We had the good fortune of connecting with Rhonda Barrymore and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Rhonda, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I was driven by my insatiable desire not only to help people but to create art. Nothing could stop me, not even when I got into trouble for using color crayons to reimagine a piece of furniture or accidentally using my baby brothers new pajama’s to create a new frock for my Barbie. My parents had a great idea and decided to paint the walls in our garage, white. That gave me plenty of space to be creative, drawing and painting, wise. By the time I was around seven years old I was drawing portraits of movie stars. When I got a little older I helped my teenage Aunt, by plucking her eyebrows.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
In 1965 I was 12, and the Beach Boys came out with a song called Help Me, Rhonda, which made me feel relevant. That was pretty important to me because I was the eldest of 6 children and my father worked out of town, while my mother was a stay at home mom. My mother had issues, most of the time, that made her angry and reclusive, so I took care of the children along with my closest sibling in age and together we tried to do our best to keep things running smoothly while our father was working out of town. We learned to cook, clean and care for others at an early age. We also went to the community library, which was an education that I chose. I read a lot of books, but the most important book that I ever read at the time was: Diary Of A Young Girl by Anne Frank. It opened my eyes to the fact that humans do not necessarily like each other or get along with each other and that I wanted to understand what was not understandable. Yet, I continued to be hopeful that all would be, Ok, for all. I am grateful to have had a lot of friends during my high school days and I still know a lot of them. I was the girl that did the artwork for our football magazine covers and decorated the entry way to our school with my art and also in our literary magazine. I got a lot of young ladies hair and makeup ready for the Homecoming game and I was crowned Queen, too. Years later, I named my styling and cosmetics company: Help Me Rhonda and I have two trademarks for it.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Well, this question is awkward. It’s been about 9 months since Covid invaded our lives and our livelihoods. I live in Midtown Atlanta overlooking the Downtown Atlanta area, just a block away. My favorite “fancy” restaurant is Nan Thai Fine Dining, but I haven’t been there, physically, since Covid. However, you can get takeout from there. You’ll love it. If you want a great barbecue go to Fat Matt’s Rib Shack on Piedmont. For vegan’s you’ll love my neighborhood restaurant called: Herban Fix Pan-Asian dishes. South City Kitchen in Midtown has a great bar, too. Piedmont Park has a Gelato Van and there is a Green Market there, as well. Right next door is another great restaurant/bar called: Park Tavern. The Flying Biscuit Cafe is another favorite of mine. There are many sights to see, as well, such as the Atlanta Botanical Gardens (they have a great restaurant, too), The Georgia Aquarium, Centennial Olympic Park, High Museum of Art, The Atlanta Beltline, The King Center, The Carter Center and Stone Mountain Trail.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My daughters are at the top of a very long list of people and organizations who helped me to do what I do now for over 40 years. And, I’m still going strong, even during a global pandemic. I want to dedicate my Shoutout to Tia Powell, the owner of Oz Publishing, Inc., who has been a wonderful mentor and friend during the great times and tough times, too.

Website: www.HelpMeRhonda.com
Instagram: rhondabarrymore and helpmerhondaInc
Linkedin: Rhonda Barrymore
Twitter: Rhonda Barrymore
Facebook: Rhonda Barrymore (Help Me Rhonda®)
Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/help-me-rhonda-salon-atlanta-3
Other: www.HelpMeRhonda.com

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