Meet Ty | Actor & Artist

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

Hi Ty, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
As an actor, risk is my best friend-my partner in crime! Without risk there truly is no reward. Every time I move to a new city with plans and hopes of meeting the right agent, or getting cast in the next big project-that’s me taking a risk. No audition is a guarantee. Hell, even having representation as an actor doesn’t automatically guarantee you the job. Risk also shows up IN the audition room. Sometimes the project or casting directors asks for one thing and we as actors must make the decision to shake things up bit. To stand out, yes, but also to showcase who WE are as individuals. More times than not, they like that. Because at the end of the day it is YOU that they want, not some random lifeless character. So yeah, risk definitely has and will continue to play a huge role in my life.

Please tell us more about your work. We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about. How did you get to where you are today professionally. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way. What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?
I cannot simply put into words what the process of training and becoming an actor is truly like. There isn’t one phrase that epitomizes that experience. It’s so unique to the individual. My experience thus far hasn’t been easy in any way. I left home at 18yo to move to New York City fresh out of high school. In New York, I studied film and television at a conservatory that I LOVED, but they however, didn’t treat me as they did a lot of my…dare I say, lighter skinned classmates? Sorry, but a fact is a fact. One of my instructors even apologized one day for not having more “urban” material for me to use. Mind you, he never did provide me with said, “urban material”. I was sort of tossed around and forgotten about by most of my instructors. I don’t think I ever stuck out to them. But I never ever let their lack of interest in me and my work ever deter me from becoming great(er), if anything I used that as fuel, I “Gassed” myself up, and and began working harder than a lot of folks around me. Post college life was still rather difficult. While my friends at the time were signing to agents and managers and getting cast in fun, career advancing projects, I was working two restaurant jobs, barely making it, and getting rejected by every single audition I went on for at least 2 years after college. Again, that didn’t stop me! I kept going and finally went on what I call a “booking spree”. I was getting yes’s left and right. Print modeling, short films, student films; I took all the work I could get as an independent artist. Fast forward a few years and here I am now in my late-twenties living in Atlanta, Freshly signed to my first Agent/representation and auditioning for BROADWAY! I urge everyone to always bet on themselves. Even now, I’m still facing rejection as an actor because that’s part of the process, but it truly doesn’t have the profound effect on me as it once did. I know SELF way too well to let another man’s “No” be the end all be all, PLEASE! onward and upward! Like I said, I’m betting on ME, forever and always.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
This is so embarrassing for me, and I’m going to sound vey ridiculous but I still have to use GPS to get in and out of my own neighborhood…listen, I am not an Atlanta native and I came here strictly to work, so my outings have been quite minimal in the couple years I’ve lived here. I am a foodie though, so I have some recommendations for eateries but I promise you don’t want my Atlanta itinerary, you’ll end up walking in a circle and will be bored by day 3 of that week long trip. Inman park, Virginia Highlands, midtown, LITTLE FIVE POINTS, and Ponce de Leon is where I feel I’ve eaten and drank the most!colony square, Apartment 4B, sister Louisa’s, Mirko pasta, GRANA, and Beetlecat are some great spots to check out for food and drinks! They’re my favorite spots for sure!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
First and foremost, my Dad! I’m a fan of his just as much as he is a fan of mine. It’s not everyday that you see a young black father in mid 2000’s, who at the time was only in his mid-twenties, fully investing in his child’s artistry. Whether it was painting, digital design, acting, or becoming a photographer- my dad has fully supported every single artistic endeavor I’ve embarked on thus far! At 15 or 16 I had a new iMac and a brand new canon camera within the same week I told him “I think I wanna ‘do’ photography”. I still don’t know where he got it. That’s hilarious to me! That’s love! Alongside my incredibly supportive dad is of course my Mom, my Nana and my Grandaddy . Aside from blood related family is my chosen family: my best friend Yanella , Angel , and my friend Brill are seriously the most incredibly supportive friends I’ve EVER met and I thank the stars every single day for allowing me to meet them and experience them and their greatness! All of them-True pillars!

Instagram: TyRavenelOfficial