Meet Tyanna Watts | Content Creator & Creative Director

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

Hi Tyanna, what principle do you value most?
Creativity is probably the most valuable principle to me. Well, I treat it like a life principle anyway. Being creative, the act of creation, and creativity as a concept are so important to me. Striving to be creative really has driven all of my most important life decisions from leaving jobs and living situations for space to be more innovative, or connecting myself to spaces and people so that I can be challenged creatively.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I think the easiest way to define what I do is creative is storytelling. Whether that is as a comic book creator or editor, and as a digital video creator, as a photographer, other mediums I pick up. However, it’s probably more accurate to say that I am a digital video creator, creative director, and writer. I think what sets my art apart from others is my unique artistic voice and my authenticity. I put so much of myself in my work that I think people who recognize my work can quickly identify something I’ve worked on. I’m really proud of my artistic voice and skill too! How far I’ve come, what I’m making now, and how I see myself continuously evolving is actually crazy to watch in real-time, and I’m kind of awestruck by my own ability to evolve and grow.

As far as evolution and growth are concerned, I have certainly come a long way. I started as a blogger back in 2018 making content about nerd media, otaku culture, and creatives in the blossoming content creator space that we have now. I started to gain a little traction, but I’ll say it myself, it really wasn’t anything to write home about. I’m still proud of that small page though. It connected me to so many wonderful creatives and cheerleaders and led me to freelance photography and local event coverage in my niche, which I have since expanded and still do now.

I went through a few different phases as a blogger between 2018 and 2020, but as the pandemic went into full effect in March 2020, I pivoted to digital video creation as a means of storytelling. From there I rebranded my personal brand from a blog to an entertainment media platform talking about hot news topics in the nerd space, and then to a full-blown short form creator where I cover a myriad of nerd and otaku topics from animation, sequential art, and fandom. I break it down pretty linearly but this was such a difficult path. Being creative was easy, but balancing my growing career with the reality of my often crazy life situations was not.

One of the biggest challenges I had to overcome on my pathway to where I am now was dealing with my mental health. I had always struggled with it in some capacity my whole life, but in 2022, I sought a diagnosis to see what actually was up with my brain because I was not in a good place. Turns out, I have ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), and once I had that diagnosis, started seeing a therapist, and started creating a plan to work on managing my symptoms I saw drastic improvements in my life. In addition, leaving traditional 9-5 work for contract work was a big help too. It’s definitely still been tough and I’m always working to perfect the work-life balance, but I am in a good place and I think it reflects in my work.

I will say, one of the biggest lessons I had to learn was to ask for help and tell people what’s going on in your life. It’s why I advocate so hard for people to find their people or community and connect themselves to a support system if they can. Finding my community creatively, and letting my family and peers know what I needed to feel supported as I pursued a creative career in an uncharted field was really what I needed to feel like I could do what I do now.

What I do now is create content as Blaque N’ Kulture, work with a team to conduct reviews as BN’K on Tour, and in general, work as a freelance editor, writer, and creative director. My brand and business have always been about highlighting the amazing work of black and brown folks in nerd and otaku spaces, educating people on niche topics within my community, and creating the stories I’ve always wanted to talk about my favorite IPs, fandom, or my own original works. By connecting with Blaque N’ Kulture and BN’K on Tour you’ll be stepping into the world of cartoons, comics, anime, manga, and fandom through my eyes and the eyes of my peers and I am so excited to provide that experience to everyone.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If you come down to Orlando yo have to visit arcade monsters! It’s a crazy fun 2 story arcade. If you’re looking for a sweet treat it’s a bit cliche, but you have to stop by a Twistee Treat ice cream stand. Some other dope places are Black Bird comics and cafe and The Bao Spot!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
So many people deserve recognition that I literally cannot pick one person. What I will say, is that as I work upward in my career I owe so much of my ability to do what I do and how I do it to my community and support system. That encompasses my friends, family, life partner, peers, and mentors. I don’t think I would be where I am today without my village cheering me on and supporting me!

Website: https://blaquenkulture.com

Instagram: @blaquenkulture

Twitter: @blaquenkulture

Facebook: @blaquenkulture

Youtube: @blaquenkulture

Other: Tiktok: blaquenkulture

BN’K on Tour:
Website: bnkontour.com
Instagram: @bnkontour