SPEAKER_01 1:45

Hey everyone, welcome back to another episode of the Hilltop Glove Podcast. Today we have the pleasure of speaking with Ms. Jamie Drew. Jamie is a self-taught abstract artist located in Columbia, South Carolina. Her work consists of tribal patterns, effortless layers mixed together freely. She creates works of art that are chaotic and messy, pieces that flow together and represent life in its many layers. She is the owner of TGE Living Co., an online art cafe and community that offers the highest quality experience for discerning individuals seeking to indulge in the finer things in life, all while finding relaxation and inspiration. Her menu features a range of premium teas and herbal infusions, as well as unique artwork sure to inspire a conversation and provoke thought. Jamie graduated from Morgan State University in 2004 and is a former and was a former artist in residence for a community project sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts called Home Is in 2020 and 21. Thank you for joining us today. How are you? I'm great. Thanks for having me. Yes. You like your little bio? Yeah, I love it. Just hearing it. I wonder how people feel when they hear their bio. They're like, oh, that's me. That's how I feel. That's exactly it. Of course, Kevin knew about you, but this is our first time hearing about you, knowing about you. So we like to start off by starting each interview, telling our listeners a little bit more about yourself, your background. Can you tell us what was it like growing up in multiple cities and what influenced you in to be who you are today? Okay.

SPEAKER_02 3:23

So growing up in multiple cities was fun and challenging at the same time. So of course, because that's how I grew up, it heavily influenced who I am, my life, the way I see things. Because it's like I'm always traveling. I'm always experiencing something new. And not just the traveling that was fun, but just packing up and starting your life all over again. So, you know, just growing up with a military family, you're staying in a place maybe three to five years. Five years is a long time.

SPEAKER_03 4:00

Very true.

SPEAKER_02 4:00

So just moving around like that, you know, the difficult part is not being able to keep the same friends all the time. You say you're gonna write. This was before social media, okay? Write letters. Yes, in power. But you don't, you know, you're so far away and you just can't keep in touch. There was no Facebook, there was nothing like that to keep in touch with anybody. So that was the difficult part. But the fun part that I really enjoyed is like I got to reinvent myself every single place I moved. Because I was like, yes, nobody knows me. I'm leaving all the stuff I didn't like in that last city. And everything is coming with me in this new city. And you know what? When I start school, everybody runs out of new clothes the first week, but all my clothes are new because y'all ain't never seen these. That's so cool.

SPEAKER_01 4:51

At least you have a positive attitude. Wait, what's your sign? Virgo. Yeah. I be knowing it. I be attracting these energies. Don't think about it. Hey, so my dog is. We're the best. Come on. Tell us the many cities that you've been to.

SPEAKER_02 5:11

Okay. I've lived in several different cities in Maryland. I've lived in Northern Virginia, DC area. Okay. I have lived in Germany when I was a really young child, a baby. Don't remember much of that. I've lived in Missouri. Oh, wow. I have lived in New York. I've lived in New York City and upstate New York. Oh, okay. Oh, both flavors. Yes. I've also spent some time in Puerto Rico. Oh, wow. So this was more, I was more of an adult at that point. So my parents were living there. They were stationed there. But I still consider kind of one of the places I've lived just because it wasn't a visit. I wasn't on a resort.

SPEAKER_04 5:53

In Puerto Rico.

SPEAKER_02 5:54

I was in Puerto Rico. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 5:57

How old were you when you were in Puerto Rico?

SPEAKER_02 6:00

I think they were there. They were there just after I finished college. Wow. I remember that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 6:07

Yeah, they actually go out and experience Puerto Rico.

SPEAKER_02 6:09

Yes. And that was cool. Like, especially during the wintertime.

SPEAKER_04 6:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 6:14

Because everybody's hanging out. And you're like, wait, it's supposed to be cold. And people are having garage parties for Christmas. Oh, we're on the beach inside of the water during the holidays. So it was a really cool, you know, cultural experience to be experiencing these different places and these different cities. And most of the places that I went were in the United States, right? But, and of course, Puerto Rico is US territory. Right. It's crazy because you experience a different culture every single city you go to. Every single state. It's a different people, different mindset, different clothing, different stores. It's cool.

SPEAKER_01 6:56

So what actually influenced you from going from city to city? Because you're an artist now. So what kind of inspiration did you see or take in landscapes, sunsets, architecture? People.

SPEAKER_02 7:11

People, okay. I'm a people person through and through. I love people and I love talking. So I'm always in conversations with people and always trying to immerse myself in their life and who they are. So it was the food, it was the music, it was the style of dress, you know, that I'm taking away the culture of it all. You know, especially when you're doing abstract, you may be just flowing in your mind. You may be just moving to the music or just moving your hand or trying not to think about anything. That's the beauty of abstract for me, is that I'm not always thinking, oh, I'm going to paint a landscape today. It's no, I'm going to express myself and everything that I am today.

SPEAKER_01 8:01

See, me being a Virgo, I'm like a perfectionist. Listen, the last artist we talked to in Charlotte, I was like, I can't do abstract. Like, I'm such a perfectionist. It's so hard to be vulnerable. But you have found you have mastered it. The art of vulnerability and carefree flow. Yeah. So how did you get to that point?

SPEAKER_02 8:23

See, I think of a Virgo, our perfectionism, in a different way. Uh-huh. Because we want things to be perfectly our way. Yeah. And we're exacting about that. So for me, it doesn't have to be perfect as imperfect in society's eyes. But what is my perfect? Okay. What is my way? What does it have to be like for me? That makes more sense. You know? So that's the way I'm able to just put, you know, messiness or how I feel or, you know, on the board because I'm just having a good time. Yeah. And that's my goal. Now, the perfectionism part does come in like as far as like when I'm finishing the piece, because I'm like, oh, this has to go out of the door with varnish on it. Yeah. This has to look like I care. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 9:21

Yeah. Oh, yeah. That part. You know that part. Enough to wet paint to hang ahead.

SPEAKER_02 9:25

Absolutely not. Absolutely not. You know, that's why, you know, I came in here today with gifts for you all. And I'm like, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 9:34

So she's lovely back. Thank you. First, first time we've received gifts.

SPEAKER_01 9:38

Round of applause. How you did a round of applause.

SPEAKER_06 9:39

I'll forget which one that is. See, we got this board here that we're still trying to get used to. Watch this. I'm going to mess it up. No, I ain't going to do it. That's something we messing it up.

SPEAKER_01 9:48

A round of applause for Jamie Drew for bringing us some gifts.

SPEAKER_02 9:52

We'll do an ALO is a good idea. My pleasure. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 9:55

Thank you. We will definitely give you a shout out and tag you on everything. Thank you. I really appreciate that.

SPEAKER_06 10:01

You you're moving around to all of these different cities. This is something that I've been like paying attention to lately. And as every town you go to has its own little vibe and has its own little attitude and its own, I don't know, zeitgeist. You know, like the young yin consciousness of a particular town kind of thing, right? You're nodding your head, so you you know what I'm talking about. Absolutely. I'm very interested in that right now and how to interact with that and how it becomes where it comes from. What if what have you what do you know from your travels? What do you because I'm assuming this is if you're dealing with people and you're in your art, I'm assuming this is something that you've played with before.

SPEAKER_02 10:43

Yeah. We've become a lot smaller of a community now that social media is in play. See. The culture is merging with each other because we're able to look at each other on social media and mimic things that we see people all over the country doing. Whereas when I was growing up, and I'm 40 now, just for context, when I was growing up, there was none of that. So the culture was the physical place that you were in.

SPEAKER_06 11:14

Somebody had to bring a style from New York down here for us to know about it. So it took a couple years.

SPEAKER_02 11:20

It was slower. Exactly. But really, that still highlights the point that people are still people. And at the core, they still care about the same things. You know, their lifestyle or their bills, their health, their family, what's going on with them. So even if you are different from that particular culture or coming into that particular culture, just being yourself and finding a connection in any way you can, it's just so important. Finding what is the same about you that you can connect with somebody on. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 12:06

And I have a question. Just based on your uh your travels and going from location to location, especially as a child of military parents, have you ever felt the need? And this based on being a creative as well, dealing with your art abstract art, do you ever feel the need to fit in? Always. How do you manage that and be creative? Because we were talking about this before you got here.

SPEAKER_06 12:30

Fresh off a trip to Disney. Yes. And I don't know. I have opinions about everything. Yes. And some of them were considered radical in a modern capitalist society. But there definitely is a culture of I don't know, the cult of the mouse or whatever.

SPEAKER_04 12:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 12:47

And uh I don't know. It's just interesting to see it so palpable. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 12:53

I know this man, right? I knew it was gonna be weird. I was like, I could ask him how this was when he went to Disney. Because he really does, like you said, very opinionated. We have certain things that we've learned from growing up and etc. That when you are put into certain environments, you may feel like an outsider just based on opinions alone, not how you look, dress, or perceived by people, but what's in your head. So as an artist, I always like to ask folks, how do you maintain your creativity, and especially you doing abstract art, how do you maintain that idea of being radically weird and but still fit in? Because we're still social beings. We want to fit in.

SPEAKER_02 13:31

Yeah. I had to grow into that because starting all over at a different school every time, I was trying to fit in. And I was trying to prove myself a lot. And over time, when I'm going from city to city and reinventing myself, I'm just realizing, okay, these are the pieces of who I am. And also, like growing up in school, I did like some acting. Like, I'm a true creative, okay? I've done photography. All parts of the art. I've been dancing. Okay. Everything, all the arts. But you just realize it's okay to be different in different places. We all are. And you don't have to be like, oh, and to be me, I have to be this way all the time, or it's not authentic. No, every piece of you is authentic. And it's okay to know your audience. And adapt. Yes, and adapt to your audience and be you within that environment for whatever that environment calls for. So I don't feel like I'm being less of myself if I have to go somewhere and be more professional. I don't feel like if I'm being less of myself, you know, if I can't let my hair down the way I want to in a certain place. I'm still me within that particular bubble.

SPEAKER_04 14:57

And it doesn't feel like selling out.

SPEAKER_02 14:59

Absolutely not.

SPEAKER_04 15:01

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 15:01

Absolutely not. And especially the way.

SPEAKER_06 15:05

Maybe LARPing a little bit.

SPEAKER_02 15:06

What is what is that?

SPEAKER_06 15:07

Live action role play? Yeah, the kids put on the wizard costumes and go in and fight.

SPEAKER_02 15:12

Oh, but hold on a lot. LARPing, though. We're all in this video game.

SPEAKER_06 15:20

Convince y'all that I'm responsible enough not to piss away your money. There you go.

SPEAKER_02 15:25

Because I'm not gonna be. Say I came here talking to you guys the way I do when I'm laying down in the bed. Come on now.

SPEAKER_04 15:33

Hey, we used to do that now.

SPEAKER_01 15:37

That's how I mean recording the podcast season one and two. They would be like, Tamai, are you in the bed? I'd be like, no, I got a whole setup. Like sitting on top of my yoga blog. The mic on top of my yoga blog. It's a setup.

SPEAKER_05 15:52

It is a setup. And it's a whole setup. Oh my goodness.

SPEAKER_04 15:55

No, but that's something, especially as like when we're trying to, this is funny with our podcast, like learning how to adult, right? You're doing these things from adolescent age until your early adult age. And then you're trying to say, okay, so how do I transition this? Because I really want to be considered like a real adult. I want people to take me seriously. I don't want them to hear my words and discount them because of my age or perceived, ah, what's the word, ignorance of what's going on?

SPEAKER_06 16:19

Because I ain't put my white voice on today. See? Yeah. I know I've always been this too. Yeah. Yeah, think about it for a second.

unknown 16:27

Yes.

SPEAKER_05 16:27

You gotta put your white voice on, Mike. I'll be trying to tell Mike with you.

SPEAKER_06 16:33

Well, because it's not really a white voice. It's a whatever the the homogenized dominant culture is. And that that is a certain thing in South Carolina. It's a certain thing in Florida, it's a certain thing in New York. And and somewhere in there is like the imperialist one from way the hell back that goes back to Rome. And that one is the one that doesn't want you stepping out of line and causing no trouble and whatever the hell. So you you gotta, when you put that tie on, you're saying I'm not gonna cause no waves. Sometimes you gotta do that.

SPEAKER_04 17:05

Yeah. And then and especially even when you're a as a business owner, that has to be something that crosses your mind. Yeah as a business owner. Like, how do I maintain professionalism without losing my soul? You know, because the soul is what that's what's in this bag.

SPEAKER_05 17:22

You know what I mean? Yes.

SPEAKER_06 17:23

And that's what you want to do. Let me just describe this to you all. There's a there's a a nice airtight pouch of tea inside of here to keep it all say it again. That's right. Keep it all all nice and at the proper humidity level. But then there's also a metal tin. But the tea's not in a tin because if you put it in there now, it'd mess it up. Boom. But once you open it, you gotta put it in a tin. And then there's these little reusable pouches. Is that is that what these are?

SPEAKER_02 17:46

Yeah, inside of I I put tea bags inside of a tea bag. Yeah, there we go.

SPEAKER_04 17:51

I thought that was dumb.

SPEAKER_02 17:52

No, everybody doesn't have the infusers, the metal infusers. So I put bags inside just in case people are new to loose leaf tea.

SPEAKER_06 18:00

So yeah, it's it's a little very like thought-out, concise little tea gift. If you don't have anything but water, this would do it. You could probably drink out of a little tin if you had tea. But yeah.

SPEAKER_02 18:12

Yeah, because I care. I actually care. That's what it is.

SPEAKER_04 18:17

And that has nothing to do with like creativity being weird or anything like that. It is a literal process creation thing of I'm gonna keep things in a very controlled way because I want to deliver a good experience. And so moving on to having no rules and creating abstract art, it consists of a level of vulnerability that takes time to master where you have to literally open yourself up and show people that you are now a weirdo.

SPEAKER_02 18:42

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 18:43

And it's hard. Yeah. I even I don't even speak the way that I normally speak when I'm out in public because I know to do so it would take, it would take power away from my words in some some instances. So to see somebody that does, especially that does uh abstract art, man, and to do it at a high level, it takes a a certain amount of how would you put it? The it's the easiest way to say it. It it takes bravery. You have to be brave, it takes courage to do so. Yeah. How how do you keep your no-rules boundary to do your art, but then conform to society's depictions of reality?

SPEAKER_02 19:19

I got speaking of bravery, right? I got that from my family, the way I grew up. We're a military family.

SPEAKER_03 19:26

True.

SPEAKER_02 19:27

We have to move every few years. We gotta pack up. Oh, you know, we gotta change our clothing. Yeah, you know, in Puerto Rico, you don't need a coat. Good point. In upstate New York, there's snow mounds in June. Okay. You purged. So I'm a warrior. Yes, I'm a warrior. I can get through anything, I can do anything, you know, and just knowing that and moving from those environments and seeing what you are able to do, and just knowing what my dad has done, going to two wars, going to the Persian Gulf and going to Baghdad, and knowing what both. Knowing the strength that he had to have, knowing the strength that my mother had to have to be home to deal with that sort of thing, you know, be on the phone with him, and he would all of a sudden hang up and be like, I gotta go, you know, and then you don't hear from him for three days. Or though those types of things, being a military family just takes incredible strength. And, you know, I just as time went on, as I grew up, as I raised my son, who's 17 now, I started to realize the strength that I hold in that nothing matters besides what's important to me. You know, we all get advice from people and give advice to people, and everybody ends up doing their own thing anyway. So what are the rules for? Rules are just something a collective group of people came up and said, hmm, okay, this is you that's good, but you're not gonna do that. Dot dot dot. People agree on this.

SPEAKER_06 21:04

Let's not rock the boat too much because you're gonna kill me if you know that's what it is.

SPEAKER_02 21:09

Yeah. So why can't we decide that these are our rules? You know, and my rules change with my environment, with my age. I don't care. They should. And I'm okay with that.

SPEAKER_06 21:19

Like we shouldn't constrain ourselves into, you know, don't don't fuck people over, kind of thing. You know, how you yourself should be able to change how you feel on the mood because I'm not the same person each day.

SPEAKER_01 21:29

Nowhere. No, exactly. Now you're the only child.

SPEAKER_04 21:33

I was. Oh, oh. Say that with some some resentment, anger.

SPEAKER_02 21:40

I was, but where'd the other one come? Dot dot cave. No, no, no, no. For 11 years, I was the only child, right? And then my sister came along. My dad is actually my stepdad. He raised me, so I call that's my dad. Yeah. But after him and my mom got married and got together and everything, then they had my sister when I was like 11. So it was still almost like being the only child because when you're 11 years apart from somebody, you still don't have to share. Yeah. So yes, I got a lot of attention from mommy and hugs and love and everything. I still have some only child mindset.

SPEAKER_01 22:14

So wait, why'd you ask me that? Hold on. I was just curious because like we were talking about your family. So I'm like, I wonder if she's an only child, middle child, you know.

SPEAKER_02 22:22

I am the eldest child. Okay. Yes. I actually have four sisters. All together. Okay. I'm the eldest of five. Yes.

SPEAKER_04 22:32

Because whoa, whoa, what's the age range just looking like on this? How do you do this?

SPEAKER_02 22:36

40 and it goes all the way down to 20. Okay. Oh, Jesus. Yes. My biological father, you know, have his, you know, other wines that he had after him and my mother divorced and other children from, you know, his other marriages. And then, you know, my mother and my stepfather getting together, and my stepfather having a child, a daughter, ironically, before they got together, and then making my sister.

SPEAKER_04 23:02

So you're team captain.

SPEAKER_02 23:04

I am team captain.

SPEAKER_04 23:06

I could tell it. I could tell it in a way. Yeah. That's my team captain. Yeah, you do.

SPEAKER_01 23:10

Team Captain Leadership. Yeah. So let's talk about your brand, TGE Living Co. Tell us a little bit more about that. And how did you decide to actually brand yourself and how did you come up with the name?

SPEAKER_02 23:22

Okay, so I came up with the name TGE Living Co. because when I first started my business, it used to be called the girlfriend experience. And that is still the name of my LLC. And the reason I did that is because, you know, over the years of growing up in different places and also having a career housing people, I got to know. Know a lot of things about humanity.

SPEAKER_01 23:48

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SPEAKER_04 23:51

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SPEAKER_06 24:05

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SPEAKER_00 24:14

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SPEAKER_02 24:34

And so people would always ask me, How do you do this? And how do you do that? You know? And so I wanted to teach them, but like in a non-clinical way. You know, like in a hair-down way. I wanted to be like, girl, this is how you do things. You're chatting it up. Exactly. Okay. So that's why it was the girlfriend experience. And plus I love the name was cheeky. It was like, wait a minute, what's that? That's not the girlfriend experience.

SPEAKER_01 25:00

That's why I was kind of like when I saw the name, I was like, I never heard of that.

SPEAKER_04 25:05

I was like, is this safe to talk about in the middle of the day?

SPEAKER_01 25:09

See what I'm saying? So that's why I checked it. It's like a you you don't know what you're gonna get type of thing. Yeah. So what made you rebrand to the TGE Living in Co.

SPEAKER_02 25:19

I wanted to expand upon, you know, just the girlfriend experience because that title, it just took a lot of explaining, you know, because the girlfriend experience was really the style and the manner in which I was giving people information. The presentation. Exactly.

SPEAKER_06 25:38

When you say optimizing their life, like what what what kind of things are you doing? What do you teach it? I'm big on wellness.

SPEAKER_02 25:45

Huge well-name and folding finished sheets a big one.

SPEAKER_06 25:47

Don't laughing at.

SPEAKER_02 25:48

Wait, folding finished sheets.

SPEAKER_06 25:50

Yeah, folding finished sheets is a big one.

SPEAKER_02 25:52

No, I brought those up in a bowl. That's life optimization, not folding the fitting sheets. Okay. No.

SPEAKER_06 25:58

Now my mom was a maid. I I can fold a finished sheet. You can fold a finished seat now.

SPEAKER_02 26:03

You're gonna have to teach me that one.

SPEAKER_06 26:05

Nope. You just you just gotta go for where the seam corner is instead of where the you just go back and then you just let it fold it on.

SPEAKER_04 26:11

I've watched six videos on YouTube. You just you just ignore the ruffle and you grab it at the seam. Folding, yep. I've tried to know that fake.

SPEAKER_02 26:18

I've tried.

SPEAKER_06 26:19

Anyway, go ahead, mommy. What you actually do.

SPEAKER_02 26:22

Okay, so the life optimization. I always considered myself, even when I when it was branded as the girlfriend experience, is as a lifestyle consultant. Okay. So it's like, I'm telling you how to live your life better by doing these things that I've learned over the years. Okay, cool. Yes.

SPEAKER_04 26:40

All right. Like the show, like the show girlfriends, they give each other.

SPEAKER_02 26:45

Yeah, it's pretty raw. And you know, when you're in a more professional and clinical environment, you have to sugarcoat things and dance around things. Right. And you can't say things that hurt people's feelings. But I want it to be like, girl, you want me to tell you the truth, or you want the nice answer?

SPEAKER_06 27:01

Very, very Virgo experience.

SPEAKER_04 27:03

Virgo experience. Very Virgo experience.

SPEAKER_05 27:07

It's great. Y'all Virgo's scared me.

SPEAKER_02 27:09

You want my answer, or you know what somebody else's answer?

SPEAKER_01 27:13

Okay, you're gonna get it blunt. Blunt again.

SPEAKER_06 27:16

I don't have time, brothers. Let's get to it. Going to it.

SPEAKER_01 27:19

Now, is this community strictly for women or men included?

SPEAKER_02 27:23

It's not. You know what? At some points I felt like it was. Because you know how when you're starting business, they're like, who is your avatar, your client avatar? Who is the person that you're talking to? And I was like, I'm probably talking to myself, you know, like my former self or my yesterday self. Yeah. So yeah, she's a woman. But I realized that a lot of guys are into the stuff that I'm saying and into my art and everything. And we want to be Yes, exactly.

SPEAKER_04 27:51

I don't want to be sickly and dead.

SPEAKER_05 27:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 27:55

So why would you? So now it's kind of like I feel like the person who is into what I'm into is healthy, artsy, earthy. Mm-hmm. Crunchy.

SPEAKER_04 28:06

What is crunchy? Granola.

SPEAKER_02 28:08

Yeah. You make the earthy method. That's healthy and earthy together.

SPEAKER_04 28:13

Do we gotta wear burger socks?

SPEAKER_02 28:15

No, you don't. Only if you want to.

SPEAKER_04 28:17

Shawls, optional.

SPEAKER_02 28:19

You know, you gotta have something flowing. Something flowing. You have to be the god divine within on the outside. I love it. A little floppy in the weather. Extra. We're extra. Okay, I know I'm extra, and I'm embracing that now. So you have to be a little bit extra to be a part of my tribe. Those are all my madmen sensibilities. Oh, absolutely. Are you talking about like that Netflix show?

SPEAKER_04 28:52

I'm asking these questions to be a problem child right now. I'm devil's advocate. You don't follow me up, right now.

SPEAKER_01 28:56

Can I follow him up? You see how I look at it.

SPEAKER_04 28:59

But I ask that because especially for for folks outside of the community that you're expl expressing, they are there's a certain amount of trepidation and fear attached to going down that road. For some people, I had somebody tell me this, and this is hilarious. I have a conversation about yoga. And this person said, no, you can't do yoga. That's the stuff of the devil. And I was like, good Lord, who told you that?

SPEAKER_06 29:26

My grandma. Look, I tell you, there are there are certain versions, there are certain versions of how you look at things in which you can't consider anything other than one particular set. Yes. And path.

SPEAKER_02 29:40

And you just can't worry about those people that aren't vibing with you. You just can't.

SPEAKER_06 29:51

Let's just talk about that. Proper yoga is summoning demons. That is not what that is.

SPEAKER_01 29:55

I don't be worshiping all these deities and gods. I'm within myself. You know, I'm praying to myself, breath work within myself, noticing my surroundings.

SPEAKER_04 30:05

And you're using that practice for bettering yourself. Yeah. That's what people don't realize. They don't, you don't have to like that other stuff, that's on that's something else. Well over there.

SPEAKER_01 30:14

But we're in the matrix.

SPEAKER_06 30:15

Yeah. Europe has spent several thousand years, too, in fact, figuring out how to not let people hold on to the idea of this dude named Jesus and Nazareth without doing it in a very controlled and concise way. Exactly. Basically, you can only do it in this ma fashion. Otherwise, it would be chaos, it would be bedlam, and we couldn't control you all because you'd all have your own ideas about it. Yoga has always been you all have your own ideas about it. And you don't control that shit at all because if you do, you have now not been on the yoga path. Yes, a lot of people do think that. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_04 30:51

Do you have traditional religious ideas?

SPEAKER_02 30:54

I don't. I don't subscribe to any religion whatsoever because I feel like that puts me in a box. Exactly. So I want to pick out the pieces that I like. So I'm gonna take a little of this and a little of that and mix it out again. I'm gonna make a blend.

SPEAKER_01 31:09

I'm gonna make a blend. So tell me, like, what is I really want to know your art process. So, like from conception to completion, how does that work? Because I was watching your video on Facebook, how you do everything. I want to know. First, I have to feel good.

SPEAKER_02 31:28

I cannot paint if I'm like exhausted or I'm not in a good mood. I have to be like, yeah, today is a great day, you know? Let's paint. So sometimes that involves like some herbal motivation, you know. Go ahead, girl. And so I may have to, you know, sip some herbal honey infused tea.

SPEAKER_04 31:56

Go ahead, promote.

SPEAKER_02 31:58

I do. I use I use the herbal honey and I put like a spoonful in my tea and stir. Or, you know, whatever it is that gets me in the mute mood. And then, like, y'all, I'm really at home like trying to romanticize my life. I pull up the blinds, I'm like, yeah, the natural light. And then I'm worried. I'm lighting a candle. Yeah. And then I'll turn on the music. Go ahead. And I really like like acid jazz. Oh, stop playing. Seriously. Yes. Or like lo-fi, but not the elevatory-y lo-fi, like the the heavier sounding lo-fi. Yeah. Oh, or some Erica Badu stuff. Okay. Yeah. Or Chris Brown.

SPEAKER_05 32:41

That was a left turn I did not see coming.

SPEAKER_01 32:45

You know, I didn't know.

SPEAKER_05 32:45

Breezy just hits you in a certain place. Look, you know. I like something.

SPEAKER_02 32:49

I mean, he has so many songs to choose from. Exactly. So now that I'm feeling all good about myself, then I just start painting. And I when I first started painting, I started watching other artists and their processes. And there's this lady that I watch on YouTube named Betty Franks. And she scribbles all over her canvas before she gets started. Yeah, I saw that. Loosen herself up. And I love doing that. What do you scribble with?

SPEAKER_01 33:17

China markers, colored pencils. Yeah, I saw the different dimensions of the pens that you were using. Yeah. It's almost like chalk size. So it could be thick, skinny, whatever.

SPEAKER_03 33:29

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 33:29

And you're just loosening up the wrist, not caring. Like I was teaching someone like how to do abstract one time. And then I looked at their art and I was like, you care too much. Yeah. Have another drink. Yeah. You know, you know what I'm saying? Like you tell how rough they are. They're just like trying. Make a straight line. No. Just wiggle it. Wiggle it. Sometimes I don't even look at the board.

SPEAKER_04 33:55

I'm just like, they were talking, they were discussing this as well before you came today. Like, how does she do that?

SPEAKER_02 34:00

Yeah. How does she like, can I figure out how to do that?

SPEAKER_04 34:03

It's how like you're you're jazzing. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 34:06

Exactly. I'm being on the board.

SPEAKER_06 34:10

Make the energetic space verse. Exactly. You do that, that work. And then are you are you just free forming everything after that point? Or are there like like things that you're wrestling with? Like you you take you have a topic that you're dealing with right now and you're wrestling with it and then you're intentionally trying to get that out.

SPEAKER_02 34:31

It depends. Like it depends on the day, it depends on the moment, right? So sometimes I'm watching something on TV and I'm just being distracted. That's one of my I love to be distracted because I don't want to overthink the art. Yeah. So sometimes a word from the podcast or the show that I'm working on ends up in that because it sticks in my brain, and I'm like, oh yeah, I like what that says, you know. So you're intentionally in each moment. Yeah, I'm I'm just like pulling from I don't whatever, whatever is going on in my brain. That's pretty cool.

SPEAKER_06 35:07

It's interesting too, because like the times that I've been able to pull off abstract, and I'm not talking about for anybody else's consumption, but when I felt good making something, it was always, it was, it was like a state of mind that you get to, that you're a conduit, a channel, or whatever. You know, yeah, it is for me. It was very much like getting almost like a trance kind of thing where it's going and you're sitting there watching it like, I can't believe this is what's happening. You know, I'm I'm paying stars, like just flicking.

SPEAKER_01 35:36

That works. All right, let's keep going. Exactly. It's like you get overwhelmed in the moment. It's kind of like like yoga because you you have to be vulnerable to be doing more yoga and meditation. You have to be deeply moving at the same time.

SPEAKER_03 35:48

Yeah, that's pretty much.

SPEAKER_02 35:49

And sometimes I'll look at something, like sometimes I'll have a reference photo or a vibe that I'm trying to get or colors I want to use or something. But usually when I'm using something referenced, I try to mess it up a little bit. And it's crazy that I'm a Virgo because I don't want it to be perfect. I really don't want the art to look perfect.

SPEAKER_01 36:10

But you you establish that you have your own type of perfection, it's your idea, and that's society's. See, with me, I'm thinking more of society. What was society like? What was who would they? How would they like this? Will they buy this? That's why I hate this commission. Yes. Girl, I I that's why I don't be doing graphic design because people just want everything to be perfect.

SPEAKER_02 36:32

I'm telling you, if I if I start doing commissions again, I would have to say, listen, when it's done, it's done. I don't know when it's gonna be done. And don't don't give me any specifics. I'm just gonna do it. You like my work? Just know that you like my work and you're gonna like it in the end. Because I feel that pressure, like, oh, are they gonna like this? And it takes me like months to work on stuff. So I'd rather just do the art up front and feel a certain way and then see if you like it at the end. And if you do, great. And if not, then it's hanging up on my walls.

SPEAKER_01 37:08

Do you do any live art shows or live painting? I'm sorry. I've done live painting. Okay. I perform art.

SPEAKER_02 37:17

Not I've done like one, right? Where there was like a jazz band performing and I was just painting, but I felt the pressure that day too. Yeah. Because I was like, oh no, I'm not gonna finish. Yeah. I'm not gonna finish by the time the music is done.

SPEAKER_06 37:33

And I did end up finishing it later, but it seems like it'd be hard to put yourself in such a like an intimate space with a whole bunch of people around who are also like actively watching music.

SPEAKER_02 37:43

Right, yes, and coming up asking you questions while you're doing it.

SPEAKER_04 37:47

Because then and you don't have time to create your space to create the ambiance, your environment. Yeah. Like you want to go in there and burn some incense, you want to go in there, say a couple chants, rub on the bowl, make some sounds, and then get to work. People be looking at you like, what if you really had that opportunity though, to actually do something like that with you?

SPEAKER_02 38:04

You wanted to create that space. I would do it. I would still do it. Like, even with people around, because I'm not afraid of people because I, you know, I'm a people person. I love being around people. I just have to, in my mind, be like, forget them. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 38:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 38:16

I I'm sorry to say, but I have to minimize the people around me and and elevate my own importance to not be overly concerned with what they're thinking about me in the moment.

SPEAKER_01 38:27

That's that would take some. A meditation person just levitating for some reason when you said that. Yeah, because you just have to be okay with them being like, what is she doing right now?

SPEAKER_02 38:37

And just be like, oh, yeah, I'm doing that.

SPEAKER_04 38:39

And you can't worry about the judgment. I have a question for you. I've seen certain performance art done by abstract artists where they just videotape them performing it. You're welcome to come and look at it, but they ain't paying you any mind. And they record it so that you can see the process of them creating their space, getting ready to do the art, and then performing the art. You can consume it that way, or you can come out and you can look at it. But either way, you do not disturb the artists. Is that something that you'd be interested in doing?

SPEAKER_02 39:07

Absolutely. Because he because you get distracted. I even I've been doing like certain meditation practices before, or you know, doing something with my altar, and then I'll hear my son's footsteps, and then I'll be like, oh my gosh, he's looking at me. I wonder what he thinks about what I'm doing right now. Yeah. Should I stop? This is not my own space anymore. You know, like all of that. I can hear him. Is he looking at me? Did he walk away yet? Should I open my eyes?

SPEAKER_05 39:43

No, that's that's funny. I like hearing it.

SPEAKER_02 39:46

So it's difficult, but I would do it because I'm challenging myself more and more. That, you know, that's one of my fears and is uh how I'm being perceived. So I recently did something where I burned all those up, and I'm working on doing more and more things that I'm afraid of because I know that's where that's where the good stuff is. Yeah. Behind the fear. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 40:11

Real talk. Shadow work.

SPEAKER_01 40:14

So what does your everyday life look like as an artist?

SPEAKER_02 40:19

Okay, so it looks different now than it's gonna look in a couple of weeks because I just gave notice to my J-O-B. Okay, yeah, I am leaving and I am going full-time in my business. Yes. Okay, great. So thank you. I'm so excited for that. Oh my gosh, yes. Freedom, autonomy. I can say things that I wouldn't say before. I can be like, oh my gosh, it's my lunch break. Are they gonna think I'm working since I'm recording on my lunch break? You know, all of that can go. You know, while I've been actually working for other people, it has looked like me squeezing in what my needs are for the lifestyle that I'm trying to create for myself and for the example that I'm trying to set for my son, you know, just squeezing it in when I can between exhaustion and doing things for other people.

SPEAKER_01 41:15

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 41:16

It's going to look like me doing that process, you know, more often and connecting with more people and just really going out into the community and building my tribe and and seeing who's interested in what I have going on. Yeah, yeah. You're gonna have the time. Exactly. Yes.

SPEAKER_04 41:40

You're gonna have the time. You're no longer gonna feel as if you're um serving two masters and you won't feel as if you're wasting it either. Yeah. Because you'll be exactly where you're supposed to be at.

SPEAKER_02 41:50

Yes. I cannot wait. I'm just so excited. Happy for you. And like on the cusp of a life change.

SPEAKER_05 41:57

I can tell in your energy, I can tell how you're speaking right now. Like the excitement is real.

SPEAKER_01 42:01

Yes.

SPEAKER_05 42:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 42:02

What current projects are you working on?

SPEAKER_02 42:05

I'm I'm working on me rediscovering who I am outside of working Jamie. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 42:14

Who is working Jamie, first of all? We never even asked you what working Jamie was.

SPEAKER_02 42:18

Feel bad. She exists in the past only. Okay. Where was Working Jamie working at? Working Jamie was working to house people. Oh, you were doing that work that you were working with. Yes, the nonprofit, the social work work. Oh, yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 42:36

We know that job. Yep.

SPEAKER_02 42:39

Yes. So that was that was past life Jamie.

SPEAKER_04 42:42

Understood. Understood. Now I get it. All right. It makes sense.

SPEAKER_02 42:45

So yeah, New Jamie is a whole new vibe. Learning myself, expanding my business, doing workshops. I have an artist talk coming up at a location, local location called Fenby Columbia. They're a co-working space. You know them. And I'm doing an artist crawl. So I'm going to be on a map. People are going to be able to come to my studio and vibe with me, sip some tea. Come by. So I'm doing that and just working on showing people how wellness and being healthy and being mindful doesn't have to be a chore.

SPEAKER_03 43:22

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 43:23

And how you can really envelop yourself in the wellness by being creative and by drinking tea, you know, and just having beautiful things around you that that don't make it seem like something that's boring.

SPEAKER_01 43:38

You're right. Good vibes only. Yeah. Okay. So where can people find you on social media and check out your work and buy your work? Yes.

SPEAKER_02 43:46

They can go to tgeeliving.com. That's my website. And if you scroll all the way to the bottom, all my socials are linked there. So I am on TikTok. I am on Facebook. I am on Instagram. Snapchat. You know what? I'm not on Snapchat. You know what? My son's 17.

SPEAKER_01 44:08

It's just, am I supposed to be there? The younger, the younger people are on Snapchat still. I could be there.

SPEAKER_04 44:15

It's a great tool to expand your horizons. Okay. It's a great tool to expand your horizons. I will program myself.

SPEAKER_01 44:25

I'm going to work on that. Everything I put on each social, I put on Snapchat. Okay. Just transfer it all onto one same thing. And then just build your following still on that too. I'll start doing that. Because you know, Snapchat only lasts 24 hours. So yeah. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 44:39

That works for me. You know TikTok? You said TikTok all the time. Yes, TikTok. I do all the socials pretty much. Just about. You know, I dance, but I don't do all the dance. Some of them are complex now. Yeah, they are. I I want them to see my movement with the brush. Yeah, I feel it. This was a great episode. Thank you. Thank y'all for having me and being so real.

SPEAKER_05 45:08

We try.

SPEAKER_06 45:09

Exactly.

SPEAKER_05 45:09

Say it.

SPEAKER_06 45:10

Yeah, yeah, we try. Yeah, we try. Yeah, we try. Plus, here's the cool thing. Take off all the masks every now and then. Yeah. We just happen to do it on the internet so that everybody who gives a shit could actually find out what we look like in Damass son.

SPEAKER_04 45:22

And we've learned from doing this that once you find people who are in your tribe, it makes it very easy to communicate and speak with them and to express yourself and also spread your words. That's what we like to do. We hope that you enjoy speaking with us today. We enjoyed having you, and you're a great guest. We appreciate your gifts. Again, thank you so much from the Hilltop Glove podcast. We want to thank our audience for listening. We want to thank our guests, of course, for joining us today. We appreciate you so much, Ms. Shamie. We want to thank Ms. Tamaya Helen and Mike over here on the mic. We also have Skip hanging out over here on the side on the laptop handling business, taking photos. And my skip.

SPEAKER_06 46:02

Stop quiet because he does all the real work.

SPEAKER_03 46:05

Jesus Skip.

SPEAKER_06 46:08

Nah, man. I'm just giving you a shout. We have to. We got to bother him.

SPEAKER_01 46:12

Oh, yeah. Shout out to the Edgewood Michigan Library for hosting our location today. Yes. We always can love being in a location where it's free space, clean space, and a good environment.

SPEAKER_04 46:24

In safe space. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 46:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 46:28

Oh gosh. Like a month. It's been a month since we've been back here. Yeah. So you're our first episode back home.

SPEAKER_03 46:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 46:36

I was happy not to have to go anywhere out of town this weekend, which is cool. But we will be back on the road again.

SPEAKER_01 46:42

Thank you guys for tuning in, and we'll talk to you soon.

SPEAKER_04 46:45

Peace.