Today we’d like to introduce you to Keshawn Lee Kinslow.
Hi Keshawn Lee, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Me as actor is something I think that the art form specifically grabbed me by the collar and said “you’re going to do this”. I often think about me having a start at this or at least an interest at a younger age, but like they say it finds you when you need it most.
One thing I can say since I was a kid I’ve always leaned into any avenue of creative expression. I come from a family of musicians. My grandfather was a bass guitarist father was a drummer and uncle was a piano player, music was the first thing that opened my eyes. I spent my early teenage years up until now still finding my voice with music. From there I started designing clothes by meshing fabrics together on whatever I could get my hands on. Next came photography and then acting, Which I give credit to my uncle who lives vicariously through me. He sat me down week after week when I was about 19 years old and said look, your talented, got a good look, people love being around you, and you have a strong work ethic, this is something that could propel you into a whole new world. I denied it the first few times hearing, mostly cause I didn’t understand it. But he insisted and coincidentally the last time he spoke of it a director reached out personally and said “I want you for this movie” and from there my not only my opportunities grown but my love for this intimate and beautiful art of storytelling has also.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
When asked if I think it’s been a smooth road, I say “what for”.. to me a smooth road represents a path less traveled. It’s avoidant of any hardships, any growth, or humbling experiences and that builds confidence, character, new found knowledge, and relatability. That road traveled could be a scenic route at times and a construction zone also. When it’s a scenic route I think of all the pieces falling in place at the right moment. But a construction zone you have some strategizing to do, some building and figuring out to do. That’s hard work who doesn’t appreciate that. I admire dexterity. Often I struggle with placing, where, why and how I should move next. There’s nothing like wasted time and opportunity. That’s really the only thing I try to steer clear of.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m an award winning actor based in Nashville, Tennessee. I’d like to think of myself as a thespian but what I find to be a more suitable analogy for the legacy I want to leave behind is a painter. I create this invoking series of events that culminate a story of what ever is translated through emotions. What I feel is the most important about what I do is that I relate to the specific. Not every circumstance is copy and paste, cut and dry but you definitely know the feeling, so whatever plot is being told there is always a relationship between actor and audience. I don’t think anything separates me personally from any of my peers, maybe decision making when performing, but it’s all mental. I feel comfortable in what I can do in with what’s in front of me and knowing that it’s a strong choice, but even then it’s only as it relates to understanding.
What matters most to you?
What matters to me is the enjoyment of life. As it relates to acting it’s the enjoyment of life through expression. There is no right or wrong way of doing its just the spectacle of which you see things as it relates to you at whatever point of life you’re in, and for me it’s translating that through the specific. Not everything is cookie cuttered out through our life experiences but we know the feeling of which so as an actor conveying the specifics to relate to the universal matters to me.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/actkeshawn
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BBfgrqY53/
