Conversations with Jaylan Sims

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jaylan Sims.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
As a small kid with overly creative ideas, I started my pre-professional journey in Chattanooga, Tennessee. At an early age, I was diagnosed with Attention hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Having ADHD became increasingly discouraging throughout my scholastic career and hindered me from properly obtaining a ‘Healthy” social life. It wasn’t until middle school that I started to use my hyperactivity tendencies to good use. Publishing my first ever YouTube video game me a ‘high’ for videography and carried that passion out until I was in high school. While in high school, I started to get involved with in-house extracurricular activities that broadened my outlook on the possible careers that I’d pursue while in college. It wasn’t until I got involved in my school’s journalism organizations and shadowed at a local news station, that I caught the ‘journalism bug.’ As I progressed throughout high school, I felt as if telling people that I wanted to be a ‘news reporter’ was generic and could be obtained by anyone. Instead, I had to shake things up by adding a travel element to my career aspirations. That’s when I decided to align my scholastic events with the role of a ‘Middle Eastern War Correspondent.’ I used the stepping stones that I pre-planned for myself in middle school to secure my first professional journalism job as a production tech at CBS affiliate WDEF News 12.

Out of all the 130 colleges that I applied to, I felt as if Vanderbilt was the perfect school for me to attend due to their student newspaper, ‘The Vanderbilt Hustler,’ rich history. Being able to gain experience in the same newsroom that once housed William Geist, Skip Bayless, and Lamar Alexander will absolutely help me flourish and gain real-world print experience before applying for jobs in the print journalism industry. I also host a show on Vandy Radio called ‘Vandy Streetz,’ and serve as the main anchor for Vanderbilt Video Production’s newest newscast.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Having a neurodivergent disability and trying to find your purpose in life can be two terrible mixtures. The bullying that I experienced from my peers in Kindergarten made my life awful. I felt as if what I was diagnosed with acted as a burden to those around me and a societal wall that made me increasingly unable to form and keep meaningful connections with those around me. However, I was ignorant not to realize that what I was going through at that moment would soon make me one of the most resilient people in my community.

Many people in Chattanooga saw my work as ‘non-important’ or referred to me as an ‘overrated’ individual. There was an extensive period within my pre-professional journey where I completely lost all motivation to carry out extra-curricular activities due to the criticism I was getting from those around me. I cannot even count how often I have been referred to as a ‘fake reporter,’ ‘a fake news propaganda peddler,’ or a ‘wannabe journalist.” It made me want to quit pursuing my passion, but my eagerness to reach my goal of living in the Middle East, and reporting on wars, wouldn’t allow me to.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Currently, I serve as a Staff Writer for The Vanderbilt Hustler. At The Hustler, I primarily am accountable for supplying my team/community with information about university modifications, announcements, initiatives, and influential on-campus events. I also cover local, state, and national occurrences, primarily ones that affect Vanderbilt students. I strive to preserve close affinities with campus authorities, including administration, student government, and other faculty and staff. Recently, I decided to pick up the Tennessee State Politics beat. I contribute to the sections of News, Multi, Podcast, opinion, and Life. I also host a radio show on VandyRadio.com called ‘Vandy Streetz’ which is the universities’ premier all-black hip-hop, trap, rap, and R&B newscast. Vandystreetz prepares Vanderbilt minorities for a night out in Nashville and creates more safe spaces that minorities are able to relate to. On top of all of this, I somehow manage to anchor Vanderbilt Video Productions’ newest news show. I excitedly started a podcast called ‘Commodore Files,’ which is an investigative journalism podcast that explores the university’s deepest conspiracy theories and allegations.

The proudest project that I have ever produced was when I filmed a documentary during my sophomore year of high school, highlighting systematic racism within America and how some cultures see African Americans as a societal threat. That documentary featured the son of Martin Luther King Jr, Greg Funderburg, and an assortment of other local leaders. I used my experience in videography to also anchor ‘RamNews,’ leading us to win our first award for best newscast. My recent opinion article for The Hustler about how I found out that ADHD was a superpower rather than poison is what I feel is my best work most recently.

So maybe we end by discussing what matters most to you and why?
I’d have to say that long-term Success matters the most to me. The ability to continue proving to those who see my work as “not good enough” feels like a high that I can’t get away from. While they aren’t necessary, I continuously strive to obtain accolades and recognition in everything I do. For over 19 years, I have been purposely preparing myself for a life of Success, and something that would completely overshadow and devastate that dream is a failure.

One quote that keeps me going during times of low creativity or peak failure is from Summer Redstone: “Success is not built on Success. It’s built on failure. It’s built on frustration. Sometimes it’s built on catastrophe.” This quote softens the meaning of failure and turns it into a good connotation. We are sometimes our worst critics, and I think that’s what also hinders some from Success.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://vanderbilthustler.com/staff_name/jaylan-sims/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jaylan_.sims/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Jaylansims03/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/sims_jaylan