Looking at Kenneth Anthony walk into the room you could feel the positive energy and keen sense of style that makes you wish you had had that sort of swagger. But beyond the obvious there is a lot more to Kenneth, who goes by Ken, than just a fly pair of JW Anderson Chucks and a nice smile. Ken is a creative. Ken is an entrepreneur. Ken is a musician. Ken is philanthropist. Ken is Charismatic. Ken is outgoing. Above all, Ken is who he wants to be. Ken has always been defining on his own who he is. Despite the pressures of the world to throw labels on any one dimensional element of his identity, he has stood up and taken action on reassuring the world that he is the keeper of his identity.
The complexity of who Ken is directly reflected in the work he does. As a Senior Media Production Manager for AT&T from 9-5, he lets no hour of the day outside of that go to creative waste. Outside of his 9-5 is a freelance videographer, a member of a band, and owns his own non-profit, and probably saving the world. Now that plethora of creative responsibilities doesn’t come without its’ cost. “My whole life is so shaky, life is not easy,” Ken says about having so much going on, “but those things are also my escape.”
Taking a break from all of these other ventures on a hot AF Saturday in Downtown Los Angeles, Ken was able to expand his resume to now include modeling. Featured in our new capsule entitled “Nobody’s Smiling”, Ken took the time to not only shoot some flicks in our latest product but drop these gems below:
YOUR STYLE IS A VOICE
“Style has always been a way to express myself in a way without saying words. People are so quick to judge a book by its cover, and with style you can literally stop that narrative with just one look. That one look can change the narrative and give them a new perspective on something. Style is everything. It’s personal confidence. It’s personal voice without having to use your words. It’s a way to identify who you are without having to verbalize it”
BE PROUD OF YOUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS
“My class ring. It’s just to remind myself of my accomplishment. A lot of people don’t get that, especially a lot of people of color. It’s a blessing and sometimes you’re the first one in your family do that shit. That class ring is just something to remind myself.”
YOUR STYLE IS KEY TO WINNING EVERY DAY
“If I’m not comfortable in what I’m wearing, I don’t think I’ll be comfortable expressing myself when talking with someone normally. I don’t want to be pulling on my neckline or like try to pull my pants up. I want everything to be right because that’s how I’m gonna go into my day. If I’m prepped; if my teeth are brushed, and my hair is straight, and my clothes are straight, I don’t have to worry about that when everything else is happening in my world. My style is all about comfort and ultimately being true to myself.”
REPRESENTATION IS POWERFUL
“Virgil is now the creative head of Louis Vuitton. For me just seeing a Black Male in that position, just the meaning and what he has done for the culture. How he is expanding it. How he has invited people of different colors to come in and be a part of streetwear. Louis Vuitton to me, I never thought I’d be like rocking Louis Vuitton. Now I have a big thing for Louis Vuitton.”
TAKE WHAT YOU ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT SERIOUS
“When young people take the time to put their energy into something Map it out, design it, come up with a layout to roll it out. Advertising. Marketing. When people take the time to do that, that shows me that person is passionate on another level. I’m passionate. I have something to work towards. I have motivation. I’m not just going easy breezy.
IT’S HUMAN TO NOT ALWAYS BE HAPPY
“People have this perception that I’m always that happy go lucky guy. I’m always gonna the life of the party. They expect me to dance on command. That’s fine all do that to a point, but I’m a human. I have feelings. I have emotions. I have ups, I have downs.”
FIND YOUR WAYS TO COPE WITH YOUR FEELINGS
“This shoot alone is how I’m coping with, I‘m dealing with my sad times. I could’ve decided to be a lone and like Aaron could’ve hit me up, and I could’ve said yeah I’m here but I don’t want to do it because of personal reasons. Self-doubt. Self-consciousness. What people will think, I’ve never met these people. Just saying yes, and having the confidence to just come out here. That is how I cope with things. Doing things you like to do to make you feel the way you want to feel.”
PRESSURE MAKES DIAMONDS, AND WE ARE ALL DIAMONDS
“I think the biggest thing when you’re in these low times, when life is not going the way you want it to, you keep pushing through regardless of the circumstances, regardless of whatever pressure is coming on you. Because all of that pressure, pressure makes diamonds baby. So your’re gonna be pushed to a point where you explode and it’s either gonna be really bad, which may not be what you want, but that low point can bring you up into a high point. You’re gonna learn from any down season in your life. Regardless if it’s about yourself, about somebody else, what you like, what you dislike, what you’re capable of dealing with, what you’re not capable of dealing with. I’m always happy for when I’m down at my lowest, because I know a mkfer is gonna come back at his highest. It’s gonna be a journey. With those journeys you can be inspired to write that song. Write that song. Design that next collection. Motivate that next person.”
TAKE THE TIME TO UNDERSTAND PEOPLE
“Try to be understanding. You don’t know what people are going through until you ask. When you meet somebody new ask them how they are doing. When Trayvon Martin got shot and I was living in the South, people were asking ‘How can I help you?’ or ‘How can I help your situation?’ I was like it’s not about helping my situation, it’s about understanding our culture and our struggle, and what we are going through.”
