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PIFF: And not only are you an actress, but you’re a model as well, right? VANESSA: I can’t do everything because I’m short, but I do a lot of print and commerical work, but I could never really be on a runway because I’m not tall enough. That’s why I’m focusing more on the acting. I use the modeling side more for networking and business opportunties. I’m not tall, man. I’m this little shortie!!
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PIFF: Do you prefer one over the other? VANESSA: I love them both. I love acting because I can be any character I want to be that I cannot be in real life. I get to walk in people’s shoes and feel their feelings, their thoughts. As far as modeling, I love doing the print work and feeling like it’s my time to shine. I love being in front of the camera.
PIFF: How long have you been doing this? VANESSA: I've been officially in the industry since 2012.
PIFF: Any advice for other women out there aspiring to make it to your level? VANESSA: It has to come from you to really want this. If you really want this, you’re gonna do whatever you can to push yourself out there and make it. And network with people.
PIFF: When did you decide to get deeper involved in the game and go into doing production? Going from being the actor to becoming the director... VANESSA: That is funny because I really needed my demo reel. We got ready to put an idea together to build on our demo reels, me and a group of actors. We met up to shoot
‘Jack’s Shed’ and none of us knew each other. We all were strangers when we got together that weekend to make that short film. But, it was actually for my demo reel and I never thought that the idea would get picked up. And that’s how I got started producing and I enjoyed it, so I went into shooting ‘Bad Director’. My next film I plan to produce is going to be about modern slavery.
PIFF: What are your goals for 2020? VANESSA: To get as many bookings as I can this year. All I need is one opportunity to prove myself. The more bookings, the better. My biggest goal is to be able to quit my job and pay my bills only through
modeling and acting. PIFF: What’s the process if someone wants to book you on a project? VANESSA: They gotta holla at P.I.F.F. Magazine and go through you guys if they wanna work with me. I’m managed by agents, not just anybody can book me, so if somebody is interested in working with me on a project, they’re gonna need to get it cleared through P.I.F.F.
peachy
peachy tea Interview By: Xavier “CompleX” Prue Photos By: JE Photos
PIFF: What’s your experience in the modeling industry and how long [have] you been pursuing this vision? [Peachy Tea]: I started modeling about a year ago in February, March.
Ok, and what was it about it that made you decide to get into modeling on a serious note? At first, I was just having fun. And then, the fun turned into: ‘I’m actually kind of good at this!’ And then it was like, ‘I’m actually kind of good at this, I already know my potential super cedes what I’m doing with it in this moment.’ For the past couple months, I’ve been going through boot camp every Sunday practicing theatrical modeling. I have a huge fashion show coming up on May 30th, a huge fashion production going down in Albany, New York at the Governor’s Convention Center.
Tell us more about the show. The designers – Slyvia Robinson and Donte Thomas – we're going to be having quite a few different designers working with us from different cities - including New York City, Atlanta – coming out and it’s gonna be all pretty much theatrics. Overall, it’s going to be a theatrical
production, it’s not gonna be your typical runway show. There’s gonna be a lot of twists and turns and attitude and flair and fire and a lot of glitz and glam – it’s going to be very well coordinated. That’s what you’re going to see. There’s not going to be any dialogue, just all choreography and modeling. We’re going to have plus sized scenes, children scenes, traditional themes, men themes – it’s going to be a creative blend. This fashion show is going to set the Capital region on fire!
We see you’ve been building up in New York. Have you reached out beyond the NY market? So far, I haven’t traveled outside of New York. Like I said, I’ve just been having a lot of fun. So, over this past year, I’ve just been doing a lot of shows. I’ve been published already in a Manhattan magazine as well as some blog placements. I put my son into children’s modeling, as well, and he’s already gaining a fast reception. He was recently just published in a newspaper and he gathered up to 200 followers in his first month of us creating his social media account.
That’s incredible... so, tell us... why is Peachy Tea the signature? It started out as “Sweet Tea”. My first love gave me the name when we was about 14, and it kind of stuck with me through the years. [As I came into the industry], I wanted to use “Sweet Tea”, but I just thought it was too bland. Because... I’m not as sweet as I once was and all the life lessons I had to learn, it just made me a little sour. And plus, I wanted to put a spin on the name and I love the South. And my complexion resembles a Georgia peach, especially when I’m in the sun because I have that yellow, orangish tone from being both Latina and Asian. And I loooovve Peach Tea. Except for that Lipton sh**. That’s nasty, but anything else Peach, I love it. So, I was like, ‘why don’t I be Peachy Tea?’ because after having my kids, I needed to find a new and different self-identify which gave me that escape from my normal life because the person I’m reinventing – which is Peachy Tea – is my current reality I’m stepping into and my future persona. So, it’s all about a stepping-stone revolution for me.
So, bring us back a little bit... where does your journey begin? I moved up to Albany when I was 7, but my father always lived in the City. I ’m from the Bronx, New York. I was born in Bronx Lebanon Hospital. Life was really tough for me... tough to me. It didn’t just start with me... something that flowed through me and that I had to get through from past generations before me. My parents’ parents weren’t from this country... they didn’t have their citizenship and everything like that officially until later on. So, it kind of changed the game for me because I’m the first woman in my family
to graduate from college. New York City... that lifestyle is... it’s a difficult life. If you can survive that life, you can pretty much survive anywhere. I remember growing up in the ‘90s, [the mentality] was like... beef one time, beef all the time. In the ‘90s, that’s how it was. They would shoot up the whole park for one person. When you grow up around that type of element, you’re going to be a little different. I don’t interact with every type of vibe and every person out there, because I mind my business. My upbringing was messed up, but I learned from it, but honestly, I wouldn’t change it because it made me very sharp and on point and the way most people are these
days is dumb as rocks. That’s deep. So, what’s one thing someone wouldn’t be able to tell about you from just looking at your profile. That I’m 100% real. I don’t sugarcoat nothing. Even if I don’t like it, I’m goin’ still tell it how it is. Even if it don’t sound good, I’m not gonna try to make it sound good. I’m just goin’ keep it 100% and stay real to what I represent.
What’s your greatest weakness in your ambitions? I tend to lose focus a lot on the bigger picture sometimes, when I’m dealing with the bigger picture and I start to pick out small issues that overall don’t mean as much as the bigger picture – it's not that serious like the whole project isn’t done off of one issue. And I think that’s my problem – is accepting failure. That’s something I have to overcome because that’s a part of being in this industry is learning how to accept failures and realizing you’re not always going to please everyone or accomplish every single goal you always set.
How do you find ways to regain your focus? When I get bored with one thing, I go to the next. A lot of people can’t multi-task and I believe that people who do have that skill can actually continue to progress without feeling blocked because maybe one avenue isn’t working. Once I done got tired of printing labels – I done printed 200 labels and I got 200 more labels to print – let me go sew this shirt together because I’m bored with this. Now, the shirt is sewn and I go back to hit print on the other 200 labels, but I’m not waiting because while those labels start printing, I’m going back to finish designing the shirt I just sowed. And then when I get bored with that and I’m halfway done with the shirt, ok, let me go and package this material – package it, put the labels on it. Now, the day is over and not only did I get my labels printed and orders packaged, I also designed a whole new shirt at the same time instead of just waiting and getting stuck on one project at a time.
If you had to sum up your biggest goal in one word, what would it be? Empowerment. This movement is empowering me to be the woman I should have always been and I’m not letting anything get in the way of that.
So, what’s your focul point with that? What helps you keep pushing forward? My kids. If it wasn’t for my kids, I would have lost my mind a long time ago, I ain’t gone front. My kids keep me sane and motivate me to make it through anything just so I can be there for them. If God takes me out before then, that’s just what it is, but I can’t give up or quit and my kids are a factor for that. And of course, God keeps me strengthened and going. Whenever I feel my spirit is under attack, I turn off the secular music and get to praying and playing gospel music and praising Him and thanking Him for every moment – good or bad – for just bringing me through it all and keeping me strong. And once I get through that, I usually come up with a new approach or a new plan to get me back to the goal in which He provided or led me down to.
Why do you feel you have to get away from the secular music? The secular music has a worldly component to it that God warns us about. That deters your mind from doing what you know is right. The only music that you listen to when you hear radio is something that He says ‘don’t do.’ Whether it’s fornication, intoxication, high on drugs, hurting people, killing people, disrespecting people. And it does sound good. It sounds great. And I'm not saying that as humans, we don’t indulge. But, when you feel your spirit under attack, you have to do spiritual maintenance and get away from those vibes because you feel it in your spirit if you’re aware. If you turn off that secular music and tune into spiritual music, it completely turns your mind around and washes out every negative vibe in your mind that you’ve been taking in from the rest of the world.
Is there anyone in the industry you look up to as a role model for your ambitions? Rhiana. She’s definitely my inspiration and with all that she’s accomplished with her own branding and recent modeling endeavors, definitely a woman with a statement. I respect her grind and hustle and seeing her make milliondollar moves just motivates me more.
What should we be on watch for this year with Peachy Tea? I got a fashion show coming up in the early summer. I also have a music video shoot coming up for one of the local designers and artists I’m working with. May 30th is my big fashion show in Albany at the Governor's Convention Center. I’m going on the Stay Focused Tour later this year with P.I.F.F. Magazine. So, we’ll see... got a lot coming up on this adventure of mine...
How do people find you or get in contact with you to work with you on things? I’m on Instagram as @sweettea5972 and my Facebook is: Peachy Tea, so definitely follow and/ or like my Facebook page. I have a modeling page called Peachy Sweet Tea. You can look me up on there, too. You can really look me up anywhere. I’m everywhere and I’m gonna be everywhere!
My kids keep me sane and
