Today we’d like to introduce you to Remson Omotayo
Hi Remson, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Soireé began from a want of more queer black and brown spaces in Miami and one that wasn’t in a club. One weekend I traveled back home (New York City) during Fashion Week and was going to an Azealia Banks show. The friend that I was with, a NY based stylist was approached by a woman on the train we were riding. That woman, who was a commercial photographer recognized my friend and they began talking about fashion and her work. She then turned to me and asked “and what do you do?” I told her immediately, “I organize events for black and brown, queer and trans people.” At the time, that was a lie, I hadn’t actually done it yet only talked about wanting to do it for a few months. After that that NYC trip I came back to Miami, with my birthday approaching in a couple of weeks and decided I would use my birthday as a soft launch for this thing I wanted to create. I reached out to my friends Dorien and Akada, and two weeks later in a small gallery/cigar shop in Little Havana we launched the first Soireé, “A Libra’s Soireé.” A few months after, we welcomed our 4th member Lexx!
From there we continued to reach out to other organizers, venues and push a name for ourselves. We’ve been fortunate to have been supported and booked by talented and prominent figures in the local Miami scene.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The biggest challenge with organizing events is the funding. How to organize an event without being bankrolled by a larger entity? Many venues are largely inaccessible, even more so when you’re centering queer black people, they generally are not as invested. Sourcing funding, an accessible venue, and organizing an event while maintaining a full time role can be a lot of labor.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
What most people don’t know is I work in animal welfare. For the past 8 years I have worked in animal shelters, animal rescues, veterinary clinics, and have even deployed on missions to aid in cruelty cases.
I do this by trade and never knew loving cats would lead me into an entire career of it. As of late I’m really into working with end-of-life care, people who are dealing with putting their pet to sleep. I think I started empathizing a lot with it lately and from doing so I’ve been able to offer reassurance for people going through a tough time.
Although I work in animal welfare being surrounded by pets is a perk, I do it particularly because I like engaging with people. I believe you can’t really help pets unless you’re helping the people who want to help these animals.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I don’t see myself as a major risk taker, but in doing events I think many things are inherently risks. Who knows if the event will be successful? If the partnership will work out? If the venue will allow you to return? Each time you do an event is a risk. The only sure way to not have any risks is to not do the event at all, then what would you lose?
What I do believe is “closed mouths don’t get fed” and “you miss every opportunity you don’t take”. It’s better to do and fail rather than nothing at all. If there is a risk, assess it, what is the worse thing that can happen? Now how can you mitigate that thing, soften the blow if it does happen? That’s all you can do. I don’t believe we should move out of fear though, just because something appears risky.
Pricing:
- Book Soiree to host and help operate your event $350
- Book Soiree to produce an event for you $650
- Book Soiree to work event Door $35/hr
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://Instagram.com/soireemia
Image Credits
Photographers:
@SomeParadise
@Cristinajonthego
