We recently had the chance to connect with Yesenia Bello and have shared our conversation below.
Yesenia , we’re thrilled to have you with us today. Before we jump into your intro and the heart of the interview, let’s start with a bit of an ice breaker: Who are you learning from right now?
My grandmother and my brother! I recently decided to give up the apartment I was staying at to maybe spend some time with her and my family to heal alongside them since my mother just passed recently. My brother and her are the closest relatives I have to my late mother and the way that I’m learning to be more patient, and deal with shortcomings just watching them move forward after all of it is truly mind blowing. So grateful for my family !
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Yesenia Bello, although I commonly go by Draki! I was born and raised in Miami and come from a family of Cuban and Honduran ethnicity. Im proudly a first generation Latina even in times like these! So far at 25, I’ve had the privilege to have spent the last 5 years refining my fine arts experience and also begin my music career. Because I’ve been through so many things someone at my age isn’t necessarily familiar with, ie.. a brain tumor at 14, losing both my parents, domestic violence as a young adult etc.. I started an album and began to use my creative expression to not only help heal myself but to help others. My intention was to document the journey because I didn’t think I would still be around. With that being said I’m still here with an almost finished album. I’ve either demoed the songs myself on garage band or worked with family and friends who also create music. Everything I’ve created contains all of my happiness, my joy, my pain and the lessons that helped me become DRAKI. From my first heartbreak to losing my mother, I think these songs hold more of me than I could ever express if I were to just talk to someone about it.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
I used to think I was too much. That I talked too much and that I was too dramatic. In my mind back then, I was just too sensitive and too much of everything and needed to be less of who I was. I thought I needed to be perfect.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Yes, it was definitely life changing to say the least. At 22, I got married to someone I was friends with for years. We dated on and off but officially got together when I was 21 and had come back from New York, I had left Miami to start writing the album and ended up coming back because I was so homesick. By the time we were a few months in living together, we decided it had been time to get married and I honestly felt so much joy at first. Ive always dreamed of having a family of my own. But, all of a sudden he got violent and just started pushing me at first and yelling. Then he started leaving actual bruises on my neck, and full on choking me. I found out he was being unfaithful left and right right after. My self worth was destroyed, I never really knew what I ever did to deserve all of that from my own husband. Everyone judged me, his friends consistently blamed me for the abuse that was being inflicted upon me and I was honestly afraid for my life. Everyone saying it was my fault when I finally had the courage to ask for help definitely catapulted me into really dark times for what seemed like forever. My album didn’t even cross my mind as much because I was heartbroken and just completely devastated another human being could abuse another human being, one they claimed to love. Although he wasn’t my first heartbreak, that specific one almost broke me and if it wasn’t for my friendships, my family and most of all god, of course, I don’t even think I’d still be here. Thankfully, I managed to escape the situation quietly and heal. I had to start over in every aspect of my life, especially financially but since I was just a few months into marriage I was lucky enough to have a smooth divorce legally and continued to finish writing my album once enough time had passed. I 100 percent think I was the closest to giving up then, I just had nothing left in me.
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
That the value of a song or artist is by how much people listen, the attention they receive or how much the audience likes their music etc.. I think it’s just ridiculous. As someone who started off in fine arts, some of the most famous painters were never even famous until after they died and people started paying attention. Attention does not equate value. For me personally it’s intention, what’s in your heart. That should matter.
A pure intention, ESPECIALLY while creating songs because it is absolutely crucial when presented to a large audience. Your impact should have meaning. You can one hundred percent hear the difference when someone is singing live and they feel what they sing opposed to hearing someone who is pretending to be who they aren’t.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What do you think people will most misunderstand about your legacy?
I think what even my family and friends struggle with understanding about me is my love for theology and culture and how I’m always speaking different languages & wanting to travel to different countries and learn about their communities etc.. It’s a big part of me. I’m currently learning my 4th language. I think people might follow suit with not really comprehending why because I’m from America and have no other background culturally other than my own ethnicity but, I really do love people and I want to be able to connect with other human beings with more ease. Being able to communicate in other languages opens so many doors and I just constantly want to study and learn in general so it’s like this weird obsession with learnng I have that I just can’t shake. When it comes to theology, I’ve studied it for years. I love and find it fascinating how others perceive god around the world and throughout time. I’ve read the bible like twice I think now, studied and still study the Quran, and spent years little by little learning all about monotheism, the trinity and all types of religions. I just did it because I felt called to do that. The biggest shock I think is when people find out I converted to Islam . I’m proud to be Muslim and that I love God to my core, but I know I’m not a traditional Muslim. It tends to have a bit of a shock factor and its honestly made more than a few people start asking questions that frankly make me a little uncomfortable because I make music and that’s a bit taboo for the more religious people I’ve met.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drakiiiiiiii?igsh=azZiYWt6M2E3cmNy&utm_source=qr
- Youtube: https://youtu.be/dzWxPr-64uk?si=8T8rYUxftNqjrvr1
- Soundcloud: https://on.soundcloud.com/oRsZurBjUcEdxSstSS
Image Credits
Nuovo artistic photography did the studio shots !
