We had the good fortune of connecting with Sarena Rae and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sarena, we’d love to hear more about your end-goal, professionally.
My end goal is to live a full, intentional, and beautiful life interwoven with dreams coming true and my wildest ideas brought to life to inspire others. Professionally by the end of my career (which I hope is a long and sustainable one) I hope to have written and directed at least two award winning broadway shows, starred in movies, written a book or two, toured as a recording artist, created a non-profit for underprivelged youth to create and record music, and also modeled for major companies. I want to leave my footprints in the sand and hopefully ignite the passion to pursue a life of education and music in others. I look at my life so far and figure that I am 27 and I have a whole life ahead of me that I can continue to learn from and build on, it’s never too late and I’ll never be too old to dream big dreams and achieve great things. Ultimately, it’s a spirtitual pursuit to work a dream, thought, or an idea into reality and I plan to do so throughout my entire life and not just in my career.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
“Anything you want to last is not rushed.”

I always knew that I wanted to be a full time creative and musician and it took me working very hard to get to where I am now. I come from a single parent low income household and even though it felt as though higher education may have not been in the cards for me, my mom always made feel like anything was possible and to shoot for the stars. I remember working two jobs and being a commuter in order to attain a bachelors degree in music performance. Once I had graduated, I began performing at weddings and corporate events with a band, which was a side hustle that I wanted to turn into something full time. Later in my career (2020) I recorded and released my first original piece of work entitled Heaven and began performing a few of my orginal songs around the community. I then became the producer and booking agent for the Bluewater Kings Band, which is the Grand Rapids chapter of the International Musicians League, performing high energy cover songs for weddings and corporate events. In 2022, I produced an original educational show that celebrated black female artists throughout music history entitled Music That Raised Us. By popular demand, the show has continued to be performed and is now a staple for promoting DBEI (Diversity, Belonging, Equity, and Inclusion) in the arts, bringing awareness to the adversities and obstacles black women in the music industry overcome, and creating an atmosphere centered around the power of community. On the side, I model for companies like Carhartt, SHEFIT, Mejier, and Bissel. I love to diversify and sharpen different parts of my personality.

My journey has not been an easy one but it has been a rewarding one. Along the way there were challenges that I had to face and it was my drive and resilience that brought me to the other side of each obstacle. I also have to share that the encouragement and uplift from the people that believed in me helped to get me through the toughest of times. I’ve learned that waiting for no one is key, everything is already in me to live out my dreams and the only person ever in my way was myself. I built my own stage and stood on it and learned to create my own opportunities. The moment I realized how capable I am, was when life began to turn the direction in which I wanted it to go.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
For a week in West Michigan, I would take my friend to:

Day 1 Full day Out:

– Breakfast at Speak Easy on the NW side of Grand Rapids
– Grand Rapids Public Musuem
– Walk through Amway Grand Plaza
– Get a light lunch or snack at the Downtown Market
– Ice Skating at Rosa Parks Circle and walk around downtown
– Dinner at The Commons
– Late night comedy show at Dr. Grins
– Warm up with a late night warm drink from the Bitter End Coffee Shop (the only 24 hr coffee shop in West Michigan)

Day 2 Night Out:

– Dinner at Chez Olga for a delicious authentic Caribbean meal (order the fried plantains and slaw for appetizer)
– Catch a show at Midtown in Studio Park
– Go to Turnstiles after for late night snacks and more live music

Day 3 Day:
– Dinner at Tokyo Grill in Kentwood for great sushi and the best fried ice cream ever
– Horrocks Market Beer Garden for live music and dessert

Day 4:
– Breakfast at Lucy’s
– Robinettes Apple Haus and Winery for wine tasting, hay ride, apple cider, and donuts

Etc. Etc. Etc. 🙂

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to dedicate my shoutout to the Grand Rapids community that has continuously uplifted me with their support. I would not be able to pursue a life of music without their constant support. I am beyond grateful and feel completely blessed to live an honest life of music and creativity.

Website: https://sarenarae.com

Instagram: @sarenaraemusic

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarena-chandler-2a7a65247/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SarenaRaeMusic

Other: musicthatraisedus.com

Image Credits
Tyler Herb

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