Today we’d like to introduce you to Desanti Carden.
Desanti, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
All of my childhood, I thought I would always pursue music, I took vocal lessons, I taught myself guitar, I was several indie punk bands with my friends. When I started learning about the business side of music, I developed an interest in festivals, and the idea of an event where there are booths, clothing brands, stages, meet and greets, interviews, and people, the whole experience was fascinating to me. I wanted to be a part of it as soon as I could, and playing a festival as a performer was not exactly the easiest thing to do – so I created a street-wear brand when I was 15 so that I could have a booth at music festivals and shows.
I taught myself how to screenprint garments, graphic design, and I ordered custom items for the tent and I started with being a vendor at the 2015 Vans Warped Tour. From then on, I was a vendor with my brand “Liberate Co.” at several music shows and other festivals. After this, at the age of 17, I was hired as a screen printer at OMG I Print Shirts, where I learned to properly screen print and graphic design. Other minuscule brands were created from then on. Still, then I realized it was not the t-shirt industry that I was interested in, but creating concepts and executing them without having any of the proper tools, “Figuring it out.”
Owning a clothing brand pushed me to experiment with social media marketing back in 2013, learning algorithms, content creation, video editing, business, and modeling, which have all immensely contributed to any project that I pursue now.
Other than music, and screen printing t-shirts, I also enjoyed dancing, I was in several dance teams and studios before I found my dance home at Soundbox Studios. I would drive an hour every day to rehearsal and figured out a way to fit everything into my schedule, all while finishing high school. I co-founded what quickly became Houston’s number one podcast and several months later withdrew for personal reasons. I ended up not going to college. I figured out ways to make an income online so that I could pursue anything creative I wanted to do.
Has it been a smooth road?
The hardest part was that everything I created was from scratch, and not only did I not have any formal resources, but I also had to feed myself and pay bills. You definitely learn a lot about what truly matters. As a minimalist, I am able to survive with very little and it has allowed me to not perceive what the average person would describe as an “obstacle” as anything major.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
I never had any investors or anything handed to me. I adopted a minimalist lifestyle so that all of my attention and money could be invested into my projects. That is where the concept for my new YouTube show and podcast (to be released February 2020), “Tough Luck with Desanti,” stems from the idea that we are responsible for our future and success and not expect anything to be handed to us.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Definitely, Houston is among the largest cities in the country. It is very diverse and creative, it can be fast-paced or slow depending on which way you go about it.
Contact Info:
- Website: desanti.biz
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/desanticarden/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/desanticarden/
- Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/desanticarden/
- Other: http://www.youtube.com/c/desanticarden
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