Baltimore’s Most Inspiring Stories

The heart of our mission is to find the amazing souls that breathe life into our communities. In the recent weeks, we’ve had the privilege to connect with some incredible artists, creatives, entrepreneurs and rabble rousers and we can’t begin to express how impressed we are with the incredible group below. Check out our favorite stories from across the Voyage family.

Caroline Chavasse

Education was not something I thought much about during the first part of my life. I was a trained dancer and actor, later, writer and video-maker. I spent 10 years in NYC appearing in television commercials. Read more>>

Jap Newell

My Name is Jap Newell aka Japvisions4.0. Born and raised in Sarasota, Florida in the projects call (project Lane) I’m the Second oldest of 9 brothers. I started hip hop dancing at the age of 6 . In my neighborhood at the age of 8yrs old I started dancing in the Easter parade until I was 13 in front Thousands of people. Read more>>

Julia Martin Frazier

My name is Julia Martin Frazier, and I am the creator of ‘Harp & Home’ – an entity that encompasses my various creative and professional projects. I have been a musical performer for my entire adult life. I am a real estate advisor with Monument Sotheby’s International Realty in Baltimore, Maryland. Read more>>

Kristin Galante

My journey has not been the most linear, but has been incredibly rewarding. As an artist & entrepreneur in the art & wellness space, I have learned to find parallels between the two. I started drawing and painting after watching my brother and Dad do so growing up. Read more>>

Megan Wich

Before real estate, I was a stay-at-home mom with a background in early childhood education. I truly loved that chapter of my life, but as my children got older, I found myself wanting to pursue something that gave me a sense of purpose beyond motherhood while still allowing me to make a meaningful impact in people’s lives. Read more>>

Matthew Cirino

Music has always been a huge part of my life. I grew up the youngest of four siblings from a Jamaican and Puerto Rican household. My brother David is an R&B recording artist, and my other brother Steve managed his career. Throughout seeing these experiences as a child, I ultimately attached to R&B music. Read more>>

Erik Kugler CPA

I started out at 7 years old selling tomatoes on the corner outside my house. I didn’t sell so much, so I loaded up my wagon and went around the block knocking on doors and sold out! My path to becoming ‘The Food Truck CPA’ wasn’t a straight line, and I think that’s why it works. Read more>>

Kenyonn Gregory

Well I am a 31 year old entrepreneur, father, son, farmer and so much more. As the years have gone on I have slowly found my niche and what truly brings me joy. I grew up in Baltimore on Pennsylvania Ave. The culture would say I grew up on the avenue lol lol. Read more>>

Kimberley Guillaume

I was born in Brooklyn, New York, and raised in Hamilton, New Jersey as a first-generation Haitian American. I currently live in The Bronx, New York, after making the decision to move back to New York City in 2021 to fully immerse myself in its vibrant creative community. Read more>>

Drury Bynum

For most of my career, I told stories with a camera. My wife and I founded a video production company more than fifteen years ago, and over that time I directed well over a hundred films for brands, businesses, and organizations. I loved the process of finding the human story inside a project and figuring out how to make people feel something. Read more>>

Nina Ligon

Where do I begin… I’ve always had a love for words, performing…the arts in general. Growing up in Wichita, KS, I wasn’t regularly exposed to the arts, and never really had a creative community to cultivate the seeds within me. I can attribute my current place in life to a few things beginning with Teen Summit on BET, which I watched religiously every Saturday morning! Read more>>

Paris Johnson

Hey, so I’m a comic book illustrator / writer with a creation of my own, currently in development. A limited series set in a Baltimore of the future called Ghostwing. When it’s ready, I’m going to self-publish through kickstarter. Read more>>

Lexi Jackson

I began my journey as a Towson alum looking for a way to pivot my career into Music Licensing. I’d come across a Grey’s Anatomy special onDemand that explicitly talked about the music of the series and interviewed the Music Supervisor of the show at the time. I always loved the music of the show and never put it together that that was someone’s job. Read more>>

Taige Hart

My journey with Brooklynn’s Hart began when I was in seventh grade after realizing how many women and children in my community lacked access to basic necessities. I wanted to do more than simply recognize the need, I wanted to become part of the solution. Read more>>

Shy Sullivan

From childhood I’ve had an affinity for animals. My parents rescued, fostered, and adopted quite a few furbabes while i was growing up. Being surrounded by dogs was wonderful! This carried fully into my adult life. I worked briefly at a kennel before moving to a grooming shop to be a bather. Ultimately, life pulled me into the restaurant world for about fifteen years. Read more>>

Mariah Bonner

I was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the third of six children. Growing up my family spent time between Reservoir Hill in Baltimore, and a farm in southern Maryland where my dad is from. We were a musical and artistic family. Read more>>

JAZZ THE CEO

I’ve always believed that security is about much more than standing a post—it’s about leadership, preparation, communication, and protecting people. That belief led me to start After Hourz Security in 2019 with a vision of raising the standard for the private security industry. Like many entrepreneurs, I built the company from the ground up. Read more>>

Peggi Honig

My entire life, I learned how to listen and follow the path that got me excited and passionate. My first passion was in Opera, where I trained at a conservatory and soon after sang with The Baltimore Opera Company. I followed this track until it was time to rethink my life’s course. Read more>>

Jefferson Butler

My story starts back when I was a young boy. We had a family catering business run by my grandmother Etta Butler, Grandma Booney! This is where I learned the behind the scenes of catering. My earliest memories are of my family working side by side at different catering jobs together, it was our culture. Read more>>

BLU Energy Drink

BLU Energy Drink’s U.S. journey began when three entrepreneurs—Louay Ihmud, Nashat Ihmud, and Omar Jibawi—saw an opportunity to bring an internationally established energy drink to the American market. After building successful businesses across multiple industries, they were looking for a brand with long term potential and believed BLU could fill that role. Securing the U.S. Read more>>

Nicole Davis

My journey to founding H.U.R. Stories Outreach began while I was working as a Medical Assistant instructor at a Job Corps Center. As an educator, I quickly realized that many of the young people I taught had experienced significant trauma and adversity. While every student faced unique challenges, I found myself especially drawn to the young women. Read more>>

Hoodie Visuals

I got started during covid 19 i was taking pictures on my iPhone of my family and sports then my uncle had brought a camera randomly and said i could shoot events with it ever since that i been shooting every day since then. where i am today I’m working with celebrities EST Gee, YG Teck, Mariah The Sciencest, NoCap and many more. Read more>>

Jumara Perry

My makeup journey began after high school. At the time, I struggled with my own insecurities, and makeup became a way for me to build confidence and express myself creatively. What started as something I used to feel better about myself quickly grew into a genuine passion as I spent countless hours learning new techniques, practicing, and perfecting my skills. Read more>>

Mel Carter

I was born in Seattle, Washington. My mom is a visual artist and made my childhood magical – she painted my bedroom like the ocean and showed me that if there was anything that I wanted to exist in the world, I could make it. I started making my own visual art as soon as I could hold a crayon. Read more>>

Bintu Kargbo

I started Luxure Events & Decor in 2020, right in the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic. Creativity and design had always been a part of who I was. Whenever I hosted something at home—even a simple Thanksgiving dinner—I loved decorating, creating beautiful tablescapes, and making every detail feel special. Read more>>

JULDA NIZWARA

Please introduce my self, name is julda nizwara artist illustrator and graphic design from bandung,indonesia west java. I dig rather relying on simpleis a pen and ink on paper technic and black and white work iconic, aparently the layout of a to build medieval, occultic, surealism, folkloric, gothic, dark fantasy, sigil, magic. Read more>>

Lady Reddzz

As a child, I remember riding down Central Avenue in the backseat of my father’s van listening to the Quiet Storm on WHUR 96.3 FM. I fell in love with not only the music but also the way on-air personalities interacted with listeners and how they used their voices to tell stories – little did I know that would be me one day. Read more>>