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.

Naomi Boldon

When asked about my journey with my hair, my memory immediately jogs back to one particular day. My eyes squinted, concentrating on my fingers swirling in my scalp. I was focused on one thing: planting a cornrow in my hair. “Left, scoop, right, scoop, left, scoop, right, scoop…” I repeated in my head—segments from a YouTube hair-braiding tutorial. Read more>>

Sean Collier Myers

The only way I am who I am today is through trial & success/error, discipline, faith and support. From my first audition thinking acting would be cool, to now running a film company with our catalog streaming..I couldn’t have done any of it without the first sentence. Learning filmmaking has brought out more of my passion of the art than I realized. Read more>>

Ki-an Harmon

Hello, my name is Ki-an Boodram Harmon. I am a 27 year old first generation Trinidadian-American business owner. My business ‘The Busi Vegan’ highlights plant based eating in a creative way. When I first started, I was 18 years of age & honestly my brand vision was nowhere near what it is today. Read more>>

Y.P.C. B.C.

definitely not i’ve been battling mental health and real life problems at the same time since i was 15 me and my dad been going through a lot together my grandma being sick my mom passing and then dealing with the fact im in a market thats set up against me just because i was born here ive had friends switch up people who i thought would be there til the top and on top of all that some really toxic relationships Read more>>

Kaitlyn Lee & Z Smith

In 2024, a mutual friend and local bluegrass legend, Bob Perilla, introduced us at a good ole burger night at Swallow at the Hollow. At that time, Z was a mentee of his, where he would come over to her house once a week and teach her a few things and then they would head to a bluegrass jam. Read more>>

Aishat Akindele

My name is Aishat Akindele. I was born and raised in Mushin, Lagos, Nigeria, and I currently live in the United States. I am the proud mother of two beautiful daughters, Okikiola Babatunde and Michelle Babatunde. My journey has been shaped by both loss and resilience. I lost my mother at a very young age, and later I lost my sister to sickle cell disease. Read more>>

Wayna Wondwossen

I immigrated to the United States from Ethiopia as a toddler with my mother after we fled the communist revolution that had plunged our country into fear and violence. We were among the fortunate few who found safety, but our new life in America came with its own challenges. Read more>>

Fat Racks

I’m Fat Racks from Baltimore born and raised. I’ve been head first into music since a kid. I have a lot of passion for music, I’ve been in choir’s as a child growing up from school to the church coming up. Since a kid the first thing I do when I wake up is turn on music to get me going and get motivated. Read more>>

Karen Bertrand

I’ve spent more than 25 years in bookkeeping and accounting — some of it as a an employee, some of it with side hustle clients I picked up along the way. I genuinely loved the work, but I never once pictured myself running my own firm. Honestly, it wasn’t even on my radar. For several years, my husband’s health had been steadily declining. Read more>>

Jessica Gattis

I started my fitness journey in April 2025, but honestly, the seed was planted long before that. I’ve always been naturally petite. Growing up, I never thought much of it until I got older and people constantly commented on how tiny I was. After I had my daughter, I actually loved the healthy weight I gained during pregnancy. Read more>>

Tiely Santos

Considered the first Trans Man of national rap, Tiely comes from the beginning of his Career in 1989, collecting important performances in the arts in general. Read more>>

Sergio Buslje

A native of Rosario, Argentina, Maestro Bušlje studied music from an early age and won the prestigious Alberto Williams Award for Young Musicians when he was only 10 years old. He continued his studies in conducting, piano, violoncello, and tuba at the Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Facultad de Bellas Artes in Buenos Aires. Read more>>

Christian Hoeffel

I’m Christian Hoeffel, founder of Vineyard Voyages. My journey into the wine and travel space grew out of a background in education, a deep appreciation for high-touch hospitality, and a passion for global wine exploration as a Certified Tourism Ambassador. Moving away from my career in teaching, I wanted to build an experience that combined curated travel with genuine connection and wine education. Read more>>

sussana kelly

My entrepreneurial journey began with collaborating with creatives internationally to bring beautiful handcrafted jewelry and shawls to market. That experience gave me a deep appreciation for artisan craftsmanship and the importance of building meaningful relationships with makers. Read more>>

Shakira Kittrell

Everything that I do in life– I can thank God and my mother for. Growing up, I watched my mother trail blaze health and wellness for us before I even knew what ‘health and wellness’ was. From growing fresh foods in our garden to doing what we could to be holistically supported, my story starts from my mother’s love for our family. Read more>>

Mike Love

My story started back in 1998 when I created what I thought was my first and only company; LoverBoy Entertainment. I was a young 18 year old kid from West Baltimore with visions and dreams of becoming a boss. LoverBoy Entertainment was just a group of friends along with myself and I wanted to get into the nightlife. Read more>>

Haliyah Hales

I started my music journey at a very young age. Music has always been part of my life because music found me early. I come from a musical background, with my dad working as a DJ, so I grew up surrounded by sound and rhythm. I sang throughout elementary and high school, but my love for music began even earlier. Read more>>

Dez Bessick

5 years ago If I’m being real, there were many times I felt like the underdog. I watched others get opportunities I prayed for. I was overlooked, underestimated, and sometimes felt like I had to work twice as hard just to be seen. But I never let that stop me. Read more>>

Tejinder Pal

DJ Taj Productions really started at home, long before it was ever a business. Our father, Harinder Singh, has been a sound engineer and event professional for over three decades, and my brother Hartaj and I grew up inside that world — Punjabi music always playing, boliyan at family gatherings, speakers and cables stacked in the garage. Celebration was just how our family communicated. Read more>>

Saxl Rose

My dad introduced me to the saxophone when I was young, and my mom was a DJ, so I grew up surrounded by a wide range of music. My dad was constantly performing and touring, and he introduced me to classic R&B, funk and artists like Earth, Wind & Fire. Read more>>

Ana Linares

I am a spiritual guide, and community weaver, whose work interlaces the mystical with the practical. My path is rooted in a profound reverence for feminine wisdom, ancestral healing, and creative expression. What began as a journey of physical strength and endurance has blossomed into a multidimensional offering of emotional and spiritual transformation. Read more>>

Liz Vayda

I started the greater goods market back in 2015, two years after I began developing my then pop-up based business, B.Willow. At the time, there were only a few craft markets happening regularly around Baltimore. Read more>>

Roy Broderick, Jr.

I’ve never been someone who chased titles—I’ve always been drawn to opportunities where I could build something meaningful. Growing up in Southwest Atlanta, I learned early that leadership isn’t measured by the position you hold, but by the opportunities you create for others. Read more>>

Jennifer Rollin

My journey into this field began with my own recovery from an eating disorder. That experience showed me how life-changing it is to have a therapist who truly understands what you’re going through, and it inspired me to become the kind of therapist I once needed. Read more>>

Patrick Owens

My art career began out of complete happenstance; once out of college I waited tables and bartended into my late 20s. The bar where I worked had a large chalkboard and a server (who was also an art teacher) would write the beer and wine list, usually incorporating the brands logo/fonts. Read more>>

Jordan Burnett

never came from a boxing background. In fact, I didn’t step into a boxing gym until I was 27 years old. Most people thought I was too late to make anything of it, but I refused to let my age or lack of experience define me. Read more>>

Marie-B Cilia De Amicis

Photography came into my life through a lifelong fascination with people and cultures. I was born in Tunisia and grew up surrounded by different traditions, colors, and ways of life. That early experience taught me to observe rather than simply look, and it shaped the way I see the world today. Before becoming a full-time photographer, I spent many years in the airline industry. Read more>>

Tiimy Reid

2017 I was just a girl (i wasn’t non-binary at the time) who graduated high school and got stuck at a crossroads. I decided to make the bravest decision by reconnecting with the one thing I knew would bring me eternal joy (Creativity). It all started with a canvas and a dream then later on transformed into many different media’s. Read more>>

Tracie Griffith Tso

Griffith Tso painted her first brushstrokes as a child in California. She specializes spontaneous flower-bird painting, taught by a teacher schooled by a Hong Kong master. At 12, she learned to throw pots. After 10+ years as a journalist/infographics news artist, she turned to fine art when, necessitated by becoming an Army wife, she took her skills on the road. Read more>>

Rebecca Rapp

Growing up I always loved art. I was always drawing, painting, and doing other projects like pottery, screen printing, and graphic design. I had a huge focus on portraits, animals, and cars in my drawings. I grew up in North Jersey, but after I graduated high school my family and I moved to Delaware. Read more>>

Claudia Morrissey

I started my journey in photography at the age of 14 when I was gifted an SLR camera. It was a Canon SLR camera, pre digital era, so this meant I was using film. I started photographing landscapes, animals, and people. I realized quickly that my true love was in portraiture. I readily captured the many emotions and facial expressions of people, families, and groups. Read more>>

Kathryn Fay

I am the publisher and founding editor of Modern Artist Press. My background is in English and art history – I studied both in school and worked for some time in art museums – but I also spent a number of years working in business development and writing proposals. In 2023, I decided to draw from all of that past experience to launch the press. Read more>>

Emily Goldstein

More than 24 years ago, I started m design with a simple goal: to help businesses and organizations present themselves professionally through thoughtful, strategic design. What began as a graphic design business has grown into working with large and small businesses, nonprofits, schools and universities, associations, entrepreneurs, and communities across the country and around the world. Read more>>

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>>