Today we’d like to introduce you to Nina Ligon.
Hi Nina, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
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! I learned so much about Black culture and the possibilities of a Black girl from middle America and began dreaming bigger than Kansas had to offer…between that Saturday morning ritual, Ebony, Essence and JET magazines, I learned about HBCUs like Howard University, authors like Zora Neale Hurston and history that I never learned in school, like the lynching of a young Emmett Till.
When I was in 7th grade, my art teacher, Sherman Padgett, nominated me to be a part of the youth advisory committee for a national anti-drug coalition. With that nomination and acceptance, I traveled to DC twice a year for meetings for the next three years, falling in love with DC and the diversity of culture and creativity!
Since then, DC was always the goal!
In 2000, I joined the United States Air Force which put me in close proximity to the city after I was stationed at Langley AFB, in Hampton, VA. For 20 years, I lived in Hampton Roads, racking up miles up and down I-95 hitting every open mic, music and literary event I could. I honed my craft as a vocalist and performance poet in communities throughout the Mid-Atlantic region down to Atlanta and everywhere in between.
Finally, in 2022, my dream of moving to DC proper was finally realized. Being welcomed “home” by the creative community I cultivated for so many years, I finally found my place living in Southeast DC and serving as the Director of Culture at Eaton DC.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
This has definitely not been a smooth road. No journey in life is. The greatest struggle along the way has been internal. The battle between knowing what I want in and out of life and doing what I thought would be safest, best…what others thought I should do. I struggled with confidence in my craft, I struggled to trust myself after what felt like a lifetime of mistakes. It’s taken me YEARS to accept it all as part of my journey.
Other struggles included holding on to ideas, people and situations that did not serve me – anymore, or ever…
I could go into the health, marital, financial…LIFE struggles but ultimately, it all comes down to me and what I believe is possible for my life. It comes down to me and my own sense of worth. Even at my big age, I’m learning to not judge any person, experience or myself as good or bad. I’m learning to remain in the flow of life and accept the opportunities to elevate and evolve along the way.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I consider myself a multidisciplinary artist, writer, and cultural curator and consultant with work spanning spoken word, vocal and stage performance, and community-centered engagement. Over two decades of creative practice, my work explores identity, resilience, and personal transformation through storytelling and an audience-centered approach as a performer, event host, and moderator.
Gig-work is normal for creative entrepreneurs and this led me into the world of benefit fundraising, where for nearly a decade, I’ve helped hundreds of organizations raise millions of dollars for the communities they serve.
I am the author of Dramas of a Bald Head Queen (2012), a memoir on growing up as a Black girl in Wichita, Kansas, and Heart of a Queen: Poetry and Prose from the Soul (2013), with new memoir and documentary projects in production.
What sets me apart from other creative entrepreneurs is my work as cultural consultant. In everything I do, I work at the intersection of community, culture and hospitality as service. In this work, I not only perform at and host events, but I love helping organizations and hospitality brands uncover their cultural identity and lead with purpose. I’m excited to continue leaning into this work, while serving as Director of Audience Development for March On! Film Festival — and as an auctioneer and fundraising consultant bringing performance expertise to philanthropic spaces.
I serve on the board on the boards of directors for Words Beats and Life and DC Collaborative and is a professional member of the Recording Academy.
Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
Yes. I believe that we all have light within us and I seek to always be light wherever I am. For me, light does three basic things:
Light is a safe space
Light exposes blindspots and drives away shadows
Light is a lamp on a path toward a brighter future
With this in mind, I always encourage others to BE a light in the world, regardless of vocation. Wherever I show up, in whatever relationship I find myself in, I use my vision of light as a filter to reassess and realign so I may show up as my best self wherever I am!
Pricing:
- Host/Moderator (contact for rates)
- Fundraising or Cultural Consultant (contact for rates)
- Vocalist (contact for rates)
- Performance Poet (contact for rates)
- Auctioneer (contact for rates)
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.webethelight.com
- Instagram: @baldheadqueen
- Facebook: ninaligon
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nina-ligon-61880026
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@baldheadqueen
