Too often, people unknowingly hold themselves back from reaching their full potential. Choosing to be invisible versus visible is a scapegoat and limits you from achieving true success – something Jodi-Kay Edwards knows all too well. But she’s here to help change this.
Jamaican-born Jodi-Kay Edwards is the definition of “making it in America,” but the road to her success wasn’t linear. Edwards grew up poor, and when her family moved to the US, she realized a huge disconnect: how much people take what they have for granted.
“I’ve always had this memory in the back of my head, we were so poor I was eating rice from a pot but happy. That’s one of my core childhood memories,” Edwards recounts. It wasn’t playing outside or having a lot of friends. It was survival mode at a very young age but finding balance and stillness in the storm.
The transition from small island life to the big city was drastic, and Edwards experienced bullying throughout high school due to her differences. As a result, it led her to find ways to “blend in”.
She chose to become invisible to avoid vulnerability.
“I didn’t want to be seen because of the negative attention I felt it was bringing” she explains, she became so focused on fitting in and blending into the background she lost her identity along the way. “I forgot about this whole concept of being yourself – being you – and that people will like you for you.
She soon began cultivating her uniqueness through clothing and quickly realized fashion was a natural calling that acted as a catalyst for her personal brand and journey. This also landed her opportunities such as being the wardrobe assistant on the show Empire and gaining recognition on set for how she carried herself on and off camera. “I went to a Catholic school that required students to wear uniforms: the blue skirt, the khaki pants, the blue navy polo, or the white oxford. And so I just started finding different ways to stand out by adding different textures like lace or classic jewelry. I was the girl who wore pearls, a touch of luxury has always been my signature style” she said.
“I finally realized that if I wanted to stand out, I could do so just by being myself, and that’s okay. When I made the decision to go from invisible to influential, my whole life changed” Edwards emphasizes. After high school, she joined the military, and the previously shy, quiet, “yes” girl blossomed into a strong, independent woman capable of standing up for herself, leading a team and sharing her ideas with the world.
“I was on the set of Empire one day when Taraji P Henson walked by me and asked if I had my real natural hair out, I told her yes. I was in a room of women who were selected to wear beautiful party outfits for the scene we were shooting, their hair and makeup completely slayed while standing confidently with my curly, hard to tame natural hair wearing an outfit I put together myself from my own closet, approved by wardrobe. This further confirmed the importance of being myself even while acting,” Edwards shares.
As she takes on new clients as a celebrity brand manager, that experience has stuck with her ever since, giving her even more confidence to stand in rooms where she has to make the decision to go from invisible to influential. She discovered that others appreciate her unique and creative outlook around personal branding, and that confidence and clarity always brings the cash flow when strategy is involved – something she believes brands need more of.
Today, Jodi-Kay Edwards is a celebrity Brand Manager, speaker, coach, actress, CEO of Alignment Is The New Hustle, and Co-Founder of Behind The Scenes Agency. Behind The Scenes Agency, owned by Edwards and business partner Ajia Jackson, is a Dallas-based media and marketing firm offering services such as brand strategy, digital marketing, social media strategy, and cinematic videography. Their collaborative and client-centric approach, combined with their expertise and creativity, has earned them a strong reputation in the industry listed as the Top Dallas Branding Agency with awards including #1 Startup on MTV Wes Bergmann’s “The Blox” and the Brainz 500 Global Award.
“Being in America really helped me realize that there’s a lot of people here with all of these tools and opportunities that they’re just not utilizing at their disposal because they’re so stuck in their head,” she says.
There was a moment in her life when she fell prey to this way of living, and “I was really unhappy and it forced me to just be in this really low vibrational place where nothing was happening for me but I also wasn’t doing anything for myself.”
This all changed when she entered the world of marketing.
Edwards founded her first business – Alignment Is The New Hustle – based on the idea of aligning your mind, body, and soul with your intentions to enter a state of “success mode”.
“This mode is where you’ve gotten rid of the bullsh*t and said ‘I no longer claim to be the victim of my circumstance. I’m going to be a leader, I’m going to change it, and I’m going to do everything in my power to be someone different, so I can do something different, so I can have something different,” she highlights.
Along her journey, she met someone who was doing what she was doing – Ajia Jackson – except with videography, and like connecting the missing piece to complete the puzzle, Behind The Scenes Agency was created.
“We want to show people that we’ve been able to be successful by utilizing a lot of those values and other people can do it too. And we can help you by telling your story so you too, can get seen and get paid,” details Edwards.
And how do they do that? Simple. Edwards and Jackson take the time to learn and understand the personal authenticity in each individual or company they partner with to showcase that uniqueness through digital marketing.
They use a done-for-you format where Edwards and Jackson offer in-studio and on-location photoshoots for clients across the world. They work behind the scenes to produce professional content including photography, videography, branding, marketing, and events intended to drive awareness and engagement.
Edwards knows firsthand how difficult it can be to embrace your differences and shift into a strong, confident role. It’s easy to succumb to your circumstance and accept your reality, but it takes courage and determination to choose to make a change.
You have the tools and opportunities to stand out, and with the right help, can get your brand the recognition it deserves.
Join the family and watch your brand come to life with help from Behind The Scenes Agency. Check out their podcast “The CEO Suite Podcast” hosted by Jodi-Kay Edwards where she provides free advice on business and brand strategies that drive success.
And to keep up with the marketing agency, follow them on Instagram.
