Read a recent career book about public relations and its author will state in its introduction that the gift of gab is a characteristic of the profession. Ketia Fequiere realized she definitely possessed this gift. In doing some self-exploration, she knew she also enjoyed attending events and connecting people together. She had always loved music and the arts, and so in 2010, she established KPR Solutions, her entertainment publicity firm.

Fequiere has a vision-oriented approach in working with her clients. One of the most recent campaigns the PR strategist worked on was for a fashion show for trendy fashion store Mimi’s BoutiQ. Fequiere killed it; she created buzz for the show that resulted in a full-house. Her efforts yielded plenty of post-event buzz on social media for her client.

Kreyolicious: One of your favorite quotes, is this quote that has been attributed to Bill Gates: “If I had one dollar left, I’d spent it on PR”. Why, however, do you think that, for some acts, that’s the last thing on their mind?

It’s hard to say, but I think it’s because some acts do not know what public relations can do for your career. My job as a publicist is to expand awareness to clients and build their brand. An artist can have talent, but no one knows it because [a public relations program] is not available to him or her and [therefore] do not know who they are.

Kreyolicious: What would you say is the most stressful aspect of your profession? 

There are many stressful aspects of public relations. Some of them are: keeping clients content, executing a seamless event, unanswered pitches, just to name a few. The most stressful aspect to me is that public relation is poorly understood. Not many people understand what my job as a publicist is. Some people think I’m a manager, a booking agent, an assistant, you name it, I’ve heard it all before. One of the first questions I ask at my initial meeting with a potential client is: “What is your definition of public relations?”

Kreyolicious: And once they give you their definition, you—

Once I am given a definition, I would then explain what is really public relations. Most of the time their response is completely wrong. After I explain it to them we move on to what their realistic goals are for public relations and marketing services.

Kreyolicious: Did internships play a role early in your career?

Yes, I did intern for an entertainment publicist in the beginning of my career. I believe having hands on experience is always great to have, especially in public relations.

Kreyolicious: I’ve heard of graduates working up to a year as unpaid interns at PR and digital agencies in this economy. What other advice would you give to new graduates besides doing internships?

Some advice I would give to graduates and individuals wanting to be in public relations are to read tons of books, join public relation groups on social media, and practice your writing. I am constantly reading and researching ideas. I am a member of a public relations group named Women in Public Relations. They hold many webinars, workshops and tons of important things that you need to know when you are a publicist. Writing is very vital in public relations. Maybe start a blog or be a contributor on a blog site or for a magazine.

Kreyolicious: What’s the most memorable campaign you’ve ever worked on?

One of the most memorable campaigns I worked on was a sponsorship package for a clothing line by the name of Zoe Beautee. I started out as a fan and purchased a few items from them. Later on, I introduced myself as a publicist and the owner Carline Smothers told me about a benefit fashion show she wanted to put together to donate to a non-profit organization named “Help us Save Us”, which provides a safe and steady source of clean water for their facilities in Sant. Raphael in Haiti. It was memorable to me because I was able to help with a great cause. My main goal in life and in business is to be able to give back and with assisting Zoe Beautee with their sponsorship package, I was able to do so.

Kreyolicious: What are some of the biggest lessons you’ve learned in the field?

I don’t even know where to begin. I have learned so many lessons even with the short time I’ve been in this field. I will make a list. Lessons that I have learned in public relations: Believe in yourself. Just go for it. Believe in your craft. Never give up on your dreams. Mistakes happen, learn from it and move on. Don’t be afraid to fail! Don’t work harder—work wiser.

Visit Ketia Fequiere’s KPR Solutions Website to learn more about her firm| Connect with the PR maven on Twitter| Connect with the PR maven on Instagram and on Facebook|

New Englander Paulana Lamonier is an Oprah in progress. She doesn’t have her version of the OWN Network yet, but her career milestones thus far are definitely very, very Oprah-esque. She’s a writer for ESPN’s The Undefeated, and has also been a scribe for media moguls Danyel Smith and Elliot Wilson’s ground-shattering media venture HRDCVR. Oprah had her share of obstacles, and has looked at so-called failure in the face and rolled her eyes and kept on moving. So has Paulana. Years ago, she made a bold audition to become host of BET’s “106 and the Park”. She wasn’t selected, but do you think she threw in her journalism pen? No, ma’am. As a matter of fact, the journalism and TV maven made another one of her intrepid career bids, this time for a role as TV anchor at Complex Media, one of the biggest digital and print media firms in the nation.

Let’s have a little conversation with the CUNY York College graduate.

Kreyolicious: Growing up, did you ever wish that your name was just Paula or just Anna?
Paulana Lamonier: Growing up, I loved my name especially when I found out that my grandmother named me after her mother, I fell in love with it even more. However, I did get teased a lot! But, I’ve never let that get to me where I’d want to change my name.

Kreyolicious: Did anyone ever called you Polyanna for play or just because they wanted to?
Paulana Lamonier: No. Because my name is a combination of two names I have a lot of nicknames like Paulie, Popo, Lana, P. It’s disrespectful when someone doesn’t take the time to learn my name and make one up of their own.

Kreyolicious: What drew you to media?
Paulana Lamonier: I’ve always been drawn to entertainment, music, and media since I was young. Growing up I learned how to play the violin, I was obsessed with Brittany Spears and Usher, and I was always in the school and church choir. I’ve just always loved to entertainment people and get them engaged. So, in high school I wanted to be a radio host, but when I got to college I realized that the possibilities were endless when comes to having a career in entertainment.

Kreyolicious: Did your parents ever steer you towards other professions?
Paulana Lamonier: My grandmother, yes. But not my parents. They’ve always known since young that I’ve wanted to be some type of entertainer and they’ve always supported me following my dreams. Of course, they have their opinions on how I should’ve went about it, but nonetheless the support is always there and I take it with a grain of salt. [Laughter]

Kreyolicious: You once created an entire website to pitch yourself for a position at Complex Media, a major media company. This is something that would scare most people? Where do you get this drive? This fearlessness?
Paulana Lamonier: You are so right because I was scared out of my mind! When you’re broke, you’d do a lot to make sure you get the job of your dreams. [Laughter] But what really encouraged me was listening to an episode of the MyTaughtYou podcast by Myleik Teele where she’s interviewing Datwon Thomas, Editor-in-Chief of Vibe Magazine and they’re talking about pursuing your dreams with reckless abandon. In that interview, I learned the importance of going full throttle with your dreams, and going the extra mile for your dreams, because it’s never crowded there. I was literally listening to that episode for the second time while I was creating the website as a form of encouragement to follow-through.

In a career like entertainment, there’s always a lot of applicants, but not a lot of positions, especially when being an anchor. I wanted to make sure that I was the person to get that job. Although I didn’t get the job, it showed me how far and creative I can be if I put my mind to it.

Kreyolicious: Sometimes, you can be such an overachiever that you’re never satisfied with your accomplishments. But when you sit there and think about your path in life thus far, what do you find yourself being most proud of?
Paulana Lamonier: I’ve always learned you’re always good as your last work or achievement. So, I’m always finding ways to set new goals and how can I make them happen. My most proud achievement was working for HRDCVR magazine and writing for ESPN’s The Undefeated. With HRDCVR, I learned a lot about working with remote teams, creativity and also being inclusive.

Kreyolicious: On the journalism end, you worked with two legendary media magnates Elliott Wilson and Danyel Smith. What have you learned from these bastions of pop culture that you’ve applied or plan on applying to your life?
Paulana Lamonier: One thing that I’ve learned is to be original and make sure that whatever I’m doing is pushing the culture forward. Seeing all the work that they’re doing is both of these two qualities. They continuously push the culture forward, keep importance conversations going where it’s beneficial for everyone.

This concludes PART I of the interview with Paulana Lamonier! Be on the look out for PART II!

CLICK HERE to visit multimedia journalist Paulana Lamonier’s website! CLICK HERE for Paulana Lamonier on Youtube.

Paulana Lamonier has written for some of the most prestigious names in media: Blavity, Black Enterprise, Her Agenda. In addition to digital journalism, she
Before she made her leap in the professional world, she interned at Epic and RCA/RCA Inspiration, as well as NYC’s prestigious WBAI station. Her strong work ethic at that latter media company earned her “Intern of the Month” honors. If Oprah needs someone to serve as successor to her, Ms. Lamonier just might be an heiress to that gilded throne.

Kreyolicious: Is there something that you used to be mediocre at, that you’ve improved tremendously at?
Paulana Lamonier: This is a great question. Professionally, I would say my writing. I feel that my writing used to be all over the place.

Kreyolicious: What factors led to the improvement?
Paulana Lamonier: One of my old supervisors told me find five writers whose works that I like and continuously read their work. Also practice makes permanent. So, not only did reading a lot help me, but practicing and writing for different websites, as well. Second is time management. Being a procrastinator was never a quality in me, but what has helped me are to-do lists that keep me on track on things that I have to do. My favorite website is Todoist.

Kreyolicious: When do you feel the most beautiful?
Paulana Lamonier: I feel the most beautiful after I’ve done a hard workout. I’m a swimmer. So a lot of my workouts are intense. And of course when I finish eating Lemon Pepper Wings from Wingstop.

Kreyolicious: You’ve been to Haiti?
Paulana Lamonier: Yes. Though I was born in the States, I would spend summers there as a kid. I was there twice in 2015 for a mission trip and family vacation.

Kreyolicious: Reading is good for your soul. What five books have changed your life?
Paulana Lamonier: I can name three books. They are The People Factor by Pastor Van Moody, Live the Life You Were Created to Live by Pastor Ernst Cochy, The Servant by James Hunter.

Kreyolicious: Out of all the coursework you took in college, which has proved to be the most relevant and beneficial to shaping you into the person that you are today?
Paulana Lamonier: This may be a bit surprising, but it’s been the career services courses I took in college that has taught me a lot. I learned about resume building, interviewing skills and etiquette, and how to land a job.

Kreyolicious: You’re a native New Yorker and you remained in New York for undergrad. Do you wish you had done things differently? Or—
Paulana Lamonier: I wish I went to a school that had a great journalism program. I went to CUNY York College and the journalism program, when I attended, was just a little under 5 years old. So they were a bit old school with the teachings and should’ve focused on new media. I was actually the first online editor for my school’s newspaper. So, that’s probably what I would’ve done differently.

Kreyolicious: Years from now, is super media moguldom something you aspire to? You’re already on the path and all…
Paulana Lamonier: Thank you! If there’s one persons career I’d like to follow is one of Oprah, Queen Latifah or Lala Anthony. Oprah and Lala started in media like myself and from there has evolved and didn’t let their current career titles limit them. So that’s the end goal for me. Journalism isn’t the end all, be all for me. It’s a stepping stone for the next phase in my career. What will that be? You’ll just have to wait and see.

This is the latest installment of Yap Mennen, in which your fave chick Kreyolicious highlights the accomplishments of a baller of Haitian descent. Today’s subject was Paulana Lamonier. CLICK HERE to read other episodes!

CLICK HERE to visit multimedia journalist Paulana Lamonier’s website! CLICK HERE for Paulana Lamonier on Youtube.