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.