Today we’d like to introduce you to Christopher Rhodes
Hi Christopher, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I am a 32 year old content creator, entrepreneur, and writer based in Austin. I am originally from San Antonio, I went to Texas State for college, moved to Brooklyn for a year and a half, then relocated back to Austin in 2015. I co-run a small business, FLAVNT Streetwear, with my twin sister, Courtney. FLAVNT (pronounced “flaunt”) is an LGBTQIA+ clothing brand, which we have run for almost 11 years now. FLAVNT is a brand that promotes self-expression and confidence, and also gives back to the community — in the last decade we have donated over $50k to 15 different transgender folks fundraising for gender-affirming surgeries, as well as a handful of other community-driven causes and organizations. I have also been doing content creation, at least part time, for the last 6 years, having worked with brands like Whataburger, the San Antonio Spurs, Orbitz, and more. My content is lifestyle focused, while I have a passion for travel as well as advocacy. What led me to doing content creation was growing my platforms online by sharing the journey of my transition — I’m transgender and I have been transitioning for 10 years, sharing my journey attracted a large audience and it became something I enjoyed. I love taking photos, writing captions, coming up with creative solutions to how to tell a story. If something is creative I want to be doing it, I grew up as an artist, my degree is in graphic design, I have worked day jobs as in the corporate world as both a designer and a social media specialist, and even last year my first book of poetry, ‘ablaze’ (available on Amazon), was published.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I would not say that being a professional creative has been particularly easy, running a small business is not for the faint of heart and t-shirts are far from lucrative. Throw in being openly queer and trans on the internet (especially in today’s political climate, and also in Texas) and it can be really daunting. Factor in that our brand is for the LGBTQIA community and things don’t get easier (you might have heard about how Target pulled a bunch of LGBTQIA small businesses from their pride collection 2 years ago, my brand was one of those brands after over a year of hard work and coordination in what should have been a life-changing national opportunity). Content creation has had its ebbs and flows, there were years it was wildly successful and the collaborations felt endless, and years the well ran dry. The constantly changing algorithm as well as staying relevant and trendy can be a challenge.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
On the internet I’m known for sharing my story, as a trans person living a loud and proud life authentically and honestly as “normally” as I can. It’s not luxurious, and it’s also not much different than anyone else’s — which I think (and hope) makes my content relatable. That being said, all of my content is shared through a queer and trans lens. My unique perspective as a trans man is what I get to bring to conversations, to brand work, and to my own creative work. Like I mentioned, I grew my audience by sharing my transition, in a day and age when there were probably less than a dozen public or at least well-known trans men on the internet. I grew a following on tumblr (the good ole days) and documented my journey as well as put out advice videos on youtube. When Instagram became a thing my audience migrated over and I kept sharing, though I shifted to a more balanced array of lifestyle content including fashion, fitness, travel, relationships, etc. Creating content felt like the perfect creative outlet for me, similar to graphic design, when you collaborate with a brand it’s all about creatively reaching an audience in the most effective way. It’s been a long time since I have done any traditional art in any consistent way — in the last decade of my life my art has been through content — my passion for photography, the performance of my daily life on a small phone screen, and quips of my writing. My writing came into a larger play in the last year when I finally compiled about a decade’s worth of poetry, submitted my manuscript to an independent publisher, and was selected to be published. This was one of my greatest individual accomplishments to date.
What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
How to pivot and not give up. That may be cliche but that is necessary in any creative field and in an ever-changing world. Also to stay true to myself, even if it means less likes than lip-syncing along to some new trend — what I have always enjoyed about sharing my life is that it resonated with others — and the reason I want to keep doing that (besides that I enjoy it!) is that my mantra is “be who you needed when you were younger.” I would not have known who I was without finding and relating to the few trans folks who shared their journeys on the internet before me — so I hope my visibility makes a difference to people in that same way.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.seethestarsablaze.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seethestarsablaze
- Other: my poetry book, ablaze – https://a.co/d/7jegCIe , my clothing line FLAVNT – www.flavnt.com
Image Credits
image of Courtney and Chris for FLAVNT by Riley Shea Glenn
All other photos credit to Christopher Rhodes
