Meet Tiara Déshané | Musician, Professional Makeup Artist, Poet, Writer, Composer, Community Activist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tiara Déshané and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tiara, where are your from? We’d love to hear about how your background has played a role in who you are today?
I am from the westside of Chicago. Born and raised. I’m really from what some would consider the hood of the westside, Austin and when my parents separated shortly after I was born I was raised partially on the westside and the Southside of the city. I went to public schools, played outside until the street lights came on, regular urban 90’s upbringing. I was also born with a rare genetic condition that affects about 1 in 25,000 people, so I was always different, I stood out unwarrented. I was naturally smaller than everyone and I had really, really bowed legs so early on in childhood I became accustomed to having more attention on me because I was indeed different. At 9 years old, I had to have a leg reconstructive surgery to straighten my legs and allow me to walk independently for longer. It went well and though I still am usually the smallest in the room, it allowed me to move past my leg deformity.

These two things; being from the hoods of the city of Chicago and having a rare medical condition that affected my physical appearance have both played a major role in molding the type of person I was to grow into and how I would affect other people on the experiences I had. I learned from a very early age that there is always going to be someone out there incapable of understanding you and willing to label your life experiences based off your present circumstances. I learned that my pure will-power would be the one thing I could tap into to prove everyone around me wrong. I was going to walk, I was going to sing, dance and jump rope. I was going to run and jump & if I was going to do it, I was going the be the BEST at doing it, even with my condition. Once I found my passions in the arts, I wasn’t going to let anyone outside of me tell me what I couldn’t do. I didn’t care what the doctors felt, what my parents felt, what the teachers and the kids growing up felt, I knew I was a star. The only person who was going to get in the way of the world seeing that would be myself.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Currently I am a working professional makeup artist and musician. I’ve been doing makeup for almost 10 years and in November of 2019 I decided to leave my bi-weekly paying job for the road of being self employed. I’ve been working for myself as a mobile traveling makeup artist since shortly before the pandemic started. Since then my work has been published in about 5 different magazines. I also have been performing around Chicago’s music community scene since I was 16 years old. I am a self-taught guitarist of 11 years. I’ve performed in sooo many poetry slams, open mics, artistic events and showcases over the years and I have music on soundcloud dating back to October 2014. I’m also on Applemusic and Spotify under my name Tiara Déshané.

What set’s me apart from other R&B/Soul singers is the way I write my music, it’s usually always from a space of merging pop culture with conscious thinking and staying true to my black roots. My sound is real “def jam poetry in the early 2000s” with a splash of Chicago swag and afrobeats fusion.

I got where I am today by believing in myself more than anyone else around me. I just had from an early on age, a very strong sense of self and because of my leg deformity and my stature, I learned that in order for people to see past those things I had to have confidence out of this world. My safe space was within the condiments of my artistic mind. Eventually I had to let it out to feel sane and well. It would literally make me sick if I wasn’t in environments that supported my creative outlets. I dove head first into the adult world of hustling because I saw in high school that this is lucrative, but that by absolutely no means meant that it would be easy to live off of my talents even if I was instinctively inclined. So I became a bonafide hustle-preneur. I worked in retail for 7 years while also working on my business, recording music, being the creative director for photoshoots and the makeup artist and sometimes even the model. I created my own content, shot my own cover art, directed my own music videos, set up my own band. I was and am a one man band. & it was hard! it still is hard. I gave birth in the pandemic to my daughter and 1st child almost a year ago & that was the only thing that could happen to me to make me sit down and be in the present. Before becoming a mom, my days were long and my nights were longer and I wouldn’t change absolutely anything about it because I enjoyed the fast paced life of being self-made.

My purpose in life is to impact people on an inner level by my own testimonies, to show the world that you can rise past your circumstances and the perceptions of people around you to be someone beautiful both inside and out. I’ve beat the odds my entire life and I want to be an inspiration to my daughter and anyone else, that no matter what anyone says, YOU have the authority to mold and shape your life into whatever it is YOU want for YOURSELF. The mind is the most powerful tool you have. Beauty starts from the inside. Creativity comes from the inside.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Chicago is known for its skyline, its food and its culture. If you’ve never been to Chicago you would have to go on the riverwalk downtown, get some food and take in the scenery of the area, shopping on the Mag Mile is a must. Speakeasies tucked and hidden behind laundromats and the rooftop skyline on top of the Godfrey Hotel. All must haves. We’d have to spend 2 or 3 days going to the best museums like the Shedd Aquarium, The Museum of Science and Industry, The Dusable Museum of African American History, The Art Institute. Rent a boat and have the captain take you out into the playpen on the waterfront by Navy Pier and its iconic Ferris Wheel.

Honestly, my perception is biased because I am a native here, but out of all the cities I’ve been in America, Chicago is by far the best across the board and you would need a whole month here to really experience everything you can the city is most known for.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would have to dedicate a shoutout to my grandmother Mrs. Shirley Henderson for being my backbone growing up. I want to also thank and Shoutout Mrs. Hindricks & Mr. Henry from Gallery37 HHW Performing Arts ensemble for introducing me into the world of real professional performing arts and culture and expanding my palette to different people from across the world. Because of them and their program I expanded my curiosities into learning to play guitar writing poetry and participating and performing on some of the biggest stages I’ve even been on. It’s been over 11 years since I was introduced to them and what they do for the youth in Chicago and it still is impacting me to this day.

Instagram: @countingtiaras / @makeupbytiarad

Other: Apple Music, Spotify: Tiara Déshané

Image Credits
Photo cred: Coliin Swavey G_U_EYE Thought Poet BookRayLouie