On: Crushes Like Fortunes
This article is best enjoyed while listening to the song "Common Person" by Burna Boy - https://youtu.be/ZmZi1ZuPB9A
If you know me well enough, you’d know that I rarely have crushes.
Psyche!
I crush hard and I don’t apologize for it. Plus, the beauty of my many tumbles into the mosh pit of this sort of emotional lovey-doveyness is that in rolling in its muddy, sometimes lust-infested waters, I am able to meet great people whose lives continue to fascinate me long after the aftermath of cupid's arrows has waned. One of such amazing people is Jessica Fortunes.
My Fortunate Jealousy.
I had come across Jessica on Twitter in the hay days of my podcasting enthusiasm. I must admit that the first time I listened to her podcast titled “The Twenty-Something Rant” I wasn’t really sold on it. I was at the time edging closer to my thirties so I guess some part of me was mildly jealous. Not to mention, there was this playful chortle in her voice that made me feel like she was having the best time of her life at my expense. I was jealous.
But when I get jealous, instead of hating from afar, I draw closer. And so, after listening to an episode of her podcast and feeling a type of way about it, I jumped on her YouTube channel. One of her first videos had the tagline, which read something like “How to make money from podcasting”. This also robbed me wrongly. The effrontery! I cried as I clicked on the link and began watching.
In the video, I found a slender, amiable, makeup-less twenty-something-year-old girl confidently trying to tell me how to make money from podcasting. I scoffed at the video, the jealousy seething deep in me as I clicked on another video and then another and then another. And as time went on, with every video click, I began to notice something shifting in my demeanor: it was no longer jealousy, it had become a fascination.
The Fascinating World of Fortunes.
And thus began my journey of fascination with Jessica. I had been exposed to her podcast and from it found her YouTube channel, which then further exposed me to her life (or at least the part she was willing to share on camera). From her vlogs and posts, Jessica presented nothing more than a confident front of exploratory excellence. In one video she’s telling her viewers how to make money from podcasting and in the next, she could be talking about quitting her 9-5 or explaining her journey in joining a tech firm. It was a confluence of many variations of herself that was very typical of what a twenty-something-year-old should be —experimental.
A couple of days ago prior to writing this, I had the privilege of speaking to her on the phone about her journey. I insinuated that she seems like someone who likes to teach others how to do things as evident by her posts on Twitter, her YouTube channel, and her podcast. But she refutes this insinuation stating clearly that she simply enjoyed sharing.
“For as long as I can remember I love to share.” She says, her voice coming through my phone speakers as I sat down on the sofa in my living room. “When I’m watching a movie or if I learn something new, my instinct is always to share this exciting thing with others. But as an introverted person, it’s tough to do this. However, with social media, I can simply just go online and type out my random thoughts and share them.”
This speaks truly of who Jessica’s online persona is. If you’re one of her 664 followers (and counting) on Twitter, chances are you may often come across a tweet from her that reads like she’s addressing an audience of millions even if it might only seem like she’s speaking to herself. And as it turns out, the latter is also true.
“I document my life in such a way that I am able to look back at these moments in the future and see what I’ve done; where I was at a particular point in time, and if possible learn from whatever mistakes I made then.”
The New & Improved Life of Fortunes.
Jessica prides herself on being one to always go all out in whatever she commits her mind to do. The need to share her experience as a twenty-something was what birthed her podcast. However, in our recent conversation, she believes it is time for a more encompassing rebrand of what her podcast should mean for twenty-something-year-olds.
“I’m not changing the name or anything. It’s still called the Twenty-Something Rants podcast. It’s still about people in their twenties and how we can navigate this part of our lives that is supposed to be fun and amazing and adventurous. But I noticed that after going away from podcasting for a while, just coming back and saying “hey, I’m back” and maybe changing the logo or something felt like too little. So, in my typical fashion, I have chosen to go all out.”
And as she says this, she chuckles. Her voice sounds tired over the phone as we speak. She’s having to juggle a regular 9-5 with her many side projects. And as you may have guessed, there seems to be a pattern with Jessica: she’s not afraid to try everything. Today she’s a Social Media Manager, tomorrow she can be something else entirely without losing the novelty of her personal spark.
Fortunes Never Relent.
“I want to change the brand identity of my podcast to mirror the exciting experience of being in our twenties.” She says, “I want bright colors. I want more guests. I’m at a point in my podcasting and creative journey where a lot of things have changed and improved about the kind of content I create and I want to take advantage of that.”
Things are different for her now, she further clarifies. At the start of her podcasting journey, she recorded in her room and edited herself, but now, she has access to a professional studio plus a production team. She also has a website dedicated to the podcast with many perks that include —but is not limited to— links for visitors to share their stories and hopefully get invited to the show to come speak on their experience. Thus, she believes that with some of these improvements it only makes sense that revamping the brand identity of her podcast was necessary.
Once a Crush on Fortunes, Always A Fortunate Crush.
Prior to writing this piece, I visited her YouTube channel once again. It was no surprise that her content had evolved drastically. Her video editing skills have gone from amateurish to almost perfect. And her looks —yes her amazingly gorgeous and svelte looks— had gone from “girl with no makeup sitting in her room and beaming with the smile of a thousand suns” to “woman in her apartment, looking peng and still beaming with the smiles of a thousand suns.”
Jessica’s world continues to evolve. Every step she takes brims with a worthy challenge and an adventure to overcome. And with her recent foray into changing the brand identity of her podcast, it is safe to say that Jessica is also actively changing her identity too. It’s safe to assume that she’s actively becoming a woman that’s ready to offer more value and substance to the rest of the world and to herself.
In the final moments of my conversations with Jessica, I told her about my undying admiration [read: love] for her. And even though I couldn’t see her face, I could sense that she smiled. I smiled too. Maybe fortune would favor me boldly someday with her; or maybe not. But I am certain it already favors Jessica and regardless of what her next adventure would be, one thing is certain, I’ll be cheering for her…and most likely, very possibly, still be crushing hard too.
Cheers.
My first time here and I don't want to go. This was really a wonderful read. And Fortune is someone I admire. She's really growing and glowing in her twenties 🥰❤️ I love that!
I sure checked her out. Although the first paragraph got me thinking you had found love.😘