Introduce yourself, tell us a little bit about you & how you connected with Amber & CultureHype.

My name is Hailey Good & I am a singer/songwriter from Dallas, TX. I started singing when I was basically able to talk & I currently make music with my boyfriend/producer/sound engineer Bradley Rudolph.

I got connected with Amber & CultureHype through a post I saw her tagged in on Instagram. It was a fellow (amazing) musician, M3CCA. I looked her up, liked what I saw & messaged her through the CultureHype website.

What is currently bringing you joy & why?

I try to find joy through the little things each day, but one of the most recent things is my new kitten I got! Her name is Scout & she is the most cuddly kitten in the whole world & I love her so much. She climbs up my leg while I work from home & I feel so loved.

My cat, Kitty (it's a real name I promise!) & my dog, Olive also bring me so much joy & I just love all animals in general!

I've picked up film photography recently because a friend of mine gave me a Nikon FM2 last year & like everyone else, I have had nothing but time to learn & have fun with it. 

 I've also really been enjoying the creative process for my new single (Single Title TBD), from the harmonies all the way to the visuals & music video. It's such a different vibe that Brad & I have created & we are super excited to showcase it to the world!

How did you discover your thing that is bringing you joy? Was there something or someone that inspired you?

My little neighbor kids were playing & found Scout & brought her to us one day to see if we would keep her & it was love at first sight!

As I mentioned before, a friend who is a great photographer (@thflwrgrl) gave me the camera and it was so sweet. She was the one who inspired me & told me if I wanted to really learn photography to learn the basics with analog photography first to make me better.

As far as the single, Brad produced the composition first & after I listened to it, the vulnerability in it inspired me so much that I cried when I heard it & I immediately wrote to it. We've really taken our time with it though & we’re still recording in the harmonies, so I can't wait to see what the ending product sounds like!

How has your thing impacted your daily life or just your life in general?

Analog photography has grown my patience because you have to manually get the exposure correct & sometimes it can get difficult but I love forgetting what I took & then having the film processed & getting happy all over again weeks later. Cutting the film & getting everything scanned in is really meditative.

As much as I am excited about the new single, I am kind of stressed because I am a perfectionist, but thankfully I have God & I have Brad & all of my friends & family's support! 

Putting your mind to something/getting it done & mixing that with something you absolutely love is the best feeling in the world.  

When the pandemic hit back in March, I remember how hard it was to assess my friends & their moods. I have friends in many different places & stages of their lives, so their reactions to what was happening were all over the place. That being said, it took quite some time for the roller coaster of emotions to really set in. It’s safe to say that all of my close friends have gone through extreme highs & lows, with the initial Zoom happy hour overload then to “please leave me alone in my COVID depression” phase.

If there’s one thing that has made me really happy, I’ve noticed that a solid handful of friends have gone further into their existing craft or taken up new projects. With many of us going through phases of unemployment or partial employment, these breaks of work have forced us to try new things or get better at something we once left unfinished after a trip to Michael’s. I wanted to share a few people who I really admire & some of the things they have been working on to keep themselves sane.

Okay, let’s dive in!

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Laura Grasso, Slingin’ Threads at Rad Radish Vintage

If you love vintage, you should peep Laura’s new shop! She decided to take her passion for fashion digital & I’m here for it. She’s got some killer taste. Shop Rad Radish Vintage on IG here.

Abbey Brown, Illustrating Feels

I love Abbey’s drawings because they are so relatable! She’s made some quarantine depictions that are so on point, I could cry. Check out all of Abbey’s work on IG here.

Perla Hernandez, Designing Cool Sh*t at Venus Pearl

Perla makes really rad design work & recently started her own brand called Venus Pearl. If you need a logo, a funky digital artwork, or Harry Styles stickers, she’s your girl. Check out all of Perla’s design work on IG here.

Katie Cooke, Embroidery Wizard

Katie has been diving further into the art of embroidery (with a touch of angst - I LOVE) during quarantine and I’m obsessed. Can we all agree that she needs her own shop? She doesn’t post too much about her projects, but if you want to add her (because she's awesome) or DM her about embroidery or art things, you can find her here.

Sloan Eveningstar, Renovating an RV

My friend Sloan has had a goal of purchasing her own RV for a long time & finally saved enough cash money to purchase this beaut. I’m a bit jealous but newly inspired to live the life of a hippie nomad. Follow her renovation journey on IG stories here.

Amber LaFrance, Makin’ Jewels at Bead Babe

In the thick of quarantine, Amber took her love for jewelry to the next level. I remember when she started really getting into it & it was intense. She turned COVID cabin fever into a new side hustle for herself & I’m here for it. I had a few convos with her about how the pandemic has brought us back to things from our childhood. The 90’s nostalgia in these designs are so comforting & I think that’s something we all need right now! You can shop her new goodies on Etsy here & IG here.

If you are a creative badass or know others with pandemic stories to be shared, please send them my way! I don’t think this COVID hellscape is going anywhere soon, so I think a little creative joy will help us all stay sane.

I would also like to say, it’s okay if you’ve been a useless oaf for the last few months. You’re not required to do anything if you feel like complete & utter sh*t.

If you’re struggling to feel inspired or need to talk about the state of the world, feel free to slide into my DMs. You’re not alone!

XO @wendyingeneral

Here at CultureHype, we love celebrating little victories & anything that brings us joy. We created the “What’s Bringing Me Joy” series to bring you items we really love in hopes to inspire you to revel in the little things that make you smile from ear to ear. Whether you are looking for a new book to read, TV show to binge on the weekend or a new hobby, we guarantee you will find inspiration here! As a diverse staff, our team has interests spanning far and wide from veganism to sustainable fashion to music and much much more.

This is your reminder to do what makes YOU happy. In this time of uncertainty, the one thing you can rely on is yourself, so you might as well find time to do the things you enjoy!

Amber: Nail art inspo! I’m trying new things & learning how to paint my nails/do nail art with my left hand. I obsessively read Who What Wear UK & have been loving all of the new quarantine nail art inspo they post! Another great account I follow for colorful, quirky fashion inspo & nail art ideas is Marianne Theodorsen - she is the queen of color.

Wendy: Spending time with my weenie dog, reading, listening to music & celebrating my friends and their newfound creative projects!

Perla: Supporting vintage & sustainable shops! I’ve been trying to be more conscious about my consumerism. Finding shops that focus on vintage items & shops that ensure ethical production (slow fashion) items.

Kathryn: A print of London that I just ordered! It brings me joy since I can’t travel there right now. London is special to me because I studied abroad there in college & reminds me of such good memories. I ordered the prints from Paper and Cities.

Sola: Slight plug for the Instagram page my closest friends & I started during quarantine. @elucidate.co has brought me a lot of joy because of the content we’re putting out & the feedback I’ve been getting from the people I love. 

Avery: Listening to podcasts. My favorites are career-focused & crime podcasts! I’m loving playing around with nail art too!

Janae: New roller blades that my two best friends surprised me with for my birthday (they spent five hours spray painting them for me). We are all planning to go to a park & skate together!! 

Victoria: Rewatching early 2000’s TV shows like The O.C., Laguna Beach & One Tree Hill (been feeling super nostalgic lately). Also, I interned for the Cowboys last year so I’m super excited that NFL season is back!!

Paige: Checking out books from my local library (the Millennium series has single handedly pulled me from my reading slump), rewatching Game of Thrones with my boyfriend & making pumpkin lattes with my new Nespresso machine!

What’s bringing YOU joy?