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Inspiration June 15, 2018
The 22-year-old director who's making a name for herself with big time artists' music videos.
Representation is important when it comes to young girls of color. Having someone they can look up to is vital. Karena Evans is truly an inspiration to young black women. Her drive and determination definitely put her where she’s at now.
Nothing is ever easy, but working hard can take you many places.
Karena Evans is the 22-year-old girl that is starting to become well-known in the music industry. Evans was born and raised in Toronto, Canada. Coincidentally, the same place Drake is from.
Evans started her film career by interning for Director X and soon became the director of the company. But music videos aren’t her only specialty. According to konbini.com, she has also worked on projects such as “CBC Arts’ Heartbreak to Art” 10-part series, a Nike Air Max campaign, and created a heartfelt documentary titled “Black Lives Matter.”
All of her hard work definitely paid off and she quickly received praise from her colleagues. Director X stated that “She stayed longer worked harder than everyone else. From intern to the director at my company. Last year grinding on low budget jobs giving big budget results.”
At only 22 years old, Karena Evans has become one of the most sought-after directors.
Interning with Director X for Drake’s “God’s Plan” music video gave Evans exposure. The music video had a one million dollar budget, which he used to perform multiple good deeds around Miami. He donates the money away throughout the video. This video has a great message and is very inspirational. Both her creativity and passion were displayed in this video. Pleasing visuals and aesthetics took over and fans began to pay a bit more attention to Evans’ work.
Drake’s “Nice For What” was the song that highlighted Evans’ versatility on a larger map and made her extremely popular with Drake fans. When this video dropped, Twitter was in shambles. Everyone was praising this video and its message for embracing women of all walks of life. The lack of over-sexualization of women in this video also supported the message of women empowerment.
The music video has over 161 million views on YouTube and is praised for its visuals and cinematic feel. The music video has so many aspects. The use of different locations and the use of color makes it visually enjoyable. You can’t watch the video without feeling uplifted. At such a young age, Karena Evans is proving how valuable she is.
SZA recently dropped her “Garden (Say It Like Dat)” music video, featuring Donald Glover. The music video was directed by Karena Evans. In three weeks, the video has already racked up over five million views on youtube. Evans creatively displays the song’s messaging with color, angles, and a variety of shots.
The video seems to have been a monumental moment for Evans as well. On her Instagram, Evans posted a picture of her and SZA, captioning it “she forreal healed me on this trip and in this very moment. Love u forever.”
Besides being an astounding director, she has also accomplished other things as well. Karena Evans was the first woman to win the 2018 Prism Prize Lipsett Award. According to Prism Prize, “The Lipsett Award is presented to a Canadian music video artist for their innovative and unique approach to music video art.” The Lipsett Award is one of the highest music video recognition awards in Canada.
Along with winning the Lipsett Award, Evans was also signed to William Morris Endeavour (WME), a media company out of Beverly Hills that works with artists and content creators. Evans’ work has been noticed by several media moguls who are praising and supporting her work.
The young artist’s dedication to her craft is an inspiration to not only her fans but her colleagues as well. As a young woman of color, she is making strides and leaving her mark. Karena Evans is genuinely a muse for everyone.
