WEBVTT - Emelia Hartford: Driving Towards Healing

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<v Speaker 1>This episode contains references to suicide and other sensitive topics.

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<v Speaker 1>Please listen with care and take care. If you or

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<v Speaker 1>someone you know is struggling, call eight hundred two seven

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<v Speaker 1>three eight two fifty five the National Suicide Hotline, or

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<v Speaker 1>call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Hotline

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<v Speaker 1>at one eight hundred sixty six ' two help. That's

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<v Speaker 1>one eight hundred sixty six to two help.

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<v Speaker 2>Welcome to She Pivots. I'm Amelia Hartford.

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to She Pivots, the podcast where we talk with

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<v Speaker 1>women who dared to pivot out of one career and

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<v Speaker 1>into something new and explore how their personal lives impacted

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<v Speaker 1>these decisions. I'm your host, Emily Tish Sussman. Today I'm

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<v Speaker 1>joined by Amelia Hartford, actress best known for her role

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<v Speaker 1>in Grand Turismo, YouTuber and record breaking car builder and

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<v Speaker 1>driver Impressive. We're releasing Amelia's episode today in honor of

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<v Speaker 1>Mental Health Awareness Month because, in addition to her impressive career,

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<v Speaker 1>Amelia is a dedicated advocate for mental health. She sits

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<v Speaker 1>on the board of Alive and Well and has been

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<v Speaker 1>outspoken about her own experiences and struggles from the time

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<v Speaker 1>she was young Amelia always knew she wanted to be

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<v Speaker 1>an actress, and although her childhood was far from perfect,

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<v Speaker 1>life took a turn when she tragically lost her father

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<v Speaker 1>at just fifteen. Her life changed in a day and

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<v Speaker 1>she was forced to grow up quickly. That's when cars

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<v Speaker 1>came into her life and it became her path to healing.

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<v Speaker 1>At the time, she had no idea that one day

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<v Speaker 1>she would make it a career and bring her back

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<v Speaker 1>to her longtime dream of acting. What I love about

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<v Speaker 1>Amelia's story is that her pivot was born out of

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<v Speaker 1>healing and brought her to places and of opportunities she

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<v Speaker 1>couldn't even imagine. With one point five million YouTube subscribers,

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<v Speaker 1>a blockbuster movie, and multiple world records under her belt,

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<v Speaker 1>Amelia has remained grounded throughout it all. I hope you

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<v Speaker 1>enjoyed this episode as much as I did.

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<v Speaker 2>My name is Amelia Hartford. I am an actress, an entrepreneur.

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<v Speaker 2>I build a drive race cars, and I'm also on

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<v Speaker 2>the board of a nonprofit organization called Alive and Well, so.

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<v Speaker 1>We're going to go back. We're going to go back

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<v Speaker 1>to your childhood. Where were you born? I was born.

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<v Speaker 2>I actually just found out that I was born in Upland, California.

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<v Speaker 2>I lived in Westlake Village when I was younger, and

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<v Speaker 2>I found out I was born in Upland because that's

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<v Speaker 2>in San Bernardino, and my IMDb page says I was

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<v Speaker 2>born in San Bordadino, and I was like, oh, that's

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<v Speaker 2>not that's not right. I wasn't born in San Berdandino.

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<v Speaker 2>And we reached out to IMDb and they're like, well, no,

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<v Speaker 2>we actually pulled your records and you are, in fact,

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<v Speaker 2>like born in was like, whoa, that's news. But I

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<v Speaker 2>was born in Upland, California, And yeah, I grew up

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<v Speaker 2>in Westlake Village area, which for those who don't know

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<v Speaker 2>where that is, it's about an hour northwest ish of

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<v Speaker 2>Los Angeles. So I lived close enough to be near LA,

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<v Speaker 2>but far enough to where, you know, as a kid,

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<v Speaker 2>we never really made the drive to Los Angeles. My

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<v Speaker 2>dad was an aspiring producer and writer, so I always

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<v Speaker 2>knew him as writing scripts, trying to produce and make

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<v Speaker 2>stuff happen. But I also never felt like we were

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<v Speaker 2>in the business because all I saw was the work

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<v Speaker 2>he did at home. There was maybe one or two

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<v Speaker 2>times as a kid, I want to set to kind

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<v Speaker 2>of see that whole experience because I always wanted to act,

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<v Speaker 2>so my dad thought it'd be cool to bring me

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<v Speaker 2>to set a couple times and get to I think

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<v Speaker 2>his intention was to talk me out of it to

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<v Speaker 2>be a lawyer.

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<v Speaker 1>So you always wanted to be an actors? What turns

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<v Speaker 1>it on for you?

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<v Speaker 2>I always wanted to be an actress, and more so

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<v Speaker 2>because you don't remember, at least I don't remember a

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<v Speaker 2>lot when I was younger. So my mom's actually the

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<v Speaker 2>one who would always tell me, like, ever since you

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<v Speaker 2>could talk, it's the only thing you ever wanted to do.

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<v Speaker 2>And I know it sounds silly, and I feel like

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<v Speaker 2>you hear a lot of people say this, but as

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<v Speaker 2>a kid, you just love playing pretend. And then I

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<v Speaker 2>think I just never really grew out of the love

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<v Speaker 2>of wanting to explore these other I guess ways of

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<v Speaker 2>life and these characters, and it's just something that, like,

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<v Speaker 2>I really love to do. And when I was younger,

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<v Speaker 2>I didn't fully understand it to the way I do today,

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<v Speaker 2>but it was just fun. There was a career where

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<v Speaker 2>I got to continue to play, and that's what I

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<v Speaker 2>wanted to do.

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<v Speaker 1>Despite growing up in an idyllic community. Amelia's childhood was

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<v Speaker 1>far from perfect. Her upbringing was riddled with conflict and

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<v Speaker 1>pain that would influence her for years to come.

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<v Speaker 2>So I make it sound like my upbringing was really sweet,

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<v Speaker 2>from Westlake Village, a suburban community, and my dad taking

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<v Speaker 2>me to sets and all that. But I don't know

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<v Speaker 2>if I've talked too much about it. I feel like

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<v Speaker 2>as I'm getting older, I'm getting a little more vocal

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<v Speaker 2>with it. My dad had addiction issues growing up, and

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<v Speaker 2>he unfortunately also suffered a lot of mental health issues,

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<v Speaker 2>and in return, I hate he was abusive and it

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<v Speaker 2>was both physical and mental. But it was definitely a

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<v Speaker 2>hard upbringing. And my mom was a stay at home mom,

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<v Speaker 2>and it got worse as we got older.

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<v Speaker 1>As things got worse at home, they moved Amelia from

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<v Speaker 1>school to school as she struggled to cope with it all.

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<v Speaker 2>Because things at home had gotten so bad that I

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<v Speaker 2>wasn't trying in school. So I think I was just

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<v Speaker 2>going through such a hard time that I just stopped

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<v Speaker 2>caring in school because I was like, what's the point

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<v Speaker 2>I want to act? No one can tell me why

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<v Speaker 2>I need to know math. I don't care. I just

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<v Speaker 2>need to get through this point where I can either

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<v Speaker 2>emancipate myself or move out.

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<v Speaker 1>Then, when Amelia was a junior, the unimaginable happened.

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<v Speaker 2>But it was at that third year in high school

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<v Speaker 2>and my dad actually took his own life. He shot

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<v Speaker 2>himself in the head. And I was the only one

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<v Speaker 2>home with him that week when it had happened. And

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<v Speaker 2>that was definitely a huge shake up in my life

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<v Speaker 2>because although there was a abuse to the family, substance

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<v Speaker 2>abuse to himself, he was still my dad and I

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<v Speaker 2>still looked up to him. Even though it's kind of

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<v Speaker 2>crazy to be like, oh, you looked up to that,

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<v Speaker 2>But at the end of the day, he was my dad.

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<v Speaker 2>It's not always negative, like you can cry and laugh.

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<v Speaker 1>At the same time, the loss of her father reverberated

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<v Speaker 1>throughout her life. Her mother was now alone with two

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<v Speaker 1>kids and little to no work experience, So her mom

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<v Speaker 1>made the decision to go back to school and move

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<v Speaker 1>Amelia and her siblings closer to her family in the Midwest,

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<v Speaker 1>something that wasn't easy for Amelia.

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<v Speaker 2>We now have to uproot and move to Indiana because

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<v Speaker 2>she wants to be closer to a family who were

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<v Speaker 2>in Illinois. She couldn't afford the cost of living and

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<v Speaker 2>decided to go back to school. And I had to

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<v Speaker 2>grow up very quickly because there was no one who

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<v Speaker 2>was going to take care of me. I didn't have,

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<v Speaker 2>like I guess, I just always thought I had that

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<v Speaker 2>safety in my back pocket of there being my dad,

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<v Speaker 2>of like, oh, how do I save my money? How

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<v Speaker 2>do I buy my first car? Like the things that

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<v Speaker 2>I just, I guess, without really thinking, assumed I'd be

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<v Speaker 2>able to lean on him for And that's when I

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<v Speaker 2>had to grow up a little and realize that if

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<v Speaker 2>the thing's gonna if I'm gonna learn anything in this life,

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<v Speaker 2>ornything's gonna happen. I don't want to say I'm on

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<v Speaker 2>my own, because you know, I grew to have peers,

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<v Speaker 2>and obviously my mom was there, but it was I

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<v Speaker 2>wanted to take care of my mom. I wanted to

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<v Speaker 2>be the person who could kind of take care of

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<v Speaker 2>myself also, And that's kind of what shifted for me.

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<v Speaker 2>And I didn't understand at the time why she would

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<v Speaker 2>want to move. And I was kind of at this

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<v Speaker 2>rebellious age of just kind of being mad at the

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<v Speaker 2>world over everything. As I've grown older. My mom's my hero.

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<v Speaker 2>The fact that she went through that and handled the

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<v Speaker 2>way she did and is still here today after I

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<v Speaker 2>mean they were still married up until he took his life.

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<v Speaker 2>She might not have the nicest things to say about him,

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<v Speaker 2>but her going through that was the role model that

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<v Speaker 2>I had in my life, whether I realized it or not.

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<v Speaker 1>At this point, a Million felt trapped, trapped by her family,

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<v Speaker 1>by the move by life, and she saw cars as

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<v Speaker 1>the way to freedom. Here's a clip of her talking

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<v Speaker 1>about it on the broad Ideas podcast with Rachel Bilson

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<v Speaker 1>and Olivia Allen.

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<v Speaker 3>All Right, I need a car. I need that sense

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<v Speaker 3>of freedom and escape and I need to get out.

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<v Speaker 3>What car do I buy myself?

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<v Speaker 2>But before moving to Indiana again, one of the big

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<v Speaker 2>decisions in my life is what car was going to

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<v Speaker 2>buy myself. I went on the internet. The Internet told

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<v Speaker 2>me I needed something real drive, a stick shift, and

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<v Speaker 2>bigger than a four cylinder. And I bought this Infinity

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<v Speaker 2>G thirty five for my first car. It was a

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<v Speaker 2>manual six cylinder where will drive fun little JDM twudor

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<v Speaker 2>and it was bright green. It was super flashy looking

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<v Speaker 2>and I loved it. And that's the car. I drove

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<v Speaker 2>from California to Indiana, and while I was out there,

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<v Speaker 2>I had one of my friends in the passenger seat

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<v Speaker 2>of my car and we're out of light in Bloomington, Indiana,

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<v Speaker 2>and this old Crownvic like they're what the old cop

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<v Speaker 2>cars were pulled up next to us at the light,

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<v Speaker 2>and my friend yells out the window, don't you love

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<v Speaker 2>my friend's car? And I was like, Jessica, you're being

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<v Speaker 2>so embarrassing right now. But his name's Deo, and Dao

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<v Speaker 2>was like, I do, Actually, you should consider coming to

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<v Speaker 2>one of our car meets, and I was like, oh,

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<v Speaker 2>that sounds fun. So he hands out the window like

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<v Speaker 2>a little time and an address of war to show

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<v Speaker 2>up to, and it happened to be like a couple

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<v Speaker 2>days later. My friend didn't come with me, And in hindsight,

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<v Speaker 2>I'm like, why is this sixteen year old girl showing

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<v Speaker 2>up to this parking garage in the middle of the

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<v Speaker 2>night in Indiana to go meet this random guy and whatever?

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<v Speaker 2>Like I don't in hindsight, I'm like, what the fuck? Sorry,

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<v Speaker 2>language was I thinking? But I ended up going and

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<v Speaker 2>I think I was just like I didn't have that

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<v Speaker 2>thought of like what if, and I don't think I've

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<v Speaker 2>ever really had that what's planned B or stuff like

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<v Speaker 2>that just went. But that's where I met B Crew

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<v Speaker 2>B for Bloomington and then Crew. And that's also where

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<v Speaker 2>I met Booch, who is still one of my closest

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<v Speaker 2>friends to this day. He became my first mentor. I'm

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<v Speaker 2>actually one of the groomsmen at his wedding this year.

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<v Speaker 1>That's amazing.

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<v Speaker 2>And the guys kind of became my found family and

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<v Speaker 2>they pulled me out of this really dark time and

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<v Speaker 2>you know, instead of partying on the weekends, which don't

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<v Speaker 2>get me wrong, there was a fair share of they

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<v Speaker 2>really helped pull me out of that and I began

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<v Speaker 2>upgrading turbos and swapping engines and just kind of working

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<v Speaker 2>on cars, which was everything I needed at that time.

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<v Speaker 1>Without realizing it, Amelia's love for cars became her lifeline

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<v Speaker 1>as she slowly healed from the loss of her father.

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<v Speaker 2>It was fun, it was a great distraction, and they

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<v Speaker 2>kind of opened me up to a world where I

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<v Speaker 2>could take something, tear it apart, and make it better

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<v Speaker 2>or faster than what it was previously. And I had

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<v Speaker 2>always done that in my life, like when I had

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<v Speaker 2>an Xbox. When I was little, I would get the

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<v Speaker 2>Red Ring of Death and I would tear it apart,

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<v Speaker 2>and you're supposed to stack it with pennies, and I'd

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<v Speaker 2>put it all back together. And I just liked the

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<v Speaker 2>element of taking things apart, seeing how they worked and

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<v Speaker 2>doing that. So when I got introduced to that for cars,

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<v Speaker 2>it everything just clicked at that point. And it was

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<v Speaker 2>also great because I feel like I've had a found

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<v Speaker 2>family now wherever I travel, there's a car community somewhere everywhere.

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<v Speaker 1>Still, while her love for cars grew, her dream of

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<v Speaker 1>being an actress always played in the back of her mind.

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<v Speaker 1>When we come back, Amelia talks about revisiting her longtime

0:12:49.920 --> 0:12:59.000
<v Speaker 1>dream of being an actress. Now back to the show.

0:12:59.520 --> 0:13:03.440
<v Speaker 2>I started getting this feeling of like my time years up,

0:13:04.240 --> 0:13:07.839
<v Speaker 2>like I'm ready to go back and chase this dream.

0:13:08.200 --> 0:13:11.240
<v Speaker 2>I actually couldn't turn on the television without feeling guilty

0:13:11.360 --> 0:13:15.080
<v Speaker 2>that I wasn't pursuing the one, like literally the one

0:13:15.080 --> 0:13:17.959
<v Speaker 2>thing I wanted to do in life. It's funny because

0:13:17.960 --> 0:13:20.560
<v Speaker 2>I like tried auditioning for the school play and I

0:13:20.640 --> 0:13:25.200
<v Speaker 2>didn't get in, and I was trying to actually apply

0:13:25.440 --> 0:13:29.800
<v Speaker 2>to like acting colleges like I tried applying to USC.

0:13:30.320 --> 0:13:33.240
<v Speaker 2>There was a Wellington, which was a school in New

0:13:33.320 --> 0:13:35.480
<v Speaker 2>Zealand that had a big focus on I was going

0:13:35.520 --> 0:13:37.839
<v Speaker 2>to try to I listen. I didn't have the money

0:13:37.840 --> 0:13:39.760
<v Speaker 2>to do it. I was just applying to see what

0:13:39.800 --> 0:13:43.880
<v Speaker 2>would happen and then figure it out from there. I also,

0:13:44.520 --> 0:13:50.000
<v Speaker 2>from going through everything I had went through, I felt

0:13:50.120 --> 0:13:54.880
<v Speaker 2>that I wasn't going to get what I needed from

0:13:54.920 --> 0:13:59.000
<v Speaker 2>a typical education because everything I went through I had,

0:13:59.080 --> 0:14:03.480
<v Speaker 2>I was like doing firsthand to learn. So something in

0:14:03.520 --> 0:14:05.840
<v Speaker 2>my gut was like, you need to just move back

0:14:05.880 --> 0:14:10.760
<v Speaker 2>to Los Angeles and just try to get work. And

0:14:11.080 --> 0:14:14.480
<v Speaker 2>I packed my little two door Japanese car I had

0:14:14.600 --> 0:14:16.959
<v Speaker 2>had another one at that point, whatever I could fit

0:14:17.000 --> 0:14:22.119
<v Speaker 2>in it, drove cross country and started this crazy adventure.

0:14:22.520 --> 0:14:24.000
<v Speaker 2>At that point, what.

0:14:23.960 --> 0:14:25.800
<v Speaker 1>Did you do when you showed up in LA? You're like,

0:14:25.800 --> 0:14:27.840
<v Speaker 1>all right, I'm in the city limits, Like where did

0:14:27.880 --> 0:14:28.240
<v Speaker 1>you go?

0:14:28.960 --> 0:14:31.280
<v Speaker 2>So I felt like I didn't even know La because

0:14:31.280 --> 0:14:34.040
<v Speaker 2>I didn't spend time here as a kid. I got

0:14:34.080 --> 0:14:37.400
<v Speaker 2>this little apartment in North Hollywood, But like.

0:14:37.360 --> 0:14:39.560
<v Speaker 1>How did you find the first apartment? Like where did

0:14:39.560 --> 0:14:42.359
<v Speaker 1>you literally go when you when you showed up Craigslist,

0:14:43.040 --> 0:14:43.840
<v Speaker 1>of course.

0:14:43.840 --> 0:14:46.760
<v Speaker 2>I and I still use like I still like I

0:14:46.840 --> 0:14:51.840
<v Speaker 2>buy cars off Craigslist today, Like I did everything on Craigslist,

0:14:52.000 --> 0:14:56.080
<v Speaker 2>and all my furniture was there from there too. So

0:14:56.200 --> 0:14:59.600
<v Speaker 2>I had previously come out to like kind of apartment,

0:15:00.920 --> 0:15:03.560
<v Speaker 2>and then I went on Craigslist. I tried to find

0:15:03.800 --> 0:15:06.720
<v Speaker 2>not only as I tried to find the most affordable apartment,

0:15:07.120 --> 0:15:08.760
<v Speaker 2>I also had to go see to make sure that

0:15:08.800 --> 0:15:11.600
<v Speaker 2>my car could make it up the driveway because I

0:15:11.720 --> 0:15:16.400
<v Speaker 2>drove a really low car that had no air conditioning,

0:15:16.480 --> 0:15:19.400
<v Speaker 2>was extremely loud, and I, you know, I realized after

0:15:19.640 --> 0:15:23.760
<v Speaker 2>a couple of years of being here, going to auditions

0:15:23.760 --> 0:15:26.560
<v Speaker 2>where I had sweat all down the back of my shirt,

0:15:26.680 --> 0:15:29.200
<v Speaker 2>my makeup was runny, my hair was frizzy, I'm like, okay,

0:15:29.480 --> 0:15:31.680
<v Speaker 2>and I'd break down sometimes I'm like, all right, I

0:15:31.720 --> 0:15:34.880
<v Speaker 2>need a reliable car for transportation that has air conditioning.

0:15:35.080 --> 0:15:36.760
<v Speaker 1>You're like, this might not be helping me.

0:15:38.760 --> 0:15:41.720
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, yeah, I found. I ended up finding this place

0:15:41.840 --> 0:15:45.880
<v Speaker 2>that I then signed a lease. It was rent controlled,

0:15:45.960 --> 0:15:49.760
<v Speaker 2>which was super helpful for me at the time, and

0:15:50.280 --> 0:15:51.240
<v Speaker 2>I moved in.

0:15:52.120 --> 0:15:54.040
<v Speaker 1>What kind of jobs did you work when you got.

0:15:53.880 --> 0:15:58.360
<v Speaker 2>To La Everything was food and service so I worked

0:15:58.400 --> 0:16:00.960
<v Speaker 2>as I started as a bus and then I went

0:16:01.040 --> 0:16:04.120
<v Speaker 2>as a host, and then I started waiting tables, and

0:16:04.200 --> 0:16:07.280
<v Speaker 2>I did food and service for six years before starting YouTube.

0:16:08.160 --> 0:16:10.720
<v Speaker 1>So you kept up with the cars the whole time.

0:16:11.000 --> 0:16:12.480
<v Speaker 1>Tell us a little bit about like did you keep

0:16:12.520 --> 0:16:15.000
<v Speaker 1>it up? Like what did the car piece look like

0:16:15.000 --> 0:16:15.240
<v Speaker 1>for you?

0:16:16.000 --> 0:16:18.200
<v Speaker 2>So I was continue to work in my car. I

0:16:18.240 --> 0:16:21.480
<v Speaker 2>had to keep it running in order to get to work,

0:16:21.680 --> 0:16:24.560
<v Speaker 2>and I couldn't afford to take it to shops, and

0:16:24.760 --> 0:16:29.120
<v Speaker 2>the couple shops I hadn't taken it too, I felt

0:16:29.160 --> 0:16:33.800
<v Speaker 2>like I was always taking either overpaying or I'd get

0:16:33.840 --> 0:16:35.600
<v Speaker 2>my car back and there'd be a new issue that

0:16:35.720 --> 0:16:40.200
<v Speaker 2>wasn't there before, and the math wasn't mathing. So I

0:16:40.240 --> 0:16:42.360
<v Speaker 2>was like, in order to like, I just need to

0:16:42.400 --> 0:16:44.800
<v Speaker 2>keep doing it myself because I can at least trust that.

0:16:45.320 --> 0:16:48.400
<v Speaker 2>And it was also just fun. And so when I

0:16:48.520 --> 0:16:53.880
<v Speaker 2>wasn't working at a restaurant, I was at Samuel French

0:16:54.200 --> 0:16:57.080
<v Speaker 2>reading every play I could. I'd bought the agent and

0:16:57.160 --> 0:17:00.000
<v Speaker 2>manage your books, and I put together a little package

0:17:00.200 --> 0:17:03.800
<v Speaker 2>and cold mailed everyone. I thought it could be a

0:17:03.880 --> 0:17:07.520
<v Speaker 2>right fit to work together, and I was signing up

0:17:07.520 --> 0:17:11.320
<v Speaker 2>on casting director workshops, and I would print little headshot

0:17:11.359 --> 0:17:15.000
<v Speaker 2>cards and mail them the casting directors, and I did

0:17:15.359 --> 0:17:17.639
<v Speaker 2>everything I could on that front. And then when I

0:17:17.680 --> 0:17:19.920
<v Speaker 2>wasn't doing that, I was tinkering with my car.

0:17:20.600 --> 0:17:22.920
<v Speaker 1>So the car tinkering ended up kind of being out

0:17:22.960 --> 0:17:26.280
<v Speaker 1>of necessity, but keep done some serious builds. Was that

0:17:26.720 --> 0:17:29.440
<v Speaker 1>during that period when it was when you were doing

0:17:29.520 --> 0:17:30.040
<v Speaker 1>the builds?

0:17:30.720 --> 0:17:33.480
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, I think it was more just tinkering out of

0:17:33.520 --> 0:17:39.560
<v Speaker 2>necessity and just upkeep and routine maintenance and necessary upgrades.

0:17:40.200 --> 0:17:44.880
<v Speaker 2>And I after six years of mind you, it took

0:17:44.920 --> 0:17:47.360
<v Speaker 2>me nine years of being in LA before I got

0:17:47.359 --> 0:17:52.000
<v Speaker 2>my first opportunity in acting, after six years of working

0:17:52.040 --> 0:17:57.480
<v Speaker 2>in a restaurant. It was actually my mom who was like, honey,

0:17:57.720 --> 0:18:00.080
<v Speaker 2>you're always working on your cars. Have you ever thought

0:18:00.119 --> 0:18:04.000
<v Speaker 2>about filming it and putting it on YouTube? And I

0:18:04.119 --> 0:18:08.040
<v Speaker 2>remember so clear as like YouTube, please, Mom, What do

0:18:08.080 --> 0:18:13.160
<v Speaker 2>you know about YouTube? Moms are always right though, And

0:18:13.680 --> 0:18:19.760
<v Speaker 2>around the same time there was Vice Media. They were

0:18:20.320 --> 0:18:26.440
<v Speaker 2>putting together to help launch Michelin tires new PS four

0:18:26.560 --> 0:18:29.399
<v Speaker 2>US tire, which it's funny at a lot of you

0:18:29.480 --> 0:18:32.920
<v Speaker 2>listening might actually have that tire on your car, and

0:18:33.920 --> 0:18:38.679
<v Speaker 2>they wanted more women representation at this event because the

0:18:38.720 --> 0:18:42.760
<v Speaker 2>space is very male dominated and I had no followers

0:18:42.800 --> 0:18:44.680
<v Speaker 2>on my Instagram, but I think I was doing I

0:18:44.760 --> 0:18:47.080
<v Speaker 2>had a subrou at one point because I thought, well,

0:18:47.080 --> 0:18:50.159
<v Speaker 2>this will be more reliable than my other car, which

0:18:50.480 --> 0:18:53.520
<v Speaker 2>they're not, and I was I posted a photo like

0:18:53.600 --> 0:18:59.399
<v Speaker 2>doing breaks or something on my Subaru and someone Advice

0:19:00.160 --> 0:19:05.520
<v Speaker 2>had seen this post on Instagram thought we should reach out.

0:19:05.600 --> 0:19:08.399
<v Speaker 2>And I remember I was one of the restaurants I

0:19:08.480 --> 0:19:11.120
<v Speaker 2>was working out where I was like, oh, Vice Media

0:19:11.160 --> 0:19:14.400
<v Speaker 2>just reached out to me. This was like right around

0:19:14.400 --> 0:19:16.400
<v Speaker 2>the same time my mom was pressing me to do YouTube.

0:19:16.680 --> 0:19:19.280
<v Speaker 2>They want me to come just meet them and Michelin

0:19:19.400 --> 0:19:23.120
<v Speaker 2>and be a part of this event for the new

0:19:23.200 --> 0:19:25.239
<v Speaker 2>tire and I was so proud. I went to my

0:19:25.280 --> 0:19:28.280
<v Speaker 2>boss and he was so stoked for me. He's like, yeah, absolutely.

0:19:28.280 --> 0:19:29.760
<v Speaker 2>I was like, I need to take three days off.

0:19:29.800 --> 0:19:32.199
<v Speaker 2>He's like, you can do this, go do it. And

0:19:32.280 --> 0:19:37.879
<v Speaker 2>I like went and I saw these guys screaming at

0:19:37.920 --> 0:19:41.760
<v Speaker 2>a camera and I was like, this is YouTube. If

0:19:41.760 --> 0:19:44.399
<v Speaker 2>they could do it, I can do it. And these

0:19:44.440 --> 0:19:48.080
<v Speaker 2>guys are have I still talk to them today. They

0:19:48.280 --> 0:19:53.119
<v Speaker 2>were hugely helpful to where my career is today, and

0:19:53.200 --> 0:19:56.120
<v Speaker 2>they were so supportive because they also wanted to help,

0:19:56.160 --> 0:19:58.000
<v Speaker 2>like they wanted to see other women in the space

0:19:58.040 --> 0:20:01.080
<v Speaker 2>as well, so they were like, this is the camera

0:20:01.160 --> 0:20:02.800
<v Speaker 2>you want to get, and you want to put this

0:20:02.840 --> 0:20:05.240
<v Speaker 2>little fuzzy thing on. It was a G seven X

0:20:05.240 --> 0:20:07.359
<v Speaker 2>for those who knows cameras, and they're like, you should

0:20:07.359 --> 0:20:09.720
<v Speaker 2>put this little fuzzy thing on the mic for wind noise,

0:20:09.760 --> 0:20:12.200
<v Speaker 2>and this is the editing software we recommend you use,

0:20:12.280 --> 0:20:14.600
<v Speaker 2>and blah blah blah. And they kind of gave me

0:20:14.640 --> 0:20:16.600
<v Speaker 2>the foundation for what I needed and they're like, if

0:20:16.600 --> 0:20:20.080
<v Speaker 2>you have any questions, like, we're happy to be here

0:20:20.440 --> 0:20:22.600
<v Speaker 2>to help guide you. Obviously they're not going to do

0:20:22.640 --> 0:20:25.000
<v Speaker 2>the work for me. Nobody is. But if I needed

0:20:25.240 --> 0:20:27.320
<v Speaker 2>a little bit of advice here or there, they were

0:20:27.359 --> 0:20:30.720
<v Speaker 2>there for me. And when I got back, I am

0:20:30.760 --> 0:20:35.520
<v Speaker 2>not exaggerating when I say the story. I spent every

0:20:35.560 --> 0:20:38.879
<v Speaker 2>single penny in my bank account to buy a G

0:20:39.040 --> 0:20:43.720
<v Speaker 2>seven X and I bought it off Craigslist and I

0:20:43.760 --> 0:20:47.840
<v Speaker 2>met this guy at a random gas station and if

0:20:47.880 --> 0:20:50.280
<v Speaker 2>I remember correctly, it didn't even come with a battery.

0:20:50.480 --> 0:20:51.919
<v Speaker 2>So then I had to go save money to go

0:20:51.960 --> 0:20:53.840
<v Speaker 2>buy a battery for this camera and then go get

0:20:53.840 --> 0:20:58.679
<v Speaker 2>like SD cards and my first video, which I was

0:20:59.200 --> 0:21:02.840
<v Speaker 2>intimidated to do, but I also did plenty of research

0:21:02.920 --> 0:21:06.080
<v Speaker 2>to see what performed, what did well on YouTube, what

0:21:06.359 --> 0:21:09.359
<v Speaker 2>space and category was I putting myself in with the

0:21:09.400 --> 0:21:13.280
<v Speaker 2>cars that I'd be making content with, and what kind

0:21:13.359 --> 0:21:17.720
<v Speaker 2>of objective or through line should there be. So my

0:21:17.840 --> 0:21:22.720
<v Speaker 2>first video was walking around my Nissan two forty SX,

0:21:23.119 --> 0:21:26.440
<v Speaker 2>which was the car that I drove from Indiana to California.

0:21:26.760 --> 0:21:32.280
<v Speaker 2>And my idea was, and what I had voiced to

0:21:33.119 --> 0:21:37.320
<v Speaker 2>my non existent audience at the time, was I'm this

0:21:37.400 --> 0:21:39.920
<v Speaker 2>is my car. And I just did ten minutes walking

0:21:40.000 --> 0:21:42.600
<v Speaker 2>around the car, showing it, talking about it all the

0:21:42.600 --> 0:21:45.800
<v Speaker 2>things that needed to get done. And I set a goal,

0:21:46.040 --> 0:21:49.880
<v Speaker 2>and my goal was I'm going to rebuild this car

0:21:49.920 --> 0:21:52.800
<v Speaker 2>because I'd been sitting for a long time and learn

0:21:52.880 --> 0:21:54.439
<v Speaker 2>how to drift in one month.

0:21:55.720 --> 0:22:01.560
<v Speaker 3>Hi guys, I'm Amelia miss Amelia on Instagram, and welcome

0:22:01.600 --> 0:22:06.000
<v Speaker 3>to my first blog. I've decided to start blogging the

0:22:06.080 --> 0:22:08.359
<v Speaker 3>build of my two forty that I've had for five

0:22:08.440 --> 0:22:13.359
<v Speaker 3>years now. Okay, guys, so as you can see those.

0:22:13.240 --> 0:22:17.320
<v Speaker 2>Car, it's a lot of work, but I'm excited for it.

0:22:17.359 --> 0:22:18.320
<v Speaker 1>I think it'll be fun.

0:22:19.200 --> 0:22:28.840
<v Speaker 3>There's a lot to do, but yeah, bye bye.

0:22:29.000 --> 0:22:34.440
<v Speaker 2>And the first video did half a million views and

0:22:34.960 --> 0:22:37.959
<v Speaker 2>I wasn't expecting it. I uploaded the video I want

0:22:38.040 --> 0:22:41.000
<v Speaker 2>snowboarding in the mountains and I had no service, and

0:22:41.480 --> 0:22:43.640
<v Speaker 2>as I was coming down the mountain, I'm like looking

0:22:43.680 --> 0:22:46.439
<v Speaker 2>at him, like, oh my god, it's done. You know,

0:22:46.480 --> 0:22:48.400
<v Speaker 2>first it was ten thousand views, then it's done twenty,

0:22:48.480 --> 0:22:50.200
<v Speaker 2>that's done, one hundred, and I'm like, oh my god,

0:22:50.240 --> 0:22:54.199
<v Speaker 2>like this is like, this is crazy. And I was like, okay,

0:22:54.280 --> 0:22:57.639
<v Speaker 2>well I have to keep doing it, Like I can't

0:22:57.680 --> 0:23:00.199
<v Speaker 2>just not do it now. This this is it. So

0:23:01.280 --> 0:23:04.879
<v Speaker 2>ever since then, i'd been doing three videos a week

0:23:05.119 --> 0:23:09.280
<v Speaker 2>for the last seven years, really six years the last

0:23:09.359 --> 0:23:13.080
<v Speaker 2>year after booking Grand Turismo. I'm always going to continue

0:23:13.119 --> 0:23:16.280
<v Speaker 2>to do YouTube, but I've tailored it back to one

0:23:16.400 --> 0:23:18.440
<v Speaker 2>video a week so I can also have a good

0:23:18.560 --> 0:23:22.159
<v Speaker 2>light work life balance, because I want to do this forever.

0:23:22.680 --> 0:23:24.840
<v Speaker 2>And I see a lot of other creators get burnt

0:23:24.880 --> 0:23:29.359
<v Speaker 2>out because of how taxing this job can be on

0:23:29.400 --> 0:23:32.280
<v Speaker 2>your mental and your physical. So I'm like, let me

0:23:32.320 --> 0:23:34.720
<v Speaker 2>get ahead of it, let me tailor it down. So

0:23:34.800 --> 0:23:37.480
<v Speaker 2>I can have longevity because I don't, like, I have

0:23:37.600 --> 0:23:41.960
<v Speaker 2>such an incredible audience that I feel like they're my friends,

0:23:42.000 --> 0:23:43.720
<v Speaker 2>and I feel like I can't just not call my

0:23:43.800 --> 0:23:44.879
<v Speaker 2>friends anymore, you know.

0:23:45.880 --> 0:23:49.040
<v Speaker 1>So I want to hear what your intention was when

0:23:49.040 --> 0:23:51.600
<v Speaker 1>you say that you were very intentional about like what

0:23:51.640 --> 0:23:54.719
<v Speaker 1>the through line was, what the content was, how it

0:23:54.760 --> 0:23:57.639
<v Speaker 1>was positioning, like how you thought it about it going

0:23:57.720 --> 0:24:01.399
<v Speaker 1>in as you started it, and then it did it evolve?

0:24:02.240 --> 0:24:04.919
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, So my initial through line was I'm going to

0:24:04.920 --> 0:24:06.800
<v Speaker 2>build this car and learn how to drift in one month.

0:24:06.840 --> 0:24:09.320
<v Speaker 2>It was a tangible goal that I could try to

0:24:09.359 --> 0:24:11.800
<v Speaker 2>achieve and it was something that the audience could understand.

0:24:12.000 --> 0:24:15.000
<v Speaker 2>What's the purpose. And it's funny because, like, again, I

0:24:15.080 --> 0:24:18.360
<v Speaker 2>had no money. I was on food stamps three different times,

0:24:18.920 --> 0:24:20.719
<v Speaker 2>and I put out this video and I'm just like,

0:24:21.000 --> 0:24:23.160
<v Speaker 2>I feel like I just lied to everyone, because how

0:24:23.200 --> 0:24:25.680
<v Speaker 2>the fuck am I going to afford parts? I can't

0:24:25.680 --> 0:24:28.040
<v Speaker 2>even change my oil without getting threatened to viction in

0:24:28.080 --> 0:24:33.399
<v Speaker 2>my parking garage. And through the first video, I had

0:24:33.520 --> 0:24:35.640
<v Speaker 2>one person reach out who became a friend, who then

0:24:35.720 --> 0:24:39.000
<v Speaker 2>reached connected me to another person who it kind of

0:24:39.040 --> 0:24:42.680
<v Speaker 2>snowballed into some person like people letting me borrow their

0:24:42.720 --> 0:24:45.840
<v Speaker 2>tools and some people selling me parts for cheap because

0:24:46.160 --> 0:24:49.760
<v Speaker 2>they could let them go. And it just like, I

0:24:49.880 --> 0:24:54.679
<v Speaker 2>love the car community because they were so willing to

0:24:55.240 --> 0:24:58.919
<v Speaker 2>help at a time just to wanting to see a

0:24:58.960 --> 0:25:03.240
<v Speaker 2>fellow audi enthusiastic person succeed with their goal. So everyone

0:25:03.359 --> 0:25:06.439
<v Speaker 2>was hugely supportive. And it was crazy because people say,

0:25:06.520 --> 0:25:08.919
<v Speaker 2>leap in the net will appear, and that was like

0:25:09.119 --> 0:25:12.159
<v Speaker 2>the first time that I really saw that happen. And

0:25:12.200 --> 0:25:15.320
<v Speaker 2>then slowly I started making money on the videos I

0:25:15.400 --> 0:25:17.840
<v Speaker 2>was posting, and don't get me wrong, they didn't all

0:25:17.880 --> 0:25:20.200
<v Speaker 2>do half a mil. That was just the first one.

0:25:20.240 --> 0:25:22.240
<v Speaker 2>Then when I started posting again, then they were doing

0:25:22.240 --> 0:25:25.800
<v Speaker 2>like twenty thousand, forty thousand, and then everything just kind

0:25:25.840 --> 0:25:29.480
<v Speaker 2>of evolved from there and grew larger than what I

0:25:29.520 --> 0:25:31.160
<v Speaker 2>could have ever imagined.

0:25:31.960 --> 0:25:36.000
<v Speaker 1>Then you became very accomplished in cars and as a

0:25:36.040 --> 0:25:40.479
<v Speaker 1>creator in YouTube, and then you came I'd say, back

0:25:40.640 --> 0:25:43.280
<v Speaker 1>to acting, because I guess, did you ever really leave it?

0:25:43.320 --> 0:25:44.879
<v Speaker 1>Liked was there ever a point where you're like, you

0:25:44.960 --> 0:25:47.359
<v Speaker 1>know what, this YouTube thing is really working out for me?

0:25:47.480 --> 0:25:49.280
<v Speaker 1>Or you were or you were always trying to get

0:25:49.280 --> 0:25:49.600
<v Speaker 1>back to.

0:25:49.520 --> 0:25:54.240
<v Speaker 2>Acting I've always wanted to do acting. I couldn't afford

0:25:54.280 --> 0:25:56.600
<v Speaker 2>to do acting class at a certain point because I

0:25:56.640 --> 0:25:58.679
<v Speaker 2>was just trying to pay my rent, and I just

0:25:58.760 --> 0:26:02.160
<v Speaker 2>I felt so guilty because I really am so I'm

0:26:02.160 --> 0:26:03.720
<v Speaker 2>such a believer and if you have a dream, go

0:26:03.800 --> 0:26:06.600
<v Speaker 2>after it, and I just felt so guilty that I

0:26:06.680 --> 0:26:10.119
<v Speaker 2>wasn't going after it. That I do think sometimes you

0:26:10.200 --> 0:26:14.760
<v Speaker 2>need to step aside to reassess, build, and plan in

0:26:14.840 --> 0:26:17.000
<v Speaker 2>order to go back to doing something. Otherwise it's like,

0:26:17.040 --> 0:26:20.560
<v Speaker 2>if you do what's that saying? The definition of insanity

0:26:20.680 --> 0:26:22.920
<v Speaker 2>is doing the same thing every day and expecting different results.

0:26:23.560 --> 0:26:28.600
<v Speaker 2>So being able to step aside and create this family

0:26:29.119 --> 0:26:33.400
<v Speaker 2>also business on YouTube, it gave me, and I say

0:26:33.400 --> 0:26:37.119
<v Speaker 2>financial freedom lightly, but it gave me the freedom to

0:26:37.920 --> 0:26:41.760
<v Speaker 2>afford food on my table, pay my rent, and afford

0:26:41.800 --> 0:26:45.680
<v Speaker 2>acting class. And I wasn't desperate to book a job.

0:26:46.160 --> 0:26:49.560
<v Speaker 2>I got to actually enjoy the process and make unique

0:26:49.600 --> 0:26:56.120
<v Speaker 2>choices in character work. And yeah, I also saw when

0:26:56.160 --> 0:26:58.520
<v Speaker 2>I was a big part of the decision of starting

0:26:58.560 --> 0:27:02.639
<v Speaker 2>to YouTube too, was when I was waiting tables. The

0:27:02.720 --> 0:27:05.040
<v Speaker 2>joke is, oh, you're an actor, what restaurant do you

0:27:05.080 --> 0:27:09.840
<v Speaker 2>work at? And I saw other servers that I worked

0:27:09.880 --> 0:27:14.359
<v Speaker 2>with lose acting jobs to people who had a following

0:27:14.880 --> 0:27:17.120
<v Speaker 2>on social media, and it was still such a new

0:27:17.160 --> 0:27:21.160
<v Speaker 2>thing at the time. So I felt like, well, if

0:27:21.160 --> 0:27:23.720
<v Speaker 2>I could do what I love, which is building cars,

0:27:23.880 --> 0:27:27.160
<v Speaker 2>and I can also build a following, maybe just maybe

0:27:27.400 --> 0:27:30.439
<v Speaker 2>that can help me. At the same time, what was

0:27:30.480 --> 0:27:34.439
<v Speaker 2>the first acting job that you got. So the first

0:27:34.480 --> 0:27:38.200
<v Speaker 2>acting job that I got was this And I say

0:27:38.600 --> 0:27:41.640
<v Speaker 2>I call them little that's because what everyone calls them,

0:27:41.680 --> 0:27:44.159
<v Speaker 2>the producer, the director, all of them. It was this

0:27:44.359 --> 0:27:49.600
<v Speaker 2>little Christmas movie. It was California Christmas City Lights. So

0:27:49.680 --> 0:27:52.239
<v Speaker 2>it was their sequel to California Christmas, which was the

0:27:52.280 --> 0:27:58.560
<v Speaker 2>first movie during COVID to finish production, and it went

0:27:58.840 --> 0:28:01.439
<v Speaker 2>on Netflix and number one in the world for like

0:28:01.560 --> 0:28:04.840
<v Speaker 2>eight weeks or something like that. So I ended up

0:28:04.880 --> 0:28:08.200
<v Speaker 2>getting a really sweet opportunity to be in the second one,

0:28:08.760 --> 0:28:11.800
<v Speaker 2>and I had a few lines in there. And then

0:28:12.359 --> 0:28:16.080
<v Speaker 2>that team kind of became a family in a way

0:28:16.119 --> 0:28:21.280
<v Speaker 2>as well, the ESX family, and they do these smaller

0:28:21.800 --> 0:28:27.359
<v Speaker 2>budget Christmas movies and they've helped me to get some

0:28:27.440 --> 0:28:31.679
<v Speaker 2>more on set experience. I had met the owner of

0:28:31.720 --> 0:28:37.040
<v Speaker 2>the production company Ali through a former manager of mine,

0:28:37.400 --> 0:28:40.920
<v Speaker 2>because Ali, he and I have similar stories. I know

0:28:40.960 --> 0:28:43.080
<v Speaker 2>he'd be okay with me sharing this. But I lost

0:28:43.080 --> 0:28:45.560
<v Speaker 2>my dad at fifteen. He lost his mom at fifteen,

0:28:46.200 --> 0:28:49.720
<v Speaker 2>and he ended up going to the automotive world in

0:28:49.800 --> 0:28:53.600
<v Speaker 2>the same trajectory that I did. And it's funny because

0:28:53.600 --> 0:28:56.600
<v Speaker 2>I had at one point held the record for the

0:28:56.640 --> 0:28:59.920
<v Speaker 2>world's fastest new generation corvette, but he did for super

0:29:00.880 --> 0:29:04.800
<v Speaker 2>and we didn't know one another, and he went from

0:29:05.120 --> 0:29:09.480
<v Speaker 2>racing for subru to producing movies about cars to then

0:29:09.960 --> 0:29:14.200
<v Speaker 2>doing these feel good Christmas movies. Allie's become like a

0:29:14.240 --> 0:29:17.440
<v Speaker 2>father to me. I'm very grateful that he was introduced

0:29:17.640 --> 0:29:20.760
<v Speaker 2>to me and is in my life. But from there

0:29:20.880 --> 0:29:23.360
<v Speaker 2>is how I got Grand Turismo. I had done like

0:29:23.400 --> 0:29:27.120
<v Speaker 2>a little Netflix thing back in the day called Fastest Car.

0:29:27.560 --> 0:29:29.800
<v Speaker 2>And it's funny because I actually like everyone's like, why

0:29:29.800 --> 0:29:32.360
<v Speaker 2>are you doing this? Like because I was losing money.

0:29:32.480 --> 0:29:33.840
<v Speaker 2>I didn't get paid for it. Everyone thinks, how I

0:29:33.920 --> 0:29:35.920
<v Speaker 2>must have made a lot of money. I was just like, oh, yeah,

0:29:35.920 --> 0:29:38.240
<v Speaker 2>I'll do it if I can do like this fun

0:29:38.360 --> 0:29:41.800
<v Speaker 2>race and maybe get a Netflix credit, which could be cool.

0:29:41.880 --> 0:29:44.080
<v Speaker 2>But I was more stoked about the fact that they

0:29:44.080 --> 0:29:46.000
<v Speaker 2>were going to give me x amount of money to

0:29:46.000 --> 0:29:48.760
<v Speaker 2>put a roll cage in my car because in order

0:29:48.800 --> 0:29:50.880
<v Speaker 2>to race, for them to get insurance, mic or had

0:29:50.880 --> 0:29:52.840
<v Speaker 2>to be safe and I couldn't afford it. So I

0:29:52.880 --> 0:29:54.120
<v Speaker 2>was like, well, they're going to pay for it and

0:29:54.160 --> 0:29:57.360
<v Speaker 2>I get to race, Like why not. I had really

0:29:57.840 --> 0:30:01.880
<v Speaker 2>enjoyed the show previously. They allow you just to like

0:30:02.160 --> 0:30:05.320
<v Speaker 2>share your story and hopefully inspire others, and then you

0:30:05.360 --> 0:30:09.240
<v Speaker 2>get to race a four wide drag race, which is

0:30:09.680 --> 0:30:12.040
<v Speaker 2>kind of how I got into drag racing. Because my

0:30:12.080 --> 0:30:18.240
<v Speaker 2>little Nissan two forty SX, I decided for this Fastest

0:30:18.280 --> 0:30:22.480
<v Speaker 2>Car show, I would convert my drift car into a

0:30:22.600 --> 0:30:26.400
<v Speaker 2>drag car, and that's what I did, and I loved it,

0:30:26.440 --> 0:30:28.320
<v Speaker 2>and then that's kind of how I became obsessed with

0:30:28.400 --> 0:30:31.240
<v Speaker 2>drag racing. But I did the show. They flew boots

0:30:31.280 --> 0:30:34.640
<v Speaker 2>out from Indiana, which is super sweet, and one of

0:30:34.680 --> 0:30:37.880
<v Speaker 2>the producers on Grand Turismo had seen that episode. He

0:30:37.960 --> 0:30:40.520
<v Speaker 2>was also a fan of the show started following me

0:30:40.560 --> 0:30:43.520
<v Speaker 2>on Instagram. I didn't know this, and when I was

0:30:43.600 --> 0:30:50.240
<v Speaker 2>posting about the carpet premier stuff for the ESX productions

0:30:50.400 --> 0:30:53.440
<v Speaker 2>I was a part of, he saw that, oh she's acting.

0:30:53.920 --> 0:30:56.240
<v Speaker 2>We actually have a role in this movie. We should

0:30:56.240 --> 0:31:00.280
<v Speaker 2>have her audition for casting. I guess loved me and

0:31:00.360 --> 0:31:02.280
<v Speaker 2>the rest of this history.

0:31:02.320 --> 0:31:04.880
<v Speaker 1>What kind of impact did that have on your trajectory?

0:31:04.920 --> 0:31:07.200
<v Speaker 1>It's such a huge, huge thing.

0:31:07.960 --> 0:31:11.400
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, it's so easy to feel hopeless at times, and

0:31:11.880 --> 0:31:15.440
<v Speaker 2>especially in this industry. Like a week before, I was like,

0:31:15.720 --> 0:31:18.560
<v Speaker 2>when they say it takes ten years to be an

0:31:18.560 --> 0:31:21.440
<v Speaker 2>overnight success, it took me ten years to like, I

0:31:21.520 --> 0:31:25.120
<v Speaker 2>felt like, really just start. But that job gave me

0:31:25.200 --> 0:31:28.080
<v Speaker 2>so much hope, and I don't I keep talking about

0:31:28.080 --> 0:31:30.719
<v Speaker 2>how I meet these incredible people along my life, and

0:31:30.760 --> 0:31:34.640
<v Speaker 2>it sounds cheesy, but I am grateful, and I think

0:31:34.720 --> 0:31:37.960
<v Speaker 2>that's something that I can always rely on myself to

0:31:38.000 --> 0:31:41.520
<v Speaker 2>be as grateful because I believe there is good in everyone,

0:31:42.120 --> 0:31:45.640
<v Speaker 2>and I do think people want to see others succeed,

0:31:46.360 --> 0:31:49.320
<v Speaker 2>and yeah, I've I think I've also been through enough

0:31:49.360 --> 0:31:52.680
<v Speaker 2>to see so much negativity that I'd rather just have

0:31:52.800 --> 0:31:56.440
<v Speaker 2>that outlook on life of being surrounded by great people.

0:31:57.360 --> 0:32:01.120
<v Speaker 1>Amelia's positive outlook on life has not always come. She's

0:32:01.160 --> 0:32:04.800
<v Speaker 1>been open about her struggles with mental health, depression, and anxiety.

0:32:05.480 --> 0:32:08.120
<v Speaker 1>When we come back, Amelia talks about how she found

0:32:08.160 --> 0:32:17.720
<v Speaker 1>help amidst her struggles. Now back to the show. So

0:32:18.200 --> 0:32:21.600
<v Speaker 1>you've spoken openly about how you've struggled with mental health,

0:32:21.680 --> 0:32:25.760
<v Speaker 1>with depression and anxiety. How has that manifested itself for you?

0:32:26.600 --> 0:32:29.160
<v Speaker 2>I feel like dealing with it is literally what I

0:32:29.200 --> 0:32:32.680
<v Speaker 2>did for so long. It took me a very, very,

0:32:32.840 --> 0:32:36.560
<v Speaker 2>very long time to find a therapist. So spent a

0:32:36.560 --> 0:32:38.840
<v Speaker 2>lot of time trying to find a good therapist. I'm

0:32:39.120 --> 0:32:42.080
<v Speaker 2>very big on working out. I think working out every

0:32:42.160 --> 0:32:45.120
<v Speaker 2>day or even just taking a thirty minute walk outside,

0:32:45.240 --> 0:32:49.000
<v Speaker 2>getting some sunlight's very important. Taking your multi vitamins as

0:32:49.320 --> 0:32:53.400
<v Speaker 2>you know, cheesy as that sounds, and getting good proper

0:32:53.560 --> 0:32:56.040
<v Speaker 2>sleep and all that, and surrounding yourself with good people

0:32:56.040 --> 0:32:58.320
<v Speaker 2>and all that. It's all easier said than done, but

0:32:58.480 --> 0:33:03.000
<v Speaker 2>super important to do. And also just proper education in

0:33:03.240 --> 0:33:06.120
<v Speaker 2>learning about you know, you take care of your physical health,

0:33:06.640 --> 0:33:08.240
<v Speaker 2>how do you take care of your mental health?

0:33:09.480 --> 0:33:12.760
<v Speaker 1>I should continue to educate herself. Amelia has made it

0:33:12.800 --> 0:33:16.320
<v Speaker 1>a point to educate her audience alongside her becoming a

0:33:16.400 --> 0:33:18.120
<v Speaker 1>staunch mental health advocate.

0:33:18.680 --> 0:33:22.959
<v Speaker 3>Just spread love, spread kindness, be kind Know that everyone

0:33:23.040 --> 0:33:24.040
<v Speaker 3>is fighting a battle that.

0:33:24.000 --> 0:33:29.120
<v Speaker 2>You know nothing about. If you guys, don't have peers

0:33:29.200 --> 0:33:32.200
<v Speaker 2>or family that you can reach out to, or just

0:33:32.200 --> 0:33:35.960
<v Speaker 2>need someone to call. There is an emergency hotline that

0:33:36.240 --> 0:33:41.240
<v Speaker 2>you can talk to someone. It's really sad when people

0:33:42.040 --> 0:33:46.960
<v Speaker 2>believe or at that mental state where they feel suicide

0:33:47.040 --> 0:33:49.520
<v Speaker 2>is their only option. And I promise you that it

0:33:49.600 --> 0:33:51.200
<v Speaker 2>is not. There is a lot at the end of

0:33:51.280 --> 0:33:54.160
<v Speaker 2>the tunnel. Things will get better and there are people

0:33:54.200 --> 0:33:56.960
<v Speaker 2>here for you. And that's kind of how I found

0:33:57.200 --> 0:34:00.600
<v Speaker 2>Alive and Well because that's the non profit that I'm

0:34:00.640 --> 0:34:03.760
<v Speaker 2>on the board of, because their through line was we'd

0:34:03.880 --> 0:34:07.800
<v Speaker 2>rather put a fence around a cliff than an ambulance

0:34:07.880 --> 0:34:12.080
<v Speaker 2>or rehearsed at the bottom. And how they've done that

0:34:12.760 --> 0:34:19.000
<v Speaker 2>was really through education and starting with trying to educate

0:34:19.280 --> 0:34:25.279
<v Speaker 2>young adults with proper mental health care. And we in

0:34:25.320 --> 0:34:30.880
<v Speaker 2>Atlanta work with various schools and therapists to help educate

0:34:31.160 --> 0:34:36.320
<v Speaker 2>and also to help subsidize, So we're working on subsidizing

0:34:36.360 --> 0:34:39.160
<v Speaker 2>the cost of mental health care. I'd like to try

0:34:39.160 --> 0:34:41.839
<v Speaker 2>to find a way where we can eventually make it

0:34:42.000 --> 0:34:45.880
<v Speaker 2>cost free for people and so much more so. Yeah,

0:34:46.440 --> 0:34:50.279
<v Speaker 2>I found them trying to learn and educate myself and

0:34:51.320 --> 0:34:52.560
<v Speaker 2>that's been great.

0:34:53.360 --> 0:34:56.120
<v Speaker 1>Is there anything in particular where at the time you

0:34:56.160 --> 0:34:59.920
<v Speaker 1>felt like was really like a low point or a setback,

0:35:00.120 --> 0:35:02.879
<v Speaker 1>but now in retrospect you see it as having really

0:35:02.960 --> 0:35:04.279
<v Speaker 1>launched you to where you are now.

0:35:05.239 --> 0:35:09.000
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, I mean quite frankly, my dad's death. I know

0:35:09.200 --> 0:35:11.960
<v Speaker 2>I wouldn't be where I am today. I know I

0:35:12.000 --> 0:35:15.880
<v Speaker 2>wouldn't be as grounded or as hard working. It sounds

0:35:15.880 --> 0:35:18.920
<v Speaker 2>so fucked up to say this, because I wish my

0:35:19.000 --> 0:35:21.920
<v Speaker 2>dad were still here today, but it was probably one

0:35:21.960 --> 0:35:24.400
<v Speaker 2>of the best things to happen to me and my family.

0:35:25.080 --> 0:35:29.080
<v Speaker 2>Keep in mind the abuse and the struggles that we

0:35:29.239 --> 0:35:31.400
<v Speaker 2>went through and what he was struggling with as well.

0:35:32.040 --> 0:35:35.239
<v Speaker 2>Is weird as it sounds. That changed my life for

0:35:35.320 --> 0:35:37.600
<v Speaker 2>the better and it has made me who I am today,

0:35:37.640 --> 0:35:41.319
<v Speaker 2>and I am weirdly grateful for that.

0:35:42.440 --> 0:35:44.600
<v Speaker 1>Well, thank you so much for being on with us

0:35:44.680 --> 0:35:46.080
<v Speaker 1>and being such an open book.

0:35:46.480 --> 0:35:48.719
<v Speaker 2>Oh thank you. I really do appreciate you having me on.

0:35:51.719 --> 0:35:55.000
<v Speaker 1>Amelia is continuing to advocate for more mental health resources

0:35:55.000 --> 0:35:58.040
<v Speaker 1>and care, all while breaking world records as a car

0:35:58.120 --> 0:36:01.920
<v Speaker 1>builder and driver, not forget her career as an actress.

0:36:02.800 --> 0:36:05.319
<v Speaker 1>To stay up to date on everything Amelia is up

0:36:05.320 --> 0:36:08.920
<v Speaker 1>to follow her on Instagram at miss Amelia You can

0:36:08.960 --> 0:36:12.000
<v Speaker 1>also find a list of mental health resources on our website,

0:36:12.040 --> 0:36:17.200
<v Speaker 1>she Pivots the Podcast under our causes page. Thanks for

0:36:17.280 --> 0:36:20.439
<v Speaker 1>listening to this episode of she Pivots. If you've made

0:36:20.480 --> 0:36:23.160
<v Speaker 1>it this far, you're a true pivoter, so thanks for

0:36:23.200 --> 0:36:26.560
<v Speaker 1>being part of this community. I hope you enjoyed this episode,

0:36:26.640 --> 0:36:29.239
<v Speaker 1>and if you did leave us a rating, please be nice.

0:36:29.520 --> 0:36:32.520
<v Speaker 1>Tell your friends about us. To learn more about our guests,

0:36:32.640 --> 0:36:36.000
<v Speaker 1>follow us on Instagram at she pivots the Podcast, or

0:36:36.040 --> 0:36:38.360
<v Speaker 1>sign up for our newsletter where you can get exclusive

0:36:38.400 --> 0:36:41.280
<v Speaker 1>behind the scenes content, or on our website, she Pivots

0:36:41.280 --> 0:36:47.520
<v Speaker 1>the Podcast Talk to You next Week. Special thanks to

0:36:47.560 --> 0:36:52.600
<v Speaker 1>the she Pivots team, Executive producer Emily Edavlosk, Associate producer

0:36:52.600 --> 0:36:57.160
<v Speaker 1>and social media connoisseur Hannah Cousins, Research director Christine Dickinson,

0:36:57.560 --> 0:37:01.520
<v Speaker 1>Events and Logistics coordinator, Madeleine snow vic An, audio editor

0:37:01.520 --> 0:37:06.320
<v Speaker 1>and mixer Nina pollock I endorse Te Pivots