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Meet Prince Aday, the Bed-Stuy native with multiple creative hats
Prince Aday was born in Brooklyn, New York to Nigerian parents who moved to the states in the late 1980s.
At 8 years old, Prince traveled back to Africa to attend Nigerian boarding school. After graduating and re-landing in Brooklyn once again, Prince got to work. He told Kulture Hub about growing up in NYC and Nigeria.
“I was in boarding school for almost 6 years, so for the most part of my childhood years I was adapting to the mentality of ‘survival’ since being overseas. Now, living in New York City, I really see it’s a jungle and like any jungle you find yourself in, it’s survival of the fittest.”
Prince always considered himself a creative and over the years he tried his hand at different forms of artistry; styling, photography, clothing, and jewelry design.
He cites his favorite jewelers to be Cartier and Andy Lifeschutz, and his favorite photographer as Eugeen Herman.
“I enjoy doing lifestyle, fashion and conceptual art. My favorite picture setting to capture is life – unplanned and right in the moment.”
If there’s one thing to be recognized by Herman’s art, it’s his ability to stimulate even the most tame settings and cut them with sexual undertones through a prevalent nude color scheme found in all his photos.
Scrolling down his Instagram page, Prince’s photography encapsulates sexual nature, much like Herman, but focuses on the ethereal beauty of his subjects.
Unlike Herman, Prince’s art expands beyond the nude palette, but often resurges back to a simple black and white representation of uniformity, with pop colors making an appearance every so often.
Jewelry design became more than a hobby in 2012.
Prince launched his Rome & Tale brand and even included a couple of keychain accessories to go with the trinkets at the time.
Prince spoke about that time,
“During that period, everyone around me was creating clothing brands and I wanted something different. I also couldn’t afford the jewelry I wanted (the Cartier Love bracelet) at the time, and that drew me more into exploring the process behind making jewelry.”
Rome & Tale was born and picked up immediately, worn by known celebrities like Terrence J, Jhené Aiko, and Alicia Keys.
“My favorite project that I’ve worked on so far is ‘the process collection’ by Rome & Tale. It was mainly influenced by the experiences both my design partner (Kevin) and I encountered over the year as we were putting the collection together. The collection drew inspiration from the women that were in our lives, the technicality behind getting the pieces made, places we visited and life as a whole. We’re still designing pieces that ties into it.”
Now, Prince has brought together his many hats under one umbrella company: A DAY LIVING. The platform produces content for creatives across a range of unique quality.
“It was inspired by the concept of the Justice League – an alliance of powerful beings with a common goal – and working closely with creatives like Sooflyt & Zomon, one of our common goals is to produce content with cultural depth and value.”
Embracing each client for their distinctive originality, A DAY LIVING cherishes art in all forms, working with distinguished names like Chris Brown, Sira Kante, Diggy, and Mr. Eazi.
Prince’s personal inspiration for photography is derived from his existential self. Through his pictures, his moods are expressed clearly – the light, the dark, the straight and the wavy.
“My inspiration is life – the beauty of it, how we all have the highs and lows. I can’t label my photos in one theme – some make you feel, some are just artistic captures, and some are conceptual.”
Natural scenes seem to be a natural affinity for Prince, his artistic eye is able to capture the acclimated beauty of Central Park and approximate it to an effortlessly stunning evening in Senegal.
For young creatives interested in launching their own careers, Prince offers some of his own advice:
“Find someone that’s above you in that particular business, shadow them, get advice from them and take risks always, because the safest bet in life is betting on yourself – especially when it’s for self-elevation.”
He concludes our interview with a piece of mind he believes is important for everyone to hear, vibes as positive as ever.
“If you’re reading this, understand that success isn’t sudden and the society we live in makes it seem as so. Move at your own pace, and see your journey as a marathon and not race. Trust your patience and you’ll overcome every obstacles that comes your way. Bless!”
Word to Prince!