There is a moment in many lives when the familiar is no longer enough, but what comes next has not yet revealed itself. For Andrea McKenzie, that moment eventually required leaving Trinidad and Tobago, stepping away from the life she knew, and beginning again in Atlanta with little more than her talent, her faith, and a conviction that something larger was possible.
Today, McKenzie is an award-winning mixed-media artist known for work alive with color, texture, movement, and cultural memory. Her pieces incorporate materials ranging from acrylic and wood to crushed glass and other reflective elements, creating surfaces that seem to change as light moves across them. Her work has been exhibited at venues including Atlanta’s Hammonds House Museum and the National Museum of African American Music, and her commissioned work has reached collectors including Sheryl Lee Ralph, Bobby Brown, Akon, Julius Erving, and Sydney Sweeney.
But the story did not begin in a gallery.
McKenzie describes herself as a self-taught artist whose creative gift emerged when she was about nine years old. Growing up in Trinidad, she was surrounded by a family deeply connected to Carnival. Her father was involved in its creative traditions, exposing her early to costume-making, materials, craftsmanship, and the transformation of an idea into something tangible. Even then, creativity was more than something she did. It became a way of interpreting the world.
Still, art was not initially the life she chose professionally. McKenzie studied business and marketing and spent years working in that world before an unexpected disruption—losing her last corporate job—forced her to reconsider what she actually wanted. Eventually, she made another consequential choice: moving to Atlanta without an established network or professional foundation and rebuilding from the ground up. What followed was not an overnight success story, but one constructed through persistence, faith, discipline, and a willingness to keep moving before there was evidence that everything would work.
That may be what makes McKenzie’s story especially compelling. Her art is the visible accomplishment, but underneath it is another story entirely—about trusting purpose through uncertainty, carrying home with you while creating something new, learning when to persist and when to release, protecting your peace without closing yourself off from life, and believing in yourself before the world has given you a reason to.
Today, Trinidad remains what McKenzie calls the “foundational heartbeat” of her aesthetic identity. The sunlight, saturated color, rhythm, resilience, and creative traditions of the island continue to live inside work that has traveled far beyond it. And as her career has expanded, so has her understanding of what that career is ultimately for: less about proving what she can accomplish and increasingly about what her work—and her life—can leave behind.
For Soulivity, that makes the most interesting question not simply how Andrea McKenzie became a successful artist.
It is who she had to become along the way.
I began our conversation there.
Brian Johnson: You left Trinidad and Tobago and eventually built a creative life in Atlanta. What gave you the courage to pursue something when you couldn’t yet know how it would turn out?
Andrea McKenzie: Leaving Trinidad and Tobago for Atlanta came down to a moment of deep internal honesty—I simply wasn’t happy with where I was, and I knew I wanted more out of life. What God had placed in my heart felt so much bigger than my immediate surroundings, and I understood that if I wanted a different life, I had to be willing to make radical changes within myself.
During that transition, I thought deeply about my grandmother. She gave birth to and sacrificed so much for 17 children, and there were dreams she never had the opportunity to pursue for herself. Moving to Atlanta became about more than having a guaranteed roadmap; it became a willingness to honor the sacrifices that came before me while pursuing the dreams placed within me.
When you realize you are building something that can extend beyond your own lifetime, you don’t need to see how the entire journey ends before you begin. Sometimes you simply have to trust the vision you were given and have the courage to take the first step.
Sometimes you simply have to trust the vision you were given and have the courage to take the first step.
Andrea McKenzie
Brian Johnson: A lot of people know something in their life needs to change long before they know what comes next. What did uncertainty teach you about trusting your purpose anyway?
Andrea McKenzie: That space between knowing something needs to change and having no idea what comes next can be incredibly uncomfortable—and, at times, terrifying. For me, uncertainty became one of my greatest teachers because it forced me to strip away the external safety nets and examine what I was truly anchored in.
I learned that purpose cannot depend on constant reassurance, outside applause, or immediate clarity.
Proverbs 3:5–6 has always resonated deeply with me: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.”
When you don’t have a clear roadmap, you eventually have to stop scrambling for control and become comfortable trusting what you cannot yet see. I’ve learned that as long as I remain accountable to my vision, maintain my standards, work with integrity, and continue moving forward, clarity eventually meets me along the way.
Uncertainty became the space where my resilience was strengthened. It taught me that not knowing the outcome does not mean you are on the wrong path.
Not knowing the outcome does not mean you are on the wrong path.
Andrea McKenzie
Brian Johnson: You’ve spoken about putting God first, but you’ve also been clear about doing the work. How do you understand the relationship between faith, surrender and action?
Andrea McKenzie: To me, faith without action is incomplete, but action without surrender can quickly become frantic striving. With maturity, I’ve realized that God blessed me with a natural gift, and I have a responsibility to honor that blessing through discipline, integrity, and excellence. My faith is at the core of who I am.
Faith is trusting the vision even before you can see the full result. Surrender is releasing the need to control every detail of how and when it happens and trusting that God is working beyond what you can see. Action is personal accountability.
I anchor what I do in prayer, and then I work. I do my part completely and trust God with what is beyond my control.
I anchor what I do in prayer, and then I work.
Andrea McKenzie
Brian Johnson: You’ve described art as a spiritual experience. What actually happens inside you when you’re creating? What makes that process spiritual for you rather than simply artistic?
Andrea McKenzie: When I am creating, I become completely immersed in myself and disconnected from the noise of the outside world. It is almost like shifting into another internal space where I can hear myself more clearly.
Artists carry many layers—emotion, memory, observation, intuition—and all of those things eventually find their way into the work. That is one of the reasons I am so intentional about protecting my peace and my energy.
What makes the process spiritual for me is that the canvas becomes a direct conversation between what is happening internally and what eventually becomes visible. The textures, reflective materials, and layers I use are not simply decorative; they become ways of translating light, emotion, movement, and energy.
In that sense, the finished artwork becomes more than an object. It becomes an extension of that experience.
The canvas becomes a direct conversation between what is happening internally and what eventually becomes visible.
Andrea McKenzie
Brian Johnson: You’ve built much of your professional life in the United States, but Trinidad is still very present in your work. What from home has never left you—and where can we see it in what you create today?
Andrea McKenzie: Trinidad is the foundational heartbeat of my aesthetic identity. The intensity of the sunlight, the richness of our colors, the rhythm of the culture, and the resilience of the people are permanently woven into how I see the world.
You can see that influence in the dramatic scale of my work, the warmth and saturation of my palettes, and especially in the reflective textures and materials I use that respond differently as light moves across them.
I may continue expanding my professional footprint throughout the United States and beyond, but the spirit and heritage of Trinidad will always remain the foundation beneath everything I create.
Brian Johnson: You’ve spoken about believing in yourself and being true to yourself. How does someone develop self-belief when the outside world hasn’t yet given them much evidence that their dream is going to work?
Andrea McKenzie: Self-belief begins with becoming accountable for what you genuinely want from your life and refusing to abandon that vision simply because other people cannot see it yet.
It also requires becoming conscious of how you speak to yourself. Many of us have to unlearn limitations that were placed on us by other people, break old patterns of thinking, and begin believing that we are worthy of the life we envision.
If you wait for the world to give you evidence before you believe in yourself, you may never begin. True confidence is not built on public approval; it is built by keeping promises to yourself, remaining committed to your growth, and allowing your own progress to become the evidence.
True confidence is not built on public approval; it is built by keeping promises to yourself.
Andrea McKenzie
Brian Johnson: How do you distinguish between intuition telling you to keep going and ego simply refusing to let something go?
Andrea McKenzie: Distinguishing between intuition and ego comes down to internal clarity. Intuition is usually quiet. It feels like a steady sense of knowing. There may still be uncertainty around the outcome, but there is peace around the decision. It doesn’t require urgency, external validation, or the need to prove anything.
Ego, on the other hand, tends to be more reactive. It is often driven by fear of rejection, failure, or losing control.
For me, the difference is in how I feel internally. If I can maintain my boundaries, remain grounded, and continue forward without needing to force an outcome, I trust that as intuition. If I find myself anxious, over-explaining my value, or trying to control something that is clearly no longer aligned, I recognize that ego may be involved.
Maturity is learning to recognize the difference between a moment that requires perseverance and one where letting go is actually the wiser form of progress.
Intuition is usually quiet. It feels like a steady sense of knowing.
Andrea McKenzie
Brian Johnson: You’ve spoken about investing your energy in people who also invest in you. What has life taught you about the difference between healthy reciprocity and keeping score?
Andrea McKenzie: Life has taught me that healthy reciprocity feels light. There is a natural sense of ease, clarity, and mutual investment where care, consideration, and respect are consistently returned.
Keeping score, on the other hand, often begins when there is an imbalance. When you find yourself tracking effort, communication, or consideration, it is usually because something within you is recognizing a lack of consistency or genuine appreciation.
For me, maturity is understanding that my energy is valuable. I would rather invest my time, care, and attention where reciprocity feels natural and where both people feel equally valued.
Brian Johnson: What does it mean to really show up for someone when both people are ambitious, busy and building lives of their own?
Andrea McKenzie: In relationships, I used to try so hard to accommodate the other person that, at times, I began to lose parts of myself in the process. Through doing the work on myself, for myself, I came to understand that I am enough—and that showing up for someone should never require abandoning who you are.
I’ve also learned that healthy relationships are deeply rooted in alignment and accepting each other as whole people. We all have things we are working through—some we speak about openly and some we keep private—so I think real connection requires grace, communication, patience, and discernment.
When two people are ambitious and building lives of their own, showing up does not necessarily mean having unlimited access to one another. To me, it means being intentional, dependable, supportive, and making sure your care is reflected in your actions.
Being busy should never become an excuse for being careless. When someone truly matters to you, intentionality finds a way to make itself visible.
Brian Johnson: You’ve now accomplished things the younger Andrea once had to believe were possible before she could see them. Has achieving them changed your definition of success?
Andrea McKenzie: Yes, absolutely. When I was younger, success was largely connected to achievement—reaching certain milestones, building a career I could be proud of, and proving to myself that the life I envisioned was possible.
Today, I define success much more by impact. It is how many lives I am able to touch through my artwork, my advocacy, and the way I encourage people to believe in themselves and pursue their dreams wholeheartedly.
What matters most is knowing that something I created, shared, or stood for made someone feel seen, inspired, encouraged, or courageous enough to move toward the life they truly want.
If my journey can positively affect people while I am here and leave something meaningful behind when I am gone, then to me, that is success.
Brian Johnson: What feels expansive to you right now? What part of Andrea McKenzie are you still discovering?
Andrea McKenzie: Right now, what feels most expansive to me is fully embracing my journey without feeling the need to control or force every step. For a long time, I operated with a high level of vigilance because I was so focused on protecting my path and everything I was building.
Now, I feel much more secure in the foundation I’ve created, and that allows me to approach both life and my art with a lighter, more receptive energy.
I’m learning what it means to remain deeply open, creative, and connected while also having the discernment to step back from anything that consistently disrupts my peace.
As an artist, growth is inevitable, but this season feels less like striving and more like expansion. More than anything, I’m allowing myself to remain open to who I am still becoming.
This season feels less like striving and more like expansion.
Andrea McKenzie
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