::: Photo By Rich Greene :::
Upon meeting K’la Inman, this writer realized just how much she’d been oblivious to the world of social media influencers. It seemed like she’d been living in seclusion on Mars. Nevertheless, she was absolutely delighted to discover the invaluable insights and techniques K’La shared with me regarding the realm of social media influence.
“YOU ARE NOT PRETTY enough to become a model,” are words Inman will never forget hearing her mother say. Those nine words have played a significant role in K’la Inman’s journey. They have served as a catalyst, enabling her to realize the transformative power of pain. Since age of 16, Inman held aspirations of becoming a model or actress. She dreamt of walking runways and gracing the big screen.
Despite her mother’s comment, K’la Inman has successfully broken into the entertainment industry, but NOT as a model or actor. She has gained significant recognition as a social media influencer by powering her pain into purposeful passion.
Even though the memory of Inman’s mother’s comment about pursuing modeling was indelicate and harsh, Inman holds other memories, cherished ones, from her childhood. Particularly those memories from the trips she and her family took to the South. Originally from Buffalo, New York, K’la, along with her siblings and parents, would travel to Alabama for family visits. “I remember those trips when I was a little girl. I always enjoyed going down south”.
It was the unfortunate event of K’la’s father being struck and tragically killed by a drunk driver, that compelled the family to permanently relocate to Birmingham. Once she reached 18, her point of independence, K’la wasted no time in venturing out on her own. Remarkably, she’d already met her future husband at the age of 17, and they have remained inseparable ever since.
Bumps In The Road
“In 2018, a significant turning point occurred in my life when my oldest daughter was selected as an extra in the movie, The Black Panther. Birmingham couldn’t believe it,” she reflects. “During that period, we were suffering significant financial difficulties,” she recalls. It would have been unimaginable for people to grasp the extent of the Inman family’s
struggle. She had to walk to McDonald’s in order to access the internet and for a while the family ate oatmeal for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Not only that, the Inman’s experienced multiple car repossessions, so when one day, during her lunch break, K’la went outside to find the family car missing, she remained unfazed. Without flinching, she simply returned to the department store and had her lunch in the break room, choosing not to let the absence of the car affect her.
Creating Content That Influences
In an effort to keep the fire from the success of the Black Panther movie casting, aflame, Inman kicked into gear with an idea that would change the trajectory of her families fortune, hopefully, forever. K’la credits her faith for her success, “It is only God that I am here. My husband and I knew that one day we would live in the house of our dreams, drive the cars and live in the neighborhood we desired so that our children would be afforded the opportunity to go to the best schools offered”.
They stood on their faith and everyday K’la tried a new promotional idea. Then it happened, two people paid $35 each for K’la Inman to teach them how to get their children into the entertainment industry. The rest is history. When she came up with the idea she says, ”I recall feeling fearful of others’ opinions and the potential backlash”. However, she’d been in the same place for to long. “I decided to block anyone who[m] I anticipated would express negativity. I blocked them all”.
With this strategy in place, she began building her Facebook friends list by requesting connections with friends of friends, steadily working towards reaching 5000 followers. Concurrently, K’la continued promoting her classes. In 2020, K’la achieved her initial six-figure milestone by earning a six-figure income within a year.
Shortly thereafter, she surpassed her second six-figure objective by generating a six-figure income in a single month. Originally, Inman had established her company with the intention of assisting individuals in learning the necessary steps to enter the entertainment industry. This endeavor stemmed from her own experience of not receiving the support she needed during her early ventures in the industry. Now, with her daughter’s newfound fame, K’la found herself equipped with a sense of purpose, not only to aid other families but also to propel her own family towards financial success in the entertainment industry.