A True Visionary

with Haley Jane

Jewelry @androhmedajewelry

Clothes @plush_roses

Produced by Irma Peñuñuri / @burgerrockmedia / @burgerrock and Emily Blair Marcus / @emilyblairmedia / @emilyblairmarcus

Photography by Xena Peterson / @xenapeterson

Styling by Poshenko / @posshenko

Styling Assistant: Emily Alvarez / @amily.alvrez

HMUA: Susie Nino / @glowbysusie

Welcome to Playboy Sweden Haley, we’re really happy to have you and may we say, we really love your creations which are a clever mix of modern, abstract and surreal. What inspired you to get involved with art and who would you say has been your biggest influence so far? Thank you for welcoming me to Playboy and for featuring my art in your magazine. Art has always been in me. I never in my head planned on becoming an artist. I was just naturally good at it. Being an artist is not something easy to be. That’s where you get the saying, “ Starving artist”. If I planned on being something, it would have been something a lot easier to do, but I can’t help, but love what I do. My biggest influence is watching other artists like me succeed, like Sue Tsai, King Saladeen, Sand one, to name a few. It motivates me to keep going when I feel discouraged. That if another artist is succeeding then I can too.

You’re also obviously very attractive, would you say being beautiful can sometimes overshadow or perhaps distract the audience from your work as an artist? I think being attractive can definitely distract an audience and also cause people to waste your time when it comes to business. Like one of my good friends Tyrone says all the time when I go to these conventions, “Decipher who is there for your art and who is there to waste your time, because not everyone is there to buy your art and clothing, some just want to shoot their shot.”

It’s a random question, but do you ever horde any of your previous works, finished pieces or not, or are you to type to simply throw the lesser-known projects out or give them away? Yes, my art is like an extension of me. Some of the pieces I just want to keep because they trigger an experience I’ve been through or a memory or emotion, which is super personal to me. I think that’s one beautiful thing about art, it can invoke an emotion from someone just by simply looking at the art.

If you could collaborate with any artist in the world, who would it be and why? I would collaborate with a non living artist, which sounds really weird, but some of the artists I studied in France, were just so fascinating. Like Monet for example. His use of color was amazing. Even his house was full of color. Each room was themed in a certain color. I also wish I could have met Picasso, just like me he loved so many different mediums. He was a sculptor, painter, made mosaics and many other mediums. Also the artist DaVinci would have been life changing to meet. This is the man that painted the Sistine Chapel. I wish I could have soaked in knowledge from these artists, and learned what inspired them and some of the struggles they endured as artists.

We absolutely love your shoot, how has your journey as a model been up to this point and what were some of the highs and lows along the way? I’ve actually only modeled for my own clothing line, Dreamworld Apparel, and for my own music promotion. I think it would be really cool to do plus size modeling, since I’m curvaceous. I think it’s important to own what you are blessed with.

Much like working with any artist, if you had the chance, which musician would you absolutely love to collaborate with? I would love to work with Drake, Bryson Tiller, or Brent Faiyaz. Even if I could just write a song for them to sing. I am also a writer. I live writing hooks, and tv show ideas and movie ideas. All three of these artists I paint to their music. Brent Faiyaz inspired one of the quotes on my painting, “Conquer the world every time you smile”. This was a lyric in one of his songs. It really spoke to me. It makes me feel like as long as you choose to smile and be happy no matter what you’re going through you can conquer whatever troubles you. I did a whole series of paintings around the theme “ Happiness”. Happiness is a choice. You have to choose to be happy, because everyone has troubles and hardship, no one escapes that. A lot of us think happiness is owning possessions, or people will bring them happiness or a destination will bring them happiness. Happiness, like real joy, comes from within.

We love your creative side, but what people may not know is that you also have your own clothing brand. Could you tell us more about that and where our readers can get their hands on some of your products? Yes, I started my clothing brand, Dreamworld Apparel in 2019. I created 50 t-shirts to sell at a few art show events I did in Atlanta, during the super bowl events in 2019. My stylist friend Renaldo Nehemiah surprised me by dressing Ludacris on stage in my t-shirt for the EA sports music fest super bowl concert. This launched my career and pushed me to start a clothing brand. When I first started I had no idea what I was doing until my friends Tyrone and Jesse that own a clothing line called Planet of the Grapes Clothing, showed me how to sell my clothing wholesale and what conventions to go to. Today, Dreamworld has evolved and I am currently in 16 stores across the U.S. And British Columbia, including my online store, weardreamworld.com as well. I sell hats, hoodies, t-shirts and dresses.

We recently heard your new track Baecation, with Clas$ and totally loved it… What was your experience like working on a recording project and is it available for purchase online? I love recording music, I love the recording process and writing the best. Writing hooks is my favorite part. I have been working on a really strong project with Cla$. We are thinking of releasing it at the end of January. Nothing is fully released yet, but it will be soon. We came up with the group name “ No Gray” and the name for the album, “make up to break up”. So keep a look out for our project.

On the topic of baecations, where is your dream holiday vacation spot and what are the three must-do things you’d get up to while you’re there? I’ve always wanted to go to Maldives or Mykonos. The beauty of these locations is surreal. I love water or anything tropical.

When you’re not working on creating something amazing, what are some of your absolute favorite things to do for fun? I love traveling. Experiencing new countries and cultures. I haven’t been able to travel much this year due to covid, but once things get better I plan on traveling a lot. Last place I went out of the country was Thailand. I traveled to Bangkok, and Phuket. Phuket is absolutely breathtaking.

Beautiful women always have some of the craziest DM stories. What was one of the most random things you’ve ever found lurking in your inbox? The craziest story, hmmm. I honestly don’t have that crazy of DM stories. Just a lot of guys having full blown conversations with themselves. Haha.

On the topic of guys, what’s the most creative, and totally lamest pick-up lines you’ve ever heard? Funniest pick up line would have to be when I was at the bar with my girls and a guy came up behind me and stuck his cell phone in my back pocket. I instantly turned around and responded, what are you doing? He was like,” i’m so sorry but that booty was calling me”, haha. I wasn’t expecting this kid to have enough courage to say that. It was really funny.

For all the ‘shy’ but good guys out there, what advice do you have for making a good first impression with their crush? I think first impressions are nice, but I think actions long term are more important. A first impression is just an impression, but being your authentic self and getting to know someone even on a friend level is really important. Friendships always lead to the best relationships. So I would say for a guy to be authentic and genuine, that’s the best impression, because it’s a lasting impression.

Are you working on any new projects at the moment and could you tell us more about that? I’m always working on something. I started creating an art reality TV show. So now I’m trying to find the right network for my project. I am also always working on new art for Dreamworld.

You’ve accomplished so much, do you have any words of inspiration for all the would-be entrepreneurs out there? Being an entrepreneur is very tough, but if it’s something you’re passionate about its worth all of the late nights, meltdowns, wins, losses and anxiety attacks. Haha. My journey has definitely been wild, but I’m doing what I was born to be.

Well, it was truly awesome having you feature with Playboy Haley, for all the interested fans, where can our readers get hold of you on social? Thank you so much for featuring me and my art. You can check out my art on Instagram at @haleyz.jpg and also on my art website haleysart.com