Today we’d like to introduce you to Nyla Ruiz.
Hi Nyla, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Hello, beautiful people! I am Nyla Ruiz, but I go by Nyla Imani on YouTube and my social media platforms. I am 27 years old and originally from New York. I was born in Harlem and raised in Queens. I moved to North Carolina when I was 12 years old and lived there for 15 years until recently, so I guess I’m a southerner but I don’t like to admit that. I am a public health professional with interests in racial equity and health equity (you can’t have health equity without racial equity). I recently moved to Minneapolis for work, but I am excited to be here and explore a new city and enjoy a new environment!
Calling myself a creative out loud is hard for me to say. I’m not sure why, but I am a creative. As a kid, I was a dancer and I was into art, so it has always been a part of who I am. That creative energy shifted to using makeup as a form of expression, which then led me down the road of content creation. I began creating content during my junior year of college with a makeup blog. After multiple requests to create makeup content on YouTube, I started my Youtube channel in 2016. I posted my first video–a holiday makeup routine–on December 30th, 2016. After a few videos, I went on hiatus.
I am a perfectionist by nature, so when I have a vision for something, if it’s not executed in the way I envision it, I don’t want to create it. I wanted the content to look and feel more professional, which would eventually require investing in gear and branding. I also had some insecurities I needed to work through before stepping in front of the camera again. Lastly, my hiatus allowed me to reflect on what type of content I wanted to create moving forward. I wanted to incorporate lifestyle and fashion content because I am multi-faceted and I don’t want to put myself into one box. I always want to create content that I genuinely enjoy.
In 2020, I returned to YouTube and I have been dropping content ever since. When I returned to Youtube in 2020, I had a little over 100 subscribers and now I have over 600, with my most-watched video currently sitting at 22,000 views. In addition to re-starting my YouTube channel, I have been curating my Instagram to include the various content that I enjoy. I now have 1300 followers. My TikTok is also growing with almost 850 followers.
Subscribe to my YouTube channel, Nyla Imani, and follow me on Instagram and TikTok @simplynylaimani!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There were definitely struggles along the way as a result of my perfectionism, which I mentioned previously. I have to constantly tell myself, “just create the content and put it out.” If I allow my perfectionism to fully take over, I will never put out any content. Of course, there are always aspects of content creation to improve upon, but I know I make good content so I just need to put it out.
Consistency has been a bit of a struggle as well. My goal this year is to post 3-4 videos on YouTube per month, which I think I’ve been doing well at since 2021. I do, however, take breaks from time to time because I don’t believe in forcing content. A part of the consistency piece is being consistent on Instagram as well. I need to create content days solely for Instagram. When I create reels on IG, they are not planned. However, my in-feed posts are always planned and I will not post if I don’t have current content to post. Therefore, I need to create a schedule so I can post content more consistently. Additionally, I would like to be more consistent on TikTok as I recently started using the platform again. I think I finally figured out what content works well for me on that platform and I enjoy posting on there now. I recently went from 125 followers to almost 850 in less than a month.
Lastly, I struggle with comparison. In the world of social media, it is very hard not to compare yourself to others. Not that I compare myself to other women in terms of looks or anything because I’m a bad b*tch and God did their thing when they created me. However, I do compare myself to other content creators, the type of content they create, how many subscribers and/or followers they have, etc. But I have to remind myself that I am running my own race and there’s only one Nyla. So put the content out and whoever is going to like the content will like the content. I can only be myself and I feel like being my authentic self will take me a long way.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a lifestyle content creator with a little of beauty and fashion mixed in! I create content on both YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. I recently started using TikTok again and we are growing, but most of my following is on YouTube and Instagram. Initially, I was known for makeup and beauty content, however, I started branching out into lifestyle and fashion content in the past year or year and a half.
I am really proud of how far my YouTube channel has come in terms of the content, the branding, the quality, the consistency, and the family I am building over there. It really does blow my mind sometimes that people really watch my content. When I receive comments or messages about how helpful my videos are or that someone simply just enjoys the content, that is fulfilling to me.
What sets me apart from others is that I am always going to be 100% authentically Nyla. While I may be inspired by other people that I watch, I will never create content that is not authentic to who I am. So enjoy the (slightly) monotone voice, the bougie-ness, the sailor mouth (I think curse words add that extra spice to whatever you say), and this beautiful face because I am always going to be me. I think that comes across in my content.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
I do not have a mentor. I do everything myself and have learned a lot along the way from the YouTubers that I currently watch as well as the OG’s (such as my fave Jackie Aina) that I’ve been watching since college. It’s definitely trial and error. I am still learning. There will always be something to learn.
As far as networking, I don’t network with other creatives outside of social media because I am very shy and introverted, so putting myself out there has been a struggle, however I want to challenge myself to network more.
Pricing:
- Dedicated YouTube Video: $1000/video
- YouTube Integration: $700/video
- Instagram Post: $700/post
- Instagram Reel: $750/reel (starting price, depends on 30 vs. 60 sec. reel)
- Instagram Story: $500/story (starting price, depends on story length)
- TikTok: $750/tiktok (starting price, depends on length)
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simplynylaimani/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NylaImani
- TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@simplynylaimani
Image Credits
Danielle Caster (@whereisdaniellee)
Nyla Ruiz
