For dancer/content creator-turned-entrepreneur Donté Colley, it’s not about the millions of likes and shares on social media or working with huge names in the industry—although collaborating with folks like Anna Wintour (in a recent Met Gala video for Vogue) and Doja Cat (in her “Say So” music video) doesn’t hurt. The reason the Toronto native shares his life with millions of combined social media followers is simple, “I really want to encourage people to do what it is that they want to do and what makes them feel good,” he says.
Spreading kindness through viral dance videos that drip with positive affirmations and happy emojis is how Colley gained momentum on social media, bringing a moment of encouragement to a timeline that can otherwise lack. He’s had an impressive year of brand partnerships and celebrity collaborations, all during a pandemic, proving that as long as you have a positive attitude, consistency, and Wi-Fi, you can most likely make your dreams happen.
We caught up with Donté to chat about dealing with negativity on social media, his dream collaborations, and his advice for young entrepreneurs during Small Business Month.
You’ve had an incredible couple of years working with some huge celebrity names. Was there a specific moment where you stopped and thought, “I used to dream about this”?
I am just so grateful for every day. I think that’s why this is so surreal for me is because everyday kind of feels like that.
What has been your favorite project to work on this year?
It’s actually wild because I’m sure you can relate, starting off the year and being in lockdown is so different. Especially because Canada’s version of a lockdown was way different than America’s. So being home and being isolated and being able to collaborate with brands still was definitely awesome. It was a challenge as well because I’m such a people person and I love having that human connection and interaction. But on the flip side, I think it was a great way for me to learn about brands and be able to have conversations with brands in a new, innovative way.
Everything that I’ve been able to work on so far—whether that was being able to do something for the Oscars or being able to do something for the Met Gala, all of these things that I could not imagine in my life—is such a blessing. I’m just grateful to share that with people and know that I’m not the only one going through this. We’re all going through this together and we’re empowering each other. That’s definitely what I want to continue to reciprocate with people that support me, for sure.
I love that you’re so motivational to your audience. Who’s left on your bucket list to collaborate with?
I would love to do something with Rihanna and Beyoncé—those are two people that really inspire me and I value them so much as creatives and entrepreneurs. But I mean, any person that I meet and any person that I’ve crossed paths with, I’m always so appreciative to even have that because I’ve learned something new about myself each time. I’m just going full-force forward and seeing where it goes.
“People have these opinions of you that don’t even matter because you have people that love you for who you are.”
What does a typical day look like for you and what are some of the routines that you include in your daily life to stay positive?
I think having a little bit of structure and setting myself up with something that I can work towards—like having a checklist—but also being spontaneous and knowing that balance. That’s definitely my mojo to stay grounded. You need a little bit of structure, but you don’t want to put too much pressure on yourself.
I think one of the biggest challenges is what productivity means to us. Productivity could mean just getting up today and getting through the day—however that looks. So I definitely have days where my mental health is more of a priority than the things that I needed or wanted to do. Sometimes I need to focus on things that I have to do for myself.
What’s a song that always puts you in a good mood?
A song that always gets me feeling good is “That’s The Way Love Goes” by Janet Jackson. Classic. It just brings me back.
I was actually watching old Janet rehearsals the other day and I’m like, “I miss that side of music and performing.” It was just such a different time where having the opportunity to be on a stage and perform—dancing and lip-synching for your life, basically. I want more artists to do that. But that’s totally off-topic.
It’s amazing that everything that you do just radiates positivity. How do you handle the negativity that inevitably comes with being a public figure?
I think I’m super grateful to have my really tight-knit, close group of friends that I can count on to always encourage me and make me feel like those people don’t exist. Every day is a constant battle, though. People have these opinions of you that don’t even matter because you have people that love you for who you are. Obviously, it’s so easy to get trapped into the negative side of things sometimes but my goal is to just really combat that negativity with some love and light.
There’s so much darkness on these social platforms at times but there’s also so much love and so much beauty. I’m blessed to have my core group of peeps and some really awesome supporters that believe in me and value me as a creative.
“Leverage the opportunities that you have to feed what it is that you really want to do.”
I noticed you’re almost at 1 million followers on Instagram—do you have a particular way you celebrate milestones like that?
You know, I don’t because to me it’s still so strange. I’ve been doing this for so long, it was never about the followers. It was just about me being able to share the things that I love doing with people that I love. I may not even know you, but if I’ve been able to put a smile on your face that’s all I could ever ask for.
Before you were a full-time creator and entrepreneur what were some of the jobs that you worked?
I worked at Tim Hortons at [Toronto] General Hospital. I was like the person in line with my resume. That was a total experience and I think that’s where I started to really want to find ways of making people feel better. A cup of coffee is one thing but sometimes it could make someone’s day, just how it’s delivered. That was definitely an important part of my journey, even though I had my trials and tribulations.
After that, I moved over to Aritzia, where I was really able to find a really awesome team of people. Working alongside such an amazing team that encourages each other is also super empowering and that kind of led me to continue to do what I wanted to do now.
What is a piece of advice that you would give to entrepreneurs working Tim Hortons, Aritzia type-jobs but wanting to make their passions into successful careers?
That it’s—you leverage the opportunity that you have. Not a lot of people can even have access to positions like those. Leverage the opportunities that you have to feed what it is that you really want to do.
It’s always gonna take time, everything is not going to happen instantly. But plant your seeds and water them. Trust your process and trust that your path is designed for you and only for you. Whatever else is happening on the outside may not necessarily be for you. That’s part of the process, hitting obstacles and working through them to find solutions.
That’s great advice. What kinds of projects can we expect from you in the future? What else are you working on?
Something really exciting that I’m working on right now is for Small Business Month with GoDaddy Canada. I consider GoDaddy my family. We’ve been through the pandemic together. We want to encourage young entrepreneurs to help them get ready to build their brand online and get it out there for people to see. I think people don’t really understand that that’s a big part of brand identity and who you are.
That’s one thing that’s really exciting. But stay tuned.
