BY: JADE LEONARD
PHOTOGRAPHY BY: Jenasia Joseph and Jose Polanco
Don't let the name Dantee’s Inferno fool you, she’s far from anything lurking in the pits of Hades. She’s a young, warm, down-to-earth, and creative person, full of love and drive to show people the different dimensions of herself, hence the relation to Dante’s Inferno; there are 7 layers, and “humans have layers”. Dantee is a Brooklyn Knight, raised by her Black mother and Salvadorian father. Life as an Afro-Latina was complex. Being that her mother's black and her upbringing, she identifies more with the black community. She doesn't speak Spanish so at times she wasn't "Spanish enough".
Being in two different communities had its challenges, however, she gained valuable life skills. "It shaped me to be diverse... and it's allowed me to be educated and open on so many different things." Black Lives Matter and the Immigration situations in America really hit home because her father was an illegal immigrant for a long time... "that could've been him years ago". She felt like she was hit on both sides, which fueled her desire to be a voice for both communities.
A multi-faceted woman, Dantee is a freelance journalist based in New Jersey and a graduate of Kean University. She’s a TV host and hosts her own talk show, Dantee’s Inferno. She's also a host for the Black Girls In Media Podcast, where black women in the media give support and advice on navigating through the industry. Her first love though is acting and singing. “I’ve always been a performer”. As a girl, she did photoshoots, sang in the choir, and was in all the school plays. Are you keeping up? Okay cool!
Her start in journalism was untraditional, “I broke out pretty late. I feel like most people start right out of college at 21 and I was a late bloomer. I did background work on Netflix and did a short film”. She took time off from school for a while, then made a deal with her parents that if she went to school and got a degree, then they would let her do as she pleased within her creative world. Never wanting to work in an office, as a creative, she wanted to be out doing things. When she was in school she would “annoy the heck out my tv professor, professor Gilly”. Her professor saw her determination; anything she had available, whether it was a pep rally or the new Starbucks opening on campus, she was there ready to report. She even made a reel about college student’s Spring and Winter break plans and used that same reel to skip class and audition for The Source Magazine. From there, everything trickled down.
“Journalism is a dreamer’s dream... In this industry its not always easy to get opportunities. You can get a journalism degree and think you’re going to get a job and it’s not always that.”
“In this industry, you have to pivot where the opportunities come”. Utilizing platforms like backstage and actorsaccess in 2016, she landed a role in the short film, Civic Mind. She played Geraldine, a police academy cadet striving for perfection in a gentrifying Brooklyn neighborhood. The film gained traction in 2018 and was featured in HBO Latina Film Festival and is now on Amazon Prime. With all these great achievements, not every moment is magical. There's still a human inside who has personal challenges they're working through, “I’m very hard on myself. If I feel like I’m not perfecting a skill, I’m questioning why I’m not.”
The UpNext: What challenges did you face when breaking into the industry?
Dantee Ramos: “Lack of opportunity. This industry is all about who you know, which is not bad. That’s across the board in any career field. You go to school for this, you spend your 4 years, some people even get a Master’s, and it’s not always guaranteed. Sometimes it’s not paid, and if it’s paid it may not be what you’re worth… I’m a freelancer and work with so many different outlets due to the fact that I haven’t been able to find somewhere to put my roots in yet… fingers crossed though!”
The UN: So what made you start The Hot Seat and what can people expect when they tune in?
DR: “I wanted to make my own opportunities, and every big journalist I ever emailed or DMed to ask for advice told me “make your own opportunities”. Have something for people to watch because you never know who’s watching and that can open doors for you and what you want, which is those hosting opportunities or audition rooms. I wanted to showcase what I can do. And I love what I do. I love to talk, clearly aha."
The UN: And what is the best part about what you do?
DR: “All of it. Even though I’m talking about a struggle, I absolutely love being a journalist. I love meeting new people and being challenged. I love interviewing, talking to people, and getting deeper stories than just the surface level. I just love everything within media and content creation-- production. I love the ability to create these things in your head and then seeing them in front of you on video. I love everything about being a journalist despite the lack of opportunity and the fact that you really really have to network and be a hustler in this industry. It’s all worth it.”
The UN: What’s Black Girls in Media podcast and what does it mean to you?
DR: “I came across it one day on Instagram being a black girl in the media and looking for opportunities. I was wowed by the page, and became very engaged on it. In the media world, you have companies such as Black Girls In Media where you can be a member and they show you job opportunities, workshops, and more. As soon as I saw they had an audition, it was audition time. It’s like my baby. My Co-hosts Shelby, Kelly, and I produce all of our episodes, write, and pitch our guests. We have free creative reign over it. The fact that I can help women in media, they can listen to the podcast, it’s like listening to older sisters, and we’re all in this together. No one’s better than the other; we’re all looking. I love that I can be of service to others.”
Since the 3 years, she’s been in this industry, she’s had to jump blindly and never knows what’s next. And that's the thing she lives for. Chasing her dreams one day at a time with no regrets, “I’m glad I can close my eyes and say that If die tomorrow (God forbid), I followed my dream and I don’t feel empty like I didn’t try or didn’t go for it…”
“If we’re doing 1% a day towards our dream then we’re already ahead of the game.”
The UN: How did COVID affect your work and how did you adjust?
DR: “If it wasn’t for COVID I don’t think I would’ve started my talk show, because I was so used to doing red carpets, junkets, and always thinking about how to build my reels. When COVID came around everything was virtual so for a little while it was crickets, it was quiet, and then I said, “you know what?" I’m gonna start doing IG Lives; interviewing people that I’m interested in. I did that, got a pretty good reaction, and that made me happy because I’m all about building community.”
Dantee is more concerned with the quality of her followers versus the quantity. “Everybody looks for 15k but how many of that 15k is actually a part of your community?”. When people are interested in you and what you offer, they’re more likely to buy your merch or come to your event. She’s been pushed as a creative as well, doing podcasts, IG reels, and thinking outside the box on branding herself. “There’s so much on Instagram you can learn from… I just take a little from everywhere.”
The UN: How important is it to ask for help?
DR: "That’s a good question. I get told all the time I need to ask for help. It is very important to ask for help but I do not always ask for help. That’s something I need to tell myself to do more, hence why I’m hard on myself because I try to do everything by myself."
The UN: What’s your "Why"?
DR: “My parents! and I know that might sound so cliche, but they had me really young at 16, so much of their life was sacrificed. If I could just be that person to take care of my parents! I want to get to a point where they see me on television, I can send them money whenever they want or pay their mortgage. Another Why is that fire in my belly that I cannot deny. No matter how much I may waver, no matter how much I get upset at things, or constantly audition and not book things. I HAVE to keep going because something is telling me one day… I will be on TV, I am going to have a talk show, and you’ll turn on the TV and see Dantee’s Inferno.”
Follow Dantee on IG: @danteesinferno & Check out her channel!
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