Photo by Mark Hill Photography

Joshua J. Pinkay is a co-host for the online talk show and podcast, LaMay Day Limelight. Limelight is a creative talk series filmed in Los Angeles that features candid conversations with dedicated and passionate artists about matters of the world in real time. Each episode features discussions about topics regarding culture, community, current events, and all things that illicit insight and thoughtfulness within the creative’s mindset. Pinkay, who is also the Associate Editor for SoCal Magazine and Senior Editor for OBVIOUS Magazine, offers his view and perspective as a gay Latinx Millennial working his way in the media. He is a content creator with a drive to inspire other creatives and help young LGBTQ+ people and especially those of color with questions they may have about identity and where they fit in this world.

Originally hailing from New Orleans, Louisiana, Joshua began his journey in Los Angeles in 2010 where he moved to study fashion at the Art Institute of California-Hollywood, completing his degree in Fashion Marketing.

“I worked for about ten years in the fashion industry, with the latter half of that tenure as a brand manager for my own footwear brand,” said Pinkay about his work in the industry. “I was doing trade show operations; I was an editor and writing about fashion in various outlets; and I think there was a turnaround when something was no longer fulfilling me in that industry. I needed something different, so I left it and started my career in PR and brand marketing. From there it kind of opened up the doors to my life in media.”

This eventually led Pinkay into the world of online radio and talk shows when a friend of his asked for help with the branding and marketing of his show.

“I became a producer for an online radio talk show that filmed live. A friend of mine hosted it, and I helped create the branding behind it. I designed a logo, strategized the social media, began booking guests and basically streamlined the show so that it could compete with other more prominent platforms. This is where I first utilized my branding and PR skills behind one of my own passion projects. The show was eventually cancelled, but there was something in the midst of working on that production that really got me going, like ‘man I would really like to utilize my voice this way.’ There were often times where I would have to fill in as a host or interact with one of our guests on the air, and I would always get feedback from people saying that I should do it more because they liked how I delivered my messaging.”

In finding his voice on that production, Pinkay also met his current co-host, Sharick LaMay, when she guested on an episode. Their interaction and dialogue with each other was great and they noticed that it needed to be explored.

“Sharick was one of our guests for a show, and my host was unavailable, so she and I carried that episode on our own” Pinkay explained. “There was an instant connection and we knew that we had to stay in contact to work on something together someday. I think we kind of sat on the concept for about a year and half before we actually launched LaMay Day Limelight.

We wanted to create a platform that delivered messages to other creatives in a positive light. There are so many podcasts that are very gossip-based, which is totally fine because those shows  are entertaining, but there are very far and few that really put the attention and focus on positivity and uplifting others. This is particularly true for audiences made up of creatives and helping them get an understanding of what it’s like navigating and working through their individual fields.”

LaMay Day Limelight gathers a wide array of artists and creatives across various fields to share their perspectives. The guests also give advice to young people looking to create content or start projects themselves.

“We don’t like to limit the idea of what the word ‘creatives’ consist of,” said Pinkay referring to the different guests on the show. “We’ve interviewed singer-songwriters; a producer from Buzzfeed; the Editor and Chief of OBVIOUS magazine. We’ve interviewed other podcasters; a stuntwoman; chefs; comedians — all of which encompass the creative umbrella. What’s unique about our show is the fact that we can highlight all these different types of individuals and speak to different fields, but you can always expect to learn something new that can crossover industries. They share their experiences, and our audience has been able to gain from that.

Season two of LaMay Day Limelight has wrapped but you can watch all episodes on LaMayDay.com or listen on Apple Podcasts. Season three is slated to go back into production Fall 2019.