In this week’s episode, I interview Gemma Lux of Showgirly Swag who does so much! Currently, Gemma is an instructor at Impulse Pole Dance Brandon, a Makeup Artist, a CRNP Instructor, a show producer, a burlesque performer, and a Go-Go dancer. As I said, she does so much! During this interview, we chat about developing content for workshops, what it’s like to be a traveling artist, and working with Cleo the Hurricane.
Gemma has been dancing, in some form, for her entire life. Growing up she was involved in Tahitian and Hawaiian Belly Dancing. She then moved into cheerleading and tumbling (and softball) before finally landing in the pole community. Gemma has now been pole dancing for 8 years!
Getting Started
- Gemma was inspired to try pole dancing after seeing an incredible dancer in a competition at a strip club
- That same weekend, Gemma hopped on google in search of the closest pole dance studio and found Impulse Pole Dance
- Gemma immediately emailed the owner, Sarah Murray, to let her know she was both interested in taking classes as well as instructing
- About six months into her pole journey, Gemma was given the opportunity to start teaching beginner classes
A Leap of Faith
- At the beginning of her pole journey, Gemma was working in the Mortage industry, which can be very stressful
- After getting married, she decided to leave the corporate world to pursue pole full-time
- While she says she couldn’t make it work without her husband, Gemma has been able to sustain a career in this industry
- While there a certainly struggles in her life – she says she has no regrets in leaving corporate life behind
Developing Workshops
- Gemma uses inspiration from her life in creating her workshops
- Her most popular workshop, Showgirl Swag, was created while she was heavily involved in the burlesque community – So this particular workshop focuses on stage presence
- She looks to create classes she would want to take
- Generally, an idea will come to her – she’ll make notes – then wake up one morning to get down to business – and pull everything together
That Artist Life
- Gemma and I chat about the ups and downs of being a full-time artist
- She mentions the pro’s being – getting to wake up and create, or train, or teach – being a part of the community – being happy
- The only cons that Gemma could think of were the risk of injuries – the financial struggle – being away from family
- Currently, Gemma works with a manager through CRNP that assists her in contacting studios and arranging contracts – NOTE* Gemma mentions this IS NOT necessary for everyone – YOU CAN DO IT ON YOUR OWN but it is very nice to have someone helping
Gemma’s Favorite Performance of herself – Pole Love 2018 & Pole Con 2019
Gemma’s favorite performance of someone else – Felix Cane – Paranoia 2019
To Connect with Gemma Lux of Showgirly Swag:
Instagram | Facebook | Youtube| Gemma on Cleo’s Rock N Pole
To help out the show:
Leave us a review on Apple Podcast. Your ratings and reviews really help others find us easily!
Subscribe on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
Want to hear more? Check out Episode #8 with Candra Cain and Episode #9 with Jessica King!