There is an interview that Patrick Stump — producer, movie and television score writer, musician and lead-singer-of-Fall-Out-Boy extraordinaire — did in 2011 following the release of his solo album Soul Punk in which he said: “I don’t have any hidden talents. All of my talents are the things I do, because I suck at everything else.”
In recent years, I have realized that quote was a pretty accurate summation of my own journey. I tend to go after my passions, and I pursue them hard.
When I began college at The University of Alabama in 2020, the world was shutting down and catching fire under the weight of protests and pandemics. I felt lost in just about every way but one — if nothing else, I knew I could write, and I knew there had to be more to life than helplessly watching the world fall apart behind a screen.
So, I took that certainty and ran with it. I didn’t know where I was running to at the time, but I’m happy with where I ended up: a burgeoning career in journalism. Whether it’s breaking the latest or writing in-depth features, I want to use my skills to give my community the resources they need to make informed decisions and a voice to the voiceless.
I’ve been doing just that in my work over the past four years, and I’m looking forward to continuing that work wherever I end up next.
