About Imani Jade:
Aqua Soul Founder
Welcome to Aqua Soul—a communal public space that I hold dear to my heart. I am so happy you found us.
It has been a long journey to finally create a platform honoring all intersections of my personal passions into one space with the hope that you gain inspiration from the raw and unfiltered scope that Aqua soul possesses.
I am a creative Being who seeks understanding from my personal life experiences, embracing the scope of them all—the good, bad and the in-between.
The full spectrum is part of living an authentic life.
Though I consider myself as a spiritual, its not always the-fluffy-love and-light journey. I’m a Connector bridge of people, place and things—uplifting and honoring my community, continually providing a platform for others to showcase their talents and offerings.
Let’s engage in the conversation where Spirituality meets urban living.
Gathering Inspiration Along The Way & Creating Community—
Helping People Remember How To Celebrate Their Inner Being:
I was inspired by what I experienced on my own life journeying, the people I encountered, the dreams I had, and how I loved life and creating…and decided to create a business that would support and celebrate others on their unique journey. My vision was to create a place for all inspired and inspiring people to come together and share stories, learn new tools and strategies, be silent and listen to our hearts, gaze at the stars often, make art together, sing and share our songs, our gifts, our lives with each-other in sacred circles, led by gifted and talented creative people sharing their unique offerings of individual and community empowerment…and help each-other collectively remember the joy and passion of being alive and creative artists and thinkers and do-ers of our lives… add more…
I wanted this to be a central meeting-place and destination for those who found themselves living in an unconventional lifestyle, creating their unique stories as they journey onward through their lives.
What Inspired Aqua Soul Into Being—The Development and Growth of Aqua Soul:
Over the years Aqua Soul has undergone a beautiful metamorphosis with the ground work consistently rooted in three areas—mind, body and spirit. The original business idea started off a lifestyle store idea when I was 13 years old. I wanted to create a space for lifestyle products that felt authentic to me and were things that I would actually use.
Later in high school my senior project was a video about happiness and human connection. I became obsessed with what it meant to be human—to experience all that one is able to conceive, love, growth, self exploration, fear, passion, the range:
A Sampling About Me
I grew up in the heart of Brooklyn, next to the botanical garden, park and museum in a very multicultural neighborhood. As a child we’d picnic with other families and watched early hip hop and pop artists perform under the stars, and join African drumming circles in the park.
I love performing—I went to a performing arts middle school and attended The Professional Performing Arts School in the heart of Time Square NYC, in the acting department. I took all forms of dance classes (hip hop, ballet, modern, street) and acted in a few plays.
I’m a life-long singer and songwriter—I wrote over 35 of my own songs & performed 25+ times in local venues, and studied with the best NYC vocal coach at 13, still composing now.
Spirit was calling—I was raised as a Buddhist. Did many sacred ceremonies with a Lakota Chief and various groups all over the United States for 4 years. I’m a 3-year Sundancer, and participated in many sacred Sweat lodges, interacted with many elders and wisdom-keepers, and all kinds of people from all kinds of backgrounds. Met many people at spiritual conferences and gatherings where they shared Messages about earthy things, star-stuff, meditations, sound journeys, and more. Volunteered and learned first-hand how conferences and gatherings were coordinated; assisted with video and sound set up, recording, greeting, hosting, and networking.
Nomad Traveling—after high school I set off to follow a non-traditional nomadic lifestyle and moved to Hawaii, where I lived and worked on sea camp farm — ate native fruit, machete’d the land, hitchhiked to the beach; work and hung with the grandmas, trekked backpack 2 weeks in Kawai. It was beautiful, sacred and lush land and I felt the ancient spirits all around.
Building and off-grid living—together with my friend we built a tiny house from scratch, and lived in it for awhile off-grid in Wisconsin with composting and gardens, watching the sun rise and picking marigolds.
I sampled lots of life’s experimental pathways: I worked at a flower shop, harvested at a CBD farm, taught at a Montessori School, worked with a local farm-to-table caterer serving at lots of ceremonies, served juice at a natural juice bar in Hawaii, was a cashier at a local food COOP, worked at a youth hostel, set up and demo’ed homemade local natural soda pop, managed a Jazz bar.
The Pandemic Pause-and-Shift—I took a break for a while. I went deep in my shell, as many people did. I did some heavy-lifting and inner soul- work. I reflected and got back to ME. After such an isolating time during the pandemic, my love for meeting people from all walks of life ignited again.
Unfolding of The Vision Becomes a Reality
The Inspiration Returns—I focused on making music and performing, I managed a Jazz bar and sang on the stage when I could. I thought to myself…how beautiful people are. I want to celebrate and honor people and their unique spirits and creative expressions. I became the manager/event coordinator/HR at a beautiful Ayurvedic Spa that won the National Geographic award for one of the best spa retreats in the World.
I reconnected with the idea of my business, and asked the universe…where do I begin? How do I craft this into something real and tangible? How the hell does my living, experiences, life, interests and celebration all tie into one thing? What can I share of myself and my life with people? I realized the only thing I know best is myself, my ideas and my conversations. I learn best through personal experience. I like to inspire people, and be inspired and moved. And I realized that others were seeking the same as I was—-to make connection.
The Web of Connection Is My Way of Life—I was given the Spirit Name “Iktomi Ska Waste Wi (in Lakota means “Beautiful White Spider Woman”) during a sacred ceremony by Lakota Chief Golden Eagle. It all makes sense now. She is the web-weaver specializing in human connection—connecting all my personal passions and allowing them to intersect, connecting people to one-another through sharing and supporting learned wisdom and offerings, and weaving the web of love, life and inspiration along the way. We are weaving back together to create a new future that is fun, abundant and full of joy and laughter. And a sprinkling of magic. So, I invite you to my “web of connection”. Fluid, from The Soul. It’s honoring that fluidity, acknowledging all of the intersections and experiences that make us who we are through self awareness and self discovery.
I was made to do this work—its a joy for me to connect with diverse people doing diverse things.
Creating Aqua Soul is A Movement of Energy, A State of Being—now I share my voice of living, life and love.
The sharing of everything I am and turning it to a way of life, as way of living and being.
I share my love of people and the celebration of unique creative expressive souls, just as they are, with the world.