Josephine Battaglia is a junior at Sacred Heart and is a member of Zeta Tau Alpha Fraternity. She may be an accounting major, but her real passion is vlogging all things beauty, fashion, and lifestyle. I sat down with Phee and asked her a few questions.
1. What made you want to start a YouTube channel/ vlog?
– I have always admired YouTube. Since the age of 10 I always said it was my dream. I loved the platform it gave people. I always wanted to start my own channel just to express myself and with the support of my family and friends I knew it was perfect timing. I am very passionate about makeup amongst many other things. I also love editing; it is like a stress reliever to me. You have to live your life to the absolute fullest; I went back and forth contemplating about having my own channel. I prepared content for about 2 months, filmed like twenty videos and once I finally got butterflies after watching “My 2018 Go-To College Makeup Look”, I was ready. I always spoke about it with my mom and dad. After dinner one night my father looked at me and just said “Can you stop talking about it and do it Phee, don’t doubt yourself.” I high key also think my parents were tired of me blasting YouTube videos all day because I wanted to gain as much knowledge as possible. All winter break I was taking notes and just studying how Youtubers talked and how they edited, if I was going to do this I was going to do it right. My confidence overall along with people who inspired me, and the support of everyone, is what ultimately made me want to start my channel.
2. Do you have any inspiration for your YouTube or was there a specific YouTube guru you always looked up to?
– Everyone inspires me on YouTube. I admire them all. It is much harder than it looks. Truthfully, Jaclyn Hill was the first beauty guru I have ever watched. She is basically the reason I know how to apply makeup. Then there is Carli Bybel, Manny MUA, Tess Christine, Lauren Elizabeth, Claudia Sulewski, Laura Lee, Sammy Robinson, Keaton Milburn; the list can go on and on.
3. What can people expect to see on your channel?
– Life With Phee is simply going to be about beauty, fashion, and lifestyle. The beauty portion will show my art and passion for makeup where as the fashion content will show how I express myself in what I wear, and the lifestyle will be how I live my life in vlogs, hopefully giving a better understanding of who I am. Vlogging will also help me document events I would love to remember forever. It can grow to become many other things hence why I chose to call it Life With Phee. People are going to get a better understanding of who I truly am and I hope to inspire many.
4. Did you ever doubt making a channel?
– Of course, but my channel is something I am so passionate about that my passion over came my doubt. You can achieve anything you want in life if you work hard at it. My channel is something I could never be ashamed of or embarrassed of, I am beyond proud of everything I have accomplished. I launched my channel February 1, 2018 and that day I cried about 15 times because I was over joyed with the feedback and the support I was receiving. I have truthfully never been so proud of myself and I knew I was never turning back.
5. What is your best advice to someone looking to start a YouTube channel or vlog/blog?
– DO IT! Don’t hesitate. Block out the noise, worries, and fear. You have one life to live and if creating a YouTube channel, vlog, or blog makes you happy then DO IT. Fear of what people think or may say is only going to hold you back and stop you from doing what you love. People that truly love you will support you. Don’t let others hold you back! Be proud and confident in yourself.