Innovator Spotlight: Kayla Lusby and Life after Are You the One?

Photo courtesy James Ray, JCCPIX

I thoroughly enjoy reading questionnaires in magazines and learning more about the lives of the people around me and the people I aspire to be like. One person quickly came to mind for my first Innovator Spotlight edition, Kayla Lusby. We were both attending The Meek School of Journalism and New Media when we first met.

Kayla reached out to me and was super friendly and quick to help me whenever I needed it. She is incredibly smart and beautiful, inside and out. She has a passion for being in the spotlight for all the right reasons.

Photo courtesy James Ray, JCCPIX

Name: Kayla Lusby

Nickname(s):Taywus and Pocahontas

Occupation: Journalist

Current location: Phoenix, Arizona; but I’m a nomad, I move around a lot!

Instagram handle: @kklusby

What is life like after the hit show on MTV’s Are you the One? Life goes back to normal very quickly! You do get noticed every once in a while, but usually in the most unflattering moments like when you are devouring a messy burger or running in somewhere makeup-free and homeless looking.

Would you say your dad being a preacher scared you a little from being a part of the show? Of course! I did not want to cast a bad light on him. But I’m not my dad, I am Kayla. Growing and making my own decisions and learning in my own way.

Would you say it helped in getting your career on track? Not at all. I was on MTV. It is quite a scandalous network…

What’s your favorite dinner spot in Oxford? Tre Amici.

What’s your favorite happy hour place to be when you’re back home? Happy hour usually consists of me and Netflix and a thing of raw cookie dough.

What is the best meal you’ve ever had in Oxford? Back in my college days at Ole Miss my roommate cooked a mean dinner with some gnarly mashed potatoes…makes my mouth watering just thinking about it.

Yogabear or gym-rat? Gym-rat/obsessed with hiking.

If you could travel back in time and offer a piece of advice to your younger self, what would it be? I would tell my younger self to be smart.  Once you go down a certain road, it could take a long time to come full circle.  Be smart.  Pray about decisions. Love yourself and believe in yourself.  If you do that, everything else will fall into place just as it should.

Words I live by are… Proverbs 3: 5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”

Brittany Bugg is a HottyToddy.com staff reporter and can be reached at brittany.bugg@hottytoddy.com.