She’s a native Detroiter, adopted at an early age to parents who were strict and instilled into her the expectations of her daily chores around the home and the importance of hard work.
Her name is Jenaha, or often referred to a ‘Lady J’, who has always been good with her hands and putting in hard work. It was in her childhood days when she learned how to grow a garden, wash clothes by hand, make homemade ice cream and learning how to paint.
The painting wasn’t much of a chore but more so an activity she wanted to try out when she volunteered to paint around the home after watching her adoptive mother’s grandson paint.
Painting would become not only a skill but one she would take on as work for rehab jobs in the neighborhood.
“There was this guy where he and his father used to chase home fires, and when a home caught on fire homeowners needed to claim insurance and of course obtain a contractor to redo everything,” Lady J said.
The ‘guy’ was Charles Boom Jr, who put out a call for painters. Lady J saw an opportunity for a two for one deal, “because I liked the guy, I just thought this would be a way where I could work and also be next to him.”
In was in the early 2000s — she got the job and was handed a list of homes to paint. Not having all of what was needed or knowing all the different concepts to painting, she credits Boom for buying all the tools and equipment, teaching her how to price, and being someone who truly believed in her and gave her an opportunity to shine.
“He saw that I used blue tape all the time, and he told me, if you’re going to be a painter – you can’t be using this tape.” She initially rebuffed his tutorial but it did enhance her skillset. “He came in and took the tape from me, so I had to learn how to paint the house with no tape.”
So that meant separating the ceiling from wall, the trim from the wall, the baseboard from the wall, while walls were one color and the trims were another. But it forced her out of the crush and dependence on blue tape and stiffened and her confidence. She would eventually find her passion in painting houses that needed rehab. This growing kind of work was a big deal for her at the time as she began to lead a team in an industry dominated by men.
“Being a youth at the time, I was trying to impress this guy because I liked him but, eventually I found painting was a passion of mine,” she added. “The more work I received from him, I had to get help as guys began to work for me.”
She had assumed it would be difficult working with guys because they saw her as a woman they’re taking direction from, but her team trusted her skillset. “I never let fear show because I couldn’t. I thought to myself there’s no way I could let these people see that you’re scared or that you really don’t know what you’re doing. Any insecurities I had, they weren’t there while I worked because I knew in front of these men, I had to do a good job.”
Lady J would eventually leave Detroit for Texas but ultimately returned in 2015. She looked for work and it was “Mr. Curtis” who took a chance on her. She got a painting job from a homeowner who wanted a “glitter wall.” She had never done one before but said she was always up for a challenge.
“I knew the paint was the glue, but how to get the glitter on the wall, I did not know.”
She took her search to social media, and saw that it suggested she use a glitter gun she did not have, so what did she do? She got creative.
“I had paper in my hand, the glitter was on the paper, and I then blew the glitter from my mouth and onto the wall.”
The wall stunningly popped! Another customer reached out for a glitter wall. It would be Lady J’s impressive work done for Tiffany Martin that would earn her work being posted on Tiffany’s social media page garnering thousands of followers. Business for Lady J took off.
Now, Lady J’s specialty has expanded beyond painting. Her work and skillset has broadened to working as an electrician, building and designing sets, flower walls, wood designs, installations including work for Kiera Sheard-Kelly’s first home. Lady J’s work also extends to prominent businesses such as Skinphorea Facial Bar and the Lockeroom in Detroit.