I started The Onyx Awards in 2024. This came from an idea I had after spending a season of my life deeply acquainted with rejection. Rejection had been showing up so often that I decided to make it my friend. I spent time with this friend—hanging out, making memories, and learning to breathe deeply through it all. And by the time rejection left, I found myself overflowing with an unexpected, almost electric creative energy.
I wanted to share that energy in honor of my unlikely companion. I started thinking about the mundane aspects of life: the ordinary, the plain, the expected. And then! There’s that moment when someone does something different, something honest and real. It's the contrast between authenticity and trying too hard. When that happens, you can feel it: you’re in the presence of something special.
Congratulations to all the recipients. This is my way of saying I see you. Even if no formal awards exist for the work you do or the things you’ve endured, I made one for you.
