During those pre-teen years, Stormy
began playing sports at Norman
Playground in Algiers. “I started with
softball and it was then when I started
to crawl out of my introverted shell,”
Stormy said. “I became a true extrovert,
but I still have introvert tendencies from
time to time.”
Moving on to attend Edna Karr High
School, she participated in numerous
sports, including volleyball, softball,
basketball and even javelin throwing.
High school was an influential time
for Stormy. “Playing sports at Edna Karr
really gave me an amazing foundation,”
she explained. “I know for a fact that
I am currently carrying the discipline
that was ingrained in me from my high
school coaches. I owe everything to those
coaches because they drove me into my
current success. Without them, my life
would probably be so much different.”
With discipline, talent and intelligence
under her belt, Stormy received a full
volleyball scholarship to Alabama State
University in Montgomery in 1997. After
about two years, she decided to return
home to work and finish her education
at Dillard University. “I was driven and
determined to be successful,” she said.
Working her way up to a director’s title
at Dillard, she earned a bachelor's degree
in 2004, majoring in business management
and computer information systems.
That same year was a monumental one
for Stormy. Not only did she receive her
degree, but she also married her longtime
boyfriend. However, just when things
seemed to be going well, it all changed a
year later when Hurricane Katrina forced
Stormy to relocate to Atlanta. Little did
she know a lot more would change over
the next 13 years.
While settling into Atlanta life, Stormy
continued a previous banking career. After
years of paying her dues, she became
Senior Leader Vice President for the
Atlanta Region of Wells Fargo Bank. Her
career was going amazingly, but her marital
situation declined. After ten years of
marriage, Stormy divorced her husband.
“It was a nasty break up,” she sadly
recalled.
Following her humanitarian side,
Stormy threw herself into philanthropic
endeavors. She became a mentor at the
Boys & Girls Clubs of Atlanta, worked at
the Atlanta women’s shelter and Habitat
for Humanity and managed several other
charitable tasks. “Anything that benefits
the youth is my strong point,” she proudly
stated.
During that time, Stormy found herself
reverting back to a hobby that she shared
with her brother. “It all sort of transpired
in 2012, when my brother bought deejaying
equipment,” she said.
In true New Orleans fashion, Stormy
began playing the deejay boards as a hobby
to entertain friends and family at crawfish
and seafood boils. Then the “hobby”
eventually morphed into a career. As she
explained, “Though I had a strong love for
music, I didn’t really start to take deejaying
seriously until about two years ago.”
Then she moved on to the next step,
releasing a deejay EP album at the end
of 2016 titled, “Venom Kisses” which was
just the boost she needed to make music
and deejaying her career.
“Most people think I’ve been deejaying
for years, but it all ties back into that
discipline I was taught in high school,” she
said. “I got a mentor, I studied the craft, I
learned it and I upgraded my technology. I
learned how to actually mix on vinyl. I did
everything I could possibly do to be great.”
Focusing on EDM (Electronic Dance
Music) Stormy began to book gigs all over
the world, from Greece to Trinidad to her
hometown of New Orleans. She quickly
gained recognition and a large following
on her social media platforms.
That exposure led to the next big
step: the offer to join the cast of “Ready
to Love.”
“When the network found me on social
media, it was like the timing couldn’t have
been better,” Stormy said, recalling the
details of her first contact with the new
dating show. But at first, she thought
“it was some kind of gimmick.” After
doing research that led to an exchange
of information, Stormy was invited for an
interview with media mogul Will Packer
and several network executives. “It was in
that moment when everything got really
real,” she said.
Stormy joined the cast of “Ready to
Love” with 19 other African American
female and male singles from the Atlanta
area. As she related, “The network gave
me a platform to share what I’ve been
through and to show women that there
is light at the end of the tunnel. Every
emotion I displayed on the show was real
and how I truly felt because I am passionate
about others.”
The show, which wrapped up at the end
of 2018, gave her even greater exposure
and she is hopeful that it will lead to other
TV offers coming her way.
The show also opened Stormy’s mind
about the dating world and it propelled
her to follow her dreams to their full
potential. After leaving her corporate VP
Banking position in mid-December 2018,
Stormy excitedly announced, “I am now
pursuing my deejaying, music, acting and
entertainment career full time.”
While she has been private about her
love life and the aftermath of “Ready to
Love,” Stormy remains disciplined, positive
and just a genuinely good spirit. There
were ups and downs throughout her life
but she has come out more confident
and resilient than ever. “I’ve embraced
everything that has happened to me,” she
said. “The good, the bad and the ugly.”
Ready to take on her next challenge,
Stormy ended by saying, “If I could leave
the world with anything, it would be my
motto which is to always go against the
grain and be bold.” She is doing just that!
��
PHOTOS COURTESY OF STORMY MONROE
JANUARY / F E B R UARY 2 0 1 9 breakthrumediamagazine.com | BREAKTHRU MEDIA | 23
/breakthrumediamagazine.com
