LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – Many 17-year-olds are using this time to look for colleges, figure out their next steps in life and just getting ready to graduate high school.
One Louisville teenager, however, is already taking that next step, paving her way as a young entrepreneur and proving that age isn’t a barrier to success.
Keleese Toney is already making a name for herself as the owner of her very own dance studio, Dynamik Dancez.
Toney started dance at just four years old. She’s competed on a national level and worked with choreographers for some of the biggest names like Beyonce.
“When I get into the zone and I kind of just let go and it’s kind of like in a different world for me,” Toney said.
She graduated from Central High school in May 2024 at just 16 years old.
“I really kind of woke up one day and was just like okay I’m just ready, so I just really had a lot of things that I wanted to do and I just feel like I need a more quicker start.”
Just a few months after getting her diploma, she opened the doors to her studio, and began teaching several styles of dance like majorette and hip hop.
“It feels great because, even with me, this is a place I come to express myself,” Toney explained. “It’s definitely helped me a lot, so I know how I feel in this space and I would love for others to feel that way.”
The journey to get here wasn’t without its challenges.
“Going to people and saying ‘This is what I want to do,’ it was a lot of people saying like ‘Are you sure?’ Are you sure you can do it? Are you positive? Make sure you think through things like that,‘“ Toney said. ”But even with that, it never changed my mind to say, this is what I want to do.
“It’s hard, but it’s more so, it keeps myself in line to make sure that I’m doing right by myself but to also do right by other people coming up behind me.”
On top of everything else, Toney is adding the stress of tackling nursing school.
Currently, she has roughly 20 students under her tutelage. She said her long term goal is to open more studios around the country to help young kids fulfill their passion and have fun.
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