@Umilele currently lives in Kyiv, Ukraine where the BroadcastHER Grant winner streams music full-time — with the help of her pets, that is, a dog named Umka and a cat, Solnce which means “sun” in Russian.

What is your dream as a digital broadcaster?

My dream is to connect different people all around the world with the help of music — even though they might not share the same language.

How will the BroadcastHER Grant from the 1,000 Dreams Fund help you reach your goals?

It will help me to discover new streaming opportunities and meet my friends and community members at TwitchCon Europe 2020. It will also help me grow important relationships.

What does being the recipient of the BroadcastHER Grant mean to you?

I am extremely honored to be a BroadcastHER Grant recipient! This opportunity gave me a huge boost of confidence and motivation to keep working hard and aiming for new goals in my streaming career as a musician.

Women are underrepresented in gaming, broadcasting, and e-sports. What can we do to change this?

In my opinion, more and more girls are feeling that they can get involved and start building a career path, thanks to all that’s being done to empower women in gaming. There are still a lot of obstacles and discrimination going on, but we are trying our best! As long as people are not indifferent to the whole situation, we keep fighting together to help each other grow and thrive in streaming, gaming, and esports.

What are some of the challenges you have faced along the way?

Streaming is hard, but worth it. The challenges I am facing all the time to this day are slow growth and hardship to sustain my family as a full-time streamer. But it is getting better and I am strong enough to keep going.

What advice do you have for women who want to start broadcasting?

Do not give up! Broadcasting is a tough job but I believe you CAN make it work! Do not forget to have fun along the way.

How do you stay motivated and focused on your goals?

To be honest, I struggle with this a lot. What helps is support from my family and community.