The Scoop with Tanya Flanagan

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Tanya Flanagan 0:19
Good morning, and thank you for joining me for the scoop with Tanya Flanagan. I'm so happy you decided to wake up and start your day with me. Here on the scoop, where we talk about life, joy, funny moments, trending topics, and so much more. We promise to keep you in the know and find out what you know. So let's get started.

Good morning, Las Vegas. And thank you for joining me once again on another Sunday morning. I'm delighted to have you here with me here on the scoop on at 1.5k u and v Public Radio. We are in summer, it is hot and warm. And I thought it was we talked a little bit last week about being safe around water, you know, and that's a trend in the summertime and I thought it would be nice to continue the theme. This week, we'll have another conversation that focuses on smart choices in health. And so I'm delighted to welcome to the studio. A beautiful, you beautiful young lady who has gotten up this morning to talk with me Danny Nicole of Danny Nichols skin. So as you can guess what you're talking about skin health today. And just beauty and feeling good. And doing things that will allow you to glisten and let your sunshine as the rays of sun, you know, beam down on your face and make you all bronze and beautiful. So without further ado, Danny. Good morning.

Dani Nicole 1:44
Good morning. Good morning. How are you?

Tanya Flanagan 1:46
I'm good. Thanks for coming to hang out with me and get your you know, favorite drink in the morning and come in and sit with me and have a conversation.

Dani Nicole 1:53
Of course the morning coffee. Right? Absolutely.

Tanya Flanagan 1:55
I had the pleasure of meeting you. And through a mutual friend for an event that we were hosting for the organization, the girlfriends organization, and you came out and you did this beautiful presentation on so many different aspects of skin help and your understanding and breadth of knowledge on the different types of skin that we have, especially people of color. So, you know, hyperpigmentation issues and pigmented skin concerns. And it was super cool because I had just seen I think it was a documentary on Netflix or prime or something. It was talking about women and people who started skincare lines for pigmented skin. And what I didn't even realize the one line that's commented is a spin off pigment. And I was like, Oh, that's cute. But it was just so interesting to see how many young people have gone into the space. And so I'm just curious how you got into this field as are you considered an esthetician or is the title more involved than esthetician

Dani Nicole 3:01
so I am a licensed esthetician. Because of my education focus, a lot of people think I'm a dermatologist. I'm not just an esthetician. But I do my focus is melanated skin because of the lack of knowledge and the lack of studies and education. Throughout history. I just think it's important that we understand our skin holistically. So internal external, like you mentioned earlier just overall what we need to do throughout the seasons.

Tanya Flanagan 3:34
What are some of the most basic things that you understand that we should understand about our skin is women of color. And when I say women of color, that's just you know, be super transparent. There's black woman and then there's other women of color right? Is there is there a difference in that space where black skin is one thing but skin of color that's multicultural, is something altogether different. So

Dani Nicole 4:01
it is altogether different simply because skin is not just cleanse right are moisturize skin is lifestyle skin is stress skin is cultural, right? So all of those things play a difference in skin health, the same way our hair and our bodies and you know, our mindset are different based on culture skin is the same way. When we deal with issues like pigment, though it is essentially the same path of healing are the same path of addressing particular pigment. But the difference with, say black women is again, our stressors, our lifestyles, the daily things that we may deal with at work that other cultures of women do not. And those are the things that I kind of hone in on. Yes, like that's

Tanya Flanagan 4:54
a really interesting way to to look at what you see in the mirror and what's staring back You Oh, wow, that makes me pause a little bit because you you grow up thinking people are either just born genetically with beautiful skin or like, not that my mother didn't have stressful life because lord knows she did, right. But she had that back in the day nice Zima girl flawless skin, where she used to just look pretty much like, looks. And you know, I wasn't born with that, right? My brother got it. Right.

Dani Nicole 5:31
I didn't get it. You didn't get it?

Tanya Flanagan 5:33
No. So you always think that I know genetics has some you know, hand in, right? But then once you start to learn who you are, you learn the other things. And as we get older, we start looking at, wow, maybe I shouldn't eat potato chips, or I don't need to drink soda or don't drink a dark soda drink a lighter. Look, there's all these things. Right? Right that play into. So growing up as a little girl, where did you grow up? And what made you become interested in this? What was the course of life? So I want to know, I want them to know who you are as much as what you know about right now what you do

Dani Nicole 6:06
so so my story, it starts a little it doesn't start crazy, but it starts opposite. So essentially, I actually have a pre law degree. So my parents were very, hey, this doesn't make money, you need to go be a doctor or a lawyer or you know, you need to go down this path. So I actually have I've always been interested in skin. I've always did facials on like family and friends. But I just wasn't taught to go after my passion, I was taught to go after the money. A lot, a lot.

Tanya Flanagan 6:44
A lot of us are taught that as children that in this world, we need to grow up and do something that's going to make us money, money, you're not you can't necessarily go out to the thing that you you dream about and that you love. And it's only the evolution of understanding that families are beginning to embrace the idea of kids going after the thing that they love, despite it not being the obvious thing that will make money at least somewhere in there. You truly develop and hone the skill set that you never know how it will transform your life and what you can do to turn it into being something lucrative. So kudos to you right for getting off the

Dani Nicole 7:19
train. Yeah, the train

Tanya Flanagan 7:20
that will love gerbil is on an air trying to keep running away stuff that he doesn't like, right? Yes.

Dani Nicole 7:27
And I think it's important to so even in being an esthetician, I always say like, it's important for young black girls to look at me and say, hey, I can do this. And this, right, I can get that degree, I can be corporate, and I can pivot and do a complete 360 and do something that I love and make the money off of it. And I think even my mom to this day, I make more money now than I do with my degree. Simply because I love her love it. I love it. You know, and it's so much more than a facial. It's a sitting across the table on a Sunday morning and me saying hey, your mom or your brother didn't have it, but how did they deal with stress? Right? What's up I've lifestyle psychotherapist,

Tanya Flanagan 8:14
it's like the relationships that you in some cases have with your new person. But usually though we have with our hairdresser, right? Because your hairdresser becomes your friend. He's not just a person who does your hair, she's personal. Here's all the things and you hear things that she's going through. It's a relationships, relationship. It's the same thing. It's relationships. So now there's an additional relationship in a healthy space that's making you look at your life through a holistic lens, right? Because now what you see in the mirror, like you're explaining to me why, what I'm going through in my life, I can see it in the mirror as opposed to seeing joy. It's you know, it's robbing me of some years.

Dani Nicole 8:51
And it's coming from someone that looks like you. If that makes sense. It's it's me being relatable. It's me understanding, you know, some of the workplace things are me understanding the chokehold that shea butter has on our community that shouldn't go on, you know, it's those things really works. And it's not supposed to go on your face. It could go on the body. Yeah, but, you know, it's, yeah, it's those things. And it's also the self care aspect. And

Tanya Flanagan 9:25
that's we're sitting here talking, your skin is gorgeous. I mean, just let me add to that, because you all came to us. Let me just paint this picture that it is sunkissed. Danny has beautiful skin all over. Her hands are pretty her arms are pretty. Everything is pretty smooth. It's glowing. It is just your skin is fabulous. Thank you. So I'm gonna come back to the skin. But I'm so excited to do this. But I think a lot of times when we're having a conversation about skincare people think about their face, right? Because we're always so concerned. What do people see when they see us then Right? And then there's the makeup plication process to and the cleansing and the restoration, and we're always worried about the face. Of course I'm worried about at all. So I'm always lathering up, right? Of course my confession. I have an 80 pound Labrador Retriever and he is winning. Yeah, he's a winning since he was a puppy. I'm like, Nico, if you make one more scratch on my lips, like I've been industry fight things. But we, we think about our face. And I don't know if people were beginning to think about the body. Right. But when you have a conversation even about protection, sunblock, most of the time, people of color black people think they don't need to wear sunblock.

Dani Nicole 10:39
Right? And where did that come from? It's a culture thing. Why? Because every other culture knows that they have to put it on. Yeah. So that's another thing too, is just understanding some of the cultural differences. And not even just understanding the cultural differences, but me doing the education on skin cancer on melasma, or hyperpigmentation, on those things that affect us and looking at the numbers, and how they're not studied in the same way that it is studied for other cultures, right? How excellent memorization look on black women opposed to someone of another race, right? Even even little things like that, how we're just misdiagnosed, and so many other things, but especially in skin, especially in skin.

Tanya Flanagan 11:28
So I remember, it's a struggle, because I remember, when I went from, I used to be a newspaper reporter many years ago, and I left news reporting to go into gaming. And it was as a public relations banner. So it's a very front and center type of job where you're really like the face of the company in many ways, right? sad that you're this but you are the spokesperson, but you're not supposed to also, but you're meeting clients. And so if you're going to meet someone, you want to look your best, right? And so there you are doing anywhere from eight to 12 hour day, and somewhere in there, you're still trying to look your best. But you also don't want to reapply because I felt like well, the face has already been done. It's not being claimed. Again, I don't want to reapply. And as began to be conscious of how do I invest more in me to look my best all day all the time. And that was the turning point. That was really good. You know, when you're a reporter you're hustling, you know, you're on a scene for three or four hours waiting for the police to give you information about something that's occurred. You could be outside in the sun, you don't think about it as much. But when I went into a corporate space, I began to say, what can I do different because I need to begin to invest in how I appear for a longer period during the day because I could be at work at eight o'clock in the morning and have a client dinner at seven. I'll ever number 13 I don't look like I did at seven at seven. How do I get the most of this? How do I end and I began to realize it started with the base. The foundation Yeah, yeah. Started with the starts with the base. It starts with healthy healthy your skin or healthy skin.

Dani Nicole 13:10
And so I don't wear makeup. I'm not against makeup. But I definitely believe she looks

Tanya Flanagan 13:16
fabulous. Everybody with no makeup right away with no makeup at 7am. I just wait. I woke

Dani Nicole 13:23
up like this, right. And again, I but I do believe that makeup should be an enhancer. It should enhance your beauty. Right? When you look in the mirror, not cover up.

Tanya Flanagan 13:35
People always use it to cover up the floor. Because

Dani Nicole 13:39
the only reason you're worried about it at that dinner is because you're worried about it covering up. If it was just an enhancer, you would already say hey, I look amazing, rather because it's just enhancing my beauty. So I that's where the routine comes in. And the routine is clean stubble, clean clans moisturizer, it's those things. It's those little things that we get the foundation to get there,

Tanya Flanagan 14:01
then are you doing it from our ages, because a lot of times when we are going through our teen years, especially as women and boys too, you know and I think a lot of times we think of this for women but men also have skincare major skincare needs, right? Very serious skincare needs. But in your teen years, you're going through puberty so you're going through the the hormonal changes in your body is changing. Yes. And sometimes you get lucky and you get the flawless skin through no matter what you do. You could put soap on your face and you're still gonna look fabulous, right as in dove, right and just walk out the door. And then there are people who are not going to see the you know, the the acne that comes in puberty. And so it's important to start with that to begin to identify what can be done by what's healthy and right now,

Dani Nicole 14:43
and that's why I say it's, it starts from the head I guess our art starts not starts at home. But the same way our moms, you know have flawless skin so they didn't have to teach us certain things. When I deal with teens with acne, right? We talk about that. So Well, let's talk about what you're drinking. Let's talk about what you're eating. Let's talk about the sodas. Let's talk about those things. Let's talk about as a young lady, right? However, you're comfortable with how you're taking care of yourself. holistically, right? Because when you talk about skin, like you said, you're talking from top to bottom. And when I'm dealing with my teenage clients to talk to moms, or dads, whoever is bringing them in, like, let's all get on the same page. So that way we know you know how we're going to not only hold each other accountable, but so we can get the best skin that you need. Because skin affects confidence, too. It does.

Tanya Flanagan 15:40
It does. It does, you know, if you're worried about was watching a Sex in the City series recently in Cary, when main characters got this pimple before she was gonna run into big if anybody remember sex, and she was just, you know, mortified, like, what am I going to do? I'm about to see him and now my face. And it was like the confidence, you know, you see the tank, right? Or you have a dinner or you have a date. And it's just the day that you have to go somewhere that the shiner is either on your nose, under your lip on your forearm, and you're like, really on the side of your face. Yeah, or you just have a real skin problem. And so you have inflamed, you know, jaw area, or your forehead is your problem zone, right? Like it's really difficult in your teenage years, because you're you're navigating so much pressure as a teen to be accepted to be cool to fit, and then have additionally skin problem problems to deal with. Yeah, I is stress

Dani Nicole 16:37
is a stressor and you know what happens to they turn to makeup. And then the microfiche is a continuous cycle. And I will say this too, there's a dermatologist and there's estheticians, dermatologists are going to deal with your skin issues, like a disease. So they're going to prescribe you medicine, Accutane, different things like that, as an Aesthetician I deal with skin on lifestyle. Right? So that's where we go into what are you using? What are you eating? Where do you work? What is your personal life, like? So we can decompress and take apart all of those things? And then we can address what's actually happening? If that makes sense. It

Tanya Flanagan 17:14
does. I like it. It's a as we've been discussing a holistic approach to how to not just look at just your skin just within the mirror, but what's really underneath the layers and then what's affecting what's underneath the layers. And then I think the the great thing about it is, is as you build that relationship, you're giving a person somewhere safe to turn to, to have what will be considered a confidential conversation about something that may be stressing them, I don't care if they put it in a what if scenario hypothetical, and try to apply it to the girlfriend down the street around the corner. Somewhere in that conversation, they're going to extract from it hopefully what they need that helps. Right. So I think that it's super cool. I remember years ago, when I did have an esthetician she passed away, may she rest in peace. It was you know, she became like a sister in a way, like a really good friend. And I stopped going with the third diagnosis of breast cancer because with the chemotherapy, I couldn't do pills or anything like that. Yeah. So I stopped going to see her because of my medical care. I couldn't do any of the procedures that came in with that territory. But the relationship that we had was, you know, it was cool. Yeah. You know, and she was, you know, she was a black woman. And so there was a different level of understanding, and

Dani Nicole 18:33
trust. And in, and I think having a safe space is important too. I've had women come in, and they tell me things that they haven't told anyone else. Right. And I also think, too, that we forget, or I don't forget, it touches the exchange of energy. It's an exchange of energy. So not only are we coming in for facial, but you're coming in to decompress, you're coming in to

Tanya Flanagan 19:04
us because the facial was very relaxing. And it is it's very relaxing, it's rejuvenating, it's restorative, it creates peace, it allows you to calm your mind, your spirit helped to learn to control your breathing. It's, you know, it's just holistic. Yeah, it can be and I think as we get older, when you're younger in your 20s Sometimes you have the resources but sometimes you don't need this, you know, and as you get older and you make more money and you are able to identify what your priorities are. These types of luxuries of care become important part. And then now what you could do in your 20s which might have been a patchwork. I saw the dermatologist and then I tried these products and then I got this makeup and you think you're doing it right but as you mature, you become even more invested in yourself and so there's more resource is to come and see you, right? And to really build a relationship with you. I always joke around and say if there's one thing a black woman will never give up this her hairdresser, right? But as you get older, and you begin to identify things that are more important, there are other things you add to that recipe that makes sense to complete the whole the

Dani Nicole 20:15
whole thing, right. And I think we forget, we think self care is hair, nails, fee and essentially it is, but self care to is peace. It really is stillness. Right. And that's what a facial offers. A facial offers that piece that says, I'm

Tanya Flanagan 20:35
a big huge supporter of getting massages now. Like I've gotten to where if I don't have a massage every three weeks out the comic, I am at a different place in life where there's so much I'm juggling and just all the years of typing as a reporter and working in communications and exercise like it's shifted to me to to have some movement in my life, right? All of these things play into your skin, how healthy your skin is, how well you're sleeping, how much water you're drinking, especially once you get past your like, I'd say at least your 20s because I admit, I confess I have a niece who does not like to drink water. Because she looks just like you. Yeah, but her skin is flawless as far as she has the DNA of flawless skin. Right. But she's not a good water drinker to becoming a better water drinker. Right. But she's not the best water drinker, but she is blessed to have the water she got Yeah. And and that's the issue my nostrils flare. Hater.

Dani Nicole 21:33
Some of it is genetic. But sometimes people look at skin and I say she doesn't have breakouts, she doesn't have hyperpigmentation. So she has good skin. But it could be dry, could be flaking. It could be tight. It could be you know, it's all of those. It's all of those other, those other things too. So we even have the conversation of no comparison. You're not here to compare what you look like opposed to somebody else. I'm

Tanya Flanagan 21:57
like that. Yeah, we're

Dani Nicole 21:58
here to. Yeah. Because that's

Tanya Flanagan 22:03
powerful. I had a trainer once who said, you know, you're not gonna get like people want to go work out because they want to look like you know, Hollywood, right? But you're not gonna look like that you're gonna look like the best version of you of you. So what is the best version of you? Look, that's what I like, about no comparison.

Dani Nicole 22:18
Yeah. What is the best version of you look like?

Tanya Flanagan 22:21
I want to ask you a question about in that in that vein, because we see all the things that are bombarding us on tick tock on social media, and it hits you with all this skin type stuff, right? So what do you say to people as they're seeing these propaganda, promotional videos, or you skin type A, B, C, or D, whatever that even means, but you know what I'm saying people see this all the time. And then you're looking at it, and some people probably tap to take the quiz to try to figure out what skin type Am I right? Right? So the danger of letting that define because I'm assuming there's danger in allowing something like that to define what you think you have fur skin

Dani Nicole 23:02
and not going to a professional right so we go to a professional doctor right we go to a professional dermatologist we go to our professional everything else but when it comes to scan for some reason, tick tock influencers are you know, the professionals. So I was I see a professional. Because again, skin is not just surface level, skin is lifestyle skin is what are you eating skin is, you know, cultural differences. So see a professional, I even have clients I husband and wife, and you think husband and wife Oh, I can use the same thing? No, you can't. Mandate will stress and hormones completely differently than women. Right? Genetically, you guys are two separate people. Yeah, you live together every night, but you're two separate people. So yeah, see a professional, associate Professional. Find your esthetician. Trust your esthetician. Do what she says.

Tanya Flanagan 24:04
And if someone wanted to meet you and make you the rest of each other, we have time I like to make sure I get a couple of opportunities to make sure people know how to learn more, and find you so we're gonna do this more than once. But how do handles where they come look at and I know you're on Instagram, right? Let's let other people know how to reach you how to begin this conversation.

Dani Nicole 24:26
Of course of course. So handles everything is the same. So Instagram is at scam my daddy Nicole website is www dot scammed by daddy nicole.com. Yes, Tik Tok scam by daddy Nicole. So everything is the same. S k i n by Danny Nicole.

Tanya Flanagan 24:47
And I want to make sure they know how you spell Danny.

Dani Nicole 24:49
Yes. Danny da n i n IC o le Yep. Yes.

Tanya Flanagan 24:56
So I'm excited to have been super busy for the First part of this year, so I'm excited to carve out some time to come in and have a good conversation with you about my skin. And yes, that are just, you know, my life and just being, I want to get to the point where I wake up at 7am. And I don't, I don't need makeup, I want to wake up like this

Dani Nicole 25:17
lip gloss and,

Tanya Flanagan 25:19
and, and not at 7am at two o'clock in the afternoon or seven and I'm not a huge makeup person. But I noticed how different I've had numerous surgeries over the years between my breast cancer and just other things that I've had to you know, recover and heal from. And during those periods, it makes me slow down, obviously, right, and rest to heal other parts of my body. So I completely comply with the direction from the doctor that you're going to go home arrest for six weeks, eight weeks, 12 weeks, whatever these recovery periods have required my life. And my uncle would always come over and he would say to me, you look like you're 16 But it was hinting on the rest, right? The restoration, the skin just clears. You're not doing as much stuff. You're really resting the body like you're not on 100 All the time. Running here running my dad always tells me time you're really too busy. My brother. Thanks, Sis, you're way too busy. Yeah, I love the energy in my life and the movement and fluidity of how I'm living it. But I want to make sure there's balance and so right. Am I do I try to eat? Well? Yes. Am I always the cook? No. Right? Is it better? If I am probably, you know, it's just balanced? Do I get exercise? Yes. But am I doing? Is everything are in order? No, of course not. But I would like to get better write and write and recognize the value in what I need to prioritize, and that space in that space. And you know what I'm gonna get a realistic plan of what can I actually do, because that's the perfect world, right? If I prioritize the sure I would wake up and have a life of leisure, have a healthy breakfast, drink lots of water sit in the Steam Room, you know, I would do these things read a book for like an hour and a half or two. But I don't have the luxury of doing that. But how to identify what's important, and at least put out a list of 10 things, five things at the top that I actually can achieve and do. And I think that spending time with you helps a person

Dani Nicole 27:29
that list because we talk about those things we talk about, we talk about, okay, what's important to you. And I always ask my clients, figure out one or two things that make you feel good. And make sure you do those like that. And I'm not asking you even with skin. We're not asking you to cut out our soda or sugar. Well, let's balance it, right. So maybe you have cheese four days a week instead of seven. Because remember, it's no comparison, but it's all about how you feel and what you want to look like and what you perceive as your best self. And I think as women as as black women specifically, we are so worried about everything and everyone else around us that we often forget about us. That

Tanya Flanagan 28:14
is powerful. And that is truth. We are running out of time and B but before we do is we get into less than the last two minutes that we have this morning. It's amazing how when you're having a really good conversation, you just start to see the time click out. But what is one thing that you eat that you think makes your life healthier?

Dani Nicole 28:35
So I eat a lot of fruits, a lot of vegetables and electrolytes. Okay, misconception water clears your skin water flushes your cells, electrolytes hydrate you. So water and electrolytes include both All

Tanya Flanagan 28:49
right, yes. And I just wanted to give people a little bit. Yeah, because it's a little teaser of what they'll get when if they haven't seen Danny the call. You'll get a little bit more on the smart things that you can do that keep you healthier. Las Vegas. I hope you have enjoyed this conversation. Danny Nicole, she's everywhere on Instagram, Facebook, all those places that you hang out and social media. Thank you once again for hanging out with me Tonya Flanagan here on 91.5k u and v public radio for the scoop. Have a great week. Stay hydrated, where you sound black, stay healthy, and enjoy life. We'll see you next week.

I want to thank you for tuning into the scoop with me telling you Flanagan and I want to invite you to get social with me I'm on Facebook and Twitter. My name is my handle TA and YAFL a na GA N You can also find me on Instagram at Tanya almond eyes Flanagan and if you have a thought and opinion or a suggestion, don't hesitate to shoot me an email to Tanya dad flanagan@unlv.edu. Thanks again for joining in. Stay safe and have a great week.