Today we’d like to introduce you to Kimiko Donahue.
Hi Kimiko, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I’ve spent most of my life proving that a person does not have to choose one label, one title, or one lane.
I was diagnosed with Tourette’s as a child, so I know what it feels like to be labeled before you are understood. For a long time, I believed I had to tone myself down or become more conventional to be successful. My journey taught me the opposite. The things that made me different also made me creative, driven, emotionally aware, adaptable, and willing to take risks.
I started my career in insurance nearly two decades ago, building my way from the ground up while also navigating life as a young mom. Over the years, I grew into an agency owner and entrepreneur. I’ve founded a few companies, experienced successful exits, and learned firsthand what it takes to build something through a lot of figuring it out as you go.
Today, I’m also a co-owner of Tucson Permanent Lighting, where we help homes and businesses create year-round lighting while supporting causes that matter to us.
As my businesses grew, so did my interest in why people think, respond, and behave the way they do. I became certified in NLP, hypnosis, and MER® and began coaching and speaking. Now I help people move beyond the labels, beliefs, and experiences that have shaped how they see themselves.
I’m also a musician and metal vocalist. Music gives me a completely different way to connect with people and express parts of myself that business never could. I also ride motorcycles, enjoy competition shooting, and love experiences that require focus, courage, and presence. (Yes, I like to go fast and be around people that do cool stuff.)
The common thread through everything I do is helping people feel more capable, more understood, and more willing to take action. I’ve learned that we don’t always have to choose one identity. Sometimes the most meaningful life is the one where we allow all the pieces of ourselves to belong.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Has it been a smooth road? About as smooth as a motorcycle ride through Tucson potholes. (Love you Tucson!)
One of my greatest challenges has been moving out of survival mode. I believed I had to do everything on my own. (Because, you know, strong independent woman.)
I became extremely resourceful and independent, but those strengths also made it difficult to delegate, ask for help, and trust that I didn’t have to carry everything myself. this also made relationships and partnerships hard. I had to learn that delegating doesn’t mean I’m incapable… It means I’m making room for other people to contribute their strengths too.
My family, and that absolutely includes my friends, has been a huge support through every restart, reinvention, business idea, and wild decision to try something new.
I have restarted many times… but I don’t see that as a negative anymore. Every time I restart, I bring more experience, better instincts, and a shorter learning curve. I may be starting something new, but I’m never starting from scratch.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Music is where I get to be the loudest, most expressive version of myself. And while I’m an extremely competitive person, it’s the one place where I don’t have to compete. Art is where we can just… be.
I’m a rock and metal vocalist performing across several projects, including Miss Blizzard, a female-fronted Ozzy tribute, and Iron Priestess, an Iron Maiden and Judas Priest tribute. I also perform acoustic music and collaborate with other musicians throughout the Tucson music community.
I’m not really sure what “I’m known for,” besides my purple hair, but I hope my journey reminds people that it’s never too late to try something new, rediscover a part of themselves, or pursue something that makes them feel alive. You don’t need a traditional timeline, a perfect plan, or permission from anyone else to begin.
As a child, I was very aware of what it feels like to stand out without choosing to. Music helped me reclaim that. Now, when I stand out, it’s intentional. The stage became a place where the things I once thought made me “too much” became presence, power, and connection.
If someone sees me onstage and thinks, “Maybe I could finally try the thing I’ve been putting off,” that would mean more to me than being known for any title.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
Honestly, everyone has either contributed to growth or a learning lesson.
Nothing I’ve built or pursued has happened entirely on my own, even though I spent a long time believing I had to do everything that way.
I have a lot of ideas, a lot of projects, and occasionally the belief that all of them should happen at the exact same time. I would not be able to do what I do without the people who help keep me grounded, supported, and help manage the chaos.
My mom deserves so much credit. She always encouraged me to try new things, explore my creativity, and be myself, even when “being myself” didn’t fit neatly into one category. That foundation gave me the confidence to keep experimenting, restarting, and following paths that didn’t always make sense to everyone else.
My daughter gives very honest reviews. She keeps me humble. Her official review of me is that I’m “pretty okay.” She has grown up alongside my businesses, music, and various reinventions. Being her mom is one of the biggest reasons I keep challenging myself. I want her to see that becoming a mom doesn’t mean you stop becoming who you are.
My friend Sage Fuller always seems to show up in the places I didn’t know I needed her. She supports me in my businesses, my household, and my life. She notices the details and somehow makes my chaos look a little more organized.
My boyfriend, Joshua Wasielczyk, has shown me what it feels like to be loved and supported through all of my chaos. He supports the new ideas, the rehearsals, the businesses, and the moments when I’ve clearly added one more thing to an already full plate. He doesn’t just cheer from the sidelines. He helps build the stage, solve the problem, carry the equipment, and make the idea possible. He supports who I am without asking me to be less of it.
I also owe so much to my friends, bandmates, clients, teammates, mentors, and the Tucson music and business communities. Every person who has trusted me, challenged me, shared a stage with me, referred someone, attended a show, offered feedback, or believed in an idea before it was fully formed has played a role.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.kimikodonahue.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kimidonahue
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kimidonahue
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimikodonahue/
