Trendsetter: Meet Local Influencer Emily Scott James

Photograph courtesy of Emily Scott James/portrait by Lucio Andreozzi

Tell me how you got into dance. You started when you were two. Did you love it from the very beginning?

My mom brought me to a ballet class, and all the other girls were in full pink. I refused to wear pink. I said, ‘I’m going in all black.’ And the ballet teacher took me by the hand and brought me out mid-class back to my mom. She said, ‘She’s not ready for this.’ Now, having two-year-old twins myself, I’m like, ‘Are they ready?’ No, they are not ready. We moved back to Rhode Island when I was four, and that’s when I got into dance and fell in love with it.

At what point did you begin to take it seriously?

I also swam competitively, so I was both a dancer and a swimmer growing up in North Kingstown. It got to a point where I had to choose, because those are two pretty demanding sports, and it was a no-brainer to pursue dance.

Did you know Elizabeth Beisel?

She was on my relay team. We grew up in the same town and we’re the same age. I had three Olympians on my relay team.

What did you like about dance more than swimming?

Dance was where I felt at home in my own body. It was the art versus the sport. Not that dance isn’t athletic. I think dancers are some of the best athletes in the world.

You studied marketing at Wake Forest, and I saw you had a career in medical device sales.

I battled with going to college for dance. I got scholarships to some of the best dance schools, but something was pulling at me, and I think it was burnout. I lost the joy in it, so I wanted to prepare for something else. I danced in college, but it was just for fun. And then just as I was graduating, I got on the show “So You Think You Can Dance” [in 2014]. As soon as I graduated, I packed my bags, moved up to L.A., did the dance show, and then stayed in L.A. for a year and a half, trying to pursue a dance career. Once again, I felt the joy slipping away when it became my job. So I totally pivoted. I worked at Johnson & Johnson for the next twelve years.

So after all that, how did you become a dance influencer (@emilyscottjames) on Instagram?

I picked up dancing again in my kitchen after having my kids, including four-year-old, Beau, and my two-year-old twins, Lucy and Quinn. My following started really growing, which is wild. Dance found its way back to me in a very different way.

Now you found a niche that sets you apart.

When I had the twins, I started looking at childcare costs, time away from home and the logistics of family life; that was one of the main driving factors of me not going back to work. This gave me freedom to try to do this full-time. Thankfully, it worked. We started building a great community online, and I think the “motherhood meets dancer meets a little comedic humor” found an audience.

Can you share some of your style inspiration for your “pull it together with me” outfits?

I like funky, edgy, but approachable. I love fun jewelry. I’m into jeans, a white button-down and a bunch of jewelry. A simple base, but I like accessories and hats.

Where do you see it taking you in the future?

“Dancing With the Stars,” maybe? That is the end goal. I would be floored.