A Few Minutes with SUPERSTAR KYA

A Few Minutes with Superstar Kya on confidence, vintage, and upping the sexy in 2025!

Happy Sunday! We’re less than 10 days from 2025, and I’ve been moving in the energy of my new mantra, “up the sexy.” I got my first tattoo in three years, recorded the trailer for A Few Minutes Studio’s first podcast, and am planning all the activities for my first solo Christmas holiday.

I wanted this week’s guest to embody this energy as we move into 2025—alluring, in tune with themselves, and radiating an energy that makes you want more.

That’s why I’m sharing my conversation with SUPERSTAR KYA, aka Kya Ritchwood, this week. Kya is a Jersey girl with a flair for video vixen aesthetics and vintage clothing. Kya started her brand selling wholesale bikinis but soon pivoted to something more exciting: blending her love for graphic tees with swimwear. Since then, the brand has expanded to include SUPERSTAR hoodies, cheetah and leopard-print shorts, capris, tanks, and leather and printed headscarves. Check out her site here.

Our conversation begins with her musings on Black Friday. We explore the feeling she’s selling, her love for journaling, confidence, sex appeal, and the childhood memories that influenced her brand.

MINUTE 1 | Let’s Recap Black Friday with Kya Ritchwood.

KYA: This is my first time participating in Black Friday with product. I made one-of-one bikinis for a long time, so upkeeping inventory took a lot of work. This year, I wanted products ready to go, and the feedback has been amazing. I’ve also been pushing product more, especially around sale time, since things tend to sell fast when everyone’s shopping. I’m so happy I got everything in time—product and inventory—and it made for a fun Black Friday. Connecting with my customers when everyone’s looking to buy is easier. I want people to feel like they’re wearing something special, not just a regular piece, but taking a bit of a risk when they wear it. Sometimes, even when I wear one of my pieces, I feel like I’m always questioning myself, like, am I crazy for wearing this?

MINUTE 2 | The Story Behind the Bikini: From Cheerleading to Feeling Good in Your Skin

KYA: The story behind the bikinis starts with my love for bathing suits. Growing up, we had a pool in the backyard—not a fancy one, just a blow-up pool—but in the summer, my grandma and mom couldn’t get me out of the water. I practically lived in a bikini. Swimming was my thing; I was even a lifeguard for a while. Bikinis always felt like a part of me.

Before I started my signature T-KINIs, I was selling wholesale bikinis to get a feel for buying and selling. By the time I got to college, I was learning to sew and studying apparel construction, but I started feeling bored with what I was seeing in stores. Around that time, I was really into graphic tees, so one day, I cut one up and stitched it into a bikini. That’s how T-KINIs were born—completely authentic to me and where I was in life.

Fun fact: I was an all-star cheerleader for eight years. It’s funny how, when you’re young and into sports, you don’t realize the lessons you’re picking up. Cheerleading taught me to hold my head high and show up with confidence, no matter what. That experience shaped me.

I later asked her about her fun, at times, subtly suggestive visual aesthetic and the male gaze.

I also knew that some people might see my bathing suits as provocative. For me, though, it was never about that. It’s always been about celebrating myself and feeling good in my own skin. I wanted other women to feel that way, too. It’s not about the outside world or appealing to men—it’s about wearing something that makes you feel amazing for yourself. When I wore my first T-KINI, I felt incredible. It was different—nobody else was putting t-shirts or graphics on bikinis back then. I’m still really proud of that.

MINUTE 3 | Confidence Tips: Mirror Work & Learning From the Icons

KYA: I spend a lot of time in the mirror, and I’ve had to reassure myself and learn not to apologize for it. It might sound self-centered, but I’ve realized it’s okay to embrace that. A lot of the people I admire are super confident in their skin, and I’ve picked that up from them. Watching confident people teaches you a lot, and I’m learning to be unapologetic about my confidence.

Spending time in the mirror—whether it’s before I go out, when I come home, or even just having a reflective moment—really helps. Honestly, if I smoke a little spliff and get high, I might just get lost in the mirror for a bit. I’ve learned to fully embrace those moments with myself—they’re grounding.

I watch a lot of old-school music videos. I’ve gone down rabbit holes on so many people. Lil’ Kim, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Marilyn Monroe—obviously—and all the video vixens like Gloria Velez. Of course, Beyoncé and Rihanna too. But really, it’s the old-time girlies who were in front of the camera and just exuded that I’m a woman and confident. I feel good, and I look great, and I know it, and I don’t care.

The more research I do on clothing, designers, and finding the perfect pieces, the more it pushes me to create them myself. That’s where I am now—I finally feel confident enough to call myself a designer because I’m out there sourcing fabrics, finding the silhouettes I want, and putting all the puzzle pieces together.

It’s such a rewarding process. For a long time, I stuck to bikinis because that was my starting point, my bread and butter, and it felt comfortable. But as I’ve grown and started taking more risks, I’ve become more confident pushing boundaries with my brand, too.

MINUTE 4 | On Taking Risks with Personal Style

KYA: Sometimes, when I put an outfit together and wear it, it feels so unique to me that I sometimes question if it’ll resonate with others. But I think the fact that I’m dressing for myself is what makes it resonate with me completely. Then, when I’m out, I’ll get little reminders—like a compliment or someone striking up a conversation about what I’m wearing—and I think, Okay, this was a good choice because it just felt right. Sometimes, when I’m getting dressed, I have to tell myself, “Alright, it’s time to go. We’ve thought about this enough.”

The best way to find personal style is to have fun with clothes. It doesn’t always make sense at first, but it comes together when you wear it. I found my style by taking risks—throwing myself into outfits, even if I felt a little uncomfortable at first, and seeing how it worked. You have to trust the process.

In middle school, my mom always made sure we didn’t leave the house looking undressed. One day, my grandma took me to the thrift store, and I bought a pair of sweatpants. Sweatpants were the trend at the time, and I was determined to wear them to school. My mom said, "You’re not wearing sweatpants to school," but I wore them anyway.

It’s about dressing for your mood and vibe, not just the weather or occasion. By stepping outside my comfort zone and playing with clothes, I found my style. So, my advice is to take risks.

MINUTE 5 | Upping the Sexy: What ‘Sexy’ Means to Superstar Kya

ELLICE: My 2025 mantra is "up the sexy," which is about being assertive, following your curiosity, and making life more alluring for yourself.

KYA: What comes to mind is the act of saying no, not being a people pleaser, knowing what you want, going after it, and being unapologetic. It’s so easy to want to be the "good girl" all the time, but no. It’s funny because I tried being mysterious, but it just didn’t work. It sounded good, and you read about how some people love the mysterious girl; you think they’d want to know more about you. But it’s so easy to forget about anyone these days. So, you might as well just be out there now.

MINUTE 6 | Why Vintage Designer and Consignment Are Her Go-To

KYA: The best vintage designers in Jersey? The Hangout, E Designer, and The Vintage Attic in Clifton, New Jersey. There’s also Mom’s Mission and Little Fairy—those are some of my absolute favorites. Oh, and there's also Mint.

I feel like the quality is just unmatched. Vintage pieces are made with much more intention and care—better quality and trimmings. They last a lifetime. I don’t even know when some of the pieces I have were made, but the fact that they still hold up says a lot.

Shopping feels like a treasure hunt to me. And as a designer, I’ve realized how important it is to make clothes that feel authentic to me because they end up resonating with others. When I found brands like Hysteric Glamour and Miss Sixty, I couldn’t believe how much their clothes spoke to me. It felt like they were made just for me. I love vintage shopping because I always find pieces that fit me perfectly.

MINUTE 7 | On Vlogging, Journaling, and Documenting Your Life

KYA: The days in my life are always so different, which is why they’re so much fun. I’ve realized that I don’t live a normal life, I guess? I’ve always been super spontaneous and outgoing. One day, I decided, “This would be really fun to vlog.”

I was supposed to start YouTube seven years ago. I bought this camera from someone and drove an hour and a half because they were selling it for $400. This was supposed to be my YouTube camera. It’s funny how life goes, though, because I’ve filmed with it for YouTube but never posted a video. Now, I use it for my e-commerce, so at least it’s still being put to use.

I’ve always wanted to do YouTube and finally decided, “Okay, I’m doing it.” I’ve been posting every week since I started almost a year ago. I’m excited to see where it goes, but I’m also doing it from the perspective of having something to look back on. I’m super big on memories and timestamps. My dad has always been big on that—he’d say, “Pictures last a lifetime, just make sure you’re always taking photos.” Anytime I was with him, he’d have his camera in my face, which annoyed me, but sometimes you go down memory lane, and those are all your memories. We have so much technology now. It's nice to be able to put it to use in a way where we can preserve time.

I also love journaling because it’s so nice to see how you’ve evolved. The mind is a crazy thing, so it’s nice to see how your brain starts to think differently. I’m a free writer. Whenever something comes to mind, I just throw it on the paper and leave it like that. There is no structure—just get it out. When my mind goes a mile a minute, that’s how it feels—it’s not making sense, so I just throw it all out there. I’ll write about a few things I want to do, how I’m feeling, where I am, and the date—all of that.

Looking back at my journal, especially from college, I see how mean I used to be to myself. I was in one of my first real relationships, which ended terribly. I blamed myself for everything. It’s very easy to fall into negative self-talk.

Looking back, I realized I needed to tell myself, “You don’t have to be mean to yourself. You’re just a human being. You’re here for the first time, doing it for the first time.” Over the years, I’ve trained my brain to think differently by speaking positive things out loud. That’s one of the biggest takeaways from journaling—seeing that jump from “I’m not being nice to myself” to “It’s so much easier just to be nice to myself, give myself grace, and practice positive self-talk.”

MINUTE 8 | 2025 Mantra: What Kya’s Carrying into the New Year

KYA: Keep the ball rolling & up the score!!!!!

MINUTE 9 | 5 Things She's Into Right Now

MINUTE 10 | On SUPERSTARKYA's Target Audience

KYA: There was this woman, she was around 45 years old, and she brought a bikini. She said, "I feel so good in this! It's a little bit tiny, but I feel so good in it." She was on the beach, wearing this bikini, and she had a D cup, wearing a small, but it fits perfectly in all the right places. She said, "I know I'm a little old, but I love this bikini," and I thought, no, I don't want anyone to restrict themselves from wearing what they want, you know?

I feel like I can continue spreading that message because I don’t even like it when people say certain things are for a specific market. I obviously have a target audience in mind, but I don’t want anyone to feel restricted by clothes. I don’t think I’m too old or young to wear anything. So, if I can continue reflecting that attitude to my customers, I want to encourage them to take a risk, wear the piece, and see how it makes them feel.

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That’s all for today!

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I can’t wait for the final edition of A Few Minutes this year! Stay tuned 🫂💖

Is there anything specific you’d like me to write about? Someone you want me to interview? Got article recs? Please email me: ellisellice@gmail.com.