As a creative strategist, entrepreneur, and mentor in New York City, Ray Lyles understands what it means to design your own future. Through his youth organization, Rose Noire Productions, Lyles, 43, has built a foundation that uses fashion, film, and mentorship to help young people build confidence, discover their identity, and boost their self-esteem. The program is now an authorized New York City Department of Education vendor, bringing culturally grounded mentorship to NYC public schools.
For Lyles, the work is personal and rooted in what he calls “Human Architecture” — the practice of building a young person’s identity before focusing on career success. “We often ask kids what they want to achieve before we help them understand who they are,” Lyles said. “If the identity isn’t secure, the achievement won’t be sustainable.”
Born in Norwalk, Connecticut, and raised in Mount Vernon, New York, Lyles says his education began long before the classroom. Raised by his father after losing his mother at a young age, he credits his upbringing for shaping who he is today. “My father didn’t have all the tools to raise a child,” Lyles said. “He never gave up anyway; he always kept going.”
Lyles’s mother was a victim of gun violence, an experience that permanently altered his view of the world. “I watched what a bullet actually does,” Lyles said. “It didn’t just take her life; it scarred an entire family. I grew up with a piece of myself missing. One bullet. Several lives. Several generations.”
Lyles attended Mount Vernon High School and Monroe University, where he struggled to figure out where he belonged. “I was a popular kid growing up, but I wore a lot of masks,” he said. “I didn’t know who I was. I adapted to whatever I thought the world wanted from me.” Even after graduating college, he couldn’t find a career that felt like home.
After working across photography, film production, fashion, advertising, and consulting, Lyles realized many young people were struggling with an identity crisis. He saw himself in them. Fashion became more than clothing; it became “my armor, my way of showing the world who I was without saying a word.” He realized that creative expression could become a therapeutic outlet for others as well.
Photos courtesy of Ray Lyles
That realization became the blueprint for Rose Noire Productions. Blending fashion and filmmaking, the organization teaches executive presence, project management, and emotional regulation, culminating in an annual fashion show where participants model clothing that reflects who they truly are.
Breaking into entrepreneurship wasn’t easy, especially as a Black creative navigating corporate, nonprofit, and creative industries. Lyles said success required remaining authentic, noting that “if you are not a certain type of Black man, then they will try and cast you out.”
Before becoming a leader, Lyles said he first had to focus on his own growth. “I had to learn to control my emotions, one of the hardest things a person can do,” he said. “I had to stop seeing the world only through my own lens and start understanding other perspectives. The ego has to die first.”
Lyles believes traditional public school models often fail to engage students. Rose Noire instead teaches young people to become their best selves before they even speak. He calls creative storytelling healing “medicine,” encouraging students to express themselves through writing and reminding them that their past does not define their future. “Don’t let one chapter define your whole book,” he said. “You’re the author. Don”t let the world write it for you.”
Although many institutions measure success through numbers, Lyles measures it through impact. Over 15 years, he said, not one participant has ended up in jail or been lost to the streets. Instead, former students have become business owners, teachers, lawyers, politicians, and parents. “Even if the industry never let me all the way in, I did my job,” Lyles said. “I changed lives. That’s my ROI.”
Participants such as Ja’Lee-Rosemarie Surpris continue to inspire him. “She was 5 when she first walked into our program,” Lyles recalled. He also credits her family, noting, “Her mother Rosie showed up to every practice. Every single one. Her aunt, too. They never missed a day.” For Lyles, Rose Noire has become more than a program; it is a family.
Looking ahead, Lyles hopes to expand in all five boroughs and be remembered for something bigger than fashion. “I want people to remember Rose Noire as the place where someone saw them, believed in them, and fought for them,” Lyles said. “Everyone has a superpower; most people just don’t know what it is yet. Sometimes all you need is someone to remind you how amazing you actually are.”
