We had the good fortune of connecting with Milagros Ugueto And Keudis Sanchez and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Milagros Ugueto and Keudis, why did you pursue a creative career?
For both of us, pursuing a creative path has always felt like a calling — not just a career choice. Art is our way of communicating with the world. It allows us to express our identities, honor our Afrodescendant and Indigenous roots, and hold space for others to feel seen, heard, and celebrated.

We see creativity as a tool for healing, for resistance, and for building community. Through music, storytelling, visual art, and cultural organizing, we’re able to uplift voices that have historically been silenced — including our own.

It’s not just about making art — it’s about using art to connect, to remember, and to imagine new possibilities. That’s what drives us, and that’s why we do this work together.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
As Multidisciplinary artists, our work lives at the intersection of art, memory, and resistance. We don’t create just for the sake of aesthetics — we create to heal, to disrupt, to tell the stories that have been erased or ignored. Our art is rooted in our identities as Afrodescendants, as immigrants, as people shaped by diasporic experiences. That’s what sets us apart: we’re not just producing art, we’re cultivating cultural ecosystems where community, history, and imagination can thrive together.

What we’re most proud of is the way we’ve remained true to our values. Whether it’s through La Casa de la Cultura, our music, our storytelling, or our work in education and community building, we’ve centered the people. We’ve created platforms for artists who often go unseen. We’ve made space for cultural exchange, healing, and celebration — especially for Black and Brown communities in Charlotte and beyond.

Getting here wasn’t easy. We’ve faced the realities of being artists of color navigating systems that weren’t built for us. We’ve had to self-fund, self-organize, and fight to be taken seriously in rooms where we were often the only ones who looked like us. But our response has always been the same: create our own tables. And that’s what we did. Every challenge became an opportunity to innovate, to lean on community, and to remember that our purpose is bigger than any obstacle.

We’ve learned that consistency is power. That rest is resistance. That collaboration is sacred. And that joy — especially Black and Brown joy — is a revolutionary act.

What we want the world to know is this:
Our art is a living archive.
It holds the spirit of our ancestors and the dreams of our future. It is unapologetically rooted in justice, in truth, and in love.

We’re not just here to perform culture — we’re here to preserve it, protect it, and reimagine it for the next generation.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If my best friend were visiting Charlotte, I’d take them on a week-long journey through the city’s cultural heart. We’d start at the Harvey B. Gantt Center to connect with powerful Black art and history, followed by lunch at Leah & Louise for Southern cuisine with a twist.

We’d explore Camp North End for local art, creative spaces, and amazing food, then spend time reflecting at Historic Rosedale to honor our ancestors and confront the past with intention.

A visit to NoDa and Plaza Midwood would give us a taste of Charlotte’s street art and mural culture, and we’d catch live music at venues like The Evening Muse or Snug Harbor. We’d also explore the Historic West End, visit Johnson C. Smith University, and connect with local culture keepers.

Throughout the week, we’d eat at community-rooted spots like Mangos, LuLu’s, and Three Amigos, and end the trip with quiet reflection at Freedom Park or Reed Creek, grounding ourselves in gratitude.

Charlotte is full of spirit, resistance, and creativity — and we’d make sure to experience it all.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Harvey B. Gantt Center – Black Carolinas Artist Residency and collective for giving us a space to create, lead, connect and continue to grow in our artistic and cultural career. Afeni Grace leads with radical love, and witnessing her work and her way of being has taught me so much about honoring the sacred, embracing our fullness, and using arts and culture as a vehicle for liberation, healing, networking, connecting and being and active leader of a powerful community that encourages and supports people.

Website: https://www.lacasadelacultura.net

Instagram: @lacasade_lacultura

Linkedin: La Casa de la Cultura

Facebook: La Casa de la Cultura

Youtube: La Casa de la Cultura

Image Credits
Fenix Fotography- 1st picture Keudis and Milagros holding Masks.

Milagros Ugueto & Keudis Sánchez took the rest of the pictures.

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutNorthCarolina is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.