Meet Rey “The DRiF” Rosa
Rey “The DRiF” Rosa’s life hasn’t necessarily been an easy one - but within that struggle he has found light that many only search for.
“Sometimes negatives create the positives, not meaning to,” he says.
Born with HIV, Rey lost his mother and father at an early age and spent much of his young life in and out of the foster care system. “I was growing up in a generation where things were not accepting as they are now,” he said of his time spent in the system. “I would wonder why my foster siblings would be eating on normal china plates, and I’m the kid with the plastic silverware and the sippy cup.” He was later taken in by his aunt, who raised him through his teenage years.
Rey was told of his diagnosis when he was 11 years old, a difficult notion to grasp at a young age. “You have to change your mindset - your whole world changes,” Rey said. “I’m an introvert, and it only made me want to hide more.”
His doctors at Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx knew he was feeling depressed and isolated, and suggested a wish to help raise his spirits. His family had never traveled or even left New York before, so he chose to visit the most magical place on Earth - Walt Disney World Resort.
“The universe knows what’s needed,” he said. “And with that trip, what I got exposed to was the sheer amount of colors and creativity. There was so much more than New York, so many different worlds of people and cultures blending - all these cultures blending creating these magical worlds people fall in love with.”
While he admits it’s hard to describe what it was like as a kid - he enjoyed the rides of the theme park - but his trip really began his exploration of creativity. Since then, he’s not only created art, but he has also studied culinary arts, audio engineering, and photography. “It ignited a fire of creativity within me,” he said. “It encouraged me to explore.”
It inspired him to help other people bring their visions to life, but to also find his own.
Rey’s relationship with street art started in 2010 after a near-death experience due to a perforation in his small intestine. He discovered it on the trip to the emergency room, unknowingly starting a new journey for him. While he sat recovering in an ICU bed for more than 2 weeks, learning to cope with now having a colostomy bag on his side, Rey and his husband began searching, studying, and photo documenting art. It helped his recovery a great deal, discovering this new world. He became friends with a lot of the artists he was documenting - friends who encouraged him to take a chance, have fun.
Eventually he began creating his own art and making a name for himself in the street art world. To date, he has created murals all over New York City and in Paris, Dublin, Belfast and at BANKSY’S “The Walled Off Hotel” and has worked with brands like Tommy Hilfiger Jeans, COACH, Douglas Elliman, Spectrum News. He installed his art in the windows of Macys on Herald Square for World Pride 2019 & Black History Month 2021.
“My work is inspired by what other people can do,” Rey said. “It inspires me to see that there is hope in the world for people that are struggling, that people can find those rays of light.”
The tough part, he says, is about finding them and nurturing them. He wants to be one of those rays of light, supporting and mentoring other artists and helping them succeed.
“I’m a more behind-the-camera kind of guy - I like helping people create their own dreams,” Rey admits. “But that’s what I learned from Make-A-Wish - it allowed me to have my dream at that age, and now I’m able to pass that on to help others.”
This desire to give back is something his adoptive father instilled in him. Whenever Rey would try to reciprocate and pay him back for something, it was always “You don’t have to pay it back, pay it forward to the next person.” It’s something that has driven a good part of Rey’s life.
Today Rey works with his husband of 15 years as co-founders of LISA Project NYC, born in Little Italy and creating art around the city and the world for over 9 years. They are a premiere public arts program and non-profit that seeks to beautify cities, raise awareness for community issues through art, and to simply inspire. One of their objectives is to help elevate artists who may not often get the chance to paint a wall or get facetime with a brand.
And Rey’s creative process is truly one of collaboration, of working together to bring a final vision to light. He listens and works with every voice in the room to make sure they’re heard and represented. It’s one of the reasons he loves LISA Project NYC so much - they’re a close-knit group who work together to make things happen and to bring art to life. “A lot of artists tend to be on their own, but we’re really here to help each other. It’s very nice.” he said.
In fact, Rey is quick to put others first. When we approached him about creating a mural to brighten our office, after a quick “absolutely,” he immediately began to talk about how we could bring in and support other artists as well, and how to raise funds to make more wishes come true. He has since expanded his willingness to help, curating and bringing the Make-A-Wish Mural Project possible.
The Make-A-Wish Mural Project is a collaboration between LISA Project NYC and Make-A-Wish with a goal of bringing the power of a wish into our local neighborhoods through street art, with a series of vibrant and festive community murals. Each mural will be an individual, artistic approach to the beauty and magic of a kid’s wish, and the community the mural is in.
Rey is curating the project, and he has brought together a group of amazing, diverse artists connected to the communities they serve. He’ll also collaborate on two murals, working alongside the artists to bring color to the city, like his wish did to his life.
“One of my goals has been to figure out how I can give back to an organization that has given me something so great and had an impact on my life in an awesome way,” Rey said. “This is an amazing way to do it.”
While the trip still remains a fond memory to him, it was the impact of returning home after the experience that truly changed his life.
“The wish showed me that there’s more out there than the situation I returned to when I went home. It wasn’t as magical, as colorful, as vibrant… it wasn’t as free,” he said. “I knew that ‘you can’t let it stop here; you have to choose your own destiny.’ You have to push for it, and a lot of it’s not going to be easy, but you have to fight for it.”
That mindset to fight, to push to achieve your dreams got Rey to where he is today. Rey just turned 34, he’s living his dream as an artist, healthy and undetectable - something he didn’t imagine would be possible as a child. “I’m so glad to still be here,” he said.