YouTube star Damon Dominique on life as a true ‘Global Citizen’

Paris is the best place in the world for a night out. When most people think of Paris they’re thinking chic, luxurious, rich, wealthy — and that side of Paris absolutely exists. But I don’t go to those clubs, it’s just not my scene. Paris has the coolest, grittiest, grungiest raves. They’re all on the outskirts. Imagine where they store the airplanes when they’re not in use then you turn all the lights off and you put on these lasers and blast techno. You really feel like you’re on a different planet. I like that people feel free to do whatever they want; it’s like a completely non-judgemental zone to the point where you can wear your pyjamas. The point is not to go and look cool, the point is to go and have fun and meet people.

Brazil is the best place to travel as a vegan. It’s always the countries that I’m not expecting — like Romania and Belgium and Brazil. Brazil is known for their rice and beans with meat but they have all these lasagnes, fake meats and stews. I was so surprised; I wasn’t thinking that Brazil was going to be a vegan paradise. I’ve been there three times and every time I eat well, better than in the US.

The best lesson travel has taught me is to realise that I knew nothing the whole time. How can I be so opinionated about certain things when that opinion is going to be shaped by the culture you grew up in or where you spend your time or who you spend your time with? I’m more open to other people’s ideas, to other people’s ways of life now. Travelling helped me realise that you are both learning and unlearning at the same time

I have a lot of these bizarre, mysterious, magical things that happen to me. I was once sitting in a café in Paris and this psychic medium walked into the restaurant and she was like, “Give me your hand”. So I gave her my hand and she was like “You’re an artist, don’t let anybody take advantage of you” and she walked away and she like read my friend’s hand as well. Probably a month later, I’m at a different restaurant and she comes by again. She reads my friend’s palm, a different friend this time, and then she reads my palm again and she’s like, “You’re an artist. Don’t let anybody take advantage of you.” She says the same thing to me! She gave me this little stone that I keep with me to this day and she was like: “Anytime you look at this stone, just remember that you are an artist.” I feel like those kinds of mystical things happen and that’s why when people ask if I’m religious I’m like I’m not necessarily religious but how do you explain that kind of stuff?