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KINGSTON, Jamaica – At 23, Ackeem Lyn is turning a pageant spotlight into industry momentum.
The model and actor, who recently finished first runner-up at the Mister and Mister Teen Universe International competition, entered the pageant with ambitions that extended beyond a title. For Lyn, the stage offered a new platform to sharpen his presence and build his confidence. It also positioned him for the next phase of a growing screen career.
A graduate of Tarrant High School and Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts, Lyn approached the competition as both a personal test and a professional investment. The experience, he said, strengthened his communication skills and taught him the discipline required to prepare under pressure. “It helped me with speaking better. It helped me with living low to prepare better with necessities,” he said.
Behind the polished stage moments, Lyn found some of the most valuable lessons in the rehearsal rooms. Also, he found them in the offstage exchanges that brought the contestants together.
What began with a simple icebreaker — asking the other young men how long they had been there — grew into friendships, shared activities, cookouts and potlucks. Lyn, who joked that pasta would be his contribution, came away with a sense of camaraderie. This helped define the experience.
That mix of competition and community reinforced a lesson familiar to any emerging performer: growth often begins outside the comfort zone.
Acting Work
Lyn has already begun building a creative résumé across disciplines. His studies at Edna Manley included art for animation. Meanwhile, his acting work includes appearances in Benji Black, Chain & Power and Unlicensed. He is also preparing to begin shooting an action-horror biopic. This project is another step toward establishing himself in film.
In that context, the pageant was not a detour from acting. It was part of a broader branding strategy.
Manhunt International
Although he did not take the top title, Lyn is already looking ahead. He is considering Manhunt International as a possible next challenge. He is drawn by the opportunity to further develop his physique, stage presence and public profile.
“I will possibly explore entering Manhunt International to help me build my body. That should have some influence,” he said.
Lyn’s forward motion is anchored by a simple personal mantra. “I always keep moving…just keep going,” he said.
It is a message he extends to others chasing difficult goals. “You may fail at one thing but you will not fail at everything. Never give up on your hopes and dreams because you won’t be the worst person in the world.”
Creative Foundation
His creative foundation was shaped by mentors and artistic communities, including teachers Mr. Earl and Mr. Johnson. In addition, Studio 174, a collective of muralists, helped deepen his appreciation for visual art.
For Lyn, art is more than a subject studied in school or a career path. It is a way of understanding the world. “Art is life and life is art…it is all around us,” he said.
That outlook has made Lyn willing to move fluidly between animation, acting and pageantry. This is a multi-hyphenate path that reflects the increasingly blended nature of entertainment careers.
Family First
Family has also informed his drive. The eldest of five children, with three brothers and a sister, Lyn says he inherited a competitive streak from his father.
That competitive instinct now fuels a willingness to test himself wherever the opportunity appears — on a pageant runway, in front of a camera or in the creative spaces where his next chapter is taking shape.
Offstage, Lyn keeps his profile grounded: blue is his favourite colour, R&B is his music of choice, a Honda Civic is his preferred car and China sits high on his travel wish list.
But across those details is a larger throughline: curiosity, discipline and a desire to evolve.
The Mister and Mister Teen Universe International competition may have ended without the crown. Yet Lyn appears to have gained something more durable: momentum.
With a first runner-up finish, new industry connections and another screen project on the horizon, the emerging performer is positioning himself for a bigger spotlight.
For Ackeem Lyn, the pageant crown may have been the headline prize. The real story, however, is what comes next.
The post Ackeem Lyn Eyes Bigger Stages After Mister Universe International Runner-Up Finish appeared first on South Florida Caribbean News.
