Rich Lessons

Less than 1% of venture capital goes to Black women, but what's really behind that number, and what does it actually take to change it? In this episode, Sheena Allen and Sevetri Wilson Taylor get candid about the full picture of funding for Black women founders: from what banks and VCs are actually looking for, to why your pitch might be killing your deal before it starts, to why the current f...

The fundraising headlines are misleading founders, and we are breaking it down. In Q1 2026, startups raised a record $297 billion — but $122 billion of that went to a single company: OpenAI. If you have been waiting for the market to turn around, this is the reality check you need before next week's full fundraising episode drops May 5th. Plus, we get into the headlines shaping culture and bus...

From Tim Cook stepping down as CEO of Apple after 15 years to mass layoffs hitting Big Tech, media, and beyond, the future of work is changing faster than most people are ready for. Starting September 1, 2026, Tim Cook officially steps down as Apple CEO after 15 years, handing the reins to John Ternus, current SVP of Hardware. Was this a long time coming? Is Apple too stagnant to survive another d...

In this episode of  Rich Lessons , we sit down with powerhouse executive  Deb Grant —GE's first Black female corporate officer, former president of the GE Foundation (overseeing a $130M budget), board director, and CEO of Corporate Playbook—to decode what actually moves the needle and what it  really  takes to succeed in corporate America and beyond—and it's not just “working harder.” From...

Emma Grede said working from home is hurting women's careers, and Sheena and Sevetri have thoughts.  This week on Rich Takes, we break down why we mostly agree, who works from home actually works for, and the hard truth that if you're not exceptional and you're not an expert, the person showing up in the office is getting the promotion, the relationship, and the job security when layof...

Vibe coding is everywhere, but is it actually changing who can build a tech company, or is it just giving everyone a very polished prototype? Sevetri and Sheena are back with a conversation about the AI-powered development trend taking over the startup world. They break down what vibe coding actually is, who it's for, and — as two tech founders who've built and scaled companies — what the...

This week on Rich Takes, we’re breaking down the headlines shaping culture, business, and the future of entrepreneurship—and some of them are  wild . From a controversial $1.8B AI-powered startup raising eyebrows, to the evolving reality of college sports money + transfer chaos, to a growing backlash against “copy-paste AI” design, this episode is packed with unfiltered takes you won’t hear anywhe...

Sheena Allen and Sevetri Wilson Taylor are back with a fresh Rich Takes covering the Oscars, the Target boycott drama (over or no?), and a food city ranking that has New Orleans sitting exactly where it belongs. First up: the 2026 Oscars. Sinners took home wins, but was it enough? Sevetri breaks down why she woke up the next morning still processing how the night played out, why Sean Baker's B...

Sheena Allen and Sevetri Wilson Taylor are back with another rapid-fire Rich Takes — and they're not holding back. This week, the co-hosts break down the Essence Fest 2026 headliner announcement (Brandy, Monica, and Cardi B), what it signals about the festival's comeback, and why Essence still holds cultural power for Black artists. Then the conversation shifts to rising gas prices, the Mi...

Black female founders are breaking their silence, and the internet has opinions. This week on Rich Takes, Sheena Allen and Sevetri Wilson break down Hanifa's viral post about supply chain struggles and customer complaints, and ask the harder question: when does grace run out? Plus, is Anthropic actually the "good guy" in the AI wars against OpenAI and the government, or are we all ju...

On this week's Rich Takes — the quick-hit current events segment from the Rich Lessons Podcast — Sheena and Sevetri break down the biggest stories you need to know about right now. First up: the Supreme Court ruled Trump's tariffs illegal, but before the ink dried, he doubled down with a 50% global tariff. The hosts debate whether corporations should be suing for billions when they already...

Is AI actually changing the world, or are we living in a hype bubble? This week on Rich Takes, Sheena and Sevetri are breaking down the headlines that have everyone talking. First, they dive deep into the AI debate that's taken over the internet from the viral article (“Something Big Is Happening” by Matt Shumer) comparing AI's impact to COVID, to the growing backlash from tech insiders ca...

Subscribe to Rich Lessons on Substack for Exclusive Business Insights and Resources. richlessons.substack.com We're on a brief hiatus from our full-length, guest episodes, but we couldn’t stay quiet with everything happening in business, tech, and culture. In this Hot Takes edition, we break down the biggest headlines of the week — from our Super Bowl recap to the inside story on Khaby Lame’s...

Subscribe to Rich Lessons on Substack for Exclusive Business Insights and Resources. richlessons.substack.com Welcome to 2026, where AI is reshaping the workforce and VCs are changing the fundraising game. In this episode of Rich Takes, Sheena and Sevetri break down the biggest business trends impacting entrepreneurs right now, from widespread layoffs across industries to shifts in VC funding for...

Episode 44 |  Sevetri Wilson Taylor ( Instagram.com/sevetriwilson ) and Sheena Allen ( Instagram.com/whoisSheena ) dive into a candid conversation on what it means to be a  career-driven woman  navigating love, marriage, and modern expectations. With women now outpacing men in education and marrying later than ever, Sevetri and Sheena unpack how ambition, earning power, and shifting gender roles a...

Episode 43 | Sevetri Wilson Taylor (Instagram.com/sevetriwilson) and Sheena Allen (Instagram.com/whoisSheena) sit down with Brandon "BMike" ODUMS—a New Orleans-based visual artist, filmmaker, and cultural entrepreneur whose illegal graffiti murals sparked a movement and led to Studio B, a massive 35,000 square foot creative space in the Bywater. From spending 10 years grinding with Two C...

On Episode 42 of Rich Lessons , Sevetri Wilson Taylor ( Instagram.com/sevetriwilson ) and Sheena Allen ( Instagram.com/whoisSheena ) sit down with real estate investor, developer, and agent Chris Ross , whose path into commercial real estate began behind a bar on Bourbon Street and led to multi–million–dollar hospitality and mixed-use deals. Chris shares how he went from making $800 on his first $...

On Episode 41 of Rich Lessons , Sevetri Wilson Taylor ( Instagram.com/sevetriwilson ) and Sheena Allen ( Instagram.com/whoisSheena ) talk with Karen Freeman-Wilson, former Indiana Attorney General, the first Black woman mayor of Gary, Indiana, and now President & CEO of the Chicago Urban League. Karen opens up about growing up in Gary’s industrial heyday, witnessing its economic collapse, and...

On Episode 40 of Rich Lessons , Sevetri Wilson Taylor ( Instagram.com/sevetriwilson ) and Sheena Allen ( Instagram.com/whoisSheena ) sit down with Takema Robinson , executive producer of Netflix’s top-streaming documentary The Perfect Neighbor , to talk about justice, storytelling, and the movement behind one of the most powerful films of the year. Takema, an activist, producer, and founder of Sta...

On Episode 39 of Rich Lessons , Sevetri Wilson Taylor (Instagram.com/sevetriwilson) and Sheena Allen (Instagram.com/whoisSheena) sit down with twin sisters Kiara and Christy Muse, board-certified nurse practitioners and founders of Muse Medical Aesthetics & Laser in Baton Rouge, LA, to talk about beauty, confidence, and building a million-dollar med spa from the ground up. Kiara and Christy sh...

On Episode 38 of Rich Lessons , Sevetri Wilson Taylor (Instagram.com/sevetriwilson) and Sheena Allen (Instagram.com/whoisSheena) sit down with former NBA star and Baton Rouge native Tyrus Thomas to unpack the business of sports, the rise of NIL, and what life looks like after the league. From his journey at LSU to becoming the No. 4 overall pick in the 2006 NBA Draft, Tyrus shares how basketball t...

In Episode 37 of Rich Lessons , Sevetri Wilson Taylor (Instagram.com/sevetriwilson) and Sheena Allen (Instagram.com/whoisSheena) sit down with Baton Rouge native and civil rights advocate Gary Chambers Jr. to unpack power, policy, and the path to building Black wealth across the South. From his upbringing in North Baton Rouge to national advocacy after Alton Sterling’s killing, Gary traces how eco...

In Episode 36 of Rich Lessons , Sevetri Wilson Taylor (Instagram.com/sevetriwilson) and Sheena Allen (Instagram.com/whoisSheena) tackle the future of work in an AI-driven economy. From the rise of lifestyle businesses to the disappearance of entry-level jobs, they dig into the hard truths shaping how we’ll work, earn, and live in the years ahead. The conversation explores the controversial debate...

What does it take to turn a family project into a global movement? In this episode of  Rich Lessons ,  Dr. Calvin Mackie —engineer, entrepreneur, and founder of  STEM NOLA —reveals his blueprint for scaling impact. From his garage in New Orleans to reaching over  200,000 students worldwide , Dr. Mackie breaks down how equity, education, and entrepreneurship must intersect to truly change lives. Wh...

This week on Rich Lessons we’re joined by Dr. Isfahan Chambers-Harris — scientist, founder, and innovator. From earning her Ph. D. in Biomedical Sciences at Morehouse School of Medicine to serving as a Presidential STEM Fellow at the NIH, Dr. Chambers-Harris has dedicated her career to public health and research that addresses issues disproportionately impacting Black women. Her personal journey w...