Black Tech Green Money

Mercedes Bent is a Partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners, a multi-stage venture capital firm with offices around the world. Previously she served as General Manager at General Assembly (acquired, 2018) where she oversaw a multi-million dollar business line. Mercedes chat's with Will Lucas about how engaged VCs should be with startup operations, how she recommends founders vet their potential inve...

As founder and CEO of The Mane Choice, Courtney Adeleye, built her innovative hair empire to reported net sales of over $25 million. The company was acquired by MAV Beauty Brands. Her products are sold in over 20,000 retail stores and has a lineup of more than 90 hair treatments. Courtney chat's with Will Lucas about how to scale a hair care brand, and remain profitable when the consumer is increa...

Elliott Robinson is partner at Bessemer Venture Partners. He’s focused on growth stage series C, D and E opportunities investing across the spectrum of Cloud Software, Consumer Internet, and Frontier Tech with check sizes between $20M and $150M. Elliott chat's with Will Lucas about how cloud computing accelerates innovation during the age of COVID in stubborn industries, how Black people can final...

Candice Matthews Brackeen is the Founder and CEO of Lightship Capital, the Cincinnati based portfolio service firm including accelerators Hillman and NewMe, and venture capital fund Lightship. Candice raised the most money ever for a first time fund ran by a Black woman, a $50 million fund. Candice chat's with Will Lucas about why she can't make early bets on startups, and how she impacted state a...

Ruben Harris is co-founder and CEO of Career Karma, a Silicon Valley startup that helps job training programs find qualified applicants. Ruben chat’s with Will Lucas about the future of work, and how anyone can break into startups. Follow Will Lucas on Instagram at @willlucas Learn more at AfroTech.com https://instagram.com/afro.tech Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnet...

Tristan Walker is the Founder & CEO of Walker & Company Brands which include the brands Bevel and FORM, both designed to meet the health and beauty needs of people of color​. He sits on the Board of Directors for both Foot Locker and Shake Shack. Tristan chat’s with Will Lucas about if and why Black people should aspire to sit on corporate boards, and how Black culture leads all global cul...

Sherrell Dorsey is a data journalist, social entrepreneur, and speaker. She is the founder and CEO of The Plug—a distinctive, Black tech news and insights platform covering Black innovators in tech, venture capital, future of work policy, and more. Sherrell chat’s with Will Lucas about the why perspective is important when creating narratives around data like consumer trends and Black progress and...

The Lifestyle Specialist Kenny Burns is a 20+ year music and entertainment industry influencer and executive. He was Senior Vice President of Brand Development at Combs Enterprises, the entrepreneurial aim for Sean P. Diddy Combs, and launched REVOLT TV while managing the Ciroc and Deleon Tequila brands for Combs Enterprises as well. Kenny chat’s with Will Lucas about monetizing your personal bran...

Tuma Basa is the Director of Urban Music at YouTube, and previously served as the global programming head for Hip Hop at Spotify, responsible for curating their widely popular playlists including RapCaviar, one of the biggest and most popular playlists with over 9 million followers. Tuma chat’s with Will Lucas about how creatives break through the noise and get noticed, and how artists can gain eq...

Sevetri Wilson is a serial entrepreneur and founder at Resilia, a New Orleans based technology startup that helps nonprofit organizations increase capacity and enable enterprises that deploy billions of dollars scale their impact. Sevetri chat’s with Will Lucas about how non-profits scale their impact and transition from traditional fundraising for survival to business models that prioritize value...

Karen Civil is a brand strategist who has built social media and digital strategies for companies like Beats by Dre and Universal Music Group as well as a host of artists, celebrities and politicians. Karen chat’s with Will Lucas about finding marketing opportunities on the Internet and finding lanes that are authentic to who you are so you can get paid to be yourself. Follow Will Lucas on Instagr...

Bryan Michael Cox is a music producer and songwriter responsible for more than 100 million albums sales, 35 number one hits, and 12 grammy nominations (including 9 wins). While he’s less known for his business and entrepreneurial prowess, people are starting to take notice. Bryan talks with Will Lucas about the symbiotic relationship between music and technology, his multiple companies, and how te...

Morgan DeBaun is the co-founder and CEO at Blavity, which is home to AfroTech, 21 Ninety, Shadow And Act, and Travel Noire. She’s raised over 10 million dollars in venture funding to expand her empire, and leads a team of over 70 people. Alongside Blavity, Morgan also runs M. Roze Essentials, a beauty and skincare brand, Worksmart, a mentorship program for entrepreneurs, and launched the Growth No...

Black Tech Green Money presents the stories of successful Black entrepreneurs and technologists, as well as actionable advice and wealth building strategies from a Black perspective. Subscribe now. Follow Will Lucas on Instagram at @willlucas Learn more at AfroTech.com https://instagram.com/afro.tech Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listen...