Black Tech Green Money

Ep. 150 Brandon Butler is Partner + Chief Culture & Innovation Officer @ Majority // CEO @ Butter. ATL, an Atlanta-based media company covering all things Atlanta, from sports and news to food and music. 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....

Ep. 149 Permissionless often refers to public blockchains that allow anyone to participate in validating and mining transactions as well as using the system to buy, sell and trade assets. Wealth and Success are also permissionless. You don't need anyone's approval to go after your dream, start your company, or invest in your future. Since you don't need it, don't wait for it. Just GO and figure th...

Ep. 148 In the season we celebrate and honor the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I wanted to introduce you to a lesser known character in his life that played a massive impact. The story of A.G. Gaston is one that, when you look closely, represents the power of Black wealth and entrepreneurship, allowing us to use our resources to make the changes we wish to see in the world. Follow...

Ep. 147 Necessary to start your year off with this episode; 'A life worth living is worth recording'. These are words to live by, from a great entrepreneur and speaker. On this episode, Will Lucas, Brand Manager for AfroTech and Black Tech Green Money discusses why you should put in the work to document your journey via a personal journal, blog, podcast, or YouTube channel, and how your story has...

Ep. 147 Randall Yarborough is a multidisciplinary designer with professional experience in sporting equipment, apparel, and footwear. He was Senior Footwear Designer at YEEZY, working under Ye (Kanye West), and recently launched his own company, Joyshed, an athletic shorts brand.  On this episode, Randall speaks with AfroTech's Will Lucas about the technical aspects of design and how to balance mo...

Ep. 146 Alphonzo "Phonz" Terrell is founder and CEO at Spill, and Kenya Parham is Global VP, Community & Partnerships at the culture-first social media app. At launch, Spill jumped to the top of the app store and still maintains a formidable position. On this episode, Phonz and Kenya speak with AfroTech's Will Lucas about how Spill makes a lasting impression in the social media landscape, why...

Ep. 145 Cliff Worley is an accomplished marketing leader and growth advisor to startups. As Sr. Director of Portfolio Growth Marketing at Kapor Capital, he provides strategic coaching to help VC-backed companies effectively go to market and scale customer acquisition. He also currently stands at the forefront of artificial intelligence, speaking nationally to audiences on his secrets to leveraging...

Ep. 144 Jon Viard is Program Lead of the SARE Task Force at Northwestern Mutual, which stands for Sustained Action for Racial Equity. Prior to leading SARE, Jon was Senior Director of Centralized Supervision at Northwestern Mutual. SARE encompasses an accelerator in NM’s ongoing commitment to fight racism, prejudice and social injustice in all forms and focuses on making bold, long-term, positive...

Ep. 143 Your tech stack is the set of applications you use to operate your business. As you grow, your needs are certainly going to evolve, and what worked for you at one level, may not be the best fit for you at future levels. This episode offers a few categories and concepts you should consider as we approach the end of the year regarding the technology you use to run your business, no matter wh...

Ep. 142 We’re taught to give things our best. But what if, with respect to business and ideas in the beginning, that’s the absolute worst thing you should do? My goal is that, by the end of this episode, not only are you convinced that you may not need to dive in with both feet, but also that you have an idea of what you should do next in exercise of validating your business ideas. This episode is...

We are living in the days where the people who beg for forgiveness vs. ask for permission are going to be in position to succeed. If you’re waiting for the perfect time to start your thing, you’ll be at a disadvantage. There's a lot going on in AI as of late. The stuff happening, both in the actual tech as well as in the ecoystem of AI, is at a fever pitch. Things that used to play out over months...

Ep. 140 It is not uncommon or irregular for someone stop me at some point during my day, at least once a week, with a request for advice on a business concept or even a business move. I’m ok with that. This episode isn’t about making your first million. This episode isn’t about how to scale and sell your thing to people all over the world. Neither is it about how to raise money. This episode is ab...

Rodney Williams is Co-Founder and President at Solo Funds, one of the leading financial technology companies for underserved communities. On this episode, Rodney speaks with AfroTech's Will Lucas about how to launch a fintech startup MVP with no venture capital, how challenging disruption can be in a highly regulated industry, and finding success when facing existential threats. Follow Will Lucas...

Ep. 138 We're at AfroTech Conference in Austin, TX this week, so I'm bringing you one of the most downloaded episodes of Black Tech Green Money. There are a lot of new subscribers here, so unless you went back deep into the archives, this gem is one you might have missed. I hope you gain a lot of insights and inspiration from it! Follow Will Lucas on Instagram at  @willlucas Learn more at AfroTech...

Ep. 137  I've listened to the comments from entrepreneurs and solopreneurs who've asked for advice on tech, apps, and systems to grow their businesses. Here's the best advice I can give you: to grow a business, you need to become the type of person who can! If you're looking for ways to become the kind of person who can start and grow an enterprise, this episode was made with you in mind. Tap in f...

Ep. 136: If you're a small business owner, often in the early days of your business you struggle to hire the best talent. With todays conversation, I want to help you rethink this challenge, and encourage you instead to develop your own talent. I share some of my experiences in getting solid at the skills I needed to hire for myself, what convinced me to start developing talent instead of falling...

Ollen Douglass is the Managing Partner of Motley Fool Ventures. The $250 million company is one of the largest Black-run venture capital firms in the world. Wemimo Abbey is Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Esusu, the leading financial technology company helping individuals save money and build credit. This conversation presents a fireside chat from AfroTech Executive Brooklyn 2023. Follow Will Lucas on In...

Osinachi is a self-taught digital artist based in Lagos. The first crypto artist out of Africa, he makes artworks that mirror his personal experiences through a unique visual language that he has perfected for over 15 years.  In addition to numerous collaborations with big players in the art world, in 2021 Osinachi became the first African artist to auction five unique NFTs in Europe through Chris...

Charles ‘Beloved’ Kuykendoll is the founder at RNB House Party, a unique party experience where R&B and Gospel music are at the center, bringing the vibes, as well as the nostalgia. Just recently, RNB House Party was acquired by Blavity, Inc., which is also the parent company of AfroTech and its rebranded as Blavity House Party. Charles comes aboard as the General Manager of Community, charged...

Chaucer Barnes is Chief Marketing Officer of Translation + United Masters, the parent company of award-winning creative agency Translation, and artist services platform UnitedMasters. In creating a new normal for the way brands and creators alike mint and trade cultural capital, Chaucer applies tools and lessons from every chapter of his life – as a media planner, brand strategist, creative direct...

Mandy Bowman is founder and CEO of Official Black Wall Street (OBWS), a marketplace app that is the fastest growing platform for finding and supporting Black-owned businesses in the United States. Internal reports say her app has recirculated about $10 million in sales and business services back into Black-owned businesses. Now, she is focused on expanding her services to ten other countries inclu...

Angela Yee is a Radio Hall of Fame inductee and multi-business entrepreneur who runs companies in various industries. She recently started her solo radio show, Way Up with Angela Yee, after her long tenure at The Breakfast Club. In this episode, Angela Yee speaks with AfroTech's Will Lucas about her holdings, being a 'serial' entrepreneur, and how to decide what to focus on. Follow Will Lucas on I...

Alphonzo "Phonz" Terrell is founder and CEO at Spill, and Kenya Parham is Global VP, Community & Partnerships at the culture-first social media app. At launch, Spill jumped to the top of the app store and still maintains a formidable position. On this episode, Phonz and Kenya speak with AfroTech's Will Lucas about how Spill makes a lasting impression in the social media landscape, why we neede...

Marlon Nichols is the founding managing partner at MaC Venture Capital, a seed-stage venture capital firm that invests in visionary founders building the future that the world wants to see. Prior to MaC Venture Capital, Marlon was founder of Cross Culture Ventures and served as Investment Director at Intel Capital. Some of his current and previous portfolio companies include Blavity, Gimlet Media,...

Ruben Harris is the co-founder and CEO at Career Karma, which bills itself as the easiest way to find a job training program online. Rachelle Olden is Lead at Google’s Tech Equity Collective, which creates energizing paths into tech for Black people.  Together, they’re launching the Black Genius Academy — a software initiative to demystify fast-growing tech career fields and support Black talent i...