Black Tech Green Money

Ceci Kurzman is the founder of Nexus Management Group and is a private investor, entrepreneur, and independent board member. She has served on public, private, and nonprofit boards since 2012, including Warner Music Group, Man Group, and Lanvin Group. Ceci was Vice President of Global Marketing for Epic Records at Sony Music Entertainment. Before that role, she held various positions at Arista Rec...

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 moving fas...

Matthew "Blxst” Burdette and business partners Victor Burnett and Karl Fowlkes are the founders of EVGLE — an LA-based company that houses a record label, production company, clothing brand, publishing company, and investment arm. Blxst is a rapper, singer, and producer. Victor Burnett is Blxst's manager and serves as president of EVGLE, and Karl Fowlkes is an entertainment attorney and co-founder...

Jessica O. Matthews, CEO and founder of Uncharted, stopped by the AfroTech Executive conference in Seattle 2023 to discuss how we can have a sustainable future and harness the power of AI. She’s on the stage speaking with Jonnie Bradley who is the Responsible AI Official for the Department of Energy and Sr. Program Manager for the Artificial Intelligence and Technology Office.  Follow Will Lucas o...

Javoris and Arlene Hollingsworth are the founders of Gracie’s Corner, which features their daughter Graceyan, who was the inspiration for the hit YouTube animated series which was also nominated for an NAACP Image Award - up against big budget animation studio offerings. On this episode, Javoris, Arlene, and Graceyn speak with AfroTech's Will Lucas about creating a cartoon from their living room,...

Maisha Leek is an angel investor and startup advisor working at the intersection of venture investing, startups, and social impact. Her work aims to build a more equitable future through strong businesses, new models for investment, and supporting founders that are frequently undervalued. On this episode, Maisha speaks with AfroTech's Will Lucas about how the current banking climate affects startu...

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...

Jarvis Sam is the Founder and CEO at The Rainbow Disruption where the mission is to partner with organizations to develop practical solutions that champion DEI in the workplace and enable systemic progress where authenticity, empathy, growth mindset, and transparency are celebrated. Previously, he was Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion officer at Nike. On this episode, Jarvis speaks with AfroT...

Ciara Imani May is the Founder and CEO at Rebundle, the first U.S. plant-based braiding hair company. One in three women experience scalp irritation from plastic synthetic hair. With Rebundle, an alternative finally exists. On this episode, Ciara speaks with AfroTech's Will Lucas about the chemicals used in many hair extensions, how she sourced natural ingredients and manufactures her product, and...

Derrick Faulcon is the founder and CEO at Cloudy Donut Co., a vegan donut shop with locations in Baltimore, MD and Brooklyn, NY. On this episode, Derrick speaks with AfroTech's Will Lucas about opening the first Black-owned business in Brooklyn Heights, "reverse gentrification," and his take on what holds Black entrepreneurs from reaching their fullest potential. Follow Will Lucas on Instagram: @w...

Lockerverse is a Web3 platform that empowers creators and brands to tell culture-defining stories and deliver unique access and experiences. On this episode, co-founders Trey McDonald and Carlos McFall speak with AfroTech's Will Lucas about how NIL is changing amateur sports, the remaining value of NFTs, and how they secured rare Hip Hop tracks. Follow Will Lucas on Instagram: @willlucas Follow Bl...

Marcus Collins is Head of Strategy at Wieden+Kennedy and is a Clinical Marketing Professor at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan. He previously led iTunes + Nike sport music initiatives at Apple (iTunes Partner Marketing) before running digital strategy for Beyoncé. On this episode, Marcus speaks with AfroTech's Will Lucas about the power behind what we buy, do, and who we want to...

Vernon Coleman ( @vernnew ) is CEO at REALTIME ( @byrealtime ) and creator of JOT— an invitation-only social media app for GenZ to express one thought a day. On this episode, Vernon speaks with AfroTech's Will Lucas about how social media is evolving, fundraising during COVID, and the human need for real-world experiences. Follow Will Lucas on Instagram: @willlucas Follow Black Tech Green Money: @...

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...

Drew Henson is an award-winning designer, entrepreneur and founder of twenty2b, a lifestyle and technology product design studio based in Toronto, Canada, founder/CEO of SEAM Technic, an IoT personal safety platform, and founder of TOQi, a cannabis accessory technology company. Armed with both a B.Sc. in Engineering Physics from The University of Saskatchewan and a Masters in Industrial Design fro...

From AfroTech 2022 in Austin, TX, Blavity Inc’s Tammy Gordon is on the MainStage with talking ‘Revisiting the Talented Tenth’, a concept of creating leadership in Black communities via education, and missionaries of cultur and expansion of thought. That is a simplification, but you can do your homework on W.E.B. Dubois. She’s talking with Torian Robinson is in biz dev at Alkeme Health. Brigette Jo...

From AfroTech 2022 in Austin, TX, Stephanie Ogbogu, who was Associate Director of Editorial at Blavity, speaks with Tim Henshaw, Head of Hip Hop & R&B at Amazon Music, and Wallace Joseph, VP of A&R at Warner/Chappell Music. There’s a lot of money in the music business, some of it is pretty obvious even to laypeople, but the fine print on the contracts is where the real money is. Find i...

At AfroTech 2022, we spoke with Ruben Harris, Co-Founder and CEO at Career Karma and Sydnee Sampson Blackwell, an engineer who came through Career Karmas pogromming about how we better prepare ourselves for the changing demands of the workforce. Career Karma is technology which helps match students to educational opportunities like boot camps, to better prepare you for product and technical career...

Frederick Hutson, co-founder and CEO at Pigeonly is on the main stage at AfroTech 2022 (Austin, TX) talking with Blavity Co-Founder and COO Jeff Nelson. Pigeonly is a simple, affordable way to stay in touch with loved ones who are behind bars nationwide. 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...

Kalah Haley is an NFT strategist, and founder at Saint Rock Media, which helps companies all over the world craft culture experiences and events. A frequent speaker on NFT related topics, Kalah is a prolific investor and trusted voice on blockchain technologies. On this episode, Kalah speaks with AfroTechs Will Lucas about the current NFT bear market and investor outlook. Whats happening in the wo...

Derrick 'Moe' Moore, Clint Gray, and Emmanuel ‘EJ’ Reed are the founders of Slim & Huskey's Pizza Beeria, a fast-casual artisan pizza shop with a love for Hip Hop and R&B culture. The Nashville Based company now boasts restaurants in Antioch, Chattanooga, Memphis, Murfreesboro, TN as well as Atlanta, GA and Sacramento. CA. On this episode, Clint and Moe talk with AfroTech's Will Lucas abou...

Telva McGruder is the Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer at General Motors, and has spent more than 28 years at the company - starting as an engineer. Today, she’s focused on weaving DEI into the fabric of the company, working in partnership with internal and external leaders to champion the broad and diverse workforce. On this episode recorded at the 2022 AfroTech Conference in Austin...

Everett Harper is the CEO and Co-Founder of Truss, a human-centered software development company. He is the author of the new leadership book Move to the Edge, Declare it Center , which was published by Wiley earlier this year. He was previously Director of Customer Acquisition and Community at Linden Lab (maker of Second Life). A CEO and technologist who also hits many stages around the world to...

Ursula Burns was CEO of Xerox from 2009 to 2016, the first among black women to be a CEO of a Fortune 500 company, and the first woman to succeed another as head of a Fortune 500 company.   Most pertinent to todays conversation is her board roles. Ms. Burns sat on the Boards of Directors for more than 15 companies, including Boston Scientific, the University of Rochester, the MIT Corporation, Amer...

Collab Capital is an investment fund helping Black founders build sustainable, innovation-centered businesses. The partners, Barry Givens, Jewel Burks and Justin Dawkins are previously operators and engineers who've raised significant venture capital, and successfully sold their companies. The partners chat with Will Lucas about whats missing in venture capital to meet the needs of Black founders,...