Verbally Effective

White Haven native, Jimmy Stokes II, is ready to wake up the city of Horn Lake, MS. He is currently the City Planning Commissioner for Ward 5 and Pastor at Northeast Side Church of Christ. Her grew up as a preacher's kid and always knew he would one day become a pastor. He proposed to the love of his life his senior year in college and officially started his ministry after graduation. These days J...

East Memphis native, Nia Dorsey, is a model, actress, writer and entrepreneur. 2021 has started with a bang being featured in British Vogue, Vanity Fair and the recent season of VH1's Basketball Wives. Take a listen as Nia walks us through her formative years playing sports in high school, attending University of Memphis and how she started taking her role in the modeling and the entertainment ind...

Felicia Jarrell is a walking goldmine of resources for those who want to step out of their comfort zones to pursue their calling and create generational wealth. She is the owner of Goldmine & CoCo which is a luxury stationery business featuring hand-drawn images everyday African American women. Felicia is also a six-figure luxury business coach providing aspiring eCommerce startups and veteran ent...

Jasmine Wilson moved to Memphis about eight years ago and knew she would have many opportunities in the city, but had no idea she would fall in love with both its soul and the people. She is currently a business coach, healthcare/non profit expert, and recently elected as West Tennessee Vice Chair for the Tennessee Democratic Party. Jasmine comes from a military and multigenerational household soa...

Henry Reaves III roots reach back to Benton County, MS and White Haven, TN. He is the owner of one of the largest African American law firms in the country, Reaves Law Firm, PLLC. Henry was raised in a middle class military family living in various time zones including California and Japan. Life was good until the crack epidemic infiltrated his world. Unfortunately, Henry's father fell victim and...

Latrivia Welch is the President and CEO of RiverHouse Publishing, LLC, an indie publishing house for self-published authors spending her time helping people realize their artistic dreams through literature. She currently represents over 75 authors nationally. Welch is the founder of the Russian Romance genre which includes a black heroine lead. If you find this interesting, please take a listen as...

From corporate employee to full-time entrepreneur, Dana James Mwangi's journey began within Parkway Village community in southeast Memphis, Tennessee. Dana describes herself as that "art kid" during her formative years. After graduating college, Dana jumped right into the world of digital design working a few corporate gigs learning the tricks of the trade. She also freelanced at the time building...

Growing up in South Memphis at College and McClemore, James Alexander was a music legend in the making. Just a stone's throw away from Stax Records, James played football and was a part of a band while attending Booker T. Washington High School. Immediately after graduating high school, he was on a plane with his bandmates headed to New York City to play his very first gig at the Apollo Theatre wi...

Meet Orange Mound native and certified dietitian/nutritionist Ryan Zuber. Take a listen as "Your Favorite Nutritionist" shares his remarkable journey of how he entered the nutrition field on EP 152. Many don't know that it was because of his wife's illness that he challenged himself to learn and do everything he could to save her life. And he did just that. As a result, Ryan has been of service to...

Huntsville, AL native, Ali Manning, moved to Memphis about eleven years ago and hasn't looked back. She made that move must three weeks after graduating from Alabama A&M landing her dream job as a food scientist. She later started Umami Food Consulting and created Food Science 4 Kids. Take a listen as Ali breaks down her expertise as a food scientist and how this field has yielded many opportuniti...

So many times we continue to fight the current of our passions. That's exactly what my guest for episode 150 did until he broke free. David Quarles, IV is one of the most sought after interior designers and jewelry artists in the mid south and beyond. Being of African/Afro-Caribbean, European, and Indigenous-American descent, he allows appreciation of culture to influence how he views the world. H...

North Memphis native, Michalyn Easter-Thomas, was elected to the Memphis City Council District 7 seat in November 2019. She speaks of fond memories growing up in the Vollintine-Evergreen community as she matriculated through the Memphis City school system. Michalyn took her educational quest to a new level graduating from Christian Brothers University and later attending Columbia University of New...

Jeremy Pierre comes to the Bluff City from the Crescent City, where he was prepped at the storied St. Augustine High School. Continuing his education in the city of New Orleans, he graduated from Xavier University of Louisiana with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communication, broadcast concentration. Jeremy launched his reporting career as an intern at NBC affiliate WDSU Channel 6. After worki...

Known by her stage name, DJ Alpha Whiskey, Ashley Wimbush is an experienced entertainment specialist offering a unique and unmatched disc jockey skill set. Ashley entered the professional entertainment scene in 2017, though her passion for mixing music and making people fall in love with music started at a young age. Self-taught, Ashley possesses an almost-supernatural ability to blend and mix tra...

On Ep 146, Ena talks with Tennessee State Representative District 98 Antonio Parkinson. Originally from Oakland, CA, the Marine Corps brought him to the Memphis area as an air traffic controller in Millington. He speaks of his formative years dealing with homelessness, neglect and behavioral issues. Prior to his political career, Antonio was involved in the music business as an artist and producer...

Chelsea Chandler is the Morning Meteorologist and Time Saver Traffic reporter on Local 24 News Good Day Memphis weekdays 5-7am and Middays 11-12p as well as co-anchoring Memphis This Morning 9-10a. She has been recognized as the Commercial Appeals Memphis Most as Best TV Weatherperson 3 times and by the Memphis Flyer as Best of Memphis twice for her work as a morning meteorologist. Take a listen a...

Originally from Indianola Mississippi, Marcus T. Turner is the agency owner of Marcus T. Turner and Associates. He attended Alabama A&M for a short period until he got the itch for the insurance game. In 2011, he founded Marcus T. Turner and Associates, a firm that specializes in financial services as well as personal lines of property, casualty and business insurance. Due to his rapid success and...

The name Crumpy’s has been synonymous with hot wings for the last 30 years. Miss Crumpy’s is a second-generation company that promotes healthy eating, cooking, community development, and family togetherness. Miss Crumpy’s is led by founder Freda Crump. Freda has more than 25 years of cooking experience and it all started at home. Freda’s father opened his first Soul Food restaurant in Memphis, TN...

Making the leap from a very rewarding corporate job to becoming an entrepreneur is not for the faint of heart. However, our guest for episode 142 did just that. Memphis native Diamond S. Taylor is a creative entrepreneur, marketing consultant, and philanthropist. She is the founder and creative director of Friends + Co., a strategic marketing firm to help entrepreneurs & "sidepreneurs" streamline...

Singer, songwriter and producer Porcelan joins us for Ep. 141. Her Westwood roots shined bright as she conquered choir, theatre and even volleyball at Sheffield High School. But Porcelan knew music was her first love as she pursued her dreams after her having her child at 18. Porcelan shares with us how she started in the music business with a group of hungry creatives figuring everything out. Fas...

Making the case for causes he believes in and collaborating with other people fuels Marvin Stockwell's passion for his hometown of Memphis. He’s at his best when he’s developing creative solutions and shaping public opinion using the full suite of modern tools – media relations, marketing, public speaking, branding, event development, social media and grassroots advocacy. Marvin has worked at all...

Curtis Braden is the CEO of Braden, Braden & Braden LLC and has been in the commercial real estate industry for over twenty years closing well over five hundred investment transactions. Known as the guy who carried his briefcase at Trezevant High School, Curtis has always been infatuated with numbers. Take a listen as Curtis walks us through his journey which led him to a very monopolized commerci...

North Memphis native Laquita Tate is an educator, interior stylist and content creator for her brand, Laquita Tate Interior Styling & Design. This October she is celebrating her one-year anniversary in the design space turning blank canvases into beautiful works of art. It all started on Chelsea and Lambert growing up in a huge, loving blended family. Laquita became a teen mother at the age of sev...

My Pisces brother J. Buck is my guest for episode 137. This singer-songwriter who coins himself as "The King of Nostalgic Soul" describes music as an inside/outside process for him with elements of funk, soul and rock. Although he's from Memphis, his family has strong Mississippi roots. Take a listen as J. Buck walks us through his life growing up in Whitehaven and diving into music seriously whil...

Pastor DeAndre Brown is the Founder and Executive Director of LIFEline to Success, a reentry program for ex-offenders that equips them with the necessary tools to reenter society. This vision was made possible as a result of DeAndre spending 25 months in state and federal prison finding it extremely challenging to have a normal life again. DeAndre's roots reach back to South Memphis and the segreg...