Verbally Effective

Originally from Fairfax, VA, essayist and memoirist Leta McCollough Seletzky is deeply rooted in Memphis, TN. At the tender age of three she moved to the city known as the home of the blues with her mom who worked as a reporter for the Commercial Appeal. After graduating from Craigmont High School, Leta ventured off to college as Political Science and French major at Northwestern University. She l...

South Memphis native Crystal Mercedes has been making waves since hitting the DJ scene in 2008. Although her aunt and uncle were djs, playing the baritone at Colonial Middle School and being on the Color Guard at Overton High School was where her love and understanding for music began to broaden. She entered UT Chattanooga as a Communications major and started djing in August of 2008. Crystal admi...

You may be familiar with the Directory of Business Diversity and Compliance for the City of Memphis, Joann Massey. However, do you know about Lil JoJo from North Memphis? There is so much behind a name that it deserves a podcast to tell the entire story. Raised by her Godparents in New Chicago, Joann faced desegregation along with many other traumatic events and transitions. As she entered high sc...

From launching his business, Massage on the Go, when he was 25 to now having more than 450 therapists in 50 states, Samuel Nelson has proven that hard work and resilience are key ingredients in the recipe for success. Sam grew up in the Bethel Grove community playing football for White Station HS and hustling bootleg cds, candy and gucci apparel out of his trunk. Although he attended college as a...

It's not often that your backup plan becomes the Master Plan. This is exactly what happened to entrepreneur Megan Mottley. Her daughter was preparing to attend an international school trip to Japan and Megan started a fundraiser selling cookies that manifested into an empire. Growing up in North Memphis, Megan was very studious and involved in extracurricular activities at Raleigh Egypt High Schoo...

Chef Desmond Robinson (Chef D.Arthur) is a native of Memphis, TN by way of Whitehaven. Coming from a family of amazing culinary talent, cooking has been a passion of his since he was a child. After graduating from the University of Memphis in 2007 with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication, D.Arthur went through a period in life where he had to figure things out before beginning his culinary educati...

In this season of uncertainty we have a newfound respect for our educators. Meet Angela Janelle Jones! A graduate of Xavier University of Louisiana with a Bachelors in English, a Master’s in Education from Union University and currently a Doctor of Education candidate at the University of Memphis, Angela is a stellar individual: personally and professionally. In 2013, She took a leap of faith to s...

My guest for episode 114 is Dr. Stacy L. Spencer, Senior Pastor of New Direction Christian Church in Memphis, Tennessee, a multi-site congregation with church plants in Collierville, TN, and Idutywa, South Africa. Take a listen as Dr. Spencer speaks of his humble beginnings in the 80's working in tobacco fields in rural Olmstead, Kentucky. He learned many life skills growing up but most of all emp...

Patrick Newman is a Memphis native graduating from Hamilton High School, Univ of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (B.A. History) where he played baseball, Freed Hardeman University (Master’s in Education) and also Success School of Real Estate. Patrick has been able to gross millions of dollars in three totally different industries: Education, Real Estate and Entertainment. Throughout his career as an athle...

Rosalyn is determined to let her light shine. This Memphis native continues to build on a strong acting resume that includes work in network television and feature films, in addition to commercial work with global brands such as FedEx, Dell Computers and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. She grew up in her hometown playing flute in marching band and concert orchestra and singing in her church...

Meet filmmaker and artist Chassidy Jade; a professional video editor and multi­‐talented creative from Delray Beach, Florida and Memphis, Tennessee and with nothing more important to her than producing high quality and diverse independent projects. Tune in to episode 111 as Chassidy breaks down the cost of being a boss in the world of editing.

After a fifteen-year corporate career with various Fortune 500 companies, Summer Owens decided to use her life's challenges to help other overcome theirs. She is the founder and CEO of S.O. What! LLC and author of Life After Birth: A Memoir of Survival and Success as a Teenage Mother. She wears many other hats in addition to being named the President of the University of Memphis National Alumni bo...

Jasmine Worles is a Memphis native who has pushed for fluid communication between grassroots communities and local government and has been named a Rising Star by the American Society of Public Administration. She is on a continued mission to use her skill to bring the voices that matter most in Democracy to the decision making table. Jasmine currently serves as the Strategic Planning Advisor to th...

Standing 6'8, John Best aka "Brother John" serves as the General Manager for the Department of Broadcast Services (88.5FM & C19-TV) of Shelby County Schools. In a short matter of time, John has transformed these media entities into a powerhouse for students to create content for radio, TV, photography, podcasts, graphic arts and digital media. Originally from New Jersey, John moved to Memphis at t...

Orange Mound native Virginia Awkward has been a certified trainer for nearly one year, but her love for health and fitness started as a Memphis-area athlete at Craigmont High School. She is deeply rooted in the community with her father being a retired fireman and mother running Ernestine and Hazel's for many years. Virginia has a B.S in Psychology from Christian Brothers University and has been i...

Today I'm taking you down memory lane with the "Best of 2019" snippets. My guests last year were extremely transparent discussing the highs and lows of their pursuits and I wanted to share a piece of their podcasts with all of you. Take a listen and enjoy the guests from episodes 50-100!

Growing up as a kid in Raleigh Phillip DeWayne did not have aspirations of becoming a chef. Playing the symbols in the band and eventually landing a role as the basketball manager for the Raleigh-Egypt Pharaohs encompassed his world during those days. Upon graduation, he attended the University of Memphis for a short while but later began working at the Peabody as a dishwasher. This is where his l...

My guest for episode 104 is author and writing professional Jae Henderson. She currently spearheads the PR and social media for several businesses and nonprofits as President of Put It In Writing Professional Writing Service & PR. Jae is a Memphis native and proud graduate of Treadwell High School and The University of Memphis. As you listen to Jae's journey, you'll discover what motivated her to...

Whitehaven native and real estate finance guru Al Pickett is my guest for episode 103. Currently residing in Houston, TX, Al continues to attract clients and build a trustworthy company brand recognized throughout the community via interruptive marketing and advertising campaigns. Since a youth, Al was fascinated with numbers and discovered it made perfect sense to bet on himself. At the age of tw...

As a real estate agent, tax professional, and credit counselor, Crystell Oliver is more than a successful serial entrepreneur. Her passion for entrepreneurship and others is part of what can be attributed to her success and the growth of Dream Team Solutions, LLC. The road to entrepreneurship was not easy, as it took many failures and lessons for Crystell to realize her calling. On episode 202 Cry...

Born to sharecroppers in Batesville, MS, my radio colleague Bobby O'Jay walks us through his 47 years in the radio industry. After seeing his cousin Melvin Jones come home in a fancy ride in 1965 after sharing he was on the radio, Bobby immediately began practicing his radio voice. His first chance was presented in 1972 at the age of 18 when he received a phone call for his first gig in Montgomery...

Here we are at episode 100!!! Ena Esco shares with her producer SunAh some of the pivotal moments that brought her to Memphis, to radio and to podcasting.  Memphis has been very good to Beaumont, TX native Ena Esco. Upon graduating from Millington-Central High School, Ena attended LeMoyne-Owen College where she was a Dubois Scholar and president of her sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., Bet...

Brandon Adams aka DJ B.A. #nogenre has become one of Memphis’ most respected turntablist in the city. Born in Raleigh NC and raised in Youngsville NC, the United States Navy brought Brandon to Memphis by way of Millington on his 5th deployment two years ago. He began djing in 2010 while stationed in Jacksonville, FL and quickly put those controllers to use. After receiving orders overseas in late...

Kontji Anthony is an award-winning news broadcaster who is currently the evening anchor for WMC Action News 5. She has literally lived in every time zone including Iowa, California, North Carolina and Tennessee. Having Caribbean roots, Kontji grew up in New York outside of Manhattan where she received an amazing dose of culture attending Broadway plays, radio city music hall, statue of liberty and...

You can find my guest for episode 97 hosting trivia and bingo throughout the city of Memphis every week. Kevin Cerrito is the owner of Cerrito Entertainment and host of Cerrito Live and Wrestling Time on Sports 56 every Saturday from 10a-12p. After graduating from Houston High School, Kevin attended University of Memphis as a Communications major and wrote a weekly column for the Daily Helmsman. H...