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Imagine being in an audience and waiting to hear from your favorite speakers. The house lights go dim, the spotlight cranks up and from the silence emerges the sounds from “This is Me,” the inspirational and audacious track from the 2017 film, “The Greatest Showman.” This setup is the dream of the COO and co-founder of StartupStarter, Lorel Scott. Scott has unapologetically busted into the business sector to change the narrative around business education and level the playing field for people of color seeking to advance their businesses. Proudly representing the intersectionality of being a Black gay man, Scott understands the nuances and challenges that exist for business leaders of historically underrepresented communities. This is where StartupStarter enters the chat.
Dominiece Clifton’s story is a testament to how timing is everything when it comes to seeing your dreams unfold. The Baltimore Sun reports that the 34-year-old went from being on the brink of letting go of her aspirations of becoming a business owner to securing a “no-strings-attached” life-changing grant — $2,000 a month for one year, to be exact. “I was spending a lot of time helping other people build their dreams,” Clifton said, according to The Baltimore Sun. “But the grant has made it so I can be present because the basics are covered, and it has allowed me to invest in things for the program. I haven’t felt this much peace in so long.” According to the outlet, the “We Got Your Back” grant was launched by Jayme Wooten, who is the founder of CLLCTIVLY — a Black-led organization that works to be a resource for social impact in the Baltimore community. The funding was launched for not only entrepreneur’s businesses, but also for their overall livelihood. “You’re investing in the...
Brent Faiyaz has shown appreciation for the ladies since his music career kicked off. In the beautiful spirit of Women’s History Month, the R&B singer is taking his pen from writing lyrics to checks to support his fans. Faiyaz has launched his second annual Show U Off grant — named after his track released in March 2021 — to financially support Black women entrepreneurs, according to Billboard. https://www.instagram.com/p/Ca5SE7JPceS/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link Black women founders face the most trials when attempting to secure VC funding, so the Grammy-nominated artist aims to play a role in helping to alleviate that by providing funding to jumpstart their innovative ideas. “I want this to be the future of how Black business is done,” he said in a statement, according to Billboard. “Black people fund Black people.” Similar to last year’s program, as previously reported by AfroTech, the $60,000 fund will be awarded among six Black women entrepreneurs.
Coalition to Back Black Businesses (CBBB), co-founded by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, American Express, and four leading national Black business organizations – announced 491 Black-owned small businesses across 39 states were each awarded a $5,000 grant as part of a multi-year grantmaking and mentorship initiative. The recipients will be eligible to apply for enhancement grants of $25,000, which will be provided to a select number of 2021 grantee recipients in July 2022. The CBBB was formed in September 2020 to address the needs of businesses impacted by the pandemic and support their long-term growth. Since its launch, CBBB has awarded grants to more than 1,000 Black-owned small businesses. “From nationwide supply chain disruptions to worker shortages, Black small business owners are facing new and daunting challenges brought on by the pandemic,” said Carolyn Cawley, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. “The strength of our economy depends on the...
ComplYant is here to help small businesses with their tax needs. And thanks to a recent seed funding round, they’re able to help now more than ever. In a press release announcement, it was revealed that the company closed a seed funding round of $5.5 million led by Craft Ventures with participation from Mucker Capital, Slauson & Co., and Techstars. ComplYant was founded by Grid 110 and Techstars alum Shiloh Johnson. There are more than 31 million small businesses in the United States, and they pay billions in tax penalties every year for filing forms or making payments late. Some businesses just forget while others don’t understand enough about the taxes they owe to know that they owe them. ComplYant’s digital platform solves this problem by streamlining workflow, providing a savings wallet for taxes, and allowing accountants to collaborate with client accounts – all right in your browser. Using ComplYant, U.S. small business owners easily manage and take charge of income tax, sales...
James Harden is tipping his hat to the immortal Black Mamba. According to Boardroom TV, the Brooklyn Nets superstar has just released a new fragrance through Art of Sport that pays tribute to its co-founder — the late, great Kobe Bryant. The outlet reports that James Harden worked throughout 2021 on the packaging, coloring, and scent of the fragrance, which he ultimately called “Defy.” Defy is the second fragrance to ever come out by Art of Sport, with the first being “Victory,” released in 2019. “I named my signature fragrance Defy for every person chasing a dream,” James Harden said in a statement released to the outlet. “I challenge you to keep going until your dreams come true. I picked fragrances to create a smell that’s bold, luxurious, and uplifting. For the packaging color, I wanted something that spoke to Kobe and LA. LA raised me, you can say it raised Kobe, and Art of Sport was born in LA. This one’s for you, Bean! This one’s for the city!” Art of Sport / Steven Counts...
About a week ago, Antonio Brown had a rather infamous meltdown. As fans of football already know, the meltdown ended with the former Tampa Bay Buccaneer stripping down to his pants and stomping off the field. Now, this infamous meltdown is being made into a non-fungible token (NFT). TMZ is reporting that the so-called “Antonio Brown meltdown” is going up for auction on Jan. 13, on the ViralHeir website, and could go for a reported $1.5 million. Plus, the site is already boasting the NFT as something that “will change” the face of “sports memorabilia.” “On January 2, during an NFL game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Jets, wide receiver Antonio Brown removed his jersey, tossed his uniform into the crowd, and abruptly left the field,” reports the site. “The moment, captured by a Jets fan, has now been shared millions of times in one of the most viral moments in recent sports history. You can now own that viral moment in an NFT auction that will forever change the...
Ciearra Baker probably never thought she’d become known as the “Vending Machine Mom” when she made a Christmas Eve post on Facebook. The single mother from St. Louis, MO, quickly went viral when she posted a photo of her children with a rather unconventional “present.” “Let’s not handicap these kids making their lives easy,” wrote the woman who would become known as the Vending Machine Mom. “I’m not buying toys my kids most definitely will understand. Life is not easy and making the right choices with money & etc… So I came up with the idea to invest in a vending machine for the kids as Christmas gift #Young bosses in the making 👌💪🏽👏🏽🤑 MERRY XMAS!” Some commenters thought the idea was a good one. “I love this so much! I started selling candy at school when I was little to make my money and now I’m 24 and have a small business and I love it!” wrote one woman. Others, however, weren’t as welcoming to the idea. “Not you shaming other parents for getting their kids gifts instead of...
Black-owned businesses will soon have access to billions of dollars, thanks to this latest move by Madam Vice President Kamala Harris. According to Yahoo! News, during the annual Freedman’s Bank Forum on Tuesday, Dec. 14, Vice President Harris, alongside Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, announced that financial institutions servicing minority and underserved small business owners would reportedly receive $8.7 billion in funding. The move is a part of the $12 billion that Harris locked in during 2020 while she was still a U.S. Senator. Other Senators responsible for the action include Cory Booker, Chuck Schumer, Mark Warner, and U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, who serves as the House Financial Services Committee chairwoman, theGrio reports.
Byron Allen continues to prove he’s the man with a plan. According to The Grio, The Allen Media Group — which also, incidentally, owns the outlet — has just signed a deal to acquire a local Fox affiliate in Montgomery, AL. The acquisition, which will cost $28.5 million in pure cash, means that Byron Allen will own 36 television stations in 21 markets. “WCOV-TV is an excellent asset and has been extremely well-managed for decades by the Woods family, who I’ve known for over 35 years,” Byron Allen, the chairman and CEO of Allen Media Group/Entertainment Studios, said in an exclusive statement to the outlet. “Over the past two years, we’ve invested approximately $1 billion to acquire best-in-class, top-tier, Big 4 broadcast network affiliates, and we plan to invest significantly more to acquire additional ABC, CBS, NBC, and FOX television stations with the goal of being the largest broadcast television group in America. All of our media assets work in concert to amplify our...
Growing up in poverty, James Brown understood — perhaps better than anyone — t he importance of education. He also knew that for many Black men and women like him, college was an impossibility due to finances. That’s why, in his lifetime, the Godfather of Soul wanted to use his estate to fund scholarships for those who needed it. Now, 15 years after James Brown passed away, that dream has become a reality thanks to a new deal made with Primary Wave Music. Bloomberg reports that the company — which has made similar deals with the likes of Luther Vandross, Whitney Houston, and Prince’s estate — has just agreed to purchase Brown’s estate for an estimated $90 million. But this deal is not without its issues. For the past 15 years, several people — including five children of James Brown — have been battling it out in probate court to gain control of the estate. Before any money can be paid out, lawsuits must be decided and settled between current and former executors of the estate. It’s...
About a year ago, Google fired their star artificial intelligence (AI) researcher. Now, she’s bounced back with a firm of her own that received $3.7 million in funding from the MacArthur Foundation, Ford Foundation, Kapor Center, Open Society Foundation, and the Rockefeller Foundation. We are @DAIRInstitute — an independent, community-rooted #AI research institute free from #BigTech 's pervasive influence. Founded by @timnitGebru . https://t.co/t7UyaVfmVH — Distributed AI Research Institute (@DAIRInstitute) December 2, 2021 The Washington Post tells the story of Timnit Gebru, a prominent artificial intelligence computer scientist who just founded Distributed Artificial Intelligence Research Institute (DAIR) . The institute, according to the outlet, “aims to both document harms and develop a vision for AI applications that can have a positive impact on the same groups.” And there’s no better person to lead that charge than Gebru, who was instrumental in noting that facial recognition...
Lana Denina is a Black woman artist who has made over $300,000 just in selling NFTs, CNBC reports. And not just any NFTs — but NFTs of her original artwork. By now, everyone is familiar with the NFT, or Non-Fungible Token, and its growing popularity in the tech world. Their popularity has sparked a revolution, especially among celebrities and creatives, too. And for this Montreal, Canada-based creative, NFTs has made her quite a pretty penny. And she told CNBC that she hopes her success story inspires other creatives of color to follow in her footsteps. “I hope to inspire more creatives who look like me to step a foot into tech,” she said. “When they saw the Mona Lana, they really wanted to buy an NFT. Before that, they were looking at other projects, and they didn’t feel fully represented maybe.” She also said that she plans to donate a portion of her sales to a charity that supports African artists, and to various women’s shelters in Canada. So, what else should we know about this...