Best Startup
An online news publication created by minorities and owned by minorities delivering unbiased news and headlines free of financial and political agendas.
Tell us about yourself?
I started this magazine as a child in response to childhood trauma. I never imagined it would become what it has today. I originally started as a fashion blogger before having gone on to become a credentialed journalist.
If you could go back in time a year or two, what piece of advice would you give yourself?
Never give up. No matter what curveball life throws at you I have become a living testament to survival.
I will stop at nothing to achieve my brightest goals after a life that was largely stacked against me. I would tell my younger self to hang in there buddy, your time to shine is coming even if you don’t know it.
What problem does your business solve?
There aren’t many minority owned news agencies so I created one to serve my community and beyond free of an agenda.
What is the inspiration behind your business?
The inspiration for my business came from the fact I had nothing as a child. I was 7 when I started my first blog and it served as the launchpad for what we are now today.
The problem I hope to solve is to encourage more black and brown kids like I did to enter journalism and media so we can speak directly to our peers and community.
What is your magic sauce?
We’ve never actually paid for any advertising. Our success entirely comes from word of mouth and having gone viral 18 years ago. I treasure that because people helped launch us into the spotlight rather than having to buy our way into success.
What is the plan for the next 5 years? What do you want to achieve?
I hope to launch at least 9 more media outlets with a focus directly on American communities and this time politics. We now live in such a divided world often dominated by misinformation which is usually intentional. I hope we can at least in some way speak directly to our peers to help stop that.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far?
I’ve been told so many times I would never make it being a black guy in media. I’ve been told so many times I lack the resolve to make it to the top and my god did I prove people wrong. I would be no where though without my extraordinary team and I am forever grateful for each of them.
How do people get involved/buy into your vision?
Anyone is welcome in our community. We welcome individual advertising and such but not corporate overlords. We work with all types of people from all walks of life and backgrounds and have been open arms for many years.
