Podcast appearances and mentions of clark atlanta

On this episode of The Founder's Sandbox, Brenda speaks with Chasity Lourde Wright. Chasity is inventor and founder of Infiltron  Software Suite LLC. Infiltron operates in the cybersecurity space; a Service disabled-Veteran owned and women-owned small business. Infiltron offers quantum-resistant cybersecurity solutions for decentralized digital identity, digital assets, and AI governance, utilizing proprietary post-secure encryption. Its patented technology integrates AI, blockchain, and quantum-resistant encryption to provide advanced cyber resilience, compliance enforcement, and real-time threat mitigation across multiple industries, including aerospace & defense, fintech, smart cities, and EVs.   Chasity, as inventor, speaks about her team and how creativity in the work place is necessary for  enhancing innovation on really tough problems like Cybersecurity. As the CEO of Infiltron, Chasity Lourde Wright is also a former USAF Aerospace Engineer, Intel Officer, and Cybersecurity Instructor with extensive experience in cybersecurity, AI governance, and national security. She was part of the team that developed reconfiguration capabilities for the USAF C-130 and contributed to the creation of the CMMC framework since its inception in 2019. Additionally, she has engaged in high-level cybersecurity and AI governance initiatives, including industry collaborations, government advisory roles, and proprietary innovations in quantum-resistant encryption, AI security, and blockchain-based compliance solutions. Her expertise extends beyond participating in NIST challenges, encompassing leading-edge cybersecurity development, policy influence, and defense sector innovations. You can find out more about Chasity and Infiltron at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/infiltronsoftwaresuite/ https://infiltron.net/     Transcript: 00:04 Hi, I'm pleased to announce something very special to me, a new subscription-based service through Next Act Advisors that allows members exclusive access to personal industry insights and bespoke 00:32 corporate governance knowledge. This comes in the form of blogs, personal book recommendations, and early access to the founder's sandbox podcast episodes before they released to the public. If you want more white glove information on building your startup with information like what was in today's episode, sign up with the link in the show notes to enjoy being a special member of Next Act Advisors. 01:01 As a thank you to Founders Sandbox listeners, you can use code SANDBOX25 at checkout to enjoy 25% off your membership costs. Thank you. 01:19 Welcome back to the Founder's Sandbox. I am Brenda McCabe, your host of this monthly podcast in which I bring entrepreneurs, founders, corporate directors, and professional service providers who, like me, want to effectuate change in the world by building resilient, scalable, and purpose-driven companies. I like to recreate a fun sandbox environment with my guests. And we will touch on not only their purpose, 01:47 and what has driven them to create their own businesses. But also we're going to touch upon topics such as resilience, purpose-driven, and scalable sustainable growth. Today, I am absolutely delighted to have as my guest Chasity Wright. Welcome, Chasity. Hey. Thank you for having me. 02:13 Super excited to talk about how Infiltron has evolved and the lessons learned and how we're preparing to relaunch in 2025. Excellent. And it's perfect timing because I've known you for a couple of years now. Yeah. Right. So Chasity is CEO and founder of Infiltron Software Suite, a company that's headquartered out of Atlanta. 02:40 She is oftentimes in Los Angeles because she's working largely in the defense market and cyber security. So I wanted to have you on my podcast because you have gone further in building your business. So you and I met, I want to say back in 2022, you came out of the Women Founders Network cohort. 03:08 kind of very early stage. One of the events that I was a host of was the Thai So Cal Women's Fund. And you weren't yet ready for investing, but we struck up, I would say a friendship and I admire many things about you as, and we'll get into it in the podcast here, but you touch. 03:35 quite a few or check of quite a few boxes for my podcast. You says, so you are a woman owned veteran and women owned business. You are a veteran of the Air Force. You're in deep tech and you're by park and queer. And so there's many many boxes that you check and it was difficult to kind of hone in on what I really wanted to bring into the podcast today, but we're going to we're going to start from here. 04:05 I always like to ask my guests to start with kind of their origin story. I, when I first met you, right, in private conversations, got to hear your origin story and why you do what you do, what your firsthand experience while on missions, right, that really informed your aha moments to create infiltrant. 04:33 as a cybersecurity company. So tell us a bit about your origin story, Chasity. So, I mean, my origin story has, if you can imagine all of these different paths kind of streamlining into one path. So one of those paths would be a little black girl born in Georgia, still seeing dirt roads and... 05:01 being able to go to the country and work on a farm and, you know, just still having that connection to the past, you know, and not necessarily the past in a bad way. So athletic, played ball in college, went to Clark Atlanta University, you know, the HBCUs are a big hurrah right now, but they've always been one. 05:29 I grew up with one in my backyard, Fort Valley State, which is in Fort Valley, Georgia. So, you know, roughed it with the boys, played in the backyard with the boys, always been a boys girl, cousins, neighbor. We're all still close. We all still play sports when we meet. So it's like an adult play date, so to speak. But also, you know, 05:58 raised religiously, you know, I'm in Southern Baptist Church, two parent household, maybe lower middle class, but middle school was very transformative for me because they decided to mix in everybody. So it was my first time, you know, being in a more diverse population in school. 06:25 And, you know, music is a big thing for me as well. I DJ, I make music. That's the creative part of me. And I found a lot of people in deep tech to do something with music. So, yeah, so, you know, that's my like early years background. And then coming through, I decided to go into the Air Force. I actually took off between my junior and senior year at Clark Atlanta. 06:52 Um, there I was majoring in global leadership and management. Okay. And went in and I was in for eight years. I was an aerospace engineer, uh, got deployed several times, uh, to different places, and that kind of brings us to why Infiltron exists and, um, on one of those deployments, I was a part of a network takedown. 07:21 And it was, whoo. I mean, I don't mean to quote the pitch deck story, but it is what it is. I wrote it because that's the way it felt. It was catastrophic. So just imagine the city of Los Angeles losing power out of nowhere. The rail stops working, Sinai has no power, so all of the medical equipment is no longer working. 07:49 The internet's completely gone and not rebooting like it normally would. Your energy grid is down. That is what I experienced in one of those deployments. And I was a part of Iraqi freedom and Afghanistan. I was a part of both of those wars. And when we came, you know, we got everything back. Thank God we were smart enough to ship. 08:19 brand new equipment. Okay, you know, so you know, we weren't able to get there. Yeah. I mean, I mean, that's part of our job. We're engineers. And when you're in the middle of nowhere, there's no calling HP. There's no calling Cisco. Like you got to know how to do what needs to be done. There was there was a lot of makeshifting. I can be I came out of Air Force, I could be a mechanical engineer to 08:45 because we had to figure out how to make components on the fly. It was just so many things. Innovation, right? Like you had to be innovative. You had to be adapt quickly while keeping the mission as a focus. So just imagine something that catastrophic and something similar has happened. I feel like Colonial Pipeline was something that is known now in the US for sure. 09:15 that had similar elements of what we experienced in being deployed. Yeah, and that was two years back. And SolarWinds is another one. I generally refer to those because people generally gasp, even non-technical people, because they know how damaging it was. So we can reuse. Normally, when the equipment goes down, 09:44 Unplug, right? Plug back in. Reboot. Yeah, reboot. But that was not happening. And what we found out in the debrief was that quantum was used. So quantum simplistically is about frequencies in this context. It's about frequencies. And frequencies matter in so many aspects of life, from spirituality all the way through tech like what Infotron has. So... 10:14 What they did was they basically zeroed out the frequencies of our satellite communications. And I believe that they created some frequencies that damaged other equipment. So these are things that again we found out in the debrief. And I wasn't really able to talk to that probably when we met because I wasn't sure if it was unclassified yet. 10:42 But as soon as Biden started talking about quantum initiative, which was back in 2022, when we were in, I was like, everything's hitting it the right time because we were literally in Techstars LA space. And Biden pushed the quantum initiative. And I'm like, see, told you, because a lot of people, a lot of people doubted what I was saying because of the year that I said it had happened. And as. 11:09 we started to grow out our team. There are other veterans on our team from different branches. And of course we war story swap all the time. And those other two people work for like NSA and they did kind of the same thing, telecommunications. And I'm telling the pitch desk story and they're sitting there like, yep, yep. That happened to us too. And I'm like, when? 11:38 And they're saying different years. So at that point, we understood it. It happened more than once. So that's why Infiltronic. So what's Infiltronic? So let's bring it back to, Yeah. So you leave, you leave service after eight years after also experiencing that. I still feel like I'm a part of it because I do consult them still. Right. So it'd be great. So. 12:08 And once in the Air Force forever? Always. Well, I really would have been in Space Force. Yes. Yeah. Well, you heard that here on the Founder Sandbox. The next, yes. So for my listeners, again, you check a lot of boxes. Deep tech, women in STEM. What is it exactly that? 12:37 your suite of services. All right. So Info-Trans software, right, has two patents now. And on your landing page, it says, our patented solutions, solutions utilize adaptive artificial intelligence, advanced quantum encryption and blockchain technology to deliver real-time cybersecurity for a wide array of applications. Later on, we'll get into smart cities, but 13:06 including the internet of things, smart devices, legacy systems, hybrid data, signals and devices. All pretty, pretty understandable, but what is it that Infiltrion software is able to do that others are not? So we're able to create a easier way for businesses to migrate their devices. 13:36 and their software, so their applications that they use, maybe they've developed them themselves, we provide a way for them to easily migrate those entities over into a more quantum-proofed infrastructure. So we created what we've trademarked as quantum encapsulation. So just imagine something being encapsulated. And basically we've created, 14:05 a brand new method of leveraging quantum, the AI, we leverage it for the pro-activeness. So in lieu of just waiting for threats to happen to our clients, we go look for the threat. So we want to go be where the bad guys are and find out and bring that information back and update the solution in real time to provide protection for all of our clients in real time. 14:33 That's how we leverage the AI. The blockchain is kind of leveraged to kind of make sure that people, things like devices, aren't on networks that shouldn't be. So it's kind of, I mean, we use it for what blockchain was pretty much basically developed for, and that's a ledger. So keeping up with the transactions of what's happening. 15:03 in a client's infrastructure. Fantastic. So it's largely a B2B business, yours, right? We do. We have B2B, but we've been approached several times here recently by consumers. Because now, because of the biometric protection aspect of our solution using the quantum encapsulation, we can protect, say, 15:32 Halle Berry from deep fake, being deep faked, or, you know, protecting her likeness from being used without her knowledge in movies, CGI'd into movies. So it's kind of getting a little bit more consumerish as we iterate, right? Yeah, and we were briefly speaking before the podcast recording, Chasity and I, and... 15:59 I've known her for years. She's a very private person, would not allow photographs. So I told my producer, I'm certain Whitney Chastity's not going to be sending us a picture, but you said yes, that you might, because you do have biometric, artificial intelligence, safeguards that can actually discover deep fakes, right? Yes, yes. Yep, if it didn't come from us, if it wasn't checked back from us, 16:29 It wasn't approved by the person. So it's kind of pretty much that simple. Amazing. Well, later on in the show notes, we will have how to contact you at Enfield Tron. So you are in the startup ecosystem. Again, you travel a lot. You're between Washington DC, Atlanta, Los Angeles, and actually the Bay Area. Yeah, the Bay Area. Right. So. 16:58 Revenue can be elusive, right? How? Especially in tech, and especially in these really large markets that I call deep tech. Deep tech and leading edge, bleeding edge, right? People don't know what they're actually buying, right? Or what they don't even, they probably don't even know that they have a need, right? What's been your strategy at Infiltron to keep the revenue flowing while maintaining also a pretty playful, innovative culture? 17:27 You talked about your team and so talk, that's kind of two questions. So how have you kept revenue coming, right? While not going out for dilutive funding yet, but tell us a little bit about how, what's your business model? So the business model in itself is set up for B2B and we also have a licensing element there. So if they, for instance, 17:56 a Fortune 500 company who has a cyber team, right? They have an internal cyber team. If they want to license out the patents that we have and kind of customize it or create or build off of those, use it as a baseline for what they need for their systems, we offer that as well. But let me just put it out there. But back to your question, how do we keep it fun? So the team... 18:25 The original team members, should I say. So we met about seven years ago at a place called the Gathering Spot in Atlanta. So the Gathering Spot is a community and they just opened one in LA and I do go to the one in LA too when I'm there. But it's a community of people, creatives from creative people to deep tech people like myself and everything in between. 18:55 We went to a black tech event at the gathering spot and found ourselves not being able to get into the actual room. So we ended up, because they have a bar and everything at the gathering spot. It's a social club too. It has a club aspect to it too, but you can network there, have meetings there, meet all types of people. I mean known people, I mean it's a great 19:25 great concept, shout out to Ryan. But we found ourselves at the bar, and we're looking at each other. We knew each other because we had been introduced by the Hellbrella person, Tracy. Yes, yes. Because they had done some things for her with a previous startup that she had, development-wise. So we're all sitting at the bar, and we're looking at each other like, but we're the real tech people. 19:55 We do it. It's like we don't really take people. Um, we can't even get in there. We like, we know the organizers and personally and everything. So let's start a company. Well, what we did was we launched, um, what we launched kit labs. And it was literally right down the street from the 20:23 and connect to the community. So we had, it's not far from the AUC and the AUC is where Morris Brown, Morehouse, Spelman and Clark Atlanta are. Got it. So a lot of times you would come in there and find some of the founders, cause this was founded by myself and like six or seven other black tech founders. The ones that were outside. Drinking like, you know. 20:53 That's where we had that conversation. You know, the conversation started at the bar, being outside of that first Black Tech meetup, so to speak, with Joey Womack, who is a part of Goody Nation, who we did get a 50K grant from back in 2020 through Google for Startups. Let me just say this so much. We were so interconnected. I mean, Atlanta is Wakanda. Don't let anybody tell you anything different. 21:21 It's definitely Wakanda. But literally, not even a mile away from the Gathering Spot, we opened up Kit Labs. It's a smart lab where we can tinker with stuff. We're engineers. We're tech people. We need something. We need a makerspace. We don't necessarily need a space that is compared. The Gathering Spot was a little bit more buttoned up. 21:46 And then what we needed, we needed to be able to throw things and make things. We had everything from like 3d printers to, um, VR, AR headsets. I mean, you, anything in tech. Innovative fun. It was in, is in that lab. Um, but that's where around today. So we dissolved it. So it's been dissolved. What one of, one of the founders, he unfortunately transitioned. Um, 22:15 So, you know, and he was kind of like the pillar of it. And it kept going for a while, but it was just a lot of people like myself, it was two female founders, Dr. Nashley Cephas, who herself is from Jackson, Mississippi. I'm shouting out everybody, right? She's from Jackson, Mississippi, and she bought 10 acres in downtown Jackson, Mississippi and started a nonprofit called Bean Pad. And he basically took the concept of what we were doing at Kit Labs and brought it to our hometown. So. 22:44 Um, and it's so funny. She actually founded it on my birthday. So I was like, okay, I can dig that. Um, uh, but, but no, but we're still connected. Everybody still works with each other. You know, if I have to come in and do some things around cyber for a contract or, you know, commercial or whatever client that they have, I do like we, we all kind of still work together on each other's things. So that has allowed you to bring in some revenues, right? 23:14 through its service context. Yeah. Oh, for sure. For sure. Consultant wise, cause they're like, I think people may look at Infotron and think that there's not a human touch piece there, but if you're dealing with me, there's always gonna be a human touch point there because we have to consult the client. We can't assume, you know, we cannot assume. 23:41 what you need, we have to actually have a conversation with our clients throughout the process, even after we possibly have set up the platform for you, trained your people on it, there still needs to be an element of communication, human communication, right? But the team, we've been working together for about seven years. Yes. 24:10 Infiltron has been around for five, going on six years now. So, you know, I mean, respect, mutual respect, we're still kids at heart. I mean, we grew up wanting to be engineers. So, you really can't take the light of innovation out of an engineer unless they're just at the point of not wanting to do it anymore. So we're always, what I've found is most people in any engineering discipline are very, 24:39 curious and forward thinking. So we, and we kind of, we're kind of like a community. We are community and not kind of like, but we are community of folks that contribute to each other's, you know, projects. Yeah. Mm-hmm. And not just, not just business-wise, but personally, like we, I mean, we've been around each other for almost a decade, so. 25:04 there's been kids born and like I just said, one of our founders transitioned, like we've been through some things together that have brought us closer together. And you can, I believe when you have a team like that, and we're all diverse, you know, we have a team like that that cultivates innovation, for sure. You know, I've had a few guests to my podcast and I also write about this, 25:35 Creativity is only possible or it's greatly possible when you create a fun environment and make games out of things and have, right? And set up teams. So I think a shout out to you and what you've set up at Infiltron and in its earlier rendering at Kit Labs, just creating an environment that allows for what ifs, right? Is key. There are a lot of what ifs in cyber. 26:04 I bet you there. So I have a boatload of questions here. One is, before we get into your fundraising path, again, I mentioned earlier you have two patents that have been issued. What is post-quantum encryption technology in layman language? Post. 26:32 Quantum encryption technology. So there is definitely confusion out there that has been addressed. And because there is a difference between post secure quantum and encryption. There's a difference. So. Excellent. 27:02 Post quantum encryption, it is designed to protect data from quantum computers. So. And that's done through the encapsulation? For us, that is how we provide the protection, the encryption. That is the quantum encapsulation is a method of encryption with Involtron. So the current encryption. So you have things like RSA. 27:32 elliptical curve, which elliptical curve is more widely used and kind of being marketed as quantum encryption. It is, it is, it's on the list of quantum protections, right, or quantum methods of encryption protection. So companies like Okta use ECC a lot. But what's happening is that quantum computers are being built now. Yes. Like right now, there's no... Yeah, the cost is going down. 28:02 Yeah, there's no waiting five years from now. Like I urge anyone under the sound of my voice to prepare now for quantum computer attacks. The same thing that I describe happening to us when we were deployed, it's gonna happen. And again, I alluded to feeling like 28:33 situations like Colonial Pipeline and SolarWinds were, I feel like they were tests because there were so many different elements of what we saw in the deployment that happened in those two cases. Yeah, because I'm sitting there and think it's like 2020, 2021, 2019 actually, it started. I think this didn't know, but. 28:59 And it's still going like 20, SolarWinds was still going, the last time I checked SolarWinds was still unraveling. Like it's still, still going. But back to the question. So for us, quantum encapsulation for us is breakthrough. So NIST has had these challenges, right? Where they put out bidding for companies, 29:27 researchers, because a lot of people that are in the quantum space, whether it's physics, mechanics, are generally found in academia. They're not at Infiltron. They're not at QED. They're just not there, right? It's very far in between, and we generally have to lure them. Or we have to do something like partner with them on... 29:53 grants, like the STTR grants. Like that's the only way, generally the only way that we can probably connect with the academia or pierce them and have them work with us. And they usually through that take all the funding, but it's, you're still. Exposed, right? You're exposed, but you're also getting the expertise that you possibly need and can't rightly find in the freelancing world. Yeah. So it generally works out in the long run. 30:23 Um, but so our encapsulation is a, is a breakthrough method because I look at it like this, NIST is holding these challenges and nothing against NIST. We're connected. I contribute to NIST and everything, but they are holding these challenges. And basically they're telling the hackers what people are going to the framework. 30:49 what people are gonna have to adhere to when they create their quantum algorithms to protect their devices and data. You know, you're giving away the secret ingredients. So like, even if they don't know specifically your algorithm, they know what you've based it off of. And that gives it like a tiny thread can unravel a whole t-shirt, right? So I look at it like that. So... 31:15 And even before, you know, we were already developing things before NIST put out these challenges. We are in alignment. We can adhere and do it here to the framework that they're putting out because, you know, you have the DOD space who definitely follows their framework, especially when it comes to the risk management framework. So they're going to follow NIST regardless. They're going to follow their framework, whatever they put out about cybersecurity protection. 31:44 The DOD space and all of its agencies are gonna follow that. However, being in the cybersecurity space every day, seeing what is happening and knowing that you've given some clues, some contextual clues to the malicious hackers about what you're using as a baseline to build your algorithms will, guess what? What we have is not that. Like we are... 32:12 One of the things that differentiates us right now, because I'm sure as quantum cybersecurity continues to grow legs, so to speak, people are gonna start using the more, less susceptible to hacks by quantum computers method. So you have things like multivariate hash code. So these are some of the 32:40 quantum properties that you can use that are not generally hackable by a quantum computer. They won't be hackable by a quantum computer. So we leveraged some of that. It was like, if I'm built, I looked at it like this, I've been in cyber, I've been in tech for almost 20 years. I know I don't look it. I get it all the time. You don't have to say it. I've been in tech for almost 20 years. I've been, and when I was in the air force, we call it InfoSec. It's the same thing. And that dates me. 33:08 If I say, if you hear somebody say InfoSec, trust me, they've been in cybersecurity for at least 20 plus years. So, but it's cybersecurity, that's what it is. And I've seen the changes and I've paid my dues too. Like I didn't, when I got out of the Air Force, I was just, side note, like I cut grass and loved it. I would go back and do it if I can make these results. So then like, it's very, it's very fulfilling. Don't let anybody fool you. Like I love, but I like being outside, but. 33:38 Um, my first tech job though, I literally went through the phone book. Cause this is like still, you know, internet was not quite what it is now, of course, but it was like still growing. And I went through the yellow pages and went through the aerospace companies and called all of them and was like, Hey, let's just get out of the air force, look for a job. I don't care if it's an intern or co-op and L3 L3 before they merged with Harris. Uh, 34:08 they created me a co-op. And, but again, still in touch with, cause you know, L3 is a huge government contracting company, right? And in the satellite communication space, cause they're in line with my background. And so I've seen it all. I've seen the changes of InfoSec into cybersecurity. And now we're entering a new frontier with quantum cybersecurity. So I've been here, 34:37 maybe at the latter part of the info set, but definitely through the cybersecurity and here for and to forge some guidelines and pathways in the quantum cybersecurity space with Inflotron. So when you know Inflotron was founded in 2019, I was like, okay, if I'm gonna start 35:03 something new in cyber and we hadn't even gotten to the quantum piece yet. They hadn't even gotten to me yet. Like it started like I was getting downloads. Yeah. Because I'm, I always, I'm a reader. I wake up looking at cyber news and just staying in the know because I need to know what's going on so I can protect my clients, whether that was me in a government contracting position or me as a consultant in my businesses. So. 35:33 I need to know what's going on. And if I'm going to build something new, why am I going to build it with compromised parts? Right. That's a great way to describe it. Yeah. Forget the tech. It didn't make logical sense. If I'm going to build something new, a SaaS product that's going to integrate and be flexible and adaptable and proactive. 36:01 Why would I use RSA encryption when I know what's coming? Got it. That will be one of the snippets that I share in my YouTube channel as well as the podcast. That is excellent. Why build something with compromised parts? Frontier technology, quantum cybersecurity is what Epfiltron is about. 36:30 Next generation. Talk to me a little bit more for us, less tech savvy listeners about the use of Infiltron in a SelleGov's program for smart cities. That kind of brings it more home and more tangible. How is technology used for smart cities? So first, SelleGov through leading cities. Yes. 36:59 It connects companies like ours with municipalities to tackle urban challenges. So for us, it's infrastructure, security, and sustainability. So we were a finalist in leading cities global competition back in 2021. And we've worked through them. You know, we've been able to work with city leaders to secure IOT systems and critical infrastructure. 37:28 And quick shout out to Michael Lake. Okay. He's the founder of Leading Cities, amazing guy. Another keep in touch, answer the email quickly person. He's based in Boston, but he's built a very supportive ecosystem. So shout out to Michael Lake. But as a part of this program, 37:56 We're offering smart cities our enhanced quantum vulnerability assessment. And this is to help the smart city leaders identify areas that need better quantum protections now. We've just had a session on November the 11th, Veterans Day. And the second one is coming up December the 5th. So you. 38:24 If you're a smart city leader or see so small, medium, large enterprise, no matter what market you in, you're in, definitely tap in. You can register for it on the leading city's website or on our website at Infotron.net. Yeah, that's on December 9, 2024 at 1pm. Is that Eastern? December 5th. December 5th? No, it's the 9th, because I have it here. And that's my cousin's birthday. So yeah, it's December 9th. 38:53 Did you get to influence those dates? Yeah. So let's jump into your startup. You've taken in very little dilutive funding. How much money have you raised to date? And how have you, what is the next phase, right? In terms of outreach for fundraising. So we've raised 120K and that was through Techstars, LA Space. 39:23 Still counting. I do not take a salary. I could take one, but I'm just, it's the long game for me. And I still consult. Don't let these people tell you not to quit your job and be an entrepreneur. Don't let people do that. Especially if you have a family. Don't let these people, don't let these people try to guilt you or shame you because you still have a job while you're building your startup. Don't let, don't do it. 39:53 Because I do have a company that I started called Right Tech Solutions and we still, that's why I said I still feel like I'm in the Air Force because I still consult them. So I can, you know, the revenue that we do and we've hit 500K in revenue. So you know, I could easily take a salary, right? But I just, it's the long game for me. It's the global expansion. 40:22 um, you know, more IP and patents, uh, protections, right? Because we do have global count clients. And, um, one of the things that I wanted to make sure of before we even took on the clients was that we had legal backing there. So IP trademarks, um, at least patent, at least the application is pending, but you know, like I want to, I want to, I want it to at least have that. And we have great attorneys. Um, shout out to Malika Tyson. 40:52 and Matthew and Dorian who have, they took over because I had a, I had an attorney, IP attorney that would, had her own boutique firm and then she had to go back, you know, she just couldn't do the entrepreneurship, it's not for everybody, but we still stay in contact as well. But she introduced me to McAndrews, they're based out of Chicago. 41:20 And they are the legal team for Impletron. I always tell them that when we're on calls, like you are the legal team. Like, yeah, anything that I need from them legal, legal wise, they do it. I literally just sent a partnership NDA over to Malekka this morning and she just sent it back to me. So like, that's not IP and trademark, right? But they do, they do it. And I always tell them how much I appreciate them because... 41:49 IP and trademarks are not free and they're not inexpensive. So, and then imagine, you know, we have one pending now in Japan. We just got one in Canada. So yeah, like it's expensive, you know, it's expensive. So a lot of the funding that we get now is going to be allocated to pay them, you know, even though they work with us. But it's going to be paying them. 42:18 doing some iterations, we have a partnership where there's some hardware that's gonna be involved. We're definitely tapping into the hardware. So we'll be forging our way there because people like things they can touch. SaaS isn't necessarily something that you can touch, although put it into a platform makes it a little bit more tangible for people, visual at least. So in the- 42:48 Yeah, I mean, hardware has always been a part of the vision. FBGAs, we have another colleague of mine, he has developed a cryptocurrency mining machine, and it leverages quantum. So it's mining at exponential speeds, right? Because generally what quantum does is speeds things up. It speeds exactly, in simplified terms. 43:18 Definitely still going after Sivers traditional government contracts globally. We participated in Fintech down in the Bahamas last October. Cause we are in the Fintech space and there's a lot of similarities between Fintech and Space Tech. Because when you're talking about fault zeros and being able to detect anomalies. 43:46 both of those markets need that and they need it quick. So we've been able to, yeah, like we've been able to leverage some of the things that we're learning in both of those for each other. So we've been able to participate in some conferences. We actually getting ready to go to Barbados in January for Fintech Islands, I'll be speaking about 44:14 the kind of the intersection of the quantum age and what's coming in respect to the fintech space, cryptocurrency, web three, traditional finance and AI, because we do leverage AI. And we've been in the AI space, Impletron has been in the AI space from the beginning. One of our advisors is an AI evangelist at AWS. I did say her name earlier on this podcast, but. 44:42 She's amazing. She's a Georgia Tech grad. We do have a few Georgia Tech people on the team, but she's amazing. And I'm able to tap her. I've been able to tap her because she was one of the Kit founders. So I've been able to tap her about AI and machine learning very early on. So all of the LLMs and the SLMs that everybody's kind of talking about, we've been doing. 45:11 Like even as small as we are, we've been. 45:16 Yeah, so, Chasity, how can my listeners contact or get information about Infotron? So, yeah, of course the website. So, infiltron.net. You can follow us on all of our socials at Infotron Software Suite. It might be, I think on Twitter is Infotron app. We wanted to keep it short. 45:41 And then, or you can email us at mfultronapp at gmail.com. And I know people are gonna be like, why you use Gmail? That's another filter. And that's an email that everybody on the team can look at and not be bombarded with, cause spam and it's just, everybody has their own email address, but. So you probably, it's a test environment for all of you. 46:09 beautiful quantum encryption that you're working on. Yes. And that's it all. One better way to start. Yeah, Gmail, right? Google knows a lot more about us than we'd like them to. Oh, Google knows everything. That's tough. Even when you turn location off. Oh, Instagram. I just posted something about Instagram. So Instagram's new. They just updated their policy maybe a month ago, maybe. 46:38 Okay. Whether you want to or not, they now have access to your photos, your GPS location, everything even if you say no, even if you turn it off, they still contract. 47:00 Just putting it out there guys. Yeah. So if you do platform. So there's cause to the platform. Right? Yes. Thank you. All right. We're coming down to the section of the podcast where I like to ask each of my guests what the following three words mean to you. Because this is what I do with my consulting business. 47:24 In addition to my podcast, I work with founders that are really building resilient, purpose-driven and scalable businesses. What's resilience mean to you, Chasity? Man, that's a word that I use. Uh, I mean, I'm, I mean, you gotta think about it. I'm black trying to raise money. It's hard for black people to raise money on top of that. I've been, you know, um, I've come face to face with people that didn't believe that I wrote my own patents. Like. 47:53 you know, as if black people didn't invent a lot of things, like that we still use today. Like, come on. I mean, it's just the truth. Resilience. Resilience for me is bending, but never breaking. Bending, but never breaking. Yeah. It's about, you know, adapting to challenges. I just mentioned some and facing them. Like you can't, you can't, and I'm about to sound 48:23 run from the pain, you gotta run towards it. So you can come out stronger on the other side. And it's not necessarily about survival, it's transformation. That's transformation. It's transformation. And that transformation is preparing you for what's next. And you'll be standing taller than you were before. Amazing, thank you. Purpose-driven, what's a purpose-driven? 48:53 Enterprises or? Yeah. I'm a visionary. So like, there's a lot of founders that I've met. If I have the opportunity to get close to them or kind of hear them speak about what they're building to include myself, because I do talk to myself about the things that I'm building. I counsel myself. I'm sure my ancestors are around me. 49:23 Purpose is, it should be intentional. I think that it's kind of interchangeable for me. But in the context of the question that you asked on purpose driven enterprise, so it's the heartbeat in what we build here at Infotron. I can definitely say that. It's creating meaningful solutions that solve real problems. And in solving those real problems, 49:52 you're still staying true to the mission. I still bring the aspect of the military into Infiltron. We are mission focused. We have fun. We do all the fun things, right? Because again, that cultivates innovation too. And it keeps it spicy. You need to let things be spicy because in a regular deglar cybersecurity job, you're probably bored. Like. 50:19 I mean, let's just be real. Like you're probably bored. You're probably looking at Excel spreadsheets and creating a report by hand from that. Like it's boring. Like, but you know, it's also making moves that matter. And it's solving problems that for me leave a legacy and just never losing sight of why we started in the first place. 50:48 So never lives in sight. Excellent. What about scalable? So how does- That's one of those BC's favorite words. That's right. Because that's what they want to see. How will you scale? That's right. I mean, I'm an investor too guys. Don't get it twisted. Like, I think that was a question that I did ask with one of the investors I had. Like, how are you going to get over that challenge? Like, before I give you this money. 51:18 Scalable. So growth, like we can think about growth in so many different ways, like growth, personal growth, because if you embark on the entrepreneur trick, you are going to be, and need to be open to growth. To me, entrepreneurship is a spiritual journey. Beautiful. 51:45 about the Southern Baptist roots, but I'm not spiritual. I'm a yoga, meditating, put my feet in the sand, grass grounding person nowadays, but still bringing that element of praying. And it's all the same to me. They just changed the name of God, right? Just that's my perspective, but growth isn't just about getting. 52:14 bigger. It's about getting better. And me speaking about the personal aspect, that is what growth is. It might not feel good, you know, while it's happening. But, you know, once you get through it and you can get in a reflective mindset and look back with what you just came through and be grateful, like find gratitude in it, you know. 52:43 That's how I look at growth. It's expanding mindfully and staying grounded in your values and making sure that every step that you take going forward strengthens the foundation that you've already built. And it's... 53:11 Like I said, it's moving with intention. And while you're moving with intention, you're also preserving the quality and the vision that define you. Which goes back to purpose-driven. Yes, thank you. Last question, Chasity. Did you have fun in the sandbox? Oh yeah, I mean, it's you. You know, we already have a great rapport. 53:38 I'll say this, one of my favorite memories of you is when you brought Ty to the table to kind of see if they were, could invest in Infiltron and it was too early. But we had to sign an NDA, it was some type of contract, but it was during Mercury retrograde. You said it before I said it, I was like, I wonder if she's onto this type. 54:05 Cause I wasn't going to sign it. I was going to try to delay it as much as possible, but you're like, no, let's wait, let's wait. So after Mercer, that's your great. Well, I was like, oh, these are this. She's my people. And I was like, and I think I responded like, let's wait five days. So it is no, it's like clear. So, um, that's a little fighter for me with you. Oh, I love it. I love it. Generally hear that in business. No, no. 54:32 And the Founder Sandbox again is a pretty eclectic podcast, bringing in deep tech founders like Chasity Wright that are on the frontier, bringing in what the future, will, it's the future's here. It's here. That's right. So to my listeners, if you like this episode with Chasity Wright, CEO and founder of Infiltron, sign up for the monthly release of 55:01 this podcast where founders, business owners, corporate directors, and professional service providers share their own experiences on building with strong governance, a resilient, scalable, and purpose-driven company to make profits for good. So signing off for this month, thank you, Chasity. Thank you, Brenda, so much. I hope to see you soon.  

In this episode, Randall speaks with Jayden Williams, the 21-year-old Clark Atlanta University student running to be the mayor of Stockbridge, Georgia. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we're live from Clark Atlanta University for our last stop on our HBCU Road Trip! Stephen A. Smith, Shannon Sharpe, and Cam Newton rate Stephen A.'s list of his Top 5 pro athletes from Atlanta. Rapper T.I. joins the show to talk all things Atlanta sports and culture. We talk with both football head coaches from Clark Atlanta and Morehouse College ahead of their rivalry game tomorrow. The crew fields questions from students in the audience. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Randall & Arielle recap Week 4 of HBCU football and preview Week 5 of the season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Janae Adams is a Clark Atlanta graduate and talent agent for CSE, an agency that gives representation to broadcasters and on-air talents in the sports industry. On this episode of We See You, Janae talks about her background as a softball player at Clark Atlanta and previously Alabama A&M, and why playing on a softball team made up predominantly of black players was such a pivotal moment for her. She also discusses working as a black woman in corporate America and her message to those coming after her. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

#DrKenyattaCavil #SportsLab #HBCUsports"Inside the HBCU Sports Lab" episode 555 with Dr. Kenyatta Cavil, Mike Washington & Charles Bishop radio show. Today's show will be a good one as Doc, Charles, David Rhodes, Kyle T. Mosley and AD Drew (BCSN Sports Wrap) discuss the latest HBCU news and sports and recap this weekend's football match-ups.TOPICS:DR. CAVIL'S INSIDE THE HBCU HUDDLE REPORTHOUSTON– Dr. Cavil's 2024 HBCU Major Division Football Poll Rankings – Week 5The North Carolina Central Eagles Vault to No. 1 Ranking after Week 5Featured Top Ranked Matchups in Dr. Cavil's HBCU Football Mid-Major DivisionSat, Sep 28 1:00 pm EST - Hovey Field, Richmond, VAFINAL: No. 4 Shaw 7, No. 8 Virginia Union 42.Sat, Sep 28 2:00 pm EST - Rogers Stadium, Petersburg, VAFINAL: No.5 Fayetteville State 18, No. 9 Virginia State 35.Sat, Sep 28 7:00 PM EST - COTTON BOWL, DALLAS, TXFINAL, in 5OT: Prairie View 36, No. 2 Grambling 34.Sat, Sep 28 3:00 pm EST - Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, INFINAL: No. 4 NC Central 37, Norfolk State 10.SAT, SEP 28 7:00 PM EST - SHELL ENERGY STADIUM, HOUSTON, TXFINAL: No. 6 Jackson State 43, Texas Southern 14.SAT, SEP 28 6:00 PM EST - WALTER ZABLE, WILLIAMSBURG, VAFINAL: No. 1 Hampton 7, William & Mary 49.SAT, SEP 28 3:30 PM EST - KENNETH P. LAVALLE STADIUM, STONY BROOK, NYFINAL: No. 5 Morgan State 3, Stony Brook 22.Sat, Sep 28 3:00 pm EST - Princeton Stadium, Princeton, NJFINAL: No. 7 Howard 13, Princeton 30.SAT, SEP 28 6:00 PM EST - OLIVER C. DAWSON BULLDOG , ORANGEBURG, SCFINAL: NC A&T 25, No. 8 South Carolina State 45.SAT, SEP 28 6:00 PM EST - NISSAN STADIUM, NASHVILLE, TNFINAL: Charleston So. 9, Tennessee State 13.SAT, SEP 28 6:00 PM EST - MITCHELL STADIUM, BLUEFIELD, WVFINAL: No. 1 Johnson C. Smith 42, Bluefield State 3.Sat, Sep 28 2:00 pm ESTFINAL: No. 2 Clark Atlanta 38, Lane 28.Sat, Sep 28 1:00 pm EST - Bowman-Gray, Winston-Salem, NCFINAL: Bowie State 14, No. 3 Winston-Salem State 28.Sat, Sep 28 1:00 pm EST - B. T. Harvey, Atlanta, GAFINAL: Benedict 21, Morehouse 5.Sat, Sep 28 2:00 pm EST - Albany State University Coliseum, Albany, GAFINAL: Kentucky State 21, Albany State 49.Sat, Sep 28 2:00 pm EST - Barker-Lane Stadium/Ed Gore Field, Buies Creek, NCFINAL: Delaware St. 41, Campbell 44.Sat, Sep 28 3:00 pm EST - Municipal Stadium, Daytona Beach, FLFINAL: Alabama State 26, Bethune-Cookman 21.SAT, SEP 28 6:00 PM EST - LU FOOTBALL STADIUM, LINCOLN UNIVERSITY, PAFINAL: Livingstone 15, Lincoln (PA) 14.SAT, SEP 28 7:00 PM EST - RICE-TOTTEN STADIUM, ITTA BENA, MSFINAL: Alcorn State 42, Mississippi Valley State 21.SUN, SEP 29 1:00 PM EST - THEODORE WRIGHT, SAVANNAH, GAFort Valley St. Wildcats (1-2, 1-1) at Savannah St. Tigers (1-2, 1-1)SUN, SEP 29 4:00 PM EST - NATHANIEL GLOVER COMMUNITY FIELD & STADIUM, JACKSONVILLE, FLTuskegee Golden Tigers (0-3, 0-1) at Edward Waters Tigers (1-3, 1-1)@InsidetheHBCUSportsLab on Facebook Live and Spreaker.‬Contributions welcome at CashApp $JafusCavil

Episode 161 - The Diddy Committee is out now. Full 3hr episode streaming on Dive Team Media Network youtube channel!

CJ and Mike discuss Grambling State's big win over Jackson State, talk to Lane College head football coach Vyron Brown ahead of their matchup with Clark Atlanta, preview this week's slate of games and more.

Friends University Kicker Cole Thompson joins the show after a MASSIVE 40-yard Field Goal at the buzzer to give the Falcons a W this weekend, followed by Carson-Newman Linebacker Christian Hicks who recaps the Eagles' OT win vs top-25 ranked Wingate in the SAC. Kobe gives the D2 Recap from Week 3 and is joined by Jimmy Martin for D3 talk and breakdown, followed by a recap of what we saw on the NAIA scene near the end of the episode. Thank you all for tuning in! Video Chapters: 0:00 Episode Overview 1:30 Cole Thompson - Friends University 9:34 D2 Power 10 Rankings 11:34 West Alabama vs West Florida 14:27 UCM vs Davenport 18:48 Carson Newman vs Wingate 20:12 Colorado Mines vs Chadron State 22:09 Bemidji State vs Sioux Falls 24:11 UVA Wise vs Catawba 26:30 Clark Atlanta vs Bethune-Cookman 27:50 Ouachita Baptist vs Southern Arkansas 28:55 Henderson State vs Arkansas Tech 30:20 TAMUK vs UTPB 32:21 Christian Hicks - Carson Newman 40:07 Cortland vs Susquehanna 44:08 UMHB vs UW Whitewater 49:30 Mount Union vs John Carroll 52:36 Salisbury vs Johns Hopkins 55:58 Berry vs Randolph Macon 58:18 Stevenson vs Delaware Valley 1:01:58 Other D3 Games 1:08:55 NAIA Game Recaps

KBTHABANDHEAD reacts to the 2024 5th quarter battle between Fort Valley State University and Clark Atlanta University marching bands! I hope you guys enjoy the commentary and PLEASE leave a comment with any thoughts and concerns! More is on the way, STAY TUNED!! Website: https://www.bskillzentertainment.com/ Watch my REACTIONS on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/kbthabandhead Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kbthabandhead/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kbthabandhead?lang=en Merch: https://kbthabandhead.myspreadshop.com/

"Inside the HBCU Sports Lab" episode 539 with Dr. Kenyatta Cavil, Mike Washington & Charles Bishop radio show. Today's show will be a good one as Dr. Cavil is joined by Mike, Charles, and AD Drew (BCSN SportsWrap) to discuss the latest HBCU news and sports. Special guest: Clark Atlanta Head Football Coach Teddy Keaton. TOPICS: NCAA Division I FCS MEAC / SWAC No. 2 Florida A&M Rattlers (2-0) defeats No. 7 South Carolina State Bulldogs (0-1), 22-18 Final No. 3 Jackson State Tigers (0-1) lost to ULM Warhawks (1-0), 30-14 Final No. 4 Howard Bison (0-1) lost to Rutgers Scarlet Knights (1-0), 44-7 Final No. 6 Morgan State Bears (1-0) defeat No. 16 Hampton Pirates (0-1), 30-28 Final MEAC / SWAC – Orange Blossom Classic (MEAC) No. 1 North Carolina Central (0-0) vs. (SWAC) No. 5 Alabama State (0-0), 2:00 PM ESPN NCAA Division II No. 1 Virginia Union (1-0) defeat No. 16 Kentucky State (0-1), 69-7 HBCU Go No. 4 Clark Atlanta (1-0, 1-0) defeat No. 7 Fort Valley State (0-1, 0-1), 45-42 Final On the Grio No. 5 Miles Golden Bears (0-1) lose to the West Alabama Tigers, 16-15 Final MEAC / SWAC No. 2 Florida A&M Rattlers (2-0) defeats No. 7 South Carolina State Bulldogs (0- 1), 22-18 Final https://www.espn.com/college-football... No. 3 Jackson State Tigers (0-1) lost to ULM Warhawks (1-0), 30-14 Final https://www.espn.com/college-football... No. 4 Howard Bison lost to Rutgers Scarlet Knights, 44-7 Final https://www.espn.com/college-football... No. 6 Morgan State Bears (1-0) defeat No. 16 Hampton Pirates (0-1), 30-28 Final https://www.espn.com/college-football... MEAC / Independent No. 21 Delaware State (1-1) defeat Sacred Heart Pioneers (0-1), 17-15 Final https://www.espn.com/college-football... MEAC / CAA No. 6 Morgan State Bears (1-0) defeat No. 16 Hampton Pirates (0-1), 30-28 Final https://www.espn.com/college-football... SWAC / OVC-BSC - HBCU Independent No. 11 Tennessee State Tigers (1-0) defeat No. 19 Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils (0-1), 41-21 Final https://www.espn.com/college-football... SWAC No. 17 Texas Southern Tigers (1-0, 1-0) defeat No. 8 Prairie View A&M Panthers (0-1, 0-1), 27-9, Final https://www.espn.com/college-football... SWAC / SLC No. 15 Southern Jaguars (0-1) lost to McNeese Cowboys (1-1), 21-7 Final https://www.espn.com/college-football... MEAC / SWAC – Orange Blossom Classic (MEAC) No. 1 North Carolina Central Eagles (0-0) vs. (SWAC) No. 5 Alabama State Hornets (0-0), 2:00 PM ESPN No. 1 Virginia Union (1-0) defeat No. 16 Kentucky State (0-1), 69-7 HBCU Go https://vuusports.com/sports/football... No. 4 Clark-Atlanta (1-0, 1-0) defeat No. 7 Fort Valley State (0-1, 0-1), 45-42 Final On the Grio https://clarkatlantasports.com/news/2... No. 5 Miles Golden Bears (0-1) lose to the West Alabama Tigers, 16-15 Final https://milesgoldenbears.com/sports/f... No. 12 Edward Waters (1-0, 1-0) defeat Morehouse (0-1, 0-1), 28-11 Final https://www.espn.com/college-football... No. 15 Winston-Salem State Rams (1-0) defeat Bluefield State (0-1), 34-3 Final https://wssurams.com/sports/football/... No. 17 Shaw (1-0) defeat Elizabeth City State (0-1), 17-13 Final https://shawbears.com/sports/football... No. 2 Virginia State (0-0) vs. No. 6 Benedict (0-0), 5:00PM NFL Network NFL Hall of Fame Classic 3:00PM No. 22 Johnson C. Smith (0-0) vs. No. 8 Tuskegee (0-0), 6:00PM ESPNU Red Tails Classic @InsidetheHBCUSportsLab on Facebook Live and Spreaker.‬ Contributions welcome at CashApp $JafusCavil

#DrKenyattaCavil #SportsLab #HBCUsports"Inside the HBCU Sports Lab" episode 539 with Dr. Kenyatta Cavil, Mike Washington & Charles Bishop radio show. Today's show will be a good one as Dr. Cavil is joined by Mike, Charles, and AD Drew (BCSN SportsWrap) to discuss the latest HBCU news and sports.Special guest: Clark Atlanta Head Football Coach Teddy Keaton.TOPICS:NCAA Division I FCSMEAC / SWACNo. 2 Florida A&M Rattlers (2-0) defeats No. 7 South Carolina State Bulldogs (0-1), 22-18 FinalNo. 3 Jackson State Tigers (0-1) lost to ULM Warhawks (1-0), 30-14 FinalNo. 4 Howard Bison (0-1) lost to Rutgers Scarlet Knights (1-0), 44-7 FinalNo. 6 Morgan State Bears (1-0) defeat No. 16 Hampton Pirates (0-1), 30-28 FinalMEAC / SWAC – Orange Blossom Classic(MEAC) No. 1 North Carolina Central (0-0) vs. (SWAC) No. 5 Alabama State (0-0), 2:00 PM ESPNNCAA Division IINo. 1 Virginia Union (1-0) defeat No. 16 Kentucky State (0-1), 69-7 HBCU GoNo. 4 Clark Atlanta (1-0, 1-0) defeat No. 7 Fort Valley State (0-1, 0-1), 45-42 Final On the GrioNo. 5 Miles Golden Bears (0-1) lose to the West Alabama Tigers, 16-15 FinalMEAC / SWACNo. 2 Florida A&M Rattlers (2-0) defeats No. 7 South Carolina State Bulldogs (0- 1), 22-18 Finalhttps://www.espn.com/college-football/boxscore/_/gameId/401636373No. 3 Jackson State Tigers (0-1) lost to ULM Warhawks (1-0), 30-14 Finalhttps://www.espn.com/college-football/boxscore/_/gameId/401636387No. 4 Howard Bison lost to Rutgers Scarlet Knights, 44-7 Finalhttps://www.espn.com/college-football/boxscore/_/gameId/401628458No. 6 Morgan State Bears (1-0) defeat No. 16 Hampton Pirates (0-1), 30-28 Finalhttps://www.espn.com/college-football/boxscore/_/gameId/401654510MEAC / IndependentNo. 21 Delaware State (1-1) defeat Sacred Heart Pioneers (0-1), 17-15 Finalhttps://www.espn.com/college-football/boxscore/_/gameId/401654497MEAC / CAANo. 6 Morgan State Bears (1-0) defeat No. 16 Hampton Pirates (0-1), 30-28 Finalhttps://www.espn.com/college-football/boxscore/_/gameId/401654510SWAC / OVC-BSC - HBCU IndependentNo. 11 Tennessee State Tigers (1-0) defeat No. 19 Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils (0-1), 41-21 Finalhttps://www.espn.com/college-football/boxscore/_/gameId/401654584SWACNo. 17 Texas Southern Tigers (1-0, 1-0) defeat No. 8 Prairie View A&M Panthers (0-1, 0-1), 27-9, Finalhttps://www.espn.com/college-football/game/_/gameId/401654565/texas-southern-prairie-viewSWAC / SLCNo. 15 Southern Jaguars (0-1) lost to McNeese Cowboys (1-1), 21-7 Finalhttps://www.espn.com/college-football/boxscore/_/gameId/401654557MEAC / SWAC – Orange Blossom Classic(MEAC) No. 1 North Carolina Central Eagles (0-0) vs. (SWAC) No. 5 Alabama State Hornets (0-0), 2:00 PM ESPNNo. 1 Virginia Union (1-0) defeat No. 16 Kentucky State (0-1), 69-7 HBCU Gohttps://vuusports.com/sports/football/stats/2024-25/kentucky-state-university/boxscore/4744No. 4 Clark-Atlanta (1-0, 1-0) defeat No. 7 Fort Valley State (0-1, 0-1), 45-42 Final On the Griohttps://clarkatlantasports.com/news/2024/8/31/football-wrights-seven-touchdowns-powers-clark-atlanta-to-a-45-42-win-over-fort-valley.aspxNo. 5 Miles Golden Bears (0-1) lose to the West Alabama Tigers, 16-15 Finalhttps://milesgoldenbears.com/sports/football/stats/2024/west-alabama/boxscore/3508No. 12 Edward Waters (1-0, 1-0) defeat Morehouse (0-1, 0-1), 28-11 Finalhttps://www.espn.com/college-football/game/_/gameId/401675597/ed-waters-morehouseNo. 15 Winston-Salem State Rams (1-0) defeat Bluefield State (0-1), 34-3 Finalhttps://wssurams.com/sports/football/stats/2024/bluefield-state-university/boxscore/4771No. 17 Shaw (1-0) defeat Elizabeth City State (0-1), 17-13 Finalhttps://shawbears.com/sports/football/stats/2024/elizabeth-city-state-university/boxscore/4027No. 2 Virginia State (0-0) vs. No. 6 Benedict (0-0), 5:00PM NFL Network NFL Hall of Fame Classic 3:00PMNo. 22 Johnson C. Smith (0-0) vs. No. 8 Tuskegee (0-0), 6:00PM ESPNU Red Tails Classic@InsidetheHBCUSportsLab on Facebook Live and Spreaker.‬Contributions welcome at CashApp $JafusCavil

"Inside the HBCU Sports Lab" episode 538 with Dr. Kenyatta Cavil, Mike Washington & Charles Bishop radio show. Today's show will be a good one as Dr. Cavil is joined by Charles, Kindric Hooks (D2 HBCU Football) and Bryan Fulford (BCSN SportsWrap) to discuss the latest HBCU news and sports. TOPICS: Grambling State University to unveil new digital scoreboards from HBCUGameday.com 2024 CIAA Football Season Preview HBCU tournament basketball returning to Charlotte. From YahooSports.com NCAA Division I FCS MEAC / SWAC No. 7 South Carolina State (0-0) at Florida A&M (1-0), 5:00 PM ESPN+ MEAC / Independent No. 21 Delaware State (0-1) at Sacred Heart (0-0), 5:00 PM ESPN+ MEAC / CAA Morgan State (0-0) at Hampton (0-0), 5:00PM FLO SPORTS MEAC / SWAC – Orange Blossom Classic (MEAC) No. 1 North Carolina Central (0-0) vs. (SWAC) No. 5 Alabama State (0-0), 2:00 PM ESPN SWAC / OVC-BSC - HBCU Independent No. 19 Mississippi Valley State (0-0) at No. 11 Tennessee State (0-0), 5:00 PM ESPN+ SWAC No. 17 Texas Southern (0-0, 0-0) at No. 8 Prairie View A&M (0-0, 0-0), 6:00 PM ESPN+ SWAC / SLC No. 15 Southern (0-0) at McNeese (0-1), 7:00 PM ESPN+ NCAA Division II No. 4 Clark-Atlanta (0-0) at No. 7 Fort Valley State (0-0), 2:00 PM The Grio No. 1 Virginia Union (0-0) at No. 16 Kentucky State (0-0), 3:00PM HBCU Go No. 2 Virginia State (0-0) vs. No. 6 Benedict (0-0), 5:00PM NFL Network NFL Hall of Fame Classic No. 22 Johnson C. Smith (0-0) vs. No. 8 Tuskegee (0-0), 8:00PM ESPNU Red Tails Classic No. 12 Edward Waters (0-0) at Morehouse (0-0), 2:00PM ESPN+ No. 17 Shaw (0-0) at Elizabeth City State (0-0), 12:00PM CIAA Network Bluefield State at No. 15 Winston-Salem State (0-0), 4:20PM CIAA Network @InsidetheHBCUSportsLab on Facebook Live and Spreaker.‬ Contributions welcome at CashApp $JafusCavil

#DrKenyattaCavil #SportsLab #HBCUsports"Inside the HBCU Sports Lab" episode 538 with Dr. Kenyatta Cavil, Mike Washington & Charles Bishop radio show. Today's show will be a good one as Dr. Cavil is joined by Charles, Kindric Hooks (D2 HBCU Football) and Bryan Fulford (BCSN SportsWrap) to discuss the latest HBCU news and sports.TOPICS:Grambling State University to unveil new digital scoreboards from HBCUGameday.com2024 CIAA Football Season PreviewHBCU tournament basketball returning to Charlotte. From YahooSports.comNCAA Division I FCSMEAC / SWACNo. 7 South Carolina State (0-0) at Florida A&M (1-0), 5:00 PM ESPN+MEAC / IndependentNo. 21 Delaware State (0-1) at Sacred Heart (0-0), 5:00 PM ESPN+MEAC / CAAMorgan State (0-0) at Hampton (0-0), 5:00PM FLO SPORTSMEAC / SWAC – Orange Blossom Classic(MEAC) No. 1 North Carolina Central (0-0) vs. (SWAC) No. 5 Alabama State (0-0), 2:00 PM ESPNSWAC / OVC-BSC - HBCU IndependentNo. 19 Mississippi Valley State (0-0) at No. 11 Tennessee State (0-0), 5:00 PM ESPN+SWACNo. 17 Texas Southern (0-0, 0-0) at No. 8 Prairie View A&M (0-0, 0-0), 6:00 PM ESPN+SWAC / SLCNo. 15 Southern (0-0) at McNeese (0-1), 7:00 PM ESPN+NCAA Division IINo. 4 Clark-Atlanta (0-0) at No. 7 Fort Valley State (0-0), 2:00 PM The GrioNo. 1 Virginia Union (0-0) at No. 16 Kentucky State (0-0), 3:00PM HBCU GoNo. 2 Virginia State (0-0) vs. No. 6 Benedict (0-0), 5:00PM NFL Network NFL Hall of Fame ClassicNo. 22 Johnson C. Smith (0-0) vs. No. 8 Tuskegee (0-0), 8:00PM ESPNU Red Tails ClassicNo. 12 Edward Waters (0-0) at Morehouse (0-0), 2:00PM ESPN+No. 17 Shaw (0-0) at Elizabeth City State (0-0), 12:00PM CIAA NetworkBluefield State at No. 15 Winston-Salem State (0-0), 4:20PM CIAA Network@InsidetheHBCUSportsLab on Facebook Live and Spreaker.‬Contributions welcome at CashApp $JafusCavil

Jerry Clark is a seasoned music executive and the charismatic host of the iHeart podcast "Story Time with Legendary Jerry" With a wealth of experience in the music industry, Jerry brings a unique perspective to his storytelling, sharing captivating behind-the-scenes tales and insider insights from his extensive career. His podcast delves into fascinating interviews with industry legends, making it a must-listen for music enthusiasts and anyone interested in the entertainment world. Jerry's engaging narration and deep industry knowledge have earned him a loyal following and solidified his reputation as a compelling storyteller and influential music executive.   Subscribe to Tenderfoot+ for ad-free listening - https://tenderfoot.tv/plus/   Follow Talking to Death on Social: IG: @talkingtodeath TikTok: @talkingtodeathpodcastSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bronny James is getting ready to be drafted into the NBA. Where? Who knows, but why are people so mad about this? Caitlin Clark is the WNBA's newest lightning rod in good and bad ways depending on who you are. Atlanta drowned for 5 days. But there is a deeper conversation to be had here and its relation to where I am from, which is Mississippi.

Freaknik was an annual spring break event that took place in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States between 1983 and 1997. It was a celebration of black culture and music that drew thousands of college students and young people from across the country. The event was known for its party atmosphere, with music, dancing, and drinking taking place on the streets of Atlanta. However, it also had a reputation for being rowdy and sometimes violent, leading to calls for it to be shut down. Despite this controversy, Freaknik remains a cultural touchstone for many in the African American community, representing a time of joy and celebration in the face of adversity.In this episode, we invite Byanka, an Atlanta native, and Clark Atlanta alumni to discuss the culture of Freaknik and Atlanta. You can find Byanka:Twitter/X: @LuvleeMelodieTiktok: @LuvleeeMelodieMakings of Byanka: https://youtu.be/IFzTjCRxcxc?si=p9MlX5VhIaokpAa0You can find us at: Www.EverythangCulture.comIG/Facebook/Tiktok/Tumblr: @EverythangCultureTwitter: @EveryTHGCultureSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/everythang-culture-podcast/exclusive-content

For this episode of Beyond The Album Cover I have the pleasure of interviewing Bril Ndiaye. We talk his west coast origins, going to Clark Atlanta, Atlanta music scene, Atlanta Night Life, Art Behind The Tape, Hip Hop, and everything else in between. Don't want to miss this interview!!! Follow the podcast at Facebook.com/BeyondTheAlbumCover, Youtube.com/BeyondTheAlbumCover, and any streaming platform!!!

Alcorn State has won 9 in a row & is the hottest team headed into the SWAC tournament. Alabama A&M vs Southern & Alabama State vs Grambling shake up the the SWAC bracket in the season finale. Clark Atlanta wins SIAC championship by beating Miles CollegeFollow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…

Jarveon Howard, Ladarius Owens, Davius Richard, Taymon Cooke, Marcus Riley & John Huggins are HBCU Combine standouts. Clark Atlanta beats Morehouse & now is in the SIAC East driver's seat.Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…

This week's episode of “I Got More To Say” features advertising professional Samara Apryl! Raised in Atlanta, Sam witnessed the commercial rise of southern hip-hop. Sam's initial exposure to Hip-Hop came from her family being from various popular music regions such as Louisiana, Texas, and Michigan. Further exposure to music came from her accessibility to celebrities,  Atlanta's radio market, showcases, and local talent shows within Atlanta.  While an undergraduate Student at Clark Atlanta, Sam Started her own public relations agency and served as junior publicist for Media Girls Network, a public relations apprentice for Finn Partners, and a photographer for Rap Plug. For the 7th episode of “I Got More To Say,”  Sam chats with Cato about the impact of Atlanta's club scene, trap music impact, Texas lucrative hip-hop market, Put On or Put Out, and More! Be sure to Subscribe to our YouTube Channel using the link in our bio! https://linktr.ee/igotmoretosay

Bama State pulls in Andrew Body from Texas Southern & Rico Dozier from UAPB to highlight their class. JSU WBB vs UAPB excitement hindered by Zaay Green's injury. David Wright is 1 of 10 Allen University transfers to Clark Atlanta with Teddy Keaton. Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…

Bama State pulls in Andrew Body from Texas Southern & Rico Dozier from UAPB to highlight their class. JSU WBB vs UAPB excitement hindered by Zaay Green's injury. David Wright is 1 of 10 Allen University transfers to Clark Atlanta with Teddy Keaton.Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…

Chennis Berry is bringing 10 Benedict College players to South Carolina State. The SIAC MBB race runs through Morehouse & Clark Atlanta. 2024 HBCU Brick City Classic is Morgan State v Morehouse Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…

FSU transfer Rodney Hill recommits to FAMU, which is big for the Rattlers recruiting class. Texas Southern beats Alabama State with critical free throws. Clark Atlanta is the hottest team in the SIAC.Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…

FSU transfer Rodney Hill recommits to FAMU, which is big for the Rattlers recruiting class. Texas Southern beats Alabama State with critical free throws. Clark Atlanta is the hottest team in the SIAC. Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…

South Carolina State beating North Carolina Central MBB was the upset of the weekend. Grambling WBB had a statement victory over Southern University. Benedict College lost to Morehouse & Clark Atlanta for their first 2 losses of the season, poor trip to the ATL for BC. Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…

James Colzie feels optimistic & Shawn Gibbs steps out of the FAMU coaching race to stay at Fort Valley State. It appears the Florida A&M coaching search is coming into focus. Clark Atlanta defeats Benedict College to make school history.Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…

James Colzie feels optimistic & Shawn Gibbs steps out of the FAMU coaching race to stay at Fort Valley State. It appears the Florida A&M coaching search is coming into focus. Clark Atlanta defeats Benedict College to make school history. Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…

Hey family + friends - this is one of my best episodes. I got the opportunity and experience to interview Dr.Pittman, a licensed professional counselor by the Georgia Composite Board. She also received her BA in psychology from Spelman, her MA in Counseling from Clark Atlanta, and her EdD in counseling psychology from Argosy University. We got the opportunity to break down barriers and discuss the much-needed topics of coaching, counseling, and therapy across so many different fronts. Please take time to listen to this episode when you have time to tune in; and as always, reach out if you have questions or comments!

The SIAC women's college basketball game between the Clark Atlanta Panthers and the Central State Marauders is now available on demand free of charge!

The SIAC men's college basketball game between the Clark Atlanta Panthers and the Central State Marauders is now available on demand at no charge!

A look at the game last week at Clark Atlanta and a look ahead at the Senior Day game vs Lane at home

We look back at the Homecoming game with Savannah State and a look ahead to the game with Clark-Atlanta

Mayor Andre Dickens still doesn't have any takers, it would seem, for the Atlanta Medical Center abandoned by Wellstar a year ago, so he's looking to stop any potential development for another six months to see if something might shake out. One councilmember has an idea - an idea similar in price tag to the public safety training facility. Interesting. Bernard Simelton checks in from the Alabama NAACP to tell me what he and his organization have to do now that his state's congressional map has been redrawn. Meanwhile it turns out classified documents weren't the ONLY secrets Donald Trump was fanning Mar A Lago with; his big fat mouth wasn't boxed up, so nuclear defense secrets were being whispered in the ears of his billionaire Aussie chum, who then shared it with dozens of other folks. I have to ask, is THIS the straw that breaks the cultist camels' backs? Doubt it. Lastly, REALLY good jobs numbers & an op/ed from a Clark Atlanta senior that was something of a gut punch for me to read. We need to do more, y'all.

Atlanta-born documentary filmmaker and graduate of University of Miami and Clark Atlanta, Ronnie Braithwaite, spills on the inspiration and drive behind his captivating short films: Woke, Bipolart, and He They. The films span Ronnie's personal experience navigating black identity in predominantly white realms (think white frats and elite private schools), being diagnosed as Bipolar as it relates to creating art, and finally, the brave journey of embracing the he/they pronoun.#RonnieRevealedRonnie's InstagramEdited by Victor HaydelIntro & Outro Beats by Victor Haydel: Burna Boy x Tems type beat "Key West"

#DrKenyattaCavil #SportsLab #HBCUsports"Inside the HBCU Sports Lab" episode 439 with Dr. Kenyatta Cavil, Mike Washington & Charles Bishop radio show. Today's show will be a good one as Dr. Cavil, Charles and BCSN SportsWrap's Bryan Fulford discuss the latest in HBCU news and and sports plus discuss key Week 6 HBCU football match-ups.TOPICS:Willie Slater out as Clark Atlanta football coach from HBCUSports.com and CAU.eduNorth Carolina A&T linebacker first Aggie player to receive CAA honor from HBCUSports.comSWAC Football Weekly Honors: Oct. 3MEAC Announces Weekly Football Honors, presented by Coca-ColaMEAC Announces Weekly Volleyball Honors, presented by Coca-Cola5 Takeaways from Week 5 of the HBCU football season from HBCUSports.com1. Hampton makes a statement in the conference opener2. Florida A&M is less than spectacular in win3. Howard returns with a vengeance4. Livingstone shocks Bowie State5. Fort Valley State ends Allen's runDR. CAVIL'S INSIDE THE HBCU HUDDLE REPORTDr. Cavil's 2023 HBCU Mid-Major Division Football Top 7 Poll Rankings – Week 5The Benedict Tigers Remain No. 1 in Ranking in Week 5-HBCU MID-MAJOR CLASSIC Game of Week-Birmingham, ALLegion FieldMorehouse-Tuskegee Classic– SIAC – Saturday, October 7th, 2:00PM CT –No. 3 Tuskegee Golden Tigers (0-5, 0-3) vs. No. 28 Morehouse Marron Tigers (??? 0-5, 0-4)-HBCU INDEPENDENT/NON-CONFERENCE MID-MAJOR DIVISION Game of Week-South Euclid, OhioMueller Field– Independent (MEC) – Saturday, October 7, 11:00AM CTNo. 4 West Virginia State Yellow Jackets (4-1, 4-0) at (HWCU) Notre Dame (OH) Falcons (3-2, 2-2)-HBCU MEAC MAJOR DIVISION Game of Week-***BONUS***Baltimore, MDHughes Stadium– CAA / MEAC – Saturday, October 7th, 1:00PM CT – ESPN+(HWCU) Stoney Brook Seawolves (0-5, 0-4) at Morgan State Bears (1-4, 0-0)DR. CAVIL'S INSIDE THE HBCU HUDDLE REPORTDr. Cavil's 2023 HBCU Major Division Football Top 7 Poll Rankings – Week 5The Florida A&M Rattlers Remain No. 1, Lose FPV in Ranking in Week 5-HBCU CLASSIC MAJOR DIVISION Game of Week-Mobile, ALLadd-Peebles StadiumGulf Coast Challenge– SWAC – Saturday, October 7th, 3:00PM CT – ESPN+No. 4 Jackson State Tigers (3-2, 1-1) vs. No. 7 Alabama A&M Bulldogs (3-2, 1-1)-HBCU INDEPENDENT/NON-CONFERENCE MAJOR DIVISION Game of Week-Hampton, VAArmstrong Stadium– CAA – Saturday, October 7th, 1:00PM CT – FloSports(HWCU) Campbell Camels (2-2, 1-2) at No. 3 Hampton Pirates (3-1, 1-0)@InsidetheHBCUSportsLab on Facebook Live and Spreaker.‬Donations welcome at CashApp $JafusCavil

A.R. Shaw, Executive Editor of Atlanta Daily World joins host Ramses Ja on today's podcast to review some of the top stories that made headlines over the weekend.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

U.S. Soccer picks Atlanta for its new HQ; Flooding infiltrates dorms at Clark Atlanta; and after seeing a doubling in the number of natural disasters in the past decade, the American Red Cross prepares for that as the new norm going forward. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Recorded in Atlanta, GA at Highly Unique Radio in Atlanta, GANuface explains what "Nustalgia" means to him 3:01Nuface talks about Saint Andrews and Detroit 4:30Nuface talks about how he started collecting comics and his drawing skills 6:30Nuface about how he was voted class president because he drew the best campaign posters 8:30Nuface talks about he might start his own museum and leasing out his collection to artist 14:00Nuface talks about coming to Clark Atlanta to study graphic art 17:01Nuface details club 559, the West End and being at the Gucci Mane vs Jeezy Verzuz Atlanta 24:01DJ Big Cheaux talks about when Lil Kim said high to him. 30:02Nuface talks about traveling to other city's and getting love from N.O.R.E , Trina, Busta Rhymes 32:01Nuface talks about hooking up Lil Scrappy With A Wrestling Show. 33:59Nuface talks about the Rock The Bell Cruise In November 36:00Nuface talks about his comedy escapades and making shirts for Karlos Miller, K Dumb and Clayton English and actually getting on stage twice as "Child's Play" Rest In Peace Nard 37:15 Nuface was there when DJ Big Cheaux brought two girls to Nelly's birthday party 41:35

North Carolina A&T is reloading with new transfer talent like Damon Harmon. Kemari Averrett, Claudin Cherelus, DJ Golatt, and Ellison Jordan could be the latest to benefit from XFL prioritizing HBCUs. NCAT is reloading with former 3 star players in the transfer portal. Damon Harmon and Rashaud Pernell join the team from Oklahoma and Liberty. Pernell and Harmon were former high school teammates as well. Kenji Christian joins the the RB room from Virginia Tech. The XFL is putting on another HBCU showcase. This is just another example of the league prioritizing HBCU talent. This year's event will be hosted by Clark Atlanta. I think a revolving door of different schools would be a great addition. Kemari Averrett, Claudin Cherelus, DJ Golatt, and Ellison Jordan could be the latest to benefit from XFL's showcase. Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…

North Carolina A&T is reloading with new transfer talent like Damon Harmon. Kemari Averrett, Claudin Cherelus, DJ Golatt, and Ellison Jordan could be the latest to benefit from XFL prioritizing HBCUs.NCAT is reloading with former 3 star players in the transfer portal. Damon Harmon and Rashaud Pernell join the team from Oklahoma and Liberty. Pernell and Harmon were former high school teammates as well. Kenji Christian joins the the RB room from Virginia Tech.The XFL is putting on another HBCU showcase. This is just another example of the league prioritizing HBCU talent. This year's event will be hosted by Clark Atlanta. I think a revolving door of different schools would be a great addition. Kemari Averrett, Claudin Cherelus, DJ Golatt, and Ellison Jordan could be the latest to benefit from XFL's showcase.Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…

In this episode, I sit down with musician, bandleader, professor, and historian Mausiki Scales. We talk about his growing-up years in Gary, Indiana, where he was raised in a household that promoted education and black excellence. He shares what it was like for him, as a teenager, to meet the likes of James Baldwin, Maya Angelou, and Gwendolyn Brooks and the profound effect that had on him later in his life. He went on to meet deep-thinking, impactful professors at Tuskegee University; it was there that he experienced a cultural awakening, and in graduate school at Clark-Atlanta where his love for travel, and especially his time in West Africa, helped him see the world in a different way. We discuss the influence on him of African writer Fu-Kiau, as well as Mausiki's approach to African spirituality and bringing balance to the community. Lastly, we take a deep dive into his musical career and the influence of Fela Kuti and Parliament Funkadelic.https://www.mausikiscalescommonground.com

FREAKY HOMIES FT. TIACORINE & MARVIN ABBEY - Big Homies House Ep. 130 This week the Homies have a visit from some Homies from the Tarheel state and from across the pond, when Tiacorine and Marvin Abbey come and kick it with the HOMIES!! This week we discuss friend dynamics and if you can TRAUMA DUMP your friends! We also dig into whether or not WOMEN are actually good friends or not! And should you hold out on sex during the talking stage, and is going on dates worse than having sex?? All this and more FREAKY HOMIES TAP IN!!!! Listen To THE BIG HOMIES HOUSE AUDIO HERE: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-big-homies-house/id1520022230 Stream “FREAKY T” https://music.apple.com/us/album/freakyt/1641143544?i=1641143547 Stream 3 Shots Of Tequila https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/3shotsoftequila/id1111785754 This Weeks Guest: @tiacorine @marvinabbey TIMESTAMPS  2:44 - Can Your Friends Trauma Dump To You? 9:11 - Are Friendships Supposed To Be Reciprocal ? 10:49 - Women Are Not Good Friends! 11:02 - Is It Normal To Fight Your Friends ? 15:22 - Do You Hold Out On Sex During The Talking Phase? 23:00 - Does Sex Complicate Relationships 30:08 - Is Spending Quality Time Worse Than Someone Having Sex  33:25 - Do Your Preferences Line Up? Big Homies House, The Big Homies House, Big Homie Kodaq, Big Homie Jojo, ATLANTA RADIO, ATLANTA, PODCAST, ATLANTA PODCAST, IHEARTRADIO, iheartatlanta, iheartpodcasts, Big Homies House, XFL FOOTBALL, The Spiritual Word,m, Dunkin Donuts, Oscars, Wrestlemania, TIKTOK , BigHomieKodaq, _jojoalonso, TiaCorine, Tia Corine, Marvin Abbey, North Carolina, North Carolina Rappers, Winston Salem North Carolina, WSSU, Clark Atlanta, Dunkin Lounge, Dunkin Donuts, London podcast, Marvin Abbey, UK Podcast, 3 Shots of Tequila, Women's History Month, Women's day, 

Megan Holston-Alexander is a partner at Andreessen Horowitz Cultural Leadership Fund. It's the first VC fund that raised money exclusively from Black leaders — from entertainment to sports to business. The fund co-invests with a16z's other funds and has raised more than $60 million across its three funds to date.The overarching purpose of CLF is to create generational wealth opportunities for Black communities. It's a two-pronged approach. The first is getting Black dollars directly on the cap tables of high-potential startup companies. And the second is creating a pipeline for more Black talent at early-stage companies. Megan joined me on the show on the heels of hosting the first-ever Cultural Leadership Summit and announcing CLF III before then. Here's everything we covered during our conversation:[2:39] Takeaways from the Cultural Leadership Summit[5:19] Building despite economic uncertainties [7:36] High-worth individuals also affected by macro economy [9:05] How has the Cultural Leadership Fund evolved?[14:54] Difference between entertainment and executive LP's[17:16] Web3's knowledge imbalance  [19:16] Megan's interest in DAO's[20:58] Will CLF's investment model change?[22:42] How CLF used relationships and trust-building to scale its operation [28:35] Megan's vetting process with LP's[36:02] How VC industry at-large can create more opportunities for black founders and talent [39:15] Has the Bay Area lost its monopoly on tech? [44:59] What CLF is focusing on in 2023Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | SoundCloud | Stitcher | Overcast | Amazon | Google Podcasts | Pocket Casts | RSSHost: Dan Runcie, @RuncieDan, trapital.coGuests: Megan Holston-Alexander, @meghalexander Download The Culture Report here: https://trapital.ck.page/a23b7a6a4a Sponsors:MoonPay is the leader in web3 infrastructure. They have partnered with Timbaland, Snoop Dogg, and many more. To learn more, visit moonpay.com/trapital Enjoy this podcast? Rate and review the podcast here! ratethispodcast.com/trapital Trapital is home for the business of hip-hop. Gain the latest insights from hip-hop's biggest players by reading Trapital's free weekly memo.TRANSCRIPTION[00:00:00] Megan Holston Alexander: What we hadn't considered on the executive side is, while the athletes and our kind of entertainers can partner on different things or, like, help them go into new markets, when it came down to, like, core operations or how you should run on your board, or how to think about hiring X, Y, and Z, our black executives, like, hold that information, like, in the palm of their hands. These are people who've been, you know, operators for 20 or 30 years, and so they brought kind of an additional level of skill and kind of insight to bolster what our other LPs on the more kind of athlete or entertainment side were doing.  [00:00:40] Dan Runcie: Hey, welcome to The Trapital podcast. I'm your host and the founder of Trapital, Dan Runcie. This podcast is your place to gain insights from executives in music, media, entertainment, and more, who are taking hip-hop culture to the next level. [00:01:01] Dan Runcie: Today's guest is Megan Holston Alexander. She's a partner at Andreessen Horowitz, currently leading its Cultural Leadership Fund. And to date, this fund has raised over 60 million, invested in over 300 Andreessen Horowitz portfolio companies, and has brought over a hundred black leaders into this space. I'm talking to Megan right after the Cultural Leadership Fund hosted its first-ever in-person summit. It was a pleasure to attend that summit myself and meet so many of the people that are friends of the fund, LPs of the fund, and really make it what it is. So this conversation, we talked a little bit about what it was like bringing that event together, especially after the pandemic. We also talked about how events like that fit within the fund's overall strategy and how that strategy has evolved over the past few years. For a little bit of background, the LPs in the Cultural Leadership Fund are all black, and it is one of the first funds to have ever done that in the VC space, and specifically, to date, a lot of the investors had been athletes and entertainers, but Megan talked a little bit about how they've expanded to bring on more black executives, what that looks like, and how that ultimately helps support the goal of the fund even more. One of the fund's other goals is to increase the amount of black talent and interest in tech. So we talk about what some of the opportunities are, what some of the challenges are, and what the VC community can do to help improve this even more. Great conversation, so many insightful points that Megan shared. I enjoyed this conversation and I know you will too, especially if you are an investor or you're a founder yourself. Here's my chat with Megan. [00:02:39] Dan Runcie: All right, today we have Megan Holston Alexander from Andreessen Horowitz Culture Leadership Fund, and first, I got to say congratulations on an amazing summit. It was a great event to be a part of and to attend. How does it feel for you now being on the heels of that and just seeing the impact of everything? [00:02:57] Megan Holston Alexander: Yeah, so thank you so much for coming. It means so much that people would be interested enough and engaged enough to spend time with us away from their, you know, everyday grind. But we're really pleased with how it turned out. We were motivated because so many of our LPs had said to us, we want to get together, we want to meet each other, we want to meet the founders, we want to meet the investment team. So as an LP and kind of partner summit, I think it had the intended effect and it seemed like people really enjoyed their time, but also learned a ton. So I could not be happier. I will say I was telling myself that after it was over, I was going to have so much time to, like, get so much other stuff done, but, like, it just never, it never stopped. So, we were really proud of what we were able to put on.[00:03:38] Dan Runcie: 'Cause I'm sure an event like that makes you think about what else you could do, right? I'm sure you had a bunch of people buzzing with ideas on what other in-person events or what other things could look like, too. [00:03:48] Megan Holston Alexander: Yep. And that's always the hope, right? We bring people into a room together in hopes that, like, we can help some serendipity happen. So many people in our network work on similar things or adjacent things or things that would have a really nice kind of partnership together. And so anytime we get to make those introductions, our hope is that people will be buzzing after, and have ideas for events and programs and partnerships. So we'll see what comes out of it. [00:04:12] Dan Runcie: And I imagine that a lot of this probably had been in the plans for a while. It was just a matter of timing. So much of CLFs rise and growth had happened during the pandemic as well. And it was just a matter of, okay, when can you bring people together safely to make something like this happen? [00:04:28] Megan Holston Alexander: Yeah. Yeah. And when I say it was three years in the making. I am not kidding, because we were planning actually to host the first summit in 2020. So we were in process of like, you know, picking out venues and cities and where we wanted to be. And then, like, so many people when the pandemic hit that spring, it just kind of cleared everybody's calendars. And so it's nice to know that 2 and a half years after the original that the motive was still the same and the demand for what we were building was still the same that we got to put it on, I think, even better than we could have hoped in 2020.[00:05:00] Dan Runcie: Yeah, I agree. And then looking at, now, you, of course, get to have it on the tail end of your announcement for fund three. You've now raised over $60 million for this fund. What was it like raising in this climate though, just given where things are with the market and how things have been so far in 2022? [00:05:19] Megan Holston Alexander: Yeah, totally. Totally. So when it comes to like the market environment, you just never know what's going to happen and unintentionally, you know, I actually got to raise ahead of kind of the market changing earlier in the spring. And that was actually because I was expecting and planning to be a new mom. And the firm was really supportive of that. And they said, okay, kind of up to you. Do you want to do it before mat leaves? Do you want to wait until the fall when you come back? And me being like, I don't want to think about this while I'm trying to raise a baby. I was like, Let's knock it out early. So lucky enough, you know, I was able to close that out before people really started tightening their belts. But, you know, as a firm, we really believe that, you know, no matter what the economy looks like, what the macro, you know, face of the world looks like, builders are always building. And even more so, during times when they can be home and spend time thinking about the problems that they want to solve. And so our hope is that, you know, even in moments like that, we can still really rely on founders to keep, you know, pushing great, great companies out. [00:06:17] Dan Runcie: Yeah, and I like to think of these moments as well as when you do start to filter out some of the companies or ideas that maybe were a bit more fleeting, and you can focus on the real things happening, you look at the last economic downturn that we had, and all of the companies that came from that timeframe, too. So I feel like the call to action for so many fund managers like yourself, you mentioned the LPs or even to others is, like you just said, people are still building, and if anything, it's the real companies that are going to come out of this timeframe.[00:06:46] Megan Holston Alexander: Yep. And then a piece that I would add onto that is in these moments, while we know that like great companies will be built, we don't truly know what they are because people do build for the time and you don't know what kind of instances will be, like, permanent behavior changes or what things are like, just for now, it seems like it's a, you know, a really good idea, but in six months people won't behave the same way. And so the hope is that you just always try to lean in the things that you think will have kind of staying power. But you just try to do risk reduction. [00:07:15] Dan Runcie: Right, Right. And I assume, too, from a fundraising perspective with you and this fund specifically, because a lot of the LPs are high net worth individuals, some of their willingness to invest in funds hasn't necessarily changed as much as some of the more institutional investing in things that we've seen in the past year or so.[00:07:36] Megan Holston Alexander: Yeah. So actually I might argue the opposite. So when you're dealing with individuals, right, in their personal wealth and people who are really new to venture, right? That's a really, really scary moment because venture is a long-term play, right? It's not like you put your money in and then two or three weeks later, you can be like, Hey, Megan, where are my dollars? And so making a long-term commitment like that during a period of economic uncertainty is actually more difficult for an individual than it would be for an institution because one, it's not any particular individual's capital, but also institutions have much kind of more thorough game plans, right? They know what percentage they're putting into venture versus private equity versus, you know, bonds or whatever the case may be. So they're kind of more consistent and they understand that the market kind of goes up and down and that there will be moments like this, and it's actually a little bit more difficult when it comes to individuals to kind of get them over that hump.[00:08:30] Dan Runcie: Yeah, that's fair. Because I do think that even in some conversations I've had with folks, things like the price of Bitcoin or the price of Ethereum having a pretty impactful influence on what their net worth is and their own willingness to invest in particular things. [00:08:46] Megan Holston Alexander: For sure. [00:08:47] Dan Runcie: And for you with this fund, specifically, now fund three, but the fund itself has been around for a few years now. Do you feel like the vision for the fund has evolved at all in that time? I mean, I feel like the core mission is the same, but have any of the ways that you've either talked or pitched the fund evolved in that timeframe? [00:09:05] Megan Holston Alexander: Yep. So I think you're right. We've kept our two kind of core missions the same, but what we do understand now is there are a number of different ways to execute on it. So if you will bear with me, I'm happy to share kind of two, you know, how that looks on both missions. So on the first mission of connecting the world's greatest cultural leaders to the best new technology companies. You know, historically we set, you know, athletes and entertainers and musicians, people who, from, you know, a large scale of consumerism have contributed to cultural change. But over time we've realized black executives also have like a really, really huge impact on this space. So people who are in leadership roles at Fortune 100 companies, or even at startup companies, they can have a huge impact on culture and consumer behavior more generally. And so we wanted to be sure that we really leaned into bringing in more black executives into the fund than we ever had before. And that has proven to be really helpful for the firm because they end up being, you know, equally if not more useful to the portfolio than the musicians and the singers, and the actors, et cetera. And so we have really enjoyed kind of expanding and involving that side of the network. And then on the second side of getting more young African Americans in tech, you know, fo fund one, we committed all of our management fees and carried to, like, one set of organizations. We picked them in the beginning and wanted to support them through the life of the fund. But what we realized by fund two was like, well, that doesn't really give us an opportunity to invest in new non-profits that are kind of on the cutting edge of technology, right? As things are growing and changing, we want folks who are being innovative on the non-profit side as well. And so what we did for fund two and now for fund three is we opened up kind of the spectrum of what we would support from a non-profit perspective to kind of match where we thought the technology world was going. So for fund one, you see a supporting kind of big well-known organizations that have proven over time if they are directly putting black folks into the pipeline for technology. But now we're saying like, okay, how do we add to this? Well, Web 3.0 is a huge thing, not only as a space for investment for the firm, but also generally of wanting to be sure that black folks don't get left behind in this Web 3.0 revolution. So we support organizations like crypto tutors that is meant to do just that, and that's not something we would've had insight into in that first fund. Gaming is also a new, huge area in technology. It is now, I think, you know, people play games more than they watch TV based on current research. And so how do we ensure that black folks are being supported in the gaming industry? So now we support black and gaming. We support the Black Collegiate Gaming Association. So just ensuring that our philanthropic efforts can support and are aligned with what we're doing as a firm and where technology is going overall. [00:11:51] Dan Runcie: I actually want to talk about each of those two things separately. Let me go back to the first one. [00:11:55] Megan Holston Alexander: Let's do it. [00:11:56] Dan Runcie: I think it was really interesting what you said about athletes and that sector around sports in general, if I heard you correctly, them being but not even more influential or helpful for the fund overall, but maybe relative to some of the other folks, whether it's your LP such as your musicians or entertainers. Did I catch that right? [00:12:16] Megan Holston Alexander: If I'm hearing what you're saying, you're saying that I said that the athletes are not as useful?[00:12:20] Dan Runcie: Oh, the other way around. Like, more useful than, like, some of the others that work with the fund?[00:12:24] Megan Holston Alexander: Well, I was saying, from the executive side, did I say athletes and not executives?[00:12:28] Dan Runcie: I think it was athletes.[00:12:29] Megan Holston Alexander: Maybe I misspoke. But what I was essentially trying to say is from a cultural leadership perspective, historically, it has very much been athletes and entertainers and we wanted to involve, we wanted to evolve our kind of mission overall to include more black executives.[00:12:45] Dan Runcie: That was helpful. Yeah, 'cause I was curious to tap into more about like, why that is and how that's impacted the fund so far. [00:12:52] Megan Holston Alexander: Yep. Because I feel like, everybody thinks that when you bring on like just a celebrity, everything skyrockets, right? That it's just like, ooh, if you put this name on there, things just grow. And that's not always necessarily the case. We've, you know, really supported our companies in being thoughtful and strategic around the ways in which you use a celebrity. And we've also been, you know, in deep conversations with our kind of LP network and our network at large about wanting to be more than like a disengaged kind of passive investor. And so they love partnering with the portfolio companies, et cetera. But what we hadn't considered on the executive side is, while the athletes and our kind of entertainers can partner on different things or like help them go into new markets or help them with the launch of a new product, when it came down to like core operations or how you should run on your board, or how to think about hiring X, Y, and Z, like, our black executives, like hold that information like in the palm of their hands. These are people who've been, you know, operators for 20 or 30 years, and so they brought kind of an additional level of skill and kind of insight to bolster what our other LPs on the more kind of athlete or entertainment side were doing. So now we have this really robust group of black cultural leaders who can help in a number of different areas.[00:14:07] Dan Runcie: That makes sense. Yeah, I mean, we see the influence, we see how influential they are in all of these sectors, and if you're thinking about just like how your fund is structured, I know that you do have different folks on the team focused in sports, focused in entertainment more broadly, and I feel like eventually having, you know, whether it's even more of those or just being able find the best ways to lock in on talent, because I think we're seeing this more and more. I think a lot about like, let's say like 10-plus years ago when we saw the era of a lot of artists being named as creative directors for particular companies. And some of those turned into, you know, really flourishing partnerships, and some of them necessarily didn't. But now, and I feel like your fund was timing this. You captured this moment where we're seeing more than that. [00:14:54] Megan Holston Alexander: Yep, absolutely. And it's not just because you know, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. And it's not just because, and not only because, you know, athletes and kind of other entertainment folks want to be more engaged, but quite frankly startups are requiring it. They don't want you to just let your name on something and then you disappear and like, you know, take the money and run or whatever the case may be. And so what we're trying to do is really build up to kind of core groups of people who are interested in each other and want to work together. And so there should be an equal expectation when we bring our LPs in and on our startup side that the startups want to work with these LPs and they've been thoughtful about how they want to engage with them, right? So if you want a particular person, why, right? Why is this person the best fit for your company? And so we really challenge our companies on that, where it's not just like, you want to get the biggest name, but the person who will actually be most influential for the product that you're building. And on our LP side, we say like, okay, what is it about this company that makes you most interested that you want to bring to the table? So it really is about working together. We are trying very hard not to make it where it's just like, kind of one-off, really transactional doesn't make a lot of sense 'cause those tend to be the things that don't work out. We try to be thoughtful on all fronts. [00:16:11] Dan Runcie: That makes sense. 'Cause it's like, otherwise, then it would just be like an Instagram ad or something like that, being like, oh, hey, go sponsor this product. And like, that's not what this is about. [00:16:21] Megan Holston Alexander: And it doesn't make sense. Like, make it make sense. That's the most important thing for us because those are what can be fruitful. And then say it's something that, everything doesn't always work out, but if you went into it with the right intentions and everybody did their best, like, that's all you can hope for. And then those people usually want to work together again, even if it didn't work out. So we really do take this long view on relationships, not just as a firm, but as a fund and the way in which we interact with people and hope that they'll interact with each other. [00:16:47] Dan Runcie: Right. And then at the second piece of what you were talking about, you talked about investing in companies that are ultimately helping to either further access or knowledge. Web 3.0 was an example and wanting to make sure that black talent doesn't get left behind in this space or in other spaces that may emerge. Where do you feel like things are right now? Do you feel like folks are on board? Do you feel like there's still a huge opportunity specifically with when it comes to Web 3.0 and black talent? [00:17:16] Megan Holston Alexander: Yep. I think until we get to a place where we feel like we have like, peer across the board equity, there's always work to be done. And being like an HBCU grad being from, you know, born and raised in Alabama, I have a very core sense of like what inequity looks like and how, what are the ways in which we can try to approach solutions to that problem. And so I think I'm lucky enough to have you know, that, sort of background where I can bring an interesting perspective into how we solve those problems. But I am finding that Web 3.0 overall has a lot of opportunity. One, because, like, nobody's an expert, right? Nobody's been doing Web 3.0 for 30 years. It is relatively new, right? There's people who've been doing it for the last 10 ish years, and there are a few people who are just really hardcore, but there is so many of our Web 3.0 companies, because there is just like a lack of, expertise in the space, they're just excited to get people who are interested and passionate about Web 3.0, right? So you kind of get to jump over this need for a long period of time having worked in X, Y, and Z or Web 3.0 in this case where you get to just work off of passion and start building the product. So that's one of the things I love about Web 3.0. The hard part is that there's a knowledge imbalance, right? It takes a lot of reading. It takes a lot of listening to podcasts and going through the a16z canon that a lot of people just don't have, right? The information is there, but everybody doesn't have time to read hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of pages on Web 3.0. And so the kind of that asynchronous ability to get information, I think, is where we have to fill in the gap. What is the answer to that? I'm not completely sure, but organizations like crypto tutors that I mentioned earlier, are making content easy, accessible, fun, really big on entertainment. And so while I think the opportunities are there for the roles, I do think we need to fill in the knowledge gap in terms of who gets the knowledge.[00:19:09] Dan Runcie: Agreed. And for you specifically, which areas of Web 3.0 are exciting you the most as an investor? [00:19:16] Megan Holston Alexander: Whoa, well, you know, with CLF being a co-investment vehicle inside of the fund, I feel like I get lucky enough where I get to see all the cool stuff, but I don't have to make the strenuous, anxiety-ridden decisions about, you know, which ones to pick. I just get the benefit of spending time with them all after the fact. And so for me, I am most excited about and I'll just say the one piece that I've been looking into a lot lately is like, DAOs. I love this concept of like governance and people getting to vote on what they do with capital and making decisions of that, like, things to buy and things to sell. I think the way in which communities are being built around kind of DAOs and that type of governance is really interesting. [00:20:00] Dan Runcie: Yeah, for sure. I think some of these conversations, whether it's DAOs buying sports teams or Dows trying to get involved with different things, we'll see. I think, like anything, we're in the early days and some of these things will come to fruition but there's definitely something there. Just looking at how decentralized so many things are becoming then I think a lot of those things do need to. [00:20:20] Megan Holston Alexander: Agreed and I think there's pros and cons of everything, and I think that's one of the things that, you know, gets missed in the hype cycle. There are things that will be really great about web 3.0 and there will be things that don't work out in the way that we hope, but in the end, we hope we shake out with the best kind of the pack. [00:20:38] Dan Runcie: Right. And then you mentioned it earlier about just the way that CLF invests and you co-invest. So you do get to see all the things that come through and you're not necessarily picking or, you know, making them the investments yourself. But do you think that's something that may change with either the vision or the evolution of the fund itself, where you would be making those investments? [00:20:58] Megan Holston Alexander: You know, we, at the firm, we never say never. We don't know what the future holds, but I think right now, the way that we've structured it, you know, we've got two really core goals at CLF, and the first is like getting black dollars onto the cap tables in Andreessen Horowitz companies and the more that I can do that, whether it's through co-investing or otherwise, I think that the structure that we have right now is one that works and that I'm I'm really pleased with. And then in that second mission or actually still the first mission, but the second way that we execute on it, right, so CLF has a fund and dollars out of that fund go into kind of the deals across a number of the funds inside of the firm. Not all of them, but most of them. But then the second thing that I get to do and spend a lot of time on, because I don't have to do, you know, a ton of that behind the scenes like diligence work, et cetera, is get additional strategic rounds for our portfolio companies. So not only is our LP base as a whole represented on the cap table, but anytime that there is a really thoughtful or smart partnership or somebody wants to add an additional strategic capital, we now can give even more black people on the cap table. And so I really enjoy spending my time doing that and I want to keep at it, but the firms, we never say never to stuff. Who knows? If it ever makes sense, we'll see. [00:22:14] Dan Runcie: Yeah, definitely. And then I think too, you mentioned this a few times just in terms of how the firm is structured in terms of building and investing in relationships. And I think this is something that I know you've talked about in other interviews, something that rings true with a16z overall. Can you talk a little bit about the way that you have the divisions or the way that you have the different verticals for, whether it's entertainment or sports and some of the events that you attend as well, and how that helps the overall mission? [00:22:42] Megan Holston Alexander: Yep. So for CLF, you know, historically when probably two years ago when it was just me and Chris the two of us, we did everything right and we realized that if we really wanted CLF to scale and to grow and to really have an impact on the communities and generational wealth, we needed to scale what we were doing. We need to get more cultural leaders involved. We needed to be able to make more kind of partnership introductions, et cetera. And so the way that, you know, made sense was, okay, we've got these cultural leaders. How do we bring together the best at what they do in order to help manage these networks? So we brought in folks like Derek who have been on the management and agency side for a number of years to manage the entertainment vertical, right? So when you have one thing to focus on and it's only entertainers, you can make much more kind of clear and thoughtful decisions around who to introduce to whom or who to bring into this company, or when a portfolio company says, I need this type of person, you can make a quicker decision. We brought in Deb on the athlete side. She was a manager at Rock Nation Sports for a number of years, so she really just has the depth of knowledge. And not only that, they both have this really interesting knowledge just about who players are, but how we can structure deals with them, right? This is what they're used to, and now we're bringing in this tech side, how do we make those deal structures match, or how do we make it more, you know, favorable to everybody involved? And so they brought another level of rigor to the deals and the strategic rounds that we were putting together that we needed a lot. And then both Julie and I work on the executive side, which I said is burgeoning. And so we really try to specialize. One as a firm, right? We've got a crypto fund and a bio fund, and people who are specialized. We do the same thing inside of CLF. We try to have people focus on a swim lane. And it's proven to be successful. So far, we're really pleased with that decision. [00:24:29] Dan Runcie: Yeah, I think it's effective and I think the names that you've been able to have as LPs in each of the rounds speaks to that too. And at the end of the day, especially in these industries, of course, I know relationships drive everything, but I think it's more so in these industries because especially with some of these high net worth individuals in entertainment, there's so many people from coming out of the woodwork who are trying to swindle them out of stuff or trying to propose them the most horrible deals and investment opportunities. So I think that's where the value add is here, as opposed to, or even more so than someone else who, you know, isn't in these fields. So they're not necessarily getting as much of the crap, if you will, from the proposals. So being able to sift through the good ones.[00:25:12] Megan Holston Alexander: I think you brought up a really good point. And I think that point is trust, right? So when you have people coming out of the woodwork, like you said, with investment opportunities, I got a good investment opportunity for you. But that person has no real background to be able to speak to like kind of whatever that item is or whatever that company is. We try to really mitigate the risk for our LPs and, and kind of partners that we bring into rounds for CLF, like, we never bring deals to people that we haven't invested in ourselves, right? We feel like how can we tell you like, you should invest in this, but like we didn't do it. And so people know that anytime we bring something to them, it is fully invested through Andreessen Horowitz, like, process, deal team, GP, et cetera. And so we try to, you know, really eliminate risk for them. And obviously, we always have them, you know, do your own research. Here is the information you make the decision for yourself. But we just pride ourselves on building trust with people because if we mishandle people and we swindle people, like that gets around and then that doesn't benefit us, right? If it goes around like, oh, those. sneakers over there, a16z are doing that. But we feel like we have really put forth a concerted effort that people know that they can trust us and they share with their friends that they can trust us. And that really is I think how we try to maintain and engage with our network. And so far, you know, that network has been able to grow and we always say, you know, we're not going to sacrifice a relationship for a quick buck that's just not our style. That's not what we do. I hope that that is kind of what's making the rounds. But so far it feels like people really have built a lot of trust in us and we don't take that lightly.[00:26:53] Dan Runcie: And I do think that information and understanding of these things has just gotten better in decades overall. And couple that with the fact that this is venture capital. Of course, it's a risk. Most of the companies that we're investing in probably aren't going to take off, but the ones that do are going to hit. And you're doing it with a firm that has a track record in this. So I feel like there's so much transparency. [00:27:16] Megan Holston Alexander: Well, I don't think I'm allowed to agree with that, so I'm just going to say okay.[00:27:20] Dan Runcie: Fair enough. Fair enough. And I think the difference there though is that I think about so many of these athletes, whether it's you get pitched on like opening restaurants with their name and all these other things that you know are just dated things. Of course, those things can still work. We've seen them be effective. But we've come a long way. [00:27:39] Megan Holston Alexander: And then one of the other things is, you know, we tell people, you know, that invest in our fund to please consider us a resource when things like that come up, right? We say we're a VC firm in your back pocket, right? So if something comes your way and you want us to, like you have questions about it, you know, obviously we can't tell you what to do, but we can help you figure out what are the right questions to ask when these opportunities come in front of you. And so that education piece that we do, I think is really valued by a lot of the folks who trust us with their capital.[00:28:10] Dan Runcie: And then with your LP specifically, is there anything that you're specifically looking for from a vetting process? Like, not necessarily talking about like commitment levels or anything like that, but more so things that you're looking for 'cause earlier we're talking about, of course, we've come a long way from the celebrity investors slapping their name on things. But I'm sure there are probably still some out there that may want to do that. And you're making sure that that's not who you're attracting. [00:28:35] Megan Holston Alexander: Yep. I'm trying to tell you all my secrets. You know, the most important thing for us is that we have LPs who want to engage. We want people who are willing to like, you know, hop on a call with us and share their interests or if, you know, you join the fund and you are entered in particular deals or we, you know, come across a company that would be a really great fit for you to talk to, maybe just have a 15-minute conversation with the CEO. There are people who love opportunities like that. So people who want to engage and want to learn and spend time with us and spend time with our LPs is who we try to really, really lean into because it's a symbiotic relationship, We want to support them. But at the end of the day, like our largest goal is to support our portfolio companies and whether it's the a16z team, whether it's our LPs, like it's all hands on deck. And so I love people who come in and have a genuine curiosity and they're excited about technology and innovation and they want to play a role in things that are being built. And so, we love those conversations and you can kind of really tell, like I've had people who you would never think, people who you would think would be super disengaged. Like, that person is interested in tech who are, have gone down like the Web 3.0 rabbit hole and they're like, ooh, and I'm going to do like a token that has this, and then I'm going to give it to my whole community back in Texas or whatever. Like, really is just a really, really thoughtful people. You don't have to be an expert. Like, that's not what we're looking for, but we just look, want people who want to be involved. [00:30:04] Dan Runcie: That makes sense. That makes sense. Shifting gears a bit on the talent side of things. We talked about it a little bit about how important it is to the fund to be able to just help develop this space and obviously your fund's doing its part. We talked about some of the areas that you're looking to invest in, how you're looking to just elevate this space overall, what do you think the rest of the VC community and landscape needs to be able to do to ultimately get things to where it should be. [00:30:31] Megan Holston Alexander: Sorry, when you say get things to where they should be, you mean in terms of like talent as an employee of companies? You mean talent in what way? [00:30:40] Dan Runcie: So I'm talking about talent in terms of whether it's black founders who are leading companies or black talent that are just interested in the space that are either going on to get jobs in the space or to work for other established companies, overall investing and then just being able to grow and see more black talent in tech.[00:30:59] Megan Holston Alexander: Yep. So I'll start by saying there's no one way to do it. I think there are a number of different approaches that people can take. But I usually divide it up at least of this industry into three things. One, funds can, or you know, firms can support black founders, right, by putting capital directly into their hands so that they can build their companies. Two, they can help more black talent get into early stage companies, right? So, employee 10, employee 15, employee 20, because we know that early employee equity can really change a life, right, when a company has a liquidity event, whether it's an IPO or a sale that now that person has capital to start a company or to angel invest in companies and kind of create some generational wealth for themselves. And then the third thing is getting more black dollars on cap tables, right? So ownership stakes, not just monetizing on a platform, right, for all of the amazing things that we're creating, but actually having its ownership in the platform to create generational wealth. And CLF focuses on those last two, but there are a lot of firms, again, focused on, you know, funding black founders. I think kind of focusing on those three core areas can really create economic, you know, extreme economic kind of opportunities for the black community. And so, you know, with CLF focusing on those last two, I think we've got a really special niche that we get to support in a number of ways, which I mentioned before.[00:32:26] Dan Runcie: Yeah. I feel like the closer that, or at least the more people, whether it's in this generation or in, you know, people that are a little bit older that are still trying to do it, being able to just get more focus on building generational. And just the knowledge and the mindset of it. I think all those things help. I think we're seeing more podcasts, more shows, more content from black folks that are specifically focused on this, which is great. I think, you know, there's never too much of it. So personally I think that I would love to be able to see more dollars and more hiring that happens in these places too 'cause I think we saw, especially in the past couple years, there was so many press releases that came from particular companies, and I think I saw recently there was a big tech founder that just announced, you know, a $400 million fund to invest.[00:33:16] Megan Holston Alexander: 400 million. Yeah, yeah. [00:33:17] Dan Runcie: But like, wanted to be able to actually see the results from those and being able to see the impact and being able to see people, you know, become their own Robert Smiths that can then, you know, pay for, you know, tuition for a future class. The more of those we see, and it's not just the one, you know, few names we already know would be great and I think those things will happen, but ultimately I think that's what so many of us want to see in this space. [00:33:39] Megan Holston Alexander: And there's so much embedded in this conversation, right? And I'll go on a little bit of an aside because I think one, we have to understand that like when we think about the future and black equity and empowerment, some people still don't care. Like, there are a lot of people who just do not care. It's not their problem. They don't want to help solve it. And then you have people who kind of commit to things but have no follow-through. And that's what we saw a lot of over the last couple of years. Like, after the murder of George Floyd, all these companies were like, yes, we're going to give this, we're going to do this. And then the follow-through two and a half years later is just not there. And then you have the people who are really, really committed but don't understand the expanse of the black community and think of it as a small sliver, like, really high, like, accelerators that they would want to support who still go to like a very specific set of schools, right, the talented tenth of the black people and are willing to support that. But then there is this holistic perspective around, like, non-monolithic blackness and how do we encourage economic empowerment and growth across the community as a whole? And that's what I want to get to. When we think about HBCUs, there's over a hundred of them, right? And how do we support more of them as opposed to like the same ones that get, you know, a ton of shine. Mind you, when it comes to HBCUs, like, they don't work outside of the community, be like, we depend on each other and we rely on each other. So, you know, I want to get to a more comprehensive perspective on, like, what supporting black economic empowerment looks like from a long-term perspective. So I think we'll get there, but there's a long way to go. [00:35:25] Dan Runcie: What you just said reminds me of, there was one of the tech companies that announced that they were going to have a black board member and that someone was going to take their seat away and they were going to make the opportunity for a black board member. And people were very curious, okay, who should it be? And to the point that you're making, who can we elevate to that point? Who could we provide an opportunity for? And I think they ended up choosing one of the most successful and high-profile black founders in this space. And while it is great to see that person in that role, that wasn't creating a necessarily a new opportunity in that same type of way, and it goes back to the talented tenth thing. [00:36:02] Megan Holston Alexander: Yep. We're here. And you know, I think you bring up a good point when, and now we're about to get into black history, but that's okay 'cause this is for the people. Conceptually, when you think about the talented tenth that's, you know, W. E. B. Du Bois and, like, his concept from a sociological perspective, and you think about who he was at tension with the most, Booker T. Washington and this concept of the Atlanta Compromise. Two very powerful black men, the founder of Tuskegee University versus, like, the first black man to get a PhD at Harvard. Conceptually thinking there are multiple ways in which the black race can succeed. And I think that's still very much the case, right? So, you know, W. E. B. Du Bois is very much like, we should be going to college. We should be getting these advanced degrees. Like we can have these like high power jobs, et cetera, and be in government, but Booker T. Washington is like, our people down here, don't even have running water, right? We should be focused on trying to get like basic level of education, jobs that provide us, like, a source of income that's steady, et cetera. So my point is, you know, reasonable people can disagree to what the solution is. And, again, I think there's multiple approaches and so I think if we can, you know, not just go one route, right? It can't always be about only the talented tenth, but kind of like also bring up a pathway where in Booker T. Washington space, right? That's why we'll have all the like, black agricultural people. Tuskegee is, like, the best university for, like, mechanical engineering and industrial engineering. And that's all like thematically with Booker T. Washington. So there's room for both. We just have a habit of focusing on one. Ali went there and went into a total black history tangent. [00:37:38] Dan Runcie: We could do a whole episode on that. But I'm glad you brought that up 'cause I do think that analogy and just, it ties so much of this together and ultimately the purpose of the fund and what you're trying to do. When I think about the nuance of all these conversations and the comprehensiveness of it what people need to hear so thank you for that.[00:37:56] Megan Holston Alexander: Fun fact. I'm actually a sociologist by trade. It was my undergrad. My undergrad degree, I got a Master's in it. I went to get a PhD, dropped out 'cause I hated it, moved to California, and got into tech and my dog is actually named after W. E. B. Du Bois. So fun fact for the people out there.[00:38:14] Dan Runcie: Still fresh, I mean for some of that, you know, I'm sure the sociology degree may have been, you know, some time ago, but still fresh. You still got it. [00:38:21] Megan Holston Alexander: It's good stuff. I love social interaction and studying how people engage with each other. So it's my secret passion. I'm a sociology capitalist, I guess so. [00:38:32] Dan Runcie: Of course, no, I think that there's some term there. But shifting gears a bit though, this is also somewhat on a sociology perspective, especially among VCs, the concept of where to live and where people are investing in has just been a bigger discussion ever since the pandemic had started and you are someone that lived in the Bay, you've recently moved to Alabama. And it'll be great to hear two parts. One, not just why you made the move, but also what is your take right now on the Bay Area, on San Francisco, because it is such a polarizing discussion point, especially from whether it was even people I talked to when I was at the summit or in so many conversations, for me as someone that still lives here.[00:39:15] Megan Holston Alexander: Yep. So it's polarizing for a lot of people, but my feeling is clear and I've always felt that, like, talent is truly, truly all over. So I moved to Alabama because, you know, I got two little babies and, you know, my parents are getting older, and I wanted to be able to have my kids spend time with them and to go to Mimi's house, and Mimi to be able to come to their school stuff. And so, you know, the pandemic really allowed us the opportunity to do that because as you know, Andreessen Horowitz moved to the cloud. Prior to the pandemic, we were very much a, you know, in office culture as most firms were. But you know, much to the credit of our leadership, they saw how much flexibility people had while still being productive and wanted to be sure that, you know, people were able to maintain that. So I'm really grateful for it. But, you know, my stance has been the same. I've always felt like people, smart people come from everywhere and they can be everywhere. I used to get really offended, actually. So I went to an HBCU undergrad. I went to Clark Atlanta, but ultimately got an MBA at Stanford. And somehow after I went to Stanford, everybody starts, like, picking up the phone for you, right? And then they'll, like, respond to your emails when they, you know, see a certain thing there. But people are like, oh, I see you went to Stanford. Like, you must be smart. And I'm like, I was smart before I went to Stanford. I was smart in Alabama, you know what I mean? And so I've always conceptually believe that, you know, yes, people get these extra markers, but that doesn't necessarily determine, like, I didn't go to Stanford and get smart. I didn't go to Stanford and get some magical thing that makes me, you know, smarter than everybody else. And so I've just always been a believer in, you know, talent being everywhere. As far as like the Bay, in particular, I do think, you know, something special happens when you can kind of create some serendipity and put people in the same place. It's not that like, oh, you know, everybody was just born there. They're very smart. It's like, no, like, people were actively coming there to join companies, et cetera. So you did get this great critical mass of people living in one place, especially when offices were in office culture. But now kind of that disbursement has happened and I think it just shows people that like, yeah, people who are interested in tech and building things. Also, they desire to live outside of the Bay Area for whatever reason, whether it's family or friends or I want to live near Warm Beach. Whatever the case is, I just think, and again, have always believed that you can live anywhere and be smart and productive and happy.[00:41:38] Dan Runcie: And I think a lot of this was inevitable. We knew that as technology got better and better, the power of conglomeration, especially from a physical location perspective, was only going to lessen. I don't think it necessarily goes down to zero. There, of course, is benefit and why people live in particular places, but I do think that what we saw the past 15 years up until maybe the past two years was at least like the last wave. And you saw it before, whether it was with, you know, the auto industry or the Midwest of all these other places. Like, we've seen this happen time and time again. But what's different now is that things are so fragmented and it makes me think a lot of things we see in music as well. We saw so many areas that were just such culture beds for where the new hot sound was coming from, where the hottest music was. And I think we still see a lot of that. But we're starting to see even that spread out of it too. So this is happening across the board. [00:42:31] Megan Holston Alexander: Yep. I agree. And, you know, I think as long as companies support their employees' needs in whatever it is to be productive, I think we'll get to the right answer. So for example, our firm allows you, if you want to go to the office, you can. There's, like, no office that exists, so, like, you can't get interaction if you desire it. But not requiring it allows both types of people to be happy. And quite frankly, like, most people don't even know I live in Alabama. Like, I'll be on the phone with somebody from work and I'll like, no, I'm in Alabama. And they're like, oh, how long you visiting for? And I'm like, no, I live here. And like, everybody's eyes bug out and they're like, what? You can be equally as productive and no one have no, you know, no idea where you are.[00:43:14] Dan Runcie: Yeah. And I think that, and it's interesting, I've heard, you know, from some founders that are trying to go back in the office, some founders that are, you know, doing things remotely a hundred percent. And part of it is all that works for you, but the fact is we have options now and that's basically it.[00:43:30] Megan Holston Alexander: And I appreciate, again, the flexibility of so many companies to, like, actively buck against what the normal used to be, because I think it would've been really easy or conceptually easy to say, like, we're going back into the office. Like, that's what it is, and, you know, that's the end. But for all the companies that are like, hey, the world is changing, let me adapt. I and I know so many other people are really grateful for that. And me as a new mom, the flexibility it's given me is just huge. [00:44:00] Dan Runcie: Right. And to tie it all in too, it just allows the greatness and the genius to come from so many other areas that aren't filtered by all of the other things that let people pick from the pools of talent that existed before.[00:44:13] Megan Holston Alexander: Agreed. The CLF team, at this point, I don't think anybody's in the Bay.[00:44:17] Dan Runcie: Makes sense. [00:44:18] Megan Holston Alexander: I knew we've got New York and Miami and LA. Okay, wait, no, we do have one person in the Bay. But the fact is that this team, CLF as it is now, could not have existed if we could only be in Menlo Park. [00:44:31] Dan Runcie: Right, right. No, that's a good point. That's a good point. All right. Well, Megan, this is great. Covered a bunch. We got a deeper look behind the fund. Everything that goes behind the work you're doing.[00:44:41] Megan Holston Alexander: Wait, we're not done, are we? [00:44:43] Dan Runcie: We're getting to the tail end. We're going to the tail end. Oh, you got more? [00:44:46] Megan Holston Alexander: You couldn't convince me that that wasn't only 20 minutes.[00:44:50] Dan Runcie: No, we definitely, we definitely had some good deep dives in here. This was good. But no, before we let you go though, what's one big thing that you're excited for 2023? [00:44:59] Megan Holston Alexander: One thing I'm excited for 2023 for the fund, I am really excited to continue to, like, bring people together. In the last two and a half years, we haven't been able to do that, but CLF as a fund and as a network really relies on putting interesting people in a room together so magic can happen. And you probably heard me saying it's all around like the summit a few weeks ago. Like, my favorite part of my job is when, like, I know somebody and I know somebody else and I see them and I'm like, ooh, they need to talk. And I'll bring them together and I'll say, like, I don't know what's going to happen here, but y'all need to talk and whatever happens, give me my credit. And then I walk off. And then there's like all this like zhooshing and this magic that happens. I love those moments. So hopefully I can get to create more of those in 2023 with the awesome team that we've built at CLF.[00:45:50] Dan Runcie: Well, we'll definitely be looking out for that for sure. Megan, thank you. It's been a pleasure. Thanks for coming on. [00:45:56] Megan Holston Alexander: You as well. Thank you. I appreciate it. You're doing something very amazing with Trapital, and I mean, I just feel honored that you wouldn't let me be on your platform. [00:46:04] Dan Runcie: Of course, these are the conversations you want to have. Thank you. Appreciate that. [00:46:08] Dan Runcie: If you enjoyed this podcast, go ahead and share it with a friend. Copy the link, text it to a friend, post it in your group chat, post it in your Slack groups, wherever you and your people talk, spread the word. That's how Trapital continues to grow and continues to reach the right people. And while you're at it, if you use Apple podcast, go ahead, rate the podcast. Give it a high rating and leave a review. Tell people why you liked the podcast. That helps more people discover the show. Thank you in advance. Talk to you next week.

Bomani Jones shares thoughts on why Bills-Chiefs may be the most exciting QB matchup ever in the league (1:00), what makes Tennessee's victory over Alabama this past weekend such a big deal (13:53), and why his visit back to Clark Atlanta this past weekend made him think harder about 60 Minutes' feature on Jackson State coach Deion Sanders (23:16). Plus, an IYHH including Police using DNA to generate 3D images of suspects () and your voicemails from bad loans you have got yourself into (31:25). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the final stop of our HBCU tour on The Power of the Black Vote, we travel to Atlanta, home of three of the most prestigious historically Black colleges and universities: Spelman, Morehouse, and Clark Atlanta, to talk with HBCU students about the Black youth vote. Georgia has always played a significant role in the fight for voting rights in this country. And when Stacey Abrams lost her race for governor in 2018, young Black voters who were tired and fed-up began to mobilize on their campuses. For years, Black student voter turnout was on the decline in the state, but with rising voter suppression tactics and voter purges, student organizers and grassroots organizations started a movement to get out the vote. This resulted in an unprecedented Black youth voter turnout in the 2020 general election, which ultimately led to Georgia turning blue for the first time in years. But with the midterm election right around the corner, student organizers like Janiah Henry, a student political activist at Clark Atlanta University, are struggling to keep that momentum going. On this episode of Into America, Trymaine speaks with Henry about how she is energizing the Black youth to get out and vote this November. He also speaks with Ciarra Malone, an organizer forCampus Vote Project, who has made it her mission to strengthen civic engagement on HBCU campuses throughout the state. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at intoamerica@nbcuni.com.For More: The Power of the Black Vote: Taking Back the ClassroomThe Power of the Black Vote: Knocking Out Student Loan DebtThe Power of the Black Vote: Tackling Our Climate CrisisThe Power of the Black Vote: We Save OurselvesYoung Black voters are dominating the Georgia midterms one student at a time

Black Americans have long been one of the most loyal voting blocs within the Democratic Party. And Historically Black Colleges and Universities have often served as an important site for Democratic campaign outreach. As the November 2022 midterm elections approach, what is this new generation of young, Black voters looking for in their elected officials and what are the issues that matter most to them?This week, Into America's Trymaine Lee travels to Atlanta, Georgia to talk with students and recent graduates from Spelman, Morehouse, and Clark Atlanta about what it's been like living through these past few years, their own political involvement on their college campuses, and what they hope this new chapter of electoral politics will bring to the city and state they call home.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at intoamerica@nbcuni.com.Further Viewing, Reading, and Listening: Watch Trymaine Lee on The Sunday Show with Jonthan CapehartCheck out NBC's Plan Your Vote toolOne Year In, Has Biden Had Our Backs?

Pass the PopcornBianca started her relationship with RuPaul's Drag Race during COVID, so Tre'vell thought it fitting to talk Season 7, All Stars starring: Raja, Yvie Oddly, Shea Couleé, Jinkx Monsoon, Monét X Change, Trinity The Tuck, Jaida Essence Hall and The Vivienne. They share who they're rooting for right now, about 4-5 episodes into the season.DIS/Honorable Mentions BiancaHM: Naima Cochrane the creator & curator of @MusicSermon on Instagram. It's #BlackMusicMonthChallenge, and she's put together a prompt for everyday this month and folks are posting their favorite songs matching the prompt by Black artists.HM: Simone Leanora who works as a personal assistant for ridiculously fine, hot cocoa on winter morning Mahershala Ali. She recently posted a video on her Tik Tok account with him answering a question about whether personal assistants who work for actors get to go on set.  DM: James Patterson who said “you don't see many 52 years old white males” getting writing contracts these days. Tre'vellHM: myself!HM: Lizzo releases new version of 'GRRRLS' with lyric change after blowback for use of ableist slurBHIHEJennifer Hudson is an EGOT winnerOur Sponsors This WeekDipsea:Dipsea is an app full of hundreds of short, sexy audio stories designed by women for women. They bring scenarios to life with immersive soundscapes and characters, no matter who you're into or what turns you on. For listeners of the show, Dipsea is offering an extended 30 day free trial when you go to DipseaStories.com/FANTI. Lumi Labs:Our show this week is sponsored by Microdose Gummies. Microdose Gummies deliver perfect, entry-level doses of THC that help you feel just the right amount of good. To learn more about microdosing THC, go to Microdose.com and use code: FANTI  to get free shipping & 30% off your first order.  Go ahead and @ usEmail: FANTI@maximumfun.orgIG@FANTIpodcast@Jarrett Hill@rayzon (Tre'Vell)Twitter@FANTIpodcast@TreVellAnderson@JarrettHill@Swish (Senior Producer Laura Swisher)FANTI is produced and distributed by MaximumFun.orgLaura Swisher is senior producer Episode Contributors: Jarrett Hill, Laura Swisher, Tre'Vell Anderson, Music: Cor.eceGraphics: Ashley Nguyen