Podcasts about lisnr

Rodney Williams is the Co-founder of SoLo Funds, the largest community finance platform in the US. Since 2018, SoLo has surpassed 1M loans funded and redefined access to capital and returns for 1.5 million users. As the U.S.'s only Black led Certified B Corp fintech, SoLo continues its leadership, but grounded in the same hope and mission: to build a community that enables financial autonomy for all. Prior to founding SoLo, Rodney founded LISNR and led the company to over $40M in funding, numerous awards and partnership across retail and financial services. Rodney's career started at Procter & Gamble in brand management where he was a critical catalyst in the company's digital strategy and started in eCommerce & social media. Rodney has been recognized with numerous awards, including Ad Age's 40 Under 40 in 2012; Cannes Gold Lion award in 2015; and CNBC Disruptor 50 List in 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2023 to name a few. Rodney is a graduate of West Virginia University and Howard University. Rodney is a member of the 2019 Class of Henry Crown Fellows within the Aspen Global Leadership Network at the Aspen Institute.

When you think about funding your business, venture capital might be the first thing that comes to mind. Yet, for Black entrepreneurs, accessing traditional VC funding can be an uphill battle, with less than 1% of VC capital going to Black-owned businesses. This episode of the Black to Business podcast dives deep into alternative funding paths that you can take to build and grow your business without relying solely on venture capital. Rodney Williams, the co-founder of SoLo Funds and other successful startups, shares his invaluable insights and personal experiences on how Black-owned businesses can navigate the challenging landscape of business funding. We understand the unique obstacles you face in securing capital and building sustainable businesses within a system that often overlooks you. That's why this episode is critically important: it explores practical, alternative funding strategies that have helped Rodney and many others succeed. From utilizing personal savings and credit cards to engaging with socially-minded investors and community finance platforms like SoLo Funds, this episode will offer you a roadmap to achieving financial autonomy and business success. Rodney also addresses the mental and emotional aspects of entrepreneurship, emphasizing the importance of collaboration, support systems, and mental health.   DURING THIS EPISODE YOU'LL LEARN: Alternative funding sources besides venture capital The importance of creating a sustainable business model How to attract smaller, socially-minded investors The benefits of community finance platforms like SoLo Funds Understanding the true cost of funding options and making informed decisions About Rodney Williams: Rodney Williams is the Co-Founder of SoLo Funds, the largest community finance platform in the United States. Since its inception in 2018, SoLo Funds has surpassed 1 million loans funded and has redefined access to capital for its 1.5 million users. As the U.S.'s only Black-led Certified B Corp fintech, SoLo Funds continues its leadership, grounded in the mission to build a community that enables financial autonomy for all. Before founding SoLo, Rodney founded LISNR, securing over $40 million in funding and leading the company to numerous accolades and partnerships across retail and financial services. Rodney began his career at Procter & Gamble in brand management, where he was pivotal in shaping the company's digital strategy. He holds degrees from West Virginia University and Howard University and is a member of the 2019 Class of Henry Crown Fellows within the Aspen Global Leadership Network at the Aspen Institute. Rodney has been recognized with several prestigious awards, including Ad Age's 40 Under 40, Cannes Gold Lion award, and consistently featuring on the CNBC Disruptor 50 list.   Tune in to this episode to get inspired, gain actionable insights, and discover new ways to fund your entrepreneurial dreams, anchored by Rodney Williams' journey and expertise.   Don't miss out on the resources mentioned in this episode by checking out the show notes at blacktobusiness.com/204   Thank you so much for listening! Please support us by simply rating and reviewing our podcast!   Got a question? We'd love to answer it in an upcoming Q&A. Simply record your quick question → https://blacktobusiness.com/QA    Connect with us on Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/blacktobusiness/    Don't miss an update! Sign up for our weekly newsletter: https://blacktobusiness.com/mailinglist

Marlon Nichols is the founding managing partner at MaC Venture Capital, a seed-stage venture capital firm that invests in visionary founders building the future that the world wants to see. Prior to MaC Venture Capital, Marlon was founder of Cross Culture Ventures and served as Investment Director at Intel Capital. Some of his current and previous portfolio companies include Blavity, Gimlet Media, LISNR, Mayvenn, MongoDB, PlayVS, Pipe, Thrive Market and Wonderschool, among others. Follow Black Tech Green Money: @blacktechgreenmoney, @btgmpodcast Follow Will Lucas on Instagram: @willlucas Learn more at AfroTech.com Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's impressive when an entrepreneur builds a company from scratch that ultimately scales, but I think it is even more impressive when you can combine a strong social mission to a company that scales, as well. This is what Rodney and his Co-Founder, Travis Holoway, have built with SoLo Funds, a leading community finance platform focused on underserved communities. It's a marketplace where you can lend money to those who are looking to borrow. It's working, as the company has over 1.3M downloads and has surpassed 600K in loans funded and $300M in transaction value. As the only Black owned B Corp Fintech in the U.S. and Canada, the company is backed by a variety of investors including Rich Dennis' fund, New Voices and Serena Williams' fund, Serena Ventures. In this episode of our podcast, we cover: * Advice for entrepreneurs of color on raising funding for their startup. * Rodney's background story including obtaining his MBA from Howard University and his time at Proctor & Gamble as a Brand Manager. * We break down the tech and use cases for LISNR, a leading ultrasonic data platform company that he co-founded. * All the details about SoLo Funds in terms of how the company came together and the impact that it is making. * The story of his recent TV appearance on the Peacock series called Founding in Color. * And so much more. If you like the show, please remember to subscribe and review us on iTunes, Soundcloud, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.

Check out episode 604 of #LocationWeekly where we talk about Chipotle adding FlyBuy location tech to their app, Quuppa & Datalogic launching shopping companion tech, Meta, Microsoft & TomTom team-up on mapping non-profit, Lisnr & Clear partner on proximity and age verification tech.

Justin Gordon (justingordon212) talks with Marlon Nichols (@MarlonCNichols), the founding managing partner at MaC Venture Capital, a seed-stage venture capital firm that invests in visionary founders building the future that the world wants to see, and helping entrepreneurs bring the future into focus to find their breakthrough moment. MaC Venture Capital is the result of the merger between successful Los Angeles and Bay Area based Seed funds, Cross Culture Ventures and M Ventures. They are focused on finding ideas, technology, and products that can become infectious, investing in technology companies that benefit from shifts in cultural trends and behaviors in an increasingly diverse global marketplace. They recently raised their $203M Fund II.Marlon is a Kauffman Fellow who also serves on the Board of Directors. Prior to MaC Venture Capital, Marlon was founder of Cross Culture Ventures and served as Investment Director at Intel Capital. Marlon has an extensive background in technology, private equity, media and entertainment. His unique eye for global and cultural trends, along with shifts in consumer behavior, has helped him uplift and accelerate entrepreneurs and companies that are on the verge of their breakthrough moment. Some of his current and previous portfolio companies include Blavity, Gimlet Media, LISNR, Mayvenn, MongoDB, PlayVS, Pipe, Thrive Market and Wonderschool, among others.Marlon was recently honored as a member of the 2022 class of the LA500 list and as a top early stage investor on Insider's 2022 Seed 100 list. Additionally, he is the recipient of MVMT50's SXSW 2018 Innovator of the Year award, Digital Diversity's Innovation & Inclusion Change Agent award and was a TechWeek 100 winner. He was named Pitchbook's 25 Black Founders and VCs to Watch in 2018, 2019 and 2020, and one of Silicon Republic's 26 VC professionals spearheading change. Marlon has been featured on TechCrunch, Fortune, Cheddar, MSNBC, Blavity and NBC, and is adjunct faculty in entrepreneurship and venture capital at the SC Johnson College of Business at Cornell University.Website: MaC Venture CapitalLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/marloncnichols/Twitter: @MarlonCNicholsMarlon on the Just Go Grind Podcast in March 2021: Episode #285 on JGGShow Notes: What enabled MaC Venture Capital to double their first raise, closing a $203M Fund II The value of a strong reserves strategy MaC Venture Capital's investment in Pipe, which transforms recurring revenue into up-front capital for growth without dilution or restrictive debt The story behind MaC Venture Capital's investment in Truebill, now Rocket Money (check out Co-Founder Haroon Mokhtarzada's episode on the Just Go Grind podcast) What makes a stellar founder How they ended up investing in Mahmee and what makes their founder Melissa Hanna such an investable founder Where Marlon is excited to invest next How Marlon educates himself on new geographies and markets Marlon's perspective on investing in the current market downturn More about the show:The Vitalize Podcast, a show by Vitalize Venture Capital (a seed-stage venture capital firm and pre-seed 400+ member angel community open to everyone), dives deep into the world of startup investing and the future of work.Hosted by Justin Gordon, the Director of Marketing at Vitalize Venture Capital, The Vitalize Podcast includes two main series. The Angel Investing series features interviews with a variety of angel investors and VCs around the world. The goal? To help develop the next generation of amazing investors. The Future of Work series takes a look at the founders and investors shaping the new world of work, including insights from our team here at Vitalize Venture Capital. More about us:Vitalize Venture Capital was formed in 2017 as a $16M seed-stage venture fund and now includes both a fund as well as an angel investing community investing in the future of work. Vitalize has offices in Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles.The Vitalize Team:Gale - https://twitter.com/galeforceVCCaroline - https://twitter.com/carolinecasson_Justin - https://twitter.com/justingordon212Vitalize Angels, our angel investing community open to everyone:https://vitalize.vc/vitalizeangels/

Monique Idlett is the Founder of Reign Ventures, a seed-stage investment firm, and previously the Co-Founder and CEO of Mosley Brands and Mosley Music Group, home to a multiplatinum roster of artists. Chad talks with Monique about how the music industry is like the startup venture capital industry, understanding that representation matters, having a data-forward approach, and appearing on the TV show Undercover Billionaire, where entrepreneurs are given 90-days and nothing but 100 dollars to go undercover and build a thriving million-dollar business for a small town in the US. Reign Ventures (https://www.reignvc.com/) Follow Reign Ventures on Twitter (https://twitter.com/ReignVc), Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/reign_ventures/), or LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/reign-ventures/). Follow Monique on Twitter (https://twitter.com/Monique_Mosley_) or LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/monique-idlett-mosley-41353b15/). Follow thoughtbot on Twitter (https://twitter.com/thoughtbot) or LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/150727/). Become a Sponsor (https://thoughtbot.com/sponsorship) of Giant Robots! Transcript: CHAD: This is the Giant Robots Smashing Into Other Giant Robots Podcast, where we explore the design, development, and business of great products. I'm your host, Chad Pytel. And with me today is Monique Idlett, the Founder of Reign Ventures, a seed-stage investment firm, and previously the Co-Founder and CEO of Mosley Brands and Mosley Music Group, home to a multiplatinum roster of artists. Monique, thank you so much for joining me. Now, you left Mosley Music Group about three years ago to focus exclusively on Reign Ventures. How is the music industry like the startup venture capital industry? MONIQUE: There is no difference in the way I see a pipeline of amazing talented founders. We're truly looking for those exceptional founders that we can help develop, put up that bumper system. The end product in the music industry was the music we were consuming, the experiences through the live art form. And in the startup world, that end product is the success and the ability to scale a real solution that this company has solved with amazing, talented people. So to me, it was a nice, easy transition, and it made sense. CHAD: Are there ways in which it's different? MONIQUE: Oh my goodness, yes, lots of ways that it's different. The difference is that music is an art form. For me, music is the universal language. I believe that I've traveled the world. And I've been to places where there were language barriers, but when a song, a popular song, came on, the language barrier was gone. In the startup world, there may be several people trying to create and penetrate a problem area in a vertical or a category. And we may not have the ability in the startup world to have several of the same sounding things from a business model. They may not all work. And so you're dealing with the emotional capacity on the music side. And on the tech side of things you're truly dealing with, can you really solve this problem? We're solving problems, not just emotional connections from the music industry perspective. And also, it's a lot slower moving. We have a project in the music industry, and it may have a cycle. And now it's an even shorter cycle with technology. You may be able to create an entire project in just a couple of weeks. In the startup world, in the business side of things, you may not see the development for two to three years. So the patience is definitely...I've had to apply a lot more patience and understanding of being able to scale a business versus just a project-driven entity. So it's a little different, but the end result is all the same. Creating real great solutions for real problems, whether it's through an art form or whether it's through a business model, is all similar to me. CHAD: So, do you have a particular investment strategy or focus at Reign? MONIQUE: We do. Erica and I currently we are the largest two female Black-owned VC fund. So one of the things that we felt ten and a half years ago when we started investing together is investing has just been done...venture has been done wrong. There's a reason why less than 3% of funding collectively was...still to this day; it's about 3.2. But over ten years ago, when we started, only less than 3% of funding from VC was going to women, all women, and Black and Brown founders. And so literally, we were like, the problem is that we're not having enough investment or a lens on women and people of color. And we want to do it the way it should have always been done: investing inclusively. We are proud to say that we invest in all founders, all exceptional founders. And yes, we have a lens on women and people of color because they've been under-capitalized and under-resourced and under-everything. And so the reality is that we want to set the tone of how it should always look and the world is inclusive. Diversity is not an issue; the equity and inclusion side is an issue. And we want to keep being that example. CHAD: That's great. Do you feel like, or in your experience, have you found that these founders were already out there and they just were being passed over? Or were the problems so systemic that they weren't even getting the opportunity to even be out there? MONIQUE: I think there are always exceptional people out there; that's number one. And I think it's a two-prong problem: yes, the pipeline, the access. So there's the lack of access for these types of founders that has absolutely been an issue, the lack of resources, the lack of access. But the other side of it is that they have just been overlooked and not allowed into the rooms. There are exceptional people in this world that don't only look like one type of person. And the reality is that we have access to them. And so yes, both of those are an issue, okay. But the reality is that we have exceptional founders of all types of people. There are amazing people in this world. When you sit behind a computer, and you run an algorithm, and you only go to only your network of what looks like you and comfortable, then you are what we call missing out on a ton of opportunity. So Erica and I are founder-friendly. We go where the founders are. CHAD: I've come to learn and understand representation really matters. Being able to see yourself is really important. And it's something that because I look like what I look like, I had the privilege to not realize how important that is because there are so many people in power that look like me. I can imagine it's super refreshing to a lot of the founders that you work with to be talking with you and sitting across the table from you and seeing that and talking to someone that understands them. MONIQUE: Yes. I think that having someone to relate to on all levels, personal, professional is a very important concept. And I remember starting my career at USA Today; not only was I different in age because most of my colleagues were 40-plus, and I was in my young 20s, they were mostly male and definitely particularly only Caucasian. I was the first African American executive on the marketing and sales side. And I remember feeling very isolated and very lost and not knowing who I could turn to that would understand some of the things I was actually going through. And so yes, founders, it eases the founder's mind when they can talk to me and know that hey, I didn't always look like this from this perspective. I grew up in income-based housing in New Jersey. I understand where you come from. Yes, I understand what it's like to be a Black woman; I am one. But also the other side of it is that when we have founders who are Caucasian male. We like to have conversations of inclusion from the ground up with them. "Did you think about this consumer base? Do you know that you might have to message different?" These are things and conversations that people are not having if you're only talking to one type of person. And so, I think that what Reign Ventures is doing is allowing for comfortable conversation and then execution. CHAD: That's great. You started with a $25 million fund in Reign, and you're well beyond that now, right? MONIQUE: Yes, yes. So our current fund is a $50 million fund, and then our next fund will be...we're going for the stars and trying to raise $100 million. CHAD: Wow. I've talked to a few people who are either interested in starting VC or who have done it before. And what do you use to judge how much or how large of a fund you'll be building? MONIQUE: So we like to think of what we want the outcome to be. And so, the long-term goal of Reign Ventures is to have a billion-dollar under asset management. That has not been done by two Black females before. And so we understand if we do that, if we look at the long-term goal, if we do that and count backwards, here's what it will take to get to that billion dollars under asset management. So yes, the size of the fund will have to increase. But we also know that that means we're creating amazing companies and supporting amazing founders with Reign Ventures. And so we look at the size as our ability to have a larger stake and the ability to have follow-on capital for all of the companies that are doing amazing. I would tell anyone who is looking to start a venture fund that Erica and I (Erica is my business partner.) she and I started and wrote our thesis over ten years ago. And we actually deployed our personal capital for the first nine years so that we could create a data room and so that we could understand what it meant and felt like to have skin in the game so that we can learn truly where we sat well with a thesis. And it ended up being we do really well with consumer tech and SaaS, you know, B2B SaaS software. And so, I would say that it's not an easy journey to start a venture fund. Truly understand what you want your thesis to be. Truly understand that you're going to hear the word No way more than you will hear the word Yes. This is someone else's investment. This is accountability. And try it and understand it before you just start raising money. CHAD: You sort of alluded to this earlier; you said increasing the size of the fund is going to allow you to make bigger investments and follow-on investments. So do you also see you investing in more companies? MONIQUE: So we like to have a 20 to 25 cap strategy per fund. And what we do is we take 25% of the capital for the earliest investment, and then we save 75% of it for the follow-on round so that we maintain our equity stake. Because we're founder-friendly, so we always want to be in that board room. We always want to roll up our sleeves with the founders and so maintaining whichever early equity we have, which is usually the way the fund is structured, between around 10%. It allows us to not just do more companies; it actually allows us to really double down on the portfolio itself and make sure that we're staying and growing with the founders. CHAD: How involved are you? Are you personally involved? Do you split the portfolio up, and each person takes a few? Or how do you typically do it? MONIQUE: We truly, truly do take my 25-plus years in the music industry. We take that very bumper system approach of we're here to help develop the raw talent and, on the tech side of things, the actual founding team and the evolution of the company. And so I usually take the board seats. Erica, she comes from finance, and she's been doing finance banking for over 25 years. She's been doing early-stage investing for 16 of those years. And so, she helps with the finance cap strategies. How do we get you from your seed stage to your A in 12 months? How do we get you from your A to your B? So she's very, very involved with the financial models and running several of those and working with the founders on who's on your cap table? Okay, so intentionally and strategically, who's missing from your cap table? Let's work on that. And then I'm always the one working on taking the board seat. I'm the one working with the vision, the strategy. I'm an operator, so I have a most extensive network. And so I'm the one aligning them with our resources, our network. And you know, yeah, we're very, very involved. And I think that when you're dealing with seed-stage because that's the stage we're in, it's the riskiest. We try to de-risk the company, the founder, the founding team as much as possible. So we are as involved as the founder wants us to be. We do not make founders feel guilty for not having the largest team. We're like, "Okay, what do you need? Let's get you that." And that's where we like to play. We don't see ourselves going into anything past the seed stage. CHAD: Is there a limit to how many companies that you're able to personally work with? And how do you scale, Monique? MONIQUE: So the cool thing about our fund is that all of the companies are intentional. Half of our companies are consumer tech. So they mostly need pretty much the same type of things, even if they're in different verticals. The other half is SaaS. And so the reality is that they're in different stages. They're growing at different stages. And we, first and foremost, create a founder community that supports each other. That's number one. Then we have an LP community that supports not just Erica and I but our founder community. So we look at investing as from a holistic community. We drive community, and that is the way that we're able to actually still have a sustainable business model with Erica and I. And we have a team. We don't do anything by ourselves. We have an entire team dedicated to the growth of our portfolio companies. CHAD: Speaking of that team, what does that team look like now in terms of the different roles on it? And how big is it? MONIQUE: So currently, right now, we have about four full-time. And then, we have a couple of interns who work on the data science side. And then we also have in-house from just Monique from my particular business model side; we have an HR. We have financial operators, and then we have contractors and partners. And so, at the end of the day, there isn't anything that our founders need that we can't source for them internally or externally. CHAD: Who was the first person you brought onto the Reign team, and why? MONIQUE: Her name is Naya, and she actually has worked for me on my foundation side for a few years. She's was an engineering student at University of Miami. And once she graduated, she was now getting her Master's in Data Science. And we felt like being able to report properly on our founders, the companies that were applying that we actually could not invest in but were investable, we'd like to keep track of that. And so, we felt like having someone who could really handle the data side of Reign Ventures was one of the more important hires. And then, we also hired a full-time social media person who handles the content. We have a monthly podcast called The Series A. They oversee that so all communications on our portfolio companies and Reign Ventures as a whole. So those were the first two hires. And we're currently prepping to hire for the summer a full-time associate that will be out of the New York office. We have offices here in Miami, across from the University of Miami, and then we have offices in New York. CHAD: That's cool. The data aspect of that is super interesting to me because I think that I talk to a lot of people, and a modern VC firm is certainly doing that. But there are still ones out there that don't have that data-forward approach that it sounds like you do. MONIQUE: Well, we need to make sense of all of this. So we need to make sense of the idea of how many founders are applying? What is the demographic makeup of them? Who is this founder? Where are they coming from? What markets are they coming from? Because we do invest just only in the United States. And we pretty much invest in all markets here. We'd like to keep that data. And most importantly, we are over-communicators with our LPs. So we're sending them monthly updates. Carta is updated every, you know, they have access to that. So we'd like for them to understand what our day is looking like. How are we spending our time? What type of founders are coming to us? Hey, you all don't necessarily have access to these founders, here's why we do. And so all of this information is important. You have to make sense of who your audience is. And for us, our audience are the founders. Mid-Roll Ad: I wanted to tell you all about something I've been working on quietly for the past year or so, and that's AgencyU. AgencyU is a membership-based program where I work one-on-one with a small group of agency founders and leaders toward their business goals. We do one-on-one coaching sessions and also monthly group meetings. We start with goal setting, advice, and problem-solving based on my experiences over the last 18 years of running thoughtbot. As we progress as a group, we all get to know each other more. And many of the AgencyU members are now working on client projects together and even referring work to each other. Whether you're struggling to grow an agency, taking it to the next level and having growing pains, or a solo founder who just needs someone to talk to, in my 18 years of leading and growing thoughtbot, I've seen and learned from a lot of different situations, and I'd be happy to work with you. Learn more and sign up today at thoughtbot.com/agencyu. That's A-G-E-N-C-Y, the letter U. CHAD: You mentioned that you invest in people in some ways as much or more than you do the idea that they have and really work with them. How far along will people typically be with their product when you start working with them and investing in them? MONIQUE: The way that the investment cycle is, you know, your family and friends, then your angels, and then sometimes even your super angels will come in after that. Then you have your pre-seed, which is usually where you're testing product-market fit, et cetera. And then we step in at the seed stage, which is founder market fit, you know, product-market fit, a billion-dollar addressable market. You understand your operational strategy, where you're going to raise less than 50 million, and if you're not, you have that strategy of why? And definitely more than just an idea at that point. Now you just need to raise this round, to hire on more team, and then scale. So for us, that's how our due diligence works. And if you make it through that due diligence, then it becomes about who is this founding team? Will they be able to deal with adversity? Because you're going to have it. Are they coachable? What is their leadership style? Is it an inclusive environment? You can't be creating an equity company, and then all the team looks the same. So these are the things that we're looking at. What is your personality type? We like to spend time with our founders. How will you deal with the stress because the stress will come. Is your mindset the glass is half full or is it half empty? All of these things are important at the seed stage because it's not the growth stage where it's automatic it's happening. The seed stage boils down to can you deal with adversity? CHAD: I imagine you reject a lot of people. MONIQUE: Ooh, I would say that we use a different term. We are not dream killers. CHAD: Okay. [chuckles] MONIQUE: Here's what we say: we have an open-door policy with founders. We allow founders, even the ones that are not ready for investment or that we've actually had to pass on investment. And the thing is that we can only do 20 companies. That is where we'd like to sit, 20 companies per fund. And if for some reason, it's not a company that we invest in, we still give them access to our resources. We still give them access to our network. We still will spend…I mean, every Friday is our Founder Friday, and it fills up very quickly. Erica and I get on with founders who are not in our portfolio because just because they weren't a good fit for Reign Ventures or it was something that we could not do, maybe it did not fit the fund's structure; we also try to align them with investors that might fit them more properly. And so I don't feel like we reject; we just redirect. CHAD: So given that then, I imagine that you are often pretty open with the companies that you're not able to invest in the reasons why and hopefully, it helps them. MONIQUE: Oh, absolutely. We get founders all the time that say, "Listen, this was the best thing. Prior to coming to you all, we weren't able to raise $1. You didn't invest in us, but you taught us how to be investable, and now we've raised money." That's what we want to hear. None of us win if there's really a great company with a great solution that can really have some traction if they never get up and running. CHAD: That's great. And maybe you get the opportunity to invest in them later, right? MONIQUE: Yep. Absolutely. Absolutely. There are a couple of companies that that has happened. And one of them is now back in our due diligence and probably will make it through. CHAD: Yeah. Are there any companies in your portfolio that you particularly want to give a shout-out to? MONIQUE: Oh, we love all of our portfolio companies. CHAD: [laughs] MONIQUE: You know, Sharebite, Dormify, SoLo Funds. SoLo Funds is one of my favorite companies from the perspective of dealing and disrupting predatory lending. As a person who grew up in a neighborhood that liquor stores and cash checking were like every other block, if not on the same block, we truly do know the long-term effect it has on those communities, right? The underserved communities get so taken advantage of. If you don't have $200 and then you go to a predatory lender, and you're paying them $2,000, how do you ever advance? And so SoLo Funds really, really the only Black-owned B Corp in the United States. CHAD: That's awesome. MONIQUE: This narrative is so important, Chad. CHAD: Yeah. And, you know, not only is it important from a social perspective, but that is a huge business. It's a huge market opportunity for the right company with the right values to come in and be able to have a significant business, too, right? MONIQUE: Listen, they're making the whole ecosystem better. For the lenders, listen; they feel good. They're having a positive social impact. And oh, by the way, I'm getting a return. For the borrowers, they are getting financial literacy. They are getting higher social credit scores, which is then impacting their personal credit score. I mean, listen, by the way, when this company was created, over 76% of Americans, if they were hit with a $200 bill, they were not going to be able to pay it. So this is not just about one type of community. This is about the American concept. CHAD: So when you work with a company like that, were they a B Corp when you started working with them? MONIQUE: No. True story, I was literally personally the second investor in and then the third before there was ever even...So Rodney Williams is the Co-Founder of SoLo Funds. And I'm on his board for LISNR. We were one of the first investors in LISNR, which is the data over audio company. And he shared this idea with me, and I loved it because we all come from a neighborhood where we know and we were the ones who quote, unquote, "were doing better" in our families. So we were always getting the daily calls like, "Oh, my car broke down. Oh, this." And when he said this to me, I'm like, "Oh my goodness, this makes so much sense. I'm in." And see, this is where investing in people comes to play. Rodney had proved his ability as a founder with LISNR. So the trust was there, the relationship was there. Travis comes from banking, super, super intellectual, really quality guy, and not only is he the co-founder, but he's the CEO. And he's doing an amazing job. So no, it was not a B Corp; it is now one. And they will be the largest neobank for this community. And so growing and seeing the cycle of it is what, for me, personally, is what makes me happy. All of our companies in our fund have a social impact perspective. CHAD: Had you been involved in a B Corp before? It's something that I'm really interested in, but I have not been directly involved in one before. And I'm actually really interested in it for thoughtbot too. MONIQUE: No, I had not. No. CHAD: Is it difficult? [laughs] MONIQUE: So was it difficult for them? Absolutely. But they made it through. They made it through. And I think that we now have two men who are great human beings who happen to be Black men, but they are just great human beings who went through the process and can now help educate and share that experience with other people that look like them and are trying to do the same thing as them, create great companies with a great social impact to just have a better world. CHAD: From an investor perspective, when your portfolio companies want to embark on something like becoming a B Corp, which, you know, some investors might look at and say, "That might be a distraction from what you need to do now," how do you look at those things? MONIQUE: I mean, listen, if you want to become a B Corp, you actually are trying to have more of an impact, and I wish more companies were. When we actually are only focusing on the dollar side, the stakeholders of the dollar side, how are we truly making sure that we're impacting the world in a positive way? There's a lot of conflict usually. So we encourage that type of behavior; we encourage founders to think beyond their dollar sign and their stakeholders' dollar sign. The good thing is that they had an amazing team supporting them. They had an amazing A series lead investor, ACME, that really drove it with them. And so they did this. We didn't do this. They did it. This was their mission, and they did it. CHAD: That's great. And it's definitely something that's on my list to dig into more, like I said, for thoughtbot as well. So was it 2021 that you were on Undercover Billionaire? Was it last year? MONIQUE: Oh my goodness. CHAD: Or was it the end of 2020? MONIQUE: So it was the end of 2020, yes. [laughs] Tacoma, Washington. CHAD: Yeah. So for folks who don't know, Undercover Billionaire is a TV show where you give up all of your resources, and you're planted in a city, and you start a business from scratch. And you have what? Ninety days to bring it to a million-dollar business? MONIQUE: Yes. So technically, the premise of the show is you literally get a new identity. And you do not know where you're being dropped literally until you're dropped there. And so, I had no idea I would be dropped into Tacoma, Washington. And one, they give you $100, literally, a phone with no contacts in it, and a used vehicle, and you have 90 days to turn that into a million-dollar valuation. CHAD: It must have been a wild experience. MONIQUE: I have to tell you, the emotional connection that has to happen and then also by the way you're lying to everyone, it was a very intense thing. And most of the time, 99% of time, you're running on adrenaline. And to be completely honest, when I first got there, you're focused on the goal. The goal is can you make this valuation? The goal is I can't be the example that didn't make it right. Then when you get there, it becomes less and less about the goal. You actually get to a point where you don't even care if you make the goal. You care about the community that you've been dropped into. And you just want to see them win, and you want to see them become better. And Tacoma, Washington, everything from the mayor, down to now to one T'wina Nobles, who is now the Senator, the youngest senator in the state of Washington, these amazing people were a part of my journey. So it became all about, wow, at the end of that experience, that last show, and I look at the room of all those people, it was the most inclusive experience naturally. That's what the win was for me personally. And I also got to learn about myself. But I will tell you that it was one of the hardest things I've ever done in life outside of having children and raising them to be healthy adults. [laughter] CHAD: Not only to build the business, you mean, but that experience of -- MONIQUE: Just the entire experience. CHAD: I watched the episode where you told everybody who you really were. MONIQUE: Yes. CHAD: And I could see that it had really affected you. MONIQUE: I was lying to people every single day. And these people were so amazing. They donated their time, their resources, their ability to me because that company could not happen without them and without the community. And so, what we all walked away with was a shared experience of how powerful community actually is. And that even when you don't know how to figure something out, if you use your voice, someone will actually help you and you end up all helping each other. For me, that's what was so beautiful about the experience. CHAD: I imagine it's pretty intense. How quickly did you force yourself to settle on the business you were actually going to build? MONIQUE: It's so interesting because I have been asked like, "Did you create the concept before you went?" And I said, "Actually, no," literally, I went into it with a blank mind of wherever I end up, I want to see what they need, and we'll create a business model around that. So I think it was like day four of being in Tacoma. And I was in an area that was a food desert for the most part. And I'm like, listen, I'm talking to people, and they're like, "Oh yeah, we have to order juice shots. They have to get shipped. Or we get the ones that are, you know, sitting in the grocery store, and that's not a lot of options." And I'm like, wow, this is a problem. And I'm like, let's reimagine the ice cream truck. Everyone would like to think that the wealth gap...that if you make money, you care about your health, if you don't make money, you don't care about your health, actually, no. [laughs] I grew up in a natural home, and we lived in income-based housing growing up. And so the reality is that everyone wants to be healthy. People need more access to healthier options at an affordable rate, and people will buy it. So the question was, oh, Monique, you can't sell juice shots for $5. Yes, we can. You think a community just because they're underserved won't pay for their health? They absolutely will if you give them the option to. We always sold out in the communities that they said would never sell. CHAD: So up against a ticking clock, what did you do to sort of validate the idea and really run with it, or did you just know? MONIQUE: No, you don't just know, right? CHAD: Yeah. [chuckles] MONIQUE: You're literally working on adrenaline. Listen, there was nothing normal. We all know this as business owners; there's nothing normal about this concept. You can't create a successful business in 90 days. So you're literally in overdrive: no sleep, multitasking, doing all types of things. Here was the thing; first of all, I talked to the community. I asked them what did they need? What were they missing? If they had access to something, would they utilize it? That was number one. Number two was testing it. So I started making samples. And I went out to the community again and started testing it. Three was of the test that did good; let's run with that and package that up. And you have to understand, Chad, it was the height of the pandemic. Everything was shut down. You know, I live in Florida, so we weren't like that. But going to Tacoma, Washington, nothing was open. So I had to think, how do I get to people because they're not coming and cannot come to a brick and mortar? So the only thing that was pretty much open was the farmers' market. So that's what I did. I'm like, let's get to the farmers market. And also, let's see how we become mobile, oh, the ice cream truck treats. Let's teach people that healthy treats are actually what they crave. CHAD: I think even though it was accelerated, intense, the things you're talking about doing in terms of validating the idea, actually talking to customers, testing things out, those are things I think people want to do in any situation. MONIQUE: It is absolutely true. We talk to founders all the time, and it's the I, I, I. And we tell them, "Well, have you talked to your customer?" Sometimes we're so close to our ideas because we hold them, and we're trying to solve a problem maybe that we experience. That's step one. But step two is, is it something that other people want and need? So you definitely have to go out there and do market research. CHAD: Are there other things that you counsel founders on doing? Particularly with the seed stage, you know, on the verge of significant growth and scaling, what are some things that are maybe common plays or common pitfalls of companies at that stage? MONIQUE: So some of the things that we see, especially with solo founders, is them having this idea that only they can do everything and not understanding that you actually have to have a founding team. And that does require you to give some equity. We see founders wanting to hold on to everything. And then it becomes do you want 100% of something that's very restricted, or do you want to share it and make it something really special and a part of a billion-dollar concept? So that's one. Two would be founders in need happen to take money without understanding that it is a debt that even if it's fundraising and you're raising institutional capital, these are your investors. These are your partners. And is it a good partnership? We have seen a lot of founders in contractual and legal documents because they went and took money from the wrong type of investor. We see that -- CHAD: And they did that because they were desperate at the time? MONIQUE: They were desperate. They were desperate. They were desperate and for just really crazy, contractual things. They don't have attorneys look at the paperwork. We see a lot of these mistakes. And so we tell founders you have to have a step back from your business. You have to look at all types of options. Have you applied for grants and particular grants in areas of the problem that you're solving? Have you tried for Small Business Association grants? Have you tried to get a credit line versus an investor who's now going to have equity? These are all the things. And if you do need investors, don't take all the same types of investors. If every investor in your cap table is a bean counter and the numbers aren't playing out well for them, what type of board meeting is that going to be? So make sure you have an operator who's on your board. Make sure you have a financial person, investor on your board. You have to be very strategic and intentional. And if you're in a desperate moment, I can guarantee that is not when you want to take the money that you actually need to do a deeper dive and step back from the company to really see what the company needs. CHAD: Monique, I feel like that's great advice. The level of experience and passion that you have for the work is obvious in listening to you. It makes me want to work with you. [laughs] MONIQUE: Oh, thank you, Chad. Yes, I'm very impressed with what you have built. And I'm very impressed with you understanding the ability to give access to information to your audience. Here's the thing, we are products of an environment of capitalism. And there's nothing wrong with capitalism, but it just needs to be a lot more conscious. And it needs to have a much better impact for all. The problem with from our childhood age of education is we've been taught that there's only one, there can only be one winner. There's only one first place. We have to take that mindset back and really step into the power and the power that we truly have, which is abundance. There's enough for us all. We just have to give that power back to it. And the reality is that we all need each other, and we all need to build together. And people just need access to information. Most founders tell us, "I was embarrassed to ask that. I was made to feel like I was supposed to know this, so I just went ahead and pretended like I knew it." It's okay that we don't know everything. In fact, I like to sit in that space of student and say, "You know what? I like to be in the room that I actually don't know anything because then that means I'm learning, and it's okay. We better keep learning." One of my favorite quotes is, "We delight in the beauty of the butterfly but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty." And Maya Angelou wrote that, and she understood the human spirit needs to understand that no matter what career path we're on, Founder, CEO, employee, employer, no matter what that is, it is a constant evolution of self. And sometimes we'll feel like a butterfly, and sometimes we will have to be in that learning and growth and uncomfortable stage. But the beauty of uncomfort means you're growing, and we have to make more people feel comfortable with that. CHAD: That's beautiful. Monique, thank you so much for coming on the show and sharing with all of us. MONIQUE: No, thank you, Chad, for having me. CHAD: If folks want to get in touch with you or find out more about Reign, where are all the different places that they can do that? MONIQUE: So if they want to contact me, they can email me at monique@reignvc.com, which is R-E-I-G-N-V-C.com. We're on LinkedIn; we're on Twitter; we're on Instagram. And if they want to learn more about Reign VC, they could just go to reignvc.com. And if they have any questions, they can submit it, and we'll get back to them. CHAD: Wonderful. And you can subscribe to the show and find notes and a full transcript for this episode at giantrobots.fm. If you have questions or comments, email us at hosts@giantrobots.fm, and you can find me on Twitter at @cpytel. This podcast is brought to you by thoughtbot and produced and edited by Mandy Moore. Thanks for listening, and see you next time. ANNOUNCER: This podcast was brought to you by thoughtbot. thoughtbot is your expert design and development partner. Let's make your product and team a success. Special Guest: Monique Idlett.

Technology entrepreneur Rodney Williams talks about failing the first grade, the aspirational outlook that shaped his development, the business lessons he learned around his mother's beauty shop, and why he decided to walk away from a big job at Procter & Gamble to co-found the pioneering ultrasonic connectivity company LISNR.

Marlon Nichols is the founding managing partner at MaC Venture Capital, a seed-stage venture capital firm that invests in visionary founders building the future that the world wants to see.Marlon is a Kauffman Fellow who also serves on the Board of Directors. Prior to MaC Venture Capital, Marlon was founder of Cross Culture Ventures and served as Investment Director at Intel Capital. Marlon has an extensive background in technology, private equity, media and entertainment. His unique eye for global and cultural trends, along with shifts in consumer behavior, has helped him uplift and accelerate entrepreneurs and companies that are on the verge of their breakthrough moment. Some of his current and previous portfolio companies include Blavity, Gimlet Media, LISNR, Mayvenn, MongoDB, PlayVS, Pipe, Thrive Market and Wonderschool, among others.Marlon is the recipient of MVMT50's SXSW 2018 Innovator of the Year award, Digital Diversity's Innovation & Inclusion Change Agent award and was a TechWeek 100 winner. He was named Pitchbook's 25 Black Founders and VCs to Watch in 2018, 2019 and 2020, and one of Silicon Republic's 26 VC professionals spearheading change. He's been featured on TechCrunch, Fortune, Cheddar, MSNBC, Blavity and NBC, and is adjunct faculty in entrepreneurship and venture capital at the SC Johnson College of Business at Cornell University.https://macventurecapital.com

Cofounder of #SoloFunds, Rodney Williams has created an easy and effective way for everyone to safely borrow the money they need on their own terms. https://solofunds.com/ In 2015, Rodney Williams, a serial entrepreneur and founder of LISNR, wanted to find ways to bring equity to financial services. Williams comes from an economically disadvantaged background and remembers a time when his electricity was shut off as a child because his mother didn't have enough money to pay for it. With the experiences from his upbringing in mind, Williams and his cofounder Travis Holoway devised a platform that would lessen the impact that emergency situations have on economically disadvantaged families. The platform, SoLo, uses a new model for peer-to-peer lending. It provides access to loans between $50 and $500, with terms set by the borrower. With over 325,000 users, SoLo Funds is a rare, equitable option for those who don't typically have access to emergency funds. SoLo Funds is the only Black-owned financial services Certified B Corp in US & Canada. With only 4,111 companies certified by B Lab, and only 13 Black-owned companies in the US & Canada, SoLo Funds joins a small group of businesses committed to ushering in innovations for a better world. As part of their B Corp evaluation, led by the nonprofit B Lab, SoLo scored 10/10 for their mission-locked impact business model and 4.1/5 for customer stewardship. This announcement comes following the recent launch of SoLo Causes which further extends SoLo's impact by committing dollars to organizations making meaningful change for its community. Schedule your guest appearance on the show: https://bwstlive.as.me/schedule.php – Also, please make sure to upload a headshot(s) here: https://www.dropbox.com/request/rvpUctHVunuJ7665kWBB Interested in sponsoring the podcast? Email BlackWallStreetTodayPodcast @ gmail. com. The Black Wall Street Today (BWST) radio show is focused on all things Black entrepreneurship and hosted by Virginia Tech alumnae Blair Durham, co-founder and co-President of Black BRAND. BWST occurs live in the studios of the historic and prestigious HBCU Hampton University. The BWST podcast is produced by using selected audio from the radio show and other Black BRAND events. BWST is the media outlet for Black BRAND. Black BRAND is a 501(c)(3) organization that stands for Business Research Analytics Networking and Development. We are Hampton Roads Regional Black Chamber of Commerce. We promote group economics through professional development and community empowerment, and we unify the black dollar by providing financial literacy, entrepreneurship training, and networking resources! http://blackbrand.biz m.me/blackwallstreettoday + info@blackbrand.biz + (757) 541-2680 Instagram: www.instagram.com/blackbrandbiz/ + Facebook: www.facebook.com/blackbrandbiz/ Produced by Seko Varner for Positive Vibes Inc. http://www.PositiveVibes.net + (757) 932-0177 Private Money for Real Estate Investments: https://PositiveVibesFinancial.com Purify yourself, house, and environment to remain safe: https://www.vollara.com/PositiveVibes Invest in stocks via STASH: https://get.stashinvest.com/sekosq72j Fix your credit: https://positivevibes.myecon.net/my-credit-system/ --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/black-wall-street-today/message

Marlon Nichols, a VC with Mac Venture Capital is on the main stage helping us understand startup funding rounds, and their impacts on the cap table, a spreadsheet or table that shows the equity capitalization for a company. Cap tables include all the equity in a company, like common and preferred shares, and more. Marlon is THE person to give this talk, he's a seed-stage venture capitalist that invests in visionary founders building the future that the world wants to see. Some of his current and previous portfolio companies include Blavity (which owns AfroTech), Gimlet Media, LISNR, Mayvenn, MongoDB, PlayVS, and more. This talk was presented at AfroTech 2017, held in San Francisco, CA. Follow Will Lucas on Instagram at @willlucas Learn more about other Black tech disruptors and innovators at AfroTech.com Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Name: Marlon Nichols Current Title: Managing Partner, MaC Venture Capital   About Marlon: Marlon Nichols is a founding managing partner at MaC Venture Capital (formerly known as Cross Culture Ventures), which finds the entrepreneurs who are building the future for the rest of America. He's a former Kauffman Fellow and Investment Director at Intel Capital, with an extensive background in technology, private equity, media, and entertainment. Marlon's unique eye for global trends and shifts in consumer behavior has helped him capture many high-potential investments, which include Gimlet Media, MongoDB, Thrive Market, Fair, LISNR, Mayvenn, Blavity, Pipe, Wonderschool, and other companies that reflect overlooked markets.   He serves on the board of directors for Ajua, Blavity, Finesse, Kauffman Fellows Program, LISNR, Ryff, Sote and Wonderschool. Marlon is the recipient of MVMT50's SXSW 2018 Innovator of the Year award, a 2018 nominee of the ADCOLOR in Tech award, Digital Diversity's Innovation & Inclusion Change Agent award, was named Pitchbook's 25 Black Founders and VCs to Watch in 2018 and 2019, was a TechWeek 100 winner and was named one of Silicon Republic's 26 VC professionals spearheading change. He's been featured on TechCrunch, Fortune, Blavity, and NBC, and is adjunct faculty in entrepreneurship and venture capital at the SC Johnson College of Business at Cornell University.   DURING THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSSED: Understanding how venture capital works and the different types Which types of businesses should pursue venture capital funding When is the right time for a business to consider raising venture financing The role of a venture partner in a business What happens at the end of a companies life cycle What to expect after receiving funding and business expectations Tips for qualifying investors to make sure they are a right fit to invest in your business Are you a business owner looking to get more clients and exposure? Does your business provide professional services that would be beneficial for a business owner starting their business? If so, submit your business to be listed in our directory, The Connect!  You may submit your business at:  https://blacktobusiness.com/theconnect/   For complete show notes and resources mentioned for this episode go to: blacktobusiness.com/73   Thank you so much for listening! Please support us by simply rating and reviewing our podcast!

With more than 20 years of experience in HR, Jonita Wilson has always had a deep passion and understanding of the value of diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace. In 2019, she joined Discover Financial Services' HR team with a director of diversity position—which led to her being named chief diversity officer last summer, overseeing all DE&I initiatives for the workforce of more than 17,000. On the latest episode of The Business of Marketing Podcast, Adweek chief innovation officer Toby Daniels sits down with Wilson to discuss her HR career journey, what inspired the launch of Discover's Diversity and Inclusion Task Force, the company's top DE&I priorities for the year, and how she plans on strengthening and evolving the company culture. She also shared how other executives looking to push the boundaries with their DEI initiatives can create meaningful change within their companies. Throughout Season 2 of the podcast, we will be spotlighting a number of different startups that have participated in SAP.iO's foundries programs. During this episode, you will hear from Eric Allen, CEO of LISNR, the leading ultrasonic proximity platform enabling secure and seamless data transmission via a secure and scalable software solution. Learn how they leverage technology to drive growth and business transformation and what they see are some of the biggest future obstacles that they will have to overcome. Interested in joining the SAP.iO Foundries program? Visit SAP.iO for more information.

Marlon Nichols is a founding managing partner at MaC Venture Capital (formerly Cross Culture Ventures), which finds the entrepreneurs who are building the future for the rest of America. He’s an industry veteran – a former Kauffman Fellow and Investment Director at Intel Capital, where he launched Intel’s $125M diversity fund. Marlon, with an extensive background in technology, private equity, media and entertainment, has a unique eye for global trends and shifts in consumer behavior. This has helped him capture high-potential investments, which include Gimlet Media, MongoDB, Thrive Market, Fair, LISNR, Mayvenn, Blavity, Pipe, Wonderschool, and other companies that reflect overlooked markets. He serves on the board of directors for Ajua, Blavity, Finesse, Kauffman Fellows Program, LISNR, Ryff, Sote and Wonderschool. Thanks to his background as a professional athlete, Marlon utilizes sports leadership philosophy when working closely with CEO’s to build the ventures of tomorrow. His diverse network of media and entertainment industry leaders, tech entrepreneurs, Fortune 500 executives and sports professionals helps him develop strategic partnerships and promote brand expansions for his portfolio companies. Marlon is a 2018 nominee of the ADCOLOR in Tech award, a recipient of MVMT50’s SXSW 2018 Innovator of the Year award, Digital Diversity’s Innovation & Inclusion Change Agent award, was named Pitchbook’s 25 Black Founders and VCs to Watch (2018 – 2020), was a TechWeek 100 winner and was named one of Silicon Republic’s 26 VC professionals spearheading change. He’s also been featured on TechCrunch, Fortune, Blavity, NBC and many more. He has been featured as a keynote speaker and regularly appears in the media as a thought leader in investing and cultural trends. Marlon earned his Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems from Northeastern University and an MBA from the SC Johnson College of Business at Cornell University, where he is also adjunct faculty in entrepreneurship and venture capital. MaC Venture CapitalMaC Venture Capital is the result of the merger between successful Los Angeles and Bay Area based Seed funds, Cross Culture Ventures and M Ventures. MaC Venture Capital is an early stage venture capital firm focused on finding ideas, technology, and products that can become infectious. They invest in technology companies that benefit from shifts in cultural trends and behaviors in an increasingly diverse global marketplace. MaC VC helps entrepreneurs bring the future into focus to find their breakthrough moment. Their proven track record of 100+ investments has unlocked growth opportunities through capital, advisement, and relationship building. Their previous funds’ portfolios have returned capital to investors and continue to appreciate in value. About Our Partner This episode is brought to you Varia Search. Varia Search is a boutique legal recruiting firm that uses a bespoke approach to fill legal department roles from general counsel to paralegal. They have a particular focus on startups and growing tech companies. They are a boutique firm which allows them to provide individualized, in-depth attention to both their clients and to their searches. They focus solely on placing in-house candidates which allows them to give their clients a bespoke experience in filling their legal needs. Their matchmaking approach ensures that clients are paired with candidates who not only have great credentials but who are also a good cultural fit for a growing company. Learn more at variasearch.com. Some of the Topics Covered by Marlon Nichols in this Episode How MaC VC invests How they identify emerging behavioral and cultural trends How M Ventures and Cross Culture came together to merge into MaC Venture Capital The process and challenges of merging venture funds How Marlon got into VC The process of fundraising for their first fund What institutional LPs are looking for when investing in a fund Knowing when to be innovative and when to stick to what is proven to work Startup ecosystems Marlon has seen evolved during his time in VC and how they look at new markets How they first heard about some of their portfolio companies like Gimlet Media and Zero Grocery, how they evaluated them and why they decided to invest How Marlon manages his time The growing industries of exchanges, trading platforms and fractional ownership What's next for Marlon and MaC VC Sign up for The Grind, for actionable insights and stories from successful entrepreneurs delivered to your inbox once per week: https://www.justgogrind.com/newsletter/ Listen to all episodes of the Just Go Grind Podcast: https://www.justgogrind.com/podcast/ Follow Justin Gordon on Twitter: https://twitter.com/justingordon212 Follow Justin Gordon on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/justingordon8/

This episode is with Rodney Williams, CoFounder & Chief Commercial Officer of LISNR & Also Serves As The Board's Chair at SoloFunds. *** Disclaimer. I have to save myself on this episode. There is a part when Rodney talks about buying tables. Now I'm from Northern, NJ and his reference to "buying tables" is my version of "bottle services." When I think of buying tables my brain goes to Home Goods ish...LOL. Yes, that is where I am in my life :)

Rodney Williams, founder of LISNR and co-founder of SoLo Funds, recently closed an impressive $10M Series A round for a platform offering an alternative to predatory payday loans. He talks to fellow entrepreneur, Danielle Sydnor, Founder and CEO of We Win Strategies Group, about what it takes to turn a tech-enabled idea into a successful startup and offers sage advice for those thinking of taking the leap into tech entrepreneurship.

Welcome to After The Exit, the show where I interview CEOs after they've sold their startup and have them share the lesson they've learned about business, relationships, and life. Today we have two very special guests: my current co-founders Chris and Nikki Ridenour. Before they were a married couple, they started in 2012 as co-founders of LISNR - an ultrasonic proximity platform. Chris as an engineer and CTO, Nikki as a designer. After working with a ton of major artists and hosting 30K+ user activations, they raised Series A with Progress ventures. Shortly thereafter they left the company in 2014. That lead to Chris founding Casamatic and going through both the Ocean and Brandery accelerators in Cincinnati - and later raising a seed round from Accelerant. After pivoting from b2c to b2b they decided to shut down the company and return the funds to the investors. Chris then joined me as CTO of Cladwell for 2 years, while Nikki went through the Uptech startup accelerator with her startup Farmbee. Chris later joined Nikki on Farmbee after they had their first child. Now - they are current co-founders with me in Boilerplate.legal. If you're short on time and just want to browse the lessons, go to https://www.allsmith.org/aftertheexit/chris-and-nikki-ridenour and you can browse a list of all of the lessons and click on the hyperlink to watch individual lessons. This episode is brought to you by [Visible.vc](http://visible.vc/) - Raise capital, update investors, and engage your team from a single platform. It's also brought to you by [Boilerplate.legal](http://boilerplate.legal) - Did you know that the average startup spends $30,000 in their first 2 years on legal costs? Save 90% of those costs on venture-capital approved legal documents using Boilerplate.legal. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/aftertheexit/message

As COVID-19 propels society into a new digital revolution, the entire world is seeking new ways to create connections and innovate at a distance. The future of a "touchless" or "low-touch" world is becoming increasingly more necessary as we settle into the "new normal." Rodney Williams, COO of LISNR, provides insight into how technology is empowering connection, safeguarding society, and creating new opportunities for business managers and marketers.   WVU Marketing Communications Today is hosted by Karen Freberg from West Virginia University which is a program on the Funnel Radio Channel.     

“I was just looking for opportunities and I wasn't afraid to do something that I didn't know how to do.” By the age of six, Rodney Williams knew he was going to be an entrepreneur, and he hasn't slowed down or stopped creating businesses since the day he started renting magazines to customers at his mom's hair salon. His entrepreneurial drive has taken him on a winding journey through consumer goods giant, Procter & Gamble – where he worked in the Pampers department and onto a “start-up bus” that resulted in the founding of his company LISNR. On the podcast, Rodney also talks to MCAAD President Kerry Healey about his latest endeavor, a fin-tech start-up called SoLo Funds. A serial entrepreneur, Rodney has gone on to win numerous awards, including Tech Entrepreneur of the Year by Black Enterprise, 2016; 25 Inspiring Entrepreneurs Under 40 by Entrepreneur Magazine 2016; and Entrepreneur of the Year in Connected Communications by EY in 2017.  “I think the American Dream for me is that I'm going to go out and define my own world. I'm going to go out and define the environment that I'm going to be successful in and then, I'm going to be relentless…”

This episode of #Imalittlebuzzed we speak to Marlon Nichols, a man who finds entrepreneurs who have the potential to create the future of industry in America and makes their dreams a reality. Marlon is the founding managing partner of MaC Venture Capital and an investor in high-potential companies like Gimlet Media, MongoDB, Thrive Market, Fair, LISNR, Mayvenn, Blavity, and Wonderschool. He is also the recipient of the SXSW 2018 Innovator of the Year Award, named one of Pitchbook's 25 Black Founders and VCs to Watch in 2018 and 2019, and a former Kaufmann Fellow and Investment Director at Intel Capital. Tune in to find out what you can do to be the kind of entrepreneur that Marlon looks for.

In the world of transaction technology, we all care about the same things: Security and Risk reduction Customer experience Friction minimization Today commonly these concerns are handled by the use of EMV chips and NFC.  But what if there were a way to send and receive transaction data over a distance of several feet securely? I sat down with Eric Allen, CEO of LISNR to find out if audio is becoming a disruptive force potentially taking over as the new standard and what the benefits are of this innovation. What we discussed: The origin story of LISNR’s data-over-audio How the technology works Why audio is a great option Additional benefits To ensure that you never miss an episode of Payments Innovation, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or here.

Join Atento Capital for the fifth episode of our podcast, Be Atento. In this episode we talk with Marlon Nichols, founder and Managing Partner of MaC Venture Capital. Marlon has extensive experience in the venture capital space and has invested in unicorns such as Fair; had numerous exits including Gimlet (Acq. Spotify) and Skurt (Acq. Fair); and has other high flying companies including PlayVS, Firefly, Faze Clan, and Lisnr in his portfolio. Tune in to hear Marlon's thoughts on how COVID-19 will impact the adoption of remote working and learning, his thesis behind investing in cultural trends, and some of the most common characteristics he sees in successful founders.To learn more about Atento Capital, check out our website: https://www.atentocapital.com/Subscribe to the Be Atento Podcast anywhere podcasts can be found, if you need help, check us out on Podfollow: https://podfollow.com/1499376646 See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Hey there, Powderkeg fans! Nick here from the Powderkeg team. This is episode #124 of Powderkeg: Igniting Startups, the show for entrepreneurs, leaders, and innovators building remarkable tech companies in areas outside of Silicon Valley.  Today we’re revisiting an interview where Matt spoke with entrepreneur Rodney Williams, Co-Founder, and CCO of LISNR, one of the most disruptive companies in the IoT space and the world of mobile connectivity.  Rodney is a passionate entrepreneur with years of experience and tech expertise under his belt and is currently responsible for leading all of the LISNR’S commercial activities and strategy execution as their Chief Commercial Officer. He’s been with LISNR since its founding and served as the CEO till August 2018.  In this episode, you’ll get hear Rodney shares his personal and most significant lessons in marketing, the entrepreneurial hustle, and building a technology that has the potential to disrupt massive industries. So let’s hop right in! In this interview, you’ll learn: -- How Rodney broke free from cubicle nation and started his own company -- Some creative and unique approaches to problem solving and corporate innovation -- And some very insightful perspectives on marketing -- Plus so, so much more. So, please enjoy this interview with Rodney Williams. If you like this episode, please subscribe and leave us a review on iTunes. You can also follow us on Soundcloud or Stitcher. We have an incredible lineup of interviews we’ll be releasing every Tuesday here on the Powderkeg Podcast. Check it out at powderkeg.com/itunes.

In this episode of the Women's Retail Collective Podcast, from NRF sponsored by LISNR, we meet Heidi Isern Sr. Director Customer Experience & Innovation for Gap, Inc. Heidi's career has been quite a unique one. She's traveled around the world interviewing women about their careers and led teams in design thinking for several retailers while at IDEO. You'll also want to hear how she landed her current gig, creating a position for herself to lead the charge to perfect the customer experience for all Gap Inc. Brands. Listen for her full story, live from the LISNR podcast booth at NRF 2020.

In our latest NRF Spotlight Podcast, sponsored by LISNR, Chris Walton sits down with Walmart VP Monetization & Chief of Staff to CTO, Anshu Bhardwaj, to discuss her career background, especially her previous work leading innovation at Sam's Club and the Sam's Club Now concept, and what it has been like for her to transition into her new role supporting Walmart's CTO and monetization efforts. You definitely won't want to miss Anshu's favorite family social app either in "How Millennial Are You?" Listen to the podcast now, live from the podcast studio at NRF's Big Show.

In their final NRF podcast, sponsored by LISNR, Anne and Chris take a look back at all the topics and the people who made NRF 2020 the frenetic event that it was. From Michelle Gass's "Greatness Initiative" to John Furner putting "people first" and sustainability messages stealing the spotlight at nearly every stage, you'll be up to speed and in the know after giving this recap a listen.

The Omni Talk team catches up with LISNR Founder and Head of Innovation Chris Ostoich, live from their show booth at NRF. They talk about everything from the future of drive-thru and QSR experiences to order pickup at retail, all without ever having to take your phone out of your pocket or car ever again. **Sponsored Content**

As part of Omni Talk's live podcast coverage from NRF, sponsored by LISNR, Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga sit down with Canada Goose omnichannel expert, Justin Ing, to discuss omnichannel theory, the sights, sounds, and smells of retail, and his company's new experiential store in Toronto.

To kick off our live NRF coverage, sponsored by LISNR, Chris Walton sits down with Market Beyond CEO Yuval Yifrach to discuss his company's full holiday season report of how Walmart stacked up against Amazon from an e-commerce market share perspective. We also even throw Target into the mix, as a special thank you to our loyal followers. You can download the special full season holiday report here: https://retailinsight.themarketbeyond.com/hubfs/New%20Reports%20Who%20Won%20the%20Week/5%20Market%20Beyond%20Holiday%20Summary%202019.pdf **Sponsored Content**

Rodney Williams, founder of LISNR has been a disruptor all his life. LISNR technology transmits data over sound that you can't hear. It will not satisfy Williams until LISNR connects and changes the world.

Chris & Anne interview LISNR CEO Rodney Williams, live from Groceryshop. Rodney Williams is one to keep an eye on folks. He discusses how ultrasonic payment technology could be on the brink of changing retail checkout experiences in transformative ways, especially in concert with other advances in computer vision and checkout-free retail design. The podcast interview will blow your mind, and you will finish it saying to yourself, "How can this happen even faster?"

When LISNR closed a major enterprise deal with NBC, the organization fundamentally changed forever. First, they were able to raise $10 million as they gained interest from 70 more enterprise level customers that wanted access to their innovative solution. Second, they got their first major lawsuit. These early growing pains would eventually lead them to identify a billion dollar opportunity, but how did the startup persist while avoiding failure?In part two of our interview with Rodney Williams we discuss how the company managed to survive through multiple points of potential failure by focusing on gaining customer traction and building product value. Rodney tells us how the team was able to quickly create large sales pipelines that take years for some companies, through a meticulously thought out brand strategy. We also dive into the specific tactics behind his aggressive B2B lead generation strategy to understand how they were able to build up demand so quickly every time they pivoted. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Rodney was still working full time for Procter & Gamble when he got a term sheet from investors for his new business, a technology that transmits mobile data over audio signals. After raising $850,000 in capital he was finally ready to quit his day job. He grew up with entrepreneurial parents that ran small businesses and from an early age he knew he wanted to build a big company one day that would impact millions. Today, LISNR counts NBC, Sony Music, Ticketmaster, and many other recognizable brands as clients with new partnerships that is getting their technology in the hands of millions of people. In part one of our interview with Rodney Williams we uncover how he navigated his career early on to position himself to become an innovator. He accumulated four degrees specifically designed to give him the knowledge, skill set, and awareness to be able to see a big opportunity when it came along. We find out how he ended up at a highly visible and cross-functional role at P&G and how after getting into a startup competition called Startup Bus he was able to bring on a major music record label as a client and raise close to one million dollars within six months. Next week in part two of our conversation we learn how the business pivoted into various verticals and markets closing massive enterprise deals in the process, and how the team eventually landed partnerships with some of the biggest companies in the world to change the way we pay with our phones forever. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Rodney Williams is the Founder and CEO of LISNR, an ultrasonic technology that sends data over inaudible audio.    In this episode, we discuss how he left his successful career as a Brand Manager at P&G, working on the Pampers brand, to launch an industry disrupting start-up.   Links: @rodneybwilliams on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rodneybwilliams/?hl=en LISNR - https://lisnr.com/

Chris Ostoich is the co-founder and chief innovation officer of Lisnr, a communication protocol that uses ultrasonic audio to translate and transfer information. “Sound is infrastructure that's all around us- in every room, car, office, device, concert- it's there already, and historically we just haven't used it as a communication mechanism,” says Ostoich. With about 30 million devices today and the expectation of close to 100 million this year, Lisnr has already powered the grammy app and boasts Ticketmaster as one of their biggest clients. So, what are the benefits of this protocol versus so many others? Ultrasonic data transmission is easily embedded into existing infrastructures and ecosystems, does not require wifi or bluetooth, and is hardwareless, requiring nothing but sound, a speaker and a microphone. To learn more, visit lisnr.com.

Rodney Williams, Founder, and CEO of Lisnr talks about raising $10M of VC, HBCU endowments investing in Black Tech, and developing the discipline and maturity to fire loyal employees you like. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Season 5 Coming Soon! Enjoy this advanced release of episode 1/10! Marlon Nichols is a co-founder and managing partner at Cross Culture Ventures, an early stage venture capital firm with a focus on cultural investing. Before founding Cross Culture Ventures, Marlon was an investment director at Intel Capital. Prior to his time in venture capital, Marlon led successful careers in software and strategy consulting in the technology, private equity, media and entertainment sectors. Some of Marlon’s investments include Gimlet Media, LISNR, Mayvenn, and more.  Subscribe to my Youtube Channel at: http://bit.ly/2kymc8n Follow me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wlucasii Learn more about OF10podcast at: https://willlucas.co

In this episode of Art Of The Hustle, LISNR Founder and CEO, Rodney Williams shares stories about getting four degrees by age twenty four, founding LISNR on the Start-Up Bus, and how being well-rounded puts you in a position to succeed as a CEO. Rodney also shares tips on how to network, what advice he wishes he received, and why it's important to be accessible. Tune in to this episode of Art Of The Hustle which is made in collaboration between Work Radio and Red Bull. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://news.iheart.com/podcast-advertisers

In this episode of #MindOverMatterPod, the educated brother and CEO of LISNR come on the show and speak on entrepreneurship, starting a technology company in Cincinnati instead of Silicon Valley, and how you don't find your passion, your passion finds you. This was a episode that I've been yearning to release. Please press play and enjoy.

Adage 40 under 40, CNBC top 50 disruptor, Ernst & Young winner, holder of almost 10 patents, and recipient of numerous other accolades, Rodney Williams thinks like a social psychologist, operates like a marketing genius, and leads like an NBA coach. Shortly after founding his company LISNR (who's biggest customer is the U.S. Government), Rodney coined the phrase "Internet of Sound," referring to LISNR's inventive approach at using inaudible audio signals to transfer data between devices and people. On Innovation Crush, Rodney discusses -- among other things-- his P&G marketing background, his personal view of authenticity, his growth as a CEO, and the irony of being born deaf. Recorded live at www.sae.edu

Rodney Williams is the Founder and CEO of LISNR, one of the most disruptive companies in the IoT space and the world of mobile connectivity. You can find Rodney on Twitter (@rodneybwilliams) on twitter and his company at LISNR.com. LISNR was launched in 2012 around the core premise that sound can do more. More specifically, using sound to connect more people and devices in ways that had never existed before. LISNR has grown into the world’s most advanced ultrasonic technology. Their team has created an ultrasonic or inaudible technology; a communication protocol that sends data over audio. They use ultrasonic audio called Smart Tones™ to transmit information. They’ve accomplished functionality that engineers and innovators said was impossible. LISNR is seriously one of the most disruptive companies in the IoT (or internet of things) space. They’ve raised nearly $15M in capital and have won awards such as a Gold Lion @ Cannes for Most Innovative Mobile Technology and CNBC’s Disruptor 50. And he’s done all of this headquartered out of Cincinnati, Ohio. Yes, he’s a fellow midwestern entrepreneur, so we were like kindred spirits from the first second of this interview. Rodney is an innovative strategic thinker who is obsessed with the ways technology will improve our everyday life. He has 4 degrees but most notably two masters, one of which is an M.B.A. from Howard University. And he’s got a cool story, because he spent 4 years at Procter & Gamble as a brand manager and is most noted for being the first marketer there to co-write digital patents. In this interview, you’ll learn: — How Rodney broke free from cubicle nation and started his own company — Some creative and unique approaches to problem solving — And some very insightful perspectives on marketing Plus so, so much more. In my conversation with Rodney, he shares his greatest lessons in marketing, hustle, and building technology that has the potential to disrupt massive industries. You’ll hear about what one tech entrepreneur learned throughout his business education, starting with his childhood startup, his 4 degrees (including two masters), and real-life experience at working at one of the world’s largest companies. Rodney is a fun guy to talk to, which makes him just as fun to listen to. So, please enjoy this interview with Rodney Williams… -- Download show notes and transcripts at www.powderkeg.co This episode of Powder Keg is brought to you by DeveloperTown. If you’re a business leader trying to turn a great idea into a product with traction, this is for you. DeveloperTown works with clients ranging from entrepreneurs to Fortune 100 companies who want to build and launch an app or digital product. They’re able to take the process they use with early stage companies to help big companies move like a startup. So if you have an idea for a web or mobile app, or need help identifying the great ideas within your company, go to developertown.com/powderkeg. Thanks again to everyone who has shared an episode of Powderkeg, subscribed to us on iTunes, or left us a review. It’s the only way we’re going to spread this message and reach new people and we could do it without you. We’re coming out with new episodes every Tuesday, so make sure you subscribe on iTunes or at powederkeg.co/itunes

We talk to the founders of some of the companies competing in the Extreme Tech Challenge (XTC), a global startup competition where the ultimate prize is to pitch Virgin brands billionaire Sir Richard Branson on his private island in the British Virgin Islands. The companies featured in today's show include LISNR, which sends data over audio, sending packets of data every second between any device with a speaker and microphone. The WTFast Gamers Private Network makes online game traffic faster and smoother to help you win. ActiveProtective is smart belt that protects the hips of older adults using 3D motion sensors and wearable airbags. They aim to make hip fractures a preventable condition. Praiseworthy is the Yelp for employees. The XTC top ten is being selected December 3, 2016 at a non-profit event held by XTC's parent organization, MaiTai Global. The event is called the Ocean Gala and one of the organizers explain how you can win a trip to play on the island as well. Our Guest Co-host for the day is Grieg Coppee. He is an independent advisor and early stage investor for many established and newly formed businesses. He has served on the board of directors or advisors of several companies, including Accuvant, Fuhu, Xero, as well as, numerous start-ups that he has invested in. As an advisor, he has provided strategy and corporate development services to several private equity, Fortune 500, and VC portfolio companies. Most recently, Grieg Coppe was the Chief Strategy and Corporate Development Officer for Intuit, the financial management software and service provider. There he led a team setting strategy for the company’s $4B business and overseeing the acquisition of several key assets.

Marlon Nichols is a co-founder and general partner at Cross Culture Ventures (CCV), an early stage venture capital firm with a focus on cultural investing (global trends and shifts in consumer behavior). Before founding CCV, Marlon was an investment director at Intel Capital where he completed his Kauffman Fellowship. Prior to his time in venture capital, Marlon led successful careers in software and strategy consulting in the technology, private equity, media and entertainment sectors. Some of Marlon’s investments include Afrostream, Gimlet Media, Hingeto, LendStreet, LISNR, Mark One (Vessyl), Mayvenn, Mirantis, MongoDB, mSurvey, Sidestep, Skurt, and Thrive Market. Marlon earned a Bachelor of Science in MIS from Northeastern University and a MBA from the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University. Marlon currently serves on the board of directors for private companies LISNR, Shottracker and Sidestep, and was recently appointed to the board of directors of the Kauffman Fellows Program. Marlon was named to Silicon Republic's list of 26 venture capital professionals spearheading change in technology investing, was a recipient of Digital Diversity’s Innovation & Inclusion Change Agent award, and was named a member of theRegistry's 40 under 40 Top Diverse Talent. Marlon has been featured in a number of magazines, blogs, and podcasts. http://crossculturevc.com https://twitter.com/crossculturevc

Episode 26 we welcomed our most requested guest, the CEO and Co-founder of LISNR, Rodney Williams. Rodney has been Ad Age top 40 under 40 for a while. He also was named Black Enterprise Magazine's Breakout Star of the Year. We touched on everything LISNR and Rodney's story. We got a lot of gems this episode. Just listen! Check it out! Don't forget we have thebrewpodcast1.com also! Pass The Aux: Rodney: The Throne- Who Gone Stop Me & Manolo Rose Super Flexin Clint: Jeezy- Get Ya Mind Right Josh: Jeezy- ¼ Block L Train: The Diplomats- Bout it Bout It Remix Aaron: Big K.R.I.T.- See Me On Top ----------------------------------------- Check out the full episode. Rate and review us on iTunes. For any questions, comments, or feedback email us at TheBrewPodcast1@gmail.com Website: Thebrewpodcast1.com Twitter and Instagram: @TheBrewPodcast1 Tumblr: TheBrewPodcast Facebook: The Brew Podcast YouTube: The Brew Podcast

Rodney Williams is the co-founder and CEO at LISNR, which is a communication technology that sends data over audio - think Bluetooth on steroids. He previously worked as a brand manager at P&G, Proctor and Gamble, and Lockheed Martin. Rodney is a TechStars alum, Adage 40 under 40, Jet Magazine 40 under 40, and a lot more. He has two bachelor degrees and two masters degrees - including an MBA from Howard. Stunt.   On this episode we discuss what drives him to succeed, education, and startup focus.   This episode is brought to you by Classana.com. Companies use Classana to organize educational resources for professional development.

John Federico (@gadgetboy) talks with Chris Ostoich (@chrisostoich) from Lisnr about how ultrasonic audio can add new and powerful capabilities to your events like Proximity Location Awareness, Access & Security, Digital Signage, Analytics, Payments & Transactions - and more. You can reach Chris via Twitter or email at chris@lisnr.com.

Chris Ostoich from LISNR, a multiple start-up founder, shares his experiences with innovating in music as an underlying technology firm. He shares thoughts on how working with concert venues and music industry companies contracts and compares with working with retails and sporting events, and ways that innovation and music have rippled through his own life. Our Guest: Chris Ostoich, LISNR Chris Ostoich is Co-Founder at LISNR, a new communication protocol that connects mobile with a speaker or microphone. Prior to LISNR, Ostoich was the Founder and Chief Innovation Officer for BlackbookHR. Ostoich founded BlackbookHR in 2008 and held the role of CEO until January of 2014. Ostoich attended the University of Cincinnati where he studied Communication, Public Relations and Music (Jazz Performance).

Welcome to episode #258. On the show: A fleet of starship...delivery robots; LISNR raises $$; Amazon kills product dead; MediaSignage geotargeting moving vehicles; Rodilla gives away lunch; Facebook let's brands know who's nearby; Walgreens marries rewards and Apple Pay; Apple testing new indoor survey app; Google puts DoubleClick on billboards; SweetIQ collects some bucks; What3Words inside of ESRI. Our resource of the week is the GeoFeedia case study on Sports World Chicago.

Welcome to episode #258. On the show: A fleet of starship...delivery robots; LISNR raises $$; Amazon kills product dead; MediaSignage geotargeting moving vehicles; Rodilla gives away lunch; Facebook let's brands know who's nearby; Walgreens marries rewards and Apple Pay; Apple testing new indoor survey app; Google puts DoubleClick on billboards; SweetIQ collects some bucks; What3Words inside of ESRI. Our resource of the week is the GeoFeedia case study on Sports World Chicago.

In Nerdtastic News, LISNR could replace Bluetooth as go-to wireless information technology. For the Black-Owned Business of the Week section, Turner Classic Movies to Showcase Films by Women Directors This Month (Ava DuVernay, Julie Dash, Euzhan Palcy, Kathleen Collins + More Included).  On October 22nd,  they will air an entire night of independent black films by black female directors. Our topics are TV Fall premieres of Sleepy Hollow, Minority Report, Empire, Dr. Ken and Agents of Shield.  We also asked that tv networks #PleaseLetThisGo.   There is a list of shows we would like to end on a high note & end the series already.  Our list contains Bones, Supernatural and Fear the Walking Dead.  We try to hold an intervention for Melissa about her holding on to Big Bang Theory.   

@AkiliShine, & @JoeKBraswell discuss tech & geek news on BHL's Geek. Nerd. Tech! Today, first up is Plugs where the Yuno App has launched a new contest that has begun, and LISNR takes home a Cannes Gold Lion. Next up is Tech News, where the hosts discuss Netflix’s decision to back a huge cable merger, Comcast has set a price for Google Fiber, Apple updates its iPod yet again, Solar Impulse 2 is grounded until next year, NASA’s New Horizon Pluto probe is successful, and Spotify is helping to find abducted kids while our government finds a smart way to connect the poor to the internet. Next, onto this week's Geek and Pop Culture news where we recap the best and worst at Comic-Con 2015, and pictures of the new Ghostbusters in action. Finally, we wrap things up with our video games section, where we're breaking down the death of 55 year old Satoru Iwata, president of Nintendo, and discuss Comcast’s partnership with EA for streaming video games. All this and more on this week's Geek. Ne

On this edition of the Blacks In Technology #BITTechTalk podcast we are joined by tech entrepreneur/startup founder/CEO of LISNR, Rodney Williams. Rodney Williams, Founder/CEO of LISNR, leads one of the hottest companies in the IoT space that intends to disrupt the mobile industry with a new communication protocol that is the most efficient way to connect any device with a speaker or microphone. Fresh out of the R/GA Accelerator powered by Techstars, and a recent Upstart 100 honoree, Williams is an innovative and out-of-the-box strategic thinker who is always looking for new ways for brands to have the greatest impact on their consumers.LISNR is a new communication standard between devices that connects any device with a speaker or microphone using high frequency “data over audio”. Called “Smart Tones”, these silent audio files can broadcast from television, live events, radio, or any standard speaker and then interact with LISNR’s coder base (SDK, API, Java, etc). Client and strategic partners include, Roc Nation, Red Bull Media House, AT&T, The Dallas Cowboys and Kao Brands.Prior to LISNR, Williams spent over 4 years at Procter & Gamble leading a number of brand management, digital, and point of entry media efforts, most noted for being the first marketer to co-write digital patents. Williams was selected for AdAge and Jet Magazine’s top 40 marketers under 40 in 2013. In 2014, LISNR received notable recognition as a Webby Honoree, TIECON Hot Startup & the Business Courier’s 2014 Marketing Innovation Award winner. Williams holds an M.B.A. from Howard University along with three additional degrees which include a Masters in Integrated Marketing Communications, a B.A. in Economics and B.B.A. in Finance.

On this edition of the Blacks In Technology #BITTechTalk podcast we are joined by tech entrepreneur/startup founder/CEO of LISNR, Rodney Williams. Rodney Williams, Founder/CEO of LISNR, leads one of the hottest companies in the IoT space that intends to disrupt the mobile industry with a new communication protocol that is the most efficient way to connect any device with a speaker or microphone. Fresh out of the R/GA Accelerator powered by Techstars, and a recent Upstart 100 honoree, Williams is an innovative and out-of-the-box strategic thinker who is always looking for new ways for brands to have the greatest impact on their consumers. LISNR is a new communication standard between devices that connects any device with a speaker or microphone using high frequency “data over audio”. Called “Smart Tones”, these silent audio files can broadcast from television, live events, radio, or any standard speaker and then interact with LISNR’s coder base (SDK, API, Java, etc). Client and strategic partners include, Roc Nation, Red Bull Media House, AT&T, The Dallas Cowboys and Kao Brands. Prior to LISNR, Williams spent over 4 years at Procter & Gamble leading a number of brand management, digital, and point of entry media efforts, most noted for being the first marketer to co-write digital patents. Williams was selected for AdAge and Jet Magazine’s top 40 marketers under 40 in 2013. In 2014, LISNR received notable recognition as a Webby Honoree, TIECON Hot Startup & the Business Courier’s 2014 Marketing Innovation Award winner. Williams holds an M.B.A. from Howard University along with three additional degrees which include a Masters in Integrated Marketing Communications, a B.A. in Economics and B.B.A. in Finance.

Cincinnati Business Talk highlights the positive side of Cincinnati area businesses. Tim Schigel is an accomplished entrepreneur and venture investor.  As Chairman and Founder of ShareThis, he created one of the largest platforms on the Web, powering the sharing of all forms of content through all social media channels for over 650 million people worldwide.   Some of the world’s most successful brands, such as American Express, AT&T, Disney, Toyota and more, use ShareThis insights to deliver digital brand advertising across the Web.  The company has raised over $60 million and in 2013 was recognized as the fastest growing company in the San Francisco Bay area. In addition, Tim manages a fund totaling over $50 million for Cintrifuse, a Cincinnati-based regional innovation initiative.  Investors in this fund include American Financial, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, Duke Energy, Kroger and Procter & Gamble.  In 2012, Tim was asked to lead the digital efforts for the Republican National Committee and the presidential election. Prior to founding ShareThis, Tim was Director with Blue Chip Venture Company, where he led the firm's investment in marketing and technology leaders such as Advertising.com (AOL/TW), Nielsen Buzzmetrics (Nielsen) and Third Screen Media (AOL/TW). Tim remains active in venture capital and startups as mentor, advisor and investor in DotLoop, The Brandery and LISNR, and also served on various non-profit and university boards. This show will air at 4 PM on Friday April 11th.  Listen to this link: http://tobtr.com/s/6186647 You can listen to the show on Apple iTunes as a Podcast. You can add the podcast at:   http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Cincy-Business-talk.rss You can add Cincy-Business-Talk as an RSS feed to your Outlook email program. The exact feed http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Cincy-Business-talk.rss

Another thrilling edition of Awesomecast is here! This time we are not chilling in the dark on our Iphones! Our guests this week are Cynthia Closkey from bigbigdesign.com, John Carman fromavenuedesignstudios.com and the always lovable Cha Chi! Cynthia starts out discussing Say The Same Thing by the band OK GO! The goal of the game is to think of the same word as the person you are playing with. If you would like to play it, play with Cynthia at ccloskey! Sorg brought up invisible headphones that can be implanted into your ears! Cha Chi brings up the social implications if ear phones like these become the norm! John talks about JB dubs, a formally trained dancer with some â??alternativeâ?? dancing videos you can find on video. Check them out! Cha Chi brings up Avenger Alliance, a game he really enjoys via Facebook, but then brings up something not so awesome; Google's Music. He has been able to use it on his computer, but not on the phone. Much like Spotify. Cynthia and the gang discuss Google Reader going under. Sorg brings up Feedly, which has some sync issues but overall has been a good alternative. Cha Chi, the self proclaimed â??Feedly Hipsterâ?? waits patiently to air his grievances with Feedly, and also discuss what would make him stop using the internet. Alex Kahrs provided us info about Lisnr.com which can install on your mobile phone and can give you nice extras when it recognizes songs or certain vibrations. Somehow this transitions to talk about the movie â??classicâ?? Josie and the Pussycats. The gang discusses Ifixit's Iphone 5 liberation kit. It is a way to fix your own phone and until July 5th you can receive this by only having to pay shipping and handling. Next up, the gang looks at an article about hands free texting, and how it is not a safe alternative. John Carman and Cha Chi both believe if you are going out that way, go out big! Seriously though, do not take selfies! Join us live Tuesdays at 7:00 p.m. EST on live.sorgatronmedia.com! Join the AwesomeCast on Twitter, Facebook and be sure to follow us on iTunes in both video and audio formats, as well as YouTube, Boxee, Roku, and Blip.tv! As always, you can chime in with news, thoughts, or comments at Contact@AwesomeCast.com or 724-25-A-CAST. Miss a link? Want to see what we didnâ??t get to? Check the Show Notes!