J.R. Martinez is an Army veteran, burn survivor, actor, motivational speaker, New York Times best-selling author, and Dancing with the Stars season 13 winner. He has traveled the world speaking with troops at various bases and serving as the keynote speaker for numerous major corporate events, non-profits, Universities, and Fortune 500 companies. J.R. devotes himself to spreading his message of resilience and optimism.

Join Alisa Childers—a wife, mom, author, blogger, speaker, and worship leader—as she shares insights from her journey. Formerly part of the award-winning CCM recording group ZOEgirl, Alisa is now a sought-after speaker at apologetics and Christian worldview conferences, including reThink. Don't miss her latest book, "The Deconstruction of Christianity."

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Samuel Dixon is a full-ride Honors Cheatham-White Scholar Junior at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. He is the Co-Founder and President of the NCAT Crypto Club and Aggie DAO. He is studying user experience design and blockchain technology with a minor in finance. 

Aleesha Barlow created Tell Somebody, Inc., an organization that works toward ending child abuse and silenced abuse of any kind. The Tell Somebody movement is about bringing awareness to parents that sexual abuse can and does happen.

"I am a survivor of child abuse. I was molested by my maternal grandfather and at age 6, I told my aunt that her father was touching me inappropriately. She told my mother, and they confronted my grandfather. He admitted it. I was told to keep it a secret from the police and my own father, with the promise the abuse would stop. Unfortunately he continued, and I never spoke up again. After 20 years, my father asked me if I had ever been molested in my life, I told him yes. I felt all the weight, burden and shame I had been carrying all those years, immediately lifted off my shoulders and I want all survivors to feel that! You are not alone. Don’t take it to the grave, Tell Somebody. It’s time to heal!" —Aleesha Barlow

Patrice Gordon is an established executive coach and personal development advocate, specializing in Women’s Development Programs and Reverse Mentoring. She spearheaded the development of reverse mentoring at Virgin Atlantic, with the initial focus being on how race and ethnicity impact development in the workplace. 

Dr. John Demartini is an internationally published author, a global educator and the founder of the Demartini Method, a revolutionary tool in modern psychology. He is also the author of over 40 self-development books and manuscripts such as the bestseller ‘The Breakthrough Experience®’ which has been translated into over 36 languages.

Efram “LoveLogiq” Bryant is an R&B singer, songwriter, poet, MC, & social activist. His love of music extends to all genres, particularly Soul/Neo-Soul, R&B, Hip-Hop, and jazz. LovelLogiq has performed with world-renowned musicians recreating songs from legends such as Gil Scot Heron, Earth Wind & Fire, and Al Green. He has written for major R&B artists such as Noel Gourdin and has been featured as a vocalist in the hit FOX TV series “Empire.”

Irina Tishchenko Lujan has worked with Universal Aid for Children of Ukraine since 1999. She served as their Scholarship Program director in Odessa for ten years before moving to the United States. Irina facilitates correspondence between the UAC Ukraine team, the children in Odessa, and their staff and sponsors in the U.S.

Marty Neumeier is someone who literally wrote the book on branding, in fact, he’s written numerous books about it. He is an author, designer, and brand adviser whose mission is to bring the principles and processes of design to business. He has worked closely with innovative companies such as Apple, Netscape, Sun Microsystems, HP, Adobe, Google, and Microsoft to help advance their brands and cultures. Today he serves as Director of Transformation for Liquid Agency in Silicon Valley, and travels extensively as a workshop leader and speaker on the topics of design, brand, and innovation.

Ed Wiley III spent more than 30 years as a journalist, working as a newspaper and magazine reporter, congressional press secretary, communications manager, and most recently as the Managing Editor at BET News. In 2006, he moved to North Carolina, and two years later returned to his love for cooking. He and his wife, Yalem, opened their first restaurant in Raleigh, NC. Wiley attributes much of what her learned in the kitchen to his father, the legendary saxophonist Ed Wiley Jr., who developed his culinary chops cooking for bandmates on the Chitlin’ Circuit during the days when many of the restaurants were segregated.

The Prime Smokehouse: Barbecue & Beyond, which moved to Rocky Mount, NC, in 2013, has been ranked No. 1 on most online social media outlets in the city since it was established. In fact, Yelp recently named Prime the Top Dining Destination for Travelers to North Carolina, and the restaurant has been featured in various publications and television programs.