Founders Unfound

Follow Founders Unfound : Like and share - help us grow!

Cherae Robinson is founder and CEO of Tastemakers Africa, a company that connects black millennials to culture forward experiences. Cherae, a former Public health advocate and change-maker, has created what Fusion calls “the sexy, dope way to experience Africa.”

Our sponsor for this episode: The Plug

FULL EPISODE drops April 30th!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Follow Founders Unfound : Like and share - help us grow!

OUR SPONSOR FOR THIS EPISODE: Trajectory Series

PODCAST TRANSCRIPT

As a public health advocate and consultant, Kevin Dedner was well aware of the disparities in the health and longevity of black men in America. African American men have the lowest life expectancy of any group...67 years of age. This number is in stark contrast to their white counterparts who see life spans into the early 80s on average.

Dr. Sherman James described this impact as "John Henryism" based on the folktale of steel driver John Henry. As the story goes, John was a black man and the best in the land at driving steel into mountainsides - necessary for the building of railroad tunnels. He was challenged to race a machine - a steam-driven hammer. He defeated the machine, and then had a heart attack and died. Dr. James saw this as a metaphor for the life of the American black man. Basically: work at full capacity ALL THE TIME, with all the extra stresses and striving, which results in a shorter life.

So with this as a backdrop, Kevin undertook his own personal journey in mental health. His epiphany from the experience: finding a provider is a big challenge AND cultural context of your therapy matters. Henry Health (named for John Henry) was born in 2018. The company is building a digital platform that provides culturally sensitive teletherapy services. Their first community is, as you would expect, black men. Dan and Kevin talked about his background, the origin story of Henry Health, and certainly the current situation with the Coronavirus pandemic.

What else did they cover? Listen in and find out!

Kevin and Dan talked about her startup journey, as well as:

• Attending the high school where Brown vs Board of Education was tested
• His personal journey with mental health
• How Kevin and his team are coping with COVID-19 crisis
• A shout out to the Transparent Collective
• The "questions behind the questions" from investors

Episode Shout Outs:

Transparent Collective

Startup Health

Morgan Stanley Multicultural Innovation Lab

Dr. Sherman James

KEVIN:

https://twitter.com/kdedner

linkedin.com/in/kevin-dedner-mph-

HxD Conference Video

HENRY HEALTH:

https://twitter.com/HenryHealthApp

https://www.henry-health.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kevin Dedner is co-founder and CEO of Henry Health, a platform that provides culturally sensitive self-care and mental health services. Their first ecosystem of communities is built around black men.

Our sponsor for this episode: Trajectory Series

FULL EPISODE drops April 16th!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Follow Founders Unfound : Like and share - help us grow!

OUR SPONSOR FOR THIS EPISODE: 

Founders Live

PODCAST TRANSCRIPT

Dr. Kala Fleming has a passion to bring technology to the places and people where it can have dramatic impact. All the way back to her time with IBM, she's pursued projects that help solve healthcare, food security...and water. These fundamental needs lead Dr. Fleming to found Diaspora.ai  as a vehicle to tackle these challenges head on It's this last essential, water, that preoccupies her current startup, SMAJI, which is using AI to address water scarcity. The company employs a combination of technology and human feedback to accurately assess and validate water levels for property managers, in near real time.

What else did they cover? Listen in and find out!

Notable Interview Highlights

Kala and Dan talked about her startup journey, as well as:

• Growing up in Antigua, a water-challenged island
• Going from the Virgin Islands to Wisconsin - brrrrrr!
• A PhD dissertation on...you guessed it...water.
• AfroTech and Founders Gym
• Resisting pre-conceived notions

MORE on KALA AND SMAJI

KALA:

https://twitter.com/thekalafleming

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kalafleming/

TED talk

SMAJI and DIASPORA:

https://twitter.com/SMAJIcloud

https://www.smaji.ai/

https://twitter.com/diasporatech

https://diasporaai.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dr. Fleming is co-founder and CEO of Diaspora.ai and SMAJI, a company using AI to address water scarcity.

FULL EPISODE drops March 26th!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Follow Founders Unfound : Like and share - help us grow!

OUR SPONSOR FOR THIS EPISODE: 

Founders Live

PODCAST TRANSCRIPT

Kahlil Ashanti has one amazing and unique journey. Starting with a challenging childhood, to the Air Force, to performing in Caesar's Palace, to an award winning show on Broadway...and even to Hollywood.

But in this episode Dan spoke with Kahlil about his startup weshowup - a company that works with venues and artists to serve event audiences the option to "pay what you want." The conversation ranged across many topics, including the origin story of weshowup, which includes an experiment with Kahlil's own show - netting 82% more revenue than fixed price!

What else did they cover? Listen in and find out!

Notable Interview Highlights

Kahlil and Dan talked about his startup journey, as well as:

• The Air Force as "the family business"
• A military version of American Idol
• Doing a one-man show on Broadway
• His adventures in Hollywood
• Leveraging the network

MORE on KAHLIL AND WESHOWUP

Kahlil:

twitter.com/kahlilashanti

kahlilashanti.com

TED talk

weshowup company site:

weshowup.io

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kahlil Ashanti is the founder and CEO of weshowup, a company that brings the concept of "pay what you want" to entertainment and events.

FULL EPISODE drops March 12th!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Follow Founders Unfound : Like and share - help us grow!

OUR SPONSOR FOR THIS EPISODE: 

Washington Technology Industry Association

PODCAST TRANSCRIPT

Brooke Sinclair has a great job: take tasty, unique beverages from independent, craft brands, and bring them to eager taste buds around the world. She has a unique background: a family engineering heritage (she’s a self-professed tech ‘nerd’), theater, non-profit, and corporate logistics. She’s also a vibrant member of the startup community as an alum of Founder Institute and a Scout for Female Founded Club.

In this podcast episode, Dan spoke with Brooke about her startup Velour Imports - a company developing technology to bring craft brands from your local neighborhood across the planet. The conversation ranged across many topics, including of course the wonderful origin story of Velour. What else did they cover? Listen in and find out!

Notable Interview Highlights

Brooke and Dan talked about her startup journey, as well as:

• How religion contributed to Velour’s beginnings
• being trapped in an airport for 7 days
• whether Brooke gets to sample the beers she exports
• A shout out to MS DOS

MORE on BROOKE AND VELOUR IMPORTS

Brooke on LinkedIn:

linkedin.com/in/brookesinclair

Velour Imports company site:

https://www.velourimports.com/

or check them out on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/velourimports

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Brooke S. Sinclair is the founder and CEO of Velour Imports, a company that facilitates independently-owned craft brands distribution around the world.

FULL EPISODE drops February 27th!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

OUR SPONSOR FOR THIS EPISODE: Perfect Pitches By Precious

Full Transcript

Modjossorica (Rica) Elysee represents why we started Founders Unfound: brave, capable, inspirational, and determined. She pulls no punches. Rica took lessons from her community and nonprofit experiences and transformed herself into an entrepreneurial force. She's a sought after speaker on the fireside chat founder circuit. And has boldly helped bring together other women entrepreneurs with @thetable and Female Founders Day. She's been featured in Forbes, Bloomberg, and Black Enterprise.

In this podcast episode, Dan spoke with Rica about her startup BeautyLynk - a company transforming the on-demand beauty market. The conversation ranged across many topics, including of course the wonderful origin story of BeautyLynk. What else did they cover? Listen in and find out!

Rica and Dan talked about her startup journey, as well as:

• her "third culture" life between America and Haiti
• being on billboard in Times Square (New York)
• how music fits into her management approach
• global expansion
• what Rick Ross and Cardi B have to do with Morgan Stanley

Rica's site:

(always looking to give back with speaking opportunities)

http://ricaelysee.com/

BeautyLynk company site:

https://beautylynk.com/

or check them out on Twitter:

twitter.com/BeautyLynks/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.