Antonia Dean: From Brand Builder to VC PowerhouseIn this powerful episode of Synonyms of Sound, we’re joined by Antonia Dean, a Harvard-trained attorney turned venture capitalist, startup advisor, and one of the boldest voices advocating for equity in entrepreneurship.Antonia shares her incredible journey—from building global beauty brands at Estée Lauder to investing in Black tech founders at Black Operator Ventures. We dive deep into how she’s rewriting the rules in venture capital, why representation matters at the seed stage, and how she balances strategy, storytelling, and social impact.

Guchi discusses the power of stand-up, the POV of a child of an immigrant, Knicks basketball, and black men who love anime

Cary Wheelous, the founder and CEO of Hayti, created the largest Black-owned news aggregator that gathers digital content from newspapers, magazines, videos, and podcasts. The main purpose of this app is to showcase content from Black content creators worldwide.

Debbie Bornstein Holinstat the co-author of Survivors Club, joins the show and shares her family's stories, her father's journey of surviving the Holocaust, and why she decided to run for a School Board position in her county.

Mike joins the show to discuss his career in sports, NFL Draft Day, and career-ending injury. We also discuss his 8-year malpractice lawsuit against NYC Hospital, which awarded him 28 million dollars, and a new venture into Crypto.

Daniel & William join the show to discuss their journey of starting Bags. We discuss their successful fundraising process, product roadmap, and the importance of providing capital to underrepresented communities & small businesses.

Website: https://www.securebags.com/

Genesis Bencivenga joins the show to discuss the journey of selling pudding from the back seat of her car to now being sold in over 95 locations. We also discuss her global distribution strategy and partnership with Lou Malnati's deep dish pizza for nationwide delivery.

Lorenzo's Frozen Pudding: https://lorenzosfrozenpudding.com/

Gersha joins the show to discuss her creative process as a costume designer working on The Woman King, Star Trek, and her new film project, Captain America 4!

Zionna, Founder and CEO of Barbells for Boobs a Non Profit organization providing support and education to incorporate physical activity as the foundation for breast cancer risk reduction, treatment, and survivorship. While striving to improve the quality of life and outcomes in individuals impacted by breast cancer.

Viral Artist and Animator, JK joins the show and talks about how he got into making video animations, the first viral take off, his creative process along with what to expect long term.