Verbally Effective

Last year I had the opportunity to interview Memphis Mayor-Elect Paul Young twice on the Verbally Effective Podcast. The first sitting was prior to Young's announcement of running for Mayor and the second was months later after the declaration. I thought it would be fitting to run back the original episode which is filled with Paul's personality and some interesting facts about our new Mayor-Elect that you may not know. There's even a fun segment testing Young's R&B knowledge that will have you sitting on the edge of your seat. Tap in now to Oakhaven, TN native Paul Young's journey as I bring back our original episode from this time last year.

Anasa Troutman is a cultural strategist, producer, writer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. As CEO & Founder of The BIG We and BIG We Foundation, Anasa works to build & execute stories & strategies that are aligned with her vision world where all communities can experience safety, abundance, creativity, and joy.

Best known for her 20 year partnership as strategic advisor & executive producer for Grammy Award winning, singer/songwriter, India Arie, Anasa has provided strategic & creative support in many of the most important cultural, philanthropic, political, and social justice spaces, including being invited twice to the Obama White House to advise on cultural policy Based in Memphis, Tennessee, Anasa’s latest project is the restoration of Historic Clayborn Temple, the Memphis church that was the organizing headquarters of The Sanitation Workers’ Strike of 1968, Martin Luther King’s last campaign, into a center to build cultural, economic power with Memphis’ African-American community.

Anasa works to embody her strong belief in creativity as a transformative practice & her understanding of the importance of capital access to elevate the voices and vision of underestimated communities.

Outreach Specialist Adrianne Vestal and Sigma Pi Phi Delta Boule Social Action Chairman Melvin Burgess stopped by the podcast to discuss the The Parity Project. Currently, the fraternity has an initiative to dismantle disparities locally and nationally through the Parity Project, a national call to action to achieve economic parity for Black America by 2030. The Parity Project focuses on moving the needle for Black representation in four key areas: STEM degrees, STEM jobs, Private Equity/Venture Capital Funded Entrepreneurs, and Fortune 500 Corporate Board of Directors.

Kevin Whitted is a Player Development Coach, former NBA player, Greater Wilmington Sports Hall of Famer, and McDonald’s All-American. He is also the founder of Kevin Whitted Basketball Services (KWBS), a year-round player development curriculum-based training program that services youth, collegiate, and professional basketball players throughout the Mid-South region. Through KWBS, Kevin spends his time training others who are as serious about basketball as he is. His proven techniques have enhanced the coaching skills of high school and collegiate coaches and the performance of professional basketball players Julius Randle (New York Knicks), Thanasis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks), Liz Dixon (Connecticut Sun), Ferrakonn Hall (Argentina), Langston Galloway (formerly New Orleans Pelicans), and Shawn Williams (formerly Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers), to name a few. He has also worked with LeBron James, Amare Stoudemire, and Vince Carter.

Kevin resides in Memphis, TN. He is married to his lovely wife DeNeia, and they have two talented daughters, Peyton, who plays professional basketball overseas and Paige, who is a top-ranked high school combo guard in Tennessee.

Did you know that up to 40% of the food supply in the U.S. is wasted, and up to 21% of Tennessee landfills are made up of wasted food. Locally, restaurants are second only to households in their generation of food waste in Memphis. As a program of Clean Memphis, Project Green Fork (PGF) contributes to a more sustainable Mid-South by helping local restaurants reduce their environmental impact.

Ali Manning and Leann Edwards join me for episode 270 to discuss their mission of eliminating food waste via the 901 Save the Food Challenge. During this challenge, local restaurants collaborate with the organization on best practices and new strategies for updating their food waste management.

South Memphis native Carol Coletta is president and CEO of the Memphis River Parks Partnership and named of the 100 most influential urban planning experts. She is leading the relaunch of a nonprofit to develop, manage and program six miles of riverfront and five park districts along the Mississippi River.

Carol has been living in downtown Memphis since 1977 and is extremely passionate about the city. After traveling the world, Carol has studied and immersed herself in the art of building community. She discusses what prompted the need to redesign Tom Lee Park and the many experiences we can expect for the opening kicking off September 2nd. You'll learn some of the biggest lessons and strongest allies she's encountered throughout this project. Lastly, Carol shares with us the many hats she wears such as being a mother, dog mom, lover of cities and cancer survivor. Be sure to RSVP for the opening of Tom Lee Park on tomleepark.org.

North Memphis native Chef Eli Townsend sat down with Ena Esco for a live Verbally Effective podcast at the historic Cossitt Library in downtown Memphis last week. Chef Eli shared the intricate details of his upbringing including how his love for cooking began and opening a restraunt. Not only is Eli the owner of Dos Hermanos Cafe, he is also the President of the Downtown Neighborhood Association and currently Mr. MidSouth Pride. Tap in and get inspired!

From Aretha Franklin, Al Green and Isaac Hayes to Three 6 Mafia, 8Ball & MJG and Yo Gotti, Memphis has always been fertile soil for producing music superstars. Entering that arena with all the aspirations of a young Al Green is rising singer/songwriter and Memphis native, Kendrick P.

Like so many before him, Kendrick P. began singing in his grandfather’s church, learning to play piano and drums along the way.

Today, Kendrick’s single, Get What You Give sits at #46 on Billboard’s Urban Radio Chart and is trending all over Shazam. The accompanying video, as well as several others (Don’t Look Back and Fake Love) are currently in rotation on BET Jams, Yo MTV, BET Soul and Music Choice. Kendrick is dropping his new project "Years & Tears" on August 18th on all platforms.

Take a listen as Kendrick discusses his upbringing in East Memphis, his approach with this new body of work and when he fell in love with hip hop.

The annual Southern Heritage Classic Cultural Celebration is amongst us and I thought it would be fitting to have the founder, Fred Jones Jr. sit down with me for a live podcast at the historic Cossitt Library. Growing up in the Cleaborn Homes housing community in the Memphis area, Fred attended Booker T. Washington High School active in baseball, basketball, track and band. A severe football injury derailed his hopes of receiving a scholarship to college which led him to taking on jobs such as caddying for the Memphis Country Club and working at a florist on Vance. Fred had a gift for numbers which led him to receiving a job in the auditing department at Union Planters Bank and where he began their management program ultimately receiving BBA from Memphis State in 1971. At this point Fred made a transition and started working for Issac Hayes with Stax Records handling his finances. Having discovered a knack for putting together entertainers with large audiences in the most attractive venues, he started working with a plethora of first class talent including The Isley Brothers, Prince, Bill Cosby, The Commodores, Stevie Wonder, Parliament-Funkadelic, Luther Vandross, LL Cool J, Count Basie, Tyler Perry, Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Maze featuring Frankie Beverly, The O’Jays, Usher, and hundreds more. As a result, the Southern Heritage Classic began in 1990 in Memphis, TN with HBCU's TSU vs. JSU.

Fast forward to 2023, we are now entering the 34th Southern Heritage Classic Cultural Celebration with a new HBCU headliner, UAPB. Take a listen as Fred shares many stories throughout his journey which includes how the SHC came to fruition and his recollection when he received the news that JSU would no longer participate in the SHC. Fred and his team are laser focused on their strong commitment to continuing the traditional festivities in the Memphis community consisting of a parade, a fashion show, concerts, a golf tournament, tailgate parties, a coaches luncheon, a battle of the bands, and more. He hopes to see you this year at the Southern Heritage Classic in Memphis, TN the weekend of September 7-9 with UAPB vs. TSU.

Kontji Anthony is the CEO and co-founder of Youdle. Before Kontji became a technologist, she was the main co-anchor at WMC-TV in Memphis where she worked for 17 years.

Kontji sits down with Ena Esco for a live podcast recording at the historic Cossitt Library. She shares that her goal is to scale the tech industry and make Memphis a destination for all things tech. With only 3% of AA in this industry, Kontji makes it her mission to advocate on the importance of teaching kids to code at an early age. In this conversation, you'll hear about Kontji's transition from news to tech, her relationship with family and why she chose Memphis as her home.