Webinar: #BuyBlackMizzou Meet-Up (Saturday) by #BlackGoldWeekend

WEBINAR ENDED

About This Webinar

An innovative panel of notable Mizzou entrepreneurs give insight into building successful businesses. Join for an organic discussion and live Q&A. Our Black-Owned business virtual marketplace will showcase even more #BUYBLACKMIZZOU business owners.

Presenters

Courtney Gay

Derrick Christian

Moderator

As friends, business partners and members of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. for over 10 years, Derrick Christian and Julian Davenport have tailor made many innovative brands. In 2016, they co-founded the motivational men's accessories line MR. SUITABLE after successfully reimagining the Black Mizzou homecoming experience at University of Missouri since 2014 with NOIR: A SUITABLE AFFAIR. Known simply as #NOIRMIZZOU, the exclusive, secret event hosted on the homecoming Saturday of homecoming evolved into an annual sold out, 3-day weekend experience that is now virtual in 2020.

To elevate Black-Owned businesses, they launched the #BUYBLACKMIZZOU initiative to bring awareness and support to Mizzou alumni business owners and leave a positive legacy of support for the Black community. For more details, visit: mistersuitable.com and noirmizzou.com.

Julian Davenport

Moderator

As friends, business partners and members of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. for over 10 years, Julian Davenport and Derrick Christian have tailor made many innovative brands. In 2016, they co-founded the motivational men's accessories line MR. SUITABLE after successfully reimagining the Black Mizzou homecoming experience at University of Missouri since 2014 with NOIR: A SUITABLE AFFAIR. Known simply as #NOIRMIZZOU, the exclusive, secret event hosted on the homecoming Saturday of homecoming evolved into an annual sold out, 3-day weekend experience that is now virtual in 2020.

To elevate Black-Owned businesses, they launched the #BUYBLACKMIZZOU initiative to bring awareness and support to Mizzou alumni business owners and leave a positive legacy of support for the Black community. For more details, visit: mistersuitable.com and noirmizzou.com.

Monica Stevens

Panelist

Monica Stevens, known as "MoKnowsHair," is a licensed cosmetologist, content creator, educator and product innovator focused on healthy hair.

She was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri and has always had a natural talent for hair styling and maintenance. To enhance her natural skill, Monica earned her cosmetology certification at Aveda Institute New York, on full scholarship from the brand and later became Sally Beauty’s texture stylist and expert. To help everyone have the best version of their textured hair, Monica created the MoKnowsHair Curl Collection, a line of salon-quality products formulated with essential oils, botanicals and proteins.

Monica also serves as an educator and content creator on Aveda's Texture Team, training current and future stylists on all things textured hair care. In addition to hair care, Monica is a positive influence in the beauty community by providing insight on entrepreneurship and digital influence.

Lincoln Stephens

Panelist

Lincoln Stephens is a former Advertising Account Management Executive (Carol H Williams, Martin Retail, and TracyLocke) turned activist, muckraker and entrepreneur. In his professional career, Stephens has worked with top brands such as Frito Lay, Quaker, Pepsi, Cadillac, Hummer, Chevrolet, and Coca-Cola.

Born in Dallas, Texas, Lincoln is a graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia where he received a Bachelor’s in Journalism with a focus in Strategic Communications and recently completed his Master’s Degree in Entertainment Business at Full Sail University. He is also an accomplished community organizer. In that capacity, he has served as the Chicago & Dallas Street Team Leader for Rock The Vote, as well as an active leader & servant in a variety of urban-progressive organizations such as: African American Leaders of Tomorrow, American Cancer Society-Relay for Life, Dallas Urban League Young Professionals, YMCA, and Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.

In November 2008, he decided to quit his job to pursue his passion for mentorship and co-founded a nonprofit organization called The Marcus Graham Project. The award-winning organization which is focused on bringing more diversity to the advertising industry through mentorship, exposure and career development, has been featured in Advertising Age, Black Enterprise Magazine, Savoy Magazine, and on CNN and NBC. Additionally, Lincoln was recently named as one of Advertising Age's top 40 marketing leaders under 40 and previously featured in Ebony Magazine as one of the top entrepreneurs in the country under the age of 34.

Stacy Ike

Panelist

Stacy Ike is a TV host, actress, and entrepreneur currently based in Los Angeles.

While remaining true to her integrity and social responsibility, Stacy uses her platform to shift the paradigm of traditional media by creating entertaining and inspiring content.

Stacy began her career immediately after graduating from University of Missouri J-School. Her luminous and charismatic personality has allowed her to build a reputation as the host to share the best moments. Memorable interviews with Oprah, Tom Ford, Viola Davis, and Melissa McCarthy amongst others, pair well to working alongside companies such as the Hollywood Reporter, Essence, AT&T, Warner Brothers and more!

Stacy’s refreshing personality changes the perception of the modern day media correspondent. Many have taken note. Stacy was offered the first position as live show host of OWN Tonight on the Oprah Winfrey Network and pre-show host for FOX’s Empire. Currently, Stacy is the host and creator of a new digital series called human 2 human.

Her personal story inspired the founding of Fight for Your Fairytale, a lifestyle brand that inspires and encourages creatives to believe in themselves wholeheartedly, to push past their fears, and to step confidently into the best version of themselves.

Curtis Taylor, Jr.

Panelist

Curtis Taylor, Jr. is a Saint Louis native who has been a smoothie connoisseur for as long as he can remember. Always having had a passion for the arts, Taylor used his collegiate experience as an opportunity to leverage access for underrepresented voices as a bridge between education and art.

After completing his B.A. and Master’s in Education, Curtis then went on to work with companies and brands such as Instagram, Leo Burnett Chicago, Kastner & Partners LA, Red Bull, Shea Moisture and Kraft. Most recently, Curtis served as Director of Photography at Buzzfeed Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, CA, with a portfolio that spans disruptive, viral campaigns. A few highlights of Curtis’ leadership work as a director of photography for high-impact projects include, DP’ing ‘Quinta Vs. Everything’ original series, with this series now streaming across the world’s biggest digital platforms, including Hulu, Amazon and Facebook Watch, garnering over an average of 15+ million views. Curtis’ DP work on BuzzFeed Tasty’s first-ever collaboration with rap supergroup Migos included a viral video campaign for their latest album Culture II, which amassed over 7+ million views in less than 48 hours.

Curtis is a next-gen creative and academic who strives to use his creativity to move the needle, liberating underrepresented voices everyday. Whether he is somewhere capturing creatives in their element or working on a documentary with Spike Lee, Taylor is a true agent of change and strives to be a scholar in entertainment each and everyday.