RareMaven: The Podcast

On this episode of the podcast host Kareemah speaks with Moon Lee Ferguson. Moon is an award-winning filmmaker + founder of Filled with Magic Productions.

She is known for her award-winning fantasy series, Juju. Some of her past work includes Street Food on Netflix, Family Karma on Bravo, and the Emmy-nominated docu-series The 1619 Project on Hulu. Moon's most recent work includes her horror anthology series, Criblore, A Horror Anthology + she’s currently in post-production for her film, Skettel - a coming-of-age story about a first-generation Jamaican American mother working as a bottle girl to care for her special needs child.

Diva Dionne is an Essence Bestselling Author, Singer, Poet & Owner of Character Hollywood who is releasing a new self-published book called, “You Better Got Your Dream.”

The book centers around women discovering their creative power as a force to empower them & embrace what life has in store through the acts of journaling and reciting affirmations.

She wants women to release what has been holding them back, be bold and pursue their undeveloped dreams. In this episode, we discuss why the book is so vital in creating this way of life for women and how her work in the arts has shaped the way she inspires and creates her own signature life.

K. Marie is an award-winning lifestyle and commercial photographer who produces beautiful imagery of women of color in all our glory & essence! She is also the owner of ESSENTIALS by K. Marie a luxury aromatherapy brand and Co-Founder of BRWN GIRL TALK, a community and safe space for healing and celebration for black women rooted in the south. Through her work she is committed to the empowerment, self-care & wellness of black women.

Join us as we discuss self-love among black women and the power we have in putting ourselves first, living unapologetically and how to capture images that reflect our true hues, tones & beauty.

Jackie Clarke is a Creative Communications Publicist and Founder and CEO of The Well Connected @WellConnectedTO, a creative communications agency that supports entrepreneurs, start-ups, and businesses in acquiring sponsorships, event management, brand activations and influencer management. In addition, under her Well Design brand, she creates visual aid tools including pitch decks, wrap reports and EPKs to market brands.   

In this episode, Jackie shares her journey in leaving her corporate role to take a chance on herself as an entrepreneur in public relations after proving she had the creativity and ingenuity to do so.   

She tackles the importance of trusting in yourself and your brand, immersing yourself in your work and why it’s important to “just keep swimming.”

Octavia Gilmore, a.k.a The Millennial CEO, is the Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Creative Juice, LLC. a creative design, marketing and branding agency with clients including The Home Depot, Cox Enterprises, Medtronic and Atlanta Habitat for Humanity. She is also the owner of Midnight Wave a swimwear and fitness line.  

On this episode we chat about how Octavia launched Creative Juice after a year working in corporate and why being raised within a creative family sparked her passion to become a creativepreneur.  And we hear what it takes to build a marketing & branding business, why it’s important to re-invest into your brand and the importance of being a lifetime learner in your craft.

Tanisha Colon-Bibb is the Founder & Principal Publicist of Rebelle Agency (@rebelleagency), a full service communications agency that provides services including public relations, advertising, event management, integrated marketing and more. Tanisha embarked upon her journey in entrepreneurship after being let go from a role in 2012 but it wasn’t until 2018 that she let go and put all her faith into her business. Since then, she hasn’t looked back. Tanisha works with clients including Elle Varner and Hamilton Park and prides herself on opening her headquarters in her hometown of Harlem. One of her inspirations is celebrating all the wins both big and small from the women in her life.

To keep up with the podcast and all things RareMaven, visit us at www.raremaven.media

Christa Aiken is the Founder & CEO of Sapphire Vision, LLC. (@sapphirevisionllc). Sapphire Vision, LLC. is an operations firm where Christa helps her clients, primarily in the creative industries, develop a strong and efficient administrative structure so they can scale and have ample opportunity to create. Christa sought this venture after working in media production for 10 years & noticing that with her expertise in assistant directing and coordinating for film & television, she could help other creatives produce work to catapult them. Christa prides herself on being a phenomenal woman and entrepreneur as her aunt was. She knows from seeing her excel and build a community around her work that she’d do the same. Now, Christa works with other women of color who are creative entrepreneurs to provide opportunities to connect, inspire and support one another.

To keep up with the podcast you can subscribe or follow us on Instagram @raremavenmedia

Avery Jones is the Creator & Concept Engineer of AblazePR, LLC. (@ablazepr). At AblazePR, Avery merges her expertise in public relations and event management to offer her clients an array of services to enhance their brands. From media relations and graphic design to event design, staffing and event management, Avery believes that each brand or event has a story to tell. Avery has worked on events including The BET Live Experience, The 2019 NBA All Star Game and the 2017 Women's March in Washington D.C. which gave her the vision to expand her efforts further than she could imagine.

Akia Williams is the Owner of Akia Nicole (@akianicole), a fashion brand with made to order designs that are vibrant, feminine and perfect for any island getaway. Her collection includes uniquely designed kaftans and kimonos. As an avid traveler, Akia found it difficult to find clothes that represented her style. She used her experience in the fashion industry and sowing skills to launch her brand that inspires women of color to slay their vacay and cherish each signature piece for a lifetime.

Kyla & Mecca are the Owners of Melanin and Magic Productions (@melaninandmagicproductions). Their mission is to encourage the flourishing of creativity from black women all across the world by helping them to expand their platform while ultimately influencing more positive change in the world. They’ve produced a web series, “Finding Our Way,” “The Way Out,” a short film and their most recent project, “The Black Banshee.” They want black women at the forefront when it comes to content creation and representation.

Diva Green is the Creator of I Got Your Black (@igotyourblack_). I Got Your Black is a Pan-African travel guide to global black culture and black businesses around the world. Diva is on a mission to connect, excite and empower black people throughout the diaspora & embrace both our similarities and differences. After traveling to Europe and seeing all the racial injustices upon arriving to the U.S. in 2014, Diva knew it was within her purpose to find a solution.

She's already created a travel guide to Cuba and an Afro-Latin travel guide for NYC. Diva is just getting started and has her sights on strengthening & promoting black culture one destination at a time.

Britney Porter (@hellobritneyinfo) is a brand and business consultant and Founder of the N3xtexperiment (@n3xtexperiment). Britney merges her knowledge in finance, business, tech and legal to come up with creative strategies for businesses and brands. She is adamant about supporting businesses led by black women and has a firm belief in utilizing economic development for true upward mobility in our culture. Britney understands the power of economics as a source of self-actualization. She wants us to know that creativity is a key component to success!

Tamika Harden is the owner of Body By Tamika (@bodybytamika) where she empowers women & men to transform their lives not only through fitness, she focuses on building their self-esteem, health & wellness and advocates for safe cosmetic procedures. Tamika is also very passionate about supporting at-risk youth and has mentored countless of them in her community. One of her dreams was to become a foster care parent and in 2013 she did so. In fact, two of her greatest inspirations come from the two boys that she has now adopted. She wants to continue to be that example of success & strength for them. 

Please like, share and comment about what you think of this episode. To keep up with RareMaven: The Podcast follow us @raremavenmedia on IG.

This week on the podcast we have Alicia & Paris, Owners of BK Yoga Club (@bkyogaclub). The yoga club is in Brooklyn, NY and is where Alicia & Paris foster community and promote self-confidence through the art & practice of yoga. Within a year of meeting each other, Paris & Alicia opened BK Yoga Club where they have yoga classes, host events and build community partnerships. In December 2019 alone, the two raised $30,000 dollars in 29 days to support all of their efforts! All this they coin to the power of faith and trusting in one another. 

To keep up with all things RareMaven visit us at www.raremaven.media

On this week's episode we have Desiree Booker Owner of ColorVizion Lab. Desiree is a career strategist for mid level professionals who makes it her mission to support people of color who may find it challenging to grow professionally & acknowledges the importance of their representation as leaders and executives within their industries. Starting as a recruiter for major companies like BET Networks and NBCUniversal Desiree catapulted her own business as a career strategist after being let go from a toxic work environment & it was after this that she realized what truly served her & now she’s on a mission to share it with others.

To keep up with all things RareMaven visit us a www.raremaven.media

Calisa Cole (@realtorms.cole) is a Realtor and Real Estate Agent from New Haven, CT who helps her clients buy, sell and rent residential properties. Calisa always wanted to work in real estate and after having a thriving entrepreneurial career as a hairstylist, Calisa knew she had to fully live out her passion. Now, Calisa has created a new brand name for herself, coining the name "Realtor Ms. Cole." With her expertise, she wants to help educate women and those from poverty stricken communities about real estate and how it can change their lives for the better.

To learn more about RareMaven: The Podcast please visit our website at www.raremaven.media. You can also find us on Instagram @raremavenmedia.

On this episode we have Dominique Shabazz, Head Baker & Decorator at Grandma’s Hat Box Bakery (@grandmashatboxbakery ) Dominique creates her business as a way to pay homage to her grandmother who taught her how to bake as a young girl. Now, Dominique makes decorative cakes and treats in doing so taught herself how to decorate making fabulous insta-worthy designs! Dominique prides herself on putting self-care at the forefront of all she does and wants other business owners to know that they must always practice when it comes to their craft.  Keep up with all the podcast episodes @raremavenmedia and by checking out our website www.raremaven.media. Also, please let us know what you think & don’t forget to hit Subscribe! #raremavenmedia

Braisha Owens (@kissedbybo) - Designer of wearable arts and stylist for all from the social misfits to the ultra-conservative, SHE IS a model, creative visionary and entrepreneur. A dream promoter in her own right, She is DETERMINED to follow her dreams.  She created the vision behind Kissed by BO in 2013 and since then has developed custom denim wear, produced numerous fashion shows and hosts "style parties" for clients. 

In addition, Braisha is the Founder of The Paper Bag Chronicles (@thepaperbagchronicles_)  where she helps women uncover their self-confidence & beauty within by hosting self-love photoshoots and CONFIDENCE fashion shows. How you may ask? Simply by styling a paper bag. To learn more about Braisha visit www.kissedbybo.me 

To learn more about RareMaven: The Podcast, check out www.raremaven.media 

Lily Doxy started The Eve Brand (@theevebrand_) in 2018.  As a Marketer for a Fortune 500 Company, Lily worked with many different companies and people seeking sponsorship.  She saw a need for assistance as many people had no idea what companies like hers were looking for when seeking sponsorship.  She quickly realized many small business owners were missing out on potential sponsorship dollars because they did not know how to properly present themselves.

Lily is no stranger to hard work and entrepreneurship.  She is the child of Haitian immigrants who were entrepreneurs since before she was born.  Her father has been a serial entrepreneur since 1983 and she learned quickly that it is possible for you to garner success by running your own business and following your passion. As a Fortune 500 Marketer, she has used her education and real-world experience to create The Eve Brand.  To date, she has assisted her clients to obtain sponsorship from Verizon, Google, and Black Enterprise to name a few.

To learn more about "RareMaven: The Podcast" visit us at www.raremaven.media/podcast

Alechia Reese (@alechiareese) is equal parts warm tea and Hennessy, the Chief Brand Strategist of 360 Gateway Brands,  author of the award-winning book, Eating Elephants, and the director of PR & creative marketing of Soledad O'Brien's PowHERful Foundation. Alechia is the recipient of the Woman of Power award presented by Bank of America and NABA NYC. 

She is the former strategic marketing director of Disney star, Zendaya Coleman’s fashion line, Daya by Zendaya and transformed her life from a domestic violence victim to thriver. She specializes in brand identity, strategic marketing, public relations, and execution. 

A media personality and certified professional international speaker, her skilled, fun and energetic speaking style has afforded her the opportunity to partner with and speak for a myriad of organizations from the entertainment stage to the corporate boardroom including Progressive, UPS, BET, the Miami Marlins, Grey Goose, Vogue Italia, Verizon, and others. She also co-founded The STEAM Up Initiative to cultivate the STEM learning experience for marginalized, inner-city youth and believes beyond empowerment it is necessary to properly equip all people to succeed.

Keshia Rice (@keshiarice) is a dating coach & Founder of the Cherished Method where she coaches women on attracting “Cherished Love” by first looking within and changing their mindset to heal from the past. She also helps women discover what she calls their “Feminine Charm” in order to increase their self-confidence and create a life of their dreams. Keshia is a 2 time Emmy Award winning journalist who turned her experiences and challenges in dealing with toxic relationships to coach women from all walks of of life. She refers to her work as a ministry that was within her from early on.