Disruption Now

Nina Turner grew up the oldest of seven children to working class parents in Northeast Ohio. Turner has dedicated her life to fighting for the underserved, working class and working poor.  In 2020, as national co-chair of Bernie Sanders presidential campaign, Nina built support nationwide for progressive policies like the Green New Deal and health care as a human right in the form of Medicare for All. Nina is now running for Congress for Ohio’s 11th Congressional District. 

Actor, Filmmaker and Poet David Bianchi created the first spoken word NFT. The NFT focused on the continuing injustice of police brutality in America. His piece was sold for over $12,000 and all funds went to the George Floyd Memorial fund. David was interviewed on Forbes regarding his spoken word NFT. 

ZuCot Gallery the largest African-American owned fine art gallery in the Southeast. ZuCot’s mission is to promote original works of art by living African American artists and provide both novice and seasoned collectors with meaningful and unique services that enhance the art collecting experience. After earning his BS in Mechanical Engineering from Tuskegee University, Onaje M. Henderson began his corporate career with one of the “big five” consulting firms working with major communication and hi tech companies across the country. O.M. Henderson cultivated his professional training within arts through soaking up his fathers’ (Artist, Aaron F. Henderson) discipline over a span of 20 + years. His background in technology has aided the firm in precisely weaving the aesthetic aspects to the financial growth of the firm. His project management background plays a vital role to the day-to-day success of the company.Mr. Henderson has advised on art selection in office facilities, corporations, law firms, and individual collectors nationwide. With his guidance he has collaborated with art enthusiasts, high end collectors, and corporate executives to complete a diverse array of creative projects and programs, including large-scale commissions and specialty tailored acquisition programs that meet the precise budgetary needs for the client.

Damian Hoskins is the General Manager of Elementz an organization focused on providing hope and catalyzing change for the young people in the urban core through hip-hop culture. 

In 2014, Jabari had the idea for a genre amplification company and launched COLORS Worldwide, Inc., an ecosystem designed to incorporate multiple underserved genres through live events, festivals, and content creation.

 Ryan Wilson is co-founder of The Gathering Spot, a private membership club focused on black entrepreneurship. Wilson talks about how they expanded despite social distancing amid the pandemic. Ryan Wilson is the Co-Founder and CEO of TGS Holdings, a consumer lifestyle and hospitality company based in Atlanta, Georgia. The company’s holdings consist of The Gathering Spot, a private membership club; and A3C, a music, tech, and film conference and festival.

At the age of 24, Ryan and his business partner, TK Petersen, raised private capital from investors to open their first Gathering Spot location in Atlanta. The club has established itself as a home for creatives, business professionals, and entrepreneurs and regularly hosts notable and culturally impactful events. Ryan recently opened the second Gathering Spot location in Washington D.C. Responsible for the company’s overall management and strategic vision across all holdings, Ryan is leading the club’s physical expansion to Los Angeles and forthcoming markets, as well as the company’s digital platform TGS Connect.

Ryan has been honored as the Small Business Person of the Year by the Atlanta Business Chronicle, selected as one of the 2020 Atlanta Business Chronicle’s 40 under Forty honorees, and was the recipient of the John Lewis Emerging Leader Award by the 100 Black Men of Atlanta. He was also selected to join the inaugural class of Shea Moisture’s Social Justice Coalition. Atlanta Magazine named him one of “Atlanta’s 500 most powerful leaders” from 2019 through 2021, and he was awarded Atlanta’s Best Influencer by WXIA-TV. He has also been named one of the country’s most influential African-Americans in The Root 100 and the Ebony Power 100.

Manny has had the opportunity to work with brands and mentors to hone and develop skills in brand management & growth, sponsorship consulting, retail development, strategic planning, account management and brand activation – across a diverse portfolio of categories including: Technology, professional sports, sporting goods, financial services & insurance, retail, tourism, telecommunication, food industry, and health/medical Industry.  Manny enjoys helping others find purpose in their work.

Dr. Ebony Jade Hilton Buchholz was born the middle of three girls in the rural town of Little Africa, South Carolina. Following a family tragedy, at the tender age of 8 years old, she told her mom she wanted to be a doctor. From that day forward her mother called her “Dr. Hilton.” She attributes her entire career and the success that followed to that small gesture. Dr. Jade Hilton is the cofounder of Goodstock Consulting, which is rooted in addressing racial health disparities. Their mission is to “truly connect the grassroots to the grass tops.

Tamika Mallory is a nationally recognized civil rights activist and seasoned community organizer. She served as the youngest ever Executive Director of the National Action Network under Reverend Al Sharpton. Mallory was the co-chair of the Women’s March on Washington, the largest single-day demonstration in US history. She most recently gave what has been dubbed “the speech of a generation” – State of Emergency in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. She was recently on the Grammys and has a new book State of Emergency. Her new elevation has also attracted new critics, we address all of this.

What You Will Learn

1. Why we need to change the narrative about black leaders and wealth.
2. How listening to collective critics can destroy you.
3. Where the focus of the movement should be in the coming years
4. Why we must fight systems of oppression and not just focus on people we don't like.

Why an investor super-power should be the ability to recognize founder talent with non-traditional backgrounds.

What cities can do to build inclusive economies

Why Venture Capitalists should be pissed off about income inequality.

An emerging West Coast digital media company that could be larger than Disney.