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Time and time again, we’ve seen the tragic loss of rappers due to senseless gun violence. From more recently with Nipsey Hussle and Pop Smoke to further down the timeline with The Notorious B.I.G and Tupac, lives have been taken away at such young ages. To take the initiative in keeping talent out of harm’s way, a fellow rapper has launched a business.
The day of college athletes being exploited for their likeness is a thing of the past. With current NCAA rules and regulations and the prominence of name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals, collegiate superstars can finally get paid for their work on the field, court, and more. A recent University of Miami recruit, Jaden Rashada, is believed to have received the highest-known NIL deal for a high school recruit to date – according to On3NIL. At $9.5 million, the deal is set to possibly break records, but it did not come without its share of controversy.
Black wealth-building seems to be the forever trending topic. So, with that said, it’s the perfect time to introduce you to Dana A. Dorsey, reportedly Miami’s first Black millionaire. Let’s take a look at how he earned his fortune from real estate by buying, selling, and renting properties.
Non-fungible tokens (NFT) are all the rage, and the technology shows no signs of slowing down. With so many artists and influencers launching their respective NFT collections, the following steps are clear — the industry has to have more options and diversity around how they are sold. Ariana Waller — known as Ariana The Techie — is a Miami-based blockchain engineer and the owner and founder of Mueshi, Inc. The company launched to be a marketplace where users will be able to buy, sell, and fractionally invest in fine art NFTs. In 2021, Ariana came up with the idea for this marketplace while listening to Jay-Z’s solo album, “4:44.” On the album, the Grammy-award-winning rapper had several songs discussing the importance of investing to build wealth. Immediately inspired, Ariana jumped into the metaverse to create this emerging marketplace. “I was listening to ‘4:44’ for almost three hours a day. In a song, Jay-Z mentioned how he wanted to leave his art to his children as a part of his...
It’s the best act of service when professional athletes support their teams’ cities. In partnership with FTX, Udonis Haslem is showing love to both his home team and hometown. The Miami Heat veteran’s foundation has joined the cryptocurrency exchange firm to provide two POC business owners with $50,000 grants, according to Miami Herald. The funding aims to help small minority-owned Miami businesses flourish while being subjected to the negative impact of gentrification in the city’s neighborhoods. “You’re bringing in bigger chains and the businesses that have survived in these communities for a long time have a different kind of competition,” said Haslem, according to Miami Herald. “They don’t have access to business plans and marketing and the financial backing (needed) to sustain in gentrified areas.” Being deeply in tune with Miami, it was far from a challenge to know the ways in which fellow natives need assistance. Being from the city and a longtime resident, the issues hit...
There’s been a lot of trickery going on when it comes to various scams across the internet and one certain move has landed musician Baby Blue in the hot seat. Complex reports that the Pretty Ricky bandmate, whose government name is Diamond “Blue” Smith has officially turned himself in to start his 20-month prison sentence due to his alleged involvement in a $24 million COVID-19 loan scam. In a recent interview, he says that a lie got him caught up in the madness that ultimately led to time in prison. He claims, according to the outlet, that as the “only” man with face masks in America, he “made a quarter of a million dollars in 20 days” after managing to sell two million masks. And he alleges that those said masks came from a clothing manufacturer in China.
Miami Art Week and Art Basel events take place Dec. 2 through 4 this year, and the annual celebrations will include some NFT (non-fungible token) exhibits. As AfroTech previously reported, NFTs can be anything that has been digitally authenticated, from music to art to gifs and beyond. Hence, it only makes sense to see them during Miami Art Week and Art Basel. Suppose you’re looking to brush up on your knowledge of the growing NFT industry ahead of the art week events. In that case, NFT BZL is hosting a day-long symposium featuring NFT experts on Nov. 30 to educate attendees on digital art. Here are some NFT exhibitions we think you should check out during the annual art week.
Rick Ross, the biggest boss, is always thinking of his next move. According to Kulture Hub, Rick Ross could soon make his stake in the sports industry as an investor in the National Basketball Association’s Miami Heat. The move would be only right for the rapper and entrepreneur who has been an avid supporter of the team and is considered by many as a Miami legend. “I’m still interested in getting a small percentage of an NFL or NBA team,” Rick Ross shared during an episode of Uninterrupted’s Certified Buckets podcast when asked his stance on making a sports investment move. “I’d just invest in the Heat because we got some beautiful additions. And like I say I’m one of those people that can look three seasons ahead… I’m confident, we’ll bring them big trophies back.” As someone who was raised in Dade County, Rick Ross has been a fan of the Miami Heat since day one. He went from watching games from awful seats to garnering relationships with the players, President Pat Riley, and the...
Ambitious startup Lien Library that’s solving the problem of “interacting with and processing lien information on properties” has been awarded a $25,000 grand prize at the Endeavors Pitch Competition, Miami Herald reports. Lien Library founded by Haitian native Macdeur “Mac” Alabre was conceptualized while encountering issues with lien processing during his time working for the city of North Miami. The 27-year-old was on his way to completing his master’s in business administration and Ph.D., so he put his acquired programming and financial knowledge to the test and developed a new system. The system proved to be promising as it received a stamp of approval from the city of Miami, which is now considering embedding the Lien Library into their internal systems. “I said, ‘I found something, and I think it’s big,’” Alabre said. Now, the startup has won big, taking home the grand prize of $25,000 and an additional $25,000 in credits for Microsoft’s Azure platform. The competition was...
Rent prices have increased by two percent to four percent nationwide each year since 2011, according to CoreLogic. While gains in federal and state minimum wage rules have somewhat mitigated the bite for lower-wage earners in certain areas, it’s often not enough to compete with the rising cost of housing. Meanwhile, the population of renters has increased, forcing renters to compete for a finite supply of rental housing, which is already pricing out some people. Using data from the Joint Center of Housing Studies and the Economic Policy Institute, MagnifyMoney identified 16 cities where the median rent claims all of a minimum wage worker’s take-home pay, and then some. Let’s take a look at big cities that are more affordable and ones where the rent is too darn high. Key findings Austin, Texas, is the least affordable major U.S. city for minimum-wage workers. Austin’s median rent is equal to 143 percent of take-home pay at the minimum wage. The median rent in Austin is $1,220 per...
While Silicon Valley may be known as the foremost tech hub in the U.S., there are a number of other emerging hubs across the country. Many people interested in pursuing a career in tech are now considering cities like Los Angeles and Chicago. Before you move to a new city to start your tech career, consider which cities have high-quality training programs that will help you learn the skills you need to thrive in the industry. Luckily for you, there are a number of excellent coding bootcamps all around the country — even in cities with nascent tech industries. We’ve compiled a list of the top cities with high-quality coding bootcamps. This list will give you a sense of where you could break into one of the best tech jobs and provide you with information about some of the top coding bootcamps in those cities. Let’s break down the top ten cities to attend coding bootcamp and explore some of the best training programs those cities have to offer. 1. San Diego, California Silicon Beach...