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Stories that begin with the rise and fall of prominent individuals are not the most inspiring, but they offer insight into lessons learned and perspectives shifted. Through narratives by people across industries, those who “fall from grace” are often judged in the court of public opinion by how society accepts what they did and how they respond. Most recently, the world has sat and watched this phenomenon play out with Bad Boy Records and Revolt TV founder Sean “Diddy” Combs. The Combs saga has no particular ending for the foreseeable future. At the same time, much of his fate will be decided by the legal powers. However, one decision that has been made concerns his previous ownership stake in Revolt. As previously reported by AFROTECH™, the buyer of the Hip-Hop mogul’s shares was shrouded in mystery. The new owner’s identity was a closely guarded secret, with speculation running rife. It has now been revealed that the owner isn’t a single person. In a surprising twist, the media...
Months after music executive Sean “Diddy” Combs announced that he was stepping down as chairman of Revolt TV, a music-oriented digital cable television network, the company has been sold to an anonymous buyer. According to TMZ, the Hip-Hop mogul sold all his shares in the company he founded in 2013 alongside Andy Schuon. However, the person who made the purchase as well as the transaction amount remain unknown. The outlet’s sources reveal that the purchaser is said to “share a deep passion for Black culture.” Moreover, a formal introduction of the television network’s new owner is set to be revealed in the next few weeks. While Diddy’s last order of business with the company is selling it, sources say that it is “an amicable deal” and that “everyone’s happy,” per the outlet. As previously reported by Variety, the rapper and record producer launched Revolt TV from the childhood home of his friend and former Bad Boy Records artist, the late great Notorious B.I.G., or simply Biggie....
With the amount of talent, education, and sheer excellence within the Black community, “getting to the bag” is the easy part of the wealth journey. The more complex part of the journey is how wealth appreciates, and legacy is built. Acknowledging that not all people are privileged to consistently invest in side-hustles, passion projects, or wealth-building tools (stock market, digital currency, etc.), each person who earns money in any capacity must consider two things when determining their next money move. What are your liabilities, and what are your assets? Financial advisor Rashad Bilal and educator Troy Millings, hosts of the popular podcast Earn Your Leisure, suggest that people should always choose assets over liabilities, which is why they have an entire show dedicated to the topic, presented by REVOLT.
Have you ever wanted to pick the brain of present-day media moguls to get their hot takes on how you can find your way into brand deals, TV castings, and a PAID influencer/celebrity status? On the latest episode of Black Tech Green Money, AfroTech taps in with Ahmed Islam, CEO at Ten35, a full-service advertising company that leans into the culture, Michelle Ghee, CEO at Ebony / Jet, Rahsan-Rahsan Lindsay, CEO at MediaCo, and Detavio Samuels, CEO at REVOLT. This conversation was recorded at the inaugural AfroTech Executive held in Los Angeles, CA.
REVOLT is welcoming new hires. According to information provided to AfroTech, the company is welcoming Diondre Lewis — who will serve as the company’s chief technology officer — and Chantelle Silveira, who will serve as Senior Vice President of Product. Lewis and Silviera will pioneer change within the media industry and lead technological advancements. “I’m excited to be a part of REVOLT at such a pivotal inflection point in the history of the company. We are sitting at the confluence of Black culture, media, and technology and we have a unique opportunity to combine all these forces and scale globally,“ Lewis said in a statement provided exclusively to AfroTech. REVOLT plans to stay ahead of industry trends and believes the strategic hires will advance the company’s goal to promote wealth building for its community in the real world and within the Metaverse. “REVOLT aspires to be a wealth-building engine for our community so, strategically, we have to build a business that can...
CÎROC is committed to Black businesses 365 days a year! As Black Business Month comes to an end, Diddy’s premium Vodka brand is doubling down on its commitment to Black businesses all year long! On Aug. 31, CÎROC launched its latest initiative which aims to support Black excellence and achievement.
Diddy has plans to revive R&B with a new business venture. According to Rap-Up, the music mogul, born Sean Combs, has plans to launch a new record label that will be exclusive to R&B artists. As he enters what he’s deemed his “love” era, the Bad Boy founder also announced that he’ll drop his first project in nearly six years, an album titled “Off The Grid.” “I’m coming back into music, you know?” said the 51-year-old during an interview with Vanity Fair. He’ll also return to his R&B roots. “Yeah, [an] all R&B label, because I feel like R&B was abandoned and it’s a part of our African American culture,” he continued. View this post on Instagram A post shared by LOVE (@diddy) In the past, Diddy has been criticized for his questionable Bad Boy contracts, but in this new era, he plans to do things differently. “And I’m not signing any artists,” said Diddy. “Because if you know better, you do better. I’m doing 50-50 partnerships with pure transparency. That’s the thing. [The new...
This teen entrepreneur continues to level up! According to REVOLT , Philadelphia native Trey Brown has made another major move to expand his growing empire. The 15-year-old CEO and founder of SPERGO, a boutique fashion collection for men, women, and children, is opening up his second store in Pentagon City Mall in Washington D.C. He also announced his partnership with the Philadelphia 76ers as part of their Buy Black Program. “I started SPERGO three years ago, and I never would have imagined that I would be officially stamped a 76ers partner by my home basketball team,” said Brown in an interview with Baller Alert. SPERGO’s first store was opened in his home of Philadelphia thanks to a $25,000 grant from Diddy when they appeared together on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” in 2020. In 2018, Brown used a $178 gift received on his 12th birthday to start SPERGO and now his mother anticipates that the brand will earn $2 million this year. He launched the store to empower youth and to be an...
Buying Black just got a whole lot easier! Salesforce and Combs Enterprises have joined forces to create SHOP CIRCULATE, a curated digital marketplace that will allow customers to discover and buy products exclusively created and sold by Black entrepreneurs. On the heels of the centennial anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre this past weekend, SHOP CIRCULATE was created to equip Black businesses with a platform that would allow them to reach global audiences and will empower consumers to shop the world’s best Black-owned brands. “Building Black wealth starts with investing in Black-owned businesses and giving entrepreneurs access to the consumers needed to build sustainable companies that can thrive,” said Sean Combs , Chairman of Combs Enterprises in an official press release. “I’m excited to partner with Salesforce to create a platform that will advance our collective pursuit of economic justice.” The announcement reiterates the value that comes with both supporting and...
Byron Allen wants Black-owned media to receive what’s rightfully theirs! According to Deadline , The Byron Allen Media Group (AMG) has sued McDonald’s Corp. for $10 billion in damages and alleges that the company has discriminated against Black-owned media. This comes as the high-profile businessman continues to come for big corporations who fail to give Black-owned media a fair shot when it comes to the distribution of massive advertising budgets. Filed in the Superior Court of California in Los Angeles, the lawsuit accuses the fast-food giant of both alleged racial stereotyping and refusing to contract with AMG’s Entertainment Studios and Weather Group in violation of federal and state law. The suit states that while African Americans represent about 40 percent of McDonald’s U.S. sales, African American-owned media receives less than $5 million out of its circulation of $1.6 billion in annual television advertising. In the lawsuit, AMG also alleges that the corporation’s refusal...
Diddy’s media company REVOLT and adidas originals have partnered with social media star Druski to introduce a new sustainability-focused brand campaign for Hip Hop that pledges to end plastic waste worldwide. According to a press release, the campaign also kicks off the launch of REVOLT’s new branded content agency, which will act as a launching pad for entertaining content with influential members in the Hip Hop industry to spark important conversations about cultural changes in the Black community. “Hip Hop is the leading genre of music globally. As an authority on Hip Hop culture, the world follows where we go. REVOLT has always strived to ignite positive changes within the Hip Hop community and the world around us, and we are thrilled to partner with a likeminded company like adidas Originals to pledge our efforts in encouraging sustainability,” Andre Woolery — SVP of Branded Content for REVOLT — said in a statement. “We are excited to leverage the power of Black culture to...
Music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs penned an open letter calling out corporate America, specifically General Motors (GM), for exploiting Black-owned media companies via his cable network’s entertainment and news site, REVOLT. In a letter titled, “If You Love Us, Pay Us,” Diddy exposes how corporations like General Motors falsely claim to support Black media companies like his own in an act that both robs them of advertising revenue and contributes to a history of systemic racism. “The same feet these companies use to stand with us in solidarity are the same feet they use to stand on our necks,” he writes, reports Blavity. The letter also calls additional attention to efforts from Byron Allen of Allen Media Group in which he and several other Black media companies took out a full page advertisement in the Detroit Free Press that directly blasted GM CEO Mary Barra for racism against said companies. While GM has claimed to be in support of companies like REVOLT, Diddy challenged that...
The revolution will be televised! Sean “Diddy” Combs has the Midas touch when it comes to longevity in an industry that most predicted wouldn’t be around forever. In 2020, reports revealed that Hip-Hop is America’s favorite and most influential genre thus far and the numbers don’t lie. Just like Diddy has an eye for musical talents, he has an eye for an executive team that will take his leading Black-owned media company, REVOLT, to revolutionary heights. Detavio Samuels and Colin McIntosh understand that they have a role to fulfill as the new leaders of REVOLT and they’re prepared to do it by any means necessary. “The mission is to create the largest Black global media empire that ever existed,” said Samuels, who has been appointed to CEO of the company, “and in that world, we can take care of our people.” McIntosh adds the title of Chief Operating Officer to his current position as REVOLT’s Chief Financial Officer. “We want to build a platform for creators,” said McIntosh in an...
It’s no secret that Black people have always and continue to drive the culture. From catchphrases to hashtags, with the invention of social media just came more innovative ways for us to influence the culture, but at what cost? Detavio Samuels, co-head of REVOLT — the media and television network founded by hip-hop mogul Diddy — dropped by on the latest episode of Black Tech Green Money. He shares the keys to staying ahead of the curve as Black creatives and how Black media companies can sustain growth and scale against a system that was never built for us to succeed. “It’s incredibly hard to trademark or capitalize off of catchphrases or hashtags,” he tells BTGM host Will Lucas. “As a creative, you should be thinking about what the end product of whatever idea it is that you’re creating and do your best to think about how you monetize it before throwing it out into the world.” Samuels stresses the importance of not only having a clear plan for monetization but being clear about...