Angela Benton and her New Me Accelerator didn’t always call Miami home.
Back in 2011, when Benton launched the first startup accelerator for minority entrepreneurs, she was in Silicon Valley, and she was featured on CNN’s documentary, “Black in America: The New Promised Land – Silicon Valley.”
“Everybody was about diversifying Silicon Valley in favor of Black people,” Benton said during a GHOGH Podcast — pronounced “Go!” — with Jamarlin Martin. “Then the narrative started to shift from Black people to women, and now a lot of the resources are going to women. When they talk about diversifying, they’re talking about women.”
Benton relocated New Me headquarters to Miami a year ago.
She no longer takes sponsorship dollars.
“When you take money from people, they control the narrative,” she said during the GHOGH podcast. “If I take money from said company, how vocal can I really be without fucking up my pockets? … Don’t get me wrong, I like money. I’ve had to restart my business and walk away from hundreds of thousands of dollars just because I knew something wasn’t right.”
Digital media pioneer Jamarlin Martin launched the GHOGH Podcast Franchise — Go Hard Or Go Home — at SXSW 2018, aimed at multicultural millennials.
He spoke to Benton in Miami about starting NewMe Accelerator, whose black and brown founders have raised $42 million in venture capital. A pioneering contributor to Black tech media with BlackWeb 2.0, Benton discusses building her personal brand while being a single mom, battling cancer, and whether or not most of the “diversity” gains in Silicon Valley will go to privileged white women.
Hear more of Angela Benton on Episode 5 of the GHOGH Podcast.
Episode 6: Rodney Sampson, founder of HBCU@SXSW and the Atlanta-based Opportunity Hub, discusses investing in Atlanta blockchain startups and the importance of connecting HBCU endowments to Black tech. He covers the intersectionality of oppression, discrimination, and holding SV leaders accountable for inequality.
Episode 5: Angela Benton talks about starting NewMe Accelerator, building her personal brand as a single mother while battling cancer, and whether or not most of the “diversity” gains in Silicon Valley will go to privileged white women.
Episode 4: Detavio Samuels, president of Interactive One, leads a $30M digital media business that in 2017 acquired Bossip, Madamenoire, and HiphopWired. He discusses Richelieu Dennis’ acquisition of Essence, Facebook’s recent fumbles, and whether Complex Media is a culture vulture.
Episode 3: Arlan Hamilton talks about Backstage Capital, the VC fund she dreamed up while she was homeless. She talks about the Silicon Valley establishment and about Tamika Mallory, who attended Saviours’ Day with Louis Farrakhan.
Episode 2: Rodney Williams, founder and CEO of Lisnr, talks about raising $10 million in venture capital, HBCU endowments that invest in black tech, and how to fire loyal employees you like.
Episode 1: Brian Brackeen talks about his path to starting his facial recognition firm, Kairos, how blockchain can be applied to the NFL, and whether Disney’s’ “Black Panther” is revolutionary.
