Today we’d like to introduce you to Nneka Carrie Ude.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Nneka Carrie. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Well, I’m passionate, outspoken, well-traveled, quick on my feet, a little awkward (if I’m being honest) and extremely curious. In fact, I believe everyone should be curious about something. For me, that something is actually two things – tech and culture. My interest in both have guided my professional career as an agency side, brand and experiential strategist. It has also afforded me the opportunity to help many local non-profits and startups tackle challenges hindering their growth. As an advertiser, I’m young enough to understand and champion new tech, but I am also old enough to remember when the utility of platforms like Facebook wasn’t fully understood by brands and advertisers.
I’ll be the first to tell you that I am not a techie (btw, neither was Steve Jobs). But I believe in the magic of technology and its ability to transcend borders and connect people to ideas and cultures. It is the greatest democratizer the world has ever seen. I love seeing entrepreneurs leverage technology to solve problems. And although professionally, my job is to help brands and retailers better understand the role tech plays in the lives of people, I’m equally passionate about finding ways for big brands and startups to collaborate.
For me culture is the substance of all advertising and marketing. After thirteen years in the industry I know two things to be true. The first is that mainstream culture – from fashion, to music, to beauty – has been undeniably impacted and influenced by black culture. The second is that technology has deepened the relevancy of Black (American) culture around the world. This intersection, of people, culture, and tech, is at the heart of how I think and what I am passionate about exploring, as a marketing practitioner and as an emerging entrepreneur.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Time and the prioritization of time has been the ultimate challenge. As a hybrid entrepreneur, someone who is building a business while also maintaining a full time job, time never quite seems to be on your side. When you are first starting out, you are juggling multiple priorities without a lot of help. I have spent (and am still spending) a lot time in the trenches. It’s easy for young founders and creators to get distracted and ignore what’s important, especially when you are building an intangible product. It’s also easy to be overcome by doubt, the grandeur of your own vision, and/or obligations that aren’t getting you closer to your end goal. What I’ve come to believe is that perfect should ever be the enemy of good. Sometimes good is all you need. You can always build from there.
(Welcome to) THE PATH – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
THE PATH is a media platform and digital community exploring the intersection of entrepreneurship, economics, tech, and culture within communities of color in the U.S. and around the world.
The platform was born of the desire to see the faces and hear the stories of black and brown founders, creators, and entrepreneurs changing the business world. I understand the power and importance of representation as I have spent the last 14 years of my career in the advertising and media worlds. But when you look at mainstream business media, one could quickly draw the conclusion that it’s a “white man’s” game. It is not. And with more and more people from my generation (millennial) trading their suits for jeans and a blazer, it became increasingly apparent that the dialogue needed to be refreshed.
I launched THE PATH to do just that – explore the impact black and brown millennial and Gen Z founders, creators, and entrepreneurs are having on business, mainstream culture, and their communities. The platform right now is a mix of curated and original video and editorial content spotlighting the next generation of power players. The vision is to create a multimedia platform that adds texture and dimension to what it means to be a young and gifted person of color.
14 months following its launch, THE PATH is in a state of real growth. We recently launched our first (of many) web series entitled THE XCHANGE, curated the “Unapologetically Black, Undeniably Tech” ACE Talk for Black Tech Mecca’s State of the Black Tech Ecosystem Summit, and will be expanding our team in the next month. Getting to this place has been a slow journey full of doubt and disruption. But creating inclusive narratives and spaces that champion the change agents among us is my way of giving back and doing good.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
It always feels good when you see your vision fully and phenomenally executed. When we launched our first web series, THE XCHANGE, that sense of accomplishment and pride was at the forefront. THE XCHANGE is a provocative storytelling series that embodies how I would define the future of video content created by THE PATH. It is fun, engaging, culturally relevant, and equally insightful. The series brings two emerging entrepreneurs to the table to play a game of 21 questions, exploring their opinions on everything from innovation, culture, startup life, and strategy. What myself and co-creator/producer, Shawn Gadley, aimed to deliver was a realistic look into the minds of the people shaping and creating the future. We didn’t want to just interview founders, but rather allow them to ask questions of each other to showcase how they see the world.
We launched season one on May 15th of this year with Fabian Elliott and Dineo Seakamela, cofounders of Chicago based data and tech think tank, Black Tech Mecca. Season one will also feature International Opera Singer and founder of Voice with Keanon, Keanon Kyles; podcaster and advertising exec, Joi’ Weathers, of the Joi’ has Questions podcast; founder of Bricks Creative Group, Mark-Anthony Marshall; and podcaster and host of Black Tech Unplugged, Deena McKay. Episodes for season one will run through September and can be viewed via our website (welcometothepath.com), as well as on YouTube and Facebook (@welcometothepath).
Contact Info:
- Website: welcometothepath.com
- Phone: 7734257859
- Email: hello@welcometothepath.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/welcometothepath/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WelcomeToThePath/
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9UDGIpE5wo5Pa6YK8NmFLA
Image Credit:
BLKTECH Charlotte
Black Tech Mecca
Shawn Gadley Creative
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