Pharrell Williams’ multi-million dollar quest to uplift Black and Hispanic entrepreneurs endorsed by FAMU
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Most people know Pharrell Williams as the immensely successful singer-songwriter (“Happy”), producer and philanthropist.
But all along, the Virginia Beach, Virginia, native also has been climbing to the top of the charts as a global entrepreneur who doesn’t mind sharing his quest for providing others with financial empowerment in areas other than entertainment.
On Wednesday, Florida A&M University President Larry Robinson, endorsed Williams’s latest effort, Black Ambition, described as a non-profit initiative to provide a launching pad to success for Black and Hispanic entrepreneurs developing startups in technology, design, health care and consumer product services.
Key elements of the initiative are two prize competitions, The Black Ambition HBCU Prize and the Black Ambition Prize, which culminate in one major national event, according to a news release.
“Recent events and tragedies have illustrated the always existent stark divisions in the American experience, and while entrepreneurship has long been a tenet of the American dream, marginalized people have faced long-standing barriers to success,” Williams said in the release. “With Black Ambition, the goal is to help strengthen the pipeline of talented entrepreneurs and close the opportunity and wealth gaps derived from limited access to capital and resources.”
Working in synch with Historically Black Colleges and Universities, the Black Ambition HBCU Prize will offer prizes and mentorship for current and former HBCU students as they develop or seed early-stage ideas and launch companies in technology, design, health care and consumer products and services.
The grand prize winner will receive up to $250,000 and at least nine additional teams will receive smaller prizes.
Teams must include at least one current HBCU undergraduate or graduate student (full-time or part-time), one recent alum within two years of graduation, or one former student within two years of attending the institution who is a member of the founding team, according to the release.
This HBCU-affiliated individual must identify as Black/African/African American and/or Hispanic/Latino/a/Latinx.
The goal is to address the Black and Hispanic wealth gap by creating entrepreneurship opportunities for HBCU students and former students. It will also provide mentorship, which Williams called the “strategic scaffolding,” that enables talented entrepreneurs to succeed.
Robinson said FAMU’s current student body and its alumni are well positioned to benefit from this project.
“We are ready for this initiative. We have a long history of entrepreneurship at Florida A&M University. This is the right place,” said Robinson, who joined Williams, Norfolk State University President Javaune Adams-Gaston and representatives of Black Ambition, during a virtual news conference Tuesday, ahead of Wednesday's announcement.
Williams has been a strong supporter of Norfolk State, an HBCU located about 30 minutes from his hometown. FAMU is the No. 1-ranked HBCU by US News & World Report.
More: Robinson touts value of Florida A&M, HBCUs in address to Economic Club of Florida
More: FAMU receives $1 million grant from Bank of America to prepare grads for local jobs
More: FAMU receives $1.5 million from Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to expand COVID-19 testing
Second Black Ambition Prize
The Black Ambition Prize is similar in that it will identify, support, and seed early-stage companies in tech, design, healthcare, and consumer products and services. Ventures must have at least one founder or co-founder who identifies as Black or Hispanic.
The grand prize winner will receive up to a $1 million prize.
The prize will launch with a nationwide call for applications from eligible founder teams. Independent application reviewers will score eligible applications on the strength of their idea, with the strongest applications advancing to the major national event.
In July 2021, the two competitions will conclude with teams vying for prizes with presentations to judges and investors. In addition to financial awards, the entrepreneurs will receive mentorship and feedback as well as access to peer networks and expert connections.
Black Ambition is supported by funding from Adidas, Chanel, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, The Rockefeller Foundation, Tony’s Chocolonely and the Visa Foundation.
Individual donors include Silicon Valley venture capitalist Ron Conway and Jonah Peretti, a co-founder and CEO of BuzzFeed and co-founder of The Huffington Post.
Virgil Abloh, artist, designer and artistic director of Louis Vuitton’s menswear division contributed the Black Ambition logo and identity concept design.
Contact senior writer Byron Dobson at bdobson@tallahassee.com or on Twitter @byrondobson.
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To learn more
For more information on Black Ambition, competition eligibility, and how to apply, visit www.blackambitionprize.com
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Pharrell Williams’ Black entrepreneurial initiative endorsed by FAMU
