John Hope Bryant: The Power of Financial Knowledge

It’s election week in America. It's the once-every-four-years moment we consider how we view ourselves as a nation. Central to both campaigns is an American myth told over and over again: America is a place where anything can happen, where anybody can pull themselves up by the bootstraps and make something of themselves. A wild west where only the strongest and the fittest sit at the top of the hierarchy.

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Helen Oyeyemi: Telling Stories in Blue Mascara

In 2014, while promoting her fifth novel, Buzzfeed asked Helen Oyeyemi if she could share one of her personal superstitions. “I can recommend wearing blue mascara whilst writing,” she said. “I'm telling you, it really adds something.” Oyeyemi’s career reflects that superstition: like colored mascara, her writing is quirky and unconventional. As an author, Oyeyemi refuses to allow her words to exist within a singular genre, culture, or aesthetic.

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Brandon Deener: Afrofuturist Artist

Music producer and visual artist Brandon Deener has just about done it all. From his extensive background in music to his career as an artist, Deener’s journey as a creative is deeply rooted. 

Deener grew up in Memphis, Tennessee, where he first started his musical career in church, singing in the choir and playing the drums. Developing a deep passion for music, the artist began trying his hand at music production. He knew almost instantly that he found his passion. His ambitious determination and pure love of production left the multi-talented creative hurdling through the music industry, landing him a position in the studio with Timbaland as a protégé. 

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