David Banner heads to Richmond as Virginia Black Expo gathers founders, civic figures and cultural voices for a major ownership-focused gathering.
David Banner will be a featured guest when he and others bring their expertise to Richmond, VA this Saturday at the Virginia Black Expo. The expo returns with Black-owned businesses at the center of the action with a healthy dose of learning, sharing, inspiration, entrepreneurship and excitement.
The 6th Annual Virginia Black Expo takes over Richmond’s Main Street Station on Aug. 22 with Banner among a broad roster of speakers, business leaders, entertainers and elected officials expected to participate.
The lineup also includes media personality Free Marie, entrepreneur Pinky Cole Hayes, DJ Akademiks (not the streamer), actor and entrepreneur Lamman Rucker, AllHipHop co-founder Chuck “Jigsaw” Creekmur, Virginia Lt. Gov. Ghazala Hashmi and state Sen. Angelia Williams Graves.
Presented by the Virginia Black Chamber of Commerce, the free event is designed to connect commerce with community while giving entrepreneurs a sizable marketplace to showcase their products and services.
Join Us
AllHipHop’s Daily News Service
Delivering news to inboxes since 1999. We break it. They take it. Get it first, straight from AllHipHop.
Banner arrives with a résumé that stretches well beyond his career as an artist and producer. The Mississippi native has also worked as an actor, entrepreneur and activist while becoming a prominent speaker on business, education, economic empowerment and community development.
At the Expo, Banner is expected to discuss business, ownership, leadership and investing in Black communities, adding another dimension to a gathering built around turning conversation into economic activity.
Chuck “Jigsaw” Creekmur will moderate the “More Than a Role: Black Men in Business, Purpose, Wellness & Legacy” panel, a conversation that will bring together accomplished Black men from media, entertainment, technology and entrepreneurship. The discussion will feature actor, educator and entrepreneur Dr. Lamman Rucker; pocstock Co-Founder, CEO and Chairman Steve Jones; and Capstone Tech Founder and CEO Shawn Gregoire. The conversation will explore entrepreneurship, economic opportunity, wellness, brotherhood, mentorship, and the challenge of building a legacy.
Organizers expect thousands of entrepreneurs, corporate partners, community leaders and elected officials to attend the gathering.
The Expo Melanin Marketplace will operate from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. with entertainment continuing until 8 p.m. More than 150 vendors and exhibitors are expected to participate alongside food trucks, product demonstrations and community organizations.
The programming stretches beyond shopping. Organizers have scheduled business panels, Black Table Talk discussions, health and wellness experiences, networking opportunities and live entertainment. A bike and car show powered by BLKThrottle Co. is also part of the day’s activities.
The weekend actually gets moving Friday night with Network & Chill, the official welcome event ahead of Saturday’s Expo. Free Marie, who once hosted BET’s 106 & Park, is scheduled as a special guest with DJ Akademiks providing music. The kickoff is positioned as a networking opportunity for entrepreneurs, professionals, exhibitors, sponsors, creators and community members coming into Richmond for the weekend.
Saturday’s gathering is free and open to the public, though registration is required. Click here to register.
The Virginia Black Expo has developed into more than a conventional trade show.
Its mix of commerce, entertainment, politics, wellness and culture reflects an effort to make Black entrepreneurship visible while creating direct opportunities for people to spend money with the businesses gathered under one roof. And, there is a healthy dose of Hip-Hop.
Banner, Free and Creekmur put Hip-Hop squarely inside that conversation.
Now, the conversations will be about who owns the business, where the money travels and what communities can build when supporting themselves.
Related
