Diverse Disruptors Podcast: Meet the Future of Innovation

Black entrepreneurs receive less than one percent of all venture capital funding. Yet, the importance of entrepreneurial success in closing the racial wealth gap and in innovating for a more inclusive future is paramount. 88Nine Radio Milwaukee (WYSM-88.9FM) seeks to share personal stories of “Diverse Disruptors” from all over the country, their varied paths to success and the way investment in Black entrepreneurs has expanded into opportunities for people and communities of color. Season one of the new podcast, hosted by Radio Milwaukee’s Director of Digital Strategy and Innovation Tarik Moody, will highlight seven Black innovators in various fields from tech to education to eSports to venture capital — including nationally-recognized firm, Backstage Capital. There are so many folks that look like me that are doing amazing things in entrepreneurship,” shared Moody. “I want to share their stories with my city and beyond to inspire others like they inspired me. Because there is power with representation.” Radio Milwaukee released a pilot episode of “Diverse Disruptors” on January 18 — Martin Luther King, Jr. Day — with guest Sherrell Dorsey, founder and CEO of The Plug. In the wake of Black Out Tuesday, Dorsey tracked the commitments to diversity made by large corporations with the intent of holding them accountable to the promises they made. She opens up to Tarik about her childhood in Seattle, interning at Microsoft at age fourteen, and ultimately what led her to creating The Plug, a premium news service dedicated to sharing stories from the Black innovation economy.