ColorCreative, a management and production company co-founded by Issa Rae, is set to undergo a major expansion thanks to a new strategic partnership with HarbourView Equity Partners, a Black-woman-founded investment firm. The terms of the deal have not been disclosed, but with HarbourView’s backing, the company plans to evolve into a fully integrated, independent studio platform with global ambitions. “Partnering with HarbourView allows us to dream even bigger,” said Rae, per Private Equity Insights. “We remain committed to supporting the kinds of projects that made us fall in love with
Sundial Media & Technology Group, the parent company of ESSENCE, AFROPUNK, and Refinery29, has partnered with Creator Currency Networks to launch a new platform for women creators. CreateHer Network is the first creator platform dedicated to bridging the economic gap between women’s cultural influence and how much they’re paid. It has already secured partnerships with key industry players, including ESSENCE, Refinery29, BeautyCon, Curly Culture, and CurlyCon, according to a press release. CreateHer: A Platform For Economic Power Women drive 85% of US purchasing decisions and influence $31.8 trillion in global
Shaquille O’Neal will pay $1.8 million to settle claims that he deceived investors by promoting a now-bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, CBNC reports. The case had been pending since November 2022. The FTX Class Action Lawsuit The class action lawsuit also includes notable celebrities such as Tom Brady, Gisele Bündchen, Steph Curry, Naomi Osaka, Larry David, and FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried. However, O’Neal was the only celebrity defendant to remain associated with the company after he was served legal papers. After avoiding rocess servers for months, O’Neal was served with two complaints during
McDonald’s has settled a $10 billion lawsuit by Byron Allen, who accused the company of racial bias by excluding Black-owned media from much of its advertising budget, Reuters reports. The settlement between McDonald’s and two of Allen’s companies, Entertainment Studios Networks and the Weather Group, was announced on June 13, 2025. Financial details have not been disclosed and McDonald’s denies any wrongdoing. Byron Allen’s lawsuit against McDonald’s Allen’s lawsuit claims that McDonald’s created a separate “African American tier” with significantly lower advertising budgets for Black-owned media. He argues that this
Elon Musk’s Starlink has gradually expanded its presence in Africa, with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) being the latest African country to grant the company permission to operate. The Gambia, a country with an underdeveloped broadband infrastructure, would be an ideal region for Starlink to run in. So, when the US government arrived in The Gambia, it framed Starlink’s entry as part of the broader Digital Transformation for Africa (DTA) initiative, a White House-led effort to improve internet access across Africa. However, critics, including Lamin Jabbi of Gambia’s
Tubi is collaborating with Kickstarter to offer distribution opportunities to producers who utilize the crowdfunding platform to support independent filmmaking. From the beginning of fall, more than 20 movies that “uniquely resonate with Tubi fandoms” will begin exclusively streaming on the platform. Tubi also plans to invest in Kickstarter’s FilmStream Collective Fund, which focuses on providing financial support to early-career filmmakers to help them complete their projects. Both Tubi and Kickstarter will also pledge to 10 specific Kickstarter campaigns to help them meet their funding goals. These 10 films will
Khaby Lame has left the US after being briefly detained by immigration agents for allegedly overstaying his visa, according to The Guardian. The TikTok star, whose legal name is Seringe Khabane Lame, was detained on Friday, 6 June, at an airport in Las Vegas. A spokesperson for the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) told the Guardian in a statement that he was released on the same day and has since left the country. Lame had arrived in the US on 30 April and had allegedly overstayed the terms of
Steph Curry’s Thirty Ink generated $173.5 million in revenue in 2024, according to CBNC. Thirty Ink is a brand conglomerate that houses all of Curry’s business entities, including Unanimous Media, Gentleman’s Cut bourbon, and Underrated Golf and Basketball. A high percentage of that revenue came from its partnership with Under Armour, where the basketball player launched the Curry Brand, a basketball and golf footwear and apparel brand company. He is also the president of that brand. In 2023, Curry was given $8.8 million Under Armour common shares, valued at $75 million
Starlink has received the green light to begin operating in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) following a previous ban. Reuters reported that the Democratic Republic of Congo said that it had become the latest African country to grant a license to Starlink. In March 2024, the Congolese government announced that Starlink was banned from operating in the country, following concerns from military officials that it could be used by rebel groups, such as the Rwandan-backed M23, which had taken over more territory than ever in the east of the country
Byron Allen is selling local television stations owned by his Allen Media Group (AMG), and Moelis & Co. is managing the deal. Allen Media Group announced the news on May 2, according to The Los Angeles Times. The company needs to pay down debt, Allen said in a statement. Over the past six years, the company has invested over $1 billion in acquiring stations with the hopes of becoming the largest independent television operator in the United States. Its portfolio includes 28 stations affiliated with ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox,
