Living Live Foundation CEO On Helping Others Soar Through Entrepreneurship

Forbes

Jordan Live is the CEO and Founder of Living Live,  a 501(c)3 non-profit based in Atlanta, GA, dedicated to empowering BIPOC creatives in the arts and culture. Jordan's goal is to promote, produce, and provide access to a variety of arts experiences encompassing the visual, media, and performing arts. We encourage artistic expression in creatives of color to explore their dreams and develop their talents.  Jordan Live speaks with Rosemarie Miller for 'Forbes Talks' sharing his journey as a creative and Living Live's Career Readiness Program.  0:00 Introduction 0:15 What Is Living Live? 0:47 Building A Foundation To Support Creatives 1:24 Being A Creative And Pursuing Your Path 2:48 Living Live's Career Readiness Program 3:44 Bringing Jordan's Idea To Life 5:19 What Has Jordan Endured To Get Here?

Transcript

00:00 (upbeat music)

00:02 - Hi everyone, I'm Rose Marie Miller

00:05 and I am backstage at the Forbes Be OK Summit

00:08 with Jordan Live, the founder and CEO

00:11 of Living Live Foundation.

00:13 Thank you so much for joining me today, Jordan.

00:15 - Thank you for having me.

00:16 - Absolutely.

00:17 So Jordan, tell us about your foundation.

00:20 What inspired you to create it?

00:22 - Well, ultimately just creatives inspired me.

00:25 I'm a creative by nature, not by choice.

00:28 So, you know, just in that lands,

00:30 I just wanna see creatives thrive,

00:32 not only survive, but to truly soar.

00:34 And so I plan on doing some flying.

00:37 I want other people to do some flying as well.

00:39 So that's inspiration.

00:40 - I love that.

00:41 You said, I am a creative by nature, not by choice.

00:45 Could you expand on that?

00:47 - It's just something that, you know,

00:49 I would say just came naturally to me.

00:51 It's not something that, you know,

00:52 I chose or I could study upon, even though I did,

00:55 I'm a graduate of Clark Atlanta University.

00:58 So, you know, I went to Clark to brush up on, you know,

01:02 really hone in on my skills,

01:03 but ultimately it's something that came naturally to me.

01:06 And just like many creatives, that's the same thing as well.

01:10 But with our organization, Living Live Foundation,

01:12 we wanna make sure that creatives have those opportunities,

01:15 that those resources to really thrive

01:18 and to really go about and, you know,

01:20 just, you know, to just tap into their dreams like no other.

01:23 No other.

01:24 - So at what point in your life did you realize,

01:27 I am a creative.

01:28 This is just me.

01:30 - I would say early on.

01:31 It was forever indebted in me, you know, just in me.

01:35 I would say my favorite singer of all time

01:37 is Whitney Houston.

01:38 All my friends know that.

01:40 This year we had the opportunity of getting a grant

01:42 from the Whitney Houston Legacy Foundation

01:44 for our youth program, Lighting the Way.

01:46 So I would say as, you know,

01:48 the start of the very beginning,

01:49 seeing Whitney and Brandy and Cinderella,

01:52 and just seeing how much the diversity

01:55 and inclusion was on full display.

01:57 You know, you remember those things as a kid.

02:00 It lingers and the impact is so massive.

02:03 So, you know, with our youth program specifically,

02:06 working with the kids at Barack and Michelle Obama Academy,

02:09 making that imprint now,

02:11 because it makes a difference,

02:13 a tremendous difference when you start early.

02:15 But also we cater to, you know, creators of all ages,

02:18 making sure that they have those, you know,

02:21 just the capability and the opportunity

02:23 to do whatever they wanna do,

02:25 to try and mess up and try again,

02:28 experiment and figure out what works for them as a creator.

02:31 - So first of all, I love Whitney,

02:33 and I know what you're talking about

02:35 with the Brandy and Whitney thing.

02:36 Brandy was in tears when she met,

02:37 but I know what you're talking about.

02:39 (laughing)

02:40 But Jordan, give us some details

02:43 on like what the day-to-day looks like

02:45 at Living Life Foundation.

02:47 - The day-to-day is, let's say,

02:49 it's all over the place for creators,

02:51 but in a great way,

02:52 because we have so many things that we're working on.

02:55 We're working with the youth,

02:56 we're working with that Collegiate Career Readiness Program

02:59 that we're launching at my alma mater,

03:01 Clark Atlanta University Film Program,

03:04 making sure that they have what they need as well,

03:06 expose, bring in those directors,

03:09 those famed producers,

03:10 some people that are actually in the field,

03:12 on set, day-to-day to give the students,

03:15 you know, that the real time,

03:17 you know, just expertise and experience,

03:19 'cause it's one thing to hear stuff from professors,

03:21 but it's another thing to hear, you know,

03:23 the real inside scoop from people

03:25 who are actually in the field doing it.

03:28 So the day-to-day for Living Life Foundation,

03:31 it's a lot going on,

03:33 but it's a lot going on in the best way

03:34 because I'm passionate,

03:36 I'm a creative by nature, like I told you,

03:38 and I love to see creatives doing their thing.

03:41 And that's what we're gonna make sure that,

03:43 you know, creators are able to do.

03:44 - Yeah.

03:45 So could you give us a step to how you created it?

03:47 Like, okay, you have the idea,

03:50 how did you bring it to life?

03:52 - It lingered for a while,

03:53 like a lot of great things, you know,

03:55 it might come as a pebble,

03:57 and then, you know, you'll put it off

03:59 and not pay attention to it,

04:00 and it'll come as a rock.

04:02 - Yeah.

04:03 - And then a whole, you know,

04:04 the brick house fall on you,

04:04 then you know you have to give it some attention.

04:06 So that's, you know,

04:07 sort of like the idea was for the foundation.

04:09 I couldn't put it off any longer,

04:11 and especially, you know, being a creative myself,

04:13 having friends that are creative,

04:15 and seeing that there was a void that needed filling,

04:18 a need, you know, for creatives to really be empowered,

04:22 and just, you know, just energized.

04:24 I'm also, okay, we gotta do something,

04:26 and if not, you know, them, then us, then me.

04:29 Somebody has to do it.

04:31 So, you just ultimately putting the plan in action,

04:35 laying the groundwork for the foundation,

04:37 and the formation of it all,

04:39 getting a team of people,

04:40 'cause you are only as strong as your team.

04:43 So I know some incredible folks,

04:45 who know some incredible folks,

04:46 so we, you know, rarely we got a good solid team together

04:48 to cover the basis of the arts,

04:50 from television, from film, screenwriting,

04:53 to songwriting, we have performers on our board.

04:56 It runs the gamut.

04:58 And just carving out the mission,

04:59 carving out who we wanted to target.

05:01 I know I wanted to see my people in my life.

05:03 I know I wanna see us do great things.

05:06 So just, you know, bringing all that together,

05:08 bringing that beauty, that greatness together,

05:10 that I know we have,

05:12 and that's where we are today, Living Live Foundation.

05:14 So we're on our way.

05:16 We're small but mighty, but we're on our way.

05:19 - You make it sound so easy, like,

05:21 oh, we just brought this team together,

05:23 and now we're doing it.

05:24 I don't believe that it looks like that.

05:26 What are some challenges that you endured,

05:28 that you had to overcome?

05:29 - You know, just, I'll say the challenges for sure,

05:31 just being transparent with you,

05:34 is, you know, not having all the resources,

05:37 or all the funds, but you have the idea.

05:40 You have the passion,

05:42 you have the heart and determination for it.

05:45 So it's making sure that, you know,

05:47 you are planning accordingly,

05:48 that you are still striding,

05:50 and having those blinders on like a horse,

05:53 like no matter how tough the day is,

05:55 one day, you know what the ultimate goal is in life,

05:58 is my people.

06:00 I wanna see people like me, like you,

06:03 have the opportunity to really thrive.

06:06 And I say that because I believe that to be true.

06:09 I know the difference it makes when, you know,

06:12 I see someone that looks like you,

06:13 that's on set, that's probably on set,

06:16 and I'm on a predominantly white set.

06:19 But just that impact, just, you know,

06:21 just the difference that that makes,

06:22 one step at a time.

06:24 So the days are long, and they're not always easy.

06:27 They're not always great days,

06:30 but I know in the grand scheme of things,

06:32 in the long haul, it's gonna be worth it.

06:34 If not for me, the next person behind me,

06:37 because what are we doing it for,

06:39 if it's not a little easier for the next person?

06:42 - It is worth it.

06:43 Thank you so much, Jordan.

06:44 You're awesome. - Thank you.

06:45 (silence)

06:48 (silence)

06:50 (silence)

06:52 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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