Pharrell Williams is making a difference. The “Happy” artist is changing people’s lives with some generous contributions.
On Tuesday, the music star awarded more than 30 Black and Latinx business founders upwards of $15,000 — through his nonprofit organization, Black Ambition — and he gave one deserving entrepreneur a grand prize of $1 million.
The open call for grants received over 1,700 applications, and the 34 finals who were chosen for the $15,000 grants were introduced to a personal mentor and met with over 100 potential investors at a “Demo Day,” held on Tuesday.
As for the grand prize, the sizable grant went to Livegistics, and the Black Ambition organization celebrated the winning businessmen with a congratulatory post on Instgram, that showcased the company’s grant-winning ambition.
“We’re excited to announce that @livegisticsllc will be awarded $1 million as the Grand Prize Winner of the Black Ambition Prize,” the post shared. “Founded by Justin Turk and Andre Davis, Livegistics helps replace your paper with technology that bridges the gaps between civil construction, demolition, waste management and logistics.”
“With Livegistics, civil, demolition and trucking companies can easily convert paper truck tickets into a real-time continuous flow of information, data and metrics that allow them to be in better control of cash flow and planning for the future,” the post added.
The HBCU grand prize of $250,000 went to Dosso Beauty founder Kadidja Dosso, who created the company, which is “a Black-owned, pre-stretched hypoallergenic itch-free Braiding Hair servicing the globe. An e-commerce organic beauty supplier, retailer, wholesaler and private labeler, the company supplies scalp-friendly pre-stretched hypoallergenic braiding hair that alleviates scalp irritation, avoids cancerous chemicals and provides comfortable hair styles.”
Williams congratulated all the grant winners in a press release, sharing, “These are the founders I dreamed would represent Black Ambition.”
“Today we celebrate their determination, resourcefulness and creativity,” Williams continued. “Because of Black Ambition, the world will be much more equitable… There’s been too much disparity and discrimination. Black Ambition will continue to create and push for more seats at the table, so that your talent, not your color, determines your results.”
