Since its inception in 1970, ESSENCE magazine has been a go-to lifestyle magazine for Black women, covering a wide range of topics such as politics, fashion, beauty and more.

ESSENCE Ventures is a Black-owned and operated private-equity company. Its mission is to empower, connect and provide ownership to Black communities. It achieves this goal by creating and sharing curated content, products and experiences that uplift and shape cultures worldwide.

ESSENCE Ventures has a monthly audience of over 30-plus million people across the diaspora, and it inspires, informs, invests, and entertains through its dedication to Black excellence. “The platforms we manage are given to the communities that we exist within and the reflection of how they define culture, take equity and ownership, and celebrate global impact that is told firsthand in their authentic, transparent and educational voices,” said CEO and president of ESSENCE Ventures Caroline Wanga.

The company’s premier brands include ESSENCE, Afropunk, Girls United, Naturally Curly, ESSENCE Studios and BeautyCon. These brands celebrate diversity while offering first-class digital, social, video, print and content, and products that guide, enrich, inspire, sustain and surprise audiences.

In this episode of Young Influentials, Adweek digital editor and host Colin Daniels sits down with ESSENCE Ventures chief content officer God-is Rivera as she shares her personal journey in the media industry and gives us a glimpse of what lies ahead.

Stream the new episode below, or listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or iHeartRadio.