So Money with Farnoosh Torabi

Today’s guest is my former editorial assistant and right hand guy, Donovan X Ramsey, who first appeared on the show in 2015. As a friend and accomplished journalist focusing on the topic of black identity, politics and patterns of power in America, I wanted to catch up with Donovan for my #BlackWealthMatters series.Key takeaways from our interview:How Donovan's upcoming book, When Crack Was King, chronicles the 1980's and 1990'se pidemic, its misperceptions and the way policing changed during those years.Donovan's own experiences with racial discrimination in graduate school and beyond.The truth about what publishing pays. Donovan and Farnoosh disclose their book advances.More about Donovan: He is called "an indispensable voice on issues of racial identity, politics, and patterns of power in America," by American culture critic Rich Benjamin. Donovan's commentary on racial politics during the Obama era has been featured in The New York Times and his reporting and commentary on the criminal justice system have appeared in outlets including WSJ Magazine, The Atlantic, GQ, Gawker, BuzzFeed, Vice, and Ebony, among others.Donovan served most recently as the commentary editor at The Marshall Project, a Pulitzer Prize-winning news organization dedicated to the U.S. criminal legal system. Before The Marshall Project, he worked as an editor and writer at a number of outlets including Complex, NewsOne, and NBC's theGrio.com.Donovan holds a master's degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Morehouse College. He lives in Atlanta, Georgia, and is currently completing his first book, a history of the crack cocaine epidemic for One World—an imprint of Random House, a division of Penguin Random House, the world's largest trade book publisher.You can learn about Donovan on his website www.donovanxramsey.com and follow him on Twitter @iDXR. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stephanie Vaught, J.D. is a Gen X Financial Coach and Founder of Social Money Finance, LLC. Her company specializes in teaching effective money management and helping people build a life they love.Stephanie was born and raised in Detroit, MI. She attended Detroit Public Schools and received a B.A. from Michigan State University in 2000. In 2007, Stephanie graduated with a Juris Doctor and concentration in Litigation from Thomas M. Cooley Law School. She has spent most of her professional career in law and community advocacy.In 2009, Stephanie developed a profound interest in personal finance – mostly based on the need to manage her own household and entrepreneurial endeavors. In 2015, Stephanie made a career shift and became a certified financial counselor. She began working with a financial nonprofit counseling and educating thousands of people across the country about financial literacy and helping them to reach their personal financial goals. In 2018, Stephanie decided to take her financial knowledge coupled with her legal skills and experience back to a community of her peers and founded Social Money Finance, LLC. Her mission is to empower people to increase their financial literacy, challenge unproductive money habits, and improve their financial place for themselves and their family. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Queen Latifah made her first big splash onto the music scene at age 19, with the release of her hit rap single “Ladies, First.” For the next three decades, the Newark, New Jersey native would go on to build a multi-faceted and dynamic career as a musician, actress, producer and philanthropist, blazing a trail for other Black female artists. I recently sat down with Queen during her press tour for The Queen Collective, her latest endeavor which provides opportunities for women of color in film to tell stories from their viewpoint. The mentoring and development program, in collaboration with Tribeca Studios and Procter and Gamble, selected two winners this year and their projects will premiere on BET Networks, Saturday, June 13th at 9:00 p.m. ET. In our conversation, she shared some of the financial lessons experienced while growing up and building her business, as well as her ideas on how we can promote more equality in the workplace and close the racial wealth gap.    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dr. Nicole Garner Scott is the Atlanta-based founder of Amount Financial Services. She is dedicated to creating financial breathing room for households of underrepresented communities. She has created wide-scale programs to empower others to change their financial trajectories, focused on legacy building and generational wealth. Dr. Scott is a sought-after speaker and received an honorary doctorate for her work in business from the Obama Association. Together we explore some of the historical barriers to wealth that have continued to be road blocks for people in the Black community, as well as how the financial expert community can be more sensitive and mindful when offering advice.To learn more about Dr. Scott, please visit www.amountfinancial.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Continuing our Black Wealth Matters series with Minda Harts, founder of The Memo LLC, a career development company for women of color, and author of The Memo: What Women of Color Need to Know to Secure a Seat at the Table. An Assistant Professor of Public Service of NYU’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, she is also a sought-after speaker on the topic of workplace diversity and inclusion. She lives in New York City.In The Memo, Minda provides a roadmap for women to not only navigate but change the system that they are working within. And she makes it clear that yes, the discrimination you are feeling, those microaggressions, they are real — and we need to acknowledge them so we can change our reality. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Over the years many outstanding Black individuals who fought racism and oppression to achieve personal wealth and career success have graced my podcast. For the next 10 episodes - from today June 3rd through June 24 - I’ll be re-sharing and re-amplifying some of their voices and work, their stories of resilience, hard work and triumph. I’m calling this series BLACK WEALTH MATTERS. I announced this on Instagram earlier in the week. It is my small way of contributing to this human rights issue of racial equality. It’s the quickest action I know to take that would hopefully have a meaningful impact...to get us to unlearn, re-evaluate and better understand what it means to be a Black person in this country while trying to establish personal wealth. Thank you to everyone who responded to my announcement with guest recommendations for Black Wealth Matters. I’ve taken them all into account and keeping a folder and hoping to work my way to speaking to all of them - if not this month - in the coming months. Please keep the guest suggestions coming.Today -- We are revisiting my conversation with Myleik Teele from 2015. Myleik is the Atlanta-based founder and chief experience officer of Curlbox, the first exclusive monthly subscription box for naturally curly hair. curlBOX has major partnerships with brands and distributors including Procter & Gamble, Walmart, Target, and Shea Moisture, and more. A teacher at heart, her wildly popular, #MyTaughtYou podcast has become her global classroom where women from all walks of life tune in for guidance and a healthy dose of motivation to live life on their own terms. You just heard at the top of this show - a moment from our conversation - when she candidly opens up about her relationship with money. Even as a wealthy woman, she is, as she says, cautious with her money, perhaps overly cautious.To learn more about Myleik visit: mytaughtyou.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From how to spend the stimulus check to mortgage forbearance and rent negotiations, Lauren Silbert, VP and General Manager of personal finance website TheBalance.com shares some of the top searches on the site - and answers to people's biggest money questions.More about Lauren: She was named a “Corporate Champion” in Folio Magazine’s 2019 Top Women in Media Awards. She also appears in print, broadcast and streaming media as a personal finance and careers commentator and expert. The Balance makes personal finance easy to understand. It is home to experts who provide clear, practical advice on managing your money. Whether you’re looking to invest, buy a home, save for retirement, or achieve another financial goal, The Balance will answer your questions with straightforward personal financial advice. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week's Ask Farnoosh covers more real estate ground, as well as questions about investing for retirement. Farnoosh also shares her homebuyer checklist for anyone interested in purchasing a home this year. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sticking with the week's theme of real estate, Tracy Tutor, star of Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles, joins the show with details of the behind-the-scenes housing activity in the Los Angeles area. Tracy is a mother, entrepreneur and Real Estate agent with over 15 years of experience. She can currently be seen on the 12th season of Million Dollar Listing LA - the first and only female in the cast! In her new book, Fear is a Four-Letter Word, provides a go-to manual for women who struggle to convince people they're in charge. She shares intimate details from her early years struggling to break into the cut-throat industry and a recent success that helped seal a deal that nobody thought could be won. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Real estate expert Ilyce Glink answers all of our top questions about buying and selling in the current market. How has the pandemic impacted housing prices and is now a good time to buy?This episode originally aired on May 6, 2020. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.