Twin Cities leader continues pushing for market equity following murder of George Floyd

CATHY WURZER: Emmy Award winning radio and podcast personality Sheletta Brundidge is a force. I've known her for more than 20 years. Her focus is amplifying diverse voices and celebrating Black culture in the Twin Cities. Earlier this year, she called out a handful of major corporations in Minnesota for not supporting Black-owned media. And recently, she's gotten some results. Here to tell us more is Sheletta herself. Welcome back to the program.

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: It is so good to be here. Happy Wednesday to you and your listeners, Cathy Wurzer.

CATHY WURZER: Oh, Sheletta Brundidge, I wish you a happy Wednesday as well. Now first, let's tell folks about your work.

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: Well, I am a podcast entrepreneur. Had not planned to do that. Was more than happy to host a radio show in primetime on any number of stations in the Twin Cities and retire there. But with 20 years of experience, an Emmy, and two Edward R. Murrow Awards, I kept getting passed over for opportunities.

And I thought, instead of fighting for a seat at the table, I'm going to build my own. So I created shelettamakesmelaugh.com. It was just supposed to be me doing a weekly podcast. And then I start hearing from so many other Minnesota subject experts. Like Dr. Verna Price and Anissa Keyes and Lambers Fisher and so many other folks. And they say, Sheletta, we have almost been shut out. We've got a voice and we have something to say. We want to do a podcast, too.

So before you know it, Cathy, I had 10 shows with 13 Black subject experts. And we fashion ourselves as a one stop shop for cultural relevance and creativity.

CATHY WURZER: OK. So you got that up and going. And then of course--

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: Got it up and going.

CATHY WURZER: --George Floyd was murdered. And after that occurred, several big corporations-- Target, General Mills, L'Oreal-- all said, all right, we're going to support BIPOC-owned organizations. And, I can't remember, what did they promise specifically?

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: Yeah, Target and General Mills specifically said that they were going to dedicate 2% to 5% of their ad buys with Black-owned media outlets like mine. And so that was such an exciting time. Because the Spokesman Recorder newspaper and so many other organizations like mine, Black-owned media outlets here in town, we called each other, and we were like, did you hear? They're going to finally give us an opportunity. We're going to be able to run the ads, the same ads that you see on a KARE 11 or a KSTP, will be running on our Black-owned media channels.

And so we all one by one went to these corporations that are based right here in Minnesota and presented our media kits and tried to get our foot in the door. And we were met with silence.

CATHY WURZER: And OK. And then knowing you, I mean, you are not good with silence. And so--

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: No, I'm not. I'm not good with silence. I love talking. I love communication. That's why I'm in the communication field.

CATHY WURZER: That's right, that's right. So really--

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: And so, I said I want to see receipts.

CATHY WURZER: OK.

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: I said, now, if you're not going to partner with my podcasting company, that's fine. I'm not everybody's cup of tea, and I get that. But you promised 2% to 5% of your ad revenue was going to be spent with Black-owned media outlets, and my grandmother told me charity begins at home. And so I expect to see a partnership with the Spokesman Recorder or Georgia Ford or Insight News or the Sahan Journal. Somebody ought to be having a relationship with you.

And so far, nothing. Nobody had receipts for how this money was spent, who they were partnering with. I wasn't trying to shake anybody down, Cathy. I was trying to make them honor the commitment they made when George Floyd died. If they weren't going to do anything, they shouldn't have said anything.

CATHY WURZER: So what was the tipping point? Because you had quite an announcement to make recently.

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: Yes. Just a lot of back and forth. A lot of pressure. When they say, you're bleeding, apply pressure and to stop the bleeding, it's just a lot of pressure applied, Cathy Wurzer, honestly. And finally, these companies, these looked around and saw the value in Black media and partnering with us and allowing us the honor of promoting their brand and their goods and their services.

And they said uncle. OK, girlfriend, come on over here, let's make a deal. And so Target and General Mills are now both going to partner with my podcasting platform. We're going to be running their commercials. We're going to be promoting the goods and services that they provide to people here locally. And it is a breaking point. It is a tipping point.

Because then they'll see the worth and value of partnering with a platform like mine. This is not a charitable contribution. I am an amazing broadcaster and a marketeer. I have a very strong force on social media, and tens of thousands of people listen to the podcast that I have on my platform. They trust me in the community to tell them what is good for their family and what is best for them.

And so, this is not a handout. This is a partnership. And General Mills and I have already been out in the community doing things. They worked with me so that we could go to Uvalde and make a contribution to the children there through the library who survived that school shooting. So it's more than just running ads. But a partnership like this gives me an opportunity to get out in the community and help others.

CATHY WURZER: Have they communicated any targets they want you to meet to keep their support?

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: We are talking about the return on the investment. And it's in the early stages, but they already like what they see. They like the work that we're doing in the community, how we're involving them, how we're able to promote their services. And the pride that people in our community have in knowing that Target is now carrying Tabitha Brown's line, a prominent Black social media influencer.

And then they see the commercials on my podcasting platform. And they know that there's a commitment to communities of color. And even my daughter, we were having breakfast the other morning. And she said, Mom, this cereal is General Mills. Is that the same General Mills that has the commercials on your podcasting platform? I said, yes, honey, it is. It really is. And she said, Mom, that is so awesome that we're eating the cereal and these people sponsor the work that you do.

And so they'll see that in more than just the numbers. It's more than just clicks. But it's brand loyalty. People tell me all the time because of the work that Hy-Vee and I do in North Minneapolis, providing gift baskets and food for Thanksgiving and hams for Easter, that they pass up three or four grocery stores to go to Hy-Vee to shop because their grandmother or their cousin or an aunt or an uncle or they got one of those Thanksgiving baskets.

CATHY WURZER: So I'm curious, Sheletta Brundidge, what are you going to do with this newly found corporate support? Where do you see yourself going?

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: I was talking to somebody the other day, but I got a little intern in here now from a local college. And she's learning about broadcasting. She's learning about the business. She's learning about equipment. She's learning about editing. I can't do that. I can't train the next generation of broadcasters without that corporate support. And I was telling a girlfriend of mine the other day, we were chatting and she said, somebody called and they wanted me to go and do something.

And I didn't have to call for a community partner. I was able to just write the check myself and get it over there to help somebody. I said, that's where I want to be. I want to be where I don't have to call Hy-Vee. That I can just get a refrigerator truck full of hams and ship it over to North Minneapolis for Easter. Or I can get 500 backpacks and take them over and make sure that the kids have school supplies and the things they need to start school off on the right foot.

I want to be able to do that. I don't want to have to call somebody else to help me or to sponsor me or to partner with me. We have enough resources here in the Twin Cities where these Fortune 500 companies can invest in Black-owned media and also help underserved communities at the same time.

CATHY WURZER: Say, by the way, how are you going to grow your platform? I'm curious.

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: We do so much-- guerilla marketing is what they call it, I just call it hustling-- where we are on social media and we are offering our podcasts and we're telling people about the work we're doing. And then we are at every event, whether it is a march or it is a Mother's Day event. Telling people about the work we do, telling people about our podcast. And making sure that they know that we are here.

And also with the newfound support, financial support, we can actually do some traditional marketing. Cut a commercial, run it on social media, run it on some of the local broadcasters. And let folks know, there is a place where Black voices are being heard or Black stories of celebration-- not just tragedy-- are being talked about. And it's right here on shelettamakesmelaugh.com. Fitness, finance, travel, empowerment, we have it all here.

CATHY WURZER: All right. I wanted to just check in with you after we had you on the air a few months ago and I saw your news and I thought, no, yeah, we got to find out how she did it. So I am proud of you. I'm glad you're doing what you're doing. Thank you for joining us, too. I'll talk to you soon.

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: Well, thank you for having me. And always thank you, Cathy Wurzer, for being a voice for people in communities of color. You have long been an ally. You always go out of your way to make sure all voices are heard and everybody has a seat at the table. I've known you for 20 years, and you were doing that the first day I met you, and you are still doing that. You are consistent, and we appreciate you.

CATHY WURZER: Oh, Sheletta. Thank you. Appreciate you, too. We'll talk to you soon.

SHELETTA BRUNDIDGE: All righty.

CATHY WURZER: Thanks. Sheletta Brundidge is an Emmy Award winning producer, radio podcast personality, owner of the podcast company Sheletta Makes Me Laugh.