The revolution is being televised.
In October 2013, REVOLT Chairman Sean “Diddy” Combs went out on a mission and launched his own cable television network, REVOLT Media & TV, after realizing that Black culture didn’t have a solid space to be heard nor informed, and wanted to fill that much-needed gap.
As a well-known disruptor in music and entertainment for decades, this major move wasn’t new to him. Combs had a vision to create a company that celebrated the culture that has given the world so much influence, yet received so little respect by mainstream media – and here we are today.
Ten years later, what was dubbed as the “first channel of the social media age” is still going strong. But now, it’s helping young Black creators reach their dreams and build their own legacies not just with its programming, but in the live event space too.
“The mind of the Black creative is sent by God,” Combs exclusively told REVOLT at the first-ever REVOLT WORLD. “I know the Black man and woman are God, and it’s time for us to come together to be unapologetic Black creators. We need to be around people who look like us, talk like us, and have gone through the same obstacles as us in this world to be able to get our creativity seen.”
He added: “REVOLT is the platform you can come to get your creativity seen.”
The chairman also spoke about what he loved witnessing on Saturday (Sept. 23) at the inaugural event in Atlanta, Georgia.
“One of the greatest things that you see here is unity and in order for us to make changes, we have to unify,” the Off The Grid hitmaker explained. “Coming together is a sign that people want to unify under the name of love, under the name of hip hop turning 50, and where we’ve come from. This is a testament to where we’re going. So, seeing us all here in unity, that’s the biggest takeaway from this. Together we can do anything.”
During the three-day REVOLT WORLD event, attendees were able to get vital information and Black excellence wrapped up into one weekend thanks to panels like “Dangerous Black Girl Magic: Now You See Her, Now You Don’t” led by REVOLT Black News; “Mental Health & Hip Hop” hosted by Royce Da 5’9” featuring Styles P, Fivio Foreign, and Antonio Brown; “She Got Game” moderated by Jemele Hill and featuring Sha’Carri Richardson, Ashley Nicole Moss and Brehanna Daniels, and more. There was even a great “Assets Over Liabilities” panel hosted by Earn Your Leisure’s Rashad Bilal and Troy Milling that featured Lauren London.
As for the event’s lit performances, the likes of Don Toliver, Moneybagg Yo, Uncle Waffles, Everyday People, King Combs and more hit the stage and had everyone in attendance on their feet. Even stars such as Eric Bellinger and more put on great sets in the Love Lounge where guests experienced a live listening party for Diddy’s recently released The Love Album: Off The Grid album. Throughout all these moments, people were connecting like never before.
“REVOLT WORLD goes across all the cultures,” Diddy added. “So, this is really kind of social by design, but brought live so everything you’ve seen socially, you now get to experience – a lot of the conversations, the podcasts, and the knowledge in-person.
He continued: “We take a lot of pride in having a place that’s going to give you information. Information is key to success and there are a lot of people out there, trying to be successful, who watch REVOLT for the information.”
With a decade of REVOLT under his belt, the chairman affirmed that REVOLT WORLD weekend was proof that when it comes to the possibilities of the network, the sky isn’t even a limit.
“I have big dreams for REVOLT,” Combs admitted. “I would say that right now, REVOLT has kind of caught up to my vision, and the whole team has done an excellent job. From Detavio [Samuels] to Deon [Graham] and the whole entire team. They have really driven toward the vision that I see and the vision for REVOLT is endless. We will be the No. 1 platform for our people, unapologetically, in the world.”