This episode of the show was extra special and incredibly inspiring!
I welcomed Akilah Ffriend as a guest on the show, and she shared some of her advice with us about breaking into media - specifically how to ask for what you want, connect with the right people and identify exciting career opportunities.
About Today’s Guest: Akilah Ffriend
Akilah Ffriend is a Media Executive and On-air Host.
Akilah has a rich background in marketing and content acquisition at top media companies including Apple TV, HBO Max, EY and NBCU. She graduated from the Columbia Business School with a Masters of Business Administration specializing in media and technology.
Akilah began podcasting back in 2014. She devoted herself to learning how to podcast on her weekends when she wasn’t working her full-time job.
Currently, Akilah is making big moves. She is a client here at Adode Media where we produce her show Monuments to Me, “a podcast that celebrates every aspect of Black women in a world that tries to ignore or destroy them”.
She is also a Co-Host of Black Girl Stuff, a show produced by Revolt Media. In Black Girl Stuff, “A dynamic vanguard of young Black women welcome cultural influencers and celebrity guests to weigh in on important Gen Z issues in this female-driven, unapologetically Black conversational series.”
Akilah is a powerful force and an energetic speaker and I was so fortunate to be able to host her here on The Podcast Trapper!
I hope you learn so much from Akilah’s wisdom and experience.
Let’s dive right in…
Breaking into Media Requires Vision.
Prior to her current role as Podcast Host and Content Creator, Akilah had a big vision for her future. She knew she wanted to be in the room where things were happening.
She says it herself: “I’m the Queen of knocking on some doors, knockin’ down some doors and just being in the room.”
When asked about her career at Revolve, Akilah has a surprising story about a life-changing interview that should inspire you.
While already working a successful job in media, Akilah realized she hadn’t gone as far as she wanted. She envisioned herself as a talk show host - internationally known for lifting up Black women. Her current job was good - but she wanted to ask for more. She took a leap of faith.
While still employed at her other job, Akilah took an interview for a part-time role as Social Media Manager for Revolt, in order to get closer to her goal. She is glad she did. In that phone call, the interviewer was explaining the scope of the role when she asked if Akilah had any questions. She took a breath and said - yes!
Confidently, Akilah told her interviewer what she really wanted to be doing at Revolt. She wanted to be a Host of a show and be on air. Expecting to be told no, she was surprised when the woman on the phone expressed interest. Soon, divine intervention and the efforts of her interviewer collaborated and a role opened up for Akilah at Revolt Media. This was her big break.
Akilah’s first piece of advice for young Black creators is this: Do not be afraid to ask.
The worst thing people can do is say no to you - and if you don’t ask, there’s no chance for a yes! Especially as creators of color, we are often taught to play it small. We’re told to just be grateful for what we get - never asking for more. Akilah and I agree that this serves none of us. What is your dream and who can you ask? What room do you need to be in? And how can you make yourself ready?
That leads us to her second golden piece of advice…
Make Yourself Ready
Opportunities have a magical way of presenting themselves to you when you make yourself ready.
You need to be ready mentally, but you also need to be quite literally prepared for the role you want.
The thing is, if Akilah had been on that phone call unqualified for the role she was asking for, she likely would never have progressed. In fact, she may have even been laughed off that phone call. But she wasn’t, because she was prepared for what she was asking for.
Akilah decided to shoot her shot…but she had the reel to prove herself. In fact, seriously, watch her highlight reel here.
Akilah had a Master’s in business, years of hard work in media roles, and a reel to showcase her work.
When you’re breaking into media, you need to be able to spend time investing in your own human capital first. What are the steps to becoming qualified for the goal you want to achieve? What skills do you need to develop, and what jobs can you work in order to improve in those areas? How can you position yourself to get what you really want?
Asking yourself those questions can help you rise in the world of media, by making sure you’re always taking steps towards your dream career.
Keep Your Efforts Consistent
Akilah is super successful. But she will tell you herself - she had episodes with just five views, too!
It’s easy to look at someone at the height of their career and compare yourself. But Akilah has been podcasting since 2014, and she has stories to prove it. Laughing about her first podcast, she explains that she too created content for just her mother and best friend to listen to. She never let it get her down!
Akilah says, “It was a series of…just doing it. Just trying and thinking, like, this is what I want to do! And it wasn’t really laid out in a cookie cutter way, of how to get from Point A to Point B. But if I keep putting myself out there and attempting things something might eventually click. I kept doing that for years!”
Even while working to build her resumé in the media world, she was also working as an independent creator. She devoted energy to learning new skills like audio editing.
Later when she was on that phone call with her interviewer at Revolt, she had the receipts to prove that she had been producing content for a long time. She never gave up, even when it felt tedious. By the time she talked to the right person, she had years of excellent work to show for it!
Akilah encourages creators to do exactly this: Keep your efforts consistent! Work to become great at what you do, and spend time every week making it happen.
Own Your Brand, Even When it Evolves.
We talk about this at Adode Media all the time - know your brand and own it.
Even if you pivot later, clarity when you begin a project will take you much farther than uncertainty…so do the work now!
Akilah was clear from the get-go that she wanted to lift up Black women and have important cultural conversations. That goal has taken multiple iterations but now, she is so glad she understood her intentions from the beginning.
Akilah has powerful advice for you if you’re struggling to identify your brand: Ask yourself what sets you apart!
Sit down and consider what differentiates you from other creators. What perspective do you have to offer or background do you have that others don’t? What idea do you have that others haven’t had yet? What sets your personality apart from others? Use that to your advantage - and use that to build a career in media.
I hope you loved this conversation with Akilah Friend. You can find her links below so make sure to give her a follow - and tune into Monuments to Me because we are so proud of the incredible work Akilah is doing.
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Links: Akilah Ffriend
Listen to Akilah’s podcast, Monuments to Me
Connect with Akilah on LinkedIn
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