The future has and will always be Black — literally. So, it’s crucial that we celebrate Blackness across industries; and AT&T’s 2023 Dream in Black Future Makers list does precisely that. Now in its fifth year of highlighting influential leaders driving the culture, the Black Future Makers program has honored over 80 celebrity influencers and given more than $200,000 to everyday community leaders.
Under the theme “New Black Renaissance,” this year, the program is celebrating 15 Black culture-shapers authentically contributing to the current “era of greater possibilities.” Each embodying AT&T’s Dream in Black mission to advance Black culture, the list of inductees includes storytellers, activists, and entrepreneurs like Lori Harvey, J. Alphonse Nicholson, Marsai Martin, Morgan DeBaun, Gia Peppers, and more.
“I think what they’re doing with the Black Future Makers campaign is amazing,” actor J. Alphonse Nicholson said. “Exposing the culture to these wonderful artists — which we know, some of which we don’t know. So I’m just grateful […] and extremely proud to represent a part of my history and culture.”
Best known for his 2023 NAACP Award-nominated role as Lil Murda in Starz’s hit show “P-Valley,” J. Alphonse Nicholson aims to amplify complex Black stories through his work. Through his role as a closeted gay rapper from the fictional city of Chucalissa, Mississippi, Nicholson pushed the envelope on traditional LGBTQ+ storytelling and helped open the doors to vital conversations on sexuality within the Black community.
“There’s a lot of people dealing with the exact same thoughts and feelings and emotions that Lil Murda may have. So he’s the everyman, you know, there’s a part of him that’s there for everybody. And I think we all can relate to him if we take the time to really pay attention,” said Nicholson. “Whether you’re part of the LGBT…
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