Nurturing his academic abilities and gifts from a young age, Devon Johnson is the founder and CEO of BleuIife Media Group. With a master’s in journalism from Harvard University and a bachelor’s in communication and the arts from Seton Hall, Devon has used his experience working in the advertising and marketing industry to build his own media platform.
In this episode of our Take Ownership Podcast, Devon chats with us about building BleuIife Media Group, going to school at Harvard University, and traveling across the globe.
Building BleuIife Media Group...
“Instead of me trying to create a brand that wanted to be like someone else, I wanted to create a brand that normalizes Black men” says Devon. “There is no nationally distributed Black owned media company for Black men. You may see Black men on covers of magazines, but they are not owned by anyone who is Black. They see the value of the Black dollar but do not see the value of the Black person.” In addition, Devon mentions that his big thing is normalizing and showcasing diversity within Black people.
Going to School at Harvard University...
In elementary school, Devon was often punished for speaking out and asking questions. It wasn’t until Devon decided to take ownership of what his greatness and potential could be that he decided to attend Harvard University for graduate school. “What I found out about the elite Ivy league privileged environment is that it allows for a lot of debate and pushback” says Devon. “It’s a very liberal environment where you can challenge others. If you have a better theory than your professor, you can bring that theory up and not be punished for it.”
Traveling Across The Globe...
“I think that as a Black man in America, we feel like an endangered species” says Devon. “At any moment, we can be pulled over and shot by the police. This has always been something that was on my mind. However, when we travel, we realize that we are apart of the global majority population. This opens up our mind even more and we begin to hold our head higher and increase our confidence.” Devon also mentions, “I encourage people to get out as much as possible. If people from other backgrounds do not get to see diverse Black people, they will not know that we exist outside of entertainment and sports.”
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