Meet Jazmyn Pratt | Co-Founder of BLK WINS

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jazmyn Pratt and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jazmyn, what do you want people to remember about you?
I would like my legacy to be known as a relatable story-teller. I think that the art of story-telling is truly something that I have a knack and passion for, and that the stories that I want to share are as captivating and compelling to my audience as it is to me and my team that created. Before BLK WINS, I knew that I had the skills, but this has certainly helped me as a person find that inner historian that wants to bring truth to the world in a way that is entertaining, fun and easy to learn.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am originally from Tacoma, WA. I moved to LA in 2017 in the pursuit of a radio career. My whole reason to move to LA was to live my dream of being on the radio. I’d spent several years in Washington working for different radio stations, as well as obtaining college degrees and certifications concentrating on mass media. When I first moved to LA, to keep up my skills I put together a podcast and hosted it for a few years before the pandemic hit and I found myself in a bit of a lull in my career path. I knew I wanted to do something, but wasn’t sure if radio was still my passion or goal. My younger brother Aaron reached out to me after the during the protests for Justice for George Floyd and let me know that he and his friend Perry were looking to put something together that could make a difference, outside of the standard protests. He asked me if I was interested and I definitely was! Perry brought along his friend Chris and we all met via Google Meet to talk to each other, learn about our creative strengths and what we could come up with. From that meeting came the creation of BLK WINS. Perry is an artist so he creates the artwork for our vides, Aaron is a filmmaker and producer so he films, produces and edits our videos. Chris is a professional, so he helps with our social media posts, assists in script writing and research, as well as does a ton of our outreach, while I script write, research, interview and host our episodes. We were so excited about this project because what we found was the way Black history that is traditionally taught focuses on tragedy, while we wanted to change the narrative and speak on the positive. We wanted to highlight that Black History is American History and should be celebrated year round, not just in February. Because everything these days is online, we also noticed that what is currently being taught online is not as modern or upbeat as ours, which is another way that we set ourselves apart to engage our audience. We aim to reach young people to help create a sense of identity but also older generations so that they too can learn what they did not learn in schools. We certainly did not learn these things when we were in school, so we aim to get to a point where we can be included in educational systems. We are so passionate and while doing this project we also get to learn new things that we may not have been familiar with. Our videos feels like a journey that we get to take while inviting our audience to join in with us.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I definitely would take them around the city to see the touristy things like the Hollywood sign, Hollywood Blvd, Rodeo Drive and Venice beach to start but then I’d also like to show them the culture. I would take them to Ladera Heights and Baldwin Hills and Crenshaw area since those are historically and predominantly Black areas of the city that I’d like to highlight. I’d also take them to the boutiques and shops on Melrose to get a feel of what it’s like to shop out there. Definitely would have to carve out some time for the beach so we could go to Bruce’s beach and to Dockweiler Beach. For food, I’d take them to eat at Orleans & York, Gritz N Wafflez, The Court Cafe, and The Serving Spoon. Maybe find a day party or pool party at The W and at night eat at Beauty and Essex and enjoy a night out in Hollywood.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
The rest of my c0-founders of BLK WINS deserve a shoutout! Aaron, Perry and Chris! We all play essential roles in making BLK WINS the non-profit that we’ve created it to be. Everyone is so passionate and desire the same things. In the past, I have not ever found 3 other people that have the exact same vision as me. We are all extremely talented like-minded individuals that have a common goal of creating content and story-telling in compelling ways that will continue to impact the lives of so many people. It’s also amazing to be able to be on this journey with them. We travel and meet people together and get to really hone in on the experience.

Website: www.blkwins.com

Instagram: @jazzyredd1_

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jazmyn-pratt-193ba4101/

Twitter: @_blkwins

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BLKWINS/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BLKWINS

Other: BLK WINS Instagram and Tik Tok is @blkwins