Kinney Edwards is currently Head of the Creative Lab at TikTok, the in-house creative consultancy. At TikTok he is focused on guiding teams that inspire, educate and unlock the possibilities for marketers to reach their full creative potential on the platform and connect with its unique community.

LaToya Christian is a brand and consumer strategist with over a decade of experience in marketing, advertising, and media. Starting her career at Time Inc., she now serves as Managing Partner, Executive Director at GroupM, leading projects for Fortune 500 brands like Universal Pictures, Target, Google, and Circle K to drive representation, equity, and social impact. LaToya combines consumer insights, data analytics, and strategy to identify business opportunities and develop innovative marketing strategies, uncovering over $2B in untapped revenue potential for clients. Currently, she leads the New Majority Now research initiative, uniting major content and media publishers.

A sought-after thought leader, LaToya has presented at NYC Advertising Week, Cannes Lions, and SXSW, with insights featured in Forbes and MediaPost. Her industry transformation efforts have earned her a Black Star Award and an Anthem Award. She’s also been recognized for her contributions earning the title of an AdWeek Media All Star, a Cynopsis Top Women in Media and a She Runs It Game Changer, amongst others. Committed to gender equality, she supports young talent through programs like Step Up Women’s Network and the ARF Women in Analytics Board. LaToya holds a B.S. in Marketing from Hampton University and an M.S. in Integrated Marketing from New York University.

A Chicago Booth MBA alum and southside of Chicago native, Emanuel is an innovative and highly skilled organizational leader with 20+ years of strategic development, management and brand marketing expertise motivated by idea generation, innovation and an inclusive approach to team building and communication. He has led teams at prominent global organizations – The NFL, Viacom (BET Networks), Accenture, and Publicis Groupe (Burrell Communications).

Emanuel is also the creator and co-host of the creative conversation series, The Art of Storytelling now in its sixth season hosted at various Soho House locations throughout the country featuring such prominent creators as Bisa Butler, D-Nice, Raheem DeVaughn, Lenny S and many more.

After working in the Obama White House in 2016, Chelsea Co-Founded Freedom March NYC, one of the largest youth-led civil rights organizations in the country. Organizing movements in person and online, Chelsea is globally recognized for her ability to use storytelling and digital media to reach multicultural and multigenerational audiences. In her role as the CEO of CPM Global, she’s worked with companies, organizations, and universities across the world to help launch social impact campaigns and sustainable initiatives.

Her work has been featured in Forbes, Rolling Stone, Vogue, CNN, Financial Times, and more. Chelsea was honored as the Voice of Justice on the Oprah Winfrey Network and received the Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award. She has appeared on programs like ABC’s Soul of a Nation now on Hulu and Making Black America on PBS, amplifying the stories of movements in the digital age. Chelsea was appointed as an Executive Member of the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (the governing body of the Webby Awards and Anthem Awards) as a judge for social impact campaigns in media. Most recently, Chelsea executive produced Sounds of Change, a docuseries that highlights the voices of some of the last living survivors of the Civil Rights Movement.

MARLON WAYANS is a successful actor, producer, comedian, writer and film director. His films have grossed more than $736 million in domestic box office and $1 billion globally. As a stand-up comedian, he is selling out nationwide and adding shows every weekend. He hit a career milestone with his highly anticipated first-ever stand-up comedy special, Woke-ish, which premiered on Netflix in February 2018.

Wayans’ fourth comedy special, Marlon Wayans: Good Grief, is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video. His previous comedy special for HBO Max, Marlon Wayans: God Loves Me, received rave reviews from critics and fans. Wayans scored an overall deal with HBO Max that included performing a stand-up special and hosting a multi-act special which resulted in Marlon Wayans: You Know What It Is and Marlon Wayans Presents: The Headliners. All of three of his specials are currently streaming on Max.

Next up Wayans will be seen starring in Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions psychological sports thriller, HIM, out September 2025.

In March of 2023 Wayans’ has a successful run guest hosting a week of The Daily Show.

Onscreen, Wayans recently starred as George Raveling in Prime Video’s, AIR, alongside an all star ensemble including Matt Damon, Viola Davis and Ben Affleck. In 2022 he starred in and produced Netflix’s The Curse of Bridge Hollow. In 2021, he starred as Ted White in MGM’s Aretha Franklin biopic, Respect, opposite Jennifer Hudson. The year prior, he starred in Sofia Coppola’s Apple-A24 movie On the Rocks, alongside Rashida Jones and Bill Murray.

In 2019, Wayans wrote and produced the Michael Tiddes-directed Netflix movie Sextuplets, in which he starred as Alan, a man who embarks on a personal journey to find his birth mother and discovers he was born a sextuplet. In addition to playing the central role, Wayans appeared as all five of Alan’s siblings in the film.

On television, Wayans recently gained rave reviews for his guest star role as Lou in Bel-Air’s finale episode. He also executive produced and hosted Meta’s Oh Hell No! With Marlon Wayans. In addition, he starred for two seasons on the NBC sitcom Marlon, a family comedy loosely based on his life. Both seasons of Marlon are currently airing on Netflix.

Wayans reunited with director Michael Tiddes in the 2017 Netflix movie Naked, which Wayans wrote, produced and starred in, opposite Regina Hall. The year before, he wrote, produced and starred in Tiddes’ Fifty Shades of Black, also starring Mike Epps and Kali Hawk.

In 2014, Wayans starred in the Open Road Films comedy A Haunted House 2, the sequel to the hilarious 2013 hit A Haunted House, which had a budget of $1.7 million and grossed $65 million globally. Wayans wrote and produced both films.

Wayans hosted the NBC comedy/variety series I Can Do That! and also starred in and created the 2014 TBS hit comedy competition series Funniest Wins. Also in 2014, he embarked on a national comedy tour with his brothers Keenan, Damon and Shawn, which marked the first stand-up tour for the four Wayans Brothers.

Wayans is commonly recognized for his role as Marcus Copeland in Columbia Pictures’ 2004 hit comedy White Chicks, opposite Shawn Wayans, Jamie King and Terry Crews. Directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans, the film grossed more than $100 million worldwide. He also starred alongside Shawn Wayans and Regina Hall in Dimension Films’ horror comedy spoof films Scary Movie and Scary Movie 2, both directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans.

Wayans’ additional film credits include the Columbia Pictures comedy Mo’ Money; New Line Cinema’s drama Above the Rim; Miramax’s parody film Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood; Touchstone Pictures’ The Sixth Man; Miramax’s Senseless; Dungeons & Dragons; Darren Aronofsky’s hit drama Requiem for a Dream, opposite Jared Leto and Jennifer Connolly; The Coen Brothers’ The Ladykillers, opposite Tom Hanks; Behind the Smile; Columbia Pictures’ Little Man; DreamWorks’ Norbit, opposite Eddie Murphy; Paramount Pictures and MTV’s parody film Dance Flick; Paramount’s G.I. Joe: The Rise of the Cobra, opposite Channing Tatum, Dennis Quaid and Joseph Gordon-Levitt; 20th Century Fox’s Marmaduke; and the hit comedy The Heat, opposite Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy.

Additionally, Wayans starred with his brother Shawn Wayans on The WB’s The Wayans Bros., which was the highest -rated comedy on the network and continues to air in syndication. He has appeared on several popular television programs, including FOX’s In Living Color, Adult Swim’s Childrens Hospital, and BET’s Second Generation Wayans.

Tim Chau is the Founder and CEO of Impact Media, an award-winning digital platform and leading social destination for Gen Z. Tim has since built a community of over 40 million monthly readers with Impact. The company has been honored by the Webby Awards, Shorty Awards, Anthem Awards, Fast Company, and more.

Under their leadership, Impact has garnered billions of content views and over 500 million engagements through its content, which ranges from news to cultural deep dives. It has raised over $1.7 million for various social issues and humanitarian crises, including abortion rights, the Maui wildfire, the 2022 Haiti earthquake, and more.

Through Impact, Tim disrupted the world of brand marketing. Impact was one of the first marketing partners for Tony’s Chocolonely, and it led an instrumental social program for Bombas’ 100M campaign, which was recognized by the Shorty Award. Representing a generation that they are a part of, Tim advocates for brands to authentically do good and lead by values in order to resonate with Gen Z consumers.

As a queer, nonbinary, and Asian-American person, Tim understands the unique struggles marginalized populations face in business and the importance of an inclusive company environment. As a result, Impact boasts a team that’s majority women and nonbinary, people of color, and LGBTQ+.

Prior to Impact, Tim founded Irrational Media in high school and built a community of 4M+ followers. Having spent their entire career connecting with young people and mobilizing them for social change, Tim was named a Forbes 30 under 30 in 2022, and they have been invited to the White House twice. They hold a BA in Business Administration from UC Berkeley.

Rakia Reynolds serves as Founder and Executive Officer of Skai Blue Media (SBM), a non-traditional communications agency that proudly hosts an eclectic group of storytellers, brand experts, and strategists. Rakia continues to be a key influencer in the creative business industry as she works with her team to launch, brand, re-brand, and revitalize lifestyle, technology, non-profit and entrepreneurial clients. This list includes Airbnb, Nasdaq, Comcast/Xfinity, Dell, Serena Williams, Morgan Stanley, Jill Scott, and more. Rakia’s portfolio includes #FanofYourBrand(tactical business tools), clothing brand EVRYDAY Jane, and an ethical intelligence platform launching in 2023.

As a thought leader and proven authority in marketing, creative strategy, and business development Rakia is a member of the Fast Company Impact Council and regularly contributes her expertise to the pages of Forbes, Inc.com, HuffPost, Fast Company, and more. Onstage, she captivates audiences across many industries as her talks span branding, media, multicultural business, economic development, and the entrepreneurial journey, all of which are more than relevant to the recent challenging and changing times. Rakia is recognized for her innovative approach and commitment to authenticity and has spoken at TEDx, SXSW, Inbound, and others. More than a keynote speaker, Rakia is often called upon to moderate panel discussions due to her in-depth knowledge of an extensive range of topics affecting the business community.

Erika Lewis is a seasoned marketing leader with over 20 years of experience. She currently leads TikTok’s Cultural Partnerships efforts within Global Business Marketing. She has worked with top brands like Live Nation, Droga5, Viacom, and BBDO, driving innovation and growth. Erika is also the co-founder of Grits & Biscuits (G&B), a popular cultural event celebrating Southern culture through DJ sets and live performances nationwide. Known for creating inclusive and joyful experiences, she blends marketing expertise with her passion for community and culture.

Rob Reilly is the Global Chief Creative Officer of WPP and one of the world’s most celebrated creative leaders. He joined WPP in early 2021 to help realize its ambition to become the most creative company on the planet. His role is to champion creativity within and beyond the company – fostering a culture that delivers extraordinary work for WPP’s clients, collaborating with technology partners to fuel creativity needed for their platforms. In his short tenure, WPP has already achieved the highest honor at the Cannes Festival for Creativity in both 2024 and 2022 – Creative Company of the Year.

As the host of WPP’s new video podcast Screaming Creativity, Rob is joined by influential leaders from across the industry to engage in bi-weekly, candid conversations about creativity in all its forms with guests including actor and comedian Marlon Wayans, former Apple SVP and CEO of Burberry Angela Ahrendts, Microsoft’s Chief Brand Officer Kathleen Hall, The Coca-Cola Company’s CMO Manolo Arroyo, and more.

Before WPP, Rob spent seven years as the Global Creative Chairman of McCann Worldgroup, where he led the agency’s creative resurgence – which included collecting the Network of the Year award at Cannes Lions in 2019. Before moving to McCann in 2014, he was Partner and Worldwide Chief Creative Officer at Crispin Porter + Bogusky, which was named Advertising Age’s Agency of the Decade during his tenure. Rob is known for helping to create some of the most talked-about ideas of recent times, for the most impactful global brands. Highly-awarded, culture-shaping work he has overseen includes the “Fearless Girl” statue on Wall Street for State Street Global Advisors and Mastercard’s “True Name” card. As well as winning numerous awards himself, Rob has chaired several industry award show juries, including Cannes Lions four times.

He is a member of The One Club for Creativity Board – a non-profit organization dedicated to creative excellence and the development of young, diverse talent. In his spare time, he and his wife live in NYC and share a home in Shelter Island where Rob is trying to hold on to his youth by playing “old-man” soccer and basketball with the locals.

Dr. Batool Kazmi an accomplished academic who’s spent her career exploring and learning from all aspects of the marketing and communications industry. She believes data without context is just numbers and strives to ensure we act on the information that can drive impact and inspire change.

Today Batool focuses on identifying and addressing key disparities in healthcare, helping doctors and patients overcome key barriers. Working as a brand and medical strategist, Batool has worked on some of the biggest brands in the world and instigated key efforts such as Pfizer’s Every Color is Primary campaign.

Author of over 10 academic papers, podcaster, and Professor at Oncology University, an educational platform for agency and pharma clients, Batool also founded Colorsthetics, a consultancy focused on amplifying the experiences and needs of skin of color in the aesthetics space—because she believes it’s time to see color.