While several old school artists are utilizing their musical talents and fame to entertain quarantine audiences across social media platforms, Grammy Award winning Club Nouveau performer and veteran music industry executive, Jay King has opted for a different path of service during the Coronavirus pandemic. As the newly elected CEO and president of the California Black Chamber of Commerce (CBCC), King recently joined award winning journalist and talk show host Roland Martin, on his daily show, “Roland Martin Unfiltered” to raise financial support for struggling Black owned enterprises. King’s interview with Martin boosted the CBCC’s “Everybody Pitch In” GoFundMe campaign close to the $10,000 mark for funds raised to support California-based small Black businesses.

The two digital pioneers, both recognized for their activism across social media platforms, are extremely concerned about the aftermath of Covid-19 on the Black community. The pandemic has immobilized and shut down businesses around the entire world. Martin’s “Roland Martin Unfiltered” is a daily digital show broadcasting from Washington D.C. that focuses on issues important to the Black community. The CBCC is the largest African American non-profit business organization, representing thousands of small and emerging businesses, affiliates and chambers of commerce throughout the state of California.

During the interview King reiterated why small Black businesses matter. “Our real Black Power in this country is our economic and political power! What many don’t realize is that Black spending power in California alone is $96 billion. In addition, when we show up to the polls in numbers, we sway elections.  We are not victims here, we hold the power! There are 2.3 million Black people in the state of California.  If every one of them donated $5.00 to our GoFundMe, we could raise $10 million to support our small businesses. Every state Black Chamber of Commerce across the country should be raising money with a fundraising effort that champions Black folks within their state for support.”
King is slated to speak on the Black Small Business Association of California’s (BSBA) “Community Conversation Series” panel entitled “Covid-19 and the Music Industry: The Severe Impacts of the Shut Down” on Tuesday, April 28, 2020 at 6:00 p.m. PT. The discussion will air as a Facebook Livestream on the BSBA Facebook page.
To support the CBCC’s fund raising effort go to https://www.gofundme.com/f/EverybodyPitchIn.
For more information on and to watch “Roland Martin Unfiltered” go to https://rolandsmartin.com/.
Watch Jay King’s interview with Roland Martin at https://youtu.be/3yWaNtWuHQM