DEVELOPER SPOTLIGHT
Her Streaming App Defies Stereotypes
kweliTV: Our Culture. Curated.
Our Culture. Curated.
‣ Company: KweliTV
‣ Founder: DeShuna Spencer
‣ Mission: To create a streaming service featuring Black creators that doesn’t play into stereotypes
‣ App launched: 2017
‣ Team size: 3
‣ Go-to emoji: 🥳
In 2012, DeShuna Spencer was looking to watch a show or movie that centered on Black characters. What little she was able to find didn’t represent her experiences at all.
“The people who are green-lighting content, curating content, aren’t the people in these communities,” she says. So she decided to create her own streaming service—one that met her ideals.
Before founding KweliTV, Spencer had been a journalist, AmeriCorps volunteer, and magazine founder, but she had no prior experience in TV or film. Despite this, her streaming service dedicated to Black-centric indie films, series, documentaries, and kids’ shows ended up resonating with a broad audience.
“The platform is built for Black people, but it’s for everyone,” says Spencer. “We had our largest demographic from outside the community subscribe last year. People want to see Black history outside of the stereotypes.”
We spoke with Spencer about curating content that breaks the mold, and the one thing every entrepreneur needs to remember.
How do you choose the films and shows to stream on KweliTV?
For content to be on KweliTV, the lead character has to be of African descent—it can’t be a sidekick or a fairy godmother. We know the stereotypes, and we know what to look out for. What we hear from our customers is: “I don’t want to see Black jail. I don’t want to see Black trauma.” We see KweliTV as a safe haven. We want to make sure it doesn’t perpetuate stereotypes—we don’t do child soldiers in Africa or poverty in Brazil. We want to be part of the solution, not the problem. We can touch upon those subjects, but without triggering those audiences.
How long did it take to get KweliTV from idea to beta?
Almost four years. When I came up with the idea, I didn’t have any money, so I entered a contest for women journalists. I was a finalist but didn’t win because the judges told me they weren’t sure about the future of streaming. Over the next few years, my life was turned upside down, and KweliTV was the last thing I was thinking about. But in 2015 I won another contest for journalists of color and started to think, “Maybe I can build this.”
When someone says, ‘My son gets to see someone who looks and dresses like him,’ it makes me want to work harder.
—DeShuna Spencer, KweliTV founder and CEO
How did you find financing to make that happen?
I thought I would build a minimum viable product, put it out in the world, and get money. We built our beta and got a bunch of press, but I still couldn’t raise the funds. It was a really, really challenging time. But at the end of 2016, I was watching an interview with Ava DuVernay, in which she talked about her journey from publicist to filmmaker. People ignored her the whole way, so after a while she stopped and said, “I’m just going to do the work.” I decided I wouldn’t wait for a Silicon Valley bro to give me the green light to run my company—I’d make it work myself. I won every single pitch competition I entered in 2017. I’ve raised some money from investors, but not a lot; I’ve basically been running KweliTV on revenues and on my own.
What’s been most rewarding about your journey so far?
I started with 38 filmmakers. Now, we’re working with more than 430 around the globe who say, “DeShuna, if it weren’t for you, nobody would see this film.” We don’t want to be like other platforms, where you have to have an agent to be seen. We want to give everyone a chance, so we have a submissions section; we reach out to content creators. Then there’s our customers: When someone says, “My son gets to see someone who looks and dresses like him,” it makes me want to work harder. I have my moments when I think this is too hard. But knowing we have customers who believe in our mission and the uniqueness of our content keeps me going.
What advice would you give to other aspiring entrepreneurs, especially Black women?
You are valuable. Don’t let society—the missed phone calls, the unanswered emails, the blow-offs—make you think otherwise. Love yourself. Give yourself the care you need. And don’t apologize for who you are.
KweliTV is a part of the App Store Small Business Program. If you are a developer and would like to learn more about the program, follow the link below.