Music icon and entrepreneur Sean Combs and Endeavor are launching a virtual development program and resume database for aspiring entertainment executives from underrepresented communities.
Called The Excellence Program, the partnership comes on the heels of Combs’ signing with WME across all areas.
The six-week venture goes live July 12 and will be free to eligible students with an interest in entertainment, marketing, music and fashion. Sessions span categories from touring and performing to professional development, the business of entertainment, and storytelling.
They’ll be led by heavyweights from diverse industries and backgrounds — including Joey Bada$$, Cari Champion, Victor Cruz, Bill Duffy, Desiree Gruber, Terrence Jenkins, Reggie Love, Marshawn Lynch, French Montana, Guy Oseary, Rajon Rondo, Lindsey Vonn, Gus Wenner and Jeff Burroughs — as well as execs from Amazon Studios, Amazon Web Services, MSG Entertainment, Revolt Media, Combs Enterprises, WME, Endeavor Content and IMG Models.
Combs Enterprises and Endeavor have each committed to hiring interns and entry level employees from the program. Top performers will be entered in a resume database to be shared across the industry in an effort to diversify hiring pipelines.
Combs will kick off the program with a session called “Igniting the Excellence in You.”
“Beginning my career as an intern changed my life, so it’s been a lifelong dream to give the next generation of entrepreneurs and executives access to the best in entertainment, marketing, music and fashion,” said Combs. “Partnering with Endeavor creates a pipeline to opportunities that allow future leaders to not only succeed, but thrive in these highly competitive industries.”
“The Excellence Program helps ensure access and education are available to all who possess the talent, vision and creativity necessary to succeed in the entertainment industry,” said Ariel Emanuel, CEO of newly public Endeavor. “We are proud to partner with Sean in bringing this program to life.”
HBCU in LA, NALIP, Brown Girls Dream, Asian American Collective, Reel Works and Diverso are partners in the program. Racial justice nonprofit Color Of Change will help lead coursework.
Companies that participate will be encouraged to adopt measures from Color Of Change’s #ChangeIndustries Initiative, which secures commitments aimed at equitable culture change through three verticals — #ChangeHollywood, #ChangeFashion and #ChangeMusic.
The Excellence Program builds on the recent success of Endeavor’s Summer Series and NXT programs, which offered more than 10,000 participants courses taught by leaders across entertainment, sports and fashion.
Registration information is available at EndeavorImpact.com.
Combs Enterprises’ portfolio includes Bad Boy Entertainment, Sean John, Combs Wine & Spirits (Cîroc Vodka and DeLeon Tequila), AQUAhydrate, Janice Combs Publishing, REVOLT Films and REVOLT MEDIA & TV, Shop Circulate, Capital Preparatory Charter Schools and the Sean Combs Foundation.
Combs has been active in promoting Black-owned business and Black-owned media. His company recently collaborated on Shop Circulate, a digital marketplace with products exclusively created and sold by Black entrepreneurs. He’s publicly blasted General Motors and other big U.S. companies for scant dollars directed to Black-owned media.
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