TV One and radio host/journalist Roland Martin to emcee Liberty Bank "Angel" Power Pitch; relationship expert Paul Carrick Brunson to emcee Entergy "Series A" Power Pitch

New Orleans, June 17, 2014 -- Sixteen minority entrepreneurs from across the country will compete in two business pitch competitions sponsored by Entergy and Liberty Bank July 4th in New Orleans as part of the PowerMoves.NOLA initiative created to provide access to capital, mentors and advisers for high-growth minority entrepreneurs. The winning entrepreneur in each competition will receive a $25,000 cash prize.

The Liberty Bank "Angel" Power Pitch will be emceed by award-winning journalist, TV One News One Now host and Tom Joyner Morning Show senior analyst Roland Martin. and the Entergy "Series A" Power Pitch will be emceed by author, matchmaker and relationship coach Paul Carrick Brunson. Both Power Pitch events will be held at Manning's Restaurant, 519 Fulton Street.

The diverse lineup of businesses and entrepreneurs selected to pitch include:

Liberty Bank "Angel" Power Pitch, 10 AM

Dr. Corey Hebert, Founder/CEO - Community Health TV, New Orleans, is the largest online provider of health video geared toward multicultural consumers. CHTV's portfolio includes in-depth medical content for condition prevention and management, fitness and cooking videos, health and wellness tools, plus an interactive community support platform. www.communityhealthtv.com, www.blackhealthtv.com, www.latinohealthtv.com

Charles Easterling, Founder - Crescent Unmanned Systems, New Orleans, manufactures advanced unmanned aircraft systems for government and commercial applications. These systems offer operators in a variety of industries access to affordable aerial photography and data collection replacing expensive manned aviation assets.  www.crescentunmanned.com

Charleson S. Bell, Founder - Crystal Innovations, Inc., Nashville, is developing a portable, crystalline technology called the "Flash Crystal" used to initiate the wireless transfer of media (music, video, books, documents, contact information, etc.) from the Internet directly to a user's mobile device. The metadata from each transaction is stored and can be used for value-added services such as fan loyalty and engagement. www.flashcrystal.com

Lorenzo Castillo, Founder/CEO - Education Everytime, New Orleans, (E2) offers subscription-based streaming software with library of songs specifically designed for school activities like cleaning up cafeteria and transitioning between classes that make them fun for students and easy for teachers to manage. By establishing clear beginnings and ends to classroom and grade-wide routines, E2 Music limits wasted time, maximizing student leaning time and resulting in greater student achievement.   www.educationeverytime.com

Ivy Walker, CEO - Helios Digital Learning, Chicago, is an ethics and anti-fraud training firm using the power of digital storytelling to help professionals and students strengthen their ethical decision-making.   They deliver first-person stories as told by white-collar felons and whistleblowers, with analysis from experts in areas such as accounting and finance, organizational behavior and psychology, law enforcement and regulatory oversight.  www.heliosdigital.com

Brit Fitzpatrick, Founder/CEO - MentorMe, Memphis, takes an "eHarmony" approach to linking children with the best adult mentor, and combines it with actionable intelligence and innovative mobile technology, using it to manage operations and track results, and also better engage mentors and mentees. www.getmentorme.com

LeShane Greenhill, Co-Founder/CEO - Sagents, Nashville, is a cloud-based B2B sales and procurement platform that improves and transforms the way businesses gather, manage, distribute and communicate information.  Sagents online dashboard allows companies to gain more supplier insight, and its intuitive analytics engine allows buyers and sellers to find, connect and manage sales and purchasing opportunities throughout the supply chain.  www.sagents.com

Candace Mitchell, Founder/CEO - Techturized Inc., Atlanta, was founded by hair enthusiasts who want to transform the hair care industry for women of color through science and technology. Their first solution is a mobile app called Myavana, a female social network which allows collaboration on hair care and styling issues through photo sharing, hair products, and profiles of stylists. www.myavana.com

Entergy "Series A" Power Pitch, 2 PM

Alberto Tarajano, Co-Founder/Chief Revenue Officer - Access Personal Finance, Miami, creates fair financial products designed to help nearly 70 million Americans escape payday and predatory lending by delivering credit as an employee benefit.  Participants apply for a loan online and payments are conveniently made via payroll deduction through employer. www.accesspf.com/info

Tarik Rodgers, President, BearTek (Blue Infusion Technologies), Dallas. BearTek™ Gloves are innovative protective gloves that allow users to control their music, calls, and Bluetooth/GoPro devices by a simple touch of the thumb to the appropriate finger, activating the desired function on the target device.  www.BearTekGloves.com

Marisa Bryce, CEO/Co-Founder ConversePoint, Chicago, is a message platform that reduces message noise (notifications, alerts, email messages) by actually reducing the information that you receive, allowing you to focus on the issues that actually need your attention.  www.conversepoint.com

Brian Brackeen, Founder - Kairos, Miami, uses biometrics to create government-level facial recognition technology.  This technology is being used in online learning to authenticate student test taking; corporations are using for tasks ranging from opening  doors instead of swiping badges to taking time and attendance in lieu of punching in and out. www.kairos.com

Dr. Lisa Dyson, CEO - Kiverdi, Berkeley, CA, makes high-value oils and chemicals for a variety of product applications such as detergents, biomaterials and fuel additives. Its mission is to create alternative fuels and bio-products that reduce reliance on petroleum, and lower carbon dioxide emissions, while having the ability to meet growing energy demands realistically.  www.kiverdi.com

Kellee James, Founder/CEO - Mercaris, Washington, DC, addresses the lack of basic market data available to participants in the $7 billion organic and non-GMO agricultural sector.    Its trading platform provides up-to-date, accurate information on commodity market conditions, and allows buyers and sellers to meet on-line and trade.  www.mercaris.com

Barry Givens, CEO/Founder - Monsieur, Atlanta, is an artificially intelligent robotic bartender that makes great tasting cocktails.  Divided into Monsieur for Business and Monsieur for Home, Monsieur is re-inventing the social drinking experience by creating an ecosystem to provide quality and consistent cocktails no matter where you are. http://monsieur.co/

Jessica Holsey, Co-Owner/President - Susty Party, Brooklyn, NY - creates disposable tableware that is compostable yet colorful, highly-functional, party-ready, and responsibly made in partnership with non-profit factories that employ and empower the visually impaired community. www.sustyparty.com

Four additional entrepreneurs will compete in the previously announced Chevron PowerMoves Pitch contest, which will be held on Saturday, July 5, 2014 at the Ernest N. Morial Convention
Center as part of the 2014 ESSENCE Festival™ Presented by Coca-Cola®.  http://www.powermovesnola.org/for-immediate-release

"Over the weekend these entrepreneurs will pitch their ideas, expand their networks, and foster connections and relationships that will help them grow their businesses.  And in providing this forum, PowerMoves.NOLA will showcase the innovation a diverse entrepreneurial community can provide America," said Leslie Jacobs, Founder of PowerMoves.NOLA.

Roland Martin is the host and managing editor of TV One's NewsOne Now, the first daily morning news program to focus on news and analysis of politics, entertainment, sports, and culture from an African American perspective. Martin is a nationally syndicated columnist with Creators Syndicate, and is senior analyst for the Tom Joyner Morning Show, where his daily segment is heard on more than 100 stations and by 8 million listeners. Among many other awards, Martin was named Journalist of the Year in 2013 by the National Association of Black Journalists for his focus on voter suppression and other issues of concern to African Americans during the 2012 election.

Paul Carrick Brunson has become internationally recognized as one of the country's most successful matchmakers and life coaches. A former investment banker and business executive with an MBA from Georgetown University, he is a pioneering and the first African American male matchmaker, having served over 500 clients directly and collectively through live events and social media and matched over 3,000 people on dates. In 2012, he received an NAACP Image Award nomination for his best-selling book entitled: It's Complicated: But It Doesn't Have to Be - A Guide for Finding and Keeping Love.

About PowerMoves.NOLA

PowerMoves.NOLA is a national initiative designed to increase the number of America's venture-backed minority businesses by leveraging the entrepreneurial ecosystem, resources and culture of New Orleans. This year, PowerMoves.NOLA will offer an intense two day Risingstars boot camp presented by Techstars for twenty early stage tech entrepreneurs of color and three pitch events for twenty high growth, minority-founded startups.

Headquartered in New Orleans, PowerMoves.NOLA's mission is to address the generational challenges of wealth and economic development with innovative ideas, fresh approaches, and an overall commitment to equity and diversity as a growth strategy.

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Media Contacts:

Lynn McReynolds, 410-268-0275
McReynolds Elek Communications/Urban Media Solutions
lynn@mcreynoldselek.com

Bernard Bell, 240-535-5918
Urban Media Solutions

bernardedgarbell@gmail.com

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