Doug Melville interviews artist, photographer, and director Mark Clennon about pivoting from ad sales into a self-taught photography career. Clennon describes early momentum from a Brooklyn street photo and a major 2020 breakthrough image of protesters outside Trump Tower that went global. This led to use in TIME Magazine, and brought awards, sales, and agency representation amid new opportunities for Black creatives. Mark discusses building a versatile portfolio through high-volume spec work tied to personal interests, and his advice for aspiring artists to maximize time while employed and develop style by making lots of work. Clennon recounts conceptual shoots with Mike Tyson and LeBron James’ TIME “Athlete of the Century” cover, shares views on AI and creator culture, and highlights his ongoing “Father’s Hands” project documenting Black fatherhood.

More of Mark:

Mark's Website

Instagram

DM Doug:

@DougMelville

www.DougMelville.com

Doug Melville interviews artist, photographer, and director Mark Clennon about pivoting from ad sales into a self-taught photography career. Clennon describes early momentum from a Brooklyn street photo and a major 2020 breakthrough image of protesters outside Trump Tower that went global. This led to use in TIME Magazine, and brought awards, sales, and agency representation amid new opportunities for Black creatives. Mark discusses building a versatile portfolio through high-volume spec work tied to personal interests, and his advice for aspiring artists to maximize time while employed and develop style by making lots of work. Clennon recounts conceptual shoots with Mike Tyson and LeBron James&rsquo; TIME &ldquo;Athlete of the Century&rdquo; cover, shares views on AI and creator culture, and highlights his ongoing &ldquo;Father&rsquo;s Hands&rdquo; project documenting Black fatherhood.
More of Mark:
<a href="https://www.markclennon.com/info">Mark's Website</a>
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/mark.c/">Instagram</a>
DM Doug:
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/dougmelville/">@DougMelville</a>
<a href="https://www.DougMelville.com">www.DougMelville.com</a>

“DM Me with Doug Melville” is a direct, practical self-help podcast in which Doug Melville answers real questions with clear guidance to help listeners grow and take action on their careers, reputation, culture and life.

&ldquo;DM Me with Doug Melville&rdquo; is a direct, practical self-help podcast in which Doug Melville answers real questions with clear guidance to help listeners grow and take action on their careers, reputation, culture and life.

DM Me with Doug Melville

From Passion Project to Immortalizing Legends: The Path to LeBron and Tyson - A Sit Down with Photographer Mark Clennon

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/b8b99aae-34db-4801-b008-b4db00a1b877/transcript

Doug Melville welcomes Emmy-nominated journalist Mimi Brown, Front Page News correspondent for The Breakfast Club and host of Front Page with Mimi Brown on the Black Effect Podcast Network, to discuss what it takes to build a career in journalism amid today’s nonstop social media driven news cycle. Brown explains her daily process of curating stories for different audiences in different mediums, distinguishing national policy impact from local relatable news, and emphasizes old-school standards like training, sourcing, and fact-checking versus today's 'race to be first'. They explore why journalists now need a clear personal brand, and how shifting corporate dynamics and DEI pullbacks are pushing more people—especially Black women—toward ownership and content creation. They also touch on the midterm election urgency, civic literacy, and Brown’s advice to know your value, create opportunities, and avoid staying in a narrow lane.

More of Mimi:

@MimiBrownTV

Front Page Podcast

DM Doug:

@DougMelville

www.DougMelville.com

Doug Melville welcomes Emmy-nominated journalist Mimi Brown, Front Page News correspondent for The Breakfast Club and host of Front Page with Mimi Brown on the Black Effect Podcast Network, to discuss what it takes to build a career in journalism amid today&rsquo;s nonstop social media driven news cycle. Brown explains her daily process of curating stories for different audiences in different mediums, distinguishing national policy impact from local relatable news, and emphasizes old-school standards like training, sourcing, and fact-checking versus today's 'race to be first'. They explore why journalists now need a clear personal brand, and how shifting corporate dynamics and DEI pullbacks are pushing more people&mdash;especially Black women&mdash;toward ownership and content creation. They also touch on the midterm election urgency, civic literacy, and Brown&rsquo;s advice to know your value, create opportunities, and avoid staying in a narrow lane.
More of Mimi:
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/mimibrowntv/">@MimiBrownTV</a>
<a href="https://blackeffect.com/show/front-page/">Front Page Podcast</a>
DM Doug:
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/dougmelville/">@DougMelville</a>
<a href="https://www.DougMelville.com">www.DougMelville.com</a>

How The Breakfast Club's Mimi Brown is Dominating the Digital Era, Our 1-on-1 Conversation

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/7baf85b4-101b-4bf6-a689-b4d400644b8c/transcript

Doug Melville interviews Amman Ahmed, founder of the Youtube channel Music for Pets (Relax My Dog/Relax My Cat). He shares his vision about the confidence needed to believe in your unconventional ideas, and learning through experimentation. Ahmed describes growing up in Armley, Leeds, finding hope through books, studying IT, and realizing corporate life wasn’t for him after reading Tim Ferriss’ The 4-Hour Workweek. He started a YouTube-based relaxation music channel with $1000 and later expanded into pet-focused music and “dog TV” visuals, using insights about instruments, BPMs, frequencies, and color grading to help pets with anxiety and stress. After being pushed out of a VC-backed music discovery startup, he recommitted to bootstrapping, scaled a highly profitable business with multiple revenue streams, and sold it for in 2023 for eight figures after turning down earlier offers. He now stays in music, angel invests, and campaigns a new age album, “Ekta,” for Grammy consideration.

DM Doug:

@DougMelville

www.DougMelville.com

Doug Melville interviews Amman Ahmed, founder of the Youtube channel Music for Pets (Relax My Dog/Relax My Cat). He shares his vision about the confidence needed to believe in your unconventional ideas, and learning through experimentation. Ahmed describes growing up in Armley, Leeds, finding hope through books, studying IT, and realizing corporate life wasn&rsquo;t for him after reading Tim Ferriss&rsquo; The 4-Hour Workweek. He started a YouTube-based relaxation music channel with $1000 and later expanded into pet-focused music and &ldquo;dog TV&rdquo; visuals, using insights about instruments, BPMs, frequencies, and color grading to help pets with anxiety and stress. After being pushed out of a VC-backed music discovery startup, he recommitted to bootstrapping, scaled a highly profitable business with multiple revenue streams, and sold it for in 2023 for eight figures after turning down earlier offers. He now stays in music, angel invests, and campaigns a new age album, &ldquo;Ekta,&rdquo; for Grammy consideration.
DM Doug:
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/dougmelville/">@DougMelville</a>
<a href="https://www.DougMelville.com">www.DougMelville.com</a>

Betting on Yourself:  How This Creator Flipped a $1,000 Idea Into a Eight-Figure Sale Price - A Sit Down With Amman Ahmed

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/d3ab89f1-81cf-4437-b237-b4cd00913545/transcript

This week, Doug answers a listener question from Jasmine in Washington, D.C. about breaking into the luxury industry. He explains that luxury has distinct culture and philosophy from fashion and operates within an unwritten hierarchy. He shares five tips for getting your foot in the luxury door, including that the hiring process can take up to a year.

DM Doug:

@DougMelville

www.DougMelville.com

This week, Doug answers a listener question from Jasmine in Washington, D.C. about breaking into the luxury industry. He explains that luxury has distinct culture and philosophy from fashion and operates within an unwritten hierarchy. He shares five tips for getting your foot in the luxury door, including that the hiring process can take up to a year.
DM Doug:
<a href="https://www.instagram.com/dougmelville/">@DougMelville</a>
<a href="https://www.DougMelville.com">www.DougMelville.com</a>

Breaking Into Luxury: Secrets and Strategies for Success - A Mailbag Episode

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/9aab8883-6d05-478b-933f-b4c6008009e2/transcript

From Passion Project to Immortalizing Legends: The Path to LeBron and Tyson - A Sit Down with Photographer Mark Clennon

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