Ebonie Ward isn’t just pulling up a seat to the desk, she’s bringing the entire desk as chairwoman and CEO of eleventh & Co.

In response to Billboard, Ward heads eleventh & Co, the primary administration firm led by Black ladies. The agency is predicated in Atlanta, and Ward plans to broaden it to Los Angeles. Her govt group of seven consists of Black ladies leaders with a various set of experiences. Ward shared, “The one factor I really like in regards to the ladies on my group is that they’ve carried out a mess of various issues: from working in politics, finance, leisure legislation, and advertising to trend, DJing, touring, and restaurant possession.”

eleventh & Co’s notable superstar shoppers embrace Future, Gunna, Flo Milli, and James Harden. Ward stated, “I need to do one thing that may be very unorthodox, not one-dimensional. Along with our music shoppers, we’ve simply added James Harden of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers.”

Ward sprung into motion after #MeToo and #TheShowMustBePaused picked up pace whereas she labored as a companion and supervisor at Emagen Leisure Group. Ward spoke to Billboard about what drove her to start out her agency, “there have been all these indications of placing ladies of coloration into management positions.” She added, “I’ve seen quite a lot of Black ladies, particularly in hip-hop and R&B, who’re the backbones at many firms. I’ve additionally seen quite a lot of ladies who’re really working these firms, however they’re nonetheless not the face.”

The 2023 Ladies in Music Honoree advised Billboard that Black ladies face challenges like being “acquired and revered.” Ward stated, “Even working with my earlier companion [Emagen founder/CEO Anthony Saleh], I’ve walked into rooms and never been addressed, not to mention been revered, for understanding this enterprise inside and outside.” The businesswoman additionally holds Black ladies accountable for the small variety of Black ladies managers and executives within the music trade. She shared, “Other than holding different individuals accountable, we have to maintain ourselves accountable. As quickly as every little thing got here again after the present was paused, quite a lot of these efforts stopped. Going again into our places of work, we have to nonetheless have that very same starvation and that very same struggle to carry the trade accountable for what they stated they had been championing.”