Speaker Bio
Derrick N. Ashong (DNA), founder of TBTM Studios, is the creator and host of The Mic: Africa, which has won 5 Telly Awards (2 Gold, 2 Silver, 1 Bronze), opposite the biggest companies in Media & Entertainment. He recently received the “International Innovative Media” Award at the 2022 Murex D’Or in Dubai, the Music in Streaming Award at the Monaco Streaming Festival, and has three Emmy nominations. Season 3 of The Mic: Africa is currently airing in proud association with MTN and ayoba. It will be broadcast in 20+ countries across Africa on Premium Free TV, and worldwide on the TBTM app. A son of Accra, Ghana, he also grew up in Flatbush, Brooklyn and in the Persian Gulf, excelled academically, and made it to Harvard University. He went on to act in Steven Spielberg’s Amistad, become a TV host and producer, and Billboard-recognized Hip Hop songwriter. Derrick is a pioneer in producing multi-platform interactive content for global audiences, and has hosted his own radio show for Oprah; a TV show for ABC/Disney; has spoken at the United Nations, MIT, Harvard and Stanford Business Schools, the London School of Economics, and UK Parliament on issues of Tech & Society; and launched a ground-breaking interactive television series for Al-Jazeera, called “The Stream, that won a Royal Television Society Award and was nominated for an Emmy in its inaugural season. Constantly breaking barriers, and redefining paradigms, Derrick created the blockchain-based Take Back the Mic (TBTM) entertainment platform (available in Google & iOS stores and on the web at tbtm.io) to reward fans and creators for amplifying great content.