Glocal Citizens - Episodes Tagged with “Creative Director”

Episode 338: Creativity in Community with Rahman Ali Bugg Part 2

Florence Amerley Adu — Tue, 13 Oct 2026 05:00:00 -0400

Greetings Glocal Citizens!

We recorded this two-part conversation in the final days of my summer sojourn to the U.S. While it was a bit shorter than it has been in the recent past, this summer was another one for the books; made possible in large part by community, a consistent theme that I hope you too can appreciate as the way we become us and collectively move humanity forward. My guest, Rahman Ali Bugg is part of my "BK Fam" community — which you'll learn more aobut in our conversation, and he’s sharing his inspiring journey from Paterson, New Jersey, to becoming a seasoned executive producer in the unscripted television industry, rooting in NYC by the strength of community bonds.

He’s an executive producer, showrunner, and creative director with 30+ years leading unscripted television, documentaries, live broadcasts, and multi-platform storytelling for BET, MTV, A&E, Amazon, Roc Nation, MSG, and major cultural brands.

As an entrepreneur he founded PopStar Media, built around one core idea: that stories have power, and that power comes with responsibility. This ethic carries into his roles as Lead Exectutive Producer and Creative Director at Red Summer TV, a full service production company specializing in television and digital programming.

His work includes docu-series “Exposing Parchman” (ITV/A&E/Roc Nation) to Free Meek (Amazon) to Welcome to Rap City (Mass Appeal/BET) — lives at the intersection of culture, justice, and great television.

In addition to building the kind of content that moves audiences and making sure the teams behind that content are developed, challenged, and supported, he is passionate about media education — teaching at the university level, leading workshops for emerging producers, or building curriculum for the next generation of storytellers.

What I hope you will take away from this discussion is an understanding of how Rahman's diverse experiences, community roots, and passion for storytelling shaped his career and approach to media that matters. In Part 2, we go deeper with thoughts on how creatives can reimagine industry practices and build resilient, collaborative communities.

Where to find Rahman?
On LinkedIn
On IMDB
On Instagram
On Facebook
On YouTube

What’s Rahman watching?
Lioness
Slow Horses
Reacher
The Pitt and other medical dramas to check out
The Carol Burnett Show
Animal Control

What’s Rahman listening to?
Snoh Aalegra
Eric Benet
Chante Moore
Anita Baker
New Edition

Other topics of interest:
About Paterson, New Jersey
About The Great Migration
About the Nation of Islam from the 1934-75
Brooklyn by Neighborhood
About Exposing Parchman
Music Video Television in the 1990s
About the W.E.B. DuBois Scholars Institute
About Rahman’s Alma Mater
About music duo Foreign Exchange

Special Guest: Rahman Ali Bugg.

Episode 337: Creativity in Community with Rahman Ali Bugg Part 1

Florence Amerley Adu — Tue, 06 Oct 2026 05:00:00 -0400

Greetings Glocal Citizens!

Where to find Rahman?
On LinkedIn
On IMDB
On Instagram
On Facebook
On YouTube

What’s Rahman watching?
Lioness
Slow Horses
Reacher
The Pitt and other medical dramas to check out
The Carol Burnett Show
Animal Control

What’s Rahman listening to?
Snoh Aalegra
Eric Benet
Chante Moore
Anita Baker
New Edition

Special Guest: Rahman Ali Bugg.

Episode 217: On Building Animation Ecosystems in Africa with Francis Brown Part 2

Florence Amerley Adu — Tue, 09 Apr 2024 05:00:00 -0400

April Greetings Glocal Citizens!

As you listen to this week’s episode you may catch a hint of showers as part of the sound track for this conversation with long-time collaborator, Takoradi, Ghana’s own Francis Brown. As the saying goes, showers bring flowers and in this two-part conversation we’re definitely cultivating a bouquet of beauty and insights.
Francis is one of the first professionals that I worked with when I arrived in Ghana; at that times he was a student at Ghana’s National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI). Since then, his career has flourished as founder and creative director of AnimaxFYB Studios in Ghana. He is an award-winning filmmaker trained in a number of different cinematic mediums, and has over ten years experience in the audio-visual industry. He is a member of the International Academy of Arts and Sciences (EMMY), a Jury at MIPCOM in Cannes and a frequent speaker on different film and television forums around the world. He was shortlisted for the 42nd Student Academy Awards (Oscars), won Best Animation Film at the Africa International Film Festival 2016 (AFFRIF), Best Creative Artist 2017 at the Black British Entertainment Awards, animator of the year at the 2017 Ghana UK Based Awards (GUBA) and also Best Animation at the 2018 Ghana Movie Awards. In 2019, face2face Africa named him one of the five African animators who can give their Hollywood counterparts a run for the money. In 2021, his short 3D animated film ‘ROOM 5’ was nominated at Annecy International Animation Film Festival making him the only West African director to be nominated for the year and one of four films from Africa. He is a regular feature at Meta Cinema Forum, the largest Africa and Middle East film and cinema convention. He is also a planning committee member and artistic director of the Afrotino music festival where Latino and African performers will be meeting in a series of cross-country concerts in Panama, Costa Rica, Colombia and Mexico.

Where to find Francis?
animaxfybstudios.com
On LinkedIn
On Instagram
On Facebook
On YouTube

What’s Francis watching?
Afro Samurai
The Boondocks
Tales of the Black Freighter and Watchmen
SWAT Kats
Jonny Quest

Other topics of interest:
About Takoradi, Ghana
Watch Mmofra!
Koliko Animation Academy
How to use “Omo”
About DCI theaters
iRokoTV
ShowMax
Cinema in Ghana

Special Guest: Francis Y. Brown.

Episode 216: On Building Animation Ecosystems in Africa with Francis Brown Part 1

Florence Amerley Adu — Tue, 02 Apr 2024 05:00:00 -0400

April Greetings Glocal Citizens!

Where to find Francis?
animaxfybstudios.com
On LinkedIn
On Instagram
On Facebook
On YouTube

What’s Francis watching?
Afro Samurai
The Boondocks
Tales of the Black Freighter and Watchmen
SWAT Kats
Jonny Quest

Other topics of interest:
About Takoradi, Ghana
Watch Mmofra!
Koliko Animation Academy
How to use “Omo”
About DCI theaters
iRokoTV
ShowMax
Cinema in Ghana

Special Guest: Francis Y. Brown.

Episode 145: Fit to Flow with Terry Singh Part 2

Florence Amerley Adu — Tue, 11 Oct 2022 05:00:00 -0400

Greetings Glocal Citizens!
This two part experience will takes us on a journey through multiple planes of being and thought with my guest, fashion designer and trend setter, Terry Singh. Born and raised in Guyana to parents of Indian heritage, Terry has called New York City, home for most of his life. After a life changing journey to the country of his heritage, he has since bloomed into his current creative flow as the visionary behind his Terry Singh NYC fashion label. As a former adman of who is now the vision behind his own fashion brand, Terry's aim is to translate the practicality and elegance of the traditional Indian dhoti for a Western consumer. With multiple shows appearing at New York Fashion Week and features at this year’s New York Men’s Day, he’s created a buzz on the pages of the New York Times, Vogue, and WWD, to name a few. When asked about his aesthetic he shares, “I used to be inhibited about what I wore,” “I kept my head down because I felt people were staring. Then I realized I don’t know what’s in people’s minds, and I started to dress for myself. A question I always ask people is, ‘If today were your last day on earth, what would you wear?’ Dress like that.” Terry's fashions are also blooming with his leisurewear brand I AM U TOO.

Where to find Terry?
www.terrysomghnyc.com
On linktr.ee
On LinkedIn
On Instagram
On Facebook
On YouTube

What's Terry reading/listening to?
Works by J. Krishnamurti
Mooji
Osho
Ram Dass
Alan Watts

Other topics of interest:
Jobbers
Indian Designer Tarun Tahiliani
Brooklyn's Soul Summit in Fort Greene Park
Terry @ Maison 10
Blue Ribbon Restaurants
Gramercy Tavern
Indochine
Raoul's
Off White

Episode #144 photo credit:
Robbie Quinn

Special Guest: Terry Singh.

Episode 144: Fit to Flow with Terry Singh Part 1

Florence Amerley Adu — Tue, 04 Oct 2022 05:00:00 -0400

Greetings Glocal Citizens!
This two part experience will takes us on a journey through multiple planes of being and thought with my guest, fashion designer and trendsetter, Terry Singh. Born and raised in Guyana to parents of Indian heritage, Terry has called New York City, home for most of his life. After a life changing journey to the country of his heritage, he has since bloomed into his current creative flow as the visionary behind his Terry Singh NYC fashion label. As a former adman, Terry's aim is to leverage all of his talents in translating the practicality and elegance of the traditional Indian dhoti for a Western consumer. With multiple shows appearing at New York Fashion Week and features at this year’s New York Men’s Day, he’s created a buzz on the pages of The New York Times, Vogue, and WWD, to name a few. When asked about his aesthetic he shares, “I used to be inhibited about what I wore,” “I kept my head down because I felt people were staring. Then I realized I don’t know what’s in people’s minds, and I started to dress for myself. A question I always ask people is, ‘If today were your last day on earth, what would you wear?’ Dress like that.” Terry's fashions are also blooming with his leisurewear brand I AM U TOO.

Where to find Terry?
www.terrysomghnyc.com
On linktr.ee
On LinkedIn
On Instagram
On Facebook
On YouTube

What's Terry reading/listening to?
Works by J. Krishnamurti
Mooji
Osho
Ram Dass
Alan Watts

Other topics of interest:
Jobbers
Indian Designer Tarun Tahiliani
Brooklyn's Soul Summit in Fort Greene Park
Terry @ Maison 10
Blue Ribbon Restaurants
Gramercy Tavern
Indochine
Raoul's
Off White

Episode #144 photo credit:
Robbie Quinn

Special Guest: Terry Singh.

Episode 107: Illustrating Impact with Chidiebere Ibe

Florence Amerley Adu — Tue, 11 Jan 2022 05:00:00 -0500

Greetings Glocal Citizens!
This week's guest has recently become hot topic across traditional and social media platforms. His black fetus illustration went viral ushering his medical career in with a bang. Nigerian, Chidiebere Ibe graduated in Chemistry from the University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom State and in 2020. He then became creative director of the Journal of Global Neurosurgery. Having lost his mother to cancer, he became passionate about medicine, especially in relation to mothers and children. Independent from an early age, he raised funds for tuition to attend Kyiv Medical University in Ukraine, and will begin as first-year medical student this month.

Chidiebere's affiliations include a roles as a Research Fellow/Creative Director at the Association of Future African Neurosurgeons (AFAN) and the Young Continental Association of African Neurosurgical Societies (YCAANS). He is also Creative Director and Chief Medical Illustrator of the Journal of Global Neurosurgery. He is passionate about contemporary illustrations of black patients and intends to continue working assiduously promoting the use of black skin medical illustration in medical textbooks and public health materials. He is pursuing a career in pediatric neurosurgery and intends to establish an association for black medical illustrators. We're confident that he will do just that!

Where to find Chidiebere?
On LinkedIn
On Twitter
On Instagram
On Facebook

What is Chidiebere listening to?
Nathaniel Bassey
Moses Bliss
Todd Dulaney
Travis Greene
Donny McClurkin
Dunsin Oyekan

What's Chidiebere reading?
You Have a Brain: A Teen's Guide to T.H.I.N.K. B.I.G.
by Ben Carson M.D.

Other topics of interest:
Elservier Publishing
Ukrainian language

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Special Guest: Chidiebere Ibe.