Angel Livas is a tech leader and entrepreneur, Google TechMaker ambassador, award-winning producer, and the mother of two who is the CEO and founder of the ALIVE Podcast Network app. Through this platform, Livas is giving Black creatives a space to collaborate and amplify their voices.
Livas opened up about transitioning to the tech industry and the role of motherhood in her success.
Your background is in media, so how did you end up developing an app?
The ALIVE Podcast Network was essentially created because I realized that there was a disconnect between how Black creatives were treated in comparison to their White counterparts. For me, it was a crazy thing, because, for the longest time, I had been creating content behind the scenes for a lot of very prominent White people such as Larry King and Jane Pauley. It was imperative that I not only create a platform for people to have their voices amplified and to be able to monetize, but we need[ed] to own every aspect of it. … I just thought, “No, we’re gonna do this, it’s going to be all-Black everything, from the technology to the hosts, and to the audience that we’re supporting.”
How are you creating a new lane for young people, and what is the message you want to share with them specifically?
I’m the mother of two boys. I’m all around ensuring that our youth understand the power of their voice[s] and the power of their content. We didn’t grow up in an age where we had all of this happening. I’m informing them of how to do it appropriately, how to leverage their voice[s], and the different skills that they have through social platforms, and just different mediums. The ALIVE Podcast Network also launched our own kid’s channel called Alive Jr., which gives them an opportunity to have their voices amplified, published, and be able to monetize from their content as well. One of the shows that we have on our network currently is all youth-produced and hosted called YouthSoup. Right now we’re looking for more youth talent to be able to join the network and be able to monetize and then understand the business side of things.
How rewarding is it to be a mother?
The energy that flows through my two boys’ veins is the motivation that keeps me going each and every day. My journey to motherhood is very interesting. I’ll share it really quickly. So essentially, I had five miscarriages before I was able to have my kids. When you sit back and you reflect on different things, you wonder, why is this happening? I feel like God took me through those things because he knew where he was taking me. I believe that I had to go through that number of miscarriages, for me to get it. That I would be very intentional with how I incorporate my kids in my journey moving forward.
