Today we’d like to introduce you to Starr Howard.
Starr, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’ve always enjoyed stories and loved to read. I’m a firm believer that everyone has a story and that story shapes who we become. I remember growing up, I would watch The Young and the Restless with my grandmother, like so many black households, and watch Beverly Hills 90210 with my cousins, but no one on those shows looked like me. The one show that brought black culture from the eyes of young black kids was A Different World, but there weren’t shows of wealthy black teens in high school with luxury cars and huge mansions and expensive clothes, so I created my own. In High School, I started writing a series that combined Beverly Hills 90210 with The Babysitter’s Club with the main character as a young beautiful and popular black girl named…Drucilla, a la The Young and The Restless.
Unfortunately, I have no idea where those writings are, but the passion to tell the stories of black women still sits with me and burns inside of me. My blogazine, Iamstarrhoward.com, is a lifestyle/fashion/resourceful magazine that tells stories of black women and the many layers of our lives from dealing with relationships with our mothers, to infertility, to fashion, to faith, to entertaining. I want to show that the lifestyle that is deemed as “White People stuff” is just as much as “Black people stuff”. We like to ski in Tahoe, we love to entertain our friends over a well-dressed table and we know what a charcuterie board is! I also use my podcast, In My Opinion with Starr Howard, for the same purpose, to tell black stories. The podcast simply feels like catching up with your girls over Sunday brunch or sitting at the hair salon on Saturday mornings. Whichever platform I’m on, I want to give the opportunity to tell our stories.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I’m still on the journey. lol
The one challenge I’ve had and still experience is practicing vulnerability. Because my entire company stands on storytelling, my stories have to be real. I require every guest on the podcast and every feature in the Blogazine to be authentic and with authenticity comes vulnerability. You have to feel comfortable enough to show people who you are and be okay with the idea that they may not accept you. I found that the one thing I was requiring of everyone else around me is the one thing that I was not willing to give. I oftentimes struggle with the reality that my audience doesn’t truly know who I am. Therefore, am I trustworthy? Am I approachable? Do they connect with me? That’s a challenge that we all go through at some point, but recognizing it and learning how to manage it is the key.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Howard Companies – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Howard Companies is a media company that I incorporated in 2013. I made the company an official LLC during the Obama Administration because I wanted it documented in history and time stamped during the presidency of our first black president. The idea was initially created to pay homage to my paternal grandfather, Robert Howard. He only had a 3rd-grade education, but he was a businessman and I think that drive and determination was passed down to the Howard clan. A lot of us have our own businesses and work full-time jobs. I wanted to create a company to honor his legacy. My ultimate dream is to bring every single business owned by my family, under the Howard Company umbrella, and share the ownership with my family. I recently split ownership with one cousin but we haven’t worked out the kinks, yet. Currently, under the Howard Companies umbrella is the In My Opinion with Starr Howard podcast, the https://www.issuu.com/iamstarrhoward blog and Blogazine and Church Girls are Lit Organization.
Both the blog/blogazine and the podcast are media outlets created to tell stories of and by black women. We focus on fashion, faith, lifestyle, friendship, relationships, mental health and all things that affect black women and our community.
Church Girls are Lit is still in development. The idea was dropped in my spirit and I honestly have no idea where it’s going. I’m just letting God use me. It was definitely created to focus on the modern woman who loves God. The woman who is sitting courtside at an NBA game, or calling the shots in her corner office at a Fortune 500 Company, or blazing the trails in tech, or jet setting across the country, or sitting front row at Paris Fashion Week. Whatever she’s doing, she knows that her help comes from God.
I’m mostly proud of Howard Companies because it was created for my family.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I’m looking forward to growing Howard Companies and bring my family members on board. I am working on creating more video content through YouTube, debut short films, and even write a book. The opportunities are endless.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://iamstarrhoward.wordpress.com/
- Phone: 713-364-8508
- Email: contact@iamstarrhoward.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamstarrhoward/
Image Credit:
Briana Mills; Brandon Ruffin; Rena O
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