Leading black figures in the worlds of entertainment, tech and finance have come together to launch Mansa, a platform for global black culture. Mansa is described as a ‘new AVOD streaming platform’, but its ambition also extends to social first and short form content.
The founders of Mansa are David Oyelowo, Nate Parker and Chiké Okonkwo, along with tech entrepreneur and film financier Zak Tanjeloff. This week, they announced that the platform is coming out of stealth after a successful year-long development and beta phase. The platform is launching with $8m of seed financing, with backing led by MaC Venture Capital, as well as additional funding from WndrCo, Mike Novogratz’s Galaxy Investment Partners, Base Ventures, Dubin & Co, Rainmaker Films and Robert F. Smith.
Mansa plans to showcase content that celebrates Black culture from across the globe. The founders said that it will separate itself from other platforms “by offering a level of transparency unique to the industry including true ownership and equity for the creators of Mansa Originals. Mansa pledges to create lasting, long-term relationships with all creators and talent who produce content with the platform, who will share in the company’s success.”
Mansa said it will be “creator-first” with a multiscreen interface that enables consumption anytime, anywhere. “The platform meets its consumers where they are by offering content that is agnostic to any specific format, showcasing curated long-form and short-form film and TV shows, user-generated content, digital linear (FAST) channels, and video podcasts.” To date, Mansa has licensed over 1,500 hours of content, and secured partnerships with upwards of 50 content suppliers with over two dozen licensed FAST channels rolling out.
Mansa co-founder David Oyelowo said: “We aim to change the paradigm around creator fairness, addressing ownership, transparency and community on a foundational level. Mansa is diligently looking for content creators and companies to work with.”
“Mansa is creating a space for diverse narratives, perspectives, characters and creators that continue to be underrepresented,” added Erika Turner, Mansa chief content officer.
As outlined above, Manse aims to combine AVOD, FAST, social and short-form in one place, responding to the fluid silo-free viewing habits of Gen Z and Millennial consumers. Additional reports suggest it will also incorporate a TikTok-style feed on its mobile app. The company is also planning to launch a fund that will support 100 Black content creators.
