 Genese Jamilah is the savvy entrepreneur and the brains behind the popular I Don’t Do Clubs, a website dedicated to help young, urban professionals mix and mingle on the social scene. With a background in Mass Communications and Radio and Television Production, Genese built her own career path simply from observing the needs of her peers and creating an innovative space where they can network and socialize beyond the nightclub. Who is Genese Jamilah? I am a Georgia Peach who relocated to New York to find her career but ended up finding a whole new world outside of the south that she knew. So can you give a little bit more information about what “I Don’t Do Clubs” is and what inspired you to create this? “I Don’t Do Clubs” is a blog for Black professionals in urban areas that like to venture outside of clubs. Think brunches, mixers, day parties, career conferences; anything that you’d want to do socially and are young adult “I Don’t Do Clubs” will have. I became inspired when I was reading a book by Angel Laws, who is the founder of Concrete Loop. I was working at Hot97 and was working closely with their bloggers and was wondering how these people were able to produce all this content and make money, pretty much just from their home. So while I was reading the book for my own knowledge, it helped me come up with the idea of IDDC.
Did you intend to create a career in social media or was this by happenstance? Happenstance! I absolutely did not intend to end up here. I was in a television production program in high school. My goal was to be a television producer. I visited New York for a few weeks one summer and I ended up getting a job interview at a company called Top Point Communications, which is a corporate webcasting company. They had an entry level- production manager position open, which I decided to take. I ended up learning how to code and gained pretty much all my digital experience at that one job. From there my interests just became digital.
Dinner Table Doc we always ask people we interview that if we were to have a literal dinner, what would you bring to our table, and why? Food wise or…? Anything! It could be food, condiments, or napkins… Oh ok. I would probably bring some type of game, some icebreaker game. I think it’s fun to –maybe not an icebreaker—I would probably bring a drinking game.*laughs* It’s always more fun when drinks are flowing and people are more relaxed. It definitely makes your party the thing to be at. Right. I would agree with that for those who are over 21. Right! Sorry I forgot there are highschoolers at the party.  What is your advice for young people in that weird transition space? I think you should think about what you truly want to do if money wasn’t a concern and go after that. Explore your job options so when you do settle down, you’re happy in the career that you pick. You can’t chase money so don’t worry about how much money you’ll make. In a few years you’ll be where you want to be and you’ll be happy, not just with a paycheck but with your life choice. Do you have any other professional experiences in media? I am also the Digital Production Manager for Ebony Magazine.
What is the best way for the public to learn about your blog and what is it that you all do? All of our social media handles are I Don’t Do Clubs, on Twitter, on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Interview Done by Joie' Johnson-Walker
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