Marketing superstar Bozoma Saint John kicked off 2019 by adding “royalty” to her resume.
On Jan 2., Saint John, who gained fame for bold work at PepsiCo, Apple and Uber, was granted the title of Odupomma — or queen — by Odeneho Kwafo Akoto III, current chief of the Akwamu State in Ghana. “I am exceedingly proud of this great honor, and will do my best to uphold the respect of our people as I represent us in the diaspora,” she wrote on her Instagram account.
The title is a ceremonial one conferred onto Ghanaian women — Saint John’s family is from the West African nation, and she herself lived there for much of her childhood. It is granted in recognition of an individual’s demonstrated courage and intelligence, Akwasi Agyeman of the Ghana Tourism Authority told Black Enterprise. He added that the honor “is significant for Ghana at this time, when we have declared 2019 as a year [to urge] the global African family to make the spiritual and birthright journey back home.”
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Saint John, who is currently CMO of talent agency Endeavor, will continue her already-exciting year with the development of a Starz reality television show called “Bozoma: Being Badass.” She described the program to Fast Company as a cross between “Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations,” “Mister Rogers” and “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” and said it will offer looks into both her professional and personal lives. Production is already underway, she adds.
Saint John rose to fame through innovative work as a top marketing executive at food and beverage company PepsiCo and rideshare app Uber. While at Apple, she gave a star-making presentation at the 2016 Worldwide Developers Conference that turned an announcement about Apple Music into a dance party to The Sugar Hill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight.” Her branding work at those companies and others earned her praise and press from Billboard Magazine, Buzzfeed and other widely read publications.
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