About Us

The Royal City Collaboration Corp 501(c)3

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Khalif J. Guiden

khalifg@therylcty.com

(704) 654 6405

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11004 Ballards Pond Ln

Matthews NC 28105

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Yearly Operating Budget: $25,000 - $50,000

Requesting Amount: $100,000

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Board of Directors:

Board of Directors / Business Mentors: Leo Wolf, Cameron Mitchell, Aayla Alexander, Tarik Sloussi, Leadan Mitchell, 

The Board keeps the non profit in line with defined strategic initiatives. As a newly formed 501(c)3, the focus is placed on being creative when finding solutions to make an impact. Our board of directors are from a variety of backgrounds and disciplines that are creative or connected to the creative community.

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Application Answers:

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Tell us more about yourself or your organization:

The RoyalCity Collaboration Corp. specializes in developing and delivering programs that utilize art and music to teach essential personal and professional development skills to teens in underserved communities in Charlotte, NC. In addition, we train local artists on how to pair their expertise with our curriculum to deliver programming to our target audience and partner organizations. This approach enables simultaneous engagement with local artists, underserved communities, and surrounding residents.

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Our focus is to use music production and the recording process as a medium to engage our audience so they can acquire the skills needed to be productive citizens in the community.

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The Collaboration Corp. also develops experiences that innovatively connect artists with the surrounding community and residents to spark meaningful conversations, bring new ideas, and encourage collaboration on multiple levels. We understand and utilize the power of music and art to share information, uplift creatives, and connect the community.

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How would you describe your project in a sentence?* (50 words)

I would use money from the Fund to purchase the equipment needed to improve live streaming capabilities to develop and grow an online network to present virtual concerts, live events, and scheduled programs centered around local businesses and artists of various disciplines.

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Describe the activities that would be carried out with support from the Knight Art + Tech Expansion Fund.* (250 words)

The activities that will be carried out with the support of the fund include the following:

 

• Acquiring and purchasing specific equipment (cameras, controllers, interfaces) to enable professional live-streaming capabilities for various settings and applications.

• Creating organized and strategic planning to develop and produce three virtual series (30 unique scheduled virtual experiences) highlighting CLT-based artists, brands, and small businesses.

• Establishing a schedule of production meetings to coordinate the project team throughout the project while establishing a sustainable approach and process for producing for internal and external projects.

• Developing a schedule of weekly FREE live stream events and programs to engage and grow audience and reach consistently.

• Purchasing and implementing livestream software to facilitate the project's scheduled release and live-streaming capabilities.

• Hiring a web developer to increase website capabilities for live streaming and scheduled virtual events. The website will be a consistent space for all streaming events and associated information via desktop and mobile devices.

• Video and audio recording performances and interviews, and seminars to later deliver via online streaming channels.

• Provide professional live streaming capabilities for over 15 events in Charlotte (including three festivals, eight conference/panel events, four music and visual arts events, and more).

• Building and contracting a team of 5 production specialists to assist with filming and recording logistics throughout the project. This team will include an audio engineer, two video editors, and an outreach coordinator.

• Engaging local businesses and corporations for sponsorships and partnership opportunities.

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Describe the outcomes that would result from successful implementation of the activities described above.* (250 words)

The desired outcomes of the proposed activities include the following:

 

Organization Capabilities:

• Purchasing specific equipment needed to professionally live-stream and simultaneously deliver events on a recurring base to various streaming channels.

- It is essential to purchase the identified equipment to carry out and meet project goals successfully.

• Simultaneously removing barriers to event access while making in-person events more robust by providing a live-streaming experience for those wanting to engage and support without physically attending events.

• Creating an online space that connects and displays artists and brands with Charlotte residents and a potentially global audience while improving event accessibility.

• Developing a sustainable system and approach to producing and delivering live-stream events for a variety of artists, organizations, brands, and experiences throughout Charlotte

Production and Development:

• Develop and schedule over 50 unique schedule live-streams, engaging over 150 artists by EOY 2024.

Audience Growth:

• Increase direct online reach from 25000 (combining followers and email subscribers) to 65000 by EOY 2024 to help share artistry and a broader audience.

• Expanding the range of artists and brand exposure by developing a live streaming network dedicated to consistently delivering professional, quality content through virtual experiences.

- This provides a specific platform where we can build an audience where various artists and brands can showcase their artistry and share their brand's messages professionally and captivatingly. We will also utilize our project to provide services to external organizations needing live-stream capabilities.

• Engaging local businesses and companies by utilizing the platform to leverage sponsorships and partnership opportunities to reinvest back into artists and the Charlotte community.

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How will you know this project led to those outcomes?* (150 words)

I will track the project's progress and measure success using SMART goals and detailed tasks. There will be a detailed list of weekly, monthly, and quarterly goals that will coordinate production tasks to keep the project team organized. The breakdown of these specific goals will allow an organized approach to the project timeline:

I will specifically measure impact with the following (goals by Dec 2024):

- 150 artists, designers, and brands highlighted through various online events

- 50 unique scheduled live-streams:

- 30 scheduled events from 3 events series

- 15 Charlotte community events (external)

- 5 live-streamed seminars and artist talks

- Increasing direct followers to 65000 by Dec 2024

- 16k combined Instagram followers to 40k by Dec 2024

- 10.5k Email Subscribers to 20k

- Starting and growing live streaming audience to 15k subscribers by EOY 2024

- Acquiring ten sponsorships from local brands, businesses, and corporations

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How will you sustain the positive outcomes of the effort beyond the funding period? If this is not intended to be a sustainable effort, please explain why.*

I will sustain the positive outcomes of this funding period by utilizing the funds to establish a system that can be scaled, measured, and duplicated. The purchased equipment is a tool to launch this project and start the process. To maintain progress and consistency, monthly and quarterly meetings will be dedicated to reviewing past month/quarter work and improving plans for upcoming tasks. This approach will allow the project team to scale as needed and find ways to consistently make events, art, and music accessible through technology.

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Who are your partners in this project?

• Khalif Guiden: musician, entrepreneur - Creative direction, business strategy, branding, fashion, visual arts, logistics, outreach. Event Curation, Internet and Direct Marketing, Content Creation. 2023 Charlotte is Creative Entrepreneurship Cohort. Civic Center Entrepreneurship Accelerator Finalist and Grant Recipient. BIPOC.

• Shauna Respass: Musician, founder of DOAP Events - has curated nearly 100 indie events in the Charlotte market since 2019. Talent coordination, social media management, artist relations, guerilla marketing, sales, and partnerships. Recipient of ASC Emerging Creator’s Fellowship in 2022. BIPOC/Female

• Marcus Holness: Videography/Photography - 2x NC/CO Award Winning Videographer, Founder of Edge Recordings- Videography, Cinematography, Photography, sales, and event curation; BIPOC.

• The Royal City Collective LLC: Providing creative direction for creative endeavors that spark new ideas. The Royal City utilizes various resources to bring projects from ideation to completion.

Additional partnerships will be made based on alignment.

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