Name: Andre Kay
Profession: CEO/Founder of Sociallybuzz
Age: 34
One word that describes you: Empathetic
Andre Kay was at the top of his career, when the ceiling came falling down. Abruptly fired from his lucrative career as an assistant vice president for a bank, Kay was left trying to understand why this happened to him.
“If I didn’t get fired, I would probably still be working there or just be working for someone else,” Kay tells BE Modern Man.
Staying strong in his faith, Kay believed that God knew he would not allow this to cause him to quit moving forward.
“He just gave me a little push,” says Kay. “Ever since that day God has guided my steps and is a major influence to becoming the person I am today.”
From an early age Kay understood the importance of the ‘why,’ and was able to tap into this ‘why’ three times to launch three companies.
“One company failed and the other two became successful,” Kay tells BE Modern Man. “You need a reason on why you want to spend every waking hour to achieve a specific goal. If you don’t have a why, then you won’t have the drive to turn your passion into an obsession. Once it becomes an obsession, there is nothing in this world that will stop you from accomplishing your goals.”
One of these thriving businesses is helping well-known organizations manage their online presence.
Sociallybuzz, a social media marketing, management, reputation & campaign company which Kay launched in 2009, provides social media management, marketing, fan page management, event online digital marketing, and social media consultation using a “Build, Engage and Grow” methodology.
Eliminating fear from his life, Kay has been able to build successful businesses while integrating philanthropy into his work. Giving his time, talents and treasures to help the human race live, learn and love better was a easy decision for Kay to make.
He says, “I don’t do it to look cool, I do it because it’s the right thing to do for the greater good. I joined the Pledge 1% movement with a commitment to pledge 1% of my time, talents and treasures to charitable causes in the community and the world.”
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Social media has opened a door for the championing of men of color to be taken out of mainstream media’s control, and placed in our own hands to distribute.
“We now have more effective outlets to be more expressive, show our accomplishments and be more vocal with more opportunities to continue to do really dope shit.”
Never sacrificing talent for hard work, Kay had a decision to make after experiencing a major set back during the early stages of Sociallybuzz’s growth.
“I hired an outside engineer to build out the platform,” Kay tells BE Modern Man
. After 3 months, he disappeared with my money and my codes. I was down thousands of dollars and had nothing to show for it. I was stuck at a two-way street deciding to quit and continue trying to find a job, or keep going. I kept going and pivoted Sociallybuzz to a human-powered social-media and tech agency. That essentially became my greatest decision.”Staying true to his vision, Kay believes it’s great to have a platform like BE Modern Man to show the upcoming generation that there are options in life.
“BE Modern Men gives it the cool factor to be who you want to be, outside of just being a musician or an athlete. It’s also cool to be a scientist, an engineer or a marketer. Most importantly, it’s cool to dream big and have audacious goals.”
Once a promising executive in the finance industry, Kay didn’t blame society for the doors that were closed on him. Instead, he stayed true to his vision and pursued his why.
“My narrative is to show that nothing is promised, no one owes you anything, and you’re going to have to prove yourself.”
Kay never set out to be a change-maker, he became one.
“Being a BE Modern Man means being the face of the change-makers in our community. Our responsibility is to seek out, advise and mentor our kids. This quote from Kevin Spacey explains it best. ‘If you’re lucky enough to do well, it’s your responsibility to send the elevator back down’.”
The BlackEnterprise.com team congratulates Andre Kay on staying true to his vision for himself and becoming a successful entrepreneur. We look forward to seeing the growth of Sociallybuzz, and the continued impact Kay makes in the community and the world.
It’s our normal to be extraordinary. Follow @blackenterprise and join the BE Modern Man conversation using #BEModernMan.