In this interview I get to connect with Makena Gargonnu, woman entrepreneur and Celebrity Event Producer for San Diego, Ca.

Makena started her career in event producing, back in 1998-2000, when she worked as a registration manager for Maria Dowd and her company “African American Women On Tour”. Every year Makena would travel to eight cities with Maria and watch her work with celebrities like Debbie Allen from FAME, Dr. Maya Angelou, and Malcolm Xs daughter.

Being around an African American woman in business, Makena says, was a huge inspiration. And seeing her in action was more reason enough to start her own business in event planning.

Her biggest advice to all aspiring event planners and producers out there especially young African American women is to keep the “Hope” alive! Have a plan and know your purpose for hosting an event. A good example is her “Conscious Comedy Explosion.” Her plan was to expose people to clean comedy but her purpose was to teach San Diego black history and black culture through clean comedy. From this she was blessed to have Dick Gregory, the Godfather of black comedy, to come and perform for her church last year!

“Business is a journey that we have to take every single day–You never know what turns you will take. So be flexible”

–Makena

Today Makena continues to provide celebrity events and clean conscious comedy to the city of San Diego, and owes all of her success to God, her mentor Dr. Al-Najjar, and her loving husband Nasara Gargonnu.

If you wish to contact her to have your next celebrity event produced, go to her Facebook Fanpage by Makena G. (www.facebook.com/MakenaGargonnu)

Or call her at 619-438-0777

Check out my radio talks at www.urbusinessnetwork.com and click “Prince in The City”