Media Personality Gia Peppers Shines A Light On Black Voices

Although there have been significant strides in closing the gap of Black representation in media, the statistics are alarming. For example, Zippia reported there are over 6,469 on-air announcers currently employed in the United States, and 33.2% are women. Out of that percentage, only 8.5% are African American. Additionally, Black voices are often stifled. The Black Media Report published by the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism stated that Black media publishes a factor of as high as six times more coverage than mainstream media on issues of importance to Black communities, including racism, health disparities and voting access. Also, Black media leads the way on stories related to racism, focusing on these stories at higher levels and earlier in the news cycle than mainstream media.

Gia Peppers, an award-winning on-air talent, entertainment journalist and podcaster, shines a light on Black voices and shares cultural content that accurately represents underserved communities. Most notably known for her work as a contributor on NBC’s Today Show, her nationally syndicated Urban One Radio show and podcast, More Than That with Gia Peppers, had resounding success resulting in $4 million invested into Black-owned media. In addition, she is also part of the wildly popular podcast Black Girl Pod. With each piece of content she creates or participates in, Peppers drives home the message that all anyone has to do is the important work of uncovering it, perfecting it and owning it.

“My mom instilled in us that the hustle is sold separately; there is no such thing as overnight anything,” Peppers shares. “I learned early on that if you wanted something, you had to work really, really hard to get it. And I also learned that dreams are attainable. Growing up in D.C., when it was the Chocolate City, there were Black people from all walks of life. My parent’s friends were doctors and lawyers and business owners. But then we also had people in our family who were dealing with substance abuse and things like that. It was never a surprise to me what anyone could be or do. But it was always there for me to learn like, ‘ok, excellence is real in our community. Struggle is real in our community. Joy is real in our community. All the things are real in our community. It helped me open up my eyes too. If I can work for it, if I can earn it, I can have it.’”

While obtaining her journalism degree in college, she interned at The Donnie Simpson Morning Show on Washington, D.C. radio station WPGC-FM. She also worked for Big Tigger at ABC before transitioning to the Wendy Williams show for its first season and Live with Kelly and Michael. However, graduating during the recession left her with no job prospects. So she began freelancing and quickly learned how to have her byline picked up by publications.

She eventually secured a position as the in-arena host for the Washington Wizards, an NBA team. At this time, Peppers traveled on a daily basis between New York City and Washington, D.C., working as an associate editor at Essence Magazine, writing for various publications and broadcasting during the NBA games.

“I did that for a really long time,” Peppers reminisces. “That’s when I learned the power of hustle and how much I really really wanted this. From there, I just kept hustling.”

As she expanded her brand and gained national notoriety, she knew she wanted to uplift the voices of the suppressed; she wanted to shed light on the truth. She began networking and utilizing her Rolodex to help bring her goal to fruition. Recently, Peppers launched an original interview series, Give You the Game, on her YouTube and IGTV channels. Peppers leads inspiring conversations with impactful leaders like Debbie Allen, Erica Campbell and Sarah Jakes Roberts.

As Peppers continues to expand her brand and transition into other media realms, she focuses on the following essential steps:

• Understand the business in which you want to pivot. Every industry has a different playing field and craft.
• Get comfortable with making new connections. Focus on building relationships before you need to call in a favor.
• Use your voice to help others. Develop a purpose in your life’s pursuits.

“My hustle is unstoppable,” Peppers concludes. “It’s faith-based first. And it is mine—no one can take it from me. No one can ever say that they gave me something that I didn’t earn. Every single thing that I’ve done in my career so far has been because I worked for it. I did it with integrity. I did it within a way that I can look back in five or ten years and still be proud of what I said or did in that moment.”