BDO is the leading health and wellness destination for people of color. We leverage culture, content, and technology to transform people’s lives for the better. Editorially, BDO shares culturally relevant tips and strategies on health, wellness, lifestyle, and longevity.
BDO: Where Wellness & Culture Connect
Culture describes the ‘way of life’ for a specific group of people — the outlook, attitudes, values, and customs shared by a society.
Wellness is the state of being in good health, especially as an actively pursued goal.
All of this is combined to create the ideal platform that speaks to our audience in a way that inspires, motivates, and informs them every day. With a heavy emphasis on “how to do it, you can do it” content, BDO has earned the trust of Black consumers everywhere who were simply waiting for someone to speak to them with a voice they can trust and a language they can understand.
BDO’s editorial advisers represent some of the leading physicians and health experts in their field. BDO also boasts the largest database of culturally sensitive doctors who are committed to treating all patients fairly regardless of race or creed.
BDO Leadership Team
Reginald Ware, CEO Most of Reggie Ware’s career has been spent fighting health disparities for Black Americans by educating, informing and inspiring them to make better decisions about their health and understanding that one size doesn’t fit all when it comes to healthcare. Black people’s health needs are different and require a different game plan, one that leverages culture, content, and technology to improve health outcomes.
As CEO of BlackDoctor.org (BDO), Ware and his team produce more culturally relevant health content for Black consumers than anyone else in the country. BDO is the nation’s largest and most trusted health and wellness destination for Black Americans. After 19 years of service, BDO reaches 26 million people per month on its platform, is the most trusted health resource for Black people, and has more Facebook followers than WebMD. BDO also boasts the largest database of Black doctors and most are a part of our free doctor search tool, which allows users to find culturally-sensitive doctors in their area. This unique website is full of more than 10,000 articles and videos.
Ware’s previous media experience includes being the founder and publisher of Heart & Soul magazine, which was the nation’s first national health magazine for Black women. Under Ware’s guidance, H&S magazine reached over 1 million people per month and was among the largest magazines targeted to Black women.
Ware also oversaw the launch of two Television properties for Black Enterprise. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in marketing from the University of Arizona, which he attended on a football scholarship. He grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio, and now resides in Chicago, IL.
Please contact Reggie at [email protected].
Akinwole “Aki” Garrett, President and Chief Operating Officer As President and COO of BDO, Aki oversees day-to-day operations, drives business strategy, and leads expansion into high-growth verticals such as podcasting, e-commerce, lifestyle, premium video, and strategic partnerships. He also optimizes core business areas including editorial, live events, and brand marketing.
Before joining BDO, Aki served as VP, Head of Business Development at REVOLT Media & TV and Founder/GM of the REVOLT Podcast Network, Aki leads all strategy, new business development and mergers and acquisitions for the largest black owned media company in the United States. Prior to Revolt, Aki was the Head of Global Strategic Alliances for the Telecommunications vertical at Lenovo, one of the world’s leading original equipment manufacturers. Prior to Lenovo, Aki was the Founder and Managing Director of Accelerate Consulting, a boutique digital media and technology consulting firm that offered a variety of advisory services for strategic growth to companies between series A and series C funding rounds. Prior to Accelerate, Aki spent three years as Senior Vice President of Business Development and Publisher Partnerships at SHE Media (formerly SheKnows Media), where he was a member of the senior management team that took SheKnows through an exit, when it was acquired by Penske Media in March 2018. Aki has held business development management positions at both CBS Local and ABC News, where he was instrumental in creating new strategies and products for both companies including, most notably, ABC News’ video distribution platform and CBS Local’s podcast network – Radio.com (formerly Play.it), which birthed legendary podcasts such as Rap Radar and Drink Champs. Prior to working in the media industry, Aki was a technology, media and telecommunications investment banker at Barclays Investment Bank.
Aki holds an MBA from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University and a BSBA in Finance & Accounting from The Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis. He is a proud member of the Robert Toigo Foundation, where he was recognized as Top 40 Under 40 in 2015. He sits on the Fuqua Minority Alumni Advisory Board at Duke University, the Board of Trustees of The Shipley School and is a founding General Partner of Sankofa Family Ventures, a family office committed to investing in Black and Brown VC fund managers. In addition, he is a member of the Investment Committee of Resilient Ventures, a Durham, North Carolina based venture capital fund. Aki also serves on the advisory board of two black-owned startups.
Derrick M. Lane, Chief Marketing Officer As CMO, Derrick Lane believes in “relishing in the beauty of today, while creatively imagining tomorrow’s opportunities.” Mr. Lane has been fascinated by the everyday use of technology from age seven and married both his passions for technology and advertising together as a Senior advertising executive at R.J. Dale Advertising & Public Relations. Upon joining BlackDoctor.org initially as Marketing Director, he then became Chief Content Officer and ultimately Chief Marketing Officer.
In his current role, Mr. Lane oversees all online and offline marketing efforts, traditional and new media, while forging creative ways to strategically over-deliver on KPIs from BDO’s Fortune 50 advertisers. Mr. Lane also teaches digital marketing to various faith-based and community institutions, creates branded networking events, and sits on the board for various community empowerment organizations.
Mr. Lane received his undergraduate degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and holds multiple online marketing certifications from the Online Marketing Institute based in San Diego, CA.
Contact Derrick at [email protected]
Jade I. M. Curtis, Executive Editor As executive editor, Jade Curtis is responsible for leading the charge for health equity in the Black community by creating “how to do it, you can do it“ content. Curtis keeps her finger on the pulse of Black America by leveraging culture, content, and technology to help people live healthier, happier lives. This is done via BDO polls and surveys, social listening via the BDO Facebook page, and more. Curtis oversees the largest production of health and wellness content targeted to Black consumers. Notable accomplishments include having BDO added to the US National Archives of Medicine and helping millions of Blacks get vaccinated in partnership with the Black Coalition Against COVID-19. Daily, no one drives more targeted health conversations to Black adults than Jade Curtis on the BDO health and wellness platform.
Jade Curtis is a proud Chicago-born and raised writer, wellness advocate, and media professional. Over the past half-decade, Jade has broadened her expertise and expanded her network in the health media space. She has explored several areas in the health media industry, including marketing, technology, and finally, editorial where she found a passion for health and wellness journalism and content creation.
Jade is a graduate of the illustrious Tuskegee University, where she received a Bachelor of Science in Sales and Marketing. Jade is committed to being a catalyst for information to improve health outcomes in the Black community.
Contact Jade at [email protected]
