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One of the UK’s most inspiring black leaders, Kanya King is the pioneer behind the iconic MOBO Awards. A champion of increased diversity in creative industries, Kanya has dedicated her career to improving the representation of people from BAME backgrounds in music, art and technology. The award-winning entrepreneur is a leading voice in the race debate and supports corporate clients of her talks in working towards an inclusive mindset in their personal and professional lives.
Founding the MOBO Awards in 1996, Kanya was driven by her desire to showcase the wealth of talent coming from black, mixed-raced and ethnic minority individuals, that otherwise wasn’t being shown in the mainstream media. Gaining backing from Carlton TV to air the awards further promoted the event, which has since gone from strength to strength being shown on the BBC and ITV. With global artists like Beyonce, Stormzy and Rihanna supporting the annual occasion, Kanya has created a platform with an undeniable influence, a testament to her determination.
Alongside the MOBO Awards, Kanya has been a prominent voice in the media on race issues and the need for diversity across industries. To support individuals and companies in achieving this, she has also founded Mobolise in 2020, an online service that pairs talent with professional roles to further create a diverse working environment.
For her inspiring contributions to diversity, Kanya has been listed in the BBC Women’s Hour Power List and named as One of Britain’s Most Influential Black People. The recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Institute of Enterprise and Entrepreneurship, Kanya’s insight as an event speaker is truly transformational.
“Kanya is an inspiration to women around the world! Listening to her journey really kicked off the launch of our diversity & inclusion program. Her endless energy and positivity shines through in her speaking. Our employees left feeling motivated, invigorated and compelled to follow their dreams.”
“Thanks again for your tremendous contribution to our conference on Friday. The feedback has been outstanding from delegates and sponsors and the tweeting was just unprecedented for IoD – UK wide, not just here.”
“She gave us an amazing in depth speech and answered all questions both coherently and comprehensively – so I think it’s fair to say Kanya was the best choice for our event. We have had glowing reviews from our participants who were impressed by her and also the fact that they were able to interact and ask her questions!”
“Really great thank you!! She was a great inspiration and perfect way to close our team meeting”
“Everyone has been well and truly blown away by Kanya today, feedback that it was the best talk that they’ve ever been to in Simply Business and I can only echo that feedback. Kanya truly captivated the entire audience and I’m so thankful to have had Kanya speak today”
“Kanya was great today – she spoke in front of 80 people, both men and women, and was very honest and inspiring”
The Diversity and Inclusion Speakers Agency has been one of the UK’s leading bureaus for inspirational figures of different races, genders, sexualities and abilities since 2020. We supply speakers for corporate and public events across the world, and cater to both in-person occasions and online webinars. Our roster includes athletes, psychologists, celebrities and more, to ensure that audiences of all industries receive tailored, impactful advice on diversity and inclusion.
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