Sheletta Brundidge of ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com will receive the Governor’s Emmy® by the Board of Governors of the Upper Midwest Chapter of the Emmy Awards at its gala Oct. 19.

The Cottage Grove resident won for her Black Entrepreneurs Day at the State Capitol that was streamed live by KARE 11.

No one is cheering louder for Brundidge than Gina Kazmerski, owner of Image 360 in Woodbury. Image 360 is part of Brundidge’s branding team.

Brundidge started her podcast production business in early 2020. “I know black culture and the black community,” she said, Our celebrities get overlooked in the news.” During the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of black-owned businesses suffered and closed down. Brundidge said her business tried to do “something” to leverage the $17 billion federal loans available to small business owners.

Unlike other groups that retain lobbyists to further their interests, Brundidge recognized that Black small business owners like herself lacked a presence at the State Capitol “while the pie was being cut and decisions that affected them were being made.”

She talked to Gov. Tim Walz and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan about the need for greater representation for the community. This led Brundidge to conceive Black Entrepreneurs Day, and she created a plan to broadcast the activities of the day as a public service.

On February 16, 2024, the second Black Entrepreneurs Day at the State Capitol brought hundreds of Black business owners and their allies to the seat of government in St Paul. ShelettaMakesMeLaugh produced multi-camera live coverage of the full event.

Image 360 created publicity billboards, design signage, and graphics. “Sheletta has connections everywhere. Her events at the State Capitol are very well attended,” Kazmerksi said.

Brundidge and Kazmerski have worked together for a while now. “I was looking for a good and efficient business close to me. I was looking for women-owned businesses to partner with. Gina was instrumental in building my brand, my logos, my business,” Brundidge said.