iHEART CELEBRATES BLACK HISTORY MONTH

iHeartMedia will spotlight the power of Black culture with a special event featuring performances by Roddy Ricch, 21 Savage, Jhené Aiko and Kirk Franklin, among others, part of a monthlong celebration.

Produced by Rikki Hughes (executive producer of Dave Chappelle's acclaimed Netflix specials), iHeartRadio’s Living Black! is set to air 2/20 at 6pm ET/3pm PT on iHeartRadio’s YouTube and Facebook pages, iHeartMedia’s hip-hop, gospel and R&B stations and the iHeartRadio app.

Black History Month at iHeart will highlight hundreds of Black artists, influencers and thought leaders through audio vignettes and tributes on 580 iHeartMedia broadcast radio stations; February will see country, pop and rock artists recognizing the impact Black people and culture have had on their lives and communities.

“Black culture is American culture and this past year especially has resulted in much-needed and long-overdue conversations about the role of race in America,” said Doc Wynter, Executive Vice President of Urban/Hip-Hop Programming Strategy for iHeartMedia. “iHeartRadio’s Living Black! will use iHeartMedia’s unparalleled reach to help shape these conversations and celebrate Black culture at scale—reaching hundreds of millions of listeners on iHeartMedia stations across all of our formats.”

In addition to its Black History Month programming, iHeartMedia has hired Yesenia Bello as its first Senior Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion.

Bello will report to Michele Laven, iHeart’s Chief Human Resources Officer and Chief Diversity Officer, and is tasked with driving comprehensive long-term and measurable diversity and inclusion strategies at iHeartMedia.

Having joined the company in October 2019 as SVP of Multicultural Sales, Bello will also spearhead the development and implementation of inclusion strategies for iHeart that focus on employee retention and development. She will further create opportunities to engage and collaborate with iHeartMedia’s advertising and business partners on diversity and inclusion initiatives.

“We know that supporting our company’s diverse voices while continuing to bring in new ones is essential to our success,” Laven said. “Throughout her career, Yesenia has made it a priority to understand the needs and goals of multicultural communities. This, combined with her deep knowledge of our company, makes her the right person to take on this newly created role.”