“As a founder, whether pre-seed, Series A, or bootstrap, you are going to be rejected 90% of the time. At a certain point, I deployed the Oprah method: don’t swim against the grain. Don’t worry about the ‘how.’ The business is changing; worry about the pivot. Media AI was the pivot.”
I had the pleasure of talking with Kojenwa Moitt, a woman whose life story reads like a picaresque novel, spanning continents, industries, and the full spectrum of human emotion. Moitt is the CEO of Zebra Public Relations and the founder of the new AI platform Meetia.ai, but to define her simply by her job titles is to miss the point entirely. She is a cultural shapeshifter, a historian’s daughter who slept on dirt floors in Senegal, an actress who took advice from Denzel Washington, and a tech founder who treats Bob Marley lyrics like religious scripture.
Moitt’s origins are rooted in the kind of stark contrasts that forge resilient characters. Born in Toronto, she was whisked away to Senegal at age two. Her father was a historian defending a doctorate on the slave trade, specifically studying the departure of enslaved people from the Île de Gorée. While the work was academic, the reality was visceral.
“We were so poor in Senegal,” Moitt recalls, describing a childhood stripped of Western comforts. “My parents had me sleep on a dirt mattress at one point because they didn’t realize they had to give money to get into an apartment… From that deep hardship, we were able to surmount the obstacles and get through it. Survival became a theme early on.”
That survival instinct followed her back to Toronto and eventually into the film industry. By 19, she was cast in a movie, finding herself sitting in a trailer outside her own high school. It was a surreal entry into adulthood, populated by stars like Method Man and Mandy Moore. But it was a sweaty, intense moment with Denzel Washington on the set of John Q that stuck with her. As he channeled the desperation of a father whose son collapsed on a baseball field, he turned to the young Moitt with a piece of blue-collar wisdom: “You got to do what you have to do now so you can do what you want to do later.”
Moitt took the advice to heart, realizing that the acting world was too eager to box her in. “I couldn’t figure out how to make a real living because you get typecast,” she admits.
She left the screen for the grit of New York City, a transition that was anything but smooth. Her first stint in the city was marked by a toxic relationship fueled by professional jealousy, ending in a necessary retreat to Toronto to heal. But Moitt is a utilitarian at heart, believing in the “greatest good for the greatest number”, and she refused to stay down. She returned to New York with a dream of working for Bad Boy Records. She didn’t become a music mogul, but she did waitress at Justin’s, P. Diddy’s restaurant, before stumbling into the cutthroat world of real estate.
It was here that Moitt’s business acumen began to sharpen. She helped build a system for a real estate firm that spun off into a moving company generating $100,000 a month. But in the volatile world of New York hustle, stability is a myth. A physical injury and a lack of health insurance brought her world crashing down again. “If I go to the hospital, it’ll cost me $1,000, and I don’t have that,” she remembers thinking.
That moment of vulnerability pushed her toward an MBA and a new global perspective in Shanghai. She graduated in 2008, right as the global economy imploded. It was a trial by fire that led to the creation of Zebra Public Relations on Valentine’s Day, 2014. The name was suggested by a Swedish rhetoric consultant who noted that zebras are distinct, memorable, and, in the venture capital world, represent collaboration over competition.
Moitt’s career is punctuated by these moments of high-wire improvisation. There was the time she found herself in a room with Richard Branson during a two-day hackathon for Virgin Atlantic. Her team pitched a “clubhouse” concept for travelers, an idea Branson actually implemented. Today, she’s pivoting again, launching Meetia.ai to democratize public relations for entrepreneurs who can’t afford big retainers, and appearing on Come Dine With Me Canada, proving that her flair for the dramatic hasn’t faded.
Yet, underneath the business success is a profound social consciousness. Moitt speaks candidly about the “scourge” of racism and the rise of white supremacy. She envisions a world where dismantling racism is as standardized as building codes. “I would want to provide guidelines and principles to eradicate this within organizations and institutions, similar to LEED certification for buildings,” she says.
She has learned hard lessons along the way, specifically that “your skinfolk ain’t always your kinfolk.” For Moitt, family is chosen, and success is about mindset. She speaks of training her brain to reject the “trauma mindset of lack” inherited from ancestors who endured poverty.
“You have to sit in your abundance,” Moitt says, sounding every bit the survivor she was raised to be. “My religion is Bob Marley: ‘Get up, stand up for your rights. Don’t give up the fight.’ You have to sit in your abundance and not give up because we only have one go-round in this life.”
Yitzi: Kojenwa Moitt, it is such a delight and a pleasure to meet you face-to-face. Before we dive deep, our readers would love to learn about your personal origin story. Feel free to be as elaborate as you like. Can you please share the story of your childhood, how you grew up, and the seeds for all the amazing, wonderful things that have come since then?
Kojenwa: Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity, Yitzi. I value everything that you do and the work that you publish. Regarding my origin story, I was born in Toronto at Toronto General, right down the road. Right away, I was looking at the world. My parents brought me to Senegal at the age of two. My dad was working on his doctorate about how enslaved people left the port of Senegal, Île de Gorée, to come to the New World. He was becoming a historian and had to defend his doctorate, looking at the slave trade and the study of the peanut.
We were so poor in Senegal. My parents had me sleep on a dirt mattress at one point because they didn’t realize they had to give money to get into an apartment; it was an unsaid rule. From that deep hardship, we were able to surmount the obstacles and get through it. Survival became a theme early on. The lovely thing is that I got to learn the French language. We later went to Paris because many of the archives regarding the slave papers were there. It is the journey of humanity, really, human beings moving about throughout the world. Yet it also fostered a sense of deep resistance against the brutality of slavery and any form of oppression thereafter. After living in Paris for a while, we came back to Toronto, where I spent most of my formative years until I came of age.
I came of age at approximately 19. I decided I would make money babysitting. That was my key; I was great with kids. I love children and believe to this day that you can learn everything from young people. I babysat the children on the block and sometimes had gigs with the government, like changing traffic bulbs or installing lighting where it felt dark.
At 19, somebody asked me, “Would you like to appear in a film?” I said I would. I had done some headshots, so I went for the casting. My dad dropped me off, I’ll never forget it. They called me back, deciding my typecast: was I the love interest? The girl’s best friend? The fun one? The basketball girl? I went to the casting, got the part, and suddenly I was sitting in a trailer in front of my high school. I felt like I had made it! It was a bizarre lifestyle, but one that I genuinely wanted. I decided I could manifest virtually anything. After all, at the age of nine, I had asked for a brother, and despite my mom thinking she had gallstones, it turned out to be my brother.
I dove into the world of film. I remember meeting Denzel Washington on the set of John Q. He turned to me, sweat pouring down his face as the father of a kid collapsed on a baseball field, and said, “You got to do what you have to do now so you can do what you want to do later.” I respected him so much as an actor. I’ve met everyone from Mandy Moore to Jane Seymour and was in a film with Method Man called My Baby’s Daddy.
I loved film and TV, but I couldn’t figure out how to make a real living because you get typecast. You have to be willing to go the distance. After leaving the University of Toronto, where I did a degree in French literature, Caribbean history, and philosophy, I left for New York. To this day, Yitzi, I am a utilitarian: the greatest good for the greatest number. I truly believe that universal maxim.
I left for New York at 21 the first time. I had met someone on a film set and loved him, but we were in the same industry. When we got to New York, I thought I would live a Jackie Kennedy Onassis lifestyle on the Upper East Side. However, we were deeply competitive with one another. When jealousy is infused in any relationship, it ruins everything. It is counterintuitive to joy. We didn’t make it; the competition led to sadness and strife. I was in a situation where I had to terminate a pregnancy because it was not a healthy or constructive relationship. It was my decision to make.
That allowed me to come back home to Toronto, lay on the couch for a month, and try again. I went back to New York, and this time, I was looking for Puff Daddy. I had a dream I would meet Bad Boy Records. I knocked on the door at Justin’s, and they gave me an opportunity to be a waitress. I was terrible at it, I couldn’t remember an order because I was more interested in the people than the food. But I met a lot of people and realized I want to know everyone’s story.
My ex-boyfriend, Charlie, came in with flowers one day and said he wanted to date me, but he lived in East Orange, New Jersey, and wanted to move to Manhattan. I went to a real estate firm, and the lady took one look at me and asked me to be her assistant. I said absolutely. I was a dreamer. I worked for the real estate company, helped build a team of agents, and built a system so good they created a moving company out of it. That company made maybe $100,000 a month. I thought, “Wow, I can make a company.”
Then, one day, everything fell apart. I fell leaving the apartment and thought, “If I go to the hospital, it’ll cost me $1,000, and I don’t have that.” The team hadn’t been paid, and morale was low. I walked into the Hilton at 57th and 7th, found an MBA fair, and decided to study for the GMAT to get into Hult. Getting into Hult gave me a portal to Shanghai, where I won hackathons and competitions. I got the MBA and the letters after my name I desperately wanted. I graduated in 2008, the year of Madoff, when the economy came down. I had no choice but to start a company immediately. We called it Zebra Public Relations. We ensure our entrepreneurs are seen, heard, and published. We filed our articles on February 14, 2014, a love letter to myself.
Yitzi: Is there a story behind why you chose the name Zebra?
Kojenwa: Elaine Ekswaard, a rhetoric consultant from Sweden, suggested it. She told me, “You make people feel so good about themselves; you should do PR.” She had already purchased the domain Zebra.nu. She said, “You always remember a zebra.” It is black and white, but it is whatever you want it to be. Also, in the VC world, a “zebra” company represents a collaborative approach in unison and harmony, rather than friction or competition. We are very much that.
Yitzi: You probably have some amazing stories from your illustrious career. Can you please share with our readers one or two stories that most stand out in your mind from your career as a public relations professional?
Kojenwa: One story that stands out is receiving validation from someone I admired greatly. I was thinking about a leader I respected, and for me, that was Richard Branson. Two years after leaving my MBA, I was called to New York for a two-day hackathon for an airline company, Virgin Atlantic. Inside the room were brilliant marketers, a cartoonist, and Richard Branson. He is an innovative thinker who focuses on entertainment.
We iterated for two days. Richard asked, “What is the one thing I can do for my most loyal customers who travel back and forth from the Atlantic to the New World?” Our team’s concept was to create a hotel, a clubhouse where they could relax, have a drink, get a spa treatment, or do laundry. We pitched him on the phone, and he liked the idea. We were delighted to see he implemented the clubhouse concept, and we got paid.
Just recently, I imagined having a food show. My cousin called and told me to apply for Come Dine With Me. After an extensive application, I got a callback. Now, I am a contestant on night four of Come Dine With Me Canada, preparing an elaborate meal inside my home. I always follow the method “Do as I have done.” I will never tell a client to do something that I have not gone through myself.
Yitzi: It’s been said that sometimes our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Do you have a story about a funny mistake that you made when first starting, and the lesson that you learned from it?
Kojenwa: Communication is key. I was working with a family friend from Israel who needed to get an Indiegogo campaign up. The technology wasn’t in Israel at the time, so I said I would do it, but I had to charge a commission. Mistakes often involve working with the wrong clients or taking a job just because you need it. It is important to strive to a point where you don’t need anything, so your integrity is not compromised. It’s okay to say no; “no” is a complete sentence. Not all money is good money. My mistakes were not securing the right contact or failing to say no.
Yitzi: Can you share any other exciting new announcements, developments, or projects you’re working on?
Kojenwa: There is one really exciting project. I created Zebra to help entrepreneurs stand out from the herd. After 10 years, I realized I couldn’t keep up, so I created Meetia.ai. It is a self-serve public relations app. Entrepreneurs can secure their own publicity without needing to call “Carol” at the front desk to see if she will put them through. Media AI dispatches you to the right opportunity. For example, Authority Magazine has over 660 storylines that deserve to be heard. We want to ensure entrepreneurs can get their stories out there.
Yitzi: There’s a saying that “no” is not rejection but redirection. Do you have a story where a “no” turned into an unexpected success or discovery?
Kojenwa: That is an interesting question. I was always called the emotional one because I would cry, which was frowned upon in my household. As a founder, whether pre-seed, Series A, or bootstrap, you are going to be rejected 90% of the time. At a certain point, I deployed the Oprah method: don’t swim against the grain. Do what is required to get where you need to go.
I remember being really down one day because I didn’t get a check I expected. Another time, I won a housing lottery in New York for a perfect two-bedroom apartment, but I made $10,000 over the limit and lost it. I felt down for days. Someone told me, “That’s not your way. It’s coming through your bag so you can get your brownstone in Brooklyn.” That was the way. I didn’t get the money from an incubator, but I got the connections. Don’t worry about the “how.” The business is changing; worry about the pivot. Media AI was the pivot.
Yitzi: This is our signature question. Kojenwa, looking back at when you first started your PR firm, can you share five things that you’ve learned that would have been really nice to know when you first started?
Kojenwa: Here are the things I learned from the school of hard knocks:
- Your skinfolk ain’t always your kinfolk. Not everyone has your best interests at heart, regardless of race, creed, or religion. You make your own family based on who supports you.
- Be bold. Certain cultures teach you not to rock the boat, but it is okay to dream. I was accused of daydreaming in class, but I was visualizing.
- Be who you are. My parents put me in art school, and I studied every medium. Don’t be shocked that I am in the creative industry. Many people try to fulfill expectations, but you must be authentic.
- Never stop learning. You are never done. Even my strict Caribbean parents had to learn that they could learn from their children. Things are always changing.
- Adopt an abundance mindset. Many of us suffer from a trauma mindset of lack. I had to train my brain for abundance. It is not that we came from poverty, but our ancestors did. Our resistance is to disallow that mindset. Keep learning, get that AI certificate, learn a new skill, learn about compound interest and ROI. Health is wealth. You must sit in your abundance.
Yitzi: Wow. So profound.
Kojenwa: Thank you. I feel like I’m preaching, but I want to inspire people to be incredible in their own way. Stand up for your rights. My religion is Bob Marley: “Get up, stand up for your rights. Don’t give up the fight.” You have to sit in your abundance and not give up because we only have one go-round in this life.
Yitzi: Because of your amazing work, you’re a person of enormous influence. If you could spread an idea or inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
Kojenwa: It would be a framework on dismantling racism. I see it as a societal ill and a scourge. With the rise of right-wing ideology and white supremacy, it is harmful to all of us. I would want to provide guidelines and principles to eradicate this within organizations and institutions, similar to LEED certification for buildings. We need to spread that idea further.
Yitzi: How can our readers continue to follow your work, engage your services, or learn more about Meetia.ai?
Kojenwa: You can go to Meetia.ai to register a free account. If you are a business, you can register and discuss what you’d like to talk about. For private engagements, you can find me at Zebra Public Relations on Google. My Calendly link is available there for one-on-one calls. I am here for a coffee at any time.
Yitzi: Kojenwa, it’s been an absolute pleasure talking to you. I wish you continued success, good health, and blessings. I’m excited to work with you, and I hope we can do this again.
Kojenwa: Let’s do it whenever you decide. This was a wonderful day. It was a true honor.