Latest news with #HumorandHarmony
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
50 Cent, Shreveport Mayor signs lease agreement for Stage Works
SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) — Curtis '50 Cent' Jackson and Shreveport's Mayor Tom Arceneaux have officially signed a lease today for Stage Works. Mayor Arceneaux FaceTimed the multihyphenate, entertainment mogul, and entrepreneur to sign the lease. During the call, Jackson confirmed, 'When I get back, I'm staying in Shreveport.' The City of Shreveport states that the agreement represents a significant advancement in Jackson's ongoing growth in entertainment infrastructure and production investment. 'Shreveport has shown me nothing but love, and I'm proud to make this partnership official. Stage Works is the next phase, we're building a hub for creativity, opportunity, and next-level content right here in Louisiana,' said Curtis '50 Cent' Jackson. 50 Cent's Humor and Harmony festival revives the Red River District Further details regarding Stage Works, including programming, events, and collaborations, will be released in the coming weeks. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mayor Arceneaux outlines 2024 progress, pain points in State of the City report
SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – Shreveport Mayor Tom Arceneaux shared the highs and lows of city governance on Friday in his 2024 State of the City report. The mayor said the city ended in good fiscal condition despite many challenges. He credits cooperation among his administration and the Shreveport City Council for ending 2024 with a $29 million operating reserve. Tax collection was mentioned, and Arceneaux said that while the last three months of 2024 showed improvement in sales tax revenue, it remained the same as the previous year, resulting in a revenue shortfall. 2024 ended with a higher unemployment rate than the mayor would have liked, closing December at 4.1% saying, 'The current rate is good but not entirely satisfactory. The unemployment rate does not account for underemployment, which we believe is still significant. We must all continue our efforts to increase local business and add well-paying jobs to the economy.' 100 Days of Querbes celebration underway Arceneaux highlights accomplishments such as the passage of three capital bond propositions, managing Mardi Gras through police staffing shortages and scheduling issues, steady reduction in violent crime, solidifying an agreement to improve SPD headquarters at 1234 Texas Street and negotiate temporary substations for police personnel, ongoing water issues, and working through property standards issues. He also mentioned Humor and Harmony's success in the short time it was coordinated and executed. The mayor ended the high notes with his acceptance into the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative, where he received in-person and virtual training to become a more effective mayor and leader at no cost to the city. He said the city is receiving additional assistance in developing a plan to address blight and redevelopment. Read Mayor Arceneaux's State of the City report below: State-of-the-City-2024Download Blight fight—The mayor noted that blight is still too prevalent in Shreveport, even though property standards demolished 229, primarily residential structures, in 2024. This is still an increase from 2023 and 2022, and with the help of Bloomberg HCLI, a local team will develop a long-range plan to attack blight and encourage neighborhood development. Crime – More POST-Certified officers joined the Shreveport Police Department in 2024 than in 2023, 'We hope to make that a trend, resulting in more officers available for crime fighting and the apprehension of perpetrators of crime.' The mayor also noted that the more than 1600 Real Time Crime Center camera feeds, which are anticipated to exceed 2000 feeds in 2025, are a helpful resource in solving crimes, particularly homicides and attempted homicides. Shreveport mayor unveils 2025 summer internship for college students Bond projects – a dashboard for capital projects that will allow residents to track the progress of specific projects- is coming in 2025. Economic Development – Mayor Arceneaux lists the long-term lease of Stageworks to G-Unit Film and Television Louisiana, LLC., as a first-quarter benchmark for 2025. 'The Administration continues to feel confident that G-Unit will bring new life to the television and film industry, and other significant economic benefits to Shreveport.' Mayor Arceneaux also restated his confidence in Economic Development Director Bill Sabo, whom he believes will provide strong, sound leadership and bring 'more activity to build the local business climate and economic activity.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
50 Cent to sign 30-year deal for G-Unit Studios in Shreveport
SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS)— Curtis '50 Cent' Jackson visited Shreveport to sign a 30-year lease agreement to establish G-Unit Studios. Eleven months ago, Jackson signed a lease agreement with the city. Tonight, he stood in front of the city council to move forward with ordinance 40, authorizing the lease of the Stageworks building. 'This is exciting, I'm just excited to be here today,' said Curtis 50 Cent Jackson. The Shreveport City Council voted unanimously to approve the 30-year lease agreement, which could significantly boost the area's economic and entertainment prospects. 50 Cent's Humor and Harmony festival revives the Red River District 'Curtis 50 cent Jackson was present in the council chambers today to reestablish again his commitment to Shreveport, Louisiana,' said District A City Councilwoman Tabatha Taylor. This was the last leg of the lease agreement with Stageworks, and now that it has been solidified, we can move forward with G-unit's plans for Shreveport, Louisiana. Jackson took the podium during Tuesday's meeting and expressed his excitement for the opportunity. He said this project is special because he plans to over-deliver on his promises. 'The support from this project is a legacy project for me,' said Jackson. All things G-Unit Studios City leaders say this move has the potential to transform the stage works facility into a thriving hub for entertainment and sports, while also bringing jobs to the city. ' It's a building that has sat there for roughly since the movies were on Shreveport and about this time 20 years ago when it went from expo hall to Stage Works,' said District B city councilman Gary Brooks. 'It hasn't been utilized almost at all, so we're looking forward to a bright future with Mr. Jackson.' Jackson is set to sign the lease papers in 10 days. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
04-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Content creators, influencers, small businesses don't miss SocialCon 2025
SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – A Shreveport couple is upping the social media game and allowing local creators, digital marketing strategists, and businesses looking to increase their online visibility to network and showcase their offerings. SocialCon 2025 is an event slated for June 2025 and is the brainchild of entrepreneurs Kalli and Ryan Combs. The Combs say SocialCon presents a unique opportunity to Shreveport and the surrounding areas because there isn't another event that will bring local and national content creators together to learn and grow businesses. 'My husband and I have been in the social media world and digital world for a little while for ten years, and as we've been in this space in Shreveport, there has been a scene of tons of content creators and entrepreneurs and influencers that not only want to get into social media more but also have a following and growing a following online,' Kalli Combs said. The couple is firmly grounded in social media. Kalli's background is in digital marketing. Ryan, who his wife manages, has been a content creator for about 10 years. He said his sneaker love caused a pivot in his content. Are you one of Shreveport's TikTok Titans? Social Con Awards calling all creators 'I started off in music, but I've actually just switched over into sneaker, you know, influencing. So now I've always been a sneaker lover, I've been using that space to basically broaden people's ideas of shoes that are less expensive and shoes that are very, very expensive,' Ryan Combs said. Before you turn your nose up at the idea of 'sneaker influence,' creating an 'aspirational lifestyle' is a big business that brings in tens of billions of dollars in influencer marketing, according to Revolt. There are levels of influence one has and a wide variety of ways to convert a love of athletic footwear into direct deposits. When asked why they chose Shreveport over another more 'popping' social media scene like Austin, New Orleans, or even similarly-sized Birmingham, Kalli's response was as expected, 'Why not Shreveport.' 'We have a growing community here. I think with the success of Humor and Harmony and 50 Cent and all the other things that are coming, it's a unique opportunity to align with the movement. Our economy is rapidly, you know, growing. It reminds me back when I was in my twenties and we had the Red River district scene and it was thriving. It was things to do,' Kalli Combs said. 'So I think we're right on the cusp of that again. So we wanted to not only create this space for entrepreneurs and influencers and content creators, but it's a unique opportunity as well to be involved in where the city is going in the future in the digital space.' They are blazing a brand new trail by bringing creators from other areas to network and share experiences and insights with local businesses and creators. 'We're going to be talking about different things and social media, whether it's authentic storytelling, how to build your brand, how to connect with brands and collab with brands online,' Kalli Combs said. They will learn from people who have already seen success and built brands through their social media platforms. Another lesson the couple expects attendees to take away is that creating a brand on social media is NOT EASY. 'Yeah, you know, I'll tell you one thing. Going viral is hard. So it's a lot of work, but it's consistent. It's consistency. That's what I've learned from Kalli, being in social media management. It's a lot of consistency. So a lot of work that you got to put in long nights,' Ryan Combs explained. There's another part of SocialCon that is very exciting – awards submitted by and voted on by online users. Kalli Combs explained, 'We're going to add something called SocialCon Awards, and that is a community-involved award voting where people can vote on different categories and we will announce the winners essential.' More Entertainment News If you know and love an online creator, you should head to the SocialCon awards page on their website and nominate your fave for awards in one of the seven content categories. According to Kalli Combs, nominations are open for any creator as long as they fit the criteria, and like any democratic online award – vote as many times as you like. Kalli and Ryan Combs believe that SocialCon will open the Shreveport creator community up to the more than $20 billion influencer marketplace. 'There's so many opportunities. If you are creative enough and committed to pursuing whatever it is that you love, there's something in that space for you,' Kalli Combs said. If you want to learn about content creation, are a creator looking to expand your network and audience, want to incorporate influencer marketing into your business, or are just curious about what all of this means, visit SocialCon 2025 is set for June 7, 2025, in the 11 Events Building, 1529 Texas Ave., Shreveport. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
