Kaidi Grant
Founder, Diamond Girls Boston and Black Market Nubian
“It’s essential that we provide safe spaces for young people, places they can talk about their challenges and their hopes and dreams, places where they can pick themselves up after falling. What could be more important than making sure young people feel they have a home in our community where they can thrive? "
Kaidi makes things happen. Whether launching Lip-Hop Cosmetics, founding Diamond Girls Boston, running 4 Boston Marathons, or co-founding Black Market-Nubian Square’s first flexible cultural event space and marketplace, Kaidi makes good things happen.
Lip-Hop Cosmetics caught the attention of Teen People, the Boston Globe, Boston Magazine, the Boston Herald, and the Chronicle. Diamond Girls created Diamond Dust makeup and a social media campaign that won them a trip to BET’s Black Girls Rock taping, while helping girls in grades 6 through 12 on identifying self-worth, build self-esteem, and develop self-image.
Black Market-Nubian has generated over $650,000 for 250+ aspiring micro-business artisans, driving 20,000+ footsteps into a struggling Nubian Square.
Kaidi is a 7th-generation Roxburian. She's been awarded citations by the Boston City Council, the Governor of MA, the Black & Latino Caucus, and the NAACP. She serves on the board of the Roxbury Cultural District.
At LEAP, we envision a world in which girls and nonbinary youth grow into powerful, capable adults, realizing the promise of their aspirations. Kaidi Grant lights this path, showing what it’s like to have courage, to take risks, and to be truly empowered.