Meet Laurent Mundela

Today we’d like to introduce you to Laurent Mundela.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started? 
As a child, there were two things I would get teased about that I eventually turned into my superpowers.

1. My peers told me I talk a lot, & sound like a teacher, and

2. That I’m always dancing. I am a first-generation black American born to two immigrant Congolese parents. The internal dual identity crisis I felt as a child is a story to unpack in itself, but I bring my family up to explain how dancing and communication were such prominent parts of my culture at home. Between watching Micheal Jackson & Chris Brown Videos to my parents always educating me about the country and the music they grew up on, I was bursting at the seams looking for any opportunity to share and talk about all these amazing things. 

After seeing the ‘Yo’ video by Chris Brown premiere as I’m getting ready to enter middle school (and adolescence), I had an epiphany. The only way for me, a brace-faced, big-headed, scrawny kid who only gets the African dad low-cut special every trip to the barber shop, would be able to attract my crush is to learn to dance. So, I practiced, alone, never formal. Just YouTube, America’s best dance crew, and vibes. 

I first started with talent shows, which later evolved into doing high school news reporting and hosting our school’s variety show. This later expanded as I went to Temple University to obtain my strategic communication degree. From talent shows to school reporting to college pep rallies, throwing my own events, and hosting homecomings, I kept finding unique ways to break doors down to use my talents. My one-sentence pitch early on looked a little like – “I’m not a DJ, I’m not a musical artist, and I’m not a promoter, but I promise, not only am I the life of the party, I can guarantee the audience will receive & internalize the intended message because I am a great host” And the rest is still being written cc: @RNBONLY @AfroFestTour @BridgeTheGapDRC. 

We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Smooth road? No, but simple? Yes. I believe when you are in a field or niche that’s not super saturated because of the many potential pathways (Or lack of clarity for pathways), it’s easier to make a seat at the table for yourself. I say simple because I had to learn to focus on what I bring to the table and how that provides value instead of what people will ask for. A lot of times, people don’t know what they need until you’re clear on what you can give / how you can help. 

There were a number of hurdles along my journey, but the biggest difficulties I faced early on were 1. competing with DJs & promoters. and 2. Learning how to turn my experience into professional leverage without feeling like I NEED a celebrity or brand co-sign all the time. 

With DJs and promoters, it was hard early on to explain why having me helps if they haven’t experienced me on a mic live, So I dealt with a log of ego and defensiveness. Hosting is a field that has a very low barrier of entry, meaning you don’t know who’s just a hype person looking for attention on a mic and who’s a professional until you see them live or they’ve created the proper marketing materials. 

Which brings me to my second struggle, I had no blueprint, no family in entertainment, and no strategy to turn this into a career. I had a lot of support, a lot of confidence in my skill, and a lot of determination. But none of that mattered until I learned the skills to turn my dreams into steps towards an achievable goal. And that meant doing the less ‘sexy’ work like creating a pitch deck, etc. 

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
My official title is live events host/Public speaker. I am the Live host for a company called COLORSWorldwide who operates the Nationwide and international brand @RNBONLY. I am a part of a team that is a genre amplification company creating experiences and spaces for underserved genres, with R&B being the forefront. As the host, the DJ and I are headline performers of the event, which is a concert-style journey of R&B music from past, present, and everywhere in between. All of the dis in our company are women and the hosts are men as it brings the perfect dynamic on the stage to entertain, educate, and tell a story to the crowd. DJs lead the vibes, hosts lead the energy, and as a team, we create a safe place for everyone to let it all out and enjoy the music we know & love. 

When I first got hired by @Jabari in 2018 as the first host on the team (aside from himself), Some of the biggest shows were 500-1000 people, we had a screen projector behind us, and it was a team of 3-4 of us flying or driving around the country. 

Now, to see how this has scaled, the amount of artists I’ve been able to work with, and the size of shows I’ve been able to do, it’s all been a blessing. We even have festivals, RNBONLY FEST, which differs from LIVE because our fests are outdoor festivals with surprise musical performers each time. I’ve grown from those small-cap room shows to hosting crowds of 10,000 plus. 

A dream of mine that almost seemed impossible without becoming a musical artist or something along those lines. But the determination of a young kid who talked too much and liked to dance paid off. The colorsworldwidg team saw my talent and gave me an opportunity to show the world. 

My specialty is unique communication. I believe that although I have such a relatable background being a black American, I get extra insight because I was raised in an immigrant household. This has given me the ability to be somewhat of a social chameleon. Over the years I’ve honed these skills and want to teach people through my social media and YouTube channel how to master their own forms of unique communication to help them towards their goals. 

Almost everything I am today can be credited to the fact I can clearly articulate what I want and that no matter what’s thrown my way, I am who I am. That comes from my ability to communicate. 

I have big plans to teach people about my family’s home country of D.R. Congo through my media company @BridgeTheGapDRC and to provide people with helpful resources to become the best versions of themselves through communication. 

And bonus facts- I speak French, as it is my first language. My family spoke French in the house, and I spoke English in all my years of school. So, I’ve been told that going seamlessly between those two languages as a young black boy in public school probably plays a role in my way of speech lol. 

So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
I LOVE COLLABORATION. Even doing this interview, I see voyage articles all the time and was wondering “When and how can I do one?” I love that you all give people space all over to tell their stories. 

Big supporter of community economics. You can find me on socials @Apex Laurent everywhere. YouTube, Tik Tok, Twitter, etc. I would love for people to support my YouTube channel and my Instagram to stay connected, as this year, I’ll be ramping up my videos on communication and creating resources for people to learn from while telling my story, 

I’m always open to hosting events, whether it’s as a panelist or panel host, live show/concert, podcast, or intimate settings you need a keynote speaker. I’m your man. 

If you need a creative consultant or verbal communications specialist to help you with your goals, I am also the man for the job. 

[email protected] 

Contact Info:

• Instagram: instagram.com/Apexlaurent
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ApexLaurent
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@apexlaurent

Image Credits
@Colorsworldwide