Passing Baton of History: Kelsey Nicole Nelson on Building A Brand That Fits

Kelsey Nicole Nelson (L) with Jayne Kennedy at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.

“We are carrying the baton of history,” says Kelsey Nicole Nelson, award-winning sports journalist, branding specialist, college instructor, entrepreneur, role model, activist, nationally renowned speaker and host of Take The Lead’s Power Up Conference on Women’s Equality Day, August 26.

“I’ve always felt the role of journalist is to tell the story,” says Nelson, who recently founded her branding and communications firm, Kryptiann, where she is founder and CEO. She was awarded the 2025 Young Entrepreneur of the Year by the DC Chamber of Commerce.

“We are carrying the baton of history,” says Kelsey Nicole Nelson, @therealknelson award-winning sports journalist, branding specialist, instructor, entrepreneur, role model, activist, and host @TakeLeadeomen #PowerUp Conference #WomensEqualityDay. ”

Leading a multi-faceted career, Nelson launched the LinkedIn newsletter, “Playful Banter,” and continues with her radio show, “Listen In With KNN,” earning her the Next Generation Entertainment Award as the “Best On-Air Personality” for her work there.

“I loved the power journalists had, and I wanted to be a part of that threshold,” says Nelson, who has served as the Vice President and Membership chair of the Washington Association of Black Journalists (WABJ) and is a committee lead for the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Sports Committee. She also serves as co-chair of the communications committee for the Capital EMMYS, contributing to the Board of Governors.

This is at a time when Black women journalists have been under attack, particularly at White House press briefings. A very recent incident prompted a firm response from the National Association of Black Journalists, which recently honored Nelson with the Sports Task Force Service Award.

“Black women journalists deserve the freedom to do their jobs without being targeted, demeaned, or publicly attacked for asking legitimate questions,” according to the official NABJ statement.

Read more in Take The Lead on women journalists of color
The statement continues, ”A free press is a pillar of democracy, not a privilege granted by those in power. When Black women journalists are insulted or singled out for doing their jobs, it is bigger than one moment or one person. It is an attack on the role of journalism itself.”

Journalism is what Nelson intended to pursue from an early age.

Growing up in Montgomery County, Maryland, Nelson says both her parents worked for the federal government after moving there from Jackson, Miss, the hometown of Medgar Evers, 1960s civil rights activist and murdered NAACP field secretary.

“Black history was embedded in me from the start. I always wanted to tell the story so history could be explored,” says Nelson, who in 2020 was named “DMV Sports Media Person of the Year.” In 2016, she was awarded as the 2016 Phenomenal Woman of the Year from “Be There Magazine," and in 2017 she was an honoree for the WKYS “Top 30 Under 30” 2017 class, for being a top sports reporter and advancing women and minorities in sports.

“Black history was embedded in me from the start. I always wanted to tell the story so history could be explored,” says @therealknelson, named 2020 DMV Sports Media Person of the Year. #history #journalism ”

She says her parents and younger sister formed a big “HBCU sports family.” Nelson was involved in basketball, soccer, volleyball and cheering and held onto the dream of being a sports journalist because newspapers and broadcast news were such a big part of her life.

Known widely as a broadcaster, analyst, host and reporter who has worked with SB Nation, NASCAR, ESPN Radio, MASN, FOX Sports Radio, Bally Sports, the Big East Digital Network, NBC Sports/Peacock and many more, Nelson is often called the “Sports Oprah.” That is particularly endearing because growing up she saw Oprah Winfrey as an inspiration.

“Representation is huge,” says Nelson, who is a host for the Atlantic 10 Conference, color analyst for American University women's basketball team, twice a Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award winner, named the 2022 D.C. Media Person of the Year by the Washington Chiefs Inc. and a 2025 Daily Record Top 100 Women in Maryland honoree and a Luminary Award winner by the Thursday Network of the Greater Washington Urban League.

Journalist Antonia Williams-Gay writes recently about the role of Black journalists in society in the South Florida Times, “The cadre of Black journalists grow stronger and more resolute to speak truth to power. Today, media outlets include many varied formats, including podcasts, Substack, AI-driven platforms, etc. But the information highway still depends on reliable and verifiable data from people who are disciplined by principles and who are accountable to a professional code, including a discerning consumer-base.”

“The information highway still depends on reliable and verifiable data from people who are disciplined by principles and who are accountable to a professional code, including a discerning consumer-base writes journo Antonia Williams-Gay.”

Nelson brings her expertise and insight as an entrepreneurial role model to the Power Up Conference, “Audacity: Leadership in Action,” as the event’s host and moderator. Nelson introduces a day-long agenda of topics, issues and strategies from a diverse lineup of talent across gender, race, age and leadership sectors.

“Growing up, my classrooms did not look like me,” says Nelson. “On TV, I was wanting to see more representation. Sometimes that can show you your ‘why,” says Nelson, who has been host of the Sports Smarts podcast series for the National Sports Media Association.

Today, Kelsey is commonly seen and heard on Fox Sports Radio 1340 AM/96.9 FM where she hosts her own radio show/podcast, “Listen In With KNN,” the station's flagship show Kelsey has been recognized by the Next Generation Entertainment Awards as the “Best On-Air Personality” for her work with her show.

Graduating in 2014 from the Philip H. Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland-College Park, she received her Certificate in African-American Studies and her Bachelors of Arts degree in Broadcast Journalism. “I was so excited to get into journalism,” says Nelson, “so I learned how to be a one-man band.”

She says she made a pivotal life decision after graduation. “My job offers were in places I had never heard of, so I decided to bet on myself, and go to Georgetown to learn the business of sports.”

In 2016, Nelson received her MPS degree in Sports Industry Management (SIM), with a concentration in Strategic Marketing, Communications & Digital Media from Georgetown University. She is now s a capstone advisor for the Sports Industry Management program at the Georgetown University School of Continuing Studies. She is also a lecturer at the George Washington University School of Media and Public Affairs where she teaches and launched the inaugural "Intro to Sports Writing & Reporting" course.

Nelson also led the Society of Professional Journalists 2023 Future Leaders Academy. She was an instructor for Doral College teaching an “Introduction to Radio and Podcasting” course to students running SLAM Radio, Sirius XM-Channel 145, the first and only satellite radio station in the nation run by high school students.

Also in 2016, Nelson completed her reign as Ms. African-American United, where her platform was improving the public education system, ending youth bullying and highlighting her “All Women Are Beautiful” campaign to improve self-esteem in young girls. Before her national reign, Kelsey was previously Ms. Maryland African-American United and Miss Teen Maryland African-American United.

“I wear a lot of different hats, and I it is how I can have a lens and view of sports,” says Nelson, who has been a sideline reporter for the Big East Digital Network (BEDN) covering Georgetown University's women’s basketball team during college basketball season, a sports host/correspondent for the DKN Sports Network and DC Radio 96.3 HD4 part of the DC Office of Cable Television, Film, Music and Entertainment.

““I wear a lot of different hats, and I it is how I can have a lens and view of sports,” says @therealkNelson who works with @FoxSportsRadio @ESPNRadio @NBCSports @NASCAR @MASN @SBNation plus so many more”

“I always tell people I’ve had this underdog mentality to make it easier for others. My parents worked a lot and I went to a lot of camps where people saw leadership in me. So I want children to feel supported,” says Nelson, who has started two internships programs at her communications firm and serves as a media mentor for Richard Wright Public Charter School for Journalism and Media Arts and the Urban Health Media Project, the Multicultural Career Intern Program (MCIP) out of the Columbia Heights Education Campus, and other nonprofit organizations.

But underrepresentation in journalism for persons of color remains a key issue. “According to a 2022 Pew Research Center survey of nearly 12,000 journalists, 76% of respondents were white, 8% were Latino/Hispanic, 6% were Black and 3% were Asian. The survey showed an overrepresentation of white journalists, since nearly 58% of the population was white, about 19% were Hispanic, 12% were Black and 6% were Asian in the 2020 US census,” The Guardian reports.

“Underrepresentation in journalism for persons of color remains a key issue. A 2022 @PewResearch survey of 12K journos shows “76% were white, 8% were Latino/Hispanic, 6% were Black and 3% were Asian. #journalism #representation”

“I am someone who is not afraid to be an advocate of journalism,” says Nelson, who was a co-host on "America Speaks," the central source for military-based news, discussion, and entertainment presented by Nation First Radio, where she provided sports updates to military personnel and veterans.

“I am front and center. I think that’s why I want people to come back to sports; as it is a microcosm of society for good or bad,” says Nelson, who has a community action project, "Books Breaking Borders: Books to End Educational Bankruptcy,” where her aim is eliminating illiteracy and closing the achievement gap in minority communities.

Her advocacy work for youth has earned her several awards including the 2023 Emerging Leaders Awards (ELAs) class by Washington Women in PR, a National AfterSchool Association 2022 Next Generation of Afterschool Leaders honoree, inclusion in the Terrapin Club 30 Under 30 Class of 2022 at the University of Maryland, and outstanding global leader by the Global Oved Dei Seminary and University (GODSU).

Additionally, volunteering her time for the Special Olympics to encourage athletes with intellectual disabilities, she has served on the board of the Most Valuable Kids (MVK) nonprofit and is a Regional Advisory Board member for the Tickets for Kids nonprofit and an advisory board member for Period Reality.

Nelson’s recognition, accolades and hard work are why she is an integral part of Take the Lead’s Power Up 2026 conference, “Audacity: Leadership in Action,” as host for the event. This is her second year of involvement, as she was interviewing the Leading Media Award-winner, Christine Brennan, author and columnist of USA Today, at last year’s conference. Nelson says she is thrilled with her expanded role.

“To be able to share my work with Take The Lead is powerful,” says Nelson. “And not just with words, but with action.”

The lineup of speakers and panels last year was captivating, Nelson says. “That was a conference that made me want to stay in the room the entire time, because of the intentionality, courage and power” of all involved, she says.

“To be able to share my work with Take The Lead is powerful,” says @therealknelson. “And not just with words, but with action.” @takeleadwomen #action #Audacity ”

And this year, with a full line-up of speakers and topics ranging from keynote speaker Margaret Atwood to women’s health and wellness, financial strategies, AI and intergenerational collaboration, the conference’s promise of delivering high outcomes and takeaways for participants is even higher.

“It is a chance to come in, listen, feel supported and leave even stronger,” Nelson says. “I hope even more women come to see the great things they can do.”

What Nelson will share at the conference is lessons she has learned to make her a success.

Passing Baton of History: Kelsey Nicole Nelson on Building A Brand That Fits

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