Today, we are proud to unveil the 2026 edition of BlackStars Magazine, a special fifth-anniversary issue featuring an extraordinary group of leaders who embody this year’s theme, “Building What’s Next.”
This year’s cover represents more than a celebration of individual achievement. It is a tribute to the power of collective excellence, the importance of opening doors for others, and the responsibility we all share in shaping the future.
The leaders featured on our cover are trailblazers, innovators, and changemakers who are not simply reaching new heights in their respective fields. They are building institutions, transforming industries, creating opportunities, and laying the foundation for generations to come.
As we celebrate five years of the BlackStars Experience, their stories reflect both how far we’ve come and the extraordinary possibilities that lie ahead.
Five Years of Celebrating Excellence and Building Opportunity
Since its inception, the BlackStars Experience has grown into a powerful platform for recognizing exceptional leadership, amplifying inspiring stories, and connecting talent with opportunity.
Over the past five years, we’ve brought together thousands of professionals, entrepreneurs, executives, and changemakers from across industries, creating a community united by ambition, purpose, and a shared commitment to progress.
But BlackStars has always been about more than recognition. It is about what happens when excellence meets opportunity. When leaders use their influence to open doors. When connections become collaborations, and when individual achievements inspire collective advancement.
As we mark this significant milestone, we celebrate the remarkable leaders who have helped shape our journey while looking ahead to the impact we can create together.
More Than a Cover. A Statement About the Future.
Our theme, “Building What’s Next,” challenges us to look beyond the milestones we’ve achieved and consider the future we have the power to shape.
What institutions must we build? What barriers must we dismantle? What opportunities must we create for the next generation? And perhaps most importantly, how can we accomplish more together than we ever could alone?
These are the questions at the heart of this year’s BlackStars Experience.
And now, we are thrilled to unveil our special fifth-anniversary cover!
The 2026 cover features:
Sherette A. Constant — Managing Director, Morgan Stanley
Herschel Frierson — Indianapolis Office Managing Partner & Chairman of the Board of Directors, NABA, Inc., Crowe Advisory LLC
Justina Nixon-Saintil — Vice President & Global Chief Impact Officer, IBM
Nexus U. Sea — Partner, O’Melveny & Myers LLP
Rick C. Wade — Senior Vice President, Strategic Alliances & Outreach, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Jewel McGowan Watson — Vice President, Corporate Counsel, The Prudential Insurance Company of America
Join Us as We Celebrate Five Years and Build What’s Next
The celebration continues at the 2026 BlackStars Experience, taking place November 12–13 in New York City.
Across two unforgettable days, we will bring together exceptional leaders, rising professionals, entrepreneurs, and innovators for meaningful conversations, powerful connections, and a celebration of excellence.
We invite you to join us as we honor this year’s remarkable honorees, reflect on five years of impact, and look boldly toward the future.
And don’t forget to pick up your copy of the 2026 BlackStars Magazine, featuring inspiring stories, exclusive interviews, and reflections from the leaders who are helping build what’s next.
Five years of excellence. Five years of impact. And we’re just getting started.
