Most recently, she was a semi-finalist and placed 6th at the USATF National Championships. “Run for Life” became her mantra as running healed her wounds. She succeeded beyond even her own expectations, breaking 2,000 miles in one year and a half and losing over 30 pounds. On the UCLA track, she met Coach Richard Rucker who was a guiding force as he took her untapped athletic ability to the next level transforming her into a multi-title all-American athlete in less than a year.

This experience catapulted her life in exciting new directions. Her success is an example of passion turned purpose turned total lifestyle change. Michelle found her life transforming, from the way she spoke to herself and others to the way she felt. She reached new heights of discipline, setting clear boundaries to juggle hours of training, long days of work and law school in the evenings as she competed nationally and internationally.

As an executive in the entertainment business for over a decade, Michelle has led creative brand marketing campaigns, secured partnerships and helped artists build out their brands across various leadership roles at Epic Records, ICM Partners, Warner Bros. Records to Redlight Management. She currently is the part of the LiveXLive leadership team as Head of Partnerships. Most recently as VP brand marketing at Epic Records, she worked with artists including Travis Scott, Rick Ross, Black Eyed Peas, Wu Tang Clan, Jennifer Hudson, Meghan Trainor and Madison Beer. As a change agent, philanthropy, diversity & inclusion and giving back has always been her passion, and integral in her work as she creates unique partnerships to ignite change as founder of both Music Unites and The XX Project. She supported Chairman/CEO Sylvia Rhone with the City of Hope’s Spirit of Life Honoree raising the most single amount ever raised by a single executive for City Of Hope with over $350K from key sponsors American Express, Shea Moisture, Kering, and Morgan Stanley.

She formerly was a branding agent at ICM Partners for clients including Mary J. Blige, Anderson Paak, H.E.R., to executive women including Bozoma St. John, Debra Lee and Tina Knowles. She's previously worked at Red Light Management and Warner Bros. Records, focusing on strategic partnerships and artist development on campaigns worked on campaigns for the likes of Mary J. Blige, Ne-Yo, Estelle, Imagine Dragons, The Black Keys, Gary Clark Jr. and Josh Groban.

As founder and CEO of The XX Project, she has made it part of her everyday life to inspire and empower women in business by creating a membership platform providing resources and tools in business. The XX Project has curated over 200 events across NY, Los Angeles and San Francisco featuring industry leaders including Soledad O'Brien, Beth Comstock, Tina Knowles, Suzanne DePasse, Lavinia Errico, Gayle Troberman and Ty Stiklorius.

She is also the Executive Director of Music Unites, a non-profit funding after-school music education programs to empower youth through music. With programs across New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, Music Unites launched a Music-Versity digital series in partnership with the Compton Unified School district and launched a MusicVersity Virtual Academy, offering over 400 students nationwide access to industry leaders and artists like Jon Batiste, Aloe Blacc and Swizz Beats to provide first-hand workshops through month-long programming to help empower students through this challenging climate. This summer, Music Unites kicked off a summer program with TBWA\Chiat\Day L A “Shaping Today’s Culture” together with the Compton Unified School District offering an Advertising 101 virtual academy 6-week program for GEAR UP-Compton to ignite students creativity.

Running opened Michelle up to a whole new world outside the entertainment business. Within a year of training, Michelle took her talent and passion for track & field to the next level. Now, she is working with individuals in the sports and entertainment industries to build out their businesses, tapping into her expertise of over 20 years working with renowned talent across marketing, branding, and fully integrated strategic partnerships.

Her goal when the shutdown happened was to get back on track and connect with her purpose and passion, while challenging herself both mentally and physically as a competitive All-American sprinter and empowering herself by enrolling in UCLA Law. She will be graduating UCLA Law School with a Masters in Legal Studies with a focus in entertainment, sports and media in May 2022. She is on the student board for the Entertainment Law Association, Law Women of UCLA and serves on the Music Film and Entertainment Industry Future Hope Committee for the City Of Hope. This past year Michelle received both the Lakers Comerica Bank Women of Promise award as well as UCLA Law's U Serve Award for Public Policy recognizing students who have made outstanding pro bono, public interest, and public service contributions. She also recently became the Santa Monica Arts Commissioner.

Michelle’s mission is to empower others to embark on journeys that fill their lives with passion and purpose, truly aligning with what’s possible when one taps into one’s true power. It’s never too late to find a totally new passion and Michelle's story shows what’s possible when the mind and body align with determination, focus and perseverance to pave a new path forward. Read Less ^