Courtney Richardson

An award-winning Creative Director, Courtney leads creative direction at Droga5 for iconic brands including Amazon Music, Hennessy, Chase Sapphire The Africa Center and others. She is also the proud Founder & CEO of the Museum of Nail Art™ (a.k.a The MoNA), set to open late 2023.

Formerly of PAPER Magazine, it was there she led original ideas and disruptive thinking for brands like Nike, Samsung, AMEX, GAP, Target, Hulu, HBO, VH1, BET, AMC, Sorel, Uniqlo and more; while working with celebrities including Lena Waithe, Taraji P. Henson, Tiffany Haddish, Laverne Cox, Michaela Coel and others. A cultural conduit, she also spearheaded the editorial PAPER series, BOOKED x BUSY, a popular column spotlighting Black-owned brands & entrepreneurs.

Courtney was recently named a 2023 ADCOLOR CHAMPION and is a member of the inaugural 2022 cohort of ADCOLOR LEADERS class. She was recently inducted as a ‘Culture Shifter’ in the 2022 Creative Class, an annual recognition of groundbreaking Black thought leaders by The Creative Collective NYC. Minted by Campaign US as a 2022 Female Frontier Award recipient for ‘Conquering Creativity’ and was named 2021’s ‘Creative of The Year’ by The One Club x ADCOLOR, she also was named a 2021 Trailblazer by the Black Women in Media Awards alongside Dr. Bernice King and Deborah Cox.

Throughout her career, Courtney’s work has been nominated by ADCOLOR, shortlisted at Cannes, merited at the ADC Awards, and honored by The Webbys, The Brandies and The Tellys; while racking up numerous awards, including a Gold ADDY. In 2019, she was named one of the 'Top 150 Dope Women Doing Dope Things’ by The Well and inducted as a ‘Woman Worth Watching’ Honoree in 2021 by nonprofit, Black Girls 4 Gratitude.

A TEDx moderator, lauded speaker and sought-after panelist. Courtney has been featured by outlets, including CBS Morning News, AdWeek, Ad Age, Muse by Clio, EBONY, PopSugar, Bustle, Refinery29, XONECOLE & more. Her creative thinking has also been acknowledged, praised and sought after by the one and only, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter.

Courtney graduated from Howard University with a Master of Arts in Mass Communication & Media and a Professional Certificate in Entrepreneurship as well as a Professional Certificate in Women's Entrepreneurship from Cornell University. She is a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., American Marketing Association, Alliance for Women in Media & more.

Courtney credits her early beginnings watching her uncle direct music videos for the Wu-Tang Clan, Snoop Dogg, Master P & No Limit Records with igniting her passions and birthing her creative intuitions.

Driven and focused, Courtney’s life goal is to uplift humanity, particularly Black women and diverse creatives. She truly believes in radiating self-love and spreading positivity. The world needs more, so she aims to put forth that philosophy first in everything that she does.