MACKENRO ALEXANDER

Cox: Dr Truesdale you have this amazing cosmetic procedure that gives you a competitive advantage in the industry and helping people look 10, 15, or even 20 years younger Can you tell me more about your method of facial plastic surgery, how you came up w th it, and why is it different then what’s on the market today?

Dr Truesdale: The techn que you are referring to s the deep plane facelift As we age, we lose volume and things fall Gravity w ns! I tell people that I m a gravity f ghter I lift the muscle back to where it used to be I use a special technique that a lot of doctors don’t use because it s more challenging than the average surgery A deep plane facelift brings you closer to the facial nerve This is mportant because t’s the nerve in the face that helps move the muscle My deep plane facelift creates a beautiful result for patients but you really have to know what you are doing and be an expert surgeon but also an expert n facial anatomy to do it well People leave refreshed and look ng like themselves It’s really chang ng the game!

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Cox: Tell me about your background and how you became a surgeon?

Dr Truesdale: I grew up in upstate New York to a father who is a sc entist and a mother who is an artist I knew early on, around the age of 10, that I admired both of their chosen paths Around that time, we lost my baby brother I dec ded then that I wanted to help people, and to use sc ence to do so I went to Morehouse College for undergrad and the University of Pennsylvania for med cal school I realized quickly, pretty much as soon as I got to medical school that I wanted to be a surgeon I absolutely love working with my hands and how transformative surgery can be on someone’s life I went “shopping” for what type of surgeon I wanted to be and immed ately fell in love w th head and neck surgery I matched nto the top Head and Neck Surgery / Otolaryngology res dency in the US (The University of Mich gan) and decided to subspecial ze in facial plastic and reconstructive surgery

Like I ment oned, the other part of me is an artist I’m a portrait art st who grew up work ng with graph te and o ls So what better way than to combine my art stry with my knowledge and skill as a surgeon than facial plastic surgery? Plus, I get to really help people I can t th nk of anyth ng better!

Cox: There s not that much representation n your field as a Black doctor Why do you think there is still a huge lack of representation?

Dr Truesdale: It’s interesting – if you look at the data n the 1970s, there were more Black men in med cine dur ng that time frame than there are in medical school today I do a lot of work in the medical space in terms of diversity and inclusion It’s not that there are fewer people of color that are capable Med cine is an extremely challenging career path, is often very expensive and requires years of training and multiple rounds of interviews, tests, and appl cation processes Many br ght and intelligent nd viduals might prefer to become a lawyer or businessperson, or other lucrative and challenging careers outside of med cine Medicine is not an easy field to get nto or to navigate While fulfilling, it s a long and challenging journey, and there are a lot of alternative career paths that may be more enticing to people and/or may have fewer barr ers to entry

Social determinants can play a part in career paths as well There are a lot of things that we have to go against when try ng to get our foot n the door in med cine It s multifactor al because you have to take nto account things like financial and social challenges, lack of mentorsh p and advocacy and that there s a lack of people who look like you, both in your cohort and at the leadership level I m blessed that I was able to get to where I am

Cox: You ment oned mentorsh p How are you able to bring up the next generation of Black and Brown doctors?

Dr Truesdale: I mentor people at all different levels ranging from high school, college medical school, residency, and even dur ng fellowships If you actually google “Dr Truesdale d versity”, you will see book chapters and articles that I have wr tten on this I speak at many conferences to spread the importance of mentorsh p in becoming a doctor

Cox: With everything you have going on, how does Dr Truesdale find time for himself?

Dr Truesdale: I try to be as eff c ent as possible n everyth ng I do I also have a lifelong commitment to grow ng and stretching When you are becoming a doctor it s a stressful journey that causes you to stretch in many ways and forces you out of your comfort zone Once you exper ence it, there s no returning to your “normal” dimensions By constantly stretching, I’m also creating space for new th ngs and exper ences – including time for myself

Cox: Earl er you ment oned the holiday season being a busy season for you Why s that?

Dr Truesdale: People are g ving themselves one of the best gifts poss ble: confidence When done well, facial plastic surgery procedures bring out people’s inner beauty Some people save year-around to treat themselves to one of my procedures which I don t take lightly Dur ng the holidays, many people have more flex bility with their schedules and time off from work It’s also a season of giving and making positive mprovements in your life and the lives of those around you Facial plast c surgery can be a great form of self-care, and people who take care of themselves often find they are better able to give to others

Cox: I love that you brought up self-confidence and inner beauty

People stigmatize facial plastic surgery What are some of the misconceptions and false narratives when it comes to it?

Dr Truesdale: I would say check out my Instagram honestly Look at my pat ents’ stories People often only see the horror stor es when it comes to plast c surgery Their social media t melines are flooded with all of the things that can go wrong, like unnaturallooking results, obvious scarring, or people who no longer look like themselves after surgery I tell my patients all the time that confidence comes from w thin, and beauty is not all about external appearances My job is to help them al gn with that mindset too so they feel beautiful both inside and out That s when the magic happens I practice facial plastic surgery in a way that makes them look natural – I help make them look like the best versions of themselves Typically, that helps people feel better about themselves as well

Cox: Because you are so particular with this, do you tell people no sometimes?

Dr Truesdale: I tell people “no” all the time The thing is, th s a spec al journey that often requires a h gh level of vulnerability This dynamic helps my pat ents and me create unique and longlasting relationships I let all of my patients know that facial plastic surgery has to be done safely, and it has to be beautiful and natural look ng If I don’t th nk they’ll love their results then I won t do it If they have body dysmorphia or other red flags, I w ll say no Sometimes, dur ng this consultation process I find other options for people beyond the procedures they initially came in for In those cases, I educate them on what I think will be the best surgical plan uniquely for them, and why So, I say “no” frequently because again, I want them to look natural and to love their results Safety, beauty, and stunning, natural-looking results are what I m all about

Cox: Joe McG ll, I’m excited to speak w th you today! You have such an amazing company and story with your work in bus ness management for clients n industries such as entertainment Tell me about yourself and how you go nto t

McGill: I was born to two teenage parents in Watts, Cal fornia It was definitely difficult grow ng up there but I was blessed that my parents instilled in me the d scipl ne of sports at a very young age My father especially pushed for excellence all around which translated and resulted in good grades n the classroom because I didn’t want to let him down

McGill (contin): Growing up in the inner city I saw a lot of gang activity It was something I knew I didn’t want to do and sports was the perfect outlet for me I was fortunate enough to be athlet c, so I could play different sports and stay busy Football and basketball were the main sports for me, but in high school it was football that led me to receive my scholarship The scholarship was to the University of San Diego, but for some unknown reason I changed my mind and went to Cerritos College

Cox: So, what at Cerritos College sparked your interest early in financial management?

McGill: I took my first ever accounting course there and I thought to myself “oh this is pretty easy,” and balanc ng things out made sense to me when it came to debits and credits

Cox: You transferred later and that s when life took a turn for you

McGill: Yes I’m always that person who wants to take th ngs to the next level I was fortunate enough to rece ve a scholarship to Weber State University While I was playing there, I had a major knee injury This sidelined me for a while and all I could do was focus on my school work But the longer I stayed off the f eld my college career plan was n jeopardy I had to make a life changing decision at twenty-two years old to forfeit my athletic career to solely focus on academics I made this decision because the team doctor informed me after much rehabilitation, my left knee looked fine but they discovered that my right knee was in a condition that would later be long term complications for me on and off the field

Cox: So how did you trans tion from that college football dream to know ng that business is where you were headed?

McGill: I knew that I needed to set myself up for success after college so I got into understanding how to network w th d fferent people At that t me, I didn’t know the organizations I joined and events I attended were actually showing me how to communicate effectively to other people

Cox: Now school is over and you are back in the city of Los Angeles

McGill: So, I return to LA and this was the time of the Enron scandal The accounting world was go ng through it and funny enough all of my connections made were in Utah I got a job n Brentwood at a midsize tax company doing auditing work I actually thought that was the career path for me It wasn t until these two men came in who ntroduced themselves as managers They explained what they did and what types of clients they represented That’s when it clicked in my head that that’s what I was going to do

Cox: How and when did Topl ne Business Management come nto existence?

McGill: I started working my way through companies and learning from major corporations In 2017 Brian Meyers (who now is my business partner) called me to inform me that he had cl ents at his current company who were w ll ng to leave f he wanted to ever start his own company I had to really think about t because I was in a good position But there was th s entrepreneurial spir t in me that wouldn t let it go I spoke with my wife about the opportunity and w th her support and blessing I went for it

Cox: What were your next steps to building Topline Business Management?

McGill: The good thing was Brian and I had worked with each other and known each other for seven plus years We had the same thought process when it came to things so we hit the grounding running People knew who both of us were individually so our goal was to get n front of people to introduce them to Topl ne so they knew what it was about

Cox: Your business was still n an early stage when the pandem c hit Was it negat vely impacted?

McGill: You know actually it wasn t It was the oppos te because we actually grew with our clients We were able to help them navigate through the pandem c Our work ethic stood out wh ch resonated with our clients because while a lot of industr es were on pause, we were on calls champ on ng for our clients to make sure they were in good posit ons

Cox: Present day Topline represents a lot of compan es and high-profile nd viduals in the entertainment ndustry Why is t mportant that those in the entertainment field especially Black people, have a management company like yours handling their bus ness affairs?

McGill: I think representation s one of the most important things because right now we are in a time where people want to be represented by others who look like them There are just certain things we get w thout even having them spoken It’s just a different feeling and level of understanding they desire and rece ve from us

McGill(contin): There are these shared experiences we understand professionally and personally It helps that we can approach them in a professional voice, but also, we can switch to a more relaxed delivery We can talk to them in d fferent ways that make them more comfortable This ultimately leads to them having a deeper level of trust

Cox: Descr be to me that first meeting w th Joe after I’m a client?

McGill: I really spend the first two to three months getting to understand my clients’ spend ng hab ts This gives me the opportunity to get a full view on what I need to do for them and the parameters that need to be set for their goal So I work my way back looking at all of their expenses over those couple of months to see what was and wasn t necessary I do this because my biggest question s why is my client spending like this? I need to understand them at the core

Cox: Now before we end, what s something Black entertainers should focus on when it comes to business management, especially with money

McGill: That you need to be involved in everyth ng It doesn’t matter who you go with, just be involved and don’t just let them tell you anything Ask questions if you don’t know something or are unsure The best clients are those who are nvolved and ask quest ons like why what s th s for r ght?

McGill(contin): I stress to them that there are so many ups and downs in this industry so you have to bu ld really great money sav ng and spending habits This s why we bu ld parameters for our clients to better understand the r present and potent al future financial situat ons based on information The light bulb comes on once they see what it all takes to get them n a good pos tion They know that it’s about if they can’t afford it but what are the consequences of that purchase

JOE MCGILL SHARES HIS JOURNEY AND HOW HE CO-FOUNDED ONE OF THE ELITE BUSINESS MANAGEMENT FIRMS IN LOS ANGELES!

Rickie, let us know a l ttle b t about your background n photography How did you get into it and how long have you been doing it

I started shooting photography n 2021 when I moved to LA I started go ng out to clubs, events, and release parties to meet people and make connections Most of my nfluence is the entertainment industry and that is where I took my direction Shooting dope art sts that I listen to became my goal

Where are you currently located?

I am located in Hollywood California How would you descr be your photography style?

I would say my style is candid and lifestyle

When capturing the essence of people or events, what do you focus on? When I photograph people I focus on the actions of people Whether they are enjoy ng themselves interacting, or just minding their own bus ness I try to make the moment bigger and more meaningful My end result is to tell a compell ng story and make it interesting

What are some things you wish you knew before getting nto photography?

I w sh I knew that carving out your own lane and sticking to that helps standout Try ng to shoot everything is cool, but know ng the steps to get to the b gger picture helps more

As a photographer what are some of your rules when it comes to t me for someone to be photographed by you?

If I have a concept in m nd I space t out like a week in advance It helps me get everyth ng n place and get locations check marked As far as sessions like to keep it short and br ef A good shoot can last 2 hours, but if the concept s big it could take a day

What are some of your favor te ways to photograph people?

My favorite are studio sessions In my opin on it s more personal and I can get better images because building that bond makes the talent comfortable Uniqueness is a standard I want to hold myself accountable for

Photography Captured Through The Lens Of Rickie Arnez