4 0 S X S W O R L D | M A R C H 7, 2 0 1 9 | SXSW.COM
Arlan Hamilton could tell you the story of how she started up Backstage Capital four
years ago and gave up a promising career in the music business to pursue her dream
of founding a venture capital fund for people who, like her — a black, queer woman
without a college degree — were outsiders in Silicon Valley. She could tell you how she
went through her savings trying to get Backstage off the ground, and how she was
homeless for several months while she tried to land that first investor. But she has told
that story many times by now. Instead, she wants to talk about what happened next.
Everyone Wins on
Arlan Hamilton's
Level Playing Field
By Aimee Levitt
continued on p.42
Arlan Hamilton. Photo by Sarah Deragon/Portraits To The People
4 0 S X S W O R L D | M A R C H 7, 2 0 1 9 | SXSW.COM
