VFiles is continuous its Lab Fellows program with its second cohort.

The VFiles Foundation, a nonprofit organization that supports creators from underrepresented communities, announced its 2023 Lab Fellows on Thursday. The group consists of clothier Elena Velez, American Ballet Theatre dancer Gabe Stone Shayer, spiritual empowerment expert Aliza Kelly, SkidRow Studios founders David Sabastian and Sara Haile and Grammy-nominated producer Tweek Tune. 

Through this system, recipients will receive funding, mentorship and access to events and programming relevant to their markets and business goals. 

On how she plans to make use of the VFiles Lab Fellow recognition to further her business, Velez stated: “My studio focuses on democratizing creative and entrepreneurial resources for makers outside of typically established creative capitals and provides a pipeline to the industry for small brands through sales opportunity and network access.” 

Sabastian and Haile had an identical response to receiving the popularity, stating: “Our mantra is easy: we’re not here to provide just one other song or T-shirt. The whole lot we create has to have an effect. We imagine that together, we will create a world where nobody is left behind.”

Along with the cohort of Lab Fellows, VFiles can be launching its VFiles Lab Discovery Class this 12 months, which incorporates a gaggle of 12 artists chosen from the VFiles Lab application program. The artists will receive mentorship and academic resources.

The group includes director Kelly Butts-Spirito; artists Analise Azadian, Dustrial Dre, Sweetz, Myles and Brando; fashion designers Celine Kwan, Seokwoon Yoon, Ari Serrano, Leaf Xia, Israel Cobb-Mcintyre, Justin Joyner and Andrea Espinoza.