Arlan Hamilton

Arlan Hamilton is an investor and the founder and managing partner of Backstage Capital. In May 2020, Hamilton released her first book from Penguin Random House entitled It's About Damn Time, which is based on her personal journey into entrepreneurship and venture capital.

Arlan Hamilton
BornOctober 30th, 1980[1]
OccupationFounder and managing partner, Backstage Capital

Career

In 2015, Hamilton founded Backstage Capital, a fund that invests in "underestimated founders". Underestimated founders for the fund are defined as women, people of color, and members of the LGBTQ community. To date, Backstage Capital has raised more than $15 million and has invested in more than 150 startups.

Prior to her venture capital role, Hamilton founded and published the indie magazine Interlude and prior to that, served as tour manager to Atlantic Records recording artist Janine.[2]

In May 2018, Hamilton announced her firm would also attempt to raise a $36 million fund specifically for black female founders.[3]

Hamilton was the subject of a six-episode series on the Gimlet Media podcast Startup.[4] Hamilton is mostly complimentary about the podcast series, but did take issue with how she was portrayed, especially in sequences that cast her in an irresponsible light.[5] Hamilton's Backstage Capital's podcast The Bootstrapped VC features episodes that are reactions to the Gimlet series.[6]

In June 2019 Hamilton received recognition from Business Insider as one of the 23 most powerful LGBTQ+ people in tech.[7]

Hamilton married German composer and actress, Anna Eichenauer, in 2019.

Writing

Before becoming a venture capitalist, Hamilton gained notoriety as a blogger on "Your Daily Lesbian Moment," a blog site and point of connection for women seeking both platonic and romantic relationships with other women.[8][9]

In May 2020, Hamilton published the book entitled, "It's About Damn Time," written with Rachel L. Nelson. The book is part memoir and part how-to for people who are generally underestimated in society. In the book, Hamilton details her early career as a music tour producer and, on pivoting to venture capital, the tactics she used to start the VC fund Backstage Capital.[10]

  • It's About Damn Time. Penguin Random House. 2020. ISBN 9780593136416.

Awards
  • 2018 – Fortune 40 Under 40[11]

References
  1. "Arlan Hamilton". womenoftoday.com.
  2. Susannah Hutcheson (April 13, 2017). "How I became a venture capitalist: Arlan Hamilton of Backstage Capital". USA Today. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
  3. Jennifer Calfas (November 27, 2018). "This Venture Capitalist Started Her Own Firm Without Any Investing Experience or Degree. Here's How She Did It". Money. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
  4. "Arlan Hamilton 1: Silicon Valley, By Invite Only". Gimlet Media. Retrieved 2020-07-04.
  5. Hamilton, Arlan (2020-05-05). It's About Damn Time. Penguin Books. ISBN 9780593136416.
  6. "The Bootstrapped VC". Backstage Capital. Retrieved 2020-07-04.
  7. Leskin, Paige. "The 23 most powerful LGBTQ+ people in tech". Business Insider. Retrieved 2019-10-09.
  8. Mohan, Pavithra. "'I'll be doing this for decades': Arlan Hamilton's challenging the status quo of VC". Fast Company. Retrieved 2020-07-04.
  9. Hamilton, Arlan (2020-05-05). It's About Damn Time. Penguin Books. ISBN 9780593136416.
  10. Hamilton, Arlan (2020-05-05). It's About Damn Time. Penguin Books. ISBN 9780593136416.
  11. "40 Under 40". Fortune. 2018. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
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