It was just announced that Sheletta Brundidge and her production company ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com have been nominated for five Regional Emmy® Awards from the Upper Midwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Brundidge is also a host on WCCO Radio.
“We’re so happy to be back,” said Sheletta Brundidge, founder of ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com, a podcast and production company that received the Governors’ Emmy® in 2024 for its comprehensive coverage of Black Entrepreneurs Day at the Capitol.
This year, ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com received two nominations for the annual event Brundidge founded in 2023, which brings hundreds of Black business owners to the Minnesota State Capitol to connect face-to-face with legislators to bring attention the unique needs and historic barriers they have faced.
“After George Floyd died, mainstream media hired Black reporters and hosts, but in the current climate, positions are being eliminated and our stories are not being told,” Brundige explained.
Companies like Target and General Mills partnered with ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com, but recently Brundige’s company has seen a more than 60% decrease in earnings, which she calls a direct result of the current climate in the country, and why the Regional Emmy® nominations are so important.
“We can tell our stories and shine a positive light on our community, and we do that in a way that is unapologetically Black,” Brundidge said.
A prime example is the Emmy®-nominated interview between Brundidge and Jessie Alison, Midwest Access host and executive producer. The submission was noted as a black mom and her white friend having a candid conversation about parenting after a viral video out of Rochester showed a black boy being called a racial slur.
“I am so thankful that Sheletta and I were able to have this candid conversation on the topic of parenting and why Black moms have to parent differently than white moms,” said Alison. “I hope this nomination shows others that we don’t have to have all the answers, but we can listen, believe people when they tell us things that challenge our current point of view and that can lead to understanding and respect for one another.”
ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com was also nominated in the community service category for its Spread Love with Locks Campaign, launched in 2024 after the drowning deaths of several autistic children in Minnesota and beyond. To date, the campaign and events have put 1,000 interior combination locks into the hands of families of autistic children to keep them safe. Brundidge was recently diagnosed on the spectrum and has three children with autism.
“Sheletta has been such an advocate for those with autism, disabilities, and our community,” said Nancy Baldrica Fraser, chief marketing & development officer, SVP. “Fraser has been proud to partner with her on a variety of projects.”
Through a partnership, ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com and Fraser hosted the first-ever happy hour for hard-working adults with autism in April, days after Health and Human Services Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., said that children with autism would never pay taxes or hold a job.
“These partnerships are critical for me to survive and thrive and tell these stories as a trusted messenger in this community,” said Brundidge. Currently, ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com partners with Comcast, Bremer Bank (a division of Old National Bank), and UnitedHealthcare.
The final Upper Midwest Emmy® nomination for ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com is truly fitting for a company rooted in humor. The Fur Coat Chronicles was nominated in the entertainment category and is a hilarious look at the life of a full-length faux white fur coat that Brundidge’s college-age son, Andrew bought secondhand and wore everywhere, creating social media moments that went viral.
Winners of the Annual Regional Emmy® Awards will be announced at the gala held the evening of October 18 at the Mystic Lake Event Center in Prior Lake.
The Upper Midwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences is a membership organization dedicated to excellence in video and television. It represents television stations and independent film and video production professionals from Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, North and South Dakota.