About TJE

We exist to help Black women close the gap between who they are and how they show up.

From Agency to Movement: The Evolution of The Joi Element

For 15 years, The Joi Element has operated as a creative agency, helping leaders tell their stories. We've built brands, crafted narratives and created content for entrepreneurs, nonprofits and cultural workers. That work built us and gave us the foundation we stand on today.

But the world has changed, and so have we.

Around 2023, we noticed a pattern that went deeper than "marketing." Our clients were struggling with authenticity and keeping up with trends. It was the exhaustion of code-switching, the disconnect between their private truth and their public face and the gnawing feeling that something was fundamentally "off."

Then, the landscape shifted into the crisis we face today.

In 2025 and 2026, we saw the dismantling of DEI initiatives push millions of Black women out of their livelihoods. We watched as over 300,000 Black women were "let go" from government roles. We realized that platforms are not our friends. Algorithms heavily suppress authentic voices and updated TOS can take everything we've built over decades overnight.

Worst of all, AI is coming for our "sauce." It is learning to mimic our tone, our style and our expertise. It is replicating what we haven't documented and stealing what we haven't protected.

The Authenticity Gap is not just uncomfortable, it's dangerous. This is why The Joi Element evolved. I am no longer just helping you tell your story; as Executive Strategy Officer, I am leading a movement for Voice Sovereignty.

We aren't just "branding" you; we are building a bridge to a stage you actually own. We are documenting your authentic voice so it cannot be replicated by a machine. We are teaching you to move strategically on legacy platforms while building a foundation that can never be dissolved or restructured away.

This is resistance work as brand strategy. We are teaching you to protect your voice NOW.

What We Believe

Authenticity is resistance. In a world that rewards performance, showing up as yourself is a radical act.

Voice is sovereignty. Your authentic voice is the last thing that's truly yours. Platforms can suppress your reach. AI can mimic your style. But they can't own what you've documented and protected.

Presence is power. Not visibility for visibility's sake. Not performance for algorithms. But grounded presence rooted in who you actually are.

Meet Joi Donaldson

Founder & Chief Strategy Officer, The Joi Element

Joi started The Joi Element 15 years ago on the floor of her sister's house, separated, broke, with her toddler in her lap. What began as virtual assistant work evolved into a full creative agency, and now, into voice sovereignty work.

Her expertise:

15+ years in brand strategy and creative direction
Deep experience with Black women entrepreneurs, nonprofit leaders and cultural workers
Current Digital Media Manager at 1K Women Strong (54.4% engagement increase in 8 weeks)
Speaker and thought leader on authenticity, AI and voice sovereignty

Her approach: Joi doesn't believe in templates or formulas. She believes in deep discovery, strategic "edging" (the loving push into deeper purpose) and tangible deliverables. She's granular AF about execution and fiercely protective of her clients' authentic voices.

Her why: "Many of us are constantly looking for our 'audiences', our 'niches', to determine if the work we're doing is worth it. What we're actually in search of is the attention we owe ourselves. We are our niches, and our audiences are us pushed out, looking for people who get it. We are looking to help the little, teenage, young adult versions of ourselves and be the support we needed for others. That's where we build from. No more relying solely on external validation to give our internal mission legitimacy. Once we figure that out, what we create is anchored in the real work."

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