A lot of the talk in philanthropy centers on the biggest donors and the biggest national foundations, since that’s where the biggest money is. But local, place-based donors play a key role, too. And when it comes to the next generation of rising philanthropists, it’s not just the billionaire heirs we should pay attention to. Younger, self-made donors, including donors of color, are poised to change the scene in their cities.
Thirty-five-year-old Cam Kirk ticks all of those boxes. He grew up in Prince George’s County, Maryland, before becoming a “Morehouse man” in Atlanta. It’s at Morehouse College where Kirk fully leaned into photography and videography, a hobby that exploded into a full-on career and has given him much personal success. He became a go-to photographer for hip hop, working with the likes of Gucci Mane, Migos, 21 Savage and Future. His active social media following, with more than 110,000 followers between Instagram and X, documents his journey.
Today, Kirk is at the helm of Cam Kirk Studios, which works with towering brands like Coca Cola, Nike, Puma and the NBA. Kirk told Forbes that he’s made about $6 million through Cam Kirk Studios so far.
After launching his business seven years ago, he started Cam Kirk Foundation last year, a nonprofit that runs programs focused on art, education and community. And now comes news that Kirk gave a five-figure gift to Morehouse College to support the Morehouse Campus Content Creators program (also known as C3) to empower the next generation of content creators.
Inside Philanthropy recently caught up with Kirk to find out more about his emerging philanthropy, why he was inspired to give back to his alma mater Morehouse, and where he sees his giving heading next.
A Morehouse start
Kirk initially wanted to go to the University of Maryland or a similar school — HBCUs really weren’t on his radar. “I really wasn’t a believer in the mission of it or the purpose of it, just out of pure ignorance, to be honest,” Kirk said. But that all changed when a coworker a year older started at Morehouse and came back during break talking about how perfect the school would be for Kirk. As a senior in high school, Kirk did visit the University of Maryland but then went down to Atlanta, where he immediately fell in love with Morehouse. “I just felt at home,” he said.
The son of a photographer, Kirk did not immediately go in that direction and originally wanted to be a doctor. But by his junior and senior years, Kirk became immersed in the Atlanta music scene, taking his camera out to document parties he and his friends were throwing and attending. Things really started to change for the budding artist-entrepreneur when he reached out to then-emerging star rapper Wiz Khalifa in 2010, hoping that he would come to campus for a concert. To Kirk’s surprise, the rapper’s booking agent responded to his Twitter DM and Kirk took out a $4,500 loan to book him. It was a good bet. Soon, Kirk was documenting the lives of many artists coming up in the Atlanta rap scene.
In 2017, Kirk went on to launch Cam Kirk Studios, located six minutes’ drive from Morehouse. Even before starting his foundation, Kirk sought to bake philanthropy and social impact into his work. “I just started to think, man, how can we have impact with the work that we’re doing? How can we make sure this business is impactful not just for my bank account, but also for the city that we’re in and our consumer base and our customers?” Kirk said.
In the heart of downtown Atlanta, Cam Kirk Studios started by running free photography workshops for youth and up-and-coming content creators. “I wanted my space to be an incubator of education and knowledge,” Kirk said.
Creative community impact
From those early days running free photography workshops, Kirk started thinking more deliberately about how he could impact his local community. He began running monthly community cleanups and what is now called Spin the Block, a program of his foundation, a creative community service event that brings together environmental education and photography. Spin the Block volunteers have an opportunity to network with local businesses, take part in photo competitions and learn about Atlanta, all while cleaning the community. Kirk also invested $25,000 to put new trash cans and recycling bins all within a one-mile radius of Cam Kirk Studios.
“Part of the reason why people in inner cities don’t recycle or don’t know about recycling is, one, they don’t have the opportunity to because there aren’t recycling bins in downtown inner city neighborhoods for some reason,” Kirk said. “And the city doesn’t actually have a pickup plan for those neighborhoods. So unless somebody invests in it and wants to do it, it’ll never get done.”
The foundation also runs Yesterday’s Tomorrow, held annually on MLK Day, a free event that brings leaders in the community like fashion designer and Florida A&M alumna Caitlin K. Davis, entertainment lawyer Aurielle Brooks and entrepreneur Justin Dawkins.
Returning to his alma mater and looking ahead
Now, with Kirk’s recent $10,000 donation to the Morehouse Campus Content Creators program, he’s paying it forward to students who might well follow in his footsteps. Kirk’s friend Vic Blends, a Yesterday’s Tomorrow speaker, invited Kirk back to campus last year for a haircutting event. During the event, Kirk was struck by how many students had cameras on them. Back when he was on campus, he felt he was one of the few students engaged in the creative arts instead of the “practical” majors Morehouse has long been known for, like business or medicine. Later, several students approached Kirk and told him that he was the reason why they were also pursuing a creative path at Morehouse.
Morehouse itself started to notice the growing popularity of content creation, leading to Morehouse Campus Content Creators, a work study program that allows students to create media posted on Morehouse’s website and social media and gives students the experience of working with a brand — in this case, Morehouse College’s.
As Kirk steps up with his own donation, he’s also using his connections at Nike and HBO Max to get some of these students involved with those companies. “I’ve been working with them hands-on, off and on, just trying to be as intentional as I can and helpful as I can with the resources I have to give them opportunities,” Kirk said. “This was my investment to let them know I’m serious about making sure this program actually continues to thrive and exist on campus and maybe even spread to other campuses in the future.”
The Cam Kirk Foundation is funded with Kirk’s own money, but also actively applies for grants and conducts fundraising. Kirk leans on the many brands with which he has a relationship, including Nike and its community fund. Pinterest, the Atlanta Braves Foundation and Georgia Power are other institutions that have supported Kirk’s nonprofit, he said.
Kirk has also learned the power of getting his hands dirty and contributing whatever he can, when he can. Only in his 30s, he’s found that you don’t have to be a billionaire to make impact in your community.
“I’m just really inspired by impact now. So I try to make sure any partnership I do, any big move I do — it has some form of impact that’s larger than myself,” Kirk said. “And I think that that’s what I’ve learned and I’m most proud of and excited about as I continue to look into ways to improve not only Atlanta but other communities that I touch.”
