Black Millennials are young, connected and have significant spending power—around $162 billion in 2015. From education and entrepreneurship to culture and influence, young African-Americans are making huge gains. And this makes them an increasingly powerful consumer segment for brands to understand and connect with. Young, Connected and Black: African-American Millennials Are Driving Social Change and Leading Digital Advancement, the sixth report in Nielsen’s Diverse Intelligence Series focusing on the African-American consumer, highlights this growth through the lenses of population increases, education, diversity within the black community, advancing incomes and consumption of media.

Following the launch of Nielsen’s annual African-American Consumer Report, Nielsen collaborated with Blavity, one of the fastest growing digital media outlets focused on Black Millennials active in tech and media, to share some insights. In the first of this two part video series, Jonathan Jackson, Blavity’s Co-Founder and Head of Corporate Brand, sat down with Nielsen’s own Drew McCaskill, Senior Vice President, Global Communications and Multicultural Marketing, to discuss the size and scope of Black Millennials and break down some of the myths surrounding this segment.