Sometimes, all it takes to change the world are people who get it. Making the world a better place is a long process that requires getting as many hands as possible on deck. However, the effort may end up being fruitless if the hands involved don’t understand the realities and the work they have to do to make things happen. Deivone Tanksley Sr., AKA DMTS gets it. He has the full picture and has lived through many unpalatable realities that he doesn’t wish upon anybody else, whether young or old.
Despite being born in abject poverty with very slim chances of making it out of the trenches, DMTS got the wake-up call to do better for himself and his community at the age of eleven. He had been in and out of jail and realized early that such a path would lead nowhere positive for him. His first move was to set up a basketball mentoring program for the youth called New Britain Legacies, and now the program is now present in the youth jails around the state. He also established DMTS Network, an entertainment platform for artists and creators to build their careers and flourish. He’s an author and a committed family man passionate about empowerment, entrepreneurship and education. Despite not graduating high school, he attended Lincoln Tech, where he obtained an electrical diploma. His restaurant, My Wife Didn’t Cook, is many people’s favorite and has been pivotal in donating over 5,000 meals to people in need.
To strengthen his desire to bring about change in the world and his community, he ran for mayor in 2019. His contributions to his community haven’t gone unnoticed, as he has been recognized as one of the most influential black men in CT. In addition, his two books, “A Mother’s Pain” and “Pain, Guilt & Success,” have made a significant impact all over CT, with many young people connecting with his story and getting the prodding they need to make better life choices.
As a husband and father of six, DMTS cares immensely about the environment, young people grow up in as he believes it takes pole position amongst the factors that influence how a person turns out. Thus, for the young people he’s unable to do anything about their immediate environment, DMTS offers them the opportunity to learn music and develop their musical talents. Being a musician himself, his music has been used as a medium to pass across his inspiring messages to the people. He has an EP out now titled “From Poverty 2 Prodigy.” “My story is what makes everything I do unique! Now I’m on a life mission to change the world little by little. Using all my platforms to bring change and build economic development,” DMTS shared.
DMTS not only spreads messages of hope and change in people’s lives; he also walks the talk and makes himself a point of inspiration. His past criminal record has received a pardon after ten years, and he can now confidently do things that every citizen is entitled to. He also established We Believe Academy to serve as a mentoring and prep school, sending young people to college all over the country. Thanks to his influence and work, he received the NAACP’s Youth Tomorrow award in 2019 while continuously building valuable relationships with the major stakeholders in his community.
His personal experience living through various harsh realities motivated him to invest in all the causes he’s invested in. He doesn’t want anyone to go through those difficulties, and that thought alone keeps fueling his drive to do more by building successful ventures to donate millions of dollars to make other people’s lives better. Real influence and impact are his goals in the world as he believes the whole world is one human race that needs love to be a better place.
