The Japanese tennis player, Naomi Osaka has partnered with the National Basketball Association (NBA) champion, LeBron James to launch a new media company.
LeBron Raymone James Sr. is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Los Angeles Lakers in NBA. He is widely regarded as one of the best basketball players of all time, earning the nickname “King James.”
The SpringHill Company, founded by James and Maverick Carter, will act as Hana Kuma’s funding, operations, and production partner. Hana Kuma is the newest venture for Osaka and her long-term agent, Stuart Duguid. The duo also own a sports agency named Evolve.
According to Osaka, the company’s goal is to convey stories that bridge cultural boundaries. The company is titled Hana Kuma, which translates to “flower bear”. The firm intends to create stories that are “culturally specific but universal to all audiences” and it already has multiple projects in the work.
Naomi Osaka is a professional tennis player from Japan. She is the first Asian player to achieve the No. 1 position in singles, according to the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA). She has also won four Grand Slam singles titles.
On asked about her newest venture Osaka said, “There has been an explosion of creators of colour finally being equipped with resources and a huge platform.
“In the streaming age, content has a more global perspective. You can see this in the popularity of television from Asia, Europe, and Latin America that the unique can also be universal.
“My story is a testament to that as well. I’m so excited for what we are building at Hana Kuma. We will bring stories to life with this goal in mind: to make unique perspectives feel universal and inspire people along the way.”