Welcome to The NikiMarie Radio Show!
The NikiMarie Radio Show
The NikiMarie Radio Show
NikiMarie Radio is an internet-based podcast hosted by Nikiya “NikiMarie” Jeffries, formerly known as Nikiya Rodriguez. As a creator, mentor, higher education professional, and entrepreneur, NikiMarie brings thoughtful dialogue, lived experience, and grounded insight to every episode. This show is where authenticity meets meaningful conversation. With her signature mix of honesty, warmth, humor, and clarity, NikiMarie unpacks the issues shaping our daily lives. Each episode explores mental health and emotional well-being, relationship dynamics, entrepreneurial guidance, and financial literacy explained in a way that feels accessible and empowering. The show also features entertainment interviews and personal voice journals that offer a raw, intimate glimpse into her growth, reflections, and evolving journey. Whether you’re seeking clarity, healing, motivation, or simply a real conversation that resonates, NikiMarie Radio provides a space for connection and community. Tune in and be part of something real.
S02 E08: Donte Savage Talks About NFL Career & Being An Entrepreneur
November 30, 2018

S02 E08: Donte Savage Talks About NFL Career & Being An Entrepreneur

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Founder & CEO of Prolinked
http://prolinked.net

My name is Donte Savage. I’m originally from Northeast Portland and grew up on Dekum St. I was raised by Albert Savage Jr. and Jamie Savage and am the youngest of three siblings. I had a rough up...

Founder & CEO of Prolinked
http://prolinked.net

My name is Donte Savage. I’m originally from Northeast Portland and grew up on Dekum St. I was raised by Albert Savage Jr. and Jamie Savage and am the youngest of three siblings. I had a rough up bringing due to issues in my household. For a long period of time, my father was addicted to drugs and alcohol, which brought a lot of stress on our family. My mother is a strong woman and kept everything together as best as she could. She always pushed me to be great and do great things with my life. My father always told me that education was the key to anything.

I was a pretty shy kid until you got to know me. I spent my time as a kid playing sports and hanging out with my cousins. When I was a kid, I used football as my outlet to deal with all the things I saw at home. From the first day I played, I fell in love with the game. I knew I wanted to play professionally when I got older. I pushed myself daily to be the best player I could be. After high school, I landed a scholarship to Fork Union Military Prep School and then a full ride college scholarship to New Mexico State University. After college I played for the Green Bay Packers, in addition to a number of other semi-pro leagues.

It struct me, toward the end of my football career, that I may not get to play football for the rest of my life and would eventually need to find a way to make a living. I knew, whatever I did, I didn’t want to work for anybody else and I wanted to make a difference in people’s lives. I got to thinking about how hard it was for me to get into college, play for the NFL, ect. It is a long and rough road to get teams and coaches to notice you when you don’t have the right resources and the right people in your corner.

One morning, while a free agent, I was at the house with my fiancé and got the idea to create a business to help other free agent athletes in my position. I told her “I’m going to make a website and app to help free agent athletes” and she said “make it happen”. That is when I sat down and started working on my idea for Prolinked. I began by making an idea board with my girl. I then got on google and taught myself how to make a business plan. It took me two days to get everything done. From there things started to fall into place.

ProLinked is a social media site for players, trainers, agents, scouts, and coaches that connects everyone and helps find opportunities all over the world, for all sports. My app caters to Football, Basketball, soccer and baseball. There are so many recruiting sites that are just for one sport, so I wanted to be different. I want to help people who are in the sports industry or wanting to get in the sports industry to get noticed all over the world.

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