“AI Can Never Replace Our Humanity”: Melva LaJoy Legrand on the Future of Live Event Strategy
An ASK. BUILD. GROW. Conversation With Melva LaJoy Legrand, Founder
& CEO of LaJoy Creative
Melva LaJoy Legrand built her award-winning agency from grit, grief, and an unwavering belief in human connection. A former educator turned “Experience Architect,” she began her career as a volunteer at a D.C. radio station, fell in love with storytelling through events, and went on to found LaJoy Creative, an agency known for its intentional, impact-driven approach to live experiences.
When the pandemic shuttered the events industry, Melva lost nearly everything. Yet the rebuilding that followed reshaped not just her business but her philosophy: that empathy, excellence, and community are the real cornerstones of any live event strategy.
ABG Print sat down with Melva to talk about resilience, leadership, and why, especially in an age of AI, the most powerful business strategy still begins with being human.
(This interview has been lightly edited for flow and readability.)
How did you discover events as a career path?
My origin story is a lot of grit. My first career, I was an educator. Through a family friend, I was introduced to a radio station in D.C., Radio One, now Urban One. I started for free. I was hungry. I was interested. I soaked in everything I could learn. I wasn’t getting paid, working ridiculous hours. And I loved it. I absolutely loved it. So I knew something was there.
That passion became the foundation of her creative business philosophy. “I don’t even view LaJoy Creative as event planners,” she explains. “We’re Experience Architects. We’re in the business of storytelling, designing experiences for organizations that are doing good in the world.”
Her Post-Event Ritual
A celebratory dinner that lasts for hours. “We’ve just worked a 16-hour day,” she laughs, “and then we still choose to be together. I sit back and marvel at them. They are my legacy playing out in real time.”
When did you know this was your calling?
In 2020, I lost everything. I was caretaking for my father, who had six strokes and dementia. When he died in 2021, I thought, ‘This is over.’ But as I was losing everything, I was being contacted for amazing projects. And I realized sometimes, when you have a calling, you don’t get it right away, but you get confirmation along the way.
Those confirmations guided her forward. “Right now,” she says, “It just happens to be my turn. One day it won’t be, and that’ll be okay. But right now, it’s my turn.”
You’ve said you’re allergic to complaining.
My dad was a janitor and truck driver. My grandmother was a maid. My great-grandmother was a field slave. I am not from people who give up. If you fall flat on your face, just don’t stay down. I refuse to stay down.
How has your leadership evolved?
One of the worst things you can do as a leader is expect you from everybody you deal with. My capacity to handle stress is highly unusual because I had a highly unusual life. The worst thing I can do is tell someone ‘get over it because I did.’ I have to meet my people where they are.
She pauses, then adds, “If you are a good leader, you have to be okay when you see someone who’s not working in their gift. Encourage them to find their path. People shouldn’t have blind loyalty, they need to be loyal to whatever is calling them.”
Melva’s Leadership Mantras
- “Your word is the only currency that matters.”
- “Everything that is bad is actually a building block.”
- “Every day is a chance to get it right.”
- “Excellence over ego.”
What makes in-person gatherings irreplaceable?
AI can never replace our humanity. It just isn’t that intelligent. We are complex. We are dynamic. We need people. The blessing of COVID is we were reminded what life looks like when we’re not in community. We get to share stories that remind us we’re more alike than different. We get to find our people.
What do organizations risk if they don’t gather?
They miss the moment. You lose the chance to tell your story, to thank your supporters, to build relationships that are personal instead of transactional. And while you’re not gathering, others in your industry are. So you miss the moment.
What’s your advice to young professionals?
Be okay being a beginner. Sometimes we want to skip steps. Second, build an advisory council, people you aspire to be like, your peers, and someone outside your industry. And build your network for quality, not volume.
She also urges early exposure. “Say yes to everything within boundaries and values. When you say yes to everything, you learn your non-negotiables. Later, you’ll be told ‘no’ is a complete sentence, but first you need to learn what you’re saying no to.”
- Daily habit: “Writing. I journal every day. It’s where I leave it all out on the table.”
- How she resets: “I think about my dad.”
- Leadership mantra: “Your word is the only currency that matters.”
- Core belief: “Excellence over ego. That’s the LaJoy way.”
Melva’s NYC & Paris Favorites
The Takeaway to Achieve Your Ultimate Outcome
After every major production, from a national summit to a benefit concert Melva LaJoy Legrand returns to that dinner table ritual. “They give me the gift of seeing my legacy play out” she says. For her, That’s the ultimate outcome of a great live event strategy. not just a successful show but a gathering that leaves people seen, valued, and changed.
