Espree Devora: “This is for All of Us”

Published on November 13, 2020

Espree Devora is “The Girl Who Gets it Done,” in the podcast world, and you’ll see why. Devora helms one of the top podcasts out right now, Women In Tech, and We Are LA Tech, the first podcast to focus on Los Angeles’ booming startup community. The conversation we had was a truly unique experience, Devora’s captivating multi-dimensional personality explains why she has achieved all that she has. She is a sneaker-head, a skater, and a serial media entrepreneur, with a world view unlike any other.

“I’ve always been a world explorer. I started traveling in high school and never stopped. To date, I’ve been to 100 countries. I never felt “ready” to get on a plane or even book a ticket. Each time was a huge gulp praying I am not making some mistake. All I knew was I didn’t want my life to end without having truly lived so I continually take a leap into the unknown over and over again. It’s terrifying. I’ll let you know later if it worked out.” Devora told us, punctuating her profound thought with a contagious laugh. It certainly seems like that leap of faith has worked out to us. But that is the beauty in her entrepreneurial drive, she is never finished.

Devora has an intoxicating spirit, which could very well be rooted in the mystical nature of her name. Her mother decided on Espree after waking up from a dream, knowing that this would be the name of her child. “My first name (which I love) Espree means spirit in French,” Devora told us. Espree, we love it too.

“One mic, one girl, one plane ticket could change so many people’s lives”

Devora is a trailblazer, carving out a niche for herself in the dense environments that are the tech industry and the world of podcasts. While she is a great success, she has certainly not let it go to her head, and she isn’t finished.

“[Women In Tech is] pretty big, apparently I’m in the top 1% of podcasts, didn’t even know! What matters to me most though is not my ranking (thought I am very grateful) it’s the impact the show has on guests and listeners. Women have raised money for their companies, met their business partners and secured jobs all because of my podcast. 

I podcast to bring opportunity to people who it wouldn’t otherwise be attainable. For example, when I traveled to Bosnia and ended up meeting these extraordinary women in tech and have the ability to feature them on my show all the fancy VCs in Silicon Valley know they exist, that is pure magic. One mic, one girl, one plane ticket could change so many people’s lives. I feel very lucky to do what I do.”

At this point, “Barracuda” by Heart starts playing faintly in the background, something that this writer considers a fitting omen: an iconic, revolutionary female-led band’s hit song playing while interviewing one of the more influential women in tech.

Speaking of Dream Guests…

espree devora

This is a dream interview for us, so we had to ask Devora what her top three dream guests would be. She slyly told us, “I don’t really have dream guests to be candid. I like finding the people I don’t know,” with a telling yet charming grin.

“If you made me pick I would desire connecting with the CMO of Netflix, Bozoma Saint John, she is my hero. She’s a rare unicorn, resilient, smart and creates her own path while lifting others up along her journey. She seems to have tremendous compassion. Boz actually inspired my next podcast ‘BRAG: Businesswomen Reaching Awe-inspiring Greatness.'” she continued, giving in to our bad habit of being journalists.

She then said “A candid conversation with Paris Hilton, that made our eyebrows raise, something she definitely noticed. Perhaps that was our fault, but either way, I would not want to play poker with Devora.

“I know, I know, [but] think about it…” she says before laying down a very well thought out rebuttal, “Paris Hilton is a phenomenal businesswoman who built a billion-dollar brand. I’d only be interested if the conversation was candid with the real Paris though. I’d want to know how she builds, how she manages her time, her workflows, what tasks she does herself versus which tasks she delegates, how she hires, how she fires, her true fears and how she is unapologetically confident yet completely approachable.”

“And last…” she takes a pensive break, “Mother Teresa, Gandhi or the Dalai Lama. I have QUESTIONS about how to continuously lead from the heart with vibrancy when so much cruelty exists in the world.”

To be sure that she did not leave us in an existential crisis, she closed things out on an inspirational note. “[Women In Tech] is for all of us… “If she can do it, so can I.”


Featured Image by Dan Taylor

Justin Shamlou is a Senior Staff Writer at Grit Daily. Based in Miami, he covers international news, consumer brands, tech, art/entertainment, and events. Justin started his career covering the electronic music industry, working as the Miami correspondent for Magnetic Mag and US Editor for Data Transmission.

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