Malik Banks Talks TGDub Team Getwitit's Community Impact on The Day With Trae
Photos by Jordan Somers
In a recent episode of The Day With Trae, guest host Deaunte Damper sat down with Malik Banks, the 27-year-old cofounder of TGDub Team Getwitit. During the segment, Banks discussed the impactful work of his organization, a nonprofit dedicated to outreach, marketing, advertising, and promotional efforts within the community.
"Team Getwitit originally started like a brotherhood," Banks said. "From there, different young women also wanted to be involved, so instead of counting them out and being strictly guys, why don't we recruit women as well."
The foundation was established in 2013 when Banks and his brother Keyshawn, finding themselves entangled in the gang culture and violence pervasive in their neighborhood, decided to take action against it. Feeling deeply frustrated with their environment, the duo were motivated to create a positive change in their community.
"We're not trying to gang bang because our dad, our cousins, all our older siblings or relatives, they're from gang culture, and we've seen them getting locked up, getting killed, just throwing their lives away, and we wanted to do something better," Banks said.
Team Getwitit, which initially began as an initiative to escape their neighborhood's hardships, has evolved into a statewide organization dedicated to outreach and positive promotion.
"We have to structure this in a way where older professionals will also respect it instead of just minorities that come from the hood," Banks said. "Because we want to just change the world in general."
Their organization frequently collaborates with schools in Tacoma, where Banks mentors local youth. Having hosted events such as talent shows, concerts, basketball tournaments, and barbecues across various campuses, the organization has even begun a partnership with Evergreen College.
"They've been very supportive. They haven't charged us anything or have made us go down the regular route that they'll take everybody else down because they understand that we're trying to bring in the young people," Banks said.
Regarding running the organization with his brother, he describes their dynamic as complementary: he serves as the spokesperson for the group, while his brother manages much of the behind-the-scenes operations, acting as Banks said, "his conscience."
"Every little thing that he tells me about is what we're doing or what I should say or implement when I speak or when I tend to the crowd; he's the one that adds that little extra sauce to it," Banks said.
Banks also highlighted how becoming a father has influenced the organization and shaped its vision for its legacy, expressing a desire to leave a lasting impact on future generations.
" I think as a dad, I'm his limit or the glass ceiling to what he can do because he's going to look up to me first because I'm this first example," Banks said. "So as far as I take myself, that's as far as his dreams are going to be inspired to go."
As for what they have in the works, TGDub Team Getwitit is organizing upcoming concerts with finalized dates. Excitingly, the organization is also transitioning into a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. To learn more about Banks and his work, follow them on social media here!
For more updates on organizations doing work in the Northwest, tune into Trae’s "The Day With Trae" live at 11 am Monday through Friday on all Converge Media platforms and The Day With Trae's YouTube Channel.
