The Work Was Always There.

I'm a speaker, podcast executive producer, and the founder of Struxa. I've been building things at the intersection of technology, story, and strategy for over fifteen years.

Before any of this, I was building something else entirely. I launched So Excessive, an accessories boutique in Newark, and grew it from a high school side hustle into a nationally recognized brand. The cuffs were featured in Star Magazine, Essence, People StyleWatch, People en Español, Good Housekeeping, Real Simple, and the New York Daily News. They were sold on Extra TV and worn by Cynthia Bailey on The Real Housewives of Atlanta. Black Enterprise profiled me as an entrepreneur during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. That was my first real education in brand, product, press, and building something from nothing.

I started at Barneys New York in the call center and worked my way up to social media manager, where I produced content shoots and built out the brand's first community management program. I learned how to read a room, how to anticipate what someone needed before they said it, and how to create moments that felt personal at scale. Then the company went bankrupt, and the dream job ended. But those instincts have shaped everything I have built since.

I left fashion on purpose. Not because I fell out of love with it, but because I wanted to keep loving it. After being laid off two weeks into COVID, I started looking at where the world was headed and found my way into cybersecurity. I earned my MBA in IT Management, studied for certifications, and started training small business owners on security awareness. But the field was crowded, and I was over 40 competing with people half my age. Then AI arrived, and I saw the future before most people saw the hype.

“I'm a vibe-coding, podcast producing, AI governance loving, storytelling, brand developing, AI narrative building... yeah, it's a lot. I'm Keena, nice to meet you.”

Today, I run Struxa, an AEO and visibility strategy firm that helps businesses shape how AI engines find them, describe them, and recommend them. I executive produce two podcasts: “How I Got Here with Dreena Whitfield,” where I also serve as writer and creative director, and “Meet Me at the Highland.” I lead workshops for The Podcast Academy and speak about the creator economy, AI, and what it takes to build something that lasts.

I also wrote and produced a podcast theme song using AI. It is, by all accounts, a legitimate bop.

Beyond strategy, I build. Seven production properties across web and iOS built through AI-assisted development with no engineering background: a podcast awards eligibility tracker, a privacy-first iOS app analyzing legal language with a 5.0 App Store rating, client brand and authority sites with full AEO infrastructure, and a digital practice space built from a podcast season. Every property is also an AEO asset, structured to be found and accurately represented by AI engines from day one.