What’s in a Name: The Origin Story of Odetta

When I first started working on the idea behind Odetta, a SaaS platform to automate the outsourcing of data services that could empower women in developing countries, I honestly listened to a lot of music. My playlist kept coming back to jazz and specifically, Odetta Holmes, an American jazz musician who is widely known as the “Voice of the Civil Rights Movement.” I remember specifically it was 11 pm on Friday, when the song “Hit or Miss” came on, and I changed my google drive folder to Odetta.

Hit or Miss is about providing a voice to the voiceless. : “Sitting here/ I'm all by myself/ I'm trying to be/ Everybody else/ But now I see/ I gotta be me/ Ain't nobody/ Just like this.” Not only is the song beautiful, but it also struck me as a metaphor for the work I wanted to do– empowering and elevating women as they are.

Now, two years later, Odetta Holmes represents our business in more than just name. Odetta fought for social good by creating a career. She grew up during the Great Depression in the Deep South of the United States. She moved to Los Angeles as a teen and found her voice there. She studied classical music in high school and landed a job acting and singing in a musical. But she found a home in the folk music world and found that folk music let her release her anger and hatred about injustices in the world. She started singing work songs to heal herself. She sang songs from black prisoners and from cotton pickers, which she called “liberation songs”, freeing her from societal injustice. She knew those who sang these liberation songs were those who reaffirmed their own lives, despite society, and she found power in that. Odetta then used folk music as a means of empowerment and as a way to speak out against racism and injustice. She sang about working women and social justice. Odetta was famous amongst the civil rights leaders. She marched with Dr. Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks loved her music. She performed at the 1983 March on Washington. She was powerful and fought for human rights. I love the strong sense of justice in her voice. I love how she faced injustice and social issues head-on. I love the way Odetta Holmes was able to use her artistic talents and profession for good. 

I began Odetta as a business because I believed that I could use my talents and professional skills for social good while creating something very special. I noticed that women in developing countries had advanced degrees, but were not employed. They’re constrained by location, time, and work culture. This workforce is highly educated, committed, motivated, and intelligent. I realized the key to unlocking this talent is facilitating flexible asynchronous remote work. Our mission at Odetta is to give clients back their time while providing work & community to underemployed women globally. I started the company by bootstrapping it without investor funding and without a CTO or technical co-founder which led our team to some key insights around process efficiencies and ultimately led us to develop a breakthrough SaaS platform that enables remote work at scale. Facing many challenges, Odetta Holmes inspired me and continues to inspire me. 

After starting Odetta, I was worried that my team might not identify or connect with Odetta Holmes’ story. We considered changing the name to something with Middle Eastern ties–or our top picks were Basila (the brave woman in Arabic), Cleopatra, or Labeeba (the smart and intelligent woman in Arabic). We also considered a name with a more common story the international team could relate to– Minerva, Workbird, or Workette. In the end, everyone preferred Odetta. As a team, we find the name soulful and simple, and we love how similar it sounds to “data”.  

Literally, the name “Odetta” originated in France and means wealth. I like to think that my company brings a wealth of opportunities and connections to the women on the team. As Odetta continues to grow with a bigger team and more service offerings, we remain dedicated to utilizing our professional skills for social good in the same way Odetta Holmes did.