Whether it’s on TikTok, onstage with West African Vibe, or handing out gift cards on Locust Walk, you’ve seen Xian Scott (W ’26). His love for personal connection permeates into everything he does, weaving together a rich community behind him. While his professional ambitions might have brought him to the Wharton School, he refuses to stay trapped in the box of finance. Instead, he brings his profound kindness and strength to uplift small businesses, helping put them in social media’s limelight. He’s also a hardworking director, bringing different people and dance styles together. The whole world is his stage, and this one–man show cannot be missed.
Name: Xian Scott
Hometown: Valley Stream, New York
Field(s) of Study: Marketing
Involvement: Strictly Funk Dance Company, WAVe, Alpha Kappa Psi, Friars Senior Society
What pushed you to pursue marketing, rather than more typical fields in finance?
I’ve always done marketing, but I pushed that out of the way to explore banking during my sophomore and junior year. When I got into Penn, I started exploring to see what field Wharton students go into. So many people go into investment banking, so I decided to give it a try before I wrote it off. I did it my sophomore and junior year. It was okay when I did a sophomore year introductory program, but junior year, when you’re actually an intern, it became very isolating. I have never been so close to being in a depressive episode. I didn’t really get to engage with the other interns, and the people I talked to in IB were depressing. They would say things like “I wish I could see my family more. I don’t really speak to my kids,” and I’m like, “Your kids are 19. This is a choice.” So during the end of the internship, I told them I wanted to put this in my rearview. I decided I wanted to explore something more meaningful, and by the end of it, I was set on returning to marketing full time. Coming into Penn, I always said I wanted to change the world, to be something big. I realized I don’t want to lie, which is why I’m starting The EXDigital Collective, and doing something bigger than myself.
Talk to me about The EXDigital Collective. What are your goals for this company?
I started my own marketing company called The EXDigital Collective in my junior year. Where I grew up, there were a lot of immigrants running businesses, but it’s hard to do that in the United States without a digital presence. So, I wanted to be able to help them get off the ground in that way. It started off by building websites for small, minority–owned businesses, but recently expanded into digital strategy and social media management for these companies. I work with a lot of local Philly businesses, like a thrift store, hair care company, and clothing brand. I have a few interns working for me this summer, which I’m hoping is the start to growing my platform. I chose marketing as a career path because I wanted to be able to combine my professional interest in business with my more creative side. My mind has always been more aligned on strategy and connecting people, allowing bonds to form.
Do you feel out of place, especially in an environment that serves as a pipeline to those fields?
I think the only time I feel out of place is whenever people ask me, “Oh, what are you doing full time?” and I tell them, “I’m developing my own company.” Sometimes, people think, “Oh damn, recruiting must not have gone well.” But actually, recruiting went fine. I just hate it. It’s interesting, having successfully completed those programs in IB or consulting, I now know that my personality is not conducive to that. And a lot of my friends are going into those fields, but they aren’t excited about them. So, I don’t necessarily feel judged, but it’s more like they didn’t really see my path as an option.
I am a little worried about not having structure, because my field is very self driven. Wharton, and fields like IB, are very structured; your path is very clear. You know what work needs to be done, when it has to be done, when you will be promoted. But for me, I’m gonna be making the deadlines. Business growth is entirely dependent on me. But, I’ve been good about structuring my time, so I have faith in myself.
Do you see yourself going back to New York postgrad?
I talk a lot about performance and marketing, both of which are very prominent there, but no. I mean, I will be going back for now, but I want to get a digital nomad visa, and hop around and live in different countries. I want to live in Brazil and Barcelona, Spain mostly. I went to Brazil for spring break, and went abroad to Barcelona, and I feel like those places are more aligned towards me compared to other places I’ve visited. I just don’t think I can see myself staying in New York for more than a year and a half. I’m gonna need to hop around. Because of the way my business is set up, I’ll be able to work from my laptop, which is perfect.
On top of all this, you’re an active member of WAVe and Strictly Funk. How has that defined your time at Penn?
I got started in performing arts through music and then middle school theatre. In my senior year, I led my school’s Model Congress team, which involved competing against other schools in various activities: debate, gaming, athletics, you know, sex, drugs, rock ‘n’ roll. That year, we had a dance competition, and since I led my delegation, I was the one who had to choreograph. I didn’t have formal dance experience, but in New York, especially within the Black community, you’re always dancing, so I kinda knew what to do. Then, in college, I was very sick during New Student Orientation, so I auditioned for three dance groups to get my footing on campus. I joined both Strictly Funk and WAVe, which was a steep learning curve, because I was one of eight newbies who didn’t have formal dance experience. Being in two dance groups helped a lot with skill development, but I still spent three or four extra hours working on choreo. I also joined a New York Afro–dance company, which helped me build my hip–hop skills.
WAVe has probably been my biggest leadership role at Penn. Those dance styles were hardest to learn, because there’s so many different dance styles within Africa. By the time I was directing, I was comfortable with the dance aspect, so I was more focused on the leadership aspect, trying to understand people. We used to have a really low retention rate, so I worked hard on getting the new members socially involved, while also keeping them accountable for the choreography. Trying to navigate how to be someone’s friend, while still leading the group’s collective vision, was the skill that I needed to develop more than choreography.
What role do the arts play in your life?
They provide stability. When I was younger, I was very expressive. I would say anything that came to mind, which could get me in trouble quite a lot. I think dance has given me the outlet to express myself and release all my extra energy in a more controlled medium. It’s made me more of a grounded person. It’s also shaped how I see myself. I’m very outwardly expressive; I see myself in the public eye. I’ve always considered myself an artist, in its broadest form. Even in marketing, I’m still the face of something. I always have imagined myself ending up back in the arts, either as a performer or in entertainment somehow. I mean, everyone is performing to a certain level, but I’ve spent so much time with an audience that I know my future will include it in some way.
What lessons have your various communities taught you?
The cost of community is comfort. Everyone is always talking about this idea of “protecting your peace.” I love to protect my peace, but I think at some point, you have to know that when you join these communities, whether that be a club, organization, or friend group, the cost to keep it is inconvenient. If someone you love has a show or a presentation, you should show up for them. You might not want to. You might be tired. But the cost of upholding and fostering a good community are these small forms of inconvenience. Learning this helped me to become a more empathetic person. Because someone might not tell you how much it might mean to them if you even show up for five minutes.
I also learned the value of leadership. Being in leadership in these organizations that poured so much into me when I was a freshman and sophomore, being able to provide and build upon the growth that was already done in those years, is the most valuable thing I’ve committed myself to. Nothing beats being able to pour back into the communities that poured into you. One of my friends came up to me during Strictly Funk and asked me to mentor her. Usually, you’ll never hear that type of question that outwardly. But she said she really admired how I perform and how I carry myself, and wanted me to guide her. That really surprised me and showed me I’m actually making an impact.
Lightning Round
Favorite creative outlet? Thrifting. Even if I don’t buy anything, it feels more creative than traditional shopping.
Something about you people wouldn’t expect? I played the cello for most of my life.
Best thrift store in Philly? DRATS
What did you want to be as a little kid? A professional dancer.
If you could visit anywhere in the world, where would you go? Johannesburg.
Favorite WAVe memory? My freshman year, we competed at Princeton University and won. Everyone was so happy, and we felt the most like a family then.
There are two types of people at Penn … dreamers and achievers.
And you are … a dreamer.
