Fawn Weaver

Fawn Evette Weaver (née Wilson; born September 5, 1976) is an American entrepreneur and author who held the position of CEO at Grant Sidney Inc. In 2017, Weaver co-founded Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey where she was CEO until June 2026. She is the founder of the Nearest Green Foundation. In March 2021, she was named to Endeavor's board of directors. In July 2026, court filings revealed that Fawn Weaver and her husband, Keith Weaver, had been terminated from their executive roles at Uncle Nearest by the court-appointed receiver overseeing the company.

Early years Fawn Weaver grew up in Pasadena as the daughter of Frank and Philomina Wilson. Her father, a Motown recording artist, changed career to become a Christian minister in around 1975. At a young age, Weaver was introduced to Motown stars like Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson, they became a part of her father's ministry rather and not because her father was a renowned writer and producer. Weaver's work helped reveal the history of Jack Daniel Distillery included Nearest Green as its first master distiller and mentor to a young Jack Daniel, inspiring her to found and launch the Nearest Green Distillery and the Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey brand in 2017. This made Weaver the first African-American woman to head a major spirits brand, and also the first American spirit brand with an all-female executive team.

By 2018, the brand had expanded to 12 countries, In September 2019, Uncle Nearest opened its first distillery, set on a 270-acre ranch in Shelbyville, Tennessee.

Before establishing the distillery, Weaver also founded the Nearest Green Foundation, which honors the legacy of Green with a scholarship program, a museum, a memorial park, Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey and a book. The foundation also provides full college scholarships for any of Green's descendants to attend the school of their choice. She also helped create the Nearest & Jack Advancement Initiative, a joint venture between the foundation and Jack Daniel's. It includes the Nearest Green School of Distilling certification program at Motlow State Community College, a Leadership Acceleration Program that offers apprenticeships to African-Americans, and a business incubation program for black micro distillers.

In 2020, Weaver started the Black Business Booster program, to help ten Black-owned spirits companies with branding, distribution, and capital.

In 2026, Uncle Nearest remained under federal court-appointed receivership following litigation with its primary lender. In July 2026, court filings disclosed that founder and CEO Fawn Weaver and co-founder Keith Weaver had been terminated from their positions by the receiver, effective June 1. The receiver stated that the decision reduced operational confusion among employees and vendors while the company pursued restructuring and a potential sale. Weaver has disputed aspects of the receivership and related legal proceedings.

Other work Fawn's career began in 1994, when she formed special events and public relations company FEW Entertainment. She worked as a restaurant and real estate executive through the early 2000s, before founding Grant Sidney Inc. in March 2010. In 2015, she wrote The Argument-Free Marriage: 28 Days to Creating the Marriage You've Always Wanted with the Spouse You Already Have, which offers a 28-day plan for marital happiness using conflict management.

Weaver was named one of Time's "31 People Changing the South" in 2018.

She was also an executive board member of Meet Each Need with Dignity and Slavery No More from January 2014 to December 2019.

On July 9, 2025, Weaver became an honorary member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority.

Personal life Born in 1976 as Fawn Evette Wilson, she is the daughter of Motown Records songwriter and producer Frank Wilson. She has been married to Keith Weaver since 2003.

Legal issues

2025 lawsuit by Farm Credit Mid-America In July 2025, Farm Credit Mid-America filed a US$108 million federal lawsuit against Uncle Nearest, Inc., Nearest Green Distillery, Inc., Uncle Nearest Real Estate Holdings, LLC, and co-founders Fawn and Keith Weaver, alleging defaults on multiple loans, misuse of loan proceeds, inflated collateral reporting, and failure to maintain financial covenants. The lawsuit sought the appointment of a court-appointed receiver to protect the lender's collateral which was granted. In May 2026, the court expanded the receivership to include founder Fawn Weaver's holding company, finding that a 20 million dollar loan from Jay‑Z's investment vehicle had been routed through Weaver's holding company and misrepresented to Farm Credit as the Weaver's own funds, which the judge said met the standard for fraudulent conduct. On June 1, 2026, the court appointed receivership announced that a buyer for Uncle Nearest Inc and Nearest Green Distillery had been found and would be announced publicly after the deal was finalized.The court-appointed receiver fired Weaver and her husband and co-founder, Keith Weaver, on June 1. The firings were disclosed on July 10 in a federal court filing obtained by The Tennessean.