1 00:00:03,600 --> 00:00:05,920 Speaker 1: What's up his way up at Angela. Ye, I'm here. 2 00:00:06,040 --> 00:00:07,480 Speaker 1: My girl Stacy tis Daye is here. 3 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:10,280 Speaker 2: She's my partner in Wealth Wednesday, and we have a 4 00:00:10,360 --> 00:00:12,799 Speaker 2: true unicorn unbelievable. 5 00:00:12,840 --> 00:00:15,320 Speaker 3: We are so excited to have fun. Wea. We here 6 00:00:15,720 --> 00:00:19,040 Speaker 3: and Fawn is one of only five African American women 7 00:00:19,120 --> 00:00:22,880 Speaker 3: in the United States to lead one billion dollar plus 8 00:00:22,880 --> 00:00:26,599 Speaker 3: company in the United States. That's amazing. I'm so excited 9 00:00:26,600 --> 00:00:29,000 Speaker 3: for everyone to learn the story because it's a story. 10 00:00:29,400 --> 00:00:32,199 Speaker 4: Yeah, and to lead one that I own one that 11 00:00:32,280 --> 00:00:34,480 Speaker 4: she so we do lead a few. 12 00:00:34,880 --> 00:00:35,160 Speaker 1: Yeah. 13 00:00:35,320 --> 00:00:42,159 Speaker 2: But and I want to say, I remember when you 14 00:00:42,320 --> 00:00:46,000 Speaker 2: first bought Uncle Nerris, and we're bringing this story to 15 00:00:46,040 --> 00:00:48,479 Speaker 2: the masses and telling this story about Jack daniels a 16 00:00:48,520 --> 00:00:51,000 Speaker 2: relationship to Uncle Nerris and how Uncle Nerris is the 17 00:00:51,040 --> 00:00:54,760 Speaker 2: person who actually taught them how to make the whiskey. 18 00:00:54,880 --> 00:00:55,200 Speaker 4: Yeah. 19 00:00:55,280 --> 00:00:58,680 Speaker 3: Yeah, tell our audience why Jack Daniels could arguably be 20 00:00:58,760 --> 00:00:59,800 Speaker 3: called Uncle Nerris. 21 00:01:00,120 --> 00:01:02,400 Speaker 4: Well, you know, it's so cool because right now, we 22 00:01:02,560 --> 00:01:05,000 Speaker 4: just released a new bottle called Neares Green Tennessee Whiskey, 23 00:01:05,319 --> 00:01:07,640 Speaker 4: and one of the things that we're doing when we 24 00:01:07,760 --> 00:01:11,440 Speaker 4: released it is called Nears Green Versus Everybody, Part two 25 00:01:12,200 --> 00:01:14,839 Speaker 4: and the reason it's part two is when Jack was alive, 26 00:01:14,920 --> 00:01:17,080 Speaker 4: it's one of the most brilliant marketing things I've seen, 27 00:01:17,360 --> 00:01:18,760 Speaker 4: is he had to figure out, how do I get 28 00:01:18,800 --> 00:01:21,679 Speaker 4: people to drink Tennessee whiskey coming out of Lynchburg, Tennessee, 29 00:01:22,000 --> 00:01:24,759 Speaker 4: when Kentucky is putting out all this bourbon, when there's 30 00:01:24,760 --> 00:01:27,720 Speaker 4: one thousand Tennessee distilleries, How do I do it? So 31 00:01:27,800 --> 00:01:30,399 Speaker 4: he would show up at bars as saloons is what 32 00:01:30,440 --> 00:01:32,480 Speaker 4: they were called then, But he'd show up at bars 33 00:01:32,520 --> 00:01:34,960 Speaker 4: with a silver dollar, which was a really big deal 34 00:01:35,040 --> 00:01:37,560 Speaker 4: back then, and he would put a silver dollar on 35 00:01:37,680 --> 00:01:41,000 Speaker 4: the counter with the consumer there and he would and 36 00:01:41,040 --> 00:01:44,080 Speaker 4: he would tell them, try mine versus whoever you were 37 00:01:44,120 --> 00:01:46,679 Speaker 4: already going to buy, and he will put that silver 38 00:01:46,760 --> 00:01:49,280 Speaker 4: dollar on the line. And so we called the US 39 00:01:49,360 --> 00:01:53,280 Speaker 4: Treasury and bought a whole lot of silver dollars. So 40 00:01:53,320 --> 00:01:56,120 Speaker 4: when we released Near's Green Tennessee Whiskey, our whole team 41 00:01:56,280 --> 00:01:59,360 Speaker 4: silver dollars going out and doing blind taste tests. Whoever 42 00:01:59,400 --> 00:02:01,520 Speaker 4: you're drinking, put this up against it, and when you 43 00:02:01,560 --> 00:02:03,760 Speaker 4: think about it, it's it's a thirty dollars bottle. Twenty 44 00:02:03,840 --> 00:02:06,720 Speaker 4: nine ninety nine, And the very first takedown we did 45 00:02:07,080 --> 00:02:10,840 Speaker 4: was Blenton's blind taste tests at a Mexican restaurant of 46 00:02:10,840 --> 00:02:17,520 Speaker 4: all places, competition and so but the reason why it 47 00:02:17,560 --> 00:02:20,480 Speaker 4: is it's Nearest Green versus everybody is is when Jack 48 00:02:20,639 --> 00:02:23,720 Speaker 4: was taking Jack Daniels out at that time, the whiskey 49 00:02:23,760 --> 00:02:27,160 Speaker 4: in those bottles was Nears Greens, right, and so even 50 00:02:27,280 --> 00:02:31,200 Speaker 4: then he was putting up Nearest Green's whiskey against everybody 51 00:02:31,200 --> 00:02:32,040 Speaker 4: in the marketplace. 52 00:02:32,200 --> 00:02:36,120 Speaker 1: And he did give credit, yes, a very clear about that. 53 00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:40,040 Speaker 2: That's because you always are very It was really another person. 54 00:02:40,120 --> 00:02:43,239 Speaker 1: But the what is it a distillery? 55 00:02:43,320 --> 00:02:46,280 Speaker 4: Yeah, another person bought the brands. The brands Okay, when 56 00:02:46,360 --> 00:02:49,960 Speaker 4: Jack Daniel and his family ran the distillery until the 57 00:02:50,160 --> 00:02:53,520 Speaker 4: very last one passed away in seventy eight. Nearest Green 58 00:02:53,600 --> 00:02:56,079 Speaker 4: and his boys. They were talked about so much on 59 00:02:56,120 --> 00:02:59,600 Speaker 4: the tour that Nearest's descendants would come back from college 60 00:02:59,600 --> 00:03:03,359 Speaker 4: with their college friends to brag on their ancestor because 61 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:07,640 Speaker 4: he was so integrated into their story. And then after 62 00:03:07,720 --> 00:03:11,520 Speaker 4: Reggor died, Jack's descendant Reggor died in seventy eight, the 63 00:03:11,600 --> 00:03:15,720 Speaker 4: story disappeared. Between seventy eight and the time that one 64 00:03:15,760 --> 00:03:18,280 Speaker 4: of Nearest's descendants went to work there in seventy nine. 65 00:03:18,480 --> 00:03:21,679 Speaker 4: In that one year, the story literally it was disappeared 66 00:03:21,720 --> 00:03:25,400 Speaker 4: and it was replaced by a story of a white 67 00:03:25,480 --> 00:03:29,040 Speaker 4: preacher and distiller who both Jack and Nearest worked for. 68 00:03:29,680 --> 00:03:33,480 Speaker 4: That person in the official story became the teacher versus 69 00:03:33,560 --> 00:03:36,200 Speaker 4: what the story always had been, which was Nearest was 70 00:03:36,240 --> 00:03:39,000 Speaker 4: the teacher and the mentor. And now we now know 71 00:03:39,200 --> 00:03:41,760 Speaker 4: he was not only the first master distiller for Jack 72 00:03:41,840 --> 00:03:46,040 Speaker 4: Daniel Distillery, but he's the only known master distiller for 73 00:03:46,160 --> 00:03:49,200 Speaker 4: Jack Daniel Distillery number seven. So everybody out there drinking 74 00:03:49,240 --> 00:03:52,600 Speaker 4: old number seven that is paying homage to the distillery 75 00:03:52,640 --> 00:03:55,880 Speaker 4: in which nears Green is the only known master distiller. 76 00:03:56,440 --> 00:04:01,119 Speaker 3: So we've talked around the story. Yeah, give our audience 77 00:04:01,280 --> 00:04:03,760 Speaker 3: just the quick for one one on you got exactly 78 00:04:03,800 --> 00:04:06,160 Speaker 3: what happened, and especially that photograph. 79 00:04:05,480 --> 00:04:09,040 Speaker 4: Absolutely so. Nera's Green is the first known African American 80 00:04:09,160 --> 00:04:13,560 Speaker 4: master distiller, the teacher mentor of Jack Daniel, the first 81 00:04:13,760 --> 00:04:17,440 Speaker 4: master distiller for Jack Daniel Distillery and the entire time 82 00:04:17,440 --> 00:04:19,719 Speaker 4: that Jack was alive. Which I'm so happy Angela you 83 00:04:19,720 --> 00:04:22,279 Speaker 4: pointed this out because a lot of people still don't 84 00:04:22,360 --> 00:04:25,880 Speaker 4: know that Jack and his descendants always made sure not 85 00:04:25,960 --> 00:04:29,920 Speaker 4: only did they give nearest credit in Nearess's boys credit 86 00:04:30,040 --> 00:04:33,920 Speaker 4: and Grandkid's credit, but they also made sure that we 87 00:04:34,040 --> 00:04:37,960 Speaker 4: knew the difference between Kentucky bourbon and Tennessee whiskey. They're 88 00:04:38,000 --> 00:04:41,320 Speaker 4: both straight bourbon whiskeys. The difference between the two is 89 00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:44,000 Speaker 4: the process that came in with the West Africans, the 90 00:04:44,000 --> 00:04:48,400 Speaker 4: Lincoln County process, taking traditional bourbon distiller, running it through sugar, 91 00:04:48,440 --> 00:04:51,520 Speaker 4: maple charcoal before it goes into the barrel to remove 92 00:04:51,520 --> 00:04:53,520 Speaker 4: the impurities. That's why Uncle Nears doesn't give you a 93 00:04:53,520 --> 00:04:55,960 Speaker 4: headache like you drink that meat. You could drink a 94 00:04:56,000 --> 00:04:58,320 Speaker 4: meat all night. I do it all the time. It 95 00:04:58,360 --> 00:05:00,200 Speaker 4: does not give you, It doesn't give you ahead, and 96 00:05:00,240 --> 00:05:02,520 Speaker 4: it won't make you tipsy because we're pulling out those 97 00:05:02,520 --> 00:05:04,240 Speaker 4: impurities now. 98 00:05:04,279 --> 00:05:06,160 Speaker 2: Since this is Wealth Wednesday, I also want to talk 99 00:05:06,200 --> 00:05:09,120 Speaker 2: about you Fun Weaver as an individual in your background, 100 00:05:09,440 --> 00:05:11,760 Speaker 2: because this was not something that you. 101 00:05:11,800 --> 00:05:15,600 Speaker 1: Even had intended to do right and at all at all. 102 00:05:15,839 --> 00:05:18,400 Speaker 2: Yeah, and this wasn't even something spirits, was not something 103 00:05:18,480 --> 00:05:21,280 Speaker 2: that you had a background in, but you became extremely 104 00:05:21,320 --> 00:05:23,560 Speaker 2: passionate about it when you went to go do this deal. 105 00:05:24,240 --> 00:05:26,360 Speaker 2: So can you just give us a little of that 106 00:05:26,520 --> 00:05:29,000 Speaker 2: story because I think it's really important for people to 107 00:05:29,080 --> 00:05:31,599 Speaker 2: understand that you can feel such a strong passion for 108 00:05:31,680 --> 00:05:35,000 Speaker 2: something and actually educate yourself the way that you did 109 00:05:35,080 --> 00:05:37,640 Speaker 2: and what that process was like, because I'm sure there's 110 00:05:37,640 --> 00:05:39,919 Speaker 2: people listening who have something they really want to do 111 00:05:39,960 --> 00:05:42,000 Speaker 2: but feel like, well, this isn't what I do, this 112 00:05:42,080 --> 00:05:45,520 Speaker 2: isn't my background, so let me figure out something else. 113 00:05:45,680 --> 00:05:48,040 Speaker 4: Well, we have this. And I don't know if there 114 00:05:48,120 --> 00:05:49,800 Speaker 4: was a book that came out that told people they 115 00:05:49,839 --> 00:05:52,120 Speaker 4: needed mentors and allies to get a hit. I have 116 00:05:52,240 --> 00:05:54,600 Speaker 4: no idea where this came from, but my dms are 117 00:05:54,640 --> 00:05:57,400 Speaker 4: filled every day with people asking me to be a mentor. 118 00:05:57,720 --> 00:06:00,679 Speaker 4: You don't need a mentor. I literally never have a mentor. 119 00:06:01,160 --> 00:06:04,279 Speaker 4: Let chat, GPT be a mentor. Literally, you throw it 120 00:06:04,279 --> 00:06:07,080 Speaker 4: in it listen, best assistant ever. 121 00:06:07,240 --> 00:06:08,040 Speaker 1: And we didn't have that. 122 00:06:08,160 --> 00:06:10,360 Speaker 4: We didn't have that. We had to go to the library. 123 00:06:10,440 --> 00:06:12,360 Speaker 4: So I told people when I was learning how to 124 00:06:13,040 --> 00:06:15,960 Speaker 4: write business plans, Google didn't exist. I had to go 125 00:06:16,040 --> 00:06:19,479 Speaker 4: to the library. Now you have templates. All you got 126 00:06:19,480 --> 00:06:21,600 Speaker 4: to do is do the work, fill it in. And 127 00:06:21,640 --> 00:06:25,040 Speaker 4: so we now have everything at our fingertips to succeed. 128 00:06:25,839 --> 00:06:29,040 Speaker 4: There are no excuses at this point, right, except for 129 00:06:29,080 --> 00:06:31,080 Speaker 4: the ones that we create. And if you say, well, 130 00:06:31,120 --> 00:06:33,800 Speaker 4: you know, I come from an area where education isn't great. 131 00:06:33,839 --> 00:06:36,200 Speaker 4: I dropped out of high school at fifteen, so let's 132 00:06:36,200 --> 00:06:40,080 Speaker 4: not have a conversation about and by the way, you know, John, 133 00:06:40,160 --> 00:06:44,280 Speaker 4: your high school in Pasadena, California, you know it's not 134 00:06:44,320 --> 00:06:47,200 Speaker 4: at the top. Let's just say that, right, And so 135 00:06:47,480 --> 00:06:50,640 Speaker 4: even I dropped out of high school so early. Last 136 00:06:50,680 --> 00:06:55,839 Speaker 4: grade I completed was the tenth grade. But I studied myself. 137 00:06:56,120 --> 00:06:58,120 Speaker 4: We have to get to a place where were we 138 00:06:58,160 --> 00:07:00,800 Speaker 4: stopped looking for people to lead us. And when it 139 00:07:00,839 --> 00:07:03,760 Speaker 4: comes to this story, when I came into it people, 140 00:07:03,880 --> 00:07:07,760 Speaker 4: I remember sitting down with now he's the chairman of 141 00:07:07,800 --> 00:07:10,440 Speaker 4: Brown Foreman, who owns Jack Daniels. And this was long 142 00:07:10,480 --> 00:07:12,960 Speaker 4: after Uncle Nars came out and we sat down and 143 00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:14,640 Speaker 4: I remember and I like this guy a lot, so 144 00:07:14,720 --> 00:07:17,520 Speaker 4: this isn't a negative thing. But we sat down. He said, listen, fun, 145 00:07:18,040 --> 00:07:20,560 Speaker 4: I just didn't believe you could pull this off. Like 146 00:07:20,600 --> 00:07:22,640 Speaker 4: that was the first thing he said, right he met me, 147 00:07:23,120 --> 00:07:27,080 Speaker 4: and then we began talking about the whiskey business. He's like, well, wait, wait, wait, wait, 148 00:07:27,400 --> 00:07:32,000 Speaker 4: I thought you did marketing, you're talking about the whiskey 149 00:07:32,040 --> 00:07:35,800 Speaker 4: making process, and he said, I don't even know the 150 00:07:35,840 --> 00:07:39,200 Speaker 4: science of the whiskey making process. Now, mind you, he's 151 00:07:39,320 --> 00:07:43,800 Speaker 4: like fifth generation in this business. He was running one 152 00:07:43,880 --> 00:07:46,880 Speaker 4: of the top bourbon companies and he left that to 153 00:07:47,320 --> 00:07:50,360 Speaker 4: his scientists and his engineers and his distillers. And I 154 00:07:50,400 --> 00:07:51,720 Speaker 4: was like, that's it. 155 00:07:51,880 --> 00:07:54,320 Speaker 2: Was the business man. He wasn't the person that actually 156 00:07:54,320 --> 00:07:56,240 Speaker 2: could do the business right. 157 00:07:56,360 --> 00:07:59,640 Speaker 4: But here's the thing is is we now have access 158 00:07:59,760 --> 00:08:04,480 Speaker 4: finger tips like literally to figure out pick an industry, 159 00:08:04,520 --> 00:08:08,920 Speaker 4: any industry. We can master it. And it's why I 160 00:08:08,960 --> 00:08:11,280 Speaker 4: love AI. I know there's some dangers to it, but 161 00:08:11,400 --> 00:08:13,520 Speaker 4: I believe it to be the great equalizer for women 162 00:08:13,560 --> 00:08:17,880 Speaker 4: and people of color because now standardized tests don't matter 163 00:08:18,280 --> 00:08:21,000 Speaker 4: because we know how to answer the way that the 164 00:08:21,080 --> 00:08:24,679 Speaker 4: tests expect because we can just toss it in to chat, 165 00:08:24,680 --> 00:08:27,160 Speaker 4: GPT or I don't know whoever else. I use that. 166 00:08:27,240 --> 00:08:29,560 Speaker 4: I've been an early adopter of it, and I'm not 167 00:08:29,600 --> 00:08:30,320 Speaker 4: sponsored by them. 168 00:08:30,360 --> 00:08:34,000 Speaker 1: I'm just saying that's what I like exactly. 169 00:08:35,080 --> 00:08:38,160 Speaker 4: But now the reason why I love it and I 170 00:08:38,240 --> 00:08:40,880 Speaker 4: embrace it is because what I did to learn the 171 00:08:40,920 --> 00:08:45,240 Speaker 4: whiskey business, to learn the marketing behind what Jack did. 172 00:08:45,280 --> 00:08:47,240 Speaker 4: A lot of the marketing you see with Uncle Nears 173 00:08:47,320 --> 00:08:50,040 Speaker 4: now it's stuff Jack did in the nineteenth century, and 174 00:08:50,080 --> 00:08:54,600 Speaker 4: I'm like that still works and bringing things back because 175 00:08:54,920 --> 00:08:58,360 Speaker 4: what Jack was doing was marketing Nearest his product. What 176 00:08:58,480 --> 00:09:01,440 Speaker 4: I'm doing is marketing nearest product. So a lot of 177 00:09:01,480 --> 00:09:04,400 Speaker 4: what I do just pulls back from the marketing from 178 00:09:04,480 --> 00:09:06,920 Speaker 4: when when Jack was alive and when Nearest was alive. 179 00:09:07,160 --> 00:09:10,600 Speaker 3: Let's talk about you for a minute, yeah, because this 180 00:09:10,720 --> 00:09:14,319 Speaker 3: is interesting. When you were fifteen years old, your parents 181 00:09:14,360 --> 00:09:16,559 Speaker 3: told you to shape up or ship out. 182 00:09:16,600 --> 00:09:21,199 Speaker 4: And I shipped out. Yeah, and one. 183 00:09:21,000 --> 00:09:23,800 Speaker 3: Of the places where you stayed was Covenant House. 184 00:09:23,920 --> 00:09:25,800 Speaker 4: Yeah, I love it. That was the lat That's so 185 00:09:25,960 --> 00:09:28,760 Speaker 4: I moved to Jordan Down's. I moved to Watts and 186 00:09:29,040 --> 00:09:32,200 Speaker 4: that's where I That's where I began my journey on 187 00:09:32,240 --> 00:09:35,480 Speaker 4: my own. And if you ever wanted to to build 188 00:09:35,480 --> 00:09:38,960 Speaker 4: some thick skin, move to the projects at fifteen and 189 00:09:39,160 --> 00:09:40,720 Speaker 4: I went from there. By the time I got to 190 00:09:40,720 --> 00:09:43,920 Speaker 4: Covenant House, that was my third homeless shelter. So it 191 00:09:44,040 --> 00:09:46,679 Speaker 4: was Jordan Downs to the first one homeless shelter to 192 00:09:46,720 --> 00:09:49,680 Speaker 4: the second homeless shelter, my last homeless shelter was Covenant House. 193 00:09:49,800 --> 00:09:52,080 Speaker 3: I've done workshops at Covenant House. I love them, and 194 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:55,400 Speaker 3: I know that a requirement is either go to school 195 00:09:55,480 --> 00:09:57,960 Speaker 3: or get a job. Yes, And I was reading how 196 00:09:58,240 --> 00:10:00,560 Speaker 3: old kids would be like, oh, I can't find a job. Yeah, the. 197 00:10:05,400 --> 00:10:06,840 Speaker 4: Different tell us about fun? 198 00:10:06,840 --> 00:10:08,079 Speaker 3: What's different about. 199 00:10:07,880 --> 00:10:11,480 Speaker 4: What I so I One of the biggest mistakes I 200 00:10:11,480 --> 00:10:15,280 Speaker 4: think we make and and parents don't intend to do this, 201 00:10:15,440 --> 00:10:18,840 Speaker 4: but they are doing it, is that we mold our 202 00:10:18,960 --> 00:10:21,760 Speaker 4: kids into someone they were never meant to be, the 203 00:10:21,840 --> 00:10:24,199 Speaker 4: ship or the shape out. It's not like I was 204 00:10:24,240 --> 00:10:26,800 Speaker 4: a terrible kid. I wasn't. I mean even when I 205 00:10:26,920 --> 00:10:30,240 Speaker 4: left home, I've never to this day ever tried a drug. 206 00:10:30,320 --> 00:10:33,920 Speaker 4: I've never tried a cigarette. I wasn't promiscuous. So it 207 00:10:34,080 --> 00:10:37,320 Speaker 4: wasn't like I was doing all these things and they 208 00:10:37,320 --> 00:10:39,680 Speaker 4: needed me to leave because of that. They needed me 209 00:10:39,760 --> 00:10:44,400 Speaker 4: to leave because I challenged their authority. Not not not 210 00:10:44,480 --> 00:10:47,480 Speaker 4: for black not for black parents. You couldn't ask them why. 211 00:10:48,080 --> 00:10:50,840 Speaker 4: And I did a lot of asking why, and they 212 00:10:50,840 --> 00:10:53,520 Speaker 4: were just they were fed up with it. But here's 213 00:10:53,840 --> 00:10:57,240 Speaker 4: the problem is that we raise our kids to then 214 00:10:57,360 --> 00:11:00,959 Speaker 4: be molded and shaped into someone that they weren't created 215 00:11:01,000 --> 00:11:03,760 Speaker 4: to be so most people. I was teaching at Harvard 216 00:11:03,840 --> 00:11:07,160 Speaker 4: yesterday and one of the students she was asking me 217 00:11:07,160 --> 00:11:10,120 Speaker 4: a question about how she gets ahead in a certain 218 00:11:10,160 --> 00:11:12,680 Speaker 4: space with AI involved in all the rest of that, 219 00:11:12,760 --> 00:11:16,400 Speaker 4: and if AI can write great brand stories for everyone, 220 00:11:16,840 --> 00:11:20,400 Speaker 4: how does she differentiate herself. I said, here's the thing. 221 00:11:20,720 --> 00:11:23,920 Speaker 4: AI can write these brand stories, but what makes them 222 00:11:23,920 --> 00:11:28,000 Speaker 4: effective is a person that's authentic. And most people show 223 00:11:28,080 --> 00:11:31,200 Speaker 4: up as representatives of themselves. So we can look at 224 00:11:31,240 --> 00:11:33,600 Speaker 4: all the people that we know and we could probably 225 00:11:33,679 --> 00:11:35,920 Speaker 4: narrow it down to one percent of the people we 226 00:11:36,040 --> 00:11:38,599 Speaker 4: know who show up as themselves right instead of a 227 00:11:38,640 --> 00:11:44,000 Speaker 4: representative of themselves. And so for me, the greatest blessing 228 00:11:44,360 --> 00:11:46,800 Speaker 4: when I walked into the room, even when I was 229 00:11:46,880 --> 00:11:50,000 Speaker 4: eighteen years old at Covenant House, walked into a place 230 00:11:50,040 --> 00:11:53,200 Speaker 4: to get a job, what they were picking up was confidence. 231 00:11:53,760 --> 00:11:56,920 Speaker 4: But it wasn't confidence in my knowledge. It wasn't confidence 232 00:11:56,920 --> 00:11:59,560 Speaker 4: in what I was doing. It was confidence in my 233 00:11:59,640 --> 00:12:05,280 Speaker 4: auten unique ability, my unique ability. Everybody and I leaned 234 00:12:05,360 --> 00:12:08,240 Speaker 4: into mind. So no, I didn't have the formal education 235 00:12:08,800 --> 00:12:11,680 Speaker 4: of other people that were out there getting jobs, but 236 00:12:11,800 --> 00:12:12,960 Speaker 4: I knew who I was. 237 00:12:13,480 --> 00:12:15,120 Speaker 3: Is this why you said? And this, I was like, 238 00:12:15,160 --> 00:12:16,200 Speaker 3: what that was? 239 00:12:16,240 --> 00:12:16,560 Speaker 1: Really? 240 00:12:17,400 --> 00:12:20,040 Speaker 3: You told Forbes when they ask you what you want 241 00:12:20,080 --> 00:12:22,000 Speaker 3: your legacy to be, you don't care. 242 00:12:22,960 --> 00:12:25,680 Speaker 4: I literally don't care. I think that so many people 243 00:12:25,720 --> 00:12:30,240 Speaker 4: live their lives for their obituary. Literally, they spend their 244 00:12:30,280 --> 00:12:33,080 Speaker 4: whole lives thinking about what are people going to say 245 00:12:33,720 --> 00:12:37,160 Speaker 4: after I leave? But I have a freedom that I 246 00:12:37,160 --> 00:12:41,200 Speaker 4: don't care, So I don't live any aspect of any 247 00:12:41,320 --> 00:12:44,440 Speaker 4: day of my life thinking about how people will remember me. 248 00:12:45,440 --> 00:12:47,120 Speaker 2: You know, I want to talk about some of the 249 00:12:47,160 --> 00:12:49,720 Speaker 2: other things that the other experiences that you had. I 250 00:12:49,720 --> 00:12:52,400 Speaker 2: feel like that really helped you in building this business, 251 00:12:52,400 --> 00:12:55,840 Speaker 2: because you did start your own business at eighteen PR 252 00:12:56,000 --> 00:13:00,720 Speaker 2: marketing special events, and even in that space, create your 253 00:13:00,760 --> 00:13:03,720 Speaker 2: own and doing things that were against the norm of 254 00:13:03,800 --> 00:13:04,720 Speaker 2: what was done. 255 00:13:04,840 --> 00:13:05,800 Speaker 1: And so I want you to. 256 00:13:05,800 --> 00:13:08,199 Speaker 2: Elaborate on that and then talk about how that actually 257 00:13:08,240 --> 00:13:09,720 Speaker 2: helped with your whole storytelling. 258 00:13:10,080 --> 00:13:11,800 Speaker 1: As far as Uncle neris, Yeah. 259 00:13:11,640 --> 00:13:15,160 Speaker 4: I think if we go back to authenticity, any person 260 00:13:15,200 --> 00:13:18,280 Speaker 4: who is truly authentic to who they are is a 261 00:13:18,280 --> 00:13:22,280 Speaker 4: great storyteller. Because we're all born with whatever the stories 262 00:13:22,320 --> 00:13:24,840 Speaker 4: are that are in our hearts, that we experience in life, 263 00:13:24,960 --> 00:13:29,479 Speaker 4: our world views. We get tongue twisted, trying to formulate 264 00:13:29,559 --> 00:13:32,760 Speaker 4: them for other people to embrace or to love, or 265 00:13:32,800 --> 00:13:34,920 Speaker 4: to hear or things of that nature. So from the 266 00:13:35,240 --> 00:13:38,840 Speaker 4: very early on, I was eighteen and I interned for 267 00:13:39,080 --> 00:13:43,400 Speaker 4: the top black PR firm in LA called Tobin and Associates. 268 00:13:43,400 --> 00:13:46,640 Speaker 4: And I was interning for Pat Tobin and she had 269 00:13:46,640 --> 00:13:49,880 Speaker 4: two clients that could not she just could not get 270 00:13:49,920 --> 00:13:53,000 Speaker 4: them pressed for no matter what they tried. And I 271 00:13:53,080 --> 00:13:55,280 Speaker 4: looked at what they were doing. And I'm eighteen, I'm 272 00:13:55,320 --> 00:13:57,480 Speaker 4: an intern, But I looked at what they were doing 273 00:13:57,480 --> 00:14:01,079 Speaker 4: and I was like, Yeah, that ain't right, because this 274 00:14:01,120 --> 00:14:03,240 Speaker 4: isn't gonna work for this. This works for Toyota who 275 00:14:03,280 --> 00:14:06,360 Speaker 4: she represented a Lexus, but this doesn't work for this 276 00:14:06,480 --> 00:14:09,600 Speaker 4: over here. And I said, but here's the thing. There, 277 00:14:09,640 --> 00:14:12,840 Speaker 4: we're in LA. There are all these events that celebrities 278 00:14:12,880 --> 00:14:17,200 Speaker 4: go to. They're in green rooms. Your product is Thomas Blackshear, 279 00:14:17,280 --> 00:14:20,720 Speaker 4: he's a painter, and you know Daddy long legs, it's 280 00:14:20,720 --> 00:14:22,440 Speaker 4: a toy. It's all the rest of this stuff. And 281 00:14:22,480 --> 00:14:27,080 Speaker 4: I said, just outfit these green rooms. They're always terrible, right, 282 00:14:27,320 --> 00:14:30,400 Speaker 4: So outfit the green rooms so that every angle that 283 00:14:30,520 --> 00:14:34,280 Speaker 4: an image or a video or press is taken. It's 284 00:14:34,320 --> 00:14:37,080 Speaker 4: in the image. So now we call that product. 285 00:14:36,760 --> 00:14:39,520 Speaker 2: Placement, right right, product placement. I did that as a 286 00:14:39,560 --> 00:14:40,880 Speaker 2: living for quite right. 287 00:14:41,160 --> 00:14:43,200 Speaker 4: But now people charge for that, right now people charge. 288 00:14:43,280 --> 00:14:45,000 Speaker 4: But at that time, it was like, well, we're going 289 00:14:45,080 --> 00:14:48,120 Speaker 4: to be in a green room. That's blank anyway, go 290 00:14:48,160 --> 00:14:51,120 Speaker 4: ahead and fill it up and make it beautiful for us. 291 00:14:51,600 --> 00:14:54,400 Speaker 4: And so that's how I began. Is what we now 292 00:14:54,400 --> 00:14:57,600 Speaker 4: know is product integration. To me just made sense. 293 00:14:57,960 --> 00:15:00,880 Speaker 2: And back to your point of Chad GPT, that's not 294 00:15:01,000 --> 00:15:04,960 Speaker 2: something that somebody could that any AI could create, because 295 00:15:05,160 --> 00:15:07,200 Speaker 2: there are certain templates that you can follow. But that's 296 00:15:07,200 --> 00:15:11,040 Speaker 2: why people are necessary, right and things working in tandem 297 00:15:11,280 --> 00:15:13,120 Speaker 2: where something that can help you, but then you can 298 00:15:13,440 --> 00:15:15,840 Speaker 2: actually formulate it into something more. It can help give 299 00:15:15,840 --> 00:15:19,120 Speaker 2: you a base. But again everything is not a plug 300 00:15:19,160 --> 00:15:21,320 Speaker 2: and play too. Oh, and that was something that had 301 00:15:21,360 --> 00:15:23,800 Speaker 2: never been done. And they told you if you start 302 00:15:23,840 --> 00:15:25,400 Speaker 2: your own company, they would go with me. 303 00:15:25,880 --> 00:15:28,720 Speaker 4: And I started my own company and both both of 304 00:15:28,760 --> 00:15:30,840 Speaker 4: them came with me. Both clients came with me. Now, 305 00:15:30,920 --> 00:15:34,840 Speaker 4: obviously I'm young and I wouldn't do that again right now, 306 00:15:35,280 --> 00:15:37,760 Speaker 4: But being young, I was like, wait, you won't pay 307 00:15:37,800 --> 00:15:40,280 Speaker 4: me how much money to go do that, Yeah, let's go, 308 00:15:41,120 --> 00:15:44,640 Speaker 4: let's go yesterday, Yes and so and so I did, 309 00:15:44,720 --> 00:15:47,480 Speaker 4: and I started my own company. And that is the 310 00:15:47,480 --> 00:15:52,160 Speaker 4: foundation of how I've built Uncle Nears because this industry 311 00:15:52,280 --> 00:15:56,000 Speaker 4: is run by essentially six spirit conglomerates that have boxed 312 00:15:56,040 --> 00:16:00,560 Speaker 4: everybody out everybody. And the way that I've been able 313 00:16:00,600 --> 00:16:03,320 Speaker 4: to cut through the noise is that taking that PR 314 00:16:03,400 --> 00:16:07,320 Speaker 4: background from when I was eighteen and constantly I've led 315 00:16:07,400 --> 00:16:11,040 Speaker 4: PR strategy for Uncle Nearest from day one. I've got 316 00:16:11,080 --> 00:16:14,680 Speaker 4: an amazing PR team, but they execute my vision, they 317 00:16:14,720 --> 00:16:17,440 Speaker 4: execute my strategy, and what I love about them is 318 00:16:17,440 --> 00:16:20,320 Speaker 4: they have no ego because they're like, Okay, she's different, 319 00:16:20,800 --> 00:16:24,040 Speaker 4: she's special. Let's let her do her thing, man, and 320 00:16:24,120 --> 00:16:25,040 Speaker 4: let's support her. 321 00:16:25,240 --> 00:16:27,720 Speaker 2: And even the fact that when you first went to 322 00:16:27,760 --> 00:16:30,200 Speaker 2: go purchase this land, yeah, you did not know where 323 00:16:30,200 --> 00:16:32,760 Speaker 2: the money was going to come at all at all. 324 00:16:32,800 --> 00:16:34,960 Speaker 2: And I want to say, when you tell us that story, 325 00:16:35,000 --> 00:16:37,400 Speaker 2: that is something that people would always advise against when 326 00:16:37,440 --> 00:16:40,800 Speaker 2: it comes to real estate purchases. I mean, you know, 327 00:16:40,960 --> 00:16:43,480 Speaker 2: I think that fundamentally, you don't want to put yourself 328 00:16:43,520 --> 00:16:46,720 Speaker 2: in a position. This is what we learn where how 329 00:16:46,720 --> 00:16:48,560 Speaker 2: am I going to come up with the money for this, Yeah, 330 00:16:48,840 --> 00:16:50,000 Speaker 2: tell us your mindset. 331 00:16:50,280 --> 00:16:52,840 Speaker 4: Absolutely. And then if you look at the top of 332 00:16:52,920 --> 00:16:56,360 Speaker 4: the Forbes list, this story I'm about to share is eight. 333 00:16:56,440 --> 00:16:58,960 Speaker 4: There's a different version of it on everybody that's on 334 00:16:59,000 --> 00:17:02,360 Speaker 4: the Forbes list that is not generational wealth, right, that's 335 00:17:02,400 --> 00:17:07,240 Speaker 4: not the Walmart family or sc Johnson family, or if 336 00:17:07,240 --> 00:17:11,119 Speaker 4: it's self made, everybody has this same type of story. 337 00:17:11,160 --> 00:17:14,320 Speaker 4: Elon Musk, who just hangs out at that number one spot, 338 00:17:14,359 --> 00:17:17,840 Speaker 4: Jeff Bezos has ten similar stories. But I remember being 339 00:17:17,880 --> 00:17:20,760 Speaker 4: around Elon at an event and he was sharing with 340 00:17:21,080 --> 00:17:23,479 Speaker 4: the group that when he was doing I believe it 341 00:17:23,520 --> 00:17:26,639 Speaker 4: was his series D rays that if he had not 342 00:17:26,880 --> 00:17:30,920 Speaker 4: funded on that Friday, every paycheck was bouncing on that Monday. 343 00:17:31,320 --> 00:17:35,320 Speaker 4: That's normal. So when you're an entrepreneur or when you're 344 00:17:35,359 --> 00:17:38,400 Speaker 4: going after a big vision, you're going to have risk, 345 00:17:38,840 --> 00:17:42,879 Speaker 4: and the risk associated with it may end up with 346 00:17:43,000 --> 00:17:45,719 Speaker 4: egg on your face. And so you have to figure 347 00:17:45,760 --> 00:17:49,679 Speaker 4: out am I going to allow what may happen to 348 00:17:49,760 --> 00:17:52,760 Speaker 4: keep me from pushing forward. So with the Land, when 349 00:17:52,800 --> 00:17:56,359 Speaker 4: I got to Lynchburg, Tennessee, to learn the story, to 350 00:17:56,440 --> 00:17:59,720 Speaker 4: do interviews with Nearess's family, and to learn about the 351 00:18:00,080 --> 00:18:02,199 Speaker 4: story of Jack Daniels and Nears Green and all the 352 00:18:02,200 --> 00:18:05,880 Speaker 4: rest of that stuff. Jack's second eldest descendant, now his eldest, 353 00:18:05,880 --> 00:18:08,680 Speaker 4: but at the time his second eldest descendant. She said, hey, 354 00:18:08,760 --> 00:18:11,639 Speaker 4: you know the farm where Jack grew up, where Niers 355 00:18:11,640 --> 00:18:13,760 Speaker 4: was the distiller. Yahd YadA, YadA, YadA. It's for sale 356 00:18:14,520 --> 00:18:17,199 Speaker 4: three hundred and thirteen acres where we now know the 357 00:18:17,240 --> 00:18:21,800 Speaker 4: original Jack Daniel Distillery Number seven is the original home 358 00:18:21,800 --> 00:18:25,240 Speaker 4: where Jack grew up. Like so much of the original 359 00:18:25,280 --> 00:18:29,280 Speaker 4: distillery elements are still there. The water that runs through 360 00:18:29,320 --> 00:18:32,080 Speaker 4: their same exact spring water that ran through and what 361 00:18:32,240 --> 00:18:35,720 Speaker 4: Naress was putting in. I mean, this is American history. 362 00:18:36,760 --> 00:18:40,280 Speaker 4: That property was on the market for fifteen months while 363 00:18:40,320 --> 00:18:42,719 Speaker 4: the folk's up at Jack Daniels, God bless them, the 364 00:18:42,760 --> 00:18:44,960 Speaker 4: marketing department, none of them are still there, so I 365 00:18:44,960 --> 00:18:49,800 Speaker 4: could say this now. The marketing department was arguing to 366 00:18:49,840 --> 00:18:54,399 Speaker 4: buy the property. The operation side was saying, but we 367 00:18:54,440 --> 00:18:57,560 Speaker 4: can't put warehouses there. There's too many rolling heels. And 368 00:18:57,600 --> 00:19:01,920 Speaker 4: so while they're going back and forth fifteen months, we 369 00:19:02,040 --> 00:19:03,800 Speaker 4: just slide in and it was like, we'll take that. 370 00:19:04,520 --> 00:19:07,040 Speaker 4: But Keith and I my husband Keith my favorite person 371 00:19:07,040 --> 00:19:09,840 Speaker 4: in the world. We had literally just lost about two 372 00:19:09,920 --> 00:19:13,000 Speaker 4: million dollars of our own money that we had saved, 373 00:19:13,080 --> 00:19:17,000 Speaker 4: that we had invested in other founders in another business, 374 00:19:17,040 --> 00:19:19,919 Speaker 4: and we were literally watching it go down. There was 375 00:19:19,960 --> 00:19:22,560 Speaker 4: nothing that we could do to prevent it, and we 376 00:19:22,640 --> 00:19:24,119 Speaker 4: knew we were going to lose a lot of money. 377 00:19:24,320 --> 00:19:27,520 Speaker 4: By the time we got to Lynchburg. I want to say, 378 00:19:27,800 --> 00:19:30,800 Speaker 4: if I remember correctly, Keith would have to to like 379 00:19:31,280 --> 00:19:33,760 Speaker 4: get me right on this, but I think we had 380 00:19:33,840 --> 00:19:38,440 Speaker 4: like less than twenty thousand dollars in our bank account and. 381 00:19:38,480 --> 00:19:42,440 Speaker 1: I need how Okay, okay, did you how did you 382 00:19:42,520 --> 00:19:43,000 Speaker 1: do this? Fine? 383 00:19:43,840 --> 00:19:45,960 Speaker 4: Well, there's there's there's a couple of things. I mean, 384 00:19:45,960 --> 00:19:48,480 Speaker 4: we were still making money. I'm just saying that what 385 00:19:48,480 --> 00:19:52,280 Speaker 4: we were put out was greater. Yeah, because every single 386 00:19:52,320 --> 00:19:55,240 Speaker 4: payroll we were covering every So even though this business 387 00:19:55,320 --> 00:19:58,000 Speaker 4: was going down, we still were trying to keep it 388 00:19:58,040 --> 00:20:01,239 Speaker 4: afloat as to not lose everything. Finally we had to 389 00:20:01,280 --> 00:20:03,320 Speaker 4: just cut and just go we can't do it anymore. 390 00:20:04,240 --> 00:20:04,480 Speaker 1: Yeah. 391 00:20:04,560 --> 00:20:07,359 Speaker 4: Also, oh, it's when you know that it's that there's 392 00:20:07,359 --> 00:20:10,240 Speaker 4: so much loss. But at that point we were still 393 00:20:10,280 --> 00:20:14,119 Speaker 4: covering the business. So every penny almost that we had 394 00:20:14,440 --> 00:20:17,840 Speaker 4: was constantly going to pay for this other business that 395 00:20:17,880 --> 00:20:20,239 Speaker 4: we didn't even own, and we were I think we 396 00:20:20,280 --> 00:20:22,080 Speaker 4: owned I don't know, thirty percent or something like that, 397 00:20:22,320 --> 00:20:24,280 Speaker 4: but we were trying to keep it afloating. So I 398 00:20:24,320 --> 00:20:27,480 Speaker 4: want to I'm positive we had less than twenty grand 399 00:20:27,840 --> 00:20:30,600 Speaker 4: in our banker in our sate, like everything, savings, everything, 400 00:20:31,600 --> 00:20:33,760 Speaker 4: I don't remember the exact amount. Now we had real 401 00:20:33,840 --> 00:20:37,560 Speaker 4: estate holdings and things like that, but in terms of cash, yeah, liquid, liquid, 402 00:20:37,960 --> 00:20:41,760 Speaker 4: And so when we put in the offer for the property, 403 00:20:41,600 --> 00:20:44,440 Speaker 4: the property was on the market for one point four 404 00:20:44,880 --> 00:20:49,160 Speaker 4: and someone in the community, white dude who self proclaimed redneck, 405 00:20:49,560 --> 00:20:52,720 Speaker 4: who fell in love with us, like seconds after seeing 406 00:20:52,760 --> 00:20:55,320 Speaker 4: us in Lynchburg, started hanging out. He's like, hey, I 407 00:20:55,320 --> 00:20:57,600 Speaker 4: hear you're interested in the Dan Call farm. I used 408 00:20:57,640 --> 00:20:59,520 Speaker 4: to work for him, that was my very first job. 409 00:21:00,119 --> 00:21:02,359 Speaker 4: He only has it that high because he wants to 410 00:21:02,440 --> 00:21:05,320 Speaker 4: choose who the owners will be. But if you offer 411 00:21:05,359 --> 00:21:07,679 Speaker 4: it in cash, he'll take a lot less on the 412 00:21:07,680 --> 00:21:11,719 Speaker 4: mark for one point four we offer nine cash cash. 413 00:21:12,560 --> 00:21:14,760 Speaker 4: Now we had less than twenty thousand dollars. 414 00:21:15,119 --> 00:21:16,560 Speaker 1: We're going to figure in our bangoutu. 415 00:21:16,880 --> 00:21:20,920 Speaker 4: We're gonna figure this out. But we offered it. And 416 00:21:21,440 --> 00:21:23,160 Speaker 4: this is what I love about God, this is how 417 00:21:23,280 --> 00:21:27,840 Speaker 4: this is just how God works. We make the offer 418 00:21:28,320 --> 00:21:31,399 Speaker 4: and we're leaving the property and Keith and I are like, 419 00:21:31,680 --> 00:21:33,440 Speaker 4: we don't know how this is going to work. We're 420 00:21:33,480 --> 00:21:35,200 Speaker 4: either going to have the egg on our face because 421 00:21:35,240 --> 00:21:37,280 Speaker 4: we can't come through, or God is gonna come through 422 00:21:37,280 --> 00:21:41,040 Speaker 4: and make away. And literally the owners they were really 423 00:21:41,480 --> 00:21:44,720 Speaker 4: a lot older. They had been there for forty fifty years, 424 00:21:45,040 --> 00:21:47,560 Speaker 4: more than fifty years. And so we get a call 425 00:21:47,680 --> 00:21:52,000 Speaker 4: asking could they have a four month escrow? Yeah, because 426 00:21:52,000 --> 00:21:55,159 Speaker 4: they needed time. They needed time to move. We're like, okay, 427 00:21:55,200 --> 00:21:58,120 Speaker 4: God is working the South, thank you, this is it. 428 00:21:58,560 --> 00:22:01,880 Speaker 4: And then the next thing they asked for was an 429 00:22:01,920 --> 00:22:05,800 Speaker 4: earnest deposit, which is normal and we come from La 430 00:22:05,960 --> 00:22:08,320 Speaker 4: Arnest deposit is like five percent is what you would 431 00:22:08,320 --> 00:22:10,119 Speaker 4: put down or something like that. I can't remember what 432 00:22:10,840 --> 00:22:13,840 Speaker 4: we didn't have five percent. They came back and asked 433 00:22:13,840 --> 00:22:15,639 Speaker 4: for an ernest deposit of nine thousand dollars. 434 00:22:17,160 --> 00:22:18,560 Speaker 3: That was divine. 435 00:22:18,680 --> 00:22:19,000 Speaker 1: We had. 436 00:22:20,520 --> 00:22:22,800 Speaker 4: It's like we got that, we got that part. 437 00:22:23,160 --> 00:22:23,840 Speaker 1: We can do this. 438 00:22:24,640 --> 00:22:27,520 Speaker 4: And and then in order to do it, we literally 439 00:22:28,000 --> 00:22:31,920 Speaker 4: sold our cars sold like we just began selling stuff, 440 00:22:31,960 --> 00:22:35,680 Speaker 4: but we have four months to get it done. But 441 00:22:35,760 --> 00:22:38,440 Speaker 4: we there was something in both of us that knew 442 00:22:38,920 --> 00:22:40,840 Speaker 4: there's something big on the other side of this. We 443 00:22:40,880 --> 00:22:44,160 Speaker 4: don't know what it is, but there's something big on 444 00:22:44,200 --> 00:22:46,360 Speaker 4: the other side of it. We knew that maybe it 445 00:22:46,480 --> 00:22:49,600 Speaker 4: was like this, this book and every every book makes 446 00:22:49,760 --> 00:22:52,120 Speaker 4: a different amount of money or whatever, and we're just now, 447 00:22:52,480 --> 00:22:56,160 Speaker 4: I mean, we're still selling as many books a week 448 00:22:56,240 --> 00:22:59,120 Speaker 4: now as we did when we when we first came out. 449 00:22:59,520 --> 00:23:01,840 Speaker 4: But even the deal on this book, I did it 450 00:23:01,880 --> 00:23:05,720 Speaker 4: where my publisher doesn't have a cut. It's literally like 451 00:23:06,160 --> 00:23:08,159 Speaker 4: that's a whole other, that's a whole other, that's a 452 00:23:08,200 --> 00:23:11,600 Speaker 4: whole other, that's a whole other, that's a whole other topics. 453 00:23:12,080 --> 00:23:13,080 Speaker 1: But Whiskey is the. 454 00:23:13,080 --> 00:23:17,280 Speaker 2: Book, by the way, and it's been and it keeps 455 00:23:17,320 --> 00:23:18,479 Speaker 2: on making the New York Times. 456 00:23:18,600 --> 00:23:21,600 Speaker 4: Yeah, it falls off, pops right back, all right, And 457 00:23:21,640 --> 00:23:24,639 Speaker 4: like we're not doing anything except for continuing to be 458 00:23:24,720 --> 00:23:28,200 Speaker 4: out there and sharing the book. But more importantly, people 459 00:23:28,240 --> 00:23:30,480 Speaker 4: are sharing the book because they're like, there is so 460 00:23:30,600 --> 00:23:33,919 Speaker 4: much hope in this book. I wrote it so that 461 00:23:33,960 --> 00:23:37,800 Speaker 4: it feels like a novel, even though it's completely nonfiction 462 00:23:37,920 --> 00:23:39,920 Speaker 4: when people, you know, all they got to do is 463 00:23:39,960 --> 00:23:41,520 Speaker 4: read two pages and they hooked till the end. 464 00:23:41,720 --> 00:23:45,679 Speaker 2: Listen, I feel like I could distill some whiskey. 465 00:23:45,680 --> 00:23:48,439 Speaker 1: But it's entertaining. But it also does give you a 466 00:23:48,440 --> 00:23:49,240 Speaker 1: lot of information. 467 00:23:49,960 --> 00:23:52,600 Speaker 2: And you know, there was some disappointing information in there 468 00:23:52,600 --> 00:23:54,080 Speaker 2: for me about tequila. 469 00:23:54,520 --> 00:23:57,200 Speaker 1: And you're doing a tequila take I'm doing a tequila. 470 00:23:56,840 --> 00:23:59,640 Speaker 4: Take down now. Yeah, listen, listen. 471 00:23:59,520 --> 00:24:02,520 Speaker 2: That's my because I'm not gonna lie. I do enjoy 472 00:24:02,600 --> 00:24:05,000 Speaker 2: my tequila. I was just saying, yes, I was telling 473 00:24:05,000 --> 00:24:08,080 Speaker 2: you they don't really sell tequila like that. Everywhere I 474 00:24:08,119 --> 00:24:10,640 Speaker 2: was going, I'm like, you guys don't have and they 475 00:24:10,640 --> 00:24:11,560 Speaker 2: have a lot of whiskey though. 476 00:24:12,040 --> 00:24:14,960 Speaker 4: But and here's the key. Almost all of the tequila 477 00:24:15,040 --> 00:24:16,960 Speaker 4: that we get here in the US, they don't drink 478 00:24:17,000 --> 00:24:20,560 Speaker 4: it in Mexico. So we've got to ask ourselves, why 479 00:24:20,920 --> 00:24:24,240 Speaker 4: is the tequila in America almost one hundred percent export? 480 00:24:24,400 --> 00:24:28,480 Speaker 4: And it's because all of our most popular brands, all 481 00:24:28,520 --> 00:24:31,200 Speaker 4: the brands that are at the top, have additives. So 482 00:24:31,359 --> 00:24:33,240 Speaker 4: this is the thing. And this is why I said 483 00:24:33,400 --> 00:24:36,480 Speaker 4: tequila takedown is because I had an investor send me 484 00:24:36,520 --> 00:24:40,399 Speaker 4: a text message last week and he was asking me 485 00:24:40,720 --> 00:24:45,920 Speaker 4: specifically about bourbon and the sugar content in it. I said, 486 00:24:46,680 --> 00:24:49,680 Speaker 4: Uncle Neis is sugar free and he's like, wait, but 487 00:24:49,720 --> 00:24:52,280 Speaker 4: my doctor told me I needed to cut out sugar 488 00:24:52,440 --> 00:24:54,639 Speaker 4: and I needed to cut out carbs, and so he 489 00:24:54,680 --> 00:24:56,840 Speaker 4: said I needed to cut out bourbon because it was 490 00:24:56,880 --> 00:24:59,480 Speaker 4: like drinking snicker eating a snicker bar. It's like, who 491 00:24:59,520 --> 00:25:02,440 Speaker 4: the hell? And his doctor told him it was better 492 00:25:02,600 --> 00:25:04,159 Speaker 4: to have tequila. 493 00:25:03,680 --> 00:25:05,800 Speaker 1: And I was like, I will say that I've always 494 00:25:05,800 --> 00:25:06,240 Speaker 1: been hell. 495 00:25:06,280 --> 00:25:09,879 Speaker 4: And so, but the tequila industry has spent billions of 496 00:25:09,920 --> 00:25:13,160 Speaker 4: dollars getting us to believe it. And so the tequila 497 00:25:13,200 --> 00:25:16,679 Speaker 4: takedown that I did, that it went so viral, I 498 00:25:16,720 --> 00:25:19,159 Speaker 4: can't track it. Like, I think, it's so weird that 499 00:25:19,200 --> 00:25:22,520 Speaker 4: people record my page and put it on It's so weird. 500 00:25:22,560 --> 00:25:25,800 Speaker 1: And how when you did the whole take awe their money? 501 00:25:25,880 --> 00:25:31,520 Speaker 4: That wasn't wait super everywhere, but yeah, you know. 502 00:25:31,520 --> 00:25:31,960 Speaker 1: What you're doing. 503 00:25:32,000 --> 00:25:34,960 Speaker 2: No, I mean this is honestly the storytelling. But also 504 00:25:35,000 --> 00:25:38,280 Speaker 2: people buy into you as a person and they trust you. 505 00:25:38,760 --> 00:25:41,639 Speaker 4: And I do my hate, I do my homework, I 506 00:25:41,720 --> 00:25:45,080 Speaker 4: do so research. Even the tequila takedown isn't like I 507 00:25:45,080 --> 00:25:48,080 Speaker 4: don't like tequila. No, I love tequila, but the fact 508 00:25:48,080 --> 00:25:50,320 Speaker 4: that I had to spend so much time trying to 509 00:25:50,320 --> 00:25:53,280 Speaker 4: peel back the layers to figure out when something says 510 00:25:53,280 --> 00:25:56,760 Speaker 4: one hundred percent blew a gave, tequila will pay eighty 511 00:25:56,800 --> 00:25:59,000 Speaker 4: dollars for it because we think that means it's pure. 512 00:25:59,400 --> 00:26:02,720 Speaker 4: Absolutely not what it means for most of the brands 513 00:26:02,760 --> 00:26:05,879 Speaker 4: we're buying, most of the most popular is they distilled 514 00:26:05,920 --> 00:26:08,400 Speaker 4: out all the sugar. Just like we do with Uncle Nears. 515 00:26:08,480 --> 00:26:11,080 Speaker 4: Uncle Ners is fat free, carb free, gluten free, and 516 00:26:11,119 --> 00:26:15,280 Speaker 4: sugar free because it's naturally we distill out all of 517 00:26:15,320 --> 00:26:18,719 Speaker 4: the properties. What tequila has been doing is they distill 518 00:26:18,800 --> 00:26:21,760 Speaker 4: everything out and then they'll add a gave syrup back. 519 00:26:22,040 --> 00:26:26,840 Speaker 4: So like you go to the grocery store. No, so 520 00:26:26,920 --> 00:26:31,520 Speaker 4: the taste that people love about tequila, they're drinking a gave. Literally, 521 00:26:31,640 --> 00:26:34,080 Speaker 4: they're drinking. You go to a grocery store, you pick 522 00:26:34,119 --> 00:26:36,560 Speaker 4: up some agave to put in your tea. That's what 523 00:26:36,600 --> 00:26:39,000 Speaker 4: you're having in your tequila. And so the fact that 524 00:26:39,000 --> 00:26:43,840 Speaker 4: a doctor would tell someone don't drink bourbon, but drink tequila, 525 00:26:43,960 --> 00:26:47,760 Speaker 4: and this dude was drinking cosamigos that's got sugar on 526 00:26:47,880 --> 00:26:50,520 Speaker 4: sugar on sugar that's been added. I was like, oh no, no, no, 527 00:26:50,520 --> 00:26:51,320 Speaker 4: we're taking this down. 528 00:26:51,400 --> 00:26:53,080 Speaker 1: And sugar is what gives people a headache. 529 00:26:53,119 --> 00:26:53,719 Speaker 4: Absolutely. 530 00:26:54,200 --> 00:26:56,679 Speaker 2: Yeah, That's why normally when I drink things, a lot 531 00:26:56,720 --> 00:26:58,720 Speaker 2: of times I try not to mix it with anything. 532 00:26:58,960 --> 00:27:01,360 Speaker 4: It's exactly right. Yeah, I tell people all the time. 533 00:27:01,560 --> 00:27:05,240 Speaker 4: If you drink Uncle nerest you you it's like there 534 00:27:05,320 --> 00:27:07,760 Speaker 4: is nothing in it that is going to give you 535 00:27:07,760 --> 00:27:09,919 Speaker 4: a headache. But if you add carbonation or if you 536 00:27:09,960 --> 00:27:12,840 Speaker 4: add sugar, all bets are off because it's no longer 537 00:27:12,880 --> 00:27:15,520 Speaker 4: the alcohol, it's what you've a you've added to it. 538 00:27:15,720 --> 00:27:20,439 Speaker 3: You are such a study in just believing and just follow, 539 00:27:20,600 --> 00:27:24,560 Speaker 3: just following it, Just just follow, follow, follow before you go. 540 00:27:24,920 --> 00:27:27,520 Speaker 3: What is our audience is full of entrepreneurs? Yeah, what 541 00:27:27,560 --> 00:27:30,040 Speaker 3: are some tips that you have for entrepreneurs. You've talked 542 00:27:30,040 --> 00:27:33,159 Speaker 3: about your marketing success, You've talked about following your vision, 543 00:27:33,560 --> 00:27:37,240 Speaker 3: being comfortable with financial stress, all of educating, educating. What 544 00:27:37,280 --> 00:27:39,879 Speaker 3: are some real takeaways that you want our audience to have. 545 00:27:40,000 --> 00:27:42,560 Speaker 4: If you think you're going to build your company from 546 00:27:42,600 --> 00:27:49,960 Speaker 4: your savings, you're you're highly mistaken, meaning people entrepreneurs are 547 00:27:50,040 --> 00:27:55,320 Speaker 4: so afraid to risk you have so many that are like, 548 00:27:55,400 --> 00:27:57,000 Speaker 4: oh my gosh, I'm almost down to the end of 549 00:27:57,040 --> 00:27:59,480 Speaker 4: my savings. I better go and get a job, and 550 00:27:59,640 --> 00:28:04,520 Speaker 4: they'll quit what they've been working toward for years because 551 00:28:05,119 --> 00:28:08,520 Speaker 4: they're afraid of their savings going below a certain place. 552 00:28:08,560 --> 00:28:11,120 Speaker 4: And I'm like, look building, Uncle Ners, I've been broke 553 00:28:11,119 --> 00:28:13,600 Speaker 4: probably twenty five times, and by the way, I'll probably 554 00:28:13,600 --> 00:28:15,399 Speaker 4: be broke twenty five more times as I build out 555 00:28:15,400 --> 00:28:18,399 Speaker 4: the cognac company and the vodka company. But it's a 556 00:28:18,600 --> 00:28:24,639 Speaker 4: calculated risk. And so for entrepreneurs, if you were told, listen, 557 00:28:24,680 --> 00:28:27,320 Speaker 4: you gotta do this on your savings, don't take out loans. 558 00:28:27,400 --> 00:28:29,120 Speaker 4: Da da da da da. I want you to look 559 00:28:29,160 --> 00:28:33,600 Speaker 4: at every successful entrepreneur in America and I promise you 560 00:28:33,680 --> 00:28:35,000 Speaker 4: that's the opposite of what they did. 561 00:28:35,480 --> 00:28:38,560 Speaker 3: Case in point. Keep the success comfortable with uncertainty. 562 00:28:38,960 --> 00:28:40,920 Speaker 2: And another thing, I want to say this too, because 563 00:28:40,960 --> 00:28:43,520 Speaker 2: I thought this was important as far as leaning into 564 00:28:43,760 --> 00:28:46,600 Speaker 2: the truth and to the story right, because even with 565 00:28:46,760 --> 00:28:50,200 Speaker 2: Uncle Ners and you talked about how what is it 566 00:28:50,240 --> 00:28:50,680 Speaker 2: called again? 567 00:28:50,720 --> 00:28:51,360 Speaker 1: The company that. 568 00:28:51,280 --> 00:28:54,480 Speaker 2: Bought it Brown Brown Foreman Brown format a kind of 569 00:28:54,480 --> 00:28:57,640 Speaker 2: time to erase the real story and not leaning into 570 00:28:57,680 --> 00:29:00,440 Speaker 2: the fact of the whole Nearest Green story and what 571 00:29:00,480 --> 00:29:02,840 Speaker 2: that brought to the table, because it's not a negative story, 572 00:29:03,040 --> 00:29:05,600 Speaker 2: and they could have leaned into it in a positive. 573 00:29:05,200 --> 00:29:07,160 Speaker 4: Way, and they would have had to have done the 574 00:29:07,160 --> 00:29:12,080 Speaker 4: research right. So there's most people, on face value, you 575 00:29:12,120 --> 00:29:14,520 Speaker 4: would look at this story as America did. When this 576 00:29:14,560 --> 00:29:16,880 Speaker 4: story first came out, the headline of New York Times said, 577 00:29:16,960 --> 00:29:19,960 Speaker 4: Jack Daniels embraces the secret hidden ingredient, helped from a slave. 578 00:29:20,200 --> 00:29:23,320 Speaker 4: And it's that photo of Jack with George Green, Nearest 579 00:29:23,320 --> 00:29:27,200 Speaker 4: the son next one. The whole world assumed that Jack 580 00:29:27,360 --> 00:29:29,600 Speaker 4: was a slave owner, he stole the recipe, he hid 581 00:29:29,600 --> 00:29:30,000 Speaker 4: the slave. 582 00:29:30,200 --> 00:29:31,360 Speaker 3: They changed the picture. 583 00:29:31,440 --> 00:29:33,520 Speaker 4: But no, no, no, the picture was right. 584 00:29:34,200 --> 00:29:36,600 Speaker 3: Yeah. I thought I was reading that Nearest was moved 585 00:29:36,640 --> 00:29:37,240 Speaker 3: from the center. 586 00:29:37,400 --> 00:29:40,560 Speaker 4: Now what this is? This is it Nearest? This isn't Nearest. 587 00:29:40,600 --> 00:29:44,960 Speaker 4: This is George Green. He is literally the whole center 588 00:29:45,120 --> 00:29:49,440 Speaker 4: of the photo. So Jack Daniel is off center. George 589 00:29:49,440 --> 00:29:50,640 Speaker 4: Green is who's in the center. 590 00:29:50,480 --> 00:29:53,320 Speaker 3: Of the phot We've seen Jack. 591 00:29:54,040 --> 00:29:55,800 Speaker 4: No, no, you've never seen it with Jack in the center. 592 00:29:55,920 --> 00:29:59,080 Speaker 4: Jack has always been off center. It's just when they 593 00:29:59,200 --> 00:30:03,520 Speaker 4: when they cry, the focal point was Jack. But he 594 00:30:03,680 --> 00:30:06,680 Speaker 4: was still He's always been off center and got you 595 00:30:06,760 --> 00:30:08,720 Speaker 4: and that I was trying to say, oh yeah, yeah. 596 00:30:09,000 --> 00:30:12,080 Speaker 4: So the photo itself is the only known photo Jack 597 00:30:12,120 --> 00:30:15,320 Speaker 4: has ever taken with anybody else during his entire lifetime, 598 00:30:15,800 --> 00:30:18,840 Speaker 4: and he's surrounded by white dudes that work for him. 599 00:30:19,360 --> 00:30:23,480 Speaker 4: But the entire photo, the person in the center is 600 00:30:23,520 --> 00:30:27,240 Speaker 4: the African American guy, George Green. So the whole world 601 00:30:27,320 --> 00:30:29,880 Speaker 4: made the determination this story was negative. I looked at 602 00:30:29,920 --> 00:30:32,680 Speaker 4: that photo and said, this photo was taken either nineteenth 603 00:30:32,680 --> 00:30:34,960 Speaker 4: century or the top of the twentieth century we now 604 00:30:35,000 --> 00:30:37,960 Speaker 4: know around nineteen oh four. If you don't want to 605 00:30:38,000 --> 00:30:39,920 Speaker 4: give a black man credit, you simply didn't put him 606 00:30:39,920 --> 00:30:43,360 Speaker 4: in a photo like you literally think that right. But 607 00:30:43,720 --> 00:30:46,840 Speaker 4: here's the thing going back to They could have looked 608 00:30:46,840 --> 00:30:49,760 Speaker 4: at that photo and came to the same conclusion. But 609 00:30:49,840 --> 00:30:52,400 Speaker 4: let me tell you why they didn't. They're all white. 610 00:30:53,880 --> 00:30:56,239 Speaker 4: It took an African American to look at that, to 611 00:30:56,280 --> 00:30:59,360 Speaker 4: look at that photo and say, wait a minute, I 612 00:30:59,400 --> 00:31:03,000 Speaker 4: know our history. We would not be a center of 613 00:31:03,040 --> 00:31:07,280 Speaker 4: any photograph unless there was an ally in that photo 614 00:31:08,000 --> 00:31:09,800 Speaker 4: who wanted to make sure we weren't erased. 615 00:31:10,960 --> 00:31:11,600 Speaker 1: And in this. 616 00:31:11,680 --> 00:31:17,200 Speaker 4: Instance, Jack was that ally, and he understood America is 617 00:31:17,240 --> 00:31:19,840 Speaker 4: absolutely going to try to erase to you. I'm not 618 00:31:19,960 --> 00:31:20,840 Speaker 4: going to allow it. 619 00:31:21,160 --> 00:31:23,240 Speaker 3: That gave me chills, and the family did the same 620 00:31:23,280 --> 00:31:25,520 Speaker 3: for you. The family. A lot of people don't realize 621 00:31:25,520 --> 00:31:27,320 Speaker 3: that how supportive the family has been. 622 00:31:27,440 --> 00:31:30,960 Speaker 4: Oh so unbelievably supportive. Yeah, I got so many aunties 623 00:31:31,000 --> 00:31:34,840 Speaker 4: and cousins and the and nephews, and yeah, Nearess's family 624 00:31:34,840 --> 00:31:36,040 Speaker 4: has been unbelievable. 625 00:31:36,440 --> 00:31:38,720 Speaker 3: Last thing I wanted to touch on tell us about 626 00:31:38,960 --> 00:31:41,880 Speaker 3: the Black Business Booster Program and the Nearest Green Foundation. 627 00:31:42,120 --> 00:31:44,680 Speaker 4: Yeah, so Near Screen Foundation. Before we ever sold a 628 00:31:44,720 --> 00:31:49,200 Speaker 4: bottle of Uncle Narras, I told Nearess's descendants, if you 629 00:31:49,280 --> 00:31:51,880 Speaker 4: get into college, you got a full ride. And so 630 00:31:52,080 --> 00:31:55,280 Speaker 4: from day one, I have paid for all of his 631 00:31:55,400 --> 00:31:59,160 Speaker 4: descendants and there's a lot of them, and to go 632 00:31:59,280 --> 00:32:03,320 Speaker 4: to listen, let me tell you there was a whole 633 00:32:03,480 --> 00:32:08,160 Speaker 4: subsect of Green family members or Greens in in Lynchburg 634 00:32:08,560 --> 00:32:10,880 Speaker 4: that were so highly disappointed to find out they weren't 635 00:32:10,880 --> 00:32:20,760 Speaker 4: on the family. I got a kid in college. No, 636 00:32:20,960 --> 00:32:24,000 Speaker 4: but but we but literally every no matter. I mean, 637 00:32:24,000 --> 00:32:26,080 Speaker 4: we've paid for them to get their jds to go 638 00:32:26,160 --> 00:32:29,240 Speaker 4: straight through and they're doing amazing. And then the Black 639 00:32:29,240 --> 00:32:33,800 Speaker 4: Business booster program essentially my company, every person in leadership 640 00:32:33,800 --> 00:32:36,920 Speaker 4: for my company where everybody's bat phone. If you are 641 00:32:37,120 --> 00:32:40,880 Speaker 4: black and you are in this business, the likelihood that 642 00:32:40,920 --> 00:32:43,800 Speaker 4: you have reached into us to get help with your distributor, 643 00:32:43,840 --> 00:32:47,440 Speaker 4: to get help with connecting on capital, figuring out how 644 00:32:47,480 --> 00:32:50,160 Speaker 4: to raise money, how to get barrels, how to get bottles, 645 00:32:50,200 --> 00:32:53,480 Speaker 4: how to it's a real high high likelihood of that. 646 00:32:53,840 --> 00:32:57,800 Speaker 4: And then every year we gather about two hundred of 647 00:32:57,840 --> 00:33:01,760 Speaker 4: them at Nearest Green Distillery and do a whole full 648 00:33:01,880 --> 00:33:04,280 Speaker 4: day workshop. Is a part of the Nearest and Jack 649 00:33:04,320 --> 00:33:08,520 Speaker 4: Advancement Initiative, and literally all the gatekeepers in this industry 650 00:33:08,960 --> 00:33:10,960 Speaker 4: come from behind the gates to come to the Nearest 651 00:33:11,000 --> 00:33:14,120 Speaker 4: Green Distillery to support all of these black founders. 652 00:33:14,200 --> 00:33:15,360 Speaker 3: I bet that's your favorite part. 653 00:33:15,520 --> 00:33:16,160 Speaker 4: It really is. 654 00:33:16,240 --> 00:33:19,080 Speaker 2: And listen, and that's a fact. That's my girl, Ingrid best, 655 00:33:19,120 --> 00:33:22,959 Speaker 2: I best. She's been talking her fun and her birthdays 656 00:33:22,960 --> 00:33:24,120 Speaker 2: also September fifth. 657 00:33:23,920 --> 00:33:26,360 Speaker 4: Yes it is, she and I share birthday. 658 00:33:26,520 --> 00:33:29,400 Speaker 2: And that's especial to say for you any September fifth people, 659 00:33:29,600 --> 00:33:29,920 Speaker 2: it is. 660 00:33:30,600 --> 00:33:32,200 Speaker 1: But I appreciate all the work you do. 661 00:33:32,280 --> 00:33:34,880 Speaker 2: I love the fact that you've built this from the 662 00:33:34,960 --> 00:33:37,920 Speaker 2: beginning when I first met you to see like it's 663 00:33:38,040 --> 00:33:40,720 Speaker 2: just been amazing and a great product as well. And 664 00:33:41,160 --> 00:33:43,400 Speaker 2: I think it's so important the story behind a brand. 665 00:33:43,480 --> 00:33:46,000 Speaker 2: And I think a lot of people I see maybe 666 00:33:46,040 --> 00:33:48,840 Speaker 2: tried it because of you, you know, at first, and 667 00:33:48,880 --> 00:33:51,240 Speaker 2: then they hear the story and they try it because 668 00:33:51,240 --> 00:33:54,800 Speaker 2: of that. But I think, you know, it's a testament 669 00:33:54,880 --> 00:33:56,640 Speaker 2: to the work that you put in, the research that 670 00:33:56,680 --> 00:34:00,000 Speaker 2: you've done, the lives that you've touched, and the continue 671 00:34:00,040 --> 00:34:02,400 Speaker 2: wing philanthropy that you keep doing as well. So it's 672 00:34:02,400 --> 00:34:03,560 Speaker 2: a combination of things. 673 00:34:03,640 --> 00:34:06,400 Speaker 3: Thank you, and everybody go to Amazon and get love 674 00:34:06,440 --> 00:34:09,399 Speaker 3: and whiskey somebody. A lot of people out there needed 675 00:34:09,400 --> 00:34:11,520 Speaker 3: to hear this message today. I know I needed to 676 00:34:11,520 --> 00:34:14,360 Speaker 3: hear it. And here so Funweaver, we love you, We 677 00:34:14,440 --> 00:34:18,200 Speaker 3: are so proud of you. Keep shining. Everybody follow at 678 00:34:18,360 --> 00:34:22,520 Speaker 3: fun dot Weaver on Instagram with everybody, please just stop 679 00:34:22,560 --> 00:34:25,520 Speaker 3: what you're doing and follow Wealth Wednesdays on instagrams. We 680 00:34:25,600 --> 00:34:28,520 Speaker 3: have our newsletter, we have features, we have free resources 681 00:34:28,560 --> 00:34:31,080 Speaker 3: at Teamwealth Wednesdays dot com and you will be featured 682 00:34:31,120 --> 00:34:35,319 Speaker 3: in all of them. Thank you so much, Yes all 683 00:34:35,360 --> 00:34:38,600 Speaker 3: their money, don't it all works out? 684 00:34:39,760 --> 00:34:41,480 Speaker 4: Thank you? Thank you 685 00:34:44,160 --> 00:34:44,759 Speaker 1: Well