WEBVTT - Mathew Knowles on Beyoncé, Business and Life After Breast Cancer 0:00:16.200 --> 0:00:20.080 Aba fam, Welcome to another episode of Brown Ambition. I 0:00:20.120 --> 0:00:23.560 am your host, Mandy Woodrif Santos and whoo it has 0:00:23.680 --> 0:00:29.120 been It has been a week, ba fam. I am 0:00:29.160 --> 0:00:32.320 still recovering from afro Tech. I don't know if I 0:00:32.360 --> 0:00:36.480 had told y'all, but I was invited to attend by 0:00:36.920 --> 0:00:41.360 Blavity CEO and multi Brown Ambition host. I think she's 0:00:41.400 --> 0:00:45.440 been on the show two times at least Morgan Debon 0:00:46.080 --> 0:00:50.479 and I had been invited by her last year, but 0:00:50.840 --> 0:00:53.280 a lot was going on. I just had a baby, 0:00:53.600 --> 0:00:56.480 and then of course there was a bunch of you know, 0:00:56.520 --> 0:00:59.280 I was back and forth to Atlanta, traveling for some 0:00:59.360 --> 0:01:02.680 family stuff. It just wasn't a good time. Last year 0:01:02.720 --> 0:01:05.720 it was in Austin. But when I got the invite 0:01:05.800 --> 0:01:08.959 this year, something just said, you better get yourself in 0:01:09.000 --> 0:01:12.120 that room. I had not been to afro Tech, which 0:01:12.160 --> 0:01:14.440 is alarming to me. I think I might have gone 0:01:14.440 --> 0:01:18.840 to one of the smaller offshoot conferences, more local or 0:01:18.840 --> 0:01:20.840 regional ones that they have hosted over the years. But 0:01:20.880 --> 0:01:23.920 for those who are not in the know, afro Tech, God, 0:01:24.040 --> 0:01:27.800 how do you describe it? We're talking about a professional 0:01:28.160 --> 0:01:31.680 It is where black professionals get their damn life and 0:01:32.200 --> 0:01:39.680 come together with a mix of entrepreneurs, CEOs, business founders, 0:01:39.920 --> 0:01:47.320 business leaders, job seekers, students, more experienced professionals who are 0:01:47.319 --> 0:01:51.400 looking for new opportunities, or simply want to be in 0:01:52.200 --> 0:01:58.000 a community that feels like safe, that feels like us, 0:01:58.240 --> 0:02:02.240 that feels like in the backdrop of the twenty twenty 0:02:02.240 --> 0:02:05.120 four election that we just went through, y'all, I can't 0:02:05.160 --> 0:02:07.560 think of a better place to have landed just a 0:02:07.600 --> 0:02:09.400 week later than in the smack in the middle of 0:02:09.480 --> 0:02:12.640 thirty five thousand, yes, thirty five. I did not even 0:02:12.720 --> 0:02:15.440 know the scope of this thing, y'all. Thirty five thousand 0:02:16.080 --> 0:02:20.720 people descended upon Houston, Texas for Afrotech. I have never 0:02:20.760 --> 0:02:24.480 been to something that big in my entire life as 0:02:24.480 --> 0:02:26.960 far as like a conference goes. I mean, the scale 0:02:27.040 --> 0:02:29.480 of it, I just could not. I mean I just 0:02:29.480 --> 0:02:31.600 would turn the corner and I'd be like, wow, that 0:02:31.680 --> 0:02:34.920 is amazing. Wow. Look how the stage design. Look at 0:02:34.960 --> 0:02:38.359 the presentation, Look at the MC's, Look at how they 0:02:38.400 --> 0:02:43.040 have you know, even small details like the yard, I 0:02:43.040 --> 0:02:46.040 mean not a small detail, but Howard University, y'all, they 0:02:46.080 --> 0:02:48.000 did the damn thing. They had something in the front 0:02:48.000 --> 0:02:51.040 called the yard. Which was it was. They'd be out 0:02:51.040 --> 0:02:53.360 there at like eight thirty am, bumping, having the DJ 0:02:53.560 --> 0:02:57.640 going and the food trucks, and you would be you'd 0:02:57.680 --> 0:03:01.120 be at a conference talking to people about professional goals, 0:03:01.160 --> 0:03:03.120 and you could walk outside and do the damn Cuba 0:03:03.160 --> 0:03:06.520 shuffle and go back inside and get right back to business. 0:03:06.600 --> 0:03:09.440 And that is how we do. I cannot think of 0:03:10.120 --> 0:03:16.840 a more incredible space to be in as a black professional. 0:03:18.440 --> 0:03:22.200 And I when did I spend I spent maybe three Yeah, 0:03:22.240 --> 0:03:25.120 I spent three days at Afrotech. I actually missed some 0:03:25.160 --> 0:03:28.840 of the most exciting parts. At the end, they had 0:03:29.320 --> 0:03:32.000 the they had the Black Party, which is like their 0:03:32.000 --> 0:03:35.440 big celebration. At the end, there were, you know, some 0:03:35.440 --> 0:03:38.520 some celebrations that I had to miss, and I did 0:03:38.520 --> 0:03:39.880 it for a good reason though. I had to come 0:03:39.920 --> 0:03:42.000 back to New York to see my little brother. He 0:03:42.120 --> 0:03:46.360 has a short film that premiered at the Urban World 0:03:46.760 --> 0:03:50.440 Urban World Film Festival here in New York City, and 0:03:50.600 --> 0:03:55.480 I was so proud of him. And honestly, if y'all 0:03:55.480 --> 0:03:58.960 haven't attended a film festival in your town, they are 0:03:59.000 --> 0:04:01.000 all over the country. So if you live near a 0:04:01.040 --> 0:04:04.840 major city, chances are there is a film festival in 0:04:04.840 --> 0:04:09.000 that city or nearby. I really encourage you to go 0:04:09.240 --> 0:04:13.040 because there is amazing art that is being created by 0:04:13.520 --> 0:04:18.320 whether it's budding filmmakers or veteran filmmakers, but there are 0:04:18.320 --> 0:04:21.039 some really incredible stories out there that won't get a 0:04:21.120 --> 0:04:24.160 chance to be seen unless you go to these festivals. 0:04:24.200 --> 0:04:27.800 And it was maybe my second or third festival that 0:04:27.839 --> 0:04:30.200 I've ever gone to, which is kind of embarrassing because 0:04:30.240 --> 0:04:33.400 I live in the film capital of America kind of 0:04:33.600 --> 0:04:37.880 right apart from la and maybe Atlanta, I don't know, 0:04:37.960 --> 0:04:41.760 but it was really extraordinary. And then I logged on 0:04:41.920 --> 0:04:46.760 to like Instagram yesterday and Morgan from Blavity in Afro 0:04:46.880 --> 0:04:50.680 Tech she was posting, and I mean, I gotta give 0:04:50.680 --> 0:04:55.160 it up to Morgan. I can't believe how poised she was. 0:04:55.279 --> 0:05:00.000 I mean she was everywhere. She was introducing the whole conference, 0:05:00.160 --> 0:05:03.000 kicking it off, she was on multiple stages a day, 0:05:03.160 --> 0:05:05.640 she was working the crowd, she was in lord No, 0:05:05.800 --> 0:05:09.000 she was working behind the scenes with partners and making 0:05:09.000 --> 0:05:11.440 sure everybody was having a great time in her team. 0:05:11.640 --> 0:05:15.560 My god, at Blavity, I mean black excellence, black f 0:05:15.680 --> 0:05:19.880 and excellence. But I saw that there was like a 0:05:19.920 --> 0:05:23.880 bunch of like hot takes on social media about whether 0:05:23.960 --> 0:05:26.320 or not afro Tech is worth it. Some people were 0:05:26.360 --> 0:05:29.560 saying that it was too expensive and calling out a 0:05:29.600 --> 0:05:33.000 price of eight hundred dollars for the conference pass. And 0:05:33.160 --> 0:05:36.960 like any conference, there are multiple levels of access, right, 0:05:37.000 --> 0:05:40.599 there's a student pass, there's I had an executive pass, 0:05:41.040 --> 0:05:44.560 which is like for more I think more senior professionals. 0:05:45.080 --> 0:05:48.520 And there was a corporate sponsor pass, and forget some 0:05:48.560 --> 0:05:51.440 other ones general pass, And yeah, they come at different 0:05:51.440 --> 0:05:55.159 price points. But let's say you had spent eight hundred 0:05:55.200 --> 0:05:58.440 dollars on that conference, as long as you came with 0:05:58.600 --> 0:06:01.880 a plan and a purpose for being there, as long 0:06:01.920 --> 0:06:04.400 as you maybe went to i don't know, ten percent 0:06:04.640 --> 0:06:09.040 of the gajillion different incredible sessions that they had, as 0:06:09.160 --> 0:06:11.160 long as you hung out there for I don't know, 0:06:11.200 --> 0:06:13.120 three to four hours a day, even though they had 0:06:13.120 --> 0:06:16.760 programming from like eight am until five pm and then 0:06:16.800 --> 0:06:19.960 additional events in the evening. Even if you did that, 0:06:20.360 --> 0:06:22.960 I think you would get your money back. You would 0:06:22.960 --> 0:06:26.600 find the value there. And that is a fraction. Not 0:06:26.640 --> 0:06:28.919 only is that a fraction of what I've seen some 0:06:29.160 --> 0:06:32.840 in person massive conferences cost, but it's a fraction of 0:06:32.920 --> 0:06:38.440 like what some online professional development courses can cost, right like. 0:06:38.760 --> 0:06:42.960 And this is in community, in person with real people. 0:06:43.720 --> 0:06:48.840 And I went through this expohole, y'all, and I couldn't 0:06:48.880 --> 0:06:51.839 the scale of it, the scale of it. There were 0:06:52.839 --> 0:06:57.479 the hugest brands, I mean, American Express LinkedIn. There was 0:06:57.480 --> 0:07:01.320 a whole damn TwixT integration because Mars Wrigley was a 0:07:01.320 --> 0:07:03.799 sponsor and the CEO was there. Who knew Mars Wrigley's 0:07:03.839 --> 0:07:04.679 CEO was black? 0:07:04.760 --> 0:07:05.280 I didn't. 0:07:06.320 --> 0:07:08.919 Who knew the CEO of the Honest Company was black? 0:07:09.000 --> 0:07:12.880 I didn't Afro Latina. And not only that, but I 0:07:12.920 --> 0:07:15.000 got to go to a dinner right and sit right 0:07:15.040 --> 0:07:18.320 next to the CEO of Honest Company. And that's the 0:07:18.400 --> 0:07:22.560 kind of magic that can happen at afro Tech. And Yeah, 0:07:22.720 --> 0:07:27.080 I'm one hundred percent. I'm sold. I am so grateful 0:07:28.160 --> 0:07:31.880 to attend. I will be back unless something crazy happens. 0:07:31.920 --> 0:07:35.280 I'm going back in twenty twenty five. It's going to 0:07:35.360 --> 0:07:39.520 be in Houston again. And in fact, Houston made November 0:07:39.560 --> 0:07:41.600 what is it November sixteenth, which was the last day 0:07:41.600 --> 0:07:44.840 of the conference, they declared it afro Tech Day. Let's 0:07:44.960 --> 0:07:49.320 go go Morgan like that is so amazing. So I'm 0:07:49.400 --> 0:07:52.000 just in awe. It was a wonderful experience. I'm not 0:07:52.080 --> 0:07:56.559 even like probably the target exact target audience for afro 0:07:56.640 --> 0:07:59.160 tech because I'm not a prof I'm not a professional 0:07:59.200 --> 0:08:02.880 who's like working their way up at these at tech corporations. 0:08:03.000 --> 0:08:05.320 But I still got huge value out of it because 0:08:05.400 --> 0:08:09.160 I am a professional. I'm a working black woman in 0:08:09.200 --> 0:08:12.480 the world, and it's just magical to be in community 0:08:12.520 --> 0:08:15.840 with other people who are just wanting more for themselves 0:08:15.840 --> 0:08:20.120 and wanting to connect and wanting to learn. And i 0:08:20.160 --> 0:08:24.560 mean just the level of spongery. I'm saying spongery not 0:08:24.600 --> 0:08:28.400 ain't a word, but the level of openness to learning 0:08:28.440 --> 0:08:32.280 new things and feeling like you are getting you know, 0:08:32.280 --> 0:08:35.120 you're at the forefront of some really essential information for 0:08:35.160 --> 0:08:39.400 your career. I mean, it was just incredible. So listen, 0:08:39.800 --> 0:08:43.520 I will ride for Morgan and Blavity any damn time. 0:08:43.600 --> 0:08:46.040 So everyone on the internet who's saying it's too expensive 0:08:46.520 --> 0:08:48.760 or it's just for people who want to go there 0:08:48.800 --> 0:08:53.640 and meet a husband, which is so sexist coded like 0:08:53.920 --> 0:09:00.240 so so sexist, so misogynistic, because you know what, like, 0:09:00.720 --> 0:09:03.439 if you're a dude, I would say, you probably have. 0:09:03.440 --> 0:09:06.280 Better odds finding a WiFi at afro Tech and probably 0:09:06.320 --> 0:09:08.920 got more potential for that too, because, like all things, 0:09:08.960 --> 0:09:12.959 black women were there front and center. So I think 0:09:13.000 --> 0:09:15.800 that's just all bullshit. I think if you went with 0:09:15.840 --> 0:09:20.360 a purpose, a plan, and you were someone who was 0:09:20.400 --> 0:09:22.920 going to push yourself outside your comfort zone and not 0:09:23.080 --> 0:09:26.000 let things like, yes, we are a lot of us 0:09:26.000 --> 0:09:29.200 are introverts. Yes, a lot of us struggle in huge, 0:09:29.360 --> 0:09:33.839 over stimulating environments. And if there's one thing afro Tech is, 0:09:33.880 --> 0:09:38.240 it is a loud, proud, in your face convention. They 0:09:38.360 --> 0:09:40.960 have so much to get in front of you, like 0:09:41.000 --> 0:09:46.840 they have it's music, it's of course, it's speakers and lights, 0:09:47.080 --> 0:09:50.079 and it's massive, and you're walking from oh you're walking 0:09:50.120 --> 0:09:52.839 miles and you're not even leaving the building, right, So. 0:09:52.800 --> 0:09:56.520 It's very stimulating. And yes, I too struggle with that, 0:09:56.559 --> 0:10:00.040 and I too would have to go recharge myself and 0:10:00.320 --> 0:10:03.560 get back out there. But it is like some experiences 0:10:03.600 --> 0:10:07.200 are not worth that. Like I don't know every birthday 0:10:07.200 --> 0:10:08.960 party for four year olds that I have had to 0:10:09.000 --> 0:10:11.600 attend in the last year that have overstimulated me to 0:10:11.679 --> 0:10:14.200 within an inch of my life, I wouldn't say that 0:10:14.240 --> 0:10:17.800 those were necessarily worth my own happiness, the worth it 0:10:17.800 --> 0:10:22.360 for me. But afro Tech, that is worth pushing yourself, 0:10:22.679 --> 0:10:27.400 putting yourself past your own boundaries and like pushing yourself 0:10:27.440 --> 0:10:31.080 through your comfort zone to really take full advantage of it. 0:10:31.200 --> 0:10:33.680 So that is what I have to say about afro Tech. 0:10:34.520 --> 0:10:40.440 Now about today's episode. Today, we got some company in 0:10:40.480 --> 0:10:44.400 the studio, Brown Ambition, and I don't even really know 0:10:44.720 --> 0:10:47.080 how it all happened, but it happened, and I'm not 0:10:47.120 --> 0:10:50.480 gonna I'm not gonna question it. I'm just gonna say 0:10:50.600 --> 0:10:55.200 that I got to interview the one and only Matthew Knowles, Yes, 0:10:55.960 --> 0:10:58.959 Beyonce's dad. I don't know what else to say it. 0:10:59.480 --> 0:10:59.880 Matthew. 0:11:00.320 --> 0:11:03.360 Of course he is so much more than that. But 0:11:03.840 --> 0:11:06.800 Matthew Noles, oh my goodness, is the guest on Brown 0:11:06.840 --> 0:11:10.160 Ambition today. Matthew Knowles. What can I say about him? 0:11:10.200 --> 0:11:13.839 He's a visionary, an entrepreneur, he's a renowned music executive, 0:11:14.000 --> 0:11:18.079 he's an author. He advocates for education and for empowerment, 0:11:18.120 --> 0:11:20.360 and you're going to hear today how he is advocating 0:11:20.440 --> 0:11:24.320 for us to understand our bodies in an even more 0:11:24.400 --> 0:11:26.679 holistic way. So that we can get in front of 0:11:26.840 --> 0:11:31.160 potentially harmful diseases that maybe in our DNA. Yes, Matthew 0:11:31.200 --> 0:11:34.920 Knowles is an ambassador for twenty three and meters and 0:11:35.600 --> 0:11:37.320 you'll hear today on the show how that was born 0:11:37.360 --> 0:11:41.200 out of his own experience of being diagnosed as a 0:11:41.280 --> 0:11:44.280 rare case of a male with breast cancer. So he 0:11:44.400 --> 0:11:47.640 has taken that experience and I feel like it is 0:11:47.720 --> 0:11:50.640 just the nole's way right to take your experience, turn 0:11:50.679 --> 0:11:53.000 around and say how can I save some lives? How 0:11:53.040 --> 0:11:56.960 can I use my experience to improve the health outcomes 0:11:57.000 --> 0:12:01.080 for others? So that's what he's here to talk about now. 0:12:01.160 --> 0:12:04.560 Of course y'all know him as the founder of some 0:12:04.640 --> 0:12:07.199 of the biggest acts and music like Destiny's Child and 0:12:07.280 --> 0:12:11.240 of course Beyonce, and he has a wealth of experience 0:12:11.240 --> 0:12:12.960 and insights to share. You may not know it, but 0:12:13.000 --> 0:12:17.160 he's actually a professor in the UK. He has also 0:12:17.559 --> 0:12:20.440 taught in the US, so he is not to be 0:12:20.520 --> 0:12:24.880 played with, Okay. So I talked to Matthew about everything 0:12:25.040 --> 0:12:28.079 from the work he's doing with twenty three and Me 0:12:28.720 --> 0:12:33.120 to his early days as an entrepreneur, to the types 0:12:33.160 --> 0:12:35.960 of content, the types of lessons that he focuses on 0:12:36.000 --> 0:12:40.000 teaching as an educator, we have us a good old time, 0:12:40.360 --> 0:12:44.680 and you know what, as an interviewer, I've learned a 0:12:44.720 --> 0:12:48.040 lesson too through this conversation. You'll hear and I actually 0:12:48.160 --> 0:12:50.160 kept this in the show. You'll hear at a certain 0:12:50.160 --> 0:12:52.960 point where some of my questions. Even though I'm having 0:12:52.960 --> 0:12:54.559 a great time, I feel like we're getting along. I 0:12:54.640 --> 0:12:57.960 usually keep things pretty casual, but Matthew has a boundary 0:12:58.000 --> 0:13:00.920 and he's kind of like, here's my boundary, and let's 0:13:00.960 --> 0:13:02.880 just pick a different track. And I was like, let 0:13:02.880 --> 0:13:04.800 me keep that in the show because it's just real. 0:13:05.440 --> 0:13:08.520 And at the end of the day, as an interviewer, 0:13:08.600 --> 0:13:10.640 I'm really trying to play the role of the audience. 0:13:10.679 --> 0:13:15.680 So I hope that I hope that y'all enjoy the interview. 0:13:15.720 --> 0:13:16.760 I hope that you get a lot out of it. 0:13:16.760 --> 0:13:19.720 I hope, honestly you get to know Matthew like I did, 0:13:19.840 --> 0:13:23.040 as much more than the father of one of the 0:13:23.200 --> 0:13:29.000 greatest artists in history, and get to really appreciate his work. 0:13:29.320 --> 0:13:33.960 Oh and just stay tuned for the part where he 0:13:32.960 --> 0:13:36.240 he shows us a little bit of his music talents 0:13:36.679 --> 0:13:39.640 and talks about how he has a writing credit on 0:13:39.720 --> 0:13:42.520 one of my absolute favorite Destney's Child songs. All Right, 0:13:42.559 --> 0:13:44.480 I'm gonna take a quick break and be right back 0:13:44.520 --> 0:13:50.760 with my interview with Matthew Knowles. All Right, Hey, be 0:13:50.960 --> 0:13:54.320 a fam we have some very special company in the 0:13:54.360 --> 0:13:56.400 studio today. That's what I say when we have a guest. 0:13:56.440 --> 0:13:58.839 I don't say guests, I say company. I am from 0:13:58.840 --> 0:14:01.160 the South, I'm from Georgia. I'll know when we have company. 0:14:01.280 --> 0:14:04.559 We take the plastic off the sofa, we get the 0:14:04.600 --> 0:14:08.400 good plates down, and we say hello and welcome to 0:14:08.520 --> 0:14:11.800 our guest today. And hey, you can hardly even believe it, 0:14:11.840 --> 0:14:14.240 but mister Matthew Knowles, welcome to Brown Ambition. 0:14:14.920 --> 0:14:20.920 Hey, I'm mag Mandy. You're from Georgia. From Alabama. Well, 0:14:21.320 --> 0:14:23.280 from the South we are. 0:14:23.520 --> 0:14:25.720 Yeah, what do you call us? I mean, now you're 0:14:25.760 --> 0:14:26.760 in Where are you at? Now? 0:14:26.960 --> 0:14:31.680 Are you in La Orange County, California? You know my 0:14:31.760 --> 0:14:35.520 wife and I we we live in Houston part time. 0:14:35.600 --> 0:14:38.520 We live here part time. We live in London part time. 0:14:39.480 --> 0:14:42.800 Oh wow, Okay, what are we doing this? Seasonally? Is 0:14:42.800 --> 0:14:45.400 there a certain season? Do you leave Houston in the summer? 0:14:45.480 --> 0:14:48.000 Because that heat I hear is intense. 0:14:50.040 --> 0:14:57.160 It's not seasonal. It's it's more holiday fest of time. London. 0:14:57.280 --> 0:15:02.040 I teach every quarter at the in College of Contemporary Music, 0:15:02.320 --> 0:15:07.000 so that song calendar four times a year, and then 0:15:07.120 --> 0:15:08.960 you know, most of the times. I've done twenty four 0:15:09.120 --> 0:15:13.880 speaking events this year, twenty four around the world, so 0:15:14.360 --> 0:15:17.520 we live a lot on the AirPrint planes as well. 0:15:18.320 --> 0:15:22.400 Yeah, and I mean, I am excited because I feel 0:15:22.480 --> 0:15:26.760 as if, well, I haven't I should just start by saying, 0:15:27.160 --> 0:15:30.080 it's been a hell of a week, right, Honestly, I 0:15:30.120 --> 0:15:33.560 am in this season where when I sit across from 0:15:33.560 --> 0:15:36.200 someone who I know is an incredible parent or at 0:15:36.280 --> 0:15:38.480 least has more experience than I do, the first thing 0:15:38.520 --> 0:15:40.040 I want to do is just say, you got any 0:15:40.080 --> 0:15:43.640 advice for me? I have a four almost a five 0:15:43.720 --> 0:15:46.160 year old he turns five this year, and I have 0:15:46.200 --> 0:15:50.120 a one year old, and I mean, this is a 0:15:50.320 --> 0:15:53.800 very intense week, and I'm just wondering, like, as a dad, 0:15:54.280 --> 0:15:56.880 have there like what advice do you have for parents 0:15:56.920 --> 0:15:59.560 who are trying to figure out sort of like how 0:15:59.600 --> 0:16:05.040 to keep the vibe hopeful and you know, hopeful and 0:16:05.520 --> 0:16:08.560 forward looking during a crazy time like this. 0:16:09.760 --> 0:16:13.520 Well, I'm I'm older than probably most of your audience. 0:16:13.600 --> 0:16:17.760 So I've seen this before. I've seen it probably three 0:16:17.840 --> 0:16:22.240 or four times in my lifetime. This too shall pass, 0:16:22.600 --> 0:16:27.360 and it just prepares us. You know, whenever there's challenges 0:16:27.400 --> 0:16:31.480 in our life or failure or mistakes, I view those 0:16:31.840 --> 0:16:39.200 Mandia's opportunities, opportunities to grow, opportunities to get better, opportunities 0:16:39.240 --> 0:16:43.640 to learn from the mistakes, also known as not going 0:16:43.680 --> 0:16:49.520 to vote no. So so you know, it's an opportunity 0:16:50.320 --> 0:16:53.480 for us. And I think we keep hope alive and 0:16:53.520 --> 0:16:59.440 hopeful with our kids. Our parenting skills were always find 0:16:59.440 --> 0:17:03.680 out what they are passionate for and with and and 0:17:04.680 --> 0:17:08.240 surround them with all the support. When I found out 0:17:08.280 --> 0:17:12.840 Beyonce Slane wanted to get at a young age and entertainment, 0:17:12.880 --> 0:17:17.240 and we got a vocal coach, we got the tools 0:17:17.280 --> 0:17:21.199 that they needed. So it's always about being hopeful with 0:17:21.280 --> 0:17:23.960 our kids. I don't think we give them the do 0:17:24.040 --> 0:17:27.479 them and glow them. I don't think in parenting kids 0:17:27.720 --> 0:17:29.400 needs need to know everything. 0:17:30.560 --> 0:17:35.320 Mmm not. They don't need to know everything. Just enough, 0:17:36.320 --> 0:17:39.320 I mean just just enough, just enough to get through. 0:17:39.640 --> 0:17:39.800 Well. 0:17:40.040 --> 0:17:42.920 I did see that you you had joined Beyonce in 0:17:43.040 --> 0:17:47.080 Houston to support Kamala Harris's campaign. Is that right? I 0:17:47.080 --> 0:17:50.399 think I saw a photo. Yes, Yes, what was that experience? Like? 0:17:51.720 --> 0:17:57.200 It was amazing experience, amazing energy. The venue that it 0:17:57.280 --> 0:18:00.680 was in was literally seven blocks from where my wife 0:18:00.680 --> 0:18:04.840 and I lived. We had only been there once, but 0:18:04.960 --> 0:18:08.680 it was set up for soccer, and I had never 0:18:08.760 --> 0:18:11.640 I didn't even understand that thirty thousand people could get 0:18:11.640 --> 0:18:14.399 in this venue. And so it was so much energy 0:18:15.119 --> 0:18:19.080 and so much security, security that I had never seen before, 0:18:19.680 --> 0:18:25.560 scary security. So it was it was an interesting night. 0:18:27.920 --> 0:18:30.400 I didn't found out until later that there had been 0:18:31.040 --> 0:18:34.360 a bomb threat and that's why I was delayed. Uh 0:18:34.960 --> 0:18:38.959 So it was it was deleted somewhat couple of hours. 0:18:39.000 --> 0:18:40.600 So it was a long night. 0:18:41.760 --> 0:18:44.640 Oh man, Oh I didn't. I hadn't heard that. Well 0:18:44.720 --> 0:18:47.440 for you, I mean, I know you recently you have 0:18:47.560 --> 0:18:52.240 been doing some speaking engagements and have been sharing I mean, obviously, 0:18:52.400 --> 0:18:57.280 you developed, you produced, you managed one of the most 0:18:57.520 --> 0:19:01.719 iconic groups in his story of music and one that 0:19:01.800 --> 0:19:04.679 means so much to me as a little girl growing 0:19:04.760 --> 0:19:08.280 up in the nineties and early two thousands. But the 0:19:08.359 --> 0:19:10.359 business behind that, I know you've been talking a bit 0:19:10.400 --> 0:19:13.480 about the branding of you know, a group like Destiny's 0:19:13.560 --> 0:19:17.600 Child and then to Beyonce, And I saw this graphic 0:19:17.640 --> 0:19:20.840 where there are all these different, you know, elements of 0:19:20.880 --> 0:19:24.439 building the brand of Beyonce and Destiny's Child from like 0:19:24.600 --> 0:19:29.760 marketing and worldwide engagement and global engagement. Did politics ever 0:19:29.880 --> 0:19:33.679 come up? I you know, seeing Beyonce now sort of 0:19:33.720 --> 0:19:39.000 take the stage with with Kelly and support Harris for you, like, 0:19:39.119 --> 0:19:42.120 is that something that you would encourage as a manager 0:19:42.160 --> 0:19:45.000 for someone who's maybe not necessarily seen to be in that, 0:19:45.560 --> 0:19:48.120 you know, On the political side of things. 0:19:48.160 --> 0:19:54.200 Well, politics is in business, Mandy, not the politics of government, 0:19:54.720 --> 0:19:58.320 but the politics of relationships and how decisions are made 0:20:00.119 --> 0:20:06.360 certainly follow the same concept. There are politics in business 0:20:06.480 --> 0:20:11.480 that you have to build those proper relationships with. That's 0:20:11.520 --> 0:20:15.760 why it becomes very important relationship building. So there is 0:20:15.760 --> 0:20:22.240 a similarity there. No, I don't get that involved today 0:20:23.200 --> 0:20:27.159 in the governmental politics. I did when I was younger, 0:20:28.880 --> 0:20:35.880 much younger in Alabama and demonstrating and desegregating. I never 0:20:35.960 --> 0:20:38.960 went to a black school, Mandy, and I'm seventy two 0:20:39.040 --> 0:20:42.440 years old until I was a junior in college. So 0:20:43.280 --> 0:20:47.200 my mother went to high school in Cretit King and Marion, Alabama, 0:20:47.600 --> 0:20:51.400 and when she moved to Gaston, Alabama. My mom she 0:20:51.600 --> 0:20:57.160 was ferocious in the movement, and so I integrated elementary, Junior, High, 0:20:57.240 --> 0:21:01.720 High School, University of Tennessee at Chattanoogood. So from the 0:21:02.080 --> 0:21:06.359 that regard guards, I was speaking last night to a 0:21:06.400 --> 0:21:09.800 group of young people. You know, I've been beaten, spit on, 0:21:09.920 --> 0:21:14.199 electric prodded, all the things that young people today have 0:21:14.440 --> 0:21:18.040 no clue of what a colored and white water fountain 0:21:18.119 --> 0:21:21.000 looks like, or bathroom that we had to go to. 0:21:22.040 --> 0:21:25.920 And really, because of that, because the lack of history, 0:21:26.440 --> 0:21:30.520 don't have the appreciation of how important it is to vote. 0:21:30.320 --> 0:21:33.879 And what the stakes are. You know. One of the 0:21:33.880 --> 0:21:36.359 things that I was grappling with what to say to 0:21:36.400 --> 0:21:38.480 the Brown Ambition audience as toally, I ended up coming 0:21:38.480 --> 0:21:41.480 on at like four in the morning and basically saying 0:21:41.520 --> 0:21:43.320 what was on my heart. But one of the things 0:21:43.359 --> 0:21:47.879 I thought about was how my generation was given this 0:21:48.720 --> 0:21:53.159 impression that your generation, the ones who came before, is 0:21:53.200 --> 0:21:56.840 the Mlks, John Lewis is the Shirley Chisholms, that they 0:21:56.920 --> 0:22:01.800 had done so much fighting and that they had one period, 0:22:02.160 --> 0:22:05.520 you know, and I think what we're in now, and 0:22:05.720 --> 0:22:07.680 I mean, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this too, 0:22:07.680 --> 0:22:11.280 but it sounds like this unlearning of the fact that 0:22:11.320 --> 0:22:13.920 this is not We can't take it for granted. It's 0:22:13.920 --> 0:22:15.960 not done. The fight is so not done. In fact, 0:22:15.960 --> 0:22:19.920 it maybe starting, you know, from further behind in many 0:22:19.960 --> 0:22:22.479 ways and like where we thought it was, and that 0:22:23.160 --> 0:22:27.639 has rocked some people's worlds and terrified them in a 0:22:27.640 --> 0:22:29.840 way that doesn't seem to be terrifying you, because of 0:22:29.920 --> 0:22:35.560 course you seem to have experienced, you know, that level 0:22:35.640 --> 0:22:39.600 of social unrest and unjust and where things aren't fair, 0:22:40.200 --> 0:22:42.720 things don't work out for the home team all the time. 0:22:43.520 --> 0:22:48.520 Yeah, life is not fair in my opinion, So I 0:22:48.880 --> 0:22:53.280 seldom used that word was it fair or not? Was 0:22:53.320 --> 0:22:57.680 it injustice? You know, I used those type of of 0:22:58.240 --> 0:23:03.040 of scenarios. But you know, so I just think that also, 0:23:03.920 --> 0:23:08.360 we've made a lot of progress as black people, and 0:23:08.400 --> 0:23:12.760 we can never forget that. And I think sometimes we 0:23:12.880 --> 0:23:19.320 forget just the population of America. We are only thirty 0:23:19.359 --> 0:23:25.320 eight million people. There's two hundred million white people, and 0:23:25.359 --> 0:23:28.280 to have done all the things we've done with such 0:23:28.359 --> 0:23:33.400 small numbers is absolutely amazing. And I think we lose 0:23:33.440 --> 0:23:39.199 sight on that. Sometimes we lose sight on what a 0:23:39.359 --> 0:23:43.680 small number of people have accomplished with a majority number 0:23:43.680 --> 0:23:47.920 of people. And so I have hope. I help hope 0:23:47.960 --> 0:23:53.840 in your generation. This election showed us a lot of 0:23:53.920 --> 0:24:00.520 data one being educated versus those that aren't educated, and 0:24:00.800 --> 0:24:05.280 how the thought process. You know, you can easily fool 0:24:05.400 --> 0:24:10.639 someone who's not knowledgeable. If you don't understand how a 0:24:10.800 --> 0:24:14.800 car operates, then you can tell mechanic can tell you anything, 0:24:15.320 --> 0:24:19.639 and you'll buy into it that you need a new radiator, okay, 0:24:20.400 --> 0:24:24.879 you need a new battery, okay, because you're not knowledgeable. 0:24:25.960 --> 0:24:31.200 And that's what happens. Is why I really press about knowledge. 0:24:32.200 --> 0:24:38.400 I use the word knowledge rather than education because knowledge 0:24:38.480 --> 0:24:42.320 is to me more important having the knowledge of something, 0:24:42.680 --> 0:24:45.200 because you have the Bolls smarts of something. I'm a 0:24:45.240 --> 0:24:49.639 college professor. I'm saying this doesn't necessarily give you to 0:24:49.840 --> 0:24:53.040 give you the knowledge that you need. That's where I 0:24:53.080 --> 0:24:56.960 would give hope, because we've come a long way, and 0:24:57.200 --> 0:25:00.840 I would want her to understand again why it is 0:25:00.880 --> 0:25:04.720 important to vote. Why is it is it important to 0:25:04.800 --> 0:25:11.120 build relationships? Why is it to understand different cultures, how 0:25:11.160 --> 0:25:16.160 they think, how they operate, it's important to understand that 0:25:16.200 --> 0:25:20.600 we're all different. Cultures are different, how they decision making 0:25:20.920 --> 0:25:25.800 is different, how they build relationships are different. Uh And, 0:25:25.800 --> 0:25:28.679 and people that are successful they understand that. 0:25:28.880 --> 0:25:30.600 Talk to me a little bit more. I'm just curious 0:25:30.640 --> 0:25:33.120