The Black Perspective: November 1, 2026

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It's November 1st, the first Sunday of the month and
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days before the midterm elections. And on today's program, anchor
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Vanessa Tyler conducts a BIN one-on-one exclusive interview with Maryland
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Governor Wes Moore. We also replay Vanessa's talk with Alabama
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Democrat Governor candidate Doug Jones. Mike Stevens talks to Sonia
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Allen-Smith of the UnitedHealthcare Union of Oakland about some of
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the important bills you should pay attention to this midterm election.
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KD Gray sits down with Digital Underground's Money B as
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he talks about his hip-hop past and new memoir, A D.U.
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Party Don't Stop, The Money B Story, in part one
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of their conversation. And coming up on Your Black Business
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with Doug Davis, a new opportunity for black-owned media companies
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and creators. Plus, we get commentary from Roland S. Martin
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and James T.
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Harris.
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These stories are coming your way on today's program. Welcome
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to The Black Perspective. I'm your host, Mike Island.
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Welcome to The Black Perspective, a weekly community affairs program
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on the Black Information Network, featuring interviews and discussions on
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issues important to the Black community.
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Good Sunday, and welcome to The Black Perspective. In just
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a couple of days, those who didn't vote early will
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head to the polls to change the direction of America.
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The Black Information Network's senior anchor, Vanessa Tyler, talks about
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the final hours of the campaign trail with one of
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the power brokers of the Democratic Party.
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Mike, it's go time, and the Democrats are euphoric Tasting
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victory everywhere around the country, even deep red territory. I
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had the opportunity to speak with one top Democrat. Out
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there making the case for his party is the nation's
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only Black governor, Governor Westmore of Maryland. Welcome back to
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The Black Perspective.
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It's great to be back with you. Thank you so much.
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I've heard you say you would like the title taken away,
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only Black governor. How likely will that happen this time?
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I think it's going to be very likely.
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And I'm absolutely thrilled because we are going to have
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some remarkable history makers who I think will make history
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on Election Day. You know, I've been campaigning hard for
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people like Keisha Lance Bottoms in Georgia, campaigning hard for
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people like Aaron Ford over in Nevada, campaigning hard for
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people like David Crowley in Wisconsin and Jermaine Johnson in
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South Carolina. You know, these are these are remarkable public servants.
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And these are people who I think are going to
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make a big difference in their states. But also, I
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think you're going to send a message because the fact
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that I'm only the third African-American elected governor in the
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history of this country is still an indicting fact. And
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I'm committed to making sure that we can have more
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African-Americans in the ranks of chief executives.
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Eight African-Americans running for governor, I should add, including yourself.
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You're up for reelection. What's it been like for you
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on the campaign trail this midterm?
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We've been very encouraged. And I think that the support
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that we're seeing around the state has been powerful because
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I think people are realizing that despite the fact that
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we've been the most affected state by this Trump administration,
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I mean, they've now fired over 31,000 Marylanders, federal workers
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who live in our state. That's more than any state
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in this country. But despite the fact that we've been
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the most affected, we've also been the most effective in
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terms of dealing with it, in terms of, you know,
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it's amongst.
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The fastest drops in violent crime in America.
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A job growth rate that is nearly double the national
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average over these past six months, public education that we've
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seen rises in math and reading in virtually every grade
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now at five-year highs.
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So we're excited about the results.
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We've seen thus far, and I'm thankful for the chance
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the people of Maryland hopefully will give me to keep.
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The work going.
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How big do you anticipate the Democrats to win, or
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as they say, the polls are really too blue to
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be true?
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Well, you know, I tell people all the time, don't
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pay attention to polls. You know, pay attention to the souls.
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Right.
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Pay attention to the ones that you're seeing every day
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and you're going out there and you're working, because if
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you are out there in the communities and actually talking
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to folks, you'll get a sense of where folks are
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and what folks want you to prioritize. And I think
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that we have a really good crop of common sense
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leaders around the country who are ready to disrupt the
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status quo, who are ready to take on governor's roles
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and Senate and the House. I'm encouraging up the mystic
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that we can have a Congress that is actually has
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a spine and is ready to push back against Donald
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Trump and the and the ravages we've seen from this
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federal administration.
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But I know it's going to require work.
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Do you think there's going to be any last minute
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administration tricks? We think the voting will be safe. Every
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vote counted.
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Well, I can tell you that there's no doubt that
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the federal administration is trying to disrupt these elections and
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break the elections because they're already doing it. I tell
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people in my state, though, that these elections are state-run functions.
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The federal government is not in charge of our elections.
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The president of the United States is not in charge
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of our elections. And that's actually a big reason why
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we are pushing for something called Question 3 here in
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the state of Maryland, which gives us the opportunity to
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hold on to our democracies and not allow Donald Trump
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to be able to take charge of it. So I'm
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urging Marylanders to vote yes on question three, because a
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yes on question three is a no to Donald Trump
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and his ability to continue to try to rig elections.
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Interesting about question three, redistricting efforts in your state. Why
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aren't more voters for it, especially after what Republicans did
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in Southern states?
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Well, I think we're going to see on Election Day
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whether the voters are with or not. Again, I don't
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pay attention to polls. I pay attention to the souls.
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And I see how people are being directly impacted by
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this federal administration, that inflation is up, that unemployment, national
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employment is up, that the gas prices are up, that
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grocery prices.
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Are up, and Trump's bank account is up.
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And he is trying to regulate elections so he does
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not have to be checked. And so what question three
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is fundamentally saying is who is in charge of our democracy?
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And I believe that our democracy should be Marylanders are
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in charge, not Donald Trump. So a yes on question
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three really is saying a no to what Donald Trump
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is trying to do to our freedoms.
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Everyone talks about what the Democrats will do. Will there
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be endless investigations, which has the president shook? Should he be?
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Well, I think he needs to know that accountability is
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coming his way.
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And you cannot use the Constitution like it's a suggestion
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box and use the presidency as a get-rich-quick scheme and
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think there will be no accountability. So accountability has to
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come his way. But I also know that our next
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focus is not just going to simply be about Donald Trump.
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It's got to be about the American people.
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It's got to make sure that we're focusing on things
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like bringing prices down and bringing costs down. It's got
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to focus on things like growing our economy. It's got
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to be it's got to focus on things like making
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sure that our communities are safe and our streets are safe.
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And it has to focus on things like making.
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Sure that our basic rights to health care and basic
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social safety nets are being are being safe and secure.
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Do you think when the smoke clears on Tuesday, this
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country will feel a shift?
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I believe so, because I think people are looking for
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moral leadership and I and I realize and they realize
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they're not getting it from this White House government. And
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nor are they getting from the people that are allowing
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the White House to do whatever they want. And so
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I don't think this is just going to be accountability
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for the president. I think this is going to be
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accountability for all those people in Congress who sat there
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and let him do it, who didn't check him, who
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allowed him to kick people off with health care while
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giving billionaires tax cuts, who allowed him to start illegal
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wars while then telling our children that they would lose
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food assistance.
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And so I think there is a reckoning coming.
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And I think Election Day will be a powerful time
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for people to make their voices heard.
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All eyes are now already shifting to 2028, the presidential election.
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What kind of race will that be? How vicious? And
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more importantly, how expensive do you think it will be?
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Well, I would actually say that that focus should not
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be on 2028. That focus needs to be on next Tuesday.
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Focus needs to be on 2026 because the House is
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on fire right now. People are at risk right now.
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We have parents that are being kidnapped in pickup lines
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at schools. We have people that cannot afford the gas
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to be able to get them to their job.
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And so the house is on fire right now.
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And I think that people, you know, anyone who is
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serious about 2028, you better show me that you're serious
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about 2026.
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And of course, the closing question of those lining up, maybe,
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will it be you? I'm sure you've been asked that
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tons of times.
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Yeah, well, I can tell you my entire focus is
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on making sure that we're successful on Tuesday. And not
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just successful with our race, where I'm humbly asking the
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people of Maryland for their vote, but also successful with
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question three, where I want Marylanders to go, yes. On
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question three, successful for many of these races around the
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country that we're working on, races like Keisha Lance Bottoms
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and David Crowley and Aaron Ford, you know, making sure
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that people have their voices heard, because when we get
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out there and make our voices heard, we have a
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chance to actually defend our freedoms and defend our future
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and not just and not just have.
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To put it.
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Governor Moore, you sound like you're in motion right now.
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Where are you heading in these final hours?
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I'm heading over to Southern Maryland.
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So we'll be down in Charles County and Calvert County
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and St.
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Mary's County. We are going to hit every single.
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Corner of my amazing state before Election Day and just
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continue doing what we're doing, where we've now had over 1,100
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visits around the state during my three and a half
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years as governor. So I think people in Maryland know
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that I'm governor outside.
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So that's exactly what I'm doing right now.
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Governor Westmore of Maryland, thanks again.
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Thank you so much.
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I'm Vanessa Tyler with a Black Perspective, only on The
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Black Information.
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Network.
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Mike, back to you.
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Thanks, Vanessa and Governor Westmore. Remember, midterm elections are this Tuesday,
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November 3rd, so go out and make your voice heard.
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Tune in to the Black Information Network on Tuesday for
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our election special, Black America Votes, at 7 p.m. Eastern
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Time with Andrea Coleman. We will replay Vanessa's conversation with
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Alabama Democratic nominee Doug Jones later in today's show. Affordability
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is a big concern in this election cycle, and it
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is being voted on with support by various candidates and
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initiatives around the country on Tuesday. The Black Information Network's
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Mike Stevens recently spoke to a black health care worker.
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who is sharing why she supports Proposition 40 in California.
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Mike?
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Thanks, Mike.
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As we get close to Election Day, there are not
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only candidates on ballots around the country, but also statewide
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issues for voters to consider in many places. In both cases,
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the key word many are deciding on has to do
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with affordability. It's a big word this election cycle. Candidates
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and questions that relate to those basic life concerns are
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on ballots. Now, in California, there are three questions voters,
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including African-Americans, are deciding on. They're Proposition 40, 41, and 42.
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Joining us now to break this down is Sonia Allen-Smith
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of the UnitedHealthcare Union, based out of Oakland, California. Thank
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you for joining us, Sonia.
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Oh, you're welcome.
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So you're a longtime healthcare worker.
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Yes.
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Assuming that you are for Prop 40, which has been
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called the billionaire tax, which, as I understand it, does
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a one-time 5% tax on California's 200 billionaires to share
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their wealth. Tell us more about that.
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It's just what it says.
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We want to make sure that everyone understands the Yes
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on 40 campaign is important because it saves lives. Being
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a healthcare worker, we understand if there are cuts to healthcare,
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continued cuts to healthcare, it can lead to longer wait times.
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It can, I believe, reduce reduction in services, closing of
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some clinics, community clinics. It is about protecting the health
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care of, I think, I would say our most vulnerable people,
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which is our seniors, elderly, our critical ill, and our pediatrics.
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So this 5% tax on California's 200 billionaires would not,
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as I understand it, tax their income but their wealth,
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which could be a whole variety of things, to kind
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of make sure that health care is not hurt any
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more than it has.
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That is correct. That's absolutely correct.
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We want to continue to sustain quality health care for Californians.
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And this has been an issue because in 2025, There
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were federal cuts included in the Trump administration's so-called One
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Big Beautiful Bill that has impacted health care in many places.
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In California and across the country, we have been getting
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reports that ER and hospital closures are happening. This is
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impacting rural areas and the underserved.
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That is correct. If we look at In L.A.
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Currently right now, we can see that Big Beautiful Bill
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has impacted us by closing some of our health care clinics.
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And our community understands the impact that can show in
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our community. So we look at the Martin Luther King
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Clinics Hospital is challenged in L.A. We had closures of clinics,
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including Antelope Valley in Lancaster.
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Also in Englewood, our Curtis R. Tucker clinic.
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Just to name a few, but many of them have
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already been closed or the services have been reduced. And
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that's just the work that we have documented in LA,
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but we have it all over. In California, we can
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see the services reducing. As a healthcare worker, I see
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it in my own hospital that I'm in, that the
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staff is getting shorter, wait times are getting longer, and
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the beautiful bill hasn't fully impacted yet.
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That will come in 2027.
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And so again, our most vulnerable patients, community members are
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at risk if Prop 40 is not passed. That's why
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we're yes on Prop 40, no on 41 and 42.
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And this is especially impactful for Black families, correct?
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I think it's very impactful for African-American families because I
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can only share my own story. My son, who was
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a diagnosed as juvenile diabetic, he passed away alone because
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of lack of quality healthcare services that we have currently
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right now. So just think about if we, this hundred
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billion cut to existing services, how many marginalized communities or
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families are already struggling around healthcare issues, access. If it's
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a cut, it's going to be even more impact, you know,
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more impactful.
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To make this even more potentially confusing, on the ballot,
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there is also Prop 41 and 42, which, as I
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understand it, oppose Prop 40.
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Correct.
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How does that work?
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So here we go. So 41 and 42, we have
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to vote those down.
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We don't want people to be fooled that Prop 41
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and 42 are billionaire funded initiatives designed specifically to undermine
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and undo Prop 40. Prop 41 is funded by Trump donors, right?
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Prop 41, the billionaires behind this don't care about accountability
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for taxpayers. They've been getting out, paying their taxes for
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years through loopholes and tax breaks. Prop 41 is just
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a shame. It's an expensive one. It requires pre-election and
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ongoing audits to state programs that are funded by new
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special taxes costing the state time and money. And in
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Prop 42, the billionaires behind this don't care about protecting
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California's retirement savings. They only care about undermining Prop 40
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to avoid paying their fair share. Prop 42 is a redundant,
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expensive trick to allow approximately 200 billionaires keep avoiding paying
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their taxes while working.
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People get stuck with the bill.
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So it is really a way both are designed to
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conflict with Prop 40 in event of competing initiatives, the
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ballot measures. So we really want to make sure that,
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you know, if we get Prop 40 passed and we
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really feel it's going to get passed, there's a lot
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of momentum behind it. Prop 41 and 42 would undo
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what Prop 40 is meant to do. And it's just, again,
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you know, the billionaires not wanting to pay their fair share.
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That's why we're encouraging people when we say vote yes
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on Prop 40, no on 41, 42.
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To save health care. Really encouraging people.
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Yes on 40, no on 41 and 42.
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You know, this is part of a bigger concern nationwide
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with affordable health care, with people being able to get
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enough food. with housing issues that really is a concern. Well,
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we appreciate you coming on with us to talk about this.
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If people want more information, they can go to yeson40. com.
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00:17:34.140 --> 00:17:36.869
And that, of course, is one perspective based on support
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for this. For those who want to get more neutral information,
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they can do a Google search and pull up the
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California Ballot Initiative and just read more about the background
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and and where this is going, but we appreciate you
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sharing your perspective.
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Okay, thank you.
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We've been speaking with Sonia Allen-Smith of the United Healthcare
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Workers Union based out of Oakland, California. All right, Mike Island,
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back to you.
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Thanks, Mike and Sonia Allen-Smith. Now, we get commentary from
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Roland S.
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Martin.
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The opinions, beliefs, and viewpoints expressed in this commentary are
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are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
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00:18:15.309 --> 00:18:19.539
those of BIN and its founding partners and employees. Now
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00:18:19.579 --> 00:18:21.819
it's time to bring the funk with Roland S.
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Martin.
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When you look at the elections in this country for
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the last few years, they have been won by the margins.
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And one of the things that I have said, that
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the black folks want to see more power, we are
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going to have to maximize our power, which means voting
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at an extremely high rate. What I've made clear, is
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that the minimum we should be voting at is 70%.
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When you look at history, when Andrew Young ran for Congress,
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he got 72% of black turnout of all eligible black voters.
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When Harold Washington was elected the first black mayor of Chicago,
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85% of all eligible black folks voted in that election.
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When you've got Texas, when you've got the largest number
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of eligible black voters in the country, Florida is number two. Folks,
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we can turn the numbers out. Georgia, There are 2.2
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million registered black voters in Georgia, yet they've never hit
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50% turnout. That makes no sense whatsoever. In the last election,
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Brian Kemp was elected governor with 2.1 million votes. If
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black folks hit 70% of our number in Georgia, that's 1.5 million,
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meaning Keisha Lance Bottoms, all she has to do is
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pick up another 600,000 from white Latino voters, and she's
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the next governor. If you go down the line, folks,
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we can make a difference. Tarrant County, Texas, the largest
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red county the Republicans still have in the state. You've
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got Lisa Simmons, who's running for county judge against a
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racist MAGA in Tim O'Hare. You've got Tiffany Burks, who's
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running for district attorney against phil sorrells who spent nine
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years trying to put crystal mason in prison for casting
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a ballot what i'm saying is we need to be
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looking at the map and understand that we can elect
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black folks up and down the ballot we can stop
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maga in their tracks when it comes to agriculture commissioner
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insurance commissioner public service jobs You name it. But we
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have to be voting again. Black folks do not leave
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your power on the couch. I'm Roland Martin on the
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Black Information Network.
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Thanks, Roland. And stay tuned for commentary from James T.
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00:20:22.940 --> 00:20:25.970
Harris later on today's show. You know, the classic line
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00:20:25.990 --> 00:20:29.009
from Tupac, I get around weekends was made from Michelob,
390
00:20:29.029 --> 00:20:32.369
but it's a Monday. That's Digital Underground's Money B, and
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00:20:32.410 --> 00:20:34.700
he sits down with Katie Gray to talk about his
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Black Panther upbringing, hip-hop legacy with Digital Underground, Tupac Shakur,
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00:20:39.680 --> 00:20:42.339
and his new memoir in part one of their conversation.
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You know, obviously, let's just dive right into it. What
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00:20:44.809 --> 00:20:46.789
we're sitting down to and we're talking about today is
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00:20:48.049 --> 00:20:49.829
that you're coming out with a book, and it's coming
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out on Tuesday.
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00:20:51.089 --> 00:20:51.160
Yes.
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00:20:52.069 --> 00:20:53.970
I was trying to go ahead and get on the pre-order, too.
400
00:20:54.519 --> 00:20:55.279
Nice.
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00:20:55.359 --> 00:20:58.640
So, I mean, right off the bat, for people who are,
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00:20:58.960 --> 00:21:00.960
you know, listening in the anticipation of you coming out
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00:21:00.980 --> 00:21:02.430
with your book and you getting a chance to tell
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00:21:02.450 --> 00:21:04.490
your story, what are some of the things that we
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00:21:04.509 --> 00:21:07.210
can kind of anticipate that maybe no one's really been
406
00:21:07.230 --> 00:21:08.910
able to hear firsthand before?
407
00:21:09.730 --> 00:21:11.910
Well, first of all, you know, the title of the book,
408
00:21:11.930 --> 00:21:15.460
A DU Party Don't Stop, right? So DU for Digital Underground.
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00:21:16.059 --> 00:21:18.799
And most people would think that it's a book about
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00:21:19.380 --> 00:21:22.079
being in the industry and what it's like being digital.
411
00:21:22.740 --> 00:21:24.140
On tour, but that's not what it is.
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00:21:24.200 --> 00:21:27.609
It's really, it's my autobiography and it's about my entire life.
413
00:21:28.049 --> 00:21:32.849
And what it is, is it's me giving my firsthand
414
00:21:33.450 --> 00:21:42.089
experience through several generations, you know, like from the very beginning,
415
00:21:42.230 --> 00:21:45.529
you know, in the seventies, growing up, both of my
416
00:21:45.569 --> 00:21:47.849
parents were in the Black Panther Party, right? So I
417
00:21:47.910 --> 00:21:51.569
grew up, I went to the Oakland Community School that was,
418
00:21:52.299 --> 00:21:53.200
founded by Huey P.
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00:21:53.259 --> 00:21:55.740
Newton and the Black Panther Party. So I was part
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00:21:55.779 --> 00:21:57.279
of the free.
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Breakfast and lunch program that started with the Black Panther Party.
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00:22:04.529 --> 00:22:09.349
Just that experience, and then you go into the 80s
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and being a teenager, surviving the whole crack epidemic and
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what that was like. And then you get to the
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00:22:16.490 --> 00:22:23.069
90s with the music and Digital Underground. Tupac and everything
426
00:22:23.690 --> 00:22:28.130
that happened with that. But then also, you know, we
427
00:22:28.170 --> 00:22:35.240
get into when your career starts to fade, right? And
428
00:22:36.039 --> 00:22:37.140
you don't know what you're going to do with the
429
00:22:37.200 --> 00:22:39.119
rest of your life, but you're only 25 years old.
430
00:22:40.200 --> 00:22:44.740
You know, so there's a little bit of, what do
431
00:22:44.759 --> 00:22:48.950
you call it? You have to deal with your mental
432
00:22:48.970 --> 00:22:51.759
health because you have to For so long, you're just
433
00:22:52.019 --> 00:22:54.180
on this pedestal, right? And then all of a sudden,
434
00:22:54.500 --> 00:22:57.059
it just goes away. And for so long, that's your
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00:22:57.140 --> 00:23:00.640
identity of being in this group and being this person.
436
00:23:01.089 --> 00:23:03.730
And then when that goes away, you know, and it's
437
00:23:03.789 --> 00:23:07.430
not as dramatic as you believe, but when you're 25,
438
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you think it's the end of the world in some instances.
439
00:23:10.170 --> 00:23:14.109
So just dealing with that and being a father at
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00:23:14.130 --> 00:23:17.619
a very young age and just, I'd tell it all.
441
00:23:18.059 --> 00:23:20.880
Well, and actually it's an interesting thing that you touched on.
442
00:23:20.900 --> 00:23:23.859
I can imagine, you know, experiencing that level of even
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fame and attention at such a young age, you know,
444
00:23:27.539 --> 00:23:29.980
that probably does kind of bake in a little bit
445
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to your sense of identity, your sense of connection, your
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00:23:32.309 --> 00:23:33.049
sense of purpose.
447
00:23:33.119 --> 00:23:33.349
Right.
448
00:23:33.509 --> 00:23:35.869
So in a way you kind of had to reorient
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yourself with something else.
450
00:23:37.750 --> 00:23:38.250
Absolutely.
451
00:23:38.509 --> 00:23:45.710
So, you know, and not only that, but where's the money? Because,
452
00:23:45.750 --> 00:23:48.490
you know, you get into the, The music industry, well,
453
00:23:48.529 --> 00:23:52.349
I think all entertainment industries do this, but, you know,
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they prey on the young and the naive, right? So
455
00:23:56.470 --> 00:23:58.839
we get into it because we just want to make
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music and we want to do our art, but we
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00:24:02.660 --> 00:24:05.920
don't really know the business. By the time we learn
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the business, sometimes for some people it's too late, but
459
00:24:09.559 --> 00:24:13.970
we usually learn it later, you know, so you have
460
00:24:14.029 --> 00:24:17.170
to figure it out. You know, and hopefully you've done
461
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enough to where there's something for you once you do.
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Figure it out.
463
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Something on the other side.
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Right.
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And, you know, I was fortunate that there was something
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on the other side.
467
00:24:27.210 --> 00:24:29.309
Well, for you, because you mentioned it sounds like you
468
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had this pinnacle, like you had this, you know, huge
469
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moment in your mid-20s.
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What did you kind of.
471
00:24:35.799 --> 00:24:36.319
Do with that?
472
00:24:36.430 --> 00:24:39.279
Like, how did you work through that for yourself?
473
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Well, I kind of had to just, it's not starting over,
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but you have to just take a deep breath And
475
00:24:45.920 --> 00:24:48.940
we're like, all right, let's move forward because you can't
476
00:24:48.980 --> 00:24:51.839
go back, if that makes sense, right?
477
00:24:52.480 --> 00:24:53.619
And the other thing.
478
00:24:53.700 --> 00:24:57.140
That I was fortunate with is that I've always had
479
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a supportive family. So being Money B really didn't define me.
480
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You know what I mean?
481
00:25:04.769 --> 00:25:07.490
For some people, that's all they have. You know, that's
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00:25:07.549 --> 00:25:12.509
their self-worth. But I was always loved and, you know,
483
00:25:12.569 --> 00:25:13.569
and supported growing up.
484
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So.
485
00:25:14.450 --> 00:25:15.970
I didn't feel the pressure of, oh, I have to
486
00:25:16.009 --> 00:25:19.049
live up to this thing. So it was just about,
487
00:25:19.069 --> 00:25:22.269
all right, so what's next? Do I got to get
488
00:25:22.309 --> 00:25:24.150
a job? Am I going to get another deal? Am
489
00:25:24.190 --> 00:25:27.369
I going to get into management? And I did all
490
00:25:27.390 --> 00:25:27.869
of that stuff.
491
00:25:28.210 --> 00:25:31.369
You know what I mean? I just tried everything and navigated.
492
00:25:31.609 --> 00:25:34.529
Well, obviously you're no stranger to writing because of your
493
00:25:34.869 --> 00:25:37.970
musical path, your musical career, all the collaborations that you had.
494
00:25:38.269 --> 00:25:40.450
How did that really weigh into your process of writing
495
00:25:40.490 --> 00:25:42.410
a book? Because I feel like that's a completely different feat.
496
00:25:42.819 --> 00:25:46.519
Well, so I have a co-author. His name is Chad Coenson.
497
00:25:46.980 --> 00:25:49.019
And without him, I wouldn't have did the book, right?
498
00:25:49.140 --> 00:25:51.700
Because I don't think that I could have just sat
499
00:25:51.769 --> 00:25:54.750
down and wrote everything that happened to me or that
500
00:25:54.789 --> 00:25:55.490
happened in my life.
501
00:25:55.750 --> 00:25:57.910
Or even share, you know what I mean? Just on
502
00:25:57.970 --> 00:25:58.329
my own.
503
00:25:58.509 --> 00:26:01.569
I needed someone to ask the questions and to pull
504
00:26:01.609 --> 00:26:02.019
it out of me.
505
00:26:02.170 --> 00:26:03.740
And that's what it did. So it was just, that's
506
00:26:03.759 --> 00:26:05.400
what he did. I'm sorry. So it was just like
507
00:26:05.539 --> 00:26:07.059
a lot of interview sessions.
508
00:26:07.500 --> 00:26:10.359
Of him just asking, you know, just, it just was
509
00:26:10.400 --> 00:26:12.910
me talking to him and he was recording it and putting,
510
00:26:12.930 --> 00:26:15.490
you know, and writing it for me. I told the story,
511
00:26:15.630 --> 00:26:17.710
but I would never, like, there's some things in the
512
00:26:17.759 --> 00:26:19.740
book that I don't talk about, but it's.
513
00:26:19.640 --> 00:26:19.980
In the book.
514
00:26:21.670 --> 00:26:24.039
Oh, well, come on. That's a cliffhanger. Why did you
515
00:26:24.059 --> 00:26:25.319
have to say it like that?
516
00:26:25.380 --> 00:26:27.640
That's why I did it. How am I.
517
00:26:27.559 --> 00:26:28.400
Trying to speed read?
518
00:26:28.440 --> 00:26:30.460
I'm like, wait a minute. You put the book in
519
00:26:30.519 --> 00:26:32.420
front of me. I hope this is my copy because
520
00:26:32.440 --> 00:26:33.440
if not, I'm sneaking out with it.
521
00:26:33.460 --> 00:26:35.660
So you definitely want to get that book. You probably
522
00:26:35.700 --> 00:26:36.299
don't stop.
523
00:26:36.359 --> 00:26:37.279
Yeah, I'm like, wait a minute.
524
00:26:37.299 --> 00:26:39.220
Money B story. Get that thing.
525
00:26:39.319 --> 00:26:42.099
I feel set up. You talk about it before he
526
00:26:42.119 --> 00:26:43.130
gets a chance to read it.
527
00:26:43.299 --> 00:26:43.680
Yeah.
528
00:26:44.099 --> 00:26:45.759
Well, and I was wondering that too.
529
00:26:45.819 --> 00:26:48.509
It's interesting how You know, obviously, I'm sure there's many
530
00:26:48.529 --> 00:26:50.390
things that when you look back on, you have a
531
00:26:50.430 --> 00:26:53.579
completely different lens than when you were experiencing, when it
532
00:26:53.599 --> 00:26:56.380
was happening. So what was that, even that kind of
533
00:26:56.420 --> 00:26:59.880
experience for you? Almost in some ways, re-experiencing it in
534
00:26:59.900 --> 00:27:00.519
a different way.
535
00:27:01.000 --> 00:27:03.180
Well, yeah. So it's exactly that. Like I had to
536
00:27:03.220 --> 00:27:04.240
relive a lot, right?
537
00:27:04.519 --> 00:27:07.880
And even to, and, you know, and open up a
538
00:27:07.920 --> 00:27:11.920
few wounds or, you know, I'm talking about relationship wise, right?
539
00:27:11.960 --> 00:27:15.740
So there are some relationships in my life that were damaged, right?
540
00:27:16.130 --> 00:27:18.200
But writing this book, I had to revisit it.
541
00:27:18.349 --> 00:27:21.390
And even in some instances, I had to reach out
542
00:27:21.869 --> 00:27:24.309
to those people and talk to them because I wanted
543
00:27:24.349 --> 00:27:26.250
to make sure that I got, that I told the
544
00:27:26.269 --> 00:27:28.049
story the way that it happened.
545
00:27:28.210 --> 00:27:29.650
That you were being as fair as possible.
546
00:27:29.849 --> 00:27:30.970
Yeah. So, yeah.
547
00:27:31.029 --> 00:27:34.930
So, you know, this is absolutely not a tell-all, you know,
548
00:27:34.970 --> 00:27:37.650
where I'm just saying, you know, I don't talk about
549
00:27:37.710 --> 00:27:39.970
people unless I know, you know, unless I give them
550
00:27:40.009 --> 00:27:41.609
a chance to say their side of it.
551
00:27:41.930 --> 00:27:46.000
So I'm curious of with the storytelling side element to this.
552
00:27:46.940 --> 00:27:48.940
Figure out, like, especially if people were, you know, and
553
00:27:48.960 --> 00:27:50.839
they're excited to pick up your book, you know, are
554
00:27:50.859 --> 00:27:52.980
they going to get more of the ins and outs
555
00:27:53.009 --> 00:27:54.240
of a little bit more of, like, get to know
556
00:27:54.309 --> 00:27:56.250
you as an individual? Or are they even going to
557
00:27:56.269 --> 00:27:57.849
get to know a little bit more of, like, the
558
00:27:57.950 --> 00:27:59.170
artist behind the music?
559
00:27:59.809 --> 00:28:01.329
No, they're going to get to know me. They'll know
560
00:28:01.410 --> 00:28:04.809
everything about me. Like I said, a lot of things that,
561
00:28:05.130 --> 00:28:07.309
unless you ask me, I don't even talk about it, right?
562
00:28:07.390 --> 00:28:09.369
And there's some things that I'm not proud of, but
563
00:28:09.390 --> 00:28:10.509
I'll tell it all.
564
00:28:11.569 --> 00:28:14.730
OK, so I know that we could talk hours about
565
00:28:14.829 --> 00:28:16.039
the music component to this.
566
00:28:16.119 --> 00:28:18.400
But one element that I do not want to miss
567
00:28:19.420 --> 00:28:23.359
is you being raised by Black Panthers. Tell me.
568
00:28:23.380 --> 00:28:26.400
I mean, that must have been its own unique experience
569
00:28:26.440 --> 00:28:28.789
by itself. I feel like you could have written books
570
00:28:28.849 --> 00:28:29.509
alone on that.
571
00:28:29.769 --> 00:28:31.890
Yeah. I mean, it was a unique experience.
572
00:28:32.289 --> 00:28:34.529
And I always tell people, you know, because I went
573
00:28:34.549 --> 00:28:37.849
to the Oakland Community School. And then also, you know,
574
00:28:38.109 --> 00:28:41.109
growing up throughout the weeks, we would also stay in dormitory. Other,
575
00:28:41.309 --> 00:28:43.009
you know, members of the party, they would.
576
00:28:42.970 --> 00:28:43.930
Watch us, right?
577
00:28:43.970 --> 00:28:46.700
So we were always being, we were always with and
578
00:28:46.720 --> 00:28:49.599
being protected by a comrade in the Black Panther Party.
579
00:28:50.079 --> 00:28:52.599
But I always tell people, you know, being so young
580
00:28:52.779 --> 00:28:55.809
that I didn't really know about the Black Panther Party,
581
00:28:56.089 --> 00:28:58.980
but all I knew was the Black Meaning that I
582
00:28:59.000 --> 00:29:01.359
didn't know that it was another way. I thought that
583
00:29:01.400 --> 00:29:05.440
that was normal. Yeah, because I didn't know any other life.
584
00:29:05.559 --> 00:29:06.940
You know, that was just how it was.
585
00:29:07.660 --> 00:29:09.720
So do you remember the age you were at where
586
00:29:09.769 --> 00:29:12.609
you realized that that wasn't everyone's experience and you started
587
00:29:12.630 --> 00:29:16.369
to have a different perspective on what the Black Panthers were?
588
00:29:16.490 --> 00:29:18.930
And I mean, obviously, like even even the way that
589
00:29:18.970 --> 00:29:21.150
your education was being structured, that was different.
590
00:29:21.490 --> 00:29:21.849
Yeah.
591
00:29:22.089 --> 00:29:27.890
Once I graduated seventh grade. No, but really.
592
00:29:28.529 --> 00:29:31.859
I'll give you an example of when I realized that
593
00:29:31.920 --> 00:29:35.619
how I was raised was different is that so right.
594
00:29:35.500 --> 00:29:36.660
Around 1988, 89, right?
595
00:29:36.849 --> 00:29:37.809
It was like.
596
00:29:40.390 --> 00:29:42.970
People wearing the black medallions, the African medallions.
597
00:29:43.210 --> 00:29:43.450
Mm-hmm.
598
00:29:43.759 --> 00:29:46.230
And I really wasn't into that, right? I was like,
599
00:29:47.440 --> 00:29:49.059
you know, a lot of kids, you know, it was
600
00:29:49.099 --> 00:29:52.240
public enemy and all of that stuff. And people, you know,
601
00:29:52.559 --> 00:29:55.720
young kids, teenagers wearing like dashikis and whatnot.
602
00:29:55.920 --> 00:29:56.200
Mm-hmm.
603
00:29:56.519 --> 00:29:58.180
And I just, I didn't do it before.
604
00:29:58.200 --> 00:30:00.200
So, you know, I just didn't feel like all of
605
00:30:00.240 --> 00:30:02.240
a sudden like to follow this trend of doing it.
606
00:30:02.799 --> 00:30:04.559
But I didn't know really where it was coming from.
607
00:30:04.980 --> 00:30:08.079
Then I realized a little bit later that these were
608
00:30:08.380 --> 00:30:13.269
college age kids that were just discovering about themselves, about
609
00:30:13.410 --> 00:30:16.150
being black and black history and all of that. But,
610
00:30:16.349 --> 00:30:18.549
you know, I read Malcolm X when I was like 11,
611
00:30:18.549 --> 00:30:19.869
you know what I mean? And we were taught about
612
00:30:19.910 --> 00:30:22.109
Marcus Garvey and Assata Shakur.
613
00:30:22.230 --> 00:30:22.730
You know what I mean?
614
00:30:22.769 --> 00:30:25.420
Like we, George Jackson, I think we were I think
615
00:30:25.440 --> 00:30:27.480
I probably went to one of his court dates.
616
00:30:27.640 --> 00:30:28.119
You know what I mean?
617
00:30:28.420 --> 00:30:30.089
And we would go to court when he was in
618
00:30:30.170 --> 00:30:33.650
court and things like that. So I was surprised that
619
00:30:33.869 --> 00:30:36.750
people are just now learning that at 19, 20, 21, 22.
620
00:30:36.750 --> 00:30:39.930
So it was.
621
00:30:38.890 --> 00:30:39.369
Tripping me out.
622
00:30:39.549 --> 00:30:41.359
Well, of course, for you, you know, that just seems
623
00:30:41.380 --> 00:30:42.480
like common knowledge.
624
00:30:43.160 --> 00:30:44.640
Yeah, you would think. Yeah.
625
00:30:44.839 --> 00:30:47.700
And it wasn't like once you weren't in school that
626
00:30:47.720 --> 00:30:49.140
that's something that you bring up and talk about.
627
00:30:49.630 --> 00:30:50.609
So I never talked about it.
628
00:30:50.690 --> 00:30:52.900
I just assumed that everybody knew what I knew, unless
629
00:30:52.920 --> 00:30:53.779
you asked me about it.
630
00:30:54.279 --> 00:30:56.259
And same thing even with making my music.
631
00:30:56.319 --> 00:30:59.420
I always wanted to make hip-hop to make hip-hop and
632
00:30:59.440 --> 00:31:02.579
make good music. I didn't necessarily feel like I had
633
00:31:02.619 --> 00:31:06.369
to use it as a vessel to spread any particular message. Now,
634
00:31:06.769 --> 00:31:09.069
with Digital Underground, we always did. It was always an
635
00:31:09.150 --> 00:31:10.470
underlying message in our music.
636
00:31:10.980 --> 00:31:13.799
Well, so actually, let me ask you that, too, because
637
00:31:13.819 --> 00:31:16.980
especially with, obviously, you did so many different collaborations, but
638
00:31:17.000 --> 00:31:19.460
you also did, you know, a lot of solo work, too.
639
00:31:19.599 --> 00:31:22.640
So with your music, with that process, you know, what
640
00:31:22.700 --> 00:31:25.039
kind of drived you? What was your, you know, what
641
00:31:25.079 --> 00:31:27.940
was that piece if it wasn't necessarily always about delivering
642
00:31:27.980 --> 00:31:29.009
a specific, like, message?
643
00:31:29.029 --> 00:31:30.809
I'm just a fan of hip-hop.
644
00:31:30.829 --> 00:31:33.329
So, you know, I grew up, you know, listening to
645
00:31:33.529 --> 00:31:36.430
Big Daddy Kane and EPMD and, you know what I mean?
646
00:31:36.809 --> 00:31:40.009
And the fact that even... Now, all these people that
647
00:31:40.029 --> 00:31:41.849
I mentioned are friends of mine.
648
00:31:41.950 --> 00:31:43.490
You know what I mean? You know, we're talking about
649
00:31:43.529 --> 00:31:44.509
Red Alert. You know what I mean?
650
00:31:44.529 --> 00:31:46.210
People that I was like, wow, one day I'm going
651
00:31:46.230 --> 00:31:48.710
to do this. And these are people that I've talked to.
652
00:31:48.910 --> 00:31:54.609
And so I've always wanted to make music that was appreciated.
653
00:31:54.910 --> 00:31:58.049
And that was always just my goal to make good music.
654
00:31:58.170 --> 00:32:00.410
What sounded like it was like the music, the music
655
00:32:00.430 --> 00:32:01.990
piece to it. But it also sounded like you use
656
00:32:02.049 --> 00:32:03.769
it as a way for expression and to like being
657
00:32:03.809 --> 00:32:06.130
able to like process even some emotions or things that
658
00:32:06.170 --> 00:32:07.339
you were going through at that time.
659
00:32:07.740 --> 00:32:13.619
Yeah, and I wanted to serve MCs. I was like,
660
00:32:13.680 --> 00:32:19.710
I want to be dope. So it was mainly about that, right?
661
00:32:19.730 --> 00:32:21.329
I don't care what you're talking about. If it's whack,
662
00:32:21.349 --> 00:32:22.369
I don't want to hear it.
663
00:32:22.609 --> 00:32:23.170
No, that's fair.
664
00:32:23.309 --> 00:32:27.029
Thank you, Katie and Money B. A DU party don't stop.
665
00:32:27.150 --> 00:32:29.990
The Money B story is available now on Digital Underground's
666
00:32:30.049 --> 00:32:33.740
official website and Amazon. Tune in next week for part
667
00:32:33.799 --> 00:32:36.869
two of Katie's interview with Digital Underground's Money B. And
668
00:32:36.890 --> 00:32:39.710
you can follow Katie Gray at Katie Gray TV on
669
00:32:39.799 --> 00:32:43.440
all social medias. Early voting is showing a high turnout
670
00:32:43.480 --> 00:32:44.319
for Democrats.
671
00:32:44.660 --> 00:32:45.960
Bad news for Republicans.
672
00:32:46.539 --> 00:32:49.119
One candidate hoping to turn a red state blue is
673
00:32:49.180 --> 00:32:52.900
former U.S. Senator Doug Jones. He spoke to BIN senior
674
00:32:52.980 --> 00:32:55.940
anchor Vanessa Tyler recently on why he thinks the people
675
00:32:55.980 --> 00:32:57.380
of Alabama deserve more.
676
00:32:57.559 --> 00:33:00.460
In less than two weeks, Alabama will elect a new governor.
677
00:33:00.769 --> 00:33:03.109
It's a state with nearly one million and a half
678
00:33:03.190 --> 00:33:06.380
black people, more than a quarter of the residents. And
679
00:33:06.460 --> 00:33:11.569
Democrat Doug Jones needs their vote. Former U.S. Senator, current
680
00:33:11.690 --> 00:33:14.950
Alabama candidate for governor, Doug Jones. Welcome to the Black
681
00:33:15.009 --> 00:33:16.049
Information Network.
682
00:33:16.769 --> 00:33:19.410
Vanessa, thanks for having me. I really appreciate it.
683
00:33:19.869 --> 00:33:23.349
Polls in Ruby Red, Alabama, are showing an uphill battle
684
00:33:23.410 --> 00:33:25.809
for you. How can you turn that around in less
685
00:33:25.829 --> 00:33:26.509
than two weeks?
686
00:33:26.990 --> 00:33:31.109
Well, you know, look, we've been turning it around. These polls,
687
00:33:31.150 --> 00:33:34.819
there's a lot of different things out there. The polls
688
00:33:34.859 --> 00:33:37.700
that show a very uphill battle, I think, are just
689
00:33:38.259 --> 00:33:42.140
being out there by Republican hacks. The polls that we're
690
00:33:42.180 --> 00:33:46.420
seeing and hearing that we believe are more accurate are
691
00:33:46.819 --> 00:33:49.720
I have this as literally almost a dead heat. I mean,
692
00:33:50.160 --> 00:33:52.619
just right there. We have been on the cusp. We
693
00:33:52.640 --> 00:33:56.309
have been building momentum ever since this campaign started. And
694
00:33:56.349 --> 00:33:58.670
we see it every day. We see it not just
695
00:33:58.710 --> 00:34:01.309
in the crowds, but we see it with the number
696
00:34:01.349 --> 00:34:03.630
of people that talk to us, that are talking to
697
00:34:03.690 --> 00:34:07.630
friends and family. the independent vote that is growing, that
698
00:34:07.670 --> 00:34:10.809
has really been breaking our way, and even a lot
699
00:34:10.829 --> 00:34:13.469
of Republicans in the state of Alabama who are just
700
00:34:13.690 --> 00:34:17.210
kind of done with Donald Trump, and they're certainly done
701
00:34:17.230 --> 00:34:18.170
with Tommy Tuberville.
702
00:34:19.530 --> 00:34:23.239
New stats just released from the Labor Department show joblessness
703
00:34:23.320 --> 00:34:27.940
climbed to 3.5% in September, up from 2.8 a year ago.
704
00:34:28.420 --> 00:34:31.000
That is overall. Any idea what it looks like in
705
00:34:31.039 --> 00:34:32.059
the black community?
706
00:34:32.789 --> 00:34:37.489
It's higher. It always has been. And in Alabama, that's
707
00:34:37.550 --> 00:34:41.300
especially true. We've got a Hispanic community that's in the
708
00:34:41.340 --> 00:34:46.719
same position. And we've got to do more in Alabama
709
00:34:46.760 --> 00:34:49.239
to try to get people into the workforce. And what's
710
00:34:49.380 --> 00:34:54.099
really interesting is that while that is the unemployment statistics,
711
00:34:54.659 --> 00:34:59.260
Alabama has one of the lowest workforce participation rates in
712
00:34:59.300 --> 00:35:02.630
the country. And that affects the black community a lot, too.
713
00:35:02.969 --> 00:35:05.889
And it's not because people do not want to work.
714
00:35:06.340 --> 00:35:09.239
It's just that they've dropped out of those statistics because
715
00:35:09.579 --> 00:35:12.780
they have child care expenses. They have You know, they're
716
00:35:12.800 --> 00:35:15.679
taking care of their parents or their grandparents. They have
717
00:35:15.760 --> 00:35:19.789
transportation problems. So we've got to get people back into
718
00:35:19.809 --> 00:35:22.769
the workforce. I think that that is a huge issue
719
00:35:22.809 --> 00:35:25.010
that we're going to be working on to try to
720
00:35:25.309 --> 00:35:27.889
get more people that. And that helps with the overall
721
00:35:27.949 --> 00:35:32.050
cost of household and health care and everything else. We're
722
00:35:32.070 --> 00:35:34.599
going to put a lot of emphasis on making sure
723
00:35:34.659 --> 00:35:37.420
we get people into the workforce and those that are
724
00:35:37.679 --> 00:35:40.460
out getting those good paying jobs. I think that that
725
00:35:40.519 --> 00:35:42.699
is a that's going to be a driving factor in
726
00:35:42.739 --> 00:35:43.599
my administration.
727
00:35:44.800 --> 00:35:48.190
Specifically for the black community, what are you promising if
728
00:35:48.230 --> 00:35:48.610
you become?
729
00:35:48.630 --> 00:35:51.869
Well, there's a lot of things. First of all, I'm
730
00:35:51.929 --> 00:35:56.420
promising investment. Because right now, so much of the money,
731
00:35:56.480 --> 00:36:00.980
federal dollars, state dollars, flow through the governor's office and
732
00:36:01.059 --> 00:36:04.739
it's doled out from the governor's office. And it seems
733
00:36:04.760 --> 00:36:07.940
that so much of the money that has been over
734
00:36:07.980 --> 00:36:10.980
the last 20 or 30 years has not gone into
735
00:36:11.019 --> 00:36:14.460
the areas in the black community. We've got to change that.
736
00:36:14.519 --> 00:36:18.400
We've got to give everybody their fair share of federal dollars,
737
00:36:18.780 --> 00:36:22.719
of highway dollars, state dollars. That has not always been
738
00:36:22.739 --> 00:36:28.769
the case. A good example is that the Trump administration
739
00:36:29.190 --> 00:36:34.289
canceled some $ 20 million for Lowndes County, Alabama, which is
740
00:36:34.329 --> 00:36:38.920
a black belt county. for sewer sanitation issues, septic tank
741
00:36:38.960 --> 00:36:42.380
problems that have plagued Lowndes County for a long time.
742
00:36:42.780 --> 00:36:46.050
They canceled that, and the state of Alabama didn't do
743
00:36:46.219 --> 00:36:49.030
anything to try to get that money back. They canceled it.
744
00:36:49.050 --> 00:36:53.849
The Trump administration said it was just too DEI. And
745
00:36:53.929 --> 00:36:58.170
so our... Our Alabama government said, oh, well, that's what
746
00:36:58.230 --> 00:37:00.090
Donald Trump says, so we're not going to try to
747
00:37:00.110 --> 00:37:03.170
get it back. We're going to fight for every dollar
748
00:37:03.530 --> 00:37:06.219
to go into the black belt and the black communities
749
00:37:06.360 --> 00:37:10.079
and other minority communities in the state of Alabama. We'll
750
00:37:10.139 --> 00:37:13.840
fight for those dollars and we'll also allocate state dollars
751
00:37:14.239 --> 00:37:15.159
to go there as well.
752
00:37:16.420 --> 00:37:19.739
Alabama remapped, like a lot of red states, diluting the
753
00:37:19.780 --> 00:37:23.130
black vote. Do you think that has backfired against Republicans?
754
00:37:23.610 --> 00:37:26.230
I do think that there has been a surge of.
755
00:37:27.809 --> 00:37:31.000
Certainly a surge of interest, certainly a surge of voters
756
00:37:31.400 --> 00:37:34.940
who are angry about that. And it is particularly in
757
00:37:35.000 --> 00:37:38.610
the second district, which was the main one that got
758
00:37:38.789 --> 00:37:44.230
the boundaries redone to try to remove Shamari Figures, who
759
00:37:44.250 --> 00:37:47.920
was our second black member of Congress. in a second district.
760
00:37:48.199 --> 00:37:51.199
They did their best to try to gerrymander him out.
761
00:37:51.579 --> 00:37:53.800
But I think Shamari is going to win that race.
762
00:37:53.940 --> 00:37:57.059
I think it has backfired in that district. I think
763
00:37:57.099 --> 00:38:00.000
it's going to get folks turned out in the seventh district,
764
00:38:00.039 --> 00:38:03.519
which is Terry Sewell's district. But I'm going to tell you, Vanessa,
765
00:38:04.110 --> 00:38:07.449
what I hear around the state is that people are
766
00:38:07.670 --> 00:38:11.969
angry with the way that went down. That Louisiana versus
767
00:38:12.030 --> 00:38:15.929
Clay decision that just effectively ended the Voting Rights Act,
768
00:38:16.510 --> 00:38:19.809
our governor called a special session before the ink was
769
00:38:19.889 --> 00:38:24.519
even dry on that decision. And our legislature rushed in
770
00:38:24.920 --> 00:38:27.579
to redraw those districts and do it in a way
771
00:38:28.059 --> 00:38:32.920
in which a three-judge federal panel, two of whom were
772
00:38:33.480 --> 00:38:40.260
Donald Trump-appointed judges— found that factually that those districts were
773
00:38:40.300 --> 00:38:47.230
drawn to intentionally discriminate against black Alabamians, black voters. nobody's
774
00:38:47.269 --> 00:38:50.050
happy about that. You know, back in the day when
775
00:38:50.110 --> 00:38:53.130
I was U.S. attorney, I prosecuted the 16th Street Baptist
776
00:38:53.150 --> 00:38:57.110
Church bombing cases, convicted two Klansmen for the murder of
777
00:38:57.159 --> 00:39:01.059
those four girls. And we never got threats or anything
778
00:39:01.119 --> 00:39:03.960
like that, but we did hear some pushback. But it
779
00:39:04.000 --> 00:39:07.739
was interesting pushback. It was pushback by saying, we don't
780
00:39:07.780 --> 00:39:13.030
want to go back. We've gone beyond. We've progressed further.
781
00:39:13.289 --> 00:39:15.630
We don't want to see fire hoses and dogs again.
782
00:39:16.610 --> 00:39:20.530
Those voices are still out there, and they're angry that
783
00:39:20.769 --> 00:39:24.369
the state legislature and the governor threw us back into
784
00:39:24.530 --> 00:39:28.130
pre-Voting Rights Act days. They didn't want to go back.
785
00:39:28.489 --> 00:39:34.219
They were satisfied. They thought our congressional delegation should reflect Alabama.
786
00:39:34.500 --> 00:39:38.219
So we're seeing an anger and I think an interest
787
00:39:38.280 --> 00:39:42.750
in making sure people change state government because of that.
788
00:39:44.070 --> 00:39:47.289
Now, current governor, Republican Kay Ivey, cannot run again. She
789
00:39:47.349 --> 00:39:50.780
is term-limited. And you were running for governor against current U.S.
790
00:39:50.800 --> 00:39:54.929
Senator Tommy Tupperville, an opponent who you lost to for
791
00:39:54.949 --> 00:39:57.349
your Senate seat. What will be the key to beating
792
00:39:57.369 --> 00:39:58.050
him this time?
793
00:39:58.710 --> 00:40:03.670
Well, there's a lot of differences in 2026 than 2020,
794
00:40:03.670 --> 00:40:07.630
including the fact that this is a statewide governor's race
795
00:40:08.090 --> 00:40:12.760
with statewide offices and not a presidential year. There's also
796
00:40:12.800 --> 00:40:15.860
a big difference is because Tommy Tommerville now has a record.
797
00:40:16.239 --> 00:40:19.039
In 2020, he was just a football coach and he
798
00:40:19.079 --> 00:40:21.880
stayed hidden. He wouldn't talk. And there's a reason for that.
799
00:40:22.199 --> 00:40:24.280
He didn't know what the Voting Rights Act was. He
800
00:40:24.300 --> 00:40:26.900
didn't know the three branches of government. So they kind
801
00:40:26.960 --> 00:40:30.090
of kept him hidden and rode on the coattails of
802
00:40:30.139 --> 00:40:33.869
Donald Trump. and just the general straight party ticket voting
803
00:40:33.889 --> 00:40:38.389
that we had during that election. This is different. One,
804
00:40:38.900 --> 00:40:41.599
he's got a record, and we are reminding the people
805
00:40:41.659 --> 00:40:43.940
of his record all the time because it is not
806
00:40:43.980 --> 00:40:46.590
a good one. It is an evasive record. It's a
807
00:40:46.650 --> 00:40:49.610
hate-filled record. It is not one that has done things
808
00:40:49.650 --> 00:40:52.690
for the people of Alabama. The other thing, though, that
809
00:40:52.789 --> 00:40:56.599
is also important is that times are different. People are
810
00:40:56.659 --> 00:40:59.860
hurting out there, and it's in all areas of Alabama.
811
00:40:59.960 --> 00:41:04.349
It's not limited to just urban areas as well. gasoline prices,
812
00:41:04.750 --> 00:41:10.159
farmers are hurting, grocery prices, electricity prices. And Tommy Tuberville
813
00:41:10.199 --> 00:41:13.500
has been an enabler of that through the policies that
814
00:41:13.559 --> 00:41:17.079
he supported with Donald Trump. So we're connecting the dots
815
00:41:17.280 --> 00:41:20.929
with those folks. That's going to make the difference in
816
00:41:20.969 --> 00:41:24.309
this election. People know him now, and they know that
817
00:41:24.349 --> 00:41:26.989
he has not been a senator for Alabama. He has
818
00:41:27.010 --> 00:41:31.829
been a divisive figure, and he is clearly telegraphing that
819
00:41:31.889 --> 00:41:34.429
he will be a divisive governor if he gets elected.
820
00:41:35.329 --> 00:41:37.670
Now, Trump also paid a visit to stump for him.
821
00:41:37.730 --> 00:41:39.570
How effective was the president's visit?
822
00:41:40.130 --> 00:41:43.250
I think it fell completely flat. In fact, when I
823
00:41:43.289 --> 00:41:47.230
was told that he might come, I said, let me
824
00:41:47.269 --> 00:41:51.599
pay for his ticket. Donald Trump's lost his luster in Alabama.
825
00:41:52.159 --> 00:41:55.719
People are tired. They see the corruption. They see that
826
00:41:55.840 --> 00:41:59.289
nothing is being done for them. They see the tariff
827
00:41:59.349 --> 00:42:02.809
policy that is just wacky, that is hurting farmers and
828
00:42:02.969 --> 00:42:08.710
automobile workers and others in Alabama. They see him dumping 300,000
829
00:42:08.710 --> 00:42:12.110
metric tons of foreign beef into Alabama, which hurts our
830
00:42:12.489 --> 00:42:18.260
cattle farmers. They see the monuments. He came to Alabama, Vanessa,
831
00:42:18.300 --> 00:42:23.469
and I am absolutely convinced of this. But campaigning for
832
00:42:23.530 --> 00:42:26.849
Tuberville and others was just a second thought for him.
833
00:42:27.320 --> 00:42:31.440
He wanted the new Mobile Bay Bridge to be named
834
00:42:31.559 --> 00:42:35.360
after him. That's what he was actually campaigning for. There's
835
00:42:35.420 --> 00:42:38.239
a whole new bridge that he had nothing to do
836
00:42:38.280 --> 00:42:41.940
with that Tuberville voted against, but now taking credit for.
837
00:42:42.360 --> 00:42:45.139
And that's the first thing he talked about, naming the
838
00:42:45.179 --> 00:42:46.019
bridge after him.
839
00:42:46.519 --> 00:42:50.559
And this is the largest infrastructure project in the history
840
00:42:50.599 --> 00:42:51.900
of Alabama by far.
841
00:42:51.980 --> 00:42:54.190
So, Tommy, you're going to spend the money wisely. You're
842
00:42:54.210 --> 00:42:55.250
not going to cross over.
843
00:42:55.349 --> 00:42:59.170
And please, not like the Fed building in Washington with
844
00:42:59.769 --> 00:43:01.030
the head of the Federal Reserve.
845
00:43:02.130 --> 00:43:03.190
To do a little.
846
00:43:02.969 --> 00:43:08.679
Renovation, spent $ 3. 5 billion. Can you imagine? We could build
847
00:43:08.719 --> 00:43:11.199
the bridge for less than these couple of little buildings
848
00:43:11.260 --> 00:43:12.199
that they touched up.
849
00:43:12.739 --> 00:43:14.079
What a disgrace.
850
00:43:14.159 --> 00:43:16.119
And he's telling us about interest.
851
00:43:15.739 --> 00:43:16.579
Rates, this guy.
852
00:43:19.260 --> 00:43:20.659
You know all about that, right?
853
00:43:21.360 --> 00:43:23.400
It's a lot of money, $ 3 billion.
854
00:43:24.739 --> 00:43:28.489
Well, maybe I'll be happy. Maybe they'll name the damn
855
00:43:28.530 --> 00:43:32.429
bridge after me and I'll be happy again. I think
856
00:43:32.489 --> 00:43:35.989
it completely fell flat. There was not a big crowd
857
00:43:36.030 --> 00:43:39.659
in the house. He started his campaign in 2016 with
858
00:43:39.739 --> 00:43:43.420
over 30,000 people at a football stadium. He could barely
859
00:43:43.480 --> 00:43:48.219
fill the arena. There was probably just a few thousand
860
00:43:48.260 --> 00:43:51.510
people there and a lot of empty seats in a
861
00:43:51.590 --> 00:43:55.170
small arena. So it's just not the same. It is
862
00:43:55.210 --> 00:43:58.829
a completely different environment that we're running in now than
863
00:43:58.849 --> 00:44:01.210
we did in 2020.
864
00:44:01.219 --> 00:44:03.320
What will be your first order of business if you
865
00:44:03.360 --> 00:44:05.289
join a Democrat majority Senate?
866
00:44:06.789 --> 00:44:11.909
You know, well. First of all, I'm not in the Senate, okay?
867
00:44:12.150 --> 00:44:14.550
So I'm not going to be there. I'm running for governor.
868
00:44:14.829 --> 00:44:15.849
I mean, sorry.
869
00:44:17.650 --> 00:44:21.110
You know, and I am hoping we get that Democratic
870
00:44:21.150 --> 00:44:23.369
majority Senate. I would have a lot to say if
871
00:44:23.489 --> 00:44:26.289
I was there, but I really think that I can
872
00:44:26.329 --> 00:44:29.449
do more for the people of Alabama as governor. And
873
00:44:29.530 --> 00:44:31.670
one of the first orders of business that I will do,
874
00:44:31.710 --> 00:44:34.860
there's two things that are top of mind and one
875
00:44:34.889 --> 00:44:38.159
that we'll push through the legislature. And one is to
876
00:44:38.199 --> 00:44:42.260
try to expand Medicaid. I want to expand the eligibility
877
00:44:42.300 --> 00:44:45.619
for Medicaid and then work with our legislature to get
878
00:44:45.659 --> 00:44:48.860
the funding to expand Medicaid. We have got a rural
879
00:44:48.909 --> 00:44:52.730
health crisis in Alabama, and I believe that that is
880
00:44:52.789 --> 00:44:57.929
the first step. Forty states have expanding Medicaid. We're one
881
00:44:57.969 --> 00:45:00.900
of ten that has not. If 40 states can find
882
00:45:00.940 --> 00:45:03.739
the money, so can we. And it would do so much.
883
00:45:03.800 --> 00:45:06.940
It would be an economic driver for so many of
884
00:45:07.059 --> 00:45:09.559
our communities and for the state as a whole. So
885
00:45:09.599 --> 00:45:12.000
that's number one. Number two, I want to put a
886
00:45:12.039 --> 00:45:16.199
moratorium on the constructions of data centers. That has exploded
887
00:45:16.300 --> 00:45:19.550
as a political issue. People are concerned about it. They
888
00:45:19.590 --> 00:45:22.730
don't know what's going on. There are no guardrails in
889
00:45:22.769 --> 00:45:26.030
place to protect communities. And I want to pause any
890
00:45:26.070 --> 00:45:29.250
construction so that we can get those guardrails in place.
891
00:45:29.590 --> 00:45:31.809
The last thing, and I know this may sound crazy
892
00:45:31.829 --> 00:45:34.500
to everybody out there because you don't have to deal
893
00:45:34.539 --> 00:45:38.340
with this. We don't have the lottery in Alabama. We're
894
00:45:38.360 --> 00:45:41.099
the only southern state that doesn't have the lottery. So
895
00:45:41.219 --> 00:45:44.300
I want to make sure the legislature pushes through a
896
00:45:44.360 --> 00:45:48.030
constitutional amendment so people can vote for a lottery and
897
00:45:48.050 --> 00:45:50.650
we can keep all this money that goes to Georgia
898
00:45:50.690 --> 00:45:54.949
and Tennessee and Mississippi and Florida every day. Keep that
899
00:45:55.030 --> 00:45:57.650
home so we can put it into schools, maybe some
900
00:45:57.690 --> 00:45:58.360
into health care.
901
00:45:59.389 --> 00:45:59.619
Right.
902
00:45:59.699 --> 00:46:03.260
A lot of states, of course, put it right in education. Well,
903
00:46:03.489 --> 00:46:06.880
there is no early voting in Alabama. Election day is Tuesday,
904
00:46:06.940 --> 00:46:11.940
November 3rd. Former Senator Doug Jones running for governor. Thank
905
00:46:11.980 --> 00:46:13.260
you so much for joining me.
906
00:46:13.719 --> 00:46:15.460
Thank you, Vanessa. It's great to be with you.
907
00:46:16.440 --> 00:46:19.619
I'm Vanessa Tyler on the Black Information Network, your home
908
00:46:19.760 --> 00:46:21.019
for Black News First.
909
00:46:21.239 --> 00:46:25.119
Thank you, Vanessa and Democratic candidate Doug Jones. Now we
910
00:46:25.139 --> 00:46:26.630
get commentary from James T.
911
00:46:26.670 --> 00:46:27.030
Harris.
912
00:46:27.190 --> 00:46:30.730
The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed in this commentary are
913
00:46:31.050 --> 00:46:34.469
are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
914
00:46:34.510 --> 00:46:38.070
those of BIN and its founding partners and employees.
915
00:46:38.429 --> 00:46:40.070
I'm James T. Harris and I have something to say.
916
00:46:40.409 --> 00:46:43.739
There is something deeply disturbing about watching millionaire athletes treat
917
00:46:43.780 --> 00:46:47.250
the American national anthem like an inconvenience. LeBron James uses
918
00:46:47.309 --> 00:46:51.469
those precious moments for his elaborate pregame routine, while WNBA
919
00:46:51.510 --> 00:46:54.929
players have made headlines for leaving the court entirely. Apparently,
920
00:46:55.130 --> 00:46:58.349
standing respectfully for 90 seconds is asking too much, and
921
00:46:58.409 --> 00:47:01.670
here is what makes this so outrageous. LeBron James was
922
00:47:01.730 --> 00:47:05.329
raised by a teenage single mother. Today, he is a billionaire,
923
00:47:05.570 --> 00:47:09.000
a living example of the extraordinary opportunities available.
924
00:47:08.760 --> 00:47:09.760
In America, and yet.
925
00:47:10.139 --> 00:47:13.440
Watching his behavior during the anthem, you would never know it. Meanwhile,
926
00:47:14.059 --> 00:47:17.679
WNBA players enjoy opportunities that generations of women could only
927
00:47:17.719 --> 00:47:21.300
dream about. They are paid professionals playing basketball in the
928
00:47:21.360 --> 00:47:23.860
wealthiest nation on earth. And what do we get in return?
929
00:47:24.219 --> 00:47:27.480
Displays that many Americans see as disrespect for the very
930
00:47:27.539 --> 00:47:28.579
country that made.
931
00:47:28.400 --> 00:47:29.739
Those opportunities possible.
932
00:47:30.070 --> 00:47:33.849
This is what happens when grievance culture replaces gratitude. Somewhere
933
00:47:33.889 --> 00:47:36.690
along the way, these athletes have embraced the idea that
934
00:47:36.769 --> 00:47:41.909
acknowledging America's blessings somehow diminishes its shortcomings. That appreciating opportunity
935
00:47:41.989 --> 00:47:43.630
means ignoring injustice.
936
00:47:43.889 --> 00:47:44.309
Nonsense.
937
00:47:44.570 --> 00:47:48.449
You can recognize America's imperfections without disrespecting its national anthem.
938
00:47:48.750 --> 00:47:51.900
You can acknowledge our painful history while appreciating how far
939
00:47:51.960 --> 00:47:54.139
this nation has come. And as a black American, I
940
00:47:54.219 --> 00:47:57.619
find this especially troubling. Our ancestors fought to open doors
941
00:47:57.699 --> 00:48:00.679
that were once closed to us. They endured indignity so
942
00:48:00.780 --> 00:48:04.670
future generations could enjoy opportunities they never had. And now
943
00:48:04.849 --> 00:48:07.730
some of the greatest beneficiaries of that struggle cannot even
944
00:48:07.769 --> 00:48:11.139
stand respectfully for the national anthem. That is not progress.
945
00:48:11.380 --> 00:48:14.340
That is a failure to appreciate the sacrifices that made
946
00:48:14.380 --> 00:48:18.340
their success possible. Gratitude does not require believing America is perfect.
947
00:48:18.519 --> 00:48:22.300
It requires recognizing that opportunity is a blessing, not an entitlement.
948
00:48:22.639 --> 00:48:25.170
I'm James T. Harris for the Black Information Network.
949
00:48:25.269 --> 00:48:26.170
Thanks, James T.
950
00:48:26.210 --> 00:48:26.590
Harris.
951
00:48:26.829 --> 00:48:29.510
Make sure you listen daily for commentary from James T.
952
00:48:29.550 --> 00:48:32.309
Harris and Roland S. Martin right here on the Black
953
00:48:32.409 --> 00:48:36.360
Information Network. Today on Your Black Business, news anchor Doug
954
00:48:36.400 --> 00:48:40.010
Davis returns with another segment. His guest here today is
955
00:48:40.050 --> 00:48:43.730
the co-founder of the Black-Owned Media Equity and Sustainability Institute,
956
00:48:43.969 --> 00:48:47.590
or BOMISI. The organization has opened applications for the fifth
957
00:48:47.630 --> 00:48:51.010
cohort of its accelerator program. This year, the program is
958
00:48:51.070 --> 00:48:54.550
expanding beyond publishers to include creators for the first time.
959
00:48:54.750 --> 00:48:55.030
Doug?
960
00:48:55.329 --> 00:48:56.030
Hey, thanks, Mike.
961
00:48:56.070 --> 00:48:58.510
This is Doug Davis, and you're listening to Your Black
962
00:48:58.570 --> 00:49:01.750
Business on the Black Information Network. You know, black-owned media
963
00:49:01.769 --> 00:49:05.389
has always been a powerful force in our communities, reporting
964
00:49:05.409 --> 00:49:08.539
the stories too often ignored, you know, shaping our culture,
965
00:49:09.039 --> 00:49:13.619
holding institutions accountable. and creating space for Black voices to
966
00:49:13.659 --> 00:49:17.929
be heard. But in an increasing competitive media economy right now,
967
00:49:18.050 --> 00:49:22.139
independent publishers and creators still face major barriers when it
968
00:49:22.179 --> 00:49:28.480
comes to capital, advertising revenue, business infrastructure, long-term growth. So
969
00:49:28.579 --> 00:49:33.530
the Black-Owned Media Equity and Sustainability Institute has opened applications
970
00:49:33.630 --> 00:49:37.409
for the fifth cohort of its Accelerator program this year.
971
00:49:37.710 --> 00:49:41.610
The program is expanding beyond publishers to include creators for
972
00:49:41.630 --> 00:49:45.449
the first time. Renisha Bing, welcome to the Black Information Network.
973
00:49:45.510 --> 00:49:51.030
Now the program will select 11 businesses with each department,
974
00:49:51.090 --> 00:49:54.869
or I should say with each participant receiving $ 25, 000 in
975
00:49:55.389 --> 00:49:58.929
grants and services designed to help them grow. So let's
976
00:49:59.000 --> 00:50:01.880
begin with the big picture. Why was it so important
977
00:50:01.960 --> 00:50:05.619
to create your institute And what gap did you see
978
00:50:05.699 --> 00:50:09.539
for Black-owned and diverse-owned media companies, you know, that was
979
00:50:09.619 --> 00:50:14.250
not being adequately addressed by the traditional media advertising and
980
00:50:14.289 --> 00:50:15.630
investment systems that are in place?
981
00:50:16.110 --> 00:50:21.679
Yeah, I think it starts with when people... and businesses,
982
00:50:22.119 --> 00:50:26.530
they often forget about us. They forget that there are institutions,
983
00:50:26.610 --> 00:50:32.130
whether they are legacy newspapers and organizations or digital online platforms,
984
00:50:32.170 --> 00:50:36.030
that we also are small businesses. And so to zoom
985
00:50:36.289 --> 00:50:39.630
out a bit, I also have my own media company.
986
00:50:39.650 --> 00:50:43.530
So separate from Bonesi in 2008, I launched a women's
987
00:50:43.590 --> 00:50:47.059
media platform called Her Agenda. Fast forward to 2020 coming
988
00:50:47.079 --> 00:50:51.360
around and Bonesi All of these pledges and statements from
989
00:50:51.420 --> 00:50:55.059
major corporations and major advertisers saying we need to.
990
00:50:55.059 --> 00:50:57.800
Invest in black owned media. At that point, I had
991
00:50:57.860 --> 00:50:58.269
my own.
992
00:50:58.179 --> 00:51:01.050
Media company for maybe roughly 14 years at that point,
993
00:51:01.070 --> 00:51:04.409
or maybe 12, 13 years at that point.
994
00:51:04.469 --> 00:51:05.570
We're 18 years this year.
995
00:51:06.440 --> 00:51:08.739
And I'm in a chat with my peers who also
996
00:51:08.820 --> 00:51:11.300
own media companies, like all of these brands saying they're
997
00:51:11.320 --> 00:51:14.010
going to invest in Black-owned media, but they've never found
998
00:51:14.070 --> 00:51:15.690
us before. How are we going to make sure that
999
00:51:15.750 --> 00:51:19.389
this moment doesn't become a check the box moment or, oh,
1000
00:51:19.429 --> 00:51:21.949
we tried and we couldn't do it moment, but turn
1001
00:51:21.989 --> 00:51:25.730
it into a potential movement? Because often Black-owned media is
1002
00:51:25.869 --> 00:51:28.530
left out of what is called the media plan, which
1003
00:51:28.590 --> 00:51:32.929
is how you get advertising dollars and resources. And without
1004
00:51:33.030 --> 00:51:36.730
the dollars, we can't invest in the reporting. and tell
1005
00:51:36.769 --> 00:51:39.139
those stories that you just talked about in the introduction
1006
00:51:39.480 --> 00:51:44.800
that reflect our communities, that hold power accountable. That takes capital.
1007
00:51:45.159 --> 00:51:48.460
And the big block for so many years.
1008
00:51:49.199 --> 00:51:52.550
Is access to capital when it comes to Black entrepreneurs.
1009
00:51:52.590 --> 00:51:54.170
But with Black-owned.
1010
00:51:53.769 --> 00:51:57.929
Media, the advertisers really hold the key for us to
1011
00:51:57.949 --> 00:52:00.329
get the infrastructure and the resources. And so that was
1012
00:52:00.489 --> 00:52:03.500
the premise to start BOMISI itself. And then we wanted
1013
00:52:03.539 --> 00:52:06.530
to start a program because there's so many accelerators out
1014
00:52:06.570 --> 00:52:09.739
for like tech companies and software companies, but nothing that
1015
00:52:09.800 --> 00:52:12.880
actually understood the media business because it's such a unique
1016
00:52:12.900 --> 00:52:16.179
business to run a media company. There's different revenue streams.
1017
00:52:16.559 --> 00:52:19.309
There's multiple revenue streams. There was a time I was
1018
00:52:19.429 --> 00:52:23.679
actually fundraising for, VC money. And they said that I
1019
00:52:23.780 --> 00:52:26.719
appeared unfocused because I had more than one revenue stream.
1020
00:52:26.800 --> 00:52:28.860
I'm like, you cannot put all of your eggs in
1021
00:52:28.900 --> 00:52:32.280
one basket as a media company. So that is the
1022
00:52:32.320 --> 00:52:35.460
beginning of how we started and why we wanted to
1023
00:52:35.500 --> 00:52:37.400
launch the cohort and the accelerator program.
1024
00:52:37.900 --> 00:52:38.480
That's great.
1025
00:52:38.579 --> 00:52:42.760
Now we're at a time with this Trump administration, anti-DEI,
1026
00:52:43.139 --> 00:52:45.840
you know, I know the ad dollars have shifted, right?
1027
00:52:47.119 --> 00:52:50.309
You know, some of these big companies are, that used
1028
00:52:50.349 --> 00:52:52.670
to invest in not just black owned media, but in
1029
00:52:52.730 --> 00:52:56.329
black companies have bailed out since Trump took office.
1030
00:52:57.650 --> 00:52:59.860
How are you getting funded? How are you staying? How
1031
00:52:59.880 --> 00:53:01.860
are you keeping the funds coming in?
1032
00:53:02.599 --> 00:53:08.400
You know, as a black woman entrepreneur, I unfortunately am
1033
00:53:08.539 --> 00:53:13.260
used to doing more with less. And I also am
1034
00:53:13.340 --> 00:53:17.599
someone who studies and understands and knows history as well.
1035
00:53:18.159 --> 00:53:21.420
And so I know that there's always seasons. There's seasons
1036
00:53:21.440 --> 00:53:25.440
when the industry loves us and we are, you know,
1037
00:53:25.780 --> 00:53:28.320
the bell of the ball. Essentially, we're getting all of
1038
00:53:28.360 --> 00:53:31.199
the partnerships and the funding and it's cool to be black.
1039
00:53:31.820 --> 00:53:34.539
And then it becomes too cool. And, you know, the
1040
00:53:34.579 --> 00:53:38.179
tides start to turn. And so in 2020, when it
1041
00:53:38.579 --> 00:53:42.440
was sort of an opportunity to really get a lot
1042
00:53:42.480 --> 00:53:47.389
of funding and partnerships and resources, My co-founder, he also
1043
00:53:47.510 --> 00:53:50.550
is an entrepreneur. He also was like, all right, from
1044
00:53:50.829 --> 00:53:54.730
day one, we need to emphasize the business case of
1045
00:53:54.750 --> 00:53:58.500
this because sympathy dollars are only going to last for
1046
00:53:58.539 --> 00:54:01.380
so long. So from the beginning, when we started to
1047
00:54:01.420 --> 00:54:06.340
form partnerships and fundraise, we emphasize the business case behind
1048
00:54:06.360 --> 00:54:10.679
why this makes sense beyond the mission. And the reality
1049
00:54:10.840 --> 00:54:16.099
is we have access to the most valuable consumer that
1050
00:54:16.239 --> 00:54:19.400
you need to tap into in a trusted environment in
1051
00:54:19.619 --> 00:54:24.590
order to ultimately sell your message, sell your product, whatever
1052
00:54:24.610 --> 00:54:27.829
it is that you're trying to do in terms of business.
1053
00:54:27.929 --> 00:54:30.449
And so from day one, we were using.
1054
00:54:30.250 --> 00:54:35.980
Terms like growth audiences and really emphasizing the be valued
1055
00:54:36.000 --> 00:54:40.250
in terms of the market value of the audiences that
1056
00:54:40.289 --> 00:54:42.989
we speak to. And so that is really how we
1057
00:54:43.050 --> 00:54:46.969
have sustained and still exists to this day. A lot
1058
00:54:46.989 --> 00:54:49.590
of the partners that fund us to this day have
1059
00:54:49.630 --> 00:54:53.019
funded us from day one and they continue to sign on.
1060
00:54:53.059 --> 00:54:56.239
So yeah, we've just been really lucky to have really
1061
00:54:56.280 --> 00:55:03.090
great relationships with our partners. And we, our initial partnerships.
1062
00:55:02.690 --> 00:55:06.170
Were all kind of corporate marketing dollars. And we now
1063
00:55:06.250 --> 00:55:09.469
have evolved to focus on philanthropy dollars. And so we
1064
00:55:09.550 --> 00:55:13.809
got our first big philanthropy track last year from an
1065
00:55:13.909 --> 00:55:15.210
organization called Press.
1066
00:55:15.010 --> 00:55:19.030
Forward, which is an organization that has a mission of
1067
00:55:19.050 --> 00:55:22.260
revitalizing and investing in local media.
1068
00:55:23.230 --> 00:55:26.789
Yeah, that's so important right there. I was about to say, philanthropy.
1069
00:55:27.449 --> 00:55:30.969
That's a nice lane right there. So this is Bomesi's... Yeah,
1070
00:55:31.030 --> 00:55:34.789
trust me. That's a major one right there. So this
1071
00:55:34.849 --> 00:55:38.650
is Bomesi's fifth Accelerator cohort, and it is the first
1072
00:55:38.710 --> 00:55:41.969
time creators are being included alongside independent publishers.
1073
00:55:42.309 --> 00:55:44.389
What changed in the media landscape?
1074
00:55:44.679 --> 00:55:46.139
I know we talked a little bit about it before,
1075
00:55:46.199 --> 00:55:48.539
but what kind of changed in the landscape that made
1076
00:55:48.619 --> 00:55:52.340
this the right time to broaden the program? And what
1077
00:55:52.429 --> 00:55:56.070
kinds of creators are you hoping will apply?
1078
00:55:57.989 --> 00:56:01.389
Yeah, so we are in a world where you cannot
1079
00:56:01.510 --> 00:56:03.929
escape creators and influencers.
1080
00:56:04.010 --> 00:56:05.869
They are here and they.
1081
00:56:05.849 --> 00:56:09.530
Are essentially reaching people. And so we thought it was
1082
00:56:09.630 --> 00:56:13.190
time to bring them into the fold to see what
1083
00:56:13.230 --> 00:56:18.269
can we do to actually create a stronger kind of
1084
00:56:18.289 --> 00:56:24.130
like media ecosystem by pairing creators with traditional media companies.
1085
00:56:24.610 --> 00:56:28.070
And so I think they both have skills that can
1086
00:56:28.090 --> 00:56:34.369
be leveraged for good and for growth and for understanding
1087
00:56:34.449 --> 00:56:37.889
how to reach audiences in this kind of new media landscape.
1088
00:56:38.320 --> 00:56:40.940
A lot of people aren't turning on the TV to
1089
00:56:40.960 --> 00:56:43.719
get their news. They're not opening a newspaper to get
1090
00:56:43.739 --> 00:56:44.300
their news.
1091
00:56:44.380 --> 00:56:46.980
They're scrolling. And if someone is.
1092
00:56:47.199 --> 00:56:49.989
Going to stop the scrolls, I think it is better
1093
00:56:50.010 --> 00:56:54.630
for them to have integrity, to understand media literacy and
1094
00:56:54.690 --> 00:56:58.610
understand fact checking and understand the mechanics of what goes
1095
00:56:58.769 --> 00:57:03.389
into what the traditional media companies typically use as a
1096
00:57:03.449 --> 00:57:05.409
filter before they publish something. Right.
1097
00:57:05.969 --> 00:57:07.710
So they both can learn from each other.
1098
00:57:07.769 --> 00:57:09.949
And we just see that as a great opportunity to
1099
00:57:09.989 --> 00:57:14.050
make sure that truth is still at the forefront, no.
1100
00:57:13.969 --> 00:57:15.349
Matter how you're getting your news.
1101
00:57:15.489 --> 00:57:17.309
And this is like our little way of being able
1102
00:57:17.349 --> 00:57:17.889
to do that.
1103
00:57:18.730 --> 00:57:21.340
That's really dope, man. We just spoke about, you know,
1104
00:57:21.380 --> 00:57:26.920
the pullback of diversity-focused ad dollars and corporate commitments. But
1105
00:57:26.960 --> 00:57:30.400
from your perspective, what does that shift mean for Black
1106
00:57:30.440 --> 00:57:34.320
Gold Media businesses? And how does, you know, your accelerator
1107
00:57:34.360 --> 00:57:38.110
help participants become less vulnerable to these changed, you know,
1108
00:57:38.150 --> 00:57:40.690
kind of priorities? I know you spoke about, you know, how,
1109
00:57:41.389 --> 00:57:43.389
you know, the industry does fluctuate from.
1110
00:57:43.349 --> 00:57:43.809
Time to time.
1111
00:57:44.889 --> 00:57:45.250
Mm-hmm.
1112
00:57:46.059 --> 00:57:46.519
Oh, yeah.
1113
00:57:46.739 --> 00:57:50.360
I think it is hard right now. It's very hard.
1114
00:57:50.400 --> 00:57:53.059
A lot of us are in survival mode.
1115
00:57:53.219 --> 00:57:56.940
A lot of us are one invoice away from deciding
1116
00:57:57.039 --> 00:57:58.960
whether or not we're going to be able to continue.
1117
00:57:59.559 --> 00:58:03.039
And it's really hard. But in hard times is when
1118
00:58:03.079 --> 00:58:06.480
you have to get the most creative. And I think
1119
00:58:06.739 --> 00:58:11.550
that's what serves us as Black entrepreneurs. We're the most creative.
1120
00:58:11.769 --> 00:58:15.369
And so I would say that right now, focus on
1121
00:58:15.389 --> 00:58:17.030
the people and.
1122
00:58:16.949 --> 00:58:18.869
Your relationships and your community.
1123
00:58:18.989 --> 00:58:20.190
Go back to basics.
1124
00:58:20.269 --> 00:58:21.510
Go back to square one.
1125
00:58:21.780 --> 00:58:24.780
How can you get in real life events going? How
1126
00:58:24.820 --> 00:58:27.619
can you touch and feel your customer? How can you
1127
00:58:27.679 --> 00:58:31.280
create moments only you can create and monetize that?
1128
00:58:31.519 --> 00:58:35.260
I'm speaking with the co-founder of BOMISI, Ronisha Bing. Of course,
1129
00:58:35.320 --> 00:58:39.199
I find this conversation extremely compelling. Would love to continue
1130
00:58:39.280 --> 00:58:42.230
it next week, next Sunday on The Black Perspective. Really
1131
00:58:42.269 --> 00:58:44.329
hope to have you back. This is Doug Davis listening
1132
00:58:44.369 --> 00:58:45.409
to Your Black Business.
1133
00:58:45.469 --> 00:58:46.110
Back to you, Mike.
1134
00:58:46.190 --> 00:58:50.530
Thanks, Doug and Ronisha Bing. For more information, go to BOMISI.org.
1135
00:58:50.949 --> 00:58:53.769
And that's it for today's show. For more on these stories,
1136
00:58:53.849 --> 00:58:56.889
listen to the Black Information Network on the free iHeartRadio app.
1137
00:58:57.360 --> 00:59:01.710
or visit BINnews.com for all of the latest news impacting
1138
00:59:01.730 --> 00:59:03.949
the Black community. We'd love to hear from you about
1139
00:59:03.989 --> 00:59:07.230
the Black perspective. Go to BIN's Talk Back Live feature
1140
00:59:07.269 --> 00:59:09.730
on the iHeartRadio app, as well as the new feature
1141
00:59:09.789 --> 00:59:13.400
on BIN. to share your feedback. Also, be sure to
1142
00:59:13.460 --> 00:59:16.539
follow us on social media at Black Information Network and
1143
00:59:16.639 --> 00:59:19.730
on X and Blue Sky at BlackInfoNet. And be sure
1144
00:59:19.750 --> 00:59:23.309
to listen to the Black Information Network election night, November 3rd,
1145
00:59:23.630 --> 00:59:27.050
for our election special Black America Votes at 7 p.m.
1146
00:59:27.130 --> 00:59:30.110
Eastern Time with Andrea Coleman. And to ensure you don't
1147
00:59:30.179 --> 00:59:33.079
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1148
00:59:33.119 --> 00:59:36.940
car radio and iHeartRadio app presets. I'm Mike Island. We'll
1149
00:59:36.960 --> 00:59:39.139
see you next week with a new episode of The
1150
00:59:39.179 --> 00:59:42.900
Black Perspective with stories from our illustrious BIN anchors right
1151
00:59:42.940 --> 00:59:45.010
here on the Black Information Network.