Danny Morrison – From Movement to Media: Building Power Through Voice and Vision
Download MP3Yeah. Sarah Harris.
Speaker 2:Turn the mic up. Turn the power up.
Speaker 1:Welcome to the block. Turn the block power Welcome to the
Speaker 3:hour. This is your host, Sarah Harris. I'm glad to be with you for another show. This is going to be amazing. Are we welcoming our guest, mister Danny Morrison of Danny Morrison Media, and it is regarding from movement to media, building power through the voice and vision.
Speaker 3:This is the Block Power Hour. We are brought to you by the Black Business Association's media division, which is Elevate Media Collective, And you can find out more information at the Black Business Association online or bbala.org, as well as the Block Power Hour on Instagram. If you would like to sponsor this show or donate, because we know that you've been enjoying our guests and the conversations that we've been having, please feel free to reach out to us again bbala.org. So now this episode is a special one. This is a conversation that's rooted in real partnership and shared vision and the work of uplifting our community in meaningful ways.
Speaker 3:Our guests again, mister Danny Morrison, a three time award winning multimedia personality and content creator, a community activist, and founder of Danny Morrison Media. Welcome to the Power Hour, sir.
Speaker 4:Honored to be in the spot. Absolutely honored to be with you. Shout out to you and KABC for allowing me to grace the microphones with you today. And you know I love you. Come on now.
Speaker 3:You know, we go way back, but for people out there who don't know, I do want them to get a glimpse about you. So you have over twenty five years in radio, podcasting, and media across Bakersfield, Fresno, and now Los Angeles. And so you've built amazing platform that just doesn't inform, but what? It activates. And that's what I love about you.
Speaker 3:You also are producing the front page with Dara Starr Tucker and you host a nationally recognized podcast called Educate, Elevate amongst other things. So this conversation is gonna be wide ranging, but what we wanna get into is like really establishing, having a voice and having a movement behind it and the different things that we do just to activate things in the community. So I want to first get to you your background. Tell me about your experience in Bakerfield that helped to form everything that you've done leading up to coming to LA.
Speaker 4:Yeah, how much time we got? We as far as my voice is concerned, I started developing my radio voice, you know, as a as a preteen. And people used to say to me all the time, you should do radio, boy. You you got a radio voice.
Speaker 3:And I
Speaker 4:just said, yeah. We'll see. We'll see what's going on. You know? I was trying to be a rapper.
Speaker 3:Oh, wow.
Speaker 4:That was kinda nice on the mic too. We ain't gonna get into
Speaker 3:that. Okay.
Speaker 4:But, you know, as time went on, I started finding my voice in front of crowds, in front of groups, and started doing a lot of panel discussions around town. And a new radio station, Hot ninety four point one, shout out to my people back in Bakersfield, Hot ninety four point one came to town. And hip hop hip hop was not on the radio in Bakersfield.
Speaker 3:It was not.
Speaker 4:Yeah. So I just sent a little resume, a little, you know, air check. I was like, let me see what's gonna happen. So they invited me down for an interview, and literally the day that I walked in, I started talking to them. They go, oh, yeah.
Speaker 4:Yeah. We we gonna put you on. So I was running the boards overnight. And this is back in the day. We used to have to take a CD and put it into the cart or get a cart and shove it in.
Speaker 4:The producer know what I'm talking about. Back in the day, shoving the carts in for commercials and everything. But I was just happy to be inside a radio station. I wasn't even on the mic yet.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 4:Had to cut my teeth to make sure I was down for the calls because I had to go in there and work from 2AM to 6AM, and I had to be at work. I was working in the lumber yard. I had to work there from seven to six. So I would I would do that overnight and then go on and do my regular job during the daytime. And for a short time, I was going to college as well.
Speaker 4:I was killing myself, but I knew what I wanted. I had my eye on the prize. Number one, I wanted that radio mic, but I also wanted to expand my media imprint even at that young age.
Speaker 3:And so what how is it doing media in Bakers Field versus coming out here to Los Angeles?
Speaker 4:Well, Bakersfield is Trump country. We're keep it a buck. So you can only imagine it's a little bit different back in Bakersfield, but I'll keep it a buck, I don't care. I I really don't care what the political landscape looks like around my people because I wanna talk to my people. And I've always said, and it still is my mantra today, if we do what we are supposed to do Mhmm.
Speaker 4:If we vote the way that we're supposed to vote, if we coalesce around each other and support one another, it does not matter what the mechanism around us is doing. It does not matter. So I knew that in Bakersfield. If I get the microphone
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:And if I provide the the the platforms for us to come together and do what we need to do, everything will work itself out. And that is why I rose so fast in Bakersfield because the black community was like, oh my God, somebody and something that we can believe in. And it worked.
Speaker 3:You had that authentic voice, right, no matter what, that's what you were about and that's what the message that you carried forward. So in transitioning, coming out to Los Angeles, what was the process for you of making that transition?
Speaker 4:Well, when I was there, a gentleman named Elston Butler shout out to Elston Butler, by the way.
Speaker 3:K. Elston.
Speaker 4:He had a connection to a gentleman that I worked with back in Bakersfield whose name was Otis. And Otis was also in the sales force down there for a rival radio station. He and I didn't work together because, like I said, he worked for a rival radio station. But he came down here to Los Angeles to work for another radio station, and they were putting together the components on what they wanted in media personalities for this new radio station.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:So while they were putting those essentials together, he literally called me from the hallway. He and I still giggle about it. And he he was like, Danny, you you and I don't rock together. I know. But I'm down here in Los Angeles now.
Speaker 4:And they're talking about the type of personalities they want on this microphone. And I'm telling you, they're talking about Danny Morrison. I'm telling you. And I was like, really? He's like, dude, it's a black talk radio station, and you are black talk radio.
Speaker 4:You got everything, so you should be down there in Los Angeles. He's like, send me immediate kit, and I'll make sure it gets in the right hands. So literally that night, you know, I'm always you know, you ain't got to get ready. If you stay ready, I got immediate kit on on demand. So I sent that to him.
Speaker 4:A few days goes by, and I'm like, so what's up? He said, for some reason, they're not looking at it yet. Once they look at it, I already know. And once they look at it and they hear you, they're gonna want you down here. I'm like, oh, we'll see.
Speaker 4:So you start thinking, look. I'm a continue doing what I'm doing. If Los Angeles wants me, I'll come down to Los Angeles. If not, I've established, you know, down here in Bakersfield and Fresno.
Speaker 3:I was I
Speaker 4:was doing the Central Valley thing very successfully, so I'm good. So the gentleman that runs that radio station finally listened to everything that I had, and he called me. And we talked for I was I'll never forget. I had just worked out. I'm sitting in the parking lot.
Speaker 4:I was I always go get myself, like, a chicken burrito or something just kinda get my protein back on track.
Speaker 3:Mhmm. And for those who don't, see him quite now, yes, Danny makes sure that he has his workout on.
Speaker 4:A little bet, Tim. I'm saying a little bet.
Speaker 3:Okay. Okay.
Speaker 4:Look. I believe look. If you if you're gonna be a leader in this community, you gotta look the part. Okay. I've said that for everyone.
Speaker 3:Also, for the amazing amount of work and being busy, you gotta keep that energy up. So it's just a matter of of health as well. Right?
Speaker 4:That's exactly right. So you know what's up. So he calls me, and I'll never forget. And he goes, is this Danny Morrison? And I said, yeah.
Speaker 4:And he said, Elson has been pushing me to listen to this thing for, like, weeks now. And I've been pushing back because I've been busy. We're trying to get this thing off the ground, etcetera, etcetera. And he said, mister Morrison, this is one of the best things I've ever heard. And I started crying.
Speaker 3:Wow.
Speaker 4:Real talk. I started crying. And he was like, I need you here. I need you down here.
Speaker 3:So at that point, it must have seemed to you like, oh, this is real. Like, you're really going to make your transition to Los Angeles now.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I definitely did, but I can't front. The number one thing that came to my mind was my kids. I have children in Bakersfield. And I'm like, am I ready to leave my children? Especially, no disrespect to my sons, a beautiful little girl who at that time was only five years old.
Speaker 3:So
Speaker 4:that was the conversation that I needed to have and they gave me their blessing. And I came down here and here we are.
Speaker 3:And here we are. And so in making that transition there, when you first came on, because at the time for me in publishing Sweet Life SoCal magazine, we ended up doing a feature to spotlight the launch of it. And so when I saw you, I was like, who is this guy?
Speaker 4:Yeah, I remember.
Speaker 3:Who is Danny? With the crazy, crazy thing was like, there was just the instant familiarity that was there like, yeah, Danny. And so it became great to learn more about you with the interview and the whole process of doing that feature for the launch of the radio station. And so when you started to settle in there and also to learning LA market, right, what what was that for you?
Speaker 4:It was shocking to be totally honest with you because I've been under the impression and maybe much to my chagrin, I I've been under the impression that when I came down here to Los Angeles, it would be different. I I really came down here thinking that LA is way bigger than Bakersfield. There's gonna be a wider swath, a wider assortment of of blackness, and it's gonna be a far more Afrocentric area. And, you know, there's gonna be black people supporting black people far better than they did in Bakersfield. I'm here to tell you that's not true.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 4:I'm here to tell you. And shockingly, I don't think the market matters. I think that we struggle as a people
Speaker 3:Oh, wow.
Speaker 4:Supporting each other, especially from the conversations I had with people on the East Coast. They go, Danny, that ain't just no West Coast thing. The same thing is happening here.
Speaker 3:Well, especially because the, Los Angeles market, just the whole area, like how spaced out we are. Yes. And so I think a lot of that tends to have a hands on of how we approach things in the community for that reason. So being enlightened about LA because West Coast is compared to the East Coast many, many times. But one of the biggest things is that they don't realize this about how spread out we are, how how different we are in a different community sectors.
Speaker 3:So it's not monotone for black people in the communities.
Speaker 4:Yeah. I came here not to cut you off. I'm sorry. It's just when I came here, I remember asking people, so if I want to wake up in the morning and spend money only with my people and hang out with my people
Speaker 1:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:And coalesce with my people, where can I go? And some people said, well, Leimert Park, but they're gentrifying Leimert Park right now. So it's just like, is there a centralized black community in the city of Los Angeles right now? And the answer is no, at least from my standpoint, and that concerns me.
Speaker 3:Yeah. And I think that that's what led us to being connected.
Speaker 4:That's exactly what brought us
Speaker 3:So we'll talk more about that and other things with mister Danny Morrison here on the block power hour. I'm your host, Sarah Harris. We'll be right back. Welcome back to the block power hour. I'm your host, Sarah Harris.
Speaker 3:We are here with our guest today, mister Danny Morrison, a multimedia personality award winning one himself.
Speaker 4:Don't get it twisted.
Speaker 3:Don't get it twisted. Okay. Uh-huh. So we here at the Block Power Hour, we have some amazing conversations. We thank our sponsor who supports the Black Business Association, US Bank for help making this program possible to participate if you want to as a sponsor, as well as maybe a donation.
Speaker 3:We know that these conversations are meaningful and resonates, and we look forward to you looking us up at the bbala.org for more information. And so now with our guests in the last segment, we were talking about from building his platform and Bakersfield and to stepping into a larger ecosystem that is Los Angeles and relocating. So that means expanding your mission. So now you are in Los Angeles, you're beginning to get your sea legs and find out where you are. How did you go about planning your way forward once now being here in Los Angeles?
Speaker 4:Well, once I left that radio station, I knew that I wanted to expand my imprint here in Los Angeles, especially Black LA. And while I was at that radio station, I was there for two years, two and a half years or so. Mhmm. And I knew the entire time that I was there. I said, I have to fashion relationships the entire time that I'm here.
Speaker 4:I know who the players are in black LA, people that are about that life, people that are literally trying to enhance, empower, illuminate us as a people, especially as it relates to black commerce. And Sarah Harris, you know, come on now. Mhmm. You were the first call that I made because I'm a student of people that are about that life. I'm a student of people that love black people.
Speaker 4:That is what I'm about. That is what you are about. And when I called you, you know the conversation that I'm talking about. You and I both got chills because we were speaking the same language.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:You and I genuinely believe that we can save ourselves. You and I genuinely believe that if we do this the right way and we empower our people and put us all in the right position
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:We can get this done. Every other racial group in the city does it. All of them. And I don't wanna make this a racial conversation, but I have to in some aspects of
Speaker 3:Well, no. I mean, because you're spot on because the block power hour is about economic mobility, but a large part of that is about collective action. And so what that means is how we can come together and really is within any community, just like you said, how many others come together to support their own, It's the same for the black community. And so we just wanted to be able to uplift that. And when we came together and you uttered about bolster black LA, were we not on?
Speaker 4:Oh, man. When you showed me
Speaker 3:on the
Speaker 4:page that you were thinking in the sand, I said, oh my god. This is god's work we talking about. Right? Do you remember that?
Speaker 3:Yes. I do. I do. I do. And and and again, for those of you who are are listening, he is wearing his hashtag bolster black LA shirt.
Speaker 1:Shout out to bolster black LA.
Speaker 3:You know, it very much aligned as we came together in discovering ways that we can work together and bolster black LA, but it did take a minute, but enough about that part. Just kind of tell again your experience and how you were seeing your way forward and what do you plan to do?
Speaker 4:Yeah. Just the relationships. Relationships. Anyone that's trying to make an imprint here in Los Angeles, because a lot of people, we all come from outside this city. Let's keep it a buck.
Speaker 4:I mean, how many native Los Angeles?
Speaker 3:Yeah. Exactly. Well, I am. You are.
Speaker 4:But I would say the bulk of the people that I know that are in this industry are transplants. Mhmm. And those of us that aren't from here, it is imperative that you put yourselves in in a position to where you are shaking hands and kissing babies all the time. I go to events all over town. I go to multicultural, multiracial.
Speaker 4:I go to a lot of black events, but the entire time that I'm there, I'm fashioning relationships. Mhmm. And people say, people ask you to do things all the time. Well, why is that? I say, first of all, I'm talented.
Speaker 4:I ain't got a problem saying on this microphone that I'm talented, but then secondly, I always put my best foot forward in getting up and going out to support.
Speaker 3:You know, we talk about bolster Black LA, but speak on why that means it's great for everybody.
Speaker 4:Yeah. Well, with this country, I wish this country understood most of the time, but a lot of the time they need to understand that if we're doing well, I think it's a it's kind of a a bottom up philosophy. Mhmm. If the black community is doing well, everybody's gonna benefit. Why?
Speaker 4:Because we spend our dollars Yes. Better than anybody else. Must to our detriment a lot of You know? I wish we spend a lot of them dollars with our own culture and our own people, but we ain't got a problem going to your Targets of the world. We ain't got a problem going to your Walmarts of the world.
Speaker 4:If we are doing well, we're gonna spend our money within commerce all throughout America. We don't only spend with our own people. So if we're doing well, it's gonna matriculate all throughout the entire country.
Speaker 3:Not only that, if we're able to prosper and to continue to develop what we're doing in terms of a culture, our talents, even our business or what have you, there's a lot of appropriating. And so a lot of your money is made off of black culture and community. And so if it's thriving and prospering, that translates to a continued global market for that. So I just wanted to take a minute to just kinda say it's like bolstering Black L. A.
Speaker 3:Doesn't just mean a focus on just our own. It uplifts all boats.
Speaker 4:That's right. And I've had a number of non black entities reach out to me and ask me, can they, you know, kinda attach themselves to the brand? And then what I tell them is yes and no. I said, as long as I see that you have a you're making a a concerted effort to empower my people, I don't mind putting you on the wagon with us, but I'm not gonna be in a in the middle of, you know, a white owned business, you know, or non black business, I should say, with a bolster black LA fist in the air if I don't see that you're doing right by my people. But, you know, it it can accountability and it can
Speaker 3:show that we're all in alignment. Right? Yeah. Okay. So now sir, tell us, you have projects, you have projects upon projects and all kinds of stuff going on.
Speaker 3:What do you want to talk about first? You have something between your self destruction two point zero, Yeah. You have the reconstruction project, also to educate elevate when you work with the community college system or network. So kinda tell us what you are. What do you have going on?
Speaker 4:What I did back when I was in Bakersfield, talking about empowering people, I really believe in youth. And not just black youth. I just believe in youth. I believe that children are our future. Shout out to Whitney Houston.
Speaker 4:But I believe that literally. So back when I was in Bakersfield, every single year, what I would do is I would bring the youth together to create a multicultural, socially conscious project of sorts. The first one that we did was self destruction two point o. For those of you that are old enough, you might remember, back in 1989, Care as One recognized that there was a lot of fights and even a murder that took place in some of the rap concerts back on the East Coast. So he got all the best rappers that were in the game at that point.
Speaker 4:Mhmm. And they made a we are the world type project called self destruction. It blew up all over the place, one of the greatest songs and videos of all time. I said, with what's going on with the gang culture happening back in Bakersfield and in Kern County as a whole, I'm gonna take the best rappers in the game. We'll do the same thing.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:And we made self destruction two point o. It went viral, front page of the paper. It really did well. Then that next year, all the rappers in the city were fighting and we did something called Local Legends. I brought them all together with the new radio station I was working at.
Speaker 4:And then we did the racism project that next year, which is just all of the rappers in the city. Mhmm. Basically talking about their relationship with race in America. And then the last one that I did right before I left, it was called the reconstruction project. We had never done a project with all women.
Speaker 4:I said I wanted to do something with nothing but women and singers. One rapper in the middle, but nothing but singers. I had them write it. I wanted to make sure that I produced it, but I wanted to make sure that they wrote it. And we took all of the most impactful topics that, women have to go through here in well, back then it was 2022 America.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:And we touched on abortion. We touched on domestic violence.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 4:And it's a really, really powerful video. I I invite you all to go to YouTube to check it out. It's called the Reconstruction Project. That's that side of things. Also, radio, as you know, I'm with a new radio station now.
Speaker 4:Looking to expand my role at that radio station very, very soon. Conversations will take a place with that. I'm also, at the same time, working for California Community Colleges. I wanna give love to the chancellor, doctor Sonia Christian, who's known me for a long time. They hired me to basically be the face of the podcast with California Community Colleges, all 116 of those.
Speaker 4:And thank god for them expanding my role recently. They gave me a new show alongside my podcast show. It's called On the Road with Danny Morrison where I go
Speaker 1:all the down.
Speaker 3:Clubs Very, very nice. Well, thank you all. Yes. Yes,
Speaker 4:sir. Because they were saying I was lived you know, I'm I'm I'm buttoned up on that podcast. I'm very serious business. And they were like, Danny, we need that. We gotta give Danny a show where Danny could be Danny, show that personality to his thing.
Speaker 4:So they Mhmm. They let me spread my wings on there. Guys You are gonna see that coming down your timelines very soon. So and, of course, my business. We empower black business in this city.
Speaker 4:If you are a black business and you got something going, invite me and my people out there. We'll come out. We'll shoot it. We'll produce it, we'll and put it all over the place. And alongside in concert with one Sarah Harris in the Black Business Association, we will use every arrow in our quiver to make sure more of Los Angeles knows about what you're doing, and that's what my business is about, empowering the business and brands of black business here in Los Angeles.
Speaker 3:Most definitely. Most definitely. Tell them real quick how they can find you online.
Speaker 4:At dannymoshow, all over socials, at dannymoshow. That's the best way to get in contact with me.
Speaker 3:That's the best way. And and that's for sure. We are always working together on different things and we'll talk more about that, but I always enjoy the energy and everything that you bring to the space and your passion for what you do. We will be back in just a moment. We're going to talk more about the entrepreneur that is Danny Morrison.
Speaker 3:This is the Block Power Hour. I'm your host, Sarah Harris. We'll be right back. Welcome back to the block power hour. I'm your host, Sarah Harris.
Speaker 3:We have the incomparable mister Danny Morrison multimedia personality in the house. It's been such a pleasure having him here today. Loving this conversation. How are you doing, sir?
Speaker 4:Fantastic. Fan incomparable. Is that
Speaker 3:what I am? Wow. And then what you do. Yes. Indeed.
Speaker 4:Well, I thank you. I appreciate that. God bless you, Queen.
Speaker 3:So right now we wanna talk about the entrepreneur that you are. So building Danny Morrison Media and bolstering Black LA. So when you thought about how that's shaping out and what that looks like, what what were some of the things that was going through your mind in handling your business?
Speaker 4:Because I am sick of, number one, listening to someone else tell me how to do my job.
Speaker 3:Oh.
Speaker 4:And the second thing is I'm sick of handing my paychecks to somebody else.
Speaker 3:Alright.
Speaker 4:Alright. I got sick of that. And I said, look, I'm going to do what I do because I believe in us as a people. I believe in us as a culture. I believe in us as a community.
Speaker 4:I'm sick of working so hard. And every single time I get done with a project, I hand that check to somebody else. I said, we gotta do this ourselves. Mhmm. Because a lot of the time I hand a check to somebody that don't look like
Speaker 3:us. Okay?
Speaker 4:So I said, I wanna make sure I build a company Yeah. That empowers us, but it also reinvests in us as a community. Yeah. So that is what this is about. That's why working with you, Sarah, is such a blessing because I could work along somebody that is not only like minded.
Speaker 4:Mhmm. But also she look like me too. Little lighter skin, different conversation.
Speaker 3:Oh my.
Speaker 4:Little lighter.
Speaker 1:Little lighter.
Speaker 3:See, that's the part. That's the part within our community.
Speaker 4:Okay?
Speaker 3:It's the different tones and the different okay.
Speaker 4:A little colorism in our community.
Speaker 3:Yes. That is. Yes. Indeed.
Speaker 4:I kid. I kid. But that was what entrepreneurship for me was all about, but I'm a keep it a buck. Hardest thing I've ever done.
Speaker 3:Always as you do. And what's been great is some of the experiences in coming together, working with the Black Business Association. It's been a pleasure to have him as our emcee regarding our Black Business Expo. We did a couple of years for the Kingdom Day Parade, rocking it in the Kingdom Day Parade.
Speaker 4:One of the funnest things we do, I ain't gonna lie. Love it every single year.
Speaker 3:It's just amazing experiences together as well as just coming to collaborate with Bolster Black L. A. What I loved is getting to know different businesses, black owned businesses around Los Angeles and your experience with them. Can you kind of give us a story of those who you experienced as businesses that you enjoy going out and helping to uplift?
Speaker 4:Yeah. I'll give you one that literally just took place last week. There is a mall. Oh, boy. They're gonna kill me for not knowing the mall.
Speaker 4:That is closing right now, and it's not the Crenshaw Mall. Lot of people think I'm gonna be talking about Crenshaw Mall. Think it's South Bay, actually.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 4:But there's a young queen that asked me to come out there and check out their store. Now the word had not come down that they were gonna close the mall, but as soon as I walked into the mall, I knew they were about to close this mall. Okay. Okay? Think I I saw a tumbleweed cross in front me when walked in.
Speaker 4:However, I walked in, and this queen, she is part of a kind of a a cohort of sorts where they all come together and they put their brands inside the store. You come in and you shop, and then there's, like, 10 different companies inside
Speaker 3:similar to, like, the one that's in the Baldwin Hills Mall? Yes. Afro City.
Speaker 4:Very, very similar.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:So I walked in and I said, this is fantastic. So she took me around, and I was like, what about you? And I hope she doesn't mind me shouting her out. It's called Molly Cottle, and she is fantastic. Beautiful young queen.
Speaker 4:Great products. She has, like, a line of products. Not only that, but she's got fashion and all of these hair care and all of these just it's just really, really fantastic. So she and I were talking the other day, and she was like, I don't know what to do. Because if she loses her brick and mortar
Speaker 3:Mhmm. Well, yeah, that's what it's built on
Speaker 4:right now. Exactly right. Mhmm. But what a lot of black owned businesses, I think businesses in general, are dealing with right now is people just don't wanna walk into a brick and mortar anymore. Why?
Speaker 4:When places like Amazon exist.
Speaker 3:Exactly.
Speaker 4:You're gonna have something next day these days. So people that rely on your brick and mortar because they want you to come in, see it, smell it, taste it.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:If you lose that, you lose half of their marketing strategy.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:So what I do and what you do as well, we always make sure that what we do, we put it in front of them because what you and I both know, your phone gonna be in your hand all the time.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:Your phone does not leave you. Some people cry when they lose their phone. So if we create the right content, if we create the right social promos as we call them, the right audio, something that really pops when people turn on their phones since they see that content, I'm willing to bet, and we've already proven it to be true, they will come to you. They will find you. They will go to your website.
Speaker 4:They may even call you and say to come to their home. If you have a product that is marketable and we market it the right way, and it seems to be working in most aspects, there are some that don't, but I'd say two to one usually works.
Speaker 3:Well, and talk about marketing the right way, give us a couple of examples of how people don't market the right way.
Speaker 4:Listen. Okay. How much time we got? Listen. If you if you're black owned business, first of all, you gotta keep your word.
Speaker 3:Oh, wow.
Speaker 4:Yeah. You gotta keep your word. If you say that something is going to ship at a certain time, I oh, I'm gonna try not to blast this queen out. At my old radio station, there's one reason
Speaker 1:to quit. No No names.
Speaker 4:And you know I'm not gonna put no names inside that. She begged me to buy from her. She begged, begged, and begged me. And I said, okay. One week went by, the item didn't show up.
Speaker 4:Two weeks ago by, she told me it was back ordered. Three weeks ago by all this time went by. All of a sudden, I didn't hear
Speaker 3:from her.
Speaker 4:Mhmm. And so I hit her up. I was like, so what's the deal? Where's my product? She wasn't answering my phone calls.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 4:And it's it's like, listen, y'all. Things happen, but your word is your bond.
Speaker 1:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:If you gonna do something, you have to follow through. You don't think that I don't drop the ball every now and again? Sometimes my photographer can't make it down from Bakersfield. Sometimes we gotta push things back. Weather happens.
Speaker 4:Sometimes things don't happen. I'm a tell you one thing that will happen though is a phone call or a text from me saying this is what is going to need to happen.
Speaker 3:Right.
Speaker 4:Your word is your bond. The second thing is I'm sick of seeing, like, misspelled words on flyers.
Speaker 2:Oh my god.
Speaker 4:And you know where I'm going with all this.
Speaker 3:Uh-huh. Or maybe now the AI can catch that.
Speaker 1:Every single go flyer look the same because everybody's using AI but their
Speaker 3:flyers. Yes. Indeed.
Speaker 1:Find yourself a black owned business.
Speaker 4:I know so many graphic designers, one sitting in this room right now, shout out to Sarah Harris, by the way, that will create flyers for you for a very small nominal fee. If you use an AI, you don't wanna look like everybody else. You wanna stand out on your own. Mhmm. Do not be using AI for everything.
Speaker 4:AI has a purpose. I use it a little bit. A little bit. But you shouldn't be allowing AI to just take over your business because that'll deem you just null and void. We don't need you at this point if they're be doing everything for you.
Speaker 4:And here's the most important thing. You gotta be bold, man.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:If you're not willing to risk it all trust me. I know from personal experience. I'm not just saying this. If you're not willing to risk it all for your brand and your business, go do something else. Go work at UPS.
Speaker 4:It's okay. Mhmm. Just getting yourself a regular job is fine. Entrepreneurship is not for everybody. If you're not willing to risk it all and put it all on the line, I have put it all on the line.
Speaker 4:Okay? I can go get myself a 6 figure job somewhere today. I'm telling you today I could do it.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:But I believe in myself. I believe in my business. I believe in my people. I believe in the culture here in BLACK LA that we can get this done. And I wanna be one of the cogs in the wheel to get us where we need to go.
Speaker 3:Excellent advice and information to feed out to people, but you really do have to be passionate and it has to be like just part of ingrained in you because being an entrepreneur is not easy at all. So you really have to believe in yourself and have a plan and move forward. Right?
Speaker 4:That's exactly and you're gonna trip up. Oh, yeah. I'm a give it to let me give it to Steve Harvey whose clip changed my life. You ever seen that that clip about him talking about jumping? I'm sure you've seen it.
Speaker 4:He's talking about jumping. He's like, jump off that cliff.
Speaker 3:Oh, yeah.
Speaker 4:Yeah. When he's talking about basically, get out there, jump off the cliff, and take a chance. And you're gonna hit the rocks of an eye and again. The jagged edges of the rocks gonna cut you up on the way down, but you have to jump because the only way you find out whether or not your parachute is gonna open is if you jump. Jump.
Speaker 4:I could have stayed really comfortable in the city of Bakersfield. Like I said, I was very successful in radio back there.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:I was being simulcast all throughout Central California. Everything was good, but I was like, I wanna be in Los Angeles. I've always wanted to be
Speaker 3:here. Mhmm.
Speaker 4:This is the entertainment capital of the world. This is the center of black people, I think, in this city. Most creative ideas come from the the black community here in Los Angeles in the world, I think. So I wanted to be here. Has it been tough?
Speaker 4:It's been tough. It's been really tough. But every month, I like to think that I get better and I'm moving in the right direction.
Speaker 3:And you are. And you are. I'm seeing you everywhere. A lot of people are asking you to be their emcee now.
Speaker 4:Yeah. My phone is blowing up right now. I can't deny.
Speaker 3:And how do you manage that? Just kind of like gauge what's best for your career or or just who you have partnerships with?
Speaker 4:Yes. Yeah. Yes and yes. And also I've never charged the church a dime. I don't charge churches.
Speaker 4:I don't charge youth groups. Anybody that I feel is empowering us as a community, I'm not gonna charge you a dime to come out and do
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:But I always look engaged on whether or not it's good for my brand, my business, and also my reputation. I'll I'll give you this short example. A weed spot hit me up.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 4:A weed spot hit me up, and they just wanted me to come out and do one of my social promos, do one of my bolster black business tour
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:Events there. And I said, no.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 4:And they were willing to pay the money. You know what I'm saying? They were not black owned, but they were willing to pay the money. And I said, no. And they were like, wow.
Speaker 4:We didn't expect you to say no. I said, no disrespect. I don't smoke weed. And I said, I am the wrong person for people that know me. They know that I do not smoke weed.
Speaker 3:So if it's something that you couldn't, like, personally endorse or what have you, then it wasn't good for you.
Speaker 4:And my kids are watching.
Speaker 3:Okay. Alright.
Speaker 4:That's most important thing.
Speaker 3:Good stuff. Alright. We got one more. Coming back again with some more with mister Danny Morrison. This is the block power hour with Sarah Harris.
Speaker 5:This is the block power hour hour.
Speaker 3:Welcome back to the block power hour. I'm your host again. This is Sarah Harris, and we have our guest today, mister Danny Morrison. In the spot. In the spot.
Speaker 3:In the spot. I usually don't do this, but I'm a plug myself. Follow me at Sarah Harris CEO on Instagram,
Speaker 4:Facebook, and on
Speaker 3:underscore stock.
Speaker 4:I forgot your underscore.
Speaker 3:Okay. Instagram made me do it. Sarah Harris CEO underscore.
Speaker 4:I love that you, finally broke out and did that page. Don't get me wrong. BBA is important than what you do for the BBA. We lock you for it, but you got
Speaker 3:you got It was about time. There's there's a lot more things that are happening and everything that I couldn't just post on the BBA or whatever, so I had to do my own. But yes. So follow Sarah Harris CEO underscore.
Speaker 4:Yeah, man. And find out you talk about you think I'm working? Sarah is everywhere. She's like the Kamala Harris of LA.
Speaker 6:I'm telling you right now. She out there doing it.
Speaker 3:Working it. Working it. But that's what we do. We're in the community doing it. And having said such, the Black Business Association, this show is presented by our media division, which is Elevate Media Collective.
Speaker 3:And in that, we are so glad and honored to have mister Danny Morrison as part of the collective.
Speaker 4:It was an honor and a privilege of me and you and mister Ilya Daley. I mean, we got a strong, strong team. I mean, you're talking about some brains in the room and more importantly, some experience in the room. That's why we can get it done so effectively. So, yeah, it's an honor to be a part of that group.
Speaker 3:A whole lot more information is coming on that as we continue to build out the collective, but it is a way of continuing to unify voice and uplifting and working through that collective action. That's one of the reasons why I'm really glad to have you here today, Danny. Yeah. So we've had a great conversation in terms of your beginnings and your journey to Los Angeles and also about some advice that you give to other entrepreneurs, but I wanna know about what's what's the plans for Danny Morrison Media.
Speaker 4:There's a lot. I got some opportunities in front of me. I I'm I already told you about the new show with California Community Colleges, but I got
Speaker 3:some opportunities. A little bit into that.
Speaker 4:The On the Roadshow, it's just a dream come true. I just feel somewhere and Ilya and I talk about this sometimes. As much as I do, as many platforms that I'm involved with, a lot of the content that I put out, I got a lot going on.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:But I still don't have my the epicenter of everything that I do.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 4:Like, where's my landing spot for what I do? Mhmm. I haven't really done that yet. K. I think that's coming.
Speaker 4:Like, what is the platform that I'm associated with that is synonymous with me here in Los Angeles? That hasn't happened yet. I got some opportunities in front of me that I'm talking to some people. Mhmm. We'll see whether or not that happens.
Speaker 4:I do love everything else that's going on with me.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:But I'm still fashioning what is ground zero for Danny Morrison Media and also me as a brand and a business here in Los Angeles.
Speaker 3:Well, kind of speak to that because everybody has a season and things come together. Kind of give your assessment or tell people how you kind of handle where things are starting to come together. They're not quite there, but you know it, you see it, and it's on the horizon. How do you kinda tell somebody how to deal with that, and how are you dealing
Speaker 4:with that? Well, number one, I'm a man of faith. Let's start that.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 4:I'm a I'm about God, staying in front of God and just staying prayed up and asking him to deliver what he feels where I need to be and what I need to be doing. That's number one. Number two is you have to trust the people that are around you. I've been lied to so many times here in Los Angeles. There's one thing that was really consistent when people say, when you get there, there's gonna be a whole lot of fake.
Speaker 4:And that is the truth. There's a whole lot of artificiality in this city. But there's a whole lot of real. So the real people that are in my circle, who are in this room as well
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:I know who I can trust. I know who I can lean on, and I would come to these people for advice on whether or not I should take that leap. As I navigate through what's going on here in Los Angeles with me
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:God willing, that platform that I believe will be that platform will bring it all together. You guys see me on socials. I got 20 things going on right now.
Speaker 3:Yes. You do.
Speaker 4:A lot of them are paid things. A lot of them are not. But I always people reach out to me all the time. Literally every Monday morning, if I turn on my my phone, my emails are just bombarded with people saying, Danny, can you come through this? Danny, are you interested in this?
Speaker 4:Danny, will you be the brand manager for this? I'm just shutting people down left and right. I'm still waiting for that one thing to where I go, there it is.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 4:That is where I'm supposed to be.
Speaker 3:Well, that's interesting. Looking for that one thing that really just kind of centralizes you and what you're doing, and then you can like spread from there.
Speaker 4:You kind of know what the one thing I
Speaker 3:kind of know. Can show it could be,
Speaker 4:but we'll see how it goes.
Speaker 3:Okay. Good stuff. Good stuff. So I usually kind of ask a couple of things, like, call it a block fire. Fire.
Speaker 3:Yeah. Just kind of a rapid thing where I just kinda wanna know some things about you just from me saying one particular thing, just kinda went on top of your head.
Speaker 4:Let's do it.
Speaker 3:So I wanna know the power of media is
Speaker 4:More important and more dangerous than we think. I think that we have a responsibility in media, especially right now in the political climate that we're in. The power of media is very, very important, and it is up to us, especially to the people that slip through the cracks a lot of the time. I think it's very important that we bring the necessary information to the populace the way in which that we need to instead of kowtowing to certain groups, instead of holding our tongue at certain times.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:I am all about leading with my chest and bringing the necessary information to my people. Sometimes it's painful. Sometimes you might even take some lumps from delivering that information, but I don't care.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:I'm always going to speak the truth. I'm always about truth to power. Yep. And I think the power of media is here in 2026 and beyond.
Speaker 3:It's so important because it's what people listen to and you get a lot of people that follow you and sometimes you don't even realize that people are really paying attention to what you say and do. Mhmm. So it's so important. Okay. So if you could collaborate with anyone next, who or what would it be?
Speaker 4:Well, Janet Jackson has been my question.
Speaker 3:What? What?
Speaker 4:I collaborate with Jen all day. You know
Speaker 3:I'm saying?
Speaker 4:Collaborate on a marriage and a baby. Well, half on a baby, but that's a different conversation. Collaborate.
Speaker 3:Any kind of north star that you've been kinda looking to?
Speaker 4:The people in this room I already collaborate with. Who's the queen with
Speaker 3:the What's a wish list kind of a thing?
Speaker 4:Who's the queen of the million the million, advocate? And and we went
Speaker 3:to her conference Oh, Arlen
Speaker 4:Arlen Hamilton is the truth.
Speaker 3:She's amazing.
Speaker 4:I love what she does.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 4:I love what Issa Rae is doing.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:There's a number of people that are about that life, And I wanna work with people that genuinely love and care for black people.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 4:And understand that black business can get it done. So those are people like like Arlen Hamilton. Yeah. For sure.
Speaker 3:Alright. And one word that describes your journey to Los Angeles.
Speaker 4:Enlightening. Enlightening. It's been enlightening. Okay. It's been exciting, enlightening.
Speaker 4:How many other e words can I come up with? Egregious. Sometime a different conversation. But, yeah, it's been enlightening. Like I said, when I came here, was like, oh my god.
Speaker 4:Los Angeles. And it was kind of I don't get intimidated, but coming to Los Angeles was intimidating to me. I really didn't know how it was gonna go. And then I ran across a gentleman named Ilya Daley Oh my.
Speaker 3:Who you being talked up a lot today.
Speaker 4:He's he's he's my dude. And, you know, when when I saw that there are genuine people here in this city Mhmm. That get me and also understand the plight that I'm on, and he's on the same journey as I am, I think that at the end of the day, when we do finally get to the mountaintop, we're at the pinnacle of where we wanna be. I think that the three people in this room will be standing side by side.
Speaker 3:Oh, most definitely.
Speaker 4:I honestly believe that.
Speaker 3:Most definitely. So? Believe in the power of connection and partnership and alignment. And when you know that that's there, it's it's real. Right?
Speaker 4:Yeah. And you're not by yourself. For the people that are listening, you are never by yourself. I'm not talking about just God.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:I'm talking about God. But I'm I'm telling you as far as people are concerned, sometimes in Los Angeles, it can be really harrowing to think that, oh my god. My bills are due. This business is not popping the way that I want. I'm here to tell you, you were not by yourself out there.
Speaker 4:Reach out. Bbala.org is the spot to go to. There are people that are here that will help you get to where you need to go and at the same time, give you all the information that you need to get there. So trust me. You're not by yourself.
Speaker 3:Okay. I kinda cut you off in terms of any upcoming projects or something really that you're working on besides the one that I I know about. But
Speaker 4:Well, I got something bubbling right now. We'll we'll see. I will say this. By the end of twenty twenty six, I'm I'm pretty sure that the things that I have bubbling
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:Will be synonymous with my name in a city. If everything goes according to plan Mhmm. Everything will be done to where you guys will go. When my name is mentioned in this city, they will say, oh, that's the guy that dot dot dot. I mean, right now, people know me for bolster black LA.
Speaker 4:Mhmm. A lot of people know me for the bun on the back of my head right now, which happened at the movies the other day. I was busting up. I knew it was you because of your. So, yeah, that's me.
Speaker 3:Well, this also speaks to your legacy. So real quick, as we begin to close out, what's legacy to you?
Speaker 4:God, it's so funny that you're asking this question, and I'll keep it brief. I had a emotional conversation with my children recently.
Speaker 3:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:And I don't wanna get too far into details. I almost died a few years ago Mhmm. With an accident that happened at a home, and you know about that. And I told them had I died that day, my platform dies with me. I don't think that I've done my due diligence to build a brand and a business that is self sustaining with or without me.
Speaker 4:Legacy is about building something that will continue to thrive even when you're not there. I don't think that I've done that yet. If I die today, Bolster Black L. A. Probably dies with me.
Speaker 3:Right. I believe that wholeheartedly. One of the things that the Black Business Association is about is about legacy and succession planning.
Speaker 4:Yes.
Speaker 3:And so that therefore the businesses don't die with the founder.
Speaker 4:Correct.
Speaker 3:So so important. So I thank you for bringing that up because it's very important. We wanna see more businesses to continue to thrive and continue on. This has been an amazing conversation, Danny.
Speaker 4:Oh, fantastic.
Speaker 3:Believe it's over.
Speaker 4:I just couldn't wait. I couldn't I said I can't wait to talk to Sarah. It's gonna be fantastic.
Speaker 3:Real quick. Give him your handles.
Speaker 4:Holla at your boy at Danny Mo Show. Holla at your boy. I would love to work with you. I'd work in concert in any way with you as far as hosting, as far as coming out to your business, building content for your business. Even if you just want a conversation, I don't charge.
Speaker 4:Just holler at your boy. I don't charge for the conversation. Everything else is different.
Speaker 3:Holler at Danny Mo show. Alright. This is the block power hour. It's been a pleasure. I'm your host, Sarah Harris.
Speaker 3:Thank you for joining us once again, and come back Mondays, 6PM.
Speaker 2:This is the
Speaker 5:block. Our. Our.
Speaker 2:Our. We talk business, culture, vision, and grind. Opportunities align when the community shines. Dreams get bigger when the people connect. Moving with the purpose and demand and respect.
Speaker 2:Innovation in our blood. Break it when I stride. Win the message never dimming our pride. I this song. I love nachos.
Speaker 1:Loving everything? You might be buzzed. You know what I'd love?
Speaker 2:A ride when it's time to head out.
Speaker 1:If you see a buzz warning sign, call for a ride when it's time to go home. Buzz driving is drunk driving. A message from Nitza and the Ad Council.
