MONDAY MOTIVATION: Money Talks

In 1993, Jay Z and his friend Damon Dash sold his record out of Dash's car.... and well the rest is history! Tyler Perry spent his life savings to make a musical that people did not attend!  He was homeless for a time and spent many months living in cheap motels and his car!   Finally in 1998, he was successful and never looked back! 

What Jay Z and Tyler Perry have in common is that they didn't give up and they also invested in their own dreams, spent their own money to make things happen!  By investing in their dreams both of these men have changed the face of the entertainment industry. Yet, by  having the support of the black community they also have changed the way in which urban culture is viewed by the mainstream!  The only way we can make changes is if we as artist choose to invest in our own projects, but also reach out to our various  communities  to support our projects.

I have invested thousands of dollars in my own productions and some have been very successful ventures and some have lost me money but I still kept/keep going, because I believe in my work, believe in my talent--Believe that I have something very important to offer this world!Lately,  I've been really impressed with the numerous innovative ways that artists are now choosing to invest in themselves and their work, and their dreams. 

My brother, Darren Anthony recently started his own indiegogo campaign to raise money to turn his successful play, Secrets of a Black boy,  into a short film entitled THE REC, with the hopes of eventually making it into a feature.  He is a few thousand dollars away from his dream and I would encourage you to support him!  We need to support artists who are changing the "game." To find out more about THE REC and to support Darren's work check out this video. 

I recently had the pleasure of meeting playwright Katori Hall, one of the few black womyn to have her play on Broadway. Hall shared with me that director Kenny Leon was instrumental in going to the community to raise 3.1 million dollars in order to bring her play to Broadway!! Wow! 

As I'm currently embarking on my own initiatives to raise money for my own production of 'da Kink in Atlanta, I was inspired by Kenny Leon's tenacity to raise such a great sum.  Suddenly, my own efforts to balance 'da Kink budget didn't seem so daunting and I realize I just have to raise the money, one dollar at a time!  

So,  trust me folks in the next few weeks I will be rolling out an initiative to get donors, investors, and supporters on board and yes I will probably be clearing out all my life savings once again to make my dream of bringing 'da Kink to Atlanta happen!  I believe money talks, money changes the game and money changes the way we are able to tell our stories!  I strongly urge you, if you want to see more diverse stories on stage, on television and in the media, it's time you put your money where your mouth is! Let your money talk! Invest in your artists! And also invest in yourself! If your dream is important to you spend your own money as well!

Please also remember to donate to Darren Anthony's production and help him actualize his dream! In the next few weeks I will be using my blog once per week to highlight various artists who need our community support to make their dreams come true! If you have an initiative please feel free to contact me and I will try my best to support it and help you spread the word!  Every penny counts, donate even just $5 and if you've got it, donate MORE!!! Let your money talk!