[0:00] 899 KM OJ the people station. What's up

[0:03] Twin Cities? It's your girl Glam Life

[0:04] Kim and of course today is Minneapolis

[0:07] 360 with one of my favoriteest people in

[0:10] the whole wide Minnesota and beyond.

[0:13] What's up Anthony Taylor?

[0:14] I love when you say that though. I just

[0:16] feel good. You know it's always

[0:17] reciprocated cuz you always one of my

[0:19] favorite people of all time. You know

[0:21] it's been almost eight years since we've

[0:23] been doing this show.

[0:24] Yeah. Can you believe it's been that

[0:25] long?

[0:26] Long time. Yeah. Wow. You know what's

[0:28] interesting about uh how we get down on

[0:30] this show? It's just so easy with us.

[0:32] You know what I'm saying? It is. And

[0:34] it's information for people and you

[0:35] know, it's just a it's a vibe and you

[0:38] vibe and we do have great information

[0:40] that everybody that tunes in to Camoj

[0:44] need to hear about. That's right.

[0:45] And that they need to share.

[0:46] That's what's up. Yeah. Absolutely.

[0:47] Sharing is caring.

[0:48] Sharing is caring and knowledge is

[0:50] power, right? So that is very true.

[0:51] You definitely have to be able to uh

[0:53] share what you know with the people you

[0:55] love, your community. And that's a

[0:57] beautiful thing. That's why we here on

[0:58] this earth.

[0:58] That's why we are here. And that's what

[1:00] we do, right? That's what we do.

[1:02] Absolutely. And it's always a good time.

[1:03] Always a good time. And it's always

[1:05] always my pleasure, y'all, to be with

[1:07] you every second and fourth Wednesday of

[1:10] the month. My name is Oh, the month is

[1:12] And it's almost Well, we ain't I was

[1:15] going too fast.

[1:15] I know. We ain't going there, but

[1:17] too fast.

[1:17] I was going I was going to jinx it, but

[1:19] it's not going to happen, y'all.

[1:21] No.

[1:21] Yeah. So, you know, and it's beautiful.

[1:23] So, this is Minneapolis 360. I'm your

[1:26] host, Anthony Taylor from the city of

[1:28] Minneapolis, riding shotgun always with

[1:30] Glam Life Kim. My pleasure always to be

[1:33] here in studio. Uh, when we talk about a

[1:35] vibe, y'all, it's real. So, a lot of us

[1:37] have not had the opportunity to come

[1:39] into the studio, but if you ever have a

[1:41] chance, the vibe is just really dope.

[1:43] Yeah. Swing back.

[1:44] Yeah. I come in and I meet a new friend.

[1:46] You know what I'm saying? Like, it's

[1:48] it's

[1:48] Marvin is in the building. But he got

[1:51] but he got that 76ers cap. So that's

[1:53] that's in question.

[1:54] Uh

[1:55] oh. Little questionable. You look

[1:56] questionable.

[1:59] Hey y'all. Today is one of my favorite

[2:01] times of the year to talk about uh this

[2:04] show. We are talking about Black

[2:05] Business Week.

[2:07] Yes.

[2:07] Happening upcoming.

[2:08] How many years has this been now?

[2:09] This is five. Wow.

[2:10] This is five for Black Business Week.

[2:12] Wow. It's beautiful.

[2:14] It's a beautiful thing. Should we get

[2:15] into it, Kim?

[2:15] Let's get into it. I'm ready. Let's go.

[2:17] You know, one of the things about it is

[2:19] that we can always kind of spotlight

[2:20] entrepreneurs in our community,

[2:22] celebrate Black Business Week, being

[2:24] able to really uh throw a lot of events

[2:26] the city of Minneapolis has been doing.

[2:28] You can support your black

[2:29] entrepreneurs, people in the city that's

[2:32] doing work to ser celebrating some of

[2:34] the real good cultural districts and the

[2:36] shops and the chefs and everything else.

[2:38] I mean, it's been five years,

[2:39] Minneapolis, and if you've seen the last

[2:42] couple, it just gets better and better

[2:44] every time. And I think this year what

[2:45] what's really important that I want to

[2:48] know that you to know is that it's going

[2:50] to be even bigger and beautiful again

[2:51] this year. And I' I've got people Ken is

[2:53] going to come on and it's going to

[2:54] really tell us all about Black Business

[2:56] Weeks. They have been uh a big part of

[2:59] it. Uh and I think it's important. So I

[3:01] want to shout them out. Bring them Yeah.

[3:03] Bring them on the air. I want to

[3:04] introduce D.A. Sadir, senior policy aid

[3:07] to council member Andrea Jenkins and

[3:09] Chef I want to be clear. Chef Lelle

[3:12] Cunningham, owner, Healthy Roots

[3:14] Institute in the City Food Studio.

[3:17] What's up, y'all? Welcome to Minneapolis

[3:19] 360.

[3:19] Hey,

[3:22] I love it for having us.

[3:25] Absolutely. And and and I love y'all

[3:27] being here. So, we going to jump into

[3:28] it. This a 30-minute show and we already

[3:30] down eight minutes. So, Da, let's go.

[3:33] Tell us what you do uh for the city of

[3:34] Minneapolis.

[3:37] Yes, sir. Um, so again, Deepa Sardar.

[3:40] I'm a policy aid in the W 8 office of

[3:42] council member Andrea Jenkins. Shout out

[3:45] to council member Jenkins.

[3:46] Um, and everyone in the W 8. Yeah. Um,

[3:50] so I've been serving the communities of

[3:52] the eighth ward for over a decade and

[3:55] I'm so excited that Black Business Week

[3:57] is happening at George Floyd Square this

[3:59] year. Um,

[4:01] yeah, it's an area that's important and

[4:03] sacred for so many reasons. Um, of

[4:05] course, I'd be remiss not to say the

[4:07] murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis

[4:09] police officers is of course sustained

[4:11] in our city and has impacted um what

[4:14] happens there in some some deeply

[4:16] challenging and uh yet meaningful and

[4:18] beautiful ways and and uh I just really

[4:21] love that there's a strong community

[4:23] there and also some amazing businesses.

[4:25] Um, but I've been a part of some really

[4:27] important work, I'd say, over the years

[4:29] to preserve the rich African-American

[4:31] history of the Southside in Ward 8. And,

[4:35] um, that's been done through, uh, local

[4:37] historic designation projects, through

[4:39] walking tours, um, through small area

[4:43] plans, you know, where I get to convene,

[4:46] help convene community around the work.

[4:49] Um, and I've just been really blessed to

[4:51] be in partnership with people and elders

[4:55] in the community who've been doing the

[4:56] work way longer than I have. Um, but 38

[4:59] Street has been central to a lot of that

[5:01] uh, really important history.

[5:02] Absolutely. 100%. Chef Lelle, introduce

[5:06] yourself.

[5:08] Yeah, Chef Lelle here. Thank you so much

[5:10] again for having me. I'm a local chef in

[5:13] the Twin Cities and entrepreneur. I feel

[5:16] like I carry that title, chef, and it's

[5:19] real glamorous, but like the real inside

[5:21] of me is is entrepreneur and business

[5:23] owner. I own City Food Studio, which is

[5:26] a shared kitchen right in on 38th in

[5:29] Chicago, also known as George Floyd

[5:31] Square. Um, and we rent space to food

[5:35] businesses and do incubation for uh

[5:38] people in the food space who want to,

[5:40] you know, be entrepreneurs. And then I

[5:42] also have a company called Healthy

[5:44] Institute where we provide education

[5:46] across the food space from cooking

[5:48] workshops to culinary workforce

[5:51] development to food business development

[5:53] training um and and consulting. And so

[5:57] really excited about this opportunity to

[6:00] host the kickoff event for Black

[6:02] Business Week in um this historically,

[6:05] you know, uh black uh uh and and right

[6:09] now it has a very important space right

[6:12] on 38th in Chicago, you know, where uh

[6:15] the murder of George Floyd took place 5

[6:18] years ago. And um and in spite of that,

[6:21] there's many businesses that are there

[6:24] that are um wanting to thrive um and

[6:27] have had some challenges, you know,

[6:29] since that has happened. Um and so we

[6:32] really want this to be an opportunity

[6:34] for the community to start coming back

[6:36] into the space in an intentional way and

[6:39] engaging with us and understanding that

[6:41] this is a significant corridor for all

[6:43] the things that have happened. Um but

[6:46] also it's very significant. There are at

[6:48] least a dozen blackowned businesses and

[6:52] properties that are concentrated in this

[6:54] space. And I don't know where else that

[6:56] exists in the Twin Cities when it comes

[6:58] to specifically AfricanAmerican you know

[7:02] descendants of enslaved ancestors that

[7:05] um you know have been socially and

[7:08] economically disadvantaged for you know

[7:11] many many many um you know generations.

[7:14] And so to really think about this space

[7:18] and just the legacy of the the 38th

[7:21] Street corridor there and the black

[7:24] community, the black business community,

[7:26] um and and just black community that was

[7:29] thriving on 38th and 4th and you know

[7:32] all of that development to Bethany

[7:34] Community Center, the c all the

[7:36] different um neighborhood organizations

[7:38] that basically kind of come together on

[7:40] that corner of 38th in Chicago. And so

[7:43] it's just a really important not only

[7:46] like time space there's a lot that's

[7:49] coming together. Um and the vision that

[7:51] I had behind this has to do with you

[7:53] know another collaboration and

[7:54] communities of practice um event that

[7:57] we're planning with our cohort with some

[7:59] United Way collaborative community

[8:01] development work and so you know I'm

[8:03] just excited about that. I know I kind

[8:05] of went on so I'll stop there. I know

[8:07] you got some questions. Yeah, you you

[8:09] you could sis and I appreciate it both

[8:11] you and and and da one of the things

[8:12] just real quick before I turn it over

[8:14] you to you D but like there's so much

[8:15] significance around that area and we can

[8:18] a lot of people who don't know just want

[8:20] to talk about the square right like the

[8:21] square and what happened with the murder

[8:23] of George Floyd but there's always been

[8:25] some history in that area and I know uh

[8:28] council member Jenkins has been heavily

[8:30] involved and da you know uh cuz you've

[8:32] been side by side with her there's so

[8:34] much more to that and I'm glad that that

[8:36] things are happening there And when we

[8:38] talk about Black Business Week, Diva,

[8:40] like this is the fifth year and I'd love

[8:42] for you to talk more about just exactly

[8:44] what is Black Business Week.

[8:48] Yeah, thank you so much. It is the fifth

[8:50] annual um initiative for Black Business

[8:54] Week and uh it's happening July 24th

[8:57] through July 31st. And so the city of

[9:00] Minneapolis really in order to um help

[9:03] launch the National Black Business Month

[9:05] of August has created something unique

[9:08] and special in Minneapolis with a

[9:10] week-long um program. And so people can

[9:14] join the many events and celebrate Black

[9:16] Business Week. Um there are a lot of um

[9:21] events throughout the week. So business

[9:22] owners and entrepreneurs can learn more

[9:24] about resources and support, network

[9:27] with other businesses, city staff and

[9:29] business organizations, visit and

[9:32] celebrate uh the commercial districts in

[9:34] Minneapolis, and also shop and learn

[9:38] about the many growing blackowned

[9:40] businesses that we have right here in

[9:42] our local communities.

[9:44] Nice.

[9:44] Yeah, that's that's a that's a a

[9:46] beautiful thing. And and one of the

[9:47] things um I I I know when I ask this

[9:51] question don't don't like clown me right

[9:53] because I want people to understand just

[9:55] the the importance of it. So you know

[9:58] diva just talk about just why is this

[10:00] important to have black business lead

[10:04] oh gosh it's um so important and I've

[10:07] I've already heard um Michelle touch on

[10:09] it. I've heard you touch on it. Um but

[10:12] we know that the the inequities are deep

[10:15] and they're persistent. you know, it's

[10:17] it's beyond um what's happening right

[10:20] now with our current federal

[10:21] administration. You know, it's both and

[10:23] it's also so deep. And so um it's a must

[10:26] that we support um that we demand

[10:29] ongoing investment um that we work

[10:32] collaborative collaboratively across

[10:34] community across um jurisdiction to

[10:37] really support and um give investment

[10:41] where investment is due.

[10:42] Yeah, absolutely. Lelle, uh, Chef Lelle,

[10:45] I want to make sure I honor you. Like,

[10:47] you doing the the the kickoff event,

[10:49] right? First of all, I've tasted your

[10:50] food.

[10:50] Yes.

[10:51] It It's just like, man, like

[10:54] it's good, bro.

[10:55] Oh, man. It's so It's so good. I' I've

[10:58] been lucky to to have your food a few

[11:00] times and I always enjoy it. But you're

[11:02] you're hosting this kickoff uh event.

[11:04] Just tell us what that what's that's

[11:05] going to be like.

[11:07] Yeah, absolutely. And you know, as I

[11:10] mentioned, this is a part of another

[11:12] event that we are planning with our

[11:14] communities of practice. Um, it's a uh

[11:17] basically a cohort of grant recipients

[11:19] with United Way. And so we're having

[11:20] some morning events and then it's going

[11:22] to culminate into us doing a walking

[11:24] tour from Bethany up 38th Street to

[11:29] Chicago and then really activating our

[11:33] kickoff event for Black Business Week.

[11:35] And we know, you know, the importance,

[11:37] you already spoke about the space with

[11:39] the murder of George Floyd and a lot has

[11:42] happened five years has passed and we

[11:44] really, it's really time to start to

[11:46] think about where we're going in the

[11:49] future and people have been thinking

[11:50] about that and I think this kick this

[11:52] this kickoff event is the opportunity

[11:55] for us to really be a catalyst to really

[11:57] showcase black economic resilience,

[12:00] creativity, and how we collaborate and

[12:02] what's really going on in this space. um

[12:05] you know optically I think there's a

[12:07] view of the space that needs to change

[12:09] right the narrative the way it the how

[12:12] how why and how people come into the

[12:14] space we come to memorialize to to show

[12:17] to give respect and show honor to what

[12:19] happened to George Floyd in that space

[12:22] and we want this space to to also be

[12:26] what it is which is celebrating the

[12:28] black businesses that are there and

[12:30] really more than just a memorial of

[12:33] something tragic that happened, but

[12:35] really a place that we can come and

[12:37] really see revitalization and the life

[12:40] of what the blackowned businesses there.

[12:43] And and it's not just blackowned

[12:44] businesses. It's actually a diverse

[12:46] community with that represents many

[12:48] ethnicities across the board. But of

[12:50] course, we're talking about the

[12:52] importance of of black business and and

[12:55] this particular kickoff. So, we will

[12:57] start at about 2 o'clock when we walk

[12:59] up. Planning to have some different

[13:02] activations in the space starting at I

[13:04] think about 2 to 4:30. We're going to

[13:07] have three different rotations where

[13:09] people are going to be able to to tour

[13:11] the entire corridor and really

[13:13] understand some of those historic

[13:15] aspects, who's there now, what the

[13:17] importance and significance of the

[13:19] businesses there, and what the support

[13:21] that's really needed in the space. Um,

[13:23] and then we're also going to there's

[13:25] actually three art galleries there and a

[13:27] fighter art center. So, there will be a

[13:29] art crawl and then some engagement with

[13:31] those artists and art galleries. We're

[13:33] even planning an artist talk at some

[13:35] point later in the agenda. Um, and then

[13:37] we're going to have an activation at the

[13:39] kitchen where we'll be doing some u

[13:42] packaged meals that'll be going over to

[13:44] Sebastian so people can volunteer and

[13:45] participate in that activity. And then

[13:48] we're going to be having food vendors uh

[13:50] those vendors that are throughout the

[13:52] that um the corridor there, Just Turkey

[13:56] Smoking the Pit, Pota Coffee, as well as

[13:59] the entrepreneurs and businesses that

[14:00] work out of City Food studio. So, we're

[14:03] planning to have kind of a sampling

[14:04] tasting and allow those entrepreneurs to

[14:07] also, you know, sell their sell their

[14:09] goods. Um we're planning to give away

[14:11] produce. There's going to be a huge

[14:12] activation around food ultimately in the

[14:15] space. And so, um, and then from there,

[14:17] once those activations and kind of

[14:19] rotations happen, around 4:30, we'll

[14:22] gather in the square, which is actually

[14:24] a space inside of the building there

[14:26] that PJ Hill owns, and we'll meet there

[14:29] for a press conference. the mayor,

[14:31] council member Jenkins, and I think

[14:33] another council member, um, and correct

[14:36] me, Diva, um, if you know that council

[14:38] member, I know it was mentioned in

[14:40] passing, but a few council members, the

[14:42] mayor are going to

[14:44] council member Payne. Yes. Um,

[14:48] so those uh, we'll have that uh, press

[14:50] conference uh, and we also are planning

[14:53] to have a panel of the black business

[14:56] owners there. um as well as uh some

[15:00] other activities afterwards uh that

[15:02] we're all planning. Now, I want to give

[15:03] it all away. I want to keep some of it a

[15:06] little bit of a surprise, but it's going

[15:08] to be a great and beautiful day, and we

[15:10] really want the community to come out

[15:11] and support us. The Black Business

[15:13] Coalition of 38th in Chicago will be

[15:16] also uh reading our press release about

[15:19] our collaboration and the vision that we

[15:22] see for the space and what we want and

[15:24] how we want to really this is our first

[15:27] of many opportunities to invite the

[15:29] community back into the space for um

[15:33] more community building, right? and and

[15:35] really reaching beyond um you know what

[15:39] has been happening over the last five

[15:41] years and really trying to grow and open

[15:42] the space up to be the corridor that

[15:45] it's meant to be and to really support

[15:47] the businesses that are there that that

[15:50] really have suffered for the last five

[15:52] years um you know because of the

[15:54] different circumstances and and the

[15:56] access and and some of just honestly the

[15:58] perception of the space. And so those

[16:00] businesses are eager and ready and

[16:02] willing and want the community to come

[16:04] out and join us um on that day. And then

[16:07] ongoing like we want to continue to

[16:09] build those relationships.

[16:11] Minneapolis, we are talking about Black

[16:13] Business Week coming up. Like there was

[16:15] so many good stuff that that both Diva

[16:17] and uh Lelle had dropped and and and

[16:20] just Lelle just real quick before I go

[16:22] to D.A. like you're partnering with the

[16:23] people who are in that space. Like I

[16:25] love the fact that I see Kand do. I love

[16:28] the fact that I see Agape and Sebast

[16:31] like you know you can't have these

[16:32] events without these I call them OG's

[16:35] right being a part of that. So to me, I

[16:37] think that's a a beautiful thing

[16:40] and and and one of the things that I

[16:41] think is is really important, right? Is

[16:43] that sometimes we have to be able to

[16:46] think in the future, right? And how do

[16:47] we keep our momentum up and what's next,

[16:50] right?

[16:50] And I think that's super important and

[16:52] and diva like and and and I want both of

[16:55] you guys to to answer this question is

[16:58] like how can black business owners keep

[17:00] up the momentum, right? So the after

[17:02] these celebrations that happen, we get

[17:04] hundreds and thousands of people coming.

[17:06] Like what's the the key to really keep

[17:08] connected and get resources and people

[17:10] to participate and and spend some money

[17:13] with these black businesses? I'll go

[17:14] with you first, Div.A.

[17:17] Yeah. Well, you know, the kickoff event

[17:20] and the other events throughout Black

[17:21] Business Week are a great opportunity to

[17:24] get connected. If you know, you're just

[17:26] interested or whether you're fully

[17:28] immersed in the business community,

[17:30] whatever it is, um you can still make

[17:32] new connections. Um you can get

[17:34] connected to organizations that um serve

[17:38] business um owners and entrepreneurs.

[17:41] So, get connected with them, get their

[17:43] information, sign up for their updates.

[17:45] A lot of them are administering programs

[17:48] and they have um the resources specific

[17:51] for growing blackowned business. Um sign

[17:54] up for the city's target target market

[17:57] program if you are a business owner um

[18:00] and learn about what the city's small

[18:02] business team um offers and the

[18:04] resources available. Um I would say go

[18:07] to the city website and search for

[18:09] business assistance. Um you'll find a

[18:13] lot of different links there. There's uh

[18:14] one that will take you to a newsletter

[18:16] called plan launch grow and that's all

[18:19] about the important and amazing work

[18:21] that the small business team does at the

[18:22] city. So those are a few ways.

[18:24] Absolutely. And and and Chef Michelle

[18:26] just turn it over to you like what

[18:28] what's the what's the key to keep

[18:29] momentum up for uh black business

[18:31] owners?

[18:33] Absolutely. I think it's to stay engaged

[18:36] to keep showing up. I mean for the black

[18:39] business owners, we really need to be

[18:41] building that relationship with our

[18:43] community. We need to be having to me

[18:46] like I'm a entrepreneur. I have a

[18:48] business. I'm I'm here to make money

[18:50] obviously, but like everything I do, if

[18:52] you know me, I have a mission behind

[18:54] what I do. And I think that that is

[18:56] something that's important especially in

[18:58] the black community that like there's we

[19:01] a lot of us want to have like a meaning

[19:02] behind what I what we do and really

[19:05] connecting with other people that are

[19:07] like-minded in our community and how do

[19:09] we build that unification together? How

[19:11] do we support each other beyond this is

[19:14] you know how do we show up for each

[19:15] other? What do you have going on? Let's

[19:17] get in the same room and talk. You know

[19:19] you mentioned this the the can do and

[19:22] Sebastian. you know, Sebastian is like

[19:23] the oldest, you know, historic black

[19:26] community center in our city and can do

[19:30] and that the relationship between them

[19:32] and what we've been building together

[19:34] and now spreading that relationship out

[19:37] into this 38th in Chicago business

[19:39] coalition. Like if you really sat and

[19:41] see how we sit together and we hold

[19:43] space faith together. Like there's

[19:45] there's there's hard conversations,

[19:47] there's arguments, there's but there's

[19:49] like a beauty. There's a there's a

[19:50] there's like this community where we're

[19:52] holding each other up. That is what we

[19:55] need to be successful. We need to be

[19:57] unified. Not just that we're coming to

[20:00] I'm coming to buy your food or you're

[20:02] coming to buy mine, but like how are we

[20:03] sitting down and saying, "Oh, I'm doing

[20:05] this. Oh, I'm doing that." My

[20:07] relationship with Kand do has and

[20:09] Sebastie over the last year of us

[20:11] collaborating together has blossomed

[20:13] into like so many different trajectories

[20:16] that we did not even know that we were

[20:18] doing together when we first applied for

[20:20] that United Way grant and now we're

[20:23] collaborating in all of these ways. I'm

[20:25] literally getting the chills talking

[20:26] about it right now because the the ways

[20:29] that we're able to like grow and to me

[20:31] it's about synergy. Synergy is when two

[20:34] or more people or things or whatever

[20:37] come together to create something

[20:38] greater than they create create

[20:40] individually. And that's what we need to

[20:43] be thinking about and understanding. So

[20:45] often we're pitted against each other

[20:47] and there's a lot of divisiveness and

[20:49] there's so many reasons for us to be

[20:51] divided for whatever reason. Sometimes

[20:53] it might be, oh, your tone wasn't right.

[20:55] You know what I mean? And stuff like

[20:56] that. But we need to be able to move

[20:58] past that type of stuff and understand

[21:00] like this is all a part of our culture

[21:02] and sometimes like that's the way we

[21:04] communicate. But at the end of the day

[21:06] like we got each other's back and we

[21:08] know like all of our intentions are you

[21:10] know that when we have that

[21:12] understanding that we have a similar

[21:14] intention together we can go further

[21:16] together. You know there's that old

[21:18] African proverb that says if you want to

[21:21] go what is it? If you want to go um if

[21:24] you want to go far, go fast or I'm

[21:26] sorry, if you want to go quick, you

[21:28] know, go alone. But if you want to go

[21:29] further, you go together. I think I

[21:32] might have messing that up, but the

[21:33] point is like,

[21:34] yeah, that's important. I think it's

[21:36] very important now, especially with

[21:39] considering how things are going with

[21:41] DEI and just trying to, you know, shy

[21:44] away from that. So just in case these

[21:47] opportunities, you know, aren't

[21:49] available later, you know, that was a

[21:51] great question, Anthony, because how do

[21:53] we keep this going even after?

[21:55] Absolutely. Cuz there's so many attacks

[21:57] on us, right, in our communities, right?

[21:59] And we look at it every day and and you

[22:02] know, Kim, you're an entrepreneur

[22:03] yourself, too. So you understand the way

[22:05] to be connected and how do you work

[22:07] together, right?

[22:08] It's important. It's very important to

[22:10] work together. And like she said, you

[22:11] can get so much more further when you

[22:14] work together than riding solo. And it's

[22:17] like that's like you and I.

[22:18] Yeah. That's the truth. You know, cuz I

[22:20] couldn't do this by myself. You know

[22:21] what I'm saying? So

[22:23] So hey, we got a lot further together.

[22:25] Absolutely.

[22:26] Prime example.

[22:27] Prime example, y'all. In Minneapolis, we

[22:29] are talking about uh Black Business

[22:30] Week. We got about three minutes left.

[22:32] Uh da I know there's a lot more events

[22:34] and thank you chef to shell for for

[22:36] breaking that down because I wish we had

[22:38] more time because I would love to talk

[22:40] more about that and and the thing I

[22:42] think sometimes with some of our

[22:43] processes as a city government is we pit

[22:46] people against each other too right and

[22:48] I think that's always been an issue as

[22:50] well so we have to be able to fight

[22:51] against that too right so diva talk

[22:54] about some of the other events that's

[22:56] happening for black business week

[22:58] yes sir um so there's going to be a

[23:01] variety of events including including

[23:02] panel discussions. There will be

[23:04] wellness and self-care activities,

[23:07] professional development opportunities,

[23:09] and of course, shopping with vendors,

[23:11] shopping with businesses, um learning

[23:13] about not just products, but services

[23:16] and um and um organizations and the rich

[23:21] arts. All of that is incorporated into

[23:23] the week. So on Friday, July 25th, the

[23:26] Rojo Collective is hosting an all day

[23:28] business conference at the MIA the

[23:30] Minneapolis Institute of Arts. On

[23:32] Saturday the 26th, there will be um two

[23:36] fun shopping events on the north side, a

[23:38] street mall at Capri Theater from 10:00

[23:40] a.m. to 6:00 p.m. So that'll have

[23:42] shopping, food, music, just a really fun

[23:45] day hosted by the West Broadway Business

[23:47] Area Coalition, which has also been a

[23:49] really important partner with Black

[23:51] Business Week. So those authentic

[23:52] partnerships that you talk about,

[23:54] they're they're so important for

[23:56] reaching uh community and I just love

[23:58] the Capri Theater. Love what they're

[24:00] doing. They've continued to grow and

[24:01] expand. Um but uh also on the 26th from

[24:06] 1 to 4 p.m. Weber Camden Neighborhood

[24:09] Organization is hosting the Black

[24:10] Business Expo at the North Side

[24:12] Epicenter. And that's a vibrant uh

[24:15] familyfriendly black party uplifting

[24:17] blackowned businesses. And everyone's

[24:19] invited. Um, both events are still

[24:22] accepting vendor applications. You can

[24:24] learn about that and more at www.shop

[24:29] westbroadway.com.

[24:31] Um, and then on July 30th, the Black

[24:33] Business Week Summit will take place at

[24:34] the Midtown Global Market in South

[24:37] Minneapolis from 1 to 5. And um, the

[24:40] Neighborhood Development Center has

[24:41] planned um, the activities for the day.

[24:44] There will be an opportunity to get your

[24:46] head shot, wellness workshops, resource

[24:48] fair, cooking demos, and so much more.

[24:51] Um,

[24:51] I'm doing that cooking demo. Okay.

[24:53] Okay. All right.

[24:54] All right.

[24:56] You'll see me there. You'll see me

[24:58] there.

[24:58] Beautiful.

[24:59] Sorry to interrupt.

[25:00] No, you're you're you're fine. Um, we we

[25:03] probably got to end this segment. I wish

[25:04] I could love to talk to y'all a lot

[25:06] longer. I I love this. And I said that,

[25:08] Kim, in the beginning of this show. It

[25:10] it keeps getting better and better every

[25:13] year. So, and I I was at most of these

[25:15] last year. I know by the Capri when we

[25:17] had that u that street mall. I mean,

[25:19] they got a bouncy house out there. My

[25:21] son was getting busy in the bouncy house

[25:23] like Yeah. It's a beautiful thing. So,

[25:26] Minneapolis Black Business Week uh

[25:28] coming up. I want to thank uh Da and

[25:30] Chef Lelle for being on today. I cannot

[25:32] wait to y'all to come on next year and

[25:34] and talk about uh 2026 Black Business

[25:37] Week. So, appreciate y'all.

[25:39] Thank you for all your effort.

[25:41] Appreciate you. Thank you, Lelle.

[25:43] Absolutely.

[25:44] Thank you. Look forward to seeing y'all

[25:46] there.

[25:46] All right. It's gonna be a lot of fun.

[25:48] It's gonna be a lot of fun. And I love

[25:49] the energy, right? Just the energy that

[25:51] that that I can you can tell from our

[25:54] guest, Kim. And this is going to be a

[25:55] beautiful thing. So,

[25:56] so beautiful. I can't wait.

[25:57] Good to see you.

[25:58] You as well. Always. Of course. We got

[26:02] to get back out to it. Get back to it. I

[26:04] know that

[26:05] into this music. What you want to hear

[26:06] today, bro? I know. Since since Glenn

[26:08] wasn't here, shout out to Glenn. Yeah, I

[26:10] mean unfortunately um you know he had a

[26:12] death in the family. So send send some

[26:13] prayers up.

[26:14] Give prayers to to brother Glenn and his

[26:16] family uh you know when anybody passes.

[26:19] We all feel it even if we're not

[26:21] related. Kim, you know what I'm saying?

[26:24] We do. We we feel that. So

[26:25] yes, send some prayers and safe

[26:27] traveling off for our brother Glenn.

[26:29] That's right.

[26:29] But we do have Marvin in the building

[26:31] filling in for him. And of course Qar

[26:34] Banks I believe is over at Brookdale

[26:35] Health. So he should be coming up next.

[26:38] Yeah. And then don't forget that on July

[26:41] the 18th, it's uh Lovers and Legends.

[26:44] Yes. Featuring Darnell Jones, Kiki

[26:46] White, and Carl Thomas. And that's going

[26:48] down at the Oreium Theater. So be there

[26:50] a B square because KOJ will be in the

[26:53] building.

[26:53] It's going to be some babies made that.

[26:55] Oh my god. It's going to be a whole

[26:56] bunch. You think we It's a whole economy

[27:00] about

[27:02] It's going down, y'all. Keep listening.

[27:04] And we'll be right back.