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Hello and welcome to the
Jeremy Haselwood Show.
This podcast is all about exploring
a wide range of topics that
spark curiosity, build community,
inspire action, and deepen our
understanding of the world around us.
Before we get started, make sure you
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This is the final episode of season three
where we've been shining the spotlight on
women, business owners, the trailblazers,
innovators, and leaders who are redefining
what it means to build with purpose.
Each episode has brought you stories,
strategies, and inspirations straight
from the women who are creating
businesses that make an impact.
This season, we've celebrated and
learned from the powerful voices of
women in business To cap off this final
episode of season three, it's my honor
today to be speaking with the quiet
force in the entertainment industry.
She's a NAACP Image award winner,
Grammy Award winner Lifetime Achievement
Award at the University of Oklahoma.
Winner Con, A-M-P-A-V Festival winner.
She's partnered with several titans in
the industry, including Tyler Perry, will
and Jada, mark Cuban, Chaka Khan, and the
Estates of Nina Simone and Octavia Butler.
She's a writer, director,
composer, creative business
owner and founder of ODX Studio.
She's also gave me my very first
and only internship when I first
moved to Atlanta back in the day.
So it's my honor to bring on the show.
Welcome Nia Hill.
you Jeremy Excited to be here bro Like
you should get props for the monologue
that you just gave Like you should You
should This is what you should be doing
Hey, I, I, Hey.
You had so many things.
I, I appreciate it.
And I was like, there's so much, and
I'm sure I left some accolades out, but,
you know, we can get into all that when
we start talking, that that should be
enough to, to set the table for you.
that gratitude
but I wanna start back.
cause we're both from Oklahoma and I know
we both have our stories of moving from
Oklahoma, but even before that, you're
involved in the entertainment industry.
Take me back to your childhood
and when you first got that
itch to get into entertainment.
Yeah that's good so my childhood I'm a
child of two artists so I want to lead
with that Both my mother and father are
musicians my father's songwriter my mother
played the French horn my father played
the alto sax amazing My mom was in a
group called the with my aunts called The
Three Dimensions of Joy They did classical
gospel back in the day So I think I I
Okay.
that gene early on and I grew up
specifically in A suburb of Oklahoma
City called Dell City Oklahoma And I was
Okay.
my parents met in in high school their
senior year and they were soulmates and
they met in bands I come from a large
family on my mother's side and so it
was really my grandmother that raised
me My mom was 18 right and my uncle had
Okay.
a neighborhood where we were the first
black family in the entire neighborhood
Okay.
up with not much culture
Mm-hmm.
In
Okay.
schooling and outside of
my family and I don't know
Mm-hmm.
I'm being a little facetious here
but who have not been to Oklahoma
it's not the most diverse place
in the world now and it certainly
Yeah.
then so
elementary to junior high through
high school very limited amounts of
interactions with who look like me
early on that I wasn't related to that
had a lot of influence on me When I
finally left and went to the University
of Oklahoma graduated from there
okay.
a little bit about my early childhood
I was always kind of storytelling I
started writing poetry young I started
Mm-hmm.
just creative and artistic in different
ways around music and theater And I would
Yeah.
Giovanni could.
I didn't know what to call it
Nice.
Aware that there
Yeah.
for artists I didn't have
Mm-hmm.
language to describe myself really as
an artist When you're from places like
Yeah.
you if you're kind of smart you get a
job I was gonna be an a an international
lawyer get married have some kids and that
was going to be my life and that would
Right.
a good life It just wasn't the life I was
Yeah.
Yeah, and I can certainly relate to it.
And when you grow up in Oklahoma, it can
be very isolating, like the things that
you see on TV and movies and music just
seems like a world away and not possible.
And I know my experience, and I'm sure
yours too, like when you're in Atlanta,
you're like, you know, the people
doing it or you're making it happen.
So it's just a regular way of life.
But when you're in a city or grow up
in a town where it's more, it's so
far away, it doesn't even seem real.
but it sounds like you kind of grew
up maybe around, you know, at least
some musicians and some people
with entertainment in your family.
it seems like it was a
little bit in your blood
a
and at some point you got this calling,
like, how did you end up in Atlanta?
Like how did you, what made
you decide to go out there?
had traveled to Spain with a couple
of professors really thirsty for
Mm mm.
of the United States and so the
husband and wife professors were
from Spain They agreed to teach me
in a monastery over there in a small
Wow.
De Maria which is in the the city of
Okay.
or there they say
Yeah.
Ra it was the in the
How I,
Ian
yeah.
I went over there I told my
grandmother Who was the first black
woman on the Board of Regents for
the University of Oklahoma hey I
Wow.
do this And she was like okay
Mm-hmm.
And I went and I was there for about
Yeah.
I don't think I lasted a week
because I wasn't fluent at that
point So I was called back and I
was like you know what nevermind
Yeah, yeah.
I'd like to can I just come on
back home cause they were not
Yeah.
Yeah.
Spanish such a
Yeah.
immense respect and
passion for the culture but
yes.
westernized at all So they weren't looking
to accommodate my lack of language skills
at that point I knew a lot of textbook
I could write it but I couldn't speak
it especially with that specific kind
Mm-hmm.
Right, right.
well life is about choices So this
is a choice you made So this is a
Mm-hmm.
get to experience
Right.
Wisdom I was like okay so that
means I'm staying All right So
Yeah.
Yeah
a lesson.
Oh, you stayed.
Okay.
I thought it was like you could, didn't
last a week, so came home, but no, that,
that's, that's not where the story ends.
every day I went to school I was
living in a little in a youth
hostel and I went to this monastery
Wow.
taught me and I stayed
there for I don't know
Hmm.
I was supposed to be there for a couple
of months Then I completely fell into
the culture loved it And then when it was
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
back to the States everybody was like
Atlanta's where it's at And I was like
I don't know anything about Atlanta
upon my return to the United States
this is the nineties Atlanta was
the place that artists were coming
together and building around music and
Mm-hmm.
Was
Yep.
really booming at that time
So I remember coming here
Yep.
A trip for a weekend and
walking into Airport And so
Mm-hmm.
shock in Spain I had a completely
different culture shock in
Atlanta I looked around the
right.
black the pe everybody's black
Now I'm immersed in all the
Right.
And it
Yep.
black people Like it sounds goofy
now like honestly real talk But
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I'm a I'm a kid and The impact
of seeing people who look like me
own things control things build
things impacted me forever And
Yep.
I even subconsciously at that moment
decided you know what I'm gonna do that
I can do that I can build the things I
Yep.
things I can control the things
And more importantly I can
create things reflect the kinds
Yeah.
that I didn't get to
grow up seeing a lot of
yeah.
it's very true.
even though I'm, I'm of a different hue
than you coming to Atlanta from Oklahoma
it was really awesome to see people
of color in roles, their judges, their
doctors, their attorneys and, and we
don't see that in Oklahoma very often.
So it was, in a way, it wasn't a new
world and a world beyond, you know, what,
what I had seen, what I'd grown up with.
But I loved seeing that.
I love seeing the diversity in the
culture in Atlanta, which is why I stayed
as well, So you settled in Atlanta.
this season we're talking
about women business owners.
So walk me through some of the
companies, like what that journey's
been like in entrepreneurship for you.
So the my first company was called the
Solstice Group it was around the concert
booking and the agency while I was
starting that company I was also doing
and learning theater with a regional
company called the Jami they were doing
amazing theater sophisticated ladies and
girls and all this wonderful pieces of
theatrical history colored museum all of
that And that I really worked my way up
as an assistant stage manager to a stage
manager to ultimately producing theater
under the umbrella of the Solstice group
had the booking agency was which was
primarily concerts And I had agents that
booked shows that umbrella And then on
Yep.
hand I had started
Mm-hmm.
At that
Mm-hmm.
I was introduced to a gentleman by the
name of Tyler Perry and he had a couple
of plays that were half written We met
a friend said Hey he's a playwright
and she produces theater You guys
should know talk we ended up setting
Mm-hmm.
and talking about it He had two pieces
He had a piece called Jasmine's Blues
We now know all these years later it
Okay.
a film and a
Yeah.
I Know I've Been Changed
which was more of his
Mm-hmm.
story like his journey his traumas his
healing that that story And they were in
two different circuits of theater So on
the one hand you have I hate to use the
word but they call it legit theater So
you have Broadway style theater which
Okay.
man's blues And I had an affinity
for that kind of theater cause
that's where I was trained
Yeah.
Then you had the what they
called the chitlin circuit kind
of thing the gospel plays And
Mm-hmm.
Early at the time and we certainly
what we weren't the first but yeah
Mm-hmm.
back and forth and we landed on
okay we're gonna do this show
called I know I've been changed
mm-hmm.
the next three years I and my company
and my team raised capital brand
and tour this show which I helped
Yeah.
Yeah.
Retrospect helped finish writing
and wrote some of the songs
Mm-hmm.
about business side of that but
the artist side started to creep
Yeah,
anything that needed to be done
creatively I was able to jump
into that bit as well that
yeah, yeah.
on and we did that for three years
Right,
We lost money and made money
and lost money again And
right.
to hone in on
Yep.
communicate a marketing and
promotions perspective to
the audience in the way that
Yeah.
to receive it Right How to invite
Mm.
this story in a way that they
needed to be invited not what
my palette was So there was
Yeah.
wonderful lessons
right.
to do that I was able to get early on
Yeah.
So is that like rewriting parts of
the script or different scenes, or
the marketing
to do as far as
on the marketing and
the marketing piece?
So my marketing
Gotcha.
Gotcha.
radio spots my TV commercials
looked and felt a little more like
legit theater which does which
works on Broadway for people who
Yeah.
kinds of shows But when you
go to Detroit and St Louis and
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah.
Tennessee South Carolina North Carolina
all through the country that isn't the
kind of theater they're interested in
right It's a different style of theater
Right, right.
Yeah.
materials felt like Broadway shows
and the audience was telling me
It's not that they don't like those
kinds of shows but they wanted a
specific kind of story that they
Yeah.
identify with So that switch it up and
Right, right.
where they
Yeah.
of the kind of materials and the
manner in which I was speaking to
Mm-hmm.
and and sort
Yeah.
Tyler the whole time and he was really
right.
brilliant and prolific around that
his own that he was being branded
Yeah.
A powerful experience and
learning experience until we got
Mm-hmm.
tour
Yeah.
98 and then I know I've been changed
when on on a full tour as opposed
to we were doing what's called
spot dates throughout the country
all right, so you did that and
then the Strange Fruit, that was
kind of at the same time, right?
that played but I'm sorry that
Okay.
coming from the Solstice group As I was
doing that I was approached about creating
a film TV commercial music video company
by two amazing women at the time they
were starting to form it it was April and
mm
Baker And
mm
asked me to come in I was like yeah I'm
really know the film TV game so let me get
into that a little bit on the one hand I
have Tyler and the cast and nsbe LaShon
Pace Pace You know, the, the famous pace.
I have this amazing cast on a national
tour three booking agents under the
Solstice group booking concerts And
then over here now I'm starting this
Mm-hmm.
company a music video
and commercial company
yeah.
brought into the very early
stages of figuring that bit out
yeah.
it was initially called Turkana
which is a nomadic tribe I believe
Okay.
when they brought me in And then
speaking to just my inherent disruption
and need to be irreverent at 25 26 years
old I said I think we should call this
company Strange Fruit because I need
people in Hollywood to remember the blood
Wow.
so yeah part of it was about the
Wow.
and the kind of the way I
Mm-hmm.
create images and I wanted
this company to be branded and
Mm-hmm.
was an homage to the ancestors
yeah.
that they in instilled in me to be able to
Yeah.
in this position to move
Mm-hmm.
forward with a group of other
women Who'd come together to do the
Yeah.
That's amazing.
Thank you Thank you
Yeah.
strange true films So we did
Yeah.
videos for everybody in town Outkast
not I mean between here and New York
I mean in LA were we grew to be a
very big production company and then
Yeah.
Doing a lot of music videos at the
price points that films are done
at if you remember those good music
Wow.
Yeah, yeah, yeah,
independent Independent
yeah.
They don't do that anymore.
The game has changed But um,
yep.
Yep.
The business of film
with a couple of VC guys
Yep.
capitalists that taught me
Okay.
side of the film and television industry
Hmm.
cause it was just really important to
me and I wanna say this to you cause
I know you know this to be true we do
Yeah.
many cultures do well at the show part
of the business at creating the things at
the at being the art and creating the art
Yes.
part
Mm-hmm.
you've gotta get a real understanding
around is the business part of
that show otherwise somebody else
Yep.
always control your art
you will be inherently and
And own it.
you will be inherently
Mm-hmm.
So I wasn't interested
Yeah.
I to build and understand and
currency and the relationship
Mm-hmm.
someone else establishing your value for
you versus you establishing your value for
Right?
Then I said okay
Yes.
I am going to put myself and my team in
a position so that we can be unlimited
infinitely unlimited in terms of our value
Yes.
been my philosophy my whole
career So that year while I was
touring I know I've been changed I put
money up and at that time my former
business partner DeAngela Steed brought
her into the company as Strange Fruit
as well as Tracy we all put up the money
a film called Book of Love which is an
Okay.
romantic comedy with Treach and
Robin Givens and Sally Richardson and
Mm-hmm.
of Love the Definitive
Nice.
Men Are Dogs so romantic comedy
Oh
sent me the script
yeah.
read many scripts so I
read it and I said okay
Mm.
me to give it to Jermaine Dupree
to fund And I said no I think
we're I think we should fund
Yeah.
So
Hmm.
That's dope.
and then went out to
Yeah, yeah.
further learned the business
and how to create that
man, that's so important because the art
is almost like the easy part, and not
to take away from like the vision and
the creative process and everything, but
like you're saying, like we come to the
table with the art, like we can do that.
But knowing the business, like that's
how you sustain for generations.
That's how you can build wealth for you.
Generational wealth,
there's so many stories.
I'm more familiar with the music industry
than film, but just artists now, like
40 years in, still don't own their
masters, And you have groups like an
Organized Noize who threw the door, like
own their masters, like that's so dope.
Like they don't have to wait for it.
But there's really good artists that
are still waiting just to own their
masters and for creatives out there.
Or business owners period, like
mainly creatives 'cause of our
conversation here, but it's like,
learn the business, you know?
That's what I tell the artists.
I still, I'm still, you know, I'm
still out here sometimes Nia, so
I still see some younger artists
and I'm like, learn the business.
You know, read some books about it.
Owe as much as you can.
There's gonna be times where
you have to give and take, give
up something, some, a piece of
ownership maybe for a period of time.
But make sure that there is a, an
end date to when that ownership is.
But don't give it all away.
I think it's amazing what, you did,
and I don't know how you did all this.
You said you were in
your late twenties then.
That's probably how you did it.
that's
Like late twenties with three
different businesses all over.
Like, that's crazy.
You probably slept four
hours a night and that was it
honestly one
if,
and brought up Organized Noize it's about
aligning and so when I did Book of Love
and I we went to Rico Wade and we said
look we are doing this as strange fruit We
Mm.
partner with Organized Noize
to do all the music So a
Yeah,
Yeah, yeah.
all the music for that film
oh, wow.
I didn't know that.
Wow.
so shout out
Okay.
noise Outkast Good mob
yes.
And rest in peace, Rico, man.
a lot of
Yep.
were in music and I was very
intentional about finding an area in
which we weren't typically present
Yeah, yeah.
way behind the scenes so I
Yeah.
do the
Wow.
I'm gonna do this other industry over
here because I don't wanna hit I singles
triples that like and I don't want this
crabs in a barrel kind of mentality
which seemed to be really really
Yes.
in that culture So I spent a lot of
time making sure as much as I love
Yep.
music and the creators of music
that's not the area of industry I
Yep.
focus on Right because there was
exactly.
Yep.
There was a ceiling that
at the time you had to get
Mm-hmm.
the big check like noontime at the time
it came with a lot of strings So I'm
Yeah.
I'm always thinking
Yep.
I control
For sure.
that we're creating
How do I capitalize how
Wow.
people who are investing
in this and ensure a
Yes.
in what's traditionally known as a
speculative industry A lot of people
have don't have a lot of respect for
Yeah.
A lot of friends in business and
other industry think the industries
think and thought that people in
entertainment just aren't that bright
And it's very feast and famine.
it can be for a lot of people right
yeah.
But the ownership is what
allows you to continue to eat.
You know, when you don't have the
ownership, it's more so famine than
feast, but when you have the ownership,
you can still get that check every
quarter from publishing or whatever.
I don't know how the film industry works,
but like you can still receive those
royalties consistently, and it's going to
your pocket, not to some company's pocket.
And back to the bit about how
you do that how I was able
Mm-hmm.
do all of those things
yeah.
time Ultimately it goes
back to how to scale
Yeah.
right So I had to have teams that were
trusted and amazing at what they did so
that I could scale myself to be able to
oversee all of these from a macro level
right cause I have people on the ground
Yeah.
who are equipped and extremely
talented at executing
yeah.
That takes a lot of trust too.
Like to have teams working for you,
especially with three different teams.
how do you hire people?
Like what qualities did you, or do you
look forward to know, like, okay, I
feel like I can leave it in their hands.
'cause that's a hard part.
For me personally, it's cause I know my
vision, I know how I want things to be
done, and that's probably the biggest
thing that I struggle with, is just
letting go and trusting someone to do it
at a level that I, I need it to be done.
uh, I say this often to people you know,
if they're curious enough to ask you
don't have to trust me but you've gotta
trust that I trust something bigger
than me So what I'm looking at in pe
yeah.
are some core value stuff
Are are you integris
yeah.
have a moral
Mm-hmm.
have to be my moral but you gotta have
value system that you operate within
because no matter how talented you
are if I can't trust you to be loyal
to you if you've got some unhealed
stuff going on that that you're not
self-aware about or actively working
on I already know that there's gonna be
some betrayal right So there's a level of
Yeah.
that has to be done sure I'm looking
for the same qualities anybody else
will be looking for can you do the job
yeah.
do it
Right, right.
But
mm-hmm.
a lot of training I'm gonna
train you in the way that I
see the vision for this brand
Yeah.
And some people
Yeah.
can operate at that capacity
and some people can't And you've
Yeah.
with both
That's true.
You know what I mean
Mm-hmm.
I'm all about meeting people where they
are but here's what I know for sure You
often can't take them too quickly beyond
their own understanding of their capacity
right, right.
to and I've been heartbroken
Yeah.
right When I've invested in people
and I just see what they don't see
in themselves then I have to stop and
Yeah.
you're seeing all of this
bandwidth in them but they
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
you can do to make them see
That is bigger That is something
Mm-hmm.
thing that is something
they've got to work out
Yeah.
it's not for me to do I can just
encourage and instill and pour and sew
mm-hmm.
soil in the way that
people did for me by the way
so I'm
Yeah.
soil right and I'm looking at the depth
of the roots of the being of the person
how deeply and firmly that's planted
what's definitely coming are the storms
Oh yeah.
And how can you handle that?
Will you be ready?
I can simplify that construct and say
ultimately bells and whistles aside I'm in
the people business I'm in the human being
Mm-hmm.
So human beings are complex you have
to get away I think from this mentality
of comparison and jealousy and this
person I'm better than this per the
ego and pride and all of these things
everybody in my experience has some
amount of gifting Everybody has some
Yeah.
that that they are here to
Mm-hmm.
That were put into them
Yeah.
So I'm always just looking at
Well,
Bandwidth capacity and alignment
and I'll say like from a, personal
story about you that you may not
remember when I worked for you back
in the day with the Solstice group.
This is a good story.
It's a good story.
open to
but everything,
I'm open to all of it
no, no, because I saw your face.
I'm like, no, that's a good story.
This is a good story.
I have no bad stories about you.
My experience has always been good,
but it just reinforces like what you
just said and how you really care about
people as, and people that work for you.
Because when I worked for you during
that internship, I had just moved to
Atlanta like in June of that year.
And school was coming up and you
were talking to me about school.
' cause I'd left Oklahoma after
my junior year in college.
And you sat me down and you're like,
Jeremy, what are you doing with school?
Like, you had three years done.
Like, are you gonna finish?
And I was like, yeah,
I'm gonna finish Neil.
Like, that's my goal.
Like I'm, I'm taking a year off to
establish my residency so I don't
have to pay outta state tuition,
but I'm going back to school.
And you were concerned.
You were like, Jeremy, so many
people say that they're going to
do that, but they never do it.
She's like, I want you to get back
in school and get your education.
I was like, yeah, I am.
That's, that is the plan.
You know, I have the vision, I have the
plan, but you know, you, you cared about
me and you were very supportive of just
me as a person and the opportunities
that I had that I came to Atlanta for.
And it wasn't just the music, it
was also to finish what I started.
So, that always stuck with me, like
you caring about me as a person.
So I always appreciated that.
And I think about it from time to time.
I was actually telling someone about you.
Probably last month I was like, yeah,
I used to have this internship and
Nia ran it and I was telling that
same story, but just how, caring
about people, caring about your
employees it really makes a difference.
And not just looking at them
as a unit of work, but really
investing in their wellbeing.
And to your point, sometimes
you can be heartbroken.
'cause there's people that you pour
into and they're just like, they just
Yeah
you down.
Or There's that, we'll call
it betrayal and it's like, ah,
cause it's a relationship, you
know, anytime a relationship
dissolves, it's, always painful.
Especially when you put
time and energy into it.
I wanna move on to your
current company, ODX studios.
Tell me about that.
ODX Studios is a Re-Imagination
is a company that has been
reimagined from a company that
I launched back in 2005 what was
Mm-hmm.
the time in the industry and by the
industry and entertainment specifically
TV and film There was disruption
happening in 2005 around home video
that was the big disruptor Blockbuster
people weren't going to theaters anymore
They were watching movies at home
yep.
that bit I made a film called The Seat
Filler and Will and Tisha Campbell
Martin and Dwayne And so we make this
film and I have to back into the into
a bit of my strategy So I never made
a film for more than I knew the market
would bear on a sale on the other
side right So I always backed into
mm-hmm.
Yep.
that perspective I can spend
Okay.
million on this film I can spend
under 2.5 I have to have this cast but
Gotta make it back.
Yep.
is I'm not going to expect that I sell
it to a studio and I'm not I'm not
gonna have the expectation that I nor my
investors are going to see any backend
points So that's thrown away in my
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
it's there but they're gonna
Okay.
net it out That's just what they do
Mm.
right
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
It's like we didn't make any money.
Sorry.
we cross collateralized your project
with all these other ones And we took
Yeah.
all
Right.
Yep.
the game right so I was like all
Yep.
at this point we we had made it right at
the turning point where theatrical was
taking a hit I remember going to Will and
Dwayne with this business plan called the
Momentum Experience which was essentially
a theatrical film distribution model So
going back all the way back to my days
with Tyler and my touring experience I
said look why don't we take this film
to see Filler which was Kelly Rowland's
first acting role right and Dwayne played
it was a great cast D Ray Davis was a
really great little movie another romantic
comedy And I said we should take this
out Ourselves we should be the studio and
will read my business plan And against
maybe a lot of the traditional the agent
he had at the agency he was with at
the time and the, the studio that was
putting out all of his films at the time
And you gotta remember now Will's the
biggest star in the world at this point
Yeah.
Yep.
his attorney everybody's
who is this little girl
oh gosh.
Let
Yeah.
your global brand that's worth
hmm.
billions and billions of
dollars and you know what to
Yep.
he was like actually I am so
That's dope.
support was tremendous And what we
did was the concept was we'll tour
this film we'll curate an added
experience Around the film and we'll
Mm.
ourselves
Okay.
that's where the partnership with Mark
Cuban came in his company Magnolia
Okay.
Partner with for the ancillary
revenue windows after theatrical
So that's your pay your
Yeah.
all the different ways that you can
Okay.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
when you see it on the planes
all of those are windows
yep.
for profit right that you
put the IP through that
Okay.
That create profit or revenue
Okay.
say So all of those ancillary
windows were controlled I offered a
partnership to his company to control
those windows on the ip But I said we
Mm,
the theatrical now just by way of
understanding theatrical When a
film is released out into the world
domestically initially is the main
driver into all of those ancillary
windows So when it does well
Mm.
theaters
It makes sense.
Mm-hmm.
is the revenue driver into right
post.
That makes sense.
go
Yeah.
Yeah.
I negotiated a like what's
called a gross corridor window
So even though I'm gonna let
Mm. Mm-hmm.
money in perpetuity
right Which means forever
wow.
Yeah.
Oh, I know what perpetuity means
You know what I mean
for forever.
Ever.
Forever, ever.
forever ever
Yep.
But in order also to get the con
that control and to get this win
these windows you're gonna have to
Yep.
several million dollars upfront Boom Okay
Yeah.
and then
There you go.
and go to Detroit and Atlanta and DC and
we play not the multiplexes we play the
opera houses the old movie houses So they
Mm.
to 5,000
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
it became a movement
and an experience Blair
Mm-hmm.
dear Friend helped as a part
Mm.
So that was the origin story
to what is now called the
Oh,
Experience
okay.
Drop experience we actually Start, first
quarter next year we launch so for the
past year I've got a team that's been
building this out An again back to
scaling right been helping to build this
out.
And a incredible business partner
Michael Derek Thomas who is a prolific
financial modelist strategist and
he scales companies That's what he
Mm-hmm.
and so this
Yeah.
entree into the entertainment
industry And we're partners on this
Okay.
So now the one drop experience
is taking nostalgic films
curating an experience around
Okay.
experience around that IP and touring it
Nice.
Okay.
only point of difference is the same
alternative distribution system And by
Mm-hmm.
just mean not traditional Hollywood
theatrical release So we negotiated
a deal with Dreamworks Paramount
or Paramount who owns Dream
Cool.
Cool.
for their whole catalog
Yep.
and that
Really?
the
Wow.
of uh, Miramax Dreamworks
C-B-S-B-E-T-M-T-V All of the catalogs
Dope.
umbrella which is now Skydance Paramount
Yep.
As that's our partnership So
through that partnership we Identify
Dreamgirls the movie to be the
first film that we released through
Okay.
the that
yeah, yeah.
Okay.
and we'll be touring the country
26.
and creating an experience you'll
walk into the era of Motown when
you walk into the theater the
Yeah.
be dressed like we'll invite
Mm-hmm.
at that
that arrow?
we have a
Mm-hmm.
reinvestment piece where we
give a percentage to every
market that we hit Atlanta
Nice.
St Louis
That's so good.
that you
Yep.
you can't take from that so
desperately needs And not give back
into it that's just fundamental
laws of,
guys.
they Business with a purpose
There's all kind of catchphrases
around it but, is really you know,
yeah.
Yeah.
And then on the other side we have
a creative participation pool where
no matter what the backend deal
Mm.
studio on the points for the
filmmakers and creators we give them
Yeah.
through the one drop experience Yeah
Okay.
Wow.
Well, I'm looking forward to that and, and
keeping up with you to see how it goes.
And I know you're gonna be in Atlanta,
so I've gotta check out the Dream
Girls when y'all hit Atlanta for that,
I think we hit the
uh,
Atlanta at some point For
Fox.
Okay.
That'll be awesome.
Excited about that
Yeah.
the entertainment business
is a really tough business.
So for you being a woman of color, like
what has your experience been like?
It is a tough industry for anybody We
moved strange fruit from Atlanta to LA
in 2000 and I kept it out there for the
Okay.
14 years or so there was a lot of growth
but personally and professionally a lot
of experiences that I love to say I would
take back but they build character being a
yeah.
girl from Oklahoma there
were just certain things I
Mm-hmm.
To sell one main thing was my soul
Yeah.
there was no
Yeah.
You were gonna be
Mm.
me to get me to move off my
square not doing that part
I appreciate that.
that
Yeah, that's great.
that could be potentially
compromised I just pulled back but
I would say being a black woman in
Mm-hmm.
is great it requires a certain
amount of understanding going back
to valuing yourself how to move
Mm.
the
Yeah.
a lot of these people
Yeah.
do come out there broken and they
do come out there I mean they may
Yeah.
celebrity but on the inside
there's a lot of brokenness And
so I had to get aligned around why
Yeah.
out there I never had a dream
Mm.
to LA or Hollywood As a matter of fact I
went kicking and screaming I was like I am
Yep.
I'm
Yeah.
Like, Nope.
things
Yep.
I don't need facades and I don't
Yeah.
And I need
Yes.
Authenticity And I'm not saying that I
always Operated with a level of wisdom I
was a kid running around this country at
Sure.
Trying to
Yeah, of course.
point
Yeah.
I'm
Yep.
This is a state of mind and a state
of spirit you have to get really clear
about what you're there to do And
when I got the message that I was on
assignment and my assignment was to
use storytelling to pour light into
the dark areas around the world once
Yeah, I love that.
It
It's very clear, huh?
This is
Yeah.
you is about why you were
Yeah.
on this earth with the gifts that you have
Yes.
and what you are supposed to do with
those gifts You have to honor that
Hmm.
if they were given to
Man.
and I don't use them the I'm just the
vessel they'll be given to somebody
Yeah,
it has to get done
that's right.
And let's be
Yeah.
Uh, Speaking my language, man.
I mean, I don't know
Yep.
Going through any version of their
hero's journey and you're at the
Dark Knight of the Soul part I
don't know anybody that's going
Yep, yep.
jumping Nah everybody I
know I don't care how big
Right.
money they have Everybody I know is like
nah I'm good I'm gonna can I just pause on
that part because what it you don't know
Like, I'm gonna tap out here.
You can you take it from here.
It's like, no,
in here because I'm tired I'm
tap me up.
I've
Yep.
I've been through
Yes.
and
Hmm.
and I could choose to be better but I need
to hold onto my joy You can't work in the
Yes.
Yep.
And
Hmm.
and be
Yep.
to oh that person did this to me
or this person betrayed me then
And then that is an old story You
know what I mean And that those
Yeah,
may have been necessary at the time that
they happened for you to get a lesson but
exactly.
get
Yes.
the part of my journey where I can get
the elixir and bring that home know what
Yep.
Yep.
boy that was a very very long way to get
to a, potentially simple answer which is
Look.
think I'm both limitless
and to the people that think
Mm-hmm.
a black woman in this game is limited
I would just say shift your lens
Hmm.
this is
Yeah.
Yeah,
This right here all this out
yeah.
is green So if you figure out
Yep.
of
Yep.
industry and how to
Yeah,
monetize that in such a way that
is in my at least in my world
beneficial and all boats rise
So everybody you do deals in the
yeah,
everybody winning not
just winning for yourself
yeah.
not
Right.
Yes, yes.
for Hollywood cause it's not
the blueprint for Hollywood
yeah.
is
It's definitely not, it's everything
that, it's opposite of what you just said.
wanna speak
Yeah.
illusion or in any way that suggests that
I'm in any way delusional about that But
Sure.
sure that however they operate
doesn't have to be how I
operate So I don't believe
Yeah.
Yeah.
becoming reliant on manmade
systems that are only made
Mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
So I'll say that again I don't
believe in becoming dependent on
systems that man makes only for
the benefit of man So what I intend
Mm-hmm.
what I am doing instead is
creating a system separate system
with a whole different set of
Yep.
and values and presentness
spiritual dynamics that
Yeah.
with my purpose that was a long way
to answer that very short question but
No, no, you, reinforce a lot of
what I talk about though, which
is really clarity and purpose.
And when you know what your purpose
is, it clears up a lot of bs.
It, helps you say no to a lot of things.
It helps you say yes to the right things.
So it really kind of makes the way
that you function in life easier
because you're not trying to see what
sticks and you're not swayed as much
by, let me try this, let me try that.
'cause when you're clear on what
your purpose is, you know that you're
not gonna try that because that's
not where you're intended to be.
You know, you know that this
is the path that I'm on.
And I know it certainly helped clear me
up a lot of saying no to things, whether
it's business opportunities or whatever.
I'm like, that's just not where I'm at.
That's not where I'm going.
So, good luck to you though,
with what you got going on.
But it's, it's just not for where I'm at.
about the business.
Tell me what you love
most about your companies.
Like what do you love most
about being an entrepreneur?
I love being able to wake up every
day A level of understanding around
and alignment around what I'm
here to do and not having to be
Mm.
to anybody But my source my God whatever
you whatever you know you call that
people call that different things
but who I'm accountable to So there's
some area of confusion around like
entrepreneurship versus having a job like
somehow you get to work when you want
Yeah.
get to play when you want
to But in my experience
Right.
more than most of my friends who
You know?
Going
Yeah,
I
right.
bit I enjoy that I get to make every
day exactly what I wanted to be and
Yeah.
freedom of that we've known each
other for a long time so a few
Mm-hmm.
later I've never done anything
other than what I do I don't have a
Yeah.
Yeah.
You know what I'm saying So an
abundant life in terms of how I define
Yeah.
So Nia, you've been diagnosed with what
was formerly known as Asperger's, now
known as Autism Spectrum Disorder or a SD.
tell me about how that diagnosis
impacted you, maybe before
and after you are aware of it.
quick backstory to mental health father
had challenges around mental health
and some diagnosis my mother a little
more undiagnosed So I was keen to
be conscious of any predisposition
to any mental health dynamics So it
was something I was always you know,
yeah.
with physical health and emotional
health just because of the tragic way
that my father passed He, took his own
Sorry to hear that.
Was in a lot of pain so I have a lot honor
There's a lot that he gave me to complete
Yeah.
Yeah.
so that said my first diagnosis was A
DHD and I was like 35 And I was like I
Okay.
like is that
Yeah.
are I don't really What
Okay.
like how are y'all
Yeah.
me with that But I was starting
to get anxiety a and I didn't
Mm.
from I didn't know it
was being triggered by or
Mm
anything like that And so is a
connection around depression and anxiety
with A DHD or that can be especially
when brain works a certain way and
Okay.
you are like well why can't you
just do that can point A to point B
Right, right.
Meanwhile I'm over here I'm over there I
you know what I mean I personally have
come to understand that as a superpower
So my initial diagnosis was A DHD
which I didn't
Okay.
So I went to another psychiatrist
Yeah.
same diagnosis I went
to five psychiatrists
Yeah.
all right fine fine fine
You got a second, third,
fourth, fifth opinion,
And
you know?
I said okay this is what I have
now how do I manage it And they
mm,
medication I was like I'm not doing
medication I did have completion issues
I had some executive functioning issues
Okay.
Mm, mm-hmm.
It was also extremely helpful that
how I was able to do all I can
jump over here and jump over it
right, right.
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah.
hate that they call it a
disorder right It just means my
brain operates differently So
Yes.
a group of really amazing women who
have children on the spectrum at various
points from nonverbal Low functioning to
verbal high functioning to as Asperger's
It's all under a SD They'd asked
Yep.
I was
Mm-hmm.
and I didn't get into a lot of this
but finally surrendering to the artist
in me Because I'd just been producing
Yeah.
Mm-hmm.
my mind I
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
that being like an artist is
gonna require such a level of
vulnerability that I now I'm gonna put
Mm-hmm.
all my stuff out there and people get to
Yeah.
Right, right, right.
ran for a
Yeah.
a long time I was terrified
Hmm.
I was terrified
Yeah.
vulnerable and when I finally
Hmm.
stepped into it, it it was the
most magical thing ever And so
That's great.
these women including Tisha Campbell and
LaDonna Hubley and Shannon Nash and am I
missing it Tammy McCreary Tammy Michelle
who's Chaka Con's sisters So that leads to
how I met Chaka and started working with,
okay.
And so they all had
children on spend They met
Yeah.
said listen we want you to write
and direct and we have a director
already but Tisha said I prayed
Mm-hmm.
think it's supposed to be
you And I was like me I only
Wow.
Like what I mean I don't
what do I know about autism
Yeah,
I had enough good sense to
yeah.
if you guys wouldn't mind let me pray
about it And me going to some meditation
I was living in Manhattan Beach at the
Yes.
close to the water So I remember going
Okay.
and
Yep.
and I said if I get a vision cause
they didn't know how they wanted
to tell their story They just knew
that they finally were ready to
Mm.
So what
Yeah.
happened was I did get a vision for
how to tell these stories and that
was part documentary and part scripted
So I wrote a script about a family
that got the diagnosis and then I
interviewed the women and it intercuts
Okay.
family The parents were played
by Blair Underwood and Nicole
Larry Parker and the child
okay.
Played the John Duffy played
the son and I shot it at
Mm-hmm.
I shot the interviews at my house
Oh, wow.
and
Yeah, yeah.
made this film And after
we did the film went to DC
Mm.
to have legislation put into place
that underserved communities where the
higher diagnosis were having happening
around people of color But it was the
not
Yes.
um, And not where the were being
had around mental health because
of the cultural stigma that means
yeah.
lobbied we got the caucus and the
Black Caucus to come together We
did some white paper We got a pro
Mm-hmm.
firm to represent us and Obama was in
office so we got that legislation passed
in one day Those women did that in
Great.
So
Wow,
Yeah Yeah
Like that never happens.
That's crazy.
Not not without some
Wow.
What?
divine grace and and provision
Right so that led to after the fact
now we're touring the film showing
it for Delta and Viacom and other
big companies and doing talk backs
Mm-hmm.
And at one point the women got together
and after experiencing me and my neuro
behavior for a while sat me down and
said Hey We know you think you're
just a DHD but we believe you're on
the spectrum you're Asperger's our
experience with it and that sort of thing
And so then I went on to get a formal
diagnosis So definitely the Asperger's
yeah.
and the A DHD they play in the same
category from a mental health psychiatric
Okay.
So
Yeah.
I mean that was the beginning
of another diagnosis around my
Yeah.
health all it really means is that
my brain operates in a way that
may be confusing to some people
Sometimes a lot of people on the
Mm-hmm.
At the Asperger's level where it's
high functioning it's really hard to
tell Because they're doing so much
Right.
learn the mask really young
which means you you just
yes, yes.
other people can understand
But it's exhausting because
Mm-hmm.
you
Yeah.
and take the mask off and it's just
a lot of energy you're putting on a
Mm.
to move through life so people
Yeah.
think you're strange
So do,
I don't have a filter so I'm gonna say
right.
Yeah.
Exactly.
Yeah.
Yeah.
so it was really a beautiful gift that
they were able to give to me I was
chose to tell a story that I didn't
think I was equipped for Now I'm telling
it from the perspective of this child
know?
the brain of the child with
Mm-hmm.
it it could have
Right, right.
to
Wow.
but it wasn't it was apparent
Yeah.
It's like I'm gonna tell
somebody else's story.
Yeah.
that's my
But, but for you did, did you f. Did
you feel constrained before, like
the masking that you talk about?
Has that been your experience and
was it like this liberation when you
really got the diagnosis and were
like, I feel free knowing what it is
and how to move with this diagnosis,
relationships and partnerships
you know?
romantic relationships
Like it can be challenging
Yeah,
somebody on the other side to know
when you're going through any kind
of sort of emotional dysregulation or
sure, sure, sure.
kinds of things So yeah Did I feel freed
Yeah.
percent Do I
No, that's great.
Yeah because I don't
mask like I'm gonna give
Yeah,
things right And this is the
is gonna give you the thanks.
is just what it is And
yeah.
Whether you want 'em or not, here it is.
Yep.
but the need to mask to accommodate
everybody else that had to go away
that had to go away because it
Yeah.
so
No.
mentally emotionally physically
draining I would just be
fatigued by the end of the day
Yeah, yeah.
have to shut down for a week and just
not deal with people And then I you know,
mm-hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Too much light too many
people overwhelmed and
Yes.
there are tenants of it
Wow.
Yeah.
mostly it's amazing and I get
Yeah.
other people on the spectrum and
we get to talk about it and you
mm-hmm.
sort of
Yeah.
You can like find community.
It's relatability, there's
other people like me.
Yeah
great.
thank you for being just opening up about
this, being vulnerable about it because
your voice is so important to help others.
I feel very grateful and humbled that
you're having that conversation, so
thank you for opening up about that.
Not even
Um,
Me just be very
yeah.
First of all You're welcome I
Yeah.
thanks I don't know that I was
Mm-hmm.
then that I was like okay I'm
ready to tell the world cause I was
still understanding what it meant
Yeah, of course.
Yeah.
Yep.
And I still learn more
and more about myself
mm-hmm.
my neurodiversity what it needs
and how I can best care for
myself So it doesn't become
Yeah.
else's responsibility but mine
shifting back to looking at your career up
to this point, what would you say you've
learned about yourself on this journey?
On this journey I've learned that
I'm resilient right I've learned
that my faith has stretched It's
always stretching I've learned
Mm-hmm.
a large capacity for love like an
immense capacity for love for giving
love and for receiving love which
was a hard thing for me Receiving
Still get challenged with that a
Yeah.
right goes
Mm-hmm.
some early childhood
stuff I've learned that
not only do I actually like
myself but I've actually learned
how to love myself deeply
yes.
myself
Yeah.
And you can do that without any
expense right It doesn't cost
Mm-hmm.
point that I didn't love
Yeah.
I had to learn boundaries
so that I could figure
Mm.
those holes it's a lot of work
It's a lot of self work but
I don't know how can be an
Yeah.
Yeah.
And not do that kind of work because
otherwise I'm telling stories that are
Yes.
on as the vessel I'm imposing
my own stuff on those stories So
I've gotta move with a level of
clarity within myself and self-awareness
and introspection so that the stories can
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah.
Mia
that makes sense.
right Yeah
And speaking to the women who are
listening to this podcast, if you
could instill hope in another woman
who's considering starting her own
business, what would you say to her?
mean I think the biggest blocker for
anybody doing anything is fear I would
say get equipped Get the information
learn and respect the craft in the area of
industry that you are entering And then go
even if you're scared do it
Yes.
be audacious about it
Yes.
those with really large you know,
imaginations and capacity for vision can
be limited around our own personal ability
and bandwidth And so I would just say stop
caring what people say but I mean, really
stop caring it looks like on the outside
and start carrying what it looks like
on the inside because you already have
Mm.
need And the things that you don't
have will show up as you walk
down the path The further you
Yes.
up Everybody if it's a
vision if it's an assignment
Mm-hmm.
step into that business you don't need all
the things before you start You need those
Yes.
Yep.
need that value system that core and
you need to have a vision around how
you wanna present Right After that
Mm-hmm.
else shows up people will show up to
Yeah.
your vision
so good.
Yes,
Yeah
percent.
thank you for that.
That is words of wisdom because
I've seen that happen in my life.
Other people, it's like, just go
after it and the pieces will show up.
You don't have to have every single
step in everything planned, just make
movement when the movement is there and
it's your path where you're supposed
to be on, like things are going to
align, the people will show up, the
conversations, the doors will open.
But you can't do any of
that unless you just go.
So I think that's great wisdom.
Thank you for sharing that.
So we have reached the time where
we're gonna pull out the clarity cards.
Here we go.
so your card is what motivates you
to get out of bed in the morning?
What motivates you to get
out of bed in the morning?
Simple the assignment That's
That's it.
I get to be on assignment I
Mm-hmm.
amazing stories I get to build visions
that were divinely assigned for me I get
to execute I get to implement I get to do
these things It's not a have to it's like
Yes.
I
You get to
to do this This little
girl from Oklahoma get
Yes.
every day
Wow.
a blessing magnificent
I'm sometimes speechless
Yes.
the level of gratitude that
I have for that Like wow I
Yeah.
So then it just is simple I am
enough I was always enough and I'll
Yes.
striving to
Yep.
more than enough for somebody else
Yes.
for myself
Yeah.
Now that's amazing.
And it sounds like a, a woman walking
in her purpose and confirmation all
around you and the light shining
to say you're doing exactly what
you're supposed to be doing.
Nia Hill, thank you so much.
This has been a wonderful conversation.
It's been a masterclass for me.
It's also been great catching up with you.
Thank you for your vulnerability,
you sharing your story.
And I know there's so much more.
There could be a part 2, 3, 4,
but hey man, this is what we got.
This is what we have.
'cause we, there's so much more
that we didn't even get into.
But thank you for taking
time to meet with me.
If people wanted to reach out
and connect you, what's a good
way that they could do that?
my production company is bridge x
media.com I'm on ig at the real near
hill and Facebook ODX studios.com is
also another way they can reach out
Okay.
that's
cool.
Cool.
TikTok
Well, thank you for joining.
so it's
Awesome.
Hill
Okay.
and I and just for the
Okay.
name
like,
to give a match to my father and
my mother Here is Niama in West
yeah.
Okay.
It's Nema means mother of
purpose Nema to Nia Hill
Wow.
Yeah
All
Okay.
You're definitely living that out.
you Thank you
That's amazing.
you for
Yeah.
and
Cool.
Well,
platform for people
of course.
and offer you know, whatever
we can to whomever needs it
It's just medicine right I just
Yo,
that there's always medicine
in the food I'm just giving
the food but there's nutrients
Yes.
And we all need it all
That's it.
Yeah
thank you for that.
And then to the listener thank
you for tuning into the Jeremy
Haywood Show for season three.
And if you enjoyed today's episode,
don't forget to follow or subscribe.
So you'll be notified when the new episode
and the new season drops and next season.
We're actually going to dig into the
music industry a little bit and give
you a bird's eye view of the different
players that help make it all happen.
So until next time, keep following
your dream to find your purpose.
Touche
All right,
