Curtis Symonds, president of HBCU GO, visits with Kyle T. Mosley of HBCU Legends to talk about the 2023 broadcast schedule and the power of black media.
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00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:03 All right, HBCU Legends fans.
00:08 It's Kyle T. Mosley of HBCU Legends on Sports Illustrated's
00:12 Fan Nation.
00:13 And we have a good one today.
00:15 We have Mr. Curtis Simons, who is the president of HBCU Go.
00:21 We're going to talk about their full slate of games
00:24 that they're presenting, but also some of the great things
00:27 that HBCU Go with Mr. Byron Allen and those guys,
00:31 which guys are doing at Allen Media Group.
00:33 So welcome to HBCU Legends.
00:36 How you doing, Mr. Simons?
00:37 Kyle, it's a pleasure to be here with you today, man.
00:39 Looking forward to that conversation, man.
00:41 And thank you for having me.
00:42 Look, HBCU Go, you guys are doing some great things.
00:45 I know when in the infancy, I spoke to Byron when he took
00:51 over and he was going--
00:53 he had the Griot and had HBCU Go as his babies,
00:58 just trying to get things up and running.
01:00 But you guys have done a tremendous job
01:03 the first season and you're going into the second season.
01:06 Of course, you have the great Charlie Neal
01:08 as your announcer.
01:10 And you have a great slate of hosts and co-hosts,
01:14 especially with the basketball format.
01:17 You had an all-female format as well
01:20 that did an outstanding job.
01:22 I think Ms. Moulton, I had a chance
01:24 to speak with her as well.
01:26 But tell me, what's the next step for you guys?
01:30 I mean, we know what you guys have been doing.
01:33 And we know that you've put on some SWAC, MEAC, CIAA.
01:40 And now the big announcement this past summer with the SIEC.
01:44 You guys are covering the gamut for the major four HBCU
01:50 conferences.
01:51 So what's next for HBCU Go?
01:54 I think what's next for us is to continue to create events
01:57 around the HBCU circle.
02:00 We want to be the creator of events that circle and give
02:05 exposure to these schools across the country.
02:07 I mean, the key behind--
02:09 when I sold this company to Byron two years ago, Kyle,
02:12 the key behind it was trying to drive exposure
02:14 to historical Black colleges and universities.
02:16 I graduated from Central State University in Ohio,
02:19 grew up actually on campus.
02:21 My mother worked there teaching for 40 years.
02:23 My dad worked in the maintenance department for 50 years.
02:25 So I had a great flavor of the HBCU circle.
02:29 So now what I'm trying to create with the help of Byron
02:32 through Alameda Group is really give education, likeness,
02:37 understanding, and the history of historical Black colleges.
02:40 So as you will see, the circle--
02:43 the game that we wanted to play last year was,
02:46 let's get in the game.
02:47 The game, first of all, is well known as Black College Sports.
02:50 That's what makes the HBCU known for.
02:53 But the same point is there's other programming
02:55 like lifestyle programming, educational programming,
02:58 that we want to actually add in down the road.
03:01 But we knew we had to get into the game
03:03 first by trying to go after the Black College Sports.
03:06 So we got a swag deal done, which was major.
03:09 The goal last year was to really put
03:11 a good product on the floor.
03:12 I mean, that's what I was riding Byron and Hoyle.
03:15 I said, we don't want to go out there and people
03:18 looking at us saying, ah, look at this product.
03:20 This is terrible.
03:22 That's why everybody's on ESPN or ABC or Fox or whoever.
03:26 But we put a good product on the table last year
03:30 with the conference.
03:31 And we got a lot of fan reaction.
03:34 And I think one of the differences between us
03:38 and the other groups are that when
03:40 you have a legendary John Kelly and the great Charlie Neil,
03:44 and now we've added a few other good people on the football
03:47 coverage, the history and the thinking that they give you
03:51 is education in itself.
03:53 Charlie can take you back to the '70s and '80s
03:55 and talk about some players' fathers that he tells.
03:58 Yeah, that's right.
03:59 And to me, that's the education of what the history is there.
04:05 He also is able to tell the stories that are really
04:08 linked to the HBCU circle.
04:11 And John's done a good job of really being his wingman
04:15 and really coming along and doing his history
04:17 and coming up with some great respondents
04:19 on some of the things that Charlie's talking about.
04:21 So we've got a good flow along with--
04:24 a sideline of people are very good with Nina
04:26 and a few others that are doing a great job for us out there.
04:29 I mean, Charlie is an orchestrator, as I call him.
04:33 I look at his talent as his orchestra,
04:38 and he's the commander.
04:39 Because he's basically educating everybody and taking them
04:42 through the lessons that need to be learned and growing
04:46 to understand what you're bringing to the table.
04:48 So I think what really bears for us, man,
04:50 is that, A, as we build on these conferences,
04:55 we're trying to do tenure deals with everybody,
04:57 is to grow and create more events.
04:59 Like, we like to-- one of the goals of ours
05:01 is to create our own ball games after the seasons.
05:04 Why not?
05:05 Why can't it be HBCU schools playing PWIs?
05:08 Or HBCU schools playing a SWAC playing a SIC school?
05:14 Vice versa.
05:16 But at least getting the fact that you
05:17 can get these schools in more ball games, which
05:20 they constantly get left out in the current circle
05:22 that they're in right now.
05:23 So we can switch those games out from ending in November
05:26 and switch it through the end of December
05:29 and going in after Christmas would be great.
05:32 And then take basketball the same way.
05:34 I mean, our goal down the road with basketball
05:37 is to try to combine all the conferences.
05:39 Why is it just an MEAC conference?
05:43 Why can't we create our own 64?
05:45 Right, right.
05:46 I love it.
05:47 Put all the schools together.
05:49 And let's create a true champion within the HBCU circle.
05:54 And I think it would create a major environment.
05:56 Because one of the things that we have from HBCU
06:00 is the loyalty of the audience.
06:03 You have so many alumni who are just
06:04 embedded into the schools.
06:07 That there would be a drawing out there.
06:09 And I think we probably would see the same thing--
06:12 I ran the WNBA Washington Mystics for a couple of years.
06:15 And I think it would be a similar process where
06:18 we have to keep educating the public on the strength of what
06:23 these schools bring to the table if you create your own 64.
06:27 Because if you think about it, Kyle,
06:29 why is it that in the 64 today or 68 today,
06:33 SWAC is always the 16th seed?
06:36 MEAC is the 16th seed.
06:38 Always.
06:39 Never-- regardless if you're 28 or no, you're still a 16th seed.
06:43 Right.
06:44 And even though Texas Southern, the past couple of seasons,
06:48 has won that play-in tournament.
06:50 Yeah, yeah.
06:51 But why do we have to always be in a play-in tournament?
06:54 That's what I don't get.
06:56 And the fact that is, to me, it devalues the efforts.
07:02 Like I say, if you're 28 and no and you're still in the play-in
07:04 game, come on, man.
07:07 If you're 28 and no and you're a big 5,
07:09 you ain't playing the play-in game.
07:12 You're an 8C, 7C.
07:14 Maybe better than that.
07:17 You said something earlier that kind of struck an accord
07:23 with me is because I've talked to other media professionals.
07:30 And we want to see an extended season.
07:35 Like you said, the bowl games or whatever.
07:39 We have the classics, right?
07:41 You have the Bayou classics.
07:42 You have this, I think, the 13 major classics
07:45 that go around HBCUs.
07:47 And it's great.
07:49 But what we are missing is, why can't we
07:53 have one of the teams go to a nice place
07:57 and play and have their fans on these journeys
08:03 that you see from the SEC, the ACC, the Big 12, the Big 10,
08:09 and all this other stuff, right?
08:12 We have to get to that point.
08:13 Do you think you guys will be able to bring
08:16 an event like this coming up in 2024 or 2025?
08:23 I think it's a 2025 push that we're
08:26 going to try to go for because the goal right now
08:29 is to lock all these contracts down
08:31 and then try to get everyone thinking on the same page.
08:33 The problem has been, man--
08:35 and I was a factor of it in my old days at BET--
08:39 these companies have not had a lot of confidence immediately
08:44 because they've been burnt so many times immediately.
08:47 So many people come by and say, hey, let me get the swag.
08:50 Let me get the-- and then they do a deal with no distribution.
08:53 And then they walk away within six months.
08:55 And you don't hear nothing.
08:57 So now what we're trying to build within the HBCU Ghost
09:00 Circle is the trust of the conferences,
09:03 that we're not going anywhere.
09:05 Byron has made it very clear.
09:07 We are trying to help you.
09:09 Is that why it was important for you guys
09:11 to have 10-year deals in place?
09:13 Yes, yes, yes, because we wanted to try to show the conferences
09:17 that we're long term, which makes sense to me.
09:20 We're long term.
09:21 We're not trying to get out as soon as we get in.
09:25 We're steadfast on helping to grow these universities
09:31 from as far as getting more students there,
09:34 more butts in the seats, helping out with endowments,
09:38 helping get the alumni more engaged.
09:42 Because now that alumni can start seeing--
09:45 there's a destination.
09:47 You don't have to keep flittering through the channel
09:49 and say, what time did it come on?
09:52 And you get it 2 in the morning.
09:54 Now you know you got a destination.
09:57 HBCU Ghost is your destination now.
09:59 You're right.
10:00 It's always take delay.
10:01 It used to be take delay.
10:03 Ain't no question.
10:04 No question, Kyle.
10:05 I mean, it was embarrassing, man.
10:07 I came from ESPN to BET.
10:10 And I will never forget the first week I was on the job,
10:13 man, in the football startup.
10:15 They were talking about two week delay.
10:17 I said, two week delay?
10:18 A two week delay.
10:19 A two week delay, Kyle.
10:21 Wow.
10:22 That's no respect.
10:23 Right?
10:24 I said, we got to go live.
10:26 Yeah.
10:26 Yeah.
10:27 And that's the same way we feel now.
10:29 We got to go live.
10:31 I think the big thing that we're doing this year that I think
10:34 is history is we're, as a Black network,
10:38 creating double headers for Black college sports.
10:42 No one's done that before.
10:44 Now you'll be able to come off a syndication game
10:47 and be able to watch another game on the Griot and HBCU
10:50 Ghost.
10:51 And also what I like what you guys have done
10:53 is because you're layering the different conferences that
10:57 usually don't get the exposure like the SIAC as well as the CIAA.
11:02 No question.
11:03 You will see the MEAC.
11:04 You'll see the SWAC, of course.
11:06 But when it comes to those conferences,
11:08 they have a good following.
11:09 Yes, they do.
11:10 Yes, they do.
11:11 Jackie McWilliams over at the CIAA, excellent commissioner.
11:15 She's done a great job.
11:17 She's a great commissioner.
11:18 Great commissioner.
11:21 She's grown that property very well over here.
11:24 She's done a super job.
11:26 And I'm glad to be in partnership with her
11:29 because she does what she says.
11:32 She gets it done.
11:34 I got to give Jackie credit.
11:35 Her and Sonia still with the MEAC,
11:39 even though some schools have pulled out.
11:41 In Sonia's position, she's done a great job of holding together.
11:44 And you got to give her credit.
11:45 Because I said she won with the challenge last year.
11:50 That's big at the end of the day.
11:53 Yeah, and you look at what the MEAC has been able to do.
11:56 I know her first two seasons.
11:58 So she wins with Buddy Pugh and South Carolina State.
12:03 Then, like you said, this past season
12:04 with North Carolina Central.
12:07 And they had a great tournament, basketball tournament as well.
12:11 And right now, a couple of the young guys
12:13 are playing in the NBA on rosters in training camp.
12:18 So that's an outstanding job for the MEAC
12:24 and what they're accomplishing.
12:26 Talk about what you have done as well.
12:31 Because I know Charlie handpicked--
12:33 like, Laurencia was one of his handpicked assignments
12:38 to have her a part of the female crew
12:41 that you guys have at HBCU Go Sports.
12:45 But also, how will you guys expand that basketball
12:49 exposure this season coming up?
12:51 Because you had--
12:53 I think you had, what, over 20 plus games this past year?
12:57 Total over 60 games altogether.
12:59 60.
13:00 All right, I apologize.
13:01 60 games.
13:02 We came-- and I was so proud of the team last year, Kyle,
13:05 is that we were behind the eight ball coming
13:08 into football last year.
13:10 Because we got the Swag Deal signed late.
13:12 And then we rolled right into basketball
13:13 and didn't miss a beat.
13:14 And didn't miss a beat.
13:15 I mean, my crew really, really jumped on the bandwagon
13:20 and did a super, super job.
13:22 And I think that because we were able to do so good of a job,
13:27 the amount of people who are constantly coming at us now,
13:30 who would like to be part of our team going into '23, '24,
13:34 is outstanding.
13:35 I mean, I think you'll see some great-- some big names pop out.
13:38 And you'll be like, wow, they're doing HBCU games?
13:41 That's great.
13:43 So I think that they haven't made a formal announcement
13:46 on all the basketball stuff yet.
13:47 But I think you'll see some great names come in
13:50 that will pop in who are doing announcing elsewhere,
13:53 but are good names looking to try to expand some
13:56 and understanding this audience.
13:58 I think the biggest thing, Kyle, that our announcers feel
14:02 is they understand the audience.
14:04 So they know how to talk to the audience.
14:06 And I think that's a plus, man, because you
14:10 need to understand it so that you
14:12 can help the alumni, the viewing audience, the newbies,
14:18 understand what we are trying to accomplish
14:21 at the end of the day.
14:22 And I think that's really the measurement of what we're
14:24 trying to bring to the table.
14:26 Yeah, and it's important.
14:27 Like you said before with Charlie Neal
14:29 and knowing the history.
14:31 Yes.
14:31 And when you talk about HBCU commentary,
14:35 history is number one.
14:37 If you don't know the history, I listened to--
14:40 I think it was one Celebration Bowl.
14:44 These guys in the booth knew nothing about the history.
14:47 If it weren't for Jay Walker being there,
14:52 it was a mystery.
14:55 How did they get there and leave Tiffany Green on the sideline?
14:58 I could not understand that.
15:00 But they righted the ship, I should say,
15:04 bad English and all this past season.
15:08 Are you guys thinking about expanding into the baseball
15:12 tournament?
15:13 Because baseball, hey, man, we've
15:16 got to get more of these young men exposure in front of MLBs.
15:22 Like with the Swingman Classic, King Griffey Jr.
15:26 did an excellent job.
15:27 Travis Scott down here, he does a great job
15:32 with the MLB Houston Astros having a classic
15:37 to be able to help HBCUs.
15:40 What's your plan?
15:41 Our plan is to follow that footstep.
15:43 Number one, we're not just doing it
15:46 about pre-school to president.
15:48 We're not just doing football, basketball.
15:50 Our goal, Kyle, is to do all sports.
15:53 Now you've got Fisk down there with a gymnastics team.
15:58 That's right.
15:58 We want to figure out ways--
15:59 Tougaloo as well.
16:00 They're opening one.
16:01 Exactly.
16:02 And I think you're going to see that grow.
16:04 You've got hockey popping in now.
16:06 Yes, Tennessee State.
16:08 Girls rugby popping in at Howard.
16:10 Yes.
16:12 I think the goal for us is to definitely drive more exposure
16:17 into the non, as they say, qualified sports so
16:21 that people can see the atmosphere that these schools
16:25 are opening up.
16:27 You have schools going into lacrosse.
16:29 Yeah, Morehouse, the head of lacrosse.
16:32 We look to try to have--
16:34 feature some of that on.
16:36 Because lacrosse, I finally got into it.
16:39 And it's a great sport.
16:42 And you're starting to see more and more African-American men
16:45 and women getting into it.
16:46 Because it's certainly a great sport
16:48 to get a scholarship off of.
16:49 At the end of the day.
16:51 Mr. Simons, you said something that was very key there.
16:54 Because my son and I were watching the All-Star Lacrosse
17:00 game, and they had several African-American men
17:04 who were All-Stars and the best of the best out there playing.
17:08 And of course, we lost Jim Brown,
17:10 who was the best All-American lacrosse at Syracuse.
17:15 Right, he was the best.
17:16 I mean, that's a very interesting point on that,
17:20 Kyle, because we have taught our kids the traditionals.
17:26 And we've not taught them the non-traditionals.
17:29 So most kids wake up today and say,
17:31 I got to be a football, basketball player.
17:33 Well, that's fine.
17:34 No one's knocking you for the thinking.
17:36 But look at the bigger picture here
17:38 when you're going to college.
17:39 When you're trying to go to college today,
17:41 there's a lot of opportunities in non-traditional sports.
17:45 Lacrosse, hockey, golf, softball, baseball.
17:52 If you become good in those sports,
17:54 somebody is going to give you a scholarship.
17:58 Whether it be D1, D2, D3, NAI, someone's
18:02 going to give you some money at the end of the day.
18:04 There was a long time--
18:08 Deacon Wilson, he just passed away here in the Houston area.
18:12 He taught a lot of tennis players.
18:15 And he taught the kids from elementary up to high school.
18:21 And his goal was to say, hey, you may not
18:23 be the best tennis player, but I want
18:26 them to give you a scholarship so you can get an education
18:31 to go wherever you want to go to and enhance your chances there.
18:36 And I think he accounted for--
18:39 like, Zena Harris was one of his people.
18:43 So golf.
18:48 So I've interviewed Howard golf program.
18:52 I've interviewed the young man from Morehouse
18:55 who was a part of the Pathways USGA program this year.
19:00 We interviewed North Carolina A&T.
19:02 And you know JR Smith is there.
19:04 And you know Steph Curry has a presence at Harvard University.
19:09 We have not seen an HBCU golf tournament televised.
19:15 Can you guys think about that?
19:17 Yes, sir.
19:18 That's something that I've been talking
19:20 to several people on that topic.
19:22 In fact, the PGA is one because their first tee program
19:28 is trying to figure out how it's going to work.
19:30 First tee show.
19:30 In general, what I found out, Kyle,
19:33 is that a lot of the HBCUs have disbanded their golf programs.
19:39 So what I've been talking to some people about
19:41 is creating a giant tour that is based on who
19:45 wants to golf out of the HBCU.
19:48 And create an answer chat about that.
19:50 And project it in a way that depending on the score,
19:56 where's the movement from there?
19:58 Can they go to the amateur PGA tournament?
20:02 And see if they can get a hit in it depending on their score,
20:05 if they qualify.
20:07 So yes, we are looking at that down the road for sure.
20:10 That I think that and tennis are two big areas.
20:14 Two big areas that there's some great young African-American
20:18 at a lot of these schools, but they don't get exposed.
20:20 And remember, those are two of the most expensive sports
20:24 to get into.
20:26 That's one thing that's holding us all back.
20:29 Is that most of the kids who have talent can't afford it.
20:33 Unless they got some kind of big time sponsor.
20:35 And not telling it, that's a white person.
20:38 Mom and dad can't do it.
20:40 It's got to be somebody you just happen
20:42 to be sitting in the park and somebody ride by and say, oh,
20:44 wow.
20:46 And you know what else had limited some of our programs
20:49 from growing was the fact of travel.
20:53 Going to some of the tournaments,
20:55 especially if you're on the East Coast,
20:57 headed to a tournament to the West Coast.
21:02 You talk about hundreds and hundreds of dollars,
21:06 possibly thousands of dollars just
21:08 to be able to stay, accommodate the team and the players
21:12 and to feed them and to travel.
21:14 It got very expensive.
21:16 So that has been alleviated by some of the programs.
21:19 I know United Airlines has gotten
21:22 involved with providing $10,000 per HBCU program
21:28 to help alleviate the need for travel
21:31 there for some of those major programs.
21:34 I think you'll see some more support down the road.
21:36 I think Steph did a good job stepping up for Howard.
21:40 And I think you'll see more.
21:41 I've had several calls.
21:43 It happened to me lately from people who at corporations
21:48 saying, what if I got my boss to come up with $10 million
21:53 and said, I want to help out Coppin State with a program?
21:58 Would they turn it down?
21:59 I don't think so.
22:00 No.
22:01 They would definitely cherish it.
22:03 So I think that down the road, you'll
22:07 start seeing that door open up.
22:09 I think to your point, but it's got
22:11 to be some exposure so that people can see it.
22:16 Seeing is believing is the name of the game.
22:19 If you can definitely get it seen,
22:22 where people can say, damn, I didn't know over at Prairie
22:25 View they had this kid that played like this,
22:27 and he scored a 71 in golf.
22:30 Oh my god.
22:31 Where is he?
22:33 That kind of thing.
22:34 Because I always believe in the hidden god, Kyle.
22:38 There's somebody out there that can bless you, man.
22:40 You just got to see it.
22:43 And then when you say the word, well, I like to do X, Y, Z,
22:47 but I can't get to the park every day.
22:49 Excellent point, because we had conversations with--
22:58 I think it was the Texas Southern program,
23:00 the women's program, two years back to back,
23:03 that won the SWAG championship.
23:06 And when I wrote the article, even people at Texas Southern
23:13 knew how well they were doing.
23:16 So those are the things just to get that exposure.
23:19 And if HBCU Gold can be on the forefront of that,
23:23 that'll be excellent for you guys
23:26 and another feather in the cap for the media.
23:31 I think one of the things that we're
23:32 trying to accomplish this year that I've
23:34 been driving the nail on, Kyle, is driving the bland.
23:40 When I was at BET for 14 years, I was executive vice
23:42 president of marketing there.
23:44 And when I first came into BET in 1988, man,
23:48 I will never forget this day, Kyle.
23:50 I walked down the street and saw five Black people.
23:52 And I said, hey, what do you know about BET?
23:57 What?
23:58 Who is that?
23:59 What are you talking about?
24:01 Had no idea.
24:02 That day I said, Bob.
24:03 And the next day I said, Bob, we got a branding problem, man.
24:06 I said, you got people here in DC.
24:08 You've been here for eight years and don't even know who BET is.
24:11 That's terrible.
24:12 So I hate to go outside of DC and start
24:15 asking the same question.
24:16 And I think that what I learned from that
24:19 is that we've now put a quality product on the table.
24:25 We now has got the name out there, HBCU Gold.
24:28 And now people are resonating with more and more.
24:31 I'm seeing more people come in.
24:33 Anytime I wear HBCU, whatever, people walk up to me.
24:36 You're the guy that runs that HBCU channel, aren't you?
24:40 That kind of thing.
24:41 And the branding is so important, Kyle,
24:45 that people know where to go.
24:46 Then they understand where the destination lies.
24:49 And I think by laying in doubleheaders this year,
24:53 football and basketball, picking up other little specials here
24:57 and there, picking up volleyball, baseball, softball,
25:01 from whatever conference it is, and being
25:04 able to drive more that will drive more people to the table
25:07 saying, I got to watch that channel.
25:09 I got to see what's going on at HBCU Gold now.
25:12 Because it might be my granddaughter
25:14 or my daughter or my son, nephew, whatever it might be.
25:17 But they're on that channel.
25:18 And I think what it's going to do is--
25:20 I coach high school basketball here in Virginia
25:23 at a pretty popular Catholic school.
25:26 We're really good in basketball.
25:28 And of course, we're predominantly Black.
25:31 And I think what it would drive is kids, the four and five star
25:37 kids saying, you know what?
25:39 Maybe I should try this school.
25:42 Maybe I don't need to go to Duke.
25:44 Because my words to players, look, let me tell you something.
25:50 If you can play, they will find you.
25:53 They will find you.
25:55 Now, if you put the work in, you might get to the next level.
25:59 That's right.
26:00 That's right.
26:01 It ain't all about work.
26:04 Yeah, you're right about that, Mr. Simons,
26:07 because it's about the work, man.
26:09 If you're able to put the hard work
26:11 and the dedication and the commitment to your craft,
26:15 it's going to show up in the end.
26:17 No question.
26:18 It always does it at every level I've been at,
26:22 at every different industry I've been in.
26:25 It shows up the same way.
26:27 The ones who work hard, smart, learn, apply, move on,
26:32 and move up.
26:35 Yeah.
26:35 OK, let's talk about this before we get off the line.
26:40 HBCU Go, I know you guys this year
26:44 have added a few of the classics to your football schedule
26:49 as well.
26:50 Talk about the season ahead and what the audience should
26:54 expect.
26:55 Well, we're very excited about it.
26:57 We have three different packages out there.
27:01 To your point, we have a syndication package,
27:03 which is basically made up of more of our SWAC coverage.
27:07 And so we open up the season September 2nd
27:10 with the Chicago Football Classic,
27:11 featuring Central State University out of the SIC,
27:14 Mississippi Valley out of SWAC, and Soldier Field.
27:17 This is a 25-year project that's been out there.
27:22 It's been dead for a few years because of the pandemic.
27:25 Bringing it back this year, I think
27:27 the city is very excited.
27:29 The Ram brothers and Larry Higgins,
27:31 who's also part of the organizers,
27:34 they have done a super job of incorporating
27:36 the city into this game.
27:39 And we're very excited.
27:40 I've got a three-year contract with them.
27:43 I'm very excited about being able to open them.
27:46 And we go the following week to Southern Heritage in Memphis,
27:51 Fred Jones's Classic, which has been out there for 30 plus
27:54 years.
27:56 It's probably the second biggest now to the Bayou.
27:59 And they're featuring Arkansas Pine Bluff against Tennessee
28:03 State and Eddie George.
28:05 I think that's going to be another big game that we're
28:07 very, very excited.
28:09 I helped Fred years ago when I was at BT get exposure to BT.
28:13 Now I have the opportunity to have my own network
28:16 doing this game.
28:17 I'm very excited about it.
28:18 And I think it's going to be a wonderful, wonderful
28:21 atmosphere.
28:22 He's got Gladys Knight coming in to perform on Thursday night.
28:25 He's got another big name coming in to perform.
28:28 He's got the glam and the glitter going with it.
28:31 So I think it's going to be spectacular.
28:34 And then I think one of the most exciting things
28:36 on the schedule this year that the audience is really
28:41 going to love, we've got five homecomings.
28:43 And I think the five homecomings, Kyle,
28:46 the one thing that I think we bring to the table--
28:49 because I ride my people on this one word--
28:51 bringing the culture and the environment to the TV.
28:57 And I think if you're able to show homecoming when people are
29:00 celebrating each other, they've been bonding for years,
29:04 showing all the atmosphere, the game is a piece of it.
29:08 But that's a major piece of it.
29:10 And then you throw the bands in there,
29:11 the added icing on the cake that just really drives.
29:15 Because that battle is going to be so heavy,
29:17 especially doing homecomings.
29:19 Everybody's there, and you've got so many people
29:21 bringing back the memories and the glitter and the glam
29:23 of all.
29:24 So I think that we're going to be driving a lot of good
29:28 atmospheres this year.
29:30 And the goal is, with all the conferences,
29:33 is driving more butts in the seats.
29:35 Driving more butts in the seats.
29:37 Yeah.
29:38 And I think if we're putting television cameras around you,
29:42 it's going to help drive more butts in the seats.
29:44 Because people want to be seen.
29:45 They want their brother and their sister
29:47 to see them out there cheering for their school.
29:50 Or mom and dad, grandmother, whatever.
29:53 They ain't there.
29:54 So I think it's going to help drive more butts in the seats
29:57 for the school.
29:58 And also, the schools are very, very committed
30:01 to help drive that this year across the board.
30:04 So I'm very excited about this season.
30:07 I think we feature five SIAC games.
30:10 We've got five CIAA games and the CIAA football championship.
30:15 So I mean, we're really excited, man.
30:17 I think we've got a great schedule that our audience will
30:21 enjoy.
30:22 Again, the magic word for me, it is that destination.
30:26 You're not going to be able to say,
30:28 I don't know where I can find it.
30:29 No, no, no, no, no.
30:30 You're going to be able to find it.
30:32 And I think my syndication guy gave me some information today.
30:37 I was looking for this today, and it was great numbers.
30:40 You're talking about we are now--
30:41 think about this, Kyle.
30:43 We will now be in 73% of television households
30:46 across the country.
30:49 78% of African-American households.
30:53 We were in 67 of the top 100 markets.
30:56 And we're free.
30:57 And we're free.
30:59 I mean, I don't know how anyone can look past that, Kyle,
31:03 at the end of the day.
31:05 I'm not asking you to pay for it.
31:06 We're free.
31:08 Free.
31:08 Free entertainment, free exposure,
31:11 free opportunity to see your school that you're
31:16 root for and love so much.
31:18 You got it.
31:18 That you haven't been able to go to one of the home
31:20 games for a long time.
31:22 It's right there on HBCU Go.
31:25 Yes, sir.
31:28 Last thing.
31:29 I always want to ask this question,
31:30 because when talking to Byron, and we've
31:35 had several conversations, even behind the scenes,
31:40 how did you get your foot in the door immediately?
31:47 Because a lot of young people today, they see the story,
31:53 but they don't know the pains and trials and tribulations
31:57 that led up to the glory.
31:59 So how did you get started, Mr. Simon?
32:01 I mean, my story is very simple, Kyle.
32:04 I-- number one was, as I said to young Black people
32:08 and young kids today, not just African-American kids,
32:11 but I speak to a lot of groups.
32:13 I'm a PE major.
32:15 My background was really to follow my mother's footsteps,
32:18 who was a PE teacher at Central Day University.
32:22 But I was fortunate to stumble into the media--
32:24 literally stumble into the media business, Kyle,
32:27 and got on working with a cable system called Continental
32:31 Cablevision in Ohio.
32:33 And luckily, was able to run the cable system for three years
32:36 in my own city I grew up at, Senior, Ohio.
32:39 And then I jumped from there to Chicago
32:45 and got hooked in with ESPN.
32:47 And that's when I kind of realized then,
32:49 Kyle, that there wasn't a lot of us there.
32:54 And I said, this is the spot to make my mark at.
32:57 So then I focused on building what I thought
33:00 was the Curtis Simon brand.
33:02 And so I made myself--
33:04 I got to every meeting I could get to,
33:06 joined every organization I could get with,
33:08 to just keep putting my name out there.
33:10 And I had eight good years at ESPN.
33:14 And I talked to Bob Johnson.
33:15 We'd run each other cable shows.
33:17 And it was all, like I said, just me and him,
33:20 only African-Americans out there.
33:21 It was more Lilly White than that thing.
33:23 And then in '88, Bob called me out the blue and said, listen,
33:27 man, I need somebody to run all of my affiliate marketing.
33:30 My job was always distribution.
33:33 That's what I did.
33:35 And when he first talked to me, it kind of blew up my head.
33:38 And I talked to my wife.
33:39 And we were talking about opportunities.
33:41 And I said, you know what?
33:43 I know what Bob was doing.
33:44 But he just didn't come and say it out loud.
33:46 He wanted me to talk to him about me coming there.
33:50 So I called him back up and said, look, man,
33:52 why don't we sit down and have a conversation?
33:54 So I flew to DC and talked to Bob.
33:57 And I had heard all the horror stories about Bob.
34:00 Micromanaged, he was not the kind of guy
34:03 you want to work for.
34:05 He's not going to pay you what you work, blah, blah, blah.
34:07 And I just sat down.
34:08 We had a real man-to-man conversation.
34:10 I said, listen, I could come work for you
34:13 and help you turn this thing around.
34:14 But I'm not the kind of guy that needs to be micromanaged.
34:17 If you're going to let me do my thing, I'm your man.
34:20 If you're going to sit there and be in my drawers every day,
34:22 I'm not your man.
34:23 I'm not your man.
34:25 OK?
34:25 So I said, if we can agree on that, let's look at it.
34:29 He said, no, no, no, no.
34:30 You come in here, man.
34:32 Look at it this way.
34:33 And I use this line all the time because it was
34:35 a very profound line he gave me.
34:37 He said, think about this, Curtis.
34:39 Affiliate marketing is your own company.
34:42 You drive that company.
34:44 And anything goes down, I'm looking at you.
34:46 You're the president of that company.
34:48 You drive it.
34:48 And that's what he did, man.
34:49 For 14 years, I was able to grow.
34:52 I mean, I grew the company.
34:53 My team grew the company from 18 million to 100 million
34:57 in viewers.
34:59 And when I left, I felt good about it
35:01 because I could leave and know that I helped grow
35:05 BET from a small network into a big network.
35:10 And also, I knew that I did a great job--
35:14 my team did a great job of growing
35:16 the brand across the world.
35:18 Not just the country, the world.
35:20 I mean, I had us in Africa, London, Europe.
35:24 I mean, we were everywhere.
35:27 And the thing about it is--
35:28 that's what I tell people now at HBCU Go, Kyle,
35:31 is that people get caught up and say,
35:34 oh, it's only going to be African-American.
35:36 No, no, no, no, no.
35:39 We are a product.
35:41 We are a culture that drives crossover.
35:45 People want to know what we do on a regular basis.
35:49 They sure do.
35:49 They watch where we wear.
35:50 They watch where we walk.
35:53 Talk, everything.
35:54 The whole nine yards.
35:55 It's our culture that drives what people think in the world.
36:00 You can go to anywhere in the world.
36:02 If a basketball player wears a baggy shorts,
36:05 some kid over in Japan is wearing baggy shorts.
36:08 It's just the way it is.
36:09 That's the real world.
36:10 But you know what?
36:11 Mr. Simons has been like that since, what,
36:13 '20s and '30s as well.
36:15 No question.
36:15 No question.
36:16 You know, I remember my grandmother telling me
36:20 about a certain aspect because she lived in New Orleans,
36:25 but she attended Atlanta University,
36:28 got her master's there, and went up to NYU
36:32 and did a post-grad, right?
36:35 But she was talking about how the influence of our culture
36:40 she noticed at New Orleans, Atlanta,
36:44 and all the way in the East Coast
36:46 was seeping off into other cultures.
36:51 You know?
36:53 Yeah.
36:54 Think about it.
36:55 It's been part of our life, man.
36:58 I mean, every time I watch movies that are made now,
37:03 and I'll jump to your point of the old days,
37:06 you're exactly right.
37:07 You're right on point.
37:08 Everything was copied.
37:09 That's why we've become so much of an endangered species,
37:13 because people want to walk, talk, and be like us.
37:17 It's the same thing that Nike does with Michael.
37:21 I want to be like Mike.
37:22 They want to be like us.
37:24 That's right.
37:24 That's right.
37:26 That's been a song that's been sang through our whole lives.
37:30 Yeah.
37:31 I grew up-- so I'm a '60s baby, but I grew up primarily
37:36 in the '70s, right?
37:38 And remember, it was drive talk.
37:41 You know, all these drive talk, right?
37:43 Then you thought Norman Lear, the king of Black exploitation,
37:51 with "Good Times" and "The Jefferson
37:53 Rise" and everything else, take advantage of the project life,
37:59 behind the scenes, or how is it for a Black man
38:04 to grow and become successful.
38:07 You saw Sanford and Son and things of that nature.
38:10 And what I'm saying is all this.
38:13 Even back then, when JJ say "dynamite,"
38:17 the next thing you saw, it was on shirts.
38:20 It was on apparel.
38:22 Then you saw the bucket hats all over the place, right?
38:26 So all of that, and I'm saying this,
38:28 is that we have an opportunity right now,
38:32 becoming more intelligent, more in control of our media.
38:39 This is a great time for young professionals
38:41 to be able to groom their talents
38:44 and take it to the next level, because I think
38:47 it's going to come to a point where some of the--
38:50 like HBCU Go.
38:52 You got HBCU Plus, UEN Network, and all those other guys,
38:57 you know, and Todd Brown and Byron are good friends.
39:01 But you see all of what you guys are doing is just--
39:07 you guys are the pioneers right now,
39:09 again, taking it to another level,
39:12 where the streaming is the control, because everybody's
39:16 cutting the cord.
39:17 No question.
39:18 And it's going to be very important
39:21 that we are able to get those advertising dollars like Byron
39:25 was saying, and you fought for--
39:27 That's his anchor.
39:29 Right, get the advertising dollars
39:31 and put it in our pockets.
39:33 I think that's the hardest part of life
39:36 that we have to fight with, that--
39:39 to Byron's point, which he makes a very good, very good
39:43 reasoning on his thinking, is that they still
39:46 don't look at us with value.
39:48 They still won't look-- and that goes back
39:50 to what you just talked about, like with your grandmother,
39:52 Nauda.
39:53 We still looked at it like sitting back on the back
39:54 of the bus.
39:55 Doesn't matter.
39:56 It doesn't matter.
39:57 That doesn't matter.
39:58 That mindset will never change.
40:01 You know, and it's sad that, A, it
40:05 had to take George Floyd being killed, but people say, oh,
40:08 we need to commit to the Black community more.
40:11 Are you serious?
40:12 What's sad is that when you go into the education world,
40:17 they don't tell the real story about who founded what.
40:21 We're always told, oh, that was Franklin
40:23 who founded electricity.
40:25 You know, that was such a--
40:27 never telling the real story about all
40:29 the African-American men and women who were first.
40:33 And the man who worked for Alexander Graham
40:35 Bell was really the one who invented the telephone.
40:38 Yeah, and you look at the hidden figures.
40:41 You know, no one knew the lady was behind, you know--
40:45 The astronauts, yes.
40:47 Right.
40:48 I'm not going up unless she stamps the numbers.
40:50 No one ever heard that story until the movie came out.
40:53 And she was from West Virginia State University, the HBCU.
40:57 OK.
40:58 So it's the world we live in, man.
41:01 And it's a hard world because the other piece behind it
41:05 is all geared on money.
41:07 Money is-- Michael Douglas says something
41:10 in the movie "Wall Street" that I just
41:12 believe is the real true word.
41:15 Money is the pimp of life.
41:17 If you don't have it, you're in the doghouse.
41:19 If you do have it, it's easy to run by people
41:22 because you got the money and say, you know what?
41:24 Here, here's $10.
41:25 Go away.
41:25 Yeah, go away.
41:27 Bottom line.
41:28 Bottom line.
41:29 Bottom line.
41:30 And it's so true.
41:31 And that's why I've been trying to train my son
41:36 to understand the business side of what we're
41:40 doing as far as journalism is concerned.
41:43 Not only understanding how to put together the video
41:46 or how to write an article, but understanding what you do,
41:53 you are your brand.
41:55 You are the one who commands the respect,
41:59 like Byron has been fighting for, that we deserve.
42:03 Hey, give us those advertising dollars.
42:06 And I have one last conversation.
42:08 Maybe you could be able to expound on this one as well.
42:13 When it comes to fighting for our brands,
42:19 what advice would you give to a young person,
42:24 especially coming, let's say, their two, three years,
42:27 or even straight coming out of college at this time?
42:30 What advice would you give to them on embarking
42:35 into the world of media?
42:38 Well, I think one of the things that you
42:40 have to be careful of as a young African-American man or woman
42:43 coming into the game is you have to be patient.
42:45 You have to be patient.
42:47 And you have to also be selective in a way.
42:52 Once you get in the door, you want to show people, number
42:55 one, I'm not after your job.
42:56 I'm trying to learn.
42:58 Because a lot of times, we get placed in jobs
43:01 because we need this minority over here.
43:03 So put that person over there.
43:04 Put Curtis Simons over here.
43:05 And have him work with Kyle.
43:06 Have Kyle show him a couple tricks.
43:08 And just keep him happy for a minute.
43:10 And we'll see what we do.
43:11 Pacify him.
43:12 Exactly.
43:13 And so the key that I learned in the game
43:18 was learn to play the game.
43:20 Learn to play the game, Kyle.
43:22 Because everybody's trying to get up the ladder,
43:25 men and women.
43:27 Always trying to get up the ladder.
43:28 But you got to learn how to play the game to get in the door.
43:30 And then the other thing I think that's really important
43:33 is what I learned in my steps was
43:35 that you got to have people who support you, Kyle,
43:40 to get you to move.
43:41 If they don't support you, man, if you
43:43 have a supervisor who's always just in your stuff,
43:47 doesn't really give you the light of day,
43:49 always talking negative, never giving you
43:52 real positive feedback, come to the evaluation,
43:55 want to chew you up, spit you out in the evaluation,
43:57 that ain't the way to get up the ladder.
43:59 You got to have somebody who says, hey, Kyle,
44:02 come on over to this meeting with me.
44:04 I want to show you a couple of tricks
44:06 while I'm in this meeting that you could maybe use down
44:08 the road.
44:09 So now you get the experience.
44:10 You're with a trailblazer.
44:13 And now you're sitting side by side
44:14 as you're watching them work and learning and listening.
44:17 So then when your opportunity comes up,
44:19 you make-- maybe you have to act like that person.
44:22 But you might take a couple of pieces
44:24 of what you learned from that person
44:26 in order to get close to the deal.
44:28 And I think once you're able to get that confidence
44:32 under your belt--
44:34 and I use that word hardly--
44:36 confidence under your belt, Kyle,
44:39 then you start triculating up the ladder.
44:43 Because confidence is the key.
44:45 It's like in sports.
44:46 Once you get confidence--
44:48 I mean, for me, I thought I had confidence
44:52 after I was 26 years old because of the fact
44:55 that I knew how to talk to people.
44:59 And one thing was said to me early on, Kyle,
45:01 that I didn't take seriously when I was younger.
45:04 And it probably hit me throughout like 30-something
45:06 years.
45:07 My first boss in the television business that ran the cable--
45:11 I was running cables-- said to me, Curtis,
45:15 you're going to go a long way because you
45:16 have a great personality.
45:18 And people come to you because of your personality.
45:21 You just attract people.
45:23 And I didn't really gravitate to that conversation strong at all.
45:28 But then I noticed, man, after about when I got 27--
45:31 26, 27 years old, I could walk in a room and take over the room
45:34 easily.
45:36 And I mean, just run the show.
45:38 And once I got that confidence like that, Kyle,
45:42 that helped my stairs step tremendously.
45:44 Because I wasn't afraid to say something to somebody.
45:47 I just wasn't.
45:49 And I was fortunate to have people
45:51 who allowed me to take that step.
45:54 And then it just helped me progress.
45:58 And then I was getting into meetings.
46:00 I'll never forget when I first met Ted Turner.
46:04 I was 33 years old, sitting on his board.
46:07 And Bob would take me to a meeting.
46:10 And I was telling him, I was just glad to meet the guy.
46:13 I heard so much about him.
46:14 And I told him, I said, you know what?
46:15 I said, Mr. Turner, I said, I'm going
46:17 to be on one of these boards soon that you're sitting on.
46:21 And I'm going to make some noise when I come in the room.
46:24 He said, ah, Curtis, I hear you.
46:26 I'll wait and see.
46:27 Sure enough, in about another year,
46:28 Bob gave up all his seats and gave them to me.
46:30 So now I'm sitting right next to the table at him.
46:32 Wow.
46:33 And we used to have some great conversations.
46:35 Because I respected Ted.
46:37 Ted was a country boy.
46:39 But he had the money.
46:41 He had the backing.
46:42 And he would say whatever he wanted to Ted.
46:44 Didn't matter.
46:45 But he respected you if you said the truth to him.
46:48 That's what I learned.
46:50 Yeah.
46:50 A lot of guys, if y'all don't know
46:52 who Mr. Simon is talking about, Ted Turner,
46:55 who is the innovator and the founder of CNN.
46:59 So yeah.
47:00 So he was a pretty dynamic guy.
47:04 He was outstanding.
47:05 He was outstanding.
47:06 One thing I appreciated about him--
47:08 because I attended Morehouse.
47:10 And at that time, they were just coming
47:15 into their own at that time.
47:17 But they gave opportunities to some of my fellow Morehouse
47:21 brothers.
47:23 That was the important thing right there.
47:26 If you had an opportunity to go to Turner Network--
47:29 Yeah, that was big.
47:30 --you did pretty good.
47:30 Yeah, you did good.
47:32 All right.
47:35 Mr. Simon, thank you so much.
47:37 It's been a pleasure speaking with you.
47:38 Hey, Kyle, thank you very much, man.
47:41 It was a great conversation, man.
47:42 I'm glad you were able to do it.
47:44 Looking forward to seeing it when you run it.
47:46 Because I always say things I have to remember.
47:48 Like, what did I say in that?
47:51 I had to catch myself.
47:52 I said I was seeing--
47:53 man, I didn't know about this.
47:54 You said this.
47:55 I'm like, really?
47:56 I did say that?
47:56 You know?
47:57 So I look forward to it, man.
47:59 Look, I love it because I love to learn.
48:02 And I love to be able to kind of pick brains.
48:07 And you said something that was very key for me.
48:10 Because at Morehouse, we were taught
48:12 not to be afraid of anything.
48:15 So as Morehouse men, when we went out to the world--
48:18 and my first job was at Exxon.
48:21 I should say-- I shouldn't use the name.
48:24 But anyway, I was there.
48:26 And these guys were like, who are you, you young buck?
48:34 And it was one of the things that I
48:41 tried to instill into my son.
48:43 Don't be afraid.
48:46 Be tenacious.
48:47 Always fight for your rights and the principles
48:50 and what you believe in.
48:52 Learn as much as you can.
48:54 But when you're doing it, make sure that you reach back
48:58 and help somebody else.
48:59 Well, that's a very good line to close on, Kyle.
49:03 Because that's one of, I think, the understatements
49:06 in our community.
49:07 We don't know how to reach back and help people who
49:11 are trying to help themselves.
49:14 And I think that's the thing in our culture.
49:17 I just can't seem to understand, man.
49:19 And it's just-- it's a very strong deterrent of who we are.
49:24 Because we'll go out and buy a car,
49:26 but we won't give somebody $5.
49:29 How about this, Mr. Simonson?
49:31 And a lot of these young people on social media,
49:35 they swear by social media, right?
49:38 Sometimes you have the support that all
49:42 another social media content creator needs
49:45 is that you simply say like.
49:48 Yeah.
49:49 Or give a positive comment.
49:51 Yeah.
49:51 Or something to that nature.
49:53 That can help as much as, like you say, a kind word,
49:57 whatever.
49:58 If you don't have a chance to give a kind word,
50:00 give a thumbs up.
50:02 Yeah.
50:02 And you help them out.
50:03 No, I think you're right on point, man.
50:05 And by the way, before we close out,
50:08 my oldest son graduated from Morehouse.
50:09 So I'm with you on that Morehouse thing.
50:12 That's a strong place right there.
50:15 What's his name, if you don't mind?
50:16 Richard Simons.
50:17 He lives in Atlanta.
50:18 He does.
50:19 All right.
50:20 He finished in '06.
50:22 '06, OK.
50:23 I'm a long time ahead of him.
50:24 1989, man.
50:26 I got you.
50:27 I got you.
50:28 I would have been 88.
50:29 My dad passed away my sophomore year.
50:33 And it took me a little time to kind of get through it.
50:39 I understand.
50:41 It was one of the best things that ever happened to me
50:45 in life was to be able to attend Morehouse,
50:48 not because of the education, but it
50:50 was the common sense education, the practical life lessons
50:55 that we learned at the institution.
50:57 And that's what a lot of HBCU students
51:00 are starting to figure out by attending in droves these days.
51:06 I think you're right on point on that, Kyle.
51:09 And I hope that people really take that message to heart,
51:12 because that's the difference that I preach in the PBI,
51:16 in the PWIs, because you can't get that what you just said.
51:20 You can't get that.
51:21 Only at HBCU.
51:23 And that's what you learn.
51:24 That's what you learn.
51:25 Before you get off, stick around after we sign off.
51:30 I want to ask a question.
51:32 But guys, this is Mr. Curtis Simons.
51:35 He is the president of HBCU Go.
51:38 He's Byron Adams' right hand.
51:40 He's the man who puts it all together.
51:43 And it's been a--
51:46 look, I need to have you back on.
51:48 I need to have you to talk to a little bit further.
51:51 I need to pick your brain.
51:52 And we need to hear some of the information
51:56 that you can be able to bestow upon us as well.
51:59 Kyle, you got me any day of the week, man.
52:01 I love these kind of interviews.
52:02 They're heart to heart.
52:03 So just let Jenny know when you want to hook it up,
52:07 and I'm in.
52:08 All right.
52:09 I'm Kyle T. Mosley of HBCU Legends.
52:11 This is Mr. Curtis Simons, the president of HBCU Go.
52:15 Thank you, Curtis.
52:16 Thank you, Kyle.
52:17 All right, thank you guys.
52:20 (upbeat music)
52:22 (upbeat music)