val: Mandela 100. Some of the biggest
artists in the world performed at the
largest concert in African history to
raise over $1 billion for charity. Forget
about working on that stuff. It’s a
privilege to be a witness to that stuff.
Early this year, it was announced
that you were partnering with
adidas to relaunch Ivy Park.
We think it will be the biggest athletic
partnership of all time. And from
there, we rolled straight into the
Homecoming film project and then the
Homecoming Live album. We rere-
leased Lemonade, and that went back
into the top 10 [on the Billboard 200].
Next, came The Lion King soundtrack with “Can
You Feel the Love Tonight” with Donald Glover and
Beyoncé. I mean, we had three top 10 albums. The
marketing of The Lion King movie followed by the
“Spirit” and “Bigger” videos. In July, we released
The Lion King: The Gift album, which was Beyoncé’s
Quincy Jones moment. As accomplished a performer
as she is, she is also a hell of a producer, director and
arranger. And we’re just 10 months into the year. It’s
like the old Army ad, you know: We do more before
7 a.m. than most people do all day. But that’s Park-
wood. And that’s the standard that Beyoncé has set.
You have been at Parkwood for four years...
Yes. Sometimes it feels like 40, and sometimes it
feels like four days. You’re never comfortable, and
you never know enough. That’s one of the things I
love about B.
You have a front-row seat to Beyoncé’s creative
process. What can you tell us about her that
most people don’t know?
Everyone tries to copy the outcome, but I’ve seen
few people really want to emulate the process. One
of the things I say all the time is that if people want
to be her at 10 p.m. onstage, they have to want to be
her at 4 a.m. in rehearsal. And they have to be her at
5 p.m. in the conference room. If you want to be that
mogul, if you want to be that entertainer, you put in
the work. She puts in the work.
What are her strengths as an executive?
She is so secure in what she’s doing — which came
directly from how she was raised — that she gives
opportunities to people who don’t think like her or
look like her. And when you merge her talent and
drive with a team that’s able to see things that maybe
she doesn’t see, that combination is unstoppable.
Define Beyoncé and Parkwood’s mission.
We’re not just doing entertainment. We are moving
the culture forward. People use that term all the
time, but few understand that culture is defined as
a series of art and actions that helps shape a society
and its worldview. If you think about what Beyoncé
has done for African culture — for African Ameri-
cans in particular — along with women and others
who feel less empowered, she has moved the self-es-
teem of these groups in a positive direction. That
is history. I tell people all the time, “You can make
money, but can you make history?”
How did she make that transition from being
simply an entertainer to someone who wields
such a powerful cultural voice?
She got rid of the duality of trying to please every-
one — of chasing the dollar — and freed herself
of some of the things that not only hold [African
Americans] back as a group, but that hold society
back as a whole.
Given the fan loyalty and positive media she
generates, what do you make of Homecoming
not winning a single Emmy, despite six nomina-
tions, or your history with the Grammy Awards?
First of all, I don’t even consider those things as
losses. I grew up on the South Side of Chicago. Going
to the Emmys is a dream for me. You know, there are
three types of stakeholders with [an awards show]
like the Emmys. There are the fans, there are the
critics, and then there are our peers. The fans and
the critics don’t vote for the Emmys, but I can’t be
mad at our peers. What we experienced at the Em-
mys motivates me.
After the Emmys, a Boomerang video showing
you and other members of Beyoncé’s team
throwing your middle fingers circulated. Were
you angry?
That was taken at the Netflix afterparty, and it was
a joke. We were just letting off steam and having a
great time. The recognition that we got for Home-
coming, particularly from the young students [who
saw advance screenings] at Prairie View A&M, Texas
Southern, Grambling State, Morehouse, Spelman,
Hampton University, North Carolina A&T — man,
that’s 10 times bigger than any award. Look, who
doesn’t want to win those types of things? But we
smile and go on. Trust me, there are greater things to
come. We’ll be back.
What’s the strategy behind your company’s
intense secrecy?
First of all, it has become part of Beyoncé’s brand to
surprise and delight. The other big piece, mathemat-
ically speaking, is the amount of money and effort
that people put into hype. B is really trying to create
art. She’s pushing the culture forward. So why not
put the energy into that instead of a billboard or an
advertisement or social media?
How do you maintain that secrecy?
Beyoncé sets the tone. Our job is not to tell people
about the project. Our job is the project. And the
brilliant thing she has been able to do is get us to
emotionally attach to one another as well as to our
professional obligations. There’s no NDA tighter
than your love for somebody else.
MEMBERS OF THE PARKWOOD ENTERTAINMENT TEAM,
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT Production coordinator
Leah Nardos Takele, digital developer Benjamin
Maer, paralegal Kylie Gregory, production
coordinator Shaquana Golden, visual director Ed
Burke, staff photo editor Laura Germida, director
of finance Gene Bolan, executive assistant Sylvia
Black, collection archivist Samantha Oddi, head
of Ivy Park Byl Thompson, director of information
technology Matthew VanOmmeren, digital design
manager Lila Miller Espinosa, manager of human
resources and office administration Nathacha
Paul, chief digital officer Tina Imm, Pamon,
director of social responsibility Ivy McGregor,
Noel-Schure, archive manager Samantha Losben
and A&R coordinator Mariel Gomerez.
OCTOBER 19, 2019 • WWW.BILLBOARD.COM 4 7
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