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May 5, 2024 13 mins

Two-time Emmy and Three-time NAACP Image Award-winning television Executive Producer Rushion McDonald interviews Patti LaBelle. She has turned her culinary skills into a financial food triumph!  LaBelle owns 100% of her company alongside her son

In 2008, LaBelle allowed the world to experience her food for themselves after launching her food brand, Good Life. Per Forbes, the brand first carried a line of hot sauces and has since expanded to include sweet potato pie and peach cobbler, frozen breakfast foods, and meals such as chicken, biscuits, and mac-n-cheese.

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Speaker 1 (00:00):
If you're about to make a change in your life
and you feel uncomfortable, that's the best.

Speaker 2 (00:05):
Feeling you can have because for the first time in
your life, you'll make a.

Speaker 1 (00:10):
New decision that's going to be best for you and
not what somebody told you to do.

Speaker 2 (00:15):
And that's when all bets are off.

Speaker 1 (00:17):
Welcome to Money Making Conversation Masterclass. I'm your host, Rashaan McDonald.
Our theme is there's no perfect time to start following
your dreams. I recognize that we all have different definitions
of success. For you and maybe decide to your jam
it's time to stop reading other people's success stories to
start living your own.

Speaker 2 (00:34):
Keep winning.

Speaker 1 (00:40):
My next guest deserves a drum rolling, but I don't
have a drum roll. During the month of May, she
is celebrating her seventy sixth birthday. She has authored six books,
including four that are cookbooks. I have one that came
out in twenty seventeen, Deserts LaBelle So for Sweets the Scene.
She has recently begin sharing some of her personal rights
piece on Instagram, which I share on my at Rashaan

(01:03):
McDonald Facebook. Please walk on the Money Making Conversations Grammy
Award winning artists, actress, entrepreneur and founder of Patty's Good
Life Patty LaBelle, Hey.

Speaker 3 (01:15):
You better talk well, you know, how are you, honey?

Speaker 2 (01:19):
I'm doing great.

Speaker 1 (01:19):
First of all, I want to thank you for inspiring
me to and and where it'sbin said. I've been changing
lives and giving people a voice that didn't have a
voice in the fields of entertainment entrepreneurship. Thank you, Patty Label, Thank.

Speaker 3 (01:32):
You too, honey. Thank you so much. And I know
you're gonna be that man that I knew you were
from back in the day. And look at you now,
you're still don't what you do.

Speaker 1 (01:41):
Let's talk about thank you. Let's talk about this food girl.
Patty's Good Life. The live features eight hours. I know
the feature eight hours because your boy was shopping this morning.

Speaker 2 (01:51):
I went to Walmart I live in Atlanta.

Speaker 1 (01:54):
Okay, this is what I got because I'm gonna be
celebrating because you know, it's like, what's a cool way
to give her a gift, to show that I'm thinking
about it, to show of love. So what I'm gonna do?
I said, perfect, you know I'm gonna go. I went
and bought him this morning. This was I bought.

Speaker 2 (02:07):
I bought.

Speaker 1 (02:08):
I found the macaroni and cheese. It's made well, I'm
gonna tell everybody what it's made with the extra ingreen.
It's made with cheddar cheese, Monoye jack cheese, and real butter.

Speaker 2 (02:16):
Then I got the beef risky stew that's.

Speaker 1 (02:19):
Tended to beef brisket and hearty sauce with potatoes, corn peas,
and carrots. Then I also got the Southern style greens
which is seasoned kale with a touch of hot pepper.
And I'm gonna tell you something. This is what I
really love. That you got black eyed peas, black eyed
pien with smoked turkey, sweet onions, and garlics. Right there,

(02:40):
I'm busting that box open because I also got some
of your sweet corn bread. I got some of your
sweet corn bread, and then you topped it off. Because
I came back home, my wife said I didn't know Patty,
because you know, she.

Speaker 2 (02:51):
Was saying I thought she just did pies. I said, no,
Paddy got it going on. And this was opened her eyes.

Speaker 1 (02:58):
When I pulled out the Okra stew with oprah, tomatoes
and sweet corn, she said, that's it.

Speaker 2 (03:04):
She would shut up. Patty got Okrah I said.

Speaker 3 (03:08):
Patty got Yes, that's one of my favorites.

Speaker 1 (03:10):
Yes, And then you know you purchased and you're still
doing the things that you want to do. The majoity
you give to people, explain that, to explain that that
that that love for you have a life, Patty on
my show and tell people.

Speaker 3 (03:24):
I guess, I guess it's because of my mom and dad.
They were both loving people outgoing the neighborhood and just
made people feel like they wanted to smile instead of frowning.
And with me, I noticed, you know, since I've been
performing for fifty six years and I've touched so many
people just when I hug them right, you know, or

(03:47):
when I smile and say something positive to them, don't
cast you enoughing to be a lister of people. And
it's natural for me, It's natural, you.

Speaker 2 (03:57):
Know, which was always cool about you, Patty.

Speaker 1 (04:00):
Like I was interviewing Holly Robinson Pee in December and
she was telling me I'm doing it. I'm doing a
Christmas show with Patty the bill and it was like
her voice dropped down and she was like it was
a reverence, you know, like I do. And then you know,
because I was girl, you go do something with. It
was like we all joined in into tlevel of happiness.

Speaker 2 (04:18):
Girl, you're doing.

Speaker 3 (04:19):
Something with Patty, you know.

Speaker 1 (04:23):
And I like to believe I'm a successful person, and
we all know Holly Robinson Peter's a successful person.

Speaker 2 (04:27):
But just to.

Speaker 1 (04:28):
Work with you, work with you means that there's there's
something special that's about to happen, because your time means
something to us, your treasure.

Speaker 2 (04:38):
Your treasure.

Speaker 3 (04:39):
I appreciate that. And I really feel as that you're
telling the truth because, as I said, I'm seventy six
and I've been working for fifty six years. And whenever
I go and say that, I get this great feeling
from the audience that they're pleased to be with me
that night. Now I'm going to give them something special.
Nothing I do is pretend.

Speaker 1 (04:59):
Oh no, when you start flapping those wings, now, no
flapping those wings, you know, that's like a signatshire for that.
You know she's about to do her things. She's about
to do her thing right. Those are the blessings of
being able to where.

Speaker 2 (05:12):
Were you at?

Speaker 1 (05:13):
What song do you? What song do you like? What
song meant something to do? You have that type of career,
that type of brand. And the reason I bring that
up because to become an entrepreneur in this level, you
know where you where you can go in your store
and like I said, I saw your face on the
box on several boxes special Yeah, and I know where
it started. You know, it started with the Sweet Potato Pie.

(05:35):
So let's walk us through that step of being an entrepreneur.
And when you when you go in the store sometimes
and see your box, your face on that box, talker,
tell us about that journey of being an entrepreneur.

Speaker 3 (05:47):
Patty, Okay, when when? Because I've always coaked all my life,
and so at one point I said, this is my
second love, singing is first, and I should do it
and try to feed people.

Speaker 4 (06:00):
Please don't go anywhere. We'll be right back with more
Money Making Conversations Masterclass. Welcome back to the Money Making
Conversations Masterclass, hosted by Rashaan McDonald. Money Making Conversations Masterclass
continues online at Moneymakingconversations dot com and follow money Making

(06:20):
Conversations Masterclass on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Speaker 3 (06:25):
No, I wasn't thinking about the money at the time,
but I just knew how good my food was and
I wanted people to say, well, can I have a second.
And so it started with the supernet pies and all
the sweet items m M that my mother made up.
Watch my mother and my aunt make these certain items,
and I gravitated to them cooking. Because I was a
very shy kid. I stayed at home. I never went

(06:45):
out and played with skids. I learned how to cook.
So that's my gift and now that I want. When
my babies were my grandbabies were in the store and
their mother took a video of them and they were
walking down the aisle said that's graab, my patty on suplicated.
I said, oh, that made me feel like my babies
are seeing my face. And I was in the store

(07:07):
once and saw it, and it made me feel special, honey,
just so blessed, so blessed.

Speaker 1 (07:13):
And you know the real interesting thing about it is
that I remember, we won't go back to journey.

Speaker 2 (07:18):
How blessings. And if you're good, I would say, if.

Speaker 1 (07:20):
You treat people writing you're good people, then good things
happen to you. Because when you put your sweet potato
pie in the store, that young man decided.

Speaker 2 (07:31):
Decided, he decided to taste.

Speaker 1 (07:34):
And the thing about it while he was eating it,
and I'm gonna tell you so, I'm gonna tell you
how big that got.

Speaker 2 (07:38):
I was in LA and it's a Fox.

Speaker 1 (07:40):
Executive, white guy, white guy, Fox executive, and we was
talking about doing a TV show and he said, Rashan,
have you seen.

Speaker 2 (07:47):
That Patty label video? I said, what you're talking about?
He said, sweet Potato Pie video, that's what you're talking about,
and he pulled it out. That's how deep it had gotten.
That's how viral had got.

Speaker 3 (07:57):
James, I know, that's wonderful. He's one of my best friends.
I didn't know him before that. No, I was shocked
to seek the video of myself. I said, Dag, he
got it like that. He likes that pie like that.
I said, oh God, so we met and in that's history.
I mean, we're friends forever.

Speaker 2 (08:15):
But that's that. That's that.

Speaker 1 (08:17):
You can't buy that because once he did, the pies
could not stay in the store.

Speaker 3 (08:23):
Uh huh. That's true. And at the beginning when they
went out, they were doing really well, but when he
did that thing, they weren't even more. He said, thank you,
dear Jane.

Speaker 1 (08:33):
Hey, pat Patty pat I went and got a couple,
you know, I I but you had to call around,
you know, you just couldn't like just walk in wald
On and get right said, it's the patty pie. There
is the patty pie. Swee pretend the pie. And they
knew as soon as you call they knew, no, we're not.
They'll be in this Friday Friday. And so you can't
buy that type of market. And he gave it to you.

(08:54):
And the thing about it is that, you know, I
always tell people, you know, once you get an opportunity,
make sure you can deliver.

Speaker 2 (09:01):
And you delivered on the.

Speaker 1 (09:02):
Pie, the taste of the pie, the crust of the pie,
all that stuff.

Speaker 2 (09:06):
You didn't cheat your fans.

Speaker 1 (09:07):
You didn't cheat me because you know black people, you
know we can get hold of it.

Speaker 2 (09:12):
If I come on black people.

Speaker 3 (09:16):
I don't want nobody to beat me up.

Speaker 2 (09:19):
We spent a.

Speaker 1 (09:20):
Hard our money. She's just messing around that because they
would not have bought it and drove. And the beauty
of it, it happened at the right time doing that
Thanksgiving run. Oh, it was just it's just all the
stars lined up that lined up for your sweet potato pie.
Now did you came back with the peach cobbler? Now,

(09:40):
tell us about how did you get into this next
line that I just mentioned the macaroni and cheese, the
beef brisk.

Speaker 3 (09:46):
Is stewidd Because I'm always making dinner. I'm always looking
for a certain thing to add to the chicken or
the roast ham or something. So of course my size
would have been like the green though macaroni and cheese.
I've been making that forever and everybody loves that. And
so I said, well, let's just put out a few
items and see if people. Why is this way? I

(10:07):
don't have to cook dinner. They don't have to buy deserves.
I mean they have to buy a dessert spine, but
they don't have to measure your own deserves. And it's
easy for women or men like you used to buy
and relax and not have to cook. Right, and all
the food is good.

Speaker 2 (10:23):
Well, it's really reasonable.

Speaker 1 (10:25):
That's why that's I'm telling him, because you're bore about
to start promoting.

Speaker 2 (10:28):
I'm not going to be at the level of James.

Speaker 1 (10:30):
Now he did some astronomical you know this product is
you know, people want to just.

Speaker 2 (10:35):
Go home, just put it in microway, put it in
the oven. It's some great food.

Speaker 1 (10:39):
It's rare, and I guess it's a lot of food
in this package.

Speaker 2 (10:42):
I'm just I'm opening yet, but I know weight. I
know weight.

Speaker 3 (10:45):
I went, I know you do.

Speaker 1 (10:47):
I just got some just a family serving and so
and so it was so funny that I was because
I'm an old school I'm from Houston, Texas and the
country boar. I love buttermilk. I love I love for
sugar my butter milk. And so you know when I
saw that corn.

Speaker 2 (11:02):
Bread girl, I said, I'm gonna get this. I'm gonna
make me some corn bread.

Speaker 1 (11:05):
I'm gonna put that sugar there, but I'm gonna crumble
up this good old Paddy good like corn bread in there,
and that's gonna be my dessert on Sunday. I'm just
gonna let you know.

Speaker 3 (11:13):
I'm just don't you know you're gonna make that into
a dessert.

Speaker 1 (11:17):
Absolutely absolutely, I'm just gonna have fun because of the
fact that you have a you have. You're giving me
a gift because you've been doing it all Like I'm
gonna just shift a little gear.

Speaker 2 (11:27):
Because you've been an.

Speaker 5 (11:28):
Advocate for adoptions, diabetes, cancer, HIV, AIDS, and many other
causes and nonprofit initiatives. What drives that energy, Patty, I.

Speaker 3 (11:42):
Was born with this. I'm I'm a total giver and
it don't cost me nothing to give what God has
given me. So I give it and with a smile
on my face and wait to be asked to do
some more stuff because I'm that girl. You know, there's
nothing that I can do for people. I can it
all we.

Speaker 2 (12:01):
And I appreciate that. I appreciate you.

Speaker 3 (12:03):
Thank you so much. Okay.

Speaker 1 (12:07):
If you want to hear more interviews on money Making Conversation,
go to Moneymaking Conversation dot com.

Speaker 2 (12:12):
I'm ra Sean McDonald. I'm your host.

Speaker 6 (12:17):
Thank you for joining us for this edition of money
Making Conversations Masterclass. Money Making Conversations Masterclass with rough Shan
McDonald is produced by thirty eight fifteen Media Inc. More
information about thirty eight fifteen Media Inc. Is available at
thirty eight fifteen media dot com. And always remember to
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