We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
If you grew up in the ‘90s or early 2000s, you most likely heard a Master P song on the radio. From making us all say “Uhh!” in ‘97 and “Hoody Hoo” in ‘99, to taking us right to the dance floor with the 2000 hit “Wobble Wobble,” there’s no denying the impact his music and style had on millions of millennials. But don’t think that’s all he gave us. Those who deemed themselves “Nickelodeon Kids” in the 2000s know that he (along with his son Romeo Miller) spent three years on our television screens playing a fictionalized version of himself in the hit sitcom, Romeo!.
Truth be told, anyone who has had the pleasure of watching Percy “Master P” Miller build his legacy up knows that he’s a creative genius. Sure, there are a number of ways in which we can confirm the legitimacy of his said legacy, but as of late, the former NBA player has had his sights set on an avenue different than that of entertainment — and it’s sure to make him even more of a household name than he already is.
Although “Mr. Ice Cream Man” himself isn’t quite serving up “ice cream” these days, the head honcho of No Limit Records is serving up an array of affordable food products, and his latest venture taps former NLR artist and rap icon, Snoop Dogg. And while the two longtime friends are no strangers to success both together and separately, the new deal they landed for their Broadus Foods brand (named after Snoop’s birth name, Calvin Broadus) may be their biggest deal yet.
Collaborating with Post, Snoop’s debut line of breakfast cereal — Snoop Cereal — will hit the shelves of major retailers this summer. Featuring three varieties that will appeal to fans young and old — Fruity Hoopz with Marshmallows, Frosted Drizzlers, and Cinnamon Toasteez — the partnership will give consumers the opportunity to help those in need as Broadus Foods donates a portion of the proceeds from each sale to charities whose mission focuses on food insecurity and homelessness.
In celebration of the new deal, Master P took some time out of his busy schedule to chat with The Kitchn’s News & Culture Editor, Ni’Kesia Pannell, to deliver all the details of the new partnership, drop a few gems for entrepreneurs, and much more.
Check out the interview below.
Tell us a little about the new deal with Post.
Inking a deal with Post was so important because when you look at African Americans, we don’t have products on these shelves. We do a lot of buying of these products, but don’t actually have our own products, so this is a blessing to be able to have our own product on the shelves. I grew up eating cereal through the WIC program, so for me and Snoop to be able to have our own cereal brand inside these stores — and also for a great cause — it’s a blessing. It’s really bigger than cereal. We call ourselves the “Kings of Breakfast Foods.”
It also shows growth. Showing that we come from hip-hop and when you look at 50 years of hip-hop, it shows where we are evolving to now. This is my passion to be able to feed my people — educate them and feed them.
You’ve done a lot of things over the years — from basketball to taking over the music game to building a mogul-like image for yourself. Has there ever been a time when you let fear stop you from doing something or push you further into it?
I think fear pushes me. Fear, hate, non-belief … it just pushes me to let me know that they’re not going to stereotype me. They’re not going to put me in a category. I think that envy and jealousy, self-hate … it drives people. It motivates the people that know “this is bigger than me.” So, I don’t look at this as if it’s only about making money; this is about building God’s Kingdom. I’m focused and I realize bigger blessings are coming when you’re doing right.
Is there any advice you can give for those looking to step into the food world? Or, for someone who’s already created a product, is there any advice you would give to help them leverage their business?
I’d like to let people know that it’s not going to be easy. It’s going to take a lot of hard work, but it’s all about consistency. Even when people see our packaging … you can have nice packaging, but at the end of the day, it’s what’s inside here. This food has to taste good. That’s what’s going to make people want to come back and keep buying the product. So, consistency and also, quality and taste are the most important things when you’re trying to get products on these shelves.
You’re going to be dealing with a lot of adversity because to get your product on the shelf, they’re going to have to take somebody else’s product off that they already have all these relationships with. They already have this “buddy-buddy” system. So, you’re going against the grain, and you have to be 10 steps ahead of them. You have to be playing chess and not checkers. And, we have to learn how to work together in order to be successful. The harvest is plenty, but the workers are few.
I know there are plenty of other food-related products you have coming out or that are out currently. Tell me a little about the different varieties of what we’ll be able to get on the shelves with the new Post collaboration.
You’ll be able to get the cereal, the oatmeal, and then we have granola coming. We’re definitely expanding and growing. And to be able to have national distribution with Post is incredible because Post is the only company that stepped up and said that they were serious about diversity and serious about helping African Americans own companies and get their products into stores nationwide. That’s what I love about the partnership that Snoop and I have with Post — it’s all about building a family brand.
When you look at Broadus Foods, it’s bigger than cereal. That’s Snoop’s last name. When you look at Post, that’s a family name, too. So, we want to educate our people and our culture for the ones who want to listen. This is bigger than any music deal that I’ve ever done. This is bigger than anything. Even though we sold 100 million records, this constantly gets on shelves and is constantly replaced. Some of these companies have been around for over 100 years and they’re able to put money back into their communities and their culture. We want to be able to do the same thing.
We did the music thing and all of these other things, but breakfast food is the most important meal of the day. So, to be Kings of Breakfast Foods, we’re in a lane by ourselves right now. We want to be able to open those doors for other African American and minority owned businesses so they know that if we can do it, they can do it, too.
It’s very iconic actually. Whenever you decide “OK, I don’t want to do anything else anymore,” you’ll both have so many different things under your belt that generations to come will still know your names. My mom was listening to you guys, my sister and I were listening to you guys, and now my niece will get to eat breakfast with you guys. It’s all about continuing generational exposure and I think it’s one of the most amazing things.
You know, in business, everything doesn’t always go the way you want it to all the time. We failed with Snoop Loopz at first because we had a run-in with Kellogg’s and they were saying it was copyright infringement, and it caused us to lose millions of dollars. So, you’ve got to be willing to lose and get back up. To make millions, you got to lose thousands; to make billions, you’ve got to lose millions. And, we lost millions at first. But we didn’t stop, we didn’t quit. And that’s what I want to tell people. It might not go the way you want it to go all the time, so you can’t just be in it for the money.
We knew we had a great product — we knew that we had a great-tasting product — and after we put it out there and lost millions of dollars, we had to change the name. We said, “Look how God works,” and now, the name is even bigger and we’re able to put Snoop Cereal on everything. With the Loopz, we would have only been able to put it on that particular cereal. You just can’t quit. You’ve got to put your trust and faith in God. Are you going to quit when you lose? To me, you don’t learn from winning, you learn from losses.
Wondering which of your favorite celebs also have their own food brands? Check out our list of celebrities that launched surprisingly good food brands in 2022.
Ni’Kesia Pannell
Source link
