My Friends Are Better Than Yours: Building Black Media Power w/ DeVon Christopher Johnson

Big Ced sits down with independent publisher and Black media leader Devon Christopher Johnson (Bleu Magazine, Black-owned Media Equity & Sustainability Institute) for a real conversation on building our own platforms, surviving this political climate, and why supporting Black-owned media is not optional anymore.​We talk about Devon’s journey from selling lollipops in 3rd grade to Def Jam, Universal and Atlantic, then betting on himself by cashing out his 401(k) to launch Bleu Magazine, one of the few Black-owned print mags still in circulation. He breaks down the difference between corporate and entrepreneurial mindsets, how Black-owned outlets can stop fighting over crumbs and go after the full 95% of ad dollars, and why narrative control literally becomes a matter of life and death for our communities.We also get into the current Trump era, DEI rollbacks, the danger of choosing racism over profit, and what it really means when some Black men vote against a Black woman instead of for their own interests. Devon shares why Black media must be at the center of any long-term strategy, how BMeS is funding and accelerating independent outlets, and what artists, politicians, and brands are doing wrong when they ignore smaller Black platforms until their careers are in trouble.If you care about hip-hop, media, politics, ownership, or just not being a “shoulda-coulda-woulda,” this episode of My Friends Are Better Than Yours is for you.​00:00 – Intro00:38 – Why DeVon started MFABTY02:06 – Who is Devon Johnson?02:13 – Bleu Magazine & barbershop distro03:03 – Third‑grade hustle03:40 – Getting hired at Def Jam04:46 – Learning the marketing game06:25 – Almost Wall Street, chose music07:48 – Job interview + Jay‑Z story09:39 – Label run: Def Jam to Atlantic10:23 – Corporate vs entrepreneur mindsets13:24 – Why he launched BMeS15:49 – Co‑founding BMeS17:10 – Making Black media sustainable18:38 – DEI rollbacks & the climate20:01 – Stop chasing crumbs20:59 – Going after the 95%21:38 – Why legacy outlets failed22:36 – “Bad at math or just racist?”23:36 – “Why can’t we build our own?”24:41 – He who controls the media26:03 – FUBU’s real message26:29 – Tulsa and Black wealth attacks27:57 – Calling ourselves out28:10 – Could Tulsa happen again?29:06 – Remembering our ancestors’ strength31:06 – Hip‑hop, images and ownership32:02 – Early hip‑hop as reporting33:06 – Black men, voting and Kamala36:09 – Uplifting Black women’s media38:00 – The political Playbook is broken39:48 – Using the next three years41:04 – Big vs indie Black media43:01 – Views vs collective power45:05 – How artists use Black media45:33 – White PR, no Black outlets47:20 – “We already did that tier”48:11 – Actor who declined Bleu cover49:11 – What BMeS actually does49:35 – BMeS Weekend in Detroit50:06 – Passion vs “rented lifestyle”51:08 – Don’t be “shoulda‑coulda‑woulda”52:01 – Biggest business mistake53:38 – Loving every lesson55:25 – Jokes on age and hair55:30 – Ced’s closing line#MyFriendsAreBetterThanYours #TheIndustryCosign #DevonChristopherJohnson #BlackOwnedMedia #SupportBlackMedia #HipHopCulture #BlackEntrepreneurs #DEI #BIGCEDConnect with BIG CED:https://www.youtube.com/@bigced328?sub_confirmation=1https://www.instagram.com/bigced328/https://www.facebook.com/bigced328https://x.com/bigcedhttps://bsky.app/profile/bigced328.bsky.socialhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/bigced/https://www.twitch.tv/bigced328https://open.spotify.com/show/35yBW0BTd4c7HvCnh9dVXz?si=HvZeE8RfTJGH6YjvHBiYzg&nd=1&dlsi=a147a471e6ab4c5chttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-industry-cosign/id1638654676https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-the-industry-cosign-105171601/https://theindustrycosign.com/