He applied to 34 news stations.
Got rejected.
Told he “wasn’t cut out” for news.

Took a $25,000 job in a small Alabama town anyway.

Three weeks later?

He’s interviewing Oprah.

Years later?

Covering Kobe Bryant’s death.
Reporting during the George Floyd protests.
Standing at the White House.
Correspondent for CNN.

This is the story of Darryl Forges — Emmy Award-winning journalist, Louisiana native, and proof that success isn’t microwave… it’s reps, rejection, and relentless belief.

In this episode of Business Is WAR, we break down:

• Why rejection built him
• What small markets teach you about greatness
• The truth about working at CNN
• Sacrificing fatherhood for career dreams
• Why humility is the ultimate weapon
• Inspiring the next generation of Black boys

If you’ve ever doubted your path…
If you’ve ever been told “you’re not good enough”…
If you’re grinding in a small market dreaming of the big leagues…

This episode is for you.

💥 Stop waiting on perfect conditions.
💥 Stop comparing your chapter 1 to someone’s chapter 20.
💥 Put in the reps.

Because Business is WAR.

—

🎙 Subscribe for more conversations with leaders, builders, and game changers.
📲 Follow Darryl Forges on social media.
⚔️ Protect yourself at all times.

#BusinessIsWar #DarrylForges #SuccessStory #CNN #EntrepreneurMindset #BlackExcellence #PutInTheReps #Journalism #Leadership

Ameer Baraka’s life changed the moment he realized something powerful:

👉 No one was coming to save him.

Growing up unable to read, pushed toward the streets, and later facing years in prison, Ameer hit a turning point. What followed was a transformation through discipline, faith, education, and radical personal responsibility.

Today he’s an actor, author, and advocate fighting the literacy crisis and teaching others how to escape what he calls self-imposed incarceration.

In this episode we break down:

    •    How undiagnosed dyslexia shapes identity

    •    Why language is currency

    •    The mentors who changed his trajectory

    •    Prison as a wake-up call

    •    The mindset shift from victim to owner

    •    Building success without compromising your values

This conversation is raw, challenging, and necessary.

If you believe your past doesn’t have to define your future, press play.

Check out our YouTube channel for more content

In this episode of Business Is War, we sit down with Grammy Award–winning musician and cultural leader Irvin Mayfield for a deep, honest conversation about discipline, mastery, and the realities of evolution—in music, business, and life.

Irvin breaks down why most people quit before they ever reach excellence, why motivation fades but discipline must remain, and how obsession with the craft is what carries people through the hardest moments. Drawing parallels between music, boxing, business, and art, this episode reveals the universal laws of mastery that apply to anything worth pursuing.

We talk about:

    •    Why discipline matters more than motivation

    •    The real reason people abandon music and creative pursuits

    •    How mastery is built through repetition and patience

    •    What artists and entrepreneurs must understand about evolution

    •    Digital disruption, AI, and adapting to a changing economy

    •    Why now is always the best time to build and create

This is a conversation about staying in the fight, embracing discomfort, and evolving instead of complaining about change.

Because whether it’s music, business, or life—

mastery belongs to those who refuse to quit.

After 21 years of incarceration, Fox and Rob sit down with Business is WAR for one of the most powerful conversations we’ve ever recorded.This isn’t just a love story — it’s a story of redemption, resilience, and rebuilding life from the ground up. We talk about what it really takes to come home, stay solid, and build a future when the past tried to break you.In this episode, we cover:

• Life before and during incarceration
• The mental battle of surviving prison
• Love, loyalty, and marriage through adversity
• Trauma, healing, and personal transformation
• Reentry, rebuilding, and becoming unstoppable

If you’ve ever felt counted out… this episode is for you.📍Recorded in New Orleans🎙️ Hosted by Elliott FormanSubscribe to Business is WAR for more real conversations with real people who overcame real battles.

#BusinessIsWAR #Redemption #Marriage #Incarceration #SecondChances #NewOrleans #LoveStory #TraumaToTriumph #foxandrob

Welcome back to Business is War. Elliot Foreman sits down with financial professional Wil Ballard for a real conversation about financial intelligence—earning, protecting what you make, and building a future with discipline. They unpack why many families distrust financial institutions, the history behind that distrust (including Freedman’s Bank), and how life insurance, investing, wills, and trusts can work together to secure generational wealth. If you’re 40 or 50 and financial stability still isn’t part of your core operating procedure, this episode is your wake-up call.

Business is War — protect yourself at all times

Every executive understands this truth: success is never a straight line—it’s a contested battlefield. Our guest today operates with that reality as standard operating procedure. Calvin Mills Jr. has spent more than two decades navigating complex environments.

In this episode of Business is War, Elliott Forman sits down with Christopher Prasad, widely known as the “Hospitality King of New Orleans.” Christopher breaks down the trade secrets behind building a hospitality empire in less than a decade—how he identified winning concepts, secured premium locations, and scaled operations in the most competitive real estate corridors across the New Orleans metro.

From launching a recycling business to becoming a hospitality juggernaut, Christopher walks through the mindset shifts, deal structures, hiring standards, and execution systems that powered his rise—plus the mistakes he’d avoid if he were starting again today. If you want the real playbook on growth, location strategy, and operational discipline in hospitality, this is the one.

Produced by: Hunter Baxley and Aaron Henderson

Mental health has been treated like a taboo topic for decades. We whisper about it, hide it, downplay it, and hope nobody notices when we’re carrying more than we can hold. But the world has changed. Life has accelerated, business has intensified, and the weight on every one of us has grown heavier.The problem?Our internal bandwidth hasn’t evolved at the same pace.We’re operating at a crisis level—quietly, collectively, and dangerously.This video is a call to action.It’s time to make mental health a household word.Not something to hide. Not something to fear. Not something to carry alone.Real courage isn’t “toughing it out.”Real courage is speaking up before you break down.Real leadership is acknowledging the pressure before it becomes damage.In this conversation, we break down:• Why mental health has been underestimated for so long• How modern life is outpacing our emotional capacity• What real strength looks like in today’s world• Why addressing mental health is essential for how we live, lead, and perform• How to rebuild yourself without shame, guilt, or silenceThis isn’t weakness.This is awareness.This is survival.This is strength.If this message resonates, subscribe and share it with someone who needs it.The right conversation at the right time can save a life.

Co-Produced by Hunter Baxley & Aaron Henderson

In this episode of Business is WAR, former New Orleans City Councilmember Cyndi Nguyen sits down with Elliott Forman to talk about the realities of public service — from budget deficits and community rebuilding to the lessons learned from her first term and what she plans to do differently if elected again.A focused, no-nonsense conversation about leadership, accountability, and the fight to move New Orleans forward.#BusinessIsWar #CyndiNguyen #NewOrleans #Leadership #DistrictE #PublicService

Produced by Hunter Baxley

CoProduced by Aaron Henderson

**Triumph isn’t luck—it’s discipline.**

In this episode, **Stricen Carter (@sweetthangsnola)** shows how a young hustler turned an ice chest, a sidewalk, and a city’s heat into a real business. **Secondlines. Sold-out coolers. Designer Snoballs.** From pop-up to profit, she built systems, not excuses.**What you’ll learn*** How to **pivot** when plans change—and how to own the new path* Turning **street demand** into a repeatable operation (pricing, margins, logistics)* Building a **brand ladder** (originals → editions/products → mixers) that compounds over time.* Protecting your **IP & Partnerships** without losing creative control;* The role of **Faith, Grit, and Standards** when the pressure hits⚜ Why this story is a blueprint!⚜ The pivot—plans change, winners adjust!⚜ Pop-up economics: price, cost, margin!⚜ From hustle to **system**: events, secondlines, logistics!⚜ Brand & partnerships—how to structure the deal!⚜ Product ladder & scale: from the bar to the bottles!⚜ Legacy moves: the hill she’ll die on and leaving her mark!If this episode pushed you, **like, subscribe, and share** it with a builder who needs a win.Follow **Stricen Carter** and support **Sweet Thangs NOLA**.Also available on **Spotify** and **Apple Podcasts**.**#BusinessIsWAR #SweetThangsNOLA #StricenCarter #NewOrleans #Entrepreneurship #Triumph #SnoballBar #Hustle #Discipline**Produced by Hunter BaxleyCo-produced by Aaron Henderson