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TBPN

Kevin Hart live on TBPN

16 Apr 2026

Transcription

Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?

0.385 - 6.114 John Coogan

What's going on, guys? How are you? Welcome to the show. Thank you for taking the time. Big day. Thanks for having us.

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6.295 - 12.845 Jordi Hays

Big day. Would love to get... I think everyone knows Kevin Hart, but... Well, I think everyone knows James.

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12.865 - 13.987 John Coogan

I was going to ask the opposite.

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14.007 - 26.207 Kevin Hart

I was going to say... It's not about me, man. I'm going to take a second, and I'm going to highlight my guy. Okay. Yes. You know, some may be familiar with the...

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Chapter 2: What is Kevin Hart's approach to building authentic brands?

26.187 - 45.013 Kevin Hart

the idea of Kevin Hart. But in this space, man, it's more about my business. And, you know, business is great when you have great partners. So take a second to highlight my guy, man, James. James has done a phenomenal job in self, with self. with his company, with his own entity.

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45.373 - 69.015 Kevin Hart

And the idea of finding cool ways to create and develop partnerships with faces that are and can be more than just an ambassador, but more of a brand. He's done a great job, man. He's done a really good job of vetting out the space. And I'm lucky to have found someone with the mindset, the understanding to help me do the things that I want.

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69.075 - 78.012 Kevin Hart

So execution only happens when you have people that can do so. James is that. He's an executor. How did you two meet?

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78.092 - 82.682 Jordi Hays

What were the first meetings like? Where did the meetings take place? Where did all this come from?

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83.524 - 105.233 James Morrissey

We met in Vegas. Five years ago, in the depth of COVID, through mutual friends, we're in the space of building brands in joint venture with well-known individuals in entertainment, brands that they want to own, not just endorse. And we wanted to go into the tequila space for a long time. We liked the category. We thought it was very compelling.

105.213 - 115.364 James Morrissey

The celebrity tequila space is completely oversaturated. At the time, it was very noisy. We needed something really compelling to break through and to make it right for us.

116.085 - 135.085 James Morrissey

And when myself and Kev started talking during COVID, it became very clear very quickly that we matched each other's energy in terms of understanding the responsibilities of being not just a face for the brand, but being a business partner and the responsibilities of owning a brand and building one of these businesses for the long term.

135.065 - 159.777 Kevin Hart

I think you understood early on what my wants and not wants were. The biggest and I'll say the most important rule that I have, I'm never slapping my name on anything. If I can't embrace it or I can't do it on a daily and really have an authentic response to it and engage with it as if I engage with everything in my life, then I don't want to do it.

159.997 - 182.251 Kevin Hart

All of my partnerships across the board, whether it's ownership plays, equity plays, or ambassador-like roles, I truly am embedded and invested into the thing. So with the wine and spirit space, having my own tequila, it was necessary because I said, look, I only drink tequila. I'm drinking everyone else's product.

Chapter 3: How did Kevin Hart and James Morrissey meet?

370.281 - 376.87 John Coogan

I'm assuming trips to Mexico, a lot of tastings, iteration. But what did that look like?

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377.39 - 390.561 James Morrissey

So there's a lot more that goes into this business than meets the eye for the consumers, right? So to your point earlier, the liquor business, the alcohol business, it's a very complex industry to navigate based on the three-tier system dating back to the years of prohibition.

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390.581 - 410.573 James Morrissey

So there's certain criteria and ways you've got to navigate, and ultimately to build success, our perspective on it within consumer products and goods, and particularly within alcohol, where we saw the biggest opportunity over the last five years, is large corporations typically do not disrupt. They innovate. They innovate well with liquids. They innovate well with package.

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411.013 - 433.384 James Morrissey

But generally, they're not disruptors. And that's not saying the alcohol industry alone. It's every large industry. So it takes independent entrepreneurial companies to be real disruptors. Like you guys were speaking to the guy from Grunes the other day. You guys were speaking to John from Happy Dad. These are independent companies that are bucking the trend. And our model has been

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433.668 - 453.879 James Morrissey

Let's be that independent spirited business. Let's make those bold, calculated decisions in real time and be really fast and agile in terms of how we operate in the market day to day. But let's partner with the best large corporate in the business being Proximo and Juan Domingo Beckman from the Beckley Corporation. And let's bring some real scale to the table.

454.139 - 468.602 James Morrissey

So that muscularity of the Proximo machine and the agility of us in the market every day leading on what consumers see, that's been a very successful partnership for us. And it's helped us clock that trend.

468.582 - 494.359 Kevin Hart

And I also think, just to add to that, you're not dealing with rocket scientists, right? Literally. People that are successful and people that have won, they've done it for a reason. So you're not trying to recreate the wheel or redesign the wheel. You're trying to better service the wheel. So sometimes the will, it falls into a space where everybody jumps on and the expectations are of norm.

494.379 - 512.701 Kevin Hart

And they don't understand that you got to energize the will. You got to go in with some new energy. And what you'll find, those people will respond to that. I think our energy. Yeah. Hell yeah. I don't know what that was. But yeah. Okay.

512.721 - 513.182 James Morrissey

I don't know. But yeah.

Chapter 4: What challenges do they face in the crowded tequila market?

1069.191 - 1079.1 Jordi Hays

I think everyone in my community needs to adapt our strategy. How have you processed the evolution of media over your career? I'll say getting older, right?

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1079.241 - 1110.358 Kevin Hart

I mean, I'm about to be 47 this summer. Overnight success. seeing a shift in marketing and a shift in entertainment right this younger generation and how they're navigating um and and operating within social media within storytelling uh within finding ways to present themselves to the masses i mean you know the concept of a live streamer and and

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1110.338 - 1134.038 Kevin Hart

A person that that is literally talking to a screen all day and looking at a chat with comments, but finding a way to to build revenue to where it's coming in droves. Right. Like that to me. It's exciting. It's exciting to see a shift. So you don't fight that. You find a way to be a part of it. You find a way to support it.

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1134.178 - 1157.125 Kevin Hart

So where I think I've had an amazing lift is in amplifying that younger generation. Like when I have a chance to sit beside some of these younger guys that are doing these amazing things, or it's dope for them to have stars like myself on their platforms or supporting them in that space. I don't need nothing or want anything in return. I just want to see people win.

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1157.406 - 1183.787 Kevin Hart

But when you're supporting the new, it just makes you aware. Yeah. Not being aware is ridiculous. Fighting what is, in real time, a new space of success. You're seeing ad revenue, crazy spins from the biggest brands in the business. And you're seeing where they're now spinning it. Television is changing. The on-demand feel and want has changed. How we watch movies and want movies have changed.

1183.907 - 1190.717 Kevin Hart

Live entertainment still exists today, but it's bigger than ever because people still want to go out, but you realize they still want to be home.

1190.697 - 1217.599 Kevin Hart

you gotta go and you gotta say how do i basically fit into these pockets and how do i deliver in a manner to where it's real and it's never forced well you do that with support first and elevation for them and then things come back to you right now it's all about me saying i see you young guys you young women i love what you're doing i want to see you win how can i help you and then in return

1217.579 - 1238.473 James Morrissey

their audience gets to say kevin is cool but it's a it's a them first me second now of you guys when we when we've been tracking what you guys have been doing for the last two years it's it's incredible and when the business outlets came up and turned to the list of targets tbpn was on the top we want to be in the story we want to know what's new

1238.453 - 1256.097 James Morrissey

We think it's bold and exciting what you're doing. Congrats on the deal with OpenAI. Thank you. But, I mean, you guys are just getting started. But us knowing you, us knowing that we want to be on that platform, that's what it's about. And big companies don't often think that way. But we're empowered to be able to make those decisions day to day to be here with you.

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