LAW NO. 5 GUARD YOUR REPUTATION
“Reputation is the cornerstone of power: through reputation alone you can intimidate and win..." 48 Laws of Power
He is the architect and mogul of the most successful independent label in the country. Many hate him. Many love him. Many more fear him. But all of them RESPECT him. If there was ever a man who personifies the saying of making something out of nothing, it is James Andre Prince. The Pride of 5th Ward in Houston, Texas, Mr. Prince is an endangered species in the annuls of black life. He has the soul of a hustler, the discipline of a monk, and the mind of a Fortune 500 CEO.
In his recently released treatise on respect called The Art & Science of Respect, James Prince shows the world that while Robert Greene was writing about how to rise to power, he was actually doing it. His epic journey from the hunger pangs of poverty to the heights of affluence is a road that is traveled by far too few black men in the killing fields of America's abandoned communities of color.
He chronicles his rise from 5th Ward hustler, to Bank Executive, to Visionary, and finally to the title of Boss. If there is one thing that is painfully clear from his autobiography, it is that Mr. Prince is a dangerous man. Not from the perspective of being a violent hoodlum, but due to the fact that he is fearless in a world where black men are nursed on fear from the time that they learn to crawl. Unlike most hustlers turned executives, James Prince has no fear of white collar retribution. In fact, he welcomes it. It is here that his legendary reputation took shape.
While his life is a tale of extreme adversity, Mr. Prince carefully demonstrates how one can use the pain of tragedy to propel them to the pinnacle of success. In the Chapter A Vacuum or a House, he suffers the devastating loss of his older sister to a train accident. The Chapter details the hopes and dreams of a black family on the treadmill of a poor education, a poor paying jobs and a poor neighborhood. But all the poverty and deprivation could not kill the dreams of he and his sister, Zena. Tired of having to sweep the carpet, she had a more immediate desire for their home: a vacuum. But Prince was light years ahead of everyone else in that he dreamed of giving his mother a vital piece of American life: The Title of Homeowner.
He sealed this pledge with his very life. He entered the violent, ruthless, predatory world of the drug game not for neighborhood conquest, fame, or even riches. He simply wanted to repay a debt that many young black men have sought to pay since time immemorial. He dared to rescue his mother from a life of drudgery with no reward for her fidelity and unearned suffering. It was for this reason that he put himself in harm's way. While one may condemn his methods, his motives were pure and noble.
But being a master strategist with limitless creativity, he took all the transferrable lessons from the streets and pushed himself to the metamorphic event where he made the biggest gamble of a lifetime; by sacrificing hundreds of thousands of short term dollars for a multi-million dollar dynasty that would transform him into one of the most powerful men in the entertainment industry.
This event did not occur by happenstance. As it turned out, this deal involved a higher power that was deeply interested in the destiny of James Andre Prince. As such, according to Prince, God honored a promise he made to him when he entered the drug game. He requested a sign of God's vision before God would take his life or his freedom. And like clockwork, God showed up on time and fulfilled his request. It is here that we see another facet Prince's makeup--------his faith in God. His fearlessness results from that fact that to him, no one other than his Lord is to be feared. Thus, he is truly free.
While he is no saint, he is also no devil. He is at times a harmonious mesh of minister and menace. Each of which, he displays according to time, place and circumstance. It is axiomatic that the echelons of power are ruled by the sinister and diabolical. If one is to survive, he must display the ability to turn from negotiator to executioner at the slightest change in the winds. This is a fundamental component if one is to survive the wild kingdom of show business.
For decades, record labels, movie studios, and national TV networks have ruthlessly exploited black artists, actors and musicians from the protected grounds of white aristocratic privilege. This privilege consists of powerful networks between the entertainment industry and law enforcement through the middlemen of public relations firms, prominent attorneys, accountants, bankers and management firms.
These relationships turn law enforcement into a praetorian guard which protect the entertainment CEOs and executives from the physical consequences of their exploitation. James Prince shatters this white wall of safety, leaving the celebrity elite with a feeling of vulnerability to say the least. His years in the streets had more than equipped him to deal with the intimidation tactics of powerful people.
Because his street pedigree is beyond question, he is not only respected by the hardest of criminals, he inspires their deepest devotion. Like the Nation of Islam, he employs those who America has forsaken. He gives a second chance to people who would never be allowed in the bathrooms of Fortune 500 companies. By granting them a chance at redemption, he engenders an undying loyalty that makes these men and women his fiercest defenders and most dedicated soldiers. Thus, he can easily defend himself against the most implacable foe. He is quite literally, their worst nightmare.
James Andre Prince began his journey in the streets. He forged his legacy in the fire of adversity. His history is one that gives hope even as it creates adversaries. He has survived assassination attempts, frame-ups and shake downs. He has bested Interscope's Jimmy Iovine, Priority's Brian Turner, Don King & The United States Government. Because he has established a reputation of being one not to be trifled with, he has been able to walk a razor thin line between fear and respect. And though he denies being a bully, he does not deny knowing how to deal with bullies when they cross his path. So on the heels of celebrating the life of the Queen of Soul, it is more than fitting that we acknowledge the man who literally wrote the book on the Art & Science of R-E-S-P-E-C-T.
TONY MACEO is the Chief Blogger at Power & Strategy.com and a Senior Blogger at the Negromanosphere. Like, share & subscribe to the website's mailing list. Become a Patron @ Powerofstrategies on Patreon. Shop at our Chess Store or Men's Accessories Shop online. TILL NEXT TIME, I'LL HOLLA!
