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A
Foreign what's up everybody? And welcome to another episode of Coffees for Closers where we dive deep into stories of perseverance, success and business transformation. Today's guest is Darren Prince, a celebrity sports agent and entertainment agent, entrepreneur and author. Darren's journey from overcoming addiction to representing some of the world's best biggest names in the world, including Magic Johnson, Hulk Hogan. Dennis Rodman has made him a powerful voice in both business and personal development. And personal development. Tune in as Darren shares the lessons he's learned from his incredible career and personal battles, offering invaluable insights on success, recovery and maintaining balance. Please welcome me in joining Darren Prince.
B
Thanks for having me, man.
A
All right, Darren, thank you.
B
A couple times, but I made it.
A
Yeah, yeah, thanks. Thanks for your patience and getting, getting over here. You know, I know it's a, it's a bit of a struggle coming from la. Yes, we're all good, so I appreciate you. I'd like to start the show. I kind of briefly mentioned with the same question I ask everybody. And Darren, what's your morning routine?
B
I got a pretty consistent one. I wake up, walk my dog, got a little bit of red light therapy. I got a lamp on my bed, I've got my grounding sheets. So that puts me right into a state of mind that, that's important to me for inflammation, brain health, all around health. I usually get about a one hour workout in to some meditation and my hydrogen water. Hydrogen, hydrogen water. I, I'm also, I'm very close with Carrie Breck. I'm on the 10x wellness routine. So I do a lot to work on my, my physical state, my emotional state, my mental state.
A
That's a great morning routine. I mean that's a very, very thorough biohacking morning.
B
And then five days a week, sometimes six, I hit my 12 step spiritual recovery meetings.
A
One hour a day, one hour day of spiritual recovery.
B
Or you're all, it's a bunch of spiritual recovered addicts and alcoholics and you know, 40 to 50 people. Whether I walk into a church basement or log on to a zoom meeting. And that just brings me back into my purpose, which is most important in life. Helping other people that are struggling.
A
That's awesome. That's awesome, Darren. And that's, you know, living that life of perpetual purpose is just really what's keeping you going.
B
You know, it's everything.
A
It's not the money, it's not the.
B
No, man. I was with Magic Johnson two days ago. He's been a dear friend for 30 years. We were up at the Marriott in Beverly Hills and standing outside in the parking lot and I told him I had to go back to see my mom. I'm originally from New Jersey, moved out to LA seven years ago and had to take an Uber after dinner to get back to my hotel. There was four different Ubers to choose from. I just picked one that, you know, looked like it was the quickest. And 40 year old gentleman driving just wasn't happy. I could tell. We just got this whole deep conversation about life and I told him about my journey that had a God moment on July 2, 2008, and I've been super ever since. And my life is about helping people, whether it's mental health, depression, anxiety, substance abuse. And he literally stopped the car, pulled over, turned around with tears in his eyes that he just left a detox center that morning and his Medicaid insurance would only cover 48 hours. And I said, well, if you believe in miracles, I said, God put me in this Uber tonight because I have my Aiming High 501C3 Foundation. That scholarship people that can't afford to go to treatment for substance abuse and mental health. He's checking into the facility right now.
A
Wow.
B
Parents wouldn't talk to him, kids cut him off. Wife went and talked to him, call me two nights ago. Said they've never been so happy and he can't ever thank me enough.
A
That's incredible.
B
So your, your 513C, it's called the Aiming High Foundation.
A
That's awesome.
B
Yep. Which is the name of my book. My book was called Aiming High.
A
What an incredible story. And it, you know, that's not serendipity, that is just fate.
B
I told JV Goggins on Saturday, I've been his agent for a few years now and he was at Lewis House event. Lewis is my guy too. He's great. And we're in the green room and he just, it's like, bro, what's happening with, you know, work, man? How's life? Whatever I haven't seen in a couple months. And I go, bro, I gotta tell you a story. And I told him and he literally got up from the chair in the green room and and just gave me a big old bro hug. Like, he goes, that is so badass, man. He goes, so you got two of the most respected prominent people in the world, two of them with Magic and Goggins. And I connect more with them about that stuff than any amount of business that we do. It's easy to make money for the people that I work for, but I've always been about the personal relationship. And every single one of them have had their own adversity, which is what this is about. You know, every guest you have on here, you know, it's the trials and tribulations. Yeah, we've gotten to the external space of success. But what if you dealt with internally and have. You've evolved and allowed those opportunities to actually make you better, smarter, wiser, and then what you do to help others when you get there.
A
You know, the next question I have for you, Darren, just so the, the audience knows, just has more context other than my introduction. Like what is a 20,000 foot overview of what you actually do?
B
Okay, so I'm a sports and entertainment agent. I started Prince marketing group in 1994. Magic Johnson was my first client, still is to this day. I worked for Muhammad Ali smoking Joe Frazier. They both since passed. Jerry west was a dear friend and client. Passed away on June 12, which I'm still crushed over. We've got clients. Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, Charlie Sheen, Carmen Electra. Trying to think. David Goggins, Larry Bird, Dominique Wilkins. I just got off the phone with him.
A
You're their sports agent.
B
Yeah, but basically their step. So we basically focus on endorsements, commercials, keynote speeches, any sort of branding opportunities, social media campaigns, all that type of, you know, marketing opportunities.
A
By the way, I'll have to talk to you. Maybe I can do some collabs with some of those folks. That'd be great.
B
Yeah, for sure.
A
You know everybody. Yeah, you know everybody for sure.
B
And those are just the names I'm remembering, really. We have a great roster. Chevy Chase has been my guy for 30 years.
A
So you do all the, all of the other stuff outside of their normal job.
B
Yeah, I mean, most of them I've been with during the course of the height of their careers too. So there was. It's a strange time, but for the best, better. Like back then you would think the commercial opportunities and the marketing, the endorsements were big, but now they're all so iconic, the majority of them, that what's old is new again and everything's retro. Yeah, most of the young stars of today pay such mad respect to my clients that it's. In their own way, it's also kept them super relevant where their marketability is at like an all time high.
A
Yeah. Just to be candid, your clients, like there aren't clients like that anymore. Like you. The current celebrities are like YouTubers.
B
Exactly.
A
They're, you know, in. They're basically, you know, in Tick Tockers.
B
Exactly.
A
They're not iconic brands like Hulk Hogan, Magic Johnson. These are legends.
B
You represent legends, man. And they, they embrace it and, and they love it. You know, they're there for their fans, otherwise they couldn't be able to work for them. You know, I see the way they are running out in public and getting mobbed and getting bombarded, and they want to make sure everybody gets time. They want to make sure they show their appreciation, which isn't exactly the young culture today, because you'll see something on TMZ or social media where they'll rush through and avoid fans. And I'm like, shake my head over that because, you know, as an agent, I represent them and they represent me. So you, you know, that to me, there's just no need for that sort of behavior now. There's a time and a place. Yeah, you don't walk over to a dinner table at a restaurant when they're having dinner with their family. You wait for them to get up, you know, and, and, and then approach them, you know, because that I feel is a little bit inappropriate, you know, allow them to be who they are.
A
You know, I, I'm curious, like you've, you work with the elites of entertainment and what is like the general personality that you see, the general personality characteristics and traits. Is it. Do you see humility? Like Hulk Hogan, for example, he seems like a really humble, godly guy always.
B
They all had moments of adversity, but they've also had this unstoppable mindset. Hulk first went over to Japan in the 70s to wrestle, and the wrestlers intentionally broke his leg. And he just used it as fuel to beef up his body, get stronger, get wiser, and said he's never letting that happen again. So when he came back the next round a year or so later, you know, he was more in a mental and physical state of mind to just understand the game. And, you know, you said a couple minutes ago, I mean, it's one of the most iconic figures in the world. His brand is now trying transcended four generations, 40 years. I mean, we could be at events, keynotes, appearances, whatever it might be. The amount of 6, 7, 8 year olds wearing Hulkamania gear that never saw him wrestle unless it's on YouTube or their father or their uncles are telling them stories. It's. It's remarkable. He. He actually humbled me one day. I was down in Clearwater Beach a few years ago, and I call him Terry. His real name is Terry Belaya. And I went with three of my agents to get like a Couple days with them. And we went for sushi. And we're all sitting at the sushi bar. When I got up to go to valet, to give the valet guy Hulk's car ticket, there's about 100 people standing behind us at the sushi bar waiting for him to get up. Probably took him a half hour to get outside. Another 20 people following that side in the park. And I looks at me, I'm like, I got this look on my face because, brother, what's wrong? And I said, terry, we come out here to hang out with Terry Bolaya, and it's still the Hulk Hogan show. Like, I want to just get our bonding time. Because personal relationship is everything to me or any of my clients will tell you that. Put his hand on my shoulder, brother, remember this. If the world didn't treat me, if I was still the heavyweight champion, you and I wouldn't be boys. Because there never would be a connection initially over business. So I got to make sure every single person gets to tell me their story. The, the highlights and the times in their life where they were unhappy and they watched a match and, you know, they got their mind out of a very dark place to have the thrill of watching me with their father, their uncle, whatever it might have been. And I was like, you know, it's a good point. I'll never complain again.
A
You know, that sort of mindset that, that kind of celebrity hood, that the, the type of guy that Hulk is. I don't think that there's a lot of celebrities that exist like that anymore.
B
No, they're not.
A
You know, like, just like you said earlier, rush through. They don't give the fans time. They don't really know, you know, God gave Hulk Hogan so much, and he literally just gives it back. He's always telling people how to live their life, how to, to, you know, improve their life, how to be better human beings. And same with Magic Johnson, who you also represent.
B
Magic's what he's done. Irvin. I call him by his real name, Irvin. What he's done. I mean, not since probably Muhammad Ali will we ever see a post career legacy. But Magic's actually done in the business world to a level that he told me in 1996, we're in Honolulu, Hawaii. I booked him for a keynote. We knew each other for a couple years. At that point, we're having lunch at the Elakai Hotel, overlooking the ocean, beautiful setting. And he goes, what was that talk that we had a couple years ago? He goes, you remember, I was like, Yeah, I wound up getting out of. I had a baseball card company. I went from a mail order baseball card company, I sold it a million dollars when I was 19 years old to doing private autograph signings. Athletes and celebrities, that's who I met a lot of my talent. I eventually got out of that company and had a informal meeting with Irvin Magic at his hotel room in Michigan. And I told him my vision. And I made a terrible mistake in the memorabilia business that I wrote about in my book. I was investigated by the FBI for mail fraud. You want to talk about challenging times? Got off. They charged me with making a false statement about one of the suppliers, which I trusted during those two years. He was selling me product. And he wound up actually going to prison. It was a major fraud ring for fraudulent autograph memorabilia. But the bulk of my business, we were actually doing autograph signings in person with some of these icons. The judge realized I made a mistake and they charged with a felony record making a false statement probably lost everything. I went from having know millions of dollars in my early 20s to being almost a million dollars in debt. And this fly fishing trip in Alaska with my dad changed our lives. I took my last three grand. My dad was so pissed. But fishing was always our thing. And on that boat, he's like, what's your next move? He goes, you're going to stay in the business. I'm like, nah, dad, I want to be an agent. I just don't have eight years to go to law school. And he drops the fishing pole and he looks at me, this gorgeous stream in Alaska, and he's like, law school life is about who you know, not what you know. You, Joe Montana, Chevy Chase, Magic Johnson. He goes, you're dialed in with the biggest people in the world. He goes, just tell Magic your vision, I bet I'll help you. And so I was with him back to the initial part of the story. I'm with him in Michigan and I told him he knew what I was going through, stuck by me, knew I made a mistake. He goes, luck, you're a good dude and you made a mistake. And I know about making mistakes. This was only a few years from his HIV announcement. And he's like, God, test great men and women and you're being tested now and you're going to make lemonade out of lemons. But here's what I'm going to do for him. I'm going to give you two years to be my agent. If you don't use those two years to knock down every door, utilizing me to build your agency. I going to fire you. Because life isn't about how successful I become, Darren. I'm going to be a success in the world of retired athletes they've never seen before. He goes, it's about how successful I can make you and everybody else around me. Because when you get there, then you're going to pay for which other people.
A
Wow. That's an incredible story.
B
Yep.
A
That's an incredible story about magic. That's a testament to Magic's personality. Everyone knows. And I, I've been, you know, Magic's been a hero to me since I was six or seven years old. But, you know, just to see. And I, I had the opportunity to meet Magic in person at a keynote speech that he did. And he is probably one of the most brilliant entrepreneurs I've ever met. And he's diversified his portfolio like and amassed so, so many different businesses. But one thing that's similar with every business that he starts is it's intentional and it's to. To serve.
B
Yep.
A
And he's always looking and seeking to do God's work.
B
Nope. Always and always wanting to better the communities. You know their slogans, we are the communities we serve. And he just surrounded himself with such an elite team, too. He utilized his platform as a mega NBA start during his playing career. He would go out to the courtside seats an hour before the game to do shoot around and stretching so it can network with all the power people in Hollywood. Because he knew at that time if he could cultivate relationships, make lunch appointments, dinner appointments, go to their office, that a certain point his career is going to be over. So now he's got those relationships. Yeah, nobody thought about that back then.
A
But him, he was really a trailblazer. He's really a trailblazer. As a matter of fact. And I told you yesterday, we launched the. We launched Dan Fleischman's mortgage company and the intention behind it is to help celebrity celebrities, entertainers, et cetera, who have a show. And everyone knows that that show is going to end. We had a couple use cases that presented some like professional athletes who've amassed a wealth of a portfolio, 40 properties during the time the show happened. And then the show ended. And guess what? Show's over. I got 40 properties, you know, and that the target audience, the demographic is to, you know, rappers, athletes, to help them amass a real estate portfolio. Because one thing that it's going to do, two things it's going to do is one, it's going to help Them build wealth. But more importantly, it's going to help them stay grounded so that while the wealth is coming, they're not out partying, doing drugs, whatever else comes with, with success. They're like, oh, I got tenants, I got to fix the toilet. I, I can't go out and party or whatever it is, you know, like, I got, I'm a landlord, you know, like, I got lawsuits to worry about. Whatever it is, you know, like, it helps them keep that mindset, so it helps them continue on that path of success. And that's kind of like the journey or the vision that I had for this because, you know, leveraging that, that, that group and, and really just helping them to serve those people because they're, they're clueless. You know, these entertainers, these, you. I had a couple YouTubers, young YouTubers at the event, you know, some of the most well known. They're like the current, like, you know, Backstreet Boys, right, Or whatever it is. You know, when they go out into a public, people are screaming, 19 years old, buying properties. And I'm like, I'm using them as use cases and I work with them myself. But like, there's so much need in that community because they, they impact, they're the, the influential people are impacting the next generation. So, you know, just to kind of drive more attention to, to them and help them so. Because they're the ones who are helping our kids, you know.
B
You know, getting back to what we were talking about before the interview, I told you, I'm a partner in a private equity group called the Legacy Fund. My boy, James Amorous, Kevin Harrington, the Shark Tank judge, Dominique Wilkins, Exact same mission. It's about educating athletes, entertainers, minorities, certain communities that don't have the education about financial literacy. And next year, we'll be breaking grounds on the first Dominique Wilkins Financial Literacy Center. And what we're doing is athletes, entertainers, more so athletes because they die twice. You've heard that expression, they die once their career is over, and then when it happens, naturally, they don't know what to do. Yeah, they're lost. And the majority of them go broke within five, six, seven years. Football players are hurt with her in two years.
A
Yeah.
B
So what our focus is is allowing them not just to invest in unique opportunities with the incredible due diligence team that we have, but to give that opportunity to actually be on the board of advisors for the companies they work for so they actually have a purpose now. So just like you said, they're not in Vegas. They're not popping bottles, dropping 10, 20 grand night, not blowing their money on stupid crap like crazy cars and taking 20 people on vacations because they're role models. And, and, and what happens, just like you said about the young YouTubers, other parts of that generation looks up to that.
A
Yeah.
B
And so now you're just repeating the cycle instead of breaking the cycle, that it's about the long game.
A
Yep.
B
You know.
A
Yeah.
B
And if you live a certain way for a certain reasonable period of time, you'll have anything you've ever wanted anyway. And what I've seen, especially for working for the icons and the legends that I have, doesn't mean as much once they get to that point. Because you're now so disciplined and so driven with what you're doing and you see the ability that these businesses you're a part of have to give back and give other people opportunities. Yeah, of course you enjoy your life and you do what you want to do. But it's. The mentality is so different than what it would have been when you look back 10, 15 years earlier when you're in the primary career, because you just realize you're actually building and scaling something that could potentially be generational wealth. So why go out there and live in a certain lack mentality, which the majority of retired athletes do, and a lot of young superstar athletes still do. They don't have the education they typically come from nothing. They're handed a ton of money, ton of opportunities, and they think it's never going to end. And guess what? One day you wake up and it's over.
A
The finite show. Yeah, a very finite show. You know, one of the things I'm proud of is I had a young YouTuber and we got him into a house, his first property. He's gonna probably amass probably 50 properties by the time he's 23. You know, first video he did, he did a video going to his house, like 18 years old. Like, millions of kids saw this kid buying a house. Like, you think that's gonna. We're, you know, it's helping the future generations instill this like, entrepreneurial mindset. Not just like, I'm a dick off for my life, you know. Yeah. And then to your. With, with what you guys are doing, you know, and the financial literacy piece, when. That's great. But you got. There's so much opportunity in home ownership and amassing a real estate portfolio now that, you know that we can help you guys in terms of like collaborating or kind of adding another ecosystem to help you. These guys Acquire real estate. Because that's the easiest thing.
B
Right.
A
Because if you tell people financial literacy and stocks and put your money in these bonds or Bitcoin or whatever, it's. They're these intangibles.
B
Exactly.
A
They're these intangibles. They're just like. And there's a lot of reluctance and believing that. And so you got. Sports agents are telling their football athletes, put it in the stock market, put it here. Like, no, put in this property that you can go to and kick the tenant out yourself. Use your brute to get the tenant out if he doesn't want or whatever. Go fix the toilet yourself. Like, this is a little bit more tangible, hands on.
B
And produce some passive income.
A
Produce some passive income. And, you know, and Dan Fleischman said this yesterday, it's like the biggest regret anybody has with real estate, that they sold their real estate.
B
Yeah.
A
Like, there's no one that said, oh, I, you know, no one goes, oh, I, you know, sold the. Right. Like the biggest regret anybody has. You look back at the properties you sold over the years, like, damn, I should have sold that. Yeah, I should have kept that. Yeah, there's. There's never been one piece of property that you've been happy about selling.
B
Yeah. Exactly. Where I'm like, oh, my God, I'm so glad I sold that 10 years later.
A
Like, oh, that was such an idiot. You know, so. So we apply that mindset. Get these guys buying properties and just like, don't worry, just buy and buy and just, you know, you'll depreciate. You'll make a killing on your tax, you know, deductions right now. And, you know, don't worry about it. It'll. It'll work itself out.
B
Exactly.
A
Rents just keep going up, but it gives them the model.
B
Yeah, we have to find some synergy.
A
Yeah, there's definitely a lot of synergy. I think that we can help in that foundation with whatever, you know, because I. I really believe with what. In what we're doing to. To help at a macro level. And for me, it's not like I'll do it for free. Like, you know, for me, it's the vision of helping these guys. And, and, you know, like, Greg Lutzko was up there yesterday, like such an intelligent athlete, you know, just, he inspired the whole entire crowd because you see this athlete talking about real estate, talking about LLCs, talking about protecting his assets, talking about amassing a wealth portfolio, talking about being able to, like, retire. Now he's 39 years old. How long does the Skateboard's career last. It's over, you know, like it's over. At 39 years old. You got maybe a few months left.
B
You're like a senior citizen in that world.
A
You're like a senior citizen. Exactly. You know, but he's ready. He's ready for retirement. He's ready to, to. To basically take his game to the next level. He's buying a couple more units. We just closed on a three unit for him in Michigan. But these guys could buy all over the country. You got Eric Spofford buying, teaching, just general broke Americans to invest in, you know, Section 8 housing. People had no idea what kind of. Yeah, like. And third, paying 30 cash on cash returns in real estate. So there's just so much operating and so easy right now with the products that we have. You don't need income to show you could. You just literally need your down payment. So these rappers, these athletes who don't have consistent income all can get into properties like that.
B
Amazing.
A
And so, so they, they don't need to worry about, oh, I don't have tax returns. I just got this hit record or that's all I've ever done. You know, like, no, we can get you like take that money, roll it.
B
Into and develop some wealth preservation habits.
A
Immediately, you know, immediately it's going to ground you. It's going to. And it's going to force you to want to do it again.
B
Yep.
A
Your career is going to have longevity and you're going to have wealth and a legacy. So that's kind of the mindset that I have. Kind of going into the vision that I'm going to help Dan with and, and we're rolling with that as he kind of go and.
B
Right.
A
You know, and whatever I could do to help you guys with whatever you guys are doing. I'm doing a lot of speaking engagements, kind of informing the community, especially since we're. Because the mortgage community or the mortgage space has been taboo since the crash. So there hasn't been a lot of like, you know, resources to the gen given to the general public. It's been.
B
Not at all.
A
It's been like taboo. Like hey, especially in the, like, I'm a, you know, we're a broker and a banker, so we broke brokers, especially us, we've gotten the biggest stigma. We were the cause of the crash. Right. So like no, now, now coming back into this space, it's like we, we have the ability to help people beyond belief and we just kind of need to make. We have to really just Echo that message. So people have. Are. Are just knowledgeable about what's really going on. Financial literacy is important, but it's. There's a stigma with that too. It's like, I don't need to worry about credit repair. I don't need a. I don't care about my credit cards. Like, no. Financial literacy is like complete financial literacy homeownership. It's. Which is pretty much the most important thing right now for financial literacy.
B
And especially because if you do it right at a young enough age, when you don't need the money, the banks and the lenders will give it to you when you need it. If you don't do it right, good luck getting it.
A
That's right. So, Darren, you know what's fascinating? We talked earlier, like, you started your first company at what age?
B
14. 1984.
A
14 years old. What age did you know you were an entrepreneur?
B
I was probably an entrepreneur. 10 or 11. I used to. I know you haven't lived here your whole life. I don't know if they make them anymore. They used to make Juicy Fruit gum, Big Red and Wrigley's. And they would put a pack of 10 in a strip for 99 cents. And I'd go through like a hundred bags, maybe more a week, where I was buying them for 99 cents and selling that in my locker for a quarter of a pack. So I was two and a half times on my money.
A
Nice.
B
And I'd pay a couple of my big Italian football player friends that I'm still close with this day to stand guard in front of my locker so people weren't stealing quarters or packs of gum and. Oh, yeah, no, I was crushing it. I mean, that went on. Nobody at the school even cared. It was great. And then my father was in direct mail. Coupon advertising just wasn't for me. And I had a severe learning disability. Apparently, growing up, I was put in small classrooms, which we can get into how that sort of affected my eventual drug addiction because of my lack of self worth and self esteem. And the only thing I liked was this business teacher, Elliot Lovie, who I'm still close with to this day, and he's now retired. When my book Aiming High came out in 2018, they invited me back to speak to my entire high school. He coordinated the whole thing, which was very special. And he challenged the class one day to go home and create a business. Now, in my mind, I had one. Even I wasn't executing it. I would have three different jobs. I was squeezing orange juice. I was A busboy and I worked in the stock room at a sneaker store. And all my friends that were getting into dating could care less about baseball cards. So I'd buy all their collections. And then the ones that wanted to hold them, they cared more about these players. Wade Boggs, Tony Gwynn, Dom Mattingly, Daryl Straw, Roger Clemens. But I knew that a lot of them got these older cards from their uncles and their fathers. Mickey Mano, Willie Machio, Babe Ruth, man.
A
Do you have any of those cards? 100x.
B
I would give them the newer players that I would get out of packs and I would take their old cards.
A
Wow.
B
Because I would give them a card that might be worth five or ten bucks, but everybody knew. And this old card I would look up and the price got to be worth a hundred or two hundred. And I did that for about a year. So before I knew it, I had a collection of about nine, nine or ten grand worth of cards. And I asked my dad then I just said, hey, Mr. Lovie, challenge the class to go home, create a business. I need insurance for my baseball cards. My dad thinks I'm a little bit crazy at this point. What do you need? I'm like, I don't know, probably nine or something. Because, all right, I'll get you $1,000 worth of home insurance in case we ever get a flood. I got no debt. Nine grand. He goes, how the hell do you have $9,000 at the baseball cards? I run upstairs, show them the price guide, come down with a box of cards. Because when I'll. Who can you sell it to? And I said, it's funny you said that. I opened up this big newspaper ad. It's this big. The local paper in Livingston, it's called the West Sussex Tribune, and the local Holiday Inn, had a card show coming up in two weeks. For 20 bucks, you get an eight foot table. So Steve Simon runs my agency now, Prince Marketing Group. We go back 40, 44 years. I'm not always 10. We decide to put up 10 bucks each. He was going to get four feet. I was going to get a four feet. The only difference is Steve just threw some cards in a box the morning of the show because he was doing it just for more fun. I spent two weeks every single night after school preparing perfect science and the layout and very over the top, the display cases. And I made over $1,000 on that afternoon at 14, he made 50 bucks.
A
Wow.
B
Had a good time. But he just, you know, really didn't have a vision to create a, a baseball card empire. And I just dove in. That was it. I mean, I was doing cart shows every weekend. I was running ads and the bible publication back then of the hobby called Sports Collector's Digest. I was the first. One of the first people in the state of New Jersey, I think, to get a cell phone when I was 14. It's a company called Bell Atlantic in 1984. And the phone cost me three grand, and it was $3aminute. And I had a rubber antenna and a leather case and. And I would have it in my locker, so in between class, I'd be able to call up. It actually had like a. A voice, a computerized voice that would tell you who called. That was the best technology back then. And I would call a stockbroker back. And these guys all started getting to know me for my ads. And on the weekend I would go to shows, find the cards that they wanted, upcharge them, and yeah, eventually became so big that I dropped out of college my freshman year. Sold it probably about a year after college for about a million bucks. The whole company.
A
Wow. You know, the crazy thing is, if you look back at what cars you probably had in your collection.
B
Oh, bro. I got a picture of a Honest Wagner card in my phone right now. I just posted on social media two weeks ago, 1990 or 91. I picked it up for 75,000 from a private buyer, flipped it 24 hours later, I took 20 friends to an Italian restaurant in West Orange. I don't even think it's there anymore. New jersey called 91.
A
That's.
B
I flipped the card for 125 grand. I made 50K on the flip in 24 hours. Kenny Golden. It's got the biggest auction house in the world right now. Is a dear friend of mine. Since I was a teenager. I've sent him. I sent Darren Ravel the picture. They both, like, send me crying emojis. That's probably a seven and a half to $10 million today.
A
Oh, yeah, because they're. And it's actually Kenny golden because I watched that show. I love that show, by the way. Great show.
B
I got Ric Flair on there and a couple clients.
A
You got Ric Flair on that show there?
B
The first season.
A
I saw that episode. He. And in that show, he mentioned that cards and comic books go up more than like. Like quadruple. What stocks are.
B
Oh, it's not even close. It's.
A
It's like.
B
It's far surpassed real estate and every other.
A
It's the greatest asset you can buy. The collectible market is Unreal. And it's not slowing down.
B
It's not slowing down because now, especially if they're unique enough, even the new modern day stuff, the car companies are getting smart and they're starting to do these insert cards, these rare signed insert cards. And I mean, the rappers, when they had Fanatics fest last month, I know we had Hulk there. I didn't make it. It was just insane. They had 200,000 people there. And you've got Travis Scott buying cards, you've got Dana White buying cards. These box breaks now apparently are loading. You have stockbrokers that have no problem buying an Open box of 20, 24 cards from tops or upper deck for a hundred thousand a box to open 24 packs, hoping to not. There's a card in there worth a few million dollars that's a one of one. You know, it's like artwork.
A
It's unbelievable, the culture behind it. And it's exciting because I was a card collector my whole life too, and I still, I still buy cards. So I'm still a collector.
B
I. I got back into it during that pandemic and through 2020 when I put a ton of stuff that's sitting in my safe, I'm just riding it out. I don't have the time to buy, sell and flip anymore.
A
And it's really elevated with the PSA grading and everything, so.
B
And they're right down here, psa, they're.
A
Here in Orange County.
B
They're around this area. Yeah, yeah.
A
Oh, I didn't know that.
B
Yeah, yeah, yeah. But the slapping takes forever, man. You gotta really be patient. Unless you're paying like a rush service, you know, I think most people are waiting anywhere from standard Rush is like two to two to three months to get cards back. And then if it's, if it's like basic standard, I've heard people are waiting like six to eight months or more.
A
Wow.
B
There was a time, I'll tell you, it was crazy. During the pandemic, when I was sending all my stuff down there, my assistant, I was driving them crazy. They're getting 10, 15 packages a day of raw cards. So they'd have to write out the form, fill it out, upload it, send it. You actually didn't care if it took a little bit longer because they were so backed up with COVID and they didn't have the biggest staff because your money was better sitting in those cards waiting for the lottery ticket to show up. Three or four months later, the box and it slabbed. I mean, there wasn't one purchase That I made where when those cards came back slabbed, the value didn't minimum double in a period of three to four months. That's how hot that was the market back then. So. And I know it's still super strong. It's incredible. Yeah, I love to say it. I mean, like, I'm not really buying like I once was. I got back into it for a year and a half during the pandemic. But I still get a shows because a lot of my guys sign autographs and I love walking around. I've got relationships with friends that I've known for 40 years. And, you know, just seeing a lot of these young dynamos in. In the hobby that were like me. And now they've got way more ability to make incredible amounts of money compared to what I had back then because there was no Internet, you know, so that's.
A
That's fascinating. You know, Kenny Golden. You know, I'm a big fan of that show. That. And I saw this episode where he. He had a guy where he had the horse Wagner. Like the one of one man all the German. Yeah.
B
Yep.
A
Yeah. 30 million dollar horse wagon card.
B
I know.
A
Did you have that card?
B
That's the card that I had.
A
Yeah, but that one's worth 30. But that was a mine.
B
Wouldn't have been an eight or nine like that guy. So I was. There's probably more of a six, but yeah, definitely 100% would be about a seven and a half to $8 million card today.
A
Wow.
B
And I. I mean, I handled some of the best stuff ever in Mickey Mantle rookies. I mean, you name it, I had it. And you're not thinking about holding stuff back then. You're in a turn and burn business. Buy it, sell it, Buy it, sell it. Or place your inventory, find another collection, whatever it might. Might have been.
A
Yeah, yeah, of course, it's. It's still turn and burn, even for Kenny. Yep, he's turning, burning.
B
Dad always taught me, I'd rather you turn your money 10 times on this over the next two years than sit on it and double or triple your money. You'll be way better off.
A
Now, what age did you become like. Like addicted?
B
Well, 14. I was at sleepaway camp and I had bad stomach pains one night and the catcher took me to the infirmity and nurse gave me this green liquid, cough syrup liquid in a clear little cup. And I did a shot and all those inequities, inferiorities, feeling of less than went away. I like that. I. I felt like Superman. I'm walking across the softball field with the count. Check it back to the bunk. The guys are laughing with me, not at me. I'm the smart one, I'm the popular one, I'm the good looking one. Got the courage to flirt with girls next door for the first time and went to bed that night thinking nothing of it. Did all my activities the next day at camp. And that next night I'm lying in that bunk with no stomach pain. But I remember the feeling like yesterday, 40 years ago, this brain started going. I was like, God, I got to get more of that stuff while it wasn't I heal over and I start putting on the crocodile tears. And the counter comes running over and asked me what was wrong. And I told him. He took me back to the nurse and I kind of pulled that BS off for a couple weeks until my mom and dad came up visitation day and found out I was taking liquid Demerol. Back then it wasn't as controlled substance of an opiate. And you know, I speak all over the world. I do interviews all over the world, tv, podcast, and I tell people it's not the nurse's fault because I would have found what I wanted to find anyway. One in three kids that get opiates from a dentist nowadays become opiate addicts. I was one of the three. I went to get my wisdom teeth removed that same year after camp, maybe four or five months later, I had no idea what these white pills were my mom gave me. I was in a lot of pain. Man, that feeling came right back. I'm calling up my boys, I'm on the phone, I'm feeling like a rock star. And eventually my parents went to bed. I remember went down to the kitchen to get something to eat and I looked at the bottle as some wobbling out. There was only two pills. So the whole night I'm thinking, okay, how do I pull this off? My parents woke up in the morning, I run down in the kitchen, grab my cheek, I said, mom, my tooth is killing me. I got a horrible infection. We got to go back to the dentist. I can't go to school as a loving mother who wants to see their child suffer. So she took the baby, took him back to the dentist, and he wrote like a prescription for another 10 of those white pills I found that were extra strength Vicodins, another opiate. And luck, man, I was. Nobody was gonna be able to tell me what to do at that point because I had the money coming in too. So for the next five or six years, you know, I was a Rock star, you know, in the baseball card industry. And so the shit hit the fan. In 2021, I was arrested four times in six months for possession charge, not to distribute for personal use. Big concerts with my friends out at a nightclub, whatever it might be. I was the one with the money. So I was the one that was buying the drugs, paying for the alcohol.
A
So you from that age to 20, 21?
B
Yeah. I got popped four times in six months at the age of 21. Once in Texas, three times in New Jersey. I was arrested and wasn't awake. I was just pissed that, you know, it was bad luck. I thought, it's like, why was I the one that got arrested? You know, it was just crazy. I'm the one that's taking care of everybody. Complete denial. Got put into an outpatient program in New Jersey called St. Barnabas Alliance. Judge said if I screwed up or tested positive for anything, I'd go to jail for a year. And, you know, you talk about denial for anybody young in your audience that's listening or older, and there's a lot of people suffering. I got the good news. With two weeks to go, I didn't have to complete the whole year. I graduated is what I thought. I heard that. Literally that day I called my friend Dave up and I said, bro, let's go to the city and get banged up. Let's go celebrate. Let's go to Jimmy's Cafe in the Village, do some mind erasure shots. And on the way in, we took a couple Xanax, had these mind erasure shots, and next thing I know, man, it was the middle of the night and woke up and I'm in the ICU in the hospital, 90 stitches in my face. You could still see some of the scars here and here and on my hand right here. My friend Dave fell asleep behind the wheel, and the seatbelt didn't lock up on time. By the time my face hit the windshield, I was sleeping. It went through the windshield. And the first two people I say are my mom and my dad. So anybody that's left listening, you know, that's what addiction and alcohol does. It destroys families. It's not just the one that's suffering. And, you know, I was like a runaway freight train because like I said, I had the money at that point. And then eventually I jump into the sports and entertainment industry, representing some of the biggest stars in the world who's going to tell me what I can and can't do? I'm the man to get to the man. I'm the man to get to the woman. So none of my agents, nobody's going to tell me I have a problem. I lived that way for five or six years. I was crushing it at Prince marketing group. And then at some point, what was living to use turned out to using to live is adult people. And those last two years, man, were pure hell. Not wanting to live anywhere with all the money, all the success. Not just the money and the success, the notoriety. You can't buy notoriety. You earn notoriety, you earn the respect by the people you surround yourself with. So just by default, I was looked at up here because of the talent that I was working with and other the biggest celebrities and their public would have to come to me to get access to whoever it was that I represented. Or if we're out, I'm getting mad respect from their team. So I'm eating it all up because at the same time, you know, I'm a broken soul. I didn't know anything about recovery. I didn't know anything about trauma. I didn't know anything about healing. And I thought that was it. I arrived. But it was just a double life for a really long time until I had my spiritual awakening on July 2, 2008.
A
What was that spiritual awakening?
B
So July 1, the day before my now late uncle, he passed away, My uncle Stu came to New Jersey to visit my mom. And they surprised me. He was with his new girlfriend. Her name is Andrea. And I was at the woods end at this point. Point, my office, a couple people. My boy Steve, who I told you about the baseball card show with me at 14, he was running my agency. He's like, maybe you should get a treatment. I'm like, nah, bro, I'm too busy. I'm not going to over. Maybe I'll go to a spa for a few days, do massages. I'm thinking in my mind, yeah, that'll work. Yeah. Being on Suboxone, opiates, Xanax, Valium, drinking mood stabilizers, snorting Ambien at night. Yeah, I could detox myself. So she. This woman walks in. I never met her before, bro. And she's like, are you okay? I felt a connection with her. I was like, I'm not. And she's like, what's the problem? And I told her, she goes, dear rouse, you're an addict. Your life's unmanageable. And I said, yeah. And she goes, do you realize you're powerless and it's a disease? I said, yep. And then she looks around at all the pictures of me and all the stars and says, you realize none of this means anything because you don't mean anything to yourself. And that broke my soul. I started to cry and she goes, do you want help? Because I could help you. She reaches into her pocket, she goes, I just celebrated five years sober. Two weeks ago I met your uncle in recovery. We're both in recovery, I could help you. And I said, I'm desperate, I'll do anything. So that was my first God shot. She put me on a detox plan. The next night was July 2, 2008 and I was crawling out of my skin, man. Vomiting, diarrhea, upset stomach. I went to the gym two, three times in my building in New York just trying to do anything to deal with the cravings and the detox pains. And I called them up, I said f this, I'm calling the friggin doctor to get what I really need to get. I can't freaking do this. And my uncle picks up the phone and said to goddamn disease talking Darren, you got to kick the crap out of your ego already. This immature BS and you got to get yourself to a 12 step meeting. Go tell these people you're sick and suffering, you need help. I said, there's no freaking way up into the stupid meetings. When I was 21, those people can't identify with me. I hung up the phone, ran into the bathroom. This was six months after my first overdose and my then wife is banging on the bathroom, baby, don't do it, don't do it. She hears me going through the cabinets now. I was looking for a non narcotic anxiety pill, which Andrea told me I could take three times a day to help with the cravings. But out came three extra strength Vicodins out of one of the pill bottles, which was bizarre because Simone, who's my now ex wife, was. We went through all the cabinets in the apartment to make sure I wasn't tempted. But we must have missed one. I thought it was a gift from God. I thought holy crap. Which exactly what I needed. But then the miracle happened. For whatever reason, man, I wanted to live more than I wanted to die. And I had to give to desperation at the Carillon building down in Chelsea, New York City. And I fell to my knees. I screamed out to God, take the money, take the business, take the notoriety. I need a single day of freedom. If you take me out of hell, I will spend one day at a time taking others out with me. And my life changed forever in that moment. I had a burning sensation in my right shoulder. I heard A voice say, I've got you and you're ready. Stood up, I flushed the pills, I had a white light moment. Never had it before, I've never had one since. Went to the computer in the living room, found a 12 step meeting, jumped in a cab because there was no ubers back then. On this gorgeous summer night of July 2, 2008 on a Sunday, said holy crap, what the hell just happened? For the first time in my life, I wanted to stay sober more than I wanted to get high. And walked into this church basement, 150, 200 addicts and alcoholics who were all once for hopeless state of mind. And I had the leadership. Is anybody new coming back sick and suffering? And I believe God raised my hand that night because there was no ego. My ego is crushed. And I said, I'm Darren, I'm sick, I'm suffering, I'm suicidal, I need your guys help. I have such a great life and I don't know why I'm doing this to myself. And about a dozen spiritual brothers and sisters came over to me, man, and said things that changed my life forever. Stick with the winners. Take the cotton out of yours, put it in your mouth. It's time that you understand the 5A's attitude, adjustment, accountability, acceptance and action. And the last one, what got me and got my heart was we're going to learn to love you before ever. Learn to love yourself. And I just became immersed into meetings and the fellowship and learning about my character defects, my past, my traumas, behavioral patterns. Eventually one month became a week became a year and I was in actually France with my then wife in Saint Tropez on my one year sober birthday, July 2, 2009, my sponsor calls me, a bunch of people texting me, I'm so excited. On top of the world, one year sober. And he goes, hey, you want to keep this gift right? I said yeah. He goes, well, it's time to stop being selfish and start being selfless because you want to keep you better give it away to others. And that just like sent shockwaves through my body. And I actually went public right then and there on Facebook and I, I announced that I was celebrating one year sober. My mom was a bit embarrassed, my dad loved it. And that's when I realized vulnerability is a true superpower. The amount of people that DM me that needed help or had loved ones that needed help, I realized I found my purpose, I found my calling and the agency. Life gave me a platform of notoriety, but was able to come from that platform to Then as I started getting more and more sober, time connecting with all different sorts of people after my dad passed away in 2017, I had the beautiful gift of having being a sober son for my father for eight and a half years and saying goodbye to him the night before we put him into hospice. I told him, I looked at him, I was rubbing his head in the hospital bed and I said, this experience with you to never feel so comfortable during the most uncomfortable time of my life. I said, I'm going to touch the world. I said, I know you've been excited about my business success, but I know how proud you've been about my personal success success. And I'm going to show people I get through anything without having to use the substance. And then all these GMCs, my friend Bruce that passed away in Recovery after about 30 years used to call them GMCs or God Managed coincidences started happening after my dad passed. I got on and at New Jersey's Turning Point, the largest rehab in New Jersey, to do my first keynote, worked with the coach for six months. I wanted to make sure I kicked ass. It went phenomenal. The next day, Rona Graff, who was Donald Trump's longtime executive assistant, I go way back with Trump from the Celebrity Apprentice days and let's do business together. She called and said the White House would like me to come be part of his opiate epidemic initiative. And I was probably, I think, about his second year in office. So I was up there, been to the White House three times, and he was there. I met a publisher by chance on social media that's in recovery. She gave me the vision for the book. I didn't want to write it. My dad always wanted me to write one. And I was like, I don't want to write a book about my career. And after she and I met Anna David, she goes, doesn't have to be about your career. It could be what it's like to be a fly on the wall of the journey of representing some of the most iconic stars in the world while you went deep into hell and came out on the other side. Can you imagine how many people he'll help? And it's like, that's it, that's it. And after about a month, me, her, my co writer, Chris McGinnis, came up with the name Aiming High. And when it was released, man in 18, I had no idea. It became a international bestseller and to this day is helping so many people because the opiate epidemic's worse than ever.
A
Worse than ever.
B
Worse than ever.
A
Me and Eric Spofford spoke about that on earlier today.
B
I'll tell you that too. I told you, Eric's my boy. I was with him in April in Salt Lake City. It's worse than it's ever been, man. I mean, wasn't around when I was using because I wouldn't be sitting here talking.
A
No, you'd be dead. Yep, you'd be dead. Well, it came out in 2012 and he said it wiped out everyone he knew.
B
Yep.
A
All of his friends.
B
100. But I mean, we talked about this earlier when you can find your purpose, man. And you know, I do all the work each day. I got my spiritual advisor still working on traumas, blockages, character defects. I'm religious with my, you know, five, six days a week. I had 12 step meetings. Always work with people in recovery and still find a ton, ton of time to just always be crushing that Prince market. Working my ass off for my clients and got a great team behind me, but my team does too. And my clients know too. There are times that I need to be selfish. For me, it's important time back to myself so I could be selfless to people I'm trying to help and the clientele that we're working for and they get it, they understand it. Because a selfish Darren, for the right reasons, for reasons of integrity, for the ultimate purpose of refueling my tank, to help other people to vibrate higher, to have a better frequency. Laws of attraction using positive words of affirmation is just going to manifest abundance in so many other ways. Not just wealth, health, happiness, other people coming into my life. I think you and I are going to find synergy now. I mean, that's what it's about. You know, I want to. I want to always stay a spiritual, spiritually fit as I can. I've learned so many beautiful quotes and messages that your audience will love. I said this one on Jay Shetty's podcast. Say what you mean, mean what you say and don't say it. Mean people don't remember that third one. It'll change your life. Try to understand people instead of being understood in the heat of an argument. Don't send the text, don't send the email, don't make the phone call. Get your mind in a place of feeling all right versus right, because in 10, 20 minutes you are not going to remember why the heck you snapped on somebody. And the vibration of your day is completely off now. And just by the abundance, frequency and energy of life, of staying in a place of peace and not engaging life is just good it works out better that way.
A
Yeah.
B
You know, a lot of us are in our own way and we get.
A
Caught in that moment. It's like.
B
Yeah, a lot of it's just getting our own way and they don't realize why we react a certain way or. I don't want to keep dealing with my character defects. I'm still not perfect. I still make mistakes all the time. But I'm such a better version of me and I'm accountable, which is the most important thing, you know, look, I'm not a doormat. I probably snapped on two or three people in the past year, which I'm very proud of that it was only that. But I remember each and every situation. And like my sponsors would always say, you're still not a doormat. Every once in a while, you got to stand up for yourself and let people know where you stand.
A
Amazing, Darren. So I was actually going to ask you what's your favorite quote, but let's let me switch it to what is the mantra that you live by?
B
Something that my dad taught me. It's not what you say, it's what you do. Anybody that knows me will tell you they ask me for something, gets done right away.
A
You're a man of action. You're a man of action. That's what's allowed you to be so successful. That's also. It's allowed you to overcome this tribulation.
B
Exactly.
A
You know, because you immediately recognize like, I need some help. But it's hard to, you know, humble yourself, especially when you're exactly such notoriety y.
B
Well, I have now. I've gotten to that point of self love, man. Not for the business. You know, that's getting great. It's allowed me to take care of a lot of people, build our own empire. But, you know, self love and self respect comes from my mission. I told you guys earlier, man, if I lost the business and the money tomorrow, it's all good. I look back and think, God, whatever run we had the past 30 years, what's next? You know, the money is just a mean to take care of other people and give other people my life experiences. Yeah, I travel, I enjoy it, I enjoy my own life, but doesn't make or break me anymore. I found peace in my stomach, my heart, my soul for the first time in my life on this journey the past 16 years. And to be able to just help another sick and suffering human being out there that helps their loved ones, their family, their significant others, their co workers, better than doing a $10 million endorsement deal uncomparable.
A
What's the best piece of advice that you would give to your. I don't know if it was your 20, when you hit that trauma, it was 21. What's the best piece of advice you would give to your 21 year old self?
B
My 20 year old self I think learn to love yourself more because there was such self hatred at that point, you know, for whatever reason. And I, I think this younger generation needs to understand. You've heard the expression it's not my business what other people think of me. I think the meaning of that is people don't think about you that much. And if you get out of your own head and stay in your own lane and focus on your race and what's important to you, everything will start attracting the right way.
A
Beautiful. Now a couple last questions before you join here. The first one is, it's a multi prong question. What's a personal goal that you have for yourself and what's the goal that you have for Prince Marketing?
B
You know, Prince Marketing is just always growing and scale in the business. We're good with the clientele that we have. You know, at some point I would imagine I sold off a very small minority stake about, about a year ago. I love what I do. So whether it's a full exit one day, I stay on the board of advisors or whatever it might be. Like I said, I just love what I do. I love the people that we work for. And personally, I know it doesn't happen every day, but as long as I could be a service to one person that's sick and suffering every week, that just keeps me in alignment to the person that I always was meant to be and the person that I am now.
A
My last question for you, Aaron, when you're in front of the pearly gates, what do you think God's going to tell you?
B
Well, I know he's going to tell me that I'm proud of you and you did exactly what I wanted you to do because I've said it on different interviews before that you know, I don't need anything on my tombstone one day about the so called agent life, super age life. I'm nobody's superman. It's the talent that developed who they were long before they ever met. Aaron Prince. I want a man that went deep into hell and came out on the other side to sprinkle hope and recovery across the world to help other people. That's it. That's my legacy right there.
A
You're a true man of God, man. You really are a true servant at heart. And you know, I hope your legacy lives way beyond Prince marking, way beyond these celebrity, the celebrity hood that you were involved with because you're bringing good to that world. You're bringing, you know, you're, you're bringing real light to that world. And I hope and pray that your legacy lives far, far beyond. You hit every single one your goals. And if people are suffering right now that are listening or they have family members that are suffering right now, how can they get help?
B
They can contact me on Instagram at Agent Underscore DP or they can message the website Aiming High foundation dot org. Yeah, that's pretty much the two most simple ways. I'm on Facebook as well. Darren Prince out of Los Angeles, California. But I will personally reply myself. People know it, they've seen it. Like I said, I've been on some of the biggest stages, biggest talk shows, interviews, podcasts. You know, Jay Shetty and I just were over the moon with the hundreds of thousands of people that respond. I get back to every single person, bro, myself, because I put God in my heart and soul and I know that he's the one that works through me and I'm the one that's able to turn the lights on in somebody's eyes just by telling my story. I don't need to hear about your story. I'm going to tell you about mine. And if you identify, you're going to want that gift and you're going to ask me or you're going to say, hey, that was me. You know, I'm really struggling man, because I've had some most mind blowing moments at some of my keynotes after, during the private meet and greets and Q&As of people that I know have never told a single soul what they were dealing with. But those God given words that came out of my mouth turn the lights on and they took an action to make their life exactly what it was always supposed to be.
A
Amazing. God bless you man. You've been an incredible guest. Thank you so much for everything that you do. Thanks. Thank you for your service. Thank you for helping thousands and thousands of people and I hope you hit all your goals.
B
Thanks my brother and congrats to you too on everything.
A
Yeah.
B
Thank you to contending our friendship.
A
Absolutely. Thank you so much. Thanks Darren Prince guys, make sure you follow him and if you know anyone who's suffering or needs help, reach out to him. This guy's a man of service and he will help.
Episode Title: From Addiction to Advocacy ft. Darren Prince
Release Date: December 4, 2024
Host: Joseph Shalaby, Broker and CEO of E Mortgage Capital Inc.
Guest: Darren Prince, Celebrity Sports and Entertainment Agent, Entrepreneur, and Author
The episode begins with Joseph Shalaby welcoming Darren Prince, a renowned celebrity sports and entertainment agent. Darren shares his remarkable journey from battling addiction to representing some of the world's most iconic figures, including Magic Johnson, Hulk Hogan, Dennis Rodman, and Ric Flair.
[00:55] Darren Prince: "Thanks for having me, man."
Darren emphasizes the importance of a structured morning routine in maintaining his physical, emotional, and mental well-being. His routine includes dog walking, red light therapy, grounding sheets, a one-hour workout, meditation, and hydrogen water. Additionally, he attends 12-step spiritual recovery meetings five to six days a week.
[01:18] Darren Prince: "I got a pretty consistent one. I wake up, walk my dog... I do a lot to work on my physical state, my emotional state, my mental state."
[02:08] Darren Prince: "I hit my 12 step spiritual recovery meetings... that just brings me back into my purpose, which is most important in life. Helping other people that are struggling."
Darren provides an overview of his role as a sports and entertainment agent. He founded Prince Marketing Group in 1994, representing legends like Magic Johnson and Hulk Hogan. His agency focuses on endorsements, commercials, keynote speeches, branding opportunities, and social media campaigns.
[05:50] Darren Prince: "I'm a sports and entertainment agent. I started Prince Marketing Group in 1994. Magic Johnson was my first client, still is to this day."
Darren highlights the enduring relevance of his clients, noting how retro trends have kept their brands marketable across generations.
[07:36] Darren Prince: "The amount of 6, 7, 8 year olds wearing Hulkamania gear... it's remarkable."
Darren opens up about his battle with addiction, tracing it back to adolescence. He recounts how his initial exposure to opiates at age 14 led to a five to six-year struggle with substance abuse, culminating in multiple arrests and personal turmoil.
[37:02] Darren Prince: "I was the one buying the drugs, paying for the alcohol... I was crushed."
A pivotal moment in Darren's life occurred on July 2, 2008, when a chance encounter with a fellow recovering addict led to his decision to seek help. This spiritual awakening was a turning point that propelled him towards sobriety and advocacy.
[42:51] Darren Prince: "I fell to my knees. I screamed out to God, take the money, take the business... My life changed forever in that moment."
Following his recovery, Darren founded the Aiming High Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to providing scholarships for individuals unable to afford treatment for substance abuse and mental health issues. His advocacy extends to keynote speeches and participation in national initiatives addressing the opiate epidemic.
[04:20] Darren Prince: "Which is the name of my book. My book was called Aiming High."
[58:25] Darren Prince: "They can contact me on Instagram... or message the website AimingHighFoundation.org."
Darren underscores the significance of financial literacy, particularly for athletes and entertainers whose careers may be short-lived. He collaborates with private equity groups like the Legacy Fund to educate these individuals on building and preserving wealth through real estate investments.
[19:34] Darren Prince: "We focus on allowing them not just to invest... but to give that opportunity to actually be on the board of advisors for the companies they work for."
[22:16] Darren Prince: "These rappers, these athletes who don't have consistent income all can get into properties like that."
Darren shares profound insights on personal growth, emphasizing the importance of self-love, accountability, and understanding others. He offers advice to his younger self and the audience, encouraging them to focus on personal development and financial independence.
[55:26] Darren Prince: "Learn to love yourself more because there was such self hatred at that point... focus on your race and what's important to you."
[53:46] Darren Prince: "It's not what you say, it's what you do. Anybody that knows me will tell you they ask me for something, gets done right away."
In the concluding segment, Darren reflects on his legacy, expressing his desire to help others overcome adversity. Joseph commends Darren's dedication to service and his impactful work in both the business and recovery communities.
[57:13] Darren Prince: "I want a man that went deep into hell and came out on the other side to sprinkle hope and recovery across the world to help other people. That's it. That's my legacy right there."
[60:01] Joseph Shalaby: "Thanks Darren Prince guys, make sure you follow him and if you know anyone who's suffering or needs help, reach out to him. This guy's a man of service and he will help."
Resilience and Purpose: Darren's journey underscores the power of resilience and finding purpose through adversity.
Structured Wellness: A consistent morning routine and commitment to recovery are crucial for maintaining personal well-being.
Financial Literacy: Educating athletes and entertainers on financial management and real estate investments is vital for long-term stability.
Advocacy and Giving Back: Founding the Aiming High Foundation illustrates the importance of giving back and supporting those struggling with addiction.
Personal Growth: Emphasizing self-love, accountability, and understanding fosters personal and professional growth.
Darren Prince on Purpose:
[02:18] Darren Prince: "Your life is about helping people... helping other people that are struggling."
Darren Prince on Legacy:
[57:13] Darren Prince: "I want to sprinkle hope and recovery across the world to help other people. That's it. That's my legacy right there."
Darren Prince on Business Ethos:
[53:46] Darren Prince: "It's not what you say, it's what you do. Anybody that knows me will tell you they ask me for something, gets done right away."
This episode of "Coffeez for Closers" offers an inspiring narrative of overcoming personal demons, building a successful career, and dedicating oneself to the betterment of others. Darren Prince's story serves as a testament to the impact of determination, structured self-care, and a commitment to giving back.