
Just before 2024 came to a close, the XP Music Futures conference in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia united global innovators across music, tech, and culture. Among the mix was Cordell Broadus, who easily stood out as a shining example of ambition and adaptability. During his panel with longtime collaborator Shiv Jain and Canadian lifestyle and party queen Mona Halem, Broadus captivated audiences with his journey from a promising football star to becoming a multifaceted entrepreneur at just 27 years old. His story reflected not only his resilience, but also his commitment to breaking barriers and empowering others in industries ranging from gaming to entertainment.
As the co-founder of Dr. Bombay Ice Cream and a pivotal figure in various ventures for Death Row Records, the Cali-based frontrunner carved a unique niche that fused Hip Hop's legacy with cutting-edge innovation. From leading Web3 initiatives for his father, Snoop Dogg, to the launch of Death Row Games, a platform that’s helped to uplift minority creators, he exemplified what it means to be a leader and a visionary. His latest endeavor, a documentary titled Son of Kings, will delve into his family’s lineage and the broader experience of Black men in America.
During this exclusive sit-down for REVOLT, Broadus shared insights regarding his fireside chat, reflected on his transition from sports to big business, and offered a glimpse into the creative and cultural forces driving his groundbreaking moves. Check it out below.
You’ve been at the forefront of Web3 as of late. How do you envision things going as far as Web3 with Death Row and the other businesses that you run?
I'm going to be honest. When we did Web 3.0, it was more like, you know, it was new. It was something that we felt had a lot of room for potential, and we just jumped in.
We were creative and we wanted to focus on what we knew we were good at, which was music and brand-building. In under a year, we were able to put over 250 songs from the Death Row catalog on the blockchain and give consumers and holders the rights to be able to do whatever they want with the music. A lot of people remixed the instruments, and the snares, and all the music that we put on the blockchain, and we started to see how creative people could be with assets that are just sitting on hard drives.
When you think about music, it’s about collaboration. And that’s the way Web 3.0 is essentially -- everyone collaborating together. When we jumped in, it was like, how can we bring music? And we successfully did that. Snoop ended up working with Gala Games, and he did his own album package and all that cool stuff. And we slowly started to see [how] the space is filled with a lot of actors as well. And, you know, I didn’t really have a stomach for it.
I didn’t have a stomach as far as, like, staying in that crypto winter and going through all the lawsuits, the FTX, and all these things that were going on. It just felt like the words “crypto” and “NFTs” were looked down on at a point. And we kind of segued into traditional businesses.
But, we took what we learned from Web 3.0, and we implemented it immediately. You know, we started an ice cream brand with Dr. Bombay, which is a Bored Ape. And to this day, it’s still running.
My dad likes to say, you know, he’s the last ape standing. All the apes kind of disappeared in a sense. I’m still optimistic around Web 3.0, but I'm just not fully invested, if I’m being honest. I didn't want to segue into something that I felt wasn’t going anywhere, which is why I jumped into consumer products and gaming. Those industries have been here for the last 50 years and are only going up.
Regarding the Dr. Bombay brand, what are your methods when it comes to investing and engaging with different entities?
It really [involves going with] our gut. Like, we really don't have an identity. We follow our gut instinct. And if it feels right, and the founder is right, and things are clicking, we're going to put our money where our mouth is. But it’s also just timing. I think timing is key as far as when you invest.
You can’t assume that you're about to [hit] 10 times or 100 times [your investment] right away. You’ve got to just put a little bit right there and just let things grow at their own pace. Or you could be a soldier on the ground, and you could maneuver things how you want and do what you got to do.
But for me, for the most part, since I’m juggling so many different things, I try to believe in the project or the team and help from afar or help up close -- however they need me. But it’s so many different projects that I’m working on. I’m trying to like, you know, stay proactive.
I think with Dr. Bombay, that was a great example of taking an NFT and putting it in a place like Walmart. You know, we’re in 80 percent of grocery stores in the U.S. And in the first year, we did $10 million in sales. A lot of people don’t associate Dr. Bombay with NFTs anymore because it’s its own thing now. Kids are consuming it, [as well as] adults [and] grandparents. And that’s what you want. You want something that’s easily digestible.
I feel like Web3 and the whole wallet and crypto, it was hard. It was a learning curve for a lot of people. We get it because we grew up in tech. But there are certain generations that don’t understand it and are afraid of it. And it’s going to take time. I think in the next 10, 15 years, it should become what we all thought it would be in 2021, 2022. But it’s just all about timing.
You’re venturing into gaming as well. How do you stay ahead in that industry?
I just feel like I want to push what I'm passionate about in sectors that are growing. Gaming is growing at a fast pace, but I feel like Hip Hop isn’t really sprinkled in gaming as much as it should be. When you think about Hip Hop representation in gaming, it’s only really Grand Theft Auto. It used to be Def Jam: Fight for New York. It used to be all these different games. Now it’s Grand Theft Auto, and that’s not owned by us, you get what I’m saying?
So, it’s like, how do we change that narrative? We got to be the builders. We got to be the owners, and we got to bring other creators on our platform, and start creating projects, and start telling stories from places that we are familiar with. And that’s what we’ve been doing.
We’ve been working with developers in Brazil [and] South Africa. There’s a new creator economy in Fortnite called UEFN [Unreal Editor for Fortnite], where you can create worlds in Fortnite, and you can monetize off them. And that’s what we’ve been doing for the last year. We’ve done a world with Tee Grizzley where we digitized his whole neighborhood in Detroit, his grandmama’s house, Coney Island, [his Hoodbachi Grill food] truck. We’re putting real things that mean something to people from these urban communities.
Lastly, we just put Snoop in Fortnite. And his monthly Spotify listeners went from 28 million to 33 million in a matter of two weeks. So, in a sense, we’re gamifying his music catalog, which at the end is bringing a higher total revenue number for that catalog, which ups the value of it when you do sell it, or you leverage it for whatever you’re doing.
We’re just trying to bring ownership to the forefront. I think doing that in-game is essential, and telling stories by us and depicting areas and things that have true value to us is important, especially for these young kids playing these games. Like I said, Grand Theft Auto is the only Hip Hop representation, but there’s no ownership in the Hip Hop world on the Grand Theft Auto side.
Are there any other sectors that you’re looking to bring more innovation to?
At some point, I do want to professionalize everything I’m doing and really build an agency where we can help all these different sectors and have a real machine. Not just me and Shiv and a few other people that I’m working with, but like an army [with] other people who are thinking like this on our team and going to regions like the Middle East, Asia, just globe-trotting and trying to figure out how can we continue to push the narrative of our culture in these sectors and fill white spaces.
For any young entrepreneurs looking to follow in your footsteps, especially knowing your journey from sports to becoming the mogul that you are now, do you have any advice for them or first steps that they should take?
Yeah, don’t be afraid to fail. Don't get too down on yourself if you get rejected or [if] people [aren't] feeling your ideas. It's a part of the process, and you gotta stay down. You got to stay down for at least five years to see some sort of return, to see some sort of reaction. It may even take longer than that.
You just gotta have vision and not be in a rush. Take your time with this. If you're young and you’re in a minority, it’s going to be hard. Straight up. We always say that. Man, we wish it could be easier for us, but then again, we don't because we're pioneering this right now. Most rooms that I walk in, there are no 27-year-old Black kids.
I want to change that. I hope whoever this young listener is can feel inspired to do something outside of the norm of what our culture does. We usually do sports or music. That's what we're known for. How can we be known as entrepreneurs, and builders, and real people [who are] empowered and in charge of their own journey? Not only in America, but internationally, like where we are now.