Color Magazine Online

Sheila Johnson may be best known for co-founding Black Entertainment Television (BET). Or perhaps for becoming the first African American woman to hold a major stake in three professional sports teams (Washington Mystics, Washington Capitals and Washington Wizards). Today, she is known as the CEO and Founder of Salamander Hospitality, which is a group of high-end hotels, resorts, spas and a PGA Tour golf course. Add conductor, movie producer and philanthropist to the list, and it starts to become clear that she is best described as someone who does everything - and more than any one of her endeavors, she is her own brand.

CM: How do you go from being a professional, classically-trained musician to one of the most successful businesspeople in the country?

SJ: That's an easy one to answer. I just really believe that the arts give you the foundation to be able to do anything in life. I was a classically trained violinist and also played the piano. There are certain skills that were instilled in me from which I was able to form a strong foundation to start businesses. Even with doctors, those who participate in the arts also become great doctors. I don't know whether it involves a certain type of brain or not, but I just really believe that the arts give anybody a strong foundation for whatever they want to pursue.

CM: Can you point to something specific in the business world and say, training for the piano or violin really helped me here?

SJ: Music helps me to focus. It helps me to listen, so I have good communication skills. It helps me to take responsibilities that other people wouldn't want to take. It gives me the confidence to be able to stand in front of people to perform. All those skills are very pertinent to being a successful businessperson.

CM: You are part owner of three professional sports teams. Was thatt a dream you had or was it more of a business decision?

SJ: It was more of a business decision. I go way back way before Title IX. I've always loved sports. I was a cheerleader, it was the best that I could do at the time. Women's basketball games were never even on the radar screen back then. When the WNBA came into existence, I had a chance to be a sports team owner. But I also wanted to buy into an NBA team and an NHL team and had the privilege of being part of a larger vision, to be a partner and owner of three sports teams. I tend to dream big and I get very excited about it, but my heart and soul is with my WNBA team.

CM: What drew you in a different direction, to found Salamander Hospitality?

SJ: As a founding partner of BET, the entertainment business and the hotel business are basically the same. Even though we were TV media, the hotel industry is the same entity, in that we are there to entertain people. I just found it to be a natural progression of being able to remain in contact with people, entertain them and also to be able to find new and creative ways in which to grow a business based on my experience with television. Being able to bring in actors, authors to do book readings, is something that's going to continue to grow my business and bring people to my hotel. So there's sort of this thin line between the hospitality business and the media business but they all can be connected together.

CM: You recently spoke out against the direction BET is headed right now, what were your concerns?

SJ: Fortunately or unfortunately, I wasn't just centering BET out, I was really focusing on the entire medium of television. I think that the bar has lowered so far to the point where we are not seeing really good quality programming, as far as what young people are watching. We are now getting into an era where our young people are very sexualized and through no fault of their own, they are watching it every day, they see it on the soaps, they see it on BET, on MTV, in movies, on cable and on the regular networks. What we're not doing is showing them alternative programming, something that is healthier, something that can talk about safe sex. If you're going to put this programming on, and these eyeballs and still-forming brains are watching all of this, it is not good, not healthy. Fortunately or unfortunately, you've got a lot of young people who are literally bringing themselves up. They have younger parents, who are working, who are not giving the right communications or education - talking to them about the alternatives of what is right and what is wrong. So if they are inundated with these sexualized messages, they are going to believe them, and they do through no fault of their own.

The reason why I brought it up, and I've got a documentary out called The Other City, about the increase of the HIV virus. We are seeing an incredible increase especially in young men 13 to 29 years old and African American women from 25 to 39. And I'm sure its even going younger and younger. Because the message is out there that you can have sex and you don't need to protect yourself. The statistics are out there, that if we don't start talking to our young people again and communicating to them about safe sex, then we will start to see epidemic numbers of STDs.

CM: What makes you want to do, what seems like, everything?

SJ: Well the opportunities come my way. It gets me out of bed in the morning. [Laughs.] Honestly, I wouldn't take on anything I didn't think I could handle. What you have to understand is that everything I do - even though my day job, the hospitality business, is the core - these pieces of the puzzle do fit into what my core business is. Owning teams attracts publicity, it attracts people to my hotel. They say, 'Oh yea that's Sheila Johnson she also has a golf course down at Innisbrook. She's really for women's sports and into sports in general.' So that really helps my business. Making movies, I am able to do previews at my hotel, and get my name out as well. It's the branding issue. Everything I do is behind the brand. It's about what's going to help grow the brand and help bring different kinds of eyeballs.

CM: Was there ever a point where you felt like you took on too much and you doubted that doing all these things was a good idea?
SJ: The only time I really doubt myself is when my employees, whom I have hired to make this work, start to panic or feel as if they can't do it. Or they can't see the bolder vision or they're not problem solvers. That's when I panic and I have to take them and say, 'Look, I hired you to do this job, to solve the problems. I pay you a lot of money to do it, let's make it work.' I get frustrated when they start throwing up their hands, because that's not what I hired them to do. And then there may come a time when I get totally frustrated and say, 'I am going shut this division down, because I just cannot find the right people to run it.' If I didn't have the right people on board I couldn't do what I'm doing.

CM: Who do you go to when you need support or advice?
SJ: I have lot people in my life that I can compartmentalize. If it's an issue of a business decision, I know certain people within my circle that can give me some alternative suggestions. I have a wide range of experts that I have surrounded myself with, who I know are there for me, who have got my back. Anywhere from lawyers to business people, to educators to event planners, it can be anybody. And I can go to any of these people when I need advice.

CM: How do you choose where you direct your philanthropic efforts?
SJ: I have a very insightful right-hand person who is really my chief of staff and we work together on the foundation. We do our homework. First of all, I don't look at any organization unless it is in my vision of what I am interested in. And if it doesn't even fall into that, those usually get the rejection letter or end up in the trash. They are the ones that fall in line with my vision of how I want to move the needle and change things. I look at them and I do a proper investigation, interview the people and make a decision from there. Anyone who is a philanthropist or has a foundation should never give money away up front. You want to make that organization earn the grant that you are giving them. So if it's a million dollar grant, you may want to spread it over five years. There's a contract involved and they have to follow that contract to the letter. In other words, I remain at the wheel. There's a philosophy, I remember reading in a book called Shogun, it says, 'Don't be mad at your money.' So you're not just throwing money away. If the organization is not following the stipulation in the contract, they don't get the rest of the money.

CM: So you treat it just like a business endeavor?
SJ: It is a business endeavor. You just don't give it away then feel good about it. I will say that about 75 percent of the organizations I have given money to, in 20-20 hindsight, I shouldn't have given them any money and I have pulled back money for them. Because I have not been happy with the outcome and the way the money has been used.

CM: What do you hope your legacy will be?
SJ: I would like people to remember me as a smart businesswoman, who really cared about community, about self-preservation for all people and that I had a generous and kind heart.

SJ: To continue to grow the company. The whole country and the world is in tough times right now. I hope to continue to grow the country so that I am there to persevere. I want to continue on with my team hoping to win a championship some day. As far as my film career, I would like to continue to make films that inspire people, that ignite passion and send a message. And I just want to continue to be able to help people.