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LaBrent Speed on Building B3, Serve Before You Sell and The Transformation Code | On The Radar | MSR
LaBrent Speed joins On the Radar to discuss building B3 and his mission to transform Black entrepreneurship through a “serve before you sell” philosophy.
LaBrent Speed spent 30 years in sales, served as chapter president of a BNI chapter and became BNI’s first Black regional director, traveling and teaching across Minnesota. And the whole time, he kept noticing something that bothered him.
When he attended Black networking events, there was no intentionality. No structure. No mechanism to actually build business together. Just cards and pitches and socializing.
In this On the Radar episode, host Damenica Ellis sits down with Speed to talk about what he did about it, what he has built, and the personal journey that shaped all of it.
Speed founded The Better Black Business Project, or B3, on one foundational principle: serve before you sell. The organization is a professional networking community for Black entrepreneurs and authentic allies, built around what Speed calls the intentional pursuit of impactful relationships. In just over two years, B3 has grown to more than 100 members who have passed millions of dollars in referral business to one another. The organization is now expanding virtually into markets like Atlanta ahead of in-person launches.
“I wanted to create an intentional community of people coming together, building each other up and doing business with one another.”
Speed also runs B3I, The Better Black Business Initiative, a nonprofit that trains Black youth, next-generation allies and justice-impacted people to become entrepreneurs.
On September 11, Speed released his first book, The Transformation Code: 5 Keys to Transforming Your Life and Impacting the World. He says the book grew out of one of the lowest periods of his life, before B3 existed, when he was going through personal upheaval and actively studying what it actually takes to change.
“I was severely overweight. I was going through my third divorce, and life just didn’t look good. I wanted to know, how do I actually change from where I am to where I want to go?”
The principles he discovered on that journey are the same ones that run through B3: serve first, build genuine relationships, prioritize community alongside commerce and stay anchored in your why.
“Community without commerce is nice, but it’s broke. And commerce without community is transactional. We don’t want either one of those.”
Full story at msr.media.
Featured
LaBrent Speed on Building B3 and Serve Before You Sell | On The Radar | MSR
LaBrent Speed shares his journey of building B3, the power of intentional networking, and the mission behind his new book, The Transformation Code.
LaBrent Speed, founder of The Better Black Business Project and BNI’s first Black regional director, talks about intentional networking for Black entrepreneurs, his nonprofit B3I and his new book The Transformation Code.
Full story at msr.media.
Subscribe for more On the Radar from the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder.
Featured
North Commons Park: A Regional Destination for Community #shorts
North Commons is transforming into a world-class destination for Minneapolis youth, offering 12,000 local kids a premier space to play, connect, and grow.
North Commons is evolving into a world-class park for Minneapolis youth. By upgrading facilities near North High and local community centers, the project gives 12,000 neighborhood kids a first-rate space to play, compete, and connect locally. #CommunityDevelopment #MinneapolisParks #YouthSports #UrbanPlanning
Featured
62 Years of the Washington Informer: Our Origin and Mission #washingtoninformer #shorts
Celebrate 62 years of the Washington Informer as we look back at our origins and the mission that continues to drive our community journalism today.
#shorts
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From Christies to Bali: The Birth of 11Eleven gallery #washingtoninformer #shorts
Discover the journey behind 11Eleven gallery, from the halls of Christie’s to the heart of Bali. Watch how a dream transformed into a global art destination.
#shorts
Featured
Nicola Charles on 11 Providing a Space for Artistic Expression and Cultural Engagement | Let’s Talk
Denise Rolark Barnes sits down with curator Nicola Charles to discuss how 11:Eleven gallery uses photography to preserve history and celebrate cultural storytelling.
In this segment, Denise Rolark Barnes sits down with Nicola Charles, Curator of 11:Eleven gallery. They talk about Washington Informer’s 62nd anniversary, as the gallery is hosting Photogallery Exhibit and Reception, creating an opportunity to celebrate the power of photography to preserve history and tell stories that might otherwise go unseen. This is one conversation you don’t want to miss!
🎥 Let’s Talk airs LIVE every Friday at Noon on WIN-TV
🔴 LIKE, SUBSCRIBE & SHARE
🌐 Visit Us: www.washingtoninformer.com
Host: Denise Rolark Barnes
Publisher – The Washington Informer
About The Washington Informer:
Founded in 1964 by Dr. Calvin W. Rolark, The Washington Informer is an African American, woman-owned newspaper providing positive coverage of the Black community in Washington, D.C. In March 2020, we launched WIN-TV to further amplify community voices and issues.
Production Team:
🎥 Producer: Shevry Lassiter
🎥 Asst. Producer: Ja’Mon Jackson
🎶 Theme Music by DB Bantino
Follow Us on Social Media:
📸 Instagram: @washinformer
📘 Facebook: Washington Informer
🐦 Twitter: @WashInformer
Guest: Nicola Charles – Curator, 11:Eleven gallery
#Community #Empowering #Education #WIN #BeInformed #WINTV #blacknews #BlackOwnedMedia #SupportBlackJournalists #BlackVoicesMatter #BlackMediaExcellence #BlackStorytelling #blackpress #BlackJournalistsMatter #washingtoninformer #WashingtonDC #DMVNews #DCMedia #blackownedbusiness #LocalBlackMedia #DMVVoices #BlackMediaDC #BlackWriters #AmplifyBlackVoices #BlackCreators #CommunityJournalism #letstalk #blackpress #win #beinformed #washingtoninformer #washinformer
Featured
Thomas Jackson on Building Par365 | MSR On the Radar
Thomas Jackson joins MSR On the Radar to discuss building Par365, an inclusive indoor golf space designed to make the game more accessible for everyone.
Thomas Jackson’s favorite part about being a Black business owner in Minnesota is the ability to create community, perspective, autonomy and authentic experiences.
On this episode of MSR On the Radar, Jackson joins host Damenica Ellis to talk about discovering golf during the COVID-19 pandemic and how that hobby became Par365, an indoor golf simulator, bar, restaurant and event space in Roseville that he and his wife opened in December 2023. Their mission was to make golf more accessible, more affordable and more approachable.
Jackson shares how breaking into the industry took marketing, local partnerships and social events, why intimidated newcomers needed extra encouragement, and the programming Par365 built in response, including Golf 101 sessions and a speaker series for middle and high school students. He also talks about moving from a corporate product development career to full-time entrepreneurship, balancing the business with family life, and his advice for aspiring entrepreneurs: compress your vision into a minimum viable product and grow at a reasonable pace.
Watch the full conversation.
LaBrent Speed on Building B3 and Serve Before You Sell | On The Radar | MSR
LaBrent Speed on Building B3, Serve Before You Sell and The Transformation Code | On The Radar | MSR
North Commons Park: A Regional Destination for Community #shorts
62 Years of the Washington Informer: Our Origin and Mission #washingtoninformer #shorts
From Christies to Bali: The Birth of 11Eleven gallery #washingtoninformer #shorts
Nicola Charles on 11 Providing a Space for Artistic Expression and Cultural Engagement | Let’s Talk
Thomas Jackson on Building Par365 | MSR On the Radar
News Observer Weekly — October 21, 2026 | Top 5 Stories of the Week
Founder’s Growth: Boost Business Finances & Sustainability #shorts
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LaBrent Speed on Building B3 and Serve Before You Sell | On The Radar | MSR
LaBrent Speed on Building B3, Serve Before You Sell and The Transformation Code | On The Radar | MSR
North Commons Park: A Regional Destination for Community #shorts
62 Years of the Washington Informer: Our Origin and Mission #washingtoninformer #shorts
From Christies to Bali: The Birth of 11Eleven gallery #washingtoninformer #shorts
Nicola Charles on 11 Providing a Space for Artistic Expression and Cultural Engagement | Let’s Talk
Thomas Jackson on Building Par365 | MSR On the Radar
News Observer Weekly — October 21, 2026 | Top 5 Stories of the Week
Founder’s Growth: Boost Business Finances & Sustainability #shorts
One Cent Savings Bank: Nashville’s Black Business Legacy #shorts
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