We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Robyne Robinson. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with robyne below.
Robyne, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. One deeply underappreciated facet of being an entrepreneur or creative is the kind of crazy stuff that happens from time to time. It could be anything from a disgruntled client attacking an employee or waking up to find out a celebrity gave you a shoutout on TikTok – the sudden, unexpected hits (both positive and negative) make the profession both exhilarating and exhausting. Can you share one of your craziest stories?
Two Crazy stories for the price of one, which also includes Taking a Risk:
I was a reporter in Baltimore covering DC politics back in 1990. George Herbert Walker Bush was just elected, and my station sent me to cover the inaugural. Not a fan of covering either Bush or Inaugurals, I went rogue with my photographer, Earl. We got the swearing in on tape, but I convinced Earl to head to northwest DC for more video. At the time DC was facing a drug epidemic – It was Crack Central. Certain neighborhoods were overwhelmed with addicts on the streets and abandoned buildings. We zeroed in on a particular building, with people lying in front of it, running in and out to score. So we started shooting. Suddenly out of nowhere, we were surrounded by three men – two massive guys and one who stood out as the leader. It was the dealer who controlled the block and his boys, and they weren’t pleased with us shooting. “Give us that camera, ” he said, Heart pounding, I knew we could get killed. But youth, lack of common sense and desperation all happened at the same time. I couldn’t come back to the station without an inaugural story – or a $15,000 camera. “You can’t the camera,” I said. “But I’ll give you what I have in my purse, and so will Earl. Just let us shoot. You know ‘The Man’ will fire me.” The dealer look at us, paused and said, “What you got?” Between the two of us we had about $100. We gave it to him with “permission” to shoot his block. We got in the truck and screamed with relief and laughed all the way back to Baltimore. The shots we got were amazing, and we juxtaposed Bush’s oath with what was happening in front of us on the street. The story won an Emmy.
Fast Forward a few years to Minneapolis. I started producing and hosting The Buzz, which caught on with local musicians. At the time Prince blackballed Minneapolis reporters from interviews because of articles written by Star Tribune staff writers CJ and Jon Bream. But I had been befriending and hanging out with Paisley Park staff (and was dating someone in the band). One night I was invited to hang out with Mayte and staff for dancing at South Beach nightclub and dinner at Campiello restaurant in Uptown. Mayte was excited because she created a new dance company, set to Prince’s music. And she wanted coverage. “Will you shoot it?” she asked, and of course I said yes. We set the interview date at Paisley Park, and when we got there she was a no show. She wouldn’t stop rehearsals with her company in a studio next door. We sat for more than an hour, and my photographer was getting angry. “I have to get back and edit other stuff, and I’m not waiting anymore.” I knew Prince was behind the delay. I couldn’t lose the story. So I asked an assistant if I could talk privately with Mayte. When I got her alone, I appealed to her ego. “This isn’t a story about him. It’s not about what you do in the bedroom. This is about YOU. All you.” She thought for a minute, then sat down to be interviewed. We got about 30 minutes, and split. Mind you – Prince and Mayte just lost a baby earlier in the year. It was a horrible time for them. What I didn’t know was Prince was standing in the shadows on an overhead catwalk, listening to see if I’d ask awful questions – which the station wanted. But I knew I’d never get another interview with ANYONE in the Twin Cities music business if I did. They’re all connected. So I danced around the questions the brass wanted and headed back to the station. While editing, Paisley Park called. They wanted a finished copy for review before my talk show exclusive that evening. So… I lied. I knew if they didn’t like it, they’d pull the plug on it. I’d be screwed. “What? The courier didn’t get there yet? Let me call and check.” They called back twice. I lied two more times until it was too late for Paisely Park lawyers to try and pull it off the air. “We’re gonna cancel our courier contract. I don’t know what happened. I’m so sorry.” I LIED TO PRINCE. But the story made the air and was such a huge hit, the phone rang when the show ended – it was Jimmy Jam. “Come do a piece on MY wife!” he said. But the call also came in from Paisley Park: “Prince wants to see you tonight.” It was the longest drive of my career. I sat in the lobby in terror. Prince was famously litigious. But suddenly I heard high heels and dogs in the hallway. It was both Mayte AND Prince. She ran up and hugged me. “I love it! I’m sending copies to my family in Miami and Germany!” she said with a big smile. And then he walked up slowly and stuck out his hand to shake. “You were fair to my wife,” he said in that infamous voice. “Want to do an interview with me?” I tried SO hard to be cool. “Yeah, that’ll work,” I said nonchalantly. The next day, I got a tattoo to celebrate. I was only the third person in the world to interview Prince, after Oprah. And afterwards, he and I became friends. I won an Emmy for my talk show. And I became the go-to anchor in the Twin Cities for all things Arts and Entertainment who was the first African American inducted into the MN Broadcasting Hall of Fame.
The moral, kids: Be a little crazy. Take risks. They can pay off big.
Robyne, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I started out as an intern at NBC 5 Chicago then hustled to learn reporting skills while working there part-time, and as an intern at the Chicago Daily Defender newspaper – an historic Black newspaper. I got 247 rejection letters before landing my first job in South Bend, Indiana as a reporter and talk show host/producer… then onto Norfolk Va and ABC as a military affairs reporter… Dallas as a City Hall reporter and talk show host… Baltimore as weekend anchor/reporter… and finally Minneapolis, where I started as a general assignment reporter but quickly saw a need for an urban affairs reporter – earning street cred from Vice Lords gang members and the LGBTQIA community (for helping uncover a gay serial killer), What set me apart and what I’m most proud of is that I took the risks no other reporters or stations would. I talked to communities that were ignored and marginalized. I tried not to be afraid of making mistakes. And I never took ‘no’ for an answer. I became a multi-dimensional PERSON – not just a news personality. I tried to be as real as I could. And it earned trust and respect from the community. And although my bosses hated my fierce independence, I brought them ratings and money. So they knew what they were getting in the bargain.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
I’m always pivoting. That’s life. You’re always learning. You’re always evolving. Personal growth means change. Your life in business should be the same way – always fluid. Adapting. Creating. Innovating. You should be excited by what you work on. Feel passionate about it. Challenged. Our existence is much too short to be miserable.
Can you share your view on NFTs? (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)
Is that still a thing?
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.fivexfiveart.com/about
- Instagram: @fivexfivepublicartconsultants
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robyne.robinson1
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robyne-robinson-a427497
- Other: Articles by Robyne (Portfolio)
https://www.muckrack.com/robyne-robinson
Photography
https://robynerobinsonphotography.picfair.com
Jewelry
https://roxmplsjewelry.etsy.com
Image Credits
Images:
1. “Food Truck” (Robyne Robinson Photography)
2. “Western Sunset, Downtown Minneapolis” (Robyne Robinson Photography)
3. Coliseum Building Restoration Project, 2021-2024 Longfellow, Minneapolis fiveXfive Public Art Consultants (Mural: Kada Creative, Minneapolis)
4. Rox Jewelry Stainless Steel Paddle Chandelier Earrings with Turquoise (Robyne Robinson Photography)
5. Rox Jewelry Brass Tibetan Coin Chandeliers with Coral Miyuki Seed Bead Tassels (Robyne Robinson Photography)
6. fiveXfive Public Art Consultants logo (fiveXfive Public Art Consultants)
7. Rox Jewelry logo (Larry Callahan, Callahan & Co. Photography)