Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jason Gray. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Jason, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

Back in October 2015, I was fed up. I had been working as an educational specialist for the Upward Bound program at Malcolm X College in Chicago, helping high school students get into college. I loved the work, but I was tired of being overlooked for a promotion. They kept interviewing other people for the director’s position, even though I had the degrees, the experience, and I knew the students and parents like the back of my hand. I remember the exact moment I decided to quit. I was sitting in my car at a BP gas station, pumping gas, and it just hit me – I was done with being overlooked. I put in my two-week notice that same day.

Now, a couple of years before I quit, my brothers and I had started a little clothing line. We were big fans of the 90s TV show Martin, so we started making t-shirts with popular quotes from the show, like “You go girl!” and “Forever Sheneneh.” It was more of a hobby, just something fun to do, and we sold a few shirts here and there. It wasn’t something we took seriously at the time.

So fast forward to when I quit my job, I initially thought I wanted to dive into tech. I tried to create an app called Trip, where people could round up their purchases to save money for trips. But honestly, tech wasn’t my thing. I realized that deep down, I’m a creative at heart. By March 2016, I was down to my last $150, with no income and no unemployment to fall back on.

Then came the turning point. I went to a game night, and everyone was either playing Spades – which only four people could play at a time – or they were off in their own little worlds, on their phones or having side conversations. The vibe was off. It didn’t feel like a real game night where everyone’s engaged and having fun together. And that’s when it hit me – I could create a game that would bring everyone together, something that would get the whole room laughing, talking, and interacting.

The very next day, I woke up and started Googling how to create a trivia game. That’s when I decided to create Martin Trivia, based on the same TV show my brother and I loved so much. Everybody thinks they’re an expert when it comes to the show ‘Martin’

I designed the game on Canva, put together all the questions, and took $50 out of my last $150 to order a prototype. When the prototype arrived, I posted it on Instagram with a caption that basically said, “We’ve been working on something,” and the response was crazy. People were asking where they could buy it, if it was real, and how they could get their hands on it.

I knew I had something special right then and there. I didn’t have the money to order a huge inventory, so I launched a pre-sale. The funds from that pre-sale allowed me to start my business, and that’s how Cards for the Culture was born.

When I entered the market, there were only a couple of other gaming brands, and none of them were creating games like mine – games based on 90s TV shows that resonated with Black culture. I was filling a gap that nobody else was, and that’s what got me excited. I knew this idea would work because it was unique, it was authentic to who I am, and it was something people clearly wanted.

That’s the story of how I turned a moment of frustration into a business that’s all about bringing people together through nostalgia and fun.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m the founder of Cards for the Culture, and I got into the gaming industry not because of some grand plan, but because I saw an opportunity to create something different—something that would really resonate with Black people. Back in 2016, I was at a game night, and I noticed how folks weren’t really connecting. They were either glued to their phones or off in separate conversations. It hit me that I could create a game that would bring everyone together, something that would make people laugh, interact, and just have a good time. That’s how I came up with Martin Trivia, and that game changed everything for me.

Since then, I’ve created a whole range of games that tap into Black culture—games like Fresh Prince Trivia, A Different World Trivia, Insecure Trivia, House Party Trivia, Martin Trivia, Culturally Awkward Cards, Truth or Trivia, Sing or Drink series, Whose Lyric Is This?™ and more, just to name a few. My games are all about celebrating our culture, bringing people together, and making sure that we don’t lose that connection to our roots. One of my most popular games right now is Sing or Drink, where I merged physical cards with tech using QR codes that take you straight to Spotify. It’s another way I’m keeping things fresh while staying true to the culture.

The thing that sets me apart is that I was one of the first to do this. When I started, there were only two other brands in the market, and none of them were doing what I was doing. My games are more than just cards—they’re cultural experiences that bring people together through nostalgia and shared memories. I’m proud to say that I’ve inspired a whole new wave of Black card game creators, even if that’s something that doesn’t always get acknowledged.

I’m most proud of how my games have impacted people. I’ve seen my games bring people together in ways they hadn’t connected in a long time. I’ve had everyone from Charlemagne tha God to LeBron James playing my games, and even Martin Lawrence himself reached out to tell me he loved what I was doing. But at the end of the day, what really matters to me is that I’m helping to keep our culture alive and giving people a way to connect and celebrate who we are.

So if you’re looking for games that do more than just pass the time—games that celebrate our culture and bring people together—then that’s what Cards for the Culture is all about.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

So, funding my business? Man, that was a journey. Like I mentioned before, I was pretty much broke. I didn’t have any money to get things off the ground, so I started with a pre-sale. That’s how I got the cash to order my initial inventory. But then, out of the blue, someone reached out and said, “Hey, I’ll give you a couple thousand dollars to help you out with inventory.” They came through, gave me the money, and I used it to get more inventory. Once I started making sales, I gave them their investment back along with a small percentage of the profits.

Now, here’s where things really picked up. I was selling my games on Shopify, and we were doing so well that Shopify offered me a $30,000 loan. That’s when things really started rolling. Shopify’s loan system is dope because they just take a percentage of your daily sales until the loan’s paid off. At first, they were taking about 10% of my daily sales, and we were making their money back so fast that they kept offering us more.

So, my advice for anyone getting started? Get on Shopify. If your business is doing good, they’ll offer you a loan, and it’s a great way to scale up without stressing too much about big repayments. That’s how I went from a pre-sale, to a little help from someone close, to Shopify giving me the boost I needed to really get going.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

You know, people ask me all the time about resilience, and I’ve got a story for you. So, before the pandemic, things were going great. Martin himself had reached out to me on Instagram, telling me how dope our Martin Trivia game was. We were trying to connect with him, hoping to do business together and get his endorsement. We even flew out to LA, thinking we’d finally get to meet him at an event where he was being honored at Paramount. We didn’t get to meet him that day, but we kept selling the game. We even had conversations with folks from HBO and Warner who were like, “Keep doing what you’re doing, and we’ll reach out when we need to.”

But then, the pandemic hit, and everything changed. My business was built on people coming together, playing games, and having fun. With everyone stuck at home, sales dropped. On top of that, I had stopped selling the Martin Trivia game because I wanted to focus on creating original games that I owned. I didn’t want to rely on someone else’s IP, where they could shut me down at any moment. But the new games weren’t selling as much as I hoped, and I was losing confidence.

And then, in a moment of emotion, I made a big mistake. I decided to bring back Martin Trivia. I spent $12,000 to order a thousand games, thinking I could make back what I had invested. But just a week after they arrived, I got hit with a cease and desist letter from Martin’s attorneys. I was devastated. Not only had I just spent a huge amount of money, but now I couldn’t sell the games. To make it worse, I found out a couple of months later that Martin had partnered with someone else to create an official Martin Trivia game. It felt like my world was crashing down. I was depressed, sleeping all day, not knowing what to do next.

With the trivia game business on hold, I decided to try something new. I called up a friend and said, “Let’s write and shoot a short film.” I got into writing and directing during the pandemic, and we launched a production company called ZumbleTV.com with our friend’s Rob, Tiara, and JV. We poured everything we had into it, producing six short films, even though the trivia games were still on my mind. We invested six figures into this production company, but we weren’t making any money.

Then, about a year and a half ago, I was in Vegas with my brother, and I came up with an idea that would change everything. I thought, “What if I create a game called Sing or Drink?” The concept was simple: scan a QR code, the music plays, and if someone messes up the lyrics, they have to drink. I knew this idea had potential, so I got my friends together, created content, and launched the game. The first thousand units sold out in a month.

But even then, I wasn’t fully committed to my trivia game business. I was still caught up in writing and directing, losing money on projects that weren’t paying off. Then, a month ago, I had another realization. I was back in Vegas and told my brother, “I’m not focused. I’m doing too many things. I need to commit 100% to rebuilding my trivia game business.” My brother sent me a message that I taped to my door. It said, “Go build the biggest trivia game business ever, bro. You got this.” That was the push I needed.

I got focused, and now Sing or Drink is one of the most popular games out there. It went viral on TikTok, and we’ve made a lot of money in just the last month and a half. That’s resilience right there—facing setbacks, feeling lost, but finding a way to come back stronger.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://cardsfortheculture.com/martintrivia.com/singordrink.com/whoselyricisthis.com
• Instagram: @hellozumble
• Facebook: @hellozumble
• Youtube: @inlivingcultureproductions