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00:00Live from Radio Row, Sports Grid's coverage of Super Bowl 59. Joe Lisi
00:05joined by singer and musician Jay Allen. Great atmosphere here in New Orleans.
00:11Just some thoughts about the city and the Super Bowl on Sunday. I've been in
00:15New Orleans a few times. It's different now with the Super Bowl. Yeah, we went to Vegas
00:19last year. It's just vibrant, you know, during this time. So, and I got to rep
00:22the Chiefs. We made friends with Nick Lowry, Nick the Kick. Oh boy, okay. Yeah, KC
00:27Hall of Famer a year and a half ago. I'm here to represent the fight against
00:30dementia. I lost my mom to the disease. He lost his brother to the disease, so we
00:33connected over that. So, I told him I would rep KC for him. Interesting. So, you
00:38talk about the matchup. Do you have a pick for the game? So, you think it's
00:41gonna be high-scoring, KC? Oh yeah, they're gonna crush me. But you're a
00:44Nashville guy, right? You wear green, so I know who you're cheering for. I am East Coast. I am
00:49rooting for the Eagles. Yeah. I know you mentioned, in terms of losing your mom,
00:52that was back in, what, 2019? 2019, we lost mom. She got sick two and a half years
00:57prior. It took her life very quickly. So, she was diagnosed with what's called
01:00early onset Alzheimer's. It was devastating. We knew nothing about
01:03dementia or Alzheimer's until it happened to us. So, I'm a songwriter. I live in
01:07Nashville. So, I wrote a song about it in a heartbreak and some important people
01:12heard it. So, we started touring and sharing our message around the country
01:15and then I decided what better way to teach people about the fight against
01:18dementia than to show them what it looks like. So, I decided to bring my very
01:22sick mom on stage and we're opening up for a big country artist named Jake Owen
01:26in front of a couple thousand people and it was at the end of our show and
01:29everyone got quiet. Someone took a video of me and mom and some guy put it on his
01:33Facebook and it got over a billion views and we've said yes to everything that's
01:37come our way since. Even after mom has passed away, we've helped raise well over
01:41160 million dollars to fight against dementia. So, that's why we're here. We're
01:45also representing Round Pond. So, I feel like you can't accomplish great things
01:48in life without partnering with people, without community. And so, I was
01:52performing in Napa Valley, California and a couple of the owners, a brother and
01:56sister of Round Pond reached out. They heard my story. They shared that they
01:59lost their dad to Alzheimer's and so they put out a bottle of wine and they
02:03give half of all proceeds back towards the fight against dementia. So, we're here
02:06representing them as well. That's amazing. We'll get into the, you know, the types of
02:09wine in a little bit. A huge wine drinker here. I love it. I love red wine. Yeah. But
02:14what is the biggest thing that your mom maybe taught you that, you know, when you
02:17see what you've developed, not just in terms of music, but in terms of a
02:21business as well. What is the biggest thing that you remember of your mom? Good
02:25question, man. I learned from mom. She was so selfless and humble and kind, almost
02:30to the point where she was shy. She never wanted attention on her and I just, I
02:33learned to put yourself second. You put yourself second and put a cause first,
02:37you can accomplish great things. I lay my head down at night and I want to know,
02:41feel like I did a good job, you know, that I left my mark on the world, you know. So,
02:46I have a voice. That's my gift from God. So, I want to use it to help others make
02:49the world a better place. Yeah, no, that's interesting and a great story. I mean, in
02:54regards to the actual disease and other maybe families that are dealing with it,
03:00what's the biggest piece of advice in terms of detection or treatment that you
03:04can maybe, you know, give them? Oh man, I could talk about this forever. Yeah. So, we've
03:09raised a lot of money for funds, for treatments. Treatments have become
03:12available. We're going to fight for a cure until it happens, but I've grown a huge
03:18heart for caregivers. We actually started a care facility tour last week. So, we
03:21started in, every time we're in a location, we're on tour, we like to stop by a care
03:25facility center and just love on them. Play them a couple songs, acoustic, get
03:30the ladies dancing, get them out of their wheelchairs. We decided to put on a legit
03:34tour. So, we go in and these caregivers, they do it for a job, for a living. A lot
03:39of time they're not recognized. They do and see things every day that people
03:42should never have to do and see. So, we go in and we bring them on stage and shine
03:47a light on them and recognize them and get everyone up and having a good time.
03:50And I think it's just so important to say, caregivers, keep
03:53doing what you're doing. Don't quit. Yeah, it's a powerful, beautiful job and even
03:57though it's dirty and it's messy and it's ugly. Yeah, it is. You're right. And those
04:01are the people that you mentioned it, right? Take care of families and just, you
04:06know, see them from start to finish and that's an amazing job that they do. Talk
04:11to me, though, about Round Pound in regards to, you know, the... We have a bottle. Do we
04:15got a bottle? Pinot Noir? Cab? What do we have? Yeah, this is a cab. Oh, beautiful.
04:21Yeah, we actually have a bottle. So, on the label, I'll show you. They put a... Awesome.
04:26Got it. Yep, these are all pictures of people that we've lost from dementia,
04:31including their dad and my mom's up here. A picture of me and my mom. That's
04:34actually the moment I brought her on stage and someone took a video of it. So,
04:38it's called honoring because they're honoring all these people we've lost.
04:40They don't make money. They lose money. They give half of every bottle back
04:43towards the fight against dementia. And so, if you want to buy a bottle,
04:46roundpound.com and you can, you know, enjoy a bottle of wine with dinner for a
04:50cost. Now, that's incredible and they can go to roundpound.com and pick it up. I
04:55mean, unbelievable in terms of the work that you've done, not just in terms of
04:59business, right? But music and that's the biggest thing. You turn that
05:03passion into now a successful business as well. Well, I learned the power of
05:08music from... I mean, the moment that inspired me to write that song,
05:12Blank Stairs, for my mom was my dad decided to bring my mom to Nashville
05:15when she was right in the thick of it. And I'll never forget, she walked in the
05:19door of my home and I was the oldest, her only son and she looked at me like I was
05:22a stranger. And it really broke something inside of me. So, we decided to take her
05:27out. Kind of flee the scene in a sense. Right. And walked into a very well-known
05:31venue in Nashville. Opened up the door and she saw the band on stage. Right. She
05:35heard the music and that blank stare in her eye, that blank look went away and I
05:38had my mom back. So, I took her in front of the stage, in front of everyone. We
05:41started slow dancing to a fast song. Because of music, a couple steps in, I
05:45felt my mom lean in. And I call it like a come-to moment. Like, she woke up and she
05:50goes, oh, Jay, I've missed you. It's so good to be here. And I have my mom back
05:53because of music. So, I'm like, if that could happen, anything can happen because of
05:57music. So, I've dedicated my life to it. And they can go to roundpound.com and
06:01pick it up. Yep. One more piece of advice I want to ask. I asked entrepreneurs. Now,
06:06I know you took a different route, right? But what is the biggest piece that you
06:10can give maybe somebody struggling to get over the hump in regards to a
06:14successful business that you've learned just in regards to music and now with
06:19the wine? It's not gonna look like how you think it's gonna look. Surround
06:22yourself with good people. I had to learn the hard way. You have to have a good
06:24team. I have, you know, manager, publicist here and they kick butt for me and
06:28they're good good-hearted people that we share the same vision. So, surround
06:31yourself with good people. You're gonna have low moments where you feel like
06:34you're not making an impact. Just go another day. Say yes again. Do the hard
06:38thing. Show up. The first time I knew we're gonna go into a care facility
06:43center, I was like, oh, we're gonna go into a care facility center. And then we
06:46did it and it was one of my most favorite experiences ever. So, just show
06:50up. Say yes. Pick yourself up every day. Just do the dang thing. Before you know it,
06:54you can lift your head up and also I've raised 160 million dollars for your
06:57cause as well. For your passion. For your purpose. Unbelievable. Jay Allen, we'll be
07:01back.