Can the Father of the Blues help us write our next chapter?

A lot of people are singing the blues right now. Most of us aren’t literally singing—but we’re definitely feeling blue.

It’s easy to understand why.

We are facing a global pandemic, social injustice issues and an economic crisis at the same time. Any one of these problems is enough to cause anxiety. But all three at once? It can feel overwhelming.

What we’re struggling with the most, in my opinion, is that we can’t really predict how long this particular stage of history is going to last. Human beings thrive on certainty, and certainty is in short order.

We don’t yet have the perspective we need to see that this chapter represents only a small piece of our story. We can’t see the forest for the trees.

Now please don’t get me wrong. I am not underplaying the seriousness of what’s happening. The toll—on human lives, on our society, on jobs and businesses, and on our mental health, too—is catastrophic. 

What I am saying is that sometimes it’s hard to remember that this period of history will end. It is temporary.

But I thought this article was about the Father of the Blues?

Right. I was just getting to that.

Often referred to as the “Father of the Blues,” W.C. Handy was an American songwriter, composer and entertainer who passed away in 1958—but whose work and influence are still alive and well today. Handy and his music first intrigued me when I was a young boy. Today when I sit at the piano, close my eyes and play one of his soulful creations, I feel like we are kindred spirits.

Because it’s not just Handy’s music that inspires me. His story and his legacy do, too.

Early in his career, Handy wrote a song called “Memphis Blues,” which became a tremendous commercial hit. Click the link to listen to it and you’ll see why it was such a popular tune. It’s hard to get out of your head.

So did that soulful song make Handy an instant success? Not exactly. The problem was, Handy didn’t benefit from his song’s acclaim. An unscrupulous music publisher had convinced him that “Memphis Blues” would never sell. He duped Handy into selling him the rights to the song for only $50. Handy never profited from his masterpiece. The publisher made a fortune out of Handy’s inexperience.

I try to imagine what Handy must have felt whenever he heard “Memphis Blues”—his own song!—and was reminded that the publisher was profiting instead of the creator. Was he angry? Demoralized?

At this point in the story, Handy could easily have called it quits. He could have decided he was a failure, stopped writing music and pursued a new career.

He didn’t.

Handy went on to write many more big hits, including “St. Louis Blues” and “The Basement Blues”—just to name a couple. While Handy didn’t invent the blues, he certainly popularized the genre and, after getting over that stumbling block with his first big hit, he went on to become a very successful musician.

So how does W.C. Handy play into this slice of our history?

Here’s what I think we can learn from Handy’s story: Don’t let a bad piece of history define you.

Resilience is the key.

It’s easy for us to look back at W.C. Handy’s successful career and shrug off that one blip where he floundered. Why? Because we can see how many songs he went on to write. We know the impact he had on American music and culture. He would become known as the Father of the Blues! We have the benefit of perspective.

W.C. Handy didn’t have that benefit. He couldn’t have known for sure that his compositions would ever have the opportunity to hit it big again. He didn’t know how his story would play out.

But he didn’t give up. Handy picked himself back up and worked towards making his next chapter a better one.

Let’s also write a better next chapter.

As a society, we should follow Handy’s lead. This chapter in our history is a truly hard one. Let’s make our next chapter a better one.

I have the privilege of working with some extraordinary small business owners. My company runs a portfolio of incredibly successful quick service restaurant brands: Auntie Anne’s, Carvel, Cinnabon, Jamba, Moe’s Southwest Grill, McAlister’s Deli and Schlotzsky’s. Our industry has been put through the ringer over the last few months. And these small businesses have really taken a hit.

While my team and I are doing everything in our power to support franchisees, we’re also reminding them that these tough times will not last forever. Our industry is going to rebound. Many of our locations are already experiencing small shoots of recovery. We don’t know if there will be another wave of COVID-19 in our future that could cause further revenue loss. But we do believe that one day we will have a vaccine for this virus. In the future this pandemic and its impact on our industry and our economy will become a page in our history. 

I’m also feeling optimistic that we will see social justice victories in our lifetime. I'm proud to see leaders at Focus Brands coming together in support of our Black colleagues, customers and neighbors. My company is also pursuing targeted training to help guard against unconscious bias and racism. We have put into writing our commitment to celebrate and protect diversity of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion and physical abilities because these differences give our company and our nation such a rich competitive advantage.  

Here in Atlanta, Focus Brands has joined hundreds of other businesses in support of House Bill 426, the Georgia Hate Crimes Act, to prohibit hate crimes in our home state and to seek justice for our citizens from any attack motivated by bias.

While there is much work left to do, I’m encouraged by this progress.

Like Handy, I believe we will pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and make our next chapter a showstopper.

Until then, hang in there, my friends.