What I Learned from Losing $3.2 Million: Derrick Grace's Story | The RealPower.TV Podcast

He hasn't worked for another man since he was 21. He's made over a million dollars in a single month. He's also lost $3.2 million — and he'll tell you exactly whose fault that was. Derrick Grace II came to Cleveland for Freedom Summer 2026 and sat down with Kenn Dowell for the longest, most unguarded conversation he has given anybody. This is not a motivation video. It's a full accounting of how a 911 dispatcher who got fired over a dog built an empire out of curricula, books, a board game and a gun store — and what it cost him getting there. The money is real. So are the mistakes. Then it gets uncomfortable. Derrick says the presidency doesn't move Black people, and that he supports Trump. Kenn doesn't let it slide. That exchange is in here uncut, because Freedom Summer is about freedom of expression, and that means the room stays open even when the room disagrees. In this episode: - Why he made himself unhireable on purpose, and what that decision actually bought him - The exact sequence that turned a $250 sneaker sale into a $787,000 month - How one HELOC across three homes cost him $3.2 million, and the emotional buying that set it up - What in-home banking is, and how somebody with $2,000 starts today - Why his children have to respect the gun before they are allowed to touch it - The night he had to shoot, and what he tells people now about de-escalation ABOUT THE GUEST Derrick Grace II is a Tampa-raised, Atlanta-based entrepreneur, bestselling author of the Gods Amongst Men series, creator of the Unlearn & Relearn curricula and the In Home Banking board game, and co-owner of a family-run gun store and private security company. He is the father of ten. His work lives at derrickgracetwo.com CHAPTERS 0:00 – Cold Open 1:01 – Meet Derrick Grace II 3:19 – Ten Children, Five Mothers 7:07 – The 911 Dispatcher Job 11:09 – The Dog Story That Ended His Career 17:01 – Making Himself Unhireable 22:02 – The Year He Had to Talk Himself Through 25:08 – The First $250 29:37 – The Repost That Took Him From 2,200 to 64,000 32:42 – The $787,000 Month 35:07 – T.I. and the Million-Dollar Run 42:40 – Cash Under the Mattress 48:07 – How He Lost $3.2 Million in Real Estate 54:22 – The Eight Months It Took to Come Back 57:15 – Guns, Training, and Protecting the Family 1:00:43 – Teaching a Three-Year-Old Gun Safety 1:03:27 – The Gun Store and the Security Company 1:06:37 – In-Home Banking, Explained 1:12:11 – Why He Tells Everybody to Buy Gold 1:14:52 – Self-Love as the Fourth Element 1:21:11 – The In Home Banking Board Game 1:24:27 – Why the Green Screen Breakdowns Work 1:26:36 – The Night He Had to Shoot 1:35:55 – What He'd Tell You About De-escalation 1:37:17 – Freedom Summer 2026 and the Voting Question 1:38:25 – Trump, Pressure, and Where Kenn Pushes Back 1:44:56 – Final Word Derrick says local voting is what moves the needle and the presidency doesn't. Kenn says that math doesn't hold. Who is closer to right, and why? ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ABOUT REALPOWER.TV RealPower.TV is Cleveland's digital newsprint — civic intelligence for people who want to understand power and how it actually moves. Not the press release. The room behind it. Cleveland is the case study. The argument is national. Hosted by Kenn Dowell. Cleveland-born, Glenville-raised. Never afraid to say what needs to be said. 📩 THE REALPOWER DIGITAL NEWSPRINT https://realpower.tv/join/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=derrick-grace-ii 📺 SUBSCRIBE ON YOUTUBE https://www.youtube.com/@RealpowerTVNetwork?sub_confirmation=1 📻 THE REALPOWER.TV RADIO SHOW Tuesdays 12–1PM on RealPower.tv and 95.9 FM WOVU — Cleveland 🎙️ SHOWS ON THE NETWORK - The RealPower.TV Podcast with Kenn Dowell — the flagship - The RealPower.TV Radio Show — Kenn Dowell and Dr. Heather E. Burton - Sanctified & Stilettos — Dr. Heather E. Burton - A-1 Conversations — Joe Little III 💼 STRATEGIC RESOURCES CONSULTING Government relations, community mobilization, electoral strategy: https://aStrategicMove.com 📬 BOOKINGS, PRESS & SPONSORSHIP kendowell@gmail.com Stay Strategic. Stay Ready. Move with Purpose. #RealPowerTV #KennDowell #DerrickGrace #InHomeBanking #FreedomSummer2026