Inside the Godfather

By Daryl Brown, Michael P. Chabries

I Feel Good

I have taken you Inside the Godfather in a way that few, if any, have been able. I am grateful for those who have shared their stories. Thank you.

This final chapter includes some of my fondest memories of James Brown. They are not in any particular order. These are reflections of people, places, and events that would have him say, “Wo! I feel good.”

The most important idea I want you to understand about my father was something he often said: “When God resurrects you you got to resurrect others.”

In 1987, my father announced his intention to give the children of Georgia and South Carolina most of his wealth. He established a trust fund for the poor and needy children to receive funds for their education. It was estimated the trust fund would have been worth $100,000,000. If you knew my father at all, he never wanted any child
to suffer as he did. Smiles he witnessed on their faces brought a sense of pride that was only equaled by the joy he felt performing.

Similarly, the practice of giving away as many as a thousand turkeys at Thanksgiving was one of the highlights of his year. He began the day with a public prayer, sang with a gospel choir, and shook the hands of the crowd that lined up for blocks to see
the Godfather.

He was never able to leave the scars from his childhood behind. Memories of hunger pangs in Barnwell and Augusta motivated him to provide an annual feast for those who were equally hungry. These were his people. He loved them. Writing that check was easy.

Some families made it through the line twice. It was easy to spot them and some people encouraged my father to withhold his generosity. The thought never crossed his mind. He believed if they needed a second turkey – this was a way for God to provide.

My father loved Christmas. He loved to sing at Christmas and provide hundreds of thousands of dollars in toys for children. He gave back to his community much more than the annual toy giveaway in Augusta. His generosity started back in the 1960s, and never stopped until he died on Christmas day. In particular, he loved to give bicycles to boys and dolls to girls. More importantly, he wanted each child to pick something out that would make them happy. He didn’t want their parents or his staff to pick out a toy for them; that was the privilege of the child.

If he ran low on toys or turkeys, he simply turned to his staff and said, “Go buy more, people are still waiting in line.” He may have single-handedly saved the toy stores in Augusta.

Danny Ray, his Cape Man said: “Mr. Brown used to give away a lot of things. He would give away toys to kids. He used to tell me, ‘These are things I never had. I never had anything like this. I had to pick cotton in Carolina.’ Around Christmas time he would take
care of the kids. He knew the kids didn’t have a lot of things. If he saw a kid, he would give them whatever he could. He would also try to help the moms. Shoot yeah. He started the Christmas thing because of his memory of being a kid.

It was tough with his daddy thing. He would walk from Barnwell, South Carolina all the way over to Augusta, Georgia.

‘More than 50 miles,’ he said. ‘The first bicycle I got, Glen gave it to me. I rode that bike everywhere.’ That is why he gave so many kids bikes. It was better than walking. He also started the toy giveaway. He didn’t like to see kids with sad faces. I think he enjoyed watching the kids smile more than even the kid did
getting a present.

His Christmas decorations were legendary in Augusta. Thousands of eager spectators drove to see the famous black Santa when he lived up on the hill. What most people don’t know – he was Black Santa. He loved to give all year long. He didn’t really care if you were naughty or nice; James Brown did not want to see you suffer. He would gladly endure pain for you if he could benefit your life. He never saw color, he only saw need.

It is no coincidence that he died just after the toy giveaway. The thought of this day brought life to a dead man. His life was essentially over as soon as the toy giveaway ended in 2006.

He gave away millions of dollars to the needy during his lifetime. He paid medical bills, rebuilt houses, paid utility bills, and provided hundreds of thousands of dollars in groceries to the needy. He loved to buy school supplies for children. It was his way of telling them to “stay in school.”

My father loved to tip big for those who really took care of him. I know he tipped many people ten thousand dollars for their simple service. He loved to take care of single mothers who were waiting tables in restaurants. The money he had was not his. He 
never hesitated to give back. When he didn’t have money, it
 saddened him.
Not because he would go without, but because he 
could not help others in need. That was the role of the Godfather.

Sadly, Christmas was a time of loneliness and despair for my
father. He missed Alphie (heaven only knows why) and he missed
 the hand, his staff, and his friends that were occupied with their
 families. He was so hard on the band but in an odd way they were 
his dysfunctional family – the only family he really ever had.

James Brown loved to give his employees a healthy Christmas
bonus. Certain years he was not able to provide a bonus – he barely 
made payroll. This brought about a sense of despair for Mr. “I feel
 good.”

He wanted people to believe in themselves. When he wrote,
“Say it loud, I’m black and I’m proud” he was really trying to get
his people to “get up on the good foot.”

When he saw homeless and unemployed people he became 
frustrated. It was one thing to be working and poor. It was quite 
another to simply waste your life away. He said, “Don’t give me a
 handout; give me a way out.” He would talk to homeless people in
 shelters and do what he could to simply get them to move. That
 was the very essence of his music; it moved body and soul. “Wear
 your hat in the direction you want your life to go.” Move forward
 not backward…