State Senator Brent Taylor (R-Memphis), who recently secured President Donald Trump’s endorsement in Tennessee’s Republican primary for the newly redrawn 9th Congressional District, reflected on his journey from small-town businessman to state lawmaker during an exclusive interview with The Tennessee Star’s CEO and Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy, arguing his experience in both business and government has prepared him to serve in Congress.
During the interview, which aired during Tuesday’s edition of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Taylor recounted growing up in a small town where his father owned a retail lumberyard and hardware store before discovering a career in the funeral industry as a teenager.
“I was born and raised in a small town, and my dad had a retail lumberyard and hardware store. That was the business I grew up in,” Taylor said, explaining that a local funeral home owner who was friends with his father would frequently ask for his help during funerals.
Taylor joked that his early experience in the lumber business convinced him to pursue another profession.
“To let you know what I thought about the building supply business, I thought as a 17-year-old that dealing with dead people would be an improvement in my lot in life,” Taylor said.
After attending mortuary school, Taylor said he spent nearly two decades working for a large funeral home before deciding to take out a home equity loan in 2004 and start his own business, Brentwood Funeral Services.
“I took out a home equity loan, took out all the equity in my house. My wife thought I’d lost my mind. But I took that $60,000 home equity loan, started my business, which was basically an acquisition company. I bought anything death-related. I bought funeral homes, cemeteries, mortuary service, a flower shop, a monument company, an insurance company,” Taylor said.
He said he spent the next 20 years expanding the business before selling it to a private equity firm roughly five years ago, a move that allowed him to retire in his 50s and later seek elected office.
Taylor also detailed his service in local government, noting that he previously served on the Memphis City Council, the Shelby County Commission, and as chairman of the county election commission before being elected to the Tennessee Senate.
According to Taylor, his background gives him a perspective he believes is valuable in Congress.
“I think it’s important for the congressman to have that small business experience, to know what it’s like to sign both sides of a paycheck,” Taylor said. “I know what it’s like to lie awake at night wondering, ‘Do I have enough money in my account to make payroll the next day?'”
Taylor recalled one particularly difficult moment while building his company.
“The most insulting check I ever wrote myself was a $10 payroll check because that was all I had left after I paid my employees,” he said.
In addition to his business experience, Taylor said his years in local government helped him understand the impact federal policies can have on cities and counties.
“I know what it’s like to get unfunded mandates. I know what it’s like to get a mandate from the federal government and it be funded but only for a couple years, and then we have to make tough decisions to cut programs or raise taxes. So I understand that as a local elected official,” Taylor said.
Asked about the conversation he had with his wife before borrowing against their home to launch his business, Taylor credited her confidence in the decision.
“She had confidence in me that I could do it, and it was a decision we made together, and it worked out well,” he said. “We raised our family working for myself and were able to send our kids to school and pay for their college.”
Despite eventually growing the company, Taylor said the risks of entrepreneurship remained constant.
“As a business owner, when you have everything at risk—my home, my cars, everything is leveraged—you have ability and confidence, but you’re just one lawsuit away from some trial lawyer trying to take it all away from you,” he said.
Taylor said selling the company enabled him to focus on public service rather than earning a living.
“I didn’t need a job. I didn’t need income. I just needed a mission, and that’s what I’ve worked on for the last four years is really serving my community in the State Senate,” Taylor said. “Ultimately, that’s what I want to do, is continue that fight in Washington, D.C.”
Early voting for Tennessee’s August 6 primary began July 17 and continues through August 1.
— Michael Patrick Leahy (@michaelpleahy) July 21, 2026
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network.
