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- [00:02]
Crystal
Lauren LaRosa is a journalist and media personality with experience across television, radio and digital platforms. She began her career at tmz, where she worked as an on air talent and producer covering entertainment and culture. She later joined the Breakfast Club, contributing as both a journalist and commentator. In addition to her broadcast work, Lauren develops original digital content and continues to expand her presence as a creator and storyteller. Plus, please welcome to Chrysalis Couch, Ms. Lauren LaRosa.
- [00:30]
Lauren LaRosa
Thank you for having me.
- [00:31]
Crystal
Thank you for being here. I'm so honored to sit and speak with you today. I've been telling everybody I'm talking to the only person who works at the Breakfast Club and knows how to read. So I'm just so shoot excited for you to be here today. Wow.
- [00:48]
Lauren LaRosa
You know, I stutter too. So, you know, I'm all inclusive over here. I love my family at the Breakfast Club.
- [00:56]
Crystal
Well, I wanted to talk to you a little bit about your journey as a media personality, kind of how you've gotten to this place. Maybe for a lot of us, it seems like you just kind of popped out of nowhere. Yeah, kind of came out of nowhere. But those of us who work in entertainment and media know that you don't get a huge look like the Breakfast Club out of nowhere. So you have really carved out this space for yourself as a media personality, a commentator. How has your career shaped the way you tell stories?
- [01:26]
Lauren LaRosa
I think it has different. That changes depending on where I'm at, and it's changed in different intervals in my life. So when I first started in this, I was just. Honestly, I was trying to model.
- [01:39]
Crystal
Okay.
- [01:40]
Lauren LaRosa
And I was trying to act. That was my goal and to like, make TV like I wanted to. Before Issa Rae was like, Issa Rae? I was watching Awkward Black Girl and I thought that it was so fire that, like, she was on YouTube and she was acting and like she was like creating what I was watching. And I was like, I don't know what that's called, but like, I wanna do that. And then like when I retire, I have a talk show, like, you know, Cause Oprah, like, I just thought Oprah, you know, we see her as older. Yeah. And she got money. She pop out when she want to. So I'm like, okay, I'll retire and that'll be my life. But to start, I wanna do other things. So, you know, really getting into it. In the beginning, it was just about me trying to tell stories that I thought were interesting about people around me. So I used my YouTube channel to do that. And then I began telling my own story because I realized that there was a lot of people who wanted to do certain things. Sorry. That didn't really know how to do it. So like, when I moved to la, I would come home to visit and there'd be so many people that'd be like, you just got up and moved to la? And I'd be like, yeah. So then I was like, what if I start explaining to people how you can just get up and move to LA too? So I was using my YouTube channel to do that. Fast forward to when I got the job at tmz. I kind of learned that people cared about. I mean, I knew people cared about celebrities lives, but I always figured out like, okay, what's not being talked about? Like, how can you further the story? How can you make people talk about what you're talking about? And if you're the only person talking about it, people gotta talk about you to do it. So what's the next step in the story? So I gotten good at that just on YouTube and doing interviews whenever I could. And that got me into tmz. So then my storytelling turned into, you know, entertainment news, being in people's business. But more so, I think toward the end of it when I really realized like what my perspective was, because I don't think I really understood. When I learned my voice, I began to realize that like, oh, as a black woman, there are things that I just see and I just know or I talk about in a certain way that they need that and people want to hear that. And even if they don't, so what, I'm here and it's just me doing it at this point because Raquel had left and Van wasn't there. So then I started to realize, okay, there's some responsibility in how you storytell and like why you do things. And you know, you can get with all the mess and have a good time and be in people business and all the reaching out and all that, but it's like, why? And trying to balance that. So I was battling with like that being how I was storytelling. But I couldn't really do a lot of the substance and the why. Not that everything that TMZ does is without substance. I don't want to say that, but you know, it's a company. You clock in, you go home. I kind of wanted more control over what I was doing, why I was doing it and how I was doing it. So then I decided to leave. So now in this inter, you know, I still do, you know, all the Entertainment news and the pop culture. But I'm challenged every day to, like, figure out, like, why are we talking about this? And why do people want to hear the people you're in the room with talk about it and can it impact someone? Like, I've done stories on, like, sexual assault allegations, right. And I pull documents, and I'm reading through documents. I'm like, this is bullshit. And I can't say that because I'm kind of like the anchor in the room at the Breakfast Club. But I know I'm sitting with people that have presented all the facts. They gonna call it what it is. So I do my due diligence to try and go get all the facts where you might not get that in full. And then you will hear my co host be like, this is bullshit. And that, you know, I've been called behind the scenes and had celebrities say, like, you save brand deals by having these conversations in a real way and presenting facts that people skipped over because they're not reading 57, 67 pages of a document. You know what I mean?
- [05:20]
Crystal
Yeah. Somebody has to.
- [05:21]
Lauren LaRosa
Yeah. So now, you know, I'm storytelling in a way where it's, like, it's fun and you having a good time. And I've learned kind of how to, like, be a personality bit. And I'm still Lear, but I always try and think about, like, why are we doing this? And even if it's just, oh, because it's trending and it's news, it's like, what's the perspective, though? Like, it's kind of deeper to rap now, like, you know.
- [05:40]
Crystal
Yeah, yeah. So I feel like that sort of anchor reporter, journalistic take, that ability that you have that you bring to the Breakfast Club is so needed. It was probably an element that was really missing from the show beforehand. Do you feel uncomfortable stepping into the personality side of things? Do you kind of wanna stay more on the journalistic side?
- [06:07]
Lauren LaRosa
Not uncomfortable. I just think everybody has a role and, like, you gotta play it. Like, there are certain times on certain stories where I'm telling you the facts, but you gonna hear my opinion, too. There are certain stories where it's good that me and Jess are there, because, like, as a woman, you know, you saying things sometimes and you talking to two men, it's like, am I talking to a brick wall? But then you have another woman there that is like, I don't even gotta talk to y'.
- [06:28]
Crystal
All.
- [06:28]
Lauren LaRosa
I'm gonna talk to her. And then women hear it and they're listening to the show and they Appreciate it. And it creates a topic and women are calling in, you know, and then, you know, sometimes it's just. It might be my role to just present the facts. And it's four of us. We only got but so much time. So, you know, I've had to learn how to navigate. I'm not uncomfortable with it. It's just I wasn't brought up in my career doing that. Like, it's always been about, even as a model, like, when I was, you know, modeling. Now I'm able to, like, you know, I'm blessed to be able to get back to working with brands and stuff and doing that. But in the beginning phases of it, like, it's cute now to have influencers on the Runway and they're doing all these Get Ready with Me videos and you know, what they do and where they live. When I was trying to live here in New York and model what you talk. And then from that, I went to la and, you know, they're like, wait, you have a show on YouTube? What is YouTube? It was very early days, so I couldn't make it about me. It had to be about the person I was talking to in order to get the next interview. Then I get with tmz. It's not about me at tmz, which. Which I'm fine with. It's about Harvey. It's about the brand. This Breakfast Club was my first time, and stepping out and doing news on social media was my first time where people were like, oh, Lauren said that. So it just. It just was new for me. Like, it was new for me to be in that space and be leading the conversation just versus, like, producing the conversation or stirring the pot to make good content out of the conversation or, you know, it was just a different space, and I'm not uncomfortable with it. It was a different journey, though. My guest hosting time at the Breakfast Club versus, you know, when I came back when Jess was on maternity leave, I think people saw a difference in me because I went back and watched my own tape and I was like, dang, I ain't like that. All right, Lauren, you could laughed here, could have opened up a bit more here, but I'm not used to doing that right. So I was able to learn it. It's just new. But I'm not uncomfortable. I don't think I'm uncomfortable doing anything.
- [08:13]
Crystal
Okay, so it sounds like you are really learning to balance telling other people's stories while building your own. Yes. And including your perspective where needed or necessary or wanted.
- [08:26]
Lauren LaRosa
Yes.
- [08:27]
Crystal
Is it how do you balance that? Because as a journalist, you're trained to do, like, a very specific job. It's much more strict. The media personality space is a lot more open to interpretation and creativity. How have you found a balance between doing those things on a show as big as the Breakfast Club?
- [08:46]
Lauren LaRosa
Man, I think I'm learning every day in real time. And I think, you know people at first, and even not even at first, but like, even sometimes now, I go in and out of, like, having those moments where I'm like, did I just do that wrong or did I. Because people will react and I'd be like, you adrenalist. You shouldn't say that. Or you should. And I'm like, but this is me, though. This was me at tmz. This is what kept me in the room. This is what got me, you know, syndicated nationally in la, a number one market on television, both daytime and primetime. Like, they didn't put me on all these shows and affiliates because I could read from a script or I could break a story. Yeah, that was a part of it. You had to be able to do that in order to get on, but you had to have a perspective. You had to be sharp. You had to be willing to be like, no, that's not true. I don't believe that. Or even if it's true, I don't agree with that. So it's been a journey, and I don't think it's something that I'll ever have fully balanced because I think that I'm creating something and I'm doing something that you don't see people do. You have the View, which is very opinionated, and everybody there has their role. Some people queue up the story, other people give opinions. You have the CBS News and, you know, NBC and all these places and those. You know what you're going to get from those outlets. A place like the Breakfast Club. Like, I think the beauty of the space that I'm in is, like, I can do those things. You can see me break a story. And I'm about to start streaming because I really want people to see, like, what goes into this, like, on the weekend, even if I'm out and about, I'm on my phone, like, I'm trying to figure some stories out. I don't want a week to go by where, like, Lauren doesn't lead the conversation from that platform on the Breakfast Club at least one day, because that's important to me. But, like, I'm literally figuring this out as I go, because I don't know Who I can point to that does that, like, at all. And at one point, it was heavy. It just got heavy. Like, a couple weeks ago, I had to fast for, like, 30 days because I'm like, yo, this is a lot. And I need to focus because there's a lot of noise coming in because it's new and people don't really understand it. And, you know, like, I just felt like I was getting, like, rocked a little bit, and I was like, you can't be rocked. You doing something new. You gotta be able to, like, bust down doors and be okay. That, like, it's some people that's gonna fall when that door go, and they can't come with you, and that's fine. There's no real answer to that, and I don't think there ever will be. I think I'll just become better at there not being a balance and creating my balance differently for every story, for every room I walk into, and for every person I sit next to.
- [11:01]
Crystal
Okay, so when you say this idea of, like, being rocked, do you mean, like, other people's perceptions are coming in?
- [11:08]
Lauren LaRosa
Other people's commentary? Yeah, perceptions. But also, it's not even about other people. I think it's more so. You know, I don't do this lightly. Like, I know people feel like, who is this girl? Like, she just popped up. Like, no, I've been doing this for a long time, and even before I was at tmz, I've been. I've been really working hard at, like, you know, I have a degree in marketing. I have a degree in understanding how to analyze, read people and talk to them in a way that makes them want to buy, want to influence. Like, I've. I didn't just, like, wake up one day. Well, I did wake up like this, but I didn't just wake up one day and be like, you know what? It'd be real cute to figure out the Breakfast Club. I've been working at things for a very long time, and everything just aligned. But when I say the whole rocking thing, it wasn't really about other people. It was just like, there's responsibility now. People are really paying attention. I meet people and they be like, yeah. Cause you said. And I'm like, oh, shoot, you was.
- [12:03]
Crystal
Paying that close attention.
- [12:04]
Lauren LaRosa
Yeah, or I'll meet people, and they'd be like, oh, I was listening to your podcast, and you. Or people will call me and be like, yo, I just heard your episode, and blah, blah. And I'm like, you listening? Like, I'm so used to Just being a part of a conglomerate that now to have people relying on me and what I say. And then I don't have. Like, at tmz, you have a full research team, right? You have video editors that go and find whatever you need in five seconds. You have a team full of, you know, attorneys.
- [12:34]
Crystal
I was about to say, I know that legal counsel is deep.
- [12:37]
Lauren LaRosa
Team full of attorneys. You have a whole court team that pulls docs and 0.5, if you like. Like, I remember when Wendy was about to go through her divorce, and I went to TMZ because a lot of outlets don't report on other personalities. You gotta be, like, a big name for them to care.
- [12:53]
Crystal
Yeah.
- [12:53]
Lauren LaRosa
And I'm like, yo, Wendy, about to get divorced. And they're like, just let us know when it happens. And I'm like, it's gonna happen on this day. Blah, blah, blah. Our court team tracked it. So, like, the day that it hit, they called me. Like, oh, it just happened. I'm like, yo, we need to do this story. Like, it's. And it was, like, one of the biggest stories. But, yeah, I'm just one person. I can't do everything all the time, but I'm in a space now where I'm trying to do it to my best ability. So the responsibility level is, like, everything comes back on me if I say something wrong, if I am not factual on what I say, and I take that very hard.
- [13:25]
Crystal
Oh, yeah.
- [13:26]
Lauren LaRosa
Very, very hard. I be saying names wrong, and that's not gonna change y', all, okay? So leave me alone. I just. I just can't. Like, you know, somebody's name might be Katherine. I might call her Kate. I don't know. It just happens. But the real stuff, I really take it hard whenever I mess up. I get that because it's just me and people care now. So that kind of made me uneasy for a little bit. Like, whew, girl, you a grown up now. Like, you can't play.
- [13:50]
Crystal
Yeah. Your Daily Show. Is that also journalistic, or is that more of.
- [13:54]
Lauren LaRosa
Well, it is, but so it depends. Like, we've had. We had Mopreme Shakur, who's the brother of Tupac Shakur, on the podcast. And that was like, you know, me reaching out to him and doing an interview in response to Drake getting or posting the Tupac chain.
- [14:06]
Crystal
Oh, right, the change.
- [14:06]
Lauren LaRosa
Yeah. So that picked up, and, like, you know, people were attributing it to the podcast. Podcast. I do. We've done some Wendy Williams exclusives on the podcast.
- [14:13]
Crystal
Charlamagne's OG Yep.
- [14:15]
Lauren LaRosa
Big OG not the little one we do do. Everything I do is from a journalistic approach, but a lot of times with the podcast, I get to do a little bit more opinion based stuff. It's just me. And I also get to do kind of, like, stuff that's, like, more near and dear to my heart. So, like, you know, like, things that, like, you want to hear sharp opinion on from a black woman. You know, stuff like that that might not be as interesting to, like, everybody in the room that I sit with. But, like, I'm like, oh, no, this my shit. I'm about to, you know, go off. People care about my opinion, but I do try and keep it journalistic. It's the Latest with Lauren LaRosa. You know, cheap Plug Daily.
- [14:50]
Crystal
Who's gonna let you do all that again?
- [14:52]
Lauren LaRosa
Girl, I'm learning. You gotta plug yourself. Okay.
- [14:56]
Crystal
You absolutely do. So you've kind of been all over the place. Tmz, which is this huge conglomerate with the giant teams, the Breakfast Club, which has a massive audience. Your own show, where you kind of have more control and it sounds like you get to sort of inject your personality where you want to.
- [15:14]
Lauren LaRosa
Yes.
- [15:14]
Crystal
More freedom in that way. How do you stay true to yourself while still fitting into the expectations of each of these different platforms?
- [15:23]
Lauren LaRosa
I don't know if I, like, I feel like the expectation is for me to stay true to myself. Like, these people are not, like, at the Breakfast Club. I'm not there because there's like a Persona of me that I bring every day when. If I even leaned into a Persona. Baby, that's not the room to try and fake anything.
- [15:38]
Crystal
Okay.
- [15:38]
Lauren LaRosa
You know what I mean?
- [15:39]
Crystal
I do. I've been there.
- [15:41]
Lauren LaRosa
It's just not, you know. Yeah. It's just not that I don't think I approach things any other way than just myself. So I don't. I've never really leaned into, like, expectations of whatever. I think the only expectation that, you know, is something that I try and, like, live up to is just that responsibility factor I was telling you about.
- [16:00]
Crystal
Right.
- [16:00]
Lauren LaRosa
And just making sure I'm not regurgitating. That gets. You know, sometimes you fall into a trend of, like, I'm used to just following trends and in the space I'm in, like, Charlamagne always tells me, like, people don't care for you to just recite what's happening every now and then. You can get away with that because you understand how to break down stories. But people want to come to Lauren because they want to hear something Fresh, something new, something next. Like, okay, and then what? And like, what's the clarity on something? So that's kind of like the only expectation. But other than that, I just be me. I just be pulling up. I don't know how to do anything else.
- [16:32]
Crystal
So you never felt any sort of pressure to kind of code switch in a professional way or present differently?
- [16:39]
Lauren LaRosa
Oh, yeah, I had. But in those settings where I felt that, like at tmz, I felt like that for a long time.
- [16:43]
Crystal
Yeah.
- [16:45]
Lauren LaRosa
I don't know. I just. I think. I honestly, I think I shut down for a bit when that happens. Cause it's either like black or white with me. It's either I can do what I know how to do, or I'm just not gonna do nothing at all because I can't contribute to the bs. Like, I don't really understand how to in a way. And I always felt like too, when I was at tmz, I knew what needed to be said and what needed to be done. I just wasn't in the position. I had to play my position. So there was Van Lathan, there was Raquel, and I didn't have to say certain things. I didn't have to do certain things because, you know, they were there. Yeah, they had been there for years. Once they left, it was like, woo.
- [17:26]
Crystal
All right, girl. You're our most senior Negro.
- [17:28]
Lauren LaRosa
All right. Yup. Turn it up, Juneteenth, bitch. You leading the parade. Like, what's going on?
- [17:34]
Crystal
Okay, here's our black girl. Yeah.
- [17:37]
Lauren LaRosa
But even that, I will say, like, you know, when people hear me talk about tmz, I know I have, like, you know, there are certain things that I experience that I'm always be honest about. But I will say, even in that man, learning how to be in a room full of people who, even if they don't mean to, may not understand you or may not understand certain things. And having to be like, stop. That's not. We can't do that, right? We can't say that we should care about this. We should. Hey, like, having to do that when I say it gets you right? Like, I can do anything in the world. Like, period. It was the best boot camp I've ever been without going those years through TMZ and having to learn how to get out of that. Do you code switch? And I used to feel like, dang, am I being like, too, like, pro black up in here? Like, am I. Am I shaking the room too much? They gonna get tired of me. But it was certain things that just Needed to be said and done. But going through that, it made me so, like, it's not really much you can throw my way that'll, like, shake me to the point where I can't jump back. I might gotta take a little second. But it built a beast, like, period.
- [18:38]
Crystal
Yeah. Was it ever a time where you actually did feel like your job or your position was in jeopardy because of your authentic authenticity showing up at work?
- [18:50]
Lauren LaRosa
No. Never because of that. No. I honestly think from beginning to end, I think that, you know, the room. And again, I always. You know, people ask me about TMZ a lot. I think it's. Cause there's such a mystique around the brand. Like, you don't know much about what it's like to be there other than.
- [19:06]
Crystal
Y' all got the story every time.
- [19:08]
Lauren LaRosa
Somehow they not y'. All. I'm not dating no one, but, I mean, I still be getting on things, but, yeah, I think, you know, as much as people hear me talk about tmz, I never wanted to be mistaken for, like, man, F them. They blah, blah, blah. Like, it wasn't all good, but it wasn't all bad either. My job and my role was never questioned because I was, like, too black or I got it. Like, there'd be times where, you know, there would be some really hard conversations that we had both on air and off. There'd be times where I was disappointed by certain things that happened. There'd be times where, you know, I was happy to have jumped in and corrected something and it went the way I thought it should go out of respect for people that I know look like me and felt like, you know, felt certain things or whatever. There were times where I did feel like a token. There were times where I had to be like, oh, I'm not gonna be a token. There were times where I've had to be like, hey, it's okay if other black girls get on the show. It don't gotta just be me. Like. And all of that was respected. Like, it might not have been. I mean, at least to my face anyway. It might not have been, like, the most easiest conversation. There have been some really tough conversations. You work with people who are passionate about anything, and Harvey and the team are very passionate about what they do. It's always gonna be some craziness that you're gonna come up against, but never because I was, like, too black. It was always. I think the only time I thought my job was in question was when my mom got cancer and I had to leave and legally they couldn't do it because fmla.
- [20:31]
Crystal
Fmla, yeah.
- [20:32]
Lauren LaRosa
But the business is the business. And the minute they could, baby, they found a black girl. Shout out to Kashay McClay. She is at USA Today. She is the Beyonce reporter. And my baby is eating down. But they found her and put her in my seat.
- [20:45]
Crystal
I was like, now, wait a minute. What?
- [20:47]
Lauren LaRosa
Y' all done found a prototype? What is happening? What is going on? Oh, my God. I'm in the bed with my mom. She like, you don't wanna go back to la? No, I ain't leaving you. Like, I was. But that was probably the only time where I was like, yo, am I about to have a job? Like, what's about to happen?
- [21:01]
Crystal
Yeah, that. I mean, surely that team of legal people at TMZ was like, you can't do nothing until that FMLA is up. So don't even.
- [21:11]
Lauren LaRosa
They would barely even talk to me during that. I'm like, but that. No, because I think legally, when someone's on a certain type of leave or something like that, like, even maternity leave, you not really supposed to. Like, there's, like, there's. Yeah, there's rules around what you can and can't do. And I was listening. I was working to the very end. Like, the very end of, like, me being like, lauren, you are killing yourself. You can't do this. Like, I was in the bed with my mom in the hospital on Zoom, like, TMZ live. Like, I was just. Cause out of sight is out of mind.
- [21:41]
Crystal
I mean, that's true. You really can be replaced fairly quickly, grow in a heartbeat. But I feel like you are starting to establish yourself as a unique person who can't just be replaced. Especially with the work I've seen you do on the Breakfast Club. Do you ever feel like you're there to kind of play the straight man? Like you're there to bring the common sense or the facts, that sort of perspective to whichever stories you guys are discussing.
- [22:08]
Lauren LaRosa
I think it depends on the story because there are times where we can all be outlandish in the comments. Common sense will come from places you probably don't expect it. But I do think everybody has a role to play. And, yeah, I think that as a journalist in the room, like, a lot of the stuff I report on is very serious. I gotta get the facts out. I gotta. You know, and I've had to learn. And one of the things I like really, you know, have enjoyed going through, even though it's been tough sometimes, is hearing feedback from the three people I sit with just on me being concise to the point where it doesn't just feel so, like, serious. Especially when Diddy was in court, girl, it was like, okay, let me explain. I just spent from 8 to 7pm in court. And let me try and put that all into, like, maybe four minutes and still allow y' all to get y' all jokes off. Because it's the nature of the show. You wanna see the. You know, like, it's kinda like we playing spades. Like, you wanna hear the shit talking.
- [22:59]
Crystal
Yeah.
- [23:00]
Lauren LaRosa
That has been a journey. But, yeah, I definitely think that that's my role a lot of times. But I'm not mad at that. I think in learning the balance you talked about, it's like, I'm not mad at the fact that that is that. Because on the times where I do get to have a little fun and people are like, oh, not a little jokey joke, like, you know, and then I get to do things like this.
- [23:17]
Crystal
She's a personality.
- [23:18]
Lauren LaRosa
Yeah. I get to do things like this where people are curious, like, well, does she have a personality? And it's like, yeah, I do. Just invite me over.
- [23:24]
Crystal
Yeah. And, you know, you'll see the girl come out, clock it. I saw an interview you did where you talked about sort of people's perceptions of you, and you mentioned it a little bit earlier. Like, as a journalist, they don't expect you to say things like, oh, girl, such and such ate that up or whatever. Like, they don't expect you to have nothing.
- [23:44]
Lauren LaRosa
A bathing suit to the pool or the beach.
- [23:47]
Crystal
Right? It's like, that's a little.
- [23:48]
Lauren LaRosa
You better not have a little, like, shapey shape. Like, hair be done, lip gloss popping. Say, my man, my man. Now you black. You ratchet. It just. It's just all the things. And I don't give two shits.
- [24:00]
Crystal
I was about to ask you.
- [24:02]
Lauren LaRosa
No, it doesn't. It doesn't at all. I think my whole life I've been in this space where, like, you know, I know how to talk, I know how to understand, I know how to, like, regurgitate things to people. But, like, like, I'm one of the homies. Like, I just. I don't know. I literally don't know what else to do. And there are times where you'll see me get very, like, in my bag with, like, all right, she's reporting. And then there's times where, like, I naturally just go out of it. There are times where, like, I might mess up, and again, I'm like, oh, like, everything's not perfect either, but I don't know what other way to be. So I'm not about to act like I don't. In the room that I'm in, they accept it. You know what I mean? And if it's ever anything that's like. Because I also think that we all see, like, me and Jess are new in this space and then new on the platform. And I think that people don't understand that, like, when you get in that room, like, being on the Breakfast Club changed my life, like, more than anything I've ever done in my life, ever. The business I've been able to do outside of the Breakfast Club, the business I've been able to build, like, period. And I know it's the same for Jess and the guys. They're kind of like. It's like Envy's like, big bro. Cause he's, you know, he's older, but, like, he's not like, oh, he comes outside, Charlamagne's like, unk. Like, he don't go nowhere. He don't know how to use nothing. He barely can take a photo on the phone. Like, he's, like, old and shriveling up. Like, there are just things that are happening.
- [25:22]
Crystal
I get it.
- [25:23]
Lauren LaRosa
But they care about us. So we're ever gearing too far, too crazy, or if I'm ever doing something that's a little bit too much, it's like, all right, pull up. You know, like, they'll let me know.
- [25:33]
Crystal
That's nice to hear. Because from the outside, as somebody who has been around but is not part of that, they can seem very. Not like that. They can seem a little.
- [25:43]
Lauren LaRosa
Yo. Best thing that ever happened to me was having those two people.
- [25:46]
Crystal
Oh, Lord.
- [25:47]
Lauren LaRosa
You said stupid.
- [25:47]
Crystal
Well, they can seem that way. They can seem a little.
- [25:49]
Lauren LaRosa
You think both of them seem stupid? Well, men are stupid in general. I think overall, as an overarching theme, we could have established that men are stupid.
- [25:56]
Crystal
But envy doesn't give intelligence. No. Charlamagne I've worked with for a long time, he had a show called Uncommon Sense, where I definitely felt like I was that person there to be the common sense where he said, you know, whatever outlandish things. But I never thought Charlamagne was stupid. He kind of felt more like a professional troll or somebody who. Like a man, like, just like a man expressing his opinions, but not a stupid man. Maybe not fully informed, doesn't have a holistic view of things, but not stupid.
- [26:26]
Lauren LaRosa
A man with an opinion is normally stupid.
- [26:29]
Crystal
Well, I mean. And as soon as you put a mic in front of them, it's like the stupid rat.
- [26:33]
Lauren LaRosa
It's a joke.
- [26:33]
Crystal
It's a joke.
- [26:34]
Lauren LaRosa
Well, I don't know. It's crazy because I think it depends on what you're talking to them about. I don't know what Envy did to.
- [26:38]
Crystal
You, but not a thing. This is literally my perception.
- [26:43]
Lauren LaRosa
I will say I think it depends on what you're talking to them about. Like, with you, you definitely talk to them, like, in the room, on camera. Even on camera, like, as a producer, when I'm preparing topics for them, I know it's certain things that, like, Envy gonna get off on or he's gonna be better at or he. And then there's certain things. You gonna lean into Charlamagne more like, you just gotta know the personalities. Like, Envy is like the person. Like, if I'm having boy trouble, I'm gonna call Envy.
- [27:09]
Crystal
Really?
- [27:09]
Lauren LaRosa
Well, I'm damn sure not calling Charlamagne. First of all, I'm gonna call Envy. Envy is really like big bro. If I'm stuck on the side of the road, okay, I might call Charlamagne, but he gonna send somebody. Envy is going to come, and he might pull up in the Maybach, but he's going to come. Like, you just got to know, like, where you're playing them and how you're playing them. I also think, too, that people don't realize that, like, they've been doing this for a really long time, so their turn on, turn off of, like, person, even though it's kind of really them. But the. The personality and the dj, Envy and the Charlamagne, like, they're so good at, like, getting into it and getting out of it.
- [27:44]
Crystal
Okay.
- [27:45]
Lauren LaRosa
So they know when to do it. Like, I don't know. But if you think it's stupid, I don't even know how to negate it.
- [27:49]
Crystal
I just Envy, just based off my perception, the clips I see, it doesn't give smart, just gives illiterate. Sorry.
- [27:59]
Lauren LaRosa
I think she gets that kind of unfairly, and I'm gonna tell you why.
- [28:04]
Crystal
Okay.
- [28:04]
Lauren LaRosa
I think because I think when you. So first of all, are you saying that prior to me being on the show or me being on the show?
- [28:10]
Crystal
Oh, I think you being on the show just highlights, unfortunately for her, how much smarter you are than her. But I've felt this way about her for as long as I've known of her.
- [28:22]
Lauren LaRosa
I think that. I think it depends on what.
- [28:25]
Crystal
Y' all crack it up.
- [28:26]
Lauren LaRosa
The room is insane. I think. I think it depends on what you're talking about and how you're like, what are you looking for from her? Because there have been, like, for instance, right? Like, people say that they like to make the comparisons here and there, whatever. But, like, like, when I'm figuring out personality space and how to run up content and even working with, like, you know, Patrick, you know, who works with you behind the scenes, it's like, he does my content for me as well. Even developing, like, a pay schedule for him. What number should he be hitting, how my payout's gonna be on YouTube, Instagram, whatever. I sat down with Jess and she broke it down. And, like, I think you can say whatever you want to say, but, like, nothing that you're looking at in that room, Charlamagne, envy, or Jess, that don't happen by chance, that doesn't happen by stupidity. That girl has been able to build because I come from a corporate structure, so maybe mine is a little bit more like, you know, polish or whatever you want to call it. But coming from a corporate structure, I've had to navigate a certain way to be able to be okay. She's built everything on her own. She's out there on the road every weekend, sold out shows. It's a full operation. Jess Hilarious is a brand in a business that she's created, and she thrives very well behind the scenes off of it. You don't do that by chance or by stupidity. So, I mean, your opinion is yours. But when people say that, I'm like, I don't understand how you think she got to the point where she's at, because that doesn't just, like, you don't. I didn't just fumble into that, and neither does she. And I also think people have to understand that, like, figuring out being a personality is not like a. I went to school, I got a degree, now I go work a job. She had to literally figure out what's working for me, what's not, what's friction, what's not what friction do I even want to lean into anymore? Because now I'm not just. Just hilarious. I'm just. I'm Jessica Robin Moore on the Breakfast Club, and I'm living a different life now. So where am I going? What is happening? Like, all of that, it takes a different level of, like, here's how I'm navigating it, here's how I'm strategizing it. But I do think she know how to play to her base.
- [30:13]
Crystal
Okay?
- [30:14]
Lauren LaRosa
I think she know how to be. She know what she. She know what to do. And know what to say, especially when that just with the. Just with the mess mic turn on.
- [30:21]
Crystal
Well. So, yeah, for me, it's not just, you know, the way she reads, it's also her opinions. Like she. Anytime I hear a just hilarious opinion, it is almost always something that I vehemently disagree with, something that I find to be transphobic or ignorant in some other societal way. So, I mean, I'm not trying to put you on the spot to like defend her or anything. I do appreciate your perspective.
- [30:47]
Lauren LaRosa
It's not even that I think, you know, you're entitled to your opinion, but I do think that it's gotten to a point with her in that conversation. And again, this is a conversation that she should have. It's not even one for me to have. Um, but I'm just here doing the best that I can because I work with her every day, so my level of understanding of her is a little bit different than other people's. Even though I'm still, you know, we still learning each other. But I think when it comes to that conversation, it's gotten to a point now where it doesn't matter what she says or what she doesn't say or whatever. If your mind is made up, it's made up. And she could say whatever she want to say. But I think that when you have that conversation without her here, it's unfair to her. So I think you shouldn't. I mean, I know she come after seeing this, but I think if you gonna have that conversation, you should have it with her. Cause I do think that it's unfair to take clips, to take things that you see and be like, this is it, this is final. Or to take things that have happened at certain time points and judge her for where she is now. That's how I feel about it. But again, this is me just saying, yo, if you wanna have that conversation, she gotta be in the room to have it.
- [31:49]
Crystal
Yeah, I'm not sure how we got so deep into your co workers, but it's not just the transphobic thing. Like she's said other remarks. But you're right, I am definitely basing this off clips. I'm not going and watching, you know, all 20 minutes of whatever segment to see if she provided some kind of context there. So that's fair enough. That's fair enough. And I'll leave it at that. So in all of these years, building up this brand of yours and kind of stacking up your resume the way you have, has your definition of success or being personally successful shifted at all from when you first started out.
- [32:31]
Lauren LaRosa
100%. In the beginning, I was just like, yo, I want money. Like, I want money. I want to be able to, like, take care of the people who have taken care of me for this long. That's it. Now I'm like, definitely still need money. Baby girl needs some money still. But I think it's just like, you know, I want to be able to, like, build wealth and, like, things that I can pass on. And I want peace of mind. I want to, you know, even though I might not love everybody in my life every single day, I want to be able to, like, coexist with people in a good space where we're progressing and it's not, like, counterproductive. I want to be able to sleep peacefully at night. I want everybody, my life to be healthy. I want to be healthy. Shoot. I want to just be able to eat three times a day. Sometimes our lives be so crazy and things be moving, and I'm used to talking to my mom and my grandma multiple times a day. And that has changed because I'm doing so much now. So sometimes success is just like, man, I got through my full day. I'm not super exhausted. I got enough time to, like, sit on FaceTime and really talk to my mom or really talk to my grandma or, you know, maybe I can carve out a Saturday to go home and just spend time with them. That's success to me. Now I still want the money, so please don't call me nowhere for free. But I think that it's just, you know, I'm getting older, so I think, you know, what balances me and what keeps me, like, sane. And also too, I think in me growing my own relationship spiritually, like with God, that has changed kind of what success is for me, like. Cause also too, I just feel like I don't really know what success is because I have no idea what he is going to do. So every day, what the days where I feel most connected and I'm like, okay, this is bigger than me. And I feel that. And like, you know, I'm. I'm doing what I feel like I'm led to do versus what I want to do, that's successful for me, that's a successful day. Okay, so it changes. It has changed, right?
- [34:17]
Crystal
So. But you don't feel like it changes from day to day now. It's just shifted from your.
- [34:21]
Lauren LaRosa
It changes from day to day. It changed from week to week, and it's definitely shifted from the beginning. In the beginning, it was so Shallow. It was like, yo, if I could buy my bags, if my crib fly, if my car cool. It's a couple people I used to. Not, like, if they could see all this. Like, I'm good. Like, don't you know you got the ex? Don't block me. Please watch me. You know, like, it's that. Like, that's what it was in the beginning. Now it's like, I'm still. I'm a fly girl regardless. But it's just more substance now and more things that are like, even if it's tangible, it's like, but why do you care about that? Like, every now and then, it's still like, yeah, the bag in the shoe.
- [34:58]
Crystal
You kind of got to ask yourself, but why, girl?
- [35:00]
Lauren LaRosa
What are my exact. Cuz things are different at this point. It's like, okay, I'm thinking about, like, what does my future look like? Even, like, family planning and all of that. And I'm like, girl, that mean you got money put up. So, like, is the bagging issue really success? Or is it like, okay, if you sit still a couple months, you go buy this property real quick? Like, that it be. Or you could do both. Like, you could figure out a way to do both. Yeah, I'm a do bother, so, yeah, it changes a lot.
- [35:28]
Crystal
I do bother.
- [35:29]
Lauren LaRosa
I'm kind of, like, floaty, if you haven't noticed.
- [35:31]
Crystal
I. I am enjoying this so much. I'm so glad you brought up working for free, because I saw in the other interview where you mentioned that when you were guest hosting. Everybody who guest hosts on the Breakfast Club does it for free.
- [35:42]
Lauren LaRosa
Yes.
- [35:42]
Crystal
What do you think is that line between, I'm gonna go do this for free for the exposure and the opportunity versus I'm being exploited and I need to be paid for my labor?
- [35:55]
Lauren LaRosa
I think the line is just exactly what it is. So you feel like I'm being exploited? Pay me. Or sometimes, too. It's like, even if you paid me, I don't even know if I would want to do this. This is just not what I want to be doing. I think it depends, too, on. I don't think I ever get to a point in my career where I don't think, okay, but does this further, like, whatever. Like, a bigger goal is for me, even if it's not paid? Like, I know people who are very successful who have a lot of money and do a lot of things, but they get the right call, they're going for free, they're paying their own way there. Like, it happens.
- [36:30]
Crystal
Yeah, that's true.
- [36:31]
Lauren LaRosa
So I think it's just, you know, you gotta figure out what those boundaries are for yourself right now. For me, you know, I'm really learning how to balance my time, especially because, like, with my job being what it is, it's very detail oriented, and I like to go out, I like to have a life. So trying to balance that, I don't have a lot of time to just do things that, like, don't progress me or that. Honestly, I'm just not interested in, like, coming in here today. I didn't know, like, I know your. I know you from the read. I didn't know much about this show, but I listened to. I've been listening to you guys for years on the read before, podcasts were like, the thing to do. So I was like, okay, well, if she's doing that, you know, I might not agree with everything that you say, but I like the work ethic. I like what she's doing and I like what she's built. I see the business and the vision there. So just being in that space, I could learn something, or seeing her setup or, you know, just being in common ground or, you know, like, whatever. So I was like, okay, I'm down to do it and I'm not paid to be here. But sometimes it's really just that. It's like, what are you taking out of the experience? And if you feel like you're gaining something, you willing to do it for free, Go ahead. But also, I want to tell people, when you're dreaming and you're figuring things out, don't forget real life, because you'll do a lot of that. And then you'll be hungry, you be sitting out on you know what I mean? Like, and I'm lucky to have a family that supports me. So, like, I can always go home and I can always call home for things. But you get to a certain point where you don't wanna keep calling home. You don't wanna have to, like, figure things out. So I had to get to a point where it was like, sometimes I have to say no because no, I need to be paid. And when you're a personality, you know this. People think that this is, like, real cute. They don't think it's a job.
- [38:08]
Crystal
That's cause they have not done it.
- [38:10]
Lauren LaRosa
Yo, I'm like, y', all, I talk all day. I don't wanna just come and Kiki, Sometimes I don't wanna be paid to talk.
- [38:15]
Crystal
Absolutely. I get it. There was a time where after podcasting became super Successful and, like, popular. It felt like everybody was jumping into the podcasting space. And then after, you know, three months, nine months, a year, they're like, oh, this was way harder than what some of these other more successful people made it look like. And I think that's probably true for you. People see you on the Breakfast Club, and they think, oh, I could do that. I could read facts. I could talk about the stories. No, you. Detailing the amount of work you put into it, the effort and the journalistic integrity that you have for yourself, the standards you hold yourself to. That's not something easy where you can just wake up, go in with no prep, and just rattle it off.
- [38:55]
Lauren LaRosa
So I've tried, and I've had some really bad show days. I've had. No, I'm being so serious. Like, I remember the feeling of, like, what the heck, Lauren? Like, what are you doing? Like, you can't just stumble in at 4am from the club. No. More like, oh, yeah. Unless the club is the story. When you get on air, unless you are breaking an exclusive that went down in the club, why are you there?
- [39:20]
Crystal
You were in the club with Sza and Tyla, and they announced that they were getting engaged.
- [39:25]
Lauren LaRosa
That is. That is so different.
- [39:27]
Crystal
So that's the story.
- [39:28]
Lauren LaRosa
I was in the club with them. They handed me some shots and started telling me that they working on a new song, and I can. All that. That's different than just being in the club. Cause, like, I'm excited to be here, and you're. Don't get me wrong, I. I've had some really fun times, and I will still have a good time, but now I'm learning how to, like, be like, nah, I might go see y' all Saturday because I got a big week this week. And then the podcast, like you said, man, that daily podcast hustle was kicking my behind in the beginning. Oh, I was like, can't fathom. I was, like, falling asleep on my way to the podcast in between filming because I was doing so much, and I didn't understand how daily it was. I was. Was new to, like, just knowing what my grind of the podcast was. Now I can go in, record, get out.
- [40:09]
Crystal
Yeah.
- [40:09]
Lauren LaRosa
In the beginning, I'm like, wait, hold on. Like, this is a. This is a thing. Like. And then people started listening. I'm like, wait, what? Okay, so, like, I got to figure this out. Like, I, I, I. All right, Lauren, wake up. Say no to some stuff so you can sleep so that you can be good the whole day.
- [40:28]
Crystal
Yeah.
- [40:30]
Lauren LaRosa
Totally different experience. Shout out to you for doing this for so long. I like it. I love it, though. But it's just. It really is a job that people don't. Content is really a thing. It's a job.
- [40:39]
Crystal
It is, it is, it is. Yeah. Shout out to you. You actually just blessed me with that because launching my own solo show. This is a new venture for me. I've always done traditional audio only podcasts. So coming to a studio, hair, makeup and all this.
- [40:53]
Lauren LaRosa
Like, you almost got me in sneakers today. And I. I promise you, I'm shooting.
- [40:58]
Crystal
At a table so y' all don't see my Crocs like, I. Oh, you do. I don't live like this.
- [41:03]
Lauren LaRosa
Not the sport mode.
- [41:04]
Crystal
Yes. I don't live like this. Yeah, this is. No, I. So I fully understand the whole. I'm falling asleep in between interviews and tastes like this is much more of.
- [41:15]
Lauren LaRosa
A dusty Khalees twist. Probably saving your life. You got good hair. I know. Looking at you like, girl, I'm not gonna do my hair tomorrow. That's the best thing you could ever do is get some braids or a style you don't gotta do. Oh, my God.
- [41:27]
Crystal
Last week I said, let me go get some twists. Cause let me tell you what I'm.
- [41:30]
Lauren LaRosa
Especially as a black woman, and I don't know how you feel about it. I would love to have you on my show.
- [41:33]
Crystal
Actually, I would love to be on it.
- [41:35]
Lauren LaRosa
As a black woman in this space, visually, where people can see you, I feel like they tear you apart. What? Don't have a wrong color hair, wrong this, wrong that. Like anything they be on your body. I'm like, y' all hate yourselves.
- [41:49]
Crystal
They do.
- [41:50]
Lauren LaRosa
They Like, I've been letting people that write me and be like, you need to get a bbl. Your mom need to have swallowed you. Like, I'm confused. Like, why do you hate me so bad? Like, what did I do? I'm good over here.
- [42:02]
Crystal
The comments I get about my body, especially because I've been all over the place size wise. So people are just. They feel absolutely free to make whatever comments they want about my body. And you really do have to be secure in yourself because otherwise other people's criticisms and comments, they can tear you apart. You have to be really solid in who you are and have a firm belief in what you're doing in order to be successful in the media space, especially as a black woman. I fully agree. I understand what you're saying.
- [42:32]
Lauren LaRosa
And when you start going viral, it's like, people. No, for real. Like, the first couple of Times right now. Oh, I know how you feel about that.
- [42:40]
Crystal
Fine. People keep hitting me up, like, girl, are you okay? Girl, are you okay? It is.
- [42:44]
Lauren LaRosa
No, I know you okay. Cause you've been doing it for a while. But when I was listening back to the comments, I was just like, I understand kind of where you coming from. But I was just like, I don't know if I. Like, y' all went a little hard.
- [42:58]
Crystal
Oh, yeah. Well, I mean, the show is called the Read. It's not called the Big Comfy Couch.
- [43:01]
Lauren LaRosa
Yeah. But I guess my point in that, in asking you that is, like, when you finish that and that mic turns off. Right. And granted, I don't know your situation right now, but what I've learned since I've been on the other side, where I've become the story once, I've always been like, okay, I want to be honest about how I feel, but I want to do it in a way where it's like, when I turn that mic off, I don't feel like a horrible person because of it. You didn't like when you turned the mic off that day, you wasn't like, ah, no.
- [43:28]
Crystal
Because I have a background in psychology and mental health counseling. I just finished my master's degree last year in mental health counseling. I spent a year and a half as a therapist to get that degree. And so I learned a lot about child development, child psychology, life stage development, what people need in order to grow up secure, stable, and mentally healthy, emotionally healthy. And so bringing children knowingly, deliberately bringing children into a situation of confusion and chaos is setting them up for all kinds of issues. So I am very secure in my beliefs about what's best for kids. I'm not ever gonna tell another woman, like, you should get an abortion. You should do this. Like, whatever you choose to do with your body is your choice. And at the same time, that choice can be critiqued. Because you come into this Internet space, you come into the world telling us every single detail or so many details about your life. You're telling us about how your baby daddy is a horrible person. We're seeing the news stories about how this new nigga got this kid and that kid and three other kids on the way. Like, I'm not pulling that out of nowhere. And the research and the science backs me up as far as, like, what children need in order to grow up feeling secure about themselves. So is it harsh? Yes. But I also feel like I don't lie. And if that's not received well, that's fine. Because ultimately, the Point of the rant was do right by these kids. Everybody involved in the making of these children needs to do right by the parenting of these children. So do I think it's a good idea to bring a baby into a situation where you are now with the man that you said you cheated on your husband with and you got all this drama with him and other kids and the tour and all that? No, I don't think it's a great idea. But ultimately that you can have that choice. That was the very first thing I said. It was like, yes, you can have the choice. And please consider all these other things.
- [45:37]
Lauren LaRosa
So. Because I. I will say I tried to go back. Was it the episode of. Was it Baby? What was the full episode titled?
- [45:46]
Crystal
Girl Baby Jamaica.
- [45:48]
Lauren LaRosa
Okay. Yeah. Because I was trying to listen to the full, like, entirety of it because I only saw clips on Twitter and I was like, there has to be like. Cause this is my thing. I feel like if you gonna be honest with somebody, be honest with them, whatever. But I also felt. Feel like one of the things that I don't like to see with. I know she don't consider herself a black woman, but, like, women of color, whatever, women in general, to be honest with you, is what's the learning process? Because I've done things where I'm like, bro, like, now me today would never do it. Well, sure, but it took for somebody to get on my ass and then. But also I needed to be taught. Like, I needed the. I needed the. I needed to read. But then I also needed the education and the hey. Like. Because at that point, I don't know if I had people in my life that I would have listened to that would have gave it to me straight the way that somebody did to pull me up. But it where now I'm defensive and like. Cause I don't know if you saw Cardi's response.
- [46:38]
Crystal
No, people keep telling me she responded, but I don't tweet.
- [46:41]
Lauren LaRosa
It wasn't nothing too crazy. She just was basically saying the part that she didn't appreciate was like, kind of like y' all implying that, like, health wise, she might not make it through the tour.
- [46:49]
Crystal
Well, first of all, Cardi has said herself she would rather die on the operating table than, like, be fat or be misshapen or whatever. So people can miss me with that. But also, it wasn't nothing.
- [47:00]
Lauren LaRosa
Like, I one thing about you, you ain't backing down off nothing.
- [47:02]
Crystal
Well, I mean, the thing is, if I feel strongly about it, there's no reason to back Down. Like I'll fully admit, yes, it was harsh. Of course it was harsh. I'm quite frustrated in that regard. But that is out of genuine concern for kids because I truly believe that if more parents shaped up and did what was right by their kids, we would see way, way fewer mental health issues in this world. And so that's something that I'm very passionate about. I'm very passionate about people taking parenting serious. I don't think there's any bigger responsibility that a human being can take on than being a parent. So I want people to take that with the gravity, the weight of that. I really want people to sit with it. I feel like sometimes people act like having kids is like buying the boo boos. It's just not. It's not that casual of a situation. So there was that. She's made jokes herself about like, I'd rather die on the table than look like you hoes. So there's that. But also I said, you are the one who is going to be going to sit down, you know, on this operating table and praying that you wake up. Do you not? Do you not? That's not wishing death on you, but that is what you do. You go and get these operations every time you have a kid. We all know that you're open about that. You're trying to do all that, cram all that in right after having a baby and going and then going on tour. That's a lot going on. So again, people don't have to like what I said. They don't have to like how I said it. But. But a lot of what I said, in fact, just about all of it is based off things that Cardi herself has said or told us. So it's kind of like with the Charlie Kirk situation where people are like, you can't say this about Charlie Kirk. You can't say that. You can't say this. I am repeating what Charlie Kirk said. Charlie Kirk said, it's worth it to have some people die every year as long as we can keep the second Amendment. So why we can't repeat that, I don't have to agree with it. That's not my stance. I don't think it's worth it. I'd rather us not have guns. But Charlie believed in it. Charlie just didn't think he was gonna be the one to get popped. So that's kind of how I look at it. Like again, for me, as long as.
- [49:15]
Lauren LaRosa
It'S not rooted in. Cause you know, there are some people that get on and do you know, the read or the drag, just because it's like this gonna pop off, I think in talking to you now, I think. But you also know too that like there's people who have not like even that episode. I didn't listen to the full episode. I listened, I think I only heard. I heard you guys talk about Lil Nas x Charlie Kirk. Now that's. I was like, what episode was it in? Because I didn't even get to that part yet where you guys talked about her. And it was like almost a two hour episode or whatever. But so there's a lot of people who won't hear that in full context. For me, I think in what I know now and like thanking God that I got through some of the situations my dumb ass was in at one point, I just am always like, again, it's that responsibility factor. It's just always like, what is it rooted in and why? And hearing you, that's your opinion, that's how you feel, that's how you go about it. And I understand hearing you, where your logic is coming from, even if we don't necessarily fully agree. I just more importantly, I'm like, you know, when you finish and you walk away from work at the end of the day, like, what's your psyche like, how you feeling? Cause I know that people also too don't realize that this stuff, it can be heavy if you allow it to be. And it shouldn't be like, I go to work, I do a good job at work. It does have to become our life a little bit. Cause you gotta watch everything that's happening. But you really have to learn how to like mentally be like, I am a person outside of my timeline. Like, it's almost like a mantra. So, you know, that's kind of where my questioning is coming in from too.
- [50:39]
Crystal
But yeah, yeah, I don't, I don't. I guess, you know, we have been doing the read for so long. I don't really.
- [50:46]
Lauren LaRosa
How long has it been?
- [50:47]
Crystal
It's been over 12 years. Yeah, like 12 and a half years. Yeah, it's been a long time. So really, I didn't even saying those things I said. I did not even think that that would register and be such a huge deal. We went way harder in that episode on other like, we went, baby, we spent 15, 20 minutes dragging the hell out of Charlie Kirk and everything that happened in that situation. And I've always been strict about kids and the responsibility of parenting. That's something I'm very consistent about. It's not specific to Cardi, I just said all those things about Nick Cannon. I've said it about Cam Newton. Not two, three weeks ago, I said it about Kiki Wyatt. So it's not even just about men. Like, I'm very consistent when it comes to my views on parenting and what children deserve.
- [51:29]
Lauren LaRosa
So you must have saw our episode with Nick Cannon.
- [51:33]
Crystal
I heard about Nick Cannon and the trauma response.
- [51:35]
Lauren LaRosa
Oh, that probably pisses you off, girl. He using all the mental health words and kids. Oh, girl, I know you had a ball.
- [51:43]
Crystal
Literally, Literally. I was like, why would you even tell me this shit? Why would you even tell me that this man, man, is, is blaming, you know, these 15 kids that he done had scattered across the country at this point on a trauma response from getting divorced. Like, girl, what? That pissed me off so bad. That irritated the hell out of me because that's, you know, 12, however many kids he has, that's 12 little souls you brought onto this earth. You have a responsibility to them. And I don't think people take it seriously enough. A lot of people, and some people think, think because they're famous, because they're wealthy, that money will cushion their children, it'll provide whatever they need and nothing else really matters. Everything will work itself out. That's simply not true. If that were true, rich people would not be as miserable as they are. It's not enough. So I'm very passionate about the well being of children and parents doing right by kids.
- [52:39]
Lauren LaRosa
My last question. I'm going back to mind of my business. And this is your show. Are you a mom? No, no, no.
- [52:46]
Crystal
I mean, I have a dog.
- [52:48]
Lauren LaRosa
Oh, God.
- [52:49]
Crystal
So I'm one of those people.
- [52:50]
Lauren LaRosa
Yeah, one of those people. You get dog sitters and stuff. You take your dog to restaurants.
- [52:54]
Crystal
No. Okay. I was just talking to the makeup artist about this.
- [52:57]
Lauren LaRosa
You haven't come that far.
- [52:58]
Crystal
I don't take her places. Dogs don't.
- [53:00]
Lauren LaRosa
Restaurant piece boobies hitting me too much.
- [53:02]
Crystal
It's too much like the dog.
- [53:04]
Lauren LaRosa
The plane is enough.
- [53:06]
Crystal
Stop it.
- [53:06]
Lauren LaRosa
Oh my God. Yeah, it be nasty.
- [53:09]
Crystal
No, no, no, no, no. I am a rational dog parent. But no, I don't what a grave responsibility it is because I don't wanna do that kind of work. Yeah, being a parent is a lot of damn work.
- [53:24]
Lauren LaRosa
I don't really wanna tell me I don't got nothing either.
- [53:27]
Crystal
I don't wanna sacrifice like that. I wanna give that effort and energy to me.
- [53:32]
Lauren LaRosa
I wanna do it when I'm fully ready and able. That's what I wanna do. I mean, people say you Never really fully prepared.
- [53:37]
Crystal
But yeah, people say that, but you. And that's. I believe that's true. And I also believe there's a lot you can do to get prepared. And so if you really want children, you can absolutely prepare yourself for that. But, you know, of course, the reality of them being here is very different. My parents also had my youngest brother when I was 13 years old. And that really shifted my perspective because at that age, you know, you're basically a junior mom. Like, you're doing. I was doing all kinds of mom stuff. Up with that baby all hours of the day and night, constantly babysitting. Like, I was just always with my little brother. So I really got, you know, in my young teen years, an up close view of what it was like to be a parent. And I was like, ooh, you know what?
- [54:21]
Lauren LaRosa
Actually not right now.
- [54:22]
Crystal
This is a lot of responsibility and I'm just the big sister. Yeah, no, thank you. No, thank you. But, yeah, being in therapy, learning all these things about kids and development psychology, I take it so seriously because the ramifications when parents don't do that are devastating. Devastating. So.
- [54:44]
Lauren LaRosa
Bringing it back, this was incredible.
- [54:46]
Crystal
We have gone all over the place today, Ms. Lauren LaRosa. Okay, so before we wrap things up, when you think about the next phase of your career, what do you want to be known for beyond just the work, the journalistic integrity that you bring to things?
- [55:02]
Lauren LaRosa
I want to be known. Well, first of all, I want to add.
- [55:04]
Crystal
Act.
- [55:05]
Lauren LaRosa
I'm going to act. And I also want to create. So I got my first show that I developed, picked up. It's on Tubi now. It's called the Car Queen show. And that's a. It's unscripted, but I really want people to like, I have a company called Brown Girl Grinding and we have an Instagram and like, you know, we do things online and that's kind of like the group chat, but business wise, it's a production company and I really want to lean into that more and develop a cause. Like, I really want to get busy with the, like, storytelling. I don't know exactly where that'll live because everything's on streaming now or whatever. But I just want the next phase of my career for people to be like, oh, she knew that. And not just like, she do that. Like, oh, you just see, it's like, oh, like, do it very well. Like, move you and like, you know, really hit you. You know, you watch something good and you like, who created this? Like, this is my life. I want to get into that bag, you know, and just really set myself up outside of the world of entertainment, business wise, in a way where, you know, I can have the time to pour into kids when I'm ready and not have to, you know, work super crazy or pick, you know, just do kind of like the next phase of my career. I want to be building towards, like, financial freedom and ownership and like storytelling throughout all of that and figuring that out.
- [56:26]
Crystal
Well, I absolutely believe you can do it. You are such a star and you continue to rise. So congratulations on all of your achievements. Do you have time to answer a quick question? We have a question here that I think you would be. Your input here could be really great, if you don't mind. All right. This letter is from Elaine. Elaine says, I'm having mixed feelings about leaving my current state and moving again. I initially moved immediately after high school for undergrad and was gone for eight years. And it was great. For a while. I enjoyed my life in a bigger and faster city, but I started to miss my family and friends that were here and felt fomo. So I packed up and came back just, just before the pandemic. Being back has helped tremendously because multiple family members have dealt with health issues over the past few years, and my job flexibility allowed me to pitch in in ways I couldn't when I lived far away. Even though my family may still need my assistance. Currently I am fatigued of the city and what it has to offer and I struggle with leaving permanently. I don't have the same opportunities for growth here. And having just gotten my master's, I feel like I'm not maximizing my potential. Even though my hometown is wretched and filled with crime, low paying jobs and rundown housing, the people here fill me with joy. The city has the people I love the most and I hate to leave. And I hate to leave them just because I'm not happy. How did you get the courage to leave your hometown and feel comfortable being gone even when you might have been needed or wanted? How do you cope with missing out on important family events when money was limited and you didn't have the flexibility that you might have now? If that applies. Thanks so much, Elaine.
- [58:01]
Lauren LaRosa
Well, it was a lot harder when I was in la, Elaine, I will tell you that. And at that point, I was just lucky that, you know, everybody was healthy enough where they didn't need me to be as close financially. They just understood like, girl, sit. No, you don't gotta come home for Thanksgiving because we need you to get a job home for you.
- [58:21]
Crystal
Is Delaware, right?
- [58:21]
Lauren LaRosa
Yeah. Delaware was home at the point at that time, yes. So. And that's where I'm from. But yeah, so they understood my family, even when they didn't really understand, they understood enough to know, Lauren's gonna do this regardless, so we gotta find a way to support it. But when things got different, my mom. We found out my mom had stage four cancer and I didn't even know that. I came home because my mom's friend, my mom was like, oh, I think I had a stroke. But it was so regular. I'm like, what? Okay, I'll be home this weekend, whatever. Because there's no way you had a stroke and you're talking to me. You're regular. Nothing happened. And her friend called me and was like, yo, your mom woke up this morning and couldn't move her left side. And I was like, gotta get out of here. So I flew home and when I saw her, I was like, oh, something's not right. And that started a two year health journey. And she's good now, but I didn't have a choice. And to be honest with you, Elaine, like, during that time, I couldn't have been in la. I wouldn't even have been able creatively to get through my day to day with the things on my mind that were going through my mind because my mom was dealing with. She was dealing with. And then my grandmother's older, so things started happening with her as well. So I was just like, you know, I got to take a step back. So I took a step back and that step back helped me, like, figure it out in a way where I was like, you know, I do. I love Delaware. I love being close to home. It fills me up in a way, especially at this point in my life. It fills me up in a way that, like, being super far doesn't anymore. I needed the isolation to kind of, like, progress. Now I've progressed and I know how to set my boundaries so I can be closer. But I still got up out of there, though. Like, I'm, you know, two hours from home now.
- [59:54]
Crystal
Right.
- [59:55]
Lauren LaRosa
Um, and I. I just figured out a way to, like, be close to the point where I can go when I need to, but put myself in a position where, like, I'm able to do the things that I say I want to do. And I think that that's really the point of it too, is like, what is it that you want to do that isn't happening right where you are? And where can you go that might not be, you know, 360 of a location, a relocation, but it's far away enough where you feel the energy or like whatever you need. And if you can't answer that and you can't move because finances aren't well or like, you know, or maybe you don't want to move because then you got to worry about trying to pay to get home and things of that nature. I would also say travel more. Like one of the things that was for me when I was in Delaware, people didn't even know I had. I'm mid tmz. Like I'm there, I've been there for years. I'm senior news producer now. Like I'm not new to the platform and I had to go live in Delaware for two years, back and forth for two years and like be in. When I was in New York, I wasn't doing a bunch of stuff up here. I was in a hospital with my mom and like maybe a few friends knew I was here. I just did everything I could in that time to like figure out what I could do. And when I was home and living at home in the year after I left tmz, I was literally doing everything I could. I was guest hosting the Breakfast Club and I was living in Delaware. Like I would literally get up, I might drive at 2 o' clock in the morning. Drive, wow, 3 o'. Clock. I have good friends and good people around me that were like, yo, you need me to drive you? Like cool, we'll drive and be up there. My cousin shout out to my family. Like my cousins like held me down. Like you, you. When you have that support, it makes things so much easier for you.
- [61:36]
Crystal
It does.
- [61:36]
Lauren LaRosa
So you might just gotta figure out what it is you wanna do. And maybe you can do it from where you at by just getting up and going and spending weekends somewhere. Maybe it's a week on where you from and it's cheaper for you to live there and you go spend a week with a friend or at an Airbnb somewhere else. Like you got to figure out what your situation is and don't forget your real life. Like while you dreaming and you working, don't forget real life. Like how can you pay your bills? What do you really want to do and what's the easiest thing? What's the most low level thing? Because if you can, if you can eat, sleep well and not be stressed out, you can create and you can think through things. If you stressed out, baby, you gonna be living somewhere cute and can't do nothing anyway. Cuz you shut down like, you literally can't even think when you're like, you. Not all the way together. Like, you know, so being a person that has been through that, that's one of my things I'll suggest to you, is like, maybe you don't need to leave and you can figure it out from there, but if not, where can you go that's like, close enough where you can still get to home and it's affordable. And, you know, maybe it's not the biggest step, but it's something. It's new, it's fresh.
- [62:33]
Crystal
Right. Maybe it's something that'll make you happier even if it's not what you had before, 100%. Because what you had before isn't worth what you have to give up. If your family means that much to you, then, you know, and you're in a huge state, you know, maybe you move from Dallas to Houston or something like that. Maybe it's something a little bit more manageable where you're not in LA or New York or Tokyo.
- [62:52]
Lauren LaRosa
But Tokyo is crazy. I mean, you know, going to Tokyo is crazy.
- [62:56]
Crystal
People do all kind of stuff. Who knows? But, yeah, I really. I feel Elaine in this because for me, it was so hard when I first moved away from my family to be gone for, like, big family events, holidays and stuff. Like, so I grew up in Oklahoma and I moved to New York 13, 14 years ago.
- [63:15]
Lauren LaRosa
That's a big jump.
- [63:16]
Crystal
Oh, yeah, it's a huge jump. It's.
- [63:18]
Lauren LaRosa
I. Delaware is too. Like, who am I to say that? But.
- [63:22]
Crystal
But Delaware's close.
- [63:23]
Lauren LaRosa
Yeah, we got like, Philly and New York. Like, this is, like, regular for me to come into. And Oklahoma is.
- [63:30]
Crystal
Oklahoma is completely different. It's, you know, Oklahoma and New York City are night and day. And so it, you know, moving here and then trying to fly home two weeks later to see my nephew be born and all kinds of holidays and stuff where. When I was first here and first starting out, I did not have the money to be flying back home and all that. Like, when you were talking about being in la, it's like sometimes the family just had to understand that Crystal's not going to make it. How was I going to be there? But. But yeah, for me, I coped with communication, but also establishing a friend, family, establishing community for myself where I am. That helped me feel grounded and secure when I could not be home. So the people I have around me now are so valuable. Yes. And I could not survive in New York City without my friend, my tribe in la.
- [64:23]
Lauren LaRosa
Literally, I'm A recent just sitting in the car together crying, like, shout out to Nyresha who has Avenue. She just dropped her clothing brand. Mariah Jasmine, she's like a huge choreographer and dancer now. Turquoise Martin, like T Asia Armanti, who has like a marketing firm. Like, man, those people were people that I really. Assata Maze, big fashion designer now. Like, those are people I really leaned on. Like, I couldn't have got through LA without them.
- [64:46]
Crystal
Yes. My friend Jay is here with us in the studio today. And I literally, literally, Jade and I became immediate friends as soon as I got here and I just could not. There's so many aspects of living in this city. The pandemic alone. I could not have done it without somebody safe that I knew wasn't, you know, flying to Mexico every weekend in 2020 and all that. Cause I do know those people.
- [65:13]
Lauren LaRosa
So what happened to all the black in Mexico groups that were happening during the pandemic?
- [65:17]
Crystal
I think Dustin might. I got a friend Dustin. He might know. I'm not.
- [65:21]
Lauren LaRosa
I'm not even gonna hold you. I went to one of the trips.
- [65:24]
Crystal
Did you?
- [65:25]
Lauren LaRosa
I might need to hit them up. I'm really thinking about that now. Like, what they said. Now wait a minute.
- [65:29]
Crystal
I did have fun.
- [65:29]
Lauren LaRosa
What? I did. Oh, my God. It was called, like, black and tulum. Whatever happened to them? I really wanna know now.
- [65:36]
Crystal
Oh, my goodness. Lauren LaRosa, thank you so much for joining the couch today. You really finna look at us?
- [65:44]
Lauren LaRosa
Yes, because I'm really like thinking, like, what do they do now? I mean, black people still go to tulum, but it was different if it was. And also I thought it was gonna be a couch here.
- [65:52]
Crystal
See, people keep thinking that everybody has come in being like, oh, Crystal's couch. It's not a couch. I didn't want to lean too much into the therapy thing because even though I have. Even though I have this degree in mental health counseling, I'm not licensed, I don't practice. And a lot of times when I'm giving advice to people, they kind of respond as if I am their therapist. So I wanted to be really clear with the set, with the people I interview, with the topics that this is not therapy. I am not not yalls therapist. So. So again, thank you so much for your time. I know, girl. My little stickers tell the people where they can. Where they can find you.
- [66:28]
Lauren LaRosa
You can find me everywhere on Social. Lauren LaRosa. L O R o Wait, that's not my name. L o L o r e ncore l o r o s a iconic on Tik Tok. Lauren LaRosa just l o r e n l o r o s a everywhere else. Twitter, Instagram, we're also brown girlgrinding all common spelling on instag. And y' all will see like when I break stories, you guys see like the mimosa colored bronco grinding tag on it. Whenever you see that, just know it's quality, it's verified and we doing all the things. Oh, the latest with Lauren, the Rosa. The podcast.
- [67:02]
Crystal
Cannot forget that.
- [67:03]
Lauren LaRosa
Yes, listen, daily. It's a daily podcast. It's a, you know, daily dig on all things pop culture, entertainment and exclusive news. It's bite sized, so it's like 12 to 15 minute episodes. It's like a great little like on your way into work, you, you running, you working out, whatever you do, doing. It's a great daily show.
- [67:18]
Crystal
Probably should not have shut that. Sorry. I thought about them. I'm like, damn, they f to get me. They f to get me. Well, thank you again for being here and thank you for joining us on the couch today. Follow us online at Christal's Couch and if you have a question for me, shoot me an email. Advicerystcouch.com.