Best Of Full Interview: Rickey Smiley On Grieving The Loss Of His Son, Comedy's Healing, New Book + More

Summary

Detailed Summary of The Breakfast Club Episode: "Best Of Full Interview: Rickey Smiley On Grieving The Loss Of His Son, Comedy's Healing, New Book + More"

Released on January 6, 2025, The Breakfast Club, hosted by Charlamagne Tha God and DJ Envy, features an emotionally charged and deeply personal interview with renowned comedian and radio personality, Rickey Smiley. Throughout the episode, Rickey opens up about the profound loss of his son, the healing power of comedy, and insights from his new book, "Sideshow."

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1. Opening Apology and Setting the Tone

The episode begins with Rickey Smiley addressing past misunderstandings, offering a heartfelt public apology to fellow comedian Ricky Smiley:

Rickey Smiley [02:55]: "I want to publicly apologize to you again because several years ago, I gave you the 'Donkey of the Day' tag when you didn't deserve it."

This gesture establishes a foundation of sincerity and vulnerability, setting the stage for the intimate conversation that follows.

2. Introducing "Sideshow" and the Grief Journey

Rickey delves into his latest work, his book "Sideshow," which chronicles his journey through grief after losing his 32-year-old son. He articulates the challenge of balancing his role as a comedian with his personal sorrow:

Rickey Smiley [05:00]: "My job as a professional comedian is to go on stage and make people laugh. And I lost my son about a year and a half ago, and it's been hard because the bills don't stop coming."

Rickey emphasizes the difficulty of performing while grappling with immense personal pain, highlighting the therapeutic role that comedy plays in his healing process.

3. The Therapeutic Role of Comedy and Therapy

Throughout the interview, Rickey discusses how comedy has been both a refuge and a means of processing his grief. He underscores the importance of seeking professional help:

Rickey Smiley [15:30]: "I have been promoting therapy because when you roll your ankle, you don't pull out a Bible. You go to the doctor."

He advocates for breaking down stigmas surrounding mental health, especially within the Black community, and stresses that seeking therapy is as essential as addressing any physical ailment.

4. Personal Anecdotes and Reflections on Loss

Rickey shares poignant memories of his son, including their relationship and the impact of his son's passing on his life. He recounts the moment he had to return to work shortly after his son's death:

Rickey Smiley [11:00]: "That was a dark Wednesday. I'll never forget it. You have to do it."

This raw honesty provides listeners with a glimpse into his coping mechanisms and the emotional resilience required to move forward.

5. Coping with Generational Trauma and Addiction

The conversation shifts to the broader implications of loss and addiction within families. Rickey reflects on his own upbringing and the challenges of addressing addiction:

Rickey Smiley [20:00]: "I just didn't have a clear understanding of that. But I did everything I could to save, to save his life."

He discusses the complexities of addiction, emphasizing that it extends beyond the individual to affect entire families and communities.

6. Mentorship and Legacy in Comedy

Beyond his personal struggles, Rickey highlights his role in mentoring upcoming comedians. He shares stories of working with legends like Steve Harvey, illustrating the importance of discipline and professionalism in the industry:

Rickey Smiley [30:31]: "Steve's anointed man. I don't care what nobody says."

This segment underscores Rickey's commitment to fostering talent and maintaining high standards within the comedic community.

7. Breaking Down Stigmas and Encouraging Open Dialogue

Rickey passionately speaks about the need to dismantle generational stigmas surrounding grief and mental health. He encourages open conversations as a path to healing:

Rickey Smiley [15:30]: "Why is it that we black folks have a stigma that we won't go get help? That doesn't mean that you're crazy."

His advocacy for mental health awareness highlights the importance of collective support and understanding in overcoming personal tragedies.

8. Future Endeavors and Continuing the Conversation

As the interview wraps up, Rickey expresses his determination to continue using his platform to help others navigate their grief. He invites listeners to engage with his book and share their own stories:

Rickey Smiley [27:15]: "It's normal. I can feel this way because a lot of times people feel like they're on their own and they don't have those feelings."

This closing sentiment reinforces the episode's central theme of empathy, resilience, and the healing power of shared experiences.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

• Rickey Smiley [02:55]: "I want to publicly apologize to you again because several years ago, I gave you the 'Donkey of the Day' tag when you didn't deserve it."

• Rickey Smiley [05:00]: "My job as a professional comedian is to go on stage and make people laugh. And I lost my son about a year and a half ago, and it's been hard because the bills don't stop coming."

• Rickey Smiley [15:30]: "I have been promoting therapy because when you roll your ankle, you don't pull out a Bible. You go to the doctor."

• Rickey Smiley [20:00]: "I just didn't have a clear understanding of that. But I did everything I could to save, to save his life."

• Rickey Smiley [27:15]: "It's normal. I can feel this way because a lot of times people feel like they're on their own and they don't have those feelings."

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Conclusion

This episode of The Breakfast Club offers a profound exploration of Rickey Smiley's personal grief journey, the role of comedy in healing, and the importance of mental health support. Through his candid storytelling and unwavering advocacy, Rickey provides listeners with a narrative of resilience, compassion, and the enduring power of laughter amidst sorrow. His insights not only shed light on the complexities of coping with loss but also inspire others to seek help and find solace in their passions.

Transcript

[Charlamagne Tha God]

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[DJ Envy]

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[Ricky Smiley]

Wake that ass up early in the morning.

[Jess Hilarious]

The Breakfast Club Morning, everybody.

[DJ Envy]

It's DJ Envy. Jess. Hilarious Charlamagne, the guy we are the Breakfast Club. Jess is on maternity leave, so Lauren LaRosa is fil. And we got a special guest in the building.

[Ricky Smiley]

We about to mess up so many people heads. Cause they gonna be in their car, like, am I listening to the right station?

[DJ Envy]

We got the brother Ricky Smiley, here.

[Jess Hilarious]

Welcome, brother man. Thank you for having me, man. How you feeling, man? I'm feeling good, man. It's a dream to be here. Stop it, bro. I lay in the bed and I sit here, and I just scroll and watch all y'all videos. I've been a fan for years.

[DJ Envy]

Hold on.

[Ricky Smiley]

I want to say something before we get started with the conversation, man. I saw Ricky a couple weeks ago. I saw him in New Orleans at the inspired NOLA event. And I went up to him and I said something that I'm going to say. I want to. I want to publicly apologize.

[DJ Envy]

I was just about to ask that.

[Ricky Smiley]

To Ricky Smiley because several years ago, I gave Ricky Smiley donkey of the day because a radio executive asked me to. And you didn't deserve that, brother.

[Jess Hilarious]

Thank you.

[Ricky Smiley]

So I told. When I saw you, I told you that, you know, and I wanted to say that again publicly, because I feel like if you do something to somebody publicly that you don't agree with, you should publicly apologize for it. So I want to. I want to say that to everybody, all our listeners. I want. I want them to hear me say that you didn't deserve that, and I want to apologize to you again.

[Jess Hilarious]

I appreciate that, man. The first time when you walked up on me, man, your energy, man, the love and the respect. It takes a big person. I knew that it was all part of the game because we have a mutual. One of your employees is one of my mentees. Who? Big Mac.

[DJ Envy]

Mac. Oh, yeah. Max told us as an intern.

[Jess Hilarious]

Oh, yeah.

[DJ Envy]

He started us as an intern and got to where he is.

[Jess Hilarious]

Well, I put him on stage. I'm the first one to put him on stage.

[DJ Envy]

That's dope.

[Jess Hilarious]

We'll talk about that. Because I put a lot of them on stage, gave a lot of comics their start or whatever. I've been in the game 35 years, but I really appreciate that, man. And. And don't feel no kind of way about it. I didn't take it personally, but, you know, it takes a special kind of person to. To apologize and. And stuff like that. I thought nothing of it, because if I thought anything bad, I wouldn't even be here.

[Ricky Smiley]

All right.

[Jess Hilarious]

You know, What I'm saying, but I love you. I appreciate you, man. I think you're doing a fabulous job. I met you at the White House.

[DJ Envy]

Yep.

[Jess Hilarious]

I was excited about that. And I hear you in Florida all the time.

[DJ Envy]

We see each other on the road. Every once in a while, I see you on the road.

[Jess Hilarious]

It's a pleasure meeting you.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Yeah, it's nice meeting you, too.

[DJ Envy]

I was going to start that, but now we ain't even got to go there. Because I was going to ask at one time, you know, we. Everybody was throwing shots and I was like, I'm just glad I wasn't know everybody.

[Ricky Smiley]

It was my.

[DJ Envy]

You shot back, too. He shot back.

[Jess Hilarious]

I don't remember, but it was, we from the South. We can go outside and just wrestle.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Wrestle. Not at this big age. Not at this big age.

[DJ Envy]

He might have called you short.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Y'all wrestle. Now, somebody might not get up.

[Jess Hilarious]

Okay. Yeah, I might pull something. At my age. I done got up there.

[DJ Envy]

Ricky might have called you short, bald headed, Fate, Boris, Chest.

[Ricky Smiley]

We all got so many mutual people, you know what I'm saying? Whether it's Mr. Harvey, whether it's Little Duvall, whether it's Max. So it's just like, what we doing.

[Jess Hilarious]

Oh, yeah, that's right. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. We getting older. We don't have. We don't have time.

[DJ Envy]

That's right. Well, you got a new book out right now. Yes, sir, Sideshow.

[Ricky Smiley]

Yes, sir.

[Jess Hilarious]

Sideshow.

[DJ Envy]

Now, talk about what, what's. What's. What's Sideshow about?

[Jess Hilarious]

Okay. You know the song that your parents. Everybody, parents. Let the side show begin.

[Ricky Smiley]

That's right.

[Jess Hilarious]

Hurry her. It's about a sad clown, right? My job as a professional comedian is to go on stage and make people laugh. And I lost my son about a year and a half ago, and it's been hard because the bills don't stop coming. I'm still a performer, right? I still have to go on stage, and I had to dig deep and get in some real deep therapy to get myself together so I can continue as a performer. Because if I worked at, you know, Amazon lifting boxes or delivering packages, that's one thing. But when your job is to make people laugh, when you're crying on the inside with the trauma that I experienced is. Is. Is that's what the song Sideshow Talk about, you know? See the man with a broken heart, you can see that he is sad, it hurts so bad. See the girl who collect broken hearts as souvenirs. It's all about a clown in a Circus performing, but dealing with stuff on the inside.

[Ricky Smiley]

I've watched you grieve out loud online. And the only reason I don't, I don't, I don't like that. It has nothing to do with how you feel. Yeah, I know how people react.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah.

[Ricky Smiley]

And when you already dealing with something, when you already dealing with trauma and then you give it to people online, then they come at you. How did that, how do you deal with that?

[Jess Hilarious]

Oh, no, it. It didn't bother me. Charlemagne. My job was I had to help other people because the reason I was open with it is a lot of mothers out there that lost their 18 year old, 17 year old, 16 year old, 15 year. My son was 32 when we were in New Orleans. Your books, your book signing was right after mine. And I had a couple that had lost their two year old. Right. And that's some of the things that I talk about in the book. It gives you glimmers of hope and the glimmers of inspiration even during traumatic times. Right. So my son was 32. Well, this couple sitting out here crying at my book sign, their son was only 2. Wow. And I could have lost my son at 2. But God allowed me to have, you know, 30 years. 32 years. So you get a little gratitude from that. And it's crazy that you can get gratitude from something like that, you know, and you start looking at. It's a helpful too. The book is a helpful tool for people that's going through the grief process because there's a lot of people out there. And my book sign has been packed with people that have lost their kids.

[DJ Envy]

How do you still believe the Baldwin.

[Ricky Smiley]

Books too, in New Orleans?

[DJ Envy]

How do you still believe?

[Jess Hilarious]

Right?

[DJ Envy]

You talk about losing your father at the age of six, right? And then you lose your son. How do you just not say, you know what? There is no higher power. How do you still remain focused and still have believe and still have hope and still have all of that with going through the pain that you've gone through?

[Jess Hilarious]

You know, I grew up in Birmingham, man, so, you know, I got that old Southern Christian background.

[Ricky Smiley]

That's right.

[Jess Hilarious]

I went to Sunday school every Sunday. So I just have some, some strong beliefs in a close relationship with God because it was nothing and nobody to lean on. I was in an apartment in Dallas, Texas, by myself, you know, when I found out that my son passed. And I had an hour and a half, I had an hour to make it to the airport and I'm packing a bag and on the phone with my other Kids letting them know what happened.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Wow.

[Jess Hilarious]

And trying to get myself together and prepare myself to lead because my family needed me. As you know, it didn't really hit me until a year later. Right. But at that time, my son has a mother and a wonderful stepfather. So I had to protect them. I had to protect my mother, who was really close to my son, because my mother, you know, recovering addict. My mother had 35 years clean, had to protect her because they had a real special relationship, because she could identify with his struggle. Then I had to protect my other kids. I had two kids in college getting ready to graduate college. You know, my daughter that got shot, she was a senior in college, getting ready to graduate in Baylor, and then I had my son graduate in Alabama State, and then my oldest daughter. So just trying to get them and being calm, say, hey, here's what happened. Brandon didn't make it. I need you to meet me at the house immediately. Just real calm. I need you to text me, let me know that you're on your way. Text me when you let me know you just all of that. I had to be calm. I had to be cool. I had to get in the car with my uncles who was crying. I had to turn the radio on the R B station. I had to turn on Frankie, Beverly and Maze and go from the airport to house. I'm comforting them because it reminded them of my dad's death. Right. And so I'm just a child, man, that sat on the front row and watched my grandparents go through what they went through. And through my grandfather, I learned how to handle this situation because that's how my grandfather handled it as well.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Did you ever. Because losing somebody, especially someone so close your son, can. It changes you. Did you ever, at first, when you were trying to get to that, Like, I mean, I guess I get through it. I don't know if you ever get through it. Were you. Are. Were you afraid that when you got back on stage that first time that, like, you just. It wouldn't be the same. Like, your ability to kind of push through and make people laugh wouldn't be.

[Jess Hilarious]

The same now, you know, Charlamagne. One thing about funny, it don't change.

[Ricky Smiley]

That's right. When you find something to laugh at, especially in trauma.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah. When your ass hit that stage, man, them jokes come. Them jokes, like, when you get somebody on the front row laughing. I cry all the way up. My first show was in Cleveland at the Horrors Casino, and I cried from the hotel all the way to the venue, all the way backstage. Blew My nose did like that. Made sure my nose was clean and walked on stage and got them jokes and cried after I got off stage. And, you know, I was calm. But I've been in therapy. I was getting therapy twice a week, so I was prepared to go on stage again. My son died on a Sunday. That Wednesday, I was back on the radio. They said, take as much time as you need. Well, either you lay in the bed and think about all of that, or. Or you get your ass up and go do your morning show. Go do your radio show. Because all the mothers in Chicago and in Columbia and in Charleston and in Atlanta, all over the country, their kids died. Too much is given, much is required. You can't cancel the show. God put you in this position and put you in a leadership position. You have to leave. And I still went to the Salvation army like I do on a regular basis. I fed the homeless with my son, clothes in the car to go to the funeral home. That was a dark Wednesday. I'll never forget it. You have to do it. Everything, all of this stuff. And I don't want you to ever forget this. All of this stuff. Envy is a test. It's a test. Our pastor's been teaching us that for years. It's a test. God is watching you through your struggles, through your trials and tribulations, and looking at you, seeing how you're going to handle this. Are you gonna make it about you? Are you gonna use this situation to help other people? But I still. I was still smart enough to go ahead and get the help that I needed in the process because I had to get therapy, because this trauma is a bad car accident.

[Ricky Smiley]

How do you think you would have been reacting without. Without the therapy?

[Jess Hilarious]

Oh, man, I probably would have been dead. I had. My son was a. You know, my son was a comic.

[Ricky Smiley]

No, I ain't know that.

[Jess Hilarious]

Shout out to me. My son was a comedian. I'll send you some clips. My son, man. I remember my son headlined his first gig at the Stardome in Birmingham. And I walked backstage. He was by himself. He had on some. He had on some. Some black pants. And I was roasting him because he had on a white shirt and some. And some suspenders and a black box.

[Ricky Smiley]

I was like, what year was he here? What you got on?

[Jess Hilarious]

He said, oh, dad, you told me to dress now. I said, okay, you look nice. I said, but I said. I say, yeah, whatever. And he went on stage and performing. I stood backstage and I watched him perform. And he had a really good set, and he Was doing headlining shows. He had just started, you know, closing shows. Man, he was funny. He had a kind of like, a sense of humor. And he was being mentored by Roy Wood Jr. Wow. You know, they're close. You know, Roy, we all came from Birmingham, same radio station, all this stuff. So Roy was giving him some opportunities. And one time. Now, this is the funniest. He was on stage performance. So he had stayed at my house, left some clothes on the dryer. You know, he took the clothes out of the washing machine, put it in the dryer, and then he took all the clothes and put the. On top of the dryer. I was mad as hell, you know, because I like you to, you know, fold your stuff up and put your man. I went to the company club. He was performing. He was on stage. I didn't care because I was mad. I went in the DJ booth and got on the microphone and said, when you get your ass off stage, you need to come fold these damn clothes.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Oh, my God.

[Jess Hilarious]

And we got into a whole argument, and the audience was cracking up, and I was for real. And he was laughing it off and said, yeah, when you get off stage, you come home and get these damn clothes off my dryer. Slammed the microphone and walked out the door. There's some funny stuff that I always enjoy talking about, but.

[Ricky Smiley]

Yeah, how has it been, like, you know, because when you write these books, you put a lot of, you know, you put your most vulnerable, deepest thoughts into these books, and you got to go out here and do this.

[Peter Tilden]

Yep.

[Ricky Smiley]

You got to have these conversations.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah.

[Ricky Smiley]

How. How's that been for you?

[Jess Hilarious]

I've gotten used to it.

[Ricky Smiley]

Okay.

[Jess Hilarious]

You know, once. You know how it is. Once you do one interview, you do another interview. You keep doing interviews. You just get accustomed to talking about it, and then you develop some really good talking points. That's gonna help other people. Cause what people been telling me is the feedback that I've been getting is, hey, bro, it's been helping me out. You know how many people walk up to me and said that they lost a loved one and they can't talk about it? And just because they hear you on the radio every morning now, they coming out to your book sign. I have people walking up crying. Almost 90% of the people that come out about the book have suffered a loss and can't talk about it and do not go to therapy. So I've been promoting therapy because when you roll your ankle, you don't pull out a Bible. You go to the doctor.

[Ricky Smiley]

That's right.

[Jess Hilarious]

Absolutely. The muscle, the brain is a muscle, just like your ankle. Why is it that we black folks as a stigma, that we won't go get help? That don't mean that you're crazy. You have to get somebody and talk to somebody that's going to help you process those feelings and emotions. Because you can go into depression, start affecting other organs in the body. Some people don't make it from their loss. They die, you know.

[DJ Envy]

Well, a lot of times people. You know, we've been taught as kids, you keep the home business in the house.

[Jess Hilarious]

Right.

[DJ Envy]

You never really talk about what happens inside your house. But like you said, that winds up killing you.

[Jess Hilarious]

Absolutely.

[DJ Envy]

That depression, that anxiety, all those facts.

[Jess Hilarious]

All those feelings every time you cry, envy. Do you know that's like popping the cap off of a pressure cooker?

[Ricky Smiley]

You release it.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, I cried this morning. Yeah, man. I sat on the side of my hotel bed. I was having some anxiety. I called a good friend of mine. She answered the phone. When I heard her voice, I just started crying, bro. I just let it out. I just cried. I just needed to just cry. I felt it building up yesterday, and I just started crying. In the changing of the seasons, you know that. That affects you. I think they call it seasonal.

[Ricky Smiley]

Seasonal depression.

[Jess Hilarious]

Seasonal depression.

[Ricky Smiley]

I've been dealing with anxiety and depression for my whole life. And I started going to therapy in 2016. And when I wrote a book about it in 2018, my dad read the book. And I had a cousin who completed suicide that week. And my dad told me it was the week of Thanksgiving, 2018, I'm home in South Carolina. And he told me that between reading my book and my cousin completing suicide, he told me for the first time ever that he was going to therapy two and three times a week, that he tried to kill himself 30 plus years ago. And that in South Carolina, they put him on 10 to 12 different medications for his mental health. And I remember I asked my mom, I said, mom, you know, dad was going through all this. And she said, I thought he was playing crazy to get a check. Cause that's what they're doing to stop. They give you the crazy check. But imagine if he would have had that conversation with me when I was young. Just told me that the way we're discussing it right now, imagine if we heard older men in our life having that conversation early. We'd have known that the stuff we was going through was normal.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah. My granddad never talked about it. My dad died. My dad was 26. My granddaddy didn't talk about it until he was like, 85, because he would be at my house all the time. And I was sitting. I'd say, granddaddy, what happened? My dad died here in New York. You know, my dad died of a drug overdose here in New York. And my granddaddy was like. He just started telling me. It was like, I was there when they brought your dad's body in. I stood there like a man. I was standing in the mortgage when they rolled my son body in there. Like, I took that shit like a g. I didn't shed a tear. I just made sure everything was done properly, you know, brought the barber in, told the barber, I want my son, mustache and beard done. And I stood right there and I took it. But all of that stuff you cried in the car is the. It hadn't really, really hit me. It's coming out in. In small pieces. Like, this morning, maybe this morning was some of it. And I didn't cry at the funeral because my. My granddaughter was looking at me the whole time, was like, peekaboo. Because she didn't know what was going on, you know, the whole while, you know, she looking at me. We playing because, you know, and I just had that memory of my grandparents crying, Ricky, have you dealt with it then?

[DJ Envy]

Cause it doesn't seem like you fully.

[Ricky Smiley]

He dealing with it.

[Jess Hilarious]

It's a process. Yeah. Telling me again, it's a process, bro. Did you ever think about just giving.

[DJ Envy]

Away, just stopping, you know, like, I don't want to do this anymore. Was that ever a mom?

[Jess Hilarious]

No. No, man. We got to save people, man. Listen, some have to die so others can live, you understand? And, you know, no cross, no crown, bro. We have to go through what we have to go through, and we have to talk about it. And I'm just trying to break the generational curse of number one. Not talking about it. Not going. Getting therapy and getting help and to talk about, you know, drug addiction. You know, I had a son and a nephew, age 32, and a niece. I had a niece, assigned a nephew. All died at age 32 within two years of each other.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Can you talk a little bit about that? Like, just in real time when they were here dealing with the addiction and trying to help them through it and, like, also wanting them to get better. But addiction, understanding that, like, it kind of takes over where it's not. It's not even just them anymore. Like, it's kind of. It's a big beast.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah. The only thing I regret, I didn't have a good understanding of the illness because I had a, a niece and a nephew that was cool and calm and respectful, but it didn't affect my son that way. You know, my son would go off about stuff, you know, and it damaged our relationship or whatever because I didn't understand, like, hey, I'm your dad. You can't say that to me. You know, I'm driving around looking for you to fight you in the middle of the street. You know, I raised you. I cooked food for you. You know what I'm saying? I wash your clothes. You slept in the bed with me when it's thunder and lightning. Don't say that to me. You know, so I just didn't have a clear understanding of that. But I did everything I could to save, to save his life.

[DJ Envy]

Did you ever blame yourself at all?

[Jess Hilarious]

Oh, no, that's one thing I never felt. I never felt guilt now, you know, I felt a lot of stuff, but guilt was not one of them. I did everything I could as a father to save his life. You know, rehab is 70 grand off the bat. Boom. Like, you know, we did that twice. And, and, you know, my mom was trying to help him. I just couldn't, I just couldn't get him. I just couldn't get him to get him.

[DJ Envy]

Well, would you do anything different as a dad during any of those times? And, you know, I have six, so I like to.

[Jess Hilarious]

That's, that's a good question. I wasn't tough on him. He was the one that I coddled. I was tough on my other kids. Like, I, like the other kids was like, I was just really, really, really, really tough on them. And he was the one that I just kind of coddled and did everything for and took everywhere because that was my first born or whatever. I just wish that I was tougher. I know that sounds strange because it sound like I should say I should have been easier on him. I was easy on him. I should have been tougher on him like I was the other kids.

[Ricky Smiley]

What do we call tougher, though? Because I, you know, we come from the era I was getting beat with extension cords and my daddy made me go take a bath. I gotta go. I don't beat my kids. I don't even touch my kids at all.

[Jess Hilarious]

Right.

[Ricky Smiley]

So what do you call tougher?

[Jess Hilarious]

I just wouldn't give him, you know, I, I, I don't think I popped Brandon. I hit him. I popped him a couple of times when he was about 14. Made him go stand in the corner and go do that little thing right there. I Want to make sure those legs and those calves. I didn't. By the time I started getting tough on him, it was time for him to go off to college, you know, but the other kids, like Malik went to military school, then he went to IMG Academy or whatever. So he had a military mindset, I think that's what. But I tried to do that for Brandon because I sent him to the National Guard, you know what I'm saying? So my son served. He had a flag draped over his casting because he served our country. But I just think I caught on him a little too much. And he just loved on him. And he was the one I loved on, hugged on, you know, and just up under me all the time.

[Ricky Smiley]

Yeah. I don't. It's hard when you're a parent nowadays. Like I said, the era we grew up in, I be talking to my nine year old like, she a basketball player, like. But you wouldn't have survived in the 90s. You couldn't have played in the 90s. But my grandma and my mama and daddy was doing to me.

[Jess Hilarious]

Right.

[Ricky Smiley]

Please.

[Jess Hilarious]

But the key is it's good that you talk to her with that coach voice.

[Ricky Smiley]

Yeah.

[Jess Hilarious]

Because we have to give kids more of what we had as opposed to what we didn't have.

[Ricky Smiley]

That's right. That's right.

[Jess Hilarious]

You know what I'm saying? You like who you are. You like how you turned out. Right. Give that same thing to your kids.

[DJ Envy]

And the evolved version of you, I'm sure.

[Ricky Smiley]

Right. And through therapy, I've learned to love every version of me. I think that's what you got to do in life, you know, like, every version of you served a purpose.

[Jess Hilarious]

Absolutely.

[Lauren LaRosa]

In chapter 12 of your book is Let the Tears Fall, you said that it took you a year for all of this to really, like, hit you.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah.

[Lauren LaRosa]

What was that day like when you were like. I'm feeling it like that first time.

[Jess Hilarious]

Where it was, man, that one year anniversary. A few days before, for that one year anniversary, man, it hit me like he had just died. And I was sitting. I had just got off the air. I was down in South Florida because I didn't want to be in the house. But that one year anniversary, I just wanted to go get away. And, man, it hit me, man. And I was. I did some crying. I. I think. I think it was a bad mistake for me to be there by myself, but I just kind of sat on the couch and just cried pretty much for a couple of days, like, like really crying. Because the only difference was I didn't have a casket and some flowers and some condolences. Right. I had all of that to keep me distracted doing when it actually happened. I had to protect everybody. But that one year came in and it was like. It was terrible.

[Ricky Smiley]

What about the chapter when addiction chases the bloodline? Was that difficult to write because, you know, you got to go through your whole generational lineage with that. Was that a difficult chapter?

[Jess Hilarious]

Right? No, it wouldn't. It was just being. Being open and honest. My dad struggled. My mom struggled. I had wonderful gr. Grandparents. My granddad talked to me every day. Church, Sunday school, you know, hey, here's a trumpet. Play that. Here's some piano lessons. Let's go do that. I did trumpet. Lily football. Did it all. My grandparents kept me busy with the discipline and instruction. Talked to me every day so I didn't have to. I didn't have those issues. And then he always talked about how my dad died. So don't do this. So I. I just stuck with it. And to this day, I don't drink or smoke.

[Ricky Smiley]

I always wonder how grief impacts people who lost their parents at a very, very young age. Does it hit you later in life? Do you see somebody out with their parents and it hits you like, what is it?

[Jess Hilarious]

It did when I was. When I was a kid. But what hurt me about my dad's death was watching my grandparents cry like that on the front row. I'm in therapy for that. That comes up in therapy. That. That wipes me out.

[Ricky Smiley]

Wow.

[Jess Hilarious]

That wipes me out more than my son's death.

[Ricky Smiley]

Why?

[Jess Hilarious]

I'm a grandmama's baby, you understand? You from the south, like, watching my grandparents cry like that on their front row, man, I can't get over it. Even when my grandparents died, the only thing I could think about, their casket was in the same spot my dad's casket was. The only thing I could think about was them crying on that front row. April 11, 1974. I will never forget it, man. It tears my soul out of my body. I can deal with my son, but that's what I struggle with more than anything.

[Ricky Smiley]

Wow.

[Jess Hilarious]

And that's why I didn't cry at my son's funeral, because my granddaughter was watching me. And I don't.

[Ricky Smiley]

Oh, you didn't wanna traumatize her like that? Traumatized her like that. God dang, boy.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah.

[Ricky Smiley]

Life is a motherfucker.

[Jess Hilarious]

Sitting up here talking about this.

[DJ Envy]

We about to all start crying.

[Lauren LaRosa]

I just wanna hug, but that's what.

[Ricky Smiley]

I don't understand about. That's why I Noticed, like, just putting this out there to the world and having to relive all these stories and retell these stories. Is it therapeutic, or does it feel like you opening up all night, man, this is therapy.

[Jess Hilarious]

Because if I go and get in that car and start crying, that is helpful. It is helpful to cry. It was helpful for me to cry this morning. You understand? I'm good.

[DJ Envy]

But I also think what you're doing is helping people that don't know how to deal with it and can't talk about it, because now they have a friend in you in this book. And they're saying, well, let me see how Ricky dealt with it. Let me see what the troubles he's going through. It is normal. I can feel this way. Cause a lot of times people feel like they're on their own and they don't have those feelings. So that's one amazing thing about this book.

[Ricky Smiley]

Well, let's talk about something else for a second. You put on a lot of comedians, Ricky and I think that coming from the south, right? People don't re. I don't think people realize how big you are sometimes. Like, just. You know what I'm saying? Like, I don't think they realize how. How much money you got, number one. But also how rich you are and just how big you are. And I think it's. It's a. It's almost a stigma with comedians from the South. Like, they don't get the respect that they deserve, I think.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, I. I just do it for the love of the art. Charlemagne. Envy. I remember cussing D Ray Davis out, snatching a drink out of his hand because he was too young to be drinking. Hey, give me that. You know, I had a little comedy club back in Birmingham, so I would. I would have like. D. Ray. Corey Holcomb. Corey Holcomb was like, hey, man, I ain't never been outside of Chicago. I was like, okay, cool. Let's go on the road. You know, I would take those guys on the road. Corey Holcomb, D Ray Davis, a lot of them, man, that. That Tyler, some of them have passed away. You know, I would just take them on the road and help them, because that's what Steve did for me, you know, nobody have to. Don't nobody have to fool with you. You know what I'm saying? Some people can just ignore you. Steve was one of those guys, man, that was helping in training, coming down. I started November 13, 1989.

[Ricky Smiley]

Wow.

[Jess Hilarious]

That's the first time I went on stage. I met Steve before he did Showtime at the Apollo and then tell you a story. I wrote about it in my first book. And just talk about the discipline and the structure of comedy. I was dressed like a. Like Flavor Flav. Cause I thought that was the thing. I'm doing a show with Steve. And Steve was like, listen. He said, people pay money to see us perform. Your outfit is nice. He said, but tomorrow I want you to come dress better. I want you to dress. He said, I want you to dress nice. You know, Bruce Ayers, the owner, was standing in the door watching. I was embarrassed. I felt bad. I felt like my career was over. You know, my feelings were hurt. I was like, oh, you know, I don't want to blow an opportunity with Steve Harvey, man. He said, you can go ahead and introduce me. He said, but tomorrow, let's get it together. So. Yes, sir, you know, because you can't say nothing nowadays. You can't correct nowadays because everybody's sensitive. I said, y'all, give it up and show your love right now. But Steve Harvey, queen. I never forget the Queen Latifah. Come on, for the love of Money, off that new Jack City soundtrack. And he came up. I'm talking about. It was electrifying. I wanted to stay there and watch, man. I ran out that damn comedy club door. I jumped in my 1979 Toyota Corolla 4 speed. I peeled out of that company club driveway. I drove all the way across town, ran in my apartment, put on a suit. I had mart from Jeans west because I used to work at Jeans west, you know, Put my suit on, boom tie, and I'm running. Driving back. I made it back to the condom club just in time. When I walked back in the day, he's like, all right, y'all. I've been wonderful. God bless y'all. My name's Steve Harvey. Peace. When I walked back up there and had that suit on. No, not tomorrow. Tonight.

[Ricky Smiley]

That's what's up right now, what Steve said to you when he saw you.

[Jess Hilarious]

So. So. So he dapped me up. And he. You know how he do.

[Ricky Smiley]

Yeah, he push yourself.

[Jess Hilarious]

Talking about, you know, he let me up and down, and he said. He said, I'm talking to you after the show. I said, yes, sir.

[Ricky Smiley]

And Steve's anointed man.

[Jess Hilarious]

Oh, my God.

[Ricky Smiley]

I don't care what nobody, you know.

[Jess Hilarious]

After the show, he said, follow. He said, follow this car right here. I followed him back to his hotel room. I sat on the edge of the bed and took a little notepad and a pencil, and he lectured me for about two hours. And me and another comedian sat on the edge of the bed and wrote notes. How to do this? Why not do this? You did this joke wrong. Why are you cursing on stage? Why you dressed like this? At and t is in the audience. You need to do this, that, that. I took all that stuff, I took it serious because I wanted to be great. I wanted to be better at. At what I did. And I ended up opening up for the Kings of comedy. I did some shows where I did a few dates with the Kings of Comedy. You had to ride with Steve. You don't get your own limousine. You have to ride with him. So you have to be disciplined. Get in the limousine, keep your mouth closed, slide all the way up, put your back to the driver. Speak when spoken to. Had to share dressing room with Steve. We frat brothers, but I'm not ever comfortable enough just because you aq and I'm a cue. I'm finna come in here like I'm entitled. Be quiet and speak when spoken to. That's the discipline I got from my grandparents.

[DJ Envy]

Who's the other comedian on the bed with you?

[Jess Hilarious]

I was probably Sir Walt. Yeah, A comedian that lives in Birmingham. Sir Walt. And he was mentoring a lot of us, but he was really into teaching. Come over here. I'm sit down. I mean, we sitting there, he's standing up, walking back and forth, and he's talking to us and. And I remember a couple of times I was about to nod off because I was so sleepy because I go to bed early and. But that, that. That was something that was life changing.

[Ricky Smiley]

He's still like that. I changed the title of my first book because of Steve Money. I was gonna name my book I don't give a fuck and neither should you. A self help guide on how not to give a fuck. And we was driving around in a ranch in Georgia, and I told him that title, and he looked at me and he said, no, no, player, that ain't it. He said, that's the problem with y'all. Y'all don't give a. We need to. Y'all need to give. A lot of people need to give a.

[Jess Hilarious]

Right?

[Ricky Smiley]

He same thing. Lecture me for about an hour. And I'm like, all right, I got it. You ain't.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, big brother, mentor. I was supposed to be on his morning show, and we had a big argument sitting in his truck. And then Rashawn got on the phone, said, no, you need to do your own thing. We're gonna use nephew Tommy. He said, you Go over here. If it don't work out, you can come be on the show with us. Wow.

[Ricky Smiley]

So hold on. You're supposed to be a co host on Steve Harvey Show.

[Jess Hilarious]

So Steve was gonna give me. When Steve left Radio 1, they said, who do you think they said? He said, ricky Smiley. So I went down there to do the morning show with Steve for two weeks so he could gradually. Hey, turn the show over to me. Hey, I'm gonna be gone in two weeks, but Ricky Smiley gonna be taking over. The chemistry was so good that we were so funny. I was just throwing him all kind of alley oops, making him recycle jokes, and we were just so funny on the air together. We looking at each other like, hey, man, we need to. We need to. You know, and me and Steve had. We was like, okay, we gonna. We gonna stick together. I'm gonna go to New York with you. And we got in the car, ran our other frat brother, who was Steve manager. You know, Rahu Rashawn said, hell, no. He said, no, you know, I just have this idea that you should go over here. We're gonna bring in nephew Tommy, and. And if it don't work out, you can always come back. But let's give this a try. Let's see how you do.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Was that tough to hear that? Because you. Because think about it like, you go to New York with Steve Harvey. It's like you said, for what you think. Was it hard to accept that, no, you shouldn't.

[Jess Hilarious]

No, it wasn't. Because once Steve gave me that look when he did the phone, he just kind of, you know that look.

[Ricky Smiley]

That's right.

[Jess Hilarious]

You know that look when he gave you that big brother look, like, okay, we gonna go ahead. And you're not gonna argue with him, right?

[Lauren LaRosa]

Who do you do that for? That. I mean. Cause you talk a lot about people that you mentor and that you help, but, like, who's somebody that you do that for that, like, we might not know about that might have started in your clubs or just unknown and now is, like, taking over comedy wise.

[Jess Hilarious]

Oh, man. Lil Duvall was somebody that I have a real good relationship with that I was doing some, you know, mentorship.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

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[DJ Envy]

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[Peter Tilden]

And I'm Peter Tilden. And together on the really Know really.

Podcast, our mission is to get the true answers to life's best baffling questions.

Like why they refuse to make the bathroom door go all the way to the floor.

We got the answer.

Will space junk block your cell signal? The astronaut who almost drowned during a spacewalk gives us the answer. We talk with the scientist who figured out if your dog truly loves you and the one bringing back the woolly mammoth. Plus, does Tom Cruise really do his own stunts? His stuntman reveals the answer. And you never know who's going to drop by.

Mr. Bryan Cranston is with us.

[Jess Hilarious]

How are you? Hello.

[Peter Tilden]

My friend Wayne Knight about Jurassic Park.

Wayne Knight, welcome to really. No, really, sir.

[Jess Hilarious]

Bless you all.

[Peter Tilden]

Hello, Newman. And you never know when Howie Mandel might just stop by to talk about judging.

[Jess Hilarious]

Really? That's the opening.

[Peter Tilden]

Really? No, really?

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, really? No, really.

[Peter Tilden]

Go to reallynoreally.com and register to win.

500 a guest spot on our podcast or a limited edition sign Jason Bobblehead.

It's called really? No really. And you can find it on the iHeartRadio app on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast.

[Jess Hilarious]

Because remember, I was the host of comic view in 2000.

[Ricky Smiley]

A lot of people mentored just by being on that show.

[Jess Hilarious]

Right, Right. That's what.

[Ricky Smiley]

That's what 8585 south said.

[Jess Hilarious]

They told me I'm tripping. Like, Carlos Miller was like, bro, I met you when I was 14 years old. You was in a hotel. I got excited. I'm hearing these stories and stuff, man, not realizing the impact on company because I'm on BET Monday through Saturday. Like, when Comic View really blew up, it was in Atlanta. And then I hosted again Charlemagne 2004. And then the year after 2000, 2001, I had my own little TV show, the way we do it us first time, you know, and I was doing all these characters and all these voices and all this kind of stuff. And so when comics needed help and needed mentorship, I would always, you know, hey, Dress nice. Hey, stop cursing. Does that curse word make that joke funny? Are you cursing just to be cursing? That's a real thing. I just had that conversation with a comic. I say, hey, man, you curse too much. The cursing is not making the joke funnier. But if the curse word is a part of the punchline, then use it. I said, because it's like, I give the onion example. Like. Like, you eat an onion, it's nasty, but if you take it and chop it up and saute it and put some flour on it, you still eating the onion, but you can't taste it.

[Ricky Smiley]

That's right.

[Jess Hilarious]

It's just an analogy that I use with comics and I make them redo the joke. And as I. Damn, you did the same joke and got the same laugh, got a bigger laugh because people are not offended, right? You know what I'm saying? So, you know, it's. It's is no training in stand up anymore. You know, back then, in the 80s, late 80s 90s, Communists will pull you to the side. Mark Curry. Now they will put, George Wallace got on my ass so bad one night.

[Ricky Smiley]

Why, you was bombing or what?

[Jess Hilarious]

No, man, I did some jokes behind him after he closed it, after he headlined the show. I didn't know any better. He said, you don't do them damn jokes after me. Say, God damn it, I'll make one phone call, your career over. Damn, motherfucker. I said, I'm sorry. He said, yeah, you say good night, read the announcement, and bring your ass back tomorrow. I said, yes, sir. Damn. Wow. And I came on back. He was nice to me the next night, and he won't admit it to this day. I said, joey, you remember? He said, I didn't do that shit. Shut up. But it was good. I needed that. If I got a booger in my nose, tell me, don't let me be out here bad. Put me to the side and help me.

[Ricky Smiley]

But you can't even do it. You feel like you do that nowadays, and somebody will be like, oh, man, he threatened me. He hurt my feelings. He hate me, insulted me, offended me.

[Jess Hilarious]

It's like, what, man? I tell comics, man, because that's the only way. Ask Corey Hulkman. Ask D Ray Davis. I used to get at them all the time about little stuff, man. I'm like, hey, man, you, you. I think d Ray was 19 or 20 when I bought him to Birmingham. I said, you can't drink nothing. You can't have that. Give me that fussing at him about little stuff, man. And now he's great. And we laugh about it all the time. He's just gonna always be my little brother or whatever. They all come to the house. If you ever come to Birmingham, you know, you're welcome. I cook my ass off or whatever. So.

[Ricky Smiley]

100, 000 square foot house, 100 acres of land.

[Jess Hilarious]

I wish. Yeah, right. Y'all always welcome.

[DJ Envy]

Now, now, there was a rumor that in your contract, it said that you had to wear a dress.

[Jess Hilarious]

Oh, man, I don't pay that stuff.

[Ricky Smiley]

God damn. Maybe you should have put. You just bit into the onion. You ain't put no flour on there. You ain't sauteing or nothing.

[Jess Hilarious]

God damn. So I started doing comedy 89. Man. You think there's a contract somewhere?

[DJ Envy]

I'm just messing with it.

[Jess Hilarious]

I knew it. I knew it. That didn't bother me. What bothered me was people believed it.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Oh, yeah, they did. Because it's always been that thing about the wear the dress, to not wear the dress. The.

[Jess Hilarious]

It's comedy. Yeah, listen, it's comedy. I grew up watching Flip Wilson. Yeah, Flip Wilson is the greatest of all time. And right when you laughing at Flip Wilson, he turned around to do Geraldine. Me and my grandma, I would sit there and watch that with my grandmother. My characters came, man. I was doing prank phone calls on the radio. I was doing Bernie's Jenkins. And whoever would have thought a character that you do on the radio calling funeral homes and all this stuff turn into a character and somebody asked you to play the character in a movie or whatever. You know, it's funny that all that stuff is taboo now.

[Lauren LaRosa]

They do that in Philly. Mother knows. They do it on Power 99. You ever heard it?

[Jess Hilarious]

No.

[Lauren LaRosa]

And they do the calls. I just thought about that when you said it. I don't know if they got it from you, but mother knows they prank call people all the time.

[Ricky Smiley]

But yeah, that's the thing in radio. Everybody do prank calls. Okay, man, who the mother knows?

[Jess Hilarious]

I started out listening to the Jerky Boys and then Crank Yankers.

[Ricky Smiley]

Remember Crank Yankers?

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, Crank Yankers. Roy Mercer. But the characters develop. I do. I do a redneck character. I do Buford. I do Bernie Jenkins. I do Joe Willie. I have a gospel quartet. Joe Willie and the Dude Ramanieres. You know, I do Lil Darryl.

[Ricky Smiley]

Lil Darryl.

[Jess Hilarious]

Precious. I do a lot of characters. I'm. I'm talented. I play the trumpet. I play the French horn. I play the bass guitar. I play the tuba. I'm an organist. I played a B3 Hammond at church on Sundays. You Know what I'm saying? I studied music. I, I'm. I'm just multi talented. And you can't make everybody like you. I have never did anything, had any beat with any kind. I had one beat with a comic, and it was a quiet beat for 20 years. And that was Arnaz J. Me and Arnaz J could not freaking stand each other. We had. Because a show happened and, you know, comments, get there early and go on first, you know, artists that got there and didn't do the order or either something happened, but we had beef. Nobody knew about it.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Right?

[Jess Hilarious]

Right. Let me show you how God worked. Nobody knew about it. Covet came. I'm sitting on Delta, I'm in Fort Lauderdale airport, getting ready to fly to Atlanta, where I could drive home, you know, and I see a dude getting on the plane with a mask on. He got fishing rod. Well, who fish? Rnsj, Lavelle Crawford and what's my man Shadiq Houston. Those are the, the three comics that really fish. They fish, fish, they go fish. I said, that's RnaJ. I ain't spoke to Rnsj in 20 years. And so I got up and he was sitting right next to me, and he sat right next to me. I didn't say nothing.

[Ricky Smiley]

Oh, that's God. God was testing you.

[Jess Hilarious]

I saw his eyes. I said, I know this, Arnie. SJ. I hadn't talked to him in 20 years. Like we had. It was no ugly beef. Like, I'm gonna kill you. Just like, get you, forget you, or whatever. And I'm, you know, I'm a Christian person. I'm all about resolving and loving on people because that's my heart. And I grabbed his arm and he did like that. And I looked, I grabbed it. He's like, like, what? What? And I pulled my mask down, man. He started laughing. He started laughing. So, Charlemagne. Give me your hand. The other hand.

[Ricky Smiley]

Oh.

[Jess Hilarious]

The whole, the whole, the whole flight, me and Arnezj like this. Because when he started telling me that the 20 years, all the people that passed away, everything that happened here, we cried the whole flight. Wow. From Fort Lauderdale to Atlanta. I said, man, I apologize. He said, no. He said, my wife been trying to get me to call you for years. Been on me about that. I said, nah, you don't have to. It was just love. Because, Because I. I had always said, if I see on there again, I'm just gonna tackle him. I. I can't. Cat. I saw Cat one time and he had said some stuff that's before the Internet came out and said some stuff. Some stuff. Years ago, he was roasting all the comedians that wore a dress that. That play a character. You know, he was roasting all. I was talking about it on the Foxhole one day, and I was driving down 14th street in Atlanta. I saw a cat walking across the street. And I had my granddad in the car then my Ford F150. And you know, I'm one of the type of dudes I don't be carrying. I'm like, hey, Cat, what's up? He was walking to Starbucks. I'll never forget it. He said, come over, have a cup of coffee with me. Cup of coffee with me. So I went over there, and before he went to Starbucks, he came around. I said, hey, man, Cat Williams said, this is my granddad or whatever. My granddad saw you on TV before. My granddad said, yeah. And Cat stood in the door, had a conversation with my grandfather or whatever. And that was like one of the last times I saw him. And there was no issue because it's all love or whatever. Because, you know, I don't know why I never did anything to him. If I did, you know, I'm always open man enough to apologize.

[Ricky Smiley]

He felt like he was clearing the record on Shay Shay, because I think he. Or was it that he was supposed to play a role, you said supposed to be Money Mike or something.

[Jess Hilarious]

Well, I did. When I went out there, I auditioned for that part, and that's what I really auditioned for. I didn't audition for the Santa Claus. If I'm not mistaken, the Santa Claus role was supposed to be for what's his name? He played in the first Friday the comedian that passed away.

[Ricky Smiley]

Oh, man.

[Jess Hilarious]

That was. That was. That was on. On drugs and stealing and breaking in people house.

[Ricky Smiley]

Oh, oh, oh. A.J. a.J. Johnson.

[Jess Hilarious]

A.J. johnson. I think A.J. johnson was supposed to play. And this is what. What I heard or whatever. And they put me in that role because at that time I was on BET and stuff like that. But I did audition for it. That's what I went out there and read for. My manager at the time came on the air, cleared that up. David E. Talbert came on on Instagram and cleared up the fact that there's no Country. He had hired me to play my role in the movie. First Sunday before he hired Cat, he cleared. He cleared that part up.

[Ricky Smiley]

But Cube clarified it too. I said that you did audition for Money Mike, but when they saw how you move, they thought you'd be better for Santa Claus.

[Jess Hilarious]

Exactly.

[Ricky Smiley]

Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Jess Hilarious]

And I don't have no. Have no beef. I love everybody. If there is an opportunity to resolve, that's why the rap beef and stuff with rappers getting killed. I don't want comedy to ever come to that. You know, that's not what I do. That's not how I was raised. You know, we from the South.

[Ricky Smiley]

That's right.

[Jess Hilarious]

And we just don't. We don't do that.

[Ricky Smiley]

I wanna talk about some of the revolutionary stuff I feel like you've done in radio. I feel like this nation.

[Jess Hilarious]

Oh, man.

[Ricky Smiley]

You know what I'm saying? We had never seen that before. And I mean, you know, as a radio head, to see radio personalities on TV in that era, that felt like watching Howard when Howard did it on E. Right. So that was a revolutionary thing. And also making the move to urban ac.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah.

[Ricky Smiley]

Like, knowing when it was. I don't know if you knew it was time or like, how'd that happen?

[Jess Hilarious]

It just happened perfectly. We, you know, we was on the hip hop stations and it was great, but we was getting older. You know, I'm in. I'm almost 50, Brett. You know, we all in our 40s or whatever. We ain't got no business playing certain stuff because we just going. You going to naturally age. You just can't. You just can't. Can't be on the radio. We don't even know who some of the. Some of the. We didn't know who some of the rappers are that we playing. Like, who is this now, Brett? Brad, the first female rapper to sell over a million. She like, who you got the backsell of song this? Who we looking over the top of our glasses.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Which I used to make it funny that I used to watch y'all. It would be funny.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, but. But we just naturally got old. And then when Tom Joyner retired, they just slid us over and. And now we. We playing R B songs. And now it's just relaxing in the morning. We just. We chill.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Whose idea was it to throw Portia or to get Portia on the show on Dis Nation? Yeah, I think that was so good.

[Jess Hilarious]

Well, Portia, she would fill in for Brat.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Okay.

[Jess Hilarious]

Portia came, did a great job, and she would fill in for Brad. And then they say, hey, you want to do Dish Nation? So anybody came in and filled in the. The producer and say, hey, we can get you some makeup right quick. Can you do Dis Nation? Here's the script. And it's nothing. It's just reading the teleprompter and talk about what we have already talked about on the radio. Then we were doing Dis Nation while we was on. On the air. So doing commercial breaks, we would shoot a scene from Dis Nation.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Wow.

[Ricky Smiley]

Oh, I don't know why I thought that was the show.

[DJ Envy]

Yeah, I thought it was a show.

[Peter Tilden]

Yeah.

[Ricky Smiley]

I thought it was a Cooks of y'all show.

[Jess Hilarious]

Oh, man, we was doing. We was. When we first started, we was in that damn same room for six hours. We was working our ass off.

[DJ Envy]

And when did you. When, when did you know you wanted to do radio? Because radio was not a job for everybody, Right. People say they love radio, right? And then when they got to get there, an hour before and two hours after and they can't move. And especially with comedians, because you guys are on the road, right? You might not be able to go on the road some days. So when did you know that? I'm gonna stay with this, man.

[Jess Hilarious]

I used to listen to these two white dudes named Mark and Brian. You remember Mark and Brian Charlemagne. They big in la.

[Ricky Smiley]

Mark and Brian.

[Jess Hilarious]

Mark and Brian, they had this big ass morning show, but they came from Birmingham. These are the first dudes I used to hear doing characters. And they did some prank phone calls, too. So I used to listen to Mark and Brian in high school. They went to LA and became famous. Famous. But they came from Birmingham. And I was like, y'all don't listen to white dudes on kicks. 106, you know, because that's how I got into soft rock. That's why I'm sitting up here listening to Fleetwood Mac and the Eagles and Stilly Dan. You know, I'd be on some chill stuff. You have to listen to that stuff, you know? But I was crazy about radio and I. I wanted to do it. And I'm gonna tell y'all something. I drove when they put up the new station, Hip Hop station in Birmingham, 95.7jam. You know Deja? Yeah, Deja came from our radio station.

[Ricky Smiley]

Wow.

[Jess Hilarious]

Deja came from my radio.

[DJ Envy]

She used to be up here. Yeah, she used to be up here. She's on WBLS now, right?

[Ricky Smiley]

No, you talking about another day. You think about deja vu.

[DJ Envy]

Deja vu. That's awesome.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, she's on with Kelly, that TV show. Whatever.

[Ricky Smiley]

Kelly and used to be Ryan and Kelly, right?

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, she's on that. And then Roy Wood Jr. Came from. We all come from WBHJ95.7 jam. I drove 60 miles every morning just for the opportunity to be on the radio. And I got paid nothing. I Was hungry and I wanted to. Steve used to tell me, hey, get on the radio that keep your name out there and keep your brand out there. So now Charlamagne. I do my comedy shows during the week. I don't do comedy clubs on weekends. So I do a show. I just go do a 7 o'clock show at an improv and I do the improv Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. That's my four shows. And get it in like that. I'm in bed at 9:00, show start at 7.

[Ricky Smiley]

That's right.

[Jess Hilarious]

I'm back at the hotel, sleep and. And I have my weekends off at 7.

[DJ Envy]

No, no, you said the show starts at 5.

[Ricky Smiley]

Deja. When you said. I don't know why I thought of Egypt, but deja vu. She is. She. She used to be Earthquake co host on, on bls.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, at one point with a short haircut.

[Ricky Smiley]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. She DJ on, right. Kelly and whatever. Kelly who's on there now? Kelly and Ryan.

[DJ Envy]

It should be Brian and Kelly.

[Ricky Smiley]

I think Orion left to do Wheel of Fortune.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So yeah, man, we, we had a. That was a great station. We won. Took down the number one station and, and just doing good radio morning show boot camp, learning about breaks and timing and all that stuff. I take radio serious, man. Show prep, air checks, you know, listening to yourself, playing it back like I take it serious. And if you're not serious about, about.

[DJ Envy]

That's a lost thought. Yeah, that is a lost thought. Doing radio the proper way.

[Jess Hilarious]

Absolutely.

[DJ Envy]

Air checks, knowing when to go into breaks, teasing, looking at clocks. That is a lost art.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, you better hit that 53. You better be out. You know about that 53.

[Ricky Smiley]

What do you love more, stand up or radio?

[Jess Hilarious]

Oh, God damn. That's a good question. Radio don't give you butterflies. Radio is just sitting here like right now. I'm comfortable, it's cool or whatever. Stand up gives you a little bit of anxiety because you got to perform. You got to go out there. People paid money to see you perform. But my stand up is, has been great. I'm. I'm probably funnier than I've ever been. I got a special coming out. We in negotiation with Kevin Hart right now to release the comedy special. Oh yeah. I haven't done a comedy special in like 12 years, but it's funny as hell. It's probably my Dave Talbert. He directed it. Him and his wife Lynn, they directed it. It looked good. It's gonna be funny. It's gonna be all over the place.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Recently shot stuff.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, just recently shot it.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Okay.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah. Paid for it myself. And I just went on stage and killed their ass. So I'm. I'm really excited about that.

[Lauren LaRosa]

And what made you. I mean, Kevin Hart's Kevin Hart, but a lot of people go to Netflix too. Like, how did you decide where you were gonna, who was gonna house it?

[Jess Hilarious]

Well, we're gonna. We're gonna see, we in negotiation now because I just did an interview with Kevin Hart and he asked me about this. I was like, I just shot one. I said, you wanna. You wanna present it?

[Lauren LaRosa]

Okay. So you never started.

[Jess Hilarious]

Started that? Yeah, yeah. He's a good friend of mine. I absolutely love him.

[Ricky Smiley]

Great dude.

[Jess Hilarious]

Oh, great dude. Kevin man, Jamie Foxx, all of them have been good to me my whole career. I didn't know Eddie Murphy was a fan. I met Eddie Murphy at his house or whatever. Went over there one day. I had a meeting with Tracy Edmonds, I think they were dating at the time. And she said, ed, play your prank phone calls around. I was like, you lying? Are you serious? And I ended up going over there and there was some comics over there, and we had barbecue chicken, collard greens, cornbread, macaroni and cheese. It was like, we had some real soul food. And that was my first time meeting Eddie Murphy, man. That was. That was a pleasure. So that when you get to do stuff like that, and I'm on tour with Martin Lawrence right now, so that's my big brother.

[Ricky Smiley]

So the funny thing is you talk like you not wanted you not one of them conversation.

[Jess Hilarious]

I'm just. Just humble, man. I'm still, like. I kind of still feel like I'm kind of like, just still young and in the game, because I feel young and in the game. And I. I know I'm a little older and stuff and trying to coach younger comics. And I just kind of sit back and not try to do too much, but I just try to make sure when I do do something that is special and that is awesome and that is funny. And my karaoke nights be sold out. My karaoke. I sell. My karaoke nights sell out faster than my comedy shows. My co host has down syndrome. My co host, Big Chris, has Down syndrome. And he is the funniest damn person. If you look at my. Huh?

[Ricky Smiley]

You can see.

[Lauren LaRosa]

No, I was sitting here trying not to laugh. I was gonna ask you, like, it's okay. Can we laugh?

[DJ Envy]

Stupid.

[Ricky Smiley]

You can see it.

[Jess Hilarious]

Look, all you have to do is. All you have to do is look up Ricky Smiley.

[Lauren LaRosa]

I'm Looking it up.

[Jess Hilarious]

And Big Chris, karaoke night.

[Lauren LaRosa]

And that was. It was the.

[Jess Hilarious]

And he know all the songs. He get up there, he's saying, you can't get him on stage. I said, hey, Chris, you're not getting paid. You need to chill. He said, okay. To calm him down. I know how that.

[DJ Envy]

Where did that idea come about? Like, how did that.

[Jess Hilarious]

How did that idea happen?

[Lauren LaRosa]

Ricky Smiley and Big Chris.

[Jess Hilarious]

You so messy.

[Ricky Smiley]

Big Chris not even what songs he be doing, man.

[Lauren LaRosa]

What you made him sing.

[Ricky Smiley]

He ever did. Nelly, Country Grandma, I'm going.

[Jess Hilarious]

You really.

[Nissan Voiceover]

You.

[Jess Hilarious]

You really going to hell. I can't.

[Ricky Smiley]

You see me, Chris?

[Lauren LaRosa]

You see me Chris?

[Jess Hilarious]

He told go on camera. I have a.

[Lauren LaRosa]

This is Big Chris.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah.

[Ricky Smiley]

I ain't never seen Big Chris Chris doing his thing, man.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, that's my call.

[DJ Envy]

You pay Big Chris, though, huh?

[Lauren LaRosa]

You better pay Big Chris.

[Ricky Smiley]

He thought he only make down payments. Really?

[Jess Hilarious]

Going to hell, yeah.

[Ricky Smiley]

Oh, man.

[Jess Hilarious]

Funny as hell. So. So he like to bring ladies on stage and sit them in a chair and play a R. Kelly song, and he serenade them like the Kappas or something.

[Ricky Smiley]

Oh, I gotta say, R. Kelly down syndrome.

[Lauren LaRosa]

R. Kelly down syndrome. All on one stage.

[Jess Hilarious]

You just got to watch the audience out. I take him on the road with me. We do. We do the improv in full lot of. In Dania Beach. Sell it out.

[Lauren LaRosa]

He has a set by itself. Oh, okay.

[Jess Hilarious]

He just. I bring him on stage in the middle of karaoke, and I have to keep. Have to set boundaries for him. And he love y'all. Oh. Oh, he love y'all. He watch y'all all the time. He always. He got his phone I bought him.

[Ricky Smiley]

Salute to Chris, man.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah. He always showing me something that y'all. Hey. Oh, he wants to. Come on.

[Ricky Smiley]

You should have brought him, man. Next time you come back, when I.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Come back, don't bring him up here with him.

[Ricky Smiley]

Oh, I would. Come on now.

[DJ Envy]

You come for the special. Bring him up here.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. So when my special come out, we'll come up here, promote our brain. That'll be my gift to your ass.

[Ricky Smiley]

Cause you ignorant.

[Jess Hilarious]

Because, see, we have the same kind of humor because we laugh at the same kind of.

[DJ Envy]

My goodness.

[Jess Hilarious]

Chris took me to the cemetery. I think he had a cousin, and I. And this particular cemetery, you go there, you have to follow this red line. It's in Birmingham. We followed the red line. He was at the grave, crying. And I looked up at a tombstone. It was Paul Bear Bryant was a former head coach of Alabama back in the 70s. I said. And I didn't tell him. See, you ain't shit.

[Lauren LaRosa]

You fucked me up when you said he took you to the cemetery.

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah. Somebody had died and we was at the wrong grade. But I just let him. Let him. I didn't want to tell him that we was at. At Paul Bell, Bryant Gray. So I had to get him back to the car, got him something to eat and take him home.

[DJ Envy]

Ricky Smiley, ladies and gentlemen.

[Ricky Smiley]

Grief is grief, man. He got it out either way. Either way. Chris got it out. Pick up his book.

[DJ Envy]

Side show is out right now.

[Ricky Smiley]

Oh, my God.

[DJ Envy]

We appreciate you for joining us, brother. And don't be a stranger, man. You could come up here anytime. You tell we don't play those radio politics. So we want you to come look.

[Jess Hilarious]

If y'all ever in Miami. I have a boat. I'm a boat captain. I go to the Bahamas every weekend in the summer. I dare you to take a weekend off and with me. True.

[Ricky Smiley]

Let's do it.

[DJ Envy]

Say no more.

[Lauren LaRosa]

I'm down for that.

[Jess Hilarious]

I dare.

[DJ Envy]

We broadcast on the boat.

[Jess Hilarious]

You ask anybody. Ask Jeff Johnson. Ask David Talbert. We go. I drive all the way across the ocean to Bimini. Bahamas is only 55 miles off the coast of Fort Lauderdale. And I drive my boat. We go all the way to the Bahamas. I have a house that I rent. You are more than welcome. If you just get the full out of there. You don't have to worry about. I got you.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Chris be there too. Set the boundaries on the boat.

[Jess Hilarious]

Y'all up? Y'all ready?

[DJ Envy]

Chris is single. She might try to holler.

[Jess Hilarious]

You know what. Do you see what I had him to do on the front of the boat? See? Hold on.

[Ricky Smiley]

I hope you ain't had him like a phantom emblem or something.

[Jess Hilarious]

You f to scream, bro. Let me, let me, let me.

[DJ Envy]

Don't show us no pictures. You're not supposed to see.

[Lauren LaRosa]

This is Instagram or Tik tok.

[Jess Hilarious]

Uhuh. Tik tok. Let me see. Okay, here it come. It's just slow, cuz I don't. I couldn't get. Figure out that wi fi. All right, here we go. Here we go. You in the screen when you see crystal. I don't have these. Okay, here we go. Here we go. When I tell you, you're gonna follow Dale when you see this video. If I can get to it. Where is it?

[DJ Envy]

It's gonna be a meme or uncle on social media.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Yeah. Cause he been saying, here we go.

[Jess Hilarious]

Here we go.

[Lauren LaRosa]

It's coming.

[Jess Hilarious]

You ready? Oh, God. I'M ready. I'm watching. I'm watching. I'm watching, I'm watching. Ready?

[Ricky Smiley]

We gotta put this in the video, man. Cut it out, man.

[Lauren LaRosa]

I can't laugh at that.

[Ricky Smiley]

Cut it out.

[Lauren LaRosa]

I cannot laugh at that. Is somebody holding him? That is not funny, man.

[Ricky Smiley]

Cut it out, man.

[Jess Hilarious]

Looked a bit crazy.

[Ricky Smiley]

He got like the Phantom. You know when to think about the Phantom. What's that called? Interview. The Phantom 1.

[DJ Envy]

The Rolls Royce emblem.

[Ricky Smiley]

He got like a phantom.

[DJ Envy]

It's the spirit of ecstasy.

[Jess Hilarious]

Satanic man.

[Ricky Smiley]

Man, you stupid man. With the spirit.

[DJ Envy]

E. That's not the Spirit.

[Ricky Smiley]

Ladies and.

[DJ Envy]

Gentlemen, it's Ricky Smiley. Bring Big Chris up here because she is single and she. She's looking.

[Lauren LaRosa]

You surprised, right?

[Jess Hilarious]

Yeah. How old are you?

[Lauren LaRosa]

32.

[Jess Hilarious]

Damn.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Oh, that went over my head. It was still seven. You right, Big Chris. Back to Big Chris.

[Ricky Smiley]

You better take Big Chris.

[Jess Hilarious]

I saw some video. Somebody was trying to get at you. Who was there trying to get at you? I watched that.

[Ricky Smiley]

The baby. Was it the baby? Marlo? Wayne?

[Jess Hilarious]

No, the baby. That's the baby. Yeah.

[Ricky Smiley]

Yeah.

[Jess Hilarious]

That didn't work out.

[Lauren LaRosa]

Work out. It didn't go past the interview. Where was it going? Not you. Sit back down.

[Jess Hilarious]

Put your number on my phone.

[Ricky Smiley]

Ricky Smarty Sideshow side show is out.

[DJ Envy]

Right now and it's the Breakfast Club. Good morning.

[Ricky Smiley]

Wake that ass up early in the morning.

[Jess Hilarious]

The Breakfast Club.

[Ricky Smiley]

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[DJ Envy]

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[Peter Tilden]

I'm Jason Alexander. And I'm Peter Tilden and together our.

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