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The Breakfast Club
Best Off Full Show: Cast Of Harlem Interview, Trump Signing Executive Orders Topic, Chloe Bailey, Derrick Johnson & Scott Mills Interview + More
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DJ Envy
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It's about creating a path that impacts our community and future generations. Whether you're starting out or making big moves, State Farm is here to support you with resources to help protect what you're working hard to achieve. They've got your back every step of the way. Because like a good neighbor, State Farm is there. Find out more@state farm.com Catch Jon Stewart back in action on the Daily show and in your ears with the Daily Show Ears Edition podcast. From his hilarious satirical takes on today's politics and entertainment to the unique voices of correspondents and contributors, it's your perfect companion to stay on top of what's happening now. Plus, you'll get special content just for podcast listeners, like in depth interviews and a roundup of the week's top headlines. Listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey man, what are you into? I have the hookup. The hookup? The hookup for what? I'm solving a mystery through sex and haven't made a private dick joke until now. Poppers? Why are there so many poppers? All roads lead to the hookup. You think it's causing people to turn aggro? I'm gonna rip your arms off and use them to. Yeah, that's a word for it. Listen to the hookup on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Morning show For God's sake. DJ Envy, better known as the People's Choice. Then salute to all my light skinned brothers out there. Jess. Hilarious. Just for the worldwide best, do no L and Charlemagne the Dog. Everybody come to the Breakfast Club. I call this the Hot Seat Breakfast Club. It's like being on America's front porch. Don't feel like my wrist cousins. I never thought to me, every time I go to the Breakfast Club, I know it's going to be like a good morning. I'm getting out. It's a new day. This is your time to get it off your chest. Wait. Wake up. Whether you're mad or blessed, it's time to get up and get something. Call up now. 800-585-1051. We want to hear from you on the Breakfast Club. Hello? Who's this? Oh, my gosh. Did I get through? Oh, my God. Who's this? Oh, my gosh. This is Amanda from Virginia. Virginia 757. What up, Amanda? Get it off your chest. Okay, so, like, I just quit my teaching job. I'm gonna try not to cry. It was something really hard for me to. To give up and everything after six years. And I'm scared right now because I have no idea what I'm supposed to do or anything like that. And I just turned 28, and I feel like I'm failing at life. So I need some advice. You are not failing at life, man. You know, one of my affirmations this morning was embrace everything that happens to you. And, you know, being that you 28, you'll realize this as you get older. Everything is just part of a process. You got to trust your instincts. Your instincts told you that you didn't want to teach no more. Right? Right. So badly. Like, I was having panic attacks and everything. It's just teaching is not what it used to be at all. And so I love the kids, used to love the profession, but I just felt so undervalued and unappreciated. Like, it was just. It was hard. So right now I'm up because I'm about to go instacarting. Hopefully I'll make a little something until I figure things out, so. And I think that's what you should do. My mom is a public school teacher. I was a public school teacher, so I understand. I think that y'all are very underpaid, undervalued, and underappreciated. So thank you for your services. A teacher. But now you just got to pray and see where God is going to lead you next, because he's. He's. God is definitely telling you that you should be doing something else. You just gotta. You probably already know what it is. You probably just scared to do it right now. Right? Yeah. You already know what it is, don't you? You Said what? Can I put my cash app out there too? Maybe somebody can help me out. That's not what. That is not. That is not what God. I'm sorry for laughing. God told me to put the cash app. I ain't scared no more. Listening to you Charlamagne. What else God got for you? Tell me what else God is telling you to do before we get to the cash app to go instacarting this morning. Honestly, I'm up super early, so that's all I got at the moment. One step at a time. Go ahead then. Go ahead. Go ahead with your cash app. I'd rather cash app than onlyfans. Go ahead, mama. There you go. See? See? All right. It's dollar sign Amanda. Capital. A M A N d n, I c 9, 6. Hold on now. Say it again. A M A N, D A. Yes. N I C 96. And I see. Nice. Oh, Amanda. Nick. Nine, six. Amanda Chandler. That's you. Yeah. You look like a school teacher. No. You gonna put something in her cash app? Yeah, I just sent her a little. Oh, there you go. I love school teachers, man. I think school, like I said, I think y'all are undervalued and underappreciated and we trust our kids with y'all every day. And we live in a messed up society because y'all should be making six figures a year just because of what y'all gotta deal with, to be honest with you. So, yeah, hard. It's hard out here now. You know, I want to go into the mental health doing a complete career switch. So I'm just hoping it all works out. I'm pray on it and thank you guys. And I really appreciate you guys taking my call. I listen to you guys every morning. I appreciate it. You got what I sent you and said it went through. Yes, it did. Thank you so much. I appreciate it. All right, no problem. Have a good one. Get it off your chest. 800-585-1051. If you need to vent, phone lines are wide open. It's the Breakfast Club. Good morning, the Breakfast Club. This is your time to get it off your chest, whether you're mad or blessed, so you better have the same energy. We want to hear from you on the Breakfast Club. Hello? Who's this? Good morning, this is Adrina. Hey, Adrena. Get it off your chest, Mama. I'm a little nervous, but I really want people to reach out to your friends and family, check on them to make sure that they are okay. It's been almost eight months since I lost my soulmate to suicide. And when he committed suicide, we was on a break, but we were still very much in communication with each other. But I knew something was wrong, and my gut told me to go check, but my head said, no, don't do it. And had I listened to my gut, I would have known something was wrong and could have been able to help. Also with women and their children, when you have a man that wants to be in the lives of their kids, you shouldn't use the child as a pawn to get back, because no one never, ever thought that he would commit suicide because of what was happening with his children. So I just want people to just be aware of those things. Absolutely. Yes, ma'am. Well, definitely sending you healing energy queen. Yes, thank you. Absolutely. All right, mama. Have a blessed day. You guys do the same. Jesus, very heavy this morning. Crack a joke or something, Jess? Lord have mercy. You got some money? Hello? Who's this? Hello, this is Blind Tommy. What's up, Blind Tommy? Get it off your chest. How y'all doing, man? I'm mad cause I'm. Cause I'm a blind, broke comedian, so. See, you gotta pick one. Now, which one you mad about? Being blind, being broke, or being a comedian? All three. Well, you should learn to see the bright side. Damn it. How you know you're broke? How you know people not just stealing your money? I ain't got nobody to steal. Damn. I think. I think you might be looking at this wrong. Were you born blind? Look at it. You can only look at it one way. I was blind five years ago. Oh, okay. Okay, so. Oh, you are newly blind. You don't count. Damn. How'd you get blind, sir? So funk has gotten my system, and they attacked my optic nerves. Damn. Sorry to hear that, bro. Have you. Have you learned any new skills? Have anything. Has anything else? Scrimping a little bit, but not that. Too much. Got you. Got you. Well, how can we help you this morning, brother? What can we do for you? Whatever. We'll see what we can do. Whatever it is. You know how people ask y'all for books? Shut up, man. Can I get a book deal? Man? Can't work for you. You want a book deal? Yeah. I'm be honest with you. I'm interested in the story. I can't sit here and act like I wouldn't want to hear more of the story. What if you're talking about Braille books? Well, you want to write on Twitter. I hate this place this morning. I hate this place. Eddie, get. Get my guys Information. I'm interested in hearing the story. I want to see if it might be a story there. You never know. Yeah. All right. Hold on, Tommy. Okay. Hold on, Tommy. Get it off your chest. 800-585-1051. If you need to vent, hit us up now. It's the Breakfast Club. Good morning, the Breakfast Club. Morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy. Just hilarious. Charlemagne, the guy. We are the Breakfast Club. We got some special guests in the building. Yes, indeed. We have the cast of Harlem. Did I say your name? Jerry Johnson and Tyler Lepley. Welcome. How y'all feeling this morning? Tired. Phenomenal. Amazing. Feels so good. How many of y'all live in la? I want to make sure everybody house is good stuff like that. Thank you. Appreciate that. Okay. Okay. Let's get right into it. Harlem is back. January 23rd on Amazon Prime. But sadly, they say this is the last season. Why? So many people watch it? So many people are into it. How do they just do it like that? Ask Amazon prime or Universal. We're really, really sad, and I think, like, everybody's super sad because we had so much story to tell. And so, like, if we did have more seasons, this would have. The stories would have been so good. But they did such an amazing job truncating it, bringing it down into this final season. I think everybody's gonna be happy, and hopefully we get a movie. Okay. Period movie. Did y'all know it was gonna be the final season when y'all started taping? Did you know that already, or did y'all find out halfway through? No, not halfway through. I think I found out a little late, but sometimes I'm in my own world. But I found out the day of the reading, as we were reading it. Now, going into knowing that it was the last season. Are you saying when we were reading it? No, before. Before I knew, but I hadn't read the last season. I thought they were saving the last two episodes, so I didn't know, you know? And then as we were reading it, I was like, oh, no, this is it. But y'all been doing a lot on the side as well. Y'all been engaged. I know y'all been having babies. Y'all been putting out music, living life, children's books. Like, y'all been doing this. Yeah, it's true. It's true. Yeah. So how are y'all doing all of that on the side as well as taping the show? You know what's interesting is that as we've been taping the show, because we started what Year do we start? 20. 20. Okay, 2020. And then we got, like, maybe three episodes in. Then Covid happened, Then we took a break. Then we came back. Then we had a year off. Then we went through the strike and all these different things. But during the duration of all these things, we were experiencing life. We were having all kinds of life changes and having conversations in between, because not only are we, you know, friends on the show, we're like sisters in real life, but also with Tracy, and then same with Tyler. Like, that's our brother. That's our family, but each one of us were experiencing things that, you know, as Tracy spoke to us, she was like, well, what do you think about this? And what do you think about that? And I know you're on this journey, and, you know, do you mind if I implement this? And all of that? So. So much of it is actually mirrored in the show of what we were experiencing. So it kind of made it seamless in that way. And, you know, you have a specific story about that, but, yeah, just everything. It just. It feels like it was a part of our actual real lives. So what's your story with that? No, so. So we were talking about this, but you know how Quinn goes through her depression journey in season two. I did a lot of research on depression because it wasn't something I was personally dealing with at the time, but I wanted to reflect it in a very honest way. So went through that, did that research, and then I had the baby, and then I was diagnosed with severe postpartum depression. So even when I came on the show the last time, I was in the depths of that, didn't really realize the impact and how that affected me until I started to kind of climb out of that. Right. Going through that journey with Quinn, it gave me a space, and I call it my help journal, like a reflective journal to look back on and say, oh, like, this was. This was the way in which it was showing up for Quinn. I didn't realize that postpartum depression can show up as fatigue, as overwhelm. We know about the sadness. We know about all that stuff, but these are some of the ways the mood swings. Didn't know that that was a part of those things. And so being able to play that and reflect that in Quinn gave me almost like a map that I could go, okay, Grace, like, this is how you can navigate this. Did work help or hurt? Did it make it worse? No, it helped because it actually gave me an enlighten. Right. Like, oh, this is what it could look like. This is what. And so even though I was. I was doing it for Quinn, you know, I felt it on a. On a different nuanced level when I was actually going through it myself. Gotcha. How are y'all juggling the schedules, though, like, now? Because it's still. It is. It's like y'all personally flourishing in business. Y'all flourishing. How can y'all? Because I know that the schedules. I mean, I know y'all said it's been, like, two years since y'all did this, but now y'all all got individually, a lot going on, too. How can y'all still. Like, how y'all juggling schedules? We gonna start with Shaniqua on that one because she just got a single. You know, I thrive when I'm busy. I really do. I like the structure of figuring out my schedule. I become more detail oriented when I have a lot of things to focus on. And I was very intentional about dropping Feel My Love, my new single after ending season two with a engagement or proposal. And so I wanted to, like, bal and have that come out at the same time as the show because I knew a lot of Harlem fans would be paying attention, but also just to, like, you know, maybe troll a little bit or make them question whether Angie would actually end up in this relationship. Because we don't get a yes or a no at the end of the season two. Okay. Strategy can be anything. You know, we trying to have a rollout. Megan, you referred to them as your sisters and your brothers. Does that happen naturally? Because a lot of times, you know, people want to keep things business. So does that just happen naturally to this bond? It happened completely organically, like, from the beginning, from day one. If I start with Shanique, well, like, we were on FaceTime a few years prior, and I had never met her before. And we just spoke and we talked about, like, you know what? One day we're gonna do a show together, and we touched and agreed on the camera of the FaceTime. And then, literally, years later, here we are both walking in, we're both testing, and we're in the bathroom, and she's like, do you remember me? I was like, from there. And she told me, and I was like, wait, what? And then we ended up praying and crying in the bathroom. And, you know, there's that. And then literally, with Tyler, it was just immediate. Like, just family and just easy and organic. Same thing with Jerry. It was like, oh, like, I've known her forever. Like, I'm. You know. And then with Grace, I called Her, I was like, girl, I'm getting. She was like, don't tell me you get ready to come in for Camille. We were friends. Yeah. Like, for years before that. So that was exciting. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Is that the norm on sex? No, it isn't always like that. Okay. And then you also, you know, when it. When it's going to be for women, you just never know what you're going to get. You hope that that is the. But, you know, and we had talked about this a few years prior, saying how it would be great if we got an opportunity to work on a show together. So when I called her and she was like, I can't believe I'm so excited. It was like, you just knew that God was in it. And I have to say, for me, this has been the best professional experience that I've had in my entire career. Wow. You know. You know, in a way, it's the end of a chapter, but it's exciting because the way that we end the chapter, we're really, really proud of. And I think the audience is going to get everything that they want to get. But also I think that we got what we want to get outside of having a movie additionally. But. But it's better, I think, to. To move this way where it's. You know, you didn't stay for too long, but you gave everyone exactly what they wanted and needed. And I want to give Megan her props, too, because she was a great leader in setting the culture of. Of our set. And everybody who has come and guest starred, they've had a really great time. But we learned from Megan, from Grace, like it Trul. Fun time. But also, we have decided. We decided early on that we were going to stick together throughout this situation. So nobody could say, well, you know, this person was a difficult one, or this person was this one or this. Because if there was a problem, we all have the problem. If there was it, we all have it. And we're on the zoom calls or whatever, and you won't know where the source is, because we didn't want it to be like somebody was pinpointed or somebody is this one's person. And we promised each other that if somebody says something to one of us about the other one, we not just gonna take it at face value. We coming to the source and saying, hey, did this really happen? That's my evidence. People do like to, like, separate women and pin women against each other. And so I think it was really important for us to. And this is my second show. I mean, I Was like six months out of grad school, and I booked this show, and first time being the lead in something and then to get to do it like this, which is, for me, my manifestation, and to be like, oh, wait, no, actually, for me, this can be the norm of the experience, and y'all set the tone for that. So I thank you for being. All right, we have more with the cast of Harlem here. Megan Good, Tyler Lepley, Grace Bias, Shaniqua Shanda, and Jerry Johnson. When we come back, it's the Breakfast Club. Good morning, the Breakfast Club. Morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy. Just hilarious. Charlamagne, the God. We are the Breakfast Club. We're still kicking in with the cast of Harlem. Megan Good, Tyler Lepley, Grace Byers, Shaniqua Shandai, and Jerry Johnson. Charlemagne. Does acting allow y'all to just escape? When you're dealing with all of these personal things now, you can just go be somebody else for a few hours. It allows you to work through things, you know, past traumas, certain experiences. Rather, it's childhood. I mean, whatever it may be, it allows you to have a place to put it to good use and for it to be something that someone else can watch or see and take from it and go, okay. That made me feel not alone or that made me feel seen or understood. So I think, in a way, it's therapeutic. I don't know if it really allows us to escape. I get to each his own. I think escape gets a little dangerous. So do y'all allow yourselves to lose yourself in a row or you don't. You don't. Can't go to. You can't. Because that's. I think the. If we think about, like, some of our greats that have lost themselves and then we lost them, I think Heath Ledger. I was going to say that. Yeah. It's like when you go there, if you don't know how to unzip that character and step out in order to go home and not have that energy in your home, it gets crazy. But also, the body doesn't know the difference sometimes. So when you go. When you're going deep into a character and you're not doing those things where you are separating when you get home, your body don't know the difference. So if my character is going crazy, if I'm playing the joker and I'm really in there and I'm taking the joker home with me, my body don't know that I'm not the joker if I believe it enough. And so sometimes, you know, it's good to be like, all right, I'm gonna give a cap on this. Like, if I really gotta go there, I'm gonna go there for the six months I gotta go there. But I'm already planning all the things I need to plan. So that day I'm done. It's already set up for me to release this. Whether I'm going to the ocean, whether I'm wherever I am, whether all of my friends come to my house to remind me of who I am, I have to have something that reality sets me back to who I am or it's not gonna be. It's gonna be on my spirit and it's not gonna be good for me. Well then, speaking of then, Jerry, where's Ty's head at after she found out she smashed a mother and a daughter? Can she just go back from real life to back? She gotta jump back into being? Yes. That's crazy. That's crazy. You know, to find out something like that is like, how do you even deal with that? And I think Ty decides. Cause what does Ty really want? You know, she poly. She's single, open, like, even though Jerry is poly, but she's loved a bitch. Listen, right. Even though Jerry is poly. I wouldn't describe Ty as poly. I think Tyler was really wanting something, but also probably in that moment being greedy because she was wanting something but having something else. And I think sometimes if my intention is commitment, then I have to go towards what that intention is. And if it's commitment towards one person and I'm letting my energy fly, of course I might end up with a daughter. I knew what was going on and I was like, sick. Grace, how has motherhood changed you? I think what I did not expect was that I was fully prepared to be like, I'm ready to learn everything I can about motherhood and my child. I did not anticipate that I was going to also go on a journey to learn about myself. And so I had to face things about myself in order to ensure his well being. Right. So I had to go back to my own childhood, go back to the things that, you know, that I didn't realize that I was like holding on to or dealing with or like simple things like, you know, like being. Being a recovering people pleaser. I can't do that with my child. I will be so depleted. I will not show up as the mother that I need to be. So how do I then organize in my mind? Like, how do I prioritize myself? For real? For real. Yeah. You know, so like, things like that, that I didn't expect that are really changing my life. Wow. Are these moments bittersweet, knowing that, you know, it's going to be the last time y'all probably do interviews together and things of that nature? Yeah, they said they. They talk about movie. They manifested movie. So the last time we need a petition, even if it's not this, I. Y'all could do something else, y'all. Cuz y'all are so grounded. Even as just outside the cast, just hearing y'all speak like, yo, like, even from the last interview that we had with you, like, so much growth, like, not saying that you. You know. Oh, yeah. So I was. I was last time, right? No, y'all about to do that, y'all. She said, yeah, yeah. Well, not that, but y'all are just. Just. I don't know. It just. It's zenful, it's tranquility. This is a whole bunch. It's. Y'all are very grounded as a cast, so thank you. I appreciate it. I look forward to saying anything else. Not even don't have to be Harlem or just, you know, y'all can write your own movie. I can direct it. We can just get it. Well, listen, we love you guys. Like, we really appreciate it. And even. Just, like, you know, to all of us before, you know, as we saying goodbye, I feel like one of the biggest, you know, reasons it's not a sad goodbye is, like, for a multitude of things, like, hey, we have a. You know, we have a great beginning, middle, and now, you know, we knew our. And we knew we were landing at. So, like, that's a beautiful thing. But then on the flip side, off of the script, you know, because of the way we was able to come together as family. Like, I feel like this is a. You know, a lot of times when we say goodbye to people, it's like a sad goodbye, you know what I'm saying? But it's like, I really feel like this is a. You know, this is the opposite. It's almost like a happy goodbye. You know what I'm saying? When we say goodbye, it's almost like we raising the trophy up, you know what I'm saying? So it's like, when I do. Yeah, it's on a good note. So when I think back about these times, it's not really going to be a sad thing. You know, we're able to experience together, share it with the world and close the book at the right time. Well, Shaniqua, you tell them we not leaving like, that. We Leaving with your single. So we gonna play your record. We gonna play your record. We gonna play your record. But before we play your record. Ms. Grace, I felt the God in you this morning. Yes. We gonna say a prayer before we get up out of here. Do you want me to say the prayer? I'm not saying it. Please. God is good. God is great. Thank you for the food we eat. So I'm gonna let you do this prayer on the table. He do that. All right, let's do it. Thank you. Dear heavenly Father, thank you so much for this time together. Lord, we ask that you bless the Breakfast Club. Lord, we ask that you bless their minds, our hearts, their words, their father. Thank you. The world is constantly changing. It's up to you to decide how to respond. Choose to be bold. Try something new. Choose to reinvent yourself. That's what Nissan did with the all new, totally reimagined Kicks. The dynamic new exterior styling immediately announces that Nissan isn't messing around. The interior, a completely redesigned cabin with premium features like wireless Apple CarPlay and a panoramic moonroof makes driving a Kicks immersive and exciting. And with new performance and safety features like intelligent all wheel drive, the Kicks is both more fun and safer to drive than ever before. It's the dawning of a brand new era for the Nissan Kicks. Only one question remains. Is it a new era for you as well? Drive the all new reimagined Nissan Kicks today available feature. Bose is a registered trademark of the Bose Corporation. Nissan safety Shield technologies can't prevent all collisions or worn in all situations. See Owner's manual for important safety information. AT&T has a new guarantee. Because most things in life are not guaranteed. Like actually getting the rental car you requested or your wedding turning out just like you dreamed it would. And someone making another pot of coffee in the break room after drinking the last drop of the last. Yeah, don't get me started. Not guaranteed. In a world where Nothing is guaranteed, AT&T is bringing something new to the table. AT&T is introducing a guarantee with connectivity you depend on, deals you want and service you deserve. Or they make it right. So if you want to know more about the AT&T guarantee, head to att.com guarantee AT&T connecting changes everything. Terms and conditions apply. Visit att.comguaranty for details. Do you remember what you said the first night I came over here? Ow goes lower. I met Santi at a luau party in October. I'm Santi Damian. Oh, it was bizarre. The guy just disappeared. One day. Santi has been missing ever since the hookup. What is that? I'm solving a mystery through sex and haven't made a private dick joke until now. Like, no matter how hard I try, all roads lead to the hookup. You think it's causing people to turn aggro? I'm gonna rip your arms off and use them to. Yeah, that's a word for it. This is such terrible representation. I'm so sorry. Poppers. These aren't just any poppers. Mama always used to say God gave me gumption in place of a gag reflex. No, but my psychiatrist didn't laugh at that one either. Listen to the hookup on the I Heart Heart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Hi, I'm Arturo Castro, and I've been lucky enough to do stuff like Broad City and Narcos and Roadhouse and so many commercials about back pain. And now I'm starting a podcast because, honestly, guys, I don't feel the space is crowded enough. Get ready for Greatest Escapes, a new comedy podcast about the wildest true escape stories in history. Each week, I'll be sitting down with some of the most hilarious actors and writers and comedians to tell them a buck wild tale from across history and time. People like Ed Helms, Diane Guerrero, Joseph Gordon Levitt and Zoe Chao. Titanic, Charles Manson, Alcatraz, Assata Shakur, the sketchy guy named Steve. It's giving funny true crime. I love storytelling and I love you, so I can't wait. Listen and subscribe to Greatest escapes on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast for a form like this. Lord, that we're able to galvanize as one, that we're able to come together in truth and honesty, in love, and just celebrate amazing black work. Lord, we are so grateful for this moment, grateful for this time. Dear Father, we ask that you go before us, that you make the crooked path straight. We ask that you continue to uplift us in your spirit. O Lord, let us always stay in your purpose and your will. Lord, we thank you for your love. We thank you for your blessings. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Amen. There you have it. The cast of Harlem, the Breakfast Club. Good morning. Wake up, wake up. You're locked into the Breakfast Club. Good morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy. Just hilarious Charlamagne, the guy. We are the Breakfast Club. Now, if you're just joining us, we're talking about the list of Trump executive orders that affected people from DEI to birthright Citizenship to ice, coming and taking people. Yeah, the mass deportations, the dismantling of dei, you know, the potential federal hiring freeze. I mean, tariffs, you know, and so, you know, we just opening up the phone lines to see how things have impacted people. You know, Jess is already concerned about the price of wigs potentially. Excuse me. No, I'm not. No, I'm not. Okay. It affects my mother and other people who have been in childcare administration. My mom has been taking care of kids, and she has a childhood preschool and has had one for 30 years coming up. And a lot of her money comes from federal government. Federal government, you know, like the food program. She get checks to feed the kids, you know, and then all of her parents, they are using vouchers or scholarship of some sort. You know what I mean? So a potential federal hiring freeze could shut her. Absolutely. Absolutely. And it will. People are already starting to be affected by it, you know, so. And you see the dismantling of DEI programs, you see people losing jobs, you know, when you got these mass deportations, like, I know people who, you know, jobs have got ran up in, you know, I mean, or their parents. Jobs have gotten ran up in, you know, I know family members. I know families who literally have had to leave because, you know, one person in the household was. Was undocumented. And now they gotta go, and the kids gotta go. It's like, it's real out here. Yeah. Yeah. You know, growing up in New York, of course you're surrounded by immigrants, right? You're surrounded by people. You are one. Like, he not wanting the person surrounding. I'm not. I actually was born here. My parents were, too. But you're surrounded by immigrants that, you know, their kids were born here, but their parents not. And now many of my friends and the people that I know, they're fearful that their parents could be, you know, taken back and parents could be, you know, taken by ICE because there's no rules, there's no regulations. They just know that ICE is on the street, grabbing, implementation, immigrants. So people are nervous. People are scared. Are you an anchor baby? My parents were born here, sir. My grandparents were born here, and I was born here, sir. Prove it. Let me see when ICE come and snatch you up. That's gonna be crazy. I'm scared to take my daughter outside. To this day, I'm like, jesus, yes, for real. They might think I'm harboring one of them. Chris. Is Dr. Chris legal, though, right? Yeah, he is. But Molly, she didn't say that. Confident look like she. Nah, see, she More in question than her father. People be like, oh, where you get that baby from? And if I just got her by myself, I look like a nanny. Not. I don't know, it's crazy. But for the people who don't know. Your baby daddy is Mexican. Yes. Yes. Half Mexican. Yes. Half Mexican. His mom, straight, straight up Mexican is full of black, so. And my daughter, she looks straight Mexican, like, oh, my God. I think you should stop saying that. You might get a knock for part. Hello? You stupid. Let's go to the phone line. You might get a knock, Jess. Crazy. I'm scared. Hello? Who's this? This is Dr. Allen. Hey, Dr. Allen. Where you calling from? I'm from 75, but I'm in Indianapolis now. Okay. How have Trump's executive orders impacted you thus far? Absolutely. So I am a director for diversity and culture and inclusion for Engineering Research Center. So through the National Science foundation, they pretty much stopped all of me, my ability to spend money. I built programs like EV programs for high school students. They told me I could not take no more students to Washington, D.C. for. And we had an upcoming conference for them to present their research. I have about $300,000 in funding that I can no longer touch because I work in dei. They told me literally I couldn't spend no money because my proposal said I was working with marginalized students. And that is discrimination by another name when you're saying that I can't work with students because they're from marginalized background. But if it was a white student, I could go ahead and continue with my work. This discrimination by another name. And so I have about, I have another, about $5 million in additional funding that I have sent in there for review that I can't. That property is just going to throw out now. And these are. This is money that's going to our students, our low income students, our underrepresented students, to make sure that we get skills and help our students continue to grow, go to college, get scholarships, and we can no longer touch that money. They are literally trying to prevent us from growing our community and be able to do the things that we need to do, all because they don't want us to be as successful as we could be. And it is very sickening. How do we combat that? How do we combat it? How do we combat it? How can we? Well, a few things that we have to do is we have to put pressure on our elected officials. The Democrats have to be able to stop, get off their fingers and actually do something. This should not be a process for them to be able to discriminate by another man. There should be some type of lawsuit letting them say, hey, you all have not. Does not have not developed any criteria for what to say considered dei. You all are just looking for anything that says black or brown, underrepresented, marginalized, low income, and that is discriminating. There needs to be some folks that are doing something in the legal arena. There needs to be folks that are doing something in the political arena. And we also need to start thinking about how do we make sure that we are not hamstrung the next time one of these oligarchs or somebody comes in and wants to take over power like this. We need to be able to make sure that we are self sufficient, sustainable, and figure out ways in which you can do that. I totally agree, man. You know, the ill part about it is there are, you know, guardrails and tools that Democrats can use. But, you know, we just keep getting all these statements about norms and faith in institutions, bro. Them institutions are done, okay? These people are playing by a different set of rules. They need to figure it out. Let's go to another caller. Hello, who's this? Yo, good morning. They deported him just that fast. His name was. Hello? They're driving off with him right now. Hello, who's this? Hi, good morning. This is Erica calling from Fort Lauderdale. Good morning, Erica. How are you? We're talking about Trump's executive orders. How has it affected you at all? I mean, honestly, you guys, let's be real. Numbers don't. America voted for Trump. I don't understand now, why did everybody so up north about what's going on when they were clearly multiple times over and over? The Biden administration let us know about 20, 25. Nobody didn't care. I don't know. Why is everybody. Ma'am, ma'am, ma'am, you're absolutely right, but what that got to do with his executive orders impacting people? It was expected. It was forthcoming. Yes. There's nothing you can do about it if you voted to him in office. But. But have they impacted you? That's the question. Yo, at this point, Charlemagne, I'm gonna be honest with you. I'm gonna be honest with you. Right now. It's prayers. I'll do it. Psalm 91, Psalm 23, Psalm 121, and everything that's going on right now. All right, thank you, Mama. What is she saying to yourselves? That's what she said. Yeah, y'all voted for him. And she didn't answer the question. She basically just said that y'all did it. What was she quoting? Bible scriptures? Yes. She on highway somewhere too. I understand. I'm like, oh Lord. And I understand what she's saying, but that's not the question we're asking. The question we're asking is how has his executive orders impacted people? Because you know what I would like to start hearing is solutions. You know, like I would like to start hearing, you know, how we can combat some of these things. Yeah, but how can we. Right? Because he's the president. He put these orders into play. This is his house right now. Right, Right. But he's doing things. So how do we, how do we stop that? How do we defend that? How do we combat that? How is there any way like something can happen locally? Like, cuz even with my mom saying, you know, she. With my mom being affected, you know, and then the caller who just called up and said like they're going to cut her child care benefit, she's a full time working mom, like, is there something we can do? Like the mayors, the governors, like, you know, I know he signed these orders, but there's no way, like, can we tackle it locally. There's tools and guardrails that these people have at their disposable. Disposable to try to slow down some of this stuff. But you know, they got to have the strength to use them. You know, the Democrats are a party of cowards. They're leaderless right now, right now. You know, I mean, but they are. They are guardrails in place. All right, well, we gotta. This is gonna be a never ending conversation, by the way. Y'all do know that, right? Yeah, but that's feels weird because when you look at Biden and him being in office in the last four years and what he's done, and then you look at Trump being so aggressive and doing everything that he wanted to do and, and not apologizing for it and just doing it, basically saying, I told y'all what I was gonna do. If you don't like it, middle finger. And then you look at the last four years and look at Biden was just so nice and just trying to be the, the nice guy. Just. It just really makes you upset, you know? Yeah, for sure. All right, well, is there a moral to the story at all? The morals of the story is this is gonna be a never ending conversation. But that's what the Breakfast Club is here for. The Breakfast Club is here to have those conversations. Okay. And we'll bring in people way smarter than Us to tell us what these guardrails are and what these tools are. What these tools are that they can use to try to slow some of this stuff down. All right. It's the Breakfast Club. Good morning, the Breakfast Club. Morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy. Just hilarious. Charlemagne, the guy. We are the Breakfast Club. Lauren laros is here with us this morning, and we got some special guests in the building. We have Derek Johnson, the president of the naacp. Welcome. We have Scott Mills, CEO of bet. Good morning. Thank you for having me. And we have a friend to the room, cousin to the room, Chloe Bailey, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome back. Hello. How you feeling? How's everybody? Fantastic. All right, so we're talking about the NAACP Image Awards live, which goes down February 22nd, and you guys have released some of the nominations, and you're about to tell us who's going to be the host. Actually, we're not yet disclosing. Okay. I tried. I tried. We assuming it's Chloe, since she's here. Y'all got her on the press run. There you go. Well, you know, it's hard to be both a nominee and a host, so. That is correct. It's a first for everything. There you go. Why are you with them, Chloe? Like, why are you with them? Why are you with them people? We're family. Definitely family. You know, growing up as well, Sis and I, we would go and sing a lot of times at, you know, the events in Florida, several times and things like that. And it was just really special to be a part of this today with Praise this, the movie I did with Will Packer winning last year. And, you know, it was a surprise to me today as we were announcing some of the nominations. I got another nomination. Congratulations. Congratulations. God is good. There you go. Grateful. I think the first time you all joined us in ATV, like, 1112. Yeah. Well, I think it's important for you to be here with them, especially putting your voice on it, because I think there's always a conversation around, like, the award shows that we have and whether people and. And what level of celebrity support it or not. So I think you being here and, you know, being kind of like a face of it helps that. Are you at all, like, working with the NAACP in these Image Awards? Are you at all getting out there for other award shows and just kind of being a champion of that, like, and calling your friends and being like, hey, y'all need to make sure y'all show up. Like, which celebrities are you? Like, hey, make sure you show up. Particularly Beyonce. She. Beyonce came to the NXP Awards before her and Jay Z. We getting there. Yeah. I think this one is really especially important because it is honoring us in all of our blackness. And sometimes it's hard in this world and society today to not feel valued or feel worthy enough. But definitely in this space, at the Image Awards, you know, we are celebrating one another for not only our skin tone, but also the incredible art that we put into the world. Yeah. Now, how do we bring award shows back to where it used to be? Right. I remember as a kid, money, money, money. Because growing up as a kid, that's what we look. We aspired to watch. We aspired to. We wanted to see the NAACP Awards, we wanted to see the BET Awards, and some of our biggest moments culturally came from those events. Soul Train as well. How do we get back to that? Now you say money. What does that money mean? I mean, the large marketing house has actually put an emphasis on black culture in a way in which it's not explo for their product line, but that's supportive for the culture's sake. What we have seen over time is a devaluing of shows like Soul Train, which love Soul Train, but escalation of resources for the Grammys or the Oscars or the Emmys. While their viewership has been going down, they still invest in it. But then they say, your viewership is down. Yeah. You don't invest. But if you invest, people want to see black entertainment. People want to appreciate the culture. And it's not just in the US it's globally. I agree with that. But, you know, there are some black people who think white ice is colder. There absolutely are. I mean, I think one of the things that was interesting post, you know, that very brief moment of racial renaissance we had in this country post murder of George Floyd, three months. Right, right. The post that when we were preparing to do the Image Awards with the naacp, I would get these calls from journalists and they'd say, is there still a need for the Image Awards? Aren't we beyond that? Because they're so white? Right, right. And I said, you know, first of all, I think that suggestion means you really don't understand why the Image Awards exist. It is not. It doesn't exist because we were excluded from other places. First and foremost, it is about that our community values being recognized and celebrated by our community, and that has absolute value. But the second thing is, what we understand about this country is it's terribly fickle. Right. So today, oh, yes, we're wonderfully popular. And you want to include us in all of your award shows, but, you know, this is not going to sustain. And what the NAACP and the partnership with bet, we have a consistent commitment to celebrating excellence in our community, and that's really what our partnership for the Image Awards is all about. Question for you guys. Because even in planning the show, right? So BET works with the NAACP to have the awards. The programmer on the network, people always give you guys a lot of flack for what's on the network. And what's not saying that you need better shows or whatever the case may be, but the award show, the Image Awards are. It's always a good show, in my opinion. How much do you get tired of the conversation of BET doesn't have good stuff to watch. That's why we don't watch it. Well, it's fascinating. I think there are always going to be people who are critical. That's the reality of the situation. It's really fun. This morning before coming over, I listened to your best of clip that you guys have online and one of your Featured guests was Ms. Pat. Right? And it was through Lee Daniels reaching out to BET to say, I have this series that only BET can create. The only platform in the world that can actually put this. This series out there is bet. It scares everyone else off. It's an important message. So we looked at it. We love Lee Daniels. We greenlit the series, right. And it actually secured BET's first Primetime Emmy nomination because it was a really breakthrough show. And now Everybody knows who Ms. Pat is and she's going on. We're actually in the fifth season of that show. And whether it's that or the nominations that we received for D Ara from Detroit, I love that show. Right. Fantastic show. Diara Kilpatrick is an amazing talent and the show is great fun and the amazing work we do with Tyler Perry, the reality is we have the biggest investment in black focused content than any platform in the country. And even with that, you're never going to be able to satisfy every single audience. And so we recognize that they're going to be things that people love. They're going to be things that people wish for. They're going to be things that, you know, people keep on saying, bring back music video shows. Music video shows don't work on linear television. That's just the reality of it. So what we focus on is what are the things that actually our audiences are really consuming and enjoying. So Tyler Perry's Sisters, we're going into the eighth season. It is the single most Watched show among black people on all of television. Not all of cable, all of television. That's a fact. Right. So more than anything on broadcast television. So people say, oh, you know, there'll be some people who complain about bet, but the fact that we have the single most watched show in black households. So that is a long way of saying we are always striving to be more inclusive. So we created our streaming platform, bet, to be able to create even more content, speak to diverse audiences. We think our tent poles, like the NAACP Image Awards, like the BET Awards, which this year is going to celebrate its 25th anniversary, if you can believe that. We think our tent poles are those to their name. They are the things that allow us to bring a huge cross section of the community together to come and celebrate what's really important to us as a community. One of the things this year, over 3 million folks tuned in. Sorry. As over 3 million folks moved in. Sorry. Tuned in to the BET Awards in 2024. And if you think about that, it means it's the single largest gathering of black people for a black event in the country. Right. There's Nothing else that 3 million black folks show up for that is a specifically black event. And so you still have this opportunity to catalyze, mobilize, and engage our community. And you just have to be very thoughtful and have great partners like the naacp. All right, we have more with Chloe Bailey, the president of the naacp, Derrick Johnson, and the president and CEO of bet, Scott Mills. So don't move. It's the Breakfast Club. Good morning. Morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy Jess, Hilarious Charlamagne, the guy we are the breakfast club. Lauren LaRosa is in on this interview as well. We're kicking it with Chloe Bailey, the president of the NAACP, Derek Johnson, and the president and CEO of BET, Scott Mills. The NAACP Image Awards will air on February 22nd. Now, Charlotte, what does BET mean to your generation, Chloe, because you're 26. Yes. I think, you know, for me growing up, you know, I'm a music lover. I grew up loving 106 in park. Like, I think I could speak for everyone in my generation. You know, I know certain things go into a lot, but that was like, the show for me to be inspired to get excited like that was it. Like I'd run home from school, and that's what I'd put on. So I was used to seeing people who looked like me who were succeeding in a field that I wanted to succeed in one day. So BET has always had a special place in My heart especially think of all the groundbreaking performances. Like, you know, when Beyonce had her incredible performance on there. Yeah. You know, I'm so grateful that I got to be on that stage two, three times. One of my favorite performances that I did on there was on bet. It was like this surprise, treat me mashup. So it's like, I feel like BET gives a platform for all black artists, whether they are at the top of their game or whether they're rising. And I think it's really special to have that support. So when you hear that, Scott, what do you think so first? So I love it. And one of the things that we focus on is we understand People love 106 and park. Right. And so the fact that it's. It doesn't work as a linear television show doesn't mean 106 and park is over. Because we can bring 106 and park back as a podcast. We can bring 106 and park back as a digital experience, and we can just. We. We are evolving what 106 and park will look like in 2025 because it does have that very important role. I've heard. I've heard that you guys are trying to figure out a show like that. Yes. And we've got. We've got a number of really exciting executions because it's also. We're approaching the 25th anniversary of 106 and park as well. So we did a little bit ag and free 25 year. You know, we. We will. We will. You'll. There'll be some things that you guys will be really excited about, and we look forward to coming back and talk to you about 106, but there you go. Noted. So. But I think the other thing that Chloe shared that is so important is we at BET exist to be in service of our community and our culture. That's what we exist for. And we understand that there's a broad ecosystem of different institutions and individuals that make up our community and our culture, and we are part of that broader landscape and that broader ecosystem, and we play a supporting, complementary role to our community and our ecosystem, and whether that's celebrating black excellence, whether that's mobilizing our community around important events, whether that's coming to the aid of our community post, you know, in the face of COVID But to Chloe's very specific point, one of the things that our team loves is to be a platform that both celebrates our most successful artists who are absolutely at the pinnacle of their careers, and simultaneously to identify and support those emerging artists to Give them the platform. Because we were so many artists, very first time to be on television. Right. So many artists, very first time to perform. The number of managers and label executives who come up and say, you know, we are so appreciative to be back at the BET Awards because this is where our talent xyz, got their very first break. That really resonates with our team. Can you tell us some of the performance that you guys have planned for the NAACP Awards? We will be revealing performers as we get closer. We're going to. We're doing a rollout now and it's very intentional because we're trying to build the audience. The platforms by which people consume information is shifting every month. You know, as you know, we grew up listening to Tom Jordan. The morning show Breakfast Club took it over. Well, quite frankly, that's going to be a podcast to take over Breakfast Club. And so we're 160. What's happening? First of all, Breakfast Club did not take over Tom Joyner. Tom Joyner retired on his own accord. No, no, no, no. Tom Joyner was urban adult contemporary. He catered to the 2554 demo. We came around 18 to 24. And the breakfast Club is a podcast. Not just a podcast. We're the number one black podcast in the world. And happy. You do everything perfect, but somebody gonna do it better later. Is that gonna be next month? They come up or is it gonna be next year? You're doing everything perfect. Why do we do that as black people? I don't know. You started that to replace something. Why all of these things can't coexist. Coexist. But I'm responding to the tone. And the tone is we have legacy organizations, we have media companies that have been a flag pulled our community. We have a show we're on now where the podcast has been excellent. We had other shows that sunset. It is a part of the ecosystem of who we are as a community. And we should meet people where they are. Who's replaced the NAACP there? That's a good question. They ain't ready. That's what I mean when I say that. Like, why do we do that as a people like, oh, just replace that. Like, no, everything can coexist as one. You and I, we absolutely agree. But the tone set was something differently. Right. So if she is 26 and she can appreciate 106. In part, there's someone who's NACP. But if an ACP is not the right vehicle or voice for them, I support them choosing the right vehicle voice because in the social justice movement. It's not a competition. It's an opportunity for our voices to be heard in entertainment. Community is not a competition. It's an opportunity for our voices, our culture to be. To be experienced. And that's how we should be approaching all of this. And so where BET right now is in an industry that's shrinking overall, what Scott is doing is trying to figure out, okay, how do we continue to advance our culture and our voice where nacp we are in a political dynamic that has shift. It is our job being the largest organizations in 47 states, to continue to evolve with that. We're not going anywhere. I don't want the Breakfast Club to go anywhere. BET shouldn't go anywhere. We should all be leaning to our culture, our opportunity and our voice. Well, I agree these institutions shouldn't go anywhere, but I do think they do have to evolve. Like, I doubt. I doubt I'll always be here as a host. I doubt NBA will always be here as a host. Right. People like Lauren, the justice will take over and everything. But when it comes to the NAACP or any of these institutions, whose job is it to tell our own stories? Us. It's our job. Right? And that's why when we took over, we saw the partnership with BTB on Park Paramount. We have a joint venture with Paramount tv. We will have a soap opera air next month on the 22nd on CBS Daytime. We are working. We're about to launch our podcast is. We have to evolve that our revenue streams have to evolve. How we approach this organization should not be driven by personality. It should be driven by mission and strategy. So we all have to evolve. Let me ask you a question. Sports doesn't work well on bet, does it? Sports. Sports works well on linear television. The challenge is sports rights have gotten insanely expensive because I look at all these hbcu, right? A dj, the Howard Hampton game was on CBS the other day. And I'm watching a lot of these college games on TV. And I always thought to myself, with all the HBCUs and how it's been a spurge of HBCUs, everybody's supporting HBCUs. It was just always weird to me why BET didn't put their arm around and be like, I need all those games here. People actually come there. It's a great question. And in fact, when BET started, BET used to air HBCU games. I'm told that there's footage of Bob Johnson running along the sidelines doing live commentary on HBCU games. So I'm trying to look for it. But the reality is, because of the evolution of college football and because of the proliferation of access to sports across all these platforms, the demand, the viewership interest in HBCU sports right now isn't high enough to kind of support the investment. Having said that, the entry point that we think is really exciting, that we're really focused on, is you now have a bunch of brothers who went off and played in the NFL, have said, we want to remedy this dynamic where top black athletes feel like they have to go to other schools to be competitive. We want to remedy that dynamic. Right. So you saw, you know, you saw the recent announcements about the brothers. Right, right, right. Okay, there you go. And so now university. Right, There you go. So. And that. So now the opportunity is, is we take our footprint, our platform, our relationships, and then we bring them to these luminaries who are going back to these HBCUs and building those teams. And then we focus on the stories and the people and the journey, and we get a broader community to be excited about this. And we actually use it to build interest in HBCU football. And that, we think is the way to actually elevate interest in HBCU football, which will then allow us to bring more games to the network. All right, we have more with Chloe Bailey, the president of the naacp, Derrick Johnson, and the president and CEO of bet, Scott Mills. When we come back, it's the Breakfast Club. Good morning. Good morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy. Jess. Hilarious Charlamagne, the guy. We are the breakfast club. Lauren LaRosa is in on this interview as well. Chloe Bailey is here. The president of the NAACP and the president and the CEO of BET is joining us this morning. Lauren. Now, Chloe, I gotta ask you. Yes. You bringing a date to the NAACP awards? My godmom and my manager. Okay, so we will see no more Burner boy. You'll have to ask him. You're here. He's not. Oh, no. Burner's not nominated now. He's not nominated. But you look at the uc, he not on. The world is constantly changing. It's up to you to decide how to respond. Choose to be bold. Try something new. 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I met Santi at a luau party in October. I'm Santi Damian. Oh, it was bizarre. The guy just disappeared one day. Santi has been missing ever since the hookup. What is that? I'm solving a mystery through sex and haven't made a private dick joke until now. Like no matter how hard I try, all roads lead to the hookup. You think it's causing people to turn aggro? I'm gonna rip your arms off and use them to. Yeah, that's a word for it. This is such terrible representation. I'm so sorry. Poppers. These aren't just any poppers. Mama always used to say God gave me gumption in place of a gag reflex. No, but my psychiatrist didn't laugh at that one either. Listen to the hookup on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Hi, I'm Arturo Castro, and I've been lucky enough to do stuff like Broad City and Narcos and Roadhouse and so many commercials about back pain. And I'm starting a podcast because honestly, guys, I don't feel the space is crowded enough. 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And with extended interviews and exclusive weekly headline roundups, this podcast gives you content you won't find anywhere else. Ready to laugh and stay informed, listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast there. Chloe's on there. But I'm speaking of support. And you know, we were seeing you out with him in Nigeria, so is that a new thing or. Nigeria was so beautiful. I've heard. I had the best time. I've heard. What about the nightlife? We saw you in the club with Verna. Yes, the nightlife. It was so many lights, so many, so many cameras. I know. So many. You know, it'd be all like everything with you when you're trying to ask. Lauren, I've been there. Last time you were here was gonna. I mean, now it's Burna boy. We wann that your boo. Is this the thing y'all together do? Y'all go together real bad. Y'all just having fun. What is it? Well, I'm a grown woman. So you do. I had a great time in Nigeria. I really did. So I guess I'm not gonna get an answer on if you cared about the. When you left, there was the video. People were like, oh, my God, the Chloe time is over. Now he's out with this random other girl. What? I didn't see that burn. Burn a boy. Yeah, he was out with a random other girl. Snitch. Because I ain't even see happy snitch that all over. But it's because we. Y'all were so heavily together. We were like, oh, shoot, we don't see her do this much. Yeah. And then. Yeah. So, yeah, he's a grown man. It's like, I'm a grown woman. You know, I could imagine dating at 20 something and being put on the air by being so. And being super famous. Could you imagine the stuff that you did when you were young? Somebody videotaped you expecting the minute that you see her on that carpet, they going to be looking like, cuz. Looking for who? Anybody. Anybody that she's with is always a thing. Anybody she's with, like, she could have been going to Bible study. I mean, you know, you had told me you was in there studying the Bible. I would have been like, you know what? God is good. Okay. You know, you my girl. You can study anytime, even in the club. But, you know, I got my pen. I have the questions that I'd be wanting to know, cuz. Yeah, no, I just. God, mama, Done gave you that look. Keep it up twice. No, Me and Godmom behind the scenes. God, mama got on me before, so I love her, so she's gonna let you know that. But no, honestly, I don't mind. I mean, I hate to say this, but it's my life. I mean, it's what I sign up for, so I can only expect it. It's just about how I handle it. Yeah, I handle myself. So I don't think it should ever be pissiness towards the people who ask me. And I think as a woman watching you navigate it, I'm always interested in how you deal with that. Because, for instance, you hear about the NAACP Image Awards, but it's like, we want to know that, so we have to ask. And being a person who's now learning how to be in the light of everything, I'm like, how the. How do you deal? Plus, her love life is very slow. Chloe, like, very. No, she don't. No, she don't. You like, boom. Her phone is dry. Dry as heck. One thing I get about getting on this radio, Intimidated. They very dry. I am just. I am a wife. All I do is stay home. I just want to cook. But you got a husband. She got a husband. I mean, I know I'm domesticated. This radio has made me be quiet. Okay, guess what? You get on here and say, ready for that? I know he. So it's preparing you for that. No, it's not. I appreciate it. Now back to the NAACP Awards. Spicy ticket. Now, how are these nominees chosen? How do you guys choose the nominees? And how do you guys go to who's winning, winning? And how do y'all expand the categories every year? Because, you know, things change, right? You got social media personality here. Now post podcast. How do you expand the category? So start with the last question. We recognize that, that the industry is changing, so we try to keep up and we add categories. Digital content categories, Fashion design. There's a panel of close to 500 people. Half industry, have non industry that's been selected across the country. And those are the individuals that. That review the materials and they nominate. Oftentimes, I don't even know what's being nominated until I finally get it. And then once nominated, some of the categories are voted on by the public, and so it's by popular vote in some areas, and then in other areas is by those who are critics in the space to ensure fairness in the outcome. So there is a mix that we try to balance those two things out. Gotcha. I also want to Ask about comedy as well. You see, Netflix is heavy into comedy. You see a lot. They're giving comedy deals to damn near every comedian. Has BET ever wanted to jump back? Because BET was one of the huge originators, especially of black comedy. That's right. With Comic View. Did Deon Cole put you up to this question? Because he's been beating me up about this. No, but he's been up here recently, but now he hasn't. Yes. So the reality is we're always looking for the way back into places. Right. And we did a quick partnership with Kevin Hart and Heartbeat where we did a test run of bringing back Comic View. And part of the thing is that really understanding how our community wants to consume content. Right. And also understanding some people will use certain content as a loss leader for other things. And I'm not saying who would be using as a loss leader, but there are other platforms that are paying using content as a loss leader for other things. So we're working with Dion right now to do a really fun thing in stand up comedy. He'll be thrilled that you put me on the spot and ask the question. But we think comedy clearly works, right? We see it working with the Ms. Pat Show. The series we have with Dion, Average Joe, is a thriller that has a comedic line through it. We really see that our audience loves comedy. Ms. Pat, in addition to her Ms. Pat show. We do Ms. Pat settles it, which is her doing a crazy court show. And so our audience is loving it. We think in 2025, given the way the world has changed, people need to laugh even more. And so there'll be an even greater demand for comedy. So we're leaning into it in a big way. Have there been conversations, Derek, about changing the name of the NAACP since some people think colored people is a no? As we sit around the same, we got all the colors around the table, don't we? Yeah. No, we have not. I mean, we get caught up in semantics, we lose focus. And there's no need to go to the semantics. We are an organization that's been around 116 years. That's significant. When you talk about this concept of a surplus mindset that what we can do, we can stick together, we can work together, we can can prosper together. Oftentimes say, well, black folks won't do what we can't do, we haven't done. We got to get away from that and not get caught up in semantics. At the end of the day, are we being effective with our mission, making democracy work for all and ensuring Opportunity for our community. That's our focus. The semantics go out the door. Yeah. I asked that because I think it was. Was it last year? It was a pre. It was one of the presidents. I forgot from which chapter. The naacp. They were upset because somebody used the word colored. People. People somewhere. I have no idea. I don't see if you wonder. Every time I run across him, he asks a question. Cuz he's been saying, y'all need to change the name. He's been saying that since, like, 1982. Yeah. What does he see about the name that. Shut up. Shut up. I haven't. Shut up. I'm just asking a question. Lack of subtlety. Right. Right. At the end of the day, the Image Awards is. Is the crown jewel of shows for African American. Right. It gives us an opportunity for all of us to come together and appreciate the culture we bring to the table. Save him. Save him. Right. And we do that intergenerationally across all of. All of the platforms. That's right. And you can. The voting is now open to the public@naacpimageawards.net that's right. And we appreciate you guys for joining us this morning. Yes. And stop dragging Chloe around for no reason. She's busy. She got things she could be doing. She wants to be here. She out here for her people. Okay. Okay. Yes. Okay. That's right, lady. Yes. And I'm. Do you want a host? Yes. If you were not as the host, I think it would make so much sense because you out here outside, we don't know what y'all plans. Y'all putting pressure on her. They might have another host, and you just effing it in. She say she want a host, too. Or if I don't host, I could sing a little song. Listen, we've been rolling. When we announce the host, everybody gonna say, oh, that is a great choice. Good decision. The host's gonna come on with sky. They're gonna talk about why that person is the host. And y'all gonna say, this is the best thing that could have ever happened. Absolutely. Absolutely. Collaboration be dope. Chloe, girl. I know that's right. Go, Chloe. Chloe and Burna Boy hosting the nwc. That'd be a great collaboration and you all can take credit for it. When he brought that back up. I did. All right, well, it's Chloe Bailey, Derek Johnson, Scott Mills. We appreciate you for joining us. Check out the NAACP, the 56 NAACP Image Awards, February 22nd at 8pm and it's the Breakfast Club. Good morning, the Breakfast Club. Your Mornings will never be the same. Don't be out here acting like a donkey. Hee haw, bitch. Hee haw. It's time for donkey of the day. I'm a big boy. I could take it if he feel I deserve it. Ain't no big deal. I know Charlamagne guy gonna have some funny sweet say out his mouth. If you guys say something you may not agree with. Doesn't mean I'm mean. Who's getting that donkey? That donkey. That donkey. Donkey, donkey, donkey, donkey. Donkey of the day right here, the Breakfast Club, bitches. You can call me the donkey of the day, but like I mean no harm. Donkey of the day goes to 22 year old Malaysia Lee. Malaysia is from Charlotte, North Carolina. Salute to the South 1104, dropping the clues bombs for Charlotte, man. One of the reasons, one of the reasons that I've chosen to be a mental health advocate is because I want us as humans to learn how to control our emotions. Easier said than done, I know, but today's donkey is a prime example of it's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters. That's why you know, going to do that internal work on yourself matters, okay? Because you can get to that place where you realize you don't have to match energies back, baby. And you realize you don't have to take everything personally because as Don Miguel Ruiz says in one of my favorite books, the four agreements, whatever happens around you, don't take it personally. Nothing other people do is because of you. It is because of themselves. Malaysia could have used that advice. See, she could have used that second agreement because Malaysia was an employee at Wendy's in the 704. And according to store managers, a 31 year old homeless man named Alondra. Is it Alondro? Yeah, Alondro Romero. Santos came in the restaurant requesting free food. Okay? The news report said he was homeless, so clearly he wasn't having the best day. After the manager provided him with a cup of water, Santos allegedly used the cup to fill it up with soda instead. Pepsi, Coke, Sprite, Fanta. I don't know what his soda choice was, but when Santos went to the restroom, the manager threw the cup away. Why? Okay, I don't know. Let the man have his cup if he wants, you know, to get free refills, who cares? In fact, give him some of hot fries and a cheeseburger and tell him keep it moving, the man was homeless. Now granted, you can't make a habit of that because you will have people coming to the store Doing that all the time. But if you see someone in need, at least attempt to help. In this case, you didn't help. In fact, you clearly hurt because when Santos came out the bathroom, he got mad. He got upset because the manager threw the cup away. So he went to the parking lot, found another cup, and returned to the store to fill it with soda once again. Now, of course, the manager didn't like that. He went outside and found a cup in the parking lot to fill it back up with soda. Fighting away. That's nasty. Okay? That is disgusting. All right? That's how. You know, desperate times call for desperate measures. Somebody might have have spit flim in that cup, okay? And tossed it before they left the parking lot. Might have been rolling a blunt. You know how it is sometime when you out somewhere and you sitting in the car, roll it up, you know, you got a little cup from the. From a fast food restaurant. You put the blunt guts in that cup, spit in it, you know, toss it. That's why using a cup he found in the parking lot is gross. But according to this article, he's also homeless, so I'm not judging. But Santos got mad at the manager. So then Santos threw the soda at Malaysia, who was sitting in the restaurant with the manager. Now, when I heard this story, I said to myself, I think that's assault. I'm not the highest grade of weed in the dispensary, nor am I a legal expert, but that feels like an assault. It's not a punch, a slap, a push, but it is an attack, okay? There is a reason Sprite rhymes with fight, okay? That is a man throwing a drink on a woman. So I did some research. And by research, I mean I asked Chat GP GPT is throwing a drink on a woman considered assault? And Chat GPT said yes. Throwing a drink on someone, including a woman, is generally considered assault or battery under the law, depending on the jurisdiction. Well, we need to lock up everyone on reality tv, okay? From loving hip hop to Real Housewives. Round them all up. All right? Yes, Malaysia was assaulted. And Malaysia did what a lot of people do in the Carolinas, north or south, okay, when they get assaulted. She went to her car, okay? She didn't have an honor. She went and got her pistol. Now, I don't know why the dude Santos stood there and waited for her to come back, but I guess he didn't expect this young lady to have a pistol, but she did. And Malaysia came back in the store, chased Alondra outside, and shot at him three times, hit him Once in the head while he was driving. Yes. This homeless man had a car. Okay. And Malaysia shot the car up and hit him in the head. And she was charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill and discharge in a firearm into occupied property. And she is in custody. She's in custody at the Mecklenburg County Jail under a quarter million dollar bond. Now, I tell you folks all the time, you cannot tell someone how to react. Okay? I might push you, and your response might be to pull out a gun and pop me. Well, guess what? I shouldn't have pushed you. There is cause and effect to everything. But your Uncle Charlotte also tells you that when faced with certain situations, you have to start doing jail math in your head. Okay? You literally have to calculate how much time you could possibly get if you do said crime. You have to calculate in your head if you can afford to do what it is you're about to do. See, Malaysia, I'm not mad at you for going to get your pistol. You was assaulted. I feel like owning a legal firearm in this country and knowing how to use it is a form of self self care. But here's my issue. And why you getting the biggest hee haw? It's because you didn't do your jail math, Malaysia. You had plenty of time to think about your choice. I understand this man threw sold on you, and I'm glad you were able to go to your car to get your gun. But the gun should have been there to protect you from the situation escalating further or maybe even the whole demand while the cops come. I'm not expecting you to be a vigilante hero in this situation, but I just wanted you to move with a little less emotion, okay? You got to be strategic. I understand you were upset because he threw a drink on you and who knows what else you know, was going on in his life or even in your. In your life. But you went and got that pistol, he saw you coming, he hauled ass, got this car, and you let off shots. I can even understand that to a certain extent, because he might have been going to his car to get his weapon, but in this case, according to reports, he was driving off. Let him go. I know hindsight is 20 20, and it's easy for me to say because I wasn't in the situation, but let him go. Hell, you could even let one off in the air just to let him know you will bust your gun. But shooting in his car, Three shots, gunshot wound to the head while he's driving off, you should have started doing that jail math in your head, man. Luckily, he's not deceased, but now you're sitting in the county with a quarter million dollar bail. I'm not counting your Pockets, but you're 22 and work at Wendy's. I doubt you got a quarter million or the 25, 000, because most, most bonds are 10. I. I doubt you have either. But that's why jail math works. And you have to calculate these scenarios in your head before you make decisions. Addition, subtraction, subtraction, Multiplication, division. How long will I be gone if I do this? How much money will it cost me if I do this? Subtract your emotion from things and ask yourself, is it worth it if I do this? The answer is no. You are in jail right now simply because a man wanted a free soda. Let him have it. It is not worth ending up in jail over a free soda and free fast food. I mean, come on. Who, who, who would go to jail for a free soda and free fast food? Wow. Oh, Lord. Play his theme music. Okay, guys, here. Mid sized Mac is here. Yo, Bite sized Mac is crazy. Mid sized Mac is here. How are you? How are you, mid sized Mac? Hungry. But anyway. What Mac? I know. I knew as soon as I said something about food you was gonna walk in here. This is. I don't understand how I keep telling y'all that. The. The big bags are biting. Getting back. Nothing is worth any of this. And not even just because like you said, the jail math. Every black person knows. We all have the same mantra at work. I don't get paid enough for this. I agree. Yeah, I'm with you. Them faux for foes. I'm with you defending that. I don't get paid enough for this. You want to steal from Home Depot? I don't get paid enough for this. You got to keep. You just got to tell yourself in the back of your mind constantly because that will prevent you from having to do the jail math. So even if they throw the food on you or the soda on you, you still like, well, I'm the wrong person to ask that somebody throw food at me. And like, it's a game. What else you got? You know what I'm saying? Please give Malaysia. Please give Malaysia Lee the biggest. He haw. Jesus Christ, man. So he a glizzy catcher. He going open his mouth. I ain't say all that. Like I said, somebody throw it at him. What else you got? God. God damn. Glizzy catch. I hate this show. So I'm open my mouth, threaten me with A party. Being your foreplay is crazy. That's how you know there ain't no HR here. They. They probably like, look, I don't get paid enough for this, all right? Thank you, Glizzy Catcher. Charlemagne. Thank you for that. Dog in the day. Yes, indeed. The Breakfast Club. Morning, everybody. It's Dej Envy. Just hilarious. Charlemagne, the guy. We are the breakfast club. Laura LaRosa filling in for just today. We got a special guest in the building. Yes, indeed. We have the brother, Leon Thomas. Welcome, bro. What's good? What's good? How y'all feeling? How you feeling? Blessed, black, and highly favored. Leon, you are by far the greatest new male R and B singer. Doing it today, man. Thank you so much. That shouldn't even be up for debate, man. Man, I really appreciate that, man. How do you receive that? Yeah, I mean, you know, to be honest, I try to just take it one step at a time. You know, I try to stay humble with everything, but I'm glad to be a new voice in R and B. You know, it's a genre that I love. You know, I'm trying to bring back live musicianship, real songs. You know, writing with the team that I have has been an amazing pleasure. And, you know, just bringing, like, that organic feeling back to the live stage is, like, a big thing for me, you know, for people that don't know Leon Thomas, you know you started on Broadway. Tell everybody how you got your start and your way into being this R and B star. Well, listen, I grew up in New York, started on Broadway out here. I did three Broadway plays from Lion King, the Carolina Change, the Color Purple. You were Simba in Lion King? Yeah, yeah, I was sending Lion King, and then, you know, I started booking movies and TV shows. How was that? I just took my kids to see that. Oh, no, it was insane. How was that training? Because it's a lot of shows, a lot of people, and it's live, so you can't mess up. No, no, you can't mess up. It's eight shows a week. I was 10 years old when I did my first Broadway play. Shout out to my mom and my family for, you know, supporting me through that whole journey. And, yeah, man, I went from being a regular kid to starring on Broadway in a matter of months, you know. Now, how was that? Because it's not the typical thing New York kids do. Right? So you're singing, you're dancing, you're doing that. So how did you get into that part of it? No, because you don't go on Broadway. I don't know anybody that went to Broadway. So it's very different. I mean, I don't know. I had a couple homies who ended up in different plays, but for the most part. Yeah. Yeah. It was definitely, like, a bit of an anomaly for my neighborhood in Brooklyn. It was kind of weird explaining it to my homies at school. Like, yeah, I was just doing a show last night. They're like, what's going on? Maybe kids from a certain neighbo. Yeah, well, not from New York. From the hoods of New York. Okay, all right. But. Nah, it was definitely a real pleasure, you know, but from there, I ended up doing a lot of TV and film. You know, I shot my first movie out here with Robin Williams and Terrence Howard called August Rush, which was an amazing pleasure. And that kind of brought me into a lot of TV after that. Yeah, with Nickelodeon, and he was on Victorious. Victorious, yeah, yeah, yeah. With Ariana Grande. And, you know, that was a big journey. That was the number one show on the network at the time. We were beating out American Idol, and it was a way for the rest of the world to kind of really tap into who I am as a creative. But it took years of really honing in on who I am as an artist to get to this point. Producing and writing for a bunch of different artists, winning a Grammy, working with SZA and Babyface Drake. A bunch of different people. You wrote for Drake? I actually produced for Drake. But shout out to him. A lot of people write for Drake. Allegedly. Yeah, allegedly, man. But, you know, I don't think there's anything wrong with it either, but it was a blessing to. I mean, it's. It's interesting because I'm an artist and people see me as a singer. They kind of forget that I also produced a lot of big records. You know, my production game is pretty tight. So you say like a rap? Yeah, on purpose. Your lyrics are like that of a rapper. That's why when I see Freddie Gibbs on your records, Butcher, it makes so much sense to me. You still keep in touch with anybody from Victorious? Absolutely, man. You know, I chop it up with Ari Avan. Joe is a really good friend of mine. You know, Matt Bennett, a lot of the cast. We all hang out and do lunch. It's kind of like my last two years of high school were with them, so that's like my graduating class, essentially. We were all in school together, so we filmed, but we also went to school. So those are. Those are my really good friends. Salute to Victoria and her Mom, I did a. I hosted a New Year's Eve special with them. Oh, for real? Oh, that's dope. That's dope. People you ever wrote. Yeah, actually, I worked with her on her first album. That was my first time going number one with an album. I did about like four songs on her first album, Yours Truly. Wow. So that was a real. A real pleasure. Yeah. Did you know you always wanted to be a R and B singer? Like, was that the goal as a kid growing up, or did you always want to be an actor? Like, and when did you pivot? When he was like, all right, this is what I want to do. Listen. I feel like I did this role with Kathryn Bigelow. She's a Oscar award winning director. But I had to cut my dreads for it. And that was kind of like my last straw in acting. You know, I did this role for Detroit. I felt like, you know, I need to kind of tap back into who I am as an artist. You know, grew my dreads back, really got into my internal self meditating, really, like tapping into who I am as a human being. And a lot of great music came out of that. You know, I always knew I wanted to be a singer, but I knew for a fact I needed to really present myself as who I truly was. It's so easy to play a character when you're always acting. You know, I needed to come to the world as my true self. When you were on the, like, the sets, when you like, even with like Victorious and stuff like that, what was your mom and like your parents there often or. Oh, yeah, my mom, Ariana Grande talked a lot about that too. Like how y'all parents were close. No, they were there. They were there. You know, my mom was never like a momager, like over my, over my shoulder kind of mom, but she was also very protective of my peace. Gotcha. And mental health and making sure that I'm just like in a good. A good space while I'm. While I'm trying to create something timeless and, you know, shout out to her for just always, you know, creating safe spaces for me right throughout that journey, you know. Probably kept you from getting slimed. Yeah, definitely nuts. Definitely nuts. You know, seeing. Seeing how everything definitely. It's definitely, definitely insane. Don't say that. Definitely nuts after that. Yeah, I know, I know. You know, it's crazy. It's crazy because, you know, I just saw the doc not too long ago. It's definitely eye opening. And a lot of my castmates, we hopped on a zoom Call. We all wanted to talk about it. And luckily, during. During our seasons, it was. It was very wholesome and chill, but, you know, shout out to anybody who dealt with anything bad. I mean, I. You know, my heart definitely goes out to them. The thing I love about your music, too, is number one. I can tell you got a sense of. Yeah. So does that come with money or does that come with just how you came up, you know, with your mom doing music? So you always felt free as an artist? Yeah, I mean, you know, I think the greatest thing about being an artist is that it's a. It's a great representation of being a free black man. You know, like, you know, being able to wear what I want, you know, say what I want on record is really important to me. You know, I try to stay as grounded and as real to who I am as I can be. I mean, I think it's really easy to want to be an artist and play a character who you think people want you to be, but I'm doing my best to just, like, kind of just say what I want, do what I want. You know, when you come up with songs with like, I like Feelings on Silent. I love Wale, but songs like that, like, when I listen to it, each time I get something different from it. So the first time I listened, I was like, oh, this is like, guys just being like, we keep our feelings to herself. And then the second time I listened, I'm like, this is the trauma that they deal with. Because, like, he mentions PTSD and. Yeah, a bunch of other things. Like, how do you. First of all, sitting back. You wrote that? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I co wrote sitting back and writing it with him. How do you be like, okay, here's all the things that we want people to get when they hear this. Or do you guys just write and whatever people get, they get like, were you dealing with something yourself then or. You know, the way I wrote that record was really interesting. I was in. I was in Italy, actually. I was working with Ye and Ty Dolla Sign on the Vultures one project. And I just had some lyrics kind of, you know, bubbling up in my head. But I think it was one of those moments that it was just kind of stream of consciousness. I didn't really think too hard on my sections. That was like my second take that you're hearing there. It wasn't like, me, like, kind of really punching in a bunch of different ideas. It was just kind of flowing. And when Wale heard it, that was probably the hardest verse to get. Cause we did, probably. Why did you come back outside? Because he. We did, like, five sessions to get that one verse. But, yo, he's so talented, and seeing how he crafted his verse, I mean, he would do like five bars at a time. And he really cared about the poetry of it all, and it's why I really respect him as an artist. He's just a true lyricist. All right, we got more with Leon Thomas when we come back. Don't move. It's the Breakfast Club. Good morning. Morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy. Just hilarious. Charlamagne, the guy. We are the breakfast club. Lauren LaRosa, join us for this Leon Thomas interview. Of course. Leon Thomas is singer, songwriter, producer, and actor. His album Mutt is out right now. And we gotta congratul because you got a Grammy for your record with sza. We tell everybody that we helped with that because we played snooze every morning. Four times a morning. 6:00am Yeah, 6:00am but you wrote Snooze. I produced on Snooze, man. Yo, first of all, let's clear this up. Shout out to SZA for writing that record. We were producing in a separate room, and she heard the instrumental and was like, yo, what is that? And you know, there is something that I do where I, like, take my voice and I chop it up like a sample. Because clearing samples is really expensive. Expensive and cuts into the publishing. So rather than like actually doing a sample, I'll just, you know, sing a little something, Right? So she really liked that and then took it into the other room and wrote an amazing song. And being a part of the production on that with Babyface, Legendary Babyface was a true pleasure, man. I mean, it was a real journey to see that song go from like a crowd favorite to a Grammy Award winning R and B song, man. That was definitely life changing for me. You. You got a production team, right? It's the Rascals. Yeah, yeah, the Rascals. Me and Chris Tynes, man, we've been working together since we were like, 18. So it's really cool to see the growth. I mean, we started off, you know, a little shaky when it came to production, but it's nice to see us, you know, really develop into the producers we are now. We had great mentors, man. You have such big moments, like, even before that and during that. But it's like, I don't know, like, when do you feel like things started, like, to click finally where people were like, oh, shoot, Leanne. Like, we get it now. It's really interesting. I like to call it the Drake Effect. When I was working, when I was working with Drake, all of a sudden, label executives who have known me for years. The world is constantly changing. It's up to you to decide how to respond. Choose to be bold. Try something new. Choose to reinvent yourself. That's what Nissan did with the all new, totally reimagined Kicks. The dynamic new exterior styling immediately announces that Nissan isn't messing up around the interior. 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I'm solving a mystery through sex and haven't made a private dick joke until now. Like no matter how hard I try, all roads lead to the hookup. You think it's causing people to turn aggro? I'm gonna rip your arms off and use them to. Yeah, that's a word for it. This is such terrible representation. I'm so sorry. Poppers. These Arches Inc. Any poppers? Mama always used to say God gave me gumption in place of a gag reflex. No, my psychiatrist didn't laugh at that one either. Listen to the hookup on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Hi, I'm Arturo Castro, and I've been lucky enough to do stuff like Broad City and Nargos and Rose Boathouse and so many commercials about back pain. And now I'm starting a podcast because honestly guys, I don't feel the space is crowded enough. Get ready for Greatest Escapes, a new comedy podcast about the wildest true escape stories in history. 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Listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts were like, I think you could be an artist, you know, And I was like, all right, okay. So I kind of peeped that and I said, okay, well, let's start kind of building this out. But I knew I wanted that. That same formula that Drake had with Lil Wayne. And, you know, working with Ty Dolla Sign was a really smart move, not only because he's just an amazing artist, but because it was just nice to have a mentor who had done it already. So he's. He's just like, kind of like, yo, try this. Make sure the look has this. Or, you know, even when it came to the music, like, here's how you really format an album. And I'm definitely doing a lot of studying, you know, shout out to Todd Dolla Sign for sure. He definitely, you know, saw something in me that a lot of label executives were not sure about, and it's cool to see it developing. How did y'all meet real time? How did you and Ty Dolla Sign meet? I was actually working on his album as a producer on featuring Ty Dolla Sign. I was like one of, I think, nine producers on a song with Kanye and Thundercat and a bunch of other people. People. Nine producers on one record? Yeah, because it was like when it's like 0.5, like, I was just there, added this or that vocal and, like, some bass or something, but. But he had everybody play, like, their unreleased records, and I played him some of my first album as, like, demos, and Todd was like, yo, you really. You're really tight, you know, as an artist. He was like, man. And he was originally trying to record one of the songs that I had, but I was like, Nah, I want you to feature on it. And. And over the years, we became really good friends. I was working with him a lot and just kind of developed into a whole situation with Sean Baron. Sean Baron is the guy who officially, like, put it all together with easy money and Motown. Is it tough navigating because people are getting to know you now? Everybody's falling in love with your music now, and you have such a close association with Drake. You have to pick and choose where you go musically and what you do musically with who you know. Honestly, she's asking, can you work with Kendra Kendrick Lamar if you wanted to? Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know that's what she's asking. I mean, the way. The way I really look at it is just like on a political level. I make R and B, you know, Obviously I make hip hop too, but I'm really focused on my artist journey, so, I mean, Kendrick is such a huge artist. I don't really foresee us working together in the near future. And even with Drake, you know, I still want to take my steps to really build on my own two feet as an artist. So I'm doing what I have to do right now to really, like, grow my own business. Touring is a big thing for me. I'm really focused on that. I'm hitting the road all this year and working on more records. So I mean, shout out to everybody, but I'm definitely focused on me. How old were you when you realized Vibes don't lie? One of my favorite records. How old were you when you first realized Vibes don't Lie? I think that was definitely early 20s. I think LA is filled with facades and people who are pretending to be something they aren't. People who move from their hometown and create a whole new person Persona. So I think for me, just really studying folks, especially a lot of the women you deal with out there, you know, it's really important to. To study their actions and not their words. I love the fact that you are encouraging women. Women to keep their healthy. Yes. Did you ever want to be a gynecologist? No, no, no, no. That wasn't on the list. I just listen, man. Yeah, I just listen. I just listen, man. So you. They tell you, like, hey, my not feeling the best today? No, I mean, I just think ph balance is a conversation and, you know, I just listen, man. That's what it. Smell something. That's what it was. You was very, very specific. You said she, she only drink water. She keep that healthy. Yeah. They said on Twitter you be talking crazy. Like that. But you sing it so people can't be mad. You had that conversation in real life with your. Your home. Like, you're not your home girl. You sing. You know what? I'm just big on shock value. I think songs, especially R and B songs, have gotten a bit. Not boring, but I think we've kind of already hit the golden era of R and B. So I'm just finding new ways to make people's ears perk up and their minds move. I think social media and podcasts are really interesting to me. These phone mics bring out so many conversations, and I think as an R and B artist, I want to find ways to let that live on the road. And it doesn't always have to be, like, verbatim of what I'm going through in real life. I think it's important to create the drama. You know, I kind of see music as, you know, scripting a score. So sometimes the records are just, like, really good dramatizations of, like, what I'm seeing. You've been drawn in some unhealthy vaginas don't lie. I'm gonna say so you. I mean, I think everybody is. But, like, how. But like, how does that go for you now? I mean, I don't think. I don't think it's now or like, women expecting you to be like, all right, here's the check. Like, how do you. Cause you got the songs. Like, they're there. Yeah, yeah, you know, I definitely got the songs, but I think it's just important to be honest with your partner, you know, communicate. But I think it's a pretty interesting conversation I try to stay out of if I don't have to, you know what I'm saying? You ever did the ear wax test? No. I don't even know what that is, man. You putting me on right now. It's an earwax test. Digging your ear a little bit. There's a little wax on it. Put a little pinky. Put the pinky inside of. Hold on. What is jump. She got something. What? That's right. As healthy as it should be. Be honest. You listen to him. Yo, that scene, you should do it on yourself. I don't know where he got anybody. You do. That is nuts. That's some South Carolina back road thing that they do. It doesn't. Do not try. That works. He. That doesn't. Your mom never told you you got some. Make a go drink ginger ale. We a talking about stomach aches. We talking about people think ginger cure everything. Not ear wax. Don't listen to him. Put ginger ale on your vagina. That's why you single. That's why you single. Delaware is crazy. My girl used to be like, go get some ginger ale and lay down. Wow. About everything. Yeah, no, no. We love ginger ale around here. Did your therapist really tell you that you're too detached, or is that just something you tell women so you don't commit? Nah, I think. I think, you know that barfing. I have a co writer, Bizzy Crook, and he lives in Miami. Great rapper. That was a bar that came from him. He's very deep into therapy. But I'm glad that we talked about it on record, because, I mean, it's something that I definitely did try out over the pandemic, and it's something that I actually really respect you a lot for championing, you know? Thank you, brother. But. But. But, yeah, that was a. That was a bar from Bizzy, but I thought it was important to add in there, you know, don't try to blame Bizzy now. Nah, I mean, yo, that's my co writer. You know, Shout out to him. You know what I'm saying? Like, we. We write a lot of our songs together, and I really respect a lot of the perspectives he brings to a lot of my poignant records. You know, he has some great bars. Can we get into a song of that? What you want to hear? That would be amazing. Yo, let's play. Yes, it is. That would be really cool. All right, well, let's get into the record. Right now is. Yes, it is. And we got more with Leon Thomas when we come back. It's the Breakfast Club. Good morning. Morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy. Just hilarious. Charlamagne, the guy. We are the Breakfast Club. Lauren Laros is joining us on this interview, and we're still kicking it with Leonta. Ms. Lauren on for dancing with. When I listen to Dancing with the Demons. Yeah, it. Do you ever get, like, Miguel references sometimes? Absolutely. Yeah. Because I was listening. I'm like, oh, my gosh. Like, I wonder if. Like that. Like, are y'all. Do you know him? Yeah. Yeah. That's like my big bro. We actually did a movie together. He was in Detroit, the one I had to cut my hair for. He. He was. He was an amazing. An amazing mentor for me for some years. You know, that bridge between R B and rock and roll. He's traveled across that bridge many a time. I definitely look up to him when it comes to that. And, you know, for me, because I play multiple instruments you know, I definitely try to just embody a lot of that energy, but I think we both have the same influences as well. I agree with Lauren on that. Miguel, to me, before you was the last great R B, male R and B singer. To me, I'm just talking about the new guys. I'm not talking about, you know, the OG legend. I'm talking about. He was the last, last one to me. And I. I felt the same way when I heard Dancing with the Demons. I feel like. I feel like you're talking to yourself on that record, though. You said you can't seem to save yourself Never learn to ask for help Going out all night Searching for a feeling so, so what, what, what have you learned to ask for help? It's A one, but I thought because I took it as like it wasn't talking about a woman at some point. Well, I mean, it's interesting for me. Like, that record, when I wrote it, I wrote it in two different days. The first day I was, you know, microdosing on shrooms, so it was a bit of a haze. The next day, I listened to it, and I was like, man, this is really poignant stuff. I mean, it's just really talking about being up all night and searching for a feeling, and it's trying to fill voids. I feel like, as you know, when you're in your single journey, you can try to fill a void with a stranger, and that's not always very healthy. It's fun. It could be fun. It could be fun, for sure, but. And then, especially when you're in the limelight, the second verse is more so talking about being in the limelight and trying to fill voids. Nobody really talks about the darkness that comes with the flashing lights. And, yeah, that. That record was very deep and very personal for me. You know, I'm glad that people resonate with it. Now you talk about microdosing on shrooms. Yeah. Where does that put your mind? And do you always do that to produce and write? Nah, nah. I mean, I think. I think for this. This album, it was an interesting opportunity to. To kind of unplug. I mean, I wasn't doing as many shows around that time, too, so it was really helpful to kind of just get into my own head and try to figure out who I am. You know, I definitely did a lot of manifesting a lot of just, like, writing down who I wanted to be as a human being around that time. A lot of journaling, you know, and looking back at that season in my life, it was A journey for me to evolve into who I am right now. I wouldn't suggest people just go super crazy on shrooms or anything, but I think microdosing, you know, a small amount could be healthy if you're trying to just find yourself, you know. And at that time, I was trying to find myself, you know. Yeah, I microdose. I've macro dose too. You said you were trying to find yourself. Did you find yourself? Yeah, but I mean, I feel like that's a constant journey. That's like the whole part of finding yourself. You realize it, it never stops because we're always evolving, you know. But it's, it's great that I was able to do it through music. That, that, that was like a version of musical therapy for me. And I'm glad that people are resonating with it, you know, I love how you're normalizing. Dog on Mutt. Not, not, not. I'm not a dog anymore. There is a young, unhealed version of me that would have really appreciated that, that record. Cuz you make it sound so fun. It's almost like women are just going to bring you in, like, oh, Brent, come in. You straight dog. Let me domesticate you. Nah, I mean, I, I was really just documenting what I saw. Cut it out. But nah, nah, nah. It's definitely, it's definitely parts to me. It's definitely part to me. Now you document what you say. Okay. We, you know, post breakup where, where I just had to, I just had to figure it out. But I think that's all a part of living, you know. Do you get nervous though? This was a, this was a post breakup, like, album. Yeah, yeah. This is a post breakup album. So this is me documenting, you know, finding myself. First off, like, you know, you, you're kind of broken after that and then you gotta, you gotta put the pieces back together. Her fault. Yes. Nah, it's not her fault. It's our fault. Listen, Leon, it's her fault that you ended up being a dog. You went through your phase. It's so fault. I bet. I think it's very commendable too, that on the song Safe Place, you let the person you're dealing with know this isn't a safe place. Yeah, yeah. What inspired that? I mean, I think knowing that I wasn't necessarily ready to settle down. I think that conversation definitely came up a lot during, I guess you would call it my face. You know, just understanding, like, yo, I'm not trying to settle down. This is a fun place, you know, this is a Time period where I'm just figuring me out. Work is crazy. It's hectic, you know, and I think having that conversation was important. Important to, like you said, just avoid people not understanding what it was at the time. Because you're honest in music. But it's difficult to be face to face with somebody and be like. It's very. It's very difficult. You know, I really try my best to be as honest as I can, but, yeah, those are hard conversations, man. You know, I. I can't sit here and say I've always done it right or I'm perfect or anything. But I try. I try to be, like, real, you know, I try to explain myself, but even when you explain yourself, sometimes. Sometimes wires get crossed, you know, so unpacking it and communicating, you know, is an important thing later on. Yeah. Don't no woman want to hear that after she just let you hit Raw. Yeah, it's. It's. Yeah, it's not. Has a woman ever said that to you when you were trying to, like, create, like, a. All right, maybe this is, like, a thing. And she's like, yo, I don't want to do that to you. Yeah, actually, yeah. Yeah. In my. In my early 20s, I was talking to this amazing artist, and, yeah, she was just like. Like, listen, baby, this ain't a safe place kind of thing. You know? Anybody we know now? She's like, no, no, no. I don't think you got teared up a little bit. Yeah, no, no, no. It was all good for me. I mean, at that point, shades are fogging up. I ain't gonna lie. You teared up a little bit. But, yeah, yeah, you know, it was definitely. You know, it was definitely a realization for me. I was like, oh, it can happen on that side, too. I was like, 20, maybe 21, you know? You cried in the car. Yeah, yeah. So I was, like, real young and kind of, you know, green. Like, oh, okay, okay. I bet. Cool. So you all looking for a relationship now? If the right person, yeah. Yeah, yeah. I'm definitely. I'm definitely in that mode right now. Are you dating? Would you date art, other, like, artists, celebrities? Or do you, like, how does that work? Are you doing that? It's just hectic. I mean, you're kind of inviting the media into your life, like the one safe place you have. But, I mean, who knows if I really catch a vibe with somebody who happens to be fan. I mean, I don't really care about that side of things. You know, I've been in the game A long time. I've met some beautiful women who are amazing artists, but it's just about the human being. And it can be tough to. To really build something if both of your schedules are super hectic. So, I don't know. I don't want to ask a question, too, about the. The. Another record on Far fetched. Yeah, you said. Because we was having a big conversation this week about tricking because, you know, Skip Bayless allegedly. Oh, my God. Offer somebody 1.5 million and you say, paid for my mistakes in Benzes and diamonds. 250 fronted like you was my artist. 5 G's just across the Atlantic. We sat in silence for almost. Yeah, that's a horrible vacation. A quarter million dollars. Yeah. Benzes and Diamonds. Well, listen, when I wrote that record, it was not for me. That was not a joint that I was originally gonna use for me. It was for somebody really famous and really rich. But I just love the way it sounded. And I was like, well, you know what? I love to speak in a world where I can actually afford that. Why not? Let's manifest that in lucid dreams. You talk about your significant other. Leaving things behind. Yeah, that was a fun record. With Masego after a breakup. Why do you think that topic. I don't really consider it taboo necessarily, but I think it's just, like. It's just funny. Cause for me, I was living with my ex for, like, a couple years, so she just had, like, a closet filled with clothes at my crib. And it had been, like a year and a half since we had broken up. So we were in the studio talking about different things. The guitarist and producer on that song, Freaky Rob, his girl left a flat screen at the house that he had to use to watch Netflix. He was like, man, when is she gonna take this flat screen screen? And, you know, Masego also had a similar situation like that at his crib with the couch. So we were all just kind of using all of our different experiences, putting it into a song and, you know, just locking it in. It's different when it's closed, though. Yeah. Did you clear. You cleared out the closet? Yeah, definitely clears out. Yeah, yeah, Cleared out the closet. Did you move out of the apartment, or you just cleared out the closet? Nah, I'm still at the crib. You know what I mean? Still at the crib. You know, there's definitely a certain interior design choices. I'm gonna switch up soon, but this is, like, real recent. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. All right. The album is out right now. Make sure you Pick it up. And we appreciate you for joining us. Thank you so much for having me, man. It's a big opportunity. Thank you so much. It's Leon Thomas. The album Mud is out now. And it's the Breakfast Club. Good morning. Morning, everybody. Is DJ Envy. Just hilarious. Charlemagne the guy. We are the Breakfast Club. It's Black History Month. What we doing today? Charlamagne. Yes. You know, every day during Black History Month, my guy B. Dot, puts out a podcast called I didn't know. Maybe you didn't either. On the Black Effect I Heart Radio podcast network. And today he's going to tell you about Marri Marion Sims. Once hailed as the father of modern gynecology, he built his legacy on exploiting enslaved black women without anesthesia, turning medical progress into a horrifying practice. Let's listen. J. Marion Sims. He developed life saving medical techniques back in the 1800s. But the way he did it, wild. He experimented on enslaved black women without anesthesia. Anesthesia, like, hey, I'm about to cut you open, all right? But don't worry, you'll be fine. Cause you blacks don't feel pain quite like I do. That's literally what he believed. And people let him get away with it. Three women have been documented. Anarcha, Lucy and Betsy. And these three women went through hell. Anarcha alone had over 30 surgeries. 30 with no anesthesia. And Sims called it son science. And you know what he got for it? A statue in Central Park. Like, imagine going for a jog and seeing a dude being honored for torturing black women. That was a reality before 2018. Because in 2018, activists showed up in bloody hospital gowns so that you could visualize these atrocities and pretty much said, nah, this statue's gotta go. And guess what? They won. The statue got moved to a cemetery. And quite honestly, honestly, that's where it belongs. Right beside J. Marion Sims. Dead. Ethics. Now here's where it gets real. You'd think this was just some old school nonsense, right? Nah, those same racist ideas are still here lurking in hospitals like bad wifi. Studies show doctors today still think black women feel less pain. That's why black women are three times more likely to die from childbirth. Compound complications. Three times. Meanwhile, Karen over there getting extra Tylenol for a paper cut. Make it make sense. So what do we do first? Stop giving shady people statues. But more importantly, we gotta listen. When people say they're in pain or need help. We need to believe them. Cause if Anarcha, Lucy and Betsy could survive all that, the least we can do is make sure that nobody else has to. To. No, I didn't know. Maybe you didn't either. Thank you for that information, B Dot. Make sure you subscribe to I didn't know. Maybe you didn't either. On the Black Effect iHeartradio podcast network. Available everywhere. You listen to podcasts. Go back and listen to the past couple of seasons, too. You're guaranteed to learn something. All right, when we come back, we got the positive notice, the Breakfast Club. Good morning. Good morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy. Just hilarious. Charlemagne, the guy. We are the Breakfast Club. It's time to get up out of here. Charlamagne, you got a positive note. Unity is strength. It is all right. When there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved. That is actually my positive note of the day. Okay, Breakfast Club, finish. Are y'all done? Jon Stewart is back at the Daily show, and he's bringing his signature wit and insight straight to your ears with the Daily Show Ears Edition podcast. Dive into John's unique take on the biggest topics in politics, entertainment, sports, and more. Joined by the sharp voices of the show's correspondents and contributors, and with extended interviews and exclusive weekly headline roundups, this podcast gives you content you won't find anywhere else. Ready to laugh and stay informed? Listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, man, what are you into? I have the hookup. The hookup? The hookup for what? I'm solving a mystery through sex and haven't made a private dick joke until now. Poppers. Why are there so many poppers? All roads lead to the hookup. You think it's causing people to turn aggro? I'm gonna rip your arms off and use them to. Yeah, that's a word for it. Listen to the hookup on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Dressing. Dressing. Oh, French dressing. Exactly. Ah, that' I'm AJ Jacobs, and my current obsession is puzzles, and that has given birth to my podcast, the Puzzler. Something about Mary Poppins? Exactly. This is fun. You can get your daily puzzle nuggets delivered straight to your ears. Listen to the Puzzler every day on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my legacy. I'm Martin Luther King iii, and together with my wife, Andrea Waters King, and our dear friends Mark and Craig, we explore the personal journeys that shape extraordinary lives. Join us for heartfelt conversations with remarkable guests like David Oyelowo, Mel Robbins, Martin Sheen, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, and Billy Porter. Listen to my legacy on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is my legacy.