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Anita Kopak
This is an iHeart podcast.
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DJ Envy
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Commercial Narrator
Hold up.
Charlamagne tha God
Every day, I wake up. Wake your ass up. The Breakfast Club. Y' all finished or y' all done?
DJ Envy
Morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy. Just hilarious. Charlemagne, the guy. We are the breakfast club. Lauren LaRose is here as well. We got a special guest in the building. She's back. Ladies and gentlemen, Miss Anita Kopak.
Anita Kopak
Welcome back. I'm so happy to be back. Thank you so much for having me.
DJ Envy
How you feeling? Yes.
Charlamagne tha God
How's your day?
Anita Kopak
Amazing. Amazing. I feel so blessed to be in here, and I could tell you all are having fun. So I love to be in places where I know people love what they're doing.
Charlamagne tha God
The Wind on Her Tongue is your second release in the trilogy, right? Yes, but it's out in paperback now.
Anita Kopak
It is. It is.
Charlamagne tha God
What is the difference between the paperback and the hardcover experience?
Anita Kopak
So what I'm really excited about with the paperback is that we have the results for the art contest.
Felicia
Right.
Anita Kopak
That. And then there was a couple of poems, and so those are in the paperback. And, you know, I was able to. To correct a few things that I had forgotten in here. That was great to have just a few, you know, more corrections in there.
Charlamagne tha God
I love the world that you're building with the Daughter of Three Waters trilogy. The first book was Shallow Waters. This is the Wind on Her Tongue. Just explain to people what those two books are and what the trilogy is going to be.
Anita Kopak
Yes. So all of my books are about the orishas, which I don't know if you all noticed, but last night. Or not last night. Sorry.
Charlamagne tha God
At the Oscars.
Anita Kopak
At the Oscars, that Michael B. Jordan that he won for Best Actor for his Smoke and Stack.
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
Right.
Anita Kopak
And they are created from the ibeji, which are the orisha. So he won an Oscar for. For playing an orisha. And it's the twin orisha.
Felicia
Wow.
Anita Kopak
The twin orisha is the ibeji. And so the ibeji are actually in this book. I'm gonna put this in.
Charlamagne tha God
Oh, she putting her glasses on.
Anita Kopak
I'm getting old now. So let me just read this part. The end note of this book. So I say there are many different stories about Oya, but according to popular legend, after nine miscarriages and stillbirths, Oya made a sacrifice on a cloth with the color of the rainbow. She then gave Birth to four sets of living twins and a ninth child. In Yoruba myth, twins are called ibeji, meaning born two times. The theme of the rainbow and ibeji are closely linked to Oya. So we have ibeji in here. I always say that me and Ryan Coogler are like twin souls with our writing, if I do say so myself. But, you know, there's a lot of similarities in the works that we're putting out there. And you had sent me, you know, the. The videos from Brazil where they were doing those huge floats to the orishas. And it's like this energy, like people are really black. People are really remembering who we are and our. Where our ancestors are from and our spirituality. And I think the more and more we connect to that, the more and more unstoppable we are.
Lauren LaRose
I was going to say, I'm just. Now I'm like, looking. I'm looking at the cast and I'm looking at what you're talking about with the different energies, and they have. So, like Annie or Mary, who was the white woman who came in and started dating one of the brothers played by Hailee Seinfeld. She's Ocean.
Charlamagne tha God
That's crazy.
Lauren LaRose
Like, it's literally everything we talked with you about before was literally the movie. Like, the cast members all themselves like it. I never made that comparison until you said it.
Charlamagne tha God
It says key Orisha, connections and Sinners.
Lauren LaRose
Yeah. So Ocean was played by Mary Oshun. I'm sorry, one me, Wunmi Mosaku, who played Annie. She's Oya as a female warrior. Yes. And she's the warrior.
Anita Kopak
And then she carries the like and has the miscarriage. Yes.
Felicia
Have you met Ryan Coogler?
Anita Kopak
I have not met him. Not yet. So we got to figure that out.
Felicia
Wow.
Anita Kopak
No, but I did. I don't. You don't know this. I finished the third book.
Charlamagne tha God
Okay.
DJ Envy
Wow.
Anita Kopak
And so it doesn't come out until next year, so there's still the process of editing and everything you got to do as an author, all the fun stuff. But the third one is about Oshun,
Felicia
so I just want to know what was. Because I know you saw Sinners, obviously. Right. The first time you saw it 10 times. Well, all 10 times. What was your thoughts? Like what?
Anita Kopak
As soon as I saw it, I was like, first of all, with all of his films, I end up crying. I'm an emotional being. And so when I feel something deeply, I'm just like, crying. And my daughters are like, what? What are you crying about? And there were so Many things that were similar. The fact that he brought in, like, the. How the. The Chinese people mixed in with the black people, I have that within this as well. And the. The storyline of the woman being the witchy woman. Right. That is all powerful in the spirit world. I have that. And so for me, it just feels like I'm seeing someone speaking my language, and then there's something that awakens, that feels so familiar, and I feel like so many people are feeling that with sinners, and I love it. And I'm just. I'm excited for more and more and more people to read my books.
Charlamagne tha God
What inspired you to write about African spiritual traditions through. Through fiction?
Anita Kopak
So, you know, what is interesting is that I feel like the spirits chose me. Like, it didn't feel like I had a choice. It was like, at the time, the first time I wrote my first book, Shallow Waters, I was the editor in chief of Heart and Soul magazine, so I was doing health and wellness for black people. And this story just kept coming up. It was like this woman, who. Which I didn't realize was Yemeya at first, was just sitting at the edge of my bed telling me this story. And I'm like, what is this? What is this? And for most of us who are daughters and sons of the Diaspora, I was taught that it was demonic, right. To even look into it or ask about it or figure, you know, read about it. And so. But the more and more I did, the more it felt like home, and the more it felt like I was with my ancestors. And I'm like, what? Well, who told me this was demonic?
Felicia
Were you afraid of her? I was, yeah.
Anita Kopak
Yes. I mean, you know, like Yemeya, Oya, that, you know, they're. They're intense. They're intense spirits. So I guess I would say I have respect. Yeah, I have respect.
DJ Envy
I know you spoke about it before. I was gonna say, I know you spoke about it before, but what got you into that deep dive of viewing things?
Anita Kopak
So it was actually Yemen. Yeah, because my friend Lee took Thompson Young, who's passed away now.
DJ Envy
Rest in peace.
Anita Kopak
Yes, rest in peace. He was telling me about the orishas, and he told me that about Yemeya, that she watched over our souls as our ancestors went over the Middle Passage. And she was a black mermaid. And I was like, what? A black mermaid? Hold up. What is this? And so he told me all these stories. He was a priest of Oshun, and. And I am not in the religion, but I think one of the things that's really beautiful for me about that is that I'm coming at it from a place of curiosity and of, you know, research and, you know, like, if I was raised in it, I think it would just feel more, like, normal. Like, oh, yeah, that's just what we do, you know? And so I guess it's that curiosity. When he was telling me about. Yeah, I was so excited about that.
DJ Envy
So when you tried to. When you published the book, how difficult was it at first to get a publisher? We know Charlamagne published it, but before that, was it very difficult telling somebody the story and having them understand that?
Anita Kopak
So I didn't really go on that journey yet, but I. It was. It was 2020, and all of the things were happening, and I was like, you know what? This is the time for the story. And so I was like, I. I don't know how to do it, but I'm going to self publish. And as soon as I decided that, that's when Yadi, amazing friend, who is a part of the Goddess Wisdom Council with me, my sister, and Cora, and basically, Yadi was like, I went to the ocean or the shower. We still haven't figured it out. Some water. And. And I asked like, yeme, yeah, like, what? So she's the mother of us all, the mother of the ocean.
Felicia
And.
Anita Kopak
And she was like, you know, like, what should I need to do to be able to get this book out there? And the answer was, give it to Charlemagne. At that time, he did not have. I didn't even have a book imprint, his imprint, yet.
Charlamagne tha God
Never even mentioned it to nobody. Nothing.
Anita Kopak
And so she was like, I need it. And she's yachty, can tell things, she knows things. And so she was like, can I send it to Charlemagne? I was like, sure, sure. Within two days. He was like, do not sign with anyone else. He's like, I'm putting this out.
Charlamagne tha God
I was sitting in the backyard. I read it on my laptop. It was Covid. We weren't. We weren't moving around or nothing. I'm just like, yo, this is amazing. This needs to be in the world. Like, you know, this just. You know, because it's like, racism is colorism, but then it's classism, but then it's magic. Like, it just felt very black.
Felicia
Yes.
Lauren LaRose
As an author of these type of stories that people act like we have to shun away from, how did the success of sinners and everything they did in the box office make you feel for, like, what your future is about to look like?
Anita Kopak
Oh, it made me feel great. It was. It was it felt. I felt almost the same way as I did when I saw, like, the things that you sent me in Brazil with these huge, amazing floats. If you all haven't seen that, see the floats of the orishas from Brazil. And to me, it just feels like, yes, people are opening up to it. We're seeing like, what these, how deep these stories go. This religion survived underground for hundreds of years because if people practiced it in the open, they would be killed, they would be beaten, whatever it was. So it had to survive underground. And so the fact that it did and it's in us. Like, to me, I feel like when people read my stories, it's a remembering because you can feel it in your bones. You can feel it in your bones. You're like, oh, wait, I know this story from somewhere. But where?
Charlamagne tha God
Why do you think people are reconnecting with their ancestral spirituality?
Anita Kopak
Oh, because it's time. I mean, those motherfuckers are eating babies. You know, like, it's like you, you see, oh my gosh, they're doing these spiritual, like, things to make. Give them power. We know that we have our own. And I feel like that connection to me, I know as soon as that came out for me, as soon as I read the files, I looked at my altar and I was like, I need to dust that shit off.
Charlamagne tha God
Well, we have our own. That's rooted in righteousness, though.
Anita Kopak
That's right.
Charlamagne tha God
We're not eating babies.
Anita Kopak
No, exactly. Yes, thank you for the clarification. No, it's rooted in righteousness, in being a better person every day.
DJ Envy
How important is it to connect to your ancestors?
Anita Kopak
Well, for me, it's non negotiable. I mean, before I was even really interested in this, I always would talk to my grandmother, grandfather, and Lee now on the other side. But so many, to me, it feels like that's a part of us connecting to our wisdom because they're a part of us. And then there was this one time that I did ayahuasca in Peru, and my ancestors came to me and they basically told me that you are the living blood. You are the one that can exact change in this world right now. And because I think, you know, for me, I would look to them, like, venerate them, like they're so much better than me, but they're like, you're the one that's in the world that can make the changes. We can give you the suggestions, but you're there making the changes.
Felicia
How does one connect with their ancestors? Right? You see how you were called? You didn't know what was happening at first. Right. You said, it's always been said that it was demonic or something like that, and it scared you for a while, but once you really just embraced was powerful. It was the impact that it had on you. How does one get there? Because I haven't done ayahuasca. I do shrooms and that brings me enlightenment and clarity when I'm looking for certain answers or when I feel like I'm stuck and in a place. But I also heard you have to be called to do a ayahuasca as well. That's not something that you just go have fun doing like you, you know, and it's a whole thing. It's totally different from shrooms, you know, Although I. I get clarity with that too. But how do you connect with your ancestors?
Anita Kopak
It's so easy. You have a picture of your grandma, just look at her and talk to her like she's here. And to me that's. I start with the ones that I knew in life because then I feel like I can have that type of conversation and I'm getting all emotional cuz I'm thinking of our grandmothers. Amazing, amazing women we call. Baba was our Polish grandmother and then granny was our Katyian grandmother.
Felicia
So.
Anita Kopak
And just talking to them like they're here. And sometimes, you know, imagination is really important in your spirituality because sometimes you could feel like, oh, I'm imagining that I can hear them talking to me, but there's no way go with the imagination.
Felicia
Now. I had an experience very similar to that when I shroomed and me. And I have a little sister, she's 11 years younger than me and we were hugging. She was shroom. She was shrooming too. And we were hugging and we were in my home. Right? But it was like we went through time when we were hugging. I was my mother, she was me. And then I was my grandmother and she was my mother, and then I was her and she was me. But she was telling me that it was okay, like I didn't know what it was. I wasn't afraid of it. I just didn't know. I wanted to go back and I wanted to because I wanted to talk to my grandmother. I lost my grandmother at a very young age. I was her favorite and she was mine too. And I just had so many things to ask her before she left as my mom's mom. And I was. I just, I wanted to get back to that moment. But I don't want to have to shroom to do it all the time, because shroom's nasty. My stomach was hurting. And then you'd be high too long. But, but that one part, like, I was really, really happy to have connected with her, but like I said, we were going through time, but I wanted, I want to be able to do that without all the, the like being high. Like, I want to be able to, to do that.
Anita Kopak
Well, the beautiful thing about that is that once, once you have done something like. And some people don't need anything at all to connect with that. Right. But once you have done shrooms or ayahuasca, you can connect to that part of yourself that has been in that place, whether it's through meditation or just, you know, allowing yourself to move back into that space and, and, and really get back into that place. Because when you think about it, it's. It's like, it's like your mind getting out of the way.
Felicia
Yeah.
Anita Kopak
And then you're moving through your heart or through your. It's more of an embodiment. And then where is this journey taking you?
Felicia
Right.
Anita Kopak
So that's. And I feel like that's a part of these books. These books are like that, They're a journey. Like if you. And when you read this, it is a journey and you'll feel that. Speaking of Oshun, for the. I'm not saying the name of the book, but the third one that's coming out on Black Privilege Publishing.
Charlamagne tha God
Yes, ma', am.
Anita Kopak
Next year. So Oshun is the Orisha of the sweet things in Life of Honey. And I brought gifts for you all from my sisters Lomar farm. So she's a beekeeper and honey. And so these are hand poured candles that.
Lauren LaRose
Oh my gosh.
Anita Kopak
Yes, they're. You're gonna be addicted. I'm sorry.
Charlamagne tha God
No, My wife loves those.
Anita Kopak
She. Yes, she does. I already told her I'm bringing her one.
Charlamagne tha God
What does, what does Oya represent in the wind on her tongue.
Anita Kopak
So Oya represents transformation power. For me, it was the energy of the. The quote unquote, angry black woman and going deeper into that trope and seeing what is there. And as I did, it was like, oh no, she's just so fucking powerful that that's how people experience her.
State Farm Advertiser
So.
Anita Kopak
So I have the story of her coming into her power. So she's younger and so you kind of see where the anger comes from, how she was treated. A lot of the characters within the book, Marie Laveau, Mary Ellen Pleasant, they're all people. So those are historical figures and they were demonized women who were demonized and they did amazing things in this world. And I was, you know, for, for me, I was like, how come I didn't learn about them in school? And it's really, I mean, I think a big part was that they were voodoo priestesses, both of them. And, you know, voodoo has been demonized. And these women, if you look up what Mary Ellen Pleasant, she like owned half of San Francisco, a black woman, started the bank of California, which is Wells Fargo.
DJ Envy
Wow.
Anita Kopak
And I mean, she, she was a beast. And now she, I guess also was known as the civil rights leader of, of California. And it's, it's like, how did I not learn about her?
Charlamagne tha God
I'm glad you did that because, you know, like you said, all your struggles with controlling her power, right? But it is meant to symbolize what black women struggle with in everyday life. And the thing I always, you know, tell black women, like, you know, they say I don't want to be looked at as the angry black woman. But what if you are angry? Your therapist always tells you to feel your feels, right? So why not lean into that if that's how you're feeling in that moment?
Anita Kopak
Yeah, well, it's because there is that whole trope about it and it's like, oh my gosh, am I falling into that trope? But it's really is like, yes, feel your feels, express them. And that is a part of us remembering who we really are. And that's not. We're not always angry, right? Like, that's not. Yes, we're angry because there's fucked up shit that's happening. But we are a people who know how to get in touch with our joy no matter what we are going through. And so yes, we can be in our joy. We can be on our deep spiritual being. And you know, for me, having a black mother is one of the most blessed experiences that I can ever have because of how deep her compassion is. And you know, I go out into the world after that and I'm like, whoa, is this what the world is like? Oh, going back to my mama.
Lauren LaRose
That's why it's so crazy. Like when people had a conversation about like, how black women should deal with it, treat each other, and they're always like, we should be somewhat, much more kind to each other. I think it's crazy that like, you even have to talk to, especially intergenerationally to you even have to say that because it's like, what type of love and or not did you not come from? Because, like, like, if. Why don't you Feel that for a person that is right there with you, and that's how you were brought up and you were born, like, you know what I mean? Like, in your household, that's what. That's what you're given, even on the worst day. Like, why do you have to be taught that once you get back into the world?
Anita Kopak
Yeah, well, not everybody. And there's so many people who weren't taught with that same type of love. So it is. Right. Like, it. It is a lesson once you get out into the world.
Lauren LaRose
Yeah.
Felicia
But every. Everybody's household is not, you know, loving either. You know what I mean? Cause it's generational trauma, you know, that. That actually weighs heavily in people house. And a lot of women aren't able to teach their daughters how to love because they weren't loved or that. You know what I mean? It just goes back. So.
Anita Kopak
Yeah. Yeah.
Lauren LaRose
How do you. When. When black women read this book and they. And they look at Oya, right? How do you talk to them about even if that trope comes, how they still stay in their, like, power and not, like, because you. Once it comes, you're. You're then trying to fight it, and then you forget all about who you are. Right. So how do you talk black women through that?
Anita Kopak
Yeah, well, all of my books are a love letter to black women. Right. So these. These are just like. It's. It's really, like, when you read it, it's like, I see you. I see you. And so it's kind of just sticking with it. Right. Like, if you are feeling angry. Okay, what am I angry about? Sometimes even saying that to yourself out loud, what am I angry about? That helps, because it might be like, oh, dang. I'm just angry because that person cut me off. And then. Then my mind is starting to think of all the other things I'm angry about, because I already got angry from one thing. And so, you know, talking to ourselves helps. And I feel like just really continuing to learn ourselves, allow ourselves to be the main character in the story, because we know all of us want to give and give and give to everyone. And so it's like, really like, okay, if I'm the main character, what is it that I need right now?
Charlamagne tha God
When you say talk to yourself, what should you be saying?
DJ Envy
What up, everybody? It's DJ Emmy from the Breakfast Club. Now, you know, me and my wife, married 24 years and together over 30. And yes, we still speak on the phone every day. I mean, the early days, I didn't have a cell phone. I couldn't afford a cell phone and the cell phones were like the size of a a man's purse. But anyway, I love speaking to my wife over the phone. People say we talk too much, but that's my best friend. Why shouldn't we be able to talk all the time? All day long? 24,7 but did you know that 2026 will mark the 150th anniversary of the first ever phone call. It took place March 10, 1876. And that call sparked it all for the first long distance phone lines, the first lines across America, the first line across the Atlantic, the first round the world called, the first commercial cell Service, the first 911 system. AT&T has been connecting people for 150 years in so many different ways. Thank God we have cell phones. I can connect to my moms, my pops and my whole family. Thank you. AT&T.
Anita Kopak
Connecting changes everything.
DJ Envy
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State Farm Advertiser
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DJ Envy
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Commercial Narrator
Pressure has a way of revealing what remains steady. In the latest Nissan campaign, the Nissan Rogue was tested to the extreme to demonstrate that it's built to last through durability and reliability challenges inspired by real tests conducted by Nissan engineers. Brutal potholes, a steady force of water, even a jet powered sandstorm. Each challenge inviting a deeper look at how quality, durability and reliability hold their ground in real world conditions. Every test was 100% real. No CG, no AI. To see how the Rogue held up, visit nissan-duordability.com I, I, I say I gotta do laundry.
Anita Kopak
No, just kidding,
Felicia
right?
Anita Kopak
No. But I do. I, I'll talk. If I begin to feel anxiety, I'll be like, what am I anxious about? And I'll say it out loud. And then sometimes it'll just be like, oh my gosh, I'm anxious. Anxious because I think that I'm gonna look crazy when I go on this show or something, you know, like the I. And once I say it out loud, I'm like, that's silly. You know, like kind of talking to myself as if that's the, the inner child, you know, speaking their insecurities.
DJ Envy
What traditions did you discover or find out about that you feel like as a community we miss out on or we forgot about or we don't do. And I'm black. I'm not Dominican. I am black. I am not Dominican.
Charlamagne tha God
Fully black community. What do you mean exactly?
DJ Envy
Okay, continue.
Anita Kopak
Okay, well, for me, one thing that I have done with my sister and with a few of our friends, we read the book the Conjuring of America, which was actually very similar to the wind on her tongue. It was like the real version. Like she talked about Marie Laveau and she talked a lot about herbalism and how black people, like, they're the ones who brought in all of the herbal medicines, right? So they had the medicines that worked. And I Was like, wow, I feel so disconnected. Like, if I walk into a forest, I don't know what any plant is. And so what we did is we got all of our friends together, and once a month, we learned something that our grandmothers taught us. And so we've learned spiritual baths. We've learned how to make hot sauce. We've learned all kinds of different things. And so I think community and gathering and teaching one little thing. I mean, when I went to South Carolina. Oh, my gosh. Have you guys gone to the African American Museum?
Felicia
No, I have not yet.
Charlamagne tha God
They don't care about black history, Yo.
Anita Kopak
Yo.
Felicia
I really do.
DJ Envy
Yo.
Felicia
I do.
Anita Kopak
It's so good. It's so good. And one of the things that I learned that I. It's not gonna be a spoiler. I did put it into the new book, but. But was about seeking, which I didn't realize. So the Gullah Geechee have this practice called seeking, where children from, like, 7 to 11, they go out into the forest alone for days until they have a vision. And when they have that vision, they come back with that vision. So they have to know what plants you can eat. They have to know what plants cure things. So by seven, these children are out there knowing, knowing. And I was like, what? I had a similar thing in Shallow Waters where, because I knew indigenous children did that. And so I had put that in Shallow Waters. I had no idea that the Gullah Geechee did that. I learned a lot.
Charlamagne tha God
What called you to Charleston, Because I remember when you hit me and said you wanted to go down there, like, to do research for your third book, like, what. What. What called you to the. To the Holy City?
Anita Kopak
So it was the. The third book, which is about ocean. I'm not going to say the name. So it takes place in Buford and St. Helena. And so I was like, well, you know what? I've never been there. I was like, I need to kind of feel the land, the earth. When I got down there, the trees were talking to me.
Charlamagne tha God
Absolutely.
Anita Kopak
I had never, ever seen trees that looked like that with the moss hanging
Charlamagne tha God
over the stone highway.
Anita Kopak
Yep. On a road. Oh, it was amazing. And so when I was there, I learned that, you know, all of the money that the enslaved people made for the south was through rice, indigo, and cotton and all of these skills. They brought the. The enslaved Africans over who had those skills, who knew how to do the rice in the. In the swamp land, specifically pick them.
Charlamagne tha God
They weren't just grabbing random people, like, exactly.
Anita Kopak
So they're like, okay, you know, how to do this. And then took them and it's. It was. I was mind blown, like, in so many different ways. I did a tour with this woman called the grave woman. Her name is Joelle. And so she took me to a rice field where they're also like, you know, just make sure there's. When you're walking, there's no snakes and. Oh, let me tell you. Let me tell you. We walked by an alligator. The people in the south are not scared of alligators. They're not scared. Like, they walked by like it was nothing. They would freak out.
Charlamagne tha God
I was like, don't bother them, they won't bother you.
Felicia
Right?
Charlamagne tha God
Yeah.
Lauren LaRose
I hate when people from the south say that. Not normal.
Anita Kopak
Nobody bit. It's like a dinosaur.
Felicia
Alligators, not normal to us.
Anita Kopak
It's like a huge alligator.
Felicia
Did you jump? Were you scared? Did you just.
Anita Kopak
I was horrified. And they were like, the. The father. The girl's father was like, yeah, we used to swim with them. Oh, it's like, oh, swimming.
Charlamagne tha God
I never did all that.
DJ Envy
Yeah,
Lauren LaRose
they were black.
Anita Kopak
They're black.
Lauren LaRose
Oh, wow.
Anita Kopak
They're black. They're not scared. Like, not. They're like, of the land, like the Gullah Geechee. So with the Gullah Geechee, they were somewhat isolated in certain islands, so they were able to keep so much of their traditions. And. And so, yeah, it's like you saying
Felicia
the alligators was black.
Anita Kopak
No.
Charlamagne tha God
Oh, Lord have mercy. That's why you got to go to the International African American Museum.
Felicia
No, I am.
DJ Envy
No, because.
Felicia
No, no. The people. Yes, ma'. Am.
Charlamagne tha God
Queen of fool. Got her on a 21 day detox day.
DJ Envy
Number one, though, don't get it twisted.
Charlamagne tha God
Day three.
Anita Kopak
You can say you started yesterday.
Felicia
No, I went Sunday and I started Sunday.
DJ Envy
But you smoked yesterday.
Felicia
No, no, I'm letting it go slowly but surely. You can't just change.
Anita Kopak
What are you doing the fast for? Just.
Felicia
Just for, like, she don't know. Health and wellness, you know what I mean? Like, I want. Like, I want to go on that holistic journey of health. Like, my diet is messed up. You know, I want to be able to kill the cravings that I have for weed. You know what I mean? But it's not just weed. It's just even what I consume. You know what I mean? What I'm watching, what I'm listening to. I wake up on my phone before I go to sleep on my phone. I wake up angry sometimes. And I realize it's because of what you watched before you went to sleep. You know, my Dreams are crazy, like, and not all the time, but a little bit too frequent for me. I'm 34 years old. I'm not.
Charlamagne tha God
I gotta be too frequent for all of us.
Felicia
You know what I'm saying? Yeah. You know, but it's just a different way of living, you know, Optimal health. I want that, and I want that for my kids, too, you know, and my husband. Like, I really, really want that for my family. And if you can. If you can be. You know, we already got everything we need here, right. To heal ourselves. I want to be able to heal my family. You know what I'm saying? I want to be able to do that, and I want my kids to be able to heal their kids.
Charlamagne tha God
So you're sick of.
Felicia
Not sick of myself. Shut up.
Anita Kopak
No, but that's important. That's important. And. And my sister was just telling me that there is a line in the Bible that, in many Bibles that has been taken out of where it says, to heal yourself, all you need to do is fast. And it's taken out. Like, she showed me one Bible where it was in and another one where it's, like, taken out. I can't tell you which someone will be able to tell you which line it is, but I can't tell you.
Lauren LaRose
A lot of churches, though, they teach. I mean, they do fast together in the church. But I know in my church, like, they.
Felicia
You.
Lauren LaRose
Fasting is kind of like what Jess is kind of talking about, where it's like, you take that time of just discipline and, like, in those moments, you, like, talk yourself through things and just have some real, like, hard moments that make it. You change after the fast happens.
Felicia
Yeah, it's very challenging. Even on my third day, like, it's very challenging because fasting is not just about, like, not eating. What you want is. It's really not. Not watching the shows you like, not
Anita Kopak
talking to the people, you know.
Felicia
No sex. No. Like, it's very strict. It's a very strict way to discipline yourself.
Anita Kopak
Yeah.
DJ Envy
You know, you're going no sex for 30 days.
Felicia
What?
Charlamagne tha God
What.
Felicia
What else?
Charlamagne tha God
Oh, she married to a Mexican. I don't see that happening either.
Felicia
You do.
Anita Kopak
You do have to do no sex when you. When there's a whole facet you have to do before you do. Ayahuasca, too.
Charlamagne tha God
Yeah. You had to do three weeks. Yeah, we had to do three weeks. Eating clean.
Anita Kopak
Yeah.
Charlamagne tha God
No sex for three weeks.
Felicia
Even if you marry.
Lauren LaRose
Like, you.
DJ Envy
Even if you marry. Sounds crazy.
Felicia
Yes.
Anita Kopak
Yeah.
Felicia
Gotcha.
Anita Kopak
And, you know, as far as, like, guiding people through things like that, with the. With the Goddess Wisdom Council, that I'm a part of this group with me, my sister Yadi and this woman named Cora, we take people on retreats. Charlemagne has support, supported that in so many ways, because I. I want to basically create spaces where women of color, people of color, can come and experience a beautiful space where all you have to think about is your healing.
Felicia
Yeah.
Anita Kopak
And we have monthly calls called the Leap. And so it's kind of like a community that is more of, like, you know, people who can meet once a month, and we do, like, group coaching with them. And then we're about to start a mastermin, where if. A legacy mastermind, and that can be. Where if someone has, like, a project that they've been thinking about. So to me, that's where fasting comes in. Because sometimes you can't even see what it is that you want to do.
Felicia
And.
Anita Kopak
And it's like, well, what is the legacy? What is the legacy that I want to leave behind? And so if you do some fasting, then this clarity comes because only you know that you're the only one who got that call. And, you know, if it's. If it's fuzzy.
Felicia
Yeah, it's the purpose thing right now. Right. Like, you don't know what it is. And I thought that was, like, a bad thing to not know your purpose. You know what I mean? But, yeah, I can't. I can't see it. It's foggy. That's why I want to stop doing a lot of things that I'm doing to get the clarity for it.
Anita Kopak
And sometimes our purpose is just as simple as to love. Right. Like, that's. That's one of my purposes. I know that is one of my purposes is to. To love deeply, to love the people around me deeply. And also I feel like a part of my ministry is black women. Like, I just love black women. And I feel, you know, just thinking of my daughters, and I love my son as well, of course, but just thinking of, like, to me, if. If black women are healed, like, it's. That's why even with, like, micro loans, if you give it to black women, you know that the whole community is going to be served because they're not going to just take care of themselves. They're going to take care of the people around them.
Charlamagne tha God
Can we talk about the sacred Trinity? Because that's what this. That's what this book series represents. Shallow waters was the mother. The wind on her tongue is the daughter. And the next book will be the Holy Spirit. But tell me, what is the Sacred Trinity?
Anita Kopak
Yes, the Sacred Trinity for most people is the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, right? And so within my books, I'm not. I don't want to tell too much about what's happening in the third one, but I have the mother, the daughter, and the Holy Spirit. So I have the mother, which is Yemeya, she is the black mermaid, right? The mother of us all. And then the daughter who is Oya. So she is the. The daughter in the flesh. And then I have the Holy Spirit, which is going to be ocean, which is the sweet things in life, the muse, the artist, and these, the daughter of three waters within the Cuban practice of the IFA religion. So when the enslaved Africans were dropped off at different parts places in the Americas, they. Different parts of the religion sprung up. So in Cuba, in Brazil, right? So in Brazil, it's Condomble. In Cuba it's Santeria, right? Lukumi ifa. Right. Like, there's many different versions, but it's all from ifa. And so within Cuba, if you're a daughter of Yemeya and Oshun, they call you the daughter of two waters. And usually you're only a daughter of one Orisha. So when I was thinking of these books, I'm like, oh, but there's three of them. There's three of them. And I was like, it's a daughter of three waters because Oya is a storm, there's rain, transformation. She is powerful. And so that's really where that holy Trinity came in. And I'm super excited. I'm so excited. I've been calling my dad every morning early and been reading him, like, chapter by chapter. And he's. He's an anesthesiologist, right? So he's. I always think of him as super analytical and scientific. Oh, my gosh, he's helping me so much.
Charlamagne tha God
Why your father in particular?
Anita Kopak
So he was. I had. I had sent it to him, and he was like, I can't see it too well right now. Like he was having a hard time seeing it. And I was like, well, I read the book to my sister Ivana, who's back here, who is my ibc, my twin. And I always reach, like, she's the one who I usually read the book to. She gives me the feedback. I know which way to go. She. If she gets a feeling of what's going to come next, she tells me, and, you know, you've written book? Have you guys written books?
Charlamagne tha God
Yeah, justice wrote one.
Anita Kopak
So, you know, it's a process. It is hard. Like, as far as, like, sticking to it, writing a full novel. Right. And so to me, I think of them as, like, kind of like infants. And so it's. I have to be really careful who I share my words with because someone might say something that feels like a stab, and then I'm sitting and I can't write for the rest of the day. Right. I did say I was sensitive, right?
Felicia
You did.
Anita Kopak
And so I'm super careful with who I share with. And so I was like, I am going to call my dad and read this to him. And he has helped me because all of them. This next one takes place in 1909. And so he's helping me stay true to that time. Like, well, would. They would have said that during that time. Did they have a toothbrush? Right? And I'm like, oh, I didn't even look right? And I saw that, you know, only the elite had toothbrushes during that time. And so.
Charlamagne tha God
Damn.
Anita Kopak
I know.
Felicia
How long does it take for you to. How long did the third book actually take to write?
Anita Kopak
Yeah, it did not take long, which was interesting because the way I did it, which was very different from the other ways, was that I woke up early, early in the morning and just wrote a little bit every day. And so I would say I started writing around November, and now it's March. Right. And so it was really, I would say, the quickest one, even though I felt like I didn't feel like I was writing a lot because it just felt like I'd wake up in the morning, write some, and then go throughout the day.
Charlamagne tha God
I love, you know, the Daughter three Water series. What do you. When it's all said and done right? Like, what do you want these books to do to people? Not just, how do you want it to be received. What do you want them to do to people?
Anita Kopak
I want people to feel transformed and go out and do what they came here to do in this world. And I know that might be a big, tall order, but I do. I want that to be the inspiration. And I went to go see, like, a sneak performance of Dreamgirls that's gonna be coming on Broadway.
Felicia
Nice.
Anita Kopak
The way that made me feel. Oh, I would be so happy if my books made people feel that way. Because I sat there. My cousin Alyssa is in it, and I sat there, and it was the first time I felt unworthy of sitting in an audience seat.
Charlamagne tha God
Really?
Anita Kopak
Wow, y'.
State Farm Advertiser
All.
Anita Kopak
When it comes out. When it comes out, y' all have to see it. It's so good. And so I feel like that type of artistry. I hope that my book can do that. And I would love for the IP to turn into movies.
Felicia
Tv.
Anita Kopak
It will plays. And so it is. Yes. From your lips to God's ear. Yeah.
DJ Envy
Well, if you haven't picked it up, pick up the paperback. Release the wind and hard tongue and
Charlamagne tha God
go get shallow waters too. Shallow waters is the mother. Okay. The wind on her tongue is the daughter.
DJ Envy
And.
Anita Kopak
Yeah.
DJ Envy
Tell them about your sister's. She's a beekeeper.
Charlamagne tha God
Tell them about the.
DJ Envy
The bee farm.
Anita Kopak
Yes, it is.
Charlamagne tha God
I know, but beekeepers are very interesting
Felicia
to me, though, like that.
Charlamagne tha God
No, that's very interesting to me because honey fire too.
DJ Envy
It should be interesting to you too, because when you open the land and them bees come him.
Charlamagne tha God
I've been to the farm.
Lauren LaRose
Where is he?
Anita Kopak
Where is your farm? His wife loves the candles.
Felicia
What do you want to know?
DJ Envy
Well. Well, first of all, how did you get into being a beekeeper? How did that happen?
Lauren LaRose
Can we get another mic?
DJ Envy
Yeah, hold on. We'll get you another mic. So you can sit down and everything.
Felicia
Yes, like that is very important. People don't eat.
Anita Kopak
It is.
Felicia
Pay attention.
DJ Envy
Is your bag. You guys can move it.
Felicia
Yep, absolutely.
Anita Kopak
You can put it right there.
Felicia
Yeah, you.
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
And then what do I just.
Anita Kopak
I'm gonna give you an item.
Felicia
Okay.
Anita Kopak
Thank you so much.
Charlamagne tha God
Absolutely.
DJ Envy
So how did you get into being a beekeeper?
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
Yeah, so I. My husband and I and our two daughters lived in Harlem and we decided to move out to Palisades, New York. And at the same time, we found a six acre farm. And we also saw a documentary called More Than Honey, which talked about the decline in honeybees. So we wanted to revive the property as well as sort of help the bees at the same time. And so we started keeping bees and we became obsessed. We started loving it and learning more about what they do for us in the world. We thought we could help them and they can help us. So sort of a synergetic relationship.
DJ Envy
If anybody out there is against the law, just want to tell you it is against the law. If there's a honey beehive and you kill it, you're going to jail.
Anita Kopak
You shouldn't want to kill it.
Felicia
I know this. Yes, yes.
Anita Kopak
No. Yeah, listen, if you have a beehive,
DJ Envy
she'll come and get it.
Anita Kopak
Call me. She literally can go in, get the hive and then put it into one of the boxes if. I don't know if you still do that. But yeah, it's. She's. Gangsta.
Felicia
Yeah.
DJ Envy
How many times have you been stung? I'm sorry, Jeff.
Felicia
No, it's okay. He said, how many times have you been stung?
DJ Envy
Yes. Because I'm curious. It's amazing to me.
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
A lot, a lot. But bees are so amazing. Even the venom is medicine. So any. Anytime I get stung, I'm like, okay. It actually helps with arthritis. It's also been tested to help some certain breast cancer. So. So every time I get stung, I'm like, okay, this is. This is medicine. And also the honey is medicine. The propolis is medicine.
Felicia
The.
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
I mean, everything about the bee is medicine to us.
Felicia
We need them.
Lauren LaRose
Yeah. I was going to ask you what was the importance of. Of the work that you do in the space with the bees, but here in the healing part of it, do you have people that farm for that specifically?
Anita Kopak
I don't, because it's not open to the public.
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
But we do have community time where we will have a farm to table dinner to benefit our Palisades library. And if there are people that I
Anita Kopak
know that you know that want to
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
reach out, I would do it. I would have them come to the farm.
Charlamagne tha God
Go look up lamarfarms.com yes, Lamar Farm. Real quick.
Felicia
Did you ever see the movie Beekeeper? So I was watching it, and I love Jason State the Man. Felicia Rashad, by the way, movie is great, right? So he was a beekeeper in the movie. And I was talking to, like, somebody I know, and I was telling them, like, yo, he. Because they was joking about him always, like, having a odd job, like, you know, because he kills and everything. But he was protecting the bees, right? And Phyllisa Rashad had a farm, and so they was all like, nah, yo, it's just a movie about him killing them. Like, no, he was protecting the bees because the bees are for healing. Like, every part of the bee, even the venom, everything, like you just said. I was explaining that I ain't know about the breast cancer part, but I did know, like, arthritis and the bones, it helps with, you know, sickness. Niggas tried to tell me I was lying. I'm like, yo, for real. The bee is like one of the.
Charlamagne tha God
Because you always lying. It's not because of this bee thing. Don't blame.
Anita Kopak
I wasn't lying.
Felicia
Yeah, because people don't understand, you know, they just think, you know, oh, it's the bee. Kill it, you know?
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
No, because honeybees are medicine and we need them. And it's kind of part of what Anita was saying, and it's like, we've forgotten how to connect with the land. And being a part of that, you know, beekeeping is. Is helping me connect with the land and the healing that the land has for us. It's all here for us.
Felicia
Thank you.
Charlamagne tha God
Can you explain the difference between massage candles and beeswax candles?
Anita Kopak
So our massage candles are made with shea butter.
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
It's made with a special mix that you can put on your skin. And you just heat it up and put it on your skin. It's also.
Anita Kopak
It's so sexy. You light it and, like, let it melt, and then you blow it out, and then you could pour it either on yourself or your partner. Yes.
DJ Envy
Okay.
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
The regular beeswax candles. Actually, beeswax, when they're burned, is also medicinal. They act as an air purifier, so it releases negative ions into the air, connects to the positive ions, which is like dust allergy, allergens, and just bring them down out of the air. So that's the regular beeswax.
Charlamagne tha God
And then on the website, you have honey, but then you have raw honey.
Felicia
Honey.
Anita Kopak
It's all raw honey.
Charlamagne tha God
All raw honey.
Felicia
Okay.
Anita Kopak
Yeah.
Charlamagne tha God
Okay. And they got soap and body oil.
DJ Envy
So we can order from you. So I ain't gotta go to store and get honey anymore. I can order from you?
Charlamagne tha God
Absolutely.
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
This is a candle.
Lauren LaRose
This is.
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
This is a beeswax candle. That. This one. Anita brought ones.
Anita Kopak
I did. I went in.
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
This is our best seller, Wild Mountain Honey Candle. So this has, like, a very strong honey scent. So it's. Yeah.
DJ Envy
And Jess, tell it. Tell her your daughter's name. Jess.
Felicia
My daughter name is Marley.
Anita Kopak
Oh, my gosh. Are you serious?
Felicia
Oh, my gosh.
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
That's why Lola and Marley.
Lauren LaRose
Oh, I love it.
Charlamagne tha God
Yes.
Felicia
Okay, so this is mine. I knew that the bees were important.
Anita Kopak
I wanted to make sure Lauren was going to be here, too.
DJ Envy
Thank you so much for joining us, ladies.
Felicia
We appreciate you.
Charlamagne tha God
Go get shallow water. Go get the wind on her tongue, man. Available both of them in hardcover and paperback.
DJ Envy
Ms. Anita Colpax. Thank you so much. It's the Breakfast Club.
Charlamagne tha God
Good morning.
Lomar Farm Beekeeper
Thank you.
Charlamagne tha God
Every day I wake up. Wake your ass up. The Breakfast Club.
DJ Envy
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Friends like these the Murder of Skylar Neese is now streaming on Hulu and Hulu on Disney911.
Anita Kopak
Do you have an emergency?
Charlamagne tha God
I have a 16 year old daughter.
Anita Kopak
Can't get a hold of her. I am scared to death. We wanted to talk to Skyler's friends.
Charlamagne tha God
They're not telling the full story. The truth is gruesomely horrific.
Commercial Narrator
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Anita Kopak
There's a darker secret that's not been said.
Charlamagne tha God
Watch the new Hulu original series Friends like the Murder of Skylar Nese on Hulu and Hulu on Disney for bundle subscribers terms apply.
Anita Kopak
This is an iHeart podcast.
Commercial Narrator
Guaranteed Human.
The Breakfast Club – Interview with Anita Kopacz
Episode Date: March 18, 2026
Podcast Network: The Black Effect Podcast Network and iHeartPodcasts
Special Guest: Anita Kopacz
In this deeply engaging and insightful episode, The Breakfast Club welcomes back author and spiritual guide Anita Kopacz. She discusses her acclaimed ‘Daughter Of Three Waters’ trilogy (including Shallow Waters and The Wind on Her Tongue), the creative and cultural inspiration behind her work, the pivotal influence of African spirituality (specifically the Orisha tradition), and how her stories are designed as empowering love letters to Black women. The conversation expands to the success of Ryan Coogler’s Sinners film, the resurgence of ancestral spiritual traditions, her family’s beekeeping journey, and holistic approaches to healing and self-discovery.
Hosts DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, and Charlamagne tha God warmly reintroduce Anita Kopacz.
Anita shares her excitement about being back:
"I feel so blessed to be in here, and I could tell you all are having fun." — Anita Kopacz (03:15)
Discussion begins on the paperback release of The Wind on Her Tongue, now featuring contest-winning artwork and poems. (03:34–03:50)
Anita explains the trilogy’s foundation in Orisha mythology:
Insights on the cultural moment: referencing Ryan Coogler’s Sinners and how Orisha archetypes appear in Pop Culture, particularly through casting and storytelling.
"It's like this energy... Black people are really remembering who we are, where our ancestors are from, and our spirituality... The more and more we connect to that, the more and more unstoppable we are." — Anita Kopacz (05:41)
"When I feel something deeply, I'm just like crying... For me, it just feels like I'm seeing someone speaking my language; there's something that awakens." — Anita Kopacz (07:47)
Charlamagne asks what inspired Anita to write about African spiritual traditions.
"I feel like the spirits chose me... For most of us who are daughters and sons of the Diaspora, I was taught that [the Orishas] was demonic... But the more I did, the more it felt like home." — Anita Kopacz (08:56–09:51)
Anita candidly discusses her initial fear and growing respect for the Orishas.
Anita recounts her introduction to the Orishas by actor Lee Thompson Young and the powerful spiritual role of Yemeya.
Shares the story of how her first book found its home with Charlamagne’s imprint, highlighting faith, synchronicity, and community support.
"It was 2020... As soon as I decided [to self-publish], that's when Yadi... asked the ocean, 'what should Anita do?' and the answer was, give it to Charlamagne." — Anita Kopacz (11:25–12:08)
"I read it on my laptop. It was Covid... Yo, this is amazing. This needs to be in the world... It just felt very Black." — Charlamagne tha God (12:38)
Discussion on the resurgence of African spirituality in public consciousness, through both art and spiritual practice.
"This religion survived underground for hundreds of years... The fact that it did and it's in us. When people read my stories, it's a remembering, because you can feel it in your bones." — Anita Kopacz (13:05)
How to connect with ancestors:
"Imagination is really important in your spirituality... Go with the imagination." — Anita Kopacz (17:10)
Psychedelic experiences (ayahuasca, mushrooms) discussed as a tool for self-discovery, but not necessary for everyone.
"Once you have done shrooms or ayahuasca, you can connect to that part of yourself... through meditation or just allowing yourself to move back into that space." — Anita Kopacz (18:41)
Deeper dive into Oya ("The Wind on Her Tongue"):
"She’s just so fucking powerful, that's how people experience her." — Anita Kopacz (20:44)
The trilogy as a “love letter to Black women” (24:46).
Rediscovering lost or overlooked traditions:
"If I walk into a forest, I don't know what any plant is... So we got all our friends together... and learned something our grandmothers taught us." — Anita Kopacz (30:30)
"The Gullah Geechee have this practice called seeking... children go out into the forest alone for days until they have a vision." — Anita Kopacz (31:44)
Discussion on fasting, discipline, and holistic well-being as spiritual tools.
Anita relates her family and community’s approach to holistic healing and the legacy of nurturing Black women.
"My sister was just telling me... There's a line in the Bible that has been taken out, where it says, 'to heal yourself, all you need to do is fast.'" — Anita Kopacz (36:59)
Anita details how her trilogy mirrors the “Sacred Trinity” — reframing Father/Son/Holy Spirit as Mother/Daughter/Holy Spirit within the Orisha context:
"If you are a daughter of Yemeya and Oshun, they call you the daughter of two waters... but there's three of them... So it's a daughter of three waters, because Oya is a storm, there's rain, transformation..." — Anita Kopacz (41:24)
Anita describes writing the trilogy, the careful process of choosing readers, and how her father is currently helping ensure historical accuracy for Book Three (43:38–44:45).
Anita shares her hopes for the trilogy's impact:
"I want people to feel transformed and go out and do what they came here to do in this world... I would love for the IP to turn into movies, TV, plays." — Anita Kopacz (45:40, 46:32)
Anita’s sister discusses creating Lomar Farm in New York, inspired by a documentary on honeybee decline (47:44).
Education about bees as medicine (honey, venom, propolis all medicinal).
The importance of being connected to the land, and how beekeeping is another way to reclaim ancestral knowledge and health.
"Honeybees are medicine and we need them... we've forgotten how to connect with the land. Beekeeping is helping me connect with the land and the healing that the land has for us." — Lomar Farm Beekeeper (48:52, 50:46)
Bee-related product recommendations and connection to family names/themes (52:01–52:13).
This episode is both a spiritual journey and a cultural homecoming—a multilayered discussion on reclaiming lost traditions, healing, the visionary power of Black women, and the beauty of African spirituality woven into everyday life. Through Anita Kopacz’s storytelling, practical wisdom, and community engagement, listeners are urged to explore their roots, nurture ancestral wisdom, and embrace their transformative potential.
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