INTERVIEW: Pastor Jamal Bryant On 40-Day Fast Against Target, Black America's Success, Politics + More

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Breakfast Club – Interview with Pastor Jamal Bryant

Episode Title: INTERVIEW: Pastor Jamal Bryant On 40-Day Fast Against Target, Black America's Success, Politics + More
Host/Authors: DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, Charlamagne Tha God
Release Date: March 5, 2025

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Introduction and Guest Introduction

The episode kicks off with the vibrant energy typical of The Breakfast Club, as hosts DJ Envy, Charlamagne Tha God, and Jess Hilarious welcome their special guest, Pastor Jamal Bryant. Pastor Bryant arrives early, having flown in the night before to ensure timely participation despite potential travel delays.

Notable Quote:

• Pastor Jamal Bryant (00:00): "Wake that ass up."
• DJ Envy (00:02): "The Breakfast Club."

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1. The Evolution of Church Culture and Embracing Social Media

Pastor Bryant delves into the pressing need for modern churches to adapt to evolving cultural landscapes. He highlights that while mainstream culture evolves every four years, church culture lags by approximately 20 years, creating a significant disconnect, especially with younger generations.

Key Points:

• Cultural Lag: Traditional churches are often outdated, making it challenging to engage with younger demographics.
• Social Media as a Bridge: Pastor Bryant emphasizes the importance of platforms like TikTok over Facebook to reach younger audiences effectively.

Notable Quotes:

• Pastor Jamal Bryant (00:43): "The culture changes every four years. Church culture changes every 20."
• Pastor Jamal Bryant (01:11): "Social media really is that bridge to make the church relevant to a generation that's disconnected."

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2. Navigating the Digital Age: Challenges and Opportunities for Churches

Pastor Bryant outlines the struggles many churches face in the digital realm, particularly those unprepared for the shift to online services during the pandemic. He points out that over 3,000 churches closed due to an inability to transition to online giving and other digital necessities.

Key Points:

• Digital Preparedness: Many black churches were unprepared for the sudden need to go online, leading to closures.
• Generational Disconnect: Older congregations often resist digital adoption, while younger members expect modern engagement methods.

Notable Quotes:

• Pastor Jamal Bryant (01:14): "The average black church wouldn't even know what AI is."
• Pastor Jamal Bryant (01:35): "They still passing a plate and writing checks and don't know how to download."

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3. The Necessity of Physical Churches in a Virtual World

While Pastor Bryant acknowledges the importance of digital engagement, he strongly advocates for the continued relevance of physical churches. He argues that real-life community and unity cannot be fully replicated online, addressing the loneliness and mental health challenges exacerbated by digital connections.

Key Points:

• Power of Unity: Physical gatherings foster genuine connections and community support.
• Mental Health: In-person interactions help combat depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues linked to social media.

Notable Quotes:

• Pastor Jamal Bryant (03:38): "The power of unity... that sense of community, that sense of connectedness is still necessary."
• Pastor Jamal Bryant (04:19): "Social media has made this the loneliest age."

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4. Political Engagement and Activism

Pastor Bryant discusses his active involvement in politics, emphasizing the critical role of faith leaders in confronting societal issues. He critiques the current administration's policies and underscores the importance of standing against injustice, aligning political activism with spiritual warfare.

Key Points:

• Political Stance: Opposition to policies threatening religious freedoms and minority rights.
• Role of Prophets: True prophets confront societal wrongdoing, risking inconvenience to drive change.

Notable Quotes:

• Pastor Jamal Bryant (11:14): "A real prophet biblically was to confront the king and say, 'You're out of order.'"
• Pastor Jamal Bryant (11:23): "If you wanna be like, sell ice cream. But if you add sprinkles, somebody gonna be allergic to it."

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5. Confrontation with Jesse Watters: Addressing Accusations of Racism

A heated discussion arises when Pastor Bryant defends himself against accusations made by Fox News' Jesse Watters, who labeled him racist. Pastor Bryant clarifies his stance, asserting that his criticisms targeted actions harmful to the black community rather than race itself.

Key Points:

• Clarifying Racism: Pastor Bryant distinguishes between criticizing harmful actions and being racist.
• Defense of Black Identity: He emphasizes the importance of maintaining black identity and integrity against misguided affirmations.

Notable Quotes:

• Pastor Jamal Bryant (04:24): "He clearly doesn't know what racism is."
• Pastor Jamal Bryant (05:17): "Black people don't have a capacity to be racist."

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6. The 40-Day Fast Against Target: Goals and Rationale

The centerpiece of the interview revolves around Pastor Bryant's 40-day fast against Target, a strategic movement aimed at holding the corporation accountable for its unfulfilled promises and lack of support for black-owned businesses. He outlines the reasons behind targeting Target specifically and the broader implications for black economic empowerment.

Key Points:

• Why Target?:
  • Commitment Breach: Target pledged a $2 billion investment in black businesses starting December 2025 but failed to honor the commitment.
  • Economic Impact: Target generates $12 million a day from black consumers, a significant figure unmatched by any black-owned business.
  • Lack of Support for HBCUs: Despite being present on 27 college campuses, Target has no partnerships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
  • Employment Disregard: Target employs 400,000 black individuals without adequately honoring or supporting them.

Notable Quotes:

• Pastor Jamal Bryant (12:31): "Negroes spend $12 million a day in Target."
• Pastor Jamal Bryant (13:48): "We wanted to hold them accountable because when they made the pledge, it had nothing to do with Di."

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7. Supporting Black-Owned Businesses Amid the Fast

Addressing concerns about the potential negative impact on black-owned businesses, Pastor Bryant explains the strategic measures in place to ensure these businesses are supported even if Target experiences a dip in sales.

Key Points:

• Digital Support: Introduction of drop shipping to allow businesses to thrive online without relying solely on physical store sales.
• Resource Distribution: Partnership with the U.S. Black Chamber of Commerce to provide a digital directory of 300,000 black businesses.
• Encouraging Full Price Support: Advocating for black consumers to pay full price for black-owned products to sustain these businesses financially.

Notable Quotes:

• Pastor Jamal Bryant (16:53): "The money has already been spent. A movement comes with inconvenience."
• Pastor Jamal Bryant (17:52): "We don't want those businesses to be adversely impacted. We want people to support them. But do it online."

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8. Unity and Strategic Collaboration in the Movement

Pastor Bryant emphasizes the importance of unity among black leaders and organizations to create a powerful, cohesive movement. He stresses that effective activism requires strategic planning, accountability, and collaboration beyond symbolic gestures.

Key Points:

• Unified Front: Collaboration between pastors and leaders to present a united stance against systemic issues.
• Effective Communication: Addressing misunderstandings and conflicts through direct dialogue and mutual understanding.
• Strategic Planning: Integrating spiritual grounding with activism to ensure the movement's longevity and impact.

Notable Quotes:

• Pastor Jamal Bryant (25:24): "We've got to take a movement without making one singular spokesperson."
• Pastor Jamal Bryant (26:43): "Communication can solve a whole lot of issues on so many different levels."

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9. Achievements and Call to Action

Pastor Bryant proudly reports the movement's initial success, surpassing recruitment targets ahead of schedule. He urges listeners to join the movement by visiting the designated website, ensuring that their participation is both symbolic and impactful.

Key Points:

• Success Metrics: Achieved 110,000 participants ahead of the initial target, demonstrating substantial support.
• Call to Action: Encouragement to join the fast via targetfast.org, receive a directory of black businesses, and engage in daily prayer devotionals.
• Future Plans: Anticipation of the shareholder meeting on June 12th, where the movement aims to present comprehensive data on Target's shortcomings.

Notable Quotes:

• Pastor Jamal Bryant (32:43): "110,000 people have come, and we did it before we ever got to the Breakfast Club."
• Pastor Jamal Bryant (33:24): "Go to Target Fast, dawg is just one word there."

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Conclusion and Closing Remarks

The episode wraps up with light-hearted conversation about regional culinary preferences and mutual invitations to upcoming events. The hosts express their appreciation for Pastor Bryant's insights and participation, reiterating the movement's objectives and encouraging continued support.

Notable Quotes:

• Pastor Jamal Bryant (34:07): "I'm coming this year."
• DJ Envy (34:52): "Wake that ass up early in the morning."

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Final Thoughts

Pastor Jamal Bryant's interview on The Breakfast Club offers a comprehensive look into his strategic activism against Target, the importance of modernizing church engagement, and the critical need for unity within black and marginalized communities. His emphasis on combining spiritual guidance with tangible actions provides a roadmap for effective activism aimed at fostering economic empowerment and societal change.

For more information and to support the movement, listeners are encouraged to visit targetfast.org.

Transcript

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Wake that ass up.

[DJ Envy]

Early in the morning.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

The Breakfast Club.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy. Just hilarious. Charlamagne, the guy. We are the breakfast club. Lauren LaRosa is here. We got a special guest in the building. Yes, indeed, we have Pastor Jamal Bryant. Welcome, brother.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Thank you, sir. Good to be with y'all.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

How you feeling this morning?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Feel great.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Feeling good.

[DJ Envy]

You flew in this.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

I flew in last night.

[DJ Envy]

Oh, wow.

[Just Hilarious]

Wow.

[DJ Envy]

Okay. Okay. Right after service.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Right after service. Yeah, I was too scared I was gonna be delayed. Delta got a whole lot going on right now, so I came in last night. Better safe than sorry.

[DJ Envy]

You know, you. You wanted the people who you. You actually use social media to spread the word and spread what you're doing in a. In a. In a. In a. In a great way. When did you realize that you had to start doing that?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

I think culture made it. The culture changes every four years. Church culture changes every 20. So the average church is 15 years behind schedule. So to reach a younger demographic, I knew I had to hit it. Most churches Charlemagne broadcast on Facebook. Most young people are on TikTok. So it's a great disconnect. So social media really is that bridge to make the church relevant to a generation that's disconnected.

[DJ Envy]

And church culture. You said church culture changes every 20 years. What's that look like?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Well, by virtue of the fact that we're always running behind, so the average black church wouldn't even know what AI is. You have to think most churches didn't even stream till the pandemic. 3,000, 3,045 churches closed in the pandemic simply because they didn't have online giving.

[DJ Envy]

Wow.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

They still passing a plate and writing checks and don't know how to download. So a lot of our churches have got to really run up to speed.

[DJ Envy]

Wow.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

And how is that with the old congregation, the older congregation, and the younger congregation, with the TikTok and Facebook mesh.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Right. It is really a changing of the guard. Right. That church is what was our grandmother's church with funeral home fans and fried chicken downstairs shifted. And the newer generation may not come to a physical building. They may just stream. So those who are in the old church that are. You ain't really doing it if you ain't in the building when we do everything online. So to say that you're not really connected to God because you streaming and not sitting on the pew is a disconnect of what the culture is and where we're going.

[Just Hilarious]

What's your. I mean, I know you get. You always get People that love you or.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah.

[Just Hilarious]

Or don't love you.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah.

[Just Hilarious]

So you're probably used to this, but what's your motto? Every day when you're like, okay, I'm gonna get up, I'm gonna say something that people probably won't touch, like, what's that motivating factor? Because sometimes, like, I think pastors stay away from stuff because they don't want controversy, because they think controversy means that God is not within the house anymore.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah. There's an incredible book called the Carriage to be Disliked is a whole lot of people always live for other people's affirmation. John Maxwell said, if you want to be like, sell ice cream.

[DJ Envy]

That's right.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

But if. If you add sprinkles, somebody gonna be allergic to it. And so I think that the call to be great and the call to make a difference is realizing that you're gonna go outside of the culture. When Dr. King was killed, his popularity was at his lowest. But now everybody got street signs and T shirts. And a lot of times people don't recognize your greatness until after you make the impact. Mahatma Gandhi said, first they laugh at you, then they try to kill you, then they try to copy what you did. And so once you find out how to be a frontiersman and to make that difference, it'll really free you from other people's opinion.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

I want to ask one more back to the church question. Is a physical church necessarily needed?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Right.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

And the reason I asked that is you talk about the amount of people that do stream, Right?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Uh, it's. It's difficult to get out if you have a bunch of kids and everything that's going on in this world, people are scared. But is a physical church needed now?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Absolutely. It is the power of unity. There was an article a couple of weeks ago how social media has made this the loneliest age. So people are connected online, but disconnected from people. So a lot of people are depressed, a lot of people have anxiety, a lot of people have sleep disorder, A lot of people are confronting mental illness. But online, everything is up and we stuck. But I think that that sense of community, that sense of connectedness is still necessary.

[DJ Envy]

Before we get into the target fast, I wanna talk about Jesse Watters from Fox News.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Right? Yes.

[DJ Envy]

Jesse Watters said you was racist.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yes.

[DJ Envy]

Because you criticized black people who went to the White House for the Black History Month program.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Right.

[DJ Envy]

What do you say to that?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

That he clearly doesn't know what racism is. Because I wasn't talking about white people. I would. I would Talk about black people who having an identity crisis who were in there cheering for Black History Month. Under an administration that wants to make it illegal, no federal agency could honor Black History Month. So for them to have a program was absolutely crazy. And all the more, they raised up my picture, Charlemagne, after announcing who was the new FBI director. So for your own people to do that to you. I was calling them out. I don't know why he would call that racism as much as it was exposure. Black people don't have a capacity to be racist.

[DJ Envy]

I wonder why they did hold your picture up in the White House.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Three of them. Charlamagne. You've been to the White House? Yeah. You've been to the White House? Never in your life.

[Just Hilarious]

He said he not going there.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Never. Under nobody?

[DJ Envy]

No.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Oh, wow.

[DJ Envy]

President House, huh? I meant to the vice president. Yeah, well, let's.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Let's take the vice president house. You. You're not going into vice president's house with a picture or a sign holding up no stick. You barely can get a backpack in there. So for them to have three pictures of me in the East Wing is absolutely crazy. And I don't know, Jasmine Crockett is up there. Hakeem Jeffries is up there. Clabburn is up there. Why put my picture up? So I think it was a targeted attack, and so for them to assume I wasn't going to say anything was outlandish.

[DJ Envy]

You did call him the spooks who sat by the door, though. Yes, but that's a good thing.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah.

[DJ Envy]

To be a spook who sat by the door.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah. In the context of the book, what's funny is Charlemagne, none of them Negroes read it, so they didn't even know what I was talking about until I also caught him as a runaway slave.

[DJ Envy]

Which is a good thing.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

And they didn't even understand the context of it because they're lost in their own misery of delusion.

[Just Hilarious]

You also said you reminded them that you ain't never scared. You reminded them you from west side of Baltimore.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yes.

[Just Hilarious]

And he told them they got a problem pull up on you. Has anybody reached out to you to have that conversation or whatever that pull up you thought was?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

No. They made videos. They don't have none of that in them. This was the society. This was the fraternity of Carlton Banks. None of them. None of them got that kind of DNA in them. So they all went on and did social media posts. I don't even know if they knew what that meant. They needed a hood interpreter, a hood whisperer to tell Them what it is that that meant. But they are so lost that they have that access to the president and didn't champion any of the needs of their own community. So while they're there celebrating Black History Month, they should have said to them, hey, if we're going to celebrate it, we can't ban the books that record it.

[Just Hilarious]

Right.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

If we're going to celebrate it, then we can't penalize the public schools that want to teach it or fire the instructors who are really ambassadors for it. For them to have that access and that opportunity and not, in the words of Bishop Jakes, maximize the moment was just a waste.

[DJ Envy]

You from Baltimore, how come you don't say church pew? Did you listen?

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Everybody from Baltimore don't have that slang.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

They do. They be all saying, oh, yeah, no, I'm local and global, so. So I got out, but you got.

[Just Hilarious]

Out, but it's still period.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Oh, yeah, it's a half and half with wings, period. No, I got it all day long. I'm, I'm Baltimore through and through, but I spent time in Balt in Atlanta. I went to Morehouse, then I went to a Duke for grad school and then I went back to Baltimore.

[Just Hilarious]

Got you. And what's your relationship like with the black pastors who were also working with President Trump? Because I know you called them out before too. Yeah, he was on their top. So is there, like, is there, is there a working relationship? Because I think you do make points that people should listen to and they're there.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yes.

[Just Hilarious]

No.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Is Nikki Giovanni's ego tripping? A lot of people miss what the assignment is because they want the proximity of power without even really having the real access of it. And so it's got to go beyond what is the photo op or a handshake to say, oh, I know the President, but now that you know him, what are you going to do about it? And so I think that there's a common ground for us to be able to meet, but you've got to make sure that you don't sell your own people out in the process.

[DJ Envy]

To your point, that's why I never wanted to go to the White House, because it's just like, for what? Like I'm not going just for a photo op. If I'm not presenting anything or going with somebody who's presenting something, what's the point?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

I'm with you on a 50 yard line, but you represent too much people of influence who won't have that access. So when it is that you go there, this is An ERA Charlemagne, where you would have more influence than any head of any civil rights organization. More people are listening to you. I don't want to call the names of organizations then a lot of those organizations. Let's go a step further. We step outside of this room, go downstairs and ask people, who was the head of this organization, head of that. They have no idea. And so I think that you gotta realize that the shaping of influence is different than the microphone, that you would have entree to get into those spaces.

[DJ Envy]

Would you. Would you meet with Trump?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

I would meet with Trump, but I wouldn't go by myself.

[DJ Envy]

Gotcha.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

I wouldn't go by myself. I'd have to take some credible people with me. One, hold me accountable so we can all say what happened in that meeting. And two, to make sure y'all ain't gonna play me like Zelensky. Ain't no way in the world y'all gonna have all them cameras rolling and then say, you ought to be grateful to be here and how come you ain't got a suit on? Yeah, so you got. You gotta have some level of accountability in it.

[DJ Envy]

Would you pray before you go in there so you.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

I pray before I pray in there. I'd have a vial of my grandmother's oil in my pocket. Oh, no. All of that, but there's no way I would just go in there.

[DJ Envy]

How do you think Zelensky should have handled it?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

I think he did it. What this administration has shown us is diplomacy is no longer honored. That was an argument in the barbershop that was not world leaders talking about the devastation of hundreds of thousands of lives. So I give him high commendation that the argument should not be whether he had a suit on is what are you going to do about innocent children being bombed, about seniors who are living out in the street? And the question that he should have said, why do y'all have suits on when your people are fighting to get Medicaid? Why y'all got suits on when all of these students are getting ready to be robbed of scholarships from Pell Grants? Why y'all got suits on when the stock market is losing billions of dollars every day? Everybody should be in overalls. So he. He should have flipped it, but I think he did it in as much decency intact as he could.

[DJ Envy]

I want to ask you, too, as a pastor, what makes you get involved in politics so much? Because I see people. I see a lot of pastors like to steer clear. Steer. Stay clear from that. Why do you like to get involved?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Well, one, a lot of staying clear now because they don't know what this administration is going to do. This administration has already said that they want to take away 501 C3s. They want to look at anybody who stands with Palestine as a terrorist organization. But I think that it's got to be revolution comes with inconvenience to know that it goes against the prick. And you gotta stand on business. And to be a real prophet is not. You get a car, you get a house, you get money. A real prophet biblically was to confront the king and say, you out of order. You're not doing this right. And I think that you're gonna find a whole lot of people emerging and there are people who are doing it. What has happened in the culture is we have confused notoriety with strength. The most powerful preachers in every major city don't have mega churches, but they're in the community doing the hard work. But they don't have press conferences, they don't know the governor, they don't know the mayor. But the people in the community they serve honor and respect them.

[DJ Envy]

That's right.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Let's talk about this, the 40 day fast of target.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yes.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

And this is something that you're trying to put into play and why. I'm not trying. You are putting it into play.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

No, no. Yeah. So people are asking, envy, why did we pick Target when Walmart out of order, McDonald's is out of order, John Deere's out of order, bank of America's.

[DJ Envy]

Out of order, Amazon.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Amazon is out of order, is we wanted to go. The African proverb says, if you want to eat an elephant, do one piece at a time. So we picked Target first for several reasons. Number one, Target is headquartered in the same city George Floyd was killed. When George Floyd was killed, Target came out, made an announcement that they're going to invest $2 billion in the black business. Two billion. Drum roll. And it starts December of 2025. When Trump made the announcement, January of 2025, they dishonored that commitment. So we wanted to hold them accountable because when they made the pledge, it had nothing to do with Di. Secondly, I am embarrassed. Breakfast Club to say to you. Negroes spend $12 million a day in Target. And I don't know any black business that amasses that much money in any singular day.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

So 12 million a day.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

A day. Number three, target is on 27 college campuses and not one HBCU. Number four, outside of the federal government, Target is the largest employer of black people. There are 400,000 black people on Payroll and don't honor us. So we're giving that kind of money, that much human capital and to not honor us I think is dismally disrespected. And because they're publicly traded, we, we wanted to see what will happen in, in those 40 days that shows the data, this is the impact when black people walk away and to share it with those share crops. So it will not just be 40 days, but every movement has to have a benchmark, has got to have a strategy, and you gotta have some data.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

What do you say, calling it a.

[DJ Envy]

Fast and not a boycott?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah, I called it a fast because this was a call to the black church to become active. Something happened silently that scholars and historians are going to have to pay attention to. The rise of Black Lives Matter. Charlemagne was the very first movement of civil rights for black people that was not birthed out of the church. The very first civil rights movement that happened that didn't have a religious leader at the front. And so the black church is going backwards. This is the largest demographic of black people since we've been in America who don't go to church at all, who don't subscribe to organized religion. We're at 28%, the largest amount of black people who self identify as atheists, who say they don't believe in God, don't believe in nothing. So this was a call specifically for black Christians to show the younger generation our head is not in the sand. We're a part of it, but we're aligning it with prayer that those 40 days is a high holy season for the Christian community. We're praying because this is a spiritual warfare that we're under with J.D. vance and Donald Trump with all of the things that are happening with these executive orders. Marching is good, protesting is necessary, petitions are important. But if we don't bring a spiritual grounding to it, I think that we're going to miss it. During the Montgomery bus boycott that last 381 days, what nobody talks about is for 381 days, every night they went back to the church for prayer. So I think that in the movement you've got to have a faith entity intertwined in it in order for you to move forward.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

What do you say to some of the people that have black products in Target that they say that, you know, because of this boycott, if a boycott happens and people are, are stopping to go to Target, that it's going to affect their products even more. I know we had the co founders of Rucker Roots on the Breakfast Club, the Lit Bar. And they were saying that if people don't come into the store, which Target is their hugest manufacturer, their hugest buyer. So what happens to those products?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Number one, the lip bar. And all of those entities understand a new thing out called drop ship. You don't have to go in a physical store to help them. Because of that, in foresight, we partner with the U.S. black Chamber of Commerce. So every person that goes to targetfast.org within an hour, I send you a Digital Directory of 300,000 black businesses across the country. So we don't want those businesses to be adversely impacted. We want people to support them. But do it online. I can support the Lit Bar and not go into Target to do it. I can go online to do it. And so I think that as innovative and creative people as black people are, let's do it online. We do everything else online. So let's support them. And the 1,000 black vendors who are placed in Target, we're gonna prominently place on the website so that you'll be able to find them quickly without any pause.

[DJ Envy]

I saw you. Oh God.

[Just Hilarious]

So two things to what you're saying. So the first thing, when they were up here, they talked about the inventory and just how much money they have to put ahead to be in these stores that comes out of their own pocket that they will lose out on if people do not if they're not supporting these like companies or whatever. So even if you're buying it from their website because they already in contract for this amount of inventory allotted to Target, they lose out. They don't profit on that now.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah, that money has already been spent. A movement comes with inconvenience. It came a, a that same argument happened in the Montgomery bus boycott. The question was asked, what do we do for the bus mechanics who were all black. So what they did is they pulled all of those bus mechanics out of Montgomery and set up garages at the churches. What nobody is talking about is four mechanic shops came out of it. So I understand that it's an inconvenience. I know we gotta go a different route. But I would then say that's up the ante. As a business principle. Let's. Let's buy more to cover what is that loss. Companies take losses all the time. But a group of misguided preachers went into Target in Detroit and said, let's just buy black inventory and come out. You're still supporting Target. So I think that we've got to come a way even if we gotta Raise the price in order to make the balance. Let's do it. One of the things that black people do wrong, whenever it is we're supporting black business, we always want a discount. Let's pay full price and support them. Let's not just do it with lip service, but let's do it through the investment.

[Just Hilarious]

And I saw you my last thing to your point of like just upping the ante online.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yes.

[Just Hilarious]

The women from Rucker Roots talked about how major.

[DJ Envy]

Ellen Sellers.

[Just Hilarious]

Ellen's. I'm sorry, I don't have her names in front of me. I own Jameson. And Ellen Sellers talked about how even in Walmart's majority of their clientele that they make a large amount of their money off of on those products, they don't have the access to the dot com. So being able to walk in like it's just different in some of the lower area rural areas. So being able to walk into a Walmart or a Target helps them as far as inventory and creates access for those people. What about that?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah. I think that we've got to ask ourselves what is the principle? And is the principle more important than the profit? You've got a whole lot of churches who have space that is underutilized and underused. The fact that in 2025 we don't have a minority owned retail space to direct people on says that we got to reevaluate how we do business. So going into Target to buy whatever this product is to say, hey, forget that they don't honor us. Forget that they've disrespected the George Floyd family. Forget that they are only allowing black people on entry level positions. Let's do it for lipstick. I think that we're losing the larger conversation. I want to see the sisters win. I want to see them do overwhelmingly well. But I think that we got to get into a room and figure out how do we make it more accessible for those in rural areas. I don't think that the answer is to keep shooting ourselves in the foot and then ask for a cast.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Will we ever get there, Pastor? Like, you know, we want to get there, right? Will we ever own our own Target, slash Walmart? Will we ever own our own manufacturer? Will we ever own our own so we can rely on it? It just seems like we're far stretched from that.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah. So one of the things that we're asking for Target to do and for all of the demands that we're asking of Target, please go to targetfast.org they're on 27 college campuses. But no HBCUs. I'm asking Target to partner with 10 HBCUs to show our businesses how to scale up and to go into the retail space. Reverend Sharpton is one of my mentors, but in the history of black people, we have never marched black people into a white business to, say, spend money here. So we gotta figure out how it is that we really reroute and redirect so that we can create an ecosystem for us to be able to do. I think that is possible, but there's a plan that has to be afoot in order to make it done.

[DJ Envy]

I don't have any problem with the boycott, but I don't have a problem with the boycott either. I just feel like, you know, people should do something.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Agreed.

[DJ Envy]

If they're moved to do something. But I saw you repost the. The preachers who led their flock into the store to buy all of the black products. Why did. Why. Why did you feel the need to read the room?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Read the room. There's. There's no way.

[DJ Envy]

Which room, though? Everybody room.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Different. No, no, no, no. Read the living room. The Japanese proverb said, the best room in the house is the room for improvement. It. You'll notice that it caught on nowhere. Nobody thought that that was a good idea.

[DJ Envy]

Except I heard a lot of people talking about a bike.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah. In Target. Yeah. Oh, I missed that memo. Yeah.

[DJ Envy]

I heard a lot of people saying, go in there and buy all the black products.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah. Don't do that. Yeah, don't do that. I think that there's got to be a different way that we redirect. I think, to my sister's point, how do we support these businesses to Envy's point, to, we don't have a major retailer. We're the most creative people, y'all, and brought everybody in here. Master P got on from selling from the trunk of his car. So I think that we got to be innovative and put a think tank together. Say, Magic Johnson, you bought all these movie theaters in the concession stain. Can I now buy lipstick? I don't know the answer to it, but I think that we've got to figure out a way and figure out a path and figure out a tributary.

[DJ Envy]

I just don't want us to make the same mistakes that. That generations before us made. Meaning, like, people would knock Martin Luther King Jr. For his methods. And, you know, different organizations would knock each other and say, no, we should be doing it this way, we should be doing it that way. It's just like, yo, as long as everybody's doing Something. I feel like it all can be.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Effective in a sense. I'm gonna meet you on the 50 yard line. If you got beef with somebody, me and you were friends, and you find out who you got beef with. I'm at dinner with. You're like, oh, man, I thought we was together. Oh, Charlie, don't worry about it. It was just cheesecake. We didn't even talk about you. You would look at me with a different kind of eye, like, hey, man, if we entered together, how are you carousing with the person who was against me? And so I think that there's gotta be a line in the sand of how it is that we stand without attacking each other. I think that's where the. Where the rubber hits the road. There can be many different paths. I spoke at a college last week in Michigan, and I asked them, who is the head of the LGBTQ movement? And all of these college students, nobody could answer it. And I said, do you all believe that LGBTQ has a movement? They say, yes. And I said, you don't know? The head said, no. I said, that's the memo. Black people got to take. Have a movement without making one singular spokesperson. That what it is that we're doing can be rested on the back of the shoulder of one person being the leader. So the movement doesn't have to be just Sharpton or Jasmine Crockett or Maxine Waters, that all of us are moving towards that end, but it is not one entity against another. The reality is Malcolm X made Martin King a better leader because he questioned his philosophy and he had to defend it. And so I think one of the things that the Detroit pastors did made us sharpen the conversation as to why it is that we're not going. So it's not just a social media post or rah rah moment, but there's something really tangible for us to argue to that point.

[DJ Envy]

I feel like Malcolm was wrong for that. And the reason I say that is because Martin Luther King Jr. Was doing real work in an area we needed him to do real work. Meaning that he was building with John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson to get actual legislation passed. But we need somebody like Martin. I mean, Malcolm raising hell in the streets. So to me, there was no reason for Malcolm to be calling out Martin. Yes. And vice versa.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah, Yeah, I think it was calling out the philosophy. The students who are part of the civil rights movement, before they could protest, before they could demonstrate, they argued on the college campus with the professor, and they had to have practice. So if somebody spits on you, this is what you do. They try to pull you out from the lunch counter. This is what you do. The reality is we are no longer arguing philosophies. We're just arguing about people and personality or who. I don't like, who I agree with. But I think that iron sharpens iron in that space of arguing and articulating what we stand on and why there needs to be different tracks. My issue is not with people who argue against my methodology. My issue is with those who don't believe in nothing, who are just Internet gangsters. Oh, this ain't gonna work. We ain't never gonna stick together. This thing gonna have no traction. Okay, then what are you gonna do?

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Are those people reached out to you? The people that don't agree with what you're doing? Like those pastors that took their congregation in to buy. Have you had those conversations so y'all can get on the same page and say some of the things that you're talking about?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yes, yes, yes. So as soon as I saw it, because I know him, three, four of them, I text them, hey, man, y'all on the wrong side of history.

[DJ Envy]

You say amen.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

You say, nigga, it was a Sunday. It was a Sunday. So I said, hey, man. I said, hey, man, you're on the wrong side of history. He text me back and said, hey, this is what I thought process was. This is why it is that we did it. I said, it would have gone a whole lot further and better if you had the conversation before you went in there. So I went on a college campus to go speak in Detroit, Wayne State. I come out of lecturing, and the press is there and says, what you think about these pastors going to target? Said, what pastors? What are you talking about? The reporter showed it to me on the phone, and so that's when I got in it. And I think that communication can solve a whole lot of issues on so many different levels. Whether you're married or whether you're on political agendas, silence is the worst thing that you can ever do. But when we learn how to talk to each other and discuss it, I understood where it is that they were coming from. Those pastors are now walking alongside us for the target fast. But I think that communication is necessary. I also want to put on record that I think that is good for black people to be in the Republican Party. I don't think all blacks should be Democrat. We need somebody else who is in there. But if you in there, you got to advocate for your people. At the same time, I saw you.

[DJ Envy]

Say that Target has been trying to reach out to you.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yes.

[DJ Envy]

But you, you. I'm not talking. No diversity.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

No. You may not have a job next week. You reached out during Black History Month. I don't know if you're going to make it to St. Patrick's Day. I need somebody who got some job security and got some influence to make a decision. I. I think this generation don't want symbolic wins. They want substantive strides. And if you're just doing that to say, we met, we talked, all the street credibility is gone. I need somebody who can make a decision. And you got to ask envy what's in the mind of a CEO that can lose $12 million a day and say, I'm not meeting.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

So the person who reached out to you felt had no influence.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah. Not enough influence.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Got you.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah. So you're gonna send the black people out to talk to the black.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Black guy. Go talk to the black guy.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

We'll see what your people say. Calm them down. Got you. Yeah. No, no, no, no, no. I need to talk to the CEO or I need to talk to somebody who was on that board of Target who can really help me understand where you are. And if you all are being punked by J.D. vance and Trump, tell me that and let's figure out how we can walk alongside each other.

[DJ Envy]

Well, we know that's what it is.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah, that's what it is.

[DJ Envy]

But tell me that.

[Just Hilarious]

Yeah, when you. So I know that in talking about meeting, eventually y'all want to have a conversation or there is something scheduled. Right. You guys will be meeting June 12th in Minneapolis.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

That's when their stockholders meeting is.

[Just Hilarious]

Oh, the shareholders meeting. Okay.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah. So we, we are planning on going there. I'm hoping that we have resolved by then.

[Just Hilarious]

That's what I was getting.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yes. We can't wait till June, but June 12, and there now is an underground murmur that they don't even want to do. An in person shareholder me. They want to do it by zoom.

[Just Hilarious]

They don't want you guys to show up.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Yeah.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yes. But that's why it's important for you to have the data to show how this has been impacted, how much money you've lost in the stock, and what is at stake. So we wanted to take. Take all of that to the shareholders meeting June 12th.

[DJ Envy]

You know, there was a bunch of Target shareholders who filed a class action lawsuit against Target, and they claim that Target artificially inflated stock prices and failed to warn investors about how removing dei and esg, which is environmental, social, and governance policies, could cause stock prices to plummet. And it also talks about how Target concealed the backlash itself would. From the Pride Month campaign. Yes, after they removed the LGBTQ merchandise. And that's how they've been losing all of that money since November of 2024.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

America's worst nightmare is the marginalized unified. If all of the different sectors came together, that's when you have real power. Fingers separated don't mean anything. Fingers together become a fist. The Poor People's campaign is what Dr. King was putting together just before he was assassinated. He said, the same poverty that's happening in Selma is the same poverty that's in the Appalachian Mountains. What happened that really frightened J. Edgar Hoover against the Black Panther Party was they were unifying all marginalized people. So imagine if we're dealing with immigration. We don't allow the media to just make it a Mexican issue. Let's talk about the 500,000 Haitians who are unprotected. Let's talk about the Africans who are being deported. Hear this family who they not even deporting back to Africa. They in jail right now in Panama. And we not doing anything or raising the alarm if all of these factions come together. A sister out of Harvard University says, for you to have a real revolution, you don't need 100% participation. You only need 3%. If 3% of the population organize, you can shut any culture down, any government down, any society down. And what we're seeing in these town hall meetings with these Republicans, senators, and congresspeople is people are waking up saying, hey, this ain't what I signed up for. This can't be the last train to Paris. Let me get out of here and change direction. So I think that you're getting ready to see are percolating in America of those who are marginalized, that it is not just a race issue. It is a class issue.

[Just Hilarious]

My last question for you. Where are you at now, numbers wise? Because I know you were looking to get 100,000 people by this Wednesday, the 5th, when it starts. And you are.

[DJ Envy]

We are.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

110,000 people have come, and we did it before we ever got to the Breakfast Club. So now, y'all, we got to get to 150.

[DJ Envy]

We got.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

We got to get to 150. Because numbers is power. It was important for me to have tangible evidence of how many people are standing behind us. That is not just a post, is not just likes and shares, but a hundred thousand people. I can press a button and send an email to say, hey, we outside in Target. Hey, we in Cincinnati. So that the people at Target know that we mean business. That is not just symbolism, but there's substance behind you.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

How can people get behind you?

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Go to Target Fast, dawg is just one word there. You'll see. What is our list of demands? When it is that you sign up for Target Fast, I'm going to send you a digital directory to those 300,000 businesses. And even for those of you who don't go to church or watch online, I'm going to send you a daily prayer devotional so that you can stay focused. No pun intended, so you can stay on target for what it is that we're trying to get done.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

All right, well, we appreciate you for joining us this morning Again, target fast.org and thank you so much, brother man.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Thank you. And when y'all come there, Atlanta. I'm coming through. I ain't even got a ticket. I'm coming.

[DJ Envy]

Well, yeah, he came. Patrick. Jamal's popped up to my Black Effect podcast festival.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

I'm coming this year.

[DJ Envy]

I want to come to New Birth.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Man, you gotta.

[DJ Envy]

I want to come one Sunday and check it out.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Yeah, you gotta come.

[DJ Envy]

Absolutely.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

His room at the Cross. Hey, let me say this to you, okay? I'm from Baltimore. Do you know the first place I ever had crabs?

[DJ Envy]

Charleston, South Carolina.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Monks Corner.

[DJ Envy]

Monks Corner. Okay.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Monks Corner AME Church. Right.

[DJ Envy]

Jameson.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Blake. James. Blake. This is back in the 80s, all right.

[DJ Envy]

Okay.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

It's the first place I ever had crab. My family's from Georgetown, South Carolina.

[DJ Envy]

Okay.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

So we used to come down there every summer. But Baltimore, they still thought you had crabs.

[Just Hilarious]

And you from Baltimore, Was they better than Baltimore? They cook them with the beer.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

Never. Does not go too far. I was just doing trauma bonding with charlamagne. No, no. Baltimore's the homicide.

[DJ Envy]

Crab ain't no trauma.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

It's trauma that I had to do it in South Carolina before I had to do it.

[DJ Envy]

South Carolina is amazing for seafood.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

It's amazing. It's great. It's just not as good as Baltimore, but it's good. Thank y'all.

[Charlamagne Tha God]

Pastor Jamal Bryan, it's the Breakfast Club. Good morning.

[DJ Envy]

Wake that ass up early in the morning.

[Pastor Jamal Bryant]

The Breakfast Club.