Podcast Summary: The Breakfast Club – It's Up There: with Charleston White Pt 1

Date: September 15, 2025
Podcast: The Breakfast Club (iHeartPodcasts)
Hosts: The Breakfast Club Team (DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, Charlamagne Tha God)
Guest: Charleston White

Overview

This episode dives into the complex and often-controversial world of Charleston White, a provocative internet personality, community activist, and media disruptor. The conversation spans his insight on internet fame, lessons from betrayal, experiences with street and gang culture, content monetization, and the intricate ties between activism, law enforcement, and black communities. Charleston unpacks not only his personal transformation but also his role in re-shaping how online content and urban narratives intersect.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Charleston's Rise & Online Persona

• Charleston reflects on being polarizing to various communities: “To some, I’m ‘Rat Williams’. To others, I’m ‘Uncle Ruckus’. But to a lot of young people, I’m America’s favorite uncle.” (05:36)
• Describes how being accessible in the community echoes black leaders like Ali and Richard Pryor, emphasizing staying close to the people over celebrity detachment.
  “Ali was the greatest and he walked his kid to school. … I'll never want to get too far from my people…” (06:36)

2. The Cost of Betrayal & Reality of Street Life

• Explores residual trauma from years in the dope game and betrayal by those he helped:
  • “Post traumatic… If you sold dope, you got some PTSD. … Betrayal is something… that scars people’s hearts forever.” (08:27, 09:18)
• An intimate look at how personal betrayal changes trust patterns, especially with women, highlighting the cycle of distrust common in men from the streets.

3. Origins & Early Activism

• Recounts early interviews and how his story was overlooked before online fame.
  “You displayed journalistic characteristics and traits way back then... The Internet wasn’t interested in it.” (10:03)
• Describes trial and error in navigating copyright, YouTube monetization, and how “clippers” (content resharing channels) ultimately helped fuel his brand.
  “It took me four to five years to realize this is how you conquer the algorithm ... Now I let them have it.” (13:28–16:10)

4. Game of Content Monetization

• Spoke about realizing the economics of letting others “clip” content:
  • “I hardly go live now… my clipper gonna take it and it’s gonna go to Twitter… they help me sell concert tickets or get booked for interviews.” (13:59)
• Cites his role in shifting the interview business model, making it possible to earn significant fees as a guest.
  “I made it possible to get five and ten thousand dollars for an interview now. Nobody getting paid before.” (21:13)

5. Online Rhetoric, Security, and Mental Health

• Openly discusses being flagged by authorities for online rhetoric, distinctions between persona and self, and how controversy led to gun license scrutiny:
  • “My medical file has said I’m homicidal and suicidal… that’s what my mental record say. … They was trying to take my gun license but they couldn’t.” (28:40, 29:34)
• Relays surviving real threats over internet statements targeting gangs:
  • “Ain’t nobody stood before the world and told the Crips and Bloods ‘yeah right’… Not only that, I said Nipsey Hussle too—his mama, his baby.” (28:40)

6. Persona vs. Reality in Gang Culture and Nipsey Hussle

• Argues iconic figures are often imprisoned by their public personas and expectations:
  • “Most who get into this life can’t take the costume off… Nip got stuck on stage, Earmus [Nipsey] wasn’t on the sideline talking to Jewish billionaire investors, Earmus was.” (32:12)
• Tells the story of going to Nipsey Hussle's funeral to learn who Nipsey was beyond the persona, and the tensions within the Rolling Sixties Crips. (33:23–38:49)

7. Community Work, Funding, & Relationship with Police

• Shares critical knowledge on how black community funding often comes through police/public safety budgets:
  • “All the funding comes from the police department… If you don’t fuck with the police, you don’t get to go get your money.” (46:38–50:54)
• Reveals being mentored by elders, and how working both with and against the system shaped his approach to activism.

8. Culture of Insecurity & Pretending 'Hood'

• Charleston and the host acknowledge that many pretend to have “got it out the mud,” when in fact they had middle class, stable upbringings:
  • “I come from a well-to-do background, but I want to play poor… I might hit you across your head with something just to hide the fact that I’m from the suburbs.” (56:50–58:11)

9. Deep Dive: Prison/Gang Sociology & Survival

• Charleston unpacks how knowledge and literacy became his power both in and out of the juvenile justice system:
  • “I understood knowledge [was] the real power… That’s when I understood knowledge is the real power.” (79:46)
• On strong figures like Larry Hoover: “He ain’t seen his son in four decades; he ain’t been hugged, he ain’t been touched … But in his mind, he free now.” (80:49)

10. Harsh Critique of 1090 Jake & Selective Outrage

• Charleston harshly criticizes the YouTuber 1090 Jake for targeting only black figures in his ‘snitch’ exposés:
  • “Why he don’t say nothing about the Mexican cartel… It ain’t no consequences and repercussions to fucking with the pigeon.” (87:44–88:57)
  • “He ain’t doing it to nobody but us… If he played foul with everybody… [but] he just got us.” (90:25)

Notable Quotes

• “Betrayal is something… that damages and scars people’s hearts forever.” — Charleston White (09:18)
• “I learned how to do right from doing wrong, like most kids who come from our community.” — Charleston White (11:51)
• “All the funding that you need is with the police department… If you don't fuck with the police, you don't get to go get your money.” — Charleston White (46:38)
• “Most who get into this life can’t take the costume off… they get stuck on stage.” — Charleston White (32:12)
• “He [Larry Hoover] never seen his son in four decades, he ain’t been hugged… But to him in his mind, he free now.” — Charleston White (80:49)
• “Life ain’t about winning. Life is learning how to lose.” — Charleston White (26:40–27:00)
• “Why he don’t say nothing about the Mexican cartel?... It ain’t no consequences and repercussions to fucking with the pigeon.” — Charleston White (87:57–88:57)

Memorable Moments & Timestamps

• Content and Brand Disruption – How “clippers” and content re-sharing helped Charleston build a brand (13:28–16:10)
• Controversy and Threat – Dissecting the difference between persona and reality when facing real-world threats from online rhetoric (28:40–30:56)
• Nipsey Hussle's Legacy – Charleston’s nuanced take on Nipsey the man vs. Nipsey the rolling 60s legend (32:12–38:49)
• Funding and Black Communities – A masterclass on how public safety money flows to community programs (46:38–52:03)
• Critique of Street Code & “Realness” – The myth of always being from the streets, and the legacy of ’80s blue-collar black America (56:50–57:42)
• Jail Ordeals & Knowledge as Power – How juvenile and prison experiences shaped Charleston’s literacy, persona, and edge (79:46–86:14)
• Calling Out 1090 Jake – Charleston’s fiery critique of selective outrage and the online ‘snitch-hunting’ industry (87:44–91:15)

Conclusion

Charleston White’s story is one of transformation, hustle, and hard truth. He draws direct lines between generational trauma, economic realities, and the modern landscape of social media. The episode is both a critique of urban culture hypocrisies and a guide to surviving—sometimes thriving—despite them. Whether listeners agree with his rhetoric or not, Charleston White offers an unfiltered education in internet-age self-invention, community dynamics, and the cost of being real.

For more, tune in to part two on The Breakfast Club podcast.