Podcast Summary: The Breakfast Club – “Keep It Positive, Sweetie: The Business of Betting on Yourself w/ Brian Jordan Jr.”

Podcast: The Breakfast Club / Keep It Positive, Sweetie
Date: December 14, 2025
Host: Chris Renee Hazlett
Guest: Brian Jordan Jr. (Actor, Singer, Director, Creator – known for “Sistas”)

Overview

This episode of “Keep It Positive, Sweetie” features a deeply personal and motivational conversation between host Chris Renee Hazlett and special guest Brian Jordan Jr. – acclaimed for his portrayal of Maurice Webb on Tyler Perry’s “Sistas.” The main theme is resilience, self-belief, and the business of betting on yourself as an artist and entrepreneur. Throughout, Brian discusses his Louisiana upbringing, surviving Hurricane Katrina, navigating the entertainment industry, and his journey creating his new musical “Riley.” The discussion is filled with candid insights on representation, body image, arts education, working with Tyler Perry, and finding purpose and grounding.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Brian’s Louisiana Roots & Family Background

• Raised in rural Louisiana in a large family, later moved to Baton Rouge after Hurricane Katrina ([03:19]).
• Overcame socioeconomic challenges and was raised by a single mother:

  “I grew up in a big family, four brothers and sisters, a single mother and low socioeconomic. But I knew that I wanted to do more. I knew that I wanted to be more…”
  — Brian Jordan Jr. ([03:42])

2. Surviving Hurricane Katrina and Life After

• Brian details the trauma and resilience shaped by disasters like Katrina and Gustav ([05:44]-[09:42]).
• Draws parallels between disaster survival as a child and later life challenges.
• Powerful reflection on the lasting psychological effects:

  “The smell of it just… It smelled like a FEMA trailer. It smelled like that type of thing. And just a reminder…”
  — Brian Jordan Jr. ([08:50])

• Therapy and rebuilding: importance of mental health after collective trauma.

3. Educational Journey and Artistic Discovery

• Started at LSU, then drama school at NYU/Tisch, mentored by Debbie Allen ([04:34], [10:07]).
• Debbie Allen’s influence led Brian to drama and dance, highlighting the value of arts education.
• Discusses assimilation and identity:

  “It was an assimilation that I learned. And just being a black man in a super white space, coming from Louisiana… The celebration was over when I went into manhood…”
  — Brian Jordan Jr. ([11:24])

4. Challenges in Higher Education & Early Career Struggles

• Loss of fellowship due to auditioning outside school rules, resulting in periods of homelessness and struggle in New York ([12:44]-[14:12]):

  “I had to figure it out... spent some nights on a train in New York... I was determined not to go home...”
  — Brian Jordan Jr. ([13:33])

5. The Journey to “Sistas” and Landing Maurice Webb

• Decision to finally believe in himself only in 2018, leading to career breakthroughs ([16:49]).

  “I would pretend a lot. If I can be honest, I didn’t really believe that I could have all this until maybe 2018. And then my life changed right after that, whenever I... believed for real.”
  — Brian Jordan Jr. ([14:41])

• The audition story for “Sistas,” including his car troubles and reluctance to take a recurring role, ultimately leading to a main character ([17:27]-[20:41]).

6. Separating Self from Character

• Major differences and subtle similarities between Brian and Maurice ([21:09]).

  “Maurice is such an escape from who I am... Brian is a person who has such a big heart for people. I just love to take care of people. It's my love language.”
  — Brian Jordan Jr. ([21:09])

7. Coping with Fame and Body Image

• Adjustment to public life post-“Sistas”, addressing body image pressures faced by men, especially in Black entertainment ([26:58]-[33:42]).
• On discipline, self-acceptance, and health:

  “I was comparing myself to people all the time... I had to develop a system for myself because I knew that I wanted to change.” ([29:33]) “We’re born with everything that we have that we need. We really are. And so I just had to find … cause it was in here.” ([32:50])

8. The Business & Creative Process Behind “Riley”

• “Riley” is an original musical eight years in the making, described as both personal and cultural ([41:34]-[56:25]).
• Inspired by his experience at a Black laboratory school and the lack of multifaceted Black male roles on Broadway.
• Wrote songs himself – now 54 written, with 32 in the final musical ([43:34]).
• On representing HBCU culture:

  “I knew that if I got to this point and no one had told the story, it didn’t matter if I went to an HBCU, right? … the world does not know that … they (HBCUs) have really shown the vivid illustration of blackness, how you can give us something really, really small and we’ll turn it into a whole thing.” ([45:41])

9. Lessons from Tyler Perry and the “Sistas” Cast

• Major takeaways: creative ownership, business acumen, self-reliance, and community ([35:17]-[39:04]):

  “Tyler Perry has a method… there is a method that he has developed when it comes to the development and the execution of television, film, and theater.” ([36:34])

• Peer support and shared wisdom among castmates ([38:05]).

10. Creating for the Culture and Strategic Storytelling

• Insights on staging “The Wiz” at True Colors Theater and strategic adaptation for modern audiences ([47:25]-[50:03]):

  “That taught me that there is a huge market for Black theater if you bring it to the people who it’s for. Which is another Tyler Perry lesson … serve the people, the things that they... want.” ([49:12])

11. The Realities of Independent Production

• Learning to balance creative vision and fiscal discipline while bringing “Riley” to life ([53:49]):

  “You may want a lot more than what you can afford and so you have to, you have to make those decisions ... I learned a lot of lessons. I did a lot of scaling back…” ([53:49])

12. What “Riley” Represents and the Power of Black Self-Determination

• A Black college story centered on self-worth, community, and pride ([56:25]):

  “Riley represents what it looks like when black people decide not to struggle anymore. ... What it looks like when black people decide that there is wealth and real estate in our own selves.” ([56:25])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Survival & Self-Belief:
  “Belief, to me … is understanding that whatever you desire, you deserve it. No matter what the odds are, no matter what has happened before you or what will happen after you, what you deserve is what you desire.”
  — Brian Jordan Jr. ([14:41])

• On Fitting Into the Industry:
  “There is a conventional standard of beauty that I did not meet. ... I started to struggle with feeling like a leading man but not looking like one. Wow. And it’s still a struggle.”
  — Brian Jordan Jr. & Chris Renee Hazlett ([27:45])

• On Creative Ownership:
  “I knew that I could not go into Riley the way I wanted to until I can afford to own it outright. Yes. And I’ve watched TP (Tyler Perry) literally be able to not only own it ... but own it like owns it.”
  — Brian Jordan Jr. ([36:19])

• On Building for the Culture:
  “I learned then that there is a huge market for black theater. If you bring it to the people who it’s for.”
  — Brian Jordan Jr. ([49:12])

• Advice to Young Artists:
  “If you want to accomplish the dream, accomplish the work. It has to match. ... Talent can never outwork ethic. When you have that work ethic, that’s what’s gonna take you through.”
  — Brian Jordan Jr. ([59:58]-[60:43])

• On Grounding and Spirituality:
  “I find my center in God. I find it in art. I find it in food. I find it in fashion … I know that none of this would be possible without God. And I know it. And so it ain’t even up for discussion for me.”
  — Brian Jordan Jr. ([63:27]-[64:48])

Important Timestamps for Listeners

• Brian’s childhood and family: [03:19] – [04:34]
• Impact of Katrina and disaster trauma: [05:44] – [09:42]
• Mentorship by Debbie Allen and shift to drama: [04:34], [10:07]
• Struggles in New York and career perseverance: [12:44] – [14:12]
• Finding confidence, dealing with ‘no’s:’ [14:41] – [16:49]
• Audition and casting of Maurice Webb: [17:27] – [20:41]
• Maurice vs Brian – who he really is: [21:09]
• Body image struggle and discipline: [27:45] – [33:42]
• Creating & funding “Riley”: [41:34], [53:49]
• Tyler Perry’s method, creative ownership: [35:17] – [39:04]
• The impact and market for Black theater: [47:25] – [50:03]
• Advice for young artists: [58:41] – [60:43]
• Spiritual grounding, the role of God: [63:27] – [64:48]

Conclusion

This episode is a masterclass in resilience, creative entrepreneurship, and authenticity in the entertainment industry. Brian Jordan Jr. offers candor on everything from overcoming disaster and family legacies, to building his own artistic legacy. His narrative is underpinned by a deep reverence for Black culture, arts education, and spiritual grounding. Listeners are left with tangible advice (“Talent can never outwork ethic”) and a renewed sense that betting on yourself—despite adversity—can lead to remarkable, culture-shifting success.

Find Brian Jordan Jr.:

• [IG/Twitter/TikTok: @brianjordanjr]
• Riley The Mixtape: Streaming everywhere
• Merch & updates: [hbcusical.com]

"When you trust your calling, you can create something bigger than yourself." — Chris Renee Hazlett ([67:33])