We Talk Back - "Broke Bestie" (Dec 18, 2025)

Hosts: TamBam & AJ Holiday
Podcast: We Talk Back, The Black Effect/iHeartPodcasts

Episode Overview

This episode dives unapologetically into the realities of friendship and finances—navigating the group dynamics when one or more friends are "the broke bestie." TamBam and AJ bring raw, hilarious, and honest perspectives on how money impacts relationships among Black women, especially around vacations, group trips, and showing up (or not) for each other when wallets are tight. They share personal stories about being both the friend with and without money, handling expectations, and keeping friendships thriving despite differences in financial status.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Cruise Tales and Personal Updates

• [03:50]–[09:16] TamBam recounts her recent cruise experience: from not getting the liquor package (“Mistake!” [04:23]) to partying with diverse crowds, vacationing with white boys “kind of fire,” and resisting temptation.
• The confinement of cruises and the surreal vastness of the ocean at night (“You realize how small you are, for real.” — TamBam [07:58]) leads to a funny/surreal digression about cruise safety and shipboard jail.
• AJ shares updates on her aging father (“You know you getting old when your parents start getting sick.” [09:19]) and the realities of illness in the Black community, especially diabetes.

2. Insecurities and Boundaries in Relationships

• [11:15]–[16:42] Viral topic: Whether women should ask a wife’s permission before asking her husband for help in public (e.g., reaching for groceries).
  • TamBam: “If you ugly, just say that!” [11:19]
  • AJ: “If you could bag him, you can have him… You cannot be that insecure, ma’.” [12:48]
• The difference between physical aid and financial boundaries:
  • AJ tells story about a friend asking her dad for money without her knowledge, calling out unspoken boundaries and suspicions it creates: “You want to suck my daddy dick.” [13:54]
  • Both discuss rules about friends involving their exes or men in money issues: “Don’t ask my man for no money.” [13:24]

3. Financial Entanglements Between Friends and Exes

• [15:29]–[17:32] Anecdote of a friend secretly renting from another friend’s ex-husband, never paying, and the awkward fallout.
• TamBam: “Don’t. I didn’t know about the rental. I don’t need to know nothing about the eviction.” [16:20]
• Both agree: Practical favors (grabbing groceries) are harmless, but financial/personal requests can get messy without transparency and communication.

4. Social Media, Grieving, and Live ChatGPT Shade

• [17:43]–[22:48] AJ and TamBam debate people’s perceptions of how others grieve online, referencing Masika’s situation after her estranged husband's death.
  • Tangent on people ghostwriting posts with ChatGPT: “Nobody uses all these hyphens in the real English language!” — TamBam [19:25]
  • Lighthearted takedown of women dating “LA gangsters,” including harrowing anecdotes about friends getting grazed by stray bullets: “There ain’t no dick that’ll have me want to get grazed by a bullet on my face.” — TamBam [23:22]
• Reflection on maturity and what they now avoid in relationships.

5. The “Broke Bestie” Philosophy

• [27:57]–[33:10] Main segment opens: What happens when your best friend is broke, or has a drastically different financial situation?
  • “And maybe at some point, you’ve been the broke bestie in life.” — AJ [28:12]
  • TamBam confesses: “I’ve definitely been the broke bestie before.”
• Vacation planning and money:
  • When group trips shrink as costs stack up.
  • AJ: “I don’t think you have to stop being friends just because y’all in different tax brackets.” [33:10]
  • TamBam: “You just have to know your personnel. Some friends you’re gonna invite, and some you’re not.”

Notable Quotes:

• “At this stage in our life… we just split the bill evenly. We ain’t itemizing… But at one time, I’d be like 'Somebody owes me $1.79 more.' I used to penny-pinch to the exact coin… I was living hand to mouth.” — TamBam [34:53]

• “If I got it, you can have it… that goes really for anybody.” — AJ [36:07]

• Friendship resentment over money:

  • Stories about being hounded for $2—even after years of generosity. “That’s some bum shit, bitch. I understand she was broke.” — AJ [37:35]
  • The cycle of helping and the hard truth that sometimes, financial inequality creates resentment.

6. Navigating "Level Ups" in Friendships

• [40:53]–[46:44] As friends’ incomes diverge, they discuss feeling resented by friends whose financial status hasn’t kept pace.
• Task allocation (when you can’t contribute money to the group): “You’re not broken, you’re in between blessings. Broke is a state of mind…” — AJ [42:16]
• The importance of accountability, not taking others’ reactions personally, and not internalizing friends’ inability to celebrate your wins.

7. Vulnerable Admissions and The Price of Friendship

• [45:22]–[49:14] TamBam admits she “low-key hated” when she had to pay to replace a designer bag for a friend who immediately bought another one.
  • “I felt like I bought that shit.” — TamBam [46:47]
  • AJ’s take: She’d probably “just eat it” if she was on the receiving end.
• The “wine glass” parable: What is the true gesture of friendship—automatic replacement, or can you ask for what you lost?

8. Money, Motion, and Being "Missable"

• [49:14]–[55:26] Reflection on how appearances of wealth, generosity, and independence cause people to either expect handouts or act resentful.
  • “Do I look like a lick? Do I look like a safe space you could… I ask people for money, I ask men for money, so why the fuck are you coming over here asking me for money?” — AJ [55:11]

9. Should You Invite Broke Friends?

• [59:42]–[63:34]
  • AJ: Should you keep inviting friends who may not be able to afford events/trips? Is it considerate not to, or is it limiting?
  • TamBam: “I still invite them. It’s up to you to decide how you want to allocate your money.” [60:26]
  • “Sometimes you just gotta stay home. Sometimes you gotta sit down. You save so much money.” — AJ [61:11]

10. Adult Friendships & Financial Disparity

• [63:35]–[71:13]
  • Navigating awkwardness when the richer friend always pays, or when old debts or generosity are tallied up.
  • “You shouldn’t have to dumb yourself down to make anybody else comfortable…” — AJ [66:16]
  • Money-consciousness in adulthood vs. student years; inflation and responsibilities.
  • The energy and “motion” you bring might attract envy, even if your bank account isn't as big as people think: “I had motion before I had money… and I still ain’t got no bag.” — AJ [66:31]

11. Self-Awareness, Mean Girl Energy & Refusing to ‘Flex’

• [68:50]–[71:13]
  • “I don’t think you should… pick your friends based on how much money they got or how they coming financially.” — TamBam [68:50]
  • Recognizing it's often others who change in response to your success.

12. Practical Wisdom & Sassy Final Challenges

• [72:08]–[74:37] Strong advice for women: Don't have sex with broke men, and don’t accept men in your body who can’t help you. “If your finances are not in order, do not pop that p***y in 2026. You do not deserve to be popping that!” — AJ [73:21]
• “Don’t waste money on a bag and can’t put a bag in it.”—Cash Doll, quoted by TamBam [75:03]
• Anecdotes about designer bags and GoFundMe culture: the importance of real security rather than performing wealth for the internet.

Memorable Moments & Timestamps

• Cruise Party Confession
  “Girl, I cut up so bad on them people boat… I never got sick, and I just must have drank liquor all day for four days straight.” — TamBam [03:57]
• On Insecure Partners
  “If you ugly, just say that!” — TamBam [11:19]
• Consumer Advice
  “At this stage in our life… we just split the bill evenly. We ain’t itemizing… But at one time, I’d be like ‘Somebody owes me $1.79 more.’” — TamBam [34:53]
• Don’t Dim Your Shine
  “You shouldn’t have to dumb yourself down to ever make anybody else feel comfortable.” — AJ [66:16]
• No Broke Sex Challenge
  “2026 challenge: Do not pop that p***y if you ain’t popping no bands, okay? And watch how lit life get.” — AJ [74:37]

Episode Takeaways

• Money doesn’t have to end friendships—honest communication and understanding do more for keeping relationships strong than shared tax brackets.
• Set and respect boundaries about mixing money, men, and friends. Some requests are fine—others cross a line.
• Never let resentment fester—be honest about how you feel, but don’t measure yourself against others’ capacities.
• Celebrate your wins regardless of who celebrates with you—others’ silence likely isn't about you.
• It’s not about “looking rich”—true financial security beats wearing designer for the ‘gram.

Listen For

• The “broke bestie” stories (34:53–40:50)
• The unintentionally hilarious “wine glass” debate and lessons on borrowing among friends (45:22–49:14)
• Final challenge to the girlies: no broke sex in 2026 (72:08–74:37)

Tone: Irreverent, honest, comedic, sometimes vulnerable, and always opinionated—just like your realest homegirls would be.

Recommended For:
Anyone who has ever planned a group trip, split a dinner bill, felt the sting of financial comparison among friends, or just wants an honest laugh about the very real intersection of money and friendship.