The Breakfast Club - IDKMYDE: Biddy Mason

Episode Date: February 12, 2025

On today’s episode of IDKMYDE we introduce, Biddy Mason. “Biddy” was the original boss who went from enslaved to real estate mogul, proving you can turn oppression into opportunity—and still have time to build churches and schools on the side. Forget history books, she’s the blueprint!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why would you do that to me? Los Angeles, 2021. A friendly neighbor appears out of nowhere and promises to make all my dreams come true. Let's not forget that David Blum was a professional con artist, so you didn't stand a chance. But my dreams soon turned into a nightmare. I'm Caroline DeMore. Listen as I take down my scammer on Once Upon a Con on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. What would you do if mysterious drones appeared over your hometown? I

Started asking questions. What do you remember happening on that night of December 16th? It actually rotated around our house looking as if it was peering in each window of our home. I'm Gabe Lenners from Imagine, iHeart Podcasts and Lenners Entertainment. Listen to Obscurum, Invasion of the Drones, wherever you get your favorite podcasts. Hey, it's Alec Baldwin. This past season on my podcast, Here's the Thing, I spoke with more actors, musicians, policymakers and so many other fascinating people like writer and actor Dan Aykroyd. I love writing more than anything. You're left alone.

You know, you do three hours in the morning, you write three hours in the afternoon, go pick up a kid from school and write at night. And after nine hours, you come out with seven pages and then you're moving on. Listen to Here's the Thing on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. We all have a moment that splits us wide open. On my new podcast, Wide Open with Ashlyn Harris, I'll sit down with trailblazers from sports, music, fashion, entertainment, and politics to explore their toughest moments and the

incredible comebacks that followed. Listen to Wide Open with Ashlyn Harris, an iHeart Women's Sports production on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Elf Beauty, founding partner of iHeart Women's Sports. All right, y'all, on today's episode of I Didn't Know, maybe you didn't either. Let's talk about someone you probably didn't learn about in school.

Biddy Mason. And if you're like, who's Biddy Mason? Don't worry. In the words of the great Michael Jackson, you are not alone. History books really be out here acting like they on a budget for black excellence don't they? So Biddy Mason born in in 1818, enslaved in Georgia.

And listen, they didn't even give her a last name, just Biddy. It's like naming someone, hey you. The disrespect started at birth in those periods. Anyways, Biddy gets dragged across the country by her enslavers, ends up in California. And guess what? Slavery was illegal there. But do you think her owner cared? Of course not.

Colonizer from the south pretty much acted like he was immune to the California laws. Now Betty with no last name could have stayed quiet but nah she was a black woman. You know that wasn't happening. She went to court and y'all in 1856 she won her freedom and her kids freedom. Now let's just pause on that for a second. A black woman in the 1850s standing up in court and winning. That's a boss chick before a boss chick was ever even a thing. But wait, it gets better because after she got free she didn't just chill with it. You know what I'm saying? Biddy was out here working as a nurse and a midwife stacking paper.

Biddy saved up and bought land in Los Angeles for $250 and that land grew into a fortune worth $300,000. That's millions on millions of dollars today. Basically she became Don Peebles of real estate before Don Peebles in real estate. And what did she do with all that money on? Did she buy a yacht? No. Did she start flexing on TikTok? No. She gave back. She built schools, helped feed the homeless, and started the first African Methodist Episcopal Church. That's right, Biddy was out here being Oprah before Oprah.

So why don't we know her name? Why are you today years old when you found out about Biddy? Well probably cause history books be like, man we we can't have her outshining the founding fathers. But we need to talk more about her because Biddy Mason is proof that no matter where you start, you can change the game and help others along the way. So next time somebody asks you for a black history fact, hit them with Biddy Mason. And when they say, who's that? Look, I'm dead in the eye and say, I was listening to I didn't know maybe you didn't either, and I found out she was the original CEO of Glow Up Incorporated. And I didn't know maybe you didn't either.

Why would you do that to me? Los Angeles, 2021. A friendly neighbor appears out of nowhere and promises to make all my dreams come true. Let's not forget that David Blum was a professional con artist, so you didn't stand a chance. But my dreams soon turned into a nightmare. I'm Caroline DeMore. Listen as I take down my scammer on Once Upon a Con on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

What would you do if mysterious drones appeared over your hometown? I started asking questions. What do you remember happening on that night of December 16th? It actually rotated around our house, looking as if it was peering in each window of our home. I'm Gabe Lenners from Imagine, I Heart Podcasts and Lenners Entertainment.

Listen to Obscurum, Invasion of the Drones, wherever you get your favorite podcasts. Hey, it's Alec Baldwin. This past season on my podcast, Here's the Thing, I spoke with more actors, musicians, policy makers, and so many other fascinating people like writer and actor Dan Aykroyd. I love writing more than anything. You're left alone, you know, you do three hours in the morning, you write three hours in the afternoon, go pick up a kid from school and write at night and after nine hours you come out with seven pages and then you're moving on. Listen to Here's the Thing on the iHeart Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. When I smoke weed, I get lost in the music. I like to isolate each instrument, the rhythmic bass, the harmonies on the piano, the sticky melody. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey