The Breakfast Club - Jason Mitchell - Hollyweird, Setbacks, Betrayal, Thugs

Episode Date: May 29, 2023

Star actor Jason Mitchell stops by GBR to chop it up with Willie D about his early beginnings in New Orleans, playing prominent movie and TV roles, his journey and challenges as an actor, his plans for ushering in new acting talent and much more. Tune in and join the conversation in the socials below. Be sure to subscribe, rate, comment and share. Follow @getoboysreloadedpodcast @williedlive @jasonmitchellactorSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hey y'all, Niminy here. I'm the host of a brand new history podcast for kids and families called Historical Records. Executive produced by Questlove, The Story Pirates, and John Glickman, Historical Records brings history to life through hip-hop. Flash, slam, another one gone. Bash, bam, another one gone. The crack of the bat and another one gone. The tip of the cap, there's another one gone. Each episode is about a different inspiring figure from history. Like this one about Claudette Colvin, a 15-year-old girl in Alabama who refused to give up her seat on the city bus nine whole months before Rosa Parks did the same thing. Check it. And it began with me. Did you know, did you know? I wouldn't give up my seat. Nine months before Rosa, it was called a gold mine. Get the kids in your life excited about history by tuning in to Historical Records.

Because in order to make history, you have to make some noise. Listen to Historical Records on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Daphne Caruana Galizia was a Maltese investigative journalist who on October 16th, 2017, was assassinated. Crooks everywhere unearthed the plot to murder a one-woman WikiLeaks. She exposed the culture of crime and corruption that were turning her beloved country into a mafia state. Listen to Crooks Everywhere on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's up? This is Ramses Jha. And I go by the name QWAR. And we'd like you to join us each week for our show Civic Cipher. That's right. We discuss social issues, especially those that affect black and brown people, but in a way that informs and empowers all people. We discuss everything from prejudice to politics to police violence.

And we try to give you the tools to create positive change in your home, workplace and social circle. We're going to learn how to become better allies to each other. So join us each Saturday for Civic Cipher on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Jacqueline Thomas, the host of a brand new Black Effect original series, Black Lit, the podcast for diving deep into the rich world of Black literature. Black Lit is for the page turners, for those who listen to audiobooks while running errands

or at the end of a busy day. From thought-provoking novels to powerful poetry, we'll explore the stories that shape our culture. Listen to Black Lit on the Black Effect Podcast Network, iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, 1974. George Foreman was champion of the world.

Ali was smart and he was handsome. The story behind The Rumble in the Jungle is like a Hollywood movie. But that is only half the story. There's also James Brown, Bill Withers, B.B. King, Miriam Akiba. All the biggest black artists on the planet. Together in Africa. It was a big deal. Listen to Rumble, Ali, Foreman, and the Soul of 74 on the iHeartRad the real, the railroaded, the disenfranchised, the truth, the scapegoated.

And they know it. We speak the truth, so they quote it. Cause we wrote it. The north, south, east coast. It's the G.B. not you and keeping your head bobbing. It ain't no stopping. And once the beat drops in, violins, the system is so corrupt, they throw the rock out their hands and then blame it on us. It's the G.B. Don't blame it on us. It's GB. Don't get it twisted. I'm cold and we ain't dancing for no buttermilk biscuits. It's Willie D, y'all. Ghetto Boys in the house.

Back with another episode of Information and Instructions to help you navigate through this wild, crazy, beautiful world. In the studio, Jason Mitchell. Yes, sir. What's up, King? I'm good, brother. How you doing? brother how you doing hey man shit one more hop I'll be on top I heard that man thank you for having me big brother thank you for having me absolutely absolutely man we got to get right into it yeah you have portrayed a number of complex characters in films like Straight Outta Compton and Mudbound. Yeah. In Mudbound, you played a character that was based on this guy who was coming home from post-World War II. Right.

And you got this racial tension going on. How is it that you were able to, like, channel that energy that was needed to where you're coming home basically a damn near war hero, coming back home to Mississippi? Right. You know, one of the racist, I mean, this is like damn near like the foundation of racism in America. Right, facts, facts. Like, how were you able to channel that energy to deliver that role?

I mean, to be honest, right, like just being a black man in America, we know they got racism that just lies on the surface, especially when you grow up in the South. Like me, I'm originally from New Orleans, right? Right. But my grandfather, he's from Bush, Louisiana, and went to the Korean War, came home with, I mean, probably like a fourth or fifth grade education,

and had to marry my grandmother, which they consider passe blanc. I don't know if you ever seen this movie, The Passing, that Tessa Thompson just did, this black and white film. I haven't seen it. Yeah, it was an excellent film, but it was like real, right? So my grandmother was what they called passe blanc, pass for white.

And her and my grandfather pretty much got together because he had some money from the war, and she was white enough to go start them a business. You know, so that was it was damn near really his story. And like where we actually shot the film when I was in the fourth and fifth grade, man, we took field trips out there to see, you know, the plantations and the wax museums and all of that. So it was something that was already kind of deep rooted in me that I felt like I just needed to let out and it was such a privilege to be able to let that out you know what I mean like I just appreciate D. Reed so much for talking about that because a lot of times

people want to jump straight from slavery to civil rights and they never want to talk about this Jim Crow situation that was happening that really, I feel like, built the hate, you know what I mean, between white and black people. And it was, man, funny story about that, right? Like, I took my grandfather to see Straight Outta Compton, and he fell asleep in the middle of the movie. He just was knocked out. You know what I mean? He was tired. You know what I mean?

It was not that it had nothing to do with the movie. He was just tired. Right. But when I took him to go see Mudbound, he literally sat there with his arms folded the entire time. Now, mind you, his oldest brother was a slave. You know what I mean? And in his mind, there's always some work to be done, even on a Sunday. You know what I mean?

He always tell me, there's always some work. There's always some work. It's always some work. And he sat there with his arms folded the entire time. And when we left out of there, he was like, so you mean to tell me that these people paid you to do this? That's what you're saying? Like, he couldn't even conceptualize the fact that I had got money put in my pocket, and I'm getting glorified for putting this on TV.

He couldn't even, his brain couldn't even compute it. You know what I mean? And I just look at it. Was he upset? Was he upset about it? Absolutely. Because, I mean, to him it was way too real, you know, because the exact same thing happened to him and a few of his brothers. They went to the war, came back. And even though they was heroes.

They they wouldn't get no love from the white folks and they wouldn't save them. You know what I mean? So they really they had a whole different type of feeling about the film just in general, you know, and it took other people to tell them, oh, like he getting awards and, you, and the movie is doing so good for him to even calm down. He wasn't even trying to hear that at first. You know what I mean? And it was just... So he felt that your character was blasphemy. Well, he thought, because in his mind, right,

acting is already kind of a joke. They're not paying no black man to be no actor. That's never going to happen. Because back in they day, it was like if you was acting for them white people, you was basically a joke. Black people wasn't respecting it. So he already was kind of like looking at my job like, when you going to get a real job? You know what I mean? And I'm telling you, he never believed me.

It always took everybody else to tell him, like, oh, you know, your grandson doing great. But, yeah, he never looked at my job like it was a real thing. So when he saw that, it was like, but for me, I feel like look what we did in three generations. You know what I mean? We basically went from his oldest brother, who was a slave. I mean, he put my mama and her two siblings in LSU because all they could do was pick up trash at LSU. But think about it. Like, you go to a war and then you come home

and all you can do is pick up trash on LSU campus? That's crazy. So he sent all his kids there, you know, just like to be able to stand firm on what he believed. And then, you know, my mama had me, and then I put that story on the big screen you know what I mean and we went for a few Oscars so yeah I feel like that's when I realized as an actor like what I did really meant something you know what I mean like when I play

Easy E I knew like I just couldn't you just can't fuck that up you know what I mean? Like, if you do, you just got to hide under a rock until it blow over. But when you start, like, you know, when your children come home and they're like, Daddy, we watched your movie at school today, that's life-changing. You know what I mean? So, you know, I hate to look at myself like an actor-activist or something like that because I ain't got a racist bone in my body. But, you know, it feel good to be able to tell our story and not have to be violent without a protest you know what I mean so I feel like we became a long way but how do you go from easy a tough guy easy a scared of nothing to Ronzel Jackson yeah you know

this this guy who is a war hero and he got a chip on his shoulder. But then we got to deal with these motherfuckers. Right. Mississippi. I mean, they're a different type of uncivilized mutt. Right. You know, and they got they got the law enforcement and the courts and the government, everything. Everybody all in cahoots, everybody on the same page. Like, right. You're nobody. You're dealing with a system. You're not dealing with a person. You're dealing with a system. Right.

You know? Right. And, you know, as sad as it is, like, we still really haven't wiggled our way outside that system all the way, you know, as blacks. Like, because they have this cookie-cutter version of what it should be. You know, with all due respect, let's just take Hollywood, for instance, right?

It was built by a certain group of people. And, you know, a lot of the talent is black talent or it may be, you know, people of color or whatever it may be. But if you're not coloring inside the lines, they can move you around real quick. And it's the same thing with the sharecropping situation. It's like you, you, you free, but you live on my land. So in order to have anything that mean anything, you got to work for me. And that's just how this this system was built. And it's it's sad to see, you know, but me and a few of my brothers, brothers like yourself, you know, we wiggle

on our way out of this, you know what I mean? And it's about ownership and it's about having something for yourself. So, you know, if anybody learns anything from me and my career, that's what I want them to go home with, you know, go home with something that's for you and that's going to be for your family, you know what I mean? You got to own something in this world for sure, you know? And it's pretty crazy, though, to have this freedom to be able to express myself the way I feel like I need to because it's tough.

It's hard out here. You know what I mean? You got the police on your back. You got all of this systemic racism, all of these different things happening, you know? So I think I was very blessed to be in a situation to be able to speak for an entire demographic of people, you know?

So I just, I really got to get a glory to God, man. Because when you ask how, I don't really know, man. It's a blessing. You know, that's where the gift kick in and my own understanding moves out the way. Yeah. You talked about the role you played in Straight Outta Compton, Eazy-E, the iconic Eazy-E, Eric Wright, the man, the guy. Above all Right

That was your breakout role Yep That was Congrats You know Thank you Congrats And salute

Because When I looked at You do that In fact All you guys Nailed your roles Y'all was just perfect The casting was

perfect yeah we got to give a big shout out to vicky thomas for that right vicky thomas man you should get that that the casting was perfect one thou believable right and the way you the way you were able to to channel your your energy, it was like a roller coaster. It's like a roller coaster type thing going on. But you were able to deliver it. It was believable every step of the way. There were no hiccups. Right, right.

How were you able to channel this iconic character and maintain, you know, you're acting,, you're acting, but, you know, you're going cut, cut, cut, cut, and still be able to deliver, like, time and time and time again. Because I know the movie only lasted an hour or something. Right, right, right. But I know, you know, it took a lot of takes to get it right, to get it perfect. Oh, absolutely. F. Gary Gray, you know, we also got to give a shout out to him. You know, that's our fearless leader. And as a black director, I mean, he never missed. You know what I mean? Like his first film, Friday, when you look at Set It Off, The Italian Job, The Negotiator. I mean, he just don't miss, you know, so we definitely got to put him properly on the plateau that he should be on. And, you know, he's definitely one of the greats. He might be the highest paid black, you know, director ever.

So he grew up around the corner from Cube. You know what I mean? And he knew this life very well. But for me, you know, being from New Orleans, all I know is the lingo, right? Because I'm seeing it on TV. I'm seeing Minister Society, you know, these sorts of movies. And I'm able to do the voice real quick, cuz, and I can switch it up and do the LA voice, and, you know, I could do all of

that, and it was, like, something that we always thought was funny in New Orleans, because, you know, I don't really know exactly what language we speak, because it's not quite English, you know, but, like, it was funny to us that they would pronounce every syllable, even though they were super gangster, and, you know, and it was things that i saw on tv that like once i got to la and i met guys like nipsey and and problem and laylaw and all of them when they started to explain the gang culture to me a lot of it started to make more sense like Like when people see easy move a certain way, it's like all of these things was like crip affiliated situations, right? So I just started looking at it like,

you know what, if I could build this man from the ground up and humanize him as a person, you know, from, you know, him growing up, like having their first little studio in his grandmother's garage to, you know, going through baby mama drama to, you know, him growing up, like having a first little studio in his grandmother's garage to, you know, going through baby mama drama to, you know, his cousin being killed and being one of the biggest drug dealers ever. I was just sort of putting all these pieces together that would allow me ultimately to be so prepared that by the time I got on set, I was taking direction as Eazy-E and not as Jason Mitchell. You dig that? So that's kind of, that's how locked in I was.

And man, we like, working with Gary was crazy, right? Because for four straight weeks, we had to like, re-record the album. We had to do all kind of like, performance training and stuff like that with Dub C. And they wanted to believe that we was NWA. Shout out to Dub C. Yeah, that's my guy. He's a super solid one. You know what I mean?

Super talented. Yeah, yeah. He's amazing. But they wanted us to convince NWA that we was NWA without the costumes. Right. Right? So, you know, it was about being able to listen to each other and really be able to transfer the energy and all of these different things

that, like, at first we all really kind of thought was some bullshit. We're like, man, this nigga, bro, he's just doing the most. So one day he pulls some money out of his pocket, and he said, everybody close your eyes. And he drops a bill on the ground, and he said, what kind of bill is that? And we're like, come on, bro. Like, you're just making up anything now. He's like, no, if you're really listening and you're really paying attention,

you would know what kind of bill that hits the ground. If it's $100, a $5, a $1 bill, a $20, a $10, you're going to know if you're really paying attention. Man, listen, by the end of that training, he had us do it again. He dropped that. Everybody was like, that's $ he had us do it again. He dropped that. Everybody was like, that's a hundred. That's a hundred. We looked down, it was a hundred dollar bill.

And it was just incredible to like work with him and get that real camaraderie going. You know what I mean? We was really like brothers. Like when we was doing all that crying at the end of the movie, it became a joke to us because we was like, this nigga really about to make me cry. Like when Aldis Hodge walked out of there to play MC Ren, he was really holding them tears back. When Neil ran out of there crying, he was really, he was in the hallway really bawling

off camera. You know what I mean? Because we grew such a brotherhood that it was like, it just, it felt too real. It felt too real to us. You know what I mean? It was wild. I just don't know a way that they could have gotten

a better cast out of that. I just don't know. Like, it was so perfectly cast. Typically, you can get one person,

the lead person. You can find somebody that can really, really embody the role of that character. They can do it for that one person. Right, but to have everybody is a different story. What, five different people? Man, and even down to the Jimmy Iovine little roles that they popped in that you were like, damn. Like when I first met Jimmy, I was so impressed to see him standing next

to the guy that was playing him. It blew my mind. I'm like, damn, they finding everybody that really look like the people, but they still had the chops too. Jerry Hill also. Yeah. Yeah, Paul, he was amazing to work with, bro. He like, he changed my whole mind frame on where I was on the totem pole.

You know what I mean? Because I didn't know no actors growing up. The actors that are from New Orleans, they had to leave New Orleans in order to flourish. They had to go to New York or L.A. or whatever it was. So I grew up around all rappers. You know what I mean? I come up under Lil Wayne and you know what I mean? The squad and all of these guys,

that's who I'm seeing coming up. Did you try to rap? I rapped before. Everybody thought I was going to rap. You know what I mean? And not act. But I was just like, you know what?

Ain't nobody acting. So once I found that little hustle, I was like, hey, I might be good at this. You know? But you're going to rap though. You're going to rap. You're going to put a rap. You got to put it. It's in your, like, hey, I might be good at this, you know, so I ended up. But you're going to rap though, you're going to rap.

You're going to put a, you got to put it, it's in your, like, it's calling you, bro. It definitely is. I ain't going to lie,

I got a couple of records on suck, you know, because I ain't going to lie, I can write any kind of music. I can write country music if I really wanted to. Me and Trevor Jackson,

who I did Superfly with, we write a lot of music together. Yeah? Yeah. That's my guy. Man, that's something else. You can write country music of music together. Yeah? Yeah. That's my guy. Man, that's something else. You can write country music? I can.

I can. I'm here for it. Because, I mean, I'm a storyteller at the end of the day. I bet you can't do that opera. Opera, you know what? That might be a little out of my jacket. You know what I mean? But it's not necessarily something I enjoy.

Like, the art is beautiful. I just saw a black opera singer like a couple of months ago, and I was just like, wow, this is incredible. Did you cry? I didn't. You're supposed to cry. When you listen to opera, you got to cry so they know you know what you're listening to. That's what makes it feel good?

Yeah, it's all about crying, bro. If you don't cry, you really don't understand opera. I'm supposed to go to my first opera event in a few days. You got to record yourself crying. Yeah, I'm going to cry, bro. I got to see. I want to see the process. I got some tears for him, bro.

I'm going to do this with no cry pain, man. Yeah. But if you can't cry, though, you're not really an actor. Oh, I could... Listen. You got to be able to cry to be a real actor.

We can cry right now. Do it. Right now. Right now? Right now. All right, let me see. See, you're going to take me there and I ain't going to be able to come back, Willie. Don't do it.

You see, you was already locked in. You was already locked in. You about to do it, though. I saw it. I was. I was. But it's not the easiest place to come back from. Yeah.

You know? It's not the easiest place. Yeah, you was about to do that, boy. You felt it, though, didn't you? Yeah. But I also, I saw that little. Yeah't you yeah i but i also i saw that yeah you could see the wellington building up that was quick yeah man it's it's it's crazy because like um you know as a youngster i would always entertain myself and entertain my friends but i

never thought that that meant anything you know and all the hardships that i really had in my life, I didn't cry about them then. You know, like, I lost my dad when I was 15. He ended up killing himself. You know, like, we experienced a lot of trauma in New Orleans. Yeah, just, you know, my friends dying and all of this. And it's like you get so immune to the shock of it that you don't never really take the time to cry. So I think when I did start figuring out that that was something I could tap into and let loose on it, that it became like a therapy for me, right?

Like me and F. Gary Gray, I'll never forget, we doing the Detroit scenes and, you know, these big concert scenes. It's like high energy, all of that. You know, we laughing. You know, I'm going back to my trailer for my lunch. And he comes to my trailer and he's like, yeah, these hospital scenes, you know, they're coming up next week. And I just want to know what you're going to do.

And I'm like, well, you know, besides what's on the script, you know what I mean? I'm going to bring the rain. I'm definitely going to cry. You know what I mean? Like, it's a process. You know what I mean? Because, you know, he didn't even, they didn't even think heterosexual men could get AIDS at that time. You know?

So I told him about the discovery I was going to have. And, you know, I'm going to cry. And he was like, well, I want you to do it right now. And I was like, no. Like, I'm having a great day. I don't, you know what I mean? I don't want to do it right now. And I was like, no. Like, I'm having a great day. I don't want to do this right now. Like, what do you mean? He was like, we really had a hot and heavy argument in my trailer

because I didn't want to show him, you know, what I was going to do. But then on the day, I'm talking about take one. That's what you're seeing on the movie because it just was coming down. He just was in there hugging me. And I was like, I'm tired. I told you, bro.

I told you that I was going to be able to get there, but getting back ain't the easiest thing in the world. Cause they got so much to cry for that. We hold back sometimes when they got so much pain inside of us that like, if it's not channeled properly, you know, you could, it could pop out and go the wrong way.

So I'm glad that I do have this, this safe place to be able to come and let them tears out. Like it ain't nothing. What's the process getting there? And what's the process getting back? Um, the process getting there, I think,

uh, you know, they teach you like in these acting classes to use these breathing techniques. And, you know, after like different therapy and stuff that I've been through I realized that like when you are alone with your thoughts and you try to breathe through it right a lot of times you can't help the way your body starts to feel you know what I mean so I just I built this muscle memory to not fight it you know

what I'm saying once it starts to come let it go You know what I'm saying? Once it starts to come, let it go. You know, but getting back, I mean, like, you know, this film that's about to come out now. Everything is both. Everything is both. You know, I had a tough scene where, you know, I had to let the tears out. But, like, it really pretty much just took everybody coming and putting their arms around me.

You know what I mean? And that's what you need. You need that family love. So we have that moment. We have that God love situation, and then it's over. Sometimes you need that. Now, did the director, Jaquavis Coleman, did he hug you? He did.

He did. But you know how people give you the tough hug. You good, man? You good? Great job, man, but you know how people give you the tough hug. You good, man? You good? Great job, man, but you good? And it's like, because it's, you know, like a lot of times when people see you go there that fast, and they're like, all right, well, we're going to do a couple of more of these, and you turn it on and turn it off.

It's like, you know, it's crazy. But you know how like when you're young and you get a whooping and you cry yourself to sleep and you wake up feeling like a lot better? A lot of times that's how it is. You know, it might feel a little fucked up while you're doing it and going through it, but afterwards you feel like the best. That's why to me it's definitely like a therapy thing for me. The Ghetto Boys Reloaded Podcast will be right back after the break.

What's up, y'all? This is Questlove, and I'm here to tell you about a new podcast I've been working on with the Story Pirates and John Glickman called Historical Records. It's a family-friendly podcast. Yeah, you heard that right. A podcast for all ages. One you can listen to and enjoy with your kids starting

on September 27th. I'm going to toss it over to the host of Historical Records, Nimany, to tell you all about it. Make sure you check it out. Hey y'all, Nimany here. I'm the host of a brand new history podcast for kids and families called Historical Records. Historical Records brings history to life through hip-hop. Flash, slam, another one gone. Bash, bam, another one gone. The crack of the bat and another one gone. The tip of the cap is another one gone.

Each episode is about a different inspiring figure from history. Like this one about Claudette Colvin, a 15-year-old girl in Alabama who refused to give up her seat on the city bus nine whole months before Rosa Parks did the same thing. Check it. And it began with me. Did you know, did you know?

I wouldn't give up my seat. Nine months before Rosa, it was Claudette Goldman. Get the kids in your life excited about history by tuning in to Historical Records. Because in order to make history, you have to make some noise. Listen to Historical Records on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hi, I'm Marie. And I'm Sydney. And we're Mess. Well, not a mess, but on our podcast called Mess, we celebrate all things messy. But the gag is not everything is a mess. Sometimes it's just living.

Yeah, things like J-Lo on her third divorce. Living. Girls trip to Miami. Mess. Ozempic. Messy, skinny living. Restaurant stealing a birthday cake. Mess. Wait, what flavor was the cake though? Okay, that stealing a birthday cake. Mess.

Wait, what flavor was the cake though? Okay, that's a good question. Hooking up with someone in accounting and then getting a promotion. Living. Breaking up with your girlfriend while on Instagram Live. Living. It's kind of mess. Yeah.

Well, you get it. Got it? Live, love, mess. Listen to Mess with Sydney Washington and Marie Faustin on iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Daphne Caruana Galizia was a Maltese investigative journalist who on October 16th, 2017, was murdered. There are crooks everywhere you look now. The situation is desperate. My name is Manuel Delia. I am one of the hosts of Crooks Everywhere, a podcast that unhearts the plot to murder a one-woman Wikileaks. Daphne exposed the culture of crime and corruption that were turning her beloved country into a mafia state.

And she paid the ultimate price. Listen to Crooks everywhere on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Jack Peace Thomas, the host of a brand new black effect original series black lit the podcast for diving deep into the rich world of black literature i'm jack peace thomas and i'm inviting you to join me and a vibrant community of literary enthusiasts dedicated to protecting and celebrating our stories black Black Lit is for the page turners, for those who listen to audiobooks while commuting or running errands, for those who find themselves

seeking solace, wisdom, and refuge between the chapters. From thought-provoking novels to powerful poetry, we'll explore the stories that shape our culture. Together, we'll dissect classics and contemporary works while uncovering the stories of the brilliant writers behind them. Blacklit is here to amplify the voices of Black writers and to bring their words to life. Listen to Blacklit on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hola mi gente, it's Honey German and I'm bringing you Gracias, Come Again, the podcast

where we dive deep into the world of Latin culture, musica, peliculas, and entertainment with some of the biggest names in the game. If you love hearing real conversations with your favorite Latin celebrities, artists, and culture shifters, this is the podcast for you. We're talking real conversations with our Latin stars, from actors and artists to musicians and creators, sharing their stories, struggles, and successes. You know it's going to be filled with chisme laughs and all the vibes that you love. Each week, we'll explore everything from music and pop culture to deeper topics like identity, community,

and breaking down barriers in all sorts of industries. Don't miss out on the fun, el té caliente, and life stories. Join me for Gracias Come Again, a podcast by Honey German, where we get into todo lo actual y viral. Listen to Gracias Come Again on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. How did you and Jaquavis meet? Man, me and Jaquavis met, he ended up reaching out to me, just like, I think he might have just

ran across my page or something like that, but I was like, at the time, COVID had just hit, I was living in New York, and my life was kind of like, you know, it was just a little bit slow for everybody, like, you locked in the house, can't really do nothing, whatever. So he was like, I'm going to send you some books, you know, but like, you know, you know how it is. Everybody in the hood, niggas sometimes, niggas say books, and you be like, damn, I ain't going to, you know, all right, send me your books, you know what I mean? So it was all good. But he sent me the books, and I had nothing else to do, so I just, I started reading.

But then I ain't put the books down. I'm like, damn, this nigga cold. You know what I mean? So I'm just checking his books out like that. He could, you know, he really dope. So through that, we just built a friendship. You know what I mean? And we just would always just talk

and just always be on the phone. And we just, you know what I mean? We just jost COVID together pretty much. Like, you know, and we started talking about maybe, you know, how we could turn one of the books into a movie. And one thing just sort of led to another. He was like, man, listen, you know, I believe in you. If you believe in me, let's do a movie. So I'm like, all right. And one thing just led to another. And we we end up doing a movie. And did you know he was a New York bestseller before he reached out? I didn't.

I didn't. I mean, I had heard of his books before. You know, I heard of his books. Because, you know, they real popular in the black community, him and his wife. But I wasn't a big reader. You know, I would read scripts and stuff. But, you know, like a lot of other black children, I just wasn't a big reader. When you would read scripts, did you just read your own parts and you read the whole script?

No, I always read the whole script. Everybody know when I come on set, like, I know my lines. I know your lines. I'm just, I'm just. Yeah. Because, I mean, I feel like you find, because I love movies. You know what I mean? And a lot of times you got these little breadcrumbs and these little gems that happen.

And this is how you know good writing and i feel like you know a lot of people think that um i got where i am in my career from the yeses but it was really the nose it was all the shit that i turned down there was so many scripts that i get sent that like i'm looking for key things in it to know like if this is gonna be a good film or not you know what i mean what are you looking for because that's one of the questions i wanted to ask you like what do you look for because you actually pick some of the best roles like memorable characters characters that have to dive deep yeah and pull out those emotions yeah consistent with that well i'm i'm looking for the human pieces of it, man. A lot of times we just see stuff that's like on the surface, right? Like, I mean, I don't want to give no examples because I don't want to say, oh, this is bad acting or bad movies. But we see it all the time,

you know? And me, I need layers to a man, right? Like, just using Eazy-E for example, he was the villain that everybody hated to hate. Right? Because he did a lot of dumb shit and everybody was still rooting for him at the end. Nobody wanted Eazy to die.

He wanted to get his shit together. But in real life, he was definitely the villain. He was the bad guy in the movie. You know? And he liked being the bad guy. Yeah. He didn't have no problem with it

because in his mind, he's thinking, Cube, you 17 years old. Your opinion really don't count. You ain't got no money. Dre, you got talent, but you ain't got no money. You know what I'm saying?

Still, I'm out here risking my life for my money. So y'all ain't my friends. Like this is a business transaction. So at the end of the day, without no money, all of these fantasies that y'all have about being superstars and all of this good stuff is out the window, you know? And at the time they really was just thinking about being hood stars. Eazy was thinking bigger than them. So for him, he was the mastermind and the money behind it. So how do you go to somebody and tell them,

I deserve XYZ that they ain't never seen? You know what I mean? Like these guys went viral when it was just hand-to-hand situations. So every character that I try to find

has layers. Rather they be good, bad, ugly, but they got layers of a man and they need to be able to show that. You know what I'm saying? Because I'm one of them people who I really believe. I mean, you could feel when people got an ugly energy about themselves, right? Or some kind of demonic energy about themselves. But for the most part, I don't really believe in good people and bad people.

I think it's just people. And there's decisions on the table. You know? And, like, all of us have made a bad decision here or there in our life. Or, you know, made somebody feel a certain way. You know? Like, everybody ain't going to love you. Everybody ain't going to love your opinions.

And I think that's what humanizes roles and humanizes movies the most, you know, just being able to show them different layers. I'm a 17-layer cake, so I need to be able to show people, you know. You say everybody, you don't believe in good and bad people, just people. Mm-hmm. Yeah. What you saying on that, Winner? I think it is some demonic-ass people out there. Yeah.

Do you think that somebody like, let's say, Dylan Roof, who shot up the black people at the church, you don't think he was a bad person? You think he's just a person? Well, you know, I'm also like, I ain't going to say I'm a conspiracy theorist, but I do believe that agendas be pushed a lot of times in situations and like children are so easily influenced like they do have a lot of demonic energies out here right but do i believe that that kid was born hating black people and said to himself soon as i get a chance i'm gonna shoot up a black church absolutely not now whatever took over his mind at the time to make him go Do that foolishness Is a whole different story You know cause like

I don't know the dude's name The other white boy Who shot up the grocery store And was only killing black people Remember he ran up on A white person And was like oh I'm sorry Went to the next person

But the first guy That he killed The security guard Who was at the door Invented an engine That ran off water And was just on the news Like two weeks before that

They ain't trying to hide that So they gonna shoot him And then make it look like invented an engine that ran off water and was just on the news like two weeks before that. They ain't trying to hide that. So they're going to shoot him and then make it look like a random ass mass shooting. You know what I mean? So now when I'm starting to see these shootings, it's getting more and more popular and a little bit crazy now. And I feel like it's an agenda

to cover up what's really happening behind whoever they out there looking for at the time. Well, I heard that theory. I heard that there were people saying that this happened because this guy, this black guy, invented a car that could run off water. And they can't let that happen. And we know that those things do happen. We know that they do try to silence black people who have ideas and information that can change the world. Right. Because they don't want to encourage black kids to think bigger.

Right. And on top of that, you know, it's like if they give the cure to AIDS, all the people who have been studying AIDS, making $80,000, $90,000 a year, studying AIDS now don't have a job that exists anymore. You know, so they're going to pluck you. But here's my gripe with that theory. They don't have to kill so many people just to kill this one guy. Like, keep in mind, the rest of us didn't even know about this invention until after the dude got killed. So if they just wanted to kill that guy, I mean, why not just get one guy to run up on

him? Oh, how about this? Some guy tried to act like he's stealing something out of the store. He accosts the guy. The guy blows his brains out. Nobody questions anything. They know how to kill. They know how to kill and set it up to make it look like

there was some type of disagreement. Especially when it comes to black people, they are immediately trying to make it like a hood situation, like somebody just got out of pocket. They know how to do that. Why kill so many people? Well, I think historically, black people have never thrived well in chaos because we're so passionate. And the first thing we do when we really believe some shit is tear our own shit up. You know what I mean? We've been our worst enemy for a long time, in my opinion. Oh, oh. So the first thing they want to do is hand us chaos and say

yeah get mad y'all get mad everybody get mad because then we start we we completely forget about what's really happening in the situation because this is how I look at it right like I know a few police and they wanted to be cops their entire life. They waiting on opportunities to do some heroic shit. What in any cop right mind after all of these people been shot up that your approach to this person who just did all of this killing is so sweet. You taking these people to get burgers and you're putting bulletproof vests on them. And you know what I mean? Like with black people, it's not like that.

Police is beating you up. They killing you. They shooting you. So to me, that was really what I'm looking at. Like, wait, they, why didn't you just take this opportunity to kill this dude? They just had a mass shooting out here in Texas. He was a brown guy, you know, some kind of Hispanic. Guess what?

When it was all said and done, he was laid out. He was on the ground. He was finished. They killed him, you know? And I can't say that, like, you know, every one of them is part of the agenda, but I'm saying when it's the white folks who go do that, they never end up killing them, and we never know what happens to them at the end of the agenda, but I'm saying when it's the white folks who go do that, they never end up killing them and we never know what happens to them at the end of the day.

I think it's as simple as he's one of us. Exactly. He did what I wanted to do. So, of course, I'm going to treat him with humanity because I would want to be treated with humanity if I did that to them.

But that's inhuman. Absolutely insane to them like we're all but it's that's inhumane like absolutely insane to think like that it's crazy they are inhumane people who behave that way are inhumane they're uncivilized much right and and and let me go back to a statement you just made about us being our worst enemy i've heard heard that. I've heard that many, many times from black people, especially online. Right. And assuming that they were black. Right. Right. Right. Online. The reason why I disagree with that is because that is a tall statement to say that we are our worst enemy and we've been our worst enemy. We black people have never enslaved our entire population of people in any country. We, we, we didn't stomp unborn babies out of their mother's wombs. We didn't feed babies to alligators.

We didn't take plows and snatch teeth out of the mouths of human beings who didn't want to work. And so they decided that because I don't want to work, I'm not going to work for you anymore, I'd rather starve. We forced them to eat liquids. So we snatched their teeth, pulled their teeth out of their mouth. Right. We didn't bomb Tulsa, Oklahoma. We didn't raid Rosewood and burn it down to the ground. Yeah, understood.

We didn't implement Jim Crow or the Tuskegee experiment. Right. You know, we didn't create mass incarceration and welfare to purposely target black families and divide them. We didn't bring crack cocaine into the neighborhood and disseminate it, disseminate it in an entire population of people. We didn't do any of those things.

Those are major atrocities. Yeah, that's fact. Yes. Yes. Yes. We do have some uncivilized mutts in our race. Yes, we do. Right. But that is a very small group of people. When you look at our entire population, when you look, when you really think about our plight in America, we've only been free, legally freed just over 160 years or so, 170 years. That is a very short time when you think about the overall accomplishments of black people. When you think about all of our accomplishments, let's not look at just the people who are the Beyonce's and the Jay-Z's. It's what they try to get us to focus on.

Right. The Willie D's and the Jason Mitchell's. Right. They try to get us to focus on people who are in very special categories. Right. very special categories, right? We have produced thousands of doctors and lawyers, tens of thousands of doctors, lawyers, educators, inventors, entrepreneurs, and just everyday working class people who, despite the odds, put their children through school and kept them out of the long grips of Johnny Law. You know, we have they use our worst as an example of who we are collectively.

Well, see, this is what I think. Hold on, hold on. And they use their worst. I mean, they use our worst as an example of who we are collectively, and they use their best as an example of who they are collectively. Right. And oftentimes- I mean, they're even fabricated.

Look at white Jesus. And I think oftentimes, oftentimes we get brainwashed by that psychological warfare that they're playing on us when we get worn down so much. And we tend to say, just like a lot of people that aren't black go like,

damn, what's wrong with the Negroes? Damn, they can't get it together. And we start that, man, we can't get it together. We are. You know. Right. Well, see what the way I look at it, right, is that. Like you said, they've they've put these systems in place for us to fight each other, because like even even to say something as small as um we're the minority when you ask yourself for real like where really are we the minority those numbers would change right like you ever been to hawaii many i used to vacation there all the time so you heard of haole day before i haven't so haole's is what they call white people right and on haole day they just beat up all the white people. It's like a holiday.

But everybody knows, like, it's all good. That goes on currently in Hawaii? Yeah. Look it up. You can Google it. Who is they? Hawaiians?

Everybody else that ain't white. They just beat the white people up. What? Yeah, it's a thing, right? So imagine... On what days do they go out there? I don't know. We got to Google it. Find holiday. I think it's H-O-W-L-E-Y, holiday. So imagine. What days do they go out there? I don't know. We got to Google it. Fine. Fine.

Holly day. I think it's H O W L E Y. Holly. I just hate the white people who hate me, man. Right. Right. I'm the same way.

I don't have no race. I hate the one. And I hate the black people who hate me too. I hate all anybody who hate me. You don't like me. I don't like you, man. Right. I rock with me. I rock like you man right with me I rock with you right but I think you know these systems have been put in place to like you said brainwash us right and then they set it up to where like you know like for every fourth grader that fails the leap test they build a jail cell

you know what I'm saying like they they figuring it they figuring out how to again make you a slave. They're going to put these systems in place. But being from such a violent city, you know, and what I see around me is. It's kind of crazy because I'm like, yo, I've never seen the police actually kill somebody. You know, like I know a lot of people who carry guns all the time and they're not carrying guns for the white boys. You know what I mean? So like that's what I mean by times like we're our worst enemy because like we don't have no money. So it's like, oh, may the toughest guy win or everybody want to be in charge. Or when we do decide to have a movement that we're pushing forward we lead with violence a lot of the times you know what I mean and we're just so much smarter than that and like we got to be in this world where we where we pivoting you know what I

mean and we got to do that on a great level like you know you see some guys like um like 19 keys who you know they're getting huge groups of black people together and they're talking about things that's sort of like solution-based, you know? They're trying to make people think about it. But, like, that's all fine and dandy, but, like, what's the plan? You know, and I think that's what we got to start feeling like. What's the plan? What are we going to do? What are we going to do for each other? What situations what we got to start feeling like what's the plan what we're

gonna do what we're gonna do for each other what situations we're gonna set up for each other because we still pressing these these things to our a lot of our kids and a lot of our families that like it's still putting them up top and making it seem like white is right and they're doing this all over the world you know what i mean and you see so much chaos happening in these black communities and i just i just think it's sad that like you know it's somebody's job to wake up and go spin on the ops every morning like what are you thinking about you know what i mean that's crazy to me i just i can't i can't take that laying down i gotta acknowledge everything that you said just now as truth. However, those black people who do behave like uncivilized mutts are a microcosm of society. Facts. Right? Overall American society. And so

if you live amongst black people who behave that way. And even, even when you look at new Orleans as a whole, most black people I know from new Orleans are law abiding, hardworking citizens. Facts. It is that small in the projects here or the projects there are the projects. There is where all the bullshit comes from. But they are not the majority of black people in New Orleans.

Facts. You know? So it's easy if you come from that to see, and that's all you see to just say, okay, maybe that's what it is. But I was able to get outside of Fifth Ward, and I saw a lot of that too, but I was able to get outside of Fifth Ward early on. And I saw black people living differently. I saw people behaving differently. I was able to move overseas to Azerbaijan. And in that country at the time, I lived in Baku. Baku is similar to Houston in numbers and population by 4 million people at the time.

And I lived there. Houston had about 4 million people. The difference about back who experienced about one murder a month. And typically it was domestic, um, wife's type of situation. Right. In Houston, comparably

Houston was averaging about 15 murders a week at that time. Now, I also saw lines of men on the streets in suits. And these suits were like not really in good condition, but they were on the streets early in the morning and they waiting on people to pick them up, you know, like in Houston and some other parts. Even in Dallas,

you see Mexicans out at gas stations and Home Depot and all this kind of stuff waiting on some jobs. Well, this is how these guys would do it, but it would be hundreds

and hundreds and rows of guys. I mean, sometimes like for a solid mile, just straight on both sides of the street. And some people were still sleeping on dirt floors at the time. OK, some people. Right. And I'm comparing it to the U.S. and I'm going like, well, they're poor. They're really, really poor. Right. Why aren't they killing each other? Why aren't they robbing? Because because we like we often say, well, we killing each other and we hurting and we we fighting and we robbing because we ain't got nothing. Right. Well, they ain't got nothing eitherbing because we ain't got nothing. Right. Well, they ain't got nothing either.

They really ain't got nothing. Right. And they're not robbing. They're not killing. And what I surmise is how the government communicates with its people. Yes. Leadership starts at the top. Yes.

And these people have put a premium on life. They put a premium on family. They put a premium on community. We don't. I was with my family on our way home, and we saw a fight. We looked off to the left. I saw this fight. It was like old women, children, men,

beating up this one guy. They were whooping his ass. They were serving him. Boy, they were serving him all kinds of pieces, bro. The dudes was punching him, kicking him. Little kids was kicking him. Old lady, couple old ladies had broomsticks, and they

were hitting him in slow motion with the broomstick. So I turned to the driver and I asked my driver, I said, say man, what's going on? He said, I don't know, I'll find out. So he dropped us off and he went back to see what was up. He comes back and he said, yeah, that guy beat up his girlfriend.

And so they beat him up. Yeah. The whole neighborhood whooped his ass. They don't play that. In Houston, in America, we see something. Mind your own business. Right.

Mind your own business. Right, right. And that's why our women and children are unsafe. Right, because we're not living off principle. That's why our boys are walking around at 13 years old, 10 years old, with guns in their waistband. Mm-hmm. Because the people that are in this country and the people even in their neighborhoods,

instead of the men in the neighborhoods protecting the neighborhood and keeping them safe, they look at the boys as competition. Right. You know, they're trying to holler at you 15 years old. You got a grown man, 20-something, 30-something years old trying to get at the same girl you're trying to get at. Right. So they see you as competition. And in many cases, the women see the girls, the younger girls as competition.

Right. Right. Right. But I surmise that the reason, the fundamental reason is values, brother. Yeah. It comes down to values. At one point, I was a source of a lot of the pain in my community. You know, I was very violent. And so I made, I contributed to some of that, right? Right. It wasn't until I learned to love

myself that I learned to love other people. And I said, you know what, that ain't right. And I started actually taking up for people. And I became a protector. Yeah. You know, instead of an agitator. Yeah. Instead of a provocateur. I became a protector.

And once I did that, I decided, ain't nobody coming in this neighborhood and bullying nobody. Ain't nobody pushing nobody around. You ain't coming to beat up nobody in this neighborhood. Right. And once I put my foot down, the other guys around me did the same thing, and it was peace.

Right. And so the men, it really starts with the men. They got to step up because the men are the ones who are, and the boys are really the ones who are doing all the killing. So everybody like to talk about leadership. I'm a leader. I'm a man. I'm this, whatever.

Right. But you're not living that way. You're not living that way. Right. Yeah. Right. I totally get it. And see, that's why me and everybody around us, we realize how much influence film and

television has on a lot of this music all of that it has a huge influence like look at you know what's going on with jama rand you can't i mean i mean he's a young guy 23 years old but you can't tell me that that influence ain't coming from tv and film and the music and and because you're not living that way it's it's just but it's the culture putting so much pressure on people that the first thing you do

when you get money is try to go get some hoes and try to do this and the hoes like I want a real nigga I want a nigga who do this and do that and do this and do that

and you're like well shit nigga G Herbo out the hood you know what I'm saying let me so I won't be flying with a Poo Shiesty mask too and I'm

but that ain't that ain't your life though you know what I mean cause anybody who knows that life for real so I won't be flying with a push-icey mask too. But that ain't your life though. You know what I mean? Because anybody who knows that life for real ain't got nothing. They're not glorifying it at all. They're really just rapping about it

so they can get some money and never got to go back. You know? So I created a foundation called Dream Seeker that ultimately is a film education platform that's allowing people to, you know, we train people in every department behind the camera.

They can come on set, get trained, work for union hours and pretty much getting them to work anywhere in the world. We already got this projected to be a global situation because a thing that's not happening is that we don't have no direct contact with Africa for real. They're not teaching Africans about slavery. So they looking at us. We looking at them. It ain't no unity in none of this. You know what I mean?

And then when they do show us Africa, it's motherfuckers with pot bellies. And you know what I mean? Everybody starving, flies in their eyes. They ain't got no shoes on their feet, whatever it may be. And they ain't going to tell you, oh, some of these people is convoying in race. You know, some of these people got so much money that it's crazy. It's all kind of billionaires and all kind of people that we never even heard of. And they don't want to shed light on that because it'll start to give us this different picture of ourselves.

You know what I mean? And this, you know, this go way back. Like they've been trying to break our minds since white Jesus. You know, but, like, I think through all this chaos, like you said, where does the leadership start? So I know, okay, I got my little piece, film and television, all right, let's do it like this. And we can make movies about whatever we want to make the movies about, but the education

process and the the jobs that we give people and all of these different things I believe will change something and I'm like I might not even live to see that but if this go all the way around the world I know for sure I ain't gonna leave it like I came and I think if if we have that mindset to to not leave the world the same way we found it and we starting with ourself, it's going to be a beautiful place. You know what I mean? Because it ain't about us being divided.

Like, I don't want to live in a world with just black folks. You know what I mean? I don't even want to live my life like that. So, you know, like you said, like when we get to the point where we can just start loving on ourself a little bit more, you know, you can love on your kids better. You can love on your family a little bit better. You can love what you do, you know, because we all wired to love. And, you know, on the other end of that is the hate.

That's what, you know, and people end up hating because they want to be loved. You know what I'm saying? So it's interesting, man. But I think that I'm very optimistic about the situation, to say the least, you know, because I feel like if you close to me, I know I could have a little love for you at least, you know what I mean? And it just have to start there. You know, I hope I'm radiant and I hope that people like when they see me, they see God in me, they like, damn, that's what's up. You know what I mean? And it and it's you know a lot of us ain't got no guidance but it take a village you know it take people like yourself for me to get around people and be like

you know what this is a good thing you know because I feel like it's such a it's such a block between young people in the older generation. You know, like, I was talking to you about my grandfather. Him and I used to get into it a lot because he used to always want to pay his bills in the envelope that'd come in and fill out the paper and all that. I'm like, you know, it's the 20th century. Like, people don't, you don't have to do it this way no more. Like, why do you want to do it like this?

He always used to be peeking over my shoulder. I'm like, like you know and I would get agitated by it because I'm like damn I'm trying to do something else you want me to come fill these bills out but I didn't know until maybe six or seven years ago that the only thing that my grandfather knows how to write is his name and he could write it in cursive so he hella proud of it but that's all he know how to write so he was always very impressed with my penmanship and you know what I mean the fruit of his labor look how it's turning out damn look what look what we doing and it would agitate me because I'm like you know but it was it was the block and he had so much pride that he was afraid to tell me like oh I can't write this this is why I need you to do it like you know so I feel like we need to listen to each other young generation

old generation whatever it may be you know and like you said like we've we've all had our our slip-ups you know and been part of the uh the bullshit in our communities you know so we got to step up and start doing something great you know what i mean and and show people that you can change and that we can change this world if we change ourselves that was profound yeah it was it was and you know the true part about it is that uh a lot of the answers are in those characters that you've played. I'm telling you, man. Thank you. You have done a remarkable job at picking good characters. Thank you. Ghetto Boys Reloaded Podcast will be right back after the break.

So, y'all, this is Questlove, and I'm here to tell you about a new podcast I've been working on with the Story Pirates and John Glickman called Historical Records. It's a family-friendly podcast. Yeah, you heard that right. A podcast for all ages. One you can listen to and enjoy with your kids starting on September 27th. I'm going to toss it over to the host of Historical Records, Nimany, to tell you all about it. Make sure you check it out.

Hey, y'all. Nimany here. I'm the host of a brand new history podcast for kids and families called Historical Records. Historical Records brings history to life through hip hop. Flash, slam, another one gone. Bash, bam, another one gone. The crack of the bat and another one gone. The tip of the cap, there's another one gone. Each episode is about a different inspiring figure from history. Like this one about Claudette Colvin, a 15-year-old girl in Alabama who refused to give up her seat on the city bus nine whole months before Rosa Parks did the same thing. Check it. And it began with me. Did you know, did you know?

I wouldn't give up my seat. Nine months before Rosa, it was Claudette Goldman. Get the kids in your life excited about history by tuning in to Historical Records. Because in order to make history, you have to make some noise. Listen to Historical Records on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Daphne Caruana Galizia was a Maltese investigative journalist who on October 16th, 2017, was murdered.

There are crooks everywhere you look now. The situation is desperate. My name is Manuel Delia. I am one of the hosts of Crooks Everywhere, a podcast that unhurts the plot to murder a one-woman Wikileaks. Daphne exposed the culture of crime and corruption that were turning her beloved country

into a mafia state. And she paid the ultimate price. Listen to Crooks everywhere on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hi, I'm Marie. And I'm Sydney.

And we're Mess. Well, not a mess, but on our podcast called Mess, we celebrate all things messy. But the gag is not everything is a mess. Sometimes it's just living. Yeah, things like J-Lo on her third divorce. Living. Girls trip to Miami. Mess.

Ozempic. Messy, skinny living. Restaurant stealing a birthday Miami. Mess. Ozempic. Messy, skinny living. Restaurant stealing a birthday cake. Mess. Wait, what flavor was the cake, though? Okay, that's a good question. Hooking up with someone in accounting and then getting a promotion. Living.

Breaking up with your girlfriend while on Instagram Live. Living. It's kind of mess. Yeah. Well, you get it. Got it? Live, kind of mess. Yeah. Well, you get it. Got it? Live, love, mess. Listen to Mess with Sydney Washington and Marie Faustin on iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Hey, I'm Jack Peace Thomas, the host of a brand new Black Effect original series, Black Lit. The podcast for diving deep into the rich world of Black literature. I'm Jack Peace Thomas, and I'm inviting you to join me and a vibrant community of literary enthusiasts dedicated to protecting and celebrating our stories. Black Lit is for the page turners, for those who listen to audiobooks while commuting or running errands, for those who find themselves seeking solace, wisdom, and refuge between the chapters. From thought-provoking novels to powerful poetry, we'll explore the stories that shape our culture. Together, we'll dissect classics and contemporary works

while uncovering the stories of the brilliant writers behind them. Blacklit is here to amplify the voices of Black writers and to bring their words to life. Listen to Blacklit on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, James Brown, B.B. King, Miriam Akiba. I shook up the world.

James Brown said, say it loud. And the kids said, I'm black and I'm proud. Black boxing stars and black music royalty together in the heart of Zaire, Africa. Three days of music and then the boxing event. What was going on in the world at the time made this fight as important that anything else is going on on the planet. My grandfather laid on the ropes and let George Foreman basically just punch himself out. Welcome to Rumble, the story of a world in transformation. The 60s and prior to that, you couldn't call a person black.

And how we arrived at this peak moment. I don't have to be what you want me to be. We all came from the continent of Africa. Listen to Rumble, Ali, Foreman, and the Soul of 74 on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Going back to the Eazy-E movie. I mean, that's not the Eazy movie.

Straight out of Compton. The N Easy movie. Straight Outta Compton. The NWA movie, Straight Outta Compton, where you played Easy. to take any type of special courses or whatever to find out you know how an AIDS patient would respond to treatment or to the news that they had gotten AIDS did you have to go around any type of clinics or anything like that no no I just thought of it like because I had an uncle that died from AIDS right and I And I got my own conspiracy thoughts on that, too, because I ain't going to lie. He was healthy as an ox, but he was a gay man, right? And when everybody was getting tested and people was finding out and all of this kind of stuff, like, the whole family suggested that he go get tested because they knew he was gay.

Lo and behold, he got AIDS. Four months later, he dies. suggested that he go get tested because they knew he was gay lo and behold he got AIDS four months later he dies but he paid like 80,000 or something crazy number for the medicine so you know it was like to me it was it came through and just swept a lot of people but I personally feel like it came from the medicine right so aside from that I'm looking at easy situation. Like he went to the hospital and never left. You know what I'm saying? Like he, he went in a never leave.

So the shock to him was more like, no, I'm, you know, I ain't gay. What you mean? I got AIDS. Like that's for gay people. Cause that's what the media is saying.

And then they're like, no, well, your T cell count is 13, sir. You know, you, you got a few days. You got to get out of here. That whole, like, because, I mean, we done survived shootouts.

We done survived this and that. We done survived the police, all of that. And I'm about to die from a sickness. Are you kidding me? Like, I know his heart was broke. You know what I mean? Because he never ever I don't think wanted he wanted the best for Cube, he wanted

the best for Dre, he wanted the best for Yela, Ren, even Jerry Heller. He wanted the best for people. Like, he had a good heart about himself. He gave each of his kids $20,000 a month. You know, he was taking care of what he had to take care of. He gave each one of his kids $20,000 a month. You know, he was taking care of what he had to take care of. Yeah, he gave each one of his kids 20 racks a month.

20 bands a month. Why he didn't give Cube that money Cube was asking about? Cube wanted some money, man. Well, you know. Cube had wrote a lot of that music, man. Cube wanted that money. Well, you know, but to be honest, I think Eazy was also afraid to, I mean, he know that there was things that Jerry could do that he couldn't. You know, like when they went to go visit the White House, they made us take that out the movie.

It was in the original script. They made us take that out the movie. And it wasn't even, that's a simple shot to say, hey, you know, we just got off the airplane or whatever and we, and they just simply turned us

back around and said, no, get your ass back on. That's all they needed to put in the movie to let us know that it happened.

You know? But, it was like, no. Who took it out? I believe Universal wanted us to take it out. But F. Gary Gray,

he's so smart, you know, that like, at the end of the film, that's why Cube says to Easy, how you go from selling rocks in a dope house to eating dinner with the president in the White House. And, you know, Easy responds by saying, they still trying to figure that out, because that was the truth.

All they knew was Eric Lynn Wright donated X amount of dollars to the state of California, he should be a Republican. They didn't think he was going to show up and be the same nigga from Fuck the truth. All they knew was Eric Lynn Wright donated X amount of dollars to the state of California. He should be a Republican. They didn't think he was going to show up and be the same nigga from Fuck the Police. They was like, hell nah, turn him around. You know what I mean? But yeah, that's the truth. And they didn't want to see it. They didn't want us to be that powerful.

When you look at it, they knocked off him, Biggie, and Pac in a very short amount of time. If you go from the first death to the last, it's like, I don't even think it's two full years. Who was in office

when Eazy-E went to the White House? Was it Reagan? I don't remember. Who was it? See, I don't even think Eazy went to the White House. It was the presidential luncheon that they were supposed to be showing up at. So whatever it was.

It might have been Big Bush. Might have been. Whatever he went to, was supposed to go to, I think Eazy went there, like, just to give him a big middle finger. Oh, absolutely. That's what it was always about. He knew he was going to get a million dollars with the free press. Yeah, he wasn't trying to go there to get down. I can just see Eazy reading that letter.

Like, when he got the letter, I can just say, yeah, you know what? They done fucked up. And somebody probably, like, one of the secretaries or something probably read the letter and said they want you to. And he was like, what? What you going to do? I'm going. Right. I'm headed.

I'm headed. You know, because they probably had no idea who Eric Lynn Wright was. They definitely didn't put that together and think it was easy. You know, Eric, you were a very smart guy, right? But, man, I think you overplayed your hand by not paying Cube and Drake. I think you overplayed your hand. He definitely did that bad. He definitely did that bad. But I also believe.

You got your most prolific writer in the group, and you got your beat maker. You got your guy who's making the music. You got to take care of those guys. You got to make them happy. They got to be happy. Absolutely. It didn't seem like that they were asking for anything unreasonable. No, I mean, I think at the end of the day, he was so stuck on what Jerry Heller was telling him

and trusted in that situation so much that between everything that's going on in his life, he was just so blinded to it. I think he, after a while, just put on blinders and was like, Jerry got it. I don't want to talk to y'all about no money because, I mean, it is what it is. But, you know, by that time, he was on a rapid downfall. You know what I mean? Like, Jerry really got all of their ass. You know what I mean? Like, Eazy wasn't exempt from the situation.

Like, he definitely lost money, too. And I think if he would have just paid more attention to the situation in its entirety, you know, because he really didn't believe that they couldn't do it without Jerry. And Dre was preaching that to him the whole time. You know, but I mean, we see where Dre at now. Billionaire. Yeah. You know what I mean?

We see where Cube at now. Like, leading it. You know what I mean? So it's, I don't know, man. You know, it was sad to watch. It was sad to watch. It was sad to watch, but you know, I am glad that I got to humanize him in a way that didn't

tarnish the legacy at all. Oh, brother, you killed that role. Thank you. You was made for that role. Thank you. You killed it. I mean,

talking about knocking out the puck. You set a distance record with that motherfucker. Shit. Hey, man, I'm glad i wasn't out there trying to audition stop playing man stop playing they would have called me back i'm like man you playing that's jason road bro i mean you knocked that thing out the park. Is there any role that they could ask of you that you would not play?

You absolutely would just say, no, I'm not playing that type of character. I'm not homophobic at all. Don't have no homophobic bones in my body. But I just, I don't want to play any of those roles. Fair enough. But I just, I don't want to play any of those roles. None of that. Fair enough. You know, I mean, I feel like they got gay people out here that act. They got transgenders out here that act.

And they could portray those stories very well, you know, and they fit in that box very well. So, you know, I could sort of leave that for them. And that and maybe, like, I'm not too big on the womanizers either. I don't really want to play that for them. That and maybe like, I'm not too big on the womanizers either. I don't really want to play that. You know,

maybe a hot boy, but like as far as like on some Ike Turner type shit, like nah. You know what I mean? Like they still got people who be looking at Blair Underwood like,

I don't like his ass, but he, you know, he probably don't beat his wife at home, but people just look at it like, you know what I mean? Lawrence Fishburne look at it like, you know what I mean?

Lawrence Fishburne had to shake that, you know what I'm saying? Because for a long time, people were just looking at him like, I don't like his motherfucking ass, you know? So it's just like when you see Hannibal. Like when I first met Anthony Hopkins in real life, that was the first time I ever froze when I was like meeting a star. Because I always valued myself enough to, like, you know, you got some people you meet them and you're like, damn, I just been a huge fan my whole life or whatever. But as far as, like, being struck where you do some stupid shit,

like, that only happened to me when I met him and the dude who played Candyman. And they don't even know about it because I didn't speak to him. I feel like the dude who played Candyman fucked up my whole childhood. Like, he don't even know. Like, you know, but I seen him and stopped, like, you know, and I kind of let them go their own way because I'm like, damn. But, you know, it's powerful being an actor. You know what I'm saying? You never know how you affecting people's lives. So, you know, they got a couple of things that I wouldn't like to do. But I personally

feel like, you know, because I had all of these tattoos before I started acting, so in my mind, I always thought I was going to get pigeonholed, you know, or be typecast as the guy with the tattoo, Stug number three and shit, right? So, I always would press this issue that I needed to show different faces of Jason Mitchell every time. I needed to do something completely different. Like, they called me to be Eazy-E in every other movie that had a glimpse of Eazy-E in it. Like, bro, no.

You know what I mean? I'm not doing that no more. I'll play Eazy, that's fine. Like, you're not going to get me to be Eazy in nine more movies. Like, we can do this as a series and, you know, we can keep going. And then what? You know what I mean? People be like, when Straight Outta Compton 2 come out?

Nigga, hopefully never. I died in the first one. You know what I mean? Like, what the fuck? Yeah, you know, so I just, I never wanted to let that be the thing that held me back. You know what I mean? Because I definitely don't look at none of my tattoos as a mistake. I don't feel like I would take it back.

I feel like it's part of my individuality and who I am as a person. You know? So it's good to know that it ain't holding me back. But it's always kind of like in the back of my mind. Like, can you really do that? Show me. you know? And I just, I'm always in this battle with myself. Like, I feel like it's just me against me.

You know, if you stand in front of the goal, I'm going to dunk on your ass. I'm definitely the leader of LeBron of this shit. I feel like they got actors out here that had opportunities to work with me and don't because they know I'm going to go up on their ass. You know what I mean? It just is what it is like and and I love this craft it is what it is you know what I'm saying but like it's it's just like you know you see LeBron and Steph Curry got

this love for each other you know but like on the court ain't no love you know what I'm saying like I'm not gonna disrespect you or do nothing like that but I'm here to win and that's how I feel when it come to my craft like I'm here to win. And that's how I feel when it comes to my craft. Like, I'm here to win. You stand in front of the goal, prepare to get dunked on. Vince Carter style. Going with my arm and all of that in the rim. You know what I mean?

I'm going to highlight post to your ass. I believe you. I'm ready for it. Man, what's your relationship like with Lena Waithe? Me and Lena are cool. Me and Lena are cool. Me and Lena are cool. We, um, like, when I first met Lena,

I met her at a SAG event and they had, um, a step and repeat, right? And she had on, like, this fly-ass suit and I actually asked to take a picture with her because I just thought

she was fly as hell. You know, I didn't know who she was. And she was like, you know, I'm a writer, you know, I've done a couple of things, but, like, I really want to work with you one day.

And I was like, shit, let's touch and agree on it right now. Like, all my friends would tell you, like, I'll pray in a minute. Like, I'm all about it, you know. So we literally stopped on the step and repeat and prayed, you know. And then I ended up getting this offer. Come in, say, hey, yeah, for the shot. And I was just like, damn, we really spoke that shit into existence. So by us having that introduction and, you know, by us adding God into the mix early on, I don't feel like nothing could really break that.

You know what I mean? It was like, you know, when the whole little situation happened and shit kind of came rolling down on me or whatever, I understood why she got out the way. Because you got the whole brand to protect. You got the whole show to protect. You know what I'm saying? I just, I took a bullet and it was what it was.

Did she support you silently? I mean, well, let me put it like this. Did she support you privately? I mean, well, let me put it like this. Did she support you privately? Absolutely. She did? Absolutely. But, you know, to be honest, I wasn't really trying to hear that shit at the time. Like, you know, because I was like, why would you just flash out and be like, I got to stand with the woman?

Like, you don't even know what the fuck happened yet. You know what I'm saying? So she actually did that? I mean, I think she did. I think at one point in time she called the Breakfast Club and was like, I'll never work with Jason Mitchell again. But then she retracted those words when she found out that the situation wasn't what she thought it was. But I just think that's some bullshit. Like, you know what I feel like people who really know me, when they hear shit in the media, they'll be like, that's not really him.

You know what I mean? And I feel like she was one of the people who could have spoke up and said something that could have changed the situation. But she got a lot of weight. But yeah, yeah, exactly. But I also realized that, you know, if she did stand behind me and I did do some bullshit, it could have been bad for both of us. You know what I mean? I understand that, too. So, you know, I don't judge nobody for their situation.

You know what I mean? And you never know what people are going to do under pressure. I mean, niggas snitch every day. You know what I'm saying? So, I don't be judging people. I really don't. I tell you this, bro. One of the quickest ways to find out who for you is to go through some heavy shit.

Oh, yeah, for sure. Go through something. For sure. Go through something. And I'm going to tell you, you know, like when I had my situation with the feds, bro, it was one of them situations that if you could talk to God and you'd be like, say God,

no, you ain't got to do all that. God was like, no, I'm going to sit you down for a while, bro. You're kind of moving a little bit too fast. I would have been like, no, you ain't really got to, man.

I'm talking to you right now. I'm telling you, I ain't going to do it no more. I got you. I'm telling you, no, no, God, no, no, I'm going to sit you down for a minute,

but I'm going to tell you something, bro. It was a blessing in disguise. It's not something I would have wished for, but it was a blessing in disguise. Because when I say them niggas was dropping like flies all around me, when I say they was scatting, and it tightened my circle it strengthened it my circle became so strong only the real was around me and it stood out clearly including when i say the real i mean even the women in my circle the women got tight super tight the women in my circle shit i take i go to war any day i pick them over some some of these dudes out here any day because they soldiers i mean they like all the way like oh yeah they

crying they going crazy well we gotta do something they want to twin power activate like we gonna they was like that they were like that no i respect that so much. And you want to know it's not something that you wish, but if you got to go through something, if you're going through it, that's when you're going to really, really know, bro. Absolutely. Absolutely. Because we were just talking about Jaquavis. Listen, he helped me really start to look at myself for who I was because I've always been me. You understand?

I'm with myself every day. I'm not going home and saying, nigga, you a superstar. Nigga, you this, you that. I'm just Jason. That's it. I'm just Jason, bro. Everybody know I come with a very humble energy. I got a humble spirit. And just because I fucked

around and did something great, I don't think that makes me no better than the next person. Right. So it was hard for me to really start looking at it. He was like, bro, when the last time you seen somebody on the street? And they said, when you see Showtime, tell them, tell them we love We appreciate them For putting you on that show Anybody ever stopped you And said Hey man

Tell Universal That we appreciate them For letting you play Eazy-E They're like Nah nigga They love you Invest in yourself You ain't doing shit

But making somebody else rich Even if you is Getting a little A little bag, it could be a whole different type of bag if you say, fuck it, I'm going to bet on me. You know what I mean? But when I did that, a lot of people,

because the handouts stopped, because a lot of motherfuckers called me and gave me a sad story, say, brother, look, man, I'm going through, I'll shoot you something. You come stay at the crib. A lot of motherfuckers They know They know I ain't lying

They know I done held so many people down But as soon as I said I can't do that Or I was going through some shit You know Motherfuckers The phone stopped ringing as much

You dig what I'm saying? And I really I'm talking about my circle That went To a dot Family members done dropped out Of it and everything And it just is what it is And I really, I'm talking about my circle that went to a dot. Family members done dropped out of it and everything. And it just is what it is.

Because I feel like, you know, if I ain't got nothing else, I got God. And God is going to direct me to the right people at all times. And the people who really, really love me going to be 100% down with that walk that I'm on. Period. And that's just it. That's the short and long of it. It ain't no miraculous, glamorous story. No. Either you're going to love me and you're going to be here through the entire thing

or it's going to be over. You know what I mean? Jamie Foxx, you know, blessings to him. You know what I mean? Because he was one of them people, like, I went through some shit. He was like, man, come to the house. Let me talk to you. Sit you down and talk to you. You know? Really shoot some shit. He was like, man, come to the house. Let me talk to you. Sit you down and talk to you.

You know? Really shoot some shit in your ear. If you ever really need something, brother, I got you. You know? They got very few people in the world who like that, dog. Like, when things was going great, I'm talking about it wasn't a movie star in the business that didn't want to work with me or that I couldn't call personally. I could literally call my agent and be like, I need such and such number. They texting it to me in the next five minutes.

And they like, I remember I was in Vietnam. Russell Simmons called my phone. He was like, can you hold for Russell Simmons? I was like, I ain't never had nobody call my phone and put me on hold immediately. You know what I mean? But this was the type of shit that was happening. You think when I went through the bullshit, these people was calling my phone? Hell nah. You know, but now

I just feel different because I'm like, you know what, if nothing else, I know I got a direct pipeline to the fans and you know, acting is my happy place, so if I can make movies to the day I die, that's what I'm gonna do. And if the fans

continue to watch my shit, that's going to be great. But I know for a fact ain't nobody else got to give me another opportunity in the world. Don't get me wrong. I would love it. I would love to be in a Marvel movie. I would love to be a superhero. But if them opportunities never roll back around, my bag's still going to look the same as theirs. I believe that, bro.

You know? I believe that. So I'm all right. That's why I am. See, my bounce back, you know, boy that because I'm all right that's that's why I'm see my bounce back you know boy my bounce back is very similar bro like I just got one of those type of mentalities like I won't make it no matter what so even if I got to do it all by myself all alone everybody dropped off but it's beautiful to have some support, even if it's a small circle. In fact, I actually prefer my smaller circle anyway, because that's less birthday parties I got to go through. That's gifts I got to buy.

That's less anniversaries I got to attend. That's less people I got to talk to. That's taking up my time. You know, like, hey, man, you know, like, everything that I do, man, it's all quality. Yeah. Like, I'm dealing with quality people. Yeah. Super tight circle, quality people.

Yeah. And I'm cool with that. So, blessing in disguise, man. And you know how it go, bro. What don't kill us make us stronger? Facts. Facts. And a lot of times, like you said, we don't be wanting to hear that.

You know, You be like God Look You got me You're like Yeah I got you But you gonna have to Sit this one out

You know And I feel like So blessed That I got to get Close enough to the fire To really know That it was hot But not really get burned

You know what I mean Because I feel like A lot of times You know When you get to Celebr status, you got to make sure that you're not self-inflicting wounds, you know. And for whatever God has, you know, set for me to do, because it's far from over. You know what I mean? I'm still a very young guy and I feel like, you know, it's a lot that's going to be on my path. But one thing I can't do is put myself in the line of fire or self-inflict pain.

I just, I can't do that. If I do that, I'm going to lose off the rip. So he put that in front of my face like, okay, this is what would happen if you do some dumb shit. And in the process of that, all of these people who who claiming they your friends and all of this shit look we're gonna wipe all of that situation out and then make it even better for you to feel secure you're gonna go home with all of their secrets so nobody gotta feel no kind of way about nothing because i'm telling you every time i get in front of a fucking microphone i guarantee you they got people who cringe. Like, oh God,

I hope this nigga don't bring this up. And I hope he don't say this. And I hope he don't say that. But nah, I don't care. I don't care that you didn't stick up for me.

I don't give a fuck about that. I'm just happy that you out the way and that that's not going to affect my life in no negative ways. You know what i mean because we could potentially be in a situation where this could really fuck me up you know what i mean look

at young thug all these niggas never turned on the gang i would never snitch soon as they get in there it was him de. Deontre did it, your honor. You know what I mean? They doing it to each other, and it's crazy. You know what I mean? And I'm talking about instantly. So for me, I just feel like I'm just so happy that, like, the people that surround me love me as much as I love them.

You know, if anything were to happen to me, I'd feel safe with them being around my daughters. And, you know, I can't ask for much more, you know? More life. Yeah, them boys over there in that Young Thug tribe, pointing like the Jackson 5. I don't got that. Dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun.

I don't got that. They pointing at everybody, brother. Pointing, man. It's fucked up, man. I'm so sad for that dude, bro, because to be honest, man, like, you know, I mean, I can't speak on their business. I don't really know what really be going on, but I've always seen them be all about their business. That's what their whole world is engulfed with, rap music. You know what I'm saying? They either on tour or in the studio.

They trying to do some shit with they self so you know it's it's fucked up man to see these these rico cases and these conspiracy shits that be happening you know just tearing down these things that get built you know when half of it don't even be like that it'd be a bunch of handshakes and daps and shit these niggas made up and you know what i? And then you got somebody fucking off in the background who ruined it for everybody. And it's just, it's really sad to watch, man. It's really sad to watch. Let there be a lesson, boys and girls.

You resemble who you assemble. At real talk. Absolutely. Jason Mitchell, you're one of the realest, bro. This has been, this is what we would call on Halloween a treat. I heard that. This has been a treat, man. I heard that.

I appreciate you. Thank you for coming on the podcast. Is there anything that you want to leave with the audience before we take off? First and foremost, everything is both. June 2nd, Apple TV. If you ain't got Apple TV, you might be able to watch it on Amazon Prime, but you do got to go check that out. Me and Jaquavis Coleman, we produced that. Barton Fitzpatrick is in it. We found, because we like to give opportunities, you know what I mean? So

we got some sensations that you're going to see in this movie that you have not seen yet. And it's just going to be a lovely, lovely, lovely treat for y'all. So I want y'all to check that out. And for those who do want to be in the film business, go to idreamseek.org and sign up, and we're going to send you all the information you need to find out how we could get you in this business. So not only are we making movies, but we're giving opportunities. You know what I mean? Absolutely.

Oh, yes and yes. Speaking of opportunities, let me put Jaquavis on the spot right now. Okay. Jaquavis Coleman is in the house, ladies and gentlemen. Oh, he's hiding in the background. Hiding in the background. Hey, the family, I'm going to let y'all know right now, I'm going to tell the whole world, Jaquavis already said the very next movie that he do, y'all going to see me in it.

Now, that's what he said. Let's see what happens. No more talk. Now you know. No, no, no. This episode was produced by A-King and brought to you by the Black Effect Podcast Network

and iHeart Radio. Hey, y'all. Niminy here. I'm the host of a brand new history podcast for kids and families called Historical Records. Executive produced by Questlove, The Story Pirates, and John Glickman, Historical Records brings history to life through hip-hop. Flash, slam, another one gone. Bash, bam, another one gone. The crack of the bat and another one gone. The tip of the cap, there's another one gone. Each episode is about a different inspiring figure from history

Like this one about Claudette Colvin A 15 year old girl in Alabama Who refused to give up her seat on the city bus Nine whole months before Rosa Parks did the same thing Check it. Get the kids in your life excited about history by tuning in to Historical Records. Because in order to make history, you have to make some noise. Listen to Historical Records on the iHeartRadio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Daphne Caruana Galizia was a Maltese investigative journalist who on October 16th, 2017, was assassinated. Crooks everywhere unearthed the plot to murder a one-woman WikiLeaks. She exposed the culture of crime and corruption that were turning her beloved country into a mafia state. Listen to Crooks Everywhere on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's up? This is Ramses Ja. And I go by the name Q Ward. And we'd like you to join us each week for our show, Civic Cipher.

That's right. We discuss social issues, especially those that affect black and brown people, but in a way that informs and empowers all people. We discuss everything from prejudice to politics to police violence. And we try to give you the tools to create positive change in your home, workplace, and social circle. We're going to learn how to become better allies to each other, so join us each Saturday for Civic Cipher on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Jacqueline Thomas, the host of a brand new Black Effect original series, Black Lit, the podcast for diving deep into the rich world of Black literature. Black Lit is for the page turners, for those who listen to audiobooks while running errands or at the end of a busy day.

From thought-provoking novels to powerful poetry, we'll explore the stories that shape our culture. Listen to Black Lit on the Black Effect Podcast Network, iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to Gracias Come Again, a podcast by Honey German, where we get real and dive straight into todo lo actual y viral. We're talking music, los premios, el chisme, and all things trending in my cultura. I'm bringing you all the latest happening in our entertainment world and some fun and impactful interviews with your favorite Latin artists, comedians, actors, and influencers. Each week, we get deep and raw life stories, combos on the issues that matter to us, and it's all packed with gems, fun, straight up comedia, and that's a song that only Nuestra Gente can sprinkle. Listen to Gracias Come Again

on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.