The Questlove Show - QLS Classic: Tracee Ellis Ross

Episode Date: April 1, 2025

Look back to May 2021 when Questlove Supreme sat down with multiple award winner, super hilarious, multi-talented iconic daughter of an icon— (who became her own icon) Tracee Ellis Ross. This conversation is peppered with so many mic drops. Enjoy. Like Tracee, the wisdom from this episode is ageless. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me. Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media.

Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfills of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Clivert Show on the I-Hard Radio app,

Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. In 2023, Bachelor star Clayton Eckerd was accused of fathering twins. But the pregnancy appeared to be a hoax. You doctored this particular test twice in so much, correct? I doctored the test ones. It took an army of internet detectives to uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing.

Greg Gillespie and Michael Marantini. My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trapped. Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. When a group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist, they take matters into their own hands.

I vowed, I will be his last target. He is not going to get away with this. He's going to get what he deserves. We always say that trust your girlfriends. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Igo, I'm Egoode.

My next guest, it's Will Ferrell. My dad gave me the best advice ever. He goes, just give it a shot. But if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay. to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be. Right. It wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Yeah. Listen to Thanks Dad on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Questlove Supreme is a production of IHeart Radio. March means women's history month.

And we're going to celebrate here at QLS as we travel back. the 2021 for this mic drop episode with none other than Tracy Ellis Ross. Whether you heard before or not, you're really going to love this one. I know I do. All right. Enjoy. Your lighting designer should be paid. Yeah.

You guys, that means you'd be paying Mother Nature or God. So I don't know. Tracy trying to tell us that she's only using juices and berries. I don't know. I don't know if, like, I don't know how invoices come from Mother Nature. So I don't know how to do that. Right. A month later, it's going to be a pattern skin line.

I actually want to skip the end. Are we ready to go? I'm recording. I'm recording. It's recording. It's recording right now. All right. We're all recording.

I'm recording right now. Ladies and gentlemen, first of all, all of the team supremers say hello at the same time. Hello. Hello. Hello. Hello. Yeah, yeah. Okay.

All right. Today's a day. No, you're not a team supremer, Ms. Sorry, sorry. I was responding to the hello. I was trained well. You're not family yet. Hang on.

Let us induct you. I apologize. I apologize. Yeah. Today's the day of miracles. It's so miraculous. I don't even want to waste a nanosecond giving you good people. Our guest impressive resume, we can review her life at the same time, you know, as a group.

And I'm not even being dramatic because I'm afraid she's going to disappear. True. Word, word. So blah, blah, blah, blah. Lerous is lounge, blah, blah, blah, blah. Girlfriends, yes. I'm iconic parents, blah, blah, blah, blah. Siblings, everybody.

Yeah, yes. High note, blah, blah, blah, blah. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Tracy Ellis Ross to Quest Love Supreme. How did this moment happen? Blah, blah, blah, blah. I just want to say, Tracy, I've never stalked a person that I actually know. Three years. Yeah, I've never stalked a person like a person I consider a friend.

Like be one thing when I creep in Rihanna's DMs like we don't have a relationship like that. I've been slowly poaching you bit by bit. Like I would do like tiny comments on all your social media to be like, oh, mirror, let me follow him. Then I've jumped in your DMs and trying to get, and that would never happen. So I don't know how this moment. Just know that. That is ridiculous. Because by the way, the moment I finally saw your DM.

Three years later. Three years later. But I saw it and I was like, what do you mean you been trying to? I'm like, what are you talking about? Of course I'll do that. Look, I want to, I want to let all, all polite stalkers know. And I say this. You ain't going to get to me.

Really? I'd let that just a little bit, a little bit at a time, persistence does work. But, you know, I had to stalk you the kid here. How are you today, Trace? I'm really, really good today. I'm really, really good today. I am back from Cabo and my first sort of foray, away. It's been a long time since I've had a break. This pandemic, like for everybody,

it was just really challenging. And I also didn't stop through the whole thing. I had a movie that came out right at the beginning of the pandemic, at the beginning of lockdown, a week after George Floyd's murder. And it just, it just has not stopped. So how hard was it being like business as usual? There was no business as usual. And it was a weird, you know, leading up to the launch of the movie. I mean, I was so excited. It was the first time I sang. Like, it was such a big moment for me. I walked through one of my biggest fears of my life. Like, just, it was so exciting. And then they're like, we're not going to have a premiere. I'm like, I'm so now. You know, so that was the first, like, disappointment. And also, like, you know, small disappointment,

considering the many disappointments everyone was having and the genuine grief and loss that was occurring. but a personal disappointment nonetheless. People had to reschedule weddings and couldn't be there with holding people's hands. So that was the first thing. And then it was like, who cares? It just felt so, it was like, who cares? And then it flipped back around to, yes,

because our freedom and our joy and our reveling in who we are is an important form of resistance in response to the systemic oppression and the violence and the death. And so it's just, you know, like for everybody, we've been whirling around with so much in our hearts and heads through this time.

Right. I mean, that was such a, that's a heavy, How Am I? But it was honest. The show is. It was honest. But wait, I will say probably the glass half full answers also.

I probably think that more people saw the high newt and the way that we saw it because there was just a period where television and movies was just all of our escape you know what I mean? Yeah. And so it was one of the first movies to do the whole

straight to it was it was the second. Yeah. No, I definitely remember like genuinely they didn't even know how to price it like that's how knew it was like no one knew what to I didn't even know what VOD meant Do you know what I mean?

Like it was just no one understood any of that at that point. Yeah. Yeah, the weekend that you guys in Palm Springs came out, that was like a happy weekend in the household where we just, you didn't know if you were coming or going or if we would be here next week or not here. You know, just. Yeah. So that,

I definitely remember like just those first two months where just any new cinema content was like relief. It's so funny. I didn't watch any TV screens. were not my thing. I was reading at the beginning, reading and cooking and listening to audio books. Like I couldn't, I could, I don't know, I couldn't find the right content

that made me feel okay. And so I was going back to old books I'd already read. Like, the bluest eye is one of my favorite audio books. Because it's read by Ruby D. and Tony. Wow. It's literally like going to the theater. Ordering that now. Incredible. Incredible.

So I listened to that. I went back to all the old David Sedaris books because they just made me laugh and sort of took me completely out of what we were in. And so I would cook and listen to audiobooks. And then I slowly crept myself back to television. And, you know, I remember watching the Tiger King and thinking, I'm not sure that this is a very soothing bomb. I don't know that my soul is going. Ah, this is what I needed. Like, I was like, I'm not sure what's happening here.

This is very much to take in. His outfits were intense. Was Tiger King the lowest? I'll say probably for me was selling sundet. Was the lowest that I went as far as like. What do you wait? Wait, can I just tell you something? Selling sunset was definitely lower and I actually watched it do.

And then I caught myself at a certain point and I was like, oh, this, I've got to stop this. I can't. Right. Right. And then you're watching all three. seasons in like oh i did not watch all three seasons here you can go down with that one that was not me let me preface a friend of like i'm in 30 rock so a friend of mine at saturday night live was doing a selling sunset spoof for the show and i didn't know none of the references i was like all right

let me watch one episode and then that's how i got trapped yeah and then started just watching i don't know why i still have not watched an episode of the Kardashians um ever in your whole life No, I Really? Really? None of y'all? No. I really haven't. Ladies and gentlemen, I'm giving you her the biggest side eye right now. Come on. No, I really haven't.

First of all, you do get enough of the snippets on Instagram they'll come through. Right. I did, I will, I tried to watch this. Was it the first episode of this? Is this the final? This is the final season, right? Allegedly, I'm not supposed to know that.

But yeah, that's what they say. You know, that's what I heard. Okay. Well, I saw, I saw the, I saw the, I saw the, I saw a piece of it and I was watching and I was like, this is just not for me, you know? It's just,

it's just, the same thing happens when I open TikTok. I go, oh, oh, I don't, oh, I don't know what's happening. Oh, God. Wait,

you're not on TikTok. Hallelujah. I am totally on TikTok, but when I open that app. You seem like the prime candidate for it. Yeah, my content can go on there. But when I open that app,

I feel like I'm being assaulted. Yeah. It's like a panic attack as an app. It's crazy. And I feel like it's not. meant for my generation. I was like, that's okay. When do we start admitting these things? I'm so ready for that. Right now.

I'm right now. Right now. Proud. Proud. Proud. Proud of my age. I have earned every stripe, every wrinkle, every cellulite, every droop, all of it. I've earned it all and I'm happy to say, no, that's not for me. I'm good. I will say that as a person that lives in a hotel

room, like I'm a lazy Cardass. Like I don't actively look for like the new episode. But on Sundays, the E-network will do that eight-hour marathon. That's what I was thinking of here. Yeah. And I just get lazy. And I just, like, sometimes I like a good aquarium to be in my room.

Like, before my girlfriend moved in, like, I lived alone for the longest. And you just have TV running on the background. I know. Normally my fish, my aquarium was my Soul Trade episodes. But now. Please don't say it's the Kardashians. Don't say that. I'm just saying that if it's on, I don't turn it off.

I don't actively watch it, but I also don't turn it off. And by the way, I'm not hating. As I said, it's just not for me. I'm not hating on that. I personally, other people have said worse. It's quiet. It's the most diplomatic way to. It's totally quiet for me in my home and in my life.

Like I don't, I listen to music, but I don't have a soundtrack that's always going or a TV, not at all. Do you get overwhelmed by the music like you do, like everything else? Because I don't know about you, but I don't. I mean, I talk for a living. And so like at a certain point, I'm just like, moot, enough.

Like shut it down. And I do like when I'm packing or I need background information because I always get anxiety when I'm packing to go somewhere, it's such an ordeal. It's such an ordeal. and I'm such an overpacker, and it's like I have lost, I've let go of all the shame about the overpack.

It just is what it is. I am, my friends find it hilarious and so annoying, but while I'm packing, I like to listen to stand-up comedy. We're the same person. We are the same person. Who are you listening to? Me?

Well, yes. I don't like your name. What do you were listening to? Yes. Sure. Go ahead. What I'm listening to. Well, let me tell you about myself,

Lai. You're okay, good. I'm an aquarium and I like Nate Boracazzi. Thank you. He's funny. I just watched Raw again. Oh, wow. I just watched Richard Pryor when he's in the red satin shirt and I'm like, dude,

that shirt went from satin to velvet. I was like, he was so sweaty. It's like sunset, right? I swear to God, like it went into like a sunset and then all of a sudden it looked velvet. Wait, have I ever admitted on the show that Eddie's Murphy, Eddie's comedy never hit me? Oh, no. I don't know.

I don't think you said that, Mr. some supposed to be black person. But let's get into it. Wait, wait, a lot of anti-black because. I never heard one say with that. I never heard one say that. I wasn't allowed to watch it as a kid. And so when I got it years, like I got raw when I was on the tour bus.

and I only knew the stuff based on what my friends did in high school. Like, I knew the ice cream joking and all that stuff, but watching raw and delirious for the first time, like, as a 20-year-old on the tour bus, like I didn't, I wasn't on the floor like I was with Chris Rock or watching Chappelle. Interesting. It's one of those you had to be there moments.

And then I felt like a millennial watching public enemy right now. But let me ask you a question, though. when you watch Richard Pryor, does it hit you? I snuck. Like, I snuck Richard Pryor. Like, my dad had those records, and I'd sneak and listen to those records. He didn't bring Eddie Murphy in the house, so we didn't have cable. Oh, so you saying you didn't hear it in its time because you heard edit.

Right. Okay. I don't know. I'm here. I think it's, I think, I don't know that it has to. I mean, look, I don't know. I'm not your therapist. But I don't know if it has to do with what you heard as a kid because I didn't hear

Eddie Murphy or Richard Pryor as a kid. But that sensibility, particularly Richard Pryor and his storytelling ability, I can't get over it. As I would be packing and I would stop and just be like the crafting, and it's not even crafting. It's just the way his mind works, right? Like it just blew my mind the way he would come back around. You know, there's some comedians I watch and I think,

there was more to that joke. Like I was like you didn't quite get the rest out of that. Like, you know, like the backseat driver who can say like what the community. Like he's on Netflix. Like clearly he's doing just fine. I don't think he needs Tracy's commentary. But that's the beauty of watching it in your home. You can do all that.

But I will admit, nah, I don't know if I'm going to admit what I was going to change my mind. Go ahead. Let it fly. Safe space. Oh, bull crap. No. It is a safe. Well, I don't know about it.

Right here. Right, that's true. That's true. No, there is someone who people are shocked that I do not have on in any of my music playlist and it's just not someone I listened to. I did growing up, but it hasn't lasted for me. Got it. You hate thriller. I got it. No.

Anyway. No, it's Prince. I knew she was. I knew that was next. Oh, that's not. That's not. That's not. Maybe this isn't a safe space after all.

Prince is a niche. I get it. Prince is a niche artist. And so a very specific. You know, it's interesting because like I grew up. I remember when Darling Nikki came out, I would hide on the back side of my bed on the floor with the tape cassette thing opened up to look at the lyrics. And I learned that song and was like, this is fascinating. What is all this he speaks of?

Right, right. Was that something that you would have got in trouble and you would have got caught for? Probably. I mean, my mom is anti-violence and pro-sex. Like, she didn't have issue with love and sex and us seeing that. But violence, like the Flintstones she had issue with because of the violence and that. Like there, violence. Bam, bam. Yeah. And the way he treated his wife was not great. Fred, yeah. Yeah. So, but I don't think, I mean, that song was really intense, no? I didn't know how old you were, so I'm like... Still is. And what year did that song come out? 84.

84. I was born in 72. I was 12. I mean, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. There was a period where like a lot of black families became super Christian conservative, like between 79 and 88.

So I caught hell like... Baby boomers. Yeah. Well, the thing is they did all the sin and as 20-year-olds in the 60s and all the heating in the 60s, and then they had to atone for their sin when they were turning 40s. So yeah, I'm just saying like I missed, I got on punishment for Prince, but for everything else, like, they were, they were on my ass as far as like making sure that I didn't see it, even though like I had cousins and whatnot. So that's what I mean by.

Let me ask you a question. Were my 40s supposed to be atoning for my sins? No, our 40s were different. different than their 40s. Okay. But the thing is also, I'll say that the, the silver lining of what we just went through this year was that we have absolutely no doubt whatsoever that the idea of the moral right majority is absolutely full of shit. Like, we have proof now.

Yeah. And that's the thing that's the thing that everyone was hanging on. Like, they actually believed in like, you know, Christian values and family values and all these things and cleanliness and all that's, you know. Drinking milk. No, thank you. I do believe in cleanliness, though.

I really, I like that. But I'm just saying that in terms of what the moral right has led us to think was, you know, American moral right values in which obviously in the last four years of what we went through has been absolutely proven that it's bullshit. Like there really is. It's not a moral, right? It's just hiding behind the shield of Christianity to...

And racism. Exactly. I mean, morality is a tough one. I think values are very different, but morality has a fundamentalism to it that gets really complicated because somebody gets to decide what's right and wrong. Obviously, there is a baseline, you know, on those things, but it starts to get really complicated. And yeah, I think that the moral right, so to speak, is a different term and has been used to cloak racism, sexism, et cetera. But that's a... I think it's going to be a long time before we get

somebody that can pull what Reagan pulled in terms of like really getting people to turn around and at least we're black people because, you know, people, younger people, shocked when I tell them like everyone my parents age were like Republicans because they thought like you know Republicans are closer to Christianity and abortion is wrong so you know yeah like people were really shocked that blacks were as conservative as they were. I doubt that it'll happen again. So yes, to answer your question, yeah, I don't think 40 and 50 year old people have anything to worry about as far as. No, I'm not atoning. I'm trying to get as free as I'm can.

Listen. I'm a liberated woman. Listen. Outing to the world. Hey, man. Talk your shit. A win is a win. A win is a win.

I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me. Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined.

And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, the Clifford Show. This is a place for all unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger.

So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. In 2023, former bachelor star Clayton Eckerd found himself at the center of a paternity scandal. The family court hearings that followed revealed glaring inconsistencies in her story. This began a years-long court battle to prove the truth. You doctored this particular test twice in so-ins, correct? I doctored the test ones.

It took an army of internet detectives to crack the case. I wanted people to be able to see what their tax dollars were being used for. Sunlight's the greatest disinfectant. They would uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing. Gregalespian and Michael Marantini. My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young.

This is Love Trap. Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Ladies and gentlemen, breaking news at Americopa County as Laura Owens has been indicted on fraud charges. This isn't over until justice is served in Arizona. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. There's two golden rules that any man should live by. Rule one, never mess with a country girl.

You play stupid games, you get stupid prizes. And rule two, never. mess with her friends either. We always say that, trust your girlfriends. I'm Anna Sinfield, and in this new season of the girlfriends, Oh my God, this is the same man. A group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist. I felt like I got hit by a truck.

I thought, how could this happen to me? The cops didn't seem to care, so they take matters into their own hands. I said, oh, hell no. I vowed. I will be his last target. He's going to get what he did. deserves. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe.

On the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, everyone? I'm Ego Wodom. My next guest, you know from Step Brothers Anchorman, Saturday Night Live and the Big Money Players Network. It's Will Ferrell. Woo! Woo!

My dad gave me the best advice ever. I went and had lunch with them one day, and I was like, and Dad, I think I want to really give this. a shot. I don't know what that means, but I just know the groundlings. I'm working my way up through, and I know it's a place that come look for up and coming talent. He said, if it was based solely on talent, I wouldn't worry about you, which is really sweet. He goes, but there's so much luck involved. And he's like, just give it a shot. He goes, but if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit.

If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar. of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be... Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Listen to Thanks, Dad, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft. And we've got a special guest. The director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galco, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating drafts. prospects. From hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make to the players flying under the radar, this is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice Podcasts on the

iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slica Life 12 and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Okay, I have to ask you, obviously, and I was wondering, should I even burden you about like the first 10 years of your life. But only because of my personal curiosity, I'll say that, you know, I think I told you the story before that instead of like reading me books,

my parents would just put records on and that would be my, what do you call it? My lullaby. And so they would often play your mom's live records, her two live records at Caesars in Vegas as my, that was like my lullaby, you know, whatever. And so they'd always put on side two where she would tell the stories of Rhonda, Tracy, and Chutney, which I guess to like five-year-old me, you all were just like one three-headed monster.

So, but she would always talk about you guys. It's so crazy. You're not the only one. I can't remember who else. Toronto Burke. She's always like Rhonda Tracy Chutney. Right, right. I just knew you guys.

I was like, oh, they're my friends because she and she always talked about you three. Like when she went on Dina Shore and when she went like, The average, like the talk to circus, she would just talk about her children, but it was like always one name. So I guess my question is like, at what point does it register to you that you're not in an average situation as far as your child is concerned? Not to mention your dad is like a super manager of like Rufus and Shakikon and Billy Preston and Franklin Ajai and all these other groups. your father, Bob Ellis, who I just, that's, it never occurred to me that the Ellis in your name was the Bob Ellis. And let me tell you why I put that in my name.

I have like three things to say of what you said. So I want to answer your question. I also want to say whatever we were texting about, you mentioned the name of a group. From my dad, which he managed, it was like an offshoot of some other group where they were back. I don't know. But when I mentioned it to him, because I read him the text, right. First of all, my dad has the best stories. but he went on this whole long tangent about this group

and we thought they were going to be the ones. I don't know. He had this whole story and I was like that. I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm not going to remember. I don't even know what you're talking about. Okay, but. By the way, Lai, we only got Tracy on the show

so we can get to Bob. Oh, okay. Listen, you're just a bridge right now, Tracy. Yes, I have a legendary picture of him myself that I'm saving for later. But please don't forget what you, your points, Tracy. Okay, so to answer your question about when did it sort of dawn on did I realize who my mom was in the context of life and that it was not I wasn't having the most

ordinary experience of being a child. So a couple of things to set the stage. My mom is a mom before she's the Diana Ross lady. So who the sort of extraordinarilyness of Diana Ross does not hold a candle to who she is as a mom. Like she's really great as Diana Ross, but like she's like exponentially great as a mom. So we always came first. So she recorded at night while she would put us in bed, get us to sleep, then she would leave and go to the recording studio, get home, wake us up for school, and then go back to sleep. She never left for longer than a week when we were in school. So and when she was gone, she would call us at dinner time or bedtime and in the morning. So it are the sense of home and normalcy that I grew up in was home and normal. I wasn't.

carted all over the world in some crazy way. And then on the summers, we would go, she would rent a home somewhere and have a home base. So she would rent a home in London. We would live there. She would charter out every night to go fly to her gigs. I call them gigs still. It's really funny. She would go fly to her shows and then come back.

So the sense of normalcy that I had, it wasn't like I was, you know, I was going to school. I was doing all the regular things. The other piece of it is that I went to Dalton growing up, and I went to school with Robert Redford's kids, the Ralph Lauren children. I'm trying to think, Zabar's children, like all of these people who were part of the fabric of American culture. So it was normalized for all of us. We were just kids. Who our parents were was not like a thing. And it didn't come up.

Like it wasn't a part of what was happening in my dynamics as a kid. I started to realize it and have really felt the impact of it later in my life. But there were a couple of indicators that shit was weird. Like when you would go with your mom to work and leave, and there would be throngs of people banging on the outside of the car. And like security would have to escort us with police to wherever we went. and, you know, like things like that were, you know, clearly like I'm not a dummy. Like I was like, well, this can't be normal.

Like this is not a normal thing. But because of the groundedness of how we were raised, how I was, I say we too, like I'm a Rhonda Tracy Chudney. So because of how we were raised, that the magnitude of that didn't quite dawn on me until I was an adult and realized that I wouldn't even be. be doing what I was doing were it not for what my mom did and the way that she paved. You know, that there, there were places and spaces that I would not be able to inhabit and certainly wouldn't have the confidence in inhabiting had it not been not only for the career of my mom, but also how I was raised. And so, you know, I don't know if that answers your question. And then the third thing you asked was, there was a third. You never had a meta rabbit hole before.

Yeah. It was so long point still. Like, hmm, she stayed focused. We had a, there was a third. But anyway, so it's jogged another thought for you. All right. Well, okay, can you, I always tried to imagine what it was like to grow up in Los Angeles or Hollywood, assuming that you grew up in Washington. Really?

Yeah. New York and Europe. So I was born here in L.A. I went to the center. And then we moved to New York. so my mom could do the whiz in 79. And we left and started school in New York in 79 and stayed there until seventh grade.

And we moved to Paris and then Switzerland. So I did eighth and ninth grade in Europe, which are pivotal years. And then moved back to the East Coast and then went to Brown. Oh, you got a couple languages. And maybe. Wich, Pat Fonzie. Oh.

Oh. Okay. I just forgot all my French in that moment. Way la toilets. Yes, we la toilette. I have lost most of my vocabulary, but I have a strong French accent that can, you know, get me by. And I can speak English with a French accent like nobody's business.

And then you have no idea because you don't know that I speak English or French. It doesn't matter because the people they wonder. I don't know how you say in English because the people they wonder all the time, you know. how you say, how you say, um, uh, uh, you know, uh, wait, I'm sorry. This sounds traumatic to me. Tracy, do you write? I, I do. I write.

So, let me, it's, it's funny because I was just thinking you, you, I know you've done improv. I seen you sketch comedy with the lyricist's lounge. Of course, you're a funny lady. How come, and I know you're fan of stand up. Have you ever thought of like just doing it? I've not done standup, but I have to tell you. I mean, this, I'm 48 years old. Am I 48?

I'm 48. Okay. And I'm, I'm, I'm, going through the beginning of some changes, some perimenopause. And I've got to tell you that I want to stand up on this shit. Yes. I, first of all, it's got it. Did you see that, that two second pool video I posted?

Yes. Okay. And I thought, I was going right under there. Sorry. I heard about that pool video. That's funny. I don't think it's two seconds. It's two seconds.

Nothing happens in that video. Tracy, it don't matter. He was in a bathing suit. That's what I heard. That's all I heard. In a pool. I was in a pool. I mean, you know, I have like, it wasn't me in a bathing suit in the kitchen.

Actually in the pool. Yeah. I was like, why is this two seconds? You should do that because a female comedian told me that females shouldn't talk about female issues. So please do that. Why? That was. I wish more people would talk about it.

Me too. I mean, I don't know about you, but some of the sexiest and most admirable women that I look at are my age and older. I want to know what's happening. And if it's still happening, how it happens, you know. And what it is. And like, it should be demystified. And I don't think it should be scary to men either. I think it's, it's certainly not the end of my life. I am not being pushed out on a canoe out into nowhere. I'll tell you that right now. I, as I said before, I'm a liberated woman. I am out here living my life in all of its fullness. Well, yeah. And, and I think people, we should talk about it in that way

so that we let go of the stigma. It's the same thing like on Blackish when we did that episode on postpartum depression. Why are we not talking about these things? When you're siloed off by yourself, that's when you feel terminally unique and you don't think that you can, you know, it's just you that's in that situation.

Nah, we're all doing it. And by the way, men have their own version of what's happening at this age as their hormones are shifting and changing. Yeah, yeah. Hey, well, yeah, I was about to say, we'll set it off. Yesterday, even though this is coming on way later.

Oh my God, that was so charming and lovely that he did that. And that was my favorite post. Yes. It was so lovely, but I also have to say like a friend, so many friends and me, have texts, I did a video on that on Instagram too, of people saying, you know, I've gained so much weight. Good, bravo, thank your body. You just made it through a pandemic.

What else were you supposed to do? And I'm sorry, but that layer of softness, welcome it because the shit was hard and scary and sharp out there. And everybody ain't make it. No, you know, and so, and our joy and spontaneity was all funneled into very few spaces, most of which involved food and drink. So I don't know what y'all thought was going to happen. And some edibles and some smoke for you. Well, I've never done that.

But, you know, but don't worry. It's okay. Oh, okay. You never had no tree. Okay. Tracy Ellis Ross, you never had no tree at all. No. And my friends know I call it the devil's lettuce.

How did they let's you in the Laris's lounge? I don't know. I don't know. It can happen. I'm only a bloomer to, Trace. That is true. Yeah. I will guide you through this.

Yeah. I've been saying, I mean, I have so many stories about me thinking I'm going to walk that way. And wait till 50. Just go ahead and wait till 50. Go ahead. Okay. Maybe it'll be my 50th birthday. You can send me a package.

I'll leave the lighter one for you. Trust me. Okay. I got you. I got you. Okay, so I always wanted to know as far as you're growing up as concerned in that you were paired with other kids that were sort of in the same position as you. At what point, at any point did you ever had to adjust in a world in which people weren't of that sort of cut from that same cloth where you had to deal with everyday people? Like at what point were you?

Yeah, every day in life. I mean, first of all, the way I was raised again is everybody is a person. I am one of people. I was not raised to think I was better than anybody. I had certain different opportunities and experiences than other people, but I was always taught to connect on the places that we are the same. We've all got blood running through our veins, and we all have feelings, and we all, most of us are getting up every day trying to do our best and work our hard.

and sort of make at least our lives work and function properly. So I also come, I don't know if I was taught this, if I came up with this, if, you know, but to sort of put my, my humanness as the frontrunner of who I am, not, and first of all, I didn't do that. My mom did all those things. Yeah. I didn't do those things. Did she keep you around like a couple of Detroit cousins just to make sure that you all knew?

I went to Detroit every summer. Okay. And that's how you do it. Yeah, on a palette on the floor at our Bobby's house. Yes. And Aunt Bobby sat me between her legs and did my hair with that goody comb and tried to kill my scalp. And, you know, my grandma lined us up outside the fancy bathroom downstairs and put all the cousins and put mayonnaise in our hair on the on the, laid on the kitchen sink, put our head in the sink and then filled our hair with mayonnaise. You had to walk around smelling like a sandwich for,

ever to condition your hair. I mean, all of our cousins and boys and girls. It wasn't just the girls, the boys and girls. We all got lined up. Stephen, Monica, Kevin, Kevin, we all just lined up. We see that in rainbow. That is so beautiful. That's so funny.

Just layers. So yeah, that's what I'm saying. We weren't sheltered to be up in some Crystal Palace somewhere. Although we lived, you know, in a hotel. And I got driven to work in a Rolls, to school at a Rolls First every day with a driver by the name of Arthur. But that's a positive.

As you do. Wait a minute. What? Yeah. Like, okay, so these things also did happen. I'm not saying they didn't. But, um, wow, that's amazing. I spent Christmas in St.

Moritz. But then we were in Detroit in the summers. So there you go. Even it out. Even it out. Did you, I know that singing, at least when I first met you in the early arts, singing was always a big passion of yours. With a household like yours and an environment like you grew up in,

how easy was it for you to express the desire to want to do something in the arts or not be shy about it? Gary, my mother supported us in finding our version of expression and whatever that looked like. But, you know. Are you the only singing Ross? No, Rhonda. Rhonda.

No, Rhonda's a singer. Evan's a singer. I'm the last. I forgot your brother was Evan Ross. That's okay. I'm the last to the party. And it's so funny because I remember, I can't remember how many years ago it was,

but my mom was in Vegas and on stage and she was like, you know, my children sing, blah, blah, whatever. And I want to bring someone up to sing with me. And I'm like standing there like, go ahead, Evan, go ahead. you know, whatever. And she said my name and I was like, well, what's happening right now?

I was like, I'm this is not my thing. I'm the funny one. What are we doing? What's happening? And she made me sing on stage and it was so hilarious because if you watch the video, you see my mom turn into my mom and think, oh no, did I just put Tracy,

put my baby in a position that she didn't want to be in inadvertently? Like did I make her put her, put her, her, you know, too exposed on something that makes her shy. And she sort of, she, she got this tone in her voice that was such my mom's tone of, okay, everybody be quiet, because this is important. Like, we need, we need to support this moment. Be quiet. Um, are you speaking of the infamous when she puts people on the spot to sing reach out and touch? No, she put me on stage and had me sing this. Oh, to sing April. Like Billy Holiday. Oh. Like I was, like lady sings the blues.

that around the house. And she was like, go ahead. Because every time, I mean, I sang in high school and whatever, every time I sang, when I was 22, my mom said to me, all right, Tracy, it's time. And I was like, it's time for what? She's like, it's time for you to record an album. And I was like, hell no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I'm going to go the other way. Nope, we're going to make people laugh and we're just going to keep them at arm's length and that'll be good.

But why, okay, in hindsight, why do you think that was your decision? For a lot of reasons. I think unconsciously, the idea of being compared to my mom was just too much to think of. I had also seen children of be obliterated in the press, just shredded. And you think back to that time and being the child of or anything. of those things. That's not, that was not cool then. That was not something, that was also the time when you didn't move from TV to movies, when you didn't move from being a host to an actor, like, everything was very pigeonholed and there certainly wasn't this spirit of, oh, you're dying

around the child. Maybe you want to say, no, not at all. And I look like my mom. And the truth is, I sound kind of like her. So, you know, there was no, you put you, as soon as you put a sparkly dress on me, I mean, I've seen it now. I've won a golden globe. I've been doing working in, I'm 48 years old. I'm not a child anymore. And I still cannot do anything without my mom's name, like me being my mom's child.

Like it's, she's large, she's an international. She's an icon. But let me, let me, let me interject. Like, I definitely now feel as though, you know, to Diana Ross, it's like, yo, Tracy Ellis is your daughter. Like, you've done, you've definitely done something that is, I don't know if any person, maybe Janet overcoming who her brothers were to be in her own right. But, yeah, like. You've made your own name, though. Yeah.

Yeah, when history books are written, like, you know, you have your own, and not even to compare, like, you know, like we can all have got. Well, that was part of what I came to, Amir, and understood it's like, and an adult mind can look at it that way, but a kid cannot. And so now I know, like, I don't, like, I'm not trying to be here. I'm not, like, never. That's not what's happening. But as a kid, you think, you know. And you have something that's really super special. I was going to ask you because your production company is named Joy Mills.

But I'm assuming that you're aware that you have that superpower, and that's why you named it that. Are you aware that, like, Tracy Ellis Ross is a joy bringer? That, like, makes my heart very, very full. I'm just trying to tell me the truth, sis. My, I was born Tracy Joy Silverstein. That's my name. So. I use face right now.

Yeah. So I'm like, well, what about Mr. Ellis? Okay, okay, go ahead. Okay, so this is, and that was the third point. Okay. About my dad. So when I joined, so like many kids, so then I was Tracy Joy Ross Silverstein all through growing up, T.J.RS were my initials all through growing up. But then like so many people, you drop this name, that name's too long.

I was Tracy Joy Ross. You know what I mean? Drop these names. It's too many names. So I became Tracy Joy Ross. And then when I joined SAG, there was another Tracy Ross. Really? In the union.

Remember Tracy Ross? She was Brad Johnson. Oh, the model. Star Search. Star Surge. Yo. I thought that was you. Yeah.

On me here. There he go. She grew up. Wow. I didn't know you were my age. I thought like, you know. We don't all look alike. They look nothing alike.

No. I heard the name Tracy Ellis. I remember why. watching that Tracy Ross on Star Search. She was a hero. And then she thought like, oh, that's Diana Ross's daughter. That's the one she talked about. When I joined the union, there was another Tracy Ross.

So they were like, do you want to be Tracy Joy Ross in the union? And I was like, yes, but everybody, like I look like my mom and people know I'm my mom's child and I'm so much a product of both of my parents. Like I am my dad's child and I'm a mom's child. And I wanted him to have. have a stake, you know, it's so crazy because I talk so much about women and women of color and particularly black and brown women that we historically have not had a stake in what we make. And even with our children, we give up our name.

And so there's often this, you can't even follow our bloodline because of that, but we have been at the center of economic, cultural, political revolutions in this country. And we are often doing the work but not centered in the prize from that work. And strangely enough, I was worried about my dad having a piece of what he made. And so I put Ellis in my name. And I became Tracy Ellis Ross at the beginning of my career. And my first, you know, sag card was Tracy Ellis Ross. And now, you know, my name goes up there and people go and Bob Ellis's kid.

Okay. What was the first major creative thing that you, at least for you, What was the first major creative thing that you did as far as doing television or commercials? Well, the first big thing I did was the Gap ad with my mom. Your mom, okay. Yeah. And I remember it was on billboards and it was like a big wall in an airport. I walked through and I was just like, oh, my God.

And I made $1,500 and I thought I had made. I was like, I'm rich. I was like, oh, my God. I don't need my mother. I make my own food. It was incredible. I was so much money. I was like, I was like, I will never work again.

Like one month. You know what? I actually think it was $750. And then I think I made $1,500 on the first show I did. But then the next thing was I did an infinity commercial. So I was modeling with Willamina agency. And I went in for a modeling, like, commercial job go see. And at the place where they were doing it, they were like, the people that are doing the

infinite, oh, it was a secret deodorant ad I went in for. And there was a sign in sheet next to it for infinity car commercial. And whoever ran the commercial audition place was like, you should go in and try for the infinity commercial. And I was like, oh, yes, of course. dry. So I went in and that was the job that Taft heartlead me into SAG, which is the job that will pay the money to get you into SAG. And yeah, you laugh at Boo. I just love the idea that Tracy L. Ross had to Taft Hartley. I mean, I've done that and it just makes me laugh. That's okay.

Keep continue. But also, also why are there not people with multiple names in SAG? No, couldn't there be multiple Tracy? No, there's not. Really? Vanessa Williams, remember? Vanessa Vanessa Williams. Vanessa L. Williams. Vanessa L. Williams, yeah. Well, shit. Okay, cool. Yeah. I just learned something again.

So I got Taft Heartlead in. I did that commercial and then I don't know. I mean, it has not been a fast and easy road for me. I remember there was a movie called Mixing Nia that Karen Parsons from Fresh Prince. Cosby Show. She ended up getting that movie. and I've never been more devastated in my life. Really?

I was like, I mean, I was sure, Amir, that this was going to launch me into the stratosphere of the Oscars. I was going to the Academy Awards with my $750 from my Gap ad. I was going to march my way into Hollywood and be received with open arms for a career that would last a lifetime. It didn't happen.

What is that process? like your version of the Hollywood shuffle as far as callbacks near misses what did you audition for that you didn't get oh my god I don't even remember I had a three ring binder like one of those wopper three ring binders of like every audition I had audition for I didn't get oh you keep all the receipts of everything I didn't get nothing really oh because according to us it's like daddy's girls a high note in right like I'm trying to think no no no no no no From the time that I did, I did Far Harbor, that first movie I did with Jennifer Connolly and Marsha Hay Hardin. Okay, so I did that.

And then I did the show. And before that, I did the show The Dish on Lifetime that was, because I'm a TV girl. I live in your TV and I'm a TV girl. It's like, it was like a magazine show about TV shows. That's before you were born by you. What? Nothing. He can say nothing.

He says it before you. She said it first. There was before my period. I'm like, oh, I'm like, oh, I'm like, 1996. Oh, okay. Yeah, okay. You know. And, and then I got an agent and auditioned and auditioned and auditioned and auditioned and auditioned and auditioned and auditioned and auditioned and auditioned and auditioned and auditioned and I auditioned some more.

And I didn't get many callbacks. And then they dropped me and this is what they said. It stuck with me for a really long time. Listen, Tracy, we're going to let you go because you come with all these bells and whistles but then you get in the room and you just don't pop.

Wow. Whoa. And your golden face, bitch. You know what? It was a turning point for me. That's crazy. I could not get out of there without those, you know, those tears.

They sit there. Oh, you almost start to cry, the little. And you're trying so hard to cry. Hold the tears in. And I felt like, you know those office chairs with the wheels, the wheels on the bottom of them? I felt like my heart had come out and it was like stuck underneath the wheel. And she kept moving the chair and it was just getting all tangled in there.

It was my heart. And then there was blood and stuff. And then the tears. And I couldn't get out fast enough. but I made a decision at that point. I remember calling my sister. I called God. I was like, I'm a no popper.

You better do that stand up. At any point, did you ever consider dropping the Ross from your name? It was too late. The thought that like, okay, maybe they're holding that against me, like my lineage and. Well, you know, I used to say that people were like, well, doesn't being John and Rose's 's daughter open doors for you? I was like, no, what it does is it unlocks the door and then people sit on the other side like this going,

how's she gonna walk in? Oh. They're like, mm-hmm, okay, show us what. But I don't think that had anything to do with it. I think I sucked. I think I didn't know how to bring the person that I was inside myself and in the privacy of my home out into the world. And I needed that hit in order to ask myself,

Did I have the courage to do what it took to bring that person out? Or did I just want to go back into my hole and sort of live privately as I chose, you know? Do you think girlfriends is where you learned to kind of be that person? No, I learned before girlfriends. It's the reason I got girlfriends.

Actually, yeah. Am I assuming, well, I'm assuming that for, I first saw you as an adult in Lyrus Lounge. Yeah. So how did that come to be? Yeah, so good. Louris Lounge. Okay, so there was a coming out and turning point in my journey towards courageousness.

I don't remember when because I'm bad at timelines, but I had been dropped by my agents. I moved to L.A. and one of the things I did was I, every person that I met that helped me or offered me some information, I would write them a thank you note. And if they said you should meet so-and-so, I would say, can you call them for me? And I would constantly do that. And that's how my career started. So like, Marcia Gay-Harden said, you should meet my agents. And I was like, please. And I met her agents. And they were like, we can't represent you, but you should meet so-and-so. And I was like, thank you so much. I would write a handwritten thank-you note. And then they would

call the person and then I would go meet them. And that's just how much. my career started. And I booked a movie of the week, an NBC movie of the week, and then Lyrus Lounge came up, and I wanted that show so badly. And somewhere after the movie of the week, as you guys can hear, I do a lot of different voices and characters. And I love dressing up. I love clothes. I love playing dress up. So my closet is my happy place, and I go in there and sometimes I make a really good outfit, and sometimes an outfit turns into a character. And my mom had, I was, my mom had given a high eight video camera one Christmas. So I set it up in my kitchen and I stayed up until 3 o'clock in the morning and I played

dress up and I made a video of all of these characters that I had been telling stories as for years. And I called it my holiday, it was my holiday gift and I sent it out to anybody that wouldn't think I was trying to get a job. I sent it out with a note that said, I am sharing joy with you this holiday season. This is my version. And it was me, like, I was like a crazy person. And then it said, no judgment, happy holidays.

I did like an improv to Broadway song. Madame I was on there, Kalifie Champignale, like all of these characters that still exist. And my agents ended up seeing it after the holidays and sent it to the producers of Leris Lounge. I got an audition for Lairus Lounge, but they did not cast me. They cast Sarah Jones. Sarah Jones had, yeah, Sarah Jones had a values conflict with the subject matter of the show.

She felt that some of the sketches, it didn't work for her. So she left. And they brought me in. Wow. Wow, man. That is crazy. Does Sarah know that story? Yeah.

And Sarah and I, for years, we had never met. I know, like, whole thing. And then she and I came back together and met each other at the White House with the Obama's for Mrs. Obama's first mentoring weekend. We were walking to the White House together. We came down in the elevator, walked to the White House together. And we were like, can you believe this shit? That's beautiful circle.

That's a beautiful circle. Isn't that amazing? Because I thought she hated me for all those years. I was like she left because she couldn't do it. And then I took it. And, you know, it was a joy for me. I had a ball doing it. And everybody has a different compass on how they feel connected to material.

And it didn't work for her. And I had no judgment of that. But it changed my career. And then the interesting story is that Lyricis Lounge left us hanging. We didn't know if we were picked up or not. It had been ages. We had no idea what was happening. And I auditioned for girlfriends.

And we had a window. They wanted me for Joan. And we had a window of like three days that if we couldn't get the sign off and the approval by the head of MTV, they would have to move to their second choice for Joan Clayton. Oh, please tell me. Oh, do you know? And the head of MTV was on vacation in Italy. And we couldn't get a hold of him.

And I remember just laying on my bed. like frozen for hours, like for 12 hours, just waiting to hear if I was going to get this role that was going to change my life. And it worked out in my favor, but I didn't know. Apparently so. Wow. Having entered what you did at MTV, at any point were you interested in sort of honing your skill at, say, like, Second City in Chicago? or upright Citizens Brigade or any of those like improv. You know what's so funny as you were talking?

I thought you were going to say, did you ever cross your mind to own your skills as a rapper? Well, that part too. That too, for real. No, that did not cross my mind. I was so bad at that. I was in that sketch with Moe's Deaf and Master Fool. And they had to, I mean,

because, you know, sometimes I get the one three really fast. were like, no. And so they had to coach me on when to come in. No, I didn't. I had been at, what is it called out here? The improv, not the comedy store? Brownlings, Brownlings, yeah. Do you know what it's called?

Brownlings, yeah. So I was in an improv troupe in college at Brown. And strangely enough with Marty Bulaski, who was also on Laris's Lounge. And I loved improv and then I went to groundlings and they wouldn't move me from the, you know, one level to level two because they said I was too sticky and I wasn't funny enough. So I told groundlings, I said, you know what, groundlings? They got to uji. They uji in me. They like the uji of the improv.

Well, either way, I was like, I was told to go where the love is and I do not feel the love here. And then I booked Lyrus Lounge. So no, I didn't think of that at all, mostly because what I thought I was going to, I thought I was going to stick in sketch comedy after Lairus Lounge. But because of Girlfriends, which I thought was going to happen later in my life, I was living out the Lucy fantasy for me. So Leris Lounge was my Carol Bredette fantasy and dream. And then Girlfriends was my Lucy Foray. So what did? Do you think my wife, she loves, she loves you, she watches girlfriends on Netflix, like, all the time.

She was curious to know, do y'all leave, what stories did y'all leave on the table for girlfriends? And like when that ended, what was that like for you? It was horrible. Yeah. Devastating. It was really hard when Jill left. And that also changed storylines. You know what I mean?

Because that just, it was just such a hard adjustment. And then when the show ended, you know, the last episode we shot, I directed, and it was during the strike. So we didn't even have our- Oh, man. Got about the strike. We didn't even have our family together. The producers weren't there. Mara wasn't there. So it was such a strange, odd end.

We never had a-the-court house. It was like a location shot, too, right? No, that's what feels like it was the end. That was not the end. That was the end of the season with Tony. Oh, that's right. And then you came back with this. And we had two.

We had two more after that. So what did it feel like when you got the call from ABC that y'all were going to be bringing the girls to Blackish? Oh, no, that's not how that went. Okay, what did it feel like when you told ABC that we need to bring? So Courtney came to me and said, we have an idea, what do you think? And I said, this is the best idea ever. But before I said, tell me when it's an actual green light

that you guys feel like it can actually happen. and then let me call the girls first and find out if they're interested and comfortable. I don't want to make this a thing until I know if they want to do this. So I called each of them individually, even though we're on a group thread, but I wanted to call each of them individually so that no one felt pressured by somebody else or, you know, so that everybody just felt comfortable to answer. And I said, you don't have to answer me now. Like it was an immediate yes for everybody.

But we, I mean, by the way, everybody at Blackish was like, what is going on? How much is the love was it? I just got launched into another world. Like, and, you know, some people on our crew had no idea what girlfriends was. They were like, I don't understand what's happening. Like, we've never seen Tracy like this. I don't know what's going on. But we would not, we did not stop talking.

It was as if we were right back on girls. It was so delicious. It was so good. We had so much fun. And the storyline that you made around, that y'all created around it was really dope. It was really good. It's insistently.

Yes. Yeah. So good. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th.

You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast,

The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need. need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. In 2023, former bachelor star Clayton Eckerd found himself at the center of a paternity scandal.

The family court hearings that followed revealed glaring inconsistencies in her story. This began a years-long court battle to prove the truth. You doctored this particular test twice in someone's, correct? I doctored the test ones. It took an army of internet detectives to crack the case. I wanted people to be able to see what their tax dollars were being used for. Sunlight's the greatest disinfectant. They would uncover a disturbing pattern.

Two more men who'd been through the same thing. Gregalespian and Michael Marantini. My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trap. Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Ladies and gentlemen, breaking news at Americopa County as Laura Owens has been indicted on fraud charges.

This isn't over until justice is served in Arizona. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. There's two golden rules that any man should live by. Rule one, never mess with a country girl. You play stupid games, you get stupid prizes. And rule two, never. mess with her friends either. We always say that trust your girlfriends. I'm Anna Sinfield, and in this new season of the girlfriends, oh my God, this is the same man. A group of women

discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist. I felt like I got hit by a truck. I thought, how could this happen to me? The cops didn't seem to care. So they take matters into their own hands. I said, oh, hell no. I vowed. I will be his last target. He's going to get what he did. serves. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Ego Wadam.

My next guest, you know from Step Brothers Anchorman, Saturday Night Live and the Big Money Players Network. It's Will Ferrell. My dad gave me the best advice ever. I went and had lunch with them one day, and I was like, and Dad, I think I want to really give this a shot. I don't know what that means, but I just know the groundlings. I'm working my way up through, and I know it's a place that come look for up and coming talent.

He said, if it was based solely on talent, I wouldn't worry about you, which is really sweet. Yeah. He goes, but there's so much luck involved. And he's like, just give it a shot. He goes, but if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there.

Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Listen to Thanks, Dad, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft. And we've got a special guest. The director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galco, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects.

From hidden traits, teams look for, to the biggest mistakes franchises make, to the players flying under the radar. This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice Podcasts on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slica Life 12 and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. My niece wants to know.

When they, because I have, we have all like, let's Tracy Alice Ross. We get it. Listen, you already know. When they saw her name was on QLS calendar,

they was just like, my text was blowing up. Everybody went up. So I'm trying to answer my family's questions. So my niece wants to know, how do you navigate the LA dating scene? Oh, girl, please. Thank you, niece, Poole.

Because I'm living in LA, too. What do you mean? I don't, I don't, I don't know. Or do you even care? Yeah, she too. I mean. I mean, well, the beauty of it is it's not an L.A. dating scene. The world is so small now that, you know, there was no dating scene during the pandemic.

Yeah. I don't know if you heard, Tracy. I don't know if you heard, but I think Nisi's asking from the perspective of it's hard for a black woman to date in L.A. But maybe I'm just stripping. I don't know. I think it's, I think dating is hard no matter who you are, where you are. And if you're a man or a woman. I think there's good men out there. Oh, I wouldn't, oh, that wasn't the argument.

It was just that are they around unavailable? That's what it. Oh, I don't know if they are. I don't know that they are. I don't know. I don't have major major sort of theories and beliefs. And I don't, I don't have any answers. What I know is that someone's going to either make my life better or I'm going to keep

rolling with this wonderful life that I've built for myself, you know? I found my happiness at 50. So, I mean, it's like, oh, my God. Speaking of which, Amir, you said at 50, you found your life. How old are you now? 50. 50. 50.

Right. Okay. So I was like, with the way you said it, I was like, what are you? 60? Like, what's my? You just found this last week. I'm just saying that I. And a few other things.

Flowers, baby, flowers. Around, no, around like 47, 48. I was just like, maybe I'm just going to be a serial bachelor for life and, you know, whatever. And then, you know, as with all of us with the. pandemic like this pivot happens and you get a new either heed to the calling or you subcumb to the inside of your voice and no I mean it's it's possible to have a turnaround you most men get their sense at 50 so that's most of all that I's because we don't made our money but well some of it's that um no it's also about just being open but wait the thing that's so

interesting, Amir, you just said the sound inside my voice. Is that what you said? That's the most beautiful thing I've ever heard. Well, just inside my head, you know, oftentimes we hear the I mean, the voice inside of our head says the most mean shit to us all the time.

We say stuff, we say shit to ourselves. Yeah, we say shit to ourselves that, you know, we wouldn't allow anyone say to us and oftentimes we listen to that voice more than anything. Introspective, Amir, my favorite one. You gotta understand Tracy. Keep going.

A year and a half new, baby. So we did this. Yes, honey. All of this. We have eight years of none of the lifetime. None of this. This is Crystal. I'm not.

Umar Johnson. There's a girlfriend. There's a beautiful woman named Grace involved. But this is, a look at him rolling his eyes. Well, something happened in here. So just take it. This episode is not about me. We only got 15 minutes with it.

I told you, I didn't even get the blackish. Sorry. Okay. So that's okay. Okay. So let me just say that, um, I think there's really good men out there

and I don't know how to navigate any dating scene. Dating is just awkward and weird and it's even more awkward when you like being in your house. Say that shit, yes. And you know, you get to a certain age where you're like, I don't want to do that. Like, you know what I mean? I don't want to go there.

You know what I mean? I'm happier right here on my couch. So facts. Yeah. One thing, one thing I will say about. about you, Tracy, like I've always admired. You seem for your celebrity and the status and all things you've done, you are like one of the most regular celebrities.

Like, I mean, in the best way possible. And yeah, and like in the sweetest way possible, you were just, you know, you just always just exude, just kind of just a realness about you. And I was just curious to know, how do you maintain that in Hollywood? How do you keep your identity? She stays on the couch.

I think, I think it's that my identity is not wrapped up in what I do. it's who I am and how I show up for my friends and how they show up for me and the kind of daughter and sister I am. Like that's where that's what has meaning to me, how I am of service in the world, particularly to those I love and even more importantly to those I don't know. And so I, that's what right sizes my life. And I really like being a people among people. It's what my humanity is my favorite part.

It's also the most uncomfortable part. of me. You know what I mean? Like sometimes I'm like, oh, can I stop being such a human being? You know what I mean? Like, why? Why is I know better and not do better? What, you know, like, I wake up every day, try to do my best. Why did this day suck so bad? Like, you know what I mean? Like, how did that happen? Like, I didn't try to go left, but some, I am left. So, um, so I don't know. Yeah, I also think I'm not in, I'm not really invested in, I don't know. I mean, look, I love sparkly things. I love pretty clothes. I love shoes. I love great restaurants. But I'm also not, my compass is not money. My compass is not fame. It's having an opportunity to do the things that I love and to connect with people and to make people laugh and to make people feel comfortable in their own skin. You know, I know what it feels like for me when I'm around people that I leave and I'm like, I just feel so much like myself around them. Not like I want to be them, but like, Like, I just feel so safe and like myself around them.

And I hope that I can bring that to the world and to other people. And so maybe that keeps it right sides. But I don't know. I don't know. Are there, okay, now that you have the platform and the position that you do have, what's on your bucket list as far as things that you really want to do, cross off and sort of manifest and bring out there that maybe 10 years ago you weren't able to develop? I think a lot of those things are in.

process right now. And I'm not one of those people like you're not going to see me post about the idea of doing something. You're going to see me post when it when it's in is happening. So I pattern was a just it was a 10 year dream. It took me 10 years to launch that company. And I love being a CEO. I love being a founder of a company company. I love using my mind in that way. The access that it has given me to be able to sit in boardrooms and talk to people who don't usually get somebody who's not afraid to say, yeah, that doesn't work? Yeah.

Like, actually, that's not effective. Hmm, actually, that's actually detrimental to the people you say you're helping. Oh, I'm sorry, it's not called D and I. It's diversity, equity and inclusion. I'm sorry, gatekeeper, sir. If you don't make changes, there's never going to be fundamental change. You know, I didn't know that so much of what so many things that I was experiencing that caused frustration and disappointment had to do with the systemic problems that were happening in the world. I took them personally, you know.

And so when you realize it, then you're like, oh, what can I do to help make this change? So pattern has given me access not only to a particular and different kind of platform, but also a courage inside me. to not be a person that gets plugged in places, but actually can create more real estate, not just for me but for others, to help other people find how to have their own equity in what they make. So I have a production deal with ABC signature,

which is across all their platforms, Hulu FX, all of their platforms. I have five different projects and development. There's expansion that I want to happen that is in process with pattern. So those things, and those parts of my dreams, like, I want to be a producer. I love being a producer.

And that is happening. I really would like to do more movies. I would like to get, I want to do, and I want to kick some ass in a movie. I really would like to like, like, literally kick ass. Like you know those when they spin around and then they chop under the legs and the person falls and then they go, like I would really like to do that in a movie in some very strong. and powerful way, I would like to be to do a love story. I would like to be a love interest in a movie

as a sexy, grown-ass woman and not have to be like the 22-year-old with the 50-year-old man. Like, maybe I'm the 50-year-old with the 22-year-old man. How are you doing? Me and the rest of your fans are sitting here, like, how come we ain't seen this? Why has not happened? You know what I mean?

I want to see. see a whole bunch of black women on screen being as incredible as we are and not have to constantly be talking about the fact that we're black, but just be in our experience. I want to see those stories. I want to, I want to be a part of making those happen and I want to be involved in them. I want to. So there's lots of those things. You got to drop the word want to and just manifest. I'm going to. That's my last words of wisdom with manifest. Shaman love. Such good words of wisdom. And you know, I have to say I manifest quickly. So it just got to be specific about that language.

Okay. It will happen. All right. We got three minutes left, three minutes left. We do. That's three minutes. Oh, yeah, we do.

Three minutes. Yeah, we got three minutes left. And I'm skipping. Oh, blackish. You didn't be nothing. No, I'm skipping blackish. Okay. You're all I actually want to go to Mix This.

Yes. How much of your life? And shout out to our friend, Angela Nissel. Our family. Yes. Yes. How much of your life?

I know that Mixedish is, quote, a show about your character's life. But how much input do you have in it as far as the direction that I have a lot of input but it is not my life it's beau Johnson's light but but the mixed experience I love that we're able to tell that story and such and to tell it through the 80s which is so strange to think of the divisiveness that the 80s held and how similar it is to what we're living in now yes a couple of different overlays

but we can what time come on what 10, 17 20 we've got three minutes what if we're have eight minutes. Okay. We got eight minutes. Okay. So that being said, because we didn't ask her the question of when we had Mariah here, do you, did you have anything to do with getting Mariah to sing that thing? That didn't seem easy. The theme song of Mr. No, that was

Kenya. Okay. Okay. That was Kenya and that was so, she was so excited to do that. She was so excited. So perfect. Excited enough to have that big ass credit at the beginning. That's right here. I've never seen that before my life. I still tease her to this day. She's like, I don't know what that happens.

I'm like, I know your people. She is hilarious. She also is a really big text or that one. I've not stopped talking to Mariah since our interview that night. Yeah. But by the way, Mariah is also really regular in some ways. Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. She can be. Yeah. You know, I mean. No, shout out there. I'm only playing. Yes.

No, she's one. Look, anyway, that was a really wonderful experience. And I got to know Mariah. in a way that I did not before. And it's not that I had any negative idea of Mariah, but I didn't know Mariah. Do you know what I mean? And she's so lovely.

Yeah. And her mixed experience is ill too after reading a book and whatnot. I have not read her book. Oh, Tracy. I know. Trace. Trace, get the audiobook. I will get the audio book.

And literally, it's on my list. It's so stupid that I have. If you're a long driver or whatever, like her storytelling is, is. And my friend. And Miquela wrote that with her, Miegel. Yeah, yeah, power to the people, because people got the power. Yeah, she is, she is one of my faves. So, but yeah, mixedish, my first producing experience

and really love being in that position to be able to craft a story before a script is written, you know, to actually let that, to be a part of that, to be a part of casting. All of that I find really exciting and sort of the execution of something. thing. You know, Mixis was a little mixed what's mixed was a little different because it was, you know, it was the the the full expression of something that had already existed and sort of been given life. Um, but the other projects that I'm developing, you know, from auctioning a book and that like it's just so exciting. That process is so exciting. Uh, okay, now I do want to go back to Blackish. Yeah. There's so many things I want to ask about that show, but probably for

me as such a fan of that show um whose idea was it for you guys to have sort of the dark period of your marriage where i didn't see that coming and again like when i when i watch these shows i kind of do a binge style so it wasn't like i even had a a warning from a bc like a special ABC you know Meredith Baxter Bernie episode of blackie like that sort of thing you remember when they used to do that a very special very special different strokes Right One where Dudley got this You don't take my shirt off

You can't take my shirt off So Yeah I didn't I didn't see that coming And I was like Wow this is really bold Because I mean You know

Without Okay I'm trying to say this As diplomatic as I can The Huxstabels Were always my first family And now it's like The Johnsons are

About to overshadow that and really be, you know, because you guys cover so many subjects that were never, ever on the Cosby show. But if not for the Cosby's, there wouldn't be the Johnsons, but go ahead. Yes, and I'm not disparaging. But, yeah, I didn't see that coming. Like, whose idea was it to really just bring it down to that level? Can you bearers?

And Anthony and I were not happy. Wow. Y'all, playing it like you was happy. Well, it took a minute. I was like, why are we doing this? What is this? Why are we doing this? Like, I was like, I don't understand.

feels like the end of the show. It was so confusing. It was, you know, Kenya, there was a bold risk on his part. And this is why Kenya is Kenny, you know what I mean? Like he really, I don't know where it came from. You can ask him all those questions. But once we dove in and, you know, I directed the first of those two episodes. Oh, okay.

That was hard because I was playing a version of Boe that I had never played before. Like usually the show is anchored in Dre and Bo liking and loving each other. And it's also anchored in me and Anthony. Like we have a respect and a safety with each other that is the core of the show. Like that's what we do. You know, he and I, there are places that I can fly to because of Anthony and that he can fly to because of me that I've never experienced. in my creative career. It's so much fun.

It is so much fun dancing and playing ping pong with Anthony. I can't even tell you. And so that was hard. I didn't like fighting with him. I didn't like it. You know,

the film stock that you guys used, like that kind of film stock where I was like, oh, wait. Someone's about to die here or, yeah. And then my dad did die. It was a mess. Yeah, poor boat bridges, man.

And that was, And by the way, and then we went and shot a funny scene after that. I was like, are you all crazy? I don't know. I'm so proud of what we do on the show. I think back to when Blackish launched and how freaked out everybody was about the name. And if you think back to the landscape of television. This is one person.

And we know that person was. No, it was. Well, a lot of people. He started it. He started. But a lot of people were. set about it, but they didn't know what the show was yet, and I understood that. And the truth is, it's a perfect name for what our show is and what we deconstruct and pull apart and unpack.

But if you think of what the landscape of television was at that moment, and what we opened up in terms of giving metrics to the ability for black stories about a black family that doesn't happened to be black, but is black, being successful and identifiable for everybody. You know, we changed the landscape of television at that. You did an episode on June Teenth that was not in the mainstream of conversation before y'all did that. The amount of people that have said to me, I didn't know what white people that have said I didn't know what Juneteenth was before Blackish aired that episode is a lot. Yeah.

It's a lot of people who didn't know. And I always say to people like, you come by that honestly. Like a lot of people didn't know because nobody was telling anybody. Well, black is a good little small education to some layers of black people. And if that's funny, if you watch and you don't know us, you get to know a little bit. A little bit. A little piece. It doesn't do everything.

It's 22 minutes. And you get to see it through the lens of this family. But, and I mean, you know, it's just, it's been a treat, a real treat. We don't talk enough about the, the, the, frame that needs to be present to hold the narrative of our cultural value, you know, and I don't mean a blackish. I mean of the stories, black stories, you know, and how so many people reap the cultural benefit, but we don't get the credit for the work done and the stories told. And so, I don't know, I'm so grateful. The show has been such a blessing.

And so much fun. I mean, it's been seven years, knock on wood, but, you know, Anthony and I haven't gotten into nothing. No. And y'all created. They didn't bring you guys the cake yet saying goodbye and another season. No, but I mean, like Anthony and I, like to work that closely with someone as much as, I mean, we work 14 hour days. Like, it's just the longest ever, you know. And the way we work together, it's just been such a, like, such a joy. It's a joy. It's a joy to watch. It is. Everybody. And y'all created the youngest executive producer ever. She told us all back then when we asked, there was a panel we did for a season and said, what do you want to be to get older? And she said a legend.

I see this as the first episodes. It's a pilot. I swear to God. And we were all like, well, okay, Dan. Out of the mouth of the president. Let's go. Yeah, I'll be working for her soon. Oh, we, we, our listeners will kill us if we forget this.

The Kanye video. You have to tell us about shooting that. Which one? Touch the sky? Which one? What about the ass? Yeah. That was that.

That was touch the sky. I also did work. I've done, I've done two Kanye videos. I, Fifi LaBuff was in Kanye's workout plan. That was crazy. We flew on helicopters. into the Grand Canyon. And we shot in the Grand Canyon,

me, Neil Long, and Pam Anderson. I was like, what is going on right now? And I remember, because he was my neighbor, and he was like,

I have an idea, and I'm like, okay. And he told me the, you know, the story of the video. And I was like, I don't understand.

Why am I not the other character? He said because her name is Nealon. Right, right, right. Right, I get it. I get it now. I get it. I was like, I'm funny. I'm funny.

I'm my own best advocate. So like, I was just wondering why like, I wasn't like, but whatever. And then we had so much fun doing that though. That was insane. It was freezing. I would have chose you, Tracy. No, but no, but I, um, I think I, um, I think I, I, you know, what about the hair and that, that was me.

That was just me improv and like a crazy person. Queen of improv. What are you going to say? What are you going to say? I said, don't worry about it, Kanye. Don't worry about it. Just turn the cameras on and tell me, say the A word. Say action and it's gone come.

Were you always, were you always, were you always the family comedian? Yes. Oh, my God, my mom used to, she. My mom, so our dining. room table. There were glass, like glass doors outside. And my mom, like, I would disrupt so much. I would have, like, the wiggles.

That's what my grandma called it, the 12-year-old giggles, and I just had so much energy. And so, and I would really like to poke at my sister, Rhonda, to see if I could get her to laugh. But usually it made her really angry. And so my mom would excuse me from the table. Why don't you go outside and get the wiggles out? So I would stand outside while my family is eating dinner.

I would stand outside. Like, I'd be like, and then I would come back and sit down and she would say, have you gotten them all out? And I'd be like, I don't think so. And I would go back. My mom was very supportive of my large, large energy. Thank you. Thank you, mom. We thank you.

Okay. We're wrapping up. No, we're wrapping up, but I'm going to say this because my sister, Rhonda, my mom was such a good mom, as I said. And my sister, Rhonda, my siblings are such great parents. And when her son, Raif is doing what I do because she gave birth to a little me, when he's doing that. I'm like, what is going on back there?

I can't even hear you. She says he's being creative. Yeah. Saw him in that award show. He's hilarious. I love him. Yes. And he was beautiful on the website.

Yeah. My son is. being creative. Yes, yes. Wait, this is one quick question, and this is totally just random. Speaking of you, you're in your relationship with your mom,

was it you that influenced her to have L.O. Cool J on her special back in 87? No. That wasn't. No, my mom is way cooler than I could have made her be. Okay, because I always wanted to know, like we were like what the hell is LL doing this is like when bigger and deft her first came out I don't believe you we would have to see for ourselves

trust me it's weird no it like this is when her red hot rhythm and blues album came out he knows all that well you know everything though yeah you know trace I really thank you for giving making the time for us to do this yeah I was really about to say ronda Tracy Chutney thank you very much You're so welcome. I adore you. And I'm so glad I finally got on here. To our viewers, yes, viewers, to our listeners out there, yes.

I try to turn this into a five-hour Jimmy Jam episode. It didn't happen, so don't get maddened. Because Tracy Ellis Ross is booked and busy. Yes. Can you tell your daddy that we still want to talk to him? No, I'm serious. I'm cool about it. Will he talk to us?

Do you think he would talk to us? I think he'll talk to us. I think he'll talk to anybody. He talks to you. If you're in the line of Starbucks, you're going to get the whole ear. Yes. I cannot leave. To have the Bob Ellis episode.

He's a cute guy. No, thank you. No joke. I appreciate it. Tracy, run to your appointment. Thank you very much. And this is Questlep Supreme, y'all. We will see you next week.

Next time. Bye. Yo, what's up? This is Fonte. Make sure you keep up with us on Instagram at QLS and let us know what you think and who should be next to sit down with us. Don't forget to subscribe to our podcast.

All right. Peace. Quest Love Supreme is a production of IHeartRadio. For more podcasts from IHeartRadio, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. A win is a win. A win is a win.

I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, the Clifford Show. This is a place for raw,

unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. In 2023, Bachelor star Clayton Eckerd was accused of fathering twins. But the pregnancy appeared to be a hoax.

You doctored this particular test twice in so much, correct? I doctored the test ones. It took an army of internet detectives to uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing. Greg Gillespie and Michael Mancini. My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trapped.

Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. When a group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist, they take matters into their own hands. I vowed. I will be his last. target. He is not going to get away with this. He's going to get what he deserves. We always say that trust your girlfriends.

Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the IHartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, everyone? I'm Ego Wood. My next guest, it's Will Ferrell. My dad gave me the best advice ever. He goes, just give it a shot. But if you ever reach a a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be. Right. It wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Yeah. Listen to thanks, Dad, on the IHeart radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.

Thank you.