Rich and Ethical

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
While I was building our business in Brooklyn, it was
tough to make money without people assuming that I was
doing things wrong.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
Dead Ass because when you come from the floor once, honey,
we know how they make their money over there are
some of them, dudes, and it's not always ethical.

Speaker 3 (00:21):
Wow.

Speaker 1 (00:23):
It all started with real talk, unfiltered, honest and straight
from the heart. Since then, we've gone on to become
Webby Award winning podcasters in New York Times bestselling authors.

Speaker 2 (00:32):
Dead Ass was more than a podcast for us. It
was about our growth, a place where we could be vulnerable, be.

Speaker 4 (00:38):
Wrong, of course, but most apportly be us.

Speaker 2 (00:41):
But as we know, life keeps evolving and so do
we and through it all, one thing has never changed.
This because we got a lot to talk about story times.

Speaker 4 (00:54):
So Dolo's gonna laugh at this.

Speaker 1 (00:57):
I remember when yes this seas I turned thirty twenty
fourteen s eleven years ago, for my thirtieth birthday, I
started to finally say, you know, I'm gonna do something
for myself and I leased at Audi A seven. At
the same time, Dolo had just bought his seven series
BMW and we were running the program. Remember we started

(01:21):
prototype in twenty ten started to gain popularity around twenty
even twenty twelve. We were at our peak from twenty
and thirteen through like twenty and eighteen. Right what a
lot of people didn't know during that time was I
was also doing commercials. I had booked three national commercials.
I was doing color commentary. I was also assistant teaching.

(01:45):
There was a lot of money coming in, but I
noticed that people around me, who were in the training
area thought that I was making all of my money
off of the kids I was training. So they started
to speak negatively about me and Dolo and Brian, saying
that we were scamming, saying that we were staying from
people who wasn't helping them. And it made me feel like, dang,
the minute you start to better yourself, no matter what

(02:06):
it's for, because everything we did for the for the
company at Prototype was for the community. Like, if I'm
being honest now, I didn't make a lot of money
on Prototype.

Speaker 2 (02:14):
I tried to make it purposefully affordable for our local folks.

Speaker 1 (02:19):
And even though I was able to do that and
able to train a bunch of kids and not make
a lot of money off of those kids or their parents,
it was still put on us by the community that
we only did it to make money from those people,
and that's all we were doing was making money.

Speaker 4 (02:32):
And I ain't gonna lie to you.

Speaker 1 (02:34):
It pissed me the fuck off and it made it
that much easier for me to leave.

Speaker 2 (02:40):
In that return. All right, karaoke time. What you got
for us today, baby? Anything I've heard you? I heard
you over there practice and warming up.

Speaker 1 (02:50):
Bana banam damp damp damp, damn damn dannam damn damn.

Speaker 4 (03:00):
Money money money, money, money, money, money, money.

Speaker 2 (03:06):
Maney, that's all we got. I don't even know what
goes past that. Do you know what it is? That's
what I say. You know what my favorite money song was.
This takes me back to when I used to work
in Mac Cosmetics. Shout out to Mac Cosmetics.

Speaker 4 (03:27):
We had the same I know what it is because
never I came to pick you up.

Speaker 2 (03:33):
Because it was one of those things. It was my
theme song coming in after a while. Because I was
one of the highest earners in each store that I
was in.

Speaker 4 (03:38):
My a us was always high at the same time.

Speaker 5 (03:40):
Ready one two, I need dollars, dollars is what I need.
Every time I came to pick ship with me money
with something like that used to go. But it was
such a good it was I don't even know.

Speaker 4 (03:55):
I need to look.

Speaker 2 (03:56):
That needs to go into my permanent playlist in rotation.
All y'all, we're gonna take a quick break and we're
gonna get back with op or no stick around.

Speaker 4 (04:08):
All right, we back, all right, get.

Speaker 2 (04:11):
Your battle close by. Hey, hey, all right, now talk
to us, Talk to us, honey buns, what we got today?

Speaker 4 (04:20):
All right? Right in my face here, man, in my face.
It's all right.

Speaker 2 (04:26):
Just another term of endearment.

Speaker 4 (04:29):
When you have a fatty.

Speaker 2 (04:31):
Come on, now, you say what I'm saying. From one
fatty to the next.

Speaker 4 (04:34):
Wow the fatty and me sees the fatty in you.

Speaker 2 (04:37):
I love that for us. Y.

Speaker 4 (04:39):
Look you see all the guys can't say nothing, right nothing.
I hope y'all enjoy y'all.

Speaker 2 (04:46):
Innocent?

Speaker 4 (04:48):
All right.

Speaker 6 (04:48):
So the Diddy trial has been in the news for
the last few weeks, and lots of people are following it.
I'm not really one of those people, but I have
been seeing a lot of commentary on social media about it,
which led me to wonder, is the Diddy trial the
new or the current OJ trial? Back in I think

(05:11):
nineteen ninety five, the live broadcast of the OJ verdict
had an estimated one hundred and fifty million viewers, and
it surpassed the.

Speaker 4 (05:20):
Super Bowl, which is usually the biggest viewed event on TV.
Even the live chase, the Bronco Chase. I remember that
last time in the final nineteen four Oh wow.

Speaker 6 (05:36):
So an estimated ninety five million people watched that chase
on live on TV.

Speaker 4 (05:42):
And so I'm wondering.

Speaker 6 (05:43):
And the implications I guess at the time and for
OJ Simpson in the future were pretty very heavily inspired
by people's ability to watch it live.

Speaker 4 (05:55):
I think it was one of the.

Speaker 6 (05:56):
First or the first case to have it. Uh yeah,
And so I'm wondering. Do you think the Diddy trial
is the new OJ trial?

Speaker 1 (06:07):
No about to say about this. I got an opt
to my opic is no, I want to hear yours first.

Speaker 3 (06:12):
At all.

Speaker 7 (06:12):
It's nowhere closed. Everybody knows what was happening with OJ
in some form of fashion and then the spin off
with the series and everything. Yeah, it'll go into death more.
I think there's potential for the Diddy thing to have
a series. I don't, but no, I think there is
grounds there, but it won't be about the case itself.

Speaker 1 (06:32):
This is what I think, and this is what people
are forgetting. We got to remember what was going on
during that time. Right before OJ went on trial.

Speaker 4 (06:39):
There was a huge disagreement between.

Speaker 1 (06:42):
Black folks and white folks because of Rodney King, specifically
in La So tensions were really high and it was
like a who was gonna win?

Speaker 4 (06:51):
I think in this Diddy case, everybody loses.

Speaker 1 (06:54):
There's no winner, you know what I'm saying, Like, no
one's gonna watch the verdict, being like, yeah, during the
old j trial, when that verdict came out, I remember
me and my friends and all of us no clue.

Speaker 4 (07:06):
It was nineteen ninety four. I was ten years old.
We ran outside.

Speaker 8 (07:10):
Yeah we won.

Speaker 2 (07:12):
We won.

Speaker 4 (07:13):
It was like it felt like it was bigger than OJ.
We were fighting. It was you see what I'm saying.
We were fighting against an injustice against our people.

Speaker 2 (07:22):
That was the very first form of I'm rooting for
everybody black.

Speaker 4 (07:24):
Yeah, yeah, evena even if you did it, even we
were fighting for something.

Speaker 9 (07:31):
This is coming off with Rodney and King too, right,
So this is like police violence and police brutality, and
we also we lost that one, and that was huge
because we actually saw a video of him getting beat
for the very first time.

Speaker 4 (07:44):
Yes, and he's still uh, he still lost his case.

Speaker 9 (07:47):
When now OJ comes up, you got a black man
being accused of killing the white women, of course everybody's
gonna say we want our justice, yes OJ.

Speaker 4 (07:57):
So yeah, I do get that.

Speaker 9 (07:58):
My argument prior to even on the show was that
it is as big as it but Matt's case, Matt's
op sort of convinced me that it's not necessarily as big.
But I think part of this is I think for me,
like I didn't know who OJ was at that time.
Like I'm a kid, I was eleven, right, I didn't
know who OJ was. I think everybody knows who did

(08:19):
he is and some some sort of respect, like you,
you kind of have an idea who did he is?
And not only that, like we mentioned that it was
like one hundred and fifty people knew who I was.

Speaker 4 (08:29):
Gonna let her finish. I was gonna let you finished first.
But I didn't know who did he was? I mean,
who OJ. I don't think very cad who OJ is
way big.

Speaker 3 (08:38):
They didn't have to care who he was. They knew
who OJ was you your parents know who OJ was
being Caribbean.

Speaker 4 (08:43):
People like, no, not really, I don't think I don't
think so. I think OJ was an American hero.

Speaker 1 (08:47):
But you gotta think the Caribbean population in America is
way smaller than in nineteen ninety four. They are more
just American black and American white woman OJ because he
won the Heisman. But also remember the thing, I'm not black,
I'm OJ. He was one of the high paid color
commentators after he retired.

Speaker 4 (09:02):
From the NFL.

Speaker 2 (09:03):
He was personality, yes, like it would be like if
Tom Brady was up for murder.

Speaker 1 (09:11):
OJ was that big of a star that he felt
he transcended blackness because white people just loved he was
a football player.

Speaker 4 (09:19):
He was he was proper. He's proper.

Speaker 6 (09:21):
You know.

Speaker 1 (09:21):
He wasn't a quote unquote a hood star. He went
to USC which is the biggest football school. And during
this time, people have to understand this. I believe it
was Game five of the NBA Finals. We're watching one
of the biggest sports. This is the Knicks versus the
Houston Rockets. This is the first year without Michael Jordan.
Everybody's watching the finals. He was gonna win and they
interrupt the finals to show us the chase of the

(09:44):
White Bronz. So they captivated people who didn't even know
what was going on with OJ when they put that
in the finals, and that's what made people pay attention.
It's like, imagine were watching the finals right now and
they just throw just in the middle.

Speaker 4 (09:58):
It's like, what is this? Yeah, I think you know,
I would agree with that. I think you were.

Speaker 9 (10:02):
You had to be captivated because how how that case
was introduced to them, right, Like it's almost like Diddy's
Diddy for example, if Diddy was to see the video
of him beating Cassidy Cassie live like it just happens.

Speaker 4 (10:18):
Yeah, at that moment, you're, of course you're going to
be now invested.

Speaker 9 (10:22):
Yes, yes, right, So that that does make sense, Like
you you were caltivated by that video is a long
chase in the middle of fire like primetime TV. Right,
So it was all so yeah, y'all did convince me?
I changed my It's not as big as Diddy's case
is not as as OJ.

Speaker 7 (10:42):
But even in addition to that, the case is it
was a murder case versus half the people in this case,
people public opinion.

Speaker 3 (10:48):
You could look at this case, and I don't really care.

Speaker 1 (10:50):
You know what, that's a good point people, murder of
Rico is, but murder that's I've never thought about that.

Speaker 2 (10:56):
Yeah, a lot of people had to look up the
whole Rico thing, and then there was the bait. There
was a debate as to whether or not this was
qualifications for a Rico case and sex traffic because people
think that he'll he'll be acquitted by I feel.

Speaker 3 (11:07):
Like that's the biggest thing that's driving conversation.

Speaker 1 (11:10):
No one here is an attorney, but I have spoken
to a lot of attorneys. I'm not an attorney, and.

Speaker 4 (11:14):
This is what they say.

Speaker 1 (11:15):
A Rico case is proving that you used your business
empire to not only commit crimes, but hide those crimes.
Now I'm not an expert, right, but think about it.
What they're trying to prove is that Diddy, being a billionaire,
use all of the people around him that were for
such traffic.

Speaker 4 (11:34):
Right. And this is another thing, is that well Cassie
admitted that she wanted it. That doesn't matter, right.

Speaker 1 (11:40):
Hiring sex workers is illegal, So if you hired sex
workers and had your assistance pay them, flew them across
state lines, had it covered up because you were bribing
people at a hotel, all the things that happened. That
means you use your business enterprise to cover up criminal activity.
That's what they're trying to put on Diddy. Whether Cassie

(12:02):
agreed or not, or was it part of the free
court is not that's shouldn't even be talked about.

Speaker 4 (12:07):
It's what resources did. Did he use to do all
of this? Baby oil? And he used baby oil?

Speaker 9 (12:15):
And this is not a joke, man, People, people's families
are being hurt and y'all laughing resources.

Speaker 4 (12:29):
God, I'm not gonna lie whenever k comes up the shower. Now, No,
did he but to bring it back home. The fact
that people don't.

Speaker 1 (12:40):
Know what a rico is and don't know how to
even look at it composed to saying did he kill
her is a bigger difference. Plus, I honestly feel like
everybody agrees that did he did?

Speaker 4 (12:52):
He is the villain. Like there's nobody saying, I hope
did he get His defense is saying he's a villain, right,
Even the defense is saying like, oh, he did this
and it was OJ. It was OJ would never do this.
Looking so I'm saying I think it's just different, and.

Speaker 2 (13:07):
There's a consent portion of it, like with the whole trial,
whereas you don't get consent, you're just no consent to
be murdered.

Speaker 4 (13:13):
No, you don't need no consent, right, So.

Speaker 2 (13:14):
Yeah, sounds good what you got for number two truths?

Speaker 6 (13:18):
The president, the current president, is planning to pardon reality
TV stars Todd and Julie Christly, your gay.

Speaker 2 (13:28):
Husband didn't no best? You said the gay Apparently they
did no banks.

Speaker 6 (13:33):
Because twenty twenty two they were convicted of tax evasion
and bank fraud. So they went around to a bunch
of like small banks around Atlanta, community banks and they
defrauded them out of three hundred or thirty six million
dollars in personal loans, and then they also didn't pay
their taxes, and Todd was sentenced to they were convicted.

(13:54):
Todd was sentenced to twelve years in prison. His wife,
Julie was sentenced to seven years in prison. And since then, Todd,
his mother has been lobbying and meeting with the president.
I think there was a story that she paid a
million dollars to have lunch with the president. And now
the president is saying that he's going to pardon them
for their financial crimes. And this news comes after the

(14:18):
Trump administration has promised to start garnishing wages for millions
of Americans who are in student loan debts and ending
income based repayment plans for those people who cannot afford
those regular payments.

Speaker 4 (14:35):
So op or no opp? Got an op?

Speaker 1 (14:40):
This is what they do like, this is not new
to me. This is what what Trump does. Like he
finds his friends, He finds his people. You got money,
I got money. You're willing to pay for whatever I'm
about to give you. Okay, you pay me now? Now
you own me, so I'll do something for you. It's
called qui pro quote. That's that's politics.

Speaker 3 (14:56):
But this is that's exactly I have.

Speaker 1 (14:58):
No this is you know what I'm saying. And there's
nothing for me to look at other than Okay, he's
doing something first friend, he's helping out. He's gonna want
something in return later on, and we're going to see
what it is.

Speaker 4 (15:07):
Then, how don't do crime?

Speaker 3 (15:09):
Right about to see the same thing happened in New York?

Speaker 4 (15:11):
Absolutely absolutely, qui for sure, that's why I know they
doing what they do.

Speaker 3 (15:17):
I don't do crime, right You don't you don't.

Speaker 2 (15:21):
We hustling back with y'all. Clearly this is out of
my tax racket conversation. I just because it's ridiculous.

Speaker 3 (15:29):
They learned a lot.

Speaker 4 (15:30):
How did they do?

Speaker 2 (15:30):
I just want to I don't know how they went
about doing that, Like, we're like.

Speaker 4 (15:33):
How do how do you thirty six million?

Speaker 2 (15:35):
How do you mastermind the heists like this? You know
what I'm saying, Like, you use so much brain power
to be fraudulent, how about you use the brain power
to do something that actually makes you worthy of making
that kind of money. I'll never understand it.

Speaker 4 (15:52):
I feel you thirty six million in personal loans. Here's
a crazy part.

Speaker 1 (15:57):
They'll pardon them and then they'll still people sitting in
jail for petty crimes.

Speaker 4 (16:02):
Yeah, for Dina Dine bagg of Weed doing twenty years bro.
It's sad. Yeah.

Speaker 6 (16:07):
And their I guess their defense was that they were
unfairly targeted because of their conservative beliefs. That's what they've
been trying to say happened.

Speaker 4 (16:17):
It was this is what happens.

Speaker 1 (16:19):
They were waving the flag to all the conservatives to say, hey,
come save us. Yes, it's no different than Jim or said,
God rest is soul. He passed away. But remember when
he was arrested for a DWI or duy and he
said that he was targeted because he's a rich white billionaire. No,
you targeted because you was driving crazy and you're freaking
swerving and you was driving drunk. But that was his defense,
that I'm a rich white billionaire. And what it did

(16:40):
was got the ears of those rich white billionaires and
they were able to do their things, say hey, they
got one of us, let's get them out. The only
thing I would say to that is that we should
do the same thing.

Speaker 6 (16:49):
Yeah, I mean, I think you're sending the message that
the things that the government says are illegal are not
really illegal. Because the way that they defrauded the banks
out of money that they took out these personal loans
and then they took.

Speaker 4 (17:02):
Out more loans to then pay the old ones, and they.

Speaker 6 (17:05):
Use the personal loans to fund their like luxurious lifestyle,
eight cars and travel and you know.

Speaker 2 (17:12):
So the fact is that they just they were getting approved,
where we have our regular average folks who just try
to get approved for a home or a loan just
to list and.

Speaker 4 (17:19):
We can't get approved in your average like.

Speaker 2 (17:23):
I six three sixty four a house.

Speaker 3 (17:26):
I can't give you three sixty I gotta give it
to my man's over there.

Speaker 4 (17:29):
Right, that's literally what it is. I can't Josh.

Speaker 2 (17:33):
Private jets.

Speaker 4 (17:33):
I can't. I gotta give Chris forty million.

Speaker 3 (17:36):
I gotta pay for gas on the jets. You're not
going on vacation. He paying for the gas.

Speaker 4 (17:39):
That's crazy, It's so funny. That's the American way. Yeah,
it doesn't surprise me. It just not surprised me at all.
It absolutely is.

Speaker 1 (17:49):
But and I know because we talked about this on
the last show about segue, right, so we're going to
be very deliberate.

Speaker 4 (17:55):
That's the end of opping.

Speaker 1 (17:56):
Noah, So a young lady, whoever is the one I'm
speak to, A young lady who said, you didn't know
when you were sure?

Speaker 4 (18:01):
We're doing this for you, all right, but this is
actually welcome. Perfect though.

Speaker 1 (18:06):
Yeah, about understanding business and how so many of the
people around us don't understand business, so when you start
to excel at business, they automatically look at you as
if you're doing something that's not ethical.

Speaker 4 (18:19):
And that's just not the case.

Speaker 6 (18:21):
Well, I think to segue into the conversation I think
that when we talk about money and ethics, this is
a really great time to be talking about it, because
it seems as though rich people are only doing what's
gonna make rich people richer. They're not concerned with forwarding society.
They're not concerned with keeping people educated or taken care of.

(18:44):
They're not concerned with anything except making more money for
the people who already have loads and loads of fucking money.
And I really don't think that people know how much
a billion dollars actually is and the fact that we
live in a false meritocracy. What they're doing is making

(19:04):
people believe that because these people have money, it makes
them better than us, you know what I'm saying, Like
we could all have money if we were just as good,
if we were just as smart, if we were just
as ambitious, When that is not the case. Most billionaires
got their money from their parents or from you know,
their grandparents, great grandparents. Most billionaires did not work for

(19:26):
what they have, and most billionaires they learned how to
build money upon money upon money as they already fucking
And are.

Speaker 2 (19:32):
We think white millionaires because I can think of two
that come to mind that built their shit from nothing
Tyler Ferry is Rihanna billionaire satisfy? Right, Yeah, so a
lot of people are building their billionaire status, whereas to
your point, Triple, a lot of the billionaires that we
know of that have the legacy passed down are typically white.

Speaker 1 (19:49):
Well, I mean, just based on the history of this country,
you're not going to find too many black billionaires that
came from it, just because of the way our ancestors
were brought here. The way you build equity and finances
the fastest in this country is through land, and they
purposely found ways to not give us land because they

(20:10):
knew that that's what it was. With that being said, though,
like Tristan, like Tripple said, there have been a few
of us who've been able to accrue a huge amount
of wealth. Right, But let's be honest. What happens to
those people we as a community often demonize, right, And

(20:30):
I'll use the example, you don't even got to be
a billionaire the minute I started helping kids and I
was charging kids and then I actually did something for myself.
All of the people that I helped, even though I
was helping them, they just started talking.

Speaker 4 (20:45):
Bad about me.

Speaker 2 (20:46):
Because it's weird behavior in my opinion to count somebody
else's pockets, you know what I'm saying, Like, you have
a clinic, for example, and you have one hundred kids
there and you charge each kids fifty dollars. There's somebody
there saying, well, shit, they got a hundred is here
that's you know for the other So yeah, you know
they're making money here, you know, And we've at times,

(21:07):
I think, have all been guilty of that, Like damn,
they're walking away with a lot of money, not even
thinking about what it took to get there, your time,
you know, or the resources that you have to spend
to be able to sustain whatever program it is that
you're doing, whatever business it is, you know. And then
also like that was my freaking mind idea. I allowed
to I was allowed to do it because I had
the expertise to be able to do something like this. Yes,

(21:29):
so I think when people make the comment about triple
saying that, people feel like, you know, we all have
pretty much the opportunity to be able to make money
in this capacity. Yes, and no, you know, sometimes it
doesn't come from people passing things down, but you are
able to build your your wealth or build through opportunities
because you have that savvy or that know how or

(21:50):
that brain power to do it.

Speaker 4 (21:52):
But my thing is who decides what's ethical? Right?

Speaker 1 (21:55):
Like for example, when I first started my training business,
the first thing everyone told me was it'll never work
because no one will pay for training. And I said, well,
you don't have to charge people six hundred dollars an
hour to train.

Speaker 4 (22:06):
You can create. It will never work. To vitill never work.
It never works.

Speaker 1 (22:09):
So when I started, I was charging one hundred and
fifty dollars a month. And then when I grew to
having four hundred kids, people started counting my pockets. It
was like he charging people to train. Wait a minute,
y'all first said it wouldn't work. Then because it worked,
then it became unethical. And that's my question is is
who decides what's ethical? Because I'm gonna be honest. Broke
people can't tell me what's ethical when it comes to

(22:29):
business because you don't understand business.

Speaker 4 (22:31):
That may sound arrogant, but I'm sorry.

Speaker 1 (22:34):
When I was doing Prototype, most of the money I
got from Prototype went back to Prototype.

Speaker 4 (22:39):
I even paid for kids to go to college. I
paid for kids to have sneakers, I paid for kids.

Speaker 2 (22:43):
To go like I did all of the children.

Speaker 4 (22:45):
Kids say, we children, but it was broke.

Speaker 1 (22:48):
People telling me that me charging people the same money
I used to help them was unethical.

Speaker 4 (22:53):
So I need to know who decides what.

Speaker 6 (22:55):
But I think too, I think somebody pointed out a
really good definition of capitalism for me for me on
another podcast, they were saying that capitalism is determined by
who owns the means of production. So just because you
have a business where you are giving it a service
and you're making money from it, that doesn't make you
like a big bad capitalist. That's unethical a person who

(23:18):
owns the means of production. So you are training people
who want to become professional athletes, You're training kids from
the community so that they can have a skill that
can get them better opportunities. Now, the person who is
can be unethical in that ecosystem is the owner of

(23:40):
the football team, because they have control over what the
players can do, what they can say, when they can play,
when they can't, how they can make money. They kind
of own the means of production if the product is football.

Speaker 2 (23:52):
So ultimately deval having a program like that and people
parents paying into it, really the parents are just making
an investment in their child. They're not his program wouldn't
have been the unethical.

Speaker 4 (24:03):
Party.

Speaker 1 (24:04):
I hear you on that, But I also feel like
even with the league owners, right, if you create an
opportunity for young men and women to earn a large
parts of money, right For example, the NBA people upset
at NBA owners they make too much money. Yeah, but
you also have all of these players and coaches, training
staff who make a lot of money too. So they
created a platform where everybody can make money. The thing

(24:26):
to me that becomes unethical is when the person who
controls that utilizes that to stifle and manipulate to gain
more money while exploiting those who work underneath them. And
why I say exploitation is because you can give someone
five million dollars, but if they're worth fifty you exploit
it exactly. That to me is that to me is
where you become greedy or where you've done something unethical.

Speaker 4 (24:51):
Like that.

Speaker 1 (24:51):
This is what bothers me about when people try to
decide what's ethical or not. If you don't understand business
and you make claims, for example, what's the young la
any that.

Speaker 4 (25:00):
Sold my op?

Speaker 2 (25:01):
I was just about to say that as well as
Brown right. They literally came to mind.

Speaker 1 (25:07):
Don't understand how business works. When you start a business,
the goal of the business is to scale the businesses.
When you scale the business, that means that other people
are doing what you can't do by yourself in a
larger way so that you can make more money. Once
you scale the business to size, you then want to
sell it because you know, business has survived a full generation,

(25:31):
every business has coming gone.

Speaker 4 (25:33):
That's what it is. Most so the goal most some business,
but most businesses.

Speaker 1 (25:38):
The goal of any business, and I learned this in
business school, but also speaking to a lot of wealthy people,
is you start a business to sell it and then
start another business.

Speaker 4 (25:47):
What bothers me is that all of these people.

Speaker 1 (25:50):
Online saying that the rodriguez Is and Tabitha Brown and
they're unethical because they sold their idea to someone else
or because they're trying and.

Speaker 4 (25:58):
I'm like, y'all, y'all don't understand, you know what I'm saying.
That's my issue with them.

Speaker 2 (26:04):
So the biggest thing with the whole Mael stories that
there's a contingent of people who believe that the product
since being sold to Procter and Gamble, the quality of
the product has changed, and they're people who are complaining
that they're here, has been shedding, breaking, hair loss, all
of those things. They've been using her product for years,
and then all of a sudden, the minute P and
G got it is like everything is wortered down and

(26:24):
has changed. So I think she's battling two things here.
She's battling that component where people you don't want to
discount their story because some people legitimately feel like this
was what happened to them and that's their story. But
then there's also a contingent of people that don't understand,
like you said, the scaling and selling of a business business,
you know. And then you think about Tab when it
comes to Target and her products and the whole DEI situation,

(26:45):
you know, trying to understand her mindset where she's in
a conflict. It's like, here, I am in bed with
Target with this contract that I have through however much timeframe. Yes,
but then there's people who are like, listen, I'm not
shopping through Target. I'm not giving them their money. I
rather go directly to the source and buy from Tabitha Brown.

Speaker 1 (27:01):
Dot what Tab was saying, And people didn't even want
to listen to the whole message right.

Speaker 2 (27:06):
But then she also talked about how hard it was
to get black brands into a Target to begin with.
So she said, if in the event that you do
still decide to go to Target, be mindful and purposeful
about purchasing those black owned products, because once they start
seeing a decline in those products being bought, then they're
going to pull them off the shelves. So it's a
really hard position, I think for both Monique and tab

(27:28):
to be in, because it's like you're damned if you
do and you're damned if you don't.

Speaker 6 (27:31):
But I think this is why it's important for people.
If you're starting a business and if you know that
you have the type of power that a person like
Tabitha Brown does, it is important that you come up
with your own set.

Speaker 4 (27:43):
Of ethics and practices for your business so that when you.

Speaker 6 (27:46):
Get a big deal like with a Target, that you
can tell them what they're gonna do for you and
not the other way. Brown absolutely, because the thing with
Tabitha Brown, she always said that Target owns the line.
It is their line, it has her name on it,
and she is collaborating with them to curate products.

Speaker 2 (28:04):
And she's using her likeness and her selection promote so
they have.

Speaker 6 (28:08):
And so because she has the power that she has,
Target needs her. You know what I'm saying that right,
if she had you know, the revenue, the capital to
create her own line and set on her own website,
she could do that. But Target needed her for the
demographic they wanted to bring into the store because she
had the people.

Speaker 4 (28:27):
They have the product. She has the people. And so
if if.

Speaker 6 (28:33):
I think the only thing she could have done in
that situation was to say, this is your dedication to
DEI for the duration of my.

Speaker 4 (28:42):
Contract.

Speaker 6 (28:43):
And she may have taken the money and said great, amazing,
because most of us would you know what I'm saying,
most of us can't go into an office with our
supervisor and Demanda Race, let alone go into a Target
office with the CEO and demand DEI.

Speaker 1 (29:00):
That's why I think it's unfair for us to put
that on tab because she signs a deal and they
say we'll give y'all for example, I don't know these details,
so don't quote right say it's four years, we'll give
you ten million dollars.

Speaker 4 (29:10):
You're gonna be the face of this line. Cool as
we do that. Plus, this was part of the DEI
roll out.

Speaker 1 (29:15):
You will sign that contract they decide that they're gonna
change their mind two years in. Right, you can't then say, fine,
I'm gonna take your products with my face off of
your stores and I'm gonna do.

Speaker 4 (29:28):
It direct to consumer. She can't. Legally, she can't.

Speaker 1 (29:31):
If she tried to take those same progress to those
products and do the same except products somewhere else, she's.

Speaker 4 (29:36):
Gonna get sued. She probably has a not compete That's
what I'm saying. So she can't.

Speaker 1 (29:41):
So what she's doing is pretty much saying like, look,
I'm kind of stuck here, and if y'all still want
to support products, and I remember her saying that, she said,
there are products here who are black owned, who have
a director consumer, and if you're going to boycott, when
that person puts a link up that says this is
my director consumer, support it.

Speaker 4 (30:00):
It's not enough to just boycott. You have to boycott
and support.

Speaker 1 (30:06):
And this goes back to understanding business that if a
lot more people weren't emotional understood business, they would know
how to help.

Speaker 4 (30:13):
Right. For example, I've just read a doctor.

Speaker 1 (30:17):
I've just read a story about the Montgomery bus boycott, right,
think about this for a second. Do you know the
Montgomery bus boycott crippled a lot of black bus businesses,
And this is why black people wanted to ride on
the same buses as white people. And we couldn't fucked up.
So we had a point to prove. We wanted to

(30:38):
prove that our money is more valuable than yours. So
we boycotted until they let us ride on their buses,
and then we got back on their buses. What if
we were to boycotted and just spent all of our
own money on our own private, black owned bus. You
know what I'm saying. There are two parts to economics.
Boycotting is one, but there's also building. And I think
sometimes we forget the building aspect because we as Black

(31:00):
Americans have never been taught how to build businesses.

Speaker 4 (31:03):
That's why when we see other people who look like.

Speaker 1 (31:05):
Us build businesses, we say that they're what unethical because
we've never learned. You know what I'm saying, And that's
who I think where we are as a community of
people today.

Speaker 4 (31:14):
The people, the.

Speaker 1 (31:14):
Black people that have learned to make money, the other
black people who don't know point at them. And say
are they devil worshipers? They so they sold they're not ethical,
and it's like, bro, like, that's not how this works.
If you want to survive here on this planet, learn
how to use capitalism for your people. That's what I
ultimately want to do. That's what you want to do.

Speaker 4 (31:32):
Everybody here talks about that. I haven't had a conversation with.

Speaker 1 (31:35):
One person here that didn't say, yeah, because I want
to do this, and then have another idea about people
who aren't going to ever see this money. You talk
about it all the time, about how you plan to
do things for young black girls who are trying to
get into entertainment and industry writing.

Speaker 4 (31:48):
Y'all talk about it all the time.

Speaker 2 (31:50):
So let's talk about now the responsibility that we feel
these one percent or the wealthy have to society. What
kind of responsibility do they have? So again, using Tyler
Perry as an example, he is a great example because Tyler,
with the money that he's made, is literally employing all

(32:14):
of us, thousands of people, thousands and thousands of people.

Speaker 1 (32:17):
He has a program at the facility where young men
who are dealing with recidivism who can't find jobs can
come there and work, learn how to garden, and learn
how to mechanic.

Speaker 4 (32:26):
Like he has programs no one ever talks about.

Speaker 2 (32:29):
Let's talk about that.

Speaker 4 (32:29):
Well, here's about it.

Speaker 2 (32:30):
The internships that he has for kids that are coming
out of college or in college, those programs. He's just
even employing people on a crew or set. When I
film my show, there's a crew of three hundred plus
people that majority of them look like us block.

Speaker 4 (32:45):
So what I hear is.

Speaker 9 (32:49):
Instead of telling people what to do with their money,
just realize what they do, number one. Just like he's
actually employing people. And one of those trops is if
you can't, like I'm canna, I can lead a horse
to water but right, and or you can teach a
man how to fish, or you give him man fish

(33:09):
to teach him how to fish.

Speaker 2 (33:10):
Right.

Speaker 4 (33:11):
And I think what Tyler is doing, and what what
the example is in that?

Speaker 2 (33:15):
Uh?

Speaker 4 (33:16):
That what the ethical point in that is give people jobs.
Don't give people money, right.

Speaker 9 (33:21):
Like, don't don't give your hood money, don't put up
buildings in your hood or or rec centers only.

Speaker 4 (33:28):
But it is like opportunity, give people opportunities to make
their own money. Josh, you know who said that the
power story for jay Z.

Speaker 2 (33:38):
He did say that.

Speaker 1 (33:39):
Jay said this two separate times. The first thing he
said was what he got killed was he was just like,
people keep asking me why I don't give money back
to Marcie. They don't need money. They need to change
your mentality, which is a fucking fact though, Like if
you give those people who don't understand business money, what happens?

Speaker 9 (33:56):
Same thing with reparations come back. They're coming back in
two weeks broiling.

Speaker 4 (34:00):
We need to change the we've been.

Speaker 6 (34:03):
I would I would push back on that to say,
is jay Z contributing to changing their mentality with what
he gives to the hood, which is his music.

Speaker 4 (34:13):
I would say no, I would disagree. We listened to
jay z music, not really, So how say something like that?
Did you say.

Speaker 3 (34:23):
You cannot say that in front of Brooklyn.

Speaker 4 (34:25):
Now you can't fly?

Speaker 1 (34:26):
You can listen to them lyrics And he's pointing out
he talked about Dumbo.

Speaker 4 (34:30):
I forgot the lyrics exactly.

Speaker 9 (34:32):
He said he could have bought a building in Dumbo
for two million dollars. Yeah, years ago, in twice twenty something,
and what is it now? What is it worth today?
Like twenty million?

Speaker 1 (34:41):
Said I could have bought it, Dumbo, I had every
V twelve engine. He's literally telling young men and women like, yo,
I did all of this bullshit and the thing I
should have he's remember how to do something something?

Speaker 4 (34:52):
Credit? Yeah, how did that? He really is teaching.

Speaker 1 (34:55):
Also, he has bailed out thousands of people who are
in jail for petty crimes, who have never seen would
have never seen the light of day, and he bailed
them out without even making it a public thing, because
he also knows if I start telling everybody what I'm doing,
they're gonna find a way to stop facts.

Speaker 2 (35:12):
To stop you. But then also, you told the line
between when you're in a position to help people, do
we make it a public announcement to say, hey, y'all,
I have the resources to help people, versus not helping people.
And people say, well, you don't ever help nobody?

Speaker 4 (35:26):
Could you could do that for a PR a PR stunt?
But what's the point. What's the point is their ultimate
goals to help people? Why are we talking about?

Speaker 2 (35:33):
And exactly know how? And I helped regularly, and if
we were to just be like, hey, we help this
person today, we helped that person today, we this for
that person, I know I need some help.

Speaker 6 (35:50):
But that's a that's a really good point because people
always say this too about Beyonce. And something I heard
recently was like, during the LA fires, Beyonce's foundation be Good,
did a bunch of giving back and they were people
were saying, like in Pasadena, they were kind of the
only foundation that was still there after a few months,
still helping people get back on their feet.

Speaker 4 (36:11):
And she doesn't, you know, she doesn't say anything.

Speaker 6 (36:14):
She doesn't have to announce it, you know, she just
does what she does, and she just gets backlash from us.

Speaker 4 (36:18):
Same thing with Tyler Perry, I think too.

Speaker 6 (36:20):
People always find something about Tyler Perry to write that.
But when he was making stage plays and we was
buying them on bootleg, everybody was laughing.

Speaker 4 (36:29):
He and Hahn, he told me about it.

Speaker 6 (36:33):
When he got to a certain level, then it was like, oh,
Tyler Pierry's exploiting and Tyler peers doing this and that,
And I mean, Tyler Pierry is telling one story. He's
telling the story that he knows how to tell. He's
not stopping anybody else from telling another story. He's not
saying that this is the definitive story of black people,
and people like watching his shit. I was always he's

(36:54):
doing something other than he's employing people and giving people
help money.

Speaker 4 (36:57):
He's employing thousands of people. I just need one, just
one thing You're we're going to do is shoot her shot.

Speaker 1 (37:03):
But I want to say this too about Tyler Perran,
not because he's my my boss, but he does tell
the same story. But SODA's Ken your barrass Blackish, mixedish, grownish,
SODA's maral Broca kill. I just happened to love all
her stories because she tells love stories. But it's the
same story, like love it girlfriends.

Speaker 4 (37:24):
The same story, not just.

Speaker 2 (37:27):
It's like some people feel you feel like they have
a type cast because they're always playing the same kind
of character in the same random story.

Speaker 4 (37:33):
That's just what it is.

Speaker 2 (37:34):
And if it ain't for you, it ain't for you.

Speaker 1 (37:36):
We told for the last seven years, we told our
love story over and over again, different ways, through book,
through social media, through podcasts, because that was our story.

Speaker 4 (37:45):
Some people may feel the same way, like or they
keep telling the same story. I even I even her.

Speaker 1 (37:50):
Saw one comment a guy said marriage is not a business,
and Deval and Kadeen have made a business out of
their marriage, and I said, this person doesn't understand.

Speaker 4 (37:59):
I'm gonna argue and go back with them.

Speaker 1 (38:01):
But that's the same person that when we first started
and was broke telling our story, they loved it. I
know this person because the person's been following us for
a minute and they loved the fact that we was
broke and telling this story.

Speaker 4 (38:12):
And they're telling the real The minute we started ascending.

Speaker 1 (38:15):
Then it was marriaging the business, which shows me most
of the time people just don't want to say you'd
be better than them.

Speaker 3 (38:20):
You think it's crabbed environmentality.

Speaker 9 (38:22):
I don't think you could look at anybody and say
something that goes against their agenda without being crabbing a barrel,
Like there's no there's nothing any like for you. For
the example that you just gave with the with the
dude that said when you were broke one thing and
then when you start making money that completed a different thing.
That has to be crabbing a baron. That has to

(38:42):
be a sort of like an introspective of myself and
it's where I am in relation to where these people.

Speaker 2 (38:50):
Where these people are absolutely, and that is the comment section,
because I what I can't Understandavalani for example, because I
can only speak to us. I feel like we've been
very consistent with who we are and who we've been. Naturally,
of course, yes, we've grown, We've had avenues and opportunities
to be able to expand, because the reason we started
this whole social media thing anyway was to get the
opportunities to be on camera as actors, and we finally

(39:13):
reached that point. But we literally have been telling the
same stories and been the same people and sharing our
growth and the way we've done things for years. So
for folks to be like now we don't fuck with
them no more because they, you know, are doing too
much or they've changed, it's just like, now we've changed
for the better. You've been stagnant.

Speaker 1 (39:31):
We have changed, and I agree with you, we have changed.
And a lot of times people don't want to see
other people change.

Speaker 2 (39:36):
Absolutely not. They like the aspiration of things. But then
when you get to that point when you truly are aspirational,
then it becomes a faker.

Speaker 4 (39:43):
It's like not ethical. Yeah, you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 6 (39:46):
I would switch the mindset because the crabs in a
barrel thing, I understand it, but that it kind of
assumes that only certain people are the crabs, you know
what I'm saying. Whereas I think that we have a
culture of exploitation that we've all been socialized to believe
and somebody has to be exploited in order for something

(40:06):
to be good, it can we can say the same
thing for billionaires, people that hold their money because they
don't want anybody else to be upperly mobile because there's
going to be less for them. People just generally have
a scarcity mindset. I think that there's not enough for
everybody to have enough, you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 4 (40:23):
But this is the thing that bothers me.

Speaker 1 (40:26):
I don't have that mindset I shared with everybody. But
then you know what the feedback is, he only put
his friends on.

Speaker 6 (40:33):
We weren't friends before we started with And that's my point.

Speaker 1 (40:36):
People would just say anything to make them feel like
I wasn't able to do that because I didn't do
anything that wasn't unethical, When the bottom line is is
that you're looking for something to be unethical because you
just haven't accomplished what that person has.

Speaker 4 (40:53):
We went past that. I'm trying to understand, like that's
and this is what happens.

Speaker 1 (40:57):
This is what I'm saying, is why when we talk
about being rich and ethical, who decides what's unethical? Because
part of the unethical thing is like devalanceading only put
their friends on. And I'm like, when did that become
an issue? Like the fact that we only put our
friends on is an issue?

Speaker 9 (41:14):
Now you got way more friends than the three of us. Absolutely, absolutely,
I would say that so that that statement has it's
not your tight whatsoever.

Speaker 1 (41:24):
And I'm not on yet, none of us, all of
us seriously, and I'm not going to make it seem
like we don't do well. We do well, but I
have things in my life that I want to accomplish
that I haven't accomplished. Yeah, we all out here working
to do that. We're all out here helping as many
people as we can, but we're not like broadcasting it
because that becomes performative.

Speaker 4 (41:45):
But when you are gaining, gaining, gaining and you're.

Speaker 1 (41:47):
Not broadcasting how you're helping, people often say that you're unethical.
Then when you do broadcast, they say you performative. That's
why when you said you damned do you do if
you damn if you don't, I've got to a point
in my life. Now I don't get you, just fuck you,
just damn, so I might as well go out and
do it. Listen to how people create narratives. When did
we do the Essence interviews? Josh arities Okay, it was

(42:14):
April right when we did the Essence interview when I
broke down and cried. Did we know that K Show
was going to be announced?

Speaker 2 (42:22):
No?

Speaker 4 (42:22):
No clue right, K Show gets it out on I
do that interview on Thursday.

Speaker 2 (42:27):
It was the Wednesday, April thirtieth.

Speaker 4 (42:29):
I remember we do an interview on a Wednesday. Thursday,
we went to Upfront.

Speaker 1 (42:33):
I went to Upfront upfronts on Thursday, and my mind,
you the interview already happened.

Speaker 4 (42:38):
Go up us on Thursday. Asked me, how does Kadeen
feel about the release? I said, oh, the release is cool.

Speaker 1 (42:42):
They want to wait and find They don't know when
they'll be able to talk about it because we haven't
been able to talk about it on our press tour.
We find out that Saturday that they're going to drop
the release on Monday. The release comes out Monday. Everybody's
excited about ka Essence drops our interview on Tuesday. Comments
on social media. From that interview on Twitter is Deval

(43:05):
just wanted to on TikTok Dval just wanted to steal
a shine from k because her show was.

Speaker 2 (43:10):
An announced Right, He's dramatic.

Speaker 1 (43:13):
I was being dramatic, and this is my thing. I'm
not going to argue with these people. I'm not going
to go back and forth. Sakari called and was pissed, Like, bro,
as much as you push Kadeen in the forefront, for
them to create this narrative that now you're trying to
take the shine is annoying. But I'm like, Sakari, you
can't fight that. Like people are going to create their

(43:34):
own narrative about what they want and and they're gonna
argue other people. Nah, I've been watching them for years.
You don't want kay to shine and people arguing with them?

Speaker 2 (43:43):
Like are you gonna laugh at that? Because you know
how false that is. Since we're in the gym in Brooklyn, Matt, to.

Speaker 4 (43:50):
Be honest, my whole goal.

Speaker 1 (43:51):
Since we've been in the gym, Matt will tell you,
I was like, I'm going to make my wife this
is my exact words, Bigger than Kim K, bigger than Beyonce.

Speaker 4 (44:00):
Yeah, that That's always been my goal. I always felt
share that talent.

Speaker 1 (44:04):
So for people to make these assumptions and and create
this narrative that I just wanted to steal her shine.
It's proof that people have no clue what they're talking about,
but will say it with such conviction that other people
will follow them. And they do the same thing with ethics.
Beyonce is a devil worshiper Tyler Perry and Oprah worship
the devil. We've been to how many events with Tyler

(44:26):
and Oprah with a bunch of people. I've seen these
people do nothing but pray facts.

Speaker 3 (44:34):
Who they're praying to.

Speaker 1 (44:34):
Thank God, you know what, You're right. I don't know
they praying to personally, but they pray openly to God.
They thank God for everything. Every time we meet someone
who's been at that level and they see that we're
trying to get there, they always say keep God first.
But then when you hear people talk about it, they're
not ethical. Beyonce trying to get your daughters, I'm like, wow,
like this is kind of crazy.

Speaker 4 (44:55):
The fear, you know, it is exhausted.

Speaker 2 (44:59):
It is.

Speaker 4 (45:00):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (45:00):
My favorite two words right now be oh, well, you
just don't care.

Speaker 4 (45:04):
Oh, well you don't care. I don't either.

Speaker 6 (45:08):
It's not worth it to care because it's people's personal
like mindset to think that there has to be some
type of exploitation in order for somebody to be doing well.
A lot of times there is. We there is a
culture of exploitation absolutely comes to wealth, and that is true.
And so people are always looking for where's the exploitation
And a lot of times it's just like crazy shit,

(45:30):
and they're not looking for where is the like support,
where are the ethics? You know what I'm saying. They're
not looking for the good. Usually they're looking for the bad.

Speaker 2 (45:39):
Oh, where's the intersection between ethics and hard work?

Speaker 1 (45:42):
Like some people just there is an intersection between ethics
and hard work black people?

Speaker 4 (45:46):
And I was that's what I was about to say.

Speaker 1 (45:48):
What she said she said four black people, because this
is my thing, right especially on this country. In this country,
we've never had the opportunity for someone to give us
something and say here, do this exploit these people to
get more. We've always had to grind and work with people.
So most the black people I know that if grind
didn't work with those people, continue to work with those people. Like,

(46:10):
it's not in our nature to just exploit those because
we haven't even had the power behind us to exploit anybody.
That's why to me, it just seems kind of asinine
for people to be like all.

Speaker 4 (46:22):
Of these people who have gotten, they just try to
do it. To Michael Jordan, he would his shoes. Michael
Jordan's said Republicans were sneakers too.

Speaker 1 (46:29):
Guys, do y'all know that Michael Jordan is responsible for
how many people going to college on his funds? How
many schools he opened that he never talked about. Lebron
opened the Eye Promise School, so everyone thought that Lebron
was the first, but freaking Jalen Rose had an Eye
Promise School in Detroit seven years before Lebron opened his.
But no one talks about these things, you know what
I'm saying, And now here it is is on Michael

(46:51):
Jordan just exploited black people with his sneakers. It's like, guys,
like that can't be everybody's story. And I just don't
think that every wealthy person is a person of indignation.
That just was just like I'm fucking everybody to get here.

Speaker 4 (47:03):
You know what I'm saying.

Speaker 2 (47:04):
And because we had to work for everything. I think
we're more inclined to bring people along with us that
looks like us, Like I know several pockets. We're one example,
but there's several pockets to people just within like the
film industry, where it's just like yo, I'm going to
band together with my people so that we can ascend together. Ryan,
There's so many people who are doing it together because

(47:26):
we see value in what each person brings to the
common goal.

Speaker 6 (47:29):
So, you know, and I think more people should have
the mindset of being involved in a community, whether it's
your group of friends, whether it's your family, whether it's
your block. If you are doing something good, if you
are experiencing success and you can share it with somebody,
whether it's teaching them how to do the thing you do,
giving them a little change, if you know they need

(47:50):
some food, helping somebody take their kids to school one day.
Community is where you're at. We can't save everybody, you
know what I'm saying. We can do it one community
at a time. And if what we are doing as
a group inspire somebody else to try to do it
in their community, then at some point, all of our
communities are going to be doing the same thing at
the same time, and then we'll all come up together.

(48:12):
But as long as we try to alienate ourselves from
our our communities by focusing on what somebody else is
doing and not being inspired by it, we're never gonna
get anywhere.

Speaker 4 (48:26):
You hear how you just spoke from your heart about
everything you can do.

Speaker 1 (48:29):
Say after this whole thing, you go blow up, right,
you know what they're gonna say about trible Triple used
the Valikadeen and she was fucking divided the whole time that.

Speaker 2 (48:39):
I was going to say that, you.

Speaker 4 (48:43):
Know, whole time.

Speaker 2 (48:50):
That's what he put it on the offering table.

Speaker 6 (48:53):
I'm gonna put on my rich nigga hat when that happens,
I'm gonna exploit the audience, and I'm gonna write a book. God,
I was sucking them both best selling best selling.

Speaker 8 (49:06):
Actually oh well, oh well yeah, oh my god.

Speaker 2 (49:20):
But before we wrap up, I would say, just piggyback
off from Triples Triples comment about us building community. I
want to shout out at t N and Ivy Walk
Good l A. Every time I see a video from
Walk Good l A that et t In or Ivy posts,
it just makes me feel like, damn, if I was
still in l A, that would be my tribe of people.

(49:41):
You know, we were only in l A for a
year and a half and we got robbed of our
experience because of COVID and before we moved here. But
I love to see just like the togivenness and the
unity and like the black joy. You know, it's it's
families out there. There's men, there's women focused groups like
so shout out to what good l at and ivy
more we for doing that. Y'all are doing some great
work and I feel like there are a great example

(50:03):
where if we find pockets where we can build community
and actually not be concerned about what everybody else is doing,
but actually like working within, you know, maybe we can
get someone real quick.

Speaker 7 (50:12):
Shout out to y'all. Though I know y'all personally and
y'all don't talk about half that stuff, not even half
a lot of stuff. Y'all do a lot for a
lot of people.

Speaker 2 (50:20):
Thank you for that.

Speaker 7 (50:22):
I've been somewhere divine and I turned was like a
good human bro Like people don't think this way.

Speaker 3 (50:28):
It's just not natural.

Speaker 7 (50:30):
And to see y'all do it and consistently do it
and don't y'all don't need no praise for y'all just
do it out of the kind of say your heart,
thanks amazing, appreciate.

Speaker 3 (50:37):
I appreciate that.

Speaker 4 (50:38):
Man, appreciate Yeah. When you said you know, I thought you.

Speaker 2 (50:45):
Now, I appreciate that. And I feel like the reason
we've been blessed in abundance like this is because we
have a responsibility.

Speaker 4 (50:51):
Yeah, we all do.

Speaker 9 (50:53):
Says too much is given, much is required, and I
think that's the balance of what ethics is like when
you have stuff that's, yeah, you have a really big responsibility.

Speaker 2 (51:03):
It's true. I look at some of you know, family
member's friends who are, like, you know, very active in
the church, big believers in God, and it's just like damn,
like you've just been struggling your whole life. But then
we're here, So I feel like we are the answered
prayers of a lot of people around us. And that's
how I see it. That's what makes me want to
continue to be giving and be generous. It's the only
way I know how. You know, my grandmother, my dad's mom,

(51:25):
Grandma Jrother, she was my girl. I was her favorite.
But she was always just kind and I feel like
when you lead with kindness, that's the only thing that
can come back to you. And I have four boys
that I hope the world will be kind to because
they come from a lineage of people who are giving
and caretakers.

Speaker 4 (51:42):
In a sense, that's a fact.

Speaker 1 (51:43):
And also like richness isn't always I mean, Bob Marley said,
this is riches isn't wealthy. It isn't just gold and silver,
and it's not it's your ability, like we all talked about,
to actually connect with another person. You can feel rich
walking around not having nothing because anywhere you go you
feel welcome.

Speaker 4 (52:02):
You've done good in the world.

Speaker 1 (52:03):
So since you've done good in the world, anywhere you go,
they come, eat, come sit down, come chill to me.

Speaker 4 (52:09):
That's how rich I want to be. If you have
love and abundance, you're rich. Yes, yes, yes that a man.

Speaker 1 (52:16):
As a lady we was at the track meet. She
was like, if you just out here no security by yourself,
I'm just like someone with my people. We all out
here watching our kids. Like I want to be able
to go places and give love and show love and
people give it back. If I got to come here
with my glasses on in security, that don't seem rich
to me. You know what I'm saying, that seems very
much constrained. You see when you see that, it's like

(52:39):
you're in a bubble and you don't feel open.

Speaker 4 (52:41):
That to me isn't richest.

Speaker 6 (52:43):
Yeah, I think that the testament to your ethics, as
I guess leaders of our little team, our little gang
gang gang.

Speaker 7 (52:53):
Is that we are not gang gangco charges, we are
not gang.

Speaker 4 (53:05):
Friends.

Speaker 6 (53:07):
I think for me, the testament is that I've never
asked y'all for anything because I've never had to. Whenever
y'all move up, you have taken me with you, like
whenever you grow, I grow. And that's that's That's been
a huge blessing and it's helped me to grow in
ways that I have done on my own. You know

(53:27):
what I'm saying That your help people tell me all
the time, I d M de Vow to ask about
podcasting and he led me to you, like stuff like
that is huge to me. So I've never had to
ask you for anything, and that that that is and
it's and still have grown and that has been amazing.
And I'm waiting for just the right moments.

Speaker 3 (53:47):
Yeah, Hey, I need you.

Speaker 4 (53:54):
If I got it.

Speaker 1 (53:55):
If I got it is y'all because because as much
as y'all appreciation.

Speaker 4 (54:00):
Bro, that's what Tyler is for us.

Speaker 1 (54:03):
Like when I be struggling with shit business wise or
be like yo, he'll say it too, like I see
you building. This is this voice, but I say you're
building some other things. You know, you're good financially, And
I'm like, what do you mean. He's like, this requires that,
this requires this. Remember the whole tour thing.

Speaker 4 (54:20):
Yeah, I was struggling.

Speaker 1 (54:21):
He school does this is just a quick story. I
was planning the not the last tour, the tour before that,
the time, Yes, it was the time I did it.
So we had a lot of expenses at the top
of the year. So I called him and I was like, yeah, struggle,
I don't thk I'm gonna do any more tours. And
he was just like why, And I was like, because
I had to put all these expenses up and then
I had to pay taxes like two weeks later, so

(54:44):
it was like I had all of this money coming out,
and he was just like, why would you not do
all of your tour expenses at the end of the year.

Speaker 4 (54:50):
And I was like, what you mean?

Speaker 1 (54:51):
He was like, you close out your fiscal year with
the tour expenses so you can get that back on
your taxes, rather than keeping all of that money paying
back to his tax taxes back and then paying for
another tour.

Speaker 4 (55:03):
And I was like, you know what I'm saying. And
then he was just like, understand your film schedule. You
know you get paid this time.

Speaker 1 (55:12):
You should start paying for stuff at the same time
you're getting paid till you can write that, So write
that off beforehand. And I'm like, I didn't. I never
had a billionaire to explain to me how to get
through maneuver seven figure tax you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 4 (55:24):
But he was able to give it to me. And
I'm like, Bro, that's the same way y'all say. I
am for you. That's how he is. And he's never
asked me for anything.

Speaker 2 (55:33):
And you can do it not fraudulently. Facts, so we
can have to get a pardon from oh facts.

Speaker 1 (55:38):
Yeah, you can avoid you can avoid paying high taxes
a legal way.

Speaker 4 (55:42):
There have an LLC registered as an escort.

Speaker 1 (55:45):
When your escort, your tax will automatically go down from
forty nine to to about thirty three percent legally legal.

Speaker 3 (55:51):
Just to be clear, consult your local cps.

Speaker 4 (55:59):
Are smart. Okay, uh huh.

Speaker 6 (56:02):
Just because they rich don't mean they're smart.

Speaker 4 (56:04):
Yep, that part.

Speaker 1 (56:05):
Michelle Obama just said that in her podcast. Remember she
said when she got to where she went to school, Harvard.
She said, she got Harvard and looked.

Speaker 4 (56:13):
Around and realized, like, wait a minute, everybody here does
not long.

Speaker 1 (56:18):
Yeah, And I was, like she said, when she got
to the Oval office she sat down with some of
them people, I was like, wait a minute, everybody here
ain't either. I listened to that man. If there's anybody
I listened to one podcasts, it's them too. And to
be honest, I listened to Michelle Moore because I noticed
that she's a lot more open. She never had to
hold that office and doesn't have that responsibility, and quite frankly,

(56:41):
she don't give a fuck no more.

Speaker 4 (56:42):
The last time, people was getting.

Speaker 1 (56:43):
On her about not going to that event, she said,
and making it seemed like they was getting a divorce
and she didn't love Barack no more, or they must
be getting divorced.

Speaker 4 (56:51):
She didn't show up. She was like, I didn't want
to show up. It was the inauguration for a president.
I didn't care for.

Speaker 1 (56:56):
I don't have to got other things like family, things
to do. And I was like, Yo, she really being honest.
I know, but Rock is always going to have the quorum.
He's the president. He has to and sometimes he'd be like,
I don't know. She'll be like, he don't know. I
didn't want to go.

Speaker 2 (57:12):
I like that. I love that with us do a
red carpets and stuff in the future, and it's like
both of us being actors, it's like, I'm sure there's
gonna be moments.

Speaker 3 (57:20):
Last I want to support.

Speaker 4 (57:24):
Always there.

Speaker 2 (57:25):
I've seen Kadeen don't let the val breeze. She always
be at these events. I'm like, because that's my fucking husband.
To support my husband. Okay, Like what do you guys expect?
All right, well, thanks for the love, y'all. I feel
like we need a group hugg. Let's do it in
the after show. Can we get a group hug? Everybody in?
All right, y'all stick around. Were gonna take a quick
break and get into this quick listener letter.

Speaker 4 (57:59):
I sh out, we back, so let me handle these
listening letters today. Wow.

Speaker 1 (58:04):
Shout out to the Yell's crew, Josh and Tribble. How
they're not gonna include Matt and Matt's last.

Speaker 2 (58:09):
This is Ellis crew, So I guess they think Matt
is Ellis.

Speaker 4 (58:14):
Shout out to Ellis, cru Josh and Treble. That makes sense.

Speaker 2 (58:17):
Adopted family members, see what you did.

Speaker 4 (58:19):
That's what's up.

Speaker 1 (58:20):
You are impacting our culture and generation and unprecedented in
unprecedented ways.

Speaker 4 (58:25):
Keep doing your thing. Now to what I need advice on.

Speaker 1 (58:29):
I'm a forty plus year old and divorced mother of
four to include a special needs child with autism and
other medical issues. I started dating again a bound three
years after my divorce and eventually began a relationship with
a great guy. Here's my dilemma, or rather here's dilemma.
He's a single man with three children by three different mothers.
All of his children reside with their mothers. He has

(58:51):
voice feeling down because he hasn't been physically present for
his kids in a way that he would like to
be so, because I wasn't raised and raised to being
accomplished to bad parenting choices, I have giving suggestions on
things he could do to build a solid presence with
his children. Because though because although nothing can replace physical presence,
effort in tangible support bets, complaining while not taking action.

(59:13):
I've even pulled things together and sent them by him,
sent them by him for his kids because I'm a teacher.
I've suggested things from mailing them a package a month
or of undergarments and outfits and something small that his
kids like that why she's writing like this. I've suggested
things from mailing them a package a month of undergarments
and outfits and small things that his kids like that

(59:35):
their mothers allowed them to have. He does work, though
limited duty due to having suffered a stroke, so he
generates income. He has rejected each and every one of
my suggestions, stating that he's done these things before and
either it didn't work out, or he said that his
mother gets things for the kids, so he doesn't need
to do these things. I'm conflicted because he does things

(59:56):
for my kids, sometimes at great sacrifice. I don't like
that do more for my kids than you do for
your own. I'm grateful, don't get me wrong, But I
see him, and I know his children's mothers probably feel
a way. Should I disconnect. I'm not at a deficit
for emotional support. Although my ex husband's children's father doesn't
do as he should for our kids. I have a

(01:00:17):
solid support system. What do you think help a sister out.
I'm not fragile, so give it to me straight, signed,
short story, long sister.

Speaker 2 (01:00:28):
That's interesting.

Speaker 4 (01:00:31):
This is what I think. It seems like she likes projects.
She picked up a project. He You know, one of
her children has autism and it needs help.

Speaker 1 (01:00:41):
He had a stroke. Seems like he needs help. It
seems like she's one of those people that likes to
fix people.

Speaker 4 (01:00:46):
You know what I'm saying.

Speaker 1 (01:00:47):
You picked up a man that has three children by
three different baby mothers, but then also divorced the man
and said that he's not there for your children. Why
would you get with a man who's exuding the same
behavior as the man you just left at this point?
To be honest, he says, you want to keep it straight.
I feel like you need to use better discernment, stop
trying to raise people to do what you want, and

(01:01:08):
choose someone that's doing and living in alignment with the
way you want, and you won't have this problem.

Speaker 4 (01:01:12):
That's what I think.

Speaker 1 (01:01:13):
It's hard for me to watch her because I know
her intentions are good, but you're never going to be
able to change him. To be what you want him
to be, especially at forty something, so go find someone
who is what you want rather than trying to make
them be that.

Speaker 2 (01:01:25):
Yeah, it's interesting because as I'm sitting here thinking, I'm like,
it's so layered. But yeah, the man who he's showing
himself to be by way of not caring for his
children in the way that he should, I think outweighs
the things that he's doing for your children, if that
makes sense, Because him being there to show up for
your children in that capacity that he can't for his
own children leads me to believe that maybe it's performative

(01:01:48):
because he likes you, and maybe he's trying to get
on your good foot. And he might have did that
with all three his baby monter, that's a fact. Maybe
he was trying to get on the good foot with them,
and then once they figured out who he really is,
much like how you are figuring out who he really is,
who he is.

Speaker 4 (01:02:04):
That's really what it is.

Speaker 6 (01:02:05):
The only niggas that cry about not spending time with
their kids or dead beats, because while you sitting here crying,
you can be yeah or something on a plane. A
man who wants to be with his kids don't nothing
to stop him from being with this kid, period.

Speaker 4 (01:02:19):
Except for the woman.

Speaker 1 (01:02:20):
Sometimes, I'm not going to say yeah, I'm not going
to sit here and say that because I know three
people personally who have cried about not seeing their kids,
and every time they tried, the moms have done everything
in their power, including lying to their boss, calling the cops,
filling fake police reports. So I'm not gonna always put
it on on the men. But when you have three

(01:02:42):
women and there's three at some point, now, you know
what I'm saying, it ain't just it ain't just them
at this point. You gotta have some discernment too, my guy.

Speaker 2 (01:02:52):
You know what I'm saying, so different baby mothers that
that's that's uphill battle.

Speaker 9 (01:02:57):
You're having those three different personalities. And it's like with
his existing girlfriend, my podcastang my bad.

Speaker 4 (01:03:04):
I know she was like she was like, that's a point.
I think he's coming uphill battle.

Speaker 9 (01:03:11):
But I think his bigger issue is that he's knocking
down solid advice from his girlfriend, like she's she's she
wants to send things regularly, and he's like, nah, I've
tried that. That doesn't work, Like where does that put
you do?

Speaker 4 (01:03:24):
That's why I feel like he's showing you exactly who
he is. Yeah, for sure.

Speaker 1 (01:03:27):
And Kay made a good point. He's being performative for her.
He was performative for each one of those baby mothers early.
That's how he got them to be their baby mother
and then once he became himself, it was like, I'm
out of here.

Speaker 4 (01:03:38):
So I agree with you. I think that I think
he is the issue, to be honest, and she had
a full plate.

Speaker 5 (01:03:44):
Child.

Speaker 2 (01:03:45):
Yeah, there's just a lot of individuals, and that makes
it's to you your four children, him it's three baby
mothers and then there's three children and then his mom Like, yeah,
that's just a child.

Speaker 4 (01:03:55):
Company autism and special needs. And he just had a stroke.
So he doesn't work full time, right, that requires a lot.
That's a lot.

Speaker 1 (01:04:02):
That is a crazy Brady bunch. But this is what
I don't understand. I'm not trying to knock nobody, right,
you don't see your kids enough, got a stroke, you
can't work, and what you're doing with your time is
trying to get with another woman. That seems to me
like his priorities are off, Like I feel like he

(01:04:23):
should be focusing on his health and creating a big
better relationship with the kids and the mothers that he
already has. Trying to start a new one is already
gonna spread him even more than even if he is
a genuine guy. So that's why I think that I
think she should use discernment and protect herself and her
kids at this point and be like, listen, we might
like each other, but there are some things I don't like,

(01:04:43):
and I don't want it to get even worse or
put myself in a situation where I'm having another child
with somebody and become your fourth. So I think, you know,
since I don't like the way this is going, let's
take some space until you figure some things out.

Speaker 4 (01:04:55):
That's what I would do.

Speaker 6 (01:04:56):
It sounds too like he doesn't know the value of
commit because he's like, oh, I tried doing that and
it didn't work. And I heard you telling Jackson today,
like you know, you think Rome was built in a day,
Like you got to keep sprinting if you want to
get better.

Speaker 4 (01:05:11):
You're not gonna sit on day one.

Speaker 6 (01:05:12):
And so you try to send a gift a time
or two and your kids are already sawty that.

Speaker 4 (01:05:17):
You're not there.

Speaker 6 (01:05:18):
You're gonna have to keep trying because you're the father's situation.
You got to commit to that and three baby mamas
like yeah, you know, yeah, it sounds like, yeah, he's
not really putting in the effort that it takes your bill.

Speaker 2 (01:05:30):
To find a way, Yeah, to find a way to
connect individually with all three children.

Speaker 4 (01:05:34):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:05:34):
Yeah, all right, good luck to you out there. Sis
continue to write in y'all for our listener. Let us
we love to hear from you. Email us at the
Ellis Advice at gmail dot com.

Speaker 4 (01:05:45):
That's t h E E L l I s A
d V I C E at gmail. Dugger.

Speaker 2 (01:05:50):
All right, now I'm moment the truth time. What were
we talking about today? I feel like we were talking
about a bunch of stuff. Oh we're talking about rich
at the cold money, fics, business, all the things. Who
wants to start with the moment of truth? Anyone got one.

Speaker 7 (01:06:04):
One you can help help the next person in terms
of richesness, tell us what we spoke about. That's not
always monetary. So you can help one. Help somebody learn business, learn,
help them in need whatever they need. Help them with
the ethics part too. If you think somebody's going down
the wrong path, talk to them, have a conversation.

Speaker 4 (01:06:21):
Hmm, I like that.

Speaker 6 (01:06:25):
Uh, one person having something doesn't mean that you can't
have it too. Focus on building community so that everybody
you touch can be as successful as you are.

Speaker 4 (01:06:37):
I like that, I got one.

Speaker 1 (01:06:39):
Don't let the amount of money you make define your
ethics like that, because a lot of people are willing
to change their ethics depending upon how much money is
to be made. You can't let the amount of money
change if you know it's not ethical, don't do it.

Speaker 4 (01:06:54):
Damn you.

Speaker 2 (01:06:55):
I was going to say, if you know that the
goodness is in your heart and you are doing the
work to build whatever wealth looks like to you, Because
there's also some people aren't comfortable with just being able
to make a certain amount of money knowing that their
bills are paid, where some people aspire to don't be
giving me the the VALANCOPI here giving me the eyes.
I'm trying to give my thought. But some people's idea

(01:07:17):
of wealth is not monetary. Some people's idea of wealth
is making enough so that they have their house, their food,
their bills covered, and their content. Some people aspire to
have more, regardless of what that looks like. Mind your business,
Mind the business that pays you, and never let the
money change your heart.

Speaker 4 (01:07:35):
Be killing me with the light read because she'd be
going to you know, because people in the business.

Speaker 2 (01:07:43):
I was ultimately trying to get to mind the business
that pays you, because then you realize if you do that,
you might be more successful instead of minding everybody else's business.

Speaker 4 (01:07:51):
Maybe it's just what it is.

Speaker 2 (01:07:53):
Who wants to round it out? Or is it? I
think jobs you're the only one left. Bring us home.

Speaker 4 (01:07:58):
Chill, chill, right.

Speaker 9 (01:08:00):
I did google all right, I want to know exactly
what Bob said, and I was gonna quote the he said,
possessions make you rich. I don't have that type of
written richness. My richness is life forever. Yes, right, So yeah,
that's it. Shout out to the period.

Speaker 4 (01:08:16):
What that means is that.

Speaker 9 (01:08:19):
True wealth does not come from possessions and materialistic You
gotta say that, Jamaican accent.

Speaker 4 (01:08:24):
I can't. I'm not gonna do that. I'm not gonna
do that. You're not gonna do that, Jamaica.

Speaker 2 (01:08:28):
True.

Speaker 1 (01:08:28):
Well, you remember how he possessions make it richosis make
it rich?

Speaker 10 (01:08:37):
Oh ja bless no man, need yes, do possessions make
you Possessions because It's like possessions, those don't make you rich.

Speaker 2 (01:08:50):
What is this? Forget it? Possessions don't make you rich.

Speaker 4 (01:08:57):
Something like you got a cousin that crazy my cousin
like a real Okay, what's going on?

Speaker 2 (01:09:01):
Man?

Speaker 3 (01:09:01):
What's what's up my nigga?

Speaker 4 (01:09:03):
That's what's going on?

Speaker 6 (01:09:05):
Man?

Speaker 4 (01:09:05):
And he's Jamaica. He said, what what's up? My nigga?
What's up? Is the most What's what's going on?

Speaker 8 (01:09:13):
Man?

Speaker 4 (01:09:13):
That's what I get when I go to Jamaica. What's up? Zach?
Wh what's up?

Speaker 2 (01:09:20):
Yo?

Speaker 3 (01:09:20):
I love Geneva. Pick up your steps up.

Speaker 4 (01:09:24):
The world. That's so funny. Geneva say this before we
get to the out.

Speaker 1 (01:09:31):
Two weeks ago he was having sex. I said, yo, homie, Zach,
and I'm calling you Geneva, and we had sex.

Speaker 4 (01:09:39):
Zach is giving across. I loved it. At least it's
on the same network. I love it.

Speaker 8 (01:09:50):
Period.

Speaker 2 (01:09:52):
The way I'm gonna do for it, I'm not gonna
let me pull it out of holding, all right, y'all.
Be sure to find us on Patreon to see the
after show and of course more exclusive Ellis ever After
video content and Ellis Family content. You can find us
on social media at Ellis ever After. I'm Kadeen, I.

Speaker 3 (01:10:10):
Am I am Deval, I'm Underscore Matt dot Ellis.

Speaker 4 (01:10:14):
And you can double click on my Flix at Josha Duane.
I'm at Trips the Cool t ri ibb Z. That's
cool on everything. And if you're listening on Apple podcasts,
be sure to wait wait you subscribe on three Baby
one two three Day.

Speaker 6 (01:10:32):
Gott Ellis ever After is an iHeartMedia podcast. It's hosted
by Kadeen and Deval Ellis. It's produced by Triple Video,
production by Joshua Duane and Matthew Ellis, video editing by
Lashawan Rothe.

Speaker 9 (01:12:00):
It has s

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