February 25, 2025 • 41 mins
Lynae Vanee is a dynamic activist, entertainer, and social media star who has made waves in the entertainment industry while staying true to her roots as a passionate advocate for social justice. A proud Spelman College alumna, Lynae’s journey to success has been shaped by her commitment to amplifying Black voices and advocating for change.
Known for her authenticity and powerful platform, she navigates the challenges of being a public figure with grace, maintaining a balance between sharing her life and setting personal boundaries. With aspirations to continue growing both professionally and as an activist, Lynae serves as an inspiration for young women, especially from marginalized communities, aspiring to make an impact in entertainment and activism.
During our conversation, we discuss her unprecedented journey from a Psychology college student through a rigorous Masters program and into exciting new use of the skills she gained along the way.
Where to Find Lynae
Instagram: @LynaeVanee
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Our Production Team
Executive Producers: Dennison Bradford & Maya Cole Howard
Senior Producer: Ellice Ellis
Producer: Tyree Rush
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
Hey, y'all, we're back with another episode of Therapy for
Black Girls University. I'm your host, doctor Joy Hard and Bradford,
and we're back with our very special conversation right after
the break. Today, we have a very special guest who
(00:28):
exists at the helm of entertainment, activism, wellness and spirituality.
Lenee Vinie is a dynamic activist, entertainer, and social media
store who has made waves in the entertainment industry while
staying true to her roots as a passionate advocate for
social justice. A proud Spelman College alumna, Lenae's journeys to
(00:50):
success has been shaped by her commitment to amplifying black
voices and advocating for change. Known for her authenticity and
powerful platform, navigates the challenges of being a public figure
with grace, maintaining a balance between sharing her life and
setting personal boundaries. With aspirations to continue growing both professionally
(01:10):
and as an activist, Renee serves as an inspiration for
young women, especially those from marginalized communities, aspiring to make
an impact in entertainment and activism. During our conversation, we
discuss her unprecedented journey from a psychology student through a
rigorous master's program and into the exciting new use of
(01:30):
the skills she gained along the way. I'm excited for
you to hear this incredible conversation. If something resonates with
you while enjoying our conversation, please share with us on
social media using the hashtag TVG in Session. Here's our conversation. Well,
thank you so much for joining us.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
To day La and a thank you so much for
having me here that.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
We had the chance to meet for when spelm and
open their podcast studio. And I was just so inspired
by so many needed things that you said and thought
that our audience could really benefit from hearing more about you.
So if you would get us started, like giving us
a little bit of an introduction for people who may
not be familiar.
Speaker 2 (02:11):
Okay, hey guys, what's up. My name is Lene Vinie.
You may have seen me on your timeline on a
Friday in a parking lot talking about what's going on
in the world. Then, just to make sure you know
we're gonna have a good time in a long time,
I always let you know that I'm going to keep
it black, I'm going to keep it brief. That show
is basically my take, I guess as I don't know
(02:33):
if you'd call it a cultural critic. Actually, I'm reading
a book on James Baldwhen and he just called me
a witness. He called me a witness and a storyteller.
And I tell stories about what's going on in the
world through the lens of being black and women and
inclusive stories. I have a background in African American studies.
I got my master's at Boston University. I got my
(02:54):
bachelor's in psych Actually let spell them in college. And
I actually suggests everybody get a degree in psych their
first degree in It's like if they want to get
multiple they already know that because I just feel like
understanding psychology helps you understand people, and this makes you
better at whatever your job is. So that's me.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
Oh my gosh, I love that, and I echo that right.
It does feel like psychology. I think, you know, most
people think like, Okay, I'm going to major in psychology.
Then I have to go on to get master's and doctorate.
But it is a very I think general kind of degree,
both of the subject matter but also because of all
the other classes that you typically have to take as
a psych major. That's a great blog. I love that.
(03:34):
So tell me more about your choice of Spelman College
to do your undergraduate work, and maybe how your time
at Spelman has influenced both your career and your outlook
on life.
Speaker 2 (03:46):
So Spelman Colluse was the best decision that I've ever made. Actually,
I wanted to go to Atlanta and t from drum life.
I moved here from Virginia, and so I was just
I'm aware of HBCU culture, and I just thought it
was a real school, and I knew I wanted to
be on the dance line. And so when I moved here,
(04:07):
I discovered that was Clark Atlanta. At least it was
filmed at Clark Atlanta. So I said, Okay, cool, I'm
going to Clark. And I was in tenth grade. I've
always been a planner. I've always kind of known exactly
what I wanted to do, and that's definitely changed the
older I've gotten, because you can barely plan for anything
because God laughed at our plans. But anyways, so in
(04:28):
tenth grade, I wanted to go to this college fair
and we got there at eight o'clock in the morning
because me and my parents we lived an hour and
a half outside the city, so we always had to
like just bake in time for traffic and things like that.
So Clark was the first school there. We met them
as they were setting up and they just encouraged us
to go take a tour since I'd seen everything I
needed to see. And we went over to the campus
(04:50):
and it was still early for them. No one was
in to give me a tour, but there were tours
available at Spelman, and I was just so disinterested. I
was like, well, I'm not going there. It's an all girls' school.
You can keep it. We walk into the registrar's office
up tour you get to schedule tours, and there is
a photo of the first graduating class of Spelman College
(05:13):
and it's eleven women, I believe, and the picture is
I think the picture is from eighteen eighty one, but
late eighteen hundreds for sure. And I had never seen
anything like that before in my life. And I was
automatically just intrigued to learn more about these women, to
learn more about this place, because I was always an
avid Black history I don't know, trivia person, super passionate
(05:38):
about understanding where we came from. But I had never
seen women portrayed like this, and by the time the
campus tour was done, I was sold. Didn't even go
back over to Clark Atlanta. I knew this is where
I needed to be. Interestingly enough, I think being in
(05:59):
I think just being a the other girls, being around
the other girls, and being exposed to so many different
ideas and the ways of thinking and ways of advocating,
being exposed with so many different walks of life. And
it's also the common misconception that to an HBCU, you're
just entering a space of homogeneity, and that's not the truth,
(06:19):
and it just helps you realize the true dexterity of
Black experiences. During that time, my professors did think that
because I was a psychology student, I was also an
honor student like Psychi hom a Society, that my next
steps would be to go to a clinical psych program,
and I just didn't want to. So I had to
(06:40):
take a break and understand what it was that I
really wanted to do. And I had actually created my
own minor because there was no Black studies program at
Spelman at the time that I went. Because it's an HBCU,
and the way that I don't know if it's intentional
across the board, but every single professor I've ever had
talked the subjects through the lens of black feminism. So
(07:02):
you didn't have to go and like concentrated if you
didn't want to. But I did take the steps to
sort of just create an experience that would allow me
to have a Black studies concentration, and it just hit
me like, oh yeah, girl, you love black people. So
I was always the type of person that went to
school for what I was passionate about understanding, not necessarily
what I thought could make a career for me. And
so I went from one degree that you typically can't
(07:25):
get a good job with unless you go get a
further degree and once you get a master's and typically
you can't go get the best job in African American
studies until you go get a PhD. But spelm in
college and the experience of just being and understanding what
it means to be a free thinking black woman led
me on the steps that landed me where I am today.
Speaker 1 (07:46):
Is there any particular moment from your college experience that
you feel like really set your path forward and you
can think about like this was a pivotal moment and
kind of leading me to where I am.
Speaker 3 (07:57):
Today, A pivotal moment, you know, I won't say moment,
but I will say.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
Matriculation. I was in a community service scholars program and
we had to do ten hours of service a week
to keep our scholarship, two hundred and fifty hours a year,
and then for our first two summers, two hundred and
fifty hours per summer. And we didn't just do community service.
We were trained in servant leadership, and that is the
(08:35):
crux of everything that I do today. And so my
entire experience was colored with giving back an understanding community
and being grounded and level with the community that I'm serving,
and understanding them in a way that allows me to
be in partnership with them versus trying to give them
something and not really understanding where they're coming from. So
(08:57):
I think the minor scholars program and I highly recomm
men young women apply to that if they're trying to go,
because it was a full ride, thank of Jesus. But
by time there, I can think of several service trips
that we took, several personal developments that really just shifted
the way that I saw the world. Because I was
also from a small town I was raised by two
Southern minded black parents, one from Mississippi, one from North Carolina,
(09:21):
heavily entrenched in religion and not in a relationship with
God since but a follow the rules and traditions since
and you know, not really being able to understand the
divide that existed between just like religious thinking and understanding
to like real application and people and like loving people
(09:42):
like Christ. So yeah, I would definitely set the blinder program. HM.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
I appreciate that you shared that you have kind of
followed your passion throughout school, and I think that that
is something a lot of students struggle with. Form my
time in working in college counseling, I knew that there
was a lot of the concern that students would come
in and that they would maybe major in one thing,
but parents were very like, no, this is not going
to find you a job. But it sounds like you
were able to navigate that in a very different kind
(10:07):
of way. Can you talk more about following your passion
as opposed to like, Okay, I'm going to college, I
know what I want to major in, and this is
the steps I need to follow.
Speaker 2 (10:16):
Yeah. I think i'd always thought that I figured out
or always thought that. When I decided it was going
to be psychology, I said, well, maybe I'll figure out something.
And for a time I was like, am I going
to be like a version of a yan La van Zant?
Like what am I going to do? But it has
to be different? But after finishing the program and understanding
what my options were, it just really wasn't for me.
(10:37):
I could not see myself in any of the roles
that were put in front of me that were possible
with starting with this degree. So I just waited, and
I really thank God for that, because I think the
steps that I've taken have all been ordained I think
with everyone, but through discernment understanding that I didn't have
(10:57):
to take traditional paths, and more so traditional past may
not even have gotten me to where I am today.
So really digging into what my calling is and what
I felt like I could help people with, and I
made the decision to go ahead to that master's program
because I knew how knowing, learning and loving and experience
(11:19):
what culture, history and progression made me feel, and it
made me feel empowered. And if I could get more
of that and share it, how much more empowered can
I make other people feel? So that's it. And the
same thing sort of happened when I graduated my master's program.
And it's funny we had cohorts, might be like eight
(11:40):
to ten folks. We had two people my cohort, and
then two weeks later we had one person in my cohort.
It was me, and it was a one year master's program.
It was the hardest thing that I've ever done. And
I walked off the stage to the airport to go
home because I was so ready to be done with school.
But at the graduation, the department head made a speech
(12:06):
and in that speech she said, Lenee chooses the hard things.
And I don't know if she knows she chooses the
hard things. These are just the things that challenge her,
these are the things that motivate her. And so to him,
because he was going to give me the opportunity to
walk on to an American Studies PHG program at Boston University,
but that still didn't feel right for me. It was
going to be the hard thing for me to try
to find a job with the degrees that I had.
(12:28):
But I knew that next step wasn't for me. I
could feel it in my bones that maybe later in life,
but not right now. And that's how I started teaching
high school students and bringing what I learned in my
graduate program to them, and that really took me on
on a path to challenging myself and how I communicate
(12:48):
to speak to the whitest audience possible.
Speaker 1 (12:52):
Do you feel like that is a true summation of
who you are, that Lennee chooses the hard things, like
do you see that in your work?
Speaker 2 (13:00):
Yeah? And I had a special word in church. I
go to Change Church out here in Atlanta, and the
pastor was speaking on removal versus redemption in terms of
how Jesus walked with people. Like people always say that
Jesus walked with sinners d D. Jesus didn't really refer
to them as sinners. He just referred to them as
his disciples and people that he was in relationship with.
(13:23):
But regardless, he didn't necessarily need to remove any traits.
He just needed to redeem them for his purpose and
just by chance. An example, he said, so, if you
are stubborn like, maybe you need to be stubborn hearted
for the work that God has for you. And I
feel that so much because with the way the world
is right now, and the things that I tackle every day.
I need that challenging spirit because otherwise I'd be crushed
(13:45):
under need the pressure. So I'm just really grateful for
that conviction to handle the hard stuff.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
It feels like a very timely word. Yes. More from
our conversation after the break. So you mentioned parking lot
of pipping is the thing probably most people know you for.
(14:12):
Can you give us a bit of the origin story
for parking lod pipping? How did in August the.
Speaker 2 (14:17):
Yeah, So backtracking a little bit, when I taught high school,
in order to teach black studies, I had to get
a certification and a core subject, so I got history,
so I had to also teach us history. And every
time we got to teaching about the civil rights movement,
there wasn't much that I had even time to go over.
(14:38):
But my students were always asked, do I think this
could happen again? Do you think we could ever have
another civil rights movement that we would march da da
da dada? And I would always say no, I don't think.
So this was in twenty eighteen, twenty nineteen, twenty, nineteen,
twenty twenty, early twenty twenty that I had this idea
about our people that we were to individualize, to come
together and just make waves the way that we need to.
(15:04):
Until George Floyd happened, and there were several marches for
George Floyd, for Maud Aubury, for Breonna Taylor, and it
was covid. I wasn't sure how I wanted to engage,
if at all, because we live in Georgia, so with
the continued presence of marches and protests, I wasn't sure
what backlash might ensue. But there wasn't march coming up
(15:26):
for Juneteenth that my partner at the time, his church
was participating in. I don't think they were hosting it.
They couldn't have been hosting the whole thing, but they
were bringing out a group of people, and there were
a number of white people in that church, so I
felt safe going up with it. I'm not gonna hold you,
I said, okay, so I'll get my feet wet in
this endeavor, but I was still very on my toes.
(15:49):
It was a beautiful experience. There were so many people
just sort of like covering Centennial Olympic Park. That's where
we started the march, and we marched downtown to the
Capitol and we made all the way down there. We
were headed back and I started to hear like a
ruckus and people like raising their voices, and I got
a little bit antsy, not sure what was going on.
(16:10):
But when I turned around to see what the commotion
was coming from, people were just saying, like, look behind us.
There were miles of downtown Atlanta covered with people of
all different races, backgrounds, probably sexual orientations, whatever. And we
were stopping traffic. But instead of like horns blaring, people
were just getting out of their cars or playing music
(16:31):
and you know, raising the roof, cheering us on. And
I said, Oh, now's the time. And so I've been
doing different YouTube videos or even stories on Snapchat during
Black History months, but I kind of always felt like
people didn't feel like they needed to learn much at
all about Black history, like they knew everything they need
(16:53):
to know. Because I also got that feedback from my
high school students, because I taught seniors who wanted to
just take a free class and thought they could just
watch watch The Great Debaters and Twelve Years of Slave
and write a fake essay because their belief was they'd
been learning about the same people all twelve years of school,
So what else did they need to know? And I
(17:14):
just felt that that was a common conception. But I
saw a different hunger in twenty twenty. I saw a
different desire for information and digestible and not palatable but
relatable and just something to connect rass tacks, no filter.
And from that work that I did with those kids,
(17:36):
wrestling them down to make sure they were interested in
what I had to say, I was able to sit
in my parking lot and share that with the world.
And the only reason I'm in a parking lot is
because I was just trying to find a different setting
that was unique from other creators. So yeah, dragged my
chair in a park cart into the parking lot in
rest play.
Speaker 1 (17:56):
Wow, An, he has opened all of these incredible doors.
When you referred earlier that you feel like what you do,
you call it as being a witness, but it also
feels like a very unique blend of like activism and entertainment,
which I think is an interesting kind of blend. Can
you talk about maybe some of the challenges you face
as your platform has grown and like navigating like both
(18:19):
of these spaces, right, like maybe an activism space and
also the entertainment space.
Speaker 2 (18:24):
Yeah, activism breeds a very specific kind of troll, you know,
and trolls from all different places. I expected to get
racist feedback from white folks. I did not expect to
get homophobic, transphobic feedback from my community. And that's the
(18:46):
part that hurts most because one of the reasons why
I even wanted to do this is because I saw
the power and unity and togetherness and showing these sort
of walls between us, barriers between us within community its counterproductive.
And so I wanted to combat a lot of and
(19:07):
I don't even say stereotypes. I wanted to combat erasier
period in our community, to make sure we recognize how
important each one of our voices is in the fight
or struggle for democracy and civil rights and human rights
and things like that. And I just wasn't expecting to
get such vitry off from some folks in my community.
(19:28):
So that was one challenge. I did get over that soon,
because at the end of the day, they're just negative comments,
and what you do you stop reading them. What you
do you recognize is a person behind a keyboard or whatever,
a phone screen. You'll probably never meet them, who cares
the audience is fine. The audience is finding you and
you're finding the audience and it works. It's fine. I
would say. The other thing that is difficult about the
(19:50):
activism part is just how heavy it can be, how
stressful it can be, how difficult it can be to
carry trauma and sort through it like a mill. Because
one of the things that I try my best to
do is truncate or translate jargon and language that might
(20:14):
not be understandable to the common man. But the other
thing that I try to do is wield the information
in such a way that it doesn't hurt as much
by the time you get it, like filter it a
little bit so you can be informed. But it's a lot,
just on its face to take in all the time,
especially during it's particularly during a time when a lot
(20:36):
of us were being killed back to back to back,
And it also feels cyfflical in a way. I feel
like I don't get to escape certain topics. I didn't
even try to start with activism. It just necessitated itself.
If I was going to be speaking on things that
affected us, I had to get into some of these things.
I would have never been on my life that I
be anywhere near close to talking about a politic and
(20:58):
that's just something that I do every week now. So
something that I've done since then is recruit a team.
My best friend who also has her master's in African
American studies, she's a second writer for me, so she
will take the research from another gentleman who has a
master's in African American studies and journalism. He'll research for us,
she will translate into a script. I will then go
(21:20):
and put it in my words and put story into it.
And since then it's been easier because I'm not just
caring it all by myself. Is also the expectation to
be a voice, to be a leader. Not at all
interested in being a leader, but the best leaders aren't.
But you get requests and everybody wants you to talk
(21:40):
about this thing and that thing, and can you break
down this and so setting boundaries for myself, if you notice,
I'll only do videos on Fridays unless I'm working with
an organization that wants specific video on something. But in
terms of my personal capacity, I limit that to give
myself all the grace in the world that I need.
And it's difficult because you want to help everybody you
(22:01):
want to be there for everybody, but you simply cannot.
I would say on the entertainment side, the biggest hurdle
is the activism part of it, because a lot of
people love you, but don't want to touch you with
a ten foot pole if you're speaking on polarizing topics,
if you're not using a filter. I've missed out on
(22:21):
a lot of great opportunities because I've had a firm
stance politically. But I've always told myself that if my
authenticity is what brought the audience, and I can't jeopardize
the audience by compromising my authenticity, especially for a check.
So it's a juggling act for sure.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
And I would imagine that a lot of the lessons,
like the building the team, and like, okay, there need
to be so many layers between me and I need
to protect my boundaries. Those are lessons that you did
not learn without I'm sure some very difficult bruises. Can
you talk about just the process of like learning this
whole component of managing your mental health at the intersection
of all the stuff that comes with your career.
Speaker 2 (23:08):
I think the worst lesson I had to learn. I think,
like a lot of black women. I learned as I
was deteriorating, as I was falling apart, I was not
managing stress at all. I am also a Capricorn, so
I think I have to do everything because I'm the
person that's doing it right. I was not delegating, really,
(23:31):
I was spending my own money to try to invest
in myself and having to do a lot of showing
and proving, having to push myself work ten times as
hard as other influencers with my following or even my engagement.
My engagement is crazy. I should be a millionaire by
now for what I have. But as I said, like
(23:52):
it's just a difficult thing to manage the sensitivity of
my topics. But with that said, is not taking care
of myself. I used to dance. I didn't even stretch.
I'm back to doing one and a half hour stretch
sessions every morning. A playlist plays, I get into my body.
I got the little muscle gun too. When things get
(24:13):
extra tight. My dog hates it because he wants me
to give him attention. I got the dog. It was
supposed to be for my mental health. I'm not really
sure where the verdict is on that, because as my
emotional support animal. He don't seem to give a darn
about my emotions. I started drinking the tea that I
(24:34):
was pouring in every video, what else, making sure I
was being more intentional about a relationship with God and
understanding that it can't literally all be done through me,
that I have to believe in something community therapy, Yeah, therapy.
(24:56):
And unfortunately, because I got that degree psychology, I thought
my self awareness sufficed for actual processing and it didn't.
I wasn't processing. I was compartmentalizing. And while I think
a degree of compartmentalizing is necessary to exist period in
today's day and age, I was just shutting stuff up
(25:18):
in places there was no trash chute built for the
stuff to fall down and out of, Like it was
just there and I was just blocking it and the
recesses of my mind. And I was still moving on,
but I just had to. I just had to put
things down. I'm in a season of putting things down
right now, actually, And so I think it's also important
(25:40):
for people to understand that even after you have that
come to Jesus that you got to take care of yourself,
it's still a cycle of having to take care of yourself,
Like sometimes things still like you don't just like master
balance because life comes at you fast.
Speaker 1 (25:56):
So it sounds like you have a team in place
for the business, but it also sounds like there's a
team place to support Lenie, right, like so your best friend.
It sounds like it's a part of the business. But
also I imagine a nice support to have just personally
and the therapist. I mean, who else is on your
team to support the personhood of the nie the person
that I have.
Speaker 2 (26:13):
An assistant that helps me do a number of things.
I actually have multiple assistants, and I know that's business,
but it just helps take a load off on me
personally with my scheduling and things that I have to
be It helps me be present day to day and
she's handling all the intricacies in the background. Personally. I
would also say, my mom, we just we just agreed
to do weekly walks on the weekend. She lives about
(26:36):
an hour away, but we walk together on the weekends.
I have two other very close friends. We check in
every day and it's funny as one of their partners
was like, what's on you guys masterclass for this morning?
What deep topic are we delving into? But they really
helped me process as well. Yeah, community period.
Speaker 1 (26:56):
More from our conversation after the break and you mentioned
authenticity right like that that has really shaped the kinds
of organizations you've worked with or even opportunities that maybe
you have had to pass on. What has been the
process of staying true to your authenticity as your platform
(27:20):
has grown?
Speaker 2 (27:24):
I think just asking myself, does it feel right? Does
it make sense? Is this something that I could defend
without making excuses like I do I believe in this decision?
Am I making this decision because I think it's a
(27:44):
necessary decision to make and just saying no a lot
saying no and building the confidence to tell my team
on the business side, so I've got different managers, brand
partnership coordinators what I'm comfortable with and what I'm not.
And I think that's also a part of the work
because if what I do, if the goal of what
(28:05):
I do, or if what I think the goal of
what I do is to make sure other folks are
empowered so that in any field they're in, they can
have vocabulary, they can have receipts, they can have courage
to push back against the status quoth, then I must
do that as well, so my team has gotten accustomed
to me saying the sensitive taboo topic in the meeting room.
(28:30):
So you're aware of my politics if you would like
to represent me, want me to do things, and can
be aware of my politics and do your best not
to align me with people who don't allow my politics.
And that's been difficult.
Speaker 1 (28:42):
As well, difficult in finding people who would be the
voice for you.
Speaker 2 (28:48):
No difficult than being that voice for myself. Oh got it,
because it also requires that you have conviction that you're
able to stand up. And I have an amazing team,
but I just also think that I am the first
of my kind in terms of the type of people
that they've worked with, because, particularly in the entertainment industry,
on that politics stuff, it's in the air, but it's
(29:11):
not in here. We just do our job. We get
on the screen and we look pretty. But that can't
be the case because of the brand that I built.
And I don't regret that it's hard. Here'a go choosing
the hard stuff.
Speaker 1 (29:23):
That shows up. Again. Yeah, so you mentioned and I've
heard other black women with like large platforms talk about
this like desire from your audience to like speak on
all the things do all the things you know, kind
of be a voice and a mouthpiece. But something else
that often comes up is this boundary setting around the audience,
like feeling like they know you and like always wanting more.
(29:45):
How have you navigated setting boundaries around continuing to be
authentic and show up but still saving some stuff for yourself.
Speaker 2 (29:53):
I used to respond to comments, I used to respond
to DM and now I just don't. Now I just
don't because I think I was internalizing the expectation that
because these people have helped me with my platform, I
(30:13):
owe them a response or I owe them excuse me
an explanation When I am a person and I cannot
possibly answer to seven hundred ninety seven thousand people, I
absolutely cannot, and they shouldn't expect me to. So it's
not to say that I don't consider my audience, because
I consider them every time I choose the subject to discuss,
(30:35):
but giving myself the room to say I don't have
to engage this has also reduced the amount of requests
that I get. I mean, it's not like, you know,
every individual person that's emailed me tells arrest of everybody. Hey,
she's not responding to emails. But maybe it's just like
the energy that I'm putting out into the universe, like
I'm being rewarded and just not even getting as many
(30:57):
of those represts anymore. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (31:00):
Maybe so. So, given all the success you've achieved with
your platform, are there any big goals that you set
for yourself about what's next?
Speaker 2 (31:10):
I started a new contract and at the end of
the month, actually and it's given me the power and
freedom to say and do what I want to do,
and I'm really grateful for that. But beyond that, I
have some personal projects that I've also been working on
for some time, and the market has told me time
(31:31):
and time again the ideas are great, but the market
isn't ready. So I'm going to make the market ready.
And I've been able to partner with some amazing writers
and producers and take amazing meetings to bring my ideas
to life. And so I'm going to be focusing on
those things a lot more as well.
Speaker 1 (31:48):
Okay, will stay tuned, We'll stay tuned for this big announcent.
I'm very excited for whatever it is. I think it
is interesting we find ourselves I think at a very
interesting time in history, and I think much of your
work is likely as you take a deep breath. As
we all take these deep breaths, right, I'm wondering if
there is any different way that you're kind of conceptualizing
(32:10):
your work or reconsidering some things kind of given the
current climate.
Speaker 4 (32:15):
Yeah, something that I've done for a while now is
just make sure I'm not rushing to be the first
person to say something, or rushing to say something just
because it's going viral on this one day.
Speaker 2 (32:29):
There's a lot of creators who work well like that.
I just don't who are able to hop on same
day as something happens and just like give their feedback
and speak to the audience to keep them informed. But
that boundary setting is also for me, yeah, to only
come on Fridays. But something else that I think I
(32:52):
have to do on top of that right now, because
there's so much happening and you just need a second
to figure out how do I even summarize all this?
What are the key points that need to be taken away?
Because it's also why comedy has been important in my
series throughout, because we got to have something to balance
out the bad. You know, our people we laugh to
keep from crying. Laughter is the best medicine and all
(33:13):
the phrases that have become core to our culture. But
it's just also necessary to keep us going. I am
dealing in hope. I'm not dealing in resilience. And while
I think resilience is extremely necessary in times like these,
(33:37):
I'm searching for something new, something fresh, because what I
don't want is for our people to enter another movement
hardening themselves and have nowhere to put it. So, yeah,
i haven't found all of my words for it yet,
(33:57):
but I'm trying to leave resilience where she's at.
Speaker 1 (34:01):
Yeah, that you made that such an important distinction, right, Yeah,
but we shouldn't stop at resilience, I think, is what
you're saying. Yeah. So one of the things that I
was super inspired by when we worked on the panel
together at Spelman was how many students I think you
inspire it, right, and like, how many people you are
now a career like, oh, career day Like I want
(34:21):
to follow in her path. So what would you say
to the young women who have been inspired by all
the doors that you have opened up? What kinds of
things would you say to them?
Speaker 2 (34:30):
I would say to them, good news is there should
be a lot more answers by the time that you
get here, because it was woods and we took a
machete and an axe and we just carved this path
like we figured out what's what this was, because I
hadn't really seen it done before the way that I
wanted to do it. But I would make sure that
(34:50):
they understand that as many influencers that have these courses
and starter packs and what you need to do, one
thing no one's lying about is that authenticity piece. You
will not be able to grasp an audience without authenticity,
and so you really have to make sure. You might
want to follow my footsteps, but you have to do
(35:12):
it your way. You cannot follow my formula. I hate
to tell you, not that I don't think that you
could do it well, but it's not for you to
do well. Like you have to have your own stamp
and you have to be passionate about that thing. You
have to have your own boundaries because this is an
(35:32):
industry that could take a lot out of you. People
think that because it seems to them that you're just
setting up your phone and a ring light or whatever
the tech is the next time that it's easy to
do and that you can do it like a pack mule.
You can't. You still need routine, you still need flow,
you still need scheduling, you still need an organization. An
organization seems like such a work or discipline focused thing,
(35:57):
but it's also for your self care. I'm planning a
second nap after this. I scheduled that nap and then
I'll get up and I'll do more things. But you
have to organize your rest as well. And those are
the best things that I will say. Because technology is
also changing even as we speak, so who's to say what?
(36:18):
But it doesn't have to be on Instagram. It can
obviously be a podcast. You can do YouTube, you can
do what's that other one discord. There's so many different
apps that have the opportunity to be monetized, and if
you're paying attention to what's doing, what's fresh, it might
(36:38):
be the opportunity for you to get in early. So
don't always think that you have to get a piece
of what seems to be the most popular thing. You know.
Speaker 1 (36:50):
Yeah, so so much of what you said to Dayly
Nay really sounds like it comes from a place of
you just being very grounded and like connected to self, right,
Like the the things that I need, Like I know
this about myself, and I think that that can be
really hard, especially in today's world where there's such go
go go, And like, I think it really encourages like
this disconnection with self. What kinds of things have helped
(37:12):
you to stay still enough so that you can formulate
that connection.
Speaker 2 (37:19):
Stillness is new to me. I did just go antique
shopping and found a nice little chair inside table for
my patio, and I sit out there. I think meditation
is necessary. I think writing is necessary, journaling. I've started
over the Artist's Way several times, haven't gotten past chapter one,
(37:42):
but I am doing morning pages every day, and that's
just three pages of free thought. They've turned into praise
for me. So that's also just time I spend it spiritually,
but making sure I'm getting that guidance. I'm always a
student as well. I'm always a student. I don't wish
to be the smartest person in the room. Listen and
I'm observant. I sit back and I glean, and I
(38:04):
take what's for me, what feels good, and I put
down what doesn't feel good. We don't have to adapt
to formulas for other people's success, but you should expose
yourself to the ways in which people go about different things,
just so you can begin to try on the path
(38:25):
of what might work for you and understand that sometimes
it's going to be terrible. Sometimes it's not going to
make sense. But that's part of the trial and error
till you figure out you it's a journey.
Speaker 1 (38:41):
I love that. So what would you say to eighteen
year old Renie?
Speaker 2 (38:46):
Eighteen year old Renee? What was she giving?
Speaker 3 (38:51):
Girl?
Speaker 2 (38:53):
I've been watching my mouth then I guess no. Oh okay, girl,
just wait on it. You feel teddies hole, it's really you.
Just give yourself two seconds. It's okay, baby. You don't
need all of this. These people who are not your
friends are not your friends. And you know that. And
she she definitely wanted to give the friendship and the
(39:14):
love that she was missing. And what I would tell
her most is to give that to you. And as
soon as you start giving that to you, you are
about to blossom. You're about to flourish, and it's not
gonna be nothing nobody can tell you, and you will
be unstoppable. Yeah, that's what I love that. Love that.
Speaker 1 (39:33):
That's a message for all of us eighteen years old
or not, so, where can we stay connected with you?
Speaker 2 (39:41):
Lennee?
Speaker 1 (39:41):
How do we find out about all the new news
that you're gonna be announcing. What's your website as well
as any social media channels you'd like to share?
Speaker 2 (39:48):
Well, Instagram is just where everything comes from, So just
make sure you're following that Instagram that is l y
n ae v A n ee and just stay tuned
because is coming and it's coming very soon.
Speaker 1 (40:04):
Show to include all of that in the show notes.
Thank you so much for spending some time today. I
really enjoyed you. Of course, I'm so glad Lynne was
able to join you for this conversation. To learn more
about her and her work, be sure to visit the
show notes at Therapy for Blackgirls dot com, slash tvgu
(40:24):
and don't forget to text this episode to two of
your girls right now. Did you know? You can leave
us a voicemail with your questions for the podcast. If
you want to suggest the topic or movie or book
for us to discuss, please send them to us. Drop
us a message at Memo dot fm, slash Therapy for
Black Girls and let us know what's on your mind.
You might just talk about it on the podcast. If
(40:47):
you're looking for a therapist in your area, visit our
therapist directory at Therapy for Blackgirls dot com slash directory.
This episode was produced by Elise Ellis and Tyrie Rush.
Editing was done by Dennison Bradford. Thank y'all so much
for joining me for this episode of TBGU. I look
forward to continuing this conversation with you all real soon.
(41:08):
Take good care,
Hey, y'all, we're back with another episode of Therapy for
Black Girls University. I'm your host, doctor Joy Hard and Bradford,
and we're back with our very special conversation right after
the break. Today, we have a very special guest who
(00:28):
exists at the helm of entertainment, activism, wellness and spirituality.
Lenee Vinie is a dynamic activist, entertainer, and social media
store who has made waves in the entertainment industry while
staying true to her roots as a passionate advocate for
social justice. A proud Spelman College alumna, Lenae's journeys to
(00:50):
success has been shaped by her commitment to amplifying black
voices and advocating for change. Known for her authenticity and
powerful platform, navigates the challenges of being a public figure
with grace, maintaining a balance between sharing her life and
setting personal boundaries. With aspirations to continue growing both professionally
(01:10):
and as an activist, Renee serves as an inspiration for
young women, especially those from marginalized communities, aspiring to make
an impact in entertainment and activism. During our conversation, we
discuss her unprecedented journey from a psychology student through a
rigorous master's program and into the exciting new use of
(01:30):
the skills she gained along the way. I'm excited for
you to hear this incredible conversation. If something resonates with
you while enjoying our conversation, please share with us on
social media using the hashtag TVG in Session. Here's our conversation. Well,
thank you so much for joining us.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
To day La and a thank you so much for
having me here that.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
We had the chance to meet for when spelm and
open their podcast studio. And I was just so inspired
by so many needed things that you said and thought
that our audience could really benefit from hearing more about you.
So if you would get us started, like giving us
a little bit of an introduction for people who may
not be familiar.
Speaker 2 (02:11):
Okay, hey guys, what's up. My name is Lene Vinie.
You may have seen me on your timeline on a
Friday in a parking lot talking about what's going on
in the world. Then, just to make sure you know
we're gonna have a good time in a long time,
I always let you know that I'm going to keep
it black, I'm going to keep it brief. That show
is basically my take, I guess as I don't know
(02:33):
if you'd call it a cultural critic. Actually, I'm reading
a book on James Baldwhen and he just called me
a witness. He called me a witness and a storyteller.
And I tell stories about what's going on in the
world through the lens of being black and women and
inclusive stories. I have a background in African American studies.
I got my master's at Boston University. I got my
(02:54):
bachelor's in psych Actually let spell them in college. And
I actually suggests everybody get a degree in psych their
first degree in It's like if they want to get
multiple they already know that because I just feel like
understanding psychology helps you understand people, and this makes you
better at whatever your job is. So that's me.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
Oh my gosh, I love that, and I echo that right.
It does feel like psychology. I think, you know, most
people think like, Okay, I'm going to major in psychology.
Then I have to go on to get master's and doctorate.
But it is a very I think general kind of degree,
both of the subject matter but also because of all
the other classes that you typically have to take as
a psych major. That's a great blog. I love that.
(03:34):
So tell me more about your choice of Spelman College
to do your undergraduate work, and maybe how your time
at Spelman has influenced both your career and your outlook
on life.
Speaker 2 (03:46):
So Spelman Colluse was the best decision that I've ever made. Actually,
I wanted to go to Atlanta and t from drum life.
I moved here from Virginia, and so I was just
I'm aware of HBCU culture, and I just thought it
was a real school, and I knew I wanted to
be on the dance line. And so when I moved here,
(04:07):
I discovered that was Clark Atlanta. At least it was
filmed at Clark Atlanta. So I said, Okay, cool, I'm
going to Clark. And I was in tenth grade. I've
always been a planner. I've always kind of known exactly
what I wanted to do, and that's definitely changed the
older I've gotten, because you can barely plan for anything
because God laughed at our plans. But anyways, so in
(04:28):
tenth grade, I wanted to go to this college fair
and we got there at eight o'clock in the morning
because me and my parents we lived an hour and
a half outside the city, so we always had to
like just bake in time for traffic and things like that.
So Clark was the first school there. We met them
as they were setting up and they just encouraged us
to go take a tour since I'd seen everything I
needed to see. And we went over to the campus
(04:50):
and it was still early for them. No one was
in to give me a tour, but there were tours
available at Spelman, and I was just so disinterested. I
was like, well, I'm not going there. It's an all girls' school.
You can keep it. We walk into the registrar's office
up tour you get to schedule tours, and there is
a photo of the first graduating class of Spelman College
(05:13):
and it's eleven women, I believe, and the picture is
I think the picture is from eighteen eighty one, but
late eighteen hundreds for sure. And I had never seen
anything like that before in my life. And I was
automatically just intrigued to learn more about these women, to
learn more about this place, because I was always an
avid Black history I don't know, trivia person, super passionate
(05:38):
about understanding where we came from. But I had never
seen women portrayed like this, and by the time the
campus tour was done, I was sold. Didn't even go
back over to Clark Atlanta. I knew this is where
I needed to be. Interestingly enough, I think being in
(05:59):
I think just being a the other girls, being around
the other girls, and being exposed to so many different
ideas and the ways of thinking and ways of advocating,
being exposed with so many different walks of life. And
it's also the common misconception that to an HBCU, you're
just entering a space of homogeneity, and that's not the truth,
(06:19):
and it just helps you realize the true dexterity of
Black experiences. During that time, my professors did think that
because I was a psychology student, I was also an
honor student like Psychi hom a Society, that my next
steps would be to go to a clinical psych program,
and I just didn't want to. So I had to
(06:40):
take a break and understand what it was that I
really wanted to do. And I had actually created my
own minor because there was no Black studies program at
Spelman at the time that I went. Because it's an HBCU,
and the way that I don't know if it's intentional
across the board, but every single professor I've ever had
talked the subjects through the lens of black feminism. So
(07:02):
you didn't have to go and like concentrated if you
didn't want to. But I did take the steps to
sort of just create an experience that would allow me
to have a Black studies concentration, and it just hit
me like, oh yeah, girl, you love black people. So
I was always the type of person that went to
school for what I was passionate about understanding, not necessarily
what I thought could make a career for me. And
so I went from one degree that you typically can't
(07:25):
get a good job with unless you go get a
further degree and once you get a master's and typically
you can't go get the best job in African American
studies until you go get a PhD. But spelm in
college and the experience of just being and understanding what
it means to be a free thinking black woman led
me on the steps that landed me where I am today.
Speaker 1 (07:46):
Is there any particular moment from your college experience that
you feel like really set your path forward and you
can think about like this was a pivotal moment and
kind of leading me to where I am.
Speaker 3 (07:57):
Today, A pivotal moment, you know, I won't say moment,
but I will say.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
Matriculation. I was in a community service scholars program and
we had to do ten hours of service a week
to keep our scholarship, two hundred and fifty hours a year,
and then for our first two summers, two hundred and
fifty hours per summer. And we didn't just do community service.
We were trained in servant leadership, and that is the
(08:35):
crux of everything that I do today. And so my
entire experience was colored with giving back an understanding community
and being grounded and level with the community that I'm serving,
and understanding them in a way that allows me to
be in partnership with them versus trying to give them
something and not really understanding where they're coming from. So
(08:57):
I think the minor scholars program and I highly recomm
men young women apply to that if they're trying to go,
because it was a full ride, thank of Jesus. But
by time there, I can think of several service trips
that we took, several personal developments that really just shifted
the way that I saw the world. Because I was
also from a small town I was raised by two
Southern minded black parents, one from Mississippi, one from North Carolina,
(09:21):
heavily entrenched in religion and not in a relationship with
God since but a follow the rules and traditions since
and you know, not really being able to understand the
divide that existed between just like religious thinking and understanding
to like real application and people and like loving people
(09:42):
like Christ. So yeah, I would definitely set the blinder program. HM.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
I appreciate that you shared that you have kind of
followed your passion throughout school, and I think that that
is something a lot of students struggle with. Form my
time in working in college counseling, I knew that there
was a lot of the concern that students would come
in and that they would maybe major in one thing,
but parents were very like, no, this is not going
to find you a job. But it sounds like you
were able to navigate that in a very different kind
(10:07):
of way. Can you talk more about following your passion
as opposed to like, Okay, I'm going to college, I
know what I want to major in, and this is
the steps I need to follow.
Speaker 2 (10:16):
Yeah. I think i'd always thought that I figured out
or always thought that. When I decided it was going
to be psychology, I said, well, maybe I'll figure out something.
And for a time I was like, am I going
to be like a version of a yan La van Zant?
Like what am I going to do? But it has
to be different? But after finishing the program and understanding
what my options were, it just really wasn't for me.
(10:37):
I could not see myself in any of the roles
that were put in front of me that were possible
with starting with this degree. So I just waited, and
I really thank God for that, because I think the
steps that I've taken have all been ordained I think
with everyone, but through discernment understanding that I didn't have
(10:57):
to take traditional paths, and more so traditional past may
not even have gotten me to where I am today.
So really digging into what my calling is and what
I felt like I could help people with, and I
made the decision to go ahead to that master's program
because I knew how knowing, learning and loving and experience
(11:19):
what culture, history and progression made me feel, and it
made me feel empowered. And if I could get more
of that and share it, how much more empowered can
I make other people feel? So that's it. And the
same thing sort of happened when I graduated my master's program.
And it's funny we had cohorts, might be like eight
(11:40):
to ten folks. We had two people my cohort, and
then two weeks later we had one person in my cohort.
It was me, and it was a one year master's program.
It was the hardest thing that I've ever done. And
I walked off the stage to the airport to go
home because I was so ready to be done with school.
But at the graduation, the department head made a speech
(12:06):
and in that speech she said, Lenee chooses the hard things.
And I don't know if she knows she chooses the
hard things. These are just the things that challenge her,
these are the things that motivate her. And so to him,
because he was going to give me the opportunity to
walk on to an American Studies PHG program at Boston University,
but that still didn't feel right for me. It was
going to be the hard thing for me to try
to find a job with the degrees that I had.
(12:28):
But I knew that next step wasn't for me. I
could feel it in my bones that maybe later in life,
but not right now. And that's how I started teaching
high school students and bringing what I learned in my
graduate program to them, and that really took me on
on a path to challenging myself and how I communicate
(12:48):
to speak to the whitest audience possible.
Speaker 1 (12:52):
Do you feel like that is a true summation of
who you are, that Lennee chooses the hard things, like
do you see that in your work?
Speaker 2 (13:00):
Yeah? And I had a special word in church. I
go to Change Church out here in Atlanta, and the
pastor was speaking on removal versus redemption in terms of
how Jesus walked with people. Like people always say that
Jesus walked with sinners d D. Jesus didn't really refer
to them as sinners. He just referred to them as
his disciples and people that he was in relationship with.
(13:23):
But regardless, he didn't necessarily need to remove any traits.
He just needed to redeem them for his purpose and
just by chance. An example, he said, so, if you
are stubborn like, maybe you need to be stubborn hearted
for the work that God has for you. And I
feel that so much because with the way the world
is right now, and the things that I tackle every day.
I need that challenging spirit because otherwise I'd be crushed
(13:45):
under need the pressure. So I'm just really grateful for
that conviction to handle the hard stuff.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
It feels like a very timely word. Yes. More from
our conversation after the break. So you mentioned parking lot
of pipping is the thing probably most people know you for.
(14:12):
Can you give us a bit of the origin story
for parking lod pipping? How did in August the.
Speaker 2 (14:17):
Yeah, So backtracking a little bit, when I taught high school,
in order to teach black studies, I had to get
a certification and a core subject, so I got history,
so I had to also teach us history. And every
time we got to teaching about the civil rights movement,
there wasn't much that I had even time to go over.
(14:38):
But my students were always asked, do I think this
could happen again? Do you think we could ever have
another civil rights movement that we would march da da
da dada? And I would always say no, I don't think.
So this was in twenty eighteen, twenty nineteen, twenty, nineteen,
twenty twenty, early twenty twenty that I had this idea
about our people that we were to individualize, to come
together and just make waves the way that we need to.
(15:04):
Until George Floyd happened, and there were several marches for
George Floyd, for Maud Aubury, for Breonna Taylor, and it
was covid. I wasn't sure how I wanted to engage,
if at all, because we live in Georgia, so with
the continued presence of marches and protests, I wasn't sure
what backlash might ensue. But there wasn't march coming up
(15:26):
for Juneteenth that my partner at the time, his church
was participating in. I don't think they were hosting it.
They couldn't have been hosting the whole thing, but they
were bringing out a group of people, and there were
a number of white people in that church, so I
felt safe going up with it. I'm not gonna hold you,
I said, okay, so I'll get my feet wet in
this endeavor, but I was still very on my toes.
(15:49):
It was a beautiful experience. There were so many people
just sort of like covering Centennial Olympic Park. That's where
we started the march, and we marched downtown to the
Capitol and we made all the way down there. We
were headed back and I started to hear like a
ruckus and people like raising their voices, and I got
a little bit antsy, not sure what was going on.
(16:10):
But when I turned around to see what the commotion
was coming from, people were just saying, like, look behind us.
There were miles of downtown Atlanta covered with people of
all different races, backgrounds, probably sexual orientations, whatever. And we
were stopping traffic. But instead of like horns blaring, people
were just getting out of their cars or playing music
(16:31):
and you know, raising the roof, cheering us on. And
I said, Oh, now's the time. And so I've been
doing different YouTube videos or even stories on Snapchat during
Black History months, but I kind of always felt like
people didn't feel like they needed to learn much at
all about Black history, like they knew everything they need
(16:53):
to know. Because I also got that feedback from my
high school students, because I taught seniors who wanted to
just take a free class and thought they could just
watch watch The Great Debaters and Twelve Years of Slave
and write a fake essay because their belief was they'd
been learning about the same people all twelve years of school,
So what else did they need to know? And I
(17:14):
just felt that that was a common conception. But I
saw a different hunger in twenty twenty. I saw a
different desire for information and digestible and not palatable but
relatable and just something to connect rass tacks, no filter.
And from that work that I did with those kids,
(17:36):
wrestling them down to make sure they were interested in
what I had to say, I was able to sit
in my parking lot and share that with the world.
And the only reason I'm in a parking lot is
because I was just trying to find a different setting
that was unique from other creators. So yeah, dragged my
chair in a park cart into the parking lot in
rest play.
Speaker 1 (17:56):
Wow, An, he has opened all of these incredible doors.
When you referred earlier that you feel like what you do,
you call it as being a witness, but it also
feels like a very unique blend of like activism and entertainment,
which I think is an interesting kind of blend. Can
you talk about maybe some of the challenges you face
as your platform has grown and like navigating like both
(18:19):
of these spaces, right, like maybe an activism space and
also the entertainment space.
Speaker 2 (18:24):
Yeah, activism breeds a very specific kind of troll, you know,
and trolls from all different places. I expected to get
racist feedback from white folks. I did not expect to
get homophobic, transphobic feedback from my community. And that's the
(18:46):
part that hurts most because one of the reasons why
I even wanted to do this is because I saw
the power and unity and togetherness and showing these sort
of walls between us, barriers between us within community its counterproductive.
And so I wanted to combat a lot of and
(19:07):
I don't even say stereotypes. I wanted to combat erasier
period in our community, to make sure we recognize how
important each one of our voices is in the fight
or struggle for democracy and civil rights and human rights
and things like that. And I just wasn't expecting to
get such vitry off from some folks in my community.
(19:28):
So that was one challenge. I did get over that soon,
because at the end of the day, they're just negative comments,
and what you do you stop reading them. What you
do you recognize is a person behind a keyboard or whatever,
a phone screen. You'll probably never meet them, who cares
the audience is fine. The audience is finding you and
you're finding the audience and it works. It's fine. I
would say. The other thing that is difficult about the
(19:50):
activism part is just how heavy it can be, how
stressful it can be, how difficult it can be to
carry trauma and sort through it like a mill. Because
one of the things that I try my best to
do is truncate or translate jargon and language that might
(20:14):
not be understandable to the common man. But the other
thing that I try to do is wield the information
in such a way that it doesn't hurt as much
by the time you get it, like filter it a
little bit so you can be informed. But it's a lot,
just on its face to take in all the time,
especially during it's particularly during a time when a lot
(20:36):
of us were being killed back to back to back,
And it also feels cyfflical in a way. I feel
like I don't get to escape certain topics. I didn't
even try to start with activism. It just necessitated itself.
If I was going to be speaking on things that
affected us, I had to get into some of these things.
I would have never been on my life that I
be anywhere near close to talking about a politic and
(20:58):
that's just something that I do every week now. So
something that I've done since then is recruit a team.
My best friend who also has her master's in African
American studies, she's a second writer for me, so she
will take the research from another gentleman who has a
master's in African American studies and journalism. He'll research for us,
she will translate into a script. I will then go
(21:20):
and put it in my words and put story into it.
And since then it's been easier because I'm not just
caring it all by myself. Is also the expectation to
be a voice, to be a leader. Not at all
interested in being a leader, but the best leaders aren't.
But you get requests and everybody wants you to talk
(21:40):
about this thing and that thing, and can you break
down this and so setting boundaries for myself, if you notice,
I'll only do videos on Fridays unless I'm working with
an organization that wants specific video on something. But in
terms of my personal capacity, I limit that to give
myself all the grace in the world that I need.
And it's difficult because you want to help everybody you
(22:01):
want to be there for everybody, but you simply cannot.
I would say on the entertainment side, the biggest hurdle
is the activism part of it, because a lot of
people love you, but don't want to touch you with
a ten foot pole if you're speaking on polarizing topics,
if you're not using a filter. I've missed out on
(22:21):
a lot of great opportunities because I've had a firm
stance politically. But I've always told myself that if my
authenticity is what brought the audience, and I can't jeopardize
the audience by compromising my authenticity, especially for a check.
So it's a juggling act for sure.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
And I would imagine that a lot of the lessons,
like the building the team, and like, okay, there need
to be so many layers between me and I need
to protect my boundaries. Those are lessons that you did
not learn without I'm sure some very difficult bruises. Can
you talk about just the process of like learning this
whole component of managing your mental health at the intersection
of all the stuff that comes with your career.
Speaker 2 (23:08):
I think the worst lesson I had to learn. I think,
like a lot of black women. I learned as I
was deteriorating, as I was falling apart, I was not
managing stress at all. I am also a Capricorn, so
I think I have to do everything because I'm the
person that's doing it right. I was not delegating, really,
(23:31):
I was spending my own money to try to invest
in myself and having to do a lot of showing
and proving, having to push myself work ten times as
hard as other influencers with my following or even my engagement.
My engagement is crazy. I should be a millionaire by
now for what I have. But as I said, like
(23:52):
it's just a difficult thing to manage the sensitivity of
my topics. But with that said, is not taking care
of myself. I used to dance. I didn't even stretch.
I'm back to doing one and a half hour stretch
sessions every morning. A playlist plays, I get into my body.
I got the little muscle gun too. When things get
(24:13):
extra tight. My dog hates it because he wants me
to give him attention. I got the dog. It was
supposed to be for my mental health. I'm not really
sure where the verdict is on that, because as my
emotional support animal. He don't seem to give a darn
about my emotions. I started drinking the tea that I
(24:34):
was pouring in every video, what else, making sure I
was being more intentional about a relationship with God and
understanding that it can't literally all be done through me,
that I have to believe in something community therapy, Yeah, therapy.
(24:56):
And unfortunately, because I got that degree psychology, I thought
my self awareness sufficed for actual processing and it didn't.
I wasn't processing. I was compartmentalizing. And while I think
a degree of compartmentalizing is necessary to exist period in
today's day and age, I was just shutting stuff up
(25:18):
in places there was no trash chute built for the
stuff to fall down and out of, Like it was
just there and I was just blocking it and the
recesses of my mind. And I was still moving on,
but I just had to. I just had to put
things down. I'm in a season of putting things down
right now, actually, And so I think it's also important
(25:40):
for people to understand that even after you have that
come to Jesus that you got to take care of yourself,
it's still a cycle of having to take care of yourself,
Like sometimes things still like you don't just like master
balance because life comes at you fast.
Speaker 1 (25:56):
So it sounds like you have a team in place
for the business, but it also sounds like there's a
team place to support Lenie, right, like so your best friend.
It sounds like it's a part of the business. But
also I imagine a nice support to have just personally
and the therapist. I mean, who else is on your
team to support the personhood of the nie the person
that I have.
Speaker 2 (26:13):
An assistant that helps me do a number of things.
I actually have multiple assistants, and I know that's business,
but it just helps take a load off on me
personally with my scheduling and things that I have to
be It helps me be present day to day and
she's handling all the intricacies in the background. Personally. I
would also say, my mom, we just we just agreed
to do weekly walks on the weekend. She lives about
(26:36):
an hour away, but we walk together on the weekends.
I have two other very close friends. We check in
every day and it's funny as one of their partners
was like, what's on you guys masterclass for this morning?
What deep topic are we delving into? But they really
helped me process as well. Yeah, community period.
Speaker 1 (26:56):
More from our conversation after the break and you mentioned
authenticity right like that that has really shaped the kinds
of organizations you've worked with or even opportunities that maybe
you have had to pass on. What has been the
process of staying true to your authenticity as your platform
(27:20):
has grown?
Speaker 2 (27:24):
I think just asking myself, does it feel right? Does
it make sense? Is this something that I could defend
without making excuses like I do I believe in this decision?
Am I making this decision because I think it's a
(27:44):
necessary decision to make and just saying no a lot
saying no and building the confidence to tell my team
on the business side, so I've got different managers, brand
partnership coordinators what I'm comfortable with and what I'm not.
And I think that's also a part of the work
because if what I do, if the goal of what
(28:05):
I do, or if what I think the goal of
what I do is to make sure other folks are
empowered so that in any field they're in, they can
have vocabulary, they can have receipts, they can have courage
to push back against the status quoth, then I must
do that as well, so my team has gotten accustomed
to me saying the sensitive taboo topic in the meeting room.
(28:30):
So you're aware of my politics if you would like
to represent me, want me to do things, and can
be aware of my politics and do your best not
to align me with people who don't allow my politics.
And that's been difficult.
Speaker 1 (28:42):
As well, difficult in finding people who would be the
voice for you.
Speaker 2 (28:48):
No difficult than being that voice for myself. Oh got it,
because it also requires that you have conviction that you're
able to stand up. And I have an amazing team,
but I just also think that I am the first
of my kind in terms of the type of people
that they've worked with, because, particularly in the entertainment industry,
on that politics stuff, it's in the air, but it's
(29:11):
not in here. We just do our job. We get
on the screen and we look pretty. But that can't
be the case because of the brand that I built.
And I don't regret that it's hard. Here'a go choosing
the hard stuff.
Speaker 1 (29:23):
That shows up. Again. Yeah, so you mentioned and I've
heard other black women with like large platforms talk about
this like desire from your audience to like speak on
all the things do all the things you know, kind
of be a voice and a mouthpiece. But something else
that often comes up is this boundary setting around the audience,
like feeling like they know you and like always wanting more.
(29:45):
How have you navigated setting boundaries around continuing to be
authentic and show up but still saving some stuff for yourself.
Speaker 2 (29:53):
I used to respond to comments, I used to respond
to DM and now I just don't. Now I just
don't because I think I was internalizing the expectation that
because these people have helped me with my platform, I
(30:13):
owe them a response or I owe them excuse me
an explanation When I am a person and I cannot
possibly answer to seven hundred ninety seven thousand people, I
absolutely cannot, and they shouldn't expect me to. So it's
not to say that I don't consider my audience, because
I consider them every time I choose the subject to discuss,
(30:35):
but giving myself the room to say I don't have
to engage this has also reduced the amount of requests
that I get. I mean, it's not like, you know,
every individual person that's emailed me tells arrest of everybody. Hey,
she's not responding to emails. But maybe it's just like
the energy that I'm putting out into the universe, like
I'm being rewarded and just not even getting as many
(30:57):
of those represts anymore. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (31:00):
Maybe so. So, given all the success you've achieved with
your platform, are there any big goals that you set
for yourself about what's next?
Speaker 2 (31:10):
I started a new contract and at the end of
the month, actually and it's given me the power and
freedom to say and do what I want to do,
and I'm really grateful for that. But beyond that, I
have some personal projects that I've also been working on
for some time, and the market has told me time
(31:31):
and time again the ideas are great, but the market
isn't ready. So I'm going to make the market ready.
And I've been able to partner with some amazing writers
and producers and take amazing meetings to bring my ideas
to life. And so I'm going to be focusing on
those things a lot more as well.
Speaker 1 (31:48):
Okay, will stay tuned, We'll stay tuned for this big announcent.
I'm very excited for whatever it is. I think it
is interesting we find ourselves I think at a very
interesting time in history, and I think much of your
work is likely as you take a deep breath. As
we all take these deep breaths, right, I'm wondering if
there is any different way that you're kind of conceptualizing
(32:10):
your work or reconsidering some things kind of given the
current climate.
Speaker 4 (32:15):
Yeah, something that I've done for a while now is
just make sure I'm not rushing to be the first
person to say something, or rushing to say something just
because it's going viral on this one day.
Speaker 2 (32:29):
There's a lot of creators who work well like that.
I just don't who are able to hop on same
day as something happens and just like give their feedback
and speak to the audience to keep them informed. But
that boundary setting is also for me, yeah, to only
come on Fridays. But something else that I think I
(32:52):
have to do on top of that right now, because
there's so much happening and you just need a second
to figure out how do I even summarize all this?
What are the key points that need to be taken away?
Because it's also why comedy has been important in my
series throughout, because we got to have something to balance
out the bad. You know, our people we laugh to
keep from crying. Laughter is the best medicine and all
(33:13):
the phrases that have become core to our culture. But
it's just also necessary to keep us going. I am
dealing in hope. I'm not dealing in resilience. And while
I think resilience is extremely necessary in times like these,
(33:37):
I'm searching for something new, something fresh, because what I
don't want is for our people to enter another movement
hardening themselves and have nowhere to put it. So, yeah,
i haven't found all of my words for it yet,
(33:57):
but I'm trying to leave resilience where she's at.
Speaker 1 (34:01):
Yeah, that you made that such an important distinction, right, Yeah,
but we shouldn't stop at resilience, I think, is what
you're saying. Yeah. So one of the things that I
was super inspired by when we worked on the panel
together at Spelman was how many students I think you
inspire it, right, and like, how many people you are
now a career like, oh, career day Like I want
(34:21):
to follow in her path. So what would you say
to the young women who have been inspired by all
the doors that you have opened up? What kinds of
things would you say to them?
Speaker 2 (34:30):
I would say to them, good news is there should
be a lot more answers by the time that you
get here, because it was woods and we took a
machete and an axe and we just carved this path
like we figured out what's what this was, because I
hadn't really seen it done before the way that I
wanted to do it. But I would make sure that
(34:50):
they understand that as many influencers that have these courses
and starter packs and what you need to do, one
thing no one's lying about is that authenticity piece. You
will not be able to grasp an audience without authenticity,
and so you really have to make sure. You might
want to follow my footsteps, but you have to do
(35:12):
it your way. You cannot follow my formula. I hate
to tell you, not that I don't think that you
could do it well, but it's not for you to
do well. Like you have to have your own stamp
and you have to be passionate about that thing. You
have to have your own boundaries because this is an
(35:32):
industry that could take a lot out of you. People
think that because it seems to them that you're just
setting up your phone and a ring light or whatever
the tech is the next time that it's easy to
do and that you can do it like a pack mule.
You can't. You still need routine, you still need flow,
you still need scheduling, you still need an organization. An
organization seems like such a work or discipline focused thing,
(35:57):
but it's also for your self care. I'm planning a
second nap after this. I scheduled that nap and then
I'll get up and I'll do more things. But you
have to organize your rest as well. And those are
the best things that I will say. Because technology is
also changing even as we speak, so who's to say what?
(36:18):
But it doesn't have to be on Instagram. It can
obviously be a podcast. You can do YouTube, you can
do what's that other one discord. There's so many different
apps that have the opportunity to be monetized, and if
you're paying attention to what's doing, what's fresh, it might
(36:38):
be the opportunity for you to get in early. So
don't always think that you have to get a piece
of what seems to be the most popular thing. You know.
Speaker 1 (36:50):
Yeah, so so much of what you said to Dayly
Nay really sounds like it comes from a place of
you just being very grounded and like connected to self, right,
Like the the things that I need, Like I know
this about myself, and I think that that can be
really hard, especially in today's world where there's such go
go go, And like, I think it really encourages like
this disconnection with self. What kinds of things have helped
(37:12):
you to stay still enough so that you can formulate
that connection.
Speaker 2 (37:19):
Stillness is new to me. I did just go antique
shopping and found a nice little chair inside table for
my patio, and I sit out there. I think meditation
is necessary. I think writing is necessary, journaling. I've started
over the Artist's Way several times, haven't gotten past chapter one,
(37:42):
but I am doing morning pages every day, and that's
just three pages of free thought. They've turned into praise
for me. So that's also just time I spend it spiritually,
but making sure I'm getting that guidance. I'm always a
student as well. I'm always a student. I don't wish
to be the smartest person in the room. Listen and
I'm observant. I sit back and I glean, and I
(38:04):
take what's for me, what feels good, and I put
down what doesn't feel good. We don't have to adapt
to formulas for other people's success, but you should expose
yourself to the ways in which people go about different things,
just so you can begin to try on the path
(38:25):
of what might work for you and understand that sometimes
it's going to be terrible. Sometimes it's not going to
make sense. But that's part of the trial and error
till you figure out you it's a journey.
Speaker 1 (38:41):
I love that. So what would you say to eighteen
year old Renie?
Speaker 2 (38:46):
Eighteen year old Renee? What was she giving?
Speaker 3 (38:51):
Girl?
Speaker 2 (38:53):
I've been watching my mouth then I guess no. Oh okay, girl,
just wait on it. You feel teddies hole, it's really you.
Just give yourself two seconds. It's okay, baby. You don't
need all of this. These people who are not your
friends are not your friends. And you know that. And
she she definitely wanted to give the friendship and the
(39:14):
love that she was missing. And what I would tell
her most is to give that to you. And as
soon as you start giving that to you, you are
about to blossom. You're about to flourish, and it's not
gonna be nothing nobody can tell you, and you will
be unstoppable. Yeah, that's what I love that. Love that.
Speaker 1 (39:33):
That's a message for all of us eighteen years old
or not, so, where can we stay connected with you?
Speaker 2 (39:41):
Lennee?
Speaker 1 (39:41):
How do we find out about all the new news
that you're gonna be announcing. What's your website as well
as any social media channels you'd like to share?
Speaker 2 (39:48):
Well, Instagram is just where everything comes from, So just
make sure you're following that Instagram that is l y
n ae v A n ee and just stay tuned
because is coming and it's coming very soon.
Speaker 1 (40:04):
Show to include all of that in the show notes.
Thank you so much for spending some time today. I
really enjoyed you. Of course, I'm so glad Lynne was
able to join you for this conversation. To learn more
about her and her work, be sure to visit the
show notes at Therapy for Blackgirls dot com, slash tvgu
(40:24):
and don't forget to text this episode to two of
your girls right now. Did you know? You can leave
us a voicemail with your questions for the podcast. If
you want to suggest the topic or movie or book
for us to discuss, please send them to us. Drop
us a message at Memo dot fm, slash Therapy for
Black Girls and let us know what's on your mind.
You might just talk about it on the podcast. If
(40:47):
you're looking for a therapist in your area, visit our
therapist directory at Therapy for Blackgirls dot com slash directory.
This episode was produced by Elise Ellis and Tyrie Rush.
Editing was done by Dennison Bradford. Thank y'all so much
for joining me for this episode of TBGU. I look
forward to continuing this conversation with you all real soon.
(41:08):
Take good care,
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