Unmasking Stephen Jackson: From NBA Star to Devoted Family Man

What does it entail to be a true man of influence? Unmask the inspiring journey of former NBA star, Stephen Jackson, as he gracefully transitions from a public figure to a devoted family man. Hear Stephen's candid conversations on his commitment to utilize his influence not for personal gain, but for the betterment of others. As someone who doesn’t claim the title of an activist, his actions narrate a different story. Meet the real Stephen Jackson, who values his family, relationships, and self-care as much as he does his passion for basketball.

Fatherhood comes with its fair share of trials and tribulations, and Stephen Jackson is no stranger to this fact. He shares his experiences, the lessons learned from past mistakes, and his determined journey towards being an active and present father. Listen as he talks about the challenges he faced during his NBA years—striving to ensure his presence was felt by his children, even when work kept him away. Relationships are at the center of his narrative—whether as a father, a husband, or a friend. Pull up a chair and join us for an enlightening conversation with Stephen Jackson as he unveils the man behind the famous facade, sharing wisdom and life lessons from his personal and professional journey.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to Relationships Matter, the
podcast.
I am Chanel Scott.

Speaker 2 (00:04):
And I am Josh Powell.

Speaker 1 (00:06):
We have a very special guest here with us today
, Mr Stephen Statt JacksonWelcome.

Speaker 3 (00:12):
Thanks for having me.
I'm glad to be here.

Speaker 1 (00:13):
We're excited to have you Overdo.

Speaker 2 (00:16):
Well overdue, well overdue, well overdue.
My brother man, super gratefulto have you here.
I'm gonna start with the easyquestion first the man, the
husband, the father, theactivist, the businessman, the
hooper, the game changer.

(00:38):
But outside of all of that, whois Stephen Jackson?

Speaker 3 (00:46):
I love all those titles.
I took activists out Because Idon't want to diminish the work
that Tameka, matter and thosepeople do every weekend, every
day.
I was in situational.
I was in situational.
I had to ride for a closefriend Same thing I do for you,
so I don't consider thatactivism.
They really do some real workthat I wouldn't want to
disrespect by saying I'm equalas them are, can have the same
title.

(01:06):
You know what I mean, but Iappreciate it For me.
I'm somebody who Emotions.
I wear my emotions on my sleeve.
You know how I'm feeling by myface, but I just can't hide the
way I feel because I'mpassionate about my opinions.
I'm passionate about people.

(01:27):
I'm passionate about doingright, seeing people doing right
.
I'm passionate about standingup for people when they're
getting bullied.
I'm passionate about a lot ofthings that people with success
wouldn't normally speak on,especially publicly, and I'm
somebody who stands up for allraces.

(01:48):
But I'm pro-black than amotherfucker.
You know what I'm saying.
Excuse my language, but that'sjust who I am.
I just love heart in so manydifferent ways and a lot of
different aspects that peoplewon't understand, because I can
be a basketball player one day.
Then I can be in a neighborhoodgiving back to 29 states on my

(02:09):
own dime, then I can show up ona do-it-pick podcast and I can
go coach a basketball.
I can do all these things.
So I never limit it myself, butI always lead with my heart and
I think that's why the favor ofGod has always protected me to
continue to be successful.
So it ain't really nothing I'mdoing besides believing in
myself.
I'm just relying on that favorto continue to protect me,
because I made a lot of mistakeswhere I shouldn't even been

(02:31):
here, as you know.
So just that favor.
I'm just trying to continue towake up every day and show how I
deserve these blessings,because I know I could have
messed it up a long time ago.

Speaker 2 (02:41):
No, absolutely.
And a beautiful response and Ilove how you framed it and how
you talked about what you do forso many others.
But what does stack do forstack?
You know what I'm saying.
What are the things that you'redoing to grow, to elevate as we
transition into relationships,because the biggest relationship

(03:05):
is with yourself, right?

Speaker 3 (03:07):
You know what?
That's a good question, bro.
I spend so much time with otherpeople I can't even answer that
, to be honest, because my whole, especially as a man like if
you are a protecting provider,you might go walk out the house
one day and see some people thatyou just bump into, but you're

(03:28):
going to take on a role.
Yeah, I'll do this for you, noteven knowing you're taking on
another role as a man, justtrying to help somebody else,
and we do that a lot, and Ithink that's a good question.
But I think I'm caught up inthat Because I don't do nothing
for myself besides pray.
I think that's the only thing Ido for myself.

Speaker 2 (03:47):
What up bro?

Speaker 3 (03:49):
That's a good question.
I think I'm so focused on thepeople that's relying on me.
You know what I'm saying my mom, I just lost my little brother
and my little sister back in theback months at the end of last
year.
So I'm seeing so many people mybrother's wife, his kids.
I'm seeing so many people goingthrough it, and you know what

(04:11):
I'm saying and like God hasreally blessed me, bro, so I'm
just trying to be there for them.
You know what I'm saying.
I ain't had time to that's agood question, Bob.
I've never been asked that Ican't answer.
I wouldn't even lie to you.
I can't answer because I don'tknow what I do for myself
besides pray.

Speaker 2 (04:25):
Yeah, the reason why I ask?
Because I feel like there's somany men that's in your position
, right, we rip and we run andwe chase and we doing all these
things for everybody else andthen we don't eat.
You know what I mean.
And when you look up,especially us as black men, it's
like our life expectancy isgetting lower and lower and
lower.
And that's the reason why I askyou know what I mean, because

(04:46):
you so so much love to so manypeople, bro, but, like, what is
that really doing?
Have taken a break to justfocus, like man, what am I doing
for me?
You know what I mean.
That's not related to pouringinto someone else or another
situation, so that's why Iwanted to give you that.
Maybe it's something we can tapinto later on as we keep moving

(05:08):
in this conversation.

Speaker 3 (05:09):
Yeah, because I can't answer that, bro, and you know,
maybe that's something I needto do because I know it ain't
material.
You know what I'm saying?
It has to be something else,because I don't have dance, I
don't Word.

Speaker 2 (05:20):
Absolutely.

Speaker 1 (05:21):
Absolutely.
Well, I have a question.
As you pour into so many otherpeople, who's pouring into you?

Speaker 3 (05:27):
My family.
I have a strong support system.
I can't even lie, I got astrong support system.
You know we all, like I said,we all going through it right
now as far as losing my littlebrother and my little sister.
But I've always had a closefamily, like my mom and her
sisters.
They get together everySaturday, cook.
So I was able to go home thispast weekend and see my family

(05:47):
and friends.
So but I mean as a man and youknow, as being a breadwinner to
a family, people, especially afamily, they don't want to
overstep.
So you could, I could,definitely use more support, but
as a man you don't ask for thatBecause you know that's kind of
like showing the sign ofweakness.
And why do you feel that way?
Because my grandfather neverdid it, so I.

(06:09):
So I follow his footsteps.
That's why I'm so I got hisname, jesse Jackson.
That's my middle name, that'shis name, jesse Jackson.
So I seen him open the firstbusiness, a restaurant for my
family.
I seen him raise seven kids andeight grandkids all in one
house.
You know, I've seen him thestrongest man possible.
My grandmother died in the 80s.

(06:32):
She's never had a job at drovea car.
My grandfather took care of herwhole life.
So I've seen what a man can doand what a man's supposed to do
Right, and he did.
It made it look easy.
So I've been able to do that.
You know what I'm saying.
It's been ups and downs but forthe most part I made it look
easy, bro, and that's all youknow.
It wants to get going back tothe favor of God dog.

(06:52):
So I it's, it's, it's just metrying to try my best to follow
the footsteps of somebody who Iknow is righteous right, because
there's so many examples I hadnot to follow, especially today.
I know somebody who I know wasrighteous, who went to church
every day, who got up everymorning and prayed, and him and

(07:13):
my grandmother said everyone,and they grant you a name and
they pray every morning.
So that's what I've seen.
So I'm just trying to eventhough I'm not close to him, you
know, get emotional, I'm notclose to him, but I'm trying my
best to follow the footsteps.

Speaker 1 (07:28):
Well, you were recently married, right.

Speaker 3 (07:30):
I got married.
This will be.
You'll be two years in December.

Speaker 1 (07:32):
Okay, and being a professional basketball player,
like, how did you know that thiswoman was the one for you?

Speaker 3 (07:39):
For trial and error.
Okay, so many mistakes.
Talk about that I have sevenkids by five different women and
you know I would honestlywouldn't be a man if I wouldn't
say three of those situationswent wrong because I was living
the wrong life.
Right, just mistakes I learnedfrom being young, coming from

(08:01):
nothing and having everythingand not being taught you know,
not having a father figure inthe house of what to expect.
I made those mistakes and I'mglad I made them, because you
know what I'm saying.
I'm glowing now, but thosemistakes hurt a lot of people.
It includes me, you know.
Not being able to be there, Ididn't live with none of my kids
except my youngest.

(08:22):
But my two of my kids I raised.
My two oldest I raised untilthey mom, until I started making
money and she took them from meand because she wanted a child
support, and so I ended up.
That ended up severing myrelationship with my two oldest,
where my birthday was onSeptember 2nd and 4th.
And this out of therelationship is, you know, I'm

(08:43):
always keeping real with you.
The one my second youngest.
She just turned 23.
She kind of her mom kind ofturned on me her whole life.
But I still been there, I stillbe around, I still do what I
can, but her sister that livesin the same house, the oldest
daughter, is my best friend.
So that bothers me.
I don't understand where thatwent wrong.

(09:03):
You know what I'm saying.
I don't understand how thatwent wrong.
I'm raising both of y'all, buthow the?
So you know I'm still dealingwith the relationships with one
out of my seven.
I have two boys, one freshmanat Arizona mother, son is a
senior high school.

(09:24):
But I just learned a lot, man.
I made a lot of mistakes and Iown up to them, because I don't
ever want my kids to think thatI'm demeaning their mothers in a
way when I speak about thethings that I've done for them.
Right, because a lot of timesnot being there they'll make it
seem like you're totally absent,when that's not true, because

(09:49):
the same reason for my absenceis the money that you wanted.
Right, Because a lot of thosesituations, you know, even with
my wrong, a lot of thosesituations came to a head with
evilness and that's, just beinghonest, one more than you
deserve.
And I think for my kids it hurtthem a lot, you know.

(10:14):
But I stayed at it.
I kept paying child supporteven though I wasn't there, and
I learned a lot, you know Ilearned a lot.
I kept doing my job.
It was frustrating and whenpeople don't know, not even
women, but bad parents canperiod, don't know how that
hurts a parent who's actuallytrying.
Right, I lived five minutesfrom my father till I was 15,

(10:38):
never came to my house, nevernothing.
So I didn't wanna be that.
You know what I mean.
Even though I wasn't with them,I made sure that my presence
was felt.
So now today I'm going on twoyears maybe I've been with my
wife for going on 10 years andshe has a daughter who's in her
first year of college, who I'veraised since she was in fifth
grade and I got everything rightwith her.

(11:00):
My nine year old scholar, asyou know.
I got everything right with herbecause I made so many mistakes
in the past that I own up toI'm not running from, and so if
I had to make those mistakes andbe an idiot the time I was in
the NBA to be a great father nowto the ones that I have a
relationship with now, Iwouldn't change it.
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (11:20):
When we get back.
I wanna talk about you knowthat transition because you
spoke about your experiences.
But as we know, brother,because we're athletes and we
see a lot what went into youpicking your partner.
So we'll talk about that whenwe get back.
Relationships matter.

(11:40):
The podcast.

Speaker 3 (11:43):
Okay, we're clear, you're almost aiming.

Speaker 1 (11:48):
Oh, so much, it's an asset.