Lean on Me: A Conversation with Q the Messager’s Dad

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Season 6 kicks off with a special guest: Anthony Gillon, Q the Messager’s father, in town to celebrate Lil Q’s graduation. The father-son duo opens the episode with a soulful rendition of Bill Withers’ “Lean on Me.” Shane the Brain drops an old-school motorcycle quote—“Some people rarely drift over the line. I do not envy them”—and the crew dives into a wide-ranging conversation that hits deep and funny.

They discuss Eminem as the Great White Hope, debate whether 50 Cent surviving nine gunshots was luck or skill, and celebrate Shane’s one-year-old daughter Maddy saying “I love you” for the first time in both speech and sign language. Q reflects on a recent accident where Lil Q got rear-ended, while his father tells the hilarious story of Q getting kicked out of the school district in elementary school.

Shane tosses adjectives at Anthony for a rapid-fire yes/no assessment of Q, and Anthony drops wisdom about character: “If you’ll lie, you’ll cheat.” Wilt Chamberlain even gets quoted: “If I say a mouse can pull a house, hook ‘em up.”

Anthony shares a powerful perspective on integrating into a white school at age 12 in 1977, attending class on Georgia Tech’s campus and seeing a new world of possibilities. For the first time ever, Kevin the Boss Man Richardson joins in with a live mic, contributing insight on minority enrollment in college.

This episode is funny, honest, reflective, and full of hope for the future—and it sets the tone for a powerful season ahead.

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