May 14, 2024 • 62 mins
The iconic Lynn Whitfield joins the ladies of Lip Service to promote The Chi! Lynn opens up about the trials and tribulations of her two marriages, why she was afraid to have a daughter first, why she wasn't the first choice to cast as Josephine Baker, and much more. Lynn even details her experiences at Magic City. Enjoy!
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
What's up and slip service. I'm Angela Yee, I'm Jiji.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
Maguire, I'm Laura Mura, I'm Jordan Manuel.
Speaker 3 (00:08):
And dovelin' wodfield.
Speaker 4 (00:12):
Me.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
This is not a time field us, y'all. Yes, well,
first of all, live with Field. Thank you so much
for joining. Honestly, this is very iconic for us to
have you here. So we're going to be respectful, but
we're still gonna get all in your business.
Speaker 3 (00:27):
I know, I don't trust, very respectful. Trusted. We're gonna see,
she said.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
I know where I'm at, but I know you can
handle it, you know, just from watching you on the screen.
One thing that we want to start with, and this
is a little icebreaker for us, just for us to
tell a little bit about ourselves, is a time that
we have brandied, okay, and so a situation in our life,
just like Brandy from a thin Line, where we've been brandying. Now, Jordan,
(00:56):
I know first, okay, No, I gotta think about that.
What about you, gg what's some crazy?
Speaker 5 (01:01):
The first thing that comes to mind is when I
knocked the hookah over on the table and the coles
went flying onto people.
Speaker 1 (01:07):
It was that for one of your parties.
Speaker 3 (01:09):
Oh oh, I feel like somebody like really upset you.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, ask her about it.
Speaker 3 (01:15):
You did it. I knocked it and I intentionally knocked
over the You intentionally did it.
Speaker 5 (01:19):
I pushed it over and it was like a long
table full of people and the hookah was at the end,
and I like pushed it down the table like bowling,
like a bowling ball, just knocking everything over.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
And I'm coulda set a fire. It could have hurt people.
Speaker 5 (01:32):
It was very bad. So if you had it to
do over again, would you do I would not do
it again.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
You would not do it. You know there are people
that did that. You would not do it again.
Speaker 5 (01:39):
There are literally people that hate my stinking guts because
I did that. Oh really Yeah, somebody got burned and
she hates me forever. Oh I'm sorry you burned somebody that.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
Oh they're finding out new things. That was yes, all right, okay, okay, Laura,
the time you've brandied, I keep the escalator. Come on,
wait what you're stolen?
Speaker 2 (01:59):
Say?
Speaker 1 (02:02):
Kept it? Okay?
Speaker 3 (02:04):
Yep?
Speaker 6 (02:05):
Right at the game on the spot he was at
with the other girl, whoa.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
Some people may make you pay for that.
Speaker 6 (02:11):
Oh he knew not to okay, like key, I ran
after and he knew it was He knew it.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
Was me, okay, And what did he say after that?
Speaker 2 (02:22):
Why would you do that? I told you I wasn't
with nobody else. I was like, yeah, whatever, just go
get it fixed.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
Oh my goodness.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
Yeah he deserved it all right.
Speaker 7 (02:34):
Mine still doesn't know that this happened.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
But I guess.
Speaker 7 (02:37):
I guess this is or doesn't know it was me,
So I don't know if I want to blow up
my spy.
Speaker 3 (02:42):
I don't.
Speaker 7 (02:43):
Ever, there was an egging situation, the egging situation, same guy, okay,
but there was an egging moment with all the cars,
and unfortunately my homegirl, who also had an ex at
the same.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
Party, got the blame of it.
Speaker 7 (02:58):
Yeah, but they knew I was there, so you know,
I claim my business. But yeah, but the other one.
Speaker 1 (03:04):
Is sorry, let me see what did I do? I've
done like little things one time. I'm definitely the type
of person. I found out my boyfriend was cheating on
me and I the girl he was cheating with was
engaged to somebody, and I sent all the the proof
to her, the proof to the fiance via Facebook. Sure,
that's just journalism. Yeah, that's journalism.
Speaker 6 (03:26):
They did.
Speaker 1 (03:26):
They actually did end up still getting married, but I'm
sure he probably felt away. Still, Yes, you know what
about you in real life?
Speaker 4 (03:34):
Oh no, Well see that's the great thing about being
an access I can act out and not get put
in jail.
Speaker 1 (03:41):
But listen, that's not illegal. But is there a time
you have gone crazy in a relationship? I mean, you've
been in this business since a young, young, young age, yes,
and you've seen a lot.
Speaker 4 (03:50):
And well, here's the thing I wouldn't say over. I'm
not a vindictive person. I'm just more I used to
be just more emotional. If it came up, it came
out right.
Speaker 3 (04:04):
And so it wasn't just with a guy.
Speaker 4 (04:07):
Usually I wouldn't make a guy feel that he was
important enough for me to like you really like that really,
But it's through a lot of psychologies, you know, working
through things, because all that comes from rage.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
Because when we do stuff like that, it's not even.
Speaker 4 (04:26):
That we're that mad, we're that hurt where that hurt
and the hurt turns to like the anger thing and
rage and then we have a tantrum.
Speaker 3 (04:35):
Right, So I used to have tantrums. I mean, you know, okay,
I have turned over a few tables.
Speaker 4 (04:50):
I mean no, but that happens to be really, you know,
easy because you don't even have to, like you just.
Speaker 6 (04:56):
It wasn't a table, and it just yeah, look, I'm
not gonna feel a muscle trying to get.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
Mad as some fuck. You know, you can just tip
it in. It's gone. So but that was really really a.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
Lot younger, because I find that it takes more well
what do you all think? I feel like that kind
of rage and anger it takes more away from.
Speaker 3 (05:17):
You than it gives to you. Yes, you know, it
might feel good in that moment.
Speaker 5 (05:21):
In that moment, but the repercussings and consequences never feel good.
Speaker 1 (05:25):
I think that's a younger.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
Yeah, I was twenty one.
Speaker 1 (05:27):
As you get older, you're not supposed to twenty Yeah she.
Speaker 3 (05:30):
Was twenty one. Don't be scared of anybody who like
has an eye on her. Now she would I would never.
Speaker 6 (05:35):
Do that now, Like, yeah, it was too many cameras.
I'll go home and cry, just cry about it everyone.
Speaker 3 (05:43):
Might you know my phrase? No, next, just that part's
all move on?
Speaker 5 (05:49):
Like why what our feelings get involved? Because you know,
you can't feel anger and rage without having having had
filt some type of love right, well exactly so, but
that's between love and hay is it was.
Speaker 4 (06:07):
It's a saying for years and years and years and
years and years a song. It's a song and they
even made a song about it because it's passion. So
when you feel passionate about someone, it can't even be
your best.
Speaker 3 (06:22):
Friend or a friend.
Speaker 4 (06:23):
When you know you love it that that is the
person who can push you off the.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
Most heart the word really really really, so it's passion,
you know.
Speaker 4 (06:34):
So one first, I think we can celebrate that we're
deeply feeling people, and then I think it's like, okay,
what are you really going to do with.
Speaker 3 (06:41):
This if it's not quite how you want it to be?
Speaker 4 (06:44):
And how you know, how you're going to manage that
part because it's not so much the thing, but how
we manage it, you know.
Speaker 1 (06:54):
I feel like, and tell me, if you think this
is true, you feel like you've been destined for this
life that you had, because even from early on, it's like, yes,
stuff hit I do.
Speaker 4 (07:06):
I think some people are lucky enough that you get
your purpose gets deposited in your spirit. And I just
kind of always knew because I was watching those movies
at home, and you know, people were glamorous and they
would make me cry.
Speaker 3 (07:20):
They would make me laugh.
Speaker 4 (07:22):
I could go through a whole range of life experience,
you know, and I just always knew that this is
what I wanted to do, and I thought maybe I
would have talent at it.
Speaker 3 (07:33):
But then I studied it, you know, at Howard and
then with other.
Speaker 4 (07:39):
I know I do, but but you know, yeah, it's
a blessing when you kind of know what you want
to do early on.
Speaker 1 (07:52):
Now this is a real uncensored because we've seen your
TV one uncensored. Yes, but this is a different type
of uncensored.
Speaker 3 (07:58):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (07:58):
How is it in relationships turning on and off? You know,
the acting? Because sometimes people think that you could be
acting when you're in a relationship with them, and maybe
sometimes you kind of are like, how does that work
for you?
Speaker 3 (08:11):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (08:12):
No, I wish that I could act in relationships. I
wish that I was that person, the contrivant, you know,
to be kind of to act out in a relationship
you're talking about male female.
Speaker 3 (08:26):
Yeah, I'm not good at it.
Speaker 4 (08:28):
If we hung out and we found out a few times, yeah,
I kind of like need the truth in my world,
and I think that's the kind of acting that I do.
I think it comes from an honest place. But I
have I can't tell you the number of times back
in the day and even forward now then I'll be
(08:49):
at dinner with somebody, out with somebody and they're like, well,
you know, I don't know I should just before because
you know, but I don't think you could like act
that crazy if you.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
So people believe it, so you know, they believe it.
Speaker 4 (09:08):
But the thing is is that the acting part right,
part of the work of acting, and it's not just
for the you know, the glory and this and that,
and there's a lot of perks that come along with it.
But I take it as a responsibility, like in a
service gig, because I think that you have to take
seriously when you're presenting truths about people. Because if I'm representing,
(09:31):
like a lot of black women will say you represent
us so, well, well that's a you know, that's something
we're to be taken seriously and we are to be
believed and whatever the journey is, you know, it's my
job to shed some light on it, you know, whether
it's good or bad or different, but to share the
truth of who we are, So I can't sell it
(09:53):
out just to be cute and kind of be acting,
you know.
Speaker 1 (09:59):
Trust like you know in relationships. But I will say, well.
Speaker 3 (10:02):
Back to that, no, people a lot of that meant.
But that would be an insecure.
Speaker 2 (10:08):
Like is she like they'd be like, is she really
enjoying us?
Speaker 4 (10:12):
Well, that's you don't know, if right, If you don't know,
if you're not more incommings screaming a little too, you're
not more in command of yourself. If you can't know
who you are and what you can do and what
you're capable of man how to do what you do,
then what can I do about that?
Speaker 3 (10:31):
I can't, you know.
Speaker 1 (10:32):
I have love limit Field for a long time now
playing Josephine Baker. Also, my grandmother's name is Josephine. Oh,
so I've always felt like that connection. So I love
like just that name also. But that was amazing for
you do take things like that with you, like, because
that's the road you really had to get into. Yeah,
you know, that's not something that is like all right,
(10:55):
that's a real person like that. You have to study
what actually happened, you know in there.
Speaker 4 (11:00):
I'll tell you what I took one of the things
I took from Josephine Baker. If you go back and
look at it, there was a time when she lost everything.
She lost her house and they took her out of
our house and a hair by it and barefoot in
a quilted robe. I sat out on it that I
was like, oh my god, I never want this to
(11:24):
happen to me.
Speaker 3 (11:25):
I carried the.
Speaker 4 (11:26):
Fear of poverty, of making bad mistakes. And the funny
thing is is when you carry fear about something, you
often draw it to you. Oh look, y'all, we got
an amen can off. It's not even lady, may we
just talking like, you know what I mean. So I
(11:48):
think I brought some bad financial choices to myself from
the fear.
Speaker 1 (11:53):
Okay, you know what. I'm gonna say this too. For
a lot of people who don't come from money, it
is really a fear like when you start getting sound,
you know, you are so scared to like make the
right decisions because we're always scared that it's not going
to work out or that it could go away at
any moment.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
Right.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
That's how I feel like with everything that I do,
I'm always like I got to prepare it because just
in case I lose everything, I'm gonna make sure that
I always have a place to live, or like I
make decisions.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
That's a safer but that's a safer route than the
other route, which is this got started and it's never
going to go away, right, And so I think there's
a lot of that kind of thinking too.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
What do you ladies think I have fear?
Speaker 6 (12:36):
Like I feel like in this time right now in
my life, everything is that I've ever wanted is right there.
But I'm so used to being indecisive and making choices,
not thinking about myself, thinking about everything else that I'm
now like, oh my god, everything I want is right here.
Speaker 3 (12:53):
If you're not thinking about what are you thinking about?
Speaker 1 (12:57):
Fair imposter syndrome?
Speaker 6 (12:58):
Thing that fear that I I don't deserve it or
I'm gonna mess it up. I don't like.
Speaker 4 (13:04):
Fear is a bitch, and it is just the device
of obstruction and what I call I don't want to
scare people, but I do call it darkness.
Speaker 3 (13:15):
Okay, don't get scared.
Speaker 4 (13:16):
It's that's okay, It's just energy that is and and
but it's amazing what we what we do to ourselves.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
Right especially as women.
Speaker 7 (13:26):
I think, yes, it's a habit of women and society
kind of pushing us on to not going after what
we actually want and having to stay within this box
and stay within reach.
Speaker 4 (13:37):
And you know, I was at jazz Fest last week
and I was walking, you know, and there's lots of people,
and you go to the stages and Earth when fire
was killing it and just pat.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
Killed were killed.
Speaker 4 (13:55):
It was amazing, but it was so funny, like you're
walking and you know, lots of people and the number
of women, black, white, pink, purple who said I'm sorry,
like they walk in front of you, I'm sorry, excuse me,
I'm sorry. I was like, what is everybody apologizing for?
Speaker 3 (14:19):
Crazy?
Speaker 4 (14:20):
And I could see myself in it, and I could
see other people in my family in it. I was like,
why why are all the women apologizing?
Speaker 3 (14:31):
Men would just look hying and hearing and it's like,
I'm sorry, excuse me to me what?
Speaker 4 (14:37):
Oh oh wait, I'm sorry so many.
Speaker 1 (14:41):
Times b watch out.
Speaker 4 (14:45):
You know, a sense of entitlement, like I'm supposed to
be here and so I'm learning still because I'm a
work in progress. Y'all may look at IMDb and say,
oh lord, she must know it all lies.
Speaker 3 (14:58):
Lies. I'm such a work in progress.
Speaker 4 (15:01):
But I mean the information that we feed ourselves is
so key because often we just do it ourselves.
Speaker 1 (15:07):
Well, you know you said that you like when it
came to financial decisions early on, you didn't make the
best ones. No, so tell me, like some things that
you learned along the way.
Speaker 4 (15:17):
I would just put it off, right, I would put
off gathering those re seats.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
I would put off like.
Speaker 4 (15:24):
I would put off like actually finding out and actually
seeking counsel, Like is this a wise thing for me
to do right now? Is it wise for me to
stay in the south of France for six weeks? But no,
but no, but you know, not wanting so, And that
was something that Josephine did, right, Yes he did. It's
like I don't I don't want to know it's all
(15:46):
going to work out, right, you know what's me right now?
And we're in and you know, it's like we're invincible,
like we don't hurt, Like we'll work and we'll make
it right.
Speaker 3 (15:55):
We'll fix it.
Speaker 4 (15:56):
And then when it gets down to I mean, okay,
I didn't not go for the trap of the five
thousand dollars perse that was never the choice that I
would make. I have to say that, no, so, you know,
putting off the reality of where I was, not wanting
to know where I was because I wanted to do
what I wanted to do. And I think and I
(16:18):
think that was the biggest That is the biggest, That
was my biggest flaw. And so then the results that
come from all of that can be so messy, so catastrophe.
You got to go back pedal, fix it, clean it all,
why you know.
Speaker 1 (16:33):
So so that, yeah, people assume that you're rich too, always,
like even back then, just because you've had movies that
have been huge for a long time. And so after that,
understand how important, how how expensive it is to sustain
because you're expensive.
Speaker 3 (16:53):
There are I do I do, you know, I love that.
Speaker 4 (17:00):
Stuff, but I have I played a maid once once
one I play but she was really really great. It
was called Sophie and the Moon Hanger.
Speaker 3 (17:16):
But I don't know.
Speaker 4 (17:16):
After Josephine, I mean, I think that's a part of
the type guessing thing. After Josephine, people just always saw
me as this grand you know, you gotta that's.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
Not a bad thing. Though it's not bad.
Speaker 6 (17:29):
You have a rich look and yeah, like everything about
your energy. Yes, people say that, but I don't.
Speaker 3 (17:39):
I guess so, but that's not how I see it.
You know, I don't.
Speaker 4 (17:43):
I don't see well I do. Here's what I do know.
I'm entitled to be here. I am entitled to walk
this earth without full explanation of all of who I am.
And I really don't need to give a lot of
energy to things that you know, racism, sexism. You all
(18:05):
very rarely hear me complaining about all those things. You
might see me encouraging people to vote. You see me
doing some things, but I don't want to give them
all my space that they're important enough that you have
to talk about it all the time. So I think
I kind of try to. I just think I'm supposed
to be here.
Speaker 1 (18:22):
And you're from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Yes, which is I've
been there a few times, Yes, I have. I remember
the first time I went there, But after that I
did interview n Be a young boy, you know, So
I spent some time there while I was out in
Baton Rouge, and I hosted a party there. I was
there like a few times. How do you feel like
(18:43):
bat and Ruge has shaped who you are today and
what was that like?
Speaker 4 (18:47):
Well, I think the people who loved me, the women
who loved me, you know, the women who.
Speaker 3 (18:53):
My mother, my grandmother's, my aunt.
Speaker 4 (18:56):
All those people there she helped to shape me because
what was segregated in the South, and people don't quite
you know, get it, is that somehow there's still this
way that races coexist as long as they're not giving
each other a problem, you.
Speaker 3 (19:15):
Know, So it's cool.
Speaker 4 (19:17):
And so the black world that I grew up in,
everybody was the doctor, the lawyer of the Indian chief.
We had our own yards, our own land, our own homes.
So those people and that culture and that legacy, you know,
has just been with me always, right.
Speaker 3 (19:40):
So that's baton rouge. That's where I was. But now
New Orleans is with your daughter.
Speaker 1 (19:45):
In New Orleans amazing. Grace getson shout out to you.
Speaker 4 (19:49):
Yes, it was just at the Apollo Cafe last weekend,
so you couldn't come.
Speaker 3 (19:54):
But there's some other dates coming up and you gotta comment.
Speaker 1 (19:56):
Now she's a singer, she's amazing. I was embarrassed. Tell
her sorry, I was so drunk. We were good the
second time. I have no idea, but she definitely was.
Speaker 4 (20:07):
What she said, so sweet, it's New Orleans.
Speaker 3 (20:14):
It's New Orleans, right, you get drunk, drunk and eat.
Speaker 1 (20:20):
That's it, so you said, but New Orleans.
Speaker 3 (20:22):
Well New Orleans.
Speaker 4 (20:23):
I have this real cultural connection with New Orleans because
when I'm in New Orleans, you know, I feel Europe,
I feel Africa, you know, I feel a lack of
cultural judgment. Like people's cultures are respected there. Okay, even
the Irish, the Italian, the you know. So that's why
(20:47):
they have all those musical families, the Nevils, the Marsalises,
all of that. It's like a legacy of music and
culture that just continues to you go walk around.
Speaker 1 (20:59):
New Orleans and go for barta bar and just see
amazing live music. Like why does this person? Yeah yeah,
the kids outside, It's like it's like is this in
the air and the water that these kids, even from
a young age, just had like the ability favorite places
to visit. It's amazing.
Speaker 4 (21:19):
Trombone Shorties closed it because he closes out jazz Fest
every year. And I was backstage, like in his family section,
and this was this little girl. They were just wailing
on stage, and Cyril Neville and and troumbone shorty, and
this little girl had drumsticks and she was drumming on
the metal railings like killing it. And when trombone raised
(21:42):
his trumpets up, she raised up.
Speaker 3 (21:48):
To the family.
Speaker 1 (21:49):
You know what amazing place. It's very magical, Yes it is.
Speaker 4 (21:53):
You know, I can't imagine not having it. It fuels
me to be like a better artist, right, take more chances,
you know, and when you hear great music or you
see like interesting intuitive painting, it just makes me better,
you know, like art becomes a real expressionist, the expressionistic
(22:16):
part of acting.
Speaker 1 (22:18):
And exciting to have a daughter who is a musician also.
Speaker 4 (22:21):
So talented, and I am so glad and so founded
that I can really say that with gusto and mean it,
because I can't stand artistic mediocrity. So yeah, she's a
really great composer, bandleader, entertainer. She really had people in
(22:41):
the palm of her hand up there at the Pallo
Cafe this weekend.
Speaker 3 (22:44):
It was very we.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
See Grace.
Speaker 4 (22:48):
Yes, well, I think she has some dates coming up
here in New York.
Speaker 3 (22:52):
You know, we're gonna plan something.
Speaker 1 (22:55):
I would love to.
Speaker 3 (22:58):
Think it is so like not.
Speaker 4 (23:00):
The sweet, how sweet and who she is no, she's
it's a whole.
Speaker 3 (23:05):
Difference to get it from her.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
Mama.
Speaker 4 (23:07):
Know, you got say you got to stand at the
center of yourself when you're doing your art.
Speaker 3 (23:13):
I mean, like if you're not coming from.
Speaker 4 (23:16):
Day and below the gun and below is where all
the power is, and you got to use that in
your art.
Speaker 1 (23:24):
What was it like for you having a daughter while
you were in this business, like when you know, thinking
about like when you were married and then finding out
that you were having a baby and then having a girl.
What was that like?
Speaker 4 (23:36):
First of all, when I found out I was having
a girl, I cried.
Speaker 3 (23:40):
Really I.
Speaker 4 (23:42):
Boo hooed so hard. You seem like I was having
my makeup.
Speaker 3 (23:47):
I am a good mom, but.
Speaker 1 (23:48):
That's a girl mom. I see you with a girl
and a girl.
Speaker 3 (23:52):
Or a girl moa.
Speaker 4 (23:52):
But a makeup artist is doing my makeup. And the doctor.
Speaker 3 (23:57):
Said, when we have the results.
Speaker 4 (23:59):
The doctor was say, okay, back then, that's what they
would they would tell you, this is you're having a girl.
Speaker 2 (24:06):
My god, I have to grow up.
Speaker 4 (24:15):
It was bad because if it was a son of son,
it's always gonna.
Speaker 3 (24:20):
You know what I mean.
Speaker 1 (24:20):
I thought it would be like that would be easy.
Speaker 4 (24:22):
I would have to, you know, and those little girls
would be getting on his nerves, but Mama would always be.
But before I really took it seriously, and I was
in mourning for the first bit of time because I
would have to be a better, stronger woman. And I
just love being a little girl in a sandbox, acting
and telling stories and not having to, you.
Speaker 3 (24:45):
Know, grow up.
Speaker 5 (24:46):
Yes, I have a daughter, and you just I've never
thought about that. I mean, I heard it when I
was seventeen, so I was still growing up as but
like that just gives me a whole different perspective of
like the dynamic of being a girl mom. But you do,
and then we're both like she's grown, we're both grown.
Now that she's grown.
Speaker 6 (25:02):
It's just like, yeah, but even you did an amazing
job with your daughter.
Speaker 1 (25:06):
I think your daughter is amazing. I think you are amazed.
Like I was thinking.
Speaker 6 (25:10):
So, I have two boys, and I've always said I
wanted a girl. But I'm like, God knows what he does,
and he does. Everything happens for a reason for purpose,
and God gives you what's for you and what he
knows you can handle. Because baby girl at sixteen, me
with no mother, no auntie, No, none of that, and
a girl that would have been and even my second child,
I thought it was a girl in the style.
Speaker 2 (25:29):
I was like, I get a guy.
Speaker 3 (25:30):
We ain't ready.
Speaker 2 (25:30):
But now at forty, I'm like, I'm.
Speaker 1 (25:33):
Ready for a girl.
Speaker 2 (25:33):
Now, girl, I know what to tell you.
Speaker 4 (25:35):
Yes, well you better hurry up, darling taking that baby.
Speaker 6 (25:42):
My friend is having a girl and I told her,
I said, don't worry, I'll be the pabby. It's not
coming from this side. But I just feel like you
look so like you know what I say. I said,
God blessed me with youth because from the age of
sixteen I had to be a full grown adult with
no adults support, like on my own figure it out.
Speaker 2 (26:05):
So I dugged it out. I said, God, you're giving
me this.
Speaker 6 (26:09):
You're gonna get me through this, And he's really repaying
me back with everything I ever wanted. You see everything
I ever wanted, like all the fear and all of that.
Like I'm to a place now at forty where I'm like,
what are you scared for? Like you you you just
handled the toughest job that a female could be handled
at a young agen and it's a job right and
(26:34):
like you did it, and look where I'm at now.
I've never had to do anything that I regret. To
make sure my sons were taken care of. Money financing crazy,
but I have ethical and just integrity and just a
good person. And my boys are everything I raised amazing.
Speaker 1 (26:53):
I raised amazing.
Speaker 6 (26:55):
They're sensitive, they're emotional, they're strong, they're protectors, all of that.
I don't think at that age, with everything going on,
I would have been.
Speaker 1 (27:04):
Able to give that to her. You gave it to
I gave different.
Speaker 6 (27:09):
So everybody gets because, like I said, her daughter, I
think her daughter is amazing, you know, thank you. And
the way she's speaking about your daughter is amazing. So
you got yes.
Speaker 1 (27:19):
Lay, you're also the only person in here who's ever
been married. Oh yeah, just one time?
Speaker 3 (27:24):
By two times? Yes? What are you?
Speaker 1 (27:26):
That's not marriage now? Because I feel like people have
changed as far as like, you know, the like for
you when you first got married and the importance of marriage,
what was that like?
Speaker 3 (27:36):
Well, you know, I never really thought about marriage. The
first time I got married. It was to someone twenty
two years older than I was.
Speaker 4 (27:47):
He was a director and ran the DC Black Repertory Company,
taught he was my acting teacher.
Speaker 3 (27:55):
We I was in Howard University.
Speaker 4 (27:58):
My mother found out that I was spending more time
at his house than I spent in my dormitory. And
she called his house one morning, like at six am
in the morning, and I answered, I was like, and
she said, I never as long as I lived and
breathe thought that a Charla mine would be you know
(28:24):
those years and my mom was a Southern Belt but
could always use language like a sailor. And she let
go some expertives that were like and she was so upset.
I think she had a detective I think to know
where I was or something like that. And so that
we I loved Vantau Woodfield that's where Whitfield came from,
(28:47):
and it was great.
Speaker 3 (28:48):
He looked just like my dad.
Speaker 4 (28:49):
Beware when somebody looks like your dad, or when you
find the traits or something that there was something but
and I knew that I wouldn't be But I basically
got married because we loved each other.
Speaker 3 (29:03):
And he said, well, we'll just get married.
Speaker 4 (29:05):
I don't want, you know, to create this because my
mom was so upset.
Speaker 3 (29:10):
So that was why I'm married.
Speaker 1 (29:11):
So listen, We're going to get this, yes right and
make it right for mama. Yes, And how long did
that marriage lands?
Speaker 4 (29:19):
About five or six years because after I graduated from
I was still in college and he had an eight
year old son, and I was doing all that landswide
feel and after I graduated, I mean I wanted to
go to New York. He was running the National Endownment
for the Arts for giving money to you know, diverse
(29:39):
grants to people culture. So he was settling down and I.
Speaker 3 (29:44):
Was just, oh my god, I gotta go.
Speaker 4 (29:47):
I gotta like so we kind of always knew, right,
So that was the first time.
Speaker 3 (29:53):
And I was too young to give any marriage.
Speaker 1 (29:57):
What was so what was the proposal?
Speaker 3 (29:59):
Like?
Speaker 4 (30:00):
I was like, no, we'll just get married so that
they don't want they want to He said, don't worry.
Speaker 3 (30:05):
We really we really just.
Speaker 4 (30:07):
Really enjoyed each other's company. He was so kind, he
was so nurturing.
Speaker 1 (30:12):
That's good.
Speaker 4 (30:12):
But we did such great, you know work together, the
DC Black Repertory Company.
Speaker 3 (30:17):
So it was it was just a strange kindo. Huh,
it worked. It did work.
Speaker 1 (30:22):
It at the time.
Speaker 3 (30:24):
Yes, that was the first time.
Speaker 1 (30:26):
So how hard was it for you to be like, Okay,
this isn't working, Let's get a divorce. Was it just
a okay, we're cool, we agree.
Speaker 3 (30:33):
It's kind of like we understood. He understood that I
was just spreading my wings, right, and that he was
settling down because he was twenty two years older.
Speaker 1 (30:42):
And if he left you, he wanted you to go
and to do so.
Speaker 4 (30:45):
It was like a very When I look back on it,
I think it was probably the most generous kind of
relationship I've ever experienced.
Speaker 3 (30:55):
But I was too young to really appreciate. I just
knew I had to I had so much much to do.
Speaker 1 (31:01):
And was he hype when he saw you? In like
the movie rolls, Oh yes, because it's like this.
Speaker 4 (31:06):
Is absolutely absolutely he was so so so you.
Speaker 1 (31:10):
Can't go to New York and nothing.
Speaker 4 (31:14):
New York for a woman in New York and went
to Australia and ended up in Los Angeles with For
Colored Girls?
Speaker 1 (31:21):
Oh yes. And I just saw For Colored Girls on
Broadway when it was on bro I.
Speaker 3 (31:24):
Didn't get to see it, but a lot of the it.
Speaker 1 (31:26):
Came and went so fast. I was very upset about that.
Speaker 3 (31:29):
Could I enjoy it?
Speaker 1 (31:30):
I did?
Speaker 6 (31:31):
I say, Laura, you came first play? I took her
by first place, so thoroughly enjoyed. We cried the woods. Yes,
the woods was amazing. That were amazing, and the poetry
is so great. It's a story that lives for every cry.
Like I felt, every single was like are you crying?
Speaker 1 (31:54):
It was an emotional day. But when I say that
list forever. A lot of what you've done has lived
for us.
Speaker 4 (32:00):
I always wanted to be involved with class, with something
that would stand the test of time and.
Speaker 3 (32:05):
I and I'm very fortunate that there you know, a
few of them.
Speaker 1 (32:10):
Even think about ease by you.
Speaker 6 (32:11):
Everybody on that everyone has gone on to journey Magan.
Speaker 4 (32:18):
You know, Casey went on to direct Harriet and then
Whitney Houston and all that.
Speaker 3 (32:26):
So everybody continued on like.
Speaker 1 (32:29):
Who did you know that was going to be what
it was?
Speaker 3 (32:34):
I felt like it was really special.
Speaker 4 (32:36):
Yeah, and I felt I was very excited to do
it because I was inspired by my aunt who was married.
Speaker 1 (32:45):
To somebody that was philandering.
Speaker 4 (32:48):
Well you know, as I'm not I'm not going to
like go all into it, but my aunt, but but
but but a you know, an obgy and husband and
lots of things. But it was the way that people stay,
(33:08):
that women stay right and women didn't say. And it
was the period of time, you know, and I kept
asking Casey the director, please, she needs one scene where
she just you know, flips and lays him thin. And
she said, no, no, don't. You'll thank me later when
you see it. Your silence is more powerful. And I
(33:32):
really thought I was gonna have a stroke. It was
just so hard to you know, not, but she was right.
Speaker 1 (33:40):
Think about the power in staying with somebody who was
doing what he was doing and being silent about it.
It's kind of like the movie Fences too, the play
Fences when he done had a whole baby by somebody
else and she was like taking care.
Speaker 4 (33:53):
Of But those were choices that you know, women make choices,
you know, and what are we to judge if it
works out, because I've actually seen some of those relationships
that they work, they go and then they're happy that
they're together, you know, own canes and stuff together. Still,
you know, well, girl, everybody can't.
Speaker 3 (34:15):
Push the hoo could.
Speaker 6 (34:17):
Don't act like you ain't flip no.
Speaker 4 (34:24):
But some people choose, like I'd rather be here than there.
Speaker 3 (34:28):
I'm going to make the choice to stick this out.
But you know what, I.
Speaker 1 (34:31):
Do think I think that in the time period too,
as women are becoming independent with jobs making more than
our men two. At times we don't feel the necessity
because sometimes survival wise, yes, you feel.
Speaker 4 (34:45):
Like exactly exactly, well, there's that right, you have the
bank account, you have the job, you d have the
degree often or whatever. But some people still choose to
stay and work through it, and some people don't.
Speaker 1 (35:03):
It's a choice. It's a choice because sometimes people act
like you know, and gave up. If you don't stay,
if you're like I.
Speaker 4 (35:09):
Know, that gott to be a personal choice.
Speaker 1 (35:12):
And that's why I stay out of people's decisions. If
you ask me what I think, you know, I'm gonna
always be here.
Speaker 4 (35:18):
Almost any time I've ever waited on things like that,
I get myself in trouble.
Speaker 1 (35:22):
Yeah, and then they stay together, and then everybody looking
at you.
Speaker 4 (35:25):
And I need to just even if you say, they
don't go and then it ends up being horrible, you
know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (35:33):
It's just I learned just to support.
Speaker 2 (35:36):
I hear you, I'm listening, but right right here, right yeah.
Speaker 4 (35:41):
I went to this place where I did all raw
food and detox and you know, colonics, and really it
was as spiritual as it was anything else. And they
had classes as well, and this one class was called
compassionate listening.
Speaker 3 (35:58):
Like you just don't talk.
Speaker 4 (36:01):
You had to hear somebody tell you whatever they wanted
to tell you.
Speaker 3 (36:07):
That's hard.
Speaker 1 (36:08):
We all went silent when you said that.
Speaker 4 (36:11):
But the compassionate listening is listening from your heart but
not talking, not giving any advice, any opinion, nothing.
Speaker 3 (36:22):
It was really hard.
Speaker 4 (36:25):
It was for everyone but people, and you'd be surprised
at people.
Speaker 3 (36:32):
Some people came up with their own answers.
Speaker 4 (36:35):
They were so relieved just to get it out that
it didn't hurt us bad anymore, that they just to
have it out and to release compassionate listen. I had
no idea that that was just in August September that
I went into this, that I experienced.
Speaker 1 (36:51):
That, okay, And when at Arizona, where was it?
Speaker 4 (36:54):
It's into Ricos in Puerto Rico.
Speaker 1 (36:59):
I would love to do this than like me.
Speaker 3 (37:00):
It's called it and Wigmore Institute, and.
Speaker 1 (37:03):
That sounds fascinating and it's.
Speaker 3 (37:05):
All green and nothing tastes good food medicine just.
Speaker 2 (37:09):
That food is but raw food like but not raw meat.
Speaker 3 (37:12):
No.
Speaker 6 (37:13):
No, yeah, how did you?
Speaker 4 (37:18):
But when I came back Grason, my relationship improved. Oh wow, okay,
it was good. But I and if I can maybe
even you remember that.
Speaker 1 (37:28):
Yeah, yeah, I would love to do that.
Speaker 2 (37:31):
Let's do that guys retreat.
Speaker 3 (37:33):
Let's age fourteen days.
Speaker 1 (37:36):
That's a long time. I would love to be that
raw veggies, right, don't'm starving? The experience I think was
like that, don't care.
Speaker 3 (37:42):
Well, I tell you I came back feeling.
Speaker 1 (37:47):
Let's talk about this second marriage.
Speaker 4 (37:49):
Okay, okay. So the second marriage was to Brian Gibson.
Always do work, by the way, because she works all
the time. So that's you're gonna meet some Well, look,
I'm not on any boards and all that. You know
how people go dating they said, dating sites.
Speaker 3 (38:06):
I would be.
Speaker 4 (38:06):
Mortified and honestly, but you know, I'm technically a little
you know, weak, So you know all that like talking
online and all that.
Speaker 3 (38:15):
I need to hear a voice. I need to you know,
that's true. So and he directed story. Could not stand him.
Speaker 4 (38:26):
I could not stand him because it took six months
for them to decide who the right Josephine Baker would be,
and they passed on me the first time, and because
they were going to Irene Cara was going to be
the young Josephine and Diane Carroll was going to be
the older Josephine, and it was going to be played
by two women. And then I don't know how, after
(38:48):
months they decided that that wasn't and they asked me
to come back in and do a full tilt screen test.
Speaker 3 (38:55):
That took six months, six hours.
Speaker 1 (38:58):
I remember you said they had to meet you and
arrest first.
Speaker 4 (39:00):
They had to meet me in a restaurant, because I said,
I'm not going back in. I have to do this
on my own terms. I'm not going into their office
and sit across and be judged upon. If they want
to meet me, we have to meet in a restaurant
and the table has to be round.
Speaker 3 (39:16):
I can't do it. I cannot do it because I died.
Speaker 4 (39:19):
I cried myself to sleep so many nights because I
believe that I was the right person for I was
so so sad. And my agent went to bad for that,
and Reuben Cannon, who was a casting director at the time,
they worked it through and that's exactly what we did.
Speaker 1 (39:34):
That's great that your agent went to bad for you,
because the agents would have been like, YO are you
bugging like you're crazy. That's good. You must have had
a great agent.
Speaker 3 (39:41):
Yes, And it was small.
Speaker 4 (39:43):
I was with Susan Smith and Peggy that she just said,
you're right because they saw all the pain I went through,
all the work I went through, you know, producing my
own screen test and all that. So I was the
one and when we did all the prep and then
we went to Budapest is where we shot.
Speaker 3 (40:00):
And we went Budapest for three months, and.
Speaker 4 (40:03):
We just gained so much respect for each other, right,
because marriage is right. You want your husband to be
like your protector, right, and he wants you to like
help him realize his dreams. So as actress director, he
protected my performance and I was able to fulfill his
(40:24):
vision of Josephine, and we worked together as such a
beautiful team, and so we fell in love doing that.
But except when you're acting, the director is protecting you
as an actor, and when he says action, you talk,
and when he says cut, you shut up.
Speaker 3 (40:42):
But that doesn't work.
Speaker 4 (40:48):
So once we left bat, we were out of this
bubble of work of yes, of what we were creating,
because it was just such respect and regard. And then
we both came from Oh my god. It was like
Adam and Eve after they bit from the apple. It's like,
oh my god, we feel naked now we don't have
the cover of like a goal. And we were both scared.
(41:12):
But within the first three months he was Buddhist and
he'd be doing that.
Speaker 3 (41:17):
Numb your leo is he's saying, and came down from
the from his altar.
Speaker 4 (41:28):
I was Christians, was freaking yeah, and he said, there's
a little spirit in the universe that wants to come
in and we should let it.
Speaker 3 (41:38):
Baby, I thought it was entrapman. I said, are you crazy?
Speaker 4 (41:42):
This is my first big career opportunity and you want
me to I said, absolutely not.
Speaker 3 (41:49):
But that's not how God saw it. And it's so
so we left Budapest.
Speaker 4 (41:58):
We got married three months slater I was pregnant. It
was like and then we had Grace and then it
was just all the things and all the fear and
all the stuff.
Speaker 3 (42:09):
So before Grace was one year old, we were separated.
Speaker 1 (42:12):
Okay, we both want Emmy's.
Speaker 3 (42:15):
We were a Hollywood power couple.
Speaker 4 (42:17):
Everybody thought we were so great and so and we
just were too scared.
Speaker 1 (42:23):
Right, Wow, listen, this is all before social media. Interesting
because things play out so differently, Like I'm watching them listening,
I can't.
Speaker 3 (42:35):
Wait for them.
Speaker 4 (42:36):
Then field ain't nobody playing me for a long ass
time hard You can forget that, and that's happening. My
story is the one folding. Guys, I still have so
much to do.
Speaker 1 (42:52):
You've done so much that you yes, and the party like,
what do you want to do something? Tell us? Tell
us manifestation.
Speaker 4 (43:01):
I want to do a really hardcore thriller. Okay, not
a comedy.
Speaker 3 (43:07):
Thriller, but a real thriller.
Speaker 1 (43:09):
I can definitely see you do that.
Speaker 3 (43:12):
My favorite.
Speaker 1 (43:13):
Would you want to be the killer or the killed
if you had a choice.
Speaker 3 (43:16):
In the or the detective? Maybe both? Oh no, not
the detective. And I want to be in it. Yeah,
I can for you in it.
Speaker 4 (43:24):
And I want to do some kind of sci fi
sci fi extra terrestial kind of okay, you know, intergalactic alien.
Speaker 1 (43:35):
Can see it.
Speaker 4 (43:36):
I can see it.
Speaker 3 (43:36):
Yes, I would love that. I want to play them, Adam, Yes,
I love.
Speaker 4 (43:45):
I because I think that there were certain times in
history when women didn't have any options. You couldn't go
to school, you couldn't have a bank account, you couldn't vote,
you couldn't, you know, either to work.
Speaker 1 (43:55):
For somebody else that's why they stayed in their relationships.
Speaker 3 (43:58):
Yeah, or work for yourself. And one of the ways
you could work for yourself is that.
Speaker 4 (44:04):
So I wanted how women use this sexual prowess is
in exchange for their freedom, some kind of something interesting,
a means of survival, right, because it wasn't always now
where they're actually real hard choices.
Speaker 3 (44:20):
So I want to play amandam. I can see I've passed.
I passed the sex worker face. It would be I
don't know Land with Phild I think, well, I don't know.
Speaker 1 (44:35):
The Magic City well, and I do want to say,
because even your role on the Shy, you have that
type of power, you know, as like the dawn, the
you know, the boss take care of it.
Speaker 4 (44:51):
You know, sometimes people kind of fall into a place
of power. And so Alicia, you know, her brother was
the one, was really the one, and she was doing
all this, but he's gone.
Speaker 3 (45:05):
You know, and Rob is you know poor. Don't talk
about myself.
Speaker 6 (45:11):
I need you to be a nice trying to be
a good boy. No, I love That's what I don't
want you're talking about it.
Speaker 3 (45:19):
I love him. Yeah, she just wants him.
Speaker 1 (45:22):
To be and be strongest family. And it's one thing
that a.
Speaker 4 (45:27):
Parent never wants to think that they might leave this
earth and that shall not be strong enough to handle it.
Speaker 1 (45:34):
In the process.
Speaker 3 (45:35):
That's real.
Speaker 2 (45:36):
You got him shot. That's freaking I was so mad.
Speaker 3 (45:40):
I am so damn it. You know, I have to
just be in it. I can't judge. But you know,
when she's over that bed, you know who she feels.
Speaker 1 (45:51):
You could see her it's it's about to go down.
Speaker 3 (45:54):
So that's what I'm saying. You fall into it because
he could have done three more days. Lord, three more days,
didn't do it, so that meant that put it back
on her, yeah, to do.
Speaker 4 (46:04):
So sometimes you fall into having to be and I'm
nervous you are and I can't wait.
Speaker 1 (46:10):
Well, you fell into it, but you were ready ready,
you know, And that's why you always gotta stay ready,
so you ain't got to get ready as they say, right, yes,
because it's kind of like you know, fate and destiny
is balls into your lap because it was meant to be.
Speaker 4 (46:27):
Yes, yes like that and things like that. I mean,
you know, Alicien them they kind of on the dark side.
Speaker 3 (46:33):
But it all through life. Stay ready for the good,
for the bad, for the gifts.
Speaker 2 (46:40):
Well, I think Victor is going to do it or
Alicia do.
Speaker 1 (46:44):
What off with?
Speaker 3 (46:46):
Oh goodness, you know you're just jumping.
Speaker 1 (46:49):
Yeah, trying to make some predictions, trying to figure it out,
you know the way they work over there.
Speaker 3 (46:54):
You know, I don't even know the spread.
Speaker 1 (46:58):
Would y'all be sad to see do to go? Because
sometimes I'm not gonna be sad. Sometimes we like the
bad guy in the show, Well.
Speaker 2 (47:04):
I'm gonna I'm sad to see anybody go. But Douda
is a mother fudger.
Speaker 1 (47:09):
But it's all. It also makes it interesting.
Speaker 6 (47:11):
It does because he does have a so every story
is a product of his life, but he has his
loyalty is to himself and what he wants. At the
end of the day, no matter what his feelings are
for anybody around him, he is focused on what it
is that he wants.
Speaker 2 (47:30):
Anything that he can do to get to that, He's
gonna get to it.
Speaker 6 (47:34):
But as people like that message, family and baby, whether
I or someone is gonna happen.
Speaker 4 (47:40):
But she's not gonna give you this, you know, right,
You know you shoot all kinds of you don't know
what's gonna make it. You don't know what, you know,
we all gonna watch it together, but you know I'm
gonna be ready for whichever one, whatever it.
Speaker 1 (47:59):
Is, whatever it is now, I told you about the
Josephine Baker connection, but also Lady May right, May is
my meddle name, and May like that. Really yeah it is,
so I just you know, I just feel like this connection.
Speaker 3 (48:14):
But the few times that we've just hung in the world,
I feel a connection.
Speaker 1 (48:19):
Yeah, when I tell you, I was first of all,
this is crazy to me, but I love it. So
tell Grace you know we're sisters now, just so she knows. Now,
I want to make sure you understand everybody who's in here.
So Ggi has a lot of amazing things happening, and
she is also narrating the Magic City documentary docuseries and
(48:41):
they got picked up by a major network by the way,
So she was in Atlanta.
Speaker 4 (48:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (48:48):
So when you said you wanted to play a madam
if there's a Magic City movie, Pee Valley, one of
the main characters was based on Gigi.
Speaker 3 (48:56):
Really which you want?
Speaker 5 (48:58):
Mercedes really like her storyline is like very very like
eighty percent of my real life really you should write
the movie honestly, or like I sometimes feel like if
you want to.
Speaker 1 (49:13):
Roll, you have to create it. You created and you
said that, Okay, you have I can see it, like
you could even collaborate, have a writer, have writers, but
I could see you creating that because that would go.
Speaker 3 (49:31):
I don't think.
Speaker 4 (49:32):
I think I have to really contribute to the actual
story because I I really do understand what it should be.
Speaker 1 (49:40):
And Jordan is the last ever Playmate cover Playboy Playmate
of the Year cover.
Speaker 5 (49:48):
Yeah yeah, and only one of four black women.
Speaker 3 (49:52):
Yes, yes, and.
Speaker 1 (49:56):
She's right now on Summer House Martha's Vineyard, which actually
just it's like Josephine Baker in an episode.
Speaker 3 (50:01):
Yeah really yeah, oh congratulations. Yeah, people, you're both telling stories,
yes as well.
Speaker 1 (50:11):
So what I'm saying is, don't we think that you
should create what it is that you want to see?
Because I feel like, who wouldn't want to work with you?
Who tells you no?
Speaker 3 (50:21):
Well, I guess you have to ask to find out.
Speaker 1 (50:23):
Nobody's telling you no. I'm just saying, and I would
love to see that.
Speaker 3 (50:27):
Yeah, I'm gonna that that is it is in my
soul so hard.
Speaker 1 (50:31):
But when you do it, I'm right now.
Speaker 6 (50:33):
I'm following my dreams of being an actress that I've
been wanting to do since I was younger, and I
just put it out there in the universe.
Speaker 1 (50:39):
So if you do that, please do think that.
Speaker 8 (50:48):
I said, yeah, Friller, well yeah, we just manifested a whole.
Speaker 3 (50:59):
Well, you know like that.
Speaker 4 (51:00):
It's been going on for decades and decades and decades
and centuries. So before there was a poll, there was
still because that's an art form. It no doubt that
that's even different than what I'm talking about. The strength
and power and all of that.
Speaker 5 (51:21):
But the mental because you have to deal with rejection,
You have to deal with competition, You have to deal
with people frowning down upon you were talking to you,
were disrespecting you. You know, you have to always keep
your head high and just stick to your goals. You
also have to stay away from the bad influences that
the club life can bring, like the drugs and the
pimps and all that stuff. So it's it's not as easy,
and you have to act like people think that an
(51:45):
exiet entertainer is just getting on stage, shaking ass and
going home counting a bunch of money and it's not
right at all.
Speaker 3 (51:51):
You know.
Speaker 4 (51:52):
One time, I think it was Magic City that I
went to one m girl and it was like right
after it was like, here's what happened. All of my
fin Line fans and ship they started buying me lap dances.
Speaker 3 (52:10):
I'm like, wow, you know than.
Speaker 4 (52:14):
This is.
Speaker 3 (52:17):
I was like, I didn't know that that would be
the impact, because you know, you go and in Atlanta,
it's like people going to hear jazz.
Speaker 6 (52:25):
Yes, yeah, it's so cred about that, RIGHTID It's very
much the regular thing to do.
Speaker 5 (52:32):
It's just it's the first time Angela came in Magan City.
I was in the middle of doing the laft dance
and when she walked in, I ran up and hugged her,
not thinking in my mind, and I'm completely naked, and
she's like, here's what happened.
Speaker 4 (52:43):
So they all up on the wall and stuff and
going because she was inching over. I mean, I got
bought so many left and I was gifting them to people,
right and so, and this girl looked down at me
and she said.
Speaker 3 (52:57):
Oh, miss Whitfield. I said, girl, you working, don't stop now.
Speaker 4 (53:08):
It was like, you know and so and then I
did talk to you know, and just hearing people's stories
because like with me, you know, some women felt compelled
to tell me, well.
Speaker 3 (53:20):
This is why I'm here.
Speaker 5 (53:22):
Story was what completely different, completely everybody's reason is their reason.
Exact path that gets them through that door is a
different path.
Speaker 3 (53:31):
Yeah, it was just really interesting.
Speaker 4 (53:34):
So it's one of my fascinations how women have used
the themselves as a powerbroker in some kind of way.
I mean, I still think it's valid to look at
and talk about and tell stories about from different angles
and from different points in history.
Speaker 5 (53:53):
Well, the thing with the documentary is it's a three
part documentaries. It touches on the owner, who is a
black man mad the city has been owned by the
same black man for going on forty years, to be
forty years and twenty five. He did a nine year
jail stint in the FES for drug conspiracy, still owns
the club. Clearly he has a family. The whole Atlanta
(54:14):
hip hop and the whole. Like you know, a lot
of hip hop artists careers being started in the strip
club dances known as the unofficial A and RS. Then
you tie in the sports, the politics. There's so many
different celebrities, young and older, who speak into There's sixty
different people. Drake Jermaine Duprie are executive producers. Jamie Gertz,
(54:35):
who owns The Hawks, she's also an executive producer. And
it's such a huge project. It's just I'm still just
like amazed that it's even happening. Like, I know, I've
done the work, I've seen the first episode. You know,
I know that it's very much a real thing. I
know that we've been picked up by major network, But
until I actually sit in front of a TV and
watch it, I still can't.
Speaker 1 (54:56):
Everybody's tweeting about it. Yeah, I still can't.
Speaker 5 (54:59):
Even believe that it's you know, this summer. Like literally,
the press conference is any day now.
Speaker 3 (55:04):
I am waiting on the.
Speaker 5 (55:09):
I am literally waiting on the car. I know that
production the moment I see one of those numbers pop
up on my phone, I know that that very next
phone call I get from them is going to be it.
Yeah yeah, yeah, So I'm literally just waiting on the
call so excited. I'm so just like because for so
long as an entertainer, and I was really young when
I started, because I was the single parent, and you know, again,
(55:31):
everybody has their own story. But for so long I
got frowned upon and from even for my own family
members and people who just did not understand what it
was that I was actually doing. They took what they
thought I was doing and you know, dumped that on
me as I was doing something terrible, and I really
was doing something that was art. Strip is art, And
I was quoted by saying that at our premiere at
(55:52):
south By Southwest by a variety dot com, thank you
to them. And strip really is art. It's more than
just taking your clothes off of money. It's so much
more than that, and the artist is being celebrated. And
I feel like it couldn't be a more better time,
you know, with everything else that's happening within the space
and within just like music and politics and everything all combined.
(56:16):
Like if this was going to happen, this is the
perfect time for it to happen. And I'm just so
grateful to be a part.
Speaker 3 (56:20):
Of it and my group.
Speaker 5 (56:22):
Like I initially my phone call was just do an interview,
and then the interview turned into narrating. The narrating turned
into I have produced a credit.
Speaker 3 (56:29):
I said it on the pitch.
Speaker 5 (56:31):
I was a part of the pitch so I set
in on every single pitch.
Speaker 3 (56:38):
Than cheers.
Speaker 1 (56:40):
We love to see it and all that you say,
it's trying to write your own Yes.
Speaker 5 (56:48):
And you know, someone in the industry, in your industry
who I enjoy very much is like a big sister
to me that I feel would be a great person
to maybe go uh work with in that space is
Tasha Smith. Tasha, She's an amazing woman. She's an amazing director.
She has a dance background from way back in the
(57:09):
day as well, and I worked with her on a
project that never was released back in like twenty fifteen.
But she has that same like. She will always tell me, like, girl,
when it's time, I'm gonna write the movie about your life.
Speaker 1 (57:19):
Yeah, And I really feel like that could be.
Speaker 3 (57:21):
She's doing great work directed.
Speaker 1 (57:23):
Yes, yes, yes, absolutely, I'm telling you, well, listen, I'm
excited for everything that everybody here has going on, all
the manifestations that happened today. And you know what I
wanted to ask you to, would you ever get married again?
Speaker 3 (57:40):
If it was like a god thing, if it was
you know, I don't feel a need to marry, but
if it happened and it was really really really.
Speaker 4 (57:51):
Joyful and comfortable and all that, but I still don't
really see a need to marry.
Speaker 3 (57:56):
But you never know, say never, say never are you dating?
I want to do you have any idea?
Speaker 2 (58:03):
So I'm doing like the spade.
Speaker 1 (58:05):
They didn't think.
Speaker 4 (58:07):
They are not.
Speaker 1 (58:07):
Okay into She's not even getting on.
Speaker 2 (58:11):
It's not on that app it's face to face.
Speaker 1 (58:15):
Who you want?
Speaker 4 (58:15):
All those people coming and sitting in the see being
nervous and going just they would I know.
Speaker 1 (58:21):
What miss Lambeckfield needs is to meet somebody in person,
through somebody who she knows and respects. And she tried
to folks, you know, and I kind of feel like
I could see you with like a way way up
with Cupid, but like a handsome thirty five year old
period giving you know.
Speaker 3 (58:41):
I'm not really interested. Didn't pushing it, you know, like
I just look at the moat.
Speaker 4 (58:54):
You gotta look it down the yes and you know
where at the point we had to look for a
few they turned quickly.
Speaker 3 (59:02):
We have to I don't know, so put it out
there in the universe. I mean, forty five would.
Speaker 1 (59:15):
Be okay, forty five fair enough, forty five nice? That's
oh for you though, that's too o for you. I
see thirty five.
Speaker 3 (59:23):
I just feel five year old man just to be
great energy, the right energy. I like you, right person.
Speaker 1 (59:33):
I see somebody taking you on trips flying private.
Speaker 3 (59:36):
Are you all listening?
Speaker 5 (59:39):
Hello?
Speaker 3 (59:40):
Is this thing on?
Speaker 1 (59:41):
I think.
Speaker 3 (59:44):
Tapping sound check sund checks.
Speaker 5 (59:48):
You needs six more weeks in the South of France
every summer.
Speaker 1 (59:52):
Well, missling with Phil. I am so excited. I cannot
wait to see like when we reconvene and maybe like
a year and everything is in progress.
Speaker 3 (01:00:00):
My god, you mean to tell me I'm being held accountable.
Speaker 1 (01:00:03):
Because accountable, Yes, we're making this movie. We're making don't
figure it out, but it's such a pleasure to have you.
We're gonna get together and go see Grace Gibson. We're
gonna go see her do and that'll be a good time.
I'm gonna said, We're gonna sit some psachy. I'm not
gonna act up this time. You're gonna be on shachi.
And as soon as I find out, imagine.
Speaker 3 (01:00:27):
She listens, she enjoyed the time with you.
Speaker 1 (01:00:29):
Okay, good, We will definitely keep you.
Speaker 5 (01:00:33):
Yeah, I gotta have you as my special guest at
the premiere.
Speaker 1 (01:00:36):
Yes, get her a leftance.
Speaker 6 (01:00:48):
I gotta try this at Homemination was there and they
were like, yeah, yo, see I don't trust it because
they were like, look, we can to have a time.
I already know because that's how we get down ladies.
Speaker 3 (01:01:08):
Well, I've enjoyed it. Such interesting women, and I think
we had a very serviceable conversation. I think so for
our listeners, I.
Speaker 1 (01:01:16):
Feel like I want to go to Puerto Rica learn. Yeah,
definitely want to beautiful.
Speaker 3 (01:01:21):
So much of what we are is what we put
in in us, you know, and I.
Speaker 1 (01:01:28):
Know, I mean food.
Speaker 3 (01:01:31):
You know what we eat.
Speaker 1 (01:01:32):
We are okay, you know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (01:01:36):
And sometimes we just have to give up our systems
a break from.
Speaker 6 (01:01:41):
All of them, breaking down all of that processed food
and all of that. So you're right about that, but
I'll tell you.
Speaker 3 (01:01:48):
More about it off offline. Well I know, but I'm
not stopped. But I found the thing that worked.
Speaker 1 (01:01:55):
Yea, all right, all right, Well you guys, it's lip service,
amazing day. I sheiate it. We appreciate you, we love you,
we honor you, we charge listen to have you in
our presence.
Speaker 4 (01:02:08):
Thank you
What's up and slip service. I'm Angela Yee, I'm Jiji.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
Maguire, I'm Laura Mura, I'm Jordan Manuel.
Speaker 3 (00:08):
And dovelin' wodfield.
Speaker 4 (00:12):
Me.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
This is not a time field us, y'all. Yes, well,
first of all, live with Field. Thank you so much
for joining. Honestly, this is very iconic for us to
have you here. So we're going to be respectful, but
we're still gonna get all in your business.
Speaker 3 (00:27):
I know, I don't trust, very respectful. Trusted. We're gonna see,
she said.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
I know where I'm at, but I know you can
handle it, you know, just from watching you on the screen.
One thing that we want to start with, and this
is a little icebreaker for us, just for us to
tell a little bit about ourselves, is a time that
we have brandied, okay, and so a situation in our life,
just like Brandy from a thin Line, where we've been brandying. Now, Jordan,
(00:56):
I know first, okay, No, I gotta think about that.
What about you, gg what's some crazy?
Speaker 5 (01:01):
The first thing that comes to mind is when I
knocked the hookah over on the table and the coles
went flying onto people.
Speaker 1 (01:07):
It was that for one of your parties.
Speaker 3 (01:09):
Oh oh, I feel like somebody like really upset you.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, ask her about it.
Speaker 3 (01:15):
You did it. I knocked it and I intentionally knocked
over the You intentionally did it.
Speaker 5 (01:19):
I pushed it over and it was like a long
table full of people and the hookah was at the end,
and I like pushed it down the table like bowling,
like a bowling ball, just knocking everything over.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
And I'm coulda set a fire. It could have hurt people.
Speaker 5 (01:32):
It was very bad. So if you had it to
do over again, would you do I would not do
it again.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
You would not do it. You know there are people
that did that. You would not do it again.
Speaker 5 (01:39):
There are literally people that hate my stinking guts because
I did that. Oh really Yeah, somebody got burned and
she hates me forever. Oh I'm sorry you burned somebody that.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
Oh they're finding out new things. That was yes, all right, okay, okay, Laura,
the time you've brandied, I keep the escalator. Come on,
wait what you're stolen?
Speaker 2 (01:59):
Say?
Speaker 1 (02:02):
Kept it? Okay?
Speaker 3 (02:04):
Yep?
Speaker 6 (02:05):
Right at the game on the spot he was at
with the other girl, whoa.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
Some people may make you pay for that.
Speaker 6 (02:11):
Oh he knew not to okay, like key, I ran
after and he knew it was He knew it.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
Was me, okay, And what did he say after that?
Speaker 2 (02:22):
Why would you do that? I told you I wasn't
with nobody else. I was like, yeah, whatever, just go
get it fixed.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
Oh my goodness.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
Yeah he deserved it all right.
Speaker 7 (02:34):
Mine still doesn't know that this happened.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
But I guess.
Speaker 7 (02:37):
I guess this is or doesn't know it was me,
So I don't know if I want to blow up
my spy.
Speaker 3 (02:42):
I don't.
Speaker 7 (02:43):
Ever, there was an egging situation, the egging situation, same guy, okay,
but there was an egging moment with all the cars,
and unfortunately my homegirl, who also had an ex at
the same.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
Party, got the blame of it.
Speaker 7 (02:58):
Yeah, but they knew I was there, so you know,
I claim my business. But yeah, but the other one.
Speaker 1 (03:04):
Is sorry, let me see what did I do? I've
done like little things one time. I'm definitely the type
of person. I found out my boyfriend was cheating on
me and I the girl he was cheating with was
engaged to somebody, and I sent all the the proof
to her, the proof to the fiance via Facebook. Sure,
that's just journalism. Yeah, that's journalism.
Speaker 6 (03:26):
They did.
Speaker 1 (03:26):
They actually did end up still getting married, but I'm
sure he probably felt away. Still, Yes, you know what
about you in real life?
Speaker 4 (03:34):
Oh no, Well see that's the great thing about being
an access I can act out and not get put
in jail.
Speaker 1 (03:41):
But listen, that's not illegal. But is there a time
you have gone crazy in a relationship? I mean, you've
been in this business since a young, young, young age, yes,
and you've seen a lot.
Speaker 4 (03:50):
And well, here's the thing I wouldn't say over. I'm
not a vindictive person. I'm just more I used to
be just more emotional. If it came up, it came
out right.
Speaker 3 (04:04):
And so it wasn't just with a guy.
Speaker 4 (04:07):
Usually I wouldn't make a guy feel that he was
important enough for me to like you really like that really,
But it's through a lot of psychologies, you know, working
through things, because all that comes from rage.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
Because when we do stuff like that, it's not even.
Speaker 4 (04:26):
That we're that mad, we're that hurt where that hurt
and the hurt turns to like the anger thing and
rage and then we have a tantrum.
Speaker 3 (04:35):
Right, So I used to have tantrums. I mean, you know, okay,
I have turned over a few tables.
Speaker 4 (04:50):
I mean no, but that happens to be really, you know,
easy because you don't even have to, like you just.
Speaker 6 (04:56):
It wasn't a table, and it just yeah, look, I'm
not gonna feel a muscle trying to get.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
Mad as some fuck. You know, you can just tip
it in. It's gone. So but that was really really a.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
Lot younger, because I find that it takes more well
what do you all think? I feel like that kind
of rage and anger it takes more away from.
Speaker 3 (05:17):
You than it gives to you. Yes, you know, it
might feel good in that moment.
Speaker 5 (05:21):
In that moment, but the repercussings and consequences never feel good.
Speaker 1 (05:25):
I think that's a younger.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
Yeah, I was twenty one.
Speaker 1 (05:27):
As you get older, you're not supposed to twenty Yeah she.
Speaker 3 (05:30):
Was twenty one. Don't be scared of anybody who like
has an eye on her. Now she would I would never.
Speaker 6 (05:35):
Do that now, Like, yeah, it was too many cameras.
I'll go home and cry, just cry about it everyone.
Speaker 3 (05:43):
Might you know my phrase? No, next, just that part's
all move on?
Speaker 5 (05:49):
Like why what our feelings get involved? Because you know,
you can't feel anger and rage without having having had
filt some type of love right, well exactly so, but
that's between love and hay is it was.
Speaker 4 (06:07):
It's a saying for years and years and years and
years and years a song. It's a song and they
even made a song about it because it's passion. So
when you feel passionate about someone, it can't even be
your best.
Speaker 3 (06:22):
Friend or a friend.
Speaker 4 (06:23):
When you know you love it that that is the
person who can push you off the.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
Most heart the word really really really, so it's passion,
you know.
Speaker 4 (06:34):
So one first, I think we can celebrate that we're
deeply feeling people, and then I think it's like, okay,
what are you really going to do with.
Speaker 3 (06:41):
This if it's not quite how you want it to be?
Speaker 4 (06:44):
And how you know, how you're going to manage that
part because it's not so much the thing, but how
we manage it, you know.
Speaker 1 (06:54):
I feel like, and tell me, if you think this
is true, you feel like you've been destined for this
life that you had, because even from early on, it's like, yes,
stuff hit I do.
Speaker 4 (07:06):
I think some people are lucky enough that you get
your purpose gets deposited in your spirit. And I just
kind of always knew because I was watching those movies
at home, and you know, people were glamorous and they
would make me cry.
Speaker 3 (07:20):
They would make me laugh.
Speaker 4 (07:22):
I could go through a whole range of life experience,
you know, and I just always knew that this is
what I wanted to do, and I thought maybe I
would have talent at it.
Speaker 3 (07:33):
But then I studied it, you know, at Howard and
then with other.
Speaker 4 (07:39):
I know I do, but but you know, yeah, it's
a blessing when you kind of know what you want
to do early on.
Speaker 1 (07:52):
Now this is a real uncensored because we've seen your
TV one uncensored. Yes, but this is a different type
of uncensored.
Speaker 3 (07:58):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (07:58):
How is it in relationships turning on and off? You know,
the acting? Because sometimes people think that you could be
acting when you're in a relationship with them, and maybe
sometimes you kind of are like, how does that work
for you?
Speaker 3 (08:11):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (08:12):
No, I wish that I could act in relationships. I
wish that I was that person, the contrivant, you know,
to be kind of to act out in a relationship
you're talking about male female.
Speaker 3 (08:26):
Yeah, I'm not good at it.
Speaker 4 (08:28):
If we hung out and we found out a few times, yeah,
I kind of like need the truth in my world,
and I think that's the kind of acting that I do.
I think it comes from an honest place. But I
have I can't tell you the number of times back
in the day and even forward now then I'll be
(08:49):
at dinner with somebody, out with somebody and they're like, well,
you know, I don't know I should just before because
you know, but I don't think you could like act
that crazy if you.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
So people believe it, so you know, they believe it.
Speaker 4 (09:08):
But the thing is is that the acting part right,
part of the work of acting, and it's not just
for the you know, the glory and this and that,
and there's a lot of perks that come along with it.
But I take it as a responsibility, like in a
service gig, because I think that you have to take
seriously when you're presenting truths about people. Because if I'm representing,
(09:31):
like a lot of black women will say you represent
us so, well, well that's a you know, that's something
we're to be taken seriously and we are to be
believed and whatever the journey is, you know, it's my
job to shed some light on it, you know, whether
it's good or bad or different, but to share the
truth of who we are, So I can't sell it
(09:53):
out just to be cute and kind of be acting,
you know.
Speaker 1 (09:59):
Trust like you know in relationships. But I will say, well.
Speaker 3 (10:02):
Back to that, no, people a lot of that meant.
But that would be an insecure.
Speaker 2 (10:08):
Like is she like they'd be like, is she really
enjoying us?
Speaker 4 (10:12):
Well, that's you don't know, if right, If you don't know,
if you're not more incommings screaming a little too, you're
not more in command of yourself. If you can't know
who you are and what you can do and what
you're capable of man how to do what you do,
then what can I do about that?
Speaker 3 (10:31):
I can't, you know.
Speaker 1 (10:32):
I have love limit Field for a long time now
playing Josephine Baker. Also, my grandmother's name is Josephine. Oh,
so I've always felt like that connection. So I love
like just that name also. But that was amazing for
you do take things like that with you, like, because
that's the road you really had to get into. Yeah,
you know, that's not something that is like all right,
(10:55):
that's a real person like that. You have to study
what actually happened, you know in there.
Speaker 4 (11:00):
I'll tell you what I took one of the things
I took from Josephine Baker. If you go back and
look at it, there was a time when she lost everything.
She lost her house and they took her out of
our house and a hair by it and barefoot in
a quilted robe. I sat out on it that I
was like, oh my god, I never want this to
(11:24):
happen to me.
Speaker 3 (11:25):
I carried the.
Speaker 4 (11:26):
Fear of poverty, of making bad mistakes. And the funny
thing is is when you carry fear about something, you
often draw it to you. Oh look, y'all, we got
an amen can off. It's not even lady, may we
just talking like, you know what I mean. So I
(11:48):
think I brought some bad financial choices to myself from
the fear.
Speaker 1 (11:53):
Okay, you know what. I'm gonna say this too. For
a lot of people who don't come from money, it
is really a fear like when you start getting sound,
you know, you are so scared to like make the
right decisions because we're always scared that it's not going
to work out or that it could go away at
any moment.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
Right.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
That's how I feel like with everything that I do,
I'm always like I got to prepare it because just
in case I lose everything, I'm gonna make sure that
I always have a place to live, or like I
make decisions.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
That's a safer but that's a safer route than the
other route, which is this got started and it's never
going to go away, right, And so I think there's
a lot of that kind of thinking too.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
What do you ladies think I have fear?
Speaker 6 (12:36):
Like I feel like in this time right now in
my life, everything is that I've ever wanted is right there.
But I'm so used to being indecisive and making choices,
not thinking about myself, thinking about everything else that I'm
now like, oh my god, everything I want is right here.
Speaker 3 (12:53):
If you're not thinking about what are you thinking about?
Speaker 1 (12:57):
Fair imposter syndrome?
Speaker 6 (12:58):
Thing that fear that I I don't deserve it or
I'm gonna mess it up. I don't like.
Speaker 4 (13:04):
Fear is a bitch, and it is just the device
of obstruction and what I call I don't want to
scare people, but I do call it darkness.
Speaker 3 (13:15):
Okay, don't get scared.
Speaker 4 (13:16):
It's that's okay, It's just energy that is and and
but it's amazing what we what we do to ourselves.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
Right especially as women.
Speaker 7 (13:26):
I think, yes, it's a habit of women and society
kind of pushing us on to not going after what
we actually want and having to stay within this box
and stay within reach.
Speaker 4 (13:37):
And you know, I was at jazz Fest last week
and I was walking, you know, and there's lots of people,
and you go to the stages and Earth when fire
was killing it and just pat.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
Killed were killed.
Speaker 4 (13:55):
It was amazing, but it was so funny, like you're
walking and you know, lots of people and the number
of women, black, white, pink, purple who said I'm sorry,
like they walk in front of you, I'm sorry, excuse me,
I'm sorry. I was like, what is everybody apologizing for?
Speaker 3 (14:19):
Crazy?
Speaker 4 (14:20):
And I could see myself in it, and I could
see other people in my family in it. I was like,
why why are all the women apologizing?
Speaker 3 (14:31):
Men would just look hying and hearing and it's like,
I'm sorry, excuse me to me what?
Speaker 4 (14:37):
Oh oh wait, I'm sorry so many.
Speaker 1 (14:41):
Times b watch out.
Speaker 4 (14:45):
You know, a sense of entitlement, like I'm supposed to
be here and so I'm learning still because I'm a
work in progress. Y'all may look at IMDb and say,
oh lord, she must know it all lies.
Speaker 3 (14:58):
Lies. I'm such a work in progress.
Speaker 4 (15:01):
But I mean the information that we feed ourselves is
so key because often we just do it ourselves.
Speaker 1 (15:07):
Well, you know you said that you like when it
came to financial decisions early on, you didn't make the
best ones. No, so tell me, like some things that
you learned along the way.
Speaker 4 (15:17):
I would just put it off, right, I would put
off gathering those re seats.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
I would put off like.
Speaker 4 (15:24):
I would put off like actually finding out and actually
seeking counsel, Like is this a wise thing for me
to do right now? Is it wise for me to
stay in the south of France for six weeks? But no,
but no, but you know, not wanting so, And that
was something that Josephine did, right, Yes he did. It's
like I don't I don't want to know it's all
(15:46):
going to work out, right, you know what's me right now?
And we're in and you know, it's like we're invincible,
like we don't hurt, Like we'll work and we'll make
it right.
Speaker 3 (15:55):
We'll fix it.
Speaker 4 (15:56):
And then when it gets down to I mean, okay,
I didn't not go for the trap of the five
thousand dollars perse that was never the choice that I
would make. I have to say that, no, so, you know,
putting off the reality of where I was, not wanting
to know where I was because I wanted to do
what I wanted to do. And I think and I
(16:18):
think that was the biggest That is the biggest, That
was my biggest flaw. And so then the results that
come from all of that can be so messy, so catastrophe.
You got to go back pedal, fix it, clean it all,
why you know.
Speaker 1 (16:33):
So so that, yeah, people assume that you're rich too, always,
like even back then, just because you've had movies that
have been huge for a long time. And so after that,
understand how important, how how expensive it is to sustain
because you're expensive.
Speaker 3 (16:53):
There are I do I do, you know, I love that.
Speaker 4 (17:00):
Stuff, but I have I played a maid once once
one I play but she was really really great. It
was called Sophie and the Moon Hanger.
Speaker 3 (17:16):
But I don't know.
Speaker 4 (17:16):
After Josephine, I mean, I think that's a part of
the type guessing thing. After Josephine, people just always saw
me as this grand you know, you gotta that's.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
Not a bad thing. Though it's not bad.
Speaker 6 (17:29):
You have a rich look and yeah, like everything about
your energy. Yes, people say that, but I don't.
Speaker 3 (17:39):
I guess so, but that's not how I see it.
You know, I don't.
Speaker 4 (17:43):
I don't see well I do. Here's what I do know.
I'm entitled to be here. I am entitled to walk
this earth without full explanation of all of who I am.
And I really don't need to give a lot of
energy to things that you know, racism, sexism. You all
(18:05):
very rarely hear me complaining about all those things. You
might see me encouraging people to vote. You see me
doing some things, but I don't want to give them
all my space that they're important enough that you have
to talk about it all the time. So I think
I kind of try to. I just think I'm supposed
to be here.
Speaker 1 (18:22):
And you're from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Yes, which is I've
been there a few times, Yes, I have. I remember
the first time I went there, But after that I
did interview n Be a young boy, you know, So
I spent some time there while I was out in
Baton Rouge, and I hosted a party there. I was
there like a few times. How do you feel like
(18:43):
bat and Ruge has shaped who you are today and
what was that like?
Speaker 4 (18:47):
Well, I think the people who loved me, the women
who loved me, you know, the women who.
Speaker 3 (18:53):
My mother, my grandmother's, my aunt.
Speaker 4 (18:56):
All those people there she helped to shape me because
what was segregated in the South, and people don't quite
you know, get it, is that somehow there's still this
way that races coexist as long as they're not giving
each other a problem, you.
Speaker 3 (19:15):
Know, So it's cool.
Speaker 4 (19:17):
And so the black world that I grew up in,
everybody was the doctor, the lawyer of the Indian chief.
We had our own yards, our own land, our own homes.
So those people and that culture and that legacy, you know,
has just been with me always, right.
Speaker 3 (19:40):
So that's baton rouge. That's where I was. But now
New Orleans is with your daughter.
Speaker 1 (19:45):
In New Orleans amazing. Grace getson shout out to you.
Speaker 4 (19:49):
Yes, it was just at the Apollo Cafe last weekend,
so you couldn't come.
Speaker 3 (19:54):
But there's some other dates coming up and you gotta comment.
Speaker 1 (19:56):
Now she's a singer, she's amazing. I was embarrassed. Tell
her sorry, I was so drunk. We were good the
second time. I have no idea, but she definitely was.
Speaker 4 (20:07):
What she said, so sweet, it's New Orleans.
Speaker 3 (20:14):
It's New Orleans, right, you get drunk, drunk and eat.
Speaker 1 (20:20):
That's it, so you said, but New Orleans.
Speaker 3 (20:22):
Well New Orleans.
Speaker 4 (20:23):
I have this real cultural connection with New Orleans because
when I'm in New Orleans, you know, I feel Europe,
I feel Africa, you know, I feel a lack of
cultural judgment. Like people's cultures are respected there. Okay, even
the Irish, the Italian, the you know. So that's why
(20:47):
they have all those musical families, the Nevils, the Marsalises,
all of that. It's like a legacy of music and
culture that just continues to you go walk around.
Speaker 1 (20:59):
New Orleans and go for barta bar and just see
amazing live music. Like why does this person? Yeah yeah,
the kids outside, It's like it's like is this in
the air and the water that these kids, even from
a young age, just had like the ability favorite places
to visit. It's amazing.
Speaker 4 (21:19):
Trombone Shorties closed it because he closes out jazz Fest
every year. And I was backstage, like in his family section,
and this was this little girl. They were just wailing
on stage, and Cyril Neville and and troumbone shorty, and
this little girl had drumsticks and she was drumming on
the metal railings like killing it. And when trombone raised
(21:42):
his trumpets up, she raised up.
Speaker 3 (21:48):
To the family.
Speaker 1 (21:49):
You know what amazing place. It's very magical, Yes it is.
Speaker 4 (21:53):
You know, I can't imagine not having it. It fuels
me to be like a better artist, right, take more chances,
you know, and when you hear great music or you
see like interesting intuitive painting, it just makes me better,
you know, like art becomes a real expressionist, the expressionistic
(22:16):
part of acting.
Speaker 1 (22:18):
And exciting to have a daughter who is a musician also.
Speaker 4 (22:21):
So talented, and I am so glad and so founded
that I can really say that with gusto and mean it,
because I can't stand artistic mediocrity. So yeah, she's a
really great composer, bandleader, entertainer. She really had people in
(22:41):
the palm of her hand up there at the Pallo
Cafe this weekend.
Speaker 3 (22:44):
It was very we.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
See Grace.
Speaker 4 (22:48):
Yes, well, I think she has some dates coming up
here in New York.
Speaker 3 (22:52):
You know, we're gonna plan something.
Speaker 1 (22:55):
I would love to.
Speaker 3 (22:58):
Think it is so like not.
Speaker 4 (23:00):
The sweet, how sweet and who she is no, she's
it's a whole.
Speaker 3 (23:05):
Difference to get it from her.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
Mama.
Speaker 4 (23:07):
Know, you got say you got to stand at the
center of yourself when you're doing your art.
Speaker 3 (23:13):
I mean, like if you're not coming from.
Speaker 4 (23:16):
Day and below the gun and below is where all
the power is, and you got to use that in
your art.
Speaker 1 (23:24):
What was it like for you having a daughter while
you were in this business, like when you know, thinking
about like when you were married and then finding out
that you were having a baby and then having a girl.
What was that like?
Speaker 4 (23:36):
First of all, when I found out I was having
a girl, I cried.
Speaker 3 (23:40):
Really I.
Speaker 4 (23:42):
Boo hooed so hard. You seem like I was having
my makeup.
Speaker 3 (23:47):
I am a good mom, but.
Speaker 1 (23:48):
That's a girl mom. I see you with a girl
and a girl.
Speaker 3 (23:52):
Or a girl moa.
Speaker 4 (23:52):
But a makeup artist is doing my makeup. And the doctor.
Speaker 3 (23:57):
Said, when we have the results.
Speaker 4 (23:59):
The doctor was say, okay, back then, that's what they
would they would tell you, this is you're having a girl.
Speaker 2 (24:06):
My god, I have to grow up.
Speaker 4 (24:15):
It was bad because if it was a son of son,
it's always gonna.
Speaker 3 (24:20):
You know what I mean.
Speaker 1 (24:20):
I thought it would be like that would be easy.
Speaker 4 (24:22):
I would have to, you know, and those little girls
would be getting on his nerves, but Mama would always be.
But before I really took it seriously, and I was
in mourning for the first bit of time because I
would have to be a better, stronger woman. And I
just love being a little girl in a sandbox, acting
and telling stories and not having to, you.
Speaker 3 (24:45):
Know, grow up.
Speaker 5 (24:46):
Yes, I have a daughter, and you just I've never
thought about that. I mean, I heard it when I
was seventeen, so I was still growing up as but
like that just gives me a whole different perspective of
like the dynamic of being a girl mom. But you do,
and then we're both like she's grown, we're both grown.
Now that she's grown.
Speaker 6 (25:02):
It's just like, yeah, but even you did an amazing
job with your daughter.
Speaker 1 (25:06):
I think your daughter is amazing. I think you are amazed.
Like I was thinking.
Speaker 6 (25:10):
So, I have two boys, and I've always said I
wanted a girl. But I'm like, God knows what he does,
and he does. Everything happens for a reason for purpose,
and God gives you what's for you and what he
knows you can handle. Because baby girl at sixteen, me
with no mother, no auntie, No, none of that, and
a girl that would have been and even my second child,
I thought it was a girl in the style.
Speaker 2 (25:29):
I was like, I get a guy.
Speaker 3 (25:30):
We ain't ready.
Speaker 2 (25:30):
But now at forty, I'm like, I'm.
Speaker 1 (25:33):
Ready for a girl.
Speaker 2 (25:33):
Now, girl, I know what to tell you.
Speaker 4 (25:35):
Yes, well you better hurry up, darling taking that baby.
Speaker 6 (25:42):
My friend is having a girl and I told her,
I said, don't worry, I'll be the pabby. It's not
coming from this side. But I just feel like you
look so like you know what I say. I said,
God blessed me with youth because from the age of
sixteen I had to be a full grown adult with
no adults support, like on my own figure it out.
Speaker 2 (26:05):
So I dugged it out. I said, God, you're giving
me this.
Speaker 6 (26:09):
You're gonna get me through this, And he's really repaying
me back with everything I ever wanted. You see everything
I ever wanted, like all the fear and all of that.
Like I'm to a place now at forty where I'm like,
what are you scared for? Like you you you just
handled the toughest job that a female could be handled
at a young agen and it's a job right and
(26:34):
like you did it, and look where I'm at now.
I've never had to do anything that I regret. To
make sure my sons were taken care of. Money financing crazy,
but I have ethical and just integrity and just a
good person. And my boys are everything I raised amazing.
Speaker 1 (26:53):
I raised amazing.
Speaker 6 (26:55):
They're sensitive, they're emotional, they're strong, they're protectors, all of that.
I don't think at that age, with everything going on,
I would have been.
Speaker 1 (27:04):
Able to give that to her. You gave it to
I gave different.
Speaker 6 (27:09):
So everybody gets because, like I said, her daughter, I
think her daughter is amazing, you know, thank you. And
the way she's speaking about your daughter is amazing. So
you got yes.
Speaker 1 (27:19):
Lay, you're also the only person in here who's ever
been married. Oh yeah, just one time?
Speaker 3 (27:24):
By two times? Yes? What are you?
Speaker 1 (27:26):
That's not marriage now? Because I feel like people have
changed as far as like, you know, the like for
you when you first got married and the importance of marriage,
what was that like?
Speaker 3 (27:36):
Well, you know, I never really thought about marriage. The
first time I got married. It was to someone twenty
two years older than I was.
Speaker 4 (27:47):
He was a director and ran the DC Black Repertory Company,
taught he was my acting teacher.
Speaker 3 (27:55):
We I was in Howard University.
Speaker 4 (27:58):
My mother found out that I was spending more time
at his house than I spent in my dormitory. And
she called his house one morning, like at six am
in the morning, and I answered, I was like, and
she said, I never as long as I lived and
breathe thought that a Charla mine would be you know
(28:24):
those years and my mom was a Southern Belt but
could always use language like a sailor. And she let
go some expertives that were like and she was so upset.
I think she had a detective I think to know
where I was or something like that. And so that
we I loved Vantau Woodfield that's where Whitfield came from,
(28:47):
and it was great.
Speaker 3 (28:48):
He looked just like my dad.
Speaker 4 (28:49):
Beware when somebody looks like your dad, or when you
find the traits or something that there was something but
and I knew that I wouldn't be But I basically
got married because we loved each other.
Speaker 3 (29:03):
And he said, well, we'll just get married.
Speaker 4 (29:05):
I don't want, you know, to create this because my
mom was so upset.
Speaker 3 (29:10):
So that was why I'm married.
Speaker 1 (29:11):
So listen, We're going to get this, yes right and
make it right for mama. Yes, And how long did
that marriage lands?
Speaker 4 (29:19):
About five or six years because after I graduated from
I was still in college and he had an eight
year old son, and I was doing all that landswide
feel and after I graduated, I mean I wanted to
go to New York. He was running the National Endownment
for the Arts for giving money to you know, diverse
(29:39):
grants to people culture. So he was settling down and I.
Speaker 3 (29:44):
Was just, oh my god, I gotta go.
Speaker 4 (29:47):
I gotta like so we kind of always knew, right,
So that was the first time.
Speaker 3 (29:53):
And I was too young to give any marriage.
Speaker 1 (29:57):
What was so what was the proposal?
Speaker 3 (29:59):
Like?
Speaker 4 (30:00):
I was like, no, we'll just get married so that
they don't want they want to He said, don't worry.
Speaker 3 (30:05):
We really we really just.
Speaker 4 (30:07):
Really enjoyed each other's company. He was so kind, he
was so nurturing.
Speaker 1 (30:12):
That's good.
Speaker 4 (30:12):
But we did such great, you know work together, the
DC Black Repertory Company.
Speaker 3 (30:17):
So it was it was just a strange kindo. Huh,
it worked. It did work.
Speaker 1 (30:22):
It at the time.
Speaker 3 (30:24):
Yes, that was the first time.
Speaker 1 (30:26):
So how hard was it for you to be like, Okay,
this isn't working, Let's get a divorce. Was it just
a okay, we're cool, we agree.
Speaker 3 (30:33):
It's kind of like we understood. He understood that I
was just spreading my wings, right, and that he was
settling down because he was twenty two years older.
Speaker 1 (30:42):
And if he left you, he wanted you to go
and to do so.
Speaker 4 (30:45):
It was like a very When I look back on it,
I think it was probably the most generous kind of
relationship I've ever experienced.
Speaker 3 (30:55):
But I was too young to really appreciate. I just
knew I had to I had so much much to do.
Speaker 1 (31:01):
And was he hype when he saw you? In like
the movie rolls, Oh yes, because it's like this.
Speaker 4 (31:06):
Is absolutely absolutely he was so so so you.
Speaker 1 (31:10):
Can't go to New York and nothing.
Speaker 4 (31:14):
New York for a woman in New York and went
to Australia and ended up in Los Angeles with For
Colored Girls?
Speaker 1 (31:21):
Oh yes. And I just saw For Colored Girls on
Broadway when it was on bro I.
Speaker 3 (31:24):
Didn't get to see it, but a lot of the it.
Speaker 1 (31:26):
Came and went so fast. I was very upset about that.
Speaker 3 (31:29):
Could I enjoy it?
Speaker 1 (31:30):
I did?
Speaker 6 (31:31):
I say, Laura, you came first play? I took her
by first place, so thoroughly enjoyed. We cried the woods. Yes,
the woods was amazing. That were amazing, and the poetry
is so great. It's a story that lives for every cry.
Like I felt, every single was like are you crying?
Speaker 1 (31:54):
It was an emotional day. But when I say that
list forever. A lot of what you've done has lived
for us.
Speaker 4 (32:00):
I always wanted to be involved with class, with something
that would stand the test of time and.
Speaker 3 (32:05):
I and I'm very fortunate that there you know, a
few of them.
Speaker 1 (32:10):
Even think about ease by you.
Speaker 6 (32:11):
Everybody on that everyone has gone on to journey Magan.
Speaker 4 (32:18):
You know, Casey went on to direct Harriet and then
Whitney Houston and all that.
Speaker 3 (32:26):
So everybody continued on like.
Speaker 1 (32:29):
Who did you know that was going to be what
it was?
Speaker 3 (32:34):
I felt like it was really special.
Speaker 4 (32:36):
Yeah, and I felt I was very excited to do
it because I was inspired by my aunt who was married.
Speaker 1 (32:45):
To somebody that was philandering.
Speaker 4 (32:48):
Well you know, as I'm not I'm not going to
like go all into it, but my aunt, but but
but but a you know, an obgy and husband and
lots of things. But it was the way that people stay,
(33:08):
that women stay right and women didn't say. And it
was the period of time, you know, and I kept
asking Casey the director, please, she needs one scene where
she just you know, flips and lays him thin. And
she said, no, no, don't. You'll thank me later when
you see it. Your silence is more powerful. And I
(33:32):
really thought I was gonna have a stroke. It was
just so hard to you know, not, but she was right.
Speaker 1 (33:40):
Think about the power in staying with somebody who was
doing what he was doing and being silent about it.
It's kind of like the movie Fences too, the play
Fences when he done had a whole baby by somebody
else and she was like taking care.
Speaker 4 (33:53):
Of But those were choices that you know, women make choices,
you know, and what are we to judge if it
works out, because I've actually seen some of those relationships
that they work, they go and then they're happy that
they're together, you know, own canes and stuff together. Still,
you know, well, girl, everybody can't.
Speaker 3 (34:15):
Push the hoo could.
Speaker 6 (34:17):
Don't act like you ain't flip no.
Speaker 4 (34:24):
But some people choose, like I'd rather be here than there.
Speaker 3 (34:28):
I'm going to make the choice to stick this out.
But you know what, I.
Speaker 1 (34:31):
Do think I think that in the time period too,
as women are becoming independent with jobs making more than
our men two. At times we don't feel the necessity
because sometimes survival wise, yes, you feel.
Speaker 4 (34:45):
Like exactly exactly, well, there's that right, you have the
bank account, you have the job, you d have the
degree often or whatever. But some people still choose to
stay and work through it, and some people don't.
Speaker 1 (35:03):
It's a choice. It's a choice because sometimes people act
like you know, and gave up. If you don't stay,
if you're like I.
Speaker 4 (35:09):
Know, that gott to be a personal choice.
Speaker 1 (35:12):
And that's why I stay out of people's decisions. If
you ask me what I think, you know, I'm gonna
always be here.
Speaker 4 (35:18):
Almost any time I've ever waited on things like that,
I get myself in trouble.
Speaker 1 (35:22):
Yeah, and then they stay together, and then everybody looking
at you.
Speaker 4 (35:25):
And I need to just even if you say, they
don't go and then it ends up being horrible, you
know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (35:33):
It's just I learned just to support.
Speaker 2 (35:36):
I hear you, I'm listening, but right right here, right yeah.
Speaker 4 (35:41):
I went to this place where I did all raw
food and detox and you know, colonics, and really it
was as spiritual as it was anything else. And they
had classes as well, and this one class was called
compassionate listening.
Speaker 3 (35:58):
Like you just don't talk.
Speaker 4 (36:01):
You had to hear somebody tell you whatever they wanted
to tell you.
Speaker 3 (36:07):
That's hard.
Speaker 1 (36:08):
We all went silent when you said that.
Speaker 4 (36:11):
But the compassionate listening is listening from your heart but
not talking, not giving any advice, any opinion, nothing.
Speaker 3 (36:22):
It was really hard.
Speaker 4 (36:25):
It was for everyone but people, and you'd be surprised
at people.
Speaker 3 (36:32):
Some people came up with their own answers.
Speaker 4 (36:35):
They were so relieved just to get it out that
it didn't hurt us bad anymore, that they just to
have it out and to release compassionate listen. I had
no idea that that was just in August September that
I went into this, that I experienced.
Speaker 1 (36:51):
That, okay, And when at Arizona, where was it?
Speaker 4 (36:54):
It's into Ricos in Puerto Rico.
Speaker 1 (36:59):
I would love to do this than like me.
Speaker 3 (37:00):
It's called it and Wigmore Institute, and.
Speaker 1 (37:03):
That sounds fascinating and it's.
Speaker 3 (37:05):
All green and nothing tastes good food medicine just.
Speaker 2 (37:09):
That food is but raw food like but not raw meat.
Speaker 3 (37:12):
No.
Speaker 6 (37:13):
No, yeah, how did you?
Speaker 4 (37:18):
But when I came back Grason, my relationship improved. Oh wow, okay,
it was good. But I and if I can maybe
even you remember that.
Speaker 1 (37:28):
Yeah, yeah, I would love to do that.
Speaker 2 (37:31):
Let's do that guys retreat.
Speaker 3 (37:33):
Let's age fourteen days.
Speaker 1 (37:36):
That's a long time. I would love to be that
raw veggies, right, don't'm starving? The experience I think was
like that, don't care.
Speaker 3 (37:42):
Well, I tell you I came back feeling.
Speaker 1 (37:47):
Let's talk about this second marriage.
Speaker 4 (37:49):
Okay, okay. So the second marriage was to Brian Gibson.
Always do work, by the way, because she works all
the time. So that's you're gonna meet some Well, look,
I'm not on any boards and all that. You know
how people go dating they said, dating sites.
Speaker 3 (38:06):
I would be.
Speaker 4 (38:06):
Mortified and honestly, but you know, I'm technically a little
you know, weak, So you know all that like talking
online and all that.
Speaker 3 (38:15):
I need to hear a voice. I need to you know,
that's true. So and he directed story. Could not stand him.
Speaker 4 (38:26):
I could not stand him because it took six months
for them to decide who the right Josephine Baker would be,
and they passed on me the first time, and because
they were going to Irene Cara was going to be
the young Josephine and Diane Carroll was going to be
the older Josephine, and it was going to be played
by two women. And then I don't know how, after
(38:48):
months they decided that that wasn't and they asked me
to come back in and do a full tilt screen test.
Speaker 3 (38:55):
That took six months, six hours.
Speaker 1 (38:58):
I remember you said they had to meet you and
arrest first.
Speaker 4 (39:00):
They had to meet me in a restaurant, because I said,
I'm not going back in. I have to do this
on my own terms. I'm not going into their office
and sit across and be judged upon. If they want
to meet me, we have to meet in a restaurant
and the table has to be round.
Speaker 3 (39:16):
I can't do it. I cannot do it because I died.
Speaker 4 (39:19):
I cried myself to sleep so many nights because I
believe that I was the right person for I was
so so sad. And my agent went to bad for that,
and Reuben Cannon, who was a casting director at the time,
they worked it through and that's exactly what we did.
Speaker 1 (39:34):
That's great that your agent went to bad for you,
because the agents would have been like, YO are you
bugging like you're crazy. That's good. You must have had
a great agent.
Speaker 3 (39:41):
Yes, And it was small.
Speaker 4 (39:43):
I was with Susan Smith and Peggy that she just said,
you're right because they saw all the pain I went through,
all the work I went through, you know, producing my
own screen test and all that. So I was the
one and when we did all the prep and then
we went to Budapest is where we shot.
Speaker 3 (40:00):
And we went Budapest for three months, and.
Speaker 4 (40:03):
We just gained so much respect for each other, right,
because marriage is right. You want your husband to be
like your protector, right, and he wants you to like
help him realize his dreams. So as actress director, he
protected my performance and I was able to fulfill his
(40:24):
vision of Josephine, and we worked together as such a
beautiful team, and so we fell in love doing that.
But except when you're acting, the director is protecting you
as an actor, and when he says action, you talk,
and when he says cut, you shut up.
Speaker 3 (40:42):
But that doesn't work.
Speaker 4 (40:48):
So once we left bat, we were out of this
bubble of work of yes, of what we were creating,
because it was just such respect and regard. And then
we both came from Oh my god. It was like
Adam and Eve after they bit from the apple. It's like,
oh my god, we feel naked now we don't have
the cover of like a goal. And we were both scared.
(41:12):
But within the first three months he was Buddhist and
he'd be doing that.
Speaker 3 (41:17):
Numb your leo is he's saying, and came down from
the from his altar.
Speaker 4 (41:28):
I was Christians, was freaking yeah, and he said, there's
a little spirit in the universe that wants to come
in and we should let it.
Speaker 3 (41:38):
Baby, I thought it was entrapman. I said, are you crazy?
Speaker 4 (41:42):
This is my first big career opportunity and you want
me to I said, absolutely not.
Speaker 3 (41:49):
But that's not how God saw it. And it's so
so we left Budapest.
Speaker 4 (41:58):
We got married three months slater I was pregnant. It
was like and then we had Grace and then it
was just all the things and all the fear and
all the stuff.
Speaker 3 (42:09):
So before Grace was one year old, we were separated.
Speaker 1 (42:12):
Okay, we both want Emmy's.
Speaker 3 (42:15):
We were a Hollywood power couple.
Speaker 4 (42:17):
Everybody thought we were so great and so and we
just were too scared.
Speaker 1 (42:23):
Right, Wow, listen, this is all before social media. Interesting
because things play out so differently, Like I'm watching them listening,
I can't.
Speaker 3 (42:35):
Wait for them.
Speaker 4 (42:36):
Then field ain't nobody playing me for a long ass
time hard You can forget that, and that's happening. My
story is the one folding. Guys, I still have so
much to do.
Speaker 1 (42:52):
You've done so much that you yes, and the party like,
what do you want to do something? Tell us? Tell
us manifestation.
Speaker 4 (43:01):
I want to do a really hardcore thriller. Okay, not
a comedy.
Speaker 3 (43:07):
Thriller, but a real thriller.
Speaker 1 (43:09):
I can definitely see you do that.
Speaker 3 (43:12):
My favorite.
Speaker 1 (43:13):
Would you want to be the killer or the killed
if you had a choice.
Speaker 3 (43:16):
In the or the detective? Maybe both? Oh no, not
the detective. And I want to be in it. Yeah,
I can for you in it.
Speaker 4 (43:24):
And I want to do some kind of sci fi
sci fi extra terrestial kind of okay, you know, intergalactic alien.
Speaker 1 (43:35):
Can see it.
Speaker 4 (43:36):
I can see it.
Speaker 3 (43:36):
Yes, I would love that. I want to play them, Adam, Yes,
I love.
Speaker 4 (43:45):
I because I think that there were certain times in
history when women didn't have any options. You couldn't go
to school, you couldn't have a bank account, you couldn't vote,
you couldn't, you know, either to work.
Speaker 1 (43:55):
For somebody else that's why they stayed in their relationships.
Speaker 3 (43:58):
Yeah, or work for yourself. And one of the ways
you could work for yourself is that.
Speaker 4 (44:04):
So I wanted how women use this sexual prowess is
in exchange for their freedom, some kind of something interesting,
a means of survival, right, because it wasn't always now
where they're actually real hard choices.
Speaker 3 (44:20):
So I want to play amandam. I can see I've passed.
I passed the sex worker face. It would be I
don't know Land with Phild I think, well, I don't know.
Speaker 1 (44:35):
The Magic City well, and I do want to say,
because even your role on the Shy, you have that
type of power, you know, as like the dawn, the
you know, the boss take care of it.
Speaker 4 (44:51):
You know, sometimes people kind of fall into a place
of power. And so Alicia, you know, her brother was
the one, was really the one, and she was doing
all this, but he's gone.
Speaker 3 (45:05):
You know, and Rob is you know poor. Don't talk
about myself.
Speaker 6 (45:11):
I need you to be a nice trying to be
a good boy. No, I love That's what I don't
want you're talking about it.
Speaker 3 (45:19):
I love him. Yeah, she just wants him.
Speaker 1 (45:22):
To be and be strongest family. And it's one thing
that a.
Speaker 4 (45:27):
Parent never wants to think that they might leave this
earth and that shall not be strong enough to handle it.
Speaker 1 (45:34):
In the process.
Speaker 3 (45:35):
That's real.
Speaker 2 (45:36):
You got him shot. That's freaking I was so mad.
Speaker 3 (45:40):
I am so damn it. You know, I have to
just be in it. I can't judge. But you know,
when she's over that bed, you know who she feels.
Speaker 1 (45:51):
You could see her it's it's about to go down.
Speaker 3 (45:54):
So that's what I'm saying. You fall into it because
he could have done three more days. Lord, three more days,
didn't do it, so that meant that put it back
on her, yeah, to do.
Speaker 4 (46:04):
So sometimes you fall into having to be and I'm
nervous you are and I can't wait.
Speaker 1 (46:10):
Well, you fell into it, but you were ready ready,
you know, And that's why you always gotta stay ready,
so you ain't got to get ready as they say, right, yes,
because it's kind of like you know, fate and destiny
is balls into your lap because it was meant to be.
Speaker 4 (46:27):
Yes, yes like that and things like that. I mean,
you know, Alicien them they kind of on the dark side.
Speaker 3 (46:33):
But it all through life. Stay ready for the good,
for the bad, for the gifts.
Speaker 2 (46:40):
Well, I think Victor is going to do it or
Alicia do.
Speaker 1 (46:44):
What off with?
Speaker 3 (46:46):
Oh goodness, you know you're just jumping.
Speaker 1 (46:49):
Yeah, trying to make some predictions, trying to figure it out,
you know the way they work over there.
Speaker 3 (46:54):
You know, I don't even know the spread.
Speaker 1 (46:58):
Would y'all be sad to see do to go? Because
sometimes I'm not gonna be sad. Sometimes we like the
bad guy in the show, Well.
Speaker 2 (47:04):
I'm gonna I'm sad to see anybody go. But Douda
is a mother fudger.
Speaker 1 (47:09):
But it's all. It also makes it interesting.
Speaker 6 (47:11):
It does because he does have a so every story
is a product of his life, but he has his
loyalty is to himself and what he wants. At the
end of the day, no matter what his feelings are
for anybody around him, he is focused on what it
is that he wants.
Speaker 2 (47:30):
Anything that he can do to get to that, He's
gonna get to it.
Speaker 6 (47:34):
But as people like that message, family and baby, whether
I or someone is gonna happen.
Speaker 4 (47:40):
But she's not gonna give you this, you know, right,
You know you shoot all kinds of you don't know
what's gonna make it. You don't know what, you know,
we all gonna watch it together, but you know I'm
gonna be ready for whichever one, whatever it.
Speaker 1 (47:59):
Is, whatever it is now, I told you about the
Josephine Baker connection, but also Lady May right, May is
my meddle name, and May like that. Really yeah it is,
so I just you know, I just feel like this connection.
Speaker 3 (48:14):
But the few times that we've just hung in the world,
I feel a connection.
Speaker 1 (48:19):
Yeah, when I tell you, I was first of all,
this is crazy to me, but I love it. So
tell Grace you know we're sisters now, just so she knows. Now,
I want to make sure you understand everybody who's in here.
So Ggi has a lot of amazing things happening, and
she is also narrating the Magic City documentary docuseries and
(48:41):
they got picked up by a major network by the way,
So she was in Atlanta.
Speaker 4 (48:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (48:48):
So when you said you wanted to play a madam
if there's a Magic City movie, Pee Valley, one of
the main characters was based on Gigi.
Speaker 3 (48:56):
Really which you want?
Speaker 5 (48:58):
Mercedes really like her storyline is like very very like
eighty percent of my real life really you should write
the movie honestly, or like I sometimes feel like if
you want to.
Speaker 1 (49:13):
Roll, you have to create it. You created and you
said that, Okay, you have I can see it, like
you could even collaborate, have a writer, have writers, but
I could see you creating that because that would go.
Speaker 3 (49:31):
I don't think.
Speaker 4 (49:32):
I think I have to really contribute to the actual
story because I I really do understand what it should be.
Speaker 1 (49:40):
And Jordan is the last ever Playmate cover Playboy Playmate
of the Year cover.
Speaker 5 (49:48):
Yeah yeah, and only one of four black women.
Speaker 3 (49:52):
Yes, yes, and.
Speaker 1 (49:56):
She's right now on Summer House Martha's Vineyard, which actually
just it's like Josephine Baker in an episode.
Speaker 3 (50:01):
Yeah really yeah, oh congratulations. Yeah, people, you're both telling stories,
yes as well.
Speaker 1 (50:11):
So what I'm saying is, don't we think that you
should create what it is that you want to see?
Because I feel like, who wouldn't want to work with you?
Who tells you no?
Speaker 3 (50:21):
Well, I guess you have to ask to find out.
Speaker 1 (50:23):
Nobody's telling you no. I'm just saying, and I would
love to see that.
Speaker 3 (50:27):
Yeah, I'm gonna that that is it is in my
soul so hard.
Speaker 1 (50:31):
But when you do it, I'm right now.
Speaker 6 (50:33):
I'm following my dreams of being an actress that I've
been wanting to do since I was younger, and I
just put it out there in the universe.
Speaker 1 (50:39):
So if you do that, please do think that.
Speaker 8 (50:48):
I said, yeah, Friller, well yeah, we just manifested a whole.
Speaker 3 (50:59):
Well, you know like that.
Speaker 4 (51:00):
It's been going on for decades and decades and decades
and centuries. So before there was a poll, there was
still because that's an art form. It no doubt that
that's even different than what I'm talking about. The strength
and power and all of that.
Speaker 5 (51:21):
But the mental because you have to deal with rejection,
You have to deal with competition, You have to deal
with people frowning down upon you were talking to you,
were disrespecting you. You know, you have to always keep
your head high and just stick to your goals. You
also have to stay away from the bad influences that
the club life can bring, like the drugs and the
pimps and all that stuff. So it's it's not as easy,
and you have to act like people think that an
(51:45):
exiet entertainer is just getting on stage, shaking ass and
going home counting a bunch of money and it's not
right at all.
Speaker 3 (51:51):
You know.
Speaker 4 (51:52):
One time, I think it was Magic City that I
went to one m girl and it was like right
after it was like, here's what happened. All of my
fin Line fans and ship they started buying me lap dances.
Speaker 3 (52:10):
I'm like, wow, you know than.
Speaker 4 (52:14):
This is.
Speaker 3 (52:17):
I was like, I didn't know that that would be
the impact, because you know, you go and in Atlanta,
it's like people going to hear jazz.
Speaker 6 (52:25):
Yes, yeah, it's so cred about that, RIGHTID It's very
much the regular thing to do.
Speaker 5 (52:32):
It's just it's the first time Angela came in Magan City.
I was in the middle of doing the laft dance
and when she walked in, I ran up and hugged her,
not thinking in my mind, and I'm completely naked, and
she's like, here's what happened.
Speaker 4 (52:43):
So they all up on the wall and stuff and
going because she was inching over. I mean, I got
bought so many left and I was gifting them to people,
right and so, and this girl looked down at me
and she said.
Speaker 3 (52:57):
Oh, miss Whitfield. I said, girl, you working, don't stop now.
Speaker 4 (53:08):
It was like, you know and so and then I
did talk to you know, and just hearing people's stories
because like with me, you know, some women felt compelled
to tell me, well.
Speaker 3 (53:20):
This is why I'm here.
Speaker 5 (53:22):
Story was what completely different, completely everybody's reason is their reason.
Exact path that gets them through that door is a
different path.
Speaker 3 (53:31):
Yeah, it was just really interesting.
Speaker 4 (53:34):
So it's one of my fascinations how women have used
the themselves as a powerbroker in some kind of way.
I mean, I still think it's valid to look at
and talk about and tell stories about from different angles
and from different points in history.
Speaker 5 (53:53):
Well, the thing with the documentary is it's a three
part documentaries. It touches on the owner, who is a
black man mad the city has been owned by the
same black man for going on forty years, to be
forty years and twenty five. He did a nine year
jail stint in the FES for drug conspiracy, still owns
the club. Clearly he has a family. The whole Atlanta
(54:14):
hip hop and the whole. Like you know, a lot
of hip hop artists careers being started in the strip
club dances known as the unofficial A and RS. Then
you tie in the sports, the politics. There's so many
different celebrities, young and older, who speak into There's sixty
different people. Drake Jermaine Duprie are executive producers. Jamie Gertz,
(54:35):
who owns The Hawks, she's also an executive producer. And
it's such a huge project. It's just I'm still just
like amazed that it's even happening. Like, I know, I've
done the work, I've seen the first episode. You know,
I know that it's very much a real thing. I
know that we've been picked up by major network, But
until I actually sit in front of a TV and
watch it, I still can't.
Speaker 1 (54:56):
Everybody's tweeting about it. Yeah, I still can't.
Speaker 5 (54:59):
Even believe that it's you know, this summer. Like literally,
the press conference is any day now.
Speaker 3 (55:04):
I am waiting on the.
Speaker 5 (55:09):
I am literally waiting on the car. I know that
production the moment I see one of those numbers pop
up on my phone, I know that that very next
phone call I get from them is going to be it.
Yeah yeah, yeah, So I'm literally just waiting on the
call so excited. I'm so just like because for so
long as an entertainer, and I was really young when
I started, because I was the single parent, and you know, again,
(55:31):
everybody has their own story. But for so long I
got frowned upon and from even for my own family
members and people who just did not understand what it
was that I was actually doing. They took what they
thought I was doing and you know, dumped that on
me as I was doing something terrible, and I really
was doing something that was art. Strip is art, And
I was quoted by saying that at our premiere at
(55:52):
south By Southwest by a variety dot com, thank you
to them. And strip really is art. It's more than
just taking your clothes off of money. It's so much
more than that, and the artist is being celebrated. And
I feel like it couldn't be a more better time,
you know, with everything else that's happening within the space
and within just like music and politics and everything all combined.
(56:16):
Like if this was going to happen, this is the
perfect time for it to happen. And I'm just so
grateful to be a part.
Speaker 3 (56:20):
Of it and my group.
Speaker 5 (56:22):
Like I initially my phone call was just do an interview,
and then the interview turned into narrating. The narrating turned
into I have produced a credit.
Speaker 3 (56:29):
I said it on the pitch.
Speaker 5 (56:31):
I was a part of the pitch so I set
in on every single pitch.
Speaker 3 (56:38):
Than cheers.
Speaker 1 (56:40):
We love to see it and all that you say,
it's trying to write your own Yes.
Speaker 5 (56:48):
And you know, someone in the industry, in your industry
who I enjoy very much is like a big sister
to me that I feel would be a great person
to maybe go uh work with in that space is
Tasha Smith. Tasha, She's an amazing woman. She's an amazing director.
She has a dance background from way back in the
(57:09):
day as well, and I worked with her on a
project that never was released back in like twenty fifteen.
But she has that same like. She will always tell me, like, girl,
when it's time, I'm gonna write the movie about your life.
Speaker 1 (57:19):
Yeah, And I really feel like that could be.
Speaker 3 (57:21):
She's doing great work directed.
Speaker 1 (57:23):
Yes, yes, yes, absolutely, I'm telling you, well, listen, I'm
excited for everything that everybody here has going on, all
the manifestations that happened today. And you know what I
wanted to ask you to, would you ever get married again?
Speaker 3 (57:40):
If it was like a god thing, if it was
you know, I don't feel a need to marry, but
if it happened and it was really really really.
Speaker 4 (57:51):
Joyful and comfortable and all that, but I still don't
really see a need to marry.
Speaker 3 (57:56):
But you never know, say never, say never are you dating?
I want to do you have any idea?
Speaker 2 (58:03):
So I'm doing like the spade.
Speaker 1 (58:05):
They didn't think.
Speaker 4 (58:07):
They are not.
Speaker 1 (58:07):
Okay into She's not even getting on.
Speaker 2 (58:11):
It's not on that app it's face to face.
Speaker 1 (58:15):
Who you want?
Speaker 4 (58:15):
All those people coming and sitting in the see being
nervous and going just they would I know.
Speaker 1 (58:21):
What miss Lambeckfield needs is to meet somebody in person,
through somebody who she knows and respects. And she tried
to folks, you know, and I kind of feel like
I could see you with like a way way up
with Cupid, but like a handsome thirty five year old
period giving you know.
Speaker 3 (58:41):
I'm not really interested. Didn't pushing it, you know, like
I just look at the moat.
Speaker 4 (58:54):
You gotta look it down the yes and you know
where at the point we had to look for a
few they turned quickly.
Speaker 3 (59:02):
We have to I don't know, so put it out
there in the universe. I mean, forty five would.
Speaker 1 (59:15):
Be okay, forty five fair enough, forty five nice? That's
oh for you though, that's too o for you. I
see thirty five.
Speaker 3 (59:23):
I just feel five year old man just to be
great energy, the right energy. I like you, right person.
Speaker 1 (59:33):
I see somebody taking you on trips flying private.
Speaker 3 (59:36):
Are you all listening?
Speaker 5 (59:39):
Hello?
Speaker 3 (59:40):
Is this thing on?
Speaker 1 (59:41):
I think.
Speaker 3 (59:44):
Tapping sound check sund checks.
Speaker 5 (59:48):
You needs six more weeks in the South of France
every summer.
Speaker 1 (59:52):
Well, missling with Phil. I am so excited. I cannot
wait to see like when we reconvene and maybe like
a year and everything is in progress.
Speaker 3 (01:00:00):
My god, you mean to tell me I'm being held accountable.
Speaker 1 (01:00:03):
Because accountable, Yes, we're making this movie. We're making don't
figure it out, but it's such a pleasure to have you.
We're gonna get together and go see Grace Gibson. We're
gonna go see her do and that'll be a good time.
I'm gonna said, We're gonna sit some psachy. I'm not
gonna act up this time. You're gonna be on shachi.
And as soon as I find out, imagine.
Speaker 3 (01:00:27):
She listens, she enjoyed the time with you.
Speaker 1 (01:00:29):
Okay, good, We will definitely keep you.
Speaker 5 (01:00:33):
Yeah, I gotta have you as my special guest at
the premiere.
Speaker 1 (01:00:36):
Yes, get her a leftance.
Speaker 6 (01:00:48):
I gotta try this at Homemination was there and they
were like, yeah, yo, see I don't trust it because
they were like, look, we can to have a time.
I already know because that's how we get down ladies.
Speaker 3 (01:01:08):
Well, I've enjoyed it. Such interesting women, and I think
we had a very serviceable conversation. I think so for
our listeners, I.
Speaker 1 (01:01:16):
Feel like I want to go to Puerto Rica learn. Yeah,
definitely want to beautiful.
Speaker 3 (01:01:21):
So much of what we are is what we put
in in us, you know, and I.
Speaker 1 (01:01:28):
Know, I mean food.
Speaker 3 (01:01:31):
You know what we eat.
Speaker 1 (01:01:32):
We are okay, you know what I mean.
Speaker 3 (01:01:36):
And sometimes we just have to give up our systems
a break from.
Speaker 6 (01:01:41):
All of them, breaking down all of that processed food
and all of that. So you're right about that, but
I'll tell you.
Speaker 3 (01:01:48):
More about it off offline. Well I know, but I'm
not stopped. But I found the thing that worked.
Speaker 1 (01:01:55):
Yea, all right, all right, Well you guys, it's lip service,
amazing day. I sheiate it. We appreciate you, we love you,
we honor you, we charge listen to have you in
our presence.
Speaker 4 (01:02:08):
Thank you
Host
Angela Yee
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