On this episode of Insight, we’re highlighting powerful leaders, creative changemakers, and events that are building stronger, healthier communities. We begin with Tanya T. Morris, visionary entrepreneur, ecosystem builder, and Founder/CEO of Mom Your Business. Tanya is on a mission to empower Black and Brown women entrepreneurs through access to capital, coaching, and community. Her innovative pitch competitions are opening doors and building generational wealth. We recap the Future Forward: Garden Party Pitch Competition, a stunning celebration of style, innovation, and economic empowerment held June 8 at the historic Belmont Mansion. Plus, we look ahead to the next big event happening August 13 in Camden, NJ.
🔗 Learn more: momyourbusiness.com
📲 Instagram: @momyourbusiness
📘 Facebook & 💼 LinkedIn: Mom Your Business
Next, we talk with two remarkable cultural leaders — Poet Trapeta B. Mayson and Philadelphia’s Chief Cultural Officer Valerie Gay — about Healing Verse Germantown: The Streets Are Talking. This public art initiative invites Germantown residents to share original poems through the Healing Verse Germantown Poetry Line, using poetry to process grief and build community in response to gun violence. Supported by Creative Philadelphia and Bloomberg Philanthropies, this project offers a platform for hope, healing, and connection — one phone call at a time.
🔗 Learn more or submit your poem: healingversegermantown.com
📲 Instagram: @healingversegermantown
And finally, I had the pleasure of speaking with Philadelphia hip-hop legend and activist Freeway about the upcoming Free Fest — happening Saturday, August 2nd at the Navy Yard. Hosted by Freedom Thinkers Inc. in partnership with City Council President Kenyatta Johnson, this free community celebration features food, health resources, family activities, and live performances — culminating in the unforgettable Freeway & Friends Showcase.
🔗 Learn more: phillyfreefest.org
📲 Instagram: @Phillyfreefest
🔗 Learn more: momyourbusiness.com
📲 Instagram: @momyourbusiness
📘 Facebook & 💼 LinkedIn: Mom Your Business
Next, we talk with two remarkable cultural leaders — Poet Trapeta B. Mayson and Philadelphia’s Chief Cultural Officer Valerie Gay — about Healing Verse Germantown: The Streets Are Talking. This public art initiative invites Germantown residents to share original poems through the Healing Verse Germantown Poetry Line, using poetry to process grief and build community in response to gun violence. Supported by Creative Philadelphia and Bloomberg Philanthropies, this project offers a platform for hope, healing, and connection — one phone call at a time.
🔗 Learn more or submit your poem: healingversegermantown.com
📲 Instagram: @healingversegermantown
And finally, I had the pleasure of speaking with Philadelphia hip-hop legend and activist Freeway about the upcoming Free Fest — happening Saturday, August 2nd at the Navy Yard. Hosted by Freedom Thinkers Inc. in partnership with City Council President Kenyatta Johnson, this free community celebration features food, health resources, family activities, and live performances — culminating in the unforgettable Freeway & Friends Showcase.
🔗 Learn more: phillyfreefest.org
📲 Instagram: @Phillyfreefest
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Good morning. You're listening to Insight, a show about empowering
our community. I'm Lorraine Baller.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
Tomorrow, I need everybody in Philly, Jersey, Delaware, New York
tricity area to come out with August second to the
second Annual FreeFest.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
That's Philly's own Freeway, sharing a preview of his upcoming FreeFest,
a family event packed with music, resources and fun for
all ages. We'll also explore how poetry can heal with
healing versus Germantown, the streets are talking. But first we
sit down with a successful businesswoman who's on a mission
to help other women launch and grow their own businesses.
(00:33):
Joining us today is Tanya Morris, entrepreneur, ecosystem builder, and
founder and CEO of Mom Your Business. She's on a
mission to empower black and brown women entrepreneurs by providing
access to capital, coaching, and community. Through her innovative programs
and powerful pitch competitions, she's helping to create real pathways
to generational wealth. Thank you for joining us, Tania. Great
(00:56):
to see you again.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
Yes, Hylaurene, thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Well, you've built something kind of special with Mom Your Business.
What inspired you to start this movement, and how is
your personal journey shaped the mission.
Speaker 3 (01:08):
Well, my personal journey, I'll start with dad shape the
mission because I believe that mentorship is not something I
do with who I am, and so I've been doing
mentoring for over twenty years, mostly in the nonprofit sector.
I've written a couple of books based on my relationships
with my mentees, and so that's really has shaped my
(01:29):
journey leading up to Mamiya Business. And so in many ways,
I feel like Mamia Business brought me full circle through
that last position I had. I was working at Changing
University coaching businesses around doing business with the government, and
during that time we started just doing really some events
and things to bring people together and some tea parties, workshops,
and so here we are almost eight years later and
(01:52):
still doing that work of really building community and working
with entrepreneurs to grow sustainable businesses.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
You had the Garden Party pitch competition a little bit ago,
and it's a little different than your usual pitch competitions.
Beauty means beauty plus history. I wonder if you can
share what made this event impactful for both the founders
and the audience.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
Yeah, I mean, it was absolutely Incredibley, it went better
than I could have expected. We were at the historic
Belmont Mansion and that was very intentional. We wanted to
be at a black owned space where we were able
to focus on liberation and empowerment, and so those founders.
I'm super proud of all entrepreneurs that participated. They did
(02:35):
an amazing job of telling their stories. Everyone had a
really great time. Folks even had the opportunity to a
play a form that we've partnered with called Raizify to
actually continue to donate and give to those founders after
the pitch competition. So it was just a well rounded
event with music, food, and just a great experience for everyone.
(02:56):
Folks are still talking about it, So I take no
credit for how that turned out.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
Oh that's great. You focus on more than just funding,
but creating an entire ecosystem. What kind of outcomes have
you seen from entrepreneurs who've participated in your programs.
Speaker 3 (03:10):
So one thing again as far as being an ecosystem builder,
is really connecting underrepresented founders on Again, we primarily focus
on women. We did have two men participate in that
pitch competition. It's really about connecting them to the resources
that they need. So we've seen folks go from cooking
in their kitchens and their homes to commercial kitchens. We
(03:30):
have a founder now who's on the brink of moving
into a local supermarket. We have one founder who's already
in a local supermarket. She's in about two hundred shot
rights right down. And so those are the things that
we're trying to make happen in order to also move
folks forward so that they can become self sustaining businesses
and really grow. So since twenty twenty one, we've helped
(03:52):
our founders raise a little over a half a million
dollars in capital, not just through pitch competitions, but through
loans as well as equity investments and providing them resources
along those pathways actually to help them to build up
the resources they need and providing them coaching support, technic
core assistance and those things that they need.
Speaker 1 (04:11):
You have a couple of exciting events coming up, a
Black Business Mixer in July and another one in Camden
on August. What can attendees expect from these gatherings and
tell us more?
Speaker 3 (04:22):
Yeah, So the Black Business Mixers started earlier this year.
We thought it was an opportunity for us to really
kind of come together and share some stories. So we've
been doing them since the beginning of the year. So
we're going on the road doing some pop ups for
the remainder of the summer. Will be at the Lansdowne
Art Collective at eighteen off Ansdowne Avenue in Delaware County
on July to sixteenth, and folks can expect an opportunity
(04:44):
to really to engage with our entrepreneurs. So we have vendors,
we'll also have music, we'll have food for one of
our vendors, and then we do pop up pitches as
a part of that, so folks get an opportunity to
actually practice their pitches. Sometimes we'll get away money sometimes. Yeah,
it depends on how we're feeling with today and our
ability to really raise some money from some of our
(05:05):
great sponsors that are in supporters to be able to
give away some money. So it's always a good time.
Folks in an opportunity to network, share their stories and
just really heap at the time.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
I wonder if you can tell us how mom your
business challenges the narrative around entrepreneurship for black and brown women,
especially in terms of access and visibility.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Yeah, so we as you know, and maybe some of
your audience may know, black women still are the fastest
growing group of entrepreneurs, yet the least funded, receiving less
than one percent of all venture capital. And so we're
trying to change the narrative that black women are in
fact bankable and that they are a good investment. Studies
show economically that when black women thrive, the community as
(05:49):
well as the economy as a whole, thrives, and so
that's the narrative that we're trying to change. And so
by providing opportunities to raise capital to invent and black
women as well as providing them the resources that they
need to have an investment worthy, bankable business where they
(06:09):
know their numbers, they're sharing their stories, they're doing the work,
and they're growing, most importantly and scaling. That's how we're
changing the.
Speaker 1 (06:17):
Narrative, Tanya. For those listening, how can people support the
work or get involved? How can they connect with you
and be part of this mom your business community.
Speaker 3 (06:27):
Please join us at one of our upcoming mixes again.
July the sixteenth, will be in Delaware County at the
Lansdown Art Collective. We'll be in Camden, New Jersey with
Curate Noir celebrating Black Business Month in August, so pop
up one of our mixers. We're always looking for volunteers.
We're always looking for mentors and coaches to support our founders.
(06:50):
And then you can always follow us on social where
Mom Your Business on all social media platforms, and you
can go to mamybusiness dot com and register for one
of us upcoming events.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
Fantastic Tanya Morris, entrepreneur, ecosystem builder and the founder and
CEO of Mom Your Business. Her mission is to empower
black and brown women entrepreneurs by offering access to capital, coaching,
and community. Thank you so much, Dania, Thank you so
much for having me, Maureen. Today, we're joined by two
(07:21):
remarkable cultural leaders, poet Trepeda B. Mason and Philadelphia's Chief
Cultural Officer, Valerie Gay to talk about Healing Vers Germantown.
The Streets are Talking. This powerful public art project invites
Germantown residents to submit original poems for the Healing Vers
Germantown Poetry Line and art based intervention addressing the mental
(07:42):
health impacts of gun violence through poetry and community storytelling
with support from Creedive Philadelphia and Bloomberg Philanthropies. The project
uplifts neighborhood voices, offering hope, healing and connection one phone
call at a time. So I'm so delighted to speak
with both of you, Trepeta. I'm going to start with you.
You can you tell us how the Healing Verse Poetry
(08:02):
Line first began and how it's evolved into the Germantown
focused project.
Speaker 4 (08:07):
Yeah, thank you so much, and thank you for having me.
It's a pleasure to see you. So the Healing Verse
Poetry Line involved somewhere around twenty twenty, right during the pandemic.
I was named the City of Philipia Poet Laureate from
twenty twenty and twenty twenty one. Had all these wonderful
ideas to get out into the community, do all my
usual community based work, and then the pandemic and so
(08:30):
the phone line was born out of the need to
still do deeply rooted community work, getting voices and using
poetry as a way to foster healing. But then we
could leave our houses and see each other face to face.
So having the line and having people have access to
poetry through the line as well as mental health resources
(08:52):
was critical. And so that evolved over the years, and
then I was really really excited to partner with Creative
philadelp with the Bloomberg Philadelphia Grant, where we were able
to reimagine not only the full line, but other components
to be able to build out the Healing Versus Germantown project,
which has been really amazing.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
Valie as Philadelphia's Chief Cultural Officer. Why does public art
and poetry in particular, why is it so vital in
healing communities impacted by violence?
Speaker 5 (09:23):
Sure, thank you so much, Loraine. So poetry has a
way very quickly getting to the heart of the matter
and to the heart of the person reading and or
hearing it and poetry and what I love about the
work that Trapeta and you Fond the Wisher have been
doing is really taking folks who would say poetry is
not for me. I've never done it before, and to
(09:45):
show that we all have something to say and we
can say it if you will, poetically, and we can
say it in a way that impacts others. And so,
you know, when we first launched this project back or
last September, we got a cranky phone call, frankly from
someone a snarky phone call Trepeeda. I don't know if
we've ever told you this, but we get a phone
call and someone goes, do you really think that gun
(10:07):
violence can be solved or poetry can help with that?
And we're like, yes, yes, it can call this number.
And the reality is when we bring our humanity to it,
so children, adults, people who have been impacted, people who
have caused harm, all of us as human beings, bringing
(10:29):
our stories and bringing our experiences, we can learn from
each other and start the healing process.
Speaker 1 (10:35):
Trapeda, I wonder if you can dig down a little
bit further about how this project connects people to both
creative expression and critical mental health resources.
Speaker 4 (10:44):
Yeah, so it does in so many ways. So as
if you call the phone line and you're definitely hearing
that day's hall, it's a moment of reflection as a pause.
And then also on the line there are phone numbers
to the nine A crisis line is you directly connect
to the crisis line. There's also resources for intimate partner violence,
(11:04):
all a number of things on it that can support people.
But the poems themselves, the thing that I've witnessed doing
this work over the years, having people talk through their
trauma and that's what vow I think it's really getting at.
You know, mental health is something that impacts all of
us in one way or another. There's not always a
direct correlation with gun violence or mental health, but that's
(11:27):
the after effects. Families are impacted, communities are impacted. Even
the individuals that are doing the harm. So that writing
that poetry, that person that call, you know, probably have
never really experienced unburdening, you know, through poetry. And that's
what we've witnessed with this project, what Yulanda and I
are leading these workshops. We've been surprised that the outpouring
(11:51):
people are writing directly about their lost relative, you know,
a son, So many sad, sad poems about you know,
losing sons, family members and friends in the neighborhoods. But
then we also see something else with the healing verse.
While they're writing through the pain, they are finding release
and relief and then they're able to consider and I
(12:13):
see hope there. So it's not all downtrodden necessarily, because
there's a balance, and I feel like that's what this
project offers. You'll have a chance to create public art,
You'll have a chance to share your stories guided in
a really beautiful way, and we also have a counselor
on site to support that, and then your work becomes
(12:34):
public art and then everyone turns into a poet into
an artist, and to see that it's just amazing. I
think that's one of the pieces of the project. So
there's a direct correlation through the calling and the phone
number and the resources and the on site support that
we had in the workshop, but then there's that indirect
piece where I'm able to share my story Tripeter.
Speaker 1 (12:57):
Just to follow up on that, when someone call the number,
and what is that number, by the way, what exactly
is their experience? They dial the number and then what happens, Yes.
Speaker 4 (13:07):
So they're calling the one eight five five poem r
X two. When they call the number, the first thing
they're going to hear is my voice. I'm greeting them
and welcoming them to the project. And I love this
because I've done that from the beginning of the healing verse, right,
and then they're prompted to go immediately to the poem
of the week. So we work with community members poets
(13:30):
from all over and the people that are in participating
on the line now are mostly Germantown residents who are
participating in this project, they will hear the poem of
the week, and they have prompts also to skip ahead
to other parts of the phone line where they can
get the resources. And then after the prompts, they can
also learn more information about the projects, especially when we
(13:53):
were having the workshop. We're going to be having a
couple of public opportunities for the public to show up
and be a part of this. And currently there's an
open call for submission for the poetry, so that even
if you didn't attend a workshop or you get to
respond to any of the calls, you can now also
submit your work and there's guidance around that.
Speaker 1 (14:13):
Valerie, what do you hope this project will spark both
in Germantown and across Philadelphia now and into twenty twenty
five and twenty six.
Speaker 5 (14:22):
So, firstly, I pray that this project actually can be
scaled across the city, the entire city. Having witnessed firsthand
just a brief glimpse of the power of the work
that Repeta and Yolanda are doing in communities, I happened
to sit in on one of the sessions with police
officers and just to see them these people kind of
(14:43):
guard it. And as the guards started to come down
and they could hear each other's poems, it was just
so beautiful. In fact, I didn't tell you this also
is repeated. I was walking someplace. I was a big community. Mean,
this person kind of pulls me aside and maybe a
little nervous, and they were like, I was at the
poetry workshop. I was at the poetry workshop. They remember
the poem that I wrote, and we hugged it out
(15:04):
and they said, I hope I get to do that again.
It was beautiful and I want more people to do it.
So that's the first thing to scale it. Secondly, I
want folks to see that arts and culture writ large,
is part of the solution of some of the most
intractable problems that we see today in our society, and
that when we're thinking about ways of how to solve
(15:25):
these problems that seem insurmountable, that one of the ways
I think arts and culture is a part of the
solution is because at its core is our humanity, and
we're bringing our humanity. And just like we see in
other sectors, once you really start to make relationships with people,
it starts to change how you see things how you
look at things, and sometimes it happens very quickly that
(15:49):
things change, communities change, environments change. And so my hope
for this project is the entire city and my hope
for how the city embraces fully arts and culture, and
I that writ large across everything that you could think of.
That we are part of the solution to making Philadelphia.
And more importantly, the Philadelphians who are in Philadelphia have
(16:11):
the experiences that they're an alienable rights right to be
able to be full human beings and to enjoy their
lives and the lives of their families and friends.
Speaker 1 (16:22):
To REPEEDA are their upcoming workshops that people can participate
in and also where can people find out more? What's
your website? And repeat that number one more time too.
Speaker 4 (16:33):
Yeah, So the number I'm going to give up, the
numerical number for the Healing Versus Poetry line is one
seven six three six seven nine two. So you can
call that twenty four hours toll free. You can hear
a new poem every Monday. So while the workshop portion
(16:53):
have happened, we had over ten workshops. Police officers, mostly
community members, youth focus people working in this field, caregiving
in the crisis field. We have workshops with all these
different groups. Now we're moving into the public art. We're
working with Rob Blocks and Yolanda Wish and Rob Blocks
and I are the lead artists in this project. How
(17:16):
community members can become involved is for the open call.
There is an open call for Germantown community members to
submit poetry and they're encouraged to share the opportunity with
Germantown friends and neighboring. Poetry will be featured on the
Healing Versus Poetry line between now and November twenty twenty five.
There's a stipend. It's one hundred dollars. It's one hundred
(17:36):
dollars stipend, and the deadline to submit is August first.
Speaker 1 (17:40):
Okay, wonderful And I'm going to put you on the
spot here. Do you have a short poem traped that
you could share with us right now?
Speaker 4 (17:49):
Yes?
Speaker 6 (17:49):
I do?
Speaker 1 (17:49):
Oh yay ok.
Speaker 4 (17:53):
And it's called in this season, In this season of
naming and of holding space for the quiet and the
mutic to be amplified, in this season of shifting, of
barrier breaking, undoing, unearthed, uprising and leveling. You beloved, may
think yourself too small may think your intentions and acts
(18:14):
too slight, may think you are but a fragment, a
mayor adam in this place of stars and gazers. But
what a world you are, What a sphere of shocking
beauty and grace. Do you not see how your one song,
your one breath, your one step, one voice, your one pause,
one lift, one shout, one protest brought us here, keeps
(18:38):
us here. You say that it's only a speck, you offered,
just a tiny bit, a smidge or morsel, But do
you not see the feast ahead it prepares, how even
the remains have purposed, How it beckons all to your
grand table, How it feeds and fills and expands us. Friend,
(18:59):
you you are a bomb in these prickly, prickly times.
You are a vessel of refuge and a.
Speaker 1 (19:06):
Respe perfect poem for our times. For sure, I feel better. Yeah,
I'm gonna do a little thing. You're clicking here.
Speaker 4 (19:16):
That was the first poem featured on the Healing Verse
poetry line h when it started, And now we have
the all these amazing poems. They're just so powerful. Community members,
famous poets, not so famous poets. Everyone's a poet on
the Healing Versus Germantown line. So that is really an
amazing thing to witness.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
That's great, well, Valerie, I know that there are so
many different projects in addition to this one, which is
Healing Verse Germantown. The streets are talking. If people want
to know more about the work that you're doing to
elevate the arts in Philadelphia, where do they go for that?
Speaker 5 (19:51):
Philip dot gov slash arts. So phi La dot go
ov slash arts. It'll take you right to our create
a Philadelphia website and you'll see all the amazing things
that are happening. And we invite you and invite everyone
to sign up for our mailing list, and that way
you'll be the first to know of some really exciting
things that are happening, including as repeated mentioned, the public
(20:14):
art portion of the Healing Versus Germantown session that will
be happening soon. Project that will be happening soon. So
we're really excited and we want every Philadelphia and those
who love us, maybe work here, maybe don't live here,
but you work here. We want you to see that
you are a part of us and that we are
a part of your lived experience.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
Well, the arts are so critical and people don't always
acknowledge the incredible importance not only for mental health, for
personal healing, for free expression, but also the economic impact
of the art is tremendous in Philadelphia. People don't realize
that the arts contribute more than the sports teams do
(20:54):
to Philadelphia. A little fun fact.
Speaker 5 (20:58):
Yes, thank you well.
Speaker 1 (21:01):
I want to thank you both so much for this
and for this project. You can go to Healingverse Germantown
dot com and follow on Instagram at Healing vers Germantown
for more information and call that number one eight five
five poem r X And that's eight five five seven
sixty three six seven ninety two. Two remarkable cultural leaders,
(21:25):
Trepeda B. Mason, who is a poet and Philadelphia's Chief
Cultural Officer, Valerie Gay telling us about this extraordinary program,
a lovely program called Healing Versus Germantown. The streets are
talking inviting Germantown residents to submit original poems for the
Healing Verse Germantown Poetry line. Wonderful idea wonderful project. Thank
(21:47):
you both for joining us today. I am absolutely delighted
to be joined by Philadelphia hip hop legend Freeway We're
here to talk about the second annual FreeFest, a free,
community powered event happening on Saturday, August second, at the
Navy Yard. Hosted by Freedom Thinkers, Inc. In partnership with
City Council. FreeFest is all about unity and uplift, a
(22:08):
full day of music, health, education, and culture, and of
course it all wraps up with a high energy Freeway
and Friends showcase. So let's get right to it. Freeway,
thank you so much for joining us here today.
Speaker 6 (22:19):
Hey, good afternoon, Thanks for having me, Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (22:22):
I really appreciate, you know, the opportunity to talk about FreeFest.
Speaker 1 (22:25):
Well, we're always glad to talk to you about FreeFest
and anything else you want to talk about. But at
the heart of this event, I wonder if you could
tell us you created FreeFest through your nonprofit Freedom Thinkers.
What inspired you to launch this? Has it evolved into
its second year?
Speaker 6 (22:40):
Well for the people that don't though.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
I was diagnosed with n stage reno failure September fifteenth,
for twenty fifteen. I was on dialysis from then all
the way to February fifth, twenty nineteen, when I received
my gift of life, my new kidney, and you know,
when I was diagnosed, I was unaware that it could
happen to me. I had three of the leading risk
factors for kidney failure, one being hyper tension and another
one being diabetes, and surprisingly just being African American was
(23:04):
a risk factor.
Speaker 6 (23:05):
So I had three risk factors.
Speaker 2 (23:06):
I had examples of my and my family of people
you know, that had kidney issues, and I was still
unaware that it could happen to me.
Speaker 6 (23:12):
So me and my team.
Speaker 2 (23:13):
Felt like it was very important to spread awareness, you know,
so people could at least have a fighting chance. So
that's where Freedom Thinkers Academy and Freedom Thinkers, Inc.
Speaker 6 (23:21):
Started.
Speaker 2 (23:21):
That's why I started the foundation, and it's music, health, education,
and culture. So it's everything that I'm involved in, you know,
it's basically four things that my life is surrounded by,
besides my religion and Islam. You know, we're just trying
to bring awareness to the forefront. As year first annual FreeFest,
I think we had over two thousand people out there,
was an amazing event. We had a lot of things
(23:43):
for the community, you know, we had health screenings, we
had things for the children out there. He has vendors,
and we had a lot of performances, and then we
ended it with a Freeway and Friends performance, which was amazing.
Speaker 5 (23:55):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (23:55):
Well, you are absolutely the perfect person to be speaking
about this very issue of organ donation because of your
own personal journey from your musical legacy to your health
battles and family loss, You've inspired so many people. How
have those experiences influenced the mission of Freedom Thinkers and
what people will see at FreeFest.
Speaker 2 (24:17):
I just want to open people's eyes to these things,
you know, Like I said, I had free of the
ly and risk factors, and I was unaware that it
could happen to me, and it's so many other Americans
that may be in that same position. We just want
to bring awareness to these health issues. We want people
to have a good time. Music has been a part
of my life, even before I was famous, even before
I was a star, music always helped me. Like you know,
(24:39):
I remember certain times in my life, certain pivotal moments,
and I can just remember the music, the songs that
surrounded those moments, and even going through my battle like
when I got out of the hospital when I was
first diagnosed with kidney fire and I was put onto dialysis,
I immediately started rapping about it, you know, and it
was like my outlet for me to make me feel better.
Speaker 6 (24:58):
We just want to bring all those things to the people.
Speaker 1 (25:01):
There is such a challenge reaching out to black and
brown communities, not only about organ donation, but about health
in general. We're bad, We're not taking care of ourselves
the way we need to, and that's what we're seeing
as we're seeing much higher levels of the need for
kidney transplants and also the impact of so many other
(25:21):
situations like heart disease, we have diabetes, all these things
risk factors that you yourself have experienced, And I wonder
what is your message to our people out there in
terms of taking care of ourselves and also being aware
of the importance of organ donation.
Speaker 6 (25:35):
My message to people is health as well.
Speaker 2 (25:37):
And my lowest point, I would have treated everything to fame,
the money, the cars, the houses, everything, just to be healthy.
People don't know how important health is, you know. I
encourage people to keep up with your routine physicals, which
your blood work done at least once a year, because
your blood work is the only thing that could let
you know what's going on in your body. Like you know,
when I walked into that hospital, it was calling me
(25:58):
the lucky Star was coming into my room, like you
walked in here. They couldn't believe that I walked in here.
Probably just at the time doctor Freeman. He told me,
I've been doing this for thirty years and I never
seen levels this high.
Speaker 6 (26:11):
Like my levels was that high, felt.
Speaker 2 (26:13):
Like I could keep going, like if I want to
got my blood work done and I would have just
laid around the house for another couple of weeks. They said,
I probably wouldn't even be here right now. Wow, you
know that's how serious it is. So you know, we
got to keep up with our routine physicals because with
things like kidney disease and diabetes and high blood pressures,
sometimes you don't even even have a clue until it's
too late. What happened to me is afraid that medical
(26:36):
professionals use called crashing onto dialysis. When I went to
the hospital, I immediately had to start doing dialysis or
else I wouldn't be here.
Speaker 6 (26:44):
We don't want people to crash onto dialysis.
Speaker 2 (26:46):
We want you to keep up with your routine physicals,
get your blood work done at least once a year.
Sometimes you can get it done twice a year, but
at least once a year, so you know what's going
on to your body.
Speaker 1 (26:55):
Yeah, well, we've got to talk about the grand finatale
for free Fest, Freeway and Friends, the showcase. What if
you can share with us what you expect from the performance.
I know that a lot of people are just gonna
vibe with some of the old hits and some of
the new ones, So tell us more.
Speaker 6 (27:10):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (27:10):
So it's gonna be some of the old, like you said,
some of the old hits, some of the new hits.
I'm gonna have some special guests from the music industry,
you know, some of my friends from the music industry,
and we're going to put together an amazing performance.
Speaker 6 (27:21):
It's something that sy'all don't want to miss. You know,
is going to be electrifying.
Speaker 1 (27:25):
Trusting, fantastic. I know it's going to be fun, and
it's also going to be good for the community. You've
got this event again. It's August second at the Navy Yard.
What time does it start and end?
Speaker 2 (27:35):
It starts at eleven am, and it's the Freeway and
Friends section starts at four pm, so it's over at six,
so it starts from eleven to six.
Speaker 1 (27:43):
Fantastic. We will be there remarkable Philadelphia hip hop legend
Freeway talking about the second annual FreeFest, a free, community
powered event Saturday, August second at the Navy Yard hosted
by Freedom Thinkers, Inc. In partnership with City Council and
shout out to see Council President Kenyatta Johnson. And also,
of course, not only is there going to be all
(28:05):
kinds of health information, music, education and culture. A high
energy performance by Freeway and friends showcase. So see you there,
Orb Square, So Freeway, thank you so much for joining
us here today. Thank you for all that you do
for the community. You really are an inspiration to all
of us. Thank you again.
Speaker 2 (28:22):
I really appreciate too, and thank you for everything that
you do for the community throughout the years.
Speaker 6 (28:26):
It's definitely recognized.
Speaker 1 (28:28):
Thank you. You can listen to all of today's interviews
by going to our station website and typing in keyword Community.
You can also listen on the iHeartRadio app ye Words
Philadelphia Community Podcast. Follow me on Twitter and Instagram at
Lorraine Ballard. I'm Lorraine Ballard MOREL and I stand for
service to our community and media that empowers. What will
(28:48):
you stand for? You've been listening to insight and thank
you
Good morning. You're listening to Insight, a show about empowering
our community. I'm Lorraine Baller.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
Tomorrow, I need everybody in Philly, Jersey, Delaware, New York
tricity area to come out with August second to the
second Annual FreeFest.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
That's Philly's own Freeway, sharing a preview of his upcoming FreeFest,
a family event packed with music, resources and fun for
all ages. We'll also explore how poetry can heal with
healing versus Germantown, the streets are talking. But first we
sit down with a successful businesswoman who's on a mission
to help other women launch and grow their own businesses.
(00:33):
Joining us today is Tanya Morris, entrepreneur, ecosystem builder, and
founder and CEO of Mom Your Business. She's on a
mission to empower black and brown women entrepreneurs by providing
access to capital, coaching, and community. Through her innovative programs
and powerful pitch competitions, she's helping to create real pathways
to generational wealth. Thank you for joining us, Tania. Great
(00:56):
to see you again.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
Yes, Hylaurene, thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Well, you've built something kind of special with Mom Your Business.
What inspired you to start this movement, and how is
your personal journey shaped the mission.
Speaker 3 (01:08):
Well, my personal journey, I'll start with dad shape the
mission because I believe that mentorship is not something I
do with who I am, and so I've been doing
mentoring for over twenty years, mostly in the nonprofit sector.
I've written a couple of books based on my relationships
with my mentees, and so that's really has shaped my
(01:29):
journey leading up to Mamiya Business. And so in many ways,
I feel like Mamia Business brought me full circle through
that last position I had. I was working at Changing
University coaching businesses around doing business with the government, and
during that time we started just doing really some events
and things to bring people together and some tea parties, workshops,
and so here we are almost eight years later and
(01:52):
still doing that work of really building community and working
with entrepreneurs to grow sustainable businesses.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
You had the Garden Party pitch competition a little bit ago,
and it's a little different than your usual pitch competitions.
Beauty means beauty plus history. I wonder if you can
share what made this event impactful for both the founders
and the audience.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
Yeah, I mean, it was absolutely Incredibley, it went better
than I could have expected. We were at the historic
Belmont Mansion and that was very intentional. We wanted to
be at a black owned space where we were able
to focus on liberation and empowerment, and so those founders.
I'm super proud of all entrepreneurs that participated. They did
(02:35):
an amazing job of telling their stories. Everyone had a
really great time. Folks even had the opportunity to a
play a form that we've partnered with called Raizify to
actually continue to donate and give to those founders after
the pitch competition. So it was just a well rounded
event with music, food, and just a great experience for everyone.
(02:56):
Folks are still talking about it, So I take no
credit for how that turned out.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
Oh that's great. You focus on more than just funding,
but creating an entire ecosystem. What kind of outcomes have
you seen from entrepreneurs who've participated in your programs.
Speaker 3 (03:10):
So one thing again as far as being an ecosystem builder,
is really connecting underrepresented founders on Again, we primarily focus
on women. We did have two men participate in that
pitch competition. It's really about connecting them to the resources
that they need. So we've seen folks go from cooking
in their kitchens and their homes to commercial kitchens. We
(03:30):
have a founder now who's on the brink of moving
into a local supermarket. We have one founder who's already
in a local supermarket. She's in about two hundred shot
rights right down. And so those are the things that
we're trying to make happen in order to also move
folks forward so that they can become self sustaining businesses
and really grow. So since twenty twenty one, we've helped
(03:52):
our founders raise a little over a half a million
dollars in capital, not just through pitch competitions, but through
loans as well as equity investments and providing them resources
along those pathways actually to help them to build up
the resources they need and providing them coaching support, technic
core assistance and those things that they need.
Speaker 1 (04:11):
You have a couple of exciting events coming up, a
Black Business Mixer in July and another one in Camden
on August. What can attendees expect from these gatherings and
tell us more?
Speaker 3 (04:22):
Yeah, So the Black Business Mixers started earlier this year.
We thought it was an opportunity for us to really
kind of come together and share some stories. So we've
been doing them since the beginning of the year. So
we're going on the road doing some pop ups for
the remainder of the summer. Will be at the Lansdowne
Art Collective at eighteen off Ansdowne Avenue in Delaware County
on July to sixteenth, and folks can expect an opportunity
(04:44):
to really to engage with our entrepreneurs. So we have vendors,
we'll also have music, we'll have food for one of
our vendors, and then we do pop up pitches as
a part of that, so folks get an opportunity to
actually practice their pitches. Sometimes we'll get away money sometimes. Yeah,
it depends on how we're feeling with today and our
ability to really raise some money from some of our
(05:05):
great sponsors that are in supporters to be able to
give away some money. So it's always a good time.
Folks in an opportunity to network, share their stories and
just really heap at the time.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
I wonder if you can tell us how mom your
business challenges the narrative around entrepreneurship for black and brown women,
especially in terms of access and visibility.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Yeah, so we as you know, and maybe some of
your audience may know, black women still are the fastest
growing group of entrepreneurs, yet the least funded, receiving less
than one percent of all venture capital. And so we're
trying to change the narrative that black women are in
fact bankable and that they are a good investment. Studies
show economically that when black women thrive, the community as
(05:49):
well as the economy as a whole, thrives, and so
that's the narrative that we're trying to change. And so
by providing opportunities to raise capital to invent and black
women as well as providing them the resources that they
need to have an investment worthy, bankable business where they
(06:09):
know their numbers, they're sharing their stories, they're doing the work,
and they're growing, most importantly and scaling. That's how we're
changing the.
Speaker 1 (06:17):
Narrative, Tanya. For those listening, how can people support the
work or get involved? How can they connect with you
and be part of this mom your business community.
Speaker 3 (06:27):
Please join us at one of our upcoming mixes again.
July the sixteenth, will be in Delaware County at the
Lansdown Art Collective. We'll be in Camden, New Jersey with
Curate Noir celebrating Black Business Month in August, so pop
up one of our mixers. We're always looking for volunteers.
We're always looking for mentors and coaches to support our founders.
(06:50):
And then you can always follow us on social where
Mom Your Business on all social media platforms, and you
can go to mamybusiness dot com and register for one
of us upcoming events.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
Fantastic Tanya Morris, entrepreneur, ecosystem builder and the founder and
CEO of Mom Your Business. Her mission is to empower
black and brown women entrepreneurs by offering access to capital, coaching,
and community. Thank you so much, Dania, Thank you so
much for having me, Maureen. Today, we're joined by two
(07:21):
remarkable cultural leaders, poet Trepeda B. Mason and Philadelphia's Chief
Cultural Officer, Valerie Gay to talk about Healing Vers Germantown.
The Streets are Talking. This powerful public art project invites
Germantown residents to submit original poems for the Healing Vers
Germantown Poetry Line and art based intervention addressing the mental
(07:42):
health impacts of gun violence through poetry and community storytelling
with support from Creedive Philadelphia and Bloomberg Philanthropies. The project
uplifts neighborhood voices, offering hope, healing and connection one phone
call at a time. So I'm so delighted to speak
with both of you, Trepeta. I'm going to start with you.
You can you tell us how the Healing Verse Poetry
(08:02):
Line first began and how it's evolved into the Germantown
focused project.
Speaker 4 (08:07):
Yeah, thank you so much, and thank you for having me.
It's a pleasure to see you. So the Healing Verse
Poetry Line involved somewhere around twenty twenty, right during the pandemic.
I was named the City of Philipia Poet Laureate from
twenty twenty and twenty twenty one. Had all these wonderful
ideas to get out into the community, do all my
usual community based work, and then the pandemic and so
(08:30):
the phone line was born out of the need to
still do deeply rooted community work, getting voices and using
poetry as a way to foster healing. But then we
could leave our houses and see each other face to face.
So having the line and having people have access to
poetry through the line as well as mental health resources
(08:52):
was critical. And so that evolved over the years, and
then I was really really excited to partner with Creative
philadelp with the Bloomberg Philadelphia Grant, where we were able
to reimagine not only the full line, but other components
to be able to build out the Healing Versus Germantown project,
which has been really amazing.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
Valie as Philadelphia's Chief Cultural Officer. Why does public art
and poetry in particular, why is it so vital in
healing communities impacted by violence?
Speaker 5 (09:23):
Sure, thank you so much, Loraine. So poetry has a
way very quickly getting to the heart of the matter
and to the heart of the person reading and or
hearing it and poetry and what I love about the
work that Trapeta and you Fond the Wisher have been
doing is really taking folks who would say poetry is
not for me. I've never done it before, and to
(09:45):
show that we all have something to say and we
can say it if you will, poetically, and we can
say it in a way that impacts others. And so,
you know, when we first launched this project back or
last September, we got a cranky phone call, frankly from
someone a snarky phone call Trepeeda. I don't know if
we've ever told you this, but we get a phone
call and someone goes, do you really think that gun
(10:07):
violence can be solved or poetry can help with that?
And we're like, yes, yes, it can call this number.
And the reality is when we bring our humanity to it,
so children, adults, people who have been impacted, people who
have caused harm, all of us as human beings, bringing
(10:29):
our stories and bringing our experiences, we can learn from
each other and start the healing process.
Speaker 1 (10:35):
Trapeda, I wonder if you can dig down a little
bit further about how this project connects people to both
creative expression and critical mental health resources.
Speaker 4 (10:44):
Yeah, so it does in so many ways. So as
if you call the phone line and you're definitely hearing
that day's hall, it's a moment of reflection as a pause.
And then also on the line there are phone numbers
to the nine A crisis line is you directly connect
to the crisis line. There's also resources for intimate partner violence,
(11:04):
all a number of things on it that can support people.
But the poems themselves, the thing that I've witnessed doing
this work over the years, having people talk through their
trauma and that's what vow I think it's really getting at.
You know, mental health is something that impacts all of
us in one way or another. There's not always a
direct correlation with gun violence or mental health, but that's
(11:27):
the after effects. Families are impacted, communities are impacted. Even
the individuals that are doing the harm. So that writing
that poetry, that person that call, you know, probably have
never really experienced unburdening, you know, through poetry. And that's
what we've witnessed with this project, what Yulanda and I
are leading these workshops. We've been surprised that the outpouring
(11:51):
people are writing directly about their lost relative, you know,
a son, So many sad, sad poems about you know,
losing sons, family members and friends in the neighborhoods. But
then we also see something else with the healing verse.
While they're writing through the pain, they are finding release
and relief and then they're able to consider and I
(12:13):
see hope there. So it's not all downtrodden necessarily, because
there's a balance, and I feel like that's what this
project offers. You'll have a chance to create public art,
You'll have a chance to share your stories guided in
a really beautiful way, and we also have a counselor
on site to support that, and then your work becomes
(12:34):
public art and then everyone turns into a poet into
an artist, and to see that it's just amazing. I
think that's one of the pieces of the project. So
there's a direct correlation through the calling and the phone
number and the resources and the on site support that
we had in the workshop, but then there's that indirect
piece where I'm able to share my story Tripeter.
Speaker 1 (12:57):
Just to follow up on that, when someone call the number,
and what is that number, by the way, what exactly
is their experience? They dial the number and then what happens, Yes.
Speaker 4 (13:07):
So they're calling the one eight five five poem r
X two. When they call the number, the first thing
they're going to hear is my voice. I'm greeting them
and welcoming them to the project. And I love this
because I've done that from the beginning of the healing verse, right,
and then they're prompted to go immediately to the poem
of the week. So we work with community members poets
(13:30):
from all over and the people that are in participating
on the line now are mostly Germantown residents who are
participating in this project, they will hear the poem of
the week, and they have prompts also to skip ahead
to other parts of the phone line where they can
get the resources. And then after the prompts, they can
also learn more information about the projects, especially when we
(13:53):
were having the workshop. We're going to be having a
couple of public opportunities for the public to show up
and be a part of this. And currently there's an
open call for submission for the poetry, so that even
if you didn't attend a workshop or you get to
respond to any of the calls, you can now also
submit your work and there's guidance around that.
Speaker 1 (14:13):
Valerie, what do you hope this project will spark both
in Germantown and across Philadelphia now and into twenty twenty
five and twenty six.
Speaker 5 (14:22):
So, firstly, I pray that this project actually can be
scaled across the city, the entire city. Having witnessed firsthand
just a brief glimpse of the power of the work
that Repeta and Yolanda are doing in communities, I happened
to sit in on one of the sessions with police
officers and just to see them these people kind of
(14:43):
guard it. And as the guards started to come down
and they could hear each other's poems, it was just
so beautiful. In fact, I didn't tell you this also
is repeated. I was walking someplace. I was a big community. Mean,
this person kind of pulls me aside and maybe a
little nervous, and they were like, I was at the
poetry workshop. I was at the poetry workshop. They remember
the poem that I wrote, and we hugged it out
(15:04):
and they said, I hope I get to do that again.
It was beautiful and I want more people to do it.
So that's the first thing to scale it. Secondly, I
want folks to see that arts and culture writ large,
is part of the solution of some of the most
intractable problems that we see today in our society, and
that when we're thinking about ways of how to solve
(15:25):
these problems that seem insurmountable, that one of the ways
I think arts and culture is a part of the
solution is because at its core is our humanity, and
we're bringing our humanity. And just like we see in
other sectors, once you really start to make relationships with people,
it starts to change how you see things how you
look at things, and sometimes it happens very quickly that
(15:49):
things change, communities change, environments change. And so my hope
for this project is the entire city and my hope
for how the city embraces fully arts and culture, and
I that writ large across everything that you could think of.
That we are part of the solution to making Philadelphia.
And more importantly, the Philadelphians who are in Philadelphia have
(16:11):
the experiences that they're an alienable rights right to be
able to be full human beings and to enjoy their
lives and the lives of their families and friends.
Speaker 1 (16:22):
To REPEEDA are their upcoming workshops that people can participate
in and also where can people find out more? What's
your website? And repeat that number one more time too.
Speaker 4 (16:33):
Yeah, So the number I'm going to give up, the
numerical number for the Healing Versus Poetry line is one
seven six three six seven nine two. So you can
call that twenty four hours toll free. You can hear
a new poem every Monday. So while the workshop portion
(16:53):
have happened, we had over ten workshops. Police officers, mostly
community members, youth focus people working in this field, caregiving
in the crisis field. We have workshops with all these
different groups. Now we're moving into the public art. We're
working with Rob Blocks and Yolanda Wish and Rob Blocks
and I are the lead artists in this project. How
(17:16):
community members can become involved is for the open call.
There is an open call for Germantown community members to
submit poetry and they're encouraged to share the opportunity with
Germantown friends and neighboring. Poetry will be featured on the
Healing Versus Poetry line between now and November twenty twenty five.
There's a stipend. It's one hundred dollars. It's one hundred
(17:36):
dollars stipend, and the deadline to submit is August first.
Speaker 1 (17:40):
Okay, wonderful And I'm going to put you on the
spot here. Do you have a short poem traped that
you could share with us right now?
Speaker 4 (17:49):
Yes?
Speaker 6 (17:49):
I do?
Speaker 1 (17:49):
Oh yay ok.
Speaker 4 (17:53):
And it's called in this season, In this season of
naming and of holding space for the quiet and the
mutic to be amplified, in this season of shifting, of
barrier breaking, undoing, unearthed, uprising and leveling. You beloved, may
think yourself too small may think your intentions and acts
(18:14):
too slight, may think you are but a fragment, a
mayor adam in this place of stars and gazers. But
what a world you are, What a sphere of shocking
beauty and grace. Do you not see how your one song,
your one breath, your one step, one voice, your one pause,
one lift, one shout, one protest brought us here, keeps
(18:38):
us here. You say that it's only a speck, you offered,
just a tiny bit, a smidge or morsel, But do
you not see the feast ahead it prepares, how even
the remains have purposed, How it beckons all to your
grand table, How it feeds and fills and expands us. Friend,
(18:59):
you you are a bomb in these prickly, prickly times.
You are a vessel of refuge and a.
Speaker 1 (19:06):
Respe perfect poem for our times. For sure, I feel better. Yeah,
I'm gonna do a little thing. You're clicking here.
Speaker 4 (19:16):
That was the first poem featured on the Healing Verse
poetry line h when it started, And now we have
the all these amazing poems. They're just so powerful. Community members,
famous poets, not so famous poets. Everyone's a poet on
the Healing Versus Germantown line. So that is really an
amazing thing to witness.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
That's great, well, Valerie, I know that there are so
many different projects in addition to this one, which is
Healing Verse Germantown. The streets are talking. If people want
to know more about the work that you're doing to
elevate the arts in Philadelphia, where do they go for that?
Speaker 5 (19:51):
Philip dot gov slash arts. So phi La dot go
ov slash arts. It'll take you right to our create
a Philadelphia website and you'll see all the amazing things
that are happening. And we invite you and invite everyone
to sign up for our mailing list, and that way
you'll be the first to know of some really exciting
things that are happening, including as repeated mentioned, the public
(20:14):
art portion of the Healing Versus Germantown session that will
be happening soon. Project that will be happening soon. So
we're really excited and we want every Philadelphia and those
who love us, maybe work here, maybe don't live here,
but you work here. We want you to see that
you are a part of us and that we are
a part of your lived experience.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
Well, the arts are so critical and people don't always
acknowledge the incredible importance not only for mental health, for
personal healing, for free expression, but also the economic impact
of the art is tremendous in Philadelphia. People don't realize
that the arts contribute more than the sports teams do
(20:54):
to Philadelphia. A little fun fact.
Speaker 5 (20:58):
Yes, thank you well.
Speaker 1 (21:01):
I want to thank you both so much for this
and for this project. You can go to Healingverse Germantown
dot com and follow on Instagram at Healing vers Germantown
for more information and call that number one eight five
five poem r X And that's eight five five seven
sixty three six seven ninety two. Two remarkable cultural leaders,
(21:25):
Trepeda B. Mason, who is a poet and Philadelphia's Chief
Cultural Officer, Valerie Gay telling us about this extraordinary program,
a lovely program called Healing Versus Germantown. The streets are
talking inviting Germantown residents to submit original poems for the
Healing Verse Germantown Poetry line. Wonderful idea wonderful project. Thank
(21:47):
you both for joining us today. I am absolutely delighted
to be joined by Philadelphia hip hop legend Freeway We're
here to talk about the second annual FreeFest, a free,
community powered event happening on Saturday, August second, at the
Navy Yard. Hosted by Freedom Thinkers, Inc. In partnership with
City Council. FreeFest is all about unity and uplift, a
(22:08):
full day of music, health, education, and culture, and of
course it all wraps up with a high energy Freeway
and Friends showcase. So let's get right to it. Freeway,
thank you so much for joining us here today.
Speaker 6 (22:19):
Hey, good afternoon, Thanks for having me, Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (22:22):
I really appreciate, you know, the opportunity to talk about FreeFest.
Speaker 1 (22:25):
Well, we're always glad to talk to you about FreeFest
and anything else you want to talk about. But at
the heart of this event, I wonder if you could
tell us you created FreeFest through your nonprofit Freedom Thinkers.
What inspired you to launch this? Has it evolved into
its second year?
Speaker 6 (22:40):
Well for the people that don't though.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
I was diagnosed with n stage reno failure September fifteenth,
for twenty fifteen. I was on dialysis from then all
the way to February fifth, twenty nineteen, when I received
my gift of life, my new kidney, and you know,
when I was diagnosed, I was unaware that it could
happen to me. I had three of the leading risk
factors for kidney failure, one being hyper tension and another
one being diabetes, and surprisingly just being African American was
(23:04):
a risk factor.
Speaker 6 (23:05):
So I had three risk factors.
Speaker 2 (23:06):
I had examples of my and my family of people
you know, that had kidney issues, and I was still
unaware that it could happen to me.
Speaker 6 (23:12):
So me and my team.
Speaker 2 (23:13):
Felt like it was very important to spread awareness, you know,
so people could at least have a fighting chance. So
that's where Freedom Thinkers Academy and Freedom Thinkers, Inc.
Speaker 6 (23:21):
Started.
Speaker 2 (23:21):
That's why I started the foundation, and it's music, health, education,
and culture. So it's everything that I'm involved in, you know,
it's basically four things that my life is surrounded by,
besides my religion and Islam. You know, we're just trying
to bring awareness to the forefront. As year first annual FreeFest,
I think we had over two thousand people out there,
was an amazing event. We had a lot of things
(23:43):
for the community, you know, we had health screenings, we
had things for the children out there. He has vendors,
and we had a lot of performances, and then we
ended it with a Freeway and Friends performance, which was amazing.
Speaker 5 (23:55):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (23:55):
Well, you are absolutely the perfect person to be speaking
about this very issue of organ donation because of your
own personal journey from your musical legacy to your health
battles and family loss, You've inspired so many people. How
have those experiences influenced the mission of Freedom Thinkers and
what people will see at FreeFest.
Speaker 2 (24:17):
I just want to open people's eyes to these things,
you know, Like I said, I had free of the
ly and risk factors, and I was unaware that it
could happen to me, and it's so many other Americans
that may be in that same position. We just want
to bring awareness to these health issues. We want people
to have a good time. Music has been a part
of my life, even before I was famous, even before
I was a star, music always helped me. Like you know,
(24:39):
I remember certain times in my life, certain pivotal moments,
and I can just remember the music, the songs that
surrounded those moments, and even going through my battle like
when I got out of the hospital when I was
first diagnosed with kidney fire and I was put onto dialysis,
I immediately started rapping about it, you know, and it
was like my outlet for me to make me feel better.
Speaker 6 (24:58):
We just want to bring all those things to the people.
Speaker 1 (25:01):
There is such a challenge reaching out to black and
brown communities, not only about organ donation, but about health
in general. We're bad, We're not taking care of ourselves
the way we need to, and that's what we're seeing
as we're seeing much higher levels of the need for
kidney transplants and also the impact of so many other
(25:21):
situations like heart disease, we have diabetes, all these things
risk factors that you yourself have experienced, And I wonder
what is your message to our people out there in
terms of taking care of ourselves and also being aware
of the importance of organ donation.
Speaker 6 (25:35):
My message to people is health as well.
Speaker 2 (25:37):
And my lowest point, I would have treated everything to fame,
the money, the cars, the houses, everything, just to be healthy.
People don't know how important health is, you know. I
encourage people to keep up with your routine physicals, which
your blood work done at least once a year, because
your blood work is the only thing that could let
you know what's going on in your body. Like you know,
when I walked into that hospital, it was calling me
(25:58):
the lucky Star was coming into my room, like you
walked in here. They couldn't believe that I walked in here.
Probably just at the time doctor Freeman. He told me,
I've been doing this for thirty years and I never
seen levels this high.
Speaker 6 (26:11):
Like my levels was that high, felt.
Speaker 2 (26:13):
Like I could keep going, like if I want to
got my blood work done and I would have just
laid around the house for another couple of weeks. They said,
I probably wouldn't even be here right now. Wow, you
know that's how serious it is. So you know, we
got to keep up with our routine physicals because with
things like kidney disease and diabetes and high blood pressures,
sometimes you don't even even have a clue until it's
too late. What happened to me is afraid that medical
(26:36):
professionals use called crashing onto dialysis. When I went to
the hospital, I immediately had to start doing dialysis or
else I wouldn't be here.
Speaker 6 (26:44):
We don't want people to crash onto dialysis.
Speaker 2 (26:46):
We want you to keep up with your routine physicals,
get your blood work done at least once a year.
Sometimes you can get it done twice a year, but
at least once a year, so you know what's going
on to your body.
Speaker 1 (26:55):
Yeah, well, we've got to talk about the grand finatale
for free Fest, Freeway and Friends, the showcase. What if
you can share with us what you expect from the performance.
I know that a lot of people are just gonna
vibe with some of the old hits and some of
the new ones, So tell us more.
Speaker 6 (27:10):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (27:10):
So it's gonna be some of the old, like you said,
some of the old hits, some of the new hits.
I'm gonna have some special guests from the music industry,
you know, some of my friends from the music industry,
and we're going to put together an amazing performance.
Speaker 6 (27:21):
It's something that sy'all don't want to miss. You know,
is going to be electrifying.
Speaker 1 (27:25):
Trusting, fantastic. I know it's going to be fun, and
it's also going to be good for the community. You've
got this event again. It's August second at the Navy Yard.
What time does it start and end?
Speaker 2 (27:35):
It starts at eleven am, and it's the Freeway and
Friends section starts at four pm, so it's over at six,
so it starts from eleven to six.
Speaker 1 (27:43):
Fantastic. We will be there remarkable Philadelphia hip hop legend
Freeway talking about the second annual FreeFest, a free, community
powered event Saturday, August second at the Navy Yard hosted
by Freedom Thinkers, Inc. In partnership with City Council and
shout out to see Council President Kenyatta Johnson. And also,
of course, not only is there going to be all
(28:05):
kinds of health information, music, education and culture. A high
energy performance by Freeway and friends showcase. So see you there,
Orb Square, So Freeway, thank you so much for joining
us here today. Thank you for all that you do
for the community. You really are an inspiration to all
of us. Thank you again.
Speaker 2 (28:22):
I really appreciate too, and thank you for everything that
you do for the community throughout the years.
Speaker 6 (28:26):
It's definitely recognized.
Speaker 1 (28:28):
Thank you. You can listen to all of today's interviews
by going to our station website and typing in keyword Community.
You can also listen on the iHeartRadio app ye Words
Philadelphia Community Podcast. Follow me on Twitter and Instagram at
Lorraine Ballard. I'm Lorraine Ballard MOREL and I stand for
service to our community and media that empowers. What will
(28:48):
you stand for? You've been listening to insight and thank
you
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