# KIPS LIVE SHOW Pt. 2: Cracking The Da'Vinchi Code

An episode of [Keep it Positive, Sweetie](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1689495115), 6 Apr 2025, 33 min.

Audio: https://pdrl.fm/1504e6/podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/44f61442-7ba4-4250-b406-b35901038504/e0f312ed-d7c5-4c53-be69-b35901072ce5/audio.mp3?utm_source=Podcast&in_playlist=2cfaa2b1-0f12-4656-aec3-b3590103850e

This week on “Keep It Positive, Sweetie,” we’re bringing you Part 2 of our live show with the one and only Da’Vinchi! We had such a refreshing and insightful conversation – from his childhood in Brooklyn, NY, to commanding the stage on Broadway, and gracing our television screens weekly. Da’Vinchi opened up about his passion for mental health and shared his thoughts on the importance of the family nucleus. You won’t want to miss this inspiring episode! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

## Transcript

[0:04] Speaker 1: All right, now, I hope you all ready for this.
[0:07] Speaker 2: All right, My next guest, like me, start off in
[0:11] Speaker 2: music and then he's transitioned into acting. You might know
[0:16] Speaker 2: him as I don't know Darnelle Hayes from All Americans, say,
[0:24] Speaker 2: y'all already.
[0:24] Speaker 1: Know being in Mary J. Bliges a lifetime movies or
[0:30] Speaker 1: my all time fave Terry and b a Meth. Ladies
[0:34] Speaker 1: and gentlemen, David.
[0:42] Speaker 3: Bring a mouth, bring them out, bring a mouth, Bring
[0:45] Speaker 3: him out. That's harding yell when thats in your mouth,
[0:49] Speaker 3: Bring him out, bring.
[0:50] Speaker 1: Him out, ring him to, ring him out?
[0:59] Speaker 2: Hey, Davincity, how you feeling I'm feeling great.
[1:05] Speaker 4: I'm feeling great. How y'all feeling? Wow? This is a
[1:10] Speaker 4: great crowd. It's a beautiful crowd.
[1:11] Speaker 1: Listen. They have the best energy. Thank you so much.
[1:16] Speaker 2: It's an honor to have you amongst the kids family,
[1:19] Speaker 2: and we're gonna jump right into it, all right. So
[1:22] Speaker 2: you are from Brooklyn, New York, Yes, ma'am, and my
[1:25] Speaker 2: castmate daval is also from Brooklyn. I've heard some wild stories.
[1:30] Speaker 2: What was it like growing up in Brooklyn for you?
[1:34] Speaker 4: I mean growing up in do we got any Brooklyn house? Brooklyn.
[1:39] Speaker 4: That's what's up. That's what's up? What up?
[1:41] Speaker 3: Not the dopest part about growing up in Brooklyn and
[1:46] Speaker 3: a fast city like that and just up north in
[1:49] Speaker 3: areas with trains and buses and all that stuff. You
[1:52] Speaker 3: grow up fast, or I wouldn't even say fast. I
[1:55] Speaker 3: think you grow up at the rate that you were
[1:57] Speaker 3: supposed to grow up at. I think a lot of
[1:58] Speaker 3: people are just a little like they get.
[2:01] Speaker 4: Coddled a little longer.
[2:02] Speaker 3: But the way we grew up, it's like we we
[2:04] Speaker 3: became men like kind of quicker and women earlier.
[2:08] Speaker 1: That's amazing.
[2:09] Speaker 2: So like when you started with music and then you
[2:12] Speaker 2: transition to acting. For me, music I just I didn't
[2:16] Speaker 2: fall out of love with it, but I feel I didn't.
[2:18] Speaker 1: Like the politics of the music industry. What was it
[2:21] Speaker 1: with you that made you decide, hey, I don't want
[2:22] Speaker 1: to do this?
[2:24] Speaker 4: It was it was definitely the politics.
[2:26] Speaker 3: Like it's like growing up, I loved music, right, I
[2:29] Speaker 3: was like Chris Brown, the Trey Songs, the Ushers like everyone.
[2:34] Speaker 4: Right.
[2:35] Speaker 3: I was like, yo, this is this is like what
[2:37] Speaker 3: I want to be in all the great rappers, the
[2:39] Speaker 3: holes fifty I love fifty. I knows better than him.
[2:43] Speaker 3: I know fifty songs way better than him. He don't
[2:45] Speaker 3: even know, but but nah, like I was really inspired
[2:48] Speaker 3: by it. But then when you get there and it's
[2:51] Speaker 3: not a figment of your imagination no more, you're like, nah,
[2:54] Speaker 3: like they really want like a certain thing there.
[2:59] Speaker 4: And I was just like, all right, I don't know, and.
[3:01] Speaker 3: I didn't know enough about gospel singers a gospel rappers.
[3:04] Speaker 3: He'd be like, oh, maybe I'm gonna take that route.
[3:07] Speaker 3: So I was just like, you know what, I'm cool
[3:08] Speaker 3: off this. It's like they sometimes they just really want
[3:12] Speaker 3: some real killers people that's just killing left and right.
[3:16] Speaker 2: And.
[3:18] Speaker 3: It's like, bro, I'm like, bro, Like, I've done some
[3:21] Speaker 3: bad stuff, but I got a wrestled when I was
[3:23] Speaker 3: thirteen and stuff, but I never once started about killing someone.
[3:26] Speaker 4: So I'm like, bro, it was a dealing the stolen property.
[3:30] Speaker 3: Oh so yeah, it was stupid, but anyway, Yeah, but
[3:34] Speaker 3: when I realized certain things, I'm like, bro, I can't
[3:37] Speaker 3: be preaching this message.
[3:39] Speaker 4: Bro.
[3:39] Speaker 3: Like it's like I made it out of my situation
[3:41] Speaker 3: because I stopped doing certain things. So I'm like, for
[3:44] Speaker 3: me to then do this, I'm like, bro, that's I'm
[3:47] Speaker 3: lying you know what I'm saying. I feel like God
[3:49] Speaker 3: is I'm gonna have to answer to God and I
[3:51] Speaker 3: can't sleep well at night.
[3:52] Speaker 1: That's so good.
[3:53] Speaker 2: I got to watch you twice on Broadway for Thoughts
[3:57] Speaker 2: of a Colored Man.
[3:58] Speaker 1: Guys. It was such a profound play.
[4:02] Speaker 2: Just we really talked about the thoughts that are black men,
[4:05] Speaker 2: what they go through on a day to day basis.
[4:07] Speaker 2: We laughed, we cried. It was a really good plan
[4:10] Speaker 2: and you were amazing in it. But you also the
[4:12] Speaker 2: star of BMF.
[4:14] Speaker 1: I want to know. I want to know what is
[4:18] Speaker 1: your favorite Broadway or TV? In film?
[4:22] Speaker 3: Broadway was hard. Broadway was really hard. I ain't gonna
[4:27] Speaker 3: lie like it was like. It was great because it
[4:30] Speaker 3: teaches you something that film and TV can't teach you.
[4:33] Speaker 3: Film and TV there's a bunch of cut in at
[4:35] Speaker 3: the end. It's like director, cut, give you note, throw
[4:38] Speaker 3: something new out.
[4:39] Speaker 4: You get so many chances to redo it.
[4:42] Speaker 3: But a Broadway, once you lie and you you front
[4:44] Speaker 3: of a crowd like this, it's like.
[4:46] Speaker 4: Bro, I gotta go.
[4:46] Speaker 3: And when you make a mistake, it's like you better
[4:48] Speaker 3: hope your partner just like wing it with you. Like
[4:51] Speaker 3: there was moments I was just winging it and everyone's like, oh,
[4:54] Speaker 3: it was so good. I'm like, you don't even know.
[4:56] Speaker 3: I fucked this up, Like I messed this all up.
[4:59] Speaker 3: But but it was great. Acting TV and film is
[5:02] Speaker 3: great because I mean, you it pays the bills, you know,
[5:07] Speaker 3: But Broadway it's like when you're doing Broadway, it's more
[5:09] Speaker 3: of a craft thing. I mean, I don't know what
[5:11] Speaker 3: the producers make on it, but as an actor, you
[5:14] Speaker 3: you it's work.
[5:16] Speaker 1: It's a love project.
[5:21] Speaker 4: But it was great.
[5:21] Speaker 3: I learned so much and it shout out to Keenan Scott, Yes,
[5:25] Speaker 3: and the writers and directors like everyone like I learned.
[5:28] Speaker 3: I think that was the biggest class for me in
[5:30] Speaker 3: my career.
[5:31] Speaker 1: That's amazing.
[5:32] Speaker 2: I always hear that actors who really take their craft
[5:34] Speaker 2: serious go do Broadway. Yeah, they say, there's nothing like it.
[5:37] Speaker 2: There's no training course like it unless you work on
[5:40] Speaker 2: a Tyler Perry set. Because we get one take. Tyler's like,
[5:44] Speaker 2: we're on Broadway. I'm like, hey, can I get one more?
[5:48] Speaker 2: Then you decided that she wanted to pick up comedy.
[5:51] Speaker 2: Now I tell people all the time that I'm funny.
[5:54] Speaker 2: Yeah exactly. I'd be like, I'm funny but I don't
[6:00] Speaker 2: if I had the chance to do stand up?
[6:01] Speaker 1: What made you say I'm gonna give.
[6:03] Speaker 4: This a shot? You know, that's a great question.
[6:06] Speaker 3: I feel like as an artist, you always want to
[6:11] Speaker 3: push yourself, and for me, stand up is like it's
[6:14] Speaker 3: like going skydiving.
[6:16] Speaker 4: You know.
[6:17] Speaker 3: It's like, what is gonna happen if I go on
[6:20] Speaker 3: stage and I just talk Shita?
[6:23] Speaker 1: Can I for yourself?
[6:29] Speaker 3: Okay, Okay, I'm gonna fix my language. I'm sorry forgive
[6:33] Speaker 3: me mom, but but nah, It's like I was like, yo,
[6:37] Speaker 3: what if it's like the conversation that me and my
[6:39] Speaker 3: boys we having, just like just have it here. And
[6:43] Speaker 3: then the thing is, it's like I've been doing mental
[6:44] Speaker 3: health tours as well, so I was like, if I
[6:47] Speaker 3: could infuse a little bit of that and make it educational,
[6:49] Speaker 3: just a little funny, like what could happen?
[6:51] Speaker 4: And I was like, even if I got.
[6:53] Speaker 3: Booed, it's like, you're gonna leave with a message because
[6:56] Speaker 3: it's not just like like stupid little jokes and me
[6:59] Speaker 3: making fun of you people. It's like you really listened
[7:01] Speaker 3: to You're like, oh no, that that kind of makes sense.
[7:03] Speaker 1: Yeah, I love that. Now are you planning on doing
[7:06] Speaker 1: a tour for your comedy as well.
[7:08] Speaker 3: Yeah, last year I'd hit ten cities up because we
[7:10] Speaker 3: were just like, we didn't make an official tour. We
[7:12] Speaker 3: was just gone, was like what can we doing? Like
[7:14] Speaker 3: we're selling out here so out They were like, okay, okay,
[7:18] Speaker 3: But it's because of like all American and being math.
[7:21] Speaker 3: You know what I'm saying. It's not because like people
[7:22] Speaker 3: are respecting me as a real comedian.
[7:24] Speaker 1: But I wouldn't say that. You're probably coming from because
[7:27] Speaker 1: they saw you on TV and they wanted to see
[7:29] Speaker 1: what you did.
[7:29] Speaker 4: Yeah, yeah, exactly exactly.
[7:31] Speaker 3: But I think over time that I'm gonna get that
[7:33] Speaker 3: respect as a comedian if I keep pursuing it. But
[7:35] Speaker 3: I definitely think this summer I might, I might, I
[7:37] Speaker 3: might do a tour.
[7:38] Speaker 1: Okay, we check y'all going to check them out.
[7:41] Speaker 4: Yeah, we appreciate that.
[7:43] Speaker 2: So something I talk about a lot of times with
[7:45] Speaker 2: my peers is that people do not see the journey.
[7:49] Speaker 1: They don't see what we go through.
[7:51] Speaker 2: We live and we work in a very rejection driven
[7:55] Speaker 2: This is that like a career, like we get told
[7:57] Speaker 2: no so much, y'all, you guysn't have real self esteem
[8:00] Speaker 2: to be an actor facts. I can't count how many
[8:04] Speaker 2: no's I got before I got a yes.
[8:07] Speaker 1: And it takes a hit.
[8:08] Speaker 2: If you're not really strong with your self esteem, it
[8:10] Speaker 2: can take a hit. How has that journey been for
[8:12] Speaker 2: you and did you have any moments where you were like, oh.
[8:15] Speaker 1: This is too much.
[8:17] Speaker 4: Yeah, it's been. It's been bad.
[8:19] Speaker 3: It's like it's crazy because I got over probably like
[8:23] Speaker 3: a thousand no's and I only got like eight yeses.
[8:28] Speaker 4: Hear that, yeah, and the three of the eight yes.
[8:30] Speaker 3: It is all American b in math and like another
[8:35] Speaker 3: movie and grownish that like started making me like famous,
[8:38] Speaker 3: you know what I'm saying. But it's it's what they
[8:41] Speaker 3: laugh You're funny.
[8:45] Speaker 4: Yes, I was like I'm pouring my heart out on
[8:48] Speaker 4: the laughing like I was in a joke. You got
[8:53] Speaker 4: a mean audience. That's crazy.
[8:56] Speaker 2: Hey, y'all gotta act like y'all got some home training.
[8:59] Speaker 4: Don't come to myself like, nah, this is but but nah,
[9:03] Speaker 4: it was. It's tough.
[9:05] Speaker 3: I mean, this is one of the few businesses in
[9:07] Speaker 3: the world that you're constantly being scrutinized for how you look,
[9:12] Speaker 3: your size, like you're you're constantly being scrutinized, so it
[9:21] Speaker 3: it plays with your head man.
[9:22] Speaker 4: And a lot of times, like I remember it was
[9:24] Speaker 4: just a producer. He was talking to me.
[9:25] Speaker 3: He was like, you gotta remember this is the entertainment business,
[9:28] Speaker 3: not the entertainment arts, you know what I'm saying. So
[9:31] Speaker 3: like when he told me that, I was like, oh,
[9:32] Speaker 3: I stopped taking things personal because it's like like, for instance,
[9:35] Speaker 3: like I've went out for Haitian characters before I'm Haitian
[9:40] Speaker 3: both parentation, I speak the language fluently. English ain't even
[9:44] Speaker 3: my first language.
[9:44] Speaker 4: I speak French.
[9:45] Speaker 1: And give me some give us a little bit.
[9:49] Speaker 4: Okay he's out of lindsay.
[9:51] Speaker 1: Give me some friends.
[9:53] Speaker 4: Through wow.
[9:55] Speaker 1: But but nah.
[9:57] Speaker 3: But it's like it's crazy though, because I would go
[9:59] Speaker 3: out for hate characters and.
[10:01] Speaker 4: They calling my team like he doesn't look haation. You
[10:05] Speaker 4: know what I'm saying.
[10:06] Speaker 3: They want to make everyone look a certain way that
[10:10] Speaker 3: you know what I'm saying. They're telling the narrative for us,
[10:11] Speaker 3: and it's like it's offensive, you know what I'm saying
[10:15] Speaker 3: to me. So it's like there's a lot of moments
[10:17] Speaker 3: to where you know, I got a love hate relationship
[10:19] Speaker 3: with his business. But that's why I try to invest
[10:22] Speaker 3: and set myself up financially completely outside the business, just
[10:25] Speaker 3: so if everything goes south, it's like my house ain't
[10:29] Speaker 3: going nowhere.
[10:29] Speaker 4: My other house ain't going nowhere. You know what I'm saying.
[10:31] Speaker 4: So it's like, yeah, yeah.
[10:34] Speaker 1: That's so good.
[10:34] Speaker 2: Speaking of finances and financial literacy, I know when I
[10:38] Speaker 2: first started making real money, because you go from waiting
[10:42] Speaker 2: on a pay check from the IRS you can't wait
[10:44] Speaker 2: for the refund to come back, to having to pay
[10:47] Speaker 2: and you just did a really funny video on Instagram.
[10:50] Speaker 1: As a way I can pay you back. But my
[10:52] Speaker 1: plan is to show you that I understand. Talk about
[10:56] Speaker 1: paying taxes. I felt that.
[10:58] Speaker 2: I said, I want to talk about that because so
[11:02] Speaker 2: many times in our culture we're not educated on how
[11:06] Speaker 2: to manage our finances on a on a normal level,
[11:10] Speaker 2: and then we make it and we're definitely not ready.
[11:13] Speaker 1: I can't tell y'all that first tax bill. I said, yeah,
[11:17] Speaker 1: we're gonna we'll get.
[11:17] Speaker 4: To that, right.
[11:19] Speaker 1: I ain't even know. I was in no hurry to
[11:20] Speaker 1: pay it, and it was like, no, you gotta pay.
[11:22] Speaker 1: I said, pay what?
[11:23] Speaker 4: Fact?
[11:24] Speaker 1: What?
[11:25] Speaker 4: Yeah?
[11:25] Speaker 3: No, No, it's it's sick. It's like you think student
[11:27] Speaker 3: loans are bad. It's like like if you get a
[11:30] Speaker 3: bill that you gotta pay Uncle Sam a million dollars,
[11:33] Speaker 3: like y'all y'all don't got enough?
[11:35] Speaker 4: Like what am I? Like?
[11:37] Speaker 3: How am I contributing to this? Like it's it's like
[11:40] Speaker 3: it's not it's sick. Like I remember the first time.
[11:42] Speaker 3: I remember I was talking to my CPA and I
[11:44] Speaker 3: was just like I was just shocked. I was like, no,
[11:47] Speaker 3: it's like this doesn't make sense, like I don't understand.
[11:50] Speaker 3: I really did not understand that they was asking my
[11:53] Speaker 3: little ass for this much money.
[11:54] Speaker 4: I'm like, bro, y'all good, Like y'all good? I was
[11:57] Speaker 4: like yeah, I was.
[11:58] Speaker 3: I was mad as hell, and I was like, can
[12:00] Speaker 3: I just do a payment plan? Like like honestly, but
[12:04] Speaker 3: it's just like no, it's like you so having a
[12:06] Speaker 3: Chris talker. I was like, yeah, I'll pay the ship,
[12:07] Speaker 3: but right I was mad as Oh.
[12:11] Speaker 1: My gosh, we've all been there.
[12:12] Speaker 2: I tell you understand, as your star has risen, at
[12:17] Speaker 2: what point did you realize that you had to shift
[12:19] Speaker 2: the way you moved.
[12:22] Speaker 3: Ooh that's good. I think three years ago I dealt
[12:30] Speaker 3: with like it's everything in life has a side effect. Right,
[12:35] Speaker 3: It's like you fly in an airplane, Like the coolest
[12:39] Speaker 3: thing about our inventions human beings, we're so smart with
[12:42] Speaker 3: our inspiration from God. But as though as a side effect, right,
[12:45] Speaker 3: So like if you fly in an airplane's radiation, you know,
[12:48] Speaker 3: if you take a car somewhere, you run the risk
[12:51] Speaker 3: of X, Y Z and what is doing to the planet.
[12:52] Speaker 3: But it's like it'll cut time down. You know, instead
[12:55] Speaker 3: of walking to California it's gonna take you three months,
[12:57] Speaker 3: you'll do it in a.
[12:58] Speaker 4: Couple of hours. But it's like it's a side effect
[13:00] Speaker 4: being on screen.
[13:02] Speaker 3: The cancer of that is fame, Like fame is not
[13:07] Speaker 3: what it's all cracked out to be.
[13:08] Speaker 4: Like when Shorty's be online.
[13:10] Speaker 3: Like my man, my man, my man, y'all dead ass,
[13:16] Speaker 3: Like when y'all see us out and like we would
[13:18] Speaker 3: our ladies, our significant other and whatever, and we like,
[13:21] Speaker 3: y'all really on that type of time, And I'm just like,
[13:24] Speaker 3: what give you.
[13:26] Speaker 1: The he's.
[13:29] Speaker 3: And I was just like, I'm like, what have I
[13:32] Speaker 3: done to make y'all feel that this is okay? But
[13:34] Speaker 3: because when you're an artist, you're in such a unique
[13:37] Speaker 3: experience a position because you allow people to.
[13:41] Speaker 4: Feel this emotional connection.
[13:43] Speaker 3: So their brain is like undergoing neuroplasticity while looking at
[13:47] Speaker 3: your face right, So it's like it's reshaping it. So
[13:51] Speaker 3: like you're if you're learning something watching an artist, it's
[13:54] Speaker 3: like your brain is literally designing itself, right, It's malleable.
[13:58] Speaker 3: It's like play thof So it's like, so you guys
[14:01] Speaker 3: associate those nostalgic moments with us and we'll just be
[14:05] Speaker 3: I'll be in a grocery store just chilling and someone's like,
[14:07] Speaker 3: they just run up to you and.
[14:08] Speaker 4: They'm like, what are you doing to you? I'm like
[14:10] Speaker 4: I gotta eat too, and I'm just like, what are
[14:13] Speaker 4: you doing here this close?
[14:14] Speaker 3: Like it's like this is crazy, you know what I'm saying.
[14:16] Speaker 3: I'm like, this is not normal. But they feel so
[14:19] Speaker 3: like involved and like I've been followed before, and it's
[14:23] Speaker 3: like and it's like, I don't get me wrong, I
[14:26] Speaker 3: love the fans a artists. I've never in my life
[14:28] Speaker 3: thought I would ever be in a position to where
[14:30] Speaker 3: somebody is saying my resume and then like you know,
[14:34] Speaker 3: everyone start clapping like it's a great position of being.
[14:36] Speaker 3: Don't get me wrong, but there is a side that
[14:39] Speaker 3: comes with it that Sometimes.
[14:40] Speaker 4: It's like, bro, it's a lot of pressure. You know.
[14:44] Speaker 3: It's just even simple things like if I wear this
[14:46] Speaker 3: out and out and I take a picture, can't wear
[14:48] Speaker 3: it again.
[14:49] Speaker 1: We're gonna normalize that I can't wear it again.
[14:52] Speaker 4: Like it's like, yeah, well if I'm caught.
[14:53] Speaker 3: See like if me and you was having lunch and
[14:56] Speaker 3: were chilling, we having a good conversation. I just touching
[14:58] Speaker 3: hand like girls like that was so good.
[14:59] Speaker 1: Like I'm like, oh, they go together.
[15:01] Speaker 3: Picture go together. Now I gotta answer questions. I'm like, god,
[15:04] Speaker 3: damn you being a gentleman. You holding someone's hands and
[15:07] Speaker 3: helping them get you know what I'm saying. It's like
[15:09] Speaker 3: it's like everything you do or say, it's like it's
[15:12] Speaker 3: gonna be used against you.
[15:13] Speaker 1: And you see that's my little bro.
[15:15] Speaker 2: Okay, we just helion right right.
[15:22] Speaker 3: But it's it's beautiful. I'm grateful for and who much
[15:25] Speaker 3: is giving? Much is required, you know. So I'm not complaining.
[15:28] Speaker 3: I'm just letting y'all know what we go through sometimes
[15:31] Speaker 3: and sometimes we're just like oh wow, you know.
[15:33] Speaker 4: It's like sometimes I have being a serious conversation.
[15:36] Speaker 3: I'm like talking to my mom about something like no, mom,
[15:38] Speaker 3: like what do you what do you mean?
[15:39] Speaker 4: We can't do?
[15:40] Speaker 3: And someone's like I'm like, yo, hold on, hold on, please,
[15:43] Speaker 3: hold on, hold on, and they're just like no, please, Catt.
[15:44] Speaker 4: Just get it. And I'm like, yeah, just wait, but
[15:46] Speaker 4: it's my birthday. I'm like, of course, it's everyone's birthday.
[15:48] Speaker 3: Every day, like every day it's someone's birthday, and they're
[15:51] Speaker 3: making you feel bad.
[15:52] Speaker 4: And you're just like no, no, no, and I'm like, man.
[15:55] Speaker 1: It's hard, it's so hard. I struggle with that too.
[15:58] Speaker 1: And I've I've had the stalkers, you.
[15:59] Speaker 2: Know, and your life changes in the blink of an eye,
[16:03] Speaker 2: you know, And it's scary because when you're just friendly
[16:07] Speaker 2: and you love people and you love your fans like
[16:10] Speaker 2: I ride for y'all. I love you guys so much,
[16:12] Speaker 2: but there are some people that take it too far
[16:16] Speaker 2: and those boundaries are not respected, and as human beings,
[16:19] Speaker 2: I wish you would understand just that we are human, right,
[16:21] Speaker 2: and we have family, and we have issues and things
[16:24] Speaker 2: that we deal with on a day to day basis,
[16:26] Speaker 2: and some days we wake up and we don't feel
[16:28] Speaker 2: our best selves, but we have to turn it on,
[16:31] Speaker 2: you know. We don't have the luxury of being like, yo,
[16:32] Speaker 2: get on my face, I am not in the mood today.
[16:36] Speaker 1: We don't have that luxury.
[16:38] Speaker 2: You see some like hey, like you gotta turn it
[16:40] Speaker 2: on no matter how you feel, because that may be
[16:42] Speaker 2: the only moment that they get with you, and that's
[16:44] Speaker 2: their lasting impression of you, like the person they just
[16:48] Speaker 2: love and they're like, dang, I thought she was like this,
[16:51] Speaker 2: but not realizing may maybe she's really going through somewhere.
[16:53] Speaker 1: He's going through something. I feel. I love y'all too.
[17:01] Speaker 1: In that shift, did you also see a shift.
[17:03] Speaker 2: In your friends or like, as you're like climbing and
[17:06] Speaker 2: realizing we're not in the same place, because you have
[17:07] Speaker 2: to start thinking different.
[17:08] Speaker 4: Absolutely, you got to.
[17:09] Speaker 3: You gotta protect your life because it's like when a
[17:12] Speaker 3: lot of things start revolving around you. You know, you're
[17:15] Speaker 3: retiring your parents, by the grace of God, you're taking
[17:18] Speaker 3: care of so many people, like so many people revolve
[17:20] Speaker 3: around you. It's like if your life were to stop,
[17:23] Speaker 3: it's like there's so many other lives that would be affected,
[17:26] Speaker 3: so you can't move normal anymore. And sometimes it's like
[17:31] Speaker 3: when people have not involved in their thinking and they're
[17:34] Speaker 3: around you, and you're trying to tell them. It's like, Bro,
[17:36] Speaker 3: I can't just be hanging on in the corners like
[17:38] Speaker 3: shooting the ships and trying to talk to shorties like
[17:40] Speaker 3: but I can't do it like going to clubs and
[17:44] Speaker 3: like talking to a girl like but as dad first
[17:45] Speaker 3: of all, if she belonged to that man, now he
[17:47] Speaker 3: shoot me, like I've been in like two shootouts already,
[17:50] Speaker 3: and by mistake, are you buy mistake? And I had
[17:53] Speaker 3: nothing and now I'm not doing nothing to get in
[17:55] Speaker 3: trouble no more. But it's like sometimes so it's like
[17:57] Speaker 3: there's certain people I'm like, bro, like I'm not gonna
[18:00] Speaker 3: I'm not associating myself with you. And it's tough because
[18:03] Speaker 3: when people say, yo, you change or you Hollywood, it's
[18:06] Speaker 3: just like it's like, bro, I can't even begin to
[18:10] Speaker 3: explain to them because they don't have knowledge. And the
[18:14] Speaker 3: prophet Hoseiah in the Bible Chapter four, Chapter four, first six,
[18:20] Speaker 3: he said to the people of Jerusalem, he was like,
[18:22] Speaker 3: my people perish for their lack of knowledge. So it's
[18:26] Speaker 3: like it's tough because it's just like when you're trying
[18:28] Speaker 3: to explain something to someone who really don't have the knowledge.
[18:32] Speaker 3: They're ignorant by definition. Like that's why in the Bible
[18:35] Speaker 3: a lot when Jesus is talking to the Father, he's like, Father,
[18:37] Speaker 3: forgive them for that, like for they don't know they're ignorant, right,
[18:40] Speaker 3: And it's like so sometimes when you're trying to explain someone,
[18:42] Speaker 3: you're like, brod, you can't even know this. And it's
[18:44] Speaker 3: the saddest thing because it's like you look crazy and
[18:47] Speaker 3: I'm like bro like and this is really for your
[18:49] Speaker 3: own good too, But it's like, I think one of
[18:51] Speaker 3: the hardest things you can go through is like you're
[18:55] Speaker 3: talking to someone that you love and you almost love
[18:57] Speaker 3: them more than they love themselves, and you're trying to
[18:59] Speaker 3: really help them, but they really can't understand. It's like
[19:02] Speaker 3: me telling my dog, like, yo, you got to pay
[19:04] Speaker 3: the mortgage for the next four months. I don't care, right,
[19:06] Speaker 3: and the dog is niggas when you were talking about
[19:10] Speaker 3: And that's how it is talking to people sometimes. And
[19:12] Speaker 3: I just got to understand that and I just got
[19:14] Speaker 3: to love them from a distance. But it pains you,
[19:16] Speaker 3: but to them it's like, oh, you just brand new.
[19:18] Speaker 4: It sucks, man, it.
[19:19] Speaker 1: Sucks, it does I know. I've been there.
[19:23] Speaker 2: You spoke recently on I think it was for the
[19:25] Speaker 2: Fellas on BT about the black family dynamic and nucleus.
[19:30] Speaker 1: I am not gonna lie, y'all.
[19:31] Speaker 2: I was blown away by your answers and how you
[19:34] Speaker 2: articulated yourself.
[19:39] Speaker 1: Well, the trees artificial.
[19:41] Speaker 3: I'm I was like, nah, He's like nah, oh, yeah,
[19:48] Speaker 3: that's crazy.
[19:50] Speaker 2: I was blown away by the way you articulated yourself,
[19:53] Speaker 2: and I wanted to know, like, where did your family
[19:55] Speaker 2: values come from and did you have that foundation growing up?
[19:59] Speaker 4: Unfortunately I didn't have that foundation growing up.
[20:02] Speaker 3: I didn't understand the family value. I didn't understand why
[20:06] Speaker 3: it was important. I was just I was just in
[20:11] Speaker 3: a curse, you know what I'm saying. And it's not
[20:14] Speaker 3: until like I was getting in trouble. Then I like
[20:18] Speaker 3: moved to my father in Florida, and I started having
[20:21] Speaker 3: different influences around me, and I started hanging out with
[20:24] Speaker 3: families that you know, we're families, and I'm like, bro,
[20:29] Speaker 3: this is cool. Like I remember one of the this
[20:30] Speaker 3: is crazy, Like this is such a sad moment. When
[20:32] Speaker 3: I was in Florida, I'm going to high school. I'm
[20:34] Speaker 3: at like one of my friend's house and they was like, Oh,
[20:37] Speaker 3: we're gonna watch a movie and I'm like, yo, I'm
[20:39] Speaker 3: watching a movie as a family. And I'm like Dad,
[20:42] Speaker 3: I'm like, I'm like, bro, this is crazy. And then
[20:45] Speaker 3: like they were like and they would call me Abe.
[20:48] Speaker 3: My first name is Abraham, my middle name is eventual
[20:50] Speaker 3: first name is Abraham, and so Abe was the nickname
[20:52] Speaker 3: of Abraham obviously, so they would call me. There was
[20:56] Speaker 3: one of the moms was like, yo, A, can you
[20:58] Speaker 3: go grab something in the pantry And I was like,
[21:00] Speaker 3: what the fuck is the pantry like that, like that's
[21:04] Speaker 3: how like, and I'm like and then I was like
[21:07] Speaker 3: and I really and I was just like and I'm
[21:08] Speaker 3: like huh And she was like pantry and I was
[21:10] Speaker 3: like damn. And I'm like I really don't know. She
[21:13] Speaker 3: was like just grab the chicks.
[21:14] Speaker 4: I'm like, damn, like what you do?
[21:16] Speaker 3: But like no, but all jumps aside, Like no, no, no,
[21:19] Speaker 3: all jumps aside.
[21:21] Speaker 4: But I was just like seeing everything.
[21:23] Speaker 3: I'm like, bro, they got like family thing and like
[21:25] Speaker 3: kitchens really organized. I ain't have none of that, so
[21:29] Speaker 3: I had to really like learn that outside. And don't
[21:31] Speaker 3: get me wrong, my parents did the best they knew
[21:34] Speaker 3: how because if they knew more, they would have done
[21:36] Speaker 3: better because their lives would have been easier. Yes, And
[21:39] Speaker 3: a lot of times it's like our parents, they were
[21:41] Speaker 3: so focused on just meeting the basic needs about survival.
[21:44] Speaker 3: They never focused on emotional needs. It's psychological needs. They
[21:47] Speaker 3: never focused on any of that. They just to them
[21:49] Speaker 3: and they're not from this country, from a third lite country.
[21:51] Speaker 3: I was like, Bro, you got a bed, you got air,
[21:54] Speaker 3: open the window, and you got water.
[21:57] Speaker 4: You know what I'm saying. And they're like, bro, you're good.
[21:59] Speaker 4: You know nothing, tolf. So whenever I'm.
[22:01] Speaker 3: Like like that, like I'm I'm sad or whatever, it's
[22:04] Speaker 3: like band and I go take a shower, He's go
[22:07] Speaker 3: take a shower. Really, so it's like so I never
[22:10] Speaker 3: really like but and that's the beauty about books though,
[22:15] Speaker 3: because there's really successful people in this world that they
[22:18] Speaker 3: leave a blueprint behind in a book.
[22:20] Speaker 4: Man.
[22:21] Speaker 3: And I remember when I read there was like this
[22:23] Speaker 3: guy was like, if you want to hide something, a
[22:24] Speaker 3: black man, put it in a book, And I was like, dang.
[22:27] Speaker 3: And I really just reading my way into this thinking.
[22:31] Speaker 3: But like, based off my environment, I'm needed. It's a
[22:35] Speaker 3: grace of God it's a grace of guy.
[22:37] Speaker 2: You touched on something just expressing that I'm sad and
[22:42] Speaker 2: you are a huge mental health advocate and I am
[22:45] Speaker 2: as well. But I think it was like probably within
[22:48] Speaker 2: the last five years, around twenty twenty round COVID, that
[22:51] Speaker 2: a lot of our community realized it's okay to not
[22:54] Speaker 2: be okay, you know, and it's okay to say, hey,
[22:57] Speaker 2: I'm I feel sad. And we've made it a safe
[23:00] Speaker 2: for our black men to feel okay with expressing their feelings.
[23:04] Speaker 2: But for so long, we as a whole were told
[23:06] Speaker 2: shut up, suppress it, push through, and keep going because
[23:10] Speaker 2: nobody cares. And I want to talk to you because
[23:14] Speaker 2: this is something that you go to speak into high
[23:15] Speaker 2: school students all around the country about mental health. What
[23:20] Speaker 2: was it that drew you to that and made you
[23:22] Speaker 2: realize that you needed to work on yourself.
[23:25] Speaker 3: I think I've been studying a lot of sociology and
[23:29] Speaker 3: a lot of psychology. I got a degree in criminal justice,
[23:31] Speaker 3: so you got to study like criminal behavior, the mind,
[23:34] Speaker 3: certain things. And I further do studies and started studying
[23:37] Speaker 3: sociology and anthropology, and I realized why some people want
[23:42] Speaker 3: to take that out of school. I realized why because
[23:47] Speaker 3: the social sciences are so important. And when you realize
[23:51] Speaker 3: why we're disenfranchised, it's no joke. I mean you have doctors, physicians,
[24:00] Speaker 3: people just in high positions that was preaching this social
[24:03] Speaker 3: Darwinism that black people are biologically inferior to white people.
[24:08] Speaker 3: Black people pain tolerance is higher, black people don't feel
[24:13] Speaker 3: like black people aren't full human.
[24:15] Speaker 4: So it's that system that built this country.
[24:18] Speaker 3: And this country only like two hundred fifty years old,
[24:19] Speaker 3: like it's this country as young as hell, but we've
[24:22] Speaker 3: been living in that way of thinking for so long
[24:24] Speaker 3: that we are a by and that's fresh. Like two
[24:27] Speaker 3: humans ago, we were really in shackles. Like people don't
[24:30] Speaker 3: think about that, right, And it's like when you realize that,
[24:33] Speaker 3: you're like, yo, nah, I gotta like, I gotta go
[24:37] Speaker 3: back to my people and talk to them because the
[24:38] Speaker 3: way I made it out, I didn't make it out
[24:40] Speaker 3: by slaying dope at being a gangster.
[24:42] Speaker 4: I had to start. I thought my way out of this.
[24:44] Speaker 3: You know what I'm saying, and appreciate that, thank you,
[24:49] Speaker 3: And you start realizing that. It's like sometimes the media,
[24:53] Speaker 3: for some strange reason, they love to show us in
[24:56] Speaker 3: these lights that's actually leading.
[24:58] Speaker 4: To our detriments.
[25:00] Speaker 3: Like it's like, if you look at the content that
[25:03] Speaker 3: we black and brown people consume at the rate that
[25:07] Speaker 3: we consume it, it's cancerous, bro. And it's just like,
[25:10] Speaker 3: and we're not even deconstructing and fixing the problems of
[25:16] Speaker 3: why we're in it, and we're just consuming this. So
[25:18] Speaker 3: we're just building a generation to just ignorant people on
[25:21] Speaker 3: top of ignorant. That's why there's some black people around
[25:23] Speaker 3: the world, but I would I don't even want to
[25:25] Speaker 3: say black because that's not even something we would call ourselves.
[25:27] Speaker 3: Some people of African descent around the world, they don't
[25:30] Speaker 3: even want to associate themselves with African Americans and with
[25:35] Speaker 3: this because they just understand how this society is being
[25:39] Speaker 3: curated to just keep them like this. That's why growing up,
[25:42] Speaker 3: my parents always just say, you're not black. I'm agan,
[25:45] Speaker 3: that's not you were the same, right, you know what
[25:48] Speaker 3: I'm saying. We were just a little south from them,
[25:50] Speaker 3: But it's like we were doing the same thing they
[25:51] Speaker 3: were doing. So that's why I feel this moral obligation
[25:54] Speaker 3: is like, as I rising, I feel the need to
[25:58] Speaker 3: break certain stigmas down to man to my fellow men
[26:01] Speaker 3: and my brothers and sisters, because we weren't given this
[26:04] Speaker 3: access to education, to this knowledge, and when we start
[26:07] Speaker 3: realizing the things that we go through, it's not crazy,
[26:10] Speaker 3: you know what I'm saying, Like this is normal. And
[26:11] Speaker 3: the hardships and the trauma that we feel, like we
[26:14] Speaker 3: feel pain that there's people around the world that have
[26:17] Speaker 3: never feel but we're the most influential around the world.
[26:20] Speaker 3: Like it's like we're so dope and they only show
[26:24] Speaker 3: this side. So I'm like, yo, I need to like
[26:26] Speaker 3: let these people know. Like, bro, we're artists, like I'm
[26:29] Speaker 3: talking painters, We're all this stuff, but all our work
[26:31] Speaker 3: was just been stolen the strip and they just make
[26:33] Speaker 3: us think in this one way.
[26:35] Speaker 4: And I'm like, bro, you're so brilliant. I'll be going
[26:37] Speaker 4: to school, I be.
[26:38] Speaker 3: Talking to some smart ass kids and then they just
[26:41] Speaker 3: but they They're like, nah, I want to play basketball,
[26:44] Speaker 3: I want to play football, I want to be acting,
[26:45] Speaker 3: I want to be rapper. But it's just like you
[26:47] Speaker 3: have one hundred percent of the population going after something
[26:51] Speaker 3: that only less than points zero zero is a real
[26:53] Speaker 3: one could achieved.
[26:54] Speaker 4: That's a setup.
[26:55] Speaker 3: You know what I'm saying, But like, but if you
[26:58] Speaker 3: preaching the other stuff, a family having becoming a doctor normalized,
[27:02] Speaker 3: Like in my neighborhood, bro, I'm the only one that's
[27:05] Speaker 3: really impressive. Everyone else is just regular, you know what
[27:08] Speaker 3: I'm saying. And they're not black, you know what I'm saying.
[27:10] Speaker 3: But if there's another black person, this man's probably want
[27:13] Speaker 3: two Super Bowl rings and he's doing this or you
[27:15] Speaker 3: know what I'm saying. But it's like, we just got
[27:16] Speaker 3: to normalize being in these positions. But I think when
[27:19] Speaker 3: you start and you could, we could use mental health
[27:21] Speaker 3: to really understand that, dissect our brain, learn how it
[27:24] Speaker 3: works and why we're being stared, disdirection, just only be
[27:28] Speaker 3: consumers and then right there we could just start thinking
[27:31] Speaker 3: different and I feel like we could become great because
[27:33] Speaker 3: black people, man, we special. Come on, That's why it
[27:38] Speaker 3: takes to do this to us, and we're really special.
[27:41] Speaker 3: When we put our heads together, we do things that
[27:44] Speaker 3: people just I could go on and all I'm shut up,
[27:46] Speaker 3: but we're real special.
[27:48] Speaker 2: We are enjoying this, but we are running at a time.
[27:52] Speaker 2: But before we go, I know this is the question
[27:57] Speaker 2: you all have been waiting for me to ask since
[27:59] Speaker 2: he's on stage.
[28:02] Speaker 1: Let's talk about love.
[28:07] Speaker 2: You have been very intentionally private about your personal life,
[28:11] Speaker 2: and I respect it. I am the same way in
[28:14] Speaker 2: certain aspects. Because we share so much of our lives
[28:16] Speaker 2: with the public, you have to keep certain things sacred.
[28:20] Speaker 2: So I want to know a man in your position,
[28:24] Speaker 2: what are traits and characteristics that you look for in
[28:27] Speaker 2: a woman?
[28:27] Speaker 1: And don't y'all start being like, that's me.
[28:33] Speaker 4: I feel like they got to have God first.
[28:37] Speaker 3: You gotta have God, and you gotta believe in God
[28:41] Speaker 3: the way I believe in God, Like it's rooted from
[28:43] Speaker 3: the Bible.
[28:44] Speaker 4: Because a lot of y'all the universe and da da
[28:46] Speaker 4: da dah.
[28:47] Speaker 3: It is like, yeah, sending letters with no names and
[28:50] Speaker 3: no address on it, and I don't know who it's
[28:52] Speaker 3: going to, and the devil is strong. I'd be underestimated
[28:55] Speaker 3: Satan that month. That dude is smart. He know the
[28:59] Speaker 3: Bible and everything way better than us. So some of
[29:01] Speaker 3: y'all like all the universe and it's saying it is
[29:03] Speaker 3: like you want this, say it again.
[29:06] Speaker 4: You said two, and it's like, and it's like, and
[29:08] Speaker 4: that's how it works.
[29:09] Speaker 3: So it's like, I think, if we're both rooted from God,
[29:12] Speaker 3: like being Jehovah Yahweh and Jesus Christ our own. Then
[29:16] Speaker 3: it's like then that's number one, yes, because as long
[29:19] Speaker 3: as we don't have philosophical differences, we can build a union. Yes,
[29:23] Speaker 3: but it's like a house divide and can't stand. So
[29:25] Speaker 3: it's like what am I doing? Like I'm not gonna
[29:26] Speaker 3: look at you if you believe it's something else, stay
[29:29] Speaker 3: your ass over there. But two, she gotta be educated.
[29:35] Speaker 3: She got to be educated. You know what I'm saying.
[29:37] Speaker 4: I think.
[29:38] Speaker 3: And the dopest thing about women, you guys are so
[29:41] Speaker 3: beautiful and powerful and really smart. God gave us brute force. Right,
[29:45] Speaker 3: we could pick y'all little ass up, like come in
[29:47] Speaker 3: and do whatever.
[29:49] Speaker 4: But God gave y'all this to.
[29:51] Speaker 3: Where y'all could pick us up with your words, which
[29:54] Speaker 3: is like, you know, which is different because when a man,
[29:56] Speaker 3: when we fall it sometimes we try to not to
[30:00] Speaker 3: let no one else know, We try to hold that in.
[30:02] Speaker 3: But having a woman be able to articulate the right
[30:04] Speaker 3: words to let me just start expressing myself and open myself,
[30:07] Speaker 3: and she's carrying me and lifting me in that way,
[30:09] Speaker 3: and it's like and she's really that support.
[30:13] Speaker 4: That's why.
[30:13] Speaker 3: By the way, I do believe if a woman is
[30:15] Speaker 3: with a rich man and they divorced, she deserve half
[30:18] Speaker 3: because what a woman does honestly, if you're a real woman, though,
[30:21] Speaker 3: tell me I know.
[30:23] Speaker 4: But if you're a real woman and you doing like
[30:25] Speaker 4: real woman.
[30:26] Speaker 3: Stuff, absolutely because the suffering you guys help us alleviate.
[30:31] Speaker 3: There's no number that could be put on that, you
[30:34] Speaker 3: know what I'm saying. And that's that's why the unity
[30:36] Speaker 3: between a man and woman is is so destroyed in
[30:39] Speaker 3: this country. And family because there's a reason for that.
[30:41] Speaker 3: It's like, you have a family situation, you become very powerful, yes,
[30:45] Speaker 3: very powerful. And then I would say so spiritual in
[30:49] Speaker 3: the same way, believe in God, educated and just she
[30:55] Speaker 3: cares about health, like physically, mentally and spiritually, like she's
[30:59] Speaker 3: a health the person, you know what I'm saying. Like
[31:02] Speaker 3: we're normalizing a lot of sick things that it's like, bro,
[31:04] Speaker 3: this is not healthy, you know what I'm saying. So
[31:07] Speaker 3: I just want us to consume things to where we
[31:09] Speaker 3: could reap the fruits of the seas that we plant,
[31:12] Speaker 3: you know what I'm saying. And that's that's what I want.
[31:15] Speaker 3: I don't really care about nothing. I don't care about
[31:16] Speaker 3: your following. I don't care what you do. I don't
[31:18] Speaker 3: care how much.
[31:18] Speaker 4: Money you made. Got to figure that out for us.
[31:21] Speaker 1: I know that's right.
[31:22] Speaker 2: Wow, put your hands together for Da Vinci.
[31:25] Speaker 4: Thank you, Thank you so much.
[31:28] Speaker 2: Is there anything that you can let us know that
[31:30] Speaker 2: you have coming up that the kids community can support
[31:33] Speaker 2: you on?
[31:35] Speaker 3: Well, first of all, thank you so much for having me,
[31:37] Speaker 3: and thank you guys for welcoming.
[31:38] Speaker 4: Me like this.
[31:39] Speaker 1: Hey, you're so welcome. Thank you.
[31:41] Speaker 4: This is amazing. But yeah, there's b M F. Well,
[31:46] Speaker 4: I can't is it.
[31:48] Speaker 1: That's what I'm meant to ask you.
[31:49] Speaker 4: It's gonna come a.
[31:50] Speaker 3: Season four is gonna come out. Despite what's going on,
[31:52] Speaker 3: Season four is gonna come out. I can't tell y'all won.
[31:55] Speaker 3: And then You've got some movies and other stuff. And
[31:57] Speaker 3: I've been producing and working on my own stuff, so
[32:00] Speaker 3: there's definitely some stuff coming out. And then I'm gonna
[32:02] Speaker 3: do a comedy show probably like a tour in probably June,
[32:05] Speaker 3: and another mental of tour.
[32:06] Speaker 4: So yeah, yeah, if y'all follow me, I'll definitely have
[32:09] Speaker 4: some good stuff y'all.
[32:10] Speaker 1: Y'all full of on Devin. You make sure you guys
[32:11] Speaker 1: support him, were gonna keep this party going. DJ Mars
[32:16] Speaker 1: and I'll be right back, y'all.

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