1
00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:02,639
Speaker 1: I say what I want to say, and I really

2
00:00:02,680 --> 00:00:05,560
Speaker 1: don't have any fear. The only fear I only fear God.

3
00:00:06,080 --> 00:00:08,840
Speaker 1: And I just feel like, when are we going to

4
00:00:08,920 --> 00:00:12,760
Speaker 1: stand up and say enough is enough with human just

5
00:00:12,840 --> 00:00:15,400
Speaker 1: like you are? And I love people. I am not

6
00:00:15,800 --> 00:00:19,120
Speaker 1: I'm prejudiced, but I'm not racist because the racist as

7
00:00:19,160 --> 00:00:21,240
Speaker 1: you rate a person because of the color of this skid.

8
00:00:21,520 --> 00:00:25,240
Speaker 1: I'm prejudice against hate. I'm prejudiced against you beating up

9
00:00:25,280 --> 00:00:28,880
Speaker 1: on my brother, beating up on my sister, killing my people.

10
00:00:29,120 --> 00:00:33,120
Speaker 1: I'm prejudice against that, But I'm not racist. It's not

11
00:00:33,200 --> 00:00:36,520
Speaker 1: that I hate white people. I hate spect I love everybody.

12
00:00:36,560 --> 00:00:40,240
Speaker 1: But I do not want you to beat on us.

13
00:00:40,560 --> 00:00:42,280
Speaker 1: I don't. I don't want that. I don't want that.

14
00:00:42,360 --> 00:00:44,200
Speaker 1: So I'm gonna stand with my own own.

15
00:00:44,360 --> 00:00:46,800
Speaker 2: When I think of home, I think of a place

16
00:00:47,800 --> 00:00:51,879
Speaker 2: where ah, okay, now I'm not a singer, but oh

17
00:00:51,960 --> 00:00:53,760
Speaker 2: don't I wish I could say God knew not to

18
00:00:53,760 --> 00:00:58,640
Speaker 2: give me no singing abilities. Today on Naked we have

19
00:00:59,320 --> 00:01:00,120
Speaker 2: Stephanie mil.

20
00:01:09,760 --> 00:01:13,200
Speaker 1: It's the greatest sports in the entertainment. Can Naked win? Carrype?

21
00:01:13,280 --> 00:01:16,040
Speaker 3: And Carrie Chappy is to be a champion of Champion

22
00:01:16,120 --> 00:01:19,920
Speaker 3: and Carrie Chappy and the Champion and Carry Sheppion and

23
00:01:20,040 --> 00:01:23,320
Speaker 3: Carrie Shepym Naked Ward.

24
00:01:23,680 --> 00:01:27,840
Speaker 2: Hey, everybody, welcome back to another edition of Naked. I'm

25
00:01:27,920 --> 00:01:31,920
Speaker 2: going to begin this edition of Naked talking about what

26
00:01:32,000 --> 00:01:35,880
Speaker 2: happened uh in Alabama. And there is a reason. By

27
00:01:35,959 --> 00:01:37,760
Speaker 2: now we have all and I know what I say,

28
00:01:37,800 --> 00:01:40,840
Speaker 2: by now we have all culturally have seen what went

29
00:01:41,000 --> 00:01:44,720
Speaker 2: down in Alabama. And I'm talking about the river boat.

30
00:01:45,160 --> 00:01:47,840
Speaker 2: I'm talking about the brawl as they'd like to call it.

31
00:01:47,960 --> 00:01:51,240
Speaker 2: I am talking about a security guard trying to do

32
00:01:51,320 --> 00:01:54,240
Speaker 2: his job and tell these folks, and by these folks,

33
00:01:54,320 --> 00:01:56,600
Speaker 2: I mean a group of white people that they cannot

34
00:01:56,600 --> 00:01:59,680
Speaker 2: park their boat at this dock, They cannot dock their

35
00:01:59,680 --> 00:02:04,360
Speaker 2: boat at this particular spot because they're trying to bring

36
00:02:04,400 --> 00:02:08,200
Speaker 2: in the cruise ship that took people on a tour. Right,

37
00:02:08,880 --> 00:02:11,080
Speaker 2: and it's not a cruise ship, it's like a river boat.

38
00:02:11,120 --> 00:02:14,480
Speaker 2: They were doing a little sail, a little turnabout in

39
00:02:14,520 --> 00:02:18,880
Speaker 2: the river. Obviously we know what happened. The white people,

40
00:02:19,480 --> 00:02:22,120
Speaker 2: because I'm going to make it really plain, started to

41
00:02:22,680 --> 00:02:27,400
Speaker 2: attack a black man who was doing his job. And yes,

42
00:02:27,480 --> 00:02:31,239
Speaker 2: drinks clearly or involved. It seemed as if this group

43
00:02:31,960 --> 00:02:35,680
Speaker 2: of boaters, people out on a weekend excursion, enjoying themselves,

44
00:02:35,720 --> 00:02:37,720
Speaker 2: had too much to drink, but that is still no excuse.

45
00:02:37,840 --> 00:02:39,600
Speaker 2: This man was doing his job. He said, hey, you

46
00:02:39,639 --> 00:02:42,160
Speaker 2: guys are not allowed to dock your boat here. We

47
00:02:42,280 --> 00:02:44,880
Speaker 2: have this river boat getting ready to come in and

48
00:02:44,919 --> 00:02:47,760
Speaker 2: you're in the wrong location. And they started to push

49
00:02:47,840 --> 00:02:51,120
Speaker 2: and shove. You guys know what happened and leave it

50
00:02:51,120 --> 00:02:55,720
Speaker 2: to the internet. The black folks of the Internet and

51
00:02:55,800 --> 00:02:59,399
Speaker 2: probably others participated. But not only did they make fun

52
00:02:59,440 --> 00:03:01,880
Speaker 2: of this moment, they made something that could have been

53
00:03:01,960 --> 00:03:07,160
Speaker 2: really really divisive, funny and hilarious. A group of white

54
00:03:07,200 --> 00:03:09,160
Speaker 2: people attacking a black man is not something that we

55
00:03:09,200 --> 00:03:12,760
Speaker 2: want to see. That situation could have turned into a

56
00:03:12,800 --> 00:03:16,640
Speaker 2: deadly situation in a matter of moments, until we saw

57
00:03:16,760 --> 00:03:20,320
Speaker 2: a group of other blacks, blacks who worked they're also

58
00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:24,600
Speaker 2: on the dog, on the cruise ship, on the tour ship.

59
00:03:24,639 --> 00:03:27,320
Speaker 2: If you will, I'm trying to find the words, come

60
00:03:27,360 --> 00:03:30,120
Speaker 2: in and help this guy. And then some bystanders who

61
00:03:30,200 --> 00:03:32,400
Speaker 2: were black as well, who were like, no, I'm sorry,

62
00:03:32,440 --> 00:03:34,080
Speaker 2: this is not about to go down. You're not about

63
00:03:34,080 --> 00:03:36,240
Speaker 2: to beat up this black man. This security guard who's

64
00:03:36,280 --> 00:03:39,520
Speaker 2: doing his job. I'm leaving out names because I don't

65
00:03:39,520 --> 00:03:41,440
Speaker 2: want to get two in the weeds. But at the

66
00:03:41,520 --> 00:03:44,840
Speaker 2: end of the day, what we saw was this black man,

67
00:03:44,880 --> 00:03:46,880
Speaker 2: this security guard, take his hat off, flip it in

68
00:03:46,920 --> 00:03:48,920
Speaker 2: the air, and that was a signal like, save this

69
00:03:48,960 --> 00:03:50,640
Speaker 2: ship because it's about to be on, y'all need to

70
00:03:50,640 --> 00:03:53,080
Speaker 2: come help me. They trying to jump me. They at me,

71
00:03:53,120 --> 00:03:56,320
Speaker 2: they at me, and they were really at him. Black

72
00:03:56,880 --> 00:04:00,520
Speaker 2: man sitting there trying to stave off a group of

73
00:04:00,560 --> 00:04:05,200
Speaker 2: white men and women, and the optics are not are

74
00:04:05,200 --> 00:04:11,320
Speaker 2: not good. However, when peers came to the rescue, other

75
00:04:11,400 --> 00:04:14,040
Speaker 2: black men came to the rescue. Leave it to the

76
00:04:14,080 --> 00:04:17,760
Speaker 2: internet to tell you what it really means. There were

77
00:04:17,839 --> 00:04:19,760
Speaker 2: jokes about the guy who jumped in the water and

78
00:04:19,800 --> 00:04:23,280
Speaker 2: swam across to save the black man or to help

79
00:04:23,400 --> 00:04:26,000
Speaker 2: the black man fight. There were jokes about how black

80
00:04:26,040 --> 00:04:29,680
Speaker 2: men were skipping to the fight, which meant, okay, it's

81
00:04:29,720 --> 00:04:31,680
Speaker 2: about to be on. You know what a skip is, right,

82
00:04:32,160 --> 00:04:34,080
Speaker 2: And there were just so many jokes that were flying

83
00:04:34,080 --> 00:04:36,919
Speaker 2: around and it was really funny. I don't care if

84
00:04:37,240 --> 00:04:39,440
Speaker 2: you don't think it was funny. It was funny. The

85
00:04:39,800 --> 00:04:43,400
Speaker 2: optics in terms of what happened not funny, but how

86
00:04:43,440 --> 00:04:48,200
Speaker 2: we turned trauma into something hilarious is what we do

87
00:04:48,240 --> 00:04:52,359
Speaker 2: as a culture. No one. I can't think of a

88
00:04:52,360 --> 00:04:55,600
Speaker 2: group of people that turned trauma into comedy the way

89
00:04:55,600 --> 00:04:59,080
Speaker 2: in which black folks do it. And we laughed because

90
00:04:59,760 --> 00:05:02,320
Speaker 2: other we'd be angry and we'd be crying and we'd

91
00:05:02,320 --> 00:05:06,560
Speaker 2: be sad. It would be our existence if we continued

92
00:05:06,600 --> 00:05:10,440
Speaker 2: to talk about what was wrong and how we feel

93
00:05:10,560 --> 00:05:13,400
Speaker 2: wronged and how we're tired of the injustice and how

94
00:05:13,440 --> 00:05:16,920
Speaker 2: bad people treat us. We turned it into something extremely funny.

95
00:05:17,200 --> 00:05:19,640
Speaker 2: And the top of it all off, those white folks got

96
00:05:19,640 --> 00:05:23,880
Speaker 2: they butts tapped, you know what I mean, and they

97
00:05:23,880 --> 00:05:27,279
Speaker 2: started it. It was self defense. You can't run around

98
00:05:27,839 --> 00:05:30,680
Speaker 2: just punching and beating up on people, specifically black folks,

99
00:05:30,680 --> 00:05:34,599
Speaker 2: and think there will be no repercussions. And the way

100
00:05:34,640 --> 00:05:41,360
Speaker 2: in which the culture, the community, the mayor of Montgomery,

101
00:05:41,440 --> 00:05:45,640
Speaker 2: Alabama handled this situation was a perfect example of no,

102
00:05:45,760 --> 00:05:48,120
Speaker 2: we're not gonna let this ride. We're tired, we're sick,

103
00:05:48,160 --> 00:05:50,760
Speaker 2: and we're tired and retired and we're sick. But there

104
00:05:50,800 --> 00:05:54,920
Speaker 2: was so much humor in that, and since then we

105
00:05:55,040 --> 00:05:59,919
Speaker 2: have seen people with hilarious memes. We've seen luminary speak

106
00:06:00,080 --> 00:06:03,839
Speaker 2: out saying they support the group of people who protected

107
00:06:03,839 --> 00:06:08,000
Speaker 2: the super security guard. We've seen people donate to a

108
00:06:08,080 --> 00:06:10,080
Speaker 2: fund to help get people out of jail and help

109
00:06:10,120 --> 00:06:13,279
Speaker 2: other people get attorneys because people were arrested in the incident.

110
00:06:14,400 --> 00:06:20,320
Speaker 2: But have we heard of someone giving a concert. Stephanie Mills.

111
00:06:21,640 --> 00:06:29,120
Speaker 2: Stephanie Mills, the legendary singer, songwriter, award winning artist, is

112
00:06:29,160 --> 00:06:34,479
Speaker 2: giving a concert for the folks in Montgomery, Alabama to

113
00:06:34,560 --> 00:06:36,800
Speaker 2: promote peace and love and to say I see you

114
00:06:37,400 --> 00:06:40,839
Speaker 2: and I'm glad that you did not let that black

115
00:06:40,839 --> 00:06:46,200
Speaker 2: man take a beating without helping him. And today on

116
00:06:46,440 --> 00:06:53,039
Speaker 2: Naked she is our guest. Stephanie Mills has been in

117
00:06:53,080 --> 00:06:58,640
Speaker 2: the industry for fifty plus years. Discovered extremely young, performed

118
00:06:58,640 --> 00:07:01,640
Speaker 2: at the Apollo when she was eleven years old, but

119
00:07:01,920 --> 00:07:05,840
Speaker 2: arguably her most notable and in my mind, iconic role

120
00:07:06,800 --> 00:07:10,080
Speaker 2: was when she was cast at seventeen years old and

121
00:07:10,120 --> 00:07:14,560
Speaker 2: the Broadway play The Wiz as Dorothy the Wizard of

122
00:07:14,560 --> 00:07:21,400
Speaker 2: Oz is considered a classic. Judy Garland, who played Dorothy,

123
00:07:22,160 --> 00:07:24,280
Speaker 2: is considered one of the best to ever do it

124
00:07:24,320 --> 00:07:28,000
Speaker 2: in this business. In this Hollywood business, and so when

125
00:07:28,000 --> 00:07:30,680
Speaker 2: the culture decided to reinvent the Wizard of Oz and

126
00:07:30,720 --> 00:07:32,840
Speaker 2: turn it to the Wiz and put it on Broadway,

127
00:07:34,360 --> 00:07:40,720
Speaker 2: she was casted as Dorothy, very similar to Halle Bailey

128
00:07:41,200 --> 00:07:45,120
Speaker 2: being cast as the Little Mermaid. It's the first time

129
00:07:45,160 --> 00:07:48,600
Speaker 2: that you can really see in recent memory, at least

130
00:07:48,640 --> 00:07:52,320
Speaker 2: in my mind, a young brown girl being told that

131
00:07:52,440 --> 00:07:57,640
Speaker 2: she is the same as everyone else. You don't just

132
00:07:57,720 --> 00:08:00,800
Speaker 2: get the black role. You get to play Dorothy. You're Dorothy.

133
00:08:02,680 --> 00:08:06,080
Speaker 2: And for me and for anyone who really understands what

134
00:08:06,120 --> 00:08:09,960
Speaker 2: it feels like to be set aside or treat it

135
00:08:10,000 --> 00:08:14,320
Speaker 2: differently because you are black or because you are marginalized,

136
00:08:14,600 --> 00:08:18,120
Speaker 2: this was an equalizing moment. We see you as Judy

137
00:08:18,160 --> 00:08:21,600
Speaker 2: Garland and you're gonna sing this role. You're gonna play

138
00:08:21,600 --> 00:08:23,320
Speaker 2: this role, and you're gonna sing with all of your heart,

139
00:08:23,360 --> 00:08:28,520
Speaker 2: and you're going to be amazing. Stephanie Mills is the Dorothy.

140
00:08:29,560 --> 00:08:32,200
Speaker 2: You guys watched The Whiz, I'm sure, and Diana Ross

141
00:08:32,200 --> 00:08:37,600
Speaker 2: played The Whiz phenomenally. Coincidentally, Stephanie Mill says that she

142
00:08:37,679 --> 00:08:39,680
Speaker 2: always looked up to Diana Ross and had no beef

143
00:08:39,679 --> 00:08:42,439
Speaker 2: with Dona Ross getting the movie role. She was meant

144
00:08:42,480 --> 00:08:44,240
Speaker 2: to play the Broadway role, so she didn't mind that

145
00:08:44,280 --> 00:08:47,040
Speaker 2: Dina Ross got the movie role. But today, on today's podcast,

146
00:08:48,120 --> 00:08:49,760
Speaker 2: that was redundant. But you know what I mean. On

147
00:08:49,840 --> 00:08:55,400
Speaker 2: the podcast today, she talks about being the first, which

148
00:08:55,440 --> 00:08:57,360
Speaker 2: is so difficult to do and she's done it with

149
00:08:57,400 --> 00:09:03,320
Speaker 2: so much grace and elegance. She talks about dating my Jackson. Wow,

150
00:09:03,840 --> 00:09:07,680
Speaker 2: just wow. Think about that for a moment. She talks

151
00:09:07,679 --> 00:09:10,000
Speaker 2: about how she loved Diana Ross and was so happy

152
00:09:10,000 --> 00:09:13,800
Speaker 2: for her and killed all narratives that said that she

153
00:09:13,800 --> 00:09:17,120
Speaker 2: she wanted to do the movie. She also talks about

154
00:09:17,120 --> 00:09:22,400
Speaker 2: the hate that she received from so many at seventeen

155
00:09:22,440 --> 00:09:25,959
Speaker 2: years old when she was given the role of Dorothy.

156
00:09:27,559 --> 00:09:32,200
Speaker 2: But more importantly, she talks about being an activist. She's layered,

157
00:09:32,200 --> 00:09:36,080
Speaker 2: she's textured, she's unapologetic, and today she gives us all

158
00:09:36,120 --> 00:09:39,480
Speaker 2: of that in the most naked way. Pay close attention

159
00:09:40,000 --> 00:09:42,719
Speaker 2: and please welcome Stephanie Mills to.

160
00:09:42,720 --> 00:09:46,280
Speaker 3: Naked Chion and Carrie Sheppy and Carrie Sheby.

161
00:09:47,280 --> 00:09:50,240
Speaker 2: I just talked to my booker and he told me

162
00:09:50,280 --> 00:09:51,839
Speaker 2: you were from Bedsty.

163
00:09:51,679 --> 00:09:57,240
Speaker 1: Oh that yes, Brooklyn Brooklyn, New York Avenue Flat withs

164
00:09:57,320 --> 00:10:00,439
Speaker 1: ch Avenue Yeah, I'm a Betsty girl. But my mom

165
00:10:00,600 --> 00:10:03,680
Speaker 1: was from the South, so she brought us up from

166
00:10:03,720 --> 00:10:07,360
Speaker 1: New York and from Charlotte, North Carolina.

167
00:10:07,480 --> 00:10:10,520
Speaker 2: Okay, So Charlotte, North Carolina is that roots for you?

168
00:10:10,640 --> 00:10:12,480
Speaker 2: And Bedside Okay, so.

169
00:10:12,480 --> 00:10:15,240
Speaker 1: That's roots for me. But I was born in New York.

170
00:10:15,679 --> 00:10:18,679
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm asking you a question because not only am

171
00:10:18,720 --> 00:10:22,760
Speaker 2: I curious, but I am late in life, very infatuated

172
00:10:22,800 --> 00:10:25,960
Speaker 2: with Brooklyn specifically, and I have been going back and

173
00:10:26,000 --> 00:10:28,080
Speaker 2: forth from LA to Brooklyn. I'm born and raised in LA.

174
00:10:28,559 --> 00:10:31,080
Speaker 2: And so I want you if you can tell me

175
00:10:31,440 --> 00:10:34,640
Speaker 2: what was childhood like for you growing up in Bedsty

176
00:10:34,840 --> 00:10:39,559
Speaker 2: in Brooklyn and what you know of it in terms

177
00:10:39,600 --> 00:10:42,480
Speaker 2: of how it made you and formulated who you are today.

178
00:10:43,200 --> 00:10:48,240
Speaker 1: Oh my god. I was baptized at Cornerstone Baptist Church

179
00:10:48,280 --> 00:10:52,679
Speaker 1: in Brooklyn at the age of seven. I love growing up.

180
00:10:52,720 --> 00:10:57,240
Speaker 1: I went to public school PS two sixty nine, and

181
00:10:57,960 --> 00:11:01,600
Speaker 1: my brothers and my sisters went to Erasmus Hall. We

182
00:11:01,720 --> 00:11:04,800
Speaker 1: lived on New York. We lived all over Brooklyn. But

183
00:11:04,880 --> 00:11:09,080
Speaker 1: I loved going to the Jewish bakeries after school. I

184
00:11:09,080 --> 00:11:11,720
Speaker 1: would stop at the Jewish bakery every day and get

185
00:11:11,720 --> 00:11:17,040
Speaker 1: me a chocolate pastry. I love the chocolate pastries and

186
00:11:17,080 --> 00:11:19,960
Speaker 1: that I would walk to. My mother had a salon

187
00:11:20,280 --> 00:11:24,480
Speaker 1: on Utica Avenue, so I would walk to her salon

188
00:11:24,600 --> 00:11:26,920
Speaker 1: and stay there with her until she finished working, and

189
00:11:26,920 --> 00:11:30,640
Speaker 1: then we would go home. But I loved Brooklyn was everything,

190
00:11:30,720 --> 00:11:32,679
Speaker 1: you know. I had friends that would come down from

191
00:11:32,679 --> 00:11:35,440
Speaker 1: the Bronx and we would all get together and go

192
00:11:35,520 --> 00:11:38,840
Speaker 1: to Central Park. So it was fun. And I still

193
00:11:38,920 --> 00:11:41,640
Speaker 1: keep in touch with my girlfriends from back back in

194
00:11:41,679 --> 00:11:42,040
Speaker 1: the day.

195
00:11:42,360 --> 00:11:45,800
Speaker 2: There is something about Brooklyn for me even today that

196
00:11:45,880 --> 00:11:49,720
Speaker 2: feels very familiar, like it feels like family. It's nothing

197
00:11:49,760 --> 00:11:53,920
Speaker 2: nice walking down the street and just seeing us. I

198
00:11:54,679 --> 00:11:57,280
Speaker 2: was in Bedside specifically for a street fair a couple

199
00:11:57,320 --> 00:11:59,640
Speaker 2: of weeks ago, and the girls would double dutch in

200
00:11:59,679 --> 00:12:01,600
Speaker 2: and I was like, okay, let me jump in. You know,

201
00:12:01,760 --> 00:12:06,199
Speaker 2: it's very family. Do you think that has a lot

202
00:12:06,240 --> 00:12:09,160
Speaker 2: to do with your sound and how you have incorporated

203
00:12:09,200 --> 00:12:10,200
Speaker 2: who you are today?

204
00:12:10,960 --> 00:12:15,560
Speaker 1: Absolutely? My mother was an activist before she even knew

205
00:12:15,600 --> 00:12:19,400
Speaker 1: what that meant. She brought us up very much to

206
00:12:19,480 --> 00:12:22,760
Speaker 1: love ourselves, to love our community, love people in general,

207
00:12:22,800 --> 00:12:25,680
Speaker 1: but in particular, to love ourselves. And you're right. I

208
00:12:25,760 --> 00:12:28,320
Speaker 1: used to jump double dutch and I was so funny

209
00:12:28,360 --> 00:12:31,480
Speaker 1: that I would I when my sisters and them would play,

210
00:12:31,480 --> 00:12:33,400
Speaker 1: they'd make me the rag doll, because there's a rag

211
00:12:33,440 --> 00:12:36,160
Speaker 1: doll that just gets to jump when everybody else is tired.

212
00:12:36,360 --> 00:12:38,439
Speaker 1: But then when I had my friends, I would make

213
00:12:38,559 --> 00:12:41,760
Speaker 1: them a rag dolls so I could jump all the time.

214
00:12:41,920 --> 00:12:46,680
Speaker 1: But this, oh, and playing handball in the park, it's

215
00:12:47,080 --> 00:12:50,560
Speaker 1: Brooklyn just has a whole aura about it, you know.

216
00:12:50,640 --> 00:12:53,319
Speaker 1: And I'm glad I grew up in Beppisteives and I'm

217
00:12:53,360 --> 00:12:55,400
Speaker 1: glad I had that experience.

218
00:12:56,360 --> 00:12:58,959
Speaker 2: You tell me that you after school you would go

219
00:12:59,000 --> 00:13:01,480
Speaker 2: get a pace, which I think is beautiful from the

220
00:13:01,520 --> 00:13:04,240
Speaker 2: Jewish bakery, which is probably still somebody's life right now.

221
00:13:04,280 --> 00:13:07,079
Speaker 2: That's somebody's right of passage, if you will. And then

222
00:13:07,320 --> 00:13:10,480
Speaker 2: in your mom salon, what did your mom do? Hair?

223
00:13:10,559 --> 00:13:12,400
Speaker 2: Did she do? Now? Say what did she do? And

224
00:13:12,480 --> 00:13:13,800
Speaker 2: what were you doing?

225
00:13:14,440 --> 00:13:18,600
Speaker 1: She did hair? And it was actually my mom and

226
00:13:18,640 --> 00:13:22,120
Speaker 1: my brother's shop, my brother Joey. And when my brother

227
00:13:22,200 --> 00:13:24,320
Speaker 1: went to the service, my mother took it over and

228
00:13:24,360 --> 00:13:26,920
Speaker 1: they owned the business. But I would just go. And

229
00:13:27,240 --> 00:13:30,000
Speaker 1: I had so much hair at that time that I

230
00:13:30,000 --> 00:13:32,600
Speaker 1: wouldn't let my mother comb it. So I started getting

231
00:13:32,920 --> 00:13:35,720
Speaker 1: perms very early so that my mother could comb my

232
00:13:35,800 --> 00:13:39,559
Speaker 1: hair because I was tender headed. But she would give

233
00:13:39,600 --> 00:13:41,880
Speaker 1: me perms and break my hair into little plants. And

234
00:13:41,920 --> 00:13:43,959
Speaker 1: I'd go to school, but I didn't do much. I

235
00:13:44,000 --> 00:13:46,760
Speaker 1: did my homework there and when it was time for

236
00:13:46,800 --> 00:13:48,200
Speaker 1: me to get my hair done, of course I was

237
00:13:48,200 --> 00:13:51,240
Speaker 1: there all the time. But she was my mother. I

238
00:13:51,360 --> 00:13:54,520
Speaker 1: really missed her. She passed away in two thousand and three,

239
00:13:55,320 --> 00:13:59,640
Speaker 1: and I really missed her. But now I've turned into

240
00:14:00,200 --> 00:14:02,560
Speaker 1: the mother that she was. With my son. I say

241
00:14:02,600 --> 00:14:05,440
Speaker 1: things that my mom would say, like, you know, in

242
00:14:05,480 --> 00:14:07,880
Speaker 1: our family, when your mother would call you, you dare

243
00:14:07,920 --> 00:14:12,200
Speaker 1: not say what. You just go. You share not say

244
00:14:12,320 --> 00:14:14,400
Speaker 1: because I used to say what she say. Don't you

245
00:14:14,520 --> 00:14:16,640
Speaker 1: say what to me? You just come when I call you.

246
00:14:16,960 --> 00:14:19,160
Speaker 1: So those things like that I really remember, and I

247
00:14:19,240 --> 00:14:20,080
Speaker 1: say that to my son.

248
00:14:20,120 --> 00:14:25,920
Speaker 2: Now, when did you discover your voice, your talent, your

249
00:14:26,080 --> 00:14:27,000
Speaker 2: acting ability?

250
00:14:28,880 --> 00:14:32,440
Speaker 1: I discovered it very young. I could actually sing songs

251
00:14:32,440 --> 00:14:35,640
Speaker 1: before I could actually talk, because my sister and them

252
00:14:35,720 --> 00:14:39,000
Speaker 1: used to watch The Three Musketeers and they used to

253
00:14:39,200 --> 00:14:41,400
Speaker 1: like the songs and stuff and songs that come on

254
00:14:41,440 --> 00:14:44,240
Speaker 1: the radio. They would teach teach it to me and

255
00:14:44,440 --> 00:14:47,880
Speaker 1: I was baptized at seven at Cornerstone Baptist Church and

256
00:14:47,920 --> 00:14:52,520
Speaker 1: I started singing then. And my first Broadway show, I

257
00:14:53,120 --> 00:14:58,720
Speaker 1: was eleven, eleven, eleven or twelve, but I had already

258
00:14:59,000 --> 00:15:01,920
Speaker 1: performed at their apolog Theater, you know, and won the

259
00:15:01,920 --> 00:15:04,120
Speaker 1: Amateur Night for six weeks in a row.

260
00:15:05,680 --> 00:15:08,080
Speaker 2: Can you tell me about that experience? I grew up

261
00:15:08,120 --> 00:15:12,600
Speaker 2: watching Apollo. An amateur knight was always something we use

262
00:15:12,640 --> 00:15:14,840
Speaker 2: it in today's terms, like if I'm at work and

263
00:15:14,880 --> 00:15:16,960
Speaker 2: I'm dealing with somebody, I'm like, it's amateur Knight at

264
00:15:16,960 --> 00:15:19,880
Speaker 2: the Apollo Theater right now, and they make me mad,

265
00:15:19,960 --> 00:15:22,560
Speaker 2: I'm all like, I whyms ideal? But then there were

266
00:15:22,640 --> 00:15:25,160
Speaker 2: always these people that just stood out. It was the

267
00:15:25,200 --> 00:15:29,560
Speaker 2: Black Star Search if you will, oh, absolutely experience for you.

268
00:15:30,440 --> 00:15:33,520
Speaker 1: It was wonderful. I mean I was there for six

269
00:15:33,600 --> 00:15:36,080
Speaker 1: weeks in a row, so I got a chance to

270
00:15:36,120 --> 00:15:42,280
Speaker 1: see ROBERTA. Flack, the Isley Brothers, James Brown, King, Curtis,

271
00:15:42,560 --> 00:15:45,440
Speaker 1: all those people. And then later I got a professional

272
00:15:45,440 --> 00:15:47,800
Speaker 1: booking with the Isley Brothers. But it was wonderful that

273
00:15:47,920 --> 00:15:50,480
Speaker 1: make you sit downstairs like in a little basement, and

274
00:15:50,520 --> 00:15:52,240
Speaker 1: when it's your time to come up, you come up

275
00:15:52,280 --> 00:15:57,000
Speaker 1: and you up the rock and you go and you

276
00:15:57,080 --> 00:15:59,400
Speaker 1: sing your song. And then later for me to go

277
00:15:59,480 --> 00:16:03,680
Speaker 1: there and sell out seven shows was just very emotional

278
00:16:04,160 --> 00:16:07,440
Speaker 1: for me. But I love I loved my experience going

279
00:16:07,480 --> 00:16:11,120
Speaker 1: through what I did in the early part of my

280
00:16:11,200 --> 00:16:13,880
Speaker 1: career because it helped me and it molded me to

281
00:16:13,920 --> 00:16:14,840
Speaker 1: who I am today.

282
00:16:15,520 --> 00:16:18,280
Speaker 2: How were you when you went to the Apollo, because

283
00:16:18,280 --> 00:16:21,000
Speaker 2: I have to imagine that has to be scary, because

284
00:16:21,040 --> 00:16:21,920
Speaker 2: it is historic.

285
00:16:23,040 --> 00:16:27,080
Speaker 1: It's very scary. I had to be like eleven or twelve.

286
00:16:27,240 --> 00:16:32,480
Speaker 1: I was around eleven or twelve, and but I wasn't afraid.

287
00:16:32,600 --> 00:16:34,960
Speaker 1: I was always singing because I was singing in church

288
00:16:35,000 --> 00:16:37,920
Speaker 1: even before that, So I wasn't afraid to sing. And

289
00:16:37,960 --> 00:16:39,840
Speaker 1: I sang Who's Loving You? And for Once in My

290
00:16:39,920 --> 00:16:42,800
Speaker 1: Life by Stevie Wonder and Who's Loving You by the

291
00:16:42,880 --> 00:16:45,800
Speaker 1: Jackson Five. But I wasn't afraid because you know, my

292
00:16:45,920 --> 00:16:49,760
Speaker 1: mother listened to James She loved James Brown and the

293
00:16:49,840 --> 00:16:53,120
Speaker 1: Isley Brothers and ROBERTA. Flax. So to see all those

294
00:16:53,440 --> 00:16:57,120
Speaker 1: people was really quite nice, and they were very nice.

295
00:16:57,400 --> 00:17:01,400
Speaker 2: They were very nice to me, do you because I

296
00:17:01,440 --> 00:17:05,920
Speaker 2: think of those songs, Wow, those songs are very hard

297
00:17:05,960 --> 00:17:09,119
Speaker 2: to sing, and if you weren't afraid, what did you

298
00:17:09,240 --> 00:17:12,000
Speaker 2: feel when you were on the stage at eleven years

299
00:17:12,040 --> 00:17:14,399
Speaker 2: old at the Apollo? What did you feel?

300
00:17:16,359 --> 00:17:21,840
Speaker 1: I felt love because the audience really liked my singing,

301
00:17:22,640 --> 00:17:27,919
Speaker 1: and I felt I just felt love. I felt like,

302
00:17:28,040 --> 00:17:29,880
Speaker 1: this is what I do. I was singing in church

303
00:17:29,920 --> 00:17:32,199
Speaker 1: and I belonged to a big church, so I was

304
00:17:32,320 --> 00:17:34,119
Speaker 1: used to singing in front of people, and when I

305
00:17:34,160 --> 00:17:36,280
Speaker 1: went out there and they loved my song, it just

306
00:17:36,359 --> 00:17:38,159
Speaker 1: made me want to give them more. But I felt

307
00:17:38,160 --> 00:17:39,240
Speaker 1: love and appreciated.

308
00:17:40,040 --> 00:17:43,879
Speaker 2: Wow, that's special, that's really special. And at that moment,

309
00:17:43,920 --> 00:17:46,040
Speaker 2: did you know that you would go on to have

310
00:17:46,080 --> 00:17:48,200
Speaker 2: a very successful career.

311
00:17:48,320 --> 00:17:49,120
Speaker 1: Or no more?

312
00:17:49,200 --> 00:17:50,359
Speaker 2: Singing just to sing?

313
00:17:51,000 --> 00:17:53,879
Speaker 1: I was singing just to sing. I didn't know that

314
00:17:54,080 --> 00:17:56,520
Speaker 1: I would have a successful career. It wasn't even in

315
00:17:56,520 --> 00:17:58,840
Speaker 1: my head. I was just singing to sing because I

316
00:17:58,840 --> 00:18:02,159
Speaker 1: loved to sing, as I do now. I love doing

317
00:18:02,160 --> 00:18:05,000
Speaker 1: my shows and being on the road. I really really do.

318
00:18:05,040 --> 00:18:06,000
Speaker 1: I just love to sing.

319
00:18:07,200 --> 00:18:10,880
Speaker 2: So you leave the Apollo after six successful runs because

320
00:18:10,920 --> 00:18:14,520
Speaker 2: then if you get one good callback, you great. Right,

321
00:18:14,600 --> 00:18:18,960
Speaker 2: So you have big runs and people are like this,

322
00:18:19,040 --> 00:18:23,000
Speaker 2: Stephanie is something special, right, people are starting to notice you.

323
00:18:23,359 --> 00:18:26,639
Speaker 2: What do you do with that momentum? At eleven years.

324
00:18:26,520 --> 00:18:31,240
Speaker 1: Old, I listened to my parents and my sisters, you know,

325
00:18:31,320 --> 00:18:34,840
Speaker 1: I because they managed my career for a very long time.

326
00:18:35,119 --> 00:18:37,640
Speaker 1: So I just listened to them and did what they

327
00:18:38,440 --> 00:18:41,200
Speaker 1: told me to do, you know. Then I went up

328
00:18:41,240 --> 00:18:43,919
Speaker 1: for an audition for Maggie Flynn Broadway show that ran

329
00:18:44,000 --> 00:18:47,359
Speaker 1: on Broadway for about nine months with the Shirley Jones

330
00:18:47,400 --> 00:18:51,439
Speaker 1: and the late Jack Cassidy and Irene Cara and a

331
00:18:51,480 --> 00:18:53,800
Speaker 1: lot of people that are now that went on to

332
00:18:53,840 --> 00:18:57,280
Speaker 1: become famous. Was in that play. It was nine children,

333
00:18:57,400 --> 00:19:01,159
Speaker 1: orphanage children, and you just just kept going, like I

334
00:19:01,400 --> 00:19:05,639
Speaker 1: kept auditioning for different things, and the only process of

335
00:19:05,680 --> 00:19:08,240
Speaker 1: the business that I didn't like. I didn't like auditioning

336
00:19:08,640 --> 00:19:12,919
Speaker 1: because I found the people to be cold and cruel

337
00:19:13,000 --> 00:19:16,640
Speaker 1: at times, so I didn't like that. In fact, when

338
00:19:16,680 --> 00:19:18,639
Speaker 1: they wanted me to come in audition for The Whiz,

339
00:19:18,680 --> 00:19:21,760
Speaker 1: I did not want to go. I did not want

340
00:19:21,760 --> 00:19:23,840
Speaker 1: to go because I had gone up for so many

341
00:19:23,880 --> 00:19:26,840
Speaker 1: different things and didn't get it, so I didn't think

342
00:19:26,880 --> 00:19:29,200
Speaker 1: that I would get the role as Dorothy. But my

343
00:19:29,359 --> 00:19:32,359
Speaker 1: mom made me go and she went with me and

344
00:19:32,600 --> 00:19:33,400
Speaker 1: I'm glad I went.

345
00:19:34,160 --> 00:19:36,800
Speaker 2: So you led me to what I was building up to.

346
00:19:36,920 --> 00:19:40,480
Speaker 2: So let's just go there. The fiftieth anniversary quickly approaching,

347
00:19:40,560 --> 00:19:44,800
Speaker 2: and it's amazing, and it is one of these moments

348
00:19:44,840 --> 00:19:49,600
Speaker 2: that you are a luminary and it transcends for so

349
00:19:49,800 --> 00:19:52,600
Speaker 2: many people and it means so much, especially for the culture.

350
00:19:53,240 --> 00:19:55,320
Speaker 2: You go to this audition that you don't want to do,

351
00:19:55,920 --> 00:19:57,760
Speaker 2: walk me through the process, and your Mom's like, I'm

352
00:19:57,760 --> 00:20:01,400
Speaker 2: coming with you, and we're going to do it. Oftentimes

353
00:20:01,800 --> 00:20:03,960
Speaker 2: we feel like we got it. Tell me right.

354
00:20:05,640 --> 00:20:08,359
Speaker 1: I've never felt like I had anything when I auditioned,

355
00:20:08,440 --> 00:20:11,880
Speaker 1: because I'm terrible at auditioning. What did I sing? I

356
00:20:11,920 --> 00:20:15,760
Speaker 1: sang Danny Boy? And my hair was like this, it

357
00:20:15,880 --> 00:20:19,959
Speaker 1: was a puffy and I had on little slacks. I

358
00:20:20,000 --> 00:20:22,959
Speaker 1: remember it like it was yesterday. And Ken Harper was

359
00:20:22,960 --> 00:20:27,639
Speaker 1: in the audience and Vicki, who was the pasting agent

360
00:20:27,680 --> 00:20:30,239
Speaker 1: at that time, was there, and he had me to

361
00:20:30,240 --> 00:20:33,240
Speaker 1: sing and I sang, and then they called me back

362
00:20:33,280 --> 00:20:36,080
Speaker 1: a second time and I went, and then the third

363
00:20:36,160 --> 00:20:40,280
Speaker 1: time I was asked to come to Jeffrey Holder, Jeffrey

364
00:20:40,280 --> 00:20:42,879
Speaker 1: Holder's house, who was doing the costumes at that time.

365
00:20:43,080 --> 00:20:46,520
Speaker 1: And I met with Jeffrey Holder and Gilbert Moses and

366
00:20:46,760 --> 00:20:49,320
Speaker 1: Ken Harper, who was the producer, and Gilbert was the

367
00:20:49,359 --> 00:20:52,400
Speaker 1: first director of The Whiz and then but I all

368
00:20:52,480 --> 00:20:55,119
Speaker 1: that time when I was going back, I didn't think

369
00:20:55,359 --> 00:20:58,320
Speaker 1: of it like, oh, this is a big deal. I'm

370
00:20:58,359 --> 00:21:01,080
Speaker 1: doing it because I would watch those at the Bonds

371
00:21:01,160 --> 00:21:05,040
Speaker 1: every year on television. But never did I have in

372
00:21:05,080 --> 00:21:07,879
Speaker 1: my wildest dreams that I would ever play Dorothy. I

373
00:21:08,160 --> 00:21:11,320
Speaker 1: never even thought of it. So once I got the role,

374
00:21:11,359 --> 00:21:14,760
Speaker 1: I was really, really, really excited. When I was like sixteen.

375
00:21:16,800 --> 00:21:20,240
Speaker 2: It's an iconic moment for every brown girl to play

376
00:21:20,280 --> 00:21:24,919
Speaker 2: a role that should be or traditionally given to a

377
00:21:24,960 --> 00:21:31,560
Speaker 2: white young girl. Yes, and I think of like the

378
00:21:31,560 --> 00:21:35,720
Speaker 2: Little Mermaid and the controversy that surrounded it, and when

379
00:21:35,800 --> 00:21:38,199
Speaker 2: Hallie got it, and I thought to myself, how sad,

380
00:21:38,760 --> 00:21:42,600
Speaker 2: But you were doing this year's generation.

381
00:21:42,440 --> 00:21:48,520
Speaker 1: Before I've hate mail. They did not like me. My

382
00:21:48,640 --> 00:21:53,560
Speaker 1: reviews were horrible. And it wasn't until my mom, who

383
00:21:53,600 --> 00:21:56,800
Speaker 1: belonged to Cornistan Baptist Church, who was a huge church,

384
00:21:57,080 --> 00:22:01,000
Speaker 1: and Ken Harper, the producer's mother belonged to a huge church,

385
00:22:01,200 --> 00:22:04,520
Speaker 1: would bring bus loads of people from the church and

386
00:22:04,560 --> 00:22:07,680
Speaker 1: then once we did our commercial, then the show kicked in.

387
00:22:08,280 --> 00:22:10,239
Speaker 1: But it was rough there for a minute because we

388
00:22:10,240 --> 00:22:13,880
Speaker 1: were supposed to open in December and we didn't open

389
00:22:13,960 --> 00:22:16,880
Speaker 1: until January fifth, nineteen seventy five.

390
00:22:17,560 --> 00:22:20,760
Speaker 2: You had hate mail before or doing the process.

391
00:22:20,640 --> 00:22:23,800
Speaker 1: Doing the process. Once we opened on Broadway, I got

392
00:22:23,800 --> 00:22:27,080
Speaker 1: hate mail. Yeah, what did it say? Say that I

393
00:22:27,200 --> 00:22:31,119
Speaker 1: was ugly and my breast was too big and Judy

394
00:22:31,200 --> 00:22:33,399
Speaker 1: Garland she'd get out of her grave and slap me.

395
00:22:34,080 --> 00:22:36,000
Speaker 1: But I didn't let it bother me. You know, I

396
00:22:36,160 --> 00:22:39,720
Speaker 1: never I don't know. I guess I'm just built that way.

397
00:22:39,760 --> 00:22:43,480
Speaker 1: But I've never let the negativity of the business affect me.

398
00:22:43,600 --> 00:22:46,240
Speaker 1: I've always been able to just keep going no matter

399
00:22:46,280 --> 00:22:49,760
Speaker 1: what anybody thought of what they said. I really didn't care.

400
00:22:50,000 --> 00:22:52,480
Speaker 1: I would just keep going on my path and stay

401
00:22:52,600 --> 00:22:54,200
Speaker 1: focused on what I wanted to do.

402
00:22:55,240 --> 00:22:57,679
Speaker 2: In the moment. Did you realize how historic that was?

403
00:22:59,680 --> 00:23:03,720
Speaker 1: You know? What's so funny. I didn't realize how historic

404
00:23:03,880 --> 00:23:07,119
Speaker 1: it was until I did the revival of it, like

405
00:23:07,200 --> 00:23:09,879
Speaker 1: a couple of years later, when I was like twenty five,

406
00:23:10,320 --> 00:23:14,720
Speaker 1: and then I realized, Wow, we really did something because

407
00:23:14,720 --> 00:23:20,439
Speaker 1: Louiz won seven Tonys and it was just amazing the

408
00:23:20,480 --> 00:23:24,719
Speaker 1: whole process. Felicia Rashad was in the chorus, and Andre

409
00:23:24,840 --> 00:23:30,600
Speaker 1: Deshields and Ted Ross, Mabel King and Stu Gillim, who

410
00:23:30,760 --> 00:23:35,359
Speaker 1: was a famous comedian and actor at that time, was

411
00:23:35,400 --> 00:23:37,080
Speaker 1: the very first scarecrow.

412
00:23:38,760 --> 00:23:41,439
Speaker 2: And when you look back on it and what you

413
00:23:41,480 --> 00:23:45,000
Speaker 2: were able to accomplish, does it feel as if it

414
00:23:45,080 --> 00:23:47,440
Speaker 2: was meant for you? It was set aside for you.

415
00:23:47,440 --> 00:23:49,320
Speaker 2: You were chosen and calling for that role.

416
00:23:49,880 --> 00:23:55,879
Speaker 1: Absolutely absolutely. I know that God just placed me in

417
00:23:55,920 --> 00:23:59,280
Speaker 1: that place. And I lived my life by keeping my

418
00:23:59,359 --> 00:24:02,880
Speaker 1: hands in guy's unchanging hands. Amen, And I think that's

419
00:24:02,920 --> 00:24:06,440
Speaker 1: what has kept me because this spect is wrong. It's

420
00:24:06,480 --> 00:24:08,439
Speaker 1: not easy and a lot of my peers are not

421
00:24:08,520 --> 00:24:14,680
Speaker 1: here anymore. So you really have to stay focused and

422
00:24:14,680 --> 00:24:16,639
Speaker 1: and sort of stay out of the way. Do we

423
00:24:16,800 --> 00:24:19,800
Speaker 1: do your job and then just get out of the way.

424
00:24:20,000 --> 00:24:23,159
Speaker 2: Yeall, This edition of Naked is juicy. This is juicy.

425
00:24:23,440 --> 00:24:25,920
Speaker 2: We get in T T T, and we're also being

426
00:24:26,000 --> 00:24:29,119
Speaker 2: activated because she is an activist. More with Stephanie Mills

427
00:24:29,119 --> 00:24:32,119
Speaker 2: when we pay the bills, Oh my god, I'm a rapper.

428
00:24:32,400 --> 00:24:35,440
Speaker 2: More with Stephanie Mills as we pay the bills Back

429
00:24:35,440 --> 00:24:36,159
Speaker 2: in the moment.

430
00:24:36,240 --> 00:24:39,280
Speaker 3: Every champion and carry champions. To be a champion, a

431
00:24:39,359 --> 00:24:42,000
Speaker 3: champion and carry Champion and carry chat be out a

432
00:24:42,080 --> 00:24:46,800
Speaker 3: champion and carry Champion and carry Champion entertainment and Naked

433
00:24:46,840 --> 00:24:56,439
Speaker 3: Weird Erry Champion and carry Champion is to be a

434
00:24:56,520 --> 00:24:59,040
Speaker 3: champion of Champion and carry champion.

435
00:25:00,320 --> 00:25:02,280
Speaker 1: And Carri Sheppi and Caeri Shepy.

436
00:25:05,240 --> 00:25:08,920
Speaker 2: Hey, everybody, welcome back to this edition of Naked. I'm excited.

437
00:25:08,960 --> 00:25:10,959
Speaker 2: Can you hear it in my voice? I hope that

438
00:25:11,000 --> 00:25:14,280
Speaker 2: you are listening and are paying close attention because we

439
00:25:14,320 --> 00:25:17,000
Speaker 2: have a legend and she has so many stories, and

440
00:25:17,040 --> 00:25:19,840
Speaker 2: she's dropping names like she's talking about Tom Jerry Lewis

441
00:25:19,880 --> 00:25:24,040
Speaker 2: and Frank Stevie, Wanda Lutha Van Dross, Dat Michael Jackson

442
00:25:24,359 --> 00:25:27,280
Speaker 2: hanging out and meeting Diana Ross, hanging out with Suzanda

443
00:25:27,320 --> 00:25:30,320
Speaker 2: Pass like this is legendary. She's mentioning names. These are

444
00:25:30,320 --> 00:25:33,479
Speaker 2: hall of fame names, right, the equivalent of sports. I

445
00:25:33,480 --> 00:25:37,280
Speaker 2: hope you enjoy the rest of the podcast. When and

446
00:25:37,400 --> 00:25:40,440
Speaker 2: I read and correct me if I'm wrong. One of

447
00:25:40,440 --> 00:25:44,480
Speaker 2: the people that you admired or admire was Diana Ross. Yes,

448
00:25:45,760 --> 00:25:49,320
Speaker 2: and what a full circle moment? Now was it before

449
00:25:49,840 --> 00:25:52,560
Speaker 2: or after she played the Whiz Or was it that

450
00:25:52,640 --> 00:25:54,760
Speaker 2: you were like, I love her. This is somebody that

451
00:25:54,840 --> 00:25:56,280
Speaker 2: I can look up to. I helped me with.

452
00:25:57,280 --> 00:26:01,119
Speaker 1: I loved Diana Ross from the very beginning, Diana Ross

453
00:26:01,119 --> 00:26:04,680
Speaker 1: and the Jackson Five and all the Motown people, Gladys Night.

454
00:26:05,240 --> 00:26:07,359
Speaker 1: So when I got a chance to meet her and

455
00:26:07,400 --> 00:26:09,439
Speaker 1: she would come to the show, and then when I

456
00:26:09,560 --> 00:26:11,880
Speaker 1: signed with Motown and I would go to her shows

457
00:26:12,160 --> 00:26:15,160
Speaker 1: at Caesus Palace, I was just like, oh my god,

458
00:26:15,280 --> 00:26:18,159
Speaker 1: I want to be Diana Ross. And even when she

459
00:26:18,240 --> 00:26:21,320
Speaker 1: did the movie, I visited the set, I wasn't like

460
00:26:21,800 --> 00:26:23,639
Speaker 1: I mean, people tried to make it like I was

461
00:26:23,720 --> 00:26:28,800
Speaker 1: upset or anything. I wasn't. I really I wasn't because

462
00:26:28,840 --> 00:26:29,560
Speaker 1: I loved her.

463
00:26:30,080 --> 00:26:33,080
Speaker 2: Yeah, that was gonna be my question. Oftentimes they make

464
00:26:33,160 --> 00:26:35,400
Speaker 2: us feel especially I'm sure when you were coming up

465
00:26:35,560 --> 00:26:37,439
Speaker 2: there can only be one and still in your business,

466
00:26:37,520 --> 00:26:40,960
Speaker 2: music industry, there can only be one who does this well.

467
00:26:41,440 --> 00:26:45,200
Speaker 2: When they tried to create that narrative, you did not

468
00:26:45,480 --> 00:26:46,600
Speaker 2: accept it. Why is that?

469
00:26:47,080 --> 00:26:50,760
Speaker 1: Cause I love Diana Ross. I loved her talent, and

470
00:26:50,840 --> 00:26:53,840
Speaker 1: maybe that was for her. Maybe the movie wasn't for me,

471
00:26:54,240 --> 00:26:56,960
Speaker 1: The play was for me. It would let me set

472
00:26:56,960 --> 00:27:00,040
Speaker 1: it up and then whoever comes after that. Yeah, But

473
00:26:59,840 --> 00:27:05,280
Speaker 1: I mean I'm still here, She's still here. We didn't compete,

474
00:27:05,560 --> 00:27:07,920
Speaker 1: you know. She was older than me at the time,

475
00:27:08,080 --> 00:27:10,639
Speaker 1: and now there's a young girl that's coming and she's

476
00:27:10,960 --> 00:27:14,240
Speaker 1: younger than me. So it's a circle that we have.

477
00:27:14,400 --> 00:27:18,399
Speaker 1: And I'm such a supporter of black people and of

478
00:27:18,440 --> 00:27:22,760
Speaker 1: black women. I choose to take the higher road than

479
00:27:22,800 --> 00:27:23,400
Speaker 1: the lower road.

480
00:27:24,560 --> 00:27:27,960
Speaker 2: I support that. And it's hard to do that when

481
00:27:28,200 --> 00:27:31,200
Speaker 2: you have so many outside voices that try to make

482
00:27:31,240 --> 00:27:34,520
Speaker 2: you feel a certain way. But The Wiz is such

483
00:27:34,520 --> 00:27:38,760
Speaker 2: an iconic film. The play is so essential to every

484
00:27:38,840 --> 00:27:41,920
Speaker 2: brown girl, and it's almost like we must be able

485
00:27:41,960 --> 00:27:44,280
Speaker 2: to watch this and see this to understand that we

486
00:27:44,320 --> 00:27:50,680
Speaker 2: belong in these spaces. Yes, and when you know you belong,

487
00:27:50,800 --> 00:27:54,320
Speaker 2: what does that feel like for you? For a Yeah,

488
00:27:54,520 --> 00:27:59,720
Speaker 2: tell me about that, Because you have it.

489
00:27:59,720 --> 00:28:03,000
Speaker 1: It's powerful. It's like, hey, I'm a hear and there's

490
00:28:03,080 --> 00:28:06,960
Speaker 1: nothing you can do about it. It's a powerful feeling.

491
00:28:07,320 --> 00:28:11,919
Speaker 1: But I didn't start to feel that power until later,

492
00:28:12,840 --> 00:28:16,280
Speaker 1: till I got older. You know, Like right now I'm

493
00:28:16,320 --> 00:28:19,960
Speaker 1: in the thalls of Hey, you know, I'm like and

494
00:28:20,040 --> 00:28:23,280
Speaker 1: I'm sixty six. So I'm like, hey, you know, but

495
00:28:23,359 --> 00:28:26,200
Speaker 1: it's powerful. It's powerful, and that's what I really want

496
00:28:26,480 --> 00:28:30,160
Speaker 1: black women to know, and black girls to know now

497
00:28:30,280 --> 00:28:33,040
Speaker 1: while they're young, that you are so powerful and you

498
00:28:33,280 --> 00:28:36,240
Speaker 1: where you're supposed to be. You belong there. Don't let

499
00:28:36,240 --> 00:28:39,160
Speaker 1: anybody tell you that you don't, because they're so quickly

500
00:28:39,480 --> 00:28:42,240
Speaker 1: want to tell us we don't belong, and we do.

501
00:28:44,080 --> 00:28:48,120
Speaker 2: You don't leave with fear, you leave off. And it's

502
00:28:48,200 --> 00:28:52,240
Speaker 2: such a refreshing approach. And I'm and authentic because it's

503
00:28:52,320 --> 00:28:55,280
Speaker 2: not common when you talk about the Wiz. I have

504
00:28:55,360 --> 00:28:58,760
Speaker 2: to ask, because I'm sure most ask, especially in the film,

505
00:28:58,840 --> 00:29:02,640
Speaker 2: and you've mentioned the Jackson five. You dated the greatest

506
00:29:02,720 --> 00:29:06,920
Speaker 2: entertainer of all time. Arguably, Yes, he had an experience

507
00:29:06,960 --> 00:29:10,480
Speaker 2: that Once again, I mean you've had experiences that are

508
00:29:10,560 --> 00:29:14,800
Speaker 2: one of one. What was it like to know him

509
00:29:15,120 --> 00:29:15,920
Speaker 2: Michael Jackson?

510
00:29:17,240 --> 00:29:20,880
Speaker 1: It was he was just a dude, you know, when

511
00:29:20,920 --> 00:29:23,160
Speaker 1: you when he was away from all of that, he

512
00:29:23,200 --> 00:29:27,560
Speaker 1: was just Michael, and he was loving, He was kind,

513
00:29:28,720 --> 00:29:32,640
Speaker 1: very determined. He knew what he wanted to do, and

514
00:29:34,280 --> 00:29:37,680
Speaker 1: we spent a lot of time together. But when it

515
00:29:37,800 --> 00:29:40,840
Speaker 1: started to shift and he went a different way. I

516
00:29:41,520 --> 00:29:44,720
Speaker 1: didn't want to go that way. I didn't want to

517
00:29:44,760 --> 00:29:49,240
Speaker 1: go that way. But it was magical. I could say

518
00:29:49,920 --> 00:29:52,560
Speaker 1: it was really because he was such a He was

519
00:29:52,680 --> 00:29:56,280
Speaker 1: really a genius and a very kind, kind human being.

520
00:29:56,600 --> 00:30:01,560
Speaker 1: I never heard Michael say anything bad about anyone, never

521
00:30:01,600 --> 00:30:04,600
Speaker 1: a crossword, never that term genius.

522
00:30:04,640 --> 00:30:07,360
Speaker 2: Can we focus on that for a moment because I agree,

523
00:30:07,400 --> 00:30:09,800
Speaker 2: and we don't get to see very many geniuses and

524
00:30:09,840 --> 00:30:14,080
Speaker 2: different disciplines. What or how do you describe him as

525
00:30:14,080 --> 00:30:16,480
Speaker 2: a genius? What did you see that made you feel

526
00:30:16,480 --> 00:30:17,000
Speaker 2: he was that.

527
00:30:19,480 --> 00:30:25,320
Speaker 1: The sensitivity and the rhythm, the energy that he was

528
00:30:25,360 --> 00:30:29,800
Speaker 1: on his rhythm was different from anybody else's. You know

529
00:30:29,840 --> 00:30:32,480
Speaker 1: what I'm saying. You know, I mean he was very

530
00:30:32,520 --> 00:30:37,200
Speaker 1: meticulous about everything with his writing, doing the wrisk. He

531
00:30:37,320 --> 00:30:41,400
Speaker 1: was so driven, but not driven in a way where,

532
00:30:41,560 --> 00:30:43,000
Speaker 1: oh I gotta do this, I got it, but it

533
00:30:43,040 --> 00:30:47,640
Speaker 1: was just very soft and peaceful, not to hurt anybody else,

534
00:30:47,680 --> 00:30:49,880
Speaker 1: but he just wanted to do what he did and

535
00:30:50,240 --> 00:30:53,840
Speaker 1: to be able to do that was just brilliant to me.

536
00:30:54,040 --> 00:30:56,400
Speaker 1: To watch him and to watch him at home and

537
00:30:56,960 --> 00:31:00,520
Speaker 1: to watch him write it was it was brilliant.

538
00:31:00,520 --> 00:31:03,160
Speaker 2: And special because you can say you saw it not

539
00:31:03,280 --> 00:31:07,440
Speaker 2: many of us can say that. You then have went

540
00:31:07,480 --> 00:31:12,480
Speaker 2: on to have such a successful career, and when you

541
00:31:13,400 --> 00:31:16,960
Speaker 2: step into the light as your own, outside of Dorothy,

542
00:31:17,080 --> 00:31:21,000
Speaker 2: outside of everything else, you are now singing, and you

543
00:31:21,040 --> 00:31:28,160
Speaker 2: are having concerts and tours. How are you as an artist?

544
00:31:28,200 --> 00:31:32,240
Speaker 2: How do you want people to perceive you as an artist?

545
00:31:34,080 --> 00:31:40,080
Speaker 1: A loving artist, artist that that understands, that stands up

546
00:31:40,120 --> 00:31:43,960
Speaker 1: for her people, love for people, and love everyone else,

547
00:31:44,040 --> 00:31:48,320
Speaker 1: but love for people, and and and and an artist

548
00:31:48,400 --> 00:31:49,960
Speaker 1: that's not afraid to be black.

549
00:31:50,360 --> 00:31:57,880
Speaker 4: M So yes, let's talk about that. Because we are black.

550
00:31:58,360 --> 00:32:01,000
Speaker 4: This is what we do, and this is what we do.

551
00:32:01,920 --> 00:32:04,280
Speaker 2: There are so many times when we get to a

552
00:32:04,360 --> 00:32:06,400
Speaker 2: level of success that we feel like we have to

553
00:32:06,440 --> 00:32:09,520
Speaker 2: compromise our blackness or quiet that side of us, that

554
00:32:09,680 --> 00:32:12,160
Speaker 2: side of us. When did you decide because you said

555
00:32:12,160 --> 00:32:14,200
Speaker 2: your mom was always an activist, so you had it

556
00:32:14,240 --> 00:32:16,840
Speaker 2: in you. When did you say, yeah, I can't quiet

557
00:32:16,840 --> 00:32:18,400
Speaker 2: that part because that's who I am.

558
00:32:18,960 --> 00:32:22,960
Speaker 1: When I was in my thirties, because I realized that

559
00:32:23,400 --> 00:32:26,719
Speaker 1: you have to know when to go home from the party.

560
00:32:27,760 --> 00:32:28,480
Speaker 2: What does that mean?

561
00:32:29,360 --> 00:32:31,719
Speaker 1: That means when you're at a party and things are

562
00:32:31,720 --> 00:32:34,040
Speaker 1: starting to get crazy, people are starting to do things

563
00:32:34,040 --> 00:32:36,440
Speaker 1: that you don't like and you don't understand you need

564
00:32:36,440 --> 00:32:40,440
Speaker 1: to leave. And a lot of artists don't realize that

565
00:32:40,480 --> 00:32:42,880
Speaker 1: they need to leave, and they also need to be disciplined.

566
00:32:43,080 --> 00:32:45,280
Speaker 1: I am so glad that I came from the theater

567
00:32:46,000 --> 00:32:50,040
Speaker 1: and I was around that motel energy and machine that

568
00:32:50,160 --> 00:32:53,120
Speaker 1: I knew what to do, how to do an interview,

569
00:32:53,400 --> 00:32:56,080
Speaker 1: how to say certain things, how to keep your life private.

570
00:32:56,480 --> 00:33:00,840
Speaker 1: That's all lost today. You know. I went on tour.

571
00:33:00,920 --> 00:33:05,400
Speaker 1: It was me and Luther Nick and Val Ashford and Simpson. Uh,

572
00:33:06,320 --> 00:33:09,600
Speaker 1: all of us was on the Buttfest. We never argued

573
00:33:09,600 --> 00:33:12,240
Speaker 1: about who got time and who didn't get time, who

574
00:33:12,400 --> 00:33:15,600
Speaker 1: went last and who didn't. It was a love best

575
00:33:16,080 --> 00:33:20,200
Speaker 1: I don't see that a lot today. So I try

576
00:33:20,240 --> 00:33:24,200
Speaker 1: to walk the walk and talk the talk. You know

577
00:33:24,800 --> 00:33:27,120
Speaker 1: a lot of people say, oh, you sound militant, and

578
00:33:27,200 --> 00:33:29,840
Speaker 1: you sound just because I love being black, just because

579
00:33:29,880 --> 00:33:33,480
Speaker 1: I came from my mother and I respect what she

580
00:33:34,200 --> 00:33:37,360
Speaker 1: gave birth to me and my father. No, you know,

581
00:33:37,960 --> 00:33:40,480
Speaker 1: it doesn't mean that you're racist or that's your prejudice,

582
00:33:40,520 --> 00:33:42,400
Speaker 1: because you love who you are.

583
00:33:43,880 --> 00:33:47,320
Speaker 2: We have been through a lot this country within the

584
00:33:47,400 --> 00:33:51,600
Speaker 2: last three years. Yes, in twenty twenty when the pandemic

585
00:33:51,640 --> 00:33:53,200
Speaker 2: hit and we were all at home and we were

586
00:33:53,200 --> 00:33:58,000
Speaker 2: forced as an entire world globally to watch the injustice

587
00:33:58,400 --> 00:34:00,960
Speaker 2: that happens to us as black folks. When we had

588
00:34:00,960 --> 00:34:04,040
Speaker 2: to sit and see what happened to George Floyd and

589
00:34:04,040 --> 00:34:07,480
Speaker 2: Breonna Taylor, and the list goes on, because but everyone

590
00:34:07,560 --> 00:34:13,280
Speaker 2: had to watch it, and there was this collective thought

591
00:34:13,440 --> 00:34:16,920
Speaker 2: of how can I help? And here we are fast

592
00:34:16,920 --> 00:34:19,840
Speaker 2: forward just you know, just two and a half years later,

593
00:34:20,040 --> 00:34:22,120
Speaker 2: and I feel like all of the work, all of

594
00:34:22,160 --> 00:34:28,560
Speaker 2: the lip service has been reversed. When you have this platform,

595
00:34:28,880 --> 00:34:30,279
Speaker 2: how do you address it? If at all?

596
00:34:31,440 --> 00:34:33,360
Speaker 1: Oh, I address it. If you go to my page,

597
00:34:33,440 --> 00:34:37,080
Speaker 1: I address everything, like I'm going to Alabama and doing

598
00:34:37,080 --> 00:34:42,680
Speaker 1: a free concert August thirty. First. I don't condone violence,

599
00:34:42,719 --> 00:34:45,160
Speaker 1: but I was very happy that our people stepped up

600
00:34:45,600 --> 00:34:49,080
Speaker 1: and didn't allow them to beat that man to death.

601
00:34:49,360 --> 00:34:54,080
Speaker 1: We can no longer stand and videotape somebody being choked today,

602
00:34:54,360 --> 00:34:56,960
Speaker 1: somebody being beaten to death. We just gonna have to

603
00:34:56,960 --> 00:35:00,520
Speaker 1: take one for the team. There's no way, you know,

604
00:35:00,640 --> 00:35:03,840
Speaker 1: I couldn't have stood there and watched them kill George Floyd.

605
00:35:04,080 --> 00:35:06,040
Speaker 1: I couldn't have they probably would have shot me or

606
00:35:06,080 --> 00:35:09,279
Speaker 1: something or whatever. But I could not have stood there

607
00:35:09,480 --> 00:35:12,440
Speaker 1: and him begging and pleading for his mother, and nobody

608
00:35:12,480 --> 00:35:15,839
Speaker 1: tried to push those policemen off. You know what I'm saying,

609
00:35:16,280 --> 00:35:18,560
Speaker 1: We can no longer, We can't afford to do that

610
00:35:18,960 --> 00:35:22,400
Speaker 1: because we see that they will turn everything back.

611
00:35:24,160 --> 00:35:26,640
Speaker 2: The humanity of it all. If you don't think we're human,

612
00:35:26,719 --> 00:35:29,319
Speaker 2: if you can't see our humanness, you can't treat us

613
00:35:29,360 --> 00:35:30,360
Speaker 2: as if we're humans.

614
00:35:30,719 --> 00:35:32,680
Speaker 1: No, you can't, you cannot.

615
00:35:33,520 --> 00:35:37,800
Speaker 2: I know that those who watched, as we watched them testify,

616
00:35:38,560 --> 00:35:40,879
Speaker 2: have tremendous trauma and grief, and they feel so much

617
00:35:40,880 --> 00:35:45,200
Speaker 2: guilt and they wish, especially the black folks who watch,

618
00:35:45,239 --> 00:35:48,720
Speaker 2: wish they would have done something. So your sentiment isn't off.

619
00:35:48,880 --> 00:35:51,800
Speaker 2: I think that you're right in saying that you can't

620
00:35:51,840 --> 00:35:54,719
Speaker 2: watch another human being, especially not another black man, being

621
00:35:54,760 --> 00:35:57,160
Speaker 2: beat and do nothing about it.

622
00:35:57,239 --> 00:35:58,040
Speaker 1: You know you can't.

623
00:35:58,200 --> 00:36:03,120
Speaker 2: Their sentiment read that you were going to Alabama to

624
00:36:03,640 --> 00:36:06,239
Speaker 2: give a free concert, and the concert is to say

625
00:36:06,239 --> 00:36:10,400
Speaker 2: what it is to say, it's just proud of you.

626
00:36:10,600 --> 00:36:13,799
Speaker 1: The concert is to say I'm proud of you, I

627
00:36:13,880 --> 00:36:18,080
Speaker 1: love you. Let's have peace, Let's spread love. Let's put

628
00:36:18,200 --> 00:36:21,080
Speaker 1: because that's what they did to me. That was love.

629
00:36:21,800 --> 00:36:24,920
Speaker 1: To help that man, you know, because they all jumped

630
00:36:24,960 --> 00:36:27,960
Speaker 1: on him. That was love. So just keep that up

631
00:36:28,000 --> 00:36:30,239
Speaker 1: to spread that. And we have to I think that

632
00:36:30,320 --> 00:36:32,319
Speaker 1: we do have to send a message that you were

633
00:36:32,480 --> 00:36:35,359
Speaker 1: just not going to tolerate you jumping on us and

634
00:36:35,440 --> 00:36:39,000
Speaker 1: killing us. We have to send a signal like he

635
00:36:39,040 --> 00:36:45,400
Speaker 1: threw up his head like that, just like here, we

636
00:36:50,239 --> 00:36:53,480
Speaker 1: we're all here. We're here all about us, right.

637
00:36:53,640 --> 00:36:54,839
Speaker 2: Yeah, And so that's what it's.

638
00:36:54,960 --> 00:36:57,080
Speaker 1: It's like I'm here, I'm here for you. I'm coming

639
00:36:57,200 --> 00:36:59,279
Speaker 1: there to be with you, and I'm going there and

640
00:36:59,320 --> 00:37:01,160
Speaker 1: I want to meet the people, I want to go

641
00:37:01,239 --> 00:37:03,319
Speaker 1: where it happen. I want to do all of that

642
00:37:03,360 --> 00:37:06,520
Speaker 1: because I am there. I'm I'm the kind of sister

643
00:37:06,640 --> 00:37:09,359
Speaker 1: that like, I'm down with you. We gone down, I'm

644
00:37:09,400 --> 00:37:09,799
Speaker 1: down with.

645
00:37:11,600 --> 00:37:16,600
Speaker 2: Do you think that you're one of a few that

646
00:37:16,680 --> 00:37:20,040
Speaker 2: are so bold about how proud you are to represent

647
00:37:20,080 --> 00:37:23,239
Speaker 2: the culture and unapologetic in your blackness? Or do yes?

648
00:37:23,960 --> 00:37:25,200
Speaker 2: You do? Why do you feel it?

649
00:37:26,040 --> 00:37:32,719
Speaker 1: I well, because I'm really I say what I want

650
00:37:32,719 --> 00:37:36,520
Speaker 1: to say and I and I really don't have any fear.

651
00:37:36,560 --> 00:37:39,640
Speaker 1: The only fear I only fear God. I don't fear

652
00:37:41,080 --> 00:37:44,680
Speaker 1: you know people, I know they are powerful people, but

653
00:37:44,719 --> 00:37:47,440
Speaker 1: I don't believe that there's anybody more powerful than God.

654
00:37:48,360 --> 00:37:48,680
Speaker 2: I don't.

655
00:37:49,760 --> 00:37:52,520
Speaker 1: And I just feel like, when are we going to

656
00:37:52,600 --> 00:37:56,440
Speaker 1: stand up and say enough is enough? With human just

657
00:37:56,520 --> 00:37:59,120
Speaker 1: like you are? And I love people. I am not.

658
00:37:59,480 --> 00:38:02,640
Speaker 1: I'm pressed to this, but I'm not racist. Because racist

659
00:38:02,680 --> 00:38:04,480
Speaker 1: as you ate a person because of the color of

660
00:38:04,560 --> 00:38:08,400
Speaker 1: this skin. I'm prejudice against hate. I'm prejudiced against you

661
00:38:08,480 --> 00:38:11,280
Speaker 1: beating up on my brother, beating up on my sister,

662
00:38:11,640 --> 00:38:16,000
Speaker 1: killing my people. I'm prejudice against that. But I'm not racist.

663
00:38:16,520 --> 00:38:18,920
Speaker 1: It's not that I hate white people. I hate spect.

664
00:38:19,120 --> 00:38:22,200
Speaker 1: I love everybody. But I do not want you to

665
00:38:23,040 --> 00:38:25,719
Speaker 1: beat on us. I don't. I don't want that. I

666
00:38:25,719 --> 00:38:27,920
Speaker 1: don't want that. So I'm gonna stand with my own.

667
00:38:28,560 --> 00:38:31,600
Speaker 2: What is the cost of speaking out?

668
00:38:32,120 --> 00:38:35,480
Speaker 1: Boy? It hasn't cost me anything. I mean, I I

669
00:38:37,360 --> 00:38:42,560
Speaker 1: haven't lost anything, and I'm not cruel with it. I'm

670
00:38:42,600 --> 00:38:47,000
Speaker 1: not insensitive with it, but I do. I love being

671
00:38:47,080 --> 00:38:49,080
Speaker 1: block and I don't think there's nothing wrong with that.

672
00:38:49,200 --> 00:38:52,000
Speaker 1: I love being a black woman. I love everything about it.

673
00:38:52,719 --> 00:38:55,320
Speaker 1: Every other woman wants to be and have what we have.

674
00:38:55,840 --> 00:38:58,640
Speaker 1: I'll thick clips, I think behind, I'll think this. They

675
00:38:58,719 --> 00:39:02,080
Speaker 1: pay a lot of money to look like us. So

676
00:39:02,160 --> 00:39:03,920
Speaker 1: we must be doing something right.

677
00:39:04,760 --> 00:39:07,960
Speaker 2: And we should own it and we should and I

678
00:39:08,000 --> 00:39:14,799
Speaker 2: do yes, amen, amen, while we at church. So so

679
00:39:14,920 --> 00:39:18,160
Speaker 2: when I when I talk to you, and as you

680
00:39:18,200 --> 00:39:20,640
Speaker 2: say on your page, I agree. I I just wanted

681
00:39:20,680 --> 00:39:24,680
Speaker 2: to make it very clear. I will tell you there

682
00:39:24,840 --> 00:39:28,879
Speaker 2: is a generation that may not know how invaluable you are.

683
00:39:29,040 --> 00:39:32,799
Speaker 2: So I appreciate you for doing this, this interview and

684
00:39:32,840 --> 00:39:36,720
Speaker 2: being unapologetic. But there is a true sense of pride

685
00:39:37,880 --> 00:39:42,520
Speaker 2: and and and oneness that I find that we're losing

686
00:39:43,160 --> 00:39:47,560
Speaker 2: with certain generations. I don't know if it's because we

687
00:39:47,640 --> 00:39:50,520
Speaker 2: want money, or if we want to be popular, or

688
00:39:50,520 --> 00:39:54,560
Speaker 2: if we want to be influencers, but there is this

689
00:39:54,840 --> 00:39:58,480
Speaker 2: fear that is installed in us. And I don't know

690
00:39:58,480 --> 00:40:00,840
Speaker 2: where that comes from, because I I had it, you know,

691
00:40:00,880 --> 00:40:03,160
Speaker 2: when I was at ESPN, I say this often. I

692
00:40:03,239 --> 00:40:05,200
Speaker 2: knew I didn't have my voice. I couldn't find my

693
00:40:05,280 --> 00:40:08,440
Speaker 2: voice because I felt very afraid of what I might lose.

694
00:40:08,520 --> 00:40:12,800
Speaker 2: And when I said what's the cost, that's what I feel.

695
00:40:12,960 --> 00:40:17,759
Speaker 2: Everyone is worried about the cost yes, and it comes

696
00:40:17,760 --> 00:40:20,960
Speaker 2: to everybody differently. Everyone doesn't have to, in my opinion,

697
00:40:21,000 --> 00:40:23,600
Speaker 2: be so unapologetic and be free with their words. It's

698
00:40:23,680 --> 00:40:27,200
Speaker 2: just it's different for everyone. But is there a moment

699
00:40:27,400 --> 00:40:29,840
Speaker 2: or is or how did your mother raise you? Because

700
00:40:29,880 --> 00:40:34,520
Speaker 2: this is constitutional, it is in your spirit and you

701
00:40:34,640 --> 00:40:36,759
Speaker 2: have it. Was your mother always this way? Was your

702
00:40:36,760 --> 00:40:37,720
Speaker 2: father this way?

703
00:40:37,960 --> 00:40:41,000
Speaker 1: My mother was always this way. My mother when we

704
00:40:41,040 --> 00:40:43,560
Speaker 1: would be in the car driving when I was older girl,

705
00:40:43,880 --> 00:40:47,759
Speaker 1: and if she saw policeman like harassing or talking to

706
00:40:47,800 --> 00:40:49,440
Speaker 1: a black person and they a couple of carts, she

707
00:40:49,480 --> 00:40:52,719
Speaker 1: would make my father stop and she would get out

708
00:40:52,760 --> 00:40:55,359
Speaker 1: of the car and say, what's going on here? Why

709
00:40:55,360 --> 00:40:58,399
Speaker 1: do you have them against the I remember that as

710
00:40:58,400 --> 00:41:01,000
Speaker 1: a little bir Why do you have them against the fence?

711
00:41:01,239 --> 00:41:03,880
Speaker 1: What's going on is? She wanted to know what, why,

712
00:41:04,080 --> 00:41:06,480
Speaker 1: and she would stay there until it was spending. We'd

713
00:41:06,480 --> 00:41:08,480
Speaker 1: stay there, I'd sit in the car, we'd stay there

714
00:41:08,560 --> 00:41:10,759
Speaker 1: until they kind of did what they were going to do,

715
00:41:10,800 --> 00:41:13,480
Speaker 1: and then they either let the person go or arrest them.

716
00:41:13,520 --> 00:41:16,560
Speaker 1: But my mother was very concerned about the people in

717
00:41:16,600 --> 00:41:21,120
Speaker 1: our neighborhood and it's it's in me and I just can't.

718
00:41:21,400 --> 00:41:23,880
Speaker 1: She made me proud to be who I am, to

719
00:41:23,920 --> 00:41:27,080
Speaker 1: be a little black girl going to school, singing in

720
00:41:27,120 --> 00:41:29,920
Speaker 1: the in the glee club. I was a brownie. I

721
00:41:29,960 --> 00:41:34,120
Speaker 1: sold uh uh chocolate chip cookies and stuff even though

722
00:41:34,120 --> 00:41:39,960
Speaker 1: I ate mine and my mother would have sence take

723
00:41:40,080 --> 00:41:42,399
Speaker 1: the money because I'm like, well, these cookies are good,

724
00:41:42,560 --> 00:41:46,080
Speaker 1: you know, but uh, that's the way she brought me

725
00:41:46,200 --> 00:41:49,959
Speaker 1: and I and I have really turned in to my mother.

726
00:41:50,200 --> 00:41:53,719
Speaker 1: I'm really all the things that the wisdom that she

727
00:41:53,920 --> 00:41:58,640
Speaker 1: gave me has helped me maintain and and and stayed

728
00:41:58,640 --> 00:42:01,759
Speaker 1: alive in this business, which is very hard to do.

729
00:42:02,160 --> 00:42:06,000
Speaker 2: It's impossible to do because his business, as all business will,

730
00:42:06,160 --> 00:42:07,799
Speaker 2: it will eat you up and spit you out, and

731
00:42:07,840 --> 00:42:10,560
Speaker 2: you lose your identity and you forget your foundation. And

732
00:42:10,600 --> 00:42:13,880
Speaker 2: that's where all the problems begin. You reference your mother.

733
00:42:14,640 --> 00:42:16,640
Speaker 2: Your son wrote a book from my understanding about you.

734
00:42:16,680 --> 00:42:20,759
Speaker 1: Correct, Yes, he wrote a book about his adventures. It's

735
00:42:20,800 --> 00:42:24,799
Speaker 1: the call the Adventures of forad J and my son

736
00:42:24,880 --> 00:42:27,120
Speaker 1: functions at a very high level. He's an a student

737
00:42:27,480 --> 00:42:30,680
Speaker 1: and he's now finishing up his second book, which is

738
00:42:30,719 --> 00:42:35,520
Speaker 1: called The Red Virus. And he's just funny. He's really funny,

739
00:42:35,560 --> 00:42:37,080
Speaker 1: and I was so glad I was able to have

740
00:42:37,120 --> 00:42:39,600
Speaker 1: a baby, and my mom saw him and my dad

741
00:42:39,640 --> 00:42:43,279
Speaker 1: saw him because they just loved Barad when he came up.

742
00:42:43,320 --> 00:42:46,479
Speaker 1: But that is my soul. That is that is why

743
00:42:46,520 --> 00:42:48,560
Speaker 1: I still do everything. It's for him.

744
00:42:49,880 --> 00:42:53,560
Speaker 2: Does he does he reference or describe you as you

745
00:42:53,600 --> 00:42:56,040
Speaker 2: describe your mother. Do you see the similarities that he

746
00:42:56,080 --> 00:42:59,000
Speaker 2: can that he has that he has written down or documented.

747
00:42:59,840 --> 00:43:02,719
Speaker 1: He has all kinds of names for me that he

748
00:43:02,840 --> 00:43:07,640
Speaker 1: calls me, but he loves He calls me snookums, and

749
00:43:08,000 --> 00:43:10,360
Speaker 1: he loves me. He kisses me every day and he

750
00:43:10,440 --> 00:43:13,759
Speaker 1: tells me what a great mom I am and everything.

751
00:43:13,880 --> 00:43:17,040
Speaker 1: So he yes, I get that saying he loves me.

752
00:43:18,560 --> 00:43:20,680
Speaker 1: There's no love like a child. Because I was just

753
00:43:20,680 --> 00:43:23,960
Speaker 1: talking about it with Karina. I call her my sister

754
00:43:23,960 --> 00:43:25,880
Speaker 1: because we're so close, and I was like, you know,

755
00:43:25,960 --> 00:43:29,080
Speaker 1: we will just do anything for our children. I would

756
00:43:29,280 --> 00:43:30,960
Speaker 1: walk through fire.

757
00:43:30,760 --> 00:43:34,239
Speaker 2: From my child, absolutely, I just would. It's instinctive. You

758
00:43:34,280 --> 00:43:34,879
Speaker 2: can't help it.

759
00:43:35,400 --> 00:43:35,640
Speaker 1: Yeah.

760
00:43:36,200 --> 00:43:39,520
Speaker 2: Yeah, It's like when you see a mama bear protecting

761
00:43:39,560 --> 00:43:43,520
Speaker 2: her cubs, like, yes, protecting her babies. Like He's just instinctive.

762
00:43:43,520 --> 00:43:44,759
Speaker 2: It's what we do. You can't.

763
00:43:44,840 --> 00:43:46,960
Speaker 1: It's what we do and you can't help it. It's

764
00:43:47,080 --> 00:43:47,640
Speaker 1: what we do.

765
00:43:47,800 --> 00:43:51,600
Speaker 3: We do every champion and carry champions. To be a champion,

766
00:43:51,640 --> 00:43:54,440
Speaker 3: a champion and carry champion and carry chat. Be a

767
00:43:54,520 --> 00:43:59,120
Speaker 3: champion and carry champion and carry chat Entertainment can make

768
00:43:59,160 --> 00:44:06,840
Speaker 3: it work. Kerry Champion, then carry champion is to be

769
00:44:06,920 --> 00:44:10,920
Speaker 3: a champion, a champion and Carri Chapi and the champion,

770
00:44:10,960 --> 00:44:12,799
Speaker 3: the Carri Sheppion and Carrity.

771
00:44:16,080 --> 00:44:19,560
Speaker 2: You are going on tour and I think it was

772
00:44:19,560 --> 00:44:23,320
Speaker 2: a twenty fifth think you starting Detroit? Maybe am I accurate?

773
00:44:23,600 --> 00:44:28,319
Speaker 1: And actually I'm in Harlem when the New York New

774
00:44:28,440 --> 00:44:31,680
Speaker 1: York wise up and then I go to Detroit. But

775
00:44:31,760 --> 00:44:33,960
Speaker 1: I've been on the road all these years. I've been

776
00:44:34,320 --> 00:44:36,360
Speaker 1: you know, working all this time.

777
00:44:36,920 --> 00:44:39,520
Speaker 2: Yeah, And and I don't know if there was a

778
00:44:39,640 --> 00:44:41,759
Speaker 2: joke I like I said. I just spoke with someone

779
00:44:41,760 --> 00:44:43,520
Speaker 2: who interviewed you. He said that you guys were kind

780
00:44:43,520 --> 00:44:46,360
Speaker 2: of you were joking about maybe thinking of bringing Babyface

781
00:44:46,360 --> 00:44:49,520
Speaker 2: on after the Anita Baker debacle. Was that he said?

782
00:44:49,560 --> 00:44:51,560
Speaker 2: Was that true? Were you bringing asking him to have

783
00:44:51,960 --> 00:44:53,400
Speaker 2: was he being funny? I don't know.

784
00:44:53,480 --> 00:45:00,480
Speaker 1: He told me to ask you about it. U, you know,

785
00:45:00,560 --> 00:45:03,760
Speaker 1: at our age with sixties. We're in our sixties. Whatever

786
00:45:03,800 --> 00:45:06,359
Speaker 1: we've been in this we shouldn't be fighting with each other.

787
00:45:06,640 --> 00:45:07,640
Speaker 1: That's what I think.

788
00:45:08,120 --> 00:45:08,319
Speaker 2: You know.

789
00:45:08,440 --> 00:45:11,719
Speaker 1: I love I love Anita, and I love Babybase. But

790
00:45:11,800 --> 00:45:14,400
Speaker 1: I did say, well, babyface, you can come on the

791
00:45:14,480 --> 00:45:19,000
Speaker 1: road with me. Yeah, I did say it. I did.

792
00:45:19,800 --> 00:45:21,759
Speaker 2: I love it because remember the love fest. We just

793
00:45:21,760 --> 00:45:25,040
Speaker 2: had a love fest. You had Asher and Simpson, remember said.

794
00:45:26,320 --> 00:45:30,760
Speaker 1: Yeah. I think we said Luther, Yeah, Luther and Gladys.

795
00:45:31,120 --> 00:45:32,839
Speaker 1: There was a lot of us on that show back

796
00:45:32,880 --> 00:45:36,320
Speaker 1: in the day. It was just a love fest. Stevie.

797
00:45:36,360 --> 00:45:37,839
Speaker 1: Wonder you know what.

798
00:45:37,920 --> 00:45:40,880
Speaker 2: You were talking about. Legends. I can't even imagine what

799
00:45:40,880 --> 00:45:45,920
Speaker 2: that would look like today, you legendary. Legendary is what

800
00:45:45,960 --> 00:45:47,719
Speaker 2: you're telling me right now. Legendary.

801
00:45:47,800 --> 00:45:50,040
Speaker 1: Yes, yes, we had a great time. Though.

802
00:45:50,520 --> 00:45:53,279
Speaker 2: What was the Motown experience? Like you said to me

803
00:45:53,480 --> 00:45:56,239
Speaker 2: briefly that it taught you a lot of things in

804
00:45:56,320 --> 00:45:59,480
Speaker 2: terms of how to conduct yourself as as an artist.

805
00:45:59,480 --> 00:46:02,440
Speaker 2: With Motown and Motown produced, I mean had some of

806
00:46:02,480 --> 00:46:05,240
Speaker 2: the greatest of I mean literally how I was raised,

807
00:46:05,239 --> 00:46:07,120
Speaker 2: cleaning up the house, what I listened to. If there

808
00:46:07,120 --> 00:46:09,000
Speaker 2: was no Motown, I wouldn't be able to describe what

809
00:46:09,040 --> 00:46:11,080
Speaker 2: it feels like to sweep the carpet on a Saturday.

810
00:46:11,520 --> 00:46:14,759
Speaker 2: So I tell me about what that experience was like

811
00:46:14,840 --> 00:46:19,360
Speaker 2: to be in that, in that in that group of

812
00:46:19,360 --> 00:46:21,400
Speaker 2: people that were considered the best of the best, the

813
00:46:21,560 --> 00:46:23,719
Speaker 2: people who spoke to our hearts and our spirits as

814
00:46:23,760 --> 00:46:27,600
Speaker 2: a culture, and the world was in truly copying it.

815
00:46:27,640 --> 00:46:30,520
Speaker 2: The Beatles bit, the sound everybody's biting, the sound that

816
00:46:30,600 --> 00:46:32,320
Speaker 2: was already created that Moti.

817
00:46:32,320 --> 00:46:37,120
Speaker 1: Yes, yes, we created everything. It was wonderful. Susanne Depez

818
00:46:38,640 --> 00:46:40,279
Speaker 1: used to take me to Vegas. I used to go

819
00:46:40,320 --> 00:46:43,120
Speaker 1: to Vegas with that because I loved Suzanne and I

820
00:46:43,160 --> 00:46:45,520
Speaker 1: wanted to be around her, so she would I would

821
00:46:45,520 --> 00:46:47,440
Speaker 1: be like following her all around and we would go

822
00:46:47,520 --> 00:46:50,759
Speaker 1: to the Dina Wash shows and the jack So she

823
00:46:50,840 --> 00:46:53,440
Speaker 1: knew I was madly in love with Michael and wanted

824
00:46:53,520 --> 00:46:56,360
Speaker 1: to be near him, so she made sure I was

825
00:46:56,640 --> 00:46:59,359
Speaker 1: close to the Jackson vibe. But they taught you how

826
00:46:59,400 --> 00:47:02,840
Speaker 1: to be boys. They taught you how to do an interview,

827
00:47:03,000 --> 00:47:06,000
Speaker 1: what to say, what not to say, And I'm so

828
00:47:06,200 --> 00:47:08,920
Speaker 1: glad I went through that. And then when I lived

829
00:47:08,920 --> 00:47:11,799
Speaker 1: in California, I took an etiquette class because I just

830
00:47:11,920 --> 00:47:15,560
Speaker 1: wanted to know. I'm very h like if I see

831
00:47:15,560 --> 00:47:18,280
Speaker 1: something on television I want or to make myself better,

832
00:47:18,600 --> 00:47:20,480
Speaker 1: I will try that. I will say, well maybe I

833
00:47:20,480 --> 00:47:23,719
Speaker 1: should try that or try this. So I'm I'm like that.

834
00:47:24,239 --> 00:47:28,680
Speaker 1: I shop all the time, and I and I saved you. Now,

835
00:47:28,760 --> 00:47:33,960
Speaker 1: shopping is my advice. Shopping, baby, that's same.

836
00:47:34,640 --> 00:47:37,560
Speaker 2: SA save too much of I didn't know.

837
00:47:38,040 --> 00:47:41,560
Speaker 1: I didn't even know I happened one of this.

838
00:47:41,800 --> 00:47:48,200
Speaker 2: I didn't know I had it. Oh, yes, I can relate.

839
00:47:49,080 --> 00:47:51,560
Speaker 2: I'm curious. Are there any other projects that you want

840
00:47:51,600 --> 00:47:53,200
Speaker 2: to talk about before I jump? I want to make

841
00:47:53,200 --> 00:47:54,759
Speaker 2: sure that I hit everything and I didn't want to

842
00:47:54,800 --> 00:47:56,239
Speaker 2: take up too much of your time. You have been

843
00:47:56,239 --> 00:47:58,360
Speaker 2: more than generous, more than generals.

844
00:47:58,600 --> 00:48:02,080
Speaker 1: Thank you. I've enjoyed myself. Know I'm working on some

845
00:48:02,160 --> 00:48:04,359
Speaker 1: music stuff, but I can't talk about that now. But

846
00:48:04,960 --> 00:48:07,440
Speaker 1: uh no, just my shows that are coming up. I'm

847
00:48:07,440 --> 00:48:11,120
Speaker 1: coming back to uh uh n j pack in January,

848
00:48:11,360 --> 00:48:14,680
Speaker 1: but I'm booked until December. So I'm I'm working and

849
00:48:14,719 --> 00:48:15,440
Speaker 1: I'm happy.

850
00:48:15,560 --> 00:48:17,440
Speaker 2: And so we can check. We can go online and

851
00:48:17,800 --> 00:48:20,480
Speaker 2: see your dates and find you and and support you

852
00:48:20,520 --> 00:48:23,520
Speaker 2: in every way and maybe and maybe you never know, maybe,

853
00:48:23,520 --> 00:48:25,440
Speaker 2: baby Face might pop up. We don't know, we'll.

854
00:48:26,320 --> 00:48:29,719
Speaker 1: Maybe that would be a nice tour to do baby

855
00:48:29,760 --> 00:48:33,239
Speaker 1: face and I yes, you are are You are legendary

856
00:48:33,360 --> 00:48:36,160
Speaker 1: and you are gracious and those two things are a

857
00:48:36,160 --> 00:48:37,640
Speaker 1: beautiful combination and rare.

858
00:48:37,680 --> 00:48:39,840
Speaker 2: And I thank you so much for just taking the

859
00:48:39,840 --> 00:48:42,359
Speaker 2: time to talk to me and being so pleasant. It's

860
00:48:42,400 --> 00:48:44,560
Speaker 2: refreshing because you never know what you're gonna get and

861
00:48:44,640 --> 00:48:46,520
Speaker 2: I was please, thank you so much.

862
00:48:46,800 --> 00:48:49,400
Speaker 1: You're welcome, and thank you for wanting to I'm honored

863
00:48:49,440 --> 00:48:51,560
Speaker 1: that you wanted to talk to me, so thank you.

864
00:48:51,560 --> 00:48:54,600
Speaker 1: You'd be safe out here. I'm worried about don't worry

865
00:48:54,640 --> 00:48:56,399
Speaker 1: about what people say or what they say.

866
00:48:56,880 --> 00:48:59,839
Speaker 2: Amen. I received that you. You spoke to my heart today.

867
00:48:59,880 --> 00:49:01,759
Speaker 2: And a lot of Brown girls thank you very much.

868
00:49:01,840 --> 00:49:05,120
Speaker 2: We need, we need to see more of you, unapologetic

869
00:49:05,160 --> 00:49:06,319
Speaker 2: and proud to be who you are.

870
00:49:06,960 --> 00:49:09,799
Speaker 1: We thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.

871
00:49:10,360 --> 00:49:14,000
Speaker 2: So I just have to say wow, wow, wow, wow

872
00:49:14,040 --> 00:49:17,360
Speaker 2: wow wow. Not only did she say she dated Michael Jackson,

873
00:49:17,400 --> 00:49:21,800
Speaker 2: not only was she the very first Dorothy that was black.

874
00:49:22,080 --> 00:49:25,000
Speaker 2: Not only does she admire one Diana Rossall want to

875
00:49:25,040 --> 00:49:27,200
Speaker 2: hang out with her, she was a motown artist that

876
00:49:27,280 --> 00:49:29,480
Speaker 2: got to sit and go on tour with so many people,

877
00:49:29,520 --> 00:49:32,520
Speaker 2: the likes of like a Luther and Luther Vandross. She

878
00:49:32,600 --> 00:49:34,479
Speaker 2: hung out with Luther Vandross. May he rest in peace.

879
00:49:34,920 --> 00:49:37,200
Speaker 2: She talked about Stevie Wonder being on tour with her,

880
00:49:37,880 --> 00:49:41,120
Speaker 2: Gladys Knight, Astrad and Simpson. When I tell you, these

881
00:49:41,160 --> 00:49:43,440
Speaker 2: are legends. These are people who create the music that

882
00:49:43,480 --> 00:49:46,239
Speaker 2: you listen to today in some form or fashion. And she

883
00:49:46,239 --> 00:49:49,480
Speaker 2: talks about it so very casually. This girl from Brooklyn

884
00:49:49,920 --> 00:49:52,239
Speaker 2: who liked to walk home from school every day and

885
00:49:52,239 --> 00:49:55,480
Speaker 2: stop at the Jewish bakery and get a chocolate pastry.

886
00:49:56,000 --> 00:49:58,640
Speaker 2: This girl who went to her mom's shop, This little girl,

887
00:49:58,680 --> 00:50:00,640
Speaker 2: this little brown girl who went to her shopped to

888
00:50:00,640 --> 00:50:03,200
Speaker 2: get her hair done in two little platts. This little

889
00:50:03,239 --> 00:50:05,600
Speaker 2: girl at eleven years old, who went to the legendary

890
00:50:06,520 --> 00:50:09,719
Speaker 2: Apollo Theater and won six times in a row. And

891
00:50:09,760 --> 00:50:12,799
Speaker 2: she did not want to audition for the Whiz, but

892
00:50:12,880 --> 00:50:14,799
Speaker 2: she went with her mom because she thought auditioning was

893
00:50:14,840 --> 00:50:17,440
Speaker 2: too cold and cruel, but she did it anyway. She

894
00:50:17,600 --> 00:50:21,319
Speaker 2: is a legend, and as she sits in all her

895
00:50:21,360 --> 00:50:24,240
Speaker 2: glory at sixty six years old, she is still performing.

896
00:50:25,000 --> 00:50:27,920
Speaker 2: She seems extremely content and happy with her career. But

897
00:50:27,960 --> 00:50:31,200
Speaker 2: more importantly, she speaks up for the culture. She's given

898
00:50:31,200 --> 00:50:34,400
Speaker 2: a free concert for the folks of Montgomery, Alabama, because

899
00:50:35,280 --> 00:50:40,520
Speaker 2: she loved what those folks did. She said, she's not racist.

900
00:50:40,920 --> 00:50:43,640
Speaker 2: She might be prejudiced against hate, but she's not racist.

901
00:50:43,719 --> 00:50:46,799
Speaker 2: And she's saying, I'm supporting those who came to the

902
00:50:46,800 --> 00:50:50,200
Speaker 2: rescue of a black man who needed help because we

903
00:50:50,280 --> 00:50:52,160
Speaker 2: as a culture can no longer sit by and watch

904
00:50:52,200 --> 00:50:57,319
Speaker 2: and record while we're being attacked. All of that, all

905
00:50:57,360 --> 00:51:00,560
Speaker 2: of that, all of that I agree with. There was

906
00:51:00,600 --> 00:51:05,000
Speaker 2: nothing wrong with what she said and essence she's saying,

907
00:51:05,040 --> 00:51:11,520
Speaker 2: protect humanity, and essen she's saying, she's unapologetically black, all

908
00:51:11,560 --> 00:51:15,239
Speaker 2: the while being one of one, being the first in

909
00:51:15,280 --> 00:51:18,120
Speaker 2: so many ways, and I think that's special. I hope

910
00:51:18,160 --> 00:51:20,960
Speaker 2: you took some lessons away from this. Share this podcast

911
00:51:20,960 --> 00:51:22,879
Speaker 2: with friends, but more importantly, go check her out. She's

912
00:51:22,920 --> 00:51:27,120
Speaker 2: on tour. I am Stephaniemills dot com. That is the website,

913
00:51:27,600 --> 00:51:30,960
Speaker 2: I Am Stephaniemills dot com. Look for a location near you.

914
00:51:31,000 --> 00:51:33,560
Speaker 2: By the time this podcast pops out, you will be

915
00:51:33,560 --> 00:51:37,120
Speaker 2: able to see her. Perhaps if you are in Alabama,

916
00:51:37,239 --> 00:51:38,920
Speaker 2: or in New York or in Detroit, or many of

917
00:51:39,000 --> 00:51:41,640
Speaker 2: the places that she plans to perform at. Still has

918
00:51:41,640 --> 00:51:44,439
Speaker 2: a voice, still has something special to share with us,

919
00:51:44,800 --> 00:51:46,560
Speaker 2: and I'm so glad that she was able to do

920
00:51:46,600 --> 00:51:49,799
Speaker 2: it on this edition of Naked. I appreciate you guys

921
00:51:49,840 --> 00:51:56,719
Speaker 2: for listening. Thank you all for the support.

922
00:52:00,080 --> 00:52:01,080
Speaker 1: Yes