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Speaker 1: What I distinctly remember is telling her that I was

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Speaker 1: graduating in two weeks, like I just finished my classes.

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Speaker 1: But I was like, yeah, I'm graduating May I five

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Speaker 1: and Wednesday after next, and this is what I plan

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Speaker 1: to do for the next year or two or however.

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Speaker 1: Long and so long story short, we hit it off,

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Speaker 1: and the next day she sent me an email and

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Speaker 1: said they had already started production on season two. They

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Speaker 1: were three episodes in and she goes, we're shooting episode

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Speaker 1: before this weekend. There's our budget, like basically jumping if

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Speaker 1: you want this job, And so I did, and we

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Speaker 1: started working together that week.

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Speaker 2: Our next guest took the job, and the rest, as

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Speaker 2: they say, is history, but in her case her history.

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Speaker 2: Welcome to Naked, y'all. We got Denise Davis on the podcast.

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Speaker 3: It's the greatest discourse and entertainment connect.

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Speaker 4: Get Witting Carry Champion and.

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Speaker 3: Carrie Champy is to be a CHAMPI on a Champion,

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Speaker 3: then Carrie Champy and they win, Jo a Champion and

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Speaker 3: care with Chapion and Carri shepy fraend and then the

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Speaker 3: same inki make you where.

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Speaker 2: Hey, y'all, I appreciate you for being here and listening

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Speaker 2: over the holiday break. Hopefully those who are listening right

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Speaker 2: now has some time off and you're able to catch

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Speaker 2: up on all the episodes of Naked that you missed.

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Speaker 2: Today's episode really really inspiring, Well at least it was

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Speaker 2: for me. It made me feel just FYI it made

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Speaker 2: me feel like I needed to grind a little bit

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Speaker 2: more as we approach this new year. So I say,

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Speaker 2: when you reflecked back on your life, this is for everyone.

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Speaker 2: Most times. I do believe that you can look back

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Speaker 2: on an experience or a challenge, some sort of opportunity

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Speaker 2: that really truly defined your career, your life, who you

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Speaker 2: are today, your circumstances. Our guest today worked on Isa

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Speaker 2: Ray's hit web series. I don't know if you guys

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Speaker 2: know that she's not just from Insecure. She had a

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Speaker 2: hit web series and it was called The Misadventures of

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Speaker 2: Awkward Black Girls. And in my opinion, that was the

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Speaker 2: opportunity that sent our next guest into what I believe

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Speaker 2: is an extremely successful career to date. She is a

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Speaker 2: producer for some of your favorite shows like Insecure and

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Speaker 2: Rap Shit. If you watch that. Denise Davis is here

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Speaker 2: on Naked and Carey Chay and and care chatty.

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Speaker 4: I would like to start from the beginning. I did

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Speaker 4: a little research and you can tell me if this

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Speaker 4: is accurate or not. So you are from Vegas? Is

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Speaker 4: this true?

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Speaker 1: Born ways, I'm actually a repon a UNLV sweatshirt was

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Speaker 1: not planned.

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Speaker 4: Tell me how your love for television, producing entertainment in

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Speaker 4: general started.

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Speaker 1: In Vegas, in Vegas of all places. Yeah. Well, I mean,

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Speaker 1: first of all, thank you for having me here, big fan,

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Speaker 1: and just excited to talk to you today. But yeah,

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Speaker 1: you know, look, Vegas is a very special place. I

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Speaker 1: know everyone says that about their hometown, but it is

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Speaker 1: the beginning of my journey. And I would love to

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Speaker 1: add that I'm actually a second generation Vegas girl. My

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Speaker 1: mom was born and raised and so it really was

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Speaker 1: all I knew growing up. I, you know, had no

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Speaker 1: ties to the entertainment world and truthfully didn't even think

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Speaker 1: about a career in this space, and really until high school,

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Speaker 1: which sounds earlier than most people, but I actually grew

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Speaker 1: up playing basketball. It was a point guard. I took

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Speaker 1: it very seriously, went to a very great high school

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Speaker 1: who had a state winning championship team, and when I

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Speaker 1: was sixteen, I quit the sport. I just decided not

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Speaker 1: to go back out for the team, and really because

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Speaker 1: I started to realize my heart probably wasn't in it

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Speaker 1: in the same way and that you know, I had

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Speaker 1: intended to go to college for and everything, but I

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Speaker 1: just was like, wait a second, I'm not as passionate

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Speaker 1: as I thought i'd be to do that to use

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Speaker 1: this for the rest of my life. And by not

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Speaker 1: going out by the team, what it allowed for and

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Speaker 1: it wasn't intentional, but it did create a space where

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Speaker 1: I did feel like I was trying to figure out,

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Speaker 1: like what am I going to go to school for?

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Speaker 1: What do I want to do? Like this? This sport

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Speaker 1: had been my identity for my entire childhood in teenage

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Speaker 1: years and so by chance, I was in an elective

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Speaker 1: type class in high school. And this class is actually

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Speaker 1: called Sports and Entertainment Marketing, And it truly wasn't really

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Speaker 1: that it was like the class you take because the

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Speaker 1: teacher was cool and you could sleep or do homework

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Speaker 1: and like catch up on other things. But in this

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Speaker 1: class I observed these students and this is in like

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Speaker 1: two thousand and four, and this is the first time

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Speaker 1: the school was allowing the students to do broadcasts for

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Speaker 1: our daily school announcements and normally it's over the intercom

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Speaker 1: system in the mornings. That they were experimenting with recording

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Speaker 1: like writing you know, the daily updates and recording it

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Speaker 1: on green screen and then they would edit it and

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Speaker 1: then it would broadcast in like fourth period. And I'm

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Speaker 1: in the class where they're doing that, really as an observer,

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Speaker 1: and so I'm watching this and it's really taking my

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Speaker 1: interests because I'm like, well, what is what are they go?

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Speaker 1: Is this?

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Speaker 2: Know?

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Speaker 1: This is so cool? And I struck up a friendship

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Speaker 1: with one of the co anchors and also that teacher,

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Speaker 1: and he started to let me take the video camera

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Speaker 1: home to like shoot fun videos, and you know, we

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Speaker 1: had these computer setups and he and they were editing

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Speaker 1: on Adobe Premiere Pro at the time and kind of

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Speaker 1: taught me some basic editing skills and just through some

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Speaker 1: class projects, I had an affinity for it and I

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Speaker 1: was like, this is a lot of fun. And I

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Speaker 1: look back now and realize, I think I've always been

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Speaker 1: a creative person, but I had never really tapped into

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Speaker 1: this in this way. And you know, shout out to teachers.

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Speaker 1: I'm a huge, huge proponent for mentorship and teachers in general.

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Speaker 1: But this man really did introduce me to a whole

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Speaker 1: new kind of hobby that didn't exist in my life.

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Speaker 1: And so, long story short, you fast forward to my

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Speaker 1: senior year and now I'm directing and editing and producing

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Speaker 1: our daily video announcements and was taking that on and

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Speaker 1: became the video girl at school. Like my senior year,

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Speaker 1: I'm doing registration videos for the high school guidance counselors

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Speaker 1: to play to eighth graders. I'm doing commercials for the

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Speaker 1: dance team to sell how people sell tickets to come

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Speaker 1: of the performances. You know, I'm part of student council,

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Speaker 1: So I'm doing videos for the blood drive to advertise

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Speaker 1: people to come and give blood during lunch. And so

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Speaker 1: I'm just having all this fun. But honestly, I had

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Speaker 1: no context yet in terms of the entertainment industry. Right

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Speaker 1: I'm just now discovering any passionate at a hobby. And

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Speaker 1: it's time for college and my search of trying to

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Speaker 1: figure out what do I want to focus on, I

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Speaker 1: discovered I can go get a degree in film and

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Speaker 1: that felt extremely foreign because I was like, who what?

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Speaker 1: I know? People go to college to be lawyers, doctors,

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Speaker 1: you know, you name it. And I was like, I

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Speaker 1: don't know anyone who went to school to study film.

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Speaker 1: But I was excited that that existed because I was like,

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Speaker 1: I want to learn more about this and what does

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Speaker 1: that mean? And so through that research, you know, I

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Speaker 1: had one goal, which is to live in New York

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Speaker 1: for college, which is it seems silly and I apply

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Speaker 1: to mini schools throughout the US, but I was like,

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Speaker 1: I really want to live in New York. And I

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Speaker 1: ended up seeing that through and went to New York

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Speaker 1: to attend Brooklyn College for Film and that that kind

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Speaker 1: of changed everything in terms of my trajectory. So I

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Speaker 1: tell you all of this to say Vegas and High

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Speaker 1: School is really where it all started, just by chance

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Speaker 1: and by again realizing that one identity was not probably

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Speaker 1: going to be what I wanted for the rest of

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Speaker 1: my life and something else is took over.

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Speaker 4: I'm curious what made you say no to basketball? What

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Speaker 4: made you say I don't want to do that anymore,

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Speaker 4: because at the time there was the dream of perhaps

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Speaker 4: being in the WNBA. You still had that.

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Speaker 1: As Yeah, you know, I've got a lot about this

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Speaker 1: at the time. Sometimes I wonder if part of it

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Speaker 1: was fear of not being good enough. Right, There is

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Speaker 1: always that, I think crossroads that we all get to

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Speaker 1: when you know there's a you're at a point where

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Speaker 1: you kind of have to level up, so to speak.

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Speaker 1: And I had been starting and was captain on the

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Speaker 1: JV team freshman sophire year, almost undefeated by really really

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Speaker 1: solid team. But I was being in prime to move

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Speaker 1: divarsity into that next season, and by accepting that and

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Speaker 1: moving into that, I knew what type of responsibility that

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Speaker 1: was going to require. And it's not that I wasn't

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Speaker 1: afraid of the work, but I just remember feeling like, well,

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Speaker 1: if I'm not going to take this seriously enough to

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Speaker 1: use this to get to college, uses to get to

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Speaker 1: the NBA WNBA, I almost felt like I'm taking a

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Speaker 1: spot away from someone who probably really wants that for themselves, right,

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Speaker 1: And it's just high school. It's funny that I'm like,

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Speaker 1: why would I think about all of this at sixteen?

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Speaker 1: But I did. I just honestly also wanted to be

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Speaker 1: a teenager. I was like, I want to get a job.

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Speaker 1: When I have a part time job, I don't want

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Speaker 1: to practice on Saturdays. I don't want to have to

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Speaker 1: do the winter leagues. I don't want to do the

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Speaker 1: summer leagues, Like cannot just be a kid. And that

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Speaker 1: also really drove it too, which is the level of

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Speaker 1: commitment it was going to require. I just didn't want that,

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Speaker 1: And you just start to really question, like how passionate?

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Speaker 1: How much do I really want this? You know, because

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Speaker 1: I knew that. You know, look, I'm a hard worker,

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Speaker 1: like I'm just going to put in the work, But

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Speaker 1: I was like, what am I doing that for? Yeah?

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Speaker 4: And by the way, that's very thoughtful at sixteen years

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Speaker 4: old to have that kind of perspective. I don't even

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Speaker 4: know if I would have been able to do that

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Speaker 4: way at sixteen. So it makes sense that you became

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Speaker 4: the video girl, as you said, and ultimately that launched

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Speaker 4: you into a world that I don't even know. Could

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Speaker 4: you imagine the life and the work that you have

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Speaker 4: done thus far? Could you have imagined what you're doing now?

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Speaker 1: Absolutely not? Absolutely nuts? You know, it felt far fetched,

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Speaker 1: And you know, I've always wondered like, what, what what

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Speaker 1: made me so driven?

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Speaker 2: Right?

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Speaker 1: Because I was? I was very driven and I've always

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Speaker 1: been that way. Once I left to go to New York,

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Speaker 1: you know, I decided I was going to be a

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Speaker 1: producer my freshman year in college, and that was what

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Speaker 1: my That's what I wanted. And it wasn't about I

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Speaker 1: want to go work for some such I want to go,

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Speaker 1: you know, work with these actors. It was like, I

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Speaker 1: want to be a which is also an anomaly, and

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Speaker 1: that just stemmed from you know, doing my own research

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Speaker 1: in that space and trying to figure out what felt

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Speaker 1: right to me. But you know, I think, yeah, so

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Speaker 1: much of my journey stemmed from just being very certain

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Speaker 1: in who I was and and just not being afraid

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Speaker 1: of the risk and whatever that looked like right, because

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Speaker 1: often you see this this far sutch goal in a

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Speaker 1: lot of ways, and you're not quite sure you are

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Speaker 1: going to get there. But I always believe that if

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Speaker 1: you have that intention in your heart and you know

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Speaker 1: where you want to go, you know, life will throw

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Speaker 1: a lot of different curveballs, and the roads may look

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Speaker 1: very different than what you think they're going to be,

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Speaker 1: and somehow you so end up there. And I am constantly,

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Speaker 1: constantly surprised and just grateful, but also my mind is blown.

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Speaker 1: You know, I go home often and I'm like, my

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Speaker 1: life would have been completely different. Had I say, it's

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Speaker 1: just it's just it's just crazy. I really don't know

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Speaker 1: how I honestly got so lucky either way.

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Speaker 4: I think it would have been perfectly fine and you'd

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Speaker 4: have been living a life beyond your dreams. But you

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Speaker 4: said something that I think is really special, just to

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Speaker 4: not be being afraid of the risk, you know what

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Speaker 4: I mean, what it looks like. So you come into

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Speaker 4: you know right away you want to be a producer.

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Speaker 4: Your first producing job is what.

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Speaker 1: That's a great question. I think my first producing job

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Speaker 1: was was a student film in school. The first time

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Speaker 1: actually got to, you know, put apply these hands on

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Speaker 1: a hands on technical skill set to producing versus what

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Speaker 1: I was learning about in the classroom or reading about

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Speaker 1: in the book.

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Speaker 2: Right.

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Speaker 1: It was the first time it's like, okay, now you

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Speaker 1: have to actually produce. And it was a friends project

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Speaker 1: and I loved it. And honestly, I also had to

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Speaker 1: do my own like thesis film and undergrad and I

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Speaker 1: had it directed because it was required of everyone. And

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Speaker 1: I often joked that, like, I produced the hell out

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Speaker 1: of that thesis film, directing was not. I probably just

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Speaker 1: walked out in the park because I was so excited

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Speaker 1: to produce my own film more than I was excited

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Speaker 1: to direct it. I love the idea of just school

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Speaker 1: because I always feel like those four years in undergrad

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Speaker 1: was like the best bubble where I just got to experiment,

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Speaker 1: I got to play, and there was no pressure. There

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Speaker 1: wasn't It wasn't about am I going to make money

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Speaker 1: off of this? It wasn't about this thing that I

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Speaker 1: get to produce, is want to launch my career. It

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Speaker 1: was me really looking at that time as I want

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Speaker 1: to learn as much as I can. I want to

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Speaker 1: get as much experience as I can to just figure

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Speaker 1: it out from there. So a lot of the first

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Speaker 1: things I ever produced for just these fun student shorts

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Speaker 1: with people that I really liked.

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Speaker 4: That's a fust time in life, right when you just

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Speaker 4: are exploring and trying and no fear. Let me do this.

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Speaker 2: I don't have that.

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Speaker 4: I'm going to try it and we'll see if it works.

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Speaker 4: So you graduate, and what do we do with this

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Speaker 4: dream of being a producer?

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Speaker 2: Do we?

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Speaker 4: Because it's very different in television, Unlike transactional jobs. It's

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Speaker 4: not like I apply for this job and I study

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Speaker 4: and I become Sometimes there are other jobs in between.

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Speaker 4: Before you ultimately get what you want is when do

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Speaker 4: you start getting paid to do this thing called producing?

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Speaker 1: Not for another few years, to be honest. So I

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Speaker 1: think what's important to know is is two things. Right. One,

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Speaker 1: I had eleven internships in New York. I had ten paid,

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Speaker 1: one unpaid, and they were all with media, various media

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Speaker 1: entertainment companies, everything from the Blue Man Group, who produced

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Speaker 1: their own in house content, to interning on the View

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Speaker 1: the talk show, to interning for their executive executive office,

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Speaker 1: ABC's executive office of daytime programming. And I mentioned that

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Speaker 1: because essentially, while I was in the grad, these these

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Speaker 1: internships provided me an opportunity to really see some facets

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Speaker 1: of the business and how they worked. And it also

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Speaker 1: really showed me how many jobs existed within the space

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Speaker 1: of media. I was like, oh, I didn't even know

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Speaker 1: I can go be an audience coordinator on a talk show,

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Speaker 1: Like that's a job, right, And so I was. I

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Speaker 1: was being introduced to all of this, and every time

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Speaker 1: I had finish then internship, I'd come back and say,

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Speaker 1: you know what, this world seems really cool, but I

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Speaker 1: think I still want to produce. There's still something in

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Speaker 1: me that feels like this is what I'd rather be doing.

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Speaker 1: And I got to see that through some internships, et cetera.

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Speaker 1: But when it's time to graduate, I was like, Okay,

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Speaker 1: I've all these internships experience, I produced, these shorts, I've done,

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Speaker 1: have dabbled with some other outside projects. But at twenty two,

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Speaker 1: I was like, I'm not how do I say this?

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Speaker 1: I'm not a real producer yet right Like, I was like, work,

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Speaker 1: how do I realistically now go make this a full

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Speaker 1: time thing? And excuse me? I knew the usual path,

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Speaker 1: which is like maybe you get a job and you

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Speaker 1: start at the bottom, mean you work your way up.

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Speaker 1: But I had also heard and knew that there were

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Speaker 1: graduate programs that existed that only focused on producing, And

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Speaker 1: I said, you know, I think there's more to learn

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Speaker 1: about this role. And I love school. I love an education,

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Speaker 1: and I love the bubble right because I was like, well,

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Speaker 1: if I choose to go back school, I don't have

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Speaker 1: to get a job right away. And at that point

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Speaker 1: I also knew, you know, LA is Hollywood and at

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Speaker 1: some point I'd have to explore that. And so I decided,

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Speaker 1: well a lot do I apply to a couple of

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Speaker 1: graduate programs in producing that are only in Los Angeles,

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Speaker 1: and if I can get in, then that'll be my ticket.

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Speaker 1: That will be how I relocate. I don't have to

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Speaker 1: worry about sticking on a couch. I don't have to

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Speaker 1: worry about finding job right away. I can just do

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Speaker 1: two to three more years of school and learn just

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Speaker 1: about producing and then figure it out from there. And

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Speaker 1: so I looked into a couple of options. I applied

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Speaker 1: to the USC Peter Start Producing Program and the American

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Speaker 1: Film Institutes NFA Program for Producing, and I ended up

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Speaker 1: getting into AFI and that truly changed everything for me,

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Speaker 1: and I can speak more on that later. So I

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Speaker 1: en moved and I was one of the youngest producers

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Speaker 1: in my class. I was twenty two right and graduate

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Speaker 1: school usually it ranged the age ring is from young

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Speaker 1: too much older because some people take time off they

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Speaker 1: come back to school, and here I was going immediately

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Speaker 1: after underground. So this was like I want to learn.

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Speaker 1: And I truly give a lot of credit yes to

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Speaker 1: Brooklyn College for a lot of the basics, but AFI

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Speaker 1: for me is really where I thrived. It really was

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Speaker 1: my affirmation years for me to go, oh, okay, not

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Speaker 1: only do you want to produce, but I discovered I

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Speaker 1: was actually really good at producing because now this is

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Speaker 1: all I'm doing for those few years, and I enjoyed

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Speaker 1: it so much that it just was like, yeah, like

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Speaker 1: how could I do anything else? And I'm very grateful

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Speaker 1: that it was just like a full blown training almost

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Speaker 1: kind of program that it was unlike anything I ever experienced, right,

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Speaker 1: like you get to just do the thing you love

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Speaker 1: and only do it for two years and not worry

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Speaker 1: about doing it for money yet like, yeah.

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Speaker 2: It's great, beautiful, it's beautiful, it's beautiful. It's beautiful. Everything

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Speaker 2: isn't about money. And when you start making money and

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00:16:57,880 --> 00:17:00,600
Speaker 2: you work in the real world, you missed the those years.

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Speaker 2: You missed those years she said something that is beautiful.

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Speaker 2: It was affirmation years for you discovered you were really

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Speaker 2: good for it, a good at producing. Confidence is so

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Speaker 2: important in what you do, and that's the only way

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Speaker 2: people are gonna believe that you're good at what you do.

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00:17:13,400 --> 00:17:16,280
Speaker 2: If you believe you're good and what you do. It's

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00:17:16,280 --> 00:17:17,120
Speaker 2: like getting your hair down.

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Speaker 4: I don't want you to play on my hair and

356
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Speaker 4: you don't know what you're doing, Like, don't play with

357
00:17:19,960 --> 00:17:21,840
Speaker 4: my hair like I'm doing it. I can tell you

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00:17:21,840 --> 00:17:23,919
Speaker 4: don't know what you're doing. Don't do my nails like that.

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00:17:23,960 --> 00:17:28,199
Speaker 4: I'm wait, look Philly things. You're just like you don't know. Hey, everybody,

360
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Speaker 4: we gotta pay some bills. You know what that means?

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Speaker 4: I require you to fast forward for just a few minutes.

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Speaker 4: We'll be right back after this break.

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Speaker 3: Every champion and carry champion is to be a champion

364
00:17:37,359 --> 00:17:40,680
Speaker 3: of Champion and carry chappion and carry chat Beata champion

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00:17:40,720 --> 00:17:42,560
Speaker 3: and carry sheppion and carry chaffy.

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Speaker 1: Great, it's this sports and entertainment can make it weird. Look.

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Speaker 3: Every champion and carry Chappie is to be a Championta

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Speaker 3: Champion and carrie Chappie and niggy Yata champion and carry

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Speaker 3: sheppion and carried chaff.

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Speaker 5: You.

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Speaker 2: Hey, everybody, welcome back to Naked. I appreciate you for listening.

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Speaker 2: Denise Davis is still here with us.

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Speaker 4: So you you're at AFI. You leave and are you

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Speaker 4: flooded with offers? Or people have ideas? They're a whisper

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Speaker 4: about this beautiful smart go get her on the streets.

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Speaker 4: Aw the it is ready to take over? What what

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Speaker 4: what happens?

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Speaker 5: And you stumble upon is ring You're like, how does

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Speaker 5: this happen, well, uh, just life, I mean honestly.

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Speaker 1: So, I think what's important to note is that I

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Speaker 1: graduated from AFI and twenty twelve. You know, I'm twenty

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Speaker 1: four years old, and that year is important and the

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Speaker 1: reason why is that, you know, I'm a millennial to

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Speaker 1: a lot of ways, and in the years prior to

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Speaker 1: twenty twelve, digital was just becoming a thing, right, I

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Speaker 1: tell people, in twenty eleven, when YouTube invested one hundred

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Speaker 1: million dollars into one hundred YouTube channels, to me, that

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Speaker 1: became the true I think convergence of what became digital

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Speaker 1: media because prior to that, no one was investing in

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Speaker 1: that space. There wasn't any money being spent on content

391
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Speaker 1: for the Internet. No, you know, it wasn't a pain,

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Speaker 1: which sounds crazy because it's only twelve years ago, but

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Speaker 1: it just wasn't. But I'm aware of that. In my

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Speaker 1: last year, right, I was working helping with some YouTube

395
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Speaker 1: creators on stuff, and you know, I'm really thinking about

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Speaker 1: what am I going to do? Pull stay fi And look,

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Speaker 1: the one thing I knew that was true, which is

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Speaker 1: the traditional path. The usual path in entertainment is even

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Speaker 1: if you get a degree or you just move here

400
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Speaker 1: and you never discovered film. You try to get in

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Speaker 1: a job as an assistant. You try to get your

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Speaker 1: job at a mail room at an agency, like you

403
00:19:42,560 --> 00:19:44,520
Speaker 1: try to get your foot in the door in these

404
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Speaker 1: entry level positions that at least give you access. And

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Speaker 1: wherever you go from there is you know a deck

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Speaker 1: of cards?

407
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Speaker 2: Right?

408
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Speaker 1: And I knew that and I went, you know, no ego.

409
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Speaker 1: But I'm really good at this producing thing. And I

410
00:19:59,520 --> 00:20:01,920
Speaker 1: feel like like if I go and take those jobs

411
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Speaker 1: that are forty fifty sixty hours, I don't get to produce.

412
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Speaker 1: I get to learn, I get to have to build

413
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Speaker 1: a network. But I'm stuck on someone's desk and not

414
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Speaker 1: able to apply all of this great things that I

415
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Speaker 1: just learned. And I want to do more of that.

416
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Speaker 1: And I've always been broke. I'm not afraid to be

417
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Speaker 1: broke for a few more years. And when I saw

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Speaker 1: what was happening in the digital space.

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Speaker 4: Hold on, hold on? How to sound that dream? How

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Speaker 4: do you listen to you?

421
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Speaker 6: But I love it because we've been broke and we

422
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Speaker 6: know what it feels like. But I don't ever want

423
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Speaker 6: to go I don't want to go back. When you

424
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Speaker 6: want a free to be legal mindset. It's so it's

425
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Speaker 6: just genius. I'm not afraid to be broke. I want

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Speaker 6: to hustle, So I.

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Speaker 1: Mean it's yeah, I mean it's what you always know.

428
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Speaker 1: I was like, I mean, okay, like eventually I'll make money,

429
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Speaker 1: but that it wasn't the motivation, right, it was like,

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Speaker 1: hopefully this thing leads to paying the bills. But you

431
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Speaker 1: know what, how do I just stay afloat for what?

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Speaker 1: I remember doing a budget after coming out of school,

433
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Speaker 1: and I was like, well, how much you do I

434
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Speaker 1: need a mate just to pay the bills? Is a

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Speaker 1: vibe And if I could just make that, that's it.

436
00:21:06,480 --> 00:21:07,879
Speaker 1: Like I don't I'm not trying to say for a

437
00:21:07,920 --> 00:21:12,399
Speaker 1: house right now, Like I say, wow, so, but but

438
00:21:12,600 --> 00:21:14,359
Speaker 1: I say that because you know, I see what's happening

439
00:21:14,400 --> 00:21:17,360
Speaker 1: in the digital space. I'm torn about what I'm supposed

440
00:21:17,400 --> 00:21:22,399
Speaker 1: to do, what's traditional in terms of the entry level positions.

441
00:21:22,520 --> 00:21:25,160
Speaker 1: And I said, well, let me think about this. These

442
00:21:25,200 --> 00:21:27,720
Speaker 1: web projects that they're spending money on, I mean, they're

443
00:21:27,720 --> 00:21:30,960
Speaker 1: not millions of dollars, they're like fifty k. They're like

444
00:21:31,080 --> 00:21:34,879
Speaker 1: twenty k, right, Like they weren't giving loads of money

445
00:21:34,880 --> 00:21:38,120
Speaker 1: to creators for digital content, and you know, my AFI

446
00:21:38,200 --> 00:21:40,600
Speaker 1: thesis go almost seventy five thousand dollars, And so I

447
00:21:40,760 --> 00:21:43,399
Speaker 1: was like, well, what's the difference between the work I

448
00:21:43,520 --> 00:21:45,880
Speaker 1: just came out of AFI doing at these budget levels

449
00:21:46,240 --> 00:21:49,120
Speaker 1: and this digital content and you know what, that's work.

450
00:21:49,200 --> 00:21:53,159
Speaker 1: And if I can get jobs in the digital space

451
00:21:53,280 --> 00:21:55,120
Speaker 1: even at that budget level, well they got to pay

452
00:21:55,160 --> 00:21:57,600
Speaker 1: me something. It's not like I'm working in that for free.

453
00:21:58,080 --> 00:22:01,600
Speaker 1: And I had the option to basically consider a freelance career,

454
00:22:01,640 --> 00:22:05,399
Speaker 1: and I said, I I'd rather take my bets for

455
00:22:05,480 --> 00:22:08,639
Speaker 1: the next year or two and freelance as a producer.

456
00:22:08,720 --> 00:22:11,600
Speaker 1: See what jobs I can get to be hired, you know,

457
00:22:12,440 --> 00:22:14,760
Speaker 1: for a project or two, as long as I'm make

458
00:22:14,840 --> 00:22:17,480
Speaker 1: enough money to pay those bills, and see where that goes.

459
00:22:17,560 --> 00:22:22,840
Speaker 1: Because even if that fells, I've always felt like, and

460
00:22:23,080 --> 00:22:25,080
Speaker 1: it's maybe the Vegas and me, but I'm like, I

461
00:22:25,080 --> 00:22:27,399
Speaker 1: can always get for shots those assistant jobs and going nowhere.

462
00:22:27,480 --> 00:22:31,200
Speaker 1: That is just how they've always stayed there. So why

463
00:22:31,240 --> 00:22:33,639
Speaker 1: not why play it safe and just do what everyone

464
00:22:33,640 --> 00:22:36,320
Speaker 1: else is supposed to do versus what I really feel

465
00:22:36,320 --> 00:22:39,560
Speaker 1: like doing, which is going to now apply my skill

466
00:22:39,640 --> 00:22:42,320
Speaker 1: sets to real things and practical things that I feel

467
00:22:42,359 --> 00:22:45,760
Speaker 1: like I'm very capable of doing. And so that decision

468
00:22:46,200 --> 00:22:49,200
Speaker 1: led me to applying to a bunch of things online

469
00:22:49,280 --> 00:22:52,240
Speaker 1: that were like on Craigslist, on Mandy, but it was

470
00:22:52,240 --> 00:22:54,840
Speaker 1: like producer for music video pay booms in my resume,

471
00:22:54,920 --> 00:22:57,679
Speaker 1: producer for this pay semi resume and just being like,

472
00:22:57,840 --> 00:23:01,439
Speaker 1: I'm just gonna apply to like twenty thirty things. And

473
00:23:01,480 --> 00:23:03,720
Speaker 1: actually had a friend who sent me another job and

474
00:23:03,840 --> 00:23:05,959
Speaker 1: it was from a Google group and it was like

475
00:23:06,320 --> 00:23:08,520
Speaker 1: a web series looking for a line producer paid. And

476
00:23:08,560 --> 00:23:10,520
Speaker 1: he was like, I saw this out of you. I know,

477
00:23:10,680 --> 00:23:12,679
Speaker 1: you know, we recently connected, and I told him I

478
00:23:12,720 --> 00:23:14,919
Speaker 1: was going to go freelance for a little bit, and

479
00:23:14,960 --> 00:23:18,400
Speaker 1: so I said I resumeated that job, and that night

480
00:23:18,440 --> 00:23:20,280
Speaker 1: I got an email back from a woman named Lisa

481
00:23:20,359 --> 00:23:22,080
Speaker 1: Ray and she was like, Hey, I got to resume

482
00:23:22,119 --> 00:23:25,640
Speaker 1: for this job. Could you meet for it the next day.

483
00:23:25,680 --> 00:23:27,560
Speaker 1: This was on a Friday. She wanted to meet on Saturday,

484
00:23:27,840 --> 00:23:30,400
Speaker 1: and I was like, absolutely, scheduled the interview, and then

485
00:23:30,400 --> 00:23:32,320
Speaker 1: I googled her because I wasn't she didn't mention what

486
00:23:32,359 --> 00:23:35,040
Speaker 1: the web series was. I wasn't really familiar with who

487
00:23:35,080 --> 00:23:37,119
Speaker 1: was emailing me right, it just could be some creator.

488
00:23:37,320 --> 00:23:40,520
Speaker 1: And what I discovered was season one of offer Black Girl,

489
00:23:40,640 --> 00:23:43,320
Speaker 1: and at that time, Lisa had a little bit of

490
00:23:43,320 --> 00:23:45,440
Speaker 1: press about her in the show, and so I did

491
00:23:45,480 --> 00:23:48,560
Speaker 1: all my research. I watched every single piece of content

492
00:23:48,640 --> 00:23:51,280
Speaker 1: on her channel, and I essentially showed up to that

493
00:23:51,359 --> 00:23:54,080
Speaker 1: interview being like, look, I don't know who you're meeting with.

494
00:23:54,160 --> 00:23:55,800
Speaker 1: This is just who I am. This is all I

495
00:23:55,840 --> 00:23:59,640
Speaker 1: want to do. This still like the perfect opportunity, and

496
00:23:59,720 --> 00:24:02,600
Speaker 1: I never forget. She has a very different perspective. I mean,

497
00:24:02,720 --> 00:24:04,720
Speaker 1: she's like, oh, you showed up in a muscamo tank top,

498
00:24:05,040 --> 00:24:06,840
Speaker 1: and I was like, I remember any of that? What

499
00:24:06,920 --> 00:24:14,600
Speaker 1: I remember? I remember? Yeah, right, I was like, but

500
00:24:16,800 --> 00:24:21,040
Speaker 1: in uh, what I distinctly remember is telling her that

501
00:24:21,119 --> 00:24:23,320
Speaker 1: I was graduating in two weeks, like I just finished

502
00:24:23,320 --> 00:24:25,360
Speaker 1: my classes. But I was like, yeah, I'm graduating. May

503
00:24:25,359 --> 00:24:28,760
Speaker 1: I find wednesday after next and this is what I

504
00:24:28,800 --> 00:24:30,600
Speaker 1: plan to do for the next year or two or

505
00:24:30,680 --> 00:24:33,199
Speaker 1: how Her long and so long story short, we hit

506
00:24:33,240 --> 00:24:35,280
Speaker 1: it off, and the next day she sent me an

507
00:24:35,320 --> 00:24:39,000
Speaker 1: email and said they had already started production on season two.

508
00:24:39,080 --> 00:24:41,200
Speaker 1: They were three episodes in and she goes, we're shooting

509
00:24:41,240 --> 00:24:44,520
Speaker 1: episode four this weekend, there's our budget, like basically jumping

510
00:24:44,600 --> 00:24:46,679
Speaker 1: if you want this job, And so I did, and

511
00:24:46,720 --> 00:24:49,760
Speaker 1: we started working together that week and I came in

512
00:24:49,760 --> 00:24:52,240
Speaker 1: and episode four of season two is the first episode

513
00:24:52,280 --> 00:24:55,560
Speaker 1: I produced, and obviously continued on through the rest of

514
00:24:55,600 --> 00:24:59,239
Speaker 1: that season. But I am so grateful because I mean

515
00:24:59,280 --> 00:25:02,040
Speaker 1: talk about time, and I think about my story often

516
00:25:02,080 --> 00:25:04,920
Speaker 1: and I'm like, hen, that's timy, like the divine time,

517
00:25:05,000 --> 00:25:09,320
Speaker 1: and sometimes when opportunities present themselves even when you reas

518
00:25:09,440 --> 00:25:12,360
Speaker 1: expect it. And I tell a lot of young creators

519
00:25:12,359 --> 00:25:15,680
Speaker 1: now like, you can't have your nose up at any

520
00:25:15,680 --> 00:25:18,199
Speaker 1: opportunity just because it doesn't meet every single mark you're

521
00:25:18,280 --> 00:25:21,880
Speaker 1: looking after, because you have no idea where that will

522
00:25:21,960 --> 00:25:24,639
Speaker 1: lead you and what that could bring you next. So

523
00:25:24,800 --> 00:25:28,960
Speaker 1: what that relationship will continue to evolve into, you know,

524
00:25:29,040 --> 00:25:33,160
Speaker 1: And obviously meeting Lisa when I did, it changed my life.

525
00:25:33,200 --> 00:25:35,040
Speaker 1: I look at the directory I'm on now and there's

526
00:25:35,080 --> 00:25:37,919
Speaker 1: no way I can't point to that and say that

527
00:25:37,920 --> 00:25:41,640
Speaker 1: that opportunity has everything to do with it. So I'm

528
00:25:41,720 --> 00:25:44,119
Speaker 1: very grateful for But yes, that's essentially how we met

529
00:25:44,200 --> 00:25:48,040
Speaker 1: and the next three Over the next three years, I

530
00:25:48,119 --> 00:25:50,320
Speaker 1: was a freelance producer, and I continue to work with

531
00:25:50,359 --> 00:25:53,720
Speaker 1: Lisa on a lot of different things. We started the

532
00:25:53,720 --> 00:25:57,040
Speaker 1: company together at that time called Color Creative. But when

533
00:25:57,080 --> 00:25:59,000
Speaker 1: I wasn't working with Lisa, because this is also pret

534
00:25:59,119 --> 00:26:02,200
Speaker 1: and secure, Visa was also trying to, you know, build

535
00:26:02,200 --> 00:26:04,400
Speaker 1: her own career. She wasn't. She didn't have a ton

536
00:26:04,400 --> 00:26:06,280
Speaker 1: of money either, and so a lot of that work

537
00:26:06,560 --> 00:26:09,440
Speaker 1: I get paid here and there, but to pay my bills.

538
00:26:09,480 --> 00:26:12,320
Speaker 1: I was a freelance producer. I did music videos. I

539
00:26:12,359 --> 00:26:14,560
Speaker 1: did a lot of short films. I did a lot

540
00:26:14,600 --> 00:26:18,480
Speaker 1: of other digital content for other creators and these digital networks.

541
00:26:18,520 --> 00:26:20,440
Speaker 1: And every time you used to call me with something,

542
00:26:20,440 --> 00:26:22,439
Speaker 1: I was like, let's do it. But she wasn't Like

543
00:26:22,640 --> 00:26:25,920
Speaker 1: that wasn't my full time job either. I was a hustler.

544
00:26:26,119 --> 00:26:27,600
Speaker 1: I had to figure out how to pay these bills

545
00:26:27,720 --> 00:26:31,240
Speaker 1: and just got all of this experience, which was just incredible.

546
00:26:31,840 --> 00:26:34,040
Speaker 4: Oh god, I love this story. I'm so excited the

547
00:26:34,040 --> 00:26:36,399
Speaker 4: way you're telling it. I'm visualizing it. I'm there with

548
00:26:36,440 --> 00:26:40,359
Speaker 4: you while you're hustling, and I could only imagine going

549
00:26:40,400 --> 00:26:44,080
Speaker 4: from school to a job, literally a job, and you

550
00:26:44,119 --> 00:26:45,679
Speaker 4: were doing the same thing at a at five, but

551
00:26:45,760 --> 00:26:47,560
Speaker 4: now you're working with different people, and there are all

552
00:26:47,560 --> 00:26:50,320
Speaker 4: these other dynamics that come into place that weren't necessarily

553
00:26:50,359 --> 00:26:52,680
Speaker 4: in there when you're in a different type of environment

554
00:26:52,720 --> 00:26:56,359
Speaker 4: that's a little more controlled. But you work with and

555
00:26:56,440 --> 00:26:59,600
Speaker 4: you freelance over the next three years, when do you get,

556
00:26:59,840 --> 00:27:02,000
Speaker 4: in your opinion, because you had a series, your resume

557
00:27:02,119 --> 00:27:05,000
Speaker 4: is so long and so and so colorful and beautiful.

558
00:27:05,359 --> 00:27:09,400
Speaker 4: You get a series of gigs and and for our listeners,

559
00:27:09,480 --> 00:27:12,840
Speaker 4: most notably, everyone knows, uh the Black Ladies catch show,

560
00:27:13,119 --> 00:27:17,200
Speaker 4: and you have You've been nominated. I believe four times,

561
00:27:17,280 --> 00:27:18,920
Speaker 4: am I correct for you?

562
00:27:19,160 --> 00:27:22,520
Speaker 1: Yes, one for Insecure and three for a black sketch show.

563
00:27:22,600 --> 00:27:25,520
Speaker 4: Yeah, okay, okay, okay with my aries and I'm still

564
00:27:25,520 --> 00:27:27,920
Speaker 4: in my early thirties. I love it, Okay, waity sucking.

565
00:27:28,440 --> 00:27:31,680
Speaker 4: So then, so then this is like a lifelong dream

566
00:27:31,720 --> 00:27:33,639
Speaker 4: for so many people. I think of I think of

567
00:27:33,760 --> 00:27:36,960
Speaker 4: actors who we've watched well since we were kids, who

568
00:27:37,040 --> 00:27:39,399
Speaker 4: just recently got their first nomination and or win. I

569
00:27:39,400 --> 00:27:41,119
Speaker 4: think of somebody like the Shairly Wealth, you know what

570
00:27:41,160 --> 00:27:44,520
Speaker 4: I mean, Just like it's just incredible to think about

571
00:27:45,000 --> 00:27:48,359
Speaker 4: the frontier that you have that you helped build, starting

572
00:27:48,400 --> 00:27:51,359
Speaker 4: with YouTube and that digital space, like you said just

573
00:27:51,400 --> 00:27:53,760
Speaker 4: twelve years ago, but still like EASA will tell you

574
00:27:54,720 --> 00:27:58,640
Speaker 4: that was it right and that changed everything and now

575
00:27:58,680 --> 00:28:01,920
Speaker 4: everybody's an influencer. Everybody has a YouTube page. You know,

576
00:28:03,080 --> 00:28:07,680
Speaker 4: you now get this. How do you get this production deal?

577
00:28:07,760 --> 00:28:07,800
Speaker 2: Like?

578
00:28:07,880 --> 00:28:09,439
Speaker 4: Correct me if I'm wrong. I want to know what

579
00:28:09,480 --> 00:28:11,919
Speaker 4: that deal looks like and why did you want a

580
00:28:11,960 --> 00:28:14,640
Speaker 4: production deal? I often hear people say, like Robin, I'll

581
00:28:14,640 --> 00:28:17,439
Speaker 4: say I just signed a multi year deal with HBO,

582
00:28:17,600 --> 00:28:21,640
Speaker 4: or Issa did the same. What does a production deal

583
00:28:21,760 --> 00:28:24,359
Speaker 4: mean for the lay It's super simple for me, like,

584
00:28:24,640 --> 00:28:26,760
Speaker 4: we sign this production deal and that entitles you to

585
00:28:26,800 --> 00:28:28,760
Speaker 4: do what we should have a caveat.

586
00:28:28,800 --> 00:28:32,399
Speaker 1: So you know, post Awkward Black Girl, I continue to

587
00:28:32,400 --> 00:28:34,800
Speaker 1: work with Lisa for the next eight years. Right, that's insecure.

588
00:28:34,880 --> 00:28:38,120
Speaker 1: That's a Blackbady schedule. That's everything that came with it,

589
00:28:38,160 --> 00:28:42,160
Speaker 1: which was glorious, crazy years because it all happened so fast.

590
00:28:42,920 --> 00:28:45,880
Speaker 1: And then in twenty twenty, I left my post kind

591
00:28:45,920 --> 00:28:47,920
Speaker 1: of running aiece this production company, and I launched my

592
00:28:47,960 --> 00:28:51,080
Speaker 1: own and so what you're referring to is probably Reform

593
00:28:51,120 --> 00:28:55,400
Speaker 1: Media Group, which is my POD. And the first thing

594
00:28:55,440 --> 00:28:57,200
Speaker 1: I wanted to do was go find a deal. And

595
00:28:57,240 --> 00:29:00,600
Speaker 1: so a production deal is very important for anyone who

596
00:29:00,720 --> 00:29:04,480
Speaker 1: chooses to be a producer. It's specifically, at least for me,

597
00:29:04,560 --> 00:29:06,440
Speaker 1: when I'm not a talent. I'm not a writer, I'm

598
00:29:06,440 --> 00:29:08,840
Speaker 1: not a director, I don't I'm not a multi hyphen

599
00:29:08,840 --> 00:29:13,880
Speaker 1: It where I have another talent that I can lean

600
00:29:13,960 --> 00:29:16,760
Speaker 1: on and generate income outside of producer. Right, usually you

601
00:29:16,760 --> 00:29:18,760
Speaker 1: can figure out a way to do both. And so

602
00:29:18,880 --> 00:29:22,480
Speaker 1: when you are an independent like non writing producer like myself,

603
00:29:24,400 --> 00:29:28,479
Speaker 1: these production deals provide the financial stability to do what

604
00:29:28,560 --> 00:29:34,400
Speaker 1: you do because they are essentially an exchange of you know,

605
00:29:34,400 --> 00:29:36,920
Speaker 1: an advance of certain money that can go towards your overhead.

606
00:29:37,000 --> 00:29:40,000
Speaker 1: So I can put myself on salary, I can hire assistant, etc.

607
00:29:41,200 --> 00:29:45,280
Speaker 1: In exchange for me exclusively working with that studio partner.

608
00:29:45,560 --> 00:29:48,320
Speaker 1: And so you know, when people see those, you know

609
00:29:48,320 --> 00:29:50,480
Speaker 1: know that it's like the Holy Girl of producing. It's

610
00:29:50,480 --> 00:29:53,200
Speaker 1: not like everybody gets a deal. But why they're important

611
00:29:53,280 --> 00:29:55,640
Speaker 1: is because if I don't have a deal, I can

612
00:29:55,640 --> 00:29:58,360
Speaker 1: develop and try to get projects made all day long.

613
00:29:58,400 --> 00:30:01,480
Speaker 1: But we know how hard that is independently, and even

614
00:30:01,520 --> 00:30:04,840
Speaker 1: then the average person doesn't understand that as a producer,

615
00:30:04,960 --> 00:30:07,080
Speaker 1: I can go sell a TV show tomorrow. I can

616
00:30:07,120 --> 00:30:08,960
Speaker 1: have a deal for that show, and it's going to

617
00:30:09,040 --> 00:30:11,960
Speaker 1: say I'll get X amount of money per episode. But

618
00:30:12,040 --> 00:30:14,080
Speaker 1: the caveat for me as a producer is that it's

619
00:30:14,160 --> 00:30:16,360
Speaker 1: when it's made. So you know how show is going

620
00:30:16,400 --> 00:30:18,920
Speaker 1: to spend two, three, four or five years in development? Well?

621
00:30:20,040 --> 00:30:22,960
Speaker 1: The writers, Yeah, the writer is getting paid during that time.

622
00:30:23,280 --> 00:30:26,000
Speaker 1: Whoever that the producer. I'm working on it and I'm

623
00:30:26,000 --> 00:30:27,800
Speaker 1: giving notes. I'm trying to figure out how we're going

624
00:30:27,840 --> 00:30:31,520
Speaker 1: to move this along. But in that entire space, I

625
00:30:31,520 --> 00:30:34,480
Speaker 1: don't get paid for development. I only get paid when

626
00:30:34,520 --> 00:30:37,200
Speaker 1: they decide to make that right. And so when you

627
00:30:37,280 --> 00:30:39,920
Speaker 1: are a producer building a slate and I am at

628
00:30:39,920 --> 00:30:43,440
Speaker 1: the mercy of these studios green lighting our projects in

629
00:30:43,480 --> 00:30:45,560
Speaker 1: order for me to pay the bills, Well, if I

630
00:30:45,560 --> 00:30:48,520
Speaker 1: don't have the deal that's helping me like make money

631
00:30:48,560 --> 00:30:53,200
Speaker 1: in the interim, then I will be broken. Like you said, hi, right,

632
00:30:54,400 --> 00:30:57,400
Speaker 1: So that is what these production deals consist of. That

633
00:30:57,560 --> 00:31:01,600
Speaker 1: is why they were important and what I sought after

634
00:31:01,720 --> 00:31:05,040
Speaker 1: once I you know, I left my my very cushiony,

635
00:31:05,480 --> 00:31:07,719
Speaker 1: lovely position with Lisa and said I'm going to go

636
00:31:07,800 --> 00:31:11,000
Speaker 1: try to do something that I actually forgot about for

637
00:31:11,040 --> 00:31:12,760
Speaker 1: a very long time, which was my own dream to

638
00:31:12,800 --> 00:31:14,760
Speaker 1: have my own company and figure out what stories I

639
00:31:14,800 --> 00:31:17,760
Speaker 1: wanted to tell. But in order to do that, I

640
00:31:17,800 --> 00:31:19,160
Speaker 1: was like, well, how are we going? How we gonna

641
00:31:19,160 --> 00:31:21,440
Speaker 1: pay these bills? Because I felt like I was I

642
00:31:21,480 --> 00:31:22,760
Speaker 1: was year old.

643
00:31:23,160 --> 00:31:25,720
Speaker 6: I wait, I was like, I thought, we didn't mind

644
00:31:25,760 --> 00:31:28,200
Speaker 6: being abrupt, den as what happened, we got too, We

645
00:31:28,280 --> 00:31:29,480
Speaker 6: did it, we did it.

646
00:31:30,080 --> 00:31:31,360
Speaker 4: Okay, So here's the thing.

647
00:31:31,640 --> 00:31:33,560
Speaker 1: Carry but you but you got to remember too, you're

648
00:31:33,600 --> 00:31:35,880
Speaker 1: at a point in your life where, now I built

649
00:31:35,920 --> 00:31:38,040
Speaker 1: a little bit of success, I was used to having

650
00:31:39,200 --> 00:31:42,479
Speaker 1: a steady income and extra fees right like I was,

651
00:31:42,560 --> 00:31:44,520
Speaker 1: I was out of place in my life where.

652
00:31:44,320 --> 00:31:50,080
Speaker 4: You could get finance, get extra and get exactly Yes.

653
00:31:52,040 --> 00:31:54,080
Speaker 5: I'm not out here trying to find the best deals.

654
00:31:54,080 --> 00:31:55,400
Speaker 5: I'm over here and being like I want to fly

655
00:31:55,480 --> 00:31:59,719
Speaker 5: with builts because I like But you know, decisions are different.

656
00:32:00,040 --> 00:32:03,240
Speaker 5: Decisions are different. You know, it's like going from spirit

657
00:32:03,280 --> 00:32:05,680
Speaker 5: to delta. You're like, oh this is I'm differently now.

658
00:32:06,840 --> 00:32:07,960
Speaker 4: But to that.

659
00:32:08,040 --> 00:32:12,280
Speaker 1: Point once you know, look at any point in our lives,

660
00:32:12,360 --> 00:32:16,040
Speaker 1: once you hit financial stability, the hardest thing, even if

661
00:32:16,080 --> 00:32:19,600
Speaker 1: you know it's it's not what you love doing, et cetera.

662
00:32:19,880 --> 00:32:23,760
Speaker 1: Is to unattach yourself from that and really pursue your

663
00:32:23,880 --> 00:32:26,200
Speaker 1: dreams and your goals. Right, And so again I felt

664
00:32:26,200 --> 00:32:27,960
Speaker 1: like it was cyclical where I'm like now in a

665
00:32:28,000 --> 00:32:31,080
Speaker 1: moment where i want to do this thing, but I

666
00:32:31,160 --> 00:32:33,760
Speaker 1: understand by doing it, I'm gonna have to take another risk.

667
00:32:34,120 --> 00:32:38,080
Speaker 1: I'm gonna have to say this this lovely you know, paycheck.

668
00:32:38,120 --> 00:32:41,120
Speaker 1: I'm getting like, I'm just going to go for it.

669
00:32:41,280 --> 00:32:44,200
Speaker 1: And this is where that mentality comes from, where I

670
00:32:44,240 --> 00:32:46,120
Speaker 1: was always like, well, what's the worst happen. I can

671
00:32:46,120 --> 00:32:48,239
Speaker 1: try for a year or two. I'll probably run out

672
00:32:48,240 --> 00:32:50,360
Speaker 1: of money if I don't get a deal. I can

673
00:32:50,400 --> 00:32:51,800
Speaker 1: always go get a job. And he said was like,

674
00:32:51,800 --> 00:32:53,200
Speaker 1: gir you can always come back, and I was like,

675
00:32:53,240 --> 00:32:54,880
Speaker 1: thank you to because I just needed to make sure

676
00:32:54,920 --> 00:32:59,680
Speaker 1: that backup nothing else. But you know, I just decided,

677
00:32:59,720 --> 00:33:02,280
Speaker 1: like what else? So I have to believe right, if it's

678
00:33:02,320 --> 00:33:07,200
Speaker 1: if I always try to make my decisions around money,

679
00:33:07,720 --> 00:33:09,680
Speaker 1: I'm never going to be happy because that's not what

680
00:33:09,720 --> 00:33:11,760
Speaker 1: it should be about. It should always be about what

681
00:33:11,840 --> 00:33:15,880
Speaker 1: makes you happy, what are your intentions? And I'm willing

682
00:33:15,920 --> 00:33:18,280
Speaker 1: to risk it all to get there, and I just

683
00:33:18,320 --> 00:33:19,920
Speaker 1: wanted to be one of those people that I could

684
00:33:19,920 --> 00:33:22,520
Speaker 1: look back and say, at least I tried, versus what

685
00:33:22,560 --> 00:33:24,960
Speaker 1: would have happened. And I don't want to live what

686
00:33:25,000 --> 00:33:26,080
Speaker 1: would have happened life.

687
00:33:26,240 --> 00:33:27,840
Speaker 4: I don't want you to live that well would have

688
00:33:27,840 --> 00:33:31,320
Speaker 4: happened like either, sir. I love this for you. I

689
00:33:31,360 --> 00:33:34,320
Speaker 4: love all of this. It's just so inspiring. You are

690
00:33:34,560 --> 00:33:37,800
Speaker 4: inspiring me, You're reminding in the year twenty twenty. I

691
00:33:38,200 --> 00:33:42,560
Speaker 4: think there needs to be a movie of some sorts made.

692
00:33:42,560 --> 00:33:44,720
Speaker 4: I always think about these creatives because every time I

693
00:33:44,720 --> 00:33:46,760
Speaker 4: talk to someone about the year twenty twenty, it was

694
00:33:46,760 --> 00:33:49,160
Speaker 4: defining for better, for worse for a lot of people,

695
00:33:49,200 --> 00:33:53,040
Speaker 4: but mary defining, and it made people decide will I

696
00:33:53,120 --> 00:33:57,440
Speaker 4: be an entrepreneur in my way? COVID the pan and

697
00:33:57,440 --> 00:33:59,800
Speaker 4: it really took people in a creative space where they

698
00:33:59,800 --> 00:34:01,600
Speaker 4: want it should be or not. You know, how we

699
00:34:01,760 --> 00:34:04,400
Speaker 4: use our resources and how we decided to work, how

700
00:34:04,440 --> 00:34:08,000
Speaker 4: we decided to live, uh, and sometimes unbeknownst to us,

701
00:34:08,080 --> 00:34:10,799
Speaker 4: like I left ESPN in twenty twenty in February of

702
00:34:10,840 --> 00:34:12,640
Speaker 4: twenty twenty, and I had no idea the world was going,

703
00:34:12,719 --> 00:34:14,600
Speaker 4: oh wow, But I the same idea. I was like,

704
00:34:14,640 --> 00:34:16,319
Speaker 4: I'm leaving this paye check girl, I'm about to go

705
00:34:16,360 --> 00:34:17,480
Speaker 4: out here and try to do it. I don't know

706
00:34:17,480 --> 00:34:18,920
Speaker 4: what I'm doing, but I'm about to do it.

707
00:34:19,160 --> 00:34:21,000
Speaker 1: Just figure it out, I mean, and shout out to

708
00:34:21,040 --> 00:34:24,040
Speaker 1: you now someone hosting the New Years questions.

709
00:34:25,640 --> 00:34:31,520
Speaker 4: You know, God, you take the risks, take the risk,

710
00:34:31,760 --> 00:34:34,880
Speaker 4: always shows up and he affirms your dreams and your

711
00:34:34,920 --> 00:34:36,880
Speaker 4: plans when you when you bet on him. So I

712
00:34:36,920 --> 00:34:38,560
Speaker 4: believe in that when you bet on that, bet on that.

713
00:34:39,040 --> 00:34:41,920
Speaker 3: Every champion and car every champion is to be a champion,

714
00:34:41,960 --> 00:34:44,719
Speaker 3: a champion and carry Champion and carry Chat. Be a

715
00:34:44,840 --> 00:34:47,080
Speaker 3: champion and carry Champion and Cary.

716
00:34:46,880 --> 00:34:49,799
Speaker 1: Chat be great. It's entertainment. Can make it work.

717
00:34:56,480 --> 00:34:59,400
Speaker 3: Every champion and Carby champion is to be a champion,

718
00:34:59,440 --> 00:35:03,160
Speaker 3: a champion, and they care with Andy, and they care

719
00:35:03,200 --> 00:35:07,279
Speaker 3: with Sheepy, and they care with Chat. Get work.

720
00:35:07,840 --> 00:35:10,480
Speaker 4: So I am curious. So you have this production deal

721
00:35:10,520 --> 00:35:14,719
Speaker 4: with Tyler Perry, who your production company is Reform? Why

722
00:35:14,719 --> 00:35:15,200
Speaker 4: do that means?

723
00:35:15,800 --> 00:35:19,400
Speaker 1: So? I obviously didn't come by it easily because I

724
00:35:19,480 --> 00:35:23,040
Speaker 1: had a lot of terrible names before I landed on Reform.

725
00:35:23,239 --> 00:35:25,560
Speaker 1: But what I was really trying to find was something.

726
00:35:25,719 --> 00:35:27,640
Speaker 1: I didn't want a company in my own name because

727
00:35:27,719 --> 00:35:30,440
Speaker 1: I was like, I'm not I'm actually very shy. I'm

728
00:35:30,440 --> 00:35:32,840
Speaker 1: not a talent facing type of person. So I was like,

729
00:35:32,880 --> 00:35:36,080
Speaker 1: it's not about me, But what do I want this

730
00:35:36,160 --> 00:35:37,719
Speaker 1: company to stand for? What do I want it to

731
00:35:37,719 --> 00:35:40,000
Speaker 1: be about? And the one thing about my DNA, if

732
00:35:40,040 --> 00:35:43,480
Speaker 1: you can't tell already, is that I know that I'm

733
00:35:42,840 --> 00:35:45,799
Speaker 1: I look at myself almost as an outsider in this

734
00:35:45,880 --> 00:35:48,120
Speaker 1: business because of how I came in and kind of

735
00:35:48,160 --> 00:35:50,960
Speaker 1: just what my trajectory was like. And by looking at that,

736
00:35:51,239 --> 00:35:54,200
Speaker 1: I'm always fascinated by I think the traditional norms and

737
00:35:54,280 --> 00:35:57,440
Speaker 1: systems that we are placed within and how we have

738
00:35:57,520 --> 00:35:59,600
Speaker 1: to operate within them, and I don't like that. And

739
00:35:59,640 --> 00:36:02,600
Speaker 1: so when I think of the mission of reform and

740
00:36:02,960 --> 00:36:05,120
Speaker 1: what it should stand for, it really was like, how

741
00:36:05,120 --> 00:36:09,319
Speaker 1: do we do things different? How do you really kind

742
00:36:09,320 --> 00:36:11,480
Speaker 1: of change the system? And I'm not a huge believer

743
00:36:11,760 --> 00:36:13,759
Speaker 1: like you can change it from the inside. Sometimes I'm like,

744
00:36:13,880 --> 00:36:15,399
Speaker 1: we got to build a whole new system, we got

745
00:36:15,400 --> 00:36:19,080
Speaker 1: to reform something, and it just stuck. And the idea

746
00:36:19,080 --> 00:36:21,560
Speaker 1: of reform media the only thing that was closest to

747
00:36:21,640 --> 00:36:25,320
Speaker 1: it was the Reform Alliance that I know, the guys

748
00:36:25,320 --> 00:36:28,839
Speaker 1: that put together for residism and prison system. But I

749
00:36:28,880 --> 00:36:30,279
Speaker 1: was like, well that's a whole different lane. So I

750
00:36:30,320 --> 00:36:32,800
Speaker 1: could take reform and use it for media because the

751
00:36:34,280 --> 00:36:37,000
Speaker 1: mission is the same, right, I want to do that

752
00:36:37,040 --> 00:36:39,600
Speaker 1: for Hollywood and really try to find just a new

753
00:36:39,600 --> 00:36:42,000
Speaker 1: way to do things. And you know, you speak of

754
00:36:42,040 --> 00:36:44,839
Speaker 1: this deal with Tyler Perry. I mean sometimes I wonder

755
00:36:44,880 --> 00:36:47,200
Speaker 1: if I manifested that, because you could have met me

756
00:36:47,239 --> 00:36:50,279
Speaker 1: three four years ago and I would have never believed

757
00:36:50,360 --> 00:36:52,640
Speaker 1: that this is where it would have led, because it's

758
00:36:52,640 --> 00:36:55,839
Speaker 1: not like I left because I had this deal. It

759
00:36:55,920 --> 00:37:00,520
Speaker 1: came about around that same time, and I I sat

760
00:37:00,560 --> 00:37:02,640
Speaker 1: there and said, this is so fascinating. I'm getting an

761
00:37:02,680 --> 00:37:07,240
Speaker 1: opportunity to do a deal with someone who just couldn't

762
00:37:07,280 --> 00:37:10,000
Speaker 1: define what it means to go outside the system more.

763
00:37:10,480 --> 00:37:14,319
Speaker 1: And he's extending an olive branch and an opportunity to

764
00:37:15,080 --> 00:37:17,680
Speaker 1: kind of follow in his footsteps. But also he wants

765
00:37:17,680 --> 00:37:20,440
Speaker 1: to bet on me. And you know I couldn't take

766
00:37:20,480 --> 00:37:21,319
Speaker 1: that decision.

767
00:37:21,040 --> 00:37:27,800
Speaker 4: Lightly but smart easy money, you know, because yeah.

768
00:37:27,680 --> 00:37:29,560
Speaker 1: Well, because here's the thing. I could have done a

769
00:37:29,640 --> 00:37:33,799
Speaker 1: deal and I was in various conversations with any traditional studio, right,

770
00:37:33,840 --> 00:37:36,080
Speaker 1: like that's what you normally do. But here, out of

771
00:37:36,120 --> 00:37:39,319
Speaker 1: left field came this opportunity and chance to do the

772
00:37:39,400 --> 00:37:43,719
Speaker 1: same thing but with someone outside the system and also

773
00:37:43,760 --> 00:37:46,719
Speaker 1: a black man on top of that, and that was

774
00:37:46,800 --> 00:37:50,560
Speaker 1: just yeah, it was just exciting. And it felt like, Oh,

775
00:37:51,480 --> 00:37:53,759
Speaker 1: how do I call my company, Reform Media and be

776
00:37:53,840 --> 00:37:55,560
Speaker 1: about this mission and say I want to change the

777
00:37:55,600 --> 00:37:58,480
Speaker 1: way we tell our stories? And I'm getting literally an

778
00:37:58,480 --> 00:38:00,719
Speaker 1: opportunity to do just that, Like how do I turn

779
00:38:00,760 --> 00:38:03,040
Speaker 1: that down? So again I was like, I don't know

780
00:38:03,719 --> 00:38:05,840
Speaker 1: what this will look like or what will really happen,

781
00:38:05,920 --> 00:38:08,800
Speaker 1: but what's a couple of years to find out? Because

782
00:38:08,920 --> 00:38:11,960
Speaker 1: I'd be more excited if it's successful there because I

783
00:38:12,000 --> 00:38:14,000
Speaker 1: already know what these deals look like. I want that,

784
00:38:14,520 --> 00:38:15,520
Speaker 1: I want to try something new.

785
00:38:15,600 --> 00:38:18,480
Speaker 4: Yeah, oh my god, Reform in every way, this is

786
00:38:18,520 --> 00:38:20,279
Speaker 4: so great. I just want you to I'm gushing over

787
00:38:20,320 --> 00:38:21,759
Speaker 4: you because I just love this for you. I'm so

788
00:38:21,800 --> 00:38:24,600
Speaker 4: happy for you, I really really am. It just warms

789
00:38:24,680 --> 00:38:26,680
Speaker 4: my heart to see a brown girl dreaming like it

790
00:38:26,840 --> 00:38:30,160
Speaker 4: just is beautiful. So I need to know talk to

791
00:38:30,200 --> 00:38:34,080
Speaker 4: me about as I try to go down the timeline

792
00:38:34,080 --> 00:38:36,560
Speaker 4: if you will in the time which we have a

793
00:38:36,600 --> 00:38:41,279
Speaker 4: loted what is the now project, the next the now

794
00:38:41,320 --> 00:38:45,360
Speaker 4: and the next project for you that you are here

795
00:38:45,400 --> 00:38:47,520
Speaker 4: to share with us, and how we can.

796
00:38:47,440 --> 00:38:49,880
Speaker 1: Support well, I can't say too too much, but know

797
00:38:50,040 --> 00:38:52,840
Speaker 1: that you know I've been in this deal for a year. Obviously,

798
00:38:52,880 --> 00:38:55,759
Speaker 1: we had these strikes that impacted every single one of

799
00:38:55,840 --> 00:38:59,480
Speaker 1: us this year, which just slowed things down, but a

800
00:38:59,480 --> 00:39:02,360
Speaker 1: lot of great, a lot of good came out of it. Actually,

801
00:39:02,520 --> 00:39:04,880
Speaker 1: I think there was a lot of personal growth for

802
00:39:04,920 --> 00:39:07,480
Speaker 1: myself that came out of it because I liked the pandemic.

803
00:39:07,520 --> 00:39:11,799
Speaker 1: I had time to think and strategize. And so what

804
00:39:11,880 --> 00:39:13,880
Speaker 1: I'm most excited in, what I can tell you is

805
00:39:13,880 --> 00:39:17,160
Speaker 1: that as I get into twenty twenty four, I'm finally

806
00:39:17,160 --> 00:39:19,759
Speaker 1: about to embark on the first project that is from

807
00:39:19,760 --> 00:39:23,319
Speaker 1: this partnership, and it is a movie, and it is

808
00:39:23,760 --> 00:39:26,040
Speaker 1: very exciting. And again, this deal isn't for me to

809
00:39:26,080 --> 00:39:28,439
Speaker 1: come in and do any of Tyler's works. He's still

810
00:39:28,480 --> 00:39:31,399
Speaker 1: doing him. He's basically allowing me to come in and

811
00:39:31,920 --> 00:39:35,120
Speaker 1: tell stories that I want to do with his support

812
00:39:35,360 --> 00:39:38,480
Speaker 1: and his studios backing. And so it's such a huge,

813
00:39:38,680 --> 00:39:41,920
Speaker 1: huge deal and I'm so excited that I finally get

814
00:39:41,960 --> 00:39:46,319
Speaker 1: to see the first project come to fruition out of

815
00:39:46,320 --> 00:39:48,560
Speaker 1: this and then to see what happens from there, right

816
00:39:48,640 --> 00:39:53,680
Speaker 1: and hope that snowballs into many other things. So I'm anticipating.

817
00:39:53,680 --> 00:39:56,759
Speaker 1: Make sure we'll be very busy in terms of just

818
00:39:56,880 --> 00:40:01,480
Speaker 1: like back to back work, but I'm excited. I will

819
00:40:01,480 --> 00:40:03,319
Speaker 1: say I'm disappointed to share it because the strikes. I

820
00:40:03,360 --> 00:40:05,160
Speaker 1: was like, man, I was supposed to do this film

821
00:40:05,520 --> 00:40:08,400
Speaker 1: last summer and we couldn't do it, and so I

822
00:40:08,440 --> 00:40:10,960
Speaker 1: did like, I just got to wait six months. Just wait,

823
00:40:11,560 --> 00:40:14,480
Speaker 1: you're gonna be able to do everything you just set

824
00:40:14,480 --> 00:40:16,400
Speaker 1: out to do these last couple of years, and just

825
00:40:16,400 --> 00:40:19,239
Speaker 1: wait a little bit more longer. But we're in a

826
00:40:19,239 --> 00:40:21,320
Speaker 1: really good place and it's going to happen in the spring.

827
00:40:21,400 --> 00:40:24,319
Speaker 1: So I'm thrilled. I can't wait to come back and

828
00:40:24,360 --> 00:40:26,520
Speaker 1: tell you more about that. Yea, when I can talk

829
00:40:26,520 --> 00:40:30,560
Speaker 1: about it specifically, but just know that I feel like

830
00:40:30,600 --> 00:40:32,439
Speaker 1: I'm back in the place where I'm like, all right,

831
00:40:32,920 --> 00:40:34,400
Speaker 1: that's got to do the work. I'm going to do

832
00:40:34,400 --> 00:40:35,800
Speaker 1: the work and we're going to see what happened.

833
00:40:35,920 --> 00:40:38,240
Speaker 4: When do you start teaching? When do you start doing

834
00:40:38,360 --> 00:40:40,839
Speaker 4: the classes? When do you start sharing all of this

835
00:40:41,000 --> 00:40:43,279
Speaker 4: that you gave me in this shorter period of time

836
00:40:43,360 --> 00:40:45,520
Speaker 4: with I'm listening to you right now. There are so

837
00:40:45,560 --> 00:40:47,280
Speaker 4: many women who need to hear this, so many people

838
00:40:47,320 --> 00:40:49,919
Speaker 4: period who need to hear the hustle, because what I'm

839
00:40:49,960 --> 00:40:55,040
Speaker 4: hearing is it's a patient hustle. You were always working

840
00:40:55,120 --> 00:40:57,000
Speaker 4: and figuring it out, but like if you didn't know

841
00:40:57,040 --> 00:40:59,200
Speaker 4: what it was, you were willing to do the work

842
00:40:59,320 --> 00:41:01,080
Speaker 4: to figure it out, you know what I mean? And

843
00:41:01,120 --> 00:41:04,640
Speaker 4: people just wanted so quickly and so hard. I need it.

844
00:41:04,760 --> 00:41:07,319
Speaker 4: But there's a patient hustle that there's an ebb and

845
00:41:07,360 --> 00:41:11,920
Speaker 4: flow to putting a project together and you and you have,

846
00:41:12,600 --> 00:41:16,839
Speaker 4: you know, so eloquently described that patient hustle and how

847
00:41:16,840 --> 00:41:18,839
Speaker 4: it's paid off for you. So when do when do

848
00:41:18,960 --> 00:41:20,719
Speaker 4: you start doing that? Because I think you need to

849
00:41:20,880 --> 00:41:22,720
Speaker 4: start doing like Ted talk classics.

850
00:41:24,400 --> 00:41:27,399
Speaker 1: I know, I know, I think about that often. I mean, look,

851
00:41:27,520 --> 00:41:31,520
Speaker 1: I'm here speaking with you. I love, love, love nothing

852
00:41:31,560 --> 00:41:34,520
Speaker 1: more than they to give back and give mentorships and

853
00:41:34,600 --> 00:41:38,080
Speaker 1: also advice support and do talkbacks and panels, especially to

854
00:41:38,160 --> 00:41:42,080
Speaker 1: emerging creative. So anytime someone reaches out or asks me

855
00:41:42,120 --> 00:41:45,200
Speaker 1: to do it, I'm always happy to because I was

856
00:41:45,200 --> 00:41:47,640
Speaker 1: that film student. I was that girl, and so I

857
00:41:47,880 --> 00:41:52,400
Speaker 1: know how invaluable that just someone answering the questions you

858
00:41:52,440 --> 00:41:55,239
Speaker 1: have said because you just don't know. I didn't know anyone, right,

859
00:41:55,280 --> 00:41:57,759
Speaker 1: And so sometimes I'm like, I just wish I had

860
00:41:57,760 --> 00:42:00,000
Speaker 1: the information that people are but I have this day

861
00:42:00,120 --> 00:42:01,960
Speaker 1: because I didn't. I didn't have that, and so I

862
00:42:01,960 --> 00:42:05,879
Speaker 1: feel like it's my responsibility to give that and share

863
00:42:05,920 --> 00:42:10,000
Speaker 1: what I've learned because those resources didn't exist when I

864
00:42:10,040 --> 00:42:14,720
Speaker 1: came up, and it should. And so that being said,

865
00:42:14,960 --> 00:42:17,000
Speaker 1: I've always felt like I want to teach one day,

866
00:42:17,360 --> 00:42:20,800
Speaker 1: one day later in my years. It's kind of making every.

867
00:42:20,640 --> 00:42:22,640
Speaker 4: Time in the book, in the book, and.

868
00:42:22,640 --> 00:42:25,200
Speaker 1: Then I've always figured out, like in the book, right,

869
00:42:25,280 --> 00:42:28,840
Speaker 1: I was like the book, but in the interim, I

870
00:42:28,960 --> 00:42:31,320
Speaker 1: just try to make sure I'd give space and time

871
00:42:32,120 --> 00:42:33,880
Speaker 1: to share what I know and what people want to

872
00:42:33,920 --> 00:42:37,359
Speaker 1: hear from me, and just make myself available for that,

873
00:42:37,440 --> 00:42:40,279
Speaker 1: because why hold off my life? Right, Like I'm like,

874
00:42:40,320 --> 00:42:42,840
Speaker 1: I'm I'm still learning too. That's the other thing. I'm like,

875
00:42:42,880 --> 00:42:45,480
Speaker 1: I'm not the best expert at this. I'm just sharing

876
00:42:45,480 --> 00:42:48,000
Speaker 1: my experience and what I've learned and what I wish

877
00:42:48,080 --> 00:42:50,760
Speaker 1: someone told me. And that's kind of like the basics

878
00:42:50,800 --> 00:42:52,319
Speaker 1: I think, and anyone should be able to do.

879
00:42:52,400 --> 00:42:54,440
Speaker 4: Yeah, I think the job teaches you the job, But

880
00:42:54,520 --> 00:42:57,600
Speaker 4: it's the mentality that I don't that I don't find

881
00:42:57,680 --> 00:42:58,880
Speaker 4: that most people get.

882
00:42:59,280 --> 00:42:59,920
Speaker 1: It's hard to.

883
00:43:01,520 --> 00:43:06,320
Speaker 4: Adjust and focus and believe in yourself and take chances

884
00:43:06,560 --> 00:43:09,960
Speaker 4: and walk away. You said you said something financial stability.

885
00:43:10,040 --> 00:43:11,759
Speaker 4: It's really tough when you have it and you're like,

886
00:43:12,000 --> 00:43:13,279
Speaker 4: I think I'm gonna walk away from that.

887
00:43:15,800 --> 00:43:17,480
Speaker 1: Well, you know, because I went back to that, like

888
00:43:17,880 --> 00:43:19,520
Speaker 1: I know what it's like to be broke mentality. As

889
00:43:19,560 --> 00:43:21,479
Speaker 1: much as I never wanted to go back to it broke,

890
00:43:21,680 --> 00:43:24,839
Speaker 1: I was I wasn't afraid of this, right, even though

891
00:43:24,840 --> 00:43:27,600
Speaker 1: you get financial story, I was like, I'm not afraid

892
00:43:27,600 --> 00:43:29,400
Speaker 1: to take this risk because I've done it before and

893
00:43:29,440 --> 00:43:32,880
Speaker 1: I know what that's like. I can reset my boundaries

894
00:43:33,120 --> 00:43:37,319
Speaker 1: and my lifestyle accordingly, and if that's what it's got

895
00:43:37,360 --> 00:43:38,759
Speaker 1: to be, it's what it's got to be. But look,

896
00:43:38,800 --> 00:43:41,440
Speaker 1: if I was able to build financial stability after a

897
00:43:41,480 --> 00:43:44,200
Speaker 1: few more years, just because I start over again, it

898
00:43:44,239 --> 00:43:46,840
Speaker 1: should mean that I'm not going to be able to

899
00:43:46,840 --> 00:43:49,239
Speaker 1: achieve that again because I've now been able to, and

900
00:43:49,280 --> 00:43:50,880
Speaker 1: so I just kind of have to live with that

901
00:43:51,800 --> 00:43:54,600
Speaker 1: optimistic perspective that like, it's all going to work out,

902
00:43:54,680 --> 00:43:56,279
Speaker 1: you know. And maybe it's a lot of my mom

903
00:43:56,320 --> 00:43:58,720
Speaker 1: in sual with me, but I'm always like, it's always

904
00:43:58,800 --> 00:44:01,359
Speaker 1: going to work out. And why Well, because I'm never

905
00:44:01,400 --> 00:44:03,839
Speaker 1: going to be homeless. I have a loving family home

906
00:44:03,880 --> 00:44:06,799
Speaker 1: I can always return to. I'm always like you, I

907
00:44:06,800 --> 00:44:08,239
Speaker 1: can just go back to Vegas and get a job

908
00:44:08,280 --> 00:44:11,879
Speaker 1: as a talk like it's gonna be okay. I will

909
00:44:11,960 --> 00:44:17,279
Speaker 1: find that I will, so why not? Yeah, like, so

910
00:44:17,320 --> 00:44:19,960
Speaker 1: why not go for it? And you said something else

911
00:44:20,000 --> 00:44:22,200
Speaker 1: too that I think is very important, which is, you know,

912
00:44:22,640 --> 00:44:24,760
Speaker 1: if you hadn't met me in film Score at grad school,

913
00:44:24,840 --> 00:44:27,040
Speaker 1: I would have told you at the time my dreams

914
00:44:27,080 --> 00:44:29,680
Speaker 1: were so prolivid. But I was like, you know, I

915
00:44:29,680 --> 00:44:31,520
Speaker 1: want to I want to make an indie film in

916
00:44:31,640 --> 00:44:33,799
Speaker 1: Auscar Darling by the time of twenty seven. I want

917
00:44:33,800 --> 00:44:35,800
Speaker 1: to be nominated for something by the time I'm thirty,

918
00:44:35,880 --> 00:44:38,840
Speaker 1: like an Oscar and just you know, do this whole thing.

919
00:44:38,920 --> 00:44:41,920
Speaker 1: And it wasn't until years later where I said, now,

920
00:44:42,000 --> 00:44:44,440
Speaker 1: what's fascinating. I didn't even plan this this way, but

921
00:44:45,320 --> 00:44:47,040
Speaker 1: I didn't make my first film by the time I

922
00:44:47,080 --> 00:44:49,080
Speaker 1: was twenty seven, But when I was twenty seven, I

923
00:44:49,080 --> 00:44:51,640
Speaker 1: shot the pilot for Insecure. I produced my first TV

924
00:44:51,719 --> 00:44:54,719
Speaker 1: show for major network. And I didn't get nominated for

925
00:44:54,760 --> 00:44:56,360
Speaker 1: an Oscar by the time I was thirty, but I

926
00:44:56,360 --> 00:44:59,080
Speaker 1: got nominated for an Emmy, And I think, you know,

927
00:44:59,400 --> 00:45:01,960
Speaker 1: when I see that type of success, it just made

928
00:45:02,000 --> 00:45:04,520
Speaker 1: me realize how much we also just have to be

929
00:45:04,600 --> 00:45:08,320
Speaker 1: flexible and open to what we define as success for ourselves,

930
00:45:08,400 --> 00:45:11,880
Speaker 1: but also the goals we set for ourselves. Because you know,

931
00:45:11,960 --> 00:45:13,800
Speaker 1: when he saw offered me the job of the web series,

932
00:45:13,920 --> 00:45:15,719
Speaker 1: I could have probably been like, I just want to

933
00:45:15,719 --> 00:45:19,200
Speaker 1: do trying to do this, and it's like, you know,

934
00:45:19,520 --> 00:45:23,640
Speaker 1: again being open to the opportunities because you just know

935
00:45:24,680 --> 00:45:26,279
Speaker 1: whether it's we just don't know.

936
00:45:27,200 --> 00:45:28,960
Speaker 2: You are cut from my cloud. I believe in that

937
00:45:29,000 --> 00:45:30,680
Speaker 2: in every single way I work for you.

938
00:45:31,239 --> 00:45:34,000
Speaker 4: Before I let you go, I like to I really

939
00:45:34,000 --> 00:45:36,360
Speaker 4: truly like to manage my time when I do podcasts.

940
00:45:36,400 --> 00:45:38,600
Speaker 4: I have a couple of questions for you personally, not

941
00:45:38,719 --> 00:45:42,879
Speaker 4: too deep. Tell me about the spelling of your own you.

942
00:45:42,800 --> 00:45:45,719
Speaker 1: Know, I wish there was a fantastic story there. I've

943
00:45:45,760 --> 00:45:48,879
Speaker 1: asked my mom, And what I get back is that

944
00:45:48,960 --> 00:45:51,640
Speaker 1: when she always loved the name Denise, and usually it's

945
00:45:51,640 --> 00:45:54,560
Speaker 1: spelled B and I S E, and she looked at

946
00:45:54,600 --> 00:45:56,759
Speaker 1: it and just felt like it was missing something and

947
00:45:56,760 --> 00:45:58,880
Speaker 1: she was like, it just felt like it wasn't complete,

948
00:45:59,400 --> 00:46:02,440
Speaker 1: and you just added this E. And I'm grateful for

949
00:46:02,600 --> 00:46:05,600
Speaker 1: because it's made my name very distinguished when it's out there,

950
00:46:06,760 --> 00:46:09,320
Speaker 1: but it's also confused a lot of people. My favorite

951
00:46:09,360 --> 00:46:12,040
Speaker 1: is when people try to mispronounce it because they're not sure,

952
00:46:12,080 --> 00:46:14,080
Speaker 1: and I'm like, it's just it's what you think it is.

953
00:46:14,120 --> 00:46:19,960
Speaker 1: It's fine, it's not. Yeah, you know, but shout up,

954
00:46:20,000 --> 00:46:21,640
Speaker 1: you know, shout out to moms who just you just

955
00:46:21,719 --> 00:46:22,160
Speaker 1: had to add a.

956
00:46:22,120 --> 00:46:24,319
Speaker 4: Little But by the way, that that's your right, that's

957
00:46:24,360 --> 00:46:27,040
Speaker 4: your existence. The world was missing something and they needed

958
00:46:27,080 --> 00:46:29,040
Speaker 4: a little extra and you're giving it to them, right,

959
00:46:29,200 --> 00:46:30,680
Speaker 4: So that's like it's beautiful.

960
00:46:31,400 --> 00:46:33,879
Speaker 1: Yeah, I love that. I'm gonna I'm gonna use that. Yeah,

961
00:46:33,880 --> 00:46:34,640
Speaker 1: you can take it.

962
00:46:34,640 --> 00:46:36,640
Speaker 4: It's for free up here all day. Oh go wait, wait,

963
00:46:36,680 --> 00:46:38,280
Speaker 4: las last nats. What are you gonna do for the holidays?

964
00:46:38,600 --> 00:46:40,799
Speaker 4: What are you gonna do any fun exciting things? Are

965
00:46:40,840 --> 00:46:43,400
Speaker 4: you traveling or you without you know, I have to

966
00:46:43,440 --> 00:46:46,080
Speaker 4: be specific. Are you doing any New Year? Is anything exciting?

967
00:46:46,960 --> 00:46:49,040
Speaker 1: So I'm going back from the Vegas for Christmas. I

968
00:46:49,080 --> 00:46:51,880
Speaker 1: always go back for those days, and then my fiance

969
00:46:52,000 --> 00:46:55,759
Speaker 1: and I tend to spend a New Year's taking an

970
00:46:55,800 --> 00:46:58,160
Speaker 1: annual trip somewhere. So last year we went to Mexico City,

971
00:46:58,840 --> 00:47:01,520
Speaker 1: and this year we chose me because I realized, actually

972
00:47:01,520 --> 00:47:03,520
Speaker 1: I never spent holidays in New York, and so we're

973
00:47:03,640 --> 00:47:06,520
Speaker 1: very excited to go after Christmas and go some plays

974
00:47:06,560 --> 00:47:08,640
Speaker 1: and so like you know, must up in the New

975
00:47:08,719 --> 00:47:12,080
Speaker 1: York holiday kind of magic of it all. But I

976
00:47:12,160 --> 00:47:15,120
Speaker 1: mean we've spent New Years everywhere from Cape Town to Jamaica,

977
00:47:15,200 --> 00:47:17,760
Speaker 1: but also the Portland and San Francisco. So it's always

978
00:47:17,800 --> 00:47:20,560
Speaker 1: like a fun partner thing to just like pick a

979
00:47:20,640 --> 00:47:22,279
Speaker 1: place and say where do we want to spend New

980
00:47:22,360 --> 00:47:25,120
Speaker 1: Years this year? And it almost feels like a trip

981
00:47:25,200 --> 00:47:28,799
Speaker 1: to reset the year, right, It's like our personal solo bak.

982
00:47:29,120 --> 00:47:31,960
Speaker 1: So that's great. I'm very very excited because of course

983
00:47:32,000 --> 00:47:33,160
Speaker 1: I have friends in New York too, So.

984
00:47:33,960 --> 00:47:36,600
Speaker 4: Yeah, so many people, and I have your number, I

985
00:47:36,680 --> 00:47:38,239
Speaker 4: s talk to you. I live in New York. Also,

986
00:47:38,520 --> 00:47:41,200
Speaker 4: I'm a true by coast overall, so you feel free

987
00:47:41,239 --> 00:47:44,160
Speaker 4: and retouched you after this is over, I can show

988
00:47:44,200 --> 00:47:46,120
Speaker 4: you not much that I know. I'm new, I'm new

989
00:47:46,200 --> 00:47:48,320
Speaker 4: to New York. I'm a whole la girl board and raise,

990
00:47:48,440 --> 00:47:49,680
Speaker 4: but I can show you what I.

991
00:47:51,160 --> 00:47:51,399
Speaker 1: Okay.

992
00:47:52,280 --> 00:47:54,560
Speaker 4: You have resent our new year with this podcast. This

993
00:47:54,760 --> 00:47:56,600
Speaker 4: isn't great. This is the inspiration to take into the

994
00:47:56,640 --> 00:47:59,360
Speaker 4: new year. I am very very very prankful. I wish you,

995
00:48:00,040 --> 00:48:01,440
Speaker 4: I think, but the best not that you meet that

996
00:48:01,520 --> 00:48:05,759
Speaker 4: wish because it is already happening, but the understand that

997
00:48:07,080 --> 00:48:10,359
Speaker 4: your vision is clear and you inspire others with your work.

998
00:48:10,440 --> 00:48:12,360
Speaker 4: So I thank you for that. It really is important

999
00:48:12,360 --> 00:48:13,160
Speaker 4: to have people like you.

1000
00:48:13,520 --> 00:48:13,920
Speaker 2: Really is.

1001
00:48:14,800 --> 00:48:17,360
Speaker 1: Oh, thank you so much. I appreciate that. Thank you

1002
00:48:17,440 --> 00:48:20,000
Speaker 1: for making me feel seen because often, you know, you

1003
00:48:20,160 --> 00:48:22,359
Speaker 1: just do the work and you don't know if people

1004
00:48:22,400 --> 00:48:24,360
Speaker 1: are noticing or you know, just just for you to

1005
00:48:24,400 --> 00:48:26,759
Speaker 1: speak that way, I appreciate that, and thank you for

1006
00:48:26,800 --> 00:48:29,960
Speaker 1: having me love this podcast. So thank you, thank you.

1007
00:48:30,160 --> 00:48:32,000
Speaker 4: We're going to have a girl and trust me, I'm

1008
00:48:32,000 --> 00:48:33,800
Speaker 4: about to tell everyone to use it for everything. I'm like,

1009
00:48:33,840 --> 00:48:35,680
Speaker 4: you know, who should be speaking at the class at

1010
00:48:35,719 --> 00:48:39,520
Speaker 4: this and that tell her to stop recommending me for things.

1011
00:48:39,640 --> 00:48:44,200
Speaker 1: Though, I mean, I take so much joy from it,

1012
00:48:44,320 --> 00:48:46,680
Speaker 1: So please please anything you think of me, and to

1013
00:48:46,800 --> 00:48:49,440
Speaker 1: your listeners, anything that you guys feel like I should

1014
00:48:49,440 --> 00:48:51,800
Speaker 1: be speaking to like, I'm happy to. I'm always happy to.

1015
00:48:52,040 --> 00:48:53,440
Speaker 1: So thank you, thank you, thank you.

1016
00:48:53,920 --> 00:48:56,600
Speaker 2: Denise said something that I thought was really interesting when

1017
00:48:56,640 --> 00:49:00,360
Speaker 2: she first started, and even arguably when she had toss.

1018
00:49:00,880 --> 00:49:03,680
Speaker 2: She said she had been broke before her words, and

1019
00:49:03,800 --> 00:49:07,160
Speaker 2: so she was familiar with that feeling, and so why not.

1020
00:49:07,719 --> 00:49:11,600
Speaker 2: I'd already been there. There's nothing scary. I am running

1021
00:49:11,719 --> 00:49:13,800
Speaker 2: toward my fear. That is the way in which I

1022
00:49:13,880 --> 00:49:17,600
Speaker 2: interpreted it, because oftentimes when we reach a certain level

1023
00:49:18,080 --> 00:49:19,840
Speaker 2: of success, we feel like I don't want to go

1024
00:49:19,920 --> 00:49:22,320
Speaker 2: back to being broke, and by us, I mean me,

1025
00:49:22,719 --> 00:49:24,759
Speaker 2: I don't want to go back to being broke. But

1026
00:49:25,640 --> 00:49:29,040
Speaker 2: if you look at it right, the perspective is I've

1027
00:49:29,120 --> 00:49:32,359
Speaker 2: been there before. What's the worst that could happen if

1028
00:49:32,440 --> 00:49:36,160
Speaker 2: I take this chance, if I jump towards this dream,

1029
00:49:36,400 --> 00:49:39,160
Speaker 2: if I embrace this challenge, what is the worst that

1030
00:49:39,239 --> 00:49:41,800
Speaker 2: could happen? In Denise's case, she said, I can go

1031
00:49:41,920 --> 00:49:45,080
Speaker 2: back and be a cocktail waitress in Las Vegas, where

1032
00:49:45,120 --> 00:49:48,040
Speaker 2: I'm from So why not? And so I ask you

1033
00:49:48,200 --> 00:49:50,440
Speaker 2: this as we approach this holiday season and is we

1034
00:49:50,600 --> 00:49:55,080
Speaker 2: move into this new year, why not why not chase

1035
00:49:55,480 --> 00:49:59,800
Speaker 2: your dream? Why not find the address of your dream.

1036
00:50:00,280 --> 00:50:02,279
Speaker 2: I'll share this story with you, and I've shared it

1037
00:50:02,360 --> 00:50:03,840
Speaker 2: before and I'll share it again because I don't know

1038
00:50:03,920 --> 00:50:07,200
Speaker 2: how many times you have listened to this podcast. But

1039
00:50:07,320 --> 00:50:09,439
Speaker 2: a friend of mine, who I consider a mentor, said

1040
00:50:09,480 --> 00:50:13,440
Speaker 2: to me that he interviewed Tyler Perry some fifteen years ago,

1041
00:50:13,880 --> 00:50:18,120
Speaker 2: and by all I guess accounts, at that time, you

1042
00:50:18,160 --> 00:50:21,040
Speaker 2: would say Tyler Perry was very successful. Fifteen years ago.

1043
00:50:21,080 --> 00:50:23,080
Speaker 2: He had many a movie's, he had plays, he had

1044
00:50:23,120 --> 00:50:24,640
Speaker 2: lived in this he lives in this big house. He

1045
00:50:24,680 --> 00:50:27,960
Speaker 2: has all the things. And my friend interviewed him and

1046
00:50:28,080 --> 00:50:32,600
Speaker 2: he said, what's the dream? And without hesitation, Tyler Perry said,

1047
00:50:33,320 --> 00:50:39,360
Speaker 2: Walt Disney. Imagine someone asking you the address of your dream?

1048
00:50:40,280 --> 00:50:42,799
Speaker 2: Why is it so important? Well, because if you don't

1049
00:50:42,840 --> 00:50:44,719
Speaker 2: know the address of your dream, how the hell you

1050
00:50:44,800 --> 00:50:49,320
Speaker 2: gonna get there? And without hesitation, Tyler Perry said Walt Disney.

1051
00:50:49,920 --> 00:50:52,879
Speaker 2: And it was a huge dream. It is a huge dream.

1052
00:50:53,000 --> 00:50:57,759
Speaker 2: It still will be a huge dream. I challenge you

1053
00:50:57,880 --> 00:51:01,759
Speaker 2: all to this dream big. What's the worst that could happen?

1054
00:51:02,600 --> 00:51:05,319
Speaker 2: Thank you for listening to Naked. Talk to you next week.