I like my baby hair, with baby.
Hair, with happens, I like whe Negro with something something, Jackson's Fast.
Ah.
Yes, I've been waiting. I have literally literally been waiting all day long to sing that out loud. There's no one I can talk to you about this momentous moment at work. It's highly frustrating.
Meanwhile, I'm like on the phone with like my coo of the Budgetista and we are like going in like yes queens flash, Oh my god.
So the entire world changed this weekend for an ambition family. If you were under a rock or someone knocked you out, or you're in a different country something, listen, it's a whole new world. It is twenty sixteen, Part two point zero. Beyonce has changed lives. She's come out with her She came out with her news signal a single on Saturday called Formation, not just the single, but the video, the VideA.
And it was at like four pm, right on Saturday, four pm Eastern Standard time to be exact.
Yes, it was about four pm. I was just mine in my own business and then someone just snatched my hair off my head and I was like, what was that? It was Beyonce dropping a new video. This video, I've probably watched it and maybe a dozen times, which is probably being conservative. I've watched it because there's just so much to pick apart.
There is so much.
Maybe it's just because I studied literature in college and I was like super nerdy and we would just spend an entire month talking about one video. But like, there's so many little elements, and there's so many little like treasures and Easter eggs in this video, and I've personally enjoyed watching the media try to make sense of it.
Yes, of first of all, you said easter eggs, which is freaking hilarou. Did we even introduce ourselves? Do we do we ever introduce ourselves anymore?
I mean they know already this is this Mandy. I talked like this.
This is Ciffany. I talk like this.
I love it. You know what, like people are like red lobster, but like red lobster. What is this about the food industry? What is she talking about? But then it's like hot sauce, Hot sauce, What illuminati.
About those white people that we put hot sauce at our person?
She's sitting on top of a cop car, but the cop car is drowning, but then she's on top of the cop car. But then she's wearing like Victorian Night, like eighteen hundreds ensemble, and then Blue Ivy has backup dancers like what is But.
There was so much to digest.
And then she was slaying all that boobies in the hallway and she was like kick kick, shuffle kick, And then it was all the black women in the pool when they know they said that we can't swim, but we can't swim.
It just was It was a lot.
I thought there were so many elements, but before we and not to mention. So this is the day before the Super Bowl, so we already were excited for her to show up. But Beyonce's like, no, this is Chris Martin cold plays playing. But then let me just destroy the internet before the superal even happens. Yes, so she drops the video and then we get to see her perform it live on yesterday's I mean some football game, you know.
And I heard the football regalia, no less.
The Black Panther regalia. The fact that it was so close to the start of the Black Panther movement, just like so many different elements, we must unpack all of this Beyonce slayage. But first I wanted to bring we want. We wanted to bring a special guest on this week's episode because, as you can hear, I'm a little bit biased. I've loved Beyonce since Destiny's child. Tiffany loves Beyonce too.
I feel like every group of friends, though maybe has the one friend who just like hates Beyonce and just like loves to talk trash about Beyonce.
Yeah, and if you were part of the agency, we know. I just want you to know that please behive, don't sting me. I I you know, I understand the Queen. I respect the Queen. She's clean, not like my favorite all times. But I just want you to know that the opinions that will be discussed here, unless it comes directly from Tiffany, I want it to be happy.
I love to sing.
Well a special guest today. I'm pretty sure she's on the most wanted list for the Agency. Oh god, this is my really good friend, Jessica O'Neill. Jessica, you trying to get her killed out here in the know. Brought to you by Mandy Woodruff.
There you go.
So I have to have Jess on, because Jess is the one who every time Beyonce does something, drops an album, drops a single, new videos start. I don't know, just Beyonce's in the news, you can count on Jess to be the one to be like it ain't that great, which I love, splash hate like I was texting so anyway, but I want to welcome Jess to the show. First and foremost, Jessica, take a bow, Hello, Hello world. I might have to go find the the the audio booing track, no man.
No man, no ma'am, no ham, no turkey.
But I want to have Jessica on because not only I mean, you obviously are entitled to your opinion just being America, but I thought you have some interesting things to say about Beyonce and the video itself, and I wanted just to kind of a conversation about it because there is so much in this the New Orleans element, the black girl power. I mean, the fact that she's talking about having no shame about where she comes from, who she is, you know, who her daughter is. It's
an empowering video. And Jess, yes, you want to explain why your soul is so black and dark?
Yes, well it's not that it's black and dark. I don't know.
I just feel like, especially at this interday age, she just gets so much press and so much media attention that it is just kind of polarizing. So whenever she does anything and it could be so par it is just like an explosion. And it drives me bonkers because there's these people like you who are just in love with her and think she's a unicorn, and it's just all over my timeline on Facebook. I can't get away
from it. So since I can't get away from it, I always feel a need to comment or just say like, y'all chill out or something, but they just can't do it because the B agency is strong.
Yes, just tell me what was your first impression of the video and did you even try to be a little bit objective with it?
You know, this is one thing I think particular of the years as I became a good adult here, I try to try to take in Beyonce and with a clear mind, you know, full heart all that Jazz and I did watch this video and I was pretty open
to it because I do appreciate her. Now finally acknowledging that we are kind of having a bit of a black movement here, and there's a bit and it is it's kind of you know, it's it's everywhere, and it's very strong, and a lot of her people, particularly her fans, really do want to hear from her.
She hasn't had interviews right in the last couple of years and doesn't any interviews.
Yeah, and they don't listen to her.
So I was actually kind of a little proud to kind of see that she did a video and have little themes in it and stuff. But I was looking through Yeah, I mean, I don't know, Like I said, it's then I started watching it, but I don't sorry, I was looking at this video and then I started using my whole brain, which sometimes I feel like people don't do it.
Beyonce, Now that's me painting.
But and then I was listening to the lyrics and I was like, hold on, I have a feeling here because I just kept hearing I Slay, I slay.
And then I was like, Okay, now I don't know if I like this, and I don't know. Then I read the lyrics and she actually just kind of lost me after that, unfortunately, because.
I'm sorry, I'm having a really hard time not introducting. I'm trying to be respectful. Continue it's so hard. I'm bouncing up.
I feel it.
And then I mean, so you took as she with the the Michael Jackson line. Was it the Jackson nose?
You know, the Jackson nose didn't bother me.
What is bothering me is how just silly the song kind of was in terms of the lyrics. I mean, when I was looking at it, I guess it had some very lovely empowerment lines here and there talking. I mean, I can tell she really was trying to exuberate this blackness about her, like you know, my daddy Alabama, Mama Louisiana,
that whole line. And then you know, she talked about my negro nose with the nostrils, and she's sensitive about her baby's hair because everybody just feels some kind of way about blue looking like jay Z.
So it you know, I.
Felt all those things. But then I just the lyrics got me there. But when you read the other lyrics, it's just very It's like what rappers do every other week.
To me. I just she talks about writers. Go ahead, Okay, I guess.
I feel like I mean, well, one I think that, you know, no one thinks that Beyonce is the next coming of Tupac.
You know, she's not Noads.
So we're not looking for Beyonce, like, you know, to come out here and like lyrically destroy our lives. And I think sometimes too, I think that I think that the song was purposefully simplistic in that, you know, like this is a new, you know, frontier kind of for Beyonce being like so very.
Very black, like blackly black black black.
Like you know, and so that and then too, you know it always like, I don't know, I never understand why women get mad at Beyonce when she says she slays, because I'm like, well, god damn it, she does.
And guess what, so do I like she's saying so much.
She tells you in the song that's that's what's getting to be, but go ahead, that's just so.
Crazy, like honestly, So okay, I'll give you an example. So I had written this book, like my first book, the One Week Budget, and in it, I make a joke saying something like, hey, like I don't know. I wrote it when I was like twenty something, so I thought it was cute and I was just like you know something about like welcome to the book and maybe you're here because I'm gorgeous. Sight that's unrelated or something I said, and a woman went in on me basically said,
how dare you call yourself gorgeous? And I thought, how dare you not call yourself gorgeous?
Sheh?
Like it's hard enough being a sister, and like, you know, feeling some kind of.
Way about yourself.
I don't know why. I feel like, why do women get so mad when women say, like, yo, I'm pretty amazing, like and say it because so the world tells you over and over that you just are not.
I don't know. That's one point.
I don't mind when women, well anybody honestly, but especially women of color kind of like throw it in your face and say no, I am freakingthebomb dot com. And you will acknowledge because the world literally tells us otherwise always. You are ugly, You are not smart, you are not desirable, you are you know, well, your looks weird.
You know something that Tiffany Alich and Beyonce Knowles have in common, which is when they say it's say they ain't lying? Where is the lie?
Look at her?
No?
And I just feel like, I'm so glad that Beyonce because honestly, like you know, I expect this kind of like behavior from like a Salange, because you know, Solan, just like what what was that?
You don't want to see these hands?
And Beyonce, like from my previous interviews when she used to interview a lot, it was very clear that she was self conscious and very afraid to acknowledge that she thought that she was good. Like that's what I see from her early interviews, and finally she's breaking free of that and saying, no, what I work really hard, you know, like when someone says something to me, I'm like, man, I don't think I slay because I just do.
I think it's definitely a great point. I mean, as black women, yes, we do have a lot of oppression. We do not have wonderful images of us everywhere. I mean, even with saying this about Beyonce, I do feel bad because we don't have a lot of black role models. So I think it's great she has this self confidence and she puts it in these songs. This song, but
she puts it in all her songs. That's what's getting me tired, And I don't know, I think it's also exactly and then it's also in terms of her personality. I feel like this part of that insecurity. Look, maybe i'll call it as somebody who was Greek, we had to walk, you know, a certain way. As Aks, we don't actually have to tell you that we're great. We are great, and so I don't know, maybe that's also
sometimes my mentality with things like this. I don't need to always just always say how awesome I am, because I'm going to show you in my work. I'm going to show you in who I am. And if you don't believe that, then I really don't care, you know. And so I guess when I hear all this, like you know, pumping up my ego and stuff, I just I just like, yeah, I think it's great. But I also think it's also like it shows out her insecurity
as well, and she does that so much. I just kind of wish you would find something else to talk about. But then again, I don't know if she can't talk about much Cholks, so.
That I gotta jump in because I feel like the key thing for me with this video is that for and you know, beyond, it's not the first time she's done a video that makes you think. But like this video. For anyone who ever said Beyonce was not woke, did not know what's happening in the world, doesn't have anything to say. All you have to do is watch this video.
The images she puts in there. What I like about it is, no, she's not sitting there and writing a thesis on the Black Lives Matter movement, or women in slavery, or you know, hairstyles and the African American culture. She's putting all these images out there and leaving in an artistic way which leaves it open to the interpretation of the viewer, which I think is what art should be.
She's saying, yes, I see these things. I'm aware of all this, and I am interpreting it through my artistic lens, and I'm leaving something to be said by you guys. You guys still in the gaps, you project your own ideas onto this. That's what art should be. The fact that we're all sort of talking about, oh, the cop car is being drowned in the ninth ward, you know, is this a statement about Katrina's it about the cops?
You know?
But she's being drawn on top of it too. There's all this imagery that I think is so powerful, and the fact that this is a video and a song. I feel like you could maybe not the song itself, with the video itself, that you could really pick apart forever and like they may look back on this in history books and look at this video. Sorry, Jess, I know that sounds like crazy to you, but I'm not
kidding like I think. And nothing she does is a mistake, nothing from the outfits those girls were wearing, her dancers were wearing at the super Bowl, which took place in Oakland or Santa Clara, which was very close to Oakland, California, from the formation pun intended when they were standing in the ex formation like Malcolm X to what she was
wearing at the super Bowl. I know, I've gone from the video to the super Bowl, but in the super Bowl she's wearing that like militaristic jacket, which harkens back is a nod to I think Michael Jackson's nineteen ninety three Super Bowl performance where he has like a similar sort of like gold X, but also in the ex formation on her chest like I think she does. Think she's incredibly intelligent, and I think you got to give
her credit for that. And I don't mind. I don't mind an artist who takes their time to come out and talk about an issue because they want to think about it, internalize it. And I feel like that we should leave We should leave them room, like just the way we have room to uh to breathe and think about importantnesses before we you know, run off the mouth about it.
I think that's also a valid point too in terms of artistry. I do strongly believe in that, especially with music and even with be honest, I'll give her that benefit of the doubt. That being said, I will give you this criticism. She never explains her artistry to me, like does she has to, that's not the artist, And yeah, I think she does.
I think as an.
Artist, I think, yes, sure, But she at least Kendrick put out the same like type of message last year.
He can convey his message. I mean, Kanye in his.
Like egotistical craziness can do the same with his music and artistry. She never, to me can explain like, this is why I'm doing this, this is what I'm trying to convey.
She leaves it to you. I feel as a pr tactic, a lot to do this. You can. I was going to say that.
They don't, but I definitely think more artists, of modern artists, particularly when I go to museums. It's just not like a blurb there, you know, for a reason. It is showing what the artist is trying to convey. I think you do owe that to your audience once in a while, like especially now, she had a great super Bowl performance.
I'm never going to take that away from her. I think she's a spectacular performer.
But you know, now you have all these people coming out calling this a copp heating song.
I'm not that ignorant. This is not a copayting song. Go kill yourself.
They're pretty hick. You know what I would her.
I think it would be to her benefit.
I'd be quick, like to actually sit there and be like, look, this is what I'm trying to convey in this song, and I think it would be helpful to come from her mouth instead of getting everybody trying to pick it apart, and this is what I'm trying to convey. Then you can hear what the reader, like, somebody like you, what you're getting from this or whatever. But she never does that, and that is.
Honestly, because it's like the onus is on you, because you know, there are some artist are just like like I. So many of my friends are like, you know, starving artists, and I see both schools of thought.
You're right.
I have some friends of mine who will write, you know, a think piece beside their pieces when I go to their galleries to see like what they're doing. And I have some friends who will stand in the middle of a room and pour milk on their head and there's nothing and you're like, oh, okay, while we're watching their performance piece and there's never any explanation. And the explanation is what do you think you decide? I don't want to, and I'm not saying I don't know that.
Either way is right or wrong.
I just know that as an artist, you know that it's the artist prerogative to decide whether or not they feel like they need to explain.
And maybe that's the point.
Let everybody go crazy and decide for themselves, because truthfully, even if Beyonce explained, people would still say, that's not what it means.
It means this.
Yeah, there's the reason why how many hundreds of years later we still wonder what was Mona Lisa thinking, what does smirk about?
Like?
That's I love that element. I mean, not just Lee itself, to all in types of interpretations. That's why I say people will be studying this for you know, years to come or in the future. And I'm the same way. I like to hear what artists think when they do things, but it's nice to hear several years down the line, you know, to go back. I think she's just I
don't know. I think it makes so much sense for her to do with in like sort of like a not vague but then kind of ambiguous way to leave it open to us to have these sorts of discussions. And I mean not that Black Lives Matter hasn't been in the news, because it always is, but to have Beyonce just push it. I mean she has the power of voice and listen, yeah, you can't deny that what she's doing with her artistry and her voice right now is to get us talking about everything, which we are again.
You know, and also too, I mean just to kind of go back to like what we were saying before.
I think that I don't know. I feel like there always are two schools.
Of thoughts when it comes to tuting your own horn. You know, do you have the people who are like, let your work speak for yourself, and then you have the people who are like And I'm from the second school of sort because honestly, I to the budgetese's f horn every chance I get, because you want to know why nobody cares. Otherwise there's so many brands who are like, I don't care.
I don't care. I don't care.
And unless I tell them and shove it down their throats to say, look, we save nine point five million dollars. Look, there's seventy three thousand people signed up. Look you know a fourth of us have signed up for whatever. If I unless I say it over and over like it,
nobody would care or it would be glossed over. And so I understand the frustration of like unless and like, literally a day doesn't go by that I don't too that my business is home, because otherwise I don't get the respect even now with me tooting and me killing and slaying and all the other stuff. If you see some of the offers that people send me, some of these larger brands, it's insulting, babysitting money stuff for free.
And so I understand the frustration of like, no, I'm gonna say I slagh because if I don't.
It's my work is not gonna just speak for itself, not as a black woman, because it just doesn't.
Yes, maybe to my other brown sister it does, but to the world that large, no, unless I shove it down the world's throat, it doesn't speak for itself because people will ignore.
And so I put I position myself not to be ignored.
There is a place for humility, and there is also a place for demanding acknowledgement.
You know, Yeah, I'm sorry. I think there's definitely ways you can do that. I don't know. I'm like that old school media person and I grew up with around Oprah Woodfrey that was like on all the time, and I just look so much to her, and no, she's not done everything perfect either, but I just have felt like, yeah, she definitely put her brand on everything. That's why she has a magazine with her name on it, and you know, she definitely hypes her brand and that is why she
got successful. I don't know, I just see so much more I mean, just a little bit more pause with her.
I just see a little bit more reverence I just see.
Her just not having to always say I slay, I slay, I slay in every song, or just you know, making sure. I mean they're gonna say that anyway about us. I think, what Beyonce doesn't really have to do that anymore. And I think when you get to that certain level, it's okay. At this point, I want her to evolve. I want her to be great. I want her to keep being
this great icon she is. But I don't know. I think it's getting a little tired to me sometimes and she keeps putting out the same message over and over again.
I think from Beyonce.
Yeah, I want to point out one thing real quick. Did you guys notice the cameo in this video that it was Big Frida? Yes?
What?
As soon as the voice came on, I said, I know that's not Big Frida. I know that is not It was like the most So.
Yeah, how's familiar do you think Black America is with Big Frida?
Not familiar enough? But I think if you're from New Orleans, what you know Big Frida?
So you know what I like about it.
It's almost like how she used me mom Nigerian and I'm not gonna be able to say her name correctly.
She Amanda.
Yeah, you know how like so she didn't she didn't say, hey guys, this is she Amanda.
What I like is that it's like you had to dig.
And do research because she knew people would and she knew people would have got we're gonna on earth who this person was? And I felt like, not that I'm comparing Big Freeda shee and moan, I mean, but you know, but I'm just.
Saying that.
It allowed for people to dig and say, who is Big Frieda?
Who's this voice?
And when as soon as I heard it, I was like, yes, because Big Freeda is amazing, Oh my gosh, And so yeah, I just love that she she you know, she used her voice, you know, and and I don't know, introduced her to mainstream, you know, And so I don't know, to.
Have a to have someone on her single, I think, is this the first? I mean, Big Frida is a drag queen, right, am I getting that wrong? I don't know, She's like, yeah, she's But I wanted to get this right because I feel like it's in a hip hop arm like whatever you.
Want to call it.
I know, Beyonce's pop hip hop. But then this like really hard song to have a musician who is from the LGBTQA society and from that group of people to feature them so prominently on a record that's huge feel like in black music. I mean, am I wrong here?
And not just that, I felt like the super Bowl even had like a lot the message of yesterday's super Bowl was like, I mean, everything was rainbow and colors, and like, if you're going to be like taking at face value, it's you know, people were waving rainbow flags. It was very much like a you know, accepting of gay culture sort of moment. And I don't know, I really respect her putting something like that on her album.
Yeah, I mean I think it's I mean, this is me just better help out of it. I'm gonna sound like negative Nancy. I just it's twenty sixteen. I don't think it's that innovative at this point.
I'm serious.
I was gay.
They don't think the same, Yeah, they don't.
I guess everything she says. It's so big and loud, and she's the first black person to do it. I mean it's fine, I get it. It's just you.
Know, I think it's great, and I think it's awesome. Sure, maybe she will put Big Freedo on a map. Maybe she won't, but yeah, I don't.
I don't know. I think it's it's one of those things.
It's a little overblown to me, But okay, great, you know it's awesome.
Technically, I think she's non conforming. She's I'm a gay male, I wear women's hair and carry a purse. You guys just got to see her and listen to what she does. She has a web a web series on Fusion Okay, where is it Fuse? What's it called Fuse or fusion dot net? Where she has a web series. I think it's in like it's fourth or fifth season.
I saw she's But she's also on TV, like I've seen, like if you go to New York, like you'll see like bill big billboards of her. She's I've seen her show on I remember when I went to New Orleans, I wanted to go to like a bounce like party just to see because it's just the music is just like, I mean, you can't sit still, and she just has like she's just so charismatic, and I don't know, her show is just really it just shows her and her team kind of traveling the world bringing Bounce to the world.
But she though she does slay quite honestly, she because if she don't slay, you get eliminated.
No, Yeah, she slays, and she just and I just love that she slays unapologetically, cause Big Free is like six two sixty four.
She's a big, big man, you know.
And so and then you see this big man in like a snatched.
Wig and a beat.
Face and like yelling into a mike, you know, giving people instructions on and how to bounce, and you're like, wait a minute, now, I'm not sure what's happening, but my booty is moving, you know, And so I don't know. I just thought that was dope. But let's talk about other elements of the video that we were.
Like, yes, oh man, I was gonna wrap it up.
Okay, well I'll be in half an hour.
Well obviously, like you know, like just seeing Blue Ivy and I just love to see like, okay, yes, and her hair still not comb with backup dancer's.
Blue Ivy had backup dancers.
People were mad because they were like, how come her backup dancers were dark skin? But if they were light skin, they would have said, how come her backup dancers are light skin?
Golley, this is the one question I did want to ask about. Like the hair. I don't know.
I do have sometimes these things about black women and weave and hair, and I know everybody's really excited about the Black Panthers and the Afros, Like Beyonce kind.
Of still did her wee thing. What do you think about that? The way she does like her thing.
I don't know.
I would always like to kind.
Of see her in a lovely wig or something like that, in natural hair.
For some reason, I don't know, I feel like she will like they played they I mean, they're playing dress up she like you know, she is too. I just feel like.
These are always these things that I'm just always fascinated about when it comes to her. Likes very calculated yeah, like she's very natural hair, yeah, or just like she doesn't do I mean, we are very big into these elements of things, and she just kind of pick pockets where she wants to or just like you know, it's I don't know.
Kinda yes, I know, yeah, I mean I think it's a practical thing she wears. You see her with a big blonde hair like you're going to see her in that seat of people, She's going to stand out as a star. But also I feel like she's I've seen her her every which way I've seen her. I've seen her with braids or long I mean, she just keeps transforming herself, and that's.
In the video she had the long braids, and I don't know, I just feel like, honestly, like I know, I kind of picked. I mean, I'm natural, but I don't necessarily like I don't. I mean, there's definitely elements to me that have some afro centricity, but then I also have some ratchetness and then I'm also, you know, business owner. I don't know.
So I just feel like nobody's all one thing.
And then if she would have went full fred fledged, you know, like you know, kinky afro and all the other stuff, people would have been mad. I don't know.
I feel like, you know, it's so crazy. I think when I see like someone like Beyonce, I think to myself, sheesh, you know, with my little business, sometimes it gets frustrating because everyone always has an opinion, and I can only imagine at like Beyonce level, like what you know, everyone always having an opinion, and maybe that's one of the reasons why she reserves from from from sharing her so much, is because no matter what she does, Beyonce could literally sneeze.
If he could be, people would be like, see that's the bullshit right there. She always sneeze in it's a problem like.
If I'm Jackson five no true and the country.
But yeah, I guess we could wrap that up.
But yes, So all in all, it was definitely a Beyonce weekend and either way you love it or hate it, but you talked about it.
It was the Beyonce Bowl featuring some football teams and Bruno Mars and Christi.
They were really good.
It was called the Broncos. They're great, they're Super Bowl champs.
That's a good segue actually, because I wanted to briefly discuss the controversy around the quarterback for the Carolina Panthers, Cam Newton. So apparently after his terrible heartbreaking loss to the Broncos and Peyton Manning, Cam was you know how they after those horrible interviews after they lose a game and tell reporters like what they did wrong and just revisit all those wounds which are so fresh and oozing, so he was super he was giving like Monosteleba answers.
He got up and left like two three minutes into the interview, and then all of a sudden, there's all these think pieces on what an ungrateful brat he is and what a teenager he was acting like. And I don't know. To me, I feel like he's twenty six years old. He's very young. He just lost the biggest game of his life and he wants to be upset. I mean, if I miss a train, I'm hope and I'm like grumbling, like I don't want to do an interview for miss a train, so why are.
We But this is yeah, I think, but it's not your job though, to miss that train. This is his job.
He is making millions of dollars. He is in front of press since he has been like now what probably eighteen nineteen, since he started on like what when he was with us, Like he he knows this deal. He kind of was a soort loser yesterday and it's his he's I think we've discussed this before, but he That's what leadership is in the football world.
This is important. You are the quarterback of the team.
They are looking to you for guy, I didn't they need you to be the one to hold your head up at the press conference ensure this was the press conferences. Was kind of colliding with another player. They said, that's why he was offended or whatnot.
I don't care.
Cam, you know, get it together, breathe answer a few questions. You don't have to answer all of them. I mean, I think it does say something to be a professional in these circumstances. I mean that's why people were kind of like I and Steph Curry when he brought his little daughter out the press conference. Yeah, a little in professional. They're asking stupid questions. Sure, but now do your job, go home. You know, it's that's what you do.
Well, you know, you know.
I want to bring this in on a personal level, like what are some because we've all sort of dealt with failures in our career. I'm just assuming. I mean, I know I've had some big failures in my career. I wonder like if you all want to talk about any and how you handled in that moment, whether you're proud of it or not. I put you on the spots and you want me I can start what's up? Yeah,
people constantly ask me to relive this moment. So I am a reporter, and a lot of what I do is talk to people about different story a different like personal finance journeys. You know, I paid off this much debt and I, you know, paid for this with this much money or whatnot. And I love those sorts of stories.
And about a year ago, someone reached out to me and told me he had earned a saved a million dollars by age twenty seven, and he had an entire website and he had all these graphs and charts showing how much he had saved and where it came from, and here's how all the math worked out. And I was super excited because he you know, he wasn't like
this overnight success. You know, you hear like people who lost one hundred pounds in a week and people who saved a million dollars in a month, like he had been working since he was a teenager and just told me this sob story about his parents dying and they didn't teach him anything and blah blah blah. And anyway, so I write the story, and like a few it
becomes one of the biggest stories on the website. And like a week later, one of his friends reaches out to me and he's like, so this guy has admitted to line about everything like a Facebook post, and it was just like the it was like my whole entire world just like fell out from beneath my feet, and it was a huge failure on my part, and I think the I'm proud of myself and that the first thing I did was email everyone you know in my on the editorial team and say, we got to pull this.
We gotta you know, we have to face this. We have to figure out what I'm gonna do. And we immediately like wrote this like explanation and retraction and that kind of stuff. But that was like a super useful, embarrassing, horrible lesson that I learned, and it made me ashamed
because I have studied to be a journalist. I went to a great school, I had great teachers, I've been it's not my first day on the job, and it was just a reminder that I'm just a susceptible to that pressure to turn out the big stories and that pressure to turn out stories faster and faster and get those clicks.
But luckily I don't actually handled that tell you the truth, I thought, very well, because you know you and your staff. I think you put out a nice article, like you put out a retraction about it, and you apologize for it, and yeah, I think you actually handled that with dignity and to your best ability. And you're still writing stories, you know, and the Yahoo comments can get kind of you know, Kronk.
I've definitely read them, but you know, it's.
So hard to admit you were wrong, especially when, like like literally a day before I found out it was all a lie. I had gotten like a standing ovation at the morning meeting, like like Nandy's the best, and I was like, yes, I am the best. I slay and then you fall from that, you know. It was it was so humbling, like I am constantly being humbled by my own humanity, like you know, but like Beyonce yesterday when she almost fell but then didn't fall, I must have the strength to carry on.
Oh god, It's like I'm going to think my biggest well, maybe my most embarrassing was like my very first I got books from my very speaking engagement. It was like for it was a nursing home or something sort of like hospital, something to that effect. It's a medical care facility, and I don't know how they found me, but they wanted to pay me like three hundred bucks to speak for an hour. And I mean then I had I wasn't even making fifty bucks to speak, so I could
not believe someone was actually gonna pay me. I was so excited. I took it to Twitter, because you know, that's what that's what you do.
I took it to Twitter.
This is literally like five years ago, and I wrote, I quote end quotes, oh my god, I just got booked to speak at like said the organization and everything. I mean, like, I can't even believe I did this, you know whatever x y Z organization in Clifton, New Jersey, COMMA and they're paying me doctor rates.
End quote.
Oh that's what.
Yo.
I And I just was so excited and I wasn't I don't know why I wrote. I mean, I know I wrote it because I was honestly, I wrote it mostly out of shock because I was like, I can't believe someone is actually gonna pay me to do this thing I just made up. And I just you know, and I didn't really understand social media back then, because mostly it was just my it was my friends who like I literally had like maybe like twenty thirty followers
and it was just my friends, you know. And so my friends were like, yeah, it was basically I thought about it like as group text. You know, that's the kind of thing that you key key with your friends behind the scenes. So I'm like, oh, let me group text my friends via Twitter.
And so they were all like, yes, you got it, do it? Do you know what?
Within I don't even know, maybe a few hours I got an email with a screenshot of my tweets.
Well like, yeah, so what we're not going to do is hire you.
And because like this is a I forget, it was a you know, we have private information at this facility, and we'd worry that you would not use your best judgment and might share things that you might not you know, you're not supposed to, you know, if you speak for us whatever, Like let's just say a patient asks a sensitive question, I might tweet it out or whatever. And I couldn't believe it was like such a humbling when
I say humbling. And then of course the next day I was like at a at an event and the woman who had hired me was there, and I had to humble myself and go up to her, and I apologized profusely. I was like young, So she honestly was so gracious about it. She said, Honestly, Tiffany, you know I've talked to you before.
I think you're amazing.
I thought the tweet was funny, you know, because I know that you didn't you weren't thinking. She was like, doctor Race was hilarious, but you know that you know that you have to be careful of what you put on social media. And I just told her I was just so excited. I wasn't trying to be, you know, like arrogant. Honestly, it's my first speaking I never got booked before, so I couldn't believe it.
It was more.
Shock and awe than arrogance and like bragging, you know.
It was like I can't believe it? Can you guys believe it?
And she was just she was just so nice about it, and she said, I think you're gonna go far, you know, but you know, just let that be a lesson. And honestly, it was such a valuable and I'm glad I learned it early because from then on, whenever anything has happened with any brand or anything that I've worked with, I always always ask can I share this before I share it? And usually I get them kind of like a preview. Can I share this and say I'm here doing this?
That's fine, Tiffany, So yeah, but it was the most embarrassing can you imagine right screenshot? She said that they screenshotted it and they were faxing it from office to office to be like, who is this girl?
No, I was like cringing that you can't see me, but I'm my face is all screwed up, and I was telling me that. I'm just like, I mean, you never want to be on the wrong side of social media. I'm constantly worried, especially now I work someplace people actually care what I say. Loud child, Well, he bounce back, Yeah.
Exactly exactly. You know, like I said, I'm grateful, but you said.
Sorry, which is a huge deal, you know, confronting. I think that's what some people do that gets them. Like if I had, if you, if you have, or I had just like put our heads in the sand and then just like you know, legs or tail between our legs and just like walked away kind of cowardly, Like all that would do is just you would you wouldn't forget on the inside, and you would constantly have that shame.
And I think by facing it head on, by like saying sorry in person and just like getting the awkward moment over with, that really helps.
Yeah, that was very good. She actually did that as well.
Jess, I know you are a special guest. Do you want to share your failure with us or do you want to special.
My special failure?
Well, I will say with my one of my first jobs here in New York, I worked at a food service company and this just this was just a great lesson. I'm like I would say, learning how important even the little things that.
Your job are.
So one of the first things I got to do at this new job at this food service company, we worked with schools basically just a little background and the goal we'd like served them breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And so one of the things that my job was in this role was to make sure the scheduling was done. It was literally just putting things in the calendar, like
school calendars when it's closed, when it's open. And I was priding myself, like all young morons of how like fast I was of putting things in the computer and just making sure everything was scheduled and you know, doing this and doing that, and just going home at five point thirty and just being proud of myself. But you know, then, you know, my boss was kind of in and out with vacation and meetings and stuff, so I never got to see her, and she didn't get a chance to
look over my work like I thought. But I thought I was banging it out doing awesome. So yeah, I kind of missed a change in schedule for one of my schools. And next thing I know, I got a call from home and they're like, hey, these are the correct closures, right, And people were relying on me.
We're a small company, and I was like, yeah, this is all good. We're fine. So next thing I know, when I got into work, they're like, Jessica, the school was open. And this sounds really kind of like hump.
But so because I did not put one thing in the calendar, and because I was just banging it out and not really looking over my work, not really putting so much care in it, so about this whole school probably missed breakfast. So these are like and I had to really kind of think about my job in a way and really put in perspective. Because we serve healthy food for these kids, because we give them free and reduced lunch, this might be one of the very few meals these.
Kids get all day.
This was a kid in the Scout South Bronx and this kid this sounds so ridiculous, but it is actually a very true story. They might have not gotten dinner that night and was expecting that breakfast. And because I was just kind of thinking so willy nilly about her and just thinking, this is just a little blimp just putting in something into my computer. It's not anything that's thinking, that's something you should just, you know, really look twice
at girl. I think I cried for two weeks. I apologized to that school and I just felt so terrible because it was just I was just looking over you best believe. After that, I just looked at every schedule was so much care and love. Like I looked at these schedules three or four times a day, and you know, and I think, what other thing that happened. I had a wonderful director of operations at the time. You had to pull me back and like actually had to say
that you know, this is I know. It felt really bad. But you know, you got to look at these schools and what we do as a service.
And just you know, take more. You have pride in your job, but really take pride in your work.
And now again, like some people think I'm a bit of a hard ass at my current job, but no, I even saying in terms of making sure something is properly dated, making sure all your data is correct, making sure you're giving me your correct client records, things like that, I do look for it to be well done because people do depend on you, and you know, yeah, and I think that is probably one of those biggest failures.
And I was able to kind of bounce back from it and think about it and really kind of look at it holistically, and that was pretty well day for me.
But so yeah, that's if I could share that with the world.
Thanks for sharing that. I know that must be hard. It's hard to look back at the stuff you did wrong. But I don't know, I feel kind of good about this talking about what we learned from it. It sounds like each of us in that situation had someone like I had an editor who didn't fire me. I had Tiffany. You talk to the person who you know you know, let you go from a gig right afterwards, who gave you a you know, told you what is okay, You're going to survive and then Jess you had your director
sort of you know, give you a break too. I just feel like, yeah, I feel like you need someone who knows that you will make a human error, like a boss or someone higher than you, a mentor or some kind too, to give you that break and remind you not to be so hard on yourself. Sometimes we all make mistakes.
Yeah, so that's why I want Cam to kind of man up and just take.
Bringing it back to football.
I guess yes, No, I mean, I know it feels.
I know people are really like, we were really rooted for Cam, you know, black quarterback.
You know, yes, he's kind of hip hop. He's getting criticiz. We wanted to do good and he and he failed yesterday, he totally failed.
But I do think it says a lot about leadership to really kind of step it up, especially with our young black males today.
You know, we're gonna make mistakes. We are human.
Beyonce made a mistake, but that doesn't mean she's not a great performer. That doesn't mean Cam it's not going to win another Super Bowl.
But you know mistake. I mean, you know, if you look at the footage of her almost falling, you could almost say it was choreography. I can just you know exactly. Oh, I'm pretty sure you know she needs to clap like that's some those are strong legs. Likes that much body strength to make yourself not fall like that. Come on, that is just like the gluteus maximus at full force.
I totally see that.
I do.
Yes, they well, Jess, thank you so much for joining us on our special Beyonce edition of Brown Ambition.
Oh, thank you all for inviting me.
Yes, Jess, you are welcome.
Its one eye open my so basic.
You can find Jess at Just stop it, guy, I'm actually good.
Please remember that. You know, if you want to attack me.
After that story, no one's gonna attack you. You're a good human, all right, Yes, all right, guys. We'll hope you enjoyed our special Beyonce themed episode. If you want to send any hate mail or love mail to us, you can email us at Brown Ambition Podcast at gmail dot com.
We can tweet us at the BA Podcast.
We love it. So let's just jump We took so much time talking about Beyonce rightfully, So let's jump into a brown break real quick.
Okay, some more brown break is pretty I mean it's kind of related slightly to this whole beyond thing. I don't know, I'm kind of taking a brown break from fake deepness. Well I don't know if it's fake deepness, but you know, there's just been so many think pieces, so many like, you know, like so much stuff as it relates to Beyonce, Like well, the two girls who are behind Blue Ivy are dark skinned? Why and then if they weren't dark skin then it would be an issue?
Or like how come, like you know, like we talked about earlier, how come Beyonce's didn't have the black curly afro wig on?
Or I don't know.
Sometimes I'm just like, ugh, and as the world turns, you know, like I'm kind of over.
I mean, I get it.
I mean, obviously Beyonce did this whole It's a very strategic move to get us talking about race, which I appreciate. But there's just been so much that I think some things are being analyzed that I'm.
Like, is it thing a thing to be analyzed? This thing right here?
Like, you know, people were talking about, oh, the Black Panthers weren't about over sexualization. How come you know they were wearing like the bathing suit things. And I'm like, I mean, I guess I get it, but sometimes I'm just like, ugh, it's just too much, all of this over deep Facebook Facebook rant posting about you know, like what you thought, like you know, the world has shifted now that Beyonce has a new video out and how you know she is good or bad for the culture.
I'm a little bit slightly over it.
Although I get it, I'm just going to take a brown break from all that all that pieces, yes, think pieces, and all the Facebook pontifications.
I respect that because it distracts from the larger like looking at the minutia, it just like distracts from the larger messages. Sometime I'm like her intention was on to guess talking about wigs and like Blue Ivy and her backup dancers again, yes you know, yes, did I mention she had backup dancers? I'm sorry?
Sorry?
How old is she?
Like four?
All right?
I loved it. She is going to be the future queen of America if she's not a first Lady or not the first lady first, you know, the first African American president, female president. Then I don't know what's happening in the world.
Now, lady had lost it. So what's your brown break?
My brown break? I don't know if this is funny or serious, but you brought up something, you said something earlier, and it reminded me. I've been meaning to take a brown break on this for a while. And it's the expression beat face, like getting your face beat and a beat face.
Oh God, I use that.
I know you do. I know when so many women do, and like I have work with. I have the privilege of working with some really really great makeup artists here at my my work and through my job, and they say it sometimes and they'll put it on Twitter and it's like a hashtag. I don't see how it's a good thing. It's it makes me think of domestic violence. And I come from a family who's you know, women whose faces were beat but not with makeup, with like fists and stuff like that. I could see that, and
it's just like the expression just makes me cringe. I don't know, I just don't like it. And I think I Rihanna used it one time and I'm like thinking about her and her you know, you know, a woman's free to use whatever she wants, like whatever phrase she wants to use. But for me, it just makes me cringe, makes me feel like I don't want to beat face pretty face, like can you pretify my face?
But no, I know just and honestly, I think it it comes from gay culture like most cool slang does, and black culture in particular, and like you know, like just the light be and that's what I'm thinking. For those of you who know are in the no, please let me know. But I think that's where it comes from. And I'm not certain where the beat came from.
But I don't know. I'm not gonna lie. I kind of like it just the light be.
It just sounds.
It just makes me feel like I'm in the know, because anybody who knows me knows how you slag from nineteen eighty.
I'm like, dope, dope is back.
I know dope is back.
But you know, there's a question like why is it? Why do I not like beat face? But I can say sleigh and things like that. You know, I don't know what else I don't know. There's just little things get to people different ways exactly.
You are allowed to break from whatever you want to break from.
That's one thing I have to say that I don't know these days when I'm as I get older, I'm like, man, you could feel one way about something else, and like I could feel totally black power about my hair and then not feel that way about something else. I mean, it's your prerogative to feel how you want to feel, to think how you want to think. But I always say this that you can feel, think and say whatever
you want. But you have to know that so can everybody else, you know, because that's the part that people forget. They love the part where they're like, I could do what I want.
Guess what, though everybody else can do what they want to, you can.
You know, you can try your best to impose whatever you feel, think or say on someone else, but ultimately you know that's just the how the world works.
That's not how any of this works. And so as long as you acknowledge that, feel free, beat your face, do what you want, slay, hate Beyonce, love Beyonce, whatever, But ultimately you know, the world turns.
And different opinions are what makes things interesting exactly.
That's how my my friend, my my sister's husband, well, we're all Nigerians, but he was like born and raised in Nigeria. And I just love when he says that because it's like his you know, everybody has like their phrase, like I know.
I always say you know, you know.
I know because I edit them ount sometimes.
Jara always tells me that Superman always tells me you know you always say you know, you know what I mean.
I didn't even know what he told me. I was like I do.
He's like, yes, he said, it drives me crazy because they don't know what you mean.
Tiffany, nobody had, like I'm getting an intimate look into the like the speaking patterns of Tiffany elli ch.
Exactly, and so he always says. My sister's husband always says is Zoch not exactly but exactly.
Because he has a nice nick Nitrian accent.
So I just love saying that to him and he never realizes that I'm like saying it back because he'll be like, yeah, so what do you think, I'm like exactly exacly, So just exactly. You can say what you want, feel what you want, do what you want, beat your face if you want.
No.
Oh, I hate it. I hate it. I'm just gonna I know it's easier to say, but I'm just going to be like, I put some makeup on. I got some incup put on my face.
Okay, so that's it for for we have a really late You know, we have we gotten any brown breaks.
I want to hear where people want to get breaks from.
Please send your brown breaks to us via email, Tweet us your brown breaks. I'd love, love, love to share some of your brown breaks. See what you guys are going through, see what you're totally over.
We'd have gotten a lot of questions and we're not going to do a question this week because we have run out of time and we want to get to some wins real quick. But we are keeping all your questions and we love getting them, so keep sending them to Bronambition Podcast at gmail dot com and we promise we'll get to them eventually. Let's do two next week.
Yes, I like that.
Yes, all right, So moving on to wins real quick. Some extra good news for the end of the show.
Okay, so Wins, I know you had a really great win. I saw this fun on the internet.
So I actually realized I have two. But I so real quick. So I don't know if you heard, but it's February and it's Black History Month, which is kind of a big deal, and so I got the chance
to do a story that I'm really happy with. It was the five I wanted to take a look at since I worked for a huge tech company and I've written about the lack of diversity in Silicon Valley like many people have, and just the fact that there aren't very many minorities or women represented, especially in leadership roles.
So for a Black History Month, I know it's about history and looking backwards, but I thought I would do something looking forward and kind of calling out some people I thought were exciting or interesting in Silicon Valley today who just also happened to be black. Okay, So my story was five ground five ground breaking black business leaders
who were changing the face Silicon Valley. I'll just run through a few of them I have, and these aren't names that you probably know in your household, which is why I wanted to like lift them up, because they're really changing the literally the face of Silicon Valley. Got Stacy Brown Philpott. She's the COEO of Task Rabbit. You know that freelancing site. She is just incredible.
You know.
One of the best things about her if you read my story on Yahoo Finance. One of the best things I got to talk to her about was when she was working for Google before task Grabbit, where she was mentored by Cheryl Sandberg for a while before Cheryl went onto Facebook. She had the opportunity to move to India and in order to do that, to run Google sales operations over theres. In order to do that, she decided
to leave her husband behind in America. And she talks about how her family and friends really just like dogged her about that decision and made it seem like she was choosing her career over her family. And she said, she told me, and she said this before. She said, when I moved to India, I knew that I was making I knew that I was choosing my career, but it was only for a finite period of time, and my husband and I had agreed. The key takeaway for me was don't be afraid to ask her what you
need both back home and at work. And it was. And she had other school stuff to say about how she doesn't like the idea of living on a balance beam and trying to find work life balance, and she said it's too stressful trying to figure out what's to prioritize and have the perfect balance. She says that she just takes life where it leads her, and she prioritizes one thing at a time given the situation. So that's
just one incredible, one incredible woman. And you know what, I didn't set out to do this, but four out of the five business leaders I featured were women, and the fifth was a transm was a transgender. I believe he's non conforming person. So I was really excited for this story. And if you want to check it out other people real quick. Morgan Debon she founded blavity dot com.
I love her.
She's really cool and she said she'd be on the podcast soon. So love Blavity Blavity. If you don't know, the whole concept behind blavity is that it's a mashup of the word black at gravity. And she was inspired during in college going to like a mostly white college where like anyone you know, any lunch room cross America in high school, like all the black kids gravitate toward
one another. So that's blavity. So it was really dope listening to her talk about, you know, her very first business selling sugar kool aid and the cafeteria and stuff like that. And the another one was Courtney Ryan Siegler. He started this hackathon a nonprofit called trans hack, which is a nonprofit that hosts hackathons and meet ups among people in the transgender nonconforming community in Silicon Valley and across the country. And I mean, it's really cool what
he's doing. He's not in the tech world. He's actually in the media and entertainment side of things. But he talked about wanting to give trans people, trans workers in Silicon Valley just a place to get together and like feel supported because it can be lonely out there.
Yeah, I can imagine.
I like that. That's a great article. I can't wait to weeak. I'm I'm honestly like I'm. One of the things I'm addicted to is I love watching or reading stories of.
People who are different versions of successful.
So you know, not like always like oh, the multi millionaire successful, but just whatever that looks like, maybe starting something new, going after their dream.
And so just was it two days ago?
I think it was a day before yesterday, I was watching They had this documentary about Michael Jackson from when he started as the Jackson I think it was called From the Jackson five to Off the Wall.
Off the Wall was his.
Very first album, and so they kind of chronicled his life from jack Ers Yes to It was so.
Honestly, Mandy, it was so just motivating.
I mean, you know, of course, you know about Michael Jackson, you know how hard he worked, you know all these things, but to see it through one They did a lot of They had a lot of video of him as a young man speaking and you don't see that much meaning like him and his teens talking about like what
he wanted his future to be. It was very reminiscent of a Steve job just so sure that he wanted greatness and how he was going to go after it at like seventeen eighteen nineteen, just to see him speak, and then they interviewed all these really famous people about him, and they just the consistency of what people said about Michael that he was always watching, always sitting, always listening, always asking questions at six seven eight years old, Like
Sammy Davis Junior is sitting there saying Michael used to watch me on and ask me these questions, how did you do that?
Why did you do it like that? Why did you not do it like this at like eight years old?
And just it was so just watch is it on like Netflix or something?
It was on Showtime.
It was checking out.
Yes, I think you'll love it, first of all, and then like they so what happens is they they chronicle his life. You kind of see like how he made the moves that he made, and then how he was unapologetic about his success and his clear trajectory towards this is what I want and this is what I'm willing to do for it. And then they broke down like all the songs on the album, and I was literally it was like three o'clock in the morning.
I could not.
Stop help but dance because it was so like the music was still so amazing. And yeah, it's just honestly, And I encourage anyone who's kind of chasing their dreams to just watch and read things like what Mandy the article that Mandy has just written and this this this piece about Michael Jackson. I'm always reading and watching things like that because it helps mon it helps to set the tone for what you're doing because a lot of people will think you're crazy if you're going after your dreams.
And it helps you to see other people who are quote unquote crazy and how they've dealt with it, and it just helps to see that success looks different for different people in different ways. But then there are also some things that are that are kind of baseline and the same, which is you you make a conscious choice, you put in the work, and you decide how you want your life to live unapologetically. So yeah, maybe that's
my win that that that documentary. It was just so good, honestly, like I had, I hadn't.
Wait to watch them. Oh god, I love Michael Jackson.
What Mandy I'm telling you're gonna be like, oh my god. First of all, like I was sitting laughing, crying, dancing.
I mean they it.
Pulled me in every way. And Spike Lee directed it of course.
Oh did he have heard about this? Okay, thank you, you're right checking it out. I actually I got my dad's dish flog in. I'm gonna check it out very much of these stuff. Mmm, little hipster cable. Well that reminded me real quick. I've been we haven't talked about this yet, but the fact that they wanted that they're making this movie in the UK where they're having Michael Jags and played by a white actor. Did you hear about that?
Yes?
I don't even It has.
Spent a lot of time, but it's just like insane. I hope you changed your minds, like why why why can't we have one? Couldn't you find one black actor to play him?
I mean, it's it's supposed to be like a comedy and it's like a it's like a yeah, it just seems very strange, but.
Yeah, you're right, whatever, it's tired.
We're too tired to take on racism in Hollywood right now.
Right now, Beyonce has just slayd. It is making people angry across the world, which is kind of giggly. So I'm just like, whatever, take that.
Take that. I just ugh.
Yes, tomorrow the presale begins. I hope you guys all know if you have mxes that pre sale for Beyonce begins at ten a m. You can go like, are you gonna go? Yeah, I'm going you want to come?
I do?
Cityfield?
Oh.
So the ticket price has arranged from forty five dollars to three hundred and fifty dollars three hundred and fifty five dollars, which is quite high, but you know, it depends on what you want to spend. Yeah, it's good. But at the Stadium show in New York City is going to be in City Field, so like go check it out.
Yeah no, let me know, honest, I think I do want to go. I've never been to a Beyonce concert.
Oh really, yeah, I'm excited. The last one I went to was for the After the Visual album After Beyonce.
So we hope that you enjoyed this.
This uh, this episode was brought to you by B B for Beyonces, for Slagh and C for see Elater and Bagency. Please please please me and Mandy we're on your side. Don't bring in here and be have we are. We apologize for some of the some of the the comments markus. I loved Jess and I thought she had great insight, but I don't want to be stunge.
I love my life. And with that we sign off
Like I see you next week