The Breakfast Club Rewind Featuring Viola Davis & Damson Idris

man of blast. We want to hear from you on the Breakfast Block. Hello, who's this? How are you doing this? LG LG? What i'p getting off your chest? Brother? Uh? I do pretty much. I'm a core term support of mine. Uh. The way these the way the cards out here, man, they don't respect us. Fine. You know when when when you see a big truck on the road, so you gotta move to the bog. Everybody's trying to cut us off,

like giving us respect out there on the road. Mane Now, I'm gonna be honest with you, man, Lately, I've been feeling like them truck's been driving like they, cause I feel like it's been like that the last few years, they'd be pulling up. They'd be cutting over on the side of the road like they like they're driving regular vehicles. Hey look, you gotta blue your way in out there. Y'all too big to be bullying your way in. All right, you got a mack truck, but are you food run

to hit somebody? Hey, look, I ain't even gonna mack truck. I try spot cards and everything, so I got a three corps big face, you know what I mean, No trying to get to the side. You know, like I don't nobody want to set it over. Yeah, I don't like that. People people do try to not let trucks over, and sometimes Chuck's gotta take that because people will speed up driving your blind spot. So I know that's not an easy thing. I've seen it happen. I've probably done it. Yeah,

trucks do the same thing, though. I don't like that. Y'all got you because you already got commanded the road. You know what I'm saying, y'all can really hurt somebody, Like you can't just swerve over into another lane when you drive it a pick ass. Cars gotta be careful too, because cars be disrespectful to them. Trucks and just hop over and think the truck could just down. It goes both ways. It definitely goes both ways. That's a lot

of way on the road. Man. All I'm saying is we see you know what I mean, Like we got here every day with a lot of weight. There's a lot of responsibility, you know what I mean. You and your h you and your truck. Man. Uh no, I'm actually I'm hitting hitting the work right now. I was gonna ask you blow the horn, but I thank you brother. You want you to blow up? You're always doing that.

As a kid, that was the coolest thing. We used to drive to Disney back in the day and you see a truck, you get the truck driving to blow the horn. That was the coolest thing. Okay, okay, y'all never did that. Yes, no, fash him and ever you don't show them. You have your breast, that's right. If you want to sick trucks to blow you do your thing. King you see, y'all always take it too far? What y'all take it too far? What? Yeah, you've never been a Disney that's why you never did it. Hello, who's

this yo? Yo? Yo? Angelie Charlotagne and God dj Z. What's fuck what getting off your CHESSBA? That is my birthday. I'm twenty six years old man, Happy birth gratulations King. Yeah, I woke up early this morning just to call you guys and say, yo, I'm so happy. Um, I'm a long time listening at first time college from Florida. Okay, happy birthday brought. How you gonna tell no, uh cash money Blaze two four ninety six. Now, I'm gonna be honest with you. That's not enough for nobody to want

to put nothing in your cash app. I mean you're not the only person with a birthday out here, sir. I mean if anybody's feel gaerous, anybody's feel big fall, I don't know. Yeah you Chagne, No, I ain't got it for you this morning. I'll be honest with what you doing for your birthday. I thought I heard you guys get that girl's sake dinner. I was like, oh, man, me and my wife girl love it. She had a better story than you did, and I think she was it was something to do with her children. I'll send

you a book though. I got a copy of Anita Colpack Shallow Waters. I'll send you that for your birthday. I got you happy birthdays. Will you have a good one? Brother, you got it? Thank you? Hold on, let get your address. Hello? Who's this? This D from the DD. What I'm doing? Did from Virginia and Detroit? No oh, D from the D. D from the D. I want to get it off my chest. Hey, I am very respectable. I warning eighty one, but I am someth oud of my mama. Sorry, mama,

my brother, damn my body. Everybody, just please leave me a It's okay to say right, yes it is. It's called boundaries. There's a great book called chet Boundaries, fine piece by Nidra twob Glover that talks about that. Yes, I am simply the sight of everybody else and people. I wish y'all would call him the Breakfast Club with short like get out here into it. I do whatever I need to do. I live in Detroit. I hustle, I survived, Stop big, you need get it together police.

That's that's all I want to say. And I have Russian power to Dinald Gillespie, my father. I love y'all. Breakfast Club. I listened to you every morning. Thank you. D have a good one. D get it off your chest eight hundred five eight five one on five one. If you need to vent, hit this up now. It's the Breakfast Club. Good morning the Breakfast Club. This is your time to get it off your chests, whether you're

mad or blast. So plea better have the same, Indy, we want to hear from you on the Breakfast Club. Come on in North Carolina, Bill, get it off your chest. This is for you, Mvy. I'm so proud of you and Jail with this book. Y'all doing outstanding out here. I thought her name is good, but it's good. She she had good intentions that mama. I said, yeah, I'm sorry,

it's so good. But um, I went to bot my tickets for the par show, and I know that the twenty dollars tickets was out, But can you start doing family tickets because most of us have kids out here? How many kids you don't want to see themselves? I got three and a husband. How old are your kids? Three and a husband? Seventeen fourteen and seven, seventeen fourteen and ten? Oh you want family? I try to get the tickets that you know the first I think, like

a thousand tickets. We're trying to do inexpensive as possible. But you hold on it and I send you a couple of tickets. All right, all Atlanta, Atlanta. That's just a lot of knife. Okay, we'll set you up. Mama holding it right? Thank you? Hello? Who's this three bad cut? I'm back? Take take us our speaker. You can hear me now, Man, I gave you better. Yeah, why you sound like you an auto to him? Bro? Bro driving man? What's happening? King? Ain't? Then auto spins up out? Dude, man?

And until I heard somebody every time about bulls man over with all that he was talking about, Dick Sport and stark Man, the sports story, you gonna get you the baseballs and basketballs and and all that. Come on, get your mind out the gutter king. Okay, I know even I know, even driving trucks all night, But come on, get your mind out the gutter king, and we appreciate you too. With a truck driver, No, I ain't no truck job man, I'm driving my car. How did you

get I thought he was driving truck? Man? I drive. I gotta go to rood. Okay, when you work at I work at the trust cut. I ain't gonna eat call the man getting talking about but I feel you well happy you got a job king? Yeah, man, when you gonna have one of swimming all over here Southlina. Many don't send um. I don't know, I don't know. We gotta we gotta figure it out. I think the closest we've been to North Carolina. But we're gonna get

back to it as soon as this. Y'all did do a seminar and Columbia before you're talking about, Yes, you did with Chris Chris. We did one talking about with Chris. Yeah, we sure did. That was early on, Yeah, we sure did. Y'all did one of the eight three my guy Chris? Did you missed that one? Brother? Hello? Who's this morning? Good morning? What's your name? Absolutely? They asked to get off your chest. Now, I'm tired of working. I'm tired

of calling to school. I'm tired of working for somebody else while they live in the best life because I want to live my best life. Food. So basically, Kim Kardashian was right, WHOA see a little bit? Right? You're tired of work and you don't feel like that to day. You feel like you need to get up your ass and work. Huh, I tell you a good story, man, I mean, listen. I can never tell somebody what to do. But I met a young lady this weekend. Her name

was Julie. She's in Providence, Rhode Island, and she was tired of getting laid off, like during the pandemic, she got laid off. So you know, she launched her own restaurant. And she got a restaurant downtown in Providence, Rhode Island. So I don't know. Maybe it's something that you can do. Maybe it's something you want to do. I'm in school trying to open up my own doctor's offers, but it's too much. It happens though. It's not easy. It's not easy to be an entrepreneur. It's a lot of work.

It is in school is a lot of work. Like you get up every day and you know you exhausting a lot of mental and emotional energy, physical energy. None of this is gonna be easy. I think you're probably just having a day to day. But I promise you, when you crossed that finish line, you're gonna think it was all worth it. That's all. I have a good one, Mama, Get it off your chest. Eight hundred five eight five one on five one. If you need to vent, hit

us up now. It was the Breakfast Club, Good morning, the Breakfast Club booting. Everybody is tj Envy, Angela Yee Scharlamagne the guy we are to breakfast Club. We gotta ah guests in the building. You know him from Snowfall and a host of other things. His birthday is one day before mine. He's a fellow Virgo damn soon. It just welcome son, Welcome, sir, damn Son. I didn't know. I didn't know your birthday was the first September, your

day before. Oh thud, okay, okay. Buddy of mine is the two actually the show runnerup of Snowfall, Dave Andron Buzzo is the best. You know. Absolutely, they had us on New Yes, there you go. The first thing you said was I love New York because I love Jamaican culture. Yeah. What do you love so much about Jamaican culture? What what do you love? Obviously? Your food? Dirt chicken. I'm a guy you both, yeah, oxtail. Actually, I like to

dabble one both. I like to steal food from whoever I'm eating with um plantains, do you guys say plantain or planting slanting. I feel like that's the right way to say it. I was saying it wrong. You had to switch through all different times ways. It's different kinds of ways to say things. So oh yeah, yeah, that's that's part of my life instating people. You don't have

amazing Jamaican restaurants in London or in la where your shoot? No, nah, that's no man, not at all out here like missus Lilies, miss lilies m she wrote. She wrote on a gramyasels like oh where could I go? People said, um, footprints? Yes, Like, first of all, the best Caribbean food is in Brooklyn. We got footprints, we got Swede, we got Caribbean social we have this is New York. We have yes number one as well. Come on the other one quote. But

I'm going to try all of it today. That's impossible. I saw you talking about how John Singleton told you to stay humble though amongst everything different people. I don't know the first time we actually met you. You You were up here with John Singleton. Yeah you don't remember you though, I remember It's like this the first oh no, no, no. There's a couple of asking guys in a dss. Yes. How has that been for you though, because obviously Snowfall is such a huge show. You guys are in the

fifth season. We've watched Franklin grow up and he has got a lot of big things happening. But in real life, you've grown up too, and your star has grown up as well. Yeah. Yeah, it's a testament to John Singleton. You know. He really believed in me. And although I fought for the role, like crazy, auditioned nine times, you know, he took me to South Central, opened up the car door and said, if you survive, you got the role. And I was like walking around had to be in character.

Central was that experience. Man. So I'll get to John Singleton's office and I think I'm gonna read the I'm gonna audition, right, It's like like audition number eight or something like that. And then he's like, yeah, no, we're not gonna read anything. We're just gonna take a walk someone walking around and he's like, don't break character. And he's introducing me to people, and you know, Singleton was

like god in his community. Like people will be like yo, John, you know, and then they'd come up to me talking to me and like Yo, what's up, little homie. I'm like, yeah, what's up? So I'm just pretending like that I'm from there. Um. And then his mom came and you know, I'm British. So I'm saying a bunch of British stuff in an American accent. But he didn't know you were British, right, Oh no, he knew, like he wanted to make. What kind of British stuff were you saying? You know, like

you guys say like elevator, I say lyft. You know, you guys say Ben. You guys say trash or say Ben. So exactly. So I'm talking in an American accent and his mom comes like, oh, how lovely your hair looks today. I'm just gonna go over there and throw something in the bend and she looks over Johanna and she's like, John, he ain't from here, huh. I was like, man, Mom, just walking around Central. I wasn't scared, man, I was with joining you. It was my big brother, you know.

That was my big brother missing greatly. But as far as I get in this, in this industry and on this journey, I'm always gonna on a singleton for being my foundation. Well, let's talk about the new season. So you're also producing. Yeah, in the new season. How did that come about? I forced them to take give me in prode secret no. Um. You know, when you when you've been doing the show for so long, you you pick up different traits, but at the same time, you

want to be challenged. And my circles um are so bossy today that they inspire me to want to be more of a leader. That's the truth. It's like if you hang around with certain types of people having certain types of conversations and they're like, yo, bro, you should go, and then you ask, and they're like, okay, you know, I've been watching the a doc you know, and Hove was like, you know, clothes mouths don't get fit, you know,

like it's true. You know, asking you shall receive and and I asked and they gave it to me, and you know, abubble things. I'm not I'm not saying my level of producing is at the level of my acting ability. My acting ability is quite horrible. I'm just saying. I'm saying I'm being a sponge and I'm being given an opportunity to learn so that I could use my platform and my brand to create more opportunities. All right, we got more with damps and injuries from snow form. When

we come back, it's the breakfast club. Good morning, the breakfast club. I used still taking piano lessons? I have whoa, let's let's break this there. Where were you taking pan? Where do we see him playing piano? I don't know, Juliard, No, no playing piano. I'm just asking. I said you would taking piano lessons or something like that. Oh damn, let's see a video of it. Looked like you were good with your hands. Oh wow, I don't know. No no, no no. Um me and me and I'm never no

no me and that that that queen. Um are just friends. Um, she's a great you guys were I was asking about the piano lessons. Yeah, yeah, yeah, she's a great piano player. And and I didn't know she could play piano. I didn't even think the world knew. So I was like, oh, this is a cool moment. I just posted with like people thought like, you know, I don't know if Angel you could play the piano, because I'm not her actually

to learn. I don't know if Taylor, who's over here producer knows, you know, I don't know if she could play piano. So how did you get to Sweedie's house to see that she could actually play the piano? So she's a huge Snowfall fan, right, And that day we were at lunch, I think, talking about how we could collaborate because we actually wanted to get before. No, it wasn't a day guys are talking about collaborator. No, guys and girls could be friends. Yeah, absolutely, yeah, I agree

with you. That's exactly what me and and d we were friends. Okay, all right, so go ahead. So y'all, y're on a date eating I'm sorry, oh my god, eating lunch. Yeah, but my dinner. So we're having lunch, um, and then uh, she wanted to show me her new place because I love CB two and I was gonna give us some ideas about furniture and all. And then boom we went and then she was playing piano. That's it. I was in there for like five minutes that dip top Like you also talked about that Denzel is your

idol as far as acting. Oh yeah, so when you see I don't I don't. I don't want mess up the young lady's name. But when you seen a young lady interview in Denzel and she mentioned your name and he didn't know who you were. Break that down when you've seen it and how you felt like you watched the TV like, oh, Denzel and he was like, who that is? And then he asked the white guy guy, Oh, I don't I don't know who that is. No, it was it was insane. So I was at home, um,

on my phone at your house. Wow, my house, my house, by myself. Yeah, by myself, and my phone's like blowing up and it's like a bunch of articles and stuff like that and people are calling me and I was like then I was like talking about you. I'm like, oh my god, this is crazy. Like so then, um, yeah, that he didn't know who I was, he couldn't address But that was funny though. That was funny. But hey, man, like it's a new day, you know. Um, it's a

new day. And you know you could bash uh, you know, get a notoriety through social media. I'm not gonna lie, Like, there's a lot of my kind of existence has been on that through my work and just through just being me. Um. And some people from the past still don't respect that. Um. But look what social media has done for so many people today. We have to start moving in the direction of the future. But above things and all of that, Noise Denzel Washington is my idol. He's like a god

to me. Um and I will never have anything bad to ever say about him. What's next for you? What is it? What is some roles that you want to do? Wow? Is this something that you like? I would love to do that role? Like, that's my dream role? Is it an action figure? Is something musical? I love playing real people, so I'd love to play Eddie Murphy, Sidney Poitier, fellow COUTI. Um, I'm actually I don't know. I don't know. Say so, do you know who rich Pool is? Yeah? Yeah, I'm

about to play Richpool, really really rich Paul the Agent. Yeah, I know who rich poor He has a show something about him coming out or it's in something where rich Paul is a character? No, does he No? I'm asking you it's something where he's does he? No? I don't. I don't think he has a show coming out. But he's a really good friend of mine. And there's people behind this window like why did you say that? But he called me. He was like, tell the world, and

I think we should. It's time we start cherishing black moguls, and Rich is someone that people need to know. This guy has completely changed the game. I'm happy and fortunate to call him a big brother, and I can't wait to honor his story. That's great. He actually right here, approached Lebron in the airport selling Jersey his story and that's how they met each other. Yeah. Yeah, and he's like and then he's as a black sports agent, he

gets looked at in a completely different way. The white sports agents were so angry that he was able to come in and get like the biggest NBA player. Yeah. Story, it's gonna be amazing, man, And you should start telling the stories now while they were alive. I just had sometimes when we wait till somebody passes away to tell their story, but Damns has to leave me. Oh man, all right. I would try to get a couple of spoilers out of you, but I know you're really good though.

But I think I did well. But we appreciate you for joining us. Brother, never really deal yes with everything, man. I love the fact that you're producing. I can't wait to see what else you have coming up, just because we met you so like a few years ago, and I think it's just amazing to see where you are and where the show is now, and a large part of that is because of you. So oh man, that means so much. Man, thank you, thank you so much for having me. Well, let's Damnson in dress. It's the

Breakfast Club. Good morning, the Breakfast Club. Your morning's will never be the same. An Audible pick of to day is The Big Line, an Audible original starring John Hammon. It's about three filmmakers producing a controversial movie in Hollywood during the nineteen fifties. Start listening with a free thirty day audible trial at audible dot com. Slash Breakfast Club. It's topic time called eight hundred five eight five one oh five. Want to join it to the discussion with

the Breakfast Club. Talk about it morning. Everybody is DJ Envy Angela Yee, Charlomagne the guy we are the bread Fits Club. If he just joining us? Uh, Damnsonages stopped through yesterday and he was talking about his relationship with his ex. Let's listen, we're still really close, really good friends. Um. I was with her for for a very long time. I met her when I was eighteen years old. Um, who knows, man, who knows what could happen in the future.

You know, she's very much still in my life. Um. We talked like every single day. You know, people struggle to keep relationships with their exes. But I am at a place in my life now where I everyone I meet I want them to be in my life forever. I know that's a woman that I'm gonna know forever. No answer. Could you be with somebody every day? No, unless the person has kids with the other person, or unless they got some type of very lucrative business together.

There's no reason for you to be talking to your ex every day if at all, I want you. Hello, who's this this? She came up from Brooklyn? Now she camera? Could you date somebody that talks to the X every day? No? I could not. I like that. I like that what they talk about every day? Word is Bob? Talk about every day? The yam would just try to work it out. Word is Bob, That's what I'm talking about. Ain't nothing to talk about every day? Okay, every day nothing nothing

I mean, don't get me wrong. There is a lot to talk about every day. But she shouldn't be talking about with him, No her, not at all. Hello, who's this Antonio? Now? What happened in your situation? Antonio? He hit me ex was like alm up three years ago and we talked about every day. Still trumpa together, try to move on. But it made the hardest move on. But I talked too much to the point where he can move back if he got it back together, and

like last week, see now you're back. And that's that's exactly. That's exactly what talking to your ex every day does. It's like having a pilot light on. Eventually it's gonna catch flame. Somebody gonna turn the damn heat on. I think I said that right, somebody gonna turn the damn fireplace on. Okay, because that pilot light was lit, I thought you're talking stove, But yeah, I get what the same thing. Somebody gonna turn the stove on. Something with

some fire gonna happens. What I'm trying to tell you? Hello, who's this? Marcus from Columbia, South of Carolina eight o three metro. What's happening now, Marcus? What's going on with you? You and your wife both? Um? So, my wife got a baby daddy at her and she um she's a nice lady, so she, you know, tends to try to be communicated with him because of before when I came along, he wouldn't talk to her. So I allow it to happen. I say, all right, you know, maybe y'all can bring

some communication for a kid. But now I became a problem. Yeah, he's calling every day. Uh it ain't bout the kids, and you seether he's trying to get to advice from her or he's just trying to hold a little small talking. He's trying to get some advice in some ass. That's the truth though, Dad, But you know, and yeah, it's only as you. I'm like, hey, I'm doing his own issues. And when he decided to do he want to deal with kids, he can communicate, but as of now that

got stopped. So they got hold on they have kids together. Is he in the kid's life? No not. He's in the kid's life only when someone uh pushes them all like you don't call and say hey, I wanted to He just to the mom or her was the head. The kids want to see you or they've been asking him about you. Then he'd say, well, okay, you can

bring him by. I think that in a situation like this is still tricky only because that is the baby daddy, and you know, you still you know how important it is for a father to be in a child's life. So she might still be holding out hope that he gets his stuff together so he can be in his child's life. Yeah, she know, she says that, but I keep telling how I said, if it took you to leave him, that should have been a wake up call.

That's even all through these years, like keeping his older daughter, You don't, Peter don't have no He talks to her, but they don't have a father daughter communicating like a father and his daughter ship. Yeah, yeah, I'm with you. Let's cut him off? Are you stupid? Rock? Tell us you got a block? So what's the ball of the story. I don't know if there's a more. Everybody got to do what works for them. But I'm just telling you what it works for me. That don't work for me.

You know what I'm saying. Unless you got a business or you got kids together, there's no reason for you to be talking to your ex every day. What you got the pilot light on for? You? Don't even use that fire place number, that five place don't work. You got a new stove electric Will you will with you this club? Good morning, the Breakfast Club. It's a five one, The Breakfast Club. Your mornings will never be the same morning. Everybody is DJ Envy, Angela Yee, Charlemagne, the guy. We

all the Breakfast Club. We got a special guest in the building, a queen a icon living. That's right, Viola Davis. Well say later you so much. Good morning. How are you today? You know what, I'm pretty good, I'm well rested, I feel alive. There you go, okay, okay, Well, thank you for taking time to come and sit with us. It's just so exciting show on the schedule of Viola Davis Finding Me. Yes, man, man, this book is such

a beautiful exploration of your your inner child. Like when you started the journey of writing this book, did you know you would go on that journey with your inner child as well? Yeah. That was the whole point that I needed to find that inner child, and my inner child was one that needed both healing and needed to be celebrated. She was a survivor as well as someone who you know, held a lot of trauma. But I felt like I had to explore it because we were

at that period of time. I wrote it during the pandemic, you know, the George Floyd of it all, the Almand Aubrey, Brionna Taylor of it all, everything dealing with the COVID, with the election. I felt like I was having a crisis of meaning and it was my way of pressing the reset button, just to understand, man, Viola, what are you supposed to do from here on out? It just was a big wake up call personally and you know, culturally. So that's why I wrote the book. I had to

go back to the beginning of me. When you start during the pandemic, or this was something you were doing beforehand and you were just so many projects. He was like, I'll get to it though this was pandemic, this is what I want to do. Well. I didn't want to do nothing during the pandemic, but I did start during the pandemic. I had just finished How to Get Away with Murder. I literally just ended it that March, and then I started writing the book. It was something to

do because otherwise I was going stir crazy. I wasn't the person who settled into the pandemic. I felt everything that was going on around me, and I felt the chaos of it and I internalized it. So this book was great therapy. So when God made you sit still in you know, during the pandemic, what did you see about yourself that you hadn't saw in a while. I saw a lot of things. I saw Viola as a survivor. I saw, you know, I keep telling this story ad nauseum.

I know I've told it a lot, but I've always said, you got to leave a legacy, right, So I said, you know, it's life. It's like a relay race. It's what you do with your dash of time. And what great runner you pass that baton, you know, off to You pass it on to the next generation. They pass it on to the person you know who's after them and after them. And I realized during the writing of the book, is those great runners are you at a

different age? The six year old who survives it then, you know, may survive it really messy, may have been inappropriate, but she ran her leg of the race and pass a baton onto the fourteen year old Viola who said, want to be an actor In the midst of all the poverty, the abuse, the bed wedding, the sexual all

of that, she wanted to be an actor. She saw a way out, and fourteen year old pass it onto the twenty eight year old who said, you know what, I need therapy because I want healthy relationships in my life. I want to be happier and I don't know how to do that. And she passed it on to the thirty four year old Viola, who got married to the fort forty five year old Viola who then became a mom.

And then now I'm fifty six and I have the baton in my hand, and now what you know, what am I supposed to do with this part of my life? Because I would say, at fifty six, you're a little bit past midlife. So that's what I learned. It's like it's a constant reassessment of where do you want to be, what do your life? What do you want your life

to sort of look like? And I keep coming back to this because I know I know that, I know that, I know that the number one regret of the dying is they didn't take risks, they didn't become their ideal self. I don't want anyone to think that I wasn't brave, And I think that sometimes people hold off braveness and courage because they don't want to risk failure and they don't want to risk shame. And I think you got to risk it. And that's been my biggest discovery in

writing the book. You're say in the book that memories are powerful, right, some people like to beget memories because it's so painful, it's so hurtful. But it seems like you use it as inspiration to push yourself hard. Why is that. I think the pain the trauma is equal to the joy and the peace in your life. I think that they're one and the same. I don't think that the pain and the trauma and the hard times are a detour from life. I think it's a part

of life. And I think that when you refuse to lean in to all of it is you refuse to become connected to yourself. And that's why no one can connect with anyone else because the only time we want to meet is with great stories of overcoming and winning. And then when someone feels like they are not overcoming and they're not winning and they're not waking up happy every day, then they feel like they need to hide in the closet, not come out, not open their mouths

not saying anything. There's no one to share with, there's no sacred space to be you. I count it all joy. Now when I say I count it all joy, it takes some time sometimes account it all joy. But I do believe that it's all a part of life. I've been in too many spaces where I haven't been able

to connect with people. You just never know what people have gone through to get to where they are today, which is why memoir like this, where you were so open and honest about everything, it really helped us to see like where you come from when you're acting. And I wanted to ask you about your relationship with your parents because in this book you talk a lot about things that happened to you when you were a child. What did you realize while writing this book about like

your father and about your mother. I realized they did the best they could with what they had. That's what I realized. Because it's so hard to forgive your dad. I know, you know you talk about how abusive he was to your mother and things that you had to witness, So was it hard for you to even forgive that. Yeah, forgiveness is to me. I feel like forgiveness and faith are equal in terms of they're the hardest things to achieve. It they're so abstract. So it comes down to choice.

I forgive for myself. I forgive because I don't want to carry that weight, the weight, the vengefulness of regret and all of that. For me, it blocks everything from coming into your life. And I don't think that anyone wants to see a sixty year old or here is sixty year old sitting in front of their therapists saying, I, you know, haven't been able to make my marriage work or this work in my life because what my dad did when I was five. At some point your life

becomes yours as well. That you said that, because my wife was up here the other day and she was like, you know, when she forgave, she be gave for herself. And I didn't understand it at first because most people think when you forgive, your forgiving the person that hurts you. But it's actually to not to take away that pain from yourself so you don't have to deal with it anymore. That is that what you're saying when you say I forgive for myself, Well, yeah, that's part of it. I

do believe it's a sort of prison. And not to get too philosophical, of course, but I believe that when you get to the end of your life, you're not thinking about all the people that you hated and all the people that did you wrong. I don't think that you're thinking about that when you're taking your last breath. I just don't. I think all of that goes away, and I think everything comes into sharp focus, which is probably making amends, probably being with the people that you love,

probably sewing everything up, probably holding someone's hands. But I don't think that we're thinking about all of that. I think that once again, the only person you could say is yourself. That's the only thing that you could do. You can't keep backtracking as what wrong someone did to you or whatever. You got to figure out how to heal that. It's like, you don't you haven't met all the people who are going to love you in your

life yet. And so when you meet all these people who are going to love you, they do not want to meet a vengeful person, okay, because they're going to get the overflow of that vengefulness. As a matter of fact, they're not going to get the overflow of that vengefulness. They're gonna get nothing. They're gonna go so far are with you and then it's gonna stop. I've been with those people they called emotionally unavailable. We have more with Viola Davis when we come back, don't move. It's the

breakfast Club, Boilding. I love how you, you know, held your father accountable but also humanize them. Did you always see the humanity in him or was that something that happens as you got Oh do it, you know, with the more work you did on yourself. Absolutely, more work I did it on myself. The more I saw his humanity, the more I could connect the dots. You know. I thought life was like a Disney movie. People were just good or bad. That's it. The evil villain who just

comes out just wants to destroy everyone. I didn't know that people acted because of specific memories once again, trauma in their lives. The people and we really demonize black people, you know, and the very way you wouldn't even be doing what you're doing if all those things hadn't happened to you as a child. Absolutely, because it was such an escape for you to be able to turn on the TV. You said it was Cicely Tyson right, that you saw that made you even say this is what

I want to do. Absolutely that that woman and that performance was everything. I remember the moment I saw that performance because it was like magic. It was like it was a magician pulling a rabbit out of the hat. If you've ever seen the performance, she aged from eighteen to one hundred and ten, and you could not even believe it from the first frame of that it was a mini series. And literally the wind stopped blowing, the sun came out, and I saw a portal way out

of the poverty, the trauma. I just felt like, if I could do that, I could make a life. I think sometimes you gotta see it, you know, And I know everybody just puts faith on people, especially on us, especially on black folk. Know that's all we had. And and but it's a lot. You know. You go up to young black kids who are coming from really challenging backgrounds, and people come up to them and say, you know, you could be what who and what you want to be.

You just have to dream big. And then once you make it, you come back, You bring your family up, you bring your community up. And I'm sure if that kid had a language, he would say, how that's a lot you just throw and then you gotta work ten times as hard. You throw all of that on their lap, and then at fifteen, if they can't even get if if they can't achieve it at all, if they feel like they want to give up, then we just brate them.

It's a lot that we put on them. So sometimes you gotta see it, you gotta hold it, you gotta somebody's gotta throw you a rope they do. Honestly, what was you talk about, sileague or what was some of your positive influences? Because you know, you talk about, you know, your parents and how you looked at your dad, and you talked about, you know, going to the white school and the white kids chase all the bricks, and you talk about all those things. So what positive influence did

you have? What was your safe haven as a kid? If there wasn't there was no one safe haven for me. What life becomes about is how someone could take you from A to a plus, from a plus to D, from D to you know, to M to M. You know, there are people who can carry you at different points in your life. It could be a teacher, it could be a parent, it could be a relative, it could

be a stranger that gives you one word. I had a lot of teachers, even the first teacher who looked at me and he was an acting coach, who looked at me and told me I was beautiful. That meant a lot to me. And the first person who just came into science class because he was a teacher and I called him in the middle of the day. He was an upward bound teacher and I said, I was having a panic attack. He came to the school. He interrupted science class. He said, I want to see Viola.

The science teacher said you can't do that. He said, excuse me, sir, I'm gonna do it. Anybody, anybody who throws you a rope and sees you and likes you. There is something about someone looking at you and liking you right, and even saying your potential when you can't see it absolutely, because sometimes you tuck yourself out of things right because of fear. But then someone tells you, like your science teacher, listen, you need to apply for this. You can do it, And you tell yourself, I can't

do it. Why would they take me, why would they accept me? But somebody else believing in you and giving you the tools like you can't make excuses anymore after a while. And you know what, very Seldoman, am I in a space And I know y'all can say the same thing, But am I in a space specially as a dark skinned black woman, and could speak my truth about what that means the isolation of that experience, Okay, because it comes at you, three old, It comes at

you through yes, white America. It comes to you through the experience and the culture of America, and it comes to you through even black culture. I'm just gonna say it, because it's called colorism. It's its own different sect of racism, and it is destructive because what you tell women in general is that beauty is a value, which it's not. Listen, I'm one of those people. I think everybody's beautiful, and I really do. I don't talk about stuff like that.

Oh yes, well the bull frogs. At a different level, there was some meaning women, But you consider it a value. And with someone who you feel has value, you pay attention to them, you pour into them. You think that they're smarter, more, valuable, more everything. So when you go up to little chocolate girls who are darker than a paper bag and you're constantly telling them they're not as cute, they have bad hair, they have this that you're putting

negative connotations. And then you can now you can literally google people who seem to have had press conferences to talk about how unattractive they find darker skinned women. I mean, here's the thing. Even if you feel that way, why are you gonna spread that? How do you think people

are gonna received that? And we know how difficult it is to get a leg up, you know in the black community, the lack of opportunity what we're running from, and then you're gonna put that on us and so and when you can't speak your truth in a room, then you feel like you have to hide yourself. It's very it's like physically painful. I want I want to ask you a couple more questions about your father, because

I found that dynamic so interested. And you said something the book, and I paraphrasing, but you said your father was an abuser who became a good partner. Yeah, and this era canceled coaches. Some people couldn't even imagine that happening. Can you explain he did? And I think he always had it in him. I think he was wrestling you know. I always feel like it got two people that you wrestle with, right, and it's who you feed. And I think he fed the more violent aspects of himself. I

think he was running from a lot. But in the last several decades, I think since I was probably in my twenties, he helped my mom raise a lot of my relatives children, and he loved my mother. He was

always there rubbing her feet. And towards the end of his life, I mean, I say towards the end, the last couple of days of his life, my mom would always say every single day he woke up, even when he was suffering from dementia, towards the end, he would say, you know, may Alice, you know, I'm sorry about what I did to you. Wow, I'm sorry. I feel like that's everything. I mean, how many people do you know

that even make amends, that even opened their mouths. And I think that that, um, I feel like that has to be acknowledged as an incredible character trait. All right, Well, don't move. We got more with Viola Davis. When we come back. It's the Breakfast Club. Good morning, Florida Morning. The craziest people in America come from the Bronx and all of Floridan. Yes, you are a donkey. The Florida man attacked an ATM for a very strange reason. It

gave him too much money. Florida man is arrested after definitely said he rigged the door to his home in an attempt to electricate his pregnant wife. Police arrested in Orlando man for talking a flimena to breakfast club bitchy donkey other day. I don't know why y'all keep letting him get y'all lected. It's not me, It's really not me.

It's absolutely y'all donkey. Today from Monday, May sixteenth, goes to a young lady named Jania Douglas of Florida, and I went, did your uncle Charla always say about the great state of Florida? The craziest people in America come from the Bronx and all the Florida in today's no exception. I got a question for you. It's a simple one. What's on your bucket list? I don't have to explain to you what a bucket list is due it's simply a number of experiences, our achievements that a person hopes

to have, Our accomplished during their lifetime. I don't think I've ever technically called things that I've accomplished bucket list items. I'm more of a vision board type of person. But we all have things we want to do in life. Okay, some can be career oriented, some can be personal, but we all simply have things we have historically wanted to do, and once we did, then we scratched them off that list. You know, we scratched them off our list. Angelie, what's

been on? It's been something on your bucket list that you scratched off? What is something on my bucket list that I scratched off a long time ago? Buying a house? Okay, y, well something on your bucket listen, you scratched off traveling in South Africa, going to South Africa. See, those are real goals. Those are accomplishments that make sense. They're productive, they're positive. Okay, they give you something to work towards. But people's bucket lists vary for a lot of reasons.

And I can almost guarantee that Jania's bucket list is different, okay than a lot of people's. All right. See, Jania was recently charged with fleeing and eluding authorities and failure to obey an order from a law enforcement officer when she refused to stop. Okay, on last Thursday morning in the Florida Keys, let me paint the picture for you. Jania was driving to Toyota today, all right. She was speeding and driving reckless near North Key Largo at about

seven forty seven am. An officer turned on his lights and siren, but Jania did not stop them. Okay, she continued southbound until stopping at a three way intersection. That's as far as that Toyota sedan could go. Now what was she fleeing for? Did she have a warrant she knew about. Did she have a car full of drugs and guns but she under the influence of any narcotics or alcohol? Was there a dead white woman in the trunk? No?

Her reasoning her motive was that she told the deputy that getting arrested had been on her bucket list since high school. I repeat, Jenia fled and eluded deputies and said she did it because getting arrested was on her bucket list since high school. Let me tell I think she's nineteen years old. If I'm not mistaken, let me be clear. Yeah, she's nineteen years old of Homestead, Florida. Listen, Yes, first thing, I want to know, Jania, what else is

on your list? Okay, I know it's your personal bucket list, but you need to let somebody read over it to see what else is on there, because damn man, all right, Also need y'all to know something. Hey uncle, Okay, uncle's Charlotte is old, brother Lennard is old. I'm forty three. My body different, I'm breathing different. If you don't know what line that movie from, you ain't black. But I'm saying all that to say, I don't understand what's happening

no more, man, I don't understand this generation. I have no clue on what is happening anymore. But I'm not going to generalize a whole generation. We live in a world where we have to rely on the most unpredictable thing on the planet to keep us all safe, and that's human behavior. The only thing that keeps us relatively safe on this planet is the actions of each other. And we are living on this third rock from the sun with people who want to scratch getting arrested off

that bucket list. So between this and folks who just wake up wanting to commit mass shootings. We doomed. What you need? I want you to know something. You clearly can do anything you put your mind too. Now, other things you might set your mind to do, other things you might put on your bucket list, might be a little more difficult than getting arrested. But I believe in you, and I hope that this situation lets you realize that anything you put on your bucket list you can absolutely do.

Any thing you set your mind to, you can absolutely do. You just need to make some adjustments to your little bucket list. Okay, once again, I'm sitting here trying to understand the logic of something that is illogical. But it's not illogical. It's just Florida. Please give Ja Neia Douglas the sweet sounds of the Hamiltones. Oh, No, you are Dogee of the Day, the Dogee oh the day. H You want to play a game? No? I don't. Actually they don't want to play a game. Don't want to

you know what? All right, I'm gonna use me you to play a game. Okay, let's play a game of guess what racing. Let's do it. Florida Woman nineteen years old dropping a Toyota today and accused the fling. A deputy says the restaurants on her bucket listens high school. Al get us what racis? But she's definitely not black because I don't think that's on our bucket list. Oh okay, that's never been on a bucket list. Okay, Lisa's definitely not black. So what do you got? I guess white? Okay,

past me something wrong? Can you please arrest dj NVY woman driving a Toyota? So they had nineteen years old of Florida wanted to get arrested because she said it was on her bucket list. Guess what RACI damn it man, I was going black until you just she just had me like thankful for a little bit. The black person don't want to get arrested, Like we don't want Yeah, we want to avoid white people. Gotta beg to the right.

But my gut told me black earlier though. N See what y'all always failed to realize when we do guess what race it is? We have different categories. Maybe one day I gotta just run down the categories. That's the category. But there's white white, you know, we have Asian, Asian, Spanish, Latino, and we have black black, right, but we also got nigga new yor Douglas is what we call a young nigga around these poor That's all this is, okay, powerful nigga.

Are you talking about Kirkland? But she can grow out of this, okay. We all have our nigga face. By the way, nigga pace is not just for black people. There's white niggas too, okay, but they just can't use the word. This was an act of Nigga Tree the Breakfast Club. Need relationship advice, need personal advice, just need real advice. Haul up nown for asking morning. Everybody's dj Envy Angela Yee, Charlomagne the guy we all to breakfast Club is time for asking ye Hello, who's this Hi?

This is Nicole, Hey, Nicole, what's your question for? Easy? Um? So, the situation is, um, I've been in a relationship for maybe like seventeen years. It just interns my relationship. He had like different sexual interests and um, I thought, I'm like the doctor doctor Natrix. I've been like control in the bedroom and he seemed like he was into it. I'd like to turn them out, but I don't really

like when they're into it. So I've been noticing more and more aware they are, Um, he is like tooking his booty out or it's like hanging and I kind of not interested in it no more. So I want to know how do I bring up the conversation with him without hurting his feelings or damasculating him because so wait, let me So the problem is that you're a dominatrix, right, but he's enjoying it too much. I want to say, yeah, that's the problem. Okay, you want him, you want him

to be like anymore? It's like, are you really now like interested in bad or you know? Okay, so in the beginning he wasn't enjoying it, No, he was. I liked what I said, I'd like to to turn him out, so he was like, have no, stay with from that area. What you think? This is kind of like okay, so you mean with you know, like putting something in his Yeah, okay, all right, Well, first of all, you said the goal is to turn someone out. It worked, yeah, did so

now that you turn him out your board. But the thing is we are like partners, and I don't know if this is gonna mess up our actual relationship. But as a dominatrix, maybe you need to find something else to do to him next to turn him out on. I mean, okay, LEK, what other things do you do as a dominatrix in this relationship, because I guess the dynamic now is messed up? Right As a dominatrix, He's supposed to be like no, I don't want that, don't

like that. He's resistant, but now he's like, yes, bring it, do it to me, peg me yes. And I noticed that before. I'm ready to actually take it. And I'm like, right now, this is now, this feels like something we both enjoy and it wasn't supposed to be like that. So are there are there are there things that you do to him and that situation, that relationship to h you know, maybe there's something else you could do where you're stepping on him with the high heels, maybe a

little light whipping anything like that. Yeah, we we do a little role play of you know, I don't want to say please or patient. We do like a little role plays, but like I said, it's just more of now like we regular doing regular sex. He's ready to to Susio Okay, what if he used a bigger deal? Though? Why we do this is so wrong? Why is it wrong? Men? Do not let women play in your butt unless they're willing to make a real commitment to you. Okay, yeah, I mean he gave you the button. Now all of

a sudden, it's too far. This is bad. Okay, they're not married, right, Actually we are married. What he gave you his butt and now you're saying it's too much? You like it and you know that, but the problem is that you did turn him out and got him to like something that he was resistant to at first, and now you don't like it anymore. So I mean, what can you do? It works? Some suggestions? If not? Like, I'm really like, I'm in a hard place because I don't want to say to him I don't want to

do it anymore. And like I said, I'm the one that started. Yeah, but who maybe you could do it. Maybe you could do the opposite now right and torture him by not doing it? Man, what you don't do to another man's but somebody else will. I mean, is it is it that you don't want to peg him anymore at all? What if he acted like, don't what if he acted like he doesn't like it? Now moving

forward and you let him? Can I ask him to like with just a little bit more, Yeah, tell him like, tell him like, look, the dynamics of what this was is not what it is now, and this is what I need you to do for me to fail turned on, He might actually enjoy that too. That's not fair, mama. If he likes something and now all of a sudden, you're supposed to be a couple, you're supposed to enjoy each other, Well, she's not enjoying it for he is right, but he might enjoy also doing the role playing of

acting like this is his first time doing it. He didn't want to do it in the first play why he broke down for her to do it, and now what he actually likes it? If he wants it, he might have to play along. You know why a lot of men don't like but play because they feel like it makes him feel like less of a man, right, It makes him feel like a sucker. Right. So so now, yeah, I've been vulnerable with you. You turn me out, and now you're telling me to stop back like a bitch.

Well guess who turned me into one? I'm just saying, anyway, have you communicated any of this to him? Um, flight hint, but not very direct, saying oh, this is how I feel at this current moment. How can you make a change, but be direct? You're a dominatrix, Be direct, okay, and tell him, look, this ain't fun for me no more. Before it was a resistant situation. You ain't one it.

Now you tuting it up that dang up daddy, make it roll like in a regular helpful situation, Like it seems like I have to take control of everything, and it's like, is that from the way our room acts? And now it's like I don't want to call him bitching out because that's I don't want to downplayed to be far from um a female dog, but like he's very now thought or he's not taking patrol as I

think a man in the house. Okay, he might think this is what you want, and if you haven't communicated that you don't like it, he might think this is the dynamic that you wanted. Charlemagne did say something real true. What you don't do, somebody else will top guys, it's the truth. You turned them onto it. So he liked. Listen, you need to let him know that this is not working for you and this is not what your intention was, so he can take charge in certain situations. Again, this

is why men don't open up. Our hearts are butts to people, because the situations like this. All right, but the main thing is that you're not telling him what it is that you need. You gotta let him much. She wanted it at first, and he didn't want to do it at first, and then he finally opened up and did it and turned out and you are doing that's all right, so listen, talk to him. Okay, you gotta work through this. You you begged the playing my butt. You're playing my butt now you look at me like

I'm soft. Let's just keep that. This is crazy. This is this is crazy Tom. What's his number? We need to call here? No, stop it, this is Tom on the spot. Yeah, don't do it? All right, all right, this is toxically. We have no problem answering any question opened up for her. He finally he enjoys it now and now she's just gonna take it back. I'll say, y'all can't get me into communicate. We open up then, y'all tell us, y'all like what we say you say

we don't share our emotions. We open up our hearts, y'all, break our hearts, y'all. Say y'all we don't want like butt play, We open our butts. Now, look to take it back. You guys have been too in to ask you. These past is crazy. Ye, this is crazy. This is foul. These toxic women. We need to protest. We get Welcome Morning, Everybody's DJ, Envy, Angela Yee, Charlemagne the Guy. We are

the Breakfast Club, so we are on vacation. So we're playing the best of so, the best of interviews, the best of moments, some of the dopest and hottest things that's been on the Breakfast Club. I like that. I like that. And today there's something special because tickets go on sale. Listen man, Tickets go on sale for the Black Effect Podcast Festival today. I'm doing my first ever

Black Effect Podcast Festival at the Brooklyn Mirage. Here in Brooklyn, we got some of your favorite shows like The eighty five South Show, All the Small, Horrible Decisions, Reasonably Shady, The Big Facts Podcast, Black Tech, Green Money with Will Lucas, checking in with Michelle Williams, The Trap Nerds Podcast and we talk back with my two home girls from South Carolina, Tan bam in Aj. All right. It's all hosted by

my man Little Duval and Nala Simone. We got food, we got drinks, all of that good stuff, and tickets are on sale right now. Go to Black Effect dot Com slash Podfest. That's Black Effect dot Com slash Podfest. If you want tickets to come to see the first ever Black Effect Podcast Festival Sunday, August twenty eighth, go to Black Effect dot Com slash Podfest right now and get your tickets. That's right, all right. Well on movie, got more best of the best of moments. Were on vacation.

We'll be back in a couple of days. All right. It's the Breakfast Slug Morning