- 16 hours ago
On this week's episode: Yara Shahidi plays a Nas edition of "Finish that Lyric', Keshia Knight Pulliam reveals 5 little-known facts about herself, Tweet dishes on her new music, we chat with health expert Michelle Mitchum and more!
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00:00Today on Essence Live, the beautiful, the talented, the brilliant, Yara Shahidi plays
00:10Finish the Lyric with Nas songs, and Keisha Knight Pulliam tells us five things we may
00:15not know about her.
00:16Plus, I got to sit down and have a one-on-one with the singer tweet, do you think she trademarked
00:21her name?
00:22And in Slater's shade, Drake, hotline bling, don't go anywhere, because Essence Live starts
00:28now.
00:30Welcome, welcome, welcome to another fabulous episode of Essence Live.
00:44I am Dana Blair.
00:45Before we get this show started, I want to remind each and every one of you to please use
00:48hashtag Essence Live on your Instagram, your Facebook, your Twitter, all of that.
00:52I want to hear from you, and you never know, I might just read your comments here live on
00:58the show.
00:59Jumping right into it.
01:00I'll be running the 2015 New York City Marathon on November 1st.
01:03Those of you who follow the show or follow me on Instagram know it's been a struggle and
01:07the struggle has been real.
01:08But, my next guest has been helping me get my health and nutrition right and tight.
01:13Please welcome Michelle Mitchum, holistic health practitioner and founder of The Orange Moon.
01:18Hi, Michelle.
01:19Hi, Dana.
01:20How are you?
01:21Good to see you again.
01:22I'm fabulous.
01:23I'm so happy to have you here, because I'm going to give our audience a little background.
01:25When I first met you about 2010, you were featured in one of our marketing campaigns, and this
01:30is when I was still on the marketing side of the game.
01:32So, now I'm on this side of the camera.
01:34So, it's always great to see you, not only because I know you as a fabulous person, but
01:38just to see that you're doing so well.
01:39Thank you very much.
01:40And see how much you've grown.
01:41So, welcome to Essence Live.
01:43Thank you so much.
01:44I appreciate having me.
01:45So, now.
01:46Okay, now we're getting to it.
01:47You've been getting me together and all the way right.
01:50But, before I start talking about the cleanses and the things that you've given me, before
01:55you were a holistic expert, what was your field of your profession?
01:58Well, my profession, it took a lot of dips and turns.
02:02However, what people don't know most about me is that I am a biologist first.
02:05Okay.
02:06And I have always had a career in the health sciences.
02:08I took a very small hiatus and did some other things, but I've always been studying in the
02:13field of health and wellness.
02:14So, you know, I was a biology teacher.
02:16I taught biology, chemistry, and physics for a while.
02:18You seem way cooler than any of my biology teachers.
02:20I know, right?
02:21Sorry.
02:22Sorry, teacher.
02:23And I also, I did a stint in fashion and marketing, but while I was teaching, I got a
02:28master's in public health.
02:29I'm sorry.
02:30Let me backtrack.
02:31So, I got my master's in public health.
02:32I worked as an assistant director to cancer patient education and wellness at Beth Israel for
02:37a few years, and then I left there and explored some other career alternatives, but I never
02:42stopped studying.
02:43So, what brought you to holistic health?
02:45Well, I became a client in holistic healing when I worked at Beth Israel, believe it or
02:48not.
02:49Okay.
02:50Because I was able to, you know, from the seat that I sat in, I was able to see the
02:54business of healthcare.
02:55Mm-hmm.
02:56And I was actually dealing with some really challenging health issues and, you know,
02:59conventional medicine suggested that I needed to take medicine for the rest of my life.
03:03Right.
03:04And I just didn't believe it.
03:05Mm-hmm.
03:06So, I just started to do some research on, you know, my condition and where it had been
03:09treated successfully because I had access to a lot of journals.
03:11Right.
03:12So, I could see these things.
03:13And it pointed me to Asian medicine.
03:17Mm-hmm.
03:18And it was there that I landed and I started to see an herbalist and she was my acupuncturist
03:22and all of that.
03:23And actually, she still is.
03:24Okay.
03:25That, for me to this day, in a lot of ways and I refer a lot of business to her.
03:28Now that I've become a practitioner, but that's how the journey started.
03:31Okay.
03:32And so, what made you say, I'm going to dedicate my life to this in full time and start the Orange
03:36Moon?
03:37Because my lifestyle changed because of what I was learning about my health and how I
03:42had been cured of my condition based on alternative healing.
03:46So, it's just sort of feeling better, living better.
03:47So, yeah.
03:48My habits changed and people became really interested in my lifestyle because it was a little left
03:53of center at that time.
03:54Okay.
03:55We're talking 20 years ago.
03:56Before it was cool to drink the grass and the smoothies and the fruits and all of that.
03:59Exactly.
04:00So, I just kind of started to answer people's questions and I realized that, you know, people
04:03really wanted the information.
04:04So, I decided to employ myself the, you know, the credentials to be able to help people help
04:09themselves and hence how I started the business.
04:11And your business, the Orange Moon, can you share with our audience what exactly is it
04:15and what can they find with your company?
04:18Okay.
04:19Well, the Orange Moon Holistic Health and Wellness is like a full holistic health and wellness
04:23experience.
04:24So, in the practice, we deal with mind, body, and spirit.
04:27Usually, people come to me or when they want to, you know, learn alternatives and how to
04:32manage adverse health conditions.
04:34That's how a lot of my clients have found me that way.
04:37And I give them, you know, tools on, well, first I assess their entire life.
04:41Right.
04:42It's not just about the physical because in my industry, we believe that mind, body, and
04:46spirit are all interconnected.
04:47So, I have to deal with all of it.
04:48So, you know, in my initial assessment, you know, it goes really deep into your personal
04:52life, your social life, your work life, your physical life, and then we talk a little bit
04:58about what you're eating.
04:59But in those questions, I'm actually looking for, you know, I'm trying to find certain
05:04triggers as to why, you know, there are physical manifestations of certain things in
05:08your body based on some of these social issues or some other things that might be going on.
05:12Okay.
05:13So, what are the benefits of a cleanse?
05:15And I want to share that with everyone because before I started this marathon training, I've
05:19never done a cleanse.
05:20I'm from Louisiana.
05:21Pork is a food group where I'm from.
05:23You understand what I'm saying?
05:24So, when I was telling you about some of my health issues and I'm just feeling a little
05:28sluggish and trying to get my mind and body right for this 26.2 miles, you recommended
05:33some things to me that I'm like, you need to do a cleanse.
05:36I've never done one.
05:37So, why would you recommend a cleanse?
05:39Well, the thing is your body is like, it's a machine, you know, and a lot of people don't
05:44realize that you have to treat it as such and if you don't treat machines very well,
05:47if you don't, you know, if you don't maintain it, it breaks down.
05:50And the same applies to your body.
05:51So, when people come to me, if they have never done a detox before, I, you know, without
05:56question, they all have to do a 21 day full body detox with me.
06:00It is not, it's not as rigid as most, but it is a little limiting.
06:05However, because in order for me to, in order for you to see the benefits of whatever it
06:11is that we do moving forward or whatever it is that you're trying to do, we need to start
06:15off with a clean slate.
06:16And so, I have to clean you out.
06:18You do have to clean this out.
06:19And also, too, I want to point out that the recipes that can be found on your website were
06:22extremely helpful as well.
06:23Oh, thank you.
06:24I have to look at some of my other options.
06:25I was like, okay, I could do this.
06:27So, I have a question for you.
06:28How does healthy food and, say, exotic minerals or vitamins really affect your body?
06:32Because here, you have, I see you have a couple things, a cleansing herb, a liver detox,
06:36which I did, it was a part of my cleanse.
06:38You did all of this.
06:39And this sea moss bladder wax.
06:40Smells atrocious, but it's worth it.
06:43So, can you tell me a little bit about that?
06:45Well, what we have here is you have this, your, can I lift this up?
06:51Sure, you can totally lift it up.
06:52I can just point to it.
06:54Okay.
06:55So, the concentrated cleansing herb is basically a mixture of probiotics and dandelion and other
07:00cleansing elements to cleanse your digestive tract, right?
07:04Okay.
07:05All of these do that, right?
07:06Well, this mainly, that's the purpose for this.
07:08The liver detox is what, is really what it says it's going to do.
07:13There are herbs and, you know, blended herbs to focus on detoxifying and strengthening your
07:18liver.
07:19And then we have the sea moss and bladder wrack mix, which is, you know, in my life it serves
07:23as a multivitamin.
07:24So, it allows your body to, it gives your body, it feeds your body the nutrients and minerals
07:32that you might have lost during this process.
07:34What do you say to people that think that eating healthy or organic is too expensive?
07:38I say that there are alternatives.
07:39I am fully aware that it is expensive and it's actually, it's an issue that's becoming
07:45really public.
07:46I don't know if you pay attention to the media.
07:49But it's a lifestyle for the affluent in most cases.
07:53However, they are, there are a lot of websites, home delivery services that are actually really
07:59inexpensive that provide people with organic foods.
08:04And Michelle, what's your website?
08:05It's www.the-orangemoon.com.
08:08So, at www.the-orangemoon.com, you can also find these recipes.
08:12Yes.
08:13You have a blog.
08:14Yep.
08:15As well as Michelle's contact information.
08:16Absolutely.
08:17Thank you so very much for stopping by.
08:18Thank you for having me.
08:19And for keeping me straight.
08:20I'm probably going to have to do another detox because after that, I do plan on picking
08:23out on everything that I want to eat.
08:25Well.
08:26Just so you know.
08:27Make sure you do one at least three times a year and it doesn't have to be for 21 days,
08:31at least seven days.
08:32We'll see about that at Essence.com.
08:33At least seven days.
08:34All right.
08:35Coming up, we have Guess the Lyric with Yara Shahidi.
08:37A little bit later on in the show, we have Slater Shade, Drake's hotline bling.
08:41But first, Marcus Houston, Drea Michelle, and Keisha Knight Pulliam star in the new DVD
08:45release, Will to Love.
08:47Keisha Knight Pulliam stopped by to share five things we may not know about her.
08:50Check it out.
08:51Keisha Knight Pulliam, and here are five things that you don't know about me, but you'd
08:56know if you were listening to my podcast, candidlykeishaonplay.it.
09:00Number one.
09:01At three years old, I was on Sesame Street.
09:03And to date, I am still the youngest person ever nominated for an Emmy Award at the age
09:08of six.
09:09Fact number two.
09:10I recently launched a workshop for parents and children who are interested in being in
09:14the entertainment business called Is My Child Star?
09:17It's really a holistic look behind the scenes about what you're really signing up for.
09:21When I was little, I wanted to be a doctor.
09:23I want to be a fireman.
09:24I want to be a nurse.
09:25Now it's I want to be famous.
09:26And then my question is famous for what?
09:29Number three.
09:30One trend that I loved in the 90s that if I ever tried again, please kill me on the spot.
09:36When I do the bangs where you like flipped them up this way, then you set them down this
09:41way, then you sprayed them with the heart spray.
09:43Clearly, I'm a Jersey girl.
09:45The fourth thing that you may not know about me is that I'm a proud member of Delta Sigma
09:51Theta Sorority Incorporated.
09:52I took half a chapter.
09:54Yes, I pledged at Spelman College.
09:57The sisterhood and the network that you have around the country is amazing.
10:03Please don't pull any pictures of me back then.
10:05We looked a hot mess.
10:06Yes, I did step.
10:08Number five.
10:09My favorite Cosby show of all time.
10:13I feel it's the same one that a lot of people love, the anniversary shows, hands down.
10:18Behind the scenes, what a lot of people didn't realize is that Mr. Cosby and I had our own
10:22little rivalry where we would compete to see who would do their part of the song the best.
10:29Clearly, I won.
10:30Get your copy of Will to Love right now, directed by Chris Stokes, starring myself and Marcus
10:36Houston.
10:37Great, feel-good, romantic comedy.
10:51Powerful.
10:52By design.
11:00Welcome back to Essence Live.
11:09I have a friendly reminder for each and every one of you out there.
11:12I want to hear from you.
11:14You are the best part of each show.
11:16Please use hashtag Essence Live on social media.
11:18Let me know what you're thinking.
11:19Give me your comments.
11:20You never know.
11:21Might see your comments right here on the show.
11:24Alright, I sat down with my girl Yara Shahidi, who is cousins with hip-hop legend Nas.
11:28We tested her on her Nas lyrics.
11:30Take a look.
11:31What's up Essence Live?
11:32Welcome back.
11:33Joining me now is no stranger to the Essence Live family, the beautiful and talented Miss
11:37Yara Shahidi.
11:38How are you?
11:39I'm good.
11:40How are you?
11:41Well, it's so nice to see you here in New York City because last I saw you, you were
11:43co-hosting with me in New Orleans.
11:45Yes.
11:46Too much fun.
11:47No such thing as too much fun.
11:48That's true.
11:49So, we have a fun little game for you.
11:51I like games.
11:52So, of course, if anyone follows you on Instagram or is a fan of yours, they know that your cousin
11:56is Nas, who is also a friend of Essence.
11:58Are you going to make me rap?
12:00We're going to ask you to finish the lyric.
12:03If possible.
12:05If possible.
12:06No pressure.
12:07No pressure.
12:08Just everybody watching.
12:09No pressure.
12:10Just the world.
12:11Just the world.
12:12And maybe we'll send it to his inbox directly.
12:15I don't know.
12:16I don't know.
12:17Just saying.
12:18No pressure.
12:19Okay, so I will give you this hint.
12:20You can.
12:21Okay.
12:22Ghetto children, do your thing.
12:23Hold your head up, little man.
12:25You're a king.
12:26Young princess, when you get your wedding ring, your man is saying,
12:29She's my queen.
12:31Oh, oh, oh, oh.
12:33Okay, okay.
12:34You got it.
12:35You got it.
12:36Okay, so this one is from If I Ruled the World.
12:38All right.
12:39Lifestyle cruising blue Bahama waters.
12:42No welfare supporters.
12:44More conscious of the way we...
12:46Raise our daughters?
12:48Yes.
12:49Yes.
12:50Okay.
12:51Two for two.
12:52All right.
12:53And that's the last one that we have for the finish of the lyric.
12:55Do you want to freestyle anything?
12:57No?
12:58You don't have to.
12:59No pressure.
13:00In my head, I just walk around the Essence office and I go,
13:02Bars.
13:03Bars.
13:04And I see if anybody's going to challenge me.
13:06Nobody really does except for Yolanda, our entertainment editor.
13:09And I'm really trying to take her toe to toe.
13:11I'm like, what?
13:12Bars.
13:13And then I just drop a piece of paper and I walk away.
13:15I'm so serious.
13:16The thing is, when I read the lyrics, it's no longer cuter to rhythm.
13:20It's just me trying to spit off things.
13:22So I memorized all right.
13:24And it's like, what you want?
13:25You want a house?
13:26You want a car?
13:2740 acres?
13:28And a mule?
13:29A piano?
13:30A guitar?
13:31Anything?
13:32A piano?
13:33I can tell.
13:34I don't know it's legal.
13:35I don't think about it.
13:36I deposit.
13:37I really don't know.
13:38I think I know you're proud of it.
13:39I think I know you're proud of it.
13:40I can't do it.
13:41I can't do it.
13:42I can't do it.
13:43I can't do it.
13:44I can't do it.
13:45I can't do it.
13:46I'm so excited to come in for the chorus.
13:47Well, thank you so very much for taking so much time with this.
13:49You're such a joy and a pleasure.
13:50I wish you nothing but everything you ever dreamed for in your future.
13:54Welcome back to Essence Live.
13:55Joining me now in studio, I have the talented, beautiful songstress Tweet.
13:59How are you?
14:00I'm great.
14:01How are you?
14:02I'm fabulous.
14:03I'm so excited that you're here.
14:04And welcome to Essence Live.
14:05Thanks for having me.
14:06I love it.
14:07Thank you for being here.
14:08There's so much that I want to cover with you.
14:10First, I mean, this might be an obvious question that you're starting to get quite a bit.
14:14Before there was Twitter, there was Tweet.
14:16So I have to ask you, where did your name come from?
14:18Well, my dad gave me that nickname when I was little.
14:20So I've always been Tweet.
14:22I don't think I heard my real name, Charlene, unless I was in trouble or something like that.
14:27Uh-oh.
14:28And now once Twitter came about, were you like, wait, hold on.
14:30Maybe I should have trademarked that.
14:32Yeah, you know what?
14:33I think I almost sometimes want to kick myself in the head because we had that conversation,
14:38Mona Scott and I, who was managing me at the time.
14:40Okay.
14:41And we were going to trademark it to that extent.
14:43But, you know, we didn't.
14:44We'll get back to it is what the conversation was.
14:47And we missed out on it.
14:49Has Mona reached out to you since then and said, told you so.
14:52No, no.
14:53No.
14:54Told you so about that one.
14:55No, no.
14:56And before we start to talk about the new album, I kind of want to take a step back.
14:59I've been brushing up on my Tweet knowledge.
15:01And I read quite a bit that you were in a girl's group prior to connecting with Missy Elliott.
15:06But you had kind of a dark period there between leaving the group and before Missy made the
15:12phone call.
15:13Can you share a little bit about that?
15:14Well, Missy and I have known each other since around 94.
15:17Okay.
15:18And when I was in the girl group, Sugar, she was in Sister and we all were together.
15:21Okay.
15:22Like, Devonte from Jodeci had created, he wanted to recreate Motown.
15:25So he had a whole collection of artists, which was Sister, Missy, Sugar, myself, Magoo, Timberland,
15:32Genuine, Playa.
15:33Oh, wow.
15:34So we all were a group called The Basement Crew.
15:36And at that time, we had spent years trying to come out as a group, you know, and all that
15:41stuff.
15:42But it didn't work.
15:43Missy left to become who she is now.
15:44Right.
15:45And I stayed with the group and we went through a lot of stuff of re-recording our album from
15:50time to time.
15:51I had a daughter at, you know, and I couldn't really support her.
15:55So that was the beginning of my depression, you know, coming home and not being able to
15:59do stuff for her.
16:00That you wanted to do.
16:01Yeah, that I wanted to do.
16:02So, but then when the call came from Missy, you know, it was heaven sent, you know, and
16:07I'm here, you know, so she played a big role.
16:10So what did you take away from that experience in terms of, I guess, about perseverance or
16:15continuing to move forward?
16:16Did it kind of tell you something like, you know what, maybe the universe intervenes just
16:18at the right time?
16:19Yeah, it does.
16:20Because actually at the moment Missy called was the day I was contemplating doing something
16:26crazy.
16:27You know what I mean?
16:28Which we, sometimes when we go through stuff, we think I wasn't going to go through with
16:33it, but them thoughts come.
16:34Right.
16:35Like maybe if I do this.
16:36That's scary enough.
16:37Yeah, scary.
16:38So for sure it was heaven sent and the universe, you know, did what it, you know.
16:43So it was at the right time.
16:45And so how did you make the transition then from working with Missy on her album and contributing
16:49vocals and creative support, if you will, to your own first album?
16:53Well, at that time, Missy flew me out to L.A. to do the vocals and I was upstairs in a
16:59room and playing the guitar and I played Motel and I was just by myself and she was hiding
17:04on the steps or whatever listening.
17:06She didn't know at the time that I could play the guitar.
17:08Oh.
17:09So she came up.
17:10She was like, what were you doing?
17:11I was like, I was playing some of my songs.
17:13She was like, you have some more songs?
17:15Because she knew I could write and all that stuff.
17:17And I played her like smoking cigarettes and Motel and she was like, oh, we're going
17:22to take you to Sylvia Rome, Elektra, and I got a deal right.
17:27Like I wasn't expecting to go out to L.A. to get a deal at all.
17:31To me, your sound is like you can listen to it in the club, but at the same time you can
17:34listen to it like sitting at home or in the car and you really start to think and you start
17:39thinking.
17:40And then we have all these hits from you and then all of a sudden you take a hiatus.
17:44What led to that?
17:45Well, in 2005, the second album, Miss Me Again, at that time, Elektra merged with Atlantic.
17:52And so Sylvia Rome wasn't there anymore.
17:55None of the team that built, you know, helped me put out Southern Hummingbird wasn't there.
18:00So it was kind of a lack of support.
18:04Okay.
18:05That you needed.
18:06Yeah.
18:07Or maybe that she had clicked with, that energy.
18:08Nothing like the first album.
18:09Nothing what Sylvia Rome was giving me.
18:11So I decided to take time off.
18:14You know, and at that time, not only was the music not going right, the music business,
18:18but my personal life wasn't going good.
18:20I wasn't really happy.
18:21You know, my love life, my boyfriend that had a baby on me, you know, this wasn't right.
18:26Yeah.
18:27Mm-hmm.
18:28So, you know, everything hit the fan, as they would say.
18:30Right, right.
18:31So I decided, you know, let me just get myself together.
18:33And God, if this is really what I'm supposed to do, I know where to come back around.
18:37You know, so that's what I had to get myself together.
18:39And during that break, what are your thoughts on kind of the present state of R&B music?
18:44Mm-hmm.
18:45Because it's changed.
18:46It's changed a lot.
18:47The sounds changed a little bit.
18:48People aren't necessarily putting out full bodies of work anymore.
18:50So what are your thoughts on that?
18:51And I think in music right now, we need to go back to the basics.
18:54Musicianship.
18:55Real instruments and not so much just...
18:58Cushing the button.
18:59Yeah.
19:00Right.
19:01Like, let's get back to that.
19:02And I think that's what's happened.
19:03We lost the soul of it.
19:04Mm-hmm.
19:05The soul of music.
19:06The musicianship is missing.
19:07So hence the new album, Charlene.
19:09Charlene, yeah.
19:10And that's going to be out top of 2016?
19:12January 22nd, 2016.
19:14You know it.
19:15And that's your birthday, isn't it?
19:16The day after.
19:17The day after.
19:18Yeah.
19:19I've been doing my Google, girl.
19:20I've been doing my Google.
19:21I was like, hold up.
19:22That's a really awesome birthday present to give yourself.
19:23Yes, it is, right?
19:24And I read that a lot of the inspiration from the album came from your journals and from your writing.
19:27Mm-hmm.
19:28So tell me a little bit about what we will hear.
19:30Any guest artists?
19:31At this point, I just want to give them Charlene because I've been gone so long.
19:35And fans just want me.
19:36So at this album, it's just going to be me.
19:38And it's, again, pages out of my diary so you'll know what I've been going through, love,
19:44loss, love, all of that.
19:45And do you work with Missy on this album?
19:46Yes.
19:47Missy has a song on there.
19:48It's called Somebody Else Will, and it talks about if you don't love me, somebody else will.
19:52Mm-hmm.
19:53And that's what it is.
19:54That's going out to my boyfriend, my ex.
19:56Message.
19:57I always like to send messages to Essence Live.
19:59Right, right.
20:00Message.
20:01Right.
20:02Great.
20:03I have no behavior.
20:04Right?
20:05And are you working with Timbaland at all on this particular album?
20:08Not this album.
20:09Now I have to ask you, because he's such a large part of Empire, do you follow Empire at
20:14all?
20:15Yes, yes, yes.
20:16Do you think we might see you there?
20:17Because you have some acting credits on your resume.
20:19If they would have me, I would love to.
20:21Yes.
20:22Why not?
20:23And of course, you're going to have to come back to Essence Live and perform some of those
20:26tracks and songs for us.
20:27Yes, I will.
20:28Thank you so very much for taking the time to sit and chat with us here on Essence Live.
20:31You have to come back.
20:32I will.
20:33Please do not be a stranger.
20:34I will not.
20:35Keep your eyes open and peeled, Essence.com, for that new tweet album, Charlene, coming
20:39out January 22nd, 2016.
20:41Don't go anywhere.
20:42More Essence Live.
20:44Essence has always supported you and what you stand for.
20:48Now imagine Essence could be even more, offering a selection of new beauty products specially curated
20:54every month so you can see what's fresh, try samples before you buy, so you know what
20:59works for you.
21:00You're getting the essentials from name brands and up-and-coming black-owned businesses.
21:05Go ahead.
21:06Be bold.
21:07Be confident.
21:08Be you.
21:09Become a member.
21:30Welcome back to Essence Live.
21:42I'm not going to waste any time.
21:43I'm just going to go ahead and jump right into my favorite part of each and every show.
21:47It's Slade or Shade.
21:49First, we have Essence Lifestyle and Relationship Editor, Sharia Jackson.
21:52Thanks for stepping in.
21:53Always.
21:54And coming back to the Essence Live stage.
21:55Yes.
21:56Thanks for having us.
21:57You got your paddle ready?
21:58Slade or Shade?
21:59Absolutely.
22:00Sitting next to her is trouble, as we found out during the commercial break.
22:03We have Kaz.
22:04He's the founder and editor-in-chief of Stash.
22:07Hello.
22:08Hello.
22:09I'm good.
22:10How you doing?
22:11Are you going to behave yourself?
22:12I'm on my best behavior.
22:13Not that the camera's on?
22:14Oh, this is what we're doing?
22:15This is what we're doing?
22:16That's what we're going to do?
22:17That's what we're going to do?
22:18She's lying.
22:19No, no, I don't lie, Essence.com.
22:21Back again, we have empowerment guru, Essence.com advice columnist and author of Brazenly Fearless,
22:26Abiola Abrams.
22:27Hello, my darling.
22:28Hi.
22:29It's always so lovely to have you.
22:30Well, thank you.
22:31I'm sorry you had to sit next to Kat.
22:32I know.
22:33I'm adjusting.
22:34I'm adjusting.
22:35I know.
22:36Shade.
22:37We're going to put it in your wire for next time.
22:38Don't worry.
22:39Yes.
22:40Somebody write that down, please.
22:41I got you.
22:42I'm severely outnumbered here.
22:43I just want you to know.
22:44And, of course, my at-home panelists, please use hashtag Essence Live and let us know what
22:48you're thinking.
22:49So, we're going to dive right into it.
22:51Earlier this week, Drake dropped his highly anticipated video for Hotline Bling.
22:55Since the video's released, social media has been all abuzz about Drizzy's eccentric dance
22:58moves, if that's what you want to call them.
23:00Let's not forget to mention the countless memes that have been everywhere.
23:03He even re-sparked the conversation of Drake's Hotline Bling track having a similar sound
23:07to rapper D-R-A-M, or DRAM's cha-cha track.
23:10So, among several tweets regarding Drake's Hotline Bling, DRAM tweeted,
23:14Yeah, I feel like I got jacked for my record, but I'm good.
23:17Drake had already been addressed, excuse me, addressed Beatgate.
23:20I don't even know if I like that name.
23:22In an interview we did with The Fader magazine.
23:24He said, you know, like in Jamaica, you'll have a rhythm and it's like everyone has to
23:27do a song on that.
23:28Imagine that in rap or imagine that in R&B.
23:31Imagine if we got one beat in every single person, including myself, this guy, this guy,
23:35all these guys had to do a song on that one beat.
23:38I think that's a poor explanation, but I want to know what you guys think.
23:42Do you think it is a slay or a shay?
23:45Hotline Bling.
23:46One, two, three.
23:47Oh, slay, slay.
23:48Oh, slay, all right.
23:49Well, Sharia put it in the air, so let's talk about it.
23:51Why is it a slay?
23:52It's strictly for the video.
23:53I mean, the song, I don't really care about all that, but the video's everything.
23:57If we get to be carefree black girls, then I love me a carefree black Drake.
24:01He is everything.
24:02I love the memes.
24:03I love it all.
24:04Even though he had to do choreography classes for that 5, 6, 7, 8, and all of this right
24:07here.
24:08I mean, my favorite is when they put the tennis racket in his hand, and he was good.
24:10Yeah, the memes are good.
24:11I was like, Serena has taught him to be.
24:12The memes are good.
24:13We'll talk about that next year.
24:14And also slay to the girls who got that easy check, because usually the girl in the video
24:19has to do all the dancing.
24:20And she just gets to sit on the steps, and here's Drake.
24:23So, Slade, you call a union.
24:25Kaz, what do you think?
24:26Well, I mean, we credit Drake with a lot of things.
24:28Like, one of them is making black people very vulnerable and emotional in their raps.
24:33And now we can kind of credit him with showing that not all black people can dance.
24:37And that's awesome.
24:38I think that's great.
24:39You're not right.
24:40Shane.
24:41But he owns it.
24:42That was Slade.
24:43No, that's not us.
24:44I'm a tall, goofy black man, just like Drake is a tall, goofy black man.
24:47And as long as you own it, that you can't dance.
24:50Do you want to dance now?
24:51I've seen you at Henny Palooza.
24:52You are not goofy.
24:53I have seen you in the streets.
24:54Listen, you see the feet.
24:55You see the bachata.
24:56It's not a game.
24:57It's not a game.
24:58You got this?
24:59Drake got that.
25:00As far as the video goes, Drake got it.
25:02But as far as the whole controversy with the song, he's just the prettiest girl at the
25:07ball right now.
25:08He can't really do anything wrong.
25:09Yes.
25:10It's like, yeah, I stole the song.
25:11Just like reggae people steal songs.
25:12And that's fine.
25:13Everyone's like, you know what, Drake?
25:14Okay.
25:15Alright, cool.
25:16Your analogies.
25:17I'm telling you, if it was anybody else or any other song in hip-hop, they would run
25:21them out of here.
25:22They would call them crazy.
25:23That's a good point.
25:24They're a rip-off.
25:25But Drake, he can't do no wrong right now.
25:27He can't.
25:28So he's just like, okay, yeah, he stole the song.
25:29I'm still gonna jam to it.
25:30Turn it up.
25:31Okay, you're gonna do one of these.
25:33Javiola, what are your thoughts?
25:34Dana!
25:35Yes!
25:36I say Slade for the exact reason you did.
25:38I am all for it.
25:39Yes, my awkward black people, this is our moment!
25:42I tried as a little black girl who was told she had one dance move.
25:48And I wouldn't know it twerk if it came across me.
25:51Can you do the body roll poppin'?
25:52I'm okay with that.
25:53Can you at least?
25:54I mean, I'm Caribbean, so I could do a dollar wine.
25:57What?
25:58That's all you need.
25:59That's all you need.
26:00I could do a dollar wine.
26:01That's all you need, girl.
26:02And that's my one move.
26:03And I say, awkward black people, this is our time.
26:06I love it.
26:07I love it.
26:08And then the empowerment coach in me says, dance like no one's watching.
26:12You better dance.
26:13You better get your one move on.
26:15Yes.
26:16I'm so mad at you, yet so happy at the same time right now.
26:17She said a dollar wine like nobody's watching.
26:19Are y'all having a one?
26:20Awkward, can I come?
26:21We're all here.
26:22I'm weak.
26:23You're here.
26:24No, no, no.
26:25I don't condone any of them.
26:26I condone.
26:27Moving on, because y'all are out of control.
26:28So, a Maryland bride, Breeland Bowman, posted a picture of her and her father, Dr. Mike Freeman,
26:34a pastor having their father-daughter dance during her October 10th wedding.
26:38Her caption read, and I quote, another one of my faves dancing with my first love.
26:42I was able to present a certificate of purity to him signed by my doctor that my hymen was still intact.
26:47Get it together, Sharia.
26:48Also, the covenant he gave me when I was 13.
26:50When you honor God, your life will automatically honor others.
26:53I love you, Daddy.
26:54Okay.
26:55Y'all should see.
26:56I wish y'all could see Estes.com their faces right now.
26:58Is this a slay or a shay?
27:00On the count of three?
27:01One, two, three.
27:02Whoa.
27:03Shade, Shade, Shade.
27:04I'm gonna come to you last, Kazim.
27:05You feel like you gotta get it together.
27:06As Viola, why is it Shade?
27:07Shade as the daughter of a minister, I have to say that this is appalling.
27:11Papa, whoever her dad is, your father and your hymen do not belong in the same sentence.
27:17Not at all.
27:18They just don't.
27:19They just do not.
27:20And if her father would have written me at Essence.com intimacy intervention column.
27:24Plug, plug.
27:25She would have said, you need to tell your daughter, no, I adore you for your worth,
27:29not your hymen or your virginity.
27:31I love you, my daughter, because of who you are inside, because of what is up here, because
27:36of what you bring to the table, not because of anything going on with your body.
27:39Yes.
27:40That's what her father should have said.
27:41Absolutely.
27:42That was a gem she just dropped.
27:43I hope y'all caught that.
27:44Mic drop.
27:45I gotta pick up the mic.
27:46Alright.
27:47Pick it up.
27:48Pick it up.
27:49So, I totally agree that your value is so not in your vajayjay, and I think it's very
27:52dangerous messaging for young women, especially to feel like if you have had sex before,
27:56all of a sudden you're not as worthy.
27:57And so I think it's very dangerous that you don't get a prize, because I mean, of course
28:01we want you to respect your body, but it's not to put yourself on some shelf as if, you
28:05know, that's not where your value is.
28:07You want to be worthy as a person.
28:08And it's also, as Abiela said, just from a medical standpoint, there are people who've
28:12been through trauma, there are people who played soccer in school, so all of a sudden
28:15having a hymen or not doesn't mean you have any more value.
28:18Had to fight the school bully in the seventh grade.
28:20Oh, that was too much information.
28:23I'm sorry.
28:24You see?
28:25I mean, it's weird for me, because I feel like one of these days I'm going to have a
28:29child and it's probably going to be a daughter.
28:31And, you know, if you're daddy's little girl, there's things that I'm just going to take
28:35your word for.
28:36You know what I'm saying?
28:37There's some things I don't need to know.
28:38Is that something you would even want to know?
28:39I don't even want to know.
28:41I'm not going to assume the worst anyway, because...
28:43Wait, I have to ask you.
28:44I'm sorry to cut you off to ask this.
28:45If you were marrying that young lady as her husband, how would you feel knowing that she
28:51had that conversation with your father-in-law?
28:53There's a few questions I want to ask.
28:55First of all, I mean, not for nothing.
28:58I mean, I'm glad she's a beautiful Christian woman and, you know, she's proven to the Lord
29:02that she's pure and through her doctors that she's pure and everything.
29:06But, I mean, nobody wants to take a car out the lot without test driving it first.
29:11What?
29:12See, now you're just walking through a whole other territory.
29:16There's a high probability.
29:19I mean, statistics show that, you know, the worst...
29:21Don't worry.
29:22We're going to put your Instagram handles up so people can let you know their thoughts on that.
29:25Please, please, let me know.
29:26Your wife is having a car.
29:27Please let me know.
29:28Can you please finish that sentence?
29:29The statistics show what?
29:30The statistics show what?
29:31The statistics show that divorce, like, is more likely than, you know, a long-saving marriage.
29:35Not based off of that.
29:36Not based off of that.
29:37But I'm saying, like, there's going to be a time where, you know, you're going to do that
29:42with your woman, with your wife.
29:43And if it's not, you get bored or just...
29:45I'm going to go ahead and stop you now and I'm going to move on to the third subject.
29:47Save him.
29:48No, no, it's cool.
29:49I stand by my words.
29:50I stand by my words, America.
29:51I can't even deal with him.
29:53I'm just saying.
29:54We are going to check in with our Facebook fam.
29:56I wouldn't do it.
29:57Tara Josie says, saving yourself is great and I agree, but why we give these papers to
30:01your dad?
30:02Why give papers at all?
30:03Should be something discussed with your future husband.
30:06A.K.A.
30:07Not Kaz.
30:08Thank you, Tara, for trying again.
30:09Yes.
30:10It's been reported that fans who have attended Janet Jackson's Unbreakable Tour, I have,
30:14and posted snippets of her concert to their Instagram accounts have found their videos
30:17deleted or their accounts entirely deactivated.
30:20Fans claim they received emails from Instagram saying, a third party reported that the content
30:24violates their copyright.
30:25A representative for Instagram addressed the issue asserting that the removals were not deliberate.
30:29Instead, they were caused by a system bug which Instagram had fixed and was in the process of restoring the impacted account.
30:35Mm-hmm.
30:36Ms. Jackson took to her Twitter page to also address the issue.
30:39She tweeted, my team is passionate about protecting the intellectual property we are creating for the tour and possible future projects.
30:46It was never their intention, acting on my behalf, to have social media accounts removed.
30:50Permitting the use of long clips does present a contractual problem for these projects.
30:53I hope you understand.
30:55Janet later continued to say that she's working with her team to change their approach and allow fans to engage socially with her and their videos from concerts.
31:01So, Cherie, I see your face.
31:04That was a long tweet.
31:05I know, it's a lot.
31:06I know!
31:07I can't get more than 140 characters, but apparently, if you're Janet, you can get in a dissertation.
31:12Okay.
31:13You know what I heard from that?
31:14I am married to a prince and you will read my legal statement.
31:16I heard that on the Twitter.
31:18So, what do y'all think, Slade or Shade?
31:20Slade.
31:21Slade, Slade, Shade.
31:22Cause he might let you start, Slade.
31:23I mean, there is no power like a Jackson family power and I think that's the ultimate flex.
31:28The Jackson family power don't stop?
31:29Yeah, absolutely.
31:30I mean, like, any time somebody goes to a concert, what's the first thing that happens?
31:33Your whole Instagram feed is taking over.
31:34Right.
31:35Buy pictures and videos of concerts.
31:37But to have that power to just be like, you know what?
31:40All this stuff is getting off now.
31:42I'm like, boom.
31:43Shut down the internet.
31:44I'm like, amen, Janet.
31:45Flex that muscle.
31:46Flex that Jackson family muscle.
31:47I'm so mad as you should be.
31:48I'm with it.
31:49What did you say?
31:50As a Jackson.
31:51And this shade is not for Janet.
31:53This is actually for her team.
31:55Because we would love to see what's going on at a concert.
31:57And 15 seconds on Insta is not a full video.
32:00I understand that YouTube, but people want to get a taste.
32:02And if you are going, it's not like, oh, I watched it on Instagram.
32:05I'm not going to go.
32:06So it's exciting for the fans who aren't able to come.
32:08But also for people who might be going.
32:10Like, I'm going in Paris with Up In The Air.
32:12I can't wait to see Janet.
32:13But it's exciting to see.
32:14So it is a little bit shade.
32:15In this day and age, people want a little bit.
32:17Whet the appetite, Ms. Jackson.
32:18I thought it was a good thing to have everybody talking about.
32:20Yeah.
32:21It's a good buzz.
32:22Abiola, you get the final word on this one?
32:23I say, Slade.
32:24I have caught myself so caught up in a concert or event
32:27recording it for the Insta that I'm not there, present, enjoying it.
32:31I understand what you're saying.
32:32And if you want to steal my girl Janet's intellectual property,
32:35then your Instagram will get snatched.
32:37I think that is Slade all day.
32:39Post a picture of me I don't like.
32:41Snatched!
32:42I know, right?
32:43I was like, who do I call?
32:44And then I'll end up deleting my own account on Instagram
32:46because I'm not that tech savvy.
32:47But thank you all of you for joining us.
32:49Kasim, I don't know if we're going to have you back,
32:51but Sharia and Abiola are definitely going to have you back.
32:54And thank you to all of you out there watching and streaming us live.
32:57Of course, we know you're not doing it from work
32:58because you would never do that.
33:00Make sure to tune in next week for an all-new Essence Live
33:02and some Halloween fun.
33:03I'll see you next week.
33:04Same time, same place.
33:05Moi, same fabulous host.
33:07I'm Dana Blair.
33:08Bye-bye.
33:17Bye-bye.
33:18Bye-bye.
33:19Bye-bye.
33:20Bye-bye.
33:21Bye-bye.
33:22Bye-bye.
33:23Bye-bye.
33:24Bye-bye.
33:25Bye-bye.
33:26Bye-bye.
33:27Bye-bye.
33:28Bye-bye.
33:29Bye-bye.
33:30Bye-bye.
33:31Bye-bye.
33:32Bye-bye.
33:33Bye-bye.
33:34Bye-bye.
33:35Bye-bye.
33:36Bye-bye.
33:37Bye-bye.
33:38Bye-bye.
33:39Bye-bye.
33:40Bye-bye.
33:41Bye-bye.
33:42Bye-bye.
33:43Bye-bye.
33:44Bye-bye.
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