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00:00I know that I've had a blast. Our next panel is how athletes are beauty's best kept secrets.
00:07Y'all be playing with the athletes. They be having on the 40-inch bust downs too.
00:11They be getting their nails done too. Beauty beyond the sport.
00:16The best kept secret is how athletes self-care and secure endorsement deals.
00:21They be getting to the cheddar. They be getting to the bread.
00:24For our last panel, we're taking the top athletes beyond the technique to discuss how they immerse themselves in the beauty world.
00:34So, without further ado, giving us the insight on how athletes really are beauty's best kept secret,
00:41please give it up for Dr. LaKeitha Poole.
00:49Hey, hey, Essence Fest.
00:54All right. I'm so excited about this panel. Y'all excited?
01:00Okay. So, obviously, we're talking about, we're in BeautyCon, so we're talking all things beauty.
01:06But the twist is that we're talking about athletes. We're going to feature some of our top athletes.
01:10So, as we know, and I'm a licensed therapist, so self-care is always at the core of what I do.
01:15And I actually think beauty is a part of being able to think about your wellness.
01:19And so, the center of self-care is not only always about your beauty routine, but also securing the bag to find what your regime is.
01:27So, we have some of our most elite athletes here to share insight on what beauty exists for them when they're not balling.
01:35So, first up, we have Taya Cooper.
01:37Taya is an American professional basketball player who's a free agent in the Women's National Basketball Association.
01:47She played for the Los Angeles Sparks.
01:49She played college basketball for the Baylor Lady Bears, South Carolina Gamecocks, and the Tennessee Volunteers.
01:56She's a Georgia girl, too.
01:57And a CEO of an extension company, extension hair company.
02:02Next up, Flau J. Johnson.
02:07Hailing from the vibrant city of Savannah, Georgia.
02:10She got some fans in here from Georgia, obviously.
02:12Flau J. has emerged as a true powerhouse, exemplified by her championship status as an LSU women's basketball player.
02:19Go Tigers!
02:21Flau J.
02:21Her unwavering talent transcends boundaries, making waves in both the music and sports realms, solidifying her position as a multifaceted superstar.
02:30And last but definitely not least, Jordan Childs.
02:33A highly accomplished Olympic gymnast, known for her incredible athleticism, versatility, and dedicated to the sport.
02:41In 2021, Jordan played a crucial role in helping the U.S. women's gymnastics team win a silver medal at the Topio Olympics.
02:47She led the UCLA gymnastics team through an outstanding 2022-23 season this year, before beginning her training for next year's Olympics in Paris.
02:57Jordan's impressive achievements, her dedication to her sport, and her positive impact on and off the mat, make her a true role model and an inspiration to aspiring gymnasts and fans around the world.
03:07Let's give it up for our panelists.
03:08So, ladies, I want to get right to the point, because obviously this panel is so unique in having athletes to talk about beauty, because we know that you all are changing the face of the game in every single way, through your sports, but also in all of your ventures away from sport.
03:25So, I kind of want to get the scoop.
03:27I'm a therapist.
03:28I usually talk to people in private, and so to get to have an open conversation is actually pretty fun.
03:32So, like I mentioned earlier, beauty, to me, serves as a form of wellness, but tell me a little bit about each of you.
03:39Like, when you're not immersed in your sport, how do you practice self-care?
03:43What does that look like?
03:45And anybody can go.
03:47I go.
03:48I take, like, days where I just don't do nothing.
03:52I try not to do nothing.
03:53I like to just sit home, on the game, making you.
03:58Yeah, like, just chilling.
03:59Like, nobody can call me.
04:01I tell my mom I'm not talking about no business.
04:04And I just really just, you know what I'm saying, just chill by myself.
04:06I like to play Fortnite and just vibe, like, for real.
04:08Yeah.
04:10I think for me, it's I have to take a nap.
04:13I have to sleep no matter what.
04:15I just got to, you know, kind of like Flajie was saying, just take time to ourselves and just being able to separate the two from our business and sport and just, like, our daily life.
04:24Yeah.
04:25What about you, Taylor?
04:26For me, I feel like you look good, you feel good.
04:29So I'm going to get my nails done, my hair done, go to the spa.
04:33I'm always with my sister and my family.
04:35So it's, like, just family time and then pampering myself.
04:39Yeah.
04:39All of y'all, I mean, it's kind of all forms of pampering when you think about it, whether it's unplugging, taking a nap, being able to get sort of dolled up, pampered up.
04:47So what element of all of that could you not live without?
04:51Like, for instance, some people have their beauty regimens and beauty routines and those things that kind of help them wind down.
04:57What are those things that you cannot do without?
05:00Is it the nails?
05:01Is it the naps?
05:02Is it the hair?
05:02I would have to say I got to take my nap, so I would have to be the beauty part of it.
05:10I can go days without getting my nails or my hair done or something like that, but I really do need sleep.
05:15As being a gymnast, it's a 24-7 sport.
05:19Like, no matter what, we just always are going and going.
05:22And so I can't let the beauty go.
05:25I let the beauty go.
05:26Beauty sleep's a real thing.
05:27That's okay.
05:28I love that.
05:29For me, I got to have my hair done all the time.
05:34I love having my hair done.
05:35I feel like that just gives me that little spunk of energy I need.
05:38So, yeah, that's the hair for me.
05:40Some hair.
05:41Well, she said hair, so if my hair is done, I got to get my lashes done.
05:48So whatever the missing thing is, then okay.
05:51So let's switch gears a little bit from, like, the self-care part to more of the beauty.
05:55As athletes, you know, beauty sometimes can be difficult to maintain.
05:59So, like Jordan was just saying, like, being a gymnast, it's around the clock.
06:02Both of you have played basketball.
06:04Like, those things kind of take up a lot of your time.
06:07What does that look like, I guess, when it becomes difficult to squeeze in those routines?
06:12How do you prioritize?
06:13How do you make time for it?
06:14Because I know for me, I work in athletics.
06:16And so I schedule out braid appointments and nail appointments, you know, well in advance
06:21because seasons are going on all the time for me.
06:24So what does that look like for y'all?
06:27Well, as a gymnast, chalk is a huge thing that kind of messes up, like, our skin and our hair.
06:33So having protective styles is actually really, really hard because not only if we have box braids
06:39or we have, you know, a sew-in or something, it can change the balance of what we're doing.
06:44So for me, I had to, I grew up, my sister is actually my HMU,
06:49so she nonstop just was doing my hair, doing everything that I could so I could get used to that.
06:54But as a gymnast, it's really, really hard actually to keep the hair situation, like, okay.
07:02It's a constant this or that type deal.
07:05So it's the hair for a gymnast.
07:08Okay.
07:09Hair.
07:09What else we got?
07:10Oh, yeah, I don't play.
07:11All that goes in the schedule.
07:13I'm not finna play.
07:14Part of the routine.
07:14Yeah, like, that's in the routine.
07:16I gotta get my nails done.
07:17I gotta get my hair done.
07:18I gotta get my lashes done.
07:19Because that's the only way I'm gonna operate right.
07:22You know what I mean?
07:22Yeah, you can feel better when you look better.
07:24You feel me?
07:24I got you.
07:25You know what I'm saying?
07:25Look good.
07:26So I put it in the schedule.
07:28You know what I'm saying?
07:29Like, we get off days.
07:30So my off days.
07:31Yep.
07:32Yeah, I'm getting pampered, for sure.
07:33See, we don't get off days.
07:35We get no, like, it's a not, I kid you not, it's like a nine to five every day.
07:40No off days, no nothing.
07:41So putting it into a schedule, it's really hard.
07:45Well, J feels bad for you.
07:46Yeah.
07:47I do.
07:47I ain't gonna lie.
07:48Like, ooh, I'm gonna cry.
07:50Taya, what you got?
07:52You can cancel whatever is going on.
07:54If my hair not done or I got a broken nail, three eyelashes, you can cancel it.
07:59I'm not going unless I'm up to par.
08:01So it's not even happening.
08:02Yeah, you can cancel it.
08:03Okay.
08:03Got it.
08:04It is number one priority.
08:06Okay.
08:06So then thinking about those sort of things, and you all have had, you know, a great,
08:12I think, number of experiences now in the beauty industry in different ways, different endorsement
08:17opportunities, Sports Illustrated, like, all of these sort of opportunities that you've
08:21had.
08:21Has there been something that's been, like, a favorite beauty secret, a favorite piece
08:26of, like, how you see yourself that makes you feel sort of on top of the world and most
08:30confident?
08:31And I know you all named some of your favorite things to upkeep, but, like, is there a secret
08:35that you would want other people to know, to think about?
08:41Go ahead, Sports Illustrated.
08:45Honestly, I would say no matter how you look, whether people think you pretty or people don't,
08:51it's, like, the way you feel inside really matters the most.
08:55So your family and who you, like, growing up with is the people that kind of build your
09:00confidence up.
09:01So I would say keep the people that really, like, believe in you and, you know, encourages
09:07your beauty, whatever that is to you, like, keep them around because negative comments
09:12can ruin that for you, like, at a young age.
09:14So I would say from babies to grown, like, keep the people around you that is positive input.
09:20Yeah.
09:22Jordan?
09:23Mine is I always have to look at myself in the mirror and say three words, whether they're
09:29what I'm grateful for, whether it's something about myself that I really, really love, because
09:34I just going off of the positivity that you, like, put into yourself is the best thing that's
09:39going to create that beauty and that piece of you that's going to glow no matter what.
09:44So every morning I just look at myself, whether I'm, like, half awake or looking good, I always
09:50tell myself, you know, you're beautiful or, you know, you have a good, like, support system
09:56around you, just something that is always going to keep my energy up.
09:59Yeah, the affirmations.
10:00I love that.
10:01The therapist in me loves that, obviously.
10:02I'm biased.
10:03What you got, Flo?
10:04I think, um, I just try to be, like, pouring into other people, you know what I'm saying?
10:08Like, I think that's big for me because, like, a lot of people, they always, you know, I
10:13feel like making other people feel good, like, you know what I'm saying?
10:16That made me feel good because I feel like everybody's beautiful, you know what I'm saying?
10:19So I just love to pour into other people.
10:21Yeah, I love everything from keeping, you know, staying true to the people that have
10:26grounded you your whole life to being able to have positive self-talk to then being able
10:30to kind of give that back out.
10:32So almost like completing the cycle around being able to have positivity around you everywhere.
10:37I love that between the three of you.
10:39So let's get into a little bit of a deeper conversation about kind of the dollars and deals
10:44related to beauty and self-care, particularly as black female athletes.
10:49What are the things that you all consider?
10:51Because I mentioned many of you have, you know, different opportunities that you've
10:55had from Sports Illustrated to Nike to your own products, your CEO, Taya, over there.
11:00And so what are the things that go into you considering brands when they come to you asking
11:06you to endorse their products?
11:07What are the things that are, they matter to you?
11:10Their values, like, what they got going on.
11:13Because if it don't align with what I got to do, then it just don't really make sense.
11:16You know what I mean?
11:17So just like something that I really want to represent.
11:19Like, do I really want to post this on my page?
11:21Like, that's how I think.
11:22Like, if I partner with them, I'm really going to put this in my feed.
11:25So I think that, like, you know what I'm saying?
11:27Just really liking the brand for real, for real.
11:29Yeah.
11:29It's something that you do every day.
11:31I don't want a lip gloss deal because I love lip gloss.
11:33You know what I'm saying?
11:34I see you shining.
11:35I see it.
11:35Yeah.
11:38I love that.
11:39So making sure it's something that you align with, their values, something that you actually
11:43would want other people, if you tell them to go get it, to go get it.
11:45Right.
11:46Yeah.
11:48For me, I feel like a lot of brands, you know, they come and they be like, we got this much,
11:54da, da, da.
11:54And then there's some brands where it's like, they try to go all out for you.
11:58So really just the ones that show the most love for real.
12:00And it's like a longevity thing.
12:02It's not like, post this for two days and then you'll get paid 30 days later.
12:05Like, what?
12:06Yeah.
12:06So yeah, it's really longevity and then, you know, good people, relationships, like
12:11where it's like, you can use me and I can use you when I start my own company or whatever
12:16the case may be.
12:17So yeah, you're building upon an opportunity.
12:19So it's not just a one-time thing, but it's creating that long-term effect of not only
12:23just one product, but actually maybe something that turns into something much bigger later,
12:27align, all kinds of other opportunities.
12:29I love that.
12:31Well, they kind of hit both of the spots I was going to say, but being authentic, making
12:36sure you know who you're giving the brand to and knowing what their brand is within
12:42their community.
12:43Like she was saying, just, you know, making sure I'm not just going to post some random
12:47thing on my story if I'm not really feeling it or something like that.
12:50And so it's just being authentic.
12:52Like, I want to know that you're going to be authentic to who I am and then I'll give
12:55that same authenticity back to you.
12:58Yeah.
12:59So then tell me a little bit about how beneficial or effective, like, these deals can be,
13:04right?
13:04We might have some young athletes in the audience who are considering what this might
13:08look like for them.
13:10How has that either changed the way you have navigated your career, obviously as an athlete,
13:14but even outside of that, because all of you are also businesswomen.
13:17So what has that looked like for each of you?
13:21For me, as a gymnast, we have, we're not like basketball players or something where they,
13:28you know, they can go to the women's NBA and all that stuff.
13:31I have to choose whether I want to go pro or not.
13:34So when the NIL actually became a thing in the college realm, I was able to actually have
13:40the opportunity to do both my elite era and also my college.
13:46And so the benefits that I get out of it is me giving my college, you know, my name, image,
13:51and likeness and supporting what they want to see in my life, but also in the USA world.
13:56It's just being able to use my name, image, and likeness over there as well.
14:00So the beneficial part of it is just knowing that people are always going to see you no
14:04matter what and just understanding that they're always going to see you're true, like you're
14:09true to who you are and not just holding back because you're doing one side.
14:13Yeah.
14:14Other things?
14:15I would say that a lot of people make social media to be like this thing where like if
14:24you play a sport and you can't be on social media and if you do on social media and you
14:28don't want to play a sport, it's like you can do both.
14:31And social media can change your life.
14:33Like sports are not, it's not certain for everybody.
14:37Like you get injured, you get set back, you get cut, you get waived.
14:40Social media, you don't get that.
14:42That's your money.
14:43That's you and they can't take that away from you.
14:45So I would say to all the young girls and grown people out here too, like it's people
14:50that's older, younger on social media and their lives have changed and you're literally
14:54just marketing yourself.
14:56Nobody can take that from you.
14:58So I would say use it and use it.
15:01Yeah.
15:02I'm going to piggyback off what Taya said.
15:04Build your brand and get your coin, cuz.
15:07I ain't going to lie.
15:08On social media, they're throwing that bag.
15:10So I always tell like, I tell like athletes, like build your brand.
15:15Like, you know, even when you coming up as a youngin', like it's a market for kids too.
15:18You feel me?
15:19So build your brand.
15:20That's what I did coming out the rap game.
15:22You know what I'm saying?
15:23I was a rapper first, but I figured out how to engineer into going into being an athlete.
15:28So now I'm able to use my leverage in social media.
15:31And it's one of the best things I ever experienced.
15:33You know, as far as like having NIL, being able to partner with big brands, like use that media.
15:39I'm trying to tell y'all.
15:41Be careful though.
15:42Be careful.
15:42Because if your image is a little dirty, you got to clean it up.
15:46On me.
15:46On me.
15:47You got to be smart.
15:47It could go left or right.
15:49So be careful.
15:50Talk to a Taya.
15:51But it also sounds like, based on that, it's never too early to start.
15:56So if there are young athletes listening, like, it's clean up.
15:59Clean up maybe the image a little bit.
16:00Clean it up.
16:00Yeah, yeah.
16:01Or at least find your authenticity, like you were saying.
16:04So if that's who you are, then know that that comes with having to navigate this world.
16:09Most definitely.
16:09Because once that image is out there, it's out there.
16:11It's out there forever.
16:12Yeah.
16:13When are y'all about to say something?
16:14I didn't want to cut you off.
16:15I was just going to say, like, for younger athletes, just be smart.
16:18You know what I'm saying?
16:19Be very smart because whatever you put out there is going to be out there.
16:22And you want to make sure that your brand is something that could be clean, that you
16:26could go in the corporate world with.
16:28You know what I'm saying?
16:28Like, you want to be able to be in multiple rooms.
16:30You don't want to be boxed in.
16:31I feel like you put yourself in a box when you, like, limit your audience.
16:35Yeah.
16:35I was going to say, you don't have to start big.
16:38Like, you know, everybody would be like, think big.
16:39You're not thinking big.
16:40You can start small.
16:41People are getting paid to make their bed.
16:43I know y'all see them get ready with me.
16:45They're getting paid to make their bed.
16:47And there's comforter.
16:48There's a lot of companies out here where social media is starting to be a commercial.
16:52So, like, you could just start by making your bed every day if you got a nice comforter
16:57set.
16:58So, just start somewhere.
16:59You don't have to have it all figured out.
17:01It's literally social media, and it don't got to be that serious.
17:04Yeah.
17:04So, one of the things that I really wanted to talk about was what does that look like
17:10to make your own rules?
17:11Kind of like that, right?
17:12Like, it doesn't have to be what you've seen other people do, but instead figure out what's
17:16your thing, what's your unique kind of thing you bring to the table.
17:20And so, obviously, you know, all of us up here identify as black women, and there's a
17:25lot that comes with being black women in sport and some expectations that people have.
17:30And so, a lot of times we end up having to make our own rules, whether it's our hair,
17:34like having the box braids and making that decision of when to get them, when not to get
17:37them, based on just the job you have versus being able to also kind of carve your own lane.
17:43And again, y'all have all done that as businesswomen, but what does it look like to really show
17:48up as the uniqueness of who you are?
17:50Where did y'all get that from?
17:51Was that taught to you?
17:52Did your family instill that in you?
17:55Where did you get that sort of, because all of y'all have done that.
17:58I think it's just like having that confidence to be able to walk in a room and do you whenever.
18:04You know what I'm saying?
18:05Like, I've always, I was raised to like, when you step in the room, you got to own the room.
18:10You know what I'm saying?
18:11And so it's always just been in me to be myself.
18:14Like, I can't, I can't change or I can't conform just because of the center I'm in.
18:19I feel like you got to embrace that because it's unique to you.
18:22That's what I think.
18:23I agree.
18:26Mine's kind of the same.
18:28I was, I was taught to, to be the best version of yourself.
18:32You know, you can't be the, as people would say, the next Simone Biles or the next Dominique
18:38Dawes.
18:38You can only be the next version of yourself.
18:40So my mom always used to tell me, you know, wake up, walk into a room or wherever you're
18:45at and just be the next version of who Jordan Childs is.
18:48Because at the end of the day, you can try to be somebody.
18:50You can try to step in their little footsteps, but you can only be yourself at the end of
18:56the day.
18:57So I would just say that, just be who you want to be.
19:00Nobody can take that away from you.
19:02Just stay positive and always have that right support system around you as well.
19:05Because that's definitely a big thing.
19:07Yeah, that's the core.
19:09I like that.
19:10Are we talking about social media?
19:12Social media or otherwise.
19:13It doesn't matter.
19:14Just carve your own lane however you want.
19:15Even in business for you, because you've done that.
19:17Oh, carving your own lane.
19:19I would have to say, you just have to stop caring.
19:23Like, you literally have to stop caring about other people.
19:26Because there's some people that's close to you that's going to tell you, like, a million
19:29ways how not to do what you want to do instead of a million ways how to do it.
19:33So you really got to just be careful with who around you and who you pay attention to.
19:37When it comes to comments, when it comes to people even bringing you stuff that's close
19:40to you, it's like, you don't even want to see certain things.
19:43And I would just say, just filter out the, I was about to say a bad word.
19:48Just filter out the negative things.
19:50And, you know, just stay true to yourself.
19:52Like, don't change for nobody.
19:54Stick to your morals.
19:55Don't be trendy.
19:56Don't go with all the trends.
19:57Like, really just stay true to who you are and stand on it.
20:00Don't let nobody take that and change the way you think, the way you move, the way you
20:05are.
20:05Just be authentically yourself.
20:07And people will gravitate to you and love you for who you are instead of somebody you
20:11got to wake up and try to put on every day.
20:13Yeah.
20:14The last point that Taya brought up, I think, is so true in that authenticity now sells more.
20:20And so there was an era.
20:22I know for me, I think I'm like a decade older than y'all.
20:25And so, like, Flojo and those folks, you named Dominique Dawes, those were my people.
20:30And, like, they carved a path, I felt like, with the nails and the hair that was the era
20:35also, too, of, like, the 90s, right?
20:37And so now we're in this era of the 2020s, in a way.
20:41And so y'all are doing that in so many ways that have changed the narrative.
20:46But they're still critiques.
20:48How do y'all handle the critiques?
20:50Almost like what Taya was ending with saying, like, you have to stop caring.
20:53But what does that look like for people?
20:55I feel like everybody's going to have something to say.
20:58You know what I'm saying?
20:58Like, they're going to call you everything in the book.
21:01You know what I mean?
21:02Whether you're doing good, whether you're doing bad, whether you're shining, whether you're
21:06you know what I'm saying?
21:07They're going to have something to say.
21:08So that's why I always, like, I'm going to just do me regardless.
21:11Because regardless of what I do, I ain't going to never be.
21:14You know what I'm saying?
21:14So that's the kind of mindset that I got with it, from social media to anything.
21:18To just, you know what I'm saying?
21:19Like, everybody's going to have something to say.
21:21Yeah.
21:22Just let them talk.
21:24Let them say what you're going to say.
21:26I would say how you do one thing is how you do everything.
21:28So if you're the type of person that'll get a million hearts and loves, I love yous, and
21:33you pay attention to three people saying you ugly, it's like, that's just how you are as
21:37a person.
21:38Like, you paying attention to the negative when you got a million positive things going
21:43for yourself.
21:43So really just work on yourself, honestly.
21:45And just realize, like, the only thing you can change is you.
21:50You can't change nobody else, how they feel about you.
21:52Like, that's the only thing you can change.
21:53So I would say just worry about yourself, for real.
21:56Yeah.
21:56Mine is, I like to challenge myself.
22:01So if there's a negative comment or something, whether it's on social media, whether somebody
22:04said it to me in person, I'm going to prove them wrong.
22:07Because you can't, you can only control what you do within yourself.
22:11Like Tava was saying, like, you are who you are, and if you're just focusing on one situation,
22:16then that's the person you want to, you're going to be.
22:19So I just say all the time, it's all this, I call them bully bots, because that's what I
22:24see it as, like, it's a bully bot, and they're trying to, you know, get at you, get at you,
22:28nag at you, and everything like that.
22:30And it's just, like, I have so much more in me to prove them wrong.
22:34So I just prove people wrong all the time.
22:37Yeah.
22:37I love the idea of, like, recognizing that people will try to bait you.
22:41They'll try to find a way for you to, like, now engage in their negativity when in actuality,
22:46you weren't even thinking about that.
22:47And like Taya said, it's like, if you focus on that, then of course that's what's going to consume you.
22:51But you try not to.
22:53So kind of our last kind of round of questions or things to think about for our folks listening today.
23:00When you think of some of the things, all of y'all, you know, I joked about being a decade older,
23:05but, you know, y'all have done a lot.
23:07You know, we have 19, 22, 26.
23:11Did I get those ages right?
23:12And so, I mean, y'all have done a lot.
23:15And so being able to, I know I put y'all age on blast, I'm sorry.
23:17But is there something already in the time that you've been doing what you've been doing,
23:22both sport-wise as well as, again, all of y'all have become businesswomen, that you're most proud of?
23:28What's the highlight right now in your highlight reel?
23:31I just signed with Nike.
23:33I saw that.
23:34Congratulations.
23:37It's been a dream of mine ever since I was little.
23:40And, like, Nike has ran in our family.
23:42So it's like a full circle moment.
23:43So being able to sign with such, like, a huge company out in this world that everybody knows of is pretty cool.
23:50Like, now to say that I'm a Nike athlete, I'm just, I'm proud of myself because I've gone through so much,
23:56not just within my sport, but also within my life, just to get to that point.
24:00That's awesome.
24:01Congratulations on that.
24:02Yeah, thank you.
24:04Congratulations.
24:05Oh, what am I proud of?
24:11Oh, I'm proud.
24:12My project is going to be dropping July 14th.
24:14It's called For My Yelp, Yelp, Rado of Laws.
24:16Yeah.
24:18It's going to be, I've been working on it for a long time.
24:21I'm proud of that.
24:22I'm about to be a homeowner.
24:23I'm about to buy me a house.
24:25I'm excited about that.
24:26I just bought one.
24:27I'm excited, bro.
24:27Yeah.
24:28I'm excited, Ryan.
24:29I'll get to own a piece of land.
24:30That's dope.
24:31You know what I mean?
24:32And July, I'll be doing, like, a back-to-school partner with everybody that I did an NIL deal with.
24:39So, like, Puma, JBL, DTLR, we're going to be putting together, like, a store for kids to go back to school.
24:48They're going to be using, like, Flaje money with the help of experience.
24:51They're going to be getting credit, you know what I'm saying, to shop in the store and get whatever they need.
24:55So, I'm excited about that thing, trying to just make some change.
24:58That's amazing.
24:59Solid.
25:00Congrats, congrats, congrats.
25:05I would have to say having multiple streams of income.
25:10When you grow up playing a sport your whole life, you know, if it don't go your way, people kind of, like, lose their identity and think that it's just over.
25:18But in the mix of playing basketball, I was just able to have multiple streams of income, and the bag never stopped for me.
25:24So, now that I'm making money in my sleep, I would say I'm most proud of that, and then having my own company now and venturing off with that.
25:32Yeah, a big boss.
25:34You work for you.
25:35I love that.
25:36So, if you had a dream opportunity, because y'all have talked about the ones that you're most proud of, and maybe you would have said Nike, but is there, are there other things that, you know, you just, you're like, okay, what's next for you?
25:49What's the big thing?
25:50Flo-Jay just talked about her project that's coming, so it might have been that, but what's next?
25:53What else?
25:56I just linked up with Wycliffe, and we're going to be working on some crazy music.
26:00So, that's probably, like, what I'm most, most, most excited about right now, like, for the future.
26:05That's amazing.
26:05Do you have one?
26:12Yes.
26:13I have a big Hollywood luxury hair event happening in Miami.
26:19It will be my hair company's first event, and, yeah, it's going to be huge.
26:26It's going to hold, like, 1,700 people, so I'm super excited about that, and then all of the sponsors that's been helping me out, and then I plan to open, like, three storefronts.
26:35In Atlanta, so.
26:37That's amazing.
26:38Period.
26:38Her hair is fire, too.
26:39Y'all go get that.
26:40Period.
26:43Man, I think I want to go into the beauty world, so I would love to work with Fenty.
26:49I recently did something with L'Oreal, but, like, you know, my really, like, biggest one would be Makeup by Mario.
26:56I just, I want to do something with him so bad, but honestly, I, besides Paris 24, my brain, my cycle has just been,
27:05my sport this whole entire time, so those are really, like, I would love to go into the beauty world.
27:10Yeah.
27:11Well, I think part of it is you all today, and I'm sure you will, take your own advice to be able to continue on the path that you're on by keeping the positive people around you,
27:19being able to be super intentional about your authenticity, and so I have no doubt that all of those things that y'all are already having in the works or in your mind as dreams is going to happen.
27:31Any final thoughts that you want to share with our folks before we wrap it up today?
27:36Yeah, this is my first Essence Fest, so I'm really loving it here.
27:39No, for real.
27:40Welcome to New Orleans.
27:41Yeah, thank you.
27:42It's my first one, too.
27:43For real, yeah, no, it's crazy.
27:45I think it's real dope just to see, you know, all our beautiful people here coming together and supporting all our businesses, you know what I'm saying?
27:51It's just dope to see, like, this is amazing to me.
27:54Yeah, this is so cool.
27:55They came to see y'all.
27:56They came to see y'all.
27:59Final thoughts?
28:00Anybody else?
28:00Jordan, Taya?
28:01No, I just would say thank you guys so much for coming.
28:04I mean, honestly, this is my first Essence as well, and just being able to experience this was definitely an amazing thing.
28:12Definitely want to come back, for sure.
28:14I'm going to come back.
28:15But first off, to you guys as well, like, you guys are amazing.
28:20I adore you.
28:22I adore you.
28:23So just keep doing what you guys are doing.
28:25You guys are, you know, inspirations and everything.
28:27So it was cool to be up here with you guys.
28:31I would say thanks for having me.
28:33I'm super proud of both of y'all.
28:35Y'all and y'all online, young, lit, turnt, and easy.
28:38It's right now.
28:39But, no, seriously, I would say to everybody else, just believe in yourself, whatever's in your mind.
28:43Do it, fail, mess up, do it again, keep doing it, just keep going.
28:49Well, I just want to say I appreciate the three of you for indulging me with my questions related to both, you know, mental health, self-care, beauty.
28:58All of those things are tied in together.
28:59And so I know that the folks that are listening have taken everything that you've said, and I hope that they will, you know, obviously follow your journeys because we all are rooting for you.
29:08We're so proud of all of you.
29:10And I hope that you keep it up and that all of y'all enjoy Essence Fest because I didn't realize how many of y'all had not yet.
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