Confident You NETWORK with Marion Swingler

BONUS #11 THE AFTER PARTY: THE PATH TO PURPOSEFUL LIVING: Harnessing Self-Love, Courage, and Community for Personal Transformation with Samuel Brown from CYP eps 20

• Marion Swingler • Episode 11

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WELCOME TO THE AFTER PARTY!!! The conversation after the show!

Have you ever found a crossroads where a single decision could reroute your future? Our latest episode is a testament to that pivotal moment, packed with raw stories of transformation and insight. We navigate through the highs and lows of personal growth, intertwining lessons of self-love with the undeniable impact of choice and resilience. From the wake-up call of getting expelled from a school district to finding solace in an African-centered education, I share how these experiences carved out a path to a deeper understanding of identity and purpose.

Let's talk about the lifelines we cling to in our darkest moments and the strength we find when prioritizing our well-being. Self-care isn't just a buzzword—it's the foundation from which we can build the courage to support and uplift those around us. I recount a personal moment of clarity mid-flight with my infant daughter, which hammered home the critical need to secure our own 'oxygen masks' before we can save others. With each story of mentoring juvenile probationers and empowering them through mentorship, we celebrate the ripple effect of investing in ourselves and the lasting change it can ignite within our communities.

Finally, we reflect on the soul's journey through the arts, drawing parallels between a vocalist's struggle with acoustics and the universal quest for environments that let us shine. In sharing the challenges of navigating through spaces that don't align with our spirit, we uncover the courage to step away and the self-awareness required to preserve our essence. Each voice in this episode, each shared experience, is a beacon guiding us toward the realization that when we embrace our worth, we light the way for others to do the same. Join us as we celebrate growth, self-affirmation, and the indomitable human spirit in a narrative filled with heart and hope.

CONNECT AND FOLLOW Samuel Brown of Faith and Effort 
WEBSITE:
https://www.faithandeffort.org/

INSTAGRAM and TIKTOK:
@faithandeffort

PRE-ORDER BOOK:
Grow Through What You Go Through 
:https://forms.gle/8pnEhvkSsK4uAGX86

********Don't forget to tell them "MARION of Confident You Podcast" sent you :)
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IOPraise

Speaker 1:

Okay. So wait, even in that moment you said I'm chasing after myself, I'm loving myself, I'm happy with myself, I am confident in who I am. That in itself preaches, because you actually do have to run from, as you were saying, the person that people were telling you you were, because, as a child, you don't know better. That's why the Bible says if you as a child, you spoke as a child and you did things as a child. So there should be always that level of understanding of if a child is misbehaving, ok, this is a child. So now you need to give the child the opportunity to give you the tools and the tactics to be that better you and be that amazing you, to see yourself actually blessed and loved and happy and confident. I just ah, that was very disheartening.

Speaker 2:

And the one thing that just hit me, because again it's all about like you have to look at life, but you said perspective, right, and the different lens, and looking back on those moments as much as like it shouldn't have happened If it didn't imagine, if they didn't say anything and they just, like you know, kind of push me to the side and like he's just gonna be whatever he's gonna be. I wouldn't have understood what it felt like to actually get like good advice from adults to actually listen to the right people, because I had to learn what the wrong, how to listen to the wrong people before I could understand that what they're saying is wrong. And now that I'm older, I look back at those moments and it's like yo, I'm glad I got kicked out of my school district. I'm glad I got sent to this alternative school that was African-centered and I learned about who I was. I wasn't going to learn that at the public school. If they would have just kept pushing me along, pushing me along, who knows where I would have been, if they just said we just don't want to ignore him, ignore his behavior, keep pushing him along. We're not going to expel him, we're not going to kick him out of the school district, imagine, because I was on a path of self-destruction. But again, it's like I needed to be kicked off that path and they honestly, in a sense, kicked me off that path, even if they didn't know that they did.

Speaker 2:

And it just goes to show the importance of just knowing and loving yourself but also knowing what you're not. And I think a lot of people they might say I know myself, but do you know what you're not? Do you truly know what you're not? Because you everything right now, you this, you that, you, this person, you that person but what aren't you? And I know now I'm a person that is confident. I'm not a person that doesn't have confidence in myself. I'm not a person that that doesn't want to, that doesn't put myself first Right.

Speaker 2:

Um, and a lot of people you know they talk about selfishness, um around it, because once you get to a certain point where you can help people, selfishness, you know family says it when you, when you feel like you are the chosen one. And for me I feel like you know God has chosen me to break certain generational curses, to go off and do certain things, to change the trajectory of my family, because my family is on a path of self-destruction and I was on that path too, but I was blessed enough to have so much hate that I was like man. I'm tired of this. And again, my family always talks about it. You know you don't come around enough and it's not because I don't like it. I mean some of them I don't like it. It's okay, I don't like everybody, but if I love you, I love you and I love you. And for me, I always tell them it's because I'm on a mission and sometimes I need to be locked in and I can't be around distraction or put myself in an environment where something can go wrong.

Speaker 2:

And I always tell people that you've got to be selfish, because if you are selfish, it's a reflection of how selfless you are. Because if you are selfish, it's a reflection of how selfless you are, because the more that you can pour into you, the more that you can give to someone else. And I just remember, you know, being on a plane and hearing someone say, when a mask dropped down, put the mask over your face, first as an adult and then your child. I'm like y'all are tripping. There is a six year old kid, eight-old kid, that is sitting right next, no mask on.

Speaker 2:

But then I realized and it's something that came to my mind throughout this conversation, which I appreciate you bringing it out is that oxygen in its simplest form is life, and we can't pour into other people's life. We can't give someone you know the ability to truly live if we're passed out. And that's that same thing If you put the mask over the kid and you pass out halfway through, they're not going to know how to do it. The same way, the people that need you in your life. You got to be selfish enough to put that mask on and give yourself life.

Speaker 2:

Give yourself oxygen first, because once you have oxygen, then you can help someone else get oxygen, because even if they're struggling, they're on a brink of passing out. That oxygen mask brings them back to life. When on the brink of self-destruction, you have the bandwidth now to pull them up without them pulling you down. And that's like that's just like really what it is and that's what you brought out. You had me really understand like being confident in yourself and I'm ripping off these labels. It's like giving yourself oxygen.

Speaker 1:

My goodness, it's like giving yourself oxygen. You said oxygen in its simplest form is life and he breathed the breath of life into Adam. Oxygen in its simplest form is life.

Speaker 2:

My God.

Speaker 1:

I am Wow, like you had me going. I kept jumping because it was just for me doing the interview. When think, when I start yourself, it was like a mirror that you were holding up and I actually could see myself in different things. Even in this after party, I am seeing different things that I hear you talking about.

Speaker 1:

I was that 20-year-old mother with my six-month, four-month-old baby girl and that stewardess on that airplane as I flew from DC to New York, a 45-minute flight. When she gave that speech about taking that oxygen mask and giving it to yourself and then giving it to your baby that's months old, she acted as though it was a full flight. It's going to New York, from DC to New York. It's a full flight. There was no one else on that plane but me, her and my baby shereen. There was no one else. She talked directly to that baby I know I look like a baby holding a baby to make sure I understood. You have to take. You gotta save you first and then give to her, because you'll be strong enough, just as you said, to help.

Speaker 1:

The give back to me is real. That's why I, every episode, have taken up the charge of telling people about Bethany House and reminding people that if they're in trouble or they know someone in trouble suffering at the hand of domestic violence. That's why I encourage them to lock that number in, because if you happen upon somebody, just give them the information, just tell them listen, reach out, make that call. It's very important that give back. So I feel as though you're very I wholeheartedly agree. Save yourself so that you're strong enough to help someone else I, I. What is your victory story in your give back help? What is that victory story?

Speaker 2:

so one of my mentees I got. I got a good amount of mentees because I always tell young people once you with're with me, you're with me for life, you can't get rid of me. I'm like a bad edge that you can't scratch. I'm here, I'm loud, I'm rambunctious, I'm your biggest cheerleader, I'm your coach, whatever you need me to be in that moment, I'm there and for me. I used to teach job skills and life skills to juvenile probation kids and my speech like I've worked with foster care kids, juvenile probation kids and my speech every time I come in there.

Speaker 2:

And one I hated that we had our groups in the courtroom because I felt like that was just like bad, like a bad environment, like why would you have us in a courtroom, in a hearing room at that. So I come in, sit there Everyone's kind of doing what they doing. I'm like 25 at the time 24. And I just sit there and I give the same speech. I tell them listen y'all, I'm not a probation officer, I'm not an officer of the court. I do not work in the courthouse. I honestly hate the courthouse. I hate everything about it. I've been here too many times with family members. I hate it and saying that I have a job to do. That's to give y'all this information. You have a job to do. It's to give y'all this information. You have a job to do. It's to be here so that by the end of this you can get off probation. And I would tell them I'm not here to judge y'all. I don't care what y'all did. All I know is the only difference between me and you and me and that judge that judges you and me, and the lawyer that didn't talk crazy about you and drug you through the mud, is y'all either got caught or snitched on and we just I, I done done things that should have landed me behind bars didn't get caught, or someone didn't. So I told him let's, let's get that clear. And then the second thing is as long as you don't do nothing too crazy I'm not talking to your POs, I don't, because I'm not in the business of keeping your own probation, because it's a trap. I hit him with that when I say like they went, like they stood up, yeah.

Speaker 2:

And then one student in particular, josh. He was on probation. We had an eight-week program and within those eight weeks the real magic happened when I got to drop all these kids off. Mind you, I'm going all over. We leave around six. I don't get home until like 10. I'm going drop-offs all over but we in the van plug in in music, put me on the music, they put me on the artist that I still listen to today. But I just remember josh is always getting the uh passenger seat. We chop it up and eventually he'll be like yo, can I be the last person you drop off? And I'm like all right, cool, like you live close to me, like that's that works out and we should just have conversations, just talking. I would talk more about my business. This is when Faith and Effort first started. Different things like that. I lie to you. Not Eight weeks of that program, graduation hit. They all graduated. I had a 100% graduation rate on average. I got about over time. Over the course of three, they all graduated. I had a 100 percent graduation rate on average and I got. I got about over time. Over the course of like three years I probably got close to maybe 100 kids off probation.

Speaker 2:

But him in particular. He went from being on probation to graduating high school and I'm sorry he went from being on probation and graduating high school and hold on, sorry. Oh, he went from being on probation and graduating high school. He invited me to his prom man you only know this kid eight weeks and we got a session once a week like so man, I've been with him eight times. Two hour sessions, two hour drives, rides home, that's what. Four hours times eight, 32 hours total, not even the whole two days, if you put it all together. He invited me to prom, send off, and from there I told him he invited me to his graduation cookout and he was going off to school and I told him I was like these four years, whatever you need, I'm here. He built a business because we've connected. He built a clothing business called Uncommon Clothing and he graduated college last year. Come on Earlier, this year, may. He graduated college in May.

Speaker 1:

Wow.

Speaker 2:

And for me, that has been a proud moment because I've seen myself and him as someone that was written off and I will always look back and to this day, we literally text, talk, play video games. We're actually connecting this week and I'm heading back home to Coach OPA and he's like yo, let's chop it up. I'm in this adult life now and I'm trying to get things together. I was like I got you into the wheels, paulo, like until I'm six feet under, and even then I still got you. I'm going to ask God for a favor. Can I dip out for a little bit? I got to go check on some people and I truly believe that and that's everybody I connect with. If you truly tap in with me and you really want what I have to give, I'm here.

Speaker 2:

I always tell people my door is always open. It's a revolving door. It could be 2023 now and if you don't hit me up until 2025, it's because it's season and you need something from me. I got you and it doesn't feel like it's using because it's genuine. He always tells me you mean so much to me. I appreciate everything. He tells me my life has changed because just being connected with you and for me. That's all I need.

Speaker 2:

I tell him I don't need nothing else. I don't need free clothes because I'm paying for it. I don't need nothing from you. I don't need free clothes because I'm paying for it. I don't need nothing from you. I just need you to be who you want to be and truly believe that you can be it Because you came from it. Look where you came from, look where you truly came from and where you at now and that's just a reflection. Like I went to school San Copa. The alternative school is called San Copa and it means go back and fetch, or go back and give back, so that Sankofa bird means go back and fetch. So I'm going back and I'm getting my young people. I got you Because somebody did it for me and I always tell people why you do it, because somebody did it for me and I always tell people why you do it because somebody did it for me. Without them, I don't know where I would be. So I got, I got to can you answer this for me?

Speaker 1:

what does faith in effort? Where did you get that title from?

Speaker 2:

interesting story um, I was may 2017, supposed to graduate, lost my mom in um in january, or no, lost my mom in february and I didn't graduate. So from February, end of February up until December, deep depression, isolation, thoughts of suicide, all these different things. And I was sitting in my grandparents' kitchen because I had moved back home at the time and I was tired. I was tired of being depressed, I was tired of not feeling like myself. I was tired and I truly believe my mom came down, ripped me up by my neck and smacked me in the back of my head. I was like, listen, it's time. And I was like I need to create something for myself that gives me, that brings me, you know, that brings me some hope in life. And then faith and effort hit me like a ton of bricks. When I say this was my first name of the business. It didn't have anything else. The only thing that has altered, and not even a lot, was the logo. I took off like it was like a heart that connected the F and the T. I took that, but literally only name. It wasn't like. I was like, oh, I need to create a business.

Speaker 2:

Obviously, faith and Effort didn't even start off as a business. It was because my mom, before I, even believed in myself. She always believed in me and she always told me if you want something, go after it. So faith, the belief in yourself Some people can use it spiritually the belief in yourself and the belief in a higher power, effort, go after it, put in work, understand that everything is going to require work and if you want to actually achieve something in life, you got to put in that work. And then from there it went. From just me making videos of projecting how I feel and projecting the things that I've gotten through to people are hitting me up on my DMs like yo, I needed that. Yo, like I found your page and you're just so inspirational. So like.

Speaker 2:

None of this was playing, the business, the speaking, the consulting, the name nothing was ever like sat down and I made a business plan. None of that. It was literally to get me out of my depression and that was the one thing. When I think about my mom, that's the one thing she always told me it was embarrassing. She had a blown up picture of me with a bio from my scholarship dinner. They had blew up a picture I'm like and she just always telling everybody. Had it in the middle of the living room at my sister's house and it was just like yo.

Speaker 2:

But she was just like, sat me down. She was just like I need you to be the one. She sat me down and was like, out of all my kids, I need you to go to school, I need you to go to college, I need you to go to school, I need you to go to college. I need you to do something different. Because I didn't even want to go to college. I was about to join the army. I was about to just say I'm not going to school again, I don't want to deal with that. And I just remember my mom said like I just need you to go to school. And then God did the rest. God made a phone call that changed. I was about to sign a dotted line. I passed all the tests, I was physically fit, I did everything. I was literally about to sign a dotted line and I got a call From the same organization, the Coach for Youth Initiative. That changed my life.

Speaker 2:

In the summer of my ninth grade year, at 14 years old, I got a call at 18 years old asking me. They said you got two options. You're about to age out of the program. You can either do one more year or you can be an associate coordinator at the organization. And they gave me my first salary type job Well, it was hourly, but it was the most money I ever made. But literally I was in front of an army man about to sign, I had the pen in my hand and once you sign it, you sign it. And I didn't even want to go in the army, I just didn't want to go to school. So I felt like I had to do something. And my dad was in army, my grandpa was in army why not? And that call saved me from making a decision that I didn't even want to make, because at that moment it introduced me to youth development.

Speaker 2:

At 18 years old, I was working with 40 kids, 40 young kids between the ages of 14 to 18, even up to my peers. Leadership development program, eight-week program, monday through Friday, placed them at job sites, served as the supervisor for them, payroll, learned so much. And then from there it was just like boom, so like so much. Stuff has led up to every moment. But yeah, that's how long story. Short faith, never was, never planned, it was. It was a, a gift, it was a, it was a, it was a saving grace. It was a saving grace for me and now I want to use that as a saving grace for me, and now I want to use that as a saving grace for other people. That's why I embody what I embody and the message that I have, and I travel as a speaker and I don't mind getting on a call with anybody that's just asking me for help, because I never know what you're actually going through and then if that can save you, that can be your saving grace.

Speaker 1:

I'm serving my purpose, yeah okay, okay, this I feel I'm sitting here going. He's the boy version of you, because that's how you got my company name. My son and I started a company and the name came to me after I was giving the decision to make the name to someone else. I gave them that decision. God woke me up at two o'clock in the morning. Inheritance of praise. Inheritance of praise Inheritance of, praise global production. I said how am I global? In my one bedroom apartment.

Speaker 2:

It's the vision.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, he said just do what I said.

Speaker 2:

And so.

Speaker 1:

I said inheritance of praise global production. I wrote it, and then all I could see was I, and so I said Inheritance of Praise Global Production. I wrote it and then all I could see was I owe.

Speaker 1:

praise I owe praise and that's it right there. And that's it right there. And that's how I started. I didn't. There were no other titles written thought of. I literally had to call a meeting and tell the person I know. I told you yesterday but god met me to a clock in the movement. Let me tell you what happened was. And then I shared and he was like what can I say if you're telling me that God gave this to you? You preface it that way. I have no argument. He was like I was just going to sit down with a notebook and just work some titles and come back Cause I was like you can contribute something. And I got my daughter, I got my son, I want to invite you in. And again, I thought this was a music thing. That was my guitarist I was talking to. It's much bigger than what I thought. That's why global production, because now Inheritance of Praise Produces my podcast. Wait what? There's no music out yet. There is no music out yet. And I'm like how are we.

Speaker 1:

We're here.

Speaker 2:

It's a production when you hear that there's so much you can do. It's the putting on of something.

Speaker 1:

Yes, come on here. The putting on of something?

Speaker 2:

yes, come on here the putting on of something. Production is the putting on of something, and that's what you're doing. This is the first leg yes it's the first leg thank you.

Speaker 1:

I I, I accept that, I accept you speaking into my life you never know what is going to grow into.

Speaker 2:

Just allow it to grow.

Speaker 1:

Yep.

Speaker 2:

Allow it to grow free and you see what happens.

Speaker 1:

Yes.

Speaker 2:

Because you're going to just want to grow. Just want to grow like a wild tree.

Speaker 1:

Yes, and that's the thing. It's just like Myron Golden said, you just have to have expectation. I tell people that everything, I believe everything has two sides to it. I believe everything is a two-sided coin. So you can take that same expectation and flip it and end up on tails and you can have high expectations of bad things happening to you all the time, things not going your way. That's not going to come through. They're not going to do that. This always happens to me. So you can have high expectations of bad, or you can flip that coin and let it land on heads and you can think higher and you can sit in that high place in Christ and see great things happen. And that's where I choose to sit Every day, all day, every day.

Speaker 2:

Listen, bring it on. The good, the bad. Listen, I got an armor that God has given me. I always tell myself, if I can get through losing both my parents, I can do anything. There's something that might bend me, but I ain't breaking it. I haven't felt the lowest of the low. There ain't nothing lower than that. I always tell myself, when I'm really in something and I start to really get down, I like all right, we could pull ourself up from this, because this ain't nothing. So I tell myself that it took me. It took me. It took me like maybe 48 hours. It really shipped out of a thing that I was in. I locked in. I was like allow my emotions to go. Luckily I had like a four or five hour car ride. Allow my emotions to exist, process them. I locked back in Time to go. Time to put the red hat on time, to put the hoodie on. This is my armor, this is what protects me. Let's go, let's get it. And I now I'm refocused on a whole different level. Now I'm refocused on a whole different level and I'm in a different bag.

Speaker 2:

Like my man, chris, said and he actually tapped into the podcast, he texted me. He was like yo, I just got finished a gig. I caught the tail end, but I learned something. Mind you, he got like 10 years on me, so it was like for him to give me the flyer that he's gave me over these past months or two and then just tell me like I'm just operating on a different level. He told me I was elbow deep, and not just a regular bag, with a louis baton bag. I was like I appreciate that. I never. He told me I was in a louis bag, like okay, I'm, I'm, I'm cooking with. I'm cooking with with fish grease.

Speaker 2:

Now I just, I ain't just canola, you know, I'm cooking with fresh grease, something in a pot just cooking, yeah, yeah, and that's what I know, like our vet, like like that's when I know, like okay, when I'm I'm making right decisions, like yes, yeah, it's amazing you, when you made that change, and that change was you choosing the better you.

Speaker 1:

You chose to go with the higher you. You chose to go with the confident you. You chose to go with the motivated, excited, impactful you. But you have to choose that.

Speaker 2:

Power of choice, the greatest power that we have.

Speaker 1:

Just to hear how everything changed from a choice.

Speaker 2:

One decision turns into two, turns into three, and I always tell people one decision, just start with one and see how it feels and, if you like it, make another decision in that direction. Right then make another decision. And then you start to make decisions on autopilot, like you build that muscle.

Speaker 1:

It's like lifting weights you build that muscle and then it becomes easier to do being in business. Now for me it's becoming easier to do and I can literally say my mental bandwidth is really stretching beyond the lazy me I used to be. I can honestly say I was like, oh, you were lazy, you just you procrastinated on purpose. You planned to procrastinate. You're like, oh, okay, I'm going to do this first and then I'm going to get to that. And by the time it's time to get to that yeah, it's 12 o'clock, I'm going to go to bed. Then I have to get back and start doing all the things of life. And then it just keeps. I keep doing it and I had to realize I was doing it for one purpose. Then I had to stop and look at myself and say why are you doing it? And we're back at your mother going you're the one, You're the chosen one. For me.

Speaker 1:

That was the call that came from my grandma. She didn't use those words, but I sang, I went to a performing arts school and then I went to a conservatory, and these are top entities that I went to. I and there's. If you're in dmv, you want to get into duke ellington and if around the world you're in the arts the school, to get into 400 students. And I was one of the eight black students there Juilliard, yeah, my grandmother. When Oprah was doing the show and she was really spotlighting artists and singers, my grandmother called my mother and my grandmother don't play with her long distance, You're going to run up her electricity. You know this is back when you paid for every moment on that phone Like it was a popper rate phone.

Speaker 2:

They used to tell you you could get electrocuted. Now I'll be looking back like black people be lying. Yeah, black people be lying.

Speaker 1:

They made stuff up. They made stuff up to make, to instill the fear needed in us to keep us safe. I feel I, I really do feel. And so she was like yeah, if I tell you that runs up my, close my door, you're running up my bill close. They gave you the reason why they didn't just say close the door because I said Because. Then the next generation came and they said do it. Because I said do it, they didn't give a story. So then there was our generation where we were just free willy with it.

Speaker 1:

Now I'm going to believe whatever you say, what that teacher say Uh-uh, what did you say happened? Oh, I'm going back up there and I'm going back up there and everything went left. See, don't get me on that tan. See that you get me sad. Don't do it. Don't do it. I'm going to go back to where I was.

Speaker 1:

My grandmother, much like your mother, looking you in the face. My grandmother sent the message to my mother. Grandma Ski said you need to call Oprah, you need to go on that show. I ran, I hid, I've had my cousin call me and say can you come sing at the wedding? I heard the message and I didn't respond and my sister was like yo, he looking for you, he wants you to sing at his wedding. Why answer the call?

Speaker 1:

I didn't realize that I was actually not as confident in myself as everyone could hear I should be. They could hear the value, they could hear the richness. They could hear the value, they could hear the richness, they could hear the glory that came through, but I didn't feel it. So I was like I don't know if it's going to show up again. I'm not confident that if I go there and I sing, I'm going to be able to show up the way that it happened that time, like I didn't have confidence in the reproduction of greatness happening through me. Now I sing with this in mind. I'm just here to have a good time. If it sounds amazing, that is awesome. But guess what If I told you I was coming and I'm here and it sounds awful? That means I need to sit down and figure out what did you do? What didn't you do? How can we make sure this doesn't happen again? But then I also found out that there are times that I am in room singing and God won't allow my gift to shine on purpose. And God won't allow my gift to shine on purpose, because as I keep going to the room, I start to realize like you were talking about those people that actually weren't your friends.

Speaker 1:

As an adult, as recently as December, I had to disconnect from something because I realized, yeah, this isn't the space for me. The way we met that pre-conversation is not what I'm getting now. So I realized the toxicity of the environment that was there in reference to me. It seemed like everyone else in the room got love and I got scolded for the thing that you brought me. Brought me there because you said your voice is amazing, but it seemed like that person was actually jealous of me. I couldn't, I couldn't place. I'm like is it me? Why does it? Every time everybody else in the room is around, I get talked to in a certain manner that is not becoming or befitting or encouraging, to make me believe that I'm really wanted in this space. But God would not. I'm telling you right now.

Speaker 1:

I would sing every Sunday at two churches. Everything came out nice. I would get to this space and it never, ever panned out. Only the first time, because the first time I sang to his glory. The next time, yeah, you think you can do something else, because this is going to be the topic, and I was like, oh okay, I got you. You know, I sing as long as it's not raunchy and derogatory. I'm good as long as it's telling a story and at the end of that story somebody can go good, I'm not the only one that went through that and I can see here how you made it out. I'm good with singing.

Speaker 1:

It would not. I would pick songs and it just would not go over. Well, it was everything that could happen to a vocalist the room being dry, my vocal cords feeling tense, me not being able to hear. And if I can't hear the music, how am I going to sing to the music? It was like everything worked against me and it just took time for me to sit down and go. I'm not supposed to be here.

Speaker 2:

Hey, listen, people, we have to understand even the most talented people in the wrong environment. It makes you look mediocre, like it makes you look mediocre, like it makes you look mediocre. And I know that feeling of being in the wrong environment where you start to believe again, to believe like the things that you feel, because it's like a feeling right, it's like, dang, I'm not performing the way I. I know I can well, did I lose it and all this and all that.

Speaker 2:

Um, it's like when sports players get traded to certain teams and they go from like amazing to like not good and people understand, like you know, um, like it's just crazy, um, but like, yeah, I'm glad that you were able to see that and not let it again change your view on yourself. You really allowed yourself to sit down and figure it out yes, yes, yes, yes.

Speaker 1:

It has been an amazing night. I appreciate you sharing the time, taking the time from your family to be here.