Wed, Nov 15, 2017
Maxwell is one of the great singers of his era and a man of towering fame and deep humility. He taught himself how to make music and constructed a debut album called Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite that blew everyone away. Ever since that album came out Maxwell has been a superstar. How does he handle being a star? How does he write music? What does he do in his multi-year breaks from the spotlight? We dig in to all of that and more.
Wed, Nov 22, 2017
The RZA is a Legendary producer, rapper, actor, director, who will be remembered as the leader of the Wu-Tang Clan. In this hour-long interview we run through: How did he establish and maintain his place as the leader of the Wu? How did he rebound from his nadir-19 years old, in jail, on trial for attempted murder? How has Quentin Tarantino helped him as a man? What has chess master Bobby Fisher taught him about life? What books would he encourage you to read?
Wed, Nov 29, 2017
Nikki Giovanni is one of the greatest living poets in the world. I grew up hearing Ego Tripping recited over and over in ways that seemed to magically transform all who recited it and all who heard it. And so many of her other poems are so simple or so beautiful or so powerful that I can't forget them. Plus Nikki is a joy to be around. She's funny, smart, humble, and she's cool. She's the best dinner guest imaginable. In this hour plus conversation we talk about: Her insight into Trump voters after a life lived in Appalachia. The impact of watching domestic violence in her childhood home. How she rebounded from a health scare by getting onstage. What makes a great poem. How she learned to cry. Why she feels she needs to go into outer space.
Wed, Dec 6, 2017
Puff (or Sean Combs, or Diddy, or Brother Love) is one of the greatest business minds in the country today. He's closing in on being a billionaire thanks to his many revenue streams-#1 Ciroc, #2 Sean John. He's done it by being fearless in business, by being a creative visionary, by being a great marketer who understands how to infuse his brand into anything. Puff is indefatigable. He's driven like no one you've ever seen. He's great at inspiring people and setting a high bar for everyone around him. And he's done it by using himself as billboard for his brand. He's a star because it helps him sell. Yeah he's got a huge ego but he uses his stardom strategically, to help himself sell so when the guy you saw dancing and rhyming alongside Biggie Smalls is now looking dapper and holding Ciroc, the vodka looks better. When he takes the audaciousness that he brought to the music biz and injects into the fashion biz, his clothes sell more. Being an icon helps him in business. And that's just part of why he's so successful.
Wed, Jan 3, 2018
An art world superstar who's full of brilliance and ego, and who's willing to strip and be a nude model for his fellow artists, Kehinde Wiley is a portraitist who has become one of the dominant painters of his generation on an artistic level and on a business level. He's got studios around the globe and many assistants and a vision for his work that is recognized and respected across the world. He's been featured on the walls in Empire. He's painted Michael Jackson and Kanye. He's currently painting the official portrait of President Barack Obama for the National Portrait Gallery. In this intense conversation, he explores the development of his style of art and explains how he became a star and the challenges of setting up shop in a far-flung country-once in the Congo he and his team got thrown in jail for five days. Kehinde is a genius. Flat out. And he's an extrovert. And it's always fun to encounter that combination. There's a lot here for people who want to be artists, people who love art, or people who have big dreams-Kehinde is all about all of that.
Wed, Feb 28, 2018
The greatest MC ever on how to write songs, the influence of John Coltrane on his MCing, the influence of his mother on his music, the real reason why his album with Dr. Dre never came out, and the story of Rakim slap boxing with LL Cool J in 1987. Rakim and I have been working on a book about his life and his work for three years. This first-ever Toure Show live event stems from that book and from a collaboration with Fla- vorpill and WeWork. It was recorded at a WeWork space in Manhattan in front of a great crowd. I hope you learn some things that will help you rise.
Wed, Mar 14, 2018
He's a star on Empire and a singer, an activist, a lover of love and the self-proclaimed "gay Tupac-in my mind." Jussie Smollet is funny and crazy and deep. In this ep he goes in about making his new album Sum of My Music and working on Empire and growing up in a big family, five siblings, where sometimes they had money and sometimes they had none, but they were always wealthy with love. I knew Jussie was passionate and intense but I didn't know he was this funny.
Wed, Mar 21, 2018
The cable news star is brilliant, open-hearted, dignified, and someone who knows how to comeback from adversity. In this ep he goes into how he navigates the TV news business as well as how he rebounded from being the center of a mortifying international news story. Van is now the host of the Van Jones Show on CNN which airs twice a month on Saturday nights-guests have included Jay-Z, Steph Curry, Ava Duvernay, and Oprah. Damn. Van is one impressive dude.
Wed, Mar 28, 2018
She's one of the great character actors of our time and she gave me a master class in acting. She explains so much about she relates to character, how she approaches scenes, how she uses her instrument. Taraji is unpredictable and unforgettable and powerful. I'm thrilled to have talked to her and I hope our talk can inspire you on your journey up your mountain. I hope it can also be part of the historical record around this peerless artist as we peer deeply into the foundation of her craft. Taraji is now the star of Acrimony, the latest from Tyler Perry, and still the star of Empire.
Wed, Apr 4, 2018
One of the great singers of her generation talks all about singing and how she does it. She explains so much of her craft. She also talks a lot about her son and explains how she got him off of the autism spectrum. She also talks a lot about how Birdman proposed to her. That's a fun story.
Wed, Apr 18, 2018
She's a star. She's a hustler. She knows how to shine. This is a great conversation with a powerful lady who knows how rock it in Hollywood. Lots about her awesome scene in Kill Bill and her relationship with 50 Cent and her time on Curb Your Enthusiasm. The strength of Vivica's self-belief is inspiring.
Wed, May 23, 2018
Marissa Alexander is a survivor. She got a 20 year prison sentence and did three. She's a woman of steel who was pushed to her breaking point in prison but she survived. Marissa's story is one of those that I covered when I was at MSNBC and I thought of Marissa as a symbol of modern racial injustice. I didn't think she would get out of prison early. But thanks to the people fighting for, she did. They fought because of the injustice done to her but also because of who she is. Her story is inspiring.
Wed, May 30, 2018
He's one of the funniest actors on TV. One of the stars of The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt on Netflix, he made that incredible Lemonade parody where he's stomping down the street in the yellow dress with a baseball bat. It's hysterical. He's an amazing actor and I tried to get inside his philosophy about acting.
Wed, Jun 13, 2018
She worked with Prince in the studio, engineering his best albums. She knows who he is as a musical being as well as anyone. I wanted to celebrate Prince's 60th birthday talking to someone who knew him extremely well. Susan tells us what song that was the germ of each of Prince's big albums. And what happened when Prince was forced to meet Liz Taylor.
Wed, Jun 20, 2018
Two current NYPD officers on why the police function the way they do. This conversation really changed my mind about the way policing really works. I didn't really understand the police until this interview. Policing is not about protecting and serving. It's about revenue collection. And the bosses would rather cops make arrests than stop crime because arrests are quantifiable.
Wed, Jun 27, 2018
He's the hysterical comic you've seen on Chappelle's Show and The Wire. And he's a new Dad. Here he talks about how to be funny, how to make it as a comic, how to teach your kid to be funny, and he licks shots at Faizon Love for saying Chappelle's Show wasn't funny. Which isn't funny. What?!?
Wed, Jul 4, 2018
The tennis star was once #4 in the world and #1 in America with wins over Federer and Nadal. But what's most amazing is that he played his best tennis after having breaking his neck in a freak injury and contracting shingles and losing his dad-all in one year. He's tough, smart (Harvard), humble, and cool. And the best Black male player since Arthur Ashe. I interviewed him at the tennis club where I grew up, Sportsmen's Tennis Club in Dorchester, Massachusetts, in front of a few hundred people. James is an amazing person. It's really interesting to see how he thinks.
Tue, Jul 17, 2018
The cable news star is brilliant, funny, and really smart. This is a long, really open conversation which gets into his show and the big mistake I think he made while doing the show. Kamau loves criticism. That goes over well. Also: how it was he got onto CNN and how he made the most of being mentored by Chris Rock. I love Kamau. Watch his show United Shades of America on CNN.
Wed, Aug 1, 2018
Evander Holyfield is one of the best boxers of his time, and the only boxer in history to win the undisputed championship in two weight classes. He's also a huge mama's boy. He is an open book who talked about everything from why Tyson bit him, to how yoga and dance helped his career, to how he raises 11 kids.
Tue, Aug 7, 2018
Pete Rock is one of the greatest producers in hip-hop history. Starting out as one half of the critically acclaimed group Pete Rock and CL Smooth, Rock went on to work with iconic groups including Gang Starr, A Tribe Called Quest and The Roots. How'd he do it and what launched him? He tells all.
Tue, Aug 21, 2018
Tiffany Haddish is a red hot comedian who's killing it in Hollywood right now. She overcame so much to get there. An horrific childhood, as an adult she was homeless and slept in her car. Her success comes partly from thinking all this into existence. I found the power of her mind so impressive. You will, too.
Wed, Sep 12, 2018
April Ryan is the White House correspondent who's always focused on issues that matter to Black America. And right now she's afraid for her life. Trump's attacks on media have led to her getting death threats. How does she deal with that? And much more about Trump, Sarah Sanders, Omarosa, and more. The strength and resilience in this woman is so inspiring.