En Route with Durand Bernarr

00:00:09
Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome to this episode of Keep It Positive. Sweetie guys, Kipps is taken over La. I'm here catching up with some of my favorite favorite people and we are filming inside this beautiful black owned store owned by Nikayo Greco, where ninety percent of the products sold here are bipod founded. Thank you so much, thirteen loon Today, I have with me none other than durand Bernard. Guys. He is described as gangster musical theater by Queen Hervey. Durand Berarnar combines elements of Little Richard and Rick James with his own unique flare, characterized by his powerful vocals and clever storytelling. The result is unmistakably Durand, earning him the title of your favorite Singer's favorite singer. The Cleveland native performing artist, vocalist, producer, and songwriter recently debut his latest visual EP en Route, a genre bending compilation of Duran's musical influences answers as a transitional bridge between his sophomore album Wanderlust and his forthcoming solo and collaborative releases. Ladies and Gentlemen, durand Bernard, you guys have probably seen him seeing background for some of your favorite favorite artists, but you've also known him as a solo artist, so you have really built your own lane outside of singing BG.

00:01:30
Speaker 2: I started just posting content on the internet. I saw you, and that's how kind of things picked up. Wow, with just getting notoriety.

00:01:39
Speaker 1: What was your goal when you're like, I'm going to start doing covers on YouTube? That was like two thousand and eight.

00:01:44
Speaker 2: Yeah, so wasn't really a goal. I just wanted an objective opinion on what it is that I do because you know, when folks are in family and your friends, you know.

00:01:52
Speaker 3: That they'll gash you up and yet.

00:01:57
Speaker 2: So I just wanted to make sure that what I was doing, like this is this is the calling?

00:02:02
Speaker 1: Yeah yeah, yeah, awesome. So tell me out your childhood because I know the way you sing. I want to know what the inspirations were, Like, what were your parents playing when you were at home cleaning up on Saturdays? Because you have so much soul in your voice and there's so many different textures. What was that like growing up and what did you guys listen to?

00:02:19
Speaker 2: So my mother was very strict on what was being filtered in the house, so it was really just gospel and jazz.

00:02:29
Speaker 3: My dad was on the doing the jazz stuff.

00:02:31
Speaker 4: But then also they would you know, listen to you know.

00:02:34
Speaker 2: Marvin Gaye and the Commodores and stuff like that.

00:02:38
Speaker 3: Shah Day, Yes, you.

00:02:40
Speaker 2: Know, yes, Whitney and Mariah would be played on the jazz stations.

00:02:43
Speaker 3: You know.

00:02:44
Speaker 2: And Michael Jackson actually was cool, you know, because we grew up with him so but it wasn't until later on I was able to what I call a contraband, you know, listening to the Wait to Next Heale soundtrack. And yes, I don't know how I got a hold of the velvet rope. I just remember that she got a hold of them lyrics back then, you know, you used to put lyrics in the booklet.

00:03:09
Speaker 3: Child, and she got got the rope burn And I ain't seen that album since.

00:03:15
Speaker 1: Your mama burn it.

00:03:16
Speaker 3: Listen.

00:03:17
Speaker 4: She she got rid of it.

00:03:17
Speaker 3: She was just like, no, not in this house.

00:03:20
Speaker 1: Listen. I remember about my first like explicit. I think it was like Mace or like an album from Mason. It had the E on it for ex listen and my mom found that and she was like mm hmmm.

00:03:30
Speaker 5: Not.

00:03:30
Speaker 1: I couldn't even I'm on two BT shows and I couldn't watch BT growing up.

00:03:34
Speaker 2: I mean I knew listen, I knew friends who couldn't watch the rug Rats what, you know, because they felt that that behavior would was not you know, uh becoming Yeah yeah yeah yeah, for for for for children. So it's just it just really depends on what everybody's capacities were. But you know, you know, we we kind of loosened it up as we as we went along.

00:03:54
Speaker 1: So you are known for your energy on the stage. Were you always full of energy as a child or did this did you find yourself later on in life?

00:04:02
Speaker 2: I have always been myself really, I've always been myself. As my mother said, you.

00:04:09
Speaker 3: Always let us know who you were.

00:04:10
Speaker 2: There was no like us controlling or molding you into you know, even though I'm a very great hybrid of.

00:04:19
Speaker 3: My mom and my dad being the only child. But yeah, it's I've just always been me.

00:04:26
Speaker 2: I've always just been this ball of energy, always wanting to entertain people. I always want to laugh, always up to mischief, you know. But yeah, this is it's and it's just been more refined.

00:04:43
Speaker 1: Okay throughout your journey, Like because you've sang background for Eric for how long now, I still do I saw a video recently crazy.

00:04:52
Speaker 3: It's been.

00:04:55
Speaker 4: Thoughts thirteen years.

00:04:58
Speaker 3: Wow, so she got together?

00:05:00
Speaker 1: I know, Oh my good So thirteen years singing background. A lot of vocalists get pigeonholed. Singing beg for artists. How did you say, I'm gonna do this for thirteen years and still doing it, but I'm gonna also do my own thing, And how did you find the time to do that?

00:05:15
Speaker 2: So she was never at least when I came along, she wasn't gigging to the point where it was taking me away from the things that I needed to do to you.

00:05:24
Speaker 3: So I was able to balance both.

00:05:26
Speaker 2: And I told her, like, I will juggle both as long as I possibly.

00:05:30
Speaker 3: Can until I just can't.

00:05:33
Speaker 2: But it helps when you, you know, have a great relationship with not only the artist, but the crew, the band. You know, this has been a family affair for me for a while now. So I'm just now getting to a position where I'm like, oh, I can't do this, kid, because I'm gonna be an afropunk or you know, I'm gonna be over in Europe, you know. So, but that's something that she's always proud of.

00:05:57
Speaker 1: I love it. It's always good when like the person that you were for for so long is supportive of your dreams as well.

00:06:02
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, she she told me early on when I first joined. She said, I don't feel my stage is big enough for you. And that was me at like twenty two twenty. Yeah, I was really trying to just digest that.

00:06:15
Speaker 1: You know, how do you process Eric telling.

00:06:17
Speaker 2: You that when you are in a position where you can inspire your inspiration, it is unlike any feeling that we we And it's not that it's not common in certain spaces, but to just be aware of it, to really take it in like this is this is a moment, yeah, you know, or you you value my thoughts or my feelings, you know that type of thing. Yeah, And I know everyone doesn't doesn't have that when they say don't you know, don't meet your heroes or don't meet your favorites.

00:06:49
Speaker 3: You know.

00:06:49
Speaker 2: But I think my expectation for our relationship was so low, Like I thought it was just I was gonna be able to shake her hand and you know, just thank her for you know, inspiring me.

00:06:59
Speaker 3: And it was just know she reached out to me.

00:07:01
Speaker 1: Wow, So how did they even come about the Internet? Then she saw you along and was like, I want you come, come with me. Let's run this world together. Yes, indeed, that is amazing. So being that close to Erica, it reminds me of my relationship with Tyler Perry. I styled him for five years and I was with him all the time. What things, What things have you taken from Erica that have helped you in your own personal journey as an artist?

00:07:29
Speaker 3: My ship?

00:07:32
Speaker 2: But then also have fun, Yeah, have fun, trusting your band and then trusting you, building that rapport.

00:07:43
Speaker 3: Not to take myself so serious, especially on stage.

00:07:47
Speaker 2: It's like, yeah, okay, I didn't hit the right note, That's fine.

00:07:52
Speaker 3: This is when did you know? Hit the right as she said?

00:07:56
Speaker 4: First of all, how y'all gonna tell about I hit the wrong now?

00:07:58
Speaker 3: How you know which? You know? I was going.

00:08:02
Speaker 1: Right exactly?

00:08:04
Speaker 2: So now all of those things and just other mental notes that I've taken over the course of this time, especially as I've seen.

00:08:13
Speaker 3: The production grow.

00:08:15
Speaker 2: You know, last year, she did her first arena tour, and that was something that was you know, just to go from.

00:08:22
Speaker 3: The theaters that we did once.

00:08:25
Speaker 2: Let she hadn't put out new music in almost ten years, and yet you're able to sell out eighteen to twenty two thousand, sex crazy.

00:08:36
Speaker 1: That's amazing business wise. Has there been anything that you've taken from her that helped you, like develop your Businesscause as an artist, it's just not about being creative, it's also be a businessman. Now, what have you taken from her to sell? Okay, this is how I need to handle my business as well.

00:08:51
Speaker 2: So my business aspect of it really honestly came from my dad because he's been, you know, managing me. Oh really, yes, since I decided that this is what I wanted to do. So yeah, So having someone to have your back in.

00:09:05
Speaker 3: That kind of way.

00:09:07
Speaker 2: Yeah, and I have an amazing team that believes in me that you know, enhances is what is going on.

00:09:16
Speaker 3: However, when our.

00:09:18
Speaker 2: Senior just takes the cake when it comes to someone really going to bat and making sure that I'm taking care of it the best way.

00:09:25
Speaker 1: I love it. And a lot of not a lot of artists can say that their father their mother back everything they're doing. But to have that family support, I'm sure means the most because you can really trust your family, especially navigating this industry, it's a little tough. Yeah, Yeah, that's incredible. Now most recently, you just did the Juneteenth Celebration at the Hollywood But oh yeah, yeah, let's talk about it, because honey, I saw the video with Tea Pain standing on the side of the stage losing his absolute mind.

00:09:53
Speaker 3: Don't you just love it?

00:09:54
Speaker 1: Like I just love it?

00:09:57
Speaker 2: I was so first and forem of some want to go on the record and just say, Lloyd, who is there is one of the most sweetest and warm, delightful human beings that I've just immediately come in contact with. And he just poured so much positivity and encouragement into me before I went on stage, and I was telling him I feel full, I feel supportive, and I feel loved, and I also feel acknowledged all of those things happening simultaneously. To have people that I again am inspired by, that I'm motivated by, that I've grown up with, are now.

00:10:43
Speaker 3: Paying attention.

00:10:46
Speaker 1: For a long time.

00:10:46
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, so that is something that I'm And then the fact that my parents are able to witness all of this, to witness the seeds that they planted and to see all this flourish is just everything else is a as a perk.

00:11:01
Speaker 3: That is the main thing that has been the most gratifying.

00:11:04
Speaker 1: I want to ask you something, because just singing about your journey and you're saying finally be an acknowledged and seen and loved. Were there any moments in your journey where you felt like they don't see me, the world doesn't see me. I know who I am, you know, and you're still getting those and trying to build. How did you navigate through those seasons of your life.

00:11:22
Speaker 2: I did have a a real moment I think maybe in twenty fifteen, where I felt maybe I need to just completely shift who I am and how I'm presenting myself because maybe this isn't getting me a new pair of shoes that I really need to be able to stride properly. And it's all about timing, and it's all about what is being said and who is saying and how they are saying it. And I think for a long time people were trying to tell me to tone it down or to dumb it down. That was another one that I just I didn't understand what do you mean?

00:12:10
Speaker 3: Right?

00:12:11
Speaker 1: Dun't what And it.

00:12:12
Speaker 2: Wasn't until someone actually had the language for me to be like, well, actually, all we need to do is just simplify this. You can still be yourself but present it in a way where you love it, but also it makes sense to everyone else.

00:12:26
Speaker 3: And so that's where my song melody came from.

00:12:29
Speaker 2: And I was just talking about that journey of finding finally finding my sound and my approach to music, which is implementing my personality in there and leaving room for where everyone can sing along, and then those little pockets of me doing my stuff. You know, we tuck her over here in the cut. You have got to really you know, pay attention. And then yeah, so that that's been and that's been like my my my formula.

00:12:52
Speaker 1: I love it. I love it because I know a lot of times we did with imposter syndrome or feel like we don't belong knowing we do, but we get to that space where like, wait, is this what I'm supposed to do? Yeah, so I n I know, I a'll too well myself, like how they can feel when you know what you're capable of but the world doesn't see it yet, that part, you know, Yeah, I love that. So you also did the tiny desk. I that's like a big platform. Listen, that is like a huge, huge, huge, huge platform, and everybody wants to make that, but not a lot of people do. Howd Ha, how did you feel when you got that call? And then how did you come up with your set list and everything you're gonna do for that?

00:13:30
Speaker 2: So first and foremost just walking into the space knowing that I'm I've been doing this independently.

00:13:42
Speaker 3: Yeah, And I also.

00:13:44
Speaker 2: Had, you know, my village there, you know, where it's people that I've been reaching to the side of that I've known since I was twelve and eighteen, and you know, the past ten years just building this, helping add onto this machine. It was again a v is the acknowledgment, the actually, no, we don't want you to do Tiny Desk at home.

00:14:05
Speaker 3: We need to get you actually behind the desk.

00:14:08
Speaker 2: Yeah, and then just the introduction that Bobby Carter did, where it was just He's like, I've been around for every Tiny Desk, you know, and I've seen amazing acts.

00:14:19
Speaker 3: Blessed this space, he said, however, this is.

00:14:23
Speaker 2: Special, yes, and it's just like, oh gosh. And so I've been dressing up on my tour that I was on and so we kind of slapped that right in the middle of five shows and it ended up being number six. We have been on the road for three weeks by that time, so we were very locked in. It was just a condensed version of my of my set, and I was dressing up. I was the mask one night, I was Beetlejuice, I was Popeye, Carmen San Diego, all those things because I didn't get a chance to you know, trick or treat when I was growing up, you know again Harvest.

00:15:00
Speaker 6: Okay, So yeah, So I was just allowing my inner child to just kind of have a moment, to just have fun.

00:15:11
Speaker 3: You know.

00:15:12
Speaker 1: Yeah, I love that.

00:15:15
Speaker 3: Hallelujah.

00:15:16
Speaker 1: And I remember those days.

00:15:18
Speaker 5: We are not going to church, be going to the church absolutely, okay, Okay, speaking of growing up in the church, do you feel like that has been your foundation and what has carried you throughout the years.

00:15:30
Speaker 2: So, my the development, the artist development being in church, and not just in church, in theater as well, singing choral music and being a part of an ensemble where you are learning how to blend into the bigger piece of the puzzle and then when it's time for you to shine, you step out, you work the stage and so and I also got a lot of inspiration indirectly, like I didn't grow listening to the Clark Sisters, but I listen to people who listen to the Clark Sisters, and so certain things that were done I picked up from other artists, which I think is really dope about just music in general, and how we can be indirectly inspired just from someone's take of how they interpret what they've learned. And I'm a sponge, so it's it's all different type of things.

00:16:22
Speaker 1: I love it. I love I grew up in the church and I sing as.

00:16:25
Speaker 2: Well, not like you got to do that, but you're saying.

00:16:33
Speaker 3: Listen.

00:16:33
Speaker 1: I listened to you know, I was like, oh my goodness, Like you definitely have an anointed voice because the acrobats you can do with your voice, I'm just like, whoa.

00:16:41
Speaker 4: The human voice just interests me so much.

00:16:44
Speaker 2: This is the things that we can do specifically like Phyllis Hymon, Yes, like when she did Broadway. It's just the thing that can be done how you can. Jamie Fox is another one where his impressions.

00:16:59
Speaker 1: Like yeah, so good, Yeah, I love that a few other things. Tell me what else you got coming up? I know you have a six city tour skate, Yeah, you're gonna DJ yes, that's incredible. Okay, let me tell that story.

00:17:13
Speaker 3: I was.

00:17:13
Speaker 1: I had a skate party in the third grade, fell and busted my lip and I haven't skated since. Yeah, so I've the trauma. The trauma, honey, you can't. And then I tried to get when I got old and I fell and just the vibration from your butt to your mouth when you fall like that, It's like, this is why I didn't do this. So like, I love. I think it's so cool when I see people out there skating backwards and doing the dances. Do you do all that?

00:17:38
Speaker 2: So I'm seeing I need everybody to calm down because they be sending me videos of folks doing backflips and flips and the splits on.

00:17:49
Speaker 3: The edge or the curb. No, I have not done any such thing.

00:17:53
Speaker 1: Okay.

00:17:54
Speaker 2: What what I'm doing is I'm line dancing on my skates Okay, and line dancing is it is a Northwest I'm sorry, Midwest South thing, and so it makes it.

00:18:05
Speaker 4: Look like I'm doing something, but I'm just I'm stepping.

00:18:08
Speaker 3: It's just a little jig.

00:18:10
Speaker 1: You know, in your DJing on this tour. Yes, so when did you get into dj last year?

00:18:16
Speaker 2: Yes, I mean technically I've been djaying, you know, because you know, my taste in music is impeccable. But it's just now I have a controller to kind of blend and remix and whatnot. So yeah, I want to give that a shot, just to see what other avenues I can have to be myself and that make away from me.

00:18:36
Speaker 1: I love that. I love that. So what made you say I want to do a tour? A skate tour? Because this is very like I don't think you mighty really done anything like this.

00:18:43
Speaker 2: Yeah, this is very specific because I'm a skater and I grew up you know, skating every Friday Saturday night. And also too, I feel like there is a there's an art to curating music specifically for skating and specifically adult night. Yes, like I just as much as Active by the City Girls gets me going, that is not a proper skate song, right, Like we need you know, pistol, grip pump okay, we like you know those type of things. We need some Patrice Russian Okay, we need some you know mayor Jane girls.

00:19:20
Speaker 3: You know that's the thing to get that going. So yeah, I want to.

00:19:23
Speaker 2: Just showcase how I first of all, how I interpret the music within, how I blend it, and then you know, just giving the folks things that they didn't know that they needed.

00:19:33
Speaker 1: That's so true. I love it and I feel like skating is a part of our culture, such a big part.

00:19:37
Speaker 3: Of absolutely absolutely, because in Atlanta.

00:19:39
Speaker 1: I live in Atlanta. Now I'm from Tennessee, but in Atlanta, like Sunday nights is the skate night. Everybody makes their way to Cascade or Sprinkles. It's another little or Sparkles. There's another skate skating rinking Smirnou. Everybody goes there on Sunday. It's a thing. And I sometimes I've been there with friends and I'm like, I cannot do that. That is crazy.

00:19:59
Speaker 2: I'm I mean, luckily, you know, you don't have to necessarily know how to skate to pull up. I would beseech use to, you know, get your own skate so that you can at least learn.

00:20:12
Speaker 3: You got to start somewhere.

00:20:14
Speaker 2: But then just you know, just to be in the space. You know, the music is gonna be dope. You know, regardless if you're on your wheels or not, you're.

00:20:19
Speaker 3: Gonna be Yeah.

00:20:20
Speaker 1: No, that's fun. Yeah, I love that anything else you have coming up that you're gonna be doing, any music that you that you can tell us about.

00:20:30
Speaker 2: I mean, well, so I'm doing a couple joint projects. I wanted to do some cross promotion and I haven't revealed who it is yet, knowing that like that is no known, I just want to say that, but this is some a group that I think is really dope, and they have curated a sound for me that is very cohesive. It's something I've been wanting to do. So yeah, that'll that'll be out this year.

00:21:00
Speaker 1: I love it as artists, I know. Sometimes I talked about we've deal with imposter syndrome, We've deal with depression, with different types of mental challenges throughout your journey, has there been any moments or scenarios that you can share with us that were difficult for you and how did you see them through?

00:21:19
Speaker 3: H I mean outside of you know, really just trying to find my sound. I think the.

00:21:27
Speaker 2: Biggest the other hurdle that would probably be the biggest one would be just me coming into myself, yeah, and finding you know, to be able to hang on to my humanity and not detegrate myself or repress myself out of you.

00:21:44
Speaker 3: Know, just trying to be obedient, you.

00:21:47
Speaker 2: Know, in a certain space, but then also coming to a space where at least my mother was able to affirm me in a way that let me know that there was nothing to fix because I wasn't broken. And so now I'm able to, you know, have this this new life being breathed into me, which.

00:22:07
Speaker 3: Is like and love for myself.

00:22:09
Speaker 2: Yeah, and that is the confidence that I have because it's all about the company that you keep as well.

00:22:16
Speaker 3: Yes, and a lot of us have let our.

00:22:20
Speaker 2: Relatives get away with things that we wouldn't let strangers get away with. So we have to take the emphasis off of that and learn to separate our relatives from our family because they're.

00:22:34
Speaker 3: Not the same.

00:22:35
Speaker 1: They're not Ooh, that's strong. That is so real because a lot of times we do put our family members in a different box than we do other people, and we let them get away with more than we would let just any other anybody else in our lives. That is so true. How have you navigated friendships through this journey, because I mean, you've been doing this for a long time, but I'm sure there's people that you have thought, like, are you just around me because of who I'm attached to you or are you here for me?

00:23:02
Speaker 3: Yeah? That you know.

00:23:06
Speaker 2: That ebbs and flows, you know, especially being out in the industry, being amongst it. It's one thing to be in an environment where you're kind of like a shark in a pond, and so a lot of focus might be on you and the things that you're doing. But then when you're in an environment where you're not the only one doing what you're doing, and then finding people that are either heading in the direction that you want to be already there, I think there's a little you come across people that have just as much to gain in as much to lose, you know, so the dynamic is a little different even with people that aren't necessarily known, but they have shown themselves to be very dependable in ways that I didn't think that I could depend on a person that wasn't my parents, you know. So I was like, man, okay, I clearly how I'm carrying myself and the content of my character is so enriching that people are opening their homes to me because you know, I'm in between spots right now, or you know, so I don't I never take that lightly.

00:24:18
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's amazing being when you just said that, sometimes you've been in between spots. Were there any moments where you're like, oh, my goodness, like I got to get it together or because I know, for me, when I moved from DC to Atlanta, it was a really hard time for me. I moved from Capitol when I was working on Capitol Hill, very secure job, and was like, I want to be an actor and a musician and I'm going to move to Atlanta and do this thing. And I got to Atlanta. It was one of the hardest years of my entire life, and went through depression. I went through doubt, you know, where I'm just like it's just what I'm supposed to be doing. God, Like, like you said before, like do I need to completely like restructure this thing. Did you ever have moments in the journey or where you were just like, oh, this is tough.

00:25:01
Speaker 2: I was ubering and lifting for from like twenty sixteen to twenty twenty.

00:25:08
Speaker 3: Wow, And yes, I was getting.

00:25:11
Speaker 2: Recognized, yes, getting asked to sing, and I'm like, hey.

00:25:19
Speaker 4: We're just supposed to get you from the point at a point B that's.

00:25:21
Speaker 3: Gonna cast you.

00:25:23
Speaker 4: If you want to tell me, Yeah, stop playing my face.

00:25:27
Speaker 3: There was one time where I ended.

00:25:28
Speaker 2: Up all the way out in Calabasas, Wow, and I needed to pull over because I was nodding, and I thought to myself, I mean, I could go back to Cleveland. My mother would love my company back in Cleveland. However, me, the idea of me sleeping in my car out here is more productive for what I'm trying to do then going back to clean, being comfortable or somewhere where I've now developed an animosity for being because i haven't gotten to where I feel I need to be in my career, being in the environment that I need to be in.

00:26:15
Speaker 3: And so on and so forth, and I just have to like.

00:26:22
Speaker 4: FuG that out for three hundred and seventy five days Jesus, just not being.

00:26:27
Speaker 2: Able to be comfortable and sleep in because I'm on somebody's couch or I'm in a living you know, in the common area, and when they get up for work, like.

00:26:35
Speaker 3: Uh, what you doing?

00:26:37
Speaker 2: You know what I'm saying, unless it's a situation where I've been working all night and then as I'm coming in there leaving to go to work. Yeah, that was another thing that that was actually pretty cool.

00:26:45
Speaker 3: But yeah, other than that.

00:26:47
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's it's the grind, But then the grind is the when you get into the hustle, there's a little bit of like flow room.

00:26:57
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, do you find you finally found yourself in a flo Now are you comfortable?

00:27:02
Speaker 3: You know.

00:27:04
Speaker 2: There was a there was a flow, and now it's just go go, go, go, go, go go, which is a good problem to have. I'm just not reaching for moments of not having to do anything so that I can really rest.

00:27:18
Speaker 1: Yes, I wanted to ask you because he came.

00:27:22
Speaker 3: Listen you listen, okay.

00:27:25
Speaker 2: And even even seeing you know, certain people seeing me right before I go on stage. Oh, there's been times where I rolled out of bed, like twenty five minutes before I have to be on stage.

00:27:37
Speaker 3: And just it's like the do do do do do do doo? Okay, Okay, I'm not I'm on. I'm on okay right.

00:27:49
Speaker 2: Here like that, That's what it feels like sometime when you got them up. But yes, I would, I would, But I would so much rather being tired and exhausted from doing what I love, from doing what I like, from doing what is effective in adding change, the change that I would like to see in the world, and that is also necessary.

00:28:15
Speaker 1: Yes, it is. Now are you finding any time to balance it out and take time for you? I know you said you would love to have time just to lay down and do anything. Are you stilling those moments at all to be like no, at least naps.

00:28:28
Speaker 2: Good naps are just see we slept on naps. But yeah, it's it's something that is absolutely necessary. I actually now have that blocked out in my schedule when I'm like on the road or whatever like this between I need to be sleeping.

00:28:46
Speaker 1: Ye.

00:28:46
Speaker 2: So but that's that and getting massages deep tissues slash sports massages specifically.

00:28:56
Speaker 1: I have my massage SAPs is a sports trainer like she does as sports therapy.

00:29:01
Speaker 2: So and then and then stretch lab what have we met.

00:29:07
Speaker 1: Mama Si there was also trained like she certified in stretch labs that she brings and everything so good.

00:29:14
Speaker 2: So just those two things and IVY every so often. Yeah, just just to keep yourself going because it's a lot of wear and tear. It just bouncing from time zones or three shows back to back, and they're all in different cities.

00:29:29
Speaker 3: Yeah, you know so, and there might not be a bus, it might be playing.

00:29:35
Speaker 1: Yeah, you're right. Yeah, yeah, how has that hustling bustle taken a toll on your mental and do you have some onhe that you talk to?

00:29:42
Speaker 3: Souse?

00:29:42
Speaker 1: I know, for me, as my success and fame grew, I found myself having more anxiety because it was just like some people pulling at you, and it's a lot, and it's just like, oh my goodness, like sometimes you can't even hear your own thoughts and sometimes you need to talk to somebody. Do you have something that you talk to or have you been faced with that as things start to go like that for you?

00:30:02
Speaker 2: So luckily, I've never been in a position where I didn't have anyone to talk to.

00:30:09
Speaker 1: That's good.

00:30:10
Speaker 2: Yeah, no, love, very good counsel, and I have a I have a great therapist, amazing. But yeah, for the most part, I I have access to just safe spaces, uh, to be able to not just be handed a yes or what I they think I wanna hear, you know, but yeah, to actually have a rapport with people that have seen you at your best and will hold you to that standard.

00:30:40
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's good. Yeah, And you feel like a safe space, you know, like some people you like mm I don't know, but just even your energy is very calming. It's almost like a jexposition from who you are on stage to just sitting on the sofa like oh yeah, unders like that, Like it tells like a totally different person, and.

00:30:58
Speaker 2: Also too, it's different dimensions of the same yes, person. I would like to think that, you know, in certain spaces, like being around Terrell, I will definitely be bouncing off the walls because he's also bouncing off the walls. But I feel it's also important for people to see the different layers and dimensions of me where I can't sit down and have a conversation and still be as engaging.

00:31:23
Speaker 3: You know, or in tune.

00:31:26
Speaker 1: You know, absolutely, I love that. I love that. Is there anything that you would like to tell our audience about you or anything that we may have missed that you want to make sure we get across. So I want to make sure anything that you want to talk about we hit on it.

00:31:38
Speaker 2: So we have a new project, I can Route Okay for the Fancy Girls en Route Okay, and it's a story about a road trip. You know, we're going from one one destination to the other, and we have stories to tell in the midst we're making sure that even on this journey of ours, we make sure that we make time for rest.

00:31:58
Speaker 3: Yes, because in the work in the rest.

00:32:04
Speaker 1: That's a bar scroll that around the bottom.

00:32:09
Speaker 2: Must do that and take time to really just take in what's going to be present, so present that nostalgia won't kick your ass and tomorrow we'll not worry, you know.

00:32:20
Speaker 3: I love that.

00:32:21
Speaker 2: That's and then before you know, at fifteen twenty years then went by friendship or just being you know, in a certain environment that you've been able to you know, decorate and make your own right.

00:32:33
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, I love it. I love it so much.

00:32:36
Speaker 7: So I have a song on the top fifty dance Billboard charts and that is with mister k Sernadi.

00:32:47
Speaker 1: That's huge.

00:32:48
Speaker 2: Yes, I've been We've been sitting on that since twenty twenty.

00:32:51
Speaker 1: Are you serious? Isn't that crazy? How like some of the greatest hits can be set on for a while and you're like, we need to put this out? What made you guys put it this out?

00:32:59
Speaker 3: Now?

00:32:59
Speaker 1: Is it time to put it out?

00:33:00
Speaker 2: So we were just recording, went back into the lab after Bubba the last project, and he was just collecting songs and then one month he.

00:33:11
Speaker 3: Hit me up and was like, Okay, it's time to get weird.

00:33:14
Speaker 2: And I was just like fine, like yes, and it already cracked a million streams.

00:33:20
Speaker 1: Wow.

00:33:21
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, this has been This has been a very productive year thus far. And I really didn't have any other intentions other than what adventures are we going to go on this? You know, let's go around. That's that's that's the best I got.

00:33:36
Speaker 1: I love it. This is amazing. I'm happy for you. Thank you, yes, yes, thank you so much. Absolutely So before we close out, if you want to hang out with just a little bit longer, we do what it's called positive outcomes, where our listeners write in and we give them advice what they write about. All right, so this one says, Hi, Crystal. My name is Mariah and I'm twenty six. I'm an aspiring screenwriter author. Someday I feel so confident, like I had the skill and ability and do more than I'm capable. Then other days I feel where I'm not good enough, I'm not smart enough, and I just like to give up. Most people don't know this, but I suffer from schizophrenia, so it's double the intrusive thoughts and I'm constantly getting beaten down by my own mind. About a year ago, I started a new journey of getting to know God all over again, thanks to you and Change Church, of course. All it felt so refreshing and my mind was finally starting to be at ease. That was until I lost my sister and everything was back to square one. Now I'm back to constantly overthinking, feeling worthless, and I don't know how to shake back. I don't really deal with death like anyone else. I tend to just let it fade away and not really face it. But it's tear me apart mentally. Do you have any advice on how to keep your faith and keep it positive while grieving. I'm losing this battle with myself and I'm really trying to stay afloat. Wow, Mariah, thank you so much for writing in and I am m so sorry for your loss. I I'm not very knowledgeable in schizophrenia, but I'm sure that, like you're saying it, you have the double the intrusive thoughts, and then you're condantly beating yourself down with your own mind. I can't imagine what that battle is like, like an internal battle that you're having but what I will say is that one I feel like you should m definitely find the professional help that can help you either balance that or medication or any type of holistic route that you can take to kind of battle that schizophrenia. And then when it comes to loss, everybody deals with group differently, and you're gonna have days where you're okay in days where you're not. It just it comes and goes. I know I can attest to that, but I would say that I would pray because death is a part of life, and I think a lot of times we hold on to people want them to be here forever, and then we allow it to affect us in a way when we know that eventually we're going to go with sometime. So I would find the reality and death and then look at the amazing moments and memories that you built with your sister and focus on that and not the loss as an entirety. I would also say to continue to work on your relationship with God, continue to be around like minded, positive people that can inspire you and encourage you to think good of yourself. To tell you the hastis come on, let's go out, don't stay in the house. Let's have some fun, anything that you can do to keep your mind off of the loss that you had and continue to move forward. When would you tell her.

00:36:35
Speaker 3: That last part was key?

00:36:38
Speaker 2: When we're dealing with loss or change in that way, it's important for us to be around people that are going to uplift us, that are going to and I guess in environments where even if the waves do come, we can't revel in it too long, you know, yes, whether that's getting out and going hiking or you know, going skating, you know, just again being around your folks that you know you're going to get a laugh out of.

00:37:05
Speaker 3: I think that's really that's that's so key.

00:37:08
Speaker 2: And I know I talk about the destination and the journey, but really it's it's truly about.

00:37:14
Speaker 3: The company that you have along the way.

00:37:16
Speaker 2: It is like I look at I look at life as sometimes like a job that we really don't like working. But if you know your homegirl Lisa is working that shift, it's like, oh okay, okay, bad like so.

00:37:29
Speaker 3: Look at it like that.

00:37:30
Speaker 2: Make sure that the folks that you need to be there in that time are working that shift.

00:37:33
Speaker 1: That's good. Thank you so much for that, all right, So We also like to ask our guests if there's something they're going through and what they're growing through. What are you going through and growing through in this season in your life?

00:37:50
Speaker 2: Going through? I'm going through these different tiers of my career where I'm grateful enough to be able to to kind of get acclimated with what's going on before I go to the next one, because I mean I could drop a song and then you know, six months later, the trajectory of my career is just completely a one eighty. So just making sure that I have people around me that I can that can keep me grounded.

00:38:25
Speaker 3: Yeah, And what else? What am I growing through?

00:38:34
Speaker 2: I guess just finding other things out about myself. You know, what are some other healthy outlets that I can find? What are some people that I haven't met that I could really use them around, you know, vice versa.

00:38:53
Speaker 3: You know.

00:38:56
Speaker 4: Yeah, I think the main thing is just to be.

00:38:59
Speaker 3: As president as possible. Yeah, that's that's good. Yeah.

00:39:02
Speaker 1: I like that it close out. We do this thing where we fill in the blank, keep it blank, sweetie.

00:39:11
Speaker 3: Okay, and for.

00:39:12
Speaker 1: This episode, I am going to say, keep it creative, sweetie. Where would you tell the people?

00:39:21
Speaker 3: Keep it audacious? Period.

00:39:24
Speaker 1: That's the word, honey, sweetie, Yes.

00:39:26
Speaker 3: My therapist let me know you have the audacity to be yourself.

00:39:29
Speaker 1: Yes, and it's beautiful and the world needs more of that. Thank you so much. I appreciate you, guys. Thank you so much for tuning into this episode to keep it positive, sweetie. If you want to write into our Positive Outcomes listener letter, you can write into keep it Positive sweety at gmail dot com and that's Sweetye with an Ie. You can follow me on all platforms that love christorinate and that's l u v Duran tells people that can find you.

00:39:53
Speaker 7: They can find me on the tiktoks and on the I jeens.

00:39:57
Speaker 3: And on Twitter. Okay, your mama named your Twitter. That's one gonna call you.

00:40:00
Speaker 2: Uh, that's d u r rah a n d b e r rah n a rah rah. Okay, the not so quotes come on your favor because I know your daddy side. Okay, don't you forget it.

00:40:09
Speaker 1: Don't you forget it? All right, guys, that's it for this episode. In the meantime, in between time, you know what to do. Keep it positive, sweetie. Love you, guys, Delord, thank you so much for this opportunity. Thank you for the blessing of just waking up every single day, Dear God, and continue to live in our purpose. I asked that you just blessed this conversation. Let someone be inspired, let someone be healed, and let someone see themselves in us, Dear God, because you know that we are nothing without You and Jesus. Then we pray Amen a shay