Baltimore Ravens quarterback and 2-time NFL MVP, Lamar Jackson, talks fashion, philanthropy, leadership on and off the field and what’s needed to support the women’s sports space.
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00:00All right, Essence fam, Essence black women in sports fam,
00:03it's your girl, Sheree Nicole here.
00:04I am very, very excited.
00:06We've been waiting for this sit down for quite some time.
00:09I get to spend some time with the two time NFL MVP
00:12Heisman Trophy winner, QB for the Baltimore Ravens.
00:16He's also an author, he's an advocate,
00:18he's a man of service, he's Lamar Jackson.
00:21And it's an honor and a pleasure to sit here with you today.
00:24Appreciate you, appreciate you for having me.
00:25Of course, so I appreciate this chain.
00:27This chain is off the chain.
00:29And I want to just talk about your fashion sense.
00:31Can you describe your fashion style?
00:33It's just me.
00:34I like to be comfortable.
00:36Even if I have to handle business,
00:39I try to be comfortable as possible,
00:40because when you're comfortable, you can be yourself.
00:43When you're trying to be something you're not,
00:45I feel like you're faking it,
00:46and it's hard for me to fake it.
00:47I can't be that person.
00:49You can be real.
00:49I appreciate it.
00:50I'll try.
00:52Who are some of your fashion inspirations?
00:53I would say the 90s.
00:56The 90s, I get my style from pretty much my family
00:58and the older guys who I grew up around, really.
01:00Yeah, if people look at your fashion style,
01:02what do you want them to say?
01:04What would you like them to think about?
01:06He just being him.
01:07I'd rather someone be them,
01:08instead of trying to be like their idol,
01:12because you're not really being your true self.
01:14You're not really showing your true talent, really.
01:18You're trying to be like this guy,
01:20but you don't know what this guy's been through.
01:21You don't know the real him.
01:23The cameras are rolling, so he got to be this way.
01:25You don't got to be that way.
01:26No one knows you, so just be yourself.
01:29Speaking of being yourself,
01:30I want to talk about mental health a little bit.
01:32In that vein, how difficult or easy
01:34has it been for you to be yourself?
01:36To me, it's been smooth.
01:38To probably outsiders, it's like,
01:39man, I wonder how he's feeling,
01:40but like I said, I'm true to myself.
01:42At the end of the day, with everything I'm doing,
01:46I'm not necessarily going to bite my tongue.
01:48I'm going to speak what's truth and what's true to me.
01:51People are like, oh, fake it till you make it.
01:53It's like, nah, I'm not faking it till I make it,
01:55because now when I make it, I got to keep faking it.
01:59Some people can't hold themselves to that,
01:59because a lot of people harm themselves,
02:02a lot of suicidal thoughts,
02:03all types of stuff go popping in people's head,
02:05but not me, because I keep God first.
02:07Before the cameras started rolling,
02:08I was talking about just the QB position,
02:10how cerebral you have to be.
02:11You have to think about obviously keeping yourself safe,
02:14but also making sure that your teammates
02:15are doing what they need to do.
02:17The leadership component to this
02:18also extends off the field.
02:19With all of that in mind, how do you stay focused,
02:23whether it be on the field and or off of it?
02:25I feel like my teammates love me,
02:26because I'm always just doing what I do.
02:29I don't go out to clubs and stuff like that.
02:32If I'm out, it's rarely.
02:34It's because my teammates are someone like,
02:36oh, bro, come on, bro, you got to.
02:38They begging me, I'm like, man.
02:40And then when I go out, it's like I'm disappointed.
02:42It's like, bro, this is why I don't go out.
02:44What's disappointing about when you go out?
02:46What are some things that'll disappoint you?
02:48It's like I seen it before.
02:51I'm in that environment, and it's like,
02:53I don't know, it's like a movie.
02:55Everyone move in slow motion,
02:57and I'm just in there alone for real.
02:58Even though I'm with people, it's like,
03:01bro, I shouldn't even be in here.
03:02Hey, I should've been home still, laying down.
03:04I'm at my best at home, you know?
03:06Me too, Lamar, I thought I was the only one.
03:09I am such, I can be such a couch potato.
03:11I work hard all day, and I run to my couch,
03:14and sometimes I feel guilty about it,
03:15but you have released the guilt today,
03:17so I appreciate it.
03:18No, no doubt, don't be guilty.
03:21So since you're not really in the clubs,
03:23what does self-care look like for you?
03:25Do you get massages?
03:26Do you find time to meditate?
03:28What's your self-care routine like?
03:28Man, I need to start getting massages.
03:31I need to start.
03:31You don't get massages as a man?
03:33Rarely.
03:34Really?
03:35Barely, rarely.
03:36I need to start, though, but self-care,
03:39what do I do for myself?
03:40I really don't do stuff for myself as much.
03:43Who's filling your cup, Lamar?
03:44And outside of football, obviously,
03:46we know that fills your cup as well, and your faith,
03:48but I mean, living a sacrificial life at times,
03:51and being somebody who is of service,
03:54how do you replenish?
03:55Because you don't get the massages,
03:57and you're kind of making sure everybody else is good.
03:59What does that replenishing look like for you?
04:02Or what would you like it to look like, I should say?
04:04I've been getting closer to God,
04:06so I think about stuff in the Bible,
04:09it's like, dang, we gotta move this way.
04:11Certain things, okay, like I said, I don't bite my tongue,
04:15but with God, that's the only time I'm biting my tongue.
04:18Okay, that ain't gonna be right if I do this right here,
04:20so I gotta fall back and just let stuff play out.
04:22Sometimes I'll get wrong, I'm gonna be a human being,
04:24and it might just, oh, mouth out,
04:26but it'd be like, dang, I shouldn't have said that.
04:28Now I gotta go back and apologize, and stuff like that.
04:31But I'm genuine with it,
04:32it's not like I'm being fake about it, I'm genuine.
04:34I'm a genuine person, I like genuine people around me,
04:36because if someone, if they act this way around me,
04:38then go somewhere else, and they a totally different person,
04:40I really don't, I can't be around that person,
04:42because now you're faking it.
04:43Yeah, speaking of faking it, social media,
04:45sometimes that happens all the time.
04:49And being someone who is in the spotlight,
04:53who is as accomplished as you are,
04:54who's simply in a zone where you're like,
04:55I'm just being me, how do you gauge
04:58when to share and what to share?
05:00Well, if I'm in a playful mood,
05:02I'll be on Twitter just going at it.
05:05People might, oh, he's, what they say,
05:09what's the word I'm trying to look for,
05:10what they be saying I be doing?
05:11Not trolling, not trolling.
05:13Yeah, you don't give me a troll tease,
05:14you don't give me a troll tease.
05:15But I would troll, if they trying to troll me,
05:17I'ma troll back.
05:18You're gonna troll him back?
05:18Yeah, I'ma troll back, but I'd be laughing,
05:19like, I'm not mad at all.
05:21People like, man, oh, he's probably mad,
05:23that made you mad.
05:24I'm like, nah, you made me mad,
05:25but I'm just gonna DM you and just talk about it,
05:27because I know how people would take it.
05:29People like to change stuff.
05:30If you post something, they'll put
05:32their own perspective on it and spin it.
05:33It's like, bro, that is not what I said.
05:35Now you putting words in my mouth.
05:36Now you lying on me, bro, I did not say that, bro.
05:39Oh, that's just how I felt.
05:40That's how you took it.
05:41That's how you received the message.
05:42But that's not what I said at all.
05:43Yeah, yeah.
05:44Speaking of not switching out,
05:45I mean, the Baltimore fan base and community
05:48has just embraced you and for you.
05:51How critical is it for you?
05:53How does it feel for you to be a part
05:55and in the fabric of that city?
05:57What has it meant for you?
05:58Oh, it means a lot.
05:59Just knowing what the city has been through.
06:03Like, something just happened,
06:04like the bridge just collapsed.
06:05Yep.
06:06You know, and a lot of politician things
06:09go on with the city.
06:10You know, a lot of, like, murders
06:12and stuff happen in the city.
06:14I'm from Florida, you know.
06:16Florida is, I wouldn't say it's the same as Baltimore,
06:19but we're similar, you know,
06:20because the same things happen there
06:21that happens in Florida.
06:22We just bigger, you know.
06:24And we got more football teams.
06:26Baltimore already has the Ravens.
06:28They don't have a basketball team to go to,
06:29piggyback off of.
06:30So the players is all they really got,
06:32you know, to look for.
06:34And I want to get involved in the community more,
06:36but it's like, every time I'm trying to do something
06:38for the community, it's,
06:40oh, well, we need you to do this.
06:42And it's like, bro, so y'all really don't care
06:44about the people for real.
06:45Like, I care about the people,
06:46but the people don't know that
06:48because of the blockage that must be going on, you know?
06:51Yeah.
06:52I want to talk about that care that you have,
06:55because there's some incredible things
06:58that you're doing on the literature side
06:59with children's books,
07:00which I think is just so cool.
07:03The book you have now,
07:03I Dream, You Dream, Let Us Dream.
07:05For you, how cool has it been,
07:08and cathartic has it been,
07:09for you to do children's literature?
07:11Oh, it's been great, you know,
07:12because I remember reading the Tiki Barber
07:14and Rene Barber book when I was in elementary school.
07:17I'm like, man, I'm going to go to the NFL.
07:19I want to write me a book.
07:20I want the kids, you know, to dream, basically, you know?
07:23And I Dream, You Dream, We Dream,
07:25it came upon, like, everyone don't got to go to the NFL.
07:29You know, everyone don't have to be a musician,
07:31because we need plumbers in the real, you know?
07:34We need teachers.
07:35Yes, we do.
07:36We need the garbage man to come pick up our trash.
07:39All of this play a part, you know?
07:40We need therapists.
07:41We need guidance counselors.
07:43All these people play a part in our lives, you know,
07:45when we growing up.
07:47People don't have that.
07:48People look at it like, man, I'm trying to be rich.
07:51God ain't put all of us here to be rich, bro.
07:53You know, some people got to work.
07:56You play your part.
07:56We need these guys to build these buildings for us.
08:00You don't have to be a damn astronaut, bro.
08:04You can be anything you want to be,
08:06because all of this is going to play a part
08:07on building yourself and building someone else up.
08:09Because when you're building someone else up,
08:11that's how you get your blessings, really.
08:12Yeah.
08:13That's how I feel.
08:14Yeah.
08:15Who was somebody, if you can recall,
08:17that gave you permission or exemplified dreaming to you?
08:20And I ask because some people are naturally inclined
08:22to just, they're whimsical.
08:24They're dreamers.
08:25They're going to go for it.
08:26And some people kind of need a boost.
08:27Some people need to kind of see or hear from someone
08:29that models that before them.
08:31For you, when did you first, like,
08:33really attach yourself to dreaming?
08:34Or was there somebody in your life that showed you that,
08:37yo, you can dream,
08:37and then you can accomplish your dreams as well?
08:39Just the environment I'm seeing, you know?
08:41I'm seeing, like, my friends who I was growing up with,
08:43who I was playing football with,
08:45I'm seeing them, like, just throw their life away
08:47for, like, fast money and stuff like that.
08:49And they used to tell me, oh, you talk too much.
08:51Because I used to always speak about football
08:53and positivity stuff.
08:54And it's like, they didn't want to hear that.
08:56You know, but now it's like, they'd rather hear it now
08:59because I'm Lamar Jackson.
09:00But it's like, man, I'm far gone from,
09:02I'm far gone from, like, how we was when we were growing up.
09:04I've been speaking about it.
09:06Everybody, y'all just wasn't listening.
09:08Some of them was older than me, like, a couple months,
09:10couple years older than me.
09:11But it was like, I was already seeing what was going on.
09:14And, like, now it's, like, too late for them.
09:16It's like, dang, I wish we can go back in time
09:17and y'all can see, like, what I was seeing, you know?
09:20Because I always, I always looked at life, like,
09:22I counted years, like, man, when I get,
09:25I'm like, how many years do it take to get to the league?
09:28Like, it like, you do three years in college.
09:31I said, I'm doing three years.
09:32Like, I'm not doing nothing else.
09:34Like, I'm not doing four years.
09:35I'm not trying to go fifth year.
09:36I'm doing three years
09:37because I'm going to make sure my family's good.
09:39And I'm going to be able to,
09:40I'm going to try to come back and help as much as I could.
09:42But even when you try to go back
09:44and help where you're from sometimes,
09:47it's like, people don't really want that.
09:48You know, people's all for themselves.
09:49But it's like, man, the kids be the future, really.
09:51Yeah.
09:52Because when you look up,
09:53when you look up the murders and stuff,
09:55it be like the young guys going to prison and stuff.
09:57Them be the ones committing it.
09:59And it's like, the ones before us led us wrong, you know?
10:02Because they wasn't really speaking on,
10:04like, no, don't do that.
10:05Because, like, it was like, when I was growing up,
10:06it was older people like, man, don't do that.
10:08This and that.
10:10They know my mom and they know my dad.
10:11Like, but you better not do that.
10:12So it was like, oh, like, get your head on right.
10:15But now it's like, they want to see the kids downfall.
10:18They want to see them like,
10:19oh, I knew he wasn't going to be nothing.
10:20Like, what type of junkie is that?
10:22Like, what you mean you knew he wasn't going to be nothing?
10:24Like, you was preying on him not to be anything, you know?
10:27But that ain't ever been me.
10:28Like, people don't really know me.
10:30Like, people don't really talk to me.
10:31So they don't know how my brain operate, you know?
10:33But I want to see everyone win at the end of the day,
10:36you know?
10:37Absolutely.
10:37Yeah.
10:38With your storytelling, you know,
10:40how do you hope you can positively impact
10:42and influence this next generation?
10:45Open their eyes to things that, like you mentioned earlier,
10:48they may not be getting from their family members
10:50or neighbors or community.
10:54If you coming from a place like where I come from,
10:56don't try to be like the guys around you.
10:58Like, don't look up to be at the stuff
11:01that look like it's fun
11:03because sometimes it gets you in trouble.
11:06You know, it'd be like this sacrificing.
11:08Like, man, I can't have fun right now.
11:09You know, I got to get my family right.
11:11I can't do this right now.
11:12I can't mess up.
11:13Forget the fast money.
11:14I got to think about longevity.
11:16Think about fast money.
11:18You can get locked up and do five years for $1,000.
11:22That money gone.
11:23It's gone.
11:24It's like, man, I just did that for $1,000
11:25and I could have waited five years.
11:27I would have had $10 million.
11:29Right.
11:29You know, so that's how I really like,
11:31that's where I'm at right now
11:33because that's how I used to think about it.
11:33I'm like, man, forget that.
11:35Much as I'm like, man, my mom working,
11:37she busting her behind.
11:38Like, she going to work.
11:40She going to her job.
11:42When it's just me, my brother,
11:44and my two sisters at home, you know.
11:45But I'm the oldest.
11:46So I got to make sure everyone right.
11:48She don't cook and stuff like that.
11:50And it's like, man, I can't wait.
11:52Like, but I got to wait.
11:53You know, that's the sacrifice.
11:54I got to be patient.
11:55You know, the year's rolling.
11:57That's the sacrifice right there.
11:58But people don't look at it like that.
12:00It's like, man, I need that money right now.
12:01But it's like, but you don't need that money right now.
12:04You don't.
12:04Like, just wait, you know.
12:06I'm the oldest sibling.
12:07I have two younger sisters.
12:08Okay.
12:09And they tell me I'm bossy.
12:10That's not true.
12:11Whatever.
12:12I say it's cap.
12:13I call cap on that.
12:14But there is a level of responsibility.
12:17I think that comes along with being the oldest.
12:19So for you, how has being the oldest child
12:21translated into who you are as an author,
12:24a philanthropist, as a pro football player?
12:26Even though sometimes you like,
12:29you be the parent sometimes.
12:30Right, right.
12:31It's like, they watching you still.
12:33So any little move you doing,
12:35like wrong or right, they watching you.
12:38So it's like, man, nah, I'm gonna keep my head on straight.
12:40So you better keep your head on straight.
12:42So I'm gonna put down as much as I could
12:44just so you can be successful.
12:45Cause I know what the real, how the real can,
12:47you know, just be on your shoulders, man.
12:50Cause I felt that pressure, you know, young.
12:52I'm like, dang, why everyone like this?
12:54But it's like, that's just how the real is.
12:56It speak about it in the Bible for real.
12:58It's like, man, you just gotta keep a level head.
13:00Gotta keep God first.
13:01That's the only way you're gonna be able
13:02to keep your head on straight.
13:03Cause if you trying to figure it out on your own,
13:05you're gonna be lost out here.
13:06Absolutely.
13:07You're gonna be crashing out, you know,
13:08you're gonna be like, oh man, man, I got this going on.
13:11Everyone has problems, just like social media.
13:13Everyone go through problems,
13:14but they're not gonna post their problems.
13:17You're right, they're not.
13:18They're gonna post all the success and good stuff,
13:20but behind closed doors, you don't know what's going on.
13:22And people just catch the limelight.
13:23But it's like, bro, everyone gonna go through situations,
13:26but ain't nobody perfect, bro.
13:28God did not put nobody here
13:29and we just lived this great life.
13:31You know, you're gonna go through situations
13:33just to make it to heaven, you know?
13:34Yeah.
13:35So for you, you know, before I move on from this,
13:37what does being an author give you that football does not?
13:40I wouldn't say influence,
13:42but just pretty much like just giving the world,
13:45like I have a creative mind,
13:47like I could be an author and stuff like that.
13:49Cause people really don't see that side of me.
13:51Well, I'm glad I got to see it.
13:53Because I was like, come on, Lamar, chill.
13:56I mean, because a lot of people do, you know,
13:58they'll do an autobiography and these types of things.
14:01But I mean, it just shows where your heart is.
14:03And so I think we see a piece of your heart
14:04when we dive into your literature on the children's side.
14:07So thank you for sharing a piece of your heart with us.
14:09I think that's dope.
14:10No doubt.
14:11I think that's dope.
14:12So we've talked a lot about your faith.
14:13And so I want to make sure that, you know,
14:15we really sit on this point
14:16and you talked a little bit about your spiritual journey,
14:17just slightly, a little earlier.
14:19For you, what's one of the biggest lessons
14:20that you've learned, you know, on your spiritual journey?
14:23That you're really excited about it,
14:24that's been anchoring you as a person
14:26and or a football player?
14:27Just patience.
14:29Yeah, like patience is the key.
14:30You know, sometimes we just want, we want, we want,
14:33and we want it now, but it's like,
14:37the rail wasn't even built the same day.
14:39God took his time with the rail, you know,
14:41he took his time with people,
14:42he took his time with animals and stuff like that.
14:44So while we see the material things that go on in the rail,
14:47like, I want that Rolls Royce.
14:49It's like, bro, be patient.
14:50Or they might see your Rolls Royce bust your windows
14:52because they think they got something in that car.
14:55So just be patient with everything you do.
14:56And that's pretty much what I've been learning,
14:58on my spiritual journey, for real, just patience.
15:01I love that.
15:02Faith, family, and loyalty.
15:03For you, in light of this incredible journey
15:06that you've been on in your life,
15:08what does loyalty look like for you?
15:10How do you define that?
15:11Loyalty, like, man, I can be able to trust you
15:13no matter what, you know, with my back turned.
15:15Like, you can go around these people,
15:18like we, you know, we might have our own conversation
15:21or whatever, you know, you go around people
15:23and you gonna still have that same respect for me
15:25like I'm right in front of you.
15:26You're not finna go around and just talk crazy about me
15:30or, you know, just try to down what I got going on.
15:32Like, that's loyalty,
15:33because me, I'm gonna be loyal to the bone
15:35until you show me otherwise.
15:37And I was like, I can't trust you now.
15:38Loyalty is really trust.
15:40Loyalty built on trust.
15:41Like, if I can trust you,
15:43you're gonna have the utmost loyalty, yeah.
15:45What have been the keys for you in trusting yourself?
15:48Just being disciplined.
15:50Yeah, like, me trusting myself, gotta have discipline.
15:53Because it's a lot of things in the real, you know,
15:56with me being who I am, that it's like,
15:59oh man, I can do this.
16:00But it's like, nah, bro, you can't do that.
16:03You can't do what everybody else do.
16:04And that's pretty much been it, just discipline.
16:07Yeah, I love that.
16:08I wanna talk about your Forever Dreamers Foundation.
16:11You're doing some incredible work, obviously.
16:13I appreciate it.
16:13For you, how gratifying is it
16:17for you to have this level of impact
16:18on the lives of young people,
16:19in this generation in particular?
16:21Oh man, very, because I feel like our generation is,
16:25it's a lot of young parents, for real, in our generation.
16:27You know, it's a lot of people who I went to school with,
16:32so they had kids, like, young, you know,
16:34when we was still in school.
16:35And, you know, just going through the process,
16:37we really didn't live out our kid and teenage lives,
16:41you know, because people had to be grown,
16:44all of a sudden, you know.
16:46And then, like, with the kids growing up,
16:49they need someone who they can relate to.
16:52Yeah.
16:53Who they can relate to and try to piggyback off of
16:57what we seen with, like, drug dealers and stuff,
16:59like, where I'm from, you know.
17:01And it was like, we seen the nice cars they had,
17:04like Dunks, like, well, I'm from South Florida,
17:06Pompano Beach, Dunks and stuff like that.
17:08Nice cars, and it's like, man, I wanna do that.
17:10Like, it was always, dang, bro, that look hard.
17:12Like, I mean, I can't wait till I'm older to do that.
17:14But it was like, how he get, how is he able to get that?
17:19And, like, I don't wanna have to look over my shoulder
17:22every time I'm riding in my car.
17:24Like, I'm gonna do it the right way, you know.
17:26How can I make enough money where I can do my,
17:28do things I wanna do the right way
17:29and I don't have to worry about nobody, you know,
17:32trying to arrest me or anything or harass me about it,
17:34you know, so I wanted to, you know, I'm an NFL player,
17:37so now kids can be like,
17:38oh, I can make it out of Pompano Beach.
17:40I can make it out of, you know, wherever, you know,
17:43out of a low poverty, like, whatever, you know,
17:45however they gonna say it, however they gonna word it,
17:47you know, because it's really the same thing
17:48at the end of the day, but however they word it is like,
17:51man, I can do that.
17:52Lamar did it, you know, he grew up,
17:53his father passed away, like, you know,
17:56his mom raised him on his own, on her own, you know.
17:59He had siblings and they still made him
18:01look how he is right now, you know.
18:03I want kids to be able to look at it like that
18:05and be like, man, I can make it too.
18:06I don't gotta play football, I can be anything, you know,
18:08I can be a doctor, because I'm not seeing people
18:10wanting to be doctors and lawyers no more, you know.
18:12I'm seeing just rappers, like, I'm just football players,
18:16but who gonna heal us, like?
18:19You know, like, what's going on?
18:20Like, the lawyers, like, who gonna protect us?
18:23Like, people not trying to do that no more,
18:25they just want the glips and glam.
18:28It's like, bro, do you know what come behind that?
18:30Would you be able to take what come behind that?
18:32Because it's gonna be so many opinions and stuff
18:34reflecting on your life, you probably can't handle it.
18:36Now you think you're having suicidal thoughts now.
18:38So it's like, you gotta be careful what you ask for
18:40at the end of the day too.
18:41Yeah. Yeah.
18:42It's so fun listening to you talk because,
18:44and it makes so much sense why you're a quarterback.
18:46You think two, three steps ahead.
18:49Every time you've brought up a different scenario,
18:52your perspective is yards beyond just that scenario itself,
18:55which is so cool to me.
18:57Are there some things that you guys are doing right now
18:59with your foundation that you're really excited about
19:01or things that are coming up that you really want to make
19:03sure people are tapped into?
19:05I got too many things.
19:06I saw a lot of stuff on the social media
19:09and all these things, but I want to let you have the floor.
19:11Bro, it's so much.
19:12I got things coming up, like, I'm not gonna talk about,
19:15you know, but-
19:15Fair enough.
19:16Non-profit organization, I'm gonna go to that
19:18Non-profit organization, I wanted to start,
19:21I told my mom I wanted to start, like,
19:23ever since I was, bro, before I even got to the league.
19:25Man, I want to be able to get back to my community
19:28and have them kids not going,
19:29I let them know, like, you don't got to sell no drugs, bro.
19:32I got y'all, like, if I can help, I'ma help.
19:34Like, you don't, please, whatever.
19:36Like, join the 707 team,
19:38because college is looking at guys on 707 teams
19:41and stuff like that.
19:42Let's just start something.
19:43I don't want the kids to pay for nothing.
19:44Like, I'ma pay for, I'ma find it myself
19:47and we're gonna be good.
19:48People who run parks and stuff, they don't believe, like,
19:51I'm just funding it without people having to pay me for it.
19:53It's like, bro, I did this for the kids.
19:55I know how I feel when a parent can't do for they kids, bro.
19:59Like, I seen it, I seen it with my own eyes.
20:01Like, I was in those kids' shoes, you know?
20:05So it's like, let me take care of it.
20:07I'ma take care of it and let the kids have fun.
20:09Let's have a fun day.
20:10I want the kids to come out and have fun with me.
20:12I'ma try to have some of my football friends and stuff
20:15come out and let the kids just see them,
20:17I remember David and Henry Crockett,
20:20they used to have a foundation
20:22and they used to do that Blanche Ely High School
20:24and they used to have, like,
20:25they had Randy Moss come out one time
20:27and I was amazed at that.
20:28I was a kid, I'm like, they ain't had Randy Moss.
20:30I'm hype.
20:31I'm like, oh yeah.
20:32When I get older, I'ma do the same thing
20:34just so the kids can enjoy that.
20:35Cause I know if I remember that,
20:36I know a lot of kids remember that, you know,
20:38when I'm old and long and gone,
20:39and like, man, Lamar had this right here going on,
20:42you know, for free, we didn't have to pay for anything.
20:44And that's pretty much why I do the things I do.
20:46I love that.
20:47What is one thing that you're doing through your foundation
20:50that you wish you had as a young person?
20:53You know, just having someone,
20:56someone I can relate to where I'm from,
20:58but who's on a whole nother level from me
21:01to come back and just be an influence on us,
21:03like a positive influence,
21:04not no one who's around here showing negativity in the world
21:07cause there's a lot of negativity in the world.
21:09You know, they love to promote the negativity.
21:11They try to hide the positivity,
21:12the right things to do, you know,
21:14and I don't really, I'm not too,
21:15too really fond of that.
21:16Cause I'm like, bruh,
21:17there's a lot of great people in the world, bro,
21:19who y'all be hatin'.
21:21Yeah.
21:21It's like, I'm not trying to shine a light
21:23on no negativity.
21:24Like, even like the music I post,
21:26it's like, it's not trying to shine a negativity.
21:27It's like, I listen to the music,
21:28but it's like, I'm not doing the stuff I'm doing.
21:30Like, I'm not following that.
21:32The music is not moving me
21:33to do nothing that you're rapping about.
21:35I just like the sound.
21:36I just like the instrument.
21:37Like, I just like the, the beat of that song.
21:41You know, I'm not following,
21:43oh, I'm going, like, no, bruh.
21:45Y'all should not kill, you know?
21:47Like, I can protect, but y'all should not kill.
21:49I'm not looking to go out here and harm nobody, you know?
21:51So, when they influencing that stuff,
21:53that's why, like, sometimes, like,
21:55I be getting mad at myself, like,
21:56why did I post that song?
21:57Like, now they thinking I'm just,
21:58like, trying to promote some violence.
21:59Like, no, it's not that.
22:00I just like the sound, you know?
22:02And the real need more positivity, you know?
22:04So that's why sometimes, like,
22:05if I find something that's smooth,
22:07I try to push that out there more, you know?
22:09But the real don't like to hear the good stuff.
22:11They like to hear the little ratchet.
22:12They like the drama, the trauma,
22:14the brokenness.
22:15But that's what conflicts the real more, though.
22:18That gives more problems,
22:19because people go to feeling that way,
22:21and then it might not change your mind right then,
22:24but, like, if you keep listening to it repetitive,
22:27like, it's going to sneak in.
22:28It's going to sneak in the brain cells,
22:29and now you go to feeling that way.
22:31Yeah.
22:32You mentioned shining a light.
22:33I want to move to black women in sports.
22:34Yeah.
22:35I'm a basketball girl.
22:36We talked about it a little bit earlier,
22:37so I'm super excited about what's going on right now.
22:39Yeah, y'all did too.
22:40Leading into the WNBA season.
22:40It's going down right now.
22:41For you, what sport on the women's side
22:44are you really excited about,
22:45or are you enjoying soaking it all in on your end?
22:48Basketball, WNBA for one.
22:50Like, I'm enjoying it.
22:51I really wasn't, like, too fond of basketball,
22:54like, women basketball,
22:55because I'm like, man, they're not dunking and stuff.
22:57But now I'm seeing, like, non-women dunking.
23:00Yeah.
23:00And, like, they got handles.
23:01Like, women going crazy.
23:03Like, don't get me wrong.
23:05It was a girl.
23:05It's a girl from where I'm from named Destiny.
23:08She was good in basketball.
23:09She was good in basketball,
23:10and I was a football player,
23:12but she can play football, too.
23:14And I used to watch them, like,
23:15dang, she good at basketball.
23:17So I tried to play, but I couldn't shoot.
23:18Like, I don't know.
23:19You don't have a test?
23:20Back then, back then.
23:21Can you shoot now?
23:21I can shoot now.
23:22You got a jumper right now.
23:23Yeah, yeah, I can shoot now.
23:24I don't have a test, though.
23:25But back then, that wasn't my thing.
23:26So I'm watching, I'm like, dang.
23:26I was amazed back then, like,
23:27from just watching them play and stuff like that.
23:30But now, like, on a higher level,
23:31I'm seeing Angel Reese.
23:33You know what I'm saying?
23:33Angel Reese, I'm seeing all,
23:34Kaitlyn, I'm seeing all these girls, like,
23:36just go crazy now.
23:38It's like, man, it's inspiring, like.
23:40Other girls can grow up and play basketball, you know?
23:43They don't gotta be doing hair and stuff.
23:45They can play basketball, play some sports.
23:47And then, I was just in Germany, like, last week.
23:50I'm watching soccer.
23:52I'm seeing these great women in soccer.
23:53It's like, dang, bro, women are stepping,
23:55like, the sports for the women is going crazy right now.
23:58And it's amazing.
23:59Like, I'm inspired by it.
24:00I'm inspired by it.
24:01We co-signed by the one and only Lamar Jackson, y'all.
24:04Wink, wink.
24:05No doubt, no doubt.
24:06There's been conversations around, just recently,
24:08like, the marketability of black female athletes
24:11and things of that nature.
24:12As we kind of think about that, you know,
24:14what are some ways, or is there a way
24:16that you think the sports industry
24:17can better support black female athletes?
24:21Just giving them a chance.
24:22Like, you can't just, just because she's a woman,
24:24that don't mean you just downplay a woman.
24:26Like, we need our women.
24:28Our women is our real, like,
24:30women in the real make the world a better place.
24:33That's just how I view it.
24:33I love women.
24:34Like, I love our women.
24:35Not, like, on no credit.
24:37I just love women.
24:38I respect women, you know,
24:39because I feel like sometimes, like,
24:42people overshadow them and overshadow their opinions
24:44because women are very smart, you know,
24:45very intelligent and soft-spoken sometimes.
24:48But I feel like that's when the negativity,
24:50when I talk about the negativity,
24:51I feel like sometimes the music and stuff,
24:54like, they listen to might just corrupt them
24:56because it's like, that's what the guys like.
24:58But it's like, nah, we still, we miss the soft women.
25:00Like, we don't like the thug women.
25:03We miss the soft-spoken, the intelligent women
25:05because, like, don't get me wrong,
25:06women are very, very, very smart, bro.
25:09And they be, y'all be advancing us, like, early on.
25:12Like, y'all be knowing what's going on in your way, P.
25:15Like, you know, when we still being little kid, little boys,
25:17y'all be already knowing what's going on, you know?
25:19So it's like, we just need to give women a chance
25:22at things, you know?
25:23But women are tough, though.
25:24Yup.
25:25Y'all are tougher than us.
25:26You can do anything.
25:26Y'all are tougher than us.
25:27And men, I feel like some men, like, they scared of that.
25:30I'm not scared of that.
25:31But women, y'all go through way more than we do.
25:34Y'all have babies.
25:35Y'all gotta push out babies.
25:36We don't have to push out no babies, you know?
25:38Stuff like that, man.
25:39That's why I said we need to respect women
25:41under their opinions, man, more.
25:43Yeah.
25:44Best piece of advice you got from a black woman.
25:45What was it and who was it?
25:48My mom.
25:49Your mom.
25:49My mom, she gave me creative advice.
25:52I can't even pinpoint, like, one thing that stuck with me,
25:55like, because it's so many things that go through my mind,
25:58like, of what she said, of how the world is,
26:01when I was a kid and I really didn't understand,
26:03but I see it now.
26:05It's like, dang, I should've listened.
26:07Like, I was listening,
26:08but I wasn't listening at the same time.
26:10So, like her, she definitely taught me a lot.
26:15She definitely taught me a lot.
26:16And I think that's why some people be scared,
26:17because I already knew what was going on before it,
26:20before it even happened.
26:22Let's talk about Global Impact a little bit.
26:23You talked about your trip to Germany.
26:25I know there was a flag football camp as well.
26:27Yeah.
26:27And you was lighting people up on the field.
26:29I don't know if you're supposed to be doing that.
26:30I was just having fun with the kids.
26:32That's all.
26:33That's all.
26:35What are your thoughts on, you know,
26:37bringing U.S. football in line with global sports?
26:43Because obviously, you know, we talked about basketball.
26:45I think that's a more global, you know, situation
26:48when we think about that sport,
26:49but, you know, football here in the United States,
26:51they call it football over there is soccer.
26:53It's soccer, yeah.
26:53So, you know, how cool is it for you
26:54to be able to share the sport of football
26:57beyond just the United States?
26:59It's great to see, you know,
27:02because I seen, like, even my early years in the league,
27:07I seen guys in Africa playing football.
27:09And I'm like, I was retweeting,
27:10I mean, I was reposting it on social media,
27:12on Instagram and stuff.
27:13I'm like, bro, they in Africa playing football now?
27:15Like, they really seeing us play football and stuff?
27:17I'm like, bro, that's crazy.
27:18And then Germany, I go to Germany, like, this past week,
27:21and people are hyped.
27:22Like, people know who I am.
27:23I'm like, dang, bro, I would never think
27:25in a million years people would be knowing who I am
27:27because I remember growing up,
27:29they had, like, some other league,
27:30the Brazilian Football League,
27:32but it kind of went away.
27:34But just for the sport to go international, global,
27:37it's like, bro, that's crazy, bro.
27:38Like, they really get to see what really goes on
27:41besides the, obviously, football, the soccer football,
27:44but the physicality we go through.
27:45You know, they get to see interceptions,
27:47they get to see touchdowns,
27:48they get to see the celebrations,
27:50and not just using your feet.
27:51You use your hands, you got to hit people.
27:54Like I said, the physicality, like, stuff like that,
27:57it's great to see, you know, the inspiration in the world.
28:00Yeah.
28:01Besides playing, what was some of your favorite memories
28:03that you had in that trip to Germany?
28:05Introducing me to handball.
28:07Mm.
28:08One of the handball players, Yuri,
28:09he's a great handball player.
28:11That was my, you got to, it's kind of like,
28:15I want to say it's like soccer and lacrosse a little bit,
28:18you know, because, and it's kind of like basketball.
28:20You got to get, like, one dribble, three steps.
28:22You got to make the ball in the net.
28:24It's a goalie.
28:25It was dope.
28:27Like, it was a dope experience for me.
28:27So you played.
28:29I attempted.
28:30I attempted.
28:30How did you do?
28:31I think I did all right.
28:33I lost to a GOAT, Yuri's a GOAT.
28:36I lost to him, but.
28:37That's fair.
28:38I felt like it was good.
28:39He taught me how to spin the ball,
28:39because the ball, like, how they play,
28:41they make the ball sticky.
28:43Yeah.
28:43And then you got to spin the ball a certain way
28:46to get it curved, make the ball go.
28:48It was crazy.
28:49It was a dope experience for me.
28:50And then meeting Alfonso, one of the soccer players,
28:53he's from Canada, young guy, 23 years old.
28:55He's one of the best soccer players in the world.
28:58Wow.
28:59I'm like, bro, this is crazy.
29:00It's always fun to me to talk to athletes
29:02who are totally open to participating in other sports.
29:04Yeah, yeah.
29:05I think that's really cool.
29:06And, you know, I do want to talk about, just for you,
29:10you know, we talked about leadership a little bit,
29:12and I kind of want to go back to that for just a moment.
29:16You have to think ahead.
29:17You talked about that.
29:19You're obviously having a lot of other things
29:21going on off the field,
29:22but on the field is on the field.
29:24So for you, what's, like, from a leadership standpoint,
29:27like, what's your anchor?
29:29What's your focus?
29:31What's been working for you?
29:33Pretty much lead by example.
29:36That's how I've always been.
29:38They really want me to be more of a vocal leader.
29:41And I'm like, in the locker room, I can inspire.
29:44I believe I can speak more in the locker room,
29:46but, like, once the camera's on
29:49and they want me to be rowdy, that's not me.
29:52I'm not really the one going, oh, let's go.
29:55I can't be that person.
29:56Like, I was always one in the back,
29:57like, getting hype with the team.
29:58Like, ever since I was in youth football,
30:00like, that's how I've always been.
30:02So now it's the same way.
30:04So when I get on the field, it's like,
30:05you better be on the same time and I'm on, though.
30:08And, like, if I see you messing up,
30:10I'm coming to say something to you.
30:11If I mess up, you don't even got to say nothing to me
30:14because I'm going to say it to myself.
30:15Like, what the, man, like, I'm getting mad at myself.
30:17Like, I got to tighten up.
30:18I can't be on them if I'm messing up, you know?
30:21That's pretty much how I be, you know, I lead by example.
30:24What say you to the people who may be critical
30:26of the Lamar that, you know,
30:28obviously we're having a great conversation.
30:30I don't know anything about the cameras
30:32and Lamar not talking.
30:33That has not been my experience while we've been sitting here.
30:35But what do you say to the people that may say,
30:37he does need to speak up.
30:38He does need, we need to see him more.
30:39He needs to be out more.
30:40What say you to those people?
30:42I mean, that's what they looking for,
30:46but that's just not me.
30:48I got to be me at the end of the day.
30:49I can't be who you want me to be, you know,
30:52because then I won't be Lamar.
30:54I'm being the person you want me to be.
30:55You might not even like him now.
30:57You know, you might not even like that person
30:59you want to be because you want him to be like,
31:01however you got in your mind.
31:02Like, I want Lamar to be like this.
31:04Why?
31:05Like, why?
31:06I don't want you to be like nobody else.
31:07I want you to be like you, you know, that's all.
31:12When we talk about engaging,
31:14going back to the community a little bit,
31:16because you're very entrenched in your community.
31:19How do you think professional athletes
31:20can best use their platforms
31:22to provide that positive impact in their communities?
31:25See, I don't really know how people's schedules go,
31:27but like, you know, I won't say as much as they could,
31:30because people like downtime,
31:31you know, we be working our tail off,
31:32you know, trying to win games
31:35and working hard and stuff like that.
31:37So, but like, when you do have downtime,
31:39just go back, chime in and see what's going on,
31:41you know, because I feel like sometimes
31:43it make people think when they able to see us
31:45and see where we come from and see how we are right now.
31:48Some people don't get me wrong.
31:49Some people hate it, you know,
31:51because some people can't take like,
31:52oh, how did he, how he able to be this person?
31:55Like, why wasn't me?
31:56Like, you wasn't grinding for real.
31:59You know, you just, you was just talking about it.
32:01This person was being about it, you know,
32:02even when that person didn't play football,
32:04because one year I didn't play football,
32:06you know, 10th grade, because I was being a kid,
32:09you know, in ninth grade, you know,
32:10they say ninth grade is your most important years
32:12in high school, and I was being a kid,
32:14so now my grades, my grades bad.
32:16It wasn't like I was dumb or anything,
32:17because I was getting A's and B's, I'm 3.0, you know,
32:19I got A, B on the road and stuff like that,
32:21but ninth grade, I messed around and played,
32:24so 10th grade, I can't play.
32:25Core GPA bad, you know, it was 2.0 at first,
32:28I tried to transfer, 1.5, I'm like,
32:31oh no, they did this on purpose.
32:33Now I can't play football, now I gotta rip my,
32:34rip my tail off, get my grades back up.
32:36I get my grades up, now I can play.
32:38You know, I'm acting like, dang,
32:40I don't wanna go to a JUCO, I know that's harder,
32:42you know, that's a harder life,
32:44and shout out to the guys who do go to JUCO
32:46and end up making it and grinding,
32:47because that's a different lifestyle
32:49from Division I, you know,
32:51Division I is like cake compared to JUCO, you know,
32:55and I've seen people struggle from that,
32:57so it's like, man, I don't wanna go to JUCO,
32:58because I'm already knowing how my mindset is,
33:00like, bro, that's gonna be a whole nother world right there,
33:03so I gotta get my grades up,
33:04I'm asking, like, man, what I can do
33:05to get my grades right, you know,
33:07I'm just letting people know, like,
33:08it wasn't all pizzas and cream for me either,
33:10you know, y'all looking at me being Lamar Jackson,
33:12but I had to grind, I had to use my mind,
33:14you know, it's not just talent,
33:15you gotta use your mind to be in the NFL, you know,
33:18so got my grades right,
33:20ended up playing, getting offers and stuff like that,
33:22went viral off of a little high school play
33:25my senior season, went to Louisville,
33:28God blessed me to go to Louisville,
33:30I'm in the league now, you know,
33:32but just how I just told that story,
33:34it was still bumps on the road, you know,
33:36it wasn't just a smooth sailing ride,
33:38but God gonna always, like, God's way
33:41is gonna always be, like, little.
33:42Absolutely.
33:43But your way, if you try to go smooth sailing,
33:46you might not like the ending result, you know?
33:48That's true.
33:49Your advice to young and aspiring football players,
33:55taking all of what you just said into account,
33:57what would you say to them?
33:58Man, keep God first, that's number one,
34:00you know, you gotta have him front, center,
34:01whatever you're doing, every decision you make,
34:04so if you're trying to do it on your own, bro,
34:06you might crash, I'm telling you that,
34:08nah, like, you might just crash,
34:09you might not, you might get overwhelmed with the world,
34:12you know, and just patience, have patience, man,
34:15because your time gonna come.
34:17Yeah.
34:18Last question, as I allow you to leave
34:20this incredible conversation we've had,
34:23keeping in mind all y'all have talked about,
34:26you as a leader, on and off the field,
34:29involved in your community, an author, two-time MVP,
34:33all these great accomplishments,
34:35for you, in light of what you've done
34:38and what you want to do,
34:39what would you say you want your legacy to be
34:42as a man and as a football player?
34:45How do I want to define my legacy?
34:49Just one of a kind.
34:51One of a kind.
34:53I like that.
34:54Lamar, you are one of a kind.
34:56Thank you for this exchange.
34:58I have enjoyed talking to you.
35:00Thank you for your openness to share.
35:03You are, as I was sitting here talking to you
35:05and listening to you,
35:06the one word that kept coming to my mind was chosen.
35:09I appreciate it.
35:10And you are, so I wish you all the best
35:11and thank you for hanging out with me
35:13for Essence Black Women's Sports.
35:14I appreciate y'all.
35:18We good, we good, fam.