Black in the Middle

We kick off Season 4 with a New Years update, unpacking the holidays and getting those baby fresh resolutions on wax. What did we learn in 2022? What does 2023 have in store for The Middle? And what's with all the floppy top hair these days?

On this final Black in the Middle of 2022 we sit down with actor, stand-up comedian and FAMU alum Mateen Stewart. We discuss Mateen's journey from Detroit to Hollywood, all the talent and hustle that got him there and how he found stand-up along the way. Then we get real. Mateen tells us how the unexpected loss of his mother in 2020 changed his life and informs his comedy. Is it hard to be funny in the wake of tragedy? And in this age of cancel culture, what's off-limits onstage? Mateen Stewart is a Detroit native and Los Angeles local. He can be seen on season 9 of Comedy Dynamics' "Coming to the Stage" and in the upcoming film "The Devil Runs Kansas City." Mateen has been featured onscreen with Ben Stiller and Andy Daly and hosts "Late for Work" Sundays at the Hollywood Improv. He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and is a proud graduate of Florida A&M University.

Sometimes you hit RECORD and get more than you bargained for. Every week during our preproduction meeting we keep the tape running, just in case somebody says something profound. Usually all we get is funny nonsense to play before the theme song... This time we got a whole episode. Recorded before our Kanye ep a few weeks back, this Black in the Middle is an off-the-cuff conversation about leadership, motivation, fatherhood and the duality of man.

PAY YOURSELF FIRST. T-Bone's mantra drives this week's Black in the Middle as we tackle another debate from the comment section. Does it make sense to accumulate wealth for future generations even if it comes at the expense of our own enjoyment? Is that our responsibility as black fathers in white America? And if so, how well are we pulling it off?

This episode of Black in the Middle comes straight from the comments section. A social media clip from our interview with The Situational Therapist went viral and... Y'all went off in the comments. Some of you agreed. Some of you disagreed. It was a fantastic back and forth. One comment that really made us think involved White Adjacency, or the idea that POC in white spaces enjoy life advantages based solely on a proximity to whiteness. Do we think that's true? Is it unavoidable in the middle? And does it explain why we've always felt stuck in between? Listen up and find out.

A few weeks ago we had Glenn Sandifer II on the pod to discuss his High Value Man relationship book, 'The Middle Ground.' This week we're cracking the book back open to unpack our thoughts on Mr. Sandifer's theories. Where did we agree? Where did we disagree? And was Herm really mad though?

This week's Black in the Middle is off the cuff as Kanye West invades our regularly scheduled Autumn Update. We discuss Ye's latest controversy and then unpack what's been going on in our three corners of the world... Business, parenting and relationship

This week we sit down with Derrick "The Situational Therapist" Hoard to discuss his path from nuerodivergent child of a tyrannical mother to successful therapist and TikTok star. What starts as an interview develops into something bigger as Tim, Travis and Herman open up about their own parenting and relationship struggles. This is a raw and revealing episode you won't want to miss. Derrick Hoard is a licensed marriage and family therapist, avid gamer, and adult survivor of childhood abuse and neglect. He's also The Situational Therapist, a social media persona he uses to straight talk complex psychological issues and remove the stigma of experiencing childhood abuse. Derrick's sometimes challenging but always engaging videos have amassed over 900K followers on TikTok.

It's all about the music on this week's pod. The boys take a trip down memory lane and discuss their most influential songs and artist through the different stages of life. We had to reach WAY back into the vault for this previously UNRELEASED episode from Season One. We do not own the rights to any of the music mentioned. All rights belong to the respective owners. No Copyright Infringement Intended.

Romantic relationships are challenging under the best of circumstances. Throw in the rigors of an increasingly demanding business world and you have a recipe for dating frustration and failure. On this week’s pod the boys interview author, executive leader, business strategist (and fellow FAMU alum) Glenn Sandifer II. Glenn’s new book, The Middle Ground, explores the complex dynamics of business and romance. Herm wants you to know that Glenn’s views are his own as we discuss the differences between High Value Men and High Value Women, why there’s so much friction when you choose the wrong kind of partner and how successful men can avoid relationship failure in a modern world.

On the heels of Herman's perfect empty house Man Day, we discuss relationships past, present and future. Did we truly leave our toxic traits behind us? How do we build stronger lives with stronger wives? And why did it take fatherhood and 40 to finally feel grown? This week's Black in the Middle answers these questions and more... very carefully. Nobody wants to sleep on the couch.

Everybody wants to be top dog, but the Social Dominance Hierarchy is a lot more nuanced than the Alpha/Beta framework we were taught. Success means teaming with players all across the personality spectrum and we all shift in and out of different roles, so how do we navigate this complex world of Gammas and Deltas? This week the Black in the Middle crew debunks the myth of the Alpha Male (and gives the Beta his come up) while trying to answer the age-old question, 'What kind of man are you?'

Desmond Carr is back for PART 2 of our retrospective on his entrepreneurial journey. This week we talk about the importance of Winning as a Team, Challenging the Status Quo and Desmond’s secret to No Limits Living. Then we cap things off with a discussion of Legacy, Comeback Stories and the founding of Rally Gin.

Lifelong friend and brilliant entrepreneur Desmond Carr is in the house this week. In PART 1 of this two-part interview, we discuss Desmond’s career journey from Kansas City to Los Angeles (and every stop in between), the Found Family philosophy that has kept us all tight over the years, the pitfalls of Corporate America and Paving a Personal Path to Success. We also argue Cryptocurrency, which Travis still thinks is dumb.

Our country feels more and more divided every day. With people so wrapped up in their political, social and religious ideology, hatred is drowning out discourse. Every disagreement feels like war. Your boys are back discuss how disturbing blind devotion can be in a world overrun with lies, and whether our own strongly-held beliefs might deserve a closer look.

We are three black dudes from the no coast and we are not about to sit here and talk about how banning abortion in America will affect us. That will be in part 2 of this series with special guest. However, when looking at this drastic move through a political lens, the Black in the Middle crew has pinpointed a conservative strategy for this country's return to states rights. That's what this episode is about and it's a rollercoaster of a ride. Hang on friends.

Join us for a laughter packed episode as the crew updates you with what is on the minds of men who are black while living in the middle of white America.

Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and sense of attachment to one's country. As Black American men, this is changing...and we're not so sure how to deal with it. Listen as the crew unpacks how current and past events painting a different picture of our future in America.

If you look at it, it only makes sense that America is becoming exactly what it should based on Individualism & Entitlement as Norms. America was built on brutality, dehumanization and what we are experiencing with violence fits in perfectly with America’s story. What are the elements of a culture? Are we too competitive as a country, as a people? Why does America feel like we're not all in this together? And What to do about it?

There is a group forming, or already present, inside your neighborhood high school and it is potentially stoking fear and amplifying racial and political division within the student population. Turning Point USA is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization founded in 2012 by Charlie Kirk. The organization says its "mission is to identify, educate, train, and organize students to promote the principles of freedom, free markets, and limited government. Turning Point USA believes that every young person can be enlightened to true free market values." Kyle Rittenhouse was a keynote speaker at a Turning Point event in 2021. The group seems to be Pro-Trump on most issues with other notable associated people and brands include Sebastian Gorka (ties to Vitezi Rend) far- right anti-semitic org, Alan West and Mike Lindell - My Pillow guy. Tune into this episode and get ready for what happens next.