Byron Freeman: Every Day Is A Choice

Byron Freeman is a professional Renaissance man of the Performing Arts. A recording artist, dancer, actor, with a passion to entertain, a Dance Fitness Instructor and Choreographer he is an entrepreneur who launched his own dance business “Be Free w/ B.Free” , catering to all lovers of music, joy, and health. Recently he has the distinct honor of becoming the first choreographer to partner with Gucci and hopes to continue on his mission to lead with love, and through his own journey, show that it is possible to truly B. Free! 

Connect with Byron : @thebyronfreeman

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Transcript

Lisa Hopkins: 0:23

This is the stop time podcast. I'm your host, Lisa Hopkins, and I'm here to engage you in thought provoking motivational conversations around practicing the art of living in the moment. I'm a certified life coach, and I'm excited to dig deep and offer insights into embracing who we are and where we are at. So my next guest, calls himself a professional renaissance man of the performing arts, a recording artist, dancer actor with a passion to entertain a dance fitness instructor and choreographer. He is an entrepreneur who launched his own dance business be free, with B free, catering to all lovers of music, joy and health. Recently, he has the distinct honor of becoming the first choreographer to partner with Gucci and hopes to continue on his mission to lead with love, and through his own journey, show that it is possible to truly be free. He is dedicated to making people's day a little brighter, and I could not be happier to have him here today, to make our day a lot brighter, and bask in his joyful presence. So it is with great pleasure that I introduce you all to Byron Freeman. Byron, welcome.

Byron Freeman: 1:43

Hello, thank you so much for having me.

Lisa Hopkins: 1:47

Oh, my gosh, it's such a pleasure. Thanks for taking the time to join me really?

Byron Freeman: 1:51

Absolutely. The pleasure is truly mine. I'm a fan of the show. And I'm a huge fan of the owner.

Lisa Hopkins: 2:02

You're so cute. Oh my gosh. So give us some context. Where are you calling in from today?

Byron Freeman: 2:08

Yes. All righty. So I am home. I am in New Jersey. I am not too far from New York City, how my East Coast boy born and raised been here for 25 years. And we actually just officially closed on our first property. So I expect to make a home out of this place really, really, more so than we already have. And I'm excited about it.

Unknown: 2:35

Wow,

Lisa Hopkins: 2:35

Wow, congratulations.

Byron Freeman: 2:37

Thank you.

Lisa Hopkins: 2:38

And I love and find that really unique that you are still happily clearly in the place where you're born and raised. Talk to me about that.

Byron Freeman: 2:47

Absolutely. I think I recently just found out why that's the case for me. Because for such a long time, I've had this dream matched with the goal to be this person who was dynamic and exuberant and performing everywhere around the globe. But I never really felt compelled to like leave my home, I always felt like you know, the Wizard of Oz situation where home really is where the heart is, no matter how far you try to go away. And where it really stemmed from, for me was not only the pandemic, but the family culture, being at home for me is really family oriented. Especially because I grew up around all of my family. We're all pretty much from here. Most of the core people date back in history to the East Coast, New York, New Jersey. And we've all pretty much stayed here and having the pandemic really put those things in perspective about your close and loved ones and time. And prioritizing that. And being at home has always been comforting for me. And it has truly been because of the family and friends and familiar nests that I've kept because anyplace I've gone and I haven't had that. I've always tried my best to find pieces of home for real home that made me feel like it. You know? So I think that's why I feel so good about it. And I don't foresee me leaving, like I'll go visit and live in other places. But I'm gonna Jersey boy.

Lisa Hopkins: 4:41

I love that. I love that. It's, it take us through like what's a typical rhythm of your home?

Byron Freeman: 4:48

Yeah, so we're pretty well oiled machine in the sense where my mom is our matriarch. I have an older brother who's six years older than me. And she raised us herself all my life. And she was so amazing at that, but she's a professional caterer. So the homepage of my life is very, you know, social food and talking makes everybody come over. And my house was always the gathering house. She was the one who adapted all of the cooking trades and all of the social like putting the home together. Once you had me and my brother, she had all the kids, me and my cousins always came here. And that hasn't really changed since I've been an adult. And even safely in a pandemic, like we've definitely still kept pace. And every day, my mom works from home now because of the pandemic. But she still finds a way to make sure that family comes over, at least sometime in the week so that we can have something where she can cook for everybody and make it fun. And we literally do that on a random occasion. Sometimes for occasion, my brother's birthday is this weekend, he just came back from LA. After the five years of living out there, he's back home in Jersey. So I tell you, he's a Jersey boy, too. But the funny is pace that shook everything up in 2016. My mom found out that she was seven and a half months pregnant. Wow. And that is not a joke. That is not a story that is not a TLC plot. That is truly something that happened to my family and I and it shook everything completely up for so many ways, but definitely the best one overall, because I have a beautiful, young little sister who's now five. And to give more context. She found out on September 16 2016. My sister's birthday is October 20 2016. So we literally collectively had a month in four days of quote unquote, pregnancy, to plan for and figure out and I was already 20 years old, my brother 26, my mom had already been done. I'm about to graduate college and then avoided the patient have been such a whirlwind. And honestly, I wouldn't trade it for the world. I remember being so like, I'm not the baby anymore. 20 years, oh my god. But now I look at my little sister with five days of her her birthday. It's five days after my oh my gosh, 50 years and five days apart. Exactly.

Lisa Hopkins: 7:52

That's amazing what a gift.

Byron Freeman: 7:53

So it's been really uniting in a way to see my mom, be a mom. It's so much more respect. And I'm really getting to see what my mom was able to do for my brother and I and it makes me more grateful than ever to want to work and do things and get up and make something happen for myself and the people I care about, you know.

Lisa Hopkins: 8:18

Yeah, that's a that's a really, really wonderful insight. Right? A really great takeaway. I mean, obviously, you know, the gift of a new energy in the house is a beautiful thing and all that. And then you also had the, you know, the sort of, you know, new vying for position, I'm not the young one anymore. But then, but then to take that further and say, you know, I have a new perspective on my mother, who I already thought the world of right. And now you see her in another role, and you're learning from her? I mean, what a what a gift. That's tremendous. You know, when I hear you talk about it, I can't imagine it any other way. What what comes up for me that I'm really curious about, you know, I mean, I'm fortunate to have known you personally and in the studio, right and professionally, so your sheer presence is, is his energy with the power to make people feel relaxed, and excited, like, all at the same time? Which is pretty cool, right? Because there are a lot of people that can get, get a room going and get them excited. But I have observed you for years. I think it's a unique gift that you have to not only you know, you can immediately put people at ease. With your excitement, it's like you share your excitement. It's It's such a beautiful, beautiful thing. Have you always had the capacity to I call it giving I don't know what you call it. You know, talk to me a little bit about that. Does that resonate with you?

Byron Freeman: 9:44

Oh, thank you. Um, I, I would say yes, because I had something now that I'm older, I really value and I put forth effort into watering for myself, like I give it to myself. And I give it to others, like you know, because it does start inward and you know, has to come out. And so if it has to come out, I would at least make sure that it's going in right. And so I always try to give myself that energy and it's something I've really always tried to talk about about how we connect this piece. equal in treating people how we want to be treated and like, figuring that that really might be the full last puzzle piece, to figuring out what we need to do to go on us upward spiral and treat people how we want to be treated. Because if we do that, you will feel the repercussions or the other energies, like whether positive, negative, indifferent and understand what you might do, and see how it might affect the other option. And I've always treated that with positivity for whatever reason. And secondly, with that, it came something that was just less chill, you know, like, yes, we can get out the toxic positivity because we understand that that's not all, real and true. So let's get it hyped up, like you said, people can get it excited. But having the words now about safe and brave spaces to really define it for myself, really makes me understand what those things mean, and why I feel them in myself. Because safe space is to once like when you feel welcome to when you feel you can be in a space. And we learned when you talk about school, it's not always a safe space that you want to speak or invite your thoughts in. That's when you invite the brain space. So that's when you get that excitement part to really wave your fist in the air, and then have some action going. But then you need that relaxed and safe space to really feel like you are welcomed. And that's something that always want to be in especially as a gay black man in this world. And in this time right now that we thought would be different years ago, but we're still working, you know, I'm not mad at that. But it's something I value because I want that. And I want other people to feel that too. And it's so possible. That's why I think that I resonate with it and can vouch and stand up for it now, because I'm now not like, oh, wait, are you sure that I've met? Nice, just like no, like, I want to be that because other people need to see that. It's possible to feel that and people don't want to hurt them out here. And people don't want to make them feel like they have to be guarded. Because every time I've been around somebody who might be have a little harder shell, I guarantee they have said something about, I don't know what it is, but you just and I'm like, I truly want you to feel like I'm like a mirror or whatever situation you're going on. And it can be the best version of it. Because it really is possible to go the other way. And it is possible to go this way. And every day is a choice. Yeah, when I was graduating college, like my thesis, and everything was about understanding versus acceptance. And I had to start realizing like, Okay, I have a background I have prior knowledge I have, my experience is not going to be the same as everybody. And I'm not going to accept it. And so understanding versus acceptance when I was writing my thesis and everything really boiled down to, we don't accept things. If we don't like respect, view them in the way we do. But we can always try to understand. And if you do have that bare minimum, nine times out of 10, you realize that we all just want to feel good. We want a little love. We want somebody to just make us feel easy. Nine times out of 10 somebody doesn't want a hug because they just want to just feel chill, you know, they just want to just be in the space, know that they're safe and know that it's okay. Yeah. Amen.

Lisa Hopkins: 14:23

What is your definition of living in the moment?

Byron Freeman: 14:26

I feel like living in the moment is truly just having a burst of energy, not taking the second arrow to shoot a thought about it, and doing what is some than genuine to you in the moment. I feel like nine times out of 10 that in the moment thought is the one that you know, you might want to second guessed. So it is something that you have to just do. Because it's coming up from your roots. It's you It's genuine isn't the first seat and you got to sit in it and drive. And I think that's living in the moment. And I feel like I haven't done that in such a long time. And so much of my fun like talk about making content and videos for Instagram and media. Like so much of My fun, let's not even call it fun. I'll call it what it is. The viral content that has gone for me specifically has all been the things that have been lived in the moment in, take a second glance to make it perfect to edit it or try to make it all prim and proper. And then you wake up and you posted and have a good time with it. And then I'm like, Oh, my God, literally, how that happened, for me was just like, living in the moment when I did the Beyonce choreography. And I will never forget how I wanted to make it prim and proper. And I recorded a version at pace in the dance room. But I didn't have on the yellow hoodie. And it was early in the day. And I kind of wanted it to be night because I wanted it to look like Coachella. So I was like, let me not do it here. Even though I kind of like, liked what it looked like. I was like, I'm not going to maybe use this video, if I don't do something later. Let's just see, randomly decided to do it later

at night. 11: 16:22

30pm through on the yellow hoodie, super crunchy video because the lighting was so off and bad. I was in my bedroom. And then I posted at midnight, which no one's up at Instagram, but I was like, I love the performance. I was just like, I don't care, like I'm living in the moment, like just post it, you love her. Just post it. And then you wake up. And then the video is like, a million views. Like I just, it's just one of those things where since then, and having those moments, that's one of the few times that I can really pinpoint about living in the moment. But the pandemic, also, in a nothing was more in the moment, then, Ms. COVID-19. So true. To everything that happened just it was so I don't think I experienced that. I did oh god, I do not, you know how you said these things just stare up. But I did recently go through something that was very in the moment. And it was something I don't mind talking about. But it will take me time. It just was something that dealt with family and dealt with everything I talked about with time and it moves and waits for no one. And living in the moment comes from your gut. And you know, when you know, and after things recently, living in the moment, it's just being something that is genuinely you and not taking a second damn thought to second guess otherwise.

Lisa Hopkins: 18:25

Love that, you know, I'm super interested about what I call the places where there are spaces, right? So if it were dance, I'm interested in, you know, not the preparation, not the landing, but the part of the air the journey, let's say, but but I'm also interested in like the moment between the thought, you know, the, when the stage manager says places, and the moment when you walk on the stage, you know, like like the tiny, tiny moments before you do something or before you know, I just love these, these places where there are spaces. And I'm curious. I'm curious about when like when you go into a room or when you go into a situation or you know that moment for you personally, how much sort of calculation goes on in your head? When you're I bet you walk into a room and you can really read a room, right?

Byron Freeman: 19:18

Absolutely, yeah.

Lisa Hopkins: 19:19

And so then, when you read that room, how in yourself Do you truly stay before you start getting transactional about how you're going to help the room with your energy, how you're going to how you're going to share how you're going to move?

Byron Freeman: 19:35

It's funny you asked because I have found that as people we are onions and we are layered with that I truly just have authentic layers that I find myself going to and I value those so much because they are different in different settings and different spaces, but they all are definitely genuine to me. And I don't even think I tried to do it. I've been just fortunate to not feel threatened by society, or people though the system is what it is. I genuinely love people. Like I love human beings. I love life like I'm one of those people who really does see the roses and all of that, glitz and glam and the good in people. So with that, I feel like no matter what I tend to always take the seconds to base level respect. First, figure out the people's boundaries, even without, like, you know, they're not always initialized with verbiage. I always find myself giving those thoughts about respect first, no matter what it is, even if I know you, even if I don't know you. So that is something that I feel is I'm the most conscious or maybe the only thing conscious about, because with respect, I feel like you do truly have not everything, but you do have a good foundation. And no matter if I feel like the room is about to welcome me with open arms, they've known me been waiting for me, they don't know who I am, I've definitely seen based on me wanting to just give a base level of respect, because that's why I say doesn't gotta be toxic positivity, everybody won't get me walking in like, hey, all like that will be weird, you know, if I've never met them, but at least the casual even if it's just in my demeanor, not walking up, like I own the place not walking up, like I'm entitled to, you know, like I said, it has to come from inward. And I want to reverberate, you know, like, and if I'm making sure that the respect is here, you know, it's like the olive branch alone from my arm, like, here's what it is. And this is where we go and go, me and my best friend do that often because I like to respect her space, especially because that's just something she's very about, like, she was just that a person that way, like, you have to respect her space, you know, and it is important to her, it's important to me as a friend. So even though I love her to death, and I know that a hug may be a guarantee, we always do like a facial check in, or like a like, it's today a hug day, like you know, like, and I like that, you know, because it is different every day. That's my bed that's like she might come over tonight, you know what I'm saying? And then we'll have that chicken, you know, in that situation, you know, like, I'm somebody who likes to meet people with it yet. Whether you the help desk at Ripley, or you, my sister, like, I'm gonna meet you, where you at on that day in that moment. And even that is living in the moment, going back to the real question, because I don't know who said it. I think it was one of my professors from Pace, who said, Give 100% of what you have that day. Yes. And that was so resonant for me because it was like, alright, even that 100 based on the fact that the day is different, can be different. And as long as you just try to rise above, you will be alright. You know, and it's not easy. You don't gotta rise high, you just gotta rise above. Below, you know, you don't gotta rise high, you just gotta rise above and I think that's where there are people who I don't know if they've had misconceptions in my adulthood, but in high school, it was like, Is everything really just happy for you? I'm like, No, I'm just not in the, you know, barracks, like I'm just cooling. You know, today or tomorrow. I'm just exuberant more than yesterday, in a sense, but I don't like to wallow, I like to make something out of what is the situation and see where we can create. I'm like, you know, an artist in that way. I'm like, where's the pain? And how can we prosper?

Lisa Hopkins: 24:24

I'm smiling, because I have always seen you. I mean, you're saying the words, but I've always felt what you're telling me to be true. I'm really fascinated about so many things that you just said, one is at your age to be so eight to be able to articulate it so well. But beyond the articulation part, to be able to let as you just demonstrated with, as you described with your friend, you know, that that, you know, it's contextualized right? I mean, I'm such a proponent of that, so to speak, you're talking my language it's how did you get so specific in that in that I understand respect is a value I understand disarming people so that I mean that a little bit of that it makes it better for us to write we don't want to live that way. Therefore, if we disarm the other guy, then we can all have a good time. How did you come to that to the being able to read and understand and, you know, sort of chat channel those values that you've learned of respect and, and all of that I'm so curious, like, how did You know,

Byron Freeman: 25:23

I thank you, I appreciate it so much, especially because you know, I look up to you so much. So thank you, as always, like, you don't know, this is making my day. But truly like, one, I can't take all the credit because I just thought about one of my other best friends who did something that I can never forget her and her partner before. Like a while back, they wrote each other a full set, I'm talking pages typed, like at least 10 pages of care instructions, none numbered, on how to care for each other and what they needed, as a person, as a partner, as a worker as a when they're bad up, down. And I remember, like reading portions of it, or like just the idea of it that these two people in this relationship, whether intimate, platonic, just the base relationship, took the time to take the care to do something, it was like beyond setting boundaries, it was like something I was like, Whoa, like, and since then, I have never like I don't even know if I tell her that enough. But since then, that has not left my head, left my mind and base level relationships. No, I'm not giving typed up instructions to every person I meet. But I have my own in my head, and I verbalize the ones that are the bullet highlighted ones just on a regular level, even if it's through energy, you know. And the second portion of that is all my life, especially when I was really early enough to realize it. I didn't understand and then didn't like how I saw that we as people, really, when things got bad, we really just waited until they just got worse. So for me, in a sense, I was stemming from that negative end of the spectrum to get crossed over to the positive because like I always stem from, it's possible to go this way or that way. And that's just the life part of me. But also, I'm a math guy. So I'm somebody who's positive and negative. And yeah, you can look at that as science. But really, math is really just graphed. It's really just on a scale, it's on a number, you can go that way you can go this way. And with me, I like to look at it and have been looking at the negative sense like, let me not let this go. disarray. We can water things, we don't let the plants die, we don't have to, you know, so I like to position a relationship for success. I like to make sure that it's honest. And I remember the first relationship I was at, I was telling, I was telling him I was like, you know, remember that you like me? When you don't you really enjoy these things. When you don't, and I'm gonna try my, you know, will to do the same. Because I found out in this world as people, we tend to like to hate people for the things we once loved and love, like them for and, and relationships with care instructions, like specifically remembering some of those I was like, Alright, these are things that literally based on how you feel that day, do you want to care about them. And it was one of those things that I saw about the spectrum of you can go either way. And if you just decide to go above, you don't gotta go high. Just go a little bit above, even if you want the negative scale, you at least moving more to a good ground in a sense. And for me, that started to become easy, because it just became about above 100% That day, not trying to stretch out that 100 For a whole month or for a week, you know, for a short period of time. Like it was just something that became transactional, because one it was starting inward and self care is my number one topic. You can't bring yourself to the table if you ain't good. So it got to start with it. And I always wake up every day I stretch my body. And I mean that literally I know you know you can relate to that. And giving yourself that love is what I Feel has made me seen in that light, because it truly does start in me. And if everybody knew how much I have worked on myself, it is something that is not easy every day. And it is not just physical, it's not just mental. It's not even just any word, you can really describe it, because what are we really living here? You know, what are we doing, but at least I know Byron is here. And while he is I'm gonna make sure he's good. And that means the forces coming toward me, I want them good, too. So I'm awarding those relationships, I'm gonna give them care instructions, I'm gonna make sure that we know that we got to be honest. And just remember that you liked me before you don't because I'm the same person. I'm just Laird. And that's me.

Lisa Hopkins: 31:20

Yeah, there's so much to that. I love that, you know, I really believe that the the things that are quote unquote, negative, or less than desirable, or whatever, or that, that trigger as I find those to be phenomenally exciting, because because there's, there's much to be gained from it, you can run from it, but it's still going to be there, right? It's going to be chasing you. Or you can turn around and look at it and go, Why do I feel this way? And acknowledge and validate that I don't like feeling this way. And that's okay, that I don't like feeling this way. And then you move beyond that, and you open up your lens and go, Okay, rather than just going don't feel this way, Lisa, you're not helping now that you know, the voices, but rather just going Gosh, getting curious. And you add some curiosity, that mix of these negative moments or these negative whatever thoughts, whatever they might be, that we that we define as negative. And call them signposts for learning for, you know, exploring maybe a new value that's emerging in you or one that's been crossed, or one that's not being honored. They're not things that are out to get us and what we tend to do is go that's how toxic positivity I think, has been born. Because, you know, the they sort of sort of implied that we need to just get away from all the bad stuff, there's good and there's bad, there's black, and there's white. I mean, this is a binary thinking it's it's, you know, it's the disease of all right. And as you described so beautifully, there are many layers of us some that you prefer, perhaps in this particular context. Like maybe you like it better when I do an upbeat thing in that class, then, because you're feeling more upbeat, and I'm so curious to know, does what do you think of that? And like, what are there moments maybe where you feel like you could dig in deeper there than to default to your because you have an ability as I do, as many of us do to, you know, to shift, we can shift ourselves, right? We can we can draw awareness and then shift or shift in the room or whatever, what will be different if you sat in it?

Byron Freeman: 33:36

Yeah. I definitely think that we need to allow more negative space and world so that we can have a balance of all of this and not try to shun so like we pick and choose. So that is like the one part that is balanced off when the world that the positivity is so toxic, because there are bad awful things going on. But then when you have people just sharing a negative opinion, and not having any support when stuff like that happens, like we don't have enough of that, because then we're not really figuring out anything, you know, there's no balance. And on the second part of that, to answer the question is like, I went and became a school teacher to gain my assertion to learn how not to be lollipops and rainbows in the classroom. So that when I wanted to really start becoming a choreographer, I can learn how to crack the whip and learn how to do it from my place of love. And from that experience, I learned that I do fight, but I fight with love. The pandemic alone was well beyond anything I have personally like me was ever really, ever really ready for and I had never thought that I would be able to sit through so many health scares. So many dark moments, so many things and really find light in them by not trying to turn on the light And let me sweat it out. Like literally detoxing, and going through the thick of it. And learning how you cannot try to force no fake smile. You gotta cry. You gotta dug it out. You have to fall because hopefully, you will get up not hopefully, you have to fall because you got to learn how to get up. Yep. Oh, yeah. AB talk about falling, it was like, something that I never thought would happen, Ma. But like you said, there's so many, so many things to be gained. And there are ELLs in life, and we do take them. But they are not losses, they're lessons.

Lisa Hopkins: 36:16

You know, I always say to people, we always do the best we can. We really do. I mean, I mean, there are moments obviously, like in a classroom situation where someone like dials it in or whatever. But in general, when there's when there's something that we're doing, that's important to us, and those are the things that we judge ourselves about when we when we feel like we failed, right? So I'm talking about more serious things, we do not play to fail, nobody does. So you're absolutely right. It's a huge spectrum of what 100% looks like, at any given moment. And we have to honor that. And, you know, make the goal to be 100%. You are 100% meet in the moment, though, not like I need to be Lisa, the way I was with my guests last week, when it was I don't know, you know, whatever, you know, like, and it's like, no, in this moment, I all I need to do is be in this moment with you fully. I can control that. You know, and and that's enough. Yeah, I don't need to be better than that. If you can just, if you can just stay in it long enough. It always gets better. Like it really does it better. You know, and, you know, again, we can get more granular with whatever the hell that means. I mean, yeah, if you have criteria of what better is, well, then poor, you, because you're living a very shallow life, if there's only one way to be something great. You know, you're not seeing all the other things that you never see, you know, that are there, don't don't try to make it the same, you're not supposed to feel the same, you're not the same, even without the pandemic, you're never the same. Like you've got an A in a groove, which worked for you. But now you've had the perspective to understand that, oh, that groove was actually a bit of a rut. And I don't really like it, and I go, but you don't have to like it in the same way, you can still do it. You don't have to say, Well, I'm not doing it, I'm gonna, I'm gonna move and you know, other people are making these profound, like chain life changes, you know, again, binary, right? If not, that, then this. And for me, like my journey has always been about integration of all of me. So I feel like people are like, Oh, I can't believe you're doing this, like new career, I got a new career, I've essentially been doing it all my life, I'm just finding new tools to, you know, as you said, at the beginning, right, to impact and to and to be to do whatever it is, I was meant to be, you know, to use my gifts in different ways. There's not only one way to use my gift.

Byron Freeman: 38:46

Exactly. You know, that's why I, my company is called Be free. Yeah. Like, it hit ahead in my life, where I was like, I don't want to choose any of what I love anymore. I love to sing, dance act perform. And ultimately, that does have a category. But in that sense, I love to do them all, you know. And that's why I call myself a renaissance man of the Performing Arts. And I like to just be free. And right now, there are so many opportunities for me to dance and do those things. And I used to get down on the self about the music not getting pushed out and not really hitting that ground running. But I'm also realizing that I've done those things, and waves in segments of my life, like I started as a dancer all my life since I was four, and then started to sing. Then I was a singer for that portion of my life when I stopped dancing to sing. Then I was in theater for that portion. And then college and now I'm doing this and knowing that as long as you just go with your heart and give a little bit to what you love, it will always grow. Yeah. Oh, yeah.

Lisa Hopkins: 40:05

And it's all there. It's all inside of you. It'll come out in different ways.

Byron Freeman: 40:13

You just gotta be free.

Lisa Hopkins: 40:14

Yep. It's not going anywhere. It's just gonna come out in a different form. And, you know, God bless us. It'll be beautiful. You know? Where do you see your yourself, I don't know, 10 years from now.

Byron Freeman: 40:25

Oh, okay, so I love these questions now because I can really feel them now. 10 years from now, I'll be 35 and 35, I see myself truly being like a juggernaut. In the world of entertainment, I want to be world we're now recording artists, by that time with music that really makes a statement, whether it is a deep one, a fun one, but just a point of view, you know, I'm ready to start connecting, expressing, you know, and really connecting with people through that portion of my creativity and art, moving the culture with my voice in that way. Also, I really see myself digging deep into philanthropy. I grew up and nonprofit organizations, especially for the Performing Arts, and philanthropy is something really big for me, because I started my company with the idea to be a funding tool for underprivileged communities for the Performing Arts. As a sole proprietor, I always saw myself giving back to, like diverse performing arts communities. So that's something in 10 years that I see myself taking be free to the foundation level, we can have me a group of people who are passionate and really helping out our future leaders of tomorrow. And that does not mean just adolescent, that means future leaders of tomorrow. So you know, people who are here to make light out of love and make it let you know, yeah. And the last thing, I see my family, really growing, a lot of people in my family have been getting into self business lately. So I've been really excited about seeing everybody just like starting to grow. And I'm like, we need to start having family meetings about business and things. What a great job, singularly. And if we started to put the pot together and put our heads together, we could become the new Jacksons. They're the Jacksons actually, I'm the only free man I have my dad's last name, love it. Last names is Jackson. So with the help of me doing all the entertainment stuff, I'm gonna make sure that me and my family are doing what we need to do to make the world a better place.

Lisa Hopkins: 43:05

That's awesome. What's something you don't want people to know about you?

Byron Freeman: 43:15

I don't want people to know that I procrastinate as much as I do. Because people will see this stuff. And they're like, Oh, that was so good. I'm like, Girl, I just did that last night. And I had been putting it off. And I didn't wait and about it. And I need to be more active. And I appreciate people's compliments and view that I'm so consistent and that I'm you know, this, that and the third but if only they knew that I take my I take the time that I want when I take it out talk about being free. I'd be procrastinate. And I'd be like No, like I don't want like my boss is in the know. But I also know that, especially now that I'm older, it's something that I don't see it as a problem. Especially because it works for me. And I take the when I'm doing it. I also am not frivolous, though the procrastination is there. Two things are true at once. And the second truth is that when I do get involved in it, yeah. So that's why I do think that it does still come out well and looks good. And people can say, oh, it looks so good. You're so consistent. I'm like girl,

Lisa Hopkins: 44:43

I love it. It's a spectrum too right? Like a you get shit done. So you're not saying "I don't do stuff", you do stuff. You're talking about the way and you know, it's all about the way we do things right? It's all about being but there's no one way of being as we've been saying there are layers. So I love that you recognize and I recognize it right away to you said it I was thinking it said but it works for you, especially in those creative things because it puts you in the moment. I mean, that's where you shine. You so procrastination on certain things like producing a video like that probably actually work in your favor. It's probably your ally and your brain gun. Yeah. Just wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. And then like you said, then you're in it, you do it, it probably gives you a little hype. And you go,

Byron Freeman: 45:29

but now that I have bills, I'm like, okay, you know,

Lisa Hopkins: 45:34

ya know, for sure. But you you'll know, you know, I, you know, I would be willing to wager that you don't? Or certainly won't. If you do it, you're going to find out quick that you can't and you won't, you know, on those sorts of mundane, important things, you won't get it done. You'll get it done. Maybe with an extension, you know, get your taxes done.

Byron Freeman: 45:55

I'm still getting over not being the baby. Um, yeah, there, you

Lisa Hopkins: 46:00

know, you gotta be grown up.

Byron Freeman: 46:01

You asked me what I'll be in 10 years, still using that excuse.

Lisa Hopkins: 46:09

Oh, my God. All right, just before we finish, I'm gonna, we're gonna do rapid fire. So I'm gonna say what makes you I'll say a word. And you can respond any way you like. You can do it quickly if you want or not at all. Whatever. Here we go. You're ready. What makes you hungry? Huh?

Byron Freeman: 46:29

Oh, go for some stir fry right now.

Lisa Hopkins: 46:34

What makes you sad?

Byron Freeman: 46:38

The state of America and the world.

Lisa Hopkins: 46:42

What inspires you? People? What frustrates you, people? What makes you laugh?

Unknown: 46:58

Ru Paul's drag race is hilarious to me.

Lisa Hopkins: 47:02

I love it. What makes you angry?

Byron Freeman: 47:10

Pain and being able to do what I love. I recently got COVID in December and feeling like my body hasn't been the same since I've had weird muscle tension where pain haven't really danced as much as I would love. And that is very, it makes me very angry. Pain. Pain really does make me angry physical pain, I'll say.

Lisa Hopkins: 47:39

Yeah. And finally, what makes you grateful?

Byron Freeman: 47:50

My mom, the world. The world literally makes me grateful. I'm just here living in it. And so many things make me grateful. My new opportunity at Gucci being the new first Gucci choreographer makes me more grateful than ever.

Lisa Hopkins: 48:14

What does that mean? You got to tell us what does that mean? Because I'm sure my guests be curious.

Byron Freeman: 48:17

Yeah. And I know we've been cliffhanging on that. I'm so funny enough about gratitude in the world. It came out of a time when I was like, What the heck? Like, what are you talking about? Because it was the same week I had COVID that they emailed me and the email was from one of their HR workers. And it was about teaching a dance class for the HR department wanting to get this health and wellness started. And it was from a client who used to take my dance class in the city before the pandemic, who never told me she worked at Gucci, nothing like that. So I was like, what? Okay, I'll teach a private like, let's do it. So we set that up and everything got settled. And when I got to the private, what turned all of this around was that I'm there teaching. And then one of the ladies came up to me and told me that it was Fashion Week. That's also the context. Fashion Week. This was February, the president of Gucci came to the private she ended up being in town because it was the Fashion Week and she wanted to come and it was like wait, y'all are dancing. You only doing this without me. And wanted, I found out that she initially wanted to make time to do a private with me beforehand, to learn the dance that I will be teaching them so that she could be prepared and everything. So that was already something beyond me. That's funny, showed up had a great time. The very next day, Lisa, I was at physical therapy, and I'm on the elliptical start in my session. I get a call from my contacts who've been talking to me and was like we had so much fun last night. The President has been stopped like talking nonstop about you in the class. We're having a cocktail party at the end of Fashion Week Tonight. And we wanted to know last minute if we could flash mob the dance you taught us and if you'd be willing to come perform it with us, oh, she said, I don't know if you can make it. It's tonight at the top of the World Trade Center for the entire Gucci staff and we're just flashmob in it last minute. We're not even telling the employees like we literally asking you to come. And when I found out that they had a plan in mind, they told me when I was like, got off the phone, they went and grabbed all of the things they could to figure out how they could make it a planned surprise employee on the spot. Wow. And I was like, so flabbergasted. And that's the video you see when I'm just standing there. And she has the mic and she's introducing she never said she would do anything like that. The President told me beforehand that my you know, I'm a performer. I was like, you asked me to perform. I'm there to go set. My performance instructions were coming next to me, when I get the mic. Be ready. We're gonna surprise them. I'll just show you off. Tell them who you are. Boom, boom, boom, she hired me and said all that stuff and was like, welcome to the family and all these things. I'm like, Excuse me. Ha. And then to make them story more Cinderella, when they found out that I had my LLC, which I literally paid for and got issued full service by the private they paid me for. So look how God works. Yeah, I had the last bit of money settled budgeted. When I got the private and my email, I was fortunate enough to get my LLC fully service. So when they found out they said you got your business done, okay? We don't want to hire you as a dance instructor for Gucci. We would like to offer you a partner and match you with your company and bring you on as the very first choreographer. Starting with the corporate classes and working our way out. Why I was like Niagara Falls. So I got my LLC February 23. My first client April 1, wow, Gucci.

Lisa Hopkins: 52:58

That's the way you do that. That's the way you do it.

Byron Freeman: 53:03

I'm so grateful.

Lisa Hopkins: 53:05

I'm that's thank you for sharing that. Oh, my gosh, what have you and I saw the video but I love now I have the context. Oh my god, that's amazing. Wild. It's wild. I'm so excited to see where that'll take you.

Unknown: 53:18

It's so new - it's one of those things where now I get to really use everything I've learned from you all and colleagues and professors I've loved and like literally that's what be free is it's me as a young artists taking me for my experience and going on from that day forward. And like I always say to my family and friends if I'm Gucci we all Gucci Okay, cuz I couldn't be here without all of y'all that I love. And I mean that with every ounce of me truly

Lisa Hopkins: 53:52

amazing. Congratulations. I'm so happy.

Byron Freeman: 53:55

Thank you so much.

Lisa Hopkins: 53:56

Oh my gosh. Byron, it has been such such a joy speaking with you today. I mean,

Byron Freeman: 54:01

ah, I have to dance with you. Yes. And this and talking and just catching up. And I want to continue ordering that. So. Yes, absolutely.

Lisa Hopkins: 54:12

Absolutely. I've been speaking today with Byron Freeman. Thanks for listening. Everyone stay safe and healthy and remember to live in the moment and be free. That's in music stop time is that beautiful moment where the band is suspended and rhythmic unison, supporting the soloist to express their individuality. In the moment, I encourage you to take that time and create your own rhythm. Until next time, I'm Lisa Hopkins. Thanks for listening