BE A BALLER -"Building a lifelong legacy"

OSU Football Player Maurice Hall & Cast: "The Story Behind the movie #WorstChristmasEver”

• Coach Tim Brown, Uncommon Life

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OSU football alum Maurice Hall shares how he rebuilt his identity after football, trusting God and hard work to guide him into filmmaking. Along with co-writer/director Tony L. Patterson, he breaks down the real moment that inspired Worst Christmas Ever and the values that shaped it.

The cast opens up about love after divorce, co-parenting, and the chaos of blended families during the holidays—all rooted in honesty, faith, and grace. With takeaways on perseverance, purpose, and choosing the right circle, this episode is a reminder that even messy moments can lead to meaning.

Tune in, share with a friend, and keep building your legacy. Subscribe for more legacy-minded stories, share this episode with someone who needs a hopeful holiday, and leave a review to help others find the show.

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SPEAKER_08:

Welcome to Be A Baller, where we're building a lifelong legacy for our families, communities, and the world. Your host, Coach Tim Brown, is excited for you to join him on this journey. On each episode, we'll be talking about how to be intentional about building a lasting legacy. We'll be exploring what it means to leave a mark that goes beyond just our lives, but has a positive impact on those around us and even generations to come. So if you're looking for inspiration, guidance, and practical tips on how to build a lasting legacy that makes a difference, then you're in the right place. So grab your earbuds, get comfortable, and let's dive in. It's time to be a baller.

SPEAKER_05:

Welcome to Be a Baller Podcast, where we celebrate leaders, dreamers, and legacy builders who are shaping culture and purpose. Today's conversation shines a light on faith, creativity, and film, and the power of storytelling to heal and inspire. We're honored to have in the studio the creative minds behind the new holiday movie, hashtag worstChristmas Ever. We have actor, producer, and director Mo Hall, co-writer and co-director Tony L. Patterson, and the film stars Shanti Laurie, Mo Ashley, Jane Mondi.

SPEAKER_07:

Mourder.

SPEAKER_05:

This movie isn't just about Christmas going wrong, it's about finding hope, love, and redemption when life doesn't go as planned. Welcome to Be a Balls. That was a good tagline.

SPEAKER_06:

Thanks for having us. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

SPEAKER_05:

I want to start out with some fun stuff since I got this fun class. Let's do a quick round of holiday hot takes.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay. Okay. I was prepared. Let's go.

SPEAKER_05:

Favorite Christmas movie growing up.

SPEAKER_01:

Home Alone 2. Oh, that was fast. Home Alone 2, not one.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, I know.

SPEAKER_01:

I'm a one girl if I'm going to do Home Alone. I'm a love actually fan. That's my Christmas movie.

SPEAKER_04:

On the 1941 version of Christmas Girl, what else did that say?

SPEAKER_05:

Wow, you went back. You went back.

SPEAKER_07:

The Grinch. Okay. I would think the first time I saw it, I was probably five or six years old. So it's something that I watch every year.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh, wow. Okay. Elf? I think Elf was mine. Yeah, Elf was the one for sure.

SPEAKER_01:

That makes sense, Mike. Yeah, we'll take it. I don't know how to take that.

SPEAKER_05:

How about this one? Best or worst Christmas gift ever received?

unknown:

Gosh.

SPEAKER_01:

I have a terrible story that just came to my mind, and I'm literally telling myself not to tell it. Do it. My husband, for the first Christmas we were ever together. And he's in the room just so everyone can appreciate that he has to hear this story. He got me a gorgeous necklace from a fancy place with all the wrapping and the un and it was so ugly. And I opened it and I literally tried to pretend I'm an actor. So this is sad because I tried to pretend I liked it and a tear came out. He knew that I hated it. It was our first Christmas together ever. So we were, you know, learning each other's tastes, and his he's gotten so much better since I.

SPEAKER_04:

That's your Christmas.

SPEAKER_01:

And you deserve it. You deserve it. Yeah. I was not a good person that day. I feel bad.

SPEAKER_04:

I gotta say, my best was it had to be one of the Scrabble games that my mom every year she got us a new Scrabble game. We got the 10-year anniversary, the 25s, the 35s, and the 50-year anniversary Scrabble game in our home.

SPEAKER_05:

Wow.

SPEAKER_03:

Um, I will have to say we were giving my grandfather, we hold on Pops, a gift. He opens it and he says, Oh my gosh, it's a divided. And we go, Pops. It's called a DVD. So we would not let that story die down. Like, is that what you've been calling it this whole time?

SPEAKER_07:

When I was when I was younger, my mom had a friend who had no children, so she really didn't know what to give eight, nine-year-olds. So for a couple of Christmases, we would always get fruitcake.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh, Gene!

SPEAKER_07:

Oh, jean, no one likes fruitcake. I called it dead fruit.

SPEAKER_04:

Door stops though.

SPEAKER_02:

So when I was five years old, I was given a bicycle. And um, I rode the bicycle one time and I parked it on the porch in Memphis, Tennessee, and someone stole it. And I still have PTSD, which is why I don't buy bikes anymore.

SPEAKER_04:

Yeah, because you're doing it all.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh, they have the scooters.

SPEAKER_02:

They have scooters. I don't buy bikes for my kids because I'm afraid it's gonna get stolen.

SPEAKER_01:

He's ruined like generations of life.

SPEAKER_02:

Generational curse there.

SPEAKER_01:

Wow. Man, man, we're gonna pray for it.

SPEAKER_02:

We're gonna break those today.

SPEAKER_04:

Morgan, you're getting a bike next year. Also, Sydney and Harper, you're getting bikes too.

SPEAKER_05:

This is going so well. Let me get one more. I'm learning a lot here. What's a holiday tradition you can't live without?

SPEAKER_01:

Anyone else want to start?

SPEAKER_02:

Holiday tradition. Uh, I would say um, so two things. We always play board games for the holiday, primarily Monopoly. So Monopoly's the one. Number two is uh key lime pie is my favorite. So we're always gonna have key lime pie for Thanksgiving, Christmas, you know, St. Patrick's Day.

SPEAKER_01:

I knew there was a reason that we were gonna do that. No, I'm gonna set a movie because I'm a key limer too.

SPEAKER_02:

Exactly. That's it for me.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_07:

Uh my family always made an effort to get together at Christmas time, and sometimes I had to work on Christmas. So if I was working, they would come to my place of work and bring breakfast.

SPEAKER_06:

Oh, cute!

SPEAKER_07:

And then uh and then after I got off uh work, then I would go to my parents' home and then we would uh we would open our gifts together and eat.

SPEAKER_03:

Sweet. We do we sing Christmas carols every Christmas. Uh the 12 days of Christmas, and everyone has their own part. It's like we're a group, okay? Yeah. Who were you? What day were you? Uh it just all depends on the year. It just all depends on the year. She doesn't want to get it. We do think some elders. We do have some elders that only say certain days.

SPEAKER_02:

Why did you touch Tony when you said elders? I didn't sure.

SPEAKER_03:

Well, this is my elder. That this true. This is my elder.

SPEAKER_04:

I apologize. Um, well, two traditions. One, growing up, mom would always allow us to open one present, like right at 12. And then we watch movies until until we fall asleep. And then whenever we wake up, it's time to open the rest of the rest of the presents. As I raised my kids, we did the same thing, but always Christmas breakfast was like, you gotta do that. Yeah, you gotta do that.

SPEAKER_01:

I love hearing that because that's yeah, we definitely opened a present the night before. And I love a big Christmas Eve dinner, but I'm a really big fan of just a big Christmas breakfast that's sort of like easy to make, and you lay it all out, and everyone really just opens presents and hangs out together on Christmas. I'm not a fan of like a traditional sit-down because Christmas should just be like lazy a little bit. Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05:

This is good. This is good. Now, this really leads to the next question. Okay, we we're talking all these great Christmas stories. So, how did the idea for hashtag worst Christmas ever come about? Because we're all excited about Christmas.

SPEAKER_02:

We're gonna let Tony answer that one.

SPEAKER_04:

It was three stormy Christmases ago. So, three years ago, I um I I traveled from uh LA to Atlanta, where my uh my uh ex-wife had moved with her new husband. Uh, and we always have Christmas together, our our children. Uh, and when she moved, um you have to know that children will follow mommy wherever they go. So I go to my ex-wife's new home on Christmas and sleep in their house Christmas Eve to wake up to my children's flight being canceled. I spent Christmas with my ex-wife and her husband without my children. Hashtag worst Christmas ever. And now she's inviting people over. We're gonna play board games, we're gonna I was done. So then Mo said, I come back home, I tell him the story, and he goes, We should write about your pain. He didn't say pain.

SPEAKER_02:

I said, That's the movie.

SPEAKER_04:

And that's it. Hashtag worst Christmas ever is my experience. And and I'm here to I lived through it and I loved it. No telling way to go. I'm getting better when I talk about it. Yeah. I don't know.

SPEAKER_01:

That was very emotional. I felt like I knew you needed a hug.

SPEAKER_04:

Well, the medication's kicking in me.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_05:

You know, Moa, your your generation's been remarkable. I watched you grow from a national champion at Ohio State to an actor, writer, and and uh film producer. What inspired your shift from the football field uh to filmmaking? How has your faith uh guided that transition?

SPEAKER_02:

No, faith, faith has been huge. Um, yeah, obviously, growing up, that was one of the biggest things in my household. You know, my dad and mom, it was like, hey, God is God is number one. And and as I continue to rely on God, I continue to grow in success, obviously, from academically and and sports-wise. And then when I needed God the most was was after I finished football, right? So after, you know, 23 years old, this is what I've been doing. This is I'm come I grow, I'm growing up in the same place where I've had the success as a football player. So this is how people know you, and now you don't have that anymore. Who am I? What kind of I identity do I have outside of football? So that took a lot. And you know, it took a lot of lot of um belief and a lot of prayer to to get through that and find the next thing for me, which ended up being acting, you know, and thankfully I was able to find that. And uh, and then from there, you know, I prayed about how to how to get into acting and and pursue this next passion, and and God made a way for me to get there through Target, working at Target, getting promoted at Target, and and Target transferring me to Los Angeles to to pursue it, and ultimately God taking that job away from me.

unknown:

Thank you.

SPEAKER_02:

Thank you, God, but I needed it at that time, you know. But um, but you know, and and now essentially doing what I'm doing now, um, but it all started with, you know, just continued hard work, continued faith in in God, faith in myself, and then just getting better. You know, it's it's important to you, you still gotta still gotta be great at what you do in order to get to where you want to get to. So that's been been a great good stuff.

SPEAKER_05:

Yeah, I knew you as a little sideline reporter or whatever, you know, and now seeing you on the big screen.

SPEAKER_02:

That's that's how I got into it. I had my first live shot, and they said, throw it out to Maurice on the field. And Maurice said, Um, back to you. That was that was my first live shot, and somebody said, take an acting class to help with those nerves. And the next thing you know, I was uh I said, acting is it.

SPEAKER_05:

So you know, uh uh Shante, yeah, Mo and and and Jan and Jan. Jane, I'm sorry, Jane. What what drew you to this story? And and how did the how did your character connect to something deeper in your own life? I'm sure there's always a connection somewhere. You know, you read the script. How what drew you to this, to this story?

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, there's you always have to find a connection as an actor because that's your your way to be authentic. Um, you don't have to feel everything that your character does, or you wouldn't make all the same choices, but you have to understand why. Um and sometimes that's harder than others. This was very easy for me to connect to. Alicia is just a loving mom. She loves her children and therefore loves her children's father, even if they're not married anymore. And she definitely loves her fiance in her new life. She's leading and she leads with love and is, you know, trying to include everyone all the time. And that was sort of easy to get into. She's just a loving mom. Um, there's a lot of drama that happens, and that's also easy to get into because at Christmas, there's always drama, right? You have expectations and then everything goes awry and it's stressful. Um, but when I read the script, it just felt real. It felt like a real situation because it was. And it was written beautifully. And I just felt like I want to, I want to be on set and film that, and I also want to see that. And so that's when you know you should probably do the part.

SPEAKER_05:

Good.

SPEAKER_03:

For me, um, with Haley, for a young lady to go after her dreams, that's something that I can definitely relate to, especially in the time where like living in LA with a child. I think acting is also entrepreneurship. So you could like we have we're entrepreneurs. So imagine living in LA with a child, and your husband is also an entrepreneur, but still going after it, not letting obstacle stop you no matter what. And and that's why I'm here today. Um because of God. And I love how we talked about faith, because that's something that you said you mentioned it was after football is when you really had to depend on God, and I can definitely relate to that going after my dreams. That's when I really started building that relationship and watching him work. Um, and then in another area, I can say I related to Haley her being the glue in the family. I have three brothers, okay, and um I talk to them all the time. We help each other out. I'm close to my parents, so we I would say, I mean, obviously we have conflict, but we know how to work through it and we get through it and become stronger. So yeah, I think um we and Haley have that in common.

SPEAKER_05:

Good, good. Uh Jane, you're Mo's uh acting partner uh in the class. Exactly when he was younger. Younger.

SPEAKER_07:

We were we were both younger, yes.

unknown:

Elder.

SPEAKER_07:

Yes, we were both younger. In fact, my hair was not gray. Yes, I did. I met Mo uh probably about 18 years ago, and I think it was in the class that he was told to take um after his uh situation. Um and I I tell the story because um um it kind of tells you a little bit about who he is. I went to a play that he had done after he'd taken some classes, he he was doing some plays, and I went and I thoroughly enjoyed his performance and the play, and I told him that afterwards, and then I left. And um I'm on my way home and I get a call, and it's him. And he thanked me for coming and uh for saying those kind words, and then he said, Okay, now I want you to really tell me what I need to work on, and that kind of thing. So um I don't remember what I told him. I I'm not even sure I remember the play, you know, what it was. Uh, you played a detective.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, cliffhanger.

SPEAKER_07:

Yeah, um oh, is that what it was? Okay. So the thing was that I do remember um at that very moment when he, you know, told me what he wanted to work on and that kind of thing, I thought, okay, this guy's gonna do really well in whatever he chooses because he's a hard worker and he wants to build on um all the things that he learns and he's not afraid to, you know, try. And and with his background uh being a football player, he's used to working hard, and you don't always, just because you work hard, doesn't necessarily guarantee you what you consider successful, but at least um you do learn from it. And um, so and you know, here we are today.

SPEAKER_05:

That's awesome. Oh Maurice, your holiday films are heart for Christmas and now, hashtag worst Christmas ever, both centered on love and redemption. What fuels your passion for creating stories that move people?

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, well, I think I think it's easy to I think it's in the real world, nothing's perfect, right? There's always things that we look at and wish we could have gone back and done differently. And I think it's important to show that. But also at the same time, I think it's important to show family. I think it's important to show forgiveness and and redemption and persistence, like all those things that um come across, especially in in any movie, or you know, but especially in holiday films where you know we you know we want the the traditional Christmas, holiday, everything's gonna be okay, but everything's doesn't always, it's not always okay. But it ends up working out, you know. It's what you know, it it's it's what the Bible says, you know, all things work together for the good, right? So, and that's essentially what we're saying in in every project that we do, that although things might go haywire and chaos might happen, um, they all come together, you know, at the end to to give us what we exactly will we need.

SPEAKER_05:

You know, Tony, uh, this is a this is a legacy podcast. And how how how do you define legacy when it comes to storytelling and representation in film?

SPEAKER_04:

Legacy to me is I I I speak to that to my children all the time. Um, what's your legacy? What do you leave behind? When it comes to film, a million people can see your film. I can talk to four of my kids, but a million people will see my film. So it's important that what I what we put out there is there's some kind of moral foundation to everything that we that that that Monai write and or produce. When it comes to this latest uh venture, hashtag worst Christmas Ever, it's a it's about forgiveness. And and I and I send and I I tell my kids and they always they they know what's coming, you know, it's called a daddyism. And uh and and I tell them, I said the strongest force in the world is forgiveness. Because if we have forgiveness, we don't send our children to war. And and and and and as a veteran, I understand what that is. I've never seen war, uh uh, but I've seen things happen where you don't you choose not to forgive. So as far as legacy, um it has to for me, it has to be a legacy of love and kindness and and and forgiveness. And we have that in our films. Um there's always something underneath whether it's comedy, drama, whatever, sci-fi, the legacy is important that you build and so people can build on top of that. People can go, oh, I see what you've done and and become and become part of that legacy by by joining in and creating their own legacy. Everyone's gonna do something different, but that's that's what we do.

SPEAKER_05:

You know, as a chaos, Shante, Mo, and Janet, what do you when you think about your own legacies as artists and as people, uh, what kind of impact do you hope your work leaves behind?

SPEAKER_01:

That's a beautiful question. Um, because I think a lot of us actors get into acting for ourselves. Um, I got into it because I had a really hard childhood and I didn't necessarily want to be myself all the time. And getting into other characters was a release and an escape. Um, and so then once I, you know, got through that and was okay being myself, I now want to find another reason to do this thing that I love. And that is giving back, and that does form a legacy. Um, so it's something I've been thinking about more lately. Like, why am I making this project? To have fun on set or for something more? And it's just been really heavy on my mind lately. I think the world is in a place that feels a little heavy. And I would like to do something to be a part of making it better. Um, and it's funny because Mo and I were having this conversation that what we do when we make a movie matters because people see it and they maybe haven't seen themselves in that way before, or they didn't understand that about their dad before, or they didn't understand why someone did something, and they go, Oh, wow, I I can relate to that and I take something good out of that. So it doesn't have to be a heavy movie or a dramatic movie to move people. Sometimes people need a place to just feel hopeful or happy. And so that's the legacy I want to leave. I want everything I do to be intentional and to be moving towards something beautiful and better. That's a big legacy, but it's also something that I I take seriously.

SPEAKER_03:

For me, I would like to leave behind an impact on generations. Um you know, when I watch movies, especially now that I'm getting older and I am experiencing real life, adult life with the family and everything, certain things you used to think it starts changing. And a lot of the time, movies can influence and open someone else's perspective or something, or even in um bring in communities together because you know, you may be a black man going through something, and I could someone could be a white male and not really understand the difference in our worlds. But when you're giving an image, a vision, and you see it and you watch it, then that can be like, oh, you know what? Um I can see now, like my eyes have been open now. So it's like making changes, making things that's topics that aren't talked about, that's not normalized, to normalize it. Get information out there, get history out there. Um, there's a lot of work to be done, and I think movies, TV shows is a great way of influencing change and positive change.

SPEAKER_07:

That's a really interesting question because a lot of times when you audition for something and you get the part and you do the role, you don't know what the final product is. And um sometimes I don't even know if the director or sometimes doesn't know either until they actually start doing some editing. But I think as an actor, what you try to do, and at least what I hope I can do, um since I'm older. Well, older Tony. Um but uh I think that I hope that what I can bring is make it about the work. And not about myself, but about the work and what the vision of the um all the other artists are doing and uh be part of a team. And I found that when I've done that, um I enjoy it and I I also then it allows me to help in other ways, you know, and uh want to want to promote you know, newer newer people, you know, newer artists to and newer directors and writers and things like that and and help out in other ways besides acting and uh promoting or whatever else um there may be to do. But it it's a fun thing to be a part of, and the more you're involved, I think the more you want to know about it.

SPEAKER_05:

Um, you know, as we think about the movie, especially the title, you know, that hashtag worst ChristmasEver, we know that grabs people's attention. You know, was there a moment during production when you all realize that this is bigger than a movie? That this is this is bigger than this is a ministry. This as we're talking now, this is an opportunity, this is bigger than a movie.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, yeah, you know, I I did when I read it, I felt like this was a beautiful movie for a dad, you know, um reclaiming and and his family, and there's there's themes of that. But it wasn't until the world premiere in Los Angeles, and I got the feedback from people that I realized it is bigger. It's black men seeing themselves in a complicated, messy way on screen, having a family, being a good dad, even though you've made mistakes. That's big. And we don't always get to see that. I think other cultures do. There's there's, you know, um anti-heroes that people look up to in other cultures. But in the black community, I think sometimes men can get demonized or villainized. And this is the opposite of that. This is a movie that talks about a good man, a good father who is not perfect because that's real life. And then he's making um changes and and actually taking steps to be a better person. Again, it's real life. So it was beautiful to see that it touched people and that it seemed like it was something that some black men especially needed to see.

SPEAKER_02:

I think that's a mic drop. Um yeah, I mean, yeah, I think it always comes when you get a chance to watch the movie with a group of people who don't know you, and they're literally just looking at the movie as a whole, and you see how it touches various different people different ways. You know, someone picks up on the redemption, someone picks up on the relationship, you know, and it's just it's it's great to to see that. Obviously, when you hear hashtag words Christmas ever, it like you said, immediately catches your attention. You're like, this is gonna be something crazy. And um, but you get a chance to see the complications of of things and relationships and blended families and and all those different things that are like like we've said real life. Um, but it gives you get a chance to uh understand the empathy that comes with it from every single character, from the the son who has the the issue with his dad to the dad who's all he's been trying to do is provide for his family, but the problem is he hasn't been at home, so he's been working. All he he thought was what he was taught growing up to provide for your family, but as a result, he lost his wife, right? And and with the with the daughter who, you know, she's an entrepreneur, but she's also a daddy's girl, and she understands dad wasn't there, but dad was trying his best, you know, and then you have you know, my character who plays the uh almost insecure fiance and you know understands that you know my stay-at-home job and his work job, even though I want it to be the same, it's not the same. But at the same time, we still have to have the respect for each other as we, you know, go through this relationship of my new fiance and his ex-wife. So it it's it touches on so many different uh levels um that I think people take.

SPEAKER_05:

As we think about the movie, uh, what what are some lessons about grace, forgiveness, or family do you hope that viewers take away, especially during doing especially those facing tough holidays?

SPEAKER_01:

Can I just say that it's possible? Like people need to remember that grace and forgiveness and hope are possible and and that you you do have to try. You have to make an effort, and sometimes it doesn't feel exactly how you think it's going to feel, but it's still worth doing.

SPEAKER_03:

Um I would say there's a I'm trying to see how to say it without giving too much, without giving anything away, actually. Uh okay, so when there is a conflict in your relation in the in within the family, which is a relationship, um, to be open-minded when you are receiving it because your perception is reality, but also you gotta remember that other person's perception is reality as well. So they're saying this is X, Y, and Z, and you're like, no, I'm A, B, and C, and y'all not eat meeting up. Y'all have to both meet in the middle, you know. So that was my biggest takeaway.

SPEAKER_05:

You know, more recent Tony, as a storyteller and and father, how do you see the next generation of filmmakers, especially black creators, shaping the future of inspirational cinema?

SPEAKER_04:

Honest, honest filmmaking. You know, we w we can have the tendency to say the things in a crowded room that we think they want to hear that's acceptable and negative. No, I don't uh uh uh we we want to speak to truth, and underneath speaking the truth, I hope the filmmakers that come along, you know, from from uh Gordon Parks all the way to Spike Lee to Mo Hall and Tony L. Patterson, that we speak truth to power and we show ourselves, if no one else will, in different light. Of strength and vulnerability as black men, our strength comes in those forms. And I hope the the young artists that we work with, you know, Mo Ashley, I mean phenomenal talent, okay, as a young artist. And this is I this is our first feature film. So we want to speak truth and we want the the next generation to do the same.

SPEAKER_02:

I don't think I could say anything any better, so I'm gonna just leave it at that.

SPEAKER_04:

Wait, wait, was that a was that a mic drop? Correct, Tony. Good job.

SPEAKER_03:

It was a bar. It was a bar. It's a bar.

SPEAKER_04:

We got bars.

SPEAKER_05:

You know, for for everyone here, uh what advice would you give to someone who feels called to create but doesn't know where to start?

SPEAKER_02:

I would say um if you're gonna go after it, you gotta go after it. It's especially this business isn't a I just want to try it out because there's too many people doing it. And there's too many people that are great that aren't getting jobs. So if you're gonna really go after it, you gotta go all in. There's no, I'm just gonna give it whatever. It's like I'm in, I'm gonna train, I'm gonna take classes, I'm gonna do all the necessary things I need to do, get headshots. Yeah, and and if you're willing to do that, then get in it. But you gotta be willing to go all in or it's not worth it.

SPEAKER_01:

And don't forget, if you love it now and you're wanting to get into it, to remember to love all aspects of it or don't get into it. Love the training, love the rehearsing, love the going into the auditions and just meeting people. You don't have to love not getting a job in hearing a no, but don't fear an audition and go, oh God, it's gonna be so bad. And because then why are you doing it? You're making your life unhappy. Go into it because you love it and remember to keep loving it as you're working hard, as Mo said.

SPEAKER_03:

I would say I I personally think it's an excuse to say, I don't know where to start in this day and age. Way too much information out there, Nayanday. You can start. It doesn't have to be right, but you can start. There you go.

SPEAKER_07:

100% I I was listening to a podcast and they actually referred to a local pastor saying that if you're really passionate about something, you'll figure it out. Oh, come on, and and I think that's in anything, in life, in anything. So uh part of it has to be passion. Yeah. That's good.

SPEAKER_04:

No, passion is what drives me. You know, you know, you know, I talk to my kids, and the daddyism is the good news is daddyism 101. The good news is is up to you. The bad news is it's up to you. All my kids know that daddy, not again.

SPEAKER_05:

We ain't had a little church in here today. Daddy is also deacons. Leave it to me, leave it to me. Make sure you love me. Uh as we wrap up, I just uh there's one thing about Mo. Um his dance skills are terrible.

SPEAKER_03:

Everybody knows it. We're getting now we're getting real so much.

SPEAKER_02:

Wait till you see the movie.

SPEAKER_03:

I was just gonna say he's not so bad.

SPEAKER_02:

Wait till you see the movie. Your boy got it.

SPEAKER_05:

That's one thing Mo did he we're just gonna tell the truth. Mo Mo is not a club man in high school.

SPEAKER_01:

You went to the clubs with him? Tell me about that.

SPEAKER_03:

He said, let me wrap this up. Let me wrap this up.

SPEAKER_05:

I just heard about it. You heard the word on the streets. Let me put it that way. Rumor has it. Rumor has got it. Rumor has it. But I want to thank you all for joining me today on a Be a Baller podcast. This has really been special to me. And it's been a blessing uh seeing Mo. But most importantly, I'm blessed to see the people that he surrounds himself with, which is so important. As we talk about advice for young people or people want to start out in this deal, you got to make sure you're around the right people. You just can't be around anybody. You can't be around them naysayers, you know. You gotta be around those who've encouraged you that you can do this, you can make it happen. And we know when God has a plan for your life and a purpose for your life, it'll happen. Here's a man that when Mo left Columbus, we were just all I was shocked. I'm like, he's gonna do what? Going to act, you know. This this is Mr. Mo Hall, you know, all all state football player, you know, Ohio State National Champion. And he's giving all that up to do what? But when God, when God has a calling on your life, you know, and it will come to pass. That may not happen overnight, but it will come to pass. I'm just so excited to see the work that he's doing. And I want to thank you all. I want to thank you all for pointing to this young man because he's way out in California, he's from Columbus. Someone's gotta watch him watch people. Somebody's gotta watch him. I'm glad he's got the right people. So thank you for being here and reminding us uh even in the worst seasons, faith, love, and perseverance can bring out our best stories. Hashtag worst Christmas ever movie is more than a holiday movie. It's reflection on grace, family, and a legacy we built through resilience. To our listeners, remember legacy isn't about perfection, it's about the lives you touch, the stories you tell, and the hope you leave behind.

SPEAKER_04:

Come on now.

SPEAKER_02:

So I want to think go go make sure you go stream hashtag Worst Christmas Ever, all platforms, November 18th.

SPEAKER_05:

Until next time, uh keep building your legacy, one story, one dream, and one act at a time.

SPEAKER_08:

If you've enjoyed this episode, please share it with family and friends. The Be A Baller Podcast is available on all major podcast platforms. This podcast was created by Coach Tim Brown and recorded and edited by the video production class of Worthington Christian High School. Be sure to come back next week as we continue to discuss on how to build a lifelong legacy. Until then, don't forget to be a baller.