Art, Identity, and Growth During Seasons of Change

A song can be a boundary you finally honor. We sit down with Eight—artist, activist, and wellness visionary—for the exclusive premiere of “Switch Up,” a pulsing statement born from being underestimated and deciding not to be. That spark opens a candid journey through creative growth, mental health, and a bold reimagining of what a supportive community can look like for artists and neighbors alike.

We start with craft: how moving from overthinking to feeling changed Eight's songwriting, and why certain lines hit like a mirror when love turns careless. From there, the lens widens to seasons of change—moving from New York to Florida, navigating trauma, shedding people-pleasing, and choosing a new brand identity rooted in warmth, and grace. Eight shares practical tools for anxiety and depression, from breathwork and yoga to guided meditation, and explains how those practices inform a new wellness collective bridging art, mental health, and community resources so people can be seen for both their creativity and their lived experience.

Spirituality threads the conversation. Eight speaks openly about a love-centered view of God and the universe, then shares the power of identifying as Two-Spirit in Indigenous tradition—honoring both masculine and feminine energies, protecting gifts, and leading with service. We trade rituals that keep us steady—morning grounding, the simple ceremony of tea—and name the mindset shifts that carry us through uncertainty: zoom out, choose worth, and keep eyes on the horizon. If you’re standing at the edge of a big decision, take Eight’s clean advice: don’t believe the doubt.

If this conversation moved you, tap follow, share it with a friend who needs a nudge, and leave a quick review so more people can find the show. What season are you in right now?

Switch up Single Listen Here

Follow Eight on IG @theeighthking

Transcript

Welcome & Guest Introduction

SPEAKER_00 0:15

Hey friends, it's TJ, and you're listening to Tea with TJ, where our love for tea, conversation, and self-improvement intersect. So let's take a deeper dive into my cup and let's have a chat. Hey friends, it's TJ. Welcome back to another episode of Tea with TJ. And today I have a very unique and special guest, someone we've not had on the show before. Uh, musician, singer, all of the above. Uh, I'd love to introduce Tate to the show. Welcome. Hi, how's it going? Good, good. So happy to have you. Thank you for doing this. Um, so quickly for our listeners and watchers, uh, can you just tell me your story?

SPEAKER_01 1:03

Well, I come from New York. I am a artist and an activist in the community, so I've been doing a lot of things for years in that realm. And now I'm getting ready to launch a new business and a new brand that is a whole entire wellness brand. That also encompasses the music, the art, the film, the fashion. It's all encompassing. And it's been pretty exciting. And I think a part of my journey was finding myself along that route to get to this point and to find everything that I was meant to do and to find my purpose, and it feels good to finally be at that point. Of course, there were struggles and things along the way. Um, we could sit here and talk for days about that. But other than that, um, it's just been good finally getting on a path that feels divine to me.

Exclusive Premiere: “Switch Up”

Songwriting, Boundaries, And Fire

SPEAKER_00 2:02

I love that. I love that. Um, you mentioned that you are an artist. Um and you are dropping one of your songs with us exclusively here on Team of TJ. We are so grateful for. Um so let's play that so we can get a little listen. And I assume the the title of the song is called Switch Up? Yes. Love it. Thank you for sharing that. Um you just give us a bit of background on your journey as an artist and specifically what prompted you to create what I assume is going to be a full album. Um specifically this song.

SPEAKER_01 3:44

Um, well, the song itself actually came about kind of quickly, which was interesting because I'm one of those people that can be like a perfectionist to an extent or an overthinker. And um sometimes in my writing process, I will think about things kind of very um thematically. Like sometimes when I'm in the process of doing writing songs and doing stuff, it will be more from like a concept of what I think I want it to be. But as I've gotten further along in my songwriting process and being a songwriter, it is more about just feeling how you feel in that moment and expressing yourself. And for Switch Up, I was kind of like in a place where I was going through some things in a relationship, but also just in general and feeling like me being who I was and being of love and light was being taken advantage of, and people would look at it as like, oh, you're weak, or you know, like they could do whatever they needed to do, and I had to remind them of the Leo that I am, you know what I mean? And be like, hold on a second, because I know I'm a good person and I try to like give, you know, be genuine and give the right love and everything when I meet people and be friendly. But at the end of the day, if you're going to bring a certain energy to me or disrespect me or anything, then I'm gonna match you with the same thing and then be done with it.

SPEAKER_00 5:14

That is fair. That is fair. Uh there are there are a few lyrics that I want to pull out in listening to this when you sent the track to me to um insert into the episode that stuck out to me. And I would love to get your take on how you came to those lyrics and like what inspired you to create those lyrics. Uh but it is, oh baby, you wonder why I'm on a different page. You never thought that I'd ever act this strange. I warned you about this side that comes to play. You ain't got no skin in the game, which I thought was such an interesting um lyrical moment. Uh, so I've I'm very curious to know where those lyrics came from, if if it's okay for you to share.

SPEAKER_01 5:57

Yeah, I'd love to. Um that part, the first verse specifically that you're talking about, is that process of like that moment where someone kind of tries you and then also tries to manipulate you in the way of thinking like, oh, you you know, you're not you're not this type of person, or like, where's this coming from? And this is after being kind of gaslit or you know, your boundaries being pushed, or even just you know, abused in certain ways, and you get to a point where you're like you set your boundaries, and sometimes I'll admit like I have a bit of a fire in me, so I can kind of bring that to them, and it can come across a pretty ajarring, like, oh whoa, you know, they didn't see the flames coming, but it's the so that first verse to me kind of came just very naturally in how I felt about people and in the way that they move, and how like you know, you're not don't don't ever underestimate people, even for me. I think it's a good thing to know in general, you shouldn't underestimate someone because you never know what they're going through or what they've had to go through to get where they're at. So that's where a lot of that came from.

Seasons Of Change: Why It Matters

SPEAKER_00 7:15

I love that. Um, and it's interesting, and I don't think either of us set this up this way, but I love that it is still somehow found its way into the episode itself. Uh, but when I gave you some topics to choose from, you chose seasons of change, navigating transitions with grace, which I feel like based on this song, it kind of ties into that a little bit. Yeah. So, one, before we start into the actual questions, um, what kind of stuck out to you about choosing that topic?

SPEAKER_01 7:48

Well, it was just the fact that I feel like a lot of us are in a transitional state right now. Um, from what I've seen within my line of work, you know, I work for the mental health and you know, I'm very community-based and do a lot of outreach as well. And just even on a personal level in my own life, I just feel like it's something that we're all going through. And I feel like we're all kind of going into this weird gray space. And sometimes that's hard to navigate. I know for me, I like control over certain things. So when we're in that season of change, it's funny because I was just explaining to someone how as I got older, I used to love summertime as my favorite season because it was my birthday, it was, you know, fun times, whatever as a kid. But as I got older, I started to really love the fall and appreciate the sort of coziness and the laid-back, you know, nature of it and the colors changing, and you know, and someone who is spiritual in my, you know, supporters told me they were like, you know, you kind of have your own season. Like you love, I think you realize that your season isn't is like an algamation of summer and fall, which is essentially autumn. And um, you will notice as well within my brand and with the things that I'm doing that that will all kind of like play into that as well. Um particularly the switch-up single cover when that is released, has you know, orange, reddish, fiery tones to it and golden tones. So everything is in that kind of lane, and like, you know, me speaking from a place of um just authenticity and how I feel, you know, and discovering myself on a spiritual level and what my purpose is in this world, you know.

SPEAKER_00 9:51

Yeah, see, I get that. I definitely um uh echo that because there is dear God, there are so many transitions happening in my life right now. Um even this show to a degree that by the time this comes out, I think it would have been a year since our last season. Um and it's purely because of schedule and work and like auditioning and trying to live life. Um so it's been an interesting time, and uh even now uh I'm about two months out from possibly going on tour, which is a whole nother transition of things that I have to uh adjust to. But um I wanted to dive into this topic because I I think it's I think that people are really gonna love this episode based off of me knowing your energy exchange and and kind of understanding who you are as a person. Um so what transitions in your life um has kind of like shaped you the most?

SPEAKER_01 10:56

Yes. Um things that have really like transitioned me or that were big transitions for me were I mean, obviously I've moved to Florida a few years back, and you know, you know this as well, being someone who has been from the transit of Florida and New York and how that all goes. Um, it's a culture change, it's different, you know, it's different worlds in a sense. Uh but and I have gone through my share of trauma even while being there, but it's taught me a lot of life lessons. Um, I've also dealt with a lot of things regarding family, whether that was, you know, stating my boundaries with certain people who are disrespectful or even, you know, dealing with certain things with family, taking care of other family members and things like that. So I think the big transits for me that happened were the relationships that kind of kept giving that same hard lesson, like you need to kind of wake up out of this and you know, pay attention to yourself more, love yourself more, and giving myself the excuse to do that too, like to be more in a state of me for once, and be the totality of what eight is and and you know, the infinite person that I know I can be. But I was avoiding that for so long, and I think that was a big part of my rebrand and rebirth was being away with the old and welcoming in the new, whether it was scary or not, you know.

SPEAKER_00 12:38

Love that. I I feel like we all kind of um deserve a good reset um in our lives because I feel like between you know, I I'm I'm only 36, so like I've I've lived a little bit of life, but not a whole lot yet, uh, God willing. Um but I've had a f uh a good chunk of uh transitions in my life that I think has kind of shaped me to become the person that I am now. There are just certain things that I don't put up with anymore. There are certain attitudes and personalities that I'm like, you know what? No, I'm good. Um thank you, bro. Thank you. You know? Um and I had to learn that. Um, unfortunately in some circumstances the hard way, but I think it has helped kind of um grounded me and solidified uh who TJ is. Uh and I think for for a good chunk of time, I would say like especially after moving to New York, I think for a good chunk of time um I debated with myself on whether or not to upset some of those boundaries to to be able to say no, um, or to say yes to certain things. So I I completely get where you're coming from and understand. Um I'm curious to know how do you know when it's time to like pivot for you in those like transitional moments?

SPEAKER_01 14:05

When you kind of on a mental level or even on a mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, soul level where you realize that everything it does no longer fit you, it's like you've outgrown your circumstance in a sense, which is something I'm kind of currently going through, but also see the light at the end of the tunnel, so I'm not like you know, fully distracted or misguided or disrupted by it. I'm just staying on the path. But I think that it's when you start to feel like this isn't right anymore, and this isn't for me. And you know, I could say it's it is an innate feeling, it is kind of intuitive, and you just kind of know. I mean, there are some people, which was something else that I mean we could probably talk all day about, but I got into a conversation with someone I caught up with recently about um people choosing not to check in on themselves or try to work on certain things and self-evaluate and everything, and but expecting you to kind of just entertain whatever it is that they keep cycling through, and that's just not a healthy space, and I won't do that either, you know?

Knowing When To Pivot

SPEAKER_00 15:26

Yeah, agreed, agreed. I I firmly, firmly believe that we all deserve to constantly check in with ourselves because we're we're we are beings that are constantly evolving, right? Constantly learning, constantly pivoting um to what is needed in the moment. And I think I and I will speak for myself in this moment and say that like there have been moments in my life where I thought I wanted something, or I thought I was trying to go after a dream or a goal, um, and trying to um make those things happen, but then having to check in with myself and say, wait a minute, is it actually what I want? You know what I mean? Is that is that what I'm actually going after, or am I going after it because I think that's what I want, or I was told that that's what I want. Which is a whole nother can of worms that could be over. Um what um what emotions come up for you during those like big changes?

SPEAKER_01 16:24

I mean, if I'm being honest, like I deal with my own anxiety, you know, depression issues at times. So if I'm being transparent, I have definitely felt kind of you know in a dark space, or just felt like I wasn't able to climb out of it and do what I needed to do to get where I needed to be. And it's that feeling of like I guess like the world is ending kind of thing, you know, and it's not, of course, but and I've gotten better over years with that. Like I think when you do the work and you do the healing and you go along the journey and you really are diligent on your own self-work, I think you get to a point where you find the tools that are coping mechanisms to make things better, and you see along your journey that certain stuff that you handled a certain way starts to be handled in a better way as long as you keep going and you finally feel like you have more of a grip on life and what you have going on, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 17:34

And you said something that I kind of want to just go a little bit deeper with. What does that self-work look like for you?

Anxiety, Healing, And Tools

SPEAKER_01 17:42

My self-work, I mean, it took a while for me to get to it. I would try different things, you know. Um, but then I eventually, especially within my line of work, I use, I apply some of the tools that I've learned throughout my work. It's like breathing exercises, I do yoga, I do um guided meditation, I do all these things from more of a holistic base that I really go for, but I'm always about resources and researching into things that can help and better you in any type of format. And actually, that's what a part of my wellness brand that I'm launching is doing. It's something that is a collective of both the creative as well as well as the community and mental health-based people that have needs. And I felt like it would be something that we could just mold together so that people could feel like they had their expression, their authenticity, their autonomy, and everything that they feel as a person to be expressed, but also be understood for their lived experience and what their challenges are. You know what I mean?

Building A Wellness Brand

SPEAKER_00 18:53

Mm-hmm. I I use that phrase so often um when I'm talking to people and when I'm having specific conversations, that lived experience is such valuable insight. And I think it it really informs who we are as human beings, and I think it it for for myself, again, I can only speak for myself in this moment, but for me, it informs how I interact with the world and how I interact with other people. Because even though I have a certain lived experience, right, that does not necessarily mean that the person that I am engaging with has that same lived experience, right? So I personally feel like I am constantly trying to be not only aware of myself, but aware of other people and how I interact with people and how I possibly judge or not judge people, right? And trying to make sure that I'm always showing up in the best possible version of myself and the most authentic version of myself. Um so that I I I I can feel seen, but also that I can see other people. Um how do you find um stability in in in the ways that things like shift around? Because I d I I feel like I have an answer for myself. Um but I'm curious to know, especially as being especially being an artist, especially working in the line of work that you that you do, things are constantly shifting, right? Things are always on the fret, things are always kind of like in one day, out the next. Like, how do you find stability for yourself and how do you find like mental clarity for yourself in those moments?

Lived Experience And Showing Up

SPEAKER_01 20:36

I mean, to be honest with you, TJ, like what I've learned, and this is more so of a of a recent thing that has really given me stability. And I mean, I'm human, I have my days where it like kind of still teeters, but I figured out that I've found my worth and given myself the unapologetic grace to own who I am and love that because again, like I mentioned somewhat in terms of like my upbringing, like me being a people pleaser and being somebody who was kind of chasing after certain things, I eventually learned that I didn't have to. It was all here already. And maybe that's why I was going through the things I was going through and the different types of, you know, um just kind of weird uh altercations or situations I would be in over life that make you look at things differently and start to see where your power is and what your strengths are. And it has kept me now at my age, it has kept me guided in tunnel vision to know like I can't let all these other things that's going on around me affect me, or anybody that tries to pull me out of that or off my pedestal or off my throne, let that. Do anything to me. You know what I mean? And just keep being me, keep leading with love and light, but keep your eye on the prize and on the horizon because that's all I can do. Or I can't let all this other stuff get in the way of it. I've let it do that for too long. So I just think it's about like knowing who you are and keeping a focus on that and not letting anything get in the way. I tell people at work because I have clientele and people like that underneath me. And I do a lot of like, you know, therapy-based stuff and community talks and everything. And I tell them, like, one of the things I say all the time to myself to center myself is to zoom out. Zoom out for a second, come out of all this stuff that we're in, and just have a moment with yourself and everything. And then you could come back in if you feel like it. But sometimes it's best to do that.

SPEAKER_00 22:58

Yeah. I love that. I uh I have a similar um position on that where for for a really long time, and I think I shared this with you when we met. Um, but I've always struggled with my body image, right? And I've struggled, my weight has fluctuated up and down, I've been small, I've been large, I'm currently large. Um, and I think it wasn't until after shortly after 30 where I finally kind of realized I was like, wait a minute, yes, I am not unhappy with where I am, but I don't necessarily have to show that outwardly, right? And I get to choose, I get to make a choice for myself how I actually feel about it. Even though I may feel you know, a certain kind of way, I still get to choose how I get up in the morning, how I appreciate myself and my body, because the reality of the situation is that you only get one, right? At least as far as we know.

SPEAKER_03 23:57

You only get one.

Stability, Self-Worth, Zooming Out

SPEAKER_00 23:58

So it's like, why not love it? Why not appreciate it? Why not take care of it? Why not um engage with it in a way um to where you feel the most, again, going back to the most authentic version of yourself in whatever form. Um and so that's something that kind of like that now at 36 stabilizes me. But I also think something that has kind of worked in the back of my mind um for I would say probably in high school, because I used to play trumpet, I was in uh band in high school. And there were moments when I used to play of like I don't know if you know much about musical instruments, but yeah, um, okay, so uh, you know, when I used to play, there was like certain high notes that I was like, oh my armature's not great, like I don't know how I'm gonna play this like successfully, six times in a row, whatever it is. Um, but I settled on this concept of how time has to pass, right? We can't stop it. Whatever's coming is just gonna come. We gotta learn how to l live with it, deal with it, and move on. And that is kind of how I've um viewed the majority of my life of being like, okay, yeah, this may be a rough moment in time right now. But I also know that tomorrow is coming. I also know that 12 hours from now is coming. I also know that 24 hours is coming from now. So yes, I may feel shitty right now in this moment, but but I may not feel shitty in the 24 hours. And I think that has kind of been the the concept and through line for me of like providing some sort of stability and knowing that uh there is a moment beyond the current moment. Yeah, you're so right about that. Uh so you mentioned a lot about community, which I love. Um what would you say is the like role of community in supporting change, both for yourself and like in general?

SPEAKER_01 25:54

Um I think well, do you mean in terms of like what can people do better, or do you mean like what do you how is community um essential for people?

SPEAKER_00 26:07

Yeah, yeah. And I and I also want to make it personal as well for yourself too. So give me a a broader answer of you know, generalizing and then also specifically what it does for you.

Body Image, Time, And Resilience

SPEAKER_01 26:18

For for community, um to me, it's all about bringing people together. I mean, as as cliche and corny as this may sound, unity is the the objective of community. And um I just think of that in multiple ways. And I think for me, community, which both on a personal level and a professional level has always been in my life because I've had family that's worked in it, but then I also as a kid was big on like bringing people together. And I think maybe because I'm an only child and I I loved like having you know a group of people or like you know, understanding the dynamics of different people coming together to form something that makes a big change or is an impact, you know. That's why I loved like Power Rangers and Sailor Moon and things like that, because it represented this thing where everybody was their own kind of entity that was powerful but came together, you know. You know, Captain Planet too. But it's like, you know, those type of things were what inspired me. But also my family, I remember my grandparents on my mom's side would have people come live with them that were of need or you know, um homeless in the community, but they knew them through some sort of way and they wanted to take care of them and things like that. And you know, I saw things like this growing up a lot. And so it just made me, I think, also naturally, just my heart as a person, just cared about people and wanted to do that, and then fell into the path of this line of work because of the connections I made and the people I knew, and then just wanted to make a difference, you know.

Community’s Role In Change

SPEAKER_00 28:17

Yeah, I think um community is one of those things that especially uh I've mentioned this a few times on the show, but I grew up down south, so like I was very much a church kid and like you know, very much grew up in that neighborhood where everyone on my grandmother's street like knew all the kids and the grandkids and all of that. And the moment that I moved away from that, um into larger cities when I went to school in Chicago and then ultimately moved here, you know, trying to figure out what version of that um that I could hold on to for myself while living here was difficult. Um because New York, I mean Chicago is a big city, but it's like fairly small compared to New York City. Yeah. Um but New York is New York is massive, right? But there are so many cultures and people and personalities and and just so much life here. Um and it's one of the reasons that I love it. Um but it can cause you to feel siloed, right? If you don't have like any you know, community at all, especially if you're moving here with nothing. Um and so it took me a while to uh figure out uh where to land when it came to living here and like figuring out my community and my like group of people, quote unquote, if you if you get what I'm saying. Um but it I value it so much because it does again going back to uh being on the other side of 30, it really has it's really kind of helped shaped um my life, like having a real community in this city, um and not feeling alone, right?

SPEAKER_01 29:51

Yeah, because I think I think having community, and I will say this as I've gotten older as well, because unfortunately a part of big transitions as well that we're talking about is you know, you lose certain people or you have to kind of let go of certain things that no longer, you know, fit you. And sometimes that can feel lonely and isolating, you know? And for me, I can say in Florida, it was hard for me up until actually just recently to find find my tribe of people and kind of align with folks. And I think that's why I was saying, in reference to relationships I was dealing with out there, it took a minute to deal with people who were like-minded and who weren't trying to have their own agendas or were just kind of weren't right, you know, and I'm not here to judge anyone, but I just mean that it was just very um chaotic in a sense. Yeah. And for someone coming from New York, where it's like a lot of things are structurized, it's hard to go somewhere where people are kind of like, it's it's a sort of a no-man's land kind of attitude, or you know, let's, you know, they kind of try you first and then ask later, you know? And that took me a minute to kind of like adjust to yeah, yeah, yeah. No, I get that.

SPEAKER_00 31:22

Florida is also Florida, Florida is a lot. It's a lot. Um, no shade to my Florida, folks. I love it.

SPEAKER_01 31:30

Yes, no shade. We love Florida for what it gives, but a lot.

SPEAKER_00 31:34

It is a lot. Um uh shifting gears a little bit. Um, how do you you mentioned something earlier about spirituality, and I'm curious to know where faith kind of like falls in the grand scheme of things for you, and how does that um how does it help you kind of navigate like these big life transitions? Like have you leaned on anything? Have you let go of anything?

Finding Your People Across Cities

SPEAKER_01 32:02

I here's my relationship with spirituality, which has become a big part of my life as well, but I also don't I'm not a religious person in a sense, where you know, I do, if I'm being honest, I believe that religion sometimes can be a social construct or control method that makes people feel very, you know, insecure. And to me, God is love and God is all things. And when I speak of the universe, I'm speaking of God as well. And I believe that a lot of religions even tie into each other, so that's why I don't believe in trying to, you know, hone in on one thing and trying to beat that down onto someone. I think a lot of things are universal and and all work within each other in the circle of life, if we're being honest. Yeah. And so I think for me, finding my spirituality was it was happening slowly along the way, anyway, in terms of like, you know, getting into certain metaphysical things. Um, I remember a sort of uh spiritual teacher came to me when I was young, like I was like maybe in high school or so, and she was close with my mother. My mother had worked in community and mental health as well. And people knew I was starting to do things that I wanted to pursue, like, you know, in the in the entertainment world, or like just trying to, you know, get to a certain place. And this spiritual um mentor of mine, or that's what she became, she told me, she was like, You're you have a lot of things that are gonna be coming for you, and that you have a future ahead of you. And she told me a lot of what was coming, and she said that I needed to be spiritually guided, and she said that you already have a lot of protection in that realm, but you need to hone into who you are so that you know what your gifts are and you know how to protect them. So I always remember that. She gave me the book The Secret back then that this is, you know, decades ago. But this was when it, you know, some of these things that we talk about now that are everywhere, they weren't as big. And, you know, no, and everyone didn't have crystals and everyone wasn't, you know, talking about these things from all the seven chakras and things of that nature. But slowly but surely I kind of learned about all of them and I learned how to hone into my culture as well. I discovered that what I once thought was androgynous or non-binary is called two spirit. And two spirit is from the Native American indigenous culture that is representative of my mom's side. And I've always been attached to that culture, always grown up loving it, you know, used to dress like Pocahontas as a kid, you know, but then discovered at an older age that two-spirited people within the you know reservations and within the you know indigenous community were held high. And they were people that were of two spirits, both masculine and feminine, but of one being, and were healers and guiders and teachers, and people who, you know, were held in high regard, and they put them on a pedestal. And I said, wow, it just it just made sense for everything that I love and cherish and want to do, and finding that just kind of confirmed for me spiritually who I am, despite whatever has been told to me or programmed since the beginning.

Spirituality, Identity, Two-Spirit

SPEAKER_00 35:58

I love that. I oh this is perfect. Um that's amazing. I I yeah, I hear you. Like that is that's a whole another episode and conversation of like how we have been told so many things and and and taught so many things that like just don't make sense. Um I I want to be respectful of your time, I'm gonna move on, but know that like that just hit right here for me.

SPEAKER_01 36:33

And we can always touch at a different time. I'm always here for that.

SPEAKER_00 36:37

Um, do you have any like daily practices that kind of um help you stay grounded in all of this?

SPEAKER_01 36:46

Yes. Um, if I'm being honest, I was just thinking to myself as I'm here and kind of like having time to think about some things. I was saying to myself, you know, I need to start implementing more of these things into my routine more vigorously. Because not so much of because of like, oh, it's just something I need to do, like a like a healthy responsibility. No, it's more so what I know I need in order to have a good day or to get through certain things. And I said, you need to start in the morning doing um your yoga and like meditational, you know, practices, you know, and it doesn't have to take too much time because I'll be honest, sometimes I mean I get up early nowadays. When I was younger, that used to be a struggle. I wasn't really a morning person. Nowadays I'm more up early and I find myself having energy once I'm up in the morning. So I try to, I said to myself, let's try to implement some sort of um self-care and meditation and a little bit of physical action so that you can be in the right mind state before you head into the day because you deal with I deal with a lot of different energies and people and you know things going on between people and stuff. So I have to be able to have those moments to kind of like center. You know?

SPEAKER_00 38:14

I have um I mean the tea is definitely my ritual and and something that I cannot live without.

SPEAKER_01 38:22

Um and it definitely conversation about that. I need some tea advice.

SPEAKER_00 38:31

Um, but it's definitely it is I and I don't even know where it started. I I think that like there was a moment in time in college where because I've always liked tea, but what kind of cracked my mind open to what tea actually is um was around college when I was in Chicago. But opened my mind to like what is actually out there. Um but I I drink like coolongs and greens and roibus and uh matcha and uh puers. Oh, I love a puer. Um but so and and all of them uh hold different uh properties properties and ritualistic um practices for me. So like on like a rainy day, if I'm feeling down, I will likely go for something uh really strong and bold that's like a puer or like a black tea or like a like a chai or something that feels very warm and cozy and kind of like it makes me feel like I'm being hugged. Um when I'm you know, when I am like in a good mood or or feeling very light um and very happy or like um I feel like the world is very promising, I might go for like a white or green tea or you know, something like that. So I I I I see you and I hear you because that for me is in the world of tea.

SPEAKER_01 39:59

Um Yeah, and I'm and I'm trying Yeah, and I'm trying to I'm trying to get off of my coffee because I you know I'm one of those coffee drinkers in the morning and you know I've slowed down from it being more more of a casual thing throughout the day. It's more I may have my cup in the morning, like as a ritual sort of thing or routine, and then I go on about my business and the rest of the day may be like, you know, a sort of smoothie or fruit juice or water, uh, you know, things like that. But I want to get into more teas. You know, a friend of mine is into them as well, and she was kind of putting me on to certain things, and I was like, you know, I really want to chai. I'm a very big chai fan. So I I like a kick in it, you know, but I'm also all I also am good for a good old Earl Gray. Like I love a girl with a good Earl Gray.

SPEAKER_00 40:56

Okay, okay. Yeah. Yeah. Um, so I have one more question for you, and then we'll go into our final three. Um what would you say, or like what um advice would you give to someone who is kind of standing on the precipice of like some sort of big change or transition in their life?

SPEAKER_01 41:14

I would say don't believe the doubt. That's fair.

SPEAKER_00 41:22

That's good.

SPEAKER_01 41:23

As I say that, I'm saying it to myself.

SPEAKER_00 41:27

Yes, absolutely. Absolutely.

Morning Practices And Self-Care

SPEAKER_01 41:30

Don't believe the doubt. Um, you know, because there's a lot of things that could tell us which way to go, which way not to go. And um, one of the things I've learned as well is with giving grace to yourself, it's also knowing that you are the expert of yourself, even in its own ebbs and flows, ups and downs, you know, mistakes, mishaps, and everything. All of that is a part of it. And just kind of learning. And I mean, again, I may feel like some of the things I'm saying may sound like the typical standard self-help, but it's not. It's things that I've actually learned and things that I feel like you have to internalize and look at from a scope of like this, this is what matters for me, and this is what it takes for me to get there, you know, and you will see it eventually along the way. You will. And for me, that's what I've I've noticed. And I'm like, you know, I've gotten more confident along the way with every with every situation that you kind of take a risk with, and you kind of let yourself be yourself in that moment. In the end, you're like, oh, it wasn't that bad. And I got it, and I did it, and I can do it again.

SPEAKER_00 42:47

Yeah, yeah, agreed. And and I don't think it it is uh generic by any means. I think some of the most effective things are the simplest things. So um, so we have reached our time. Uh thank you, thank you, thank you for doing this. Um thank you, C T. Of course, of course. Um before we go, we do this thing on T BTJ called The Last Three. Three questions unrelated to the topic, but just to share a little bit of extra knowledge to our guests. Um you ready? Yeah. Okay. Uh what's something that that you've learned to let go? And then the final question. Uh, where do you feel the most peace?

SPEAKER_03 44:27

With my foul alone. Away from everything else. As isolating as that seems.

SPEAKER_00 44:41

I completely understand that. Um, I love that answer. Well, thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Um, I'm glad that we were able to make this happen. Um before we go, where can the folks find you?

SPEAKER_01 45:00

You can find me on Instagram at the Eighth King, as well as TikTok as the Eighth King and my brand, my wellness brand, which I won't mention the name yet, because you know, even though legal allegies are all together everything's licensed, everything's great. I just want to make sure that you know we'll print that out once we're ready.

SPEAKER_00 45:26

You know, we'll be waiting. We will be waiting.

SPEAKER_01 45:29

It'll be great.

SPEAKER_00 45:30

Um, and then where where and when um is the song coming out? I almost forgot.

SPEAKER_01 45:36

The single will be out around the time of this episode. It will be just around that time. It will be coming out as soon as that you know all in tell. So I'm excited.

Tea Rituals And Daily Grounding

SPEAKER_00 45:49

Love it, love it. Same. Um again, thank you, eight, for doing this. Uh, I greatly appreciate it. This was a conversation for the ages. Uh, and I hope that we can have you in person soon. Um thank you so much.

SPEAKER_01 46:05

I've had a great time, and I appreciate it. And uh we will be here again soon. Yeah, so thank you for that. Oh, absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 46:12

This is not your last time on the show. Yes, thank you. Yeah, uh, and with that, friends, thank you so much for listening, and I will see you next week. And that's our show, friends. Thanks for joining us on Tea with TJ. Please rate, review, and subscribe. And you can find us on Instagram at T with TJ Podcast. And as always, stay kind, keep tipping, and remember, we're here. So might as well go.