Manhood Matters Podcast
Conversations around challenges dominating a man's journey through life. These topics are explored by real, everyday friends, with a lot of experience... And we have the occasional expert guest.
Manhood Matters Podcast
Hope and Resilience Through Sickle Cell Disease
Kier "Junior" Spates joins us to share his incredible journey with sickle cell disease, challenging misconceptions and bringing light to the realities faced by those affected. Diagnosed at just seven years old, Kier has become a beacon of hope and advocacy, tirelessly working to spread awareness and support through his organization, Kier's Hope International. His story uncovers the emotional and physical challenges faced by individuals with sickle cell, emphasizing the critical need for empathy, understanding, and improved healthcare.
We explore the influence of family and healthcare professionals in managing the disease, highlighting the resilience and strength needed to face a world often unaware of sickle cell's severity. Kier's narrative offers a poignant viewpoint on the importance of comprehensive education and legislative change to ensure effective care for the over three million people in the U.S. carrying the sickle cell trait. Listen as we address the broader impact of racial inequities in healthcare and celebrate advances in medication that bring hope to affected communities.
Beyond personal experiences, our conversation sheds light on the global prevalence of sickle cell disease, debunking myths that it only affects African Americans. Kier shares his vision of creating specialized centers to better serve those with sickle cell, while also exploring the potential for economic empowerment within Black communities through ownership initiatives. This episode is not just an exploration of the challenges but a testament to the power of advocacy, resilience, and the relentless pursuit of a better future for all those living with sickle cell disease.
***WARNING*** This episodes mentions a suicide attempt
Find Chester Lacey on IG: @musclebuythepound / @bmg_chester
Find Kier Spates on IG: @juniorshms
www.kierjrspates.com
Podcast LIVING YOUR LIFE
Charity: www.kiershope.org
Host :@stephanealexandreofficial
Music by Liam Weisner
This episode was brought to you by www.OnsiteLabs.net for all DNA incl. paternity tests.
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Host: StéphaneAlexandre
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They already told me I was going to die at 11. I told God whenever you come get me, let me make sure that I've done my part, that I've changed this for somebody else. So I'm going to tell you one thing about people with sickle cell. They like making babies too, Because we keep showing up. It's not going to stop. Somebody has to give them a blueprint on how to live am your host.
Speaker 2:I am joined today by my boy, jabari Pride, and by bodybuilder and trainer extraordinaire, mr Chester Lacey. Now you know, sickle cell in our community is rampant. It's just something, however, that we don't talk about a whole lot. So I have the extreme pleasure of welcoming a truly remarkable individual as well. So Kierre Jr Spates is a multifaceted, emmy-nominated entertainer, a gifted comedian, writer, producer and inspirational speaker. As a co-host of the nationally syndicated Steve Harvey Morning Show, he brings laughter and insight to millions of people daily. Kier is a passionate advocate for sickle cell disease awareness. He founded Kier's Hope International to support those affected by the condition. His latest venture, the Living your Life podcast, continues to inspire and educate audiences worldwide. And here's the best part you will not meet a better, more wonderful human being. Welcome to Manhood Matters. Let's get to it. I was there. There you go.
Speaker 1:I appreciate y'all having me man.
Speaker 2:Yeah, man it just wasn't enough to ruin this paper, man, that's just the fact that you even go do that for me.
Speaker 1:You know, man, you could have said I've been fine with that man it is a privilege and an honor to have you here, brother.
Speaker 2:You know all you guys here. It means a whole lot to me, but to have someone take time out of their schedule, knowing how busy you are, what you do, so it's really, really appreciated. Um, and we're gonna talk about a subject. Uh, today, like I said, we had a conversation what was it like? Uh, two nights ago, yeah, and we were on the phone for a long time and it's about sickle cell.
Speaker 2:And I gotta tell you, man, the last time that this is what I learned about sickle cell, I was in high school. I was in health class and we had half a chapter yeah, covering it smells what happens for about 30 minutes and we were done. Yeah, the last time I heard about anything regarding sickle cell was, maybe about six years ago. A friend of mine, um, she got married and she has a trait, and so does her husband, and he wanted to have kids. And then she was like man, how selfish of you, because what's gonna happen is I have the trait, you have the trait, right, right, our child is definitely gonna have the disease, right, I'm in a cloud of ignorance here.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so kind of like clear it up for us man and man, um, you know it is, uh, in this country there's a hundred thousand of us. In this country that number's got to be low, three million people in this country with the trait it's only a hundred thousand of us yeah, that's yeah.
Speaker 2:Doesn't sound right, right. No, I know it's the math and math it's not math yeah um, you know, I was diagnosed at seven years old.
Speaker 1:I had it at birth. They didn't know what was wrong with me, man, man, they didn't know. They had no idea what was really wrong. They was like well, he's allergic to milk, what are you doing? He's getting oatmeal or whatever, just anything. It was a doctor out of Africa who noticed a sickle cell trait in my body and said this is nothing wrong with this boy. He's got sickle cell Seven years old in my body. I said this is nothing wrong with this boy. This boy got sickle cell Seven years old. And then you know the other doctor. He said okay, where's sickle cell? So the doctor tells. The doctor tells my parents, well, don't even plan a life for him. Really, he's probably going to be out of here at 11. Wow, holy shit yeah the crazy part about this man.
Speaker 1:Do you know what you just did as a doctor? People trust doctors, correct? Right all you did was take my parents hopes and dreams about they said you killed it, killed it. You should see how hard I was playing. At 10 and a half I was nervous, but kick the ball because I'm gonna be here about six months you better tackle me so wait, they told your parents.
Speaker 2:But then did you know as well? Did you know that?
Speaker 1:I don't understand what it was at that time seven.
Speaker 2:No, but did he say that he's not? He's gonna be gone by 11? Did you know that he said that, yeah, my parents told me, wow, wow.
Speaker 1:so they let me do everything. You know, I had some encouraging parents. First of all, my mom's a nurse, right? My mom, you know, and my father did not allow me to feel like I was incapable of doing anything. You know, I've been in the hospital over 100 times in my lifetime, over 100. I've almost died seven times. Okay, because, you know why? Because of the neglect, the ignorance, right, that they don't believe when I tell you that my pain's a 10, they don't want to serve my pain. You know, wow, there's nothing wrong with you. He doesn't look like he's a 10. How can you, how can you look like a 10?
Speaker 1:I'm telling you yeah and they don't service our pain right. So I've waited in the emergency room one time, almost died waiting in the emergency room six hours before they even seen me. Wow, no man, you know it's like uh, my parents have to go in that act of fool.
Speaker 3:That's what they want us to do you know what, man, I'm going to add to that? Because I was a former firefighter for six years and I tell people a lot of times it's an emergency to you, it's not an emergency to them.
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 3:You're just another job.
Speaker 1:When I was a kid we had got another doctor primary care physician I'll never forget. His name was John Schnick, medicare physician. I'll never forget the name was John Schnick. I love John Schnick. He was a Jewish man who really took the time to go find out what's best for me, like stuff people don't even understand. You take it for granted, like this is a nervous time for me because the weather's cold. We don't do well in cold weather. You know what I'm saying, so you know. Like you don in the morning and put my hand on the glass, you don't do that, you just go oh, it's 35 degrees out there. That's dangerous for me.
Speaker 2:That's my life man, that's what I got to do. So take us back a little bit. Let me ask you for people, even though it's so much more common than we actually think it is or know. It is because from my research, I mean just after talking to you, I said, let me go find out some more. Thank God, now there's the internet and I can get some information. I'm seeing that one in 13 people, one in 13 African-Americans or black folks right, we have the trait In this country.
Speaker 2:In this country right, and it's just in this country. And when you have the actual disease, how are you affected? What are the symptoms and what do people go through? Oh, man.
Speaker 1:What happens is man. It's like, if I want to tell you, if I describe a sickle cell crisis to you, it's like getting thrown from the 10th floor Okay, surviving that, standing up and getting hit by a truck during 35. God damn, wow, that's how I could. That's the only thing I can describe to you. That's the only way you high school, my parents let me play sports, everything. I was one of the top running backs in Texas. Right, my senior year man it's the Air Force looking at me. Texas A&M, florida State. Right, my senior year kid comes in. We get a new team doctor. He says he has sickle cell. They pulled me off the team my senior year and missed six games. He didn't even assess me, he just said he can't be doing this, even though you're already doing it.
Speaker 1:I've been doing it. Yeah, I've been playing for this school, for this division, for this district. Marco Hunt I'll never forget his name, marco Hunt, the total team doctor. He's a cross-country runner. He wasn't shit on the football field anyway, wasn't helping us, you know, yeah, yeah, sigelsell, he was my backup.
Speaker 2:You wanted that spot.
Speaker 1:And that's the moment I made sure single sale would never take another thing from me, not one.
Speaker 2:That's my next question. Yeah, what drives you?
Speaker 1:It's the thing that I have to do Start a foundation in 2015 that I funded myself. I'm getting way over. I just started getting help maybe three years ago. I'm getting way over half a million of my own money to my foundation to change people's life At this time of year. I raise money all year long to give them a Christmas before they go into the hospital. That's my foundation. That's what Junior Claus is about. I've been doing that for 10 years, man. I'm committed because I know what it's like for you not to have any hope.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:I know what that's like. I know what it's like to be in this hospital. I know them not to believe you and what's the foundation called?
Speaker 1:Cheers. Hope it's on my hat. I don't care if you give me a dollar or not. Kids are going to have a Christmas because it's a serious time for us. I've woken up in the hospital on Christmas before and your whole family in here. They can't even enjoy Christmas because you got sick. My, my grandmother looked at me, my aunts, my uncles, everybody my cousins. Man, that's not a good feeling, you know. So I said okay, god, I'm going to change this for somebody else. There's a new drug called Indarita. I tell you, doctor, you're talking to horror Invented it. It's the only FDA-approved drug for sickle cell. I don't know if you remember Pfizer just had a drug they had to take off the market because it was killing, killing us.
Speaker 2:There's no cure. There's some treatments, like bone marrow transplant, and those things are extremely painful and very risky.
Speaker 1:You know how much gene therapy is man?
Speaker 2:Sounds expensive.
Speaker 1:I'm going to tell you how much it is it's five million.
Speaker 2:So it's not a cure, is it? I know they're always serving us up.
Speaker 1:This you know bone marrow transplant. I've got to find a match, so this is the most effective, safe thing we could do. It's been darned right, Dr Nahar. Dr Nahar, I met him a few years ago. Probably the most famous person in the world was Siglasil and me and T-Bot. And Dr Nahar comes and gets me and he says man, you're such a great example.
Speaker 1:Right Gave me a contract for $2.3 million to represent his drug over three years. Wow, right To be the ambassador for this pharmaceutical company. Doing well, man Did everything. He had a vision to take this around the world, because there's more people around the world than it is here. Right, the closer you get to Africa, the more serious it gets. Yeah, it's 28 million in India alone with my disease. That's insane.
Speaker 2:We're talking about 100,000 here Wow. Yeah, I see those numbers again. They don't make sense to me.
Speaker 1:How do you think we know we all came back from Africa? How do you think we know Sickle cell?
Speaker 2:Yeah, you can trace this back.
Speaker 1:That's how I can. That's how we know that we came from Africa. It's the first recorded Disease on planet earth. It was a protection Against malaria.
Speaker 2:Well, you know, what's interesting Is the last time Again that I had a conversation with someone who had sickle cell. It used to piss me off because you know they would talk about the fact that there's no cure and the treatments are horrible, et cetera. And I would say you know what? Let one white person get diagnosed with sickle cell. I guarantee you there'll be a whole lot of research, but you're telling me they're already out there.
Speaker 1:Yeah, they're out there. You know what they don't do, man.
Speaker 2:It's a stigma attached to that it's just an afro-american disease. No, it's not. It is a world, it's a global. Well, if that's the case, then how come they're not doing? Because it's not, it's us, so we have, we are still the majority, right? No, no, no, no. What do you mean?
Speaker 1:the world, didn't? I just tell you it's 28 million in india yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:Well, are they African? They're Indians. Right Right In the UAE there are kings and princesses with the same disease. Like it's a stigma associated with like here. Well, it's just an African American disease. No, it's not.
Speaker 1:I got to start a whole podcast called Living your Life, man that was dedicated to showing sickle cell people how amazing they are and all the things that we do of how amazing they are and all the things that we do. Yeah, right. And now, man, I am a co-founder and y'all, finna, trip out, y'all, finna, really trip out. I'm a co-founder because Adopt and Hire started another company. After they pushed him out because he had a vision to take the drug around the world, started Adopt and Hire International, google. It Came to me on November 15th, right here in Atlanta. I dinner at Ray's in the city. He said, junior, I'm going to make you a lot of money. Sickle cell doctor says I'm starting this company. I said when I woke up this morning I wasn't worried about money. That's not moving me. He says I'm telling you, I need you to help me eradicate sickle cell from the planet Earth. Oh, now I'm intrigued.
Speaker 2:What a cause, right yeah, now you got me now.
Speaker 1:Now we started the company. It's ridiculous, man, bro. If we have a plant in Japan we own, it's gonna produce the new medication. The same medication I'm taking is just a different name. It's starting a new company. It's Intarper 2. Bro, it's 28 million. In India, they've already accepted our contract. The order's in it's gotta be filled by March and all we can really do is 0.01%. That's 28 million. All we can cover is 0.01%. If we hit 1%, that's 600 million. In one country. Wow, Didn't I tell you we're going to UAE and Africa in one country, bro, single sellers across this whole planet. We ain't got to the Caribbean. We ain't made it to Haiti.
Speaker 2:And speaking of that, I got to tell you, being from there and having grown up there and never heard of it, I can tell you it's just misdiagnosed. It's just. People Don't even know what they got. They probably think they're crazy, or they got something else, or I bet a Haitian's Going to kill me For saying this, someone's cursing you, someone's doing something To you or whatever it happens in Africa, yeah, they say if you have Sickle cell, it's something your family did.
Speaker 1:That's not it. You got to think this. Dr Nahar is the world's leading scientist on sickle cell disease. Right, harvard just gave him a merit award in September for all the work that he's done over 40 years. Right, I'm only 46. I was born in 1978. He started in 1992. What's the chances of us crossing paths here? Yeah, what's the chance? You know, whatever I had to do, I didn't start telling jokes until 1999. He was already working seven years ahead of me on this.
Speaker 1:I ain't have no insurance. I used to be on stage in the sickle cell crisis because I can't afford to go to the hospital.
Speaker 2:Oh, my God.
Speaker 1:Hey bro, I spent my whole life in some you working through it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you know what the crazy part about it was? I still he's still working on it. The drugs didn't get approved till 2017, from 99 to 2006. Do you know what I had to do? And yeah, I hadn't even met the man yet. Purpose what's the? What's the chances, bro? What's the chance? One in a trillion? I give them to you. Yeah, I had to actually become something first. I had to actually become famous first. While I having this, I had to talk about it. You know, I can't even get in a movie because I'm going to hold up the production because I got sickle cell. That's why they don't put us in movies.
Speaker 3:Your story was already written.
Speaker 1:But you know what I'm saying? It was nothing else I could do, Chester. It was nothing else I could do, bro.
Speaker 3:But think about this If your story was already written before you even got here, there was nothing else, bro, yeah, I'm going to build sickle cell centers.
Speaker 1:So we ain't got to be mistreated. I told him. I said, man, I don't want us to go into an emergency room, no more. Come here, where we understand you, go to these centers. Come here where we understand you. Right, we have everything in here for you, that's a beautiful cause, brother. Yeah, man, man, you're going to help a lot of people, you don't think I?
Speaker 2:know You're going to help a lot of people, I know right now.
Speaker 1:I'm going to get as many of them as I can. Yeah, do you know how many millionaires I'm going to make? Black people own the shares. It's the first global international pharmaceutical company that black people own. Wow, I'm telling you, man, I have an opportunity to change people's lives. If you go, look at my phone right now my thankfulness to God, I wrote it down. Thank you, lord, for my foundation changing lives. And look at this now. I know how blessed I am, but there's a responsibility that has to come with it. Yeah, man, I ain't asked to be rich or famous. I said I will tell jokes to change people's life because I have to laugh through this. That's how I keep from crying. I laugh at it, but you know how many times I try to? But you know how many times I try to kill myself, man? Wow, because it's a mental thing. Yeah, they tell you all these things About you when you have Sickle cell disease. Man, I ain't the only one, it's all our story.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Man, I sat there. Man, I'm so glad my dad Wasn't no good Cub scout leader, cause we never had a Not tying badge. We didn't have one On our sash. Tired of not Put the Bed Sheet Over the door, kicked the stool From under me and fell flat on my ass. I go, I took a knife. I was gonna cut my Wrist. I trip, drop the knife in the top of my foot.
Speaker 2:Oh, you must have been crying.
Speaker 1:You're going to turn something dramatic into comedy, bro. Now I'm bleeding. My mama said why is all this goddamn blood on my cap?
Speaker 3:It wasn't your time.
Speaker 2:Bigger things to do. Let me ask you something, man. You just said you're 46 yeah that's if that in itself is not the most amazing story, because you were given till about the age of 11. Yeah to live. So, from 11 through 46, every single day has been defying the odds. Yeah, every single day has been you conquering something that most people could not even fathom.
Speaker 1:No man. Some people have lost their fight.
Speaker 2:Yeah. So why gave you the mental strength to endure? And because I believe you know I don't. I don't, you know your story, I don't You're sharing with us, but why gave you that strength to get you through the next phase and the next day.
Speaker 1:I'm still coming up the road battling everything. He's not. He's already been protecting me. He said you know no weapon for him that gives me shell problems. He didn't say the weapons, wasn't going for him. I'm battling, but he's already up the road talking to Dr Nahar and getting myself together and everything else as I'm battling.
Speaker 2:All you had to do was just keep going, just keep going. I don't even know. Yes.
Speaker 1:I've had some people come in for maybe just a season or two of my life, right yeah. But they gave me everything that I needed to keep the mission going, I can.
Speaker 1:Theodore Skinner. Harold Gentry, evan Gentry. I have these people, my father. He wasn't the best father. Harold Gentry, evan Gentry. I have these people, my father. He wasn't the best father in the world, but I know what he did, man. He went to work every day, didn't care what it was. I saw him, my grandmother Praying without ceasing, my mom Telling me I don't care what they say, tell you what. Give number 11. You know what? My football number. I made it in my number.
Speaker 3:You blowing his mind away. You blowing his mind away.
Speaker 2:Chester can go on back to wait a minute. Talk to us, Chester.
Speaker 1:My basketball number any number I wore was 11. That's all it gave me.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And what forges you ahead is because for us there is no quit. I have to. I don't worry about things that other people worry about. I don't worry about things that other people worry about. I don't care if they cut my lights off.
Speaker 3:They ain't cut my life off.
Speaker 1:Cause. Y'all understand, Getting up and forging a way forward Is not even an option. It is a must. And I understand with sickle cell people that have died and lost their fight Right. And I understand, man, I buried ten of them already from ages 13 up to 34. Because the average household sickle cell people average income in those houses 50,000.
Speaker 2:Right. So you don't really have Mains yeah, not for five million, or even just like some other things that you might need. Let's say you can't get treatment right, but there could be some other things, whether it's proper nutrition, the proper environment, not living in a cold, you know place. Because if you're from Chicago and you're, I don't know how they do it. You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1:I don't know how they do it, maybe your parents.
Speaker 2:They can't pick up and just move to Florida.
Speaker 1:I don't know how they do it, I promise you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, up north.
Speaker 1:Them some soldiers right there, bro. Yeah, I'm telling you another thing, man. It's so crazy, because think about all those things, right, we're just talking about if you have one, one kid, what do the families do if they got two? And you know you're talking about the children, right, they want to have kids because of this. Right, that's a real thing. Do you know what this medication is going to do? Allow sick medication gonna do, allow sickle cell families to have children what I just tell you the very beginning of the show yes, one lady.
Speaker 2:She doesn't have the disease. She has a trade. Yes, and her husband also has a trade yes and he's like I'm so in love, I just want us to have a kid together. She's like we can't. We can't because if this happens, we're gonna bring a child into this world who's gonna suffer, yeah, and possibly live to be in his teens. If that, then why would we?
Speaker 1:do this. So guess what I'm thinking? I didn't want kids because I cannot be a father right and me and my child in the hospital together.
Speaker 2:Yeah, or watch him suffer.
Speaker 1:Can't, but now that's going to be a thing of the past. That's something I'm bringing to the singlele cell community that you can have children and not worry about how long they're gonna live, because the goal is to get the life expectancy to 70. That's what I'm working on. Care what number they tell you. You're gonna make it to 70, bro, since you're gonna make it to 70.
Speaker 2:I'm working on it where do you think that stigma comes from? Because, like, like uh stefan was saying and and I was ignorant as well you hear a sickle say oh, black people disease.
Speaker 1:My neighbor Luis. His wife got dethroned. It's both his kids. They're Puerto Rican. Change your own mindset. It's not just black. It is start thinking. Quit thinking about the United States. We're not the entire world. The world is way bigger than us. I've been around the world three times. I've been around the world three times. I've seen it. I've been to Japan, korea. I've been to Istanbul. I've been to Bahrain. I've been to Amsterdam. I've been around the world. I've been all over the Caribbean. I've been all over through Mexico. I've been everywhere. I've been to every country. I've been to Okinawa. I've been to the Philippines. I've been to Thailand Three times. By the time I was 25, I've been to the Philippines. I've been to Thailand three times by the time I was 25. I've seen it. We're not the only people in the world. Americans don't have it right. All the time.
Speaker 2:That's what keeps blowing my mind because, again, if it's a global thing and other people have it, I guess I'm still.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but it's like this why don't we know? Why do we not know? Because all we have is american media. Yeah, that's true we're not talking about. You know, africa ain't no small village in sweden, but where you think the haitians come from. Let me tell you something, stefan I I told you I love your property, sir thank you, brother, okay, I'll tell you why, though? Because you got your whole family here, right, yeah? And then think about this man. Do you think black people even know this was even possible to do? What?
Speaker 2:take your whole family live on the land with them you know what I'm saying?
Speaker 1:like, yeah, that opened my eyes. I should did this first man. Do you know how strong like I remember Chester said this earlier he's like? If something happened to you, how many people are affected? Everybody See. Let me tell you something about my life too. Ain't nobody been this far, nobody's been this far, and I did it with sickle cell man. Ain't nobody been this far. My father didn't make the type of money I'm making. You can take my. I ain't going to lie to you. You can take my mother, my father and my grandmother and my aunts and two of my uncles put them together and they still 250,000 short.
Speaker 1:Ain't nobody been this far? Ain't no rules for this Been paying people's bills? My father had to save his whole life. How could I not do that? That's what sickle cell teaches you Test no fortitude, how to fight, how to fight. Be careful, understand that there's something different about me, because I don't look at problems the same way y'all do. I know the people look at a problem and say, man, I can't do nothing about that. Yes, you can. Let me show you Move Got the way.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I got it, I'll show you, he's actually doing it.
Speaker 1:Hell yeah, I'm doing it.
Speaker 2:Can I ask you a question? I don't want it to sound morbid, but no, the reason you're wired the way you are in terms of get out of the way. Let me solve the problem.
Speaker 1:Because, no you know no obstacle. You know why I do it. I should really consider this. Do you know how long ago I had to make peace with death?
Speaker 2:That's where I was going.
Speaker 1:Do you know how long?
Speaker 3:ago that was. So you can't be scared to live.
Speaker 1:I cannot be scared to die. I told God I will do whatever. I already told you. I tried to kill myself twice. They already told me I was going to die at 11. I told God whenever you come, get me, let me You're on my part that I've changed this for somebody else. Let me tell you one thing about people with sickle cell. They like making babies too, because we keep showing up. It's not going to stop. Somebody has to give them a blueprint on how to live.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:When you play my life back, forget all the comedy shows and the tickets I sold and everything. Watch how he lived. Fun is always something I want to do. I've had enough bad days. I've taken enough people down. I got five best friends that hold me up and nothing like we in college. We packed in a car.
Speaker 1:Gotta take me an hour and a half From Prairie View back to Houston To go to the hospital. Packed in here, they crying, they think I'm going to die the next day. Man, if y'all don't, let me Just get me there. I'm telling y'all man, oh, my god, man, my boy, man, he missed him. Hey, man, just give me that. I know what to do. I know I advocate for myself Because they not gonna do it. Y'all just have to go to the hospital. Y'all just have to have an advocate. Yeah, sometimes it's gonna have to just be you. I'm still here arguing with doctors. I'm telling you what my problem is. Ain't nobody an expert On sickle cell In here but me? Ain't nobody An expert, chess, I don't care how many years you went to medical school, you ain't dealing With this shit.
Speaker 2:That's not exactly how you gonna.
Speaker 1:I don't care how many degrees PhD, mdf, ddf, I don't care it's experience Every doctor is what A specialist right.
Speaker 2:In their field. So unless you're talking To someone like your business partner who specializes in sickle cell, he specializes in it and he tells you right there.
Speaker 1:He says, okay, I'm still not the expert. Yeah, I'm sitting on the board of directors. Do you know? I'm the first sickle cell patient to sit on the board of directors. Do you know what my other job is? Dunhar asked me on November 15th to come write the protocol how sickle cell patients are being treated around the world. Amen, patients being treated around the world. Amen, brother, wow, wow. Every emergency room around the world. Hey, man, I've been fighting a long time. Doctor says man, I'm gonna publish it. It will be the mandate. Because every board of directors never had a sickle cell patient on it. Because they don't know how to treat you, because they never heard you.
Speaker 2:Wow, changes, everything changes.
Speaker 1:Wow, changes everything, changes everything, changes everything, everything.
Speaker 2:You know, I was going to say Every person. Sometimes they take their time to get there or walk away from obstacles, and it has a lot to do with the fact that they think they have time. None of us do right, single cell or not. I don't know if I'm going to make it till tonight I have no idea but I think one of the things that I admire about you is from day one to me. If I, if I were to tell the story, I would say once you made it past 11 years in one day, you knew that you should have seen me at 15, it was you had a clock ticking to everything right.
Speaker 2:So there's a clock, yeah, and it allows you to not be complacent no so why would you say then to someone who's that young, so someone between 11 and 13 years old, who has this message, who's heard this and are dealing with this, how would you help them? What's the message directly? If you're talking directly to that kid at 11 years old, what are you saying to them right now? Don't be scared to fail.
Speaker 1:Do everything. Don't listen to nobody, but do everything. I Don't listen to nobody, but do everything. I'm telling you because they're going to take your dreams. See, they took my dreams at seven then gave me FOMO years. Do you understand? They're going to do that to you. You ask anybody with sickle cell disease how long they give you. Everybody got a number like we milk or something like we're going to expire. Everybody got a number Nine, 12, 16. When I got to 12 man, I said wait a minute, I ain't supposed to be here. Wait a minute, hold on Something going on. When I got to 21, didn't he say 11?
Speaker 3:I guarantee you, every year After 11, you got more powerful, more stronger, more confident, more bold. Hey bro.
Speaker 1:I had to do everything, man. I had to be the funniest With Civil Cell man. I had to go up, man. I had to be the funniest with Sigelsell man. I had to go up there, dog, and be me. Because you know why I'm good at comedy? Because I've laughed my whole ass off my whole life.
Speaker 1:Ain't nothing serious to me. I've been doing it. There's nothing to fear, man. I ain't got no fear. I took some L's fighting and shit. Yeah, but boy was I scrapping, because that's all I know. So for those people who are sick of sale, who cannot fight, that's why I step in All y'all get on my back. I'm going to take us there. I go to graduations. When they graduate, I donate to their colleges, I give them scholarships, anything to make them feel they got everything they need. I came out of South Park, houston, texas, right. Shout out to Hood, catherine Pass and Chanel 5522. That's where I grew up at. This little boy is not supposed to be a co-founder of a single-cell company. You know how many people that died with single-cell who I thought they could have been worthy of this than me? That ain't how God saw it.
Speaker 2:That's how God saw it. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:That's not how he saw it, because he knows if I'm going to get in a position. He knows what I'm going to do. It's all about the mission I ain't through yet. That's why I know I can't go nowhere yet. I got to get the company up and going. I got to get it to the world. We got world. We got work to do too. Me and you, we definitely got work to do. Yeah, we're gonna work together, man. Do you know? I'm employing black people.
Speaker 2:I'm giving people jobs, bro, hey, man let me ask you a question, um chester have you ever worked with you being a nutritionist? Um wellness expert, have you ever worked with a sickle cell patient or someone like she's. I'm sure you have right, but did they tell you?
Speaker 3:well, a lot of times they ain't gonna tell you right, even sometimes they won't even tell you they get seizures. To be honest with you, I've had clients who I've been training and had seizures. But being that, I know because I come from that background as a firefighter, I know exactly what to do. But when you not, when you don't know, it's just kind of like you just do the best that you can and just inform them on what the importance is of having a healthy, balanced diet, making sure you're drinking enough water, making sure you're getting enough rest, because ultimately and I'm not saying it's a cure for anything, but I feel like the more healthier you are, the more health conscious you are, you can minimize on some of the episodes.
Speaker 1:It is important. Fitness has a lot to do with it. Fried food not good for me.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:You know, like you know, everything I mostly eat is grilled. They were a lot of chicken fish, not so much steak.
Speaker 2:Can't weigh this body down.
Speaker 1:Like you have to think about your diet. You got to think about a lot of different things and, like I said, the number one thing about it is I can't. That's why I'm so glad you had the water right there, because I can't have cold water really.
Speaker 3:Room temperature, room temp, love it. Be honest with you, though, and this is what I tell a lot of my clients, though the best way to consume water is at room temperature, you have to remember anything cold bloats the stomach. If it's cold when you consume it, your stomach going to get bloated no matter what. So if a woman got on a tight fit and dress, she try to have that alcoholic beverage immediately right after she have it. You're going to see a little pudge.
Speaker 1:Tight fit and dress Wallace?
Speaker 3:Yeah, for sure, but yeah, it's easier to consume at room temperature and you're going to actually consume more of it, like when you're thirsty and you have a room temperature water like that, more than likely you're going to knock half of it down. You got to consider any time I consume something cold, what is it going to do to my body? It's going to throw it in the shop, right, because my body is warm. It doesn't want to consume anything necessarily cold.
Speaker 2:You see what I'm saying. Yeah, junior, I got a question for you. Yeah, bro, a couple more before we wrap up. Um, talk to us about future plans. We know about the global pharmaceutical company and that's world changing. That's just gonna that. That's fantastic, right? Not enough words for this. What's the plans for Kier's Hope here in the US?
Speaker 1:My goal is, man, to get legislation passed to make it a crime to neglect a sickle cell patient in an emergency room. I'm really working on that. Yeah, that's important because the faster they get the treatment and the medication, the least amount of time the crisis is.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:You know, if you neglect us to a certain degree, it's hard to get the crisis to end.
Speaker 2:I mean, six hours in the emergency room is insane, bro.
Speaker 1:I've been out there man four hours and I've been in the back, I've been in the back, I've been in the back man. I can hear doctors and nurses At the nursing station Laughing and playing Dog.
Speaker 3:I'll tell you, man, listen, I was a firefighter who dropped patients off, and when you dropping them off At Grady Memorial, sometimes it's like you just see so many people Gunshot wounds, yeah, hair wraps, just Just lay in there Amen. And exactly what you're saying People might be walking, talking, laughing, amen.
Speaker 1:I was sitting there, man. I think they just checked my vitals At Grady One time. Grady has a great Sickle cell center too. You know it's 24 hours, but I didn't know nothing about that when I got here. I had Ladies say or two, it's 24 hours. I didn't know nothing about that when I got here.
Speaker 2:Like I said, we'll get to you Because your vitals are fine, so forget it no no, we'll get to you.
Speaker 1:There were so many people in the emergency room.
Speaker 1:I started walking towards the exit, my friends would drop me off and talk about hey man, where you going To another emergency room? Because if I stay here I'll die. All in here is about what do you know about yourself? I told you I'm the expert. I told you I need to go. I got to go find another emergency room. This one ain't going to get it to us. By the time they get to me I would have died in the emergency room, and that has happened. I don't know if y'all saw the video of the young lady who pleaded with the people man, please treat me. They kicked her out the emergency room sickle cell patient and an hour later she died.
Speaker 2:Wow.
Speaker 1:You can go look at the video. I can't watch it like that Because the nurse, the white nurse, said she's faking it, she's a drug seeker. That's what they call us Because we have to take opioids, strong morphine, dilaudid.
Speaker 2:Gotcha.
Speaker 1:You know, and we want too much of it. We got to be a drug seeker, so we got to be faking it. Well, the pain you described earlier. What else can subside that kind of pain? You got to knock me out.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:My whole body. Whatever the blood flow stops, right, because we have sickle cells we have. Then we have whole blood cells, like y'all, right. But when those sickle cells Stick in these veins and start a blockage A party, that's what I call it you just block blood flow. That's where the pain starts. Do you know I could have a. Do you know I could die. I could stroke out and die if I have a single cell crisis in the brain or in the heart that makes sense when you think about when are you?
Speaker 2:wherever blood flows, bro right wherever blood flows.
Speaker 1:That's how we lose some of them, because he's sitting there and when that, when that, when that blood flow stops, everything down right. My hips are deteriorating. One of them had to have a hip replacement. These are things Because of the organ damage that it does.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And sometimes you have to understand that, man, even though I know my body is breaking down, I'm still pushing forward.
Speaker 3:You must, you have a mission.
Speaker 1:I still got up this morning to make it over here. Sometimes I don't sleep. Sometimes I sit up and just Just sit there, man, because I may be in pain. Everything ain't gotta be Something you go to the hospital with. Sometimes the pain crisis Is just dealing. May not be a 10. I may be messing around With a 6. And you're used to it, used to it You're like I'll deal with this.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I ain't going down there for this. I don't want to be. That's what's wrong with us. That's why you don't hear a lot of us coming out. Like he said, they ain't going to tell you why would I go down there to be mistreated? I'd rather just sit here, suffer through it. Hope it won't last but two days. Now, if it's a seven, an eight, a nine or a ten, I got to go, yeah, but I know.
Speaker 1:But it's not like all the crises are something you have to go to the emergency room for. That's why we're so strong. A lot of them just sit there, man, and they'll just suffer through it. We'll watch a football game. You'll never know that you're in pain the whole time. You'll never know. Don't nobody know, because I don't look like it. Do Don't look like it. Do you know how my pain threshold Is so high Cause you been living With it, your whole life, whole life man.
Speaker 3:Man, I know exactly what you mean. When you been living With something your whole life, you just kinda know how to deal with it.
Speaker 1:Is it?
Speaker 2:You talking about Pain threshold man. I be watching movies With my wife and we talk about this All the time. I could not be A secret agent, cause you take out them, pliers.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I'm going to tell you everything you need to know, my pay threshold is very very low.
Speaker 3:You know that's her job. She says don't go into, yeah, I'm going in like ah nah nah, I'll be fine.
Speaker 2:Yeah, no, it's like this?
Speaker 1:Did you just snatch my toenail off. Okay, good, take the other one. What?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I can't.
Speaker 1:Junior has all the nuclear codes.
Speaker 3:Yeah man.
Speaker 1:You know, man, it's something that we have to keep doing, though.
Speaker 2:And one last question man People in their careers? You mentioned earlier that there are a lot of people who are entertainers, or want to go into it and they won't put them in movies because again you'll hold a production and things like that. Yeah, man so what advice do you have for people who are dealing with that right now Maybe not letting folks know, or I think that's what it is, man you, you can't have a concentration of African American people and single sales not there. Yeah, it's one in 13.
Speaker 1:And it's even lower than that. It's just that's all we can, so we record it. So all the people in Hollywood you think single sale in Hollywood, you think single-cell ain't in Hollywood, you think that's not happening, don't say nothing, because I got to get this movie role Sitcom, whatever it is. I didn't know it was something to be ashamed about. I didn't know. My parents never made me feel like I had to be ashamed.
Speaker 2:Well, I don't know that it's shame. It's not that. It's just that you know that you have this challenge, for lack of a better word. Other people, for instance, that would look at it and go yeah, it's not a stigma on you in a bad way, where it's something that's shameful. But at the same token, I got this production. I've got schedules. I need to hit this. I only have this guest star here for one day. If he holds a production, it's over. I don't need any of that, so I'm not going to Hire this person.
Speaker 1:Think about this, then you don't think Sickle cell disease Is in the NFL. No, you don't think it's in the NBA.
Speaker 2:It has to be just for the numbers alone. Don't talk about it, right, right.
Speaker 1:I don't know why we're putting these pink cleats on. Oh.
Speaker 3:I see.
Speaker 1:Y'all better put these red ones on. Probably 12 of y'all on the team got the disease. Ain't telling nobody why you think these athletes be dropping dead Traits. That's how Trait.
Speaker 2:Why would you say then that we need to do Get tested, okay, and how about bringing awareness? Because, that's what breast cancer has done. Right, it needed to be something that people are aware of, so that they would receive better treatment or at least be mindful of what's going on with their bodies. So how do we raise awareness In the community so that you know we don't have two people, for example, with the trait?
Speaker 1:Not know they have it and go have a kid that goes through that. That's why we get tested. That's important. Y'all have no idea, it's not. It's not the fact that I had sickle cell disease, it's not that. What scared my parents was they didn't know what to do. Yeah, that's why we get tested.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Once you get tested, say, okay, you have trait. What does that mean? Okay, well, let me tell you, you got to be specific about your partner now. Are you really going to have to look at kids Because what you didn't want to do, what I didn't want to do and nobody wanted to do, was drop this?
Speaker 1:bomb on my the boy. He got 11. That's in four years, my son. Now they panicking. Now we're not living, we're living cautiously. Then my mom says you know what, let him go. He playing little league football, he play basketball, he do what he want to go do. Dad said well, he could die. Mom said, at least he died doing something he liked.
Speaker 2:True, you got to love it. For that I do. That's a beautiful thing.
Speaker 1:That's the, that was the spark that enabled everything.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's a beautiful thing, that's all you need. Your mother love, that motherly love man you could've withered away In a bedroom man Just sitting there Just being.
Speaker 1:Looking out the window, bubble boy, yeah, bubble boy, you know man no, and that would've killed you, that would have, that would've killed.
Speaker 2:And now you're here, 30 some years later, and you are. You know, you're the champion For two great causes Not just the foundation, but the thing that you're doing, bro the state of Texas.
Speaker 1:Man House Resolution 187. Every June. Every June Is Cures Hope Sickle Cell Awareness Month In the state of Texas. That's what's up.
Speaker 1:They gave me a proclamation man Two of them. Isn't that like when your home state Do something for you, man? Texas, that's what's up. They gave me a proclamation man Two of them. It's nothing like when your home state do something for you, man? Hey man. Now in January I'm going to talk on the Texas State Senate floor about this very thing, about the legislation I need y'all to pass. Hey man, it is. I told you, man, I couldn't mess it up. Do you understand when I say I can't mess it up? If you try, if I try, completion, yeah, they keep coming man, they keep coming man.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and once Texas goes, you know others will follow.
Speaker 1:Yes, there you go. Yeah, there you go, stefan.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's what's up. Yeah, man, I need them to do it. Yeah, he's a man, kia junior spates. Where can they find you, brother, if we want to follow your journey, where can people go and find you?
Speaker 1:oh man, you know kia's hopeorg. That's the foundation. But you want to follow me on social media? Just go to anything on any platform.
Speaker 2:Junior shms, that's it on everything I'll make sure all that stuff is in the show notes. So people know exactly where to find you. Can people donate to the foundation as well?
Speaker 1:Yeah, you can go to cureshopeorg and you can donate. Yeah, it's a donate button right on the front page. Boom, that's all you got to have man.
Speaker 2:Well, junior.
Speaker 3:Jabari.
Speaker 1:Pride.
Speaker 2:Chester. Lacey I appreciate you guys, man, for being here. This was an amazing conversation. So many people need to know about this. So many people need to understand what's going on with the community. Be tested, finding out and just really just empowering people with this condition Because to me what a story you know this would make it's too good not to be in a movie not to be written.
Speaker 1:I'm sure that's coming too. It's on Netflix, man, they have a show about single sales. It's called Super Sale. Y'all seen it?
Speaker 3:I started watching it. Is that what that?
Speaker 2:is.
Speaker 1:It's about single-cell, yes.
Speaker 2:Ah, Interesting, Now I have to finish it. Yeah, man, Now I have to finish it. Now I'm going to check that out. Yeah, super, like S-U-P-A right gave sickle cell, like kids with sickle cell powers. Man, it's crazy, bro. Yeah.
Speaker 1:That's what the link was.
Speaker 2:You just ruined it.
Speaker 1:No, no, no, I only made it for like three episodes, I'm not even saying that's what it's about.
Speaker 2:It's like the sixth sense. You already seen the powers. He was dead.
Speaker 1:the whole time.
Speaker 2:You seen the powers, the first episode.
Speaker 1:Thanks.
Speaker 2:Junior.
Speaker 1:You just messed it up man. You're welcome.
Speaker 2:All right, man hey man, I appreciate you guys for being here once again, I appreciate you guys listening. Thank you so much. Tune in next time.
Speaker 1:Manhood matters baby, let's get it. Thank you man. You're the man, bro, you're fine man. I appreciate you, man. I know this for a reason Thank, thank you, brother.
