Latest / The Steve Harvey Morning Show / Rushion interviews NFL Star Player turn actor, Thomas Q Jones, about Bounce TV series "Johnson," longevity as an actor and athlete!

Transcript

Rushion interviews NFL Star Player turn actor, Thomas Q Jones, about Bounce TV series "Johnson," longevity as an actor and athlete! · The Steve Harvey Morning Show

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: My guest is Thomas Q. Jones. He's an actor, producer, showrunner.
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: He's an executive producer, show running star on The Bounds
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: TV comedy I like to call it a drama. Y Johnson,
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: he plays the role of Omar on the show Well.
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: Best known as a leading running back who played twelve
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: season in the NFL, his focus is turned to acting
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: and technology. We talked to Thomas about his path and
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: career trajectory. What made him decide to transition to Hollywood
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: doing acting and producing after his NFL career. What has
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: been some important tools that helped him and finding success
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: in the entertainment industry. If you know if face looked
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: Saverior for sounds familiar, Luke Cage, one of my favorite
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: show tales, p Valley, one of my favorite shows. Being
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: Married to Mary, Being Being Mary, Jane, and many many Moore.
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: Please welcome to Money Making Conversations Masterclass. Thomas Q. Jones.
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: How you doing, sir? Hey, thank you, I'm doing great.
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: Thank you so much for having me on. I truly
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: appreciate a big family show as well. Well. I appreciate
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: that compliment because I we got the interview book this week. Thomas. Okay,
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: so I don't do an interview unless I read the book,
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: see the movie, see the show. So they sent me
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: fourteen episodes, and I'm gonna tell you how I usually
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: sometimes I cheat. They sent me that many episode. I
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: watched the first two, watched the last two. I got
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: it right. That's how sometimes I do. I watched yesterday,
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: I got it started five thirty. I watched twelve episodes
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: last night. Wrapped up about eleven o'clock. Okay, I got
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: woke up at fourth thirty. I get up at fourth
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: third every day. Got to the officer out about seven,
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: wrapped up the last two episodes. That's how engaging. That's
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: how good this series was. It. It would not allow
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: me to cheat, because if I had a cheat out,
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: have missed the character development. If I achieved out of
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: missed the character moment. If I to cheat, out of
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: the disservice to the quality of this great series. Tell
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: me how I got started, Thomas, and tell me why
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: you involved in Well what that means everything to to
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: have that type of feedback from something that you produced
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: and acted in and given a lot of your heart.
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: Uh and so too, so thank you so much for
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: the comwords and I'm so grateful and appreciative to that
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: you enjoyed the show. Um. The show was created by
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: my producer part of das Lay and actually two thousands
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: of fourteen and I bumped in and daj in two seventeen.
• 2:30
  Speaker 1: And I had originally heard about Johnson through a mutual
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: friend three years earlier, and I didn't know that it
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: was his show. And when we met, we just clicked immediately.
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: I loved his insight just on Hollywood, on being a creator.
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: I was just engulfed with the idea around Johnson, being
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: that it was a positive UH series and with a
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: positive narrative around black men and UH. And I felt
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: that not only was it something that was needed for
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: the industry, but I felt like it was something that
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: I needed to be a part of and had to
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: be a part of. And so we UH. We created
• 3:10
  Speaker 1: our production company and Night Training Productions, and we filled
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: the pilot episode of Johnson just on our own with
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: our own money, our own friends, our own relationships, and
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: we set out on a journey to shop this thing
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: in seventeen and we were fortunate enough to have senter
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: the Entertainer and Eric wrote his partner at a burning
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: a Bear see the project and they loved it immediately.
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: They brought us in for a meeting. We sat down,
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: told him what our vision was for the show. They
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: appreciated it being that they were two black men that
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: have been in Hollywood for thirty plus years and they've
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: had a very similar relationship to the date the relationship
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: Day and I have and they were on board. So
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: we signed the shopping agreement and we went to a
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: few different places in Hollywood. Everyone loved the idea. They
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: loved the pilot episode that we had filmed, but they
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: were a little bit, you know, nervous to pull the
• 4:04
  Speaker 1: trigger because they weren't sure if a black mail PLV show,
• 4:08
  Speaker 1: UH number one would be interesting to audiences and number
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: two would actually uh pull in the ratings that they
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: were used to from some of these other narratives that
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: they typically push. So we ended up at Bounced TV
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: and David Hudson at Bounce, who's uh the head of
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: original programming over there, loved the idea, loved the concept,
• 4:32
  Speaker 1: thought it was fresh, thought it was new, and thought
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: would be a great show for Bounce. And now here
• 4:36
  Speaker 1: we are the season two. Johnson, Uh, with feedback that
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: you've given us on that show. So it's been an
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: incredible journey. It's been a lot of fun, it's been
• 4:44
  Speaker 1: intriguing best some incredible people, and I'm just looking to
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: keep the journey going. Talking to Thomas Q. Jones from
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: NFL running back of twelve years now, he's gonna be
• 4:54
  Speaker 1: acting forever this show. This guy, Now, how did you
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: get the acting bo okay? Because you know, if I
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: remember correctly, because I was, if I've been a fan
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: of yours, I remember you was at the University of Virginia, right,
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: that's what used to college ball. Right, he became out
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: with your second round draft pick. But was I was,
• 5:11
  Speaker 1: I was the seventh overall pictures, that's right, seventhorall picks.
• 5:15
  Speaker 1: I apologize. And then you went you went to the Cardinals, right,
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: it was clowning. And then uh, because like I said,
• 5:23
  Speaker 1: it's something about you know, athletes, and and I was
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: an a c C fan. I lived in Texas. I was,
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: I was that that's amazing. I knew you and knew
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: your talents and followed you. And I was born and
• 5:34
  Speaker 1: raised in Houston, Texas. And then fast forward, I'm interviewing
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: you on my show about your TV show and I'm
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: recalling information that I haven't had had a need to
• 5:44
  Speaker 1: call up ever. I was just a fan of yours
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: just because I just knew you was a bestial talent.
• 5:48
  Speaker 1: I saw some of your interviews, and you didn't talk
• 5:51
  Speaker 1: like an athlete and other one that's nothing negative, but
• 5:54
  Speaker 1: you always talked like a person that had had a life.
• 5:57
  Speaker 1: This is something you were just doing because God gave
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: you that talent. This is what didn't define you. Your
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: athleticism didn't define you. I think that's what stood out
• 6:04
  Speaker 1: for me. Thomas, Am I correct, You're you're You're absolutely correct.
• 6:08
  Speaker 1: I was fortunate to have an incredible mother and father.
• 6:13
  Speaker 1: Um As I grew up that that UH told me
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: that being an athlete is secondary to being uh number
• 6:22
  Speaker 1: one a good person and also an intelligent person. UH,
• 6:28
  Speaker 1: because that's one thing people can never take away from us,
• 6:30
  Speaker 1: your intelligence when injury takes your bathlete career way and
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: so so much so that in high school I had
• 6:39
  Speaker 1: a really really um really really good high school career
• 6:43
  Speaker 1: and I rushed for a lot of yards and my father, UM,
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: he understood it. On Saturday mornings after I fighting my
• 6:50
  Speaker 1: game that I wanted grab the newspaper and immediately reading
• 6:54
  Speaker 1: sports sports section to my stads see what other running
• 6:58
  Speaker 1: backs had some of stats. That's position a cree running back.
• 7:02
  Speaker 1: So he would take the sports section out of the
• 7:04
  Speaker 1: newspaper and I would have to read the French front
• 7:07
  Speaker 1: page of the paper first before he would give me
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: the sports page, and so psychologically what that game was.
• 7:15
  Speaker 1: It made me realize that yes, sports are cool, they're fun. Uh.
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: It's a former recreation and even in my case it
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: was an opportunity for me to get a scholarship UH
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: to university and get a degree, but his field was
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: second in regards to the understanding what's going on in
• 7:31
  Speaker 1: the world, being an intelligent person and a citizen that
• 7:36
  Speaker 1: can contribute to society, and that never left from the
• 7:40
  Speaker 1: time I was thirteen years old, so now at three um,
• 7:45
  Speaker 1: that ideal never left and I think that's been a
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: huge catalyst while continued to be successful in other industries
• 7:52
  Speaker 1: outside of the sports. We'll be right back with more
• 7:54
  Speaker 1: Money Making Conversations Masterclass with Rushan McDonald. Now let's return
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: to Money Making Conversations Masterclass with Rashan McDonald. I'm speaking
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: to Thomas ke Jones used to show runner actor UH
• 8:11
  Speaker 1: when I wanna call it hit serious. Okay, it's a
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: hit serious to me called Bounces under its own Bounce
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: network is called Johnson and Johnson is about four four brothers.
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: You know, I say brothers because of them being brothers,
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: but they're not related. They just have the last name
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: of Johnson. They met in school and and was was
• 8:31
  Speaker 1: lined up as Johnson. They they befriended themselves, as it
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: is announced in the second episode. And then the thing
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: about it is that each one of the characters are different.
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: That's what he's talking about seeing Hollywood has a way
• 8:42
  Speaker 1: of saying what people want to see because it's never
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: been done before. And what they're doing on TV. This
• 8:48
  Speaker 1: drama t and that's what it is. A drama is
• 8:51
  Speaker 1: like a drama slash comedy. You know, they have funny moments,
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: but the storytelling and the lessons you learned the takeaway
• 8:59
  Speaker 1: makes it the drama on you. That's what makes this
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: series so special is that I would tell people, you know,
• 9:04
  Speaker 1: as a stand up, and it's funny that you know,
• 9:06
  Speaker 1: one of the stars of the show is Dio Hughley,
• 9:09
  Speaker 1: who is one of the all time great stand ups.
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: And then you have one of the backers of the
• 9:14
  Speaker 1: show is a stand up center the entertain the one
• 9:16
  Speaker 1: of the all time great stand ups. And then you
• 9:19
  Speaker 1: also have one of the co stars of the show Earthquake,
• 9:22
  Speaker 1: one of the all time great stand ups in the
• 9:24
  Speaker 1: show as well. So you have these incredible stand up components,
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: are comedy components around it, and then as actors they
• 9:32
  Speaker 1: are funny. But your character, Omar, you know, let me
• 9:36
  Speaker 1: just tell you a little bit. We're gonna talk about over.
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: It's a little bit show wist, you know, because you
• 9:41
  Speaker 1: got those old values. You don't think a woman should
• 9:44
  Speaker 1: be like this. And so when you when when you
• 9:47
  Speaker 1: have to play your character, did you did you? Did you? Did?
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: Some people say, man, you're not gonna be like that
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: or you are? You said, hey, man, just the characters,
• 9:55
  Speaker 1: the role I'm playing. I don't believe in none of
• 9:57
  Speaker 1: these values. Because you know your fans hitting you up.
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: I know they are talk about it right right listen.
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: I love this show. And first of all, just to
• 10:06
  Speaker 1: talk to the point of have an Earthquake, DL and
• 10:10
  Speaker 1: Ced drink on the show. That was very important to
• 10:12
  Speaker 1: day G and I because we're standing on their Showlder
• 10:14
  Speaker 1: stay paid the way for us and even have a
• 10:16
  Speaker 1: show right, and and we appreciate the work that they
• 10:20
  Speaker 1: put in, the struggles and obstacles that they had to
• 10:23
  Speaker 1: overcome to being a position that they are, and we
• 10:26
  Speaker 1: wanted to showcase them and also create characters that our
• 10:31
  Speaker 1: characters could learn from, because it's important to showcase what
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: you want to see in real life and a real time.
• 10:37
  Speaker 1: And I know I had my father in my life
• 10:40
  Speaker 1: and other black men that had experienced life before me
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: that I learned from, whether it be NFL coaches, college coaches,
• 10:47
  Speaker 1: these are men that molded me and to who I am,
• 10:51
  Speaker 1: and they deserve the utmost respective flowers because I wouldn't
• 10:53
  Speaker 1: be a man that I am to stay it wasn't them,
• 10:56
  Speaker 1: And we wanted to show love and appreciate you to
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: deal he too Earthquake to Riveney Perry to seduct the entertainer.
• 11:04
  Speaker 1: Even Eric Rohme, who's not an actor, but he's sent
• 11:07
  Speaker 1: to his partner and they've navigated the path that de
• 11:11
  Speaker 1: g and I as producers young just trying to navigate through.
• 11:15
  Speaker 1: And I think he's important to pass the torch and
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: it's sporting for us to show that we respect you
• 11:19
  Speaker 1: and the journey we appreciate you and love you. We're
• 11:22
  Speaker 1: giving you your flowers, and we appreciate advice to you
• 11:24
  Speaker 1: give us. So that was a huge part of our show,
• 11:28
  Speaker 1: is giving those legends their flowers. And then in regards
• 11:34
  Speaker 1: to my character, Omar, Omar is a he's he's going
• 11:39
  Speaker 1: through a custody battle and marital problems with his wife Naomi,
• 11:44
  Speaker 1: and it's a complex situation. I don't want to give
• 11:49
  Speaker 1: too much away because you have to watch season one. Absolutely,
• 11:53
  Speaker 1: you have to watch. You gotta watch it. Yeah, you
• 11:55
  Speaker 1: have to your extreme season one of Johnson on this
• 11:59
  Speaker 1: at brown Sugar, you can download the app. You can
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: stream all the episodes from season one, which your ten
• 12:05
  Speaker 1: thirty minute episodes, and then also season two you haven't
• 12:08
  Speaker 1: been able to catch up with on the show about CV,
• 12:11
  Speaker 1: you can download the brown Sugar app and you can
• 12:12
  Speaker 1: get caught up all the way up to episode three. Sunday.
• 12:18
  Speaker 1: Episode four airs. This four airs this Sunday, So yeah,
• 12:23
  Speaker 1: so four will be available on Monday, but you want
• 12:26
  Speaker 1: to download the app whenever you see this, you'll definitely
• 12:29
  Speaker 1: be able to get caught up to three episode three
• 12:31
  Speaker 1: per season two. But this character, it is very flawed,
• 12:36
  Speaker 1: just like everyone else is, and and he's confused about
• 12:43
  Speaker 1: his relationship with his wife. He's he's trying to figure
• 12:46
  Speaker 1: it out. He's trying to give her her space, and
• 12:48
  Speaker 1: she needs to figure it out. But he's also a
• 12:50
  Speaker 1: human being with instincts and and and needs, and he
• 12:54
  Speaker 1: falls short. He falls short just like everyone else. But
• 12:58
  Speaker 1: the point of Almont's character is that we want to
• 13:00
  Speaker 1: debunk the idea that black men aren't there for their children,
• 13:04
  Speaker 1: aren't there for their families. He loves his son, it's
• 13:06
  Speaker 1: the most important thing that's like us side of his marriage.
• 13:09
  Speaker 1: And he's fighting for his sons, fighting for the opportunity
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: to being his son's life and help raise him because
• 13:15
  Speaker 1: he understands important about father and a child's life, especially
• 13:18
  Speaker 1: little boys life. But he's also a human being. He
• 13:21
  Speaker 1: has needs, he has once, he has feelings, he has emotions,
• 13:24
  Speaker 1: and a lot of times, the way black mail characters
• 13:27
  Speaker 1: are written on a lot of shows, we're written as
• 13:30
  Speaker 1: avoid of emotion, we're written for a void of of necessities,
• 13:35
  Speaker 1: and we're written very emotionally and unintelligent, emotionally illiterate, I'll say,
• 13:42
  Speaker 1: And that's not the case with the majority of black men,
• 13:44
  Speaker 1: especially black men that I know and she knows. So
• 13:47
  Speaker 1: it'll be interesting when you get chanced to see it.
• 13:49
  Speaker 1: You can judge for yourself what you think about Omar
• 13:52
  Speaker 1: and and and Omar's reasoning in his plate and uh,
• 13:56
  Speaker 1: that's the point of the show we try to create.
• 13:59
  Speaker 1: Look at me. Let me break it down a little
• 14:00
  Speaker 1: bit more. Because Omar leaving out of what he did
• 14:03
  Speaker 1: to this board, Keith, but watch the show, but watch
• 14:05
  Speaker 1: the show, But watch the show, but watch it's board Keith,
• 14:08
  Speaker 1: Mrs Sisters there, Mr Sis there, Keith. And then you
• 14:12
  Speaker 1: have character who plays the character Greg you know, and
• 14:15
  Speaker 1: then as you have jovis the probably the most complex
• 14:19
  Speaker 1: character I think outside of Omar. I think Omar's character
• 14:22
  Speaker 1: and Jarvis characters are the two most complex characters on
• 14:25
  Speaker 1: the show. Because Omar, they deal with mental issues, anger, anger, management.
• 14:31
  Speaker 1: They talk about the father being in the in the
• 14:35
  Speaker 1: relationship with a child because he's the only out of
• 14:38
  Speaker 1: the four friends, he's the only one that has a
• 14:40
  Speaker 1: child that he knows of. And then that's that's really
• 14:42
  Speaker 1: important that this continues to be that way. Something happened
• 14:46
  Speaker 1: with that Okay, cool? And so I want to make
• 14:49
  Speaker 1: sure that you understand that when I'm watching the show Thomas,
• 14:54
  Speaker 1: I am pulled in by the character, by the acting,
• 14:59
  Speaker 1: the same tenuity, the editing, the lighting, the the the
• 15:03
  Speaker 1: believable relationships, all that special. I'm gonna tell fans who
• 15:07
  Speaker 1: are gonna stream it, he says, thirty minutes, because that's
• 15:10
  Speaker 1: what a commercial. It's twenty two minutes. It's a fast stream. Now.
• 15:15
  Speaker 1: I saw twelve episodes from five thirty to eleven o'clock
• 15:18
  Speaker 1: last night. Didn't miss a beat. Would have did the
• 15:21
  Speaker 1: last two, but I get up at four thirty in
• 15:23
  Speaker 1: the morning. I said, I just get up early to
• 15:25
  Speaker 1: watch the next to next day. And I'm glad I
• 15:27
  Speaker 1: did because the next two episodes or equally outstanding. But
• 15:30
  Speaker 1: the character man. I root for Thomas's character, which is Omar.
• 15:35
  Speaker 1: He makes me mad, but just all good. When characters
• 15:38
  Speaker 1: are written an act of a certain way that you
• 15:40
  Speaker 1: become engaged in the relationship. So he makes me mad.
• 15:44
  Speaker 1: I root for him sometimes I think his wife should
• 15:47
  Speaker 1: just kick him in the in the in the butt.
• 15:50
  Speaker 1: I know he needs to be there for his son,
• 15:51
  Speaker 1: but he does stupid stuff with his board. Keith keeps
• 15:54
  Speaker 1: to know that he half the time, me whiney don't
• 15:57
  Speaker 1: know how to get a woman. Woman plays him sometimes
• 16:00
  Speaker 1: and then and then job was over there he married
• 16:02
  Speaker 1: to a white woman, don't know how to deal with
• 16:04
  Speaker 1: being black. And then you got Greg over that mad
• 16:06
  Speaker 1: at him because he taught time macolm x. He driving
• 16:09
  Speaker 1: a uber? What a what a two seed with the
• 16:11
  Speaker 1: two door uber? Who does that? That's where the drama
• 16:16
  Speaker 1: that comes from. Brother great Man, you something that you
• 16:21
  Speaker 1: something up all the characters at one rank. I love it.
• 16:24
  Speaker 1: I love it. That just means you're emotionally connected to
• 16:27
  Speaker 1: the characters. And and that's the first thing you want
• 16:30
  Speaker 1: when you're creating a show is you want the audise
• 16:32
  Speaker 1: to care about the characters. You wanted me, care about
• 16:35
  Speaker 1: the leads, care about the situation, root for them, want
• 16:38
  Speaker 1: them to do well, want them to succeed, but also
• 16:41
  Speaker 1: understand the mistakes they made, because we all make mistakes.
• 16:44
  Speaker 1: No one's perfect. If you if you write a show
• 16:47
  Speaker 1: with a perfect character, people probably gonna turn the channel.
• 16:51
  Speaker 1: There's there's nothing they can relate to. And all four
• 16:53
  Speaker 1: of these black men are very very different, different energies,
• 16:56
  Speaker 1: different essences, different complexions, different and uh you know, physical attributes.
• 17:04
  Speaker 1: They're all different. But they are all best friends, and
• 17:06
  Speaker 1: you can see the chemistry is national because in real life,
• 17:09
  Speaker 1: all four of us as the lead characters are really brothers.
• 17:13
  Speaker 1: In real life, uh Jarvis Johnson played by Derek Sprady,
• 17:18
  Speaker 1: Philip Smithie plays Keith Johnson, and then she already created
• 17:22
  Speaker 1: the show plays Greg Johnson, and I play Omar Johnson.
• 17:25
  Speaker 1: If you see us in real life at a pool hall,
• 17:28
  Speaker 1: at a bar, at a wedding, wherever we are, it's
• 17:32
  Speaker 1: the exact same relationship in between takes. If we're shooting
• 17:37
  Speaker 1: the scene where all four of us are in the
• 17:39
  Speaker 1: scene and they're changing the cameras or there's some quick
• 17:44
  Speaker 1: adjustment they have to make it, we all forego into
• 17:46
  Speaker 1: the room where the cast is. You could literally put
• 17:49
  Speaker 1: the camera in that room and you would get the
• 17:52
  Speaker 1: same energy that you get on screen, the same conversations,
• 17:55
  Speaker 1: the same personalities. And that's because they do not wanted
• 17:58
  Speaker 1: to cast this show very, very, as much as true
• 18:01
  Speaker 1: to the character as possible, So that way, it wasn't
• 18:04
  Speaker 1: too much work for the actor to be someone that
• 18:08
  Speaker 1: we wanted him to be, as opposed to just being
• 18:10
  Speaker 1: them as an actor and as a person. So that's
• 18:13
  Speaker 1: why the relationships are authentic and when you watched the show,
• 18:16
  Speaker 1: you automatically can connect to the characters and connect to
• 18:20
  Speaker 1: our friendship because it's real. We'll be right back with
• 18:22
  Speaker 1: more Money Making Conversations Masterclass with Rushan McDonald. Now, let's
• 18:29
  Speaker 1: return to Money Making Conversations Masterclass with Rashan McDonald. Being
• 18:34
  Speaker 1: an incredible athlete and being who was performing at a
• 18:39
  Speaker 1: high level and from an athletic stampo in the NFL
• 18:42
  Speaker 1: is the sport in America. And then you come to
• 18:44
  Speaker 1: Hollywood and something, Oh, here's another athlete trying to be
• 18:47
  Speaker 1: an actor. There's another athlete act like he got some ideas.
• 18:51
  Speaker 1: How did you overcome some of the stereotypes that you
• 18:53
  Speaker 1: will hit with when you start making that transition from
• 18:56
  Speaker 1: an NFL star to a to a professor to an
• 18:59
  Speaker 1: actor in the Hollywood. Well, that goes back to my
• 19:04
  Speaker 1: father making me read the front page of the paper. Um,
• 19:07
  Speaker 1: that's how far that that mindset goes back. I had
• 19:13
  Speaker 1: probably over ninety I had about ninety five Scholarshoo officers
• 19:16
  Speaker 1: in high school. Um I was I was reading the
• 19:21
  Speaker 1: number two running back in the nation coming out of
• 19:24
  Speaker 1: high school. So any college in the country that I
• 19:27
  Speaker 1: want to go to major college fball programmer could have
• 19:29
  Speaker 1: gone to, but I understood that certain schools had a
• 19:33
  Speaker 1: better academic reputation, and so that's why I chose Virginia
• 19:38
  Speaker 1: and O to Dame. Those are my two last to
• 19:40
  Speaker 1: two final picks. Um outside of some other schools that
• 19:44
  Speaker 1: were incredible schools, but they just didn't have the same
• 19:46
  Speaker 1: reputation to understood what if I break my leg, what
• 19:49
  Speaker 1: if I don't make it to the NFL? And at
• 19:51
  Speaker 1: least I have an incredible UH degree from a from
• 19:55
  Speaker 1: a from a from a very very respected college and
• 19:58
  Speaker 1: university that will put ventually helped me get a job,
• 20:01
  Speaker 1: a good paying job. Um. So I never saw myself
• 20:06
  Speaker 1: as just a football player. And even though I played
• 20:07
  Speaker 1: twelvers in the league, that was my life. That was
• 20:12
  Speaker 1: who I was, that was what I did, That's how
• 20:14
  Speaker 1: he saw me. There was a part of me that
• 20:16
  Speaker 1: also understood that that's not my identity and I struggled
• 20:19
  Speaker 1: with it even when I retired between twelve, I went
• 20:21
  Speaker 1: to this phase of no more cameras, no more crowd,
• 20:25
  Speaker 1: no more number twenty jones. Who am I? Despite not
• 20:30
  Speaker 1: being you know, raised that way, I still had that
• 20:34
  Speaker 1: what am I gonna do. How am I gonna give validation?
• 20:36
  Speaker 1: I don't have uh the fans cheer me on after
• 20:40
  Speaker 1: a touchdown or when I come out of the tunnel.
• 20:43
  Speaker 1: And so acting that was the perfect industry for me,
• 20:46
  Speaker 1: the transition to because it's not the typical uh career
• 20:54
  Speaker 1: choice that athletes make. And like you said, it's another
• 20:58
  Speaker 1: athlete trying to be an actor, trying to be a producer,
• 21:02
  Speaker 1: trying to have ideas. No, I'm a black man first
• 21:05
  Speaker 1: for anything else, and so my experience comes before a
• 21:10
  Speaker 1: football and so this show was just perfect because I
• 21:15
  Speaker 1: was able to suggest and and and and interject all
• 21:20
  Speaker 1: of my experiences as a black man into all four
• 21:24
  Speaker 1: of these characters and then act as an actor and
• 21:28
  Speaker 1: bring it to life. So it's the perfect scenario at
• 21:31
  Speaker 1: the perfect time for me, in a perfect show. I'm
• 21:33
  Speaker 1: talking to Thomas q joon is that coutive producers show
• 21:36
  Speaker 1: running star on the Bounce TVs drama y Johnson. Two
• 21:40
  Speaker 1: questions as we close out this interview. What don't you
• 21:42
  Speaker 1: miss about the NFL? I don't miss training camp? Well?
• 21:48
  Speaker 1: What my training camp? So I've heard that on TV
• 21:50
  Speaker 1: TV show sports or what? What? What's so bad? About
• 21:53
  Speaker 1: training camp, training camp, and I don't I don't necessarily
• 21:59
  Speaker 1: mean this. I kind mean this literally, but I kind
• 22:01
  Speaker 1: of don't me this training camp. Unfortunately, I've never been
• 22:06
  Speaker 1: in prison before, but training camp is like being locked
• 22:15
  Speaker 1: up back when, back when I was in the league,
• 22:18
  Speaker 1: not my last few years. It's like two thousand and
• 22:21
  Speaker 1: ten eleven, but I was drafting two thousand, where we
• 22:26
  Speaker 1: started training camping in July early junely like July eleven,
• 22:34
  Speaker 1: you know what I'm saying that we didn't break camp
• 22:36
  Speaker 1: until September one or August thirty one, where on the
• 22:42
  Speaker 1: ladder end of my career we started training camp and
• 22:46
  Speaker 1: it was a new CB a like Bargain Agree Man,
• 22:49
  Speaker 1: and so we only had one two a day and
• 22:51
  Speaker 1: three and all that stuff, you know, when we started
• 22:54
  Speaker 1: training camp maybe two seven eight, But I was used
• 22:58
  Speaker 1: to being in training camp the majority of my career
• 23:01
  Speaker 1: for um almost two months. And you're in a secluded
• 23:07
  Speaker 1: place most of the time, and it's all football every day.
• 23:11
  Speaker 1: So after the first two days, you don't even know
• 23:14
  Speaker 1: what that is. You know, you don't care what it is.
• 23:18
  Speaker 1: You don't you don't have the energy to care about
• 23:21
  Speaker 1: anything but football. You don't have the energy. My birthday
• 23:24
  Speaker 1: is August nineteen, so I just I still haven't celebrated
• 23:28
  Speaker 1: my birthday, uh, because I've always been a training camp
• 23:32
  Speaker 1: for my birthday, you know. So, So my birthday is
• 23:36
  Speaker 1: August nineteen. I wake up in the morning after the
• 23:38
  Speaker 1: facility is six thirty, and I have to be a
• 23:40
  Speaker 1: practice at eight thirty, and then training training room for treatment,
• 23:44
  Speaker 1: that I'm in the cold tub. That I have lunch,
• 23:46
  Speaker 1: that I have meetings, that I practice again, and then
• 23:48
  Speaker 1: we have meetings again. I don't get back to my
• 23:50
  Speaker 1: room until ten ten fifteen, curfews at eleven. So by
• 23:54
  Speaker 1: the time I get home and I check all my messages,
• 23:55
  Speaker 1: thirty forty messages, and I call everybody back, thank you,
• 23:58
  Speaker 1: my birthday is over. It's already. So I haven't been
• 24:03
  Speaker 1: able to. Really, I still have the psychologically connected my
• 24:06
  Speaker 1: birthday to enjoying the day because I'm in training camp
• 24:10
  Speaker 1: and usually that's my third week of camp where I'm
• 24:14
  Speaker 1: just physically and mentally dreamed. So I don't miss training
• 24:17
  Speaker 1: camp at all. Um, I do miss the camaraderie and
• 24:23
  Speaker 1: the brotherhood in the locker room, and and and I
• 24:26
  Speaker 1: miss the fact that I'm around guys that understand the
• 24:33
  Speaker 1: stakes and the consequences of not being successful as an
• 24:38
  Speaker 1: NFL player. That means you're gonna lose the game, means
• 24:42
  Speaker 1: someone's gonna get fired. So the stakes are always here,
• 24:47
  Speaker 1: and so everyone always we understand each other. We know
• 24:49
  Speaker 1: if you drop a ball, you might get cut. If
• 24:51
  Speaker 1: I phone the ball, I might be cut. You miss
• 24:53
  Speaker 1: a tackle, you might get cut. So we all have
• 24:55
  Speaker 1: the same energy. And that's why I'm so thankful for
• 24:57
  Speaker 1: Johnson in Hollywood because it's the same state. There's the
• 25:01
  Speaker 1: same stakes here. You know, you have to force your
• 25:05
  Speaker 1: way in this business because you're You're not guarantee to
• 25:08
  Speaker 1: get a job. It doesn't matter what you've done. My
• 25:10
  Speaker 1: last big job that I did was Blue Cage, and
• 25:14
  Speaker 1: I've been booked for a lot of other projects outside
• 25:17
  Speaker 1: of that, even p Valley. But my royal p value
• 25:19
  Speaker 1: was maybe three episode season one. But if I wouldn't
• 25:25
  Speaker 1: have produced Johnson my own series as a show runner,
• 25:30
  Speaker 1: EP and the lead act the lead actor regards to
• 25:34
  Speaker 1: the call sheet, what else would I be working on?
• 25:38
  Speaker 1: We wouldn't. We wouldn't we wouldn't be having this conversation.
• 25:42
  Speaker 1: So the stakes are high. If you want to continue
• 25:44
  Speaker 1: to be successful and you want to make money in
• 25:46
  Speaker 1: and evolving this business, you have to continue to grow
• 25:51
  Speaker 1: and evolved and work hard because everyone at any time
• 25:55
  Speaker 1: because self for the same consequences. And that's why I
• 25:57
  Speaker 1: think I'll transition so smooth into it and also beating
• 25:59
  Speaker 1: someone a day that understand those understands, those states, and
• 26:03
  Speaker 1: it's willing to work just as hard as me, and
• 26:06
  Speaker 1: he's just as dedicated and believing in him, embedding on
• 26:09
  Speaker 1: himself as I am to make this possible. So spending
• 26:13
  Speaker 1: incredible transition, I'm really excited. I couldn't pick the better
• 26:17
  Speaker 1: career uh An industry to transition into it. Spen therapeutic
• 26:22
  Speaker 1: in a lot of ways, I'm been able to be
• 26:23
  Speaker 1: some incredible people in the voltic as a person, as
• 26:25
  Speaker 1: a man, and a show like Johnson just only helps
• 26:28
  Speaker 1: me grow in involve as a black man. So spending
• 26:30
  Speaker 1: credible experience, we've answered both my questions. Thomas Thomas Q.
• 26:34
  Speaker 1: Jones um high school star, NFL star. Now he's a
• 26:40
  Speaker 1: TV star, next left, gonna be a film star. Because brother,
• 26:42
  Speaker 1: your talented and all these blessings that I'm throwing your way,
• 26:46
  Speaker 1: receive it because I feel blessed after watching fourteen episodes
• 26:49
  Speaker 1: of The Johnson on the Bounce Network. It's a hit series.
• 26:53
  Speaker 1: When they do thirty minutes, they always call them sitcoms
• 26:56
  Speaker 1: and comedies. This is a drama and that's a compliment
• 26:59
  Speaker 1: when I call it a draw money. And it's put
• 27:01
  Speaker 1: together out in the outstanding level of production, with the lighting,
• 27:06
  Speaker 1: with the editing, with the continuity, with the storytelling. When
• 27:10
  Speaker 1: one episode ends, they pick up the next episode right there.
• 27:13
  Speaker 1: There's no lost time. It just feels like it's just
• 27:15
  Speaker 1: one long movie, which is a blessing. And again, thank
• 27:20
  Speaker 1: you for coming on my show and allow me to
• 27:22
  Speaker 1: go down memory lane and to let you know I've
• 27:24
  Speaker 1: been a fan and now I'm gonna be a bigger
• 27:26
  Speaker 1: fan because what you put on TV as a black man,
• 27:29
  Speaker 1: it's never been done before. So know you're a groundbreaker too,
• 27:33
  Speaker 1: And to be a groundbreaker that means that there's more
• 27:35
  Speaker 1: blessings and more people are gonna recognize your talents. And
• 27:40
  Speaker 1: it's I'm gonna want to meet what you already told
• 27:42
  Speaker 1: j G told Chris. I say, look, I need to
• 27:44
  Speaker 1: connect with these brothers, because once we sit down, I'm
• 27:47
  Speaker 1: gonna connecting with other people because I want to do something.
• 27:50
  Speaker 1: I want to do some projects with y'all. Okay, thank you,
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: thank thank you Russian. We appreciate the opportunity. We appreciate
• 27:57
  Speaker 1: the flowers and the recognition, and we also appreciate you
• 28:01
  Speaker 1: giving us a voice because without your platform and your
• 28:04
  Speaker 1: voice and you're taking the time to watch the series
• 28:07
  Speaker 1: and understand the narrative and appreciate the narrative, we're wasting
• 28:12
  Speaker 1: our time. So you just as equally as a fifty
• 28:15
  Speaker 1: fifty partnership between us as the creators and you giving
• 28:19
  Speaker 1: us the platform. So trust me, you're just as valuable
• 28:22
  Speaker 1: to us as we are to creating the show. You
• 28:25
  Speaker 1: go handing had so you can get you, you can
• 28:28
  Speaker 1: get always nay think you canna get tagged because I'm
• 28:30
  Speaker 1: wish your happy birthday on my social media. Okay, thank
• 28:33
  Speaker 1: you for coming money making confience about the class. I
• 28:35
  Speaker 1: appreciate you. Thomas ke Jones, all right, I always remember
• 28:39
  Speaker 1: leave with your gifts. Keep winning. I'm Rashan McDonald. I
• 28:42
  Speaker 1: am your host.