Unfiltered Truth: Comedy's Power with Leslie Jones

0:00So there's a whole personality of yourself sitting on a bench watching you be something else. And it's just so sad. And it will make you sad because it's hard to continue alive. Those are very painful things. The truth is very rugged and very raw. But in the end of the day, you go, but it's me and it's the truth. And I ain't got to fake it.

0:34Mick:Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to another episode of Micamplugged. And today I'm truly excited and honored because I've got another living legend that is about to bless the podcast. We're talking about Phenom. We're talking about talent. We're talking about three-time Emmy nominated. We're talking about Times Magazine top 100 most influential people in the world. We're talking about the comedian's comedian, the people's people, none other than Leslie Jones. Leslie, how you doing today, dear? Wow, that is an introduction right there. I'm like, who is he talking about? I'm talking about you.

1:17I'm like, uh-uh.

1:19Mick:I'm talking about L-Dog over there. Oh, that's so funny. Thank you. I appreciate that. No, no, no, no. No, thank you. I was telling you offline how such a huge fan. My mom loves you. My mom is a minister and freaking loves Leslie Jones. Let me tell you, like, she might be in the pulpit quoting a Leslie Jones quote every other sermon. I'm just going to throw that out there to you. Really? Oh, my goodness. That is hilarious. Where is she at? where you're at? In South Carolina. So Greenville, South Carolina is my hometown. Oh man, I think I'm going to South Carolina too. She'll bring the whole congregation.

2:03Mick:Oh my goodness. They better be ready. Oh, they'll be ready. You ain't got to change your words or nothing. You can just be ready. They're going to be ready. I never do. Grown folks is grown folks. And plus, I always do jokes that I do real jokes. It's not just about the curse words or anything. And she would actually love this new set that I'm doing because I do some stuff on Adam and Eve and on David and Goliath, and it's hysterical. All right, Mom. You got some new pulpit material. Just letting you know. Just letting you know. But Leslie, again, I'm so honored to have you here. I know how busy your schedule is.

2:40Mick:I'm a huge fan of you, and the weird thing is, it's not even about your comedy. I will go top five, dead or alive. My L boogie is there, right? Leslie Jones is there. Wow. But it's the human being that you are. It's the things that you do when there's no camera, when there's no mic. I know most people don't see that you do, but you've got a community around you. You've got family around you that you give to. And so I wanted to applaud you for that before we went anywhere because you mean so much to me for who you are as a person. Thank you. That I want the world to know that. And I want you to particularly know that.

3:21That's so nice. You know what I've noticed, too, is that, you know, your crowd reflects who you are as a person, too. And all my crowds are so great. Like, they're loving. They're real. They're honest. They're vulnerable. They're seeking healing, you know, seeking a new way to make things right, to bring joy. And, you know, you don't just get to that position just by circumstance. You walk through it. And that's why I tell everybody, I mean, I'm not a, I don't think I'm such a deep person to be able to avoid walking through my fire, if that makes any sense. You know, I just go through it because it makes you a better person.

4:12It just does. You can't hide from things that are going to be an obstacle. You can't hide from it. You have to just go through it. That's it. And if you get to the other side, the feeling that you'll have of triumph, because we've all been to that point where we're like, I'm not going to make it through this. I'm like, I don't know how I'm going to make it through this. And we make it. And that puts callus on us. That puts armor. That's the armor that I believe that God says to put on. That's the one that I think. I know people, I think that's the armor that you put on. People always ask me all the time, it's just about really living.

5:03You just live your life. You're going to have bad days, but you're also going to have good days. Let's celebrate them just as much as we notice the bad, you know? And also too, whenever I talk to someone, you can notice how someone talks to themselves or how they don't appreciate their life. When people go, I'm just so stupid. I go, don't say that because your body doesn't know you're playing. Your body doesn't know you're joking. Your body doesn't know you're just throwing that out there. Yourself doesn't. and appreciate where you are. Like, I was just telling this one girl, I was like, she was like, yo, I really want to get a bigger apartment.

5:45And I was like, appreciate what you got. Appreciate the apartment that you got. Because that is really a thing. Think about it, humans. Let's say you have kids, right? And you brought your kid a toy, right? And your kid is asking for another toy. Well, you didn't appreciate the last toy. So I'm not going to give you something else. That's how God works too, I really believe.

6:07Mick:I am right there with you. And you said something that I tell people all the time. And it's true, it's science, right? Like your brain doesn't know the difference between reality and a thought, right? It's processing, processing, processing, processing. So if you continue to put negative thoughts and negative energy, that becomes you developing your brain to look for those things, to feel those things. And those things draw towards you too. Exactly. And you have to, I'm telling you and I tell people this all the time because they always ask me how. I'm going to tell you it's the hardest thing, but only you can do it.

6:47Only you can do it. I can sit and talk to you to your purple in the face, to our purple in the face. You know what I'm saying? But only you can go inside of yourself and find that positive negative button and flip it on. Only you can do that. I don't know. And it really is just thinking it. Like what happened with me was I was like, one day I was like, dude, I got to start thinking more positive. This is just ridiculous. You got to think more positive. And you say that and you mean it and your spirit and your universe or whatever it is you believe in takes you towards that. I believe that wholeheartedly.

7:30And it's not easy. I tell everybody it's not easy to love yourself or like yourself. That is a job. Just like when you're trying to like a boyfriend or a new friend or a relative, you have to do the same thing with yourself. You have to like yourself because people try to give things that they don't have. If you don't have love for yourself, you can't give it to someone else. And I know that sounds like a cliche, but my mom used to drill that into me. She goes, no one is going to like you until you like yourself. And I know it sounds silly. And I used to be like, it does sound silly because who would hate themselves?

8:09But you do. And we lie to ourselves daily. daily we are lying to ourselves from the time we wake up to the time we go to bed and that's why you need therapy to me you need counsel so someone outside of your thoughts can go hey that's not true like I had to tell my therapist had to look at me and go you're lying like hey that's a lie and I'm gonna show you why that's a lie and you have to look at the story you're telling yourself and go, oh yeah, that's not actually accurate. I did that so I can have this. Like, cause you think, what you think, you think you're watching out for yourself. That's what you think.

8:54You think you're going, no, I'm keeping myself in check. No, you're keeping yourself in a lie. And the truth has set you free. Hey, you took us to church.

9:08Mick:I'm over here looking for a collection plate right now. Like we need a collection plate and a closing hearing. I just tell people, if you can just do that with yourself, you become a different human being. You don't want to hurt people because you can feel their pain too. You don't want to do bad. You don't want to put out bad. You want to put out nothing but joy. And that's where I am in my life right now. And I really want to help people get to that. And my job as a comedian is to make you laugh it out. It is. You know? I love it. I love it. And, you know, I usually ask the first question around like, what's your because, that purpose, that thing that's deeper than your why.

9:51Mick:But I feel like you just gave it to me. Yeah. And so if I were to transition to what I'll just say, the unplugged truth. OK, here's something my younger self would have benefited from. Most of us picked a bank at 16 and never looked back. And it's been nickel and diming us ever since. That's where Chime comes in. Chime is changing the way people bank. They're not like those traditional old banks that gatekeep the perks and pile on fees unless you carry some massive balance. Chime is the most rewarding fee-free banking. No overdraft fees, no monthly fees, no minimum balance fees. Here's where it stacks up.

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11:07Mick:because I feel like as society has changed and evolved, we've stopped telling the truth more, right? Like we hide behind things, we talk about things, but we don't tell the truth as much as we, these are the words of Mick and Mick only, as much as we used to. Yeah. Talk to, and I know your comedy is so much centered around the truth, right? Like all the stories that you tell, there's truth in all of those stories, which is why they're so relatable. Like, why is telling the truth and being truthful, like, so important to you today? Because you, hmm, how can I put that? Again, the truth is what it is.

11:52Like, we are, for one, I feel like everybody wants to be something that they, other than what they are. And the reason that you're running from yourself is because you don't think that yourself is special. So then we have to go back and go, hey, I go, hey, listen, you are very special. God, you are a specific piece of art made by God. No one is like you. There's no one. Twins even have different things. So if you start right there, then you know that there's no one else out there like you. And if you're given the assignment to be you and you down here trying to be somebody else, you failed yourself.

12:29Do you get what I'm saying? So the truth will keep you in yourself because there's so many wonderful things about yourself. We concentrate so much on the bad and that's where the lies come in.

12:44Mick:Yeah. You know, like, like you got to like the fake it till you make it. I fucking hate that saying. I hate that saying more than life. I don't know who made it up, but they need to take that shit back where they go. You don't fake nothing. Make it. Just make it. you don't have to fake shit for when you fake it, you're, you're, you're, you're taking on a job that, in other words, I tell kids now, you're trying to have experiences without the experience. Exactly. And, and, and it's annoying when people don't want to know where things come from and, and trying to create something in that same street.

13:25Oh, I want to recreate comedy. Well, what's the history of it? Yeah. Like, let's say I'm trying to make a biscuit, right? And I go, I'm not going to use the biscuits recipe. I'm going to make a biscuit. Well, you got to know what the fuck a biscuit is made out of, right? I mean, you got to know what the original... You know, you can't riff on a song unless you know the original song. Right. Am I correct?

13:48Mick:Absolutely. When people try to build a house without foundation, three little pigs, babe. You know, I use a lot of parables. I use a lot of stuff like that because I feel like it's a way to communicate to people so they can, you know, so they can understand. So there's a whole personality of yourself sitting on a bench watching you be something else. And it's just so sad. And it will make you sad because it's hard to continue a lie. Those are very painful things. The truth is very rugged and very raw, but ooh, in the end of the day, you go, fuck, but it's me and it's the truth. You know what I mean?

14:36You know what I mean? I ain't got to fake it. I'm so relaxed because I don't have to remember a whole fucking lie that I just told.

14:45Mick:Exactly. Exactly. And here's a truth that you actually taught me, and I'm going to let the world know some things that I got from Leslie Jones that you don't even know. So aside from the podcast, right, like I do a lot of keynote speaking and I run like three, four different businesses. And you said something that was so much infinite wisdom to me that I think people take for granted. You said it in the standup world, but it so much so relates to all the things that you do in life and business. You call it mirror time, right? Like you were going to work out a joke, not a whole set. You're going to work out a joke a bit for at least 30 minutes, right?

15:30Mick:Before you actually say, yep, this is good. I'm going to move forward. And I started looking at myself and saying, why am I not doing that? Like the greats that I know, I don't care what it is. Put in the work. You just don't show up, right? And as much as I thought I was prepared, I'd memorize the speech. I'd say it to myself a thousand times, do whatever. But I never like stood in front of that mirror. And Leslie, when I started doing that. It's a whole different game. Hey, I'm good. It's a whole different game. Because now you know what your face is doing. Right. You know what face you're making.

16:10You know how to pull the tools out. Now you know how to do your face to where you can use it to your advantage.

16:19Mick:Right. Do you know what I'm saying? You learn how to show anger without moving your face. or expressing. You learn so freaking much. Yeah. And I tell everybody all the time, and you get through stage fright. Yeah. Because nothing worse than yourself watching yourself. Exactly. Exactly. But I'll tell you what I did with my companies, though. So all of my leaders now have the, we call it the mirror test. So if I'm going to have a one-on-one with Leslie, I'm having that one-on-one in front of a mirror because no matter what the conversation's about, it might not be a review. It might just be we're having a one-on-one just to catch up.

17:03Mick:But my disposition is speaking when I'm not, right? And so now we understand how to communicate without words because of Leslie Jones. Hey, well, that's because I'm going to be honest, That's Lucille Ball. That's Carol Burnett. That's Pearl Bailey. You know what I mean? These people are the people who didn't give a shit about what they look like. They gave a shit about the joke. Yeah. You give a shit about the things that you're saying. You are not important at that moment because your duty is to get that out there, if that makes any sense. No, totally. And Lucille Ball had the best face. Like she could do a whole scene with her face and not have to speak.

17:53That is pure magic.

17:58Mick:You know, magic. That was one of the first things I learned was my face. There it is. There it is. so I'm gonna go to what I call the hot takes because

18:12Mick:Leslie Jones is the hot take queen and I don't even mean it I don't mean it bad like to me yeah because I'm a samurai I damn right you are damn right you are so in your memoir which I'm going to make sure it's right there. Make sure everybody's looking.

18:38Mick:Leslie fucking Jones. Did you listen to it or you read it? Oh, I have to listen to it. Oh, yeah, because the audio is way better than the book to me. Because, one, for me, if I have to read something, it feels like punishment and it's going to take me much longer to get through it. That's what I told him. When I read the book, I was like, hey, this is not a good idea. I don't want to read what I wrote. This don't sound right. So sidebar, because I wrote a book too. Is that not the hardest thing to read your own book out loud? I didn't. If you notice, I didn't read my book. I just told the stories because I was like, I don't know.

19:17You remember when the teacher would make you read? Like you go, okay, it's your turn. I'd be like, gee, I would practice. I'd be like, Jesus, my turn. And then sometimes they would skip a paragraph and I'd be like, that's not the one I wrote! Fuck! Hey.

19:32Mick:I am, and I'm dyslexic too, so you need me to read out loud, I'm just like, nah, that's not what you want. But you talk about, you know, your real story doesn't begin with Saturday Night Live. And I, again, the story of Leslie Jones is so deep and I admire it so much because I don't think people understand the work. Right? The work. Because the average person, even the above average person, probably would have quit their journey had they had to walk in your shoes. I feel like too, you come to a point too in your career where you realize that the journey actually was the best part. I mean, you don't feel like it when you're going through it, when you're like trying, when you're eating top ramen and you just got paid$15.

20:29You don't feel like it, but damn, it's such skill. I mean, when I went to do the audition for SNL, everybody was like scared, like scared. And I'm 47. So I'm sitting there looking at it like, the fuck is y 'all scared of? I got to pay rent this month. this is not a problem being in front of motherfuckers performing. And I, man, I walked in there like, yeah, this is two o 'clock at the comedy store. Let's go. Like, like, it's like, it's like, yeah, I was built for this shit. I was built for it. And what, when I started comedy, I would just remember telling, I remember making this prayer. I was like, God, I want to be in comedy so bad.

21:19I want to be a good comedian. But the only way I would be a comedian is if I'm a good one. If I'm like one of the greatest, If I'm not going to be one of the greatest, then I'll open up a club or I'll manage or I'll write or whatever. But I want to be good at what I do. And I know the answer he gave me was, OK, it's not going to be easy. And it was not. But everything that I went through. I use now. So I always tell comedians, you know, you know, it's a respect thing when you use my experiences as food. use use my experiences as food that's what the veterans and the people that came before me and the people that came before you have done for you we've we've laid out somewhat of a plan but it's okay to also take that plan and make it yours but don't be stupid enough not to look at the history that's that's where most comedians make their freaking mistake i'm gonna be something new I'm going to be saying, well, you can't be anything unless you know where you're coming from.

22:29Yeah. You just can't. I'm sorry. You could try. And I've seen people do it. But eventually you pay them dues. That's right. Eventually the dues come and they show up and they go. And I see so many young comics that like really are so good. And they stop there. Yeah. You know, they stopped there. And let me tell you, it's something that happens. Listen, when I, I had been doing comedy for three years and I was like, I'm the best, you know, I'm the best comic out there. And I remember talking to Jay Anthony Brown and I was like, Jay, you know, I'm funny. He was like, yeah, you, you have a funny.

23:08And I was like, so how long is it going to take me to make it? And he was like, to be a good comedian. I was like, yeah. He was like 10 years. I just burst into tears because part of me knew that I could take the cheap road part of me knew that I could fake it but part of me knew that if I wanted to be that comic he was talking about, the 10 years is true, so I was going to have to live it it's the work, so we got a job that's it