The X Change Rate: Karamo & Joy Reid

Hot off her historic "RuPaul’s Drag Race: All Stars" win, Monét X Change brings her very own talk show to BUILD Series. This week, Monét was chatting with none other than "Queer Eye's" Karamo and MSNBC anchor Joy Reid.

Video transcript

[THEME MUSIC]

MONÉT X CHANGE: Hey, y'all. It's your girl, Monét. And welcome back to "The X Change Rate," a talk show where we don't know who August Alsina is, but after seeing his nudes, honey, I'll be happy to get caught all up and through his entanglement. (LAUGHING) You know what I'm saying?

Today, we are finally back with all-new episodes of "The X Change Rate." But lucky for us, we're here with a repeat offender. He's one fifth of the always aspiring cast of "Queer Eye." Karamo Brown is back.

[APPLAUSE]

And joyful, joyful, lord, we adore Joy Reid. And she's joining us to chat about her brand-new show on MSNBC.

But first, Colleen, let's get into the gig. And hit it.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

I kinda do the off beats, and they kind of work. Ga, ga, ga, ga, ga.

Yeah, guys, we are finally back at "The X Change Rate." it's been just two weeks off. But you know, honestly, I did not anticipate digital Pride being as crazy and as hectic as it was. But Patty and I were up in here, like, everyday, filming something for this, and that, and Netflix, and TikTok and-- I know. Yeah, I said those names. I'm not name dropping. But it is what it is, and we do what we do. And yeah, it's been really, really nuts. So I had to take two weeks off to decompress. And now we're back.

And in those two weeks off, I feel like the internet/social media was popping off with the attack of the Karens. Like, Karens are just ev-er-y-where doing crazy shit. The best word to describe them is just outlandish, OK? There is just the most drastic, crazy behavior.

One of my favorite ones is that lady. She's at the grocery store. And she keeps on pretending like the guy is, like, kicking her. And the guy is literally standing about 5 feet away from her. She's like, ow! Ow! He's kicking me. The guy is like, ma'am, he's literally not even close to you, and just, like, just really bad acting. I'm like, Miss Thing, I've seen better acting on Blair St. Clair in a fucking improv challenge, all right? You're not impressing anyone. So that's been that with the Karens.

That's been one good thing that has come out of the past weeks are the Black Lives Matter murals that are popping off everywhere. I said that with a little side-eye because yes, a mural is nice. But Miss Thing, I need action. That's cute. Well, let's get some-- what's the word I'm looking for? Policy. P-p-p-p-p-policy. Puh, puh, puh, puh, puh. Oh, my gosh, Angela should to redo her song, "Working Girl" and call it, like, "Congress Girl." And it should be like, puh, puh, puh, puh, puh, puh, puh, policy. That would be cute.

[LAUGHS]

Also, "Hamilton" dropped on Disney+. And I have been wanting to see "Hamilton" literally forever. I just haven't had, A, I didn't have the coins at first, and then I didn't have the time. And I watched it. And I have to say-- unpopular opinion-- I was not impressed. My main issue is that they were putting so many fucking lyrics into one line of music. I was like-- [GIBBERISH] I felt like I was watching like Twista or Busta Rhymes in-- what's that song of Busta Rhymes that they used to perform all the time? What? "Look At Me Now." It was very much Busta Rhymes in "Look At Me Now." There are too many words. I don't know what just happened.

And it was like about-- I don't know what "Hamilton" is about. About Hamilton being president? No. Whatever. I guess-- I don't know, whatever. Hamilton was a man for me. And that's all the catching up. Let's get into the actual meat of this episode, which is the gig. Mm, mm, mm.

The first word we're going to talk about is a really, really, really sad one. But I feel like it's a much needed, and it's something that's very important that we need to talk about is Naya Rivera. Obviously, we have all seen these articles, the celebrities sharing stories about Naya and everyone keeping her in prayers and thoughts and love and light and everything. And as we were filming of the show today, it broke that-- well, her body was found yesterday. But the news today broke of what she actually died from. So let's just talk about Naya a little bit.

If you don't know her, she was from the iconic show "Glee." "Glee" ran from like 2008 to 2015. For me, I started watching her at the beginning. I was a "Glee" fan at the beginning. And then kind of like season three, I kind of fell off. But it was still-- made a show that had a major cultural impacts.

And one of them was Naya, who is a Latinx woman, portrayed a beautiful, healthy, lesbian relationship on TV. Now, before that, we had never really-- yes, we had seen it in things like "The L Word" and stuff like that. But in young, mainstream media, it was something relatively unheard of. And she played the character Santana. And her and Brittany were together, who was played by Heather.

And it was great because I get it. We all know this. Oftentimes, we see queer relationships in shows, whether they're trans or cis-gender, or whatever they are, the queer stories. And it's always somebody is overdosing on drugs. Or they're homeless. Again, these were two "normal," quote unquote, high school girls who fall in love. So it was nice to see a healthy relationship portrayed that way.

But the story about Naya is that her and her son, they went out to Lake Piru. Lake, yes, yes, yes, yes, Lake Piru in California, just the two of them. They rented a pontoon boat. And they went out into the water. And then about 90 minutes before, she took a picture of them. And she posted it, saying, just the two of us. And so that was a big hit because that kind of pinpointed them to where she was.

Also, by the way, I sound so congested. I have-- it's allergy season in New York.

[SNIFFLES]

Y'all hear that?

[SNIFFLES]

I literally-- I feel like I'm talking in, like, a vacuum.

Yeah, so they were searching for her body for about four days. And they found it because of hits from the picture she posted. And now people are speculating that the reason why she posted the "just the two of us" picture, Eminem has a song, "Just the Two of Us," where the father, the son, one of them, is going to drown. So a lot of people are speculating all this crazy stuff.

I'm erring on the side of this young woman just was going out with her son to have a day at the lake, and tragedy happened. Like, let's not tarnish and hypothesize about what we think she did. That's neither here nor there. The cold, hard truth is that now she has a whole family left behind. And now her son is going to grow up without her.

But I think that, you know, people who were fans of Santana and who are really close to the story, are really being comforted by seeing stories of people from the cast, the "Glee" cast, like Amber Riley, and Kevin, and Chris Colfer, and them all, like, posting really, really beautiful in memoriam pictures and posts about her. So that's really nice.

So it's really, really sad. So may you rest in peace, angel. And thank you for being a judge on "Drag Race" and being a LGBTQIA+ ally because we love, love, love, love, love that. Rest in peace, boo.

[SIGHS]

You know, and this next one we're going to cover, girl, I just literally cannot. Kanye West is allegedly running for president. First of all, when I saw this pop up on my iPad, I was like, this-- he is just on another echelon.

First of all, he has not even submitted the proper paperwork to run for president. Like, there's-- you don't just announced it on Twitter and be like, oh, I'm doing this thing and thinking that that makes it official. That's not how running for the highest office in the land works, Kanye West.

And do y'all know what he's calling his party? Because you know, you have the Democrats and the Republicans. He's calling it the Birthday Party. That is not a joke. Now, I'm not being extra. He's calling it the Birthday Party.

[LAUGHS]

It's so crazy. I cannot. Like, what? His running mate is going to be Michelle Tidball, who is, like, a preacher from Wyoming. And she's allegedly problematic in her own ways already. And he said that he's no longer supporting Trump.

Also, this is all extracted from this, like, crazy, four-hour interview with "Forbes," where the person who did the interview was like, this is one of the craziest things I've ever done because it's Kanye West kind of spiraling.

And people are speculating. I remember, like I think last-- a couple of years ago, he had that-- when he was on tour four years ago, I believe, when he was on tour, they had to pull him off from tour because he was-- he says he does not take his med-- because he has-- you know, he has psychosis, and he has drugs he takes for his mental well-being. And so he wasn't taking his medicine. And they had to stop him from tour because he got-- he had so much going on. So people are speculating that this may be another dive into, you know, his mental health issues, which this does not sound far from the truth.

He also wants to remodel the White House, certain parts, one being the Oval Office. West said, his design group at the White House is going to use the framework of Wakanda for-- [LAUGHS] it's like, well you think that-- which, again, I'm not opposed to it. That would be fierce if we had a Black president, and they, like-- Wakanda, the entire-- burn the whole thing down and just built it up in Wakanda style from the ground up. But you know Kanye West is coming out of left field with some--

And girl, you think they're mad because they want people to wear masks? Imagine remodeling the White House to look like Wakanda. These white folk will lose their fucking minds, OK? Literally, their heads will pop over their shoulders.

[LAUGHS]

And he also said that he's OK with splitting the vote from Biden, so which means-- so in his mind, he wants to pull from Biden's numbers because he thinks that Black people are brainwashed into voting for the Democratic Party, which yes, there is some truth to that. There is-- we're not denying that Black folk think that they inherently have to be with the Democrats because the Republican Party doesn't care about them. But the truth of the matter is, both parties are fucked up, all right?

But we definitely don't want to be-- we're definitely not voting Republican for Trump right now. But that's beside the point. But he's OK with pulling numbers from Biden to further-- to get more votes for him. Like, it's just all so delusional.

And Elon Musk said that he was-- like, Elon Musk gave him the thumbs up. And Kim Kardashian hasn't really commented on it yet, which makes me think that it's probably not going to happen, if Kim hasn't said anything.

Also, I'm like, at what point is Kim was sitting at home, like-- I feel like in the morning, she just wakes up, and she sits on the side of the bed, and she's like, I married a fucking moron. And she's in too deep. She's in too deep. She can't-- she's in too deep right now.

Yes, divorce is an option. But I feel like she has put Kanye West on this weird pedestal. And her divorce from him will fuck up this whole vision that she has about her marriage and her kids. I don't know. The whole situation is so weird. And Kim Kardashian really took a big one with marrying this fucking monster.

Long story short, it's probably not going to happen. But stranger things have happened. If they did-- if Trump's people, and the cabinets, and all the weird government agencies got some weasel-around way to get him to run, that wouldn't shock me because they know that it would pull from Biden, and it would only help Trump, if that makes any sense.

I feel like I'm now fully talking in my nasal cavity. [SNIFFLING] But god, this is crazy.

But yeah, Kanye West running for president. If you are thinking of voting for him, fucking don't do it. And if you are definitely going to, you're not welcome to watch any more episodes of "X Change Rate." Close the window and walk. Walk away. Matter of fact, just burn the computer. You don't watch nothing on the internet.

[SIGHS]

And yeah, that's the Kanye West drama right now. But we're moving on from that because Halle Berry, which we haven't heard about Halle Berry in a while-- Halle Berry is making some very big waves.

But I will say, this story, I like this story because it had a good beginning, middle, and end. I think this was a learning and growing experience for all parties involved. And I'm happy that it went the way that it did.

So Halle Berry was rumored to be playing the role of a transgender man in a new film. But after much research and people, like, voicing their frustrations about this to her, the right decision was made. But let's just go through the story for all those who don't know.

So after the Instagram Live, Halle talking about the role that she may be doing with her hairstylist, Christian Brown, she said this. "It's a character where the woman is a trans character, so she's a woman that transitioned into a man. She's a character in a project I love that I might be doing. Who this woman was is so interesting to me, that would probably be my next project."

So you don't have to be far removed from the community to realize that-- just that statement, it is highly problematic. She has this misgendered this man about eight times in one paragraph. And again, I would say-- again, we're all learning and growing. So she took this as a learning moment.

But a GLAAD and "Disclosure" documentary jumped right in. And "Disclosure" said this. "Hi, Halle Berry. We heard you're considering playing a trans man in your next project. We ask that you please watch @Disclosure_Doc on Netflix first to understand how cis actors like yourself acting in trans roles has major cultural consequences offscreen."

Halle Berry took the note. She-- also, by the way, she did this Live on a Friday. And Monday morning, she came out with a statement saying that she had some-- basically, she had some time to think about it over the weekend, by hearing people from the community speak, that she's no longer going to consider taking the role on.

So this is good. This is a prime example of a cis person being offered to play a role of a trans person, them hearing the community saying why that is wrong, and then responding and saying, got it. That makes sense. I won't do it. As opposed to other people-- Scarlett Johansson, or is it Timothy Chalamet? Not Timothy Chalamet? Who played--

- Eddie Redmayne.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Eddie, Eddie, Eddie Redmayne. Thank you, Patti. Eddie Redmayne. The community is saying, hey, don't do this. And they're like, I'm an actor. I can do it. And doing it anyway. So this was--

So shoutout to Halle Berry for doing that. I think that speaks volumes, and hopefully, showing that we're going in the right direction as a forward thinking society. So claps all around to everyone involved.

[VOCALIZING]

No, don't get me wrong. Halle Berry's a fierce actress. I'm sure she would have done a really great job. But mama, now ain't the time. Right, Colleen? She's locked out. She ain't paying me no mind.

Ah! Oh, my god. I sound like the "Hey Arnold" kid. (IMITATING BRAINY) Hi, Helga.

[BREATHES HEAVILY]

And the last story, which I a-- so there's a lot going on in the world of superheroes. And all these are really good things. I'm super, super, super, excited to talk about it.

First of all, the first one is-- let me-- people have been fucking up her name all over the-- Javicia. Javicia is going to be playing the first Black, bisexual Batwoman. OK, sorry. I don't know if Batwoman will be bisexual. But Javicia identifies as a bisexual woman. Javicia Leslie. And I'm super, super, super, super, super excited.

First of all, she is absolutely stunning. When I get into drag and I wear black hair, this is what I think I look like, y'all. Like, when I look in a mirror, I'm like, oh, I'm Javicia Leslie. This is me. And then cut to here we are.

Ruby Rose, first in "Batwoman" on The CW. But she's stepping away from the role. They haven't disclosed why she's not coming back. But instead of like-- it's sort of like "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" doing it where one season, Aunt Viv was literally chocolate brown, Bob black. And then literally, the next season, she was like, Naomi Smalls. They were like, what? Nothing happened here!

CW is not doing that. They've written a brand-new character that they're going to be introduced her-- Javicia's character, her name is going to be Ryan Wilder. And she has never been in the DC universe at all. They're making her up brand new for The CW. And I'm smiling all through this because this is, like, all such great and beautiful stuff.

And they're describing her character as this. "Ryan is the most dangerous type of fighter, highly skilled, wildly undisciplined, an out"-- oh, she's an out lesbian. The character is a lesbian. "An out lesbian, athletic, raw, passionate, fallible, and very much not your stereotypical All-American hero."

Bitch, I fucking love this! I'm dressing up as her for Halloween. I don't care. I don't like Batman because he's such a basic, fucking superhero to me. But I like Javicia. I love, love, love the Black Batwoman. Oh, this is so good!

And another Black superhero, possibly, you know, we talked about Beyoncé maybe playing Storm. I honestly don't see a world where they would do that. But someone who is throwing their name in the ring is Janelle Monáe. Janelle Monáe wants to play Storm.

Now, this got confused. Because people were like, oh, the producer said. She's like, no, no, no, no, no, that's not what happened. While she was making "Dirty Computer," her last album, when she was filming the videos and stuff, they were also filming "Black Panther" in a nearby studio. So like, these are Blacks and celebs in the biz. So they went to hang out and stuff like that.

And she was like-- she said it to them. She was like, I would absolutely love to play Storm in "Black Panther 2." I don't know if it's going to be a thing. But you know-- I mean, I don't know if Storm is going to be in it. But I would love to do it.

I don't know how I feel about Janelle Monáe playing Storm. For some reason, I still see Lupita Nyong'o, which, by the way, obviously, Lupita Nyong'o was there when they were filming "Black Panther." And you know, allegedly, Lupita and Janelle were a thing. Do you think-- I think that's where they met, which, by the way, what a fucking hot couple. Like, work.

But yeah, in my mind's eye, I just see Lupita Nyong'o playing Storm. I don't see-- I just think-- I don't know. I just-- that's what I see for my life. And that's what I want. And I hope that that's what happens. But you know, I'll be happy with almost anybody they cast, with a few exceptions. But yeah, we'll see. TBD.

Our first guest knows his way around the biz but has really struck gold as the cultural attache of the new Fab Five. Welcome back, my friend, my home girl, my good friend of the show, Karamo Brown.

KARAMO BROWN: Hey, baby. How you doing?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Hello, my dear. How are you?

KARAMO BROWN: I am good. Like I just said before in our little pretalk, it seemed like me and you have not stopped working, even though everybody else has been on shut down, which I'm not complaining about. But baby, we been busy.

MONÉT X CHANGE: [LAUGHS] That's what I'm saying. We have really been interviewing, going at it, doing all the things. And like I was telling you, I'm not going to say no names, but I had some friends that just came back from PVR, Puerto Vallarta.

KARAMO BROWN: I just don't know how. I mean, I'm way too scary. Like, my whole system right now is like, OK, I just can't-- I'm couldn't imagine being on a flight. I couldn't imagine being around, like, 100 strangers on a beach. I just couldn't do it.

MONÉT X CHANGE: I'm not doing it. I am not doing it. But you know what? Not to say-- and not to be crazy, but they are of the Caucasian variety of folk.

KARAMO BROWN: I mean--

MONÉT X CHANGE: They're like, girl, we living well. I'm like, not me and not my black ass.

KARAMO BROWN: You know what? Hold on. I will say this because I thought it was all white folks that was doing this craziness. My cousin, and the cousin knows who she is, on her Instagram yesterday was in DC at some party. And I'm talking about it was nothing but Black folks who were between ages of 18 and 24 who were at this party.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Uh-uh.

KARAMO BROWN: It had been about at least 300 people there. No one had a mask on.

And I was like, girl, you are tripping right now. And she was like, well, no, no, no, I'm staying out of the way. And I was like, you do know this is airborne, right?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Hello?

KARAMO BROWN: I was just like, girl, you know this is airborne. Just because you're in the corner, girl, don't mean nothing. But you know, I think through more education, I think people will start to really understand the importance of protecting themselves and protecting others. And I have just have to continue to have faith, or my anxiety will take the best of me.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Agreed. Agreed. I want to-- and outside of corona and everything going on, obviously, we're seeing this really huge movement for Black Lives Matter. And it's been really great, really beautiful. How are you seeing it as-- you know, because you are the cultural expert with how Black Lives Matter and Pride this year? It was this really different energy this year. How would you describe it?

KARAMO BROWN: It was different energy and I think in a good way because as Black folks, we have been fighting forever, you know, about wanting equality, deserving equity. These things have been on the forefront of what we have said forever. And finally, for once, the world woke up.

And I think part of that is because people are at home. They were fatigued by all the coronavirus coverage. And they were like, oh, maybe we should start focusing on the fact that Black people have been abused and systemically treated wrong forever. And so I think it's been great.

What I think is most important, especially with that Pride piece, is that it woke up a lot of gay white folks who thought that they were not Karens, who thought they were not Kens because they were gay. And what we know to be true is that, within the LGBT community, there is racism. There is transphobia, and there is sexism.

And it is perpetuated in the club environment, in the non-profit environment, in all the environments where you can just walk into a space where it's supposed to be LGBTQ+ inclusive. And you're like, oh, we're missing the B. We're missing the Ts. We're also missing the Blacks, the Latinos, the Asians, disabled individuals. I mean, you just see it.

And the unfortunate part is that for too long, white men felt like, oh, there's no problem. Like, there's not history here. And I think because Pride fell in that month, they started to be challenged and started to say, hold on. As we're supporting the Black Lives Matter outside of our community, we need to also look within our community and see how can we change and grow.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah. Yeah. And you have your boys with you. How has this been with your boys, having this, like, really beautiful civil rights moment, like, today, and not from the '60s, but having the chance to share this civil rights movement with your kids?

KARAMO BROWN: I mean, it's really nice because just having-- obviously, raising Black boys, we understand the conversation that we had when we were younger. And I had the same conversation with them since they were younger. So it's nice to see that their generation is stepping up, doing what they need to do.

But I'm gonna be honest with you. As the protests were happening in LA, I wouldn't allow them to go out. I was like, nope.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Really?

KARAMO BROWN: I was like, no, I don't care if your friends are going. Corona is still out there. You know you're not about to-- and so they were a little mad at me for that because I was like, you can't go out there. But I was like, there's other ways to protest. And so what I tried to do was encourage them to be like, while your friends are out in the street, how about you call these representatives? How about you find these numbers and share them, send emails? Understand that this is a two-pronged fight and you can--

It's great to be in the street, getting awareness, demanding change. But it's also equally important that you're like, hey Representative So-and-so, that policy you passed, we're not up for it. We're petitioning. We're doing these things. And I think that's really important.

MONÉT X CHANGE: I will say this also. I think it's a parent thing. When I told my mom I was out there, she was like-- she said, Monét, please don't go out there. Stay home. And I'm like, no, Ma, I have to go. And Bob had similar coverage with his mom. His mom was like, what are you doing?

I think it's just the parent thing because you're seeing all the atrocities through the TV. You're like, I don't want to look up and see my son hemmed up by 19 cops on the pavement. Like, so I get it. I get it. You're a dad. It was intense.

KARAMO BROWN: Yeah, that probably as the dad in me that popped out, and I'm like, no, I need to protect you and save you. But it was a good lesson for them to learn that there's multiple ways to protest and to effect change. And so that was really good.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Speaking of change, I want to talk about your skincare line. Now, as-- people-- everyone is in the comments. They're like, oh, my god, Monét, your hair. I started using MANTL by Karamo Brown. And look at the result in just two short days. This is sprouting from my head.

KARAMO BROWN: Thanks. That is a special side effect for the bottles we sent you because we needed to make sure. Oh! [LAUGHS] But--

MONÉT X CHANGE: No, talk to us about MANTL. How was it birthed? And it did so well. Talk to us about MANTL.

KARAMO BROWN: Yeah, so really, it came out of a desire of my own personal struggles. I started going bald and started thinning about 28 and just was very ashamed because we know, like, in culture, if men start losing their hair, they start telling them they're not sexy, you're not going to be the life too long, you aren't desirable, all these things.

And I started to believe that. I was like, oh, if I'm supposed to be this boy that's supposed to look good, then I'm supposed to have, like, a full head of hair or a nice edge up. And it played with my mind to the point where this whole area right here-- I should have had not wore a hat today, but I was doing something else. But this area right here was thinning. And I used to, like, Bigen it in. You know, like, anybody who's not an African-American--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, my god. The Bigen!

KARAMO BROWN: The Bigen. I used to, like, draw--

MONÉT X CHANGE: You were drawing it. [LAUGHS]

KARAMO BROWN: I used to draw it in and have a little, you know, whatever. And the thing was that season 1 and 3 of "Queer Eye, you can see, it is completely Bigened. And like, it's funny because two things would happen. Either you could tell were I was sitting in the car because if we went through a bump, my head would be on the roof. It was like an map. Or as an episode would go through, you would see, like, it go from darker to lighter.

MONÉT X CHANGE: [LAUGHS]

KARAMO BROWN: It was a mess. And so one day, I had to really challenge myself and was like, why do I believe these narratives that me going bald is not attractive? What is wrong? Where's my self-esteem and where's my self love that me not having hair somehow means that I'm not going to have the life I want.

And so I called my best friend over. And I was like, bitch, I'm ready. He brought me a razor, and we shaved it. And then I went out on the "Queer Eye" red carpet premiere. And everyone was like, you look so good. And then I was, like, OK--

MONÉT X CHANGE: OK, so was the red carpet the first time that you went into the world bald?

KARAMO BROWN: First time. First time.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Wow, I didn't know that.

KARAMO BROWN: Yeah, because we had already shot the seasons. And then--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Got it.

KARAMO BROWN: But when I saw the-- when they played the episodes back of season 1 and 2 for us, I was so embarrassed of, like, I'm helping these people to live their best life, and I'm over here lying about my hairline.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Wow.

KARAMO BROWN: And so after the red carpet, I was, like, oh, I need products now because I got spots on my head.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah.

KARAMO BROWN: My head was-- all the things that come with it. And there was no products for bald or balding people. And so I was like, well, let me create a line that I would use that could moisturize, that can give me protection from the sun, that could be a great cleanser.

And so it was birthed out of my own experience. And literally, it has taken off, where Beyoncé put it up on her site.

MONÉT X CHANGE: I live.

KARAMO BROWN: --about a six-month Nordstrom's.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, I was about to say, no shade to the JCPenney's and the Sears. No, mama, we're at Nordstrom.

KARAMO BROWN: We at Nordstrom, baby! In store and all.

I'll tell you, when I got that call, I literally gagged because they were like, you know what? We've been waiting for someone to be honest about how beautiful it is to be bald. And all the women were on the call and the guys who were gay on the call, they were all like, I have never not dated a guy because he didn't have hair. I will tell you, I will not date him because he's a liar. I will not date him because he ain't got no money, he stays with his mama. These are reasons I won't date you. But the hair is never one of them.

And I was like, well, why are we perpetuating this story to men and women that if you're losing your hair, you ain't cute?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Hello.

KARAMO BROWN: And so I was like-- so that's how it came about. And it's just doing really well. So I'm super excited. So everybody out there, go get your products from Nordstrom.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah, got get your medicine, girl. I have not received a package. But I'm not-- that's not shade. I was literally-- Patti and I are getting an Uber. As soon as this call is done, we're going down to the Nordstrom on 34th because they just put one on 34th Street.

KARAMO BROWN: No, baby, no, no, no. No, no, no. I appreciate the support. I'm sending you some.

MONÉT X CHANGE: No, I'm not-- I'm gonna send the box back.

KARAMO BROWN: No, I thought I already sent you some because you were on my list.

MONÉT X CHANGE: I'm sending the box back.

KARAMO BROWN: No.

MONÉT X CHANGE: I'm sending the box back. When any of the girls send me their makeup and stuff, I'm like, no. I am an artist. I get it. Bitch, buy my shit. Patti and I are going to the Nordstrom, and we're gonna buy our stuff.

KARAMO BROWN: [LAUGHS] I appreciate that, boo.

MONÉT X CHANGE: And we also chatted on your podcast about Karamo. A lot of people out there-- because again, like you said, you and I have been working a lot in coronacation. And I did your podcast. And it was such-- thank you for having me on. It was such a genuine, honest conversation.

And I love doing interviews where the person clearly knows about me. No shade to any of you people out there. But you and I know, you do interviews. And you're like, really, you have me here, and this is the question you're going to ask me? Literally, you google it and I've answered that 95 times.

KARAMO BROWN: 95 times.

MONÉT X CHANGE: It was such the conversation about the racism and toxicity that exists in the "Drag Race" fam, amongst other things.

Did you start it because of corona or because you wanted something while you were quarantined at home? Or how was she birthed?

KARAMO BROWN: Yeah, well, you know, the opportunity-- first of all, I gotta say thank you to your episode because your episode has been a major success. And literally, your transparency about the racism and prejudice within the drag community, people forget this. And again, it's like what I said before is that people just assume because we're all part of this LGBTQ+ community, umbrella, that everything is rainbows. And it's not.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Sure ain't.

KARAMO BROWN: There is so much shade. You can see it, as you talked about, in social media numbers, how people follow us, deals and things. And people of color have to work harder and so many instances who are trying to game the same success from LGBT culture. And it's sad, but people need to hear it to understand that this is an issue.

But you know, the podcast came about because people from around the country were like, I need Karamo advice. And I was like, well, I would need to figure out a way to do it. So the first half of my podcast is there's a 1-800 number. Anybody can call in and speak to me. And then I'd pair some of the calls that I take with a celebrity. And we sort of have it where you're talking about, like, one consistent issue, but we're talking to the celebrity about their life, but we're also talking to multiple people. And so with your episode, that's what we do.

So it was sort of just birthed out of like, I want to help more people. And how can I get more people? 'Cause I ain't gonna invite you to my house. So let me get a phone phone number so you call me. And that's how it works.

MONÉT X CHANGE: I live, live, live, live. Because obviously, that is something you do so well on "Queer Eye." Do you feel like you go you're just going for an honest trip to-- I don't know-- to-- what is that department store in Los Angeles?

KARAMO BROWN: Which one?

MONÉT X CHANGE: Is it Vons?

KARAMO BROWN: Vons. Oh, you're talking about the grocery store.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah, you just going to the grocery store. People are like, OK, Karamo, I know you're just buying some apple juice, but I have to ask, yada, yada. Do you get that a lot in public?

KARAMO BROWN: Girl, all the time. I'm talking about in some of the weirdest places. Like, before corona shut down, I could be at the club. I'm trying to get-- I'm like, lit, OK? Because I do not try to pretend like I don't like a cocktail. I love a cocktail responsibly. And like, somebody comes up to me, and they're like, oh, my gosh, this is my moment to tell you about all my life issues. And I'm like, sitting there.

And I want to be respectful. But I'm like, girl, you don't hear Rihanna playing?

MONÉT X CHANGE: [LAUGHS]

KARAMO BROWN: I have a cocktail in my hand. I was--

MONÉT X CHANGE: It's on the replay, bitch.

KARAMO BROWN: OK, I'm gonna be on, like, this side, you know?

There's some times I've been in restrooms, and I'm trying to take a pee. And you know, as men, the way the stalls are set up, unless you go into an actual stall-- and people will be, like, standing next to me. And my thing out. They thing out. And they, like, telling me about how they mama had an issue. And I'm like, this ain't the time. I--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Not now, mama.

KARAMO BROWN: You put that up. I'll put mine up. And then we can maybe chat. Do you know what I mean? So it does.

On one end, I feel really honored that people feel that comfortable to tell me about their issues, and they know they can trust me. But on the other end, I do think we should practice more decorum. And so people shouldn't--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah, sure.

KARAMO BROWN: If we're both peeing, now is not the time.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Now is not that time.

KARAMO BROWN: Yeah.

MONÉT X CHANGE: And are you going into the juicy-- in "Queer Eye," you're kind of having this full circle moment because we all met you in "Real World Philly." And now, you're going back to Philly with "Queer Eye." What does that feel like to be arriving to Philly like boom, bitch, here I am?

KARAMO BROWN: OK. [LAUGHS] It felt good. Because when I was on "Real World," when I got off, they used to call me Crazy Karamo because I would cuss somebody out. And you know, I was young. I was in my 20s. And then now, I come back, and it's like Compassionate Karamo. And so I'm like, baby, this is called growth. This is-- you know, this is what we're seeing here.

But it felt good because I was able to come back with being successful as a father. So I just had a new perspective. And so it was nice to have that full circle moment and to be like, oh, I came back, and I did this city right. Because the first time, I was a mess. I was a mess.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah.

KARAMO BROWN: That was when-- what's Christina Milian's song? What was it called again? (SINGING) Dip it low?

MONÉT X CHANGE: (SINGING) Dip it low. Pick it up slow.

KARAMO BROWN: Let me tell you something, baby. I almost learned how to do the splits during that song because I was young and hot and in the club dipping it low every chance I got. And then this time, I went back, you know, wanting a glass of wine and, you know, procuring art.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Speaking of wind, you were having a little communion with the priest.

KARAMO BROWN: I was.

MONÉT X CHANGE: How do you tackle religion, Karamo? Are you like, religion, absolutely not? Are you like, on the fence because you had this interaction with a gay priest, I mean, with the priest in "Queer Eye."

KARAMO BROWN: Yeah, uh-huh, he was gay.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Right. OK.

KARAMO BROWN: Yeah. And so what it was-- for me, I actually do believe. I'm a Christian. I still identify. It was raised-- you know, I have a memoir, and I have a whole chapter on religion because one of the thing's for me-- and anytime I am faced with oppression, it actually forces me to educate myself even more.

And so if I'm in this space where I believe that god is love, and I was perfectly designed as I am, and then I walk into this space that is telling me that I'm not this, and if I am wrong for loving who I love, I need to really research this. And what I researched is, for anybody who want to go out there, the holy Bible does not say anything about gays, trans people being wrong. The verses that people try to use were about pedophilia, had nothing to do between consensual relationships.

And so I use that to say, if there are people in the community who want to not lose their faith or who want to have faith, it's OK. You know what I mean? Just be armed. And also, understand that if you're in a space that tells you you're wrong, that ain't a church for you. That church is not preaching what god would preach. You know what I mean? And so for me, it was an easy conversation to have because I understood his struggles. I understood what he went through.

But I'm also in a place where I accept anybody. Like, my son identifies as an atheist. And we have very transparent conversations about it. He's like, Dad, every time you pray, you sound stupid to me. Like, I don't understand what you're praying to.

And you know, when he was younger, when I gave him that privilege to be honest with me, I wanted to slap him in the mouth because that's how I was raised. And I was like what? OK, quick!

But now, I'm like, I gotta respect your point of view. And I think that's the journey of spirituality and the finding out who you are is for me, my spirituality is, yes, I love the lord, but I don't subscribe to organized religion. And for my son--

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah. The same. I'm the same.

KARAMO BROWN: Yeah. And so for my son-- and so I get what LGBT people go through because the church has been trying to damn us forever. They try to damn us as Black folk. They used to try to say the Bible says we should be slaves. And so people have always weaponized something that was supposed to be good for their negative purposes. And that's, you know, what I try to help people understand so they can educate themselves.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Karamo, you are just so good at things and life.

KARAMO BROWN: Thanks, baby. You, too. You're so smart. You're so beautiful.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Always such good conversations, so honest, so open, and so forthcoming. That's everything, always.

KARAMO BROWN: Can I say something? So on my podcast, I brought this up. And I'm trying to bring this up everywhere I go because I'm holding your ass accountable. This is my holding your ass accountable stick is, I said, next time you have a music video, if I am not your male video ho-- and I'm putting this out there-- I promise you, I'm gonna cuss you out.

MONÉT X CHANGE: [LAUGHS] I promise.

KARAMO BROWN: Everybody watching, if Monét comes out with one more video and she got one mo brother or somebody else in it that's not me, I'm gonna cuss you out.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Well, you know, I'm currently writing a new EP right now. And we just wrote this dope reggae joint. And we want to film it on location in Jamaica. So you will absolutely be the--

KARAMO BROWN: Baby, I'm Jamaican. Baby, you already know it.

MONÉT X CHANGE: I know. It's perfect timing. We are casting for Karamo. So I will definitely let you know. It will be really dope. Trust me. We're going to do it.

KARAMO BROWN: I know at the beginning of this, we both said we wouldn't get on a plane. That would be the moment that I would put on a mask and everything else for you, just to go back to the yard and come wind up--

MONÉT X CHANGE: (JAMAICAN ACCENT) To the yard. To the yard.

KARAMO BROWN: (JAMAICAN ACCENT) Let's go to the yard and wind up on Monét. What happened.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Karamo! Karamo, I love you so much. Thanks so much for being here as always. I would have you every day if would let me. So thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.

KARAMO BROWN: Anytime. I love you so much. Thank you for having me.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Love you, my dear. See you soon.

With the grand finale of "All Stars" season 5 soon descending upon us, I'm back to offer what little insight I have about becoming a winner.

Hey, y'all, it's your girl, Monét X Change, and welcome back to Expose. Bonjour, bitch.

I was feeling very frilly today. I wanted to give you guys a very busty, bimbo-daciously, Parisian look.

So I think I look gorgeous. And my friend, RC, is here with me too.

- Hi.

MONÉT X CHANGE: That voice-- this is her right here.

[LAUGHTER]

I'm really excited today because I'm going to show someone on camera. Colleen. Colleen. Kitty! Well, she's the same color of the green screen, so this may fuck it up. But I got Colleen in her sweater today. hi, baby. She looks so cute in her little sweater. I love her so much, my little angel.

No, don't eat the hair.

"All Stars" 5 is serving us the drama. These girls are so extra in the best way possible. So let's just jump right on in at the top of the episode.

Last week, of course, you know, the whole shady shit happened with India telling Shea that Alexis was starting to cool.

Fly in the receipts.

Basically, she's like, Alexis politely asked me, after we picked lipsticks, if I chose to send Shea home. So she kind of twisted the truth a little bit, which is very shady, Miss India Ferrah.

INDIA FERRAH: Lies, likes, and more lies.

MONÉT X CHANGE: You had all of us thinking that Alexis is a nasty, conniving, shady bitch. I was wrong, y'all. Alexis was telling the truth. And India--

INDIA FERRAH: Lies on top of lies.

MONÉT X CHANGE: At the top of the episode, Alexis is crying. I mean, she is-- well, not really crying. Those tears are very crocodile. I ain't seen nothing fall from her eyes. God, this is just so--

[SNIFFING]

I was like, girl, where are the tears?

And yes, I get it because India twisted the truth, and it vilified on Alexis. All the girls in the workroom, in the back of their mind, they're all thinking Alexis is nasty, she's shady, and she's next.

Miss Blair is interjecting her truth, talking about that she was at the bottom four times. Well, at least India had a fucking win, baby. What you got?

The challenge this week is a ball, using materials that you find at a barbecue. All of these-- well, most of these girls sew. From past balls, they've all had fierce, fucking looks.

Honestly, this is, like, one of my favorite "Drag Race" looks of all time. Because y'all know me. I'm the streetwear girl. And like, bitch, I could see myself in this outfit. Bitch, I might just get it remade. Fuck it.

So now, in the workroom, as predicted, Jujubee is struggling. Although, you think back to all the "Drag Race" seasons, they had to create a lot of stuff.

Did Juju have bad runways back then?

JUJUBEE: Oh my gosh.

MONÉT X CHANGE: She's back there struggling with her machine. She can't figure out why the fabric won't go through the machine, why the needle won't go through the fabric. Again, here's Shea, offering up some advice, helping out the queens.

Then some of the girls discover that India left them letters. Alexis lets Jujubee read her letter. And in India's letter, she's talking about some, open your heart. I'm like, bitch, you a liar. You is a liar. I'm not opening up my heart to you. No.

Jujubee is having this emotional, come-to-Jesus moment with Ru, but she ain't saw nothing yet. I be like, Ru, this is all cute, fine, and dandy. But I gots to go because else, you're ass gonna send me home.

We also see Blair being very braggadocious about her fashion skills and her eye and this, that, and the other.

- Blair, Blair, Blair.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Now, Blair is serving us very fierce looks this season. I wouldn't categorize Blair as one of the fashion girls. And Cracker is calling her out on it in a confessional 'cause she ain't doing it in person because she ain't that bitch.

MIZ CRACKER: I knew you were.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Like, she's the fucking Anna Wintour of drag.

Why can't this frenemy fake friendship between Alexis and Shea-- every episode, they act like nothing has happened. When everything is coochie crunch, girl, they cool, cool, cool. I would be giving her the full side eye. I'd have been like, no.

- Which part did you understand?

MONÉT X CHANGE: What? And now the runway.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Our next guest has been a prominent voice in the political scene since she started her career in 1997. You may know her from "The New York Times" bestseller list or her nearly decade-long contributions on MSNBC. Y'all, please welcome the fabulous Joy Reid.

JOY REID: Hey, Monét. It's Joy. How are you?

MONÉT X CHANGE: I'm good, Joy. How are you?

JOY REID: I'm good. I'm happy to talk to you. I was saying earlier that my daughter is a little jealous because she [AUDIO OUT], and she's probably the biggest fan of "RuPaul's Drag Race" in the world. But I love you guys, too. So thank you all so much for having me on.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh my god, of course. And same for you.

OK, so before I got to on the show, every Sunday morning, before I went to my church gig, I would go to the gym on Sunday morning. And you would be in the locker rooms every Sunday. And I'd be like, ooh, yes, joy better let him know, honey.

JOY REID: [LAUGHS]

MONÉT X CHANGE: It was always so good. You are so-- sorry, I have a little lipstick on my teeth. You're always so good, so fierce, so amazing. And I'm so, so happy you are here.

How is everything going COVID? But you're still working through it.

JOY REID: I'm still working through it. I mean, the thing is-- I've actually adapted to this era pretty well because I like being home, you know? We-- I'm a New York girl. I was in New York for a long time. But we bought a house out in the DMV, out in the woods a few years ago.

And at first, I didn't adapt to it really easy because I liked being in the city. I liked being close to restaurants and theater. I'm very much a city person.

But now, I have really become ensconced in my little country environment. I'm like a farmer now. I'm like, I'm out here in the middle of nowhere. I love it. And I'm working from my basement. They built a little studio in my basement, where I can broadcast from.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Nice.

JOY REID: And I'm like, I can do this. This is fine for me. It's working.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, can we please call MSNBC to come into my one-bedroom apartment and build me a studio, please?

JOY REID: Yes. And they will build you one where you will not realize. Like, people are watching Rachel Maddow and everybody and not realizing that people are at home.

MONÉT X CHANGE: At home.

JOY REID: And you can't tell. It's so seamless. You can't even tell. So--

MONÉT X CHANGE: That is amazing. I am literally filming on a second generation iPhone potato. So you know, I hope the quality is good enough for you.

JOY REID: It looks good to me. I mean, your background is great. It looks fabulous.

MONÉT X CHANGE: So you say you're from New York. I just realized. We have a connection you don't even know. I was born and raised in East Flatbush, and you lived in Flatbush.

JOY REID: I was born in St. Mary's Hospital in East Flatbush, New York. Yes, I was born in Brooklyn. So yes, you are-- listen, we are from the same hometown. But I had moved to Denver when I was two. So I grew up in Denver.

But being from New York was so great for a nerdy kid. It was the best anti-getting-a-beat-down defense in the whole world. You know, she's from Brooklyn, so maybe she is tougher than she seems, you know? So don't mess with her. So I always use it as a badge of honor that I was a Brooklyn girl, even when I was in Denver.

But yes, I lived in both New York and Denver probably amount the same amount of time. Once I got older, I moved back to New York.

MONÉT X CHANGE: You moved back to New York. And you went to Harvard. And people don't-- I want people to know this about you because people hear people go to school. And people be like, I can't do it. You went to Harvard University, and you paid your way, working through school.

JOY REID: I did. Yes.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Can you please talk to us briefly about that experience and what that was for you? Because people don't know how you can go to Harvard too. But you worked for it.

JOY REID: I worked for it. I mean, like I said, I'm a proud nerd. And my mom always believed in us. You know, my sister went to Brown University.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Wow.

JOY REID: Before me, there was one other kid from our school that had gone to Harvard. So there had been a couple of kids who had gone to Ivy League schools. So I was not afraid. I applied to everywhere. I didn't get into Stanford, but I got into the other ones I applied to.

And you know, my mom, in her West Indian attitude, was, (CARIBBEAN ACCENT) if you get into Harvard, you better go. You have to go. Oh, my gosh, you get into Harvard. I'll be so proud. You're going to go to Harvard. I'm so excited.

But my mom, unfortunately, did not live to see me go. She passed away, like, 22 days, from cancer, before I started to go. Harvard is-- it's obviously-- it's got all this name recognition and everything. But there is also a sort of cut-throat brutality to the school. When I got into this school, my mom passed, and my father was absentee. He was back in the Congo. They had divorced. They passed the bill that would've been the parents' bill onto me.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Wow.

JOY REID: So I had to pay my own way while the people I went to school with could do three unpaid internships in the summer. I had to work.

MONÉT X CHANGE: You had to work.

JOY REID: I had to work. I was temping back when temping was a thing.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, my god, temp agencies and all that stuff, yeah.

JOY REID: Temp agencies. See so I was temping. I waited tables at the Marriott Marquis. I was a banquet server, carrying all those big banquet trays. I drove a shuttle bus. I was a shuttle bus driver, driving all these little rich kids to class, little snotty nose rich kids. I'm driving for them. I washed blackboards. I taped classes.

So I worked. I worked my whole way through school and paid my own way. And then when I came out, I had to pay-- I actually graduated with not that much debt. I graduated with about $22,000 in debt.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, bless you. I literally have maybe 10 times that.

[LAUGHTER]

JOY REID: Tuition is a thing. I mean-- right now-- the tuition when I went there was $22,000, so I probably had $23,000, $24,000, $25,000 in debt. It's $50,000 now, and it's the same--

MONÉT X CHANGE: That is crazy. And I mean-- and I would say that that hard work translated itself to your career because now, you are the only-- the African-American woman to have a primetime slot on MSNBC.

JOY REID: Yeah.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Did you see this coming? Or is this a surprise to you?

JOY REID: You know what's so funny? And it sounds really corny. But back in 2004, after I quit the news-- I used to work at a local NBC affiliate in Miami. And I was a digital news producer before that. I had been a morning show writer-producer. And I had a career that could have been really successful.

But I really opposed the Iraq War. I just thought it was wrong. I wrote an op-ed that they put my work address on it. "The Miami Herald" acted as my work address.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, accidentally? That sounds so shady, Joy.

JOY REID: Very shady.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Accidentally.

JOY REID: They accidentally put my name and my work email. And I almost got fired for writing this op-ed.

But my co-worker is this older white guy named Ike Seamans, who was a mentor. He stood up for me. He was like, don't let them back you down. You have your First Amendment rights. Stick to your principles.

So my principle was, I quit. I quit the news business in 2003 because I opposed the war. Went and worked on campaigns. I ultimately worked on the 2004 campaign trying to get rid of George W. Bush.

And when we lost-- I'm sorry. I'm slowly answering the question. But when we lost--

MONÉT X CHANGE: No, please.

JOY REID: Yeah, when we didn't beat George W. Bush, I had to start all over because I no longer had a TV career.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Right.

JOY REID: I no longer had a column in the "Herald" because I was now considered too partisan to write a column. And so I had to start over.

And so in 2004, after the election was over, I wrote a dream board. And I put on my dream board all the things that I dreamed that I wanted to do. And on there was appear on "Hardball" as a guest, appear on "Meet the Press" as a guest, write a bestselling nonfiction book, write columns again. I had all this stuff on it.

I didn't put "host a TV show." But I always admired people like Gwen Ifill, and she was like an idol to me. And I always thought, you know, if ever I'd make it to the point where I can be like her and host on TV, I put that down. And you know what? It really came true. So it's not like I planned at MSNBC to get a show like this. But it was enough in my realistic dreamscape that I believed in it. And I really do believe in that power of spirit, that if you really-- you can speak things into existence that you want.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah. And now, with this new slot, I've read lots of articles about it. And people are saying, obviously, this is a monumentous thing to be the first, the only African-American woman to do it. Do you see the tide shifting for Black and brown news anchors in your field, for the primetime position?

JOY REID: No. Absolutely. And you know this. Because Monét, you've been in that position of being the first to win-- you know what I mean? There's a responsibility that you feel. OK, I'm through this door, right? And so it's a huge responsibility. It's a huge opportunity. But I feel like what the responsibility is twofold. It's one, to do well, right? And to represent the communities that I care about, that are important, that are part of my life well.

But the second one is to pull as I push, you know, is that how much can I push that door open for new voices, for non-traditional voices, for issues that people don't normally talk about on the evening news, that don't get play, even on the liberal, MSNBC?

So I'm like, I need to be responsible to pull as many people through that door as I can. And if I do that, then I think I've done a good job.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yeah. And going-- if we look-- and obviously, right now, we're in a very-- what I think is a very beautiful time. We are seeing this is this new era of civil rights activism going on and Black Lives Matter. This year, we saw a really beautiful intersection of Pride and Black Lives Matter.

JOY REID: Yes.

MONÉT X CHANGE: How have you seen the landscape? And how will-- on "The ReidOut," premiering July 20, how do you see bringing those Black and brown and queer voices to "The ReidOut"? Is that something that you'll be interested in?

JOY REID: Yeah, absolutely. You know, my daughter is a very proud member of the LGBT community. So you know, and supporting her has really grown my mindscape of what the possibilities are. I mean, she could not have lived the life that she can now when I was a kid. It would just not have even been possible. And I have friends that I look back on now that were LGBT who never could admit that and even live openly.

And you think for young people now, even the fact that "RuPaul's Drag Race" is on TV is revolutionary. You think of-- you know what I mean? It just wouldn't be possible a generation earlier. So this young generation, to me, they are so smart, so bold, so open. They're pushing the society further than it has ever gone, ever.

But there are still a lot of issues out there. And as you said, this year, Pride has been very much mixed with the Black Lives Matter movement because you have things like the Black trans murder spree. It's like a epidemic of murders. I used to be in Miami. And people think of Miami as being this really friendly to the LGBT community. But there's a lot of problems there and a lot of those murders are in Florida. So I mean, those are the kind of issues that I feel like nobody really talks about that as much. They talk about the progress. But there are a lot of issues that still need to be discussed.

And we actually had a meeting today with the team where one of the things that we talked about is, where can we find those voices of young activists who are actually doing the work and put them on TV? Because we always put older, newsy people. But we never put on the real people doing the work. So I'm going to really try to do that.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Ah, Joy, can I just-- I am-- to hear you, this amazing Black woman, talk about it, literally, I have goosebumps up and down my spine. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. That means the world to me to hear you speak about this. Thank you so much.

JOY REID: Absolutely.

MONÉT X CHANGE: [LAUGHS] Now, and another thing that you're known for is the way that you infuse your-- I guess the word is-- I don't know. You have this, like, joyous, vivacious light with serious topics. Where does that come from? And how does one do that when speaking of issues?

JOY REID: It's hard. I mean, well, first of all, my name is Joy. So I was born with the ability to be happy, right? [AUDIO OUT].

Because I'm very cynical. I mean, I consider myself a joyous cynic because I can see the world very cynically. You know, I expect things to go wrong a lot of the time, but I plan for fixing it. You know what I mean? I try to have a plan.

But I don't necessarily-- you know, I look at the way this country is right now as glass half full, glass half empty. We have-- what's been exposed in the last four years is not surprising to me. I'm glad that it's come to the forefront, that we are what we are dealing with.

But look what we're dealing with? You know, we're going back to not even the '50s but the 1920s with some of the attitudes people have toward members of the community, who are going to be the majority. I mean, the reality is that what the left has won-- the culture wars are over. We're in an insurgency right now. The culture wars are done.

I think that for those of us to understand that the new world is going to be young, it's going to be diverse, it's going to be LGBT-friendly, people are going to have more rights, have the equal rights to the white Christian men who created the country, it's still a fight. It's still a fight. And I don't think that fight is going to end even if the administration changes in Washington. So it's going to be difficult.

I've completely forgotten your question because I'm now rambling.

[LAUGHTER]

MONÉT X CHANGE: And moving forward to the election in November, it's a very big day, which if you are watching this, and you have not registered to vote, please, please, please, before you turn around, it's going to be September. After that, it's going to be Halloween. And November is going to be right away. So register to vote if you're watching had you haven't.

JOY REID: Please. And do your census form. Please do your census form.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Yes. OK, and I'm guilty. I have not done it yet. But you just reminded me. I am literally going to stop it and do it after this.

JOY REID: Yes. Completely.

MONÉT X CHANGE: I am going to do it, yes, yes, yes. And people don't realize that with the census form, that's where a lot of changes happen in the census. And people don't even realize that. And Id didn't.

JOY REID: It's money. It's literally the money in the bank for your community. And every person who doesn't fill it out, that's money being drained out of your schools, your roads, your bridges, you know.

And you want to talk about defund the police, if you want your mayor to have the power to change your community, you need to do the census so your mayor has some money, that your congressman has some money. They need finances to change the country. And who gets hurt are the Black mayors with Black communities, the brown mayors, the Indigenous community, that's who gets hurt when we don't do the census.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Do the census. Yes, everyone, do your census and register to vote.

JOY REID: Right.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Going forward to Election Day, what do you think is the biggest thing that we can do as a community to help ensure victory in November?

JOY REID: Yes. So every senior citizen in your life, get them the application to vote by mail. Most seniors over 60 can vote without any excuse by mail. I got them for my godmother and her husband in New York. Sent those off to her. You don't even need a stamp usually to mail them in, but send them a stamp anyway, just in case, to make sure it gets it. So send it. Make it real easy for your seniors.

Everyone who can vote by mail, please vote by mail. So number one, register. Make sure that everyone you know is registered.

I threatened my kids. I have three kids. They all vote. They're all over 18. And the phone bill, there'll no phone. There will be no money in the account. There will be no phone.

MONÉT X CHANGE: That's how you get them, Joy. No phone, no Instagram, no Facebook until you vote.

JOY REID: Nothing. Cut you off your TikTok. No more TikTok. You have to vote. And I want a picture.

I don't only just vote. If you go and look on my Instagram, if you scroll through, you'll see pictures of my kids on Election Day with the little "I voted" sticker on because I want receipts. I want proof.

MONÉT X CHANGE: [LAUGHS]

JOY REID: And I keep telling people that I need to see that sticker.

MONÉT X CHANGE: [LAUGHS]

JOY REID: So I think if you could just get everyone you can to vote. Because here's the thing. There is a foreign country that does still want to mess up our election. Russia has not stopped. It is real.

I just interviewed Malcolm Nance. I do a podcast called "What to Read" where I interview authors. I just interviewed Malcolm Nance today. And he was talking about the fact that Russia is still trying to mess up our election.

And you know, Monét. This is such an important thing for our community. They really targeted Black people. Black voters were one of the main targets the last time. So please, please, please, we have to vote in huge numbers.

The election cannot be close. When it's close, they can steal it. If it's not close, they cannot. So let's not make it close. Let's vote, please.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Vote, vote, vote. Joy, I could talk to you forever. You are just such a beautiful mind, such a beautiful spirit, heart, soul, everything. Thank you so much for being here.

And y'all don't know this. There was so much stuff going on. Joy got in here, and she is-- I'm just very grateful you're here. And this is an honor to talk to you and chat about "The ReidOut."

JOY REID: Yes. Well, Monét, thank you so much for having me on. You're wonderful. And I was saying to you earlier that I might look to take that hairstyle because that is-- that is cute. I need to look for a look.

But I will have different look. That's one thing I can announce. And this is exclusive to your wonderful podcast. I'm gonna a whole new look on Monday that you will not see until Monday. So please do not miss the debut on the 20th because you'll see my [AUDIO OUT].

MONÉT X CHANGE: OK, Joy. I can't wait to see this look.

JOY REID: My glam spot. I'm bringing it in. We're gonna have masks on. It's gonna be very safe. We're gonna have full masks.

But they're about to redo my whole look. So it's going to be exciting. I can't wait to see what they're going to do. I don't even ask them. I just let them create.

MONÉT X CHANGE: All right. I'm excited. Well, just in case, I am going to take this off my head as soon as we're done, and I'm going to send it to you so you can have it as a backup, just in case.

JOY REID: I love it. I absolutely love it. Thank you for bringing me on.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Thank you so much, Joy. And have-- stay safe. Stay healthy. And congratulations on "The ReidOut."

JOY REID: Thank you so much. Yay, Thank you, Monét. Thank you. Bye.

MONÉT X CHANGE: Oh, yeah, girl, what a good conversation. what an amazing guest. The fact to have someone like Joy Reid, who I love-- like, I literally have watched her on TV for a very long time, Sunday mornings before church-- it was just great to have her be obsessed about me. I've made it, Mom. I've made it!

It's really good to be back here at "X Change Rate." Thank you guys for always loving me, and tuning in, and supporting the show. And I promise, I'll never go away again. Well, except when I go on vacation again. It's four weeks. But we'll talk about it then.

Love y'all. And always, remember to keep your currency in check, bitches. Peace!

[KISSES]