Kisses from Kenya Episode 11: Has the Sky Fallen Before?

Premiered on 13 Apr 2026  Kisses From Kenya

EPISODE 11: Has the Sky Fallen Before?

Is what's happening in America truly unprecedented - or have we been here before? Vuyanzi and Brendan pull back the lens on patterns of injustice, the centering of whiteness in political outrage, and the question of who gets to be shocked. Fair warning: the cynicism is showing, and we're not sorry.

In this episode:

• Whose America Is It Anyway? - ICE, CBP crime statistics, and the headlines making us pause
• Lost in Translation - natural scent, cultural memory, and a story about what it means when your body is the controversy
• Deep Dive - the centering of white reactions to injustice: who says "I can't believe this" and why that matters
• Queer & Black Joy - IShowSpeed and the joy of discovering artists you didn't know you needed

Democrats Abroad Kenya | Expat politics | African diaspora podcast | Black American abroad | Queer diaspora | ICE and immigration | U.S. politics from abroad | Nairobi expat

Kisses from Kenya is the podcast for Americans living abroad who haven't stopped paying attention. Subscribe and hit the bell so you don't miss an episode.

#KissesFromKenya #DemocratsAbroad #BlackDiaspora #AmericanAbroad #Expat #QueerJoy #ICE #Immigration #NairobiPodcast #AfricanDiaspora

Transcript

Vuyanzi 0:06

Hey, Kisses from Kenya is produced by Democrats Abroad Kenya, but everything you hear in this podcast reflects our personal perspectives.

Brendan 0:20

Yes. Nothing we say should be taken as the official stance of Democrats Abroad Kenya, Democrats Abroad Global, or the Democratic Party. And this is an entertainment space and not an official policy platform.

Vuyanzi 0:33

Thank you. And running around something like saying, the sky is falling, the sky is falling. And I feel like he and Goosey Loosey. Oh my gosh. Oh, making me miss Nana. And I feel like that's what people are talking about. So we're looking today at patterns of injustice and the reactions to it. So I'm just saying. Yeah.

Brendan 1:06

Well, yeah. Welcome to Kids From King It's Day. We're diving into the question. Like you were saying, has the sky fallen before? And if so, on whom?

Vuyanzi 1:20

So you guys, uh, if you're detecting an air of cynicism on today's show coming from me, uh, it's it is it is cynicism, but we're going to press on. Um, yeah.

Brendan 1:32

Well, and on that point, no need to delay our first segment, which is whose America is it anyway?

Vuyanzi 1:38

Yeah, and let's just get into our own thing. The whole thing. Yeah, yeah, we'll get into it.

Brendan 1:42

Yeah, and it may not be that, but we have a few to look at. Um, another way out, power of force, and far right, rewards for killing, which is about the far right's complicity and state violence. We have thousands of anti-ICE protesters take to the US streets in day of action. And we have this one was interesting. It takes on a Democrats need to know to truly reform IES, which to me comes with a big asterisk of can it be reformed. Um could you reform the Nazis Drum Trooper?

Vuyanzi 2:29

Well, well, okay.

Brendan 2:31

Well, they tried to, and then we got right back into the yo.

Vuyanzi 2:35

I just want to say this. You and and we've read those headlines. However, there was something you said to me, and I'd love for you to expound on that. We were getting ready for a Democrats abroad event, and so um you sent me a message, and you said, um, you know, we want to be careful about we were doing a moment of silence, however, you were talking about not want to be careful, isn't it? It was something bad.

Brendan 2:59

I just I noticed how it was framed in the proposed agenda. That was okay.

Vuyanzi 3:04

Yeah, and but you said something very important that people are talking about because I've seen it and I've felt it before about the centering of white folks in this injustice. Now, granted, okay, other things have happened, but I want you to talk a little bit about that um and what you're seeing, because this was something I felt before I started seeing the Instagram post. Yeah. But let me be quiet, you go.

Brendan 3:31

No, I mean I think that um I mean, there's so many things to say, right? One of which is like at some point, like the fucking chickens come home to roost, which is like where we're at. Um but I think, you know, I mean, there's always been this kind of weird dynamic around it, right? Because I even remember like in Batroge when we were protesting during like Alton Sterling, like after Alton Sterling was killed by the police. And you know, like there was this, I mean, there there was like a group of like white progressives that were like at the protest, they were like, no, like we need to get in front, like put our bodies in front. Like that's the like that's the point. Like, we can't expect black people to be on the front line.

Vuyanzi 4:21

Wow, wow.

Brendan 4:22

Which like I think like something like that is a way that you can physically censor yourself because it aligns with you know like the paradigm of what you're talking about, like that's putting practice, you know, from theory into action. Yeah, but I think when you look at what's happening with like the ice killings, it's like you know, all of a sudden this white woman gets shot. And like, no, like obviously, like you said on the last episode, like we were gonna be making jokes, and like it doesn't take anything away from like how sad the thing is. Right, right. Like, I have nothing against Renee Good, I have nothing against Alex Party, like yeah, but like also like both of their names are on the tip of my tongue because I know them because they've been all over the headline, right? And so, you know, when I saw the dialogue coming out about like, okay, but also like Keith Porter is a black man who was killed by ice. Yeah, why isn't it in yeah, you know, yeah, and like of course, like I think there's the cynical take, which is like because we're used to black people being killed by police forces, so it's like not news making anymore.

Vuyanzi 5:30

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Brendan 5:31

Which is like straight up, yeah, cynical but honest. Yeah, but it's also like why do why do you know why do you fellow white people only pay attention when like it's us getting shot? Because like on top of that, even like when I was just like when I saw that we were thinking about doing like the moment of silence, and I only saw those two names there. Of course, keyporter came to mind because that's the one that's been circulating on Twitter. Yeah, yeah. I refuse to call it that other name.

Vuyanzi 5:59

I I actually left my account, I won't go back on it. I just have my people on there.

Brendan 6:05

Um but like also like I was just doing some like Googling because I was like, I I want to educate myself on the statistics because I honestly don't know because it's not presented in the media.

Vuyanzi 6:19

Yeah.

Brendan 6:20

And it's like, I mean, dozens of like you know, Latinx people have also been killed. Like a lot of them are not even named because it's just like an undocumented Mexican man was shot by like ice at like this blah blah blah. So it's just one of those where I mean I I think the the challenging thing about doing coalition work is like you have to make space for everyone, and every like everyone inherently comes to the table out of self-interest, right?

Vuyanzi 6:54

Like we know that like that's what like all that's what life kind of is about, even relationships.

Brendan 6:59

If there's we want something, and so like while I'm not gonna like knock that fact, and it's like you need like a wide variety of people to be in a movement for it to have success in a country as diverse as the US, and like you also unfortunately, with the current power structure that we have, do need like white voices in that conversation. Yeah, yeah. Like, yeah, I'd also think it's valid to like question like why do you guys only show up when it's like well, I mean, this this is I was thinking about this, right?

Vuyanzi 7:34

When when people were saying, How could this be happening in America? I'm like, bitches, it's been happening, and I'm using bad grammar on purpose. It's been happening in America since the beginning of America. So, like, why are we so surprised? Oh, because they're white. So that's and and again, and I still want to reiterate this, not to demean, no one's life is being demeaned here. However, it is the re-response or the reaction to it. Now, great, I'm glad that um, and and be even before those killings, during like let's say the first several months of Trump being president, I don't know if this appeared on your feed. However, on my Instagram feed, what was starting to happen was they were like, while the world is going crazy, here are black people, and they have the black people line dancing, like being hashtag unbothered. Like we did our part, we've marched our parents' marched, great grandparents, grandparents, great-grandparents marched, people have gotten bit by dogs. Um, my literally, my grandmother could only work in as a domestic worker or picking uh tobacco in the fields of North Carolina at a certain point in time. So it's like, okay, we've done our bid, and now with with as you know, white folk are getting killed and everything, and it's just like were all you got, did you guys march before? Were you guys there before? And um, and I I shout out to this one though, shout out to Pierremont, New York, and I have to shout out the village that I grew up in and that I lived in before I moved here. Because after um the killing of so many people were killed, you're gonna have to take this part out because when I'm thinking of him, George Floyd, sorry. People were angry, white folks. So now in that in that village, it's like 90% white, something like that, maybe 85. I don't know. But the white folk were really mad, and they're very liberal, right? Yeah, and I did a speech, which I we gotta um tag this speech, it's on YouTube that I did uh about it. However, I was at least happy at that time. Now no one was in, you know, there was no tear gas and and no ice being, but I saw that it was majority of white people oh no, we were getting shot by shout sound cannons and shit down there.

Brendan 9:57

What is a they don't play it? They're like, no, you get off the street. We tried to go on the highway. What? It's like I forgot that I wasn't in Oakland for a minute.

Vuyanzi 10:06

Jesus. But but and now though it's just like where are our priorities? Are can okay, if they're now here, can they stay here even if it's even if the white killing of white people stop, right? So so the thing is, and also it reminds me of Fire Next Time by James Baldwin. I don't remember a lot about that book, but there was something very interesting he said about liberal white people. He said they'll help you until you're facing eye to eye to them, and then it's like, what are you doing here? I'm confused. You're down there, and I'm helping to raise you up. So anyway, I But not quite to my left. Yeah, like here, nose level, maybe. But it was just interesting, and I'm I'm using all different things because can you imagine my mind? I'm trying to do my best to make something clear, and I don't even know the point I'm making, but I know that over this I have felt sadness, I have felt frustration. Um, and I hear Michael Jackson's song playing in my mind saying they don't give a damn about us um in all of this. The black and brown people, I actually more more um Latinx people have appeared on my Instagram feed, yeah, that I had no clue that they so even inherent racism. We talked about that in another episode, like the way the country is even built, the media not saying the names of the people, but but you know what all you know the white people look like, and everyone's important. So show show no one or show everyone, say everyone's name or say no names. So anyway, you know, I'm getting off on that. Sorry.

Brendan 11:50

I think what's what's interesting about it though is like I I do think in some ways that like that's a tactic, right? Because like the fact of the matter is that it's like we all like all of us as minority groups in our own respects have to show up for each other because that's when we actually have the majority. And so it's like, you know, as much as you know, like I've seen a lot of like uh chatter online, both on Instagram and Twitter, where it's like talking about, you know, like you have like a section of black Americans that are like this is y'all's issue, like yeah, and they're like boots on the ground, but then you have other people that are like y'all, like be aware because like we're next, yeah, yeah. So it's like you have to show up when it's not your fight because next is gonna be your fight. And like, but that's the thing, right? It's like the powers that be know that, and so it's like, well, if we do this in a way that now makes people upset and causes them to pull out of this like coalition, then you know, the coalition falls apart, and then we just stay in the world where we are. So Lord have mercy, you know. I I think it's one of those like because I I was talking with a I won't name any names. Um I was talking with a friend who was having I think some similar issues with being in a space that was like a lot of white women talking about stuff that's going on, right? And you know, of course, I I'm also white, right? So I'm like, I have a certain threshold for my people because I grew up with that. Yeah, yeah. Um and I was like, you know, I like I understand where you're coming from, I understand the frustration. Yeah, and I I was like, you know, I think my push to you is also the same push that I have to myself when I'm like dealing with like, for instance, talking like with my straight Kenyan friends about like LGBTQ issues where like we're literally, you know, yeah, very opposite, yeah, yeah, yeah. On like what we know and think. Like it's like you have to figure out how to like see your discomfort, like see your distaste, and also like kind of almost like it's like a wad of chewing tobacco, like stick it up there in like the corner of your mouth so you don't lose the flavor because like you don't want to forget it, but it's also like we got shit to do, so it's like how do you how do you kind of balance those in a way that you can keep pushing towards like the ideal vision, which doesn't have these dynamics, but also make space to like work with someone that's triggering you in that way.

Vuyanzi 14:34

And I don't know that I have like a good answer for it, but that would be the million-dollar answer if you had a good answer. That's million dollars, and take it to the streets. Um, I guess, but going back to you just said something, we have shit to do. Yeah, there's there's work regardless of how I feel, there's work that has to be done.

Brendan 14:56

Um well they're depending on you to get beat down and then withdrawn.

Vuyanzi 15:00

Yeah, yeah. And and it's easy. It's easy because some days you're like, really, the world is crazy, especially these days, right?

Brendan 15:08

Because it's like, I feel like I was having a conversation with someone the other day about like, you know, um, what was it? Oh, it's like a friend of mine who does like spiritual work, spiritual life coaching type of stuff.

Vuyanzi 15:24

And oh, you told me about this person.

Brendan 15:27

I was sending her, you know, there was a reel that was like this guy like calling out a bunch of these like kind of new wave influencers that are like silent on everything that's going on. And you know, I was like, you know, my reflection is like a lot of people that do these practices that are centered on like Eastern spirituality and like yoga and meditation and mindfulness. I'm like, you guys love to forget the fact that like Buddhists are like some of like the most radical like social justice-oriented people in the world, like because their entire belief around like like my self-equilibrium is tied to like the equilibrium of like my people. Wow, which is why they're the ones like setting themselves on fire, and like there's a group that's like walking from Texas to DC. Yes, yes, yes, yes, like all the like and so as soon as you take like spirituality and meditation and and all of that, and like turn it into this thing where it's like only focus inward, and it's like your self-piece is more important than it's not.

Vuyanzi 16:34

It's distorting what it was all about in the first place, right?

Brendan 16:36

But again, that's a tactic, right? It's like if I can get people to become individualistic, then nothing's gonna change because we're all divided.

Vuyanzi 16:49

Okay, let's I I'm feeling beat down in this conversation. Um, so a little bit of a shift here. And I more than a bit of a shift, but moving on to last in transition as we talk about the fact that the world is falling apart around me. I know, and no, because I feel no, but even in this conversation, as much as I'm enjoying it, I'm feeling like drained by it. Like, what the f like, well, we have to go out there and and make sure that we're doing things, and that's why we are members and we are active in the Democratic uh Party abroad. Um Yeah.

Brendan 17:27

I mean, it's it's one of those where, you know, I was thinking about this actually. I don't know if it was on my way here. At some point today, I was like riding around the back of a voter, which is usually my think time. It's like that and in the shower. Because it's like I don't have anything to say. Without a helmet. Sorry, Mom. Um and I was I was like, what's crazy is like like the one thing that is annoying me actually was like one of the headlines that we're looking at. Like the Democratic Party, right? Like, we are the opposition, and I feel like we're not acting like no, we're not radical enough, right?

Vuyanzi 18:04

Holy shit, we are the opposition. Yo, when you just say it like that, it almost feels like a shift. Yeah. Because what does the opposite the opposition is known to be rebels? This is like our type of fucking good trouble. Yeah, maybe we need to watch that movie again. Um, Good Trouble. Yeah. Wow. We're the opposition. So what does the opposition party do? We burn shit down. We burn the burn.

Brendan 18:33

It's like when you feel like beat down, it's like, no, motherfucker, I'ma beat you down. No, for real. Oh, the overthrow of the government.

Vuyanzi 18:44

Let me not call it that. I know, you know where we are.

Brendan 18:47

Don't throw us in the back of a bag.

Vuyanzi 18:50

Uh imagine. Well, I wake up in our cell and no. Uh uh, no, no, uh uh, we rebuke that in Jesus' name. Okay, we're taking that out of it. Okay, here's lost in translation this week, okay. But I have to say that this segment is really not meant to be offensive, and I need to give context first. So when I was a little girl in um in the choir in church, this is the way the story ours was called the Sunshine Band. Um, S O N. You had a guitar? No, but my grandmother used to play a guitar with my mother and my uncle at a radio station in North Carolina, but that's a whole different story. So um I must have been in about about third grade, third or fourth grade, and the story is told to me that someone, one of my counterparts in the choir, goes like this. Like if she sniffs and then she's like turning up her nose like that. And both Nana and Mom start and they clock that, like, oh shoot, she's musty. That's what it's called, musty, right? Everybody love her musty. Okay, they love, love, love, watch, watch, watch this. I gotta give you context first. And they took me, apparently, took me from the choir. They were like, where do we have, what do we have to work with? And they went to the bathroom, they got some soap, and they just rubbed it under my armpits so I wouldn't smell musty. So since I was a kid, I'm very aware of how I smell. Even if, even especially in this weather now, because it's really hot in Kenya, I'm aware when when the deodorant has worn off. And what you won't see me doing is this. You won't see me with Patty Labelle arms. So I wanted to give that context because that's how I grew up. And I'm in a place where sometimes when I'm in the Ubers, especially now, it's rough. The armpit smell is really rough. And what I noticed was one day I was talking to my house manager, and she said she called it natural scent. And I said, Oh, I never thought of it that way, but it is a natural scent. Now it doesn't make it smell any better in my nose. However, it was interesting because we were talking about all different types of things either.

Brendan 21:16

Because like musty is like the worst thing you could be.

Vuyanzi 21:18

Right. In the US. Right. But here, it's a natural scent for some. But I mean, it's, you know, it's not my favorite smell. But anyway, I just thought that was interesting. It changed in the language. But musty is the way I grew up, and it's like, don't ever be musty because and I remember the worst thing you could be. Well, in third grade, actually, though, even before that, or maybe around that time, I remember we had field day at my elementary school and Eddie Priggy, I don't know where he is now. Um, we were getting the drink of water, and he's like, Slide on the DM, baby. No, do mm mm mm mm mm mm. He said, You smell like a skunk. He said I smelled like a skunk. At the time I didn't understand what it what it meant. And sidebar, something very good.

Brendan 22:10

And I also tell you you smelled like outside.

Vuyanzi 22:13

No, she's they just no, they went for the jugular. Yeah, you smell musty. Like you have to wear deodorant. But here's a fun sidebar story before you get to your lesson translation. Who was in my third grade class, but a kid called Jamie Voigt? Jamie Voigt is John Voigt's son, who is Angelina Jolie's brother. He was in our third grade class. And one time his father, John Voigt, who used to be very big back in the day, had come, and people were like, John Voigt, Jamie's father's here. Jamie's father's here. Yeah, but I don't know whatever happened to Jamie. He was like head and shoulders above everyone else and kind of was he was quiet. Yeah. I think people made fun of him though, but that's another story. Yeah. Yes. What about you? What got lost in translation? Mine was natural scent. What about you?

Brendan 23:01

Well, like this made me think of something because um I had a situation with there was a a man at one point that I was involved with. Who also had a natural sense.

Vuyanzi 23:22

Oh father. What?

Brendan 23:24

How did you so I like I was trying to figure out like the polite way to like this? So at one point I may have given him like a gift bag of like dev for men products. Did any include deodorant? Where like the ratio was much heavier on like the deal and the first friend than it was on the body gel. And I was like, oh, I just bought these from the US. I thought maybe you could try them. See if you like them. How did it go? He didn't wear it. And then I was talking to I was talking to a friend who's from the same region as this person is from. And they were like, oh, you know, like in that region, one of the things that like the men tell their sons is that you need to smell like a man. And like this natural scent, like that's the way that men smell. And so it's like if you like put on like perfume or something, then like no, you smell like a girl.

Vuyanzi 24:28

Oh my.

Brendan 24:30

So that's a dead relationship. Well, it died for other reasons, but uh we could talk more about that in a channel. But also, I was thinking about like you said, you know, there's like the the thing about how like white people smell like penny. Well, actually like milk or like or it's more like a wet dog. Sorry, that's there's a sour, there's a sour smell. I think what's so funny is like because of the fact that I like live in Kenya and like very few of the people like I mean through Democrats abroad, I have more white people in my circle than I have for the first like five years. I can imagine, I can imagine so it's one of those things where like actually when I go home, like going back to what we talked about last episode, it's like when I go home and I'm around more white people, like I'm like it's like a four. It's like I'm gonna get on the plane and then I'm like, get up a little, like, out of a little van, and I'm like, ooh. That was like nickels in here.

Vuyanzi 25:43

Oh god.

Brendan 25:45

Few too many of y'all went for a jog and made before afterwards. Because I'm also like I'm very like, because for me, it's like when I was a kid, I never like really had issues with BO, but I I was like a I had like heavy perspiration as a kid. Like I was the one who like like my like white Hanes undershirt used to have them yellow um marks after like two weeks.

Vuyanzi 26:09

Okay, my white shirt, I don't buy white shirts for that reason, even still my armpits. Yeah.

Brendan 26:22

Um but it was yeah, so it's like I've always and so it's like I mean I carry like a little tiny like dove for man antiperspirant in my spray one.

Vuyanzi 26:36

So it's like if I ever forget and I get that like when I like go to and I'm like oh I get like in a minute and then you'd have the eyes.

Brendan 26:59

I don't know about you, but it's like if you don't have like the real shit, like it means the antiperspirant. I I've been trying to like my sister for a long time was like, you know, you know, like because she was real vegan and crunchy before, and she'd be like, you know, the aluminum, and I was like, I don't give a fuck. The aluminum, I don't care. Because I was like, she gave me some fucking crystal. I'd be loving that crystal. Not a crystal. It's like natural deodorant. And I would be like, this smells like a fucking mermid. I gotta blew a French onion.

Vuyanzi 27:50

Uh yeah, it's timeout for that. Even this time when I came home, I had like four for me, Lady's feet. I I have four catch pieces. No, mm-mm. And Lady's feedstick is expensive here, so I just buy it from any. I've got all of it in the US.

Brendan 28:04

Yeah, and just I find it that shit in both. Yeah. I don't know if I'm supposed to do that. Carrie, don't come for me, but I had it all. It was in my bag because I'm like I'm like, I'm very particular. I like the spray, I like the Dove for Men spray. Oh, really? It has a nice sense and it works well. It's not too heavy, like one spritz under each arm does it for the day.

Vuyanzi 28:25

Really? Yeah. Wow. I love it.

Brendan 28:29

I maybe I mean although actually I remember when I was a kid, um, this is really dating my son. I mean, I know you're older, but not that much. So when I was a kid, we I I was always really into magazines. I love magazines.

Vuyanzi 28:44

Yeah.

Brendan 28:45

So I had a subscription. There was a magazine called Zillions, which was Consumer Reports Kids Magazine.

Vuyanzi 28:53

Stop! They had a kids.

Brendan 28:55

Yeah, it was Consumer Reports for Kids.

Vuyanzi 28:56

Oh my god.

Brendan 28:57

It was called Zillions. It was fucking awesome. Like, because it was like literally, like, I mean, it was like you remember like Nick News and stuff like that? Yes, yes, yes.

Vuyanzi 29:07

Like adult, like adult facing, but for kids.

Brendan 29:11

Yeah. So, like, you know, it's like you took them seriously enough to like write like a and so they literally would test all these different things, like consumer reports, and they had reports on it, and like the like the magazine. And there was one where they did deodorate an antiperspirant, and actually they found that ladies' antiperspirant was stronger than men, you know, because like we don't we're like, God forbid, like a woman sweats, or like you know, have a scent, like a natural scent. Uh what so there was a time like when I was a kid and I was really like getting a lot of like I and I would use arid project. Because that shit would it was like it would stop it in its tracks.

Vuyanzi 29:53

Wow. And I even wonder sometimes though, is that even healthy? That it's it's almost clogging up your pores. But we're not smelling. Okay. All right, what's your queer joy? Talk about your queer joy. Oh, okay, okay. So this was more delayed. It was a delayed black joy because I, and pardon me, you can cancel me for not knowing who this guy was, but I I'm sure this is so low on the ladder of things that we cancel us for on the show. Oh, okay. And I haven't even gotten into the other stories. I'm just keeping it very, very PG this time. But um, there was like this on my Instagram feed, they kept talking about I Show Speed. I show speed. And so I was like, is this a machine? I show speed. What is this? I show speed. Even the president of Kenya was like, we welcome i Show Speed. I was like, is it what is that? I didn't know it was a person. Now and like now, what number one streamer in the world?

Brendan 30:50

So what brought me joy I have zero concept of streaming. Like, don't for me.

Vuyanzi 30:55

Well, I can tell you, I can I can tell you about it a little bit later because I was I streamed for the first time the other day, but that's a whole different story. We could even do this streaming, but um, iShow speed brought me later, brought me joy later. Black joy later. Hold on a second. Brought me black joy later.

Brendan 31:18

The bitch is broke. I gotta pay the bell.

Vuyanzi 31:26

That's only fans. You can't do it on my other one. I don't think you can do that on Twitch. I only fans. The rule. No, I'm not showing my booty hole. I don't send rose. No, okay. Noah. Anyway, this young man I chose.

Brendan 31:47

I mean if you are personally.

Vuyanzi 31:50

No, do not. Do not. We have to look up the difference because I saw somebody who's making tons of money on OnlyFans. We have to see what we could do. Maybe we could show our feet. I have feet. That's been told us a lot. Your feet are very nice. They're very nice. Okay.

Brendan 32:08

If you want to see them, send us a DF.

Vuyanzi 32:13

Well, you have to send money first, and then we'll show you.

Brendan 32:16

It's not cash on delivery. That's not an option.

Vuyanzi 32:18

No, no COD. Cash me for a free. Yes. Well, you used to get a package.

Brendan 32:25

Oh, like the edges sketch. The color change markers.

Vuyanzi 32:31

Okay.

Brendan 32:32

Sorry. Probably 1995. You too could have Kathy. What's her face's dump recipe? Kathy, what's her name? You know the one I'm talking about? The one that had all the recipes and they're all like dump. It's like dump dump cakes, dump soups. And it was just her dumping a bunch of shit into like a pie. She kind of looked like a goblin.

Vuyanzi 33:02

Anyway, sorry, back to I show speed and streaming. That was a very long time. No, it's okay. It's okay. I'm here for it. But I didn't know who he was. But after I found out who he was, and then I saw how such an impact he was making, not just here, but across the world, that people got insight into different parts of Africa where there's certain stereotypes, but he brought it and the way people supported him, and he became number one, that brought me delayed joy. Do I fully get him? No. Yeah, as a concept, no. And I think that's okay. I don't need to. I don't think I'm his his prime audience. Yeah, I'm not his target audience, but it did bring me joy. Yeah, I know. He does.

Brendan 33:55

What brought you great joy?

Vuyanzi 33:58

He's 21. Yeah, no, he he's a baby face. But his daddy didn't. Did you see the picture? Yeah, his dad, because he he was raised with his dad, as far as I know. And his dad, like they showed this whole thing where his dad was crying when he saw how he was being received, or something like that. I was like, Well, hello, Zaddy. Okay, what brought you queer joy?

Brendan 34:52

So this year at the Grammys, um, for the first time, um, so there's this guy Duran Bernard, who Yeah!

Vuyanzi 35:02

I love him. I love him.

Brendan 35:05

He's like been really big on Twitter. I know you said you left the platform.

Vuyanzi 35:09

But but on Instagram, he's huge, and I follow him and I have his album on Apple Music.

Brendan 35:13

And so he won his um Grammy this year. Yes. Actually, like speaking of what you were talking about with iShow Speed, his dad was there with him because his dad is like one of his biggest supporters of like him just like being himself. And so it was like really cute to like watch, like you know, I didn't watch the whole thing, but I saw pictures and like some of his posts like about them, and like because he also like came with him to the Grammy. Um so I think just like seeing that, um, and then also like um Kendrick Lamar when he was on his way up to get his Grammy like greeted Duran like on his way up to the stage, and like you know, he turned around and went for like a dap, but like Kendrick went in for like a hug. Oh and it was just like a really cute moment. Yeah, yeah.

Vuyanzi 36:07

It's okay. We learn, we learn, and um like actually what's his name again? Durant, what's what's his full name? Durand Bernan. Durand Bernan Bernard Bernan Bernard Bernard Durand, um Durant It looked like an M and an N. Sorry, thank you, thank you for zooming in. He's very witty in his songs, too. He's like, he is, he's amazing. I really do love him. And um, speaking of Durant, do you remember, do you don't remember the group Duran Durant? Duran Durant Hungry Like the Wolf.

Brendan 36:56

Yes, sorry. Yeah, that was my queer joy for this thing.

Vuyanzi 37:01

I that that was good. It was my queer joy actually seeing him. He's like, he was running. Did you see him running up to this? Who was running behind him? I don't know. Because someone took something, I feel like he was in the bathroom or something. I mean, this guy was bolting, and then somebody was running behind him, and then they took something when he got up on stage. So cute. I love it. So, okay, so anyway, any final thoughts as we begin to close?

Brendan 37:26

I'm like, what did we talk about tonight?

Vuyanzi 37:28

Yes.

Brendan 37:29

Oh, the sky falling. Yes. I mean, I think my closing thought is just like everything we said before, right? Like, I mean, this is not the first time. Like, the sky has fallen many times on a lot of heads. I think like the the one that like always, I think for me, like I come back to it like you remember the bombing in Philly where they were trying to like get those black kids and they bomb an entire city block. Imagine. Fucking imagine. Um like that has always to me stood out as like such a stark example of like what our government will do, you know, to people that are like pushing for something better, especially when they're you know not quite people.

Vuyanzi 38:21

Yeah.

Brendan 38:22

Yeah. And so you know, to me it's like this is just like another and like such a long line uh deep thing. I I think it's just more like my question is always like when is when is it finally gonna be enough, you know? Like and you know I just hope that you know like I'm happy that people are awake, I'm happy that people are aware. Like people's awareness comes when it comes, right? And like I don't think we can manage anyone else's journey, but I hope that also it's like, you know, because I know how my people are, we tend to like show up in a space and colonize it. Like I just hope that you know, while people have a certain sense of awareness, it's like if you now come into all of these spaces and elbow out the people who have been in them, working in them for decades, if not centuries, then even generationally, yeah. Yeah, like so it's like how do you create a space for people to be on their own journey, but also create boundaries and safeguards so that they don't like tear down oh yeah. That's my final thought for you.

Vuyanzi 39:46

Yeah, that that's a good final thought. I think I think um my final thought is that being human is super complex. Um because I feel so many feelings about everything going on. Um okay, great. We're almost at low battery anyway. So um I don't know. I'm I'm just gonna kind of in closing, I sit with my feelings because sometimes there's not much to say. Sometimes we gotta sit with it and see, reckon by myself and while I still work, because to quote you, we got shit to do. So uh we thank you. This has been Kisses from Kenya.

Brendan 40:28

See you next time.