As one-third of the nationally-syndicated morning radio show “The Breakfast Club,” and through shows on MTV and MTV2, including his current weekly program “Uncommon Sense,” Charlamagne Tha God has emerged as one of the most talked-about personalities in media. Over the years, through his brazenness and brutal honesty, he has irreverently stoked the ire of major hip-hop figures including Sean “Puffy” Combs and of course, via the interview heard and seen around the world with Cash Money Records’ “Birdman.” Nevertheless, hip-hop is not the only subject matter in Charlamagne’s interviewing repertoire; additionally, he has conversed with political and intellectual heavyweights like Hillary Clinton, Michael Eric Dyson and Minister Louis Farrakhan.
On the outside looking in, Charlamagne’s rise in the industry seems meteoric; aside from having worked alongside Wendy Williams (she gave him his first big break) in New York during her radio heyday, he was virtually unfamiliar to those outside the east coast.
In his New York Times bestseller, Black Privilege: Opportunity Comes to Those Who Create It, Charlamagne Tha God relives his modest beginnings in the small town of Moncks Corner, South Carolina, and how he used the peaks and valleys of his upbringing to create his own lane in radio and beyond.
He shares details about his delinquent past, including…
…revolving door stints in jail, mostly for drug offenses. After tiring of this lifestyle, he got himself together and then upon realizing he actually was interested in a career in radio, he landed an internship at a station in town.
While the book gets in-depth about the ups and downs of his then budding radio journey, including a “get-hired-and-get-fired” pattern that lasted for years, at its core, #BlackPrivilege is a motivational book about, as the subtitle suggests, blazing your own trail on your own terms, especially if you are African-American. And while Charlamagne enjoyed the success of his career ascension and all that came with it, he realized he had to tighten up his life in another area: his health.
An early mentor advised him on the importance of fitness and proper nutrition, adding that in order to maximize his potential, his body and mind had to be right. Having feasted on a regular diet of fast food with a side of alcohol and marijuana, he realized he needed to make a lifestyle change. These days, the “shock-jock” is all about exercise; for Charlamagne, “physical fitness is nonnegotiable.”
When it comes to eating, “vegetables or something green” accompany all his meals and far as snacks go, fruit, peanuts and protein bars are his weapons of choice. Early in his fitness mission, he was 202 pounds; today, he proudly hovers between 170-175 pounds, with a set of abs to boot.
In addition, a physician enlightened him about the connection between poor nutrition and skin care; as a result, he consulted a dermatologist about the dark spots he had developed under his eyes. Once he began to eat better and got skin treatments, his skin cleared up, although rumors circulated that he bleached his skin.
The time Charlamagne Tha God spends in the book about his health was an unexpected surprise. He is just as hilariously motivational about that area of his life as he is about everything else. Readers of #BlackPrivilege will certainly find his commitment to his body inspirational, and through his candor and wit, he stresses the benefits of good health.
“I’m glad I came to the realization that I didn’t want to be one of those people who treat their material possessions better than they treat their own bodies,” he says. “Who will clean their Jordans by hand with a toothbrush but won’t put nearly the same amount of care into their health.”
Well said, Charlamagne. Well said.