SPEAKER_00: 0:00

John Lewis wasn't too young to march on the Edmund Pettus Bridge. Julian Bond wasn't too young to go and run for his office as well. And you have all of these different people like Gabriel Sanchez, Bryce Berry, you have Eric Bell, all of these people who are running in these positions who are young. The fires of our youth will be able to be used to weld and form and forge tomorrow in a great way. So if you feel as if I am too young, just wait till the history books come out.

SPEAKER_02: 0:29

So you're everybody, it's your girl Lish Feaks, and welcome back to another episode of my podcast, I'll Just Let Myself In. This is the podcast where you don't wait for an imaginary permission slip or some invitation to a seat at an imaginary table. We let ourselves into our God-given doors. Y'all know the deal here. When I do have a guest, it is usually a guest who lives out what we believe on this podcast, a guest who has let themselves in. And today is really different. I've never had a guest like this on my show before. And it's special because this young man is letting himself into politics. I have on the couch with me today a 25-year-old young man running for Georgia Secretary of State, none other than Adrian Consoneri Jr. Welcome to the couch.

SPEAKER_00: 1:41

Thank you for having me. Thank you for having me. Absolutely, absolutely.

SPEAKER_02: 1:44

Now, I said your full name, but I call you AJ. You know, because I have known Mr. Consoneri since he was a teenager, which is crazy.

SPEAKER_00: 1:52

I'm gonna be honest, hearing you say Mr. Consonary is kind of different for me, but but absolutely, yes, it's been like we've known each other for years. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02: 2:02

Yeah, it's been a minute. And I cannot say I'm surprised when I heard that you were running. I said, just tracks.

SPEAKER_03: 2:09

That makes sense.

SPEAKER_02: 2:10

And you know, I'm excited. I'm I'm calling you a young man because I want the people to know that there is no um limits to when you can decide to be of service to your state or to your country in this way. And I'm excited to talk to you about, you know, your your initiatives, uh, your platform, what has inspired you to run. But before we get into that, I want you to talk about the young kid, AJ, and what happened in his childhood that lends itself to you being in this position today.

SPEAKER_00: 2:42

Well, uh, first and foremost, I mean, thank you for having me here. Uh, but I, as a kid, growing up, there were a lot of different things that would take place, like um seeing my own family be politically active, seeing my family partake in everything. And my parents and my whole family, they made an environment that was really conducive of us to dream. Yeah, whatever we wanted to do, they would support it. I and it, I'm telling you, whatever it is. I would just go and tell my parents, hey, I want to do this, I want to do this, whatever that most outlandish thing was. They only had a few things that we would have to follow. Yeah, write it down, make sure you have the self-discipline to do it. And it didn't matter what it was. And so, from that type of environment, like I've been a two-time published author, I've been able to do a couple different things uh throughout my life. I've been able to work in various different capacities, yeah. But because of how they raised me and how the household was, it encouraged me to do more. So um now when problems started to arise from the outside world, that's what really brought me towards my purpose. Um, and there was a I I recently had the chance to go to the African American Policy Forum, um, where I got to meet Representative Justin Jones. He was speaking and he was giving us, you know, a lot of different talks. And he's a young guy as well. But he said, Why are you waiting on permission from other people to live in your purpose?

SPEAKER_02: 4:08

He must he must watch the podcast.

SPEAKER_00: 4:11

I hope so. I hope so. I hope he tunes in. But he said that and it just it resonated. And I'm like, who am I waiting on? If I see my my my father is a mechanic and my mother is a counselor, the household was always designed to identify a problem and become the solution to it. So if I see that there's a situation and I see that there's a problem, why am I waiting on someone else to be the change when I could be it?

SPEAKER_02: 4:36

Yeah. So my goodness, that's good. Okay. I want you to explain to someone who does not know what a state secretary or secretary of state or nothing, they don't know nothing. They just, I'm here. What why do I even vote for this? You know, I only vote in presidential elections. A person like that.

SPEAKER_00: 4:53

Right.

SPEAKER_02: 4:54

What would you explain to them? You know, your that your role would be. How would you explain your role to them?

SPEAKER_00: 4:59

Well, the secretary of state position is the one position that actually goes behind all the scenes. We the that that position is the one that is in charge of all commerce, it is in charge of making sure every election is fair, as well as the Georgia securities market. And if you're any type of professional license, you know you have to go through the Secretary of State. So anytime you see any strip mall or any business that's within the state of Georgia, they all had to go through the Secretary of State's office. So it's literally the common denominator for business when it comes to Georgia. And that position is also the same position that can make sure your voice is heard or that your voice isn't heard. So that's that's the real thing when it comes to that.

SPEAKER_02: 5:46

Yeah. Okay. So let's talk about lifeline initiatives.

SPEAKER_00: 5:49

Yes.

SPEAKER_02: 5:50

And the whole thing you just said about making sure your voice is heard or isn't heard, you know, that initiative is to amplify, you know, the voices of the underserved. And I think it's so important because we're in a space politically.

SPEAKER_00: 6:05

Talk about it.

SPEAKER_02: 6:06

I don't want to. I really don't want to talk about it. You know, I I um a confession, this is the most disengaged I've ever been politically. Because my heart just can't take it. I I realized, you know, on a federal scale, I I had to stay. I said, okay, it's either my mental health or handcuffs. So um, so I, you know, I know the things I need to know, but I I was a person like Rachel Maddow every night and you know, all that. I had to say, you know what? Not worth it. So it has been, it has been tough, but in this climate, I think the idea of making sure voices are not heard is really, really prevalent. So then you have someone like you who's coming along, um, who's been in that position before. We'll talk about that a little bit too. And and you have this passion and this desire and you create this initiative. Uh, tell tell my listeners about the initiative and what your hope is for it.

SPEAKER_00: 7:05

So when I was 20, I started Lifeline Initiative Incorporated. It's a 501c3 that focuses on community development, vocational rehabilitation, and amplifying the voice of the people. Um, in fact, I named the organization after my own line name. Um, so I pledged to an organization in Grambling, Grambling State University. Shout out to the Tigers. Yeah, yeah. Uh, where we're United African American Men Incorporated, or UAAM for short. And my older brother, my big brothers, they said that I would give the shirt off on my back for my brothers if need be. They knew that my brothers could rely on me. So they gave me the name Lifeline. And I hated it because every everybody else, everybody else had like really cool names. Everybody's name was so cool. And I'm like, Lifeline. Okay. But then I had to realize the nature of the name. You don't you don't call on a lifeline unless you're in dire straits. You only call on a lifeline when it is the last straw, something it is it, like my life is literally on the line. I need someone to save me.

SPEAKER_03: 8:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 8:04

And I felt honored that they felt that of me, but I was humbled by it because that means that even without the name, that's the character that they saw.

SPEAKER_03: 8:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 8:13

So when it came time, because in 2020, a lot was going on.

SPEAKER_03: 8:17

Yep.

SPEAKER_00: 8:18

A lot was going on. And when it came time for people to hear that things that were not going their way, but they wanted to fight and stand up for something. Well, that's when lifelines were needed. And every way, people are dying left and right because of COVID. You have people who are are struggling in their own communities, can't put food on the table, jobs are being cut. We're trying to figure out what an essential worker is and what it isn't. Yeah. Like I remember there's a picture of a guy who was in a Baskin Robbins mask, got costume masking. Why am I an essential worker? But like, so it's this whole thing of trying to figure out what we can do to maintain our reality. And I wanted to make something that would go and help enrich lower income areas, help enrich communities, and give them the resources that they need so that way they can be self-sufficient without needing governmental aid, without needing anything to come through. And the beautiful thing about what my nonprofit is designed to do, it's designed to not be needed. The moment that the work is done, we don't stick around. We're not like, all right, we're still here. We're, you know, we're we're not gonna do all the work that we can. No, we go as far as we can in everything of what we do to make sure that the work is prevalent, done, and to the point.

SPEAKER_03: 9:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 9:30

So that way, when the work is done, you see that they don't need us. And we go to the next community. Because a lot of times people come in with their own mentality when it comes to what they want to do in a community. Yeah. And it completely.

SPEAKER_02: 9:46

Toxic charity. Toxic charity. Yes.

SPEAKER_00: 9:48

It's when you you have your like if I look at a community and I'm like, oh, a lemonade stand would be perfect right here. But like nobody in that community likes lemonade. Yeah. But I'm bringing lemonade. Or needs lemonade. Like, no, they need water. Like I'm bringing a lemonade stand into Flint. Like, what am I doing? Right. No, I need to be bringing the resources to help their piping. I need to be bringing resources in order to help them stand strong. So what is it that changes that mentality? And that's what Lifeline really is.

SPEAKER_02: 10:15

Yeah, that's good. That's good. I think about, you know, uh this idea that I talk about often with people is that help that isn't helpful isn't helpful. Right. Help that doesn't help isn't helpful. You know, and we think that sometimes we think we know what a person needs or what a friend needs or what a community needs without actually doing uh our due diligence to speak to the people themselves or speak to that community and make sure that we're actually serving their need. Um, and so I think it's so noble and important. It's very important work to do. And I think you pivoting to this political um stage is actually gonna be really helpful because one of the things that I think our, I'm gonna say ancestors, but they only a couple of generations removed the civil rights movement. One of the things I think they have right, which is why this country was so desirous of squelching that, they understood that it was law that was gonna change things. They understood that, you know, they were they did the work, the marches, the sit-ins, and all that, but the desire was to change the law. And I think that having more of us in politics, right? It's not the end, it's not the end all beat all. You know, people will say, well, Obama was the president and things didn't change for black people. I'm like, well, he's only one man. And and and unlike some presidents, he actually had to answer to somebody.

SPEAKER_00: 11:36

Right, right, right. Talk, hey, I know you don't want to talk about it, but talk about it. You know what I mean? He actually couldn't just do whatever he wanted, um, because we play by different rules.

SPEAKER_02: 11:46

But I think that it's really important for our young people and even our older people to see our elders, to see, you know, us in these spaces. And so I'm excited to see, you know, what you're able to do if the Lord allows this position or anything going further, because you're so young. The cool thing about you is that you're so young that you could like be doing this for the next 10 years and like then be successful and you would still be very young. That's what I love about stuff like this. Like, I always think it's cool when you enter a field that you could take your time in, you know, and rise through the ranks. Um, do you have presidential aspirations?

SPEAKER_00: 12:25

Yeah. Uh, but you know, at this current moment, like as as much as I would want to do that, yeah, I know that there is a lot of work that needs to be done.

SPEAKER_02: 12:35

Well, you got about 30 years to do with that. You get 20, 20. Yeah, yeah. Because they ain't gonna elect you until you buy 50 something anyway. So you got plenty of time.

SPEAKER_00: 12:43

You know, and and that's that's the thing. Like, if if I were to go into the presidential spot, I know for a fact that I would want to feel content in the work that I've done. Because I wouldn't want to just rise to education, like, oh, he's young, he got that, da da da da. But I would want to rise into that position solely because I know that there's there's a different level of mark of what I've done.

SPEAKER_03: 13:10

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 13:10

You know, like I've I've done, I've presided over a couple different changes, I've presided over a couple different projects, I've presided over a couple different communities to make it to where this stuff has happened. My whole state trusts me for this because like I if I would be following in a couple different footsteps. Like, yes, Barack Obama, obviously, but I would also be following in Jimmy Carter. And that's the only president to ever come from Georgia. So following in their footsteps is a whole different game. It's like I would not just be another black president, I would be a president from Georgia.

SPEAKER_03: 13:46

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 13:47

And that is what would make it all the more, I would honestly say all the more like loving because I love my state.

SPEAKER_03: 13:57

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 13:57

I I love I love everything that comes from Georgia. And I'm not talking about just Atlanta. I'm talking about the peaches, I'm talking about the rural area, I'm talking about North Georgia, like everything. There is a certain level and spirit of Georgia where you know you from Georgia. And and that's that's something that can't be changed.

SPEAKER_03: 14:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 14:15

And to bring that to the White House, which with all Southern hospitality in mind, and giving that to the rest of the country, it could change the world.

SPEAKER_02: 14:23

Yeah. And you said it here first, guys. You know, we'll run this back in 25 years, 30 years, and see see what's happening. But I think it's it's an incredible thing to be starting off your journey at this at this time. I want to talk a little bit about Grambling. Um, tell me about your time there and a little bit about what going to an HBCU created in you, you know, as a black man.

SPEAKER_00: 14:48

First and foremost, well, I already said it, but I'm gonna say it again. Shout out to the Tigers. Um, I love Grambling. I love Grandpa State University.

SPEAKER_02: 14:57

Your dad went there and your mom, right?

SPEAKER_00: 14:59

No, my mom didn't. Um, but she wear the G Proud uh like she did. So and for those that don't know why I keep looking, she's here. Um But I I love Grambling because number one, like when I was looking for schools, I I'm named after my dad, right? So everything is almost like, oh, I'm following in his footsteps, I'm following his footsteps. And I tried not to go. I I looked at other schools and everything like that. I toured other schools, but one thing about every time I went on a tour with another campus, they would always get my name wrong. They would always, you know, and I and I was used to that growing up. I'm like, uh, it's a tough name, it's Italian. I know not everybody can pronounce it either. Okay, you know, hey, but I'll get the benefit of the doubt, you know what I mean? I know it's not hard, but like I grew up with the name.

SPEAKER_02: 15:42

Yeah, so how would they say it? Adrienne or something like that?

SPEAKER_00: 15:46

Adrian, conessory, consonnery, connoisseur, con consonant, connoisseur, connatary, commissary, like whatever you could think, consonant, I'd have got it all. But but at the same time, when I went to my tour at Grambling, the tour guy that was there, he was a student at the time, and he he's still one of my good friends to this day. He said, I saw your name on the paper, and I don't want to go on this tour without knowing who I'm talking to. So, how do I pronounce your name? He didn't even try to say it at first, he just asked me, and I said, Oh, I'm Adrian Consonary Jr. He was like, Consonary, Consonary. Okay, Adrian Consonary. I'm gonna say that for the rest of the tour so that way I can make sure I got it right. And the motto of the campus is where everybody is somebody to live that out and have that be exactly what I had just experienced. Yeah, I was like, well, if you're representing this school, maybe this school will be the same way. And I said, I'm gonna do it. And that was the best gamble I ever took because my experience at Grambling was just that. I'm gonna be honest with Grambling is in the middle of nowhere, all right? It's in nowhere, Louisiana. But because you have nothing around you, you have to tap into the God that's within you and create the reality that you want. You got to speak everything into existence. If you want to go and have fun with your friends, you gotta make the fun. If you want to have a business, you gotta make the business. If you want to be like busy and do stuff, you gotta make it happen. You gotta get involved, make the reality, get involved with the community. The life and thriving nature of what Grambling State University is is so infectious that when anybody steps onto the campus and the people are there, yeah, you truly see that it is the people that makes that campus. And it is the spirit that lives on. Now, of course, don't get me wrong, you know, I could brag about how we got Eddie G. Robison, the winningest coach in college football history, or Doug Williams, who was the first black quarterback to ever win a Super Bowl. Or, you know, you know, the world-famed Tiger March band. I could, I could go on, I could go on. But, or you know, Erica Badu or E40 that came to the uh that actually went to Grandpa State University too, you know, shout out, you know what I mean. But at the same time, it's the people.

SPEAKER_03: 18:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 18:03

I talk about these these different things because it's the people.

SPEAKER_02: 18:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 18:07

And it has always been and will always be.

SPEAKER_02: 18:10

Love that. That's so good. What do you feel like that produced in you as a young black man?

SPEAKER_00: 18:14

It produced you. It produced a level of confidence that I don't need to prove who I am to anybody because I know who I am. Yeah. I'm just showing you what I know. Yeah. And so the moment that people come and they're looking at me and they're they're trying to wonder what makes me tick, I'm just like, well, if you sit down and talk to me, you'll know. It's nothing about like, oh, I have to put on a facade or anything of that nature. Like, people are gonna watch this and they're gonna be like, yeah, that's AJ. That's that's that's him through and through.

SPEAKER_03: 18:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 18:44

Grambling brought that out. And it was it was a culture shock because I I went to Hillgrove High School in Cobb County, of which I still love my school. I love Hillgrove. But when I went to Grambling, I learned who I was and I learned how I can move in society rather than trying to make society society work for me. Yeah, I just move and everything happens.

SPEAKER_02: 19:08

Yes.

SPEAKER_00: 19:09

Turned me from a thermometer to a thermostat.

SPEAKER_02: 19:10

Love it. That's good. That's good. Not going to HBCU is my biggest regret. My only regret, really. I don't have a lot of regrets in life. And I've said this on the show before. I regret not going to HBCU. I also, though, I honestly feel like had I gone to HBCU, Jesus was Jesus, it was gonna not be no Jesus. Like the Lord said, go ahead and go to this little CUNY school in New York so you can be in ministry, so you can get your life right, because I know I would have been on that campus turned all the way up.

SPEAKER_00: 19:37

And it it you can definitely do that. I will say, you could definitely that it that option is there. But one thing about it is like the HBCU lifestyle, of although I do recommend everybody get that type of experience.

SPEAKER_02: 19:51

It just looks so amazing.

SPEAKER_00: 19:53

It is, but it's not in a sense of like, oh, well, you're missing out.

SPEAKER_03: 19:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 19:59

You know, because at the end of the day, it is higher education, it's higher learning. It's it's definitely a spot where, especially with education under attack right now, it is a spot where people can still get that type of education that's needed. Yeah, but you can still educate on who you are.

SPEAKER_02: 20:14

Oh yeah, the smartest people I know come from HBCUs. Yeah. The most well connected. Like, that's why I'm that's why I'm regret not going. Because I'm like, if I'm doing this well in life, I would have been on the moon. If I couldn't probably have connected, I probably would have plunged, I probably would have done a little scene. I've been like, I'm not saying girl, relax. Okay. Um, but no, I really love talking to people who, and I go to my my little cousin goes to TSU. I'll be going at the homecoming, I'll be right up there with my little blue hoodie on. I'm like, I'm gonna get this experience. So one way or another, uh, shout out to you, TJ, uh, in his senior year at TSU. But yeah, I think it's an amazing thing. I feel like HBCUs create our best, some of our best leaders. And I really do for people, you know, have all sorts of things to say, oh, you know, that's not a true depiction of how the world is. I say people, they got the rest of their lives to live in the white world. Go ahead, let them go to the HBCU. We talk all the time. I'm not gonna make my kids go to HBCU, but there will be some incentives. Unless you get into Harvard, go to HBCU. Right. And even then, you can still go to HBCU if you want to. You know?

SPEAKER_00: 21:21

So here's what I would say. Here's what I would say. If the experience, especially for you, if the experience is still something that you want, yeah, and you can still be connected, yes, grad school with HBCU. Talk about it. Hey, look, it is something because don't get me wrong, as much as I am Grambling through and through, they got some great grad programs all across all 107 HBCUs. And and there's like, this is gonna pain me to say it, but Southern University with their law program and their nursing program is really cool. Um, but their law program is like through the roof. Now, Grambling Nursing Program, I'm gonna I'm gonna stick towards that all day. All day. But their law program is definitely like top in the state for Louisiana. Um, and then of course you have Howard University with their law program. Fantastic. They produce some great people who always I got some friends right now who are in their law program and they are they are doing amazing. You've got some folks who just when they go back and they get these these master's degrees, you get a little bit of what you missed out on, but now you have the wisdom on how to deal with it. Yeah, and you get all of the benefits of what comes from it. So I I thoroughly it's not over.

SPEAKER_02: 22:32

I might I might have to read double back. Uh you're from a faith community. I know you were raised faithful to believe in God and all the different things. You know, as you're going through this political time or going on this political journey rather, how's your faith been sustaining you?

SPEAKER_00: 22:50

So I'll be honest with you. Right now at Bridgepoint Church, I'm actually the young adult ministry leader. Um we we are doing a lot to make sure that we can have people come in and know what needs to take place. Uh, but for myself, my relationship with God has never been stronger. Because I know I would not be here if it wasn't for him. I would not be able to have this type of confidence. Because yes, Grambling helped to bring it out, but there was there was something there to be brought out. Yeah. And that's what God created in me. So, like, as much as I give credit to all the different outside sources, I know who made the source itself. I know who made me. Yeah. And if I want to know how to be better, I gotta read the instruction manual. I gotta, I gotta read the the manufacturer's uh notes. I gotta figure out what is it about what he created that I can tap into, learn some more features about myself. What what can I do? Yeah, um, and all in all, knowing that God ain't done with me yet. Like, I keep getting updates every time I I wake up. I got a new new software update, new software update. I'm like, okay, God, what you gonna do with me today? Okay, God, what you gonna do with me today? And it's something that I thoroughly appreciate because I know he's not done with me. And it's not even a sense of like pride, it's just a sense of God, I know you love me. Yeah, so why would I not want to know more? Why would I not want to dive into the the future of what this could be? And the further I get in my relationship with God, the further that I'm able to learn what he has me doing. Yeah. So like even with this this campaign, even with this run that I'm doing, if I do not, if this does not go the way that I hope it does, I know I'm good.

SPEAKER_03: 24:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 24:40

Like I know I I gave it a the good old college try. I I day, I put my best foot forward and I did everything that I could, and I did it at 25. God, you could do so much more with me.

SPEAKER_03: 24:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 24:52

And from that point, just to try itself, because who's to say who I meet during this, that could take me to the next level. So so I am gonna run for this position. I'm gonna go because I know what can happen.

SPEAKER_03: 25:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 25:03

And if someone does beat me out, they're gonna have to do everything that I said I was gonna do, or else the people are not gonna be ready for them. Yeah. So yeah, that's good. So yeah, so I'm I'm excited. Uh, God has definitely been revealing a lot to me during this time frame. Yeah, and he just continues to reveal every day.

SPEAKER_02: 25:20

Yeah, I love that. Your dad is an elder in the church.

SPEAKER_00: 25:24

Yes.

SPEAKER_02: 25:25

Tell me about your relationship with your father and how it has informed you and how you carry yourself in the world. I think so many young black men, you know, don't have fathers, and that's a story that gets told, but so many do. So many do. And I think that what we're seeing, particularly in the younger fathers now, like black marriages are on the rise, black divorce rates are down, um, the the statistics about black fathers being in the home are higher than they've been in decades. Um, and so you are are a product of a of a spiritual man of God being in your home. And uh talk to the people about how that's impacted you.

SPEAKER_00: 26:14

Well, I'm gonna be honest. Let me just brag on my dad really. Yeah, brag on my dad. So, number one, first, but even before I say this, because I know yesterday was your anniversary. Happy happy bladed anniversary. Um, my parents' anniversary was on August 12th.

SPEAKER_02: 26:28

No, nice.

SPEAKER_00: 26:29

They just 30. Wow. They just celebrated 30 years.

SPEAKER_02: 26:32

Wow.

SPEAKER_00: 26:33

When I was growing up, my dad, my dad and me used to race to open my mom's door. Like, like when I was a little kid and I finally got that. I used to run to try and beat him to open my mom's door, and he'd be like, Oh, you got me, you got me. Oh, I got you this time. And then when I got a little taller and my stride got a little longer, he was like, All right, now look, that's my woman. You're like, look, you gotta let me know. All right, that sounds like Mr. Adrian.

SPEAKER_02: 27:04

Yeah, that sounds like Elder.

SPEAKER_00: 27:05

But my dad has done so much in just making sure that he he has always told me, son, I don't want you to be like me. I want you to be better. I don't want you to be like me. I want you to be better. I've I've made mistakes in my life, I've made some things happen, I've done some things that I probably shouldn't have. But son, I don't see that happening with you. And I don't want you to do that. And my father, like my father is a mechanic, like I said earlier. He he does so much with his hands. Yes, but one of the greatest things he has ever done with his hands was build our family. Like he he everything about what he does is intentional. Yeah, he will sometimes overthink what may need to happen, but it is all out of the most sincerest of love. Yes, my father has shown me more vulnerability in his strength rather than his silence and weakness. Like he has he has let me know more. And as we've gotten, like as I've gotten older and I've got to know him more because I'm like, well, you know, you the one with the name. I gotta know about the name. So, like, you know, I'm just a second iteration. Like, what is that? What does his name really mean? Right. And I've learned what my name means through my relationship with my dad. My name means strength, my name means protection, my name means providing. My name means I am going to serve. My name means I'm going to be a safe haven. Like, I got friends who call my dad Pops. Like, I got friends that they they will hit him up. In fact, it's so funny. I have a very specific group of friends who call my dad Kratos. And Kratos is uh, he's now a father figure. He all he wasn't always a father figure, but he's a father figure from a game God of War. And they look at my dad and they look at my relationship with my dad, and they're like, yeah, y'all kind of, you know, y'all kind of resemble that a little bit. Because my father will always give me these little nuggets of wisdom randomly.

SPEAKER_02: 29:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 29:03

And I gotta be ready. I have to be ready to catch.

SPEAKER_02: 29:06

He does that to all of us.

SPEAKER_00: 29:07

He does, yeah. That's the thing. He's everybody's dad. Like, which y'all look, he's consistent. He does it all. Yeah, a little speech. Every time. And that's that's another thing. Like my dad, when it comes to sharing his faith, he I have always tried to talk with him about commercializing his business, but I'm thinking about the money. He says, son, I don't want to do that because my job is my ministry. It's how I reach people, it's how I talk with them. And I cannot make somebody replicate what I do because I can teach you how to fix a car, but I can't teach you how to minister. I can't, I can't teach you how to just naturally talk to people and hear what it is. So when I talk about my dad, I talk about number one, the mirror that I have to look at to understand my name.

SPEAKER_03: 29:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 29:55

But I also look at the perfect role model for what a man in society is supposed to be. I love my dad.

SPEAKER_02: 30:00

Yeah. That's good. Oh, I really love that. I love that you are a family man, even though you're not married.

SPEAKER_03: 30:07

Yes.

SPEAKER_02: 30:08

I think a lot of times people look at politicians and they want to see, is this a family man? Is he married? What's his life like? And I think it's so important, particularly in this season of time, um, where people are getting married later, starting families later. You know, I didn't get married until I was 35. Um, you know, to see that you can be a leader and not be married. You know, that's in the church, that's in politics, you know. Bald wasn't married. Yeah. Okay. Now talk about it, you know? And was didn't want to be. Right. You know what I mean? Right. Um, and I think that's one of the unique opportunities I had. I had opportunity to be a leader in many spaces, you know, before I was married. And, you know, anyone who's watching this can see the passion that you have for your family, the way you love your family. You know, you came here with your mom. Um, your sister is the one that reached out to me and said, Hey, I don't know if you know that AJ's running, but you know, if if you have space on your show, I'm like, absolutely. And it just, you guys are such, I love what you said about your dad. The the best thing he did with his hands was build his family. Because, you know, as a politician, you are someone that even if I didn't know you well, I would know I could trust just based on what you come from. You know, that structure is so important. And not everybody who uh, you know, runs or gets to do great things in this world comes from that structure. But there's something very special. I tell people all the time, you know, I was raised in a single parent home, but my dad was present and I was, I've been loved by my parents. I don't know not being loved by my parents. I don't know not being affirmed in my gifts and my talents by my parents, you know. I think if my mom wasn't a single mom, she probably would have put even way more energy into building up my gifts and talents, but she was at work. So, but I think that there's something so unique about a person who really has the story of being built, affirmed, loved, you know, even almost crafted by the love of their parents. Um, I love the idea of you racing to the car, honey. I want daughters, but if I have a son, y'all better be racing. Everybody racing. Okay.

SPEAKER_00: 32:15

Look, he used to he used to try to say, like, you ain't faster than me. I'm about to go and open. But what that was doing was actually teaching me chivalry. Yes. It was teaching it from a very early moment. And so now when I'm older, like and I'm and I'm hanging with my friends who are girls and everything like that, and they ride in the car with me. I'm like, don't you touch that door? Yeah. Like, don't you don't touch that door? Why? Because look, you don't get to touch the door.

SPEAKER_02: 32:35

Yeah, I had a friend like that growing up. His name was Warren. Shout out to my bro Warren. He would hit my hand and my sister would be like, What are you doing? Like, why would you touch the door? I'm right here. And it was cool because he actually taught me a lot because I didn't grow up with my dad doing stuff like that for me. Um, so he was the one that taught me. He and many of my male close friends taught me what to expect from men. So when I met my husband, I knew to expect chivalry, I knew to expect servitude, I knew to expect someone to be eager to meet my needs, not just like, oh, here you go. You know what I mean? And we were talking about this yesterday, like you said, it was our anniversary. And we were talking about, you know, the things we love about each other and the things we've learned over the last two years and whoop-de-woo and what all the it was very cute and loving. And I was telling him one of the things I love about him is that he never makes me feel like any of my needs are needy. He's it's his pleasure to meet my needs, and so it disarms me and it makes me feel like I can share easily with him what I need. Um, so I love that about your dad. Let's get to the politics again, really quick, before I get you out of here. Um, talk to me a little bit about how your 2020 experience with your absentee ballot made you say, okay, I gotta get more politically involved.

SPEAKER_00: 33:47

Yeah. So, well, first off, I in order to talk about 2020, I gotta talk about 1965. Okay. 1965 was the year that the Voting Rights Act came out. John Lewis, Martin Luther King, they all went and they sat in the office of Lyndon B. Johnson and they got that signed into law. And that was something that we as black people thought was going to last us forever. However, what we did not realize was that was the start of giving us a foundation to continue the fight because voting rights are always under attack.

SPEAKER_03: 34:17

Yep.

SPEAKER_00: 34:18

Every single day. Every single day, there is somebody who is it, the the the head may change, but the premise is the same. Somebody does not want to hear your voice. And they're gonna do everything in their power to make sure that that happens. So, fast forward to 2020, I am a student at Grambling. I'm sending in my absentee ballot to make sure that my voice is heard. Yeah, I have this value, I'm ready to do it, I'm ready to finally partake of the democratic process of choosing a leader. I'm excited. I've been learning about this my whole life. I remember going to the polling locations with my parents, getting the sticker and everything like that, and finally I get the chance to do it myself for a president. And I send in my absentee ballot, waiting for confirmation. And instead of confirmation that it was received, they said it was challenged. This happened twice. This was for the primaries and for the general of that year. Now, of course, I fought for it to go through. I fought and fought and fought. And in the general election, the fight was a little bit easier because I had the resources made available by um by Stacy Abrams with Fairfight and Helen Butler with the People's Agenda. I was able to fight with those resources made available, hotline calls, everything of that nature, because they told me I had three days to come back to the state to prove who I was, who I said I was, or as they were throwing out my ballot both times.

SPEAKER_03: 35:33

Wow.

SPEAKER_00: 35:33

And I'm like, I am a broke college student. I only got enough gas to take me to Walmart. You are not about to get me to drive all these states over and get back here to prove that I am who I said I am because you're trying to match my signatures. And they said it was because my signatures didn't match. And I'm like, I signed this.

SPEAKER_02: 35:54

Like, this was me. I signed it. And mind you, you're someone, I know you joke and say you're a broke college student, but you have resources. You could call your parents. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 36:00

There are people who don't. Right. Right. So, so this mentality of what took place. Now, don't get me wrong, I fought for my vote, my vote to go through, and I didn't, I didn't come back either. I did not. Just because somebody give you some type of ultimatum, that does not mean that that is the only choice that's available. Remember that. But like after that happened, I'm sitting there, I'm like, nah, there's gotta be more to this.

SPEAKER_03: 36:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 36:23

So in 2020, I dove down a rabbit hole of voting rights, and I've been diving ever since. I started working with, and this is by no means any endorsement or anything like that, but I worked with several different nonpartisan organizations that fought for voting rights. I worked with Black Voters Matter, I worked with Transformative Justice Coalition, League of Women Voters, Better Ballot Georgia, I worked with all the NAACP, I've worked with all of these organizations all across the nation, going to all different types of communities, helping, seeing what people need in their community, giving them the resources that they need to let their voice be heard. Because when you go around this nation and you see that there are people who genuinely do not know what's going on, and the moment that they get one type of pushback, they're done, yeah, you realize just how much is bad. And I really want to say this for everybody watching. If your voice did not matter, they would not be fighting to make it to where you cannot hear. They would not be fighting to silence you. If your voice truly had no type of merit towards anything or any type of effect towards anything of what takes place in this nation, they would have no problem with you voting. But here's the problem: it does. Your voice has so much power. Quite literally, me just sitting here and talking with you is power in on itself because our voices are going together and we are talking about something of letting ourselves in. If you let yourself into the ballot box and that ballot box tries to push you out, it ain't the ballot. It's those that put it there. Something is wrong, and that needs to change. Georgia deserves fair elections. And unfortunately, I was not given a fair election as a student. Now, there are other instances where there have been military personnel who've been challenged. I dove down the rabbit hole a little bit further and found out I wasn't the only one that was challenged. There's around like 40,000 people that were challenged, but 70,000 ballots that were just thrown out that year. And now they're doing voter purges all throughout, where you have it to where, like even in 2017. 2017, you had 534,000 people purged from the voter rolls. This is their registration. They said, oh yeah, no, these people don't live in this address anymore, or they're dead, or uh they just they they don't vote, like they're not voting anymore, because not a lot of people know this. Georgia has a use it or lose it mentality when it comes to voting. That is obsolete, especially with today's political climate. That is enough to invigorate anybody to get to the polls. Yeah. So you mean to tell me you're gonna redo my registration because you think I don't deserve it? Because I haven't used it, but it's my right. Yeah, I have the right to do so per the voting rights act that happened in 1965, right? 60 years ago. So why am I sitting here trying to fight and prove to you that I deserve this right when it's already been given?

SPEAKER_02: 39:09

Yeah. That's good, that's good. So, so that definitely would have infuriated me and got me got me going as well. And I think it's so important that you took it back to LBJ's office. You took it back to where it started because I think it's it's one of those things that we don't focus on as a country, and there's a reason why we don't focus on it. And um, it if it affects us the most, right? It affects us the most. So I'm excited that you are taking that on and that you're speaking about it. That's on your website, that it's a part of what you you believe. All right, so I usually finish my my episode with one question. I'm gonna ask you two, because I think the people just need some bullet points of what. So if someone is looking to vote for you, they want to know, okay, I've never voted in this type of election before. When are they voting? And why should they vote for you?

SPEAKER_00: 40:05

Absolutely. So, well, first things first, uh, you'll have to vote for me for the primaries. Okay. So you will have to vote twice. That is something that not a lot of people talk about. If you are going to vote in this 2026 midterm, if you're gonna vote in the presidential uh campaign, you have to vote twice because there is a primary of where the parties decide who is going to come uh and represent them, and then there's a general election where the parties go against one another. So for me, you will have to vote in May. May is when the primaries are for the Democratic Party. You will have to also vote in November, November 3rd. Now, this is all of 2026, so you've got time. So you can research everything about me. If you like what I say, if you don't like what I say, at least do the research so that way you have an educated vote rather than just a, oh, I like his name or oh, I can't pronounce his name. So definitely want to make sure that you go and do that. Um, but the main reason as to why I would say to vote for me is because I'm not a politician that can be bought. I am not a politician that somebody will be able to look at and say, oh, if I just slide him this this couple hundred thousand here and there, da-da-da, I'll be able to get him this. No. My job, I'm not asking for a vote to lead, I am asking for a vote to serve. This is a public service position. Yeah. This is something where people are actually coming through to service and make sure that people are getting the needs met. Businesses are having their needs met. You're having it to where people are getting these different votes and they're talking about I'm gonna lead you to the future, I'm gonna lead you to the future. No, the future is gonna come regardless. Yeah. Let me serve you.

SPEAKER_03: 41:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 41:37

Georgia deserves to be served. Yeah, Georgia deserves to be cherished, and Georgia deserves to be valued. Yeah. And that is something that I am going to do. I'm not here to try and give any puffed up values or anything like that because I know what Georgia is capable of. And in the great words of Andre 3000, the South got something to say. But I'm here to listen.

SPEAKER_02: 41:58

So I love that. That's awesome. That's so good. The last question we ask uh here at our podcast is in the grand scheme of things, what do you want your legacy to be?

SPEAKER_00: 42:09

I want my legacy to be one of intentional service because service is one thing. You know, people can go and be like, oh, I'm going to do a community service project, but like I just need service hours here, or oh, I just need a photo op there. No, intentional service. Intentional service begets change. Intentional service leaves people questioning why were they here? What really sparked them to do it? Because now it's not that you're just there, like I'm not there with some organization t-shirt on, and oh, you see me doing this, and I'm posing for photo ops and then I'm gone, you never see me again. Yeah, intentional service allows for you to really showcase your heart. Yeah, you open up. It it there I wrote a poem once where I talk about vulnerability being the biggest strength any man can have. Because to pry yourself open is against all thoughts of self-preservation. So when you open yourself up in service and you show the people you are serving that you are human, not that you are above them, not that you are beneath them, but that you are right alongside them and you are there to help them, you must open up to let them see your humanity. And that's something that I really want for people to see is intentional service. If I have anything that people are left with with my life, with my work, or with my name, intentional service.

SPEAKER_02: 43:28

That's a great answer. Well, you are well on your way to creating that legacy. I'm so proud of you. I'm so excited and I can't wait to see what all happens, what the Lord does in your life. Um, and I just want you to keep going. No matter what happens in this situation, keep going. You're so young, so gifted, so wise. Uh, and the world will be better off for having you in positions of service. Tell the people about your website where they can find you on socials if you want them to, and how they can get more information about what you're doing.

SPEAKER_00: 43:56

Absolutely. Uh, so you can go into my website, ajthenumber4ga.org. That's aj4ga.org. You'll be able to learn more about me, or you can also go to my Instagram page, my Facebook page, Adrian Consonary Jr. for Georgia Secretary of State, or AJ number fourga underscore. That's the Instagram page. You can definitely go there. You can learn more about me. You can donate to the campaign, you can volunteer for the campaign because this is not gonna happen alone. We got 159 counties to hit, and I'm gonna need your help. But also, and I do want to say this as well, because yes, I am young. I am definitely young, but John Lewis wasn't too young to march on the Edmund Pettis Bridge. Julian Bond wasn't too young to go and run for uh his office as well. And you have all of these different people like Gabriel Sanchez, Bryce Berry, you have Eric Bell, all of these people who are running in these positions who are young. The fires of our youth will be able to be used to weld and form and forge tomorrow in a great way. So if you feel as if I am too young, just wait till the history books come out.

SPEAKER_02: 45:00

So and listen, most of our, you know, leaders died at a very young age, you know. So all the things that Martin Luther King were doing, he did in his 20s and 30s, all the things that Michael Mack did, you know, these people didn't die at 60.

SPEAKER_00: 45:12

Right.

SPEAKER_02: 45:13

You know? Um, and so you are young, but just old enough to get the job done. And I'm excited to see what you do. Thanks so much for being here.

SPEAKER_00: 45:20

Thank you for having me.

SPEAKER_02: 45:21

Absolutely, absolutely. Listen, this has been another episode of I'll Just Let Myself In. I'm so grateful that you tuned in. If you tuned in on Sirius XM channel 140 Holy Culture Radio on Monday nights, 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. We thank you so much for listening there. If you're watching on their YouTube, we thank you for watching there. If you're watching on my YouTube, Lish Speaks, thank you so much for watching there and make sure that you subscribe. I've noticed that about 70% now, we've gotten a little bit better of those of you who listen regularly are not subscribed. So I want to encourage you to subscribe to the YouTube channel so that you don't miss anything. Once again, this is the podcast where we don't wait for an imaginary permission slip or some invitation to a seat at an imaginary table. We let ourselves into our God-given doors. I thank you so much for tuning in, and we'll be back next week. Same time, same place. Peace.