Hosted by Chad Sanders, writer for HBO Max's series Rap Sh!t and author of Black Magic, Direct Deposit is an episodic podcast that explores the complex dynamics around Black wealth and success.
Chad Sanders is a writer on the brink of wealth, whose world is changing fast around him. He goes from sleeping on a mattress on the floor of his Brooklyn apartment to Hollywood pitch meetings with his mentor, Spike Lee, to riding around Los Angeles with Kanye West. He lands a staff writing gig for Issa Rae’s new show, Rap Sh!t. His phone is ringing nonstop, and he can feel his burgeoning success, but can't stop checking his bank account and obsessing over how he's going to make more money without losing himself. Now that he's getting some cash, Chad stays up at night wondering what's going to happen next?
“We’re going to take you on the ride from being broke and hungry, to cashing some big checks,” Sanders says in the podcast’s trailer. “And all the complications that come with trying to get rich.”
In Direct Deposit, Chad discusses everything that happens to Black people who get rich through a series of illuminating, honest, funny, and moving conversations with Black Hollywood power players like Issa Rae, Charles King, Soledad O'Brien and Gabrielle Union, as well as Black entrepreneurs like Slutty Vegan founder Pinky Cole, NFL quarterback trainer Quincy Avery and more, in a quest to understand the unique, fraught, and fascinating relationship that Black people have with money. To get to the real and raw truths around being rich while Black, Chad takes us into the clubs, black cars, studio lots, bedrooms and therapy sessions inhabited by Black super-earners (including Kanye West’s bathroom).
Chad's trying to answer the most urgent questions in his life: What's money going to do for him? What's money going to do to him?
Series Topics Include:
TRYING TO GET MONEY: Chad talks with Issa Rae (Insecure) and NFL quarterback trainer Quincy Avery about the early, hungry days of scraping and clawing to jumpstart their careers. Chad’s path toward wealth hits a dead end until he has a spectacular chance encounter with one of his heroes: Spike Lee.
HEATING UP: He talks with Vanessa Anderson (star publicist to Cardi B and Issa Rae) and David Leeks (2 Chainz’s manager) about how to create a buzz loud enough to get The Town’s attention. Can Chad grow his notoriety enough to cash it in?
BECOMING A THING: Chad’s life hits warp speed when he writes a viral Op-Ed piece in the New York Times about white people’s reaction to George Floyd’s murder. His phone is lighting up with offers, exes, and angry Instagram comments. The ride becomes disorienting so he calls on beauty mogul Jackie Aina and Pinky Cole, leader of the $100M Slutty Vegan empire, to get some real advice on how to stay grounded when everything around him is upending.
MONEY ON THE FLOOR: Chad takes us from first class flights with rappers, to fancy steakhouses with NFL stars to an Atlanta club with a pimp. There are many ways for young rich people to blow their cash, especially in Atlanta. Chad explores the way ballers burn cash and the people who help them do it.
WORKING WITH WHITE PEOPLE: Chad examines the many angles of frustration, sadness and anger that he’s experienced working with white people as his money grows. He talks with actress Gabrielle Union and journalist Soledad O’Brien to share their experiences about working in white environments.
MENTAL HEALTH & THERAPY: Psychologist Amanda Jurist speaks with Chad about some of the historic and insidious causes for his pain and why Black people must be particularly thoughtful about how they engage with therapy.
DON’T LOOK DOWN: Chad goes to see a professional - financial manager Anytwyne Delonde - to break down the ways Chad can avoid falling into the fear trap that snares many young, rich, Black people and leaves them broke..
TRYING TO STAY FREE: Chad has some money, a little bit of clout and a future that looks bright. But still, he doesn’t quite feel free. Chad talks to people who have climbed to the top to ask them the question: are you free?
“Direct Deposit: What Happens When Black People Get Rich” is available on Audible