Who's Your Ma Honey?

3: How Addonis Parker Went From Hiding His Art to Owning His Gift

What happens when the thing you’re called to be… is the very thing the world tells you to hide? Today, Teri Williams and Suzan McDowell welcome the world-renowned artist Addonis Parker to unpack identity, masculinity, and the cost of suppressing your true self. From hiding his creativity as a young athlete to being told how his art should look, Addonis shares the internal battle of trying to fit into a version of himself that the world would accept. But what he once buried eventually became the very thing that saved his life. Listen in as this conversation goes deeper than art. It’s about confronting shame, reclaiming your identity, and understanding that your difference is not a weakness, but your calling. KEY POINTS:  * 0:00 – Introduction  * 3:14 – Success leaves clues: Legacy, lineage, and “Who am I?” * 5:17 – Hiding creativity: Sports, masculinity, and burying emotion * 6:48 – The moment at six: A sketchpad, sunlight, and realizing he was different * 11:02 – Learning to be “other”: Accepting that art + athletics can coexist * 13:51 – Being ashamed of “Adonis”: When your own name feels too artistic * 15:35 – Everything changes: Owning “Adonis” and watching the world respond * 24:21 – “Stop painting Black people”: The pushback against his Black art * 39:17 – Turning pain into fuel: Using rejection as hidden fire and purpose * 41:48 – The lie that almost killed him: Not expecting to live past 25 QUOTES: “When God gives you a gift, you've got to add on to it.” – Addonis Parker “You have to realize that you are a human being with worth before you become a superhero.” – Addonis Parker “The worst lie you can tell is the one you tell yourself.” – Addonis Parker RESOURCES: Addonis Parker  Website | addonisparker.com [https://addonisparker.com/] Instagram | @addonisp [https://www.instagram.com/addonisp/] Explore more from OneUnited Bank: 🏦 Learn more: oneunited.com [https://www.oneunited.com/] 💡 Build smarter with WiseOne: oneunited.com/wiseone [https://www.oneunited.com/wiseone/] 💳 Get the Card: oneunited.com/apply [https://www.oneunited.com/apply/] Who's Your Ma' Honey?  is produced by EPYC Media Network (visit at epyc.co [https://www.epyc.co/])

Karen Hunter on Getting Fired, Racism, and Becoming Undeniable

After being told her work was “not up to par” and getting fired early in her career, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Karen Hunter was forced to confront rejection, self-doubt, and the realities of navigating spaces that weren’t built for her. But instead of folding, she doubled down. From calling the newsroom every day to outworking everyone around her, Karen turned that moment into fuel and went on to land front-page stories at one of the biggest newspapers in the country. This isn’t just a story about getting fired. It’s about what you do next. RESOURCES: Karen Hunter  Website | www.karenhuntershow.com [https://www.karenhuntershow.com/] Instagram | @karenhuntershow [https://www.instagram.com/karenhuntershow/] Explore more from OneUnited Bank: 🏦 Learn more: https://www.oneunited.com/ [https://www.oneunited.com/] 💡 Build smarter with WiseOne: https://www.oneunited.com/wiseone/ [https://www.oneunited.com/wiseone/] 💳 Get the Card: https://www.oneunited.com/apply/ [https://www.oneunited.com/apply/] Who's Your Ma' Honey?  is produced by EPYC Media Network (visit at https://www.epyc.co/ [https://www.epyc.co/])

2: Karen Hunter on Rethinking Strength and The People Who Shape You

In this episode of Who’s Your Ma Honey?, Teri Williams and Suzan McDowell sit down with Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Karen Hunter to unpack identity, origin, and the stories we tell ourselves about who we are. Karen shares powerful stories about her upbringing, her mother’s resilience, and the mindset that helped her navigate spaces where she wasn’t always welcome. From being told she wasn’t “up to par” to becoming one of the most influential voices in media, her journey reveals what it really takes to own your identity without apology. This conversation challenges the idea of shame and replaces it with something more powerful: self-awareness, imagination, and the courage to define yourself on your own terms. KEY POINTS:  * 0:00 – Introduction  * 3:22 – Karen’s “no shame” origin story: Delusion as protection * 4:18 – Father’s grind and early expectations: Work ethic, plotting & skipping a grade * 8:29 – Generational courage: From plantation roots to leaving the South * 17:42 – Social discomfort vs. belonging: Introvert who refuses to shrink * 24:03 – Cosplaying decoded: Performing the life others expect * 29:16 – Suzanne’s parallel: Rejecting “weak” mothers, then realizing the cost * 30:53 – Lessons for the community: You belong everywhere you are * 48:36 – Racism in the newsroom: quota myths, slurs, and using it all as motivation * 53:02 – All money ain’t good money: Community-first business ethic QUOTES: “Every time I do whatever it is, I imagine it happens.” – Karen Hunter “Most of the problems people bring to you are them telling on themselves.” – Karen Hunter “I like the ability to be able to do whatever it is I want to do, and that, to me, is power.” – Karen Hunter RESOURCES Karen Hunter  Website | www.karenhuntershow.com [https://www.karenhuntershow.com/] Instagram | @karenhuntershow [https://www.instagram.com/karenhuntershow/] Explore more from OneUnited Bank: 🏦 Learn more: https://www.oneunited.com/ [https://www.oneunited.com/] 💡 Build smarter with WiseOne: https://www.oneunited.com/wiseone/ [https://www.oneunited.com/wiseone/] 💳 Get the Card: https://www.oneunited.com/apply/ [https://www.oneunited.com/apply/] Who's Your Ma' Honey?  is produced by EPYC Media Network (visit at https://www.epyc.co/ [https://www.epyc.co/])

How to Reframe Your Shame and Finally Love Yourself | Dr. Delvena Thomas

What do you do when you feel disconnected from yourself… like you don’t fully belong anywhere? In this powerful segment from Who’s Your Ma Honey?, Dr. Delvena Thomas shares practical tools for navigating shame, self-doubt, and the tension between who you are and who you’ve been told to be. This isn’t surface-level advice. It’s about doing the real work: Learning how to stop ruminating on your past, practicing self-love in a tangible way, and giving yourself the grace and forgiveness needed to move forward. Dr. Delvena Thomas breaks down how to reframe your story, why self-love is the foundation for everything, and how the very experiences you’ve been stuck on may actually be what led you to your purpose. If you’ve ever felt like you don’t fit in, questioned your worth, or struggled to let go of your past, this conversation will give you a new way to see yourself. GUEST RESOURCES: Dr. Delvena Thomas  Website | www.drdelvenahelp.com [https://www.drdelvenahelp.com/her-story] Instagram | @drdelvena [https://www.instagram.com/drdelvena/] RESOURCES: Teri Williams Website: @teri-williams [https://www.oneunited.com/about-us/our-leadership/teri-williams/] Suzan McDowell LinkedIn: @suzan-mcdowell [https://www.linkedin.com/in/suzan-mcdowell-01a4574] Who's Your Ma' Honey?  is produced by EPYC Media Network [https://www.epyc.co/]

1: The Psychology of Shame: How Internalized Shame Shapes Your Identity | Dr. Delvena Thomas

Shame doesn’t start with you. It’s learned, internalized, and carried until you decide to confront it. In this premiere episode of Who’s Your Ma Honey?, hosts Teri Williams and Suzan McDowell sit down with Board-Certified Psychiatrist Dr. Delvena Thomas to unpack the psychology of shame and how it silently shapes identity, confidence, and success. Teri shares the moment she realized she buried her roots to fit into elite spaces, disconnecting from the very woman who shaped her greatness. Suzan opens up about navigating identity, belonging, and the tension of growing up between polarizing cultures. Together, they reveal how external judgment becomes internal truth and how that truth can be rewritten. Tune in to find out how shame is formed, why we disconnect from our origins to survive, and what it really takes to reframe your story. This episode is a masterclass in self-awareness, healing, and reclaiming your power. If you’ve ever felt like you had to hide parts of yourself to belong, this conversation will change how you see your story. KEY POINTS:  * 0:00 - Introduction  * 2:38 – Burying your roots to succeed: how Teri erased Indiantown and Miss Honey from her Ivy League success story * 7:48 – Internalized trauma & self-stigma: why we disconnect from our background to survive elite, white-dominant spaces * 16:18 – How shame is imposed: subtle microaggressions and dismissal that signal “you don’t belong here” * 25:12 – Undeserved shame exposed: institutions reward you for disconnecting from your roots, community, and history * 30:41 – Suzan’s immigration shock: taken from Jamaica to Texas and forced into cultural displacement and poverty * 32:03 – Split identity as a superpower: being both Jamaican and American becomes Suzan’s advantage in South Florida * 49:20 – From trauma to resilience: reframing, “Brain Love,” and turning shame into your superpower QUOTES: “There could be some things about you and in our roots that we bury to try to fit into this integrated world. We went from segregation to integration.” - Teri Williams “I felt so ashamed of being this… dark skinned, ashy Jamaican… not fitting in girl in the middle of Texas.” – Suzan McDowell “We do this subconscious thing where we disconnect from our roots because this is our way of surviving.”  - Dr. Delvena Thomas GUEST RESOURCES: Dr. Delvena Thomas  Website | www.drdelvenahelp.com [https://www.drdelvenahelp.com/her-story] Instagram | @drdelvena [https://www.instagram.com/drdelvena/] RESOURCES: Teri Williams Website: @teri-williams [https://www.oneunited.com/about-us/our-leadership/teri-williams/] Suzan McDowell LinkedIn: @suzan-mcdowell [https://www.linkedin.com/in/suzan-mcdowell-01a4574] Who's Your Ma' Honey?  is produced by EPYC Media Network [https://www.epyc.co/]