Culture | the porch | Terence Poole
Is the soundtrack for most of the culture's morning commute and center for some of the most notable moments and thoughtful recaps for more than a decade becoming stale?
Note: As of Monday, Feb. 5 Jess Hilarious is officially the third permanent co-host of The Breakfast Club.
The Breakfast Club premiered on airwaves in the New York City market in December 2010. The show became nationally syndicated in 2013. Formerly The Breakfast Club was hosted by radio hall of famers; DJ Envy, Charlamagne Tha God, and Angela Yee, who left the trio in December 2022. It airs Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. until 10 a.m. The show is an integral part for many listeners who commute to work during that time. On any given day, in between those four hours, there have been some of the best viral, culture-moving, thought-provoking, and WTF moments over the years.
Great Radio Moments
Who could forget the classic Soulja Boy interview when he had his questions for the hosts–DRRAAAKKKKEEEEE?!
Or before Charlamagne got a filter and used to say everything that came to mind? There’s the moment DJ Envy wanted to box Tyrese in the mouth for speaking sideways to his wife Gia and what happened with Lil’ Mama, who I still feel bad for (IYKYK.)
As an avid listener, I looked forward to tuning in for the surprise of never knowing what would be said or who was going to say it, but as of late, I’m questioning the future of the show. With the less-than-interesting topic of discussions and constant rumor reports about nothing, I’m forced to ask, is The Breakfast Club becoming stale? Should we consider a complete overhaul?
The Hosts
DJ Envy is starting to become a snooze fest, to say the least (no pun intended.) He has his “beige rage” moments besides that, but nothing noteworthy. Listen to TBC every day for a week straight and you’ll know everything you need to know about Envy. In the meantime: DJ Envy is married and father of the year with 37 kids (relax, I’m exaggerating.) He couldn’t sexually satisfy his wife, Gia for years. Note the term “DJ” used loosely here–he’s a DJ and has been for years. He does a really good job at playing songs and he does car shows. In my opinion, his best source of content is his “beige rage” moments.
During one of the most infamous interviews with Damon Dash, a heated discussion between Dash and Envy ensued about being your boss. Dash eloquently summarized Envy’s commentary by saying he “sounds smart to a dumb person.” From that moment on, I started paying more attention to what Envy said and realized that I could not have agreed more. A few more episodes revealed that Envy is full of nothing at times, but I admire his delivery and how he confidently says nothing. I was hesitant to touch on this next point, but I couldn’t wrap my mind around what was going on, so here we are: what’s going on with Envy and this fake one-sided gay relationship with Charlamagne? Aside from listening uncomfortably, who wants to hear a grown 46-year-old man joke with his co-host daily about their “love affair?”
While Envy’s job may be secure, I think there can be some improvement on his end–for starters, cut the gay act. Then, stop asking dressed-up surface-level questions. By far, he’s not the worst radio host, but I wouldn’t be upset if he was replaced for a few shows or replaced altogether.
Charlamagne Tha God has experienced the most growth as someone who used to smell the seats of the women who appeared on the show. He went from saying the most asinine things that would polarize discussion to being almost completely disengaged with what’s happening in the culture. He used to share his opinion whether it was a part of the consensus or not to just simply say, “I do not care,” or “Why are we even talking about this?” It’s not problematic but it makes listening to him boring.
He breaks up the show’s format with comedic relief and has one of the most notable segments in Donkey of the Day despite his maturation. It’s bittersweet in that because of his maturity, a lot of things just don’t interest him anymore. It will be surprising to see if he stands strong for another five years on the show. Seeing him go is not what I’d want for The BC but if he does get the boot, send Envy with him and let the new hosts get a fresh start.
Topic Docket
Topics of discussion is one of my favorite segments because I enjoy hearing other people’s opinions on certain matters but lately, it seems as if there is nothing to talk about. For me topics like “Would you date someone with x amount of kids,” “Would you walk on the airplane barefoot,” or “How do you feel about support animals?” fall flat.
I never knew how much hate service animals received until I listened to that show. I could tell nothing was going on that day and if you tuned in, then you would have been just as confused as I was when Envy had vehement emotions against support animals. I understand every show will not have the greatest topics, I’d just rather cut the fluff if those are the best types of topics we can hear discussion on. If Charlamagne sounds uninterested in talking about it, imagine my face behind the wheel.
A Permanent Third Wheel
Is the plan to have a rotating co-host until the show is no longer on air? I’ll be the first to say it, they need a permanent replacement! Angela Yee left hefty shoes to fill but in my opinion, Jess Hilarious would be the ideal addition to the show, and Loren Lorosa would be my second option.
Unfortunately, Lorosa is the butt of her co-hosts’ jokes and they just don’t seem to take her seriously. She has a similar issue as Envy with questions that don’t have any depth, for example, asking piggyback questions like, “Why are you asking that?” During a celebratory interview with the recent SuperBowl Halftime performer and icon Usher, she asked him, without rhyme or reason, whether he was dating Kim Kardashian or not. Or randomly interjecting to ask an interviewee about their zodiac sign. She has potential for a future in radio but is not a permanent fit for TBC.
Jess, on the other hand, provides a fitting balance between Envy and Tha God. She stands on her business and can take their jokes and dish right back, arguably harder. If it ever came down to it and the veterans began to transition out, Jess would be the right person to usher in a completely new era of TBC–throw the bag at Ms. Hilarious and lock her in.
Terence J. Poole. is a Fayetteville native, raised in Spring Lake, N. C. He received his B.S. in Business Administration from Fayetteville State University in 2014. He started his writing career by briefly contributing to an online gossip blog as a music writer. Terence has aspirations of being a television show writer but the main goal is to eventually create his shows. He plans to use his platform to bring up his peers who may be having a hard time breaking into the industry by giving them a voice.
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