Today we’d like to introduce you to Laderrius Barksdale.
Hi Laderrius, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I started my journey after COVID. Before the pandemic, I was doing event planning in Hawaii. But after the lockdowns and the two-year pause, I felt like it would be difficult trying to reestablish myself in a market that far away. So instead of forcing my way back into something that no longer felt natural, I leaned into my biggest strength , being a people person.
Talking to people always came easy to me. I enjoyed interviewing, but I never liked how formal and scripted traditional interviews felt. So I decided to bring more of myself into it and create a relaxed environment where conversations felt real instead of rehearsed. What made the show different was my ability to make people feel comfortable enough to open up. And once that happened, the conversations became unforgettable.
Sometimes the stories would get so deep that I’d end up calling the very person they were having issues with and bringing them onto the show. Suddenly, we were working through real problems live in real time while I asked the questions everybody watching actually wanted answers to.
As the show continued to grow, I reinvested every dollar back into it because I wanted people to feel like they were watching a real production , but still something fun, chaotic, and unserious at the same time. That balance fit my brand perfectly.
Ever since then, I’ve lived by the motto: “I take playing very serious.”
My audience connected with that energy because for a lot of people, the show became comedic relief after a long, stressful day of work. It gave people a place to laugh, engage, debate, and escape reality for a little while while still talking about real-life situations.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
The obstacles were there from the beginning, and honestly, they still exist today. My content has always pushed the line between raw, edgy, funny, and real, so setbacks came with the territory. But every setback taught me something valuable along the way.
I’ve lost multiple six figure YouTube and Facebook pages, along with the revenue and opportunities that came with them. That was hard, especially knowing how much time and energy I had poured into building those platforms. But instead of quitting, I looked at it as part of the process and kept going.
My first year was probably the most challenging because I made a decision early on that I didn’t want to shortcut my growth by relying heavily on big Name guests or creators with larger audiences to carry my platform. I wanted to build a real foundation and a genuine community first.
So while other people may have seen only 34 live viewers, I saw a core audience that truly believed in what I was building. Those people showed up consistently, supported the vision, and helped shape the culture of the show. Even during the slow growth, I knew I was building something special , something authentic that people could connect to long term.
As you know, we’re big fans of Talks With Tukay LLC. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Talks With Tukay isn’t your traditional podcast, interview platform, or media company and honestly, that’s what makes it work. We built our brand around real conversations, real reactions, and real people. The show lives somewhere between entertainment, comedy, therapy, and complete chaos all at the same time. I specialize in creating an environment where people feel comfortable enough to open up without feeling like they’re sitting in a stiff interview chair being interrogated.
What sets us apart is the energy. A lot of platforms focus on being polished and politically correct. We focus on being authentic. My audience doesn’t come to Talks With Tukay looking for perfection. They come for honesty, humor, uncomfortable conversations, messy situations, and those real human moments you can’t script. One minute we’re laughing uncontrollably and the next minute we’re helping somebody work through real life problems live on air.
I’m known for having conversations most people are scared to have and asking the questions everybody watching is already thinking. Sometimes the stories get so deep that we bring both sides onto the show and work through conflict in real time. That unpredictability is what keeps people invested because anything can happen at any moment.
Brand wise, I’m probably most proud of the community we’ve built. The “Messy Mafia” isn’t just viewers. It’s a real community of people who clock in every night looking for laughter, conversation, drama, accountability, and an escape from everyday stress. A lot of people work hard all day and come to the show for comedic relief and connection, and I take that responsibility seriously.
I’m also proud that we built this brand organically. There wasn’t a huge machine behind it. We reinvested back into the production, upgraded the experience over time, and stayed consistent even during setbacks. Losing platforms, rebuilding audiences, and starting over multiple times taught me resilience and made the brand even stronger.
At the core of everything, Talks With Tukay is entertainment with personality. We take serious conversations and make them relatable, engaging, and sometimes hilariously unfiltered. Around here, the motto has always been, “I take playing very serious.”
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
Anything that can go wrong will go wrong, and you have to be prepared for both the fall and the comeback. This space comes with a lot of ups and downs, and you have to learn how to weather the storm without losing sight of the bigger picture.
Over time, I realized I was building something bigger than myself. Thousands of people tune in looking for laughter, stress relief, conversation, and an escape from whatever life threw at them that day. That’s a responsibility I never take for granted.
No matter how difficult things get behind the scenes, I understand that showing up matters. The platform became more than content. It became a place where people could decompress, laugh, connect, and feel seen. That alone keeps me motivated to keep pushing forward no matter what obstacles come my way.
Pricing:
- 150 LOW LEVEL
- 250 FOR A MID LEVEL
- 350-500 FOR A EXCUSLIVE
- THESE ARE WHAT I PAY FOR PEOPLE WHO COME ON MY SHOW
Contact Info:
- Website: https://TALKSWITHTUKAY.COM
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/talkswithtukay/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570395742947
- Other: https://KICK.COM/TALKSWITHTUKAY
