1 00:00:01,068 --> 00:00:03,269 Viewers like you make this program possible. 2 00:00:03,270 --> 00:00:05,339 Support your local PBS station. 3 00:00:16,016 --> 00:00:17,951 I'm Henry Louis Gates Jr. 4 00:00:17,952 --> 00:00:20,654 Welcome to "Finding Your Roots." 5 00:00:21,522 --> 00:00:25,525 In this episode, we'll meet Lizzo and Flea, 6 00:00:25,526 --> 00:00:28,528 two extraordinary musicians whose lives 7 00:00:28,529 --> 00:00:31,098 were transformed by their talents. 8 00:00:32,666 --> 00:00:33,867 I was weird. 9 00:00:33,868 --> 00:00:35,969 I stood out 'cause I would write raps all the time, 10 00:00:35,970 --> 00:00:38,872 like when I was like 10 or 11 or 12, 11 00:00:38,873 --> 00:00:41,675 and I would always like subvert expectations. 12 00:00:42,076 --> 00:00:44,544 Growing up, I thought that I was never good enough, 13 00:00:44,545 --> 00:00:46,513 that the world was scary. 14 00:00:46,514 --> 00:00:48,348 But as soon as I discovered music, 15 00:00:48,349 --> 00:00:50,116 I thought, this is what real is. 16 00:00:50,117 --> 00:00:52,285 This is something to hold onto. 17 00:00:52,286 --> 00:00:54,154 And it just took over my life. 18 00:00:54,155 --> 00:00:55,422 All of a sudden, I was interesting, 19 00:00:55,423 --> 00:00:56,524 instead of weird. 20 00:00:57,024 --> 00:00:58,291 To uncover their roots, 21 00:00:58,292 --> 00:01:00,060 we've used every tool available. 22 00:01:01,095 --> 00:01:03,396 Genealogists comb through paper trails, 23 00:01:03,397 --> 00:01:06,599 stretching back hundreds of years. 24 00:01:06,600 --> 00:01:08,701 That's crazy. 25 00:01:08,702 --> 00:01:11,971 While DNA experts utilize the latest advances 26 00:01:11,972 --> 00:01:15,208 in genetic analysis to reveal secrets that 27 00:01:15,209 --> 00:01:17,378 have lain hidden for generations. 28 00:01:18,312 --> 00:01:19,779 Wow. 29 00:01:19,780 --> 00:01:21,114 And we've compiled everything... 30 00:01:21,115 --> 00:01:22,482 Wow. 31 00:01:22,483 --> 00:01:23,783 Into a "Book of Life." 32 00:01:23,784 --> 00:01:25,118 Oh my gosh. 33 00:01:25,119 --> 00:01:27,120 A record of all of our discoveries. 34 00:01:27,121 --> 00:01:28,755 How the hell did you find this? 35 00:01:28,756 --> 00:01:31,125 And a window into the hidden past. 36 00:01:32,193 --> 00:01:36,129 You just think about like the little things 37 00:01:36,130 --> 00:01:38,599 that have to happen for you to exist. 38 00:01:38,866 --> 00:01:40,633 That's right. 39 00:01:40,634 --> 00:01:43,003 I'm actually speechless by that. 40 00:01:43,337 --> 00:01:45,305 I don't know why this has affected me so much. 41 00:01:45,306 --> 00:01:46,573 It's emotional, 42 00:01:46,574 --> 00:01:48,341 someone I never knew, you know, 43 00:01:48,342 --> 00:01:50,543 you just feel like you know him a little bit. 44 00:01:50,544 --> 00:01:52,313 It's family. 45 00:01:52,847 --> 00:01:56,282 My two guests have performed all over the world, 46 00:01:56,283 --> 00:01:59,019 bringing joy to generations of listeners. 47 00:02:00,321 --> 00:02:03,556 In this episode, they'll step off the stage 48 00:02:03,557 --> 00:02:06,326 and become listeners themselves, 49 00:02:06,327 --> 00:02:09,696 hearing stories about long-lost ancestors, 50 00:02:09,697 --> 00:02:14,200 stories that will forever change how they understand 51 00:02:14,201 --> 00:02:15,402 who they are. 52 00:02:16,570 --> 00:02:18,706 . 53 00:02:37,725 --> 00:02:39,560 . 54 00:02:42,129 --> 00:02:43,763 {\an8}♪ LIZZO: It ain't my fault ♪ 55 00:02:43,764 --> 00:02:44,864 {\an8}♪ that I'm out here gettin' loose, ♪ 56 00:02:44,865 --> 00:02:46,799 {\an8}♪ gotta blame it on the goose... ♪ 57 00:02:46,800 --> 00:02:48,602 {\an8}Lizzo is a force of nature. 58 00:02:49,703 --> 00:02:52,639 {\an8}The Grammy award-winning singer radiates 59 00:02:52,640 --> 00:02:55,174 {\an8}an infectious charisma. 60 00:02:55,175 --> 00:02:57,610 {\an8}And her message of female empowerment has 61 00:02:57,611 --> 00:03:01,681 {\an8}proven both widely resonant and wildly entertaining. 62 00:03:01,682 --> 00:03:03,349 {\an8}♪ LIZZO: Blame it on my juice, ♪ 63 00:03:03,350 --> 00:03:05,519 {\an8}♪ blame it, blame it on my juice. ♪ 64 00:03:05,853 --> 00:03:07,420 Watching her perform, 65 00:03:07,421 --> 00:03:10,657 it seems Lizzo was destined for the stage. 66 00:03:10,658 --> 00:03:13,460 And in a sense, she was. 67 00:03:14,061 --> 00:03:16,029 Born Melissa Jefferson, 68 00:03:16,030 --> 00:03:18,698 Lizzo, was raised in Houston, Texas, 69 00:03:18,699 --> 00:03:20,700 in a churchgoing family filled with 70 00:03:20,701 --> 00:03:23,069 talented musicians. 71 00:03:23,070 --> 00:03:25,306 And she grew up wanting to join them. 72 00:03:27,274 --> 00:03:28,908 I knew when I was nine years old. 73 00:03:28,909 --> 00:03:30,209 You did? It's so wild. 74 00:03:30,210 --> 00:03:33,780 I knew I wanted to be like the Spice Girls so bad, 75 00:03:33,781 --> 00:03:35,582 and I wanted to be like Destiny's Child. 76 00:03:35,583 --> 00:03:38,484 And I was put, I was forming little girl groups, 77 00:03:38,485 --> 00:03:41,120 and my first girl group was Peace, Love, and Joy. 78 00:03:41,121 --> 00:03:43,456 And I was like, "You be, you be 'Love,' 79 00:03:43,457 --> 00:03:45,892 you be 'Joy,' I'll be 'Peace,' that's our brand." 80 00:03:45,893 --> 00:03:48,895 And I was writing these little girl power songs. 81 00:03:48,896 --> 00:03:50,163 Yeah? Yeah. 82 00:03:50,164 --> 00:03:52,165 And then I had another girl group, Initials, 83 00:03:52,166 --> 00:03:53,533 and then I had another girl group, 84 00:03:53,534 --> 00:03:55,201 and then I had Cornrow Clique. 85 00:03:55,202 --> 00:03:57,003 And so I was always a part of these girl groups, 86 00:03:57,004 --> 00:03:59,639 'cause, but I, I, I wanted to be a part of a team. 87 00:03:59,640 --> 00:04:01,074 Mm-hmm. Really badly. 88 00:04:01,075 --> 00:04:02,843 Mm-hmm. A girl team. 89 00:04:03,978 --> 00:04:06,746 Lizzo's ambitions may have been clear, 90 00:04:06,747 --> 00:04:10,150 but she struggled mightily to make them a reality. 91 00:04:10,951 --> 00:04:14,053 After high school, she became the lead singer 92 00:04:14,054 --> 00:04:16,889 of an experimental rock band and started 93 00:04:16,890 --> 00:04:19,326 playing small clubs in Houston. 94 00:04:20,027 --> 00:04:22,795 But her world was turned upside down when 95 00:04:22,796 --> 00:04:26,734 her father passed away, just before her 21st birthday, 96 00:04:27,868 --> 00:04:30,838 leaving Lizzo utterly shattered. 97 00:04:32,373 --> 00:04:34,540 It got really bad. 98 00:04:34,541 --> 00:04:39,178 I stopped going to work, I stopped paying my car note, 99 00:04:39,179 --> 00:04:41,315 stopped paying rent. 100 00:04:42,316 --> 00:04:45,585 Actually, my car just disappeared. 101 00:04:45,586 --> 00:04:47,053 Mm-hmm. 102 00:04:47,054 --> 00:04:48,421 'Cause I didn't, I think it got repo'd. 103 00:04:48,422 --> 00:04:49,656 Uh-huh. 104 00:04:49,657 --> 00:04:51,591 And I remember being like, "Oh, well." 105 00:04:51,592 --> 00:04:56,030 And I was homeless for a year. 106 00:04:56,430 --> 00:04:57,930 Oh, poor baby. 107 00:04:57,931 --> 00:04:59,265 I was showering at the gym. 108 00:04:59,266 --> 00:05:00,867 I was sneaking into the gym to use the showers. 109 00:05:00,868 --> 00:05:02,402 Oh. Yeah. 110 00:05:02,403 --> 00:05:03,970 Friends were feeding me. 111 00:05:03,971 --> 00:05:05,605 You descended into the valley of the shadow... 112 00:05:05,606 --> 00:05:06,906 Yeah. 113 00:05:06,907 --> 00:05:08,307 ....in the wake of your father's death. 114 00:05:08,308 --> 00:05:09,642 Yeah. Mm. 115 00:05:09,643 --> 00:05:11,110 It was rough. 116 00:05:11,111 --> 00:05:12,645 And my mom, you know, I know she feels bad 117 00:05:12,646 --> 00:05:14,313 'cause she'd be like, "Please just come home." 118 00:05:14,314 --> 00:05:15,848 Like, you can just come home. 119 00:05:15,849 --> 00:05:18,051 Mm-hmm. But it was so hard. 120 00:05:18,052 --> 00:05:20,553 I remember, I, I remember in the dark, 121 00:05:20,554 --> 00:05:22,021 and I was laying there, I was thinking, 122 00:05:22,022 --> 00:05:24,524 and I was like, "Why is everything so hard?" 123 00:05:24,525 --> 00:05:28,861 I was like, is this like God trying to 124 00:05:28,862 --> 00:05:32,632 warn me to get outta this situation? 125 00:05:32,633 --> 00:05:34,200 Mm-hmm. 126 00:05:34,201 --> 00:05:36,602 Or is this God trying to make me stronger? 127 00:05:36,603 --> 00:05:38,071 Mm-hmm. 128 00:05:38,072 --> 00:05:39,405 By enduring this situation. 129 00:05:39,406 --> 00:05:40,907 I didn't know. 130 00:05:40,908 --> 00:05:43,711 Lizzo's questions would soon be answered. 131 00:05:44,845 --> 00:05:47,647 In 2011, she moved to Minneapolis, 132 00:05:47,648 --> 00:05:50,783 drawn by the city's vibrant music scene, 133 00:05:50,784 --> 00:05:53,320 and ended up in a girl group called The Chalice, 134 00:05:54,221 --> 00:05:57,091 with a sound that was more in line with her talents. 135 00:05:58,759 --> 00:06:01,427 The group's success would attract the attention of 136 00:06:01,428 --> 00:06:04,698 one of Lizzo's idols, Prince, 137 00:06:05,566 --> 00:06:09,136 and Prince gave her the chance to turn her life around. 138 00:06:11,338 --> 00:06:14,307 He was like, "I want you to be on this song." 139 00:06:14,308 --> 00:06:17,643 And he had us in the studio, played the song, 140 00:06:17,644 --> 00:06:20,613 and he was like, you know, "It's your song. 141 00:06:20,614 --> 00:06:22,482 Just pretend it's your song." 142 00:06:22,483 --> 00:06:25,184 And I went so crazy on that song, boy. 143 00:06:25,185 --> 00:06:27,253 I said, I'm gonna rap, I'm gonna sing, 144 00:06:27,254 --> 00:06:29,856 I'm going squall, I'm going to give it to you. 145 00:06:29,857 --> 00:06:31,657 And I did... 146 00:06:31,658 --> 00:06:32,992 Uh-huh. 147 00:06:32,993 --> 00:06:34,460 And he was like, I can offer you the world, 148 00:06:34,461 --> 00:06:35,695 you know what I mean? 149 00:06:35,696 --> 00:06:37,396 And was like, "But you can't cuss, you can't talk 150 00:06:37,397 --> 00:06:38,698 about anything negative." 151 00:06:38,699 --> 00:06:40,032 Mm-hmm. 152 00:06:40,033 --> 00:06:41,200 And I remember being like, 153 00:06:41,201 --> 00:06:43,803 "Huh, no cussing, no negativity." 154 00:06:43,804 --> 00:06:47,640 And that became the catalyst of me making positive music. 155 00:06:47,641 --> 00:06:49,075 Hmm. 156 00:06:49,076 --> 00:06:51,010 I started, 'cause I used to talk about like, 157 00:06:51,011 --> 00:06:54,113 uh, I'm anxious, I'm broke, I'm tired. 158 00:06:54,114 --> 00:06:55,314 Mm-hmm. 159 00:06:55,315 --> 00:06:57,283 I'm, uh, it was always this negative stuff. 160 00:06:57,284 --> 00:06:58,551 Mm-hmm. 161 00:06:58,552 --> 00:07:00,186 And I remember being like, my mom being like, 162 00:07:00,187 --> 00:07:01,721 "If you gonna talk about being broke and tired, 163 00:07:01,722 --> 00:07:02,989 you're gonna be broke and tired." 164 00:07:02,990 --> 00:07:04,991 And I was like, "Yeah, whatever, Mom." 165 00:07:04,992 --> 00:07:06,292 I like your mom. 166 00:07:06,293 --> 00:07:07,660 Right. Yeah. 167 00:07:07,661 --> 00:07:10,229 So I, I tried to start talking about more 168 00:07:10,230 --> 00:07:12,465 positive things, but it was really ego-based. 169 00:07:12,466 --> 00:07:14,600 But then once it was like, no, don't cuss, 170 00:07:14,601 --> 00:07:16,402 don't talk about nothing negative. 171 00:07:16,403 --> 00:07:17,804 Mm-hmm. 172 00:07:17,805 --> 00:07:19,305 I started making positive music, 173 00:07:19,306 --> 00:07:21,308 and that's how I got to where I am today. 174 00:07:23,277 --> 00:07:26,112 My second guest is Michael Balzary, 175 00:07:26,113 --> 00:07:28,014 better known as Flea. 176 00:07:28,015 --> 00:07:31,285 The legendary bassist of The Red Hot Chili Peppers, 177 00:07:31,785 --> 00:07:35,155 one of the most successful rock bands of all time. 178 00:07:36,623 --> 00:07:39,959 Over the last four decades, Flea and his band have 179 00:07:39,960 --> 00:07:42,728 packed stadiums around the world and 180 00:07:42,729 --> 00:07:45,833 sold more than 120 million records. 181 00:07:47,968 --> 00:07:50,469 But the man who was brought so much joy to so 182 00:07:50,470 --> 00:07:54,441 many people came to his calling almost by accident. 183 00:07:56,510 --> 00:07:59,178 Flea was born in Australia and might never 184 00:07:59,179 --> 00:08:02,448 have found music at all, were it not for his parents' 185 00:08:02,449 --> 00:08:05,018 troubled marriage. 186 00:08:05,953 --> 00:08:08,721 My real father, my biological father, 187 00:08:08,722 --> 00:08:10,923 you know, had a suit, briefcase, 188 00:08:10,924 --> 00:08:12,692 went to work every day. 189 00:08:12,693 --> 00:08:14,694 Uh, he worked when we moved to New York when I was four; 190 00:08:14,695 --> 00:08:16,529 he worked at the Australian Consulate 191 00:08:16,530 --> 00:08:18,631 as a government official of some kind. 192 00:08:18,632 --> 00:08:19,866 Mm-hmm. 193 00:08:19,867 --> 00:08:21,167 Customs, I think he did. 194 00:08:21,168 --> 00:08:22,301 Mm-hmm. 195 00:08:22,302 --> 00:08:23,669 Um, I never quite understood what he did. 196 00:08:23,670 --> 00:08:26,205 Um, and, and my mom left him, 197 00:08:26,206 --> 00:08:29,576 remarried when I was seven years old, 198 00:08:30,210 --> 00:08:32,144 and, uh, to a jazz musician. 199 00:08:32,145 --> 00:08:35,181 And he started having other jazz musicians come 200 00:08:35,182 --> 00:08:36,782 over for jam sessions. 201 00:08:36,783 --> 00:08:38,150 Wow. 202 00:08:38,151 --> 00:08:39,652 And they'd all set up in the living room and play, 203 00:08:39,653 --> 00:08:41,320 you know, we'd have food, everyone would be drinking, 204 00:08:41,321 --> 00:08:43,122 smoking weed, playing Bebop, you know, 205 00:08:43,123 --> 00:08:45,925 and these guys are just going for it. 206 00:08:45,926 --> 00:08:47,026 You know... 207 00:08:47,027 --> 00:08:49,462 . 208 00:08:49,463 --> 00:08:50,897 You know, Bebop. 209 00:08:50,898 --> 00:08:52,198 That's Bebop, that's Bebop. 210 00:08:52,199 --> 00:08:53,532 Very cerebral, very sophisticated, 211 00:08:53,533 --> 00:08:56,836 very emotional, spiritual, physical music. 212 00:08:56,837 --> 00:08:58,304 Right. 213 00:08:58,305 --> 00:08:59,572 And, um, the first time I saw it, 214 00:08:59,573 --> 00:09:01,307 if you would like, disappear right now, 215 00:09:01,308 --> 00:09:04,143 or start walking on air, or turn, turn into a, a pig... 216 00:09:04,144 --> 00:09:05,611 Uh-huh. 217 00:09:05,612 --> 00:09:07,280 It wouldn't be any more amazing than how that 218 00:09:07,281 --> 00:09:08,781 made me feel when I was a child. 219 00:09:08,782 --> 00:09:10,082 I remember just, you know, 220 00:09:10,083 --> 00:09:11,918 rolling around on the floor laughing, 221 00:09:11,919 --> 00:09:14,687 'cause I was so overwhelmed with joy. 222 00:09:14,688 --> 00:09:18,557 The joy of that moment would soon lead Flea 223 00:09:18,558 --> 00:09:21,494 to take up the trumpet, but it would also lead 224 00:09:21,495 --> 00:09:24,164 to something much darker. 225 00:09:25,165 --> 00:09:29,268 In 1972, when Flea was nine years old, 226 00:09:29,269 --> 00:09:31,070 he moved yet again, 227 00:09:31,071 --> 00:09:34,473 this time to Los Angeles, where his stepfather attempted 228 00:09:34,474 --> 00:09:37,743 to launch a music career and ended up 229 00:09:37,744 --> 00:09:40,112 in the throes of addiction, 230 00:09:40,113 --> 00:09:43,150 casting Flea's family into chaos. 231 00:09:44,718 --> 00:09:47,186 It was terrifying to be in our house. 232 00:09:47,187 --> 00:09:50,890 I used to, um, sleep in the backyard out in the garage. 233 00:09:50,891 --> 00:09:52,258 Mm. 234 00:09:52,259 --> 00:09:53,759 It was too scary to be in the house. 235 00:09:53,760 --> 00:09:56,829 He was, um, you know, he was, uh, 236 00:09:56,830 --> 00:10:01,567 emotionally very unstable and violent and, um, 237 00:10:01,568 --> 00:10:03,903 would destroy the entire house. 238 00:10:03,904 --> 00:10:05,905 And, you know, my mom would leave him. 239 00:10:05,906 --> 00:10:07,006 We'd always go back. 240 00:10:07,007 --> 00:10:08,741 We'd run and go stay in a motel somewhere, 241 00:10:08,742 --> 00:10:10,109 and then come back. 242 00:10:10,110 --> 00:10:11,544 The police would take him away. 243 00:10:11,545 --> 00:10:13,112 I'd come home, and it'd be cops outside with guns. 244 00:10:13,113 --> 00:10:15,481 You know, it was just scary, 'cause you didn't know when 245 00:10:15,482 --> 00:10:17,750 it was gonna happen, what was gonna happen next. 246 00:10:17,751 --> 00:10:19,051 Mm. 247 00:10:19,052 --> 00:10:20,486 You know, and so when I was 12 years old, 248 00:10:20,487 --> 00:10:21,754 I'd be out to three in the morning, 249 00:10:21,755 --> 00:10:23,055 four in the morning, 250 00:10:23,056 --> 00:10:24,190 out on Hollywood Boulevard, 251 00:10:24,191 --> 00:10:26,158 you know, running around, stealing stuff. 252 00:10:26,159 --> 00:10:27,393 Mm. 253 00:10:27,394 --> 00:10:29,729 I started getting high when I was about 11, 254 00:10:29,730 --> 00:10:31,097 I started smoking pot. 255 00:10:31,098 --> 00:10:32,732 Mm-hmm. 256 00:10:32,733 --> 00:10:34,133 Um, and as my teenage years went on at, 257 00:10:34,134 --> 00:10:35,868 got into all the hard drugs and all that. 258 00:10:35,869 --> 00:10:37,269 Mm-hmm. 259 00:10:37,270 --> 00:10:38,738 Um, and at the time, it's funny, 260 00:10:38,739 --> 00:10:40,006 I didn't think of it as quelling pain... 261 00:10:40,007 --> 00:10:41,340 Mm-hmm. 262 00:10:41,341 --> 00:10:42,408 ...'cause I didn't know what it was to not 263 00:10:42,409 --> 00:10:43,676 be in pain. 264 00:10:43,677 --> 00:10:46,412 Fortunately, Flea would find other ways 265 00:10:46,413 --> 00:10:47,980 to handle pain. 266 00:10:47,981 --> 00:10:50,217 And he's been drug-free for decades. 267 00:10:51,184 --> 00:10:54,320 But his path to happiness began on the same streets 268 00:10:54,321 --> 00:10:56,622 where he tried to lose himself, 269 00:10:56,623 --> 00:10:59,393 in a chance encounter with a kindred spirit. 270 00:11:00,127 --> 00:11:03,063 A classmate named Hillel Slovak. 271 00:11:03,830 --> 00:11:06,766 Hillel went on to become a fellow founding member of 272 00:11:06,767 --> 00:11:08,834 The Red Hot Chili Peppers. 273 00:11:08,835 --> 00:11:10,837 A guiding light in Flea's life. 274 00:11:13,407 --> 00:11:14,974 We met him while we were hitchhiking one day 275 00:11:14,975 --> 00:11:16,876 in the street, and he drove by and picked us up and... 276 00:11:16,877 --> 00:11:18,477 . 277 00:11:18,478 --> 00:11:19,812 And that was it. Uh, yeah. 278 00:11:19,813 --> 00:11:21,313 And, and we just kind of became inseparable. 279 00:11:21,314 --> 00:11:22,748 Mm-hmm. 280 00:11:22,749 --> 00:11:24,050 And one day he was like, you know, 281 00:11:24,051 --> 00:11:25,551 our bass player, he is just not serious. 282 00:11:25,552 --> 00:11:27,820 He doesn't, he doesn't believe in it and, and 283 00:11:27,821 --> 00:11:29,555 why don't you learn how to play the bass? 284 00:11:29,556 --> 00:11:32,558 And I was so happy, I, I couldn't believe... 285 00:11:32,559 --> 00:11:34,860 Huh, why? ...that he asked me. 286 00:11:34,861 --> 00:11:39,365 Um, I think I always felt kind of like an outcast. 287 00:11:39,366 --> 00:11:40,733 Mm-hmm. 288 00:11:40,734 --> 00:11:42,134 And like, I didn't belong. 289 00:11:42,135 --> 00:11:44,136 I always felt kind of removed from what I saw as like, 290 00:11:44,137 --> 00:11:46,238 the center of what was happening in school and social, 291 00:11:46,239 --> 00:11:49,442 I was just kind of a outcast. 292 00:11:49,443 --> 00:11:51,143 That's how I felt. 293 00:11:51,144 --> 00:11:52,778 And, um, he asked me to be a part of something. 294 00:11:52,779 --> 00:11:54,080 Mm-hmm. 295 00:11:54,081 --> 00:11:55,247 And I went out and got a bass the next day. 296 00:11:55,248 --> 00:11:56,749 I think my friend's dad had an extra bass, 297 00:11:56,750 --> 00:11:58,184 let me use it until I could figure out 298 00:11:58,185 --> 00:11:59,652 getting one on my own. 299 00:11:59,653 --> 00:12:02,188 And, um, literally two weeks later, I was on stage 300 00:12:02,189 --> 00:12:03,856 on at a nightclub on Sunset Boulevard... 301 00:12:03,857 --> 00:12:05,224 No. ...performing. 302 00:12:05,225 --> 00:12:06,358 Wow. 303 00:12:06,359 --> 00:12:07,526 Two weeks from the day I started. 304 00:12:07,527 --> 00:12:08,627 That's amazing. 305 00:12:08,628 --> 00:12:09,962 Yeah. That is amazing. 306 00:12:09,963 --> 00:12:11,163 You know, acting like a rock star, 307 00:12:11,164 --> 00:12:12,965 posing and prancing around, 308 00:12:12,966 --> 00:12:15,001 and that changed my life forever. 309 00:12:16,403 --> 00:12:19,205 My two guests found fame when they were young, 310 00:12:19,206 --> 00:12:21,241 and they've never let it go. 311 00:12:21,775 --> 00:12:23,609 But living in the limelight means living 312 00:12:23,610 --> 00:12:25,911 far from your roots. 313 00:12:25,912 --> 00:12:28,948 And both came to me with fundamental questions 314 00:12:28,949 --> 00:12:30,750 about those roots. 315 00:12:31,451 --> 00:12:34,321 It was time to provide some answers. 316 00:12:35,922 --> 00:12:39,125 I started with Lizzo and with a mystery at 317 00:12:39,126 --> 00:12:41,328 the heart of her family tree. 318 00:12:42,028 --> 00:12:45,331 Lizzo's father, Michael, grew up knowing little about 319 00:12:45,332 --> 00:12:48,567 his own father, Lizzo's grandfather, 320 00:12:48,568 --> 00:12:51,338 a man named John Andrew Franklin. 321 00:12:53,173 --> 00:12:55,641 What have you heard about him? 322 00:12:55,642 --> 00:12:58,711 The only thing I've heard is we don't 323 00:12:58,712 --> 00:13:00,246 know his ethnicity. 324 00:13:00,247 --> 00:13:01,547 Mm-hmm. 325 00:13:01,548 --> 00:13:04,283 We don't know who his parents are. 326 00:13:04,284 --> 00:13:05,818 Mm-hmm. 327 00:13:05,819 --> 00:13:06,886 There's a story that he's Puerto Rican; 328 00:13:06,887 --> 00:13:08,154 there's a story that he's White. 329 00:13:08,155 --> 00:13:09,522 There's a story that he's super light-skinned. 330 00:13:09,523 --> 00:13:10,589 Mm-hmm. 331 00:13:10,590 --> 00:13:11,690 We don't know. 332 00:13:11,691 --> 00:13:13,559 Okay, you ready to find out? 333 00:13:13,560 --> 00:13:14,793 Yes. 334 00:13:14,794 --> 00:13:16,228 Please turn the page. 335 00:13:16,229 --> 00:13:17,563 This is crazy. 336 00:13:17,564 --> 00:13:19,165 This is your grandfather's application 337 00:13:19,166 --> 00:13:20,733 for Social Security. 338 00:13:20,734 --> 00:13:23,169 It's dated February 10th, 1940. 339 00:13:23,170 --> 00:13:25,305 Would you please read the transcribed section? 340 00:13:26,139 --> 00:13:27,773 "John Andrew Franklin, 341 00:13:27,774 --> 00:13:28,974 age 18. 342 00:13:28,975 --> 00:13:32,244 Mother's full of name Hattie Caldonia Cunningham." 343 00:13:32,245 --> 00:13:33,579 Mm-hmm. 344 00:13:33,580 --> 00:13:36,650 "Father's name Calvin Columbus Franklin." 345 00:13:38,185 --> 00:13:39,585 Have you ever heard those names? 346 00:13:39,586 --> 00:13:41,588 Never heard those names. 347 00:13:41,988 --> 00:13:43,889 Now that we knew their names, 348 00:13:43,890 --> 00:13:45,491 we set out to learn more about 349 00:13:45,492 --> 00:13:47,826 Lizzo's great-grandparents, 350 00:13:47,827 --> 00:13:50,363 and we soon encountered something puzzling. 351 00:13:51,298 --> 00:13:55,067 In the 1930 census for Muldon, Mississippi, 352 00:13:55,068 --> 00:13:58,470 we found Lizzo's great-grandmother, Hattie. 353 00:13:58,471 --> 00:14:01,174 She's listed as being Black and single, 354 00:14:01,775 --> 00:14:04,043 and she's raising seven children, 355 00:14:04,044 --> 00:14:06,947 including John, all on her own. 356 00:14:07,814 --> 00:14:10,917 So why wasn't John's father Calvin with the family? 357 00:14:12,185 --> 00:14:15,721 His death certificate, filed in Memphis, Tennessee, 358 00:14:15,722 --> 00:14:18,892 over a decade later, contains a clue. 359 00:14:20,894 --> 00:14:23,663 Would you please read the transcribed section? 360 00:14:26,132 --> 00:14:27,666 "Certificate of Death: 361 00:14:27,667 --> 00:14:29,735 Full name Calvin Columbus Franklin. 362 00:14:29,736 --> 00:14:32,738 Race or color? White." 363 00:14:32,739 --> 00:14:33,806 There it is. 364 00:14:33,807 --> 00:14:35,074 There it is. 365 00:14:35,075 --> 00:14:39,246 Your great-grandfather was a White man. 366 00:14:40,213 --> 00:14:42,281 Whoa. 367 00:14:42,282 --> 00:14:44,784 How does that make you feel? 368 00:14:45,819 --> 00:14:48,787 I, I just wanna know what, 369 00:14:48,788 --> 00:14:50,789 what happened between them, what's the story? 370 00:14:50,790 --> 00:14:52,024 Mm-hmm. 371 00:14:52,025 --> 00:14:53,359 You know, 372 00:14:53,360 --> 00:14:55,361 you hear about things like that back then, 373 00:14:55,362 --> 00:14:59,098 and you assume something negative, you know? 374 00:14:59,099 --> 00:15:00,599 Mm-hmm. 375 00:15:00,600 --> 00:15:02,668 You don't assume it was outta love, you know? 376 00:15:02,669 --> 00:15:07,306 And I hate that that's where my mind went to 377 00:15:07,307 --> 00:15:10,009 something like rape or, you know what I mean? 378 00:15:10,010 --> 00:15:12,745 But your grandfather knew the 379 00:15:12,746 --> 00:15:14,213 name of his father. 380 00:15:14,214 --> 00:15:15,614 He knew the name. 381 00:15:15,615 --> 00:15:19,718 If you had a child as, after you were raped, 382 00:15:19,719 --> 00:15:21,887 I, it's difficult for me to imagine, your gonna tell... 383 00:15:21,888 --> 00:15:23,589 That's true. 384 00:15:23,590 --> 00:15:25,958 ...your child, the name of your rapist. 385 00:15:25,959 --> 00:15:28,228 What's their story then? 386 00:15:29,663 --> 00:15:32,097 We don't know what exactly happened between 387 00:15:32,098 --> 00:15:34,366 Hattie and Calvin; 388 00:15:34,367 --> 00:15:36,869 there are no records to tell us. 389 00:15:36,870 --> 00:15:39,838 {\an8}But Calvin's obituary, published in Memphis on 390 00:15:39,839 --> 00:15:43,309 {\an8}December 31st, 1943, 391 00:15:43,310 --> 00:15:46,346 {\an8}shows that he was a man of many secrets. 392 00:15:47,681 --> 00:15:50,015 "Mr. Franklin was born in Muldon, Mississippi. 393 00:15:50,016 --> 00:15:53,652 He leaves his wife, Mrs. Virgie McConnell 394 00:15:53,653 --> 00:15:55,321 Franklin of Memphis..." 395 00:15:55,322 --> 00:15:56,655 Wow, look at this. 396 00:15:56,656 --> 00:15:58,991 "Two daughters, Mrs. Russell. J Hennessey." 397 00:15:58,992 --> 00:16:00,392 Mm-hmm. 398 00:16:00,393 --> 00:16:01,727 "And Mrs. Winston Jackson. 399 00:16:01,728 --> 00:16:02,795 Both from Memphis, six sons: 400 00:16:02,796 --> 00:16:04,496 C.O. and J.C. Franklin of Memphis, 401 00:16:04,497 --> 00:16:06,899 J.B. and C.E. Franklin of Jackson, Mississippi. 402 00:16:06,900 --> 00:16:09,201 Staff Sergeant Thomas J. Franklin 403 00:16:09,202 --> 00:16:11,904 of the Marine Corps and Private Claude J. Franklin 404 00:16:11,905 --> 00:16:13,639 of the Army." 405 00:16:13,640 --> 00:16:15,574 There's your great-grandfather. 406 00:16:15,575 --> 00:16:17,476 According to this obituary, 407 00:16:17,477 --> 00:16:20,212 at the time of his death, he was a married man. 408 00:16:20,213 --> 00:16:21,613 Hmm. 409 00:16:21,614 --> 00:16:22,948 Married to a White woman and they 410 00:16:22,949 --> 00:16:25,184 had eight children, two daughters and six sons. 411 00:16:25,185 --> 00:16:27,386 Those children are your grandfather John's, 412 00:16:27,387 --> 00:16:29,054 White half-siblings. 413 00:16:29,055 --> 00:16:30,389 Wow. 414 00:16:30,390 --> 00:16:32,224 John himself, of course, 415 00:16:32,225 --> 00:16:34,059 was omitted from the obituary. 416 00:16:34,060 --> 00:16:35,561 Right. 417 00:16:35,562 --> 00:16:38,464 So he had an affair with 418 00:16:38,465 --> 00:16:39,798 your great-grandmother. 419 00:16:39,799 --> 00:16:41,200 Right, right. 420 00:16:41,201 --> 00:16:42,468 Do you think Calvin's wife and 421 00:16:42,469 --> 00:16:44,503 children knew that they had a mixed-race, half-sibling? 422 00:16:44,504 --> 00:16:45,537 Probably... 423 00:16:45,538 --> 00:16:47,373 Probably not. Yeah. 424 00:16:47,374 --> 00:16:49,174 But we know from the documents we gathered 425 00:16:49,175 --> 00:16:51,777 that your grandfather knew who his father was. 426 00:16:51,778 --> 00:16:53,178 Yes. 427 00:16:53,179 --> 00:16:54,613 We also know from this obituary that Calvin 428 00:16:54,614 --> 00:16:58,217 moved away from Muldon to Memphis in 1922, 429 00:16:58,218 --> 00:17:01,121 the very year your grandfather was born. 430 00:17:02,122 --> 00:17:06,159 Oh, scandaloso. 431 00:17:09,062 --> 00:17:11,230 We can't be certain that Calvin's move was the 432 00:17:11,231 --> 00:17:16,068 result of John's birth, but it seems highly likely. 433 00:17:16,069 --> 00:17:18,504 And as we dug deeper, we noticed something that 434 00:17:18,505 --> 00:17:20,939 shed a little more light on the relationship 435 00:17:20,940 --> 00:17:22,675 between Lizzo's great-grandparents. 436 00:17:24,911 --> 00:17:28,447 The 1920 census for Mississippi recorded 437 00:17:28,448 --> 00:17:31,784 about two years before John was born, 438 00:17:31,785 --> 00:17:33,986 shows that Calvin and Hattie lived 439 00:17:33,987 --> 00:17:36,289 just a short distance apart 440 00:17:36,856 --> 00:17:39,959 and that Calvin was already married at the time. 441 00:17:42,295 --> 00:17:43,896 So he was cheating on his wife. 442 00:17:43,897 --> 00:17:45,164 Ah. 443 00:17:45,165 --> 00:17:47,299 We don't know if any of John Andrew's 444 00:17:47,300 --> 00:17:49,501 siblings were also fathered by Calvin. 445 00:17:49,502 --> 00:17:51,170 Right. We don't know. 446 00:17:51,171 --> 00:17:53,772 We found an online obit that refers to Calvin as 447 00:17:53,773 --> 00:17:57,143 the father of John's older sister, Evelyn. 448 00:17:57,377 --> 00:17:59,211 Stop. Yeah. 449 00:17:59,212 --> 00:18:01,046 So multiple kids. 450 00:18:01,047 --> 00:18:03,148 That's from the obituary, 451 00:18:03,149 --> 00:18:04,349 which have been, 452 00:18:04,350 --> 00:18:07,119 you know, somebody in the family has to put down 453 00:18:07,120 --> 00:18:08,720 who was the father and who was mother. 454 00:18:08,721 --> 00:18:10,022 Right, and she had seven kids. 455 00:18:10,023 --> 00:18:11,557 Yeah. Two of them. 456 00:18:11,558 --> 00:18:12,925 So if there were two, 457 00:18:12,926 --> 00:18:14,226 that means they had a relationship. 458 00:18:14,227 --> 00:18:15,461 That's a relationship. 459 00:18:15,462 --> 00:18:16,495 Yeah. 460 00:18:16,496 --> 00:18:17,930 That's a situationship. 461 00:18:17,931 --> 00:18:19,799 Please turn the page. 462 00:18:20,200 --> 00:18:24,204 Oh, who is that? 463 00:18:24,938 --> 00:18:26,472 That is your great-grandfather. 464 00:18:26,473 --> 00:18:27,673 That's Calvin. 465 00:18:27,674 --> 00:18:29,541 That is Calvin Columbus Franklin. 466 00:18:29,542 --> 00:18:33,613 That is your father's grandfather. 467 00:18:35,148 --> 00:18:38,150 He had blue eyes. 468 00:18:38,151 --> 00:18:43,322 Oh my gosh. 469 00:18:43,323 --> 00:18:44,890 I've had like, you know, like a... 470 00:18:44,891 --> 00:18:46,024 . 471 00:18:46,025 --> 00:18:47,793 Like spidey sense, like my whole body, like... 472 00:18:47,794 --> 00:18:49,695 . 473 00:18:49,696 --> 00:18:50,996 ...when I saw him. 474 00:18:50,997 --> 00:18:52,631 . 475 00:18:52,632 --> 00:18:54,868 Wow. 476 00:18:55,168 --> 00:18:57,169 This is wild. 477 00:18:57,170 --> 00:18:59,205 This is crazy. 478 00:18:59,739 --> 00:19:01,340 What's it like to see that? 479 00:19:01,341 --> 00:19:04,042 Okay, alright, now that I've gotten over 480 00:19:04,043 --> 00:19:05,577 the White man of it all... 481 00:19:05,578 --> 00:19:06,845 Mm-hmm. 482 00:19:06,846 --> 00:19:11,818 His energy, he gives, like, I can see, 483 00:19:12,852 --> 00:19:15,921 I can see he's got like a puppy dog eyes type of thing. 484 00:19:15,922 --> 00:19:17,189 Mm-hmm. And I can see... 485 00:19:17,190 --> 00:19:19,491 Why she would fall for him? 486 00:19:19,492 --> 00:19:20,759 Why she would like him. 487 00:19:20,760 --> 00:19:22,027 Yeah. 488 00:19:22,028 --> 00:19:23,595 He got the suit on, down. 489 00:19:23,596 --> 00:19:25,931 This is wild. 490 00:19:25,932 --> 00:19:27,734 This is so wild. 491 00:19:28,801 --> 00:19:31,904 Unfortunately, this story was about to take 492 00:19:31,905 --> 00:19:36,508 a painful turn, digging into Calvin's roots. 493 00:19:36,509 --> 00:19:40,245 We discovered that Lizzo's White family traces back 494 00:19:40,246 --> 00:19:44,317 to the 1700s through Mississippi and South Carolina, 495 00:19:45,251 --> 00:19:49,422 and includes at least three men who own slaves. 496 00:19:50,456 --> 00:19:54,326 Leaving Lizzo to puzzle over this very complicated 497 00:19:54,327 --> 00:19:57,263 newly found branch of her family tree. 498 00:19:59,999 --> 00:20:01,733 I have a lot to process... 499 00:20:01,734 --> 00:20:02,734 Mm-hmm. 500 00:20:02,735 --> 00:20:04,102 ...with the White side. 501 00:20:04,103 --> 00:20:05,370 Mm-hmm. 502 00:20:05,371 --> 00:20:06,672 Um, but I don't feel like there's 503 00:20:06,673 --> 00:20:07,806 that much White side. 504 00:20:07,807 --> 00:20:09,074 It's just a little, it's a little, 505 00:20:09,075 --> 00:20:10,275 but I got way more Black side. 506 00:20:10,276 --> 00:20:11,677 . 507 00:20:11,678 --> 00:20:12,744 But, um... 508 00:20:12,745 --> 00:20:14,179 Did, when you were growing up, 509 00:20:14,180 --> 00:20:15,647 did anybody ever get on you? 510 00:20:15,648 --> 00:20:17,282 "You think you White, you act White?" 511 00:20:17,283 --> 00:20:19,051 Oh yeah, I got that a lot. 512 00:20:19,052 --> 00:20:20,419 Well, see, they were right. 513 00:20:20,420 --> 00:20:22,487 Ah, don't play with me. 514 00:20:22,488 --> 00:20:23,655 That is true. 515 00:20:23,656 --> 00:20:26,058 All the White-girl allegations are true, honey. 516 00:20:26,059 --> 00:20:28,126 Yeah, it's, it's, you know. 517 00:20:28,127 --> 00:20:30,662 How much resolution would this have brought to 518 00:20:30,663 --> 00:20:32,331 your father to know? 519 00:20:32,332 --> 00:20:34,066 How would he be feeling right now? 520 00:20:34,067 --> 00:20:36,234 I think that he would have, um, gotten a 521 00:20:36,235 --> 00:20:39,872 good laugh out of, uh, this one right here. 522 00:20:41,107 --> 00:20:43,875 He look; he look apologetic. 523 00:20:43,876 --> 00:20:45,477 He look like, "I'm sorry." 524 00:20:45,478 --> 00:20:47,313 Yeah, you should be. 525 00:20:48,982 --> 00:20:51,550 Like Lizzo, Flea grew up knowing little about 526 00:20:51,551 --> 00:20:55,188 his paternal roots, but for very different reasons. 527 00:20:56,623 --> 00:20:59,591 His father, a man named Noel Balzary, 528 00:20:59,592 --> 00:21:02,862 moved back to Australia when Flea was eight years old. 529 00:21:03,496 --> 00:21:07,299 And the two had a distant, often strained relationship 530 00:21:07,300 --> 00:21:09,901 for decades, in no small part due 531 00:21:09,902 --> 00:21:12,071 to Noel's struggles with alcohol. 532 00:21:13,406 --> 00:21:17,042 And although they were at peace by the end of Noel's life, 533 00:21:17,043 --> 00:21:19,912 Flea still wrestles with his father's memory. 534 00:21:21,948 --> 00:21:24,917 What do you miss most about him? 535 00:21:25,218 --> 00:21:28,620 You know, I miss, I always kind of hoped that 536 00:21:28,621 --> 00:21:31,923 our relationship could be better and deeper and, 537 00:21:31,924 --> 00:21:37,062 um, I miss kind of just the hope that it could be 538 00:21:37,063 --> 00:21:38,296 what it could be. 539 00:21:38,297 --> 00:21:39,665 Mm-hmm. 540 00:21:39,666 --> 00:21:41,199 You know, and I think when he died, 541 00:21:41,200 --> 00:21:42,668 one of the things that was really hard for me 542 00:21:42,669 --> 00:21:44,236 was that it didn't get to what I always kind of 543 00:21:44,237 --> 00:21:46,938 my dream relationship with him, you know, 544 00:21:46,939 --> 00:21:48,807 the sense of ease and comfort 545 00:21:48,808 --> 00:21:51,476 and, uh, humor and you know, 546 00:21:51,477 --> 00:21:54,313 the things that you want when you spend time with someone. 547 00:21:54,714 --> 00:21:56,048 Mm-hmm. 548 00:21:56,049 --> 00:21:59,718 But he was such a strange character of a man. 549 00:21:59,719 --> 00:22:02,020 Um, yeah. 550 00:22:02,021 --> 00:22:06,925 And I, I, yeah, he was, he was funny and nutty and, 551 00:22:06,926 --> 00:22:09,428 um, and when you get him in the right time, 552 00:22:09,429 --> 00:22:11,129 you know, my father really drank a lot, so you'd have 553 00:22:11,130 --> 00:22:13,365 to kind of catch him in the right moment, 554 00:22:13,366 --> 00:22:14,766 you know, how it is with alcohol, you know, 555 00:22:14,767 --> 00:22:19,271 kind of on way up or, um, he would, he, he'd be, 556 00:22:19,272 --> 00:22:21,206 you know, really funny and charming, you know? 557 00:22:21,207 --> 00:22:22,709 I miss that, yeah. 558 00:22:24,277 --> 00:22:26,244 Perhaps unsurprisingly, 559 00:22:26,245 --> 00:22:28,346 given the gaps between them, 560 00:22:28,347 --> 00:22:31,684 Flea and Noel rarely discussed their shared roots. 561 00:22:32,585 --> 00:22:36,688 Flea knew that Noel's father, Clifford Vincent Balzary, 562 00:22:36,689 --> 00:22:39,491 had also battled alcoholism. 563 00:22:39,492 --> 00:22:41,593 And he'd heard that Clifford had been 564 00:22:41,594 --> 00:22:43,496 a difficult man. 565 00:22:44,230 --> 00:22:47,199 But when we began to research Clifford's life, 566 00:22:47,200 --> 00:22:49,367 we found that a crucial part of his story had not 567 00:22:49,368 --> 00:22:51,270 been passed down. 568 00:22:51,904 --> 00:22:55,307 It begins in Australia's national archives with the 569 00:22:55,308 --> 00:22:57,443 World War I enlistment record. 570 00:22:59,245 --> 00:23:01,847 "To the recruiting officer at Melbourne. 571 00:23:01,848 --> 00:23:05,117 I, Clifford Vincent Balzary, hereby offer myself for 572 00:23:05,118 --> 00:23:07,986 enlistment in the Australian Imperial Force 573 00:23:07,987 --> 00:23:10,323 for active service abroad. 574 00:23:10,690 --> 00:23:13,225 Consent of parents or guardians for persons 575 00:23:13,226 --> 00:23:14,760 under 21, 576 00:23:14,761 --> 00:23:17,295 father's signature, Edwin A. Balzary, 577 00:23:17,296 --> 00:23:19,966 mother's signature, Ehmma Balzary." 578 00:23:20,266 --> 00:23:21,767 How the hell did you find this? 579 00:23:21,768 --> 00:23:24,137 . 580 00:23:24,504 --> 00:23:26,104 I take it you've never seen this? 581 00:23:26,105 --> 00:23:27,405 No. 582 00:23:27,406 --> 00:23:29,608 Clifford enlisted in March, 1917. 583 00:23:29,609 --> 00:23:31,343 He was just 18 years old. 584 00:23:31,344 --> 00:23:33,645 Now, what were you doing when you were 18 years old? 585 00:23:33,646 --> 00:23:35,847 Smoking weed, hanging out at the park. 586 00:23:35,848 --> 00:23:37,349 . 587 00:23:37,350 --> 00:23:38,683 Yeah. 588 00:23:38,684 --> 00:23:40,118 What's it like to learn, uh, 589 00:23:40,119 --> 00:23:41,720 that your ancestor at that age did this? 590 00:23:41,721 --> 00:23:43,922 It's intense and very much like 591 00:23:43,923 --> 00:23:46,458 my father to do that. 592 00:23:46,459 --> 00:23:47,859 Um, you do your duty. 593 00:23:47,860 --> 00:23:49,060 Mm-hmm. No matter what. 594 00:23:49,061 --> 00:23:50,328 My father really believed it. 595 00:23:50,329 --> 00:23:52,197 And my father was also very like, nationalistic, like, 596 00:23:52,198 --> 00:23:54,232 Australia Day was a big day, you know, 597 00:23:54,233 --> 00:23:55,834 he is very patriotic in that way. 598 00:23:55,835 --> 00:23:57,235 Uh-huh. 599 00:23:57,236 --> 00:23:58,670 And, um, you know, we've always gone with America. 600 00:23:58,671 --> 00:24:00,672 We've always gone with, you know, with England, 601 00:24:00,673 --> 00:24:02,507 you know, you don't question these things. 602 00:24:02,508 --> 00:24:04,342 These are the alliances that make us who we are. 603 00:24:04,343 --> 00:24:06,211 He really believed in that. 604 00:24:06,212 --> 00:24:08,513 Um, and it very much makes sense. 605 00:24:08,514 --> 00:24:10,582 I mean, yeah. 606 00:24:10,583 --> 00:24:12,884 It adds up in my mind that that's something that 607 00:24:12,885 --> 00:24:14,821 my father's father would've done. 608 00:24:16,656 --> 00:24:19,291 As it turns out, Clifford was not the only 609 00:24:19,292 --> 00:24:22,762 person in his family who was eager to serve his country. 610 00:24:24,096 --> 00:24:26,565 Records showed that his older brother, 611 00:24:26,566 --> 00:24:28,900 a man named Leonard Balzary, 612 00:24:28,901 --> 00:24:30,970 had enlisted two years before him. 613 00:24:32,972 --> 00:24:36,208 So I have a great uncle named Leonard? 614 00:24:36,209 --> 00:24:37,709 There you go. Wow. 615 00:24:37,710 --> 00:24:41,313 He enlisted in July 1915 when he was 18 years old, 616 00:24:41,314 --> 00:24:43,348 two years before your grandfather. 617 00:24:43,349 --> 00:24:44,816 And you've heard nothing about this? 618 00:24:44,817 --> 00:24:46,151 No. 619 00:24:46,152 --> 00:24:48,220 What's it like to learn that you're related to 620 00:24:48,221 --> 00:24:51,724 not one, but two Balzarys who fought in World War I? 621 00:24:52,925 --> 00:24:56,761 Um, it's amazing to know, you know, uh, it, 622 00:24:56,762 --> 00:24:59,297 it can't help but like open up in my imagination, 623 00:24:59,298 --> 00:25:00,765 like what was it like for them? 624 00:25:00,766 --> 00:25:01,933 Mm-hmm. 625 00:25:01,934 --> 00:25:03,935 They had been in Australia, like living a 626 00:25:03,936 --> 00:25:06,304 very provincial, rural type of life, I'm sure... 627 00:25:06,305 --> 00:25:08,039 Mm-hmm. 628 00:25:08,040 --> 00:25:09,241 Um, in Australia at that time, 629 00:25:09,242 --> 00:25:10,475 and they got on a ship, where did they go? 630 00:25:10,476 --> 00:25:11,543 Right. 631 00:25:11,544 --> 00:25:12,677 Did they go all the way to Europe? 632 00:25:12,678 --> 00:25:13,980 You know, wow. 633 00:25:14,513 --> 00:25:16,615 {\an8}The two brothers would indeed find themselves 634 00:25:16,616 --> 00:25:18,283 {\an8}in Europe, but not in a way that 635 00:25:18,284 --> 00:25:21,554 {\an8}either of them likely hoped or imagined. 636 00:25:22,855 --> 00:25:26,791 {\an8}When Clifford enlisted, Leonard was already in France 637 00:25:26,792 --> 00:25:29,328 serving on the infamous Western Front. 638 00:25:30,930 --> 00:25:33,398 Months later, Flea's grandfather would board 639 00:25:33,399 --> 00:25:36,868 a transport ship seemingly bound to follow in 640 00:25:36,869 --> 00:25:38,771 his brother's footsteps. 641 00:25:39,939 --> 00:25:42,307 But by the time Clifford arrived, 642 00:25:42,308 --> 00:25:45,077 Leonard had made the ultimate sacrifice. 643 00:25:47,680 --> 00:25:49,614 "Casualty was sitting on the side of 644 00:25:49,615 --> 00:25:53,885 Westhoek Ridge in the open, a shrapnel shell exploded 645 00:25:53,886 --> 00:25:56,955 near casualty, killing him instantly, 646 00:25:56,956 --> 00:25:58,823 and went immediately to his assistance, 647 00:25:58,824 --> 00:26:00,926 but he was beyond all aid. 648 00:26:00,927 --> 00:26:03,428 He was buried near Westhoek Ridge, 649 00:26:03,429 --> 00:26:05,463 but I do not know the exact spot." 650 00:26:05,464 --> 00:26:06,865 So that's my Uncle Leonard. 651 00:26:06,866 --> 00:26:08,166 Yeah. My great uncle Leonard. 652 00:26:08,167 --> 00:26:09,334 Yeah. He got killed. 653 00:26:09,335 --> 00:26:11,671 Yeah. Wow. 654 00:26:12,171 --> 00:26:13,872 He was 20 years old, Flea. 655 00:26:13,873 --> 00:26:15,840 Oh man. 656 00:26:15,841 --> 00:26:17,643 What's it like to learn that? 657 00:26:17,843 --> 00:26:20,278 I mean, I'm grateful for it; it's unbelievable 658 00:26:20,279 --> 00:26:21,713 that you unearthed this. 659 00:26:21,714 --> 00:26:23,648 I don't know how you guys find this stuff. 660 00:26:23,649 --> 00:26:26,551 Um, yeah, I'm... 661 00:26:26,552 --> 00:26:29,187 crazy man. 662 00:26:29,188 --> 00:26:33,158 It's, it's, uh, it's emotional, someone I never knew, 663 00:26:33,159 --> 00:26:36,227 you know, and just reading the first part, 664 00:26:36,228 --> 00:26:38,297 made me... 665 00:26:39,065 --> 00:26:40,565 you just feel like you know him a little bit all 666 00:26:40,566 --> 00:26:41,800 of a sudden, you know? 667 00:26:41,801 --> 00:26:43,970 Sure. It's family. 668 00:26:45,471 --> 00:26:49,274 Leonard died in September 1917 near 669 00:26:49,275 --> 00:26:51,509 Ypres, Belgium. 670 00:26:51,510 --> 00:26:54,112 He was buried in an unmarked grave near 671 00:26:54,113 --> 00:26:56,248 where he fell. 672 00:26:57,450 --> 00:27:00,352 Less than a year later, his brother Clifford would 673 00:27:00,353 --> 00:27:04,357 arrive in the same place, heading into a nightmare. 674 00:27:07,259 --> 00:27:10,596 . 675 00:27:10,863 --> 00:27:14,432 In August of 1918, Clifford's division joined 676 00:27:14,433 --> 00:27:17,502 other allied forces in what became known as the 677 00:27:17,503 --> 00:27:21,506 Hundred Days Offensive, an all-out effort to break 678 00:27:21,507 --> 00:27:24,944 through Germany's trenches and end the war. 679 00:27:27,146 --> 00:27:29,748 The offensive would prove a success, 680 00:27:29,749 --> 00:27:31,984 but it came at an enormous cost. 681 00:27:33,185 --> 00:27:35,553 It's estimated that the allies suffered over 682 00:27:35,554 --> 00:27:38,156 one million casualties, 683 00:27:38,157 --> 00:27:42,160 including more than 25,000 Australians, 684 00:27:42,161 --> 00:27:45,064 some of whom Clifford likely knew. 685 00:27:47,767 --> 00:27:49,667 So how do you think it affected him? 686 00:27:49,668 --> 00:27:51,102 Without doubt, like, 687 00:27:51,103 --> 00:27:52,937 you don't come home the same. 688 00:27:52,938 --> 00:27:55,006 No, you can't come back normal or 689 00:27:55,007 --> 00:27:56,241 the way that you left. 690 00:27:56,242 --> 00:27:57,609 No. 691 00:27:57,610 --> 00:27:58,843 Plus your brother's dead. 692 00:27:58,844 --> 00:28:00,145 Yeah, no, your relationship to life 693 00:28:00,146 --> 00:28:01,179 and to what human beings are capable, 694 00:28:01,180 --> 00:28:03,648 capable of changes forever. 695 00:28:03,649 --> 00:28:04,749 Yeah. 696 00:28:04,750 --> 00:28:06,684 From what I know from my dad, 697 00:28:06,685 --> 00:28:08,386 he drank a real lot. 698 00:28:08,387 --> 00:28:09,721 Mm. 699 00:28:09,722 --> 00:28:10,855 And that it killed him at a, you know, 700 00:28:10,856 --> 00:28:12,057 he didn't live long. 701 00:28:12,058 --> 00:28:13,324 Mm. 702 00:28:13,325 --> 00:28:15,393 And you know, per, perhaps the trauma of that, 703 00:28:15,394 --> 00:28:17,162 he must have seen a lot of, you know, 704 00:28:17,163 --> 00:28:18,997 people being blown up and killed and stabbed and shot 705 00:28:18,998 --> 00:28:21,933 and bayonetted and whatever they did. 706 00:28:21,934 --> 00:28:24,302 Maybe that's, you know, a birth of a lot of trauma, 707 00:28:24,303 --> 00:28:26,471 you know, that, you know, back then, I don't think 708 00:28:26,472 --> 00:28:30,141 you got, um, you know, I've got stress disorder 709 00:28:30,142 --> 00:28:32,010 after the war, or whatever it is, you know. 710 00:28:32,011 --> 00:28:35,346 No, PTSD didn't exist as a concept. 711 00:28:35,347 --> 00:28:36,748 Yeah. Get over it. 712 00:28:36,749 --> 00:28:37,982 Yeah, be a man. 713 00:28:37,983 --> 00:28:39,384 You know, especially in Australian culture. 714 00:28:39,385 --> 00:28:40,485 Oh yeah? 715 00:28:40,486 --> 00:28:41,686 Yeah, there's none of that. 716 00:28:41,687 --> 00:28:43,154 Yeah. No coddling. 717 00:28:43,155 --> 00:28:45,190 Clifford was honorably discharged on 718 00:28:45,191 --> 00:28:50,328 October 2nd, 1919, more than two and a half years 719 00:28:50,329 --> 00:28:52,031 after enlisting. 720 00:28:52,932 --> 00:28:56,267 He was just 20 years old and had survived some of 721 00:28:56,268 --> 00:28:59,238 the worst combat in the history of war. 722 00:29:00,773 --> 00:29:03,074 He would eventually receive multiple medals 723 00:29:03,075 --> 00:29:07,078 for his service, but it's not at all clear that 724 00:29:07,079 --> 00:29:09,882 he ever recovered from the stress. 725 00:29:11,984 --> 00:29:13,985 Do you think your father knew any of this? 726 00:29:13,986 --> 00:29:15,820 He must have. 727 00:29:15,821 --> 00:29:17,322 He must have. 728 00:29:17,323 --> 00:29:19,324 And he might have, like, I, I feel dopey, 729 00:29:19,325 --> 00:29:21,326 like he might've like dropped a little bit here 730 00:29:21,327 --> 00:29:23,528 of it here and there, and I didn't really get it. 731 00:29:23,529 --> 00:29:24,929 Uh-huh. You know. 732 00:29:24,930 --> 00:29:26,197 Uh-huh. 733 00:29:26,198 --> 00:29:27,432 I'm wondering, like what, anything that 734 00:29:27,433 --> 00:29:28,733 he said that I missed. 735 00:29:28,734 --> 00:29:30,368 Mm-hmm. You know? Um... 736 00:29:30,369 --> 00:29:31,870 Or maybe he didn't want to talk about it. 737 00:29:31,871 --> 00:29:33,371 It could be, yeah. You know? 738 00:29:33,372 --> 00:29:35,273 It was too painful to him to talk about or... 739 00:29:35,274 --> 00:29:36,641 Yeah. I just don't know. 740 00:29:36,642 --> 00:29:38,443 I just, there's so much all unknown to me. 741 00:29:38,444 --> 00:29:40,912 Uh-huh, has it changed anything about 742 00:29:40,913 --> 00:29:43,349 the way you now think of your father? 743 00:29:44,683 --> 00:29:49,787 Um, it makes me understand him better. 744 00:29:49,788 --> 00:29:52,290 Doesn't really change my opinion of him or, 745 00:29:52,291 --> 00:29:53,691 you know, what kind of man he was, 746 00:29:53,692 --> 00:29:55,160 it makes me understand more. 747 00:29:55,161 --> 00:29:56,628 Mm-hmm. 748 00:29:56,629 --> 00:29:58,196 Like, you talk about trauma being handed down, 749 00:29:58,197 --> 00:30:00,265 and I think about how much, like, my sister 750 00:30:00,266 --> 00:30:02,433 and I were often kind of angry with him... 751 00:30:02,434 --> 00:30:03,935 Mm-hmm. 752 00:30:03,936 --> 00:30:05,303 Over what we saw as, you know, 753 00:30:05,304 --> 00:30:08,173 dysfunctional behavior and anger and trauma, 754 00:30:08,174 --> 00:30:10,208 and like how much he was doing the best that 755 00:30:10,209 --> 00:30:12,010 he could with what he had. 756 00:30:12,011 --> 00:30:13,344 Mm-hmm. 757 00:30:13,345 --> 00:30:15,047 And what was handed down to him. 758 00:30:15,281 --> 00:30:17,982 We'd already traced Lizzo's paternal roots back 759 00:30:17,983 --> 00:30:20,719 two generations in the Jim Crow South. 760 00:30:22,087 --> 00:30:24,956 Now, Lizzo was hoping we could go further back 761 00:30:24,957 --> 00:30:26,992 into the slave era. 762 00:30:27,927 --> 00:30:29,928 In the archives of Mississippi, 763 00:30:29,929 --> 00:30:33,565 we found Lizzo's fourth great-grandparents, 764 00:30:33,566 --> 00:30:37,036 a couple named Ambrose and Susan Dangerfield, 765 00:30:37,670 --> 00:30:40,772 as well as their daughter, Susan. 766 00:30:40,773 --> 00:30:44,042 They're all listed as property in the estate records 767 00:30:44,043 --> 00:30:46,445 of the White man who owned them. 768 00:30:48,113 --> 00:30:49,881 "Chattels and personal estate of 769 00:30:49,882 --> 00:30:51,616 Nathaniel H. Hugh, 770 00:30:51,617 --> 00:30:53,851 and Noxubee County deceased. 771 00:30:53,852 --> 00:30:56,521 Ambrose valued at 600. 772 00:30:56,522 --> 00:30:58,590 Susan valued at 200. 773 00:30:58,591 --> 00:31:02,094 Susan valued at 325." 774 00:31:03,329 --> 00:31:05,930 Chattels is crazy. 775 00:31:05,931 --> 00:31:10,269 Mm. $200. 776 00:31:13,706 --> 00:31:15,006 What's it like to see that? 777 00:31:15,007 --> 00:31:18,910 To see your own flesh and blood listed as property 778 00:31:18,911 --> 00:31:22,114 with a value put next to their names? 779 00:31:23,482 --> 00:31:26,684 I think there's a certain gravity that you feel, 780 00:31:26,685 --> 00:31:31,824 because we as 781 00:31:32,791 --> 00:31:35,227 Black people today are 782 00:31:36,095 --> 00:31:39,064 far removed from chattel slavery. 783 00:31:39,265 --> 00:31:40,398 Mm-hmm. 784 00:31:40,399 --> 00:31:41,532 Just from, just because of time. 785 00:31:41,533 --> 00:31:42,800 Mm-hmm. 786 00:31:42,801 --> 00:31:45,803 But also the erasure that's starting to happen, 787 00:31:45,804 --> 00:31:49,707 um, in our schools where they don't teach it anymore, 788 00:31:49,708 --> 00:31:51,542 it's starting to be suggested, 789 00:31:51,543 --> 00:31:52,677 it's starting to be like, 790 00:31:52,678 --> 00:31:54,779 "Oh, they were indentured servants." 791 00:31:54,780 --> 00:31:55,780 "They were..." 792 00:31:55,781 --> 00:31:56,848 Right. 793 00:31:56,849 --> 00:31:57,982 "They were immigrants." 794 00:31:57,983 --> 00:31:59,250 Right. No, they were stolen. 795 00:31:59,251 --> 00:32:00,518 Mm-hmm. 796 00:32:00,519 --> 00:32:05,423 Um, seeing something like this makes it, 797 00:32:05,424 --> 00:32:06,991 it brings me right there. 798 00:32:06,992 --> 00:32:08,226 Mm-hmm. 799 00:32:08,227 --> 00:32:09,260 It like closes the gap... 800 00:32:09,261 --> 00:32:10,361 Mm-hmm. 801 00:32:10,362 --> 00:32:13,299 ...between 1865 and today. 802 00:32:13,699 --> 00:32:15,066 Right. 803 00:32:15,067 --> 00:32:17,436 And it's like, it's heavy. 804 00:32:17,903 --> 00:32:19,170 Mm. 805 00:32:19,171 --> 00:32:20,372 It's very heavy. 806 00:32:21,707 --> 00:32:23,408 This story was about to take 807 00:32:23,409 --> 00:32:25,444 an unexpected turn. 808 00:32:26,278 --> 00:32:28,713 Lizzo's ancestors were enslaved by a man 809 00:32:28,714 --> 00:32:31,749 named Nathaniel Hugh. 810 00:32:31,750 --> 00:32:34,786 He owned vast plantations in both Mississippi 811 00:32:34,787 --> 00:32:38,557 and Virginia and kept hundreds of people in bondage. 812 00:32:40,092 --> 00:32:42,960 But when he died, his will suggests that he was 813 00:32:42,961 --> 00:32:46,065 not exactly a typical slave owner. 814 00:32:49,468 --> 00:32:51,069 Whoa. 815 00:32:51,070 --> 00:32:55,239 "Tenth item, 'I emancipate and set free my slaves in 816 00:32:55,240 --> 00:32:59,177 Virginia and set those free to be sent to Africa 817 00:32:59,178 --> 00:33:02,580 by my executors and their expenses paid out of any 818 00:33:02,581 --> 00:33:04,515 monies under their control. 819 00:33:04,516 --> 00:33:07,585 I do also emancipate and set free each and every one 820 00:33:07,586 --> 00:33:10,254 of my slaves in the state of Mississippi 821 00:33:10,255 --> 00:33:13,391 now under the control and management of Matthias Mahorner 822 00:33:13,392 --> 00:33:16,494 in Noxubee County as above directed before 823 00:33:16,495 --> 00:33:18,230 starting for Africa.'" 824 00:33:19,832 --> 00:33:22,433 Huh, plot twist. 825 00:33:22,434 --> 00:33:24,836 . 826 00:33:24,837 --> 00:33:26,270 He emancipated them. 827 00:33:26,271 --> 00:33:27,672 Yeah. 828 00:33:27,673 --> 00:33:29,707 And paid for their trip back to Africa? 829 00:33:29,708 --> 00:33:31,342 That's what he said in his will, 830 00:33:31,343 --> 00:33:33,578 when I die, I have left money, 831 00:33:33,579 --> 00:33:35,847 and this has to happen. 832 00:33:35,848 --> 00:33:38,217 . 833 00:33:39,852 --> 00:33:44,722 Nathaniel Hugh passed away in 1844, and the unusual 834 00:33:44,723 --> 00:33:48,359 stipulation in his will would prove fodder for the 835 00:33:48,360 --> 00:33:52,063 local press, which detailed his involvement 836 00:33:52,064 --> 00:33:53,731 with what was known as the 837 00:33:53,732 --> 00:33:56,467 American Colonization Society. 838 00:33:56,468 --> 00:33:59,837 A group founded to promote the emancipation of enslaved 839 00:33:59,838 --> 00:34:03,041 people and their resettlement in Liberia, 840 00:34:03,575 --> 00:34:06,144 a colony the society had founded on the 841 00:34:06,145 --> 00:34:07,780 Pepper Coast of Africa. 842 00:34:09,114 --> 00:34:10,748 "Mr. Nathaniel H. Hugh 843 00:34:10,749 --> 00:34:13,251 of King George County, lately deceased, 844 00:34:13,252 --> 00:34:16,287 left by his will nearly all his slaves, free, 845 00:34:16,288 --> 00:34:20,826 amounting to some two or 300 slaves." 846 00:34:21,059 --> 00:34:22,393 Yeah. 847 00:34:22,394 --> 00:34:25,096 "With ample provision to carry them to Liberia. 848 00:34:25,097 --> 00:34:27,131 The liberated slaves are to be removed under 849 00:34:27,132 --> 00:34:29,601 the direction of the Colonization Society." 850 00:34:30,536 --> 00:34:32,403 We have never seen anything like this in 851 00:34:32,404 --> 00:34:35,006 the whole history of this show, never. 852 00:34:35,007 --> 00:34:37,842 And I've read about the American Colonization Society 853 00:34:37,843 --> 00:34:40,511 since I was, I took my first Black history 854 00:34:40,512 --> 00:34:42,915 class as a sophomore in college. 855 00:34:43,615 --> 00:34:47,351 You're the first guest ever related to this movement, 856 00:34:47,352 --> 00:34:52,191 to repatriate liberated slaves back to Africa. 857 00:34:52,724 --> 00:34:54,091 Wow. 858 00:34:54,092 --> 00:34:55,960 What do you make of this? 859 00:34:55,961 --> 00:34:57,462 I'm like, well, did they go? 860 00:34:57,463 --> 00:34:58,696 Mm-hmm. 861 00:34:58,697 --> 00:34:59,797 That's what I wanna know, clearly, 862 00:34:59,798 --> 00:35:01,266 they didn't. 863 00:35:01,667 --> 00:35:03,768 {\an8}Lizzo's hunch was correct. 864 00:35:03,769 --> 00:35:05,636 {\an8}Although the enslaved people on Nathaniel's, 865 00:35:05,637 --> 00:35:09,240 {\an8}Virginia Plantation boarded a ship for Liberia 866 00:35:09,241 --> 00:35:12,043 {\an8}in November of 1845. 867 00:35:12,044 --> 00:35:16,215 Lizzo's ancestors are not listed on that ship's manifest. 868 00:35:16,982 --> 00:35:19,083 And neither are any of the other slaves held 869 00:35:19,084 --> 00:35:22,020 on Nathaniel's, Mississippi Plantation. 870 00:35:23,522 --> 00:35:26,224 None of them made it to Liberia. 871 00:35:26,225 --> 00:35:27,859 Like what happened? 872 00:35:27,860 --> 00:35:30,661 In 1845, Nathaniel Hugh's heirs, 873 00:35:30,662 --> 00:35:32,897 his son, William D. Hugh, 874 00:35:32,898 --> 00:35:36,100 and a minor grandson named Nathaniel Hugh Harrison, 875 00:35:36,101 --> 00:35:39,537 petitioned the court in Mississippi to stop 876 00:35:39,538 --> 00:35:42,807 the emancipation of Hugh's Mississippi Slaves, 877 00:35:42,808 --> 00:35:46,777 including your ancestors, they contested the will. 878 00:35:46,778 --> 00:35:49,347 "This is too much money to let go." 879 00:35:49,348 --> 00:35:51,916 They go, "Old man must have been out of his head." 880 00:35:51,917 --> 00:35:53,918 They claim this was against the laws of the 881 00:35:53,919 --> 00:35:58,256 state of Mississippi, which in 1842 forbade the 882 00:35:58,257 --> 00:36:00,526 manumission of slaves. 883 00:36:01,159 --> 00:36:02,360 Hmm. 884 00:36:02,361 --> 00:36:04,228 In the end, the high court in Mississippi 885 00:36:04,229 --> 00:36:05,830 agreed with them. 886 00:36:05,831 --> 00:36:08,900 So, Nathaniel slaves from his Virginia plantation 887 00:36:08,901 --> 00:36:11,969 ended up being transported back to Liberia. 888 00:36:11,970 --> 00:36:14,572 But the Mississippi slaves, 889 00:36:14,573 --> 00:36:18,843 including your ancestors, remained in slavery. 890 00:36:18,844 --> 00:36:21,913 Jesus Christ. Now imagine. 891 00:36:21,914 --> 00:36:23,414 I was rooting for them. 892 00:36:23,415 --> 00:36:25,950 Imagine they're told that they're free. 893 00:36:25,951 --> 00:36:27,018 Yes. 894 00:36:27,019 --> 00:36:28,452 He probably said, 895 00:36:28,453 --> 00:36:29,854 "When I die, you all are gonna be free." 896 00:36:29,855 --> 00:36:31,822 And then it snatched away. 897 00:36:31,823 --> 00:36:34,693 Damn, that, that really, really upsets me. 898 00:36:37,095 --> 00:36:39,297 Tragically, this was not the end of 899 00:36:39,298 --> 00:36:41,233 Lizzo's family's ordeal. 900 00:36:42,234 --> 00:36:44,502 In the wake of the court's decision, 901 00:36:44,503 --> 00:36:47,738 Nathaniel's slaves in Mississippi were distributed 902 00:36:47,739 --> 00:36:49,874 among his heirs. 903 00:36:49,875 --> 00:36:52,176 Lizzo's fourth great-grandparents, 904 00:36:52,177 --> 00:36:55,112 Ambrose and Susan, became the property of 905 00:36:55,113 --> 00:36:58,349 Nathaniel's son while their young daughter, 906 00:36:58,350 --> 00:37:00,851 Lizzo's third great-grandmother, 907 00:37:00,852 --> 00:37:02,821 became the property of his grandson. 908 00:37:05,657 --> 00:37:07,024 So they were split up. 909 00:37:07,025 --> 00:37:08,125 Mm-hmm. 910 00:37:08,126 --> 00:37:09,460 The daughter was split up. 911 00:37:09,461 --> 00:37:11,128 Yes, the family was torn apart. 912 00:37:11,129 --> 00:37:13,398 Split from her parents. Yes. 913 00:37:15,267 --> 00:37:17,201 What's it like to see that? 914 00:37:17,202 --> 00:37:18,936 Yeah. 915 00:37:18,937 --> 00:37:21,806 It's like, I've read about this so much, 916 00:37:21,807 --> 00:37:27,578 and I've seen so many documentaries and films 917 00:37:27,579 --> 00:37:34,519 and it's, it's, it's, it's like, um, 918 00:37:35,721 --> 00:37:37,088 I don't, I don't, 919 00:37:37,089 --> 00:37:38,556 it is very uncomfortable... 920 00:37:38,557 --> 00:37:39,991 Mm-hmm. 921 00:37:39,992 --> 00:37:41,258 'Cause we talk about it like slavery 922 00:37:41,259 --> 00:37:42,860 separated families, we say that that's what 923 00:37:42,861 --> 00:37:46,163 we say when we're out here talking, you know? 924 00:37:46,164 --> 00:37:52,671 And it's wild to be like slavery separated my family. 925 00:37:54,906 --> 00:37:57,575 Lizzo's ancestor was just eight years old 926 00:37:57,576 --> 00:37:59,745 when she was taken away from her parents. 927 00:38:00,712 --> 00:38:04,249 And it's quite possible that she never saw them again. 928 00:38:05,584 --> 00:38:09,587 Her new owner appears to have transported her to Texas, 929 00:38:09,588 --> 00:38:13,958 some 600 miles away, and we could find no evidence 930 00:38:13,959 --> 00:38:16,795 that the family was ever reunited. 931 00:38:18,563 --> 00:38:23,100 I can only imagine, like, what, losing both 932 00:38:23,101 --> 00:38:27,873 of her parents like, that what that, did to her. 933 00:38:29,207 --> 00:38:33,044 What do you think did to the parents? 934 00:38:33,045 --> 00:38:35,880 To lose your 8-year-old daughter? 935 00:38:35,881 --> 00:38:38,215 I think that's the fear that they lived 936 00:38:38,216 --> 00:38:40,584 with every day. 937 00:38:40,585 --> 00:38:41,852 Mm. 938 00:38:41,853 --> 00:38:46,924 And I feel like, I hate to say this, a part 939 00:38:46,925 --> 00:38:49,627 of them had to have been emotionally prepared for it. 940 00:38:49,628 --> 00:38:50,861 Mm-hmm. 941 00:38:50,862 --> 00:38:52,329 Hardened a little bit. Mm-hmm. 942 00:38:52,330 --> 00:38:53,531 It's, there's nothing you can do to 943 00:38:53,532 --> 00:38:54,899 really prepare for it. 944 00:38:54,900 --> 00:38:55,933 Mm-hmm. 945 00:38:55,934 --> 00:38:57,201 You know what I mean? Sure. 946 00:38:57,202 --> 00:38:59,136 It's heartbreaking, but it's like you have to 947 00:38:59,137 --> 00:39:00,304 keep living. 948 00:39:00,305 --> 00:39:01,439 Mm-hmm. 949 00:39:01,440 --> 00:39:02,774 You have to keep living. 950 00:39:03,008 --> 00:39:05,609 There is a grace note to this story: 951 00:39:05,610 --> 00:39:08,579 when Lizzo's ancestor was taken to Texas, 952 00:39:08,580 --> 00:39:11,816 her parents remained behind in Mississippi. 953 00:39:11,817 --> 00:39:14,452 And records show that after freedom came, 954 00:39:14,453 --> 00:39:16,487 her father Ambrose demonstrated that, 955 00:39:16,488 --> 00:39:19,457 despite all he had suffered, he was still willing and 956 00:39:19,458 --> 00:39:22,427 quite able to help his community. 957 00:39:24,096 --> 00:39:27,932 "I, Benjamin Roby for and in consideration 958 00:39:27,933 --> 00:39:31,936 of the sum of $200 to me in hand paid, have this day 959 00:39:31,937 --> 00:39:34,438 bargained and sold and by these presents 960 00:39:34,439 --> 00:39:38,776 due grant bargain sale and convey until William Catlett, 961 00:39:38,777 --> 00:39:41,545 Ambrose Dangerfield and Richard Gray 962 00:39:41,546 --> 00:39:43,681 for the sole use and of the congregation of 963 00:39:43,682 --> 00:39:47,251 colored persons in the Town of Macon and Noxubee County 964 00:39:47,252 --> 00:39:48,719 in the state of Mississippi, 965 00:39:48,720 --> 00:39:50,988 known and recognized as the First African Baptist Church 966 00:39:50,989 --> 00:39:55,694 in said town, the 21st day of October AD 1868." 967 00:39:56,061 --> 00:39:58,395 Three years after they were freed, 968 00:39:58,396 --> 00:40:02,066 your fourth great-grandfather, Ambrose, and two of his friends 969 00:40:02,067 --> 00:40:05,870 bought land for the benefit of the congregation 970 00:40:05,871 --> 00:40:07,538 of colored persons known as the 971 00:40:07,539 --> 00:40:09,407 First African Baptist Church. 972 00:40:10,742 --> 00:40:14,346 . 973 00:40:16,581 --> 00:40:18,415 Why did that make me tear up? 974 00:40:18,416 --> 00:40:21,118 Of all the things we talked about today... 975 00:40:24,589 --> 00:40:26,624 ...of all the things! 976 00:40:26,625 --> 00:40:29,261 Isn't that amazing? You got me. 977 00:40:29,961 --> 00:40:32,129 Well, I wasn't expecting that. 978 00:40:32,130 --> 00:40:36,902 I know that on my mother's side, um, 979 00:40:37,335 --> 00:40:39,270 Mama Kirkwood started a church. 980 00:40:39,271 --> 00:40:40,371 Mm. 981 00:40:40,372 --> 00:40:42,239 I didn't know on my dad's side. 982 00:40:42,240 --> 00:40:43,974 I didn't know. 983 00:40:43,975 --> 00:40:45,910 Whoa. 984 00:40:45,911 --> 00:40:48,146 I'm actually speechless by that. 985 00:40:49,948 --> 00:40:51,715 We'd already uncovered the story of 986 00:40:51,716 --> 00:40:54,752 Flea's grandfather Clifford Balzary, 987 00:40:54,753 --> 00:40:58,557 who served in the Australian army during World War I. 988 00:40:59,357 --> 00:41:02,159 Now moving back two generations, 989 00:41:02,160 --> 00:41:04,261 we came to the man who brought this line of 990 00:41:04,262 --> 00:41:07,365 Flea's family to Australia in the first place. 991 00:41:08,400 --> 00:41:10,301 His great-great-grandfather, 992 00:41:10,302 --> 00:41:12,304 Albert Balzary. 993 00:41:13,004 --> 00:41:15,706 Albert was born in Hungary and immigrated to 994 00:41:15,707 --> 00:41:19,110 Australia sometime before 1853. 995 00:41:20,478 --> 00:41:24,348 While the details of his early life are unclear, 996 00:41:24,349 --> 00:41:26,985 we found a birth record for one of his children. 997 00:41:27,619 --> 00:41:30,354 And it shows that Albert and Flea shared 998 00:41:30,355 --> 00:41:32,791 something profound. 999 00:41:33,658 --> 00:41:36,360 "Births in the colony of Victoria. 1000 00:41:36,361 --> 00:41:40,197 When, and where born July 21st, 1858. 1001 00:41:40,198 --> 00:41:41,665 Pleasant Creek, 1002 00:41:41,666 --> 00:41:45,202 child's name, Arthur Vincent Balzary, 1003 00:41:45,203 --> 00:41:47,938 father Albert Vincent Balzary, 1004 00:41:47,939 --> 00:41:51,376 Rank or Profession, gold digger and musician." 1005 00:41:51,977 --> 00:41:53,644 Gold digger and musician. 1006 00:41:53,645 --> 00:41:55,079 Did you have any idea that you were not 1007 00:41:55,080 --> 00:41:57,581 the first musician on the Balzary line? 1008 00:41:57,582 --> 00:41:59,049 I had no idea; 1009 00:41:59,050 --> 00:42:01,352 I had never heard that before. 1010 00:42:01,353 --> 00:42:03,020 What's it like to see that? 1011 00:42:03,021 --> 00:42:05,657 Amazing, I love it. 1012 00:42:06,825 --> 00:42:09,793 Unfortunately, Albert's musical talents 1013 00:42:09,794 --> 00:42:12,264 were eclipsed by a more urgent need. 1014 00:42:12,764 --> 00:42:14,666 The need to earn a living. 1015 00:42:15,567 --> 00:42:17,902 When he arrived in Victoria, the province 1016 00:42:17,903 --> 00:42:20,437 was in the throes of a gold rush. 1017 00:42:20,438 --> 00:42:22,940 And immigrants from all over the world were 1018 00:42:22,941 --> 00:42:26,677 pouring in, searching for riches that almost 1019 00:42:26,678 --> 00:42:29,347 invariably proved elusive. 1020 00:42:30,515 --> 00:42:33,051 Albert was not an exception. 1021 00:42:33,351 --> 00:42:37,421 He found no riches, just long hours of hard work 1022 00:42:37,422 --> 00:42:39,658 in brutal conditions. 1023 00:42:39,891 --> 00:42:41,992 And when the gold rush petered out, 1024 00:42:41,993 --> 00:42:44,529 he paid the ultimate price for his efforts. 1025 00:42:45,664 --> 00:42:49,566 "Age 51 years. When and where died? 1026 00:42:49,567 --> 00:42:53,538 Third July, 1865. Dunolly Hospital. 1027 00:42:54,139 --> 00:42:57,741 Cause of death, duration of last illness, 1028 00:42:57,742 --> 00:43:00,445 dysentery, five months." 1029 00:43:00,645 --> 00:43:01,845 Yeah. 1030 00:43:01,846 --> 00:43:06,116 Well, dysentery, is that a, is that a... 1031 00:43:06,117 --> 00:43:07,751 Intestines. Intestines. 1032 00:43:07,752 --> 00:43:09,453 Severe diarrhea. Severe diarrhea. 1033 00:43:09,454 --> 00:43:10,554 You die of dehydration. 1034 00:43:10,555 --> 00:43:11,922 You die of dehydration. 1035 00:43:11,923 --> 00:43:13,190 Yeah. 1036 00:43:13,191 --> 00:43:15,292 And living a hard life will do that to you, man. 1037 00:43:15,293 --> 00:43:16,593 Yeah. 1038 00:43:16,594 --> 00:43:18,896 You know, out there digging in the dirt and probably 1039 00:43:18,897 --> 00:43:21,065 whatever mining he did after that, like, 1040 00:43:21,066 --> 00:43:22,466 I mean, when gold rush didn't pan out, 1041 00:43:22,467 --> 00:43:24,101 he must have done other types of mining... 1042 00:43:24,102 --> 00:43:25,402 Mm-hmm. 1043 00:43:25,403 --> 00:43:26,570 ...because that's what he knew how to do. 1044 00:43:26,571 --> 00:43:27,738 Right. 1045 00:43:27,739 --> 00:43:32,477 Um, it's sad, you know? 1046 00:43:34,145 --> 00:43:37,314 When Albert died, he left behind a wife, 1047 00:43:37,315 --> 00:43:41,386 Flea's great-grandmother, a woman named Henrietta Balzary. 1048 00:43:42,287 --> 00:43:46,523 She was just 32 years old, and suddenly she had to 1049 00:43:46,524 --> 00:43:49,260 raise a family all on her own. 1050 00:43:50,462 --> 00:43:52,763 She had four children by this time, Flea. 1051 00:43:52,764 --> 00:43:54,231 32 with four kids. 1052 00:43:54,232 --> 00:43:55,599 Four children and a widow. 1053 00:43:55,600 --> 00:43:56,967 Yeah. 1054 00:43:56,968 --> 00:43:58,302 So let's see how she fared. 1055 00:43:58,303 --> 00:43:59,370 Okay. 1056 00:43:59,371 --> 00:44:01,072 Please turn the page. 1057 00:44:02,007 --> 00:44:03,974 The two documents in front of you are from the 1058 00:44:03,975 --> 00:44:06,611 year 1870 and 1872. 1059 00:44:07,345 --> 00:44:09,747 Five and seven years after Albert's death. 1060 00:44:09,748 --> 00:44:13,217 Would you please read the transcribed section of both? 1061 00:44:13,218 --> 00:44:16,487 "Petty sessions at Dunolly on Friday, 1062 00:44:16,488 --> 00:44:19,456 the 23rd day of September, 1870, 1063 00:44:19,457 --> 00:44:24,862 complainant William Crofton, defendant Henrietta Balzary. 1064 00:44:24,863 --> 00:44:28,766 Cause, selling ale without license. 1065 00:44:28,767 --> 00:44:30,467 Petty sessions at Dunolly, on the 1066 00:44:30,468 --> 00:44:33,570 3rd day of September, 1872, 1067 00:44:33,571 --> 00:44:35,339 defendant Henrietta Balzary. 1068 00:44:35,340 --> 00:44:38,142 Cause selling liquor without license. 1069 00:44:38,143 --> 00:44:41,945 Decision, defendant fined five pounds with one pound, 1070 00:44:41,946 --> 00:44:43,914 six shillings costs." 1071 00:44:43,915 --> 00:44:45,315 Mm-hmm. 1072 00:44:45,316 --> 00:44:47,017 So she was selling probably some kind of bootleg 1073 00:44:47,018 --> 00:44:48,185 to make do. 1074 00:44:48,186 --> 00:44:49,787 You got it. Wow. 1075 00:44:49,788 --> 00:44:51,488 Yeah, what do you make of that? 1076 00:44:51,489 --> 00:44:53,557 I, you know, you gotta do what you gotta 1077 00:44:53,558 --> 00:44:55,025 do to get by, you know? 1078 00:44:55,026 --> 00:44:56,160 Yeah. 1079 00:44:56,161 --> 00:44:58,162 I, I appreciate the, uh, the, 1080 00:44:58,163 --> 00:45:00,665 the industriousness of doing it. 1081 00:45:00,899 --> 00:45:02,199 Yeah. 1082 00:45:02,200 --> 00:45:03,868 You know, power to her man. 1083 00:45:05,270 --> 00:45:07,838 {\an8}Henrietta may have been industrious, 1084 00:45:07,839 --> 00:45:10,175 {\an8}but she faced steep odds. 1085 00:45:10,809 --> 00:45:13,977 {\an8}Australia did not offer many avenues for a single 1086 00:45:13,978 --> 00:45:16,047 {\an8}mother to make a living. 1087 00:45:16,481 --> 00:45:19,516 Most experienced dire poverty, 1088 00:45:19,517 --> 00:45:21,218 and selling alcohol illegally 1089 00:45:21,219 --> 00:45:23,388 was one of the few ways to survive. 1090 00:45:24,856 --> 00:45:28,093 Fortunately, Henrietta soon found another. 1091 00:45:30,095 --> 00:45:32,096 "Marriages solemnized in the 1092 00:45:32,097 --> 00:45:34,164 district of Dunolly." 1093 00:45:34,165 --> 00:45:35,933 She really didn't get outta Dunolly. 1094 00:45:35,934 --> 00:45:40,538 "March 11th, 1875, William Lovett, bachelor. 1095 00:45:40,905 --> 00:45:43,774 Profession, minor, age 43. 1096 00:45:43,775 --> 00:45:48,178 Henrietta Balzary, widow, profession storekeeper." 1097 00:45:48,179 --> 00:45:50,180 Mm-hmm. Age 42. 1098 00:45:50,181 --> 00:45:52,783 Henrietta went from illegally selling booze to 1099 00:45:52,784 --> 00:45:56,787 becoming a storekeeper, presumably with a license now. 1100 00:45:56,788 --> 00:45:58,155 Yes. 1101 00:45:58,156 --> 00:45:59,323 And she got married again. 1102 00:45:59,324 --> 00:46:00,724 To another minor. 1103 00:46:00,725 --> 00:46:03,727 Your ancestor had to be incredibly scrappy 1104 00:46:03,728 --> 00:46:05,095 and resourceful. 1105 00:46:05,096 --> 00:46:06,497 Yeah. 1106 00:46:06,498 --> 00:46:07,798 You see any of these circumstances, 1107 00:46:07,799 --> 00:46:09,399 Mr. Flea in yourself? 1108 00:46:09,400 --> 00:46:11,168 Uh, very much so. 1109 00:46:11,169 --> 00:46:12,503 Yeah. 1110 00:46:12,504 --> 00:46:14,606 I'm scrappy and resourceful. 1111 00:46:15,640 --> 00:46:18,075 As it turns out, Henrietta had been living 1112 00:46:18,076 --> 00:46:22,413 by her wits for far and longer than Flea even imagined, 1113 00:46:23,748 --> 00:46:26,116 as evidenced by the manifest of the ship 1114 00:46:26,117 --> 00:46:28,253 that brought her to Australia. 1115 00:46:28,753 --> 00:46:31,288 A teenage girl from Ireland, 1116 00:46:31,289 --> 00:46:33,625 utterly alone in the world. 1117 00:46:34,993 --> 00:46:38,529 "List of immigrants per ship Pemberton arrived 1118 00:46:38,530 --> 00:46:41,999 on the 14th, May, 1849. 1119 00:46:42,000 --> 00:46:44,701 Female orphans." 1120 00:46:44,702 --> 00:46:46,303 Wow. 1121 00:46:46,304 --> 00:46:50,108 "Name Honora Bentley, age 16, calling, house servant. 1122 00:46:51,009 --> 00:46:54,312 Native place and county Limerick, Ireland. 1123 00:46:54,779 --> 00:46:58,182 Read or write? Both." 1124 00:46:58,183 --> 00:46:59,483 So she was an orphan. 1125 00:46:59,484 --> 00:47:01,753 Mm-hmm. 1126 00:47:05,657 --> 00:47:08,425 And her aspiration was to be a house servant. 1127 00:47:08,426 --> 00:47:09,826 Yes. That was her hope... 1128 00:47:09,827 --> 00:47:11,061 That's right. 1129 00:47:11,062 --> 00:47:12,563 ...that she could do that. 1130 00:47:12,564 --> 00:47:14,866 She could read and write. 1131 00:47:15,500 --> 00:47:18,369 It's a trip, man. 1132 00:47:19,804 --> 00:47:21,773 That's my people. 1133 00:47:23,374 --> 00:47:26,177 There was one more beat to this story. 1134 00:47:26,377 --> 00:47:28,212 Records show that Henrietta was born 1135 00:47:28,213 --> 00:47:32,150 around 1833 in County Limerick, Ireland. 1136 00:47:33,551 --> 00:47:36,720 Which means that when she was roughly 12 years old, 1137 00:47:36,721 --> 00:47:39,691 she was caught up in what we now call The Great Famine. 1138 00:47:40,525 --> 00:47:43,760 A cataclysm that claimed the lives of roughly 1139 00:47:43,761 --> 00:47:46,231 a million Irish people. 1140 00:47:46,864 --> 00:47:50,534 County Limerick alone saw its population fall 1141 00:47:50,535 --> 00:47:54,572 by close to 70,000 people in just 10 years. 1142 00:47:56,140 --> 00:47:58,075 We don't know what happened to Henrietta 1143 00:47:58,076 --> 00:48:01,712 during the famine, or to her parents, 1144 00:48:01,713 --> 00:48:04,047 but by the time she was 16, 1145 00:48:04,048 --> 00:48:06,918 she was an orphan living in a workhouse. 1146 00:48:08,953 --> 00:48:10,487 She was all on her own. 1147 00:48:10,488 --> 00:48:11,989 Yeah. 1148 00:48:11,990 --> 00:48:13,257 Had to be very hard. 1149 00:48:13,258 --> 00:48:14,625 Had to be really hard. 1150 00:48:14,626 --> 00:48:17,160 I, you know, kind of mean, I wonder how long she had 1151 00:48:17,161 --> 00:48:19,630 been an orphan when she was in the workhouse and... 1152 00:48:19,631 --> 00:48:21,398 Yeah. We don't know or why. 1153 00:48:21,399 --> 00:48:23,300 She might have been on an orphan since birth. 1154 00:48:23,301 --> 00:48:24,501 She could have been. 1155 00:48:24,502 --> 00:48:25,636 You know what I mean? 1156 00:48:25,637 --> 00:48:26,870 She could have been abandoned at birth. 1157 00:48:26,871 --> 00:48:27,971 She could have been, they could have died 1158 00:48:27,972 --> 00:48:29,039 of starvation, and they could have... 1159 00:48:29,040 --> 00:48:30,073 She could have been illegitimate. 1160 00:48:30,074 --> 00:48:31,174 I mean, we don't know. 1161 00:48:31,175 --> 00:48:32,476 Yeah. We just don't know. 1162 00:48:32,477 --> 00:48:33,810 Yeah. 1163 00:48:33,811 --> 00:48:35,445 {\an8}The workhouse where Henrietta found herself 1164 00:48:35,446 --> 00:48:39,083 {\an8}was basically a walled-off factory with beds. 1165 00:48:40,652 --> 00:48:43,687 Once inside, she likely had to do physically 1166 00:48:43,688 --> 00:48:46,891 demanding labor in exchange for food and shelter. 1167 00:48:48,693 --> 00:48:50,861 It's little wonder that she was willing to roll 1168 00:48:50,862 --> 00:48:54,298 the dice and take a risk on Australia, 1169 00:48:54,299 --> 00:48:56,801 knowing nothing of what was to come. 1170 00:48:57,935 --> 00:49:00,804 Do you see any of her bravery and resilience 1171 00:49:00,805 --> 00:49:02,473 in yourself? 1172 00:49:02,674 --> 00:49:04,708 Um, I hope so. 1173 00:49:04,709 --> 00:49:06,643 You know, it makes me feel like, you know, sometimes 1174 00:49:06,644 --> 00:49:09,346 I've, you know, all my tough times I had and 1175 00:49:09,347 --> 00:49:11,214 stuff makes, I feel like I had it pretty easy, 1176 00:49:11,215 --> 00:49:12,516 you know? 1177 00:49:12,517 --> 00:49:14,017 Yeah. 1178 00:49:14,018 --> 00:49:15,419 I mean, I always, even when I was like 1179 00:49:15,420 --> 00:49:16,720 skipping the bill at restaurants and running 1180 00:49:16,721 --> 00:49:18,155 out without paying, I was eating, 1181 00:49:18,156 --> 00:49:19,256 you know what I mean? 1182 00:49:19,257 --> 00:49:20,524 Yeah. 1183 00:49:20,525 --> 00:49:21,625 And people starving to death, 1184 00:49:21,626 --> 00:49:23,460 it's serious business, you know? 1185 00:49:23,461 --> 00:49:24,761 What do you think of your 1186 00:49:24,762 --> 00:49:27,064 great-great-grandmother, and what's it like for you 1187 00:49:27,065 --> 00:49:30,001 to think that you descend from her? 1188 00:49:30,668 --> 00:49:32,502 Um, I love it. 1189 00:49:32,503 --> 00:49:34,204 I think she's amazing. 1190 00:49:34,205 --> 00:49:38,476 Um, you know, she, she did what she had to do to survive. 1191 00:49:38,943 --> 00:49:42,879 And I'm sure that so much of it just comes from love 1192 00:49:42,880 --> 00:49:46,316 and caring, not only, you know, for herself and 1193 00:49:46,317 --> 00:49:48,585 treasuring life itself, and not just becoming, 1194 00:49:48,586 --> 00:49:50,687 uh, not dissipating... 1195 00:49:50,688 --> 00:49:52,022 Mm-hmm. 1196 00:49:52,023 --> 00:49:53,490 ...at any point, you know? 1197 00:49:53,491 --> 00:49:56,326 Um, but continuing to focus on doing what she 1198 00:49:56,327 --> 00:49:58,195 could do to make life good for herself. 1199 00:49:58,196 --> 00:50:00,997 And, you know, remarrying, she, so she, you know, 1200 00:50:00,998 --> 00:50:02,699 I hope the guy was nice. 1201 00:50:02,700 --> 00:50:04,034 Yeah. 1202 00:50:04,035 --> 00:50:05,635 You know, I hope they're all nice to her. 1203 00:50:05,636 --> 00:50:06,837 I hope Albert was nice to her. 1204 00:50:06,838 --> 00:50:07,971 Yeah. 1205 00:50:07,972 --> 00:50:09,706 I hope this other guy is nice to her, too. 1206 00:50:09,707 --> 00:50:11,174 Mm-hmm. 1207 00:50:11,175 --> 00:50:13,510 Um, 'cause it must have been real hard. 1208 00:50:13,511 --> 00:50:15,445 Does it make you look at your own success 1209 00:50:15,446 --> 00:50:17,447 any differently? 1210 00:50:17,448 --> 00:50:19,282 You know, I've always had a real intense 1211 00:50:19,283 --> 00:50:23,688 striving, and there's a part of me that's like, 1212 00:50:24,455 --> 00:50:26,523 you know, like a part of me that performs and stuff 1213 00:50:26,524 --> 00:50:30,727 where I push myself to beyond where I should push myself. 1214 00:50:30,728 --> 00:50:32,229 Mm-hmm. 1215 00:50:32,230 --> 00:50:33,663 You know, I push myself to like, 1216 00:50:33,664 --> 00:50:35,465 just like practically death, you know what I mean? 1217 00:50:35,466 --> 00:50:36,733 I go back to the hotel and, you know... 1218 00:50:37,935 --> 00:50:39,469 ...because I push myself so hard when I perform. 1219 00:50:39,470 --> 00:50:44,141 And, um, it makes me feel like that that's in me. 1220 00:50:44,142 --> 00:50:45,308 Mm-hmm. 1221 00:50:45,309 --> 00:50:46,643 That survival thing, like I really have it... 1222 00:50:46,644 --> 00:50:48,044 Right. 1223 00:50:48,045 --> 00:50:49,280 ...deeply ingrained in me. 1224 00:50:50,848 --> 00:50:54,051 The paper trail had now run out for each of my guests; 1225 00:50:54,952 --> 00:50:57,988 it was time to show them their full family trees. 1226 00:50:57,989 --> 00:51:00,357 Wow. 1227 00:51:00,358 --> 00:51:02,592 . 1228 00:51:02,593 --> 00:51:04,928 Now filled with names they'd never 1229 00:51:04,929 --> 00:51:06,430 heard before. 1230 00:51:06,431 --> 00:51:07,864 These are all of the ancestors... 1231 00:51:07,865 --> 00:51:11,201 For each, it was a moment of wonder offering, 1232 00:51:11,202 --> 00:51:14,838 a glimpse of the women and men who'd sacrificed 1233 00:51:14,839 --> 00:51:18,242 so much to lay the groundwork for their success. 1234 00:51:19,577 --> 00:51:21,111 Man, I gotta process it. 1235 00:51:21,112 --> 00:51:22,279 I gotta think about it. 1236 00:51:22,280 --> 00:51:23,880 I got; it's really given me something to chew on 1237 00:51:23,881 --> 00:51:25,182 and meditate on. 1238 00:51:25,183 --> 00:51:26,316 It's a lot. 1239 00:51:26,317 --> 00:51:28,151 I, I feel all of it, like in my body... 1240 00:51:28,152 --> 00:51:29,319 Yeah. 1241 00:51:29,320 --> 00:51:30,787 ...like in my psyche and who I am. 1242 00:51:30,788 --> 00:51:32,456 That's great. And it connects. 1243 00:51:32,457 --> 00:51:35,192 It's these little things, this whole tree 1244 00:51:35,193 --> 00:51:38,728 just shows me like, the smallest things have 1245 00:51:38,729 --> 00:51:41,264 had to happen for me to be sitting here today. 1246 00:51:41,265 --> 00:51:42,532 Absolutely. 1247 00:51:42,533 --> 00:51:44,301 I mean, so many things... 1248 00:51:44,302 --> 00:51:45,635 Mm-hmm. 1249 00:51:45,636 --> 00:51:47,204 ...had to have gone, right? 1250 00:51:47,205 --> 00:51:48,505 Mm-hmm. 1251 00:51:48,506 --> 00:51:49,940 And I'm glad they did. 1252 00:51:49,941 --> 00:51:51,942 {\an8}They were put in slavery, they were separated, they... 1253 00:51:51,943 --> 00:51:55,278 {\an8}. 1254 00:51:55,279 --> 00:51:57,047 {\an8}And I'm still here. 1255 00:51:57,048 --> 00:51:58,915 {\an8}This is, I am here for them, 1256 00:51:58,916 --> 00:52:00,851 {\an8}this is their resilience, I'm the proof of it. 1257 00:52:00,852 --> 00:52:02,185 {\an8}And you're going strong. 1258 00:52:02,186 --> 00:52:04,689 {\an8}And I'm going strong, baby. 1259 00:52:04,889 --> 00:52:06,523 {\an8}That's the end of our journey with 1260 00:52:06,524 --> 00:52:08,892 {\an8}Lizzo and Flea. 1261 00:52:08,893 --> 00:52:11,895 {\an8}Join me next time when we unlock the secrets 1262 00:52:11,896 --> 00:52:16,366 {\an8}of the past for new guests on another episode of 1263 00:52:16,367 --> 00:52:18,836 {\an8}"Finding Your Roots."