[MUSIC PLAYING]
Hey.
Texas wide receiver Kenny Stills was recently
arrested protesting for Breonna Taylor's killers
to be brought to justice.
That's right.
Houston Texas wide receiver Kenny Stills
was arrested in Louisville, Kentucky yesterday
and is facing a felony charge of intimidating a participant
in the legal process for his role in a protest at the home
of Kentucky's attorney general.
Yo, he just had his charges dropped.
And he's here to talk about it.
Make some motherfucking noise.
DESUS: Kenny, how's it going, man?
What's up, fellas?
Man, what's going on?
Not too much. Not too much.
Hey, man.
Happy to have you, bro.
Same, same, man.
Enjoying the west coast.
Yeah.
What's the weather like over there right now?
It's beautiful, man.
It's been beautiful every day.
You know, we were on the inside for about 17 hours.
So anything's better than being on the inside.
That's a fact, bro.
And trust me, sleeping on your t-shirt is not the wave.
Them turkey sandwiches-- them turkey sandwiches ain't right,
man.
They don't hit, right?
We was putting toilet paper underneath, like, a towel
to use that as a pillow.
Like, you know what I'm saying?
Put a sandwich on top of your shoes.
Was that your first time being locked up?
No, that was my second.
I got a DUI my freshman year in college.
So we did, like, six hours.
I'm close to having 24 hours on the inside.
Oh, OK.
Oh, shit.
You get an Xbox achievement badge--
I gotta earn my stripes.
Gotta earn my stripes.
You know what I mean?
You gotta walk around with your shirt off.
Like, yo, what's popping, yo?
You got arrested protesting at the attorney general's house.
You sat down.
And then you were actually arrested
and charged with a felony?
Yeah.
So they charged us with trespassing and disturbing
the peace or something.
And then also the felony charges--
intimidating somebody that's involved in a legal process.
And so I think they added this felony
charge to kind of be able to keep us in jail
for a little bit longer.
And not realizing that adding a felony charge with people
with a little bit of notoriety being there just brought
more attention to the case.
And in the grand scheme of things, in the big picture,
that helped us bring more eyes to this case
and try and get justice for Breonna.
And you do something that's really important,
which is, like, actually saying the cops' names.
Because I'm terrible with names.
You know what I mean?
So I'm always like, arrest the cops
that killed Breonna Taylor.
But like, it's-- like, it's important to name them,
because they, like, live in--
they regular-- their best life--
They out here on the beaches chilling.
Like, not thinking about nothing.
Yeah, that Instagram that he posted was wild.
Like, he's just-- he's really just out here on the beach.
Out there on the beach with two ladies enjoying his life,
which is crazy, man.
I just-- it blows my mind that people don't have, like,
that sense of guilt or those feelings of emotions
to really want to process these things, which is just go out,
and just party, and act like nothing happened.
You took somebody's life.
You messed with somebody's family.
And, you know, just--
I wish more people would pay attention to,
like, how they think they would feel
if that shit happened to them.
Yeah, definitely.
And how does it-- how much time were you
facing with the felony charge?
So it said one to five years, but, I mean,
we knew that that charge was going to get dropped.
We didn't do anything wrong.
We showed up there.
We sat on his property.
We were peaceful.
We had no weapons.
And so, you know, we're not going to be able to be
charged for the felony.
Yeah, Because how you intimidating
somebody with no weapons, and you're just sitting down,
protesting?
How are you intimidating somebody that's not even home?
Like, we're intimidating his property?
Like, nobody was at the crib, so I
don't know who we could be intimidating
if he is in Frankfurt, at the capitol,
and we're in Louisville that's, you know, 45 to an hour away.
Right.
That's wild.
Is the irony lost on you, the fact
that you were arrested before the cops that actually
killed Breonna Taylor were?
Man, come on, now.
Come on, now.
Like, you're going to arrest--
MERO: We know.
Like, that-- that--
I mean, it is what it is, man.
But we were telling the cops when
we were on the inside, man, y'all need
to arrest your damn self. Arrest yourself.
Right.
Arrest yourself.
You're arresting us?
Like, why don't you just do your job?
You wouldn't have to arrest us if you would just do your job.
Right.
Did the cops seem to have any kind of remorse, or any kind--
did they say anything, or were they just, like,
doing the usual cop thing?
Or just, like, the whole blue wall of silence,
and that kind of thing?
For the most part.
I mean, there was a couple people--
you know, we actually had an officer that was, you know,
being--
I guess-- I wouldn't-- you know, just people were calling her
out from the outside, you know?
And she ended up, you know, shedding a tear
and turning her back, you know? Basically--
Oh, yeah. I think I saw--
I think I saw that video, yeah.
So you know, we had an officer that, you know--
we're definitely touching them, and
they're definitely hearing us.
And then, you know, guys on the inside, which-- you know, I
don't want to get them in trouble,
were basically being like, hey, we appreciate
everything you guys are doing.
Like, that type of stuff.
But at the same time, like, you know,
not like we were getting any--
any special treatment on the inside.
We were still getting the turkey sandwich and the--
and the Crystal Light, you know what I'm saying?
Like, so--
You said there was a lot of high profile people
there, like--
like, did they recognize you?
Did they say, like-- you said you
didn't get special treatment, but like, did anybody
say, like, yo, shout out to him for winning
my fantasy league in '13?
Naw.
Naw, not-- no.
They-- they knew Cordae, and they knew--
we had some, you know, other people
from reality TV, and stuff.
I'm not really, like, tuned into that, but--
you know, they knew those-- they knew the rappers,
and they knew Cordae.
But you know, they didn't know it was me
until I was getting released.
When I got released, they were like, oh, we'd better
hurry up and get you out of here before people
start asking for autographs.
And I'm like--
DESUS: Oh, wow.
I don't know what that means.
So how-- this experience, has this--
has this made you more resolute about protesting,
and like, just put the battery in your back?
You gonna keep going?
Or do you, like, kind of-- - Oh, yeah.
Yeah?
I'm energized, man.
And I mean, obviously I never want to encourage other people
to go and get arrested, but to be a part of something
like this, like, the Louisville 87, that's
going to be something that's going to be
written in the history books.
And also, just the experience of getting arrested,
and going to jail, and seeing how officers treat you.
Seeing the intimidation on the inside, seeing how,
you know, shitty, like, they try to make the process.
Like, and to me, it doesn't make sense
that it has to be that way.
You know what I'm saying?
We have all this money invested into prisons, and jails,
and police, and then we show up there and it's like,
the worst conditions possible.
And you know, even if somebody is--
you know, does a crazy crime, like, there
is no reason for people to be, like,
living in these conditions.
You know?
Or living like that.
And so especially peaceful protesters,
like, going in there and treating us like that.
Not letting us go to the bathroom, not giving us water.
You know, just doing everything they could to try and play
these head games with us.
And why would they want to do that to our citizens?
Like, what is-- how is that beneficial to our society?
And so yeah, I'm definitely energized.
Especially being in a room with like-minded people, man.
We had 22 men in a cell that were
able to really have this powerful, impactful
conversation.
Come together.
You know, talk about reparations,
talk about different plans that we can put together,
and how we can work together in order to go
back and recruit more men.
Because you know, we were out-- outmatched three to one
by the women.
You know, it was 22 men, and the rest were women.
And there was more white women there than there
was black men supporting-- trying to get
justice for Breonna Taylor.
So we have to do a better job as men.
And that's not calling the men out, but just saying,
like, hey, where are-- where are we at?
Yeah.
And why are we not there?
You gotta be on the front lines.
On the front lines, protecting our women,
and shouting, and screaming, and doing everything we
can to try and get justice for our sister?
This is true.
Facts.
So now, you see this a lot--
you have celebrities, and they kind of-- once you get money
and a little fame, they get out of touch,
they no longer know what the streets are saying,
or what the people want, or even care about.
Like-- protests, and Breonna Taylor, and stuff.
Like, because we know, like, there's
a lot of famous celebrities that have never tweeted about it,
never spoke on it.
How do you stay in touch with the streets, and know--
how do you-- not even in the streets.
How do you stay in touch as a regular human being?
Because you could easily turn your back on all this,
and just go live in Hollywood Hills, and have a Ferrari,
and just be chilling.
Yeah.
I mean, that's just not in me, man.
The way I was raised--
you know, it was a village.
You know, there were so many people
that contributed to helping making sure
that I was, you know, going to school, going to practice,
playing ball.
You know, doing all these different things.
And so, you know, after, like, it's
part of just my responsibility to do the same thing
and give back, man.
You know, each one, teach one.
And so I've always been that way.
And you know, I was never, like, political, or like,
my parents never really talked to me about politics,
and so I was never really into it.
But in 2016, you know, when I first took a knee, that really
just, like, jumpstarted me into really educating
myself on what's happening within our country,
and around the world.
And using the platform that I have as an athlete,
knowing that people listen to me because I play sports,
and because I have a platform, to just try and influence them,
you know, in the right direction.
You know, less about chains, and money, and girls, and cars,
and all that stuff, and more about just human beings,
and helping each other.
Emotional intelligence, self help,
personal growth, and looking out for each other, man.
Trying to create this-- this village so that, you know,
we can thrive as a society, man.
Because we have all the resources,
you know, that we need.
And it's just a matter of really allocating
them, and focusing, and doing the right things with them.
So like, you said, like, the village concept--
I fuck with that you, you know what I mean?
Because that's how I grew up.
But also, you come from a football family.
Yeah.
You think getting into sports and like, you know,
being in that lane, and focusing there--
did that help, you know, with your resolution now to be like,
you know what?
I got my-- my priorities are in order, you know what I mean?
Like, that structure that that gave you?
You know what I'm saying? Like--
No.
It's definitely, like, the team mentality, for sure.
But also, I think it helped being really talented
at a young age, because I really had to figure out how to be
a good team player, right?
So a lot of times, like, even in, like, school
and like, PE and stuff, my teachers would pull me
to the side and be like, hey, like, you know,
you don't have to, like, go so hard.
You can let other people, you know, make plays.
You don't have to do everything for the team.
And so-- - Right.
Just this concept of like, the team
working together, and all of us playing our parts,
and knowing our role, and my role in this time
being a football player as hey, people are watching, you know,
what I'm doing on Sundays.
And I have an opportunity to bring eyes and light to some
of these issues that we have.
So that's what I'm doing.
And when you first took a knee, did you expect that?
Like, did you expect, like, a big backlash,
and you were like, I'm ready?
Oh, yeah.
Yeah, 100%, man.
So we had seen, you know, Colin, and Eric
Reid, and Megan Rapinoe.
We had just been seeing what they were doing,
and I had got to a point, really, where seeing
all these videos just, like--
you know, I felt, like, helpless.
Like, damn, what the hell can I get-- you know, what can I do?
And I'd seen them doing that, I'm like, shit,
this is my opportunity.
So September 11th, 2016 was the first time,
you know, I took a knee.
And obviously, we knew it was going
to be a huge deal because we were taking a knee,
but also because it was September 11th.
And you know, I grew up in Oceanside, California, which
is right by Camp Pendleton, which is, you know,
a military base.
And so I was raised and grew up with a bunch of, like, Marines,
and all the kids that were on my team were--
you know, their parents are Marines, and stuff.
And so my mentor and my little league coach,
I reached out to him before I took a knee and was like,
hey, what do you think?
And he had been in the Marines for, like,
20+, 30+ years at that time.
And long story short, he basically was
like, hey, you know, I wish--
I had hoped you wouldn't get involved in the protests.
Like, I hoped you'd leave it alone.
And I was like, all right, you know, thank you.
I'm going to sleep on it, and pray on it, and stuff.
And the next day, I still got involved.
And just to see the Facebook messages and text messages,
because I have the same number that I've had since I
was in, like, sixth grade.
The first number I ever got, I still have.
And so the text messages and Facebook messages
that I was getting from kids that I grew up with,
I went to school with, and parents--
you know, it was--
it, like, blew my mind to see how quickly people switched up.
Yeah, man.
Because like you said, having the platform you have,
just a simple--
like, a symbolism like that, it resonates, man.
Like-- and this is a national stage, you know what I mean?
Like you said, every Sunday, millions of people
are watching. So--
Yeah.
Yeah, no, definitely, people switched up on me.
But people are coming around, man.
They see, you know, my heart, and they
see how, you know, the work that I've
been doing in the community, and how I just have never let up.
You know what I'm saying?
Like, obviously, people-- some people might know me now,
just for the first time, getting arrested and being
on the front lines, but this is work
I've been doing for four years.
Community service, road trips.
I mean, mental health camps, working with law enforcement,
trying to build, you know, relationships
with the community.
Like, I'm literally trying to do everything
I can to connect people, and just try and make,
you know, a better, safer society for all of us.
That's what's up.
That's dope.
You said people, like--
when the people switched up on you, was it, like, out of--
was it out of nowhere?
Was it, like, people that you were just like, yo, wow,
I thought you was my mans.
Like, are you serious?
Was it that kind of thing?
It was like-- or was it just, like,
not people that close to you?
Just like, kind of hangers on?
Fans?
Naw, yeah, it was more just, like,
kids that I went to school with.
Like, you know, we always knew you were
just a dirty this, or that.
You know? - Oh, wow.
You know?
And I'm just, like--
Oh, that Facebook coverage.
- Like-- - Yeah.
Damn.
That's how you really felt?
That's how you felt all them years?
Yeah.
You should have been like, fuck the PE teacher.
I'm a-- I'm mossy right now.
DESUS: Yeah!
Exactly.
But naw, for the most part it was just, like,
people that I just didn't-- you know, if it was close people,
they just-- we just didn't rap, or didn't talk
for a little while. DESUS: Right.
And then they've come around since then.
Well, Kenny, we thank you for the work you've been doing.
You know what I'm saying?
It's not about recognition, but we are recognizing you,
and we thank you for using your platform for good.
We hope that, you know, one day we actually get the cops
who killed Breonna Taylor.
But we're going to stay on their neck until they do.
You know what I'm saying?
You are an illustrious guest.
What would you like your neon sign to say?
I want my shit to say "Arrest Brett Hankinson, John
Mattingly, And Myles Cosgrove.
Arrest They Ass And Fire They Ass Right No."
Right there, put it up.
Put it up.
Immediately.
Right there.
Yo, everyone, give it up for my man, Kenny Stills out here.
Kenny Stills, y'all!
Listen-- Black Lives Matter.
Arrest the cowards that killed beyond Breonna Taylor.
That's right.
Thanks.
Stay strong, bro.