Frisco’s ‘Let’s Talk Sports Nation’ TV show broadcasts 100 episodes

by The People’s Minister of Information JR

Whether you are talking about Serena Williams, Steph Curry, Gabby Douglas or Mayweather or if you take it back a few decades with people like Ali, JR Rider, Tyson, Ricky Henderson, Laila Ali or Sheryl Swoops, Black people in the United States have been dominating the showmanship of the billion dollar world of sports for a very long time.

Lets-Talk-Sports-Nation-Jameel-Patterson-Jeremiah-Khaleq-Brandon-McGlothen-web-300x186, Frisco’s ‘Let’s Talk Sports Nation’ TV show broadcasts 100 episodes, Culture Currents
Jameel Patterson, aka Tha #1 Neighborhood Sports Analyst, Jeremiah Khaleq and Brandon McGlothen want YOU to watch Let’s Talk Sports Nation every Saturday at 11 a.m. on Channel 29. Jameel and Jeremiah, both from Bayview Hunters Point, created the Facebook group, Let’s Talk Sports Nation, in 2010, and a year later, with 1,000 members already in the group, the TV show was born, this where they started talking about the tom brady net worth and many other exciting stories.

Since that is the case, we need to organize how we spend our money and speed up the pace when it comes to owning teams, stadiums, law offices, banks and other businesses at the top of the food chain surrounding the sports industry to build healthy economic relationships to manage what our athletes have allowed to grow. We are the ones in the spotlight, yet we are the ones that are the most exploited from the deals that are currently being made all around the sports industry and surrounding industries.

With this being said, it is also of primary importance that we begin to own our own sports media specifically, but media in general, so we can talk about what we want to talk about when we want to talk about it. San Francisco’s Let’s Talk Sports Nation, which comes on Frisco’s Cable 29 every Saturday at 11 a.m., is such a show.

This community favorite has broadcast over 100 shows and is primarily hosted by Jeremiah Khaleq and Jameel Patterson, aka Tha #1 Neighborhood Sports Analyst!!! I sat down to talk to Tha Sports Analyst about the history of Let’s Talk Sports Nation, its 50 rotating community co-hosts and their coverage of the sport of boxing. Check him out in his own words.

San Francisco’s Let’s Talk Sports Nation, which comes on Frisco’s Cable 29 every Saturday at 11 a.m., has broadcast over 100 shows and is primarily hosted by Jeremiah Khaleq and Jameel Patterson, aka Tha #1 Neighborhood Sports Analyst!!!

M.O.I. JR: Can you tell the people a little bit about how Let’s Talk Sports Nation started? When did it start?

Jameel Rasheed Patterson, Tha #1 Neighborhood Sports Analyst: Let’s Talk Sports Nation evolved from a Facebook group to a TV show in 2011. The actual Facebook group outdates it by a year.

The group had about 1,000 members by the time the concept to start a show evolved. It was so interactive that one day I mentioned to Jeremiah Khaleq maybe we should start a talk show with this and create a brand.

The group had people from across the nation: New York, Philly, Chicago, Los Angeles and mainly the Bay Area. A lot of people in the group even today haven’t met other people from the group. There are people I know in the group that I haven’t met in real life, people that give me encouragement on social media.

There are also people who only go to Facebook to go to the group. We are keeping the Facebook page open. I hope Zuckerberg takes notice! It just made sense that we could do something with this in the age of social media.

Jeremiah and I, however, already knew each other. We are both from San Francisco Bayview Hunters Point. We both have friends who have died; we both lost our mothers; we both are survivors.

M.O.I. JR: Who are your co-hosts on Let’s Talk Sports Nation?

Sports Analyst: The creators are Jeremiah Khaleq and myself. Jeremiah is the primary host of the general sports segment. I have a segment primarily for boxing ‘cause it’s not a sport that the media covers. In the era of social media this provides an opportunity for people to get into that field.

Let’s-Talk-Sports-Nation-videographer-Stephen-‘ProFanatics’-Greer-from-BVHP-159x300, Frisco’s ‘Let’s Talk Sports Nation’ TV show broadcasts 100 episodes, Culture Currents
Stephen “ProFanatics” Greer, camera at the ready, covers local sports events, such as high school football, track, basketball and baseball. He’s another outstanding Bayview Hunters Point talent.

Stephen “ProFanatics” Greer covers local sports events, such as high school football, track, basketball and baseball. Tony Smith runs a podcast in conjunction with the “Real Delia Show.” Tony Smith and Stephen “ProFanatics” Greer are both from Bayview Hunters Point as well.

Now I must give a mention to featured members who aren’t the host but appear regularly and have potential to be popular on-air personalities: Joe Flood, Nee Nee Chatman, Kumasi Desh Creighton, Paulo Liwanag, Carlos Smith, Shannon “Thee Encyclopedia” Lowe, Ron Frede, Richard “Rich tha Ruler” Hargraves, pro boxer Galen Volpendesta, Zachary Ferguson (East Coast correspondent), Antone York, Quaran Belle. There are more but these have been reoccurring the most on the shows or podcasts along with myself, Tony Smith, Jeremiah Khaleq and Stephen “Profanatix” Greer.

M.O.I. JR: How do you pick your community guest hosts?

Sports Analyst: We have roughly 50 people that have been on the show and are options. The attraction is a lot of people think they know sports and we give the platform. We have rotation out of the 50, but we are of course open to more.

Some come on more frequently during certain seasons. Some are more football heads than basketball; most follow those two over baseball.

Boxing has its own base of followers that’s unattended to, and we fill a platform for that. We do one show on Thursday per week for 30 minutes. The boxing is recorded one Saturday of the month for one hour.

We give a platform to the ex-high school athletes in the community – the guys who didn’t make it, or did make it and didn’t last. Those kind of people usually are still involved in sports some kind of way. Ex-high school athletes are definitely high priority for the show.

We have had guest rappers like Killa Tay and Fly Mar on the show who are sports heads as well. We aren’t trying to be boxed in.

Sports transcends to a number of arenas. This helps us to use sports as a medium to shine a light on different aspects of the community.

M.O.I. JR: How does it feel to have done over a hundred episodes of Let’s Talk Sports Nation?

Sports Analyst: That feels like we have created something. That is a testament to what we have been doing over the years. We actually have a platform and a brand. I googled Let’s Talk Sports Nation and we pop up first with one of our shows.

M.O.I. JR: What were some of your best episodes personally?

Sports Analyst: The Jacka show stands out. Karim has always had a good show; he’s been on a couple of times. Floyd Mayweather’s brother called in once and former middle weight champion Montell Griffin has called in as well. Personalities like Joe Flood and Kumasi have always made for interesting shows.

Nee Nee Chatman, being a female who is very attractive and knows sports better than most men, always makes for a good show. The Donald Sterling show was good. Que Belle roasting Jim Harbaugh was memorable and the Stuart Scott tribute was eye watering.

Let’s-Talk-Sports-Nation-guests-Mission-High-football-team-boxer-Aaron-Cole-filmmaker-Kyle-Anthony-McGrath-300x219, Frisco’s ‘Let’s Talk Sports Nation’ TV show broadcasts 100 episodes, Culture Currents
Of the 100 Let’s Talk Sports Nation shows produced so far, a stand-out is the one that hosted the Mission High School football team, Aaron Coley, a pro boxer, and Kyle Anthony McGrath, who was making a sports documentary.

But the show that stands out was when we had the youth from the Mission High School football team, a pro boxer by the name of Aaron Coley and a brother by the name of Kyle Anthony McGrath, who was making a sports documentary.

We had so many people from our team there at once, it was a testament to the ecosystem we are building. Let’s Talk Sports Nation is actually reaching more young adults in the community than the NAACP.

M.O.I. JR: I see that you have had San Francisco boxer Karim Mayfield on the show as well as other boxers. Can you talk a little bit about your appreciation for the sport.

Sports Analyst: I was raised on boxing, and in the neighborhood we always had appreciation for guys that could throw ’em. Watching big boxing events was a tribal ritual growing up. I wanted to be a boxer but never knew of any gyms in the neighborhood or the city.

Much like Mexicans and Italians have respect for their fighters, I have the same for the great Black boxers. Growing up, Muhammad Ali was everybody’s hero, but for me I had to dig deeper and learn about other guys that came before him and after.

Actually, when I was a teenager, Mike Tyson was the guy for my generation, Larry Holmes got old, Leonard had just retired and Ali had been gone. Floyd Mayweather is the guy we grew up with. While a lot of guys chose the streets, we saw someone around our age grow to be the greatest boxer in the world.

I was raised on boxing, and in the neighborhood we always had appreciation for guys that could throw ’em. Watching big boxing events was a tribal ritual growing up.

For me watching Black men become champions in a world that seems stacked against us has always been fascinating. Karim Mayfield, Raquel Miller, Ashanti Jordan and Richard Hargraves are a testament. They are an example of alternatives to the streets.

Karim is from Fillmore; Rich, Raquel and Ashanti are from Hunters Point. Rich and Karim both came out the same gym, Straight Forward Club, under Ben Bautista. Both of those young men are like brothers, but they are from rival neighborhoods with long histories of beef.

We can stop future deaths in the neighborhood if boxing becomes the culture. After all, in the hood, we love guys that can throw ’em. In a tourist attraction city like San Francisco, it would only make sense to add that to the scene as well.

For me watching Black men become champions in a world that seems stacked against us has always been fascinating. Karim Mayfield, Raquel Miller, Ashanti Jordan and Richard Hargraves are a testament. They are an example of alternatives to the streets.

Ed Lee needs to look at that. We have a large Latino and Pilipino base in the Bay area, as well as African American. I see boxing as germane to curtailing Black on Black homicides.

M.O.I. JR: Are there any sports that you don’t cover? If so, why?

Sports Analyst: Hockey – we haven’t done anything in hockey. Hockey has a fan base but probably is the least favorite of the five major sports.

M.O.I. JR: What made you do an episode on our beloved late brother the rapper the Jacka, even though that was a community loss outside of sports?

Sports Analyst: We are media, and some things transcend, from Malcolm X to Tupac. Jacka meant so much to the era of people who watch our show, it would be negligent not to.

Hip hop is a definite bridge we look to cross as a media team as well. Stuart Scott just passed, and his career was a testament to how he bridged gaps media-wise between sports and hip hop culture. To some degree, we are bridges for hip hop and sports as well.

M.O.I. JR: What has it been like working with the San Francisco cable access channel?

Sports Analyst: Enlightening, very enlightening. It has provided us with the outlet to start this path. It’s very exciting to actually be involved in this social media age.

We are in a very creative environment. I saw youth about 12 years old doing a show. I said to myself that’s the kind of creative outlets that youths from the ghettos of San Francisco, Richmond, Oakland and so on need.

I get to see the mindset of other communities. They have workshops on crowdfunding , kickstarters and just creative ideas. It feels good to be in an environment away from the doom and gloom that is presented in Bayview. I truly believe the Bayview community should go in that direction and set up facilities there – Fillmore as well.

M.O.I. JR: What day does your show come on? What channel?

Sports Analyst: Saturdays at 11 a.m., Channel 29.

M.O.I. JR: How can people keep up with you online?

Sports Analyst: Go to our channel on YouTube, Let’s Talk Sports Nation, and subscribe. Go to our website, Letstalksportsnation.com, email us at Letstalksportsnation@gmail.com or you can join the Facebook group, Let’s Talk Sports Nation, and chop it up with us about sports.

The People’s Minister of Information JR Valrey is associate editor of the Bay View, author of “Block Reportin’” and “Unfinished Business: Block Reportin’ 2” and filmmaker of “Operation Small Axe” and “Block Reportin’ 101,” available, along with many more interviews, at www.blockreportradio.com. He can be reached at blockreportradio@gmail.com.