From NFL to TV Stardom: Akbar Gbajabiamila on Identity, Addiction & Resilience
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What key life experiences shaped Akbar's identity?
I just took what I had made from the NFL and I leveraged that on myself. And then what happened? I got married. And then I had a child. And then good things started happening. No, actually no. After I got married and had a child, I actually started running out of money.
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Today on We're Out of Time, we're joined by Akbar Bajabimela. There you go. You got it. There's a B-A-M-E-L-A in there, but you got it. Bajabimela. Come on, man. Former NFL player turned television personality and Emmy-nominated host. You know him from American Ninja Warrior and from his run on the CBS daytime show, The Talk, which wrapped its series run last year. He also co-hosts the new podcast, 154 Africa. Akbar, it's great to have you here. Thank you so much. I appreciate you having me, Richard. Is that your government name? Oh, there's more to the government name. You want the whole thing? Yes. I should make you say the whole thing. Do it. Akbar Oluwakemi Idowu Bajabiamila. Dude, that's bitchin'. Yeah, yeah.
That's bitchin'. There's a story behind it. You know, Akbar means great. Oluwakemi, you know, God pampers me. Ido Wu, born after twins, and then Bajabiamila is big man come save me. And the story is that my great-great-grandfather, this was actually a nickname. It was a nickname that became our last name. that he was a seven-foot guy who was a mediator in his village, and people would call on to him to come and help mediate. And so that nickname then turned into a last name, and that last name is one family's last name. So everybody who has that last name is a part of this family lineage. There is no, you know, oh, there's that person with the same last name, but y'all ain't in the same family. Like, we're all part of the same family.
How many? How many what? How many in your family? A lot more than I can count. But in my immediate family that I grew up here in L.A., there's seven of us. That's one short of the optimal. Six boys, one girl. And mom and dad, they came to this country in the late 60s, early 70s, settled in Los Angeles here in L.A. And yeah, there's... That big old family. And now I've found that I have a cousin, a second cousin, who is the chief of staff to the president of Nigeria. No kidding. Yeah, Femi Baja Biamila. Have you talked to him? No, but I'm looking forward to meeting him for the first time very soon when I go to Nigeria. Have you been? I've been to Nigeria before. How is it? You know, when I went, I went for the first time with my father, and it was so cool.
It was a while back. It was back in 2006. And it was probably the coolest experience I've had in all my life, all my travels. I've done 41 countries. But Nigeria, not just because it's home. And this was the story of my mother and my father. But I'll never forget. We land in Myrtilla Muhammad Airport and we set up at the hotel. The next day we go to to see my grandmother. This would be my first time meeting my grandmother. Father's side? My father's side, yes. And my father is telling, oh, like there was no street signs. Some of the street signs were like down or whatever. And he was like, turn here, turn there, turn here. He hadn't been back home in 32 years. And he just was like, everything was just snapping for him.
Turn here. And then he was like, we're here. All right, we're here. And he walks into his home and he was like, you see this tree here? This tree they said that would never grow. My brother planted this one, and I planted this one. And then, look, this is the biggest tree in the courtyard. He says, you see, you never know God's surprise. I never forgot that. But we walk in, and he goes, Alaji, Alaji.
How did Akbar transition from the NFL to broadcasting?
And calling his mom, who had been to Mecca, so she gets the name Alaji. And she goes, who's there, who's there? He's like, Emi, Emi Mustafa, Emi, saying, it's me, Mustafa.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What key life experiences shaped Akbar's identity?
0:00–4:54
2
How did Akbar transition from the NFL to broadcasting?
4:54–10:01
3
What challenges did Akbar face after leaving the NFL?
10:01–13:11
4
How did Akbar overcome addiction to painkillers?
13:11–16:20
5
What inspired Akbar to launch his podcast 'One54 Africa'?
16:20–20:46
6
How does Akbar view the impact of substance use on mental health?
20:46–23:39
7
What insights does Akbar share about resilience and reinvention?
23:39–27:51
8
What does Akbar love most about Nigeria and his heritage?
27:51–51:22
Speakers
3 identifiedMore from We're Out of Time
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