Neko Scott and Kiplyn Primus

[00:06] KIPLYN PRIMUS: My name is Kiplyn Primus. I am 62 years old. Today is Saturday, June 1, 2024. I am at the Atlanta story Corps booth. I am talking to Neko Harvey, and she is my mentor Mentee, who I met here in Atlanta.

[00:27] NEKO SCOTT: Hi. Thank you, Kiflin. My name is Neko Scott. My maiden name is Harvey, and I didn't change my marriage name now that I'm divorced, but it's now Neko Scott. I am 46. Today is Saturday, June 1, 2024. I am filming from home in East Brunswick, New Jersey. My interview partner is Kiplyn Primus, and she is my longtime friend and mentor.

[00:59] KIPLYN PRIMUS: So, Neko I'm just going to start at the beginning. Tell me about growing up, your parents and siblings, and if you knew your parent, your grandparents growing up.

[01:12] NEKO SCOTT: Oh, where do I start? I was born in Atlanta, Georgia. My mother and father is Gail Harvey, and my father was Michael Newsom. Both of my parents have both transitioned. I have three siblings, two brothers, and one sister. I'm the youngest of the four. I knew my mother's father and mother, and I knew my, I met my father's mother shortly before she passed away, and I knew his father.

[01:53] KIPLYN PRIMUS: And so what about school? Did you know? Tell me, what about growing up? Tell me some stories about you and your siblings. What did you all like to do?

[02:03] NEKO SCOTT: Okay. I grew up on the northwest side of Atlanta, Georgia, off of Bankhead highway and some apartments, they call them projects called Boeing homes. I spent the better half of my younger years over there. I attended ad Williams elementary School. From there, I went on to middle school near Carver homes. And then from there, I went to high school at Washington High School, Booker T. Washington. Growing up was. It was fun. It was different. I was always getting into something. My brother is four years older than me, my brother Malik. My brother Derek is six years older than me, and so is my sister. They're both six years older than me. All of us are half siblings. So my mom had three children and my father had two. I spent a lot of time growing up with my grandmother. I was with her a lot. Sometimes I would even stay with her periodically due to whatever was going on in our household. You know, I would just go stay with grandma for a little while, then come back to my regular home.

[03:26] KIPLYN PRIMUS: And what was your grandmother's name?

[03:28] NEKO SCOTT: My grandmother name is Desi Cook. Maiden name was Harvey. She's a country girl from Tarleton, Georgia, Junction city area. Yes. She's now 88 years old.

[03:44] KIPLYN PRIMUS: And so what was it like when you were able to, you know, escape whatever was happening at home and to be able to go to her house kind of as a retreat. What was that like exactly?

[03:56] NEKO SCOTT: It was a retreat. It was nice. It was comforting. She was just always attentive and very much involved, you know, she just kind of let me do whatever I wanted. But her husband, on the other hand, he was strict military guy, and he ran his house a certain way. So when you're there, you need to be, you know, acting like a child, being seen and not heard of that sort of thing. But we had a good time. He used to take us fishing. We would just go on field trips together. He was a good guy. And, yeah, it was nice. My grandmother always cooked. She was such a great cook. She doesn't cook as much now because she's old and has some issues. But when I was a little kid, even into my adulthood, maybe my twenties and thirties, she was really a good cook.

[04:52] KIPLYN PRIMUS: So favorite dish?

[04:54] NEKO SCOTT: I loved it there.

[04:54] KIPLYN PRIMUS: I'm sorry, no, what are favorite dishes? And did you learn how to cook from her or just enjoyed her cooking?

[05:02] NEKO SCOTT: She did teach me some of her recipes. I didn't learn it by watching her. I waited till I got married and then I would be calling like, grandma, how you cook this and how you cook that, you know? But some of her favorite. My favorite dishes that she would prepare was her collard greens. Basically southern cuisine, soul food. Collard greens, cornbread, fried chicken. Best fried chicken ever. She was good with her macaroni and cheese, potato salads, you know, green beans, okra. All the good.

[05:35] KIPLYN PRIMUS: All the good stuff. Oh, my God. Oh, gosh, that was pretty good. And then what do you remember about your siblings? You know, do you remember them in school? Did you follow them? You know, did you all go to the same schools or were they just on a different path because there was a big age? Six years when you're a little kid is a big gap.

[06:02] NEKO SCOTT: Yes. What I remember from being the youngest with my mom's children. Well, first let me say I didn't get to spend a lot of time with my brother on my father's side due to the fact he lived, you know, on a different side of town. And we just didn't get together often, but when we did, we always had a good time. He was a great big brother to me. Now, on the other hand, with my mom's two children, my sister just didn't want to be bothered. She never really wanted to be bothered. But my mom always, like, forced me on her. Take Neko Where you going? Take Neko And if she wanted to go somewhere, I had to be like, can I go? You know? So I think I became like she resented me because it was like I always had to be with her. She didn't want me, barring her clothes, nothing. She was that type of sister. And my brother, we just used to fight a lot. It was always something with us, you know, but we were closer because we were closer in age. So I found myself being a tomboy, getting into the things that he would get into. He got a pair of sneakers. I wanted the same sneakers, that sort of thing. But it was okay, really. They just didn't have time for me. They were on their own path, and I was doing my own thing. I had a lot of a few friends, I should say, so I would hang out with my friends mostly. When it came to the school situation, I thought I would follow my siblings footsteps and attend Frederick Douglass High School. But they had another plan for me. And when I say they, that means, like, the school system. I. We all went to ad Williams Elementary School from kindergarten to 7th grade. My sister and brother, they went on to Frederick Douglass High School, no problem. But by the time I had reached the 7th grade, my issues started coming up. You know, my behavior problems started coming out, and I ended up getting kicked out of 7th grade, pretty much. And once I was kicked out, I was sent to an alternative middle school. And honestly, I can't even remember the name of it. I just know it's over off of in Carver homes area, and I didn't like it.

[08:27] KIPLYN PRIMUS: And what were some of the things that you were doing, Neko It was a little bit more than just teenage rebellion. Or was it just teenage, or was it just teenage rebellion? But for some reason, you were treated a little differently because of it?

[08:42] NEKO SCOTT: Well, the things, you know, honestly, looking back, it wasn't all my fault, but some of it was right. I had a challenging household. You know, it was a lot of stuff going on in the household that children should not be around. So I grew up fast, and it made me act out. I didn't know to go talk to a school counselor or talk to my teacher. I didn't know anything about that. So I acted out I would be smart at the mouth. And it was teenage rebellion as well. I got involved with boys way too early, just different things. And then eventually again, I had, you know, one of my siblings, he was involved with marijuana. So, like, for my 12th birthday, I got a joint for my birthday. Well, it wasn't my joint, but it was like, hey, you know, introduce me to smoking. So it was just different things. And it showed up in my behavior. Yeah.

[09:43] KIPLYN PRIMUS: So you left the alternative middle school for Washington High. And what was that experience, and what was that transition like for you?

[09:57] NEKO SCOTT: It was different because I really didn't know anyone. It was on a different side of town. I didn't like it because I felt like. I just didn't feel like I mattered. You know, it was a big school, so a lot of children. And at that time, I had moved out of the house and was being grown, you know, and I always loved school. Let me put that out there. Education has always been extremely important to me. So when I got to that school and I felt like, you know, some of the teachers were challenging me and interested in my. My education and me, but overall, I don't feel like I was getting challenged properly. So, of course, I ended up meeting up with some of the other kids with some of my same issues and my lifestyle, and, you know, it was like a party. So let me tell you, I would go to school during the day, and if I wanted to go to the class, I would go. If I didn't, I wouldn't. And basically, I will go to school every day during the summer, during a regular school year. But then I wasn't really performing, I was flunking. So what happened to stay on course, to graduate one time at 18, like I wanted to, and I know I could, I would go to summer school, and then I started going to night school as well. So whatever I was doing during the day, I would make up for it at night.

[11:33] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Okay. And then how did you end up at the alternative high school? What was the thing that transitioned you from Booker T. Washington to the alternative high school? Do you remember?

[11:47] NEKO SCOTT: I remember. And I'll share the fact that at that time, I think maybe it was like the 9th or 10th grade. I can't remember which year of high school. They had already installed metal detectors in the school, and they weren't there at first, but they're there now, and they search you. They want to make sure you don't have any weapons, no drugs. They want to make sure you're coming in school safe and as you should. Well, I had already made it through, but later on during the day, they wanted to check me again, and I got offended, and I refused. You know, it was later in the day. I had already been checked. What's the problem? Because I'm out in the hallway and I should be in class, and I was kind of getting into it with these two boys that were aggravating me, and we were fussing or whatever. And the hall monitor saw was they went their way, but I got caught up some kind of way. And you know when they said, we need to check your bag, we need to do this. And I said, listen, if you check my bag, I'm calling my family lawyer. This is harassment. I've already been searched basically by the medical detector. I'm not doing that again. They said, well, you need to go to the principal's office and we'll deal with this there. So then we went to the principal's office and they asked me the same thing, and I said no. They said, well, you have a choice, young lady. You can let us search your bag again and finish with your school day, or you can leave and not come back. And I chose the latter, and I was okay with that.

[13:26] KIPLYN PRIMUS: And so you leave Washington?

[13:30] NEKO SCOTT: Yes.

[13:30] KIPLYN PRIMUS: What made you. I mean, clearly, you were trying to be educated. You were going to summer school, you were going to night school to try to make up for, you know, your days. But what brought you to the alternative high school at West End?

[13:45] NEKO SCOTT: Well, at this time, my mother was upset that I was kicked out again and having behavioral problems again. So she said, Neko I'm done. I'm not going to help you. If you want to get back into school, you do it on your own. Do what you want. You want to drop out, that's your business. But I'm done with you. I'm tired of the issues. And she pretty much gave up on me at that point. So I said, okay. So I was hurt, you know, very hurt, because I'm like, but what about me? I still want to finish school. I still need my mom, you know, and she said no. So it was. I can't remember when in the process, but at some point, I was looking for schools to attend and I looked for alternative high school, and I came across Burger King Academy, West End Burger King Academy. And I don't know if I was looking in the phone books, I probably Washington. And it wasn't too far from my grandmother's house. And I called the school and I got Mister Bobby Garrett.

[14:55] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Mister Garrett?

[14:56] NEKO SCOTT: Yeah. And he was like the principal of the school or the program director. And we talked on the phone and I shared a little bit of my story. And he was like, I love Mister Garrett, by the way. He was such a great person and just. He believed in the children and he wanted us to succeed, you know? And no matter what we had going on, he still never gave up on the kids, you know, so may he rest in peace. But we talked on the phone, and he said, well, he was kind of stern when he wanted to be. He was like, well, what make me think you're going to come here and do the right thing, you know? And I said, because I'm telling you, and when I give my word, then that's what it is. And he said, well, I want to meet you. When are you going to be able to come up here and we talk in person? I said, whenever. And he gave me a date and time, and I was there. We met one on one. He told me about the school. He told me his expectations, and, you know, he laid it out there for me and told me, you know, he would give me an opportunity to come there. And that's what. That's what happened.

[16:00] KIPLYN PRIMUS: So I came back to Atlanta in 1991. I can't remember if we met in 1991 or 1992, but it was around that time.

[16:15] NEKO SCOTT: Okay.

[16:16] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Do you remember?

[16:18] NEKO SCOTT: I don't remember the year. I know I must have been in the 9th or the 10th grade. I graduated from there in 1996. I think I spent two years or three years there.

[16:34] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Okay, so I'm gonna tell you how the story I tell about meeting you, okay?

[16:40] NEKO SCOTT: Okay.

[16:42] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Because I don't know how you tell the story.

[16:45] NEKO SCOTT: Right.

[16:48] KIPLYN PRIMUS: So I remember I had come back to Atlanta. I had gotten married, and my mom was teaching at the West Hamburger King Academy because she had been teaching there for a while. And I told her I was interested in mentoring and, you know, working with some young people. And, you know, could I work with some of the students at the school? And I had been kind of in and out for a minute since I had been home. I had been up there, and I had noticed you. I kind of knew who you were because my mom was like, Neko you know, Neko So I knew your name. I kind of knew who you were. And I said, you know, mom, I want to, you know, meet with some of the girls, you know, talk to them, see if we can put together, you know, something for them to do some work experience, whatever. And so they arranged for me to come back up to the school one day at the end of the day. So school was out. And I remember coming into one of the front rooms, and it was about. I want to say it was about five young girls in the room. You were sitting separate from them. It was. If I remember correctly, it was like four or five girls sitting on one side. There was this gap, and you were sitting by yourself on the other side.

[18:08] NEKO SCOTT: That's me.

[18:12] KIPLYN PRIMUS: So I come in the room, you know, I introduce myself to you to the ladies. You know, I talk about the fact that I just moved back down from New York. I was doing some communications consulting work, and, you know, could use some help at some of the events that we were doing, my little company was doing around Atlanta, and, you know, would love to talk with you girls. And one of the girls on the side, I don't know. Don't know her name. Don't remember her at all. But she asked if I had children, and I said, no, I don't have children. And she was like, but you said you're married. And I was like, well, yeah, but I just got married. I was like, I just got married. I haven't even been married a year. You know? You don't, look, I'm coming from my place, not yours at all. It's like, you know, the marriage is going to work. That girl looked at me and she said, I have two kids, and if you don't have children, I don't think there's anything you can teach me. You know, there's nothing you can do.

[19:21] NEKO SCOTT: Oh, wow.

[19:22] KIPLYN PRIMUS: And she packed up her stuff, and the other, you know, like, two or three other girls, they packed up their stuff and they left. They were like, if you don't have kids, you can't help us.

[19:32] NEKO SCOTT: Wow.

[19:33] KIPLYN PRIMUS: You were the person left. And so I was sitting up there talking to you and Nikko, you were high as hell. You were so high. I was like, I was trying to figure out if you could even understand that I was. And then I finally asked you, I was like, look, I know you're high, you know, but what is, what are you, you know, what did you smoke? What are you doing? Yeah, and you told me you had bought a blunt from someone, and I was like, you know, look, I've been high before. I know what smoking marijuana looks like. And I was like, you look beyond marijuana. I said. I was like, you can't just smoke blunt. Somebody gives you, you know, you can't just buy a blunt from somebody. You don't know what's in it, right? And so we kind of had that conversation, and I told you I needed someone to help me do something. It was some conference, and I was handling the media for the conference, and we were going to have to get there early that day at, I think it was at the Georgia World Congress center on this.

[20:45] NEKO SCOTT: Was it for sisters only?

[20:46] KIPLYN PRIMUS: With Keith, it might have been for sisters only. I was like, I got a sign in the media. I was like, can you meet me at this time? Whatever. Whatever. And so we ended up working that conference. But we worked at more than one conference during that summer. But I remember we worked at conference, and I think we were leaving to go get something to eat or something, and you were like, Miss Kiplyn I want to tell you something. And I was like, you know what? I'm sitting, you know, driving, thinking, what is, you know, now what is this? Getting ready to be from Miss Neko because you always had something going on. And you said, I don't buy blunts anymore. And I was like, okay. And you were like, I buy my own marijuana and roll my own blunt from there.

[21:39] NEKO SCOTT: Oh, my goodness. I don't even remember that.

[21:42] KIPLYN PRIMUS: I had to bring myself back down, and I was like, well, that is much better, young lady, I don't know if you remember any of that.

[21:54] NEKO SCOTT: I don't. I definitely don't. But I believe you.

[21:59] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Well, what I do remember is that whole summer that you were helping me with those conferences, you always showed up on time. You were always ready to work. You were always very, very polite to everyone. Everyone. You know, that was a nice young lady. Oh, she was so helpful. She was so this. You were always so good at everything, you know, that you did. And then when you went to Devry, I mean, I could not have been prouder that you had set this goal. I remember when the folks from Devry came to the school and talked to folks, and you were interested, and you. They tell you what to do. You did everything. And the next thing I knew, you are a student at Devry. So how. What was it about that conversation from the school? What was it that made you think, this is my way out. I can do this.

[23:05] NEKO SCOTT: Okay, speaking of that. So I don't remember half of that stuff. And it's probably because I used to get high, you know, that was my thing. You know what I mean? That's how I cope. But, you know, not to go in another direction, I'm going to answer that question. But, you know, if you think about it now, they're legalizing marijuana everywhere.

[23:26] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Everywhere.

[23:26] NEKO SCOTT: And how people, you know, it is self ahead of my time. Back then, I knew how to cope. It was. Yeah. Seriously.

[23:39] KIPLYN PRIMUS: No, it helps a lot of folks with a lot of different things from adhd to cancer, so.

[23:45] NEKO SCOTT: Right, exactly.

[23:47] KIPLYN PRIMUS: It's. It's legal in more states than not at this point.

[23:50] NEKO SCOTT: Right, right. So the thing about Devry, it was kind of sold to me. I'll never forget the lady's name. She was, um. Her name was Rose Odinh. And she came there for, you know, to recruit and she had us do these. I don't know.

[24:09] KIPLYN PRIMUS: It wasn't your little test.

[24:11] NEKO SCOTT: Yeah, it was a test, like an assessment to figure out which field you should go into. And she was like, oh, you will be great with computers and yada, yada, yada. She was so excited. You should do it. And. But to be honest with you, Kiplyn I was supposed to go to Howard University and I was upset because I missed the opportunity. I chose not to go. It was offered to me and I was going to get a full ride because I wanted to be an actress. But what happened? I was selected at Burger King Academy to go represent the school in DC. At presidential classroom was the name of the organization. So they go around and they choose two students from so many schools throughout the US, and they chose me. And another guy, I think his name was Will, can't remember, but it was, I think William. He was chosen and I was a female chosen. And we went there and it was great. I learned so much. I was like, oh, man, I can see myself living here. But I ended up experiencing two other young people from that area that I just didn't get good vibes from. It was a female and a male. And I'm like, I've always been a thinker and a leader for myself. Like, I don't need anybody to lead me. So after that experience, and I did enjoy it, I learned a lot. We went and sat on Congress to see how they vote and all this stuff. What happened? I decided, you know what? If this is how they act and they're my peers and this is just too representative of this place, I don't think I'll fit in and I don't want to set myself up for failure. And I just chose not to go because the ladies, I can't think of her name right now, but she worked at the school and she had a family member who worked as a dean.

[26:03] KIPLYN PRIMUS: And how make it work.

[26:06] NEKO SCOTT: And they were going to make it work for me and I messed up. And you guess what? My mom didn't want to be involved anymore, so I didn't have anyone to talk me out of it. I don't even think I presented that idea to you because you probably would have told me.

[26:17] KIPLYN PRIMUS: I probably would have made you go, right?

[26:19] NEKO SCOTT: And I wish I had because a lot of times I just kept a lot of stuff to myself. But, yeah, that's how I ended up at Devry. And it was very challenging, you know, it wasn't that I couldn't do the work. It was just a lot. It was an accelerated program. What sold me, too, was you get your degree in three years, your bachelor's degree. So I'm thinking, wow, if I can just go ahead and get that degree, I can be making like a hundred thousand dollars. I can get out my grandma house, you know? So this is what I'm thinking. And I got there and it was hard. It was really hard, and it ended up being four years. I took a job there and worked in a computer lab to help me stay on task, you know, and if I needed to work with some of my peers, we had that time because it was way indicator, and I. Yeah, but, yeah, it was, it was an experience. I did it in four years. I'm glad I did it, but I hate it. That field. I don't feel like it was for me. So that's what made me, you know, move on to do something different afterwards.

[27:24] KIPLYN PRIMUS: And so you left the lab at DeVry, and you end up in a lab at Emory University running a computer. Is that where you discovered radiology? How did you discover radiology?

[27:40] NEKO SCOTT: What made so. Yes, that's right. I was working at the lab at DeVry. I saw another opportunity at Emory, same type of job, but it wasn't, it was similar. So I interviewed for that job, got the position, and it was part time, and I worked there, the health sciences center library, for two years. And then after that, I, you know, I had graduated from my degree program. So now I'm looking for something more challenging, more money, bigger title, all of that. And I saw some openings at this nursing school at Emory, and I ended up taking, it was a computer lab coordinator job. But let me just say I didn't want to stay at Emory. Like, I had my sights set on bigger things and better places because to me anyway, because some of my peers had graduated in February of 20 20 20 20 20 00. I graduated October 2000. So at the same time y two k was happening. So I don't know if you remember what was going on. They started hiring freezes. Companies didn't want to take people. It was just a whole new game, like eight months later.

[28:54] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Yeah, yeah.

[28:55] NEKO SCOTT: So I was like, I kind of got messed up, basically. I didn't get the opportunities that my peers got because they graduated before me. And so I ended up getting an offer at the school of nursing as a computer lab coordinator. I took it and I stayed there for five years. It was a great opportunity. They were doing their best to help me, mold me along to something more, but I just didn't have that passion for computers. So then I left there, and I went to the school of medicine at Emory and worked there for another three years. Yeah. So I was in that position, a business analyst. So at this point, I'm doing more, like a little bit of coding with what I was doing, because we were supporting Peoplesoft as the main admissions application for the university. So I was, like, the liaison for the school of medicine and the Peoplesoft community. So it was great. But I, again, it just wasn't what I really, really wanted. What made me really look towards the field that I'm in now is I was looking at these medical students come in and be done so quickly, and I'm like, you know what? I was at the time when I was married, I was telling my ex husband, I'm not happy. I'm stressed. I feel like I could be doing better and more, making more money. So he said, well, you should just, you know, go back to school. I said, I want to, but I can't work. They want me to go full time. So he supported my decision. He said, if you want to do it, do XYz, and we'll make it happen. And that's what I did. I looked into. I shadowed at the radiology program at Emory.

[30:44] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Okay.

[30:45] NEKO SCOTT: Since I know the director there. So she said, yeah, sure, we'll take you around and let you see it. We went, and I was like, you know, I could see myself doing this. I was thinking about being a CT technologist and CAT scan tech. So that's what made me make the decision to change into the healthcare field. So fast forward. I got into grady radiology program. It was two years long. Finished that up, and I saw radiation therapy, because when you're a radiology student, they have you rotate to different modality so you can get exposure, see what it's about. And radiation therapy just, like, was calling my name, and I did it, but it was another year of school, so I finished that up. Three years, and here I am.

[31:30] KIPLYN PRIMUS: And then you just finished another degree.

[31:33] NEKO SCOTT: Yes. Yes. So.

[31:39] KIPLYN PRIMUS: I know you love school, and that's when, for one of those people who had behavior problems and, you know, couldn't get out of traditional school.

[31:47] NEKO SCOTT: Yeah.

[31:48] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Your whole life since then has been about school, and I find that amazing. So. But then your next degree, because you didn't stop there. You never stop. You always go to the nth degree.

[32:04] NEKO SCOTT: Yes. So I've been working in this field at that time, I guess, like, seven years in radiation therapy at Sloan Kettering. Really, really enjoy my work. But again, I want more. And I know at this point I need to get a master's degree. So I was at a crossroads of either going to nursing school to do something accelerated and get it done because, you know, nursing is so huge, right? There's a sky's the limit. And I should have done that. But that's okay. It's not too late. I still have breath in my body. But yes, I said it's time to go back to school and get a master's. And I wanted an MBA, but I changed my mind and said I'll do healthcare administration.

[32:48] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Yeah.

[32:49] NEKO SCOTT: So I applied to USC out in California, got in, got accepted, and, yeah, that was. You could do it in five years. But I was getting tired because Covid hit during my second semester. I started 2019 of May, and I just. I was just so tired. So I said, I need to hurry up. So I kind of made my workload full time. So I was working full time and doing that full time for about a year and I got it done in 2022. Yeah. Yeah.

[33:24] KIPLYN PRIMUS: I mean, I am just so very proud of you. I just, you know, I tell your story all the time. I tell people all the time about how I met Niko. I thank God you didn't have a kid because you may have walked out of the room with.

[33:40] NEKO SCOTT: I'm telling you, I thank God, too. And God is the reason why I didn't have it. And I'm so happy because I do have a child now. And you know her, Nina, she's twelve and a half. And the issue, I was having complications getting pregnant, but miraculously, I had a woman pray over me and everything was great. I didn't have any issues conceiving my daughter and it just worked out. I only have the one, but I don't want anymore.

[34:09] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Think about that. Sometimes. It's like, you know, I've known Neko since you were ahead, what, 1516 years old?

[34:16] NEKO SCOTT: Yeah. Yeah.

[34:17] KIPLYN PRIMUS: And it's because you didn't walk out the room. I mean, it is literally because you stayed in the room and we had a conversation and we have been, you know, having a conversation on and off. I was in your wedding.

[34:31] NEKO SCOTT: Yes, that's right.

[34:33] KIPLYN PRIMUS: I found a picture of your wedding a couple of days. But, you know, I was in your wedding and we have had a relationship. Not every day, not all the time.

[34:44] NEKO SCOTT: Right.

[34:44] KIPLYN PRIMUS: But we have had that relationship because you didn't pack up your stuff, you know, and leave the room. And I am so appreciative of that fact. And, you know, I brag about the fact that you came out of that alternative high school where a lot of people feel like alternative high school people have given up. But a lot of people, high school is just not the way for them. It doesn't work for so many different reasons.

[35:14] NEKO SCOTT: Right?

[35:14] KIPLYN PRIMUS: But you came out of that alternative high school and you never stopped doing bigger and better things. You just kept going. I mean, when you were the lab coordinate, the computer coordinator at Emory, I was like, look at Neko you know, at Emory, running things, you know what I'm saying? And that wasn't enough for you. You were like, no more. And when you finish the program at USC, I mean, you've already had this great career in healthcare, but you always wanted more. And I just. I love that about you. Because you're not just one of those people who wants more, but you want it. And then you make a plan and you get it and you do it. And you have done that ever since I've known you, Neko And there are so many people who cannot be self directed. You pumped up yourself to do these things.

[36:09] NEKO SCOTT: Well, that was a God in me. Honestly, Kiplyn thank you for saying that. But it's God, I'm telling you. I got to know him when I was twelve years old in juvenile, by the way, I got locked up for truancy, I wasn't going to school. And these women came over and they wanted to talk to the kids. And I was the one. I want to pray. I want somebody to pray with me. And the ladies, two or three ladies, they surrounded me and prayed over me. And I accepted Jesus right there. And I spoke in tongues and everything. I haven't done it since that one time. And I'm telling you, God has been with me and kept me this whole time. And I'm so grateful. And that's what I tell people. It's not just me. Yeah, I'm motivated and, you know, I'm a Capricorn. You know, where the goats would go to the top of the mountain. But I really wanted to. It's something inside of me. And I know it's the spirit of God that leads me and keeps me well.

[37:04] KIPLYN PRIMUS: I love the way that you continually proved everyone wrong, everyone who may have doubted Neko Harvey Scott, anyone who may have said, you know, just, she's never going to be, you know, she's always fighting, she's always this. You have become a beautiful woman, and not only contributing to your family, but you make a contribution to society and your work every day and raising a beautiful daughter, and, you know, just have had this wonderful life, which I can imagine if people had been looking at that room at us all those years ago.

[37:49] NEKO SCOTT: Yeah, they would have.

[37:51] KIPLYN PRIMUS: They probably would have written both of us off. You know, she runs around trying to help people do stuff.

[38:00] NEKO SCOTT: I know. And the fact that I was so high, and I used to be high in school so much. I wonder what made you continue. I guess because I gave you a chance. You gave me a chance, I guess.

[38:11] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Yeah. And, I mean, look, like we, you know, people find what they need to cope. Everyone's got a vice, right? So you can't get mad at people for their vice because you don't want them to get mad at you for your vice. So that was not anything that bothered me. Like I said, the only thing I was concerned about was really your safety.

[38:38] NEKO SCOTT: Right?

[38:43] KIPLYN PRIMUS: This ain't just marijuana, girl. You on something else. But I also remember at one of those conferences, I can't even remember, you were getting ready to go. You were wanting to leave a little bit early that day, and I think you said you were gonna dip. You used some slang term that I had no idea what the hell you were doing.

[39:05] NEKO SCOTT: I was always giving you.

[39:07] KIPLYN PRIMUS: And I was like. I guess. I was like, I guess she thinks you are such a funny duddy. You don't even know what we still. Oh, my goodness. Beniko, I thank you. I thank you so much for letting me be a part of your life. Cause you didn't have to. And I just thank you so much for that. And I have learned from you. And I have just appreciated the fact that you did let me in. And I just wanna thank you for this today. Cause again, I was like, I tell your story all the time. I was like, I bet she never. She doesn't know the story I tell about me.

[39:47] NEKO SCOTT: Well, thank you. Thank you so much for asking me to do this. And you know I'll do anything for you. I just feel like you're a wonderful lady. You always have been. You never judged me. And you were just always kind and wanting to help. So I appreciate your interest in not giving up on me. I needed that. I needed you. And I just know that God had to put us in the right place at the right time and set that whole tone for the other girls to leave and for me and you to stay. And I'm glad we did because we're still here today, right? So thank you so much. I love you. And your mom was one of my favorite teachers. And misses Jackson, Vicki Jackson, those were my. As well as misses Essie McFarland. Let me not forget her. And lastly, Mister Maxwell. I gave him a hard time, but he was such a good teacher. I had to apologize to him later because I was struggling with mathematic. I would give him a hard time. I would be cracking jokes and joining him while he's trying to teach us, so people wouldn't know I was struggling with my math so much, you know? But, yeah, a shout out to Burger King Academy and the whole staff and everybody that, I mean it, had they given up on me, where would I be, you know?

[41:01] KIPLYN PRIMUS: Nobody wanted to give up on you, though, Neko And I can't wait to play with Miss Nina when she comes this summer.

[41:07] NEKO SCOTT: She's looking forward to it.

[41:09] KIPLYN PRIMUS: All right, baby. Thank you so much.

[41:12] NEKO SCOTT: You're welcome. You're very welcome. Thank you. Thanks, Brenda.