By Omar Tyree

Hip-Hop culture radio personality, podcaster, restaurant owner and book publisher, Charlamagne tha God, published a nonfiction project last year that was boldly titled Get Honest or Die Lying. But do you know how many people will die with lies that have never been converted into truth in this world? ALL OF US! Why? Because as Jack Nicholson’s character said on the stand in the famous Tom Cruise military movie—A Few Good Men—“You can’t handle the truth!” And we really can’t.

We’ve been trained to avoid the truth ever since our childhood years, because a good lie will always make the other person feel better. So, you learned to tell your mother that her food tastes good, but that you can’t eat it right now because you have a stomachache. You learned to tell your dad that his toupee looked normal, even though you were embarrassed every time he wore it. You learned to tell your older sister that her dress didn’t make her look fat, it was only her fear of other people’s perceptions. But you knew you couldn’t tell her to change it, because then she would know that you were lying. And you told your younger brother that your car had an alternator issue instead of telling him you would never trust him to drive your car without the fear of him wrecking it.

Of course, these are all called “little white lies” in America, harmless lies that serve to protect the other person from hurt feelings. Then we have what they call “big black lies” which are the ones that benefit the liar, like a white manager who lies to his black employees about the minimum wage pay for working at a local grocery store, while he pockets the difference. Or an older man telling a younger woman that he’ll pay her four-hundred-dollar car note after she cooks for him, cleans up his apartment, and gives him a little loving on the side. While afterwards, he tells her that something must have happened with his check that usually pops up in the mail on Fridays.

Lies happen every single day of our lives. It’s as common as running water. Sometimes we lie by not saying anything. You know, because you don’t want to rock the boat. So, instead of telling your husband that you don’t really like his family, you simple avoid being around them. Or when your wife says something you don’t particularly agree with, instead telling her the truth, which may cause an immediate argument that lasts longer than you’d like it to, you lead her to believe that you agree with a quick smile and a change of the subject.

And please don’t talk about criminals and American lawyers. They lie as a normal and natural part of their business. Who wants to go to jail for a crime they were arrested for if a lawyer can advise them on a great lie to maintain their freedom? You can always make a better decision next time, right? So, why go to jail for a bad decision?

Simply put, lies make life easier. That’s what people tell me every day now. Just lie, Omar! That’s how you get out of this. Don’t tell them the truth. No one wants to hear it. You’re only going to make people upset with you. And you don’t want to piss off your audience. Then no one will want to listen to you. No one will want to buy your products. No one will want to speak to you or follow you. No one will invite you to anything. And no one will have anything good to say about you. So, you learn to lie, lie, and lie some more to be consistent with your other lies.

That’s the world we live in now. You have to spin your lies into love. Spin your lies into smiles. Spin your lies into kindness and warmth. Spin your lies into the opportunistic feelings and energy of hope. Spin your lies into a bank account full of money. Ultimately, you want your lies to become fully acceptable to the people in order to make them feel good, while collecting sponsorships and endorsement deals for your uplifting their spirits.

What’s so wrong with that? Everyone likes to feel good. Don’t you? Wouldn’t you rather I told you you’re going to be rich and famous after five more years of dreaming than telling you to get your act together before you end up broke and searching for a new career? Who wants to hear that? That’s just obvious. Give me a sweet lie over a bitter truth any day of the week. Right? That good lie will keep me smiling, energized and happy.

But then the truth sneaks out. At some point. And we’ll be forced to deal with it. The only problem is, we don’t know how to. Because nice people have been lying to us for our entire lives. Our moms, dads, uncles, aunts, cousins, friends, grandparents, business partners—you name it. So, we become unprepared for the truth and attempt to run from it. We try to reject it. We push it away and get upset. “That’s just not true!”

We try our best to ignore it and slide it under the rug to the point of becoming delusional. Then we find a whole group of other people who agree with the lies, while we find ways to normalize them.

That’s the world that we’ve created. So, when these kids fail, they have no idea why. Sure, we told them twenty times what they need to do, and how they need to think, and the hard work they need to put in. We warned them that it won’t be easy, and that it may take them a little longer than what they think.

But they didn’t want to hear any of that, the hard work, tough skin and determination they’ll need to battle through the real struggles of TRUTH that life presents to us. No. They wanted the easy routed lies that go down real smoothly in your stomach. But then they get stuck there in your belly with nowhere to go, because you’ve never learned the hard facts of life that allow you to form that iron in the fire that successful people use as a tool for all of the hurdles, roadblocks, landmines, sabotages and guerrilla attacks that all serve to derail our goals.

But the people who really win, they ask for the TRUTH. Because only the truth will prepare them for the hard work of the victory. And the victory is never easy, even when you’re prepared for fit. That’s what the truth teaches you. It’s hard out here. But with awareness, tenacity, preparation and determination, you can still win.

So, may the honest man and woman please stand up and stop allowing these kids to make up their new perspectives and formulas to old realities and obsoletes that will predictably lead them to failure. Then they’ll look back at us truth-sayers after another five years of lies and delusions, and admit, “Damn! You told me the truth five years ago.”

Nevertheless, every man and woman gotta learn for themselves.

Omar Tyree is a New York Times bestselling author, NAACP Image Award winner, and professional journalist. A proud graduate of Howard University, Tyree has mastered a range of writing styles, including fiction, nonfiction, hard news, op-eds, screenplays, and stage plays.

Known as the “Godfather of Urban Fiction,” Tyree brings his expertise to discussions about The State of Black Writing, his prolific career, and his vision for the future of literature.

Tyree’s literary journey began at Howard University, where he transferred after completing his first two years at the University of Pittsburgh. He burst onto the literary scene in October 1992, captivating readers with his groundbreaking urban fiction. His classics, such as Flyy Girl, A Do Right Man, Single Mom, Sweet St. Louis, For the Love of Money, Just Say No!, Leslie, Diary of a Groupie, What They Want, The Last Street Novel, Pecking Order, and works from his Urban Griot series (Capital City, College Boy, One Crazy Night, Cold Blooded), have inspired millions of readers and a new generation of writers.

In addition to his urban fiction, Tyree has written extensively in other genres, including nonfiction, poetry, children’s and young adult literature, business, international thrillers, short stories, and autobiographies. Notably, he co-authored Mayor for Life: The Incredible Story of Marion Barry Jr., chronicling the life of Washington, D.C.’s iconic late mayor.

Today, Tyree continues to create impactful literary works and is focused on adapting his stories for film, music, and educational events on a global scale.

To learn more about Omar Tyree click here to visit his Hot Lava Entertainment website.

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