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Savannah James on opening up and starting a podcast: ‘It came with a lot of liberation'

Courtesy of Savannah James and April McDaniel

Savannah James, wife of NBA star LeBron James, started her own podcast this year with her close friend April McDaniel.

Savannah James was extremely nervous to start a podcast, but this year, alongside her close friend, April McDaniel, she did just that.

For the majority of her life in the public eye, people saw James as the quiet wife of basketball star, LeBron James, and mom to their three children. The couple's son Bronny James was recently drafted into the NBA.

"The way I was perceived was very quiet, very 'She doesn't talk,' very 'Does she talk?' like I don't have a voice," James tells Make It.

"So while I was very nervous, I was also looking forward to sharing a part of myself that a lot of people hadn't seen before."

On the "Everybody's Crazy" podcast, James and McDaniel take calls from people who are looking for advice on how to handle complicated situations.

"I felt like this is something fun that I want to do with my friend," says James. "We thought it would be a great idea to take these calls and give [our] perspective."

Starting the podcast was also a very big leap for McDaniel, who founded her own marketing agency, Crown + Conquer. McDaniel considers herself a private person.

"I think the podcast happened on accident in a lot of ways. It wasn't as intentional as people thought," says McDaniel.

"But I think what was really beautiful about it was us being able to show our purest self. I think the one thing people don't realize about me and Savannah is we don't care what other people think."

A huge part of why James felt comfortable starting the podcast is because she embraced her comfort with being scrutinized.

"I don't care how I'm being judged because this is who I am," says James. "While that came with a little bit of nervousness, it also came with a lot of liberation."

Since starting the podcast, James and McDaniel have also launched Let It Break, a community for like-minded women to share resources for personal development and foster a safe space for growth.

The newest venture is yet another part of James' personal journey of embracing her individual desires beyond her family's massive public image.

To be comfortable with this change, she had to "be more open and vocal about things that didn't have anything to do with my husband or my kids."

"It was all about me. It was really liberating and really exciting," she says. "While first it came with nerves, it ended up being really, really special."

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