Posted by Actively Black
on September 25, 2026
Watch the full interview: Lanny Smith, Cecil Williams, Fredrika Newton & Fred Hampton Jr. Talk Actively Black Apparel + More, The Breakfast Club on YouTube
Listen to the full episode: INTERVIEW: Lanny Smith, Cecil Williams, Fredrika Newton & Fred Hampton Jr. Talk Actively Black Apparel + More, The Breakfast Club (October 2025)
The Breakfast Club, the morning show hosted by DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious and Charlamagne Tha God, featured Actively Black founder Lanny Smith in an October 2025 interview with civil rights photographer Cecil Williams, Fredrika Newton, the widow of Huey P. Newton, and Chairman Fred Hampton Jr. Actively Black is the Black-owned athleisure brand Smith launched in 2020. The group talked about the brand’s New York Fashion Week show, where living legends walked the runway, and about history, ownership and respect.
Key takeaways
- Smith said Dr. Bernice King and Ilyasah Shabazz, daughters of Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, walked in Actively Black’s New York Fashion Week show, along with Ruby Bridges and the guests on the show.
- Smith said Actively Black has licensing agreements, so sales pay the Black Panther Party Museum, the Hampton House, the Cecil Williams museum, the Shabazz Center and the King Center.
- Cecil Williams said Actively Black sent a contribution to the South Carolina Civil Rights Museum about 45 days after photographing him, and sent another check after the New York show.
- Fredrika Newton said Smith spent a few years trying to reach the Newton family before using Huey P. Newton’s image, even though he could have used it without asking.
- Smith said the brand partners with Bridgeforth Farms, a fifth-generation Black farm, and sources cotton directly from them.
- Smith said his first collaboration was with Olympians John Carlos and Tommie Smith, inspired by a story that Rosa Parks faced eviction late in her life.
In Lanny's words
“black owned is not a description, it's a feature.”
— Lanny Smith, The Breakfast Club (October 2025)
“We got to take care of the ones who paved the way for us so that we can continue.”
— Lanny Smith on paying living legends, The Breakfast Club
Why it matters
Bootlegs are everywhere. Fredrika Newton said on the show that there is no way she could afford to stop the knockoff Black Panther Party merchandise. Actively Black does the opposite: we ask permission and sign licensing agreements, so the families and museums behind these images get paid when we sell.
That is reinvestment you can trace. Smith told the hosts the fashion show had no major sponsors and was paid for by what the Tribe bought. Those same sales go to the museums and foundations that protect this history. The uniform carries the history, and the purchase supports the people who lived it.
Shop the story
Wear the history discussed on this episode with the Fred Hampton x Actively Black collection, the Huey P. Newton x Actively Black collection, and our NYFW 2025 collection.
Frequently asked questions
Who founded Actively Black?
Lanny Smith, a former professional basketball player, founded Actively Black and launched it on Black Friday 2020.
What did The Breakfast Club say about Actively Black?
In an October 2025 interview on The Breakfast Club, Smith and his guests discussed Actively Black’s New York Fashion Week show. Guests Cecil Williams and Fredrika Newton described how the brand pays their museums and families.
Is Actively Black Black-owned?
Yes. Actively Black is a Black-owned athleisure brand founded by Lanny Smith to uplift and reinvest in the Black community.
Does Actively Black pay the families behind its Fred Hampton and Huey P. Newton collections?
Smith said Actively Black has licensing agreements, so sales pay institutions including the Hampton House and the Black Panther Party Museum. Fredrika Newton confirmed on the show that Smith sought the family’s permission.
