Tabitha Brown, also known as Auntie Tab, ruffled some feathers on social media this week while offering advice to entrepreneurs. Earlier this week, the actress shared a video on social media.
“This is not to discourage you,” she said in the video. “Entrepreneurship…it’s not for everybody. That doesn’t mean it’s not for you, but right now these last few months…few years…baby, it ain’t been working for you and you’re doing a lot of robbing Peter to pay Paul. It’s time for you to get a job.”
Though well-intentioned, Brown’s PSA struck a nerve with some social media users. Many found her message to be insensitive and tone deaf to the reality of the current job market. Between unexpected lay-offs and companies replacing people with AI, reports show that the number of unemployed individuals has surpassed the number of job openings, creating a tough job market. Additionally, studies have shown that Black workers, especially Black women, have faced the most job losses, contributing to the climbing Black unemployment rate under Trump.
“‘Tab wasn’t talking to people currently looking for work’ ….. no. She was telling ppl to BECOME the mf looking for work,” one user wrote on Threads criticizing Brown’s post. “She said, ‘you not doing well at digital entrepreneurship, so go compete w the people who been job searching for two years in a s—y market. Join all the federal employees who just lost their jobs, dust off your resume with the four-year gap on it, and spend two years looking for a 9-5.’ That’s insensitive at best. Stupid at worst.”
Similarly, content creator Talia Cadet noted on Threads that “[Black women] are looking for work. [Black women] turn to entrepreneurship in response to a forever racist and sexist job market. A struggling actor turned entrepreneur, fixing their mouth to imply otherwise is disappointing.”
In the midst of the backlash, some users understood Brown’s message. One user tried to offer some clarity on the growing discourse: “Guys, this message is NOT for the entrepreneurs who are ACTIVELY TRYING to get a job and can’t. It’s for the entrepreneurs who are sinking their time and money into a failing business and refusing to acknowledge that it’s failing. I hope this helps!”
To which, the actress and entrepreneur responded: “Lord i was starting to wonder did AI change my videos because baby folks is making up all kinds of things Jesus.”
Brown later elaborated on her point in a separate video posted on X, clarifying that she was not telling entrepreneurs to give up on their dreams.
“You can have a dream, you can have a goal, you can have a vision that God has given you, and you can still have a job while pursuing it,” she continued. “See, I’m talking to the people who burnt all they bridges up, baby. You have burnt all your bridges because you refuse to get a little side hustle or a job, to have income coming in while pursuing your passion and your dream? I’m not talking about the people who are trying to get jobs. I’m not talking about the people who do have a little job, and things are still hard. I’m not talking about you.”
“I’m talking to the people who have just decided that working is beneath them. That’s who I’m talking to. Okay, you know who you are. I’m not talking to the people who are like ‘Tab. I done tried to get a job.’ Baby, the keyword is try. I’m talking to the people who ain’t trying,” she added.
While her message encouraging people to look for jobs may have triggered the thousands of Americans currently trying to navigate the precarious job market, Brown’s message was intended to be that classic tough-auntie love that a specific audience may have needed to hear.
“Sometimes, getting a job is the door that the Lord is waiting to open for you to get to your dream. So don’t think that a job is beneath you. It’s not. It may just be part of your journey, and that’s okay,” she concluded. “Just stay locked in, keep believing like my plan A is going to work, but ain’t nothing wrong with you working while you wait on it to happen. Okay, two things can be true…Keep dreaming big. But also get you a little job. Get a little money coming in—a little side hustle ain’t never hurt nobody.”
