Original subtitles

Hey, guys.

I am The Donovan, and I live in Atlanta, Georgia.

I'm a classically trained concert pianist.

Music is my life.

I have been able to be generous because I am that blessed.

Both of my parents grew up dirt poor.

I was able to hustle, grind.

I put myself through school.

I'm slowly trying to break all of these generational curses.

I've always been great with money.

Home-- pay for.

Cash.

Easy.

My closet is full of designer.

I don't really have to budget.

I have a nonprofit organization where I

give back to families in need.

During the holiday season, we were

able to service over 1,500 people, giving

them food for the holidays.

And it was one of the most rewarding things

that I've ever done, even though I'm broke.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

DAN ROSENSWEIG (VOICEOVER): Here are the facts.

The numbers are massive.

Over 45 million people have borrowed over $1.7 trillion

in student-loan debt.

And the COVID-19 pandemic has only

made the situation more dire.

My name is Dan Rosensweig, and I'm

the CEO of the multibillion-dollar company

Chegg.

This is my mission.

And with the help of my financial expert, Tonya Rapley,

we're going to help people who are drowning in extreme debt

build a life of financial independence.

This is the year.

DAN ROSENSWEIG (VOICEOVER): It's not going to be easy.

I can't do this.

DAN ROSENSWEIG (VOICEOVER): But if they do the work,

they're going to go from being in the red to becoming

the CEOs of their own lives.

This is Going From Broke.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

This is my baby.

Yeah.

You know, she still sounds good, for a 100-year-old lady.

THE DONOVAN: I was very blessed to have

a passion for an instrument that I absolutely love

with my whole heart and soul.

And I happen to be really good at it.

That's what a 104-year-old piano sounds like.

DAN ROSENSWEIG: Good morning, Tonya.

How are you today?

TONYA RAPLEY: I'm great, Dan.

Something tells me we have our work cut out for us today.

Look, I love meeting incredibly talented people.

You know, they're gifted, and they work hard at their talent.

Our job is to say, your talent can take you only so far.

Yeah.

DAN ROSENSWEIG: If I'm reading this right,

during the pandemic, The Donovan generated zero income.

I don't even know how he's eating.

I'm concerned that he might have had a lot of success,

financially, early.

Walk me through the numbers, because there

are some interesting things.

The Donovan has done a few things right.

He owns his home outright.

And so points to him making some solid financial decisions.

However, things have changed.

TONYA RAPLEY (VOICEOVER): During the pandemic,

The Donovan earned $0.

But his monthly expenses are a whopping $6,500,

putting him that amount in the red every month.

He says he has around $70,000 in student loans

and $12,000 of credit-card debt.

His total debt is approximately $82,000.

Let's buckle up and bring in The Donovan.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Hi, The Donovan.

Hi, there.

How are you?

TONYA RAPLEY: Hi, The Donovan.

I am phenomenal.

I'm Dan.

Hi, Dan.

Hi, Tonya.

I know the both of you.

Your reputation precedes you.

Oh, thank you, Donovan.

Yours does, too.

[CHUCKLES]

TONYA RAPLEY: Fill us in.

How did you become The Donovan?

The Donovan.

[CHUCKLES] So The Donovan, the one and only.

I have dedicated my entire life to the arts and the craft

and the science of music.

And I've always been so different.

I wanted to be as identifiable in my name

as I am in my everyday persona.

So when your mom calls you, does she say, hey, The Donovan?

It took a lot of work to accomplish that great feat.

But yes.

[CHUCKLES]

THE DONOVAN: When I got about, you know, 15,

16, my relationship with my parents got pretty tumultuous.

And it led to a series of events that, you know,

forced me to go out into the world on my own.

You know, I knew that I wanted to pursue music seriously.

My favorite part is--

THE DONOVAN: I grew up in Harlem.

It wasn't always easy.

You know, where I'm from, there's

no such thing as a classically trained concert pianist.

Even when I started playing the piano,

people looked at me like I was crazy.

And with practice came money.

And yeah, I saved every single dime

until I could buy my house.

So what did your life look like pre-pandemic,

as far as your performance, schedule, and everything else?

It was really great.

I had such low overhead that I could

enjoy certain luxury amenities.

If I wanted something, I would buy it.

If I wanted to go somewhere, I would go.

If I wanted to fly, I would fly.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

I'm on the way to Vegas.

I'm about to do one of my favorite things,

and that's do a little bit of shopping.

I'm actually wearing the ensemble

that I bought yesterday.

Aren't these sunglasses so cute?

I just had to buy them.

And then the salesman convinced me to get a few more.

But I only spent, like, $670.

OK, I'm really in trouble now.

Your extraordinary early success

at building the brand The Donovan

meant you didn't prepare at all for your financial future.

You just said, I have money.

I'll spend money.

I have money.

I'll spend money.

This is true.

TONYA RAPLEY: It's definitely the grooming.

Even as someone who enjoys her self-care,

it's just like, whoa.

THE DONOVAN: I'm on my way to get laser hair removal.

If you've never gotten lasered before, it does hurt.

$250 on hair-care products, $150 on perfume,

$120 on facials, $150 on blow-outs,

and $175 on skin-care products.

THE DONOVAN: I absolutely love my exfoliating cleanser.

Oh, there's only one left.

Has to have it.

[GROANS] And then I need my serum

and nighttime moisturizer.

I underestimated the pandemic gravely.

I could not imagine a world where I wasn't booked and busy.

And that was just, like, pre-pandemic.

Like, it was very comfortable.

You saying that makes me think that you've

made changes during the pandemic, which

your budget doesn't indicate.

Listen--

TONYA RAPLEY: Here on paper, it hasn't.

--do you see this curly hair?

This would never happen pre-pandemic, OK?

I'm used to getting, like, these Brazilian blow-outs.

But yeah, I cannot afford that.

My savings have dwindled so vastly

that now I'm seeing red everywhere,

and not just the literal room.

So tell us, what caused you to make this call?

The main reason that I made the call was because I

have a charity organization.

We do a lot of community work, community

service, toy drives, food drives in the midst of the pandemic.

Nobody has money, that's a luxury right now.

And I had to fund 90% of that, which

took a huge hit to my savings.

And that's how I have been living--

on my savings.

Do you still have any money in savings?

The Donovan, I need to know how much we're working with.

Do you have any money in savings?

I am so embarrassed to say.

You know what's even more embarrassing?

Having to lose your home.

The Donovan, what do you have?

Like, $1,000 left?

It's, like, $3,000.

DAN ROSENSWEIG: OK.

So you have $3,000 left, and you're spending-- that means,

in 15 days, you'll be broke, because you're spending

$6,000 or $7,000 a month.

So have you stopped paying your credit cards?

Yeah.

But then I'm looking into your monthly housing expenses.

There are two things that really stuck out to me.

And that was $240 for lawn maintenance

and $500 for housekeeping.

Yes.

TONYA RAPLEY: I need to know what you're

doing that you need someone else to come

clean your home for $500.

I know that that seems crazy, but I feel better when I wake

up, and there's not just, like, clothes all over the floor

or dishes in the sink.

How messy can you be when you're not working?

You'd be surprised, Dan.

DAN ROSENSWEIG: I just want you to make clear,

you lost 150 points in your credit score,

haven't been paying your credit card,

but you've been paying your lawn and your cleaning person.

Well, I don't--

OK.

The lawn thing--

I don't have a lawn mower, so I have to have somebody--

Oh, I'll get you one.

I'm getting you one.

A lawn mower?

Challenge accepted, my friend.

You now getting a lawn mower from me.

Now, maybe if I wear, like, cowboy boots and,

you know, a tank top, that'll work.

But other than that, I could not see it in a million years.

This is happening, my friend.

All right.

So homework, The Donovan.

So the first thing that we need you to do

is create an accurate budget, because I

know you gave us numbers, but those numbers are not accurate.

I want to know, down to the dime.

The second thing-- your self-care budget

is out of control.

I want to minimize this to $100 a month.

Honestly, you have at least $1,500

you can take out in expenses.

Clean your home yourself for the next four weeks.

[GROANS] OK.

That's going to-- OK, $1,500.

TONYA RAPLEY: So another thing that we need you to do

is, you have this wonderful asset in your home.

So I need you to look into getting a roommate.

You're going to look into roommates.com to see if we can

bring someone else in who will help you absorb

some of the house expenses.

Yeah, I'm crazy, guys.

I don't know that a roommate would like me.

[CHUCKLES]

THE DONOVAN: OK.

I'll look into it.

DAN ROSENSWEIG: On the income-generation side,

you're going to come up with a 30-day plan

to generate at least $1,500 worth of income.

We're going to start booking whatever gigs we can take,

and we're going to start building an online plan.

And I'll help you with the online plan.

I'll help you with your online presence.

Yeah.

This is something that I've never had to do before.

I've always been able to rely on my showmanship.

Wake up.

You're broke.

All your-- everything you've worked for since you're

17 years old is at the brink.

[SIGHS] Yeah, it's a bad situation.

Oh, gosh.

I've got to get out of my ego.

Even though I might have to get pulled

by the ear on one or two things, I'm so

grateful for the opportunity.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

I have a homework assignment.

I have to go through all of my finances.

OK.

My hair-- that was $150.

My eyebrows-- can I cut that out of here?

How did I spend $90 at Dollar Tree?

In the Dollar Tree, everything was $1.

I'm happy because I have all of the skin-care products

that I need to give myself a spa day here at home.

I feel like we need spa music playing in the background.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Now imagine if somebody else's hands were doing this.

I mean, I'm in an industry where beauty

is what gets you your next opportunity, 90% of the time.

I mean, talent-- yeah, cool.

But do you look good?

Am I glowing?

I'm going to bed.

[PIANO PLAYING]

There we go.

[CHUCKLES]

The Donovan.

Oh, Dan!

Were you listening to that?

You're not supposed to hear that.

[CHUCKLES]

That was beautiful.

Thank you.

You have to get used to people hearing you again.

Well, music is entering a new phase where those that perform

and those that teach can do it as successfully but at larger

scale and make more money and be more

profitable because of the leverage online gives you.

Absolutely right.

DAN ROSENSWEIG: There is an amazing company

called School of Rock.

And they've got an extraordinary CEO

who figured out how to take that entire business

from offline to online.

And there he is.

Hello, there.

Rob Price, CEO of the School of Rock,

meet my favorite new musician, The Donovan.

Hey, The Donovan.

So like you, this time last year was a devastating blow.

You know, we really thought that our business

could be at existential risk.

What we learned was that even with having to change the way

we did everything, the bond between our students

and the instructors persisted and, in some ways,

got even stronger.

But it required a lot of technology changes.

We had to convert our entire business to remote.

And I'm going to share every secret

we got to make sure that you have

as much success as possible.

And this is the beginning of a friendship, I hope.

Mr. Price, that means the world to me.

Thank you.

ROB PRICE: What we've learned is that, post pandemic,

one of the most important things that's going to be in place

is live streaming.

And we've come upon what we think

is one of the most innovative and powerful

live-streaming tools called In.Live.

And our partners and friends at In.Live

are going to be very excited about getting

you set up on the platform.

What we're going to do is put something in your hands

where you can be your own producer.

And I am so excited to have the tools.

I'm ready to get to work.

I realized very young that all I ever was going to do was music.

Brother, you're, like, down the street from a bunch

of Schools of Rock, dude.

We would love for you to come in and get to know our teams.

And if there's an opportunity for you to work in our schools

or work with some of our students,

that would be amazing.

Oh my goodness.

My mind is blown.

Life is changing for the better, and I'm really learning.

And it's like I'm back in school.

But I'm ready, and I've got homework to do.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

I don't want to tell you guys this,

but I do have my sound-bath artist

and spiritual healer here--

[RINGING]

--to kind of help me relax and help

me recuperate from the travesty of not being

able to spend any more money.

You are a money magnet.

Every dollar that you spend comes back to you.

THE DONOVAN (VOICEOVER): I want this

to be like a spiritual release for me.

[RINGING]

Ah, no more money worries.

THE DONOVAN (VOICEOVER): I'm embarking on this journey

of financial literacy.

You are aligned to the universal bank of abundance.

THE DONOVAN: I just didn't realize how stressed I was,

and I really needed that.

So although I might have spent way

more money than I was supposed to,

you have to pick your poison.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

You're probably like, why is there a garbage

bag on top of my head?

I needed to do a hot-oil treatment

and a deep-conditioning treatment to my hair

since I can't go to the salon.

I'm making a lot of sacrifices.

Tonya is coming over tomorrow, so I have to clean my house.

I don't even know where all my cleaning supplies are.

I need fresh flowers.

How do you work this thing?

Oh my goodness.

[COUGHS]

I have a few more finishing touches

that I have to put on the guest bedroom,

'cause I'm sure she's going to want to see that 'cause she

wants somebody to reside there.

It has been so long since I've had to fold clothes.

Does anybody know how to fold a fitted sheet?

Because my housekeepers are not here, [SIGHS]

I had to do laundry myself.

[DISHES RATTLING]

Oh my God.

I hope I don't break anything.

Oh, these are big.

This is a lot of work.

Oh, my arm hurts.

Oh my gosh.

I'm tired already.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Today, I get to meet Tonya--

not virtually, but actually in person.

I make saving money look good.

TONYA RAPLEY: The Donovan has a welcoming home.

He owns it free and clear.

He needs to start allowing other people

to utilize his home so that he can make money from that home.

I'm so happy that you're open to looking for a roommate

and finding some way to bring in passive income,

because your home is your oasis.

You've done an amazing job.

What's your biggest concern?

Well, my space.

I just can't imagine having someone else here consistently.

Well, let's imagine it. Let's open that up.

[LAUGHS]

Let's have a look.

Roommates.com is a great way to see

who's looking in your neighborhood, what they're

willing to pay, as well as for you

to get a good understanding of them

before you reach out to them.

Yeah.

TONYA RAPLEY: So let's see who's looking for rooms in this area.

Now, how would you feel about a more mature roommate?

I probably would prefer that.

Mm-hmm.

This person has a budget of $800 for a room.

$800 sounds great--

- Yeah. - --a month.

But--

That's your utilities, essentially.

THE DONOVAN: Yes.

I love hearing money coming into my pocket.

Ching-ching.

Yeah.

THE DONOVAN: This all sounds really good.

But I do have questions.

Like, do they use my kitchen?

I mean--

[MUSIC PLAYING]

So you want them to come into the house

and pay you $800 a month and not use your kitchen.

What do you want them to do, cook

in the room on a hot stove?

Is that a possibility?

No, that's not.

That is not.

You will not be that type of landlord.

You--

[CHUCKLES]

So that's why the interview process is important.

THE DONOVAN: If they can cook, and they can clean--

They're basically a husband, right?

[LAUGHTER]

The Donovan, thank you so much for inviting me into your home

and hosting me today.

THE DONOVAN: It's been my pleasure.

TONYA RAPLEY: So I have some more homework for you.

THE DONOVAN: OK.

I understand you met with Rob Price of School of Rock.

I'm going to connect you with the team over at In.Live

to help you set up an online concert

that you are going to perform next week.

Oh my--

- You-- - What?

Yeah.

Yep.

You still have to market it.

You've still got to get the audience there to show up.

I've never in my life had to do a concert in seven days.

Seven days.

So-- what am I going to wear?

Can I buy something?

No, no.

You cannot buy anything.

Wait, wait, wait.

OK.

OK.

Thank you so much for everything,

honestly, from the bottom of my heart, for all the information.

Can I have a hug? - Yes.

It's going--

Thank you.

--to be wonderful.

A concert in a week-- that's-- it's kind of crazy to me.

Oh my gosh.

[GROANS] So the travesty of it all

is that I'm going to have to wear something

that I've already worn.

Hopefully, I can draw a crowd.

I'm pretty good at that.

I don't know that I like this.

Oh, my hair hurt.

It has been a crazy two days.

I haven't performed live in over 18 months.

[SIGHS] Not a happy camper right now.

So one is we're going to put it right in front of you

so they can get a straight shot of you playing.

That's important.

That's important.

THE DONOVAN: The producers and founders of In.Live

have literally come to my home.

Let's go ahead and create your career profile.

OK.

We can go ahead and update the photography.

And--

That's right.

[CHUCKLING]

It looks great.

THE DONOVAN: And the show is tomorrow.

If I mess up, I'm going to let everybody down.

I'm afraid to let myself down.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

The Donovan, when performing, is a diva.

Not now.

THE DONOVAN: I'm a perfectionist.

Only having four days to prepare--

that was not fun for me.

And it wasn't just about me performing.

I had to advertise.

I had to organize.

I had to decorate.

You know, I had to be a CEO.

What am I wearing?

Black or white?

MAN: I would go with the white.

Give me about 45 minutes, and I'll have an outfit.

Thanks.

MAN: No, we have three--

THE DONOVAN (VOICEOVER): There was so much pressure.

Michael, do you see The Donovan yet?

THE DONOVAN (VOICEOVER): There were so many nerves.

WOMAN (ON PHONE): He is not ready yet.

We're working on it.

MAN: You are cutting it very close.

The stream is live in five minutes.

THE DONOVAN (VOICEOVER): I can't spend any money.

Usually, I would have makeup artists,

hair, wardrobe, stylist.

My hair is still soaking wet.

Two sec-- two minutes.

WOMAN (ON PHONE): We're ready for you any minute,

The Donovan.

Hey, The Donovan.

I'm so sorry I couldn't be there tonight,

but I wanted to wish you good luck on your performance.

Hey, it's Jewel.

I'm in the recording studio slash my guest room.

But I wanted to take a minute from recording

to introduce this very special live performance.

MAN: Donovan, there's about 50 people

online on the stream now.

ASHTON KUTCHER: Performing musicians were

hit especially hard in 2020.

They couldn't do shows.

So tonight, I want to introduce you to a talented young man

who needs our help.

MAN: We need him downstairs.

We're going to start the stream in 1 minute and 30 seconds.

Your story inspired me and is a true testament

to what artists are capable of.

I just wanted to say, Darling, I'm very proud of you.

THE DONOVAN (VOICEOVER): I am not calm.

I'm panicking.

Please keep finding ways to express yourself.

And I promise, I will keep rooting for you.

Have fun tonight.

Please tip him generously.

Let's help him get back on his feet.

THE DONOVAN (VOICEOVER): Literally, as I'm walking down

my stairs, the cameras go live.

So without further ado, I give you The Donovan.

Hi, everybody, and welcome.

Thank you so much for joining me.

Let's get started.

I'm going to play one of my favorite pieces.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

DAN ROSENSWEIG: Let's bring in The Donovan.

Hello, The Donovan!

Hi, Dan.

Hi, Tonya.

How are you?

We're good.

How are you?

THE DONOVAN: I see you guys are in my city--

in New York City!

Whoo!

[CHUCKLES] OK.

Sorry.

The good news is, you did it.

You had less than a week to prepare,

and you did phenomenal, The Donovan.

It was wonderful, and you had so many supporters there,

so many people just outpouring love.

DAN ROSENSWEIG: We have been on The Donovan journey for a month

now.

What did The Donovan learn about The Donovan?

Transitioning into the CEO is not as glamorous

as one would think.

I had to wear so many hats, as the king CEO knows.

It was stressful, to say the least.

But I'm proud of what I produced.

And the fact of the matter is, I will never

go 18 months without performing or practicing

or preparing again.

TONYA RAPLEY (VOICEOVER): Though he did not meet our challenge

to make $1,500 this month, The Donovan made

$820 at his virtual concert.

He reduced his monthly expenses to about $2,700,

almost tripling the amount we asked him to cut.

THE DONOVAN: So I cut over $4,000 out of my spending.

This is major, The Donovan.

I haven't bought any cosmetics, no skin care.

I've been making my own hair-care product.

I was so unhappy about cleaning my home myself,

but it's something I've been doing.

And I've been putting myself on a schedule.

The Donovan, if we do the math for you,

you have not spent, in 12 months, $50,000, which--

TONYA RAPLEY: --would build that savings back up.

Right, which would allow you to build a savings once you

start to generate income.

Now, my other question for you--

so what's next, The Donovan?

I have been making phone calls to perform wherever I can.

Can I perform?

Can I perform?

Can I perform?

This is not something I've ever had to do before.

But I'm on it, I promise you.

I like that you're calling people.

[INAUDIBLE]

TONYA RAPLEY: We checked out roommates.com.

How are we looking as far as bringing someone in?

There are, like, three people--

TONYA RAPLEY: [GASPS]

THE DONOVAN: --that I've been [CLEARS THROAT] talking to.

Is that hard to say?

Is that-- did it get stuck in your throat?

[CHUCKLING]

Yes, because, you know, I'm like,

I'm really considering this.

Look at how I'm evolving.

You're doing all of it, and we're so proud of you.

I think I can speak for Dan and myself.

We're-- - For sure.

TONYA RAPLEY: --so, so happy with the progress

that you've made.

So we have a little gift for you.

We would like to give you, as a token of gratitude

for letting us into your life and for working so hard,

a $1,000 check.

But you got to use it--

Really?

--to pay down your debt.

What-- heck, yeah.

Listen, I don't want these collection

people calling me no more.

[CHUCKLING]

Thank you guys.

I love you.

I'm going to miss you.

We're all friends now, OK?

We're all, in my neighborhood, what we call mishpocha.

We're all family.

OK.

Family.

I love it.

Oh, oh.

It's your mama--

BOTH: And your auntie.

Oh--

[INTERPOSING VOICES]

--we love the show, The Donovan.

Oh, thank you, Ashton.

Oh, you made my baby a star!

Oh!

Oh, oh--

OK.

Tired.

Oh.

Oh, my pants.

Ah.

Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa!

I'm hot.

Oh.

If you're looking to build or rebuild your financial life,

we've got tools and resources to help.

For more on debt, student loans, earning more, spending less,

and dozens of other money topics,

go to Chegg.com/GoingFromBroke.

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