James Brown’s Daughters Discuss Growing Up with the ‘Godfather of Soul’ in New Docuseries

Deanna Brown Thomas and Yamma Brown talk about having the Godfather of Soul as their dad — and preserving his legacy.

via: People

In a clip from the forthcoming docuseries James Brown: Say It Loud, which PEOPLE can exclusively share, two of James’ daughters, Deanna Brown and Dr. Yamma Brown, speak candidly about growing up with “the Godfather of Soul,” who died at the age of 73 in Atlanta in 2006.

At the opening of the video, Deanna, 55, notes that although she earned a college degree, her “best life lessons” came from being “on the road with my father.”

“I could hear him, how he talked to different people, how he wanted his business taken care of. I learned a lot while I was putting those rollers in his hair,” she explains.

Then speaking about her mother, Deidre Jenkins, Deanna details that she was a “homemaker” and “wasn’t in the business,” noting: “She was happy raising her two daughters and being Mrs. James Brown. Period.”

Yamma, 52, then appears next in the clip, where she discusses how she was brought into the world and how her name came to be.

“I was born in Augusta, Georgia, but Dad was in Japan when I was born,” she says. “He enjoyed the name Mount Fujiyama, he changed the spelling a little bit, put two M’s instead of one, and Yamma the name came from Dad.”

Highlighting how her famous father was “so serious most of the time,” Yamma then recalled how he would be critical of her looks growing up.

“He would always get on me about my hair when I was a kid,” she says with a laugh. “Like, ‘What you doing with your hair? You look a mess right now.’ It’s just like, really? You gonna call me out in front of everybody?

According to an official synopsis, James Brown: Say It Loud “traces the incredible trajectory of Brown’s life and career from a 7th-grade drop-out arrested and jailed at the age of 16 for breaking into a car in the Jim Crow-era South, to an entertainment legend whose groundbreaking talent and unique perspective catapulted him to become a cultural force.”

“His words, songs, style and moves inspired musical revolutions and molded a nation’s view of Black Pride and Black masculinity,” the synopsis continues. “Consistently facing obstacles and unbelievable odds, the documentary details how Brown persevered through decades of personal demons, racial injustice and career setbacks to find redemption and become one of, if not the most celebrated and influential artists of the 20th century.”

The upcoming two-part docuseries from A&E will air on Monday, Feb. 19 and Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 8 p.m. EST.

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