Joe Rogan Experience #2353 - Shaka Senghor

Senghor emphasizes that being able to read allowed him to structure his days like university in solitary, study philosophy and history, and ultimately write books—he believes he would not be who he is without that skill.

By answering, “How did I end up here?” on paper and refusing to lie to himself, Senghor confronted his trauma, his role in harming others, and his pattern of quitting, which became the foundation for real change.

In solitary, he built a strict daily schedule—intellectual study, physical workouts using improvised equipment, and creative writing—to keep his mind “moving forward” and avoid the mental collapse he saw in others.

Stories of feces “wars,” food loaf, exorbitant phone costs, and officers’ trauma highlight a barbaric, chaotic system; Senghor contrasts this with European models focused on citizenship and rehabilitation, and notes the ingenuity and talent languishing inside American prisons.

Senghor argues he was “incarcerated before prison” and “free before release,” because true freedom came from mastering his thinking, taking responsibility, and choosing who he wanted to be regardless of external constraints.