Lots of people remember having “the talk” with their families or friends. Whether they sat down at the kitchen table for a long discussion, or blurted it out in the car on the way to the grocery store, each family had their own (probably awkward) way of talking about some uncomfortable, but important facts about life.

And no, we’re not talking about sex - we’re talking about a different talk, the talk about race.

In honor of the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. we're speaking up, sharing our stories, and having an honest and brave conversation about race.

According to a recent MTV study, 73% of 14 to 24-year-olds believe that having more open, constructive conversations about bias will help people become less prejudiced, yet only 10% report having those conversations often.

If we really want to fight bias, 10% is not going to be enough. As "The Daily Show" host Jon Stewart said last year, “We have made enormous progress in teaching everyone that racism is bad. Where we seem to have dropped the ball is in teaching people what racism actually is.”

And that’s why we’re having #TheTalk.

On Monday, January 19th from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET, MTV is going black-and-white to spark a conversation about where we’ve been and how far we have yet to go. We’ve got Kendrick Lamar, Pete Wentz, Rick Ross, Penn Badgley, Big Sean, Common, Jordin Sparks, and more sitting down to give their thoughts on the conversations they’ve had about race. They’ll be joined by young people and activists from around the country, as well as politicians like Senator Cory Booker, Senator Rand Paul, and Congressman John Lewis, who marched from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. 50 years ago this spring.

We want you to be part of conversation. Share your story using the hashtag, #TheTalk. Your tweet may appear on-air, or on MTVNews.com

Maybe you want to share your thoughts on something you saw in the news that got you thinking about race, or something you feel like you and your friends always talk about but think no one else does or, like Kendrick Lamar, maybe it’s a conversation you had with your family.

“My father definitely talked to me about [race] early on,” Lamar told MTV News. “He’s from Chicago, you know, he came from Chicago to Compton and that’s where I was born. And he dealt with it his whole life. And he knew the moment I was born, the color of my skin was going to be put to the test. And that’s just how it is, you know. We have legacies, people who died for it.”

Want more? Watch all the artist, activist, and politician's testimonials HERE.

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