Mr. Cheeks

what's up? Man? What's going on? Fellas? I love having that. I love when you are on the mike something. It's always yeah, it's always something. He got something cooked up. You better believe everybody listens to this show understands there's some story. He comes when backstage comes up. You know, we got some diabolical scheme, some kind of planning, something important. Gina,

I'm talking the other day. And as we migrate into this podcast, once we get past the banter and get into it and who we're talking to, all this will tie together and uh, you know, just music. I mean we all we all love music. Whatever whatever kind you like, whatever style genre singer we all like. And backstage you were colectic too, Man, I go back so so so you know back in the day when when backstage Joe might have been a little bit athletic. You can google it.

So every every game before I stepped out on the mound when I was pitching, was Eric being rock him microphone thing? Now that like? And that was obviously after Yes, it was back to old banter folks. Yes, there's there's a lot of tie ins here. But so just like as I look across that, you guys, you know G Steve like, you know old school, you know hip hop, rap,

R and B whatever you like. You know when you start looking back, we all know the Ice Cubes, the Dr Dre's outcast, you know Eric b Outcast, Uh, you know Beastie Boys, Flavor Flame, Public Enemy another one without a pause, look look at you. So with that being said, I wanted to test my two brothers rap game knowledge. I'm about to fail. So you don't you don't have any HIPOPN know what it's about yet, right, and you might be good. M I know my limitations. You know

your limitations. So what is it like West coast only because you're a West coast. But I just I don't. I don't keep up with it as much you're talking about current stuff or just just you know, I know all those I don't oh the old school, I don't necessarily know the names anyway, Go ahead, don't you don't know names? He just dismissed me. Proceed. Look, so I got five questions here, so we just don't drag on our audience too long. Um, each question is gonna have

three rap names in it. One of them is going to be real ones I've made up. Now this is racist because he made him up. He made them up. Let me check off MC white. So my disclaimer on this is I made these names up. Help you know this is this? This is me. So anybody out there with your YouTube rap name that I might not have seen online, I don't mean any disrespect. I'm not stealing it. I don't want to go Instagram live and get beat

up because this is your real rap names up. No way, So I hope they're not so again, three rap names. One is real? Have an answer? Yeah? Yeah, we don't. Nobody, I mean yeah, we don't. All right, So question one, Crispy Kream number two d J d Q or Burger Buddha, Which Chris, which one is real? Which one is which? Which one is a real rap name? Mr? Smith, Burger Buddha And I'll go with what was the second option, d J d Q. I'll go with d J d Q.

You're both wrong. There's a rapper called Crispy Kream. How has like I don't know about spelling. I'm just ethnicity Crispy Kreme. I don't know about ethnicity. I just looked up. There's really a rapper named Chris Crispy it was his I'm guessing his ethnicity is not the color shade I am. There's a lot of donut options out there. Yeah, they know. I hope there's no brother named Krispy Kreme J Crew. Oh he just changed his name. He's now Froggy Fresh.

I'm on Google. Oh that's a that's a non brother and he and he has I think a marijuana tattoo on his chest. It's not that gave it away. I don't know what that is, but or whatever. It's still one. Yeah, alright, cool question too, all right? Choice one backsplash p Choice Choice number two, Sugar Tongue Slim, what go ahead? And choice number three is the grind Boy, the grind Boys. That's you're both wrong again. That's flash pace, Sugar tongue Slim. Okay, well,

I'm glad that home depot doing some repairs. Sugar tongue, Slim, look him up. Sugar tongue, Swim. That's it's sugar tongue. He probably believes he's fired with it. That's why he came with. That is a brother. Huh. He abbreviates sometimes sts what sometimes? How you do it? Sts? Alright? Ready, I know people, so right now, if I add up, y'all score zero. I said sugar, I said sugar. No, man, you said the grind Boy. Y'all were both like y'all won the lottery. Y'all were excited about the grind Boy.

That's backstage Joe making it up. Bash. I'm gonna trying to get through this one, all right, let's go alright. Third question, Yeah, photo fresh f t z Ice. What or the last one? Fruit Kwan hope A fruit. Um, I'm gonna go with I'm gonna go with fruit quin. That's real, Steve. What was the first one? The first photo? Fresh with the f it's fruit kwan. Oh, I'm on the boats. Fruit kuan fruit kwan say it with a what's his first name? I gotta, I gotta where did

he grasp fruit kum from? What's this? What's his first what's what's his birth? It's one word fruit and kwan k w a n what's you spell? Kwan? Qualm like hit the qualm? Not that he's got. He's got, He's got a couple of albums life rightness? What's his real name? Fruit? To me? His real name is Arnold Hamilton's move on next, next round, So right now, g got a point. Steve's just happy to be here. Next one participation That little crampy, little crampy little crapper the rapper is that? Is that

a fool? Is that the full thing? Or a little poopy? I know some I know a dude named Poopy. I'm gonna I'm gonna go a little poopy. I'm gonna go a little poopy correct little man on board because I know that I know somebody whose son name is Poopy and so god given name, I mean parents given name. Are they called him? That dude name is Poopy? He called we called them poopy? Yeah, call call Hank the Sun name is Poopy, but that's all I know him, is Poopy. Really, you got a lot of stuff on

Poopy does poopy dot com. That's a different website now that kind of thing. Don't do that podcast. Last one. DJ Silky Chocolate, Oh you made that one up. I can tell you. I got DJ Peanut Butter Wolf, Peanut Butter Wolf or d J Smooth Caramel, the Light Skin player. Oh, that's real. It's Peanut butter Wolf. I got you all with the Light Skin players. Like I sold it. We were don't take de bait. You tried to suck into two lights game Brothers Step that was his rap name,

Light Skin. He's all excited about it. We felt seen when you said when representation. So as I knew we're this upcoming episode, I'll just started. I'm like, what is this? I there? Man? I all right? Who we got coming up on the cut to It podcast, We've got Mr Cheeks, co founder of the legendary hip hop group Lost Boys. He's also a solo artist with four albums of his own and he's a native of Jamaica, Queens, New York. Mr Cheeks on the Cut to It Podcast Cut to

It no question. Appreciate you having your boy LV and the building. You know, Let's get it, Let's get it, let's get it. Hey man, Well, our first segment is called get iced Up. It's our version of Icebreakers. We just gotta get We gotta set the scene for you. So there may be follow ups, there may not be. We're just gonna ask you some random questions. Just it everything, go and get the blood circulation. Gotta get you iced up, So SMOTHI go ahead and give him the first one,

first rap song single. You remember when cassettes used to come out, So first cassette that you purchased or bought at the local barber shop, first hip hop cas set I brought, well, first um joined our guy was chubb Rock. You know what I'm saying. Chubb Rock was the first influence of Yeah, first record I bought, like, oh yeah, you know chub Rock. Uh see that you know that record? Do it do it again? That was all right, I'm gonna tell you online ahead. Three is the magic number

by okay, no question, no question. That's you bought with your own money. Yeah, okay, yeah, you remember singles. That's what I'm saying. It's it wasn't the first when you heard it's just the first one you bought, put it in the record player, I mean put it in a cassette player. Three. Then the first one I ever would have been, uh, the first thing I have a ball with, stuggish, ruggish bone, the first one I bought. You already got reminiscent. Man. All right, your favorite TV show? You know, TV is

bananas right now? So any TV shows you really into right now? Oh? Right now? Oh yeah, the Blacklist is crazy? Like that's when that is a real good one called O D that's hard. I haven't got into either. Well first eight all day, big fan of that. It's crazy, but I love I love the drama. On Sunday about seven or eight. I like watching Um Supermarket Sweet. You can watch the old one on Netflix. We got ninety threes backstage. Want the show. I'm really digging right now.

Life was Life below zero? Oh yeah, that's that's hard. I was just looking at this world of my mother's checking out this this morning, she's going through the ill snowstorm, and had to I was a second that that's crazy. All right, let's go and get inside track. Uh, what Shorge do you hate doing? How Shorge just cleaning the dishes that they leave in the seat, You know that that's mainly, might might be other things, ain't nothing, how just cleaning the dishes When I wake up in the morning,

I don't want to see all that death. Well, you know, we got the dishwasher, but you could throw that in there too. To tell me, she was like, we don't need a dishwashing washing. Yeah, that's what they did, all right. Last one, what's your hitting talent? My hidden talent? Oh yeah, breakdancing kid, let's go um get well. I used to get my dad so happy. But you know, I do my regular two steps now. But back in the days, man, I was on the linoleum and let's I do had spend.

Last time, I had a battle with my son. He's sixteen now. I did a battle of him and breakdan because they didn't believe it because I showed him, showed him a B street all right. He thought he thought he was knew he was doing. And you know, the dudes nowadays dance like ladies. Sometimes they're the same like we used to go. So I'm trying to tell him, listen, that's how we used to do it. Yeah, I mean, but oh I did it has spending new You already know I need gate the whole day. Next day, you

know I needed spending up. Of god, I was over forty crazy man, oh man, you know what. I actually have a Mr. Cheek story. So there's no way he's gonna remember this. But back in I think it had to be two thousand and one, uh huh. Here in North Carolina there's a big called super Jams and Greensboro. Mr Cheeks was the co headline. This is back during

the lights, camera action stage or whatever. And so I'm sixteen maybe, and me and my friends were out and in Greensboro there's this main road called at that point in time, it was called City and so people you know, going back and forth leaving the coliseum, and so we're just, you know, parking lot, doing what you do because we can't get in anywhere with sixteen. And so we're sitting there, sitting on top of our cars, watching everyone go by. And the limo pulls up and the window rolls down

and some stuff rolled out. I don't know what it was. I wasn't known enough back then, and everything comes out. Fall. It was fall. It was fall because it was so so the fog rolls out and and we see Mr Cheeks and we don't get excited. Is like four or five us, we're like, oh, Mr Cheeks. So we're like, hey, we're the party at Mr Cheeks. This is Mr cheeks response, he ride up the block, mother, and we all are like, yo,

Mr Chicks, what's up? What's up with what? And he rolled the window back up and dipped on this man like he didn't even tell us what. He just said, ride up the block. So at sixteen true story, first interact. That is exactly what he said. He said, ride up the block, mother, roll the window back up, so basically trying to tell you you make your own party, welcome through the block. And we're like, yo, he just rolled up the windows. But that's that is my first interaction

with the celebrity. Anything like that, Like that story is edged in my mind. And when we were getting ready for this, like I'm texting my friends, like you remember that time we saw Mr Cheeks and roll the window that everyone died laughing. That was it was, so this is the full moment. That's pretty cool. This is really cool. Well she got that's how I got my first start in the game too, And she ain't gave me one of those. I went, I made my way into the

little More East. Yeah, I'm saying down back in the days, back when it was like eight and eighty nine, eight seven, shanned down by Law all that. It was just popping off on that all of that that world, man, you know what I'm saying. So I went there and I went just to see if she shan't nice for photographing like that. Not that shame, but let's go, you know what I mean. But I just knew hip hop was real right there. You know what I said. Oh man,

that's crazy. Good stories. Alright, cool, So let's get into it time. You know you already said it. But I love to always ask. We already start off with this, And where are you from? Your place you call your hometown, no doubt Among towns South Jamaica, Queens, South bows On Park one one thirty second Street one to you have it, no doubt about it. Shouts to the Kellys and all of that. You know what I'm saying. My grandfather, grandmother, well,

they gave him New Orleans, baby. You know what I'm saying. How we got to New York is a long story, but I can. I can bring it down. Grandpap slapped the white lady and got us out of town. I bean, yeah, especially back then, that to make it relocate. Yeah, yes, matter what time, that don't matter what time of a year. That's right there. Yeah, that's that's that's run for your life right here. Yeah, established in uh Queens, New York. Had a few of had a few beauty salons out

in Brooklyn, Red Hook, Brooklyn. You know what I'm saying. And uh, my grandfather and grandmother has um nine kids, seven girls, two boys, you know what I mean. And my mom's is dying. And she raised me as a single moms of course, well not of course, but you know, it came it came to be like that, you know, and she was hard working hold us down. I got I got um uh one sister, three brothers, you know, and I'm a grand pops and all of that. You know,

I've got two grandkids and all of that. So oh yeah, I'm just from South Jamaica, Queens. I made my mark in the game with the Lost Boys. I'm the lead artists of the hip hop group Lost Boys. You know what I'm saying. We've got some joints on our belt from music made me high to clap your hands to like Renee uh Lex School's Beamings and Ben's you know lights camera action. I got a few joints under my belt and yeah, I represent South Jamaica queens all day. Every day we have to take a break and the

morning thing, we gotta pay some bills. You got checks. I love cut to It and I love it even more when you download us and subscribe, and you can follow us on social media too, Smithie, where where at? That's act? Cut to It on Instagram? What about Twitter? At? Cut to It? Facebook? Cut to It featuring Steve Smith singr? What about online? And you can follow us at cut to It podcast dot com where you can buy merch and you can subscribe to us wherever you listen to podcasts.

I got all my answers questions. Um, yeah, I got all my questions answered. That's what I'm here for, a brother, cut to a podcast dot Com. So growing up in Jamaica queens, I mean it's kind of a loaded question, but I'll ask it because I grew up in l A. I'm from l A and it helped me and hurt me at times, depending back. So how did how did it growing up at Jamaica Queens help you and hurt you as a kid because you're a grandfather now so you wisdom, you don't get the tooth. I'm yeah, oh yeah,

Queen's helping me. And um, well, like you say, like I'm from Queens. So it wasn't like it was a really major like in the in the music well in the music game and hip hop came and things like that to like ll co J freaking frag and on

you know, Mikey D and things like that. Well, I'm just thinking of people up the top of my neighborhood and things that made the Queens made me want to be a rapper from from Queens because Queens always getting you on though, right, So being from Queens has made me strong as farther as like get at let's get at it, you know what I'm saying, as far as like yo, hold up, there ain't nothing sweet about Queens

and say Queens Niga, you know what I'm saying. And we go through some sometimes soup just like any every borough, any other state, any anywhere, you know what I'm say, any of the hood, and we just that that just made us want to be like that though. You know what I'm saying, um just did did not disrespect, but not to really respect. We needed like so we have to make going way and being from Queens made you want to do that. Anyway you go. You know what

I'm saying. You're from Queens. You go to Hall and you go to the Brooklyn, you go to the Brown. You gotta show yours and something pop off. You know what I'm saying, Because I done some niggas and queens, but we came, We came in the game and we earned our key from all of that. And that's just what it was like Lors Spoils before these rappers. You know what I'm saying. We have to scuffle our way into the game or the streets and make our name. No, you know what I'm saying. We just want to wrap

and ship like that and earn our key. So whatever it toothing to do that, we did that. So it's it's interesting playing in sports. You know, there's summer camps, there's high school j V. Right, there's Little League Pop Warner, you get coached. There is no farm system in in wrap, there is no pop, there is no there's no developmental lead. There's no developmental there's no like you know you, Hey, I'm gonna sign no Blue Gerard on how to be a better you know, how to be a rap rap game.

Ain't gotta au right right, no doubt. Yeah, was the process like for you individually? Because everybody has a different story. It's like this. I was in high school. I was in John Adams High School playing for the junior varsity football team and my brother signed. Uh what position? I was? Running back? Kick work? Yeah, footwork. I was first. I scored the first touchdown john John Adams High School back in the eighties, six or something like that. What was it?

I don't know. I really know the places my brother. My brother used to be the half back, so musr polam over knocked them down. Hey, just doing it man, But it's one night I caught that concussion. It was over because you noticed he said I was JV here. He said, none about arsen I don't know bay Side. If you knew about New York football. Day signed high school? Was you know what I'm saying. No Niggers came over

there and showed me some work. I was like, oh, ship, but but football that maybe you want to rap though, I was like them years. I was like, um, it was like heavy ding the boys. So on Pepper, Oh man, they that's what you want to make you rap because it was remember so Pepper came through with that red BMW and all of that. I was like, I got to get it. I just wanted to be a part of that world. So, like you said, it ain't it ain't. Wasn't no school for that. So but we had we

had a readings. We had to go. We have to go to the park James. You know what I'm saying, the block parties. You have to go to the battles with Grandmasters Vic and like Spengee. You know what I'm saying. It was they was doing um you know, the pup jams ship. So they give you the mic if you was hot enough, they give you the mike and um from this day on, you know Fragile starred Onyx. Yeah, that's my main man. We grew up. We was the Niggas and queens. We was the nigga was holding it down.

And another dude from our herd name p I legendary. But um, that's where I got it from. Man going to arm school and after the holidays. You know, Rock Kemmen and Big Daddy came up, come out with a record, and then Queens Niggers compared. You know Rock I made from Queens, but Queens didn't though he was a Queens. There let's go. But that's how are you right? So we would we would compared Rock kem the kame you know,

all of that came about. But you know, just when your work played together from a kid LLL COO, J I'm bad and all of that, like you wanted to know. I learned that, Like I just wanted to learn, right, be the illest writer or the illest lyricists or whatever, and that I could. But you know what I'm saying, Um, that's where it came about. That's the school you go to. You little to different games like the Gavin out in New Orleans. How can I be down down in Atlanta?

You know, it was a bunch of things that all the Rappids go with the conventions and all of that. That's how I did it though, with all of that going on as you are moving up in the battle game and all stuff. Yeah, you got you Mr Cheeks the Lost Boys. But I want to know what were some of the names that never made the menu. When y'all were thinking about y'all your names like Lost Boys, Mr. The Lost Boys about Yeah, I have the Lost Boys come about? And what was some of the failed names

that y'all were like, No, we can't have that name. Oh, we didn't really had too many failed names. We just grew up out of the names. Really. Yeah, I tell you from from from a nigga who was in aigger because it was it was in a nigger. That's who was a State fresh crew. You know what I'm saying. But when we've seen the movie The Lost Boys, that's

what we thought you was. You know what I'm saying. Yeah, we was running around the hood like them niggers on the bike, stealing, causing younger, younger, younger days, you know, having fun, having fun, you know, I know, incriminate yourself on this recording. There's podcast this is a no indictment, Yeah, no intment podcast, door checks and alway, oh man. But now, we used to watch the movie a lot, and we used to feel like them, and we saw, you know,

uh it's running around smoking weed. As we was making music. It was like we we kind of like the White Book, like the Lost Boys, the White Dudes, but we not know, you know, no vampires, but we come in later. That name we don't like when the sun is on. That just young dudes bugging back. But we threw the Z from the UH. We put the L S T B O Y Z because the Z meant the zooe. We was always in. It was always in channel zero and

you know on our vibes as well. That's on our own, our own where we used to be in the back streets getting our hit again on music together. When we came from like uh summer school and all of that, it was a crazy time. So that's what we gotta. Really got it from the law school. Just put that Z on the back of that S and I just made it run and we just we did it. We had beef over that name with dudes and the Bronx and all that. For the Lost Boys came out standing,

hard body, no doubt Lost Wards around the world. But you know, we have to definitely go hard to keep that name and be what it is. You know what I'm saying, y'all had to and your and your influence on the rap game is do you feel like sometimes it gets overlooked hell yeah, you already know. I get mad at niggers. I'll be like ya, hold up, I'll be seeing mad at pop joints. They don't never throw no low sport. And I'm like, your hold on, what's going on here? We ain't made no bankers. We got

a catalog. I know there's a lot of people that be giving up mad prostitutes that I got two records, Steve Records were up right. They be saluting these dudes like they made joints. Y'all be like your hold on? Came We're still banging out a bay Man stop playing. But you know I ain't gonna know. I ain't got no problem with it. I'm just saying they will notice, you know what I'm saying. That's why I'm still at it. That's what I think. I'm still doing what I'm doing,

So I'm still on the cut to it. Do it's now right here, you're here. But I find it fascinating because you meant a lot like the park jams, all of these things that were essential to the essence of hip hop as as a true and you were right there in the middle of it. Your uncle is also Jill Scott heron Gil Scott doubt talk a little bit about his influence to you and and and you just kind of being up under his his leadership and this guy, oh,

you know, just being around Uncle was ill. You know, um before you do his shows and things like that. When he comes, I'll go to the crib helping them move from just growing up here and this music on his um performances as a youngster, you know, uh, just help them help me even more influence of my music music, musical talents. I guess you know I used to singing all that. But I'm not saying I used to sing. I'm saying I used to background singing for my cousins

to him. And you know, when when new addition came out, you know, everybody wanted to be a groupe, right, That's really like, well a little started, but Uncle always held it down. You know what I'm saying, Uncle Gil Scott hard body man mad. I mean, there are these things on on with him and all of that, but he was definitely a talented man and the great musician, great artists man, you know. And that's the speddled for that, really, you know what I'm saying. And it's just like he's

just sitting on he's just seing me. Man, that's Uncle Gil. If you get a chance, check him out on the on Prime. On Prime. He got the new joint black Wax. If you've never seen that, check that out, no doubt. But yeah, he was good, he was just it was just something what it is, man, you know what I'm saying. A good influence? Man, How hard was it for you, you know, to get in and get signed by rapper label?

Everybody's fire, yeah, everybody, everybody's a bees yeah right, Well then back then when it's not, when it's not, I'm sure we'll get to this later, but it wasn't as accessible, right, Like everybody you got soundclouds, you got Instagram, you got all these different things. But yeah, gives point. How how are you able to obtain a recording contract back then? Oh? Man? It took. It took to gritting your talent and to

you know, you know, your confidence. Man. Like back in the days, man, we used to go to like it wasn't just lost boys, right yeah, red Man, you had all Keith, Mary, all of us was going at it. So with all that talent in the game, nobody's sounding the same. It's different. Flavors every way you look. It's different. Nig is rapping about different things and different from from PM Dawn to like you said, doys effects, trickal quest.

It was mad, different things popping. You got you got the gangster ship out in l A where you was at car and n w A come on man, hundred miles and running like you don't listen, Man, listen is real. Hip hop and music is just so it's so warm. It's just so influencial. You know what I'm saying. Just maybe just I'm happy I'm be a part of this. You know what I'm saying. It's not just it's just smaller. It's more than just rapping about you know, the struggles

and all. Like you said, you can talk about your lady, were talking about politics, you talked about anything in the rap game. Mean, I mean when you take your time out and really write music is different like anybody like you said, anybody could rap, but it's like yo, when you really put your pen down to the paper and believe think about you know what I'm saying right down was really like I don't know, man, I'm different. I don't I don't freestyle when I rap. I don't. I

don't freestyle the album. I don't fee y'all. I'm putting my pen to the paper. So I'm used to that and being back in it from back in the days. Man, that's what you had to do though, like you have to have skills, you know what I'm saying, And I don't. I'm not saying the game changed like that, but it's like, yes, outside, I gotta ask the game. Like, listen to you, you had Life's camera, actually have renee. But in between the

course it was actual words, lyricism, lyricism, lyricism. Now you listen to music, the whole song, it's course yeah m hm, not putting you on the spot of you know, down plane, the Curse of vers of course, no question, no course for listening to rap. Now, some some artists, you can't tell between the course, hook, the hook, the bridge. You can't. I don't. I can't separate it. It's like it's all the same, right, It's like through the whole song and it's not even a real sixteen bars. No, it's like

two bars. M hmm. It's like the game got like remember we had three verses in your records. Yeah, they don't do that. No more. They can try to get away with one verse and slid. It's like, huh, they're they're successfully doing it. They yeah, they win because the niggas ain't got time to be listening to the whole stories no more. And it just like this now, niggas,

what the bag went? Everything is so fast next forgot about what it is though, Like the game they changing so far that they fed these niggas or they fed all this like uh yeah, it's all about And the radio stations don't even give you you know, you wait, are you gonna wake up to them and take your kids to school or whatever? Yeah, and nigga talking about

I don't even know. I don't want to throw it out because I don't be really, I'll be hearing the records on the way shoot in the radio, y'all playing joint what they're doing, man, I say, but now, but I'm just different in the game in the morning and they talk about give me, I'm like, yo, let's get over there. But it's just different, man on. The game is not the same. Man. I mean a lot of people that used to really care about the game, the xex and all of that, they don't care no more.

They care about YouTube, light blue pikes and all of that. It's not really it's not even about like talent them are. It's about likes and ship like the chicken that glue ahead. If this is coming out with a record, Niggers, get out my fish man. I if these they just get this, this that got the river blue tap to the head, y'all wowing. Man, that's how easy it is. Man. You back in the days you had to work for. We made man. We had to work for like when you now,

I worked for talking with y'all. Right now it's twenty I put my first, my first record out in. Let's shoot that in twenty one. I'm talking to Motherfucky Steve Smith. Nigger. Yes, that big fence, you already know that. You know what I'm saying that love to the face, shout out said man. Whatever, I'm cutting through it on, I'm cutting to it in. I think what you're saying is it's the longevity, right like the Jays wrapping now is still rapping. They have longevity.

They still have the storytelling them. They still have the history and the and and paint. How much of the game right now is I hear exactly what you're saying, no, The point is people are just taking advantage of that fifteen minutes. Yeah, microwave generation instant noodles. Because but here's the thing, you though. Then they get and I'm not gonna name a person, but they take four years and they save up and they and they take all their money and they get a diamond impressed in their forehead.

Oh man, we just go different ship. Yeah, it's different. It's different. It's different. It's different. Every time I see the Homeboy with that in his head, and now I think about, you know, my man from the the the when the superhero ship pull that out of his head, like the Avengers Vengers, like yo, that the Avenger joining is head. That's crazy because it's putting the vengeer joints in their head. It's cool. I'm just I'm just rock these gold teeth man smoke this league. The moral of

that story is it's his rock stars. You gotta forgetta remember now what happened to music videos? Man? I grew up watching Jukebox, oh man, or the Basement. You're on TV jams? You know what? Why why are music videos gone? With them? Shows? At right? Yeah? Well, yeah, I don't know what those shows are either, But why what why you used to make a song? When you did a song, you had to follow up with a music video because if your music video sometimes the music video, what show

your actual song? That that's how people That's how some people consumed it. Yeah, the vision invidual. Like so, how how has it? I mean, if you don't mind breaking it down, like just really how the game has changed? The money? The money because because everyone thinks every rapper that has made it has that bag, and that's the case,

there's a lot. I mean, you look at Tony Braxton, you look at some of these some of these artists who's who have had multiple albums who later come out and they say, hey, a bad contract or the or the deal was not what I thought it was. Um. Then you and then you hear some yeah, and you hear some people they're talking about how you know, going

on tours, the way you make your money. I just I just want to know, like how is it changing how you know for the good and the bad or and why is all this stuff everybody think like like football, there's fifty three guys on the roster, but they're really only about twelve guys making bookoo. Then then the other forties something of them. Uh, they don't. All right, you know they're they're they're doctors and lawyers, but but they

they aren't multimillionaires that people assume they are. It's a different game, brother, know what I'm saying, Like we were in the game, you have to go to labels and get dells and fight food. And you know, now, like I said, it's like it's just giving out the money right now, whatever sticks to the wall. Bang. You know, That's how I look at I ain't even mad at saying that. But when you say they're giving money, you know, not not using yourself as an example, but now you

can use me an example. I'm saying that mistakes. No, No, I know, I'm just talking about as far as like, what's what is you're saying they're giving money away? What's a lucrative deal that that you're hearing that that's out there? They're lucrative deal? They got the three sixties going on and feeling No, I don't over yeah, explained explained to us. You asked me, I'll feeling you I don't. They're taking all your show money. They're giving you the biggest shows

because they're taking some of that money. I mean, this is what it is. They give you budget because they're getting their money at the see what the rectors do? You know, like like it always been. But I really ain't been in the industry, so I ain't really been in the game. I I'm on label and all that. I know my own little routes that I'm taking the way to sell records and all that, so I can explain. I really like when they're giving out these deals down

three sixty. When they see three sixty, like I said, they're taking most of them. It's really like not not you're like everything. It's like when you do shows, you don't you don't give you a label the money. You know what I'm saying. When you do you sell the merchandise, you don't get a lab. Label, don't get that money. I mean yours that's supposed to be you all day. But now they got Like I said, you might have to talk somebody else I know about the really to

the three sixty. But like I said, I'll mean, I am in the game and about what the industry industry. I've been to my own runs, doing my own thing. Mown still popping in but they ain't really like with a label and all of that song of my own label and my own you know, my own backing since when we's doing it. So but it's just like, yo, the games is mad different, man. I can't really explain it because I ain't really playing that game with them

no more, you know. But like I said on what you say, would you say that guys are in the rap game right now? Not everybody? You know, we're not talking about the Drakes. We're not talking about the Kendrick of Mars. You're not talking about the big guys. We're talking about the middle of the road guys. Right they're looking apart. But it doesn't always equal up to the park, fast, fast, fast, a lot of line going on, a lot of front,

a lot of bullshit, a lot of cloud chasing. We get it, we get it, but sometimes you gotta fake it to make it. You know. I think it's about that time. Just take a little breather, do it good, do it. Let's getting down to do it good. Hey Gerard, why did you get that T shirt? You mean this thing? Oh yes, I got it from cut to a podcast dot com where we have exclusive merchandise. Shout out to our guys at seven or four shot. But yeah, you can go on, buy you a T shirt, subscribe to

us wherever you listen to podcasts. There's so much music out there, it's really hard to know who's successful and who's not. And I was gonna say that now, the way that you consume, in the way that it's put out like this, the whole streaming platforms, it's it's a lot to choose from. But then I think also what both of y'all are saying is it seems like that's changed the game too, Like the streaming be good or bad for for the music industry. Like you said, it's

like it's both ways. Man. You know it's good. That's good for me, Nail, they got they got the spot fire, you know, we use all of that. But yeah, I guess it's good. But then it's also bad because god damn man, you get anybody can sell a record head? You know, I don't know, man, I don't know it. I ain't know like music that be hating music. I'm asking. I'm asking because you just going back in the day. First of all, it popped upside the head. If you are to more than one juwbox, Uh, was that like

the mail thing. No jukebox was back in the day, juke box for for Cali dudes was you watch television and you can for ninety nine in or to nine feels a feature. You call in and you request the box that music video or that song, right, yeah, And that's how they do it now. With streaming, you just you just downloaded, pay you pay, or whatever the case may be, and you can download whatever you want. And if it's a feature and it just comes out, you

can download it early, you know, pay for it. And I just and I just see that things are different. And so being a old school cat, you that have had a number of rectors, when somebody downloads it yours, you get the residual, but you capture Back in the day, you were able to capture that information. Right now, it seems like the it seems like it's harder to understand how they capture it because it's so much. With that twenty dollars a month, I can get I can download

as much as I want. You got peloton, right, I get on the peloton. I'm I'm whatever. Right. It just seems it just seems as music has still stayed the same with expression Yeah, the way you can consume it around the world is different, right, It's all the strange man.

And and the question becomes what is the cost of a stream And that's a that's an open ended question, but it goes it goes back to from an artist perspective, like Mr Cheesus is talking about like I'm sure you you knew back in the day, all right, I'm selling the CD. I get it, I get a cut of the CD. But now it is it is very different in in the means of the streaming has just changed the way that people consume and the way that people purchase.

I just remember, like when you can buy an album, then you can buy an album really enjoy an album. No fact, you don't fast forward no records. Man. Yeah it's a lost there's a lot of lost, man. But it's still out there though. Don't get it twisted, because it's some good artists that's still got albums out, Like you know, she Loon got a new album out, she Loo uh uh, Floyd Fluss has got his tent underground. Should uh I love so much you know what I'm saying that I saw. I just want to shut shout

that up. South those out the underground still is as prominent as it is. The problem is coming back, man. I mean, like you know, several times it's like the several of the things that go down and is on his way back, the boom back on air stuff. Yeah, yo, check this out, my man. You know, Brucy b You're the original, you know, from wild Style and all that. Bucy I mean not Brucy be Busy bes busy be. He gotta wreck it out right now that they really paying attention to it. But it's so hard, you know

what I'm saying. It's like it's like we don't really pay attention to all like you know what I'm saying, music like we usual because it's not really out there too for us to get or to hear because they're so flooded with everything else right now. You know what I'm saying, It's like look away from the realhood, the classic ways of making music and really putting the network and the track from Pete Rocking, you know what I'm saying, like,

oh man, oh ship. But I don't mean to jimple of the course, but yeah, I missed music like that, and uh, it's on his way back. Don't trust me that I mean like when you were when you were growing up talking about music on his way back. How thick and legitimate was the East Coast versus West Coast beef? How dick was it? Yeah? Because you know sometimes people be like it wasn't legit, it was just awful. It was all authentic. Yes, it was just all for It was all for show. It wasn't all for show because

two niggas died right now. Man, that ship wasn't no show. Chip is real, but it was a real beef. I mean it wasn't. It wasn't really like no Willie I would beef me. But we was back in biggie because he was on the East Coast and Nigga's that was with Topac's back and pop over there me. But you know the let me tell you the beauty, the beautiful

thing about that East Coast was coast. Me and the motherfucking dog Pound Shot music made Hi remix l in l A together East Coast, West Coast while that beef was going on him saying, so it wasn't really like it was like did he and show ship and a lot of people got caught between that ship. You know what I'm saying I mean, I'm not saying it like that, but I'm saying it, but you're saying that it was. Man, it's a lot of other ship, not the main characters.

They didn't tupac Beef. They had the music going on, but other elements came about, you know, but it seemed like because of the Beef that the realness and the hard work. East Coast tried to outwork West Coast. West

Coast tried to outwork. Yeah, the music was so direct but also so original, so creative, because whatever you came out with, then that side of the Coast had to come back, come back to something more substance, and then and then it burned for more because like like Mistership is saying too like I think they were able to merge them in the Dog Pound were able to merge, and then later on then you got the South Rise and the Right like you got you got outcasts came

into the even having that, but still you're able to birth other projects and other places from the country able to to bring about good music as well. That's a fact. You know. We're gonna do one that we love calls called DP three Man and just it's you know, just about you and their inner perspective. What advice would you give a young rapper starting out today? You know, stay original man, be original in the game. You know what

I'm saying. I mean, go your own way, man, and don't get distracted tracts because the game is crazy, you might get distracted. Don't get distracted at all, Kay, just keep following and going for what you believe in and you understand what you what you want to do is what you You know what I'm saying, that's something what you your way of life and where you want to carry on through your journey. You know what I'm saying. But definitely don't get distracted and the original keep that

fire in you man. Go hard. That's bottom nine. Like a lot of people don't know it took us ten years to make that one record. Like styles that mention shameless, So I mean we was doing that. We was making records, were making records. It's like what eighty seven, so you know, things just we developed into becoming the lotst boys that and this. We went hard and we got that album there, you know what I'm talking about, Like he was working our way up there and it took us ten years.

Aget established and go and bang out with Tim Dog and them and get a record there, to make one record from eight these eighty six eighty seven and ship like that. You started making music at what fifteen years old in fact, So it just took us a while to get to one of the be So never give up type ship. You know what I'm saying. You gotta go through it to get to it. You know what I mean. Got you so if you hadn't become a rapper, what would you have done? Oh? Man, I probably claimed

ball basketball That is not football, not football. We knew that early. Like yo, yeah baby, okay, okay, I still man to man. When when you get back in the COVID is old meet you down here. Okay, come on here, no chucks, you better come some real basketball shoots. I'm coming out with the Air Force ones hot top. This is North Carolina. It's to Bacco Road. We can go with the r C. Wallace's Baby. I know what you're saying.

I don't tell you. I'm gonna tell you right now because my son is getting taller than me, and I told this morning he did something. I was in the pantry, you trunk tell you. Look, I ain't gonna low Bridge. I'm tack but you ain't dunking. You better know it better, Hey, Mr Cheeks, and I know you you Paul come, your little skinny as trying to dunk on you better put it in them out, Please take out some golds now I'm hitting them three something another word, I'm doing the

light do It's like that in other words? You don't want those? Yeah, he trying to ice up. No, Steve, you and mamam cotting Steve Marley, I know them. You're not let you do. You know that, but you're gonna run and tell everybody right, so you're not doing nothing on the right. I understand. I understand, and so I take it from over here and bing bing, I shoot the lights out there. Oh okay, listen, she's got range. You already do our last one? Man, is it's more

of a thing. Is it's less of of a question. I can tell you this, um, And I told you when I was when I was on your show. But man, I grew up listening to to your songs man and Renee renew Renee was one of the songs man that I just remember, and it just um, you know, growing up on the West coast. There was this West coast field. You weren't really allowed to really like other other folks stuff on the East coast, Man, but Renee was one of those things. And that's all meant something. You can

tell that's meant something, and it was. It was really cool, man, And I and I and I just want to thank you, because when you look at the rap game, you look at some of the stuff that's out there, Man, it is hard to listen to. It's sometimes you'll find yourself saying some stuff where you find yourself thinking you're like and I questioned where this is coming from. It was coming from a place, and a lot of your music

comes from place of where you were in life. But then also what you experience, you experience the loss, your experience love, you experience relationship, man, and and that's what music really is about. When you go when you when you break it down, it goes back into experiences and you let us you gave us a peek into the

window of your experience, you know. So I just want to tell you, man for for me growing up and being able to do this podcast and talk to talk to current players and entertainers, but also being able to talk to the right man. It's it's an honor and the privilege in this respect facts man, so love man, it's all a blessing. Man. We keep it like this,

it's gonna just be. It ain't the old game. You know what I'm saying, Like, I appreciate that that I gonna write music for us, you know what I'm saying. I ain't just write that for me, man, It's definitely when I write my music, I'm writing for every brother and if you if you if you rock them with me, well if you're not. You know what I'm saying. I know some people that have been through what I've been through.

So I definitely trying to put that into the to my my music all day every day, you know what I'm saying. So I write for us, brother, I write for us, you know what I'm saying. Yeah, who was the most important artist to you growing up in l A mm hmm. And just thinking about it, he looked back, obviously, Tupac um ice Cube, Dr Dre, Like just you know, I think growing up, you know, growing up around that time, you you're always looking for something or grasping for something. Um,

I think you know, sports, celebrities entertainers. Music. I think music, especially for young men. Um, I think it's easier to relate to, especially back in the day because of the music videos, the the glitz and the glamour. Um. But um, I think music music hash change, so I don't really see music the same way today that I used to see it. So, um, I think music back when I was a kid, back in the eighties and nineties impacted you so differently. It made for me, I agree with

everything you said. For me, I love music, specifically hip hop. Of it always made a very big world seems smaller. It allowed me, living in North Carolina to to hear West Coast stuff like the chronic to hear uh n w a T to hear even bumping up a little bit more the game, like all these different artists. It gave you an experience outside of what you know, outside of your your your own habitat. So for me, uh, it's big because it always gave kind of that that

market time. Like you remember, I remember when Lights Camera Action by Mr Chiefs came out. That was two thousand and one, Like I remember that stuff. It's it very much points to a moment in time. But just having an artist like him. It was. It was so amazing, and we're planning to have a lot more artists on the show. What role did music play in your wrote music is. Music has played a huge role, especially as an athlete, because it gives you an opportunity to kind

of zone out, zone in check in music. There's old school music. Man, when I when I play it in the car, I could just remember. I can, but I can remember, like like Lauren Hill, the fujis listening to them, like as you say that, I remember when I was listening to that when it first came bro. I can remember in fourth grade when the score came out. How

about this stuff. I can remember sitting at home when with the NFL football somebody gave me and having my radio listening to the THEO right with that dark that that deep voice who was an Asian guy, right that nobody knew that was a big thing back then, back home, Um big boy, power one, power one oh six or you know power um and just remember and I could sit back and remember I was we were at one nine and a half Cambridge Way, and I can remember sitting there in the living room and some of my

playing in the playoffs and losing, and I had some of my articles, and I remember tattooing the Superman, drawing the Superman s on the on my picture. And we had wood paneling, and we have bunk beds, and I can remember sitting in the house in my room day dreaming about catching the football they dreaming about playing in the nfl um also practicing uh nutcrackers, trying to get faster on my feet, and I just remember trying to be here, trying to be w I am today. But

that music was the soundtrack behind Oh. That music allowed me to daydream. And when I hear that music, it reminds me and then it makes me kind of fast forward to where sometimes and I and I read this and it and it really puts it in perspective for me, is there is a basket of fresh bread on your head, and yet we go door to door asking for crust. I remember when I had crossed and I was asking for bread, And yet now and forty be forty two this year, and how I have bread, And sometimes I

forgot I used to beg for crust. That music is a great reminder. Mr Cheeks was a great reminder. Man, I just gotta be grateful for today. You are a unique person, you are well worth it, you are competent, and most of all, your lovable. I'm Steve Smith singor I'm Gerald Little John and this has cut to It. Cut to It with Steve Smith Senior. That Is Me is a production of Cut to It LLC, Balto Creative Media,

The Black Effect and I Heart Radio. For more podcast from I Heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows from Cut to It. Executive producer Steve Smith, Singer co host Gerard Little John, talent in booking manager Joe Fusci, Social media team Wesley Robinson and John show from Balto

Creative Media. Cut to It is produced by Brian Baltaschevic and Meredith Carter, with production assistance by Alex Lebrek, Production manager Sarah Pollock, Theme music by Alex Johnson, lyrics and vocals by Anthony Hamilton. You ain't heard about it, then We're about to let you know. It's all