Episode 380 w/ Special Ed

He is drink Chess, motherfucking podcast. He's a legendary queens rapper. He ain't agreed. That's your boy in O R E. He's a Miami hip hop pioneer. What Up it's DJ.

E f N. Together they drink it up with some of.

The biggest players, you know what I mean.

And the most professional, unprofessional podcast and your number one source for drunk.

Fast drink chants. Motherfuck post every day.

Is New Year's s E. Listen, it's time for drink champs, drink up, motherfucking.

Mother would a good be hoping he's gonna should be. This your boy in O R E? What Up?

Is DJ E f N?

And this is.

Motherfucking classic drink Chess make And right now, when I tell you, man, this man basically raised me with his music.

Man legend.

This man has been out here, you know what I mean, a monkey foot in the game for years. We've been working out to it all week, listening to his music. Just the brush up on what's going on.

Man.

The man is. It's a legend of legend. He's an icon. His wordplay, the ship that he was doing back then, Holy moly, guacamole is still doing now still got festival, still got.

Shit going on. In case you don't know the fun we about.

Now.

This is a song where I was going through your catalog. This is a song immediately and never go back?

Yeah, Man, is that?

Can I live sample? Nah?

Can I live sample? Never go back?

That's what I'm saying, That's what I mean.

Well, I came out first with it. That was produced by hit Man How We Tea? And first, let me just tell T send my love and respect in regards to hit Man How We te Man?

He changed my life.

He changed a lot of people's lives man, but mind especially Man since I was fifteen years old.

Wow.

He's also produced for Chub Rocks absolutely chub Rock, Little Sean Pumo, Whistle U TF folder, Real Rock Saying, and the list goes on and on.

Yeah, So let's let's get back to what we were talking about being for that.

Never go back the sample.

Because I'm listening to it. Wow, did Jay get that off for you?

Absolutely?

At least at least I did because I put it out first. I mean, the way it goes and hip hop is when you hear something and then.

You do it. You did it based on what you heard.

Is it.

How we did that, I don't know.

We could look on like Isaac cays, you can look on whose sample or whatever, but yeah, how we I just coming, I just come in the studio, and how we got it playing. I actually wrote that joint in probably about thirty minutes the whole song, because that's how charged I was.

Off the beat. I was like, oh, this ship is hard, and.

It's the kind of yeah, it's the kind of vibing level you could really kind of freestyle. But there was factors involved. He was at the time, he was working with Little Vicious. Yeah, so I threw them in there. Donovan shout outs to the hustler. You know what I'm saying, and that see you got the Saint Norir hosest.

All praises.

Do I need one man sat ed candle burn that shit all day?

Yeah. I'm Jamaican ja.

Yeah.

And that's one of the reasons why my first record I said I'm not a Puerto Rican because coming from Brooklyn and so much cultural diversity in the New York, everybody thought I was everything Dominican Puerto Rican every day. So I had to kind of dispel that one time. But I never got the answer Jamaican from anybody, right.

Because I always I mean, listening to your music, we always hear when you pick up the flat buysh and all that. I always thought that you were Guyanese. I always thought that to me, Guyanese like Jamaica's cousins.

Right, well, we's all from the Caribbean.

It's all the Caribbean, same areas, you know what I mean, Puerto Rican, Cuba, Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, it's just the colonizes. I believe language the colonizer spoke right right, yeah, I believe.

The first time I met you, I said, are you a Puerto Rican? I was like, this motherfucker said that ship.

He's not a Puerto Rican.

And I said, listen, all right, let's let's.

Do you know.

You have arguably one of the best beats ever made in hip hop.

Howie Tea once again?

I got it made, how made ty? How We Tea changed my life. He actually produced the entire first album, Young and Youngest in Sharks, and at the time I was fifteen years old, so I was just really r y Ronan. But I was actually going through the crates with him and I was doing some producing myself, and he actually wanted to give me producer credit and I refused. I was now, man, I was like back then, yeah, back then, because I was just honored to have.

Him, as you'd have been the first, off, daddy, the first, like.

I am the first.

I am unequivocal.

Me now.

And in terms of that, now, let's talk about that we are we invented all that remix ship period, so they could claim whatever they want, but how We Tea was the one. How we remix everything, and not just for me, for every other artist as well. So when they talk about remix this and we the remix that, no, y'all not man, how we Tea Brooklyn, New York, let's go, it's like Harry.

I can't even put it on blasts.

And so last night, because I got the worst phone in the world, I'm gonna send this to hash. You got the better phone, right, I mean, yes, this.

Was this last time we tea to remain one.

Kids hooked up so you could play it.

Your little Bobby, how did you guess? Connect you and Howie te how we tea?

Howie Tea lived across the street from my first cousins flat, So yeah, so we grew up right across the street. From each other, and they were friends, family friends, so I seen it, neew them all my life, like when they first came out, we'll like get tough in like eighty two eighty three.

Like we was.

We was there. I was there when it was making. He's brock cousin.

Oh okay okay, And I believe actually little Sean had to bring him to Howie he you know, he was bashful. I guess you know what I'm saying, But I wasn't. So I went to my cousin and I was like, yo, take me across the street. When I was little, they used to hold my hand to walk across the street.

No, I was that little, was always was.

But that's how long I've been around how we tea and production and all that stuff. So they used to take me across the street to watch them make mixtapes.

They used to have to set outside and DJ and hap.

Yeah, because they used to have the crew out there with the mics, And to me as a little dude, it was like incredible. I was like, oh ship, they up here performing in the driveway in the backyard type shit.

But they making mixtapes.

I mean.

And that was my first real hands on exposure, and then one time he made a mixtape and he remade the Bubble Bunch Beat. Shout out to Jimmy Spicer Man because that's my other biggest influence because he was from Flatbush two he was from Brooklyn and super round Bubble Bunch Dollar Bill y'all. Yeah, that was Jimmy Spicer Man. I used to listen to that religiously.

So you said you had You just did a concert in Cony Island.

Oh yeah, I curate. I do concerts.

I did Coney Island Hip Hop fiftieth with Summer Stage with City Parks Foundations. Yeah, and I got another one coming up on Sunday. I'm doing a Native Tongues tribute with Red Alert, Jungle Brothers, Chili, Black Sheep, Dress, Money Love. Yeah, Sunday Sunday Sunday was incredible. I had an incredible line up, man, and it was a bunch of cl smooth, nice and smooth.

What's up with's moving?

P rock Man?

They can't get along. Well, I'm I don't know, man, you know that's between them.

But I do know that I'm you know, family with both of them, and I always encourage them to get the people what they want because that's what it's about, you know what I'm saying. Anytime I see discord, you know, I know what that's about. You know, we donet been through it. I don't been through it. I've been in this game over thirty years, so I know how to go, you know what I'm saying. And the most important thing though, is not to destroy the brand, the legacy, because that's

Yeah, that original energy. You know what I'm saying. Do you recognize Flat Push anymore?

Do me? You?

Oh?

I recognize it. But I'm in awe of all the buildings they put up and the whole is out. I don't know if they got whole foods, but they got a whole foods look alike Flatbush and fall Time, Yeah yeah, and they got a whole bunch of little eateries and shit, it's so many other ethnicities there. Sometimes I think it's police man, Like, what the funk going on? Is this an operation investigation?

Because I used to go to Brooklyn around the eighties and and things like that, and I would never since that. It's a place called Dumbo in Brooklyn. Have you ever have you been to Dumbo?

Yeah, Dumbo is all under the Brooklyn Bridge. But that's man by the days, back in the days, that was abandoned. That was like really it was warehouses. We actually shot Crookling down there. Get the fun out of here, man.

Crooklyn was shot in Dumbo.

It was.

Oh, buck shot in Master.

Ace was on the show in Coney Island, and we did Crookland absolutely shout out of the buck shot at Ace. See my memory. I'm getting old, but you know, I know, I know what we're doing. Oh yeah turned saint nor no man so because I'm not gonna lie.

But but Brooklyn is still Brooklyn though, like like you you still get it because like this is place in Dumbo and.

I enjoy going to Dumble.

All that is on the other.

Side of the side.

They still haven't given a proper.

Attention to the rest of Flatbush, Brown Bill, East New York, Red Hook, even Coney Island.

Like it's even though they fix up the park.

In the beach and the second did a couple of things Coney Island as well.

Well.

Absolutely, I mean everybody's trying to do what they can for this for the town. It's just a matter of the city actually putting those dollars into our communities and not just where they gentrifying, you know what I'm saying that that's what's happening. And we gotta as a people understand how this works. We have to go to the city planning meetings and see what's happening. That's how they come in and moving by everybody out because they know what's going to happen.

That's exactly that's how it's going down. Yeah.

Yeah.

And the thing the thing about that is you have to sample our record because if you try to get the original, you ain't you ain't gonna it ain't gonna sound like the sample because of how we processed it. Wow, it's an og production secret behind that.

So no matter what if they try to go to the original, they still have to go to the.

Original that y'all made, right, because the original, when you sample it, it ain't gonna have that picture or that tone or to it, it's gonna sound totally.

Look, I just want you to look read the message. He just sends me this record out the blue and there's no look, just out the blue. That's the record right there. And I say, I say, crazy, crazy crazy, and interview specially add tomorrow it's good. Wow, we're dealing with we're dealing with natural and supernatural forces.

Right that was?

That was like I was like, cause I was like yo, And you.

Know, usually I put out uh when I interview an artist, I'll say, you know, you got questions for him, but I didn't do that to this morning, so there's no way that he could understand that. I was like, Yo, the snetic energy is working man. So so how many people have sampled that record?

Man?

I can't start the count. Wow, bunch like a dozen from R and B.

To hip hop.

Yeah, and a lot of them is you know, unreleasing new artists that you might not hear, but you know they've had some that have gone a little bit and got a little airplay, a little buzz. But me personally, I feel like I don't touch that record because it's a classic, right, and I don't want to even you know, tarnish the reputation. You know what, you know, it's the killer though, the killer is the killer bought to that is. I recorded this song at fifteen years old.

I wrote.

You are Stupid before I wrote it prior to recording, So when I wrote that was probably between yeah, yeah, thirteen, fourteen years old.

Okay.

Yeah.

To describe the session, you go to Hobbie t Yeah, and he's already got to be playing.

I got it made.

Yes, I believe we went through the digging and the sampling because I heard the process. I heard of how he truncated it and chopped it and s now fifty, I'm.

Gonna get y'all a little, a little Joels. You know, s now fifty got some tools on it.

So yeah, he went through that and chopped it up, and I was like, oh, yeah, that's hard. Oh and then what I started doing was piecing together my braggadocious round right.

You know what I'm saying, because that was the style back right right right.

Well, see, it was either gonna be a story or I'm a diss you, or I'm a talk shit, right, So I said I'm gonna talk shit.

Yeah, and I got it made. Yeah, that's it.

Yeah, but that record has outlived the test of time.

Amen.

Like I don't think there's no party in the world. I was gonna say America, but I don't think there's no party in the world that you can't put that on.

And everyone knows that record.

Well, well, you know what it is.

It's about programming.

So the same way they programming negativity, I was programming positivity and empowerment.

I'm your idol, handled right.

So when you say those words, you're empowering yourself. You manifested greatness, godliness. You feel me. So that's what that was really about, and that's why it resonates in my opinion, that's why I still resonate the way it do. And then in addition, I wasn't talking brand names and dating myself. Wow, you'll free no free advertising, y'all ain't free advertising?

Okay, then I was not.

I was never into that you feel me? And I was ghost writing too at that age. Like when I was fifteen years old, I go, so I wrote a record for the real rock sannes. Oh wow, right, and they never pay me. So I like, fuck ghost.

Like you're rocking little your rocking kids records.

You know what I'm saying that Robin kids Man who was Select Record, wasn't that game?

Oh yeah, Redmano owned it. But Chuck was on Select and I think was Utfo on Select. I'm not sure, but there was some a lot of There was a lot of artists. Yeah, he had a good catalogue. You know what I'm saying. He was just a fuck fucked up business man. You know what I'm saying now, It was you know, thank you for going to there. Now.

It seems like.

From the Melly Mail days, right, yeah, up until eighty nine's and then in the nineties, I would say to past ninety five, the record contracts got got better. What was these record contracts like when you when you.

Guys, Well, they were trying to take everything and then they were to give up. Yeah, they was trying to take the publishing. And I was like, nah, they got it was oh yeah. I was explained by my lawyer because what happened is I read it for myself and then the lord young age you hell yeah, that's the hen Look. I read it for myself and what I did was I questioned certain things because it was assigning rights to people.

I'm like, they ain't right. My shit, So why is they getting this?

And then what I was told was that for the record deal, that's their interest is the publishing.

So I had to give up half of it. You know, well, this is the thing.

Now. The management I had at the time was trying to take the other half, and I was like, hold the fuck up. They ain't write my ship and why are they interested in my publishing? I was like, nah, what do I get if they get fifty and they get fifty or the fuck I'm left with?

So I was like, nah, they dead on that. So I got my fifty and then the label got fifty.

But as far as points, they was on, did they pay you for the that they took?

No, they ain't paying me. It's part of the deal and whatever's coming in for it was part of the contract.

This was fucked up. Yeah, it was fucked up worse. It was like Motown for hip hop you feel me? And then you know that was the terms. And the points was like twelve points or some shit over one hundred points out of the guns. Wow, so a point is a percent of y'all at trying to figure it out. So when they say point, they just fancy talk four percent and.

I heard you say earlier, My bad for jumping around. You heard it say earlier. You say you've been in the game thirty years. Now over, it's these albums reverting back to you because we.

Heard about to right now. Because I don't follow all my paperwork for the revers it thirty years.

It's thirty five. I believe it. You just told us I've been hearing thirty five. I always heard it with thirty, so it changed.

I just got to read read the laws. Okay, the copyright at thirty. You can begin the process, okay, all right, Yeah, you can begin the process and start filing your paperwork and sending your letters out. So I did that like three four, five times. I'm making sure I get my ship.

Wow.

So so what happens if you get your back? Oh, I get all my ship back.

And then you can you you you take these albums and then you essentially put them out.

How does how does that work?

You own all the rights to it, all the publishing rights, all the mechanical rights, and you are able to now have ownership of your material.

You could now at wants to do a deal with you, like to put it. You would be the licensing right and right now.

I still get paid fifty percent, but they do the admin and then do that, so you don't know how to shake them up for my ship.

Yeah, Like I just finished shaking them up for my ship for real. But what do you mean like what they had the weight hand? Can they're holding his money?

I mean a lot of people sample, but the money come from different places. So I get my money from Sony, but then profile still got an interest in it, and I gotta go be like, Yo, where my bread?

Bro? You know what I'm saying, And then they send me some bread, right goddamn it, man, goddamn.

I had to learn patients though, because I wasn't that patient back in the days. Man, it was really about to go down. They sold out their back as well. Yeah men, yeah, well time Tom all.

Okay ship shit he said time? Yeah you said, Tom, Well not.

That time. They are up to their thirty something rights as well.

They had to fight for it.

Was the time was I believe I believe their deal was messed up. I believe they explained it that time, because I believe they split. They split that twenty five percent that was left of they publishing. I believe I might be misquoting them and they split that twenty five amongst themselves.

So that's what happened.

Yeah, so that the label's interest is your publishing, so they tried to take as much as they can and then whatever it's left, you have to split as a group. You know what I'm saying. And I was a solo artist, so you know what I'm saying. But yeah, damn so how.

About and you said how we tea produced that whole album? Absolutely so did how we team make out good?

Or yeah, how we making out good?

We tee you all right?

And he split publishing too, okay, okay, and that's how go oh he has to producer portion?

Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely, yeah.

Hell yeah god that You artists gotta listen to this ship because it is real.

Man, And they've been taking advantage of artists for years because there were no standardizations, there were no rules.

Whatever the whatever you signed for is what the deal is then.

But as time progress and we start knowing our worth, just like with the shows before, we getting whatever the performing. Now they getting a million dollars to perform, feel me half a million dollars a million dollars to fifty one hundred and fifty. They getting real numbers to.

Perform, right, Yeah, definitely, yeah, to get it out. So let me let me ask you, how did it feel? Man? I was a kid, I'm forty five years old, I'll be forty six September. But me watching this and me seeing these records, like, how did it feel back then to.

Be the man?

Back then?

Hip hop really madtered?

You know what I mean?

Good?

But I was always grounded because I knew what entertainment was and what it consisted of. Man, And I never let that shit get to me in that way, you know what I'm saying. And I was never one of them, you know, one of the bandwagon type people. I never followed other entities and other racial identities down those roads, like I ain't let nobody lead me in, you know, because I was already being abused since the beginning. So I was watching everybody like the fuck away from me.

It had to because you know, right now, my person couldn't continue to take a record and they throw it out in Japan tomorrow. But back then you had to actually go market to market to market, and you having one of the most powerful records in the universe.

How did it feel going to your.

First time the Philly or your first time to Delaware because at the time it was just New York. Yeah, if you hot in New York, you hot in the world. But then you had to travel to these places, right, How did it feel like going to these places and they know who you are?

Well?

It felt great, man, especially when you on stage and they singing the songs with you. That's a feeling you can't you know what I mean, You damn you know. Hey, I'm about to give y'all a mic.

You feel me?

So it's one of those feelings. It's just still knowing the other end in the back end. You know, you can't abuse your power, you know what I'm saying. And that's what a lot of people go too far. They abuse their power, and you know they don't they don't respect the game. They just run, I mean until they fall and break their fucking ankle, right, so let.

Me now, it's admission not a small time thing. That video was like the first time I seen a theatrical Yeah, and and in in videography cinema, like you know what I mean, like in black cinema, like like like it was like a movie to.

Me watching that that then and I see that that that.

Video to me Birth like the Biggie Smalls videos where he's like, you know what I mean, like like the movie style videos.

Was that something you planned on doing?

Well?

I think that stemmed from think About It.

They Think About It, had the hovercraft, the helicopters, and then it went into the mission where that was another story.

It was chases and all kind of stuff going on.

Karate fight yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, So I think it just went into that direction. But Cheacob Bruce, a female director, is the one that Birth and came up with the whole treatments and the video for Think About It. Oh wow, And that's the one where you know we went on the whole chase and it was actually the whole theme

All the ruined me. So that was the storyline.

But it birthed that type of dramatic scenery and the whole theatrical elements, and yeah, you know, everybody started getting real theatrical with their videos.

I feel like you birthed that.

I feel like those two videos, like you said, think about it, and and the fact that those budgets were open for I forgot. It was like to be continue, wasn't it. I'd like to be continue. I feel like you grated that well cheek of Bruce Man.

I gotta give it up because at that time, once again, I didn't come up with the treatment I was. I was sixteen that by then, you know what I'm saying. And I never shot a video or directed or produced a video on my life. So all the praises do the cheek of Bruce a female director.

You feel me?

How come him when they were sixteen? They were so bright and he's sixteen year olds fucking high?

Well, what happened is because back then we was actually going through a struggle and it was actually real economic hardships that we had to overcome. I could see him being from Queen's Bridge, queen Bridge still fucked up.

You feel me?

And me coming from Brooklyn. We're trying to find a way out of the debts, you know what I'm saying. We're trying to find a way out of poverty and not jumping into poverty and then having the resort to doing wherever youbody else in the street doing robbing people, selling drugs, going to jail. You know what I'm saying, dying?

You feel me?

So it was for me just trying to find a reasonable solution where I ain't got to watch my back. You know what I'm saying, Well, I still got to watch my back, but not in a negative way where I've done somebody some wrong.

Feel me.

I'm not out there doing crime, selling drugs, looking for the police.

I don't give two fucks about the police. Ain't nothing on me. But what examples did you have at that age that At that age.

The examples were everybody dying and going into you just didn't want to do that exactly.

I was not going in that direction, you know what I'm saying. And it was easy. It was easy to do. I mean, there was access to everything.

We had opportunity, but me knowing better and having four older brothers to learn from as well, because they all went through those pitfalls, you know what I'm saying.

And I was like, no, I'm not doing that. I'm not going to jail, I'm not going to die.

I'm not standing out here on the streets selling drugs, you know what I'm saying. And to me, that wasn't enough money because when once you re up, you left with a couple of dollars, you're gonna buy sneakers like I wasn't with that. I need real money, you know what I'm saying. And I ain't working for nobody. I ain't working for them. I ain't working for nobody think they're gonna work me or rule me. Ain't nobody ruling me, you know, I feel me ain't no man above me

Goddamn. Now, how did you get the name special AD?

Was you in special AD?

Nah? Man? Because I was a special and resource room and I probably amen.

Okay, hey, how that go? How that go is?

Obviously my name is ed.

But my man e Dot came to me, he got from Flatbush, and he was like, Yo, you should call yourself special LED. I had a personality you feel me. I wasn't in Special LED, but I had a personality like a motherfucker. And at the end of the day after he said that, I thought about it, and I could have took it two.

Ways, but I was like, nah, this is my bro. He ain't gonna be town.

Special education was frowned upon.

It was frown upon. But I thought about that, and I was like, you know what, fuck that?

Because for one, I can change the dynamics of how it's perceived, and for two, I'm gonna teach y'all.

Motherfucker something, and for three, my.

Name ed and I'm special, So it was way too many reasons why I should as opposed to watch. I'm just fuck what class y'all think, I'm in whatever, whatever, y'all gonna know how intelligent I am when y'all hear this shit or when I speak.

So I wasn't really worried about that. And I think that whole special.

Led thing is just you know, their way of saying, we don't know how to deal with that's all. We don't know how to deal with this because some ain't nothing wrong, ain't nothing wrong with you. It's just a matter of not being the common every day motherfucker that they can deal with the behavior. But I know they was lying.

And sometimes it's what you say.

Sometimes they want to railroad you because you got a brain and you got a voice, and you have an opinion.

You know what I'm saying. Yeah, it's it's how they set you back. When I want to bet award, we wanted to bet award. I grab my thing and I was like, everyone, there's a special education. My DMS lit up from all the special education teachers.

It was like use speech. I was like, I think it's just part of that, you know, it's part of that, like the School of Prison pipe right right for basically what it what it is, It's part of the School of Prison pipeline. Other than there are some kids with special needs and don't have you know, don't have it together where they need that extra attention. But half of the kids is just they don't give a fuck. They're like, y'all talking to me crazy shit like that. You know

So look, you're still really young coming out of the gate Lyrically something is inspiring your or is it really just coming out of your own ether?

Well, like I was inspired by Yeah, I was inspired by the Ogs, like I said, Jimmy Spicer for one, because Jimmy Spicer put out a fifteen minute record with like ten stories in it.

And because you definitely come from a special ad of storytelling.

Storytelling, so he inspired me on the storytelling special my bad because he told stories about Dracula, about different and shit, and it was right creative. It wasn't just like some you know, it wasn't boring. It was humorous, it was creative, and that inspired me. And then I listened to shit like you know, Mellie Mel Curious five and the message that inspired me, Howie t CD three Get Tough, that inspired me. So it was the content that inspired me more so. And I was like, damn, I gotta be

You know, that's a very interesting question because a lot of people should say back then that the record labels had more of a control over the music.

Was it like that back then?

Like, well, it was they there wasn't a bunch of explicit records like this. Now you could say anything because there's no label control at all. And then the labels, uh, you know, came up with their agenda later, but back then in the early eighties, they definitely didn't want They wanted songs that could play on the radio. They wanted songs that they could sell openly. They didn't want a bunch of hardcore ship. So really, until n w A

Because you came out of eighty nine, correct, yeah, eighty nine, So then what what what? What?

W came eight nine and I think the single, the single was eighty eight, the album was eighty nine.

Yeah, it was the single the police knowing no, it was my single, I got it. Yeah.

But then n w A came out and they ship was hardcore, and I was like, see they could say what they want, right, but the label didn't want to market me in that way. And I had I had hard ship, like I was a battle rapper on the street, so that's what I did, and they didn't want that.

They wanted commercial belt. Yeah, making belt.

I had a few. I had a future making belt yeah yeah, everything the ratchet to Ratchet and the switch blade in.

The belt yeah yeah yeah yeah.

Flat was a wild hell yeah yeah, Flatbush myself yeah for real, and he Hall was I'm gonna tell the truth. He Hall was like one of the worst schools in the city, especially when I got in there, Like they had big ass gaping holes.

In the walls on the hallway and the boards. It was like, you motherfuckers, what you're doing here?

Yeah?

Serious, So we had to deal with that, and it was But when you in it and you that young and you feel this, it ain't nothing. But thinking back as an adult now, I'm like, come on, y'all had a budget cleaning ship up back then. Yeah, me and Buster Rhymes went to elementary school together, the school like this is and Walt Whitman Junior High School especially as well.

Did that help the native tongue affiliation because Buster was considered native tongue, right, Yeah?

Probably so. I don't know, though, I mean, you know, they had their own vibe with the leaders of the new school. I think Chuck bred them. Chuck d shout out to Chuck d. He bred the leaders of the New School. I think came up with the whole group. He named name the group right in the group. So yeah, and the busters from around my way. What happened is he moved to Long Island and then that's when he started rapping and came back and you know, back to the hood. Yeah right, you ever throw hip hop VI

I guess I was too.

I mean, yeah, yeah, I appreciate run DMC, but I couldn't really like I mean, they kind of hushered in that global the glow.

Yeah, you know movement of hip hop. Yes, of course Bambada and then were doing it before, but I feel like run DMC took it. They took it to the next level commercially.

Yeah, and that and that's one of the reasons why I was eager to sign with Profile Records because that was the label that's signed to. We were on the same label, and when I was like Profile, I was like, oh, that's right. They could do for me what they did for run DMC. So that's why I jumped on it.

I was like, hell yeah, but you know, me going through your music and me listening, Yo, you sound like absolutely nobody.

How come you was a hot m C back back then and still is?

But right right now, I can listen to fifteen people that's out all. I can't even that's right now though, that's right now that you know what I'm saying.

If you blindfold me, I'm like that's him.

Oh, that's him, that's him, that's him.

Like right now, I can listen to your voice, I can listen to this great voice. I can listen to EPMD. I will not say that they sound like anybody. How come it was like that back then? And how come it's not like that now?

Because we all wanted to be original, we wanted to own identities. Now it's a bandwagon effect. It's like, oh, this sold a million records, let me make a copy cat. Yes, So it's really about cloning right and making it a commodity that makes money. The industry doesn't care about the culture. They just like this works, okay, keep going right going, and they keep pushing out the same shit back to back.

Right, what happens to this artist? Because I remember La Red. I remember me going to see La Reed, right, me picking a single off of my album, Me saying yo, I wanted to go with this album, and La Reed saying I think you should go with this Automatically, I'm like, all right, cool, let me go with him. Because if I make a mistake, then then it's your miss then it's my mistake. He makes a mistake, where's the artist that stand up to that.

Well, the independent artist now they put out whatever the fuck they want. However, with a train air and the understanding of the way, you know, radio plays and marketing goals, you got to have something that is listenable, that is digestible to the audience, and something that you could play like you want something you could play on a soul train or you can play on television and it's not risky,

Are you listening to any new music now?

Be honest, I barely listen to music. Brokay, Okay, he's kind of new.

I mean't.

I don't listen to any particular artists. I'm gonna keep it real. I don't have nobody album. I don't google nobody name. What I might do is put on like my R and B shit like I like, if I could listen to something that calmed me down.

That's what I listened to.

You taking your girl to show my wife?

Nah, I ain't taking. No. I don't the concerts unless I'm in them. No, I said, you're just mad niggas wiggas.

Serena.

I don't even I don't even know what happened.

But I don't go.

I don't go to concerts. I'm sorry. I don't go to concerts.

I don't go nowhere. I'm not getting paid.

I's just doing ure is going.

He's performing.

Whoever is like girls in the ground, He's going to them and singing to them.

You got it, you got it bad. See well, he's an R and B crewner. I know usher since he was a child.

Damn it.

His mama introduced me to him when he was a child, goddamn it. So you know, I wish him all the success in the world. Whatever tactics he feels he needs to use to make money and stay famous. Oh he's doing it more power tool.

I just meant for me.

I don't go to any concert that I'm not a part of or getting paid. Sometimes, however, I may have good friends that are performing, and I might go, like I went to a New Addition concert just to see them.

I fucks with them. That's not people. You know what I'm saying.

If we need you up here, but you ain't going to the Drake concert.

Oh you know what. When I was in New Orleans one time I went to a Drake concert with some friends just on the random, really, but it was just me falling in because that's what they was doing. But like I said, I don't really go to concerts like that too often at all.

Man.

I don't look for it it, don't you know. I ain't got nothing to do with me. You know what I'm saying.

I go with it, I go away.

I'm picking up that back in. You know what I'm saying.

If I'm throwing the concert, as in the case with the City Parks and my concert, I got one coming up Sunday, you know what I'm saying, shout outs to the violators. Rest in peace, baby, Chris. I'm doing this for y'all. Man, I'm doing this for Red Alert. And that's pretty much it. Man, that's a concert.

Let me let me do recommend two concerts for you would like to attend. I didn't see the fifty and Buster, and I believe Jeremiah I was on that tour. I didn't see it wasn't physically there, but I last stream it every fucking night. It's fucking awesome. But I went to the nas and the Wu Tang Joint, and I kid you not, I.

Went to one of those when the game, the Charlotte my Man, my Man divined com. He was like, yo, we and Charlotte he just hit me today him out there and Arlot Yeah yeah yeah. So basically that's it, man, they got to invite me, right if they don't, like, I don't know.

I don't know, I'm not paying attentions. I write myself though, I was.

I pulled up on them and it was.

So dope because you know, when you get to see these groups like that, like NAS and Wu Tang, you would think that NAS will come out and perform and the Wan will come out and the form and the Wan come. No, they actually did it like as as, like like NAS does five songs and they come out and it's like I was like a mixtape on stage and I was like, oh, l roots that pretty.

It's pretty dope to yeah, yeah, yeah, well they got that from us, the alumni. We've been doing that for ten years old, myself, Chub Rock, Dame to Dane Kwame, Money Love and Greg Nice. We've been performing together like one group for ten years the fuck because so that's.

Where they got that.

Who's the people going to say again? Special Led Chuck Rock, Dana, Dane Money love mo Ma, Greg Nice Nice.

That's what I'm saying.

We all classic iconic hip hop artists and we've been doing that shit over ten years. So when they say, yeah, we're doing this and doing that year, we did that ship already. Thank you.

Yeah you're welcome, man, Thank you and your welf. It's an honor to be honored. What do you think about hip Hop fifty? Hip Hop fifty is it's appropriation.

It's appropriation because what they're doing now is they putting together these great lineups and then they're gonna overcharge the public. See the concerts I'm doing for the fifty is free to the public. It's free for the people. I'm doing it with the city. I'm doing it where the people could pull.

Up for free. I ain't overcharging for a ticket. How do you get paid that? How do you make the city?

Okay?

All right?

And I pay the artists? No, but see I pay the artists. Let's get that straight. I ain't saying I'm saying I pay all My artists get paid period. That's how I operate. I've been a booking agent for overd for like twenty years now. I provide income opportunities for all artists.

Let me stop you for one second. You know what I always said, memes. What's the names? M No, not nims men, memes, your boy with the drags, memes. He booked us one time. Oh damn name artists, artists. When he booked me, he did everything everything as an artist would do us. Usher booked me. He did everything like, I didn't ask for nothing. Artists know how the Book of the Artists, right, we know how to treat other artists.

So I got that from Prince booked me before Rest of Peace.

Yeah, you gotta tell us this. Yeah, he had a club.

You ain't gonna just say that.

It's just like go, okay, okay, so hold on, hold on.

Time you chilling in the crib and somebody say, Prince want to book you for a show.

Well, I didn't even know until the gig was going on and they said, oh, you know that's Prince's club. It was in that GLAMs Yeah. Yeah, glam Slam was in LA back in the days. L Yeah, we did the one. We did the one in l A, I believe it was.

And yo.

I respected that.

I was like, oh ship, Prince got a clumb and then he booked me and then the other person is uncle Luke.

So Luke Luther Camp but what o g.

So so back in the days they had like the Goomba Festival and all that, Yeah, goom bab Yeah yeah, jamaic it yeah. So so so Luke booked me for that and it was like, I was like, man, you you are artist yourself. So when I saw Luke do that and then Prince did that, it put me in the mind frame of oh, I could provide opportunities for other artists. So that's how that came to be. And I just started booking all. I booked everybody. I booked

I don't what made you start doing that?

Well, just like I said, booked me, Prince booked me, and I respected that and I thought that that was cool that an artist would had a mindset to provide opportunities for other artists. So that's what I do. I provide income opportunities for other artists. I've been booking, That's what I do.

Did you get to meet Prince? Yeah, I got to meet him that night in the plug Yeah.

Did it taste like did it feel like velvet, he said, taste, you know what I mean.

It was.

It was a long time ago, but yeah, we greeted each other and and I was honored just to be able to get booked by him in his club because I was a fan period.

You know what I'm saying, He's an icon to me.

You know what I'm saying, He's not even in the rap game, but he booked me as a young rap artist. So I was like, Yo, that ship like enlighten me and just just showed me that, oh, you could do other things, you could provide you know, I provided income opportunity for everybody, man, trust me.

You know.

It was ill about Prince, Like he was so ahead of his time that I heard that so many artists used to come up to him and try to sample his music, and.

He would tell them go own your masters first.

And at the time, artists was like, were we were so happy of getting our advents? He were so happy to traveling to Japan and they said.

Oh we holding long times.

Did y'all really say that?

Okay?

Really like and meanwhile, but meanwhile, he was really like the first person that was owning this advocating like even even even when he changed his things to the slave thing like that because they owned his things, Like I didn't even realize that. So I had to change my name from Norriega to Norway at one point I had to change it because they had invested their component in Norriega, so they had owned that.

So it was like it was crazy. So yeah, yeah, he was business.

He taught a lot of business lessons and advanced a lot of artists understanding of ownership in the music.

Business man shout out to princeman Peace. Did you get a chance to man think like something like that or No? It was just like not just meeting him through that event, that's all.

You know.

I hadn't come across him too many times other than that. Did you meet with Donna before Donna? Madonna?

Madonna?

Nah?

I hadn't met like I can feel like, yeah, but you know, I wasn't a chaser, like I ain't. I ain't fuck with people just because they did this or did that. There had to be situations where, you know, we we were together organically, you know, we met organically ship like that.

Because I see you got to ring on your finger? How long I just got married last year?

Okay?

Way for this, Yeah, yeah, yeah, you was knocking down a lot of things.

Man.

Man, it's been out.

It's been from fifteen. I'm fifty one now, so it's been a while.

Man, I've been you know.

And it's a thing in all community. When you got good, you get some good pussy. Well see, yeah, that's absolutely correct.

Yeah, but we got We gotta also understand, though, even though we as a culture glorify that, we have to understand who we are as men and as spiritual beings and learn how to control ourselves that period and master that because a lot of times I look back from the age of sixteen when the record came out until now, Yeah, it was very wild, but I feel like a lot of that was also abuse, not just from them, but me on my end, abusing myself like a lot of them.

To be with me me absolutely.

So you have to understand your value and your worth and you can and it's be giving yourself out to any of everybody.

Man, You draining your energy, you draining your spirit.

No, seriously, though, man, we just gotta be more serious about ourselves and our self worth. You feel me, because I look back in a lot of people, I'd be like, damn, fun was I doing?

You feel me?

So it's just about realizing that and not just glorifying sluty ratchet behavior.

Where was your favorite place to perform?

My favorite place? Yeah?

Man, anyway they paying me, that's my favorite place to perform. Where our money?

Yeah?

Yeah?

What's there?

A lot of promo going on back then, because let me let me lie is, let me tell you, let me tell you what I radio. I remember for years, Yeah, I would have to drop an album and I would have to go state to state, go to the morning shows.

That's going to make my promo.

Go to the morning shows, Go to the retail you go to the marketing stores, go to the Wiz, the Sam Goodies. I know I'm old school saying the Wiz the Sam Goodie. I know they're not open no more, but I'm just saying to get people.

We did some of that.

Yeah, But I remember for the first five years of my career, I wouldn't they would call it promo. I would not get paid. But what I would notice was like the street team people were getting paid. Everyone else was getting paid. But besides the artists. Well they say it was to sell your record. I ain't really do too much of that free ship. I'm gonna be honest. I went to a few retail spots.

I did some in stores, but as far as performances, very few free performances.

Fuck that.

Even back then, even back then, you knew you don't pay me, damn, because y'all getting paid. Everybody getting paid to pay me to I did some radio station shows that were favorable and less than I would normally get, But that was for the station, for the spens, Yes, for the relationship really, because it ain't directly for no certain amount of spends. But you gain that rapport and that favorable you know, that favoritism from the station.

You know, I was fucked up when I would do I would do free radio shows, and then I would see like an artist just a little bit bigger than me going and collecting the check, and I'm like, what the fuck am I doing here?

Like you know what I mean, Like I went needed to do that at that time, you know what I'm saying, Especially starting out, they expect that of you. But see my record flew off the shelf. It was all over the country, all over the world. So that was the promo. So when I pop up, Now, yeah I did some radio station shows, but they still had to cover my expenses compensate me somewhat.

You know what I'm saying.

It wasn't just like all free. They wasn't dragging me around like no puppy or some shit.

You feel me. Yeah, now we don't do that nah man oh.

Man, Yeah, holy shit, I'm just thinking of that times because like you got to go, you got to sell records where person have to pick your cassette, have to pick up your CD.

Like I don't believe these streams.

I'm sorry, Like like this this kids out there with forty million streams and I don't know noting one person that know one of their words, right, and they got forty million streams.

It's automated. It's automated. Is they buy a lot of that ship. And at the end of the day they made up besides the box, they made up a whole pay structure out of fucking thin there.

Like we ain't got nothing to do with that. We we didn't agree that, we didn't sign Yeah, we didn't sign off on nothing saying that we're okay with that. You feel me.

They just decided that this is what we're gonna pay, and it's like a fraction of a penny like came out. Yes the radio, everybody I know, even Dresses is on one about that. We all on well really, but they're actually taking action, you know, And I would love to be a part of any action because I ain't agreed to none of that shit neither.

You know, Chuck d sue the whole He sued the whole universal on behalf of us, and he won.

Good, he won, right, I believe, so, yeah, he won.

I don't know. I believe he only took his portion on what he felt he was old. Yes, class action lawsuit. I just can't believe like how bad it was. I don't want to say bad because it did save.

It's bad right now because they getting ripped off for this streaming shit.

It's terrible. Yeah, you're terrible.

Like if you made your own platform and collected your own earnings off of your intellectual property, it would be much more than you getting from these Spotify and all this shit going on right now. And I don't even like name dropping fuck that, you know what I'm saying. But any of these services, they're not paying you what you weigh. They paying you what they feel like you weigh,

Yeah?

Anyway, equity in those platforms, yeah, at something, but you know it's all really based around advertising and marketing and merch at this time.

You know that's where the money at all your data money, yep. So that's really what it is.

Man.

They getting money in other ways.

It's not necessarily for somebody just listening to They get money in other ways.

You talk about the artists, you talk about the labels.

Both.

Some artists are doing it.

Independent artists are doing it and understand it, and they understand how it is. It's an opportunity to other avenues to sell your merch, your shirts, your hats, your sneakers, your whatever you sell.

Made up your saxty deal, right, he made up? He make it up, I believe.

So.

I believe.

Maybe he didn't make it up like how we go, but the people that usually go applied it. I believe it's something like that. And the thing about it is for me. Leo has always been a great CEO to me. Right, I'm not saying he didn't have unfair practices with other people.

I'm not saying that. What I'm saying is for me.

But how did he have the foresight to see that records won't sell as much as they will in the future, so they have to start marketing because no one asks, no one. You had to put people in there on your shows.

I tell you how he knew when that MP three shit started, because that was the beginning of that end. That was the beginning of the end of conventional record labels and record sales because now you could share peer to peer online without paying nobody no mind, you feel me. So even though they regulated that at a certain point, then you know it was understood like, oh damn, it ain't no going back now, Ain't nobody buying nothing?

Now you understanding.

Now it's even worse because they just if it ain't on their phone, they ain't gonna hear it.

You ain't gonna hear nothing unless you hear it on your phone house, you gonna hear it.

Ain't nobody really up there on the laptop all day everywhere they go. But they got that phone everywhere they go. So it's all mobile, it's all online, it's all technology now, and the only way to really make some money is, oh shit, I want that shirt he got on. Oh ship them kicks is hard? Let me get that oh that had his fire, you know what I'm saying. And you sell shit or drink, so whatever it might be, it might be a bottle of this. You know what

So let me ask you, Like how we spoke earlier, you said, like me and you both agreed that artists, you know, booking artists is probably one of the best things, right because we know.

How to treat each other artists.

Why isn't it more artists basic record labels?

Like I respect what Rick Ross does.

I really think that he takes care of his artists, And I respect what Yo Gotti does, really think he takes care of his artists. And that's like it's like one and so many. Why doesn't you own your own record label? Why I came on their own record label.

You know, so on and so and forth.

Cares one to try to like nurture these new artists.

Well I do.

I have an artist, City the Great. But what I did more so is empower him.

And he has his own label, and I show him how to move independently and how to be an entrepreneur. Instead of me trying to you know, own them or diddim or some shit, you feel me, I teach him how to be his own boss and how to make his own move.

Shout out to City the Great man.

And you know he's come from you know, some adversities, let's say, and now he's flying high man.

He was just on the show in Coney Island with me.

I give him a platform, give him opportunities, and it changed his lives.

Man. So it's the education is the most important part.

Man.

If you can give somebody the information and help them to succeed, empowerment, that's what I do. I have a nonprofit organization and that's my whole life mission right now is because of my life's experience as a young child artist, I go out there and teach children how to perceive this and operate in this landscape. It's called special ed art so literacy. We call it SEAL. Yeah, special arts so literacy seal. So that's seal Artsoliteracy dot org. You know what I'm saying. And our mentor I go do

But a right that that was so dope what you just said, right, because what we're saying, we're saying like that. The kids nowadays they hold the money to the ear they're doing. But I'm looking at the old school videos. I'm looking at them cell phones, the ones that didn't fold.

Yeah, I have, so I'm looking And that was a form of flossing as well back then, flossing and communication. Because now you have the ability to communicate mobile wherever you at and go get that money. You can be out traveling and answer your phone and do business. At the same time I was doing business, I was actually the youngest in charge.

I was really in charge of my ship. Yeah, absolutely, so I.

Was making moves, making calls, making decisions. I wasn't just running along behind what people say. I never did that.

You know what I'm saying because I learned.

But what I'm saying is they're talking about the lifestyle then, like the lifestyle like if for some reason, and I'm not trying to just the new generation, let me reiterate what I'm trying to say. It felt like when they was flassing back then, it was like a responsible flaws as opposed to what it looks like. And I'm not saying they're not responsible. I'm saying it looks like it's just people just throwing money. Like just see kids throwing money in them all, and it's like, that's.

Not resk like that, that's not one in real life.

That's actually content driven for the grant, that's for the grand social that's for any social media, that's what it is. But they don't have any social responsibility. Nobody is guiding them or teaching them properly.

So that's what I do.

I go and talk to the kids that may have an interest in becoming artists or entrepreneurs or media creators, and I give them some perspective, some insight on how to think, how to behave, how to present yourself, how to be professional, so that you're just not out here while they' I really needed and bond. Then you're not there.

You feel me.

You need to be able to survive this game. You know what I'm saying. This is a long term thing.

This is not you.

You don't want to do this for two years and then disappear. Yeah, you understand, And that's what's happening because.

You're doing it for six months now. Disappearance crazy man. At least at least back then.

They had two years, you had a hit record, you could go on to all you can feed your family now. And what's fucked up about it is no one's schooling these kids, That's what I'm saying, not telling them hold that money, don't buy that car, don't buy that that They're just.

Letting them go and then that money is gone, specially at arts and literacy. That's what we do.

We teach them better. We teach you better, and so you know better and you do better and you succeed. That's what I'm on. That's all I'm on right now. I don't compete with nobody. I ain't out here putting out a new single, this, that, and the third. No, I'm out here talking to these kids. I'm going to the hoods. I'm on my way to Chicago. I'm in Philly, I'm in New York. I'm everywhere I need to be. I'm in North Carolina, like just wherever it's at. Oh,

No more.

Man.

That's a part of flaws, and that's a part of right here, come get me.

But but yeah, you know, I invest wisely, and that's a part of it, investing things that appreciate. Go buy some houses. You know what I'm saying. You can get a nice car, but make sure you got a nice house first. You know what I'm saying, Something that's going to appreciate and make you money year after year.

Absolutely, what are you what are you telling the youth and how to navigate social media. How to navigate social media, that's like the one of the biggest issues.

Right right It is not to be reckless, not to be offensive, be mindful of how you direct your energy and to whom you direct your energy. Don't start you know, don't start problems. This this kids right now that is actually using social media to beef yea and to take over right and to take lives. And that's you know, that's that's the misuse of it first of all. But then if you think about it, that's that sound like an agenda to me. That sounds like they making they

You know.

And there's a lot of kids out here that may not have one or both parents, but you still have a community, you know what I'm saying, And a lot of them get caught up in what they would call a gang. But you know, it's up to the gang to direct them correctly and not to destroy themselves and others. You know what I'm saying, It's a responsibility that come with all of that. You could be a OG. But what kind of og are you? You know what I'm saying.

You feel me?

You can't do that, man, That's like you gotta be a real o G. You can't just be you know, using children. You know what I'm saying, You can't use and abused children. Man, that's not looked upon. You know, that's not good real so karma karma real, and you're gonna get all that back, you feel me?

What's your We talked a little bit before, but is there an affiliation with low lives with my boy Thirsty?

Oh? Like he's the way he leads, the way you know, from showing that whole community that he was a part of a different way. Yeah, absolutely, it's turning.

What was I wouldn't say negative because they was trying to survive, you know, and they found the lane hustling gear seed you.

Never shot lifted, but they did. They did absolutely, you know, and I grew up with them, you know.

I grew up with with them in Brooklyn, and when I came out, you know, they was everywhere there was around I went to school, My man guests actually shout out to my main guests. I used to cut out of school with him and he used to have moms with we go to the crib. He lived on Rockaway a lot of guests. Yeah, he was, and then he lived next door to fee fee Ware.

To feel.

Right, they was all surrounded by everybody else all low. There was low life, there was fee Low, guests, low everybody.

Yeah.

So they more more than just polo.

Now, it was a bunch of it was brands, but that was the lucrative brand that they could sell and monetize in the streets.

I like it that Ralph loren actually included them in his Man.

They partially responsible for the success of his brand, just in the fact that they was, you know, criminalized stealing it and selling it, like they stole millions of dollars worth of that ship, but it was also wearing it.

Yeah, that's what we do.

I was like then, absolutely, oh yeah, I'll be square mall hell yeah, Brooklyn, New York. That was that was a landmark Dad in King's Plaza. You know what I'm saying. Anyway up in down Fulton Street, you know what I'm saying. Yeah, downtown Brooklyn.

Yes, well you supposed to. Our show is about giving people all they flowers while they're.

Alive, and we wanted to give you. I appreciate that you are I call my brother. I appreciate that.

I can't wait.

I can't wait.

And this Sunday and she said this Sunday. No, No, we did cony out last Sunday. What Sunday coming up is gonna be in Marcus Garvey Park uptown in Harlem. Oh okay, Yeah, And I'm doing the Native Tongue tribute for Red Alert and Rest in Peace Baby Chris Chris Lighty And it's gonna feature Red Alert, the Jungle Brothers, Black Sheep Dress, Chili Money Love and yeah, we're doing it like that. And you were signing Chris light was No, it was just my boy man, like we was friends.

How did y'all connect?

We connected through the industry through him being a violator in the native tongue. I fucked with them. They was all my people. I toured with them, you know. I toured with trip called quests a lot. You know what I'm saying. There was native tongue too. They are you feel me? And just being family. Man. We treated each other with respect. Man, like I don't he done took me. I don't spend the night by the crib just chilling. You know what I'm saying up in the Bronx. I

That's it, Jesus.

Hey, I was gonna say, I was gonna say, I'm basically like Jesus in the street.

Yeah, that's that's what it was.

You want to heal?

Yeah?

How much? How much Beijing do you use? I don't use none. I don't use nothing. I'm gonna tell you.

I had one law the Gray here right here, and I got upset when it broke. My ship broke.

You had one. I had one in my.

I got I got a few little here and there, I think, But this is genetic, man, you know what I'm saying. You know, I'm blessed thanks to my moms and poss who gave the drops of Loti berries, just regular eating fruits and berries.

I'll put the ship in my head now.

America girl. Yeah yeah, now that the not just the mother and father gift that they gave me. Man, they blessed me. But I'm glad.

But back in the days, that was like the ship to have an esque girl and you got good hair.

Did anybody ever accused you of having the esk girl? Well, now I think they could tell.

They could see from you know, the grade or whatever, you know, the grater heir, you know, just my my complexion. They would think I was you know, like Dominican, Puerto Rican, trinid Dad, Guyanese and those are all people with more curly or straight here.

So you ain't never like act like he was one of them to get some pussies up.

No, I ain't never had the hat. I ain't never had the hat. I mean I just full back and let that. I ain't never had to do nothing for it. Okay, Well, we got a game on our show. It's called quick Time of Slim. You're not drinking, so you could pick any one of these butters that drink for you.

I suggest you picked the Haiti because he used to rocking Jamaican bell.

He had no permission for no yard.

I suggest you picked the Haitian because because yeah, yeah, because he had.

No permission in rock the yard mane belt. I could do it with the coconut water. No, no, no, you have n't you have him take the shot?

Sure? All right?

Cool and you you you're good, you're gonna do stay cool?

All right? Pumo or Pete Rock or Friend and roots a ry the spreending rum. Yeah, spending rules is if you pick both, then he drinks. If you be politically you reckon, you say neither, then he drinks. But if you pick one, then know what he drinks. Okay, okay, you ready?

All right?

Pre or Pete Rock both. Yeah, he understands this. Yeah, but this is my people, This is my family. You know it's okay this d MX or Biggie.

X or Biggie.

Biggie Okay, Brooklyn Brooklyn, Guru or big Al.

That's a good one, Guru, Guru because he done gave me a haircut. That's that was my my man, like my man, my man, like I'd have been to his crib.

Was a good.

Yeah.

Yeah, Guru was a buck. I was too.

I used to cut here before I started rapping.

Yeah yeah, I cut my hood. I cut all the hair. But one time we was at the New Music semin off in the city and gu was like, yo, I got run to my crib real quick.

I was like, yo, I come with you. Fuck it, let's go. So we went to his crib.

I got a little shape up and ship and then we went back to the New Music seminar.

You up, yeah yeah?

Got man. Rest in Peace, My man, Holly Rock rest in Peace introduced me to him from East New York because he was down with the East New York crew, and we kind of came out at the same time and did a lot of things together, you know. We we little side shows, inside hustles. We did a lot of ship together.

Man.

He was also a youth counselor.

Wow.

Yeah, he was a counselor.

Man.

Guru was a little I ain't gonna lie. I got drunk with Google a lot. Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Yeah, Okay, I like this one. You want to take this one?

Okay?

Caine or Ell Caine Brooklyn damn straight out, straight out, no hesitation on.

That, and it ain't I'm gonna tell you well, I ain't gonna tell you we got up to Yeah Kane, shout outs to big Daddy Kane. That's the o G. Matter of fact, he was like a big brother the me too. Like he doesn't come to church after the hood to pick me up. We go to Apollo hang out, chill, go watch all one of them little blaxploitation flicks at the crib. Chill, we laughing, get gigging it up. He was a big brother man, like I respect. The ship out of a big Day came May cut at the time.

Howie t Or Eric Sherman, Howie Tea Man Brooklyn Okay, Chub.

Chub Rock Brooklyn like his loyalty. I like it. New Jack City or Juice Juice? How did you get in the Juice? I forgot that.

Well.

I wasn't really really supposed to be in the movie at all. Actually, yeah, what happened was I read for the part because I wanted to be in the movie at the time, so I read for the part of the curly head kid.

Of course you did.

So when I went to the set, I went to the set to go fuck with Poc.

That was my man, Like, we was tight. So I produced records for people to talk about this.

Y Yeah.

Yeah. So I went to the set to go chill with Pac, and when I saw who they casted for the part I read for, I was like, how the funck y'all get a look alike?

Why y'all ain't get the real nigga? Right?

So Pac was like, yo, you read for this move. I was like, yeah, son, they gave it to the other curly head dude, what the fun?

Right?

Who is this other curly So that was right?

He right there?

Yeah right?

And I end up taking this girl right So so.

So Pack was like he acted like he was He acted like he had to do something. So he was like, Yo, I'm gonna be right back. I'll be right back. So he left and when he came back, he was like, yo, ed, I got you a little part in the movie.

Man.

It ain't a big part, but it's a little cameo. I ain't even know he was doing that. I was like, come on, son, you ain't.

Had to do that.

Give thanks though, And then I went out there and they had this this drop top jeep, you know, them wranglers with no top and it had like a fuzzy steering wig and I was like, oh, hell no, I'm not driving that ship.

Thanks for the part, but I'm gonna drive my ship.

So they looked at my sit and was like I had the red pasat with the foods, with the food sir, rims, the chrome ship.

Yeah yeah, only only me, Only me and the shop owner had them rims.

Yeah.

So I spent the little paper on them. But they saw my whipping it was like, all right, we use your car. So we found a little crackhead that was washing cars and was like, all right, clean my ship up.

We're gonna do this. And we did the scene in Harlow. Yeah, we did the scene.

But talk to us about pocat me and I don't think you ever met Park none, never had a chance to meet popping up to outlaws and everyone.

Yeah, so a lot of questions about no worries.

It's not because because I just never I'll never get that back.

What it is is I met Pop through through a mutual friend and through Latifa's crew.

I used to date one of our dances, right, I feel me.

Yeah.

So they were on tour with Digital Underground at the time, and I had spot dates that I used to do with them. I toured with all of them, but they introduced me to Tupac. He was a roadie for Digital Underground at the time, and I met all of the money be Shot Gen. We we all tight, like I still fuck with money be now Rest in Peace, Shot Gress in Peace, and you know we met then it was organic and we was all just cool.

We all fucked with each other. When I went to l A, I called him.

Up one time too, and he was like, damn, I'm in the bay, but I come fuck with you, and he drove all the way to LA to countries.

With a right maybe we went out. We went hanging out and ship.

But then when he came to New York all the time he'd call me and act too, and then he would come by the studio. And that's how we ended up producing for him because he said they had put him on and he had a record deal now, so he was like, if you got any beats, you know what I'm saying, Woo woo whoop. So he came through and we put him on some beats and did some production for him. So you know, that was a blessing.

I just produe. I did what he acts.

But it's funny you say that because we could clearly see the relationship that Park had with you. We clearly see the relationship that Park had with Buck Down.

Yeah.

He was a great dude. Man, He was a good dude. It was biggie early on.

Yeah, he had like a Brooklyn connection.

Yeah.

I mean he was just a real dude period. He was stretching a live squad too in Queens too.

Yeah.

But what I'm saying is, what's there a difference that you could notice recognize from the pocket you knew from Digital Underground days to the park that did you meet the pocket from on Death Row Pocket?

Well, at that time, well meet, I already knew him, but I didn't see him when he came home and got on death Row and all that. And actually I was in La one time, and I was that's when I used to smoke.

Man.

Matter of fact, let me just say, man, I stopped smoking weed after forty years. Wow, I'm Jamaican, so that shit come with the family. But I stopped smoking weed.

This year.

Yeah, I just stopped a few months ago. Man, don't get excited. Don't get excited. That's all fresh. It's just control. It's just self control. You know what I'm saying. I controlled myself.

So what I was saying against my pot.

But hold on, we're gonna get back to pop. Make sure we go back to pop. But hold on, what made you stop smoking?

I want to know that part. Well, I've been doing it so long. I'm like, when am I gonna stop? Okay? How am I going to dish? Destroyed myself in the process? I stopped smoking cigarettes? Am I gonna kill?

Yeah? I had to do that too. When I was a teen, I used to smoke new Ports. At one point I smoked black and Miles. I had to stop, like step by step when I moved to the South. I moved to the South, down South. I moved to the South, and yeah, okay, I stopped now long years ago, years ago, years ago. I stopped smoking new Ports, probably over ten fifteen years ago. And then I stopped smoking black and Miles a few years ago because I was

So let me actually because two right, I mean, this was a totally different person.

Yeah. So what happened was I was in l A one time and I was smoking some pie grade and I passed out. My boy, My boy, my boys went to the party and see pot and I woke up tight. I woke up and I'm in there by myself. I'm like, what the fuck going on? Everybody at they at the party.

I'm like, I was so pissed at these motherfuckers.

Boy.

And then they come back and you, yeah, they were hide you. Yeah, it was up. I'm like, your motherfucker man. They was like, yo, sir, we seen pac. I was like, get the fuck away from me. Did you have a relationship with Big Yeah? Yeah, I had a relationship with Big through and it started through my man Klepto. And actually that's another person. I went to elementary. Yeah, I

Dollar Cab Lab.

Yeah, that's the dollar van.

To go to church, exactly, dollar van. So that's why we call it dollar cat an people. Hell yeah, dollar yeah.

So the Dollar Cab Lab. We I say it again. We don't win in a tangent. Oh yeah yeah.

Okay.

So Clip came by the studio and everybody used to come by the studio, but he came byn and was like, yo, big putting us on, and we're gonna do an album once again.

You got some beats, oh come on? Hell yeah.

I got a whole team by that time. I had probably like five six producers with me in the Dollar Cab Lab. What I did was I had all the equipment in the studio and then I called all my homies and I said, look, I'm gonna show y'all how to use this ship. So I taught all of them, how to use the machines, how to sample, how to loop up, how to sequence all that shit, and so we always had beats.

We had a gang of beats Dollar Cavet.

Yeah.

Two we did like two or three we did like I think it was two joints on the Junior Mafia album. Yeah, yeah, well that's the only album they did. But we did two joints on their Murder Ones and oh my lord, oh wow.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Did you ever think, because uh you know who Biggie was and who Park was, that they would ever crosspath and to get this bad No?

Actually, you know, I think that was all third party in entourage ship, and that's that's really the problem. Is just sometimes the people you around and what they add to the mix, they add either negativity or positivity, you feel me. So that's what happened, man. I think between them too, as individuals, they was never in a problem. You know, I think it more so of the things that happened, and Pop blaming Big for not warning him, for warning him or informing him, right, you know.

What I'm saying.

And I think that's where they got it got tumultuous. But as men, as individuals, man, we all had love for each other.

Period.

We had warm and g sit here the other day and Warren G said that he actually met with Big and he had a message to relate to Pac. He never had got it to Park. He said that he thinks single handled one of those messages might have changed the whole trajectory of this whole situation.

You think, you think.

Because that lack of communication, because you know, if they would have probably got in the phone with each other, they probably say, yo, bro, I'm not beefing with you.

I'm not doing that. You think that that was a big part. Yeah, I think that was a big part. But also I think there was a lot of fire and Park at the time. I mean, he got shot up, you know what I mean. Regardless of how it happened or what happened, the fact is that it happened in our home.

You feel me.

That's like if we go to LA and something happened in the studio where they at, it's gonna feel like, yo, bro.

It's gonna automatically feel weird. Yeah, it's gonna feel weird.

So I think that energy, you know, just ran off and took a life of its own without men getting to speak man the Man and heal the situation, you know what I mean?

I agree, Yeah, you want to go to the next one. We lost some icons yet, resting peace to both of them. Men, all right, Mop or black Moon?

Oh Man, drink Man? Can they both from Brooklyn? And I foxed with both of them. They all, you know, little fame, that's my little they all come on man.

Yeah.

And then Buckshot in boot Camp actually came up in the Dollar Cab Lab in my studio.

Yeah.

So when they started recording boot Camp Click, when they started the boot Camp Click and started recording all their albums ogc Healter, Skelter, et cetera, rocking rock and all that, they started in my studio in Brooklyn, the Dollar Cab Lat it used to be like ten fifteen of them just laid out everywhere because you know, we had a fit. It was a it was like a not it was an apartment, but we turned into a studio and it was different rooms all over. We had video game rules and roots.

Yeah.

So yeah, shout them out. Yeah, yeah, they know, just ask them about the Dollar Cab last.

Yeah.

I wish I would have been there, Dollar Cab Lab. Hell, yeah, you'd have been welcome. We welcomed everybody. Everybody been there. And when they came through Brooklyn, they came and stopped off and chill. Even if they didn't record, they came by to chill.

You feel me. It was a family, it.

Was it was a vibe good fab or Jadakiss, Jadakiss.

I know Fab is from Brooklyn, But me and Jada I have always had a relationship, like me and the Locks. Like see certain groups, you know, certain groups we gravitate to just on the strength of realness. And I spent a lot of time on Yonkers too. I used to go fuck with him down down the road and all that. And you know they show love so and I haven't seen them all over the country. You feel me out and those see if Jada was having a show or some ship, I might go pull up, yo, what up

Yeah, yeah, like this pick right now, Yeah, this is all your criteria jay Z or nots jay Z.

Or nos'ma, I'm gonna give it to Brooklyn. I'm gonna give it to Brooklyn just because I'm from Brooklyn. But I love them both, you know, and to be real, to be really real, they both showed me love. I probably spent a lot more time around Nas and just fucking with Nas. But and I booked Naves before you know, we brought him to Charlotte. But you know, shout out

It's out. I have to watch the rest in peace to biz Markey.

He has always been the most loving, the most genuine, the most real of.

People period, and I wanted to play him in the movie. Okay, if a movie come out the Juice Crew, I'm gonna go.

And let me tell you a little you're going to start.

Let me tell this a story about buz Man back in the days, and he changed my perspective on some things. One of them was we had a show in Puerto Rico and Biz comes to the show with no luggage, nothing. He just had a walkman on. I'm like, and the whole time it's just bus and a walkman. Ain't no bag nowhere, no nothing. I'm like, oh, this thing is real. Meantime, I got all kinds of bag. I got a robe in my ship, I got Fendy luggage. I'm like, and it's only a one nice show. But the lesson I

Out the biz Man. He really rest in peace.

Man.

Oh yeah yeah.

This was a real big bro.

His connections was ill and I don't want to ruin it, but people need to watch that documentary. It's it's dope, all right. Next one, Havoc or Large Pro, I.

Would say, yeah, I would say Large Pro because of my relationship with Large Pro. I done been through his crib and Queen's Bridge in the apartment. As matter of fact, that's where I first met Nas at was in Large Pro crib. You feel me because Nas lived in Queen's Bridge at the time and I went to Large Pro crib to get some tracks and hear some beats, and Nas popped in and we actually had a little cipher. You know what I'm saying, just me and him in Large Pro. So shout out to Large Pro. And like

That's a little bro.

Right.

The next one Kris One or Chuck D, Chuck N.

Chuck D. So Chuck D.

Now you know why Chuck D has always been stand up.

Yeah. And we used to tour and one thing I learned from Chuck touring is that to take this business seriously because while we was wild and now smoking weed, getting drunk, this, that, and the third, we were going to a truck stop and Chuck d is sitting at the table with the whole team around the table, and there is some deep ass conversation doing the knowledge you feel me. And I always looked at that like, man,

You met Nas at Large Pro House?

Yeah, I met Na's at Large Pro House in Queensbridge, and I remember, I remember, Yeah, we had a little sipher. We was playing beats Me and Na start spitting. We had to get down low for the speakers and the mic feedback. So we're down low, crouching, spitting and shit. But one of the neighbors must have been complaining because this shit was banging. Large Pro is getting on our rate,

Shoot out?

The window.

Come on, son, shout out to large pro man, that's the that's the honey Ellmatic or ready to die Ellmatic or ready to die. So he could drink for that. Yeah, drink for that.

He ain't got no problems but a drinking problem. Az or Cormega, ac or Cormega. They they're in the same team, ain't they.

Yeah, but you still gotta pick.

There was like partners an they was on the same records and ship right somewhat.

Okay, he could drink for that. Cool they cool? MC light or Queen Latifa.

Oh man, I'm gonna say MC Light and I've had I've had a great relatelationship with Latifa, but I think throughout the years i've seen and been around and had more communication with Light.

But you know, we used to tour together.

Like I've shared my tour bus with Latifa in them man, like we've been Yeah, flavor units, shout out shot him, shout out the whole team.

You know what I'm saying. Recipeace withs owings.

You know what I mean. But matter of fact, it's drink to that man. But Light is Brooklyn. Light is Brooklyn. But you're gonna still drink Okay Tupac or Easy Tupac?

Have you heard? I didn't meet him. I've seen him.

He was with Dre at a party in the what was that Mars or some ship back in the days on the West Side Highway and him and Dre came to the party. We were standing outside at the door waiting to get in. That's the only time I've ever seen Easy. I've seen Dre plenty of times. I done been to Dre study shout outs to Dre man one love. But yeah, definitely, uh who I picked? Come on son?

It was called open Fire and shout out the DJ action too. Video music box, all your own TV raps, Video music box.

Uncle Ralph Brooklyn once again, but problem from Queens Well, I always see Ralph and Brooklyn. Ralph from to me, but nah, but Ralph because he's still added, he's still going. Matter of fact, I had Ralph hosts The Coney Island Show and Ralph is hosting in Harlem with me. I always incorporate Ralph. He always showed me love. He showed me more love than most you feel me throughout my entire career, like period. So Uncle Ralph all day. You

That's that's unk. Yeah as well. Yeah, n w A O Wu Tang clan Wu Tang Wu Tang is for the kids.

Now.

You know what besides that, man Wu Tang was dropping knowledge and positivity.

You know, n w A brought the age of destruction, Damn Jesus. N w A brought the age of destruction to our children and our culture.

Period. Hey, I respect all of them as men, but as the art form, and you want me to speak on the RD form, I'm gonna tell you what it is. That's where it started. Wow, that's where the agenda started, and that's where the destruction.

Began against the rap You will give that to them or was it iced.

T well iced t? Yeah? Iced T did that.

I ain't say they started against the rap.

But what happened was when the President sent them that letter, they went hand with that shit like you know, and they had more of a presence.

You know.

Iced T did his numbers back, you know, he did his thing. That's my old G two iced T.

But and w A ran away with it in such a way where it was like, for real, that's all we gonna do.

You know.

It was genius for them, and they made millions of dollars off of it, But look at what it caused the police early. Yeah, we always saying fucking the police. But they said it on record, absolutely for the record, and I respect them for that too.

Shappa Ranks or Shop Ranks or Bougou.

Hmmm, shop of the o G boy, you're gonna drink for that? They both from yard big up our yard man. Drink for the yard man. Name Belly or shot us.

Belly or shot Yeah, I know, I know. Hm hmm. I would say, shatas.

You took the water, you took the watts too far? Now that the shot? Yes, I remember there was filming right around the corner.

Yeah, I went, so you went with shotas okay, Master Ace or Jay Wood the damage.

Hmmm.

I would go with Ace because of our long standing relationship, and I do have a long standing relationship with Jay Rue as well, but I think I've had more interaction and then sharing the Crookland soundtrack Crooklyn going back and talking about going back to Crookland.

Hold on super Cat or Bounty Killer. I don't know why Jamaica keep coming out of me. Well, see one is the og and Bounty is actually now a OG. I actually Supercat, your cousin. I could tell Actually, I'm gonna tell you though.

I did the first hip hop collab with Bounty Killer Wow on my album. It's called just a Killer Wow. Yeah, it was on my album Revelations. I actually flew down to Jamaica to King Jammy's studio with the cash, with the cash and paid the man when you know he was he you know, before he had all the hip hop fame on ninety four, I believe, Yeah to the.

Yard, yeahsh yeah, very dangerous.

Yeah yeah yeah.

I'm a dangerous guy. Man, don't get tristed.

I'm Jesus on the street. But you know I'm also you know, I'm many things. Respect my family. My family is from Kingston, Jamaica.

You know, all of them you know, my favorite place in Kingston, Jamaica is Tivoy Gardess.

Okay, enjoy that. Enjoy yourself for me, this is the last one.

You want to take it. Loyalty or respect, loyalty.

Because you're gonna get respect, but loyalty, loyalty, you know what I'm saying, because then you know you can trust and you know, you know who you could fuck with.

You know what I'm saying.

Anybody could respect you, you could scale them more fucking too respecting you. But that don't mean they're gonna be loyal. You know what I'm saying, They gonna run and go tell the police. You know what I'm saying. I take that loyalty now, I know I could trust you with whatever. We're good, right, Yeah.

Right, I respect that. I respect that. Yeah.

Hey hey, I'm gonna take I take my respect. I take my respect period. But loyalty is rare. Loyalty you gotta really be loyal. You got and not everybody's loyal.

You feel me. You can always take your respect because that's what I've been doing. Like fuck that.

I'm gonna take my respect, But loyalty you can't. You know, by time you turn your back you know, you don't know, it might be a knife in it. You feel me?

Yep, yeah? Did you?

Did you?

I know you say you don't go to concerts, but did you get to see clips of the Hip Hop fifty concert in Yankee Stadium?

No, it'd been on my timeline, but I just keep scrolling. I don't fuck with appropriation. Appropriation, what do you mean by that? I mean, motherfucker's trying to come up off of the people that ain't. That wasn't done by nobody I could respect in this industry. That was done by uh, you know, the man, that was put together by the man, that was exploited by the man.

And they I don't know what the ticket prices was, but I could imagine.

But you don't think that was a good thing. I think that was a good thing overall. No, overall it was a good thing. But for them to do it wasn't. I would have rather seen Red Alert do that. I would have rather seen Ralph McDaniels do that. I would rather see.

Somebody in the culture win from that, rather than these entities the vampires come in and do that and then not really respect the actual culture and not value the culture.

They came to me.

I mean, I'm gonna say this, Both Rock the Bells and the Yankee Stadium Ship both came to me and low ball me, and I felt disrespected, Like, Nah, y'all gotta pay. Y'all can't come to me and offer me half of what I want the fuck out of here. Y'all not doing that to the other groups. Y'all ain't doing that to run DMC. I know that for a fact period.

You know what I'm saying.

But you ana come to these other artists and think you can determine what they're worth, and that's not how this works.

But who's finished. But what I'm asking Sometimes.

Sometimes I feel like the culture does deserve a pay cut sometimes when it comes from the culture.

Like the fact that it's coming from l it ain't come from now. Man.

Look, look, he got his own brand and his thing going, and that's wonderful. But he don't speak for me, and he don't speak for my genre or my timeline. He don't even speak for half the artists that I fuck with. You understand, I see he's speaking for queens. That's cool, But I'm from Brooklyn. I'm from I kept. Do you want to stand all the money I donetook, man, But listen, but I can't.

I can't say that because I've been on one rock.

You're from Queen's. Well, see, he came to you and he treated you properly.

Yeah, okay, Well.

I took a pay cut. I did, I did, I did.

But what I'm trying to say is I think that sometimes it's unfair to.

Like but hold on, how you going to take a pair of cut? But he charging the ship out the audience.

I just can't tell.

I Well, see I can. I could tell anybody, no, nobody, don't run. It ain't no old man on this earth above me. I'm your idol, the highest title nigga. Please, so when you come to me, step to me correctly. That's it.

That's all I asked. You're a grown man. You already know. I'm toured with LL before.

I mean, when I was coming out and my ship was hot on the street, he put me on spot days to sell tickets.

I'm familiar with the process, you know what I'm saying.

I'm also familiar with the fact that you know what I'm saying. There was a lot of people that wasn't around for a very long time. But now they want to come back and take everything.

Come on, bro, all right, but and Yankee Stadium was involved in that's appeal, well, he kind of that. That was Na's whole stance with em.

She sham was to say that he's involved, meaning that he took the money, but like he didn't necessarily have everything.

To do with the actual book.

And now this is what I'm trying to tell you. It's no and hey listen, even with I'm gonna just say this, even with a the bells, even with a mass appeal, these are other entities involved that are pulling the strings.

Period. Prove me wrong. But Massive Pill got a hip hop museum. I feel like they're a museum.

All of that shit is appropriation. Bro.

It's museums everywhere, museums popping up everywhere, museums overseas, museums every fucking where.

Bro.

That ain't nothing but another person doing what they got to do to make money off of hip hop.

Wow. That is not the participants of the art.

Wow.

Call me when read Alert got a museum, what.

Would you have done different if they came to you, like you said, you curated right, So if they came to you, if Yankee Stadium. They got mass appeal to take out rock the Bells at L let's say, just Yankee Stadium right themselves said Yo, and we've been loving what you been doing.

Can this is in your hands? What would you have done?

I would have contacted all the artists that deserve to be recognized and I would have gave them recognition and participation in the event.

At what they asked, artists, you have booked? Yeah, I can.

But that's a whole love. Uh, that's a fucking assignment like that. I gotta dig into my I gotta ship. But yeah, I mean just in general, I don't even know who was there who was not?

You feel me?

I saw some flyers you know this and that and the third Yeah, who Hurk is everywhere? Respect shoutouts to cool Hurk. And I'm gonna just say, man, who Hurk? You know he's he's Jamaican. He brought his set outside, he had a party. You know what I'm saying. He did what Jamaicans do. You know what I'm saying. And I'm glad that they appreciated that in the Bronx and

Come outside the big speakers.

If you look at all the speakers, even in the historical photographs and ship you see the Jamaican flags on them and the horns and yeah they sound they sound system they sets. Yeah. Yeah, man, that's that's a that's a part of the that's a part of the culture.

You know what I'm saying. All Right, I think crazy like said something like that. Like you just said, yeah that there was a lot of parties around that time.

Well, what I want to say, yeah, party is a party. I'm not going to blame anything on one party. But what I do want to say is I hear a lot of people talking about, oh, well I invented this, and I invented that, and I invented that. Come on, bro, y'all need to ease up. Talk to DJ Hollywood man. Yes, yeah, man, man, Like I mean, it's good. We can all have a credit for our contributions. But when you start talking about you inventing ship, like go patent something.

And when you say DJ Hollywood was that technically the first.

He well technically he can break ship down as a og and that you know what was happening during that time because a lot of people claiming a lot of ship.

You feel me and I respect everybody. I respect the.

Lessons they say Cochla rock was the first time the folk first the see but then I'm hearing like as far as rocking the party, DJ Hollywood was the first person like to want the mic.

Well, see, that's between them. I wasn't even there. I wasn't even there. But I do know a party is a motherfucking party. And unless y'all started a part, like the whole concept of having a party, I mean, talk to me.

Because essentially that's when they say hip hop was born out of a party.

A girl, I don't think it was just the party.

I think the fact that he was bringing the breaks back and forth at that party, at that party. Yes, what there's what is being said. What do you believe? What a special?

I believe what I believe aliens came down as came down right now, especially how the hip hop gets start. What would you say?

Okay, there was a whole lot of crooners and people making records, rapping right as far as having parties.

Yet cool Hurk is from Jamaica.

And then Jamaica they bring the sound set outside because you have a lot of oppressed people. The South Bronx was an oppressed people at that time, but Jamaica has been an oppressed people in a third world country. And how they find peace within themselves or a little happiness out of life, it's through the tunes and through the bringing the sound system outside and playing, and that's what that's what's been going on. So Hurt brought the same

You feel me.

I mean, you go to a third world hut. You've you've been to Jamaica, You've seen.

What it's like. Well, how did they bring peace?

They blessing Cryptis, diplomats and Republicans there we are, I said.

Diplomats, same same way, same gangs.

They talk about gangs, this and that and the third where gangs started, and this and that. Third shit is very political and historical. Think I'm saying politics definitely like Jamaica politics.

But ay wait, I think something important that Grandmaster Cas told us and mc shyrock. Okay, they said hip hop didn't invent anything. It reinvented everything, right, that's my point. I don't think it was a specific or particular invention. I think that they reinvented everything.

And then the art form of sampling and reinventing music and reinventing the rap.

And the way we record and poetry is tom riots.

Come on, now, we're talking about ancient shit, you know what I'm saying. We're not talking about some shit that's fifty years old. Were talking about some shit that's thousands of years old.

You understand.

Yeah, yeah, simply when they were saying that. Yeah, but I love them all. I want them all to get props. I want them to get paid. How about that? How about we fucking make sure who hurt gets paid? How about DJ Hollywood gets paid? How about everybody that did not get paid gets paid? Period? Give them something, give them royalties. You got sponsors. You got these people doing these big ass concerts, making millions of dollars.

The older stadium. I saw it and said, fundraiser. I guess we gotta look into what the fundraising was. Oh, ain't looking at this ship. Yeah no, I'm gonna look into it. I don't want to go through investigation. But my thing is the people. Should the people, yeah, exploit?

Should the people have to pay more for us to celebrate our anniversary?

Right?

I don't think so. I think it should be free?

Right, billions of dollars later, fifty years later, you made billions of dollars. You can't throw a free fucking concert for the people. Pay the artists and let the people in free. What the fuck?

What are you celebrating?

It's true, but a free concert and Yankee Stadium might be a little loose.

Nah, use the same staff, same staff. And then they climited tickets. They mean they sell their hot dogs and beer, right, niggas love them glizzies. You only got so many tickets. You're talking about a billion dollar industry. Yeah, first, first serve, sign up whatever, have two concerts three? I don't care.

You know, great story, he said, I'm just sticking.

I'm just saying, man, that that's that's how you show your appreciation by you know, and the government needs to treat I mean, whether it needs to or not.

The fact is hip hop is really is the number one cultural export of the United States exactly, traveled the world ten times over, exactly, So why not celebrate for real. That's not a celebration.

That's an exploitation, that's an opportunist Come on, bro, I mean, I want.

To agree with you, and not agree with you to a certain extent, but I also want to see the good. You know.

No, I see the good. I see the good that we here fifty years later and we're doing it right. But I also see where they ain't doing it for everybody?

Right?

Yeah, period, I put in work.

But isn't that like with everything, like like somebody's always gonna get Yeah, someone's like someone's always like recently recently.

Oh, but it's come to the point, hold on, it's come to the point where they appropriating and certain OG's and legends can't even get into the events. True, they can't even go to the events. That's disrespectful, okay, but how the are you going to talk about?

Definitely advocate for a second, because the other day they had Queensbridge Day, right, and on Queensbridge Day they had they hired Big Daddy Kane and they hired somebody else, so they actually didn't hire no one from Queensbridge. But I had to listen to their complaints and I'm listening and tragedies are a close friend of mine of the tragedy was like, yo, he kind of didn't want to He didn't he say. He said that Caine invited him, but he said that when he got there, he kind

You could take it from there.

What I said to him was like, yo, a lot of the times it'sould be an outside promo to how you was just saying. And it's like people from Queensbridge are going to them like a curator.

They don't know who to go through the cure rate.

It's just saying, whoever can get in contact with these artists right, and then that's how it's happening.

So that's the problem.

The problem is the organizers, the organizers or whoever it gets hired to do the task, and sometimes they're putting the wrong organizers in place, and they're not respecting the culture or where they at.

Like it took Caine from Brooklyn to know.

To invite a queensband guy right Trad to the event instead of the organizers saying Trad very correct, you're a community leaders, you're og from the community.

We need your.

Extra p we need you whoever, we need you, havoc, we need you feel me. But instead y'all just go with whatever.

And that's been happening since basically since people have figured out they can make money off of hip hop.

Well that's what dissected it. And that's exactly what appropriation is. That's why I said it like ten times.

Now because I mean obviously, like like I see the effects of hip hop.

Like, like I tell you the truth.

One of my favorite places to go is to go out of the country, is to perform is because I feel like the black man is gone everywhere else but America right like it's.

And that's the that's the whole reverse psychology because the black man in America is god too original.

Yes, it just don't feel like it right.

Well, because they came here, took our ship, and then let us think that this wasn't our ship, right, but we yeah, over over time and manipulation and media.

So but when I go to like places like Europe and like that, like I can go to a club and this would be all blank right, And by the time I come in and I come out, they have Compona and Norriego all over there doing grammedy and and they break dancing, and I'm sitting back and I'm like, what the fuck? And like I sat there one time the moota gave me my money and just disappeared, and I'm just like, where the fuck is he at? And then come to find out the end of the night

And ship and then motherfucking and then he didn't set it up for for as soon as us to walk out, it was to be a breakdance carser as soon as we walked out.

So me and walked out, and these guys are.

Just breakdancing and just battling like it's b Street. But in Europe and I'm like hip hop is living out and sat.

Let me speak to that in the Vatican.

In European countries they worship mellenated people, yes, but here in this country is the opposite because they mind fucking us and took our land and took our country. So they can't educate you and worship you at the same time. They oppressing you. But all around the world, and they've done it already all around the world. But the history is known. They're educated. They know who the mellenated are. You understand, but they can't tell you that here. Can

I remember going overseas when Obama was in office. That was like the first time I kind of didn't feel racism.

They was like, oh baba.

I was like.

They didn't really know like that. That was like racist.

It's like anything they see the black person, it's like America.

I was like America. It's like, I was like, oh shit, they secretly worship you. Yes, they they kiss your statues, they pray to your images.

You understand me.

Been in Japan. No, okay, Japan is like that for the black man. I'm telling you. That's why you look at step.

I'm telling you.

The world is like that for the black man, the melanated. Okay, the whole world is like that. But here in America they cannot do that. It's the opposite, right, because they were still under the mind control. Well most are. I ain't under ship. I know why.

I'm Jesus on the three right.

Amen, Listen, if you had anything to do over, what would you do over?

What would I do over?

Mmm?

Just maybe some of the business some of the business moves that I've made, and some of the deals that I agreed to, are the deals that I made I would change, you know what I'm saying.

Yeah, that's about it.

Otherwise, life's experiences make you who you are, right, And if I changed anything other you know, I might not be have the same perspective on mindset. You feel me because because I think a lot of people come in the game with a strong mind, but then they get let up. They get you know, delusion by whatever. You know what I'm saying, Drugs, fantasies of you know, delusions of grandeur. Yeah, shit like that. And then they turn into something else. They save themselves. You feel me. It's

You feel me? And they forget about the plight of the people.

They forget about their families, They children run, You feel me?

Yeah? If you? If you? If aliens came down, I know touching this. I love aliens.

W Aliens came down, and I want to learn hip hop. And you have one album to give them, Just one album for the Aliens to go back Intoday's spaceship or whatever, the Martians, whatever.

My ship, youngest in charge.

The first thing that go is I'm your idol, the highest title held. Yeah, yes, I mean, I mean you know.

Because I honestly you know, I know we've been playing around. But you looking so good like Kelly's young brothers. Like how you can maintain this type of regimen because like you said, I think you say it's fifty one and you're looking like you fucking fucking twenty one.

Bro.

Like I'm trying to look for the Beijing. It's not coming out us, No, it's not coming out.

Real.

Wea one thing is. One thing is genetics. That's for one.

For two is exactly what you put into your body, what you consumes. No, not yet. I'm kind of more pescatarian issues. Okay, but I'm more conscious. I'm more conscious than anything, you know what I'm saying. When we're younger, we tend to eat anything, and we eat anything they sell. But when I was younger, I was conscious, and I stopped eating pork at a very young age, a boxtail. I stopped eating beef. I stop eating pork. I stop eating chicken. For the most part, I eat chicken sparingly.

Okay, yeah that much.

But the fact is, the fact is I'm drinking the proper liquid. I don't funk with sodas and all that. Fruits, fruits and vegetables, fruits and berries. Vegetables is what you eat. You are what you eat. The energy you get when you eat fruits and a salad.

It's way different than you eat a play a steak and you go to sleep. You understand. So you have to deal with reality.

Now, you have to deal with what's going to sustain you and keep you alive and keep you in good physical condition.

I said, you make it what was the hardest food to cut off by?

Just the beef? Oxtail? I love pepper steak. I used to love pepper steak.

Yeah, man, oxtail, curry goat, come on, man, yeah, I stop all of that. I might once a year, I might eat my mom's curry goat. She'll make something and I eat some curry goat once a year. But even when I do that, it's different. I feel different, smell different. But you have to know what these things do inside your body. They stay in your body, they rot, and that cannot be good for you or your digestive system.

I tell you, I was vegan for like eight months to a year, and the favorite foods I ever ate when I was had that vegan expirits had always came from the island and came from vegetarian Delight. It's a place out here. They coconuts. Well, it's all Jamaica. It's all seasoning, right. Seasoning determines everything. Like I love salads, and you can just put whatever dressing you like. But I love like when I say I love salad, I love salad.

Man and fruits. Fruits is the best ship on the earth of your kale. Guy nah kale is cool.

I put everything I like spinach, lettuce, romaine, spring mix, and I do a little bit of food science, so I don't do too much iceberg, lettuce and ship that has no nutritional value.

Water.

But for the most part, you just have to understand what you're eating and how it helps you.

Okay, and do that.

Man.

You know I'm into you know, the ginger, turmeric, all kind of shit, lemon like, I deal with natural substances.

Man.

That's what we have to get back to, is ship with one ingredient. What it is You eat an orange, you know, it's a fucking orange, you know what I'm saying.

But you eat some other ship. It got a whole list of ship on way too much. There you go big up money love too. She's she's like on that too. She's Jamaican too. It's your Jamaica's with the good jeens. Yeah, you don't get it twisted, and some Jamaicas some fucked up geens.

Now, it's an individual. It's how much you care for your data, mind, your temple, and your consciousness of what you are doing to yourself. It's just like me, stop. I stopped drinking. Yeah, I used to drink. I stopped smoking. Yeah, I used to smoke so.

And not all the time. Was I who I am?

Now?

You take edibles?

No, I don't even do edible because because I stopped drinking. Because alcohol, alcohol causes poor behavior. Alcohol is poisons. And would you drink a whole bottle of cough medicine at once?

Yeah?

That has that has a that has a percent of alcohol. See, you also got to be mobile. You gotta a body in motion, stays in motion, So you gotta do shit too.

I walk, I ride bikes, I swim, I do whatever you feel me. I love the ocean. I love the ocean.

So who you battling in versus? First of all, I just call you right now. Say if Swiss called me, he got to tell me a dollar amount. Damn period.

I need to hear about the money. I need to hear worth.

I'm not doing this for TV. I don't need to be on TV like that. I've been on TV for thirty years. I'm not doing this just to have an episode or some shit on TV. I'm doing this so because I respect what y'all doing.

And we appreciate that.

And you have to tell your story or else somebody else wanna try to tell your story. So I'm here to inform.

I'm here to educate and let it be known. But okay, let me just ask.

Let's supposed Swiss call you and say, on special ad, I want you to pick your oppony. Who would in your mind? You say, all right, I'm supposed to dollar mint is great, right, dollar mine is great? I pick anybody. I don't give who would you pick them?

Swiss? Do a poll, y'all, niggas, do whatever y'all want. Put whoever you want on that stage. Okay, yeah, I'm gonna do. I'm gonna get them all bucks shorty. Hell yeah, Okay. I'm versus with anybody. That's the point.

Okay, I'm versus with anybody.

Y'all pay me.

I'm gonna be there.

I'm versus anybody who else is as I'm versus in anybody.

Now. Daddy came win already though, No, but I'm just saying for him. I just want to Granddaddy, you would have been a good one. Granddaddy.

Yeah.

Uh oh.

Man, listen, I verse I ain't no challenge. That's the whole point. That's how I got where I am today because I ain't turned down. No, I used to walk down the streets of Brooklyn and just run up on Cypher's like me, Skinny. I used to be like a buck thirty, like skinny, little nig like I run up

Damn straight for the name.

I'm going for the Gusto jail style mentality. We're gonna wear the hardest way where it's at.

Okay, come on.

So that's what I did. Man, I wasn't I challenged anybody. You know what I'm saying. I walked down the street. I don't give a fu how tough anybody. Look, I'm taking titles out here.

Yeah, well, man, you.

A motherfucking legend. Man, I'm so glad you got to sit down with us. Man, just let you know this is your platform. If you want to come in here and promote pink toenails. We don't care, like we don't know what.

Promoted lady, but you know we.

Want you to know, man, because you know, in our our our genre, our music, so many people want to say that you got ten years or more, that you know, your old school and you're washed up. And I hate that because you know, they.

Don't have that in jazz, they don't have that in rock and roll, they don't have that in any other job space.

They don't even have it in dance hall, you know what I'm saying.

They like.

So the fact that they have it in hip hop, this is something to me and my partner wanted to change from the beginning. He was just like, you know what, if we got a platform, we want to salute the people who's been there before us and give them their flowers and tell them to they face, you know what saying. So now everyone wants to give people flowers. Me and him, we didn't invent the phrase, but we may reinvent it.

You are a legend, you an icon. You continue to do it.

You out here monkey footing the games because you're out here still throwing shows, doing what you gotta do. Man, I want to show you love. I appreciate it, and I forgot to ask what you got going coming up besides the shows? You got anything else coming up?

Well, more shows I'm doing. We're going out to Chicago. What I've been doing is this stop the violence movement?

You feel me?

Shortly after pnb Rock got killed, Corrupt called me and he was like, yo, man, we need to you know, do something about this. We need to unify because he always called me for enlightenment. You know what I'm saying, that's a big bro. And I agreed, and I said, you know what, let me see what we can do to make all of this happen. And we started bringing everybody together on these calls for to Stop the Violence movement.

And that's a part of my mission.

What I'm out here to do is just utilize all of our resources and our influence to help these youths redirect their energies because their energies is up.

In the air.

Man.

It's getting very negative and very very very hectic out there for kids. These is our children, man, These is like teenagers. We can't let them destroy themselves. So that's my mission. So I'm going around everywhere and I'm talking to all the kids I can, all ages, and just letting them know and based on giving them my life's experience what I had to go through, you know, from a child till now, and showing them as an example of you can be successful. You don't have to compromise

What did you get to that level where you were just like, you know a few years.

Ago, it's been some years now. I just see everybody like it's like a rat race. I see what they do for money. I see how they use and abuse artists, and how they just undermine people's value and.

The work that they put in.

You know what I'm saying, it's like shit going back and forth with og artists, pitting them against newer artists and doing all kinds of dumb shit like this is not a petition in that sense. I think we need to bring it back to something more, more more pure, man more organic, and stop stop trying to create rivalry all the time.

I remember me looking up to artists that came before me. Do you think these new artists they lost that?

Yeah? I think they lost it because we're not going back out there and speaking to them and engaging and teaching them. But I do. That's my whole point in my purpose is what I'm doing with my organization special at Arts and Literacy SEAL, And that's my whole mission right now. I don't care about the music game and the industry because I know what it comprises, what it consists of.

It's it's a road to destruction for most. So I ain't even worried about that no more.

I'm worried about how do I change the minds of these children so that they don't destroy themselves. You you don't have to die to be famous. You understand, you don't have to die to be famous.

Or get hurt or get hurt, because that's what a lot of people are doing now too. They're getting hurt and then it's like it's a vived or stabbing or something like that.

Right, And it's the mentality. It's like they're going out here. They've taken stunting to a whole other level, and then they're endangering themselves and then they have to arm themselves, which is causing more gun violence. You feel me, and then they get their feelings hurt, and then they want to pull the gun out because they feelings is hurt.

You understand, that's not what this is based on.

You use a firearm to protect yourself, to protect your life, not to go and threaten or endanger or take someone else's life or rob somebody. That's not what you use a firearm for. You know what I'm saying. That's called crime. That's criminal. You feel me, and we don't want them to believe that that's what they need to be out there doing.

No.

I mean shit, I've had a fire on my entire life. I never accostant or threatened anybody with it. You know what I'm saying. It's for me to defend myself and my family and what I have, my possessions. I'm not out here flashing. I've had a file since I was a teen, before I made records. You understand me, before I before the age of fifteen, I had a fire arm and I never had to pull it out and flass it. Not legally, nah, but now it's legal. Ever since I became of legal age and got into a

And that's the thing they out here, trying to intimidate and.

Harm people and broadcasting it and broadcast Yeah, and that's not what we want.

That's not what we own, you know what I'm saying.

We want to just teach the kids better from a young age so that they don't grow into because once they become a teenager and they mindset and they ready to go, they ready to go to so so I try to get them a little earlier.

And even with the teens, I talk to them too.

But once they gone and they you know, clap that thing a few times, they get that energy, Yeah, they go to their heads.

So we got to stop that.

We got to prevent that, you know, and the one thing I can say, and the one thing I would love to say, please, And I would say to all the youth out there, all you thugs, have you ever pointed your gun at someone else other than your own brother or sister?

Have you ever ever?

No, I don't see you pointed at anyone else except yourselves. You might as well point it in the mirror, you feel me, because you're only killing yourselves. You're not standing up for yourselves against the real oppressors, against the real people that are really oppressing you and taking from you and causing you to be in poverty. And in these conditions, you're not pointing a gun at them. You pointed at your own family. Don't point your gun in no mellenated people.

Damn, man, that was that was hard. I don't even know.

Yo.

Man once again, especial that man. We appreciate you mas coming through man. Like I said, this is your house, man, anytime you want to come and promote it. Man, I appreciate, we appreciate, we appreciate you showing uh the ogs that you can actually still maintain into this this environment. And I really want to respect your company because that's what artists should be taking care of artists.

From the beginning, I knew that.

I didn't know that you actually had a company that was catering to towards that. So I knew that from from from from the first person, I was like, Yo, he kind of like did everything everything I asked for, Like he already did it.

So I love that man.

I just want to continue to support you. Get all bless this man. Like I said, give you your flowers, my brother.

Dave Man, I appreciate it. Got that flowers.

Wow.

Drink Champs is a drink Champs LLC production and association with Interval Presents hosts and executive producers n O r E and d j E f N from Interval Presents executive producers Alan Coy and Jake Kleinberg.

Listen to Drink.

Champs on Apple Podcast, Amazon Music, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for joining us for another episode of drink Champs hosted by Yours truly, dj EFN and n r E. Please make sure to follow us on all our socials. That's at Drink Champs across all platforms, at the real noriegon Ig at norieg on Twitter, mine is at Who's Crazy on ig at djefn on Twitter, and most importantly, stay up to date with the latest releases, news and merch by going to drink champs dot com