It is drinks Chests, motherfucking podcasts.
He's a legendary queens rapper.
He ain't agreed as your boy in o r E.
He's a Miami hip hop pioneer put up as d j e f N. Together they drink it up with some of the biggest players you know me and the most professional unprofessional podcast and your number one source for drunk.
Drink chans mock post every days New Year set It's time for drink Champs. Drink up? Father? Would it go Ben to see? This is your boy in r E was going on as dj e f N. It is mid Save Me Crazy World podcast. Make some Now.
When we started the show, we said that there wasn't an outlet for people who has been seasoned in this game, for people who have been ten years or more with the person that we're about to introduce. The person that we're talking about. Not only is he season he's making look good.
He has dominated every world for when you talk about with your parents not understanding, to sitcoms to movies, to dominating goddamn gumming on a goddamn plane. Preach this, motherfucking don't gear. He is the potential when you think of black excellence. When you think of a person who came from the hood and made it somewhere and kept going.
This is the fucking picture you should see in the dictionary for not just black people, for ally more throughout the world, for people who made it from the bottle and really, really, really made it to the top.
This man has dominated so many feels. We are proud of him. We are happy to have him on the show. In case you don't know what we're talking about, we're.
Talking about I'm about to say, fresh Prince. That's That's where I'm going with you. Yes, we take it, Anna say, but you can't forget we're in Philly. Philly, by the way, let me just tell you something.
I'm gonna be honest with you, and I know some people from Philly gonna question this.
This this is what I'm about to say. Well, just be careful because you still yeah I am. You don't know what about to say I am Because, first of Philly is my.
Number one market from me being from New York and even in drink Champs, I believe it's always been on top five mark. But this is the first time ever I flew to Philly and I've seen clear blue Water.
Yeah, I was like, did Will Smith by.
This?
Mother? A? I phil Blue Water? Like, I mean, come, I'm coming from Miami coming. I was like, did you buy some ship? You know, because I knew ya was coming? Switch? We hit this swit. We hit the switch when when luminaries coming, you got a street named after you? Congratulations? Man.
See, are people not only when they get a street named after them, but most of the time it's always after they pass away, and most of the time almost after like they reached their glory days.
And it's like kind of like when they reached it, like you're on top for sure, you're not dead, You're not that you're well alive. A couple of days last year, I wish I was, so, how does this happen? May I calls you and what do they say? So, you know, Charlie Max, Charlie, that's my dude, and you know he's really connected with the city and stuff like that. So he's, uh, you know, he's always pushing for stuff like that. That's my that's my day one ride or die, you know.
So they made contact and you know, it's funny. It was like really changely emotional for me. It's like, you know, because I want awards and stuff like that. But the it's a it's a street named after me in front
of my high school. It hits this right, so and and it hit real different and my mom is sitting there and the mayor presents it, you know, and it was like and it's called will Smith Way, right, and it really it really hit me with the idea of like what is the will Smith Way that kids are gonna come out and cross the bridge and think about the will Smith Way? That was? That was so do you think that? Do you think your your neighborhood will have crime in it? Or you're gonna We're gonna put
we ended that's right. We only only elevated. We only we only elevated. Were learning and growing and evolving. So I'm a bounce around a little bit. I'm gonna have a drink. Drink what they got what they put in here? Okay, I don't know some will smips. I'm just letting you know. I was like I would say, you know, I to do like drink champs. I wanted to sit with y'all like I'm a drink chump. So we get the lit'sten. We're gonna phrase that I'm gonna be let's yeah, it ain't.
I'm gonna be no good one. Drink. Okay, we have a beautiful Philly bartender here, So would you like to serve with Will Smith?
Drink?
Okay, keep it real. What's your name, Amanda? How you doing? Man? Just so so we go, okay, all right, boom, we're gonna bounce some right. Do you realize.
It might be my opinion, but I believe everyone else and in here is probably gonna say the same thing. Bad Boys franchise might be the best franchise in movie history.
Mmm. Okay, I'll take that. I'll take that. That's definitely your opinion. You know some people go disagree, Well, name somebody who would just we're only talking golf. We only talk the god Oh, the Godfather. We only talk Godfather for sure, God, because that's all seriousness. They were throwing.
Fishes and ship if y'all was throwing fish and somebody you know, like, yeah, we we have that.
Well we're gonna add some fish next time, be up there with the Godfather. But okay, it's hard to do what we did in Bad Boys. The one thing I'm gonna get that I'm gonna give us because you know, I can't say it about myself, but I can't. I do agree with you. I agree y yeah. But like twenty seven years after Bad Boys Too, like to be able to do a third one twenty seven years later, and then be able to do a fourth movie and they all are increasing in in the box office success.
That's that's hard to do. That's hard to do it. That's how I realized how dope it was. And I realized how good you was the actor when I realized you got DJ college and promot. That's true. You're just going that. I can take it. He's Collage, very funny. So on on on Bad Boys three, calid. You know, he was having a hard time with his lines and stuff like that. So on Bad Boys four, he decided he was going to be perfect. So he's stating character.
So he was. I was like, yo, so listen, like in the in the parking lot, coming into work, I was, Yo, Cali, what's up? What's uping? Yo? Hey, what's up. He's stayed in character for like two weeks. I didn't see him out of character. I was like, Callage, you're doing a lot. It's just it's Bad Boys you don't have to do method active for boys. He stayed in there hard though, but he did a He did a really he did
a good job. Like the I've watched the movie in ten countries and when Cali comes on camera around the world, audience is like they just he got a thing. People just love seeing them. So as my friend Capone walked in from Copona and Noriega and I'm thinking about.
Odd Legacies are one of the first records on the album. By the way, you was starting on the album, Yo.
Yo, I'm listening to that. I'm like, Yo, you're trying to show you. I feel like I feelve you had something to prove. Yeah, no, I have more than something to prove. I had something to say, right, And you know, I felt like the first track on the album is called uh Shop interior barbershop. There he was having fun
on that. I was having fun, right, So what I wanted was like, you know, let everybody know, I know what job saying someone reminded me of somewhat what eminem did, like everything about so no one can say right, absolutely continue because it was based on Eddie Murphy's barbershop scene from Coming to America, right, So I played three characters on the track, Jeff play one and be some mom. Uh played a character. But what I wanted to do
was to really to set it to rap. So the people are talking, but they're talking in rhyme form lines back and forth. So I wanted it to be a really unique, uh kind of creation where I got to just say everything that I wanted to say. Uh. It's like it's in the back of people's mind. So first track, I want to get it out so we can, you know, open up to talk about what I want to talk about. Intro right into the track, like Abby Dabby, I was like, yeah, yeah, yeah,
So let me ask you. We're standing the burn the forest, in a burning forest. Didn't know where I'm going, Yeah, okay, we a burning burning forest. You got one bottle of water. One bottle of water. This one bottle of water to saved somebody. But you got two choices. You got Martin Lawrence there, damn, and then you got Jazzy Jeff. Damn. Wow ended out for me. Damn. It's Martin Lawrence and Jazzy Jeff and it's one bottle of water. I heave that bitch in the forest and we all die. Together.
I'm gonna say about that component fn I did not have to answer. God, I'm like, yeah, no way, ain't, no way, I wouldn't. I wouldn't be able to live with myself either way. We are, We're gonna all end it right now.
Okay, So let's let's speak about Jazzy Jeff, right, because that relationship to me, yeah, man, and.
We all know that that is really really good question. By the way, about that all that's a really that's like, that's a really.
But that's a very seldom thing in this industry, right when you look at people who had twenty five year relationship, right, and then God bless me because I'm not coming at this new generation.
But you see these guys, they last a year or two.
They can't stick with the manager, they can't stick with the rol person, they can't stick with everybody. But you and Jazzy Jeff have like a thirty year career.
But then you don't.
You don't have them just one. You have this Martin Lawrence, the same thing. And then I've read somewhere or heard somewhere where Martin Lawrence didn't even want you in Bad Boys.
No, No, it was the other way. The studio didn't want me. Martin had the script. Oh wow. Right, so the studio didn't want me, and Martin said he wouldn't do it if it wasn't with me. Oh wow. Right, So Martin wanted he had the script, and you know, he was looking at Eddie and his sister was like, you know, I really think you need to do this.
Oh yes, right, Well, his sister was, I really think you need to do it with Will And he thought about it, and he called me and we had a meeting, and then the studio was like, yeah, you know, it's like both of us were we were successful on TV, but we weren't Eddie, right, So they wanted to do it with Eddie, and Martin was like after we met, He was like, no, it has to be well we weren't. We met. He called me to come to his house
to pitch Bad Boys, and we met. We had a dinner at his house, and we met that night for Battle Let's yeah, and then just ever since then, it's like it's hard.
To have.
Real relationships, you know. You know, but like in this business, it's hard to have it's hard to have real relationships because what happens, especially you know in in movies, you're talking about you know, five, ten, twenty dollars. When you're talking about it, you're talking about real talking about Yeah, we're talking about real money. It's really hard for somebody to make a decision for a relationship over a decision for money, you know. And it's it's like, Martin, is
you know, one of those relationships. It's like one of one of my only my real relationships are before movies, like you know, we and Philly, and you're looking around and like, you know, like the youngest of my squad got twenty years you know, the goal here, you know. So it's like, you know, I'm in this season of my life. I'm really taking notice to those things. Right first day on the set of Bad Boys four, you know,
I'm doing it. I'm going to go on and Martin said, hey, hey, he said, he said, man, we made three of these and we don't really remember a lot. He was like, we're gonna pay attention for this one, okay. When he said, we do remember a lot with me because we just like we were running, running, running around, Paying said, he
was like, no, no, no, no, it was day one. He was like, no, slow down, And it's like we're gonna take in, we're gonna live in the experience, you know, and it was really good, and we kind of settled down. He was like, we're gonna make the movie. It's gonna be good, or it's gonna not be good. He was like, but what we have is our attention, and I was like, got it. And we just really just settled down and
it's like, you know, that's my that's my dude right there. Man, Like he is as as authentic a person as you will ever meet Mark Martin.
Was it a culture shot going from the music side to the Hollywood side?
It was, Yeah, it was really it was different in the in the sense that so music is really current, right, So you're you're making this stuff, you're in it, and it's really current. And then what happens when you into television it slows down a little bit. It's like five months delay you make something and then it's you know, five months before it comes out. Then when you get in a movie, it could be two years before it comes out, and like it just loses the the immediacy
of it. So for me, that was that was, uh, the biggest difference, the biggest difference, Like in the expression of it. It's like you don't get to you don't get to create and get it out in a timely fashion where you like you're checking in to see how people get feedback. You're getting your feedback, right. So it's it's harder to stay current with with movies and television than it is with with music. What about the environment though, in terms of that, in terms of the people, Yeah,
you know, I've been I've been blessed man. You know, immediately on the Fresh Prince of bel Air, I was with Quincy Jones. You know that was his idea, right that wash Yeah, so Quincy Jones, it was about him, correct, it was Benny Medina was with Quincy Jones. Benny Medina was an a n R exact at Warner Brothers, be a J. Lowe manager. He j Loe's manager, and he had an idea. It was based on his life. So he went from Watts to Beverly Hills and Quincy changed it,
you know, he changed it to Philly. He was like, what's your rap name? I was like, Fresh Prince. He said, Okay, that's the character's name, Fresh Prince. Where you're from Philly? I said, all from Philly? He said, oh, man, I got some stories about Philly. We don't talk about it, you know. But Quincy changed it to Philly and then he said, Benny, Benn, he grew up in Beverly Hills. And we were at Quincy's house and he was like, this is bel air. He said, you like this house?
I said, I like this. Yeah. He said, yeah, bell A make Beverly Hills look like public housing. He was like, you know, buck Beverly Hills, it's bel air. So Quincy changed it, like literally in one night. He changed it to Philadelphia to bel Air and named the show The Fresh Prince of bel Air. Yeah before you before before been in audition that time. Were you the first rapper
doing a sitcom? Yeah okay yeah yeah, so fresh the the uh now I got to ask home before you go because at that time, doing anything commercial, yeah, it was all bad. It was round upon, Yeah, you're making this round upon. That's a light, that's the like light. It was like it was doing a foul ship. Yeah, foul. That ship was whack. People get hard. Was whack. That ship was corny and will Smith as ship. All right, but you're making the money.
You got the hollywoodlights and you go from Philly to actually real Hollywood.
How was that experience? You know, it was more than Philly Hollywood that was hard. It was the Philly l A that was hardy. Like they got different rules in l A. And it's it's like, you know, you you you learned the hard way walking around in LA with your red Phillies baseball cap boy, Like, yeah, that ship I didn't even know. I was like we was learning, learning the hardware out there. It's like they just got this.
It's it's different, different rules, you know. So it's the the first thing was like trying to just get the lay of the land of how to you know, how to move out there in terms of Hollywood. I guess really like the the big issue in the transition U for me was more about acting. The difficulty was about acting versus rapping. It's a whole different thing to like be looking in somebody's eyes and say a line from the sitcom to the movie well no, no, from from music. Yeah,
it's not. It was like the really different, different thing that was hard for me. And I was like nolthing people's lines and stuff like that. So it was like learning. Yeah, it was terrible. It was terrible. That the big transition was like Quincy never asked if I could act. He just he saw my music video, so he assumed that
I could act. So I was on the set of The Fresh Prince of bel Air and never have really done anything, you know, So it was like that, but you know, Quincy had the power to do that.
What was your first serious role, because you know, at the end of the day, they all thought, you know, rappers are fat, right, and then you know you're on The Fresh Prince and it's working. But then it's it's like, you know, I know Jamie Fox was like the Ray character, right. What was your first serious role besides Muhammad Ali?
The first was I did I did a movie I think, uh sex second season of Fresh Prince called six Degrees Separation, Yes, okay, separation. So that was my first you know, attempt at dramatic acting. But on the on The Fresh Prince, really the father scene with Uncle Phil was like the first that first of I don't want to watch that, don't do that? How come he don't want me? Man? It's like, that's
damn myself. But yeah, that that that scene was like the first time you know where where it was like looking to expand and be able to you know, hold a dramatic scene. And James, you know, everybody on that show was like stage trained veterans. Joe Marcel was from the Royal you know, uh, British Academy, you know, and you know Janet Hubert written you know, was a triple Broadway threat, you know, singing, dance and acting. Like so
everybody had intimidating for you. It was it was really, it was really intimidating, but it was it was love. Everybody you know wanted me to win. In the beginning was a little bit, I think because rappers was taking actors' jobs, so that wasn't a good look for that. English people
are taking America. Yeah, they don't like that. It's like, you know, they they they are well trained though, you know, and that's a that's the thing, uh, especially with with like with black actors in America, because the opportunities aren't the same. We're not. It's like we don't get you know, stage training to prepare for for acting. It's like it's it's a really it's we do it from a much more from the muscle natural space, and our training is
actually on the job, you know, whereas you know British actors. Yeah, I mean they did. They listen, they're doing the damn thank you. So.
So we have a game on our shows called quick Time with Slim right where we take you ask questions and we take shots. If you don't want to take shots, you can have somebody from Philly who represents you coming place and take your shots. Or maybe you have one or two shots.
You can take a shot. You can take a shot. You want Japanese whiskey, you know, like a Japanese listen, just give me the So you gotta get ready. You're gonna get ready because this first question is mine. Everybody back up. Everybody back up. It's not even on this is not even it's not even on the list.
Alright.
I do not recommend that I do not recommend that you know you're a fly motherfucker. I got Japanese whiskey just in case you want from the else of of Tokyo. From the House of I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, said from the alf.
I'm trying to make it sounds gonna have me message from the Tokyo. Alright, this is a question. There you go.
She from the Prince world universe and if I get it now, we're gotta remember some of the rules.
No, you gotta tell them. You telling these rules. And because you're making this ship up, yeah, you know, so we got Tokyo.
Right.
What we do.
Is that we asked the Japanese question.
You know, we're gonna give you two choices.
Yes, you pick one. We're not drinking. But if you don't pick, we're drinking. Okay, So you can say both and neither. We're drinking both or neither, we're drinking okay. All right, So we want stories. This is all to bring up story.
All right. This is a lifelong fresh friends question, right, that's that's what you like that Instagram? This morning you was practicing and I said, does anybody have questions? Will?
And this question popped up so much, so many times and so fast, because everyone knows about this game is called quick timas line you give.
Them, it's called quick Thomas Live. So everyone knows. Everyone knows this.
So soon as we I texted, I texted the picture that with me you or Charlie Matt And this is the first one.
And this is a very important one.
Remember this or that, this or that said neither.
Speak Vivian.
Because I want to say it politically correct in one VIV.
One or or VIV two. I'm trying to say what I'll say I'm doing as another one.
I hear the bottles in the forest drinking.
Slow?
How many times in your life it has people ask you, doesn't it so it doesn't burn when you drink it?
Oh and burn? I'm just trying to be you like you will slip that definitely burns. That's tasty though. Oh yeah, like that's from the the full set up. How many times have you been to ask that question? Oh my god? Yeah, yeah, you know it is. It was one of the most like difficult times in my life.
Right, you know, because you don't understand it's a job you have a relationship with.
Yeah, it's like you know what on on those kind of sets you take on the relationships of your character. It's like your set parents. Yeah, right, so it's like it's real, that's real relationships. You go. You know, it's like,
you know, this is your first relationship. Yeah, and it's like that that that that loss, that that's I'm not a man that's prone to too much regret, you know, because I believe things happen, and they you know, if you're if you're happy today, you gotta you know, accept that it's because of the things that went right and wrong. And you know, but that that was that was a you know, Janet and I are magnificent uh friends now, but that that was a very very very hard time
for me. And it was like, I didn't see you, said Jenny aunt Janet. First, I don't want people don't like I'm just talking about crazy. Yeah, the first hand of Janet, Janet Hubert written, she was she she's magnificent, right, and you know, my young arrogant eyes couldn't see that, you know. And it's like just the depth and the power that she she brought to the show. I just I was I was missing it. I just I couldn't, you know. When I look back, it's it's like it's
really you know, it was obvious what she was bringing. Uh. But Daphne, you know, Maxwell Reid, you know, cultivated a beautiful relationship you know with her, But it was a really Janet is a special kind of you know, beautiful talented power were full. You know, she was she was holding it down and I certainly wasn't wasn't seeing how powerful and important she was to the show.
Now it's always these rumors that Michael Jackson is like a gangster on the side, right, is content Ban's gang banging on?
I mean no, no, let me tell you that is one of the most committed comedic actors I have ever met. But nobody commits like he commit when he listened when he goes part of one of the you know, I've really learned my comedic acting on the set of The Fresh Prince of bel Air. And the thing that Alfonso does is like, even when he doesn't like something, you know,
he always gives it one hundred percent. His thing was like, let the writers see if you if you tanked the joke and you don't give it all, they're gonna think that it didn't work because you sabotage it. And he really taught me a you like, you know with that Carlton dances stuff like when he goes, he goes, and it's like you you can feel, uh, the power and the fun of his commitment. It's funny because he commits so hard to to the joke. Yeah, he's he's a
he's a unique breed. Okay, I'm gonna take another shot you because I got you just gonna take a shelt. I got a Chris question. You got to question this for me? Shot look like rules.
Okay, let me just say, Philly, yeah, you take a shot before.
They hold on hold. You know what I'm gonna I'm gonna go to the next one. You know what you're correct? Yeah, rapping or acting? Rapping? Man. So here's the thing I think I am. I'm more naturally an actor, really right. I think that the what my mind most naturally falls into it as far as entertainment. I saw you reached for it and then you pull back.
You can.
You just want to drink? He was breaking it down so good. I was like, really came out of me, by the way, Yes, it has such.
A beautiful soul, my god, like another one what you said?
So I'm more naturally an actor, right, but my love is hip hop right, And it's like, you know, acting is when it comes out of me like I can when I can go into a character, like I can transform my mind and my eyes when I look at somebody and fall into a character. It's like really it's natural for me yo. And it's it's like it's like moving moving your energy and attention around in your inside your body, right, so I can like fall into you know,
what did that motherfucker say? I hear your brother say it again? I just don't wire right now? Right, So that like, and I've always been able to do that, to like see something and mimic a character. So I've always been able to u mimic it, and as I got older, I could like fall into the emotion of it where it changes the look on your face, it changes your it changes your eyes, it changes your body language and just you know, so I've always been able to do that naturally you.
Learned that with time or you did you ever have to take classes?
So I never so I naturally could mimic, right, So I would look at how somebody walked, or I would listen to somebody's voice, and I could I could copy. And then as I got older, like copying is shallow, right, but then where does the emotion come from? And being able to find the deeper and deeper place and layers as I got to know myself better. Actors call it a toolbox where you have a toolbox where like so for example that the fresh scene, fresh print scene, you
were talking about the father scene. I use the father scene to find sadness, so I'll use that for you know, for King Richard. For example, there was the scene with about Venus Serena. Yeah, for that. There was a scene where at the at the net with Venus before he lets her go and play. I watched the fresh Print scene before that. It's a prep right, so I prepped to like get you watch yourself to prep for yourself. Yes,
I respect that. So but the music, there is nothing like being on stage and fifty thousand people here drums please, you know, and it's like that moment when people realize you about to do the song they've been waiting for. That's the top of entertainment. That is the top when they hear the first couple clicks up the record, that's the one they wanted to hear. There's nothing there's nothing like that in entertainment. So that's that's my It's my my love versus what I'm actually best at.
But you know, the but you was dope about you that I've noticed throughout your career, no matter how Hollywood you went, and you were always hip hop.
And infusing men in black when you brungs And then I was watching that the scene today and it was like y'all didn't even talk.
And I'm like I remember actually being in a movie theater and god bless me white people, but they didn't know what.
The communication was. They were just like they going, that was alien to I wonder if you'll start a popcorn you know what I'm saying that, But you always keep how did you? How do you do that? Likew What it is is the it's the it's the thing that's unique about what I bring. Right. So it's like you know, being being born and raised in Philly and in hip hop, it's the it's the thing that's uniquely me right at
your core, at my core. So when I bring that, you know, ninety percent of the character can be comprehensible to you know, general audiences, but then you add that little sauce that is the unique special sauce. So for me in terms of hip hop, like you'll never see in any movie ever where they beat box as an alien language, right, Like that's like I love that. It's like only I can do that, right, you know, Like I said, I was so mad at the movie people
didn't get it. I was like, yet, my god, yeah that but even to call Biz to do it right, to know that I want Biz to do that piece, you know, And it's like a R P B is r B. Yeah, God, damn, I have to look you get all right? All right?
The first one, now hold on, let me I got this. Another one is also off the off off the menu of off the menu, Jay z or Nas.
Think about it. They got you, both of them got your number. That's important. Damn. That's a hard one too. That's how I want to who's more petty? No, I have more more. I have more of an interaction with with with Jay z uh But I think I think that for I'm I'm gonna go, I'm gonna go Nas on that one. I'm gonna go Nas, I'm gonna go. No, just took us here, they said, no, yeah, yeah, No. I mean I have more of a relationship with with with Jay, but I think not Nas has made me
study rapping more. Like when I hear Nas, I'm like, damn, I'm way off the fucking bark, mark, I got I gotta get to work, you know. So yeah, Na Nas pushes me into study more. Okay, because you.
Yeah, exactly there you thinking about that, So you have to answer yeah, not a lifelong but a very long time in Queens.
The rumor is that NAS helped you with Jiggy with It, so we not Jiggy with During the time that I was working on Jiggy, NAS did uh just Cruising. It was a record called Just Cruising, right, So me and me Ands wrote Just Cruising together and I let Nas listen to the album and he was like yes, no, yes, no, yes no, And I was like, so we did. We didn't do any writing together other than the Just Cruising track, but you know, an executive cruiser. Yeah, he was, well,
he was not really an executive producer. He was there and I was like, yo, will you listen to this and tell me what you think you know? And you know, he was honest. He was. He was really honest. And then we wrote one together. We wrote Just Cruising. It was like a B side of Men in Black or so. Because he's never confirmed or did not like, yeah, yeah, come up to him like you we know you would. Yes. I don't know if he laughed, he just yeah. We definitely,
we definitely worked in the studio together. I think we might have messed around with two or three other songs, but just Cruising is the only one that ever was released.
Okay, so let me ask you because listening to this album, first off, I was very very impressed. One I'm not impressed because.
Of what you did.
I'm impressed because I was trying to figure out with's this hunger right? Because all of us to make music, we have to have hunger right, and then when you're not hungry no more, it's harder.
To make use it. So I'm sitting there, this is what I'm trying to tell you.
I was, you know, first off, your people who sent the album big up to the lexing them this will never be bootlegged.
Oh by the way, my face scare. Did you get maybe download downloaded? Like dirty years working ship? I was just like yo, I said, for whoever your team is, it's so official. Listen to me. They can send this ship to the bootlegging place in Kenya, Toby running the house, and they still can't bootleg this shit. I just being honest. It took three of us in one car to go through the whole album. But here's what I was saying.
I kept listening, and I kept saying, I kept saying, where's he going to slack at?
Where's he going to say, you know what, I'm this you know movie star, I'm this guy that reached order accolades. I'm so crazy now that I do white boy sports and you.
Know what I'm saying, like, I'm but I'm still black. And then but then you come in this album and I'm trying to find but I was so jealous because I couldn't find you not being hungry. I still felt that hunger. I still heard French fresh Prince, and I'm jealous of that because you know, if me and a poem right now going to make a Worr report, I don't think we can I can have that same attitude. I'm not speaking for him. I'm speaking for myself. And so I was.
I was jealous because it took me a whole day to download it. So when I finally because you know, I'm not that smart, but I had two smart people.
And it got them. So I was like, I would say, it's not just me, but going through it, and then I went back through it and I was just like, I can't see how you locked in?
Did you go to like Bali or somewhere like how could you lock in and and and block the world out and focus on this because it's one it sounds like you super focused.
Two it sounds like you still love the game, love it. That's the problem.
That's the part that I'm mad like because I'm like, damn, how could he be the way made more than me? Obviously have more eccolas and all on wins and things like that, But how does he still have that hunger? That's that's that's that's the question for me personally and not even for the world.
Like I felt that hunger in you. So what happened blood? I ain't got a blunt That's how good that question was. Now, what happened? What happened with me? Man? Is you know in the in the last couple of years, like I really just it down, you know, and you know, really after the Oscars, I just shut it down, and I did a real deep dive, Like I looked at I looked at myself as honestly as I could, and I looked at all of the parts of myself that I
always thought of as not for public consumption. Right, So there was a Will Smith, and there was an in an image, and there was an an an identity of Will Smith. But that was only my good qualities it was only the best of me. You're saying, what swift to the public, right, Yes, Will Smith to the public was only the best of me. Will Smith wasn't allowed to be.
Beautiful the beautiful post that you you posted, and you posted what you on the island, then you showed that it was blue behind you.
So you're saying like something like that's that that you know that that was a one way to do it. But the idea that you never saw me not smiling, right right, but you could probably imagine there was some times when I wouldn't be smiling. It's just that wasn't for public consumption, you know, So you know there was there was. It was just the best qualities of me. So then you know, I was forced into a situation where I had to be honest that I don't just
have good qualities. I have some things that I have pushed down. I have you know, fear, I have confusion, I have anger, I have sadness. Oh you're human, yeah, oh yeah.
You know that's probably the most beautifulest thing. And I know you spoke about it, but I won't. But what I'm saying is the most beautiful thing about you is you own your humanness. Yes, and and you know, I'm gonna be honest and I'm bouncing around. But I always related to the five percent nation or like the Muslims a little bit more than the preachers, because the preachers showed me that they didn't have mistakes. But when I seen you know, the five percenters, I've seen the FOI
handing out the newspaper. I seen that brother messing up before, so it made me relate to them all.
So that's that's what you know, what I'm saying. So that's what I feel like with you.
But my thing is you've never lost a step, and if you did, I guess you was just a minute that but you didn't show it to the world.
How can you do that? So for me, now now this about this time, this phase of you know, my career and really this phase of my life is as I looked into myself in that way and I like really confronted those parts of myself that my humanity, not the just the straight Superman winning all the time, the happy, happy Superman winner. Right when I started confronting those other
parts of myself, something really magical happened. Right as I like, the best way I can describe it is like imagine, like you know, I pushed my anger down and I held it and then it popped and then I was like, okay, I'm not going to pretend like you're not there, like let's talk, right, and I really like confronted it. And then it's almost like there was a hole under my anger that my anger was plugging. But inside the hole was great shit. It was great creativity and great power
and like new ideas. And it was like by not accepting that part of myself, I was cutting off the good that it could offer me. It's like it's like there's no bad qualities, there's no bad qualities in you. There are things that are neglected that will be a superpower. If you befriend your anger, if you befriend your sadness, not try to get rid of it, befriended, befriend the fact that you're scared, Like be okay that you're scared. You still got dude of shit, but don't pretend like
you're not scared. Like be scared, but still do it. Like when you befriend those energies versus like fighting them, they become superpowers. They become your army. So like you have this army of energies, and that's the place where I am right now. Like the good qualities that I
thought were the strongest, will Smith, that's not. It's like now those qualities are backed up by all of these other energies that are like having been cleansed, like not you don't want them to drunk drive through your life. But now they've been like cleansed, and now they're giving me gifts. They're giving me poetry, they're giving me power, they're giving me patience, they're giving me certainty, you know. So to me, there's a long way to answer the
question the hunger I'm from. Like, I got cheat codes, right, I got cheat codes. I want to, Like I want to share cheat my cheat codes. I want to, Yeah, I want to. I'm not. I never thought I needed derby, dude, like the way you broke, I want you need to be a defist, like or like tell somebody your dirty because I was I was so in like I want to you know how when it's I'm like, yo, can we tell you that was so? That was so dope, man, that's so dope man.
And I noticed a cliche question, And I'm gonna get back to quick time of slim.
But did you have a thing that you would make it this far? H man. I've been beyond my dreams for like twenty years. I've been beyond anything. Yeah, yeah, yeah, like you know now and it's like I'm in unknown territory right now. I have no idea where this is going. I have no idea you know what's happening. But you know, if you think of it as a wave, right, I know I can surf, right. So I'm like, you know, life, bring it back? Yeah, right, right, I don't know like
things are. So when I when I was saying cheat codes, right, so one of the first things there's a there's a song on an album called you can Make It. You can make It. It's a Monday, yes, so one of the cheat codes around you can make it? Right, So as I as I sit in this room right now, right, so a bunch of black men, you know, and you know, we would never admit we're having a hard time, right, but you don't have to tell me. I know you are.
I know you are, and I can be here and I can make it harder for you, or I can be here to have you be stronger when I leave, right, but what I used to think that you know, you know, I got to defend myself. I don't have to defend myself from you. We both having an equal hard time. If I don't aggress upon you, you're not going to write. It's like if you know that I know that you're having a hard time, and that I don't want to be any part of why it's more difficult for y'all, right,
And it's like like that's a cheat code. Like that's a real cheat code. People see it in your eyes when you know they're having a hard time and you don't want to make it harder. They also see when you don't give a fuck, if they see you don't give a fuck, not a part of them that don't give a plut you know what I mean. Yeah, So it's like to me, it's like part of the part of that cheat code of entering rooms and entering interacting
with people. It's like, I don't know what it is, but I know every single person in here is struggling with something, with something right, and at different levels. You know some you know, somebody's going through a breakup, and you know somebody you know lost some money that they really needed. Somebody that got a loved when it just died.
You know, somebody's family is fighting over something. You know, everybody's lifing, right, So it's a cheat code to don't get lost on the person in front of you, even if they're aggressing. They're aggressing because life is fucking you. It's what's not you. Life is hurting them, and they even may perceive that you're aggressing just how you walk. It don't even have to be you. They could they're perceiving that you're aggressing, and they're prepared to hurt you. Right.
But it's like the cheat code is just know that don't even don't even go into that energy space with them, you know, and you know for me, like that song you can make It, It was like that was part of the discovery, like you know, don't don't get distracted from the fact of every step you take is affecting people's lives as you move, right. So that was what part of the idea of you you can make it is like keeping in my mind when I'm looking at people, I'm saying, you can make it. I don't know what
it is, brother, but I know you got it. You got it. You know. And it's like holding that energy as a real cheat code because then people want to help you when they feel like you're open to want to help them. Voter want to help you. But it takes vulnerability to open that. Men don't. We don't do that with each other. Right, So for me when I come downstairs, brothers, it's welcome to Philly, like like like I want you to enjoy it and have fun with you in Philly, you know. And it's like I want
you to feel safe and have a good time. I got cheese steaks for you, you know. And it's like that energy is an energy of abundance. You like you, You build things, you make friends, you build relationships, You create a safe space around you. When you start from that mindset that the person is going through something, it's like you're trying to reverse the idea of hurt people hurt people. Yes, absolutely, trying to reverse absolutely, you know.
But I want to say something because the rollout that your family, the people that work with you, you've seen you a million dos work for games. We've seen you on what's the guy name that tells everybody to stop smoking in his airbnb?
You did play Boy back.
And you did drink chances and when you're looking at that, you're sitting back saying, damn, your team knows what they're doing.
They're shifting with the time.
A lot of people would have went to, you know, the traditional radios, which you had you dropping an album, so obviously you want the radio splays. But right now, black young, unscripted media is running the world. So the fact that your team knew that, Like, I watched it and I'm sitting back and I'm like, whoever's on your team, they know exactly what they're doing.
So here's my question.
You knowing that now that black young media is running the thing, where is Overbrooks Podcast Company? Where's Overbrooks Production Company? For the young directors? Putting young next? Willsmith for the young next, Kevin Hart, that's here? Eat was like me, he chis with because I know you brought cheese steaks and you trust.
Me, I'm gonna be judgment to home. Helpy came up and said, I forgot the cheez whiz. I said, I'm judging you on both times.
I'm here from Philly. But but but that's you know, it's something that I learned and I had to learn going through it because I had to go through it. Nas, who he spoke about earlier. Nas could have had Copona Nori Jega sign. He could have had Mob Deep sign, he could have had a Z sign, he could have had Foxy Brown sign. But he chose to kind of be our friends right when we wanted. We might have wanted our leader at that time. So if you look at Nas and that's my brother, you know what I'm saying,
them before I got here. But then you look at Jay. Jay didn't really care about him being your leader or not. He wanted to make good business. So if you look at that, but then if you look at them both, that's what you are like, you know what I'm saying, Like, you're a person who has the movies, your person who has the music. And then and obviously podcasts is this a new thing? And I'm sitting back like, why isn't Overbrook? You know that virsion of our heart, know how our
heart has all this? And then you got you got Netflix and God bless us. Right we made Netflix and Chill.
That was a dude that was born during COVID and said Netflix and Chill and the whole ship, this is our people. When is our people who are at that top going to invest into people, whether it's that that bottom or whatever. And I'm not just saying overbook, it's just like I kind of feel like black folks or hip hop folks should invest in hip hop now. So here's so, was that a good question? First?
That that was really good? You felt good about it. I'm like it was like it was sharp, it was a little bit it was yeah, but I want you to answer, we need blacks to invest in blacks?
Yes, cheers cherious, Yes, So that one. No, so right, So, first of all, it's it's always been the case right that my manager, Miguel, he's still in here, he would he would always say what's urban is suburban? Right? So so our community has always led right, so uh always let right. So it was you know, brands, you know before run DMC were always looking at what was happening and they say, yes, absolutely, they were always looking at what happened in the inner city. And then once run
DMC really they they broke the barrier. They didn't have a deal with Adidas. They were wearing Adidas before they had to deal with and then they were like, oh, got it right, So Adidas didn't even know their sales were spiking because run DMC was wearing Adidas. Right, So that the idea of the the the inner cities and urban communities leading in in you know, fashion and branding as we've always been that. So in terms of you know the question of why we don't do that, so
we do do it, it's it's bandwidth is an issue. Right. So you know, I know Kevin Heart's company, you know, Heartbeat Overbrook, big y'all up man, we got yes, yes, yeah, yeah, that big y'all up definitely, you know, but when you get to fifteen projects, you're at your whole company's bandwidth, right. But there's four thousand, you know, people who deserve a look, right.
But it's like, you know, you got one executive that's working ten projects that they believe in that one is going to go right, right, So you look at a company after four years and it's like, you know, so for us with our company with like bel Air, okay, right, so we've got black staff and you know, black and brown writing and staff and all of that, but it takes everything our TV division has to keep that show
up and relevant and going. And then you just don't have the bandwidth to have a second one going to it's like all hands on deck to make show, to make sure the show wins, because when you get the shot, you have to win too, right, you know. So you know we have that, we set it up, and then you know, things happen, so you start building it out right, So you'll start building out your divisions and you get going, and then there's a strike. Oh yeah, the writer's strike.
Now there's a writers strike and you have to like, you can't survive because you can't work and you can't hold one hundred percent staff, so you got to scale down to twenty percent staff until the strike is over. Now you lose all of these great people, you lose all of these great projects, and now you're starting up all over again. Right, So there are business considerations like Tyler Perry has like the most like stable foundation of being able to make things in churn them out. But
you know it's bandwidth. Also Tyler's writing and directing, you know all of this stuff too, right, So it's really it's it is. The idea is simple to say, but when you look at reality, the reality of it is, if you have a staff of forty, you could get to bandwidth on a staff of forty people with two projects. You could be like, you get two big things going, and what it takes to keep it going is like it's really hard. Then what happens is then you have
to let other people be in charge. Right, So when I'm looking over a project, like, I'm I'm the taste, right, so you know, I have other people that are really good taste. But as you get broader, you lose the taste and then you start making things that aren't good and that's not helpful either, you know. So it is, it is a It is a complex it's a complex problem, and more complex in today's media landscape where everything is
every day is turning over. So on top of it, twenty four to seven, yeah, ten years ago, you could take a big bet and be pretty sure you're going to make it limited box office yeah yeah right, you know, so it is that, you know, it is. It is difficult, and people now are thinking of it as disposable, right, so movies, yeah, disposable, well, entertainment and general the content
is disposable, freed everybody. So you can't even like, you know, make a two million dollar bet on something because people might decide that that's not exactly. Yeah, it's it is a it is a difficult issue, and I'm in a lot of those rooms. It is not because people are not trying to make it. Yeah, it is not because people yet.
Yeah, so they always say that being the first person, it's beautiful, but you know, you get you get looked, get frowned upon.
Right, I'm using that lightly. Again.
You were the first person to win a Grammy, first rapper, first rapper to ever win a Grammy.
Right, we boycott it and you boycott it and one and one still except that's right, we didn't accept one.
But were you guys solely boycotting on your own or it felt like it was a hip hop?
Boy? It was a hip hop So so what happened the So it was the first year ever that pop got hip hop got acknowledged by the Grammys. So they acknowledged that they had the category, but they said they weren't going to televise the the hip hop category. They weren't going to televise it. So we were like, well, wait, we sold more records than everybody, Like, why is that? Why is our stuff not being televised? So Russell Simmons
and le Or Cohen and m t V organized a boycott. Okay, and you're not on depth Jam, I'm not on deaf Jam. Rush's management makes sense, Okay, I just wanted to make a sense. Yeah yeah, yeah, I'm so they organized a boycott. They said nobody where Nobody's going. So MTV has a counter show that's going to boycott the Grammys. So we go, and you know, two days before the Grammys, we find
out that Como D has agreed to appear Grammys. Damn with the big glasses and a yeah yeah cool yeah so D but he uh and it's so crazy because it seems it seems so little and silly now, but it was like the biggest thing is everyone looked at the betrayer. Yeah liked and we Me and Mo were like great friends. We still are, but it was like it was like huge that he crossed the line and he went and did an intro to the Grammys. Wo right,
so yeah he did the whole legend. It was just it was just it's so funny because it was like the biggest like our lives depended on this and it was like the worst ship that ever happened. Uh, Me and Mo laugh about this now. But so we're there and it's US and Salt and Pepper and LL and stets of Sonic and so it's like fifty rappers and we're standing and we're watching and you know, they're doing
the show. And then they they do the earlier tonight awards were given in the rap category and we're standing with all the rappers and me and Jeffers standing were looking at the TV and we were nominated against It was o pp It was uh was it still a rapping R and B just right. It was the first time that it was just wrapped. So it was like US, L,
Salt and Peppa h. This was dominated Super Sonic. Oh that's right, yeah, yeah, JJ past on two three four, I'm missing a missing a fifth my name running m C was in there all right, So it was you know, so everybody was nominated. So we're standing there and we're watching the TV and they say and earlier this afternoon, DJ j Z, Jeff and Fresh Prince were awarded Best Wrap and we're standing there with everybody, and I was like a boycott. You didn't know you were gonna win.
I didn't know were you what? I was like, man, me and went in the other room and it was like, yo, the first grandy ever give it to a wrapper, And it was like we never, we never really you know, had the chance to fully celebrate. But it was really giant hearing that we wanted the first ever.
Yeah, now, hip hop could be you know, critical until they actually make that position right. Like it's like it's like a person seeing the first person doing the alley, like, well, that shit looks crazy, and then you learn how to do. This is legit, you know what I'm saying. So after winning the Grammys, when did it become cool to actually win Grammy?
Because I'm sure you got chasts, yeah for sure now and it was like, you know, well they only won because white people like their music. But that's cool. They won because it's they want one, because it's soft, you know, it was their their music was palatable for other audiences.
That critic is still going on to this day. When itgory for sure, you know, you know, I think I think it was probably like.
Like three three Grammys later where it was like cool, cool to to win the Grammy. It was like that that next year still wasn't cool, but they televised it, so it was like good that they televised that they were respecting the genre. But it was yeah, definitely, like three years later that it was like a real prestige thing to to win a Grammy.
Yeah, because now everybody's bragging about it, but back then they were like pistol the Grammy.
Yeah, yeah, I hope actually did it pistle you well, Kanye one of them did that. They said, No, it's a it's a it's an honor. Anytime anybody will say we appreciate what you do, I think there's a lot of silliness that goes into that. It's not about the award, it's just it's it's a work you know that you put into Somebody is saying, hey, I appreciate what you do, and you know what your how your gifts are being received by humanity. Is that that is That's a real thing.
Is there any aspirations to be to have an egot to all of them? Uh? Because you know, I'm I'm pasted, I'm past awards in in my mindset. You know, there's a there's a thing I think that everybody. Uh, I wish that everybody could have everything they dream to realize that that's not it. You know I've said before, like there's a there are people talk about rock bottom that when you hit rock bottom is when you'll make a
change drugs like drugs. People say dr rock bottom in life. Yeah, but yeah, it is that people say it in in you know, in a talking about rock bottom. But there's a core responding place that I call cliff top. Right, you could be too high, where you get so high that you realize literally none of the stuff can make you happy. Right after you you get you can get to the end of the material world. You get to the end of money, you get to the end of sex.
You know, you get to the end of fame. You get you you you have so much, and you get and then you you like go off of a cliff into the same kind of abyss that you'd be scared of slipping into at rock bottom, right where life loses all of its ability to sustain and please you. And then the only thing that's left the same thing at rock bottom. The only thing that's left at cliff top is you have to You have to find what you actually looking looking for, And what you're actually looking for
is you. You're looking for you. You're running around right when you when you like a woman and you like being with a woman is because you like how you feel. You like what's happening inside of you. When you have money, it's like, yeah, it's cool to buy things, but it's
not the money. You like how you feel inside. It's unleashing a feeling inside and at rock bottom and at cliff top, what you have to learn how to do is generate that feeling without anything external you want to You have to learn how to like like you so much that you like being alive so much that you you bring positive energy that's not generated by stuff. Right because stuff is coming and going, like people are coming in going. Everything you have and everybody you love is
going to rise and fall in your life. The place that we have to find is a spiritual place where we are good with us. We trust us. I trust myself, I trust God, and I trust life that whatever happens, I'm going to make happy out of it. I don't need specific things to happen.
And I think also the important thing is we forget that that journey is really the middle part is really the best part of me.
Yes, exactly. It's like being able to be right here, right now with whatever arises and not need a specific thing to happen, right, And it's like, you know, part of the beauty of these these moments for me and these interactions for me, it's like I don't need a specific thing to happen with us. Now, I'm open and I'm excited, Like what's going to evolve from this moment.
And as soon as I have a specific thing that I want to happen that I want from you, now it it it throws off the energy of our experience, you know. So I'm just learning to accept life as it comes. Just relax.
You know.
Some ship's gonna come that you don't like, some ship's gonna come that you do like. And it's like, I'm trying to just cultivate a mind that is able to accept and add love to any circumstance that arises. Letting go. This is what I got to do that let me join you properly. Cheers, So look at me. So I want to speak about you quick time was like we just didn't go back sometime. I want to say something about Philadelpia. Don't care nothing about the rules, but.
Philly has made such a dramatic mark in hip hop, he says after you, like prior to you, we had Schoolly Deal first, then we had you, and like you said, like so many people.
There's a lot of firsts from Philly and hip hop is going way better. You know what I'm saying is from him. But so many people didn't understand because you were making clean rap, right for lack of a better term, right, you were making clean rap.
A lot of people didn't know what rest Philadelphia was. A lot of people didn't know what Philadelphia was. A lot of people didn't know that Philadelphia. You're gonna get killed out there.
You're done, and you're gonna shot a shot and and they might stay there to like It's like so a lot of people didn't know that because New York was so much of but now Philly has kind of like took his own mark, like like I mean, through hip hop, through through so many different things, through comedy, cav How did how did you did you see that Philly would be.
Prominent like that because it's damn near next to New York at this point.
You know what's interesting, Like Philly was all out news right so to to me, the the hip hop culture and the creative culture in Philly and even before that, when I you know, when I was growing up, Joe Fraser was Philly. Yeah history, yeah, yeah, yeah, you know, so you know there there has been a long history. Uh you know, Wilt Chamberlain went to the high school. I mean that he was going with He's famous brothers literally a couple of times, you know. But you know,
there's a rich history. There's a rich, rich history of talent and successful people. Julius Irving, you know when I was growing up, so you know, for me, it was always I knew that I was going to do my best to be a part of a rich history. I didn't feel like I was starting anything right, So I felt like I was being you know, gambling ugh, and you know, I felt like I was being a part of a history, contributing, contributing to something that was already you know, alive and well.
Listening to this album, I felt like you called everyone and everyone said yes, but I'm wondering if I'm wrong. Was there anybody that you called for this album and they were like, I'm busy or I'm in Costa Rica?
No, you know, yeah, no, there there were there were a couple of people who who weren't sure about working with me. There were yeah, there were, There were definitely definitely a couple of people. It was the hot water, Yeah yeah yeah. They were like, yeah, we'll wait for the second round. Will were round, Yeah, the boy the boiler, Yeah yeah, we'll see. But it was actually that that was new for me too, that I got that was real humbling. I'm used.
I was used to when when Big Willie call it was you know, I was like, I was saying, but they honest about it.
No, No, people weren't being honest. You know, they weren't being honest. But I knew. I knew that's what it was. I knew that's what it was. Well, please please do not forget. But the other day new he called me. Now, he called me and was like, yo, can you can you meet me at Club eleven? And I was like, yeah, of course, and you said it. He knew I was lying because I'm too old there want to, but I don't want to tell him no. So I was like I was like yeah, okay. And then and then Nellie
he knew it. He heard. He freezed. He's like, damn, you could just say. I was like, I'm older. Now you want him shoutut my grass yeah, so I don't go out.
So I don't don't go out. No, but I feel different. Now are you different? I'm talking you're different because how people treated for the incident that happened. No, you know, can you see how these people fuckers are?
No? No, I I don't have so. First of all, I didn't look at anything that anybody said, right, So, like I literally shut it down. I was like, I don't want to know nothing that nobody saidication as all. Yeah, somebody had five months where I didn't even look at you know, Instagram, and I was, yeah, we all need to do that. Yeah, you know. So it's like, you know, I know there there's you know, like people that went hard, right,
but I literally don't know. I don't know. Me and Charlie was out the other night, me and Charlie, yeah, and somebody somebody walked in that had had gone hard, and I was like, hey, no, no, no, not that one. That one. I ain't gonna say nobody's name. Somebody's name. Figure it out. We're not speaking of him. We're not
speaking of him, right, you know. But for me, it's like I just I knew it would poison in my heart, and I was like, I just don't want that, man, I just don't want to know what none of them niggas said. So when I see him, Hey, man, Charlie can just grab my hand. I love that. But that was all right.
Now I'm gonna give you one of mine. I did an interview, our second interview with his brother. Our first interview was so beautiful. I mean, a second interview was beautiful. It had parts in there that, oh I already know.
Oh yeah, and I remember we're dropping an interview.
And sorry for anybody who's looking the but you know, puff Daddy called me and said, man, you sure you want to drop this? And I said, yeah, I'm an artistic I'm standing by my artistic artistic tree.
I'm standing by my Japanese outpian street will boys. I regret that.
He did not say I told you so. No, Hed never told me that. He never too, but he told me and we dropped this Kanye interview. The name I said, I wasn't going to say the name I'm saying.
You just didn't say. But if you expressed by and f N are not necessarily will Smith that what I'm saying. She entered. It surprised me with the people that called me.
The people that called me wasn't the essential people that I thought that were called like Shaq called.
Me, Pharrell called me, and it was just for me. It was just like I made a mistake, and what I say, I made a mistake. I never said nothing, but I did not like that.
So now I understand that that this is my responsibility if a person is on my platform, regardless of what. If will Will Smith gets on my platform and says, let's let's say Monster Energy, we got to get money with them.
We get money with them. Don't talk about let's say black black black. No excuse me, brown brown little squares, there's a piece of ship. Yeah, brown little square is not only as mad as you.
If they're mad at me, they thought that I edited it, They thought that that I went over it, and they thought that I deliberately said.
When it's really just your views.
So my question is saying that was one of my in front of the industry most downist moments, and the people who called me was people that I did not in one of your downiest moments. Was whoever one of these who was the person who called you? Who you you didn't think Floyd Mayweather.
Floyd. I love Floyd. Yeah yeah, Floyd called me every day for a month after that. Oh yeah, you know I love let me. I want to back up on this a little bit because that's what you touched on a good point, all right, So you know you you get this interview if you have it and you put it out. Here's the cheat code. Yeah, So people said to me, will you sure you wanted to do drink champs? Really? Do you want? You want to? Like you say, for real, for real? Like will are you sure you want to
put yourself in that position? Right? But you know right? Yeah right? We don't even know, right, So it's like, well, what are you gonna You're gonna take drinks? Right? And then who knows what the fuck you might say? Right right? And they were like, you know, Norris good at getting you to say some ship you might not right right? So so I said, oh, because I love y'all right. So I sat on it for a minute.
My son, that's my first time I we mentioned the bright No no, no, that's a Nickelodeon nicolode continue right.
So so but I really had to sit with that, right. So the cheat code is what's your intention? Right? So when you're in those situations, it's like, what is your intention? What was your intention in that moment? In that moment, what's your intention putting out the interview? Right? So for me, when you're ten toes down in your intention? Right. So my intention of being here with y'all is to support any good you're trying to put in the world.
We want to show you our because our attention is about giving people their flowers, the smell them.
They and we'll let me just tell you something.
Every wrapper in this world that ever tried to act, ever wanted to go into another, we all owe you, we all owe you. We all have to take our hats off to you. You gotta rub our Beijing, and we gotta do whatever. I'm obviously not doing it, we know. But every rapp up who has ventured out you know, you know, I mean even did you know, uh what do we call it?
Uh? Uh?
You know other business mentions because prior to you, all rappers did was rap. And then when they didn't have them pensions in them W nine's in the one case, then they started to complain.
But you gave the blueprint. You said, you know what I could rap, I could dominate rappers that can.
Dominate another fail, and then I can come back and I can dominate another fail, and I gonna keep dominating another field.
I keep going.
I can get so bored. I could do ship that y'all don't even like it. And guess what, and then you had to TikTok phenomenon.
I'll be following you on. I don't know what the fuck you be doing. I'm like, I'm like, fucking will swip through it, Like.
It's just so we want you to know, like how important how much are you tip that other world?
And right now we probably don't understand because the other world has just been chipped. Yeah, for sure, that's pioneering. That means that's what pioneer. That's why I said earlier.
I was like, yo, yo, you know you was the first person to running grabby. I'm sure I was the first person to do reggae dong.
People laughed at me. I almost had to wear a pampa because I feel like everyone's shipping on me. But guess what.
You can't turn the radio without saying, but you've been trying to be spanning too, I mean, why be watching you?
You're not calling you poppy letting you know, like you be having spain this girl, I'll see the left deal community.
We've been contemplating on how we kicking you out well like this nigga want to be called poppy drawing the line man, you have to brew? Are we are? Girl and brew? How do you let me tell you? I mean, it's nothing like it's it's nothing like uh, Friday night in Colombia. You know, I'm telling you, it's a lot of places. It's a lot of places. What are you doing?
The hole? It's beautiful. I'm like I've always I've always loved you know, Latin music and and Latin food and like the the you know, the fire of Latin women and dance and all of that.
All of our Latin music comes from Africa as well. Yes, trying this for bad Boy five. That will. Let me just tell you something that we were so excited I worked out about.
You're doing you know what we're doing the Rocky Steps tomorrow. Yeah you heard. I could have I could have hit your team. Your team is so official. Yeah.
I was like, you know, I couldn't bother them, Like everybody was a fit and I couldn't download the album. I asked him about seventeen times about the album, everything, everything.
Yeah, it was so efficient.
But we're doing the Rocky Steps tomorrow because that's my dream to run the Rocky Step. So now it's gonna be mostly Instagram meaning I'm I'm running very.
Fast, Yes, got it, and I'm gonna go up to the hill. Yeah, I'm gonna be like yo yo yo, Yeah you do that. Yeah yeah yeah. Is that how you trained for Ali? Yeah? Oh no that yeah, no, no, no, that was a good yeah. You know, my mouth was open, but you with all these real trainers, right, No, it was real. Yeah, okay, because I wasn't. I wasn't the boxing classes in South Beach, yes, and you walked in.
Actually I don't know if you know the trainer was still working at that at that gym.
Act as Ali. Yeah, we did. We did a real fight camp. So it was it was you know, real fighters, Michael Bent, Uh, Charles Shooter, James Tony and you know it was they wanted me to train and to you know, have a sense of the experience of what it was like to train for a real fight. So we went real real and Michael Michael Bent was like, you know, mentoring me and James Tony was the one that he no actors, So James, Tony would hit me real, James, Tony would hit me for real. Yeah, And I was like,
I'm gonna give you the act. He would screamed. He would scream, bite your mouthpiece. When he was throwing a punch, he would say, bite your mouth piece, you know, James, Yeah, James. I was like, James, seriously, come on, man, come on, I got it. I don't work with no actors. We fighters in here. You know if Jake pulled child you to a fight, would you take it? Man, I'm too old for that. Good that that joke is strong. He is he we you know, you know he made, he made.
He's not.
Working his way to being a professional fighter, right, but you know he was like he was a champion wrestler before he that. Yeah. Yeah, no, he's he's he's he's real. You know, maybe now on the professional level, yeah, but you know as a as a fight he can fight for real. Yeah. People an't like you can has an affinity for the.
Be honest with you, not since my father's older friends, I've heard somebody use the word joker.
Joker. Every time you use it, I crink.
No, bring it, bring those old school joints back.
If you don't know that East coast when the when the East coast say, man, that joka, that's up now.
The person place and I'm looking at well and now you were using in your rhymes to it. I'm telling you use that that that's the only good I had. So joka joka is that just genera But let me just say, jokat a lot cooler ship. Yeah, we got we got so much schools. But step give me something, give me But joking, like we say, joker, this joker all the time, that joke, it must be out of
his mind. But that y'all, y'all, y'all, yeah, ya, y'all, y'all, y'all, day that joint that really that jo yeah joke would just make me say, damn this grandfather to ship right here out here. It makes me makes me I don't want to accept except man, I use Beijing, I used we want y'all you used me one No, no, mine is just like this all the time. Man, Well come on a little bit. I know many my ship would probably look like that. Yeah, yeah, for sure, I'm on the verge. If you had one thing to do all
over in this industry, and that's anything. What would you do one thing to do all over again? You know it's funny like once your once your past things right, there are very few. You know. There's a song on an album called Beautiful Scars, right, So what the the idea is you You don't like shit while you're going through it, right, but once you learn the lesson, you never want to give it back. Right. It's like you suffered it, you survived, you took a lesson from it.
Now it's like the things that you have suffered are in your eyes when you talk to your son, right, if you ain't been there, you can't help him, right. So to me, it's like, you know, I wouldn't you know when I look back, there's like there's not things. I mean, of course there's things you know I think about, but I wouldn't. I would never from this side of it, I would never give them ours back.
Because you're looking at it like whatever you've been through, why you're here now, makes.
You who you are? Right, It's like you you're you can't be more valuable than your suffering. And that's a really that's a hard idea you learn in this world by getting smashed. That's that's how that's the sound shot. Yes, but like most stuff sounded like a shot. Can we really? I'm sorry because you're so deep, but I really want to open up. Will Smith therapy. No, no, I'll be a therapist too. Yes, you're gonna be the therapist. I can't be. No. I don't know. Man, you gotta get
trained something. You might just throw the problem. That's like, oh yeah, somebody like struggling with. Somebody thought something that they struggling. You know you you got something, nobody. Yeah, come on, step up, cut, come on, come on, come on, take up. We've seen real struggle. We've seen it. My chicken nuggets weren't that good. Let's go cut dude, you gotta stave you step back like shark take Yeah.
Yeah, you me your therapy already. Somebody I'm like up with a problem. He's like you back up, back up. It's like yo, and you got to make sure you you ready for this.
Yeah, he's on the way here on the right head. I lost a friend that I spoke to him Sunday. Damn. Sorry to hear that. Man.
The last three months I lost five people. Food as you get older was closing and you get to look around like, damn, friend, how do you deal with that older me?
So you have more exprience. Absolutely, so he got deep. I was already a grand grand clothes like anoy, your.
Celebrity ran open the grand clothing, go to the OUs of Joan.
What we'll say. Yes. So it's funny because I talked to Quincy Jones about this, uh you know, he said that exact same thing, probably eighteen months ago. I was talking to him and he was like, man, I've been a funeral every week, you know, and you just you know, you just get to that point where that's what it is, you know. And he was like, I'm the last one,
you know. And so part of the idea so death, everybody in here is going to die, and before that we're going to experience a series of our loved ones at the party. Right. So, reconciling death is the highest human difficulty as soon as you can be with So for example, my sister was with my father in the room in the moment that he died. My sister did the makeup on my grandmother in the in the casket, right. So but because of that, she's gangster, right, she can
be with life and all that it has to offer. Right, So I would say to you, don't shy away from their families, go sit with them, like look with them, Like be with what that loss actually means inside of a human heart. Like be with it, and you you will break your heart in that. I used to do the Make a Wish Foundation and would be dying children
who their last wishes they wanted to see me. It's crazy, right to like be to be with death is the final human reconcile when you can sit and look and you know, I was just I was actually I was talking to Gilly, right, and I had to I made a confession to to Gilly the other day. I was like, yo, when your son died. God bless. I've reached for my phone multiple times and I didn't have the courage to
call you. Right. It's like death is the hardest there is, Like don't run stand it, Like be with the people that are hurting, Be with the people who are suffering. There's you can't fix it. Just be able to be with people in that level of pain, right, and it's all you can do. It's like we're not we're not in charge of that part. But what we can do is love each other through it. That's all we can do is be with each other.
I'll be something because no, no, I say something because again, like I witness you downstairs. I see you get out of the car, and I've seen the security god, the same security god that said hi to me, she said hi to you, and you just you just stood there and you just open your arms and you just accept what life brings you.
I'm also jealous of that.
It's because, like I automatically, if someone says up to me, I'm like, I don't. I don't immediately put you broke your hug.
Excuse me?
You bring your arms out for a hug, And I was like, what the fuck? And I can't think like that sometimes, like especially if I'm in the far in place. I mean, obviously it's not a foreign place to you. But when I jump out and the person says to me, yo, what's up, I'm like, what's up. It's like even when I jog, like if a person's able up, you got to like actually get me out, And I'm like, what up?
Yo? You know what I mean?
But you or the accolades or the places you've been, as soon as you jump off the car like and I do this like for the past nine years. I analyze everybody as they get as a car, analyze who they talk to, are analyze if they speak to the regular individuals, they speak to the orf they want to want to come in and get this interview over and done.
Because we're not a emotional people. We don't we don't care about interviewing people when they We care about interviewing legends and icons and making sure they iconic legendary Statugyes continues, continues and continues to grow.
But something that was so genuine about you is when you jumped up the car you see me, I saw you. I was like, damn, this nigga.
He looked like the wild wild West right now, it's crazy, it's crazy, Like this nigga is real.
It's real.
And then and then the security guard said, I will and she had just did the same exact thing to me, and we spoke and you know, I gave her a hug, but your hug was way more genuine in minds, right, He's like, no, no, no, no, no, no, it was real because I was just like, all right, cool, this is this lady I gotta talk to to get upstairs and maybe I should.
So I did, and I did it.
But your hug was like, Okay, I ain't see you in a while. And I was like, I don't know if you said you see you in a while. Your hug said, yeah, you didn't see you in a while. And then I recollect to what you said to us, Welcome to Philly. Yeah, yeah, that's not normal, Ship. Yeah, you know, it's it's some.
It's it is.
It's new for me.
I've always been I'm letting y'all know for twenty five years we need this is yea brother.
I told brotherly Love this morning. I'm like, oh, this is waw Ship talking about fucking will Smith his brother loved twenty five years. Yeah, my bad man. But so so what I thought, you know is, you know I saw y'all you know, so you know, I greeted everybody, and I saw her off on the side of the security guard was like, oh, you know, because Honda, they they know each other, they're doing the things. She didn't want to, like impose. So I was like, no, no, no,
you safe here, sister, come on in. So I was like I wanted her. I could tell it's the end of her work day, workshift, she's going home. So in my mind I saw her go like that to me is the highest she like she saw. So I wanted to fan the flames of that energy.
You know how hard that is to understand human behavior. And within that fifteen seconds. Back in the days, we could sit there and you could be like, I know this guy, and somebody's gonna say, Yo, that's rainbows from South Bronx. He's such such so you can actually, but now we have fifteen seconds set to see if this person is worthy of our time or not. But you did it in fucking three well, because everybody's worthy of money, right, He wasn't judging it. Yeah, way like there's nobody who's
not worthy of my time. That is some niggas ain't worried my time. You're a much better person than me.
I ain't gonna lie. You know who you are. Some of you skip your call or purpose. I see you. This is me. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Let me take a shot. That's hilarious, man.
But everybody's worth for your time. That's such a beautiful thing, man, I promise you. I'm going to try to live, but I'm not gonna live like I'm not gonna sit here.
And lie to you, you know what I'm saying. But I'm I'm going I'm going to try my best to really feel like everyone is my time because there's certain people that like that call me, ask me, are you having another monster energy event? That's who you don't follow me on Instagram? Like why are you asking me this crazy thing?
But you you think that everybody not everyone. Most people like when you go to target, you speak to people you're not going to target.
So so first of all, if you don't know who the person is, you can't really how would you know they're not worth your time? You can't judge that, Yeah, you don't know. And then if you're gonna mess around, benefit to look at somebody based on how they dressed or something like that, you know, and you know, so part of so, part of the revelation that I've had in these past couple of years is everything is God right,
So everything is one thing right. So the idea of something being higher and lower, something being good and bad, that's a that's a false perception of reality, right, that's not that's not a real because you can't you can't know what something's going to lead to so even something you don't want, even something you don't like, just because you don't like it doesn't make it wrong, and just
because you like it doesn't make it right. Right, So you you actually you can't know, You literally can't know what the future is. You can't know if we're gonna go downstairs after that and you're gonna be lunching and walk out in the street and that girl grabs you. Better not be my wife right there, right right, you know. But it's like like, you know, don't give me no, no no. If my wife there and I'm walking down the street, that girl need to let me get hit
and put your hands on me later, you know. But you can't you we don't. You don't know what's gonna happen, right, You can't. You can't know what when you're gonna cross
somebody's path again or something. My grandmother said something to me when we first got on the tour bus for me, Jeff Willie, this is your first tour, first tour period, yes, like you know, nineteen eighty eight or something like that, first time getting on a tour bus and my grandmother said we're getting on, said bye, baby, she said she says, okay, baby, just remember everywhere you go. One day you're gonna have
to go there again. This is a grandmother that was sitting next to you during the on the now that was my mother. That was my mother. Yeah, my grandma, my grandmother, she passed. Let the grandmother that found the curse curse work. I found that. That's why you don't really curse that. Yeah. Yeah, so yeah, you let other people curse on this out. No. Yeah, you think that you ain't curse, but you let the nigga. Okay, he's smart.
A cursing character characters another person acting, so it's different. I gotta learn this acting shit. Yeah, that's my goal.
Right now, I'm going to Will Smith act in class, going to Will's. If there are people me and you are a partner, Will will send yes, Will Smith network, but it's really don't let nobody know that, yes, your partner, sil secrecy. Will Let me just tell you something, man, I really respect you.
I really.
Once you understand that you laid the blueprint for every rapper who wanted to be something more than a rapper, because rapper was the quintessential level to where we wanted to get at At one point let me take off my glass to like a Macaolmax.
But then you hugged Uncle Phil, and then you you brung gangsters.
Regular people, street people, people who pack bags and wall bounds, people who deliver food for six brothers. You bring them all together because everyone had that little missing part of their heart, whether they had a father or they didn't have a father, they had something that was missing in their heart. They did that. Then you went on and then you conker. One of my favorite movies the all time is Enemy of the State. You know what Enemy of the stated? You remember that?
I remember that one. That one I was there, look at me, look like because because I asked you earlier, what.
Was your most serious role? And to me it was Independence Day? You and vivocat together. That that was That was too like the black actors. They put you all together and independent that Yeah, that was crazy. July fourth was different. Yes, big, okay, that's what it was.
I was I'm like, year was that ninety six? That I can explain? It's cooled d what jail? Yes, you can explain. Yeah, but.
Now listen told you bouncing around? Yes, now I realized that you and Michael B.
Jordan is out of line, out of line, out of line, out of line. He's going to explain in a second, everybody, and I am legend died. How the fun is the part too? All right, coach? So hold on, by the way, I want to I can explain to a war or something, all right. So there was there was a there was an alternate ending that came out on the d v D. I got ye in the alternate ending, my character Liz. Listen, ye seating right now, but I respect it. Listen. Oh yeah,
and I hadn't bring this. I wanted you to say this. Oh I believe you with that. No, you can't have it. You can't have it, but I just want you to because about it. Take a picture, well, let's take the figure with I want one bulf Okay, I'm sorry, I don't want to do that, but get yeah, so I am letting you yeah, no, no, no, you see how he was with this, yeah.
Case listen when when e f N he has like little takes yeah right here yea. By the way, if you touch his take, even though this is your tape, it's my it's your music, get pause. That's it too much. Watch watch how you.
He's gonna throw away into your wills.
Okay, So she was throwing that like this, and he's talking like this. It feels like, calm down, guy, But I am lesgend. I'm gonna be honest with us. I watched all your movies bad boys every day. I did watch that alternate ending. Yeah, but I also realized I was making up a bag like let's get another bad No. No, you misread it, you miss read It's me. Let me tell you, let me tell you the truth.
Let's go. So, here's the truth of what happened, all right, the ultimate see what had happened was what happened. So the alternate ending was the first ending, the original It was the original ending, was the original script, and it
was based on the original novel. We tested it and it was the only movie I've ever had that the audience booed at the end, at the end of that ending when the so in the in the final scene where they come in and there around me and the alternate ending and the the Dark Seeker, what we realized and the alternate ending is that he realizes the one that I was keeping in the room was his woman. And I realized it was his woman, and he was like, you know, the meaning of the ending was, oh shit,
I'm the monster. They think of me as the monster, right, And we looked up at the wall and we do the shot up at the wall, and you see how many of them I killed? And he looks at them and looks at them, and he looks at me and then he goes in and gets his woman and leaves. Right. So that was the alternate ending. We tested it and the only so how they do these things is they put it in front of an audience. You know, you
get a couple hundred people. They fill it out, and you fill out you know, there's five boxes and you say either excellent, very good, good, poor, very poor. And what they do is they take the top two boxes and if you score, you know, ninety percent in the top two boxes excellent and very good, you're pretty sure you have a good movie. It was the lowest scoring
movie I've ever ending. So they score the whole movie, but it was because of the ending ending, okay, and it scored fifty one in the top two boxes, and we were like what So then then they fill out the thing and it was like basically across the board, it was like the ending is bullshit, that's bullshit. He's not the monster. They're dark seekers. They've been chasing them, and there was something that was just horrific except they could. They was like, no, you're not the monster. We didn't
watch this whole movie to figure out that you're the monster. No, they're the monsters. So they felt cheated. So six weeks before the movie comes out, we had to reshoot the ending that was actually in the movies where my character died. That's in New York City where you wasn't here. Yeah, right, so where where my character dies in the end actually is the alternate ending, right, So it's the it's the alternate ending. But we we were faithful to the novel
in the in the previous ones. So when we did the new ending, it scored ninety one in the top two boxes, and it was like, it's just one of them weird things that happens. It was like, how much does that say about us? As I know? Right? Yeah? Humor yet watching that No, but it was it was, it was It was like a major save. We saved it because people, the audiences hated it, right, but it was what we originally wanted to do. So we were like, well, we we shot. You know, it was probably an eight
million dollar ending that got scrapped. Wow, right, because we were special effects and all of that stuff in it. So well, so we ultimately we were like, well, we got to use it. We got to use it somewhere. So we put it on the DVD, on the DVD and Blu ray, so people saw it, so it popped up online and all of that. And then later the writer Akiva Goldsman, he's the Academy Award winning writer of a Beautiful Mind, and so he's like, hey, what if
we made another one? What we were going to do is the prequel, So we were going to do the prequel. What happened before, So we were going to go back and do the prequel. And he was like, but wait, what if we make a new version from the alternate ending where your character is still alive? And you know, Michael B. Jordan's character currently is the head of a new settlement. So he's not your son, he's not my son, not my son, not my son, my dark seeker son. Well he's an evil right.
But no, so uh well, no, I can't tell you to movie, give me like a long nobody watching this ship. Yeah, right right now. Just want to people that I am legend fans like me and I love the fact that we're doing the number two.
But he said we we do, we do. I love to be doing another one. Will you know? You said we you know? We we do? We knew well, but I love the fact that you do.
But I wanted it so so for people that's fast like me, make it makes sense for them. Tell them that you we got we had d N A left over. Michael B.
Jordan is coming out DNA left off just making up ship. Yeah, I thought you you established that.
But that's that there's not d NA. How does Michael B. Jordan come to assistance? Does a dog eat him?
No? No, the dog there's a dog practically, I'm so when he was jogging and I am like other people. Adult, You're not doing a good job selling this movie right now. I'm not telling Michael George's movie. No, this is your new social media get him over here. No, no, no, it's really it's a it's a it's a cool concept. So uh or currently Michael Be's uh character is the head of a settlement.
So there's a settlement in Connecticut. Right I'm gonna be honest will is the settlement is no judges. There's no nobody in the pregnant.
So you're gonna you're not gonna watch it, or you're just gonna watch everybody dead. Everybody's not dead your life. So there's other people. You saw the girl and the little boy. Take it to the shot, last last shot. We're gonna get your flowers. We get you up there. You think you will, I know you got you. We go us. There's slow time of life. Thank you man, Hey, listen man, thank you man. This was fantastic.
Please have listen man, come have form with us anytime you.
You own Miami, Miami, Please please in Miami for sure. You know that's my town. Yeah, come by hang out.
It was beautiful for us to come hang out with you Andiladelphia, because one Philadelphia is a town I couldn't as soon as as soon as I landed, I thought of trading places immediately and I couldn't realize why. And I realized that actually trading places happened here. But let me get back to the point. Well, because of my man Lex man, you know what I mean, big up to your whole team being so I mean, they were so official, so efficient.
I don't even know if I'm making sense, but get it.
And they were so great, and I just want to thank you so much because so many great people like you have a terrible team, and then so many people have a great team and then they're terrible people.
Oh wow, you actually got some shit worked out.
Like I mean, for nine years of me dealing with every artist from fifty said to you, name him, I don't want to keep name dropping. I'm telling you this is purely a pleasure for me. Your album is fucking awesome. I ain't gonna lie.
I'm sorry.
I'm sorry to say this, but I was listening to it like there's no way he could still be this hungry. So I was actually listening to it for a flaw and I didn't fly in one. And the thing about it is, I want to salute you for that. I want you to know that you appreciate it. I want you to know everything that you did because in a certain way, had you not rapped and went to Sitcom, from sitcom to movies and then dominated all these worlds,
we wouldn't have had that from us. He's a DJ, me, a rapper, us to go to podcast, so in a lot of ways. You might own Drink Chances, but we could do a deal for Old Brooklyn.
You know your part of it. We thank you, man.
I appreciate you man for taking your time out. And I just want to say something before this is all up. He didn't ask me to say this, lexing next me say this. No one asked me to say this. This might be one of his best albums.
I love that. No what do y'all say? I'm not glazing. No cat, no cat, no, no can't no blazer listens.
Listen to that ship and I'm gonna tell you this just in case. And by the way, he did not tell me this. Listen to the first two tracks.
If you're not.
Intrigued, adapted, and want to continue for the first two traps. First two tracks, excuse me, You're not human.
That's it, and you can be an I am legends.
Drink Champs is a Drink Champs ll C production hosts and executive producers n O.
R E and d J. E. F f N. Listen to Drink.
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