CIPHA SOUNDS - Chinese Take-Out NYC

York edition, we are not actually cooking in studio. We're gonna do take out addition, So I want to know what you ate when you were broke in New York trying to survive. So what do you have us eating today? So? Um, Hi, I'm very famous in New York. So uh, there was a lot of things I ate while I was broke, but this this year was my main go to. And this is a New York staple. Now it sounds kind of common. It's four chicken wings and French fries, which you could get at any on any kid's menu in

any restaurant. Buffalo wild wings, red lobster, Applebee's, I mean, but it's different. In New York when it comes from the Chinese hood spot. I mean, this is not even this is new. See the chicken wings and French fries from the Chinese spot. It's something special about it. I don't know why has nothing there's nothing Chinese about it. Yeah, there really isn't that. But for some reason, the Chinese hold in the wall spots in New York City make

them a certain way. I don't know if they all talk to each other and have the same recipe or they get the chicken delivered from the same spot. But some dude, some dudes have variations. You could do four chicken wings and fried rice. Some do four chicken wings and an egg roll. I personally like the French fry aspect. So this was like my go to broke meal coming up. And how much was this when you were coming up? Four bucks? Four bucks, five bucks sometimes and you know

you can add another wing. You can ask for extra duck sauce, which I don't know why people in the hood are so rude when they ask for extra duck saw It's a thing you never seen that, Yo, give me more duck sauce. I'm like, hey, just as nicely, he'll get they'll give you more. So you do your French fries with dusaus, you do the chicken with you do you do hot sauce, duck sauce and catch up, and then you can you have like a tri dip, you know what I mean a little bit. That's why

they're so rude. Yeah, because give us the catch up in the hot sauce. I don't see any duck. There is no duck. Shouts, Well, you have to ask for the duck shots. Did anyone ask who got this? Eagle? Did not get this? I had? I had what do you call it? The delivery service? Yeah, what is it? Delivery? Rob Hobbs and those guys, and they delivered. Didn't have that when I was broken. Yeah, well we were on a tight schedule. So we're like order that and have

it delivered. It has to be delivered from a Chinese guy on a bike from the restaurant. Yeah, because the guy, the guy who delivered it was like Filipino or something, and he came in a Honda Civic. He came in a scooter. Scooter. Things have changed. So let's let's just let's just try a wing so I can have this experience. It from New York. Right, Yeah, I'm from New York, but I live in l A. I've lived in l A so long. But how you had this before? Right? I've had this. I've had this. So you got to

pop off the wingy part. Sometimes you can get a little meat meat and when you pop How did you do it? I did it? I did it? Do you do flats first or drum first? Let me tell you, I'm a flats person. I don't. I don't you know what I don't. I don't mess with the drum. When I was younger, I was all about the drum. I got older and I was all about the flat. What is it about the flat that you like? Mhm? I feel like the drum is always dryer. I'm gonna lie. I haven't had this a long time. It tastes exactly.

It's hello, good yo. Let me yeah, this taste exactly. How I remember, when was the last time you ate this like this? Like straight up from a Chinese spot like this? Oh man, I had to be like, but you're were in two It had to be like two thousand and four or something like that. Wow, that's a long time. And I eat a lot of wings, so funny because you look like you're a nostalgic land right now. You're like, no, because you know, taste is one of them. You know, taste and smell is one of the most

um sensory, provocative, uh mind melding type. You know, smell is the most you remember the most when you smell something like if a girl works past me with Chanel number five, I instantly think of that bitch that broke up with me. And I don't use the term bitch in a derogatory sense towards females. It's more of a hip hop colloquialism. Okay, well, what was going on in two thousand and four? Yeah, but like right before before and then I want to know two thousand four what

the transition was? But oh no, well, so yeah I was broken at ups and downs? Right. So six, I get the call the DJ for a little kim, So did you not know that I'm listening? I'm so I get to call it trying to be eating. This is gross. Don't do that, you know. I just I want to tell you something people actually hate when we're smacking on the show, and I try so hard not to. I'll be like trying to quiet and every once while I get an item where we're both like, see, that's the

difference between podcasts nowadays. In radio, we used to have this thing called a cough button. It's a button right by the mic, like if you're about to cough or do something you don't want people. It's almost like a mute button and you hold it down. Podcasts don't have buttons, no no, but we have at it, you know. But we did everything in real time, but just smack quietly, smoothly. So I have to call a DJ for a Little Kim. So I go on the road with Little Kim and

Junior Mafia before her first album comes out. So we were just doing promo shows and she was doing like she didn't even have an album all yet. She had like get money, get Money, remix players, anthem, a couple of R and B for you know, features, and we would do like, you know, we have to fill a half hour or hour show, so we would do like a Yo, here's a b I G. Here's your favorite Biggie songs and he's like your favorite West Coast. We

would just make a show out of it. And I was getting three hundred dollars a week and then like then her album comes out, then she's popping, popping, like we was going everywhere and the album's doing really well, and then her videos come out like first Came No Time In and the song Crushed on You. So we all popping and they still give me three hundred a week. That was like the promo tour money. So then I said, yo, I just you know, I want to stay doing this,

but it's not enough to survive. I was. I thought I was gonna get more, and then I had to quit and they hired some other guy. He sucks, so they called me back. Then I was getting three hundred a show, and I thought I was rich, oh, because they went from three hundred a week. So then it's like we go out Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, we might do we might do a some kind of big show on Saturday. Then we might do an after party. So that's two shows in one night. So I'm getting three hundred.

So I'm coming home with like twelve or fifteen hundred a week, and I thought I was rich, and that was how were you at that time? Yeah, you're you're really rich at that time. And my rent was seven hundred dollars, so I'm making that in a week plus, right was a week, I'm making seven rent, Like in my mind my rent is done God, then the rest of it is just stacking up and you know. And then that stopped. So I was just deejaying. And then I started interning that on the radio for funk Master

Flex and he wouldn't pay me. He didn't pay me. He paid me in knowledge and opportunity and food he would pay for, like the food, like I order food and you order yourself something, so like I had to order him food and I would order like something like this. I would order whatever. He always ate crazy, so I would order extra because he never checked the receipt. So I ordered something for right now, and then something I could have for breakfast. So I'm like, okay, what will

if I hide this in my book bag? Won't won't take gross in the morning, and that's it. And then then I was back to broke, you know what I'm saying. And then but I learned how to make money. Flex wouldn't pay me, but he taught me how to make money. So as I mean, it's still to this day, I use Flex tactics. Now, where was the transition where you you ended up not eating like what happened two four, where it was like no more no. I still was kind of broken two thousand four, but not eating this.

Um So, I'm on the radio. Let's see. I started in nineties seven as an intern, and then I just started DJing a lot more on DJ and every night, sometimes opening for flex, sometimes getting my own gigs. And I don't really I don't spend a lot. Like I bought one chain it was fake. I bought a platinum chain, but it was fake. Like I know this lady that makes Julian. She goes, no, just get um well coded and we'll put cubics of Coonian. And I was like, oh yeah, let's do that. And then and then here's

the crazy ship. You can say whatever you want. Can I see the effort? Thanks? Can't you say all that? Um So, she's telling me a lot of famous rappers at the time, we're getting fake chained. But it was like they had real chains, but they would wear the fake ones out in case they got robbed. Yeah, yeah that makes sense, but you believe, you know they can afford the real change. Where would they wear the real chains?

Do in their house? I guess depending on where they were going, Like, if you're going to the tunnel, that's where DJ. The tunnel nightclub chains were getting robbed on the regular, so don't wear your real one to the tunnel. But anyway, so I got one chain, I said. So I wasn't really a flashy guy like that. So I stacked all my money, stacked it, stacked the stacked the stack.

So I was DJ and a lot um. Then Flex would get me certain well, you know, we would host somebody's mixtape and we get like four brand he gave me one, you know, we host like uh certain events, and then like he got on MTV and he would like, you know, you gotta pay sight for the drive or whatever. So I was making like a little bit of money here now, but I didn't wasn't spending a lot. So

I started stacking boom boom boom and then um. And then when I got my own show on the radio, that's when I started getting like popular, like getting real good gigs like that, gigs that pay two thousand, three thousand, five thousand. DJ was fun back then. Yeah, yeah, you're making a lot of money. You were in heavy rotation. How's your ego around that time? Oh, my ego got checked so early. My boy Ari, he saved my life this when I had to change. I took the chain

off after this night and I listen. I was in the tunnel around Puffy, jay Z, Fat Joe, Big, Pat, Norri, DMX, all these people and so like, I thought, oh, I'm in the game. Ame I gotta get a chain. I didn't really. I don't even like jewelry. I don't even wear a wedding ring. Like I don't wear I don't just like I have so many nice watches, I don't even wear them. And I was in a tongue I'm

opening up. I have to be at the tunnel at nine o'clock because it was it was the first five girls free, so I had to be at the tone of nine o'clock, the tone and get popping until twelve o'clock. But I'm there eight thirty bringing in my crates. And I said something to my boy like halfway I'm the ship, like yo, just yo, yo, grab that one or some ship. And he he's a little guy too. He's from Philly. He's my one of my best friends to this day. He grabbed my shirt and he said, Yo, don't you

ever ever talk to me like that again. He's like, we've been with you. We're all in this together. We've been with you since day one. Okay, you got on first, but don't talk to us like you bigger than us or anything. And I've it made it changed my life, Like, oh, should I start to get gas? I mean, like that's where Cifer don't get gas comes from that. I started to get gas because I was like starting to be known and it really and it made me realize it

doesn't matter, it matter, It does not matter. My friends are what matters, you know. And I took the chain off that day. What am I doing? Why am I wearing this stupid chain? Yeah? It wasn't even like you were into it. No, it was stupid. I was playing like a role. But I was young, I was one whatever. So have you ever had to face that ego beast ever sinsor where you like? Good? I It might pop up here and there, but I check it quick. I

check it with um. You know. I try to, you know, put myself in reality, like this is a fantastic opportunity that I have opportunities many but also it's all it doesn't you know, it's not you know it doesn't matter. You know, how you raise your family or how you look at the world is what matters. But that don't mean. I don't mean I take away the fun. I have a lot of fun with a lot of dope people, but I just don't let it get to me like that.

And I watched, you know, I've watched so many people come in and nobody's blow up come back down, like you know, you try to warn them, but they're not you know, they're not your people like that, But I see the come rich back to broke. Who who are you? Are you open to naming like names of like who you've personally seen like up and down the ladder? I uh, I don't remember exactly. I just seen it so much.

Um I'll tell you Nikki though Nicki Minaj is one of them that Nicki Minaj to me, she's not broke at by any means, But Nicki Minaj to me is the perfect example of who you see on the way up is what you see on the way down. And she treated a lot of people like ship and then you know, now she's not nowhere it is how does she was? Yeah? You know what I mean? And I say that I don't want to say, like, I got beef with her, even though I do, but you know, I don't want to have be for her. She for

some reason we got I'm not be for nobody. My name is clean in the streets. And she's the one person that like just just some foul ship to me. And I was just like and then, you know, look at people like Nori. He was up down. Now he's all the way up. He's all the way up, all the way. When I say he's all the way he's all but he's still I spoke to him today for

like two hours. He still calls me. I would say this, Nori was my first rapper friend, and Aliyah was my first R and B friend, You know what I mean. He still calls me to this day and he's the same Nori, but he's all the way up. Well, that's

like he hasn't changed. Even if you see how much he's accomplished, always feel like people that are able to especially in the industry, because it's so easy to burner bridge with ego, like for him to be able to accomplish what he's accomplished, he's clearly clearly a good friend to people, right, but That's what I'm saying. The thing about Nori is I watched him when he was just you know, Nori had a couple of records out, and he everybody would invite everyone to a studio, no matter

where you were. From first time I've ever met Two Chains when he was Titty Boy, it was with Nori. First time I've ever met UM three six Mafia was with Nori. Every first time I met David Banner, they would just come to his studio or his session that he would always show them love. And now he's big and they're big, and it's not like he just met them to get him on his show. He's been knowing them. He's been showing him love in New York. So now

it's coming back, you know, it's paying back. Yeah. So yeah, I don't I don't let the ego. UM, I don't let the ego get me. And then I fall into situations where like, damn, if I was a little more um, not egotistical, but if I was a little more loud about my accomplishments, I might get more things at this time, Like I don't shout my accomplishments a lot, where other

people shout them all day long. Yeah. So I mean people like you're known as like a legend, like you know, you're on that legendary, like you have your own brand. So I feel like there's a lot of respect people. There's a lot of stuff I got jerked on, missed out on, or missed the opportunity, but I didn't. That's weird because I didn't miss because I was doing another opportunity. I just wish I would have, Like, as as I looked back, I was like, I should have did that

instead of that. You know. I did an interview once with Earthquake and he was talking about like, yeah, he's the best, let me he's got story. But one of the things he had said was like I think I had said something along the lines of like what was that moment that you made? And he had said something about like just like it was, there's never a time where you make. It's just more like, you know, did you cash in on the opportunity, like the type of deal.

Like I feel like you're still moving and shaking, Like even though we're in the beginning of your story, there's there's so much to unpack with you, you know, because now you're just a huge stand up comic now. You know, I'm gonna say huge, but but you're making your waves. I'm like a hundred enjoy the journey type of person. That's why I'm able to do all this stuff because I like does struggle. I like the the climb. You know, some people only want to get to the top. I'm

enjoying every night. I enjoy it. Yeah, I I am a person that like loves the hero's journey, the hero story, hence eating wall broke. I for these. Tell me how it was. Speaking of that, you you name dropped a couple of people, Like, so I'll name drop please. Let's start with the bay dropping, Like, what's up? Were you and ali Leah? I love Aliyah? Um, i'mally at the radios, I mean the rappers I met was at seven or

the people in the industry. I mean at that time, how nanty seven was on fire and everyone had to come there. So that's where I met a lot of people. But Aliyah was super, super cool. I met her at the radio station, and I also we really got cool. And funk Master Flex was doing some kind of MTV Beach House. He was DJ and the beach House one of them MTV things, and she was there, and there's a famous picture where her and Mark Ronson, She's wearing

the hill figure. I'm in that picture, but I got cut off the one that the picture that blew up. It was just her Mark Ronson, I'm in that picture. Um. She was super cool. She used to call me like she saw like I was, like she was. This was like right before one in a million drop, so like right before she really really blew up. And I don't know if she got my numbers somehow. Maybe I don't even know. I don't remember, but she would call me

and check in on me, like I saw that. I was, like, you know, intern at the radio station, getting flexus food and setting up his records, and she would call, how's it going, How you doing, You're doing this? You're doing? Do you feel good? Like you're not stressed or nothing? Like? He used to make me blush like when she would call, Did you know now? Was that that was? I have to mention this thing? But was that after the R

Kelly like anything? No? No, that was after because that was the R Kelly situation was her first album and that was all you know? Did you kind of know about it at the time, not more than we all did more than anybody. Like when that was in the news, I mean I heard a lot of ship about our Kelly, but we didn't know, like like it was always like it's always like there's a lot of people like, oh no, he'd be, you know, be careful over there. He'd be

with the young ones like like that. Yeah, I don't know. I'm a kid too, Like I don't know what this means. You know, you guys were around the same Ageah, yeah, she might have been a year older or a year younger like Kim. Like me and Kim at the same age. So like when I was on tour with little Kim, she's a superstar, but we're the same age. Like when we go back to the hotel, she was like a twenty year old, you know, but she just had this

whole big persona. If you had to put three of these ladies in like a order of great I'm gonna you already know who I'm gonna ask about, party Ya and Nikki We're gonna leave at Lauren Hills would trump all of them. But like greatest, Like if you had to choose like greatest in order, like who would be your number one? I need I hate these lists. I need more specifics, like in Wraps, Niki Nikki's the Nikki

Rice the dopest bars. Really yeah, I know she writes really good, But I think Cardi right corn Oh, let's see, that's what I'm saying. I don't want to take nothing away from her. I respect her so much. Hold up what I mean? Maybe some maybe some, but not there's there's well maybe she just raps well on the beat, incredibly delivered. But here's the thing, I know, all of it in the industry knows who writes for her. She delivered. She performs all your favorite arm by singers. Nine even

cent of them don't write their own songs. It's just it's not even a thing like in hip hop. It's like, oh, he's got a ghostwriter, he ain't writing his ship. But and nobody can't already right, like the writer's right because the writer and the performer is not the same thing. So that's how I look at Cardi. But she kills the performance. She kills. Let me tell you, nobody gets me more. Not only does she kill the performance of the rap, she kills it in in her life, Like

you can see she is who she is. Yeah, yeah, My only problem with her is that I sometimes I feel like she's just using hip hop as a step. That's what makes me upset, like to get to movies or TV or the next thing. Like I don't like when people use music because it's easy to put out a record to get to the next thing. I don't know if that's true. That's just how I felt, because she doesn't like if you don't write, then do you

really want to rap? It's different with hip hop? You know. Well, I think I think heard one day rap wasn't something that CARTI was like easy to acclimate to think. I heard it was a little bit of work and I don't even think she really wanted to do it right. But but but someone had pulled her arm. But do you think that's Nikki's anger? Sometimes because Nikki always seems very to me, she comes off very defensive, and I

think it's because she's writing and a lot of people aren't. Yeah, it could be part of it, you know, it probably goes a lot deeper. Like I I feel bad for what I said earlierou Nikki, like I wish she had Like I don't know her well enough. I don't know her. I know I had one really big problem with her and I to this day it bothers me. But like you know, I'm a big advocate of mental health, and

some people don't go get the help. You know, you can see when you get the help that I've gotten, you see and other people like, oh, you I need this, you need a little of that, And then you can't tell them that, especially if you don't know them. You know, I said my therapist. My therapist is giving me months free of how many people have sent to her months free, Like she's like, you ain't gotta pace so many you're advocate for for for therapy. Clear. Yeah. Yeah, so that's

kind of just I just want to get back on No. No, that's me because every time you mentioned something like, oh wait, let's stop um now. As far as performance and groundbreaking is Kim, Yeah, okay, yeah, I agree with that everybody, and one way or another, all these females are somewhat trying to not all not all, not like a rhapsody, but anybody who's sexy on stage in hip hop, you're getting a piece of that from Kim. Do you know who I actually kind of wish would have went further

is a mail liked her like I didn't. I mean I was young, I was very young, but I did. I did like her. Yeah, but some of these females like not females or you know what. This show's making me think too much. I hate it. I'm looking inside too much because I'm catching myself saying these females, but that would never that. Men do it too. I've seen a lot of artists like get a little deal, their first deal, and like just while out, like this girl flexed,

this girl that flex has signed to him? If that Michelle. I remember she came to the office with like her McDonald's receipts. I was like, Yo, you gotta give me the money back for this McDonald's. I was like, you can't. You're bringing McDonald's receipts. That's crazy, Like, but was she struggling? You gotta do there was money given. That doesn't mean anything. I can't do it. I can't ask another man paid for my McDonald's. But what was it? A girl was

a female though? Right, That's okay. I'm just I mean, I hate to be that hit the what it was it called hypocrite whatever, it is, double standard, But I can see why a man wouldn't do it. But I could also see why a woman would. Why how? How? Because you know it's like, first of all, she was struggling. I'm just gonna put myself in her. She struggling, But she got money. You gotta check to get the deal. Yeah, maybe she didn't handle it right. Well, maybe I said

all meals covered by. But let's get back on you for a second, and maybe we could pick two more celebrities before, because I just want to talk about three more celebrities. I want to talk about Ja. I want to talk about I heard you you had did some time in A and R. I want to talk about that. And then I gotta I gotta talk about some comedy. These fries are cold. Is there an air frier here? No? Do you have an air frier, Michael? This guy's a microwave.

There is a microwave this Who is this person? He said microwave. You can't put rise in a microwave. Let me ask you a question. What's your name? But Cam? Did you got a red lobster? You ever get cheddar Bay biscuits? Do you ever bring him home? How you heat him up the next morning? If you say microwave, won't kick you out of the studio so fast. You put him in an right, what kind of people are you doing business with? You know what, he's young, he's young.

What are you talking about? You getting cheddar bay soup? If you put them in the micro wave young, you know what? Yeah? Yeah, yeah, you had a fried when you were broke back in the day. Let me tell you, eagle who put them onto the air fraight? I was me right, give me my coup. Looking at it right now, I was like, you need to get one of these air fryers, like what I had to do to eat broke back in the day. Air fry Nowadays, Oh my god, you can make anything in the air it's the best. Yeah,

I agree. So let's talk about these names. Jay Z, you gotta I'm a huge jay Z fan. I'm damn well, like I have a I'm just giving perspective. I'm married now and if you walk into my house, the center of my house, like in the living room, there is like a six foot painting of jay Z sitting. It's no one in the world has his painting. By the way, I'm waiting for the day that I have the opportunity.

I haven't signed this only painting, only painting in the world. Okay, I love him sitting with his feet kicked up in the projects with a cooler picture. Yes, I had it sent to my mom. I had her custom make this painting for me. Yes, I haven't. And my husband to this day says, we gotta move that and put a family portrait. And I'm like, yeah, it's not going where. He's like, you can put it, you can put it

in the It's not going anyway. But it's literally yeah anyways, but I promise you this is a fight that goes out of my house like all the time. But if you walk in my house, it's an original painting of a rare picture. It was Respect magazine that actually published the picture, and I knew the publisher and I was like, I need that picture. And then uh, does the painting look like the picture or did the artist take some artistic liberties? It's my mother who did it, and brick

by brick bro your mother did your mother? Artists? Yeah? You artist? So I have the only one. I assure you I have the only one because I know no one in the world has done that. So now that I would love that, really, he would love it. Well, if you got the plugs, you know, make it happen. I assure you I have the only one that's fire. Yes, yes, I'll send you a picture. So with that being said, please tell me you got a good hope story with

a good hope. I storry I got a million stories with hope, but like I don't nothing nothing like that sticks out, like nothing funny. Oh he's super funny. I feel like he's super sarcastic, super s Like. Then let me tell you about Hope, I know whole on a such a personal level. Um, wait, we want on a personal level. Yeah, I mean I've never been to his house, but I'm just saying, like I worked for him two

different times. Um, and then the last time, I was a rock nation as an artist, so he kind of managed me, but I was like also working there so like I used to. So he started a label called rock Loft Familiar. Um, when he was president of Deaf Jam, he started rock Loft Familiar. And when you hear you've heard of O g One, right, O g One is the guy who the other guy who owned rock Loft Familiar with him. So O g One is one of my mentors as well. So O g One and j

other people who owned forty forty. So when I worked for rock Loft, familiar with Wan. Wan didn't like to be up at Deaf Jam. He's like, I don't like being around all these music industry people. So he would only go there for meetings, and our office would be just in his office at forty. So every day after work, j would usually go to forty forty, so we would

always be in the club. That's how I know Dez, who's O g One's wife, who is now the lady who runs rock Nation, but like she was like the not the manager, but one of the owners of forty forty, but she also man, so like these are my like, this is like my family. So Jay would come in there and it was like all walls down, Jay, right now, James from Brooklyn, And you know you're from Brooklyn, right, you know how you animals are like you people from Brooklyn.

You know you got that wall, that wall that comes up. So I would see non wall hole all the time. And then if me O g one and Jay in a in his office or one office and we order food chilling talking, this is when like I'll sell exactly what this was. This is when Jay did the remix to the Kanye song Diamonds Are Forever. So he had just done it, and he was playing it in the studio in the office over and over and and he just kept playing it, playing and playing in it, and

like all he had was his verse. So it goes, I got it from here, Yeah, damn, And I wonder why he started it like that. But then when you hear the song, you got Kanye's verse, and then Jake cuts him off right, So he's playing that over and over and over. Then t I comes in randomly, they all start smoking cigars, and then Puffy comes in and they all start smoking cigars, and I'm like, I'm around my idols, I'm around rich people. I'm just ear hustling everything.

They're like two more people come in that he didn't really know. They were like maybe Tis business associates or somebody like they look white or European as suits. And then I see the jay Z wall go up. Trew super friendly, super nice and and friendly and um cordial. But all the laughing and joking around he was doing just two minutes ago stopped and he's and and I was like, oh, he's he don't know them. I didn't

know who knows who. I don't know, he don't know them, and he and the wall went up like fast, and I was like, oh, so he knows how to turn it on and turn it off whenever. But my favorite ship is my favorite one. We're in rock Nation and I was working. I was helping him with title when it first started, and I don't know what. I think they were just giving me a check, to be honest with you, like we love sife, give him a check. So so I was helping him with title, but nobody

was even listening to me. I was just there. So I'm sitting at the with I was on the one floor. Hose office was on the next law up and it was no stairs. You had to take the elevator. Somebody the receptionist desk looking for an envelope to FedEx something whatever. He gets off the elevator, he walks into the reception area. I look up, I see him. I give my head nod and I looked back down. Keep doing what I'm doing. He walks past me, walks halfway down the hallway and goes, nah.

I look over. He goes, I'm still jay Z get excited when you see me and I was like, yo, come on, and he walks back over to me. He's like, you know what the fox is wrong with you? Wrote? I'm like, what are you talking about? He goes, I'll still jay z. I go we're at work, like you want me to fan out of rapper fan out when we're at work, and he got He's like, nah man, nah nah nah, I'm just that walks away. I'm still Hove.

I'm whole. I'm h to the oh. I was dying laughing, yo, because he walked past me like an employee, like what's and then called himself like nah no, no, no, no, that was too little of excitement, because you can't I don't know if what they tell employees at work there, but I'm sure they tell them don't get crazy when Hove comes around. I've heard stories. I mean, I'm definitely not trying to take him, but I heard stories of like people like you know, like they said that like

you can't take pictures of them. And I heard like someone had took a picture of him in the hallway and they got fired and then like no phones were allowed or some crazy stuff. I believe that you gotta earn it you gotta earn it. Yeah, I've heard some stories because there's some just high level people there in the corporate in the in the corporation, but um, there's also like just people who might not even really be

into hip hop that like work there. Yeah. Yeah, So, and the turnover rate was high, you know a lot of people. The company was growing so fast, people just getting hired. And I'm sure they had to tell him, like, I can't fan out over this guy, but it's hard. He got that aura, Yeah, he got that aura. So yeah, I'm in London for Carnival, which is like the London version of Labor Day Parade in Brooklyn, and um, I'm DJ for a little Kim the only doing like three songs.

And then Jay was there with Dame and they said that d J Clark can't got stuck at customs. They wouldn't let him in. So he's like, Kim, can we use your DJ? So I d J for jay Z and he went before us because Kim was bigger than him at the time, and all he had, all he wanted to do is ain't no and dead press and so remember this, it's crazy to just imagine that Kim was bigger than j it's crazy but bigger, like yeah yeah, yeah, no no, but sometimes it's crazy looking back now. And

then like Jake comes in, that's that's biggest friend. They're all like super excited to see him. But he wasn't the biggest rapper. He was just biggest friend that was coming up. And and so there's a West Indian day Uh festival, So you know a lot of West Indian a lot of reggae records on forty five. So on a turntable, it's third D three and it's forty five. So when you play forty five records, you have to click the button and that makes the turntable go faster. So then I go to DJ for J but it's

like yo, yo, yo, DJ got stuck with you. DJ for Us, we're going on right now. So I grabbed my record. I run up there and they're like yo, yo, we're ready, were ready, go go go play ain't no first. So I go up there and it's still on forty five, so I go, I just throw the record on. It's like doom doom, doom, doom, doom, doom, doom doom doom, and you know he starts the verse starts right off

the top. So as soon as I'm scratching, he gets ready to do the verse, and it's mad fast, and he gives me this look like you just ruined my life. You ruined my life, you ruined my career. And it was the craziest look ever. And I was like sorry. And so to this day he brings that up. To this day, he'll bring you you remember you ruined my show in London. I'm like, I didn't ruin it. We

just it was ten seconds. It's like it's brought it back. Okay, so let's let's bring it to like when you were a A and R. So tell us a little bit about that experience, which one like, uh, let's just talk about Drake or like that I heard did you do did you have anything to do with Drake? Oh no, I was supposed to tell us about it. I failed miserably tell us about it. Tell us about it. Um, I have a joke that I do that I couldn't

sign Drake and I didn't do it. But that's not as the joke is like makes me look like a loser, but really it's not. So so Toronto is like my second home. So I was in Toronto every year for for Caravan and which is the other West Indian festival. But I used to be in Toronto all the time my card and now will fish out like one of my best friends. And I got introduced to Drake through who's the guy that runs um the Ovio thing? Um

what's his name? Oliver Listen? I don't know. He runs like he runs like the Ovo clothing all that stuff. So he I was up there and they were like, yo, safe, um this is when I I was. It was oh seven, so I was I just I think I just left. Yeah, I just left Rock at Familiar because I got a job as a VG on MTV, and Hove said to me, yo, you should take that job. You can always be an A and R. You're not always gonna be the young hot DJ that gets on MTV. So I was like, okay,

you're right. So I took it and then uh so Drake uh people, they gave me his CD and if you look it up, it's the CD where he got the peak code on with the with the leaves with the fall leaves behind them. You know I'm talking about right if you google, I forgot what it's called. But he got the peak code on and the autumn leaves in the background, and then I was like I looked at I was like, what the what the this is? R? And B what the this? And then um and then

so he go here's the stories. He met me at this place called Frands Diner, and he went to Toronto those friends dinner and he was like, yo, I'm trying to get a deal. But he was mad young, like super young, and I just told him. I was like, yo, I'm sorry, I'm not looking for artists right now because I just got on MTV, like I'm I'm trying to do my thing, you know, I'm not trying to sign

anyone right now. And he was like, no, I'm telling you, I'm this, I'm that, And I was like, I believe you, but I just I'm sorry, it's just not I was starting to feel because I had gotten this whole Rhianna situation where basically not taken away from me, and I felt like I was like, I'm not I'm gonna focus on me. Also, I was managing the group Need the Sky, and they they were annoying me because like I was doing more work than them, like I'm showing up early

I'm setting up to turn. I was DJ for them, I was managing them. Sometimes it would be late. Sometimes it would playing about the bread and I'm like, yo, any bread, any bread you get for performing is worked it like we gotta get to it. And so that I was frustrated. So I was like, I'm not looking for artists right now. I want to just focus on me. I wish I could wrap, because if I could wrap, I would outwork all of you. And that was my concept. I mean that was my idea, um my mind frame.

So they're like a year and a half later, maybe not that long, maybe like a year, Like he starts getting the buzz like all the college girls like, oh, Drake, Drake Drake. I was like, I know, I know someone named Drake is that that that can't be the same kid. And it was the same kid and then but I was still cool with him. I'm still cool with him to this day. My old manager runs over up. Mr Morgan runs it like but like you know the famous freestyle when he came up to flex and he had

the BlackBerry. There's like a YouTube video where everybody made fun of him because he was reading off the black berry that I'm the one who brought him there. I brought him to Like, I was telling Flexio, this is this kid, he's really dope. He's from Toronto. Flexis that you love Toronto everything And I said, no, I'm telling you, he's buzzing, like you know, we should get him up. But he came up. But I didn't sign him. But I could have signed, Like Rihana was responsible for helping

get a deal, so you helped get her. Oh, I got her the deal, Like I got her the deal. Yeah, and then um and then um, I almost got Damien Marley a deal, but um, it was like very close. But then the Marley family was like, because he was trying to sign in the Rock Left Familiar. Rock Left Familiar was like jay Z. It was called like a world label, so we were trying to do Caribbean. We were trying to do Spanish all that stuff, and the Marley family was like, we don't sign to rappers. They

like they shut us down. Okay, Cube, Mr jay Z, but we don't wear Marley Gonna signed to rappers. Man, it was nasty. So where did comedy come into mix? Oh? Because I didn't sign Drake so I got fired. Now comedy came, um, my name dropping too much. We love it. No, no, no, we love this guy. Yeh. So okay, there's a lot of different So basically I'm no, no, no. There's a lot of reasons why comedy came into play. First of all, when I got my own show on the radio. My

first big show is called Cipher Saturdays. It was, you know, difference between a jock and a DJ, like a DJ mix his records and a job just talks like Andrew Martinez is a job. So they gave me the show on Saturday nine am to two pm. They wanted me to be a job from nine am to noon and then mix on Saturday at noon. Never been done before. No, but you gotta remember everything we here nowadays is so common. This was the first time ever there was a DJ on the radio at noon on a Saturday. Because I

was like, yo, let me mix. My boss was like, yo, you could be a jock. I was like, I don't want to be a job. I just want to be a DJ. She's like, I let you DJ, but you gotta be a job because she saw something in me that I didn't see at the time, that I would be a good radio personality. I'm thinking noon on a Saturday. Everyone's in their car, watching their car, doing laundry, grocery shopping, like you know what I mean. Like it was like untapped market as far as like mixing like party vibes.

So so anyway, when I got that show, when I was doing the talking part, I would be doing pranks because nobody's there on Saturday. There's no bosses in the building. That was wilding out I was doing. I would call one Chinese restaurant and then put him on conference code with another Chinese restaurant and and even start yelling at each uh, doing like that all the time, and then um, y'all listen, if you want to have fun, try that just and then go can't place the order, and then

that's what I gotta say, and just let it run. Um. So I was doing these little pranks and everybody would say to me, you're funny. You know you're funny on the radio, like I'd be DJ and at night and girls would calling to me like, yeah, yo, you're man funny, you man funny, So like the hustler brain and me was like, why do you keep saying funny? Like what is this funny thing? The hustler brain nowhere in there

that I think I was a comedian. I was just like, people keep saying, I'm funny, How can I make money with funny? So I started producing a comedy show and had it packed out because I was on the radio, so I could, you know what I mean, the same way I could had every DJ in the world was doing a nightclub, not one DJ was doing a comedy show. So I was like, I wonder if I could get people to come to a comedy show and then from there. But also before that, I was a DJ on The

Chappelle Show. So Dave we used to warm up the crowd before we started taping, and I used to do some DJ yo the Little John skit came from me, you know, Little John? Um. Dave Chappelle's Little John was like, what yeah, that came from me. I had a Little John record and we would be working with the audience and and Dave would say something. I would just scratch in what yeah yeah, what yeah? And he was like, yo, yo, yo, why why do you why do you keep doing like yo?

That's the thing people say when they hear a Little John. And then like a couple of weeks he shot up a little John sketch sketch. So anyway, so Dave was like, Yo, you're funny. You should do stand up And I was like, this is two thousand two three, How the fun what I do? Stand up? What are you talking about? Like you're an idiot? But this Dave Chappelle, he knew. And then another time I was on when I was on MTV, both Will Smith and Jamie Fox said, I was funny.

You're seeing a lot of funny keep popping up. I'm just being me. I'm funny with my friends on a road trip. Yeah. Yeah, well you sound like you're a lot of fun to be. Oh no, no, I'm not fun at all. No, no, no, i'm funny. I am not fun. I am boring. So looking at Eagle, is that I'm out? He was like, yeah, man out him Eagle, Eagle with favorite Favery funny comedian him and all the other younger comics. After the show, they're chilling, They're talking

about to go somewhere drink that. I'm in my car. I'm out. I'm watching fucking Colombo in my car on the way home. Um. But like Jamie Fox like, I'm just being a VJ. And MTV and they're like, yeah, you're funny. Bro was like really, why why are you saying that? And Will Smith was like yo, he pulled. He pulled me aside, goes, do you do comedy? I don't know, I'm a DJ. Heees you should do comedy.

I was like wow, okay. So then they always funneled around in my head and I started doing that show, and then I started taking it seriously okay, And then when did you actually step behind the mic and like become standard? So I did. I would say I did a year of my shows at this place called Comics it's not there anymore, fourteenth to nine, and it was

called it Don't Get Gas Comedy Series. Everybody came to my show, all rappers, I mean, Drake was there, a little Wayne Rick Ross um t I. Everybody came to my show then, Kevin Hart, my Gaps, Tracy Morgan. Like my show used to be, oh, I don't know nothing about sports, but they used to be crazy NBA players and football players in there, like my boy, my boys be like, that's John Starks. Just say something about dunking on Jordan's. I was like, oh right, I gotta say that.

Go yeah, you're dun Dune Jordan, and the crowd was crazy. I don't even know what the funk I'm saying, but um so yeah. So then that became like this celebrity, but the celebrities would all come. And then after a year of that, I was just I was just going on stage saying hi and then introducing the comedian. And then I tried one little joke here, one little joke there. It started to work. Oh that's funny, like da da da. And then like a year of that, uh, some comics

step to me. Uh, Talent Capone, Will Sylvans, a couple of those guys, Mark Vieira, they cornered me and they go, okay, we need to talk to you. I was like, okay, what the fuck And they're like, you seem to be really trying to take this ship seriously, because when radio people do a comedy show, they like kind of steal jokes and try to just run off their radio fame or whatever fame. Like He's like, they were like, you

you seem to really like this. I paid well. It was a Tuesday night, pat everybody wanted to come to my show, and I paid well. I didn't care about making like I would pay a lot, and they were like, if you want to take this seriously, you need to know this doesn't count. I was like why, They're like this your fans, these are your audience. They know you're ready.

You gotta go where no one knows you because you're so They're like, come to like this little hole in the wall or this little bar and queens or whatever. And the next year was just bombings, horrifically bombing, just disgusting. But I kept going back. So they were like you you want to be a comedian, so you gotta like now really and music and then so then then I then I was on the morning show on Hot and like a comic, like somebody like let's say Kevin Hart

like this before he was big. But he was like, yo, you want to come to Albany with us this weekend, but like we're leaving on Thursday. We gotta show Thursday, Friday, Saturday. And I'm like, I can't. I'm on the radio. And this is where when I had the chance to go beat Rihanna's DJ, I said no because I was on the radio, and I always regretted it. So then I so then I started regretting when comics would ask me

to go open for them and I couldn't go. So that's when I started saying, oh, I need to make a choice. Che made the choice. Yeah, the last two years of Hot Night Severn were horrible for me. Horrible. So where can your fans or people that are interested in seeing your stand up or find you get tickets to your show? Like? Where can they all catch you at? Um? Well, if I'm in New York, I'm a mostly at the

Comedy Seller. But do you do Instagram and all that stuff? Yeah, it's just my name as Cipher sounds c I p h A sounds um like. I always say the Comedy Seller. But then also the Comedy Seller sells out every show, so I don't even invite people there because we can't

get them in. Yeah, but you know people, you know people, people are gonna want to So I started posting clips on my Instagram about a year ago, And the only reason why I do it is because my my hip hop fans did not necessarily follow me to comedy, which pissed me off, and I had a long talk with a friend of mine. He was like, no, it's not that they didn't follow you. You didn't tell them to follow you like they're supposed to just do it, you know,

like you gotta tell them. So I started posting clips and my only reason I post clips is for all my old fans to see I do this now. Yeah, that's my goal, and it's working. You know. I'm not trying to blow up off TikTok and Instagram yet right now. I just want I already have a fan base right now. You're just like trying to make the official announcement that there's a transition and happening. Guys, you want to keep it with Cipher Sounds and everything he's doing comedy wise,

because he's officially in the comedy circuit. And I'm seven years late and announcing this. So thank you so so it's officially been announced that Cipher Sounds, yes, exited. But also, like I said before, I don't care. I'm enjoying the journey. Don't come whatever, come check them out because I know I will be. Um, thank you so much. I didn't get to any stories yet, all right, thank you so much.

Has got a microwave form these French fries. You thank you so much for coming all the way down to Brooklyn, because I know you absolutely look at you hating on Brooklyn. Make sure you keep the energy for j Listen. Last thing, I gotta go. I know you gotta go. We gotta leave. Thank you, Charlomagne. Two things. One b K is the stupidest thing in the world because it's two syllables brook Lynton, so it should be b L. I don't know how it became b K. It's so the name of where it.

I'm sorry, but look at eagles face. His wheels are turning like listen, I don't know why you Brooklyn people. Where do you live in brook Clinton? That makes no sense. It's Brooklyn. Also, you Brooklyn people live on island. I know you hate to admit it. I know you don't want to admit it. You don't want to look at you. Your hurt right now, you're upset. Look at the map. There's a place called Manhattan, and to the right of that on the map there's a place called Long Island.

The first place you see on that island it's Brooklyn. But you live on Long Island. I'm sorry. I know you guys. You guys are listened to the show, but we have a we have a small audience here and if you see Ego Ego wits in the house. If you see his face, his jaws, like, I might not listen if if you never hear from me again, I was murdered somewhere in Brooklyn. Microware and French fried dudes. Well, I just want to say, it's a pleasure having you. We may have to do if I come back to

New York. We may just have to do another another run of this because I feel like you have a body of art of stories. Can we do it in Manhatan? We could, We could, We could make an exception to do it in Manhattan. Hopefully my budget will be bigger. We're doing. I'll do it. Deal, deal, Now what we gotta do to get this jay Z painting signed? Make it happen. For visiting Long Island and coming to be it. We really appreciate eating these wings. Everybody you can catch

Cipher sounds. Follow him on Instagram. I'll be checking him out before I leave town. I'm gonna try and figure out where you're as. I'll go to comedy seller tonight, comedy seller. All right, it's good, it's any month. Brow