Aloe Blacc

that song? And then everyone else in the Christmas communities like you can't just add a reindeer guy, especially well with plutonium on their nose. These are the things that I think about. This is what goes through the old noggen, and I'm not proud of it, but it just is what it is. Last show before Christmas, which is crazy, right, Merry Christmas everyone out there, Happy Holidays, all that stuff.

I hope everyone has an amaze sing Christmas. I hope your family doesn't start a crazy fight on Christmas night. It's filled with amazing presence and a stimulus package, I suppose, and a vaccine. That's what I hope everyone gets. I have a present for you today. I will say that pumped for today's guest. And normally I kind of tease the name of the guest, but I'll tell you we're gonna have Egbert Nathaniel Dokins the third You know who that is, maybe saying no, Well, I have no, I've

never heard of that name. That sounds like someone who probably signed the Declaration of Independence, and you would be wrong. Okay, Well, let me just say this. American singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, philanthropist hit songs like I Need a Dollar, the Man, Awake Me Up with a VICI starting to get it here.

Super Smart Cat graduated high school with a perfect four point o g p A, went to USC double major, was thinking about going back for his master's when he got kind of fired, We're not sure about that, and then said, you know what, I'm gonna pivot. I've become a singer, dude, almost one mass singer last week. Yeah, he was the mushroom. One of the nicest guys in the world, one of the most talented guys that I've ever had the pleasure of interviewing. On the Wells Cast today.

It's Alo Black. Seriously this one, guys, do not miss what I'm saying. Also, just for Rudolph. All right, welcome back to Wells Cast. Very excited to have on the show. The one, the only, the man, the myth, the legend, the guy that wears hats better than anybody else in the world. Aloe Black. How are you, buddy? And I'm good, Thank you, thanks for having me. You know, I watch Mass Singer. Here's my thing number one. They've really upped the celebrity level this season. I feel like I'm very

impressed with who's showing up to this thing. And I'm just gonna go ahead and say it. I can't believe you didn't win, dude. Well, you know what, I'm happy I got as far as I got, and I'm really happy for Leanne Rhymes winning the Mass Singer. She's an amazing person. Don't give me the can pr thing. You're pissed just like I am. Dude, you got robbed. This is ridiculous, you know what. Look, this is a it's actually such a dope show when you think about it.

There's no there's no real you know, competition going on. It's an entertainment show. Like, really, at the end of the day, you're not competing for how well you could sing. It's like you're competing for like how well you play a character. And it's not even a competition. It's just let's let's have fun and see how far we can get. That's what I was trying to do, just see how

far I could get and fool people. That was my whole mission was how can I throw my voice in different ways to make sure that the panelists don't guess who I am and so that the rest of the home audience doesn't guess. I was shocked. I have to be honest with you. I did not think it was going to be you. Did you have any idea or did you just you didn't know? I just had I had no clue. My fiance when I told her I was interviewing you, she was because she hadn't seen the episode.

She was like, oh, he's the mushroom. That makes total sense. But the way you walked threw me off. I didn't think I thought you were going to be like a Broadway guy or like a dancer. The whole the whole character and the whole stee was just me embodying the spirit of my daughter. When I put on that mushroom costume, it had a skirt as the stem, so it's like, Okay, I'm picturing my daughter and dressing up in her princess dresses, dancing and singing around the house. And that's ultimately what

I was reflecting through the mushroom costume. And then I chose songs that were all female power ballads so that I could just like way throw my voice in a whole different corner that nobody would guess. We've got a good friend who is a choreographer on that show, and you know, she always tells us how absolutely bonkers it is backstage, like no one you're like always wearing a mask, and so I guess my question is, is how much does that suck when you're just like constantly being like covered.

So when I'm in my trailer, I don't have to wear the covering. I'm good. When I'm backstage in my green room, so to speak, I don't necessarily have to wear the mask because no one can see me until I walk through the hallways. Then I have to put on the mask and it gets really hard to keep you know, to make your steps in this very narrow corridor. Somebody has to have a flashlight for you. You're wearing this visor that's tinted. Um. All of that makes it

really complicated. But at the end of the day, it's such a fun show. Like those things don't even you don't even remember them, you know, after you get off stage into your performance, like whatever par for the course. Were you wearing the hat underneath the mask the entire time? There's no way. I switched the hat. As soon as I took off the mushroom helmet, I put my signature hat on. I was wondering. I was like, damn, dude,

I don't even know how that fits in there. But all right, it makes sense like a split second where you get to see my receding airlines. Do you have a favorite judge or panelists whatever you call him? Um, I don't know if I have a favorite. Um. I really really dig Robin Thinks music. He's an amazing singer, amazing singer and a great songwriter. Um I I kind of missed out on the whole Pussycat Dolls thing. It wasn't my wasn't my steevee When I was a kid, When I was younger um more of a hip hop

and soul artist guy. But Nicole's comments were so um, you know, so gracious to me that, you know, I think she's definitely one of my favorite. And then Ken's were just off the wall. I like Ken because he's great TV. This is a great TV. You know, he knows what he's doing there. I love Ken, but sometimes I'm like, maybe, Ken, did you take some mushrooms before this? Like I don't even know what you're talking about. It

doesn't make any sense. Prescription but cabinet. I also, every time I look at Can, I think I've seen you run around naked on the Hangover and I just can't get that vision. You should stop thinking about that. Of all the songs you sang on the show this season, did you have a favorite. I think my favorite was singing Valerie. The version that I sang was the Amy Winehouse version. It was Amy Winehouses back to Black. That kind of opened the door up for this new era

of soul music. And I came right after that with I Need a Dollar and the Good Things album, so I wanted to sort of tip my hat to h to Amy Winehouse with that performance, and at the end A little beatbox because I know she was a hip hop head as well. I know that masked dancers coming up? You're gonna do that next? Or you are you done with the masks shows? What kind of question is that? How does that even make sense? Why would I say that I'm gonna do it? If I was gonna do it?

You know, you know the bis smart man. Well, it was so much fun watching you on the show. Sarah and I were rooting for you, like I said, and then opening the show, I thought you got robbed. I thought Leanne was fantastic and Nick was was really really good, but I don't know. Something about your vocals got her Billie Eilish song her uh cringe because I love you bah blah blah blah. She killed every performance, And you

know I was. I was trying to play the game so hard that I was just trying to hide my voice in different places. I think I would have been found out first episode if I had to use my regular voice like buster rhymes, like if you're Wendy Williams and your bust of rymes, you can't hide your voice. It's there. It's like slapping everybody in the face. So I figured I didn't want to come in, you know, like feeling my way through there with the rasp and the gravel and all that stuff. I just really try

to keep it, you know, way way different. Well, it was fun to watch you man. What's next? What's going on with you? Post mass singer? Well? I released my album in October. All of everything. I've been UM doing some virtual concerts and stuff online to promote and share it. UM. But there's this remake UM of one of the songs on the album. Steve Aoki heard my way and so we collabed on a new version of it and that's dropping UM in in a in a week. And I

love this new version of it. I think Steve, you know, he did his thing and it's gonna it's gonna be a bot for people. That's kind of an m for you. Is uh is getting big massive hits with like really well known DJs. Is that something that you've always kind of like gravitated towards what you know? I never I never expected it to happen. And you know, God rest his soul. A VICI was, you know, the opportunity that basically keeps UM you know, showing and blossoming. It's the

flower that Keeps Blooming. UM My song with him, Wake Me Up ended up introducing me to a lot of the dance music world and and these DJs. But um, about ten years ago, twelve years ago, I was in the middle of Siberia doing a concert and I was at the pub with with the promoter, and I saw on TV this huge concert in a stadium and there was one guy standing at turntables and I was like, who is that and how does he get to do that? What's going on? And he was like, Oh, that's Tisto.

He's a you know, he's a trance dance DJ. And I was like, I'm gonna do that one day. That's I'm gonna do that. I'm just gonna figure this out. So I went home and started trying to figure out how to be a dancey J. I didn't go it didn't go far. It really didn't go far. But I think the next best thing was getting in the studio with Tim and riding Wake Me Up and sharing that

with the world. You know, Yeah, that was the I mean, that was the first time I was introduced to you, uh years ago, back on my radio days, and I remember hearing that in a music meeting being like, whoa, this is gonna be a big one. So I'm glad you're still uh, you're still doing it, and I'm excited for this new release. Um with Aoki. Um, is there anything that we didn't talk about that you want to talk about before I switched gears into like what this

show is? I think we got it. Well. I don't know if anyone told you, dude, but I'm kind of obsessed with people's origin stories, like how they got to where they are, what their roads success was, what's the blueprint for them for their fame and fortune? And I'm so excited to talk to you because I know, like I said, I came from the radio world, So when I do actors or reality TV people, I really don't

know their background. But I do know a little bit about your background just from working in radio and needing to have like good bits in between songs. So I'm so pumped to talk to you about where you came from. Quick break we come back. Can we find out where the hell Halo Black came from? We can do that. Yes,

let's do that back in the Welles cast. So excited to have well one of the guys who was top three on the Mass Singer but Huge hit Maker Amazing Singer radio topper Alo Black on the show I want to find out where you came from and how the hell you got here. You weren't born Aloe Black, though, were you? No? No, no no. I I have a very colonial name. Um My my legal name is Egre

Nathaniel Dawkins, the third. It comes from Jamaica. Um, my great grandfather moved to Panama, had my grandfather than my dad and my they you know, we all got the

name and I'm the third. But because I grew up making hip hop music, like I started writing rhymes at nine years old, I thought I was I thought I was the the the answer to um to the West Coast version of L cool J. Basically when I was nine years old and I started writing hip hop music and rhymes, and then by fifteen I was recording and I chose the name Alo because I felt like my whole style was so smooth like lotion that that Alo was the best name for me. And you know, fortunately

or unfortunately, it followed me into my singing career. This is uh, this is the name I've chosen A flyer or saying kids that's the one. What does your family think about it? Because obviously you know you're being a third that is an important thing. So do they like that you a stage name where they like you are always going to be Edburgnette Daniel Dawkins, the third. Never, they've never really said anything about it. I think I think they get it. They understand that as as an artist,

you have this artist name in pseudonym persona UM. So they're cool about it. There's no other restrictions. When I named my son UM, there was a bit of a conversation of whether I'd name him the fourth. Nah, we're good, We're good. We we took it far enough. I'm gonna start a whole new legacy now. He talked about Panama and South America. But were you born down there? Were you born in the States. I was born in southern California,

so I've lived in southern California my whole life. I don't do snow and I try not to do the desert. He tried to keep it as as simple as California weather. And do you have siblings. I have two sisters, an older sister a younger sister. My older sister was the singer of the family. I wasn't supposed to be singing, turned out this way, and now she's she's managing lawyers. If you're the singer of the family, I got to hear this chick's voice. That's ridiculous. And I have a cousin.

I have a cousin who has my middle name, Nathaniel, who graduated from Harvard, who is one of the most amazing voices I've ever heard. And boy, if if I don't write an album with him or do something, then I've failed my family legacy because his voice is literally his voice is a hundred times better than my beautiful piano player, great songwriter. His name is Nathaniel Maynard and just and and he's and he runs a church, runs a church out in Boston. So I was reading up

on you. There's some story about a trumpet. Yeah, yeah, I started playing the trumpet when I was nine years old. I guess the story on on Wikipedias that it was broken, but that was like a bad translation from you know, a German interview. It was just a rented trumpet and it's not broken. I still have it. Actually, it broke recently and I had it fixed, but it wasn't broken back in and I played trumpet up until high school marching band because I wasn't down with the marching band

suit anymore. And I was too cool because I was making hip hop music and changing my name to Alo Black. Okay, so you're nine years old, you're writing hip hop tunes and into high school you're, you know, playing trumpet and stuff. Were you also learning other instruments? No, back then, I wasn't learning other instruments. I mean, everybody does the recorder, but that's that's the other thing. One I got into college, Um, I would come home on the weekends and my dad

but had bought a piano. So that's when I started playing piano. And I took a course at the university for one semester of piano, and then I took one semester and then he bought a guitar, so then I stole the guitar and I took a semester guitar just so I could learn. Because I'd seen this TV commercial with Cat Stevens playing guitar and singing and the look on his face was just so real. He just looked so passionate about what he was saying. I felt it. I was like, I don't know if I've ever made

anybody feel this way with my rap songs. So I'm gonna try to sing now. And I got a guitar and tried to try to sing. Were you good at first or did it take some time? I was not good at first at singing. I still I'm still working on it, trying to figure it out. You know, I'm selling records, but you know, I'm doing my thing. I think I can write a better song than I can sing,

and I think that's what ultimately is is. Um the saving grace in my career is that I can write what works for my voice and uh and you know, you'll see, we'll see where it goes ultimately. Like I'm not going to be the best piano player or best guitarist. I have musicians and friends that are way better, and

that's that's what they focus on. I like to focus on the words, the letters, the writing, because that's what I was trained in as a hip hop artist, just writing with no music, just coming up with great ideas, great concepts, and pulling and pushing on emotion and language. I mean, you're obviously a smart guy. I was reading up that you had a four point oh in high school that earned you a scholarship. Where did you go to college? I went to the University of Southern California.

I got a full tuition academic scholarship because I was, um, really really into school, you know, I wasnto into hip hop as well. Like my I did so well in school that my parents were like, do whatever you want, so I'd go and I'd go to clubs on weeknights, come home to three in the morning, um, and then get to zero period, you know, at seven am the next day and still be you know, up for the challenge of doing well in school. But that was in high school. That was in high school, and then when

I got to college. I still continue to make music, but I focused way more because I didn't want to lose my scholarship. So I focused way more on academia and UM and study communication. And I wanted to do a neuroscience minor, but they didn't they didn't have it, so I had to kind of like piece together my own minor of or a double major actually of linguistics psychology. So I ended up doing a bunch of you know what they call the dry side of neuroscience. West Side

would be opening brains. Jesus dude sucking smart man. Okay, so so you graduate, You graduated like, Okay, I'm gonna go I'm gonna go play music. Now I could be a neuroscientist, but now I'm gonna go play music. No. No. I graduate, And while I was at university, every summer I had an internship with Ainsteon Young. So every summer I was in either Chicago or I was in Phoenix or here in l A doing an internship. And when I graduated, I walked straight into a job basically UM.

But music was always tugging on me. It was, you know, my passion, it was my past time, it was my hobby, it was my expertise. That's where I had ten thousand hours already devoted UM to learning and practicing something. And there was this um new higher hazing that they did at one of the quarterly meetings where the new hires, the new associates had to do some sort of talent sing say a poem, or do an interpretive dance, or draw a picture or something in front of you know,

the entire company. I decided to sing a song that I wrote, and when I got off stage standing ovation, and one of the partners came up to me it was like, you might be in the wrong business, and uh, I was there. I was there for two years before they let me go and then I went to just focus on music. So do you get fired? I don't know if I want to call it fired or made redundant, reduction of force. There's a lot of euphemisms. But I

I just said, yeah, I was fired. You know, if they wanted me, if they really wanted me, if I was worth what they were paying me, they would have kept me. I'm glad that I left because now I probably make more than most of the partners. So you're doing business consulting, you leave there, or you get into music. You're a guy who had a four point oh g p A. You had a scholarship to USC, you were double major. You're like, all right, you know, I'm not gonna do I'm gonna become a musician. Now are your

are your is your family like wait? What? What? Hold on a second? Kind of yeah. My mom was like, why aren't you gonna get a job? You know? She's like, you know, and my dad was like, you know, music, Yeah, it's not really a career. UM, and there was you know, there was a good span of time between leaving the corporate world and having my first hit. It was a good span of time. So I was even getting colfie. I was like, you know what, I'm gonna just go and take this uh this little g r e here.

See if I'm gonna go to graduate school because I might have to go teach somebody something. I had signed a deal with an indie label called Stone's Throw where I got to uh make this transition from making hip hop music too singing and then release an album called Good Things, which was a soul throwback soul album that

had I Need a Dollar on it. I Need a Dollar became a huge hit because it was synked to the theme for How to Make It in America, a TV show UM that didn't make it in America, and um it became really popular in France and Germany and England because people were illegally downloading it. Remember lime Wire and they the radio station started playing I Need a

Dollar out in Europe. So I flew out to Europe, spent a lot of time doing a lot of press and promo and concerts, and major labels out there started asking about me and wanting to sign me, and that that really led to you know where I am today, just the success If I need a dollar, He's that how your relationship with a Vici came about. I mean, I'm certain that you know. Avici had a huge hit with the song called Levels where he sampled at A

James's voice, and that was for for him. I think was an experience that made him think, I want to work with soul vocalists. I want to work with another soul vocalist or something like that, and I ended up getting signed to Interscope. And Avici had befriended Neil Jacobson, one of the best and our guys in the business, one of the most honest and real guys in the business, um who was like, you know what, I know Avicci has something, there's something here, but Interscope didn't want to

sign him at the time. The leadership at Interscope was like, Nah, we're not gonna sign him. But Jake Neil Jacobson was like, I'm going to help this guy anyway. I'm gonna see what I can do to help his career. So he had, you know, this idea to put me in touch with Tim, and Tim was looking for a soul vocalist to do some songs with, so we connected in the studio and you know, the rest is history. Was it an immediate chemistry between you two or was this something that you

guys kind of had to work on. I think it was immediate chemistry from a very focused and high endurance music standpoint, Like we we met in in the in the place of mine where we're giving a tent to everything we do, and we're both really good at what we do, so we're not going to fail each other. Um. And you know, the first song he had me saying was one that was written by Mac Davis, who um was one of the you know, big songwriters for Elvis and in the country world. And then I was like,

let's try to write something together. And immediately, like the the song and the idea just kept growing and building and it it just felt so awesome. But we never put it out. It ended up. I think the reason why Tim never put it out was because it wasn't necessarily a style that he wanted to promote yet forever. If Ever, it was more of a of a like a dub step feel and vibe UM, and you know, that's that wasn't what he was known for, and obviously there were

other artists who were really known for that. So maybe he was testing me. I don't know, but we had a really cool bond on that situation on that session, and then we had another session booked, but he double booked and he was in the studio with Mike Einzinger, and Mike Einingger was like, Yo, if you have a session with Ala, just let's all make a song together. Have La come over. So when I got to Mike's house, they already had the chord progression on the guitar for

Wake Me Up. I had these lyrics that I wanted to share because I I always walk into the session prepared with something. I never wanna come in empty handed. And I started singing these lyrics to their to their guitar part, and we're all like, yeah, this is it. Let's recorded. We did when that song was released, obviously, like I Need a Dollar was kind of like the first big milestone of your career. But was Wake Me Up the thing that you were like? I made it? Wow?

You know? Wake Me Up was a Vichy song, right, it was his release and so for me that I made It moment was right around that time I had finished my album. John Eman was my A and r his um in the in the chain of command. Next was Larry Jackson, who had brought John Eman over to Interscope, and Larry Jackson was Jimmy Ivan's right hand man. So Larry Jackson is at Jimmy's house playing him the new album and there's a song called The Man on it. Jimmy called, Larry calls me. He's like, I got Jimmy

on the phone. He wants to talk to you me. He's like, hey, hallo, I heard the song The Man. I want to use it in my Beats by Drake commercial. And I'm thinking, I hope he's not asking me because the answer is yet, There's no way I'm gonna say no here. So they end up using the song for the commercial with Kevin Durant and with Colin Kaepernick um. And I felt like that was that was my made It moment. I had no idea how much more of them I made it moment Wake Me Up was gonna be.

It just kept growing and growing and growing to the point where like it became, you know, the basically the biggest song during that time, and it's gonna be an evergreen. It'll be it'll be around forever. Last question, what's one piece of advice you can give people out there striving to do whatever they want to do and attain their dreams. And piece of advice that you give them or something

that you live by. Yeah, I mean easy for me to say, but you know, when you are trying to achieve your dreams, do not base your success on how much money you make. Do not base your success on how famous you get. Really, at the end of the day, success is about the quality and craftsmanship you put into the work that you do. I have tons of songs that I believe are the biggest songs in the world that basically didn't make a blip in the in the marketplace.

And I have tons of songs that I have never released that I feel like, are you know, a real testament to craftsmanship that I hope to release one day.

Those are the things I'm most proud of. I'm happy that I got some money in the bank, don't get me wrong, but I feel really strongly about that because I have friends who are amazing artists and they understand the value of what they do, and they may never make a dime um, but they're still way better than a whole lot of people who are on the top of the charts, And I think that's what matters the most real quick for I let you go. You got time some rapid fire questions? Oh yeah, for sure, Let's

do it all right. Wrap the fire questions with Alo Black. What was the first concert you ever went to? The first concert I went to was Wu Tang Clan. That's a good one. Who's your first kiss? First kiss? What's her neighbor? Rebecca Greenwood? Shout out to Rebecca Greenwood? What was your first car? Making model? First car? Oh, my gosh, My dad had so many cars and I borrowed all of them. But the one he bought for me was a Geo Metro red. We called it the Peanut eminem

what's your biggest pet peeve? Oh, biggest pet peeve? Inconsiderate people. You gotta just, you know, be considerate. It was the first record, cassette or CD you bought? First record? Because the first cassette I bought was nas Illmatic. I remember buying it on Santa Monica board. On the Santa Monica board. What what's one thing it's always in your fridge, Always in my fridge, Um coconut water. Who's your childhood hero? Childhood hero? Sorry that one is escaping the childhood hero.

It wasn't he man. I was more into the uh, into ThunderCats, so it was come raw. Who's your clevety crush? When I was really young at the babysitter's house, she used to play shod A and I fell in love with Shod's voice. But I also fell in love with Anita Baker's voice, so it's a tie. Last one, you can you can record with anybody alive or dead, work with, right with, perform with who is it? Quincy Jones? For sure? I mean the best producer and best human being in

the music business, I think, Ali Black. Thank you so much for being on the Welles cast. Dude, your story is amazing. You're a wonderful dude. I'm still pissed at Leanne Rhymes, but whatever. You can't win everything, I guess, and uh, I'm gonna write a letter into some television producers. But thank you so much man for being on the show. Right on. Thank you, it's been a pleasure. Take care

well that was awesome. All Black is The man also wrote a song called Them and for a song called I Need a Dollar, which I do need a dollar like everyone in the country needs a dollar right now? Lost, all right, I'm gonna go. I'm gonna go try to wrap some gifts in a terrible manner because men can't wrap gifts. It's just a fact. We are bad at it. I'm a bad guy. I'm a bad guy, guys, Just

so you know, I'm a bad guy. I get whatever I get, and I put it in a bag and I throw it some tissue paper and being bout a boom, bout a bang. You got yourself a gift wrapping stuff ridiculous takes forever. Find yourself a bad guy. All right, I'm out. I gotta go to CVS and buy some more bags. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays to everyone out there. Listen, this year is I'm gonna safe. Locking sucked, all right, it did, but we're here. Must be thankful for that.

Hopefully is better. I don't know, I mean, really, low bar. Shouldn't be hard to be better than that, you know what I'm saying. Rate and review on the Apple and play Store. It helps the algorithm. I guess if you like what I'm doing. Tell your friends and family all that stuff. Be safe on Christmas and New Year's. Try not together with people you don't know, because you know COVID. Alright, I wanna go. We'll get some back to see you later.

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