Welcome to that moment with Damon John and I am Damon John, and today we are going to get into it with the legendary Iced team.
Let's get into it. Man.
When you found out your album now is being blocked by Warner how was the initial reaction.
Tell me about the initial reaction. What do you mean with the cop Killer record?
Yeah, well, you know I know that they weren't going to put out anymore. You know, you worked hard on that on that album, and you know they just said we're not going to back this anymore. And I know that's.
That's not how it happened day. It didn't happen like that. All.
We made this song called cop Killer, I was on Sire Warner Brothers, and the record came out and it did phenomenal. The album came out of when gold Warner Brothers was really excited about it. You know, we actually had a party for the success of the record, and then we got hit by the Fraternal Order of Police out of Austin, Texas that said cop Killer was the
cause of this problems or drama. Really, the police were under siege, just like they're under siege now, and somebody smart said, why don't we just push the narrative at Warner Brothers. Warner Brothers put out this record. Now, they couldn't really get mad at me because I'm a black man and I'm making, you know, noise about the corruption We've been dealing with our whole life. But they were like, Warner Brothers, big corporation, how can you allow this man
this platform. But Warner Brothers stood, stayed down with me. Jeral Levin, who was ahead of time, Warner wrote a big letter to the Washington I mean, to the to Wall Street Journal, and they backed me. They backed me as much as they could. It hit them in the stock you know, stock prices started to drive and what the problem was.
What I was saying. They understood. But they're a white corporation. They're a corporation. They're part of the system. So now this is challenging them and their stockholders.
Now you got to remember, at the time, Warner Brothers had myself, They had Prince, they had Slayer, they had Sam Kinniston, they had Andrew Dice Clay, they had the Ghetto Boys, they had a lot of controversial edgy artists. Madonna and Warner knew that as soon as they allowed them to censor me. It was going to be a problem. And I went into a meeting with Lenny Warnaker and Moe Austin and they broke it down to me. There was a big corporate table in front of me, and
they said, I see this is it. You're an artist on Warner Brothers. And the guy put a quarter on the table. He said, to see the size of this quarter. This is how big Warner music is compared to Time Warner. We're so you're a dot on that small quarter and what you're doing is it's hurting the entire thing. So I was like, damn, you know, and I just kind of felt some kind of way like they're doing everything
they could to support me. So what happened was the next album I was putting out was a rap album which was called Home Invasion. And when I went in there to do that record, when I turned it in, they had me come in and they had every word on the record written out in big letters on a board. They were going through every little thing and there was some there was some sketchy lyrics in there. I had a lyrics said I don't give a fuck about a cop or a g man. They all talk shit they're
breast smelling like semen. I catch them in that alley all alone, put them in the prone pop pop pop to the dome. So they like, you're killing cops again, right, But I'm like this gangster rap right. So it was so they were so uptight, Dame that I eventually just said, you know what, let me go.
I asked for the release.
I said, it's kind of like me and you are in business, and I'm like, my politics is messing with your money.
But we friends. Let me go. Man, I'm no.
Hard feelings, and I never had a hard feeling with Warner Brothers.
And what Warner Brothers did that was very cool.
The Home Invasion album was about a half a million dollar album to make.
They gave it to me. They never recouped it.
They just said here, good luck Ice, because you got to remember, for so many years, like ten years, I was the number one rapper on that label.
They loved me.
They you know, I had done nothing but bring them golden platinum records, six consecutive golden platinum records, so they.
Couldn't turn on me like that.
But I got them in a sticky situation, and that's what happened. A lot of people didn't understand the source magazine went after me. He said, I folded. Chuck d said the best. He said, those that are don't in the wars shouldn't comment on the battles. You have no idea what was really going on behind the scene.
But that was it. But Warner never really did Low. They didn't do Low. They was just a bad situation.
History is proven, or history is reflected only the times that large corporations or any company turned their back on people.
I mean, we do see.
Nike will stand on the side of what they believe is right, even when somebody's kneeling. They'll stand on that side, and we can use them. But I don't think I've ever heard of a music label, especially a label that wasn't backed by like, let's say, a young person hip like you, right like you. I've heard of Jimmy I
Bean backing you know, and and having somebody's back. I've heard of a couple of people, and I never heard of something like a Warner backing you and that that's that's that's really rare.
So you know what it was name, I don't think they were backing me as much as they.
Was back in the back in the principle overall, Yeah, once they censor you.
Yeah.
And if you notice at the end of it, there was no more Warner Music at some point. The last thing was when death Row was trying to get involved and Ted Turner came in and shut that whole ship down. But nah, they they pretty much all the edgy groups left Warner Brothers at that time. Uh, and they knew that. They explained that to me, they like, it's bigger than you.
It's where you go after that, though, you know what, because I'm trying to find at that moment, that moment you're saying you were you were you were, you were doing well on there ten years in you would already well, we'll get to the origin of when you decided to put that gangster rap on an actual album and.
Go out there.
But where did you Where did you go right after that? What were your options that moment when you were like, let me go. Did you already think, I listen, I'm getting my guys in the sticky situation, I have other opportunity. Did you feel like were you, being, of course courted by other people or was it like I'm gonna go do the ship myself. Like, what was that moment in your life?
It was it was nerve wrecking man, because you know we I was red hot.
Yeah, you know.
Uh. The cop Killer record, even though it was it was in trouble, it went, it sold a million records. Every record up to that point ic T was either gold or platinum. So I wasn't on a downstroke. But I was just like kind of like an out, like people were afraid to touch me, you know. And I basically went over to Priority Priority. Brian Turner over Priority was familiar with the funk because he had put out NWA, so he was not afraid of it. He was like,
let's do it. We'll do the Home and I did two albums at Priority was this I can't even tell you the year. I know that cop Killer shit hit in ninety two, so it was probably ninety three ninety four, trying to drop another record. But Brian Turner put out the Home Invasion album, then he put out the Return of the Real album, and then later on he put out the Gangs Rap album. So I went over the Priority because they were like not as big a corporation and they didn't give a fuck.
And then body.
Count went over to Virgin, because Virgin is a British own company, and they didn't really give a fuck about American politics.
They were just like fuck it. You know, that's that's Richard Branson in them. Yeah, he was already a rebel himself. He was already down there in trouble for himself. Yeah, that's time, right right, Yeah.
I mean, you know what, if you're moving records, it's not going to be a problem to find a home.
I remember we went.
Over to UH when we went to when I went to Virgin, I went over there with my ball. I let my balls hang like they were like. We were like, what do we want for the record? I said, I need a million up front. I need a million dollars up front. I said, don't offer me three hundred thousand. I got to watch the cost three hundred thousand. Let's let's talk some numbers. I said, give me the equivalent of the album going platinum up front.
And if you don't think the record's going to go platinum, why are we here? Why are we here?
I need to be someplace that knows you can move a million records, because I've done it before. And they leaned back in the chair and wrote to check, so, you know, and now that was my first really you know, me, me being able to negotiate because my one idea was always in a slow increment because I'd signed, you know, a long term contract.
Now I'm a free agent.
So and in them days, getting a million dollars for a record up front.
Was big, right, big. Now these kids are getting twenty millions. But that was big.
Let's let's let's let's wind it back, because I want to know when when you were frustrated and you know nothing, you know you you you know, we're boys. I know these served this country. I know that also you you you was a bad guy. You know, you were doing what you had to do when you decided at that moment to create your first single, your first song. Can I can I ask you what was going through your head around that time?
What were the records that were motivating you at that time?
Because you know me, when I was coming up, it was a it was a rising to the top by Kenny Burke, or it was public enemy, fear of you know, you know, fear of a black planet and stuff like that,
and I, oh, no, rock him paid in full. I'm driving my car going, I'm gonna get paid in full, right, What were the songs of that time when you were first coming up and you were like this is this is in whatever you were doing, you was on the car to go go and do something that we don't agree upon now, or you was heading to the studio and you were just you were frustrated or excited. What was the songs that you remember at that time at that moment for the most part.
Well, I first started hearing rap when I was in the Army, and you know, I went out of high school. I went in the Army and there were New York kids there from and they had the tapes you know before. So I was hearing Flash and I was hearing Trench with three and all that on cassette tapes. And when Sugar Hill Gang came out, I was like, I could do that, you know, I could do that because I'd been saying raps for the gang bangers in the streets.
I knew how to rhyme, so to speak.
And when I came back from the Army, my tension was to be a DJ like Uncle Jam's Army and.
You know, do that. But I got more attention rapping. But it was like.
Curtis, Blow, Furious Five, the groups that were out there, and then the first real superstar rap groups like Run DMC and people like that that came out. Ll of course he came out before me, and those were like the targets, you know, and like everybody talking about the LL beef with Ice, well that was because he was the best, and he was a solo artist, and I was a solo artist. So you have to go after the man. You have to go after him, you know.
The only way to be the man is to challenge the man, you know.
So I was.
Rapping like that, like a battle rapper like that kind of rap was my first style.
But you took it to another level though, you know, because I grew up, thank God, with them, and I remember, and I remember clearly, I will you know, I was a roadie on on the tours, and I was on that or pushing around speakers and trying to hang out with people, and I was on that tour with LL and and Fat Boys and Rock Kim and all that, and I'd be very honest.
At that time, some.
Of the rappers were a little disrespectful when they got out of New York because New York they thought that it was only New York.
The world was New York. So they would see people that.
Look a little different with Jerry curls and and other stuff, and they'll be disrespectful, like yo, Jerry curl, put your hands in the air. And then I remember we got to Detroit and there was a whole bunch of Jerry Curle doers from LA and they would call n w A and we ain't know much about them, but these guys that the police were throwing boss of them.
They were throwing boss the police.
They had they had, they had machine guns, they had ouzzies with them and all kinds of stuff. And I was like, yeah, those Jerry Curle people with the mechanic suits on, I'm afraid of them.
You know, because the.
Rappers in New York, I mean, you know, they were talking a little bit of stuff like yo, you know, like it wasn't violence, it wasn't fight back. It was kind of like a public enemy said fight back. But it was kind of like the very much of Black Panthers. You know, it was like we are you know, we are going to uh, we're gonna police our own community. But your rap was, you know, we're gonna we're gonna police the police the way they're policing us.
And what gave you that drive.
To be able to be that vocal Because out of all the rappers you were talking about, maybe the earlier days, sugar Hill Gang was very pop. Maybe the message was the one that was frustrating, where he was talking about people pissling on the rail stations, just don't care. You know what gave you that that anger or that that ability to say, I'm gonna I'm gonna vocalize the streets and in a way that very few people have and I don't care it.
Really, it really comes from not coming from a hip hop background, Like you know, like growing up in La it's a gang culture, so you understand gangs and you understand low riding, and you understand how we had what the Cali look was.
You did.
So when I first started to rap, of course, I was trying to rap like New York rappers.
But then I heard Schooley d out of Out of Philly.
He did a song called PSK where he sung about the park Side Killers, and I'm like, he's rapping about a gang, and I was like, that's okay, And at that point, that's when I turned That was the pivotal moment in my career where I'm like, oh, they like that shit, right. And so six in the morning, what they call the first gangster rap record really is not the first gangster rap record is PSK.
And then six in the Morning.
I even snatched Schooli's Cadence when he said PSK, we making that green. People always say, what the hell does that mean? I said, six in the police at my door fresh year. I'ven jack the Cadence, But I took you on a ride through La you know, hitting crensyaw first time anybody ever heard the street crenchyaw, rolling a blazer with a Louis Vauton interior and getting jacked by the police and going to jail and coming out and that record hit Dame, that shit hit and I was like, yo,
and it hitting the Bay first. It hitting the Bay because I got a call to do a show at the Fillmore West, a very famous venue, and I said, Okay, I'll do it. They called me back three days later said we want you to do a show at the Fillmore West. I'm like, I booked that. They go, No, that sold out. I'm like word And once I you know, sometimes you got to find your identity. Another thing that helped me find my identity was Russell Simmons.
I was trying to be New York.
I'm trying the dress, I got the spikes on early like Mellie and I'm trying to rappers had to look. And I was at a show with Russell in La and they just called me on the stage. And that day I had on my street clothes, I had on Fela, I had k Swiss on, you know, my perm and I went upstage wrapped and when I came up to stage, Russell's like, that's your look, trying to look like New York. You gotta look like La nigga. You were an La nigga. You gotta rep the coast. And then I started to
evolve into just being a LA player. And early my first two albums I didn't even rep gangster. It was more like the player, the hustler. But when Nwa came out and ice Cube said straight out of Cumpton, crazy motherfucker named ice Cube from the gang called niggas with attitudes, the press called it gangster. Yeah, So I said, well, if it's gangster rap, I got two albums out already then I'm the original gangst So that's where the og shit came from me reclaiming like, okay, this is what
we're doing. Then yeah, let's make it clear. And you know it's it's just really reflecting what you see versus rocking the party. Like you know, when I tried to write the party, it didn't work. You know, when I started talking about the street shit, I reached a large audience and it was really my perspective at the moment. So earlier Ice Team music is a lot more negative as before I started to evolve as as a man,
I was kind of like right off the block. Just imagine if you took a kid right out of any Borough, Queens or whatever in the projects. He's hustling, and if you put him in a studio and whatever he said happened to Ron. That's real raw gangster rap. You see what I'm saying. It's just magically at Ron and he told his story. That's what we were doing right out the gate.
Let me go to that gangs of mentality though, because you know, we can't help what we came from, and that gang's mentality it seemed to have served you in various different ways that you used it in the form, and I always said, everybody, there's only two people to get the ultimate pass snoop and iced tea. You can get a a star on the Walker Hall of Fame and curse everybody out at the same time, you know, by getting and giving love to obviously the people in
the audience. But if you reflect on it, there's a certain way you can think about gangs and stuff. You can think about it that don't ever cross the line. Don't disrespect me because this is all I have is a reputation, and I'm gonna have to defend that reputation because if I allow you to do that, well, then everybody's gonna do it. Oh, it's a mentality of Listen, I know you got dirty with me. Wanna I know you've got a bigger priority, and you know I don't
think that. I don't think I want to take you down that path kind of like you know you walking down the block. Listen, a little homie, I did this dirt by myself. Don't worry about it. I know you cool, you ready, but I ain't gonna do that to you or when you and I, you know, we're kind of hanging out and chilling on our own.
And you're like, listen.
I always talk to Dick Wolf and I be like, listen, man, just tell me what it is, and I'm good.
You know what I mean.
We I've had a good fortune of going for me to cop killer, the longest run a cop on television, and the TV and everything is changing. I got you, you got me, I got you. Don't stress it that you have a form of dedication from a gangster way, but also you brought the form of But I'm not going to bring you down that path. I mean you just let me know what it is and we good when we walk in you know what I mean.
So that is c It's a code, man, It's a code that you know. I was raised around a lot of OG's older than me, and you know it's a code.
Man. It's like, yo, man, I got this. I did it. It's my shit. Let me handle my shit.
You know, like people talking about snitching, Yo, if I did it, I did it, I'll handle I could carry my weight. When I was going through the cop killing shit, I wasn't pointing at other rappers. Why would look at them? They they're saying stuff too. I'm like, I handled my business. But you know, you gotta have a little gangster to survive in this business because the way that businesses, they'll fuck you.
They'll fuck you with the with the soft touch, you know.
They and they will also challenge anything they think won't fight back. They will definitely you have as as a businessman, you got to be like, I know my shit, don't blame me, don't play me. A lot of time when I'm doing contracts with people and they're like, well, what do you want in the contract, I'm like, why don't you just send me one? Let me see what how you feel about me. Let me see your offer. And I don't know whether you're a fuck boy or you really down with it. Like I can read, I can
read how you feel. You know, give me the offer. I'm waiting to see how how valuable you think I really am. So a lot of times, man, you know this attitude now now my personality, this gangster shit, it's not really who I am. I had, you know, fifty Cents said it best. It's not how my mama raised me. Is how the hood made all right. So you come into this business world real soft and thinking everything's good.
They're gonna fuck you, They're gonna fuck you. They're gonna find everything you don't know and take advantage of it. It's like if you're doing a record deal, they go, Okay, you're international merchandise.
You know what do you go? Huh? They go fucking right there? You know, right there, right there? Oh, what we got to Now? They go publishing? What about that? Hunh fucking mind. They're not gonna explain to you what you're publishing. They're gonna hit you every place. You don't think they don't think you know. But my boy used to say, they're been fucking us long enough, we should not a fuck nerve.
I don't think it's I think it's just the streets translate to business very well.
Well, can I can? I?
You know, because a lot of a lot of people are going to be trying to move their career. Every every day, somebody the fairy getting cancel or whatever. But let me add, when is that not work for you?
You know this mentality and if you ever said I went too hard or I didn't know what I didn't know, I mean, can you do you?
Can you recall any times or that moment when you say, you know what, maybe I should have gave them another chance. But I had I had developed such a hard shell that they weren't trying to fuck me, but I thought they were. I mean, or or or listen, somebody could have been trying to fuck you and you regretted it at the time, you reflect and seeing what they did to other peopleeople after.
You and they will you were like, yeah, yeah, you know, you know not really, I'm very smooth. I'm very smooth when I deal with people.
It's always a soft touch, and I make sure that people around me have a soft touch. That's the biggest problem. My crew, like the guys I got working for me, they not as seasoned in this as I am. So you know, even this the way you know a lot of brothers, the way they talk people like they're extorting me.
No, no, ask them for the money you owe them. That's all.
But that there, I have to like work with my guys like, look, man, you can't you're scary, like you know, don't be like that. But nah, I mean, nah, I've learned a lot. I've been in a lot of rooms with people I've dealt with, you know, big heavyweight executives.
And they're gangster, you know, they they're the way they handle business.
Like I always say, like in business, the trick is, like me and Dick Wolf's relatelationship, is we make the deal.
I stick to the deal. That's it.
There's a moment when we get to negotiate, we go back and forth. Now I think I'm worth this iced I can get Brad Pitt for that. Come on, man, well come on man, this, that and the third. Come on, I'm the only black man on the show. I might throw the race card in there. I'm trying to get paid right.
Oh wow.
But then after we come to that negotiation and it's done, I stick to the deal, and so does he. That's gangster. I don't come back halfway in the middle of the contract one that no no, no.
No no. So he knows.
Once I told you, Dick Wolf said, iced tea is the least pain in my ass, the best compliment I ever got, because you know, when you have employees, the person who's the least pain is your favorite person. You know, the one that's always coming with problems and ideas and book man, come on, man, you really close to the ads. You think you're doing a lot, but you're really about
to get fired. Because you're driving me fucking crazy. So you know, my boy, one of my other boys, said, the only thing gangs about ice, he really is he does not back up. Well hmmm, I like that. I don't back up well. So in other words, everything's cool until you tell me what I better do. Then naw, because like you said, once I allow at, I might as well let you do whatever you want to me.
I might as well let you move in my house.
You know what I'm saying, Like, there's got to be a point where and you got one too where you're like, nah, now not nah, now you're going to cross the line.
Nah. And you know, other than that, I'm fair game. I'm play game fair Well.
You know, your your history is coming up as a as a really vocal music artist, embarrassed, and you know, I don't really know what the real deal is.
I mean, you know I've been told your pimp told you this that.
And then you you you change your lifestyle, it alters a little bit, and you you know, our wives of friends and you change would be just becoming a new dad again, taking that path, beautiful white, very dedicated dad. What was that moment when you you said, I don't know I feel like change.
I mean, you know you didn't change immediately.
You were ready for change to be the guy that we know now very beloved as a father or husband of various other things and no longer.
I mean your gangster at hard.
So it's very hard to explain Ice, but that moment of being calm in your career, you know, going on and being an actor, but the meantime being on stage your shirt off, doing heavy metals and ship over here, and then you know, being on the player's ball, which I think that's my favorite role of Ice, being on the player's ball.
But yeah, yeah, when when did you.
Get that form of like being just really comfortable whatever you did and being a dedicated dad because I know, I know the story when you know, so when you decided to to you know, to be that person with Coco, I know you gave her the phone and and said any any any young lady call you answer this and you know what you say it better than I do. What was that that moment when you gave her the phone and said boom?
Well, like like like this has been a long transformation, you know. So the first transformation was leaving the streets when I started making music, and I got a little famous. I just said, man, I'm done. I can't break the law no more because you know, now all eyes are on me and I don't want to get any of you guys in trouble.
But how about you thinking not keeping it real?
I mean, we just we're just seeing what happened to Gunner and all these dudes who they were making all this money. But you know now they got Rico chargers and they probably going to jail until you know, I don't until aliens come down start rapping it.
Well, there's a difference between fame and infamy. When you're infamous, you don't nobody knows your name. You like low key, and like I said, if everybody in the street knows your name, so did the cops.
So I had been able to duck them. And when I decided and finally start making a little record money, of course I went broke. But that was a career change I made because now I'm doing interviews, I'm meeting people. You can't do that and go out and break the law. And my other book, I had this chapter called Too Famous to Steal, where I went to do something and steal something.
Some kids came out of the house and wanted autographs. I'm like, what the wait a minute, what hold on? You went to steal what? You was already famous and you were trying to steal something.
Yeah, I mean, you know, you don't really get no bread to your first, second, third album. So I had a Porsche and I was trying to get a part Porsche and my boys just stole a Porsche and I didn't want to pay for it, and they was full of shit about getting the part I needed. I'm like, where's the motherfuck car at where's the car? I'll go get it.
Fuck that.
So I got a ratchet set, I got my boys. I walked through this apartment building. I walked through this apartment building. I pulled a car cover off the car. I'm in the car, still in the park. Part probably costs like a thousand dollars. I could have paid for it.
I was just it I wanted.
Plus I was showing my niggas I knew I was still good with my ship. But when I get in the car, all these little kids come walking out the motherfucking house and they're.
Like, I see oh shp. So now their mothers and stuff come out, and I'm taking.
Pictures in front of a G in front of a G t A. I'm standing there taking pictures because they saw me in breaking and some ship and yeah, it's funny now. So then after they all left, they thought that was my car. I had to call the home. He's like, Yo, this car can't be here in the morning. Move this fucking car. But yeah, that's a chapter one of my books called too Famous to Steal. But long story short, now made just transition. I'm going through all this music and stuff like that.
I left my I was with my ex Darlene for like fifteen years, never got married, and when I came to New York, we broke up. You know, usually when you break up with a woman, you really broke up a year or so earlier.
So we were together, but we weren't really living like that, you know, and finalized. When I came to New York to do law and order, it was like, okay, might as well stop playing this charade out for my son.
Let's just cut it off. So now I was single out here for a couple of years. Didn't dig it. I didn't dig it.
Because you know, it's just a it's an illusion, you know, it's always when you got your girl on your arm, all the girls are fine. As soon as she gets off your arm, these bitches changed. They transform into all kinds of other scary looking things.
You know. It's just something about being single. It's not it's fun. It's a weird warp. So when you're young, it's cool because you'll fuck anything.
But when you're older and you refine your taste, you know, you ain't gonna see that shit you want walking around by yourself.
It's just not I think, you know, I think that is a greeting call. When you're young, you'd fuck anything, you know. I think you should write cars. Young, you fuck anything. When you get a little older, you ain't gonna see the ship you want to fuck.
You know.
I think that's pretty. You know you should write greeting cars. I think that's that moment. But let's go, let's go into let's go further in your taste. Yeah, you refine your taste. So I met Coco.
Now, when I was going after Coco, I was watching a lot of.
The Osbourne's.
Ozzie and Sharon, and I was looking like, would Ozzie have a mansion if it wasn't for sharing Osbourne, Like, this woman is running all the tours, running all his business.
Doesn't even seem like Ozzie would know how to pay a phone bill.
Ozzie is something different, right, But he's wealthy because you got a woman to hold it together. So me personally, I could get money for crossing t's and dynay's.
It's not my thing. It's not many artists things.
That's why artists have business managers, because you know you my business manager. You send me in a studio, Da da da da dah, Send me over here, send me over there. I will get money, But somebody gotta pay the taxes. Somebody gotta you know, that ain't what we want to do. We just want to make the money. So I told when I met Coco, she was fine. I was like, told her, I said, yo, I mean, I'm not really just trying to get another number in my phone. I'm really trying to find somebody that wants
to ride. And she dug the flyness of me.
She was a chick. When I met her. I had on a red snake skin suit, so she was like, ooh, that's fly. See some girls some girls want soft niggas and some girls want real niggas.
You know, they don't a soft nigga. They like, I'm not even into you. You ain't got no base in your voice. Some women want to man man.
So she was like.
Coke, Yeah, like put me in my place. You I like that shit. You know what I'm saying. You know, some chicks I don't know. They emasculate niggas, but that's different. They won't even fuck with us. They to day is already know that nigga Ice is too managed. Funny story, Whoopy Goldberg was talking about Coco one day and she said, yeah, Coco that she's a dope sister, and they go sister,
They said, uh, Whoop, you know Coco's wife. She said, Coco been dealing for twenty years with Ice teased managed ass.
She's a She's an honorary sister, that nigga.
So anyway, when we got together, I was just like, Yo, are we gonna do this?
Are we are?
We are we gonna do this as a couple And she was like, I'm down. So I had a phone at the time, and I'm like, here, take it. Start answering the calls, and anybody that calls up, just say who you are and take the message.
At that time. Yeah, I was out in the street, but I didn't have no chicks that could lay claim to me.
They were just chicks, you know what I'm saying. So when they got the call, she's like, Hey, what's up is this? I no, this is Coco. Oh okay, Well, maybe they might hang up, maybe they might tell her to leave a message.
Sometimes I got the message. It was such and such.
But you know, when you out in the streets and you you're a player, that girl is calling from Atlanta. She ain't talked to you in a year. She's just checking in. You know, we're going to Miami. Y're gonna be into Miami.
You know that bullshit? I don't know if you're talking about. Yeah. Right.
So anyway, Coco cleared the house in a beautiful way. But then she would also take messages from my niggas. So I would get messages like this from her. She's like, uh, baby, uh trigger said he left some bullets and come on. Or the funny thing is like they would call and it would be like.
This, yo, yo, what's good? What's that? What's here? She'd be like, oh, this is Coco. Same nigga, Hey, Coco.
What's the same Nigga's voice would change when he would talk to her.
So you know, it's been good. Now we've been together twenty two going on twenty three years. It's good man. And uh, it was a smart move. You know, it was a smart move for me. You know, it's dating scene.
Anybody knows out there it's toxic and it's full of land mines. And uh, you know, I got the fuck off the field for I called a body. Did you find balance?
And that's interesting because she show she's she's one of the as you would say, I say too, she's one of the nicest people you'll ever meet, right, and.
She's not trying to be this trying She's just who she is. And did you find that that kind of friends change your perspective? One thing? You know, not really.
I never really dated a white girl before, you know, so my thing was like, you know, I've been around white girls, I work with them and stuff, but as far as actually being like in love and all that, that was different for me.
But you know, I always say I'm a player. I don't really care.
You know, if a Martian bitch dropped down and was saying the right shit, I'd be fucking green pussy right now, there you go.
You like Captain Kirk because Captain Captain Kirk.
Would would do it with anybody, bang everything in the universe. My partner, my pimp, Buddy Rich, said, man, you just look for a bitch. You could understand what the fuck you be talking about. You just need somebody could comprehend. Boom, that's you needed comprehension, my nigga. So I was like, no, Coco was dope. But I think I always say this, and I say this in a weird kind of way, but.
Coke and I are.
Like like like like the exact same thing, but turn into a woman and a male. So think of it like this, right, Okay, uh, if my gangster was feminine, it would be sexy, right. A woman's power is sexy, being sexy, not being like a man. She would be sexy, right, So that would result probably in a big titty blonde right that. And her gangster is male, it would be a nigga a gangster. So it's it's like we're very
alpha of each of each side of the spectrum. You feel me like she's an alpha alpha woman, I'm an alpha male. And also I think that like you and your wife. The trick is, you have to find someone who matches your energy. Now, if I go out by myself, I spin the room when I walk in.
That's iced tea. That's iced tea.
Well, she spends it too, she spends it on her own. So there for we we have equal power and we are a good couple. If I'm with a chick that doesn't have that same energy, my energy intimidates her, like why you got to take pictures with all the people?
Why you got why you got it that.
If my wife is with a weaker nigga, he like, why you gotta wear that?
You gotta you look too.
You know, you're dracking too much attention, So you gotta have a Both people have to be very confident in who they are, just like you and your wife.
You know who you are. She knows who she is. And that's why, y'all.
You know, we both dealt with chicks that are insecure, and we both dealt with you know, so it's it was a lucky lick, you know. And I was in my forties when I met her, so you know, I've done everything a nigga could do. I remember I told my boy, I said Yo, I'm thinking about getting married to Coco. It's like, Nigga, you didna have more sex than a football team. Nigga, you have time to bring bring that shit home to shit down, Like what are you trying? What are you trying to do?
And I'm very happy and now with my daughter.
Our daughter is about the same age.
I quote Muhammad Ali.
He says, when a man has a child in the second half of his life, after he turns fifty, it's like it resets it. It's like it resets his life. It made me want to live forever. It made me create new goals. Because you got bread, you can start slowing down. But now not that new baby. That new baby, and it's the best gift I could ever get. I see how much you love your daughter. I think the difference with Chanelle and my other kids is I'm very conscious of this baby. Like I had my daughter when
I was in high school. I was ripping and running, so it was presence over presents. I wasn't there. Yeah, you know, same way my son. My son, Ice happened right when I was becoming Ice Tea. You know, I had never been famous before. This was a whole new thing. So I'm distracted by that just becoming.
Chanelle. I'm comfortable. I'm in a cruise pattern.
I was there when Coco was pregnant, I went to the hospital, and she now still sleeps into bed with us, you know. So I'm so much more connected to her than my other kids. But it's been a beautiful.
Thing, you know, I really I took away a lot of stuff here, a lot of a lot of a lot of a lot of gifts, really, and there's a lot of things that a lot of hitting gems in there. And obviously, I mean I never thought of a when you think of gangs of being a big titty blonde, you know. Okay, yeah, I get it, though, I get it, you know what I'm saying, because that that could be gangs and big titty blonde, big titty brunette.
Big titty whatever, little titty whatever. I mean.
You know, Barbara Corkran always says you an got big titties put up put with with pigtails.
You know. So, But.
I gotta say, you know, when you when you when you talk about young ice and you're advising a lot of the younger people coming up now who look at you and you you pretty much have done in your terms.
It hasn't been easy.
A lot of people were against you, and it wasn't really done before. Of what you've accomplished in regards of being very true to your your.
Upbringing, what would you say? What what is your go to.
In that moment when you have to make critical decisions and you say do you trust your gut? Do you say, I go back to these cold you know? What is your kind of your thing that leads you back to the fundamentals of ice And no matter what, he's not gonna break these And I don't give a shit if I lose everything, I'm not gonna go against this.
I never I would never betray my friends, you know. I would never. You know. I'm not that guy you know and the only person that can betray you with somebody that you trust, you know, so I wouldn't. I'm not that guy. I don't know, you know.
I run into lots of issues. I like to sleep on stuff, you know. I like to like if something is difficult to me to answer, I'm like, give me some time, let me think on it. A lot of times I'll wake up the next day. I was noticing a lot of times things we stress off. Sometimes you just need to make the phone call and just get that out of the way, like just that postponing it.
That anxiety of.
It isn't usually as big as the actual issue once you get to the people and you talk and get that over with. But I just really, I just don't fuck with bad energy no more. You know, I know what bad energy is. I know when you're out to do wrong and you're out to do bad things.
I just don't do that no more. I don't even entertain it.
Do you entertain people around you who are not putting the energy towards you, but you hear them they talking about other people.
They all got there. So what happened?
Because sometimes as family, sometimes people who you know, I tend to cut people off after years and I look at the list, you know, at the end of the year, and I go, this person's not a good friend to themselves, They're never going to be a good friend to me. Or maybe I don't mess with them and there's something wrong with me. But whatever it is, I can't change. I don't like them, and I just I just kind of,
you know, I let them know where we're at. Though, I let them know, Hey, I can't mess with you on this level or that level. I tell him I'm clear because I don't want to be. I don't want I don't want no misunderstandings. What do you do about the people around here to do that?
But they're not.
They never do it to you. Managers, lawyers, friends, called colleagues.
They say, if you can't change some of your friends, you have to change some of your friends.
So I, I don't know. Pretty much, I got my shit down to a skeleton crew. I'll keep it one hundred. I got it down to a skeleton crew. I got a very very few people that I really fuck with to where you know, I'm gonna return their phone calls if they call me. I just don't fuck with people like that. Like a lot of one of my homies was like, Ice is your friend? Yeah, as Ice ever called you? Has he ever called you? Did you ever pill on the phone? He's like, hey, man, how you doing?
Okay? Think about that for a minute, right, Like how does he call you? I don't think.
My dad used to tell me if you can count your friends on your hand, it's a big thing.
It's very it's very rare that.
You have people that you really let into your real world, like you know, like I know, grim's your man, I know certain people, those are people that are inside. Yeah, but those people that are inside are the ones that can hurt you the most. That they go less because they have the access. So you just have to be very cautious. I don't know, Dan, you know, you're right. I think it's your gut. I think by now your gut is very seasoned and you can feel it, and
you just try to learn from your mistakes. You make mistakes, and you like, I mean, you know, I didn't even doing business. I just did a business deal with some people and they came in and they act like they had a lot of money, and then halfway through the deal they ain't had no money.
And I was like, I was like, we can't even assume them.
They broke And so I told my partner, we cannot deal with broke mo fuckers, Like before we start, we have to make sure they can handle what they claim and they can hear.
So these are lessons. These are lessons.
But you know, I don't know, man, I don't know what makes me tick at this moment. I just really just try to like keep it positive, to keep you know. You know, my thing is I've never counted on anybody other's health, hustle. I think that's my success thing is I've never counted on anyone.
Else but me.
And that's the scary part of it is. Right now, I'm trying to get into other businesses. I'm trying to get you know, we're starting a dispensary. I'm trying to find things that generate money other than myself, because what if something does happen to me and I physically can't get it, you know, But I have to learn about those things because I've always been the money person that generated the money.
And yeah, man, I just I don't know.
Man, it's hard to say. Man, I think you just have a code. You have a it's really your character. It's like, what is your character? It's your character a good person or your character a shady person or a slick person. And you know, I don't got no ops, I don't got nobody after me. I don't have no no negative energy like that. I don't want that shit. It ain't worth it, He's not.
Really you know.
I think I can vocalize it as well. I mean, you know, I agree with so much of what you've said. But this is about you and me trying to go down that rabbit hole with you and get that thought process if you going. But I think it's the same thing, you know, after you've been through so much, all these deals and people that come to you when it's a rush, right, it was always a rush. Hey, Cannas is hot this year, let's get it home.
Slow down. So oh hey cryptos hot, this is you. Come on, come on, I need you to sign this.
I need you to do this, like you know, And if there's so much of a rush and you can't go home and think about it, then all of a sudden, why was it so much of a rush? Also, yeah, you know, it's not necessarily the deals that you you don't do that hold you up. The deals you do because you get into the deals of these people that
don't have money. Because it's funny, right, a lot of people will come to you, me and the people listening right now, and they go, oh, we're doing all this, we're doing all that, we're doing that, but we ain't got no money for you because we want to why everybody else got picky, why everybody else got paid? What are you you're doing? All this and that, you know. You know, I like to do they go. You know, I was gonna take this over to ditty. I was
gonna take this leap. I'm gonna take to you for no, no, no no, take it to them, take it to them.
You know.
But I think I think that, I think it. What it really boiled down to is your gut, you know, because.
You know, yeah.
One thing I like to say also with me is that I hold friendships, dear. You know, so I'm friends with you. I'm friends with doctor Dre. But I'm like, say, Dre Dray, But I never talked to Dre about music, right m you know you're on Shark Tank. I've never talked you about money. I never we don't talk about it.
You know.
So I get around somebody like you know Jamon John, Oh shit, you should get him that. I'm like, Look, see, that's why you can't be his friend, because you know that's not what he does. You know, if you're friends with somebody like Dre, you want he wants you to come over and play Xbox and leave like that.
Just be his friend. You know. If something generically happens, that's great.
But you know, I like people for who they are, you know, and just have friendships.
And that's hard in this business because everybody's angling.
You know, your boy will come over and at the end of the night, after you done had fun drank, here comes a pitch you like this, what this whole thing was about? This pitch you got for me? Like, come on, man, take it easy.
I don't know. It's different. Different people see things different ways, you know, and so.
I I see things my way, and you know, I always say, I think, at the end of the day, Dame, what really matters to me is my legacy, not the money, not none of this shit. Because when you're gone, you're just gonna give the money to people who gonna fuck it off because they didn't have the acremen to get it in the first place. So it doesn't mean they're gonna have the acremen to hold it. They're gonna fuck it off. So you know, the only thing that really
you leave is your reputation. And if you are a great man, when people meet your daughter or your wife, they go, oh, that's Dami John's people.
Okay, let them through. Like my son is in La this nigga telling me, oh, I got juice.
You got juice. How the fuck you got juice? You telling them you little ice and they letting you through the ropes. That's your daddy's juice, you got, you know. But my daughter's in Atlanta. When she says who she is, people treat her like a little queen or princess. That's what's important to me, my legacy. If I leave here as a great man or a good man, then everyone else gets to live off of that, not the money.
It's my rep at the end of the day.
Our legacies is more important because that's what our families are going to live off of. That's what you know, your your wife, your kids, and on and on and on. And we just had to be careful because they try to scandalize you or do something ruin that.
And that's more important to me than anything else.
So you know, I've just got to be careful and cautious because they hate to see, you know, especially black men, become successful and pull it off and leave, you know, on a good note, you know, And that's what my thing is about, you know. So I'm very careful and trying to stay you know, straight, So my kids and my wife and anybody who represents me.
Can be proud.
Right well, Listen, man, I always learned something new when
we hang out. And I love the fact of going down this kind of history path, of that moment, the moment that you know, you realize that you were famous and you couldn't no longer live the life that you will even even though you didn't have necessarily money, the moment that you have to deal with with the decision of facing Warner and or you were going through the moment of you know, meeting your your wife and changing your life and moving New.
York and you know, moving away from her.
You know who you're with, So a lot of decisions have to be made in your life, man, And I'm glad you took the moment today to share it with us.
And you always inspired me.
A lot of times you're just telling me things that I didn't know if I did the right thing or anybody else felt like like I feel, you know, as I'm still trying to learn and grow. So I appreciate you spending time with me, man, and thank you for being.
On that moment.
Hey, Hey, you know what, oh, at the end of the day, Man, you know what I learned is that it's always going to be you, just on you by yourself. There's not a group of people to help you when shit goes wrong, It's going to be on you. And in closing, I try to tell everybody, nobody wakes up.
In the morning with your dream. Whatever you want to do.
You could think you got partners, but nobody wakes up thinking about what you want. And the only way it's gonna happen is that you do it. Because I could be on the sidelines. I'm helping you, but I don't wake up with your dream. That's your dream, all right, that's sure, Thank you brother.
All Right, Pete Dame, I've talked to you soon.
All right, you gotta think, all right, And this has been that Moment with Damon John. That Moment with Damon John is a production of the Black Effect Podcast Network. For more podcasts from the Black Effect Podcast Network, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite show and don't forget to subscribe to the show and.
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