INTERVIEW: Memphis Bleek Turned Down $75K To Sign With Jay-Z, Talks Roc-A-Fella History, New Podcast + More

Wake that ass up in the morning.

The Breakfast Club.

Yeah, it's the World Knows Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club Charlamagne the God, DJ Nvy just hilarious. Envy had to bounce, but Lauren lo Rossa is in and we got a special guest in the building. Man, he's got a new podcast called the Rock Solid Podcast on the Drink Champs Black Effect Podcast Networks. Him is bleak as hell.

You know what I'm saying.

Blizzo in the building with some lady. That's my guy right here. I never met your ladies before, you know, I just met I g Oh, yeah, you know what I mean. I've seen I've seen you show some love. I show love back.

You know.

Man, listen your ass. Don't age.

When I say you look good, Think when I was young and you look good.

Now, thank you. I'm trying to win. I'm trying to hear that white for you beat watch.

Out into this personality blocker space. Now you my age is stressed.

I know, Ryan Stratt, I'm not.

I'm not trying to get into the controversy of the blogger space and trying to bring some jokes.

I want to be like I feel like my podcasts. I want to be like the sitcom when we was younger.

You know, you had your smack DVDs, your your your wild moments, but then you could go in the crib and watch some Martin. You're going to crib and watch some fresh Prince and you know, get back to your sense of humor. I feel like that's what my space. I want to be just enjoying. I don't want no clickbait.

It's interesting though, most people who actually have gotten active in the street don't want problems.

No, no, no. I love I love this life I live. I don't got to watch my back. I don't need no strap. I'm good.

I love it because I even seen people say things about you on social media and you just you just laugh at all.

Yeah, cause it's like I'm from the era you know, in the hood that like the more anger you show, the more laughter comes to follow. So I really learned that young. It's like you don't show you, you can't show people that they even penetrate the armor you wear anything. So I'm always laughing off even though I might be pissed, but you'll never see that.

You know, most people start a podcast, I guess to build some credibility.

You already got credibility.

So what do you want to say on the podcast that you haven't said on records or an interview.

I feel like people don't know my personality.

Like you know, back in our day, you could be whatever you want it because all they know was a source magazine picture. They see you on BT or MTV, your video, by your album, and that's all they knew of you. Like now on Instagram, people get to see your everyday life. So if you're corn ball, you're corn

You know, you know, you've been in rooms with some of the biggest names in music, right but on Rock Solid, are there stories you finally feel comfortable telling now that you couldn't back then.

No, I don't think I ever played that role in the game, Like I never We never came in the game as a crew with images up.

Hell, we always were just who we were.

I believed in integrity, was gonna take you as far as you needed to go. So it was never no rap image I portrayed or something. But it's just things I can't talk about now because the big homie married.

We married, So God, can't you know I got a pg it. I can't trade it. Like, so.

Have you and your wife ever watched backstage again?

No, I can never watch that one. No way.

I have to tell that wasn't me. The guys she know today that's not him.

All bad an imparting backstage with one of y'all. I think it's you ad like I didn't. I don't funk all the Texas or something that, but half the country flipped.

And reversed it. Yeah.

I was on some ship we was battling and not records, but we had versus for real.

So any upcome and guess that you well, is it out yet?

Yeah?

We just first episode with jo ru yesterday, so that that did really good. A lot of people didn't know me and Joe had that relationship. So that's the things like I want people to understand, like behind the scenes behind the music. We real regular people. Like my first friend in the music business was Joan ru Like, you know, people from the outside would think it was Beans or Freeway or somebody from Rockefeller.

The first person I.

Met hanging out riding around with was joh Like people don't know even Nick Cannon. Nick Kennon used to be in mostly with us, Like it's because my friend, this kid from my projects named clep rest In Peace, he actually used to write for Nick.

Like we all was managed by the Sacred Producer, I.

Mean same manager, you know, be Hot Jay Cousin managed all three of us, Nick, me and Clep you know, so he used to spit.

To manage Nick Cannon.

He never told me, Yeah, been a priority.

He was. He was.

He was always talking about going in the show biz back then too, like.

Like music was never his thing.

So to see where he took it and what he do is like you lick like I've just seen him at the Super Bowl h February, you know, and I'm like, I need to get on that show cause y'all the freestyling, battling this.

And that's that's my that's my area.

So you know, I'm gonna go do that he definitely got to pull up to the podcast.

What was Nick doing in Marcy?

Just chilling, just regular stuff, Like you know, he was a regular dude. This before the fan, before any of this, but the kids and all of that crazy crap. This was just regular Nick on the block, hanging out. He just wanted to be in the hood. Like a lot of people that met us back then was on some yo you from Marcie. I want to go because you couldn't go to Marsie back if you didn't know somebody or go with somebody certified. Wasn't no walking through Marsie.

I made it sound fun. You did make sound like cant coon a little.

Bit, a little bit, you know a little bit. For us, it was because we were the guys, but anybody couldn't do that.

So your man used to go straight for Nick Cannon.

Yeah, yeah, man, he.

Get like, what what record was?

I don't know it was those records, but it was like his demos to help him get a deal, like when he first was rapping, first doing this thing, like yeah, Nicks was in the studio with us and all of that, but you know it was nice.

I always thought he was talented.

I ain't say that, I said you thought he was.

I always thought he was talented.

And then a couple of times you give the guys your dang Nick got a classic.

NA.

I think that's the fear of every artist, like Yah, they't gonna rock with me, or somebody gonna be like dang Nick.

I mean, especially being around y'all, though, like that's a different it got are very different rappers than in Nick Cannon.

No, but it was it was rough, like growing up, like just even being in the Rockefeller Camp Baseline studios. Remember we only had two rooms with fourteen artists, so it's like you.

Couldn't be in there playing with bars.

You had to get out if you was laying something that wasn't rocking, They it's time to go. We got six people waiting for that space.

So sleuthing Nick, though definitely you speak about Baseline. You were the first artists to be called the head to jay Z's thrown like Jay called you the head to the throne. What's something you learned about pressure and expectation that took That took some time for you to understand.

It's not reality, like people will put limits and expectations on you that you don't have for yourself or even see. Like when Jay said that, I was like, I'm the new improof. What since when who told you? They didn't tell me that, so it was like, oh work. So it's like, you know, you gotta do your thing and write and try to better yourself, learn the game, learn perfect your role. But the dominoes don't always fall the way you hope.

You know what I'm saying.

Of course I wanted to be the biggest one to be this, but unfortunately I grew up with the sun and it's like any fire I put out, he burnt out. So it was nothing I could do. I just accept my spot. But he was capping.

You might have saw something you that you didn't see in yourself.

That's what I He definitely did and to this day, like you know, Jay pushed me to do I send them music. It's so weird because I got a new project coming out right on the twentieth Apartment three D. It's probably like my third album I recorded since my last studio album. The first two he done shut down. So when I started sending them records from this one, and he like, this is it you're doing your thing.

I'm like, what changed.

I'm still trying to figure out what changed, because now it's like you rocking with all the joints.

What happened?

I think, you know, it's just where you're at in your life and what you're talking about.

So you was Apartment three D and they were apartment uh fossie. And see that's what I like.

People always know you from the music with Jay Rady, like, oh, that's Jay's protege. But yo, y'all grew up together in the trenches.

But that's the thing we grew up to, not together.

People think that, like they gotta remember Jay is like the big brother, like the uncle, like I was the kid, like one of his nephews on the black.

He didn't hang with me.

He came and got me, like seeing me doing reckless stuff, he would, you know, put me on the right track, correct me, give me gang.

But it wasn't no hanging out. It was like, all right, I see you. That's Jay with that fan. I see you.

So the day when I seen it with Clark Kent rest in Peace, it was like, man, he always pulling up with the Illis cars, the baddest joints. Man, I gotta get on this boat. I gotta find out how to be a passenger on that boat. So I just shot my shot and they weren't.

Well, what was something he taught you during that era that fans wouldn't know that we might hear on the on the Rock Stylar podcast.

Man, everything you see? Man, just the if I live the man I am like Jay taught me. I'd learn everything from him. Biggs Dang my manager be high. I could say it was a collective thing because without them, who knows where I'll be in life right now. But one of the main things I learned from Jay is stay on top of your business.

Man.

Don't like you got manager's lawyers, all of that, but nobody know what you want but you and what you're gonna get with you, So stay on top of your business. That's why I just had to talk with him this morning, because you know, with the Rock Solid podcast, we had the rock logo on the podcast. But of course, you know, people wait till the last day to try to get you to handle business. So I'm like, yo, I can't put that pressure on Jay right now, he on tour

So we talked about it today and he.

Like, yo, bro, I don't just be licensing my my logo and my likeness out to anybody.

And I'm like, I've been in this game forever.

What makes you think I don't I own my show, like the single on to nobody else.

And he's like, I'm like, I learned from the best.

Nobody owns anything you do, and now why would I give away anything I do?

Right?

Yeah?

So it was just do you think as a as an artist?

Right? Because I know you said you learned a lot from Jay business wise?

Right, do you think as an artist if you would have signed to somebody else, you would have been a bigger artist?

Nah?

Probably be.

I probably wouldn't be here cause you know, you get your one and done, your two albums, You're done. That's what made me. It's so weird, all right, that's what made me signed with Jay. I remember my manager be how he ain't gonna like that I'm telling this story.

It'd change everything in your household, like these was Marci struggling days.

And I'm like, I feel you, But that seventy five thousand dollars come from somebody I don't know. So today my train slipped, They not going to invest back in the train to get me back on track.

So I'd rather roll with Hole. And it's before J. It was no Rockefeller.

He was still this was Reasonable Doubt on Priority Jay, and he was like, yo, but what if you know Rockefeller is a dream of J. What if it never manifests? And I'm like, then it'll never be no bleak. I'm cool with that, you know, but my dice is with somebody that I know. Rather roll on somebody I don't. This was during Reasonable Dow because Reasonable Doubt came out on Priority. A lot of people think it came out on Death.

Jam, but it didn't.

I was literally gonna say, people talk so much about your loyalty and that story and speaks to it, right, how has your loyalty had to change as y'all grew because you've known them for so you've known jay Z for so long, like it's been it's so long at this point, excuse me.

It's weird seeing what people what I always saw in him, because to me, he was always larger than life. Some kids grow up looking at sports players, movie stars. My next door neighbor was my inspection. I'll go outside. He has the cause nobody had. I look at his neck. He wearing Jerry no one in the projects can afford. You know, he's flying, traveling places. Member Jay got a picture in London and the BMW. It's like nineteen ninety three,

He always been that to me. So I don't think anything changed.

Because the day I decided to be like, yo, I want to get money, I knew I want to get money like them them tie tying on.

Oh my god, it's funny even you know, not the Lawrence question so kind of. But you know, you see people online saying things like bleak too loyal to Jay, like How is there such thing as being.

Too loyal to somebody? I don't know, especially if it's reciprocated.

Yeah, like, how can you be too I don't know no other way. I don't know no other person. Like what I'm supposed to do? What they wanted me to do. I don't know who I was gonna get a deal with. We're artists. I'm gonna go sign with another artist and be like, yo, I'm this crew. Now, that'll never happened.

So it's just like when Rockefeller died.

That's why they ever chased music, because it's like, what I'm gonna do, I'm gonna be g unit, I'm gonna go be this guy over here.

I'm never If it ain't Rockefeller, it ain't nothing. You know.

It's funny, right, you all wanted a few artists from that era. Who seems like you never chased Clout when things slowed down? Oh no, was that a conscious decision or just your character?

We always been lit like since a kid, we always been lit, like you know, like growing up man in Brooklyn. Brooklyn was you gotta remember Brooklyn is as big as the city were bigger, it actually bigger than Bad And if you think it's a burrough so in Brooklyn. Once you was known in the Star, Crown Heights, Coney Island.

You man, you ain't. You didn't need nothing else Like so.

This industry thing, a lot of these people I feel like because who they always wanted to be with rap fing, I've been who I was and just got rap thing. You know what I'm saying, Like I didn't have to portray any type of That's what I mean that we didn't portray. This guy has always been me like anybody that know me, No, yo, been the same guy since day one. Where you can look at a lot of these rappers and you could see, man he acted once

It don't really isn't made up. It don't mean anything.

What was your first thoughts like when things were dissembling, right, Like, what's your first thought? Go to wise like career wise? Like what do you because now you y'all there, y'all established people know y'all you've been who you've been.

Oh, I had no clue. I had no clue.

That's why I give on my wife all of credit because she really put the pieces together and helped me see the vision again because to me, it was over. I didn't know what to do, what direction to go, And when I met her, she was just like, you tripping, this is what.

We need to do. Boom boom, boom boom, and we put it to guy.

Here we are. And that's interesting because it's not like you didn't have people.

No, and I had peoples, but it's still like when you do something and that's all you know. Like remember I never had a job, like, never had to fill out a resume. I got a deal I.

Was fifteen years old, Like, I never had to work ever. Rule My work was rap. So when it was over, it was like I'm gonna do I don't do construction. I'm sweep. I never swept like, so it was like what I'm doing.

Then my wife was like you bugging y'all hold me own ninety businesses, go figure out a way in one. And that's how Duce came apart. And it's like, Okay, I'm the liquor man now I sell drugs again.

Listen, I want to ask you, like if you could go back to one session from the early rock days not to change it, but just to relive it.

What would it be?

And why see, I'm gonna tell you another story people on the Clue tape, I remember it was Jay Z and Source Money. My first time he including invite us to the studio. Jay and Source Money they murdered a verse. Now mind you, I'm fifteen years old sitting there like, and y'all want me to rhyme.

After these two guys, I don't think it's gonna happen.

And Clue like, yo, go ahead, So Jy like, Yo, you're gonna give up an opportunity. You got a shot right now, you better write son And I'm looking at him like, I ain't got it. After what y'all said, I don't think it's nothing I could say. So I missed that opportunity. And when that tape came out, it was like one of the biggest freestyleusand Marcia by playing it going crazy through Brooklyn and I'm like, I was right there.

I could have been a part of it. So if anything would be that. And on the j R. Kelly album Best.

Of Both Worlds, if you listen to it, he was like if one of the songs I think it was somebody girl is at this party song.

If you listen to the.

Beginning, he saved my name em extra money, Let's go, And I never wrote my verse, Why.

You little scared ass man?

No, no, see, we had a thing in Rockefeller. It wasn't scared. It's called bullshit with balls. When you think you too lit, you out here doing too much that you ain't got time for the balls. It wasn't this clue take was shooks dog Kelly was.

I was lit. I'm outside the thirties on me. I'm lit. I ain't got time being the studio.

That's how I clipped a value one too, I thinking I was too lit, and they left me went on the tour with bad Boy Biggie and them.

I missed it, missed the old tour.

What what in my lifetime? I boty won what you was doing? Though?

I was? I was lit in Brooklyn, I had I just bought a truck from Skaying.

I got TVs twenty six is on it. I'm sixteen years old. I'm at every high school in Brooklyn blasting music. That's what I'm doing. I thought I made it. I didn't know it was the rest of this. I just thought being known to a and I'm.

Lit, this is it and then I left off.

Yeah, and that's the time Jay came to the crib and gave me a to I spoke about this on Drink Champs and he was like, yo, dog, I'm rich. I'm trying to make you like put your family on, like I don't need you, you need me.

And that was the last time I missed anything.

Man, I was gonna ask you because I watched Drink Champs and I saw that. But you also have crazy amounts of jay Z features. It's like twenty four to twenty five of them.

How many I think we are about thirty thirty?

Okay, So in the accumulation of all those thirty, your go to what's your favorite one of them?

Hypnotic?

Hypnotic because I could say the way that song came about, Jay wasn't supposed to be a part of it. He thugged his way on that one. Like you know, Beans, Beans was the one who came up with the whole concept. We were supposed to do the Beans and Bleak album in Miami. He was bullshiting with balls, like I said, going to the club. So I come to the studio Beans in there the studio dark, these things got encense, playing a blasting all type shit, and I hear this

We're gonna get a Jay z Bleak sit down on the podcast people I.

Want to, but not right now because Jay heat. Yeah.

Like what people don't understand is no matter how old I get, Jan ain't gonna let me be the businessman sitting there like I could really conduct the conversation with him, like, yo, so you know what we did. It's never like this will be the hardest interview to do, like because he's gonna diss me the whole interview.

Like do I want people to know he talked to me this way?

Do we say certain things? Do we talk to each other? Like he might not even want people to know how I talk to him all the time, Like you know, like even with the Jai ru Uh Jay funny because the Jairou interview come out, he hit me, yo, that wasn't me who said no?

Do you find out what nah?

Man?

I think? I don't know, man, you know, I don't think nobody said no.

I think it was just two camps moving too fast, like I told jab joab blew up his astronomically. Man, when we before we talked about doing an album together. We were both Nobody's. We were both features on the jay Z Talk.

I was there.

My first concert ever was a hard Knock Life to It. That was two thousand and talk in South Carolina.

We come boy to you and he bought you and Jill.

Just the freestyle no beans and joh beans and joah yeah, and then I came out on this to all right. That's what the single I had out at the time, But after that tours like Joe was four million sold everything he dropped. I seen him in the mall one hundred crips and bloods with them like, oh he ain't the same my guy. He on he out there man. So that's what I think it was. Man, two crews, that two superstars. Man, there's no time you know what

That you got a podcast though, because I feel like there's a core of rocker fella all that crew that gets talked about.

But they don't ever respond. Like Jay gets talked about all the time. You get talked about all the time, and we get talked about time, and it's.

A whole gang of y'all old friends and stuff that's always talking about y'all, but we don't ever hear the other side.

Because it's too much the cover. It's too much like yo, I go on Twitter. Rock Nation is blank for everything. We the reason why people in jail were the reason why guns Like I don't know why did since when Rock Nation have all this influence, we could influence people in other countries that lock people up when they land, Like if we had that much power.

They need to.

Clear some of this red tape for me and my g's because I got to do still on parole.

Why why can't get them off there? And we could put you in?

Why can't get somebody off? Has definitely become the evil Empire, Yo, It's crazy.

I don't know why, but you know it's the thing in our community.

When you make so much money, it gotta be some type of evilness to it.

But my thing is, why didn't I get the evil spell or potion?

They just left me out the whip when it did the ritual?

I just.

Like, did it ever bother you that? It was like you had to head to the throne. Then it was like, it's like that narrative got past to Kanye then Cole. It's like they skipped over bleak and went's great to the next chap.

I love it though, man, when it came down to Kanye west Man, even though Kanye Documentary, I told him, Yo, dog you nice, you gonna be one of those guys. But as you can see, man, this fame it's like the illess drug.

Man, it really is. Man.

Some people get this high and they can never come down. They're gonna chase it for the rest of their lives, and it's sad to see man, But Kanye is a musical genius. The person he is today, I don't get into that. I leave that that's him. He's gonna have to find some healing with that, you know what I mean?

Are you somewhat sometimes when you look at Kanye what he's going through, happy that your career is where it's at, where you have a little bit more solitude in peace versus him.

I'm never happy to see one of my friends going through anything, you know, So it never makes me happy or compare myself to them. It's just I don't want to see it, you know, I turn it off.

I try.

I hear about it more than I see it because I can't watch my friends spiral a lot of control, you know what I mean, Like it's.

Just whacked me.

Another thing that was going around Dame started and he said, you don't write your own rhymes to write for you, and then her Beanie say that too.

On it.

I want to know why I never went triple platinum? Then why ain't follow up them?

J Cells?

If Jay wrote these records, why the publisher checks come to me? I shall have ask caps send these people my record breakdown. They could see that four hundred and seventy five records in all the splits and now understand Like on title it actually shows credits if somebody, if I wrote something for somebody, even if you my man, now dog, I need my PC. Jay wrote coming to Age one, Coming Age two. I had no input at all on those records. When I showed up, it was

Cox is on.

The real MC is involved, So I don't know where that that that really came from. Beans is the main one that got me, like, Fam, you doing.

That much drugs? You don't remember being in the studio with me? Are you set? You bugging?

Like Dane was never in the studio with us, so he wouldn't have a clue. Beans, come on using the studio with us every single day. We spent about twenty years in baseline and Jay wrote my rhymes.

But you never saw it that's coming. I saw a ghost once too then.

But when you said you were coming to age one and two. Yeah, okay, so did you ever want him to write for you?

Right now?

Give me a verse right now, put me back on, baby, let's get lick kidding me. Man like you, when you want somebody to do something for your axe, for that you're giving the way. It's the same thing as giving away your money, like you're publishing. That's the only way we really made money. A lot of US rappers never recouped the budgets we spent on these albums. So your publishing is the only way you make money. And Joe

How well when things like this happen, right because Charlam said, people I do real quick.

But I know, are you going to have beans on as a guest?

Oh yeah, I need to have beans up there cause we gotta get a we gotta get this settle and then talk about, you know, the life we live.

It's like you haven't even spoken since he said that.

No, that's exactly where I was going at all.

Yeah, that was my question.

Because you love you too. Good luck on the you know what I mean? They can happen on the audition.

You know, And I guess that's the thing I love.

Man, Like we always hear about these studio moments, but like, what's a non music moment with with anybody from Rockefeller that really just sticks with you through the year?

Man?

You know what one thing that always bugged me out?

Buster the rhymes. I love Buster splips start on my bros. I love them.

But I remember one time, I think it was.

Jay called Bust to the studio to do a song with him, and Buster showed up to baseline with a bulletproof vests on.

It blew my mind like, yeah, like Buster got beat. I guess me want to try to kill Bust the rhymes? We gotta go get them, man, y'all buck it. This is a New York staple.

And that really had me like, I kinda find out what Bust into? What the hell you walking around with a vest for? You know, just one of those moments I'll never forget. And now I ain't gonna put nobody under bust. You know a lot of people married, so I ain't gonna say, oh I saw this guy with this girl.

I could.

Yeah.

Now I want to know. We want to know, do you did you did you ever feel like behind the scenes, well not say this, At any one point, did you feel like.

Jay was drifting too far from the crew?

And if so, how do you even address that when he's not just you know, you're big homie, but also like the boss.

I knew he had to for Jay to be where he at, he couldn't be around us every day. We couldn't be I'm a liability, like you know me now being married, being a businessman, of course things has changed, but the reckless bleak you couldn't be around us, anything that happen, and then it spills right back to you.

So once Jay started.

Doing these billionaire deals, basketball teams, moving teams from here to Brooklyn, you automatically knew the distance was warranted. It's not that he don't rock with you or don't rock with us. Hey, dog, I'm over here getting to these millions. Y'all still in the club popping bottles.

I don't need that.

Look, how did you understand something like that? Though? But like a beanie, didn't I don't know? And you're trying to tell these guys.

That's the thing.

If you really sit down, see a lot of people when they do on these cameras cut on. They got an image. They gotta you know, they gotta keep it up. I'm this guy. I can't let nobody. But if they really really sit down and have a real, real conversation with the reality pills on the table, not the other drugs, the reality pills, they'll tell you. I told these guys this was coming because I used to get the word from Big Homer. Yo, niggas don't ship up, they don't

You hating on me, fam, And I'm like what you mean?

He like, Yo, if j your man, like you say, why you ain't got no record label, why you ain't got no clothing line? Dang, my man, you're taking care of me all this, And I'm like, I feel you, but you know why I don't have those things because my bro would never exploit my ideas for him to make a bag. That's what you need to realize. They're

What was getting to the bottom of the manufacturing. What ended up being behind that?

What was that was his business? I never got into it.

It just was a red flag to me, Like if I'm gonna do a deal with you and you're gonna make my clothes, I need to know who the manufacturer is.

It's just like I did a deal.

With Drink Champs, right, I know Drink Champs, y'all, y'all had a deal with somebody, y'all start on y'all network.

I need to know.

Who the plug is Black Effects, Like, I can't just be we need to know what's going on here. You know what I'm saying, Like, I can't just rely on you when you relying on somebody else. I need to know all the moving parts. And that's as any businessman should. You want to know the moving parts. You don't just want to receive the checks because one day they're gonna stop. Then you don't know how to pick them back up. Its insane, that's real, you know.

I named I named it Black Effect because the jay Z song Black Effect Wow. I reached out to him to get the blessing Wow to call it Black Effects, and the logo uh was Emery's guy that designed I said, y'all want something like the paper planes logo and.

Do yo, God bless because when I found out, man, I've been hearing it forever.

And when they said yo Charlamagne old black Offeid, I'm like, Yo, he is destroying the game. That's right, bro.

That's all you can do, man, is pray and keep killing. That's it, man, They only get one shot at this thing. A lot of these guys think it's all about the glitz. Man, you could keep the glamor in the glitz. Give me the check. I gotta tell people credit, don't spend money due. I don't want the credit.

How do y'all do you define success now? And is it different from fifteen year old how he would have defined it?

Your fifteen year old me was the Porsche on the wall stadmant house. You know what I'm saying, rich girl like, oh butrah, just letting me be Stadman out here. That was me as a kid, you know. But me now, success to me is what I have, love in the household, healthy family, your health, so you could be you know, you'd be thankful for the things you have and the things you don't is like don't matter.

No more. Like my goals now are to leave a legacy for my children.

Like before it was y'all gotta go to the tunnel into Bentley, Now it's nah. I gotta make sure my daughter don't ever ever turn her head with a horn hark when somebody honked the horn.

No better be watching traffic. That's it.

What was it?

What was it that that moment for you were that bleak entered the world.

I think it was right before I got married, man, because it was at a time when you know, like he said, I was the I don't know how it happened, but I became like the run of Rockefeller, like out of nowhere, I'm the wackest rap or Rockefeller like oh work. So the so the three go albums in one platinum didn't matter, Like okay, I take it, I'm the whackest one. So it was like at a time when you feel like you you just all alone, man, and it's like you have nothing. All you have is family, Like money

That's the success right there.

I know.

I don't think there was ever a conversation that Bleak is whack. It was just that Jay set the bar too hot.

Yeah, when he.

Said just the new improved jay Z. Everybody waiting for that. So you don't appreciate Bleak for what Bleak is.

But I'm better than whole. He know that he don't want battle.

I tried to battle sauce one time. I thought I was better at this sauce like sauce money.

Don't want no smoke. This is my hood.

I'm the new young sheriffs in town. I seen them come with us in the project, seeing them coming through your sauce.

What up?

It's battle.

That's when he spit that line to me, man, because it's chin niggas think they Chinese the way they duck sauce.

That's it. I'm done.

You got it.

I don't want no more smoke.

Damn.

What about I know you were signing an artist at one point two?

Oh yeah, I'm done.

I'm done artist last Yeah, cash shutout cast free cash Man, but I'm done.

No Lodes don't listen like you.

All I could do is tell him, and I feel like me getting out the game and trying to be behind the scenes and telor artists.

They more looked at it as man, I'm more lit than you. What you're talking about you don't know nothing. If you do all this, you would be.

Litt and it's like, fam, I'm not rapid because I chose not to.

My last album went gold.

Don't forget they didn't exit me out the game off a fifty thousand pack.

I left with a gold record, which is cool.

I take that, and they just I just felt like the artists just thought, man, you don't really know what's up.

Man. Let me high at Jay and it's like you're never gonna get that.

He's never so you know, and they wanted too much too fast, like they don't understand it takes time.

You have to work, work, and work more.

I watched interview with casting over where he talked about you actually took him to the office and I sit down. I think it was to tell you to kind of relaxed, and it still didn't work. It was here, Oh that was here.

Okay, Yeah, that's when you know.

It came a time when Cass was, you know, discructive employee and he wanted direct access to the nation and me, I'm not a gatekeeper. I'm never gonna hold nobody from their goals, their dreams or whatever. If you believe the grass is green over there, I'm gonna put you over there. But then when we get to that Rock Nation brunch and you ain't got them tickets, you know why.

You over there, now, fan, they only got one in the pack. If you was over here, got that faux pack.

They don't. Never get on your nerves though that People kind of underestimate your contributions to like music, and you're so humble with it, but it is.

What can I do. I can't argue against the masses on one small voice. So it's like, how mad can I real? I could be mad internally, but no one cares. They don't care. Man Like, people love turmoil. They want to see you do bad, or see you angry, or see you upset, and it's like to see a smile on your face. It hurts the hater's heart.

It hurt them bad. They don't want to see you smile.

You said something earlier. Let me know you really a friend though, because even if you and your home he ain't talking, you know that's your man.

Yes, you ain't got to talk to him for a couple of months or whatever, even a year, but you know that's your man.

You're seeing what they're doing. That's my guy.

I know we see each other. It's gonna pick up right well left far.

That's a fact.

That's why I tell people, Man, if you and somebody got a real genuine relationship, not based off some type of business, intriguing or whatever y'all doing's just genuine friendship.

It can never die.

Unless somebody break the bond. Like I even say it in one of my songs. Man, I say I'm a friend for life. Once you link with me, I'm a friend for life. Once you link with me, we tight until you break the bond. Then it's long kiss good night. And that's true. I'm one hundred percent that I don't care. I got friends like my dog, Rob, Kelly and Dublin. I don't speak to him every day, but when I pop out in Ireland, he right there at the.

Airport to get me. All my friends.

Any country I touch down whether I'm in London with my god Clue Grease Sniper, my guys is there and he's been my friends for the last twenty years, you know what I mean.

I'm often am I in London.

But I was gonna ask what's your relationship with Dean Dash It's cool.

I spoke to Dame, like we agreed upon, you know, to keep things respectful, because I felt like things was going a little bit too far, especially you know what I mean, when when the legal accuisations was going around and people leaning on that, like you really don't know people integrity.

That's what rubbed me wrong.

It's like you was dead with us fam, You're gonna act like you don't know the integrity we went outside with man like people was playing that game. We don't play that kid game. And that rubbed me wrong. So I had to reach out to Damon. It was a respectful conversation.

The wildest thing about that is when when all of that shit went away and everybody you just knew it was bullshit from the beginning, When everybody realized it.

Was bullshit, it was crickets cricket. Nobody said nothing.

No, they wanted It's like people want Jay to be guilty of some some bull and it's like your fam we were who we were for we got here, like we didn't become who we are in this industry. So the things you see that a lot of these people took advantage of their stardom, their fan.

That's not us. We been lit.

Like, I don't know why people think the rap game made jay Z who he is.

He came in this game up. Trust me.

How did the passing the clock Kemp impacting?

I was real devastating, man, Like clock played a major major role in my you know, my upbringing, my first album, like even putting together the record we recorded coming to age and his basement, wow as his house, Like he made the b on the spot and we recorded it on the spot. So just knowing the contribution he put into music way then into my life, the game, the goals.

He always told me.

I just cherish him, man, And it's just so sad to see him go that young over something that was preventable like us as young black men. Man, please go get tested with all hell, physical cool colon, all that.

Man.

Do it. People say forty five, do it at thirty five. If you can. It's never too early, but it can be too late.

I wouldn't got mine at forty four.

I ain't got mine forty and then did it again like a year ago, and they told me I don't got to come back for another seven.

I'm like, oh, because you got a history of it in your family. Yes, they tell you to go to go early. Yeah, we both got birthdays coming up.

That's right you six twenty three right.

Yeah, twenty nine Yeah, man catcer gang in the building.

Two way different personalities. You're so sweet and humble. He is too cool alright.

He just got that right, Yo, you know how to throw that whip quick hit you with that.

You My friends are always my friends and he is.

Hell, you ain't heard the bleak running down on people's story. What I'm saying I watched, I've heard.

But that's when my friends say. They always be like, Yo, you meet and bleak right now? You still ain't met Malik Malik the business man. That's when it's serious.

Had gloves off, no plane, talk.

About your relationship with Nori, Because like for me sitting and watching you on Drink Champs, when I saw the podcast, I was like, this makes so much sense because when he's interviewing. It's just so good, you're so into it.

Norri gassed me up to do this. Just FYI, I did not want to do the podcast.

Gassed me.

I ain't gonna say he bagged me, because you don't bag nobody but me and Norri relationship started. It started before I even knew him. Man, when I bought the whatever it Say first album Compona Norriget the Wall Report album, I knew right there, when I get my album, when I get my deal and my chance to make my album, I need this guy on my album because he talked that life that I taught. So when I met him and we did the record, what you niggas want to

Chris, I got a couple heavy at this Leneys.

And after I got a few and started realizing where it was going, I'm like, this is needed.

People did need to hear.

They need to hear this, man, cause I think a lot of these young guys they think it's one way. If you not a killer, you can't be a rapper. Like they really got to kill on YouTube and drop the video the next that next minute. Then they go platinum and it's like your fam, where's the cool people, where's the regular guys? That's what we represented. Nobody had Rockefeller was the ultimate killer. We just was hustlings who got money right, And I feel like that has died,

So that's why I think y'all need a platform. Man, I say it all the time. The rock Nation, that core.

Of people, the most normal people I've ever met in this business in my life.

We know the weirdos and that they're the most normal people.

No, that's a fact, man, Like it's no, it's no. If you as a weird on Rockefeller, we got you out of there early. We we the strainer was out early.

And we shook the loose anside of there.

So when it comes down to the Emery's man like, Emery is the OG. I tell him, he's the definition of a OG to me, like when people talking about original gangster, not just an old guy, original gangster. His picture need to be there because that's what he is. He's the epitome of that. Just if you know his story, his history, he laid down on the sword for the team, and then you come home to reap the benefits of it. Like, I don't think no man walking right now will ever try to.

Even repeat that. I don't think we'll ever see it done again.

Nah.

And then his vision, like I remember being in the office, would be high when Emery had just came home and he was. He literally had folded up a piece of stationary and was throwing it around the paper plane. He was like, that's gonna be the next shit Like.

I remember that.

So it's just like when you see somebody have a vision like that and see what has become now, it's like, come on man.

Yeah, Emery always been and been the super Flyers, dude, I know coming from you know what I mean, Baltimore DMV.

I respect Emory.

I would love to have him on a podcast like a person like Tata, but I know Tata never come.

I got a kidnapped to gain about the pie.

But don't you feel like they gotta tell it like it's a given it has to happen with you.

I would hope they will want to tell it with me. But knowing Ti No, they can't talk to me. They not gonna do Ta Kid, not him, Jay, Emrie might because I feel like Emrie and Wan they they give me that. I bleiker o g he one of us Ta Ti Jay is like, nope, you're still a little dirty kid from BOSSI.

I can't get out of here.

But I think even seeing that would be good for people too, because we don't get to like I'm literal. I'm sitting here listening to y'all talk right now, and I'm like, man, I can't imagine it was like being around during all. These people are so great to us, but they're normal people to y'all. People might need to see the personality a bit.

They definitely do. Man like Tata is funny. Man like he run from the camera. So that's how I know if I did an interview with Tai, have to be over the phone like he locked up. Wen't have to act like he phoning in. But he not gonna get over it. I know him, Man, it's been years. He's not gonna do it.

But that's what makes y'all so solid though, because nobody wanted to be anybody like.

Old was that guy?

You know?

You know how hard that is for a bunch of men, especially to get behind one guy and say that's the guy.

He's gonna help change all our lives.

Because you knew it, man, Like you knew it, Yo, you knew it. See from back then, you knew you could see the ray of light in the clouds with Jaywalk. Like I tell people I was there from the beginning. I could tell you the cars they drove, the clothes they wore, the malls they shop, and the kind of women, the liquor they drunk, the food they ate, and your results won't be the same. I could put you on

To play his record.

I wasn't even around back then.

No, it was really hot, but sending gift backet gift baskets with chrystyle and all these different trinklets in there, just to get DJ's to play j record.

Like I remember us ground.

And then when it clicked, it was like it's over and he said, I'm never gonna stop.

Andreie was the first person to play it.

I think, yep, Angie was the first person to show love. That's why Andre's down with the team to this day. She's Angie. I feel like back then it was Miss Jones. Wendy was really popping, like flex always been there enough man the radio stage, that's when it was. It was impactful then man like now today, Like I heard the homie right before me talking about artists they lost love for the radio. They just believe in streaming me. I love radio. I feel like this is the way to

It's like, nah, I'd rather just get it one time and I'm done.

That's why I love watching Lauren and Jess because you know they thirty three, right, thirty three years old.

They came up in the inter and oft era with now on the radio every day and they.

See it's so crazy. I'm like, I never want to hear somebody say the radio don't matter like this. I've been on television in different markets, big markets. This changed my life, like honestly like radio. And I can't believe it when I say it, but yes, and you people get to know you personally. Yes, a lot differently than it is when you just post something on Instagram or whatever the case may be.

But because you can edit that. This is this is straight like it is. Yes, it's no, it's no filter, no editing, no nothing like. This is what it is.

And like it's as a fan, I listen to y'all every morning. You know what I'm saying. It's nothing else to listen to. I wake up. Even my daughter, She's like, who don't get to day to day daddy. I don't know. We gonna find out though.

I was gonna say when I was watching the first episode with you and yoa Rule, y'all talk about the Hard Knock Life Tour, it seemed like there was like college for for him and for a lot of y'all, like the learning lessons. What was the biggest lesson you took away from the tour?

The biggest lesson I took being a good performer because DMX used to go out there and destroy.

Then you have Redman and Methan Man. Remember they used to.

Do how High and flying through the scrip, through the crowd, and everybody on that show held.

Their own And remember I was the new coming.

It was like, damn, when I get my shot, this is how it's gonna be this high. So that right there, and then I remember Jay, they didn't let me smoke before the shows, like every day before the show, like two hours be high. He would come take on my weed and my dutches and everything like you can't smoke to after the show just to be a professional, like just to be ready and on time like and that told me if you ain't fifteen minutes early, you're fifteen minutes late.

Wow, What's what's one Rockefeller artist you think never reached their full potential?

Signed or unsigned?

Both.

I gotta get my guy Host to ripper them flowers. A lot of people probably don't even know Whopper is.

It's from New Jersey.

I'm telling you him and Beanie Segull are the only two people I ever seen touch the stage and no beat and spit a verse that no one ever heard and have the crowd go crazy. Now, I mean HOSTI Ripper was shutting venues down, opening up for j He was fine, Yes, he was down with us, but he just it never manufactured into an album or single or anything. And now he changed his life. Like you know, he's a big preacher. He got a church out in Jersey

Because I remember being so jealous.

Jay brought him out on the tour with Biggie and them and he shut it down spitting, and I'm like, I don't like this guy that's supposed to be me up there, And it's like, but then I knew I wouldn't be able to do that.

Look what he's doing. You kidding me? No way.

He was the opening artist on The Reasonable Reasonable Dolta. Why don't people talk about it?

Never heard him?

Yeah, host the ripper Man. I'm telling you it was ill. You can look him. He got YouTube videos where he's shutting concert.

He did the Tonnel with us one time, he did a couple of venues with us, and he is his pen gang.

To me back then was like, it's the nicest kid I've ever seen.

And what about somebody we know alright?

Like, who didn't PD crack?

Oh yeah, yeah, I can see that.

I'm from Delaware, so a lot of PD crack.

Yeah, p D crack. I feel like pet had a lot of gems. He just was in his own way, you know what I mean a lot of our artists that happened to Like I feel like at Rockefeller, when you came in, whether you had a record or not, you got to chain. He was in baseline every day. We all travel in the world. We're on tour, buses were flying, so a lot of these guys felt successful before actually being successful, so they forgot to.

Put the work in.

I felt like with PD Crack, like it was like hot so fast, and then it just stopped.

Because that's what I'm saying. They was out there running around with the thirty bodies. They forgot about the work, the body of work, like you gotta go to the studio, like I think Chris said something on one of these interviews where he said they had an opportunity to go to the studio after a show, but they wanted to go party with right with Rihanna, so they didn't go to the studio with.

That. I was young, Chris.

I don't know who he was talking to, but I can see that happening because it's been times with Jay like Yo, hey they do this and whatever and nobody show up. We'd be sitting there like what happened?

What?

Oh you? Yeah, I'm saying that was me, Yo.

Remember hearing that conversation.

Do you feel like to at that point because it was now it's like once you get to like Chrisnive and Oschino and P. D Crack, there's so many different people involved versus when you're there right, Jay Z's like right there with you, like no, put the blunt down, no get only.

At the shows. He was never there in the studio.

That's why I don't understand where the narrative came from that Jay wrote for me. That's why I can't wait till the Guru interview drop. Lenny asked interview because then they gonna really hear the stories on the work and how hard it was for us to even get them to acknowledge us. Because when Beans got his deal at Rockefeller, I was the first artist. Everything was Memphis Bleak. When

He didn't rap on his song. It was like a verse you already had sitting around.

Yeah, he rather and he spit it on. What you think of that?

Yeah?

But yeah, Jay wasn't like we did that whole album by itself, like no input, no nothing. Now on the second album, I could see why you might think that because I got an alley oop with a record?

Is that shit?

Yeah?

Like that was on his London record. But it's still like, Yo, bro, I got a hook, I gotta beat, write a verse, We're gonna shoot a video.

Cool. That's not you writing for me. You just gave me an idea, you know what I'm saying.

Beanie siegu said that it was because it was it was how you said it was a three, y'all. That basically Jaz had to cheat for you because it was a three y'all, and that's where the writing came from.

He just don't want to admit I shmoked him. That's that said that he must have felt I had the best verse, and he's like, the only way that could happen, Jay had to give him some balls. So I don't know if you if we all in the studio writing, how fast is Jay writing that you didn't see him write for me?

Like it's impossible, right exactly?

You didn't see him tell me, Yo, some bars and you ain't never hear reference track? Like where's the reference tracks?

Like?

Go leak those?

Now, there's a lot of history, man. I would like to see you talk to Jim Jones.

Oh and Yo, Cam ain't gonna come Cam to lit now the podcast, you know they live him and may stay up there suited and booted baby get to that chick gong so he I don't think Cam would sit down.

It is what it is to promote rock stylad.

Yeah, I go up there, I go up there. I definitely pull up on Camp.

We had a relationship, That's what I That's why I want my podcast to showcase that I have a lot of relationships with a lot of people in this business that people don't know. Like the world didn't know Sean Price was related to me. People don't know steal from Smith and Wesson is my cousin, Like you don't know.

I grew up in the duck down household like I was supposed to.

I could have been ducked down, you know what I mean before Rockefeller, Like people don't know.

I went to Statn Island.

Know Shahim and Ghosts and all of them from Stapleton before the rap gang, like Joe well Ortiz from Cooper was in a rap group with my artists living Proof as a kid. I knew him since he was probably like ten. Like a lot of people don't know these things. So I feel like my podcast is gonna showcase.

Yeah, you couldn't be on dug Down you grimy but not duck down grin couldn't.

I tried. I tried back in the day.

They was like, nah, you gotta gotta come up, And ironically I made a song called come an age.

Yeah listen, bleak man, do you ever wake up sometimes? Just be like yo, we changed the world, man.

Nah Man.

I wanted I wake up sometimes and hope I did enough. I say that that I hope I made my mark. I did my thing that I ain't disappoint my friends, my family, or my fans of people that you know, rock with me. And sometimes I wake up and don't feel I did enough. Like that's why you know, I feel like like my partner Cheech, he made it make sense to me, Like you know, I stopped rapping. I didn't care, like I said, I left with a gold album, so rap. I didn't care like I ain't an't feel

Gun on me on this project because I don't live that life. It's literally for us.

And I told them, if I'm gonna make music, I want to give these guys some type of gang, some type of hope because as a teenager today, to look out a guy fifty years old still doing the same thing you doing today, what hope does that get?

Right?

You got to see somebody that you would be like, yo, Okay. It is like at the end of the tunnel a person who came up like me, right, And that's what.

I want to be man.

And now I'm driving June.

Twentieth, six twenty we outside with it again called Apartment three D, just the closure from five to thirty four.

That's the address, five to three to four, Apartment three D.

And the rock Solid podcast is available everywhere you listen to podcasts on the Drink, Chance, Black Effect, Alright, Heeart Radio podcast Network, Bleak.

Always a pleasure man.

Always glad for you in this space, Glad to hear these stories being told.

My brother appreciate you, Laura. Nice meeting too. Wake that ass up in the morning.

The Breakfast Club