Latest / The Grounded Show / Grounded Show Ep. 59 - Character Arcs

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Grounded Show Ep. 59 - Character Arcs · The Grounded Show

0:04
It ain't, man, I was just talking about that, um that Rick
0:07
Rubin and John Mayer podcast. Man, if anybody liked podcast period or just
0:12
music podcast things like that, get a new one. I think it's called
0:17
Tetragram or something like that. Just if you look up Rick Rubin, John
0:20
Mayer, it'll pop up and it's super dope, like for people that make
0:24
music, but also just for creatives, just to kind of hear how he
0:28
works through, you know, just the creative process, like the journey overall,
0:34
just kind of how he viewed stuff and just hearing Rick Rubin talk about
0:37
it, you know what I mean. It was super dope, and it
0:39
inspired me because I've been like real uninspired lately. Um just because I've been
0:45
so busy, like in my normal life kind of stuff, you know,
0:47
like we're opening a new business things. Have just been busy with my current
0:51
business, you know what I mean. I got both kids and like summer
0:55
camps and they're both on teams too, so it's like it's it's crazy,
1:00
bro, It's crazy. Yeah. Bro, This morning was a crazy one,
1:03
Like I was. I had like a like a horrible morning and then
1:07
like when I got to the shop, I spilled my coffee on my desk,
1:10
and I'm like, damn, bro, like I need to just chill
1:14
out because if not, this is gonna be my whole day, you know
1:15
what I mean? Yeah, I had a kind of like caliber and after
1:18
that I was good. But um, the other day, I don't know
1:22
how we got into the topic all of us, um, and I just
1:26
randomly went into an old email I had, like from my rap days,
1:29
you know what I mean, when my name was GA real, my rap
1:33
name was Ga right, yeah, and like the conversation y'all had about you
1:37
rapping again, and he brought that quincy about the name, and I want
1:40
to hear, like I saw that conversation, but I understand, like what
1:44
was the significance about those names? So so the funny thing is when I
1:49
first started rapping, I was a kid and I was a geek. Bro,
1:52
I'm still a geek, but I was a super geek. And my
1:55
rap name was Galaxy but with three X. Yeah, but with three xes,
2:01
but with three xes. I was Galaxy with three xes. Yo.
2:07
I wait real quick, before you get into it, I'm just gonna say
2:09
this quick point. He believed that ship one hundred was sent though, because
2:13
I remember every time I think about you rapping, Bro, I can like
2:16
distinctively remember ay, like I can distinctively remember that Bro, like, oh
2:24
my god, that was my old little intro thing. BRO spelled the name
2:28
out and stuff like yo. When we all started rapping, rapping the whole
2:31
group, like it was three. It was five of us at first,
2:34
then three, but we all like that was like our go to thing.
2:38
Like I guess it was just because we were young in the music, like
2:39
we would just all spell our names. Bro. It was like a spelling
2:43
every song. But yeah, So, like my name was Galaxy at first,
2:49
and then um I shortened it to g A and I kind of flipped
2:52
it like I just I called myself GA, and I would tell people I'm
2:54
GA because I'm on top of Florida, you know what I mean. Like
2:59
so like I kind of it wasn't the original intention, but I was like
3:01
I gotta make I gotta make this make sense, you know what I mean?
3:05
Yeah, But um so I went into my old email, which was
3:08
GA says a yomail dot com because I was that later became my intro.
3:15
Like the way I say yeah yeah Now I used to go a yo,
3:20
like like a loud like A loud and long a yo Bros. It was
3:25
so funny, man, like just to think about it, like, and
3:28
I used to always make sure I hit it in every song, bro yo,
3:31
that's fact. I used to always make sure, like, bro,
3:34
I gotta hit this in this song, my a yo, Like even if
3:36
I finished something and it sounded good, like at the engineers like, oh
3:38
what else on the hold, I gotta go in and say A yo.
3:44
I used to think. I used to think the fans was waiting for the
3:46
a yo bro. But like, I'm listening to old music, like probably
3:52
like the last one of the last two projects I did of like rapping before
3:55
I started singing, So I'm listening to an I had a song called Feeling
4:00
like Freeway, which I got from on the Beanie on the Beanie Seagull album
4:06
that had a song called I'm trying to remember the name of the song,
4:11
I Can't Go on this Way, and it had like the Young Guns Freeway
4:15
Beanie Seagull on it. I think that was the only people who was on
4:18
a Young Guns Freeway and Beanie Seagull and the way Freeway starts his verse he
4:25
goes, I can't wait until the rain turn the sunshine because I hate to
4:29
spend my life, my life, my life, my life stuck at one
4:31
time, you know what I mean, And like it was just so dope
4:36
to me, you know when I was a kid, like that song period,
4:40
like even just the whole idea of like I can't go on this way,
4:42
Like it's basically just talking about getting out the hood, you know what
4:44
I mean. And when that drop, that was like, you know,
4:46
that was my environment and that's what I'm like, you know what I mean.
4:49
That's like a gospel to me, you know what I'm saying, Like
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I can't go on this way, you know. So I made a song
4:55
like kind of using that as like the crutch of the hook, you know
4:58
what I'm saying. And I called it Feeling like Freeway, like just to
5:01
give a nod and to let people know like I'm not I'm not buying a
5:04
lot of those concepts and those songs, bro, like you you're not a
5:09
lot of people just made music to make music. Like everything you try to
5:12
put together at a concept behind it as a meaning behind it. That's crazy.
5:15
Yeah, Like even like so long ago, Yeah, even like with
5:18
the rap group and all that stuff like I was always like I've always been
5:21
like the glue guy, you know what I mean. Like I'm then yourself
5:25
a conscious rapper like logic or k dot I would. So it's funny because
5:35
even just being like light skin and rapping and like I said, bro,
5:40
like I was a geek before. So like even how I look now,
5:44
like I look way more menacing than I looked before. You know what I'm
5:46
saying, I don't look menacing at all, you know what I'm saying.
5:49
So like back in the day, like what I was trying to do was
5:53
like be super hard, but my thing was always lyrics. Like I always
6:00
was very conscious of like what you say, you know, not necessarily back
6:03
then as far as like being true to myself and stuff like that, because
6:08
obviously, you know, we were all rapping about shooting people and selling all
6:11
these drugs and everything even had shotguns at that time. And facts, bro,
6:17
facts, and um, what was I what was I saying? What
6:21
was it? Was the whole point of me saying that, oh you were
6:24
asking me about them? Yeah, so in the group and everything, like
6:27
I was the one that kind of like put together the concepts of the songs,
6:30
like whenever I would hear it beat, I'll be like, yo,
6:31
we should do something like about something like this, and I'll kind of give
6:34
like a line or two. So everybody kind of stays on topic. I
6:38
would kind of produce everything, Like if somebody said something that didn't really match,
6:41
I'll be like, now you should change that line whatever, you know,
6:43
whatever it was, Yeah, that was always that was always my thing,
6:46
you know what I mean. But when I used to wrap, like
6:49
my main thing was like the lyrics and like I was big on punch lines,
6:54
but I was big on them like meaning something like making sure it's to
6:58
call back to something I said before or like that it makes sense in the
7:00
context, you know what I mean. And that feeling like Freeway song,
7:04
like when I heard it back, that song is mad vulnerable, like and
7:08
I'm listening to it and I don't I don't really remember it, you know
7:11
what I'm saying, because I don't listen to like I don't listen to my
7:14
old music, like I don't really like think about when I used to rap
7:17
like that. But like this week, for whatever reason, like it's just
7:20
maybe it's because I've been in this rut and maybe because lately I've just been
7:24
thinking about rapping, and I'm like, you know, it's just coming up,
7:28
and I'm just thinking about it from the point of view of like damn,
7:30
like this, like I was saying some shit, you know what I'm
7:33
saying. Like I'm not saying the song was super dope or anything, but
7:36
like and I'm not even saying I was saying some shit from the point of
7:40
view of like people would think it's hard. I just know, like if
7:42
you hear it and hear what I'm saying, like you know that it really
7:45
came from a vulnerable place, you know what I mean. Like on that
7:47
song, I'm talking about how my dad left when I was a kid,
7:51
and then how I had a step dad and then he left too, and
7:54
just kind of dealing with that like of like your dad leaving twice, you
7:58
know what I mean. Like that was the thing I dealt with as a
8:00
kid, you know, like having to kind of be the man from my
8:01
brother and like him kind of resenting it a little bit because he felt like
8:05
I was trying to sun him, you know what I mean. Like it's
8:07
like a lot of like real deep stuff in there, and I'm like,
8:11
dangn the separation between an artist and a writer, and this kind of taps
8:16
into what you're exactually speaking to, like to the point where you're you're telling
8:22
a story like you're writing a story. And that's why I like you see
8:26
Hollywood is lacking, Like they don't have any hosts for award shows, all
8:31
the late night shows are out because the writers, the people who who actually
8:35
invest in the content are no longer there and there's not a lot of people
8:41
who can do that. You have artists, you have performers, you have
8:45
people who can recite the ship that's written, but the writing shit is a
8:50
whole different. Yeah, it's the people that you don't see. It's the
8:52
people that you don't see. My question to you less because I always think
8:56
about this. I actually um had did a recent interview with we Family ATL
9:00
shout Out, we Fami MeTL when I did the performance an interview and everything,
9:03
and they asked me how I kind of started with the music thing,
9:07
and I bought up a funny point that like I didn't even think about,
9:11
but like, well I didn't realize, but like the first songs I ever
9:13
recorded were via m P three player back in the day that used to have
9:18
like a little cheap little microphone where you can record voice memos on it,
9:22
like, and I would have a beat plan like somewhere behind me, and
9:26
I'm like rapping into the you know, the MP three player. And that's
9:28
kind of how I started. So my question to you is, like,
9:31
how did you start? Um, that's a good question, So let me
9:35
think back a little bit. Okay, So how I originally started before I
9:41
like really started taking it like quote unquote serious, was kind of the same
9:45
way you're talking about. But my boy Mike shout out to Mike, Mike's
9:48
Um, I was gonna say his last name. Let me not do that
9:52
because you know, there was a couple of mics, so we always would
9:54
go by the last name. But anyway, my boy Mike, when I
9:56
moved to went where if he had moved in like right before me, you
9:58
know what I'm saying, Like it was literally like only our two buildings in
10:01
the whole like and everything else was woods and um, you know, I
10:05
used to hang out with him and he was he was big into music.
10:09
He was actually one of the people that kind of like opened my mind like
10:11
as far as like catalog wise with music, because um, you know,
10:16
he was like one of those. He had an older brother, you know
10:20
what I'm saying, Like he had both his parents at the time, so
10:22
like he had a little bit more means and like he learned a little more,
10:26
you know what I mean, Like kind of had like those people.
10:28
So like I got a lot of music influence from him originally. And he
10:33
had a boom box with cassette you know, double cassette player, where like
10:37
you could put one cassette in to play something and record record onto it and
10:41
stuff. So like we would just do songs like straight takes, like we
10:45
were writing, and like we would have to knock it out perfect. You
10:48
know, if you mess up, you got to go back to the beginning
10:50
all over again. So that's kind of how it started. But after that,
10:54
when I was, like when I first got a computer, um,
10:58
and I discovered like that you could buy stuff online and everything like eBay.
11:01
You know when eBay came out, Bro, that changed the game dog you
11:05
could get like quality stuff for way cheap cheap. You I was, you
11:07
know what I'm saying, Like, so Bro, I can't even tell you
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how I did it because I didn't have any money. I don't even know,
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like Bro, Like I said, I can't even explain to you the
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story. But I ended up buying like a little like interface and a mic
11:22
off eBay and hooking it up to this computer, figuring out how to make
11:26
it work. And once I got it ready to work, I didn't have
11:30
the confidence, like I was recording by myself at first, but I didn't
11:33
really have the confidence to like to like say, I'm a rapper, you
11:37
know what I mean. So I looked for other people to come rap with
11:41
me, like I wanted to rap. But I was getting people to come
11:43
rap with me because I wanted to rap, you know what I mean.
11:48
So, like I would ask all my homies in the neighborhood, like,
11:50
yo, I got my setup, you know, Like I would kind of
11:52
like mention it and like it would pique their interest, and eventually like everybody
11:56
would cycle through and record, you know what I mean. But then to
12:00
see like the ones that really like gravitated to it and stuck to it,
12:01
like that's where like the group started, you know what I mean, Like
12:05
with the people that actually would like pull up and like it consistently. Yeah,
12:09
you know what I mean. Yo, It's so funny you say that,
12:11
because like so I told my story. Obviously, I started with the
12:15
whole MP three player thing. I moved to Wentworth and I can't remember if
12:18
it was you or if it was shout out to Ricky. I can't remember
12:22
if it was you a Ricky, but I remember I went to one of
12:24
your cribs and um, you guys had like a little setup you know,
12:31
and had like the sock on the on the hangar to con It was probably
12:37
me because I'm pretty sure I was the first one to do all that and
12:41
Wentworth like from our group, you know what I mean. Okay, yeah,
12:43
I'm so going to it. That was the first time I had ever
12:48
actually recorded into audio software, and I think it was like Sony acid Prom
12:54
acid Pro acid Pro. Yeah. And the only reason I remember is because
13:00
I eventually, you know, I had like a little cheap laptop at the
13:03
house and I didn't even have an interface. Bro. I pulled out a
13:05
computer headset and hooked it right into the headphone jack and recorded like that.
13:11
And that was my first like home setup, bro. That's crazy, man.
13:16
Yeah. My upgraded setup was actually one of them little stick mics,
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you know what I mean, Like they used to They used to come with
13:24
a computer back in the day. It was like a like a stick on
13:26
a stand, you know, yeah, yeah, yeah, for some reason,
13:28
it had better quality than like my other stuff, so like I would
13:31
end up using that like after that. But it's just it's crazy because like
13:37
the main reason we've been talking about like the rap stuff and just all this
13:39
kind of stuff so far is because I've I was listening to it and kind
13:46
of just hearing like the kind of things I was saying in a wrap the
13:50
energy I had, like where my head was at at the time, pause
13:54
and just hearing like like dang, bro, like I've really come along way
14:00
like as a person, just like um, you know, in the ladder
14:05
in life, you know what I mean. And just like like the anger
14:07
that was there is not the anger that was there is not here anymore,
14:11
you know what I'm saying. Like even like the way I used to rap
14:13
was like super aggressive, like I was like my voice is kind of deep,
14:16
and then like when I rap, I would wrap very strong, Like
14:20
that was the thing. Like, especially like when I would have sessions with
14:22
people, like or when people like when I would meet people, like they
14:26
would see me and then they would hear me rap and be like bro like
14:28
just it would just kind of it would blow their minds. Not because I
14:31
was so dope or anything like that, it just didn't make sense, like
14:35
the stuff that I was saying, and the and the way I looked,
14:37
and like the voice that was coming out because I was way even way more
14:41
stringy than I was than I am now before you know what I'm saying.
14:45
And I just thought about it from the point of view of like when I
14:48
try to do something like rappy or like in that rap style, like I
14:54
just can't put my like I can't put my mind in that place no more,
14:58
you know what I mean. And it's like I feel like it's something
15:01
that's kind of hindering my music overall, even just the idea that like I
15:05
can't really like take myself out of the headspace of my situation to kind of
15:11
put myself in another situation or right, you know what I mean, Like
15:16
I need to figure out a way to do that without feeling like I'm being
15:20
I'm not being authentic, you know what I mean, which is also like
15:22
a big you don't want to go back to that person and going off of
15:28
that like a thing that I have a lot of, like self issues with
15:33
like in just like internal battle is like you know, I came from that
15:39
place and I have matched stories, but like like even just to take it
15:43
behind the curtain, dog, Like I don't even know if y'all really noticed,
15:46
but like when we were talking about the dreams that that one episode,
15:50
I end up taking like a whole story out of that episode. Like I
15:54
remember I told a story like like a neighborhood story, like some crazy stuff
15:58
that happened. Yeah, I took that out when we when we dropped it
16:03
up post. Yeah, like it's not on the episode, and it's like
16:08
like I don't know what it is in my mind, but I need to
16:11
get past it. It's like I just look at it like I'm not that
16:15
guy no more. That's not my Like like I just I just don't even
16:18
like talking about that kind of stuff, Like I just hate how like a
16:22
lot of people when they talk about things like that, they're like kind of
16:25
bragging. They're kind of telling you in a way of like hey, listen
16:27
to the guy used to be like, don't mess with me, you know
16:30
what I'm saying, Like that that's your story. Person in the world too.
16:34
Though, Yeah, I read this quote I don't know where I read
16:37
at this point, I remember, but it said, it's the old me
16:44
that prevents me from being the old me. The old Jew is never gonna
16:48
die. Bro, that person is never gonna die. It's gonna existing you
16:52
forever. But you don't have to be that person. But it's so you
16:56
can't pretend that person never existed and never it's gonna contain exist. But also
17:02
as good as you of a person as you are today is because of the
17:06
person that you were, you know what I'm saying, the person that you
17:08
like. It's like why some people, some people will continue down that and
17:15
that's something we always talk about. Some people will continue on that same path
17:18
for the rest of their life doing the same negative stuff doing, you know,
17:23
being shady to people all their life, stealing from people, lying to
17:27
people, whatever. And I'm not saying you did any of that. But
17:30
what I'm saying is the stuff that you went through, you grew from it,
17:33
you know what I'm saying. And it's more so you know you.
17:37
I mean, obviously it's something for you to work through, but it's more
17:40
so like you should appreciate that, you know what I'm saying. From a
17:42
standpoint of like, Bro, I went through that ship. You know what
17:45
I'm saying, Like I went through that ship and it didn't knock me back.
17:48
When y'all tell me stories, I'm like, Yo, people need to
17:52
hear these stories. Yeah, real talk. Yeah, man, it's just
17:56
a big I don't know, man, It's just like I don't know what
17:59
it is. I always have this uh kind of back and forth with Freddie.
18:03
We always kind of touch base on the same conversation all the time,
18:07
and it's like, there's just I don't know, bro, Like there's something
18:11
in me that like prevents me from talking about this stuff. I don't know
18:15
if sometimes I feel silly talking about it. I don't know. I think
18:19
I think also like the way I look also gets in my own head because
18:23
it's like I kind of feel like when I'm telling these stories, it doesn't
18:27
seem like I should be telling these stories, you know what I mean?
18:30
And it's like, my don't we don't get it. Edit our stuff out,
18:33
Leicster. Yeah, So we need you, like collectively, Quincy,
18:42
we collective, we need less to be like that m re'al talk real talk
18:48
because I mean, like, at the end of the day, bro,
18:51
like all of that. Yo, there's somebody out there that's gonna hear that
18:53
story that's a fan of you, or maybe not even a fan of you,
18:56
but that story makes them become a fan of you because of the person
19:00
you are today, and like you lived that. Damn, I ain't even
19:03
know he went through all that. Talk about all the time, like,
19:07
damn, I never knew this guy's story, and now that story makes you
19:11
look at him a little different. Yeah, Bro, My fiance talks about
19:17
it all the time, like she literally is like, I can't believe yo,
19:22
Yeah you're there. I can hear you. Your your video froze,
19:25
but I can hear you. There you go, You're back. I can't
19:30
hear you. You gonna Yo, I'm here, there you go, there
19:36
you go. Oh there you go go ahead, go ahead. Damn.
19:41
He's like getting out, but he looks I see him. Yeah, your
19:45
video and you look straight, Dann. I was waiting for that. Whatever
19:51
you was about to say to dog, ain't a wave. Bro, here
20:00
it comes, He's coming back. I'm ready for that story for sure.
20:07
But yeah, man, Yeah, it's definitely something that I would just always
20:11
struggle with. Vulnerability is the term. Do you think it's vulnerability. I
20:17
don't know, bro, like because I don't know. Man, I just
20:21
said, I have been speaking on an internet microphone for a long time over
20:29
just speaking speaking, like talking shit and who knows who listens to it?
20:33
Right? Who knows? Who the fuck knows? Bro? But one thing
20:38
I try to focus on. Whatever I say, if people listen to it,
20:44
I'm okay with it. So you felt that way at that moment,
20:47
so you got to release it. I feel that, definitely feel that speaking
20:52
speaking now you're creating, like if you're painting, or if you're making music
20:57
or you're making a mix or if you're creating some you have intervals, you
21:03
have iterations of it, but when your life speaking to something, there's nothing
21:07
like the truth right there. That's sorry, I feel Yeah, I feel
21:11
that. It's definitely something that's been coming up a lot with me lately,
21:15
just because you know, even like as an artist, taking that next step
21:19
includes that, you know what I mean, Like, especially when you're trying
21:22
to get people to literally invest in you by buying your music. You know
21:26
what I'm saying. Like, I'm kind of at that point where I need
21:30
to kind of figure out what my next move is as far as like putting
21:33
together a project like whatever. It is, Like I'm already out of like
21:37
the stage that I'm in, and I need to like hit that next stage
21:40
and that includes that, you know what I mean, Like just just kind
21:44
of like opening that door and letting letting that kind of like shine or whatever,
21:49
or just like put some focus on my story and stuff. But I
21:53
honestly, I don't think it's vulnerability. Bro. I just have this thing
21:56
in my mind where like I just like it's kind of like the stuff we
22:03
talk about on the podcast, Like I really just feel like everybody has such
22:06
a unique story that like I just don't feel like mine is. That's,
22:11
you know what I'm saying. Like and and like I said, it's an
22:14
internal thing for sure. And maybe it's like you're saying, maybe it is
22:17
the vulnerability part of it, um, you know the way look at it.
22:21
And and that's why I want to tie it into you as a writer.
22:26
The best part about shows is a character arts, right, the character
22:30
development and prime example, um stranger Things. So my knees fourteen years old
22:41
didn't give a crap about it, And then I started explaining that there's character
22:45
development. This character arts when when they write characters. And I'm I'm putting
22:52
this parallel to our podcasts, and the three of us are characters in our
22:57
in our podcast, and you know we put out episode is that we're consistently
23:03
I feel like the three of us are consistently in our views and expressing our
23:07
values. But people learn more about us with every episode, and there's character
23:14
arts where each one of us reach a level where we've never been that personal
23:18
before and that vulnerable before. And I feel like that is what good writing
23:26
is in the when you're watching the show, and that's what's good about live
23:32
interactions with people. It's good you learn about people. And that's why I
23:36
think the best podcast is when you know who's talking and you know everything about
23:41
them, so when you hear anything they say, you take it as that
23:47
person saying it rather than you interpreting it in your yea yeah, yeah.
23:52
And that's a great point because theo Van is somebody that I've kind of found
23:56
recently, like I would say, in the last year or so, you
23:59
know what I mean, even though he's been around for a long time,
24:02
but I found him recently, and I really what really resident, you know
24:06
what originally kind of caught my ear was like the funny little stuff he would
24:08
say. But then when I actually like saw some stuff where it's like him
24:12
really just being vulnerable about how he's feeling. Yeah, it's like, oh,
24:17
dang, like you know, this is pretty dope. Like and like
24:18
you said, like you hear where it's coming from. And it kind of
24:22
even as far as like being a comedian and stuff, it kind of even
24:25
gives you that thing of like, oh, this guy isn't you know,
24:27
just a heartless guy making fun of people, you know what I mean?
24:30
Like this is you know, this is what he does. You know,
24:33
the comedy thing is his playground. But exactly he's an entertainer, but you
24:37
know this is what he's about, you know what I mean? And yeah,
24:41
man, like I definitely, uh, I definitely agree with what you're
24:45
saying, man, And I need to I definitely need to break past that
24:49
little curtain man, because I know I know it's been what's been holding me
24:53
back for sure applies to all of us. Like you know, um,
24:56
you've said it, you said it months ago about your music and how you
25:03
want to change the way your approach it. But same thing with me.
25:06
The reason I stopped podcasting the reason like I don't even when I make a
25:11
mix, but I don't like playing in back immedia, like I do not
25:14
like hearing where I messed up. But you you gotta get used to that.
25:19
You gotta get used to that. You gotta get used to just like
25:22
you said, I remember you told me long ago, like, yo,
25:25
we know you're not like some professional DJ, like you're gonna bring out like
25:29
the club mix for awards and shit, like just send us what you got
25:33
and like that. That's what the people who put out content. I think
25:38
that that's a level, that's that's a filter that people have all the way
25:42
maxed out, and some people like it's lose back. And the people who
25:45
are losing back, we consider them crazy people like yo, you will literally
25:49
do and say anything. But then again, those are most people that are
25:53
being like in the ourcord, yeah, not facts, and that be that'd
26:00
be like a big part of the struggle too. It's like, and you
26:03
know what, now, I'm realizing that that's one way social media has definitely
26:07
affected me, even if it's an opposite effect, Like I'm seeing everybody do
26:11
these things. Are we not gonna get quincy? I want to share my
26:15
thing. Yeah, I don't. I don't know if I don't know if
26:17
he will all right, keep going. I'm not gonna wait for him,
26:21
but I'll do it when you're done. But yeah, like with the social
26:23
media thing, like I see so many people sharing their stories and you know,
26:29
you you kind of interpreted through your own lens and look at it like,
26:33
oh maybe this is insincere or something, and you kind of see people
26:36
doing it for the lights and it kind of discourages you. You know,
26:40
he's by yo to such gears a little bit. Yo. I've been telling
26:45
Quincy he got out on net dog and I can't even argue at this point.
26:51
But I'm so over it. And the worst part is we can't do
26:53
nothing about it. Like the internet is a thing. Is like whatever services
26:56
you have in your area, that's what you gotta do with it. And
27:00
that U bro, you was like seeing there reloading your plates for like thirty
27:04
seconds. But what were you saying that that's something? To go back to
27:10
what you were saying, Quincy, And remember where you were talking about too,
27:11
Joe. But I'd but Quincy, you were saying something about your fiance
27:17
be telling you basically you remember when we went out to eat that time and
27:22
we were just talking about stories and stuff, and you know, my fiance
27:25
was like, Yo, that's crazy, you know, like she couldn't believe
27:27
it, Like she couldn't wrap her head around it. It's like she sees
27:30
you today and she's just like, damn man, Like he's such a like
27:33
good dude, you know what I'm saying. Family guy does all the right
27:37
things, handles his business, you know what I'm saying, takes care of
27:38
his kids, whatever. And you know, when you tell the stories that
27:42
you went through, it just don't connect, you know what I'm saying.
27:45
You would never expect that. So I think that that's like it's dope,
27:49
it's honorable. It's something that people will like hear and appreciate. So it's
27:53
like it's definitely not something that you don't want to talk about because it's like,
27:56
at the end of the day, it's still your story, you know
27:59
what I'm saying. Yeah, I appreciate it. And it even kind of
28:02
even goes back to like the movie thing, you know what I'm saying,
28:04
Like even like a lot of elements in that movie thing and just like realizing
28:08
like how that story should be told. It really like even opened my eyes
28:14
to like how deep and layered like those things. Because just to bring back
28:18
the curtin a little bit, like we're kind of loosely like in the beginning
28:22
stages of working on like this little movie project, Like I don't know the
28:26
length exactly yet, but um, I got a pretty dope outline, and
28:32
it's like coming to life just because all the stuff that we're talking about kind
28:36
of like relates to it because it's a story from back in the day,
28:37
you know what I mean. So like when I think about all the elements
28:41
like that really happened in the story and then like the stuff that I'm just
28:45
gonna take creative liberties to kind of like piece it together, all of it
28:49
leads back to kind of like what we're talking about is like finding your way
28:53
with the person you are and like if you are happy with the person who
28:56
are not happy, like figuring out how to change it and stuff like that,
29:00
because that was a big thing in that story. I'm not gonna give
29:03
anything up the story yet, just because it's just you know, it's so
29:07
early that I don't want to let the what is the cat out the bag?
29:08
Is that what they say yeah, yeah, I was gonna use that
29:12
other words, but yep, you use your but yeah, like um,
29:18
even just thinking about like those days and like the way in my mind and
29:22
even like with this podcast like why I'm So Fixated Slash, I emphasized the
29:29
fact that everybody's living their own life and it makes sense in their head.
29:33
It goes back to like my beginnings, because you know, I was like
29:36
a little crazy kid running around doing stuff I wasn't supposed to do. And
29:41
you know, you know, just like I always say, like if I
29:45
didn't have my daughter, I don't even know where I would be right now
29:48
because I didn't even have like a plan or nothing, you know what I
29:51
mean. But I think about that guy today and I look back and it's
29:56
like I used to think about it, like oh man, like what was
29:59
wrong me? And it's like there was no wrong with me. I just
30:02
didn't have any guidance and I just didn't know, you know what I'm saying.
30:04
I'm around people that are older than me that are telling me things,
30:08
and as a kid, I'm thinking, you're telling me this, you know
30:11
what you're talking about. But then when you get older, you realize,
30:15
like, oh man, like this was just somebody hanging around me because they
30:17
ain't had nothing better to do, you know what I mean, you know,
30:19
the cop out, the cop out of this too. I ain't have
30:22
no guidance. I like, however, the funk I want, and that's
30:26
a surprise for everyone, is to find somebody who just chose not the cop
30:32
out, you know, chose the ship that it's worth something to work for.
30:36
And all right, here's my situation. I'm gonna make the very best
30:40
and I'm gonna do what I know got to do despite what was taught to
30:42
me. And you know, it's funny that you say that because I remember
30:48
specifically, like as a team. I don't remember the day or like the
30:52
age or anything, but I remember being a teenager and kind of realizing that,
30:55
like, you know, my mom worked a lot and she was never
30:57
home. I didn't really have nobody telling me when to come home, like
31:03
what I could and couldn't do. Like I remember specifically realizing that as a
31:07
teenager and thinking it was cool. You know what I'm saying, like,
31:10
damn, my friends gotta go to school, you know, gotta go to
31:11
sleep at a certain time whatever, Like you know, they can't do X
31:15
Y and Z like the mom you know, they don't they're not allowed to
31:18
do this, this and that, and like I was just doing whatever I
31:21
wanted, you know what I mean. And I remember specifically thinking in that
31:25
moment that I still shouldn't be doing whatever I wanted, you know what I
31:30
mean, Like I knew even though I kept doing it, I knew,
31:34
like, bro, I'm not a parent, but you know, I feel
31:41
like my niece. I treat my niece like she was my child, right,
31:44
And just going back to when I was a kid, and then when
31:48
we used to pull up to like a homeboy's crib and tell him to come
31:51
outside and he could only talk to us through the window. They were like,
31:53
just open the door and talk to us, bro, Like, why
31:56
can't you do that? Like I would what my knee? Since she ever
32:00
opened the door for something like that. So us as kids thinking everybody's punks
32:06
doing that, and now we're ads and we're like, you better than I
32:08
ever do that. Shit. It's a different, different kind of story.
32:14
Yeah, it's because as kids, you know, we always wanted to be
32:16
grown, but we weren't really grown, you know, and just feeling in
32:21
and having a little bit more leniency as a kid makes you feel grown,
32:23
but really it's just having less structure, you know facts Now that that's that's
32:29
a perfect way to say it. It's like you're not grown, You're just
32:31
an idiot with no guidelines, you know what I mean. Yeah, but
32:36
that's what I mean. And then going back to Leicester, uh, not
32:38
default of that. Oh that's the way it was nus like, Nah,
32:42
this ship better. There's better ways to to act in that and to just
32:47
be you know, follow certain kind of like just honorship. That's what I
32:52
feel like. It's just all yourself, like be respectable for yourself and how
32:57
you treat people, and that will always come back on you. That's how
33:00
That's how I've always seen it. No matter what was taught on you,
33:04
what you put out is what you always received. Not all the time,
33:07
but for the most part. Yeah, that's what And what was the thing
33:10
you were gonna say, Joe when we were talking earlier about before Quincy came
33:15
back on, Oh this is this is going on a little off topic,
33:20
but it still comes down to your passion in the artistry and she loved Do
33:25
you want to go into it? Yeah? All right. Cyprus Hill was
33:30
on tiny desk. Cypress Hill. I saw that. I haven't seen the
33:34
performance, but I saw that he was on there were Um who do you
33:37
what do you know Cyprus Hill? For um, I know them mostly from
33:42
that beef Um DVD back in the day. Any songs, none, but
33:46
let me let me work back. We're from there. They had that Beef
33:49
DVD. I knew them from a couple of little songs, you know what
33:52
I mean, like that how to how I could just kill a man?
33:54
You know? Um, there was another one that they had that Uh,
33:59
I don't remember the name, but I kind of remember like how it went
34:00
and stuff. But anyway, like the real reason I knew them was that
34:05
beef DVD back in the day. I don't know if you remember Quincy when
34:07
they were talking about the rap beasts and they were talking about them him,
34:10
um, Cypress Hilvers ice Cube had. That's really like what I think about
34:15
when I think about Cypress Hill. No perfect thing that that that is their
34:22
prime like prime example of them. But as far as that, that's what
34:28
I try to touch in the music. As far as their songs, insane
34:30
in the membrane, right, that's really the song. Yeah, that's the
34:34
one I was thinking of that insane in the membrane that is Cypress Hill everywhere,
34:42
right, So they say that for their very last song, and he
34:45
said, this is our crown jewel. He said that blew us way the
34:49
fuck up that we didn't expect And this is a quote. I'm I'm playing
34:53
it right now. And and so he's like, the exects came to him
34:58
that, like this is a song, and like they were like, are
35:00
you crazy? We have like so much better songs. I'm literally repeating verbatim.
35:06
As artists, sometimes we were so closely connected to the song that we
35:10
don't see that bigger picture. We just love our arts so much that we're
35:15
fired for a song that is inmarketable or radio friendly, which is what we
35:21
were doing. And he's like that their whole theory as artists was to get
35:25
darker and that was like their lightest song, and but without that they would
35:30
have never been in Cyprus Hill. Yeah, that reminds me a lot of
35:36
something Mac Miller said where it's like he was saying I remember exactly how he
35:39
said it or the exact verbiage, but I remember the gist of it was
35:44
when he got in the game, he knew he had to give the label
35:46
their album so that he can make his album album. Ye yep. And
35:51
it's kind of like that same concept plenty of episodes before, you know,
35:54
knowing that that that line where you're sacrificing when you like versus what they like.
36:00
But sometimes you gotta give him, just give them what they got.
36:06
I'm laughing because I'm laughing because I had a conversation with Freddie. And we've
36:12
mentioned Freddie before. Freddie. Freddie helps us out a lot on the back
36:15
end and behind the scenes with the music stuff and um. And you know,
36:20
when I was talking to him about good Days, which for anybody listening,
36:23
you know, that's my best performance song so far. You know the
36:27
story behind it is, you know, it got lost on a hard drive
36:31
like it got lost. You know. It was one of the songs that
36:34
I even when I recorded it, I didn't really care too much about it
36:37
because it was you know, I liked it, but it wasn't like what
36:38
I was going for it for example, going back to type of cell,
36:42
it wasn't that dark theory, you know what I'm saying. It wasn't what
36:45
I was going towards. But when we went ahead, and put it out.
36:50
Um, it surprised me, It surprised Freddie. It's surprised just from
36:54
the reception of it, you know what I'm saying. And it kind of
36:57
goes back to that point where it's like, you know, you gotta do
37:00
that. You know what I'm saying that as artists, sometimes like the art
37:05
the music that we're trying to make or that we want to make isn't the
37:08
most popular music. But you know, sometimes you have to be able to
37:14
kind of do both. You know what I'm saying. You gotta be able
37:15
to kind of like, I don't know, put it, put some of
37:17
that stuff aside and be willing to that popular song like other artists who blew
37:23
up on the exact song that they did not even Yeah, it's just nuts
37:29
because if they would have pushed too much, then we would have never might
37:32
have heard as you know, m that's funny because, um, I don't
37:37
even know when I dropped it, but I dropped a song called Celebration,
37:40
And when I dropped it, like it's like I liked the song, but
37:46
I didn't like the song at the same time, you know what I'm saying.
37:50
It was kind of one of those like I recorded it from a very
37:52
vulnerable It's it's like my mom my most vulnerable like real like singing song,
37:59
you know what I mean, probably like the closest I would get to like
38:01
that rapping style, you know what I mean. And I literally recorded that
38:06
song like I was like damn near like rock bottom at the time, you
38:10
know, I mean, it was like a few year it was before I
38:13
about my house. It was like three three years ago or something like for
38:15
about my house. After like the whole crew that I was doing music with,
38:21
like we all just stopped working together. It was like a whole big
38:24
thing. And I was in between buying my house and leaving the house I
38:30
was renting, and because the house thing was taking a little longer, I
38:35
had to stay with my mom for a little bit, like with my whole
38:37
fam, you know what I mean. And I hadn't stayed with my mom
38:40
like since you know, been like for sure ten plus years, you know
38:45
what I mean. Like I never went back after I left, you know
38:47
what I mean. And and it was like one of those things where like
38:52
when I put out the song, I was kind of like worried just from
38:55
the point of view of like I just thought it would kind of fall on
39:00
ears because it was so personal to me, and like what I was saying
39:02
in the song was like so like to me, it was sappy, you
39:07
know what I mean, Like I don't like to me, that's not like
39:10
the type of stuff that I want to hear from somebody, like from the
39:14
point of view of like just like the singing I don't know, bro,
39:16
just for whatever reason, I was just looking at it that way. In
39:20
long story short, it's about to be like my fifth best song, and
39:23
it's a song that people still like they hit me up, like even today,
39:29
like I had people hitting me up because of that song because of like
39:31
it just hits people because like in the song, like I started by saying,
39:37
I guess I wasn't worthy of the celebration, so I've been turning elves
39:42
into elevation. And it's basically like the whole song is really just saying how
39:46
like like all those trials and strip relations, I still was just like like
39:52
I'm talking about like the things that happened and like how I feel about it,
39:55
but I'm also giving solutions in the song. Like that's kind of how
39:59
like I wanted to make the song like it's like, yeah, all this
40:01
happened, and all these things go on whatever, whatever, but you still
40:05
got to make it happen. I've sent that text before, turning Elves into
40:08
so I those are the people who've been through shit and still managed to succeed.
40:15
The three of us are exactly the same situation. We've been through ship
40:17
that could have just just ended everything, but we were resilient and we just
40:23
persevered and we did what we had to do to just stay to keep going
40:29
and end up on top. That's how I feel we all relating that sense.
40:32
Yeah, and it kind of like tie it all back together with that
40:36
celebration song. I felt the same way I did with that rap song I
40:39
was talking about at the beginning of the podcast, where it was like,
40:42
dang, it's crazy to hear where my mom was at that time, and
40:45
like just seeing like where I'm at now some such a better position, even
40:50
from the rap song to celebration, from celebration to now, Like like how
40:54
I captured those moments of how I felt and like how things have progressed,
40:59
and I'm just super grateful about it. But I also know, like you
41:02
said, it's like that perseverance, you know, and in the next episode,
41:07
bro, Like honestly, like just from all the stuff that we're talking
41:08
about, like I feel like it is that time for like us to really
41:12
get into like the background of like what brought us to this point and what
41:16
gave us. I think we've talked about a little on the podcast too,
41:19
but it's like why are we grounded? You know what I mean? Like
41:22
what made us? What made this resonate with all of us that we're like,
41:27
Yo, let's do this and let's talk about this stuff and let's um
41:30
put it out in the world. And why is it important, like you
41:34
said, Joe, is because of the story where it came from. It,
41:36
like you said Quincy, like somebody might hear it and not necessarily just
41:40
a fan aspect, Like somebody might hear it and be like damn, bro,
41:44
Like I'll be feeling like that too, Like I just need to to
41:47
do X, Y and Z instead to kind of like adjust it, you
41:51
know what I mean. And it's like even going back to like what we
41:52
talk about on the show too, like everybody's different, everybody interprets things different
41:57
ways. Some people, you know, I'm the type of person I feel
41:59
like people are destined to never get it, but they're just determined to never
42:04
get it, you know what I mean. And I'm not talking to those
42:07
people. I'm talking to those people that I'm talking to the people that maybe
42:12
feel some type of way but they don't want to feel that way and they're
42:15
trying to figure out how to get out of that. But maybe Jay just
42:17
don't got the wherewithal or the know or the know how to do it.
42:22
Like like what happened with me, you know what I'm saying back in the
42:24
day. The people that was advising me, they wasn't in no position to
42:29
advise, So I had to, you know, hit a lot of roadblocks
42:31
to then figure out, like get enough knowledge and wisdom from life period myself
42:37
to figure it out. And that's why this is so important to me to
42:39
like give those things to people that might just be out there alone that they
42:45
know, because that's another thing man like, and not to ramble on,
42:49
I'm gonna wrap with this, but you can get around people that you and
42:54
your heart feel like something's wrong or something that you're doing is wrong, but
43:00
they'll ease that because they're doing wrong also, and they'll make you feel comfortable
43:05
in it, you know, what I mean ain't as bead as I'm doing,
43:09
so we'll just let them do that exactly or even like you get with
43:13
somebody that's slimier than you and you'd be like, oh, at least I'm
43:15
not doing that. Oh I'm a thief. I'm a thief, but I'm
43:17
not a drug dealer exactly as bad as I'm doing. So I'm good to
43:22
keep going what I'm doing exactly like it. It's always um, you know,
43:29
it'd be hard to navigate sometimes, like when you're in those situations,
43:31
but there is a way out if you're looking for it, you know.
43:36
Yeah, yeo, I've had I will say I've had one hundred books,
43:39
one hundred audio books, one hundred podcasts, one hundred everything, and I
43:45
might listen to it like one time and like three years later listen to it
43:50
again. In the clicks, So these episodes are ment to when we put
43:54
them out and you listen to them, if they click, they click,
43:59
If it don't click, to the hopefully one hundred episodes later when you listen
44:02
to it, it clicks, But one day it's gonna click, and we're
44:06
gonna keep having the conversations because when it does, when that trigger goes off
44:09
in your mind that you know that all you want to do is make better
44:14
for yourself. You're gonna you're gonna continue that, and you're gonna need to
44:17
hear that kind of motivation and you're gonna that that that kind of thing will
44:22
push you to keep doing better for yourself. And that's that's a kind of
44:23
message that we're trying to put across. I feel that, man, And
44:29
to kind of tie it all in and kind of put a bow on it.
44:31
I usually don't do this kind of thing as far as like talking about
44:38
these these situations, but um, speaking of kind of what we're talking about
44:44
with million dollars worth of game, Wallow and Gilly. That was a podcast
44:51
that I saw Wallow in a clip and I'm like, man, I really
44:54
like this guy's energy. I figured out, you know, oh that's Gilly
45:00
kids cousin, they got a podcast, cool whatever. Like I know Gilly
45:02
from listening to rat back in the day. So I went back and listened
45:06
to it from the beginning the podcast, you know what I mean, like
45:07
mad years later, Like I listened to every episode through from the beginning toil
45:12
like I caught up and it was super dope, Like you said, Joe,
45:15
Like, there's things in there that even if you catch it later on,
45:16
it still makes sense because they're talking about some real stuff and it's just
45:22
super sad to me. Man rest in peace to um. I don't know
45:24
his actual name, Gilly's son. He went by cheese, and rest in
45:29
peace to him because he was killed in a triple homicide. From what I
45:31
unders, I don't know if it was a triple homicide or if it was
45:34
just a triple shooting that three people got shot. But he passed away yesterday
45:42
as we're recording from that, and they speak nothing but life in their podcast.
45:45
You know, everybody, you know, they got their entertaining parts and
45:49
their ratchet moments. You know, every nobody's perfect, but their big thing,
45:52
their big thing is keeping people off the streets, having people realize how
45:58
stupid that street life thing is. Some experience twenty years, twenty years in
46:02
prison, man Like, he knows what it gets you, And it's just
46:07
super sad seeing that situation happened to them. With how much life they're speaking
46:12
into that community, you know what I'm saying, Like the community we come
46:15
from, and just seeing like damn, man Like that's just it's just I
46:19
just wanted to give my condolences to them because of that, because I feel
46:22
like Wallow especially and Gilly especially, like they've given me so much just hearing
46:29
their podcast and kind of seeing like how I even navigated from like being in
46:34
the trap with my friends all the time to like just turning into like a
46:37
different guy. And it was just super sad of here, man. So
46:40
I just wanted to throw that r ip out there because, you know,
46:44
losing a son I can't even imagine, man, And just uh, you
46:47
know, the mission that they're on, I hope they stay on it.
46:50
I hope, um, you know, I hope it's still something that's that
46:53
they're passionate about, and I hope this strengthens that. And you know,
47:00
I just hope they found peace in that situation. Man. Yeah, facts,
47:02
man, that's so. But yeah, man, um, unless y'all
47:07
got anything to throw out there, really, man, I've been trying to
47:14
tell all the people around me to you know, stay stay bar not do
50:06
not do not, do not be m