QLS Classic: Darius Rucker

Singer-Songwriter Darius Rucker talks about Hootie & the Blowfish, going from playing frat parties with Dave Matthews to The Grand Ole Opry as a solo artist and the obstacles he faced along the way.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Quest Loves Supreme is a production of iHeartRadio. This classic
episode was produced by the team at Pandora.

Speaker 2 (00:08):
What's up, y'all?

Speaker 1 (00:09):
This is QLs classic from November twenty second, twenty seventeen
with Darius Rucker.

Speaker 3 (00:16):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (00:16):
Singer songwriter Darius Rucker talks about Hoody and the Bluefish.
I know those guys, right, They go for playing frat
parties to playing with the Dave Matthews Band to the
Grand Ole Opry and then going as a solo artist.
And he also talks about the obstacles he faced a
long way and yeah, by obstacles, we do being racism,
but we also speak of his love of hip hop

(00:38):
and other types of music and sports, and his strange
obsession of his spirit animal, the late Great Nate Dog.
So you don't want to miss that one, all right,
Darius Rucker Quest Loves Supreme.

Speaker 2 (00:51):
Right now, Steve looks like a homest truck drivers.

Speaker 4 (01:00):
Supremo, Roll Supremo, Supremo, Roll Call Supremo, something Supremo, Roll
call Supremo.

Speaker 3 (01:11):
So some Supremo.

Speaker 1 (01:13):
Roll His name is not Hoodie, Yeah, it's Darius.

Speaker 3 (01:17):
Yeah, mister Rucker. Yeah, if you're nasty.

Speaker 5 (01:21):
Roll call Supreme did rhyme roll.

Speaker 3 (01:28):
Some Supremo roll call.

Speaker 5 (01:30):
My name is Sugar.

Speaker 3 (01:31):
Yeah, I'm being wooed yeah by the podcast. Yeah, I
could only want to be with you.

Speaker 4 (01:39):
So Supremo roll call, Supremo, Supremo roll call.

Speaker 5 (01:46):
I'm on paid Bill. Yeah, ready to rock.

Speaker 2 (01:49):
Yeah, shout out to South Carolina. Yeah, go game cocks roll.

Speaker 6 (01:54):
Supremo, Supremo, roll cal Supremo, Supremo roll.

Speaker 3 (02:01):
I got boss Bill's name.

Speaker 5 (02:03):
Yeah, Well I forgive you who.

Speaker 6 (02:10):
Suprema Sure, roll call Supremo Supremo role.

Speaker 7 (02:18):
It's like, yeah, and I'm going country.

Speaker 8 (02:21):
Yeah, yeah.

Speaker 3 (02:26):
Up from.

Speaker 5 (02:28):
Sam Roll.

Speaker 9 (02:34):
I'm from the country. Yeah, that's where I'll be. Yeah,
I'm showing a question everybody. Yeah, I'll come and seem something.

Speaker 6 (02:44):
Supremo roll call, Supremo, Supremo, role called Suprema something So Supremo,
roll called Suprema something something Supremo roll call.

Speaker 3 (02:58):
I haven't screwed up like that since episode four.

Speaker 1 (03:01):
Jesus K, thank you Jesus Christ.

Speaker 3 (03:10):
Practice time, and you know.

Speaker 7 (03:13):
Wasn't around doing nasty darns.

Speaker 2 (03:15):
Clearly did you not hear that?

Speaker 1 (03:19):
Hop your reference, ladies and gentlemen, this horrible show. You
listening quest Love Supreme only on Pandora. My name is
quest Love. We got team Supreme with us super Steve.
Uh unpaid Bill who has looks new. We haven't seen
you in a while.

Speaker 3 (03:38):
I cleaned.

Speaker 2 (03:40):
Is that like a number's only jacket? It is?

Speaker 3 (03:42):
You like it? You have a new girlfriend, don't you?

Speaker 5 (03:44):
Uh, you're I didn't want to.

Speaker 2 (03:47):
I'm not on bumble. I have a girlfriend.

Speaker 3 (03:50):
Oh okay, what's as one as he used to have.
I was about to say that is the only reason
why you look brand right now?

Speaker 2 (04:00):
Like I have to go to things, and I too
that I can't look like my usual You look great.

Speaker 7 (04:06):
You don't look well enough to go to a thing?

Speaker 3 (04:08):
No, no, no no. But he's glowing.

Speaker 2 (04:11):
He's glowing, and I have a suit in the card.
Thank you, thank you?

Speaker 3 (04:17):
Oh wow? Okay?

Speaker 1 (04:18):
And uh boss bills here and he also looks as
good as I do.

Speaker 3 (04:22):
Fan is somewhere handling. Uh.

Speaker 2 (04:25):
He's getting in shape.

Speaker 1 (04:26):
Yeah, he's getting getting married in his wedding suxceedo. Uh,
ladies and gentlemen. Uh, I have to say that our
guest today is literally loved by millions at least at
least Yeah, it's rare. I think he might be the

(04:46):
first Diamond artist of a non greatest hits or or
a compilation to ever be on the show.

Speaker 3 (04:53):
UH Grammy Award winning Uh baby fits. I don't think
the million people record, but I'm sure I wanted to
make sure question of Supreme emails from Search. Yeah, No,

(05:14):
I get it, I get it.

Speaker 1 (05:16):
But I have to say that for for the last
twenty five years or twenty plus years, I won't our
guest has been entertaining millions and millions, uh, initially as
a frontman of Hoodie and the Bluefish and now as
an artist in his own right. Ladies and gentlemen, please
welcome to Quest Love Supreme Darius Rockett.

Speaker 10 (05:38):
Thanks for having me.

Speaker 3 (05:43):
Anyway. How are you Today's.

Speaker 10 (05:45):
I'm good man, how y'all doing?

Speaker 3 (05:46):
I'm good. I'm good, not bad.

Speaker 10 (05:48):
I like this. It's really laid bad.

Speaker 3 (05:50):
I gotta I gotta say that.

Speaker 1 (05:51):
You know, for a lot of the guests of the show,
many of which have had careers in the four and
almost five decades, UH, you're probably the first act that
I don't know intimately, as in like the back of
my hand. But I'm very curious about your journey on

(06:14):
your your your your whole life spent. It's like I
I know of you, I know of your music, but
I never know of you as a person and in
your beginnings. So I know that you're you were born
in Charleston, South Carolina.

Speaker 3 (06:28):
Charleston.

Speaker 9 (06:28):
Yeah, just uh this little neighborhood. Uh there was six kids,
you know. Uh that wasn't really around a lot if
at all. And uh just uh I had, you know,
lived in this little neighborhood, this great little neighborhood. We
had our neighborhood with the small houses and we had
the projects behind us, and you know, we fought every
day and it just it was one of those things.

(06:49):
But ever since I was ever since I heard Al
Green at the age of four, all I wanted to
do was be a singer.

Speaker 10 (06:54):
That's it. That really was for me. There was nothing
else I ever wanted to do.

Speaker 3 (06:58):
I have to say, Uh, I think.

Speaker 1 (07:03):
A year ago I did a show in Charleston and
I didn't realize how close to New Orleans. It's almost
like a a cut. It almost felt like I was
in New Orleans, like in the French Quarter. How long
has it always had that sort of vibe or is.

Speaker 9 (07:22):
This always it's always been that way. We've always said
that we were like New Orleans cousin, you know, and uh, because.

Speaker 1 (07:28):
New Orleans is one of my favorite cities. When I
went there, I was like, oh, I went out almost
consider like if I had to be one of those
people that like my grades back down south like in
there later years, like I'd consider this and considering what
the rest of the United States heard or knows about Charleston,

(07:48):
South Carolina, and to still say that that's how great
my time was in the weekend there.

Speaker 3 (07:55):
So I didn't realize.

Speaker 10 (07:56):
That, oh it's a great city.

Speaker 3 (07:58):
Is it a musical city.

Speaker 10 (07:59):
It's not as musical's normals, but it's a musical city.

Speaker 9 (08:01):
It's music everywhere, you know, there's always bands playing and
and just always something to do with music.

Speaker 10 (08:07):
For sure.

Speaker 8 (08:08):
Who are some like notable South Carolina folks, So you know,
I'm just thinking.

Speaker 10 (08:11):
About that rock Chris Rock.

Speaker 8 (08:13):
Yeah, well yeah, Chris Robert musical. There's not you know, Uh,
it might be Darius Rutgers.

Speaker 10 (08:22):
Uh you know who they.

Speaker 9 (08:25):
Me uh Uh. James Brown's from like north was born
in North Augusta or something, but he lived in you know,
in Augusta, So that was he's really known to be
more from Georgia, right, But how.

Speaker 3 (08:36):
Close to Georgia was Charleston.

Speaker 9 (08:39):
Oh, I'm probably two hours from Georgia too, from Augusta.

Speaker 7 (08:44):
Are you're still there?

Speaker 3 (08:46):
Yeah?

Speaker 9 (08:47):
I thought I lived. I lived in the city for
a couple of years. I was making R and B
record back at the turn of the century. Yeah, I
lived here. But uh, I love I love it the
turn of the century.

Speaker 3 (08:57):
Just I know.

Speaker 10 (09:00):
In it was like seventeen years ago.

Speaker 3 (09:02):
There stop, wow, no more years? Yeah? Please? So, Uh,
you said that your first musical memory was Al Green. Yeah?
What was it about? Uh?

Speaker 10 (09:18):
His voice that called his voice? Of course?

Speaker 9 (09:20):
I mean, you know, and those records, you know, those
records that will eventual produce were so still when I
put them on today, they're they're the sound is my mom.
Al Green was her favorite, and so when he I
just wanted to be Al Green.

Speaker 10 (09:34):
Like.

Speaker 9 (09:34):
One of the worst days of my life was when
my voice changed. It's the true story. My voice changed
and I tried to sing it Al Green, so I
couldn't sing it.

Speaker 3 (09:41):
I cried so initially sort of a not soprano but
an alto. Yeah approach, you were singing, yeah.

Speaker 9 (09:49):
Registered all that stuff. Yeah, and my voice changed and
went straight to a baritone. I cried for like two days.
I couldn't say there you go, very white, true, true, you.

Speaker 3 (10:02):
Just changed with it. So was your family musical as
well or was it just you?

Speaker 9 (10:07):
Yeah? Yeah, my family was a big time in church musical,
like everybody sing in church. My dad had a had
a little uh gospel group, and believe it or not,
the gospel group was named the Rolling Still.

Speaker 7 (10:20):
Got scared when you said he wasn't around much.

Speaker 9 (10:22):
I was like, oh, oh, actually the way I heard,
the way my relationship I have with my dad was
every Sunday morning on w p a L in Charleston,
the Rolling Stones had a half hour Wow and that's
where I heard my dad.

Speaker 3 (10:37):
McDowell's sort of lawyer.

Speaker 9 (10:40):
I don't like, they never did anything that the Stones
evenw what was.

Speaker 7 (10:43):
Happening you know South Carolina for life.

Speaker 9 (10:45):
Yeah, absolutely, yeah, they Yeah, they weren't doing anything. The
Stones didn't like that's.

Speaker 3 (10:49):
The secular where the Christian Rolling Stone.

Speaker 9 (10:53):
Oh yeah, they started the show saying rolling Stone gathers
no moss.

Speaker 1 (10:57):
So were they uh kind of of like the Backwoods
Gospel Quartet exactly.

Speaker 9 (11:04):
You know, they came out and did all those songs,
never really wrote anything, just did all the old spirituals
and stuff. And they, I mean they were great. I
mean he was a tenor and he was great. And
my mom had an amazing voice. Like I used to
sneak in the living room when my mom was cooking
and clean in the kitchen and I'd sit in the
living room just to watch to listen to her sing.

Speaker 10 (11:21):
She had an amazing voice. She was really something special.

Speaker 3 (11:24):
Was it? Of course? I guess when you're traveling with.

Speaker 1 (11:30):
A gospel quartet or whatever, most kids that have the
experience have to have church all week, not just on Sundays.

Speaker 3 (11:39):
So was it just was this a Baptist or seven
day of Venice?

Speaker 10 (11:42):
So we were Baptists.

Speaker 9 (11:43):
We were straight Southern Baptists, man, and everything that comes
with it.

Speaker 10 (11:46):
That's what we were.

Speaker 3 (11:48):
Saturday service, Sunday.

Speaker 10 (11:50):
Sunday service, Saturday service, you know.

Speaker 9 (11:53):
Yeah, I mean we went to we went to church
at like nine and got out at three. We were
there all day. It was an all day thing, and
it was you know, that was just the way we
were ready to go eat at night. Yeah, in the
night service exactly. You love the night service because you
know you can get some sweep tato pie up in there.

Speaker 10 (12:12):
You love that.

Speaker 3 (12:13):
Did you ever sing with.

Speaker 9 (12:14):
The I sing with the choir. I never sang with
his group.

Speaker 3 (12:17):
Now, okay, how were you when you sing in the choir? Ah?

Speaker 9 (12:20):
God, I started singing in the choir when I was
I guess eleven or twelve, and I sang for three
or four years in the choir.

Speaker 3 (12:26):
So because you were i'd assuming you were born in
the late sixties.

Speaker 10 (12:30):
Yes, sixty six.

Speaker 3 (12:30):
Oh, I'm guessing. I promise. I wasn't going to say
no more.

Speaker 1 (12:33):
Years to grow up down South.

Speaker 3 (12:41):
Post civil rights period.

Speaker 1 (12:43):
At least I considered the Mason Dixon line to be
nineteen sixty five.

Speaker 10 (12:46):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (12:49):
What were your childhood experiences like in those formative years,
like the first ten years of your life.

Speaker 7 (12:54):
Oh, we're born a year after we got to write
the vote.

Speaker 1 (12:56):
Yeah it was, you know, it was like we're in
a adult size.

Speaker 3 (13:00):
Was it like hey, a new day or like, how did.

Speaker 10 (13:03):
You know it was still bad? It was still bad.

Speaker 9 (13:07):
I remember being six and my mom and her friends
organ She was a nurse, and they organized this big
march because they were getting paid so much less than
the white nurses. So they organized this big boycott in March,
and I just remember that being you know, get our
you know, people putting death threats in our mailbox and
stuff like that. It was it was it was the
South doing it, you know. I always say the one

(13:29):
thing about growing up where I grew up is you
always knew who didn't like it.

Speaker 10 (13:33):
It was never questioned you. You never had to wonder
if this.

Speaker 9 (13:37):
Guy, it's this guy everybody's but down there you knew
who didn't like you, and they made no bones about it.

Speaker 7 (13:46):
And you still stayed to go to college.

Speaker 10 (13:48):
And I mean, my family was there. Where was I
gonna go? You know?

Speaker 9 (13:51):
And once I started playing music in college, you know,
we were playing that little circuit down there, and where
was I gonna go?

Speaker 3 (13:59):
Were there bands? And in your high school experience.

Speaker 10 (14:01):
I didn't. I didn't. My first band was who the
Blowfish Really could start? Yeah?

Speaker 9 (14:06):
Wait, seriously, that was my first band?

Speaker 10 (14:10):
Yeah?

Speaker 3 (14:11):
Wow, how lucky. We just tried this band, thinking, oh
my god, were the biggest band you guys were around
for a while before.

Speaker 10 (14:18):
Yeah, we were a band for eight years before we
get a record.

Speaker 7 (14:20):
Though, Dude, your first band of roots?

Speaker 1 (14:23):
Yeah? No, I meant, oh, but I considered like I
did work with my dad's group, Like okay.

Speaker 8 (14:31):
Your daddy's group, but I got you.

Speaker 1 (14:37):
I did thirteen years in that group before I got
my wings. Oh wow, Now that's amazing because usually people
have to.

Speaker 9 (14:44):
Well, my problem was nobody in high school could play.
Like I didn't have anybody in my high school that
was a guitar player. I had one guy to play guitar,
and I don't know, I don't know one drummer or
bass playing.

Speaker 10 (14:53):
They played in the band, but nobody sick.

Speaker 3 (14:55):
So there was no high school curriculum for music or nothing.

Speaker 9 (14:57):
There was, but there wasn't anybody gonna, let's start a band,
you know, like I I sing in the high school
choir and and all that stuff, show choir and all
that stuff. But it wasn't like anybody was trying to
start a band, and you know, so I just never did.
And then when I got into college and I met Mark,
I was like, hey, man, let's let's jam and we
started the band.

Speaker 1 (15:15):
So being as though musical aspirations weren't like in your
your high school years or whatever, like what did you
want to be when you grew up?

Speaker 3 (15:23):
Like what was your I.

Speaker 10 (15:24):
Wanted to be a singer.

Speaker 9 (15:25):
But when you're from South Carolina, you hear so many
times that you're never going to make it from South Carolina,
and so you got to decide you'll do something else.
So I decided I was going to be a sportscast.
I went to school for broadcast journalism.

Speaker 3 (15:35):
You know, and sportscaster.

Speaker 10 (15:37):
Yeah.

Speaker 9 (15:37):
I wanted to talk about sports, you know, do the
sports on the six o'clock news was my goal. That
was way before ESPN or anything like that.

Speaker 10 (15:45):
Back in eighty four.

Speaker 7 (15:46):
This is in high school, in college.

Speaker 10 (15:48):
Was in high school. I decided that was good.

Speaker 1 (15:49):
Yeah, that also explains why he had Oberman ESPN era
L video. Of course, now it's making sick, so okay, well,
I know that most down South towns are football towns,
college towns. Like you, weren't a sports guy at all.

Speaker 9 (16:05):
I like sports, and I played sports until I was thirteen,
and I just and uh, it was it was tough
to realize that I wasn't going to play in the NFL.
But when all my when all my friends were better
than me and they weren't going to play in the NFL.
So around thirteen, I decided that I should probably concentrate
a little more on singing. And so that's when I
really started trying to become a singer, just trying to

(16:26):
learn how to sing, and really just from listening to records.
I've never had a voice lesson in my life. It
was just listening to records and singing a lot.

Speaker 3 (16:32):
It's amazing.

Speaker 10 (16:33):
It was crazy.

Speaker 3 (16:34):
Oh okay, So and where did you go to college?

Speaker 10 (16:38):
To South Carolina?

Speaker 1 (16:39):
Okay, So that's basically in your freshman or sophomore year,
you guys.

Speaker 9 (16:44):
Sophomore year, I meet this this kid. Hears me singing
in the shower and I come out of the shower.
You know, we had those big community showers with no just.

Speaker 10 (16:53):
Jail house showers.

Speaker 9 (16:54):
Yeah, yeah those and uh and I'm singing some song
in there and he hears me and.

Speaker 10 (16:58):
I walk out.

Speaker 9 (16:59):
He says, you know, was that you? I was the
guy's like, I played guitar. Let's see if we know
any of the same songs. And we went to his
room and knew about ten of the same songs and
decided we were gonna I thought. I told him, we
get us a gig at this chicken wing joint. And
that's how all started.

Speaker 3 (17:13):
And you guys named yourselves study in the blue Fish.

Speaker 9 (17:16):
Oh dude, I was still mad at myself about this ut.
First we were the Wolf Brothers. Then we decided to
get a whole band, and and there's two guys. One
guy I sang with them, and one guy had these
really big eyes.

Speaker 10 (17:26):
And I used to be a real asshole. I used
to give people's nicknames all the time.

Speaker 9 (17:29):
And this guy had big eyes, and I called him Hoodie,
and everybody started to call him Hoodie, and.

Speaker 10 (17:34):
His roommate and best friend who.

Speaker 9 (17:37):
Literally found out it was his boyfriend, and uh, he
had these big.

Speaker 10 (17:41):
Cheeks and he played he played trumpets.

Speaker 9 (17:42):
He had these big dizzey gillaspie cheeks and he'd do
that thing, and so I started calling him in the Blowfish.

Speaker 3 (17:47):
I'm certain that even now do they know this story.

Speaker 10 (17:50):
V H one did a thirty minute special.

Speaker 1 (17:58):
I'm certain right now at the family table, facegiving like, oh,
I'm sure they tell us there all the time.

Speaker 8 (18:05):
And I'm going to ask the dumb question in the
room because somebody's listening, and somebody's thinking it, who is
a fish?

Speaker 10 (18:10):
Oh?

Speaker 5 (18:12):
What I did not who?

Speaker 7 (18:15):
Yeah, don't look at me. It was somebody listening right now?

Speaker 3 (18:16):
Who thought, so you.

Speaker 1 (18:25):
At what point are you guys like Okay, let's like,
how do you escape South? Because I wouldn't imagine that
Charleston is a music town like Nashville. Oh no, Or
wasn't like, hey, why don't we go to Nashville? Like
for me, it was like, we got to go to

(18:45):
New York to make it.

Speaker 9 (18:47):
And we were told that by everybody we gotta go
to Nashville or New York or La or Atlanta to
make it.

Speaker 10 (18:51):
And we just didn't want to do it. We wanted
to stay in Columbia.

Speaker 9 (18:54):
And uh so we were playing a circuit back and
back then you could play from the New York down
to Florida and the Tennessee and every place had a club,
and so we would just play the same clubs every
six weeks. And so after a while we started doing
great at these clubs. Like I think the last year
before we got a record deal, we each made fifty
grand just playing club.

Speaker 7 (19:16):
How how long had you been?

Speaker 3 (19:18):
So we played better?

Speaker 9 (19:19):
We played three hundred shows that year, but you know
it was and we didn't get a record that when
we got big Grunge was king. Nobody was trying to
sign a band like Cootie the Bluff, and we put
out a little EP called Kuchie Pop and we sold
fifty five fifty. Shirley Hamphill, We're watching We're Washing Hamphio

(19:40):
do her stand up and she said her daughter saved
her whole Couchie Pop.

Speaker 3 (19:48):
I think I know that routine.

Speaker 10 (19:49):
Yeah, and that's where we got it from.

Speaker 3 (19:50):
Yeah, what I think I remember that?

Speaker 9 (19:54):
And absolutely, And so we named the Kuccie Pop and
we sold like fifty sixty thousand copies of it out
of the back of our van, just selling it at
shows and at these Mama Pop record stores. And that's
when and it was before Billboard had computers, so you
still had to call the stores. And people were calling
these stores in the Southeast, going who's selling and we
were like number three and number four and the people

(20:15):
who is this? Who do even bofish Man and they
all came down looking. So this is around like eighty
nine ninety that's around ninety one ninety two when it
really started to take off.

Speaker 2 (20:23):
But when did you guys start writing songs? Because I
feel like.

Speaker 9 (20:25):
We started writing songs eighty nine because it was the.

Speaker 3 (20:27):
Cover was that you guys play covered Yeah, we.

Speaker 9 (20:29):
Covered forever Yeah, And it's so funny down to up
looking out because you know, Dave Matthews got huge. We
we played frat parties with Dave Matthews. That's how I mean,
that's how big the scene was back back then, that
scene was so good and it's not that way anymore.
But we made we didn't even care about a record deal.
We were making good money.

Speaker 1 (20:47):
Well, I was gonna ask, what would you how would
you categorize yourselves? Because from me, from me seeing you guys,
and we like there have been a few are those
big giant festivals were like the roots were on like
the ninth Stay the backlock stage, you guys are headlining,
and I would I rarely hear people describe I always

(21:12):
thought that you guys were more of a jam band
with pop sensibilities. Absolutely, like not all the way fish,
but kind of in that length, Like would you consider
because I never considered it country pop or straight ahead
pop or I think there's musicality and.

Speaker 9 (21:33):
Absolutely we were jam band with with with with that
pop such ability because none of us could play well
enough to be a jaman. Nobody, nobody, nobody wanted to
hear our guitar player player solo for ten minutes. Nobody
definitely wanted to hear me play a solo because I
still can't play so so, but we had that Jampan
feel about us. So that's what we always that's what
we always thought we were.

Speaker 3 (21:53):
I see, Okay, So at what point does Atlantic come
in the picture?

Speaker 10 (21:57):
Like, how does Yeah? They came in ninety A.

Speaker 9 (21:59):
Lanta came out at the end of ninety two and
started talking to us, and everybody was but everybody was
talking to us, I mean, and we met this guy
that we liked, and so we went with Atlantic and
I remember making Cracked Review. And there's some people right
now that if you talk to them, they'll tell you
they signed us, but they didn't. They lie, and uh,

(22:20):
Danny Goldberg was president of Atlantic at the time, and
people went in. People at Atlantic went in and told
Danny Goldberg that you can't put Cracked Review out. Told
him that if one guy told him, if you put
Cracked Review out, we will be the laughing stock of
the music business because it wasn't grunge, and everybody was
buying up the grunt and grunge was everything, you know.
Kirk Cobbaine and Pearl Jam and those guys, they were everything,

(22:43):
and they told him to not put on. Danny just
told him we're putting the record out, and you know
the rest, I guess.

Speaker 3 (22:49):
Just it Okay.

Speaker 1 (22:51):
So obviously the one factor that meet you guys you
need was the fact that a black lead singer and
this band, Like, how as far as once the majors
got to you guys and at least we're recording you
to sign to the label, like, was there hesitancy as

(23:12):
far as that like, was that ever? The subthing was
that the ever the white elephant in the room. Oh absolutely,
how are we going to sell this in the marketing?

Speaker 9 (23:19):
And that was always I mean, I don't know how
many times people say, yo, Lenny Gravitz that I was like, yeah,
but we don't sound like Lady Gravitz.

Speaker 3 (23:27):
Guys weren't hippified.

Speaker 1 (23:28):
That's the thing you were so dude's next door, Yes exactly,
k guys next door, Like, but that's the thing you weren't.
I don't you guys weren't silly frat you weren't. It
was so normal that it worked, It was relatable. But
I'm certain that someone said, like, well, just let the music,

(23:48):
you know, let the music speak for itself.

Speaker 9 (23:50):
Like you notice, we're not there's little picture of us
on our first.

Speaker 3 (23:53):
Record, the Motown Theory. Yeah, and that was on purpose.

Speaker 10 (23:57):
That was on purpose. That was you have me for
Somebody wanted to do that.

Speaker 3 (24:01):
You know.

Speaker 10 (24:01):
They didn't want people to see, you know.

Speaker 9 (24:05):
Because if they and if they saw me on the record,
they would have thought I was a drummer or the
basse player.

Speaker 3 (24:09):
You know.

Speaker 9 (24:10):
And and so when we actually when we started making
our first video, was like people, you know, they were
worried that, you know, the the video channels working to
play like you know.

Speaker 10 (24:19):
I was like, well, you know, let's see.

Speaker 1 (24:22):
So there's discussions of just doing an aerosmith and have
a narrative of the story.

Speaker 9 (24:25):
And you guys, not exactly did bother you I always always.

Speaker 10 (24:32):
You know, because to us it win a big deal.

Speaker 3 (24:35):
Man.

Speaker 9 (24:36):
We had just played frat houses where you know, I
was called nigger and all this stuff. We had just
busted our bus to get through where we were going
through the South playing all those shitty gigs that you know,
I look back on and go, I can't believe we didn't.
You know, I didn't have to fight our way out.

Speaker 7 (24:49):
Of that, you know exactly.

Speaker 9 (24:54):
And so when we got there, I was like, man,
we still got We're on the big stage. Now we
still got to deal with this crap.

Speaker 7 (25:00):
How did your bam it? How did they deal with
because this is something new for them.

Speaker 9 (25:02):
I'm sure it was, yeah, but I mean, you know,
they they were thinner skin than I was. I knew
that if I was going to do this, I had
to have thick skin. I knew that the instant we
started playing in the South that if I was going
to do this, I gotta have thick skin. And we're
gonna be fighting everywhere we play.

Speaker 1 (25:17):
And damn I forgot because you're the front man, and
I know there's always some asshole or a heckler or
beard or sure, so how you must be have like
marksmen like that.

Speaker 3 (25:31):
I am pretty.

Speaker 8 (25:35):
Of those clubs with the cages around Rose Pay one
of those.

Speaker 9 (25:40):
Yeah, like Blues Brothers places that had the fence around
this day.

Speaker 3 (25:44):
You guys never played Rong Hide just for kicks. We
played Roigh that night.

Speaker 9 (25:47):
Didn't even know it picked it.

Speaker 3 (25:53):
Oh man, that dog that is that is brave?

Speaker 1 (25:57):
Like does would that ever give you an anxiety?

Speaker 3 (26:00):
Because I don't know.

Speaker 1 (26:05):
I mean, at the most I would probably fear facing
an audience that has indifference, but not you know, wondering
every night where's it going to come from.

Speaker 9 (26:17):
I tell you the times when I got the most
scared or like, but you know, we took the gigs,
were go play the gig, But anxiety was playing those
frat houses in the South, like going to the University
of Tennessee and playing the freaking Kate, going to Presbyterian
and playing the KA House. And you know, I don't
know what it is like that, but back when we
were in school, KA was the old South frat. You

(26:38):
know they basically, you know, they should have three k's
instead of ka.

Speaker 1 (26:43):
Was that ever a redemptive purple ring movement where it's
like where it's like when you get to that climatic
song and they're looking at each.

Speaker 9 (26:51):
Other like, yeah, absolutely there was.

Speaker 3 (26:55):
There was.

Speaker 9 (26:56):
But then then we're lowing our shipped down and the
guy front and I hear this man that was a
good band, even though they had a nigger singer.

Speaker 10 (27:04):
Oh heard it.

Speaker 9 (27:04):
The guy was right there.

Speaker 8 (27:05):
When he said, and what's crazy for you is you
had to go through both sides because it's like you
have that and then you're not black enough on the
other side, because I'm sure there were situations that you
you know, you wanted to do or even as far
as publications that you wanted to talk to and it
was like, wait, I'm here.

Speaker 9 (27:21):
Absolutely, that's that. That's been the hardest thing for me
is to have to get it for most sides, Like
I've sold thirty five million records. There was one point
where I was in the biggest band in the world.
And you know, I've never been on the cover of
Ebony or Jet. I've had one story and Jet they
did a story. But who was in Bluefish in ninety six, right,

(27:47):
we just got.

Speaker 3 (27:47):
The cover of Ebony.

Speaker 1 (27:48):
But I'm just saying that it's it's even though he's
we're in different genres, there is it is a psychological
mind fuck to thrive in a business where categorically or

(28:10):
statistically the audience that's supporting you might not necessarily embrace
you in real life. And on top of that, the
people that you look like when you look in the
mirror aren't necessarily supporting you as well. So it's a

(28:31):
very weird thing.

Speaker 3 (28:32):
Toby. It's well, I mean, there's a lot of acts
like that, but it's it's.

Speaker 7 (28:38):
Still you know what's crazy.

Speaker 8 (28:39):
Y'all should know that it trickles down to radio too,
because I've been told I'm come from radio, and I've
been told, Okay, black people aren't into that, like you,
we can't talk about that. Oh can we just talk
about No, black people don't. So it trickles down in
all kinds of ways. I don't want y'all to just
think like, you know.

Speaker 1 (28:52):
Well, that's also the difference because he has a lot
of hits and I got one and that.

Speaker 3 (28:56):
Half hits.

Speaker 1 (29:00):
All right, So so the album comes out and it
becomes an unstoppable monster. Yeah, like and again I know
that no one planned any of this. It wasn't like
you were, oh god, no doing Michael Jackson posted on
the wall like.

Speaker 10 (29:18):
No, not at all.

Speaker 1 (29:20):
So at the point where it's like where your sound
skin numbers reports are coming in, deal like, oh guys,
another million, another million, another million, another million.

Speaker 3 (29:30):
Does it does it get scary?

Speaker 1 (29:32):
Because like, this is your first album and are you
already thinking like damn, now the second album has to
be just as good?

Speaker 9 (29:40):
And I was I was the one that said of
the band, y'all know this is never gonna happen again, right,
I mean.

Speaker 3 (29:46):
It was even as it was happening.

Speaker 9 (29:47):
It got to like twelve million, and they, I mean,
they wanted to go. They wanted to chase Michael Jackson.
They wanted to put too more singles out. They wanted
to chase Thriller. They really really did. They wanted to
they wanted to put too more singles up, but we stopped.

Speaker 3 (30:01):
It, respectful.

Speaker 9 (30:03):
No, we want to make another record record, you know,
the same song as make another record, and uh, it
was it's getting crazy, but I knew it.

Speaker 3 (30:15):
Dude.

Speaker 9 (30:15):
We sold six million on the next record and that's
considered a flop. How how crazy is that we sold
six million records and it's considered a flop.

Speaker 11 (30:23):
That's crazy Today, if anybody sells six million.

Speaker 3 (30:27):
You can't.

Speaker 10 (30:27):
Can't. It's not possible.

Speaker 1 (30:31):
So okay, So when you get to Fairweather Johnson and
and and the other records, like, are you well, I mean,
what's the as far as you guys are concerned, Are
you guys still a tight knit you?

Speaker 8 (30:44):
Oh?

Speaker 1 (30:44):
Yeah, yeah, Because usually when bands get to that level
like you two dog, their entourage situation is the craziest
thing I've ever seen in my life. Like even Adam
Clayton has his own private plane, his own us, his
own like each band member and YouTube has their own world.

(31:07):
Like it's something I've never seen before. But are you guys? Like, Okay,
we're gonna stay humble, stay on the same bus.

Speaker 3 (31:14):
We were so tight.

Speaker 9 (31:16):
I mean it was we felt it was still us
against the world and the party was on. Okay, I
mean we we were at that point when Fairweather came out,
we were raging. I mean it was like, I think
back to that time and when we get together, the
four of us talk, we say the same thing, thank
God for letting all four of us make it out
the end of that. And so that was something that

(31:37):
brought us together. We were just having so much fun.
We didn't care about the record. So the only thing
we loved is that the shows were bigger.

Speaker 10 (31:44):
You know that. That's that's what we cared about. The
shows were bigger.

Speaker 9 (31:46):
We're getting to play as much as we want, having
a great time. I actually con afford to pay off
my student loan and get me a car.

Speaker 3 (31:54):
First first check.

Speaker 10 (31:56):
My student loan first check.

Speaker 9 (31:57):
Yeah, much just like thousand with you.

Speaker 7 (32:05):
Your first loan was like twenty.

Speaker 9 (32:08):
Exactly.

Speaker 1 (32:08):
You know that the Obama's paid off their student loan
the first year of being in the White House.

Speaker 5 (32:12):
Wow wow, really wow.

Speaker 7 (32:15):
It was expensive too. They did had a lot of
schooling they did.

Speaker 3 (32:19):
That's real, that's crazy.

Speaker 1 (32:21):
So to play, what do you prefer like smaller intimate
settings or is it as intimate when you're playing in
the stadium.

Speaker 9 (32:32):
Or oh definitely not today, I definitely. But if we
could play like a two three thousand sedter, that's perfect.

Speaker 3 (32:37):
That's a good small small I love it.

Speaker 9 (32:40):
That's not small. I mean small is a five hundred
the club, But that's that's I like that. But you know,
like last night, I pluay. You know, there was you know,
eleven twelve thousand people in this tennis stadium and you
just can't. You try to give it up, but you
can't see everybody. You can't, you know, you can't really
get it. And that's I like that because you know
that the checks are bigger, and you know you're still

(33:01):
and you you're doing all right, and you got all
these people here. But man, if I could play a
two thousand theater, I love it.

Speaker 1 (33:12):
I gotta ask a question, So right now, where's your Grammy.

Speaker 3 (33:19):
This This is a running joke on.

Speaker 6 (33:24):
I have.

Speaker 10 (33:24):
I have a man.

Speaker 9 (33:25):
I have this little room where I watch football and write,
and I got my studio there, and there's a little
closet area. If you want to see my grammys right now,
I would have to take you to them. Like you
never walk in my house and see my Grammys, I'd
have to take you to Oh.

Speaker 3 (33:39):
So it's not on the floor, it's not a doorstopper.

Speaker 9 (33:41):
Or basically it's basically a bookend. Some books up there.
The two of them are holding some books up. But uh,
I mean, like I say, I'll say, any other I
don't have. I don't want people to walk in and
like there's not one platinum gold record on my wall
anywhere in my house. I don't have them. My sisters
and brothers have them all. I don't have my cousins.
I don't have any of them because I don't want

(34:02):
people walking into my living room and seeing all the
you know, eighteen times blaten Am and all that stuff.
It's like, I know what I did, you know, you
know what I did. I don't have to throw in
anybody's face. So my grammy is just a little they're
in the corner somewhere, just if you want to see them,
them to you, but you're.

Speaker 10 (34:16):
Not gonna see it one less.

Speaker 2 (34:17):
They're not in the bathroom.

Speaker 10 (34:18):
Now, They're not in the bathroom. Yours in the bathroom?

Speaker 2 (34:20):
Yeah?

Speaker 7 (34:20):
Yeah, nice?

Speaker 3 (34:23):
So yeah in the bathroom.

Speaker 1 (34:31):
When did you know that it was time to leave
the band and start your own solo career.

Speaker 9 (34:35):
I got lucky if our drummer came in. We had,
you know, you tour every summer, and we were on
tour in the middle of the tour and our drummer
walks in and says, hey, man, you know, I don't
want to be a touring band like this anymore. I
want to just we we're touring too much, so I
don't want to be a touring band. And my first
thought was, Okay, I'm going to go do this country record.

Speaker 10 (34:56):
Yes, I was like yeah.

Speaker 9 (34:58):
I was like, cool, I'll go do I'm gonna do
my this country thing and see what happens.

Speaker 1 (35:02):
But you didn't, right, huh you? As far as I'm concerned.
When I first met you two thousand and one, you
signed it in beach career.

Speaker 9 (35:11):
Yeah, yeah, but that was that we were still together.
That was we took a year off and I did
that record. Then we got back together and went back
on tour until two thousand and eight.

Speaker 3 (35:19):
Okay, I thought you left the group and then.

Speaker 9 (35:21):
No, that we were just taking time off for that
then and then at two thousand and eight was when
two thousand and seven was when.

Speaker 10 (35:26):
They called it.

Speaker 9 (35:27):
They we just don't want to do this all the
time was okay, And we weren't that band who could
have said, Okay, we're gonna get a new drummer. We
just we're a band. When the four of us play,
we play. If the four of us are gonna play together,
we're not gonna play.

Speaker 1 (35:38):
So the grass is always greener on the other side.
Because I was shocked. Really, I just just as a
as a working musician, my thought is always about like
my livelihood and the people have to take care.

Speaker 10 (35:55):
Of Yes, I mean too you can't.

Speaker 3 (35:57):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (35:57):
I don't know if it's just with with black people.
I mean I would think that everyone thinks like Okay.

Speaker 2 (36:03):
I also feel like.

Speaker 3 (36:07):
Yeah, so to.

Speaker 1 (36:10):
Walk away from something so sure shot and I'm sure
I'm certain that by that point you know your guarantees
or nice yeah for you know, yeah, that time period
to make that every To make your your your grandparents night,
to make your grandparents' annual salary in one ninety minute

(36:31):
concert is great. So to walk away from that is
such a risk. Oh yeah, And I'm not even talking
about your standpoint because you're still here.

Speaker 3 (36:40):
But for your band members, is.

Speaker 1 (36:43):
It Was it a rastusism or was it like, well,
let's talk about him.

Speaker 9 (36:48):
No, he had thought about it for a while. I
mean you could tell when he was talking to us.
And I think the band actually thought we might not
play for two years, maybe three years, and we'd be
out doing it again. And I'll be honest with me,
I probably thought to say thing because I was going
to make my country record in my basement with my buddies,
and because I didn't think I could get a record deal,
because I say all the time, if I was my brother,

(37:09):
I wouldn't give me a record deal because at that point,
who he had run his course on the radio. We
had done our thing, you know, if we were lucky,
if our records would go gold, you know, and it
was one you know, We're still had a touring band.
We were doing great, but nobody was out buying hoodie records.
And I thought to myself if if I'm the president
of the label or ain't our guy, I'm not going
to give the black lead singer of a pop band

(37:29):
that was big a record deal to do country music.

Speaker 10 (37:32):
I mean, I just didn't think i'd get a record deal.

Speaker 9 (37:35):
And Doc McGhee was my manager, and he talked to
president of Capitol and to give me a record deal
before before he said who I was. And then when
he said who I was, I got lucky because the
guy said, you know, I didn't really get that hooty thing,
but I always thought he was a country singer.

Speaker 5 (37:54):
Who you were?

Speaker 10 (37:56):
They were at dinner.

Speaker 9 (37:57):
The story goes here at dinner and he's with Mike
Duncan and he says, I want you to give this
guy a record deal, and Mike was like who. And
they went around for an hour and Mike was like,
I can't give him deal with that, telling me and
Doc pull deal.

Speaker 10 (38:06):
I'm Doc McGee, you you're gonna trust me on this.
One said all right, I'll give a deal.

Speaker 9 (38:10):
I'll give a deal and said it was me And
they called me that night and I went and in
the next day and he gave me a deal. And
the favorite story that I hear is he said. When
I decided to give a record deal, I called the
thirteen people in Nashville that I thought were the tastemakers,
the guys that are running country music. He's called by
thirteen friends, and I thought would know that know this business,
are controlling this business. And I told them all I

(38:32):
was sudden you and twelve of them told me it
will never work. Wow, don't even do it. You're wasting
your money. The guy who produced my record for the
Rogers was the one guy who said, great idea, call
me when you do it. Yeah, really, yeah, he I mean, dude.
When I started going to radio, I had radio guys

(38:53):
who are now my best buddies. You know, when you
need that extra spin to go to number one, you know,
and call them up. They'll play it two times in
a row. But when I started, they told me straight up.
I told people I'd never played I've heard people say
to me, I thought my audience would.

Speaker 10 (39:04):
Never accept the black countries here.

Speaker 7 (39:06):
I thought I had.

Speaker 10 (39:08):
But it's been twenty five years. I came along, Charlie
Proud had done anything.

Speaker 1 (39:13):
Well, let it not be said that you aren't familiar
with recording danger. Now the thing is that I I
thought that that was a natural thing, Like it wasn't
like I said, really, I felt like, oh, that makes
sense the same thing if Nald Richie were to make

(39:34):
a straight up country record or whatever. You know, well,
yes he did, but I was just saying that it
it makes sense to me only because, like, especially now
that I get to talk to a lot of country
acts that come on the Tonight Show, I'm slowly realizing

(39:55):
that damn country acts have a lot of things in
common with Soul seventies acts, Like there's there's a passion
there that I thought it was a perfect fit.

Speaker 3 (40:09):
And so I mean, obviously, of course.

Speaker 11 (40:12):
If you think about it, like Glass Night and the Pips,
the imagination now with Midnight Training Georgia, all countries.

Speaker 3 (40:19):
Yeah yeah, yeah, you have.

Speaker 9 (40:20):
The porners sisters, they want to cantry Grammy.

Speaker 11 (40:23):
Yeah, the first one was a country, so neither one
of us must be say good bye country something.

Speaker 1 (40:28):
But before we get to that, so I because I
know that you were working with dra and Videll and
and whatnot, what was that whole experience like doing that?

Speaker 9 (40:37):
That's that's one of my that's still one of my
favorite records that I've ever been a part of. I
listened to that record probably three weeks ago. That was
so much fun. Man, work with those guys, work with
Jill and and work with you know, with the I
was working with the characters here and working with Jazz
out in the LA. Where did you record the I
recorded some of it here, some of them in Philly.

Speaker 10 (40:54):
Yeah, it was. I mean, I love that. I love that.
I still love that record.

Speaker 9 (40:57):
I think we've had some great songs on that record.
You make me feel like I've sing the song.

Speaker 3 (41:09):
You love Lizabon know that.

Speaker 9 (41:10):
I mean only that, I hear.

Speaker 10 (41:15):
So fun.

Speaker 3 (41:18):
I want having.

Speaker 10 (41:19):
You got so?

Speaker 12 (41:24):
How would you got so?

Speaker 10 (41:31):
Even got so? Help me too?

Speaker 3 (41:39):
I love it.

Speaker 7 (41:39):
What was that like working in the studio with her?

Speaker 10 (41:41):
Oh? Great, she came in.

Speaker 9 (41:42):
We started writing that song, and you know, I was
such a big fan, and and we start writing a
song and we get to the chorus and when we
started cutting, it was so sexy. You know, her voice
is so sexy, and I.

Speaker 7 (41:51):
Was with her everything she gives us sex.

Speaker 10 (41:55):
It was awesome.

Speaker 1 (41:58):
So, uh speak of your at least for the transformation into.

Speaker 3 (42:07):
Going to the country world. How hard was that adjustment
for you?

Speaker 10 (42:11):
For me, it was easy.

Speaker 9 (42:11):
I mean because I'm just I'm still still that kid
from South Carolina that thinks he got lucky.

Speaker 10 (42:17):
So like they were surprised.

Speaker 9 (42:19):
Like when we got the first single and I went
to my label, I said, I want to be the
new guy. I said, I don't want to be. I
want to start from the bottom and work.

Speaker 10 (42:28):
My way up. They're like, well, we had these ideas.

Speaker 9 (42:30):
I was like, well, I want to do a radio tour,
and they were shocked because they said they had talked
about it, but they didn't think I would do it.
And so I went to one hundred and ten radio
stations three or four day for five six weeks. I
mean every day, busting up, you know, talking to people,
shaking hands, kissing babies, playing for three people in the
conference room and doing all that.

Speaker 3 (42:51):
How hard is it to.

Speaker 1 (42:54):
Make them this attached themselves from what your past was.

Speaker 10 (43:00):
That was the hardest part. That was the hardest part of.

Speaker 3 (43:03):
How do you win that armless wrestling match.

Speaker 10 (43:06):
To I just went in and was myself.

Speaker 9 (43:08):
I just went in and talked, and that was me
and and I visited and you know, you got for
have lunch and drink some beers. And have a good
time and people liked me and I had actually had
a good song.

Speaker 8 (43:19):
Was there anybody that was mentoring you like that, anybody
that went through the process like you did that change genres?

Speaker 9 (43:24):
And No, that was something that somebody said to me
that I thought of. It was like so many people
that have gone from popped and tried to trying to
do country and I'm the only person that's that's made it.
And I was like, wow, I never even thought about that.
But I mean, I've had a career. I got eight
number ones, I get a Grammy, I got five number
one records.

Speaker 1 (43:44):
It was it's it was crazy, so okay for a
person that's never played there but has heard about the
folklore of the Grand ol Opry, what is what is
the honor or the folkal of playing the Grand Old Opry?

Speaker 9 (44:03):
And it's pretty sacred in country music.

Speaker 1 (44:06):
It's it's like like, is it a jury that decides
we'll let you play this?

Speaker 8 (44:10):
Or who?

Speaker 10 (44:10):
He tried to play there for years. They wouldn't let us.
They would never let us on the stage.

Speaker 9 (44:15):
They just said, you're not a country band, you know.
And so the first time I played it was pretty awesome.
It was just one of those out of buddy experiences,
because you know, and the day I got asked to
be a member was probably the first day I thought
I was a part of the country music.

Speaker 1 (44:31):
So is it like the Friars Club or it's like, explain,
do you know, can you explain for audience and me?

Speaker 3 (44:40):
What is so okay?

Speaker 1 (44:43):
Assuming that you're a young start in Nashville, Like, is
your dream like one day.

Speaker 9 (44:49):
Absolutely, your dream is one day be a member of
the Grand Opera? And yeah, the play because everybody once
you're if you're in the business, you could play it.
If you're a country singer, you could get on the opry.
But becoming a member, you know, it's just an honor
that that that everybody in Nashville is trying to get.

Speaker 1 (45:09):
And what's like, what's a member like? Is it like
the Rock and Hall Hall of Fame or is it
it's not.

Speaker 3 (45:13):
It's not.

Speaker 10 (45:14):
It's more like the Friars Club is probably a better
way to describe it. It's it's a it's a big
fraternity of.

Speaker 9 (45:20):
Musicians and we all give our time to the Opry
and you know the.

Speaker 10 (45:24):
Charity stuff that the Opry does and all that.

Speaker 9 (45:26):
Stuff, and it's It's like everybody wants to be a member.

Speaker 1 (45:31):
So who initiates the idea? Like does your manager call
them and say, hey, oh, they have.

Speaker 3 (45:37):
To come to you.

Speaker 9 (45:38):
You have to come to you and say do you
want to be a member of the Grand Opery?

Speaker 7 (45:41):
Are you the only pepper and a salt?

Speaker 9 (45:54):
Were you?

Speaker 1 (45:55):
Charlie as growing up as a kid with with like
limited uh television shows on but a lot of variety shows.
I definitely remember, like Charlie Pride always seen him on
these variety shows in the seventies. But I'm not that
familiar with his discography, So I did he get a
lot of play?

Speaker 9 (46:14):
He got a lot of where we lived, Like I
was an AM radio kid, where I just sit and
flip through the radio and whatever song I liked, I'd
stop on it.

Speaker 10 (46:21):
And Charlie Pride, I.

Speaker 9 (46:23):
Mean, and even in our house because he was big
in our house, because it was one of the only
places you could see music. Yes, exactly exactly, And so
you know I watched you.

Speaker 3 (46:36):
Oh no, no, I thought you said roll call.

Speaker 7 (46:39):
I quoted it in my role.

Speaker 3 (46:40):
Call there is that roll call was derivative of but it.

Speaker 7 (46:47):
Is also a dance in DC. We made up but.

Speaker 9 (46:50):
Continue and so he was really big and he was
for me as a kid, I was always that kid
who wanted to do something different, who always and I
always thought it was cool that Charlie Pride was, you know,
doing something that we weren't supposed to do. You know,
we weren't supposed to sing coutry music. And this guy
was not just saying country music. He was Entertainer of

(47:11):
the Year two years. You know, he hosted the CMAS
a couple of years, and I thought, this guy, you know,
he was somebody I definitely looked up to as a kid.

Speaker 3 (47:19):
Uh have you.

Speaker 1 (47:21):
I know, it's well with a lot of singers in
the business, like some of them are kind of slow
to meet someone more successful. I'm not saying like you're
idol or whatever you don't meet your heroes or whatever,
but do you guys have a relationship.

Speaker 10 (47:38):
We're friends. We're definitely friends.

Speaker 9 (47:40):
We talk, we hang out when we when we can,
and the whole ebony and jet thing.

Speaker 10 (47:45):
I didn't even think about that until Charlie said that
to me.

Speaker 9 (47:48):
Never And when he said that to me is when
I thought, I was like, Wow, I've never done it.

Speaker 10 (47:52):
I was like because that's those kind of things. I
just let go because I'm like, it's just not gonna
happen what I do.

Speaker 9 (47:56):
And then I thought, wow, Charlie Pride has never been
on the cover of Ebony or I mean, I was
like wow, And I was like, you know, I guess
I kind of understand me.

Speaker 10 (48:03):
But that guy is I would, Oh you would? You
should have one of that. He's he'll tell you too.

Speaker 7 (48:10):
Baseball player.

Speaker 3 (48:11):
He was a baseball player.

Speaker 10 (48:12):
I love what he Charlie.

Speaker 9 (48:13):
Charlie's one of the guys you love to hang out
with because he loves to tell stories and I'll sit
there for hours and just let him talk and just laugh.

Speaker 10 (48:21):
And he's you should have one. He's great.

Speaker 3 (48:22):
Dear, guys, have been doing please make this happen.

Speaker 7 (48:25):
Were you guys friends before you decided to do country or.

Speaker 10 (48:28):
We met when I started doing so when.

Speaker 8 (48:30):
He found out, Like, what is the first initial conversation
that you guys?

Speaker 9 (48:32):
Our first conversation was he was hosting the Opry and
I was on the opery that night, and him and
I got there early so we could sit in the
room just me and him.

Speaker 10 (48:42):
For an hour.

Speaker 3 (48:44):
Are laughing about getting there early?

Speaker 9 (48:46):
Yeah, Yeah, I don't know that about that.

Speaker 2 (48:52):
Your country people get here.

Speaker 3 (49:01):
What you got me? Man, you got me. So you
guys got there earlier.

Speaker 9 (49:15):
And we just sat and talked for like an hour,
an hour and a half. We just sat in the room,
just me and him and talked and I picked his
brain about you know, but his life and my life
and what I can expect and and I'll be honest
with you.

Speaker 10 (49:29):
One thing I.

Speaker 9 (49:29):
Said to myself years ago, we were talking earlier about
the frat house and all that stuff.

Speaker 10 (49:33):
I said to myself.

Speaker 9 (49:34):
Years ago, no matter what I go through, I can
handle it because I can't imagine what Charlie Pride went through.
I can't imagine what he went through to succeed the
way he did. And I always said, if he could
take that, I could take whatever they got to throw
my way.

Speaker 8 (49:49):
But I'm almost scared for you because it's kind of
like a semi resurgence of Charlie.

Speaker 10 (49:56):
Oh, you're right.

Speaker 9 (49:57):
And the funny thing is the only time I've ever
really experienced something that was just so blatantly racist at
one of my shows is we're playing a show in
upstate New York. Upstate New York. I'm playing a show,
and all of a sudden we see these six giant,
giant rebel flax and these guys are walking around the
crowd carrying real flax. So my boys are like, hell no,

(50:20):
so we all go together and they went out no Darius,
and these guys went out and grabbed these you know,
grab these cats. And these cats were straight up we
are the local chapter in the KK.

Speaker 7 (50:29):
Were to people don't know about the are you?

Speaker 9 (50:33):
We were like, y'all get out of here, y'all got
to go.

Speaker 10 (50:37):
We kicked them out.

Speaker 3 (50:38):
It was three years some of the world is we're
here to visiting?

Speaker 11 (50:45):
Thing about it all?

Speaker 3 (50:46):
Like why is that road playing?

Speaker 9 (50:48):
Hair Rosa, stay at ouse walls tied in here and
then sit out here and tam world.

Speaker 13 (50:56):
Over us where no matter all, we got him here again.

Speaker 3 (51:07):
Gun, You don't guy, what you see in a.

Speaker 5 (51:11):
Glance on the street?

Speaker 6 (51:12):
What do you want to see?

Speaker 11 (51:16):
Okay, Well, since we're talking about this is really appropriate,
can you talk about the song Drowning, which seems to
be quite as relevant now as it was twenty years
ago when it was first released.

Speaker 9 (51:25):
You know, we uh, the rebel flag used to be
on top of our state house like it would be
the US flags, the South Kin flag, and the red
flag flying over the state House. So there was a
big controversy that we just wanted it take him down.
We wanted it take him down. And so one night
I was out at the bars and there was this cat.
He was a homeless cat and he uh, his name
was Spider. We all call him Spider, and he's he's

(51:45):
sitting on the thing. And so I went back in
the bar and I grab two beers and I go
down and I sit next to Spider and we start
talking and we figuring about beer before I go to
the next bar, and we start talking about the rebel flag.
And he, you know, he knew the band, and he
said to me one thing. He said, you know all
the you know, all the hate, that hate that's going on.
You said, you know, it's you the hate. And I
went wow.

Speaker 10 (52:04):
He's like, well, I was like, what do you mean.
He was like, you know they're playing with these white boys,
You're the one they really hate.

Speaker 3 (52:08):
And I went wow.

Speaker 9 (52:09):
And I went home that night and I wrote Drowning
and Drowning it's a protest song. I mean, there's no
other ways you could say. It's a protest song. And uh,
I just I wanted to. I was so frustrated and
that night and I was so like taken aback by
what spider it said that I sat down and you know,
and I wrote it, and you know, when it came down,

(52:29):
that was one of the songs they were playing at
the State House when they were taking it down, and
I thought that was pretty cool.

Speaker 8 (52:33):
Wow, that's do you stand it with the So now
you know, now that the flag issue is down, now
there's the statue issue. I'm just curious because I know
South Carolina. You know, they've been pulling statues down around there.

Speaker 9 (52:47):
The thing that the thing that kills me about, Uh,
all the people will go you know where you're forget
the history. These are the people who came to be
these patriotic Americans, and the South tried to destroy the Union,
they tried to destroy what America was when America and
also they could keep black people with slaves and they
were terrorists and they were you know, and they want

(53:09):
to keep that up. But all those were put up
in the Jim Crow era and they were put up
to to show black people we are still you know,
we're still the man. We hate it, We're going to
put all these things up, and people don't realize that,
you know, that wasn't put up in eighteen eighty.

Speaker 7 (53:23):
We think that it was.

Speaker 9 (53:24):
They think that it was, but it was, and it
was put up to doing Jim Crow to keep black
people in their place, so to say. And so I'm
good with taking them down.

Speaker 1 (53:36):
So based on what's going on now, I mean, how
awkward is it doing press in that circuit, especially with
what's going on now. I know that you're a big
sports fanatic, and it's almost like every day you wake up,
everyone America wakes up sort of panic stricken because they're

(54:00):
not knowing what's going to be reported next on the news.

Speaker 3 (54:03):
And second me.

Speaker 1 (54:04):
Turning on and now just dealing with the White House
and the National Anthem and football and everything. I mean,
how hard is it to just sell your product in
that marketplace and and kind of step between, uh.

Speaker 3 (54:28):
You know, landmindes.

Speaker 1 (54:29):
Of of of avoiding being a spokesperson or content.

Speaker 10 (54:35):
And and the thing.

Speaker 9 (54:36):
For me, it's hard both ways because like I sing
the Nashay, I was in London singing the national anthem
just a little while ago. But I just the way
I was raised, I can't kneel during the anthem. I
understand why they do trust me. I've been stopped. I've
been stopped for driving a nice car a million times.
I got brothers and cousins and uncles and friends, and
I'm totally with what the what what those guys are protested,

(54:59):
you know, and I get a there. But then you know,
like you said, you're all trying to sell a product
and people want to talk about what's going on, and you,
you know, you.

Speaker 10 (55:06):
Say the wrong thing. Look at the Dixie Chicks. You
say the.

Speaker 9 (55:08):
Wrong thing one time, and your career could be over.
I mean, you know, career suicide country country, especially especially
in country. You got, you got? The Dixie Chicks said
one offhand thing. The day before they said that they
were the most played band on country radio by far,
the day they said that they haven't played since. I've

(55:30):
never heard a Dixie Chicks song on the country read
I listen to coutry radio all the time. I've never
heard a Dixie Chick song. And that that you know,
you look at that, and so you stay true to
I stay true to who I am. You know I do.
If you ask me a question, I'll answer. I answered
the way that I want to answer it. But it's
like it's such a fine line to walk out there,
you know, because you want you always want to do
the right thing, but then you have to think about

(55:50):
you know, about this, about my career, about all this,
and so it's tough getting it sold, but you've got
to go out there and work.

Speaker 2 (55:56):
It doesn't sound like you you asked to be a
spokesperson for race, but you seem to have. It seems
to be this responsibility that's been put upon you just
because of these lines that you seem to be walking.

Speaker 3 (56:09):
What is that like?

Speaker 2 (56:10):
I mean, like I don't think you know, Like I
feel like some people they want to talk about race
and it's very important to them, and this just feels
like where you live and the genres that you jump
between your automatically that's sort of yeah, whether whether you
want it or not, which is.

Speaker 3 (56:24):
And it's just ridiculous, but like it's kind of part
of being black.

Speaker 2 (56:28):
Well okay, white person. I'm just that I don't know
what that's like.

Speaker 1 (56:32):
Whenever I'm in this situation, I have a fear of like,
oh God, please don't let an awkward statement happen.

Speaker 3 (56:37):
Please, I just want to I just want to go
to Starbucks and get my coffee. I live that every
day and whatever.

Speaker 9 (56:43):
So yeah, like I did the CBS Saturday Morning thing
and it goes so crazy because I did the CBS
Saturday Morning thing and you know, I was doing exactly
what you're saying. Don't let me say something awkward something,
you know, And because I started talking about the.

Speaker 3 (56:58):
EMU, not even you, I'm just from with other people.

Speaker 9 (57:01):
Yeah, oh yeah, coming like some question or something that
that gets me to say something. And then I go, well, right,
come on man, you know, like you know, it's just
it's a fun line.

Speaker 8 (57:11):
Plus you're like a double agent in a way, so
I feel like you have information, you know what I mean,
you don't. I'm sorry if we're asking to me question like,
oh I know there's I'm like, what do you do
when they talk about the NRAs.

Speaker 3 (57:22):
It's so much.

Speaker 7 (57:22):
They're all your fans.

Speaker 8 (57:24):
Man, it's fascinating. You're fascinating. You should be on the
cover of Ebony.

Speaker 3 (57:27):
Yeah, make it happen you please.

Speaker 1 (57:31):
Okay, how hard is it to navigate a career and
a personal life?

Speaker 3 (57:45):
Uh?

Speaker 1 (57:46):
Like away from your career? Like, are you a twenty
four hour I have to constantly tour.

Speaker 3 (57:52):
I have to always make music.

Speaker 1 (57:55):
Is it just like, Okay, I want time off to
you know, have a family life for that sort of thing, Like,
how hard is it to.

Speaker 9 (58:02):
I think that's probably the main reason I live in Charleston.
It's because the place where I live, everybody knows me,
like I've been living there. I've been living in the
same neighborhood for twenty years now. Everybody knows me. They've
they've you know, I grew up with a lot of
people like I played the show the other night and
I knew half the people in the crowd. And so uh,
because I don't have to work all the time. I

(58:25):
love being off. I love being with my kids. I
love being home with the family. I love that. And
so I lived there so I could just have a
normal life because really, outside of my job, my life's
pretty pretty normal, you'd be. I mean, like, people are
surprised when they hang out with me because I go
to I go to Walmart and Target every day.

Speaker 8 (58:41):
I go to the grocery store every day.

Speaker 3 (58:45):
I do.

Speaker 10 (58:46):
Yeah, you wouldn't see me. I love it.

Speaker 8 (58:47):
What's it like being around because all your brothers and
sisters are still in the area too, righte, So not
to be all up in your business.

Speaker 3 (58:53):
But since you did.

Speaker 8 (58:55):
But since you did have such a successful band, you
are such a successful artist, do you to I've learned
this request let retire people like are there certain people
that you like?

Speaker 7 (59:05):
You know, like certain your older brothers and sisters. You're like,
don't worry about.

Speaker 3 (59:08):
It, you have a hanger on.

Speaker 9 (59:09):
There was, yes, there was a minute question.

Speaker 7 (59:15):
Made it pretty.

Speaker 9 (59:16):
There was one thing I said to my sisters and
brothers when cracked reviews started taking off. You know, I said,
I love you guys. I said, I love you guys.
And you guys will never be kicked out of your house. Okay,
you always have a car. But we are not rich.

Speaker 7 (59:30):
I am rich.

Speaker 10 (59:32):
I will take care of you.

Speaker 3 (59:33):
I will make sure.

Speaker 9 (59:34):
I will make sure you never ever if you're if
you're four months late on your on your mortgage, call me.

Speaker 7 (59:40):
You're not getting a new house.

Speaker 9 (59:41):
But you ain't getting a brand new house just because
you want to have and I'm not writing a check
for it.

Speaker 3 (59:45):
And and where were you?

Speaker 7 (59:48):
You don't have as many brothers and.

Speaker 10 (59:50):
These they know they can call me anything.

Speaker 3 (59:51):
They know.

Speaker 9 (59:52):
If they called me and say, you know, Darius. I'm
gonna buyd I'm gonna be there in a minute with
cash or check or whatever you need. But don't expect
me to change your life this. I can't change it
because I want to. I want to stay this way.
I don't want to be broken. I have not a
nate fear of being broke some day. I grew up poor,
you know what. I have to just great fear being
broke some day, and I haven't it.

Speaker 1 (01:00:13):
I just want to take about seventeen seconds to appreciate
this moment. First, the Dyla siren, Okay, because it's just
hit me that there's a black man in this business
that has went diamond, Yes, that shows up on time early, early, early,

(01:00:40):
and doesn't have uh street dreams and aspirations. Because naturally,
I'm thinking even whatever, I mean, even whatever, my my
faux humble approach, you know, even I'm thinking like, okay, Diamond, Yeah, definitely,
I'm gonna have a yacht and twelve houses and blah

(01:01:02):
blah blah.

Speaker 2 (01:01:03):
But twelve oh for your record collect You just have
storage spaces for your record collection.

Speaker 1 (01:01:08):
Yeah, well they got to have a home too, No,
But I'm just saying that you're you're totally going against
the narrative of someone that.

Speaker 3 (01:01:19):
Should. I mean, just every person I know that's in
your position.

Speaker 1 (01:01:24):
Has family and friends that they have to carry on
their back.

Speaker 3 (01:01:29):
They have to show up late. You know.

Speaker 1 (01:01:33):
There, I know someone who's ex wives live in a commune,
a gated commune. I showed you, Oh, I'd like to
see we have, But you said that, you know, like
if the mentality, especially with black folks, like if one

(01:01:56):
of you is rich, we all rich?

Speaker 2 (01:01:58):
Where not?

Speaker 3 (01:01:59):
How do you know how to say the word no?

Speaker 12 (01:02:03):
Oh, well, you were smart enough to do it early,
which means that you might have had foresight that this
might be a big thing.

Speaker 9 (01:02:13):
Yeah. I mean when it started taking off, I realized
it was going to be a big thing.

Speaker 1 (01:02:19):
And and how how hard could you How long could
you sort of squelch and hide?

Speaker 3 (01:02:28):
I had to do that. I still have my first car,
I'm still driving my same you know.

Speaker 7 (01:02:35):
It's I have.

Speaker 10 (01:02:37):
I have one house.

Speaker 3 (01:02:38):
I keep it just for it's not very big.

Speaker 9 (01:02:40):
I got one house, not very big because I didn't
want a big house, because I didn't want my kids
to be able to get lost in it. You know,
you got twenty five hour square foot house.

Speaker 2 (01:02:47):
You could.

Speaker 9 (01:02:47):
You cannot find your kids if you want to. I
got a nice house. I drive a free car, you know,
free car?

Speaker 10 (01:02:53):
Yeah, damn. Marino told me a long time ago.

Speaker 9 (01:02:55):
Let your let your community take care of you. Yeah, Charlie,
he told me that he's right, let your community take you.

Speaker 7 (01:03:11):
Can't do that.

Speaker 9 (01:03:12):
Marino hadn't paid for a car since he was a rookie.
His kids get free cars dealership.

Speaker 3 (01:03:17):
Yeah, wait, that can happen. Ye have a.

Speaker 7 (01:03:20):
Suburban man radio DJ get that.

Speaker 9 (01:03:23):
I get a new one every six months.

Speaker 1 (01:03:24):
Do you know any d J gigs I had to
do to get my birthday gift downstairs?

Speaker 7 (01:03:29):
Well, your birthday gift downstairs?

Speaker 5 (01:03:31):
A no sigh, Yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:03:32):
There ain't no suburban.

Speaker 1 (01:03:33):
I'm sure maybe some cousins are listening right now, Yes
they are. Wait, how does that happen? Okay, now I
need you to mention. Marino told me, oh he did.

Speaker 3 (01:03:49):
Wow, I did not know I could ask for the stuff.

Speaker 9 (01:03:54):
Dude. You just get to get with the right guy.

Speaker 8 (01:03:56):
And athletes know because they're always getting those those deals, because.

Speaker 1 (01:04:01):
As I also come from management that uh, well them
free Well no, no, no, it's it's just they they they
successfully for the longest, talked us out of that lifestyle.
You know what I mean, Like again, I got my
license when I was thirty four.

Speaker 3 (01:04:22):
I got my first car when I was thirty four.

Speaker 7 (01:04:24):
It was traumatic, wow around.

Speaker 3 (01:04:28):
I mean, we were a touring band.

Speaker 1 (01:04:30):
Like the whole logic was even how I met Jimmy,
Like when I finally begged and begged and begged and
baked and big, let me.

Speaker 3 (01:04:35):
Get a house in La please. First day out there,
I mean Jimmy.

Speaker 1 (01:04:39):
And then it's like, crap, gotta move back, you know,
East Coast. So whenever I try to really floss, you know,
it's it's always backfire. So I was even talked out.

Speaker 3 (01:04:54):
Of would you like me to floss on your behalf?

Speaker 10 (01:04:58):
Just give me the access to this what's.

Speaker 8 (01:04:59):
Happening and don't floss. He don't flows Although I'm sure
those boots aren't cheap.

Speaker 3 (01:05:03):
I know. I was like, I was looking at the.

Speaker 7 (01:05:09):
Where did that snake come from? Ye?

Speaker 3 (01:05:15):
I'm gonna get a picture that boost on Instagram later.

Speaker 10 (01:05:17):
Yeah. I like my boots.

Speaker 9 (01:05:18):
I've had they made a rattlesnake?

Speaker 3 (01:05:21):
Yes they are? Ye?

Speaker 7 (01:05:23):
Did you kill it?

Speaker 3 (01:05:25):
Yes?

Speaker 7 (01:05:29):
Daris? Can you tell me? Is it rude? To ask
somebody they have like they have their license. Is that rude?

Speaker 9 (01:05:33):
No, that's not rude.

Speaker 5 (01:05:34):
I don't think I can't ask.

Speaker 7 (01:05:36):
Somebody not a driver's license, gun license that.

Speaker 9 (01:05:40):
I can learn from you everybody's got a license.

Speaker 7 (01:05:45):
Well, no, I asked, because he said he killed him.

Speaker 9 (01:05:47):
Even I know I don't think you did he I
would have ran from the snake, but it let.

Speaker 8 (01:05:51):
Me in my mind and think, Damn, I wanted to
Dari's hunts, like you know, you're in that world, blah
blah blah.

Speaker 10 (01:05:55):
I got a gun license.

Speaker 3 (01:05:58):
The other white people, of course you want to.

Speaker 2 (01:06:00):
Yeah, all the white folks.

Speaker 8 (01:06:03):
Question country not white, because you know it's more to
white people.

Speaker 2 (01:06:06):
I saw you, and why are you all the white questions?

Speaker 7 (01:06:10):
You don't know about Southern country white neither business.

Speaker 5 (01:06:14):
They're married a Southern white country person, thank you very much.

Speaker 10 (01:06:18):
She loves me too.

Speaker 3 (01:06:19):
Yeah, oh my goodness.

Speaker 9 (01:06:28):
That you see that key and peels thing that they
did on me. They they schedule me and say we're down,
and we're down in Nashville and we're doing the show.

Speaker 10 (01:06:36):
And I said, hey, I'm doing nice to you.

Speaker 3 (01:06:37):
Hey, I love you.

Speaker 10 (01:06:38):
We love Darius.

Speaker 7 (01:06:43):
That's good.

Speaker 9 (01:06:45):
I love it when you're on the standing labor means
you made it. I love that stuff. I don't care
what they say.

Speaker 3 (01:06:51):
I love it all right? So what what are you not?

Speaker 2 (01:06:55):
What are you about the cars? Aren't you?

Speaker 3 (01:06:57):
I mean for you? Is it?

Speaker 10 (01:06:59):
No?

Speaker 1 (01:06:59):
I'm still in my head even though I have a
question life after when was the last time? I'm still thinking,
like how do I get a free car? So as
far as your your career is concerned, like what would
you hope is your legacy? And as far as like
what you're at the end of the day, like is

(01:07:20):
there anything that you've not achieved besides eminine jet you're
gonna do electronic connections?

Speaker 2 (01:07:26):
No?

Speaker 9 (01:07:27):
No, The only thing, honestly, the only thing I haven't
done that I want to do is I'm ever since
I can remember, ever since really Notorious Big was was
killing it. I want to sing the hook on a
big rap record so much. I want I want to
be Nate Dog so bad. Oh, I'm dying to I

(01:07:49):
mean dying.

Speaker 2 (01:07:50):
You can help dying too.

Speaker 11 (01:07:52):
You know something, I know the Carolina connections, duet.

Speaker 3 (01:08:00):
I want you have to get married now.

Speaker 7 (01:08:02):
It's like.

Speaker 3 (01:08:05):
You know something.

Speaker 2 (01:08:07):
I'm that girl.

Speaker 3 (01:08:08):
I'm going to talk to you way too high. I'm
going to talk to you after the show.

Speaker 1 (01:08:16):
Because I have a project you might be interested in.
It's not an album, but it's concerning that very person,
and you are the perfect person to do.

Speaker 3 (01:08:28):
This the question love, I'm serious. Script, Everyone's like, what
are you talking about?

Speaker 2 (01:08:33):
Man?

Speaker 9 (01:08:34):
I want to say this. You could ask me to
sing pooh, pooh pooh. And the respect that I've have
that I have for you, and I love you and
I love the roots, I would do whatever you wanted
me to do.

Speaker 3 (01:08:45):
I appreciate it absolutely. Okay, I guess I will reveal
it because I can't.

Speaker 1 (01:08:50):
Keep it a secret because of uh, well, twenty eighteen
coming up will be uh somewhat of a notable anniversary
year for a lot of seminal classics and music of
nineteen ninety three. I've been we've been going back and

(01:09:11):
forth with the Dre camp trying to figure out a
way how to celebrate his twenty five year milestone with
the Chronic and Doggy Style both are in their twenty fives,

(01:09:32):
so we're still in the talking stage right now. But
one of the one of these snags and the thing
was like, yo, who's going to be Nate Dog and
I've been racking.

Speaker 5 (01:09:46):
I'm still in I will cancel my tour.

Speaker 11 (01:09:51):
I don't think your manager will be happy about that.

Speaker 3 (01:09:56):
And you can show up five minutes.

Speaker 9 (01:09:58):
Yeah, I'll away for you all, and then.

Speaker 7 (01:10:04):
We can talk about getting him in the museum. Hope
he's there. I just I'm assuming, Yeah, the Smithsonian.

Speaker 10 (01:10:10):
I'm not in this spisode.

Speaker 7 (01:10:11):
Are you sure?

Speaker 10 (01:10:12):
I don't think I am.

Speaker 7 (01:10:13):
You don't think we're gonna check on that?

Speaker 1 (01:10:17):
Yeah, it's it's probably one of the most amazing experiences
of any well for black people, especially to see that
museum in d C.

Speaker 7 (01:10:29):
Oh, yeah, it's we need more white folks to go see.

Speaker 3 (01:10:32):
Because you know, you kidding. Have you seen the lines?

Speaker 10 (01:10:35):
I know I've seen the lines.

Speaker 1 (01:10:36):
It's no, it is it's almost like I want more
black trust me.

Speaker 7 (01:10:44):
We sold it out the first year and now it's
on them.

Speaker 3 (01:10:46):
That's right.

Speaker 1 (01:10:46):
Yeah, No, it's it's you know, but it's I shall
make it. Shout out to Timothy and yes, her name
is Timothy.

Speaker 7 (01:10:56):
No ebony because you're gonna be in the Smithsonian.

Speaker 2 (01:11:01):
Oh my god.

Speaker 5 (01:11:02):
Ye, why.

Speaker 3 (01:11:11):
Talk about.

Speaker 1 (01:11:13):
Besides besides singing on a rap hook and see we
can make that happen. What are some of your other
bucket listing like, like, do you still get it itching
to do sports commentary?

Speaker 9 (01:11:26):
And you know, I always tell the local sports guy
and Charleston that when I retire, he just's he's just
holding my seat for me, and he hates when I
say that. But I might do that when I But
like musically, I mean, I'm still so far above where
I thought that would ever be. There's really not much
else that I want to do. Really, yeah, I mean,
I'm just I'm having a blast where I am. First,

(01:11:48):
I'd like to do this for four or five more
years if it's you know, but I want to be relevant.

Speaker 10 (01:11:52):
If it's over, you know, I'll.

Speaker 9 (01:11:55):
Still tour and everything, but I'm not gonna you know,
force it down anybody's throat or anything like that.

Speaker 3 (01:11:59):
Is there such thing as retirement.

Speaker 10 (01:12:02):
I don't think it's.

Speaker 9 (01:12:03):
I think retirement means you just play, you know, fifty
shows a year.

Speaker 1 (01:12:06):
Well, I'm just saying that if you can stop and
just let the checks come in or whatever.

Speaker 3 (01:12:13):
I don't know.

Speaker 1 (01:12:14):
I don't know what the residual game is like as
far as like songs being licensed.

Speaker 3 (01:12:19):
You guys, I hate to admit that.

Speaker 1 (01:12:22):
Have I mentioned the Friends thing already? Oh god, okay, yeah,
I fell down. You guys are in one episode one
of yourselves in yes, okay, early earlier this summer, when
I took the one vacation I ever take a year.
Alan Yang of Masters of None, Master of None fame

(01:12:42):
with Diseasin Sorry, directed a jay Z video in which
they perfectly mirrored a Friends episode, but Nerd asked me
had to watch both episodes to see if they had
it cut for cut, and then somehow I may or
may not have watched all two hundred and thirty. I

(01:13:03):
fell down a vicious rabbit, Friends rabbit. I don't know
why I did it.

Speaker 3 (01:13:07):
I had nothing to do.

Speaker 1 (01:13:08):
I was in Chef Gordon's backyard, and you know, literally
every day I watched season for season for seasons.

Speaker 3 (01:13:15):
So I know that there is a hoodie song in there.

Speaker 1 (01:13:17):
But as far as like licensing songs for movies and
those things and commercials and that stuff, like, it's.

Speaker 10 (01:13:24):
It's still pretty good.

Speaker 1 (01:13:25):
Yeah, it's one able to retire and not have to Yeah,
can you say no to that?

Speaker 9 (01:13:31):
Not?

Speaker 3 (01:13:31):
Family members?

Speaker 9 (01:13:32):
Like, yeah, I could, I could retire right, I could
retire right now and live a pretty good life.

Speaker 7 (01:13:38):
I looking at you. I'm not gonna rob you, Darius.
I just looking.

Speaker 3 (01:13:43):
She's trying to get my face. Well, man, I thank
you very much for coming on that show. We appreciate it.

Speaker 7 (01:13:53):
Congratulations on his brand new album as well too.

Speaker 9 (01:13:56):
Yeah the last time, thanks a lot.

Speaker 2 (01:13:58):
Wait, you watched two hundred and fifty episodes.

Speaker 3 (01:14:00):
It's two hundred and thirty six ship, I've only seen one.

Speaker 2 (01:14:03):
That's like, that's true, I've only seen one.

Speaker 3 (01:14:07):
I'm a complete this man.

Speaker 13 (01:14:09):
You know this is not gonna go over Well, there's
only one reason why somebody would watch all those episodes
of Friends.

Speaker 2 (01:14:21):
What's that they have no real Friends.

Speaker 4 (01:14:26):
Show?

Speaker 3 (01:14:27):
Yeah, way go, way to go.

Speaker 1 (01:14:31):
So what what what are your plans? Well with the
new album, are you going to tour?

Speaker 10 (01:14:35):
What are you going to tour next year?

Speaker 9 (01:14:36):
We're going to do a few shows here at the
end of the year, and then I'll probably take November
December off and uh going to Australia I think at
the end of February March while the go to Europe
for a minute, then coming to the States.

Speaker 3 (01:14:46):
Didn't you play the Apollo recently?

Speaker 2 (01:14:48):
Yes, I heard about that Thursday night.

Speaker 7 (01:14:50):
What was that like for you, that's like Ebony magazine.

Speaker 9 (01:14:52):
When we were kids. You guys know, when we were kids,
we didn't talk about the Garden. We didn't talk about
the Colisee, even Chlobe. We about playing the Apollo. And
I always wanted to play the Pollow. And when they
had the show, show Time at the Pollow, who you
got to play on the stage? You play two songs
on show Time at the Apollo. Our second record we

(01:15:13):
played played the TV show Show at the Apollo.

Speaker 3 (01:15:17):
How did that come out? What was that like?

Speaker 9 (01:15:20):
It was? It was a little different, no booze.

Speaker 10 (01:15:25):
Oh yeah, I was drunk.

Speaker 9 (01:15:26):
But Thursday night, Thursday night, we set a record for
white people in the Apollo. Yeah, it was, it was,
it was. It was awesome, that's true. Yeah, they played
the Apollo. McCartney played the Apollo too, so they probably
had us. We were probably even.

Speaker 3 (01:15:45):
But it was.

Speaker 9 (01:15:45):
It was.

Speaker 10 (01:15:47):
Greater than I ever thought it was.

Speaker 9 (01:15:48):
It was such a great show and be on that
stage and we like broke out some Temptation songs and
and all that stuff.

Speaker 10 (01:15:54):
It was. It was nice, man, It was great. Yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:15:56):
Do you mix up the repertoire of songs you like
to cover your show.

Speaker 9 (01:16:00):
It always because I was I still love covers. I'm
a cover band singer. I mean, so we'll break out
like we break we do this thing where we do
uh Garth Brooks, Uh friends and no places right in
the no diggity Wow. It's crazy, I mean back to back,
it's crazy.

Speaker 11 (01:16:17):
Works to bring up my Garth Brooks analogy. What your
R and B record? Chris Gaines?

Speaker 9 (01:16:25):
Remember that Chris Gaines Records Actually.

Speaker 7 (01:16:29):
Don't concept my stuff, Like, oh, I thought it.

Speaker 3 (01:16:31):
Was a good concept.

Speaker 1 (01:16:33):
I did not think of it think about it.

Speaker 3 (01:16:38):
At home, but I think you he definitely got more tracks.

Speaker 11 (01:16:41):
Oh yeah, definitely, definitely definitely. Garth kind of ran screaming
after that failed.

Speaker 3 (01:16:47):
You know, it was weird. I think when he came
on our show. It was supposed to come on the show. Uh.

Speaker 1 (01:16:53):
One of his one of Garth's uh the Internet songs
like the extra songs that we do on the show
was from that.

Speaker 3 (01:17:01):
Uh. What was the name of his? Chris, Chris Gaines.

Speaker 7 (01:17:05):
Do you have country friends.

Speaker 9 (01:17:08):
You know like other countries with all those Yeah, that's
the one thing about the community.

Speaker 10 (01:17:14):
Country music community is real.

Speaker 9 (01:17:15):
Try I got on my record, I got Luke Brian
Jason Aldean all one on the same song.

Speaker 10 (01:17:21):
Oh yeah, those are my boys. Yeah.

Speaker 3 (01:17:23):
Question about the industry, the country music industry.

Speaker 11 (01:17:25):
I have a pretty good idea of what most people's
grapes are within the R and B and hip hop industry.
What do you not like about the country music music industry?

Speaker 9 (01:17:35):
Radio is so slow, Like right now on radio is
in such a slow burn with songs, and it takes
if you're not one of the five big ones, it
could take thirty weeks for your for your for your
song to go up to charts and number I think
my last number one took like forty weeks.

Speaker 3 (01:17:52):
Is it?

Speaker 1 (01:17:53):
Is it the same system as so with hip hop
and a lot of clear channel uh related stuff. Songs
are added way ahead of time, so you know, like
if you're taking Beyonce's newest song that hasn't come out yet,
they'll pre program it. Wait, you know, weeks ahead of time?

(01:18:14):
Is it? Is it more moment because I know that,
you know, with a lot of the record sales, like
you know, Walmart plays a bit like they're still buying
physical copy. Is radio still ten fifteen years behind as
far as ads and as far as the country world is?

Speaker 9 (01:18:31):
Oh? Yeah, yeah, it's still they you know, they add it,
and you know, you get you're the most added song
of the week, and you still don't make the top forty.
You don't make the top fifty, you know, just because
you're getting spent. You're getting spun at three in the
morning and four in the morning, five and then.

Speaker 10 (01:18:46):
It's a slow build.

Speaker 9 (01:18:47):
They just want to build and they want to build,
and I don't know, it's just the way it is.
I don't know why it's like that, And it's like
that for everybody Taylor, because I'm wondering, Okay, Taylor, like
Taylor's a unicorn and she.

Speaker 8 (01:18:59):
Doesn't even new country automatic.

Speaker 1 (01:19:02):
She doesn't count like Kenny Rogers. Well no, even than
Kenny Rogers still get played on. Let me don't Scooby
do me yet? No, just meaning that she's more pop ubiquitous,
and that's what I thought in the country. So I'm
saying that, you know, are you chilling with like uh

(01:19:26):
Casey Musgraves.

Speaker 10 (01:19:27):
Or yeah, absolutely, I mean.

Speaker 3 (01:19:30):
Chris Stapleton, Yeah, Chris.

Speaker 9 (01:19:32):
Chris, I've written two three of my number ones together, or.

Speaker 3 (01:19:36):
The real deal.

Speaker 10 (01:19:37):
He's the real deal. This is how good he is.

Speaker 1 (01:19:39):
Because I was like every time he performs, man, we're
always like damn, he got us again, Like.

Speaker 10 (01:19:46):
Dude, this is how good he is. When we write
a song.

Speaker 9 (01:19:50):
He can't sing the demo because he sang the demo
to one of my number ones, and I wasn't gonna
cut it because he so freaking good. I kept saying
to my producer, I haven't seen you.

Speaker 1 (01:20:02):
Would you would be a Chris Stable to stand what
you married?

Speaker 3 (01:20:11):
No, I mean like you he Yeah, he must be cute.

Speaker 1 (01:20:17):
I would want Chris Stapleton on the Roots album, like,
that's how good he is.

Speaker 8 (01:20:22):
But Darius record first because you already told him that.

Speaker 3 (01:20:25):
Yeah, we already got that. But I'm just saying, that's
how dope he is, Like he's listening.

Speaker 1 (01:20:32):
I should I I'm trying to look under the hood
to see, you know, what was there and you know.

Speaker 3 (01:20:37):
But it's he's the real deal man.

Speaker 10 (01:20:41):
And Chris is doing it without radio player.

Speaker 9 (01:20:43):
Chris is never I don't think Christ has ever had
a record the top ten and he's got the number
one selling record. How's he killing Yeah? I don't know
he's killing it because people know it's real to go
in the shild and everything. I don't think Chris has
ever had a record in the top ten.

Speaker 7 (01:20:54):
Oh so he's like too short maybe catching up in
that way though, Like there's a lot of people you progressive,
That's what I mean.

Speaker 3 (01:21:02):
I like him, so that's how progressive he is.

Speaker 10 (01:21:04):
He's great, he's a real deal.

Speaker 3 (01:21:06):
He's just it's off the chain.

Speaker 8 (01:21:08):
So, man, have you ever seen gone to a club
and see another black person saying country? I'm trying to
see who's after Darius.

Speaker 9 (01:21:14):
King Brown who's got a number one right now, His
record's number one this week King Brown. And there's a
couple of other young ladies that are coming that are
coming up that are trying to Mickey Guyton is one
trying to get a foothold, you know, trying to get
a hit. And uh, there's there's a few I think
me coming over and having success. I'm not gonna say

(01:21:34):
I open doors, but that that that A and R
person who would have looked at the CD and so
is the black person and throw it in the trash
probably gives it a listen now.

Speaker 10 (01:21:41):
And and so there's there's Guy's coming along.

Speaker 2 (01:21:44):
There's a black hockey player now too.

Speaker 9 (01:21:46):
There's a lot of we're taking hockey. Yeah, there's like
fourteen of us at hockey.

Speaker 3 (01:21:51):
Now we're a.

Speaker 2 (01:21:52):
Black hockey goalie too. Have you ever seen that that's
the ultimate nominally that exists?

Speaker 9 (01:21:57):
How could you say that? With Grant Furre was one
of the greatest ever.

Speaker 3 (01:22:00):
That's true.

Speaker 2 (01:22:07):
Sports references Now we go super deep on college football
right now.

Speaker 10 (01:22:11):
If you want to be good, goes Dems. You want
to go man.

Speaker 2 (01:22:14):
Game Cock is not doing so well this year.

Speaker 9 (01:22:15):
We'll talk about we're four, we're five and two. Who
take me at you again?

Speaker 3 (01:22:21):
They'll just give it up.

Speaker 2 (01:22:22):
I come from an Auburn My ex wife the same
one who's from Alabama, she is an Auburn fan. And
it'd be as a Jewish kid from Long Island. You
don't know what that's like until you get there, and
it's fucking insane.

Speaker 10 (01:22:35):
Absolutely sanity absolute.

Speaker 3 (01:22:37):
Why is it such a religion though?

Speaker 2 (01:22:38):
Because they don't there's nothing else.

Speaker 9 (01:22:39):
There's nothing else. There's no pro teams. I mean there's
pro teams in the area. Like we got the Falcons,
so we got Charlotte. But like and and and the
thing is, when you go to school for four or
five years, you you're invested in it. And when your
football team is I mean football is everything in the Southeast.
Everything Saturday stops. Saturday stops like my tailgating spot. It

(01:23:04):
was one of the few things I've spurs done.

Speaker 5 (01:23:06):
The shoes.

Speaker 9 (01:23:07):
So much money on this tailgate spot. But for me,
it's like I want to go be able to tailgate
without people, but.

Speaker 3 (01:23:15):
Without people by my friends are there?

Speaker 7 (01:23:18):
Isn't not Your tailgate spot is not outside.

Speaker 9 (01:23:20):
You know what's out? You got a la since then,
I got me a big old it's called I got
a big old caboose that's in there.

Speaker 5 (01:23:27):
I love these over Yeah tails crazy.

Speaker 2 (01:23:30):
It's awesome, Am.

Speaker 10 (01:23:31):
And we get there four hours before the game. By
game time, hammered.

Speaker 7 (01:23:36):
Darius was drinking choice.

Speaker 9 (01:23:38):
I drink beer, but I like to drink. I'm a
whiskey drinker. I got my own whiskey out now backstage, whiskey.

Speaker 10 (01:23:43):
If any of your drinks back whiskey.

Speaker 3 (01:23:45):
If you have heard of.

Speaker 9 (01:23:48):
It's good. Next time, I'll bring you a bottle.

Speaker 3 (01:23:51):
Wait, we're all pulling out whiskey right now.

Speaker 2 (01:23:55):
I'm making whiskey notes even two pm.

Speaker 3 (01:23:58):
Right eventually.

Speaker 2 (01:24:03):
Five o'clock.

Speaker 1 (01:24:05):
Yes, we will show unannounced at your house anytime.

Speaker 10 (01:24:08):
You'll welcome anytime my house in Charleston.

Speaker 3 (01:24:12):
Well I thank you very much for coming on our
show today, record, thank you.

Speaker 1 (01:24:19):
On be having Sugar, Steve Unpaid and Boss Bill. It's
Laia and the newly nuptialed uh Fontigolo. This is Quest
Love signing off of course loved Supreme. We'll see you
on the next storground. Thank you, guest. Love Supreme is
a production of iHeartRadio. This classic episode was produced by

(01:24:40):
the team at Pandora. For more podcasts from iHeart Radio,
visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you
listen to your favorite shows.