Get ready to be inspired by the legendary Paul Wall as he takes us behind the scenes of the Houston rap scene, sharing stories that only someone of his stature could tell. Discover his initial skepticism about the iconic track "Still Tippin'" and how he transformed financial struggles into a booming business with Johnny Dang. As we navigate through Paul’s journey, hear about his admiration for emerging artists like That Mexican OT and the collaborative spirit that bridges seasoned musicians with the new wave of talent in the Texas rap scene.
Explore the rich tapestry of Houston's musical evolution, as we trace the history from Rap-A-Lot and Screwed Up Click to the global influence of Swishahouse. We celebrate artists like Megan Thee Stallion and Travis Scott, who have catapulted the Houston sound to international fame. This episode highlights the unique cultural blend of Texas, influenced by church, blues, and car culture, with a nod to key figures like Mike Dean and Pimp C for their foundational contributions to the region's iconic style.
We tackle the ongoing challenge of preserving regional music identities amidst mainstream trends, emphasizing the importance of staying true to one's roots while embracing new influences. As Houston grows as a cultural hub, we express excitement over collaborations with producers like DJ Fresh and G-Luck, and the profound impact of artists like Zero. Paul shares lessons in gratitude and perspective, offering insights into parenting, faith, and seizing opportunities. Plus, don't miss our surprise album release announcement, promising fresh tunes and a reminder to pursue your passions.
Talk Soon! ✌🏾
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Y'all.
Speaker 2 (00:00):
I just interviewed Paul Wall and it's really a full
circle moment for me because though I love interviewing all
the new young hot artists that come up, I really
love when it's.
Speaker 3 (00:11):
A legend in the building.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
So this is a full circle for me cause when
I was a kid, Paul Wall is the same guy
who made me buy gum so I could use aluminu
foil grills. That's only right that I brought up my
real one for our interview today. I would say the
biggest takeaway that I took away from this interview was
it's just positive aura and energy in his love for
hip hop.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
Like it. It's just it's so dope to see. But
funny story.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
We talked about the creation is still tipping and how
he actually originally hated the record and how he hated
the beat.
Speaker 4 (00:39):
All the beat is some violins, and I'm like, what
the hell?
Speaker 2 (00:45):
But he's so glad he's wrong and we are too.
And then another fun fact was that he approved of
my grill. Okay, now, I don't know if you know
him and Johnny Dang, the business partners, they kind of
are like the bar for grills, and mine's got approve,
So we're gonna have to do a little yo.
Speaker 3 (01:00):
All right, let's get into it.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
Hey, what to do was Pater People's champ. I got
a new album. It's out right now. It's called Once
upon a Grind. Let's say, nhal, what's up? We need
to talk?
Speaker 2 (01:12):
What's up, guys, and welcome to another episode that we
need to talk today. I have a very special guest.
We actually got a legend in the building.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Paul Wallace here. How are you?
Speaker 4 (01:20):
I'm great, happy to be here with you.
Speaker 3 (01:22):
I'm so happy that you're here.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Man. You see them grip I wear girls on the podcast.
Speaker 3 (01:29):
Yeah, yeah, it's only right. Do people do this to
you often?
Speaker 4 (01:34):
Do people come up like sometimes? Sometimes? Yeah? But you
know it means a lot to me, you know what
I'm saying. So you definitely got my approval.
Speaker 3 (01:42):
Definitely got my thank you. How does it? How does
it feel? I guess being the bar for jury and fashion?
Speaker 1 (01:52):
I mean it feels great. I mean also being uh
I mean also I think about when I was broke
and I had no jury. I couldn't afford anything, so
any any amount of jury was something that I was
proud of. So even when I got my first set
of just sided gold grills. I was showing them things off,
like they cost me a million dollars. Yeah, and then
you know, so I feel that when I see other
(02:12):
people shining, especially if I can help facilitate it.
Speaker 4 (02:15):
You know, I feel like a part of that.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
So it's like I made your grills and you wearing
them and you shining, Like yeah, we shining.
Speaker 4 (02:22):
You know, That's just how I feel. You know.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
Also having a partner like my boy Johnny Dang, you know,
he full time jury.
Speaker 4 (02:30):
You know, I'm kind of more part time jury full time.
You know. Johnny dadd was in music too a little bit.
He's like part time. He's get sometimes he a like
executive produced this or that, or he'll fund this or
I have an idea for that.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
Every now and then I get him to drop some bars.
I was going to say, Yeah, we had a song
called stay stuff for a while back. I wrote him
a verse and he actually killed it because I wrote
it for him, but he like killed his I thought
it was gonna be tough getting him to record it,
but he nailed it.
Speaker 3 (02:57):
Wow.
Speaker 4 (02:57):
He shot a video for a while back. But you know,
I mean stuff like that.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
It's like a commercial for us, So it's like fun,
it's fun, but it's an investment in our business as well.
Speaker 3 (03:06):
Yeah. I love that.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
I had no idea you guys were partners actually, but
that that makes a lot of sense now looking back,
and even like I don't know, I feel like Texas
rap right now is probably my favorite. I love money Leo,
I love big Ex, I love that Mexicano T.
Speaker 4 (03:23):
You your taste.
Speaker 3 (03:24):
Yeah, right now, I feel like you're being bad.
Speaker 4 (03:33):
So yeah, for sure, Memphis, but we got to stillicent Twain.
Speaker 3 (03:37):
Yeah, y'all have a Twain. Oh okay, Yeah, so that
that makes sense.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
And then the record, Johnny Dang, I was really happy
to see you on it, just to see the collaboration
between OG and like the new new young people.
Speaker 3 (03:53):
But talk to me about just your relationship with him.
Speaker 4 (03:56):
Being m mexcino T.
Speaker 1 (03:57):
I've been a fan of him watching his ride, you know,
me being somebody who's established, I just watching his come
up and he just was shining. It came with a
different type of swag, different type of style. Of course,
a lot of people know him for rolling his rs.
When there's not an R, you know, you're rogive, but
he you know, he's just what he rap about, him
rapping fast and having high energy, you know. Content wise,
(04:18):
he's rapping about a lot of similar things that you
know I would wrap about, but just his style, the
way he delivers, it's so different and unique.
Speaker 4 (04:25):
I was a huge fan of him.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
Watching him come up, it kind of got to the
point where I felt like I missed my window opportunity
to do a song with him, because even though I'm established,
O g all this that type of stuff. But you know,
when you're an artist on the come up, you know,
it's like you feel like you want help from people,
and if people are already there, you want them to
help you, you know, and you don't know how they
(04:48):
can help.
Speaker 4 (04:48):
You or how, but you just want them to help.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
So if someone doesn't help you, sometimes you just feel
a certain way. Just it's nothing personal, but it's just
just how you feel. So I really felt like because
he blew up, it seems I like it blew up quick,
but it took a while.
Speaker 4 (05:01):
So I just felt like, you know, like, man, I
missed my winter opportunity.
Speaker 1 (05:05):
If I ask him now, he either gonna be like, hell, now,
you ain't helped me. So why I'm gonna do a
song with you, or he might be like, yeah, I do,
it's gonna be fifty thousand dollars, you know, which he's
worth every penny of. But still I'm just like, Okay,
I don't know, but you.
Speaker 2 (05:17):
Know, crazy that you even look at it like that.
I'm honest, like, I'm shocked that you're saying that.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
Yeah, I mean, I don't know because I've had experiences,
you know, working with some so many artists that are
like hot and popping on the rise, and a lot
of times they feezle out you know what I'm saying,
or they don't for whatever reason. It could be personal things.
They can go to jail, they could have kids and say,
you know, it just ain't for me. I gotta do
something different with my life. They could say, Okay, I'm
not meant to be an artist. I'm meant to be
(05:44):
a label exec or something like a more product something,
you know. But so many times I work with people
that were hot and popping and they feel like you
just riding their way.
Speaker 4 (05:56):
They feel like I'm riding they way.
Speaker 2 (05:57):
That's why I hate, you know, people who don't really
understand their place in the universe.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
But I feel like anybody who's.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
Just a fan of hip hop rap, like it's an honor,
Like I'm so honored that you're you're here right now.
But all right, these are just fan questions. Let me
get into my real questions.
Speaker 3 (06:14):
Okay, So.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
You were a key player on putting Southern rap, Texas
rap on the map. How do you feel like Houston
had officially arrived on the global stage.
Speaker 1 (06:29):
Feels crazy to see you know, people worldwide accepting or
even familiar with the Houston or.
Speaker 4 (06:37):
The Texas culture, just because for so.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
Long we would say things in our wraps and nobody
knew what the hell we were talking about, you know,
just because we're talking and slang or with an accent,
or just about you know, content wise, about things like
street names of people's names that people outside our bubble
have no idea what we're talking about. So just to
see people accepted worldwide listen to it, be fans, or
even just for them to under staying with were talking
(07:00):
about it, It's big.
Speaker 4 (07:02):
For me from a fan perspective because I'm a fan.
Speaker 1 (07:05):
Of you know, the Texas rap as well, and then
to see you know, it grow, you know what I'm
saying from how it was from you know, rap a
Lot and screwed up Click, or you know us with
switch House, which we you know, of course we came from,
you know, following the screwed up Click. And then you
know everybody else who's came since, Saucewalker coming with you know,
evolving in Houston style. Or you got Megan a Stallion
(07:27):
taking it to All New Heights, Travis Scott, Don Tolliver just.
Speaker 4 (07:31):
Just taking it, but just making it.
Speaker 3 (07:33):
They changed it, they went a whole other way.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
It's like y'all got nothing right now, y'all got two
different I.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
Feel like, you know, I feel like almost like you know,
my Jeneman Slim Thug Mike Jones come in and we
kind of made, you know, we kind of you know, popularized,
you know, the Houston style, like maybe maybe more nationally.
Speaker 4 (07:51):
But when I look at like Megan the Stallion or.
Speaker 1 (07:54):
Don Tolliver, Travis Scott, Toby Newigway, Sauce Walker, I look at.
Speaker 4 (07:58):
Them like they evolved internationally.
Speaker 1 (08:01):
You know, some of that is just how the world
is now with technology and social media, and social media
was out when we came out, maybe it would have
been a similar effect, but just you know, just but
just watching the Dominoes fall and watching the Texas style grow. Uh,
you know, and the Texas style has always been bigger
than just Houston. You know what I'm saying, because even
though a lot of the music comes from Houston, Texas
(08:23):
in general is our support system. So they make it
possible for us to even be here because Houston don't
support Houston like that, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 4 (08:31):
I'm gonna let you know.
Speaker 1 (08:33):
There definitely are people in Houston who get support, but
just as in general, most you know, I can see.
Speaker 2 (08:41):
That because they all being saft walking comments backing him up.
Speaker 1 (08:44):
Like yeah, but you know, but it's just like you
know that just Texas in general, they just they just
ran for us. So you know, it's just something where
you feel and bolden to just we got to represent
for for them.
Speaker 3 (08:58):
What do you think it is about Texas?
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Because even I mean, New York City is a melting pot, right,
but it doesn't have the same We don't have a
Mexican Ot, we don't have a Paul Wall, we don't
have what is it that?
Speaker 3 (09:14):
What is what is it?
Speaker 4 (09:15):
What the difference is? Y'all got a jay z If
it's just a job I don't mean but yeah, yeah, yeah,
but I mean I mean.
Speaker 2 (09:23):
Like culturally, like we got a Mexican rapper that raps
just as good as like.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
I don't know, some of it might be our influencers
are similar, you know what I'm saying, Like Me, Mexicano
Tea and Slim Thug. We're pretty much all inspired by
the same people. So music wise, we got a lot
of the same influences. Culturally we grow up in the
same environment, so we sound similar, you know.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
And you think it's so is it like a heavy
church city like what I'm trying to really figure out.
Speaker 4 (09:51):
Well, it's definitely evolved, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
I can't say. I don't I can't say how it
is for today's youth with the church.
Speaker 4 (09:57):
But when I was growing.
Speaker 1 (09:58):
Up for the show, it was a church city, so
there was a It's also heavy blues city, so you're
gonna get some of that in the music is very bluesy,
we're very bass guitar.
Speaker 4 (10:09):
You're gonna hear a lot of bass guitar. You're also
gonna have hair stuff.
Speaker 1 (10:12):
Just got heavy bassed drums because we're gonna be driving
on our cars. When I you know, you might ride
on the bus, but it's not a train. And even
when you're on the bus, you like got your head
on the swivels, so you're not like listening with headphones on,
you like worried about somebody robbing. I mean, I don't
ride the bus, no, but I mean just how it
would be like we would most people in Houston or
(10:34):
just in Texas would have cars, you know what I'm saying,
Because to get from one side of the city to
the other, it's gonna take you maybe an hour hour
and a half and you're still in Houston, you know.
Speaker 4 (10:41):
And and that's.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
Even without traffic, you know. So you know, having a
car you can have even if you gotta. Everybody had
a car, and even if you gotta, you live in
the hood, you got a car.
Speaker 4 (10:52):
So even if you got a raggedy car.
Speaker 1 (10:54):
You might put some speakers in the trunk, you know
what I'm saying, so that at least during your commute
you can field the music as well as here it
because when you feel the bass and you just feel
it all around, like it's just it's a different experience
than when you listen to with EarPods. You know what
I'm saying, I think that's definitely some of it. Also,
you know the freestyle type of uh uh uh you
(11:16):
know style that was popularized by the screwed up click
that the switch house we carried on. You know, that's
just that that became part of like the style of
how we rap. And then you got other people like
Mike Dean or Scarface who's you know who are are.
Speaker 4 (11:31):
They played musical instruments, Mike Dean.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
The top producers, you know, Happy Prayers, same Happy Prayers.
Where these are like real producers that don't just you know,
tap something. They can they can tap something, but they
also play they can sample somebod they also can play it.
You know, they can hear it and play it right
there from just listening, you know. And that just that
that that type of you know them incorporating you know
a lot of the guitars and the musical instruments and a.
Speaker 4 (11:55):
Lot of the old rap a lout music.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
It really just is stuck with us because that laid
the foundation for what the Houston style or the Texas style.
Speaker 4 (12:04):
Same with you GK. With PIMC being a producer and
a rapper.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
When he would produce, you hear a lot of organs
and it beats you to hear a lot of bass,
a lot of bass guitar, all of that. You know,
it was very bluesy and it just you know, just
you know, coin basically the Texas the Houston style, you
know what I'm saying.
Speaker 4 (12:20):
And uh, you know, it stuck with us. It's the
same today.
Speaker 1 (12:22):
Now we might do it a little different now, just
because nowadays most production is like fast paced. To me,
a lot of the production today sound like war drums,
you know, and a lot of the music too, is
you know, everybody killing everybody's like that.
Speaker 4 (12:37):
It sounded like with all.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
These war drums, like we ready to go to war
with each other, Like yeah, yeah, so well, so you
see that. That's the flip side of it, is that okay,
well with that, And we still try to incorporate a
lot of the so even on my new album, even
though you know it's half produced by somebody from the
Bay Area.
Speaker 4 (12:54):
He's very musical. DJ Fresh she plays on the.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
Last produc I figure because I was like, this sounds too, like, yeah,
it got.
Speaker 1 (13:03):
That bounce that the West Coast bounce, and that's not
it's not Houston type of style, but it kind of
we found like.
Speaker 4 (13:11):
A you know, yeah, yeah, we found like, you know,
a mix with it.
Speaker 3 (13:16):
You know, we finally, Oh, I didn't know he produced
this project. That's what's up.
Speaker 2 (13:20):
Okay, Yeah, I loved loved commas. It's so chill, but
it's talking that ship like yo, I'm doing this until
like it a beat.
Speaker 3 (13:29):
Yeah, man, I love it.
Speaker 1 (13:32):
You.
Speaker 2 (13:33):
So, collaborations and artists seem like more fluid now across regions,
but I know it was different like in the early
two thousands, So I kind of just wanted to talk
about that. How do you feel like, I don't know,
how do you just feel like it's changed for the
better or for the worst, because I do feel like.
Speaker 3 (13:49):
Low key we need regional sounds to come back.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
Yeah, for sure, definitely the local regional sounds have definitely
kind of been lost to everyone sounding the same sometimes
or with you know, somebody sounding local, but it becomes
the national trend, so now everyone sounds like that. You know,
you would see a little bit of that, like when
we came out, we came with the screwton chop style
screwton chop hooks, so you would see some influence on
(14:12):
that with other people. You know Katie Perry or whoever
got you know, screwed Chopho, you know, just musically across genres.
Speaker 4 (14:18):
But it wasn't like you know, like it is.
Speaker 1 (14:20):
Like now where when something take off, their style is
like oversaturated.
Speaker 4 (14:25):
H you know.
Speaker 1 (14:26):
But it could be a good thing because it can
help spotlight, you know, certain regions and sounds and really
get them a spotlight.
Speaker 4 (14:32):
That if it was ten twenty years ago they would
have never got. But at the same time, we lose
a lot of the regionals, you know.
Speaker 1 (14:38):
And I've always been somebody who my favorite rappers are
the ones that sound the most local, like you know,
with those like Snoop.
Speaker 4 (14:47):
Sounds like la you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
Like, you know, Juvenile was one of my favorite, Juvenile
BG with my favorite rappers growing up other than Little Kiki,
So you know, Juvenile BG both sound New or Orleans
is hell.
Speaker 4 (15:01):
They don't sound like nothing else but.
Speaker 1 (15:02):
New Orleans, Louisiana, so you know, you know, just that
regional sound or you look at like a Biggie or
jay Z.
Speaker 4 (15:08):
Even though they're global, they still represent Brooklyn.
Speaker 1 (15:11):
You hear Brooklyn in them, you know, or if you
want to take you even further, Cameron as Harlem as
it gets, and you can hear that in his music,
you see that.
Speaker 4 (15:19):
In his swag, how he talks, how he carries yourself.
Speaker 1 (15:22):
So as a fan of it, my favorite rappers being
you know, even though a lot of them are global,
but they still have a local kind of sound and
they represent local.
Speaker 4 (15:31):
You know.
Speaker 1 (15:31):
It's it's a little tough sometimes when you see it
like missing, But I mean, at the same time, my
favorite rappers are still my favorite rappers.
Speaker 4 (15:39):
Like who I'm listening to today?
Speaker 1 (15:40):
My Richter Factor from Kansas City sounds like Kansas City
global real?
Speaker 4 (15:44):
Is she sound like Memphis?
Speaker 1 (15:45):
You know? Or you know, just whoever else I'm listening to.
They sound very recent. That's just my personal preference. So
I encourage people to still represent and sound like you
know what. I also know what it's like to come
from somewhere where there's amount of sound and if you
sound like anything else, then your whack.
Speaker 4 (16:03):
You know what. I know what that's like, you know,
So to see it grow in Houston alone.
Speaker 1 (16:06):
I mean, when the Sauce Twins and Softwalker came out,
I remember telling them. One of the first things I
told them was like, say, man, don't never let nobody
in Houston tell you, because people from my generation were
kind of like shit on them, like, man, you don't
sound like Houston.
Speaker 4 (16:19):
You sound like somebody else, you know, or whatever.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
But I looked at it like as this is a
new branch of a hip hop tree and Houston.
Speaker 4 (16:26):
Is starting to grow, you know.
Speaker 1 (16:27):
So now you know, our Sauce Walker is a firm
branch on that tree, that style, you know, and so
just just just to see that, and you know, it's
just to see how far it's come.
Speaker 4 (16:38):
And I quick to tell them, say, man, y'all got
youall own, y'all bring it something new to Houston. You're
evolving the Houston style.
Speaker 1 (16:44):
We don't all have to sound like each other, but
we can still support each other and represent for each other.
And some of that's that's the you know, the positivity
in and of I don't sound like Soucewalker, but we
sound good together, you know. So some of it is
you know, the yin and the yang of you know,
coming when you come to together, you knight for a common cause.
Speaker 4 (17:01):
You know, you bring, you know, some good sounds out
of people.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
So I like to see how you know the sounds
or even just to see like, you know, you got
like me, Mike Jones, slimp Thug, you got you know, Southwalker,
you got Scarface, UGK, Ghetto Boys you got you know,
Meghan and Stallion, Toby Nwigway, Travis Scott, you got max
O Cream, you got Don Tolliver.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
All of these people sound different, different.
Speaker 1 (17:29):
You know, we might have similar accents, and we might
say similar There might be some similar things, especially visually.
We might put some of the similar things, although we
all got different dress styles as well, you know. So
you know some of us sound like me, slim Thug
and Mike Joone, we might sound more similar than like,
you know, me and Don Tolliver sound you know what
I'm saying. But you know, we all sound different and
(17:51):
we all come from the same place.
Speaker 4 (17:52):
So I love to see it. I love to see
it me too.
Speaker 2 (17:55):
How do you feel about Texas being the new Atlanta?
Speaker 3 (17:59):
I love that everybody's moving there and plan.
Speaker 4 (18:02):
Nah, people in Texas don't like it.
Speaker 1 (18:04):
They always say, hey, man, y'all go back to where
y'all can Texas. But I love it because you know,
I mean, I'm a fan of it too, So I mean,
I come from the era where the world thought everybody
in Houston had cows in their backyard and we drove
horses instead of cars.
Speaker 4 (18:20):
I come from that era, you know.
Speaker 1 (18:22):
So it's like, you know what I'm saying, for people
to want to experience our Houston culture and you know,
and the vibe and to be there, I mean, I
love it.
Speaker 4 (18:31):
I'm very welcoming for that.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
I find myself like a steward for the Houston culture.
Like people are always like, oh, what can we eat?
What's the best food places, where's the best this and that,
what's the best nightlife or whatever?
Speaker 4 (18:41):
You know, and it's it's a lot of it. You know.
Speaker 1 (18:44):
That's the funny thing too with the food because you know,
depending on where you're from, that's where you think the
best food.
Speaker 4 (18:49):
From a lot of times, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1 (18:50):
So you know, of course, everybody in Houston think Houston
got the best food.
Speaker 4 (18:53):
People in Atlanta think Atlanta, people in New Orleans and
New Orleans got the best you know. It's just like
that everywhere.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
But you know when people from out of town and
they appreciate the food, and it's like, OK, no, I
wouldn't trip and I.
Speaker 4 (19:04):
Knew we had some good food here, you know, But.
Speaker 1 (19:07):
I mean I love it because it, you know, it's
Houston has kind of grown too to become not just
you know what it was, it's you know, it's certainly evolved.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
Yes, becoming a staple, a really strong one. So once
upon a grind, where are we at? Who are we
collaborating with? I know you said you're working with the
West Coast producer again, but who's the other one?
Speaker 1 (19:27):
Yeah, the DJ Fresh he produced basically half of it.
The other half is by my boys, G Luck and
beat On, G and B Productions.
Speaker 4 (19:33):
They did a lot of stuff for me in the past.
They lot of stuff for Slim.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
Thug, Jade Dog, a lot of you know, a lot
of Houston icons they stated produced.
Speaker 4 (19:41):
They actually, you know, a big.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
Reason why I work with them is because they although
they've been iconic for a lot of older, you know,
established artists like myself.
Speaker 4 (19:51):
Like the first time I worked with G Luck and.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
Beat On was like around two eleven, twenty twelve. That's
the first time maybe when we was in the studio
non stop every single day I worked him for that,
But that's like when we were like really getting it in.
Speaker 4 (20:03):
So nowadays their sound has evolved to match how the
Houston sound has evolved.
Speaker 1 (20:09):
So, for instance, they got a lot of tracks on
soft Walker projects or all these other artists we talking about.
They got a lot of tracks on that Mexicano Tez
projects or anybody else just that's coming out of Houston.
Speaker 4 (20:19):
They're working with them. So it's like I wanted somebody who.
Speaker 1 (20:22):
Kind of could capture the you know, the old sound,
but be fresh with it, you know.
Speaker 4 (20:26):
And uh and so they basically did the other half.
Speaker 1 (20:29):
And then my boys Beans and Cornbread. They produced the
song with me and Zero swang down.
Speaker 4 (20:34):
They produced that one. Then the features we got Zero
of course, my boy Zero.
Speaker 1 (20:39):
Then we got I got a song with some thug
little Kiki cartel Bow cartel Bow is another somebody from
like the.
Speaker 4 (20:48):
Now generation where he's killing it right now. I got.
He just signed a deal. He got a hell of
a wave going.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
His style is so different than me, but together it
sounds like a perfect match.
Speaker 4 (20:59):
So it's definitely sound sound good together.
Speaker 2 (21:02):
And my last interview with Mexican ot I had said
I didn't know who Zero was.
Speaker 3 (21:07):
I've never been flooded with so much hate in my life.
Speaker 2 (21:11):
Now I'm not quite aware I did the research Zero
zero fans.
Speaker 1 (21:14):
Hey, Zero fans are the type of fans where if
you say you don't like Zero, they'll fight you.
Speaker 2 (21:20):
But it's not that I don't like it. I've never
been to Texas.
Speaker 4 (21:25):
Like that's how they are.
Speaker 1 (21:26):
Zero is like one of our iconic like you know,
he has a style I would say, maybe, you know,
sound wise, it kind of sounds similar maybe to like
a knack dog where he's got a deep voice and
he sings, but he Zero raps a lot too.
Speaker 4 (21:42):
And the things he talks about, Zero talks all.
Speaker 1 (21:44):
He talks a lot about struggle, you know, so anybody
who's been through some things definitely relates. So if you
think about this is I'm just this is what I'm
talking about the fan base. You think about people who
have went through some hard trauma pain I'm talking about.
I don't mean like girlfriend she.
Speaker 4 (22:00):
Known them something like that.
Speaker 1 (22:00):
I mean like life life, And those people are the
ones who love Zero because they really can relate to
what he's talking about.
Speaker 4 (22:09):
You know. Actually, for me, for a long time, it
took a while for me.
Speaker 1 (22:13):
To really listen to Zero and appreciate them because when
I used to listen to Zero. At first, it used
to trigger me. It would trigger my traumas and I'd
be like, I can't listen to it. I'm still trying
to sweep that under the rug, you know. But until
I can confront my own traumas, then I can really
listen to Zero and really appreciate it, you know. But
he's somebody who we chair. He's one of our icons
(22:33):
in Texas where we just we chaerish Zero. We love
Zero in Texas.
Speaker 3 (22:38):
I love that. I love that, and I love that
once you did the work, you could it's like.
Speaker 4 (22:42):
School it right. Yeah, yeah, definitely.
Speaker 3 (22:44):
Dang, that's dope.
Speaker 2 (22:45):
Okay, let's talk about Oh, I want to talk about
your verse on Still Tipping. Take us back to the
day the record came together.
Speaker 1 (22:56):
Still Tipping is an interesting story because if you ask
anybody that's involved, they'll tell you a different story. They
some of them have different perspectives. Some of them are
trying to hang on to, you know, notoriety. Maybe it's
you know, some of them are trying to whatever.
Speaker 4 (23:13):
It's just it's just it's very interesting.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
But I mean, from my perspective and the way I
remember it happening.
Speaker 4 (23:19):
You know, it was a you know, there was I was.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
I just signed with the switch swish House was a
mixed table, sorry, mixtape label. It wasn't a mixed table.
It was a mixtape label, but you know, it wasn't
a record label.
Speaker 4 (23:31):
It was just mixtapes. And then it evolved in becoming
an actual record label.
Speaker 1 (23:35):
But by the time it evolved your record label, I
already had a record.
Speaker 4 (23:39):
Deal with somebody else.
Speaker 1 (23:40):
When Switch House started, it was specifically for promotion like that.
Yeah yeah, yeah, right, so we would we would get
on the Swish House mixtape to promote our upcoming album
on a on another label, you know. So, but eventually
it evolved into becoming its own label.
Speaker 4 (23:56):
But really, you know, Michael watsh O G n C.
Speaker 1 (23:59):
They were you know, they created a Swisher House to
be a stepping stone and a platform for up and
coming artists to establish themselves and then go get a
record deal with somebody else. Well gde Ash he came
and he had a management company in him and Michael Watson.
They they basically formed a label out of it, and
they a few of the other artists who were there
on the mixtapes. They were some of the first artists
(24:21):
and then you know me and Comedian there we were
a group. We ended up breaking up going our separate ways.
And that was at a time when everybody in the city,
every all five men people in the city of Houston
would let me know, hey, you ain't shit without Comedian there.
Speaker 3 (24:37):
Wow.
Speaker 4 (24:37):
They would tell every regulatbel hey, we don't want to sign.
We'll sign y'all, but we don't want to sign you.
And uh, you know at that time, my boy Tif Ferris,
he was he was the A and R.
Speaker 1 (24:49):
And I think his title was the president of the
Swisher House.
Speaker 4 (24:53):
You know. I sat on them out on the song
with playing songs.
Speaker 1 (24:55):
He became my manager later on, he's making the Stallion's
manager now. But he was somebody who came to me
and he told me he was like, say, man, because
we were boys. He was like the first person who
was like my coach where he would kind of encourage me,
give me direction and just you know, give me critiques,
but in a way where I understood it and I
could take what he's giving me and run with it.
(25:17):
So he came to me and he was like, hey, man, look,
I talked to Michael Wis and talked to g Dash.
Look I'm not trying to sell you on this, but
I just want you to know if you ever want
a regged deal with the Swish the house, the door
is always open to you. I feel like your best
days are in front of you. They not behind you,
they ahead of you. I feel like you got a
(25:37):
lot of talent, your work ethic, all of that, and
I'm not trying to push this on you, but i
just feel like I got to let you know if
you want to sign with us, you're more than welcome.
Speaker 4 (25:46):
Well did he.
Speaker 1 (25:47):
Know that was the only person in the world that
wanted to sign me so our of course I jumped
out on it and he gave me a CD with
eight Beats on the City.
Speaker 4 (25:56):
We're working on a compilation album that they helped part two.
Speaker 1 (26:02):
And he said, he's the eight beats on it. Anything
you feeling right to a rap to it? You want
to do a verse, do a verse, you want to
do the whole song, do this song, you do two verses,
you want to do a hook, whatever you want to do,
whatever you feeling do it.
Speaker 4 (26:13):
If you don't like it, don't do nothing.
Speaker 1 (26:15):
But I'm hungry, I'm motivated, So I'm like I'm rapping
on every single one of these songs, but there was
one I'm also kick you back.
Speaker 4 (26:22):
This is when it's on a CD.
Speaker 1 (26:23):
On a CD player about this size, a little portable
CD player that if you play the volume too loud
and the bass is knocking, it's gonna skip. It's gonna skip.
So so i gotta play it at a low volume
and I'm listening to it and I'm playing rapping everything.
I roll a rap to every single beat. And there's
one beat I couldn't write to and it's like, man,
what am I gonna say to this beat? All the
(26:45):
beat is some violin?
Speaker 4 (26:46):
Do do you do?
Speaker 1 (26:49):
Do?
Speaker 4 (26:49):
And I'm like, what the hell I'm I gonna die
about on this? And t f SI me aint gotta
write to it.
Speaker 1 (26:53):
I said, no, no, no, no, no no no, I'm gonna
write to it, but I just need some direction. And
he said, well, just just freestyle do whatever to it.
And there did like a little freestyle too or whatever.
Just wrote, you know, talk about a little bit of everything.
Also Magno magnificent. He's somebody else who was, you know,
signed to the Swish House. Came up in the Swish House.
He he wrote it did a verse to it too
(27:15):
and uh. And then later on there was what I
call the rough draft of Still Tipping they were trying
to put together because they were working on this compilation. Okay,
Originally the compilation was supposed to be produced by one
singular producer, Randy big Time shot to Randy Shout the
Big Time, so anyway, him and Michael Watts. I guess
(27:37):
they got into it or didn't see.
Speaker 4 (27:39):
I don't know. I don't know.
Speaker 1 (27:40):
I wouldn't part of another that. All I know is
all of a sudden, now Big Time is not producing that.
Speaker 4 (27:45):
They hell broke loose too.
Speaker 1 (27:47):
So what they did was Big Time took all his
beats and Watch took all the vocals.
Speaker 4 (27:51):
Wow, okay, Yeah, And there was what I call a
rough draft.
Speaker 1 (27:56):
To Steal Tipping, which was one of those things. And
Big Time took the beat and Watch took the vocals.
And Slim Thug told me, Slim Thug told me recently,
because I never knew this, but Slim Thug recently told me.
He told me this year, matter of fact, And he
told me that it was his idea to sample his freestyle,
which was the hook still keeping on fol Folk. That
(28:17):
was a classic freestyle from Slim Thug. Slim Thug also
just for people that don't know, you know, ever since
hours we were in high school, Slim Thug has always
been the man, always so wrapping.
Speaker 4 (28:27):
Freestyle and switch house. He was always the star, always
the boss.
Speaker 1 (28:31):
So some of these freestyles, they're like iconic to us.
This is something we would listen to day in and
day out. So slim Thug had he said he had
the idea to sample something and make a hook out
of it, and he told Randy and watched, Hey, I
need you all to sample this and make this the hook.
And then Slim Thug's verse on there is very similar
(28:51):
to his freestyle that he originally laid. So if you
listen to his freestyle, he incorporated some of the lines,
but he like updated them, so it's freestyle.
Speaker 4 (29:00):
He might have said, he was, you know.
Speaker 1 (29:01):
At this club, well and still tipping. He's saying he's
at that club, and it's freestyle. He's saying, he's wearing
these clothes and he's still tipping. He's saying, but it's
the same basically the same bars. He's just updating it,
you know, and making it a little fresher. So of
course so even when we debate who has the hardest
verse on Still Tipping, it's like undebatable.
Speaker 4 (29:19):
You know. It's because you can't go wrong with anything.
All three different, three different, you know, different reasons. You know.
Slim was kind of the nostalgia version of it, and
of course he wrecked and it was the inspiration for
the song. You know.
Speaker 1 (29:31):
Uh, then Mike Jones, you know, him coming with it,
having his bars, me having my bars, all of that.
You know, so it just really all kind of came
together anyway, the perfect start with with the with the song.
Speaker 4 (29:41):
Okay. The next thing, you know, all I did was
just laid my verse to this do do Do Do
Do Do to that? Okay?
Speaker 1 (29:49):
Well, anyway, all the all the eight beats, they were
all from the same producer, Sally Williams, Carnival Beats. He's
the one who made He's Still Tipping sitting sideways. Back then,
they didn't want me to day all on me. A
lot of the two thousand hits for us, you know
what I'm saying.
Speaker 4 (30:05):
Even before that, he was iconic to us in Houston.
Speaker 1 (30:08):
There's a super iconic record level called rec Shot Records,
and Carnival Beats was like their in house production, so
Big MOESG some of Big Pokey Carnival Beats produced a
lot of their music that were radio hits, you know,
which was our classic hits for people from my era
(30:28):
in Houston, you know what I'm saying. So it was
to work with him, it was almost like, damn, we're
working with a big doll.
Speaker 4 (30:34):
We get to work with Sally Man. He produced dadd
he produced Dad, he produced that. Damn we get to
work with him.
Speaker 1 (30:40):
So it was very inspiring and it was one of
those times where you feel like you're making moves, you're
really doing something. So anyway, you know, I wrapped me
and Magno we rapped to the violin and then then
you know they're they're trying to find a way to
fly in these vocals. There was another beat this Sally
made it part of the eight because that song was
(31:01):
already done, but it was another beat that had the Nutcracker,
you know, the home alone Nutcracker.
Speaker 4 (31:07):
Dum dum dumb, don't dum, dumb dumb dum dom doom,
don't dum. It was a beat that had that sample
on it.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
Okay, the album was coming out around Christmas time, so
everybody was like, Okay, we're gonna fly in the rough
draft vocals what I call a rough draft. We're gonna
fly in the rough draft vocals on that beat. Because
it's Christmas.
Speaker 4 (31:25):
Time home alone, Nutcracker, all that type of stuff, it's
gonna be all it's gonna be a hit. You know.
Speaker 1 (31:29):
It's kind of almost kind of gimmicky because it was Christmas.
But I mean, at the same time, you never know,
we could have had we could have had our Mariah Carey.
Speaker 4 (31:37):
Moment, you know, for Christmas if it was on the
Nutcracker beat. But we didn't know.
Speaker 1 (31:42):
So this is all good. We got one to we
want to hip hop top fifty songs.
Speaker 4 (31:46):
It's all there.
Speaker 1 (31:47):
But anyway, you know, So anyway, there was a slight
debate over which beat they should use.
Speaker 4 (31:53):
Should have bet the Nutcracker beat. Na Ti Feris was like, man,
they need to beat this violin and they.
Speaker 1 (32:00):
Was like, well the violin beat is a little slower,
so we're gonna have to slow down the vocals.
Speaker 4 (32:06):
But t fails, Like what you mean, we just swished
the house. That's what we do.
Speaker 1 (32:08):
Anyway, we slowed down anyway, that's what we screwed up city.
Speaker 4 (32:12):
That's what you mean? And anyway they did it.
Speaker 1 (32:15):
They flew in in, they flew in Mike Jones and
slimmed up vocals on there, and then it was like, okay, well,
who are they gonna pick?
Speaker 4 (32:22):
Is it me or Magno? Like which verse?
Speaker 1 (32:24):
And they voted and it just ended up being me,
but Magno he had a hard verse two. And I'm
sure if they wouldn't have flew in the rough draft vocals,
he probably would have been on it too, because.
Speaker 4 (32:33):
He had a hard version.
Speaker 2 (32:34):
Is there anywhere we could find these songs? I definitely
want to hear the Nutcracker version.
Speaker 1 (32:39):
The Nutcracker version is it's a song. I don't know
the name of it, but it's a song that's on
the day Hell Broke Loose. I know Mike Jones is on.
Speaker 4 (32:45):
I don't know who else, but if you just listen
today Hell Broke Lose Part two, it's on there.
Speaker 1 (32:50):
Also Randy big Time, he ended up putting out the
what I call a rough draft vocals. I guess they
basically shared that or something I don't know, but he
basically put that on on his version as well with
the beat he made so in his uh the name
of his album. I forgot because he ended up putting
out with rap a lot. It was called uh man,
(33:13):
I can't remember what it was called. Yeah, it might
have had something to do with the hair broke. Maybe
it's like the day after hell broke. I can't But
if you just google big Time and it's big Time,
the time is spelled with a why.
Speaker 4 (33:25):
I believe big Time with a why. But if you
look it up, it's is there. You'll find it.
Speaker 1 (33:30):
Or you'll look up, you know, just other still tipping version.
Matter of fact, Commillionaire was on what I called a
rough draft version.
Speaker 4 (33:36):
He was on that version. Uh you know.
Speaker 1 (33:38):
But you know, even I didn't know I was gonna
be on a song, so I didn't know they voted
and I'm on the song all this. I just remember
T Ferris pulling up to you one day. He had
his jag and I remember I remember he pulled up.
He had a cool a smile. This is the biggest
smile I've ever seen t Fairs. He went smiling like
this when we got our deal. He won, smiled like
this when Platinum nominated for Grammys. He I never seen
(34:01):
a smile like this before. He had a kool Aid
ear to ear smile, and I'm just like, what now, okay.
Speaker 4 (34:07):
Look.
Speaker 1 (34:09):
Also, he pulling up and he like, hey, I gotta
let you hear something, and he playing me the Violent Song,
and I'm thinking he's smiling.
Speaker 4 (34:20):
Nah, it's obviously jamming.
Speaker 1 (34:22):
When I'm hearing it in his jag and I'm hearing
still tipping, it's jamming. But when I was listening to
it on the boom box, the little CD player, it
wasn't jamming to me or anyone else that heard it.
Speaker 4 (34:34):
Mike Jones refused to rap on it. He was like, man,
I'm not rapping on it.
Speaker 1 (34:38):
Everybody, everybody that were the only reason why I wrapped
on it was because I was just hungry.
Speaker 4 (34:43):
I'm like, man, you could fart on the beat. I'm
gonna rap on it, you know what I'm saying. And
Magno too. I don't know.
Speaker 1 (34:47):
Maybe Magno thought it was hard, but everybody, all the artists,
we were like, I don't know about that one. You
know what I'm saying, But it's because of how we
heard its.
Speaker 4 (34:56):
Least. That's my that's.
Speaker 2 (34:59):
Every How you call it the violent song, I'm like,
that is so crap, man.
Speaker 4 (35:03):
But T Ferris pulled up.
Speaker 1 (35:05):
I'm thinking he just letting me hear the violent song,
and I'm I'm really thinking he just.
Speaker 4 (35:11):
Put it in my face? Did Yeah, I told you
this shit was jamming.
Speaker 1 (35:14):
I told you I was right because te Ferris used
to be right, and I would be wrong all the time.
Speaker 4 (35:18):
I have no problem being wrong.
Speaker 1 (35:20):
I love it when I'm wrong because you're right.
Speaker 4 (35:23):
We running whatever. That's cool.
Speaker 1 (35:25):
I mean because a lot of what I go off
of is my personal preference, and my personal preference is
a little niche. So Tee Faris have more of a
mainstream or global mind frame of how to like take
me whatever I can capable of my style and show
that to the world and something that they can digest,
you know. So he you know he was. I was
just like thinking, this is one of those moments. I'm
(35:47):
thinking he playing the song. I hear the rough draft
on there, so I'm like, oh, this is the older
version of still tipping, the rough draft version.
Speaker 4 (35:55):
This on the violent song.
Speaker 1 (35:56):
So I'm immediately thinking, I'm not on there, me off.
They took me off of there, and he just letting me.
He's smiling because he's like, yeah, I was right. I
told you I was right to see jamming and.
Speaker 4 (36:06):
He for sure was right. My boy was right. Well
that shit was jamming.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
But I'll never forget when I'm just like, oh, damn,
slim on there, and I'm like, damn, I'm kind of
feeling like a little deflated let down, like damn, it
should have been hard man, slim thug on there, Mike Jones,
and now I'm not on there, like damn, man fuck.
Speaker 4 (36:25):
And then so anyways, he like, not just wait to wait,
I got something. I got surprise for you. I have
surprised for you.
Speaker 1 (36:30):
Just playing, he playing playing, and of course I got
the third verse and my verse come in.
Speaker 4 (36:34):
I'm like, damn, I'm on there. I'll make the cut.
I ain't get I ain't get took out.
Speaker 1 (36:37):
Because also at the time, Michael Watch used to be
notorious for taking people verses off. Sometimes it was because
it's there is an abundance of verses, so, you know,
and the song can only be three minutes, four minutes,
you know, especially just getting played on the radio, song
can be no twelve minutes long.
Speaker 4 (36:53):
You know.
Speaker 1 (36:55):
Well, he was notorious for taking people off, so I'm
thinking he's taking me off with a song. So just
knowing that I made the cutting, I'm on the song. Also,
this was like my first song ever with Slim Thug.
We didnet been on freestyles together, but it is like
my first song with slim Thug. I gotta tell you,
slimp Thug I always been the big homie. He's the
same age came, but he always been the boss.
Speaker 4 (37:15):
So employ you get to work with the boss. You
know what, employe, you get to sit at the boss
and table. Okay.
Speaker 1 (37:21):
I was decided of it. So when he let me
hear it, I was like, damn boy you. From that
point on, I was like, Hey, don't even ask me
what I want to write to. You tell me what
I need to write to. Still sit sideways, Hey, you
tell me what? Hey, whatever beat you telling to.
Speaker 4 (37:34):
Rat to, I'm rapping to it. Wow, I'm I'll never
forget being in the studio when we did. Back then,
they didn't want me. Mike Jones song.
Speaker 1 (37:40):
Mike Jones had a slightly different perspective. He had another
song on his album on his solo album that Mike
Jones just he just knew it was gonna be a hit.
It was a song he made about his grandma. He
was singing on it old Grandma and he felt like
people could relate because everybody love that Grandma And he
felt like, Okay, I maybe don't have a singing voice,
(38:01):
but Usher got vocal lessons.
Speaker 4 (38:04):
Beyonce got vocal lessons. Well, I can give vocal training
and I can learn how to sing like Usher.
Speaker 1 (38:08):
Well, you do have to have a little basis of talent,
you know, every matter how hard you work, everybody can't
sound like Beyonce or so. But you know, I mean,
his perspective was he felt like, you know, the Grandma
song people could relate to, but a.
Speaker 3 (38:23):
Lot of artists be doing that.
Speaker 2 (38:24):
I always tell my artist friends like, you need somebody
else to take it because the one that you love
is only sentimental and it's.
Speaker 4 (38:32):
Okay to be wrong. And I was wrong about still tipping.
Speaker 3 (38:35):
Thank god, thank god, I'm selling right now.
Speaker 4 (38:38):
If you come and see me and show at a concert.
Speaker 1 (38:41):
Every song I sing other than one song who is
somebody else? It was mostly T Fairs, but there's one
song Swinging in the Rain, that's my idea.
Speaker 4 (38:53):
Every other song was.
Speaker 1 (38:54):
T Fairs or someone else saying hey, you need to
do this, and me being like, I don't know, but
I'll do it for you, and it ended up working
and it is so it worked up. So Mike Jones
when he did back then they didn't want me. T
Ferris like I got just beat the same producer Sally
he made back He's simple something you said, and still
Tipping made a song and Mike Jones like, nah, they
(39:15):
ain't it. This it the Grandma song. It Well, all
I knew was T.
Speaker 4 (39:19):
Ferris is always right.
Speaker 1 (39:20):
So I'm like, I don't know what song is it,
but whatever one fans say, that's the one I'm going with.
You know. But like I said, man, of course he
was right about back then they didn't want me to.
Speaker 4 (39:29):
There was a smash it for Mike Jones to. So
you know, it's okay to be wrong artists. Is okay
to be wrong? All right?
Speaker 2 (39:37):
Real quick, before we go, we always play this segment
called Questions that he answers. All you gotta do is
fell in the blank. The older I get, the less
I the older.
Speaker 4 (39:45):
What's the opposite of anxiety?
Speaker 3 (39:49):
I calm?
Speaker 4 (39:50):
Okay, the older I get, the less I calm. Because
the older I get, the more I got.
Speaker 3 (39:54):
Stress, the more I stressed.
Speaker 4 (39:57):
The older I get, the more I stressed.
Speaker 1 (39:58):
I mean, some of it be big because you know,
I know how precious life is, so I appreciate certain things.
So I'm very you know, although I'm one hundred percent
somebody who is like I live by faith and I
believe in faith in God's will. So if something happens
good or bad, especially because so many good things happen
to me, you know, in the mix of something bad
(40:19):
happened or something bad happening, and the result is something
good not something bad. So just because I'm bad happened,
no meaning that just is you know, God pivoting and
changing sometimes your path.
Speaker 4 (40:30):
So I'm a firm believer in that.
Speaker 1 (40:31):
But even that being said, I still stress about my kids,
my family, things like that. And you know, it's mostly
things like that, and it's like, you know, them going
out into the world and things happen into them when
I'm not there, or things that you know.
Speaker 4 (40:45):
I have no control over anyway.
Speaker 1 (40:48):
Yeah, and it's just like, man, I just you know,
you know, and even if something bad happens, which it does,
you know, I still stress. So the older I get,
unless I call it, I get, the more I stress.
Speaker 2 (41:02):
Man.
Speaker 3 (41:02):
I hate that, but it's understood. My dad told me
one day I'll understand. So yeah, okay, the things.
Speaker 1 (41:08):
To do when I as soon as I had kids,
everything changed about.
Speaker 4 (41:13):
My perspective on life. And some of it was a
gradual change, some of it was a switch. But as
soon as the instant switch.
Speaker 1 (41:21):
Was how how I walk, how I moved when I'm
when I'm even married, before you have kids. When you're married,
it's different. When you have kids, it's it's different. But
when you I don't know, like I mean, like I
used to be kind of risky, you know, like I
where I would hang out or where I would live
or you know, I was in I was on the block,
you know. So it's like, now you got kids, it's
(41:41):
like okay, with people dying right in front of your face.
Speaker 4 (41:44):
Maybe yeah, you got two months to lose, you know.
Speaker 1 (41:48):
But you know, I realized that, you know, if something
happens to me, I'm not just the only one affected there.
You know, my kids are directly affected, my wife is,
everybody's affected, you know, if something happens to me.
Speaker 4 (41:59):
So I got you know, take that in consideration.
Speaker 3 (42:03):
You would never believe me if I told you.
Speaker 1 (42:07):
You would never believe me if I told you how
much I did not think still tipping the violence.
Speaker 4 (42:16):
You will never believe me.
Speaker 1 (42:18):
I mean, I almost don't believe because when I hear
it's still tipping instrumental, that's your jamin. But when I
first heard it, it wasn't to me.
Speaker 4 (42:28):
So thank god I was wrong. You would never believe
me if I told you how much I did not
believe in that song.
Speaker 3 (42:34):
That's true, all right. Sometimes I look back at my life.
Speaker 4 (42:38):
And sometimes I look back at my life.
Speaker 1 (42:43):
Always I look back in my life, and I'm so grateful,
you know, for every lesson I learned, for every blessing
I received, for all the people that have I've crossed
path with that I was just blessed to be in
their presence or to know them or befriend you know,
I'm always grateful, always, And when I look back at
my life, it's just a immense amount of gratitude, even
(43:08):
for the negative things that happen, because they certainly shaped
who I am and who I become. So, you know,
some of the some of the worst things that happened
to me, they made me the best version of me. So,
you know, I think back to you know, what if
certain things, what if you know I grew up, you know,
in a two parent household, my parents getting get divorced,
(43:28):
and my biological follow was in a doul fiend. Well,
maybe I might be out here, you know, with a
different type of po wow. You know, maybe I wouldn't
be who I am.
Speaker 4 (43:37):
You know.
Speaker 1 (43:37):
So some of the things that I grew up with,
they you know, they let me down certain paths or
you know, or had me become influenced by certain people
that really shaped who I am.
Speaker 3 (43:47):
Character development, Character development.
Speaker 2 (43:52):
My last question is three things you would tell your
eighteen year old self.
Speaker 4 (43:56):
Three things I would tell my eighteen year old self.
One is have an open mind.
Speaker 1 (44:04):
You know, it's okay to be wrong, like I'm saying,
because you know, sometimes when you feel the sentimental things
with the music you're creative, you feel biased about it
because it's sentimental to you.
Speaker 4 (44:15):
But it is okay to be wrong. Have an open
mind because people are sharing their perspective, and sometimes their
perspective is a little broader or more general perspective than
my niche perspective. So that's number one.
Speaker 1 (44:28):
Number two I would share is work as hard as
you can. There there are you know, there's two times
where I just really regret, like man, I wish I
could have did that, but just through the circumstance I
couldn't through the time. And one was when ghost Face
Killer asked me to get on his album and I
was traveling. He was like, hey, I want you on
the song, you know, But it was like I kind
(44:50):
of like, I got like a day or two to
do it.
Speaker 4 (44:53):
Well, I was on tour. It just was not possible
for me to do it.
Speaker 1 (44:57):
But I always regret that I was not on ghost
Face Killer's album, and I think, damn man, I wish
there was some way I could have made it happen.
Speaker 4 (45:05):
And another one was with Jill Scott.
Speaker 1 (45:07):
You know, of course we got a song so Gone together,
but she asked me to get on another song before.
Speaker 4 (45:11):
That, and I dropped the ball on it. I did
a verse. I was on tour too.
Speaker 1 (45:16):
I did a verse and I was like, Okay, this
ain't gonna be like the ghost Face Kill.
Speaker 4 (45:19):
I'm a find a way to do it.
Speaker 1 (45:20):
So I recorded it in the bathroom on the tour bus.
Speaker 4 (45:24):
You know that's not really Jill Scott caliber, you.
Speaker 3 (45:27):
Know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1 (45:28):
Just guy was like hey, and also having done the
song was so gone with her in person, knowing how
she works.
Speaker 4 (45:37):
She has a vision. She's not just like I wonder
how this is gonna sound.
Speaker 1 (45:41):
She has a vision that she's trying to, you know,
incorporate and make happen.
Speaker 4 (45:46):
So you know, when we're not together, we can't really
she can't share that vision with me.
Speaker 1 (45:50):
So it just it didn't work out, you know, and
she still put the song out, you know, without me,
and I'm just like, damn.
Speaker 4 (45:56):
Man, I miss my chance.
Speaker 1 (45:57):
Man.
Speaker 4 (45:58):
I love Jill Scott.
Speaker 1 (46:00):
Oh my god, I loved your Scott. So when I
got the second chance, it was like my redemption song,
you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 4 (46:08):
And I'm like, hey, what ever you want me to say, dude? Whatever?
A yes, of course I loved your Scott.
Speaker 1 (46:15):
But the last thing I would tell my eighteen year
old self is just continue to be grateful.
Speaker 4 (46:19):
You know what I'm saying. Just continue to be grateful
because it's something that you know, It changes your perspective.
Speaker 1 (46:25):
About things, you know what I'm saying, Because if you're
looking for something to be upset about, it's there for every.
Speaker 4 (46:30):
Person on this earth.
Speaker 1 (46:31):
You're looking for something to be mad about, you will
find it. But also, if you're looking for something to
be grateful about You'll find that too. So, you know,
although I've always kind of been to people's champion, had
a positive attitude, that is for sure something I would
tell my eighteen year old self to say, man, look
full positivity, because you will find it.
Speaker 3 (46:50):
I love that. Thank you so much, Thank you so
New project this Friday.
Speaker 4 (46:59):
Friday might be out by driving.
Speaker 3 (47:03):
We'll figure it out.
Speaker 4 (47:06):
New albums out right now, New albums out right now.
Speaker 3 (47:09):
Let you guys tune in.
Speaker 4 (47:10):
Talk soon already m hm mm hmmm
Y'all.
Speaker 2 (00:00):
I just interviewed Paul Wall and it's really a full
circle moment for me because though I love interviewing all
the new young hot artists that come up, I really
love when it's.
Speaker 3 (00:11):
A legend in the building.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
So this is a full circle for me cause when
I was a kid, Paul Wall is the same guy
who made me buy gum so I could use aluminu
foil grills. That's only right that I brought up my
real one for our interview today. I would say the
biggest takeaway that I took away from this interview was
it's just positive aura and energy in his love for
hip hop.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
Like it. It's just it's so dope to see. But
funny story.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
We talked about the creation is still tipping and how
he actually originally hated the record and how he hated
the beat.
Speaker 4 (00:39):
All the beat is some violins, and I'm like, what
the hell?
Speaker 2 (00:45):
But he's so glad he's wrong and we are too.
And then another fun fact was that he approved of
my grill. Okay, now, I don't know if you know
him and Johnny Dang, the business partners, they kind of
are like the bar for grills, and mine's got approve,
So we're gonna have to do a little yo.
Speaker 3 (01:00):
All right, let's get into it.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
Hey, what to do was Pater People's champ. I got
a new album. It's out right now. It's called Once
upon a Grind. Let's say, nhal, what's up? We need
to talk?
Speaker 2 (01:12):
What's up, guys, and welcome to another episode that we
need to talk today. I have a very special guest.
We actually got a legend in the building.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Paul Wallace here. How are you?
Speaker 4 (01:20):
I'm great, happy to be here with you.
Speaker 3 (01:22):
I'm so happy that you're here.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Man. You see them grip I wear girls on the podcast.
Speaker 3 (01:29):
Yeah, yeah, it's only right. Do people do this to
you often?
Speaker 4 (01:34):
Do people come up like sometimes? Sometimes? Yeah? But you
know it means a lot to me, you know what
I'm saying. So you definitely got my approval.
Speaker 3 (01:42):
Definitely got my thank you. How does it? How does
it feel? I guess being the bar for jury and fashion?
Speaker 1 (01:52):
I mean it feels great. I mean also being uh
I mean also I think about when I was broke
and I had no jury. I couldn't afford anything, so
any any amount of jury was something that I was
proud of. So even when I got my first set
of just sided gold grills. I was showing them things off,
like they cost me a million dollars. Yeah, and then
you know, so I feel that when I see other
(02:12):
people shining, especially if I can help facilitate it.
Speaker 4 (02:15):
You know, I feel like a part of that.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
So it's like I made your grills and you wearing
them and you shining, Like yeah, we shining.
Speaker 4 (02:22):
You know, That's just how I feel. You know.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
Also having a partner like my boy Johnny Dang, you know,
he full time jury.
Speaker 4 (02:30):
You know, I'm kind of more part time jury full time.
You know. Johnny dadd was in music too a little bit.
He's like part time. He's get sometimes he a like
executive produced this or that, or he'll fund this or
I have an idea for that.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
Every now and then I get him to drop some bars.
I was going to say, Yeah, we had a song
called stay stuff for a while back. I wrote him
a verse and he actually killed it because I wrote
it for him, but he like killed his I thought
it was gonna be tough getting him to record it,
but he nailed it.
Speaker 3 (02:57):
Wow.
Speaker 4 (02:57):
He shot a video for a while back. But you know,
I mean stuff like that.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
It's like a commercial for us, So it's like fun,
it's fun, but it's an investment in our business as well.
Speaker 3 (03:06):
Yeah. I love that.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
I had no idea you guys were partners actually, but
that that makes a lot of sense now looking back,
and even like I don't know, I feel like Texas
rap right now is probably my favorite. I love money Leo,
I love big Ex, I love that Mexicano T.
Speaker 4 (03:23):
You your taste.
Speaker 3 (03:24):
Yeah, right now, I feel like you're being bad.
Speaker 4 (03:33):
So yeah, for sure, Memphis, but we got to stillicent Twain.
Speaker 3 (03:37):
Yeah, y'all have a Twain. Oh okay, Yeah, so that
that makes sense.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
And then the record, Johnny Dang, I was really happy
to see you on it, just to see the collaboration
between OG and like the new new young people.
Speaker 3 (03:53):
But talk to me about just your relationship with him.
Speaker 4 (03:56):
Being m mexcino T.
Speaker 1 (03:57):
I've been a fan of him watching his ride, you know,
me being somebody who's established, I just watching his come
up and he just was shining. It came with a
different type of swag, different type of style. Of course,
a lot of people know him for rolling his rs.
When there's not an R, you know, you're rogive, but
he you know, he's just what he rap about, him
rapping fast and having high energy, you know. Content wise,
(04:18):
he's rapping about a lot of similar things that you
know I would wrap about, but just his style, the
way he delivers, it's so different and unique.
Speaker 4 (04:25):
I was a huge fan of him.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
Watching him come up, it kind of got to the
point where I felt like I missed my window opportunity
to do a song with him, because even though I'm established,
O g all this that type of stuff. But you know,
when you're an artist on the come up, you know,
it's like you feel like you want help from people,
and if people are already there, you want them to
help you, you know, and you don't know how they
(04:48):
can help.
Speaker 4 (04:48):
You or how, but you just want them to help.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
So if someone doesn't help you, sometimes you just feel
a certain way. Just it's nothing personal, but it's just
just how you feel. So I really felt like because
he blew up, it seems I like it blew up quick,
but it took a while.
Speaker 4 (05:01):
So I just felt like, you know, like, man, I
missed my winter opportunity.
Speaker 1 (05:05):
If I ask him now, he either gonna be like, hell, now,
you ain't helped me. So why I'm gonna do a
song with you, or he might be like, yeah, I do,
it's gonna be fifty thousand dollars, you know, which he's
worth every penny of. But still I'm just like, Okay,
I don't know, but you.
Speaker 2 (05:17):
Know, crazy that you even look at it like that.
I'm honest, like, I'm shocked that you're saying that.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
Yeah, I mean, I don't know because I've had experiences,
you know, working with some so many artists that are
like hot and popping on the rise, and a lot
of times they feezle out you know what I'm saying,
or they don't for whatever reason. It could be personal things.
They can go to jail, they could have kids and say,
you know, it just ain't for me. I gotta do
something different with my life. They could say, Okay, I'm
not meant to be an artist. I'm meant to be
(05:44):
a label exec or something like a more product something,
you know. But so many times I work with people
that were hot and popping and they feel like you
just riding their way.
Speaker 4 (05:56):
They feel like I'm riding they way.
Speaker 2 (05:57):
That's why I hate, you know, people who don't really
understand their place in the universe.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
But I feel like anybody who's.
Speaker 2 (06:04):
Just a fan of hip hop rap, like it's an honor,
Like I'm so honored that you're you're here right now.
But all right, these are just fan questions. Let me
get into my real questions.
Speaker 3 (06:14):
Okay, So.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
You were a key player on putting Southern rap, Texas
rap on the map. How do you feel like Houston
had officially arrived on the global stage.
Speaker 1 (06:29):
Feels crazy to see you know, people worldwide accepting or
even familiar with the Houston or.
Speaker 4 (06:37):
The Texas culture, just because for so.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
Long we would say things in our wraps and nobody
knew what the hell we were talking about, you know,
just because we're talking and slang or with an accent,
or just about you know, content wise, about things like
street names of people's names that people outside our bubble
have no idea what we're talking about. So just to
see people accepted worldwide listen to it, be fans, or
even just for them to under staying with were talking
(07:00):
about it, It's big.
Speaker 4 (07:02):
For me from a fan perspective because I'm a fan.
Speaker 1 (07:05):
Of you know, the Texas rap as well, and then
to see you know, it grow, you know what I'm
saying from how it was from you know, rap a
Lot and screwed up Click, or you know us with
switch House, which we you know, of course we came from,
you know, following the screwed up Click. And then you
know everybody else who's came since, Saucewalker coming with you know,
evolving in Houston style. Or you got Megan a Stallion
(07:27):
taking it to All New Heights, Travis Scott, Don Tolliver just.
Speaker 4 (07:31):
Just taking it, but just making it.
Speaker 3 (07:33):
They changed it, they went a whole other way.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
It's like y'all got nothing right now, y'all got two
different I.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
Feel like, you know, I feel like almost like you know,
my Jeneman Slim Thug Mike Jones come in and we
kind of made, you know, we kind of you know, popularized,
you know, the Houston style, like maybe maybe more nationally.
Speaker 4 (07:51):
But when I look at like Megan the Stallion or.
Speaker 1 (07:54):
Don Tolliver, Travis Scott, Toby Newigway, Sauce Walker, I look at.
Speaker 4 (07:58):
Them like they evolved internationally.
Speaker 1 (08:01):
You know, some of that is just how the world
is now with technology and social media, and social media
was out when we came out, maybe it would have
been a similar effect, but just you know, just but
just watching the Dominoes fall and watching the Texas style grow. Uh,
you know, and the Texas style has always been bigger
than just Houston. You know what I'm saying, because even
though a lot of the music comes from Houston, Texas
(08:23):
in general is our support system. So they make it
possible for us to even be here because Houston don't
support Houston like that, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 4 (08:31):
I'm gonna let you know.
Speaker 1 (08:33):
There definitely are people in Houston who get support, but
just as in general, most you know, I can see.
Speaker 2 (08:41):
That because they all being saft walking comments backing him up.
Speaker 1 (08:44):
Like yeah, but you know, but it's just like you
know that just Texas in general, they just they just
ran for us. So you know, it's just something where
you feel and bolden to just we got to represent
for for them.
Speaker 3 (08:58):
What do you think it is about Texas?
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Because even I mean, New York City is a melting pot, right,
but it doesn't have the same We don't have a
Mexican Ot, we don't have a Paul Wall, we don't
have what is it that?
Speaker 3 (09:14):
What is what is it?
Speaker 4 (09:15):
What the difference is? Y'all got a jay z If
it's just a job I don't mean but yeah, yeah, yeah,
but I mean I mean.
Speaker 2 (09:23):
Like culturally, like we got a Mexican rapper that raps
just as good as like.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
I don't know, some of it might be our influencers
are similar, you know what I'm saying, Like Me, Mexicano
Tea and Slim Thug. We're pretty much all inspired by
the same people. So music wise, we got a lot
of the same influences. Culturally we grow up in the
same environment, so we sound similar, you know.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
And you think it's so is it like a heavy
church city like what I'm trying to really figure out.
Speaker 4 (09:51):
Well, it's definitely evolved, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
I can't say. I don't I can't say how it
is for today's youth with the church.
Speaker 4 (09:57):
But when I was growing.
Speaker 1 (09:58):
Up for the show, it was a church city, so
there was a It's also heavy blues city, so you're
gonna get some of that in the music is very bluesy,
we're very bass guitar.
Speaker 4 (10:09):
You're gonna hear a lot of bass guitar. You're also
gonna have hair stuff.
Speaker 1 (10:12):
Just got heavy bassed drums because we're gonna be driving
on our cars. When I you know, you might ride
on the bus, but it's not a train. And even
when you're on the bus, you like got your head
on the swivels, so you're not like listening with headphones on,
you like worried about somebody robbing. I mean, I don't
ride the bus, no, but I mean just how it
would be like we would most people in Houston or
(10:34):
just in Texas would have cars, you know what I'm saying,
Because to get from one side of the city to
the other, it's gonna take you maybe an hour hour
and a half and you're still in Houston, you know.
Speaker 4 (10:41):
And and that's.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
Even without traffic, you know. So you know, having a
car you can have even if you gotta. Everybody had
a car, and even if you gotta, you live in
the hood, you got a car.
Speaker 4 (10:52):
So even if you got a raggedy car.
Speaker 1 (10:54):
You might put some speakers in the trunk, you know
what I'm saying, so that at least during your commute
you can field the music as well as here it
because when you feel the bass and you just feel
it all around, like it's just it's a different experience
than when you listen to with EarPods. You know what
I'm saying, I think that's definitely some of it. Also,
you know the freestyle type of uh uh uh you
(11:16):
know style that was popularized by the screwed up click
that the switch house we carried on. You know, that's
just that that became part of like the style of
how we rap. And then you got other people like
Mike Dean or Scarface who's you know who are are.
Speaker 4 (11:31):
They played musical instruments, Mike Dean.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
The top producers, you know, Happy Prayers, same Happy Prayers.
Where these are like real producers that don't just you know,
tap something. They can they can tap something, but they
also play they can sample somebod they also can play it.
You know, they can hear it and play it right
there from just listening, you know. And that just that
that that type of you know them incorporating you know
a lot of the guitars and the musical instruments and a.
Speaker 4 (11:55):
Lot of the old rap a lout music.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
It really just is stuck with us because that laid
the foundation for what the Houston style or the Texas style.
Speaker 4 (12:04):
Same with you GK. With PIMC being a producer and
a rapper.
Speaker 1 (12:07):
When he would produce, you hear a lot of organs
and it beats you to hear a lot of bass,
a lot of bass guitar, all of that. You know,
it was very bluesy and it just you know, just
you know, coin basically the Texas the Houston style, you
know what I'm saying.
Speaker 4 (12:20):
And uh, you know, it stuck with us. It's the
same today.
Speaker 1 (12:22):
Now we might do it a little different now, just
because nowadays most production is like fast paced. To me,
a lot of the production today sound like war drums,
you know, and a lot of the music too, is
you know, everybody killing everybody's like that.
Speaker 4 (12:37):
It sounded like with all.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
These war drums, like we ready to go to war
with each other, Like yeah, yeah, so well, so you
see that. That's the flip side of it, is that okay,
well with that, And we still try to incorporate a
lot of the so even on my new album, even
though you know it's half produced by somebody from the
Bay Area.
Speaker 4 (12:54):
He's very musical. DJ Fresh she plays on the.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
Last produc I figure because I was like, this sounds too, like, yeah,
it got.
Speaker 1 (13:03):
That bounce that the West Coast bounce, and that's not
it's not Houston type of style, but it kind of
we found like.
Speaker 4 (13:11):
A you know, yeah, yeah, we found like, you know,
a mix with it.
Speaker 3 (13:16):
You know, we finally, Oh, I didn't know he produced
this project. That's what's up.
Speaker 2 (13:20):
Okay, Yeah, I loved loved commas. It's so chill, but
it's talking that ship like yo, I'm doing this until
like it a beat.
Speaker 3 (13:29):
Yeah, man, I love it.
Speaker 1 (13:32):
You.
Speaker 2 (13:33):
So, collaborations and artists seem like more fluid now across regions,
but I know it was different like in the early
two thousands, So I kind of just wanted to talk
about that. How do you feel like, I don't know,
how do you just feel like it's changed for the
better or for the worst, because I do feel like.
Speaker 3 (13:49):
Low key we need regional sounds to come back.
Speaker 1 (13:52):
Yeah, for sure, definitely the local regional sounds have definitely
kind of been lost to everyone sounding the same sometimes
or with you know, somebody sounding local, but it becomes
the national trend, so now everyone sounds like that. You know,
you would see a little bit of that, like when
we came out, we came with the screwton chop style
screwton chop hooks, so you would see some influence on
(14:12):
that with other people. You know Katie Perry or whoever
got you know, screwed Chopho, you know, just musically across genres.
Speaker 4 (14:18):
But it wasn't like you know, like it is.
Speaker 1 (14:20):
Like now where when something take off, their style is
like oversaturated.
Speaker 4 (14:25):
H you know.
Speaker 1 (14:26):
But it could be a good thing because it can
help spotlight, you know, certain regions and sounds and really
get them a spotlight.
Speaker 4 (14:32):
That if it was ten twenty years ago they would
have never got. But at the same time, we lose
a lot of the regionals, you know.
Speaker 1 (14:38):
And I've always been somebody who my favorite rappers are
the ones that sound the most local, like you know,
with those like Snoop.
Speaker 4 (14:47):
Sounds like la you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
Like, you know, Juvenile was one of my favorite, Juvenile
BG with my favorite rappers growing up other than Little Kiki,
So you know, Juvenile BG both sound New or Orleans
is hell.
Speaker 4 (15:01):
They don't sound like nothing else but.
Speaker 1 (15:02):
New Orleans, Louisiana, so you know, you know, just that
regional sound or you look at like a Biggie or
jay Z.
Speaker 4 (15:08):
Even though they're global, they still represent Brooklyn.
Speaker 1 (15:11):
You hear Brooklyn in them, you know, or if you
want to take you even further, Cameron as Harlem as
it gets, and you can hear that in his music,
you see that.
Speaker 4 (15:19):
In his swag, how he talks, how he carries yourself.
Speaker 1 (15:22):
So as a fan of it, my favorite rappers being
you know, even though a lot of them are global,
but they still have a local kind of sound and
they represent local.
Speaker 4 (15:31):
You know.
Speaker 1 (15:31):
It's it's a little tough sometimes when you see it
like missing, But I mean, at the same time, my
favorite rappers are still my favorite rappers.
Speaker 4 (15:39):
Like who I'm listening to today?
Speaker 1 (15:40):
My Richter Factor from Kansas City sounds like Kansas City
global real?
Speaker 4 (15:44):
Is she sound like Memphis?
Speaker 1 (15:45):
You know? Or you know, just whoever else I'm listening to.
They sound very recent. That's just my personal preference. So
I encourage people to still represent and sound like you
know what. I also know what it's like to come
from somewhere where there's amount of sound and if you
sound like anything else, then your whack.
Speaker 4 (16:03):
You know what. I know what that's like, you know,
So to see it grow in Houston alone.
Speaker 1 (16:06):
I mean, when the Sauce Twins and Softwalker came out,
I remember telling them. One of the first things I
told them was like, say, man, don't never let nobody
in Houston tell you, because people from my generation were
kind of like shit on them, like, man, you don't
sound like Houston.
Speaker 4 (16:19):
You sound like somebody else, you know, or whatever.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
But I looked at it like as this is a
new branch of a hip hop tree and Houston.
Speaker 4 (16:26):
Is starting to grow, you know.
Speaker 1 (16:27):
So now you know, our Sauce Walker is a firm
branch on that tree, that style, you know, and so
just just just to see that, and you know, it's
just to see how far it's come.
Speaker 4 (16:38):
And I quick to tell them, say, man, y'all got
youall own, y'all bring it something new to Houston. You're
evolving the Houston style.
Speaker 1 (16:44):
We don't all have to sound like each other, but
we can still support each other and represent for each other.
And some of that's that's the you know, the positivity
in and of I don't sound like Soucewalker, but we
sound good together, you know. So some of it is
you know, the yin and the yang of you know,
coming when you come to together, you knight for a common cause.
Speaker 4 (17:01):
You know, you bring, you know, some good sounds out
of people.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
So I like to see how you know the sounds
or even just to see like, you know, you got
like me, Mike Jones, slimp Thug, you got you know, Southwalker,
you got Scarface, UGK, Ghetto Boys you got you know,
Meghan and Stallion, Toby Nwigway, Travis Scott, you got max
O Cream, you got Don Tolliver.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
All of these people sound different, different.
Speaker 1 (17:29):
You know, we might have similar accents, and we might
say similar There might be some similar things, especially visually.
We might put some of the similar things, although we
all got different dress styles as well, you know. So
you know some of us sound like me, slim Thug
and Mike Joone, we might sound more similar than like,
you know, me and Don Tolliver sound you know what
I'm saying. But you know, we all sound different and
(17:51):
we all come from the same place.
Speaker 4 (17:52):
So I love to see it. I love to see
it me too.
Speaker 2 (17:55):
How do you feel about Texas being the new Atlanta?
Speaker 3 (17:59):
I love that everybody's moving there and plan.
Speaker 4 (18:02):
Nah, people in Texas don't like it.
Speaker 1 (18:04):
They always say, hey, man, y'all go back to where
y'all can Texas. But I love it because you know,
I mean, I'm a fan of it too, So I mean,
I come from the era where the world thought everybody
in Houston had cows in their backyard and we drove
horses instead of cars.
Speaker 4 (18:20):
I come from that era, you know.
Speaker 1 (18:22):
So it's like, you know what I'm saying, for people
to want to experience our Houston culture and you know,
and the vibe and to be there, I mean, I
love it.
Speaker 4 (18:31):
I'm very welcoming for that.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
I find myself like a steward for the Houston culture.
Like people are always like, oh, what can we eat?
What's the best food places, where's the best this and that,
what's the best nightlife or whatever?
Speaker 4 (18:41):
You know, and it's it's a lot of it. You know.
Speaker 1 (18:44):
That's the funny thing too with the food because you know,
depending on where you're from, that's where you think the
best food.
Speaker 4 (18:49):
From a lot of times, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1 (18:50):
So you know, of course, everybody in Houston think Houston
got the best food.
Speaker 4 (18:53):
People in Atlanta think Atlanta, people in New Orleans and
New Orleans got the best you know. It's just like
that everywhere.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
But you know when people from out of town and
they appreciate the food, and it's like, OK, no, I
wouldn't trip and I.
Speaker 4 (19:04):
Knew we had some good food here, you know, But.
Speaker 1 (19:07):
I mean I love it because it, you know, it's
Houston has kind of grown too to become not just
you know what it was, it's you know, it's certainly evolved.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
Yes, becoming a staple, a really strong one. So once
upon a grind, where are we at? Who are we
collaborating with? I know you said you're working with the
West Coast producer again, but who's the other one?
Speaker 1 (19:27):
Yeah, the DJ Fresh he produced basically half of it.
The other half is by my boys, G Luck and
beat On, G and B Productions.
Speaker 4 (19:33):
They did a lot of stuff for me in the past.
They lot of stuff for Slim.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
Thug, Jade Dog, a lot of you know, a lot
of Houston icons they stated produced.
Speaker 4 (19:41):
They actually, you know, a big.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
Reason why I work with them is because they although
they've been iconic for a lot of older, you know,
established artists like myself.
Speaker 4 (19:51):
Like the first time I worked with G Luck and.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
Beat On was like around two eleven, twenty twelve. That's
the first time maybe when we was in the studio
non stop every single day I worked him for that,
But that's like when we were like really getting it in.
Speaker 4 (20:03):
So nowadays their sound has evolved to match how the
Houston sound has evolved.
Speaker 1 (20:09):
So, for instance, they got a lot of tracks on
soft Walker projects or all these other artists we talking about.
They got a lot of tracks on that Mexicano Tez
projects or anybody else just that's coming out of Houston.
Speaker 4 (20:19):
They're working with them. So it's like I wanted somebody who.
Speaker 1 (20:22):
Kind of could capture the you know, the old sound,
but be fresh with it, you know.
Speaker 4 (20:26):
And uh and so they basically did the other half.
Speaker 1 (20:29):
And then my boys Beans and Cornbread. They produced the
song with me and Zero swang down.
Speaker 4 (20:34):
They produced that one. Then the features we got Zero
of course, my boy Zero.
Speaker 1 (20:39):
Then we got I got a song with some thug
little Kiki cartel Bow cartel Bow is another somebody from
like the.
Speaker 4 (20:48):
Now generation where he's killing it right now. I got.
He just signed a deal. He got a hell of
a wave going.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
His style is so different than me, but together it
sounds like a perfect match.
Speaker 4 (20:59):
So it's definitely sound sound good together.
Speaker 2 (21:02):
And my last interview with Mexican ot I had said
I didn't know who Zero was.
Speaker 3 (21:07):
I've never been flooded with so much hate in my life.
Speaker 2 (21:11):
Now I'm not quite aware I did the research Zero
zero fans.
Speaker 1 (21:14):
Hey, Zero fans are the type of fans where if
you say you don't like Zero, they'll fight you.
Speaker 2 (21:20):
But it's not that I don't like it. I've never
been to Texas.
Speaker 4 (21:25):
Like that's how they are.
Speaker 1 (21:26):
Zero is like one of our iconic like you know,
he has a style I would say, maybe, you know,
sound wise, it kind of sounds similar maybe to like
a knack dog where he's got a deep voice and
he sings, but he Zero raps a lot too.
Speaker 4 (21:42):
And the things he talks about, Zero talks all.
Speaker 1 (21:44):
He talks a lot about struggle, you know, so anybody
who's been through some things definitely relates. So if you
think about this is I'm just this is what I'm
talking about the fan base. You think about people who
have went through some hard trauma pain I'm talking about.
I don't mean like girlfriend she.
Speaker 4 (22:00):
Known them something like that.
Speaker 1 (22:00):
I mean like life life, And those people are the
ones who love Zero because they really can relate to
what he's talking about.
Speaker 4 (22:09):
You know. Actually, for me, for a long time, it
took a while for me.
Speaker 1 (22:13):
To really listen to Zero and appreciate them because when
I used to listen to Zero. At first, it used
to trigger me. It would trigger my traumas and I'd
be like, I can't listen to it. I'm still trying
to sweep that under the rug, you know. But until
I can confront my own traumas, then I can really
listen to Zero and really appreciate it, you know. But
he's somebody who we chair. He's one of our icons
(22:33):
in Texas where we just we chaerish Zero. We love
Zero in Texas.
Speaker 3 (22:38):
I love that. I love that, and I love that
once you did the work, you could it's like.
Speaker 4 (22:42):
School it right. Yeah, yeah, definitely.
Speaker 3 (22:44):
Dang, that's dope.
Speaker 2 (22:45):
Okay, let's talk about Oh, I want to talk about
your verse on Still Tipping. Take us back to the
day the record came together.
Speaker 1 (22:56):
Still Tipping is an interesting story because if you ask
anybody that's involved, they'll tell you a different story. They
some of them have different perspectives. Some of them are
trying to hang on to, you know, notoriety. Maybe it's
you know, some of them are trying to whatever.
Speaker 4 (23:13):
It's just it's just it's very interesting.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
But I mean, from my perspective and the way I
remember it happening.
Speaker 4 (23:19):
You know, it was a you know, there was I was.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
I just signed with the switch swish House was a
mixed table, sorry, mixtape label. It wasn't a mixed table.
It was a mixtape label, but you know, it wasn't
a record label.
Speaker 4 (23:31):
It was just mixtapes. And then it evolved in becoming
an actual record label.
Speaker 1 (23:35):
But by the time it evolved your record label, I
already had a record.
Speaker 4 (23:39):
Deal with somebody else.
Speaker 1 (23:40):
When Switch House started, it was specifically for promotion like that.
Yeah yeah, yeah, right, so we would we would get
on the Swish House mixtape to promote our upcoming album
on a on another label, you know. So, but eventually
it evolved into becoming its own label.
Speaker 4 (23:56):
But really, you know, Michael watsh O G n C.
Speaker 1 (23:59):
They were you know, they created a Swisher House to
be a stepping stone and a platform for up and
coming artists to establish themselves and then go get a
record deal with somebody else. Well gde Ash he came
and he had a management company in him and Michael Watson.
They they basically formed a label out of it, and
they a few of the other artists who were there
on the mixtapes. They were some of the first artists
(24:21):
and then you know me and Comedian there we were
a group. We ended up breaking up going our separate ways.
And that was at a time when everybody in the city,
every all five men people in the city of Houston
would let me know, hey, you ain't shit without Comedian there.
Speaker 3 (24:37):
Wow.
Speaker 4 (24:37):
They would tell every regulatbel hey, we don't want to sign.
We'll sign y'all, but we don't want to sign you.
And uh, you know at that time, my boy Tif Ferris,
he was he was the A and R.
Speaker 1 (24:49):
And I think his title was the president of the
Swisher House.
Speaker 4 (24:53):
You know. I sat on them out on the song
with playing songs.
Speaker 1 (24:55):
He became my manager later on, he's making the Stallion's
manager now. But he was somebody who came to me
and he told me he was like, say, man, because
we were boys. He was like the first person who
was like my coach where he would kind of encourage me,
give me direction and just you know, give me critiques,
but in a way where I understood it and I
could take what he's giving me and run with it.
(25:17):
So he came to me and he was like, hey, man, look,
I talked to Michael Wis and talked to g Dash.
Look I'm not trying to sell you on this, but
I just want you to know if you ever want
a regged deal with the Swish the house, the door
is always open to you. I feel like your best
days are in front of you. They not behind you,
they ahead of you. I feel like you got a
(25:37):
lot of talent, your work ethic, all of that, and
I'm not trying to push this on you, but i
just feel like I got to let you know if
you want to sign with us, you're more than welcome.
Speaker 4 (25:46):
Well did he.
Speaker 1 (25:47):
Know that was the only person in the world that
wanted to sign me so our of course I jumped
out on it and he gave me a CD with
eight Beats on the City.
Speaker 4 (25:56):
We're working on a compilation album that they helped part two.
Speaker 1 (26:02):
And he said, he's the eight beats on it. Anything
you feeling right to a rap to it? You want
to do a verse, do a verse, you want to
do the whole song, do this song, you do two verses,
you want to do a hook, whatever you want to do,
whatever you feeling do it.
Speaker 4 (26:13):
If you don't like it, don't do nothing.
Speaker 1 (26:15):
But I'm hungry, I'm motivated, So I'm like I'm rapping
on every single one of these songs, but there was
one I'm also kick you back.
Speaker 4 (26:22):
This is when it's on a CD.
Speaker 1 (26:23):
On a CD player about this size, a little portable
CD player that if you play the volume too loud
and the bass is knocking, it's gonna skip. It's gonna skip.
So so i gotta play it at a low volume
and I'm listening to it and I'm playing rapping everything.
I roll a rap to every single beat. And there's
one beat I couldn't write to and it's like, man,
what am I gonna say to this beat? All the
(26:45):
beat is some violin?
Speaker 4 (26:46):
Do do you do?
Speaker 1 (26:49):
Do?
Speaker 4 (26:49):
And I'm like, what the hell I'm I gonna die
about on this? And t f SI me aint gotta
write to it.
Speaker 1 (26:53):
I said, no, no, no, no, no no no, I'm gonna
write to it, but I just need some direction. And
he said, well, just just freestyle do whatever to it.
And there did like a little freestyle too or whatever.
Just wrote, you know, talk about a little bit of everything.
Also Magno magnificent. He's somebody else who was, you know,
signed to the Swish House. Came up in the Swish House.
He he wrote it did a verse to it too
(27:15):
and uh. And then later on there was what I
call the rough draft of Still Tipping they were trying
to put together because they were working on this compilation. Okay,
Originally the compilation was supposed to be produced by one
singular producer, Randy big Time shot to Randy Shout the
Big Time, so anyway, him and Michael Watts. I guess
(27:37):
they got into it or didn't see.
Speaker 4 (27:39):
I don't know. I don't know.
Speaker 1 (27:40):
I wouldn't part of another that. All I know is
all of a sudden, now Big Time is not producing that.
Speaker 4 (27:45):
They hell broke loose too.
Speaker 1 (27:47):
So what they did was Big Time took all his
beats and Watch took all the vocals.
Speaker 4 (27:51):
Wow, okay, Yeah, And there was what I call a
rough draft.
Speaker 1 (27:56):
To Steal Tipping, which was one of those things. And
Big Time took the beat and Watch took the vocals.
And Slim Thug told me, Slim Thug told me recently,
because I never knew this, but Slim Thug recently told me.
He told me this year, matter of fact, And he
told me that it was his idea to sample his freestyle,
which was the hook still keeping on fol Folk. That
(28:17):
was a classic freestyle from Slim Thug. Slim Thug also
just for people that don't know, you know, ever since
hours we were in high school, Slim Thug has always
been the man, always so wrapping.
Speaker 4 (28:27):
Freestyle and switch house. He was always the star, always
the boss.
Speaker 1 (28:31):
So some of these freestyles, they're like iconic to us.
This is something we would listen to day in and
day out. So slim Thug had he said he had
the idea to sample something and make a hook out
of it, and he told Randy and watched, Hey, I
need you all to sample this and make this the hook.
And then Slim Thug's verse on there is very similar
(28:51):
to his freestyle that he originally laid. So if you
listen to his freestyle, he incorporated some of the lines,
but he like updated them, so it's freestyle.
Speaker 4 (29:00):
He might have said, he was, you know.
Speaker 1 (29:01):
At this club, well and still tipping. He's saying he's
at that club, and it's freestyle. He's saying, he's wearing
these clothes and he's still tipping. He's saying, but it's
the same basically the same bars. He's just updating it,
you know, and making it a little fresher. So of
course so even when we debate who has the hardest
verse on Still Tipping, it's like undebatable.
Speaker 4 (29:19):
You know. It's because you can't go wrong with anything.
All three different, three different, you know, different reasons. You know.
Slim was kind of the nostalgia version of it, and
of course he wrecked and it was the inspiration for
the song. You know.
Speaker 1 (29:31):
Uh, then Mike Jones, you know, him coming with it,
having his bars, me having my bars, all of that.
You know, so it just really all kind of came
together anyway, the perfect start with with the with the song.
Speaker 4 (29:41):
Okay. The next thing, you know, all I did was
just laid my verse to this do do Do Do
Do Do to that? Okay?
Speaker 1 (29:49):
Well, anyway, all the all the eight beats, they were
all from the same producer, Sally Williams, Carnival Beats. He's
the one who made He's Still Tipping sitting sideways. Back then,
they didn't want me to day all on me. A
lot of the two thousand hits for us, you know
what I'm saying.
Speaker 4 (30:05):
Even before that, he was iconic to us in Houston.
Speaker 1 (30:08):
There's a super iconic record level called rec Shot Records,
and Carnival Beats was like their in house production, so
Big MOESG some of Big Pokey Carnival Beats produced a
lot of their music that were radio hits, you know,
which was our classic hits for people from my era
(30:28):
in Houston, you know what I'm saying. So it was
to work with him, it was almost like, damn, we're
working with a big doll.
Speaker 4 (30:34):
We get to work with Sally Man. He produced dadd
he produced Dad, he produced that. Damn we get to
work with him.
Speaker 1 (30:40):
So it was very inspiring and it was one of
those times where you feel like you're making moves, you're
really doing something. So anyway, you know, I wrapped me
and Magno we rapped to the violin and then then
you know they're they're trying to find a way to
fly in these vocals. There was another beat this Sally
made it part of the eight because that song was
(31:01):
already done, but it was another beat that had the Nutcracker,
you know, the home alone Nutcracker.
Speaker 4 (31:07):
Dum dum dumb, don't dum, dumb dumb dum dom doom,
don't dum. It was a beat that had that sample
on it.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
Okay, the album was coming out around Christmas time, so
everybody was like, Okay, we're gonna fly in the rough
draft vocals what I call a rough draft. We're gonna
fly in the rough draft vocals on that beat. Because
it's Christmas.
Speaker 4 (31:25):
Time home alone, Nutcracker, all that type of stuff, it's
gonna be all it's gonna be a hit. You know.
Speaker 1 (31:29):
It's kind of almost kind of gimmicky because it was Christmas.
But I mean, at the same time, you never know,
we could have had we could have had our Mariah Carey.
Speaker 4 (31:37):
Moment, you know, for Christmas if it was on the
Nutcracker beat. But we didn't know.
Speaker 1 (31:42):
So this is all good. We got one to we
want to hip hop top fifty songs.
Speaker 4 (31:46):
It's all there.
Speaker 1 (31:47):
But anyway, you know, So anyway, there was a slight
debate over which beat they should use.
Speaker 4 (31:53):
Should have bet the Nutcracker beat. Na Ti Feris was like, man,
they need to beat this violin and they.
Speaker 1 (32:00):
Was like, well the violin beat is a little slower,
so we're gonna have to slow down the vocals.
Speaker 4 (32:06):
But t fails, Like what you mean, we just swished
the house. That's what we do.
Speaker 1 (32:08):
Anyway, we slowed down anyway, that's what we screwed up city.
Speaker 4 (32:12):
That's what you mean? And anyway they did it.
Speaker 1 (32:15):
They flew in in, they flew in Mike Jones and
slimmed up vocals on there, and then it was like, okay, well,
who are they gonna pick?
Speaker 4 (32:22):
Is it me or Magno? Like which verse?
Speaker 1 (32:24):
And they voted and it just ended up being me,
but Magno he had a hard verse two. And I'm
sure if they wouldn't have flew in the rough draft vocals,
he probably would have been on it too, because.
Speaker 4 (32:33):
He had a hard version.
Speaker 2 (32:34):
Is there anywhere we could find these songs? I definitely
want to hear the Nutcracker version.
Speaker 1 (32:39):
The Nutcracker version is it's a song. I don't know
the name of it, but it's a song that's on
the day Hell Broke Loose. I know Mike Jones is on.
Speaker 4 (32:45):
I don't know who else, but if you just listen
today Hell Broke Lose Part two, it's on there.
Speaker 1 (32:50):
Also Randy big Time, he ended up putting out the
what I call a rough draft vocals. I guess they
basically shared that or something I don't know, but he
basically put that on on his version as well with
the beat he made so in his uh the name
of his album. I forgot because he ended up putting
out with rap a lot. It was called uh man,
(33:13):
I can't remember what it was called. Yeah, it might
have had something to do with the hair broke. Maybe
it's like the day after hell broke. I can't But
if you just google big Time and it's big Time,
the time is spelled with a why.
Speaker 4 (33:25):
I believe big Time with a why. But if you
look it up, it's is there. You'll find it.
Speaker 1 (33:30):
Or you'll look up, you know, just other still tipping version.
Matter of fact, Commillionaire was on what I called a
rough draft version.
Speaker 4 (33:36):
He was on that version. Uh you know.
Speaker 1 (33:38):
But you know, even I didn't know I was gonna
be on a song, so I didn't know they voted
and I'm on the song all this. I just remember
T Ferris pulling up to you one day. He had
his jag and I remember I remember he pulled up.
He had a cool a smile. This is the biggest
smile I've ever seen t Fairs. He went smiling like
this when we got our deal. He won, smiled like
this when Platinum nominated for Grammys. He I never seen
(34:01):
a smile like this before. He had a kool Aid
ear to ear smile, and I'm just like, what now, okay.
Speaker 4 (34:07):
Look.
Speaker 1 (34:09):
Also, he pulling up and he like, hey, I gotta
let you hear something, and he playing me the Violent Song,
and I'm thinking he's smiling.
Speaker 4 (34:20):
Nah, it's obviously jamming.
Speaker 1 (34:22):
When I'm hearing it in his jag and I'm hearing
still tipping, it's jamming. But when I was listening to
it on the boom box, the little CD player, it
wasn't jamming to me or anyone else that heard it.
Speaker 4 (34:34):
Mike Jones refused to rap on it. He was like, man,
I'm not rapping on it.
Speaker 1 (34:38):
Everybody, everybody that were the only reason why I wrapped
on it was because I was just hungry.
Speaker 4 (34:43):
I'm like, man, you could fart on the beat. I'm
gonna rap on it, you know what I'm saying. And
Magno too. I don't know.
Speaker 1 (34:47):
Maybe Magno thought it was hard, but everybody, all the artists,
we were like, I don't know about that one. You
know what I'm saying, But it's because of how we
heard its.
Speaker 4 (34:56):
Least. That's my that's.
Speaker 2 (34:59):
Every How you call it the violent song, I'm like,
that is so crap, man.
Speaker 4 (35:03):
But T Ferris pulled up.
Speaker 1 (35:05):
I'm thinking he just letting me hear the violent song,
and I'm I'm really thinking he just.
Speaker 4 (35:11):
Put it in my face? Did Yeah, I told you
this shit was jamming.
Speaker 1 (35:14):
I told you I was right because te Ferris used
to be right, and I would be wrong all the time.
Speaker 4 (35:18):
I have no problem being wrong.
Speaker 1 (35:20):
I love it when I'm wrong because you're right.
Speaker 4 (35:23):
We running whatever. That's cool.
Speaker 1 (35:25):
I mean because a lot of what I go off
of is my personal preference, and my personal preference is
a little niche. So Tee Faris have more of a
mainstream or global mind frame of how to like take
me whatever I can capable of my style and show
that to the world and something that they can digest,
you know. So he you know he was. I was
just like thinking, this is one of those moments. I'm
(35:47):
thinking he playing the song. I hear the rough draft
on there, so I'm like, oh, this is the older
version of still tipping, the rough draft version.
Speaker 4 (35:55):
This on the violent song.
Speaker 1 (35:56):
So I'm immediately thinking, I'm not on there, me off.
They took me off of there, and he just letting me.
He's smiling because he's like, yeah, I was right. I
told you I was right to see jamming and.
Speaker 4 (36:06):
He for sure was right. My boy was right. Well
that shit was jamming.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
But I'll never forget when I'm just like, oh, damn,
slim on there, and I'm like, damn, I'm kind of
feeling like a little deflated let down, like damn, it
should have been hard man, slim thug on there, Mike Jones,
and now I'm not on there, like damn, man fuck.
Speaker 4 (36:25):
And then so anyways, he like, not just wait to wait,
I got something. I got surprise for you. I have
surprised for you.
Speaker 1 (36:30):
Just playing, he playing playing, and of course I got
the third verse and my verse come in.
Speaker 4 (36:34):
I'm like, damn, I'm on there. I'll make the cut.
I ain't get I ain't get took out.
Speaker 1 (36:37):
Because also at the time, Michael Watch used to be
notorious for taking people verses off. Sometimes it was because
it's there is an abundance of verses, so, you know,
and the song can only be three minutes, four minutes,
you know, especially just getting played on the radio, song
can be no twelve minutes long.
Speaker 4 (36:53):
You know.
Speaker 1 (36:55):
Well, he was notorious for taking people off, so I'm
thinking he's taking me off with a song. So just
knowing that I made the cutting, I'm on the song. Also,
this was like my first song ever with Slim Thug.
We didnet been on freestyles together, but it is like
my first song with slim Thug. I gotta tell you,
slimp Thug I always been the big homie. He's the
same age came, but he always been the boss.
Speaker 4 (37:15):
So employ you get to work with the boss. You
know what, employe, you get to sit at the boss
and table. Okay.
Speaker 1 (37:21):
I was decided of it. So when he let me
hear it, I was like, damn boy you. From that
point on, I was like, Hey, don't even ask me
what I want to write to. You tell me what
I need to write to. Still sit sideways, Hey, you
tell me what? Hey, whatever beat you telling to.
Speaker 4 (37:34):
Rat to, I'm rapping to it. Wow, I'm I'll never
forget being in the studio when we did. Back then,
they didn't want me. Mike Jones song.
Speaker 1 (37:40):
Mike Jones had a slightly different perspective. He had another
song on his album on his solo album that Mike
Jones just he just knew it was gonna be a hit.
It was a song he made about his grandma. He
was singing on it old Grandma and he felt like
people could relate because everybody love that Grandma And he
felt like, Okay, I maybe don't have a singing voice,
(38:01):
but Usher got vocal lessons.
Speaker 4 (38:04):
Beyonce got vocal lessons. Well, I can give vocal training
and I can learn how to sing like Usher.
Speaker 1 (38:08):
Well, you do have to have a little basis of talent,
you know, every matter how hard you work, everybody can't
sound like Beyonce or so. But you know, I mean,
his perspective was he felt like, you know, the Grandma
song people could relate to, but a.
Speaker 3 (38:23):
Lot of artists be doing that.
Speaker 2 (38:24):
I always tell my artist friends like, you need somebody
else to take it because the one that you love
is only sentimental and it's.
Speaker 4 (38:32):
Okay to be wrong. And I was wrong about still tipping.
Speaker 3 (38:35):
Thank god, thank god, I'm selling right now.
Speaker 4 (38:38):
If you come and see me and show at a concert.
Speaker 1 (38:41):
Every song I sing other than one song who is
somebody else? It was mostly T Fairs, but there's one
song Swinging in the Rain, that's my idea.
Speaker 4 (38:53):
Every other song was.
Speaker 1 (38:54):
T Fairs or someone else saying hey, you need to
do this, and me being like, I don't know, but
I'll do it for you, and it ended up working
and it is so it worked up. So Mike Jones
when he did back then they didn't want me. T
Ferris like I got just beat the same producer Sally
he made back He's simple something you said, and still
Tipping made a song and Mike Jones like, nah, they
(39:15):
ain't it. This it the Grandma song. It Well, all
I knew was T.
Speaker 4 (39:19):
Ferris is always right.
Speaker 1 (39:20):
So I'm like, I don't know what song is it,
but whatever one fans say, that's the one I'm going with.
You know. But like I said, man, of course he
was right about back then they didn't want me to.
Speaker 4 (39:29):
There was a smash it for Mike Jones to. So
you know, it's okay to be wrong artists. Is okay
to be wrong? All right?
Speaker 2 (39:37):
Real quick, before we go, we always play this segment
called Questions that he answers. All you gotta do is
fell in the blank. The older I get, the less
I the older.
Speaker 4 (39:45):
What's the opposite of anxiety?
Speaker 3 (39:49):
I calm?
Speaker 4 (39:50):
Okay, the older I get, the less I calm. Because
the older I get, the more I got.
Speaker 3 (39:54):
Stress, the more I stressed.
Speaker 4 (39:57):
The older I get, the more I stressed.
Speaker 1 (39:58):
I mean, some of it be big because you know,
I know how precious life is, so I appreciate certain things.
So I'm very you know, although I'm one hundred percent
somebody who is like I live by faith and I
believe in faith in God's will. So if something happens
good or bad, especially because so many good things happen
to me, you know, in the mix of something bad
(40:19):
happened or something bad happening, and the result is something
good not something bad. So just because I'm bad happened,
no meaning that just is you know, God pivoting and
changing sometimes your path.
Speaker 4 (40:30):
So I'm a firm believer in that.
Speaker 1 (40:31):
But even that being said, I still stress about my kids,
my family, things like that. And you know, it's mostly
things like that, and it's like, you know, them going
out into the world and things happen into them when
I'm not there, or things that you know.
Speaker 4 (40:45):
I have no control over anyway.
Speaker 1 (40:48):
Yeah, and it's just like, man, I just you know,
you know, and even if something bad happens, which it does,
you know, I still stress. So the older I get,
unless I call it, I get, the more I stress.
Speaker 2 (41:02):
Man.
Speaker 3 (41:02):
I hate that, but it's understood. My dad told me
one day I'll understand. So yeah, okay, the things.
Speaker 1 (41:08):
To do when I as soon as I had kids,
everything changed about.
Speaker 4 (41:13):
My perspective on life. And some of it was a
gradual change, some of it was a switch. But as
soon as the instant switch.
Speaker 1 (41:21):
Was how how I walk, how I moved when I'm
when I'm even married, before you have kids. When you're married,
it's different. When you have kids, it's it's different. But
when you I don't know, like I mean, like I
used to be kind of risky, you know, like I
where I would hang out or where I would live
or you know, I was in I was on the block,
you know. So it's like, now you got kids, it's
(41:41):
like okay, with people dying right in front of your face.
Speaker 4 (41:44):
Maybe yeah, you got two months to lose, you know.
Speaker 1 (41:48):
But you know, I realized that, you know, if something
happens to me, I'm not just the only one affected there.
You know, my kids are directly affected, my wife is,
everybody's affected, you know, if something happens to me.
Speaker 4 (41:59):
So I got you know, take that in consideration.
Speaker 3 (42:03):
You would never believe me if I told you.
Speaker 1 (42:07):
You would never believe me if I told you how
much I did not think still tipping the violence.
Speaker 4 (42:16):
You will never believe me.
Speaker 1 (42:18):
I mean, I almost don't believe because when I hear
it's still tipping instrumental, that's your jamin. But when I
first heard it, it wasn't to me.
Speaker 4 (42:28):
So thank god I was wrong. You would never believe
me if I told you how much I did not
believe in that song.
Speaker 3 (42:34):
That's true, all right. Sometimes I look back at my life.
Speaker 4 (42:38):
And sometimes I look back at my life.
Speaker 1 (42:43):
Always I look back in my life, and I'm so grateful,
you know, for every lesson I learned, for every blessing
I received, for all the people that have I've crossed
path with that I was just blessed to be in
their presence or to know them or befriend you know,
I'm always grateful, always, And when I look back at
my life, it's just a immense amount of gratitude, even
(43:08):
for the negative things that happen, because they certainly shaped
who I am and who I become. So, you know,
some of the some of the worst things that happened
to me, they made me the best version of me. So,
you know, I think back to you know, what if
certain things, what if you know I grew up, you know,
in a two parent household, my parents getting get divorced,
(43:28):
and my biological follow was in a doul fiend. Well,
maybe I might be out here, you know, with a
different type of po wow. You know, maybe I wouldn't
be who I am.
Speaker 4 (43:37):
You know.
Speaker 1 (43:37):
So some of the things that I grew up with,
they you know, they let me down certain paths or
you know, or had me become influenced by certain people
that really shaped who I am.
Speaker 3 (43:47):
Character development, Character development.
Speaker 2 (43:52):
My last question is three things you would tell your
eighteen year old self.
Speaker 4 (43:56):
Three things I would tell my eighteen year old self.
One is have an open mind.
Speaker 1 (44:04):
You know, it's okay to be wrong, like I'm saying,
because you know, sometimes when you feel the sentimental things
with the music you're creative, you feel biased about it
because it's sentimental to you.
Speaker 4 (44:15):
But it is okay to be wrong. Have an open
mind because people are sharing their perspective, and sometimes their
perspective is a little broader or more general perspective than
my niche perspective. So that's number one.
Speaker 1 (44:28):
Number two I would share is work as hard as
you can. There there are you know, there's two times
where I just really regret, like man, I wish I
could have did that, but just through the circumstance I
couldn't through the time. And one was when ghost Face
Killer asked me to get on his album and I
was traveling. He was like, hey, I want you on
the song, you know, But it was like I kind
(44:50):
of like, I got like a day or two to
do it.
Speaker 4 (44:53):
Well, I was on tour. It just was not possible
for me to do it.
Speaker 1 (44:57):
But I always regret that I was not on ghost
Face Killer's album, and I think, damn man, I wish
there was some way I could have made it happen.
Speaker 4 (45:05):
And another one was with Jill Scott.
Speaker 1 (45:07):
You know, of course we got a song so Gone together,
but she asked me to get on another song before.
Speaker 4 (45:11):
That, and I dropped the ball on it. I did
a verse. I was on tour too.
Speaker 1 (45:16):
I did a verse and I was like, Okay, this
ain't gonna be like the ghost Face Kill.
Speaker 4 (45:19):
I'm a find a way to do it.
Speaker 1 (45:20):
So I recorded it in the bathroom on the tour bus.
Speaker 4 (45:24):
You know that's not really Jill Scott caliber, you.
Speaker 3 (45:27):
Know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1 (45:28):
Just guy was like hey, and also having done the
song was so gone with her in person, knowing how
she works.
Speaker 4 (45:37):
She has a vision. She's not just like I wonder
how this is gonna sound.
Speaker 1 (45:41):
She has a vision that she's trying to, you know,
incorporate and make happen.
Speaker 4 (45:46):
So you know, when we're not together, we can't really
she can't share that vision with me.
Speaker 1 (45:50):
So it just it didn't work out, you know, and
she still put the song out, you know, without me,
and I'm just like, damn.
Speaker 4 (45:56):
Man, I miss my chance.
Speaker 1 (45:57):
Man.
Speaker 4 (45:58):
I love Jill Scott.
Speaker 1 (46:00):
Oh my god, I loved your Scott. So when I
got the second chance, it was like my redemption song,
you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 4 (46:08):
And I'm like, hey, what ever you want me to say, dude? Whatever?
A yes, of course I loved your Scott.
Speaker 1 (46:15):
But the last thing I would tell my eighteen year
old self is just continue to be grateful.
Speaker 4 (46:19):
You know what I'm saying. Just continue to be grateful
because it's something that you know, It changes your perspective.
Speaker 1 (46:25):
About things, you know what I'm saying, Because if you're
looking for something to be upset about, it's there for every.
Speaker 4 (46:30):
Person on this earth.
Speaker 1 (46:31):
You're looking for something to be mad about, you will
find it. But also, if you're looking for something to
be grateful about You'll find that too. So, you know,
although I've always kind of been to people's champion, had
a positive attitude, that is for sure something I would
tell my eighteen year old self to say, man, look
full positivity, because you will find it.
Speaker 3 (46:50):
I love that. Thank you so much, Thank you so
New project this Friday.
Speaker 4 (46:59):
Friday might be out by driving.
Speaker 3 (47:03):
We'll figure it out.
Speaker 4 (47:06):
New albums out right now, New albums out right now.
Speaker 3 (47:09):
Let you guys tune in.
Speaker 4 (47:10):
Talk soon already m hm mm hmmm
Host
Nyla Symone
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