Song Breakdown #19: "Da Grind" by Masta Ace ft. Apocalyspe

Today, Desmond returns with an honest and heartfelt breakdown of Juice Crew legend Masta Ace's "Da Grind" off his album A Long Hot Summer. Dez provides a relatable outlook on the ups and downs of chasing one's dream, connecting the similar thoughts Masta Ace and Apocalypse share in their verses in the effort to inspire you to stay the course as you pursue your own dreams and goals.

Enjoy and share your thoughts! Thank you for all the support! - Dez

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
A beautiful aspect about hip hop is when it meets
you where you are. Whether it's a song you've listened
to hundreds or even thousands of times, or a song
that's new to your ears, it's always nice to be
reminded of the relatability hip hop can bring. There have
been many songs that have Darnier served as therapy for
my life, simply because I could see myself in the artist.
And this past week I actually have one of those moments.

(00:22):
I've listened to and been inspired by the Grind by
master Ace on several occasions, but last week it hit different,
just because the words hit a little closer to home.
Master Ace and Apocalypse use one verse each to express
the ups and downs they face as they chase their
own dreams, ultimately inspiring listeners like you and I to
chase our dreams. So today it was only right that

(00:44):
I share that experience with you, because we're all on
some kind of grind. Mine, of course, is more obvious
with what you see with hip to the Games, but
I also think about how maybe you are a single parent,
or an inspiring artist, or an athlete, a business owner,
a doctor, or something else, and I may not always
have the words to relate to you or inspire you,

(01:05):
even because I struggle with the similar ups and downs
that come with chasing the grind. But thankfully mastera Ace
puts some of those in rhyme form, and today we
can let this hip hop legend encourage us to keep
a level head while we embrace our own grind. Welcome
to Hip to the Games, the podcast for you, the
basketball junkie and the hip hop hit. I'm your host,

(01:26):
Desmond and I too have had hoop dreams and enjoy
the beautiful genre of hip hop and its history. Together
we will enjoy some of the greatest albums, songs, artists, players, moments, teams,
and so much more, while even mixing the two on occasion.
All in my hope that you remember why you love
both or either of these to begin with.

Speaker 2 (01:44):
You'll soon understand that Hip to the Games is more
than just a podcast. It's a lifestyle.

Speaker 1 (01:49):
And if you were looking for a platform that combines
both basketball and hip hop, you've come to the right place.

(02:10):
Welcome to this episode of Hip to the Games. All right,
shout out to you if you are a loyal listener
and our Hip to the Games. Okay, you see me
rocking the shirt today, I'm feeling myself. If I'm being honest,
you know, always good to represent and you can do
the same, all right. But whether you're listening on your
favorite platform or watching on YouTube right now, I sincerely

(02:31):
thank you for your support however you show it. And
if you happen to be a new member of the
H two DG family today, welcome. I am happy to
have you on board. I'm happy to have you here.
If throughout this episode you like what you're hearing, be
sure to hit that subscribe or follow button on whatever
platform you're listening to or watching on now to stay

(02:51):
tapped in with all things Hip to the Games. And
before we get into today's episode, you already know the drill,
all right. I gotta get my pregame shoutouts out the way.
The first one always goes to the creative director Jesus
Christ for another Hip to the Games episode, as it's
always a blessing to get in front of this microphone
and do what he's put in my heart to do.
And the second one goes to my nineteen media group family. Okay,

(03:13):
it's always a privilege to represent the home team. I
know you see that blue and white logo in the corner,
that's my squad. Those are my teammates. I you know,
be sure to follow nineteen m group on Twitter, nineteen
Media Group on Instagram and YouTube to follow everything going
on with the network as we got a variety of
shows around sports, music culture hosted by some passionate independent podcasters.

(03:35):
And I'm sure you can find another teammate of mine
to support, you know, whether it's through listens, likes, comments, views, reposts,
buy and merch any of that support is seen and felt,
and it's sincerely appreciated. And I do want to take
the time to say thank you if you voted for
the show, if you voted for Hip to the Games
to be named Best Basketball Podcast in the twenty twenty

(03:58):
five Sports Podcast Awards. Okay, my gratitude is infinite, and
you know, now it's time to wait for the results
that are gonna be revealed on January thirtieth. So of
course I just wanted to say thank you now that
the voting has been closed, because if I'm honest, I'm
not really stressing about the outcome. You know, it's a
blessing to even be in the conversation.

Speaker 2 (04:17):
So I'm just.

Speaker 1 (04:19):
Incredibly thankful for your support in that way. And of course,
you know, while we don't have to worry you much
about this, for this song that I'm breaking down today,
given that this is a hip to the game's breakdown,
you know, I gotta give my disclaimer. You should know
that I keep it clean over here, so you will
hear me sensor curse words and even reword lines as
I try my best to avoid sexual innuendos, vulgarity, just

(04:40):
anything that ain't clean. But you better believe, Okay, you
better ask somebody that you will enjoy this episode. You'll
leave with a smile or a laugh and or simply
a reminder of why you love hip hop in the
first place. Okay, why we love this beautiful genre and culture.
I So, with all that said, let's get into some
personal and artists background of the grind by the legendary

(05:03):
master Ace featuring Apocalypse. Now, if you've listened to Hips
the Games before, then you'll know that I have no
issues letting you behind the curtain every now and then.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, no
matter the platform, whether it was an NBA player, radio personality, podcaster,
YouTube creator. I told myself at a young age that

(05:24):
I would let people know what my journey was actually
like because people tend to gloss over the hard days
that come with dream chasing, you know. So I'm gonna
be honest and say the last several days I felt
empty as a creator, which I'm sure is surprising in
some ways because I'm usually smiling and trying to be

(05:47):
bold and put myself out there and walk in confidence
even if I got a fake it low key, you know,
all while being encouraging and positive and just truly trying
to be the light that God causes to be. You know,
I enjoy my hobbies. I enjoy my passions. You know,
I find joy in expressing joy of the Lord because
this world needs more of it, right. I always try
to be that guy. But and you know, of course

(06:10):
I enjoy sharing my interest with people like you. That's
one of the reasons why this podcast exists. And you know,
as I always said, I enjoy basketball and hip hop
for what they are. I don't give a blank about
hot takes. I don't put out content for engagement. I
don't make statements just because you know, I don't care
for nor find the thrill of debates. If I'm being honest,

(06:33):
like I just love getting to the root of why
fans like you and I love hoops and love hip hop.
But what happens when I'm not feeling any of those things?
You know, what happens if I'm not feeling those positive
emotions and those dopamine hits. Right, What am I supposed

(06:53):
to do when all the passion and the work I
put inside one podcast episode and I'm really proud of it,
but it gets twenty views, right, and it leaves me
drained where like the next day, you know, I'm waking
up with eyestrain because I was staring at a laptop
in an iPad for ten, twelve, even fourteen hours, you know,

(07:17):
Or when that kind of work has me question in
my purpose, has me questioning my love for.

Speaker 2 (07:22):
What I do.

Speaker 1 (07:22):
Do I really love it like I say I love it?
And you know, of course I gotta be all the
way real with you. There are days where you know,
there are ten NBA games on a night, some of
my favorite players are playing, some of the most exciting
teams are set to face off.

Speaker 2 (07:39):
But here I am.

Speaker 1 (07:41):
Sitting in my room, I'm playing NBA two k sixteen.
Yeah you heard that right? Or dare I say NBA
Live O six I'll bust out the PlayStation two sometimes
and I'm just reminiscing on the NBA and the styles
of basketball I grew up learning and loving. Yet the
whole time I'm doing that, my brain is like, man,

(08:02):
what do you want? It's no wonder why you can't
find no mass success and your endeavors. You can't even
watch a game from today's era, ten games tonight, full
of exciting players, and you worry about the past.

Speaker 2 (08:14):
And then even then say say.

Speaker 1 (08:15):
Those games are on a Sunday or a Monday. I'm
literally sacrificing watching NBA games so my podcast content can.

Speaker 2 (08:24):
Be ready for the week.

Speaker 1 (08:25):
And still it don't stop there, because don't get me
started on hip hop, right, it is hip to the game,
So I gotta be tapped into both. And while most
of my peers my age, they're tapped into guys like
Larry June, Rock, Marciano Boldi, James Smino, like I'm just
admittedly I'm just not as familiar with a lot of
those guys catalogs. And you know, it's cool because music

(08:48):
is subjective, you know, maybe I'll get into their stuff
when I'm thirty five, in thirty six, right instead of
twenty six. You know, music reaches us at different points.

Speaker 2 (08:56):
Of our lives. That's the beautiful thing about it.

Speaker 1 (08:58):
And shoot, I still got to listen to Red album.
You know, all these things are coming to my mind.
But you know, truth be told, Sometimes I find myself
struggling to find that desire or inspiration to tap in.
Sometimes sometimes I want to just listen to my playlist
of songs that's you know, just near and dear to me,
Like I don't have like the bandwidth.

Speaker 2 (09:21):
I guess I could say to.

Speaker 1 (09:24):
Tap into a different artist, you know, But then of course,
in my brain when that happens, it's like, oh, here
you go. Now you call yourself hip to the games
and you can't even you know what I'm saying. You
not even tapped in all the way. Yeah, I So
I say all that to say this past week I
felt pretty empty and pretty drained. You know, I tweeted

(09:45):
if you followed me on Twitter, you know, I tweeted
one day and I think it was just again, it
was one of those tweets I was just thinking out loud,
So you probably didn't even see it, but it was
like I just felt like the Lord was testing my endurance.
You know, the NBA TI topics weren't just popping in
my head like they usually do. You know, I'm struggling
to pursue the hip hop centered ideas that I've just

(10:06):
been sitting in the back of my mind like old vinyls,
you know. You know, I'm comparing myself to bigger creators
and getting discouraged. I'm worried that my efforts are worthless,
that they won't lead to anything. I start questioning why
anybody should even entertain this, right, I'm getting disappointed that

(10:27):
I've recorded one hundred plus episodes of this thing, put
so much thought and effort and oftentimes research into them,
and people might not even listen to those, you know,
and I start to feel an anxious pressure to make
it quote unquote because I feel like I got all

(10:48):
the tools to find success. Yet from what I can see,
at least, it doesn't look like I'm close. And you know,
people say there's room for everybody to eat, right there,
there's room for everybody to when, but sometimes it don't
seem like it. Sometimes it don't seem like it you know,
some of my closest homies are progressing in their careers,

(11:09):
progressing in their lives in general, and yet here I
am chasing a dream or a passion that I don't
even know what the true end goal is. You know,
I don't even think there's an end goal quote unquote.
You know, I've always just tried to like, I do
this for the love of it, you know, And you
mean to tell me it might take six or even
ten more years of these up and down days, all

(11:33):
of these emotions that I'm describing before I see sustainable success.
Like again, I'm being a hundred with you. This is
what this platform is all about. I'm being a hundred
with you. So I know I'm getting a little long winded,
but that was the mindset I was in. Nothing was
clicking for me, and so I took it as a
sign to embrace it and just like let these feelings

(11:54):
play out, like your human feel these feelings. Obviously knowing
that at some point I need to plan some content.
Hip to the Games is gonna be coming up for
a new episode. Obviously, I still want to tap in
with my solo YouTube channel, like I know at some
point something's gotta click. But at the same time, I'm
still trusting God that he had my back in the
midst of what I was feeling. And so finally, after

(12:16):
what was really another day of hopeless procrastination, I go
on YouTube music, hit one of my playlists, one of
my go to playlists, and decide to listen to the
Grind by master Ace, And suddenly it's like, like life
felt a little bit more relatable, you know, the way
I'm meditating on that instrumental and being touched by the

(12:38):
relatability of them lyrics and just thinking of my life.
It's darned near making my eyes sweat, you know what
I'm saying. You know, real ones cry to You know,
it was darn near making my eyes sweat, and you
know that's what music is for, right like and then
and then it happened, God spoke, this is what you
need to give them. Notice he didn't merely say say

(13:00):
make this your next episode, post this video. This is content.
God is not a god of content. He's a God
of people. And I realized he was essentially telling me,
des this is what you feel. These are your real
life feelings. This hip hop song helped you kind of
release the things that you couldn't describe with your words,

(13:21):
the things that you were sitting with. Isn't this what
your platform is about? You bring this to them while
you point to me. You need to give them this
practice what you preach, right, you say, this is an
authentic platform to match the authenticity of hip hop, Like,
don't polish yourself up, don't feel like you gotta look

(13:42):
like you gotta be put together to do this. Give
them this because this is real life. This is what
people need. Do what I put in you to do,
use your love of hip hop to have fun, love others,
and most of all point to me. And then it
was like riding a bike. After that, suddenly I had
an abundant amount of inspiration for my next episode, which
is what you're listening to now. And I can't tell

(14:05):
you how much more of some of the past hip
to the game's episodes came to be in similar ways,
you know. So I say all this to say and
introduce my breakdown of mas to Ace's two thousand and
four single to Grind featuring Apocalypse, because if you're in
a similar situation to me and have experienced similar feelings,
you know, to master Ace and apocalypse. You know all

(14:27):
about the grind, you know all what comes with the grind,
and I mentioned it in the previous episode. But if
you're if you're newer, you don't remember.

Speaker 2 (14:36):
Master Ace is a Juice Crew legend. Okay. Years before
the Wu, years before a.

Speaker 1 (14:41):
Tribe called Quest, there was the Juice Crew, okay, which
consisted of DJ Marley mal Big Daddy, Kane mc sham,
Bismarquis Cool g rap Roxanne Chante, and Master Ace to
name a few. And recognize all of these artists were special, Okay.
I know. I expressed a similar point with the Wu
Tang clan, same thing with the Juice Crew. You know,

(15:02):
Marley Marl got hot in his neighborhood and he became
like the go to DJ producer if you were an
aspiring rapper. You know, if you could get a hold
of his attention, you had a shot at a successful career.
You know, Big Daddy came. He needs no introduction. But again,
this is a guy who was known for his smooth delivery,
smooth persona, versatile flow patterns, most notably his fast raps.

(15:25):
You know, to rap fast while still saying something, you know,
even though it was off in Braggadosha. He could switch
his flow up, you know, the late great rest his
soul biz Marquis.

Speaker 2 (15:34):
He was the character.

Speaker 1 (15:35):
You know, he could rhyme, he could tell stories, he
could beat box, he could produce. You know, he could
put on a show that was worth watching. You know
he could rock a party for show. You know, he
was an all around talent. You know mc shan. He's
widely known for beefing with KRS one, you know, and
igniting the Juice Crew VERSU Buogie Down productions battles and
beef with the Bridge. Kougi Rap is a hidden goat,

(15:59):
if I must say, you know, his style carries the
kind of perfection that only the best have. Yet among
general fans, he doesn't always get in that conversation. Obviously,
those of us who know.

Speaker 2 (16:10):
Will include him.

Speaker 1 (16:11):
You'll hear a lot of ogs include him in their
top five or Mount Rushmore as you could say. But again, he,
similar to Kane, possessed a lyrical dexterity that many MC's
wanted to copy. And then you got Roxane Chante right,
the woman, right, the first lady. She comes up as
the best battle rapper in her hood while just a
teenager I'm talking like high school, you know, like the

(16:33):
early years, and then she quickly got the attention of
Marley Marrow and you know, so without turning this into
a Juice Crew episode, they were an all star crew
filled with legends. Not even using that word lightly either. Okay,
like I said, I know, we do that a lot
because we got legends in our hearts. But this is
a true legend, okay, genuine hip hop legends coming out
of the Juice Crew. Now, the most fascinating thing though

(16:56):
about Master Ace is that, given he is a Juice
Crew member, his career stretches back as far as the eighties,
but he credits his work post two thousand and one
for his longevity up to this point, as his work
since then has been able to draw in younger fans. So,
you know, while ogs remember his work from the eighties
and the nineties and even to this day, he makes
music right, most notably with Marco Polo. But one of

(17:18):
the main reasons fans appreciate him and his albums like
the classic Disposable Arts or the relatable you Know Along
Hot Summer, is the fact that he takes immense pride
in making conceptual albums. You know whether fictional or fact based.
Master Ace makes albums the way they're supposed to be made,
with a purpose and a theme in mind. Okay, And

(17:41):
again there's so much talk nowadays of like whether or
not you should do a conceptual album or whatever. And
it's the thing I always say is, especially the younger generation,
like they don't understand that that was once an industry standard.
Everybody was making concept albums. Everybody had some kind of
like person, right or idea that was coming to the

(18:03):
forefront of their album. That was an industry standard. And
master Ace took that and made that like he does that.

Speaker 2 (18:10):
For his career, right.

Speaker 1 (18:12):
And of course when you have conceptual albums, that means
storytelling becomes even more important. And master Ace used A
Long Hot Summer as a prequel to Disposable Arts. So
obviously a Long Hot Summer came after Disposable Arts, but
along Hot Summer served the concept was that it was
a prequel to the story that was told in Disposable Arts.

(18:33):
You know, the albums detail the journey of an aspiring
slept on MC in a tough music industry. And again
that sounds like a lot of MC's we know, right,
But the album is filled with instrumentals from producers like
Ninth Wonder Crisis, who actually produced the dreamy, hopeful sounds
of the Grind, and master Ace himself. Even so, with

(18:54):
a self explanatory title, master Ace partners with Apocalypse, who
I actually couldn't find any information on as far as
background whatsoever. A lot of stuff it was hard to find.
But together they use this song to chronicle their respective
journeys as MC's And what I like is that even
with master Ace's career success, you know, him being out

(19:14):
of the Juice Crew, He's able to express the struggles
that come with that, and I appreciate how Apocalypse can
tap into the struggle of tasting the dreams of the
future while wrestling with the realities of the present. So overall,
just some extremely relatable verses from both of these guys.
So without further ado, we can get into the breakdown

(19:36):
of the Grind by master Ace featuring Apocalypse. I mean,
if you take those lyrics and you pull them away
from the music and you put them up on the
wall and someone had to look at them, they would sing,
this is genius.

Speaker 2 (19:49):
This is genius work.

Speaker 1 (19:52):
So as the beat starts, master Ace gives a shout out,
specifically dedicating the song to those who find themselves trying
to make ends meet common goal of the grind.

Speaker 2 (20:01):
Right. Ultimately, our respective grinds are in the.

Speaker 1 (20:04):
Effort to provide for ourselves doing what we enjoy doing,
or for some of us, you know, simply doing what
we have to do so we can take care of
those we love. Either way, Master Ace knows who the
song is for and establishes it early, and then we
get the first rendition of the chorus, I'm on the grind,
still got my money on my mind, and I feel

(20:26):
like I'm walking on the line. When it seems like
I'm running out of time, That's when I'm going on
the grind. And what I love about this hook is
that it's a simple picture of the day to day workflow, right,
Like I just said, you want to provide, you want
to find a way to make money in some ways
it's And what struck me is that it's kind of

(20:46):
an indirect callback to rock him right, thinking of a
master plan. Because the ain't nothing but sweating inside my hands.
So why I dig into my pocket all my money
is spent. I dig deeper, still coming up with Lynch,
So why start mission leave my residents thinking how I
can get some dead presidents? Right? Master Ace is trying

(21:07):
to detail his mission as an aspiring MC, and I
believe he uses the idiom of feeling like he's walking
on the line to describe the pressure of his journey.
You know, because in particular, when you're pursuing your passion,
every day you fight that line between your dreams and reality.
You know you dream too much, and you know you
realize at some point you got to.

Speaker 2 (21:28):
Get to action.

Speaker 1 (21:29):
You get too realistic, and you might experience regret that
you didn't maintain that childlike joy or innocence to chase
what you desire deep down. So from Mass to Ace,
he makes the wise choice of following his heart and
continuing that grind and being willing to fight that line,
because we can presume that he would much rather use
his god gifted time to chase the grind work toward

(21:53):
his dream than live with regret. And this idea really
flows smoothly into his verse. I'm trying to make my
dollars double. I done found a place to fit in
for brothers trying to get into this power struggle. I
work hard on the job like immigrants and always trying
to get my first half in advance. All right, So
technique wise, Master Ace has a smooth flow and pace okay,

(22:16):
a lot like NBA Phenom shake, Gilgris Alexander Okay, not
too fast, not too slow, just right. While not in
an exact rhyme, though, he does a great job showcasing
his syllability matching power struggle with dollars double right, and
then he even bends his pronunciation of immigrants to match
in advance right, work hard like immigrants to get my

(22:39):
first half in advance, okay. But message wise, these lines
detail how Master Ace is a hard worker. He's found
its footing as an MC in the industry that is
very difficult to crack, and he stays on top of
his responsibilities. You know, he respects his current circumstances as
he yearns for greater success. You know, he stewards he's

(23:00):
a good steward of where he's at, so he can
be a greater steward of what's to come. Right, That's
kind of his mindset here, I feel like. Then he
shifts the conversation a bit, and then he continues his verse,
expressing the realities of a rap career. It sounds strange,
but the rap game is not a game. You can
make a lot of money, gain a lot of fame,
but don't.

Speaker 2 (23:20):
Get it twisted.

Speaker 1 (23:21):
You could get addicted by a mansion in the Hamptons
and get evicted. So one of the first lyrical details
you may notice is how master Ace plays on the
phrase the rap game by saying that it's not a game, right,
It's not something to play with. It's not all sunshine
and rainbows. As I've mentioned a few times on the
show before, you know, if your values are in the

(23:42):
wrong place, it can be very easy to fall into
the bottomless pit of the stardom that can come with
a career in rap. Right. That's why I always make
it very clear to you and people that I come across, like, yo,
are you doing this for hip hop or are you
merely just chasing a rap career? Because there's a difference, especially,

(24:03):
and that's why I take so much pride in this.
There's a difference. There's a difference that I feel like
the younger generation, for obvious reasons, just doesn't understand, you know,
and you can for me, you can go back and
look at every single interview I've done on this podcast. Okay,
it's not a whole lot, but it's a great handful.

(24:23):
From d Skills Harris to Adrian Rose, every single artist
I've had on here so far has their values in
the right place. You hear it when they speak, You
hear it in the answers they give that they.

Speaker 2 (24:36):
Love hip hop.

Speaker 1 (24:38):
They take pride in the foundational principles and values of
this thing that we created way back in the late seventies.
They want to reach people with their words. You know,
a big house and a nice whip and all the
doe in the world is a bonus. It's a bonus,
but it's not the main thing. So master Ace to me,

(24:59):
I think he touches on that here. You know, fame
and money may come, but don't get it twisted. Even
you with all that fame and money and status and whatever,
you can get addicted to the fruits to the point
you lose everything you ever worked for. Even with that
mansion you bought, you can get evicted. You aren't immune

(25:20):
to losing those things because you have that money and
that success. And this goes for everybody, right, not even
just musicians, but anybody who is able to reap those
kind of fruits. You know, you got to make sure
your mind is in the right place. And after placing
this kind of proceed with caution sign if you will.
At this point in his verse for fellow aspiring artist specifically,

(25:42):
Master Ace offers a look behind the curtain at why
his time is precious and his responsibilities extend beyond the
art of rap. Now, if you call me and I'm
not around, I'm probably putting my grind down doing shows
out of town. I be the manager, road manager and
call handler, booking agent, choreographer and tour planner. I be

(26:04):
the VP of marketing and promotions, producer and a ranger
with a range of emotions. And after it all, I
still got to perform at three o'clock in the morn
when half the fans are gone. But it's fine.

Speaker 2 (26:19):
I love this part.

Speaker 1 (26:20):
Okay, So a few lyrical notes to take, Okay, if
you're that kind of listener. Number one, Notice how Master
A says he's the VP of marketing and promotions, producer,
and a ranger with a range of emotions. Okay, that
is an awesome display of his lyrical dexterity to say
he's an arranger of music with a range, right, which

(26:42):
is the word arrange separated producer and a ranger with
a range of emotions, a range of emotions, right, Obviously
a range meaning that he has a variety of or
a spectrum of emotions that he's dealing with.

Speaker 2 (26:56):
Right.

Speaker 1 (26:57):
And then secondly, how even at the end he shortens the.

Speaker 2 (27:00):
Word mourning to mourn just to fit the rhyme scheme.

Speaker 1 (27:04):
Right. You gotta love that kind of creativity that comes
with hip hop.

Speaker 2 (27:07):
Man.

Speaker 1 (27:08):
You know, there may be standards, but there are no
rules to this art. Man lyrical excellence from Mass to
Ace bro lyrical excellence. Now, as far as the message, though,
like I said, this is my favorite part because we
can presume that he is addressing those that either appreciate
or use his time. And unfortunately, when you're in his position,

(27:29):
those people can often be close friends and family. Right,
the same people that once rooted for your success and
rooted for your come up. Say you've gone Hollywood or
you changed, not realizing the new responsibilities that you've attained,
you know, and I love that Mas to Ace he
took the time to detail all of those responsibilities, as

(27:50):
he essentially says, now that I'm an independent artist, I
wear all the hats. I am the manager. I am
the road manager on tours. I am also in charge
of the phone calls and inquiries. Right, I have to
book my shows and appearances. You know, I got a choreography, Uh, choreo.
I have to provide the choreography for my performances and

(28:12):
dictate how my tours are gonna go. Because I am
the president, I'm also the vice president of marketing and promotions,
So I have to market myself and promote my album
and shows and get people to support while taking advantage
of how the methods behind doing so will evolve with time.
Oh yeah, and of course I can produce my own beats.

(28:34):
I can bring the best out of myself in the
recording process and even arrange my vocals for each song.
And how could I forget On top of all that,
I'm still a human being who goes through everyday experiences,
still trying to get better as a man and an artist.
And even then, I still gotta show up to a
different city, maybe even go overseas a different country, to

(28:58):
perform at three in the morning, even if it means
it's not a full crowd, and still give them my
best and make their time and money spent worthwhile. So
before you get upset that I'm not around all the time,
this is why this is my grind and I'm sure
it's similar right for doctors, for single mothers, for athletes,

(29:19):
a lot of careers. This part always hits home for
me because it's the exact same way as an independent podcaster.
Every day is an opportunity for me to somehow build
my fan base, you know, build this family, right, which
I only have so much control over. You know, I
can't force feed people to listen and support right, And

(29:39):
on top of that, I'm the host. I spend hours
on my laptop outlining the episodes. I'm the graphic designer,
which again I'm not even the greatest graphic designer. I
just trust the ideas that God has given me right
the I'm the social media manager, you know, if they
don't reach out to me first, I'm the one who
slides in potential guests dms. You know, I come up

(30:02):
with the interview questions. How can I ask the question
that is going to be captivating and thought provoking and
maybe even critical thinking? Right, I'm I'm the one who
edits the audio edits the video, I make the thumbnails.
I photoshop the pictures that you see. I cut and
create the social media eclips and add the captions you know,

(30:24):
Riverside cap cut and Adobe. Shout out to them this.
You know again, I ain't even getting paid to do this,
but shout out to those these these companies have my
credit card information.

Speaker 2 (30:34):
You know, you feel me.

Speaker 1 (30:35):
And the wild thing is I like that control. Like
I'm at a point where I don't even want to
outsource this stuff because you know, I don't even want
a production team like a lot of these obviously, these
celebrities who have these pre established fan bases and they
can afford to have production teams and everybody run their stuff.
I don't even want that anymore. Really, you know that's

(30:56):
that would be nice, as it would lighten my load.
But like, because it's been me, Jesus and this laptop
for so long, I don't want to not have a
hand on hip to the games. So just like Master Ace,
even as we wear all the hats, like I said,
you may be in a similar situation. It's fine, like
he said at the end, but it's fine, you know,

(31:17):
it's cool, Like I wouldn't have it any other way.
This is a part of my grind. It has its
ups and downs, but that's a part of my grind.
And still master Ace acknowledges how lonely this grind can get.
In the next set of lines, been on the grind
since like eighty eight or eighty nine, the game is
fouled like a play to swine? Now, is there anybody

(31:38):
kind like me? Is anybody out there on the grind
like me? After reflecting on the longevity of his journey
and comparing the ills of this rap game to swine right,
particularly pigs generally known as unclean animals, Master Ace seems
to show more vulnerability and he's crying out, like wondering,
can anybody relate to me? Can anybody relate to me?

(32:01):
And where I'm at? And again, I found myself here
many times. I'm sure you have as well. Just last
week I was here, Like I said, you know, especially
when you're scrolling social media and you're seeing people succeed
in what you desire. Also, that can be really hard
to deal with, like where's the grind? We see we
get caught up seeing the highlights.

Speaker 2 (32:20):
We miss the grind.

Speaker 1 (32:21):
You know, Oh man, look at this young black, short,
skinny dude. You know, he just turned twenty seven and
he got a collab with ESPN. Well, I'm young, I'm black,
I'm short, I'm skinny. I see myself in this dude.
I'll be twenty seven this year. You know what I'm saying.
But nobody really knows who I am. That's kind of
bothered me a little bit. It makes me question, am

(32:43):
I on the right path? You know? I'm sure for
other people like yo, look at this happy thirty year
old couple who just announce they're having twins, and it's like, dang, well,
I'm thirty and I'm feeling forever lonely. You know, where's
my queen? Or you know, for the ladies, where's my king? Right?

Speaker 2 (32:59):
Like?

Speaker 1 (33:00):
You know, we see all these people's celebrations and not
their grind and so it takes a hit to our
feelings and it makes you feel like an outcast. It
makes you feel like you're forgotten. You know, something must
be wrong with me because I haven't made it yet again,
is there anybody out here like me who feels the
same way I do? But take it from me, man,
comparison is the.

Speaker 2 (33:20):
Thief of joy. It is truly the thief of joy.
The Bible was not lying.

Speaker 1 (33:24):
You know. I still struggle with it, obviously, you know.
It's and the thing is too like there's space for both, right,
It's it's very possible to be happy for people's success
and want your win as well, you know, but comparison
will literally rob you of your joy. And I won't
even try to put a band aid on it like
I usually do, you know. Again, in my effort to

(33:45):
be positive, sometimes I feel like I'm guilty of that.
So but I won't even try to do that at
this time.

Speaker 2 (33:50):
Like it's hard.

Speaker 1 (33:51):
It's hard to not fall into that, you know. It's
it's kind of why, Like I try to tell these
kids who look up to Kay Sanat, for example, like
understand that this young brother has been at this since
he was in middle school. And even when you look
at what he's done just in the past four to
five years, he's done some stuff that's unhealthy, like twenty
four hour streams man what And you wonder why he

(34:15):
seems like he's this overnight sensation. Not everybody can nor
should everybody do what he's doing. But that's cool, it
works for him. There's levels to success you know, everybody's
grind is different. It's the same thing when you when
you hear the stories about Kobe Bryant, Like everybody wants

(34:35):
to do those things, but Kobe Bryant is was an individual.

Speaker 2 (34:39):
He was truly one of one.

Speaker 1 (34:42):
So and his one of one type success for example,
scoring sixty at almost forty years old, it makes sense
that his grind gave him that result because not everybody's
willing to do that stuff. It's the same thing with
Kay Sinnett, Like, not everybody's willing to do these twenty
four hour streams and all this stuff, and to keep

(35:03):
people's attention for twenty four hours. You know how hard
that is. And he's doing that because he wants this
crazy success for himself. You know, you gotta you gotta
give him his props for that. But like my point
in mentioning this is that you can find your own
rhythm of consistency. You know, I understand it can get tough,
right when you feel like master ace, Like am I tripping?

(35:24):
Like is there anyone else who one day feels super
inspired and then the next day absolutely clueless and on
the verge of giving up? Oh there are okay, cool?
We move, you know, I promised you. And if you
if you don't see anybody going through what you're going through,
like I said, I'm here to tell you that i'dn't
been through all the emotions, you know, and and obviously

(35:46):
if it ain't me, master Ace is here to tell you,
you know. And the good thing about this, though, is
that master Ace he does provide a similar ray of
hope right knowing that you're not alone. He provides a
similar ray of hope at the end of his verse
for everybody working nine to five, for everybody trying to
rise with their eyes on the prize.

Speaker 2 (36:05):
I'm with you.

Speaker 1 (36:06):
We all going through it. But yo, deep down inside,
I know we still gonna do it. Okay, So master
Ace shouts, you know, He gives a shout out to
those who are managing nine to five jobs and those
trying to wake up every day pursuing their goals and dreams,
and affirms to them that they indeed aren't alone, even
including himself a part of the group, right, Like, I
think that's important too, to say we like we I'm

(36:29):
with you, you know, and doing all that before declaring
that deep knowing that success is on the horizon, you know,
deep down inside, I know we still gonna do it right.
So it's a nice ending to a relatable verse that
details the ups and downs of Mass to Aces Grind,
you know, and after a double rendition of the hook,
we get to hear similar themes from Apocalypse's.

Speaker 2 (36:49):
Point of view.

Speaker 1 (36:50):
But before that, if you are enjoying this breakdown so far,
here's how you can show some extra support two hip
to the Games and represent that H two DG lifestyle
like yours truly as a fan of Hip to the Games,
not only should you show your love for the podcast,
but you gotta express your love for basketball and hip
hop with a wide variety of clothing and accessories. There

(37:11):
is always a way to show how much the game
of basketball and the game of rap means to you.
Let everybody know what it means to be Hip to
the Games by clicking the link in the episode's description
to cop some merch and represent the H two DG lifestyle.
All right, welcome back to Hip to the Games. And
now we're gonna pick right off with apocalypsees verse, the
second verse of The Grind, Like I said, where he

(37:33):
carries similar notions and feelings of Master Ace. What he
did in his verse, I really feel I'm blessed because
I was born with the talent to rhyme, But the
stress got.

Speaker 2 (37:44):
Me this close to quitting.

Speaker 1 (37:46):
Sometimes on the crowded a train every morning, I can't
wait for the day my hustle game don't gotta start
this way, man, I just know so many aspiring mcs
that feel this exact way. Okay, I can only imagine
how hard it is to know you got quality songs
in this never ending itch to create with your god

(38:07):
gifted talent, only for people to remain sleep or be
reminded of your hardships. Right, And I love how Apocalypse
is honest.

Speaker 2 (38:15):
And straight up.

Speaker 1 (38:15):
And he says he feels like quitting sometimes because it
be like that too. Because let's be real, the stress
doesn't necessarily come from creating, Right. It comes from creating
when the tunnel still looks dark. It comes from creating
not seeing that light at the end of the tunnel
that you thought you saw last week. Right. It comes

(38:37):
from balancing the dream you have a love for and
the job that you're just tolerating.

Speaker 2 (38:44):
Right.

Speaker 1 (38:44):
It comes from dropping your hardest bars and you get
two cents from distro kid. You know, the people ain't
really rocking for some reason. It's not there's no gravitational
pool to your art. You know, it comes from dropping
an album and you're closest people barely support They ain't
like in retweeting, sharing it with a friend. You know

(39:05):
all those things. And you know, I can't say it
enough though, man, Like I know how it is. I
know how to grind gets. You know, Unmet expectations hurt oftentimes.
That's really the root of it. If we being a
hundred unmet expectations, it hurts, you know when it even
for me, like I said, when an episode that I

(39:27):
worked hard on doesn't do as well as I thought
in my mind, that's when it can get very discouraging
and disheartening.

Speaker 2 (39:33):
You know why.

Speaker 1 (39:34):
You think I always make room for gratitude throughout my show,
right most I'm sure most podcasts experts quote unquote might
look at that and be like, he's doing too much.
That's why his episode, his episodes could be way shorter
because he's.

Speaker 2 (39:46):
Doing all this stuff.

Speaker 1 (39:46):
Like nah, I strive for the connection that you and
I have through this art that we call hip hop
and through basketball too, you know it. But like I said,
those things can be very disheartening, you know, because at
the end of the day, I try to focus on
who is here and who does support because if I
get too far off and my focus changes and I

(40:07):
get off kilter, I'm gonna get discouraged easier.

Speaker 2 (40:11):
But you know, it can be hard.

Speaker 1 (40:12):
When you know every day you're reminded that you're not
where you want to be yet. And I think Apocalypse
kind of nods to that when he mentions how he
can't wait for the day getting on the crowded a
train isn't the start of all his days, you know,
And I think similar to Master Ace. He continues his verse,
detailing a part of his grind that people don't see

(40:32):
and therefore end up misconstruing. Brothers think it's all good
when they see me and hear my CD, and they
think I'm jumping into seven forty five with TVs. They
don't know I miss tours and shows to go to
work and pay bills and keep do on my clothes. Okay,
so lyrically right, the highlight we can see here is
how Apocalypse says see me to match the abbreviations of

(40:54):
TV and CD. Right, brothers think it's all good? When
they see me and hear my CD and they think
I'm in the seven forty five with TVs. You know, solid,
solid execution there, and I think good awareness, you know,
if you're thinking of like songwriting and delivery when performing
those lines. But message wise, he explains how people often
think because they hear his voice through a CD, that

(41:16):
he's made it right, and so he's getting the money.
And in his words, you know, he's pushing a seven
forty five BMW with the TVs inside, which, might I add,
was a great picture of wealth in two thousand and four,
and dare I say a great picture of health today?
It probably looked a little different, but great picture of
health point being. And again, you know, this reiterates what
Master Ace was talking about in his verse, right, how

(41:38):
people see you and they think they know your grind,
when it's the total opposite. And in this case, you know, apocalypse.
He may very well release music that fans are enjoying,
but in reality, he releases that CD and unfortunately has
to miss out on promoting his project, promoting his album,
promoting his songs through touring and shows in favor of

(41:59):
him paying the bill. Right at the end of the day,
music is in his main source of income, so he's
got to get back on his main thing to pay
the bills and do the heavy lifting income wise. Again,
another example of balancing one's passion with their reality. And
you know, like I said, it takes a long time
for music to pay the bills and provide in all

(42:19):
areas of life. You know, any artists will tell you that,
especially when you about this hip hop life. Again, We've
a lot of our legends have been honest about this.
You know. The sad reality is that hits and tours
they pay the bills. You know, the nerdy lyrical stuff
that we care about ain't gonna bring you that much,
you know, unless you can find a way to do

(42:39):
both at the same time. For example, like an eminem
Lose Yourself. You know, you gotta sprinkle in some hits
in there if you want.

Speaker 2 (42:45):
That big money.

Speaker 1 (42:46):
You know. So most hip hop artists on the come
up supplement their careers with nine to five jobs, and
then on top of this, Apocalypse has to deal with
the pressure to perform right, pressure to hustle in the streets,
and a rough relationship.

Speaker 2 (43:01):
With his mother.

Speaker 1 (43:01):
As we'll see in this next set. In the Shadow
of a legend, so they expect me to spit and
sound like him. But y'all gotta let it go. Every
day I face the crossroad of rapper drugs, album cuts
and singles and crackheads and clapping thugs. When I'm broke,
my moms won't even give me a hug. But on
Payday I'm her baby.

Speaker 2 (43:22):
Then she called it love.

Speaker 1 (43:23):
So it's interesting right to wonder if Apocalypse is referring
to master Ace as the legend he's in the shadow of,
or if he's the son of another hip hop legend. Again,
I wasn't able to find much of anything on him,
but either way, I think we can understand that he's
feeling the pressure to be somebody he's not right, and
good on him for recognizing that he should have his

(43:44):
own story, have his own style, you know, have his
own grind. It can be tough and annoying when people
expect identical results in that situation. You don't think of
Bronnie James, for example, Many people expect him to be
this multi time All star just because he's Then's son,
you know, because he'll have the connections and the relationships

(44:04):
to aid him in this success.

Speaker 2 (44:06):
A lot of.

Speaker 1 (44:06):
People placed a lot on his plate in just his
young career so far. A lot of people want him
to get all the playing time and all this thing. Oh,
he shouldn't be in the G League. WHOOPI woo, like
all because he's Lebron's son. And you know, the reality is,
Bronnie James can make zero All Star appearances in his
career and still have a long and successful NBA career.

(44:28):
I hope people realize that, like just because they share
the same name, he's not Lebron much like Apocalypse right,
Once people let that go, it'll be easier to accept
the individual that is Bronnie James junior.

Speaker 2 (44:40):
Right.

Speaker 1 (44:40):
That is Apocalypse right. And additionally, Apocalypse details how hard
it is to deal with the crossroad of a career
in music or to hustle again. Because of the situations
he wrapped about earlier, we can understand why he's tempted
to give up the music career and get the money
another way, likely much quicker, even if it isn't a
respectable way living, even if it's a dangerous way of living,

(45:02):
you know, and even it goes down to the relationship
with his mom, you know that might aid in that decision,
you know, because for him, she only seems to express
that love to him when he brings home some money,
which in the end, isn't the kind of unconditional love
a mother is supposed to have with her child. So
what I like about Apocalypse's verse is that we get

(45:22):
more layers to that grind. Right, the grind isn't just
the work. It's the difficult relationships. It's the people taking
advantage of you. It's the inner struggles. It's the inner doubts.
It's the urge to give up and do something that
probably ain't gonna be good for you, but it will
give you that success you're looking for quicker, you know,
like the grind entails so much that people don't see.

(45:44):
But like master Ace, he ends his verse on a
positive note, choosing to keep one foot in front of
the other. I keep making my moves because one day
I'm approved. I got what it take and I will
not lose. Yeah, that inner determination goes a long way
when you on the grind again. It's that deep knowing
of success. Right God would have taken, I will not lose. Like,

(46:05):
I don't envision myself failing. I gotta see how my
reality might one day match the dreams I had in
the past, because the absolute worst thing I can do,
you know, the absolute worst thing would be quitting and
dealing with.

Speaker 2 (46:19):
That regret of not trying.

Speaker 1 (46:20):
So I gotta keep going, and by not giving up,
I can't lose to myself.

Speaker 2 (46:24):
You know.

Speaker 1 (46:24):
The only way to win is to keep going. So
we hear Apocalypse make that choice and in turn inspire
you and I to make that choice. Also, if master
Ace and Apocalypse can detail the ups and downs of
that grind, get honest on what it's really like, and
choose to steal keep going in the end, then maybe
I can and should as well trust the journey, as

(46:46):
they say, And then the song ends with a final
double rendition of the chorus, I'm on the grind, still
got my money on my mind and I feel like
I'm walking on the line. When it seems like I'm
running out of time, That's when I'm going on the grind. Huh.
I'm on the grind, still got my money on my mind,

(47:06):
and I feel like I'm walking on the line when
it seems like I'm running out of time. That's when
I'm going on the grind. And after an outro that
features a chopped up and scratch version of Na's lyrics
on hate Me Now Right, I had to hustle hard,
never give up. I had to hustle hard, never, never
give up. That brings us to the end of the

(47:28):
Breakdown of the Grind by Master Ace featuring Apocalypse. This
song is a great pick me up for me personally,
and I definitely encourage you to add it to your
playlist as well, because I know that if it can
help me and bring me out of a funk, then
it can do the same for you. If you know
me by now, you know I love a good, honest, wholesome,

(47:49):
heartfelt hip hop song. You know me, Give me the
nerdy stuff, but give me something to take with me too,
and this song certainly does that.

Speaker 2 (47:58):
It's hopeful, I would say too.

Speaker 1 (48:00):
You know, if I had to pick one word to
describe the grind.

Speaker 2 (48:02):
I would say it's hopeful.

Speaker 1 (48:05):
Just knowing that somebody relates to the process is nice
and even for me, right, I say this like I'm
blessed with a great supportive family. I always have my
mom and my brother and my sister, and my grandparents
and my auntie and cousins that told me good job
or keep going. You know, even if it wasn't every day,
it was always nice to have these people who really

(48:27):
looked at me and said, like, good job, Dez, keep
going bro like and I and again I try to
do the same for them, but like I want to,
I share that to say, like the reality of even
with that kind of support, I still struggle with some
of those feelings that we've talked about this whole breakdown,
So I can only imagine how hard it can be

(48:47):
when you don't have that. Again, That's why I've always
been so big on encouragement on my platform. Because I've
received so much of it, I'm able to pass it
on to you and anybody else I come across. The
Bible says in Proverbs twelve twenty five, anxiety weighs down
the heart, but a kind word cheers it up. And
I don't take that lightly. You know, I'd much rather

(49:08):
use my time to edify and encourage as opposed to
be on some foolishness. Right and then, Like you probably
wouldn't know it, but some of my most earnest raps
and in depth podcast episodes have come when I actually
haven't been in the Bible right haven't been in my word,
or I'm struggling to stay positive, but somehow again God

(49:29):
downloads like the perfect material in my head, or again
like this, he just leads me to listen to this song,
a song that I've listened to many times, but it
just hit differently and it's like boom. Now it bursts
this kind of episode. So, like I said, I was,
I was feeling pretty dull and empty last week. But

(49:50):
like I said, the dopest thing about that is that
God moves in those circumstances and he doesn't keep records
of wrong, unlike us as humans. So you know, I
figured it would be great to let you in on
this part of my grind and be real with you
while putting you onto some you know, good hip hop
in the process, Because again I won't lie to you.
I'm rooting for your grind as much as I'm rooting

(50:12):
for my own. You know, we don't know what our
efforts will lead to, but we can keep encouraging one
another and placing down the bricks one by one until
we build our respective houses. I can't guarantee that tomorrow
will be the day that you win. I wish I could,
I can't even say that it'll happen even in five years.
But I'm praying and I'm hoping that our dreams come

(50:34):
true in a way, that we can contribute to society
and God's Kingdom in a positive manner, and that our
grinds pay off. And even then, when we do make it,
there will be a whole nother level of a grind.
So I just pray that we continue to keep going,
to take care of our mentals and trust God even
when it's hard. You know, the grind is more universal

(50:54):
than we are led to believe. You know, don't let
comparison steal your joy. So you know, I hope this
breakdown certainly inspired you and helped you in your own grind.
I hope it reminded you that you aren't alone, you know.
I if you're watching on YouTube too, you know, comment
what you're grinding towards so I can cheer for you.

Speaker 2 (51:13):
Along the way.

Speaker 1 (51:13):
You know, you gotta you always got a fan here
for hip to the game, So as always, I hope
you give this song a listen, whether it's for the
first time or the a million time, And you know,
I appreciate you taking the time out to hear just
my thoughts of all people on some of the hip
hop's finest work.

Speaker 2 (51:31):
I encourage you to share any.

Speaker 1 (51:33):
Thoughts with me okay, on the socials, in the comments,
whatever you feel like doing. I'm always around for further discussion.
I always keep that door open, so you can hit
me up on Twitter or Instagram, at Desmon Power Underscore
or at Hip to the Games either or I'll be
happy to see those thoughts if you want to talk
some more. Like I said, that door is always open.
Here's to another reflection of the god gifted brilliance of

(51:55):
hip hop's past. Okay, shout out to the legendary Mass,
the Ace and Apocalypse for sharing their hearts on the
grind and motivating us all to trust the journey towards
our own dreams. And of course here's a huge shout
out to you for being Hip to the Games and
I thank you so much for sticking around for another episode.

Speaker 2 (52:13):
All for the love of the best.

Speaker 1 (52:14):
Commo there is peace out and God bless Hope you
enjoyed this episode of Hip to the Games.

Speaker 2 (52:20):
And if you enjoyed this.

Speaker 1 (52:21):
Episode, be sure to hit up the socials at Desmond
Powell Underscore and at Hip to the games on Instagram, Twitter,
and TikTok so you don't miss out on the fund
and please follow or subscribe to the show and leave
a review on the podcast platform. And you're all right now,
as your support is greatly appreciated