Shaboozey sits down with Bobby to trace the unlikely path that led to one of the biggest songs in the world. He opens up about growing up in Northern Virginia, feeling isolated in school, and how Harry Potter inspired his imagination and made him want to create worlds of his own. He also shares the impact of his father’s journey from Nigeria and the lessons that shaped his ambition. Shaboozey reflects on recording his first song in high school, moving to Los Angeles, landing a record deal, battling imposter syndrome, and rebuilding after being dropped. He explains how “Old Town Road” affected his vision, why he rejected the “country hip-hop” label, and how he finally found the sound that felt authentic to him. Plus, he reveals the surprising story behind making “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” why he never wrote down a single lyric, how quickly it exploded, and what it has been like losing his anonymity after becoming a global star.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
He's like, yo, that song you made last night or
this song's out of here, and I'm like, but the
song had no drunes. It was just like a guitar
am me singing the song and he was like, no,
it's out of here. And then our A and R
hit me too. It was like, yeah, that tipsy song
like crazy.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Hey.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
Today's guest is Shaboozy. One of the wildest runs in
music over the last couple of years, even maybe decade,
from breaking records with the bar Song, which was also Tipsy,
to winning a Grammy with Jelly Roll and they did
that with Amen. And the guy's been doing it his
own way, Like this guy has been killing it. And
he's back with a brand new single called Cowgirl, a
(00:45):
new album called The Outlaw, Cherry Lee and other and
Western Tails. It's coming out July thirty, first massive tour
this fall. He's got so many songs in such a
short time. I really enjoyed this conversation here he is
Shaboozy growing up up. For me, I'm curious about how
you grew up Like I grew up really poor and
so I never really knew the price of anything because
(01:06):
we couldn't buy it. And then now I'm not, and
so I don't know the price of anything. So it's
like it's kind of a bizarre mix of life. And
when I was even single, I just went to the
gas station to buy everything, all my groceries. Really, so
I've never had a real concept of like grocery store
grocery so.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
You were never never even able to like go to Walmart.
Speaker 3 (01:26):
Yeah, Walmart was the kind of where I got my
clothes as a kid. We had Walmart's all over Arkansas.
That's like the two we have two things, Walmart, yeah,
Johnny Cash, Yeah, and Arkansas Razorbacks.
Speaker 2 (01:40):
Crazy from Arkansas too.
Speaker 3 (01:43):
Yeah, Like my grandma was a mass My grandma raised
me for a lot of my life. Yeah, and so
she was a massive Johnny Cash fan because he was
one of us more so than any other reason. So
like when I grew up, it wasn't the icon Johnny Cash.
It was like that's somebody who made it, like you
can make.
Speaker 2 (01:59):
It stuff a cool one to have.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
Do you have any of those man like at that time?
I mean, being from Virginia, Farrell for sure. I think
Forrell is definitely our Johnny Cash in that way, in
the realm of like you know Pharrell's story, like he
was in he was in a high school band, you know,
and his mom taught at the school. She was like
a librarian, I think. And so I think everyone was
just like being like the Nettunes were like the thing.
(02:21):
And then him and his high school buddy Chad Hugo,
you know, got in and started making beats on MPCs,
and then they became for for real. Well then, yeah,
so I think it was I think that's probably probably
the closest in that world, you know. But then you
got some you know, some like the historical country people
that I kind of learned about a little later on
in life when I come of did some digging.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
But it's cool how much representation actually matters. And I
think as I got to be an adult, I actually
understood what representation would be like for children, and it
could be it could be women, it could be race,
It doesn't matter, like it's just not having representation in
a larger place actually shows you you can do it,
especially when you come from like where I come from,
(03:04):
because nobody did anything but work at the mill. Yeah,
and so to do something like this that was never
a reality, but it was never you couldn't do it.
Speaker 2 (03:15):
So what was it like for you?
Speaker 1 (03:16):
I think it was, you know, it was a little
bit similar. I mean I grew up in Virginia, Northern Virginia,
and I was like explicitly rely remember just like there
being nothing there. Even when I go back there sometimes
now it's like, especially in like the fall time when
it's like really gray and gloomy, I'm like, man, how
did I get out.
Speaker 2 (03:33):
Of what's your home? Like this?
Speaker 1 (03:34):
It's called Woodbridge, Virginia, so it's it's like forty minutes
how to down south of DC a little bit more
like Fairfax. I was one of Fairfax's hospital. Marshmallow was
born there too. But I think Benny Blanco's from the
area too, He's from Morton, so like that that kind
of area. But it's hard to describe. It's like a commonwealth.
(03:55):
There's like a lot of people in the government or
military or you know. But you know, schools are like
the schools are good, Like they're they're decent.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
I mean, they're pretty good.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
But it's just like how you wanted to explore, like
how you wanted to use the resources that were available
to you.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
You know.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
I met j Furrow recently from Resinel, Virginia.
Speaker 2 (04:15):
Guy. Yeah, there's a bunch of Virginia guys.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
Yeah, he was from the freak chessa Peak chessa Peak.
Speaker 1 (04:24):
Yeah, it's a it's a it's a big place, man.
There's so many different corners and pockets. But the thing is,
it's like definitely for sure Melton pot of different things,
like or different cultures and groups of people. Like in
my school, like my school high school is majority actually Hispanic,
I mean Latin, Like it's like forty percent or something
like that, you know, and then the other side was
probably then you know, African Americans were like next, and
(04:46):
then you know it's kind of like white people were
kind of like the minority at that school. I would say,
you know, what.
Speaker 3 (04:53):
What kind of kid were you? What kind of student
were you?
Speaker 1 (04:55):
Man? I was like, this is actually a really cool,
good question. Feel like I was kind of like I
was really really competitive, but sometimes I wasn't willing willing
to do the work, you know what I mean, and
anything I did, like, you know, as far as like
when I was like in school, like I was trying
to be I would like to be like the smartest
person getting the best grades, but I was like, man,
I want to be that, but it's like I just
(05:17):
can't bring myself to like do the work in a way.
Or maybe I was more like an attention difficit thing.
Speaker 2 (05:24):
Yeah sounds like sound and you're just like, yoah, I know,
I want to do this thing.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
I want to get all days and I want to
get a great high GPA, but like I just can't
do it. Like and most of that stuff. Success in
school was like I feel like it was more about
like organization, you know. And I was like I was
a very like under sould things. So like usually the
kids that come with the binders and the papers are
falling all out like.
Speaker 2 (05:49):
Those they're never going to make it. And school it's
like that that guy's not going to make it.
Speaker 1 (05:52):
I was one of those kids, you know what I mean,
locker open, single papers, falling out doing homework and lunch.
Speaker 3 (05:58):
Or you want to be when you grew up.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
When I grew up. I mean, do you want like
that like the preschool?
Speaker 3 (06:06):
Like you how did that change?
Speaker 2 (06:07):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (06:08):
In preschool, man, I think you. I think I just
started off with just wanting to do the thing that
nobody else was doing. Like always, it was always that
it was always like what's the thing you talk about representation?
It's like, yeah, what's the thing that nobody else would
is doing, and like no one would expect me to do.
Speaker 2 (06:23):
I think it was always a push for that.
Speaker 1 (06:26):
So like when I was a kid, you know, the
first thing I said it was like I want to
be an astronaut, you know what I mean, because I'm like
the amount of people that are astronauts, and like, you know,
it also seems like a high paying job if you
make it back, Like but you know.
Speaker 3 (06:38):
I don't pay much as you don't.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
I wonder how I need to We need to look
at what how much astronauts make.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
But yeah, I was gonna, yeah, I wanted to be
an astronaut for a little bit.
Speaker 2 (06:47):
That was like four year old me.
Speaker 1 (06:50):
It kind of went from that and then it just
really turned into what I said about just being like
I had this strong sense of.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
I don't I don't know, I don't know. Maybe this
is another development.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Uh problem, the mental problem whatever, but I wanted to
just be I've really felt like isolated in a weird way,
and I don't think it was like a bad thing,
Like I just be in a group, I be in class,
and I just feel like I was just it was
just me, you know, I mean in the class, and
then there's everyone kind of else.
Speaker 3 (07:21):
I don't know how that how to reach do you
feel smarter? Less smart than the other kids? Was about
intelligence at all I felt.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
I think I felt very aware and maybe you can
use it as a form of intelligence.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
Maybe maybe it is. I mean, it's just weird when
it's gonna.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
Be actually cool, cool segment, like it's actually interesting to
feel like as a kid in school systems like that
when you feel like you could be really intelligent, but
because you're not, you're not in using their performance metrics,
like you're not holding up to their like that the
great systems they got, you're not, you know what I mean.
Then it's like, well I think I'm smart, but I'm
(07:54):
getting CS and d's like and then you know, I
got friends or people around me they're like, yo, I
think you're so. I think it was a little bit
of of that, Like I felt like I was really aware.
I felt like from a young as a young kid,
I was like four, just being like I'm a human being,
Like this is freaking this is crazy, you know, I mean,
like we're literally speaking you know what I mean, and
(08:16):
having a conversation and communicating you understand what I'm saying
through languages, you mean through.
Speaker 2 (08:22):
Yeah, that's no, But I'm really serious, like no, one
hundred percent. That's how I felt.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
It's funny because you know, I had a lot of
friends like in high school, you know, you know Virginia,
like growing up in like, you know, twenty twelve whatever,
going to high school in the twenty tens. You know,
there was a lot of that stuff because you know,
it's a kid Cuddy and all that kind of hip
hop was come mac Miller. So there was a lot
of kids experimenting with a lot of you know, that
sort of stuff. And I was like I never did it,
(08:47):
and you know, so I was like, I don't think
I need to do that. You know, I think I'm
pretty I'm pretty tapped already.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
What did you think you would do in about tenth grade?
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Like what did your tenth grade see this? From tenth grade?
Speaker 1 (08:59):
I think that was kind of like we're like this
drive and yearn to be like, man, what am I
good at? I really think tenth grade. I think I
was pretty low. I think I was pretty lost. I
think the thing I really was probably the closet like
pretty attached to is some sort of be like a director,
like a videographer or a director or something like something
(09:22):
like that, but more in this, more in the narrative,
in the narrative space, more in the like I loved,
I did like creating things. I like making things or
not even making things, more having ideas, you know, and
if it's like like what you's we were talking about,
you know, Sam Malton, it's like having an idea and
just being like, oh, I have this idea, let me go,
(09:44):
let me go journey through this, you know, let me
like figure out where it leads me. So I just
really like, I think that was one of my one
of my first loves was really just being like, dang,
I have this inspiration for this idea or concept, and
I want to see if I can make it happen
or like materialize it. So tenth yeah, that's kind of
(10:05):
where tenth grade was.
Speaker 3 (10:06):
Do you have any sort of like movie or book
or anything that was yeah, like something that kind of
blew you away that inspired you to create?
Speaker 1 (10:15):
Yeah, for sure, A specific one. Actually it was actually
Harry Potter, which is like believe it or not, yeahs
one what Harry Potter? Probably the first one, just just yeah, probably, yeah, right,
that one. I was like seven or eight, yeah, seven
one when I first like, you know, watch that movie
and read that read that book, and I was just like, man,
(10:37):
I think there's something fascinating about like Harry's life. To
a kid like probably like us, that's just like you
feel really ordinary, you know, and you're kind of like
not looked at as much. I'm not saying that's your reality,
but coming from the places we are where there's not
not extraordinary things going on, and then someone comes to
you and you're like, yo, actually, yo, Bobby, you're like extraordinary,
(10:58):
I mean, and you kind of attach yourself to a
story like that, where like a kid like me who
really doesn't feel like they have much going on or
much of like a talent or much of a story,
or feels like they want to get out of the
world they're in meets or watching something like that, and
you're like, oh no, like I do feel like extraordinary.
Speaker 3 (11:14):
You know, who was it that made you feel extraordinary
for the first time?
Speaker 1 (11:19):
I would say, I would say my mom and dad,
My mom and dad. I think them being like you know,
immigrating here, like my like specific I mean not both
of them, but specifically my dad. I think him coming
here from Nigeria and you know, going to school in
Texas and paying his way to Like he he worked
(11:40):
his way through school. While he was at school, he
was also doing like dishwalks. He was like working at
like as a dishwasher, Like he was doing odd jobs
to pay for himself to go to uh to what
does it pay your way through school? And in Texas?
Then he also got his master's So I think when
you like think of that like level of drive and
someone who's who can do that, it's like, what why
can't I.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
Do something similar?
Speaker 1 (12:02):
So I feel like and then the cultural pressures of
like in like that in his culture, well our culture,
you know, or how he.
Speaker 2 (12:10):
Grew up, I'll say that how he was raised.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
He had nine siblings and lived in like a really
really really I mean, like I don't want to get
into like the generic stuff, but like he lived in
the village, you know, didn't probably didn't have like you know,
you probably have to go to a river to like
get water in buckets and carry it back home. And
he grew up with he definite had less than nine siblings,
but it was like seven to nine. And uh, there
(12:33):
were a lot of boys. And in that culture, like
there's kind of an emphasis on the first son, and
he was the fourth. So it's like you're in the middle,
I mean of boys, you're kind of not you know,
So for him to like, for him to in the
same sense I think what we're talking about, to feel like, dang,
I have to pick my I have to motivate myself.
(12:53):
I have to feel extraordinary in the middle of this,
in this village, you know, with all these people living
with all of my whole family's living here.
Speaker 2 (13:02):
I'm the fourth boy.
Speaker 1 (13:04):
You know what I mean when we talk about the
emphasis on the first you kind of have to make
your own like your own make your own star, you know,
I mean, or make your.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
Own self motivation. Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 1 (13:18):
And I think just thinking of where he started to
where he he got himself, it just was like that's
kind of what I and I think he was really
much like instilled that on me.
Speaker 3 (13:27):
So did you ever go back to where he grew up?
Speaker 1 (13:30):
Yeah, I've been there before. I've been Yeah. Yeah, when
I was younger, I went there. We went there a
bunch The first time I went there was I was seven.
I went there and crazy experience. I got off the
plane and the first thing I see is like what
we got to out the airport.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
The first thing I see is a guy roll up
to me. I'm like kind of a skateboard with no legs.
Speaker 1 (13:51):
He had no legs and asked me for money, and
I just started screaming.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
I was like, yo, what.
Speaker 3 (13:57):
A seven year old I could see where the.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
Amputeen's war, you know what I mean, just just just
just straight up to you. And I'm just like, oh man,
I'm seven years old. And it was but it was
a you know, it was it was interesting to like
come from like Virginia, America, go there, see that, you know.
And then I also went to boarding school there too,
so that was like another another crazy experience as well.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
How old were you when you went to boarding school?
Speaker 2 (14:21):
It's nine, it's nine, nine, nine years old.
Speaker 3 (14:24):
How long were you there?
Speaker 1 (14:26):
Year and a half. I was there a year and
a half. My other brothers, like my other sombers are
there longer. Some of them got like only have three siblings,
but two of them came there and they were there
for like four or five.
Speaker 3 (14:37):
Years is that because he wanted you guys to know
where where he and where you come from.
Speaker 1 (14:41):
Yeah, you know, like our whole your whole family's are
you know, you're extended fans like my cousin's are over there.
So I think it was there was, it was. It
was virtually that. But my dad was still very like,
it's an interesting guy. You need you should bring him
on your podcasting, we should do it together. But but yeah,
it was really was honestly, it was that. But there
(15:01):
was like there were times where they use it as
punishment too, like they would psychologically tell you, like, you know,
if you don't get like if you mess up, we're
gonna That was kind of the thing the other people
in the community did. So by the time they were like,
yeah it's time to go there, I'm like, yo, you know,
I mean, my sister like, why are we going there?
I mean, like you told us this is like capital punishment,
(15:22):
you know what I mean, and now we're like going there.
Speaker 2 (15:24):
But it was, it was, it was. It was an experience. Man.
That's like a whole nother and that could probably be
its own book. You know.
Speaker 3 (15:30):
We have a house in Fayetteville because I'm from Arkansas,
and so we got a house back home. Do you
have a house back in Nigeria?
Speaker 1 (15:36):
Yeah, man, that's a that's the thing that people do
their culturally. And my dad just built like this crazy,
crazy house.
Speaker 2 (15:42):
Yeah. It's like I'm like, yo, Dad, you were.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
You were at to Toyota, you know, like you don't
have to live like the like the president here, but
that's what some people do, like you know what i mean,
Like you know, I was like, you're a car salesman.
Speaker 3 (15:52):
Feel like a long flight to get to Yeah.
Speaker 1 (15:55):
But it's like he just called me that because I
just got my house and he just.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Called me and he was just showing me. He was like, yeah,
the only thing about here is just no electricity.
Speaker 1 (16:01):
Also, but he's got this huge like it's probably like
maybe like twenty maybe probably a little lesson than like
fifteen acres and it's like and.
Speaker 2 (16:10):
He lives next to the governor of the state.
Speaker 1 (16:14):
But he's like a you know what I mean, Like
I love him to death, but sometimes I'm just like, yo, Dad,
It's like, but that's just the culture there.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
Man.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
The people like to like they want to like be
you know, everybody just kind of like wants to be.
Speaker 2 (16:24):
A little bit a little show off a little bit,
but it's still cool.
Speaker 1 (16:29):
You know, it's cool for your Like it's really important
for parents to like and still like a sense of
pride union on the kids, on your kids and yourself.
And you know, I think that's some of the most
like that's a very under under a recognized trade about
like how much like that helps with my kids?
Speaker 2 (16:47):
You know? Did you end up finishing high school? Yeah?
Speaker 1 (16:50):
Man, barely, I'm making a sound. I'm trying to make
it sound like that was one of those like like
like dunk like kids that was just like not.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
Oh, I would have thought undertrieval the opposite.
Speaker 3 (16:57):
I would have thought you were way smart and that
you'd be one of those that like I don't need
high school because I know what I want to do.
So I think what you think you're feeding me and
what I'm getting from your two different things. Because I'm
not taking you saying that to me at all.
Speaker 1 (17:11):
Yeah, no, I know, but it's just but I think
sometimes maybe I try to, like, you know, you know,
you kind of try to like maybe upsell the whole
like nah, you know, I just like I didn't go
to school. I didn't care about school. I just came
out and it was like, you know, it was like
but yeah, the truth is it was I think it
was exactly what it was. It was just not where
my I just couldn't focus in those areas. Like my
brother on the other hand, like he's uh, he's he's
(17:34):
like in Chicago doing like a residency. I don't know
what medical thing he's doing, but he like did that,
did his uh got in to medical school? Did them cats?
All that stuff, and he's like a scholar scholar. Interesting
to think about him is like from what I because
we weren't like we didn't talk a bunch from in
the house. But he didn't really talk.
Speaker 2 (17:53):
You know. It's interesting, right, like he.
Speaker 1 (17:55):
Barely talked, but then he'd write these crazy papers and
essays and stuff that I'm like, yo, you I mean,
but we went to the same high school. And yeah,
let's take a quick pause for a message from our sponsor.
Speaker 3 (18:19):
And we're back on the Bobby cast. I felt you
go to other people. Almost every time I've talked about you,
like almost every time you've been like, yeah, but not
about me as my dad was my brother, Yeah, like
in your house, was it? Hey, don't make it about
you mean, was that.
Speaker 1 (18:39):
Man, you know what, probably probably a little bit more
there was. There's definitely like a sense of like, may
we going to therapy right now?
Speaker 2 (18:46):
Man? I just left. I need to do therapy more
so that I don't come in here and do it.
Speaker 3 (18:52):
I was like.
Speaker 2 (18:54):
No, but yeah, I think there was.
Speaker 1 (18:56):
You know, there was definitely like culturally, there was a
lot of competition, you know what I mean, lot of
like liquature, this person's doing. I look what that person's doing.
Why don't you be more like that? Or why don't
you do stuff like that person? So I think there
was a level of that, and I do think that
was a huge motivation for me to be like, let
me figure out.
Speaker 3 (19:12):
I mean when did you figure out what you wanted
to do though, because so far it didn't feel like
tenth twelfth grade when you graduate, like you didn't really
know what you wanted to do.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
Yeah, I think in the eleventh grade. Tenth eleventh grade,
I made it recorded my first song, you know what
I mean, Like there's you know, the shitty on it
when it's not even that's like like on a blue microphone,
And I think I just record a song like mixed
craft and I showed it to my friends, you know,
like everybody did it. Like, you know, we all try
(19:40):
to like figure out if we were the next Neptunes,
the next Neptune or the next odd Future whatever or
whatever it was there, or the next Johnny Cash or
whoever it is, Like we all try to figure that out.
Speaker 2 (19:51):
And I think that's kind of what happened. That was
like what you did.
Speaker 1 (19:54):
You know, you went to your friend's house and you
try to record a song, and then some people are
not good, and then somebody's wait, he's he's kind of good.
And I think I think when I recorded my first song,
like the state I would just get into was just
like I still it's still the same to this day.
Like I would just go into not a booth, but
(20:15):
I'd be sitting at a desk and as soon as
I just opened this, like I start making music like
my my like the world almost like shuts down and
I get into this thing where I just like start
seeing worlds as I and everything becomes like super visceral.
I think Viscerl was a visceral me.
Speaker 3 (20:32):
It's like an emotional like a react like a viscil
reactually be like what makes you feel emotional.
Speaker 1 (20:36):
Yeah, yeah, it's exactly so, you know, and it'd be
like something about like this girl I was talking to
that I didn't know how to really say the thing
the words.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
To and I just be like let me you know, but.
Speaker 3 (20:47):
Now you did in the song. Yeah, yeah, kind of.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (20:50):
It was like, you know, because I wasn't like the
most like I was like the most outgoing person. I
mean I was, no, it was really outgoing, but I
wasn't the most confident person.
Speaker 2 (20:57):
I'll say that.
Speaker 1 (20:58):
So I think when I was able to get into
a place where I can like create and be, you know,
the version of myself who is confident, like that kind
of like helped.
Speaker 2 (21:11):
It was a good way they focus. Could I focus?
Speaker 3 (21:14):
Yeah, once music started and you started actually doing it,
could you focus more than you focus on anything prior?
Speaker 2 (21:21):
Yes, for sure. For sure. I would say that like.
Speaker 3 (21:24):
Your attention could say on music, but you found your thing.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
Yeah. Like I would make full on projects.
Speaker 1 (21:28):
It was one of those things where like like other
people that were helping me with the music, like whether
I was engineering or producing, I would fund them be
like Yeo, we gotta let's go, let's go do this.
I'm motivating everybody else to find, you know, the same
way in the school project, someone would probably want the
over the achieving person would be like, yeah, why are
pushing other people? I'm now doing that for in music,
(21:49):
And I think I took a lot of those like
because at the end of the day, I'll still I'll
still push to be like an academic, Like I still
understood what the what the what's the word?
Speaker 2 (22:00):
God?
Speaker 1 (22:00):
This is such a simple what the expectation? What the
expectation was when you are in school. So I think
I applied a lot of that stuff to music, and
that's kind of like what even helped me even excel more?
You know, you can ask my managers. I'm not always
calling people like what are we doing? What's going on here?
Organizing people? Like when I see people that are kind
(22:20):
of like when I see something that's not working or
something could change, I'm like the one that's like, you
know making those things?
Speaker 2 (22:28):
Are you always hustling?
Speaker 3 (22:30):
I am always like I got eleven things going once
I got it's like spinning plates. I'm just trying to
keep them all going.
Speaker 2 (22:38):
Yeah, man, I changed a lot.
Speaker 1 (22:40):
Man, I used to be I used to be really
bad when it comes to that like never giving myself credit,
never celebrating any moments, like really just like everything was fleeting.
I was like, what's the next thing, What's the next thing?
Like always living in the future of like I'm going
to make be a New York Times bestseller, I'm going
to write a book, or I'm going to do this,
(23:01):
and every time I do that, I found myself being
getting further and further away from the thing that I
was asking.
Speaker 2 (23:08):
Or looking for. And then I don't know where it.
Speaker 1 (23:13):
I think it kind of changed when like everything kind
of like crashed, you know, everything kind of just like stopped.
Speaker 3 (23:19):
What crashed just.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
Just like my whole like just I mean it's a loss.
It might need more than an hour, but just like
my whole like kind of like first the first iteration
of my career because I was signed to I got
signed to Republic when I moved to that. See this
is crazy, Like I moved to LA and didn't know
anybody in twenty seven at sixteen.
Speaker 2 (23:42):
To be an artist, to.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
Be an artist, yeah at that time, you know, it
was to be with somebody that you know, but it
was also to kind of be an artist and just
if it was for me to be a director. It
was me a musician, just do something. And I kind
of got out there and and because of like we talked,
what we talked about, like that motivation, the things that
I kind of experienced, I think I was able to
get like an edge on on and just so I
(24:07):
had that self motivation right and that self drive of
being like if this person did it, it, this person did it,
If Sam Walton did if my dad did this, if
for real did it, you know, if anybody did it,
you know, if Waylon Jennings did it, if anybody like
I should be able to do this too. So I
think that motivation, like I found myself, Like I got
(24:29):
a deal in when I got to LA in like
six months, you know, and I didn't know anybody like
I got to not even did I get a deal.
I got a record deal to the label I said
I was going to sign to before I even left.
Speaker 2 (24:38):
How did that happen?
Speaker 3 (24:41):
You did the knock on the door, get to know
people think or they find you.
Speaker 1 (24:44):
I think it goes back to that, literally, that that
thing when I was like that, when I was in
high school, when I went in front of that laptop
on mixedcraft or audacity and recorded that song and everyone
was like, yo, he's you know. I mean, I think
I think any opportunity I got, like if I was
was going through enough. It's another thing that happened yesterday
in front of the lakeside that kind of reminds me
(25:04):
of this. It's kind of emotional, but I think it's
just like hunger. And then whenever, whenever I got into
a studio finally, like the song I would make would
just be like to them, I mean, it would just
be like we never heard anything like this, and you
could play like twenty songs and when you get to
a song that I did, people would just be like, like,
what's that?
Speaker 2 (25:24):
You know? So I think that just kind of carried
and moved things along.
Speaker 1 (25:29):
But then I met in the first year, I'm like,
also someone that like that same self motivation I have
and the same belief in myself. I have that same
belief in other people because I'm like, what's the difference
between me and the person next to me?
Speaker 2 (25:44):
Right?
Speaker 1 (25:45):
And I think you said that about even the Johnny Cash,
like this is this is the guy in Arkansas that
made it. We're not looking at him as Johnny Cash.
We're looking at him as someone who made it. So
I think for me because you know, you said something
earlier that was like really kind of it was interesting,
and you said, I talk about a lot of other
people a lot, because like, I really like human beings
like fascinate me a lot and like what they're capable
(26:07):
of doing, and their stories just like resonate with me,
especially the ones that like find success in a place
where or coming from a place where you usually wouldn't find.
Speaker 2 (26:18):
That, so you.
Speaker 1 (26:21):
Yeah, and then just finding other mes, but like also
kind of creating other mes, you know, in the sense
of being I'm like I because I'm like, man, what
if somebody I did have those people? Right, I did
have I was lucky enough to have people that when
they heard my music they'd be like, oh yeah, like
I want to help you. So I'm speaking specifically to
(26:41):
this producer, Nevin Sastrey, who I mean, he made a
bar song, but like he was like the first person
I first producer I met, first person I really met
in music a little bit in LA and he wasn't
a big producer. He didn't have any can't have any
cuts at all. Actually, the first time we did we
met up, I was like, Yo, your beat suck. I
was like, duction was actually terrible, but you know what
(27:02):
I mean. But he had that also. He was because
his parents are their immigrants stud there from Bangalore, but
he grew up in Ohio, Dublin, Ohio I think, or
outside of Columbus. But he was going to medical he
was trying to get in those doing the medical school route,
the surgeon route, and he told his parents he was like, hey,
I don't want to do this, like I think I'm
supposed to be a producer.
Speaker 2 (27:22):
And his parents like, can.
Speaker 3 (27:23):
You imagine the parents You're oh my god, gosh, yeah,
I want to go dolt.
Speaker 2 (27:30):
Yeah, and so they were like are you are you insane?
Speaker 4 (27:33):
You?
Speaker 1 (27:33):
I mean so I think just meeting him, but that
he he had that same hunger where he's like, well
I just like kind of like quit everything to go
do this. And he was only in la for like
two weeks at that time and met him and it
was that was like really the universe in God because
he heard me. I think we just found each other
at a time where we needed to kind of find
(27:54):
each other because he had just done that and the
studio we were working, he was like interning at this
studio small little like rickety. Rickety's crazy, but this a
small studio on Sunset.
Speaker 2 (28:10):
I love that studio. I'm not gonna say it is
Rickety is terrible.
Speaker 3 (28:12):
A rickety stud you can rickey, But it was like
a little it was like a little studio.
Speaker 2 (28:20):
It was the best studio I've been at the time,
you know.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
And but we met there and he was interning for
this guy and the guy ended up you know, he
ended up having kind of both of us in there,
and uh, he was wanted to.
Speaker 2 (28:32):
Produce for me.
Speaker 1 (28:32):
He was like, yeah, let me play some of the
stuff I'm working on the studio owner or the head
producer there, and then same thing, and played a whole
bunch of songs and then he heard this song from
me Nevin did, and was like, who's that guy like?
And then we kind of just like ended up meeting
and then we ended up working, and that kind of
put a rift between studio head and him, because you know.
Speaker 3 (28:55):
It was like because he kind of took you from.
Speaker 1 (28:57):
Kind of that's what That's what it kind of became,
That's what the story became. But I still think there's
something so cool about how two people from like immigrant cult,
I mean.
Speaker 3 (29:07):
Parents while you were drawn together. Yeah, you know, like
related to each other.
Speaker 1 (29:11):
Related in that sense of being like, yeah, we kind
of like we're kind of like giving up everything to
do this, you know, like maybe we should maybe like
that hunger. I finally found someone that would could wake
up at the same time as me, you know what
I mean, and put in the same hours, if not more,
you know, to the point where like I would go
to sleep. Because we stayed in the studio apartment together
for like, uh for it was like three of us
(29:33):
in the studio apartment for like seven eight months. He's
actually the reason I got signed to Republic, which is
crazy too because this is a guy who has no
industry connections, has never had a cut before, was able
to like after six months of us being in a
studio apartment working. There's other things at this I'm glossing
over in the story, but you know, with that, you
(29:53):
know what, I think that the energy of like us
being in a studio apartment every single day making music,
I think that somehow gets and permeates through the world
and like that. You know, someone always says one of
my friends, I'm pretty sure its from the law of attraction,
but says, you know, if you the universe will conspire
to bring you whatever you need if you. I think
that's something like that, you know what I mean. So
(30:15):
I think I think it was just it was just crazy.
He just had like there was a little bit of
like a bidding war going because we made this we
made this song and ended up putting it out. It's
called Winning Streak, and it kind of like went viral.
So there was a little bit of it was like
already kind of some some interest. But he had a
friend that was uh, interning for an A and R,
(30:37):
I mean the A and R at Republic, and so
I just took a meeting, you know, they were like,
we want to bring you in.
Speaker 2 (30:46):
I went in.
Speaker 1 (30:46):
There was me and Nevin and someone who I don't
even want to talk about, but we're there, and they
were just like, yeah, like you want to sign you
And then kind of happened in Two years went and
there was a lot of like talk about unfocused. Then
I got unfocused again a little bit kind of being
(31:06):
young and a lot of just a lot of a
lot of stuff just kind of gotten the got in
my head. I just got in my head a.
Speaker 3 (31:13):
Lot pressure or bad influences.
Speaker 1 (31:19):
It was more like pressure childhood, like feeling like not good.
Speaker 3 (31:24):
In you, like imposture syndrome.
Speaker 1 (31:26):
Yeah, yeah, that's the word. More yeah, more of the
imposter syndrome. There was also like I think there was
that that, there's that there's a there's a time. There's
moments where like believing believing in everyone can actually hurt you,
like believing in like that everyone's is great and everyone
has this greatness to them.
Speaker 3 (31:45):
Where everyone has your best interest in mind when they don't.
Speaker 1 (31:47):
Yeah, But there's also like a part where it's like
you hear ideas and you're just like, oh, like I
believe in people so much and like all right, this
person's so cool, Like I'm gonna they're telling me to
do this, so I'm going to do this.
Speaker 2 (31:57):
And then it's like maybe not the best.
Speaker 3 (31:59):
Thing you let an effect who you were?
Speaker 2 (32:01):
Yeah, or like what I need to be doing.
Speaker 3 (32:02):
Yeah, which is who you are? Right, Like, what you're
doing is who you are. So that that crash.
Speaker 2 (32:08):
Yeah, that that that kind of got dropped from there.
Speaker 1 (32:12):
You didn't have a bar song then, No, I didn't
have a bar song, but I was. I had It's
funny like if you ever see Seth England. Ask him
about the first album that I had. I made an
album at when I was at I made album before
I got sugned to Republic called Wrangler.
Speaker 2 (32:26):
That was my first time.
Speaker 1 (32:27):
I mean before I had already like started putting the
kind of putting the western and the country stuff into
the music. Because the biggest thing for me that kind
of motivated me was where I found like a gap
if you want to say, it's like being from Virginia.
I was like, man, New York has a sound, right,
you know, kind of like hip hop, boom back. I
(32:47):
mean more than that punk all the everything happened in
New York, Atlanta like trap music, outcasts like again, amalgamation
like these these are like huge cultural centers that are
known for music. They have distinct sounds and James Brown,
there's so many things. I mean, Georgia, then California's got
their thing, Texas, Nashville's you know, clearly got a thing.
(33:08):
I was like, what's Virginia's thing?
Speaker 2 (33:09):
You know what I mean?
Speaker 1 (33:10):
If I asked anybody, what was like, I'm yeah, what
would you say Virginia's most promising like musical contribution is
you'd probably say, I'm curious what you would say if.
Speaker 3 (33:22):
You said, what would Virginia sound like musically, I would say,
just from the people that I know, especially that have
been in the military, I would say hip hop with
a light, interesting country.
Speaker 1 (33:37):
I love that you said hip hop with a light
interesting exactly. But it's funny. But then it's like, so
it's interesting how I always had to be like, so
I kind of don't put it on myself to like
create this.
Speaker 2 (33:48):
There's two things I want to say. I also think
Virginia is like.
Speaker 1 (33:50):
The most like is a place of just individuals, right,
I'll I'll just be looking through stuff. He's like, Oh,
this person's from Virginia that did this cool one off project.
Like I think the guy who made Donnie Darko's from
Virginia and it was like the only movie he made.
Then there's this person who was like, oh, they're from Virginia.
They did this David lynch Ott a stint in Virginia. Like,
but it's like, you also have the Carter families also
(34:11):
from Virginia. That means Bristol. It gets pretty close to Tennessee.
But Patsy Klined from Winchester, Virginia. You know, I was
Emmy Lou Harris went to my high school.
Speaker 2 (34:18):
I love that one. I could not scream that from
the top of my lunch.
Speaker 1 (34:22):
But Emmila Harris went to went to my school in Woodbridge, Virginia.
Grand Parsons played out in d C. That's where Grant,
That's where Emmy Lou met Graham Parsons. You know, you
got So's, you got the Carter family. That's like from
that area. It's like I wanted to when I I
really just fell in love and I just's something Virginia.
People have an obsession with Virginia, as you can tell,
like with everybody, like we just we love it so
(34:45):
much for some reason because we know in the kind
of like the it's gonna sound like a disc but
like in the ordinary and the there's like you always
say something's in the water, but in that like mundane
mondanity or whatever madanity that make that word that probably.
Speaker 2 (35:01):
There's like something in there.
Speaker 1 (35:02):
You know, all of this stuff I want, like with
all the like random fights we went through we went
to in the park, the skateboard and the the football,
like everything, all of these experiences we had like go
into us and they create these like very like unique
like individuals, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (35:18):
Or people.
Speaker 1 (35:19):
So I think for me it was like, you know,
I just kind of kind of was like just trying
to figure out when, what's my why? What can why
is Virginia iconic and just trying to bring like that
history to the world in a way or creating a sound.
And it's funny you said light interesting country, because I
was like, oh, yeah, like my dad the country you know,
(35:39):
there's it was in there. You know, my dad listened
to it. My dad went to school in Texas. He's huge,
Like he's as patriotic as they come. I don't know,
like I said, but but I think for me it
was like, man, I was like I wanted to bring
those worlds together, and I thought like when I did it,
everyone was going to be like in Virginia was going
to be like yes. And I was just like realized,
(36:00):
I was like, damn, not a lot of people here
actually like country music.
Speaker 2 (36:03):
I mean a lot of my friends.
Speaker 1 (36:05):
But I told you earlier, I was like, I really
was just trying to, like you talk, we talked about
one about representation into like standing out and not wanting
to do that kind of wanting to do the opposite
of what other people were doing, and that kind of
like really it's where it kind of went. I went
on this journey of being like man like putting like
NASCAR references into my music and then learning about Dale
(36:26):
Earnhard and Richard Petty and like and combining that with
like my love for Like at that time, I'm still like,
you know, I'm listening. I'm listening to you know, everything
everybody else was listening to future, right, you know all
that stuff, and you know SoundCloud is popping at this time,
so they're still like Uzzi and post Malone and and
Playboy Carti and all those guys and Lil Yachti. So
(36:47):
that's kind of like I'm the same age as those guys.
So that was kind of what was the the.
Speaker 4 (36:51):
Thing, you know, the Bobby Cast will be right back.
This is the Bobby Cast.
Speaker 2 (37:07):
Where did you put up bar song first? When did
I make that?
Speaker 3 (37:11):
Where did you put it up first? Like what platform?
Speaker 1 (37:13):
Oh no, this is that was already like I was
well into like I had boom fast forward dropped from
a public pandemic. Happens two years after the like a
couple of years after the pandemic, I get suned the Empire,
and then we're trying to work. We're just working records
and just trying to figure out what works.
Speaker 3 (37:30):
So you got about your music though at this point.
Speaker 1 (37:32):
Yeah, I'm like I'm trying. Yeah, I'm like figuring out. Yeah,
it's like it's like an updated version. And I got
my manager who was in here too, Like he met
me a little bit after the pandemic and really just
me and him us meeting just like that just like
kind of like fired it off. I think he just
met me at like a time where I really needed.
I was just I didn't have any managers, I didn't
(37:52):
have a label, I didn't have anything. I was just
kind of just sitting around, like I was already constructing,
like what my album, this new album. I was already
constructing this at this time when I met my manager,
and then we went like four or five years trying,
you know, different records. Like that's when like Beverly Hills came,
a tall Boy came, and and.
Speaker 2 (38:12):
The album Cowboys there Forever I Never Died. That's where
that started.
Speaker 1 (38:16):
And then that was when I was already and initially
had the idea of doing like a Western concept full
on album where I like, yeah, like I told this
narrative and I wanted to tell a narrative that was
sequenced from like the top to bottom and a linear
story or whatever. And then we were like, you know,
the label was like like bro, like we don't know,
(38:38):
no one knows who you are. I mean, like you
can't like, how are you going to sustain that, you know,
over singles, over a rollout? Like how can you sustain
damn near playing a movie? Making me a moviecacter. So
then it kind of was like, you know, there was
a lot of back and forth and you know what
I mean, and like in fighting, and then you know,
(38:59):
I think then we and then uh and then essentially
what happened was we had to bring another manager and
then we kind of he kind of found a partner,
someone that really helped him, like just mentor him, because
I think when we met he I was like twenty five.
He was like twenty two maybe.
Speaker 2 (39:18):
It was, but something like that.
Speaker 1 (39:19):
So he was having there's a lot of infighting, and
it's like where when you're a manager, who you you
know who? I know this is a genius, but I'm
older than them, so it's like there's still a little
bit of that like you know, I mean, I was like,
you've never done this before shout out to him, but.
Speaker 2 (39:30):
You know what I mean.
Speaker 1 (39:31):
So so there's always a little bit of that kind
of like duality going on. And then you know, he
found someone that he finally was like I think I
think this guy could really help us, like like be
that third person. So it's not the fifty to fifty
you know what I mean kind of split. And he
had you know, a lot of experience just managing different artists.
He was a writer himself. Funny he got he wrote
(39:56):
Republic's first number one song, and he had just experienced
just being in the music industry. So he came in
and immediately he was like yo, Like he was like yo,
all this like this movie thing like you I mean,
he's like, let's like strip that back for a little
bit and just like be yourself.
Speaker 2 (40:12):
You know.
Speaker 1 (40:13):
He's like, you need to be able to, like because
you need to be able to just like go out
like this and take a picture and put it on
social media, like now everything needs to feel like this elevated,
you know, this elevated experience, like it should just just
be you. And you know, I think that imposter syndrome.
(40:34):
Like I think all that stuff still was probably pretty
It was probably there, but I wasn't really facing it.
And then after you said that, I kind of just
like started doing a little bit of like searching inward.
That producer Nevin, we kind of had a little falling
out after the Republic situation, because you know, he's this producer.
Speaker 2 (40:54):
We start out together.
Speaker 1 (40:55):
I get a deal to Republic, I get a deal,
he gets his publishing deal, and then you know, I
think there's like labels trying to like then you know
what they do, They get the producer and the artists,
and then they try to take the producer, put them
over there, take the artists, put them over there, And
now you're on opposite ends, and you've got a producer
that's looking at the artists like you know, hey, you
just got dropped kind of like and you ain't like
and I think there was a little bit of that,
(41:16):
like damn, like you know what I mean, Like we
started this together, and yeah, I think it was like
a little bit of like some choosing going up.
Speaker 3 (41:23):
When did the first traction, like real traction start to happen.
Speaker 1 (41:26):
For you in life or in like this two point
oh two point h two point oh. It was kind
of always there, I think as soon as like so
again I don't you don't know, we're run out of time.
But I was kind of like I said, I'd already
done my like first intro to like combining these worlds
(41:46):
in these sounds like country and hip hop and like whoever,
like whatever my sound was, there was like there was
like little sprinkles of it as early as like twenty
fifteen of me doing that, and then you know, and
then when I when I came to when I went
to Republic for my first meeting, I already had the
album Wrangler done, but I was coming in with like
you know, I was thirteen them WZ Wrangler jeans like
(42:09):
Wrangler that the straight Canadian tuxedo lou Casey's on or
you know what I mean, like and flaying on twenty fifteen,
like I mean before the song, you know, I mean
you know the song before that song, and and you
know that's kind of what they were interested in. They
were like, oh, this dude's like a like black dude
like put like country with like hip hop like flaring
(42:34):
it and it says it doesn't sound like contriving it
doesn't sound like like kind of corny, you know, and
I think they were like really excited about the prospect
of like what that could do in the world, and that, yeah,
that imposter syndrome kind of kicked in and then before
you know it, like you know, old time Rowe came out.
Like I'm literally like sitting here in my room, like
(42:55):
did someone just do this shit? I mean like before
before me kind of yeah to it. Yeah, I was like,
someone kind of hit this and I was just like
I was at Republic and they were already kind of
like you know, I think it was like things were
happening at the same time and yeah, and it just
like kind of just watched it blow up and it
was just like dang, Like you know, I had a
whole album called Wrangler.
Speaker 2 (43:14):
You know.
Speaker 3 (43:15):
Do you feel you missed because he that hit first?
Did you feel like you had to start over or
do you feel like that was something now you could
jump on.
Speaker 1 (43:22):
I don't That's a great question. I don't know if
I felt like I missed it. I felt like I think,
you know, I think it goes back to that, I'm
like I want to be the first. I mean, like
you want to be the first or you want to
be the one that like kind of stands out or
not do what other people are doing. I've always been
that person like when other people are this, I look,
I go this way, so I'm like, you're going this way,
and then someone just like you know, I, cuts you
(43:43):
off and goes and does it. So it kind of
felt like, damn, I can't do it anymore. Not can't
do it anymore because it's not like a.
Speaker 3 (43:50):
So then what did you start doing once that happened?
Anything different?
Speaker 2 (43:53):
Kind of Well, I.
Speaker 1 (43:53):
Think before that there was like already some hesitancy to
jump in the water in the space, you know. Like
even going back and listening to that album, the one
I'm talking about that seth England knows about, it was
like it was kind of like it wasn't great, you know,
like it wasn't good, Like I don't you know, it
wasn't like it was rough. You know, I didn't know
(44:13):
much about because essentially we made this whole album called Wrangler,
and at the end of Wrangler, we made a song
called Winning Streak. And then the Winning Streak song was
so good that I told like my managers at the time,
I was like Hey, forget about the album right now.
We need to drop this song right now. I'm talking
about winning streak. And then we dropped that song and
(44:35):
then that's what started the whole That one caught you know,
this was a time and then I think remember like
Belahedide I was at Coachella twenty sixteen. Belahadie just posted
a video on ig of her jumping out of skydiving
and the song was in the background, and then that
shit just took it to like a whole nother level.
This is like the early on set of like influencers
like posting your song and it actually made the song
(44:56):
go viral. So then that's how I got through Republic.
And then when we got to Republic, we were like, hey,
but we have this album called Wrangler. They're like, dope,
we're gonna drop put out this Wrangler album. And then
that's when I was like, I don't I was like,
I don't know if the world's ready for like I
don't know if I'm ready. I don't know if the
world's ready for this. I don't know like the market
it's ready for like this, uh this what yes?
Speaker 2 (45:17):
I mean?
Speaker 1 (45:19):
And I don't only want to call it country hip
hop because I never looked at it like that. I
don't even like that term country hip hop. I'm not
like into that, but like, whatever this is, you know
what I mean, whatever my artist is, what that project was.
And the reason I don't cause it's like it's it's
saying country hip hop is almost like saying it's not
a country.
Speaker 2 (45:34):
I mean, ye I would, I wouldn't call it country, yea.
I don't want to call it that.
Speaker 1 (45:37):
I feel like it's it cheapens like what it what
it is by us.
Speaker 2 (45:40):
You know.
Speaker 3 (45:40):
I feel like sometimes we lose our things lose value
when we try to label it.
Speaker 1 (45:47):
One hundred percent and it's and it's like something like
that's another hopefully by the end, by the end of
all my career. It's like, you know, whatever my intention is,
because I'm not the most like people and I'm not
the most like I don't say things the way I
wish them to be said. You know, when you have
a thought, you're like, I know the exact way to
say it, and it comes out a completely different way.
(46:09):
That happens to me a bunch. But but yeah, like
I kind of was like, I don't think the world's
ready for this kind of leaned a little bit more,
going back to like just being like traditional hip hop
just like what I what I thought, well, I mean
what I like to listen to and what I thought,
like what I thought would be I was just A
and R and my stuff too much, being too much
(46:30):
of A and R.
Speaker 3 (46:31):
You know, too much of you're over evaluating, oh exactly.
Speaker 2 (46:35):
And it's crazy.
Speaker 1 (46:36):
I think some of the most successful artists of our
of that time were really not thinking.
Speaker 2 (46:40):
They were just like having fun. It's funny. I just
did like a.
Speaker 1 (46:44):
Some radio interviews and I was just talking about how
like the key to having fun when you're in a
room because that winning Streak song, we had fun when
we made that twenty thirty minutes a song was was
done and we put it out and my whole life changed.
I got a record deal, got a publishing deal, and
then yeah, then kind of like Wrangler was like was
over evaluating. It was like the road's not ready for this.
(47:06):
Made this other EP or project called Lady Wrangler, which
y'all can see online, and that was more me just
like unfocused, just making stuff. They really didn't have any
I won't say it wasn't me but it was just
like it was like, what does this sound like? How
do we describe this to somebody? Like the first song
I sampled, you know I dream of Genie? Right, Yeah,
(47:31):
Like I sampled I dream of Genie on the first
song I don't know why, and I just wroke. But
it was like, well, like if you listen to that,
that's honestly probably the purest form of like me and like,
if you really want to talk about like auto biography,
it was probably that album.
Speaker 3 (47:44):
So when when did barsong happen? Like I'm just cure
because we ain't got there yet. We ain't got there, yeah,
just talking about like how like yeah, people Jim Pop
found it.
Speaker 1 (47:57):
To be honest, it was like it was like I
just made a song, man, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (48:02):
I made a song and that's what it is. It's
been a bunch of those happened.
Speaker 1 (48:05):
When I talked about having those ideas and being like
that would be a dope idea if if someone does
this and I just got out of my way that imposters.
Usually people will be like I got out of the
way of me just overanalyzing this stuff and just being
like we're making this album and we're not thinking about
We're not thinking about what the concept of the album
is going to be and with the move with the
videos are going to be.
Speaker 2 (48:26):
It's just like I'm just going just to have fun again.
Speaker 1 (48:28):
And at the end of it, at the end of
us making, it's funny happened again. At the end of
us making, where I've been isn't where I'm going. Last,
we're like producers are cooked, you know what I mean.
They're like, look, we have your these are your twelve songs,
Like we're not we don't want to make anymore. I
don't think anybody really said that, but you can, you know,
kind of feel that. You're like, yeah, we've been working
on this for all year. And I was like I
just came to the studio one day and I was like, hey,
(48:50):
I got this idea for this song where we like
we should flip a two thousands hip hop song until
country song. And it was just one of those days
where the producers were like sure, and they was like, yeah,
we'll do it, and then we made we made some
random song right before it, and then right before we're
about to leave, we just started on another song and
(49:10):
and and then we just started cooking. As soon as
he started playing that guitar un I was just like,
I was like hard, you know what I mean. And
I just I think I just said to my baby,
want to burgen? I mean she'd been telling you. I
think I just said that.
Speaker 2 (49:23):
It wasn't written down anywhere. I don't think I wrote
a single lyric for that song at the time.
Speaker 3 (49:28):
You just kind of sang freestyled it.
Speaker 2 (49:29):
Yeah, I got voice memos of it. I have a
voice memos.
Speaker 1 (49:32):
It's it's rare, but it's like I have a voice
memo where I'm like, I'm saying, like me, he pull
it out, let me.
Speaker 2 (49:38):
See if I can find it. But in the video,
in the in the audio, I'm like.
Speaker 1 (49:41):
Oh, this is about to be my first country number
one and say that this. Yeah, I'll see if I
can find it. But yeah, like I'm you know, because
you're just voice mamos.
Speaker 2 (49:48):
You don't forget.
Speaker 1 (49:49):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I definitely have it. Let me see
if Sean, if Sean can get it to me. But
Sewan Cook is the other producer. But I'm like, oh,
you got the bort A song.
Speaker 5 (50:02):
Let's take a quick pause for a message from our
sponsor and we're back on the Bobby Cast. Did you
have to message Jay Kwan Jake?
Speaker 1 (50:21):
No, actually, Jay Kwan message messaged me once because you know,
you had to get it cleared. And like he messed
me like three days after I made that song though,
I mean, we were working on all these songs and
then that last when I made that song, you know,
I think the label I kind of just dropped it
in a note in a storm and I just dropped
it in a notes in the notesap and then he
hit me up and was like, I just made the song,
(50:43):
dropped it in the notes and went to sleep, didn't
say anything. I didn't tell anybody, and made the song.
And the next thing next day he calls me and
he's like, yo, that song you made last night?
Speaker 2 (50:52):
You know what I mean?
Speaker 1 (50:52):
He was like, oh, this song's out of here, and
I'm like, but the song had no drums. It was
just like a guitar am I and me singing the
song and he was like, no, it's out of here.
And then our A and R hit us hit me too.
It was like, yeah, that tipsy song, like crazy, I'm
talking about no drums, talking about a shitty sounding guitar
in the song. And then and then you know, every
(51:13):
once once enough people tell you like, this song is
pretty crazy, you know. And then and then the producer,
his publisher, his manager was like, yo, you're about this
song is about to take off.
Speaker 3 (51:22):
Did you feel it immediately when you release it?
Speaker 2 (51:25):
When I released it, yeah, yeah, yeah, that is that
a crazy.
Speaker 1 (51:28):
Feeling that was that was really really really nuts. So
you wanna hear some more moral lore. This gets deep,
This gets deep. Man, you might have to move my
flight back so you don't have to the lord, here's
a law. So so song comes out right, we're talking,
we're making everyone's making bets and stuff. They're like they're like, man,
what's it going to do? Like how is it going
to perform? So first we were like at Coachella doing
(51:52):
something like we were doing like a what we were doing.
We were doing some sort of like you know, the
little mini events whatever they got side events or something.
After whatever, song come, song drops that night and then
we're like sitting there like, man, how many streams is
it going to do? How many streams? You guys saying
think do you think it's gonna do in a week?
People like we think, go do a million everyone's like
(52:12):
it's gonna do like a million in a week. Some
people are like like five hundred thousand in a week.
They're trying to keep it like conservative numbers, and they're
like a million in a week, and I was like, man,
that's that's pretty crazy. It used to take us like
a month to do a million, you mean when like
other songs, and that was good. I mean, like getting
a million a month was like great, Oh my gosh. Well,
we're watching this thing get like one hundred thousand in
(52:33):
the first five minutes, you know, I mean of this
song coming out, and then we're just staring and we're
just looking. And then then we're just like watching it
as like cause we're we're doing we did. The show
we did was like at eleven o'clock in the middle
of the desert. It was like and Charlie XCX went
on like right after us, which is crazy because she
ended up having a working massive too, But but yeah,
we're just watching this song. We're just like, yo, this
(52:54):
thing is like kind of going crazy. And then first
twenty four hours we're like, oh, we hit a million
just on Spotify alone in twenty four hours, and twenty
four hours in a million and twenty four hours, and
then you know, then you got to calculate all the
other DSPs, and then by the time you know, we
hit like four million streams and twenty four hours across
all platforms. So then we're like, this is crazy, like
no one's ever done this, but like this has like
(53:16):
never been seen before at this point. But then two
weeks later, Million Dollar Baby comes out, you know what.
It's by Tommy Richmond, and he posts like two tiktoks
to his story and I'm like, I'm like, oh this.
Speaker 2 (53:30):
I was like, this song's kind of catchy.
Speaker 1 (53:31):
And then he drops his song and the same thing happens,
and I'm like, oh, he's just a million twenty four hours,
and I'm like, I'm like, is there like a is
there like a glitch or something like.
Speaker 3 (53:39):
What's going like everywhere everybody's getting a million?
Speaker 1 (53:41):
So then but no, so I'm just I'm like, Okay,
So that's that's interesting. Like I guess like all the
songs coming out are just going to start doing this,
and eventually I think, you know, now we're and now
we're actually at that point where it's kind of like happening.
But this was like the early onset of like this
this trend, but come to find out it wasn't. That
wasn't the case. That was also like a massive so crazy.
(54:02):
He went to my high school. He went to my
he went to my brother's high He went to my
the high school I was supposed to go to in Virginia.
Speaker 3 (54:08):
What else is crazy is my manager for eight years
signed him?
Speaker 2 (54:12):
Oh really? Yeah? This record label?
Speaker 3 (54:14):
Oh yeah, when I blew up?
Speaker 2 (54:15):
What's his name to be? Okay? Does he? He also does?
He work with Brent too.
Speaker 3 (54:20):
He's over the whole umbrella, that whole thing.
Speaker 2 (54:22):
That's yeah.
Speaker 1 (54:23):
But yeah, like so my little brother told me about him.
Tommy like two three years before that. I was actually
a Tommy Richmond's. I was at a party of his
three weeks before. That's before bar Song even came out,
like a week before Barsong two, a week or two
before Barsong came out. So which was ended up because
this came out a week after mine and I was
at a party because I was in Virginia at that
time for something, I I think, some family thing, and
(54:45):
I get on the mic. There's a video of me
on the mic just being like yeah, man, like not
a lot of people make it out from from or
make it to this level and just senior success man
like keep going like you're like you're you're doing you're
killing it. And then at this time he you know,
he had the song with Brent that was like probably
the big is one I'm Upset or something, and you know,
and then the whole summer long we're like neck and neck.
Speaker 2 (55:06):
Like I remember when both songs came out, it was.
Speaker 1 (55:09):
Like two and three, Like it was on the billboard
high one hundred, and I'm like, damn, two people from
the same uh, it's about same mild radius, like having
this huge, like these huge songs at the same time.
So it was it was it was cool to see
for like the city, for people to be like, oh,
both those guys are from the same town, but we
never met at what.
Speaker 2 (55:27):
We met before.
Speaker 3 (55:28):
Like do you guys start to get do you start
to get a ton of offers? Like two weeks after
already blown up, you mean like like record stuff like show.
Speaker 1 (55:37):
Show, show, They just that was I mean, that was
like kind of immediate because I think right right after
we did it stage Coach was like that weekend because
it was Coachella, right, So then you know, Diplo had
me come out of his hot you know, the Diplo
Honkey Tok thing he does a stage coach and I
(55:57):
come out on this crazy rise and I'm like, oh,
just thirty thousand people out there and I'm doing the.
Speaker 2 (56:02):
Song and it was like and they knew it and
they knew it.
Speaker 1 (56:04):
And then it was also cool too, because I don't
think I was even on officially on stage coach on
the lineup that year. This is two weeks after this
song came out. And then bud Light hits me up
and the like, hey, we want you to do it
or a little bud Light tent, and then.
Speaker 2 (56:17):
I do the tent.
Speaker 1 (56:17):
The tent is like I mean, it's like people are
squeezed in there, and then there's a line wrapped around
bud Light. And these are some of my favorite moments
in my career, to be honest, like, you know so
far like this that stuff doesn't beat anything. When it's
like you've been working so hard at something, you got tripped,
you got you got this, you got told you had
people try to steal from me, you had people try
(56:39):
to do so many different things, and you've like really
really tried everything and felt like you failed that imposter syndrome,
that that just doing every feeling you're doing everything wrong,
you know, and then finally you're just like, wait, you
know you you you actualize into the person you thought
you you wanted to become, and.
Speaker 3 (56:58):
You hit hard, and you hit hard, and then what
about following it up though, because now you got a
big one? Yeah, and now looking back, you did follow
it up with a monster one. But are you putting
that same pressure on yourself to do it again?
Speaker 2 (57:11):
Yes?
Speaker 3 (57:11):
And no?
Speaker 1 (57:12):
And man, Bobby, I just want to say, Man, I
appreciate you for this conversation, not like talking I'm about
to leave, but like this you're really helping me like
unravel stuff in my mind because, like you know, because
this concept I'll Misscary. This is the thing that I
felt like, and I think my team deals with it
a lot, because like, are you sure? Like I kind
of tried to do this before and I really felt
like I feel like people didn't understand it, or I
(57:33):
kind of failed flat, or like we just didn't commit
or anything like that. And I was just like, and
what's really cool about us talking about it now? And
I'm They're like, no, like you're supposed to do this now.
And what's really cool about it is the fact that
I'm gonna, I think I'm gonna continue to have a
career like this where I can do special projects and
maybe people don't understand it, you know what I mean,
Maybe it is something that's like it's like maybe who knows,
(57:56):
maybe it does you know, and not do what we
think it's to do it or whatever or doesn't. But
then it's like you can come back. You can always
come back and just keep creating and making new things
and you never know what's gonna like kind of catch show.
Speaker 3 (58:09):
So you're nervous about this, You're nervous about the ALOGI
I'm nervous with all the success that you've had.
Speaker 1 (58:15):
Yeah, you know, I mean, you know, I mean it's
like I said, there's so many more nuanced, like nuanced
things to talk about, especially like now dealing with like
being to referencuse. It's so cool that you're from Arkansas
and you have like the upbringing you did, because it's like, man,
sometimes it feels like man, really like how the how
did this all happen?
Speaker 3 (58:34):
But now there are people looking at you in areas
where nobody's making it out going man. If Shoboozy can
do it, yeah, that means I can do it because
he wasn't supposed to do it. Yeah, you weren't supposed
to do it. I wasn't supposed to do it. But
I think the representation for people out there too, And
I think the fact that you're nervous.
Speaker 2 (58:52):
About it is good.
Speaker 3 (58:53):
Yeah really yeah, because it means it matters. Could you
just keep putting out bangers?
Speaker 2 (58:57):
Probably? Probably? Really? Yeah, like you got it.
Speaker 3 (59:01):
You put out multiple bangers in a row, massive songs. Yeah,
you probably got three more on your phone right now.
Speaker 2 (59:06):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (59:06):
I mean, and I also probably could go look the
route of just being like, hey, I'm just gonna just
give me twenty outside songs and I'll pick the one
that I know is going to work and record it
and then put it out. But it was like I
just I was like, if I'm going to do this,
I think I should do this now. You know, I
got the blessing from everyone. Just be like, if you're
going to do this project, do it now.
Speaker 3 (59:23):
True artists get nervous about their art real man, because
you want it to matter.
Speaker 1 (59:27):
You want it to matter, I mean, you do want
you do want to work, and I think what the
part that the most reward the most.
Speaker 2 (59:34):
The best part of my career I think.
Speaker 1 (59:36):
Has been putting out the good News and Amen and
that deluxe album too, but like man, the fact that
like where I've been is and where I'm going to.
The last album was like that was, I mean a
couple of times platinum. Now it has a diamond, has
a diamond song on it has like six seven platinum
or I think every song is almost certified on that album.
We made it in the bedroom on like a micro budget,
(59:57):
you know what I mean, maybe we spent maybe our
album budget recording Budge. It was maybe like thirty thousand dollars,
I mean to record that whole album, mixed, master everything,
and then on top of that doing a deluxe, like
doing a yeah deluxe with five six extra songs. One
another one is multi platinum, another one is multi plantinum
(01:00:17):
and won a Grammy And it wasn't even this, you know,
Like I went to the Grammys with the bar song
year and I think we had like six seven nominations.
I ain't want any of them. But then next year
came and won a Grammy with a man Like that
is to me that's way more rewarding than to look up,
wake up and be like, man, trust me, I got
a room full of bar song plax. It's like I
got to tell people. I'm like, there's other Plaxas just
haven't come in yet, you know what I mean. Like
it trusts me. It's not like a So this is
(01:00:39):
not like the bar song in the tipsy room, swear
to God like I have to. I'm like, I wonder
if they come in there and be like this motherfucker
only has one song with Plax, you know what I mean.
But so now I'm like, I had this Grammy and
it doesn't say bar song on it. It's like it
almost is like a better experience. And if I just won,
if I just like I had another bar song thang
in the bar song room.
Speaker 3 (01:00:59):
Well, I'm talking about the album before you came in,
y'all all cher Lee and other Western tails. Yeah, I
hope that you get from this album what you want
to get from this album, because obviously this album has
been inside of you for a long time.
Speaker 2 (01:01:10):
Long time, man, long time.
Speaker 1 (01:01:12):
Yeah, it's you know, I think for me, it's when
we talked about like Star Wars, like all those like
the things that inspired me.
Speaker 2 (01:01:19):
To make something really cool. I really wrote a note
about today.
Speaker 1 (01:01:22):
I'm like, man, it's just this is just me trying
to exercise one hundred and ten percent of like my creative,
my creative like energy, and man, I think we did
something really cool. Some of my favorite like projects like
Pink Floyd the Wall, which was had a movie that's
one of my favorite movies too, And honestly, it didn't
really make sense, but but.
Speaker 2 (01:01:39):
I love it anyway.
Speaker 1 (01:01:40):
And you weren't high enough. No, that's why it wasn't.
But those concept you know, Prince Purple Rain, and there's
so many of them. But I really hope that this
album goes into the rankings of like some of like
when you think of concept albums, and when you ask
chat GPT you know about concept albums, you know mine
comes up first. Also know the data centers just want
(01:02:02):
to say that her Virginia is the most data centers.
Speaker 2 (01:02:04):
Really I did.
Speaker 3 (01:02:04):
I was talking about data centers today and yeah, they
got to have fresh water. It can't even be salt water. Yeah,
the environmental impact of how loud it it is, oh
yeah yeah yeah, And we crave more data and we
crave all of the things that obviously Netflix and all
our social media, but now that AI is being used
in everything and we need more. And there's also a survey.
Speaker 2 (01:02:27):
On the crazy thing is but Virginia has the most
data centers.
Speaker 3 (01:02:30):
It's also what the most military is.
Speaker 1 (01:02:31):
Yeah, four hundred and fifty three apparently, And this is
one thing I saw. But I was crazy because im
seeing everyone, like you know, everyone's like kind of like
standing up in their communities for it, and I'm like, man, my.
Speaker 2 (01:02:40):
State has the most of these by like a lot,
well tech. Yeah, and the Texas, but at least you
number one. Okay, look you gotta go damn Yeah, we
do a part two though.
Speaker 3 (01:02:49):
I appreciate you. Yeah, yeah, good to finally meet you.
Speaker 2 (01:02:52):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:02:52):
How tall are you?
Speaker 2 (01:02:54):
Six three six three and a half?
Speaker 3 (01:02:55):
Can you go out and just like walk down because
I saw I saw waa women ya was drawn and
he's seventy five, but his is it for a different reason, right,
Like he's a you can't do anything without people, but
you have a large presence.
Speaker 2 (01:03:08):
Yeah you know you're a tall guy.
Speaker 3 (01:03:10):
Yeah you got shaboozy hair, Yeah, shaboozy hat. You got
to be shaboozy.
Speaker 1 (01:03:15):
Yeah, it's it's it's it's not that's what I was
going to say. Even also it's like that's like that
that part of it, And it's weird because the imposter
syndrome is still if anything is really still real in
that in that regard the whole, like yo, bro, like
you can't, you're you're you're somebody. You can't just because
I still sometimes I don't feel like anybody in that regard,
you know. I think when I touch stage it turns
into that when I talked to her when'm making music
(01:03:36):
and in tenth grade. But like outside of that, when
I walk off that stage, there's no there's no sense
of I am. I don't even using that word like
being famous, Like there's no world, Like I don't.
Speaker 3 (01:03:48):
They called you boozy for you out here. I want
to say hi to your people up there.
Speaker 2 (01:03:52):
I just want to.
Speaker 3 (01:03:53):
I want to say hi, were like boozy being a
little band, I was like boozy all right.
Speaker 2 (01:03:58):
But yeah, you know, it's weird. I don't. I don't
feel that. I don't feel like the famous thing.
Speaker 1 (01:04:03):
Like you know, it's just a weird because I'm like,
I'm just like, yo, We're all just human beings, man,
We're all.
Speaker 3 (01:04:07):
Like you said when you're four years old, we're just
human bodies. Communicating with each community is feeling there and eat.
Speaker 1 (01:04:13):
The last thing I'll say, you know, man, just just
just you don't have grace on on on on an
artist man, you know, I mean like they do do it.
Speaker 2 (01:04:20):
It's just a really demanding thing. I didn't really think
to me.
Speaker 1 (01:04:22):
It was like when you're a kid, You're like, I'm
going to make music and perform it in thousands of people.
Speaker 2 (01:04:27):
I'm like, yeah, you think it's gonna be like that easy.
Speaker 3 (01:04:29):
But last thing I'll say, no more data centers, No more.
Speaker 2 (01:04:33):
Is that political. It don't matter, don't matter. It's fresh
water for everybody. Good to see more communities clean.
Speaker 3 (01:04:39):
Thank you real thanks for listening to a Bobby Cast
production
He's like, yo, that song you made last night or
this song's out of here, and I'm like, but the
song had no drunes. It was just like a guitar
am me singing the song and he was like, no,
it's out of here. And then our A and R
hit me too. It was like, yeah, that tipsy song
like crazy.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Hey.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
Today's guest is Shaboozy. One of the wildest runs in
music over the last couple of years, even maybe decade,
from breaking records with the bar Song, which was also Tipsy,
to winning a Grammy with Jelly Roll and they did
that with Amen. And the guy's been doing it his
own way, Like this guy has been killing it. And
he's back with a brand new single called Cowgirl, a
(00:45):
new album called The Outlaw, Cherry Lee and other and
Western Tails. It's coming out July thirty, first massive tour
this fall. He's got so many songs in such a
short time. I really enjoyed this conversation here he is
Shaboozy growing up up. For me, I'm curious about how
you grew up Like I grew up really poor and
so I never really knew the price of anything because
(01:06):
we couldn't buy it. And then now I'm not, and
so I don't know the price of anything. So it's
like it's kind of a bizarre mix of life. And
when I was even single, I just went to the
gas station to buy everything, all my groceries. Really, so
I've never had a real concept of like grocery store
grocery so.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
You were never never even able to like go to Walmart.
Speaker 3 (01:26):
Yeah, Walmart was the kind of where I got my
clothes as a kid. We had Walmart's all over Arkansas.
That's like the two we have two things, Walmart, yeah,
Johnny Cash, Yeah, and Arkansas Razorbacks.
Speaker 2 (01:40):
Crazy from Arkansas too.
Speaker 3 (01:43):
Yeah, Like my grandma was a mass My grandma raised
me for a lot of my life. Yeah, and so
she was a massive Johnny Cash fan because he was
one of us more so than any other reason. So
like when I grew up, it wasn't the icon Johnny Cash.
It was like that's somebody who made it, like you
can make.
Speaker 2 (01:59):
It stuff a cool one to have.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
Do you have any of those man like at that time?
I mean, being from Virginia, Farrell for sure. I think
Forrell is definitely our Johnny Cash in that way, in
the realm of like you know Pharrell's story, like he
was in he was in a high school band, you know,
and his mom taught at the school. She was like
a librarian, I think. And so I think everyone was
just like being like the Nettunes were like the thing.
(02:21):
And then him and his high school buddy Chad Hugo,
you know, got in and started making beats on MPCs,
and then they became for for real. Well then, yeah,
so I think it was I think that's probably probably
the closest in that world, you know. But then you
got some you know, some like the historical country people
that I kind of learned about a little later on
in life when I come of did some digging.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
But it's cool how much representation actually matters. And I
think as I got to be an adult, I actually
understood what representation would be like for children, and it
could be it could be women, it could be race,
It doesn't matter, like it's just not having representation in
a larger place actually shows you you can do it,
especially when you come from like where I come from,
(03:04):
because nobody did anything but work at the mill. Yeah,
and so to do something like this that was never
a reality, but it was never you couldn't do it.
Speaker 2 (03:15):
So what was it like for you?
Speaker 1 (03:16):
I think it was, you know, it was a little
bit similar. I mean I grew up in Virginia, Northern Virginia,
and I was like explicitly rely remember just like there
being nothing there. Even when I go back there sometimes
now it's like, especially in like the fall time when
it's like really gray and gloomy, I'm like, man, how
did I get out.
Speaker 2 (03:33):
Of what's your home? Like this?
Speaker 1 (03:34):
It's called Woodbridge, Virginia, so it's it's like forty minutes
how to down south of DC a little bit more
like Fairfax. I was one of Fairfax's hospital. Marshmallow was
born there too. But I think Benny Blanco's from the
area too, He's from Morton, so like that that kind
of area. But it's hard to describe. It's like a commonwealth.
(03:55):
There's like a lot of people in the government or
military or you know. But you know, schools are like
the schools are good, Like they're they're decent.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
I mean, they're pretty good.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
But it's just like how you wanted to explore, like
how you wanted to use the resources that were available
to you.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
You know.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
I met j Furrow recently from Resinel, Virginia.
Speaker 2 (04:15):
Guy. Yeah, there's a bunch of Virginia guys.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
Yeah, he was from the freak chessa Peak chessa Peak.
Speaker 1 (04:24):
Yeah, it's a it's a it's a big place, man.
There's so many different corners and pockets. But the thing is,
it's like definitely for sure Melton pot of different things,
like or different cultures and groups of people. Like in
my school, like my school high school is majority actually Hispanic,
I mean Latin, Like it's like forty percent or something
like that, you know, and then the other side was
probably then you know, African Americans were like next, and
(04:46):
then you know it's kind of like white people were
kind of like the minority at that school. I would say,
you know, what.
Speaker 3 (04:53):
What kind of kid were you? What kind of student
were you?
Speaker 1 (04:55):
Man? I was like, this is actually a really cool,
good question. Feel like I was kind of like I
was really really competitive, but sometimes I wasn't willing willing
to do the work, you know what I mean, and
anything I did, like, you know, as far as like
when I was like in school, like I was trying
to be I would like to be like the smartest
person getting the best grades, but I was like, man,
I want to be that, but it's like I just
(05:17):
can't bring myself to like do the work in a way.
Or maybe I was more like an attention difficit thing.
Speaker 2 (05:24):
Yeah sounds like sound and you're just like, yoah, I know,
I want to do this thing.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
I want to get all days and I want to
get a great high GPA, but like I just can't
do it. Like and most of that stuff. Success in
school was like I feel like it was more about
like organization, you know. And I was like I was
a very like under sould things. So like usually the
kids that come with the binders and the papers are
falling all out like.
Speaker 2 (05:49):
Those they're never going to make it. And school it's
like that that guy's not going to make it.
Speaker 1 (05:52):
I was one of those kids, you know what I mean,
locker open, single papers, falling out doing homework and lunch.
Speaker 3 (05:58):
Or you want to be when you grew up.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
When I grew up. I mean, do you want like
that like the preschool?
Speaker 3 (06:06):
Like you how did that change?
Speaker 2 (06:07):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (06:08):
In preschool, man, I think you. I think I just
started off with just wanting to do the thing that
nobody else was doing. Like always, it was always that
it was always like what's the thing you talk about representation?
It's like, yeah, what's the thing that nobody else would
is doing, and like no one would expect me to do.
Speaker 2 (06:23):
I think it was always a push for that.
Speaker 1 (06:26):
So like when I was a kid, you know, the
first thing I said it was like I want to
be an astronaut, you know what I mean, because I'm like
the amount of people that are astronauts, and like, you know,
it also seems like a high paying job if you
make it back, Like but you know.
Speaker 3 (06:38):
I don't pay much as you don't.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
I wonder how I need to We need to look
at what how much astronauts make.
Speaker 1 (06:43):
But yeah, I was gonna, yeah, I wanted to be
an astronaut for a little bit.
Speaker 2 (06:47):
That was like four year old me.
Speaker 1 (06:50):
It kind of went from that and then it just
really turned into what I said about just being like
I had this strong sense of.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
I don't I don't know, I don't know. Maybe this
is another development.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Uh problem, the mental problem whatever, but I wanted to
just be I've really felt like isolated in a weird way,
and I don't think it was like a bad thing,
Like I just be in a group, I be in class,
and I just feel like I was just it was
just me, you know, I mean in the class, and
then there's everyone kind of else.
Speaker 3 (07:21):
I don't know how that how to reach do you
feel smarter? Less smart than the other kids? Was about
intelligence at all I felt.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
I think I felt very aware and maybe you can
use it as a form of intelligence.
Speaker 2 (07:31):
Maybe maybe it is. I mean, it's just weird when
it's gonna.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
Be actually cool, cool segment, like it's actually interesting to
feel like as a kid in school systems like that
when you feel like you could be really intelligent, but
because you're not, you're not in using their performance metrics,
like you're not holding up to their like that the
great systems they got, you're not, you know what I mean.
Then it's like, well I think I'm smart, but I'm
(07:54):
getting CS and d's like and then you know, I
got friends or people around me they're like, yo, I
think you're so. I think it was a little bit
of of that, Like I felt like I was really aware.
I felt like from a young as a young kid,
I was like four, just being like I'm a human being,
Like this is freaking this is crazy, you know, I mean,
like we're literally speaking you know what I mean, and
(08:16):
having a conversation and communicating you understand what I'm saying
through languages, you mean through.
Speaker 2 (08:22):
Yeah, that's no, But I'm really serious, like no, one
hundred percent. That's how I felt.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
It's funny because you know, I had a lot of
friends like in high school, you know, you know Virginia,
like growing up in like, you know, twenty twelve whatever,
going to high school in the twenty tens. You know,
there was a lot of that stuff because you know,
it's a kid Cuddy and all that kind of hip
hop was come mac Miller. So there was a lot
of kids experimenting with a lot of you know, that
sort of stuff. And I was like I never did it,
(08:47):
and you know, so I was like, I don't think
I need to do that. You know, I think I'm
pretty I'm pretty tapped already.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
What did you think you would do in about tenth grade?
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Like what did your tenth grade see this? From tenth grade?
Speaker 1 (08:59):
I think that was kind of like we're like this
drive and yearn to be like, man, what am I
good at? I really think tenth grade. I think I
was pretty low. I think I was pretty lost. I
think the thing I really was probably the closet like
pretty attached to is some sort of be like a director,
like a videographer or a director or something like something
(09:22):
like that, but more in this, more in the narrative,
in the narrative space, more in the like I loved,
I did like creating things. I like making things or
not even making things, more having ideas, you know, and
if it's like like what you's we were talking about,
you know, Sam Malton, it's like having an idea and
just being like, oh, I have this idea, let me go,
(09:44):
let me go journey through this, you know, let me
like figure out where it leads me. So I just
really like, I think that was one of my one
of my first loves was really just being like, dang,
I have this inspiration for this idea or concept, and
I want to see if I can make it happen
or like materialize it. So tenth yeah, that's kind of
(10:05):
where tenth grade was.
Speaker 3 (10:06):
Do you have any sort of like movie or book
or anything that was yeah, like something that kind of
blew you away that inspired you to create?
Speaker 1 (10:15):
Yeah, for sure, A specific one. Actually it was actually
Harry Potter, which is like believe it or not, yeahs
one what Harry Potter? Probably the first one, just just yeah, probably, yeah, right,
that one. I was like seven or eight, yeah, seven
one when I first like, you know, watch that movie
and read that read that book, and I was just like, man,
(10:37):
I think there's something fascinating about like Harry's life. To
a kid like probably like us, that's just like you
feel really ordinary, you know, and you're kind of like
not looked at as much. I'm not saying that's your reality,
but coming from the places we are where there's not
not extraordinary things going on, and then someone comes to
you and you're like, yo, actually, yo, Bobby, you're like extraordinary,
(10:58):
I mean, and you kind of attach yourself to a
story like that, where like a kid like me who
really doesn't feel like they have much going on or
much of like a talent or much of a story,
or feels like they want to get out of the
world they're in meets or watching something like that, and
you're like, oh no, like I do feel like extraordinary.
Speaker 3 (11:14):
You know, who was it that made you feel extraordinary
for the first time?
Speaker 1 (11:19):
I would say, I would say my mom and dad,
My mom and dad. I think them being like you know,
immigrating here, like my like specific I mean not both
of them, but specifically my dad. I think him coming
here from Nigeria and you know, going to school in
Texas and paying his way to Like he he worked
(11:40):
his way through school. While he was at school, he
was also doing like dishwalks. He was like working at
like as a dishwasher, Like he was doing odd jobs
to pay for himself to go to uh to what
does it pay your way through school? And in Texas?
Then he also got his master's So I think when
you like think of that like level of drive and
someone who's who can do that, it's like, what why
can't I.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
Do something similar?
Speaker 1 (12:02):
So I feel like and then the cultural pressures of
like in like that in his culture, well our culture,
you know, or how he.
Speaker 2 (12:10):
Grew up, I'll say that how he was raised.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
He had nine siblings and lived in like a really
really really I mean, like I don't want to get
into like the generic stuff, but like he lived in
the village, you know, didn't probably didn't have like you know,
you probably have to go to a river to like
get water in buckets and carry it back home. And
he grew up with he definite had less than nine siblings,
but it was like seven to nine. And uh, there
(12:33):
were a lot of boys. And in that culture, like
there's kind of an emphasis on the first son, and
he was the fourth. So it's like you're in the middle,
I mean of boys, you're kind of not you know,
So for him to like, for him to in the
same sense I think what we're talking about, to feel like, dang,
I have to pick my I have to motivate myself.
(12:53):
I have to feel extraordinary in the middle of this,
in this village, you know, with all these people living
with all of my whole family's living here.
Speaker 2 (13:02):
I'm the fourth boy.
Speaker 1 (13:04):
You know what I mean when we talk about the
emphasis on the first you kind of have to make
your own like your own make your own star, you know,
I mean, or make your.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
Own self motivation. Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 1 (13:18):
And I think just thinking of where he started to
where he he got himself, it just was like that's
kind of what I and I think he was really
much like instilled that on me.
Speaker 3 (13:27):
So did you ever go back to where he grew up?
Speaker 1 (13:30):
Yeah, I've been there before. I've been Yeah. Yeah, when
I was younger, I went there. We went there a
bunch The first time I went there was I was seven.
I went there and crazy experience. I got off the
plane and the first thing I see is like what
we got to out the airport.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
The first thing I see is a guy roll up
to me. I'm like kind of a skateboard with no legs.
Speaker 1 (13:51):
He had no legs and asked me for money, and
I just started screaming.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
I was like, yo, what.
Speaker 3 (13:57):
A seven year old I could see where the.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
Amputeen's war, you know what I mean, just just just
just straight up to you. And I'm just like, oh man,
I'm seven years old. And it was but it was
a you know, it was it was interesting to like
come from like Virginia, America, go there, see that, you know.
And then I also went to boarding school there too,
so that was like another another crazy experience as well.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
How old were you when you went to boarding school?
Speaker 2 (14:21):
It's nine, it's nine, nine, nine years old.
Speaker 3 (14:24):
How long were you there?
Speaker 1 (14:26):
Year and a half. I was there a year and
a half. My other brothers, like my other sombers are
there longer. Some of them got like only have three siblings,
but two of them came there and they were there
for like four or five.
Speaker 3 (14:37):
Years is that because he wanted you guys to know
where where he and where you come from.
Speaker 1 (14:41):
Yeah, you know, like our whole your whole family's are
you know, you're extended fans like my cousin's are over there.
So I think it was there was, it was. It
was virtually that. But my dad was still very like,
it's an interesting guy. You need you should bring him
on your podcasting, we should do it together. But but yeah,
it was really was honestly, it was that. But there
(15:01):
was like there were times where they use it as
punishment too, like they would psychologically tell you, like, you know,
if you don't get like if you mess up, we're
gonna That was kind of the thing the other people
in the community did. So by the time they were like,
yeah it's time to go there, I'm like, yo, you know,
I mean, my sister like, why are we going there?
I mean, like you told us this is like capital punishment,
(15:22):
you know what I mean, and now we're like going there.
Speaker 2 (15:24):
But it was, it was, it was. It was an experience. Man.
That's like a whole nother and that could probably be
its own book. You know.
Speaker 3 (15:30):
We have a house in Fayetteville because I'm from Arkansas,
and so we got a house back home. Do you
have a house back in Nigeria?
Speaker 1 (15:36):
Yeah, man, that's a that's the thing that people do
their culturally. And my dad just built like this crazy,
crazy house.
Speaker 2 (15:42):
Yeah. It's like I'm like, yo, Dad, you were.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
You were at to Toyota, you know, like you don't
have to live like the like the president here, but
that's what some people do, like you know what i mean,
Like you know, I was like, you're a car salesman.
Speaker 3 (15:52):
Feel like a long flight to get to Yeah.
Speaker 1 (15:55):
But it's like he just called me that because I
just got my house and he just.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Called me and he was just showing me. He was like, yeah,
the only thing about here is just no electricity.
Speaker 1 (16:01):
Also, but he's got this huge like it's probably like
maybe like twenty maybe probably a little lesson than like
fifteen acres and it's like and.
Speaker 2 (16:10):
He lives next to the governor of the state.
Speaker 1 (16:14):
But he's like a you know what I mean, Like
I love him to death, but sometimes I'm just like, yo, Dad,
It's like, but that's just the culture there.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
Man.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
The people like to like they want to like be
you know, everybody just kind of like wants to be.
Speaker 2 (16:24):
A little bit a little show off a little bit,
but it's still cool.
Speaker 1 (16:29):
You know, it's cool for your Like it's really important
for parents to like and still like a sense of
pride union on the kids, on your kids and yourself.
And you know, I think that's some of the most
like that's a very under under a recognized trade about
like how much like that helps with my kids?
Speaker 2 (16:47):
You know? Did you end up finishing high school? Yeah?
Speaker 1 (16:50):
Man, barely, I'm making a sound. I'm trying to make
it sound like that was one of those like like
like dunk like kids that was just like not.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
Oh, I would have thought undertrieval the opposite.
Speaker 3 (16:57):
I would have thought you were way smart and that
you'd be one of those that like I don't need
high school because I know what I want to do.
So I think what you think you're feeding me and
what I'm getting from your two different things. Because I'm
not taking you saying that to me at all.
Speaker 1 (17:11):
Yeah, no, I know, but it's just but I think
sometimes maybe I try to, like, you know, you know,
you kind of try to like maybe upsell the whole
like nah, you know, I just like I didn't go
to school. I didn't care about school. I just came
out and it was like, you know, it was like
but yeah, the truth is it was I think it
was exactly what it was. It was just not where
my I just couldn't focus in those areas. Like my
brother on the other hand, like he's uh, he's he's
(17:34):
like in Chicago doing like a residency. I don't know
what medical thing he's doing, but he like did that,
did his uh got in to medical school? Did them cats?
All that stuff, and he's like a scholar scholar. Interesting
to think about him is like from what I because
we weren't like we didn't talk a bunch from in
the house. But he didn't really talk.
Speaker 2 (17:53):
You know. It's interesting, right, like he.
Speaker 1 (17:55):
Barely talked, but then he'd write these crazy papers and
essays and stuff that I'm like, yo, you I mean,
but we went to the same high school. And yeah,
let's take a quick pause for a message from our sponsor.
Speaker 3 (18:19):
And we're back on the Bobby cast. I felt you
go to other people. Almost every time I've talked about you,
like almost every time you've been like, yeah, but not
about me as my dad was my brother, Yeah, like
in your house, was it? Hey, don't make it about
you mean, was that.
Speaker 1 (18:39):
Man, you know what, probably probably a little bit more
there was. There's definitely like a sense of like, may
we going to therapy right now?
Speaker 2 (18:46):
Man? I just left. I need to do therapy more
so that I don't come in here and do it.
Speaker 3 (18:52):
I was like.
Speaker 2 (18:54):
No, but yeah, I think there was.
Speaker 1 (18:56):
You know, there was definitely like culturally, there was a
lot of competition, you know what I mean, lot of
like liquature, this person's doing. I look what that person's doing.
Why don't you be more like that? Or why don't
you do stuff like that person? So I think there
was a level of that, and I do think that
was a huge motivation for me to be like, let
me figure out.
Speaker 3 (19:12):
I mean when did you figure out what you wanted
to do though, because so far it didn't feel like
tenth twelfth grade when you graduate, like you didn't really
know what you wanted to do.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
Yeah, I think in the eleventh grade. Tenth eleventh grade,
I made it recorded my first song, you know what
I mean, Like there's you know, the shitty on it
when it's not even that's like like on a blue microphone,
And I think I just record a song like mixed
craft and I showed it to my friends, you know,
like everybody did it. Like, you know, we all try
(19:40):
to like figure out if we were the next Neptunes,
the next Neptune or the next odd Future whatever or
whatever it was there, or the next Johnny Cash or
whoever it is, Like we all try to figure that out.
Speaker 2 (19:51):
And I think that's kind of what happened. That was
like what you did.
Speaker 1 (19:54):
You know, you went to your friend's house and you
try to record a song, and then some people are
not good, and then somebody's wait, he's he's kind of good.
And I think I think when I recorded my first song,
like the state I would just get into was just
like I still it's still the same to this day.
Like I would just go into not a booth, but
(20:15):
I'd be sitting at a desk and as soon as
I just opened this, like I start making music like
my my like the world almost like shuts down and
I get into this thing where I just like start
seeing worlds as I and everything becomes like super visceral.
I think Viscerl was a visceral me.
Speaker 3 (20:32):
It's like an emotional like a react like a viscil
reactually be like what makes you feel emotional.
Speaker 1 (20:36):
Yeah, yeah, it's exactly so, you know, and it'd be
like something about like this girl I was talking to
that I didn't know how to really say the thing
the words.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
To and I just be like let me you know, but.
Speaker 3 (20:47):
Now you did in the song. Yeah, yeah, kind of.
Speaker 2 (20:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (20:50):
It was like, you know, because I wasn't like the
most like I was like the most outgoing person. I
mean I was, no, it was really outgoing, but I
wasn't the most confident person.
Speaker 2 (20:57):
I'll say that.
Speaker 1 (20:58):
So I think when I was able to get into
a place where I can like create and be, you know,
the version of myself who is confident, like that kind
of like helped.
Speaker 2 (21:11):
It was a good way they focus. Could I focus?
Speaker 3 (21:14):
Yeah, once music started and you started actually doing it,
could you focus more than you focus on anything prior?
Speaker 2 (21:21):
Yes, for sure. For sure. I would say that like.
Speaker 3 (21:24):
Your attention could say on music, but you found your thing.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
Yeah. Like I would make full on projects.
Speaker 1 (21:28):
It was one of those things where like like other
people that were helping me with the music, like whether
I was engineering or producing, I would fund them be
like Yeo, we gotta let's go, let's go do this.
I'm motivating everybody else to find, you know, the same
way in the school project, someone would probably want the
over the achieving person would be like, yeah, why are
pushing other people? I'm now doing that for in music,
(21:49):
And I think I took a lot of those like
because at the end of the day, I'll still I'll
still push to be like an academic, Like I still
understood what the what the what's the word?
Speaker 2 (22:00):
God?
Speaker 1 (22:00):
This is such a simple what the expectation? What the
expectation was when you are in school. So I think
I applied a lot of that stuff to music, and
that's kind of like what even helped me even excel more?
You know, you can ask my managers. I'm not always
calling people like what are we doing? What's going on here?
Organizing people? Like when I see people that are kind
(22:20):
of like when I see something that's not working or
something could change, I'm like the one that's like, you
know making those things?
Speaker 2 (22:28):
Are you always hustling?
Speaker 3 (22:30):
I am always like I got eleven things going once
I got it's like spinning plates. I'm just trying to
keep them all going.
Speaker 2 (22:38):
Yeah, man, I changed a lot.
Speaker 1 (22:40):
Man, I used to be I used to be really
bad when it comes to that like never giving myself credit,
never celebrating any moments, like really just like everything was fleeting.
I was like, what's the next thing, What's the next thing?
Like always living in the future of like I'm going
to make be a New York Times bestseller, I'm going
to write a book, or I'm going to do this,
(23:01):
and every time I do that, I found myself being
getting further and further away from the thing that I
was asking.
Speaker 2 (23:08):
Or looking for. And then I don't know where it.
Speaker 1 (23:13):
I think it kind of changed when like everything kind
of like crashed, you know, everything kind of just like stopped.
Speaker 3 (23:19):
What crashed just.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
Just like my whole like just I mean it's a loss.
It might need more than an hour, but just like
my whole like kind of like first the first iteration
of my career because I was signed to I got
signed to Republic when I moved to that. See this
is crazy, Like I moved to LA and didn't know
anybody in twenty seven at sixteen.
Speaker 2 (23:42):
To be an artist, to.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
Be an artist, yeah at that time, you know, it
was to be with somebody that you know, but it
was also to kind of be an artist and just
if it was for me to be a director. It
was me a musician, just do something. And I kind
of got out there and and because of like we talked,
what we talked about, like that motivation, the things that
I kind of experienced, I think I was able to
get like an edge on on and just so I
(24:07):
had that self motivation right and that self drive of
being like if this person did it, it, this person did it,
If Sam Walton did if my dad did this, if
for real did it, you know, if anybody did it,
you know, if Waylon Jennings did it, if anybody like
I should be able to do this too. So I
think that motivation, like I found myself, Like I got
(24:29):
a deal in when I got to LA in like
six months, you know, and I didn't know anybody like
I got to not even did I get a deal.
I got a record deal to the label I said
I was going to sign to before I even left.
Speaker 2 (24:38):
How did that happen?
Speaker 3 (24:41):
You did the knock on the door, get to know
people think or they find you.
Speaker 1 (24:44):
I think it goes back to that, literally, that that
thing when I was like that, when I was in
high school, when I went in front of that laptop
on mixedcraft or audacity and recorded that song and everyone
was like, yo, he's you know. I mean, I think
I think any opportunity I got, like if I was
was going through enough. It's another thing that happened yesterday
in front of the lakeside that kind of reminds me
(25:04):
of this. It's kind of emotional, but I think it's
just like hunger. And then whenever, whenever I got into
a studio finally, like the song I would make would
just be like to them, I mean, it would just
be like we never heard anything like this, and you
could play like twenty songs and when you get to
a song that I did, people would just be like, like,
what's that?
Speaker 2 (25:24):
You know? So I think that just kind of carried
and moved things along.
Speaker 1 (25:29):
But then I met in the first year, I'm like,
also someone that like that same self motivation I have
and the same belief in myself. I have that same
belief in other people because I'm like, what's the difference
between me and the person next to me?
Speaker 2 (25:44):
Right?
Speaker 1 (25:45):
And I think you said that about even the Johnny Cash,
like this is this is the guy in Arkansas that
made it. We're not looking at him as Johnny Cash.
We're looking at him as someone who made it. So
I think for me because you know, you said something
earlier that was like really kind of it was interesting,
and you said, I talk about a lot of other
people a lot, because like, I really like human beings
like fascinate me a lot and like what they're capable
(26:07):
of doing, and their stories just like resonate with me,
especially the ones that like find success in a place
where or coming from a place where you usually wouldn't find.
Speaker 2 (26:18):
That, so you.
Speaker 1 (26:21):
Yeah, and then just finding other mes, but like also
kind of creating other mes, you know, in the sense
of being I'm like I because I'm like, man, what
if somebody I did have those people? Right, I did
have I was lucky enough to have people that when
they heard my music they'd be like, oh yeah, like
I want to help you. So I'm speaking specifically to
(26:41):
this producer, Nevin Sastrey, who I mean, he made a
bar song, but like he was like the first person
I first producer I met, first person I really met
in music a little bit in LA and he wasn't
a big producer. He didn't have any can't have any
cuts at all. Actually, the first time we did we
met up, I was like, Yo, your beat suck. I
was like, duction was actually terrible, but you know what
(27:02):
I mean. But he had that also. He was because
his parents are their immigrants stud there from Bangalore, but
he grew up in Ohio, Dublin, Ohio I think, or
outside of Columbus. But he was going to medical he
was trying to get in those doing the medical school route,
the surgeon route, and he told his parents he was like, hey,
I don't want to do this, like I think I'm
supposed to be a producer.
Speaker 2 (27:22):
And his parents like, can.
Speaker 3 (27:23):
You imagine the parents You're oh my god, gosh, yeah,
I want to go dolt.
Speaker 2 (27:30):
Yeah, and so they were like are you are you insane?
Speaker 4 (27:33):
You?
Speaker 1 (27:33):
I mean so I think just meeting him, but that
he he had that same hunger where he's like, well
I just like kind of like quit everything to go
do this. And he was only in la for like
two weeks at that time and met him and it
was that was like really the universe in God because
he heard me. I think we just found each other
at a time where we needed to kind of find
(27:54):
each other because he had just done that and the
studio we were working, he was like interning at this
studio small little like rickety. Rickety's crazy, but this a
small studio on Sunset.
Speaker 2 (28:10):
I love that studio. I'm not gonna say it is
Rickety is terrible.
Speaker 3 (28:12):
A rickety stud you can rickey, But it was like
a little it was like a little studio.
Speaker 2 (28:20):
It was the best studio I've been at the time,
you know.
Speaker 1 (28:21):
And but we met there and he was interning for
this guy and the guy ended up you know, he
ended up having kind of both of us in there,
and uh, he was wanted to.
Speaker 2 (28:32):
Produce for me.
Speaker 1 (28:32):
He was like, yeah, let me play some of the
stuff I'm working on the studio owner or the head
producer there, and then same thing, and played a whole
bunch of songs and then he heard this song from
me Nevin did, and was like, who's that guy like?
And then we kind of just like ended up meeting
and then we ended up working, and that kind of
put a rift between studio head and him, because you know.
Speaker 3 (28:55):
It was like because he kind of took you from.
Speaker 1 (28:57):
Kind of that's what That's what it kind of became,
That's what the story became. But I still think there's
something so cool about how two people from like immigrant cult,
I mean.
Speaker 3 (29:07):
Parents while you were drawn together. Yeah, you know, like
related to each other.
Speaker 1 (29:11):
Related in that sense of being like, yeah, we kind
of like we're kind of like giving up everything to
do this, you know, like maybe we should maybe like
that hunger. I finally found someone that would could wake
up at the same time as me, you know what
I mean, and put in the same hours, if not more,
you know, to the point where like I would go
to sleep. Because we stayed in the studio apartment together
for like, uh for it was like three of us
(29:33):
in the studio apartment for like seven eight months. He's
actually the reason I got signed to Republic, which is
crazy too because this is a guy who has no
industry connections, has never had a cut before, was able
to like after six months of us being in a
studio apartment working. There's other things at this I'm glossing
over in the story, but you know, with that, you
(29:53):
know what, I think that the energy of like us
being in a studio apartment every single day making music,
I think that somehow gets and permeates through the world
and like that. You know, someone always says one of
my friends, I'm pretty sure its from the law of attraction,
but says, you know, if you the universe will conspire
to bring you whatever you need if you. I think
that's something like that, you know what I mean. So
(30:15):
I think I think it was just it was just crazy.
He just had like there was a little bit of
like a bidding war going because we made this we
made this song and ended up putting it out. It's
called Winning Streak, and it kind of like went viral.
So there was a little bit of it was like
already kind of some some interest. But he had a
friend that was uh, interning for an A and R,
(30:37):
I mean the A and R at Republic, and so
I just took a meeting, you know, they were like,
we want to bring you in.
Speaker 2 (30:46):
I went in.
Speaker 1 (30:46):
There was me and Nevin and someone who I don't
even want to talk about, but we're there, and they
were just like, yeah, like you want to sign you
And then kind of happened in Two years went and
there was a lot of like talk about unfocused. Then
I got unfocused again a little bit kind of being
(31:06):
young and a lot of just a lot of a
lot of stuff just kind of gotten the got in
my head. I just got in my head a.
Speaker 3 (31:13):
Lot pressure or bad influences.
Speaker 1 (31:19):
It was more like pressure childhood, like feeling like not good.
Speaker 3 (31:24):
In you, like imposture syndrome.
Speaker 1 (31:26):
Yeah, yeah, that's the word. More yeah, more of the
imposter syndrome. There was also like I think there was
that that, there's that there's a there's a time. There's
moments where like believing believing in everyone can actually hurt you,
like believing in like that everyone's is great and everyone
has this greatness to them.
Speaker 3 (31:45):
Where everyone has your best interest in mind when they don't.
Speaker 1 (31:47):
Yeah, But there's also like a part where it's like
you hear ideas and you're just like, oh, like I
believe in people so much and like all right, this
person's so cool, Like I'm gonna they're telling me to
do this, so I'm going to do this.
Speaker 2 (31:57):
And then it's like maybe not the best.
Speaker 3 (31:59):
Thing you let an effect who you were?
Speaker 2 (32:01):
Yeah, or like what I need to be doing.
Speaker 3 (32:02):
Yeah, which is who you are? Right, Like, what you're
doing is who you are. So that that crash.
Speaker 2 (32:08):
Yeah, that that that kind of got dropped from there.
Speaker 1 (32:12):
You didn't have a bar song then, No, I didn't
have a bar song, but I was. I had It's
funny like if you ever see Seth England. Ask him
about the first album that I had. I made an
album at when I was at I made album before
I got sugned to Republic called Wrangler.
Speaker 2 (32:26):
That was my first time.
Speaker 1 (32:27):
I mean before I had already like started putting the
kind of putting the western and the country stuff into
the music. Because the biggest thing for me that kind
of motivated me was where I found like a gap
if you want to say, it's like being from Virginia.
I was like, man, New York has a sound, right,
you know, kind of like hip hop, boom back. I
(32:47):
mean more than that punk all the everything happened in
New York, Atlanta like trap music, outcasts like again, amalgamation
like these these are like huge cultural centers that are
known for music. They have distinct sounds and James Brown,
there's so many things. I mean, Georgia, then California's got
their thing, Texas, Nashville's you know, clearly got a thing.
(33:08):
I was like, what's Virginia's thing?
Speaker 2 (33:09):
You know what I mean?
Speaker 1 (33:10):
If I asked anybody, what was like, I'm yeah, what
would you say Virginia's most promising like musical contribution is
you'd probably say, I'm curious what you would say if.
Speaker 3 (33:22):
You said, what would Virginia sound like musically, I would say,
just from the people that I know, especially that have
been in the military, I would say hip hop with
a light, interesting country.
Speaker 1 (33:37):
I love that you said hip hop with a light
interesting exactly. But it's funny. But then it's like, so
it's interesting how I always had to be like, so
I kind of don't put it on myself to like
create this.
Speaker 2 (33:48):
There's two things I want to say. I also think
Virginia is like.
Speaker 1 (33:50):
The most like is a place of just individuals, right,
I'll I'll just be looking through stuff. He's like, Oh,
this person's from Virginia that did this cool one off project.
Like I think the guy who made Donnie Darko's from
Virginia and it was like the only movie he made.
Then there's this person who was like, oh, they're from Virginia.
They did this David lynch Ott a stint in Virginia. Like,
but it's like, you also have the Carter families also
(34:11):
from Virginia. That means Bristol. It gets pretty close to Tennessee.
But Patsy Klined from Winchester, Virginia. You know, I was
Emmy Lou Harris went to my high school.
Speaker 2 (34:18):
I love that one. I could not scream that from
the top of my lunch.
Speaker 1 (34:22):
But Emmila Harris went to went to my school in Woodbridge, Virginia.
Grand Parsons played out in d C. That's where Grant,
That's where Emmy Lou met Graham Parsons. You know, you
got So's, you got the Carter family. That's like from
that area. It's like I wanted to when I I
really just fell in love and I just's something Virginia.
People have an obsession with Virginia, as you can tell,
like with everybody, like we just we love it so
(34:45):
much for some reason because we know in the kind
of like the it's gonna sound like a disc but
like in the ordinary and the there's like you always
say something's in the water, but in that like mundane
mondanity or whatever madanity that make that word that probably.
Speaker 2 (35:01):
There's like something in there.
Speaker 1 (35:02):
You know, all of this stuff I want, like with
all the like random fights we went through we went
to in the park, the skateboard and the the football,
like everything, all of these experiences we had like go
into us and they create these like very like unique
like individuals, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (35:18):
Or people.
Speaker 1 (35:19):
So I think for me it was like, you know,
I just kind of kind of was like just trying
to figure out when, what's my why? What can why
is Virginia iconic and just trying to bring like that
history to the world in a way or creating a sound.
And it's funny you said light interesting country, because I
was like, oh, yeah, like my dad the country you know,
(35:39):
there's it was in there. You know, my dad listened
to it. My dad went to school in Texas. He's huge,
Like he's as patriotic as they come. I don't know,
like I said, but but I think for me it
was like, man, I was like I wanted to bring
those worlds together, and I thought like when I did it,
everyone was going to be like in Virginia was going
to be like yes. And I was just like realized,
(36:00):
I was like, damn, not a lot of people here
actually like country music.
Speaker 2 (36:03):
I mean a lot of my friends.
Speaker 1 (36:05):
But I told you earlier, I was like, I really
was just trying to, like you talk, we talked about
one about representation into like standing out and not wanting
to do that kind of wanting to do the opposite
of what other people were doing, and that kind of
like really it's where it kind of went. I went
on this journey of being like man like putting like
NASCAR references into my music and then learning about Dale
(36:26):
Earnhard and Richard Petty and like and combining that with
like my love for Like at that time, I'm still like,
you know, I'm listening. I'm listening to you know, everything
everybody else was listening to future, right, you know all
that stuff, and you know SoundCloud is popping at this time,
so they're still like Uzzi and post Malone and and
Playboy Carti and all those guys and Lil Yachti. So
(36:47):
that's kind of like I'm the same age as those guys.
So that was kind of what was the the.
Speaker 4 (36:51):
Thing, you know, the Bobby Cast will be right back.
This is the Bobby Cast.
Speaker 2 (37:07):
Where did you put up bar song first? When did
I make that?
Speaker 3 (37:11):
Where did you put it up first? Like what platform?
Speaker 1 (37:13):
Oh no, this is that was already like I was
well into like I had boom fast forward dropped from
a public pandemic. Happens two years after the like a
couple of years after the pandemic, I get suned the Empire,
and then we're trying to work. We're just working records
and just trying to figure out what works.
Speaker 3 (37:30):
So you got about your music though at this point.
Speaker 1 (37:32):
Yeah, I'm like I'm trying. Yeah, I'm like figuring out. Yeah,
it's like it's like an updated version. And I got
my manager who was in here too, Like he met
me a little bit after the pandemic and really just
me and him us meeting just like that just like
kind of like fired it off. I think he just
met me at like a time where I really needed.
I was just I didn't have any managers, I didn't
(37:52):
have a label, I didn't have anything. I was just
kind of just sitting around, like I was already constructing,
like what my album, this new album. I was already
constructing this at this time when I met my manager,
and then we went like four or five years trying,
you know, different records. Like that's when like Beverly Hills came,
a tall Boy came, and and.
Speaker 2 (38:12):
The album Cowboys there Forever I Never Died. That's where
that started.
Speaker 1 (38:16):
And then that was when I was already and initially
had the idea of doing like a Western concept full
on album where I like, yeah, like I told this
narrative and I wanted to tell a narrative that was
sequenced from like the top to bottom and a linear
story or whatever. And then we were like, you know,
the label was like like bro, like we don't know,
(38:38):
no one knows who you are. I mean, like you
can't like, how are you going to sustain that, you know,
over singles, over a rollout? Like how can you sustain
damn near playing a movie? Making me a moviecacter. So
then it kind of was like, you know, there was
a lot of back and forth and you know what
I mean, and like in fighting, and then you know,
(38:59):
I think then we and then uh and then essentially
what happened was we had to bring another manager and
then we kind of he kind of found a partner,
someone that really helped him, like just mentor him, because
I think when we met he I was like twenty five.
He was like twenty two maybe.
Speaker 2 (39:18):
It was, but something like that.
Speaker 1 (39:19):
So he was having there's a lot of infighting, and
it's like where when you're a manager, who you you
know who? I know this is a genius, but I'm
older than them, so it's like there's still a little
bit of that like you know, I mean, I was like,
you've never done this before shout out to him, but.
Speaker 2 (39:30):
You know what I mean.
Speaker 1 (39:31):
So so there's always a little bit of that kind
of like duality going on. And then you know, he
found someone that he finally was like I think I
think this guy could really help us, like like be
that third person. So it's not the fifty to fifty
you know what I mean kind of split. And he
had you know, a lot of experience just managing different artists.
He was a writer himself. Funny he got he wrote
(39:56):
Republic's first number one song, and he had just experienced
just being in the music industry. So he came in
and immediately he was like yo, Like he was like yo,
all this like this movie thing like you I mean,
he's like, let's like strip that back for a little
bit and just like be yourself.
Speaker 2 (40:12):
You know.
Speaker 1 (40:13):
He's like, you need to be able to, like because
you need to be able to just like go out
like this and take a picture and put it on
social media, like now everything needs to feel like this elevated,
you know, this elevated experience, like it should just just
be you. And you know, I think that imposter syndrome.
(40:34):
Like I think all that stuff still was probably pretty
It was probably there, but I wasn't really facing it.
And then after you said that, I kind of just
like started doing a little bit of like searching inward.
That producer Nevin, we kind of had a little falling
out after the Republic situation, because you know, he's this producer.
Speaker 2 (40:54):
We start out together.
Speaker 1 (40:55):
I get a deal to Republic, I get a deal,
he gets his publishing deal, and then you know, I
think there's like labels trying to like then you know
what they do, They get the producer and the artists,
and then they try to take the producer, put them
over there, take the artists, put them over there, And
now you're on opposite ends, and you've got a producer
that's looking at the artists like you know, hey, you
just got dropped kind of like and you ain't like
and I think there was a little bit of that,
(41:16):
like damn, like you know what I mean, Like we
started this together, and yeah, I think it was like
a little bit of like some choosing going up.
Speaker 3 (41:23):
When did the first traction, like real traction start to happen.
Speaker 1 (41:26):
For you in life or in like this two point
oh two point h two point oh. It was kind
of always there, I think as soon as like so
again I don't you don't know, we're run out of time.
But I was kind of like I said, I'd already
done my like first intro to like combining these worlds
(41:46):
in these sounds like country and hip hop and like whoever,
like whatever my sound was, there was like there was
like little sprinkles of it as early as like twenty
fifteen of me doing that, and then you know, and
then when I when I came to when I went
to Republic for my first meeting, I already had the
album Wrangler done, but I was coming in with like
you know, I was thirteen them WZ Wrangler jeans like
(42:09):
Wrangler that the straight Canadian tuxedo lou Casey's on or
you know what I mean, like and flaying on twenty fifteen,
like I mean before the song, you know, I mean
you know the song before that song, and and you
know that's kind of what they were interested in. They
were like, oh, this dude's like a like black dude
like put like country with like hip hop like flaring
(42:34):
it and it says it doesn't sound like contriving it
doesn't sound like like kind of corny, you know, and
I think they were like really excited about the prospect
of like what that could do in the world, and that, yeah,
that imposter syndrome kind of kicked in and then before
you know it, like you know, old time Rowe came out.
Like I'm literally like sitting here in my room, like
(42:55):
did someone just do this shit? I mean like before
before me kind of yeah to it. Yeah, I was like,
someone kind of hit this and I was just like
I was at Republic and they were already kind of
like you know, I think it was like things were
happening at the same time and yeah, and it just
like kind of just watched it blow up and it
was just like dang, Like you know, I had a
whole album called Wrangler.
Speaker 2 (43:14):
You know.
Speaker 3 (43:15):
Do you feel you missed because he that hit first?
Did you feel like you had to start over or
do you feel like that was something now you could
jump on.
Speaker 1 (43:22):
I don't That's a great question. I don't know if
I felt like I missed it. I felt like I think,
you know, I think it goes back to that, I'm
like I want to be the first. I mean, like
you want to be the first or you want to
be the one that like kind of stands out or
not do what other people are doing. I've always been
that person like when other people are this, I look,
I go this way, so I'm like, you're going this way,
and then someone just like you know, I, cuts you
(43:43):
off and goes and does it. So it kind of
felt like, damn, I can't do it anymore. Not can't
do it anymore because it's not like a.
Speaker 3 (43:50):
So then what did you start doing once that happened?
Anything different?
Speaker 2 (43:53):
Kind of Well, I.
Speaker 1 (43:53):
Think before that there was like already some hesitancy to
jump in the water in the space, you know. Like
even going back and listening to that album, the one
I'm talking about that seth England knows about, it was
like it was kind of like it wasn't great, you know,
like it wasn't good, Like I don't you know, it
wasn't like it was rough. You know, I didn't know
(44:13):
much about because essentially we made this whole album called Wrangler,
and at the end of Wrangler, we made a song
called Winning Streak. And then the Winning Streak song was
so good that I told like my managers at the time,
I was like Hey, forget about the album right now.
We need to drop this song right now. I'm talking
about winning streak. And then we dropped that song and
(44:35):
then that's what started the whole That one caught you know,
this was a time and then I think remember like
Belahedide I was at Coachella twenty sixteen. Belahadie just posted
a video on ig of her jumping out of skydiving
and the song was in the background, and then that
shit just took it to like a whole nother level.
This is like the early on set of like influencers
like posting your song and it actually made the song
(44:56):
go viral. So then that's how I got through Republic.
And then when we got to Republic, we were like, hey,
but we have this album called Wrangler. They're like, dope,
we're gonna drop put out this Wrangler album. And then
that's when I was like, I don't I was like,
I don't know if the world's ready for like I
don't know if I'm ready. I don't know if the
world's ready for this. I don't know like the market
it's ready for like this, uh this what yes?
Speaker 2 (45:17):
I mean?
Speaker 1 (45:19):
And I don't only want to call it country hip
hop because I never looked at it like that. I
don't even like that term country hip hop. I'm not
like into that, but like, whatever this is, you know
what I mean, whatever my artist is, what that project was.
And the reason I don't cause it's like it's it's
saying country hip hop is almost like saying it's not
a country.
Speaker 2 (45:34):
I mean, ye I would, I wouldn't call it country, yea.
I don't want to call it that.
Speaker 1 (45:37):
I feel like it's it cheapens like what it what
it is by us.
Speaker 2 (45:40):
You know.
Speaker 3 (45:40):
I feel like sometimes we lose our things lose value
when we try to label it.
Speaker 1 (45:47):
One hundred percent and it's and it's like something like
that's another hopefully by the end, by the end of
all my career. It's like, you know, whatever my intention is,
because I'm not the most like people and I'm not
the most like I don't say things the way I
wish them to be said. You know, when you have
a thought, you're like, I know the exact way to
say it, and it comes out a completely different way.
(46:09):
That happens to me a bunch. But but yeah, like
I kind of was like, I don't think the world's
ready for this kind of leaned a little bit more,
going back to like just being like traditional hip hop
just like what I what I thought, well, I mean
what I like to listen to and what I thought,
like what I thought would be I was just A
and R and my stuff too much, being too much
(46:30):
of A and R.
Speaker 3 (46:31):
You know, too much of you're over evaluating, oh exactly.
Speaker 2 (46:35):
And it's crazy.
Speaker 1 (46:36):
I think some of the most successful artists of our
of that time were really not thinking.
Speaker 2 (46:40):
They were just like having fun. It's funny. I just
did like a.
Speaker 1 (46:44):
Some radio interviews and I was just talking about how
like the key to having fun when you're in a
room because that winning Streak song, we had fun when
we made that twenty thirty minutes a song was was
done and we put it out and my whole life changed.
I got a record deal, got a publishing deal, and
then yeah, then kind of like Wrangler was like was
over evaluating. It was like the road's not ready for this.
(47:06):
Made this other EP or project called Lady Wrangler, which
y'all can see online, and that was more me just
like unfocused, just making stuff. They really didn't have any
I won't say it wasn't me but it was just
like it was like, what does this sound like? How
do we describe this to somebody? Like the first song
I sampled, you know I dream of Genie? Right, Yeah,
(47:31):
Like I sampled I dream of Genie on the first
song I don't know why, and I just wroke. But
it was like, well, like if you listen to that,
that's honestly probably the purest form of like me and like,
if you really want to talk about like auto biography,
it was probably that album.
Speaker 3 (47:44):
So when when did barsong happen? Like I'm just cure
because we ain't got there yet. We ain't got there, yeah,
just talking about like how like yeah, people Jim Pop
found it.
Speaker 1 (47:57):
To be honest, it was like it was like I
just made a song, man, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (48:02):
I made a song and that's what it is. It's
been a bunch of those happened.
Speaker 1 (48:05):
When I talked about having those ideas and being like
that would be a dope idea if if someone does
this and I just got out of my way that imposters.
Usually people will be like I got out of the
way of me just overanalyzing this stuff and just being
like we're making this album and we're not thinking about
We're not thinking about what the concept of the album
is going to be and with the move with the
videos are going to be.
Speaker 2 (48:26):
It's just like I'm just going just to have fun again.
Speaker 1 (48:28):
And at the end of it, at the end of
us making, it's funny happened again. At the end of
us making, where I've been isn't where I'm going. Last,
we're like producers are cooked, you know what I mean.
They're like, look, we have your these are your twelve songs,
Like we're not we don't want to make anymore. I
don't think anybody really said that, but you can, you know,
kind of feel that. You're like, yeah, we've been working
on this for all year. And I was like I
just came to the studio one day and I was like, hey,
(48:50):
I got this idea for this song where we like
we should flip a two thousands hip hop song until
country song. And it was just one of those days
where the producers were like sure, and they was like, yeah,
we'll do it, and then we made we made some
random song right before it, and then right before we're
about to leave, we just started on another song and
(49:10):
and and then we just started cooking. As soon as
he started playing that guitar un I was just like,
I was like hard, you know what I mean. And
I just I think I just said to my baby,
want to burgen? I mean she'd been telling you. I
think I just said that.
Speaker 2 (49:23):
It wasn't written down anywhere. I don't think I wrote
a single lyric for that song at the time.
Speaker 3 (49:28):
You just kind of sang freestyled it.
Speaker 2 (49:29):
Yeah, I got voice memos of it. I have a
voice memos.
Speaker 1 (49:32):
It's it's rare, but it's like I have a voice
memo where I'm like, I'm saying, like me, he pull
it out, let me.
Speaker 2 (49:38):
See if I can find it. But in the video,
in the in the audio, I'm like.
Speaker 1 (49:41):
Oh, this is about to be my first country number
one and say that this. Yeah, I'll see if I
can find it. But yeah, like I'm you know, because
you're just voice mamos.
Speaker 2 (49:48):
You don't forget.
Speaker 1 (49:49):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I definitely have it. Let me see
if Sean, if Sean can get it to me. But
Sewan Cook is the other producer. But I'm like, oh,
you got the bort A song.
Speaker 5 (50:02):
Let's take a quick pause for a message from our
sponsor and we're back on the Bobby Cast. Did you
have to message Jay Kwan Jake?
Speaker 1 (50:21):
No, actually, Jay Kwan message messaged me once because you know,
you had to get it cleared. And like he messed
me like three days after I made that song though,
I mean, we were working on all these songs and
then that last when I made that song, you know,
I think the label I kind of just dropped it
in a note in a storm and I just dropped
it in a notes in the notesap and then he
hit me up and was like, I just made the song,
(50:43):
dropped it in the notes and went to sleep, didn't
say anything. I didn't tell anybody, and made the song.
And the next thing next day he calls me and
he's like, yo, that song you made last night?
Speaker 2 (50:52):
You know what I mean?
Speaker 1 (50:52):
He was like, oh, this song's out of here, and
I'm like, but the song had no drums. It was
just like a guitar am I and me singing the
song and he was like, no, it's out of here.
And then our A and R hit us hit me too.
It was like, yeah, that tipsy song, like crazy, I'm
talking about no drums, talking about a shitty sounding guitar
in the song. And then and then you know, every
(51:13):
once once enough people tell you like, this song is
pretty crazy, you know. And then and then the producer,
his publisher, his manager was like, yo, you're about this
song is about to take off.
Speaker 3 (51:22):
Did you feel it immediately when you release it?
Speaker 2 (51:25):
When I released it, yeah, yeah, yeah, that is that
a crazy.
Speaker 1 (51:28):
Feeling that was that was really really really nuts. So
you wanna hear some more moral lore. This gets deep,
This gets deep. Man, you might have to move my
flight back so you don't have to the lord, here's
a law. So so song comes out right, we're talking,
we're making everyone's making bets and stuff. They're like they're like, man,
what's it going to do? Like how is it going
to perform? So first we were like at Coachella doing
(51:52):
something like we were doing like a what we were doing.
We were doing some sort of like you know, the
little mini events whatever they got side events or something.
After whatever, song come, song drops that night and then
we're like sitting there like, man, how many streams is
it going to do? How many streams? You guys saying
think do you think it's gonna do in a week?
People like we think, go do a million everyone's like
(52:12):
it's gonna do like a million in a week. Some
people are like like five hundred thousand in a week.
They're trying to keep it like conservative numbers, and they're
like a million in a week, and I was like, man,
that's that's pretty crazy. It used to take us like
a month to do a million, you mean when like
other songs, and that was good. I mean, like getting
a million a month was like great, Oh my gosh. Well,
we're watching this thing get like one hundred thousand in
(52:33):
the first five minutes, you know, I mean of this
song coming out, and then we're just staring and we're
just looking. And then then we're just like watching it
as like cause we're we're doing we did. The show
we did was like at eleven o'clock in the middle
of the desert. It was like and Charlie XCX went
on like right after us, which is crazy because she
ended up having a working massive too, But but yeah,
we're just watching this song. We're just like, yo, this
(52:54):
thing is like kind of going crazy. And then first
twenty four hours we're like, oh, we hit a million
just on Spotify alone in twenty four hours, and twenty
four hours in a million and twenty four hours, and
then you know, then you got to calculate all the
other DSPs, and then by the time you know, we
hit like four million streams and twenty four hours across
all platforms. So then we're like, this is crazy, like
no one's ever done this, but like this has like
(53:16):
never been seen before at this point. But then two
weeks later, Million Dollar Baby comes out, you know what.
It's by Tommy Richmond, and he posts like two tiktoks
to his story and I'm like, I'm like, oh this.
Speaker 2 (53:30):
I was like, this song's kind of catchy.
Speaker 1 (53:31):
And then he drops his song and the same thing happens,
and I'm like, oh, he's just a million twenty four hours,
and I'm like, I'm like, is there like a is
there like a glitch or something like.
Speaker 3 (53:39):
What's going like everywhere everybody's getting a million?
Speaker 1 (53:41):
So then but no, so I'm just I'm like, Okay,
So that's that's interesting. Like I guess like all the
songs coming out are just going to start doing this,
and eventually I think, you know, now we're and now
we're actually at that point where it's kind of like happening.
But this was like the early onset of like this
this trend, but come to find out it wasn't. That
wasn't the case. That was also like a massive so crazy.
(54:02):
He went to my high school. He went to my
he went to my brother's high He went to my
the high school I was supposed to go to in Virginia.
Speaker 3 (54:08):
What else is crazy is my manager for eight years
signed him?
Speaker 2 (54:12):
Oh really? Yeah? This record label?
Speaker 3 (54:14):
Oh yeah, when I blew up?
Speaker 2 (54:15):
What's his name to be? Okay? Does he? He also does?
He work with Brent too.
Speaker 3 (54:20):
He's over the whole umbrella, that whole thing.
Speaker 2 (54:22):
That's yeah.
Speaker 1 (54:23):
But yeah, like so my little brother told me about him.
Tommy like two three years before that. I was actually
a Tommy Richmond's. I was at a party of his
three weeks before. That's before bar Song even came out,
like a week before Barsong two, a week or two
before Barsong came out. So which was ended up because
this came out a week after mine and I was
at a party because I was in Virginia at that
time for something, I I think, some family thing, and
(54:45):
I get on the mic. There's a video of me
on the mic just being like yeah, man, like not
a lot of people make it out from from or
make it to this level and just senior success man
like keep going like you're like you're you're doing you're
killing it. And then at this time he you know,
he had the song with Brent that was like probably
the big is one I'm Upset or something, and you know,
and then the whole summer long we're like neck and neck.
Speaker 2 (55:06):
Like I remember when both songs came out, it was.
Speaker 1 (55:09):
Like two and three, Like it was on the billboard
high one hundred, and I'm like, damn, two people from
the same uh, it's about same mild radius, like having
this huge, like these huge songs at the same time.
So it was it was it was cool to see
for like the city, for people to be like, oh,
both those guys are from the same town, but we
never met at what.
Speaker 2 (55:27):
We met before.
Speaker 3 (55:28):
Like do you guys start to get do you start
to get a ton of offers? Like two weeks after
already blown up, you mean like like record stuff like show.
Speaker 1 (55:37):
Show, show, They just that was I mean, that was
like kind of immediate because I think right right after
we did it stage Coach was like that weekend because
it was Coachella, right, So then you know, Diplo had
me come out of his hot you know, the Diplo
Honkey Tok thing he does a stage coach and I
(55:57):
come out on this crazy rise and I'm like, oh,
just thirty thousand people out there and I'm doing the.
Speaker 2 (56:02):
Song and it was like and they knew it and
they knew it.
Speaker 1 (56:04):
And then it was also cool too, because I don't
think I was even on officially on stage coach on
the lineup that year. This is two weeks after this
song came out. And then bud Light hits me up
and the like, hey, we want you to do it
or a little bud Light tent, and then.
Speaker 2 (56:17):
I do the tent.
Speaker 1 (56:17):
The tent is like I mean, it's like people are
squeezed in there, and then there's a line wrapped around
bud Light. And these are some of my favorite moments
in my career, to be honest, like, you know so
far like this that stuff doesn't beat anything. When it's
like you've been working so hard at something, you got tripped,
you got you got this, you got told you had
people try to steal from me, you had people try
(56:39):
to do so many different things, and you've like really
really tried everything and felt like you failed that imposter syndrome,
that that just doing every feeling you're doing everything wrong,
you know, and then finally you're just like, wait, you
know you you you actualize into the person you thought
you you wanted to become, and.
Speaker 3 (56:58):
You hit hard, and you hit hard, and then what
about following it up though, because now you got a
big one? Yeah, and now looking back, you did follow
it up with a monster one. But are you putting
that same pressure on yourself to do it again?
Speaker 2 (57:11):
Yes?
Speaker 3 (57:11):
And no?
Speaker 1 (57:12):
And man, Bobby, I just want to say, Man, I
appreciate you for this conversation, not like talking I'm about
to leave, but like this you're really helping me like
unravel stuff in my mind because, like you know, because
this concept I'll Misscary. This is the thing that I
felt like, and I think my team deals with it
a lot, because like, are you sure? Like I kind
of tried to do this before and I really felt
like I feel like people didn't understand it, or I
(57:33):
kind of failed flat, or like we just didn't commit
or anything like that. And I was just like, and
what's really cool about us talking about it now? And
I'm They're like, no, like you're supposed to do this now.
And what's really cool about it is the fact that
I'm gonna, I think I'm gonna continue to have a
career like this where I can do special projects and
maybe people don't understand it, you know what I mean,
Maybe it is something that's like it's like maybe who knows,
(57:56):
maybe it does you know, and not do what we
think it's to do it or whatever or doesn't. But
then it's like you can come back. You can always
come back and just keep creating and making new things
and you never know what's gonna like kind of catch show.
Speaker 3 (58:09):
So you're nervous about this, You're nervous about the ALOGI
I'm nervous with all the success that you've had.
Speaker 1 (58:15):
Yeah, you know, I mean, you know, I mean it's
like I said, there's so many more nuanced, like nuanced
things to talk about, especially like now dealing with like
being to referencuse. It's so cool that you're from Arkansas
and you have like the upbringing you did, because it's like, man,
sometimes it feels like man, really like how the how
did this all happen?
Speaker 3 (58:34):
But now there are people looking at you in areas
where nobody's making it out going man. If Shoboozy can
do it, yeah, that means I can do it because
he wasn't supposed to do it. Yeah, you weren't supposed
to do it. I wasn't supposed to do it. But
I think the representation for people out there too, And
I think the fact that you're nervous.
Speaker 2 (58:52):
About it is good.
Speaker 3 (58:53):
Yeah really yeah, because it means it matters. Could you
just keep putting out bangers?
Speaker 2 (58:57):
Probably? Probably? Really? Yeah, like you got it.
Speaker 3 (59:01):
You put out multiple bangers in a row, massive songs. Yeah,
you probably got three more on your phone right now.
Speaker 2 (59:06):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (59:06):
I mean, and I also probably could go look the
route of just being like, hey, I'm just gonna just
give me twenty outside songs and I'll pick the one
that I know is going to work and record it
and then put it out. But it was like I
just I was like, if I'm going to do this,
I think I should do this now. You know, I
got the blessing from everyone. Just be like, if you're
going to do this project, do it now.
Speaker 3 (59:23):
True artists get nervous about their art real man, because
you want it to matter.
Speaker 1 (59:27):
You want it to matter, I mean, you do want
you do want to work, and I think what the
part that the most reward the most.
Speaker 2 (59:34):
The best part of my career I think.
Speaker 1 (59:36):
Has been putting out the good News and Amen and
that deluxe album too, but like man, the fact that
like where I've been is and where I'm going to.
The last album was like that was, I mean a
couple of times platinum. Now it has a diamond, has
a diamond song on it has like six seven platinum
or I think every song is almost certified on that album.
We made it in the bedroom on like a micro budget,
(59:57):
you know what I mean, maybe we spent maybe our
album budget recording Budge. It was maybe like thirty thousand dollars,
I mean to record that whole album, mixed, master everything,
and then on top of that doing a deluxe, like
doing a yeah deluxe with five six extra songs. One
another one is multi platinum, another one is multi plantinum
(01:00:17):
and won a Grammy And it wasn't even this, you know,
Like I went to the Grammys with the bar song
year and I think we had like six seven nominations.
I ain't want any of them. But then next year
came and won a Grammy with a man Like that
is to me that's way more rewarding than to look up,
wake up and be like, man, trust me, I got
a room full of bar song plax. It's like I
got to tell people. I'm like, there's other Plaxas just
haven't come in yet, you know what I mean. Like
it trusts me. It's not like a So this is
(01:00:39):
not like the bar song in the tipsy room, swear
to God like I have to. I'm like, I wonder
if they come in there and be like this motherfucker
only has one song with Plax, you know what I mean.
But so now I'm like, I had this Grammy and
it doesn't say bar song on it. It's like it
almost is like a better experience. And if I just won,
if I just like I had another bar song thang
in the bar song room.
Speaker 3 (01:00:59):
Well, I'm talking about the album before you came in,
y'all all cher Lee and other Western tails. Yeah, I
hope that you get from this album what you want
to get from this album, because obviously this album has
been inside of you for a long time.
Speaker 2 (01:01:10):
Long time, man, long time.
Speaker 1 (01:01:12):
Yeah, it's you know, I think for me, it's when
we talked about like Star Wars, like all those like
the things that inspired me.
Speaker 2 (01:01:19):
To make something really cool. I really wrote a note
about today.
Speaker 1 (01:01:22):
I'm like, man, it's just this is just me trying
to exercise one hundred and ten percent of like my creative,
my creative like energy, and man, I think we did
something really cool. Some of my favorite like projects like
Pink Floyd the Wall, which was had a movie that's
one of my favorite movies too, And honestly, it didn't
really make sense, but but.
Speaker 2 (01:01:39):
I love it anyway.
Speaker 1 (01:01:40):
And you weren't high enough. No, that's why it wasn't.
But those concept you know, Prince Purple Rain, and there's
so many of them. But I really hope that this
album goes into the rankings of like some of like
when you think of concept albums, and when you ask
chat GPT you know about concept albums, you know mine
comes up first. Also know the data centers just want
(01:02:02):
to say that her Virginia is the most data centers.
Speaker 2 (01:02:04):
Really I did.
Speaker 3 (01:02:04):
I was talking about data centers today and yeah, they
got to have fresh water. It can't even be salt water. Yeah,
the environmental impact of how loud it it is, oh
yeah yeah yeah, And we crave more data and we
crave all of the things that obviously Netflix and all
our social media, but now that AI is being used
in everything and we need more. And there's also a survey.
Speaker 2 (01:02:27):
On the crazy thing is but Virginia has the most
data centers.
Speaker 3 (01:02:30):
It's also what the most military is.
Speaker 1 (01:02:31):
Yeah, four hundred and fifty three apparently, And this is
one thing I saw. But I was crazy because im
seeing everyone, like you know, everyone's like kind of like
standing up in their communities for it, and I'm like, man, my.
Speaker 2 (01:02:40):
State has the most of these by like a lot,
well tech. Yeah, and the Texas, but at least you
number one. Okay, look you gotta go damn Yeah, we
do a part two though.
Speaker 3 (01:02:49):
I appreciate you. Yeah, yeah, good to finally meet you.
Speaker 2 (01:02:52):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:02:52):
How tall are you?
Speaker 2 (01:02:54):
Six three six three and a half?
Speaker 3 (01:02:55):
Can you go out and just like walk down because
I saw I saw waa women ya was drawn and
he's seventy five, but his is it for a different reason, right,
Like he's a you can't do anything without people, but
you have a large presence.
Speaker 2 (01:03:08):
Yeah you know you're a tall guy.
Speaker 3 (01:03:10):
Yeah you got shaboozy hair, Yeah, shaboozy hat. You got
to be shaboozy.
Speaker 1 (01:03:15):
Yeah, it's it's it's it's not that's what I was
going to say. Even also it's like that's like that
that part of it, And it's weird because the imposter
syndrome is still if anything is really still real in
that in that regard the whole, like yo, bro, like
you can't, you're you're you're somebody. You can't just because
I still sometimes I don't feel like anybody in that regard,
you know. I think when I touch stage it turns
into that when I talked to her when'm making music
(01:03:36):
and in tenth grade. But like outside of that, when
I walk off that stage, there's no there's no sense
of I am. I don't even using that word like
being famous, Like there's no world, Like I don't.
Speaker 3 (01:03:48):
They called you boozy for you out here. I want
to say hi to your people up there.
Speaker 2 (01:03:52):
I just want to.
Speaker 3 (01:03:53):
I want to say hi, were like boozy being a
little band, I was like boozy all right.
Speaker 2 (01:03:58):
But yeah, you know, it's weird. I don't. I don't
feel that. I don't feel like the famous thing.
Speaker 1 (01:04:03):
Like you know, it's just a weird because I'm like,
I'm just like, yo, We're all just human beings, man,
We're all.
Speaker 3 (01:04:07):
Like you said when you're four years old, we're just
human bodies. Communicating with each community is feeling there and eat.
Speaker 1 (01:04:13):
The last thing I'll say, you know, man, just just
just you don't have grace on on on on an
artist man, you know, I mean like they do do it.
Speaker 2 (01:04:20):
It's just a really demanding thing. I didn't really think
to me.
Speaker 1 (01:04:22):
It was like when you're a kid, You're like, I'm
going to make music and perform it in thousands of people.
Speaker 2 (01:04:27):
I'm like, yeah, you think it's gonna be like that easy.
Speaker 3 (01:04:29):
But last thing I'll say, no more data centers, No more.
Speaker 2 (01:04:33):
Is that political. It don't matter, don't matter. It's fresh
water for everybody. Good to see more communities clean.
Speaker 3 (01:04:39):
Thank you real thanks for listening to a Bobby Cast
production
Host
Bobby Bones
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Betrayal Weekly is back for a new season. Every Thursday, Betrayal Weekly shares first-hand accounts of broken trust, shocking deceptions, and the trail of destruction they leave behind. Hosted by Andrea Gunning, this weekly ongoing series digs into real-life stories of betrayal and the aftermath. From stories of double lives to dark discoveries, these are cautionary tales and accounts of resilience against all odds. From the producers of the critically acclaimed Betrayal series, Betrayal Weekly drops new episodes every Thursday. If you would like to share your story, you can reach out to the Betrayal Team by emailing them at betrayalpod@gmail.com and follow us on Instagram at @betrayalpod and @glasspodcasts. Please join our Substack for additional exclusive content, curated book recommendations, and community discussions. Sign up FREE by clicking this link Beyond Betrayal Substack. Join our community dedicated to truth, resilience, and healing. Your voice matters! Be a part of our Betrayal journey on Substack.