Club Shay Shay - Club Shay Shay - 2 Chainz Part 1

Episode Date: May 21, 2025

In this special on-the-road episode of Club Shay Shay, Shannon Sharpe hits the streets of Atlanta for an exclusive day in the life with none other than hip hop icon, entrepreneur, and proud ATL native — 2 Chainz. From the gym to the garage, and even his award-winning restaurant, we get an intimate look at the grind and mindset that power the Grammy-winning artist and part-owner of the Atlanta Hawks' G-League team. Known for his distinctive style, sharp business acumen, and undeniable influence in pop culture, 2 Chainz proves he’s more than just a rapper — he’s a unifying force, a father, a husband, and a man of the people. Tune in as 2 Chainz breaks down his intense workouts, explaining the difference between habit and hard work and how he stays sharp physically and mentally. Then, get a tour of his prized classic cars, including a ’72 Chevelle, a custom alligator-interior ride, and a sentimental Chevy truck reimagined for his late father, each with its own story — from horsepower to photo ops with Lil Wayne and plans for Barrett-Jackson. Dive deep into the studio grind with 2 Chainz’s creative process, where convenience rules and freestyling captures the moment’s energy. He shares stories about his early connections with Ludacris, Lil Wayne, and how they shaped his artistry and business sense. From turning down a private jet invitation with Jermaine Dupri due to loyalty, to gifting Wayne red Gucci boots, his journey reveals lessons in trust, integrity, and hustle. 2 Chainz also talks candidly about business advice for artists, emphasizing passion over trendy passive income. He calls himself a “property hoarder,” revealing savvy real estate strategies that balance impulsive purchases with smart investments. His philosophy extends to forgiveness after a theft at his nail salon and how social media changes transparency.  He recalls his time being loosely affiliated with Kanye West’s G.O.O.D. Music and how Baby (from Cash Money) inspired him to start charging for features. Despite that, he maintains a strong work ethic, often turning around feature requests in a single day to demonstrate professionalism. Hear 2 Chainz reflect on his youth in College Park, his rough encounters with the law, and how basketball saved him through tough times, even as he faced setbacks in college sports. His stories of loyalty, family, and love are deeply personal—from proposing to his wife on a big stage to balancing fame with fatherhood. They discuss his work with Eminem, Drake, and the competitive studio environment where legends push each other to greatness. 2 Chainz shares insights on ghostwriting, sampling, and the importance of hearing the full song before clearing samples. Get an insider look at his establishments, a glimpse into his life as a husband and father who values humor, support, and real connection.  The episode ends with reflections on Atlanta’s music scene, strip club culture as a music incubator, filmmaking ambitions, and lasting friendships with Atlanta legends. This episode is a masterclass in authenticity, hustle, and legacy —from the mind of one of hip hop’s most respected voices. #volumeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You're listening to an iHeart podcast. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of 2B. We dive into the competitive world of streaming. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core? There's so many stories out there, and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen.

Listen to Good Company on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In the fall of 1986, Ronald Reagan found himself at the center of a massive scandal that looked like it might bring down his presidency. It became known as the Iran-Contra affair. The things that happened were so bizarre and insane, I can't begin to tell you. Please do. To hear the whole story, listen to Fiasco, Iran Contra on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Hello, welcome to another episode of Club Shay-Shay on the Road, the guy that's stopping by where we're following him around in the day and the life of. He's a hustler's hustler, a man of the people and a unifying force in Atlanta. He's celebrated for his unique style and entrepreneur endeavors. He's transcended music into fashion and philanthropy. He's a versatile entertainer, a multi-platinum artist, a Grammy award winning hit maker, a chart topping songwriter, pop culture influencer, hip-hop superstar, a creator of anthem and trance, a rapper turned entrepreneur, talented actor, host, HBC alum, athlete.

He's part owner of the Atlanta Hawks NBA G League team, a prominent figure in the community, an ATL icon, a proud father, a husband, and here he is, ladies and gentlemen, 2 Chainz! All my life, been grinding all my life. Sacrifice, hustle pay the price. Ladies and gentlemen, 2 Chainz! Roll the dice, that's why, all my life I've been grinding all my life... ... We gon' vibe on this Be a lil' run down

Who did you meet first in the industry? Was it Luda or was it Lil Wayne? I met Luda first Luda used to work on the radio down here and we had a mutual friend together and so I met Luda through that way and then eventually signed into him and then with Lil Wayne And you know, we had a mutual friend together. And so I met Luda through that way. Right. And then eventually signed into him.

And then with Lil Wayne, some weed story. But it's like, gave baby some weed. And then like, he hadn't paid me for it. So I had went to New Orleans. To collect on the weed? Yeah, because it was only like $900 or whatever. But it's the fact. It was the time I ain't, you know.

You had the red like that. I had it like that. So you or whatever. But it was the fact. It was the time. And I ain't, you know. You ain't had the red like that. I didn't have it like that. So you don't know I'm going down there for this. But I'm following them down here like, I need this, you know. And then I end up meeting Wayne that way. And we built a great relationship. Right.

Kind of like smoking. And Wayne didn't even know I rap for a while. Did Luda know you rap? Yeah, he knew I rap. OK. Yeah, he knew I was trying to rap. Trying to rap? Yeah, Wayne had no clue.

He thought maybe I just sold weed. So, started telling him. I did have no part on the side. But rapping is what I really tried to do. And this is what I wanna do, you know? And then honestly, being around Wayne shaped me to be, you know, the artist I am now. Wayne had a Maybach with a driver.

He had a chef. So I was able to get around him and pick up on certain instincts and certain things that I felt like helped make him successful. And it was convenient. So it was like having all these things around it. Right. Well, you didn't have to do a lot.

You know what I'm saying? You just need to focus. Now you can just focus on one particular thing being the best at what I want to do. So it's not a secret. I got that directly from Wayne the work ethic of him just, you know, studio every day every night. I got that from him. You mentioned that being around Lil Wayne, you saw he had a Maybach, you saw he had a private shelf,

you saw he had a certain thing, a level of convenience. What did you learn from Ludo? Because Ludo had blown up at that time and now he's a household name. What did you learn, if anything, from that situation? Ludo is very business savvy. So I can say I picked up a lot of the business savviness from him and his team. It was a product somewhere, it was product placement, he was getting paid

for it. He wasn't just holding a product, you know what I'm saying? He just wasn't rapping about something, he's not getting paid. You know what I mean? So he was somebody that I guess I could say, you know, kind of taught me how to monetize, you know, things through music, you know know Product or whatever it could be. Is it hard to really blow up when you signed to someone else's label? No, I mean we saw Drake and Nikki was signed to Lil Wayne. Correct. It is the I think it's Kanye was under Yeah, ho so I think I think it just depends, you know, sometimes It looks good the number the more, you know The the strength of numbers things kind of it looks good if everybody's doing well.

But sometimes it's only room for this one thing to go through or two things. And if you're not a part of that, you seem to get put on the back burner and feel some type of way. So just to cut the emotion out, let me just be responsible for my own career. Lil Wayne, Jermaine Dupree are trying to sign you. What made you, why did you decide to say, you know what, I'm going to do this on my own? Jermaine actually called me one time, he had a hov on 3 on Three Way, and he tells the story different. He said that I said it was a young man's game, or I don't even talk like that.

But what I said at the time was, my manager, who is my manager now, he was a DJ. But like many other people, like a DJ Khaled, he's bigger than a DJ. Most DJs, DJ Drump, a lot of DJs. Mustard and all those. They should just drop the DJ out their name. People actually think their name is DJ or something.

So when I'm telling them on the phone, they're trying to invite me somewhere, like to meet up with me, which I was still flattered. Like me and Ho, we'll talk about it to this day, bro. You know what I'm saying? I don't know what would have happened either way if I'd have went, you know what I'm saying? I know what happened by me not going'm saying I don't know what would happen either way if I'd have winter, you know I'm saying I know what happened by me not going but I don't know what would happen about it went right?

Yeah, so I said, you know, you know, you don't mind I want to you know, bring one of my partners with me who kind of been helping me You know beat the concrete can get to where I'm even on y'all radar I know I'm saying like is it you know, I mean cuz I'm recognizing that even on y'all radar, you know what I'm saying? Because I'm recognizing that when they come, what happened when this tech and Charlie, my management at the time, they came to me and they offered their assistance on,

the first thing they told me was, we think you a superstar. And I thought the same thing. So we already on the same thing. Okay, we in a grits. I'm like, well damn, okay. We in a grits. Well, okay, cool.

Okay, cool. And then they told me like what they did for another group. Like we did this, we made this kind of money for these type of folks. You know what I'm saying? I'm like, oh man, you can do that with that type of stuff. I'm gonna see what you can do with mine, you know? And you know, that might've been 2010 or something.

Okay. I get the call around maybe, I don't know, 2011 from JD and I just was saying, do you mind if I bring my partner with me? No, you don't need nobody with you. You don't want to bring my partner. Who? I'm thinking JD might know. So I'm like, you know, DJ Technique, they go, oh man, but you don't need to bring your DJ with you.

You ain't got no, you know, it's kind of like a, a little joke a little bit, but you ain't got no show or nothing. I'm like, nah, you know, like, I don't be helping me. And you know, it was a situation where, I don't even know if it was calling my bluff or whatever, but, and I think they were sending me a jet. I didn't get on the jet because they wouldn't let me bring,

you know what I'm saying? My dog, who was helping me. Cause Chris Brown told the same story that he, somebody wanted to sign him and he was like 14 15 He said okay cool. I just yeah Hey, just tell my mama what you telling me like now I don't need to talk to your mom and he said inside with him because like bro You're talking to a kid and if everything's gonna open up you can't tell my mom Yeah, so if everything is cool, you mean to tell my I can't bring my partner, somebody that I trusted, I built around?

Yeah, and I'm looking back, they don't know that he was probably that to me. You know what I'm saying? And probably looking like, boy, you know, this a blessing and an opportunity. You know what I'm saying? And I got this book coming out, it should be out like another year.

It's getting edited right now, right? The name of the book is The Voice Inside Your Head Is God, right? Wow. And I talk about this in the book. JD and JD, I don't talk about them, but I just talk about this instance of me listening to the voice and wondering if it led me in the right direction. Obviously I'm right here now but what happened if I say I just go on my own? And I don't know what would have happened. This is one instant while I listen to my voice and they said I couldn't bring my dog and I didn't go. But I always wondered what would happen.

You know, listening to this voice has got me to this point now. Yes. Yes. So I don't even know why I'm questioning it, but I do wonder sometimes. Had they said you could bring him, would you have gotten on that flight? Absolutely. I didn't say I wanted to get on the flight. I definitely wanted to get on the flight, But I almost wanted to be loyal to a partner

that's been there from the... Yeah, yeah, yeah, he kinda liked that. That's how I grew up. How did you get Wayne to hop on a song with you though? Man, Wayne, he was just cool, man. Man, like I said, we were friends first. He was a music bass. And then I remember being, if it wasn't a Maybach,

it was a Phantom, and I told him I rapped and played some of the music. And we just bonded quickly. We've been, you know, he's one of my best men at my wedding. So, you know, anytime it was just been an anytime thing for him. I've been in the studio with him many times where he ain't, I haven't rapped one second because he likes to just do what he does in the studio. Then it's been many times that we get in and kind of, you know what I'm saying, sharpen each other up.

So is it true you paid him each 150,000 for him to hop on and get you a feature? For Duffel Bag Bucks? Yeah. Well, at this time, Wayne was charging, well, Baby was charging 100, and he was charging Wayne 100, so. How he charging?

He ain't on it, so. But he was over cash money, so anybody, when Wayne was so hot, if anybody wanted Wayne, he would be like, I need a hundred too. And people would obviously do it. Absolutely. So Wayne does the song for me.

So this is really what happened. Wayne used to wear like these skateboard shoes. But he's been skating a long time. They were called Supras and something like this. And I will wear stuff like Prada's and Gucci shoes and all this stuff. And so I go to Gucci and they got these red Gucci's out. I'm like, hey, shorty, what size shoe you wear?

You know what I'm saying? Boom. You know, he represents the red team and all that. So I get these red Gucci's and I take them to them at the studio. He don't know I'm about to take it to him. But I also got like a beat CD. Right. And I'm not doing this for the other thing.

Right. But I just take it to him and he like, damn. Right. And I'm not doing this for the other thing. Right. But I just take it to him and he like, damn, you know what I'm saying? You know, New Orleans, if you know New Orleans people, they say bitch a lot. You know what I'm saying? Like damn, bitch. This bitch, bitch, bitch, bitch, bitch,

he's harder than a bitch. These bitches, he bitches hard. You know, whatever. So, you know, I end up saying, man, I hang out with him, I say, I got this, he already, he working, I give him this, it's a CD at the time. I give him a beat CD.

I give him the beat CD. Time goes by, Katrina happens. He moves to Miami. When he moves to Miami, he like me, you ought to come visit, you know what I'm saying? Come, you know what I mean? Boom, I catch a flight to Miami and him and Cortez, who was his manager at the time, they picked

me up. We go from the airport to the mall because he is trying to, I guess, show his appreciation for me buying him them shoes. And so now he like, what's our shoe you wear? Let's get out, you know, let me get this for, you know, whatever. And we're doing that. And then out the blue, he says, what you thought about the hook I did for you? And I don't know what he talking about

he's like I Said yes Ted did you email him the song and he says yeah, I did and he said email I'm like, that's not my email and they said oh man. I don't know where I done sent this song So so Wayne is little in and the mall he's like trying to remember This is what we could go to the mall, it's crazy. He was trying to remember the hook, he's like, but I don't do nothing, and he couldn't remember it.

So we literally, right there, he was like, let's go to the studio. And when we go to the studio, which was the Hit Factory in Miami, it's a room, he matches play, this beat comes on, and this hook comes on. And I remember at that particular time knowing what a hit sounded like, because it just sounded so like, and I looked at him like of some damn, like a movie. Like he had eight hairs. I said, man, you did that for me?

He like, yeah, boy. I'm like, I run out, call my boy Dollar I'm in playa circus at the time yeah we got us one like what Chessie man home on hill you know I'm like home on hill singing and everything like for I'm like bro this shit you know hard I gotta get back to Atlanta bro I'm gonna make sure I come you know next couple days I get up there you know that was it that was it man And it just really helped You know, so you you're right who got the beat? So now I got know who he who did he be able to beat to the other one?

I don't know Dave somebody still got it hard still got it But when Wayne did that he didn't charge me but so baby was so it's only gonna be just 100 not 200 They will still want to his hunt right Baby come to Atlanta, say nephew. I said, what? We gonna need some rooms and we gonna need some. I hit baby, oh man, man. Man, man, man. Tell me, say man, don't even worry about it, bro.

He said, don't even worry about it, man. And he could tell like I had, he like, don't even worry about it. And he already knew who I was like I had, he like, don't even worry about it. And he already knew who I was dealing with. Right. With, you know, Luda and all those guys. And he just told me, man, you know what I'm saying, don't even worry about it.

And we, I brought them to Godby Road on Old National, which is very, very epic. It's like bringing, you know, it's like bringing a superstar to any hood. Yeah. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. And it was received very well. Had a lot of people come out.

There's some here, some no longer with us from that era as well. And I haven't looked back. Wow. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next.

In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. We dive into the competitive world of streaming, how she's turning so-called niche into mainstream gold, connecting audiences with stories that truly make them feel seen. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there

and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Get a front row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment, and sports collide. And hear how leaders like Angeli are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets. Listen to Good

Company on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In the fall of 1986, Ronald Reagan found himself at the center of a massive scandal that looked like it might bring down his presidency. Did you make a mistake in sending arms to Tehran, sir? No. No one was let go. It became known as the Iran-Contra affair. And I'm not taking any more questions. In just a second, I'm not taking any more questions in just a second.

I'm going to ask a... I'm Leon Neyvok, co-creator of Slow Burn. In my podcast, Fiasco, Iran-Contra, you'll hear all the unbelievable details of a scandal that captivated the nation nearly 40 years ago, but which few of us still remember today. The things that happened were so bizarre and insane, I can't begin to tell you. Please do.

To hear the whole story, listen to Fiasco, Yaron Contra on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Kanye tried to sign you to his label, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Kanye tried to sign you to his label, didn't he? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I was like an indirect member of Good Music for sure. I learned from that situation too. I try to learn from every situation I get in, you know what I'm saying? You mentioned that you were doing verses for free in car, you said, man, hey, he charging 100 bands now. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly what he did. Yeah, and they went up to 100 right then and there. I mean, I could have been charging the whole time,

but it was like, man, I was just knocking that junk out, man. At the time and still now, when somebody would ask me to do a feature, it would be very important to give it back to him like the same day. So it was more about me just showing the, my level, the level of business and work ethic that I had, as far as I'm going to get this done, I'm going to give it back to you, I'm going to make sure I show up and show out and hopefully, you know, I got somebody to handle the type of business for me.

But you know, when you, you know, it wasn't that I was just first in the game, it was just that I was becoming successful. At that time, when you get successful, a lot of people gonna call your phone, ask for certain things. So I think I just wanted to be like the dude that got on and wasn't acting funny. You know what I'm saying?

I think that's what it was like, man. I ain't changed, you know what I'm saying? Yeah. Yeah. I think that's what it was like, man. I ain't change, you know what I'm saying? That's how I kind of, kind of just try to play by that right there. And then sometimes people try to take advantage of that. People take your kindness. All the time. They'll play with you until they know they can't play with you. Same color orange, it is striped in a lease Sailor Beach, dogs over here Kanye put you on one of his songs when you featured on one of his songs Kanye was still huge but during that time it was probably was at the crescendo When you get the call, okay Kanye, Weez, it's a big and they want you on it

Do you like okay okay yeah so what what what Kanye he reached out when I was like at my arm we had a studio on old national 5540 that was really like a trout but it was a it was a studio on the back and every day a different artist was was calling me and so it's funny, man. One of my homeboys, he's no longer here, rest in peace to Troop. But Troop was like a hustler, you know what I'm saying?

That he was trying to figure out a way, me knowing Troop, he was trying to figure out a way how he can get something out this introduction. You know what I'm saying? And what Ye had did was send out a few different messages on trying to get in contact with me. So it was coming from a couple of different directions. And he finally got me on the phone

and our first time ever talking on the phone, we probably talked just probably more than an hour. And like it was almost two hours. It was weird that we. Y'all talking like y'all known each other for years. Exactly, that's how we got, it was the first conversation just didn't start with like, it didn't start with like, man, I like your stuff, I like your stuff, we gotta hook up.

It just got to getting into other stuff and talk about other things. And we built a real cool rapport with that. I remember him being on tour with Jay at the time. Or about to go on tour, but yeah. And then I got invited into a session in LA where it was a hotel that basically he rinsed out the whole floor and used it for a studio.

So I'm there with, at the time, Tiana Taylor and Sahai and a few other artists that were affiliated with good music and You know, I have a hotel I have a room across street from the room they're using for a studio So I'm just right across the hall right across the hall, excuse me And I go over there and I do a verse and I do the verse fairly quick You know what I'm saying? And I hear the guy, Che, my homie Che, he on the phone with you. And I guess he telling him, man, he knocked it out. He like he did. What you mean?

Like I hear I guess he's saying like he's he's done. And so I guess he's trying to pull up, pull up, pull up something else. So he pull up something else. And I knock it out again. And I remember I remember Sahar at the time, he asked me like, but you must have this verse wrote already in your head. And I'm really like, no, I'm just really like motivated. I'm coming in here.

You know, I want to do something. I want to prove myself. And so this happens about three or four times where they tell me, pull up another song. And I, you know, I knock it out fast forward. I go about my business. I get a call. They tell me, um, a single going to drop tomorrow with you Kanye push and Sean Now keep in mind. I've never heard the song before

I've never heard it when I did the song it didn't sound like this This person wasn't on a yay going so I don't even so I'm like man Can I hear the song? So I hear the song and it's mercy right, you know, and that's when I started realizing like The magic home possessed because the song sounded nothing like that when I did my verse two. Right. You know and we're gone and Mercy becomes you know whatever it becomes but yeah that's that's like the beginning introduction

of you know our relationship. Is Mercy your best verse? What you think your best verse is? What you want, who you on? I actually think some of my best verses on my latest project. Really? Which is cool to see because that's cool to know that I hadn't like peaked out, you know what I'm saying, I burnt out. I think the project that I just dropped

with Alchemist and Larry had some of my best verses on it. But I have some scattered around. My friend just sent me a text message with the verse I did on the Schoolboy Q record. He said it was like seven, eight years ago, which is the homie. And I think the song I got with Gang, Olive O'Mah爺 was a hard verse.

You called the little stertile online when you said you had the hardest verse on Mercy. I did though. I did. Which camera should I look at? I had the hardest verse on Mercy. I had the hardest verse on Mercy. I had the hardest verse. I'm not trying to be funny. I did though. I did though. I did though. Big Sean called you and said you had the hardest one on. Big Sean know that too though. Big Sean ain up in the play with it first of all. Big Sean won once, you know. Right.

But you know, when it came to that right there, man, I just took pride in it, you know. And everybody from somewhere else, Sean from here, Push from here, Yee-Wee from the south, you know what I mean? So it was just like that kind of like. It was a nice mixture though. Mm-hmm, it worked out real well. Right.

It seemed like everybody been getting into it with Kanye. Big Sean said, man, that man don't need money. Kanye said that J made money off his catalog. Big Sean said, well, you ain't, you know, you got mine. So what's the... You don't have those problems. Yeah, neither do I speak on anybody else's. I like that. I like that. How'd you get on a song with Ariana Grande? Inspire, I inspire her to do something.

Through that inspiration, she reciprocated it by doing a hook for me. So she had like, when I did the pretty girls like trap music thing where everything was pink. Right. And you know, just I had a pink trap house in Atlanta, which inspired the trap museum that TI has. Right. So I had a museum that was pink, but like Tip told me I didn't own mine, so he ended up, so that was a lesson I count on. But that was that inspiration.

But it just, some of the ideas that I put out into the world inspire other things And so with area on the ground it inspired her to do her stage Basically, just like my all pink car, you know, I mean, so I knew somebody Or it was somebody that knew both of us. It was a mutual person that put us together because it was just Different, you know if you get caught up into that social media stuff, you know, which I didn't, we communicated, we figured out a way to make it work for both of us and it did. Who's someone you haven't worked with

that you'd like to work with? I used to want to work with Ho because I know he does it when he wants to, you know what I'm saying? Yeah, he ain't really, he gotta be in that space, he gotta be there. And I understand and respect that, so I think I might have missed my opportunity.

Yeah, you know, it might have just wasn't bad. It's just a, you know, you just respect him as what he's done and everything. And then when I look at, you know, and think of all the people and just list all the people you named, there's not many people left that I hadn't done anything with. Brother Ola knew. I just shot a video of Ron Isley. I had Ron Isley, man, I'm a mom, auntie. It was a photo shooter.

I had Ron and Ernie on the block. Ernie playing the guitar on Moil & Nell in front of the corner store. So it's like, man, I'm just so blessed. But in that vein, I guess the only person that would be left would be him. I've done something with like I mean everyone else but everyone else man all the all my favorites all the you know I'm I love Drake and Kendrick I love Scarface I love you know Eminem is such a lyrical

giant doing something with him you know all all the and then you just talk about people that just like this is what they wanna do, rap at a high level. And then you go to talk about like, just people who got something to do with the culture, like, you know, the Migos, Rest In Peace, Take Off, and just being a part of like, you know, just different generations of Atlanta. You know, Atlanta is someone that's been just doing

their thing for so long. Andre 3000. That's who you want? That's it. Andre 3000. Three stacks. That's it. And he doesn't really rap anymore. No, he's like, he done. He don't really rap anymore. But that's who I actually just super love, bro. I love. I heard on the interview, he said at his age, you're like, what he rapping about? Yeah, he'll make it sound cool though yeah he'll make you make it you'll make you'll make somebody that don't want to get no cold not she

probably make somebody go get one because he just made just a real cool Atlanta player man I love I love him and big boy actually you won a Grammy with Chance the Rapper for no problems of that moment like man it was one of the moments where I'm gonna explain this in a way that you can understand. Okay. So I was very happy to get the Grammy. Very, very, very excited. So my first platinum plaque I got was No Lie, right? Right. And I was happy,

but it had Drake on it. And then the second plaque I got was Birthday Song, and I was, I was happy because it was my song, but it had Ye on it. My third platinum plaque was I'm Different. And there was nobody on it, it was just me, my hook, my verse, DJ Musa did the beat. And when that went platinum, I got chill bumps because I realized that a million people had bought my, just my idea. And so with the Grammy,

when I look in the mirror, I'm thankful for the Grammy, when I look in the mirror, I'm thankful for the Grammy, but I know like, even though like Chance didn't know Wayne, I put Wayne on the song, like that was my, he didn't know him, I wouldn't have did all that. Chance came to my studio, shot the video. I was really helpful for it. And thankful for it, but it's Chance's song.

Right. It's Chance's song. You want to grab me on your own? You so smart, you so intelligent, it's crazy. It's an interesting time for business. Tariffs and trade policies are dynamic, supply chain squeezed and cash flow tighter than ever. If your business can't adapt in real time, you're in a world of hurt. You need total visibility from global shipments to tariff impact to real-time cash flow. That's NetSuite by Oracle, your AI-powered business management suite trusted by over 41,000 businesses.

NetSuite is the number one cloud ERP for many reasons. It brings accounting, financial management, inventory, HR, into one suite. You have one source of truth, giving you visibility and control. You need to make quick decisions with real-time forecasting. You're peering into the future with actionable data. And with AI embedded throughout,

you can automate a lot of those everyday tasks, letting your team stay strategic. NetSuite helps you know what's stuck and what's costing you and how to pivot fast. It's one system, full control, tame the chaos with NetSuite. If your revenues are at least seven figures, download the free ebook, Navigating Global Trade, Free Insight for Leaders at netsuite.com slash sheshe. That's netsuite.com slash sheshe. Y'all won that Grammy over Fat Joe's All the Way Up. Really?

Yeah. I didn't know that. Yeah. Yeah, that was it. That was in there. I probably was so surprised cause that song, that was. All the way up. Fat Joe don't play either, man.

Yeah. Fat Joe don't not play with them folks, but when he put out one, he let you. It's a hit. Yeah, it's one of them. The story about Dre, like when you went to Dre and you was trying to rap and he's like, bro, I can't understand your dialect, bro.

Yeah, I told you, you know, Dre is a perfectionist. And that's why I guess you want to be around him, you know, but he is a, you know what it is? It's like Dre, it's like rap is at a point now where you, it's like AI, not AI, but it's quicker and faster and sometimes if the end of a word is not a non-sense, it's still taken as like dope because it's a vibe. It's an energy drain going for that. He want to hit a tee He want to hit a dot on the eye I got an over by bro. I can't some of this stuff just ain't gonna come through. Okay. Yeah, and he I think I'm finna just get a couple lives

He stopped me no, no, no, go back and say that one again. But man, I really enjoyed being around Dre because of obviously who he is to the culture and who he is. And man, and the people around and just, he record every day, whether he gonna put something out in the, he work hard, you know, he in the studio going hard every day.

I'm going there, he playing full songs that he, with a whole, man, all type of of instrumentation a whole skit involved. I'm like, I did this three songs today So it's cool to know that he's still you know, musically motivated What's it like going to the studio with a Dre because like you said, I mean when it comes to this hip hop It ain't ain't any bigger than him. I mean you can he go back to the NWA's and then he brought it forward. Well, Dre, we got cool. We got cool. Quick. He showed me around the house. I'm into interior design. So the house so fast, you know, I'm saying home got fingerprint. I guess what I got my finger. That we got a fingerprint. I get something from there. You know, I mean, he got the fingerprint,

but he got the real like some, you know, yeah,? He got the fingerprint, but he got the real, like some, you know, you gotta cut it off and you ain't gonna be, if he ain't there, you dead. So, but he got all this stuff and you know, then he got a gym, kind of same bond, you know what I mean? And then, you know, I smoke, you know, often. And so his place had never been his studio. He was even saying like at the time,

I don't even know Snoop had even been over there, but no one had smoked over there. But he said, you know what changed? I'm gonna let you smoke, man. And smoke, we just talk. I appreciate it. I sure appreciate it. Because when I did work with Eminem,

I couldn't smoke in there. They put my, when it was time to work with Eminem, it was actually kind of funny. When it was time to work with Eminem, they put, and this is his people, it's not Eminem, I couldn't smoke in there. They put my... When they was trying to work with Eminem, it was actually kind of funny. When they was trying to work with Eminem, they put... And this is his people, it's not Eminem. Eminem is somewhere right, and he's not even standing. But his people are just so concerned with him. They put the speakers outside so I can listen to the beat.

So I'm outside, it's a beautiful day in Malibu. I'm just smoking, the speakers outside. So then I come back in and do my verse, and the door is closed, and I'm in the speakers outside. So then I come back in and do my verse and the door is closed and I'm in the booth smoking and I see him, I actually see him out there. So I'm like, he ain't here while I'm recording, it's hard. And so he's about to like come in and say something. And like some of his people were like, you know, no,

you know, don't go in there, he's smoking. And Em looks like, man, what the, man, sit the down. Like, y'all like, what they, I guess he was thinking like, what do you know don't go in there he's smoking an M looks like man what the bet sit the f*** down like y'all like what they I guess he was thinking like what do you think I'm about to do like you know I guess he thinking like what you I don't even know that that let you know the time though that's a DVD player yeah that's a DVD player put a DVD in and watch a movie but I remember them kind of like tripping on him being around and he was not tripping at all. But other than that, that's basically all I need for a studio, a couple joints, you know what I'm saying?

I'm self-motivated, I don't need... You don't need much. I don't need much. I'm not gonna say he was instrumental, but Drake. I mean, because Drake has helped a lot of people and we know what Drake can represent. And you're cool with Drake. So how did that? How was that?

How did that relationship? Start then and then you working with him through Wayne, you know, he's with Cash Money. So when I had a We had the song Dupont bad boys Wayne was on tour It was called I am music tour when he went on tour The first night he went on tour, he did, he rapped my verse to Duffelbad Boys on stage, like somebody like told me in Florida. So I'm calling him like, bro, and he was like, man, you need to come out

here because I can't just stop after the hook, people know your verse type stuff, you know what I'm saying saying so that was like indirect Invitation to then when I went on tour with him. I met Drake and a few other people, you know I'm saying and Nikki and all of those people so that was maybe like oh eight or nine met him and You know, we all did a tour together. So that's how those stuff You um, but you the uh, the song, I don't, you like, and I heard you talk about it, you like, ain't got nothing to do with me.

The man put my name in the song, I thought it was cool, but I ain't got nothing with that diss and stuff, because I guess Drake means a lot to the culture. I mean Savage has worked with him, you've worked with him, um, I'm trying to think who else has worked with Drake that I know off the top of my head. Um, but it's been about five, the Atlanta rappers, I mean Drake is, is, has worked with Drake that I know off the top of my head. But it's been about five, the Atlanta rappers, I mean Drake is huge with the Atlanta culture. You guys love him. Yeah, I mean it's not even that, it's just like when people ask me how I felt about my

name it's like. Yeah how did you? What do you want me to, I don't even have an answer. I don't have zero feeling about it. I have zero emotion on it. I have zero, because this is what happens, right? This is exactly what happened. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company,

the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. We dive into the competitive world of streaming, how she's turning so-called niche into mainstream gold, connecting audiences with stories that truly make them feel seen. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core.

It's this idea that there are so many stories out there, and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Get a front row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment, and sports collide. And hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit

in the most crowded of markets. Listen to Good Company on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In the fall of 1986, Ronald Reagan found himself at the center of a massive scandal that looked like it might bring down his presidency. Did you make a mistake in sending arms to Tehran, sir? No. No one was let go. It became known as the Iran-Contra affair. And I'm not taking any more questions.

In just a second, I'm going to ask it. I'm Leon Neyvok, co-creator of Slow Burn. In my podcast, Fiasco, Iran-Contra, you'll hear all the unbelievable details of a scandal that captivated the nation nearly 40 years ago, but which few of us still remember today. The things that happened were so bizarre and insane, I can't begin to tell you.

Please do. To hear the whole story, listen to Fiasco, Iran Contra, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. If he say your name, you feel a certain way. If he don't say your name, you're going to feel a certain way. Right. Right? Right.

You know what I mean? If people from Atlanta, he could have said it. Okay. And vice versa. So, while I'm going to get into a thing, go, man, I'm glad. Man, I wish he wouldn't have. I really have zero Zero zero emotion about my name. I said if you really want to know people have probably said two chains in their rap

I don't know. I guess it just rhymes with a couple of different things, you know a few a few times I hear it a lot, you know, I mean, so it don't it don't bother me man I ain't getting caught up in it. How about this where you on ghost writing? I've never had a ghost writer before. Are you out on it you just never have it or you don't feel that okay if you are because I hear a lot of people saying you're a true MC LL say he a true MC this one says they're true MCs true MCs write their own verses. Yeah. So I've thought about this a couple of times, because when I think about Michael Jackson and Beyonce, who've all had writers, right?

And hits hits off the writers. And then here I am writing my stuff every night. Who's doing it the right way? I don't know, I don't have an answer for that. So I can't, as bad as I wanna be like, man, my confidence lies with me knowing that no one helped me articulate this idea, get this metaphor out. Like I came up with these words,

but at the same time, my pride hadn't let me accept the song from somebody and read I won't even do If somebody has a hook and they say I would like for you to read if I didn't come over to it I don't even say it. Wow. Yes, my son man. Won't you say down down? I'm sorry, brother. I'm sorry. They mean, you know, it's gotta be you Yeah, because somebody they'll think they'll hear me saying something like this, but I'm just I'm sorry, brother. Like, I'm sorry, that ain't me, you know? It's gotta be you. Yeah, because somebody else, they'll think they'll hear me saying something like this, but I'm just, I'm gonna do it. So yeah, everything has very much been me.

But like I say, I don't know if that's the right or the wrong way, because I mean, I'm here. That's just not your way. Yeah, but this is just how I've been operating, you know what I'm saying? But when I really sit back and think, so many people has had writers help them get over some other place, you know?

But I can honestly look in the mirror, place, you know, and but I can honestly look in the mirror. And that's one of the things I can look at the mirror and kind of be a priest above to like man, everything that y'all heard in the universe has been from from from me internally. Would you ghost write for an artist? I would. Yeah, I have before. Oh, have you? Yeah. Sampling. I love sampling. Ha ha ha. I do. I love, I love, I love.

But I love to create, I love the creative part of taking a little piece of something and modernizing it, upgrading it. Like, I love, I love samples, especially like feel good samples, sofa samples, stuff like, I don't know, you might've heard as a kid or whatever and they've been able to chop that up and then add something to it.

I like samples. Original, originality is dope too. If you can make a beat from scratch, I rock with that. But I like samples. If somebody were to sample one of yours, do they need to play you the song or you like, hey, they call you up and say, change, I want to sample one of yours. Do they need to play you the song, or you like, hey, they call you up, say change, I want to sample theirs, and you're like,

okay, it's gonna cost you X, Y, and Z, or do you need to hear the song before you like? Yeah, I'm always hit a song. I'm always hit a song. But you don't want nobody to put no boo boo on your track. But even if they put boo boo, I don't wanna, I wanna hear the song, I wanna be affiliated with nothing. You know, crazy.

You right. But if the song is boo boo, I still make clear because I know what it's like for my song not to be clear I know that feeling like so I figure out a way for it to make make sense for me long It's not a huge interpolation of what I did. It was something small whatever. I ain't really tripping on that because It's just a way to you know, kind, you know, kind of, you know, kind of keep, keep my algorithm going. Tyler creative recently showed you some love. Are people slipping on your pen change? Yeah, but that's cool though. I mean Tyler's dope too.

Yeah. Just took to my daughter to see his concert and he gave me a shout out while he was on stage. So that was cool. Today it's dope for people who have that kind of impact to throw some shine on something as opposed to shade. Right. And so when he did that, I looked at it as he was, you know, throwing some shine on something.

["Whipstrap"] Welcome home, Shay. Yeah, man. Welcome home, player. I switched whips in the AM. Pick up the bagel with the cream cheese. When I played, I didn't get an opportunity to really enjoy it because I was so caught up in the journey, I wasn't really concerned with the destination.

And then once I arrived at a destination, which was when I completed my career, now I get back like, man, I did that. I had a great blah, blah, blah. Do you have an opportunity? Do you sit back and just think about what you have accomplished in your young career? No. I think that's one of the,

that's something that I think I started feeling a little late in my career. I didn't become really successful until I was in my 30s and then I think by taking me so long to become successful I didn't want to celebrate too much. I didn't want to go on vacation. I didn't want to you know take the time to like reflect, look back or even judge where I was currently. And so now as I started to get older and understand, how life works and how the universe works,

I really wish I would have spent more time in those places and not just like, figuratively speaking, I'm talking about internalizing what I was doing at the time, you know? But I'm still here and confident that I can make some more waves and experiences along my journey. We're here in Candyland for your 46th birthday, you bought yourself a strip club.

Of all the birthday presents you could have gifted yourself, why an adult entertainment? I mean, why not? You know, this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. Okay. Um, how this whole thing came about, it was just God involved. Okay. You know what I'm saying?

Um, anybody from Atlanta would be interested in having something to do with a strip club because it's a major fixture in the city. Correct. interested in having something to do with a strip club because it's a major fixture in the city. Correct. But you're not able to open up any strip clubs unless you have a dance and permit, which they stop even producing. Yeah, issuing them in 93.

Wow. So you have to actually buy one from someone who has one or get grandfathered in. Right. And so I was able, my partner was already in the midst and in a situation to where he was starting that process. And God just put me in the picture at the right time, at the right place at the right time, like me and you discussed. And so, that's what happened. I ended up being at the right place at the

right time. I didn't put all my eggs in the basket. I put a lot of them in the basket for this one. And I just feel like it's one of those things, it's just gonna be around. We have food, it's entertainment. And I tell the dancers that you're entertainers. You know what I'm saying? So you have a fan base as well.

It's always cool to try to spread you know, I'm saying, spread some game. Yeah, here we go. Show people the food. Yeah. You so greedy. Look at this. Um, smell like this. Seem like, uh, like hot, like hot. These seem like lemon pepper. These seem like barbecue. I don't know what else. It look like the Mesquite type of stuff. Yeah. Yeah. But I'm, oh, we got fries over here. I love fries.

Show y'all the fries. Show y'all the fries. Y'all see this? And since Shae is doing such a great job of promoting my product, let's not forget, my brother got his own yak. He just won an award. He told me about gold.

Got a gold medal or something. So, you know, I don't even, let me tell you something. I'm not even worried about what I don't do. I'm finna go ahead with it. Okay. I'm gonna go ahead with it. I'm gonna go ahead with it. Let me try it.

What they do, you don't drink it, you swirl it around. You swirl it around. Then what we call it is nosing it. Nosing it. Yes. Now, I've done that with red wine before. Well, does this let it breathe more or something? Yes.

This stuff in barrels? Yes. In order for it to be a cognac, it has to originate in the region for at least two years. So it has to grow up in the cognac region. It is a grape. This is a Ouniblanque mixed with a petite champagne. Each region in cognac has a particular is a grape. This is a Ooni Blanc mixed with a petite champagne. Each region in Cognac has a particular type of grape and according to how you want your Cognac to taste, that kind of

grape. And so this is a Ooni Blanc grape. I think maybe 70% of the grapes that's in that region is and it's a uni blanc grape with a petite champagne. This is a VSOP, very special, au pail. VSOP has to be aged between four and six years. And then as you're going up and so forth and so on. So we think we've done a great job. La Portier is my grandmother's porter in French. Che, my name, and Chez by La Portier. So how long have you had this Cognac? We came out, we tried to come out in 2000 then the pandemic happened.

And it's funny that this bottle wasn't the original bottle. We had a bottle using a company out of Italy and they go bankrupt during the pandemic. So we had to scratch that. Now we weren't able to come out in 2020. So now we had to push it back to 2021. So now they're sending me products all through the mail. I'm sampling, I'm tasting. I'm like, OK, I like this.

And my partners and I, like, what are we going for? Or we want something to taste good. People are going to buy it. It's like, yeah, that's that's the end goal. But we want to produce an award winning cognac. And now we won 14 awards. We've won the simple ward, which is the highest award you can win Because it's a blind taste test. And again, we won another taste test today. The only cognac that won so without even Starting the process

Your partner in this Knew that the end goal was awards. Yes. I guess you say everything else will fall. Everything else, everything else. Yeah, if you can get an award, yeah. Yes. And it's a VSOP that drinks like an XO.

XO is extra old. XXO is extra, extra old. And then you start getting into the specialty cognac and stuff that's about 25, you know, 50 years. As a matter of fact, we went over there this past June, June of 24, and a guy had cognac that was in a barrel that was pre-Civil War. He let us taste it, yeah.

They keep, I mean, cause everything is, it has to go through the process. It has to be, cause our cognac is very unique. We don't add color, we don't add sugar. It's the bright, it's how it looks. It's how it comes out of the barrel. This is how it comes out through the process. It has to be, because our cognac is very unique. We don't add color, we don't add sugar. It's the bright, it's how it looks. It's how it comes out of the barrel. This is how it comes out of the barrel. We're a small batch.

We can control it. You see, your mom cooking for 10 people is gonna taste different than she's cooking for a thousand people. So when you try to cook something so now we can control the taste, that's why you get the consistency. And that's when you become great at something

when you're consistent at it. Yeah. So congratulations on everything. Thank you. You've been very consistent. Thank you, brother. Appreciate it. Thank you.

Ooh. That's a good cognac there. I promise you. Nobody's going gonna beat us on the market. We don't talk about anybody else. We just tell you what we do. And what we do, we do very well. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, we gotta get it in candy.

We gotta get it in your stomach. Yeah, easy. See, that's easy. When you own something, it's like, it's easy. I can really make that happen right now if you had a case of... Oh, we're good for that. So this is Cognac. This is Cognac.

Yeah, see, I don't... It has to originate because, see, you're like, wines can start anywhere. You can have wines from California. You can have them in Oregon. They can be all over the place. But they're calling it a Cognac. It has to originate the first two years in that region, in Cognognac In Cognac. It has to go through the copper pot. It has to be stored in the wooden barrels Yes, the VSOP in order for you to call it a VSOP. It's got to be four to six years. Four to six years of age

And just sitting up in a barrel. Sitting there marinating Does that make you stronger? Well, it's the process in which it goes through, because you know, you have the grapes, you have a certain amount, and it's a blend. Because as you, like, we got another one coming out that's a premium, that's a step above this. And as you start to blend, it gets more and more expensive,

because you're blending older and older cognacs to try to get the blend that you particularly want. So you might be blending something that was, you know, say 10 years old with something that's 15 years old to something that's 20 years old. And you're trying to do X amount, but like, because we're a small batch, we do really, really well.

We've done really well. People have been very receptive. When they taste it, they know there's a lot of love. There's a lot of care. There's a lot of support that's going into it. You can hear that when you describe it. Honestly, I'm not obviously a big kind of drinker, but it was smooth.

It was smooth. And you know, the trend is whatever it is right now. There's more shot base. So I wasn't sure if I was supposed to sip it or take a shot of it. Just a little sip of it. Now, if I was to add a... A drop of water, it'll open up the body.

You're supposed to actually add a drop of water, not an ice cube, because an ice cube, you can't control the milk, because if the ice cube melts, it's more than what you intended to get in there. So with a drop, you get to control how much water actually goes in and it opens up the body. What about a juice? Would you, are there some...

Oh yeah, well, here's the thing. Would you drink juice with your Cognac? No, I, now, and over there, they drink ginger ale. They mix it with ginger ale. That was the big thing over there that I didn't know. Cognac and ginger ale? Yes. But it makes a great sidecar.

We have drinks like determination, discipline, determination, dedication, or things that are factors that are really important to me and how I kind of got to where I got. We have drinks. We have a mixologist, an in-house mixologist, and his job is to come up with specialty drinks, not just the cognac. Now, you can drink it by itself. Yeah. Because a lot of times people, they do mix drinks, they try to hide it because your thing ain't that good.

We really good, we stand behind it. We would prefer. You like a chef, don't add no seasoning to my dish. That's right. When I send that steak out there, I don't send ketchup or whiskey or something. Yeah, they don't like that. Because I already know what it is.

Yeah, they don't like that. And I'm real chef. We know what this is. So we stand behind that. So let me ask you, that's what I wanna know. You go home, you're like, oh man, my 46th birthday. Man, I think I'm having me on adult entertainment. How you explain that to mama? Oh, my mama was here.

I ain't talking about your mama. I'm talking about your girl. Your wife? Yeah. We like minor, that's why we together. Okay, okay. She about that, she on that paper, she about that. We come here together.

Really? Absolutely. We come here together. It's just sometimes I party too hard and it'd be hard for her to recover for a couple of days. But we come out, we hangin' together. This ain't no secret. Like I wouldn't even try to play like that.

Right. Yeah, so we come out, we hang out together, have a few drinks, whatever, you know, whatever we do. We share the same like that. Right. Yeah, so we come out, we hang out together, have a few drinks, whatever, you know, whatever we do is, we share the same, like, similarities. And I think that's what work in most relationships. Is that what drew you to her? So how did you know she was the one, Jay? Man, it's just beautiful, man. Beautiful inside and out.

And I remember she used to go to church and take notes and stuff. Really? I thought that was so interesting, so cool. And then maybe look at him here and there. So just a God fearing woman who was just a super angelic personality. And you know, we laugh every day. We got some beautiful kids out this deal and just just kept moving. I knew

You know, I would you would you would you guys meet? We've been knowing each other 20 we've been on show who made the first move I did This concludes the first half of my conversation Part two is also posted and you can access it to whichever Podcast platform you just listened to part one on. Just simply go back to Club Shae Shae Profile and I'll see you there. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures

and your guide on Good Company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of 2B. We dive into the competitive world of streaming. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. There are so many stories out there, and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen.

Listen to Good Company on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or ever you get your podcasts. In the fall of 1986, Ronald Reagan found himself at the center of a massive scandal that looked like it might bring down his presidency. He became known as the Iran-Contra affair. The things that happened were so bizarre and insane, I can't begin to tell you. Please do. To hear the whole story, listen to Fiasco, Iran-Contra on the iHeart radio app,

Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. You're listening to an iHeart podcast.