Drink Champs - Episode 416 w/ Steve Rifkind and DJ Cassidy

Episode Date: June 28, 2024

N.O.R.E. & DJ EFN are the Drink Champs. In this episode we chop it up with the legends themselves, Steve Rifkind and DJ Cassidy!Legendary music executive & DC Alumni, Steve Rifkind joins us once again to share stories of his career in the music business. DJ Cassidy, host and creator of the show “Pass The Mic” joins us and shares his journey in music.DJ Cassidy shares stories of DJing at the White House, having Steve Rifkind as a mentor and much much more.The guys share stories of how they took DJ Cassidy’s hit show “Pass The Mic” live to Las Vegas with special guests Ja Rule, Fat Joe, Slick Rick, Doug E. Fresh and many more.Lots of great stories that you don’t want to miss!!Make some noise for Steve Rifkind and DJ Cassidy!!! 💐💐💐🏆🏆🏆   *Subscribe to Patreon NOW for exclusive content, discount codes, M&G’s + more:  🏆* https://www.patreon.com/drinkchamps *Listen and subscribe at https://www.drinkchamps.com Follow Drink Champs: https://www.instagram.com/drinkchamps https://www.twitter.com/drinkchamps https://www.facebook.com/drinkchamps https://www.youtube.com/drinkchamps DJ EFN https://www.crazyhood.com https://www.instagram.com/whoscrazy https://www.twitter.com/djefn https://www.facebook.com/crazyhoodproductions N.O.R.E. https://www.instagram.com/therealnoreaga https://www.twitter.com/noreagaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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We have today one of the best execs of all time. One of the most respected execs of all time. He's here still monkeyfooting the game. He's promoting shows and doing tours and doing all types of things that's going on. He's been rewinding time as well. In case you don't know who we're talking about, we're talking about my friend, the one and only, Steve, what the fuck is that? In case you don't know who we talking about, we talking about my friend, the one and only Steve. Now, Steve, let me ask you because

you had one of the craziest runs with Loud, right? But let's suppose we had a chance to reverse that and you was an artist. Rewind. And you was an artist. Knowing all you know now

what would be a label you would sign to that's a good question I do Vodka labels that are right now either or either back then or do both

pick from back then from back then I would sign to Loud because the artist always came first okay you're bigging up yourself I respect that and then I would sign to Loud because the artist always came first. Okay, you're bigging up yourself. I respect that.

And then, I love what Top does. TD. Oh, TD. Yeah. Okay. So, did you go,

when Kitten Jerker and Drake was battling, did you, who'd you go for? I mean, I didn't really go for anybody. You didn't? No, I was just,

I thought it was just good for hip hop. Yeah. Was you excited by it? I was in Vegas, right, while this whole thing was going on. And I was just like, I was entertained. Right, right. Because you was down with Mobb Deep, and Mobb Deep was going after Pog.

And that was like a little bit more serious. So I don't know if you know this. Let's go. Pog was my roommate. What the fuck? Wait, hold on. You got to describe it. I don't think anyone knew that.

I don't think no one knew that. Okay, go ahead. So on his first album. Okay. In his scope, he wasn't on Death Row. He was on a label called, it was Adrian Gregory's label. Okay.

This is after Digital Underground? Yeah. This is after Digital Underground. And Interscope just started, and they hired me. Wow. To do all the street team and all the marketing for it. So we set up a promotion talk.

Oh, I don't want that. Thursday to Sunday. So we'd get back on a late Sunday night or first thing Monday morning. So he would stay with me. I had a townhouse in Studio City. And he would come to the office

with me, he would pack records with me, and it would be me, this kid Faye DuVernay, and our assistant Lisa. And it would be me this kid fade duvenet and it would be and our assistant lisa and it would be this us on the floor shipping packing records i mean he was a worker like he worked his ass off wow wow that's so just to be clear for the audience this is you before loud before i just i just you know it was src but the market was the stephen rifkin company not src records okay and loud just started loud just started yeah but they hadn't taken off yet No, it was SRC, but the market was the Stephen Rifkin Company, not SRC Records. Okay. And Loud just started.

Loud just started? Yeah. But they hadn't taken off yet? No. So you're with Interscope, and this is him after Digital Underground. He's about to get, or he got his deal with Interscope. He had his deal with Interscope. This is Brendan who got a baby trapped.

Right, right. Wow. Yeah, that's amazing. Thank you. What were those conversations like with him? They would, he just wanted to work and win. Like, I mean, literally, he would, you know, we would sit on the floor, we would pack records, we typed a letter, he would sign the name, he would put the letter in the envelope, and boom, he would smoke, cigarettes, weed, you know, whatever it was. We were right, our office was on Melrose, and there was a fast food, there was a restaurant called Johnny Rockets

right across the street. Yeah, of course, Johnny Rockets. Right? Good-ass turkey burgers. Burgers. So we would go back. I mean, we would stay there until 10, 11 o'clock at night,

then go to the crib, right? That's incredible. You know, Tuesday was radio day, and then we'd be on the road on Wednesday. Did you guys maintain a relationship after those talks? Yeah, so this is what I was going to say. So I went to see Tony Rich perform at the House of Blues one night. Oh, Tony Rich, the Oakland artist, right?

I don't know if he was an Oakland artist. Okay. I know he was signed to LaFace. Okay, cool. And I'm walking through and I get smacked in the back of my head. So I got a bald head. So I don't know if it's a love tap or if it's a real, right.

And it's him. Right. And I'm looking at him. He goes, you don't say hello. And I'm like, man, I don't know where I stand with you.

Oh, you're talking about. Yeah. Okay. And he goes, are you talking about them? He goes, man,

I'm just messing with them so I could be relevant. Wow. So Tupac saying that about Marv Z. Yeah. He loved him. Wow. I can see that too. I can actually see that. I canac saying that about Mobb Z. Yeah, he loved him. Wow. I can see that, too. I can actually see that.

I can actually see that. That's crazy. Has there ever been an artist that you had the opportunity to sign and you didn't sign and you regret it? Yeah. Who? Jay. No. I think you mentioned this.

Yeah, I think he did mention this. Okay. Jay, Em. Okay. Em? But Jay by himself or was it Original Flavor with him down with Original Flavor? No, Original Flavor was on Atlantic. J was Rockefeller.

So it was, okay. Dame came to the office. We wanted to do the deal, and BMG wouldn't let us do the deal because they were trying to build their stuff up. They were like, it's not going to happen. And they wanted a JV. I was like, give them a JV and just give us an over. Joint venture for those

who don't know. What? JV is a joint venture. Yes. Holy shit. Imagine. Imagine Rockefeller flourishing under love.

But I also had Gotti before. Irv? Oh, you got Irv. Okay. Before, before Leo and Russell got him. Wow.

And he'll tell you that, too. Wow. Was that after he was with Blunt Records? Cash Money Click. Great. Wasn't it Cash Money Click? No, that was Mike Geronimo. Wow.

So we were going to sign Mike. We couldn't get the sample cleared. Right. Holy moly. So they say time is everything, right? Yep. You were going to sign Mike Geronimo before Blunt Records? Yeah, way before. And Irv brought everything, right? Yep. You were going to say Mike Jerome before Blunt Records? Yeah, way before.

And Irv brought him to you. Yeah. Wow. That's amazing. So we were in Paris. Yes, we were. And I got to see one of the most amazing shows, period. I don't want to say hip-hop shows.

I'm talking about amazing show, period. Like, I watched, you know i always pick this up but i watched wu-tang and nas like no opening act just these guys sell out the whole arena it it but it looked like a a it looked like a documentary it looked like they weren't there that's how good it was and i remember one part of the show, RZA stops the show and he goes, Steve Rifkin, he stops and he bigs you up. And I start to think,

what other artists grew with their CEOs like how y'all grew together? I don't think there's too many people that exist. I mean, me and Joe. Yeah. Okay, I'm talking about other than you motherfucker

yeah I mean Russell and LL Russell and LL Lior and Jay a little bit you gotta go Jimmy and Dre Jimmy and Dre is a perfect cause I do look at Dre even though he's a phenomenal

producer phenomenal artist I do look at Dre, even though he's a phenomenal producer, phenomenal artist, I do look at his business, mine, more with Jimmy. You know, I mean— But that's beautiful, man. Right, and then— Darren DMX. Who? Darren D.

Yeah, but they're more different. You know, and then maybe Stout and Nas. They don't really work together still. I think they do deals, but I don't think they work together. But they're still close. Yes, yes yes yes yes i think that's beautiful like to grow with the artists you grow in time you know what i mean you get to know each other's kids you get to know each other's wives and things like that but i i was so blown away at how he was so articulate and so like like like i believed him you know how somebody like, you know, would say something to like a big person.

You were genuine about it. And I looked at Riz's face and I was like, wow. But it wasn't just him. It was all of the world that was sitting there. It was like word, like, you know what I mean? I thought that was special. Do you realize how special that is though? I mean, we all, I mean, Riz's family, right?

The way I consider Joe family, the way I consider you family, right? I mean, we all grew up together. Riz's family, right? The way I consider Joe's family, the way I consider you's family, right? We all grew up together. It's like they changed my life, I changed their life. And it was just, you know, and the one thing is, you know, we never fought over money. And I won't fight over money. Wow. Right?

I never realized that. So, like, we could have a disagreement about our marketing, but not even about how much we were spending. You know, let's do this, let's do that. You know, when I got them on the Rage Against the Machine tour. Right. Right? If we finished that tour, to me, that would have been the biggest selling hip-hop album of all time.

Why? Right? I mean, it was a double album. We debuted. Was that when they? That was Wu-Tang Forever. Okay. Was that when they got banned for Hot 97?

Yeah. Okay, cool. So, and then we had the Rage Against the Machine tour. And, you know, unfortunately for us, the tour started in all the cities that we already had on lock. Wow. Right? And we had that, you know, first hip-hop million-dollar video, right, with Triumph. Right.

And then... Obama, Tom Lee. Yeah. Bob Lee. Basketbreaker. I'm Abomba Toma Lee. Yeah. Abomba Lee, Abomba Lee, Abomba Lee. I'm sorry, I'm getting my class back. So what happened was, you know, we scanned, which means records sold in those days. We sold, I think, 600 and something thousand

first week, debuted, and it was a double album, so it really is a million two, right? So 94% around the world number one in every country and then the tour

without radio too yeah right the Hot 97 thing came right we got hit right but now I was like

alright don't worry about it the tour's gonna start and the video's dropping so you know we debuted at 600 you go down and now the record starts coming

up again. And we're averaging around 300,000 a week. And the tour, now we're going into the Midwest, like, when I'm saying the Midwest, like Nebraska, Cleveland, Indiana, like, markets that we've never been in, markets that we haven't sold.

And we're talking about 30,000, 40,000 seaters. And if're talking about 30,000, 40,000 seaters. And if we finished that tour, we would have done 15 to 20 million albums. Easy. And that was just in America. Was that tour... It was going to go international, but I'm just talking about

the domestic. Because me and you have been overseas a couple times together, but I wish the fans could understand how sometimes overseas more kind of appreciates it. You know, they know it better than we know it. Yeah. They appreciate it because they can't touch it.

Mm-hmm. So I want to know the first time you met Woo. Was it you met RZA first? I met RZA 30 minutes before the rest of the guys. I met him on my birthday, March 2nd, 1993. And RZA just,

I've been trying to reach him since the beginning of the year. And I'm in New York for my 31st birthday. And I'm working at a RCA building. And I think it was on 6th Avenue at the time and like 43rd Street. And they said, there's a Prince Rakeem. And I'm like, you're kidding me. What?

You didn't know Prince Rakeem was RZA? No, there was no RZA yet. It was just Prince Rakeem. You knew him already. Yes, because he was already an artist that was out. Yeah, but I didn't know him personally. I knew who he was. Right, right.

You said you were looking for him already. I've been trying to reach him. He didn't have an answering machine. Like, all that, you know, if you saw the show, like, you really, so he shows up.

I'm with E. Swift from the Alcoholics. Shout out to E. Swift. Right? So the office is no bigger than this table. Mm-hmm. Right. Right? And he comes and he goes, the guys are downstairs. You mind if they come up? right so the office is no bigger than this table right

and he comes and he goes the guys are downstairs you mind if they come up I'm like yeah no problem did you know it was nine of them no right I can picture this right now they come up and say we got a video protect your neck

so they put the video in and they start performing so some guy comes in in a jumpsuit so I don't know if he's in the mail I don't know who he is he comes and slams the door says that's that shit comes in and goes out I've never seen him again I still got a million

dollar check waiting for him I don't know if they set me up and they hired this guy to come in as an actor or if he really you never asked them if they didn't see it somewhere? I mean, me and RZA. RZA, like, you know RZA. He's like, he gives me a smile. Hey, hey, hey.

And we signed him, you know. The deal was done within like two weeks. Wow. Wow. And I know this is a cliché kind of question, right? But some people would just see talent off top and sometimes the talent has to be proven did you know off top

by looking at them? I mean the energy how do you not dirty doing his verse to protect your neck like standing on the desk I mean did I know 35 years later

that they'd be in? Yeah, because we take it for granted now, but even the name Wu-Tang Clan sounded crazy when you first heard it. I mean, you know, that W to me is in the top five brands in music, right? You have the Rolling Stones, Tongue, you have the Grateful Dead, Skull, you know, and then the Wu-Wu, you know, and I know. So that's fucking amazing this is hip-hop music hip-hop was predominantly at this time was not known to cross over and when it did cross over, it was looked at like,

oh, it's almost frowned upon. Wu-Tang was one of these groups that crossed over that they never compromised their music. It always stood the same. It always sounded street. Was there ever a time where they tried to change that? I'm talking about not the group. I'm talking about you signed with BMG and all these other, like... If they did, I would tell them to change that like i'm talking about not the group i'm talking about the huge sign with bmg and all these other like if they did i would tell them to go fuck themselves

right because i mean i never considered myself an a and r guy to this day i don't consider myself an a and r guy i consider myself a marketing and a promotion guy right right so you know i own the name street team right and that's's all I know how to do. Like, you know, when I left from Loud to start SRC Records, you know, I thought I was going to build Loud.2, right? But Universal didn't understand Street Records, right? You know, and God blessed me with Akon. God blessed me with David Banner with that.

You know, and then it was like I found something. We just moved, and I just found something with that you know and then it was like I found something we just moved and I just found something where you know Akon had the number one and number two pop record in the country

at the same time and what was it Clap That? it was Smack That Smack That and I Wanna Fuck You and I Wanna Fuck

two very vulgar records yeah one was with Em and you know the other one was with Snoop and um like and Universal was saying you gotta move one of their records and you know the other one was with Snoop and like

and Universal was saying you gotta move one of their records and I was like you laughed in my face when I said this will be the biggest artist in my career

I was like nah you guys are gonna lose your bonus on this one do you think Akon created Afrobeats I don't know

if he created Afrobeats but he has a big he has a big saying you know he was promoting going to Africa first. I mean, he's from Africa. Go back, go back.

I'm fucking around. I'm joking around. I'm joking around. What's your favorite era of music? 90s. 90s? You remember early 90s or late 90s, middle 90s, or just the 90s period? I'm going to say from 92.

Okay. 92 on. Okay. That's where Woo dropped, right? to, you know. Okay. 92 on. Okay. That's where Woo dropped, right? Woo dropped in 93. When did Digital Underground drop? Oh, that's late 80s. Late 80s, 89?

89, 90. Yeah. Okay. What did you say? That's when Digital Underground? And so when you're starting your label and you're saying you, to go back because it's a big deal, you said you trademarked Street Team? Yeah, I trademarked Street Team after the label. But yeah, I didn't even want a label, man.

I was like, I was, you know, my late 20s. I was making six figures, you know, and I thought I was rich. You know, I was cool. I would leave the office every day at 3 o'clock. I mean, you were, but at that time, for sure. I was leaving the office every day at 3 o'clock, go to the park, play ball for two hours, come back to the office, do my reports. And somebody said, you got to have a label.

I was like, nah, I'm cool. And they ended up calling my father. So I'm in the city. I'm staying at the hotel on 54th Street. And he said, I need to talk to you. And no,

actually I was just staying at the hotel. I was staying at my partner Rich Asickson's apartment. Yeah, he goes, I need to talk to you.

And I'm like, all right, I'll have lunch with you tomorrow he goes no come to the house now my dad lived in long island which was 45 minutes i'm like dad it's 10 o'clock he goes i don't give a get over here now he put out the first hip-hop record wow yes um and you know when he's when my dad talks like that I really you know it's not smart to say no to anybody so I take the Long Island Railroad take the train

and he said Paul Marshall called me I'm like okay and he goes you turned down a label I'm like yeah he goes you're a fucking idiot he goes, you turned down a label. I'm like, yeah. He goes, you're a fucking idiot. He goes, you know why? I was like, you know, it's not the first time you've called me an idiot.

And just like, well, why, Dad? He goes, with the company that you have now, you're doing extremely well. But you're only as good as your last contract. MCA could fire you. MCA could fire you. Warner Brothers could fire you. You could get fired, and then you're left with your dick in your hand. All right. With this, having a record company, you own something.

You're making money while you're sleeping. Right. Right. And I couldn't disagree with him on that. Shout out to your father. All right. and I couldn't disagree with him on that. Shout out to your father. But before you get into that part, what I wanted to find out is,

how did you get into the street team and marketing side of things? Like, what drove you there? So, I was majorly dyslexic as a kid. I didn't know how to read or write until I was 14, 15 years old. Wow. And I was in juvie and just

I was getting in a lot of trouble. And my grandfather was living down here. And my grandfather was a, I don't know what he was, but he was a tough motherfucker. Right. And he called me. And he says,

you got to change. I was 18, 19 years old. He says, you got to change your life. I'm like, what do you mean? He goes, I want to be like you. He goes, this is why I'm living down here now. I don't want to be that, what I was. He goes, you're going to end up dead or in jail. And he goes, go into the music business.

I said, my father wants nothing to do with me. He goes, I'll take care of that. And two weeks later, he calls me. He goes, go into the music business. I said, my father wants nothing to do with me. He goes, I'll take care of that. And two weeks later, he calls me. He goes, pick me up. Eastern Airlines at JFK. Wait a minute. Your father signed James Brown? Yeah, my dad signed James Brown, too.

Wow. And we went into the city and we sat down with my father and uncle and they said we're going to put you on the road so you'll fly back to Florida with grandpa and then from there they gave me a route

I drove from Fort Lauderdale to Macon, Georgia then to Atlanta Alabama there's no GPS from Fort Lauderdale to Macon, Georgia, then to Atlanta, Alabama. Don't forget, there's no GPS. I'm just learning how to read. So it's like I would call the stations.

So if I'm in Macon, Georgia, I would call the station in Atlanta and literally write directions down. I didn't even know how to read a map. I mean, I was so, but I'm 18 years old, hanging out with 40, 50-year-olds. And I was like, let me go to the colleges, right? What are we going to talk? We're going to talk music. We're going to talk sports.

We're going to talk girls. Right. That was never really about money. Right. So that was only supposed to be three months and um it lasted three and a half years so when i was done i actually got really good at it and i just kept in touch with a lot of the college djs and when i moved out to LA I was I moved out to LA to start managing

New Edition and then after that ran its course I needed to do something so I started calling the record labels and said hey I'll help promote your hip hop records and that's when I put the whole team together I'll help promote but you went to manage

New Edition? Yeah. How much pussy did you get at that time? So this is a great story. This is great. This is a good story. So, we're in St. Thomas.

They're performing at Hal Jackson. Remember Hal Jackson from WBLS? Nope, I'm sorry. I ain't be not that old. All right, so Hal Jackson, he was one of the owners of BLS, Hal Jackson's Talented Teen Contest.

And we're flying back from St. Thomas to LA. And they're talking about how many they went through. I thought they were talking about for the weekend. Oh, yeah. Oh, okay. They're talking about per day. Per day. Right? So when it came up to my note, I. Oh, okay. They're talking about per day. Per day. Right?

So when it came up to my note, I thought I did good. Right. Right? They said, you were doing that per day? And I was like, no, I did that for the weekend.

They said, no, we're talking about per day. Right. New addition. I can smell the ass. I can smell the ass. And you, because for us,

so R&B is different and those are different times too but this was a different times where they had to come see you there was no Instagram there was no there was nothing

they couldn't follow you and fantasize through there they had to go and see you and it was those different things these roommates were pop that was pop but that was that was after

after New Edition was New Edition was like 86 85, 86 you know how many people in this room New Edition

might have took your moms down it's a fact so but but this was a great thing with New Edition the reason why I let Wu-Tang do all their solo records

okay because to me the group was always bigger bigger than the whole right so when Ralph wanted to do a solo record

that's why we put johnny in the group and everything else ralph tresman ralph tresman we all said the group will still be bigger than the solo so that's how i let until bobby brown started that makes a lot of sense though bobby brown said it's my prerogative bobby sold more records but touring michael sold more records. But touring, Michael sold more records than Jackson 5, but Michael couldn't tour the way that you, right? When Michael went back with the Jackson 5 for that victory tour, you know, and that day, that was the

biggest tour in the world, ever. No, but this is crazy because it makes sense how you would have had that foresight to make that type of deal with Wu-Tang because based on what you went through with New Edition that makes total sense

but at that time because I believe Wu-Tang was on loud but you actually let meth go to Def Jam you had to give permission for that or that was something

that's what he's saying that's where he got that's where I got because of New Edition so when I signed Wu and they gave me it I wasn't going to say no no matter what

because it was about survival of the finish, right? Right. So I was like, go ahead. We can match it. I didn't have the money to match it. Right. And it wasn't even crazy money.

Wow. Match. Match. The other deal. Yeah. But then you had Genius, I believe, was on. Geffen. Geffen.

Geffen. Dirty was on Elektra. And we ended up having Wright and Deck. Wait, they already had those deals before? No. No, no. That was after. GZA had...

Meth had... Dirty was at Elektra. Then when Protect Your Neck and the METHD man came, Def Jam came and got Meth. Right. Okay. Now, did Leo have to ask you for permission for that? Well, yes, but it was RZA that said, you know, this is what we on permission for that? Well, yes, but it was RZA that said,

you know, this is what we wanted. Because that's how you did the deal. Yeah. That it would allow those things. But what was the agreement? As long as Wu-Tang get back together, you'll be in with that. That's fucking genius.

It sounds so simple nowadays because we've seen so many examples of it, but prior to that, we have never seen any examples of it. And I never even put two and two together with New Edition. Right. Until just now.

We could take for granted the fact that had you not experienced what you experienced with New Edition, you might not have done that type of deal. We might not have had the Wu-Tang the way we have them today. 100%. Right.

That's crazy. Shout out to New Edition, though, for being a part of that. And shout out to Hiram Hicks, too. It's genius because in a certain way, when you have artists that's making these albums where all the artists is on the group it's like they're actually helping these other labels to help and promote not only the group right but the other artists like you know what I mean like like for instance uh Ghostface album I remember him I remember him what is it Supreme Client Sale or is it the other one

where Ray Kwan is right there so it's like you know it's in your best interest yeah the bigger they are the bigger and don't forget they would pay us

not RZA but Sony would pay us Elektra would pay us Geffen would pay us why for the clear samples or the clear artists to market the records

what the fuck did they know how to market they're paying the scripture yeah and you already had the expertise and I had the blueprint yeah they know how to market? They're paying the script. Yeah. And you already have the expertise. And I had the blueprint. Yeah, you know how

to promote them already. You already sold millions of records with them as the group. And the branding ultimately helps the group because they're all screaming Wu-Tang at the end of the day

and then Wu-Tang is on loud. Did you ever see streaming, like did you see this coming? So man, let me, right before I got to Florida. Okay. You know, in 2013 I had my heart attack okay right and I stopped working from 2013 to today my catalog has done 23 billion streams I called my

lawyer yeah on my way here to find me some fucking money. Right. Because the truth is I sold the company, and I think it generated, I don't really know the math, but my son said it was like $140 million. And this is catalog, right? Right. I'm like. And you sold the catalog? I sold it.

I got sick. I didn't think I was going to live, so I sold. The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration in the United States. Recipients have done the improbable, showing immense bravery and sacrifice in the name of something much bigger than themselves. This medal is for the men who went down that day. It's for the families of those who didn't make it. I'm J.R. Martinez.

I'm a U.S. Army veteran myself. And I'm honored to tell you the stories of these heroes on the new season of Medal of Honor, Stories of Courage from Pushkin Industries and iHeart Podcast. From Robert Blake, the first black sailor to be awarded the medal, to Daniel Daly, one of only 19 people to have received the Medal of Honor twice. These are stories about people who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor, going above and beyond the call of duty. You'll hear about what they did, what it meant, and what their stories tell us about the nature of courage and sacrifice. Listen to Medal of Honor on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

A lot of times the big economic forces we hear about on the news show up in our lives in small ways. Three or four days a week, I would buy two cups of banana pudding. But the price has gone up, so now I only buy one. The demand curve in action. And that's just one of the things we'll be covering on Everybody's Business from Bloomberg Businessweek. I'm Max Chavkin. And I'm Stacey Vanek-Smith.

Every Friday, we will be diving into the biggest stories in business, taking a look at what's going on, why it matters, and how it shows up in our everyday lives. But guests like Business Week editor Brad Stone, sports reporter Randall Williams, and consumer spending expert Amanda Mull will take you inside the boardrooms, the backrooms, even the signal chats that make our economy tick. Hey, I want to learn about VeChain. I want to buy some blockchain or whatever it is. So listen to everybody's business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The American West with Dan Flores is the latest show from the Meat Eater Podcast Network, hosted by me, writer and historian Dan Flores, and brought to you by Velvet Buck. This podcast looks at a West available nowhere else.

Each episode, I'll be diving into some of the lesser known histories of the West. I'll then be joined in conversation by guests such as Western historian Dr. Randall Williams and bestselling author and meat eater founder Stephen Ranella. I'll correct my kids now and then where they'll say when cave people were here. And I'll say it seems like the Ice Age people that were here didn't have a real affinity for caves. So join me starting Tuesday, May 6th, where we'll delve into stories of the West and come to understand how it helps inform the ways in which we experience the region today. Listen to the American West with Dan Flores on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your

podcasts. I know a lot of cops and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes, but there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multi-billion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season One, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated

on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st, and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Ad-free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. And it's gonna take us

to heal us. It's Mental Health Awareness Month. And on a recent episode of Just Heal with Dr. J, the incomparable Taraji P. Henson stopped by to discuss how she's discovered peace on her journey. So what I'm hearing you saying is healing is a part of us also reconnecting to our childhood in some sort. You said I look how youthful I look because I never let that little girl inside of me die. I go outside and run outside with the dogs. I still play like a kid. I laugh. You know, I love jokes.

I love funny. I love laughing. I laugh at myself. I don't take myself too seriously. That's the stuff that keeps you young and stops you from being so hard. To hear this and more things on the journey of healing, you can listen to Just Heal with Dr. J from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. AT&T, connecting changes everything. Who would it be? Universal Universal motherfuckers get your light together

Make sure you break Steve Ripken Jamie can I get another one? Jamie? I wanted to play Quick Time with Sly But I guess we gotta wait for We can do it twice if we want So Cassidy will be here soon. Explain this relationship.

Do we wait for him? No, let me say it first. Okay, cool. What? I haven't called. Okay. Don't worry. You're randomness, bro.

So Cassidy's like a son to me, right? Wow. I gave him his first record deal with O'Neal McKnight when I had SRC. We threw probably the best party

in the history of parties 2007 at my house right after the BET. Okay. So, during COVID, he calls me,

he goes, I need you to see something immediately. And like, please, it's going to take 30 minutes he calls me he goes I need you to see something immediately and like please it's going to take 30 minutes so he sends him talking to you and he sends me this video of a show called Pass the Mic

so I watch it and I said this is going to change your life this is going to change my life I'm going to make a deal for you on TV and we made a deal for you on tv and we made a deal with bett and then um we discussed i got a call that somebody said that they want to make this a tour oh wow so shelby joyner who has Black Promoters Coalition, called. We did a deal with Shelby for like eight, nine cities and did extremely, extremely well. And now we have this residency in Vegas with Live Nation. And now who is, we know Fat Joe and Ja Rule.

Dougie Fresh. I believe Dougie Fresh. Doug E. Fresh. Sick Rick. And then we have Ray and Ghost coming one night. Oh, wow. Public Enemy coming one night. Okay. Akon coming for a weekend.

Jermaine and Da Brat one night. Okay. Warren G and Too Short one night. That's every month. That's going to be for the month of July in Vegas. That's July. Yeah. We're going to start it off just one month.

Right. Do you think, is residencies something that's good? I think so. I mean, look how it restarted Usher's career. Right. Yeah, and it seems like, I mean, depending on the caliber of artists, but the money that at least in Vegas, that they're giving up for these residencies

is crazy. That's why we need to do this residency with you guys. You'll make more money than you'll ever make in your life. I didn't have a residency, but I don't know

if you remember after Oyamikando hit number one, I got hired for all the Wednesdays of one month. You don't remember? I kept going out

just one place, same exact place, I did the same exact show, Cancun, Mexico. Yes, yes. So I don't know if out just to one place. Same exact place. I did the same exact show. Cancun, Mexico. Yes. So I don't know if that was considered a residency. Yes. That was a residency.

But yes and no, because these deals in Vegas are totally different. Yeah. So Vegas, don't forget, you have merch, right? And why is residency so popular in Vegas? Because everybody's in Vegas for the weekend. And those hotels, they need to attract the people to get them in the casino. And this is what's attracting them. Residences one no no it could be weekly it could be relaxed buddy one time in dominican republic

you can do it you can do it we can do it i mean you can there's people that do it every day. All right, Cassidy, it's 10 minutes out. Okay. Your residency, once a year. Your residency comes with a platter, don't it? You got to relax.

Because I remember the residency when I first heard of something like that. It was like the Rat Pack type of thing. It was like... That's the original residency. That's the original residency? Oh, okay the Rat Pack type of thing it was like that's the original residency

that's the original residency oh okay I'm not bugging no that's the original so that was Frank Sammy Dean of Vegas Dean Lewis Sammy

well you said Sammy Frank Dean Lewis Jerry Lewis and then then they you know they had their own beefs

so so I also remember you had something to do with Mary's residency. Was that the truth, or you were managing her at the time? Yeah, it was a quick stint. What, what? It was quick. Short term. Yeah, they wanted her to replace Usher.

Wow. And she didn't take it, or she did? She had to deal with Live Nation to do this tour so she's gonna do the tour first okay and you're

I heard you say this a couple of times you're down with Live Nation now yeah what does what does that mean Ron Lafitte

who manages Usher okay is probably the biggest management company in Live Nation and he's a good friend and he said come in do you have you know an empty whiteboard is probably the biggest management company in Live Nation. And he's a good friend.

And he said, come in, you have an empty whiteboard to do whatever the hell you want to do. Right. So. And so what does that mean? You're more on the concert side? I can do whatever I want. I can do a lot. Yeah, so if it's Cassidy, if it's Mary,

if it's like if we could get the residency with you guys. Right. I'm starting out. That doesn't mean you have to live there. No, no, no. Residency just means you're going to be there consecutively. If you're a resident, you got to live there. It probably originated like that because those guys used to have penthouses in the hotels back in the day, so it probably started with that. That's probably where the name probably originated.

I don't want to change minds. That makes you fun of me. I don't want to change minds. I mean, at least he's using a word, understanding what it means. So I guess that's the point that EFN is trying to say is, it has to be because you don't want to fly back and forth. If you live in New York, you might want to stay there the whole month. You know what I mean?

Yeah. You know what I mean? You know what I mean? No, we're going to have a good time. You know, my uncle has his restaurant down there. Right. So it's like. Right. What's the name of the restaurant? Pick it up. Piero's.

Piero's? Okay, sounds good. One thing I know about Steve Rifkin, he knows how to eat. So do you, Nori. I mean. He's always in the best spot. He got some good ass taste. You like to eat with Steve Rifkin Nobles. That's right. That's right. Damn, you ain't got to blow ass taste. You like to eat with Steve Riffkin

at Noble's. That's right. Damn, you ain't got to blow it up. Damn, you should go tell the address. There's other people listening, Sonny. Uh-huh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, that wasn't Noble. That was the original one.

None of us knew how to order there. Oh, my teacher. We didn't tell you, Steve. I'm a nice guy. You know, Steve. Steve, what you bought all this? Listen to this thing. Fine little things like this.

I don't know if it was like this the whole time, but it was only raw. And we couldn't, like, we couldn't, like, we couldn't differentiate what was good, what was not. I mean, but we were in Paris. Yes. He was eating at the finest restaurant. That's right. That's right. And I was like and what was not. I mean, but we were in Paris. Yeah. He was eating at the finest restaurant. That's right. And I was like, what the fuck? You got to be kidding me.

Me and Sonny was, I think we were texting each other like, what is what? We couldn't get the salmon right. Listen, guys, don't worry. Anything you guys want, I got it. I said, I want the salmon. They sent out something that

looked like five French fries. You got the snap on. And I threw up for ten years. By the way, that's crazy because that night,

we walked to see Steve. I don't know if you remember. Sonny and Diego. Where was Diego at? We walked to see Steve, and we saw Nas right before we walked to see him. It was like a legendary night for us. Who the fuck just walks in LA, and you see fucking Nas Escobar sitting down there? So we see Nas.

We take a picture, and then I'd tell knives the name of the restaurant. What's the name of the restaurant? Matahisa. I can't even pronounce it. You know, my dyslexia.

Matahisa. And I was like, you could get in there? And I was like, yeah, with Steve. And then, apparently,

a couple of other people called me and I was saying that's where I'm at. And they're like, how could you get in there? Like, no one could get

a reservation. And from that moment on, I knew Steve was a restaurant couture. He could handle the rest of them. He remember the people. It was fact. Yes. He said, where are you? No, they looked at Steve.

They was like, you know, I'll tell you this. And you tell me if this works out for you. One of my favorite CEOs that I got to work with. You know, me and you are friends. We never actually got to work, right? But one of my favorite CEOs is Leo Combs. And Leo Combs would show me how he would walk in a restaurant and he knew everybody. When I tell you everybody, he knew the guy mopping. The boss.

He knew the person wiping the tables. He knew the owner. He knew the maitre d'. He knew the person that walk you and get you the menus. He knew everybody. So it was a strategy for him. Because when you walk into a place and everybody knows you it's hard for me for you to say no to that person like i knew he was tricking me this

whole time but then i started to do it when you eat at the same restaurant at every at every time Look who's here. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ.

DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ.

DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ.

DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. DJ. right because i mean even like even like something simple like here okay okay you go to the bathroom yeah okay all right um even when you think of something like simple like cheers cheers told us sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name it was something simple like that and i remember me always doing that me frequenting the same restaurant but i applied it during covid during covid nobody could get a carbon reservation oh was i destroying my my posting it people were like people people were hating so much but i i learned that i learned it from leo but i also did and so is that something you do with your artists too? Like you bring them to these restaurants and put them on? I mean

if it's a good restaurant 100% like it's not I'm not that way where you know I'm not really flashy so I'm not

I'm not trying to show up. Right. So when I started going to Matahisa Uh huh, yeah. That was really after my heart I mean I was

I've been going since the 90s All healthy. Right. So when I had my heart attack Nobu, I've been going since the 90s. All healthy. All healthy. Right? So when I had my heart attack, Nobu was truly a real friend. Right, right. So I would come and he would say, this is what you're having tonight. Wow. He would charge me.

Why? He was like your dietician. Yeah. That's fucking fly. Holy shit. Holy shit. Because he knew your condition. Yeah.

Oh, that's kind of ill. I thought I was special by getting chicken parmesan and carbon. This guy got no movement telling him, this is what you're eating. That's fucking fire. What is your favorite restaurant? In the world. In the world? In the world.

There's an old school Italian restaurant in New York on 43rd between 2nd and 3rd called Piero's. Piero's. That's what you mean? Pietro's. Pietro's. Pietro's. And then my uncle's restaurant in Vegas is called Piero's. Piero's?

Piero's. Piero's in Vegas and Pietro's in the city. So it's safe to say your favorite food is Italian? Yeah. Yeah? Okay. I have a chicken parm over Yeah. Yeah? Okay. I have a chicken parm over there.

What, the chicken parm at Pietro's? You had it? No. He ain't had shit. At my uncle's restaurant? I've been around. But I'm asking the one on 43rd to be on, because we going. The one on 43rd is...

Crazy. Between second and third. Compare it to Rao's what do you like better I see you and Tommy Matola up in Rao's I see y'all I like Pietro's Rao's is more of a vibe

you got your reserve table you have everything but food wise so let me ask you an old wise tale they always said that Rao's was five tables, right? No, excuse me. They said

it's five mafia families, right? But in Rao's they have six tables. So you said they had a table for every family is what you're saying? Yeah. I don't even think that's a rumor. That's 100% like how they sell rails like yo the five italian families bought these tables and then so it's like you like yeah so it's like you got this experience where in rails

is six tables and i always wanted to ask like somebody who's close to that world is there a secret family that we don't know about no i think that's just um's a great you remember we went to Vancouver us down the cable over there. I always wanted... Yeah, yeah, yeah. So DJ Cassidy, the one-legged bitch! I'm going to make one call. Okay, go ahead, go ahead. All right, Cassidy. Wow, look at the mic. He's passing the mic.

I'm passing the mic, Cassidy. I apologize. I left the hotel two hours and 45 minutes ago. Welcome to Miami. But I don't know how you all got here. You must have been coming from a different direction.

I'm flattered you guys came. I called Steve. I said, I'm guessing no one's coming. He said, I'm almost there. We'll see. He called me and said, you guys are all here. I was parked on one street, bumper to bumper, four feet of water.

Wow. I don't even know how we got past it, but I can't believe you guys all made it. Yeah. Yeah. We don't play no games. We don't play. We're very serious about this. So I'm honored to be here and flattered that you guys made it here. I thought this for sure was a cancellation, but I'm so happy we made it through the floods. You're one of the you're one of the biggest DJs on the planet. Right. You got to You got to.

That's a very big statement. I don't know if I accept it, but I'm flattered that you say that. But I don't know if that's true. No, you are. It's the truth. That's true. I love the fact that so many people have great relationships with you. How did you develop that? Is that something that you did on purpose?

Or that's something that you developed a long time? Well, I've been DJing since i was 10 years old wow so it's been three decades of relationships and i think at the foundation of every career and every life not to sound overly poetic, but is relationships. As a 10-year-old kid, I never dreamt of doing any of the things I've done as a DJ. My only dream as a 10-year-old DJ was for my favorite rappers to know my name. If you'd have told me when I was 10 years old that Tretch would know my name, I could have died a happy kid. So that was really the only dream I ever had.

And in celebrating my heroes, I developed relationships with nearly all of them. gift of my career thus far by far has been developing friendships with those who I idolized as a child. By far the greatest gift of not only my career, of my life. I like that. Let me ask you. Let me ask you the highs.

Let me ask you a low. Has there ever been somebody that you looked up to that you was as a 10-year-old kid and then you met them and you was like, because I've met plenty that disappointed me. You know, the one person that comes to mind, and I don't know if this is going to sound cliche, if you've heard this before, is actually no one in the music business or hip hop. Everyone in music and hip hop always actually really treated me as their fan with kindness. Wow. And to this day, when I meet someone new, I couldn't even think of a negative encounter. But I had one negative encounter with Michael Jordan once as a child.

Then why Mike always did that? Yeah, Mike. So I wasn't a sports fan. I was never a sports fan. I only cared about Michael. No, you was a DJ when this encounter happened? I was a child who had turntables. Okay, cool, cool, cool.

So the answer is yes, but he would have never known. I was a kid. I was 12, 13 years old. I need to understand where this is going. Go ahead. The DJ part has nothing to do with it. I DJ'd Michael Jordan's birthday since then. Since then?

Of course. I need to hear this challenge, G. So, I'm on a family vacation. And someone tells us that Michael Jordan is in the lobby lounge. And I think I was wearing the 11s, but not the padded leather 11s. You know, the low ones with the net? Ooh, the ones that's almost like cup hands. The gray concrete.

Okay, yeah. And then they had the net in them. They were like the summer 11s, but they looked nothing like the padded leather. They looked the real ones. So someone tells me Michael Jordan is in the lobby lounge. And I go down there, and he's in a meeting. He's having a drink with a guy. And I walk up to him very politely. And I thought I could get away with it because I in a meeting. He's having a drink with a guy. And I walk up to him very politely.

And I thought I could get away with it because I was a child. I don't think I would have walked up to him as a 20-year-old. And I said, could you sign my shoe? And he said something like, I'm having a drink right now. And that was it. And I walked away. It was the only disappointing moment. But as an adult, I can appreciate why Michael Jordan doesn't sign every shoe he's asked to sign. So I wasn't left, if I was left a little salty then, I was not as an adult.

Especially when your signature is worth however much money I can only imagine. You're not just going to be signing every sneaker that comes your way. But that really is the only negative encounter that I can even imagine. I've been really blessed. I have found that all my heroes, especially in music, have really proven to me why they're legends. And I mean, I could give you, you know, example after example, but. Some of them. So, I think Run and DMC, I think.

Is that why we always have on, like, hats? Like, is that you're paying homage to Run DMC to a certain extent? So, when I was a kid, I idolized Run DMC and I idolized Michael Jackson. I could see them both. Yeah, I could see that. I could see both. And, you know, I always thought as a kid that everyone I looked up to looked like a superhero. You know, as I was saying a minute ago, I was never into sports.

I was into Michael Jordan for the clothes and the sneakers. I was never into sports. I was into hip hop. Right. So hip hoppers were my superheroes. They were my Michael Jordan. They were my Superman and Spider-Man. And so I looked up to Grandmaster Flash, Kool Herc, and Afrika Bambaataa. And not because I knew much about them as a young kid. I knew later on as a teenager, I researched them

as a young teen. But eight, nine, 10, I don't think I knew much about them. But I knew what they looked like. And they looked like superheroes. Cool Herc in the convertible with the speakers. I know you guys know that image. And Flash with the outfits. They literally looked like superheroes. I'm going to leave you alone on that one.

I was enamored by them yeah and they later influenced my career and how i dj'd but initially i didn't know about all that but but but i just knew what they look like okay and they look like superheroes and then you cut to Run DMC, three superheroes times a thousand. You know, if an alien came from outer space to this day and said, what is hip hop? And you could only show them one thing. You couldn't show them 10 examples. You could only show them one thing.

I think I still might show them Run DMC and Jam Master Jay. And if I could only play them one thing, I think I might play them Sucker MC's because that looks and sounds like hip hop to me and I know that's different with everyone that's not fact but so

they were my superheroes and I always wanted as my career grew to to not necessarily look like them, but to have a look like them. And so I think I started experimenting with hats because of Run DMC, Jam Master Jay, and Michael Jackson. I think I were. How early were you starting to experiment with the look?

I think it started in my late teens, early 20s, but by my late 20s became really solidified. I don't think the boater hat became my signature to my late 20s. But I mean, every kind of bit of my style, I could trace back to someone in something. I wear my pants really short. That's Michael Jackson. Every little bit is some kind of influence in a blender. As a kid, I idolized Bobby Brown. He's also become a friend and he just looked like the coolest person on earth. The leather outfits, I got that from him. So, you know, I've been

idolizing people for a long time. And a lot of those people are my friends today, but they're still my idols. And I say to my idols that have become my friends, I'll say to them, I'll say to Run, I'll say, Joey, no matter how close we grow. You call him Joey? Yeah, I get to call him Joey. You don't call him Joey? No, no, no.

You call him Run or Rap? I don't call nobody. I call all my hip hop heroes by their hip hop names. So he has three names. Joey, Rev, and Run. Yes, okay. So, but I'd say Joey or Run. I do call him Run.

I don't call him Rev. I'll say Joey or Run. I'll say no matter how close we go, I'll say no matter how close we grow as friends, you will never stop being run to me. And I think those two things can coexist. I think you can idolize your friend. I think you can look up to your friend. I think you can admire your friend. I tell that to Nas all the time. Exactly. So it doesn't dumb down my fanness, the fact that we're friends. I was at a birthday dinner in L.A. two nights ago.

Uh-huh. And it was for one of my best friends, Mark Birnbaum, who's the owner of Catch, the restaurant Catch. I love the floss. Continue. So I walked into the restaurant. There were maybe 50 people there, cocktail hour, ready to sit. And I run right into Nas and LL. So they were walking to sit. I walked with them

and for the next three hours, the three of us sat and had the greatest conversation. This was literally three nights ago. Just you, Nas, and LL. Let's make some noise for you. That's legendary, man. And I don't think that's normal. I didn't look in my phone for three hours. As we all know, I don't think that's normal. No.

I didn't look at my phone for three hours. As we all know at a dinner, that never happens. You're constantly checking your texts. You're on Instagram. You're posting the birthday. Nothing. Yeah, look. Sonny's on his phone right now.

And every time someone from the dinner came over to me to say hello, oh, long time, don't see. I kept on going, can we talk later? I'm right. I'm listening to LL and Nas, and I wanted to get rid of everyone because how often do you get to spend three hours with LL and Nas? But here's the point I wanted to make. Watching the two of them together, these giants, right?

Giants from Queens. Giants was such a beautiful thing. I don't even know that three days later, I know yet how to put it in words. I tried to tell them at the end of the dinner. And I hope I articulated myself so that they understood. I think they did. First of all, watching Nas talk to one of his heroes

was first of all, obvious that talk to one of his heroes was, first of all, obvious that it was one of his heroes. You could have come in and known nothing about hip hop and you would have known something was going on. It was a beautiful thing. It was beautiful. I told them. I said, this has been the most touching experience. And watching the respect LL had for Nas. Right.

Right. And, you know, I chimed in here and there, but I really just wanted to let them go because I don't know how many times they've done that. Right. And Nas started quoting songs off of LL's first album and talking about their favorite songs of each other. And, you know, it was a beautiful moment.

But I'm only bringing this up because we were talking about being a fan and a friend. And you look at those two who are mega stars, way beyond hip-hop culture, just global superstars in so many ways. And you forget sometimes that stars are fans. Yeah. And watching them together was so beautiful. And I also think that it speaks to a camaraderie and a fraternity-like environment in hip hop

that's truly special. Yep. Maybe basketball has it, maybe baseball, maybe sports has it. I wouldn't know, not my territory. But I don't know how many businesses in this world that exists in. And it's clearly more than a business.

It's a culture. But there's such a fraternity and a camaraderie amongst, I think, people in hip hop. And it was a beautiful thing to watch. And specific to them, you were witnessing a full circle moment between these two artists. You know? You know, you're known for DJing some of the biggest parties, right?

Not just hip-hop, just in general. Have you ever DJed for Michael Jackson? No, so Michael Jackson, when he died, was one, he was the only person that I had never met that I wanted to. Oh, I thought you were about to say you DJed at his funeral. I was about to say that. Damn.

I was like, wait a minute. What means you met Prince? You met Prince? You met Mimi? So Prince and I performed at the White House together. Oh, wow. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, talk about? So Prince and I performed at the White House.

It was one of the many times I DJed at the White House over the years of the Obama administration. I need to ask. OK, did Prince invite you or this was Obama administration? So I got a call, but I guess I have to give some context. So please, over the eight years of Obama's administration, I've never been invited to the White House. I'm not welcome. Well, it was a special time. I don't know that now you can feel exactly like what that felt. There was a lot of hip-hop stuff going on at that

time. I just think for so many reasons, I think that was a time that just... It was a special moment in time. Did you smell weed at the White House? No, I didn't. No?

No, I didn't. Don't tell me if you did anyway. I didn't want to tell. No? He kicked you under the table a little. What the heck is with you? So I was the first DJ to ever play a presidential inauguration. Wow. And I was the first DJ to ever DJ at the White House.

Wow. So, you know, there's this guy. I forgot his name, and I don't know if he's still there. Okay, can I be fair, though? Because didn't NWA perform there? So wouldn't their DJ? NWA never performed. NWA performed at the White House.

No, I don't know. EZ went to a Republican Party thing, but I don't think. Oh, he didn't. I thought he performed there. I don't know. But a group might have had a DJ. Okay, yeah, yeah. But you DJed.

This is you rocking the crowd. You DJed the party there. I don't know, but a group might have had a DJ. Okay, yeah, yeah. But you DJ, this is you rocking the crowd. You DJ the party there. So the first time I was at the White House was actually not the first presidential inauguration that Obama had. The first inauguration, his parties were not at the house. Okay. They were at a convention center, and I performed live at one of those parties. Yeah, because you didn't have access to the house yet in the first inauguration.

You get inaugurated January 20th. No, I think you move in that day. Right. So you could have. Okay, okay. But perhaps that was the reason. But anyway, it's a big convention hall and there's like eight different parties going on.

So I was like the curator of the music for all the rooms and I played live in one of the rooms. Big responsibility. But it was fairly impersonal. Right. So a year or two later, the president is turning 50. And I get a call that the president would like you to play his 50th birthday at the White House. That's big, man.

So I show up at the White House for soundcheck. And it was a moment I'll never forget. There's moments in your career. I don't even want to say career. There's moments in your life. Your life, yes. Where you just say, how did I get here? You know that song by Talking Heads, Once in a Lifetime?

And I ask myself, how did I get here? As the days go by. Right, right. So I walk in, I go, how did I get here? As the days go by. Right, right. So I walk in, I go, how did I get here? And at that point, I think I left that night saying this was the greatest night of my life because I felt that what I did had a little meaning. I mean, I wasn't the leader of the free world, but I just thought that I left with a little more meaning than I had gone in. Let me ask you something.

Does the president pay? I did not accept money from the president. But did he say you want the bag or you just. The first one would have been the DNC. I can't. Second one. I can't speak for others, but I never accepted money from the president. For me, it was an honor.

They had the thing that you got in France. The thing that made you violent. No, no, no. Go ahead. As funny as that, I want to know that, too. Do they take care of travel, at least? Yeah, of course. Travel and equipment.

And the crazy thing is, is my sound guy at the time, he fully outfitted the White House. So years later, when the party with Prince happened, it's my sound guy outfitting the sound. These were full on parties, full on parties. So what unfolded that night after I walked in, I was not even prepared for. Okay. Meaning? I'm about to go on. And when I say go on, if you're looking at the White House,

if you can picture the pillars, there's windows. I don't know what the room's called. I did it ten times. But this is the last room on the left. The last window on the left. I've never been in, so I don't know. Call it the Lincoln Room? I don't know. This is where I went.

So we're not talking about a tent or an addendum event area. We're talking about the White House. Okay. That's crazy. Eleanor Roosevelt designed rooms in the White House, the Blue Room, Green Room, Yellow Room, and Red Room years ago. And now they're where the tourists go to see. You see the red room, the blue room, and next to all these rooms is the party room.

Coincidentally, the red room was the green room, meaning the dressing room. So I'm in this red room, and I call my grandmother at that time, 80 years old, Holocaust survivor, came to America with nothing. And I say, Mama, guess where I am? And she knows, obviously. She says, where? And I said, I'm in the red room at the White House. And you could just hear her having chills down her spine. And at that moment, I knew that this

night, if I never did it again if I never came here again this moment was special so I get a tap on the shoulder and someone says, hi DJ Cassidy Stevie Wonder would like to talk to you so I immediately say, why is anyone asking my permission

for Stevie Wonder to come say hello to me like, yes, can he please? where is he? I'll go say hello. Stevie, you sliced on you. Driving the car. He saw you on his way in. So already, this is starting off bizarre, like overly polite, like, you know, strange.

Like, why are you asking it, Stevie Wonder? Of course, come interrupt my phone call. I literally said, mom, I'll call you back. I got to talk to Stevie Wonder. So Stevie comes up. You're stunning on your grandma. So let me paint this picture. I'm in the red room. It's a famous room. You can Google it. Very Louis XVI ornate Versailles, like all gold red. And the party people are in this room right to my left, 500 people. And the president is on stage thanking Janelle Monae for performing, about to bring me on. But very casual. This is not a black tie event. This was like Sunday afternoon vibes. So Stevie Stevie comes up to me and goes DJ Cassidy so um I was thinking we could do some I've done things with him at this point before so he goes

Cassidy um I was thinking maybe we could collaborate and I'll come on and sit at the keyboard and surprise the president I said I'd. So he goes, maybe I'll just do signed, sealed, delivered. Could you drop a beat to that? So I'm thinking I have a solid 15 minutes to prepare what beat I'm going to loop in Serato for him to play signed, sealed, delivered. That 15 minutes was 15 seconds. Stevie walks on stage with the guy, you know, that holds his hand. Right. And the next thing you know, the president goes, oh, looks like we have a guest. Unexpected.

Stevie Wonder. And Stevie Wonder sits at the keyboard and I follow him. I don't know what I'm about to do. So I have about 30 seconds to say to myself, what beat? I just caught that. He followed Stevie on stage? I followed Stevie on stage because he wanted me to jam with him. You know what I'm talking about?

Like literally walking. He said that Stevie was being taken in. I'm being funny. I'm being funny. So. He heard he's very independent. Yes. So Stevie was being guided.

And I knew that if I wasn't there, he wouldn't realize I wasn't there. He thought I was ready to rock with him. Right. So in 30 seconds, I'm thinking, what the hell am I going to do with Signed, Sealed, Delivered? So the president's still talking. The president now announces Stevie Wonder and DJ Cassidy. And he plays the first chords to sign, seal, deliver. And I pull a Billy Squire big beat, praying that I have those first four bars looped on Serato.

Not looped. So I'm sure you guys know, but for those listening, Billy Squire, Big Beat is a song from the 70s, a rock song that was first made famous when Run DMC used it for Here We Go, Here We Go, Here We Go, Here We Go, Here We Go. And Run DMC's performance of Here We Go was never recorded in a studio. It was recorded live at the Funhouse. And you can hear Jam Master Jay going back and forth every four bars. And I think there's one or two times he kind of messes it up, but he catches it. Right.

Wow. And then Rick Rubin used it for 99 Problems. So I know it's about the same tempo as Signed, Sealed, Delivered. Right. So Stevie starts singing. As I prayed so long, and i'm still wrong oh baby here here i am sign seal delivered i'm yours and i do that for the next five minutes. While he not only performs Signed, Sealed, Delivered,

but an extended improvised version of Signed, Sealed, Delivered. So I can picture it like it was yesterday. He's right here. Everyone's right here. And I'm kind of tilted. They were going to move me out straight. I was on wheels. But because he was there, now I'm tilted.

And I'm cutting up this song, praying that I just stay on beat every four bars. Stevie's rocking. And I kind of turn to my right. I didn't wear glasses then, so it's probably easier. And I see Jay-Z and Chris Rock. Boy, they just lit. Is that the White House still? And they're nodding their head.

You know that mean face you make at the studio when you like a beat? You know that face and the head nod? Hey, this is the illest mashup right there. Boom, ba-ba, boom, boom, ba-ba, boom, ba-ba, boom, boom, chika-chika-chika, boom, ba-ba. And I look at them and they see me seeing them. And at that moment, all the pressure went off then I was rocking when I saw that

and it was one of the greatest moments in my life they found cocaine that's the Biden administration that's not Obama the cocaine is from the Biden only Sonny will segue to and then they find cocaine there it wasn't a party why would you segue to, and then they find cocaine there. It wasn't a casting party.

Why would you segue to that? He said this beautiful story. You want to bring up cocaine in the White House? He said Stevie dropped it. Stevie dropped it. I didn't say that. I didn't say that. Yo, listen.

On the way, on tape. Yo, listen. You know what's crazy about Stevie Wonder? We have so many people who come on the show. We love Stevie, man. We love Stevie Wonder stories. We have so many people who come on the show. We love Stevie Wonder stories. We have so many people. Because Shaq is still the best.

That's the best. Shaq said. He was like, it was believable the way he said it to us. Shaq said he got in the elevator with Stevie Wonder by himself. Just them two. And Stevie pressed the button. Oh, did he say he pressed the button? No, he said, what's up, Shaq?

He said, what's up? And then I think he said he pressed the button afterwards. Who said he pressed the button? No, he said, what's up, Jack? He said, what's up? And then I think he said he pressed the button afterwards. Who said he was walking the street by himself? No, Ron Isley said. Ron Isley said he saw Stevie Wonder cross the street. A busy street. A busy street. And he said they went and got him.

But we, right? I forget exactly what. No, he said, no, did he buy himself? I mean, it don't matter, man. Everyone has a Stevie story that transcends logic because he's actually not a logical person. But it's real. There are really, if you think about it. Mentally, he's just all.

And then Dr. J said he called him at 5 a.m. Yeah. He's done for that. That's why. There's very few artists that have this level of genius. So it makes sense that that most of the stories we hear are beyond, you know, daily logic because his whole being is is nice. A superhuman. Yes. I want to talk about a different superhuman. Recently, a friend of mine's just released his trailer to a movie.

He made me a Lego character. His name is Pharrell Williams. What is your connection with Pharrell Williams? I've known Pharrell for years. And actually, Pharrell called on me to DJ his three of his closest friends' weddings. I DJed Shea's wedding from N.E.R.D. and two other very close people in his life. So I've known Pharrell throughout the years. He's been a supporter of my career and on various occasions that were important to him, I was kind of his gift to the wedding, which is very flattering.

I mean, it never, I take that responsibility very seriously. I get nervous to DJ parties to this day, especially if it's for someone whom I admire. You know, when Pharrell calls you to DJ a party, Pharrell could call any DJ and any DJ would go, would jump at the opportunity as do I. And so when anyone of that stature. With critical ears. With extremely critical ears, who most people on earth hold on a very high pedestal. We're not just talking about your average producer. Someone who's commonly thought of as the ears you want to respect you. So when he calls me for a wedding of his three best friends, it's something I take very seriously. But I could say that across the board,

whether it's the White House or Pharrell or anyone of that nature. Beyonce. Beyonce and Jay. You worked with them both? I did their wedding. That's fucking awesome. What kind of DNA, what is that NDA you had to sign for that? What is it called?

NDA. I mean, it was a long time ago. I'm sure I just, I'm known for reading things over and over and not signing them on site. I'm sure I just signed it. I do remember I didn't bring anyone. I was asked not to bring a sideman or a tech. I think I might have been able to bring my tech to Soundcheck. It was at their apartment in Tribeca.

It was very small. You've got to understand, no matter how big your apartment is in Manhattan, it's still an apartment. It's still not a house. I think I might have brought someone for sound check but no one at night okay and i remember it being like a marathon like i must have got there at eight but here's the funny thing okay so the only photo of that wedding is me walking into the lobby so apparently they sent me a car to pick me up in my apartment. The car never showed up. So I took a taxi.

Okay, tell me. Tell me, tell me, tell me. All right. I just want to get this correct. Did you just say you took a taxi? I took a taxi to their wedding because the car service never showed up. And I didn't want to be late. By the way, this is gangster.

I didn't want to be late. So I left the apartment, hailed a taxi. This was way before any apps. Yeah. So all the celebrities are directed from the car services on where to go. So down the garage, right? So all the paparazzi shots are of the celebrities like through the SUVs. But the one shot they have of the whole wedding is me walking in the front door of the main lobby in my like black velvet tuxedo because i took a taxi yeah had i not done that there would have been you

know no first song was was there any backlash from them they're like no okay no so okay all right i'm bouncing i've done so many events you know my mouth was right you know i never had a big mouth at these things i mean that was part of why i was there it was getting higher okay i'm bouncing around a little bit one thing i know is uh they're very private people so how do you get this call and then how do you get the first time you got to work with right so i think this was anyone could google it but i think they got married in 2007 or Or was it 14? I don't know why I'm thinking it was 7. No, I think it...

No, it wasn't 14. I think it was 7. I think it was 7. It was 7. I got married in 2006. Nobody cares about when you got married, sir. And I think it was April 4th. I think they're... it was April 4th. The 4th.

I think they're... 2008, April 4th. And I think their lucky number is 4. So it was the... 4-4-4. Yeah, so it was 4-4. Mm-hmm. And Blue Ivy, Ivy is a 4. Oh.

So I had already been DJing Jay's parties for at least five years. Wow. Okay, go ahead. So I got my first call from Jay, I think. I was still in school, so I must have been maybe 20. And so I would DJ all his parties, his birthdays, then Beyonce's parties when he threw them,

the 4040 Club opening in Atlantic City and Vegas and all of those. But that was the school, I mean, in college. Yeah, I was in college at that point. And so I had been doing all his parties. So the call to do his wedding was not at all- Abnormal. Yeah, it was not abnormal at the time.

But still, as I said, about all these things, I don't want to say the same thing every time. You don't take it for granted. Look, that's the two greatest entertainers of our time. Mind you, this is now 15 years later, even more of the greatest entertainers of our time, right? Like we knew then, but you know now, right? And, you know, they could have anyone, you know, anyone. And also this wasn't a wedding where they bring out, you know, this R&B singer to sing the first dance and this band to do. No, it was it was literally just me. Wow. And controlling the whole party. The entire party from beginning to end.

How do you approach that playlist? Do they tell you? So, no, I don't think there was any talk of music other than like the first dance and the entrance song, like those songs, you know, that the bride and groom choose. Right. I think there was no discussion of music because I had been doing this with him now for years. So you knew how you. Yeah, I don't think they were coming to me to direct it. I think they were coming to me for me, you know, to do me. Right.

But I'm, you know, still to this day, and I mean, I swear to God, I think about this sometimes. Like when I go to her concerts, right? Like the Renaissance tour, I think about it. I sit there thinking about it. The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration in the United States. Recipients have done the improbable,

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And it's going to take us to heal us. It's Mental Health Awareness Month, and on a recent episode of Just Heal with Dr. J, the incomparable Taraji P. Henson stopped by to discuss how she's discovered peace on her journey. So what I'm hearing you saying is healing is a part of us also reconnecting to our childhood in some sort. You said I look how youthful I look because I never let that little girl inside of me die. I go outside and run outside with the dogs. I still play like a kid. I laugh, you know, I love jokes. I love funny. I love laughing. I laugh at myself. I don't take myself too seriously. That's the stuff that keeps you young and stops you from being so hard. To hear this and more things on the journey of healing,

you can listen to Just Heal with Dr. J from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. AT&T, connecting changes everything. I DJed their wedding. It still feels like a very big deal to me. It is a very big deal. I don't let those things, I don't allow myself to become jaded. I actually keep those memories as memories that continue to inspire me and hype me up. As they should, right. Because the two greatest entertainers in the world could really call anyone. You know, their Rolodex doesn't exist because they can get everyone's number.

Right. And so, you know know i was as honored then as i am now in fact i think i'm more honored now by the memory i think then i was probably just so in it but now when i look back i say damn you know 30 people at that party wow sounds rich to me let me just look I've been analyzing all night I want to see if I'm correct is that the Cartier nail

and is that the Cartier Panther I'm not wearing one name brand break this down for me this is very Devonier I respect it thank you so the only thing that's name brand that I'm wearing is my sneakers Air Force 1's just, Air Force Ones.

Okay. Just white Air Force One. So. So, oh, and polo, polo shirt. Okay. But the suit is custom made. I have all my suits made, all my stage attire made. Contrary to what many people think, it's not more expensive than buying fancy name brand clothes.

Right. It's not at all, but it's not a money thing. It's a fit thing. It's I never want to walk on stage or walk into a party and someone else has my suit that they bought at Tom Ford or Gucci. And also the crazy, you know, the crazy shit I wear, I could never even find in a store. You know, I'm tall and skinny.

My body never fit things growing up. You know, my posture was always bad. I was lanky. I could never fit a suit or a tuxedo. So over the years, I started custom making clothes. And I buy all my fabrics. So I literally, if someone ever says to me, what do you do besides music?

I say, I make clothes. But I don't make clothes to sell them. I don't go to fashion shows. I know nothing about the brands on Fifth Avenue. I know very little about the fashion industry. You don't focus fashion over? I actually would, though. You know, the things I do buy are cheap to expensive.

There's no rhyme or reason. But really, most of what I buy are basics. The Air Force Ones, the polos. But I have fun going to the fabric store. All the fabric. I choose the fabric, I choose the fabric. I choose the buttons. The jewelry is vintage that I either bought at...

I thought you were going to say 1800s. So the brooch... Oh, I should have said the glasses are name brand. But the brooch and the cuffs are straight vintage stores, antique stores,

flea markets, estate sales. Don't say flea markets. He's going to go crazy. But that's what I do. That's what I do. I don't think you should be giving him a five. Not a lot. He goes to the bad flea markets. It's a different flea market.

It's a different flea market he goes to. It's a different flea market. I can already tell that we've been to the bad flea market. It's a different flea market. It's a different flea market he goes to. I can already tell that we've been to the same. I can already tell. I could give you all the spots. You know, there used to be a store. Yo, this will be a show. You guys shopping together.

That'll be a show. That's a win. That's it. A state sale chance. There you go. Estate sales is where you find all the heat. Because the rich old women die. That's what I'm saying. People don't understand. Estate sales, when you say that,

it's people that passed away and they're selling off the estate. I don't wear name brand jewelry. Nothing is expensive. Nothing is real gold or diamonds. It's costume jewelry. It's costume jewelry. I don't walk around with anything expensive and it has nothing to do with money. It's just what I like.

I like vintage costume jewelry. The hats are all custom made. I started wearing boater hats. I experimented with hats for many years. And so there was this hat store in New York where I grew up on 32nd and 5th called JJ Hat Center. I used to have a studio on 32nd and Madison.

So you must know that store was there forever. Small store. So this store was like the classic men's hat store. And every time I would go in there, they'd give me something that looked like a Run DMC or a Michael Jackson felt or strut. And there was always this straw, stiff, thick boater hat with this brim that was hard, like a fucking weapon. And it looked very old school and estately. And I thought maybe I like kind of transform that and

it would give me this kind of like classic thing but i would do it you know in a different way in a hip-hop way or just in a different um you know modern way so i started experimenting with the bowder hat it became my signature but then as evolved, I wanted a larger brim. So the machines in America can only make the two-inch brim. So the three-inch brim has to be custom-made. But there's only one machine in the world that can make a three-inch boater hat because of the way the cork is, and that's in Florence, Italy. And one old man has that machine. Jesus.

And when he dies, it's a wrap. Wow. So I order these hats, and you get them when you get them, and sometimes you never do. The man's literally an 80-year-old man making them on this one machine that can make... Make them until he can. Then the wrong sizes come, and they're all padded. It's a triple layer.

You see one, two, three layers of cork. Three-inch brim hat. No one really has the three-inch straw boater hat. It's kind of a unique. I never knew that's what that was called. It's called the boater hat. Yeah. I never knew that.

Never knew. So let me ask you. You've been all over the world. What is one of the strangest places you've ever performed at? Kazakhstan. You mean performing ever performed at? Kazakhstan. You ain't performing Borax country. Yeah. What the fuck?

You went to Borax land? So it's nothing like he presented it. No, it's not at all. Which is why that country tried to sue him. Wait, the whole country tried to sue him? Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's hard. They were highly offended by him.

He got beat with the whole country? Yeah, he was beat with the whole country. Okay. But one interesting thing in Kazakhstan is that they eat horse. Excuse me? That's not the only country, though. There's other countries. Well, it was the first one that I had been.

I go to this country to DJ a black tie gala. Like what you would imagine. I'm trying to think of an American example, but they're all like European galas that would equate to that. You know, like a gala in Cannes, Amphar. Okay. But in Kazakhstan. Right. And, you know, I'm seated, I'm a guest before I go on stage, and every single portion of the meal was horse meat.

So that was a bizarre experience. I apologize. Oh, no, you're good, man. Have you ever been to Kazakhstan? You walked in on the horse meat. This is your office, man. Have you ever been to Kazakhstan? Have I had the what?

Have you ever had the horse meat? The horse meat in Kazakhstan? You walked in at the perfect time. We're going to give you some tasajo. No, in Kazakhstan. In the former USSR. No. Okay, we had him speak about it earlier. You ever had

horse? I had buffalo. Buffalo, no horse. No horse. Bison, yeah. I got buffalo wings. Different buffalo, buddy. You were going to say something, sir. Oh, no, no, no. Oh, yeah. So we spoke about, Steve spoke about it earlier, but how did

you come up with this Pastor Mike idea? Was it during the pandemic? Yeah. So in April 2020, early pandemic. Early. Early. When no one really knew what was going on. Right.

When I was cleaning my groceries with Clorox wipes, that whole era. Yeah. Ducks, wipes, that whole era. I was FaceTiming one night with my friend and mentor, Verdine White of Earth, Wind & Fire, whom I mentioned earlier when we started. Nice floors. Continue. And so Verdine has been a hero of mine as far back as I can remember. And I can tell you the story about how we met after. But he and I go to dinner every now and then, once every couple months.

So I called him to check in on him in this crazy time. And we were FaceTiming. Now, for those who know Verdine, everything I say about my clothes and my fashion, he's times a thousand. I mean, he's the originator. He's the originator. And so I FaceTime him, and he's sitting on his couch in red silk pajamas, looking like Verdeen White should. And while I'm FaceTiming with him, the Earthwind song, That's the Way of the World, comes on my Sonos speakers in the back. And Verdeen hears his own song, and he begins to casually sing along.

Hearts of fire, create love desire. So this ballad, on a regular fire, create love desire. So this ballad on a regular day gives me chills. It's one of those ballads that just touches me. But in this moment, those chills were multiplied.

It's a crazy time in the world. I was literally alone for three months. I didn't have human contact for three months, but didn't have human contact for three months, but at that point it was still new. And he starts singing along. The first three months. And he

starts singing along, just like nothing to his own song. And I didn't take that moment for granted. I said to myself as he's talking, how fortunate am I to have relationships with so many of my musical heroes and how fortunate am I to be able to experience their music in this intimate way? It's crazy how we started this conversation. However many, you know, now it's, you know,

an hour maybe. And it all comes back to the same thing. Because the first things you asked me were about my heroes and my friendships and relationships. And that's what sparked the whole thing. So I said to myself at that moment, maybe there's a way for me to give people around the world during this crazy time the feeling that I have right now at this moment of interacting with their favorite artists and experiencing their favorite songs in a more personal way than ever before. And a light bulb went off. And I immediately envisioned what became Past the mic. I envisioned myself in my living room in front of the fireplace with the palm trees and the flamingo wallpaper and the lights dimmed down low.

And I envisioned myself dropping iconic hip hop and R&B records and bringing on screen the legendary hip hop and R&B icon who sings that song to sing along. And I said, Verdine, I got to call you back. And I called my editor, Ian, and I said, Ian, I said, we all know on Zoom and FaceTime, if I trigger a song, no one can sing along in real time. They'll be five seconds late. How can we do it? And 48 hours later, we concocted a way to break the code and have me trigger songs and have people sing along in real time.

And I started calling every icon of 1970s and 80s R&B that I had relationships with. Now, I knew I couldn't call people that I had never met because the idea was so crazy, no one would do this. They had to have some level of trust in me. And so I called back Verdine and his partner in crime from Earth, Wind & Fire, Philip Bailey, and Kool from Kool & The Gang, and Patrice Russian, and Ray Parker Jr., and Cheryl Lynn, and Howard Hewitt and Steve Arrington. And I said, guys, I have this idea.

I'm going to sit in my living room in front of my turntables, and every time I drop one of your records, you're going to pop on screen to sing along. Now, did the verses come out before this? Or the D-Nice? Is this before that, or is this after?

It's around the same time. It's all around the same time. I'm just trying to picture it. Sorry. I know D-Nice started DJing on Instagram Live almost immediately when the lockdown started. So that probably preceded this phone call versus I'm forgetting the exact month they started. But I think it was all around the same few months, March, April, May, June, July,

it was all very much happening. And I start calling everyone, and shockingly, everyone says yes, except Philip Bailey of Earth, Wind, and Fire. So I call Verdine, and I go, Verdine, can you talk to your, you know, best friend of, you know, 50 years? And he goes, you know, Philip is very cautious and he likes to understand what he's doing. So I called Philip's daughter, Trinity. I said, Trinity, can you help me?

And finally, I finished the entire episode. You never told me that he said no. He said no. You know, my best friend's, you know, at your birthday party when I wanted to strangle. No, God. God, I wasn't ready. I wasn't ready. I wasn't ready.

We're going to spend a block on that. There's a lot of things we've got to put a pin in, but that's one. But go ahead, go ahead. So I filmed the whole show and edited the whole show. Now, some things that people don't realize about the show is the show took me anywhere from four to eight weeks to create, to conceptualize, to playlist, to reach out to the artists, to film them all individually, and then to put everything together so it looked like I never got up from the chair. So the first episode is now assembled and it's for Dean White playing bass on the song that inspired the whole thing. That's the way of the world

into Saida Garrett doing her duet with Michael Jackson. I just can't stop loving you into Patrice Russian doing remind me into Denise Williams. Um, so on and so on. And now there's 20 R&B icons. And I call Philip Bailey's daughter, and I say, can I please speak to your dad? So she puts him on the phone. I go, Philip. I said, remember that thing I was talking about? He said, yeah.

I said, look, I finished the whole episode. I left the space for you to sing with Maurice White. Maurice White, who died, I think, now about 10 years ago, the founder of the group, he sings half the song. The song is Maurice White and Philip Bailey. I said, I want you to sing with Maurice White. So I said, look, I'm going to send you the episode. Let's schedule a time to do it.

I'm going to send it to you. If you don's schedule a time to do it. I'm going to send it to you. If you don't love how this turned out, we never had the call. But on everything I've ever said, on everything we've ever collaborated on, and we had collaborated on a few things, I said, give me 30 minutes of your time. And you have my word that you'll be proud of the product. So he did it. I edited it and I sent it to him. And five minutes later, his daughter texted me and said, approved. And that was the beginning of what became something I could have never, ever imagined. And I finished this episode in late May, early June.

And I didn't premiere it until a month later. And I texted it to Steve, who didn't know anything about it at that point. And I said, Steve, watch this and call me back. And you had recorded it online

on Instagram Live or no? No, no, no, no. He pre-recorded it. Oh, you just pre-recorded it. Okay, okay. So Instagram had nothing to do with Pass the Mic ever. It was YouTube. It was premiered on YouTube.

Right. And it was never filmed on Instagram Live or Zoom or any of the common apps we use. Okay. It was a show that I filmed individually, edited, but when you couldn't go to anyone's house, it was quite a puzzle to put together on how to teach artists some of whom at that time were over the age of 70 so I sent it to Steve

now before I sent it to Steve I had sent this to every blog every website every magazine every network and said would you premiere this for me? Now, you know, like a new single

premieres, new music video premiere. It's a little vanity thing. It's not a big deal. Couldn't get one person to premiere it. And my YouTube subscribership was low. I'm not a YouTuber. I have a basic subscribership. I've had six music videos. So I send it to Steve

Rifkin, who's my dear friend and mentor for many years. And I say, Steve, watch this. Now, he has no idea what he's about to watch. So he calls me 28 minutes later and says, this is the greatest thing I've ever seen. And I said, since COVID? And he said, no, ever. He said, this is going to change your life and it changed my life

because i feel like we're hearing all the the name droppings that you can that that you're saying and all the things that you've done up to this point, but I want to go further back. How does this 10-year-old DJ who gets to these turntables, starts DJing, then you go to high school, college, what is the break that makes you feel that, okay, there's something here, I could really do this, I could do a career in this. What's the break?

What's the thing that starts to get these people to call you to do these parties to give you these these collaborations connects you with these artists um there were many moments and i'll tell you as um as many as you want to hear but it started when i was 10 years old and i dj'd every single possible opportunity I had to be in front of people. I never enjoyed DJing in my bedroom. I was never a real scratch master. I was never that guy. I was never a competition style. I was never a turntablist.

I was a party DJ. So there's only so much you can do in your room. You can't practice routines. You need to be in front of people. Yeah, because you feed off the crowd. Yeah. So I would DJ every rinky-dink, school, carnival. You're the first two guests who drink the Monster, just so y'all know.

Really? Monster water. Monster water. A little bit of water. Monster water. Monster water. We appreciate that. We appreciate that.

I drink Monster water all the time. Is this a sponsor? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. We appreciate that. I drink Monster water all the time. Is this a sponsor? Yes. Shout out to Monster. That's right. So we just raised the value. But guests usually just go straight for the drinks. They don't.

But we appreciate y'all. But go ahead. Continue. So I DJ'd every possible thing I could. Right. And I brought my milk crates of records and my turntables to school. And although it sounds silly, it gave me my first experiences in front of anyone. Now, I didn't value these kids' musical opinion. In fact, I kind of had disdain for it. I wanted to be in real life.

But as a sixth grade, seventh grade, eighth grade kid, and then into high school, it was a beginning. School homecoming parties, school dances, school proms. And then in this era of New York, there were a lot of underage nightclubs that were just out in the open. And I don't know how this existed. But there were full-on nightclubs that high school kids went to and everyone knew it. And there was no carding. We had those out here, too. Like the Pack Jam.

So I started DJing some of these parties. And that was kind of chapter two because I was out there. And then one thing led to another, and I met some party promoters who at the time I thought and were real deal party promoters in actual New York City nightclubs. Right. And I went from doing these kind of

high school underage parties to actual New York hotspots to some degree. And you were 10? No, no, no. By this, I'm now 17, 18, 19. That would have been crazy if he was 10. Yeah, well, I had to learn how to use the turntable first. Right.

And those clubs were really the first exposure to real people. In the 90s, everyone wanted to be an intern for a hip-hop label. Right. And if I was old enough at the time, I would have wanted to intern for Steve at Loud Records. There were a few labels you would have interned at as a dream. Loud Records, Def Jam Records. Yep. I remember when he was 13 years old,

he would be at the office and we would give him records. Wow. Because back in the day, there was obviously no internet. And the only way to get the newest hot record was to get it from the record label to be in the record pools

being in the record pools 30 years old you already had a name in the industry I had no name but I was meeting everyone I could and would somehow get to Loud Records his babysitter was dating somebody that worked for me oh shit that wasn't in so that was one in

that was one in so that was one in That was one in It wasn't one of those times Steve was fucking everything The babysitter Wait his babysitter His babysitter Was fucking Combe

Who Controlled Every beautiful woman In New York City And the babysitter Was also very good friends With Stretch Armstrong Who controlled every beautiful woman in New York City. And the babysitter was also very good friends with Stretch Armstrong. Man, your babysitter was connected. Shout out Stretch Armstrong.

And your babysitter. Your babysitter was kind of managing you. So I had two babysitters, Awana and Diane. You got two? I'm sure they might hear this. That's why I just shouted them out. And they were friends with Stretch Armstrong. They were friends with someone who worked for Lab Records. But look, that wasn't.

Yeah, it was. And so that wasn't the moment that changed the game. But I had my antennas out. And so what I was saying was, you know, you wanted to intern. So one of the places I interned as a high schooler was actually not for someone in the music business, but in the fashion business. But in this era, DJing for this person was as good as DJing at a record label. Can anyone guess what that might be? Andy Hilfiger. Oh, wow. Andy Hilfiger oh wow so I

so I interned for Tommy Hilfiger's brother Andy now Tommy Hilfiger in the mid to late 90s was a revolving door of hip hop artists so being an intern for Andy Hilfiger meant you folded rugbys

and polos for Q-Tip and for Raekwon and for Snoop. And so that was another kind of path that led me out into the world. I remember Andy Hilfiger took me to Andre Harrell's white party at Tavern on the Green in 1995. I was 14. So Andre Harrell's White Party at Tavern on the Green in 1995. I was 14. So Andre Harrell became a very dear friend and mentor to me. When he passed,

I was filming past the mic and I always wished he could have seen it because so much of what I do on the microphone comes from Andre Harrell. But I want to get to that because that's of what I do on the microphone comes from Andre Harrell. But I want to get to that because that's a whole important piece of the puzzle. So the Hill figures bring me to Tavern on the Green in Central Park for Andre Harrell's famed white party.

And I remember watching Kid Capri tear down that party now you have to remember I've only maybe been to three parties it wasn't like I had been to 30 of these I know Kid Capri killed that one more than the other 29 I hadn't been anywhere I just heard about

it so I'm watching Kid Capri he's a master So I'm watching Kid Capri. He's a master. The master. And I'm watching Andre Harrell emcee the party. And I can picture myself where I was standing at Tavern on the Green.

And I looked at Andre and I looked at Kid Capri and I said, I want to do that. And that became one of my goals. Goddamn, make some noise for that. So I want to tell you something else. So the years, I think 2002, I interned for Def Jam as well in those years.

And now I'm just making a name for myself. So I'm finally getting the records from the labels without having to beg. And it's 2002 and the hottest record in the clubs is a song called Nothing by Noriega. And

maybe I went to and excuse my voice today I'm a little hoarse but okay you need some more water or anything no I'm good but that's why I'm drinking a lot so I am a little hoarse so I hear Flex playing this record you know

over and over and over and I'm now knee deep in the club so I know this is the hottest record. I'm DJing at Cheetah on 21st Street. God damn it. 21st Street. Justin's was right down the block. Across the street. How old were you then?

I was 21. I don't have this record. Oh, wow. I go to Fat Beats. They don't have the record. I go to Rock and Soul. They have a bootleg. I don't want a bootleg. I want to Fat Beats they don't have the record I go to Rock and Soul they have a bootleg I don't want a bootleg so so

I was always like a sonic you know so I go to Def Jam and I say I need two copies of nothing when I tell you they don't want to give me two copies

it was so it was so on fire I need two copies of nothing. When I tell you they didn't want to give me two copies. It was so on fire. It's like the scene in Crush Groove when they're printing It's Like That or King of Rock in the movie and they can't keep them on the shelf. I couldn't get a copy. So they finally give me two copies

and I go home and I put on the turntable to practice a few things and it skips so I take it off and I put on the double and it skips yeah the press that pressing skip I work the record yeah here oh so don't kill my punchline so I go to Def Jam back the next day and I wish I remembered who was doing the street scene. Was it Rob Love? Well, he was head of it. It definitely could have been Rob Love.

All right, let's make it Rob Love. So I go into Rob Love's office. It's definitely Rob Love. And so I say, I need two more. Right. He said, no, we just gave you two. You begged for them yesterday. I said, they're skipping at an integral part of the song.

It's not even the third verse. It's like at the beginning. So I said, he goes, well, those are your two. I said, the whole batch is fucked up. I'm telling you. He goes, you're crazy. Get out of here. So I see you have a turntable here.

He says, yeah. I said, whose office is the turntable in? So whosever office that was. And we take the vinyl. And I say to him, take two vinyl from anywhere in this stack. Top, middle, bottom. I'm like David Blaine with the cards. Just pick a vinyl.

So he puts them on. Same spot. Same spot. Same pot. I said, I just discovered a flaw in your pressing. You never heard this? so he puts them on same spot same spot same pot I said I just discovered a flaw in your pressing you never heard this I called you

I told you that damn was sucking up your record I did hear it but I didn't remember it like how he just described it the whole pressing

was fucked up the whole pressing was fucked up but this is what's ill this is how big the record was people were still playing the fucking record.

You can't stop a hit record. And you can't stop word of mouth, right? So at the end of the day. In my early days of DJing, I don't want to say when I was getting hot. When I felt I was getting hot. I'm in no place to say I was getting hot. That's for other people to say. But when I felt I was getting a little hot. I'm in no place to say I was getting hot. That's for other people to say. But when I felt I was getting a little hot, there were four hip hop records of that era

that were the biggest and greatest club records ever at that time. And they have all stood the test of time and remain songs that kids in their 20s now would sing every word to. Right. And those songs are Jay-Z, Give It To Me, Nori, Nothing, 50 Cent, In The Club, and Lean Back. Now, you, there's no way to explain what those songs did if you weren't there. You can try. Some things you just have to feel. You can't explain what it was.

We could play the song four times in a row. Right. Right. And it was a magical moment in New York. And, you know, I always tell people there's a lot of things that allow your stars to align in life. It's not just talent.

It's not just luck. There's so many stars that have to align. Right. And one of them is being a New Yorker who rose to prominence in the era of that music.

Yes. That's luck. Right. Because if I was coming of age now in New York, I don't think my life would have taken the same course because the music is different. It's so disposable

now. It's kind of like, yeah. And hip-hop is different. DJ culture is different. Everything is different. Yeah, but I was coming of age. I don't even want to say rise to prominence. I was coming of age in an era of new york hip-hop that was magical yeah and and um i agree and it gave me a platform because those

parties as you talk about the hot parties the exclusive parties you can't dj them if they're not happening and they were happening and they were happening in my backyard and all the music you played at those parties was being recorded in my backyard from people who grew up in New York and that's the stars aligning you could have been born anywhere else you could have been brought up anywhere else

well I want to stop for a second I want to let you know that our show is about giving people their flowers you know why are they alive you know you know what i mean why they could smell them man we wanted to give y'all both yeah even though you were an alumni okay yeah so uh before we start quick I'm going to take a quick piss I was going to thank you on air, but I'll wait

Yo Oh shit, look, someone just sent me I've been to a flooded Yeah Yeah, because I need We're all sleeping here tonight I couldn't believe it, though. But we did make it, right?

Diego, we almost crashed. By the way, I'm going to let you know. Was that honey? Did you just take a shot of honey? I respect that. This was the dangerous on the way to work. This is the most dangerous it's ever been.

We were swerving. We couldn't get here. We could I can't believe you came. I kept thinking Steve was going to call and say everyone's not coming or left. I mean, it was four feet of water. Because once I hit Steve and I was like, you know, and he was like, let's make it happen.. I mean, it was, there's four feet of water out there. Because once, yeah, once I hit Steve and I was like, you know,

and he was like, let's make it happen. I was just like, you know what? Let's just do it. Let's just make it. But I'm not going to lie, I regretted on the way here because I was so scared.

Like, at first it was like, what's that shit called? Not exciting. I didn't want feet. I wanted limits. We were like, all right. I didn't, oh my God. We. Yeah. I didn't want to be like, all right. I didn't, oh, oh, God. What happened?

We saw like 20 cars on the water. Everything was like, hmm. And then we got to the highway. And we were like, you know, close. We got in the fast lane. We was like, yo. He got in the fast? Yeah, we went to the last lane.

Yeah. It was not a good idea. It was not a good idea. One puddle. Yeah. I was scared to death. Because we didn't move. That was us. So hold on. I'll keep doing this. Yeah. I was scared to death. That was us.

So hold on. Yeah, I was scared. So look, literally, let me ask. Because you said you did a whole bunch of Pastor Mike's. What made you pick for your residency, right? The one that's in Vegas. What made you pick these artists? Actually, I'll both.

You know what I mean? Whoever want to go first. How did y'all make the decision? Before you go. Yeah. When it comes to curating music, I feel he's probably the best DJ in the world. I respect that. When it comes to somebody curating a show.

So he's always going to come with the mural, right? And then I'll say, you know what, maybe add this color, add that color. But to me, he's one of the best DJs in the world. I'm not going to question his thing. Sometimes I'll say, you're out of your fucking mind on this. But, I mean, he puts us together. So, I'm really, 95% of the time, I'm not going to question his curation.

Okay, so, before you say this, how does this work? Does the Vegas Regency reach out to you, and then you say to Steve, yo, listen, how does this work? So, first of all, thank you, Steve, because those are very, very big, very big words to say the greatest of anything. And I just want to I want to answer your question.

But can I take 60 seconds just to say that I'm a product of so many people? I'm a product of Dougie Fresh, who without watching him over the years, I would have no idea how to unite artists on stage. He's the godfather of that and in many ways has, I don't want to say passed me the torch, allowed me to hold the torch. And he's another hero that has become a dear friend. And I studied, of course, Flash, Herc and Bambada, but also Kid Capri and S&S and Funkmaster Flex.

All legends you mentioned. And without all of those people I just named and Andre Harrell as a master of the microphone, there would be no DJ Cassidy and certainly no Pasta Mike. I mean, everything I say on the mic is all of those guys in a blender. Right. So there were chapters to this journey. You know, I told you the story of the first episode

after the first episode I knew I wanted to celebrate my hip hop heroes and whereas the first episode started with Earth Wind and Fire the second episode started with Run DMC and went from Run DMC to LL Cool J

you got DMC too? Run and DMC? Yep. And they did Sucker MCs together. Wow. And then LL did radio. And then Chuck D did Rebel Without a Pause. I saw that. And then Rakim did Eric B as president.

And then Doug E. Fresh did the show. And Big Daddy Kane did Warm It Up Kane. Right. And, you know, over 25 artists were on that show, most of which who then joined us at my Radio City Pass the Mic show last summer, which was a full circle moment. And then after volume two, there was a volume three where I wanted to pay homage to my R&B heroes of the 90s, the New Jack Swing era. And that show featured Keith Sweat and Boyz II Men and TLC and SWV and all six members of New Edition. Hmm. And then in a very long story short, the show went from Steve

Rifkin to Jesse Collins, renowned television producer of every award show known to man, to Connie Orlando at BET. Volume one that I did completely on my own premiered in July. Volume two, August. Volume three, October. Volume four, a television special November 29, five weeks later that over 2 million TVs watched. And I don't want to speak for you. I'm curious to hear your opinion. I could have never in my wildest imagination thought that that would become a full-on television special in a matter of five weeks with millions of TVs tuned into it

on its first airing. Well, I told you your life was going to change. So, at the end of the day, I mean, I knew what this was. And I knew how we curated. Let me ask something. The first one that you did, was everybody involved in it strictly off of all the relationships you built?

Yes, 100%. Like it wasn't about like you're hiring these people to do this. It was all relationship based. No, it was either people that were in my phone or people those people knew and conferenced in right right but all really because it's important for people to understand like the power of relationships yeah so let's go through it if i can remember so for dean and philip i've told you that story yeah saeeda garrett who wrote man in the mirror for michael jackson and sang on i just can't stop Loving You is a dear friend. Patrice Russian, who sings Remind Me,

which has been sampled in hip-hop a thousand times, and Forget Me Nots, which became Men in Black. I called her directly. She was a friend. Howard Hewitt of Shalimar called him directly. Who else? Ray Parker Jr. called him directly. I said, Ray, you played on To Be Real by Sherilyn, right? He said, yeah. I said, do you keep in contact with her?

He said, of course. Now she's on the phone. And the list goes on. When I called Big Daddy Kane to take part in Volume 2, I looked at my text. I hadn't spoken to Big Daddy Kane in six years I don't call Big Daddy Kane but I do have his number and I called him

in July of 2020 so almost four years ago and he picks up the phone and goes hey Cass, if you're calling me about that pass the mic thing, I'm in and those were the kind of answers I was getting strictly based on volume one. And so volume one, two, and three were just a snowball. And by the time it went from Steve

to Jesse Collins to Connie Orlando, it's now a series of BET specials. And it went from 25,000 people watching on YouTube live to 100 on YouTube Live to maybe quarter a million to literally Nielsen ratings like 2.1 million televisions on the first airing. And long story short, after seven television specials and 10 episodes altogether, I had passed the mic to 220 legends. And those 220 legends spanned 40 years of hip-hop and R&B. Earth, Wind & Fire, Gladys Knight, Patti LaBelle, Charlie Wilson, Hall & Oates, New Edition, TLC, SWV, En Vogue, Keith Sweat, Teddy Riley. Crazy, come on.

Now for you, where you at? SWV, En Vogue, Keith Sweat, Teddy Riley. Crazy. Come on. Now we're here. We're here. Thank you. And that was just the first three. And then Missy Elliott, Wyclef Jean. Busta. Busta Rhymes, Wu-Tang Clan, Ice Cube, Sean Paul, Shaggy, Super Cat, Maxi Priest. I mean, we did a whole episode. Nobody can get Super Cat to do anything.

You got Super Cat. And we did a whole episode of reggae music. And I want to thank this amazing woman, Sharon Burke. Sharon Burke is kind of like the mayor of reggae music. And I met Sharon because she helped me get Shaggy. is kind of like the mayor of reggae music. And I met Sharon because she helped me get Shaggy. No, I'm sorry. She helped me get Beanie Man on a previous episode.

And we hit it off. And I called her and I said, Sharon, I told BET I want to do the next episode all reggae. I said, will you co-produce it with me? And she did and we produced this episode that featured shaka demas and pliers tara fabulous sister nancy doing bomb bomb and you know her story is incredible she deserves her flowers because that song has been used at least you got a documentary right now they got a documentary about her right now. Right. So it all just came full circle. She never made a sense from this

track or the top line or the song for years. And so she was on the show. And so Sharon calls me and says, you have to come to Kingston for the premiere. So I'm used to watching the show in my living

room with a couple of friends. I never did anything. She says, you know, it's just after COVID. We're just flying again. She says, you have to come to Kingston. Man, that must have been ill. And so I'd never been to Jamaica, let alone Kingston. And so Sharon Burke throws this event for me.

And all the artists who were on the show, the mass majority, live in Kingston. So they all came. Junior Reed, who artists who were on the show, the mass majority live in Kingston. So they all came. Junior Reed, who did One Blood on the show. And words can't really explain what I felt on that trip. You know, for me, Pass the Mic was, and in some sense it still feels like my living room show in which I'm surprised if anyone who I don't know has ever heard of it. So when I walk into Kingston and everyone knows that the show's happened,

it hasn't even aired yet, and everyone knows it's airing, and there's a whole show dedicated to reggae, it was quite a feeling. And honestly, in many senses, I have favorite episodes for different reasons, but that's my favorite episode because I think we stepped out of the comfort of hip-hop and R&B to some respect, but as a kid, dancehall music was hip-hop. I learned dancehall music through

Funkmaster Flex. That was my in to knowing Supercat Records. I learned it through hip-hop just like I learned soul music from hip-hop. Right. So, after 10 episodes, 220 icons spanning 40 years. And then Steve gets an email from the Black Promoters Collective, who's an independent

concert promoter, who was very hot that year with the New Edition tour and the Mary tour and the Maxwell tour. And they said, have you thought about taking the show on the road? And of course we had, but they saw the vision. And over the past year, we've been putting on past the mic live concerts across the country. And I've been walking out in front of arenas that are sold out with 10 to 15,000 people. And there's no feeling like this because at the end of the day, this whole thing started with this little idea of calling artists and convincing them to do this crazy concept to bring celebration to people at a crazy time. And it turned into a

celebration of the soundtrack of our lives. It turned into a celebration of our favorite songs and our favorite artists, a celebration of our heroes. And so I have this incredible, over the past year, I've had this incredible opportunity every month to walk on stage and experience that celebration in front of 10 to 15,000 people with my heroes on stage and every one of those shows

has been a unique show the show in North Carolina was different than the show in New Jersey was different from the show at Radio City so every show is like a special event curated specifically for that time and place than the show in New Jersey. It was different from the show at Radio City. So every show is like a special event, curated specifically for that time and place. And the show at Radio City

was the greatest night of my life. Sugar Hill Gang, Curtis Blow, Cool Moe D, Busy B, KRS-One, MC Shan. But listen to what I just said, though. On one stage, Cool Moe D, Busy B, MC Shan, KRS-One. You brought the rivals together. Those are two infamous beefs. And Naughty by Nature, and Rock King and Big Daddy Kane,

and KRS-One and Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick, and Lords of the Underground, and the Fushnikins and EPMD and I will never forget every minute of that night I don't think it can be topped it's my thriller now it's like in it's own

I can't touch that in my own heart and soul it was everything that I ever dreamt of and I felt I don't touch that in my own heart and soul. It was everything that I ever dreamt of. And I felt, I don't feel it often, but I felt that night that I had made some contribution, that I did something for the music and the culture that gave me life and identity. And I remember some artist saying that night that they had never been to

radio city. Um, and I got a call from Roxanne Shantae the next morning telling me just that. Wow. And, um, so, um, it's, it's, it's, you know, we talked about a lot of memories early on, I think in one of the stories I said at that time, that was the greatest night. This was the greatest night of my life. So all this led to Vegas. And, you know, you asked about the artist. Yeah, how did you pick those particular artists? It's always been, I just want to say, about the artist, right? I'm really just the messenger.

I'm just really, I have the fortunate position of being a bridge. And if I'm nothing else in my life, but that bridge, I'm happy with that. And I really feel, again, sorry for this voice, but I really feel that this is going to sound very poetic, but I feel in all episodes and shows that pass the mic, the artists have chosen themselves. I think it was always just clear. You know, when Steve and Live Nation first started talking about Vegas, I was immediately inspired by the shows that we think of as the iconic Vegas shows. Yeah. The Rat Pack. That's what I said earlier. Yeah, he wasn't even in here. I said that.

Yeah, we were talking about that earlier. Elvis Presley, Liberace. Steve always calls me Liberace. He definitely did. So I can't wait to hear what was said before I got here. Good stuff. Good stuff. So the Rat Pack, Elvis Presley, Liberace, Wayne Newton.

These are the first people who were residencies? They were the first ones to have long-term definitive residencies. There were people in between. I'm sorry for cutting you off. I did forget. My father did bring Elvis to Vegas. He brought Elvis to Vegas? Yeah, at the International Hotel.

And he's told me that before. So that's the DNA of this conception. And when this started, I didn't know that. Right. As the aesthetic and vibe started to form, he told me that. So I've always been

fascinated with Old World Las Vegas, with Fremont Street, the old hotels, the gangster stories, the neon signs, the lights, the glamour. The black and white of it all, the mob. Exactly, the black and white of it all. Yeah, yeah. The black and white of it all,

even though it was actually very bright. Very bright. Yeah. So I thought about the rat pack and i thought about who are they were they unknowns no they were five stars the first wu-tang clan is that the reason when you see the bastard mike it's like almost like the rat. I didn't even think of that. Exactly. So the Rat Pack is five stars. Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin, Joey Bishop, and Peter Lawford. Peter Lawford.

He's a deep box brother, I think, too. Yeah, so these guys were singers, actors, comedians. They didn't need each other. They were stars. But what did they do? They came together and formed an ensemble that the world had never seen, that you could only see in one place. And that place was Las Vegas. And remember how we started and I said, if an alien came from outer space and said, what is hip-hop? I would show them a picture, run the MC Jam Master Jam, play them.

So this is the Vegas residency? If an alien came from outer space and said, what is Las Vegas? I would show them the Rat Pack. So I thought there was an opportunity to create something groundbreaking and something trailblazing. There is very little hip hop in the concert space in Las Vegas. There is almost no hip hop in the residency space. Didn't Wu-Tang have one? Yeah, they just finished Four Nights and they have New September and that's brand new.

Okay, cool. And drink champs, we're coming soon. There you go. We need you in July. And Usher and even though Mary's considered hip-hop overall, they don't probably

because Usher and Mary There's been a bunch of R&B for sure. But virtually with maybe one or two exceptions, there's been no hip-hop in the residency space, very little in the concert space. And certainly DJs have always existed in Vegas in the world of nightlife,

but not in the world of concerts. So I saw a tremendous opportunity to take inspiration from those that made Vegas what it is and to redefine it through a hip hop lens, through a New York lens largely. And to create an ensemble cast of five artists that all have their global careers that don't need to come together, but choose to come together to create a once in a lifetime experience that you can only see in Vegas. And all roads led to Ja Rule, Fat Joe,

Slick Rick, and Doug E. Fresh, and myself as the core five. And Ja Rule has coined us the rap pack. And you know every night. So it's every night? So it's it's just as long as it could be every week, every night.

No, this is every weekend for the month of July. Every weekend. Yes, it's Friday, Saturday. Friday, Saturday. So on night one, we have Raekwon and Ghostface as our special guests. Every night one? No, just on night one of the residency. I thought you meant every first night of the weekend.

On night two of the residency, we have Public Enemy joining us on stage. Now, I just want to talk about this for a second. Public Enemy, first of all, has only performed once in America in seven years. Wow. Meaning seven years ago. Right, right. The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration in the United States. Recipients have done the improbable, showing immense bravery and sacrifice in the name of something much bigger than themselves.

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A lot of times the big economic forces we hear about on the news show up in our lives in small ways. Three or four days a week, I would buy two cups of banana pudding. But the price has gone up, so now I only buy one. The demand curve in action. And that's just one of the things we'll be covering on Everybody's Business from Bloomberg Businessweek. I'm Max Chavkin. And I'm Stacey Vanek-Smith. Every Friday, we will be diving into the biggest stories in business, taking a look at what's going on, why it matters, and how it shows up in our everyday lives. With guests like Businessweek editor Brad Stone, sports reporter Randall Williams,

and consumer spending expert Amanda Mull will take you inside the boardrooms, the backrooms, even the signal chats that make our economy tick. Hey, I want to learn about VeChain. I want to buy some blockchain or whatever it is that they're doing. So listen to Everybody's Business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The American West with Dan Flores is the latest show from the Meat Eater Podcast Network, hosted by me, writer and historian Dan Flores, and brought to you by Velvet Buck. This podcast looks at a West available nowhere else. Each episode, I'll be diving into some of the lesser-known histories of the West. I'll then be joined in conversation by guests such as Western historian Dr. Randall

Williams and best-selling author and Meat Eater founder Stephen Ranella. I'll correct my kids now and then where they'll say when cave people were here. And I'll say it seems like the Ice Age people that were here didn't have a real affinity for caves. So join me starting Tuesday, May 6th, where we'll delve into stories of the West and come to understand how it helps inform the ways in which we experience the region today. Listen to The American West with Dan Flores on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes.

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I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Ad-free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. And it's going to take us to heal us.

It's Mental Health Awareness Month, and on a recent episode of Just Heal with Dr. J, the incomparable Taraji P. Henson stopped by to discuss how she's discovered peace on her journey. So what I'm hearing you saying is healing is a part of us also reconnecting to our childhood

in some sort. You said I look how youthful I look because I never let that little girl inside of me die. I go outside and run outside with the dogs. I still play like a kid. I laugh, and run outside with the dogs. I still play like a kid. I laugh. You know, I love jokes.

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AT&T, connecting changes everything. Out of all the people involved in the residency, for some reason, Chuck has been the person who has posted the ad for the show more than anyone. I cannot tell you what that means. There's really no words to explain

how I feel when I see Pass the Mic Live on Chuck D's Instagram. Chuck D's a truth, man. He's a truth. The ultimate truth. Yeah. Like capital T-R-U-T-H. Yeah, man. He's the truth. The ultimate truth. Yeah.

Like capital T-R-U-T-H. There's no more truth. Night three and four, we are welcoming a global icon, a Steve Rifkin label mates

and discovery. Akon? Akon. And night five, we are welcoming Jermaine Dupri and Da Brat. Nice. Together doing something very special that we're currently curating. And night six, we're welcoming Too Short and Warren G. And it's going to be a very special night. Obviously, Vegas is in the West Coast, so that's going to be up particularly. And just to be clear for the people watching and listening,

when you say welcoming, in addition to Fat Joe, Dougie Fresh, John, it's in addition to them, right? In addition. And the great thing about the month of July for this year is you have the NBA Summer League. In Vegas. In Vegas. But you also have the Olympic team practicing so pretty much

85% of the NBA is going to be in Vegas so this will literally be the number one residency for the month of July and what hotel is this at? Caesars Planet Hollywood, owned by Caesars so and when this all started Steve was very Caesars, okay. Planet Hollywood, owned by Caesars. Okay.

And when this all started, Steve was very adamant about July. I'm not a sports guy. As I've said several times, Steve is. And so Steve goes, no, I go to Vegas every July. You can feel the energy, the culture. We have to do it in July. And he was right. And, you know, Ja and Joe and Rick and Doug and myself are designing an experience like you've never seen before. If you've been to a Pass the Mic concert over the past year, you've seen a three-hour continuous show with no intermission and no breaks and no moments of silence and no opening acts and no headliners it's straight 100 miles per hour from 8 p.m to 11 p.m but in vegas we're taking that

and multiplying it times 10 so what does that mean we are creating a show that is more interweaved and collaborative than ever before. If I didn't believe in this, I was supposed to do a Loud 30 on July 5th. And knowing what he does, I said, Cassidy, I'm going to shut my show down. And I was doing the big theater, T-Mobile, which holds 22,000 people. And I had Woo, 3-Mobile, which held 22,000 people. And I had Woo, 3-6, I had everybody. And I debted it for this. That's how much I believed in this. Because even though it's a month, this is going to be,

when he mentioned Wayne Newton, this is going to last. Because what they're doing doing it's an experience it's just not a typical hip hop show this is really going to be a real fucking experience and take it to a whole different place I respect that I think I'm giving you a contact high he's not

I keep looking I was losing my voice before I got in high. He's not. I keep looking. I'm like, he's alright, man. I was losing my voice before I got here. You can blame Nori, bro. You can blame Nori. I was losing the voice already, but now it's taken to a different level. You want to explain the rules with Quick Time and Sly?

Oh. Actually, Tash just hit me back and I was just talking. You played Quick Time already with us once. You're new to QuickTime. So this is what we're going to do. We're going to give you two different... Damn, I lost my...

Choices. Two choices. You get to pick one and we don't drink. If you say both or neither, we all drink. But you guys aren't drinking. You guys aren't drinking. So you get to pick. So he could be your designated drinker.

You're going to pick a You guys aren't drinking. So you get to pick. So he could be your designated drinker. You could pick. You could pick a designated drinker. Yeah. This guy can drink at the switch. I got some drink here. Shop does the drink. Right here. Right here. Does they drink?

Right here. Are you my drinker? You drink? Who's drinking? Boris, you're my driver. Hey, come on. He's my driver. Are you my drinker? You drink? Who's drinking? Boris, you're my driver. Hey, come on. He's my driver. He's not going to be your driver.

I can bring eight drinks, right? Come on. You're my teammate. Come on. Hey, you going to drink? All right. You got one here. All right.

I got eight. I got eight. I got eight with the hoodie. With the hoodie. You want some of these drinks? No problem. I can't have the driver I don't know I'm fucked up right now You got the flea market show You gotta relax I don't think you're gonna have to drink at all

I don't know because're going to have to drink at all. That's not what we call it. I don't know because now it's two for you to contest to. So if he fails you. Estate sale champs. Estate. Yeah, estate. You need a champ. This guy.

Yeah, bring him. Bring him. Come on, come on. Who's producing estate sale champs? All right. Hold on. Yeah, bring him up. Bring him.

Oh, y'all don't make me go back. Hold on. I'll take the first two. I'm going to give the first two. Hold on, hold on. Let's get his drinker up, though. Okay. Where's his drinker? Oh.

Uh-huh. Oh, what the fuck happened to me, man? I can't even talk anymore. Yeah. Let me do the first two. I'm going to give them both to Steve. His man's in them. You can sit next to your designated.

We got two things right here for you. What if I just answer everything and no one has to drink? No, no, no. We're both for y'all. This is between both of y'all. So we're going to bounce back and forth. So because you explained to them that if you say both. Yeah, we're giving you two.

Let me say it because I don't know why the fuck I can't even talk. But you get two choices. You say this or that. If you pick one, nobody drinks. Right. If you say both or neither, which is the completely correct answer. I get it. We all drink.

That's it. Yeah, I get it. Right. So I'm going to start with you, Steve. Tupac or DMX? Both. See, but when they're not drinking, they just say both. Drink it up.

Sallow, swallow, swallow. Drink it up. Cheers, cheers cheers cheers y'all okay it's also to you again oh my life this mama wanted

now this one yeah I think you're gonna I think you're gonna let me not let me not leave the witness yeah don't leave

the witness MOP or Mob D come on Nori I mean what the fuck I mean it should be sorry in a sense no I mean they're both loud I mean what the fuck I mean it should be sorry in a sense

no I mean they're both loud I mean how can I oh yeah I'm thinking but Mobb Deep was first yeah Nori said five no this is not those are the guys

who write these questions the Colombian and the Dominican I would say both but I'm saying you're leaving the witness now no I'm gonna you know

I had more records With Mobb Deep Than I did with M.O.P So You're saying But Annie Up might be one of my favorite records of all time One of our favorite records He does say that often

Jesus Christmas Cop out Rifkin over here Damn Alright man Let's go Cassidy cop out Rifkin over here. Damn. All right, man. Let's go. Cassidy. Nas or Kiss? Jadakiss, to be exact.

Are we allowed to explain answers? You can elaborate. Your criteria of why you would say one or the other or both. Nas. My favorite album of all time is Illmatic. And it holds a very special place in my heart.

And so anything that includes Nas might go to Nas because of that. Okay. That's fair. Alright. Steve. Rizzo or Pete Rocker? He did fair answer yeah all right steve brisler pete rocker and you gotta you he did he did it massively

so i mean i'm not as smart as he is you are come on you're his mentor you have to be wow man let's let's say... They are both loud. You can say Bo. I ain't mad at Bo. Nah. You gotta go Bo. Cheers. Cheers.

Let them give me a real question. Alright. Alright. You want me to do this one? Yeah, you can do that one. I'm not talking to you anymore, Steve. Let's go. Wu-Tang or NWA?

Wu-Tang. You said it hella fast. I'm from New York. That's a good answer. I experienced it. I'm not talking to you anymore. It's not music versus music for me. It's just memories versus memories. I experienced it in a different way. I get it. As'm not talking to you. It's not music versus music for me. It's just memories versus memories.

I experienced it in a different way. I get it. As a New Yorker, I experienced NWA in the moment more secondhand. So I don't have the same kind of memories with that music. Although I love it and I know every word, I didn't experience it the same way. Yeah, I think that's one of my favorite arguments on Drink Chance with you and Tony Ayo. That's not the same. I feel like he just broke it down.

No, bro. No, you're right. The way he broke it down the experience and all that. That's what I meant by it. But still, Tony Ayo completely misconstrued the whole thing.

He asked me about top five. I told him who I was. He did not like it. And then engaged in an argument. I loved it. He asked you top five rappers of all time? Yeah, and I've always been the biggest Ice Cube fan. I said Ice Cube was in my top five.

He was my number one. And then he didn't like the answer. Ice Cube did pass the mic. Yeah. Ice Cube was in my top five. He was my number one. And then he didn't like the answer. Ice Cube did pass the mic. Yeah. Ice Cube did do pass the mic. He was the 220th artist. Goddamn. Bigger Ice Cube, wherever you at.

Yeah. We need you back on Drink Champs. Yes, sir. Okay, Jay-Z or Big Daddy Kane? I'm going to go with Jay-Z. Ooh, look at you answering now. A little piece, a little piece. I'm going with you.

And then I'm going to pause. I'm going to come with you, too. You better pause on that. On this one. And y'all can say it at the same time if y'all want. Big pun or Biggie Smalls? Steve, you go first. I'm going, I just have to say it.

It's my heart. Pun. I'll say Biggie. Okay. Who are you going to say? Did I technically do that? I mean, who are you going to say it. It's my heart. Pun. I'll say Biggie. Okay. Who are you going to say? Did I technically do a... I mean, who are you going to say? No, we're not going to...

Me? Yeah. I'm taking a shot. No, I mean, if you... Steve's questions aren't really fair. I mean, you're making a choose between loud artists... I think you've got to be honest. I think...

No, no, no, look. I mean, obviously, I can't speak for you in your mind. No, you can't. But when we're telling our guests to have their criteria, home was very close to you. So by that criteria. That's what I ask. Yeah, but I wouldn't let that change my decision.

I kind of think that they both lived a short career. Like, they both had so much more to go. So I would say both. But we're not really talking about careers, because remember, we're telling the guests, it's whatever your criteria that's my criteria that's your criteria I've been doing this show for 8 years

that's my criteria you've been here for 8 years I just noticed right now but don't we expect Steve to favor those artists whose careers that he guided and that's why he's been so great guiding those careers. Yeah, I think the only hard questions for Steve are not a loud artist versus someone else.

It's when it's two loud artists. Yeah, so that's why we're going to go to this one. Project Pat or Lil Flip? It's just not fair. You're killing him. Project Pat. Wow, you picked. And there has to be Project Pat. Wow, you picked. There has to be a reason in there that you picked.

Yeah, I mean, Flip was the last artist I signed to Lab before they kicked me out. So I had the record with him. But with Project Pat and Hypnotized Minds and 3-6, I don't think you guys realize. Was Project Pat first before 3-6 Mafia?

No, 3-6 came first. And then, you know, Pat and Juicy are brothers. Right? They're not brothers? They're not blood related. Blood brothers. I'm almost positive they're blood brothers. Wow.

Project Pat. Google it, Az. Why you said the other thing? He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father.

He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father.

He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father.

He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father.

He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father.

He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he is the father. He said he got in trouble. And what else?

No, then he got in trouble. Oh, yeah, that's right. Pat is the older brother. Really? Wow. I never knew that. Say something, what I do here. Listen.

Take a shot for no reason. I'm taking a shot. I'm going to take a shot. No, no, no. I don't know why I don't want it. I'm like, no, no, don't drink, Steve. I just always love his name. Who, Project Pat?

Anybody got named Project Pat, he's telling you where he's coming from. And he definitely don't give a damn. So we should call you Flea Market Sonny. Okay. What up? A state sale Sonny. A state sale Sonny. I'm not taking anything away from Flip. Flip is an L hustler, bro.

He's an L artist too. When BET out of me, a few years ago, Flip came. Flip was there. We were there. Yeah, you know, Flip. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's what we want. That's what we want.

Yeah, yeah. Pat came, 3-6 came, so. No, Flip is dope. No, Flip is dope. I'm just saying, I mean. He's a drink champ, alumni. Mm-hmm. Okay, we'll move on.

You got it? French Montana or Rick move on French Montana or Rick Ross? French Montana you explain why if you want I don't know maybe it's a cop out I have a personal relationship with him so I just connect him in a different way

I love Rick Ross but you know I've seen French in the studio i kind of been there i just have different experiences for me you know these questions aren't just like who's a better lyricist no no we actually respect both people we always mention yeah it's about just having these conversations for me it's everything like conversation who you know who do i connect with on some kind of level? You know, Nas to me is cheating because that album to me just is the greatest.

So most questions will be him. You know, French I know as a person. I've hung out. I've seen him record. So I just feel it in a different way. Yeah, you're lucky I go to the same karate class with some of you. You want a fresh one? Basically.

With Ralph McPhail. I got the next one. Okay, go aheadail. Yes. All right. I got the next one. Okay, go ahead. My bad. Jesus. All right, Steve. UGK or Outkast? No excuses.

You're getting much harder questions than me. I'm going to say Outkast. Okay. Any reason why? I mean, they won Album of the Year. It was a double album. Yeah, I forgot. And, you know,

L.A. and, you know, Face are like brothers to me. Okay. So I was just closer to them. That's all. L.A. we eat at Babyface. Yeah. Okay.

I like how you like seldomly say like some of the... He threw the executive reason why. Yeah, yeah. I like it. I like it. The artist crew,

my executive peers. That was smooth. That was smooth. That, I like it. The artist crew, my executive peers. That was smooth right there. He could have said Kenny. I'm going to ask y'all both, but I'm going to start with you. I think I know your answer already. Illmatic or ready to die? Illmatic.

Illmatic? Illmatic or Ready to Die? Illmatic. Illmatic. Illmatic too, but Illmatic, Ready to Die, and Reasonable Doubt is always a fun and difficult conversation because there's no wrong answer. I don't think there is no wrong answer. You said anything that has to do with Nas, you're going with Nas. I said Nas, but I mean all three, and I threw in a third. Wait, didn't Kendrick just post something about reasonable doubt and Illmatic?

Yeah, he did. I don't know if it just happened. He said reasonable doubt, talk amongst yourselves. Yeah, yeah. He put reasonable doubt over Illmatic. I saw something of that. Yeah, he was like, unfollow me if you want. I don't know where that came from.

I think it was a Twitter post or something. I think, you know, my street team, my New York street team would have fights in the office about reasonable doubt and nomadic. In the era when Buddha

was in the... It was Buddha, Gabi, and OJ. I mean, it was all of them. I mean, they literally would go at each other. And, you know, when reason without can't, you know, they did that independently. Yeah. So you really.

But that wasn't the question, though. Right. No, no. You know, it's a great conversation regardless. Yeah. So I just feel like it's the third. But at the end of the day, Biggs, Jay, and Dane, they did that shit themselves. They didn't have a Sony muscle.

Because that was what? Freeze and Priority originally? Yeah, it was Freeze and Priority. yeah it's um it's crazy that you think that like three masterpieces that really just kind of changed everything like um all came out in a consolidated amount of time I mean

two of them were 94 right and one was 96 and because um reasonable doubt was 96 yeah so 94 94 96 but it's just to, crazy when these conversations happen. I think all the answers are the right answers. Because when you talk about these three, there's no wrong. It's like Off the Wall and Thriller.

There's no wrong answer there. Me personally, let me just reiterate kind of what you were saying earlier. Illmatic changed my life, like personally. But so did the others, but in a different way. But Illmatic was the first time I identified with rap music when I actually I knew what this guy was talking about without me having to even be

there. Just listening to that, I was like what the fuck? The way he was describing certain things, I was just like, yeah, I was so there. I was so there. Okay, you want to go to the next one? Let's see here. It's related to it. Yeah, I was so there. I was so there. Okay, you want to go to the next one? I haven't made one person drink, by the way. Yeah, yeah.

I haven't. You drink, but not because of me. I haven't said both once. Hold on, hold on. That's good. He drank because of you. So let me ask this one. Now you're going to make him drink.

Fat Joe or Ja Rule? Yo. Let him drink. They're going to take it personal. I'm good. He's going to have to take a shot of that honey. Don't cancel your residency. Just send a drink.

I'm trying to sell tickets, ladies and gentlemen. Drink away. Cheers. Cheers. I'm trying to sell tickets Ladies and gentlemen Drink away Cheers Great answer Cause you know They just did Versus too You don't remember back then So yeah And they

The hair together That's good You knew you were getting me there Yeah yeah yes yes If you come with Slick Rick Or Doug E. Fresh You're getting the same answer Uh

Let's go with that then You drink your shit right Slick Rick and Doug E. Fresh, you're getting the same answer. Let's go with that then. You drink your shit, right? Slick Rick and Doug E. Fresh, let's drink. All right, let's drink. I'm not giving this question to Steve because I feel like I know he'll go with it. Okay. Cassidy, beat nuts or the alcoholics?

Yes, yes. Oh, shit. I would say beat nuts. Okay. Because as a DJ You stay in New York, let's just be honest You very New York heavy They had two songs Off the Books and Watch Out Now

Which were big DJ records They were big club party songs Beat Nuts had two big And they started as a very hardcore Group Was that Pun's first published verse? Yeah. I think that was his big hit.

But the great thing about both groups, even though I really talk basketball, I have to go baseball here. The alcoholics, the number two hitter and the number six hitter are so fucking important. Yes. Right? And to me, I

knew what I was going to get with both groups. I knew I was going to sell 300 and something thousand records with the Licks and the Beatnuts. I knew they were just going to get on base. That's exactly what I was going to say. They were just going to get on base and somebody

else was going to bring in the run. But the Licks were first for you. Yeah, I inherited the Beatnuts. Right. With 3-6 and all them. Right. But at the end of the day, I knew what I had. It was like putting the Yankees together, right? So they-

Beatnuts get on base? What label were they on first? Relativity? Relativity. Relativity. Yep. But Beatnuts was on Relativity. Yeah.

That's what I'm saying. I inherited- Fat Joe was on Relativity as well, right? Both amazing legendary groups. Hip-hop fucking history. You pulled out a baseball roster, one through nine. Yeah. I always loved when a hip-hop group that wasn't known for making party records made one just by chance.

Of course. Because it was so natural. Yeah, it was organic. You got the sense no one was trying to make a club record or a party record or anything that crossed over in any way. But with those two records, it was just like this organic. Well, the Beatles were dope producers themselves. Yeah, and they were twins.

One's East Coast, one's West Coast. I felt the same way. Alcohol? No, no, no. He's not saying they're literally twins. No, he said one from one place and one from another. One's from the East Coast, one's from the West Coast. And they're what?

The same model? No, they have two different vibes. They both produce the same alcohol. Yeah, you're right. I mean, they were both They were both self contained But the licks on the west coast You mean make room only when I'm drunk Next level

Were tremendous tremendous tremendous Club records And coming from King T That whole lineage was crazy Okay so I'm sending this to you Cassidy Timberland or Swiss Beats Swiss That was fast Cassidy. Timberland or Swiss Beats? Swiss. That was fast.

Cassidy be going, pew, pew, pew, pew. He's not trying to get you drunk at all. I mean, I'm fucked up already. I don't know. We were waiting for 17 hours today. By the way,

I want to announce that too. Rappers, we have so much of a bad name are coming late. Today we had one of the famousest DJs in the world and one of the biggest executives in the world and they were both late.

Rappers, we are going to stop getting this bad slack. For the record, there's five feet of water. Cassidy, just take it. Just take it. Cassidy, but we were all here though. Somehow. And that is very true and I still don't understand how you guys were here.

You know what's the amazing thing? We're in a submarine. I was in a flood of five feet of water. His sneakers are still fucking spotless. Yes. Did you see it? Well, see, that's the difference. What am I?

All of our sneakers are wet. You see? You see? How about the silk suit? We are literally in the trenches. That's it. Yeah, you can you can next one let me see Parker

what is the next one uh artifacts or cellar dwellers cellar dwellers because they were on loud yeah I mean cellar dwellers

I mean they're both dope okay but I would have said advance to boardwalk alright funk flex or DJ Clue funk flex

I like that flex on more you know I like how you flex on more records let me explain answers Hence the boardwalk. All right. Funk Flex or DJ Clue? Funk Flex. I like that. Flex on more records. I'd like to hear you let me explain answers, but I haven't explained the past few. You said you saw more records? Explain the answers for Funk Flex and Clue. I would love that. What was the last one I wanted to explain? I guess it's past the point, Swizz and Tim.

Never mind. But I'll explain Flex and Clue. Go ahead. Okay, cool. You can explain both. It's okay. We waited for you all day. Okay, cool. You can explain both. It's okay. We waited for you all day. Yeah, we got 17 hours.

I got to wait for my shoes to get dry. I've only told you one White House story. There's many, many more to go. One involving the song Fight the Power. We can come back to that later. So, what did I say? Oh,'s that oh flex and clue yeah so both are friends of mine and mentors of mine came before me looked up to both flex just symbolizes something that is you know to me growing up it was like hulk hogan and funk master flex

i always compare flex to hulk hogan you know how in the WWF, they kept on taking the belt away. They kept trying to take the belt away from Hulk. And whoever they made champion couldn't be champion. Ultimate Warrior, he just wasn't Hulk. Macho Man, he just wasn't Hulk. Ric Flair, he just wasn't Hulk. But he had Rolexes

and limos. No one has Funkmaster Flex. It's why since I was in the sixth grade, I still hear the same voice on the radio. How uncanny is that? Think of how hip-hop music has changed from 1993 to 2024, and yet the person at the helm of it

in New York City is the same voice how insane is that and he defies everything that everyone always thinks about hip hop it's a young man's game you know there's a revolving door you know everything that's everyone said over the years it's not really true

in every sense at all it's not but people say it but isn't he like one of the greatest examples of how that's not true? Absolutely. And so for me, there's, you know, hard to get a ticket, hard to get a ticket. Yeah. You know what, you know, it was crazy. I recently went to New York twice. Like just, you know, since, you know, we work out here and i literally sometimes can't enjoy my city unless i listen to flex on the radio and i see him tear it down absolutely i love if there's a hit record that he's playing he tells people to pull over i love when he told people go go

on the cash register i was like wait a minute a minute. This might be too far. But, yeah, I love that. That makes me feel like I'm back home. He's passionate. He's home. I love Clue, too. Don't get it twisted. I love Clue, too. I love Clue.

And Clue changed the game in many ways that no one else did. From mixtapes. And then to albums, of course, too. But, you know, what you just said is so surreal. He's like the voice of home. Like when he says pull over, sometimes I pull over. Like I literally listen. He be like, pull over, New York City.

I be like, oh, shit, fuck. Fuck it. I'll sit down. He'll say something crazy like, don't rock out your window. I listened to it. It's like, so I remember, I remember where it was Drake and Meek was battling, right? And this was like, this was like the first Kendrick and, you know, Kendrick and Drake is now the biggest battle. That was the biggest battle ever.

But at this point, Meek and Drake was the biggest. And I remember Flex saying, yo, I got this record. I literally missed my flight. I was like, I can't get on. This is before Wi-Fi was on a plane and shit like that. I could have still caught my flight like an idiot. I'm at the airport. I'm damn near down the block.

This is when you flew commercial. No, no, no. I was in a block commercial. But listen, I was like, yo. I said, hold up. I can't get on this flight. Knowing how, you know, hip-hop just feels without, I got to listen to both of of these just going on come to

find out like they have no record it was everything but it was a mint so so much even if I probably would have been offered they'll just listen to the app on the flight you know you have Wi-Fi even if I don't offer that I probably wouldn't want to do it because you know why? I wanted to be in the city listening to it it's a different feeling and Flex has always gave me that like it's a different feel on Christmas

Eve he plays classics and he uses only vinyl and he brings vinyl up to the station he's done it for over 10 years and I really miss a Christmas Eve and that for some reason hearing him play hip-hop from the 70s and 80s and soul music from the 70s and 80s now it feels like christmas eve to me because it's really that music is really the sound of

celebration that's probably why i would imagine he he he um he chose that night to play that music. And, you know, I moved to L.A. six years ago. And I've listened to that on Sonos. And to complement what you just said, it's not the same. You got to be there. You got to be there. You got to be in that city. You got to, like, look at the guy with the frank stand.

You know what I mean? You got to look at the guy, you know, that's walking by selling peanuts. You know what I mean? That shit is like, I immediately get mad when I go back to New York City. You have to. We have a certain type of anger that comes with the city. And if you don't,

if you got to be a little bit mad when you land back, you got to just look at somebody, look at, you know, and well, ah. Because if not, the city will eat you up man it's a it's it's a beautiful negative most beautiful place on the earth but that energy you have to match it that you cannot not be a lion in the lion's cage well said even if you're not a lion, why are you in that lion's cage?

You better act like it. Act like it. Great story, guys. Get your ass out of there because you ain't trying for that. But all right, cool. Let's go. Let's go to the next one.

Let's see what we got. Yeah, definitely. You take this one. Podcast or radio? I'm with you guys. Podcast. Radio. And by the way, let me just point out that you're the first person that I ever see take a shot of honey.

Like, did you plan this out? No, but that shot takes two hours to get down. I'm losing my voice, so I asked the hotel for these little jars of honey. Oh, so you knew this was happening. I knew I was losing my voice. So it's not my weed. I'm not fucking you up like that alright cool now I'm thinking I'm thinking I'm like yo man this is not right the fans are going to look at this shit and be like what is Nori doing he's a casualty man like alright cool alright so alright he he's so everyone knows Nori did not try to smoke him the fuck out.

No, he already knew his voice was cracking. He had free honey. I never seen somebody with free honey. That shit is fucking fantastic. I ain't gonna lie. Steal your idea. Get your publishing on it though. Okay. I'm gonna give it to you. Really?

Okay. Three, six, Mafia or A-Boy MJG? Nope. You're giving him very tough, loud, affiliated questions. Three, six. I'm going to you, too. Three, six. Okay.

Okay. This is definitely you. Brand Nubian or Tribe Called Quest? Tribe Called Quest. Damn, you just rapid fire. I'm very definitive in my hip hop emotions. Do you want, would you like to explain it? Because I know you didn't like that.

I could explain that. You could. Can you please? Yeah, my other favorite album of all't like that. I could explain that. You could. Can you please? Yeah, my other favorite album of all time is Midnight Marauders. Okay, wow. So they're not going to lose too many questions. Okay. Where was you at when you first heard Midnight Marauders?

I was 12. About the same age as Illmatic, maybe a year younger. I think you can tell the era people grew up in, in many cases, by what their favorite hip-hop albums are, because my three came out in a three-year time span. The third is Cuban Lynx. Wow. That's a great poem. Yeah, they've definitely been setting you up all night. By the way, it's your friend, Mr. Lee, who fucking

writes these questions, so don't look at me. Mr. Lee and Hazardous Sound. I know you pretty good. Exhibit or Rascal? Oh, you're really doing this, Sam. This is this guy. That's what I got.

I mean, they're best friends. They're extremely close, but you don't want, you know. You going with the ex? Yeah. Do you remember when me and ex had an argument? No. And me and you would come by the office to say hello. Oh, okay, okay.

You went back then. I'm like, damn, you had an argument yesterday? No. office to say hello? Oh, okay, okay. You went back then. I thought you meant recently. I'm like, damn, you had an argument yesterday? No. What the fuck happened? No, Jesus, Jesus. You really haven't given Steve the hardest one of this category. Okay.

What do you think? If you don't go there, I kind of want to throw it out there. Yeah, throw it out there. You want to take over the show for a second? Let's go. Let's go. Okay, so I'm going to ask the three of you. Okay. EFN, Raekwon, or Ghostface?

Both. Okay. Shot. I'm proud. I'm proud to take both of that. They are both my friends. Because only those on Cuban Link is really both. But wait, we're getting there.

Okay. Don't give up your answer yet. We're waiting for you. This is opening act right now. Okay. Yeah. This is the same question? The same question. Nori.

Raekwon the chef or Ghostface Killer? No, I just said both. Oh, you said both already? Yeah, that's what that means. The shot is took in. Yeah, I said both. Steve Rifkin. I'm saying both. So we... You drank? That really wasn't a hard question.

That's like saying which kid you like better. That's fair. For me, it's like saying which foot you like better. I like them both, motherfucker. Go ahead. Ask me another one. Nori. Premier or Pete Rock?

Okay. Got me. okay got me and I'm taking it back I'm going to give you one more do we ask the same question to others but could I ask the same to you I'm curious what you would say he took a shot already

I would take a shot. I would take a shot. I would say both. You'd say both. Steve? Both. DJ Premier, P-Rock? Both. Both.

I definitely got the next one. All right, can I do one more? Yeah, please. Go one more round for you. Yes, three. Three is my lucky number, so I'm going to do three. Okay. Nori?

Mm-hmm. Man, you're holding on to that. Rock him or Big Daddy Kane? Okay. You got me again yeah that's what the game is about I'm not gonna fight you I'm not gonna fight you

what was it what was it again Rakim or Big Daddy Kane that's what the game is about ok now it's back to me. I pass the mic back. Digital or analog?

As a DJ or a listener? It's your criteria. You can play this game all night. Digital. Okay. I just like having more songs with me. There's so much I like about vinyl better, but having a million songs is better than having a thousand.

You don't miss you in the crack? I miss a lot. You couldn't have went to Jay-Z and Beyonce's wedding with vinyl. Oh, no, I did. I went all over the world with vinyl. Because there was only one guest invited, right? There was only you. Well, I would have had to carry my own crates.

You would have carried your own crates. I did that for many years. God damn it. Let's make some noise for that. Any DJ that was worth anything carried their own crates for a while. Eight crates in the trunk of a New York taxi. One in the front, one in the back.

You could bring eight crates in a cab. Put that in the encyclopedia. I ain't doing a cab though. That's horrible. Damn. I don't mean to sack the P. I ain't doing the cab though. That's horrible. Damn. I don't even, like, that's. So six in the trunk. Yeah, because I'm trying to.

Six in the trunk, one in the front, one in the back. But it took five cabs to get one that let you do that. My friend Diego couldn't even bring a pizza in here today. He fell. He said, I stood there and I fell down. What happened if you brought a friend? I fell and I can't get up. You carry eight crates by yourself?

I'm a crazy person. You carry eight crates by yourself? So listen to this. One night we were talking He called JP. This is the strongest guy here. One of the strongest guys here. I need help with the pizza. What the pizza? One of the strongest guys here. You're a strong guy, man. And you carry

eight crates in a New York City taxi cab. Can you look at my friend Diego and tell him what the hell is going on with him? In many instances in New York, you know, they would block the street off. So we talked about Cheetah, for instance, right? So Cheetah was on 21st Street between 5th and 6th Avenue. So if the club was extra popping, they would barricade the whole street on Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue. And Cheetah was smack in between Fifth and Sixth. So I would walk out of there at 430 and no cars could get through to the club.

So I was carrying a crate at a time to Fifth Avenue and had someone watch them while I went back and got the rest. So before Cheetah, it was a club called Private Eyes. On Salon Salon. 45th Street. No, 21st Street. Private Eyes, right? Okay, my bad. I got too excited. Wasn't there a strip club? Yeah, VIP down the road. Let me calm myself down.

Yeah, yeah. Private Eyes. Private Eyes, and it was the first video club. What does that mean? The club was for all videos. What he did, like, would pass the mic. Right.

It was... It was recorded. It was... The DJ would play. What year was that? 83, 84, 85. In sync with the DJ? The videos playing? Yeah, like, it was... I mean, 85, yeah. In sync with the DJ? The videos playing?

Yeah, like it was amazing. And the most beautiful woman in the world with it. Wow. A crazy thing about Steve is, you know, much of the public associates Steve with loud records and hip hop, New York hip hop. That's awesome. Blue time.

But Steve could tell you a place in time in a story for every classic R&B record. I do fancy myself somewhat of an encyclopedia. There's, of course, people who could top me. But every record I ever play or love or mentioned or was on the show, passed to my... Steve worked the record as a 20-year-old, or Steve brought the record to Frankie Crocker,

or some crazy story that Steve was involved. He's like the Forrest Gump of R&B promotion of the early 80s. We kind of already found out with this new addition added story with you. It's always something new. All right, so we moving on to the next one yes you I got it now hold up

we said that I was in the bathroom you said exhibit 2 yeah you fuckers you said Kanye 2 no don't tell me Yeah yeah Kanye or Pharrell

I'm going with Ye Pharrell I like how Do we take a shot Because They're not on the same level Your connection with Ye, how did that form so strongly?

I didn't know him when his first few albums. Right. He was at Matahisa. At the restaurant? At the restaurant. And I was there and Noble comes up to me

and says you know Kanye I said actually no I said can you go back to him and see if it's okay to say hello so do you remember when you guys did the drink champs in my office in LA so I was I had a concept to do an album where I took nine of the most relevant rappers in like 2017, 2018, and redo 36 Champs. And I wanted...

Wait, wait. Okay, keep going, keep going. Wait, wait, wait. But was RZA in on this? Yeah, me and RZA were partners. Really? Yeah. Wow. Like every song? Redo the whole album. keep going keep going wait wait wait was RZA in on this? yeah me and RZA were partners really? yeah wow and

like every song we do the whole album wow and I wanted Ye to be RZA wow and I

we didn't I could have called Scooter but I knew Scooter as a manager no matter even though I raised Scooter I would have been he would have blocked it

and he just happened to be there. I said, is it all right if I come by tomorrow or whatever? He says, please. And he's a huge basketball fan. And he had a game every Monday, Wednesday, Friday. And he says, do you play ball? I said, yeah, but I just had heart surgery. So I didn't know how. I said, is it OK if I bring my son? And I don't like to lose it. so you know my son played college ball so um so i brought my son and you know he was on my team and with my son on the team you know we didn't lose a game so it was cool and we i cool. And we just started talking. And then I saw, I go, what type of sneakers are they?

He goes, they're going to be the Yeezy basketball shirt. And I said, that's another billion dollars for you right there. And I said, you know, I consulted Nike for all these years. I was Phil Knight's personal consultant. And he literally pretty much hired me on the spot. Wow. And that relationship has been tested. Yeah.

I mean, there's times when he hates my guts. And there are times that he loves me to death. But I'll always be there for him. Right. Even when I disagree with him. You guys saw it that one time when he dropped the car off yeah we felt like he wanted to address that I said we felt like you wanted to address that

what then or now well but we're right now you're finally making sense over there yeah I mean I know he has a heart of gold right

you know what he means and if you remember when I hugged him that was a true it wasn't a fake you know hug and I was like whoever it came from he just said it wrong.

Right. And that's what it was. You know, if I said, hey, you know what? I need to borrow $5 million. You know? He was happy to see the action. He would give me the money. No, no.

That's not what we're talking about, though. No, so I just think he has a hard time communicating really what he wants to say. And that's all it is. Kendrick or Drake? Huh. No, got him. Got him, you said? Jesus.

No, it's not really got him um it's not a both or the i just have different well you have to answer one yeah steve got him okay um kendrick Kendrick. You're not like us. They're not like us. I gotta be honest with you. It has nothing to do with the Beef records. But I'm just saying.

But they're not like us. I just feel musically, the songs that I'm going to listen to forever, there are songs in Kendrick's catalog musically, the songs that I'm going to listen to forever, there are songs in Kendrick's catalog musically that to me are just deeper.

Just on another level. So for a one word answer, Kendrick. But it's obviously way more complex. But having nothing to do with it. That wasn't a who won the beef question. Right, right, right. We're just having fun with it. How about you? Kendrick. Steve didn't even hesitate.

He said, they're not like us. They're not like us. No, but if you look at my heritage of music, right? For sure. Who is Kendrick's idol? No, for sure. Who is Prodigy? I'm tired.

I didn't know that. Yeah, the reason why he started rapping. Yeah, I didn't know that. Yeah, the reason why he started rapping. Yeah, I didn't know that. He says Prodigy? Google it again. He's going to say, yo, Google it. Hey, Googler. I like how Steve knows the room.

He said, I know where the Googler is now. Google, Googler, Googler. I'm Googler. He's under the influence. What'd you say? You said, I'm Googler. I'm Googler. He doesn't know how to start. What'd you say? You said I'm Googler? I'm Googler. I'm Googler.

I'm Googler. Influence? Jesus. That's a hard way to say this. I'm Googler. Jesus. All right, yeah, but you tell us when the vibe up. Hey, Google's not that slow, bro.

Don't blame it on the rain. It's called high- speed internet, bro. Don't blame it on the rain either. Why do you both have to huddle? Just say Kendrick and Prodigy. Look at all the little talk. He's on dialogue. Yeah, what kind of...

You're definitely on... You let us know when you find it. He's on dialogue. Yeah, what kind of... Yeah, you definitely on... You definitely on analog. Dead President clips. Wait, wait, wait. Wait, wait, wait. What'd he say? Inspired. Yep.

What happened? Inspired. By Prodigy. Yeah. That's all you got out of all that filming, bro? Inspired. Holy shit AI can do better bro AI can do better

I'm sorry Siri Sorry let me talk to Siri Okay Oh no That's a lie That's a lie What's will I am shit

AI AI AI will I am right No Stop You don't even care You're lost bro You're a GI What's Will.i.am shit? AI. AI, Will.i.am, right? No. Stop. You don't even care. You're lost, bro. You're a GI.

All right, guys. Go to the next one. She got a name. She got a name. This is what Kendrick said? Yeah, my brother. Kendrick noted Prodigy's influence on his early style and development as a writer and an MC. Describing the original recording set setup at Dave Cleve House. Okay, it's getting a little weird.

It's true. All right, that's my guy right there. Yeah. Well, not all of us went to school. That's why he's got to read it. You're not even going to school at Google, bro. You know you can spell it wrong, and Google says, no, This is what you mean.

All right. You going to go to the next one? We're fucked in the future. I heard the next one. You heard it, right? Yeah, I know Steve's answer. Dead Prez or Clips? Was that to me?

Both. Both? I mean, as much as I love Pusha, I mean, I'm going with Dead Prez. Now you too. And Hip Hop is one of my top five records of all time. I love that record, man. I think that's such a pivotal record. It's like a humble argument between y'all.

I think that record means a lot to Hip Hop. Clips' first album is one of my favorite Hip Hop albums of the past 20 years. Well, now it's over 20 years. God willing. I love the Cliffs. I'm not taking it, but Dead Prez, at the end of the day,

that record to this day will still be played everywhere. Hip, hop, is that what it was? Yeah, it's authentic. This is not the last question for the interview,

but this is the last question for Quick Time with Slime. Okay. I'm not going to lead the witness. Don't lead the witness, right? Don't lead the witness, bro. This is to both of y'all. You can answer at the same time. You have to look away when you ask a question

because you don't lead the witness. Loyalty or respect? Loyalty. Same. Please, we need both explanations why. For me, I grew up, if you weren't loyal, you'll be swimming somewhere.

Man, you'll be swimming with the fishies. Oh, wow. Some intimidation. I like that. Listen, not for nothing Steve but you've been giving Marlansky vibes the whole time we've been here always

so we know we know bro shout out to your family I think loyalty precedes respect if you're not loyal to people who's going to respect you this is the thing I think loyalty Precedes respect If you're not loyal to people Who's going to respect you But why can't people pick both?

This is the thing You can't pick both, right? But this is the thing I thought the goal of the game Was to not do To not say both No, it's not the goal I thought the goal was

To make decisive decisions It's decisive for you Whatever is decisive What is indecisive Right So I'm saying it's not both. Okay. No, no.

I get it. I get it. But wouldn't both in this situation be the ideal situation? This is why I'm always confused. Yeah, but I thought you have to choose one or the other. If you could only have one. No, but you've been choosing two. Well, not you.

Steve's been going crazy with two. Hold on a second. Hold on a second. Every single pair you've mentioned, not one of us have disliked the other. It was always which you like more. Yes, yes. Right, right. So respect loyalty, it's which one if you could only have one.

But they're two different things, to be honest with you. But if you could ideally have both, you would have both. That's the one time I want to have both. That's why I can't imagine if that's not the game. Nobody ever says. I want to have both. People say two, both of all the questions. Well, then I would accept both on everything.

They have a hard time saying one. Well, because you guys encouraged to choose something. I think Steve went around full of that. He said there are two different things I want to hear. I don't want to hear you right now in this situation. There are two different blocks. I like it. At the end of the day.

You can respect somebody and not be loyal to them. Right. And you could be loyal to somebody and not respect them. But if you live in a great world where you could say, hey, I want you to be loyal and respect me. Yeah. I mean, yeah. I would love for the whole world to be loyal to me, to respect me but at the end of the day

how I grew up it's about loyalty you always gotta go into somebody's house what's funny is we often get respect more than loyalty, right? that's what we often get, more than anything else

I would say like a 55%. Nah, I'd say more. People say I would prefer they respect me because they say loyalty has its limits, they say. Respect comes from qualities that people respect about you. If you look at Rock Nation

or any you know, if it's Kevin Hart's company Jay's company right they're all so loyal to each other it's a beautiful thing to watch

I mean it really is the reason why Loud One we were a team you know from the

I mean 30 years ago I still have a relationship with Joe I mean when I was gone for 35 minutes I was on the phone

with RZA. You don't have to stun on us like that. No, no, no. You were taking a shit and talking to RZA at the same time. I get it, I get it, I get it. No, no, let me say something. After the BET Hip Hop Awards that you were a part of two years ago,

Loud was honored, right? Yeah. And you guys were there. They won an award. We won 2020 PGA. Amazing. After the awards,

we went to dinner. You were there. Yeah, I was going to ask if you were there. Okay, so Fat Joe made a little speech. And he said something about Steve that was so dead on that it capsulizes Steve to me. He said, first of all, who gets 10 or more of their former artists to show up for a tribute? Then he said,

who gets them to rehearse? Then he said, who gets them to rehearse the day before and the day of and then he said who gets them to rehearse the day before and the day of and say nothing but nice things it's fantastic we was there to witness it. Hold on, let me use the back. We were definitely there. So we finalized this love and loyalty? Love and loyalty. Well, I think the entire game I was under the impression

was to pick. Because if you're supposed to say both, then I would like to renege on my Swizz and Timberland and my Illmatic. I thought you had to choose a favorite. You didn't have to. It was preferably to your criteria. You could pick one or the other or both.

Right. But I thought the cop out is saying both. That's the cop out. Right. It's the cop out. Okay. But actually, the way you're saying it, you're right, man. You're fucking right. And it sucks. Because you're saying the way you're saying it. You're right, man. You're fucking right.

And it sucks. No, no, no. That's what Steve says to me every day. You can't debate the guy. No, no, no. You're right. Because the way I'm trying to argue it is like, if I had the choice, these are the two I would want both of those things. But then you're saying the way we put the game up is this is the cop out so let me tell you a funny story so this is pastor mike is really it's his baby like i'm

an uncle or a grandfather right so when i really disagree with him on something my fiancee she she knows how to communicate right it takes me weeks. I'll scream at him for two weeks. I'll have to go fuck himself, hang up the phone. I mean, I won't talk to him, Mike. I got to get myself ready, knowing I got to give myself two weeks, because I know how he's going to come back with the fucking thing. No, when he has a vision, there's no fucking way you could change his mind. So I got to come with every fucking fact possible.

And Aaliyah, she really knows how to communicate well. Your wife, that's your wife. Fiance, yeah. So I'm like rehearsing every fucking day for two weeks, pacing back and forth

in my bedroom to go at this motherfucker. Damn. So it's very rarely that you're going to win a debate with him. You have to go a different way around. So again, I don't. He hasn't found the way. No, I just said there's no fucking way.

Listen, I don't think you really answered when I told when I asked you like that moment, those things that that moment that really I know you said there's many moments. Right. It's hard. They got you down. But no, no. But there has to be this pivotal thing that happened between a moment that you're just this DJ kid. And then you become this other thing um again I think I know it sounds it's not a cop-out of an answer there were there was like a five-year span from age an era yeah age 17 to 23 or 18 to, you know, 17 to 22 or 18 to 23, maybe a five-year span where every opportunity really snowballed into the next.

And all those things from the school parties to the internships to the first celebrity seeing internships, um, to the first, um, celebrity seeing me DJ all led to what came next. And everyone heard me at someone else's party and, um, ended up calling me. And by the time I was in my low twenties, I became known, um, for, for playing, um, not only celebrities' parties, but hip-hop celebrities' parties. And I think over the years when I get asked most, like, why do you think that happened? Why did you end up the guy at that time in your life playing for the heavyweights of hip-hop um and i always um um i hate answering that question because i don't like speaking for the people who call on me the truth is only they know but i think the real answer is why i was the dj that all these um

hip-hop heavyweights was calling was because of soul music. I don't think any of them were necessarily, like a Jay-Z, attracted to me because of the way I played hip-hop. Now, I'd like to think I played hip-hop just great. Yes, immaculately. But I think what that one special draw was was how I played the soul music of the 70s and 80s. And that music wasn't how I started. I was a hip hop kid.

I thought very early on in life, I thought that to fully embrace hip hop, you had to hate everything else. Right. I thought that to really be a part of hip hop, you had to hate rock and roll and everything else. When hip hop is sampling all of this. And so we talked about Kool Herc, Africa Bin Laden, Grandmaster Flash earlier.

And remember when I said I knew what they looked like, but I didn't know about them. So once I was a little older, 12, 13, 14, and I learned about them. I learned that they weren't playing hip hophop music because there was no hip-hop music. They were creating what became hip-hop music through playing R&B, soul, funk, disco, rock and roll, to be this encyclopedia of music. And that journey led me to the soul music of the 70s and 80s, which in many ways became not what I played everywhere for everyone, but in many ways became my signature sound. Can I say something? I threw a party at my house after the BET was. Was it 2007? Around.

And I must have had 500 of my closest friends at my house. Well, and, I mean, name some of these closest friends. I mean, I'm joking. The most famous people in the world. The most famous people in the world. Like the who's, not the B list, not the C list. The A from Barbra Streisand on down. Jesus.

At the house, right? So he was a DJ. So. Then. No, it was 2007. It was the BET. It was an after party. The party started at 2 o'clock in the morning, and it went to 10 o'clock in the morning.

Quincy Jones came up to me, who was like a father to me. He says, where's Barbara? I'm like, Barbara who? And he goes, Barbara Streisand. I go, she's here? He goes, yeah, she was just over there. Where'd she go? You don't even know she's there.

No, I mean, it was the craziest thing. And again, before he got here, when I talked about how he just curates, he had those 500 people when i'm when i'm saying a little wayne that was the day his album came where he scanned over a million units from little wayne on down to every major basketball player i mean and it was he had what i'm saying that whole fucking house in the palm of his hands. But I did get him one time. Not in 2007.

He says he was never been punked before. But again, right? And again, it took me a month to set this up. Do they know the background of your pranks? No, you have to tell them. I mean, you got to give, otherwise it makes no sense. I mean, I'll go into death to get somebody. Like who's famous for this? For pranking.

Big, expensive. The original punk guy? Yeah. So remember, before he was here, I said I gave him a record deal. He had O'Neal McKnight signed to his label, and we do this record. And we were talking about something where he goes, I'll never be punked. It's like like all right so a month later i invite him out to la to have dinner at my house i hired 10 stuntmen

to come through the glass windows and to and to kidnap us break them break like i was gonna tie They were going to tie us up. I was going to spend $75,000 to get his ass. So we go over to the house. We have some drinks. We sit down for dinner. There's a chef. And for whatever reason, my head of security, and we're literally, I'm here. He's right there. Comes and he goes, I'm doing a walk

and he dropped the gun which wasn't part of the prank and he just puts his gun right on the table you said a mouth he passed out I wasn't ready he saved me 75 grand

I didn't have to like... Never happened. Never happened. Well, that was the prank. Holy shit. No, they were literally going to... He burst out laughing. He couldn't even tell the story for a half an hour.

And he said, I have 10 people outside ready to tie us up and kidnap us. And this was going to be on the real no this is this is this is no no no not that holy taking a shot for that this is a shot for that. You don't got a shot? No, this is my shot. Oh, yeah. Do it. Yeah. By the way, pick up these new monster cups. They're kind of monster cups.

That's a monster, bro. Definitely. I think we did it. All right. We did it. Yeah. Believe so. Good job, guys.

We did it. Mater Storm, we ain't waiting here. Let's talk to the people one more time. She did it. Maynard Storm. We ain't waiting here. Let's talk to the people one more time. When does the residency start? So DJ Cassidy's, and excuse this voice, it won't be like this in July. All right. DJ Cassidy's Pass the Mic Live, the iconic Las Vegas residency, starring Knightley.

Starring Knightley, Ja Rule, Fat Joe, Slick Rick, Doug E. Fresh, with special guests Raekwon the Chef Ghostface Killer Public Enemy Akon Jermaine Dupri Da Brat Too Short Warren G and special surprise guests This July This July

This July at the Back Theater At Planet Hollywood Tickets on sale right now On Ticketmaster Every night really is going to be a Groundbreaking, trailblazing Musical experience That we honestly think is going to

Redefine the Las Vegas residency If you trust my taste in the artists that I signed. Mobb Deep. No, but I'm just saying, in general, this show is just as special as every artist that I signed. I would not have stick my neck out to Live Nation and to Ron Lafitte to say, we got to get this thing done. And shout out neck out To Live Nation And to Ron Lafitte To say We gotta get this thing done And shout out to Sid at Live Nation

By the way Just want y'all to know This is how important They are to us We risk our life Coming out tonight I almost drowned Yeah

I swam in an alligator My car almost crashed Diego fell. All types of crazy shit. We're still proud of you. We're still. Damn. Damn.

And they said tomorrow's going to be worse. Come on. The pictures. We're taking pictures, please. The audio mic come out in the picture. Audio mic. Audio, the audio mic come out of the picture. Audio mic come out of the picture. Audio mic. Audio mic come out of the picture. Audio mic come out of the picture. Audio mic come out of the picture.

Audio mic come out of the picture. Audio mic come out of the picture. Audio mic. Audio mic. Audio mic. Audio mic come out of the picture. Audio mic. Audio mic.

Audio mic. Audio mic. Audio mic come out of the picture. Audio mic. Audio mic. Audio money. Great episode. Oh yeah, nah, I'm committed. What's our commitment? No, no, no. I got some pictures with you. Let me just get some pictures with you. Nah, I'm good.

And then you're gonna have to do drugs. Come on, Cassie. Yeah, I can't believe it. This is the worst, this is the most dangerous thing I've ever seen. I'm gonna have to go out. I Thought we're going to Me take some pictures for you. For sure. Right here. It's not silent. It's not silent.

It's not silent. That was the rain stop when it got dark. That was the rain stop when it got dark. It's both dangerous. It's both dangerous. And it's dark. And it's bright. That's why I'm going

to Flamingo. All right, let me get some drops. No, no, yo, yo, chill, chill, chill. Oh, you got to do the drops.

You got to do the drops. I got to do the drops. All right, folks, it's not a meeting. You got to go. Yo, please. It's not a meeting. All right.

You done this before. Get away. Drink Champs is a Drink Champs LLC production, hosts and executive producers, NORE and DJ EFN. Listen to Drink Champs on Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Spotify,

or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for joining us for another episode of Drink Champs, hosted by yours truly, DJ EFN and NORE. Please make sure to follow us on all our socials that's at drink champs across all platforms at the real noriega on ig at noriega on twitter mine is at who's crazy on ig at dj efn on twitter and most Stay up to date with the latest releases, news, and merch by going to drinkchamps.com. The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration in the United States. Recipients have done the improbable, the unexpected, showing immense bravery and sacrifice in the name of something much bigger than themselves.

This medal is for the men who went down that day. On Medal of Honor, Stories of Courage, you'll hear about these heroes and what their stories tell us about the nature of bravery. Listen to Medal of Honor on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A lot of times, big economic forces show up in our lives in small ways. Four days a week, I would buy two cups of banana pudding, but the price has gone up. So now I only buy one. Small but important ways from tech billionaires to the bond market to yeah, banana pudding.

If it's happening in business, our new podcast is on it. I'm Max Chastain. And I'm Stacey Vanek-Smith. So listen to everybody's business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Why is a soap opera Western like Yellowstone so wildly successful? The American West with Dan Flores is the latest show from the Meat Eater Podcast Network. So join me starting Tuesday, May 6th, where we'll delve into stories of the West and come to understand how it helps inform the ways in which we experience the region today.

Listen to The American West with Dan Flores on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops. They get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes, your podcasts. 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. 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 wherever you get your podcasts. This is an iHeart Podcast.