IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson - Simplify Your Life with Anderson .Paak

Episode Date: June 3, 2026

Grammy Award-winning artist Anderson .Paak joins the show today! He talks to Michelle and Craig through his music career, including his early days as “Breezy Lovejoy,” the devastating moment he thought his career was over before it started, and his big break with Dr. Dre. Have a question you want answered? Write to us at imopod.com.Use code imo at https://incogni.com/imo to get an exclusive 60% off.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Somebody said my teeth were like the temptations. Everybody wanted to see Lee. So back then it was tough. I got the braces on and then it was a long process. It just happened like this. I didn't come out like this. It was a whole process. If your teeth were like that, you probably had the retainer, the night thing.

They were like, we're going to work on it. Yeah, we're going to work on it. Like jaw fasteners and all that. I didn't have all that. Why you got to do me like that? I'm sorry. I didn't have a head here. Damn.

I was like, I was like, I stopped short. of head gear. Just hold on. Say you got to get a jar on the pain. And you were a chubby little dude, too. I was a little hefty critter. Yeah. So you were eating your way through the pain.

I was, I eat because I'm unhappy. Yeah, that was it. My mom, she worked so much. Right, great. You know, she knows how to cook. She can burn, but she's not at times. Right. She'd just be like, here's 20 bucks.

Figure it out. Hey, Craig in Black. I am in Black today. The man in black. Michelle in Blue. You know, this episode today reminded me of, wanted to ask, if you remember when you used to take drum lessons. Oh, yes. How old were you when you started?

I was in elementary school, and I had to be like in fifth grade. I thought you were even younger than that. Yeah. No, I don't think. Okay. If anything, it was fourth grade, but I didn't think it was fourth grade. I think it was fifth grade. But, and folks out there, drum lessons back in the day, I had drum sticks and I had a drum pad that was made out of solid rubber.

It was a solid rubber pad, and it was on an angle. Yeah. I remember it too. Yeah. And then you eventually moved to like a pad that was a drum. It was like a pad that had like a, the material that is actually a drum was on a pad about this big. Yeah, yeah. That was the extent of my drum lessons. I could not get past that drum pad. And looking back on how music was taught when we were coming up, man. You know, it is the opposite of wanting to get kids in. interested in music because we come from a family of musicians on both sides. Musicians, singers. And we grew up with our aunt, Robbie, who lived downstairs and was a piano teacher.

So the music was always strumming through our house. So I from four years old wanted to play the piano. Right. Because I could hear the scales happening. And I could imitate the scales even at four. But you know how she would start us out with the piano keys on a cardboard? Oh, it was terrible. We're sitting next to the piano, and I'm like, I want to go on the instrument.

And she's like, nope. And we did that for weeks, and I was so mad. Yeah. Because I was like, I didn't come down here to play on a. So, you know, I think the approach to teaching kids' music these days is a little better. Yeah. Yeah. My son who has taken piano lessons, his teacher, first thing comes out of her mouth,

what song would you like to play? Yeah, yeah. And he said, Old Town Road. And she found him the sheet music for it. That's how you grab, because he's still taking lessons now, and he's 16. And it's just such a better way of teaching. That's like taking a kid out to a basketball court. You want to teach him basketball.

And no ball. And no basket. No ball. Just like just imagine it. Just out here running around. Think about it. Hold your hands in the right position. Yeah.

Our guest today is a musical genius who hopefully has a better story than we did. Yeah, yeah, I can't wait to hear how he got exposed to music. But thank God he wasn't, he didn't have Aunt Robbie. I want to find out if he had a practice pad or if he got to start straight on the drums. But why don't you introduce him? I will, I will. And he's a young and too. He's a youngster.

Oh, let's see how young. Yeah, yeah. He's got a baby face. And we're talking about Anderson Pack, who is a boundary pushing artist, producer, now director, and nine-time Grammy Award winner. He emerged from his roots as a teenage church drummer in Oxnard, California, with a breakout album Venice and the universally praised album, Malibu. He's expanding his creative reach through his newest film, K-pop's, which you all have to go see. It is so wonderful in which he stars, co-wrote,

and directed. So, Mr. Pack, will you come join us? My cute miss. Man, did they make that in a double X-A? They might, man. I mean, I want to zoom in on the shoes. Like, can we do that? I mean, you said that's a Japanese brand. Japanese. Are those high

tops? Are they, are they mules? What's the bat? Lift up the heel. Ah! Those are fire. Fire. Well, welcome. Welcome, man. Thank you for having me. Yeah.

Yeah. Are you kidding? We're honored. I mean, I love you to death. I mean, you are more than just talented. I mean, you guys. You're quadruple threat or all the threats, you know, personality, talent. You can act your butt off. You can produce. You are a gifted musician and seem like a really, really good man.

Wow. Thank you. And now actor and director. That's right. As if I wasn't doing enough stuff. Welcome to the club. Talk to her about that, man. Thank you so much.

Yeah. Well, did you have a drum pat? Did you have a better start? practice pad. My drum pad was the couch. See there. It was the bed, pots and pans. And then I was driving everyone crazy.

And eventually they got a drum kit in the house. My step pops. How old were you when you got a drum kit? I was about 12. I was in like sixth grade. You had real drums in sixth grade. Yeah. But it almost didn't happen.

I was supposed to play. I wanted to play saxophone. Okay. Because I wanted to serenade the ladies. I wanted to be, you know, outside the window. And they was like, we had a saxophones. And I was like, well, I damn show I ain't playing the flute. Wait, you went to get a saxophone and they said they're out?

I was, it just started sixth grade in middle school. And I was going to, I was like, I'm going into band. Because before that, I was really into music, dancing, everything. But I was like, I want to play instrument now. And it was the first day. And I was so dead set on the sax. And there was no more left. And they said, all we have is the drums.

We have the bass drum or the bass drum. snare drum, which one do you want to play? And I didn't even think what was going to be my plan B. So I was like, I guess I'll pick the drums. I picked the bass drum. And they had us in there playing on these big old things. I'm like, I can't get no girls with this. And I was about to quit.

Baby, I love you. I'm at the window. I'm in the garden. Hold on. Let me put this thing on. Playing Georgia's the Jungle. Getting the Cups called on me. Yeah.

It would have just been all bad. So I was about to quit. And I was walking home one day, and my step pops had a drums kit in the house, and he was playing on it. He was playing along to some Prince Records. Wow. And I didn't even know he played. And he was like, yeah, I heard you're playing drums now, so I got a drum kit.

And I didn't think about the whole drum kit in a sense because in band, it was just separate drums. Right, right. So he had the drum kit. And I was like, okay, this is cool. And when he finally got off of it, I hopped on. And it was the first thing I ever did where I just picked it up really quick. You did. Like instrument-wise

And before that I was trying to play basketball Everything I was really terrible And I got on that kick And my mom came running out dancing And she started dancing I never really seen her dance before So I was like, whoa, like this is crazy Like I'm making a beat that's causing people to dance

Yeah I want to keep doing this And so your step pops You called him? Yeah He was a drummer Yeah So you learned just by hearing him play

Or you really learned when you were in band Yeah, he was showing me a few things. Okay. And then right when I started playing in the house, my mom gave me like all her record. She was like, okay, you need to learn Archibald and the drills. Need to learn Earth, on the fire, free. Learn these beats.

And so I was just doing that every day at the house after school. And then my god sister came by and she said, oh, you're playing drums? You need to come to church with me. And she took me to church. And it was the black gospel church. And there wasn't very many black people in the city of Oxenard where I'm from. But they were all there at the church. They all went to that one church.

Everybody was to see. That's where I really learned how to play. It was the best musicians in the world coming through and playing behind a choir, playing behind, you know, organists and choir directors. I'm a church kid. So I grew up playing drums all the way until I was, you know, about 30 years old when I, you know, I couldn't really do it anymore because I was traveling a lot. But since I was little, I was picking up on grooves and I was really into dancing.

Like I wanted to be like I grew up in front of the team. My mom was always working. and my sisters pretty much raised me in front of the TV so I grew up watching like BT MTV and music videos and stuff so I would want to learn every new dance that came about and now when I listen to music it's tough

because I produce, I write and everything so it's tough to kind of like turn that off and just like just enjoy songs sometimes but I really love when something has a nice groove, good drum tones and I really love chords and also like clever lyrics Yeah.

So I think that could be, you know, anything. But, yeah, when it comes to, like, dancing and stuff, I guess I'm the drums movie. It's funny when you, our generation, when you say I watch TV all the time and I used to, I was waiting for you to say Soul Train. But I was like, oh, my God. That too. So Train. Yeah, but it wasn't even on when you were able. Yeah, yeah.

I mean, you know, they have to. We have a grind. You know of it. You know of Soul Train. Yeah, yeah. People have said it. The Soul Train line is part of everyone's culture. It is.

We were there. That's weird. It's like, I'm getting old. And I'm like, oh, yeah, they had MTV. Yeah. You know. And you talk about Oxnard. There weren't a lot of black folks in your neighbor.

Tell us how you, who lived in Oxnard? And, you know, were you born there? Was your mother from there? Was there, you know. Yeah. Ongstart is a beautiful place. It's a small town. A lot of people think it's like the valley.

It's about an hour north of L.A. going towards Santa Barbara. And it's a beach town. It's a lot of agriculture, so a lot of Latinos. And when I was coming up, it was mostly Latinos, like second generation Latinos and white people. And I was like the only black kid in my high school. And my mom ended up there because she, well, my mom's story is crazy. But, you know, long story short, she was an adopted kid during the 50s, during the Korean War.

She was a found kid. Her and my uncle were found abandoned. And she was adopted, brought to an orphanage, adopted by black parents who were in the military. And so she was raised in Compton, California, all around L.A. Up until her 20s. And she met my dad. He was in the military as well. He's from Philly.

And he was stationed in Point Magoo, which is in Oxnard. And they met there. They met in the club. And eventually my dad battled with addiction and several different things. But they had me and my little sister in Oxnard. And that's where we were raised until my pops went to prison. And then we moved to Ventura, which is just the next city over. Okay.

But yeah, we were just like, just a tight family. I grew up. I'm the middle boy of three sisters from my mom and my pops. It was Rolling Stone. He had a bunch of kids too, but mostly women. So I was just, yeah, the boy that was there to like provide entertainment and fun and sometimes therapist. You know, everybody's talking about each other and I'm in the middle. Like, I know, I told you something crazy.

And I'm saying the same thing to the other sister. Yeah. But yeah, we're all really close to my mom. And she just, you know, she was a workaholic. She also worked in agriculture growing up. So she was gone a lot doing her own thing. I never seen her work for anybody. She was entrepreneur.

And, you know, she was just like all about her family, keeping her family together and working hard. And we had a lot of fun. It was a lot of trauma too. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, you have had an amazing story of a lot of ups and a lot of downs and few curves. But did you feel like you had a community of friends? in Oxnard being the only black kid in your school,

what was that like for you just making it as a kid? Yeah, I dealt with all kinds of stuff. It was really dope, though, and a blessing that I grew up playing drums in church because I had different communities. So I had my church family, that was where a lot of the black culture and everything surrounding that was where I, you know, thrived at.

And then I had, when I go to school, it was like my white friends, my Mexican friends, then I had that. And then at home, everybody was doing their thing. My sisters were listening to all kinds of stuff from SWV, the new edition, Mariah. And my mom wouldn't go past like Tony, Tony, Tony, Freddie Jackson. You couldn't play nothing, you know, nothing after that. It was always, you know, don't touch it.

Earth, when the fire, it was like, you know, that was what was going on. And then I go to school and they were listening to Nirvana and Radiohead and all this, the food fighters. And I was getting all of these things. And I was growing up really quickly, I felt like I can't wait to get out of this town. It's not enough diversity. I'm too big for this town. Especially when I started doing music, I wanted to escape to all these different places that I've seen on television or on movies or on records that were here. And looking back on it, I was just dead set.

As soon as I graduate, I'm going to L.A. I'm going to make it. I'm going to get signed. I'm going to be doing all these different things. And it didn't happen exactly like that. And I'm actually glad it did because it built a lot of character. And I'm glad that I grew up in a small town now because I think it gave me different kind of perspective. And I don't even know if I would have survived coming up in L.A.

And when I look back at it now, it was different. But yeah, I batted with like identity stuff, you know, thinking that wasn't black enough with the kids that I grew up with in church. And then I go to suburbs and I'm the only black kid. Then I thought I had to be the black spokesman for the whole school. I think my mom saw that too. And my mom deals with, you know, being an orphan and growing up. She's biracial, too. She is.

She didn't know anything about her Korean culture, you know, and we grew up black in a black household. And I didn't know about anything about Koreans, anything. When I found out, my mom was Korean, I just took it as something I could tell to people and make me exotic. How old were you when you found out or when you realized she was Korean? I was about like, I think she was telling us this, when I was about 10, 11, when we started sitting down, she started telling us her story. Uh-huh. And she wouldn't always do it, but she would open up some time. You know, and she was like, yeah, I'm adopted.

You're and your uncle. We were found and this and now. We'd be like, what? That's crazy. And, okay, so we're Korean. Okay, I'm mixed. Nice. I'm about to tell everybody.

That's a story to tell. When did your mom tell you the story of your biological father? Because she, did you remember him? Because he was in prison like you were seven. Right. And did you remember that story, the story of him, the story of what happened with them. Yeah, yeah, totally.

You know, my pops went to prison when I was around six or seven, and I saw him, he was a twin. Which is a trip out. Yeah, there's a whole- We gotta talk a little bit about that. Crazy story with that, yeah. But you couldn't tell him apart. So, you know, I remember we were with my babysitter at the house,

and I heard someone screaming, I go outside, and my pops is on top of my mom. There's blood in the street, and he's like, get back. in the house and my babysitter screaming like, don't do it, don't do it. He's like, I got a gun. And I didn't know. It was in complete shock. I was really in denial. I was like, no, that must be my uncle. Like, this can't be because my mom didn't tell me about any of this. I didn't know that. I didn't see anything. I didn't see anything. I never saw them fight. Now that I think about it,

he was gone from the house, but my mom was always saying like he's working, he's getting his health together. But I didn't know that he was actually going through rehab and my mom was trying to get him help through AA. And he was estranged. She didn't know where he was. And she was so me, you know, he was on drugs and everything, but she felt like she was going just as crazy, just trying to get them off. She would be chasing people down, trying to find them, doing all these things. And everything just came to a head that day. And, you know, we left, ran out the house and my pops ended up getting arrested and sent to prison for years after that. But it was around that time that she told me, you know, your pops had a very different life, you know, than a lot

of people. He came up in Philly. He got kicked out the house when he was a teen. This is in North Philly in the 70s and he was a kid out there trying to raise himself and somehow got into the military early and just grew up in a different way and then was really,

she always told me it was really a beautiful person and a great dad it was just when he got addicted to drugs he just really turned him into someone different and he couldn't win that battle and yeah she told me about that

how they met and everything but it was crazy because even though she went through all that stuff with him She never said anything bad. Yeah, it was always very positive. That's very noticeable in your whole story. She's still trying to hopefully,

yeah, hoping that he could turn it around and not, not ruining your vision of him until she absolutely couldn't help it. Yep, yeah. That says a lot about her. For sure, yeah. And, you know, after she got back on her feet, she was just like, all right, we've got a new chapter now, you know, we're going to move out of it.

this house and I'm going to get back to work and son let that be example do not touch known drugs don't get into no drinking stay away from all of it did that do it for you uh yeah it was it was always like a a warning for sure and I knew that I had a um there was a thing in my family where we battle with addiction you know and so I was always weary and I didn't do very much anything it was really scared straight, you know, all the way up into my 20s, 21 when I moved to L.A., I hadn't done really much anything. And I was in church, so I was scared of everything. I didn't want to go to hell. So I was like, I'm just doing this. It's like, let me just play my drums. Yeah, playing my drums, being cool. It was late bloomer. And so, yeah, you know, that helped. But, you know,

you get older, you go through life, you got to experience stuff for yourself. But, yeah, she's still like that. You know, my mom is, you know, the strongest person. But, and, you know, it was my mom that when they got together, she found out that he had other kids and everything. And she had two older kids of her own from another marriage. And my mom was, you know, going through every husband she went through. So I'm crazy. But she was big on him getting all the kids together. So I remember when we were young, she got us all together with our sisters and my brothers that I had from Philly and brought us all together at the house in Oxnard.

And we met everyone. It's like a big family reunion. And then when he got put in prison later, and I got my 20s, It was my sister from his side that really was like, you should talk to him. He's not doing well. He just got out of prison, but his health isn't well. And he really wants to talk to you. And he really wants to kind of make it right.

And were you who you are now? No. Were you still making it? No, I was still making. I was just barely. I mean, I was doing music, but it was, I was, nothing was going on for me. And I had just gotten my first, like, shows and started going on tour. And I was, you know, thought I was too busy to talk to him.

I didn't really want to have a relationship or I thought I didn't need it. And it was still like that trauma when I seen him and knowing all that stuff. But I'm glad I did end up talking to him because I didn't know that like you could be going through stuff and not even know it. You know, when you talk to people that you feel like your parents were always your parents and they don't, they weren't adults and having to go through life just like how you have to go through life. And so I got to talk to him and he told me how proud he was in me and how he wanted to be a singer. too, and I learned that he was on the gong show, and they were auditioned and he had a group, and he had big dreams, too. Okay, so fun fact, Kelly has always loved reselling stuff online, whether it's furniture,

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Thinking about starting a business, this is your sign. Get started today at Shopify.com slash IMO. It's officially patio season, and this year Kelly and I were committed to sprucing up our outdoor space without completely blowing our budget. The idea was to make our patio feel like an extension of the house, and Wayfair made the whole process so much easier. We got new seating, a rug, some lanterns, and suddenly we're out there all the time. Morning coffee, a few work-from-patio sessions. It completely changed how we use the space. I recommend starting with the four-piece a case Wood Patio Conversation Set, which comes with its own cushions.

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Tell them all about your dog and use code IMO to get 70% off your welcome kit when you subscribe today. Plus, they offer an obsession guarantee. If you're not completely obsessed, you'll get your money back. That's ollie.com slash IMO and intercode IMO to get 70% off your first box. Ali, feed the obsession. Given all the stuff that you've been through at a young age like that, how did you remain so positive, so bright? So, you know, because we met briefly for the first time before we came out here and you have this light about you, that this great spirit.

How were you able to keep, or did you? Yeah, I mean, there's times, you know, I have my moods and everything. I've been called Moody and there's a lot behind the smile. And I did an interview recently with a rapper named Norie who pointed this out. He said, usually people like that, that, you know, they have that smile and they've been through all this crazy things. they're trying to protect their peace. And I think that's probably what it was. Me having this, how I am now is there's a part of it that's natural, but there's a part of it, too, that's like, I feel like,

defense mechanism, a coping mechanism that I have from the things that I've seen and things that I've gone through. And my piece is important for me. The things that I do were kind of like escapism, I feel like for what was going on in my reality. When I think about me going watching the TV and learning how to do. dance and then learning how to play drums and moving on to everything that I'm doing now, it's always that kid that was running to his room and getting away from the craziness, I think, and creating my own world. Music was that.

The music was that. And the smile is just, you know, thank God my mom got me some braces because the smile wasn't always just nice. It was coming at you in 4D. And so she was like, we got to get a grip on that. Somebody said my teeth are like the temptations. Everybody wanted to see me. So back then it was tough.

I got the braces on and then it was a long process. It just happened like this. I didn't come out like this. It was a whole process. If your teeth were like that, you probably had the retainer, the night thing. They were like, we're going to work on it. Yeah, we're going to work on it. Like jaw fasteners and all that.

I didn't have all that. Why you got to do me like that? I'm sorry. I didn't have head here. Damn. I was like, I was like, I was a couple years. of head care. Just hold on.

They got to get a jar of banging. And you were a chubby little dude, too. I was a hefty critter. Yeah. That you were eating your way through the pain. Okay. I eat because I'm unhappy. Yeah, that was it.

My mom, she worked so much. You know, she knows how to cook. She can burn, but she didn't have time with anxiety. She'd just be like, here's 20 bucks. Figure it out. And, you know, we go hoarding. order some pizza and Taco Bell. And, man, that's how I was doing.

I didn't have good eating habits for so long. I didn't know I didn't have good. It's just how I grew up, a couple of noodles and Tom Rom and everything. And, yeah, I was as big as a house. And then, yeah, after my senior year, I was like, screw this. I'm still a virgin. I'm going to be fly. I'm going to be fly.

I put that snare drum down. Exactly. I'm going to get me a girl. Yeah. Your mom sounds incredible. I mean, because it's like, you know, she also was taking care of your stepbrothers and sisters like they were her own. Absolutely. Even through all that she went through with your father, right?

And never treated them differently, you know. It's like you all were all one family. And for her to be able to hold it together like that through all that she's. was dealing with, but she had some tough times. And I'm sure that had a lot to do. Well, let me not put words in your mouth, but talk about what your mom went through and how that affected. Because you guys were on the upswing with her business. She was into strawberries. Can you talk about that? Yeah. Yeah, my mom had a strawberry company in Oxnard. And, you know, we went from, after my boss went to prison, we were in, you know, apartments. And every year, just the business,

got better. And by the time I was in a senior high school, we were in a big mansion. And we were used to always like changing, you know, different houses and everything, but we were doing good. And I, again, I didn't, my mom, she kept stuff from her. She, you know, she, she, she thought kids business was kids' business and she was going to work and we didn't need to know everything. And I remember just like having everything. I had my own studio. My sisters, my two older sisters, they were married, but she was taking care of them as well. And everything. was on the ups and I got called into the principal's office one day and my principal just slid the newspaper to me and was my mom on the front cover, she had been arrested and my step pops was in

Cuffs too and they had both been arrested. I was just like, what the hell is going on? He's like, you know what's going on? I was like, no. Then my brother-in-law called me and he's like, yo, they got mom, they've been building the case on them for years and they got her for like 75 counts, you know, securities fraud and all these different things. And I was just in shock. The whole school was looking at me like, that's how you got that house. Like, you know, it was like, again, only black kid in the school. And it was just like, damn, it was messed up. And everything just turned upside down.

And, you know, so my pops being in prison and my uncle, now my mom, my step's pops, was just like nonstop. And where did you guys go after? Because she went to prison. She was sentenced. Yeah. So she was actually in county for like a year and a half. We were trying to figure out how to get her a lawyer and see if we're going to fight it and all this stuff.

And she was like, I don't want to fight it. We couldn't get. She was like, if we can't get a great lawyer, I just going to do my time. I know what I did. I know they're trying to put me under the prison. So I'm just going to do a plea, do what my time and I'll be out. You should get a job, Brandon, because your sisters are going to come in and watch your little sister. And as soon as you can work, you should figure out something.

I know you want to do your music, but do that as well. But you should get out the house and be a man and go and lighten the load. How old were you? I was 17. Yeah. So I, uh, what did that feel like? I mean, what did that feel like to your 17 year old soul to have your world turned upside down and then be told? You got to, you got to figure it out.

Yeah. I mean, one hand it was crushing because my mom is, I just, it would just kill me to know, like, she was in prison. Like, I know she was not a violent person, the sweetest person, no criminal record. So I was just always so worried, like, what's going on in there with her. And I hope she's okay. And then on the other hand, she was just so positive, optimistic, and strong that it made me want to get my stuff together and just keep going. And she was very just like, yeah, man, I'm going to be all right, you know. I'm worried about you guys more so.

Like, you guys, you know, do what you guys have to do. Don't worry about me. And so, and at the same time, I thought I was going to be, like, signed by then. Like, before that, I was making mixtapes. So I was DJ and I had my own, like, demo that I was selling at school. Couldn't nobody tell me I wasn't going to be right out of high school, like sign of Jay-Z, you know? And it was like that big record scratch. Yeah.

So there was still a part of me like, okay, I'm still going to try to do this, but my world's upside down and I had to move out and all this stuff. So right after I graduated high school somehow and I was like, all right, I'm going to go to L.A. I'm going to make the move, going to try to do my thing. And I'm going to take some meetings. I had a manager at the time that was taking me around. And my two older sisters were taking care of my little sister. And I pretty much was off into the world after there. And I did a bunch of stuff.

I went to Atlanta and was trying to get a record deal. Got every door closed on me and got a rude awakening that, you know, yeah, this is cool, but can you do more something like this? And we don't get it. Like, you want to rap? You sing. Yeah, what were you doing then? I was doing a lot of everything.

I had a little demo. that I was taking around and I was rapping, I was singing. I made all the beats. I was playing drums. And back then, it was a lot of emulating. And so I was back in Oxnard and I was, my sister lived in Northridge and I was like, okay, well, let me try to live with you. And that's kind of L.A., so she was like, you can sleep on the couch if you want. But if you live here, you want to help on these bills.

And so I tried to do stuff and it wasn't happening. So then I had to get a job. One of my first jobs was working at Ralph's Grocery with my brother-in-law, and I was bagging groceries and pushing in carts, and I was writing songs still. I was still writing. What was your look then? My look?

Yeah. What was the look? Very regular, dagular. You know what it was? I was very anti. After I got chewed and spit out, I was very anti-hip hop, very anti. It's like, I'm going this way. I'm going complete hipster.

I don't listen to it. I listen to Beck. I listen to radio head co-play I have specs black frame skinny jeans buttoned ups with the What'd you do with your hair? What were you doing with it by then?

I think that a little part in my name No man Line up nut and very Just Yes natural Oh natural Yeah Oh natural

Did you have an accent Did you play around with that a little bit You did You listen to them old songs back then I was like boy you were not from Wells Like where are you getting this from Who was your crew? Who were the people that you were,

or were you working too much to have friends? I had a crew, shout up to Benji and Julio's my crew from like high school. And I had a few people that, you know, that were still, I was still kicking it. Because Benji's still with it. Did you guys do some stuff together in one of your friends? No, it's a different one. Okay. This before I actually met my crew that I hanged with now because I eventually made my way to music school.

But I had a few people that, that I knew from high school that were. taking me and letting me live in their garage and different stuff. I was still kind of always doing music, but I was working jobs because I couldn't make money doing music. So how did you get, how did you figure out, okay, this is going to be the lane I'm going to be in now? Style-wise. Wow, it took a lot, man.

It took a lot of just making a lot of different music. I was playing for a lot of people. When I finally got to L.A., I did a lot of, like, you know, putting bands together for other artists. And I would see how they do stuff. And everybody was like, you're a great drummer. So I played behind a lot of different people coming up. And some of them were really talented.

Some of them weren't. And I picked up a lot of different stuff from different people. And eventually I got to a point where I met this guy and he told me he's like, you know, you're really talented, but you don't have any work ethic. And I think that because you're so multifaccented and talented, it's kind of working against you. Because look at all the things you're doing. And this is, you know, I was getting close to third. at this point and I thought I was going to be young forever and at this point I had my

my son, I'm a Korean wife and I was still like trying to play drums with this person make a song over here do this stuff and he was like if you just sat down in a room sit your ass down and just work on you don't have to invite anybody just work on you and you could probably do something you get a whiteboard start figuring out how you want to go about it what kind of artist you look up to maybe you can do something different draw from there and simplify your life. And he brought up your great husband's quote where he said, you know, I only had a couple suits.

And I simplify my life. I don't want to worry about what I'm going to wear every day so I can make better decisions. And so that's what I had to do. He did say that. He still does that. You see? Yeah, yeah. We need to get him that jacket.

You're right, right? It's like you can unsimplify. I love it. He's fly. He's fly. I see him. I know you're a fly guy. Don't say that. Now his head is just going.

Anderson Pax says I'm fly I'm gonna hear that for the rest of the year Yeah But it was those words And I finally he said And if you do it If you I was like how I'm gonna do it I gotta pay your rent

I don't know I gotta figure out how I'm gonna do He's like I'll pay your rent How about that? If you just sit in this room Yeah And who was this? This was a manager at the time

His name was Brian Lee Okay Yeah he gonna run with this one Shout out to Brian Steve Lee Lee Take this little clip You'll have a documentary

series out of the next week You heard what Obama said about you know, Obama did not say that. Is that Brian Lee? Brian Lee. He sat me in that room. He said, I'll pay your rent. I'll get the little computer.

I was like, but I need all this. He's like, no, you're going to get just this little computer, Mac Mini, get your little mini board, and you're going to figure out how to record yourself. You're going to sit here. You're going to make a bunch of songs, figure out your sound, and just do it. And it was in that room that I went from being breezy lovejoy to Anderson Pack.

See, that's what I wanted you to say. You were breezy love joy. What is that? What does that mean? That's a DJ. Tell me all the back. You know. You know.

I got you. I got a little bit back for you. He's not the one. It's like you too. See, she's bad because she knows that DJ college. Oh, DJ. Yes. Craigie Craigie Craig.

Craig. Just like Breezy love joy. Come on, Craig. Man, we would have been killing back in a day. Top Life Security world, Craig. Shoot. That's incredible. Yeah.

The old head and the young one. That's right. There's something to it. There's something to it. There's something to it. We can make it work. You can make it work. Telling you.

Yeah. But. Breezy love joy. I mean, okay, well, there's a story. I used to tell people that there's a real story about how I got breezy. But I used to tell people because I'm Aquarius, you know, I'm an air sign. I go with the wind, with the wind blows. I'm breezy.

I'm breezy. Yeah. And the love joy is like something you need more of. But the real story is I was passing gas a lot as a kid. I was just a little chubby kid farting all around the room And my brother-in-law was like, I'm gonna call you Breezy You always parted like a gust of wind when it hit you That's what we're gonna go with

So that was that Where you got your diet together Exactly That sort of fast food diet Messed you up That toggle bell wasn't a grin It wasn't in the grint Yeah so I had to switch it up

And yeah Brian was like What did Breezy Lovejoy look like? Breezy Lovejoy was chubby I mean, no, you know, Breeze's Lovejoy went through that transformation too, so he had like dread hawk. He was like, you know, after the transformation, I was working out a lot.

So I was always in like a cutoff tea, real rock image. And still rapping? I was still rapping. About what? I was doing all kinds of rapping about. What was Breezy's life about? You know, being in the streets of Venice.

And, you know, I was like, I was talking about. To me. The streets of Venice. I was going to that music college. So I have been exposed to a lot of different relationships. And I was like a crooner too. I was playing piano. So I was making songs about,

you're my girl's best friend. And I don't want to be alone no more with you. I was like one of the Breezy Lovejoy. They're Breezy. Breezy. Oh, my God. Talk about it. He was still happy, go lucky.

But he was really trying to find his sound. He didn't really have one sound or even one unique tone. And that's where Breezy was at. And I remember Brian was like, you got to change that name. That's the last thing we got to do. Now you didn't do everything. Now you've got to change that name. And I was like, what are you talking about?

I got 200 followers on MySpace. His name stays. I don't work for that. He's like, Roy, this name stays. Jack. And that's that. And that's on Jack. And he said, you're really going to meet Dr. Dre one day and tell me your name is Breezy Love Jay?

And I was like, damn. You got a point. You got a point. He was like, you should go by your real name, just go by Brandon Anderson. I was like, Brandon? Brandon. Are you kidding me? Well, Brandon is a little. I was like, okay.

I love Brandon. Brandon's a mother's name. My mom loves it. Brandon, Pac-Anderson. So that's my full name. And so we did a little, you know, jigsaw. And we went with Anderson, Anderson, Pat. And I was like, well, it's pronounced Pac.

And he said, nah, say PAC because they won't know if it's a group or a band. And people will argue if it's Pack or Pac. and it'll make you the talk of the town. So that was intentional. Yeah. Yeah. So where did the period come from? Period came.

I put the dot on there because so at this point I was, you know, damn near 30 years old and I felt like I had been overlooked for so many years. I felt like, you know, I used to call myself the most underrated yet elevated. Like when we play in the band and we used to everybody would be making it. And we just, I felt like, you know, we got ignored a lot. And I put the dot because I said, you know what? When I make it, I want to make people put that. dot, they're going to have to pay attention because they didn't pay attention to me for so long,

and now they've got to remember to put that dot. So it's always, period. Period. Oh, period. That's right. It's like my green M&Ms, you know, my thing. And I was like, y'all going to do it. I took the chance.

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Make this the year you finally get your sleep, your energy, and yourself back. What was the first break, the first reel where you were like, I'm in? Yeah. When I got the call to work with Dr. Dre, that was a big break. And how did he hear about you? What precipitated that? So I had a couple songs that were circulating at the time that was. big in the streets. This was before, like, Spotify was a really big thing. It was really just about

SoundCloud and, you know, reverb nation or stuff like that. Can you hum a few bars? What did it sound like? What was the song? Can I say this song? Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. It's his song. It was a song called Swade. And the song simply goes, If I call you a bitch, it's because you're my bitch. And as long as no one else call you a bitch, then it won't be no problems. Now, if I call you a trick, it's because you're you paid rent. And as long as you don't call up the six, then it won't be no problems. Now rock with me now. Yeah.

Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Oh, you make, could you say that? Yes. Oh, yes. No, you absolutely can. So, so, Stray heard that. That did it all for me. That did it. Yeah, well, it was, yeah, I recorded that song and it was moving around. People knew about it. And, you know, and so when

when they said, Dre wanted to hit me up, I was little shit because that's like the final boss. I grew up in the West Coast. Nothing's bigger than Dre. And so there was a little bit of shook and also a little bit of self-sablish I was like, I ain't going to that session. I don't need that.

They're going to try to make me something I'm not. And who knows? He ain't putting out no album no time soon. I'm working on my stuff and this and that. And really, you were afraid that you might fail. Looking back on it, yeah. You know, Dre's known for, he don't care who you are, what hype.

You know, if he don't like, he don't like it. And so they begged my new manager at the time. He was like, please go, man. you know, Adrian Miller, shout out to Adrian Miller. I got to say Brian Lee, shout out to Adrian Miller. Yeah. He was like, come on, man, show up. Let's just do it.

And I show up and first person I meet was Dr. Dre. And him and the D.C. And they was like, hey, man, I heard a lot about you, you know. That's what's up. Cool. And then they go off. They was watching the playoffs. And they ushered me into the studio.

And I met these two writers, King Mez and J.T. And they were like, we love your song in Swede. Like, we love it. We've been playing it nonstop. And we want you to help on this Dr. Dre album. It's top secret. No one knows about it. Don't tell anyone.

That, cool. So they played me some music. I'm like, great, let's start working. And they say, hold up. Before we play this, we want to play your song Sway for Dre. And I was like, oh, no, he hasn't heard it yet. Like, come on. Let's get some, let's just going.

I'm in here now. What if he doesn't like you? It's like, damn. It's like, just leave it. Yeah, it's all good. That would be deflating. That would be deflating. Yeah, actually.

You thought that's why you were here because it's slayed. Little like, no, Dre didn't have a clue. He thought I was a runner. He was like, go ahead, man. Yeah. And they were like, we want to play it for Dre. So I was nervous. And he came in there and they threw on the record.

And I was like, I didn't know where to look. I was just looking at the floor. I was looking at his feet. That's where I realized like, oh, Dre wears the same shoes every day. White Air Force ones. All right. It's like check? Yeah, check.

Noted. Simplify your life. Okay. Got it. And so you playing the music. And man, he cranks it. You know, he's playing, cranks it up. They're blasting it.

And I look up and he's like, I play that again. What's your name again? AP. Okay. And what should I call you? AP. We're going to call you AP. Play it again.

You didn't like focus on the period. Yeah, no. Excuse me. It's an A period. That's Mr. Pacte. No, none of that. Whatever is you like. Honestly.

You like it. I love. Yeah. You're just glad they didn't kick you out. Yeah, exactly. I was like, play the gig. That's gangster. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Let's work. There's too much talent in the building. And he just threw on the mic. On the mic, started doing stuff. And boom, like, I was back every day. Every day he hit me up to work on stuff. And they told me it's top secret. Don't tell anybody about this.

I told everybody. I told my cousin. Man, I was telling everybody, man. I'm on. I'm with Drake. Don't talk to me. Don't like your tone, bro. I'm working with Dre now.

I ain't got time about all that, foolishness. Oh, no. Yeah, so I was like, I was hyped. That's when I was like, oh, man, this is good. Because before that, man, it was, it was tough. I was making low headway. But man, it was still struggling. Sure.

I wasn't making any money really as an artist. And I was full-time artist. And so it was tough. And I had a family. When that moment came, I was like, wow. And then he put out an album. I woke up and he had dropped in a surprise album called Compton. And I was all over the album.

It was like on six tracks. It was called me six-track pack. Yeah. And then he had a movie straight out of Compton. And he did the beat still. And Dre was popping. And so I was like, wow. And I was like, well, shoot, I guess I should put out something now.

And it was cool because he was so busy doing his thing that he didn't sign me right away. So I was working on an album called Malibu. And I had it like halfway done. But now, like, people were looking. So I was like hitting up producers that are, you know, this album was like my dream album that I have been holding on to these songs for a while. And I didn't want to, I was like, when this comes out, I want people to be able to hear it. And now, like, I had a lot of, like, leverage and people were, had a lot of eyes on me. So I was hitting up people like Knife Wonder and Mad Liv and high tech.

And these people were helping me complete the album now. And I was getting these features. And Dre was still doing his thing. So I got to put it out independently. And, you know, now I own the master's on those. That was probably the best thing that happened. It was like, how fortuitous that he was too busy. Yeah.

And I was trying to, you know, we were trying to break our neck, trying to, everyone was. knocking down my door now trying to sign me before I couldn't buy a deal. And everyone was like, yeah, we want to sign you now. And I was like, if I do sign anything, I'm going to sign a Dre whenever it comes back around. And I was on tour after that for years. I didn't see. How did you finance your tour? So it was a lot of things that happened.

We started very, after Malibu came out, it started circulating. And I got a Grammy nom for Best New Artist, different things like that. And people were seeing that, oh, he's not like just a rapper. Like, he could play, that he has a band. So we started getting festival offers to play at festivals and stuff. And so, you know, the rate started getting better. And then we got on a show called NPR Tiny Desk. Oh, I love you on Tiny Desk.

That was. And that really opened it up. People started seeing, wow. And I didn't know that, like, playing drums and being the front man was going to be a big thing. And it was really that that kind of like opened everyone's eyes. And man, then we started getting booked for all kinds of gigs. And then our shows were starting to get lying around the corner. So how did you know how to line up your team so that financially you would,

because they're the story of a lot of artists. Well, I went before that, I was going to be with anybody who could help pay my rent. Right. I would sign anything. And I got out of the manager who made me change my name, he is like, hey, I don't know what to do now. you're off. But if you ever do make it, you owe me this much. And so I learned a little bit like, oh, nothing to this stuff is free. Like these are all partnerships. So he was like, you will make it. Exactly. It's like I pay your rent. You know, you're not paying my rent. Exactly. Yeah.

This is an investment. I want an ROI eventually. I don't know what to do with you now, but you're going to figure out. And so he gave me a big or receipt of how much I old. And then I was, I had a bunch of music, but I just was in debt and no connections. And so I met another manager. And he said, Hello, young fella. Just look at me. Remember the first thing you said, he was like, just look at me as your personal ATM. And I said, bet. I got this debt.

I got my rent. I got a wife. I got a kid. I want to do all this stuff. And he said, great, we're going to get you deal. I'll help you with all that stuff. Just we're going to sign a management agreement, though. And I signed him, a new manager, and he put together a financial team and a lawyer, everything.

Some of the people I still have to this day. He wasn't perfect, but he was, you know, a bridge over Trevor Water. He was a guy that gave him an opportunity. I didn't have an opportunity. And he was one of the people that got me in front of Dre. And he didn't have all the knowledge of it, but he did teach me certain simple stuff. Like, don't sign your publishing no matter what. The very first thing people want to do is sign their publishing because they don't have a lot of finances and they need a big check up front.

So they sign these publishing deals and that's your everything. That's your kids' kids stuff. Yeah. And there you get locked in for years. So I didn't know what he was talking about. And up until then, man, people were trying to get my punishment $5,000 here and now. I'm like, let's sign it.

Like, let's do it. I'm broke. Like, that's $5,000. We ain't walking away from that. That's generational wealth. And he was like, boy, don't sign that. I'll give you $500 to get you to the next. Yeah, you're here.

I'm like, all right, I'm calm now. I was just hungry. But yeah, he would do something like that. And like, you know, to this day. I don't know, I haven't, I'm holding on to that. And so, yeah, he was, he was the person that got my initial team together. And then I started making money and didn't know where it was going. Never was a type to have a bank account before that.

I was in collections. Like, I never had a. It's like, that's all you knew about the banks. That's all right. I get a card. I max it out. And I'll be like, all right, on to the next. Yeah.

And I had debt, school debt, all kinds of stuff. My credit was abysmal. And, yeah, it was like, when I started making money, it was just like, I just, you know, here, I had a team that he put in place. But I never was checking to see where it was going and all this stuff. They were just, you know, putting it in places. And thank God, you know, my first initial team did do really cool stuff that to this day I'm really happy about, you know. I mean, you were lucky. Very lucky.

Yeah. Nobody's stories. It's like that. It's like the story. I'm waiting for this. I didn't know nothing. And I gave everything to them. Well, that's true.

And I still have it. That's like... No, no, no. I lost a lot. Okay. I had to go through the growing pain. I had to fire everybody. It was a whole bunch of stuff.

But, you know, people, artists, I see a lot of these things where it's like, they took me for this and that and all this stuff. But you only do what you allow people to do. And there's no reason why I couldn't pick up one of these contracts and looked it through and figured it out and maybe waited and stuff. It's not... It's not that I didn't know better. It's just like I was just trusting and doing what I can. And these people were helping me out of time. And I didn't have anything.

And so I needed to help. And they saw something in me when no one saw it. And I think, you know, you could take the good with the bad sometimes. Right, right. Man, dude. Then I met Bruno. Oh, yeah. And I learned a lot about debt.

Talk about that. How did you meet Bruno? did you guys come together? We met, I opened up for him at the 24-carat magic. It was one of my first big, like, opening tour offers when, when Malibu had came out. And he took me all over Europe, big arena shows. Your first big arena shows? Yeah.

Yeah. What was that? What was that like? It was incredible. Breezy love joy. It was like, look at where we are now. Look at where we've made it. Yeah, it was crazy.

I remember, you know, like. after one of the shows because our whole thing was like yeah we gotta make it so that you know he messed up having us open we're about to steal some fans we're going to kill it that was our whole mentality

and Bruno has that mentality too like we come from like you don't want to come on the stage after we go you know like that's where we want to kill the stage and give people the best show possible we don't care who's coming after

and that's how we went and I remember one day we played and like we had a standing ovation and I was like yeah we killed that the next day they said Bruno wants to talk to you. And I said, oh shit. He's like, he'll see a letter.

He's like, meet me for dinner tonight. I want to talk. And I'm like, oh, damn, I'm talking to my band. I'm like, shit, I hope we didn't kill it too hard. Bruno wants to meet. Yeah, yeah. We go and we go to this restaurant that's like at the top floor. He and there smoking a cigarette inside the restaurant.

That's when I knew. I was like, oh, this is different type levels of famous. I was like, are you not? It's not. It's not. Yeah, yeah. Brunon Marks. Non-smoking.

Excuse me, sir, do you see the sign? No, you put that down. Yeah, yeah. And so he's like, I like you. You did great. You know, that was real cute. See, listen, I want you to come on the rest of the tour with me. You know, I'm going to do, we got San Antonio.

We got New York going to come on the American leg. And, you know, my crazy self, I'm like, well, okay, but I need a little more money, you know, because I got the band and this and that. He's like, you know, the tour sold out. And I said, okay. So, I mean, I don't need you to do this. So you don't take it or leave it, buddy. I'm doing it because I like it. It's not because I need you.

Right. And so I said, damn. Oh, you've got a point. You got a point there. I'm learning business quick. Yeah. It's all right. I'll be back.

I'll figure it out. And that was a big decision because, you know, at that point, I had Malibu, and then Dre was like, hey, man, when are you going to come back, make your next album? And I was like, oh, wow, that's right. I need to make another album that's been years, you know? Yeah, yeah. I had been on the road nonstop. And if I would have kept going with him, I would have me.

He's just coming off that 24-carat. And he just put it out of it. So it's like, it's easy to, you know, get caught up in that where you can be on the road for a long time and you forget or doing different things because it's like, it's fun or because it's like lucrative and stuff. And then you forget, like, okay, well, I got to, I still got stuff over here.

Also I had a family. I also had different things going on. So I had to make a decision. It was a tough one to be like, okay, I'm going to leave a tour. I'm going to go work on my album, work on my stuff, go back, be with the family, and, you know, tap in on my own artistry. As fun as it is to open up, I didn't want to get stuck in being an opener, being like some sidekick or something.

What was Bruno's reaction to that? Good luck. He's like, tours still sold out. Still sold out, Jack. Yeah. And nobody come to see you in the first place. And so maybe we kept in touch and we made some music. And he was just like right away we hit it off. I hadn't met anybody that was that talented.

It was my age and that could make hits and was a mega star. You know, like it was, I worked with a lot of people that were older or maybe younger. And I was always like felt like the lone ranger that was still like the guy that really wanted to play and perform and listen to old school stuff. And he was that even more. I love cooking in the summer. Every year around this time, my hands start itching to fire up the grill or try some new summer recipes. But all that prepping still takes quite a bit of time and effort. For my family, Instacart has been a game changer. With Instacart, you can build your cart with exactly what you need for the week, specific cuts of meat, ripe produce, household goods, and have it delivered on your schedule. It saves me so much time, especially during the summer, when the whole point is to spend time outside together as a family. I cannot tell you how much of a relief it's been to not have to run back and forth to the grocery store because I forgot cilantro. Instacart brings convenience, quality, and ease right to your door so you can focus on what matters most.

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And you've been on the road since they were born? Yeah, 2016. Yeah. Before that, that was my life. You know, bread and butter was put something out, go on the road for months. And you come home and life still goes on without you. And you know, Daddy's home. And you just did the kids run up to you.

And then they come out. They're like, long time, no see. Nobody's saving you no chicken and don't get the big piece of chicken no more. And everyone's like on the iPad. I'm like, you know, so it became apparent like if I wasn't going to have a lot of time, it was very important about what you do with the time and being present. and I know Daddy's working and all these things costing. I do all stuff.

But while I'm here, I want to be present. I was really what quarantine did for me. I got to be present, create a bond with my son, figure out what he was into. He's like, I like YouTube. I'm like, YouTube. I'm like, K-pop. I'm like, K-pop. What's your name about Tupop?

Boy? BTS, what you know about BET? How long I've been away from? What the hell is happening in this house now? I got to rectify some things. Yeah, so then I had to tap me in. And I see he liked to do YouTube. So I'm like, oh, let's make some skits.

Like, I remember brought me back when I was a kid making, like, funny skits with my sisters. And I used to love, like, editing and filming and making home videos. And it brought me back to doing that. And so I became one, I wanted to be a YouTuber more than him by the end of it. I'm like, come on, son, let's do this. And I realized how funny he was. And he had been in dance classes forever. So he was like a little dancing machine.

And I'm like, wow, this is 2.0. Like, faster, more handsome? Does he have the same kind of energy as you do? Even cooler energy. What's that in like in the house with you too? You know, he's a sage and I'm Aquarius. So I don't know, y'all can do the research on that. No, Julia knows it.

She already knows it. We're always talking about this. So it's a lot of just staring at each other like, all right? Go ahead with your bad sell. I see you over there. You know, I used to do a little. So he's really much like, I see you doing that, I'm going to have my own thing. And so kind of like you.

Yeah, yeah, very much so. And his mom. And, you know, and he's got the Korean side too. His mom is full Korean. And he's got a different. Is she musical? She's musical. She sings, plays keys and everything.

All right. So the K-pop is fully your story. Yeah. Not fully, fully, but I was pulling from the whale. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, that was why I was like, son, I'm going to write a script. Like, this could be something.

What if I didn't know how to something? So you thought of that in COVID. of it. Yeah, I was... But we're talking about K-pop's, the movie. The movie. Yeah, yeah.

My feature film and I knew I wanted to... Because at that point, I saw that, okay, touring stop, a lot of music, it's always going to be there, but that's when I realized, like, oh, man,

you know, different... I could tell different stories in different mediums, and it might take a while for me to learn a new medium, but that's the joy of the whole process. You know, I love that. So this was your first script.

Yeah, yep. And you taught yourself how to do it. Yeah, so I had a co-writer. Okay. I had to come with idea first, and, you know, what if I didn't know how to son? That son could be the next K-pop star. And I come into his life, and I'm teaching him about his black culture, and he's teaching me about the Korean side,

because I didn't know anything about my Korean side until I met his mom, and then I was reintroduced. So I had all these unique experiences that I could pull from and put them in this movie that I didn't think anybody had really done before, like, especially Asians and black people, like, that was real. Like, we got rush hour, you know? That's about it. So I was like, this could be cool.

And then I didn't want it to be, I know I had a lot of different things that I could pull from in trauma and different things, racism, things that we all been through. But I wanted to kind of pull from the things that helped me cope with all those things, like the love, the music, the fun, the comedy. And I felt like there wasn't a lot of movies that were bringing families together where you saw families on the screen. It was family comedy. and no one dies. You know, it's like different things. My kind of movie. Right.

Very uplifting. By the way. Yeah. And my mom, too, she's like, Brandy, you know what? This is like a Hallmart movie. I was like, Mom. Oh, don't say that.

You mean Sundance? No, this is Hallmark. This is ready for Hallmark. I was like, all right. But I understood what she was saying. It's like, you know, sometimes you want, escapism of knowing that everything's going to be all right. And, you know, that doesn't mean you can't put different things in there,

but it's beautiful when you can. It's really hard to do. kind of movies. So yeah, that was the genesis of it. And I started doing the process and I met with my buddy dumbfounded because once I knew I wanted to direct and everything, people didn't want me to do it. And I wanted to be in it and I wanted my son to be in. And they were like, okay, that's a lot. It's very ambitious. Like, why don't we give it to somebody, give it to this? I don't want nobody around my son. Don't you know who I am? Come on now. Formerly Breezy Lovejoy? Really? Bring a bell? I do hard.

Exactly. Yeah. So, um, I, um, I'm really. I'm. I. So, um, um, I Eventually, my boy Dumbfounded, who was one of my best friends that I met coming up in L.A., who started music, but was making the venture into movies, was working with this company Stampede and EST. And he said, bring it to them. They're taking chances on, you know, different stories. And I pitched them the idea, and they said, yeah, cool, we'll give you some money to do it. And I was shocked. I was like, whoa, all right, cool. So, and they were like, you want to direct it, right?

I was like, yeah. And you want to write it? And I didn't know how to write a script. I would love to have a co-writer, actually, because I need, just to show me structure or whatever. And they blessed me with this really young co-writer, Kayla Amazon, this young black writer who was a military brat and who also happened to be a K-pop fanatic.

So she was like, right when got in there, and we was just in here just like this and everything like this. And I'm like, so she's like, all right, this is K-pop one-on-one. This is movie structure one-on-one. She graduated from, you know, film school and everything. And I think it worked out because it was those two worlds And she taught me structure And she taught me the idea that I had gained all these layers

Because it wasn't as deep as him being on a show And all this different things And I learned more about the structure of K-pop And how they have this, you know This incubation system and this whole thing about This person is this person and that and all this thing And again, it was making me think of groups that I came up with And so I was like this is going to be a cool opportunity to show

Like how things relate And how much in common things have and how, yes, people take and pull from different things and have their own interpretation, but that's been going on for years. My favorite scene in the movie is when you're out with, I shouldn't say, when Pops is out with his son and they go by the record store.

And he starts pulling out the albums. It's explaining this is what, you know, trying to teach his son some soul and understand what it means. That was beautifully done, you know. Thank you. And is that the first time you acted? Yeah. I mean, I had done it.

different things, but this is the first... I mean, you were really good in it. I mean, funny and, you know, lit up the screen. Really, truly. You know, I mean, I was laughing out loud watching the movie really sweet and your son. I mean, so now your son is, you said, is man. Yeah, I mean, it took forever.

He was like eight years old. He was obsessed with K-pop. And then by the time we got to shoot, I got all the money and stuff, he was like 11 years old. And he was like, man, I don't like, pop no more. I'm like, slip-knock. I'm like, contractually, son, here's the same. I need this to work.

We're doing this. I owe a lot of money. So he was like, all right, I guess, you know, he's going into his teens, and I had to adjust things for him, but he was like, I'm going to do your solid, dad. You seem really into it. And I'm like, thank you, son. Let's do this. Thank you. This is about your tuition and your life. I appreciate. This is going to mean more than you know later. And so, yeah, and it was cool because the whole thing was like, I really loved being on set with him and being able to kick it with your son and like see him grow and we're working together and we're creating a bond. But we also have be on set really early and I'm seeing him learn about how to be, learn the language of being on set, being on his mark.

And he's taking his acting class of serious and learning his lines and getting me on my game. And it was just so much fun. And, you know, at the end of it, I was like, it was really surprising because, like, I didn't know how he was going to take it. And I could see him having a lot of fun. Mind you, before this, he was in homeschool all his life. And now he's, like, around other kids and adults. And I've seen him blossom socially and everything. And I'm like, okay, we might have a little acting bug.

And I'm like, what you think, son? Would you do it again? How did you feel? He's like, it was great. I think we had a lot of core memories. I think you had a lot of fun, yeah. But I would just like to be a kid. It's not my passion.

And, yeah, we'll leave it there. That's pretty mature. Dang, he's like, but it does depend on the script, dad. And that's cool. I was fine with that. And now he's going to school. Now he's like, it's funny when you like back off him, they get to do their thing their own way.

And now he's playing guitar. He's playing bass, making beats. And I'm right back in his face like, all right. Yeah. I'm wrong now. You want to produce the next album. It's got to be their idea. It does.

You know? How's your mom doing? My mom is doing great. She has narrowed it down to one boyfriend now. Okay. She got, she's vegan. Okay. Pissing off every restaurant we go to.

She is a Dodger fanatic. Oh, my God. She got me into the Dodgers. Oh, my God. So now we be all obsessed with the Dodgers. Congratulations. She's a F1. She's F1.

She's F1 too. He's an F1 fanatic too. All of it. All of it. So I'm broke. Having to get all these passes. And tickets, she got to be front row and everything. Did she go to the Vegas place? She went to the Vegas race.

She went to the last fight. She got to feel the sweat coming off of them. I'm like, dang. Yeah, so she's loving life. And, you know, she's out in Atlanta. And, you know, sometimes she'll tap in and be a grandma. He'll watch the kids. And then she'd be dipping out.

She's jet-set now. I'm like, Mom, for some reason, she's like, I don't want to go anywhere, Brandon. I don't trust it. The things that people eat. I don't... I'm like, Mom, why isn't that stopping you from going anywhere? Really?

Go trouble. No, they're doing some foolishness over there with how they do the chicken. You see that? Have you seen that? I'm trusted, I'm scared of that. But now she's traveling. She was in Puerto Rico. She's packing her own food.

No. Yeah, yeah. She will. That's one way to piss her clean off. To hell with the whole country. Yeah, so she's bringing her food. and she's going to travel, London now, finally going to get her to go over across the pond.

And yeah, she's, dude, she's great. That's my dog. That's my best friend. But she did a great job in raising you, dude. She really has. And been through a lot, stayed strong, you know. And I like to think that that's also, you know, where you get your steadiness and your drive.

And like you said, your mom, you know, has taught you a lot of it. And you can see it. It's spilling out on this table. Thank you. Shout out to Mama. Yeah. Shout out to my... Forget Brian Lee.

Yeah. Mama. Mama. You did that. Shout out from the Obama's in the Robinson. That one. Yeah. We see you.

We see you, Mama, Benda. Yeah. You want to do the listener question? Yeah, let's hear from Amanda in Boston. Hi. My name is Amanda and I'm from Massachusetts. My husband and I have to... started to discuss growing our family. As a teacher and future parent, I often grapple with the

idea of building resilience in young people. I had a fairly unstable childhood. My father battled alcoholism and actively worked on his recovery while my mother worked long hours trying to make ends meet. Because of this environment, I was forced to develop resilience and grit. I had to learn to guide myself and power through uncomfortable feelings without the guidance of my parents. I find myself being able to handle adversity in adulthood because of this learned resilience. I truly believe that I have my childhood and struggles to think for this. As I think about raising independent and resilient future adults, I worry that I won't be able to provide my children with opportunities to naturally build this resilience. How do we balance this idea of giving children a predictable and loving home

while also allowing them to naturally build resilience? I want to give my future children everything I did not have, but this can become a slippery slope. Thank you so much for your time. Okay, Amanda asked. It's getting the answer from Mr. Resilions himself. Yeah, really. Yeah. You can't be afraid to let them go through their own struggles.

You know, sometimes like, you know, especially my kid, he remembered, my oldest one he remembers, like the little apartment, you know, and me going for us taking the bus, and then when we first got our place, we first got a car, and he still remembers that my little one, he just bought. born in first class. You're real. He's like, he's born, you know, after we had the stuff.

So, you know, sometimes I take him through coach and tell him, go ahead. Like, y'all got to sit back there. So I'm sitting up front. Y'all figure it out, you know? Work your way up, like how often, you know? Take him down, skid row. Let him see. Like, this could be you now.

Get up the car. Go walk. No, you want to be tough, right? Go ahead. That's what's going to get you. Get your ass in the car. Let's get out of here. That's some old-school lesson.

You got to do it. And now, I wanted to protect him so might. I want to give them the life. I didn't have all this stuff. And I realized, like, all this stuff that I went through made me me. And it wasn't like, it wasn't, I don't know how it would have been. If, you know, the table's returned and I got to live in that lap of luxury and my mom and everything worked out, it might have been still a chubby little spoiled brat, you know, and I know how to treat people and all this stuff.

That's right. And so, you know, the kids have to go through their own trauma, their own set of different things in order. And you have to trust that the things that you install. installed them, it's going to stay with them when they go out into the world. So now my son is going to school now. He's made his debut. And he was homeschooled forever. I didn't want to put him in school.

I didn't trust nobody. I was like, nah, we're going to keep him here. And, you know, he was like, please, Dad, I want to go to school. I'm sick of this. I'm sick of my cousins. He's like, you know, who's going to watch your little brother? It's like, not my job. Yeah, it's not my job.

So now he's out. And, you know, I trust that, you know, I worry sometimes, but I trust that the things that he learned in the house and the way we raised him, he's out there being a good representation and he's going to learn, you know, on his own. And he had to be, he had to let him do that. And, you know, he's around other people

and getting influenced and learning different things. And I'm excited for him. But I think that that's what you have to do. You have to trust that you raised them right and that you installed a lot of those things, but can't be afraid to let him go out and venture and bump their head sometimes and get back up. And it's a part of it.

Yeah. That's a good point. You know, I think sometimes parents, they have to get out of the way. Yeah. You know, and I would say, Amanda, make sure that you aren't parenting out of fear or out of your own motives, right? Our mom was really good at that. She always used to say, I can't let my own fears get in the way of your growth. Wow.

And when, and the perfect example was when I got the chance to go out of town for the the first time to a tournament. Basketball. A basketball tournament. My mom was scared to death. And I was going to Kansas City in a van with a bunch of guys and some coaches. And I didn't realize it until I was, she never told me this until I was grown. But she was absolutely afraid the whole time I was gone.

And she just ate that fear and let me experience it. And I tell you, it's just like what you said. saying. It's not doing the homework, not getting in the way of your child's development because of your own personal fears too. You see it in coaching a lot. I see it so much now in coaching kids that these parents are trying to curate the perfect childhood for them. And that's not sports. It's not going to be perfect. You're not going to go undefeated. You're not going to ever not miss a shot. you're not going to ever run into a kid who's better than you are. Right.

And you're going to lose a lot. You are going to lose. You are going to, at some point in life, somebody is going to be mean to you. Yeah. You're going to be disappointed. Something's not going to work out. That. We've all experienced that.

Yes. So we got to prepare kids for that. That's what resilience is, you know. And you don't have to, you know, be flat. broke to do it. You don't have to have extenuating circumstances to do it, but you do have to let go throughout their childhood. And Amanda, your kids will still love you. That's the thing. They'll still love you. That is the crazy thing about it, you know? And, you know, for a minute, you have to not care whether they like you or not. I mean, that's kind of, that's kind of the secret to parenting,

you know, you got to be able to be like, you got to outlast. I don't. I don't. I don't. I don't. don't really care. Yeah. If you like me, that's not my role in your life, you know. My favorite saying that my daughters say, I say, I say this all the time. I'm not one of your little friends. That was what my mom used to say to. I just not.

And I never felt like I needed to be. Oh, you mad? Right. Oh, you mad? You got rent? Mm-hmm. Exactly. Oh, so who's going to be mad or longer?

I was like, who's not? Oh, you're not speaking to me? Right. It's like, great. I won't speak to you. Right. And guess who always wants? It's like you going to need to speak to me before.

I could not speak to you for years. Wow. And my life wouldn't change. She's rough, man. She's rough. She's rough. I don't go to hell. That's right.

She stays high except with her kids. It's like, oh, we're going below. Okay. All right. Let me show you love. Wow. I like it. And that would build resilience.

Absolutely. Yeah. Don't hurt me more than your child. a little resilience there. They're never coming on. They're never coming on yet. Oh, my God. None of our kids want to come with us.

You know, that's why I'm telling you. Aaron wants to come. He's the youngest. The youngest. This is what you're saying. Your son now, he's like, please. No interest. Yeah, no. No.

I don't know. It may change, but, you know, especially when your parents are, you know, he's going to try to create as much distance between you and him. Yeah, what's the opposite of the drums? That's serious, man. Boy, yeah, he's doing guitar. And I can't play it. And I'll just be like, uh-huh.

You're not going to play this, though. You know, that's what I'm doing. He's just killing it. So, yeah. Yeah. Well, hopefully that helps. Amanda, you know, figure stuff out. Anything on the music front coming our way?

Yeah. I got some, I have a soundtrack that's, going to accompany the movie where I'm doing some cool K-pop collabs and also like R&B and reaching back to different groups that I came up with like Earth Win and Fire and different stuff. I can't wait for. I'm excited about the soundtrack.

Like Anderson Pack plays real music. Breaking news. Bringing real music back. Please keep doing it. Thank you. Y'all keep doing what y'all. Yeah. And tell us about Andy's.

Yes. Actually, can I bring in a, can I give you all a gift? Yes. I got you all. Please. Speaking of real music, it's becoming harder and harder to find places where you can perform real music

where you see people playing instruments. Yeah. Right. Hear people, you know, having a good time and seeing people dance. And I'm trying to bring that back. And that's how I came up in L.A.

And that was a big part of how we made it and got our buzz. And I think it's important to have a place where bands can cut their teeth and practice and it can be like an incubation place where that happens. And so I started a club called Andy's. What we got?

Yes, this is a little, so I got a nice of you. I got the supper club because I got food there. I got an excellent menu. We're coming. I'm coming. Live music every night. And I got y'all some Andy swag. Let's chuck a hat.

And some breath miss. Now, this is my other venture. Wham. I know y'all do a lot of talking. Okay. Y'all be up here. And so I started my own mint with my doctor. He's Harvard graduate.

You know what? You look like you need, you could have a man. Well, you know, you meant minty fresh. Fresh. I mean, everything about him smells good. And this is meant to be shared. Now y'all can be, because confidence is meant to be shared. All right.

Appreciate you, man. Well, thank you. Thank you. Thank you for the gifts. Thank you for bringing real music back into our lives. Congratulations on the film. Everybody's got to see it. Congratulations on everything.

I really appreciate it. Thank you for being here. Yeah. Likewise. Even bigger after this.