No Jumper - Ewol Samo on Hunting Soulja Boy with Rico Recklezz, Why Drill is Dead & More

Episode Date: July 16, 2024

Ewol talks about his friendship with Rico Recklezz, his recent bid, the end of drill, J Mane & Durk pushing peace, and more! ----- Get the latest news & videos http://nojumper.com CHECK OUT OUR ONLINE STORE!!! https://shop.nojumper.com/ NO JUMPER PATREON http://www.patreon.com/nojumper CHECK OUT OUR NEW SPOTIFY PLAYLIST https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5te... Follow us on SNAPCHAT https://www.snapchat.com/discover/No_... Follow us on SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/4z4yCTj... iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/n... Follow us on Social Media: https://www.snapchat.com/discover/No_... http://www.twitter.com/nojumper http://www.instagram.com/nojumper https://www.facebook.com/nojumper http://www.reddit.com/r/nojumper JOIN THE DISCORD: https://discord.gg/Q3XPfBm Follow Adam22: https://www.tiktok.com/@adam22 http://www.twitter.com/adam22 http://www.instagram.com/adam22 adam22bro on Snapchat Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

No jumper, coolest podcast in the world. I'm in here with my man Remo today, and we are having a legendary conversation with the man himself. Ewo! Ewo! How you feeling? It's the word. Man, I'm feeling blessed, man. Highly favorite, man.

Super appreciative to be here, man. You know what I'm saying? It's always of that. How long you've been a free man for? I've been a free man now since October of last. I've just been low. Oh, okay. So you were just taking it easy?

Yeah, I was taking it easy, catching out with the family, man. being a dad because I was gone. Shout out to my kids. Shout out to little Sam and Saraya, but I was being a dad. And just going through a different phase

of my life, getting things back together, getting back balanced. You know what I'm saying? After you get out of the joint, you got to take a little time to get your shit together. Yeah, because at my big age,

sometimes you've got to reassess things, you know, can't keep going through the same cycle over and over and over and I feel like proper preparation. So, okay, we're going to go back in time but in terms of recent history, you and Reckless went on a legendary interview run that even had

your face appearing on the Joe Rogan podcast which is pretty unprecedented. I don't think anybody from... Nobody from the drill scene ever, ever been on Joe Rogan's podcast. Now, Grant, you had to talk about spraying somebody with a Glockduke in order to get there. For sure. But still pretty legendary. So then after

all that interview hype and stuff, How long was it before you got caught up? And why did you get arrested? I would say after that interview run, I would say about eight to nine months after that. Oh, okay. We were working on the project in between that, doing shows here and there and stuff like that. I got arrested for allegedly going on a high-speed chase and getting into a three-car accident. And, yeah.

So they tried to pull you over and you were in possession of things that you didn't want to be pulled over with? Allegedly. Allegedly. Right? Because I was not caught with anything. I didn't get arrested for a firearm anything. So you got a good arm on you? I just.

Out the sunroof? No. No. No. What happened was it was they was trying to unlawfully arrest me for being me in Chicago. Okay. Right? So I didn't.

feel that the traffic stop was warranted or legal. So I just, you know... Did the dash. I politely, you know, went on about my business. Did the race. I politely went on about my business, you know what I'm saying? How long they chased you for? It was, it was an extensive chase.

What does the mind stay when you're getting chased by the police and you're like... Get the way. Yeah, but what you... Get away. Get home. Like, how often the niggas is getting away, though? in the rack yeah like how often is it like you might get away

from high speed chase um you're going to get away nine out of ten times nine out of ten but it only takes one time because they can't really like chase you as aggressively as they probably want to they have to give up at a certain point that's part of it and you know

experience you know when you have so many high speed chases you kind of know how to get away you know what I'm saying as a white person I assume that there's just no way the the cops were to try to pull me over, it's over. I have absolutely no reason. I would never be able to get away.

So I really admire the confidence that you're like, hey, fuck it. I can do this. It's like, it's what's going on, right? They have your license plate number as well, right? I mean, it's what's going on. I'm not promoting it, though. Right. I'm not promoting this, you know?

Hey, if you get into yourself in a situation, man, pull over, let them people do their job. You know what I'm saying? Hopefully you're clear you're going about your business. But in Chicago, this was going on. High speed. Survival. Survival, man. And that's crazy.

It's a survival situation on the day-to-day basis. You wake up and just think I got to survive through the day. So was it tough going to jail being that you'd, you know, experience more this time around in terms of just being around some fancy shit? You've been in the no-jumber studio. You've been around Remo. You ate the caviar with Rico Reckless, et cetera. This is our first time I actually mean. though.

I feel like I feel like this was my worst time of all my times. And I didn't did five years straight. Right? I didn't did three years straight.

What was this? This time was four months. Four and a half months. It felt like longer. But I think this was my worst time. Why was it worse than the five year bid that you did? Because first and foremost,

when they sent me back to prison, they sent me back to the prison that I paroled from. that I did years from. It's niggas down there that got life and 60-some years, they're still there. So when you walk through the door, it's like,

what you do with back? I heard, you back, you back? You back? What you do it back? Like, the whole four months so I kept hearing. Like, that what you're doing back? They'd everybody want to lecture me,

you know what I'm saying? Which I appreciate it because they care, generally care, but it's like, it sucked. It sucked, right? And then, you know, being home, going like you say traveling and coming to no jumper and moving around actually living life and then it gets snatched away from that right that hurt worse than anything were you by moving around the way you were moving at that time given that you had other shit going on

um or is it just no no actually the way i was moving actually was helping me right see it's certain situations that transpire the cause for me to be in that situation if i would have just kept moving how I was moving like moving around and traveling and I'd have been cool I kind of had started coming back to the city which I shouldn't have did right? Very rarely does a Chicago

rapper say I went back to Chicago and everything was fine. It's always I went back to Chicago and I got shot I got arrested something really bad happened. That's the truth that's the truth and it's like man

bro I city poison and I'll love my city because we got one of the most beautiful cities in the world, right? But the climate in the city is bad. The environment is bad and it's like, boy, it's like a dark cloud that hovers

above our city and we're trying to figure out a way to clear that cloud up. And the sun shine back through, man. Right. Because when the push and peace conversations have been happening recently, occasionally you see like some enthusiasm about it,

but like more often than not in terms of people actually in Chicago it just kind of feels like they're almost like laughing at it because it's so bad right now that there's just almost more violence than there's been in a long time right so it might not be the super famous people involved in it but like when you hear about the stats over the 4th of July weekend and shit it's like oh crazy 4th of July weekend was crazy Chicago I'm disappointed

over 100 people shot that I was I was disappointed it. Like, that shit was crazy. Right. And when it comes to the pushing piece, it's like, it's kind of like a double-air sword because like on one side, you're right. It's like it's bad. The violence is real, real bad right now. But on the

other side, you've got a lot of good brothers that really pushing that piece narrative and they're actually making some headway, right? Some things are changing. Shout out to FYBJ, Maine. Shout out to Golden Child.

the unity movement. Shout out to Big Twine. You know what I'm saying? Shout out to Guerrilla Boy, shout out. It's a bunch of brothers that's really making headway

with the unity and the peace. But it like, it gets overshadowed by the other stuff because it's been so many big names that's been getting killed right now. It's like, oh, hell, no, it's,

it's over crazy, but it's kind of like the same as it's been, but it's been a lot of faces dying. So it's kind of over. shadow the hair way that we make it. But I feel like, man, J. Main was just on the phone with Durkio, man. That's a start. You know what I'm saying?

That's something big. That's a big start, yeah. That's a big start because who would have ever thought? Right? Who would have ever thought? So it's like something is working. Then I was on the internet the other day. I seen a D-Thing and what's the other kid, the rapper from New York, Dougie B. It was on FaceTime together. And they were like, man, Joe, we need to push peace. Man, you see Chicago doing

man let's push let's push this piece like shit something working what would you want to see from dirk and jane to do like what you think they should do in order to like help the pushing piece movement besides the phone call um let's get in the streets right let's get in the streets um and i'm not even saying dirk has to come physically his self and get the street let's let's get some um let's get some groups let's get some um some food drives you know what i'm saying let's let's get community centers built. You know what I'm saying? Let's start giving the kids some incentives.

Together, though. Both sides, right? Let's start working together to give them opportunities outside of the streets together. Let's put both names on it. Let's get some concerts going. Let's get some, you know what I'm saying, some peace concerts together, right? Let's get some carnivals together, right? Let's start making it okay to say, aye, I'm extending this olive branch.

if you grab and extend your olive branch. Some people are not going to like it in the beginning, but it's going to reach the people that matters to us, some kids. It's just kind of depressing to realize how cynical some percentage of people are that they could, you know, hear that phone call, and it's just like whatever, I don't give a fuck all that. Like, when you ask people in interviews and their perspective on it, it's just so not accepting of that at all, it's kind of like, damn,

what the fuck is going to happen? Yeah, yeah. But then you think about that. And especially you think of like, all right, imagine going and telling a little Jeff and little schoom telling their homies. Like, hey, you know what I'm saying? We're pushing peace. They're going to look at you like you. Your boys just got killed.

Sorry, we're pushing peace. Like, imagine trying to tell them that. And that's the challenge we're faced with, right? And we understand that. We can't be naive to that. We got to look at this from a realistic perspective, right? Like, it's going to be some people that ain't trying to have that. And I can't blame them for not trying to hear it.

Because it was once upon a time where I wasn't trying to hear it. Right? I lost, man, I could count on both hands of my feet how many homies I don't lost in the last 10 years. Right? So it was a point in time where I wasn't trying to hear it neither. But we have to look at it like this. When is it going to end? When is it going to end until we just, everybody's dead and nobody's in Chicago?

It's just going to be a vacant city because that's what we're going to come to. Everybody going to die. Because a lot of people getting killed now are literally, they could have been kids that got killed. that they were conceived that their parents decided to have them around the time of drill music starting, like 2011. Absolutely. But some of these kids getting killed are like 13 years old and shit. So they're literally like they were born around the time the drill came out and then they're losing their lives. So they're losing the same shit.

They're literally drill babies and they're losing their life to drill. And that's what I say is it might not be a popular view. But drill is dead to me. You feel that way? I drill is dead. Like you can't even mix me with drill music at all. at this point in this stage of my life and in my career so it's dead to you but you don't feel like it's dead overall really right i feel like it's dead overall on in different perspectives like um

first of all i don't hear like it used to to me it don't hit like a use to me i're saying chicago drill or is drill music in general so we're talking drill we have to start with chicago drill that's the mecca right that's where all the other drills are a fraction of Chicago drill. So I can only speak on Chicago drill. It's dead. It's dead. The labels are not really even funding drill anymore, bro. They're not looking for drill artists for real. Like, that ain't what they're chasing

nowadays. Because shit, you ain't even making your money out of drill artists. You know what I'm saying? Like, they're dying in two, three months. That's literally what happened in a little schoon. You got signed? Rest of a piece of a little school. Rest of a piece of bloodhound, little Jeff. I didn't know them personally. but they young kings out of our city, you know what I'm saying?

They was just getting the spotlight, you know what I'm saying? It's a few of them just doing their thing right now, and I pray they stay safe and stay successful, like Fat So, and Look King and Chuckie Wack them. Man, I want to see them succeed, right? But I want us to be more creative, man. We don't got to be shooting up bang bang all the time. We ain't got to be kill your mama, whack your daddy.

We could be more creative and innovative. man. But a lot of them, they're super talented, though. I was just listening to Faso New New Song yesterday, super dope. I was just listening to it too, yeah. Man, it's dope, right? He's super talented.

I was just telling my little brother, like, man, he's going to take over the game. Can you agree with me that something has changed? Because I had an observation last night, I'm sure a lot of people said this before, but it's like when you look at the early era drill music in Chicago, the guys who were the breakout stars

were not necessarily. necessarily assassins. But now it feels like a lot of the dudes who are getting attention and shit, the fans are so tapped in that they expect the dudes who are rapping about this shit to really have a street resume. And because of YouTube

and Instagram and shit, they can kind of track it down and come up with a pretty good assumption about who's dangerous or not. Like the bloodhound little Jeff, like his first DJU interview, had 10 bodies as clickbait, which to me is like unprecedented. I've never had to make that decision of like

throwing 10 well i guess i did with terran's gangster williams but he had already told and it's like ancient history but i mean i don't know it just feels like now it you know what it is it's like rap music plus like true crime documentary type shit combined together i never really realized that until i heard traplow ross described drill music that way absolutely and uh i feel like it's because now you almost forced to right it's like it go hand-to-hand that's like you can't be a good drill rap unless you're really drilling nowadays. That's what the climate is. That's how it is in the world.

They put this expectation on you. You've got to do that, right? And it's because things have changed overall, right? Like, back then when we was young, when I was growing up in the hood, it's like you'll have a few killers in the hood. If it's 30 us in the hood,

it's probably two to three real killers. Like, them the killers, them, bro, no. You know, we have, Like, but bone them the real kill. It wasn't, like, expected to everybody be on that. Because the value of life was way higher then. People weren't just eager to just go kill because niggas didn't want to go to jail.

And niggas, you know what I'm saying, actually have value. Now, if it's 30 of them, hey, bro, 28 of them is killers. You better lead them little boys alone. They stretch and shit. They're scary. Them little boys, because they don't care about life. The value of life is way down. It's like, I kill you and go lay down.

Like back then it's like you kill a man like you can't sleep, you jitters and you're dreaming about it. Nah, they'll kill you man and go and act like ain't nothing happen. That's what's going on. Do you think it's because of the internet now though? Absolutely. I think the internet, I don't think it's more the value of life. I think it's more so people are doing it now because they can get a career off of it maybe. No, I feel like the internet has desensitized it.

It's desensitized killer. You see so much of it and it's pushed so much. it's like, it ain't shit. Yeah. Back then it was like, you only seen killing on scary movies. You feel me?

On a serial killer documentaries. Now, nigga, you get on YouTube, the first thing you're going to see about somebody die. And you can literally go

watch people die all day, like just literally whole 30-minute clips are just different people dying in different ways. It's desicitized. And you realize,

you realize how f*** up it is because think about somebody like little Jeff, who's like relatively young, since he first became capable of understanding what people were saying and the music he was listening to it was about that shit like he grew up probably listening in chief keef and all this other types of shit and it makes it even worse the perks have like completely taken over the game when i was talking to the dude who uh killed pop smoke on here the other day he was saying he's like i barely

even remember that night i was off hell of perks and like so he's just out there just in a blur zombie mode, taking somebody's life, going home, not even thinking it's that big a deal. Fat-ass Glock switch on it, 50 shots in it. It's like, that's a formula for destruction. I don't want to run into his ass on no bad night. And I'm a gangster. I ain't trying to be running to these because they're not thinking.

Because before, you may be from a similar environment and you may be a gangster, but like your threshold for when you need to bust your gun is a lot high. than a lot of these kids where it seems like it's just like the most reckless decision. They're not thinking. They don't care. They're not thinking. First of all, their brain's not even fully formed

you. Right? They off these perks and these zams and this shit got this fat and all in and they got these nice ass exotic guns, these $1,000 guns with switches to chew the hundred bullets in two seconds. It's like,

man, that's a formula for destruction. I'm a thing. They're not going to think. it only take one tap. You feel like you've always been that way or this is a new mature Iwo that we're getting now? Because when I seen you years ago, it seemed like you was on that shit.

No. I was on that shit. I was on that shit. I was on that. Yeah. I was on it. Anybody didn't know. Anybody from Chicago didn't know me.

I was on that, right? But I still, I feel like there was still a higher value of life there. I still I want to just go do it 10,000 years now it's like the youth who don't care

they don't care they're ready to it's literally like they call it crashing out that didn't exist back then when I was growing up crashing out like what the fuck

you want to crash out for let me out this motherfucker for a crash now it's like they literally say well we're going to crash out that just that thought process

is beyond me like little bro you're saying that you're about to get in the car and run into a wall you know you're gonna die from that right damn okay now we're crashing out they off them drugs and they and it's like a it's like a game in them that's like a competition who could do it the worst you got you got two I'm trying to catch four it's it's like it's it's man it's bad bro like the fact that we all still remember the tuka shit and the little jojo shit

and all these like famous murder from back in the day. Like, none of the murders taking place right now are going to be remembered the same way 14 years down the road. Like, this shit is so much more common now. Desicitized. But back then, that shit, like, completely changed the culture

and it was all anybody could talk about, et cetera. It's like, that shit is not going to be the same way going forward. It's so much more common and so much, like, makes so much less of an impact now. And that's, that's like I was saying. Back then, when I was coming up, it was two, maybe three killings. So when the killing happened, it's like,

ooh, so-and-so just got this. I'm like, bro, if it's 30 and 28 us killing, it's killing all the time. All right, you call one today. I'm going to go catch one tomorrow. Oh, then you're a double-back catch two? Oh, I'm going to catch two. How are we going to remember it?

It's too much. So, all right, tell us a little bit about exactly where you're coming from and what it was like in your days as a young man. Um, so originally, for the ones that don't know, I'm a full blood in Nigeria. I was born overseas. Okay. I was born in Nigeria.

Came to America two years old, moved to the projects. My family bounced around a lot at the younger age, but when I got settled, settled, you know. So your parents came out here for a better life, and then they just sort of accidentally ended up in the middle of the shit in Chicago. Trenches. Damn. But it's like, okay, so this is the tree. trenches to Chicago is right. This ain't the trenches

to them. Right. To them it's like, oh we're having shit now. This is the hill tonight, shit. We, projects? It's right in water. So, this is the Hilton. But at a certain time, did your parents realize like maybe this wasn't the best neighborhood? For sure.

Because the difference between Nigerian culture and American culture is the together Right? Growing up in Nigeria, being Nigerians, they have more,

like, you've heard the saying it takes a village to raise a child. It was really a village mentality, and it wasn't that here. So it was more cut, though, kill. Like, to see a black person, kill a black person is ludicrous. It's like Nigerians don't kill Nigerians.

Like, what? So they automatically knew, like, no, this ain't right. Something ain't right here. Y'all don't hang with them. Was there a big deal? vibe between you and the other kids just in terms of you being an immigrant though? Like you got a little accent and shit and they probably treat you different. Man, when I say bullying was at an all time, huh? I was the one getting bullied at a point in time because we

was the African booty scratchers. Wow. That was the word. Where did that come from? Because I used to call nigginsets. In elementary school, they would say that, but there weren't even like actual Africans around. There's black Americans, but like they used to be saying that shit. And that's one thing I didn't realize until I moved to New York when I was like 20 is that black Americans, if there's like African kids around, they will treat them like they got nothing in common. And it's like a total. And that's super horrible. And now you see that shit on Twitter all the time, that there's like crazy conversations

that I'm not fit to speak on. But the crazy thing about it to me now is like I'm seeing a full circle and now it's like now it's becoming cool to be African. When I grew up, when I came to America, we came to America, my older brothers or oldest, It wasn't cool to be African. We used the African booty scratches. Now it's like I see that America is embracing Africans more, especially Nigerians, the Nigerian culture.

Like I said, Afro beast is blowing up crazy right now. I see everybody talking about eating foo-foo all of a sudden now. What's food? It's like a doughy, pasty food, Nigerian cuisine. You eat with stew, vegetables, stew, a vegetable stew. Nope next time I'll come and bring you Bring you a dish That'd be great

You could test it out Let's do that It's some foo food on here So you said you moved here at like two How many siblings you had? Like how many siblings you got? So it's me and I have six brothers and sisters So yeah we was in the two

Two bedroom Well three bedroom No no I'm like two bedroom Two bedroom project built So it was Yeah we was packed in It was It was rough early.

And I moved straight to the hundreds or? No, no, no. We moved on 63rd. Whoa. We're 62nd, 6220, the Cali-Met Builders. That's when we first moved when I first came to America. Okay. So from there, we moved on 71st in Lafayette.

Chicago was a known, called the Lafayette Towers, the white builders. Yeah, so my first, my first experience in Chicago was Project Living. Right. It was Project Living. I've seen the Ozak TVs that you did. It was Trigger World? Okay, Trigger Town. So that's after a few, like I said, we moved around early.

So from 71st, we moved to the far, the south suburbs, Cal City, Calumet City. Shoutout is on now, 147, man. Tide money from around that way, you know what I'm saying? And from there, I bounce to the hundreds. That's Trigger Town. So Trigger Town is the 100s. Low. Yeah. Stumping ground. That's why I really, I say I earned my bones for real. That's why I call home home, right? I stayed at a few different places. Before that, I stayed with these third Nartesian also. You know what I'm saying? Should I out cross Western. You know what I'm saying? But 123 is why I call my home, and that's why I earned my bones. That's where EWO became EW. That's why I became EW. And what does EW stand for? Because there's a whole much of y'all that got EW in front of the name. Okay, so E-W-W-E-W-S-Pell backwards.

It's Low Street. We're from 123 and Low-S-E-O-Sreet. Oh, all right. That's L-O-W-E-E-W-L, so E-W-W. You ever go to Lowe's? All the time. I want to get, it was a point in time I wanted to get Lowe's tattered on me. You should.

But get it like your name, but in the Lowe's font. With the 123-s saddle on top of it. That would go be crazy. I'm glad I didn't do that. So what was it like in that area, though? Like, the environment. This is any typical Chicago neighborhood, man.

You know what I'm saying? You got the drug dealing. You got the violence. You got the, you know what I'm saying? You got the prostitutions. You got the robber. It was hood living. But also, you had the camaraderie.

You know what I'm saying? You had the family aspect. You have your friends, which are your brothers. You know what I'm saying? You had your sisters. You had the, you know what I'm saying? We had the cookouts. We had the barbecues.

We had the old heads, the OGs. You know, it was typical Chicago shit, you know? When you feel like you jumped off the porch? Like, what age would you say? Okay, I've been bad since... I've been bad since bad. Since the beginning, I've been off the porch since I was young, right? Because, like I said, I grew up from Africa to projects.

So I always been a ruffian. And going through that early bullying, I had to fight back. My parents wanted them type of parents to let us fold. So it's like, ain't no coming in her crime. Go back out there and fight. But you were always a big dude? No, I was skinny, man. I was a skinny dude, man.

Prison made me big, man. Processed prison food gave me this size, man. I used to be skinny, but I was always lanky and tall. I just always had the heart of a lion, man. I'll fight however many people I got to fight, man, because I got tired of being bullied. So I started doing the bullying at a young age. But to say, when I really jumped off of the porch,

off the porch, man. I went to Juvenile when I was 11 years old. First time, I went to 1100 South Hamilton. That's our Adi home. What Chicago was called Adiholm. I was 11 years old, man. I stole the motor vehicle in the pipe, man. I've been off the porch since the younger.

I've been bad since bad was bad. So Rico Nigerian? No, okay, Rico's not Nigeria. Rico's not Nigeria. Okay, let me clarify. Okay, let me clarify. because a lot of people don't understand a relationship. Me and Rico, that's my cousin, but that's my cousin by default, not by blood, right? All right, that makes sense.

Okay, so my mother and Rico's mother, we all went to the same church at a young age, right? Me and Rico literally got pictures in the church basketball league when our shorts was too big for our bodies. You know what I'm there? So we just been around each other since adolescence. So that was my cousin. Do you remember how you met him? you know how it'd be when you it's been so long

you don't even remember how right you know what I'm saying it's one of those situations but was he kind of like reckless already reckless always been reckless he was already that dude okay this is before he was Rico reckless

but he already had that personality Ronnie Moe he was bad as shit he always been and now I think that's why we clicked so much because we was both just bad as shit and how far was Rico block

from your block okay so in a hundred okay Rico's originally from 39th in Lake Park Way down low Right But like I said We went to the same church

So we used to meet It church You know what I'm saying And it's ironic That's why we both love God Right But we were just bad as hell And it's ironic that we bad as him

We made in church We formed our relationship At church right You know what I'm saying But I feel like that's what carried us This far because The relationship we do got with God even though we bad as hell.

Right. And so that's what we used to meet and we used to play basketball together. You know what I'm saying? He had, his best friend name was Johnny back then. And I used to kick Johnny's ass all the time. Just a little tidbit. Johnny, you know what I used to do to you back then.

A little tidbit. But yeah, we've been talking since the younger. Yeah. And so were you guys primarily focused on the streets or when did the music start to become a conversation? Okay, so back then, you got to think, growing up in the hood, young, young black, we always say we either going to be basketball players or rappers, right?

I always wanted to rap. He wasn't even big on rapping back then, right? He was more hooping and shit like that. But we was always doing bad shit, like breaking the cribs. breaking their houses and stealing cars, and we was just bad as hell. But I always, me personally, I always wanted to be a rapper. So I always do my little rap thing. So you was rapping before Rico?

He was taking it more serious before me. I'm going to say that, but I always been rapping. You know, we freestyle, you know, we get high. We smoke, get high, we all get the rapper. You know, normalhood shit. But I always wanted to be a professional rapper since the younger. Right? back then, Reckless didn't really express that back then, but it was in them.

Freestyle, pop this shit, you know what I'm saying? You know how that shit go? So when did you record your first tracks? Like, what year is this? You started like, all right, I'm going to take this series. Okay, my first mixtape was recording in 2012. Hosted by DJ Amaris. Shout out DJ Amaris.

It's called Mr. BMW. you. Bitches money weed. That was my first real mixed tape. But Reckless was recording before that, which is crazy, right? He was recording before that. Because Reckless

moved on 75th way back then. In the 5th Wookle World. And that's, I guess, around the times where he was around the little Jojo's and the killer kills and, you know what I'm saying? Those are his group of friends down

way I wasn't living down there. But he was rapping. He was rapping with them. And this was around the time where the drill era started becoming the drill era. This is when the Chief Keys was getting hot. The little Jojo's was still alive. You know what I'm saying? So we was here in the beginning

of the drill era. We were part of the forefathers of it. So y'all see all the motion that's going on between Chief Keith, you know, Dirk having his wave, Louis at the time having his wave. Louis, for sure. When did y'all So y'all decided to come up with Reckless Renegate?

Like, what was that the name of y'all label? Yeah, that was the name where I labeled. When did y'all create that? How did that form? Okay, so Reckless created that. I would say around 2013, when I was locked, I was booked. Yeah. Right?

But we used to still communicate over the phone. And he got booked, too, but he got out before me. He created it. And he bought it to me, like, look, because I got out in, like, 2015. And he's like, man, dude, you're fin to take this rap shit serious, dude. Like, you can't keep going to jail. He's like, man, I'm having some little motion on this shit. I can't do it without you.

Flat out, he's like, I can't do without you, man. I need you at with me. You're my cousin. You don't only my guy I really trust for real. You know what I'm saying? We ain't got to pick no size. We ain't got to be on this side. We ain't got to be on that side.

We're reckless renegade. We're us. You know what I'm saying? You fuck who you fuck with? You fuck with who I fuck with? Like, people just going to accept us or they not. That's why we could smoke a gun smoke. You either going to smoke with us or you're going to get some smoke from us.

You know what I'm saying? And that's my cousin. Loyalty always dealt love. I'm shit. Come on. Let's do it. Fuck it. So who was reckless renegade?

It was just you and him? Me and him. We was the renegades. But as time went on, you know, more people was going to fucking with it. My little brother, Spang D was always with me. So he was by default reckless renegade. Free Spang D. You know, he had a few guys that he fucked with.

it was with the movement. Was that like shocking to people that y'all didn't want to take sides or doing your own thing? And that's the thing, right? That was something that was overlooked back then, but it was a big riff. A lot of people wasn't happy about

it. Because you got to remember, Rico was with a movement that my people wasn't too excited about back then, right? Because he was with the GD movement, right? Yeah, yeah. They weren't excited about that. They're like, what you doing?

You tripping, bro. You tripping. I'm like, man, it's my cousin. But off the respect and the love that my people have for me, they honored it. And they have rifts with other neighborhoods behind that because they like, damn, y'all support that? Yeah. And, you know, my people are like, man, that's bro. Man, we rock with whatever he rocked with.

And at this time, it's hit him up out. That's, did he remix it yet? Because I know that brought some action. your shit to you because if you if y'all's having beef just my affiliation yeah so soon as he dropped that song it had to go crazy whew! Hiddlebop! Hiddlem up

has started some shit. It's some stories that people don't know about. Yeah, give us some stories about how hit him up. Were you out of jail when it dropped? I was out of jail when it dropped. I was literally in the studio with him. We're in the studio. Don Robb studio, shout out Don Robb.

And Rico, man, rest of peace Unk was there and he's Enrico like, man, hey, Cubs, thinking about dropping this Trump, thinking about recording this track, man. I'm about to remix this track, man. And I'm gonna... This the whole Chicago.

What you think? He told me straight up, man, if you say, don't do it, I ain't gonna do it. I say, nigga, fuck, the nigga drop that shit. Bitchy be. Music is supposed to be creative, right? Yeah.

We entertainers, right? We entertainer, right? Man, that's your craft, man. Drop that shit. If they feel some type... they feel some type of way, man. Hey, whatever happened behind her, you know, I'm rocking and I'm rolling. I haven't listened to that song in so long, but was he just dissing everybody or was it strictly

people that he had issued with? No, he just dissed everybody. I think the first song wasn't, the first diss was about Lou Reese, right? Yeah, first off, first, yeah, like, yeah. And then I think Reese's ass, all right, so when that song came out, what was the immediate backlash from either your homies or anybody, like, who was the first person? You were like, oh, yeah, there's some backlash coming from a, this shit. I'm not going to let's like everybody has something

something to say at that time. Everybody but I feel like the real artists right knew it was like shit just music man because it was like it was like uh what a time to be a live moment right it's like Chicago history right there

like that's something that when you speak on Chicago music history Chicago you're going to talk about that you're going to talk about hey I remember Rico Reckless this the whole city he pulled the 50 cents right that's the back that was our favorite rapper growing up. 50 cents.

So he's like, man, I'm about to do it in it. And we understood that it's entertainment, man. We ain't really dissing them on some fuck-you-dead, homie shit. Man, we feel a rap. Y'all understood it was entertainment, but not everybody he dis-understood that it was entertainment. Someone took it serious. And 50-7 was dissing, like, a bunch of rappers, not, like, warring gang members. But the war, no, okay, so hit them up.

The warring gang members were rappers at the time. Everybody he dissed in that. song were rappers. 50 cent doesn't like Fat Joe, Little Kim and shit, right? I don't even remember if Fat Joe was in it. But he's just like talking about a bunch of people that realistically were probably not as much of a worry. And also, well, I mean,

that was early in 50's career before he was like insulated from a lot of drama and shit. But that was the primary influence. So that started a lot of shit. And so are you kind of having to do cleanup on that, trying to keep shit cool? Or? I mean, I'm a respectable young

man in the city of Chicago. Right. So I'll just say I got a few phone calls. And we have some respectful conversations. Yeah, you said some stories happen, Mauna. Give us a story that we probably ain't heard behind that. That you could tell, obviously. See, the key word is that I can tell. It's some things I probably can't tell, right?

A lot of times when you hang out with reckless, he'll tell you a little story here and there. Yeah, I'm going to just say. You're not supposed to repeat. Clean up crews was around, if anything, were to go too far left. You know what I'm saying? Like, it's also, we also be peaceful, man. We also, we're having fun. It's entertainment, but, like, we're not going to be threatened by anybody.

Like, we ain't nobody going to, we're not just about letting anybody do nothing to us. You know what I'm saying? So if anything social happened to go too far left, we prepare for what comes with it. We, you know, we was prepared for what came with it when we dropped. Around what year is that when y'all dropped that? This in 2007. 2016. That's about like four years after you guys started wrapping, right?

Yeah. And like, 2016. That was like the same year that Rico traveled to L.A. In search of Soldier Boy. Situation, yeah. And were you there for that? I was there for every situation. I was right there.

I was always the one just in the shadows. I ain't going to say too much. I ain't going to do too much camera. But I'm here. Right. I'm here. And if it shows you're having to go too left. So what was the plan with that?

Like, from your perspective? What were you guys going to LA for? To be honest, we were going to LA for something totally different. We didn't go to LA for a soldier boy per se. But it just so happened. He was teething at that time. So it's like, shit, we have, yeah, you know, we're not regular, d'agler people, right?

And you don't know who's connected to who, right? So it's like, we can get to you because you don't know who we connected to. You think you're safe where you at, but you don't even know. Like, we're not just no regular guys. You know, sometimes you don't let your right hand know what you're left doing. Right. So the essence of power is knowing when to use it. You don't know how powerful we are.

That was, to me, that was when I really got familiar with Reckless because I remember academics posting like, you know, 12 fucking videos about all the different little things that Reckless was getting into while he was out here. I remember watching every single one and just being like, what the fuck, this dude's crazy. Yeah. Yeah. But I feel like, shit, that's his name, right? Reckless, right? He was living up to his name, and I was around, you know. You was making show people kept without their mouth.

Yeah. Let's talk about the viral video. So when I first, years ago, like, early on before, like, when Zach TV's doing this thing, you had a viral video. It wasn't even on Zach TV, but this is around the same time. Yeah. Where, I guess, AOKD and NBA and Flip were about to go do a song, and they linked up somehow, but it got intercepted

where you ended up running into them, and you got the viral video where you confronted them, and you told, I don't know if you were talking to both of them, but you were saying, keep reckless renegade out of your mouth. You pressed them. You said, I'm Ewo. I'm not a rapper. I'm a street nigger.

Break this day down. First of all, you was there for a flip. Where do you want to flip? How do y'all even know each other? Yeah, just break that day down for us. Like, what, what went down? Okay. Just disclaimer, right, through the gate.

This is all younger years, right? Where I was then isn't where I'm at now. Yeah. First and foremost, right? Some of the people that I didn't like then, I wouldn't necessarily say I don't like now, right? We mature and we grow over time. So who I was then and who I was, who I am now. Just disclaimer.

But at that time, when I was in my madness, right? I was going to call it. We used to my madness, right? I'm like, who is this thing right here? When I was in my madness, we had a lot of things. things going on outside of the camera first and foremost, right? But was it with flip hood?

Because it felt like AOKD was just like a random I mean, yeah, okay, so let's do the gate AOKD never had nothing to do nothing. I never been into AOKD. I've never seen AOKD as an opposition at all. I've never had beef with him. I still to this day

don't have beef with him, right? The world painted like that, but like I never had no beef with him. Me and him, we never been into it. He's so far from where I'm from, right? Flip is from the hunters, right? Not too far from me. So it's things going on outside of the camera.

We're just going to say that. It was some situations and some things were said about some loved ones in my that I didn't take too much liking to. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. What a lot of people don't know is Flip has some type of relation to Rico

in a sense. I ain't going to get too deep into that. But he still shows him a lot of love. Get related. He'll talk about him affectionately. They're related. So just off the strength of that, get sort of a pass,

if that makes sense. Right? I feel that. It's like sort of like, so it could go more than one way, right? It could be the video that you see and an embarrassment that comes with that. Or you could have never saw a video. never saw a video.

Exactly. All of a sudden, this is a tragedy that people would talk about as like a sad start to, you know. So some things were said that I didn't like. So I'm like, hey, look. But did Flip say these things or more so his only? Flip. Flip said them for sure. All right, for sure.

I didn't know. He for sure said them. Which, and to be honest, I don't think he's in the same space today that he was in back then. Right? because I seen some recent videos from him. He's locked up currently, right? Yeah, currently he's locked up right now. But before he got locked, I've seen some recent videos,

and he had a different kind of a tone, right? Like, he was moving in a different direction, too, right? Kind of like, he ain't what we used to be. And I love that for him. Hopefully, you know, more success, and I hope he get out of jail, and he live his life and be a father to his children. You know what I'm saying?

But at that time, he had said some things that I ain't taken too much liking to because I had just lost one of my little brothers. Manky. Everybody world knows Chief Manky, yeah. Everybody knows Chief Manky. Everybody knows Chief Manky was from that video after that, for sure. So Chief Manky had just passed away, and it was some words like, yeah, he was talking to reckless.

Like, yeah, nigger, and tell your cousin to pull up to so I could Chief Manky his ass. Flip saying this. All right, yeah. That's the part we didn't see. That's what a lot of people didn't see. That's what even caused the whole ordeal. I ain't a bully, but there's certain things I'm not going to allow you to say or do. I got more questions in.

It said that AOKD and Flip were headed to a studio, and they had, I guess, another homie in the car. How did y'all, they were trying to say it was a backdoor situation where... They were headed to me from the beginning. But headed to you to go to the studio? They were coming to me from the beginning. All right, but the way AOKD explained it was they were getting studio to, and him and Flip were from the knockout of feature.

So, seeing like they got back door and they thinking they was going to studio and they ended up where you was at. Remember what I was saying earlier about how you don't know who's connected to who, right? I'm not a regular person. I got a little bit more power than the average. When I want to touch you, I can touch you.

It ain't hard. They were coming to me from the beginning. But in that video, it seems like you're showing up where they're hanging out. Yeah, yeah, because they were on like a porch and then like, sorry, they're coming to you, how do they end up on that porch?

Because in their mind, they're going to a studio session, at least how AOKD explained it, and then they're on a porch, and then you walk up. Yeah, so the way things work, right? Because at the end of the day, you know, we got to still be, we got to keep it PG and keep it, you know? Yeah, we're pushing peace.

Don't forget. We push a piece. But, um, you don't know who's connected to who and it's different type of fish in the pond. I ain't one of them tadpoles. I'm a great white shark. So when the button get pushed,

if I want to touch you, I'm going to touch you. Ain't a way you can run. Ain't the way you can hide. And that was one of them situations. They thought they were going to a studio session. They never were going to a studio. They were coming to me from the beginning. Oh, okay.

But AOKD, he didn't have anything to do. A-O-KD had no idea what was going on. A-O-KD never knew. Like, he don't know what's going on. So who's driving? Somebody's driving them to you, obviously, is a scenario like that. I mean. So he just basically, he got just caught up hanging out with.

In the middle of some shit that he had nothing to do with. Right. So that's why I let him off the porch. From the beginning. Because I've never had beef with A-O-KD. Did you even know him that day? I didn't know who he was. Oh, yeah.

I mean, you know. I didn't know him. I don't know him. Yeah. So it's like Because he kept telling me He's like, I never said reckless Renegade.

Right. No, but he, there's a thing. On the interview that Flip said what he said, A.O. Katie was in that interview. He was there with him. So kind of like a guilty by association type of.

He was ad libid. Not knowing who he's ad libbing against right now. He didn't know what he was getting itself into. Yeah, all right. Right. Right. Right. So it was more of a.

Hey, spanking, don't do that again, type of thing. Right? It wasn't never an execution or a persecution. It was just a, hey, don't do that no more because, like, you're playing. Y'all are playing. And it's niggas I had ain't playing, man. Yeah.

This niggas out how they ain't playing. And y'all are playing. This internet shit going to get y'all in the pickle, man. I don't do the internet. And that's why I was letting them understand. Hey, bro, I don't do that. I'm not a rapper game. my cousin's making me rap.

I'm not a rapper. These cameras will go off. Don't do the shit again. You know why you're getting your pass, and that's why he kept saying, call reckless, call reckless. Right? Because when you call reckless, that's his relative. So reckless, obviously going to say,

let him go. You know what I'm saying? That's why he kept saying, call reckless. So do you feel like you created a demon in that moment? Because to this day, when he's pretending to be homeless, and he's, doing all these crazy skits and shit. It kind of feels like,

I don't know, it feels like it all extends from that. Like, he took a L and was made to look pretty silly on camera, and so he's kind of like gone upon throughout his life. He's like done a lot of goofy-ass shit, but he's faked a lot of it, and he kind of took control of that. And I regret that

even ever happened, because I do feel like that altered that kid's life in a way because now anytime anyone sees him, they see him in a certain light, and they use that to their advantage against him, right?

It's like they look at him as like a goofy through the gate, and that was never my intention to portray him as a goofy. He ain't even supposed to be here. I was just being me. I wasn't trying to bully him or make him goofy or make it, but he's like, you know what I'm saying? This could go different

ways. I'm trying to take the best route right now. Right? So, this is what I have to offer. go. But from that everybody started trolling. He started trolling. He's He started trolling. So now it's like from that point forward

now they just like label him as a goofy. Which he's actually an I kid, man. I haven't talked on the phone with him numerous times, the FaceTime with him numerous times after that man. He just kind of lost in a sauce a little bit. You know what I'm saying? He just needs some guidance. You know what I'm saying? He's done and you like need a mentor or something. I don't know. But like I just seen the shit with him.

He locked up right now, I think. for this shit in Atlanta? I don't know, man. It's just, I don't know what's real or fake with him anymore. Yeah, I've seen that. Him and FYBJ. Maine posted that he recently got a lot.

I don't know if it was a skiff. That's what I'm saying. I don't know. And it's like, in a sense, it's like, that still stems from that one moment. It's like, it's like I'm labeled as a goofy now,

so I might just be goofy forever. But that's something like, boy who cried wolf shit, because literally we're watching a clip of him getting arrested by a police officer, putting him in handcuffs, and we're still all like, I don't know.

I don't believe. I swear to all that's real shit because he did so much shit and I didn't talk to him like bro chill out bro how did y'all get cool like you apologize to him or something one day and then y'all kind of like do the report

as a man you know man listen man as you grow older man you got to take accountability to feel actions right so I have to take accountability for putting him in this because it's like I say this shit that dragged over 12 14 13 13

years now. It's like they still fucking with this kid over this shit. And it's like, I'm like, man, you know, my bad man. You know, you was just the wrong place, the wrong time, man. Did that change life for you in the streets in the sense that all of a sudden you're like well known for fucking with people in that?

I've been who I been. But you're like used to like reckless being the one who's doing the crazy shit on social media and now all of a sudden people have seen you doing some wild ass shit on social media. And you know what? That's crazy, right? Did you say that? Yeah, because after that, everybody always done they just expecting me to do shit on camera for it's like that ain't even me

bro like I'm not with all that so now at nighttime everybody expected you all to do something wow and yeah now we thought you was like after that video for sure so all right you said you talked to AOKD so like now that you see the pushing piece moving and stuff is there is it a point where you want flip could ever talk or is it's too far gone um if we're talking about the pushing peace movement,

could you and his? Like, I don't know how serious to it. How could I say no? That would be me being a hypocrite, right? When the disrespect is like 10 plus years ago. Like I was saying before, you know, before we start the interview, it's like, yeah, everything that went on and went on,

but then it's like, when does it stop, though? Right? Who's going to be brave enough to be like, all right, it stops with me? Right? me to say I'm not open to having a conversation with him, that'll be being a hypocrite and I'm not that. Right? It's a lot of things that happen, man.

Bloodshed on every side. On every side. Right. Like, so it's like, who knows? Who knows? Because you know if you were to run into him when you're both 50, it's very unlikely that you're still going to be hung up on it, right? So you might as well just accept it now. hey, we both did

fucked up shit, we both did disrespectful shit let's put it behind us so that we can hopefully influence these kids. And that's the right thought what you just said is the most important right. To be able to beat a face that influences them. Like, fuck what we got going on.

What didn't happen with us and happen. If we don't stand up and be an example, it's going to keep happening. And I got a 15-year-old son. It's going to end up happening with him there. And who's to say he don't be the one to catch it. Well, he don't be the one

to give it and be locked up forever. Right? So if we don't stand up and be like, hey, bro, we got to be some type of example. Man, we fail in his leaders. We fail in his influences. We call ourselves influences. What we're influencing? What type

of influence are we having? Because think about the model you're setting for your son. If you could explain to him, like, listen, this is a dude who disrespected my dead homies and we had this and this and this happened between us. But that shit It doesn't really mean anything at the end of the day. It's bigger than that.

I'm going to be the bigger man. At the end of the day, the goal, the main goal is bigger than that. That's the kind of model that you need to set for a teenage boy, you know? No, for real. The main goal is taking care of humanity and having unity, right? As a people, not even just Chicagoans or black people or white people. It's just people. We are human beings at the end of the day.

We all bleed red. So that's the goal for humanity And like I said That's why I me personally I don't partake in drill music anymore Because the narrative that it pushes And the message that it pushes is not That's not why I'm at in my life anymore

How old were you during that footage That's about like eight years Yeah I said 10 plus it was more like eight years yeah In 2000 and what 15 Well hit them up came out seven years ago Yeah so that was It was about eight years ago. About eight years ago.

About eight years ago. All right. So for the people who don't know who Chief Manky is, who was he to you? Man, Chief Manky was the spark of the neighborhood, the spark of Trigger Town, man. He was that one guy did. If everybody's having a bad day, a bad moment, he walks in the room, he's going to make everybody laugh. He's silly. Funny is here.

Just crazy. Always got a smile on his face. always saying some wow shit he was the um he was literally the life of the hood he was like the young one of the youngest out of us so we like we all like kind of protected him shelter him you know I'm saying um that was like I said it's my little brother man you know what I'm saying not the same mother not the same father but that's my little brother so um yeah when he he had that hurt a lot of people you know you got them certain people like uh you got certain guys in the hills like, all right, he, he's a

stepper. He a gangster. So it's like certain ones love him and like him, right? The guys like him. Chief McGee was the one that the females like, the old lady's like, he's going to help up bring her groceries in and he's just the likable, everybody

likes him. Everybody's welcome. So it's like, when Lussein died on goddamn you got served, man. Yeah. It's like, damn, let's say that's how I would. And he died to gun violence. And he died to gun violence. Yeah. So, man, yeah, that was, that went hit home a little harder than, you know, the average.

He was more like a closer friend to you? Yeah, that was my little brother. I literally was on the phone with him for almost two and a half hours the day before he died. Wow. I just dropped off a pair of shoes for him. The shoes that he died in was the shoes I just gave. Wow. So, like, it was hit home.

So did you end up getting locked up in between, like, that time, that 2017 era and then when you guys are doing that whole podcast running like 2021 type shit? Yes, I got locked up in 2017. Right. And got back out in 2022. Okay. And what you get charged with during that time? I had two UUWs, high capacity magazines.

UUW's obviously pistol cases. I had two ran wild. But I was charged, but it's an armed abitual criminal. So both of my cases carry six to 30 or 85% ran wild, meaning I had to serve each sentence one after the other. I wasn't serving them together. So essentially, I was facing 60 years and 85%. Wow.

So to say that it was serious is an understatement. How'd you end up getting away with five? Shit, a good-ass lawyer. Really? A good-ass lawyer, bad shit. Shout out my boy, Blue. Bird. Shout out that Jew Gloop. Where did that did it? Shit, boy.

I ended up getting the plea agreement for 12, 12 years of 50% for both of them. So 6 at 50 and 6 at 50. Got a little bit of good time and I came home in five years. Okay. And would you say, like, how much did you change while you were in that environment? Was it for the better or was it for the worst? I changed for the better exponentially, man.

I changed. It was a time of reflection, right? It was a time where, because that's the longest time I ever did, right? And you realize that a lot of the shit you thought matter, man, that shit don't matter. When you sit in that cold cell by yourself in night, a lot of shit you think matter, don't matter. All of the pride and the ego and the clout and all. I don't know that shit, matter.

Because I had a cellie that had 66 years. Oh, my God. right and you talking to him and it's like bro don't none of that shit we think matter matter bro if this man to give his left leg right now to get his freedom we don't be cherishing what we'd be having

when we'd be having it I didn't cherish my freedom right I didn't cherish I didn't cherish my independence to be able to go open my refrigerator and you know what I'm saying take my daughter to the park and this man here sitting in hell

in the cell with me 66 years he never coming home He's gonna die in prison. He knows it. Right? So it was a time of self-reflection with me. Like, man, I can't be like this. I can't go out like this.

But if I keep playing, I will, though. And that's why I pray a lot of these young brothers really get this message like, gang. All that shit you think matter. Phone them, that shit don't matter, boy. When that judge slammed that gavel down and say, 66 years, you're going to cry. Shit going to hurt. I know many nights I cried And I'm a gangster

I cry because that shit hurt Them holes gonna leave You hear me The phone calls going slow up They gonna stop answering That commissary money Gonna slow up Yeah

All the guys Ain't gonna be the guys Fava They gonna fuck your bitch All that You're gonna be in there hurt Them letters gonna slow up You don't want to go through

The Trial and Trippulations man And then to no like Man I gotta go to through this for 60 years. Man, that shit ain't no game. That shit set me down, especially coming from where I was coming from, having the motion that I was having to having to sit down for five years, man.

Shit. I reassess my situation. Quick. Fuck that. All right, because I've asked a lot of people, so in that sense, you feel like jail actually helps you? Absolutely, right? Jail is like a double-edged

sword. For some people, it can rehabilitate and help you if you do what you're supposed to do. while you're there. Because some niggas in the they don't even take it serious. They begin in there and they're still doing

the same shit they was doing to it. Savage lives. Savage life. Stabbing niggers up, fighting, stealing, robbing niggas. Just goofy as hell, right? That's goofy to me. Me personally. What were you doing in there to rehabilitate yourself in a sense? I'm always big on

exercising, right? I used to do a lot of exercises, weight lifting. They have weight in there? Yeah, for sure. Some prisons don't. Some prisons don't. I wasn't in a supermax prison. I was in like a medium max. That's what we call the medium max. It wasn't the max max, but it's like right under it. So we have free weights. It's funny because I've heard them say

that they took the weights away because the CEOs don't want to have to be wrestling a bunch of fucking 300-pound monsters. But then at the same time, if you have a bunch of big, brawling fucking dudes who've got all kinds of energy and their predisposed to violence and shit, if you get them working out and exhausting themselves, that might be like very, very good for making dudes less aggressive. I feel like the weights are needed because, like I say, it does make you less aggressive

because exercising helps your mental health. Right, exactly. Right. That's one thing. When I was in there, I got deep into mental health, right? I'm a super big mental health advocate now. Shout out. Hearts, my brother, A, B. Slick, he has a, it's a clothing.

line called Social Hearts. It's the Heart Heart Prevention Club. And he's big on mental health and we advocate

mental health. Shout out Mo Petchy. We big on mental help in our environment, man, in our neighborhoods. Because a lot of us

be having mental health issues and don't even realize it. We normalize it. Right? I didn't know I had the mental health issues that I had

until I did that five years. And I got a chance to actually take a deep dive into what's my problem. That was one of my biggest questions to myself. I had to literally sit in front of myself when I was in jail.

Like I came out of my body and sat in front of my and had a conversation with myself. Like, bro, what the fuck is your problem, bro? You steady tweaking, steady coming to jail, bro. You kids growing up. Girl got a new nigga. You and this bitch losing. What's wrong with you?

You like this shit? I know I don't like this shit. I'm answering. I'm like, I don't like this shit. What's wrong? I'm fucked up. That's the problem. I got mental health issues.

And I don't know how to identify it. A lot of our youth right now is in the world with mental health issues and don't know how to identify it. It's a lot of kids in Chicago right now with mental health issues that don't even understand it. Shout out to her, man, for shining a light on PTSD. Yeah. But that album was big, too. Bro, I played that album to death when I was in it.

I played that non-star. I was on my MP. I used to work out to it. Because the album was so deep and so real. It'll bring tears to my ass because it's like, bro, we fucked up. And we don't even know we fucked up. We think this shit normal. Bro, we're...

I can't go to the bathroom without my piss. That's not normal. I'm not a fucking Marine. I'm a civilian. I'm a Americanist, but not in Chicago, though. We fucked up. Like, and it's like... Ain't nobody saying this shit

Like bro Y'all don't know we fucked up It's like shit what They roll up Nick, fuck you too We fuck that we're good It's like nah bro We fucked up

Right because like When you're in the middle of war You don't really have room To be talking about your feelings And shit like that So that time that I had Sat down gave me the time To reflect

And analyze And to really break down What's my problems Where do I keep going wrong. Why do I think the way I think? Why do I think it's okay to just kill it, man? Like, that's not normal

to just think like, man, if this nigga step on my shoe or if he hits my sister, I have the right to go kill him. No. That's not a normal human being's way of thinking. Right? But it's been normalized

in our society. Because of the mental health, man. Right? Like, we had Gunshots and act like a motherfucker just slammed the door. You can't have switch to go off right now. And I just keep going like ain't nothing happened. Well, motherfuckers would be under the table like, man, you just heard them. Like what?

What's wrong with you? One of y'all got a pipe, right? We're good. And that ain't normal. But we don't even realize that. You can't tell no, no, no, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, you for Chicago right now that that's not normal. They're like, well, you're tweaking, bud.

She did you got a pipe, we good. having to ride with a gun every single day, right? This is how I rationalize it. If I carry my pistol outside, 365 days, every single day of this year, 365 days in the year, if I carry this pistol outside with me, 365 days, it only takes one day, one time to get called. I don't care how lucky you are. You're not about to just keep coming outside every single. day with this gun and think you're going to come home safely every single day and I go to jail when there's task force whole police

forces that gets paid a salary to chase you every day to try to catch you this is their job this is what they get paid to do every single day because they know you got it the fact that you even think in your head that you're going to make it every day is insanity that's mental health you you you're a little off But we think like that, though. And there's multiple traps. There's the trap where you're not safe leaving the house without your gun, and the cops all know you have guns, so they're going to arrest you. And then there's the additional trap of once you do your time, then you're going to be on parole or probation or whatever.

They know where to come in. And then you still need a gun. You still need your gun. And now you're going to get in way more trouble if they catch you with it. So that's why you got to get out of it. Like anybody. You got to get out of it. Because it's like being in that environment where you're so.

mixed up with your ops and people around you and cops knowing who you are and shit it's just like it's a death sentence it's literally it's literally being set up for failure yeah right it's like knowing that I'm a fail and that alone is depressing that's the that's real the pressure to know like I'm gonna fail bro it's no way for me to win for someone that's in that situation right now like it might be in Chicago they feel like they have to keep a gun on them to protect himself but also they risk and going to jail every day what type of advice would you give them get out.

Right? And that's easier to say it than done because everybody doesn't have the resources to just get out. And that's why those faces,

the dirks, the herbs, we got to really step up. The chances, the Kanye West. Y'all love Chicago, bro.

We got to come together, bro, in some way to change the narrative, change the climate, change the environment where it's not like this, though. So we can help

each other get to a point where I don't need that gun. I don't need that gun. Or I have the resources to get out. We got to help bring resources, man. Yeah. And I see Dirk has a pretty decent relationship with the mayor. You know what I'm saying?

Man, we need to start having these sit-downs, man. And really try to figure out a way, well, we could change the climate. Because any problem that you have, you have to attack it from the route. We got to get to the road. root. And the root is the climate, the environment. Because the kids are only going

to go as their environment goes. So until we can change their environment, it ain't going to be no chain. They just literally crashing out. Waking up to crash out every day because they got to keep their pipe. But if they get caught, they'll get in jail. If they don't, if they

get caught without their pipe, they're going to die. We got to change the environment where it's not like that. Where if I get covered my, without my pipe, then I'm not dying. And the shit's fucked up too because the high cost of living makes it so that the idea of you just like getting a job and being able to get enough money together to be able to move to a different area and get a spot is just like so much more challenging. And that also entails leaving your family and the people that you grew up around, which understandably

a lot of people don't really want to do. I feel like off a job right now, the way the economy is, a dream to think that I'm going to just get a job and I'm going to save up enough to move like, bro, that shit is it, bro. What the fuck is living? Check to check right now. Yeah. Like, it's possible, but it's extremely hard. Extremely hard, especially what type of jobs do we have in the inner city?

Not to mention the risk. We don't got a bunch of tech jobs. The risk of being a gang member who's working at Walgreens is immense. Exactly. So just think of that mental pressure on you every day. I want to do better. I want to get out. but it's like, in order for me to do this, I got to go get this job.

But if somebody catch me at this job, they're going to kill me. Just that mental pressure on your brain every day will drive a same man crazy. How to drive anybody to a crash out? You got your baby mama on your ass. You know what I'm saying? She all your ass because you ain't bad. Let's get your baby. You ain't pull enough in.

It's like it's just so many different pressures coming at us on a daily basis from every angle that is. It would drive a same man crazy. So how long were you actually free there after that one bid and then before you got locked up again after that whole interview run? Oh, you was crazy? I did so good when I got out. I got out in January of 2022. I didn't catch that new case until June of 2023.

Right? So a year and a half where I was out the way. And thank God I didn't catch no weapon charge or anything like that. Like I said, it was a driving case. I shouldn't have caught that. I was disappointed myself. But thank God it wasn't another gun. Because if I get caught with a gun,

y'all won't see me until Jesus comes back. Damn, yeah. So then you have like the ultimate reason to stay the fuck out of that environment. But I still want to help change the environment. Yeah. Right? So I'm fighting a double battle

because I still got young ones in that environment that I be feeling obligated to making sure I don't just leave them because I love them. So now I'm at this point in my life where it's like I got to try to figure out a way to help change it without sacrificing myself. Right? I feel like I've built up enough respect and love in them trenches

that they'll actually give me an ear. I'm not saying everybody's going to take heed to what I'm saying and just do it. Yeah. But they'll at least listen. That is, Ewa. Let's hell what he said. That is one of the guys.

Folks thorough. Fos being thorough since day one. He ain't never did no flaw shit. He never do no fool shit. Let's hear him out. And hopefully when they give me that ear, I can give them the right message to change them just a little bit.

Like I said, shout out to my brother, Golden Child, because me and him sat on the phone when I was in jail and had these conversations hours on end about how we can help change our community. What they're doing with the unity movement is, man, leaps and bounds. They're making moves, man. Making moves, man. His name Golden Child is the unity movement, man.

And I'm so proud of that brother. He was coming to court for me with the nation of Islam, with they red bow ties and, you know what I'm saying? Deep in the court room from me. But they got boots on ground. They actually in these neighborhoods, man, passing out food. You know what I'm saying? passing out clothes to the homeless

and actually mentoring these little brothers, man, and talking to them and embracing them. And I salute them. You know what I'm saying? And if we could get more faces to do it, though, bro. We got to, bro, the faces got to step up. It got to get to a point in time. Look, we help make it what it is right now.

Can't nobody run from that, bro. We got to be accountable. Our drill era helps fuck the world up for sure. So now we got to help clean the world up. we got responsibilities I'm looking at y'all man we got responsibility we got work to do man we got to do this shit man

y'all can't run from this shit man your legacy is what counts man change your legacy right now stand up be accountable and help these kids be accounted for this is what we got to do man and that's why like I said I don't make drill music that straight afro beats for me

because everything that I do is high vibration and high frequency now man this is how I'm coming man take it or leave it. I had to be brave enough to be who I am. I was the person that everybody wanted me to be for so long because I was good at it. Now I got to be brave enough to be who I am. But now you see that shit as kind of a cop-out now. What do you mean by cop-out?

Like you're good at being the bully. You're good at being a hard ass. But, you know, just being the same thing that you've always been is not challenging. It's not helping you grow as a human being. and it's definitely not having a good effect on That's not what I want my legacy to be Right? When I leave this earth

That's not what I want to be known for I don't want them to write Ewo to bully on my tombstone Right I want them to write innovator Changemaker Father, friend You know what I'm saying

Mentor You know what I'm saying I want to leave a mark We out hell living Not leaving the mark Niggas dying Ain't doing shit worth doing?

What was your work while you was here? How did you help change anything? We could talk on hours on end or how we helped change it for the negative. We could talk hours on end on that. Because we interviewed Blasjendahl the other day, and she said something like real casual of like, motherfuckers don't want to hear some peaceful shit. They want to hear violent-ass shit. That's just how it is.

Unfortunately. She has every excuse in the book to be traumatized and angry at certain. and groups of people, et cetera. But she's also young, and she can't see past that. She's not in the place that you seem like you're in, where you see a better version of your community and yourself. You know, she's still caught up in the bullshit, and she's still realizing that talking about violent shit

is probably what's going to take her next music video to the million-view mark and not the 100,000 mark. You know, realistically, that's the choice that a lot of these young rappers from Chicago have to make. And I say to her, we just can't give up on her. It's our responsibility to still be that. Even when she don't want to hear it, to still give it to her. I know you only view it like this right now,

but it was a point in time where I didn't view it like that. You know what I'm saying? I had to get here. You could get there too. And like you say, she has all the right to feel, because I'm pretty familiar with her story. She has all the right to feel. Right.

I can't blame you for that. And I'm not trying to just change that. I'm just trying to give you a tidbit of information. Hopefully I could plant this sea, and one day it blossoms and grows. Losing a homie's one thing, losing your mom? Your mother is a different level. I couldn't even imagine, right? I would probably be going scorched earth.

Right? But it's like, where is it going in? It's got to stop somewhere. It got to stop. Well, we just, oh, we all just, we just crash out. Yeah. We all just crash out. This can't be like the next 30 years.

Chicago is the same story. I mean, realistically it might be, but it's on the older generation to try to do what they can. I feel like if we don't try, then we fail. And I feel like having these conversations right here, hearing people who hear you speak like this,

is planting seeds to maybe change. That's all I want to do. Plans some seeds. I can't force you to do nothing, brother. I can't make you do nothing, brother. I'm not even trying, because I don't want you to get upset with me. But I'm going to plant this seed. And I'm going to keep watering it.

Whether it be watering right in front of you or watering it from a distance. I'm going to keep watering it and pray that it blossoms into what we're trying to help it blossom into one day. Right. And I just feel like, so I look at it like this. Life is one big trend. And let me. Anything that goes on right now is follow the leader. Right.

So killing and drill was a trend. And you watch the world follow that trend. follow the trend all the way from Chicago all the way to New York to Jacksonville RIP Fulio, right? Jacksonville, Jacksonville, I said when we're going to start the positive trend, right?

I feel like if the right faces start that trend in the spirit the same way because everybody want to be cool, everybody want to be with the end crew. So if the end crew pushing this, believe it or not, you're going to see him off was like, because I'm going to be honest with you, a lot of street niggins that I

know, and they don't even really want to be into it. They're tired. They wore out. Who want to keep dying and dodging bullets and dodging police every? They don't want to, but they don't want to look goofy. So we have to make it cool to be

cool. Right now being cool, like cool, cool. How do we make it cool? The cool people got to cool people got to do it. The people that everybody look up to, they got to do it. They got to say, fuck how everybody going to look at me. I'm feeling, this is what we on, man.

This is what we on. We're going to make it cool to be cool. If it go from one cool person to three cool people to five cool people to 10 cool to 20 cool, now it's like shit, we're the end crew. You're going to be the goofy still on goofy shit? Nah, they're going to follow the trend because the world is a big trend, bro. Like, I swear it is just one big trend. Yeah.

No, I respect all that shit for sure. It's dope to see your mind The mature you all is definitely here. We didn't even know. We didn't know we're going to get this version of Ewa. That was big. Yeah, we talked a little bit. I said this interview is going to be a little different.

Because the world is in a place that is needed, bro. The world. Because like you said, spread. Look the shit's happening in Jacksonville. Yeah. Man, that shit spread, man. How did that boy? man that boy I don't know him I don't know the people you're into it with I have no skin

and no you know what I'm saying and whatever they got going on but it's just tragic to see public places I was just seeing this earlier you know that DJ you did that little scoom interview 24 hours before he did that's how fast that shit happened my little brothers watch little school and I'm on TV all day watch a little joff and for them they just they just literally just put me up on them like a month ago. So I'm two hundred dollars. And to see like their whole crew, almost their whole crew did. He was like, what the fuck?

Rico facetoned me in the car with them last month. He was just with them, bro. With all three of them in the car. Rico reckless. Rico don't be mad at me for saying this, but I'm just gone sad for I get y'all. I talked to Rico the day he was with them. And I'm like, no, what you? Because they were saying some shit like they about to rob Rico for his shit.

It was some shit going on on. on Instagram. They were joking. They were joking like, oh, they're going to rob RICO and people thought they had robbed RICO. But little day, I was on FaceTime Rico that whole day. And what he was

actually doing was counseling them. And actually giving them advice like, hey man, he was steady telling him, man, don't go back to the city. Stay out hell with me. We're going to run up these features. Go have these little meetings. You know what I'm saying?

We're going, I don't want to try to go back to the city. He kept saying, man, he's my little brothers, man. He's my shawdies, he won't. I fuck with Shardy them, man. He's my little... And I'm like, man, keep them out there.

Keep them out there. And to see this shit, that he came back to the city, man, and lost his life like that, man. That shit fucked Rico up more than people even know. I said, I hope he don't get mad at me for saying because he probably didn't want anybody. Nah, because he made a...

He made a post recently on Instagram where it was like people kind of took it the wrong way where he was like, I'm off social media, but people didn't know if you're taking it. Exactly. That shit takes a toll on our mental, man. I was just with you. I just told you, don't do what you just did.

Because if you do what I'm telling you, you're about to go do, bro, you're going to die, bro. And you go do it and then die. Yeah. I clicked on like a random vlog showing little Jeff and Schoon like flying out here and like doing the label, meeting thing or whatever and it's just like you know sometimes when you tell these

stories you're thinking of these kids as like hardened gang members but I'm watching this vlog and I'm just seeing them as kids joking around now unfortunately they're joking around about shooting people and snort and perks like they're making jokes about that like hella lighthearted and shit but it's like these are real young and it's probably never even been on plane before they coming out here meeting the labels and shit that shit probably felt incredible for them and they have them both gone that fast bro what the fuck right to see the trajectory through your life could be going in.

To have that film like, damn, I could make it up out of this shit. But to be so wired to this environment that it's like a magnet that draws you back and finishes you. It's a tragedy. It is, man. It's tragic, bro. Yeah, no, it gets deep, man. That's why we kind of need these type of, this is a positive talk that we're having,

you know what I'm saying? I hope this is a door opener for others. I hope this is a domino effect for others. I hope this gives others enough bravery to stand up and do the same. Fuck what people think or how they view you, man. Listen, do what we're supposed to do, right? We're the leaders. We're the kings and queens.

It's been placed here to change the world. Man, do what you are placed on this earth to do, man. We can't be goofy forever, man, because that shit goofy. We're crashing out, man. We're dying like a mother going to jail from 60, 70, 70. 80 years, man, I got too many friends, man, facing real life synthesis. I got friends that have never see their kids grow, never see their kids go to prom, never see their kids walk across the stage.

You know what I'm saying? Yeah. This fucks what I'm mental, man. We got to, come on, man, be brave enough to say, man. Enough is enough, man. You know Shark going to win? I don't know him personally, but I know. Because he's kind of on the same message, like he's preaching the same positive messages

that you are. I feel like you and him together would be. Yeah, I know of him, we got some mutual acquaintances. You know, I'm one of the people in the city. I know a lot of people, right? Yeah. So, hopefully, if he's on the same frequency, we'll be able to get out, sit down. Yeah, that would be good.

That's what I want to build. I want to build the Army. If you could build a pushing peace council right now, who would you want, like, if they're listening, who would you want to be a part of it to call? Every. Who can have a major? effect. Every and anyone that has influence. And I'm not just talking about the rappers. And I ain't just talking about the people. I'm talking about them killers. Them heavies. I'm droll the ones that's funding it. The ones that's hitting them cuts. We need job, man.

Bro, let these kids live, man. Them do something better than the fuck we did. Because we didn't fuck it up. Do something better than us. Right? Like me, my joy is to see my son surpass me. I want to see my son surpass me. I want to see. see my son do better than what I did. How was he going to do it? I got to give him the sauce. We got to get him a sauce. We got to get a youth to sauce, man. So I need all the staples,

the heavies, the bricklayers, the, god damn it. I don't care if we're just doing the ceasefire every weekend. We're doing barbecues. We're doing basketball games. Shit, y'all come out and sponsor some of this shit. They'd be talking shit about

oh, Adam is this, Adam's that. off. I want to see Adam sponsors some positive shit for us. Let's go. Let's get this community shit really rolled. Let's get some basketball tournaments or something, man. Let's get back and let's, you know what I'm saying? Because regardless how anybody look at it,

they look at the negative fact. We cannot forget the positive fact that your platform is done for our community also. Right? The light that has been shined on a lot of our, you know, this is one of them places where you got to stop. When you want to get into this industry and go to the next level, you have to do

no jumper, man. And you've helped a lot of, you've helped more people than hurt from what I think. Right. So I want to see us work together as humanity, bro. Yeah. Let's do it. Let's keep talking about that. I like that idea.

Like, for real, man. For real. Like, let's lock in and really, man, let's help the community. Because this shit got to, it got to stop. It got to stop. I'm exhausted. Thanks. I'm tired of.

So what do you got coming up in the future in terms of what you plan on doing with your life and your time at this point? Right now, and for the people that didn't know, now they know, like I said, I'm a full-blooded Nigeria. So I've taken a turn when it comes to my career. I'm now doing full-blooded Afro-beat music. I don't make drill music anymore. I want to bring Afro-Beb music and make it a larger scale in Chicago. I want to give the kids an alternative to create.

and be innovative to make music without having to talk about killing and drilling and drug dealing. I want to make good dance vibes and love vibes and you know turn the clubs up. I got a song out right now. My first Afro-B song ever. T-T-T-T-T-T-O-C-E-T-O-C. T-T-O-C.

TikTok is going viral. It's going crazy right now. Actually, I just performed last... What's the name of it? It's called TikTok. T-I-C-C-O-C. It's a super vibe. It's going up on the Internet right now.

I just perform. form last week in Chicago at an Afro beat club. I got a few more shows booked. But it's not a regular Afro beat, right? It's a Chicago Afro beat. I call myself... Hey.

I just had to hear a little bit of it. Oh, y'all d'all. You don't shit at my book. Okay. It's a vibe, man. Y'all go check me out. Go check me out. You know what I'm saying? YouTube, Spotify, all available platforms, man.

Apple music, it's out. And that's what I'm doing. I'm doing Afro Beat. I want to bring Afro Beat to Chicago and make it big to give kids an alternative. You don't got to make dream music. You can make something else, right? I don't care if you're African or not. Try it out.

It's a vibe. It's dope. It makes the girls dance, man. Who don't like pussy, man? You go get your pussy, man. You know what I'm saying? Instead of a bully, it gets a pussy. I got a black girlfriend now, so I'm probably going to have to play that around her.

And see what she said. I bet she fuck with it. She's from Baltimore, but. I bet she fuck with it. You know what I'm saying? I call myself the big Shigerian. I like that. I'm the big Shigerian.

I'm going to have some shirts. You got to put that on a shirt. For sure. You know what I'm a Nigerian who was raised in Chicago. So I'm the big Shigerian. And it's a lot of Shigerians. I'm like, my core fan base right now, I feel like is the hybrid Africans, right? The Africans that have African parents but was raised in the States.

You know what I'm saying? I'm appealing to everybody, but I know that core audience, they really fuck with me real hard. I'm the big Shigerian. I'm the culture merging connoisseur. Try to merge these cultures because I'm trying to unite the people. I like it. Right? I want to unite the world.

Yeah. That's our job. Let Ewa'll be great. Let me be fucking great, man. Let me be great, man. I feel it. I feel it. That way, man.

Are you still going to be able to keep this energy once, like, are you going to do it? on another podcast run with Rico Reckless, and are you going to be able to keep the positive energy even though he has his demonic tendencies? I'm trying to influence reckless to be the best reckless he could be. There you go. Because Reckless has a gray heart.

He's really a good dude, man. He was one of the motherfuckers pushing peace before pushing peace was even a thing. He did a song with Idae back, way back when, and everybody wanted to assassinate him for it. But now you got Jay May and Dirk on the phone with each other. He's been saw this shit. Go on get that dude with his flowers, man.

Get reckless his flowers. He was running around with a BD when all his friends was BD blank. He'd been pushing peace. Man, I can say what you all about him. But he's been doing this shit, man. Give him his flowers, man. That's a fact. Give him his flowers, man.

Go on put some respect on his name. He been saw this shit. He been saying, but we don't got a beef with niggas. We're just trying to have some fun, make some music, fuck some girls, count some money. You know, so Rico definitely goate it. There it is. Ewa, we appreciate you pulling up, man. Thank you so much.

I love y'all, man. I appreciate y'all for having me, man, for real. Let's stay in touch about what we're going to do out there in Chicago and shit. I'm going to get it set up. I'm going to get us a group chat with the people that I'm working with. We're going to lie there. We don't get it really, get a roller, man. Oh, yeah.

Let's get it going. Man, I appreciate y'all. I appreciate that. Remo, thank you for setting this up. There's Hurricane Chris on the line. Ewa, I appreciate you, dog, for real. Yeah, for real. Thank you for the positive message.

We needed that. Everybody tap in with my man. Go watch TikTok. Go leave a comment. No jumper. Coolest podcast. Like, comment, and subscribe. Ewo.

We out.