The 85 South Show with Karlous Miller, DC Young Fly and Chico Bean - ROTIMI in the Trap! | 85 SOUTH SHOW

Episode Date: April 12, 2024

THIS WEEK IN THE TRAP, we have the multi-talented Rotimi! || 85 SOUTH App: www.channeleightyfive.com || Twitter/IG: @85SouthShow || Our Website: www.85southshow.com || Custom Merch: www.85apparelco.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Every Tuesday, make sure you listen to Pretty Private from the Black Effect Podcast Network Network Network. Tune in on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Chigo, I was telling I ain't never go to Africa, man. You got to get open, man. I ain't never been to Nigeria before. Oh, you love it, though. I've been to Ghana twice.

Ghana's a good place to start. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's like, it's clean. Yeah. It's like, it's kind of like the states. Yeah. It reminds me in Miami Beach Yeah, I mean

That's what it looked like in the city FACs But my friend brother is from Nigeria And his father's like Rich over there You know what I mean Oh so you saw it from Oh you haven't seen it yet

I always I always tease them Because I'm like, nigga I can't believe you came to America To live in D.C. poor When your daddy was rich in Nigeria It doesn't make no sense, bro I tell people If you got money in Africa

You live so much better than here, because you appreciate it. Niggas really, like, understand, like, who they are. There's no racism. I mean, there's other issues, but every, we all black. You know what I'm saying? That's the part that I learned the most in Ghana, like, just dispelling the myth that Africans don't fuck with us.

It's not true. That's just the Africans in America. Yeah, like, over there, man, so much love, man. Like, I was walking up and down the street. People were stopping me. When are you guys coming, man? You got to come. Yeah, yeah.

The first time I went, I just went just to kind of, you know, clear my head because, you know, I mean, I just needed that time. But this year, I went and I got the layer of land. A dude that was over there was a big real estate dude. Smart. Showing me around. Yeah. And, man, there's so much money and so much going on in the infrastructure that they're building up over there. It's crazy.

But I want to go to Nigeria because it was crazy. I went to the strip club in Ghana. It's called the, what is it called, the Silver Fox? Okay. And all of the strippers that was there were from Nigeria. Yeah, and he'd all come in town to work in Ghana and go back home. I'm like, nigga. That's crazy.

Yeah, bro. Oh, Lego's different, but it's different. Yeah, my man, my security guard did security for the band. Yeah, he said he went over there with him and he said he was crazy over there. Yeah, he's like the president. He can't walk around for real for real. Yeah, he's, he's different with him. Like, he's a legend, like OG legend.

DeBange. He liked the equivalent to, I'm just say, like, like Snoop? Like legendary status? Yeah, yeah, yeah. You're one of the first pioneers, the Afro beat. Oh, yeah. Yeah, well, he did security for him, man.

He said he went over there, said, man, you're not security over here. He had, like, niggas with A-Ks and A-Rs. And mother said he had a Ferrari over there on the dirt road. He was like, who the fuck you drive this bitch? He was like, niggas. The thing is, when they need that Ferrari, they pay that full. There's no, there's no monthly, nothing.

Yeah, there's no, no. You gotta buy it, yeah, that's the difference over there. Ain't no. There ain't no loans and none of that shit, like, yeah. You see a house? That is a real, that's yours. There's no mortgage. Yeah, yeah.

They don't trust it. Yeah, but to see the thing that I learned from, you know, I was looking at getting something in Ghana and just learning the property and how it works. Yeah. So if you're not, if you don't have citizenship over there, you can't. You can't pass it down. But it's yours.

You own it. It's like a 99-year. Some shit they put you on. But you have to get dual citizenship to be able to actually pass it to give it to your family and all of that. So I got the rundown of it. You working on trying to get it us? Oh, I'm going too nice. I love that.

It's a... Charlemagne put me on to it. It's a dude that they build in like outside of a crop, which is the main city. Probably like how outside they're doing like this beach. front property, what they're doing the beach front in the front. Like townhouses? No, no, no. It's like cabanas in the front. Then they're going to have like shopping and all that

in the middle and then houses in the back. That's tough. Yeah, I got it on that already. But then in the main city of Accra, the price is the only good part is that you own it, but the prices are kind of similar in regards into America. Yeah. Because they're building in the St. just as fast. Yeah, yeah. It's real similar.

You know, as far as like, they showed me, he showed me three condominiums. Nah, I take that back, because what it would cost you for that presidential one the day bill, and they only wanted 750,000 for it there, but over here that would cost you five, six million dollars. So, yeah. But, you know, for me, it didn't make no sense to have that because it's like, I know it being in the, so it wouldn't make sense.

You want that, if you're spiritual, you don't want that, all that energy in there either. Yeah, you know what I mean? Yeah. Right. Yeah, you don't want that. and security, it's a lot. So you're smart, bro. Like, if you want to retire and then live there, that's smart.

That's smart, yeah. Yeah, but the beachfront shit made sense because it's commercial. It's commercial property, so it made a little bit more sense. But as far as just the layer of the land, like, you wouldn't think that it was that much going on. But the NFL just invested, the NBA just invested in Ghana. Nice. Like, it's a whole bunch going on over there, like, that nobody over here would know about. And they're welcoming us to come back.

Yeah, yeah, because they want that, bro. Absolutely, it's the bridge. Oh, I'm the man. So I got, so, side note, I got my own skincare line, but I only had two in, like, at the crib. So I have ordered it in. So I get y'all, like, even send it here for y'all individually. You know what I'm saying?

You got a skincare line. Oh, yeah, bro. Yeah, is it cool, my friend? Go ahead. Put your shit on that, man. Put your shit on that, promote your shit. You know what I mean? Promote your shit. But now I'm gonna get either your address or...

Oh, I bet. Here, send us to create. Come on. Remote your shit. That's gonna love this, though. It's minerals from the Dead Sea. For real? It's 100% natural.

You got that shit, them be in the mall. My brother, please, let me show you something. Please, what do you use on your seat? I beg, but I... Please, please, please, please, please, please. Please, don't break my heart, please. Please, you got that good shit. It's from the Dead Sea.

Yeah, yeah. I partnered with Andy Hillfigure. Oh, where? Yeah, yeah. So, we need another. Right. I got so for you too. Yeah.

I got something for you. I got something for you. I got something for you. Okay. That shit. It's an Army, Caribbean vibe. Oh, you're from Ghana's here. You know what I went to high school with?

We're from Gnostic. I just ain't finished. No, it's another one. I just ain't finished it. Oh, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. You know what I'm like the, nowadays? I take my time with Rutgers. I'm like, that's real nice.

I'm like, I don't want to touch until. I want to keep. back in the studio and it's right right. I get it, get it. But if my part, I already done, you bless that. Yeah, too. I'm in the studio for the next four days. Okay.

Here? Yeah. Oh, you back. Yeah, just sent it to the crib. Right. That's nice. I send it to you. Yeah.

I do that at the crib. And they told me you build that one right here. Mm-hmm. We got almost done, too. I'm just waiting on the man. Right. No, that shit is trying to get the roots and shit, everything insulated so it could be soundproof. Yeah, yeah.

I went to, like, really, we're on our fifth guy. Yeah. Really? Yeah. Yeah. The first four nigga I want to talk about shit We did this shit

Turn around time Like, yeah, yeah, yeah One in a while Yeah, yeah, yeah, we don't take that long Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, we don't really need all that That's fine, yeah, yeah, yeah, we're trying to tell them what they're going Yeah, absolutely, absolutely, that makes sense Just make it work

I don't mean to something in the studio, like this is so small Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, just make it work Yeah, you got an engineer? I don't know about this, I don't know about it, you know how much, Oh, I'm gonna call myself, long as we got the right setup That's, he cool, bro. Listen, bro. That's so dumb.

It's not a whole thing. You're in the game. When you're in a certain, you need to rough draft skills of saying, all right, long as you got your template. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You're like, how you record? All right, bon, how you did it? All right, boom, boom, boom. Everything ain't working right?

Yeah, yeah. You like that now. I'm gonna-you-like that now. I'm gonna say that. I've been recording myself and some of the lady shit that I put out, I recorded myself. And I sent it to get the mix. Okay. So it's a song that I recorded myself.

but I sent it to my man's unique. He cleaned it up. I recorded myself. Okay. At the career. Okay. Oh, I got featured with a nigger that I don't record it on. I'm like, I record that shit.

That's tough. That's tough. You at the house? Yeah. I did. I remember you was explaining something to me. I can't remember what you called it, but it was like the something where you, once you get the right one, nigga, you will never know. You'll make your voice sound and certain shit.

What you call? It's a template. Template. It's a template. It's a template. Every, you know, it's as a. composer. I mean, I play music. I play instruments. So my motherfucker be, you may be a great artist, but I'm so in debt with the shit now where it's like, I only want to sound good.

Why do you think jerk sound the same on every song, why? That's his template. He knows that, okay, if you ever get on the track and you're like, ooh, I like how sound on this bitch. Say that template. That's it. Yeah. You damn damn that pay for that template and then you can carry everywhere. Carrier everywhere. Oh, that's what I remember that. So when you go, yeah. So when you go to another studio. Like, they can't mess with the niggas, and the niggins. And the niggins don't, the niggins will feel like

that's his sauce. Well, I'm like, well, don't mix and master the shit. I just only wanted to sound good as I'm recording. Right. And I can take that template and record everywhere I go. Because I want to sound like this every time. You get on the track and you be recording shit, you're like, you can tell the engineer

don't know what he's doing, bro. This shit sounds too rough. Yeah, yeah. I sound better off the track than I do the new track. So I know it. You don't know what he's doing. And then the energy be weird sometimes. Yeah, you know, they didn't want too slow.

Oh, my God, smart. Because you'll be in the house and you'd be like, yeah, yeah, yeah. That's that first, that first melody. The first melody is always better than any melody. Anything, anything, anything. For anything, yeah. It's because you add to that. Yeah.

You get that first melody and then you add to all those harm. Because you'll end up, I just, matter of fact, the song we were just talking about. Yeah. Because I got the second verse open. As soon as that the verse came in I came in I'm like Ooh that shit All you like that came on it

I don't remember And I'm like And I try to go back and recreate it I'm like I'm talking about it I'm like If I'd been in the studio And I created that

And I was recorded it It would have been super duper Perfect because When you listen to music now You gotta listen to Like listen to this song Right I'm gonna say

This shit works he's going with the flow the melody is with the flow even with his son the way he catching the cadence it wouldn't work with no other flow it's this specific flow this flow this flow fits and this was the first one

the first melody the first melody like and then I'm like oh that's it that's it don't do nothing don't do it don't you don't that's the one that fits you try to do anything else on top of all this this flow

it comes from that music is the vibration, bro. It's a beautiful thing, though. And once you realize it's deeper than just the artist, I realize, oh, everybody is important when it comes to composing the music. Yeah, the engineer, too, the musicians, the art, the person who made the beat, all that comes into one. That's why, if you see now artists getting hooked up with producers, and producers now understanding their value. It's like the same thing as a comedian, right? You know how you tell that joke for the first time and it worked crazy. Right. And then

you got to say it again. Somebody like, what did you say? And you got to repeat it. Right. It might not be the same feeling. You're going to try to deliver it the same way, but there's nothing like that first, I came up with that. That's going to work. Then deliver it. That first feeling is epic. You know what I'm

saying? Because at that moment, you give me the true feeling. So when you listen to a beat, you're like, you know what I'm saying? And you're like, ooh, okay, then you add to it. And then you're like, all right, I'm going to take pieces from this, and then they end up being some shit. That's why you got to really go for how you feel. When you're a songwriter, you go for how you feel, and you listen to the beat.

The beat will tell you what you want. It's like everything. You'll tell you what you want to know. Everything. You got to trust in everything. It's like life, too. But I'm saying, though, like, how often, you know, you hear some people say, man, I know it was a hit when I made it. You know what I mean?

I hear people say that sometimes. But how many times do you make some shit and you be like, man, fuck that, and it ended up turning into a hit? You got to talk to him. He's the man with the hits. He's the man with this. It is something. It is plural. It is plural.

It's got this. It is plural. Boto scotch one. Botton scotch two. Boto scat three. Uh-huh. You understand now. No, but bro, like, it's a, it's like a spiritual thing, bro.

Like when you do a melody that you can imagine every race singing to, every age singing to, like when we did this record, it was like, this is so relatable. Like little kids could say, age. people, Indian people, it was just like, how can this not work? The sample right, it's sometimes it's lightning in the bottle, bro. Like, you can't even explain it. It's just like

a blessing. Like, but then when it hit and it feel like that first like, listen back and you get chills, it's like, okay, I did something. As an artist, every record you feel like, yo, I killed it. I'm the one. This is going to be the one. This is, oh, they play the stadium music. But then there's a certain ones where it's like, ooh, this is nice.

Okay, no first heat. All right. over the threshold, over that hump when it's like, I'm just not an artist no more. I'm now in the group. Yeah. Because you technically, the fact means you're in the group. Facts, facts, facts.

When you finally got over the hump. Yeah. Because I don't know your damn music. Yeah. Because, you know, you're on your shit. You're doing your shit. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And you're a gangster.

Yeah. So how do you be a gangster? Uh-huh. And the ladies, man, and going over that threshold and hitting that hump. where it's like now you can relax you. Your shoulders can drop. And you're like, ah, I've been accepted both times.

Here, and you. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I never felt the relaxation, bro. It's never been relaxation. That's what makes it more magic. Once I do, I lost. I'm no different from the lazy nigga that's trying to get on.

You know what I'm saying? One, I get it. For me, when I got a taste of the success and I saw the plaque come in and say platinum, I said, I want another one. I got to work harder. And I know I got to work harder. work harder than most people because I'm doing gangster, I'm doing this, we're doing comedy,

we're doing house party, we're doing all these other cool things. So I know I have to really prove myself. I don't have, I don't have the same, like a Jacques Quees who can be an artist and record all day and record only and that be like, ah, if this didn't work, it's cool. He's going to come back with another one. The microscope on me is like, I have to, I can't miss. I can't miss, I can't miss, and I got to work with less time. Bro, when I, bro, I made in my bed and love rhythm, okay, let me give you my step. Break it down, break it down, a superstar, because you are a superstar. God bless you, who got so many different, God bless you.

You're supposed to be able to be able to, but they don't understand that. They feel it easy. No. Break it down. Okay. Doing this, doing that and doing that with little time. Bro, I'll tell you right now. Come on, somebody.

So if you remember, season five, power was going crazy. That's when Dre, everybody. It was Canaan, everybody trying to get Drake. That was the most heavy lifting I've ever done as an actor. I've never taken acting classes in my life. So all of this level of learning and responsibility was new. So then, Empire, I'm signing the Empire. So Empire was like, listen, Ro, we need a record.

I know you're filming, but we got you a studio. We got six hours. We've got some time for you. I said, I have a big scene tomorrow. I don't know how I'm going to... Okay, all right, cool, just set it up. Literally, bro. We finished filming at 11 p.m.

At 12.30 was my... 12.30 a.m. is my session. I got six hours to close out. You're a singer. So I'm a singer. So I've been talking all day. I've been learning lines. And, you know, as an act of course, mentally draining, bro.

We have straining, and then even mentally, like, to be... To do the same line over and over and over all day, it goes... It's hard. So anyway, so you finish. So I got to now go into creative. And I have six hours. I don't have a hit on my project yet. We're talking about 12 to 6 in the morning.

12 to 6 in the morning. 12.30 a.m. to 6 a.m. Do you have to go to set the next day? And I have to go to set 9 a.m. I'm not going to sleep. So I'm like, all right, cool. I got to give him a hit. I got six hours.

Niggas usually get six weeks to do what I'm about to do. Niggas get six months to do what I have to do. Six hours. I go in, play to be. Again, this is divine. This is all. God, yo. They play the beat. My man plays love rhythm. Instinctively, it was like, baby, baby, yeah, I don't say too much.

That came out like, boom. I was like, yo, all right, cool. Let me just go lay this. I don't know what's going to happen to it. They send it to me the next day, they're like, yo, we got a hit in the hand. I sent it to the Empire. They're like, this is a single. So that's just to give perspective that doing both is literally trying to be a doctor and a lawyer at the same time. That's why most people can't do it. Who can be a doctor and lawyer at the same time? You can't. It's impossible.

Unless you have the right team, the right this, everything has to work instinctively. And again with God. So for me six hours I was able to make a record that most people get six months to do and it's just again

a testament to not having the wiggle room like most people do. I have to every time. I have to every time I can't miss, you know what I mean? Because then it's like, he ain't that nice anywhere. I really, you're an actor. Right.

You get what I'm saying? So I wear that. Yeah, he was a different persona. You, you guys are ladies, man. We're two different characters, right? I mean, but the scotch is a real thing. Butta scotch, yeah. I can't explain that one.

Yeah, that one I kind of speak. You can be most hated and most love at the same time. Hey, Jesus is the same way, no? Yeah, that's same way. Jesus is the same way, you know? No, yeah. You were doing music first before the act, and all that. Oh, bro, my story's crazy, bro, so.

Shit, we're about to tell them all of looking at and watch this. Welcome back. Yeah. My God's up, though. Yeah. Yeah. I should have let you play that shit first. That's how we're feeling.

That's how you feel. That's how you feel. That's a vibe. I should walk in warm or clothes. Oh, it's hard, man. Oh, yeah. It's hard. We're worried, but I got some place.

Yeah. Mm-hmm. What's the fuck got to be put to you. Yeah. I got something for you. No, Sam. I love it. You got to do the intro other day, man.

They're your real punny. Let me tell you something. Let me tell you something. We got my dog in the building, man. We got a real mogul, a real icon, a real African brother, lenient in the blood you understand he's a multi-platinum artist you dig what I'm saying he's an amazing actor he's an amazing father he's an incredible friend he's an executive he's a producer he's a writer I don't think y'all understand man my man got so many hats he got so many talents you did

none other than my dog, Roe Timmie! Come on, somebody. Come on, somebody. Good, yes. Come on, somebody. It feels good to be here, man. It's so hard not to talk like that with you. I'm like, goodness, it is so happy to help you here.

It was very, very good. I have been to Africa many times, and I am very, very happy to have someone here who I can give me their real. through him. Oh, yeah. I watch his stories. I don't think he, that's the most I stalked you.

When you, when you're in Ghana, every time you go to Africa, that nigga I jump in the bed and be like, yeah. And you see every time. You be walking and shit, I'd be like,

that nigga ain't got no shoes off. Every time I'm over there, you see it. It ain't the time I'm over there with somebody. Where's this young flying? Dangos mila. You know,

Mr. Tell the Lord. Come here. Bro, like, listen, I was in Ghana. I'm walking down the street. This nigga gave me dap for five blocks.

I'm talking about he grabbed my hand and walked with Fab me, man. You please, please call them. Can you call them for me, please? Just so I can say hello, we love you here. And then to see the type of the way that they consume content over there is so much. Like, you don't even realize how much you've done until you go to another part of the world and see how people are consuming the work that you put in. Like, because they're showing me stuff that we did years ago.

And I'm like, yo, I don't even remember doing this. And they were like, we love this. I'd probably want to come back if I ever go. I'm like, you know what? I mean, it feels like that. That's why I always tell people. I say, yo, if you have money in Africa, you get treated so much better

if you're a black man and a black woman from your own people, because you live better, you get appreciated, you get told how amazing you are consistently. And people, there's no jealousy, everybody wants to win everybody It's like if you show love they show love bad You know what I mean here It's a little different you know

If you show love you don't know what the other person Really gonna be on right you know what I mean But here but back home They appreciate you're gonna eat here Oh my God Because we all trying to get it together Man it's crazy I went I ended up waking up one morning

This is probably about four weeks after I got back from Ghana And I'd never get on Twitter But some made me check my Twitter and I had like 500 mentions of people just saying, come to my house, come to my restaurant, come. I'm like, what is going on? I checked and seen that I was trending number five in Ghana in the whole country for a video that I did

when I was over there about the pharmacy. Wow. Truth, bruh, in Ghana. Like, bro, it blew my mind just because it was so many people that were offering things that niggas would never offer you in America. Like, come to my home.

Are you still here? My family wants to feed you. you please. My daughter wants to meet. And mind you, these are people that don't that don't have as much as most of us to have here. They just want to show you love. Whatever they have, they're going to dare and give them to you, brother.

If it's anything, I've been saying this for the longest, man, but we got to get over there just so y'all can see how much love we get over there, man. This is in my mind. This is, I've been thinking about it about a year and a half. Not a year and a half, probably like the year last year. Come to execute. I want to do an African tour.

and I want to give back like 15, 20% to whatever country, I mean, your country that I'm at. Yeah, whatever I perform, man, I'm gonna get 15%. Nine times out of ten, I'm down there getting shit back here, yeah, yeah, yeah. I just want to, you fuck with me, I fuck with y'all, and we're just gonna help each other.

Exactly, exactly, man, listen. I don't want, let me open up, let me open up. Whatever. You got to, you got to call me. You're the headliner, niggins. Are you ready for butt the skies? You ready to go to this guy? And it's so crazy because, like, you see,

I saw so many people from so many different countries over there because, you know, in Ghana, from December, like, from December 1st to, like, January, there's just the party. They party the whole time. And so people from all over the world come there. And, man, I'm talking about South Africa, Kenya. The Ivory Coast, all of these different places,

people are like, oh, my God, I love y'all. Like, one of y'all coming over here. Y'all is global, bro. they be trying to put on Africa. That's not real, bro. So fake. The Africans love us. What, bro?

They're scared of how, if we know our real story. Yeah, our real heritage. If we know our truth, if we really, truly go home, there's so much money to be made. There's so much businesses to be built. Entrepreneurship. They're afraid if we know this, we have no reason to be here. That's what they're scared of. And they're trying to keep it from us, bro.

We still laboring, quote-unquote. Yes. We're doing all the heavy lifting. Yes. We're still doing the heavy lifting. Absolutely. All that's in a sense of a day. And the arms are dangerous.

That's not what you see when you get. I'm talking about Benzers, Range Rovers, Mayfops, Ferraris, all that. It's money over there. And then even the people who are living, what you would consider to be lesser, they still are working and they ain't nobody big and they want you. And then whatever they have, they're willing to offer you. I had so many people like, please come sit with my family. Come to eat, we love you, you know what I mean?

And it was just mind-blowing to me because my persona, the way that I felt was like these people don't like us. But from the moment I got all the playing with a Chico Bean, my brother. Welcome home, my brother. Do you need anything, my brother? Please, my brother. I love you, my brother. I'm talking about walk me through the airport.

Make sure I got my bags. I mean, everything. And then it's like, man, I make jokes about it. But I once I never go to the strip club in America because, you know, I'm not doing that. I'm not even participating. I went to the strip club in Africa, bro. I went to the silver. It's called the Silver Falk in Ghana.

Where are you from? Where are the girls from? The girls were from Nigeria, most of them. They come in hustling. I don't know, please. I don't. I just had things. I just had things.

I went in there with 500 American dollars, bro. 500 American dollars. I looked like Big Meach in that bitch. It looked like BNF in that month. I'm talking about, bro, I've never had that much fun in my life. And I know that I can't recreate it. So I'm only going to the street. strip club in Africa.

Bro, I'm talking about if I gave a dude $500, he came back with a trade of African money. CEDs is what they are. I'm like, bro, this, this, this, I'm talking about, I'm in there.

Take this shit. You got the strip clubs in African. I'm talking about, turned up. Turned up, bro. I'm talking about turned up all the way, man. That reason why I ain't went to Africa yet, I know, I'm not. Bro, you might not come back.

Be the one of y'all. That's what I'm saying. You would never come back. That's what I'm saying. Both of these, I'm telling you, both these two, bruh, they, I can't wait. I got to be there to see it because when they see. When I'm made in my mind, space, where I'm at and I'm, and I'm, I don't be like, a miracle. I'm talking about everything you can think of, some of the most beautiful women you've ever seen.

Why are you guys going to live one, bro? My, my girl is Tanzanian. Man, some of the most beautiful. women you're ever saying you're like to go home and and it's so crazy but you got family you got family that's like like direct yeah I'm 100% in Nigeria yeah like I want to go to Nigeria but everybody be scared me talking about you're gonna get kidnapped so it's but bro I'm having a conversation I swear to God you know what's me man yeah you know I mean yeah you're like no man listen

For My Heart Podcasts in Rococo Punch, this is The Turning, River Road. I knew I wanted to obey and submit, but I didn't fully grasp for the rest of my life what that meant. In the woods of Minnesota, a cult leader married himself to 10 girls and forced them into a secret life of abuse. Why did I think that way? Why did I allow myself to get so sucked in by the kids? this man and in thinking to the point that if I died for him, that would be the greatest honor. But in 2014, the youngest of the girls escaped and sparked an international manhunt. For all those years, you know, he was the predator and I was the prey. And then he became the prey.

Listen to The Turning River Road on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to Pretty Private with Ebeney, the podcast where silence is broken and stories are set free. I'm Ebeney, and every Tuesday I'll be sharing all new anonymous stories that would challenge your perceptions and give you new insight on the people around you. On Pretty Private, we'll explore the untold experiences of women of color who faced it all, childhood trauma, addiction, abuse, incarceration, grief, mental health. struggles and more, and found the shrimp to make it to the other side. My dad was shot and killed in his house. Yes, he was a drug dealer. Yes, he was a confidential informant, but he wasn't shot on a street corner. He wasn't shot in the middle of a drug deal. He was shot in his house unarmed. Pretty Private isn't just a podcast.

It's your personal guide for turning storylines into lifelines. Every Tuesday, make sure you listen to Pretty Private from the Black Effect Podcast Network. Tune in on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Your entire identity has been fabricated. Your beloved brother goes missing without a trace. You discover the depths of your mother's illness the way it has echoed and reverberated throughout your life,

impacting your very legacy. Hi, I'm Danny Shapiro. And these are just a few of the profound and profound and powerful stories, I'll be mining on our 12th season of Family Secrets. With over 37 million downloads, we continue to be moved and inspired by our guests and their courageously told stories. I can't wait to share 10 powerful new episodes with you, stories of tangled up identities, concealed truths, and the way in which family secrets almost always need to be told. I hope you'll join me and my extraordinary guests for this new season of Family Secrets. Listen to Family Secrets

Season 12 on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The OGs of Uncensored Motherhood are back and badder than ever. I'm Erica. And I'm Mila. And we're the host of the Good Mom's Bad Choices podcast, brought to you by the Black Effect Podcast Network every Wednesday. Historically, men talk too much. And women have quietly listened. And all that stops here. If you like witty women, then this is your tribes with guests like Corinne Steffens. I've never seen so many women protect predatory men. And then me too happened.

And then everybody else want to get pissed off because the wife said it was okay. Problem. My oldest daughter, her first day in ninth grade, and I called to ask how I was going. She was like, oh, dad, all they were doing was talking about your thing in class. I ruined my baby's first day of high school. And slumflower.

What turns me on is when a man sends me money. Like, I feel the moisture between my legs when a man sends me money. I'm like, oh my God, it's go time. You actually sent it? Listen to the Good Mom's Bad Choices podcast Every Wednesday On the Black Effect Podcast Network The IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you go to find your podcast. Adventure should never come with a pause button. Remember the movie pass era where you could watch all the movies you wanted for just $9? It made zero cents and I could not stop thinking about it. I'm Bridget Todd. Host of the tech podcast,

there are no girls on the internet. On this new season, And I'm talking to the innovators who are left out of the tech headlines, like the visionary behind a movie pass, black founder Stacey Spikes, who was pushed out of movie pass, the company that he founded. His story is wild, and it's currently the subject of a juicy new HBO documentary. We dive into how culture connects us. When you go to France, or you go to England, or you go to Hong Kong, those kids are wearing Jordans, they're wearing Kobe's shirt, they're watching black pants. and the challenges of being a black founder. Close your eyes and tell me what a tech founder looks like.

They're not going to describe someone who looks like me and they're not going to describe someone who looks like you. I created There Are No Girls on the Internet because the future belongs to all of us. So listen to There Are No Girls on the Internet on the IHurt Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Listen, man, I'm having a conversation with a girl at the bar. It's two major hotels, right?

There's two major hotels in Ghana, like, it was a bunch of nice hotels, but the one that I was staying at, it's like a bar that's 24 hours served food and all that. So I'm sitting down there just having a conversation. I'm talking about, man, this beautiful woman just came, and was like, oh, my God, you're Chico Pina. I love you so much.

We're having a conversation, and she was like, you know, I work so hard. My rent is 18,000 CDs a year, and I'm, like, 18,000. I did the man. Her rent, $1,800 a year. And the fucked up potters, I had to act like that was a lot.

I was like, damn, $18,000. Because I don't need her to know. I can pay you forever, man. This is crazy over here. Like, um, you paid her right? You paid her? No, I didn't. But I thought about it.

I thought about it. I bought all the drinks, though. That was like $40. But still, it was worth every time. I mean, that's what I had to pretend like. That was a lot. I'm like, 18,000. Woo.

Yum. But how is it? How easy? I'm going to say how. How accessible is it for you to build? Build an Africa? Yeah. Oh, bro.

You know the right people, bro. Oh, my God. He built a school over there. I got a four-bedroom condo in Nigeria. And what I did was my pops is really still tied to the culture, like, for real, for everyday, you know. So he was like, yo, they're building something in this specific area that in four or five years, this is right before COVID. He was like, in four, five years, this is going to be one of the biggest areas. You know what I mean?

So get in now. So I was like, how much? He was like, honestly, Roe, if you do a quarter million, it'll feel like it's a $4 million home for what you would get here. So I promise you. So I was like, all right, cool, gave it to him. And now it's worth about triple that. Triple that in four or five years.

Listen, I told, I just was, we just was talking to fly. Like, the only thing because the dude that I was with this time was a real estate mogul over there. So he rode me over Shalomain put me in contact with Salute the Charlemagne and he rode me around and showed me three condominiums that they building and then also you know some beachfront stuff that they're doing and for what you pay man for what you pay what you pay bro you first of all it it's no property taxes and all that you buy you own it you own it's no it's none of it's none of it's none of back your bags

fuck this shit we're learning everything they showed me it's an area area in a crowd where they building a bunch of, a bunch of, like, buildings and, you know, condominiums and all that. They showed me three different ones. One, one bedroom, probably, like, I'd say probably like 2,500, 3,000 square foot. Condominium, one, 250. The two-bedroom, 4-50, the three-bedroom, 5-50. The presidential penthouse suite, the upstairs, downstairs, downstairs, swimming pool in it. Five.

That's about $5 million in L.A. Six, seven million in America. Because Ghana is like Miami Beach It's like South Beach That's what it looks like It's surrounded by the ocean Oceanfront property and all that And then if you go over

Outside of the coast Like outside of the main city Then you get 70, 80 grand Bro, you can build What it would cost you A million dollars to build here? So I'm gonna go I'm gonna be there before

But come down December with me See? That's when a December Come down December with me That's what my friend My friend brother was coming You got to come to Nigeria in December. I promise you, you get all the information you need, bro.

I got to go. Yeah. So, like, how long? How long have you been here? So, no, I was born and raised here. I was born and raised here, but I spent a lot of my childhood going back and forth. Most people are. You know where you're doing.

So I know, I know where I'm from. So, like, my mom is, shout out to all my Nigerians, my West Africans. My mom is Ebo. My dad is Yoraba. So my mom is from the village. My dad is from the city. Okay. So my dad is like, one.

one of the area boys, which means, like, he was one of them dudes that was really, like, around Phelah. So, Fela is, like, the Michael Jackson of African music. He's a heart and soul of Afro-Beat. So my dad was, like, one of the little, you know, runners for him, doing whatever, whatever. So he was already a part of understanding the lifestyle of being a rock star. You know, and my mom was in the village. So whenever I went back, I was able to see, like, both worlds, like, damn, the fast life. and then having a walk two miles

to get good water and then get the walk two miles to get the water then walk back holding the water and if you drop it, you got to go back to get it and then when you get back to where you stand you got to wait to boil the water to clean it. So there's a whole, before you get to drink water

and where my mom was at, it was four or five hours. So a lesson like that at three, four, five, six, seven years old is show you the quality of hard work, show you how to be a man. Man, you got to spill that water. Oh, bro. You get your ass whoop. You get your ass whoop.

So it's like concentration. It's like determination. It's like you're hungry. So what you're going to do to survive? It's all these things as a child is instilling in you that's what's got me to be who I am today. Where I'm appreciative, when you come down the faucet, you're like, you're like, that's in my head. Exactly. So when you, to go back to your, when you ask me earlier, like, do you feel like you can just, now?

Now, I don't even know what that is, bro. I don't even know how to understand. Right, because there's no, there's no, there's no, there's no, they make a living out of not having, you can't complain out of, and that's so much more. Yes, exactly, exactly, bro. It's a big Nigerian, you know, population in America, like, so have your success kind of endocrine, I mean, like, kind of got you in a space where people are looking at you like, okay, this is one of ours, you know, because over here, as black Americans, it's difficult

to get embraced by, you know, you can be the man from where you're from, but you go one state over, and then he's like, who the fuck is you? Yeah. Does it work the same way? It does, bro, and I've been very fortunate, man, because, you know, I've always championed being Nigerian, you know, I'm like, there was a point as an artist I was, they asked me, yo, you're going to change your name to little whoop, wop, wop, wop, wap, wap. Like, no, I'm going to stick to Rott Timmy, man.

That's a strong. A little woo, wop, wop, wak, watching this like, you better to shoot my name. Woo-W-W-W-W-W-W-W-T-W-T'all. Hey. Yeah, I always want to talk about whoo-wop. Man, man, man, man, man. I need to go and drop in mid-time. Right, so for me, it was like, I always just like,

let me just stay true to who I am. And when I did that, it was, okay, let me add humor, let me add but let them know he's from Nigeria. All right, cool, let me do this R&B thing, but who are you really wrote to me? And it was like, the first thing that started feeling natural was the Afrobeat rhythm, the Afrobeat sound, the creating that wave. And that's what worked for me.

So when you're champion your name, you champion your artistry, and now in every interview you're saying, in the acting world, I'm African, it was like, man, thank you so much because, bro, you know, we was growing up, bro. It wasn't cool to be African. It wasn't cool to be Haitian. It was like, you fresh off the boat. It was jokes like that for us, you know what I mean? Who are some big-ass stars in Africa that's from America?

that don't even know their stars in Africa. That don't even know? Yeah, like, people who have no idea how big they are in Africa. Man, probably Damson, Damson from Snowfall. He's just ever know. He knows, John Boyega, another actor.

I think at this point, the world's so small, I think everybody kind of know. But like, to actually, you gotta go and feel that impact. Yeah, that's what I'm saying. You gotta, I don't know if they've been. Nigger, I don't know, you, you, Bro, that's who, you and you. Bro, both of y'all got to go over there, man.

And feel that love, bro. Like. I'm like, sit for my kid, man. I'm coming to guilt, man. I'm coming back over here, man. I'm serious, bro. Like, you. I found three teachers.

Bro, especially you because of how your mind worked. I know. I know. I would, I would be knowing that I'm, I feel a certain energy. I'd feel bad leaving. You would. I'd be like, I don't want to leave y'all. They'd be like, please don't leave.

I'd be like, don't worry about it. Yeah. We're from the bill that line over here, my nigger. Yeah, yeah. You want to be from the west side? Nigger, you're from the west side. From the west side, Nigeria, O'Belala, bike, can't.

We're from big, we can't. We can't say that shit. I can't see you after you're done filming everything, spending four months there. Yeah. Easy. Easy. That'll be my relaxation place when I'm going.

I'm like, you know what I'm going. I take that little five months. Matter of fact, you know, went to a half a year now. I know. It works. It works. Catch me half a year? Yeah.

I mean, I'm talking about, I mean, I ain't sit here no sirens, no dogs, bother. None of that. it was peaceful, man. The layer of the land, everything is beautiful over there. One, and then everything that you do here as far as, you know, as a consumer, all of those things change when you're over there because it's us. It's black people.

It's not, you're not a minority in Africa. It's huge people, and it's still a form of appreciation that you don't see over here. Absolutely, absolutely. You get to feel what white people feel like in America. In America. You get to feel, yeah. Yeah, you get to feel what white people feel about everywhere in the world. Yeah, I'm telling you.

That's going to be the clip, nigga. Hell yeah. Hell yeah. That's real. You get to see how white people feel in America. So, you know, the Afro beats then took over. Like, it's such a major genre. Like, well, did you know any of the artists that-

I've been hearing this beat? What is that? I've been hearing that shit by five years. Like it? This shit. No, this ring. Oh, the ring. I hear it in the beat.

It's not in the beat. No, but I'm hearing it through all us talking and I've just been hearing this. I guess you, I guess you. I don't know. Oh, you're talking about that? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, yeah.

Yeah, I don't know what that is. Mm-hmm. Something off. What is that? No idea. You got to close it some. Is it the speaker or something? We're going to go find it.

Yes, sir. I didn't know how to be here. But, yeah, you know, did you know any of the artists? Like, one of my favorite, Burner Boy, I've been listening to Burner Boy for years, way before it blew up. Like, did you know any of these artists that blew up prior to them blowing up here? Let me tell you, bro, back in 2012, so when Whiz Kid first came to America, they had found out about me musically because one of my songs back then had crossed over back home. And this is before Afro beats and everything. This is before Instagram.

man, all that. It was just, I don't know how they found it, but when he got here, they were like, yo, bro, can you come open up for Wiz? You know, here's the first time in America's, we're doing 500 Cedars, you know, can you do it? And he was a part of a group. This is 2012. Yeah, this is early. So this is when, to a point where I got off the plane and Wiz is like, hey, bro, let me help you with your bags, man. Like, it was, niggas was really like, oh, like, we have a mission, you know what I mean? And I always love him for that because he knew he was what he was going to be. So we're doing five. 500 seats, I'm performing in front of this crowd and we're just, the conversation that we had was like, yo, in 10 years, bro, I want to be the best act. I just started acting then.

Best actor, best artist, best this is. He was like, bro, I'm taking over the world, bro. That's what that was his answer. So I saw the wave in 2012. Then after that, I started just falling back into, man, let me just do R&B. And that was, when you, you know, bro, as an artist and you young, you're like, Let me try sounding like that person. Let me try sounding like that person. And those records are good because you can sing, but they don't hit because it's not true. So it took me five years to really find out who Ro Timmy was and remembering the conversation I had with Wiz in 2012. And in 2017, that's when it hit me like, bro, just be you. You are the definition of African-American.

You genuinely are. So be the bread of R&B, Afro beat, all in one. That's when the hit record started happening. So meeting him then and seeing like, oh, Africa in about eight years, it's going to be crazy. Because after a while, people were like, what is this noise? I remember bringing love rhythm to the radio station in 2018. And then the program director was like, I can't even get on the beat of this. What is this rhythm?

I can't. This is not good. They don't even understand it. And this is before Wiz and all them had, Wes had the record with Drake. And, you know, so I comfortably can say, I personally brought Afrobeats to America. Talk to Top. It's a fact, you know what I mean?

So, like, I think it was one dance with Drake and Wiz. One dance, one dance had just afterwards. It come out. And not saying it was because of me, no, the timing. But the sound, the open people's ears up to the sound. I was the one taking the music to all the program directors with love rhythm and getting them used to, you love me like juju, all that type of rhythm. And then when that started happening, it was like, oh, I like this.

Now it's a lane for us. And then, of course, Drake obviously helped as well because having whiz on it, but then that happened. Then in the middle of that, I dropped in my bed. So it's like, oh, this is really good can work. Then the DeVito and everybody else, you know, and it was just like, so I can proudly say that I did that. But it started with that conversation in them hotel rooms like, bro, let's just be true to who we are, bro. like it's okay to be African because again growing up

the jokes was like oh y'all dirty y'all this y'all that Jamaicans and hate I think it was I think being African is a new Jamaican because how the niggas look like

yeah you're Jamaican you know what I mean but yeah bro it was it was a tough it was a tough grind but when we found out who we truly were now you see what the world

you know take it's crazy because this artist that's like you as Americans we get so clouded with this being the biggest thing in the world and this, you know what I mean? But when I went to Ghana, it's artists that are superstars over there,

Black Sharif, Otomoto Black, all these dudes is amazing. I'm talking about super superstars over there, and it just ain't translated over here yet, but the fact that the people's ears over here are open to the same, it's only a matter of time before they get one, they catch over here. Absolutely, and it's out of here.

And you're out of here, bro. So, you know, it's divine timing, it's work ethic, right, everything got to work at the right time for this thing to hit, bro, because there's a million artists, athletes, comedians, and access, and so praying, the access. They got drill music and trap music in Africa too.

Odomo. Odomo? Black, bro. That's the definition of what that is. He's a hard body, bro. Man, that nigga, you got to play some of that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I went to, did the radio when I was over there. I told you, I did the radio when I was in Ghana. I walked in the radio station.

They was playing the Black Sharif and Odumoto Black. I'm like, man, what the fuck is this? Mm-hmm. You're like, Odumoto Black. Got to me. This is it, right? This is it. I'm like, yeah, this is it.

This shit, jamming. And you know what? You know what? And Atlanta's one of the few places that championed the artist, how Africa champions their artists. Like, you ain't heard old boy yet. Even just how the radio work, you know what I mean? Like, it's just all love. It's politics.

And politics. You know how that shit, you know. I say the only place I've been that reminded me of that is not even Atlanta. It's Detroit. Like, because you go to Detroit. They love all they are. They do the same. They do.

They do they do. They do. They do. You know, they do. Nobody's going to hear the Bay Area, too. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Certain places you go, you're going to hear hometown music. I love that, but when I was in Ghana like that,

so they played American music, you know what I mean, the mainstream stuff, you hear the Drake's and the, you know what I mean, those people, but for the most parts, you hear their music, you know what I'm saying? And it's another dude that was over there that's real big. I can't think of his name right now to come to me, but he was, it's real popular over there, but he's like, They call him like the Kanye West because he's controversial. Like he speak his mind a lot over there, which is, you know, controversial.

I got to think of my man named. But these are all people that I didn't. I mean, I'm riding around him with my driving. He just playing the music over and over. And I'm just in there. And it just feels good. Yeah, you know what I mean? Who is this?

Who is this? Who is this? Because the sound, like you said, but it's the fact that the sound was, he was opened up to the sound over here. Absolutely. Luckily for me, I said I had African partners, so he used to play me all the Nigerian music. I can't think of the name of the art. artist, but I don't know ba'u Bawi, I can't think of what the, Azan Nunanu.

There I gotta find that shit. It's like 15, 16. Yeah, there you go. Yeah, I know. You know what, you know the melody. It's me. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm going to do, I know.

I'm going to do. I know. That's my shit. What is that shit? Man, hold up. I'm gonna find. No, you know the one I fuck with now. What?

Damn, I can't, uh, you can get me. Oh, what? Um, he took about, uh... That's my shit. Come on, man. You know that, nigga, you know what he said. You know it. No, who, which way?

I know what I'm saying the wrong. That's my nigga name. Shata Wale. Shatawale. Shata Wale. Shata Waleh. Oh, Shata Walee. Shata Walee.

That's the nigga name. Shatawai. You're a corner to. What's the damn song? The shit is being right now, right? You're talking about, no, you're talking about, you're talking about, you're talking about, you're you talking about Drift? That's, that's, no, that's not, uh, that's not.

I said a whole other world. That's all the other type of music, my brother. What's that? What's that? It's not. Yeah, that's, that's, that's, um, like, dance hall reggae energy. Oh, but I mean, but it's still the same, though.

I mean, it comes from the same place, like, in the same, that same essence. We all, we all Africa. Yeah, you know what I mean. That's what you. Yeah. Okay. Yeah.

You know what I mean. Yeah. That's what I'm saying. We all African. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

You know what? I'm gonna switch the gears up. Talked everything third, get right. Because we all know you're an amazing artist. The plaques speak for itself. Thank you, bro. Like you said, I'm just hearing you. Your journey with the acting and the music, you know,

finding your ways. And like you said, it's 2012 when you say, I'm for the store acting. Yeah. Nick of your career been popping since 2012. Thank you. It's been doing shit since whenever you started, you've just been doing the shit.

Being an amazing actor. Yeah. being one of the ones that, you know, they call scene stillers. Come on now. You know about that. Oh, I know about that. You know about that. A lot about that.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's why they want to give you one, two lines. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, when you're seen still and then you end up having to be in five seasons. Explain the process and the procedure of getting a role on power and, you know, going through the audition space. And when your age and college say, hey, man, I got some new. shit coming out.

Cool. We got time to just tell. We got time to tell us about that story. We got time. All right, because we got to start from the beginning. Start from in the beginning. In the beginning. So I graduated college in Chicago.

Right. At this point in time, it was just music. I was 21 years old. My manager at the time was like, yo, you're so natural in front of a camera. Why don't you just, you know, go down to the city, go down to Chicago and just try this to get an agent? I was an artist at the time.

Just an artist. You're a musician. We're living in the hood and Hyde Park in Chicago. Just doing music, literally. And you're in Chicago. I'm in Chicago. I'm living in Chicago, like, dead in the hood. And I was like, all right, cool, I'm going to go.

So no agency wanted to take me because I had no resume. Right. The only agency that, this is 2012. The only agency that took me was only because her son was a freshman at my college. So she was just looking out for alma mater. She was like, all right, well, let me just look out. for you, you have no resume, it's so cool. I go in, she's like,

you never act before? I said, no. She was like, all right, cool, all right, it's okay. This is a Monday. She was like, I have an audition on Wednesday for you, but the role is already cast. Don't think you're going to go in there and get it. I just want you to get used to auditioning, because I'm good friends with

the casting director. I said, okay, cool. I go in on Wednesday, the show's called Boss. It's with Kelsey Grammer. So I go in on Wednesday, and the directors and everybody's there, and she's like, hey, this is the kid I was telling you about, if you have any pointers for him, it's his first day.

Just, you know. So I get in there, but I'm still, I'm on my hustle, my music hustle. Remember during that time they had the rubber bands with the website? Yeah, like, so I'm going to go to memucic.com. To me, music, to the acting world, right? So I'm like, all start laughing a little bit. So I didn't know that was a bad thing to do, but it works for me.

But I get up there and they're like, can you go? I do it. Boom. They're like, can you do it one more? Can you try the different way? Boom, I do it another one. I then realized I do it eight different ways. And they're like, so this is your first day?

I was like, yeah, it's my first day acting. Boom. Two weeks later, get the call that I'm now on TV. I got the role. They got rid of the other guy. I got the role. So now my first acting class is episode one of this show. And Kelsey Grammer takes me in as my acting coach

because he's like, yo, this is camera left. This is camera writing. This is called sides. This is where you stand. I'm learning all this. Debut. I'm terrified, bro. I'm learning debut.

But again, this is where, again, for every actor and every musician, anybody who's creative out there, yo, you never know who's watching. So, season one goes crazy. They're like, yo, who is this kid that came out of nowhere? Literally just walked in. Courtney Kemp, Agbow. Courtney Kemp, sorry. During that time in 2012 was writing, was watching, was watching

watching boss and was writing power creating power watching me do what i was doing and said damn i got to work with that kid who's that guy fast forward two years later now this is the show gets canceled boom my dad this is a Nigerian father yo my dad was like yo the money you made for this show i'm putting it away for you you only got $30,000 to work with if you say you're a superstar if you say you like that, you're going to make this work and get the next thing. I said, dang, okay, cool. Buy a house, rent a house in Atlanta, 2013, 2014, me and four my guys who are just all artists. We didn't have no sofa, no nothing, no nothing. We had lawn chairs, no TV, just a studio. We put all our money into the studio, creating records, creating a record. Six months go by,

nobody making money. My agent called me, he's like, yo, there's a TV show. called Power that's interested in you. But you got to fly yourself to L.A. You got to put yourself up and you know it's pilot season. So you don't know how long you're going to be out there.

Pilot season is February where it's audition after audition after audition after this. So I'm like, I got to, I was like, I looked at my bank account, bro. I had like $1,500 left, bro. So I'm like, it's getting like crunch time.

So I'm like, damn, I got to get a flight. I got to put myself up. I don't know. It's like, all right, cool. All right. I'm getting better on y'all. Man, bet on yourselves. It changed my life, obviously. So I was like, you know, let's do it. Put 700 at the time for a flight, got 700 left. I find the cheapest motel on Hollywood Boulevard, East Hollywood Boulevard that the guy was like, he was like, yo, it's usually 40 at night, but I said, bro, I'm struggling an artist, man.

Let me just, let me just, can't give you 20. It'll double my days. I don't know. He said, I got you. I got you. It's okay. Let me stay. second day I get out there I do the audition kill it but then two three weeks go by so now I'm waiting you know this bro

I'm waiting because I don't know what's going on I gotta stay there so now it's $20 $40 $60 you gotta get food luckily you know

I was always a fly guy so I had some guests you know what I mean they got to cook your brother they'll just come cook for your brother in the motel

you know what I mean so I was space he to cook bro bro. I was on my, you know what I mean? Ramen, all the type of.

It was, I appreciate those times now, but it was, it was craziness, bro, so I was able to stretch the money a little bit. I get the call.

And it's like, all right, you got to go in for a table room. Not everybody's in there. I mean, a test read. You got everybody's in there. And the person that I always,

I rarely tell us, but the person that it was down between me and Lakeith Stanfield, but Dre. So, I'm like this, he's like this, I'm like, what's up, bro, again, and I knew he was a dog then, like, because we both looked at each other like, all right, man, what's up,

bro, like, yeah, cool, cool. And I felt the energy of like, I'm trying to get this, you're trying to get this. So, I was like, went in, murder, I know, and you could tell, you could tell when somebody got the gift, right? So I knew he was lit like that. So anyway, I got to go crazy.

So went in, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom. Got the roll. And at that particular time, I had $40 left, bro. $40 before I got the road for power. Boom. Go to fly to New York. And then Courtney tells me the story of like, you know, I watched you. So I took, she was like, I took your audition tape and compared it to everyone else that was auditioning because what I saw you do on.

boss the other show so again it's like to every creative out there yo honestly please every line every scene every opportunity go hard if you really believe in yourself yo you got to bet that on the house that sounds so for me you got to bet that exactly how did wild and out work for us you see it's the exact same way yeah nick came and did auditions in north carolina that wasn't a real audition and he was like, you got to fly yourself to New York to the audition. So I'm like, I bet

flew myself to New York, the audition yeah, do the audition to New York and I'm like, no money. I just got laid off my job, no bread. And he was like, you know that joke you made about having to fly yourself up? Yeah, we're going to need you to do that one more week. You got to come back for the main audition.

So I went home. Wow. The first time I sold some clothes because I've always been a fly guy. I see, brother. I like the shoes, yeah. But I sold some clothes that play those closet to get the first plane ticket.

The second one, I went to my rental office lady and was like, look, man, I got an opportunity. If you can just let me be a little bit late, I promise you, I pay you. She was like, whatever you got going, that's fine, baby, do your thing. We go up to the main, or the group, like, which was the table read. And I never forget, this man says something to me. When he came in and still resonates to this day,

right before we go in the audition, it was a bunch of niggas. He was like, man, I don't know what these niggas do. But we great get on TV. I love that, bro. Men, that shit. That's hard. That's hard, bro. Oh, yeah.

I mean, I mean, it was so many niggins. That nigga walked right up there because we knew each other, but we didn't go through the audition process together. We had different auditions because he auditioned in Atlanta. I had to go to New York. That nigga walked straight. I seen him. I was like, what's up?

Nick, he can't walk straight up to me and said, hey, I don't know what these niggas gare do. That's tough. We great get on TV. And then it was like, we did the audition. And like you said, that three-week period went past. You don't know. You don't know.

The nigger called and was like, you know, we ain't going to be able to bring you in the workshop. I'm like, damn, welcome to the cast of Wiling Out. I was like, fuck. That January, I officially got laid off from my job, I think it was like January 11 when they sent me the letter. That was that Friday. That Monday I flew out to shoot Wilden out for the first time I ain't looked back to. That's what I'm saying. You got to put that on yourself, bro.

Like, that's how, even with Flat, when Flack came in, when Flack had already had like, you know, buzz on social media, but nobody knew what that nigga was going to do on TV. But I remember that first time we was in that workshop, that nigga Flav was like, nigg got me fucked up, watch this. And niggas was like, oh, this nigga raw, for real. I can't go back to that block. For real. And I also understand, that way I appreciate Nick so much because it's like, all right,

he's in position where he's in control on some, this is who I want to get an opportunity to. I love that. You see what I'm saying? And he, I remember, because, you know, I remember my audition. He was like, I see you little nigger. I see you on Instagram. I'm like, Nick was probably the biggest nigga I ever seen in my life at that day. But he don't even know that this is a whole fast forward because I was in drumline.

In the fifth grade, I remember when they taught the nigga how to punch him. Wow. I was in the fight scene in the stand. So you've been acting? I was just always in the mix. That's crazy. I was always in the Renaissance. That's crazy, bro.

My mother shit. Yeah, yeah. So when I saw him, I was like, I went right back to the field grade. And he was like, he was like, I see you little, I see your Instagram, and do some. I did the best, whatever that was. That's dope.

And then once it was just like, like he said, that waiting period, I was like, I ain't get no phone call. What? I'm just appreciative. Said I got the audition. And the nigga were like, while I just called. They said, you go to, I was like, oh. Oh, shit, right.

Nica? When the world get a glimpse of this? This nigga wasn't exposed to, this nigga didn't even have a real audition, I didn't even have an audition slot. Oh, for real? Yeah, it just showed up. I just showed up. I was like, Ben, thank you.

And I was, I just stayed all day. And then, like, most of the people that they had to audition for the producers. But you know how a motherfucker, like, Nick, he showed up for like an hour to. Right. You won't be that long. So I just got the audition for Nick. I got the audition. Yeah.

Nick, I don't understand. No, man. I didn't get the audition for the, I got audition for Nick. The crazy part is the shit that he did. Nick just wanted to see something. He just wanted to see you be a girl. The shit that he did in North Carolina wasn't even a real audition. He was just doing that because he had a radio show that he was promoting it.

He was just doing a mock, just something to just promote the show coming back. So I went down there because Salute to Dolly. Dolly worked with Nick at the time and she was like, you know, just go and, you know, do that audition. But the crazy part is I had already met him like two years prior doing his fresh faces a comedy show. I went up to Gotham and did a comedy show. Then I was walking around in my creative process. As I walk around, talk to myself, get my shit together. He stole me doing that outside.

I go up to kill when I came down. He was like, man, you just made that up outside. I seen you talking to yourself. I was like, yeah. He was like, man, I'm around some of the best in the game. They can't do what you just did. Keep working. When I walked into that audition, he was like, I remember you.

You're the nigga that's talking to yourself. I was like, yeah, niggins. So help me not talk to myself no more free. What you mean? And that's how it started. And my man beat out audition. He ended up getting on the show later. but I didn't even get his vantage point

until afterwards he had went and didn't do well in the audition at all literally that's what I said as soon as I walked in the door so he said from his vantage point it was no laughter as soon as he heard seeing me walk in and the door closed the room erupted with laughter he was like oh this niggas this niggas out of here so but just that process

most people don't understand that they take that because they see you at see us at this point and don't know that niggas was really fucked up when we got on we was fucked up the first couple years of being on, like, we had to make that shit work, bro. It takes 10 years to get your moment, bro.

Hey, boy. Come on. Shit ain't started getting good, D.I.R. You understand what I mean? Come on. All right. Now when I realized, I was like, I can finally get out my mom at my house. Man, bro. I'm talking about, we was, I'm talking about

going on the road, breaking down, what, $250, 300, nigger apiece. But we was doing five, six shows in a week doing that. But just, I'm talking about And you know where you're going and you know your destination. Absolutely. And you know, and you understand that God is putting you in positions to win.

Yes. You realize, okay, all I got to do is apply faith, apply energy, V, go hard at my craft. Everything is going to work out. Especially once, that's all we prayed for is just the ball to get a little roll. Yep. Yes. Just a little. Just a little roll.

I just need a little roll. And it ain't flat easy. It got a little pump. All of a sudden, it got a little out in it. Yep. Yep. For my heart podcasts in Rococo Punch, this is The Turning, River Road. I knew I wanted to obey and submit, but I didn't fully grasp for the rest of my life what that meant.

In the woods of Minnesota, a cult leader married himself to 10 girls and forced them into a secret life of abuse. Why did I think that way? Why did I allow myself to get so sucked in by this man and thinking to the point that if I died for him, that would be the greatest honor. But in 2014, the youngest of the girls escaped and sparked an international manhunt.

For all those years, you know, he was the predator and I was the prey. And then he became the prey. Listen to The Turning, River Road on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to Pretty Private with Ebeney, the podcast where silence is broken and stories are set free. I'm Ebeney, and every Tuesday I'll be sharing all new anonymous stories that would challenge your perceptions and give you new insight on the people around you.

On Pretty Private, we'll explore the untold experiences of women of color who faced it all, childhood trauma, addiction, abuse, incarceration, grief, mental health struggles, and more, and found the shrimp to make it to the other side. My dad was shot and killed in his house. Yes, he was a drug dealer. Yes, he was a confidential informant, but he wasn't shot on a street corner. He wasn't shot in the middle of a drug deal. He was shot in his house, unarmed.

Pretty private isn't just a podcast. It's your personal guide for turning storylines and to live. lifelines. Every Tuesday, make sure you listen to Pretty Private from the Black Effect Podcast Network. Tune in on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Your entire identity has been fabricated. Your beloved brother goes missing without a trace. You discover the depths of your mother's illness, the way it has echoed and reverberated throughout your life, impacting your very legacy. Hi, I'm Danny Shapiro. And these are just a few of the profound and powerful stories

I'll be mining on our 12th season of Family Secrets. With over 37 million downloads, we continue to be moved and inspired by our guests and their courageously told stories. I can't wait to share 10 powerful new episodes with you, stories of tangled up identities, concealed truths, and the way in which family secrets almost always need to be told. I hope you'll join me and my extraordinary guests for this new season of Family Secrets.

Listen to Family Secrets Season 12 on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The OGs of Uncensored Motherhood are back and badder than ever. I'm Erica. And I'm Mila. And we're the host of the Good Mom's Bad Choices podcast, brought to you by the Black Effect Podcast Network every Wednesday. Historically, men talk too much. And women have quietly listened. And all that stops here.

If you like witty women, then this is your tribes. With guests like Corinne Steffens. I've never seen so many women protect predatory men. And then me too happened. And then everybody else wanted to get pissed off because the white said it was okay. Problem. My oldest daughter, her first day in ninth grade,

and I called to ask how I was going. She was like, oh, dad, all they were doing was talking about your thing in class. I ruined my baby's first day of high school. And slumflower. What turns me on is when a man sends me money. Like, I feel the moisture between my legs when a man sends me money. There's me money. I'm like, oh my God, it's go time. You actually sent it? Listen to the Good Mom's Bad Choices podcast every Wednesday on the Black Effect

Podcast Network. The IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you go to find your podcast. Adventure should never come with a pause button. Remember the movie pass era? Where you could watch all the movies you wanted for just $9? It made zero cents and I could not stop thinking about it. I'm Bridget Todd. Host of the tech podcast, there are no girls on the internet. On this new season, I'm I'm talking to the innovators who are left out of the tech headlines. Like the visionary behind a movie pass, black founder Stacey Spikes, who was pushed out of movie pass the company that he founded.

His story is wild, and it's currently the subject of a juicy new HBO documentary. We dive into how culture connects us. When you go to France, or you go to England, or you go to Hong Kong, those kids are wearing Jordans, they're wearing Kobe's shirt, they're watching Black Panther. And the challenges of being a Black founder. Close your eyes and tell me what a tech founder looks like. They're not going to describe someone who looks like me

and they're not going to describe someone who looks like you. I created There Are No Girls on the Internet because the future belongs to all of us. So listen to There Are No Girls on the Internet on the IHurt Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Pick you back off what you're talking about, bro. So when I got on Power season two, right? Dre was supposed to get killed off season three.

he wasn't supposed to survive he was not supposed to talk much he was just supposed to be there and just be you know the goong nigga the hood guy you know what I mean that energy and when it got to the point where I was like okay I only got two lines what could I do to make a moment and I was like

okay I got to do everything on my eyes so when they started seeing like yeah I answer something and I do something like they'll be like oh we can oh my god then they started realizing this is when Twitter was going crazy so oh that Drake character up to something, up to something, because it's just putting more than just what the words say

and taking advantage of opportunity to the point where they were like, oh my God, we got to make you ghost 2.0, da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da. And they had to redo my contract because it's like, yo, the moment is here. You roll the ball. I got to take it and go crazy. Well, when did you realize that being on power? When did that that success hits you as far as the people? Not necessarily the industry and all that, but when did you feel like, oh, shit, Like, the people were resonating with this character. I think it was, um, season three. Season two, it was like, oh, you part of, okay, that's lit.

Season three is when the conversation started being like, oh, he's about to be on a ghost's wing. And when people started seeing it and they started seeing the similarities and how I was acting and how, like, how I was stealing scenes in that moment, it was like, okay, wow, like, girls love it, Niggas respected, old people love it, da-da-da-da-da. White people love 50, so they're going to watch it. So it was like, oh, wow, I'm outside.

And I remember when I was around, this is like Tray Song, I think it was, and everybody went crazy for him. And that's my dog. So it was like, seeing that everybody gave me the same reaction, it was like, oh, you really, and I didn't expect it. You know, that's my blow. So I'm just, we went in Vegas. We looked over the balcony.

They went crazy for him. I'm like, oh, that's crazy. they're going crazy for my man I looked over they were doing the same thing so I was like oh you really did it and at that moment I'll never forget he was like bro congratulations like now turn it up even more and and you know that was that was the drive yeah it's always I always like to ask those moments because those are the to me those are the surreal moments when the people react to you I never forget for I know one for me was when we went to that all-star game that that celebrity all-star game and me and this nigger was just walking down time

We're bad. Wow. Wow. Wow. That's shit crazy. Like, we thought they gave us the wrong shit on accident. That's crazy. They gave us some good-ass seat.

Like two of the best seats and the shit. That's hard, bro. Everybody got to walk by us. Yeah. So we're just sitting there like, man, this is fucking crazy. They must, they must don't know. Yeah, bro. This nigger say at the eve, like, fuck it.

Nigger, let's walk on the court. I love that. What they're going to do? Kick us out. You did. We did. We see Dage & Pills. So we're like, man, we can ready to say what's up.

I had to say what's up the day. As soon as we get up on that day, he was like, Carlos Chico, man, what's happening, man, how y'all don't. He was like, nigga, you know us. Wow, that's a great moment. When we leave, when we leave, we're walking down the street. I don't even know if you remember. Remember we walking down the street, nigga, we turned around.

Yeah. It was, I'm talking about three blocks down of people following us down the street. Amazing, amazing, amazing. And we like, man, what the fuck? It could go two ways for artists or entertainers at that moment. It could go to your head and be like, oh, I'm lit. Oh, that shit blew my mind. You know what I mean?

it's time to go crazy, or it can drive you. Right. And this is where a lot of us still. When there's a lot of things, you don't work no more. No, it doesn't. It's longevity. It's longevity. Yeah, bro.

Another nigga who they're going to pay less money. Exactly. Get your shit together. I tell you what the moment's for you that was funny as fuck. You probably don't remember this. When you first came, when I say probably it's probably about your second or third season, you was all the way settled into the process. And I guess when you were in the manual, when Emmanuel was the famous person,

you would go and be like, hey, y'all, they go to Emmanuel. Man, that nigga did that shit to you. We was on tour, that first tour. He was like, yeah, DC on your father, that thing was like, oh, shit. He was like, yeah, got you and that's your turn. I mean, I didn't care about being popular, and fame is different. I'm used to being popular. Facts, facts.

But fame coming with the annoying shit. Absolutely. So when I used to see Emmanuel get annoyed, I used to find that shit so funny. So we'll be around here, and folks be like, D.C., what's a nigga? But that's it. That's all I'm going to get. D.C. What's a kid?

I get a picture, too. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. That nigga, he tried to get to the car. I'm like, we got Emmanuel Hussing, everybody. Here, look at me. Elijah, get out the crowd. It's 40, 50 people around the nigga. He's that licking at me like, I fucking hate you.

That nigga, boy, about a year to a half. Boy, that nigga got that dick is so vicious, man. That motherfucker said, D.C. on fly everybody, and they were like, ah, that nigga looked at me. He was like, I got your head. It's a good feeling, bro. I said, I fear you, bro.

It's a good moment. That's a fuck about you to do that. Now, what was that feeling like to be a superstar in two lanes, though? You can move the shit, TV show jumping off, then you got the music shit doing crazy numbers. Like, how were you able to just, like, balance both of them at the same time jumping? Honestly, bro, it was, I mean, it's going to sound cliche, but, like, it was a lot of sacrifice, bro. Like, I couldn't party like most people was.

I couldn't really enjoy being out while in flying this and doing that. Nah, it was like I had a responsibility, you know. I felt like I had a whole country, a whole continent on my back that I got to represent properly. And then it was just like, I've always been able to multitask. So it didn't feel like work to me for a while. Like being lit in acting and being, it just pushed me, bro. Like the most amazing feeling was when we had gotten the ratings and it said, Power is now the number one TV show on cable, on TV, yeah.

But then I also had the number one R&B album at the same time. I see that. You know what I'm saying? Come on, man. How you do that, man? So, so crazy. So for me, it was just like, man, God just give me discernment. Yes, sir.

Give me wisdom. What, sir? Surround me around the right people. Put me around the right team. Even, you know, I finally feel like I got the right team. And shout out to my brother, Punch. But it's like, you know, yeah, that's my dog. You know, so like, it felt like you got to want it.

You got to have a team that won it more than you. They got to have a lot of them. They got to do it while you're going to. Not more than, exactly. They definitely do I don't want them more than you. They got a way, yeah. They know how great you are. Yeah, yeah.

You don't understand. Like, when you have that team that understand your greatness and understand where your strength can be displayed. Absolutely. And they're like, I got somebody that could be. Absolutely. We're too busy saying, look, you need to go talk to them. Why should I have been telling you to go talk to them?

Bro. You should already know the importance of talking to them. Bro. Like, the best thing we can do as creators is know that we're brilliant in what we do, right? Right. But we have to surround ourselves. and me and Punch talk about all the time, you have to surround yourself with experts

that are great at what they do and allow them to do what they do to maximize the ability of where you're going to go. If I'm doing this, I want this. First of all, that means you don't trust your team. Then you're taking away from what you really got to do. Then you're doing it, so you put...

Energy consumer. It's energy consumer, so you can't succeed if your team ain't right because you got a force to do everything. At one point, I was a booking agent. This isn't it. You know what I'm saying? And, like, that's when I felt the most pressure and I felt the most, I almost got depressed.

I almost hated music. I almost hated entertainment because I had to wear so many hats. But it was like, hold on, let's put ourselves and let me put my people in position and trust them to do it. And then you start seeing the money come in, start seeing the rolls, start seeing the music, hitting everything, and the tour and all this, because it's just also surrendering to the process. What do you look for? What did you look for in those people? Ben as though you wore all those hats, like you had that responsibility. It creates a level of understanding from each position.

Yeah. So what did you look for in those people when you, you know, put it in place? What were some of the qualities you look for? You got to be a dog. You got to be tenacious. You can't take no for answer. You know what I mean? You got to look at me and if I'm up at four, you're up at four.

You know what I mean? So that mindset. Then you have to be able to really prove and show that you are really good at what you do. You have to breed results. You know what I'm saying? Then also. Don't get a talk. I love it when someone.

is it... Yeah, for real, you got to, bro. And then also, somebody who's not phased by fame because if you put somebody who's not around it, around it, and they start losing their mind because they become the artist. I've seen that happen six times with people I work with. Exactly.

They want to do all the other things, but then it's like when they know that this is a job, we got a mission, we got a point to prove, we got a this and this, then that changes everything, you know what I'm saying? And then also spiritually, they got to respect where I'm coming from and then, you know, I respect where they're coming from. And, you know, and don't put me in harm's way.

I don't put them in harm's way. Well, that fame is a drug. Like, when you said that, though, it's like, it's a lot of people who still, like, they ain't all the way in it, but they will. Ain't nobody looking. I'm going to say you what. Why do you think clout?

Clout? Clout shit. You're going to get viral. They love a hell of a drug. They're like, any attention and good attention. Anything. No, it's to me. All it is to me is just make people who don't know you act like they know

you forever, and people who know you forever act like they don't know you at all. Yes. That's all fame does. Yes. It's just people who don't know you or run up on you and act like you've been in their family forever. And people who've been in your family and knowing you your whole life would treat you like a stranger. Yes. You know what I mean?

You know what I mean? People who chase clout have a lack of love. Yeah. They're looking for a validation from the validation that they think they see. You think I'm right. Yeah. Right. And they don't even understand the importance of being able to have people around you when fame comes that it can tell you you wrong.

Yes, honestly. I forgot to say honesty, bro. Yeah, I mean, you got to be, I don't want nobody around me who can't tell me, niggas, stop. That ain't. You look crazy. We don't all look at each other when we're going to say some shit. You're like, no, that isn't. Like, look, that how I feel.

Because some people are scared to hold people accountable because they're afraid that that's going to be, I can't say nothing. that nigga going, oh, I'm going to lose my, I can't have nobody around because I can become a danger to myself in that way, because when things start working and working and working, you can think that every idea you have is the right idea or everything that you want to do is the right way to do it. And it takes that vantage point for somebody to be like, that's why I love the black woman so much because they understand us to where they can step and be like, hey, hey, hey, nigga. Absolutely. Don't do that. Absolutely. That ain't the thing to do. Absolutely. You need to say it. Yeah. Yeah. It's a look, man.

win me to get you like, I ain't saying don't do what you're doing, but I know you and you wouldn't do what you're doing. Absolutely. Or he's up to fucking around and be like, you're really about to do that? That's even worse. Now, I wasn't about to do that. I was about to do shit. I'm mad that you thought I was going to do that.

Exactly. It would slap you out. What you're doing? Yeah. I don't want to see what you're going to say what you're going to do that. Yeah, exactly. But like, it's so true. Like, even on the way here, I'm like,

Punchers just, we were just talking. driving up, and he reminded me of something like, and no one else would tell me straight up, like, like, bro, don't do this. Make sure you don't do that. Remind this thing that you think you're like that. And it's like, wow, if I make this whatever mistake or whatever situation or whatever, I'm at fault,

and it affects everybody. So the fact that, like, it's this mindset of my brother, do right, do this, do this, let's think of it this way, let's think of it this way. You need that in all capacity to succeed, yo. Facts. So what does Rootie want? Because I'm hearing the journey.

Right, man. I'm hearing the journey. Did your music always, you was always in music, or did your music and your acting start around like the same time? No, so music started when I was, okay. So my mom is a prayer warrior. Okay. So when I was in her womb, she had a dream,

and Bob Marley came to her and said, your son is going to finish my legacy. So a lot of people don't know. God damn, mama. That's nice. Pressure to put on the nigger as a young nigga. What? Don't let Bob Mali go.

Damn. So if you know any Nigerian friend, you're a partner in Nigerian, so their parents, our parents are like, you have to be a doctor, lawyer, engineer, a pediatrician, librarian, that's it. So when I came out singing, my mom was like, I remember this dream, I have to nurture this gift. Oh, man. So at three years old, four years old, my mom had me as a Nigerian wedding singer, so I was going from. Houston, Connecticut, Philadelphia. You are together. Yeah, I'm like, Jesus.

You are together. Hallelujah. You're going to talk about that day when and a four-year-old come out. I want to take everybody for coming. Literally. Literally. Literally. In a three piece.

Yeah, I'm going to send y'all the picture. I'm going to say y'all the picture. I'm going to say, hall, Hallelujah. Literally, literally, literally, bro. But at Nigerian weddings, they throw money. They throw bread, you know, so. So you get throwing money.

I'm getting, what? Oh, man. So I'm like, so I'm, brother, I'm four. I'm four. So I'm getting like literally maybe five, six thousand because of as many, because it's a spectacle. It's like the four-year-old singing. I'm in there. Nigerian wedding singer, let's do it.

So when I'm realizing that, that stick with you. Like my gift is. breeding money at this particular time and it sticks with my parents. They're like, oh, we have something. So they nurtured it, nurtured it, nurtured it. I'm from Jersey. So the Apollo Theater is big in New York for us, you know what I mean? So for everybody.

Yeah, for everybody. So I performed at the Apollo Theater when I was 14 and I won. Came back the next week, I won. So then Jay-Z's nephews moved into town when I was 15 and they rap and they were doing music. So they were like, yo, like, I hear that you to singer around here like you want to join our group but if you really want to do this we got to be serious because our uncle the pressure on us is to be better than our uncle at the time so hold was like listen if y'all really want to make music you got to come down to my condo oh yeah 15 so i had to go

he was like come down to the condo and write all your music perform all of it in front of me let me critique everything because i got to see personally what's going on so about six seven months every three weeks we were taking the bus taking a car to go to Jay Z crib performing his living room and he was like yo Roe that was good nah

but your voice is a little too strong here so I'm getting critiqued by one of the greatest at 15 and he's telling you yo like you got it you got it bro please understand you have it I said okay so that propelled me

at that point like About a nephew you tell them shit Yeah you told him he told him he told him man, bro. You keep taking this goddamn blugging, man. Man, shout out to Spanky and Ramel all them. But, like, they put me on that situation

and it changed my perspective as a creative, bro. And at 15, you're impressionable. Hell, yeah. So you got J.D. saying, you like that. That's enough drive. It's enough drive to last you for your lifetime as a person. So that, you know, that driving

I got to college, and I was just making music and selling my mixtapes while I was on campus. skipping class, standing at the corner to sell my music. It was a regular music. Oh, it was a regular, trying to get on since I was four. But then you said you also had a song to go big over in your country. Yes.

You're right now. So I had a record called Beautiful Music that I recorded in my dorm in college. And when I graduated, we just put it out, and this is where my space, so you add in top five, you adding everybody to your music page at this time. And I used to do that for eight hours a day, eight hours a day, eight hours a day, eight hours a day for the whole summer. And I started realizing, like, fans, building fan bases all around the world. And I'll say that I was Nigerian.

So one of the top, his name was T-note, T-o, something like that, T-something. He found the music on Mindspace, and the song, Beautiful Music, kind of just took off over there. And they were coming down to America, like four months later. And that's when, you know. So, again, you just got to put the work in and invest in yourself, man. Keep on going on going on. So what's next, man? You know, I mean, I personally, you know, hate that question.

just because, you know, the fact that you don't know when you got that type of history, like if a nigga would ask you what's next when you left J.D. Absolutely, absolutely. Like, what's next? Nicka Platinum, yeah, yeah, yeah. I gotta go.

You gotta put the time, go. Man, what is that nigga platinum, nigga? I just left Jay Z living room, man. I'm gonna fuck what a nigga, talk of him out. You're not lying, though. Yeah, I think for real. Where is the power franchise had, hit it? Where is it at?

Where's it hit it? What can the fans expect from that? Oh, bro. I ain't been a part of, Powered for six years, bro, bro. So I don't even know anything. Yeah, bro. I don't know nothing was going on, honestly.

I mean, I think, I think five for changing my life. But it's a job. You know, it was my job. It wasn't, you know, it's, I did my job and I move on, you know what I'm saying? You can be gone and then you show back up and you dad. Oh, no, they burn my character ass, well. They didn't brook motherfuckers back to life. I'll be a ghost.

Yeah, you won't be but to see that. I can do, doc. You can't do this, baby. Go back, now go back in time and see like your land move. Oh, that thing I need that. Nah, no. Hold on. It's the ankle in a show.

But I'm, before, been, fuck, I'm asking wrong questions now what's next, nigger, you got a skincare line. We ain't talked about, yeah. You got a skin care line.

Thank you, what made you want to do a skin care line? No, it's me. No, it's me. Yeah, it's already, I already used it, though. That's some African shit like this. You can use the rest of it.

I can make sure it was good for you. I had to make sure it was good. Look at my skin. Look at your skin. Look at you. You had to make sure it was good for you. So basically what happened... It's some good lotion.

So it's all favored skin, right? Let me get some of that. And what happened was during the pandemic... Thank you, bro. It's minerals from the Dead Sea, 100% natural. So what happened was 2021, it was COVID, and I started breaking out because I was stressing and I was just going crazy and I was using bad stuff on my face.

And I was like, I got a call again, divine time and God. Andy Hilfiger calls me from the Hilfiger Tommy Hilfiger brand and all that. Call me and it's like, yo, bro, I see your butterscotch videos. What do you put on your face? What's going on with your like, what is that? I said, oh, I just

used this other brand. He was like, yo, what, are you going to, have you thought about endorsing something? I said, bro, if I'm going to get into skincare, I want to own my own skincare. And he was like, okay, cool, do it. Let's do it, man. You want to go 50-50? I said, I said, yeah, it was like, yeah.

So look, I have a company in Israel. They have this stuff from the Dead Sea, and the Dead Sea is like a healing, it's like a healing. Yeah, the mineral. Yeah, the mineral. My friend, please. Yes, yeah. Please, don't break my heart.

Please. Please, please, please, please. Please, please, please, please, please. Please, please, please, please, let me say you something. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. So, so the Dead Sea, so if people don't know, know it's in Israel and it heals like skin cancer it heals like psoriasis it heals eczema so i was like

yo honestly man i want to make something that black brothers and sisters can use on their skin without any preservative and it's all natural and it's a healing place healing thing from the source and israel is the holy land you know what i mean like it started there so for me it was like i want something that will change people's lives so i called it favor because it's like when i started realizing that it was changing my life and doing what it's doing to my face, or I could change people's lives because a lot of people's insecurities come from their skin. A lot of people's insecurities come from a lot of outer stuff. So I was like, let me be a part of that healing process. We created it. So it's about to be in Target. We're about to do a meeting with H.S.

And the testimony, I got you. I got you. I got you. But like, favorite skin in it, and it, like, when I put my finger and my hand into the Dead Sea, I saw like the dirt come off, it naturally exfoliated everything, and it was a natural glow, so, you know, we're the only ones that got minerals from the Dead Sea and the States. You know, so I think it's changing. And then the testimonials that we've had,

like, we've had about 4,000,000 testimonials of people using it so far, and it's like, you've changed my life, you help me, man. Like, I'm, they show me before and after pictures, I hold team, so it's just been a blessing, man. So, if you want to get it, it's favorite skin from both men and women.

Well, we've got you some 85 South Show gift. Oh, thank you, bro. My brother. Thank you. We took your skincare. Oh, no, no. We're going to do a promo code, 85 South on the on as well.

85 favor. Oh, 85 favor? 85 favorites. Yeah, we do. Hey, we do. Thank you, bro. Thank you, brother. Yeah, make sure y'all go get anything, Ro, Timmy put out.

We got new singles dropping. You got new faces. Oh, yeah. He also got a track, too, so y'all know on YouTube. Yeah, we got a record out, man, that's going crazy. And also, I got a double album that's coming out in July. We have a double album coming out in July. It's called, not yet, but it's half AfroB, half R&B.

So all my fans get seven records of R&B, seven records of Afro. And it's going to be that. You know, this is your first time stopping through here. Don't let it be the last. I'm here. This is my family, bro. Yeah, that's what I'm saying. You're never got to get you to sign the table, man.

You got to sign the table, man. Without show, my family, bro. We are out. Let's get a flick, man. Oh, come on. Why is this taking so long? This thing is ancient. Still using yesterday's tech, upgrade to the ThinkPad X1 carbon, ultra-light, ultra-powerful, and built for serious productivity with Intel core ultra-processors, blazing speed, and AI-powered performance that keeps up with your business, not the other way around.

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IHeart women's sports and our founding sponsors, Elf Beauty, Capital One, and Novartis. Just open the free IHeart app and search IHeart Women's Sports to listen now. I knew I wanted to obey and submit, but I didn't fully grasp for the rest of my life what that meant. For My Heart Podcasts and Rococo Punch, this is The Turning, River Road. In the woods of Minnesota, a cult leader married himself to 10 girls and forced them into a secret life of abuse. But in 2014, the youngest escaped. Listen to the Turning River Road on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Do you remember Vine? It changed the internet forever, and it vanished in its prime. I'm Benedict Townsend, and this is Vine, six seconds that changed the world.

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