The Breakfast Club - INTERVIEW: DeMar DeRozan Talks New Memoir 'Above the Noise,' Compton & Toronto, Drake & KDot, Kobe Bryant More

Episode Date: September 12, 2024

The Breakfast Club Sits Down With DeMar DeRozan To Discuss His New Memoir 'Above the Noise,' Compton & Toronto, Drake & KDot, And Kobe Bryant. Listen For More!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wake that ass up in the morning. The Breakfast Club. Morning, everybody. It's DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, Charlamagne Tha God. We are The Breakfast Club. Jess is on maternity leave. Lauren LaRosa's filling in. And we got a special guest in the building. Compton's finest. Ladies and gentlemen, DeMar DeRozan. Welcome. Man, it's an honor, man. Appreciate you. How you doing, my brother? Doing good. How you doing?

I am blessed, black, and highly favored, man. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. New book out. Above the Noise story of chasing calm i love that title when i hear that title i know a man that's doing the work on himself man trying man this is it's definitely a challenge something that's not easy take time it's patience gotta give yourself grace you know we go through a lot of stuff you know that we we sweep under the rug and A lot of times by the time we figure it out, we deep in and it takes a lot of work to try to figure that out.

So just trying to inspire, get the message out there and just try to break the stigma more than anything. I love what you said in the New York Times about how more athletes need to open up about their mental health. And basically you said they need to show their Clark Kent side. Yeah, yeah man, everybody look at us like we the superhero so much.

Y'all are to a lot of kids. Without a doubt. I don't look at you. I'll dunk on you. See? He can't even touch the net. He can't even touch the net. I'll poke you up right now.

He never take you serious, but go ahead. And it's definitely, you know, I think for me, you know, I look at it, we fall in love with a lot of superheroes because who they, you know, who they are at night. You know, we never appreciate the person before they put on the mask. And a lot of times we carry that mask more than anything. You know, even me to this day. That's one thing I'm trying to break. You know, it's tough when you got to kind of be two different people, you know.

And sometimes you forget the most important person at times and put yourself in a deep depression at times, and it's tough to get out of. I want to know your journey when it came to the NBA, right? Because growing up as a kid, there wasn't as many leagues where it was training. We just kids played in the park, and the good kids went to high school, played on a high school team, played in college. But now it seems like everything is foreseen as training.

You got to train, train six days a week. Lamar Odom and all those days just played park. They went to ruck and played ball and kept it moving. So what was your journey getting to the league? And explain to some of the kids out there who have that dream how difficult it was to get there. First of all, like you said, like growing up, like we didn't know nothing about training. It was all like if I go to play at the park from sunup to sundown, that's what I'm going to be able to do.

That's what I'm going to do. If it's in the backyard, if it's making a crate, playing basketball, my aspiration was always trying to escape from my reality with sports. Whether we play football in the streets, whatever it may be. We use sports as a gateway for peace. And for a long time you don't even consider working out. You just wanna hoop. So as you get older it becomes more difficult

when you gotta take those necessary steps to evolve into a true basketball player. So it's definitely a long road. And especially now, I can't even imagine what social media and so much stuff that's in front of these kids now you're basically famous by the time you know you're in middle school you know so it's definitely uh difficult these days more more so than ever um when before it just used to be about the game when did you realize you you were you were that good to make it to the league because as a kid everybody thinks they jordan everybody thinks they kobe everybody thinks they every player that they ever imagined when did you realize you were that good to make it to the league? Because as a kid, everybody thinks they Jordan.

Everybody thinks they Kobe. Everybody thinks they every player that they ever imagined. When did you know, like, oh, I got a shot? When it was a true real-life belief, probably by the time I was probably like in the 19th grade when it was like, all right, if I keep working at this, I maybe – I still maybe have a chance. But for me, everything still felt so far-fetched because you know you didn't know nothing about college i didn't have nobody in my family go d1

so even just going to college was a big thing like man i gotta at least make it to college like like damn the league college was more so the the big obstacle for me to make it to there so by the time my senior year i knew knew I was going to SC. I knew it was a chance after that for me to go pro for sure. What about your father? Because I love seeing black men celebrate their fathers. And you dedicated the book to your father, Frank DeRozan. What were some of the values he contributed to your upbringing?

Not just as a player, but as a man more importantly. As a man more than anything. You know, he taught me the art of hardworking, resiliency, being a man more so than anything. And one thing growing up that he always, you know, preached to me that, you know, we was growing up in a cruel society. So he prepared me on how to deal with that more so than anything. How to deal with them white folks.

Yeah, just period. My dad was from the country. He was from the south. What part? Vidalia. It's a small in Louisiana. Small, small, small town. I remember when I was a kid, he first took me there.

I remember he showed me cotton fields and all this stuff. It was crazy. They still boil their water to take baths. You know what I mean? So that was real humbling for me at a young age, especially being from Compton, going to go see the, you know, the countryside of my dad. But he showed me just the importance of hard work, sticking to your word, and, you know, everything that he went through, he never complained.

Is your dad one of the OGs that bought them horses to Compton? Is he from the country? No, no, no. He was like, yeah, we got that. No, no, no. That's a good one. No, no, he didn't. What was the Compton like that you grew up in?

I mean, in the time, I thought it was a norm, you know, of being around, you know, such an aggressive nature of, you know, gangs and everything because it was so family-oriented. You know, I grew up during a time like, you know, it still was those kind of old-school rules where, you know, the guys in the neighborhood are going to protect you to stay away from all the, you know, the bullshit that was going on. And that was one thing that definitely helped me. You know, even though it was aggressive, you had to deal with a lot of obstacles.

But, you know, it was a lot of people that looked out for me more so than anything to keep you on the right track. Coming from Compton, I know in 2018 is when you sent out the tweet, the depression get the best of me tweet that kind of sparked all of the conversation. And I know you were back in L.A. at the time. Do you think or did you feel like was it like survivor's remorse because you're so connected to home and family now you're back and you're at the height of your career? Yeah, I think for me that's when everything hit the wall for me

because my career was, you know, taking off at a peak that I never would have imagined. You know, I'm coming back home to L.A. being a starter for the all-star team. And, you know, all I cared about in that moment was get home and see my kids. I wanted to see my daughters. I didn't care about nothing else. But it's like as soon as I got to L.A., everybody asking for something, needing something, wanting tickets, wanting to do this. Everybody had this pre-notion of, like,

I felt like I was getting plotted on in a sense. You know what I mean? When at the end of the day, I just want to go hug my kids. I want to do what my kids want to do. But it's like the overwhelming feeling of I see myself in all these hotels downtown L.A. It was just a lot. And it kind of put a lot of stuff in perspective for me and I kind of

just you know I hit a wall at that point was Toronto a better place for you because you away from everybody that you grew up with and was that a mistake leaving Toronto Toronto was the best thing that happened for me because at that time even when I was at SC like if I had a good day or a bad day I was still going to Compton like still going to stay at my mama house in Compton. I'm still around the same type of environment. So I really wasn't evolving in a way I needed to. I still ran back to what I was comfortable with. So when I left SC, got drafted, I go to a whole nother country.

Toronto. I know you like, what the hell is this? Lot of beautiful women in Toronto. It's a beautiful place. Love it. No, lot of beautiful women. He. It's a beautiful place. Love like love it. No, a lot of beautiful women. He heard you. I love it.

That man heard you. He tried to get you. He heard you. That man heard you. Look at that man in trouble. Go ahead, brother. It definitely is though. Go ahead, brother.

It's so wild because I didn't realize how much I needed to be away from home. And it was to the point to where like nobody in my family had a passport. None of my cousins could go no like so i was there by myself so it forced me to kind of grow up in a way to where it helped me mature in a in a very professional way where i paid attention to nothing but working on my craft how to be the best player best individual listen to all the ogs like i didn't

have no outside distraction because i can't have the homies come up, I can't have the fam come up, nobody got no damn passport. It wasn't easy getting a passport. So it was something that definitely was a necessity in my career at that point. And a lot of things that I learned from my time being away from home, then I still carry to this day, just understanding solitude

and being able to be to myself. Was that the first time you felt the calm? Yeah, yeah. Unknowingly, too. You know what I mean? Because it wasn't no distraction. I had no choice but to be to myself. And with that, you know,

shit, now you got to figure out how to do laundry, what to eat. Like, so much stuff when before, you know, I'm going to just go to mom's. I'm going to have mom's to, what to eat, feed you, like so much stuff when before, you know, I'm going to just go to mom's, man. I'm going to have mom's make me something to eat, this, this. So it definitely was a calm, like I said, even to this point that make it easier for me when I need those moments to be alone, it's easy to do. The decision to leave Toronto. Why was that? That was tough. That was tough because at that point, you know, I was nine years in.

It was the only place I ever knew, only place I, you know, wanted to stay. Invested so much there. You know, I grew there. I was 19 when I got drafted. You know, had two kids up to that point. So I became a father. Like, just was a lot going on. You never thought in your mind that you would leave in a place that, you know, you had so much success in.

So when that happened, you know, it took a hit. But, you know, looking back on it, I'm glad, you know, it happened because that's another point in my life that was needed for me to grow much more than I ever could imagine. And you left Toronto and you went to Chicago. No, I went to San Antonio. San Antonio. Yup.

And then Chicago. Chicago. Yup. Was the rumors of you going to LA ever real? Was that like a real thing? Yeah, that was real. Yeah, that was 100% real. You was gonna play with LeBron? Yeah.

How close did it get? It was like, it was basically like a done deal at one point. And I remember waking up and I remember leaving L.A. because I just knew, like, man, free agency start. I'm about to sign with the Lakers. It's about to be a fucking shit show. You know what I mean?

So I took a vacation, got away. I think I went to Cabo or something. And I looked on Twitter. They were a different route. I was like, I thought it was a done deal. You found out from Twitter or something, and, you know, I looked on Twitter. They were a different route. I was like, I thought it was a done deal. You found out from Twitter? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, the Lakers changed their mind?

The Lakers changed their mind. Is that normally how that works? Sometimes. You know, you can't, you know. Dang, so you in Cabo. So what happens? How do you feel? Who do you call?

What's crazy, you don't call nobody. Oh, you just. You just basically, like, you know, you don't call nobody. Oh, you just... You just basically figure out your next move. Wow. Because something probably could be a thought or a word agreement don't necessarily mean it's set in stone. So they chose to go a different direction, and that's when I went to Chicago.

But before Chicago, it was a good chance I was going to be a Leggett. I always wonder how did that make players feel when they look on Twitter and see that they've just been shipped somewhere because it's almost like you're not even human. You're just a product. And that's another thing I talk to a lot of guys about that it's a lot of players in our league

that that kills their confidence. They don't understand it and it puts them in aspiring like downhill like emotion that they can't get out of and a lot of times you will see a lot of these guys that you know they they they good players and that one obstacle hit they never the same because a lot of a lot of guys can't bounce back from it from a mental aspect expectations set on them they feel like they didn't reach it. Now they feel less than.

It's a lot that goes into it that gets overlooked. I understand it's a business, but a lot of times guys feel a certain type of way when that do happen, and a lot of times it's hard to bounce back from it. That's why I never get mad at players when they make their own decisions. And people are always mad at them. And you see people giving LeBron flack all the time for doing what he does, but how could you be mad at him when on the other side owners do the same thing yeah do the same thing that's the tough part where you know i always tell guys my whole career i always tell guys man you make the best decision for you you know i mean there's been times i play with

guys like i know if you come back like we could be we could we could even be better next year but you got to make the best decision for you. I always tell guys to do that. So what made you choose to play for the Kings? Be honest, the opportunity to compete, to win was there, and the other side of it, obviously the financial part, to still be able to feel like you wanna still receive what you're worth.

You know what I mean? Let me look that contract up He's like a bird over there This is 16 year in a league to 16. Yeah, what's the contract? Three year deal worth up to 76 point seven million Including three million in unlikely bonuses. Congratulations, Damar. Appreciate you.

Man, 16, you see yourself going like 20? Mentally or physically? Both. Both. I would answer physically first and then do mentally. Physically, for sure. You know, I definitely could do it. I take care of myself.

I don't do nothing. I don't go out. I don't drink. I just either be my kids or I be chilling. I don't do nothing. I don't go out. I don't drink. I just either be my kids or I be chilling. I don't do nothing. So physically, for sure. Mentally, that's the tough part because, you know, kids getting older, you know, missing so much stuff from the kids. That becomes more of a priority, more so than anything. Like, you know, I hate, you know, my daughter asks me if I'm going to be at a dance they have and I'm like, I'm on the road. I can't make it. You know what I mean?

That be the tough part. So seeing them get older and missing a lot of stuff, that makes it harder on me to say let me go for 20. Why did you leave the Spurs? Because Greg Popovich, he writes the forward in your book. I saw you, I forgot who I saw you at telling the story about how, I think it was after your father passed, and he came to see you and y''all just kicked it for some hours.

Yeah. And why leave that type of environment? You know, it's crazy. Pop's such a real dude because even in that point, he just wanted me to be able to go somewhere to win and kind of, you know, because the team was going a different route. They was kind of going younger, and, you know, he just told me my last year in San Antonio,

wherever you choose to go, I'm going to make sure it happens. You know, and, like, that's why I speak so highly of Pop. Like, you know, Pop texted me last night, like, just randomly, like, you know, like the most positive message you could always get. You know, I love when Pop texts me. But Pop, you know, he was the one that come to me saying, like, you know, go somewhere where you could go be happy and be yourself because we going a different route here with the team.

Wow. You know, so Pop a real dude for that. What makes him such a special coach? It's not about basketball. You know, it's been – I always tell a lot of guys around the league, like, you think it's basketball, but it's been so many days with Pop we had come in. We think we about to watch a film on a game previously or something, and he'll sit us down and we'll watch a whole show about penguins, right?

And you'll be lost in the moment, but you also will watch it and realize why he have us watching it because how penguins come together and sacrifice during certain seasons because how penguins come together and sacrifice during certain seasons of how the males come together take care of the eggs while the female go out and hunt for six months it's like a deeper meaning that he put you in front of to show you like humility from a a different level you know i mean and or maybe times where you lose two games in a row everybody mad complaining he'll come in and show clips from a third world country of kids training at 14 years old playing uh to be in the army and you know he asked he'll tell you ask yourself like what is it

really to complain about you get paid millions like you get to do what you want to do as people out there suffering from real things. So he put a lot of stuff in perspective, and he know how to get the most out of his players more than anything. When y'all watch the Penguin doc, did it show that they have same-sex behavior? Because a lot of times they say same-sex behavior in penguins has been observed in zoos, but it's not clear if it's common in the wild. Nah.

Nah, I ain't get that. I ain't get that. So let me ask you about that's true but that's that's true look it up later okay now let me ask you about your pops you you said um you said I knew my dad loved me and he was larger than life to me but he was the only person that you were scared of oh my god uh and I know for my fact and I say for me growing up I'm sure the same thing I said I was scared of my dad growing up too I'm sure the same for you, Charlamagne. That's what you was about to say? I said, I was scared of my dad growing up too. I'm sure it was the same as you.

Me too. I was like, damn, my dad used to say that word too in the 90s. Well, how were you as a parent? Are you the same way with your kids?

Uh, no, because the fear he put in me, I always tell myself, I didn't want to be like that to my kids. But it kept you straight. But it kept me straight. But I also grew up in the streets.

My kids don't know nothing about the streets. So I approached them more so with love and patience and more of understanding. When before, like, you know, my parents parent parent me in a sense of survival it was always it was always a thing my mom always used to tell me when you walk out that door make sure i don't care what you do you walk back in this house but every time you come back in so with that it gave me a survival instinct to understand like no matter what i gotta i gotta make sure i make it back to the house you know i what I mean? Because it was tough. So, you know, my kids.

When did you realize that? Because, you know, as a kid, you think your dad's just being hard on you. And you're like, I hate him. But then when you started getting a little older and you started having kids, you understand everything. Oh, yeah, you understand so much. Even to this day, to this moment. I still have moments where I fully understand why my parents did a lot of stuff that they did, you know.

But, you know, when it comes to, like, that tough love, I don't think it's necessary like it was with my dad for me, especially growing up in Compton. You know, it's so interesting. I saw you say in the book that you were afraid to have a son of your own because you didn't feel that you could deliver the same brand of tough love that he did. And two things that I learned learned in therapy number one uh i i felt like my dad used to discipline me for things he never taught me but also my dad was raising me out of fear and not love

exactly and i think what we call tough love is actually fear because yeah he was afraid because you was in the street it's like when i was in the street my dad did not want me to make the same mistakes that he made exactly yeah and even now even me now having a son like my son is like you know i got four four girls and one son and you know having my son like he having that you know especially with my son i think about my father more so than anything but like with him he brings like i give him the joy and the love that he deserves like I do my daughters. You know what I mean? Because when I was a kid, I always wanted that for my dad.

I always wanted the approval from my dad. I always wanted to make sure I made him happy. But that was the tough love he was giving me that made me question that at times. So, you know, with my son, like, I definitely didn't want to come off that way. You know what I mean? I didn't want to come off that way you know i mean i didn't want to give him that that tough love it may be times where it's needed but for the most part you know my son is my dog as long as with my daughters but you know having a son now it makes me think about my dad more more than anything now is it true that you said jordan on the wizards is your favorite michael jordan But you don't do drugs.

More so. You got to explain that one. More so from the standpoint of how simple he made the game at such a, he was 38, 39, 40, still. But that was your favorite, Jordan? It wasn't my favorite, but it was more so the one that I could, I remember watching the most. You know what I mean? I'm 35 when, you know, I was, what, 12, 13 when Mike was with the Wizards. So it was more me understanding and, like, watching.

And you fell in love with that Jordan? No, I love Jordan. Okay. But I more so fell in love with that Jordan with the style of play of how I play now. Okay. You know what I mean? Obviously, you don't agree, huh? No, I mean, I get what he's

saying, but that 23 on the Bulls is just a different 23. That's definitely something else. What's your favorite Bron? My favorite Bron? That's a good question. I mean, second Cleveland stint, LeBron, probably my favorite

Bron because that's the Bron we couldn't get past when we was in the playoffs. He was unstoppable. Unstoppable. You had a relationship with Kobe too, right? I had a relationship with Kobe ever since I was probably 15.

15, 16 years old. Just growing up in Compton. Growing up in Compton and I always used to go to his camps. Then, obviously, when I was in high school, being a top-ranking high school player, he used to have these late-night runs where we would go up there and play. And, you know, he used to – What's up, y'all?

This is Questlove, and I'm here to tell you about a new podcast I've been working on with the Story Pirates and John Glickman called Historical Records. It's a family friendly podcast. Yeah, you heard that right. A podcast for all ages. One you can listen to and enjoy with your kids starting on September 27th. I'm going to toss it over to the host of Historical Records, Nimany, to tell you all about it.

Make sure you check it out. Hey, y'all. Nimany here. I'm the host of a brand new history podcast for kids and families called Historical Records. Historical Records brings history to life through hip hop. Each episode is about a different inspiring figure from history. Like this one about Claudette Colvin, a 15-year-old girl in Alabama who refused to give up her seat on the city bus nine whole months before Rosa Parks did the same thing. Check it. Did you know, did you know, I wouldn't give up my seat.

Nine months before Rosa, it was Claudette Goldman. Get the kids in your life excited about history by tuning in to Historical Records. Because in order to make history, you have to make some noise. Listen to Historical Records on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hand pick who, you know, who you fell in love with as players. And I was one of those ones. And by the time I was a senior in high school, you know, he would give me his shoes. I wore his shoes, his Kobe's all.

I think my senior year in high school, a lot of times. When I went to college, he used to give me a lot of his shoes. So we always had a relationship ever since I was young for sure where do you rank them like where do you have we just finished talking about my goat okay okay i'm beyond it i'll tell everybody cobe is my goat for many reasons you know that was the first person like i watched like growing up in la that's the only nba game i used to watch with the Lakers. So I watched every single game of his. I cried when he shot the air balls versus Utah in the playoffs as a kid.

So I always had an emotional attachment to him growing up watching him play. And obviously him being my mentor by the time I got in high school and throughout my time in the league. Did the NBA provide proper grief counseling after Kobe passed? Even if you didn't have a personal relationship with Kobe, he influenced so many people and inspired so many people.

Did they handle that correctly? Because y'all was in the bubble too around that time, right? Was that the bubble? Yeah, I think that was the bubble year. Yeah, that was that same year, right? Yeah. Because that happened, yeah. That, yeah.

Because that happened that year, then the league stopped, then that summer we went to the bubble, yeah. No, you know what's crazy? I think during that time, as players, we kind of embraced each other deeper than anything because you start to look at the person next to you like, man, if this could happen to Kobe, this could happen to anybody. And it kinda hit us all hard, man.

Like, I remember the night, I mean, the day it happened, I remember we had a game, and a lot of people across the league started, you know, basically text and talk before the game. It's like, should we even play? A lot of people was contemplating on not even playing, because just out of respect for cobe and everything but we end up you know everybody end up holding the ball i think we held the ball for 24 seconds shot clock you know just try to you know pay pay respect to

him but you know we we all bridge together as players more more so than anything i was playing against him because that was your idol that was your your goal. Y'all played what, 10 games in the league against each other? Total? Yeah, probably more than that, because probably more than that. I think for me it was cool because I was even able to be a part of his last All-Star game in Toronto.

To honor him, even that season, I think we honored him when he game in Toronto. You know, to honor him, even that season, I think we honored him when he came to Toronto. I gave him some special shoes, special made Kobe shoes. It was amazing being able to play against your idol, somebody you looked up to, and knowing how crazy he was on the court, you know, and the aura that he carried is almost similar to the stories I hear about Mike. You know, and to see that in Cole whenever he stepped out there on the court

and the things he was able to do, it was beyond incredible. Now, you also played on Master P's AAU team, right? I was playing for P. P was like, man, that's family, man. Like P, like beyond family, man. P took me in like a son, to be honest with you. Like Monday through Friday, I'll be in Compton. Friday night to Sunday, I'm at P house with Romeo, you know, Rome.

You know, even the other day, my book signing at L.A. Rome came through and, you know, Rome, you know, even the other day, my, my book signing at LA Rome came through and, you know, show respect, you know, that's, that's one of my close friends since, since we was 14, 15 years old, but, you know, he took me in, you know, I was like, I was like a son to him early on for sure. So it was dope to be around that whole aura. How good was, was little Romeo playing ball? How good was P? Cause I'm sure y'all played. Yeah, we played a lot. Um, P was good, but he was even better at talking smack. Talking the whole game. Talking, yeah.

He used to talk trash all day long. He gives me the old man back you down. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Hit you with the elbow. That's P. P, like old school, dirty. If he hit two shots in a row, you ain't going to hear the last of it. And little Romeo?

Rome was nice. You know, obviously, you don't, looking back at it, and we even had this conversation, him being the child star he was, it was hard for him to focus on, you know, just one thing. But for him to even make it, you know, college says a lot with the amount of stuff that he was dealing with, going through, being a star, doing TV shows, doing music and everything.

So it was just difficult for him to focus on one thing, but he had it. I think, first of all, I love the title of your book, right? We're talking to DeMar DeRozan, Above the Noise, My Story of Chasing Calm. I think we all know what noise sounds like, right? What does calm sound like? Because one thing you said earlier that hit me,

because I understand that feeling, is when you feel peace and you're a person that's used to dealing with anxiety about the depression, it scares you a little bit. Man, I think I said this the other day. It's kind of like, you know that eerie feeling you get when you're in the middle of somewhere and it's just too quiet? That's right. And you're waiting for something to go wrong.

You're just waiting. It makes your nerves kind of even worse in that moment you in the middle of somewhere and it's just too quiet. Like, like. And you waiting for something to go wrong. You just waiting. Like it makes your nerves kind of even worse in that moment because you, you, you kind of on 10 from there. So that was even a challenge for me. Like, and I used to try to figure out ways on really how to like accept it and indulge in it. So I start, you know, it got to a point to where I started

going to like Montana Wyoming going to these random places where it's just completely natural sound and just like getting lost in it and understanding it's okay to be within peace it's okay to kind of decompress away from everything else that's going on because this is a true way to find a center yourself and kind of really think clearly for a second and not question it what do you do meditation or i mean i'm i'm big like i remember i went to montana i got on the river i went along the river for about seven eight hours no phone no nothing and just you know looked at the mountains and and just went along the river and you. And it kind of puts your thoughts in perspective with everything I've been.

You think I was no phone? Yeah, no nothing. Wow. But that's the thing. That's amazing. But that's the thing. We get so caught up in our phone. I'm going to be honest, too.

Sometimes I get lost in my phone and I get mad, throw my phone like, damn, I don't need this. You know what I mean? Let me kind of decompress from all this and kind of just find myself because it's so easy to get lost in everything else so now you have like resources though where you can get up and go to like montana and do all that stuff when you talk to younger players about finding peace just because they might not have the same environment yeah how do you explain to them how they can find little pieces of peace like you said you had your grandmother who was peace to you. Like, how do you talk to them or talk them through

that? I think you really got to find what you, what you love. And sometimes you can't be scared to try something new either, you know, whatever that may be. Cause it, it's different for everybody. And one thing I always try to tell people people be open-minded to things you may be comfortable uncomfortable with because that could be the thing that changed you because there's a lot of stuff I never in my life thought I'd do I never thought I'd be somebody from Compton be in the middle of Montana like I never thought that but I was open to the idea of doing it and trying it and it was one of the most amazing things I did and even in that moment when I did it I remember I took like six seven my of my cousins from Compton.

I took them there. I remember they was mad as shit at me because, you know, I didn't tell them where we was going. They thought they was going somewhere hot. They thought they was in Miami. You see what I'm saying? They thinking like we about to go turn up. We going like and we get off the plane and we in the middle of Montana

and they was mad. But by the end of the trip, it going like, and we get off the plane, and we in the middle of Montana, and they was mad. But by the end of the trip, it was like, yo, this is one of the greatest experiences I ever had. I never thought I'd be in Montana scaling trees or on the lake or fly fishing or doing all these. Like, I never would have imagined, but it changed their perspective. You know what I mean? In touch with nature, too.

Yeah. It give them a whole different outlook on just life and thinking it's just being around like you know toxic type of you know energy sometimes it's cool it's you know everything in moderation but sometimes you really just gotta ground yourself and figure out that that kind what is it that makes compton so special man like like just think about all of the great iconic culture shifting people who have come out of company yeah yeah it's it's wild because i've had moments where you know when i go back home and i'm i'm leaving out this like city and you really just sit and realize like man this this small city them births some of the greatest individuals that ever touched the world you know what i mean

and it gives me the chills a lot of times when i think about it because you know it make me even feel even more proud even being from there because it don't happen by accident the same you know like it's it's something about this place that that shape that have so much to offer that that you that you see you know i mean and it's it's it's i'm i'm just honored to be a part of it be honest with you um it's hard to pinpoint what's what is what is it but it's something amazing because we got some grace to come out of there now you played in toronto for years but then kendrick's from compton drake is from Toronto. That's your guy.

How do you choose what you're going to get into and what you're not going to get into at that point? You know what's crazy? It's like loving both family. You know, but at the end of the day, it's like I'm from Compton. Like my city, where I'm from, where I'm born, where my family still live it's like that comes first

before anything you know and I feel like any real person will understand that you know and that's just what it is like and it's so crazy because my second home became Toronto that has one of the greatest of all time being

from there too so watch your mouth so you're not mad about the Super Bowl That has one of the greatest of all time being from there too. Watch your mouth. Watch your mouth. So you're not mad about the Super Bowl. Watch your mouth. Kendrick got the Super Bowl. No, I'm not mad.

I'm not mad. I understand it. Like, yeah, we for sure love to see Wayne up there. And my thing too is like everybody was in such an up world. We don't know if Wayne was still going to do it. You know what I mean? Like we don't know. We didn't know 50 was still gonna do it. You know what I mean? Like, we don't know. We didn't know 50 was doing LA, but it was such an

honor and surprise to see him still do it. He can't do that, though. Wayne can't pop up as a Kendrick Lamar. I mean, that part of it. That would be crazy. You think so? Yes. Yes, come on, man. Kendrick put your name in the song.

I'm glad D-Rose came home. Y'all didn't deserve him neither. You being in the video, they were acting like you crossed enemy lines or something, even though that shit a guy. So imagine Wayne showing up on stage. I mean, yeah, true. What you want me to say? I see dead people too?

And then walk off afraid? That wouldn't work. True. I mean, that's why I'm glad I'm not in an entertainment business. Yeah. Because your job is definitely difficult. Have you spoke to Drake? No, I haven't talked to him.

I haven't talked to him. You ain't sent him a text to be like, you good? Blocked him. Nothing? Don't send him no football emoji. Listen. Football emoji. Oh, a football.

Oh, you saw? He can't get away. What that mean? First it was the Penguins, now it's... The Penguin thing is true, though. Okay, go ahead. Go ahead. Where did I walk into?

You'll see. Watch it. You'll see. The Penguin thing, that's a thing. Like, people... Okay. That is a thing. All right.

I think, listen, it's dope regardless of how everybody looking at it. I think it's dope to go back to the Compton thing and see somebody from Compton headlining the Super Bowl. Again? Y'all just had one two years ago. Yeah. And it's in LA in two years from now too. Yeah. But yeah, I don't know. I just appreciate the moment. I would love to see Wayne.

You know, I love to see, you know, cash money out there. I love to see No Limit out there. You know, so I don't think too much into it when it happens because I'm pretty sure it's more of a surprise that probably do come with it. And that's just me guessing. I don't have no insight on anything.

That's just me guessing. And I like it, man, because to the victor goes the spoils. Yeah. It was the greatest rap feud of all time, greatest rap beef of all time. Kendrick won. I feel like if Drake would have got the better of that situation, there's no doubt in my mind we getting Drake and Wayne at the Super Bowl this February.

Think so? Absolutely. That's like Kendrick's ring. It's not like sports, right? You play to a certain point and you play for a championship and you win a ring. These guys just sell records, sell out shows, but what's like that crowning moment?

This is like his crowning moment to me. Yeah, I mean yeah. I mean it's, and I look at it from a fan perspective from the whole thing. It was just an exciting year from the standpoint of being able to see two of the biggest rappers all the time that duke it out, you know what I mean? And to see where it's at now. I'm ake it out. You know what I mean? And to see where it's at now,

like, I'm a fan of it. You know what I mean? Like, yeah. Because I look at it like that in sports. You want to see the best of the best go at it. You know what I mean? Win, lose, or draw. Somebody got to lose.

That's all right. But it's sport. It's part of the sport and competition. Break down that concept. Forget location. Who's better? Forget location. Forget where you from. Just pure listening. Who's part of the sport and competition. Forget location. Who's better? Forget location. Forget where you from.

Just pure listening. Who's a better rapper? Kendrick Lamar or Drake? You not about to put me in this. I'm going with both. Both of them is my favorite. That's why I'm leaving in that. Kobe said Kendrick was him.

That's what Kobe said? I remember something like that. Yeah, he did. Yeah, he did say that. It's such a... It's tough because even when it come to Kendrick, for me, being from Compton, it resonate so in depth because every album, every verse, like I pinpoint that emotion, the feeling, the bar for bar, like it's certain things he say with certain streets and lingo where i know exactly what that feeling feels like or what that meaning means so to me is is if you put me in that

situation is is it's kindred but it's like also like i remember when drake was making views i was in toronto and i remember hearing it and knowing exactly the vibe and the feeling he was going for that was going on in the city. So that's what makes it so tough for me that puts me in such a tricky... You know what I mean? Because I was there for both times.

I've been there for so many albums of Drake and really understand where it come from and everything. You know what I mean? So for me to be throwing in it it I want you to break down the concert right the concert you did in Juneteenth in LA right of course we seen from the outside we seen the music side but everybody was talking about what he did for yeah street and local so break that down for people that don't understand that part of it people gotta understand, I know it can seem like people celebrating whatever it comes to the disc or whatever.

But for us, the weeks leading up to it, the conversations that was had about certain people being in the same building that haven't been around each other, the same people that's been having issues, internal issues, hoods, individual problems with a lot of people. For everybody to know that they're going to be under one building and act accordingly, no problems, no issues. I remember when I first got there, I remember walking in the back and I see the line of every single entourage.

Every hood. Every hood. I'm talking about blue, red, blue, red, blue, red, blue. You see it every, and there was no issues, no problems, everybody talking. In that moment, fear symbolized what really was going on. That was bigger than just what the outside people may be looking at, like, oh, it's a beef. They don't know.

Some of these dudes haven't even been in the same building in years. And some of these dudes hoods then had serious issues with this other hood. So it's like, we all in here wasn't not one problem, wasn't one argument, going or leaving. And that was the most incredible thing for me to witness. How did you avoid, I guess, joining a gang growing up in Compton?

I always wonder about that. Because you would be like the good kid in the mad city. Yeah, exactly. And I think for me, like, majority of my family, gang members. In a gang, associated with a gang. And growing up in Compton, you was affiliated with a gang whether you want to be or not and for me i had so many older people in my life that understood and had the respect to where when they see me make sure i don't get in this situation or you know there's been times where a situation about to happen and be like all right d out there d somebody

get d out there take take him home and we meet back and you know i hear that night a situation happened but they made sure i was i was far gone before anything happened so i had a lot of that i was lucky enough to have a lot of that from both sides even with with bloods and crips to be able to have that type of respect and that that that um that love to keep me away from a lot of situation even even my games in Compton. I remember so many games where I look in a crowd, it be this hood that don't get along with this hood, but they here to watch me play with no problems.

And that used to mean so much to me that no issues happened. Nobody ever fouled you hard in Compton. Nobody ever fouled you hard. Ever. Ever. And even still, I remember we used to have, when we had road games, my high school coach used to get an extra two buses so we could take people to our away games. And he used to make sure all the game members took the bus

so we wouldn't have problems somewhere else. But that was always just the respect I had growing up. That's crazy. When you look back at your journey from Compton to the NBA, what's the most valuable lesson you think you learned? Most valuable lesson? That's a good question, man. That's a hell of a question.

I should have been ready for that because I know how you, like you. I think for me, patience. Because growing up, I always used to want everything so fast. Like I never considered nothing else. And sometimes patience is what have you ready for when whatever you want do come. And that's one thing I kind of learned because my patience, when things came my way

I was ready for it I accepted it I made the most out of it instead of rushing through it ladies and gentlemen DeMar DeRozan this book is out right now Above the Noise

My Story of Chasing Calm and we appreciate you for joining us man don't be a stranger either man for sure man I appreciate it my nicks beating up on y'all you come on

you come in I wish you much success this season I don't have an NBA team I like players you know what I'm's beating up on y'all. You come on. You come in here. Say what's up. I wish you much success this season. I don't have an NBA team. I like players. You know what I'm saying? So I wish y'all much success in Sacramento. Thank you, brother. Appreciate that.

Absolutely. It's the Breakfast Club. It's DeMar DeRozan. Wake that ass up. In the morning. The Breakfast Club.