The Questlove Show - Questlove Supreme: Cedric The Entertainer

Episode Date: September 20, 2023

Established as a king of comedy and a leader in film, television, and hosting, Cedric The Entertainer has added novelist to his resume. Cedric speaks about his debut novel Flipping Boxcars, his career journey, as well as the origins of his latest pivot in a funny and thoughtful episode of Questlove Supreme.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-heart podcast. Guaranteed human. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me. Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits,

my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, the Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfills of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated.

So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft. And we've got a special guest. The director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galco, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects. From hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make to the players flying under the radar.

This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice podcast on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, for wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slical Life 12 and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. When a group of women discover they've all dated

the same prolific con artist, they take matters into their own hands. I vowed, I will be his last target. He is not going to get away with this. He's going to get what he deserves. We always say that trust your girlfriends. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe.

On the IHartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Everyone, I'm Ego Wood. My next guest, it's Will Ferrell. My dad gave me the best advice ever. He goes, just give it a shot. But if you ever reach a point where, you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of,

you know, the cat, just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot in luck. Listen to thanks, Dad, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Daniel Alarcon and this is my friend. He's much more famous than I am. I wouldn't go that far. But I'm John Green, co-hosted the podcast The Away End with my old friend Daniel. On our podcast, The Away End, we'll share with you the magic of international football, all leading up to the 2026 World Cup. Together, we'll find out why, of all the unimportant things, football, soccer, is the most important. Listen to The Away End with Daniel Auerkone and John Green on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts. Questlove Supreme is a production of IHeart Radio. Word, word. What's up, right up? What's going on? What's going on? How you doing? Good.

I saw you guys the other night. That was lit. Oh, you was there? Yeah, yeah, in L.A. Yeah, that was hard. Okay. That was my first time at the form, man. I enjoyed that.

Oh, yeah. I did it in May with the tour we was on. I had actually did it one other time with me and George and all, but it's a great performance venue. Yeah, because it's rare to be in a venue, which there's not bouncing sounds. Yeah. It's specific. Exactly. They did.

Yeah. We can introduce ourselves to Cair while we're eating. I'm Laia. How you doing? Laia. Yeah. Yeah. Get them.

I'm working. Work them out. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

I'm Fonte, man. We met a few times. We, uh, I think, I brought my family backstage. You guys were in Raleigh. This was, uh, a couple years ago, uh, when you and Eddie and George, I was doing your tour. and you and pool. I think you and Poo, y'all played. I think you and Poo was doing,

just do something with sports together, something from those brothers. Oh, pool, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, that's right. We had one of those football things together we was all in. Yeah. Like, Sugar Steve just rolled a joint, though. What, Steve? Yeah, we probably did.

Yo, I just rolled 10 joints. It's his birthday, Steve. It's his birthday, say. Let's go, Steve. Let's go. Let's go. Nice to meet you. Yes, sir.

Congratulations on your book, man. It's nice to see all these St. Louis references in here. I got a mama from there. Oh, word. Okay, yeah, no doubt. I'm really happy with the way it turned down and everything. So super excited about it. It looks like it's going to be on somebody's stage or screen in a couple of years maybe.

Yeah, yeah, it's definitely got all the elements of being a great story. Actually, that's kind of where I started it. I started writing a TV show idea. And then the book, opportunity he came. So, so dope, man. All right. Ladies and gentlemen, the summer is over. I hope you guys thrived and did well.

This is another episode of Questlove Supreme. I'm yours, Questlove. We have our team Supreme. He's with us. Take a little, bro. What's up, man? Oh, working, man. How was your summer?

My summer was hot. I think I've realized this summer my favorite season really is fall I think I only like summer as a kid because there was no school but summer as an adult it's fucking hot in business y'all can have this shit

because I'm a fall guy but I mean but the summer it was good I didn't get to cook as much as I wanted to it was just that hot it was too crazy but uh but no we had a good time man me and the family too you have an outdoor set up in your crib oh yeah oh yeah I got my got my uh the big green egg I do it on

that. And, you know, that's normally where I do all my, all my cooking outside, my grilling. But, uh, you ain't no real griller if you ain't got that egg, I heard. That's like a thing. No, I mean, it's official, but I mean, listen, I didn't see dudes get busy in a file cabinet before. So, you know what I mean? If you got the skill to do it, you know, I mean, I want to talk barbecue. We'll get into it. I want to talk barbecue for six. I know you and Anthony. Y'all got your thing, too. So, but yeah, man, uh, yeah, my summer was cool. My son was cool. Word up. That's right. Steve. You remember we used to put out the deluxe

George Foreman grill on the patio. No, we had a real barbecue, but Foreman was handy. Definitely handy. I miss my Foreman grill, man. It's probably still on that patio. I've left the house like 16 years ago. I bet you's still out there.

How's your summer, Steve? What's going on, bro? Man, just like Fonte's a lot of work, a lot of projects, got the record label nonstop, or just did our 23rd record on on JMI and 23 records 23 records yeah

last 6 or 7 years I look at the label for real cause you guys remember when it started right around time Quest Love Supreme started Yeah Ray Angry one was your first one wasn't it Was that second one? Yeah, it's like 10 Ray Angry albums later Yeah well he's our he's our flagship artist for sure

And a lot of good stuff coming out yeah Cool How does it? It goes well, much like Fonte, it was a hot summer, especially because this is my first Perry summer. So that was an experience. Perry summer? Oh, fellas. So let me end it.

Never tell you, paramedopause is the stuff that happens before menopause. It could pop off at like, you know, 35, starting to age of 35. Mine happened a little later. And that's just when you get all the heat from the menopause. All your things are still rolling, you know, your body's still doing things. Maybe not as often. And I'd be partying for 50 days without a situation. But yeah, if you look at me now, there's a glow.

So you're saying everyday summer for you. Every day is summer. Every day. Shout out to your bandmate Kamal who wanted to make that known to everyone yesterday. I'm still going to kick his ass. What did he do? Oh, no, he just didn't announce that I had my menopause fan in my hand. And I was like, it is.

But let me tell my story. No, no, no, no. He only knows that because I can attest that Kamal, Tariq, and maybe two other roots also had their fan. hands in there. There's a thing that you plug into your iPhone and it cools you off. And yeah, we're up there, man. This is this, this, this is the summer in which I felt, whatever the equivalent of preschool is to being a senior citizen, that was this summer. The force. This was, this was, this was camp cool J. This is literally G.I. Jane. Oh, please tell us

something to me or just tell us something. No, like L.L. wasn't having it. Like we've been, I probably lost an additional 15 pounds. Like, he has working out, lifting weights, like getting cupping every night and

similar to the spot to get, yo, I need you all relaxed, man, getting drips, oxygen tanks, like LL is, is,

I mean, not like major pain level of drill sergeant, but like, he don't take that. I mean, he looks phenomenal, so you know that it's got to be a lot to make that help.

happen. Well, yeah, it's, it's definitely an osmosis effect that's been happening. So, you know, four more gigs left. But I will say this is one of the hardest summers of my life. Like, and I had to do no running none of that stuff. Like, I mean, you've seen the show like the yeah, you seen us injured like you saw Thaddeus jumping one leg and in and in a clutch. And it was the wet as I ever seen you. You got off stage. You was like soaked. I was like, that's not like you. You do this like it's nothing. Three and a half hours. Well, you saw a short show. That was like three hours on the nose, but normally it's like three and a half hours. Back where I belong, sitting in the chair, talking and not moving is where I'm the happiest.

So again, I will say that longtime listeners of the show should know how much we love focusing on career pivots. All of us have reached our pivot where we were one thing when the show first started, and now we're, you know, multi-hyphenated doing other things. And I will say that our guests this week is absolutely all about that. You know, as probably one of the biggest stand-ups in all of comedy. And he has pivot to become a fixture on. He's television, film actor, stage. We know him first for comedy and then, you know,

if you're fans of a Comic View and Def Comedy Jam and even the Primetime Emmy Awards, you know our guest. But you know, he's also executive produced shows and created opportunities for so many other comedians and actors in his wake. But also, I will say that our guest tonight, he's sort of expanding his palo a little bit. And he is a novelist. And his first novel, flipping box cars, is currently out. And he's joined us to talk about his life, his career, and his many pivots. Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for the one and only you're ready for your next I mean that's classic

okay That's classic That's the Black people have Wait So this is what you don't know said Okay So without alienating my position

With one of my jobs With the roots now 15 years at that job We kind of have a short list of the types of a guest that get to the couch. But we have a top five list of people who are a snooze city. Like, like give a one.

Like when you see it on television, it's perfectly edited. It's nice. But these are like 18 minutes story, like the equivalent of me in real life on the show. And it's to the point now where all three, of your ad libs, uh, hmm,

uh, like literally, your adlives are triggered on my computer to the right. And that's what I use to sometimes make fun of guest on the show. So, you know, if you haven't to see us laughing from the couch, you didn't say anything funny.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's fun. No, that's one of my favorite bitch, man. I love that. How are you doing, bro?

I'm good, brother. doing everything as well man it was good are you in the car right now yeah man I was actually out with my wife what's so with every black guest that we had hey do their interview portion in the car this where it's uh soundproof and whatnot where are you calling us from

I'm in I'm actually at the nail shop so my wife wanted me to come to come to the nail shop with her and then I was like oh I was like our anniversary was Sunday so I've been like just anniversary and it up with her like so each day whatever she wants to do and I was like babe I got this interview and she's like come it's going to be fast and of course it's not she and they're getting jailed toes and and dips they

dipping it's all I said I got to go to the car to do this interview so it's long enough for you to do a podcast yeah yeah if she getting jail on the toes and the hands yeah no they're going to wait yeah can I Can I ask you guys for advice? So at what point in the relationship do you realize that you shouldn't do too much at the beginning? Because then you'll have to maintain that level of excellence throughout the entire relationship. Like when February is working around, do you all feel like the pressure of, oh, God, now I've got to. Yeah, you can easily put yourself in back. To your point, you can put yourself in bad situations.

And depending on the person you're dating, right? My wife is not really big on her birthday, but her anniversary, that means much to her. So anniversaries are things that I got to go hard on. Valentine's Day is something that she's just, as long as I pay attention and don't forget, we good. But, like, you know, but like Thanksgiving, Christmas, anything to do with the kids.

like the kids got to be like their birthdays and what we do to celebrate them or I need to be very concerned about that as a man which you know in most cases I am not I'd be like yeah when when was these little kids born again like I don't know shit okay they are old and stuff now I'm looking at them like I don't know where your birthday is bro okay yeah I was about to say after after 23 my dad stopped acknowledging my birthday so yeah yeah it's like bro Like, come on, man. Come on, now, like, salute. Oh, yeah.

I was doing my son like that. My man, happy birthday, bro. Like, that's it, you know. You're no longer a little dude where I got to get the cake and throw the Lakers' birthday party for you and all that stuff, you know. Like, you know. How old are you kids now, man? Yeah, my son's going to be 23 in the end of September.

And my daughter will be 20 in November. And I got an older daughter that's 34 and a granddaughter that's 7. Wow. Yeah. And you and your wife, y'all got 20 years in? Is it 20 for y'all? Yeah, 24. 24.

24, yeah. That's beautiful. Congratulations. What's your secret? I'm always looking for advice. What's the secret to keeping it in a laugh? I mean, I mean, I mean, we really enjoy each other. I think that was the main thing is to really kind of keep your wife as your girlfriend, you know,

try to keep that part of it alive, you know, so that you don't get into playing those kind of traditional roles and get, you know, everybody. just kind of like playing the game of marriage. So we still like date a lot and have fun together, laugh a lot and have our own inside stuff. And it's important. Even when we was raising the kids, we still like, you know, made it, you know,

made our relationship about us. And, you know, the parenting part of it was, again, a part of the overall system. But never was it all about like, oh, you know, we're just going to be mama and daddy and not, you ain't going to be my girl, you know what I'm saying? You got to be my girl too. So I think that's the key.

I've never had an in-depth conversation with any of the kings of comedy. And, you know, I've seen many, you know, like a documentary on like the comedy act theory and all those things. But I know that a lot of you've gotten your start out. I'm assuming like in the Midwest, then making our way out west. So just in general, I want to know, like, where does your, where does humor play in your life? Like, were you always the class clown? Were you always making people left? Like, how, when were you, at what point on the timeline will you mark where your journey starts with comedy?

I'm going to say, you know, probably that, you know, that seventh, seven grade lunchroom cafeteria, the area where we all kind of start to identify ourselves as a, you know, like your own personality. But, you know, you also got to stand up against, you know, the. the larger group, right? And I came from a small town at that time. I used to live in a little small town called Carruthersville, Missouri, and moved to St. Louis.

So I was like the kind of the new kid, but, you know, I lived in a household, single-parent household, me and my mom, but like my uncles and my cousins, they was funny. Like, I got, like, one uncle that just was one of these funny personalities, just always said funny things. And I think that that was, you know,

know, that place where you see it, you see it, that environment where you like, you know, somebody that's always going to walk in the room and everybody can't wait until he get there because he's going to say something crazy and he had a hundred of them. And so I think that even my style of comedy is more like, you know, somebody you know, like somebody like more conversational in my delivery, more like an uncle or a cousin. And then I had to learn how to put it on stage in a, you know, in a formulated pattern way. But I still still more or less. write jokes and come with my jokes from a point of view of like slice of life like what I would say in a circumstance. At this point in your career, how do you work stuff out? I mean, because you've,

you know, you've done stadiums and stuff. So yeah, you go to just kind of, you know, when you need to work your ideas out. Yeah, I got a couple of comedy clubs. I like to work out usually up north. Like I'll go up to, you know, like Sacramento, you know, that kind of area. Or it's a little club outside of Oakland. That's one of my favorite clubs to go workout is in Pleasant, California. So I would go there and just, you know, do multiple shows. And that's usually

where I'm trying to, like, write jokes and try new things out. But I'll also do it on the big stage. You know, I've kind of gotten to the point to where if I think I know what the joke is, I'll just do it. Like, right there in front of people. Like, just try it. Okay. Answer this

question to me about L or how they would at least So you're about maybe the six or seventh comedian that I've heard that will mention a place outside of Los Angeles. Yeah. So, but the thing is that when I'm on, so I'm currently right now on Sunset Boulevard, you know, the comedy store is always crowded and all the comedy clubs up here. Who's working out there if none of the heavy hitters that I know are. working out in Los Angeles. Like I always hear like, oh, there's

like an out-the-way comedy club like 100 miles away. Is it that there's a fear that a writer or somebody's going to take your joke or whatever or... Yeah, is that... That's the one thing in in L.A. is a lot

of comedians here trying to find themselves, get put on. Of course, looking for discovery. And so that's where they kind of work out. You know, all the kind of guys is trying to make it happen. And there's some people who, you know, definitely have, you know, like their brands already, you know, say like a D-ray or somebody like that. They work out here and they have their own rooms and that works, you know, for them. But, you know, most comedians, we try not to be inside that one.

I try not even hear other people's material so that I don't even, you know, I'm not even get influenced by nothing. So I'll try to go like, you know, outside of L.A. And it's usually just better. The audiences are, you know, a little more regular people. with jobs, you know, and it's kind of like the, to your point, it's that that middle America audience that you're looking for, but in California

where it's close to go to work. When you go to Hollywood, you got, you know, you got the people that want to be seen, trying to be seen, and it's that vibe, you know, so it's, it's like, you know, you got to almost wear a full Versace outfit to go and do shows there. Like, you know, it's

like, you got to be just as sharp as everybody who's coming out, you know, like it's a whole thing. Look at it. real. So how is how is lost or Hollywood divided? Like I know how New York is

where a lot of the alternative comedians are either Brooklyn only or maybe part of the village and then kind of the more established ones, you know, they'll go to the comedy cellar in the West Village and kind of

work their way up in Midtown Manhattan and usually like the Vegas level comedians or whatever are just like kind of midtown to uptown. And then, I mean, at one point, I knew that there was a place for black comedians to work out way uptown. I don't know if it's still that way now,

but for those that are of the comedy act theater set, like, they work out because I'd never see you guys at like, is it still kind of an apartheid in terms of? Yeah, a little bit. I mean, you know, it's definitely, you know, like chocolate Sundays, which is at, you know, the Laugh Factory. And that's a Sunday night kind of thing.

That's where the Black Comics go to work out in Hollywood at the Laugh Factory on Sunday nights. Comedy store usually will have a night or two where everybody kind of goes up and there and pop. So almost all the clubs got like a night where it's the Black night tonight. And if you want to work out with your people, that's where you go. And then, you know, and then it's a few, like in L.A. Like, it's, it only used to be one down, like on Pico, near that Roscoe's down. I can't think of the name of it right now. I don't even know.

It's hard for them to survive after COVID, too. Like, you know, that's one of the things because to your point, even the bigger comedians where people can draw a name and, you know, and these, these kind of locations can do well, they find themselves struggling just to keep it packed. You know, but, you know, again, there's a lot of comedians. So, and there's a lot of comedians that, you know, want to get on stage and work that are dope, you know. So I think that, you know, those are the kind of spots

that still need a lot of love and support. And usually I'll go by when somebody like, you know, whether a friend of mine want me to really come through, like something like that, I might pop up and say, I call Mabel stage for a few minutes. I don't really work out like that much that like when I'm in LA because between the TV show and being a family man, when I go, I don't really want to just hang out and be like, you know, doing the old school way. I'd be wanting to go in, do my business and break out, you know, so. Is Jay Anthony Brown's place still open?

I've been meaning to check on that place. Yeah, I don't know. Like, again, that was a spot that was, again, had a lot of love, a lot of residential. I would think so, but I hadn't heard. I saw Jay not too long ago and I didn't even know. ask them about the club, but it seems as though it's still alive, because it's right near

Snoop Dog's kind of big top-in, yeah. Everybody go and hang out, yeah, so. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me. Clever Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions,

my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated.

One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok.

This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft. And we've got a special guest. The director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galco, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects. From hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make to the players flying under the radar, this is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice Podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slica Life 12 and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. There's two golden rules that any man

should live by. Rule one, never mess with a country girl. You play stupid games, you get stupid prizes. And rule two, never mess with her friends either. We always say that trust your girlfriends. I'm Anna Sinfield, and in this new season of the girlfriends, oh my God, this is the same man. A group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist.

I felt like I got hit by a truck. I thought, how could this happen to me? The cops didn't seem to care. So they take matters into their own hands. I said, oh, hell no. I vowed I will be his last target. He's going to get what he deserves. Listen to the girlfriends.

Trust me, babe. On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, everyone? I'm Ego Vodom. My next guest, you know from Step Brothers Anchorman, Saturday Night Live, and the Big Money Players Network,

It's Will Farrell. Woo, woo, woo, woo, woo. My dad gave me the best advice ever. I went and had lunch with him one day, and I was like, and Dad, I think I want to really give this a shot. I don't know what that means, but I just know the groundlings. I'm working my way up through, and I know it's a place that come look for up and coming talent. He said, if it was based solely on talent, I wouldn't worry about you, which is really sweet.

Yeah. He goes, but there's so much luck involved. And he's like, just give it a shot. He goes, but if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be.

Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Listen to Thanks Dad on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm John Green. You may know me as the author of The Fault and Our Stars, and now I guess also as the co-host of The Away End, a brand new world soccer podcast. I'm Daniel Alarcon, a writer and journalist, and John and I have known each other since we were kids. My first World Cup was Mexico 86. I was nine years old. I watched every game and I fell in love. On our new podcast, The Away End, we'll share with you the magic of international football, all leading up to the 2026 World Cup. For us, soccer, football, is a story we've shared for over.

30 years since Daniel was the star player on our high school soccer team. Very debatable. And I was their most loyal and sometimes only fan. I love this game. I love its history, its hope, its heartbreak, and above all, it's beauty. Together, we'll find out why, of all the unimportant things, football, soccer is the most important. Listen to the away end with Daniel Auerkone and John Green on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Can I go back real quick? Because Amir talked about St. Louis, but I just, I really want to get into St. Louis a little bit because you said you're from, how do you pronounce it, in Caruthersville?

I couldn't say it in the book. Carruthersville. Yeah, Carruthersville. So can you break down? What's the distance between Carruthersville and St. Louis and the differences? So Caruthsville is like a super small town. It's like, and it's probably four hours, three and a half hours from St. Louis and probably an hour and 10 minutes from Memphis. So it's like going south.

Like so we go, you go down south from St. Louis, and you go towards Arkansas and Tennessee, and it's right in the boot hill. So it's a small town, probably 3,000 people, 3.30. So very different. Yeah, you're very different, very segregated, you know. You know, but it's on the river. It's on the Mississippi River. So where I, you know, where I prayed, when I framed the book in the 40s, the river,

the riverboat cities were very thriving because people traveled on the river a lot and they would stop and they would eat and come to hang out and so these were like really kind of bustling little small towns and so uh you know with a thriving downtown and restaurants all that stuff so so that's where i kind of you know tell that story around with my grandparents live there but you know i grew up there as well what was what was the uh impetus of starting or for you to to go into storytelling and writing your first novel? Well, you know, for me, it really kind of stemmed from the idea that I was, I was trying to, I was, first of all, I was trying to, like, just kind of had this connection to my,

my family, right? Like, I grew up, my mother was a single parent where she raised me and my sister. And so I didn't really have my male figures around. I knew my dad, but he wasn't really in our life. And so oftentimes, you know, my mom would say, you know, that's like my daddy would do that. my daddy would have done this. And he had passed before I was ever born. So, you know, and listening to stories about him, I started to wonder, like,

like, what was my connection to somebody I never met before? Like, what was that DNA that kind of led to me being very entrepreneurial, kind of a person that didn't want to work inside the lines? Like, even though I had my degree, I never wanted to have a job. Like, my mom used to be like, why don't you just work at that company? I was like, I don't want to go to work every day. That's not who I am. She was like, my dad.

It was like my dad, you know. So, you know, it was that kind of thought process. So I started to create the character based off me having these machinations of who he was. And then, you know, I started to write a TV story about it. That kind of felt like Borewalk Empire. I always kind of love that character, Chalky White. In a way the way, yeah, way my mom would describe him, he was kind of the deal. the de facto mayor of the black side of town.

He was the guy that you call to get things done and all that stuff. He was plugged in with the sheriff. And so I basically put all that kind of stuff in the book and then told this fictional tale about who he is. Did the seat of the start for you in the pandemic? No, you know, actually it was a little bit before that. It was so interesting that, you know, because it was times when I was kind of transitioning from, you know, like, you know, know, movies, I was doing a lot of movies in the early 2000s, you know, and then my kids started to get, to get older where they couldn't travel and they couldn't come with us,

because most of the movies weren't doing them in L.A. anymore. And so they were younger, they could come with me. But we would shoot movies in Toronto and, you know, in Vancouver, and then Ireland. And, you know, when they were younger, my family could come with me. Then they started to get their own schedules. And so I was trying to figure out, like, how I could still be a part of the family structure and be a part of life without giving that up. So I decided to do television. And that was when it was like, you know,

it was kind of like, you know, consider it a fallback. If you do television, you wasn't as hot as a movie star. So, and it's instantly with streaming and stuff that everybody had changed, you got Yellowstone, you got movie stars coming to TV now. So, you know, but it's like, but at that time,

it was like a real, you know, real hard move. And I had to make that kind of strategy. And I started to think about like stuff that my, will pop in my head, like, what were my grandfather doing in this situation? And so I started writing the ideas down back then. And then, you know, the book kind of came as I was trying to, you know, kind of shape the show, then the opportunity for me to do the book because, you know, the neighborhood was doing well. And so then everybody started offering you all kinds of stuff.

Like, yo, you want to do a book? You know, I was like, yeah, but not a book about me being a stand-up and telling you my kind of dot-to-dot story. I got a whole other idea. And when I pitched it, they loved it. And that was it. So I was glad that it took it took like a year and a half to really kind of shape it up, though. So let me ask because, you know, one, we had a pandemic.

But what we're kind of going through right now as we speak is kind of pandemic 2.0 for anybody that's kind of a professional in the industry. Yeah. So let me ask you. Is there ever, okay, so let me, let me phrase it. America Ferreira, when she started her ugly Betty series, she told me that she waited, you know, it was an instant hit out the box. And she told me that she wanted to wait till the third season before she felt safe enough to like put down on that house and really, you know, for it.

there's a point where you go from like living in that little apartment that you lived in until you find that hit sitcom and then you really want to make sure that your contract and your money's right and all that stuff. So she said, okay, I'm going to wait until my third season. And, you know, she nominated for Emmy. So it just seemed like, okay, blammo, instant hit. And then after season three, they were like, all right, well, that's it. You're done. Knowing what you've been through. And, you know, you're famous for the joke of you guys not getting the kids.

you know, other shows you've been on that got canceled without warning. Oh, yeah. No cake or anything. So now that you're on like an established network comedy show, like do you always feel safe or is there a part of you that's always like, nope, let me have my plan B, C, and D, like, just in case, you never know. Definitely, me, I learned that a long time ago because it's such a fickle business. Like none of us really saw like this strike coming, if you will, but you do recognize that, you know, ratings or what's hot or something new comes along.

This town just really fickle like that. Like, you know, so whatever the latest craze is, they'll just figure out like, oh, we're going to change to that now. And you'll be like, what happened? You know, so I'm definitely, I'm definitely far more cautious about, you know, like just being, you know, being super. confident that whatever I'm working, even though it is working, that it's going to always work. You know, I mean, we, we, we, we've been ordered for the sixth season. So that's a real blessing. theoretically, yeah, for the neighborhood.

theoretically, I like to go to eight, you know, I like to go. Of course, syndicated purposes. Yeah. Yeah, but, you know, like shows like blackish and, you know, other kind of black shows of, of, that I feel like our El Capitigree that's been on like major networks should have the opportunity to run all the way out, like tell your full story, you know. And so, you know, and then, you know, but also like now as a producer, I'm creating, you know, spinoffs and other versions. So again, that you have the show live beyond its, it's years. And so these are the

things that I try to like, like even negotiate for while I know that my show is doing well. I'm like, hey, give me the spinoff so that I can, like, turn my show into another show that can run another, you know, you know, five, six years that, you know, I can be eating off of and then do something else too. I can see that with your sons, the sons. Yeah, exactly. Yeah.

So for me, there's a myth in the music business where they say, like, all it takes is one hit and you're set for life, which is kind of a truth and a lie. I mean, in other words, like... Had to be true in 88. It ain't true today. Right.

Yeah. Yeah. But, you know, I'll say hip hop is definitely changed everyone's lifestyle goals. So in other words, if I were the writer... Okay, so if I was one of the writers of Queens under pressure at the time when Vanilla, I sampled it and, you know, sold 10 billion copies. you know, that's a nice check that I'm going to get every year and if I maintain my lifestyle, but if, you know, if I'm pursuing a $5 million lifestyle

and I'm only getting a million dollar check, then like you're asked out. But the equivalent of that in the television world is when your show gets syndicated. Is that the goal, like can one actually, like for now, like for any act or any actor or actress that is on a show that's syndicated and currently running right now. I'm certain that those checks are helping a lot while your current show is not on.

But is syndicated money still good? No, not anymore. It's very much very parallel to, like you said, the music business. I mean, it used to be probably, and to some degree, one of the big reasons of why we're striking, too, is that, you know, new forms of media streaming, all these companies being mixed in together, they protect themselves, you know, like, I mean, CBS is a part of Paramount, Paramount Plus, and then, of course, the whole, what used to be VICOM, all their channels.

So they will syndicate to, yeah, they'll syndicate to themselves. And, of course, that'll ruin the money that used to be available, right? Who are you negotiating? How are you negotiating yourself? And it's internal and it's internal business. And they basically tell you that. These are internal numbers. This is what we're doing to protect our assets.

So that's the scary part said. I had just listened about that. And we were just talking about this before you came on. And we were talking about how like, so if you're on TV and you do syndication, because I think a lot of times we need to explain this to the people who actually watch TV. They don't know the intricacies of this language a lot of times. And so the TV versus I was just watching the. actor from Breaking Bad saying that like he's on Netflix and Breaking Bad is on Netflix and that is

zero money that he receives from that versus maybe if it was on an actual network on TV, it would be a more. Yeah. Yeah. Like, I mean, the opportunities, you know, we used to have this thing like where you go. And I say most people would understand like the, the channel 9s or channel 13s in your local city and you see something that come on after the evening news. You get to watch everybody, little Raymond or friends or.

or all that's where the money is because you got to think it's one of those in every little town and they all got to buy it in a way as a part of a group or individual and so it's being sold that many times right every episode and so so that's when they're buying it but like a Netflix will just take it and and then they they're a technology company so they're not a broadcast company so they don't have to even reveal what numbers they do. The algorithm. Yeah, it's like, it's technology. I don't know.

Like, I don't know. I don't know. Is one of the striking points to finally reveal that? Yeah. Yes. That's one of the real kids to push towards it because really what happened is not even that we didn't know is that we need to be able to have the kind of, you know, transparency because what they did is now is.

they kind of take your intellectual property by not revealing it because they do do original programming because they do have people create things for them and then you don't have to basically tell me what it is right i can i can pay you one time and and you can have a hot show and i don't have to really ever reveal to you how hot that show was like i don't have to ever say it was in but i paid you and you know and their thing is that usually they paid more than what people used to get paid So that's how they won for so many years because they would pay you a larger premium. So to be on Netflix was that good bag, right?

It was that fat bag and nobody really cared. Like, you know, if I would get $30,000 on a regular show, Netflix might give me $150. And you'd be like, give me that. Right. But they might have made $2 million and you don't even know. Yeah, you never know. You never bothered to ask.

And it didn't really get, you know, it didn't get important until shows got bigger and bigger. and you start to realize like, oh, that's really all we watching is Netflix a lot now, you know, and Prime and Hulu. We're only watching these shows. Now, where's the money? So that's why I see. Your pivot is more brilliant than it looks, right?

Because not for nothing, do you feel like your business is changing in a major way? I said to music people, I was like, we used to be like, wait until I get to TV and film. That's what the big money is. Every day you become in the music business now. movie is. No, it's so true. I was going to say, it looked like every business looked at the music industry and was like, yo, they don't pay nobody. Why should we? Exactly. And that's it.

And you think it was the digital platform that really changed the music business when, you know, when the streaming came and the Napster of it all, and people started to be in the chair. And that changed the whole model. And Netflix and Amazon basically changed the model for us. Like once they got really hot and, locked in and then was able to create and become the it. Then everybody else wanted to be them. So you think about it.

Disney became Disney Plus. Paramount became Paramount Plus. The Peacock on NBC. Everybody took streamers so that they can do their model. They don't want to have a residuals. I was going to say, I just get really sad by watching it because I come from a business that used to be called Black Radio. And nobody noticed when we kind of got eaten up by a thing called,

Sh! podcast. So I watch y'all industry and I'm like, ooh, I mean, I watch our, because this is something that I wanted to participate in as well, but it's scary. It's a little scary. I'm glad that you have made this pivot to the novel. That's literally. Because you are on a hit show. And I've seen a few people in the comedy world, I'm bringing it back to clubbing and working out that, you know, you want to work out in the gym and work out new material. But the more you're established on your comedy show, it's like the less that you are working out your material on stage, does that worry you a little bit like, I mean, assuming that stand up is your first love, even

though you're doing these other things. But I mean, if it were all up to you to choose one medium, would you just choose acting or standup or? You know, that's interesting. I mean, I think standup is the freest. You know, I always say that, you know, I just, I did some shows this weekend. I went and did a casino in Oklahoma. And that's the really great thing about being a live performer

is that we have so many different spaces. You got comedy clubs. You got all these casinos across the country now. You know, the whole Indian casino run. You got the big casinos. You got, you know, big venues. You know, if I decided to do a larger tour with some of my friends, like we did this summer with, like, straight jokes, no chases,

with me and Mike Eves and D.L. and DC Youngfly. We was able to go and do arenas. And it was fun. And we rocked it all the way until May and then went on a break. Because mainly the music acts killed the summer. We, you know, we learned a long time. You'll stand up.

Don't you go out there against B.I. You can't win against Biont. Beyonce Taylor Swift and Drake are killing us, man. And the festivals. Yeah, and the festival. You don't. So we stopped out to in May and we'll pick it back up in October, late October, November.

So, I mean, but that's. That's kind of what we've learned as stand-ups over the years. It's like, get out the way of them big music acts. They're going to murder you and murder every ticket in the area. And so you like, all, cool. But, you know, again, I was able to go and do a casino because it's kind of an enclosed audience. You know, you can go and the casino going to market to their people.

And they're going to say, hey, Sid, come in. And I'm able to go and do 2,000, 3,000 seats. you know, two nights in a row on my own. Like, so that's, that's a beautiful thing, right? So I respect the stand-up and I stay with it, you know. I've been my whole career, I've never really ever giving it up. You know, I've known comedians that, you know, you make it on television or you start making it in the movies and you kind of give up on it

or you feel like you don't have to do it anymore. But it is the, it's the dojo. It's the place where even if I'm going to write a movie or be in a movie, I like to go do stand-up before I either start the movie because it helps you kind of start your engine on your comedy vibration. Like if I got a character or something I'm trying to do, I'd rather just go do some stand-up in a small place for a little bit

just to get my energy going. So like, all right, cool. When I come to set, I'm going to be funny as this character. Like, I know there's the hot 10 and sometimes there's the hot 20 if Sepel asks you to do something or whatever. But when you are, like, are you the type of person that has to ramp your way up to, you know, 75, 90, or whatever the time is for, like, Netflix specials or HBO specials and whatnot? Is it, how hard is it ramping up to that, especially with, I guess I'm asking you if, are you operating in the same way that an MC operates?

like, you know, like obviously, you can take Fonte or even Tariq from the roots. Those both, you know, very capable, excellent MCs, but this is kind of a new battleground, if you will, with new rules. And emcees today don't relate to the, you know, or do they have the same process as yesterday's emcee. Is it that way for the, for the comedy world, or is it still about, For you, a punchline. Chris Rock told me that he doesn't believe in a punchline anymore, which kind of shocked me.

Yeah, I mean, you know, it is a little different. I definitely think that new comedy has kind of removed the idea of punchlines, you know, like people are more like into, like trying to deliver, you know, I think after Chappelle here, everybody just want to be prolific, man. Like everybody want to try to deliver like they, you know, these brilliant swire people. And that's just him. Like he he got a totally different brand than everybody, right? And he read.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. A lot of people don't read and then they want to be at the top of my name saying smart stuff. But you know, like he's like, bro, where do you get that from? So, but I think that the, I think that for, you know, for me, like the idea of like even even thinking about delivering a special, like I really, I'm probably one of the one comics that take a lot of time between my specials because I have material that I feel like makes a special, but, you know, I'm also not a person that's very interested in just

kind of throwing stuff out there. You know, I think people use it for a number of different reasons. One, you know, you might have the deal on the table, right? They might say, all, cool, we're throwing a bag at you, put this special out, and you'll see people go do it just so they can get the money, right? And then you have people that really feel like they got something to say right now, and they, you know, and they'll put those specials out. But I think in the last couple years, you know, For me, it's all about, like, just making sure that my material, my personality, what it is that I want to say is all in tune with the brand I built over 30 years. So I'm not going to just go out there and just take, like, little chance. I think y'all like that, too, as far as the roots go and as far as my opinion.

Like, y'all, y'all are curators of your brand, like, in a real way. We were watching on stage the other night. Me and my wife was saying the same thing. Like, nobody has the ability that are entertained like they do. Like, you know, you'll see the new people like that, you know, kind of come out and maybe have a band on stage with them. But it's like the combination of musicality, real professionalism, and something you know you're going to get when you spend your money, right? I know it's going to be lit.

I got it, right? Now I know, like, going to Maestro's or a quality restaurant where you know it's going to be good. I don't have to worry about it. Like, it's good. So that's what I try to deliver when I'm, you know, when I'm doing specials or anything. So I'm never in a big hurry to just throw out anything. You're not putting any pressure on me whatsoever for my future in music and concerts. He's saying do what you continue to do.

Do what you continue to do. Yeah, I know, I know. Yeah. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me. Clever Taylor the 4th.

You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes,

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This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft. And we've got a special guest, The director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galko, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects. From hidden traits teams look for

to the biggest mistakes franchises make to the players flying under the radar. This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice podcast

on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, for wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slica Life 12. and TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. There's two golden rules that any man should live by. Rule one, never mess with a country girl. You play stupid games, you get stupid prizes.

And rule two, never mess with her friends either. We always say that trust your girlfriends. I'm Anna Sinfield, and in this new season of the girlfriends, oh my God, this is the same man. A group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist. I felt like I got hit by a truck. I thought, how could this happen to me?

The cops didn't seem to care. So they take matters into their own hands. I said, oh, hell no. I vowed. I will be his last target. He's going to get what he deserves. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe.

On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, everyone? I'm Ego Wodom. My next guest, you know from Stepbrothers, Anchorman, Saturday Night Live, and the Big Money Players Network. It's Will Ferrell. Woo, woo, woo, woo, woo.

My dad gave me the best advice ever. I went and had lunch with them one day, and I was like, and dad, I think I want to really give this a shot. I don't know what that means, but I just know the groundlings. I'm working my way up through, and I know it's a place that come look for up and coming talent. He said, if it was based solely on talent, I wouldn't worry about you, which is really sweet. Yeah.

He goes, but there's so much. luck involved. And he's like, just give it a shot. He goes, but if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat, just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Listen to thanks, Dad, on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm John Green. You may know me as the author of The Fault and Our Stars,

and now I guess also as the co-host of The Away End, a brand new world soccer podcast. I'm Daniel Alarcon, a writer and journalist, and John and I have known each other since we were kids. My first World Cup was Mexico 86. I was nine years old. I watched every game and I fell in love. On our new podcast, The Away End, we'll share with you the magic of international football, all leading up to the 2026 World Cup. For us, soccer, Football is a story we've shared for over 30 years since Daniel was the star player on our high school soccer team. Very debatable. And I was their most loyal and sometimes only fan.

I love this game. I love its history, its hope, it's heartbreak, and above all, it's beauty. Together, we'll find out why, of all the unimportant things, football, soccer, is the most important. Listen to the away end with Daniel Alarcon and John Green on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast. or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm really just shocked that no one's really done a concentrated study on how you, your whole click and Walter Latham kind of built the brand and built you guys up. So can you just talk about that initial period of?

Matter of fact, is Walter still active in terms of throwing shows? Not that I know of. I think that he tried to do some stuff on the internet not too long ago or try to like create some brand where he was like taking, you know, using like young comedians and kind of using his kings of comedy, you know, pedigree to do things for people. But I think it all kind of burnt out for my opinion. But, you know, he was just a, he was a young, creative, you know, show promoter at the time.

And he was, he was just one of these guys that had like, you know, he was aggressive. young and had good ideas and a lot of heart. And so he, he, he would do all of us individually. He'd do Steve, you know, and, you know, these would be theater shows, you know, small theaters. And he did Steve and then he did Bernie. Then he did Steve and Bernie one time.

He would do D.L. and I together. He was the one when, when I became the host of Comic View, D.L. used to be the host. And he put us together and called it, you know, the host of, the host of BT or something like. that and put us together and we were able to go out together and do these tours. So I think it's inside that space where he looked at his numbers and saw like all these guys were doing these numbers in these individual situations.

What if I put them all together? I probably could do an arena. And so that's really how the Kings of Comedy came about. It was his idea. He kind of called us, put us together, put the tour together. But I do think that in the process of that, he started to think he was the other king. of comedy. And so it's like his own hubris kind of got in the way. And then, you know, it was, it was after the show and the movie came out that, you know, it was so many little things that

he just was, nobody wanted to be in business with him no more. So that was it, but he, you know. He didn't do the queen? He didn't do the queens. He didn't do the queens. He did do the queens. All that was here, you know, the kings, the kings, yeah, the kings and queens. But he, he had a Kings and Queens title. And then he did a few other ones. He did a couple of tours after, but nothing to the magnitude of the Kings of Comedy and the Queens of Comedy. Is that the original roster? I just wanted to know.

I always wanted to know, but the Kings of Comedy, was there ever somebody that was, that wanted it originally or that got dropped off of the live? No, deal was an addition. It started out just me, Steve, and Bernie. And then they added DL and then that became the one that, you know, that really toured around and got hot. So yeah, we started out just the three of us. We got Tori, got Tori with MC and had a night popping. Gotcha.

When you're doing that, like who's determining, like, the order of things and who's the, or at least the curation of it all? Yeah, it would be, it's usually the comedians. I mean, on a tour like that, we decide. And it's, and it's usually, you know, usually an honor or respecting, you know, depending on, you know, who's on the tour. Like usually people just kind of, you know, give props to, you know,

whoever the OG is and be like, yo, you go last if you want to. But on our tour, I remember like Bernie was the dude. Like Bernie was the dude, but Bernie wanted, he called it the hammock. He didn't want to, he didn't want to go first and he didn't want to go last. He went to laying the hammock. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. So, so. Last and first is, ah, the penultimate right before last. That's the sweet spot. Yeah, exactly. So, you know, even on the special, it looked like Bernie go last, but when we actually shot it, he was in the hammock.

He did not go last at night. It was the, I went last, and he would, but on the special, the way to edit work, it was better for him to go last for the movie of it off. But he performed in his hammock. That's what he liked. He was like, that's why I want to be. And he had been out, you know, I got it. He had been out like Bernie that got hot before the rest of us.

And he did, like, big tours on his own. And so when he decided to do the Kings, he was just like, look, man, I already been out, like, as a big star already touring. I like the idea of this. But, you know, again, we're doing 30, 40-minute sets. Let me ride easy. So I got it. And so that became a thing that a lot of comics like to do to this day. Like you say, Amir, like, we all like to go in that spot right before last.

It's just less pressure. You can kill it and you can be gone. Be like, yo, do something out. Right. And if you don't kill it, then you know somebody else coming behind you and everybody can have a good time and they ain't going to blame you. Forget about how you didn't. Yeah, they're going to blame you that the show was bum-ass or whatever.

But so, you know, you. So, but it's usually a respect thing. It's usually the comics deciding where everybody wants to go according to who we feel, you know, deserves that reverence or whatever, you know. How involved were you guys working with Spike in filming that? Was he kind of hands on with you guys or did he just let you out of? No, it was a, you know, it was a one. We all made a choice that, you know, because we were trying to find somebody to direct the movie.

We had, it was our choice. We were all partners on the movie. And Spike, you know, came up, of course, presented the idea that he wanted to do it. And, I mean, he was the most expensive one to make our partner. but we also knew that it was the best move to get a movie. It's, you know, the kind of create, the kind of credit that we wanted. And then, you know, he's Spike Lee. He really loved comedy.

He loved the idea of being he came. I think we did Radio City Music Hall. He came and watched us, came backstage, talked about it. He just super hyped and we was like, yeah, this will be crazy if Spike does this movie. So, you know, and it just ended up being the right move for us. And again, you know, we knew that when you bring Spike on, on, you know, he's going to cut into the money, like all the money that we could have got for using, you know. You could have used Billy Woodruff or somebody, you know.

Not laughing that hard. Shout out. Yeah, Billy's cool. Billy's cool. That's my guy right there. Hey, wait, I got to ask you, because from a fan perspective for y'all, those fellas, two questions. Number one, I just got to know how you preserve Bernie in your heart. And also like the relationship with you and these men, like how do y'all make sure that y'all continue to nurture it?

Or do you know? Yeah, for sure. I mean, you know, I just did my golf tournament, my celebrity tournament, charity tournament last year. Both Steve and D.L. came, you know, of course, me and D.L. We probably, we see each other the most because our wives are friends, like real friends. So we see each other a lot, you know, go to dinner, hang out, you know. And then we tour a lot of much, a lot too. all the kind of big arena tours I've been on D.L.

been a part of him. So, you know, we got that kind of brotherhood. And then B. Mack is just one of these guys, man, that, you know, whenever we, you know, we're always related to the Kings of Comedy. And so, you know, almost in any interview, every situation, he's going to come, he's going to come up and be a part of it. But he, you know, kind of like what Quest was saying about, like, certain jokes. So he just got so many cash phrases that all of us that, that day I go,

school for regular, regular life. You know, if somebody say something off, you know, off kilter, then we, you know, we're going to pull out of Bernieism, you know, it's like they're just a part of like, a part of like how we made up, especially by being with him so much on the tour, you know, like he would, he just had a hundred, you know, on a 50 yard line, but it's first than gold. You know, you'd be like, what?

You know what I'm saying. So that means that wherever I am in life, I'm out here trying to win and I believe I can win at this. point. I'm on a 50-yard line for him is first in gold. And I was like, digging. I love that one right there. So, you know, that's B-Mac. That's his kind of language. I want to ask you

about two of my most favorite roles that you have done, Gus Pitch and Jazzy D. Yeah. You're like with the movie, sir, Gus pitch was Intama McCrude. And Jazzy D was

top five. It was top five. It was rock movie. Both of both of was like these sleeper movies, man, that I was always really, really good, you know, really blessed to be a part of these, like, moves. Like, one, Gus Petch was like just a fun character because he was like, yo, you get to be in a movie with George Clooney and Catherine Zeta Jones. And, you know, this is the character you did, you did detective. And it was the Cohen brothers. Yeah, what was it like?

What was it? Yes. Yes. Because that was a really, it was an unconventional film for what they normally kind of do. Yeah. What were they like? They, you know, they're super artists. So, you know, and they're very eclectic and different.

Of course, you know, Joel is, you know, probably a little bit more talkative. And then Ethan is kind of like, you know, laid back. And so, but they were both like, they both, like, really enjoyed what I was bringing to the character. So, like, once they kind of recognized, like, what I was going to do and what I was doing as a character, then it was, like, really fun. They just kind of embraced so many things. that, like, choices that I kind of wanted to make as the guy. But I think you had to kind of earn that with them, like, you know, because they are very

specific to their vision, you know, that was the one thing. And I think that with that particular movie, to your point, it was a little outside their normal thing of what they was, what they kind of normally do. So they, they kind of trusted. You know, I think about even like what Jeffrey Rush did in that movie and all those kind of things. And Billy Bob, Billy Bob, you know, like all these kind of things. people did different little, no, character choices.

And I think they, they kind of opened up and like, yeah, you know what? All right, try it. You know, so I think that. And then with top five, you know, that was Chris Rock. He was directing. He had written a movie. He was directing the film. And he, you know, he's a brother, right?

He's my comedic brother. So we've been knowing each other many years and toured, been on dates together. And when he told me what the character was, I was. like say less man like he was like you know it's the it's the dude that you know that when we start coming up the dude that it promised you all this stuff and you know yeah i'm sitting in the limo for you don't worry about it i got you in the dope hotel up you could this i do it trust me i'm the man in houston and i was like oh don't say less if i if i ain't met this dude 130 times i know exactly who he is that whole scene came back to me but carly red and all the stuff yes

Yes, yes. So. We're a little light tonight. It's going to be walk up. Walk up, time. No, that person still exists. Yeah, me getting them hangars, that was like, that's like the real thing because you realize like people always still in the wooden hangars, with hotels.

If they got good wooden hangars, you're like, oh, man, they got the lock on them. Yeah. They got the lock on. Oh, you're the reason? The hangers are two-piece now, Amir? Oh, dog. I thought it was the only person that did that. my good hangers at home.

Yeah, man. The hotels in the world, boy. Yeah, yeah, man. The good hangers, you go in the hotel, they got the good hangars. You're like, shit. They got the, they're about to get got. That's a rap. Yeah, I was going to, well, I'm going to add on to what they said.

You get character, actor roles, but you are not a character actor, like everyone knows who you are. So how did you, how did you nuance that in starting? Your first movie was ride, was it not? Yeah, yeah. The first movie was ride. You know, and I think, you know, that was the one thing. I think, like, even my stand-up early on, I used to do a lot of characters on stage,

like, you know, like, act out things fully. So in my mind, I just kind of transitioned the idea that, you know, where I would write a joke, I would try to develop a character. So, you know, like, like, the old man in the barbershop. They was like a choice. Yeah, like, Eddie was a choice. Like, they wanted me to play a different role. And I was like, no, I want to be the old man.

And I remember everybody was like, well, we want to cast a real old man. And I was like, well, just let me read it. Let me just show you what I'm going to do with it. But I had this guy like that there was a combination of a dude at my mom's church and somebody else. And it was this whole beat of like who this dude was. I knew exactly who he was. And so I got to the point I could do Eddie. I didn't even need dialogue.

Like you just give me your circumstances. and Eddie just going to come out of me. Like I know the stuff people say, and it was just that. And so the directors started seeing that, and they was like, all, cool. That was before we even shot. So when they gave me the character, that was great for me.

And that was really one of those transitional spots because that kind of like, you know, really like changed me from being just a character actor in the movie to people saying, all right, cool, you can lead a movie. And so I started to get other little movie roles, Johnson Family and honeymooners and little things. I love doing to your question, Quest. I love, like, getting, like, just great little character roles that, like,

show up in the movie with the right people, you know, and where you can just come in and steal scenes and then, and this burnout, like, those are fun to me. I think I always love, like, like, when Don Cito did Devil in the Blue Dress. You know, we love, yeah, we learned, we learned this there, but mouse was out of, like. And he was just, he wasn't. So he wasn't all through the movie, but he was like, where mouse said? Give me more mouse. I want to say that character.

There has never been a moment, said, where you walked on the set and felt intimidated in that way? No, I mean, you know, like, you know, like with that, that, that, the first scene in in Tarvon Cruelty, I had to do a scene with George Clooney, like, the first day I got there. And, you know, it was one of those things. And knowing, like, he was Clooney at the time. And, you know, and you just kind of want to do the right. thing and you just you know so but I never I never really got small I just was very careful right like

you kind of like more careful like make sure you know you know and I knew the Cohen brothers was a big deal and it's all these things where you just want to be like I don't want to be this guy to come in and like act like these people not a big deal and then you find out like oh that was offensive or whatever so that's the that's the young virgin but you know I always kind of was confident in who I was and what I was coming there to do. So I just leaned into that more than anything. Did they know who? Because as your fans, did they know who you were?

I always been curious about that. Like, you step on that Cohen brothers. Does George Clooney know? Like, I'm a king. Clooney did, but all I think the Coen brothers really knew. I think they knew, like, once they kind of got into casting and I had to kind of go there a couple of times and then they, you know, at a rehearsal.

Then they kind of realized, like, oh, oh, you like, really that dude. Yeah, like, people will come see this movie for you like that. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, but I don't think they knew that right away. Are you still in the occasional audition phase, or is it, I once said the entertainer, and you don't, here's the script, tell me if you're murdered or not. No, I will. I will always, you know, I tell teams that sometimes people don't, they don't see me or, you know,

see me in a certain role. So if I must audition, if it's something I like and I want to do and I must audition, I will. I definitely prefer to be offered, you know what I mean? You know, but in certain roles, like, it was a role that came up. I don't even know if they ever shot this project, but it was a role that came up, and it was a cool, like, you know, Apple TV series, and it was something that I wanted to do was very likening to the character in my book. And I don't think anybody would have saw me as this character,

but I was already kind of on this journey. And when I saw the breakdown, I was like, yo, give me an alternative. I want to go in and then I had a long, you know, because of that, I was able to have go a long way with the directors and the producers. But I'm not sure what direction it went. I've never seen the project come out. So, but I know I ain't get to roll. But I did, I did open the conversation up once they saw like what I could do. Then people started to be like it became a little more real, you know, by doing the audition.

So I wasn't afraid for that. Like those kind of things make sense. Was there a role that you passed up that you later had a regret about doing, i.e. Will Smith passing up on The Matrix? Matrix, yeah. Oh, man, let me see. Not necessarily. I know that I had the opportunity to do like Mike, that movie Like Mike, but it was also at the same time that I could do Barbershop. And I felt like I made the bad choice. Yeah, you made the right. I don't know.

Was that bow wow? That was bow wow. That was the bow wow. But I just remember one was a bigger money play. And, you know, and my team was like, yo, you're going to get paid over here. There's a big movie. And then the other one was a small movie. And I was like, nah, this a better movie.

That became a franchise. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, exactly. Smart of moves. So I was trying to think of like ones where I didn't, where I kind of passed up that I didn't get nothing really comes to mind that I was like, yo, I'm, you know, I kind of regret. I didn't get that one.

Man, talk about threats by the Jay Z track. Like, what was that? That's right. You two have something in common, sort of in a six degree to separation way with the threats to me. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So, yeah, I was, you know, I'd seen Jay, like, you know, throughout my career many times. And so I just told him one time I was like, yo,

but I'm in New York. to see you work. Can I come to the studio? Everybody told me about, you know, the rain man thing he does and how he just kind of writes and move, move, move, and I just ask him, could I come to the studio? And he was like, yeah, no doubt. So I go one time. He's there. We're in the studio. And everybody just kind of hanging out. And he's like, I got to leave. I got to go and run some errand. But I'm working on this, this threat situation. I'm working on this thing. And he was like, it was on, like, some mad to rapper type stuff. If you can just throw something out there, let me know. And so he literally, he literally.

left. I think he was ninth and it was ninth. Guru was there. And I just kind of like went in and just started freestyling it. And then he called me maybe a few months later and was like, hey man, you made the album. I was like, wow. He was like, yo, you made the album. I was like, oh, man, that was crazy. It was the black album. So it made you feel like, yo, one, you're just a part of like, you know, super history. And so I was really happy to be a part of that, you know, that kind of same thing on the Nellieville, yeah, on country grandma.

Yeah, I'm about to say. That was D-ray doing Bernie. Damn, I did not know that was D-ray. Yeah, yeah, that's D-ray doing Bernie match on the hood. He's so tall. Oh, that wasn't Bernie Mac. No. All right, D-ray, you're talented.

I ain't know. I mean, I do know. Yeah, yeah, no, he lived. A win is a win. A win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me. Clever Taylor the 4th.

You might have seen the skis. kids, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even mute.

The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft. And we've got a special guest. The director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galco, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects.

From hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make to the players flying under the radar. This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, for wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slice of Life 12 and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. There's two golden rules that any man should live by. Rule one, never mess with a country girl. You play stupid games, you get stupid prizes.

And rule two, never mess with her friends either. We always say that trust your girlfriends. I'm Anna Sinfield. And in this new season of the girlfriends, Oh my God, this is the same man. a group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist. I felt like I got hit by a truck. I thought, how could this happen to me?

The cops didn't seem to care. So they take matters into their own hands. I said, oh, hell no. I vowed. I will be his last target. He's going to get what he deserves. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe.

On the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, everyone? I'm Ago Wadam. My next guest, you know from Step Brothers Anchorman, Saturday Night Live, and the Big Money Players Network. It's Will Ferrell. Woo, woo, woo, woo. My dad gave me the best advice ever. I went and had lunch with him one day, and I was like, and dad, I think I want to really give this a shot. I don't know what that means, but I just know the groundlings. I'm working my way up through, and I know it's a place that come look for up and coming talent. He said, if it was based solely on talent, I wouldn't worry about it.

which is really sweet. He goes, but there's so much luck involved. And he's like, just give it a shot. He goes, but if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there.

Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Listen to Thanks, Dad, on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm John Green. You may know me as the author of The Fault and Our Stars, and now I guess also as the co-host of The Away End, a brand new world soccer podcast. I'm Daniel Alarcon, a writer and journalist, and John and I have known each other since we were kids. My first World Cup was Mexico 86.

I was nine years old. I watched every game, and I fell in love. On our new podcast, The Away End, we'll share with you the magic. of international football, all leading up to the 2026 World Cup. For us, soccer, football, is a story we've shared for over 30 years since Daniel was the star player on our high school soccer team. Very debatable. And I was their most loyal and sometimes only fan.

I love this game. I love its history, it's hope, it's heartbreak, and above all, it's beauty. Together, we'll find out why, of all the unimportant things, football, soccer, is the most important. Listen to the away end with Daniel Alarcon and John Green on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Seeing you at this stage of your life, is there any, is there anything that you have yet to achieve that you have, like, as a bucket list? Do you feel like now is the time for you to just get your bucket list on and start greenlining your own projects or whatnot? Like, what do you? Yeah, that's kind of really the space I'm in now.

You know, of course, like the strike really, really teaches you that too. Like, you can't always kind of like, you know, expect that you'll have time or that everything that you want to do will just show up when you need to. And so, you know, I felt like, you know, I definitely want to get back into the movie space, like in the starring role parts, you know, like you're looking for those. So I started to write movies that, you know, that I feel like makes sense for me. And then. And dramas and comedy said? Yeah, exactly. I think more so to your question,

question is that it is dramas that I feel like people hadn't necessarily seen me really stick my put in something, right? You know, I did that first reformed with Ethan Hogg that was out last year, really, you know, really moved with Paul Schrader, great director, you know, and Ethan Hogg, Amanda Say Free, a small kind of an artsy film. It was a dramatic role. We got some nominations. We got some looks.

You know, but again, it wouldn't be something that black people would go see. I don't think right away. Certain kinds of black people said, you know, not a monolith. Yeah, exactly. You're just so true. I was going to throw that out there. Yeah, you know. That's how Quest goes.

Maybe, you know. I would see it. Yeah. I would see it. I would see it. Yeah. No, it's a great film because, again, dynamic actors in there. and it's, you know, kind of uniquely done, very quiet movie, you know, not a lot of, you know, all about the words, all about the emotion.

I forgot that's a style that's called like Transcendental or something like that. It's a style of movie shooting. But, you know, that's pretty much what I would say bucket list. I'm looking for a character or a series or something I can stick my teeth into where people can see me be a little more dramatic in my play, you know. I want to see that. I can't believe my very first question to you that I didn't ask, and it looks like it's going to be my last question to you. How did you come up with your moniker?

I do not know the story of how you became Cedric the entertainer. Oh, wow. Oh, yeah. That's a crazy story. That story really kind of, really kind of came from, I always say it was me trying to, it's fairly serendipities. It was the idea that I didn't want to be, I got very popular in St. Louis, right?

A lot of people, I was doing comedy. People knew me. I would call into the radio. I would get booked. But I didn't have a lot of jokes. I would, you know, I had, you know, 10 minutes' worth of jokes. And then so to get really paid, you have to do at least 30 minutes, 40 minutes on stage. So I would sing, I sing a whole Luther song.

I'd do a poem. I'd do a dance routine. I do a whole bit about being on Soul Train, and I play like nine songs so I can do the different dances. I would fill up my time. And so one night, it was a guy, you know, just kind of introducing everybody. He kept saying, this next comedian, this next comedian.

And I was like, don't call me a comedian because I don't have enough jokes to be called a comedian. Call me an entertainer. And he called me, Cedriced the Entertainer. I went up, I rocked it. And then when I came off, I had a stand ovation. and he called me Cedric D. Entertainer again and I just kept it.

I was like, that's the name. Nice. As a comedian, I've seen you do crowd work before. Do you like doing crowd work or is it too much pressure to think on your toes that fast? I'm not that fast, man.

I mean, I could do it if it happens to be the... Well, I'm seeing in hosting situations in which... Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, when you're hosting, you gotta be like, yo, like, just kind of let the room

like kind of come to you. But it's not a thing. I'm very comfortable with because it promotes people talking back. You know, it promotes, and I am more of a, I am more of a stage performer. You don't have like five quips for a heckler just in case they want to. For sure. You know, I'm ready now. Like, I keep it a lot.

But the thing is, is that, you know, I much rather, when I'm on stage, I much rather come there for the performance. So actually, some of my opening acts, I would hire open. opening acts that are shooters. I call them shooters because they go out and make sure that audience is tucked up and in their place and go on no smoke.

Yo, I never thought of that. That's a career, though. You get an opener to assassinate any would be I got a dude named Malikas from Florida. He ain't, no, you don't want no smoke with this dude. He come out there. He is fast and he's funny

and he's raw and he's going to be and people be like, yeah, I'm good, man. never mind. And so by the time I come on stage, everybody is pretty much there to understand that I'm here to tell you some jokes and perform for you like a grown-up and you're going to sit in your chair and you're going to be quiet. Can I ask a flipping box cards question? I just, I wanted to know because it is a fictional story and you said it was interesting to listen to you earlier in this conversation, talk about the lack of men in your life. So number one, I was curious because even though it's fictional, it seems like it is a lot of your grandfather and baby. boys, right? Yeah, yeah. And I was just curious how you got all of that because you didn't know him. And was it really from your mother?

And then also since you, and as to this for me, too, as a man, who was a man in your life? Because, say, when we look at you, when we talk to you, you sound like such a well-rounded man in so many ways to have so many women in your life, you know? Yeah. Yeah, you know, I think that that's really the thing. I kind of really feel it was a lot of kind of osmosis in a number of ways. you know, because my mother and my uncle would tell me the stories of my grandfather. And then you start to emulate, I think, you know, other people's fathers and the neighborhood.

You know, we were just kind of talking about that when you see these young folks out here that kind of grow up and everybody kind of like, you know, on the Draco's and everybody got, they passed down and they want to be gangsters. You know, you kind of see that when we grew up, our, our, in our neighborhood was people that was fathers. The ones that was there, they was like taking kids to the baseball field. And you had to say yes, sir, to him. And, you know, you didn't call your daddy by, your daddy friend by his first name. Like, these kids, they know people by Donnell now, you know what I'm saying?

They don't even, they don't call that man Mr. Nothing. That'd be like, you know, you literally live in the world where these kind of, you know, archetypes don't really exist. So for me, I think that that's really, you know, one of the things that I was kind of like, you know, kind of like spinning the story from is like this idea that I like to wear suits, this idea that I like to be respected and treat people with respect, that I do think that I got a responsibility to others, you know, like I recognize that and somehow, you know, my mother would say that's who my grandfather was. Like he would do all these things. He makes sure that even though he was in the underworld and he was a gambler and a

hussler and a bootlegger, but he kind of did all these things because that was really what was available to him, you know, at the time, you know. So what's not true? I'm like, wait a minute. There was not true about baby boys. That's all this stuff. All that stuff is in there. The restaurant owner, he had the restaurant.

He'd go and take care of the people out in the field. I say he was the first dude with a food truck that would be in my mind because, you know, like because he would. He would take his restaurant. He'd make sandwiches and he'd go out to the fields and then people would pay a quarter for a sandwich and some water. And he'd like make sure he eating and he burned back out. That was all cash moves that he would do. Like this and, you know, those kind of things.

And so, you know, but he was also like a, you know, extreme risk taker, which, you know, in the book you find out like he took big risk. And, you know, these sometimes they don't go your way, you know. But that's the, that's the life of any of us that you try to go out and you. stick your neck out for your own ideology, right? You recognize that at some point in time, it might not go the way you think, and then you got to deal with that, those circumstances, consequences. Wow.

I want to ask you, you were mentioning earlier some conversation about your team and kind of deciding which projects to pick. The team that you have now, how long did it take to assemble them, I guess? And, like, who were, like, kind of your core people, you know, your manager, man. I've been really blessed, man. I mean, my core group of people with my guys that I met in

college, man, like my manager, my partner, you know, my production company is called a bird and a bear. That's me and my partner, Eric Rohn. He's my manager and my business partner. We called him Swanee, you know, from the Warriors. You're from back in the living in the swamp. Yeah, we called him Swan back in the day. And so, and I'm Setti Bear. So we're a bird and a bear. So that's the name of our production company. But we've been together since, again, my college days, my tour manager and, you know, creative and tour consultant, he was, he was, I went to junior high school with him. That's Kelvin Bland.

So he had got to been with me my whole career, like, seeing me, like, come up and just, you know, and he started to learn how to do lighting and learn how to make my shows more interesting. And, you know, and those were the kind of things he got interested in and booking. me and so that's it. And then I've been, you know, with my agency and my lawyers who probably a long time, too, like from early on when I got my first deals, you know, so I'm starting to make some changes there. But, you know, for the most part, my team is solid.

And then I got a new publicist not to maybe about three years ago. So, but they've been great too. But, you know, they came through great recommendation. And so it's the same guy that does Eddie Murphy. He's my guy right now, so he's dope. Yeah. You know, I was an avid watcher of your millionaire days. Is game show hosting, like, is that as fun as it seems, or, like, do you have any other future plans for?

You know, I actually enjoyed it. You know, there was a thing about doing, you know, a millionaire where you are, you know, that people are coming on here and they love these game shows and they really want to win. And it's a lot of fun to them. It's very arduous because you have to do, you know, maybe, you know, five and six shows in a day. Like, you shoot a lot. You know, it's very aggressive, you know,

because we, and that was the biggest thing about it. But for me, it allowed me to live in New York for like three months. So it was great because it was a totally different experience. You know, I was able to come and live in the city and be there. So the only reason I didn't come back and do with the second season is that they, the next season is that they moved into Connecticut. way up in Connecticut, and I was like, that's, that's not for me, guys.

It was like, they was near, wait, they showed up in Connecticut? They moved it to Connecticut, you don't know, to cut the budget or make it a little more. It's a big talk show state. It's a right, the big talk show state. Like, Maury was there and Jerry was there. Oh, wow, yeah.

I did not know that. I knew for a second, Tyler was there for a second. Like, he had a, I mean, ESPN. ESPN, yeah. ESPN, yeah. Yeah, ESPN, but yeah, it was like. Dad, and it was very, you know, very small town field, very outside the loop, you know, and you had to be there three to four months.

And I was just like, nah, you know, no, no. If you're living in New York doing that, then that's fun because you're in the city, you get to pop off, you finish your day, and then you go. And we would shoot like Monday through Thursday, so I would have Fridays off a lot of time. Oh, yeah. Ain't know where to go. Game show. Yeah, I'm not going to be stuck in Bristol.

You know, that's not going to be my move. Like, yeah. I want to ask you, too, before we go with your barbecue, man, you and Anthony Anderson. Yeah. What do you, do you, like, cook a lot? What's just something in there? Is it sugar-free? No, we just got the rubs right now.

Okay. So we, the sauces are coming, though, and we will, because, you know, Anthony's diabetic. So we all go and make sure we're not going to be over the top with all our, you know, sugars and all that stuff. But the idea really came from us. You know, we all golfed together, me, Anthony, George Lopez, Don Cheadle, Chris Spencer. Jesus Christ. We all travel, D.L. And we were traveling going.

Anthony and I would often be the ones doing the cooking, grilling, you know, cooking and making a food for everybody. Because we rent a house and hang. It would be a fun time, man. So, but, you know, I grill a little bit and cook a little bit. But what we really loved about the space is that everybody was, you know, trying to do, liquors and tequila and all that. And what we wanted to do is use our celebrity for something we thought that really was uplifting for the community

and really authentic to who we were in the sense that barbecuing and grilling and grilling and getting together is as black as they come and even more so American as it come. Like this is where people fellowship, I throw the meat on, you bring the tater salad, you somebody bring the back of cheese, and we got a meal, and we're going to play cards and we're going to laugh and we're going to drink.

And we was like, yo, we can capture this as a brand. And we can capture that essence. That's what we really want to do. And that's what AC barbecue about more than anything. We actually feature more pit masters than we grill ourselves. So we really go around and find like people that really put like on the show. Like we pull up. Like that's the kind of thing.

We love the fact that you really love it. Like, you know, you throw a cool barbecue at your crib or. You got to end. You got to end. You know, and that's it. We come through, pull up and like, let's talk about what you're cooking. Let's talk about the, you know, the relationship you have to why you start cooking and in the stories. And then that's what we do.

And then we, you know, as AC barbecue, we out telling that story along with, you know, introducing our products. And, you know, we got, we're in like 2,700 Walmarts right now. We got Lowe's coming. We got Home Depot coming. Loz and Home Depot coming. Those are home deep. That's dead. We're doing tools and we got spatulas and tongues and all that come in.

We got we got restaurants coming. We out here. We out here doing it. So we actually got an opportunity to do some restaurants on college campuses. So these are things that we all got in development. So we working hard at making sure that we are here, you know, talking about, you know, something that really started from, you know, our culture really is that idea of taking whatever we got and throwing on some hot coals and making a meal out of it.

That goes as far back as slavery and beyond on the way to cook. So, you know, but it definitely culturally, a thing. But we love, and we know that barbecue is different in different regions, and that's why we didn't want to be like, you know, you got to do it our way. We like, we love the way you do it. We're going to come and show and get that love. And so that's what our show is all about, too. So, man.

So, Mr. Kiles, I think. you for coming on our show, man, talking to us. About time, like, we've been here almost, what are we, six years now? Almost seven. We're not going to seven easy. Why do I have a hard time remembering our...

Yeah, yeah, we're not... Yeah, we're knocking on seven. What you say, Steve? Because you said, because you don't love us. That's a blessing, man. In podcast land, you're damn right. We old in podcast length.

This is great. All right, man. That's what I. Oh, geez. Thank you, OG. Thank you for everything you're doing for race relations with the neighborhoods. I wanted to say that because y'all are doing some introducing some things, letting people know and stuff.

I appreciate. Yeah, that's right. Yeah, that we use cows. Yes. That's my favorite, said. I always talk about that. That is such a big deal. It's so true.

We're talking about the towel joke, y'all. Y'all know we just found that white people don't use wash cloths. You know, wash cloths. Wash cloths. Watch cloth. Yeah. Watch cloths. Thank you.

Steve, any comment? Thank you, Shedger. I love all the stuff you do. Thank you. My brother, man. Steve, my birthday, fan. Thank you. Nice.

Thank you, man. No, thank you for everything, man. You're one of my favorite comedians and just one of, you know, my favorite entertainers, period. And I always got teased in high school. Everybody told me I looked like you. And you have this humor. Full circle moment. Yeah.

Oh, he's funny like that. There's no. Yes. Oh, my gosh. Sherman's showcase. Check it out. Said. I'm a long-time fan, brother.

Just love, love everything you do, man. Let's go. No doubt, man. All right. Well, on behalf of Laia, I'm Pape Bill, and birthday, Steve, and Fontegalo, and shout out to Brit and Jake. Wow to the King. Yeah, and the entire family at Eyehart. This is another Questlove Supreme extravaganza.

We'll see you on the next grover. All right, thank you. Yeah, man. Oh, huh. Quest Love Supreme is a production. of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from IHeart Radio, visit the IHeart Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits,

my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated.

So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft. And we've got a special guest. The director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galco, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects. from hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes

franchises make to the players flying under the radar. This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice Podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

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He's going to get what he deserves. We always say that trust your girlfriends. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, everyone? I'm Ego Wood. My next guest, it's Will Ferrell.

My dad gave me the best. Best advice ever. He goes, just give it a shot. But if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there.

Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Listen to Thanks Dad on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Daniel Alarcon, and this is my friend. This is much more famous than I am. I wouldn't go that far, but I'm John Green, co-host of the podcast The Away End, with my old friend Daniel.

On our podcast, The Away End, we'll share with you the magic of international football, all leading up to the 2026 World Cup. Together, we'll find out why, of all the unimportant things, football, soccer, is the most important. Listen to The Away End with Daniel Auerkone and John Green on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an I-heart podcast, guaranteed human.