The Questlove Show - Questlove Supreme: Fat Joe

Episode Date: May 20, 2020

Take a ride with Questlove and Team Supreme as they dive into the life of Joesph Antonio Cartagena bka Fat Joe. Joe details growing up in the Bronx, finding his voice, stepping up his hustle and evolving into a world renowned rap icon AND actor.  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee 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, Cliver 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, 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 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, or

wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slicel 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. 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 Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Questlove Supreme is a production of Iheart Radio.

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another episode of Questlove Supreme. I'm your host, Questlove. With me is My Ear. Quarantined from the West Coast. Hello. Hello. Hey, everybody. I miss you and hug you. So good, Steve from the top of his building in Manhattan. Petri dish central. Where are you at, uh, unpaid bill? Westchester. We're neighbors. Okay. So I can visit? Yeah. Come on over.

Can you hang out with Frick and Prack? It's the whole thing. A lot of you don't approve of that. All right. Take a little. Where are you broadcasting from now, bro? From the crib, Raleigh, North Carolina. Okay. Keeping it real. Ladies and gentlemen, this episode has been long, long overdue. You know, it's a rarity that anyone in hip-hop culture can have sustainability and change with the times and still stay themselves.

Big facts. In this culture without hitting a landmark. and our guest today is, I mean, I'd call him Teflon Joe. Yo, me and my buddies have a saying if a nuclear bomb went off, the last two rappers standing would be fat Joe and bust the rhymes. Straight up. Straight up. Y'all brothers don't survive everything, man.

Ladies and gentlemen, yeah, let's welcome the one and only. the god fat Joe Exactly Exactly Don Carter Gine To Quest Love Supreme Thank you so much How are you making out

How are you making out in this current Environment sir Me I'm just You know I'm happy to be home man I'm happy to be home man I've been I've been on the road for 25 years Man and the fact that I'm able to be

With family and spend time at home with my daughter, my wife and everybody, man. I'm actually enjoying it, to be honest with you. Where is home currently? You're a Jersey resident right now, correct? No, no, no, no. I live in Miami. I've been to Miami for like 17 years.

I've always known you as... I'm sorry. I've always known you as a Jersey resident. I didn't know that you moved to Miami. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I lived in the Bronx my whole life, and then I moved to Jersey. My wife forced me to move to Jersey because I ain't want to lead to Bronx.

And she was like, if you don't move, I'm leaving you. So I had to go to Jersey, which was the smartest thing I ever did in my life. So when I went to Jersey, I finally heard birds chirping and little kids playing in the street. And then eventually, at one time I got so frustrated with, like, the New York hip-hop scene that I moved down to Miami. And that's when, you know, that's around the time I met DJ Callet before he was, you know, when he was just an underground DJ and Kulin Dre. And just the love down here, the camaraderie and the love was just so much different from what was going on in New York. So I had came down here for a fresh start and been down here ever since.

Okay. Around what time was that when you went to Miami? Man, that's like 17 years ago. You know, I always said, you know, one day, you know, when I started, I started out digging. in the crates and if you go to them early videos, if you would go engine, engine number nine, on that, you as I, I'm one of the guys jumping in the background. Oh, word?

I was in everybody's video. Yes, I was in everybody's video. Everybody was in my video. We worked with each other. We didn't look at each other as competition. It was all love when I came up. And then once money came into play, everybody started having their own click

and everybody thought they was bigger than the other one. And that's how New York got separated. And then one day I was in my home in New Jersey and I was fed up with it already. I was listening to the radio and I heard Cameron say he'll smack the coofy off of Naz's head. And that's when I told my wife,

pack up the vans, we out. We're out of here. We can't be over here. Like this, I don't know what's going. on with New York hip hop. And we came down here and we started the Miami movement, like with the DJ Callet, with the Pit Bull, the Rick Ross, the Cool and Dre.

You know, we set it off down the end and made that camaraderie. And then when Lil Wayne, when Katrina happened, he came down to Miami, him and Birdman. We embraced them. And that's where you get all those records. We was doing like taking over, brown paper bag. Yeah, make the rain. In the Bronx, how would you describe your childhood for those that don't know your history in the Bronx?

Well, you're from Philly, right? But there's different parts of Philly, there's North Philly, South Philly, Allegheny, German town, this, this, this that. So what I'm trying to make reference to that is, oh, he's from North Carolina, this Fayetteville, this, Greensboro, this. Absolutely. I'm from the Bronx in the part where hip hop was created. Right. So what I'm trying to tell you is there's many parts of the Bronx. So me as a little kid, I was watching Melly Mell and Grandmaster Flash pick up games of basketball against Little Ikees, C, little Rodney C.

You know, I grew up in like literally. So if you look at so privileged, so Ruby D, who's the first Latino MC, he used to have a softball team. These guys never lost. I used to watch them play softball. I used to go to every jam. My brother, my brother was,

the way I fell in love with hip-hop, my brother used to go to all the jams that bring me back to cassette tapes from all the Zulu Nation anniversaries or cool hurt or whatever. And I used to listen to it so much. I thought I was actually in there. Like, they'd be like, back up from the ropes, back up from the ropes.

Then they're playing, marry, marriage, why you bugging, jibid, jibit on. That funk is on. Right. And then they come back with, I don't know if you've been told, but Santa Claus is a black man, a black man. I'm like, I'm in my room listening to these cassette tapes like, oh, my fucking God. And just because I was too small ago And then when they did it outside I would go to outside

So I was privileged to be born in the soil Like, you know, just no other way To explain it to you. Like I was blessed as a hip hop fan As a hip hop fan Not just as the rap or whatever. Wow. So as far as like it calling you

I mean were you rapping early as a kid Or you were just like I'm a fan, but at what point is... I wanted to be like... At what point is it like, okay, I want to get involved in the culture. It's different. It was... I was the culture.

It's what I'm trying to tell you. I break dance. I wrote graffiti. Terror Squad is a graffiti crew. Okay. It started out off graffiti. Terror Squad. So where were you tagging up at?

All over the Bronx, on the walls, on the train. When I got old up, I would break out my house. I'm talking too much in front of my daughter right now. but I would break out my house when my parents were sleep, go hit the trains, and dangerous shit, like cops chasing us under the third rail, like crazy shit. Come back to my house,

my sister would open the door like five in the morning, like damn, man, like you butt. And then, you know, when I wake up, you know, it was time for school, but writing graffiti. But rapping, I wanted to be like my brother. My brother was, you know, he used to rap. And I wanted to be like my brother. And I wanted to be like my brother.

And so I started to rap. So I was writing maybe 9, 10 years old, 8, 9, 10 years old. And my mother's table where everybody was like, what type of shit? What am I doing? And I'm like, you know, I want to rap. What was your MC name back then? 9, 10 years old. Oh, my name, my first name was Lil Pop.

Okay. Little Pop. And, uh, and, uh, and, uh, we were saying shit like Joey Rockwell and all that and I had a little fake rhymes like sneakings and cheap you know something you could fill every rock

you could like I was just you know learning the game but you know yeah it was real so as far as like in the area that you grew up were there any other notable hip hop luminaries that we would know

of today, like, were you growing up with Lord Finesse as an 11-year-old? Yeah. Yes, yes. So what happened was, so as I told you, was hip-hop, wippy, whip, rap, all of them live in my block. Right. But when the guy who inspired me to rap was Lord Finesse. So I was already in the streets, hustling, doing all type of shit, you know, being, you

product of my environment in the worst way. And Finesse, he used to sell us papers. So back in the days, they would bring the newspaper. So Fennesse would buy the newspaper at the store for a quarter, but he was selling in the building for a dollar. He was an entrepreneur. So he

would walk up and down a project building going, paper. And then my mom's would give me a dollar. I'd go see Fennas. He made, not his real shit. And then he would make 75 cents and then give it back. But Finesse would always sell me like, yo, Joey, I'm going to be a rapper.

I'm going to get on. And I'd be like, yeah, right. I locked the door. I'm like, man, he's so full of shit. And one day, one day I'm just listening to the radio, Red Alert. He's just playing the funky technician. He's playing all the Fennett. I'm like, no way, Fennes made it.

And that gave me, sometimes you got to see it. So that gave me the proof that we can actually make it out of the hood and actually become professional artists. And that's when I started, you know, really believing we could do something. And then also Diamond Dean, Diamond Dean used to write graffiti with me. And he would tell me all the time,

yo, Joe, you're gonna go to jail, you're gonna get killed, you're out here doing crazy shit, y'all, like, bro, why don't you put all the shit you do in the streets into your music? And actually, even though I had money at the time, actually crazy money. He took me to the studio and paid for the session, Diamond, to, like, you know, get me off the streets.

Wow. And so we went in there and we made the demos. And then one of them was Flojo, my first single. So I went, am I talking too long? No, no. No, no. This is perfect. This is perfect.

Okay. So we went, we made like three demos in that first session. One of them was Flojo. Right. So I had went, I wanted to earn, even though I grew up with showbiz and AG, I grew up with Diamond. They were already on. They were already on.

I wanted to earn my spot. So I went to amateur night at the Apollo and I performed that amateur night. And I won it four weeks in a row. Word. And to tell you the truth. Wait, I got a question. Yeah, yeah. That's how I got on.

I got a question because we rarely had. have actual Apollo amateur night contestants on the show? People who survived the Apollo. How is the true, what is the true way to rig the system so that you win amateur night, the Apollo? Is it the people you bring with you or like? I can't tell you rig. I had some people in there, but it's, the power was like stadium compared to the people.

I might have brought 20 people came to see Fat Joe, but it's, it's 2000, 3,000 seats. But I'm going to tell you something And this is where This is where no one can ask me if there's a God You understand what I'm saying? Because as I went back recently, maybe a year ago, I really thought about that Apollo.

Like I said, all right, you went in Apollo. What do you do? So I went in there, it was 150 groups. And I remember looking at everybody saying, they don't have a chance. I don't know what they're doing here. I'm going to take this shit. Now, what's crazy is, if you want to talk about the elephant in the room, I was the only Latino in Black Harlem with 150 black boots.

Talk about that. No, and then, so when I think about it, how it went down, I just went out there. I had two girls, three girls from my projects, Michelle and Barbara and D.C., and they came out with me. And they were standing behind me doing some fly shit and I was walking through rapids. But the people just went crazy. They couldn't hear a bar or nothing. They just fucking went crazy.

And every time I came out, they just went crazy. And it wasn't because of my lyrics. It wasn't because of the, they just went crazy. And I say that was God. In the room, he said, this is how you're going to do it? So I won four weeks. I met Red Alert. Red Alert was the biggest DJ in the planet Earth.

It was only two DJs at the time that were considered mainstream. It's Red Alert and Mr. Magic. Mr. Magic. Y'all, Mr. Magic, rest of peace. So Red Alert said, yo, do you have a demo? Can you give me a demo? So I gave the flow Joe. About a month later, I had the flu.

I was in the projects laying down and the shit came on. And I jumped to the ceiling. jump from the flu. I put the speaker on the window in the projects and told everybody, yo, Red Alert playing my shitty plan. Everybody going crazy in front of the building. And then he kept playing that for like close to like eight months every week.

And then Chris Lighty, rest in peace, came to the hood where I hustle, where I hustled. And told me, yo, you fat Joe, I was like, yeah. I was like, yeah. I was like, he said, you know why am? I said, yeah, you baby Chris. And he was like, y'all, I want to sign you on a record deal. Like, I think you could be a superstar.

And I signed in the middle of the street. And the rest was his. You signed instantly to relativity? Yeah, I don't have no lawyer. And I was a drug dealer. What do you want me to do, Chris? No, no, no. I was just like, wow.

I ain't got no intertive. That was speedy. So wait, that, that answers my second question. So that's definitely you. Saying fuck you talking about on a, on Diamond D's, uh. I am in every ad lib on that album. That's my claim to fame. It's my fucking claim to fame.

Fuck you talking about. You're too. Right. That is my fit. You know what it is. You're that's that shit. Oh, that's you. You're the ad lib guy all over.

You, that's that shit. Yeah. I am the adlibs. Every song, I dare you to X Diamond. I am, that's my claim to fame. I was there for that whole album, the whole process. Slight, slight confession. Like, there was a point of my life where, you know,

there was enough base in my voice to be, to be cursing and really intimidating people. So, shut up, Laia. Like, you're like, oh, really? No, I swear to God, like, every time. Post 93, when I'm saying, fuck you talking about, I'm literally just echoing. Back Joe. I'm going to talk about.

Yo, chill. That is my favorite cursing on record ever, ever. But were you not involved on the Jazzy J record at all? The compilation that he did? No, not a Jazzy J. No, no, no. I was from Diamond D on. But I knew Jazzy J. I did my whole first album in Jazzy J studio.

But I'm not, I think the compilation was before me. So when did the official, like, the uniting of Digging in the Crates first occurred? Like, was it then in 92? I think I always digging in the crates. I'm from the projects. So I was digging in the crates. There's no way to explain it to you. Like I grew up with Showbiz, grew up with Diamond D, grew up with Finesse.

Hey, I'm rapping. I'm digging in the craps. I was, you know, getting a lot of money in the streets. And I was at first the fat Spanish guy that stands on stage behind Lord Fannas and Diamond D. And you're looking like, who the fuck is the D-boy standing behind these motherfuckers, iced out with the convertible bends outside? Like, motherfuckers is like, that must be the big boy from the block. And so people knew me from that.

But I was always digging in the crates. I don't think there was initial anointing. You know, I do remember we was at the fever in the Bronx. When I got asked, could we make OC digging in the crates? And OC was from Brooklyn. And I was like, hell yeah, man. He had the joint, you lack the minerals and vitamins. I am in the size.

Times up. Yeah, I was like, yo, yeah, times up. I was like, we better make that boy digging in the crates. And so I remember that. And was Bigel around this time period or? Bigel was there already. So Finesse had met Bigel doing the, Bigel used to battle everybody on 125th all across the street from Apollo.

Every day after school, Bigel was just killing dudes. Finesse met him, put him on a remix, and yes, you may remix. So I was at the show the first time Bigel ever rap at a show, and he destroyed that motherfucker. And I was like, oh, shit. They was like, yo, he signed, you know, Big L. I was like, big motherfucker L, D-I-C. He was incredible.

It was like a finesse on steroids. It was like, first of all, to me, finesse was the best punchline lyricist at the time. And then he found, like, he found the Bravo of the Superman, like Big L. So it was a no-brainer. Right. So as far as the environment is now and what you're used to, like when you're doing concerts,

I know that it was like night and day with a 25-year lapse in between. But what were your early shows like promoting on the road and like back at 92, like from 92 to like 95? Like what was that like back then in the very beginning? When you ever heard of Steve Lobel? You know Steve Lobel. Yeah, Steve Lobel was our product manager at Relativity. He had Fat Joe and Big Punk and the rest of the terrorist squad in a van driving through the whole America.

Because at the time, I was scared to fly. So we drove everywhere to Shaw. We drove to Chicago, Cabrini Greens with Pink House, DJ Pinkhout. We drove all around this country eating McDonald's. And we was eating McDonald's. And even when Flojo was like, Flojo was number one in the country.

It went number one. And I was still getting like $400 a show, $500 a show. Wasn't no real money at the time. So it was like a struggle, you know, to get to the next level. But I had left like a fairy tale. And this is no bullshit.

I had left the drug game alone when I signed to start rapping and I refused to go back even though my friends were still making literally millions of dollars they was in Bentley's they was in all that shit I wouldn't go back if somebody got robbed in the crew

I wouldn't go back if anything I would not go in there because I knew this was my way out is the way I had to go so I took a real pay cut so I would do stuff like not only do my shows but then

promote parties. So poor KRS probably came and performed for me 20 times for free in the Bronx. So everybody you haven't met, I'd be like, I gave Biggie his first show. The Tory is BIG. I gave him his first show ever. Yeah, I gave him a G and a bottle of a whet. And he came, and I'm talking about party and bullshit

just came out. Oh, okay. So it's like the first show, B.I.G. That Joe. And I was just promoting parties, making a couple of grand, on the side, then doing my show, you know, it was real. It was a real struggle. A win is a win.

A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clipper 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 Podcast,

or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at 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.

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. Yo, I remember an episode of Yom TV Raps where you had like your own clothing joint or like you were like one of the first dudes to have your your venture. I think I was the second. FJ 560. FJ 560. How did you know that?

560. I think... He knew everything. I remember this. He had the jacket. So what happened was... What happened was... And I'm going to tell you some real shit I never said before, but...

It was probably the first or the second. I don't know if Wu-Tang had their brand first. It was one of the... Now, you were first. But I remember we was making these... So, we were making these coats and these snorkels. The leather jackets, almost like the Avericks is.

And I remember going to a party and Puffy and Jay-Z walking into the bathroom. I was in the bathroom where FJ560 snorkels on. And I was like, oh shit, they was like, yeah, we rocking your shit. And I'm like, all right, cool, yo. But the business partners that I have,

they were really, really cheap. They didn't want to really master dues. They didn't really, really, We want to market and promote, and we lost our shop. We could have made hundreds of millions of dollars with that line. It was ahead of its time. Yeah, I wanted to visit that. Like, y'all, I remember you and Freddie were like live at that store.

I'm like, yo, I want to go over there and see that, John. Like, I always wanted to see it and never knew what happened to it. Hey, Joe. Okay. I was just going to ask. I was just kind of curious since you were talking about, you signed your deal in the middle of the street. You were new to the industry. You didn't know anything.

some of those hard lessons that you had to learn on your way. Because now you are the business man, you know this business in and out. But before, we were like a couple of them hard lessons that you had to learn. Well, I really ain't going to lie to you. I did not get jerked by Chris Lighty in the middle

of the street. I was lucky. Okay, good, good. No, no, I was lucky. He did not jerk me. He was fair with me. Forever. Relativity was good to be. But I did get jerked for my public. So I had signed a deal with this guy's name is Jelly Bean Benitez. And he was fans and producer.

Yeah, yeah. So he was signing, he was doing music for Madonna and all of them. So he hit me with the yo. He hit me with the yo. We both Latino, this, this bullshit. And then I met him in 1992. I signed his publishing. He gave me $50,000 when I signed.

he's been robbing me for that publishing ever since, and I still ain't see him in like 25 years. And, you know, and so we've been trying to get some type of royalty accounting or whatever. I didn't have my publishing back till around lean back. But anything before there was stuff, anything I did, the man robbed me for my publishing, real talk. Oh, shit. Damn, Benita.

Yeah, yeah. Damn. Donald Passman book, everybody. Donald Passman. My good old Latito. My good old Latino brother. Wait, hold on, Joe. Joe, can you talk to like, can you talk to where like Latino music and hip hop were meeting at that time? I mean, behind you is a giant picture of Hector Lavaux. Who's like, we can't ignore that. The king of. What's your name?

Yeah. Yeah. Salsa. What's your name who asked that question? I'm Bill, Sherman. Yo, Bill, let me tell you something, Bill. Hip hop is. Please.

black and Latino music from day one. So if you go to the very inception of hip hop music, the very first black party jam, you will see the Latinos in there and the blacks in there, and they breakdancing and they write in graffiti. Latinos just break dancing and writing graffiti. So the black guys is mostly DJ and MCN. And that's the real focal point on it.

But if you go to day one and you look in the archives of hip hop, it's always been black and Latino music. Was it like that though? Go ahead, I'm sorry, Bill. But for you, like, in the house, like, was it like, was there Latin records in one corner, hip-up records the other corner? I grew up black. So, like, I'm a black Latino.

No, it's real. No, you got to break that. That's real, but you have to break that down because everybody in the world don't understand what that mean. I grew up black. So, like, where I grew up was 99.9% black. And Fat Joe had the hairs like the Beatles with green eyes and thought he was black. Wow.

Because there wasn't no real Latino. So all my girlfriends growing up was black, me, black. If you look at the class pictures, it's me and 30 black people. Like, who did they? I think they said, the killing of Malcolm Mellon. Who killed Malcolm X? They showed his class picture at one point. He was the only black guy.

It was nothing for white people with the whole picture when he was growing up. Right. And that was that joke. And that was that joke. So you said like the Beatles, you mean mophead or hippie era? Yeah, like this. Look, I put up a picture maybe like two weeks ago. I found one with my hair like the Beatles, bro, like the fucking beetles.

Like the people, like the mushroom. Okay. Yeah. And so what happened was nobody told me, yo, you're not black. I don't know how to explain it to you. So even though my father's Cuban and my mother's Puerto Rican,

you know, my mother speaks English fluently, everything, you know, she grew up on all the Gladys Night, all Areca Franklin's, you know, my house every day. We didn't play Sousa. We played, I will survive. Right. Oh, oh, no. Walk out the door.

Like, that's the shit we was playing. And it wasn't until I went to high school. And there was no social media. It wasn't even a rap video at that time. Right. So when I went to high school, I met a friend of mine. His name was Charlie. He lived on the other side of the Bronx.

And when he took me to his hut, I never knew. There was so much Puerto Ricans in the Bronx. And this is like 15 minutes away. So just like me, I met the one black guy. Yeah, then I met the one black guy who thought he was Puerto Rican in that neighborhood. Yeah, he's up in his family. He thought he was Puerto Rican, right? So when I went there and I started going to Charlie's house, that's when his mother was like,

yo, you're not black. And she starts screaming, hecta Lavalvo, Grancombo, Grouponici, all the Southside, you know, all the legends. And I'm like, oh, shit. So that's when I got put on to Spanish music

and more so Spanish pride started finding myself in my culture. Every window I looked at had Puerto Rican flags. I'm talking about 14 flights. Every window had Puerto Rican flags. And they was bumping that, Southside shit out the window. They were like this.

So that's when I started. to learn about Hecda Lavo and Sousa music and then Latino heritage. And then from there, I just wanted to learn more and more and more and more. And that's where we are. Yo, not to fast forward, but just I got to tell you based off of that, that's why I was so good to see that episode of She's Got to Have It when y'all went back to Puerto Rico and really just broke down the connection of like the African diaspora to Puerto Rico and how we are all black and how they, you know,

it was just, it was perfection. That must have felt real good to do any win. I was going to say. Winnie. Winnie. You know he's Winnie winning in the house like a motherfucker. Wait, all right. Now, all right.

You killed that role, man. You body that role. All right, we got to skip. What the fuck shot? How did you, who are you channeling with your voice with Bidding? Like, that was my favorite character from that show. All right. Thank God.

But listen, let me tell you, now I meet a lot of people I met Chalachau. I had Boswick a bunch of actors that say, yo, man, you killed that shit. You did. I was like, you know, I went hard. I know. Y'all went hard, though.

You showed your heart. Like, it was just. That character, I'm going to tell you the truth, y'all. That was like the 14th member of Wu-Tang. So what they said, they said, this guy's got money, got his own strip club, but he stuck in the past. He still with Tim's and.

bagging pants and hoodies and sniffs a little coat. And then I was like, oh, shit, that's like the long-lost member of Wu-Tang. And that's who I modeled when he went after. I came up with that whole character. Like, you know, he was a member of Wu-Tang. So he was like, oh, shit, when he went, I know who the fuck is and then, you know. And that's how I feel when a lot of times when I get around the Wu-Tang, because they all got money, but they be like dressed like it's still nine-three,

for. Yo, straight up, Pelly Pellie jacket, yo. Pelly, hoodies, chims.

I'm like, yo, like, these niggins ain't get the memo. Like, it's like, you know,

but that's, that's a winning, win, it's based off him. Do you find, do you find it often, uh, especially coming from where you came from,

and your need to evolve as a person and as an artist, like outgrowing your teen life and your early adult life into where you are now. Was it was it hard making that transition? Like was it hard throwing all those timblins away? I think I'm. Huh? No, no, no, I still got 10.

You still got your pink Tim? I still got Tim. You still got your pink Tim? I still got 10. Okay. No, I got 10. Dude, he was early. He was an early adapter.

I remember. He was early. And maybe some baby one. first of all, the first transition was I had to go, I'm writing the book of my life now when it comes out, y'all read it and y'all get a bigger understand it, right? But first of all, when I came in the game, I think the biggest transition

I had to do was leave the streets behind. So when I came in the game, a lot of people were scared of me hearing my reputation in the streets, so they almost thought like I was going to be the New York. Shug Night, like extort my way or whatever. So I had to win people's trust and never feel like I'm some bully or I'm, that was the first transition I had to make. So I actually was sitting back looking at everybody else at the fool when I knew I could

squash everybody, but, you know, try to be a nice guy so these people won't think I'm an animal, right? And then we still had that conception of keep it real, keep it real. keep it real. So Fadjo always had to keep it real, keep it real. Even though I had records like What's Love, when you saw me, I was walking in with 30 street dudes, entourage, ice drilling. You know, so you was like, yo, we had that. I think that was the biggest transition I had to make. And I made it maybe in the last five years of my life where I said, you know, fuck, keep it real. Keep it real with making sure my people are fed, my family's good,

and let me try to elevate and grow and be this guy you see now where, damn, this guy's a nice guy. Like, we just never knew. And at the time, too, like, I don't want, like, me and Biggie was really tight. Me and Notorious, me, IG Biggie was really tight. I don't have the pictures with Biggie. Because at the time, it wasn't cool. You felt like you was a sucker to ask somebody,

yo, let's take a picture. Right? So I missed out on all that. Right? So, and at that time, even if you liked each other, everybody was ice-grilling each other. Right? So I had to learn how to smile.

Right. I had to learn. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I had to learn how to smile and be like, all right, yo, let it down. Like, grow, we're getting old, the chill. And that was the biggest transition I had to make from keeping it real. And I lost a lot of money keeping it real.

because people really didn't want. What I didn't understand is people they want to be affiliated with gangsters. Like, you know what I mean? And Joe, let alone we heard rumors he's a gangster. He's coming with dirty gangsters. And you know what? We can't invite Joe.

We really want Joe to come to the Athens. But we know that guy's coming with dirty street guys and somebody might get robbed in the bathroom in the all-white party. So don't invite Joe. Ha, ha. Man, one question. I always wanted to ask you.

No, go ahead. You're about to ask about who shot you? Oh. Oh, well, we get there. Before we could do who shot you, man. So one question I always wanted to ask you just as an MC, Joe. So your trajectory, your progression from represent the jealous ones, envy was like phenomenal. What did you do in terms of stepping your thing?

I'm going to tell you what happens. From that first album and the second album. I'm going to tell you what happens, right? So I came I came out at a time where Flojo went number one in the country

but if you really listen to Flojo I'm going bust it, check it, watch how I wreck it? Niggas watch your back. Shit is getting hectic. I catch vibes like Count Basie I sit, right? So it's like it's like it was ABC, B,

FG. It really wasn't lyrical. It wasn't nothing. And so you love the song. You love the fact that I was certified by the digging in the crate's room. You love my history. When you called up your cousins in New York, it was like, no, no,

some boys is laying it down. Like, they did it true. So you was intrigued. You was intrigued. It's similar to like Young GZ with BMF. When he came out we was like oh he's part of it so it was all that but I really wasn't dope so there's a guy who came out his name was Nas and now remember sitting in the car showbiz came to get me at the beamer he was like yo Joe getting the car come down so I got in

the car and when he pressed play and that boy was like sneak ouzzi on the aisle and then my on me, I can lie in there on there when in common, a vase. Half man, half amazing. But I was like, it was the most incredible shit I ever heard in my life. But at the same time, it was almost like a morgue or cemetery

for MCs like Fat Joe. It was like, if you do not step your shit up, it is over. It's low Joe one and done. So I don't think emcees do that anymore, y'all. Straight up. They don't do that. No, they don't.

So he pushed the game. He elevated the game to a point of where you couldn't get away with bussy checking. So I had to study him. I studied him. I might have listened to that tape. If I say 20 million times, it's not enough. And then reasonable doubt came out. And all that.

So everybody was like, so when reasonable doubt came out, I could relate to that more because he was talking that drug dealer life. and where I came from. And I said, oh, shit, we could do that. Like, we could talk that, so then when I came, hustling is the key to success. Money is the key to sex. The life is getting mad, getting wet.

The game's sequel play. The name's, what's for the gas, too, serrevely, bloods, streets, all that. Yeah, so then I was like, oh, shit, I could be me. Like, I can really save my life. A win is a win. A win. I don't care what y'all saying.

Yep, that's me, Cliver 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 Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at 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. 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 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, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slices Life 12 and TikTok podcast.

network on TikTok. So let me ask, all right, since you mentioned him, because I feel like one of your most underrated bangers, the incredible was, no, was John Blaze. Oh, yeah, John Blaze, yeah, yeah. Yeah, I mean, when Cosmic, Cosmic, Kev played that in Philly, man. He rarely is one of those, I'll play something three times in a row, like the way that Fontmaster Flex does, like, I got to play it over,

but the day that John Blaze came out. with you and Nas was like, that was a moment. So, I mean, how did you feel at that moment when that was actually, even before I asked that? Well, whoa, whoa, let me go back. Because I feel like your moment of really stepping it up for me was who shot you? I'm sorry, I shot you. I shot you.

I shot you. How did that, how did that even? come to be because for me like the way you ended that line you think you're talking to you'll be cry aka gazaosa kaisa kaisa solza like that i felt like that was your domino slam moment domino so what how do that how do that come to be first of all l l l wu j's my item and uh i've never back down i've never back down for competition i've never back down down to this day. And you can be the greatest rapper on earth

and I'm gonna go tour to toe with them. I've never been scared. It actually elevates me. Like you ever see like Golden State when they were the best team in the world? They'll play the wackest team and then they'll play whack like them. But when they, when there's a big game,

they'll shoot shots. It brings me up. If I get on song with Jay-Z or Niles or whoever, I'm going. Like I'm going on another level. I couldn't wait for this moment. So I'm working on my second album, the track masters, come in the studio.

We had a, in New York Battery Studio, something. And they come in and they were like, Yo, Joe, Craig was stuff. And they was like, what you work? I said, my album, I played him a couple of joints off my album. It's like, yo, we need to ask that loud. And that's when I came in with that. Now, who the fuck you think you're talking to?

Right. I pay dues. I sprayed crews. Look at Joey Crack. Motherfuck is he like he's bad news running this racket For New York to Montigo Sotomayor Sotomayvobo Bring a touch of Puerto Rico

Nah That was my moment Was it all done Were you all? Were you all doing it at the same time Or was it just piecemeal? Like was Foxy there? Was no John Blaze

No no no John Blaze I did with everybody But but That no They just gave me to be and I just went for mine, you know, that's shit. Because that's, that's the risky thing about doing posse cuts because I know oftentimes, and I watch this a lot with Tariq, whenever people ask him, you know, to do stuff or whatever,

recently, uh, Tariq's on a joint with Eminem and, and I mean, on, on Eminem's records, like a posse cut. And Tariq was kind of soft. because he had his joint first. He had his joint first. It was like, ah, man, I don't want to be the first guy to submit the verse because then they'll, you know, no one wants to be the first guy.

So I always wanted to know how are posse cuts organized. Like, do you hear everyone else's shit or do you? I don't do that. Me neither. I'm not going, I'm not going to lie to you, Quest, man. Fat Joe so underrated is, I don't know how to explain it to you, man. I don't listen to nobody's shit. I don't listen to nobody's shit.

I go in there and I tell them play the music. And when they play the music, I write the shit right in their face with my own flow. And I go in there, yo, what's the hook? Boom, I need the beat. I need the hook. The hook is this.

All right, so now I know where we're going with it. Boom, and I'm going to just go crazy. I never changed my verse. I never, like, I don't know, you know, I'm just not on it like that. I just, you know me, I fight for my life every time. So every time I write, I write like just the last song I'm ever do in my life. Like, I might die today.

And that's just my strategy. That's always been my strategy. So that means I give it 2,000% every time I rap. So I'm never worried like that. But, no, I'm not like that. You got to treat every verse. I was saying you got to treat every verse like it's the first time somebody might be hearing you. You know what I'm saying?

That's kind of been my lesson This is moving along. And you know every time You know, And you also got to know that any time a young artist asks as you to get on it, you know they want to give you a can of whop-ass.

So you really got to pay attention and spit that shit. Because you know that's how it is. It's just like boxing. Motherfucker take the box in the grave. Motherfucking Mike Tyson was killing niggas in 12 seconds. But when he was already 30,

something years old looking for that check. They was using them to beat them up and look like they're somebody ill. You know, and that's pretty much what a young dude to do. If a hot young dude says, crack, let's get on a record. Like, I did two songs with the Griselda Boys. I went crazy. I'm not going to let them rip me down. I'm just not.

Like, I'm a go for mine crazy. I mean, the only person I let my guard down with, and she don't like me to say this is Remmy. She's the only person. I don't feel competition with. She's the only person. I don't care if she beats me. You know, I'll rap, rap and let her.

I want her to always shine no matter what. You know, that's just... I'm about Remmy, why is it? What is it about Remi? Because you didn't rhyme with other brothers, other sisters, but... Not what about Remi. It's just she's my sister, for real. Like, you know what I mean?

So I want her to... I want her to sound great. Anyway, I'm not talking about... I'm taking it easy on Remi. I'm not saying. best shit. But I don't get mad if Remi beats me on the, she's, we did that remix with Jay-Z. She went, ain't shit, bro. Right. Like bananas. I was happy. Yo, Joe, can you just tell us the first time you heard Remy? Like, what was it? When did she stop you in your tracks?

Unreal. A pun said, y'all want you to meet somebody. And he brought her to the studio. She came in, I never, she was so skinny. She had the leather vest and we played a beat and she wrapped for like 10 minutes straight. The air bubbles in your sneakers. I'm troubled. My, I'm Raya's my brother. And I was so amazed, but I was jealous and I was mad because I was like, damn, pun discovered her.

She's gonna be pun artists. Like I wish she was my artist. Right. I was mad. I was mad. I was quiet. Punk acceded I was mad. She tells me the story.

She says, yo, bro, you ice grill me for like 10 minutes. I was really mad. I was in there like, yo, shit, I wish I'd discovered her.

Why she ain't come up to me? And then when we walked out the studio, pun, and says, I know, Twain, don't worry, she's going to be your artist.

Don't worry. She's your artist. How did you put a pun? How did you put a pun? I went to a pun. bodega right in my projects that I always used to go to and they was just out

there. It was him and like three other guys freestyling. So I came out with a diet Pepsi. I had by diet Pepsi and I looked at him and I and I was like, yo what is this fatter Spanish dude gonna spit about? Like

I just, I was just like what the fuck is this nigga going to talk about? Right. And um, And so I walked up. He said, chill, y'all, chill, chill, chill. He was obviously the leader. And so he starts rapping.

And he's like, da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da. Stop, like, all right, like he stopped the car set. Pull the moon out the sky and blow the sun away. Me and my niggas playing hardcore lyrics and I feel like breaking gaw-thaw-thaw-law. now that I do it. So I was like, Ha! I could not take it.

I ran to the passenger side. I had a white Lexx, L.S. 400, and I opened the door. I said, please. Get inside. Please. We locked the door. And that was just, it was just,

it was just, it was just beautiful. because I'm the youngest brother. I'm the youngest kid in my family. But I never had a little brother. And I never had a big brother. I realized, Homer's like, you're going to be my big brother. You're going to be my big brother.

I'm going to be a brother. And, you know, you got to have my back. And I said, I got your back. And then he started telling me about his life. Real, real personal deep shit. You know, Pum was homeless growing up. You know, nobody gave a fuck about him and told me all that.

It's just ripped it out. And me coming from the streets before I even rap, the rap shit is even faker. But coming from the streets, where I see men that, you know, killers and murderers and all type of people, I had never met a person who could just open up himself and his pain

first time I met him and there and I was just like, now I love this dude, man. I fuck with him on another level. And that's how I met punt. Wow. You know, Bill, unpaid Bill here, and I are a part of the team

that worked on Hamilton, and I know that you know, anytime Lynn Manuel does an interview about who is lyrical inspiration was to put Hamilton together he won't hesitate

to say like how important big puns lyrical style was just on his life and just, you know, culturally and all those things like oh for sure. You know, I almost wonder

like what Hamilton would just be a regular Broadway show if it weren't for Big Punt. To this day, to this day, dead in the middle of Little Italy, blah, la, is one of his favorite. Yeah, yeah, because internal rhyme is always his thing and everything and so that always, we used to listen to that a lot.

That record was on auto, auto spin at our house. That was, that was his hero. Like he will, he- I mean, you know, big pun. Little, did we know, do we riddle to middlemen who didn't do Ditaly? Yeah. Yeah, man.

You know, dead in the middle of little Italy almost wasn't dead in the middle of little Italy. So, like, pun was so advanced that it was a joke to him. Dead in the middle of little Italy was actually a joke, he would say, like, he would have, he put it on the album two, packing the Mac in the back of the bag, back in the back of the back in the back in the back. I want to ask you about. What? Because to me, that is my favorite, that is one of my favorite.

that is one of my favorite skits on a hip-hop record only because I know that he was reenacting the Scarface scene where he lets the one guy go and the one guy's like, oh thanks fun, I appreciate it and he runs off.

Like, but literally, what was what was the deal with packing a mac in the back of the act? For one, now that we're floating in this era, we were unconscious. We was like, we was numb. We were crazy, man.

We was just fucking crazy. I don't know how to explain it to you. And stuff that you can, if you think about regular people, I thought, you know, when I grew up, I grew up seeing death. Maybe I had 40 guys I grew up with, 38 of them got killed.

Real shit. Before they 20 years old, 21. And when I meet regular people who didn't have friends dying at 16, 17, I'm like, Then I start saying like, damn, some of the shit we don't say the music, like, motherfucker's like with a normal life. It's like, yo, what the fuck is wrong with them?

Because he's saying pack of the mac in the back of the act. He's all about machine guns. Packing the mac in the back of the bag, packing the back. And so that was the joke. And dead in the middle of little Italy was the other joke. Then in the middle of little it. So when we did the song together, I say, yo, you gotta put that dead. I swear to God on everything.

You gotta put that dead at the middle. He was like, yo, that shit, whacked. That shit is a joke. That shit, I said, pun. That shit will blow their minds off. He was like, no, I'm telling you. That shit regular, that shit. That's a joke.

And I gas him to put it in that motherfucker. And man, you know, he was, he was, you know, this guy's born. This guy's born. Jay Z was born. Naz was born. Eminem was born. Big Pum was born. I'm trying to think of others.

I guess Raqin was born. There is no other job description for these people. They were born to do that. Like there's just no, that is the DNA. Their birth was on that. Pum will fall asleep. Wake up and be like, give me the book, Twit? Give me the book.

That's crazy because I got paper and pen right here. He says, he goes, give me the book. Give me the book, Twin, give me the book, Twent. And I give him the book, he write a whole song down. He thought about it in his dreams and write the whole song down. It's crazy, man. The guy was a genius. It's just nowhere around it.

And his breath control was kind of like crazy. I don't understand how he did all that and then still the breath control. Right. Big guy. Yeah, but still rhyme back to the host, you know. He would do it on stage. You know, Pondon was different. like, you know, you know how you see boxes.

It's crazy. I keep referring back to boxing, but you know how you see boxes is so nice that nobody wants to fight them so they can't really get a real fight because you know you'll get knocked out. Pum would invite every rapper to the studio to do a song with him and no one would show up.

So we would drive around me and Pund, and he would see like a cipher of upcoming rappers battling each other, and he would get out the car, hard double platinum rich and battle the whole cipher like wow you know nobody wanted smoke with pun I don't know how to explain it to you in no way shape or form that anybody want smoke with this guy they can say whatever right forget him whatever you want but nobody when he was alive people were going don't let him on don't let him on for massiflex used to have these

Syphers. Every week you would bring rappers up there. So one week is Norrie up there, Camron, Norie, Camron, I think DMX is somebody else, right? And pun hears it, and starts racing down from the Bronx

to Hot 97. So pun is calling this, the hotline pun calls Flex fix up. He's like, yo, yo, yo, yo, you got let me up there. You got to let me up there. You got to let me up there. So Flex said, Here's a true story.

Flex said he looked at everybody up there and was like, yo, pun is on his way. He said they was like, no. Like, no, like, don't let him on this motherfucker, please. So then pun arrives at 97. He's calling Flex a million times. Flex don't pick up the phone. They freestalling up there.

So pun calls me, yo, twin, this thing of Flex won't let me up there, this, this, this. So then later on I got with Flex and I asked him the truth. I was like, your Flex, why are you in that point up there? He said, yo, they were scared to death. They didn't want to let pun up there on that cipher. They didn't want them up there.

And we're talking about big guys, Cameron, DMX, snoring. At their prime, they was like, hell no, don't let that boy up. You're going to come up in there. You're going to come up in there. It is, I got to go. Love y'all. Can we do a part two to this? Let's do it a part two, whatever you want, man.

I'm here. Yo, for show, peace, Joe. All right, part two coming. All right, thank you. Quest Love Supreme is a production of Iheart Radio. For more podcasts from Iheart Radio, this is the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you listen to your favorite shows.

A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me. Clifford Taylor the Fourth. 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, 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 Iheart radio app,

Apple Podcast, 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 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 iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, for wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slice of 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 bowed. 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 IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast, guaranteed human.