The Questlove Show - Questlove Supreme: Lisa Cortés Part 1

Episode Date: May 24, 2023

Award-winning filmmaker and former record executive Lisa Cortés joins Questlove Supreme for an in-studio conversation in New York City. Cortés recalls her musical upbringing and serendipitous beginnings at Def Jam Records and, eventually, the Mercury Records executive team. Here is a two-parter not to be missed.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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 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 Clivert Show on the I-Hard 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 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 Slica Life 12 and TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. 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 Financial Literacy Month, we are talking about the one investment most people ignore, building a business around the life you actually want. It was just us, making happen whatever he said was going to happen and then it happened. On those amigos, entrepreneurs like America Sam and Joe Huff get real about money, taking risk, and while your dream might be the smartest move. At the end of my life, what am I really going to care about? And the conclusion I came to is what I did to make the world a better place in whatever way.

Listen to those amigos on the IHive Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. On the Ceno Show podcast, each episode invites you into a raw, unfiltered conversations about recovery, resilience, and redemption. On a recent episode, I sit down with actor, cultural icon, Danny Trail, talk about addiction, transformation and the power of second chances. The entire season two is now available to bench, featuring powerful conversation with the guests like Tiffany Addish, Johnny Knoxville, and more. I'm an alcoholic.

And without this group, I'm going to die. Listen to the Cino show on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. Questlove Supreme is a production of I-Heart Radio. This is kind of weird. It's going to be great. Welcome. You mean the world?

Weirdness of those two guys in the corner? No. Everyone. What? Not just us. No, we're good. All right, let's go, kids. Here we go.

Suprema, sub, sub, sub, supremo roll call. Supremma, sub, sub, supremo roll call. Supremma, sub, sub, supremo roll call. My name is Questlove. Yeah. Shut up. Yeah. Yeah.

So, ladies and gentlemen, this is another episode of Questlove Supreme. I'm your host, Questlove. Hope you are doing fine. We have Fonticlo and Laiaa and Sugar Steve and Unpaid Bill. And our guest today is the Emmy winning director in film. Why y'all looking at me like there's a bunch. See, Fonte already knows what time it is. Name is Fonte.

So nice to meet you. Don't got the cult jam, but it's Lisa, Lisa. Oh, poor. My name is Sugar. I'm glad we're not on Zoom. Yeah. Wop out of Lubop. Yeah.

A wop and boom. I'm on paid bill. And what the what? Yeah. Let's talk to-frutty and take it in the butt. Roll call. Supriva. Yeah.

And I'm losing my mind. Yeah. I am everything. Yeah. That's music doc of my time? Roll call. Supreme. Thanks a lot.

My name is Lisa, and I can't rap. Yeah. But I'm a director. Yeah. And I'm going to tell you about some little richard. I know why you left a rap label. I'm sorry, Amir. I was, I didn't know.

Actually, I agree with you. It's one of the most important. Yo, no, for real, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another Questlove Supreme episode. All right. How are you guys doing? Doing? Doing good, man. Yo, yo, yo, we have a field trip.

I got to make a butt sex rhyme. I'm good. Hey, yo, man. Nah, shod, yo, unpaid bill is doing some amazing shit. Listen, man. Let's just, come on. Straight up. No, straight up, man.

Sorry, Lee, Bill. If you don't egot, you're definitely going to egot. All right. All right. No, first, Jamvan, his show that's on YouTube kids. Jam Van. It's like my favorite kid show since Yo Gabba Gabba. It is perfectly made for people that like to get high and watch television shows.

Also featuring Fonte and Laia of Oh yeah yeah yeah She's killing as the book Yeah yeah I meant to give you a problem You sounded great This is my bill Nah so yeah

So Janvan is great And then his show And Juliet Which is on Broadway We saw it last night At the Stephen Sondheim theater I'm not a musical person at all At all

Like ever I was worried That was my first Broadway show That was Fonte's first Broadway show That was my first Broadway show Not my first play I mean I've been to play I got culture and shit

But like I just ain't never seen on Broadway You see you see you see some Sunday plays. You know what I'm saying? Come on. I've seen Mama them

burn up the chicken and, you know, you're obviously short the box with whatever. But no, and Juliet, bro, we had a wonderful time, man. Great time.

It's the music of Max Martin, so it's like all like the Backstreet Boys shit and weekend and... Brittany, Brittany, Britney. Katie Perry. I wanted that way and the way they used it.

Yeah. I was like, yo, that was fucking clever. Yeah. And to everybody, the back street's back. That shit was funny. It's going to be...

Well, I don't want to spoil it. But, But no, man. The boy, boys. Wait, can I ask a question, though? When you hear Backstreets Back? My prerogative. Oh, not even...

Damn, I didn't even get to that. I was going to say, are there any other thoughts in your mind when you hear Backstreet's Back? No. I don't think any other thoughts. It's only me. Only because that song is literally the reason

why Cal's got a guilty plea because, you know, his whole thing of saying that, you know, CGI or, you know, whatever, like, that was fake me, whatever. But apparently someone has TRL on in the other room. Oh, and that's how they knew. And it was a Halloween episode, I guess that that song debuted on, it's a Halloween theme video. Yeah, because they have on their costumes and the videos and stuff.

Right. And so I guess you can hear in the background like, Spenceual Halloween is a world premiere of Backstreet's Back, but no, no, no, no. So it's almost like, every time I hear that song, I think like, wow, this is the song that finally, after years and years is what got Kelle. I did not know that.

That was a question of a deep dive. Yeah, that was a deep dive. I won't be thinking of that when I hear that song. Sorry. I'm just doing my dance and think about that. I would just be doing that. But not, man, like, great job, man. The music, the show, like we had a wonderful time, man.

Glad you guys got to go. Appreciate it. It was amazing. Cool. And how was your experience last night? Fantastic. I went to see New York, New York, just opened on Broadway with John Tander and Lynn Miranda, and it was wonderful. He's in it?

No, he just wrote some additional lyrics. Okay. I got it. I got it. So fancy. I saw Vanessa Williams, though, who I believe worked with our guest here, and I was quite a night. Vanessa L. Williams? Sure.

The right stuff. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. But I don't want to miss out. Yeah. And I got to rhyme about a butt. I'm happy. It's a good day. I feel you.

I'm here for it. Yo, our guest today is Emmy winning director, film producer, and she was part of the team that brought us, oh, precious. Wait, can I ask something? We ain't even for this intro. Oh, how's life, are you? No, I just meant that part, her part. I was just messing with you. Go ahead.

Ask your question, boy. It's your show. Whose idea was it to make, like, why it wasn't just simply called precious and not Precious a film adaptation based on a novel by Push? Yes. I asked. That was your idea? Yes.

Why was that? Precious was the character, but the source material was so important. And I wanted to make certain that that connection was there. At the end of the day, you can shorten it. You can shorten it if you want. But I wanted people to connect to the book that, you know, back in the 90s on the subway, going to Brooklyn, everybody was reading Push. So based on the novel by push.

At 30 Rock, that's always been like an inside joke where people will never say precious. They'll be like, oh, you're talking about precious based on the novel by push. And by Sapphire, like literally they'll give the whole biography or description of the book. And I was like, why do you guys keep saying that? And I guess it's them like. Also, because if it was just going to be precious, I didn't think that gave enough. We worked on that film for so long to get Sapphire to give us the rights, to option it, to develop it, to write the script, to have one director,

to then have Lee step in, to have cast the main character. And four weeks before we're going to start shooting, Lee's like, we have the wrong person. I'm like, oh, no, we have the right person because we're going to start shooting in four weeks. And then we went out and we found Gabby City Bay. So there's such a deep, deep history. We worked on it forever. Oh, so she was the right person.

Wait a minute. Let me introduce our guest first. Wait. I said that to you 10 minutes. I know that. Anyway, there's also the Apollo Theater documentary, which she was part of that production team. She also directed remix Hip Hop Times fashion.

Yes. All right, got it. And before her life and film, she was an exec at Mercury and Def Jam. Very interesting story of how we're connecting. it. We'll talk about that later. But I will say that her newest film

which I will go ahead and say an instant classic and that's not Questlove hyperbole or over-exaggeration which of course I'm world famous for but I will say that it is immensely what? You just call yourself world famous

for exaggerating which wasn't exaggeration in a time. I will say that it's an immensely powerful and important film, especially where we are today in terms of erasure, in terms of understanding that all people are in a monolith, that we have different spectrums and different cultures and different aspects of our lives. And, you know, and basically the freedom, the fight for the freedom to be free. And I guess we at Questlove Supreme want to do everything in our power to amplify this very powerful. documentary, of course, I'm speaking of Little Richard. The full title, because of course

Based on the novel box. No, it's called Little Richard. I am everything. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome Lisa Cortez to you. Yes, sir. I just want to say, it's so good to see you all. I listen and I thought, these are my imaginary friends.

And they're real. There's no AI shit going on. No. No. This is all right. So before I get to your story, I have to say that you are very, very, very key and instrumental in my career. I don't know. Do you remember a conversation that you had with Richard Nichols right when?

So assuming that your years at Mercury, you were part of the Kenyatta Bell, Ed Eckstein. Dave Gosset. Yeah. Rejecture. Some bullshit demos. Right, right, right. That's my favorite line. So do you remember the story of our,

the connection with the roots of Mercury Records? Yeah. All right, well, one, I want to ask what happened the day after. So I've told this story millions of times, but the shortest version is, you know, we started busking on the streets in 1992. Eventually, all of 1993, we start fishing for a deal, winds up into,

I won't say a bidding more, but we damn near went to every label. and then at the last minute, Mercury was going to be that label. And then the way that I believe the story was when either Kenyatta Bell's assistant sent us the contracts because of our intricate spelling of our names. Three of the group members' names was misspelled. And our lawyer was like, well, instead of you guys initialing it, tear this up and have them send back new contracts with your name spelled correctly. and Kenyatta Bell's assistant was supposed to send new contracts

the next day. And she forgot to do it, but not to worry. Look, I'll send it on Friday and then you guys will get it you know, Monday and sign. But that Saturday and Sunday is when Wendy Goldstein decided to throw a hat in a ring. Now, we had no intentions

on signing with Geffen Records because we're like this rock label, they don't have a staff, we're good. But we wanted the free dinner. Like we liked the whole whining and dining Corning part of getting a record deal. So thus, you know,

we did the steak and lobster thing with three to go and all that. Get old shit. And then just to mess with her, Rich and I decided to call her bruff and we just literally like just started naming everything.

Like, you know, we want, you know, Pathfinder and three apartments. Da-da-da-da-da-da-da. Long story short or longer, Sunday, our lawyers like she agreed to everything you guys asked for and more. And then we were like,

but we told Kenyana Bell, we're going to sign the Mercury Records. And, you know, the price was way different because you know how much rap labels were paying back then. And Rich basically had to break the news to you guys.

Kenyatta was severely depressed about this. And I believe he also spoke to you. He said Lisa Cortez told us, Hmm, get from records. I hope y'all take racial, sensitivity training over there. That's my girl. And I was like, wait, what does that mean,

Rich? And we later found out in the longest 20 year lesson of our life. The longest fuck around and find out ever. Literally. And so whenever the bullshit happens, we always used to joke, Lisa Cortez told us this this is going to happen. So do you know, like, what was the aftermath of that? Because you know, we should have signed to that label.

Like you guys took us to the Legion. I think the Legion was shooting a Jingle, Jingle, Jingle, wow. Jingle jangle, size of up every angle. Literally. Like, we went to the jingle jangle set. We met Dres and everything.

We're like, oh, shit, we're going to be stars. You know, and then, you know. So I remember when you guys did a showcase for us. Yeah, at SIR. Yes. Yeah. Like on 50 something something. Yeah.

Kind of proximity. 50 seconds. And it was fantastic. Right. I was the VP, and I had hired all those guys. Like Dave Gossett had gotten fired a Def Jam, and I was like, come over and work with me. And, you know, Kenyatta came in. And I didn't know this thing about the spelling stuff.

See, that's the thing. When you give the keys to the car, to the kids, like, sometimes they don't tell you stuff. They don't drive. Well, you know, also our parents were naming us like a meal, you know. It's like, 40. It's a clear. It's not. Don't do that to, uh.

No, but Malik had like 12 names. Oh, yeah. So, yeah. So. I do remember, though, telling Kenya that because I, you know, I, I wanted to do the deal. And I wanted to support all my team because if somebody came to me and like, Lisa, we have to sign. We have to. And they had so much passion.

They had a vision. I saw you guys. I knew the long tail. that we could make an investment in. And when I heard, you know, and it's like, I'm, I just, I always blame it on the managers. I'm like, who's the manager? Who like this shit go down? You gave it.

You gave Virginia Woolfool. But with grace, you know, I was born in Connecticut. He said you did a very clear huxtable, like the very stern. Hmm. Motherfucker. Right. But I love you. Bless you.

And so. But I was just like, I also, as an executive, saw different spaces. And I knew Wendy Goldstein had a great heart, and she was there. But the ecosystem, the bigger ecosystem you were going into, it was like, you know, working for Ed Eckstein. And the Ed story is really interesting, how we connected. But, you know, he was the president. A black man was the president. He let all of us do our thing.

You know, like, I got a tape from Red Alert. It was the Black Sheep. I was like, I want to sign them. It was a real janky tape, too. But I was just like, I really like these kids from North Carolina. Let's do it. He was all, I was like. I didn't know what?

Sanford. I did not know that. I forgot. Yeah. I got a tape on a spoken word artist, Reggie Gaines. I was like, I want to do a spoken word record. He's like, sure. I would produce.

MeFed Me also, right? Wait, didn't y'all sign? Reggie. Now, Me, Fah Me, was RCA. Okay, okay. Yeah, no, we're always kind and gentle. Okay. So when all of this happened, I just was like, yes, they should be here, but more importantly, I'm a prayerful person.

So I was like, I'm just praying that the right people besides the one A&R person who loves this group is going to come on board. Because I know how that happened. Like, I would love things and I could not get the rest of the company on board. And then, you know, like Buzhou, I work with you. was boogey for so many years, from signing him to finally getting to Till Shiloh. And there was a lot of resistance. You know, when you're the sole A&R person in the woods going, they're the best. They're the greatest.

Come to the show. Let's do this at retail. Come on. Let's get him on this tour. And everybody's going, you know, when's the new X record going to drop? It's very disheartening. Did you sign I'll out scratch as well? Mm-hmm.

Ah, okay. Yeah. How did that come about? I think that might have been someone on my, might have been Bernadette Williams, who's my assistant, and then she became an A&R person. You know, I did a record, a label deal with DJ Pooh, because I had known Pooh from, you know, back in my days before. And I think if we're going to Mercury, the most interesting thing talking about Vanessa Williams is when I was at Rush, I started a company there called Rush Producer Management, RPM. And I represented, you know, the bomb squad, Eric Vietnam Sadler, Larry Smith, Sam Sever, Jam Master Jay. And so the late great Gary Harris. Ah, Gary.

You know. Every conversation I ever had with Gary was always like, I don't even know to visually describe, but he'd just be like one of those cats that would always cover his mouth like, like it's a, casino. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Like the feds was watching. Right, right, right. But he'd be like, yo, this kid named DeAngelo, like, whatever.

Gary was part of the DeAngelo team at EMI, but he was at Mercury first. Well, he was friends with Ed. He never went there. So Ed had wing records, and he had Tony, Tony, Tony. He had Vanessa. They were trying to blow her up.

And Gary said, Joe, you need to meet Cortez. She's working with all the hot hip-hop producers. So Hank Shockley, Bomb Squad did a remix of the right stuff. Right. And then Edward was in California. He would come to New York. You know, we'd take him to Nells.

We'd take them to the fever, you know. And so I knew all the people out there, the producers. You know, I would sleep in the studio at Green Street. Like when we did Ice Cube's first album, the Bomb Squad. You were there to witness that? Oh, yeah. What? Jesus, St.

What was that like? Yeah. I'm a hip-hop zealig. 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, 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 we're 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 Slical Life 12 and TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. I'm John Green. You may know me as the author of The Fault and Our Stars. And now, I guess also is 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. its heartbreak, and above all, its 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. On a recent episode of the podcast Money and Wealth with John Hobriant, I sit down with Tiffany the budgetista Aliche to talk about what it really takes to take control of your money. What would that look like in our families if everyone was able to pass on wealth to the people when they're no longer here? We break down budgeting, financial discipline, and how to build real wealth, starting with the mindset shifts. Too many of us were never, ever taught. Financial education is not always about, like, I'm going to get rich. That's great.

It's about creating an atmosphere for you to be able to take care of yourself and leave a strong financial legacy for your family. If you've ever felt you didn't get the memo on money, this conversation is for you to hear more. Listen to Money and Wealth with John O'Brien from the Black Effect Network on the I'd Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. If you're watching the latest season of the Real Housewives of Atlanta, you already know there's a lot to break down. Gorsha accusing Kelly of sleeping with a merry man. They holding Kay Michelle back from fighting Drew. Pinky has financial issues. I like the bougie style of Housewives show.

I think it looks like it's going to be interesting. On the podcast, Reality with the King, I, Carlos King, recap the biggest moments from your favorite reality shows, including the Real Housewives franchise, the drama, the alliances, and the team everybody's talking about. As an executive producer in reality television, I'm not just watching it. I understand the game.

As somebody who creates shows, I'll even say this. At the end of the day, when people are at home, they want entertainment. To hear this and more, listen to Reality with the King on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. All right, you were born in Connecticut. Yes. All right. So what was your first musical memory? Okay, I was born in Connecticut, but I grew up between Connecticut and Harlem.

So I always like to put that on the map because I'm, you know, You know, I'm kind of like Green Acres, I'm like the city and the country. I can tell already this is going to be my favorite interview of this whole entire series. Like, oh, she just has an energy. Go ahead. First memory, I'm down on my knees. I'm begging you, please, because I'm busted. Ray Charles? Yes.

Ingredients and a recipe for soul. My mother would play that, like three times, and the house would be. She had these records she would play to clean the house. And she'd be like, I pay him three times and the house would be clean. So that was one. And then Dinah Washington, the bitter earth, and then there'd be an occasional showtude. So I love musicals.

Look at Bill. I love musical. I don't. Said the man on his way to it, E. God. Can I ask a question? Speaking of Busted, have you ever heard this version of Ray Charles doing Bustit and then someone walks on stage to sucker punch Ray because I got to. Ray slept with this woman.

No. Like literally, they're going, dun, he's going through the verse and then all of a sudden, you know, the band's, you know, like on television

when they messed up. Like literally that moment and someone's like, you're a dog. You're a motherfucking dog. And Ray's just like, bless your heart, bless your heart.

Can someone come and get this gentleman all? Fuck you, dog. Why'd you do that to her? You dog. You dirty, disgusting. Dog. And then someone,

you hear like, like, dog, dog. Someone, please come get him off me? And my part was like, wait, why is the band letting Rachel's get beat up? Like, that speaks more than... Yeah, because they knew. Right. And so you hear them dragging him to him off, like, fuck you, Rachel, what? And you hear him like,

faint out the door, no, I'm saying, bless his kind of all. All right, two, three, and then... Literally, you never heard of that? Never, never. That's like my favorite thing next to like Freddie Hubbard cursing out the band and Buddy Rich. Yeah. All right. Sorry.

Side of. Well, you know, it's funny when you were vamping there. I think for a kid, uh-da-da-da-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na. Right. Even though I didn't know the lyrics, I love the melody. So I think that's why I always remember that so strongly as that musical memory and just how it motivated my mother to get the house together.

You know what that's called? I learned that, I learned this morning. Okay, I'm doing the Slide movie. It's called Counterpoint, where, oh, damn, Bill just literally came alive. Like, huh? Hello? I know you have to get music nerdy. I like it. Yeah, Counterpoint. I guess, Slide also took advantage of this as well, where Ray has a gospel bass, but the melody is more like a nursery rhyme. Mm-hmm. So sort of like, you know, The Rishi's theory of mixing chocolate and your peanut butter and that sort of thing.

So sometimes people intentionally write songs where, you know, some super fun, like, Sly will do something super funky with the drums and the bass, but the horns and the melody will be like, na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-la. Like schoolyard shit mixed with funk and knowing that that's how you get the kids and the music heads together. So, yeah. So, wait, Sly. Can I ask you a question? Yes.

Did he sleep with Doris Day? All right. So that's one of the most asked questions of this thing. Is it? So far I... He's like, what are you talking about? I'm like, what? So far, I have four nose and two yeses and the nose might have it.

However, Dar's Day son, who was like Sly's engineer during the there's a ride going on. That's suspect. Was also his... Well, no, they... Sly live across the street from the Beverly Hillbillies house. Oh. This is when they went to... Bel Air, but turn it real like hood. Dars gave Sly her BMW, and I guess that's how that rumor came.

But Sly, every interview, Sly sort of sinewyating like, yeah, you know, Dar's Day gave me this BMW, so, you know, they're like, wait, are you dating Dars Day? I don't know. Am I dating Dara's Day? What? So I don't think, you know. Because, you know, Kayserah. Every, you know, I'd be in the beauty parl with my mother and people would be like, Casar off I Right.

So, but the thing was I looked in 73 And I was like, okay So Slice 29 Doris is 44 And I looked at her In 73 And I'd be like, all right That motherfucker hit

So Like would you give anyone your BMW Just for that so Hello talk Mm-hmm Yeah So there's one person that can Put their life

and the fact that they believe they slept together. But the rest of the band's like, no, I think he was just lying. Right. And that was his day after song, if you want me to stay. That's never that, though. See, I told you. She knows out a rabbit hole just like the best of us. What was the first concert you went to?

Stevie Wonder, opening for the Supremes. I thought he said the Rolling Stones, because I was like, what were you doing there? They couldn't find a babysitter. Okay. Oh, parent trip. Come on, come on. How old were you?

I was like four. Oh, man. Do you have memories of it or is it? Yes. It was at the bowl in New Haven. It was outdoors. It was the summer. And Stevie kept, he did like 15 encores.

And I just remember my mother going, you know, I really came to see Diana Ross in the Supremes. And I was like, I was like, I like, I like, I like this, man. I like him. So your mom was just like, I was a little opening act kid. Yeah. Get out of here. She grew to love him. She grew to love him.

And then I had a very memorable concert with the Jackson 5 with my mother and father. And that famous memory is it was at Madison Square Garden. And my father, like, all these screaming kids. And my father's like, that's when the horn and hearted, automated restaurant was that. that right across the street there wasn't, you know, the train station and all that. And my father's like, I'll be in the horn and heart it, having some tapioca pudding. He didn't want to come? He couldn't take it.

It was just like all these, you know, prepubescent girls screaming. Be like a parent today at a BTS concert. 100%. Like, I don't want to see that. So let me, I'll be across the restaurant. Right, exactly. What did your parents do for started? My mom was an aircraft engineer.

Okay. And my dad, who's an immigrant, he's from Colombia, South America. He was a rebel, a radical, and a businessman. Cortez. In my back of my mind, I was trying to, okay, let me figure out where, okay. So the whole Pacific coast, Afro-Columbian. Are you fluent, Lisa? Do you speak Spanish?

When I need to cuss somebody out. When you need it. And where's the bathroom? I mean, I think those are the most important language skills to have. But not busting people. Because my favorite thing is when I've hung with people that people might think like, oh, they're black or something, whatever, and they'll talk shit. And then that person.

And then you go, per one momentito. Right. And then they go, oh, shit. Right, exactly. I'm like, mm-hmm, we everywhere, baby. So when was the moment that you were like, I want to get in the industry? Nine years old. I convinced my mother to let me go to the children's theater workshop,

which was a dance school run by Miss Connie, and they put on mini musicals. I'm trying to get on your next show, Bill. Okay? Well, thank you. And so we did Gypsy. So you can imagine, you know, from three-year-old kids to teenagers doing once I was a schleppa, now I'm Miss Mazzepa, you know, like, because Gypsy is a musical about a stripper.

and I had been very quiet. Wait, you want to be in that musical? I was in Gypsy. I do it all the time. Wait, I didn't know that. Yeah. Stephen Sondheim and it's the story of Gypsy Rose Lee and how her sister was going to be the star

and their mother pushed the sister forward and then the sister ran off with one of the dancers because it takes place in the vaudeville time and then Gypsy, they end up in a shitty show and the mother's like, you're going to be an exotic dancer. And Gypsy goes on to become one of the famous vaudeville strippers. It's about a fucked up stage mom. I was in this play in, like, fifth grade and didn't realize.

Why are there so many kids in these plays? I don't understand. Why are y'all doing this play as kids? At performing art, well, at my school, it was like from first grade to 12th grade. So it was the older kids, but they found, like, roles for, like, the elementary kids to play in. So I didn't realize. So we did showboat. We did Mame.

We did Gypsy. Mame. Yeah. I was veered. Charles's assistant or well my sister played Vera Charles and I had to they made a role for me I did hair in high school I was hood were you naked fuck no okay then you didn't do hair yeah I mean it was a very a very tame down Republican version of hair but I did it you were here you were bald yeah I grew my hair out but like they wouldn't let us do all the new all that we

wouldn't do that shit yeah plays are fancy so I found my voice I went, my mother said, get your grades up. Okay. I got my A's and I auditioned and discovered that I could sing. And then I loved movement and performance and connecting. Fast forward the summer I was 14 when everybody rebels. I locked myself in my room and I just listened to Ella's Gershwin songbook, Cole Porter songbook.

I just. Not heat wave, not. Oh, of course. Of course. Not Isaac. Evelyn Champaign King. You know, I mean, my father's playing Celia Cruz. I mean, it was a lot, a lot of music.

And I also read the back of albums. And I was like, who is this mixer? I just, you know, I would bathe myself in music. Sound bath. You said rebelling. So in my mind, I'm like, oh, okay, this is when, like, she discovers bad brains or sex pistols or the removes. And I'm like, Gerswin, your parents' dream.

But your peers are like, what the fuck? And then I discovered hip-hop. What was your first hip-hop record? I'd say it's rapper's delight. How were you when rappers' delight came out? I don't talk about age. Oh, my bad. I'm sorry.

I'm younger than springtime. Oh, younger than springtime. I got it. Okay. So how do you nuance your way into, was Maroon-era Def Jam, you're a Def Jam? or black label, Def Jam, your Def Jam. No, I'm Maroon. I'm, 1986.

Tell me everything about it. Okay, this is one of my favorite, how do you get in the music business when you have no connections? So I went to Yale, and when I was there, I had this incredible group of friends, one of them is the sister name Lisa Jones, Mary Baraka's daughter.

Yeah. We were just these young, feisty kids, and we were working on a magazine that Lisa was putting, together. She was part of that great crew at the Village Voice at that time. And she wanted to do a magazine called Diva Dekooning. I was into hip-hop and I was like, I want to write about women in rap. So I talked to her step-sister, Dominique DePrema, you know, in the Bay. I talked to the sister, Tequila Mockingbird, who was kind of in the punk scene in Los Angeles. And I really

love this article and a friend of mine who worked at Spencer Beck, worked at Interview Magazine. And I told him about this article and I was really excited about, because nobody knew there was women in rap. And so he said, you should go talk to Bill Adler. He is the publicist at Def Jam. So I just called and Bill said, come on in. So I'm just chatting with Bill. He's the most amazing, giving, knowledgeable person. And a guy across the room said, said, who did you talk to in L.A.? And I said, oh, Tequila Mockingbird. That guy was Leorkegon.

So two weeks later. Who did you talk to in? What are you doing here? You have to talk like him. Right, right. So tequila shows up in New York. And I bring tequila to the office. I'm a good baker.

I made this ginger cake. And I brought my resume. And we all hang out, blah, blah. You got a tear ass off, Trude. And Jimmy Spicer was the receptionist. What? But Jimmy Spicerner never picked up the phone with the different calls

because he'd be chatting some woman up. So I didn't get the job. Wait, can you stop? This is the second time that we've heard the story of someone charming the Def Jam staff to nuance a job via pastries because you also remember Kevin Lyles with his girl you know his true money

every morning at 6 a.m. We'll buy everyone orange juice and Leor was like impressed. Like this guy's clean up the office and buying us donuts. And that's how he got a job. Like Russell was like, get away from me, kid. But pastries. Time out.

Jimmy Spicer's. Dollar Bill, y'all. What? So I'm this kid. He answered the phone like this. I love it when he does voices. Me too. All right.

I'm sorry. I had to say that. Rest and peace, Jimmy Spicer. Oh, yes. So I keep trying to, you know, roll up in there and, you know, impress them. And, you know, it was pretty chaotic, but it was also very small. There was not that many people there.

And I went to a Luther Vandross show. I con my way into the party backstage. Because, you know, you just got to get in. Or actually, you just need to make a hole. You don't even fit in. You make a space. And I run into Leor who was friends with Shep Gordon, who was Luther's manager. That's our guy.

And LL Cool J. Right. And I walk up to Lear and I go, hey, you remember me? I gave you my resume on the good paper. It was like the heavyweighted paper. It was cream colored. That mattered. And he said, well, you know what?

I actually need someone. I need an assistant. Call me. So I keep calling, calling, calling. And then I got him on the phone one day. And I said, he picked up because Jimmy Spicer was talking to some woman and did not pick up the phone. And I said to Leor, you know, I don't really know if. you know, you'll like me or I'll like you,

but I'll come and work for you for a half a day for free. And that half a day turned in to five years. A lifetime. Wow. So from 86 to... 91. Wow. Okay, so license deal is about to start to come out.

Yep, I was there when... Original concept. Is it a big endeavor? Yeah. Yep. And I was there when we moved to 298 Elizabeth Street. Right. When Chuck came in and met with Mr. Bill, Bill Stephanie,

and, you know, they signed the public enemy. What is Lear like then? Because the Lear we like, know now is such a big personality. Oh, he was, he was big. Yeah. And you know what, he... So he was always that person. Like the way that people...

He was never a wallflower. Yeah, the way people imitate Lauren Michaels at... Right. Like, Lauren and Leor are the two most imitated execs that I know. But they always have a sort of disapproving father. And untouchable. They're untouchable, like, it feels like in ways, right? They sit and glad, like, you can touch Lauren, but Leo and Lorne are in that way kind of.

I know softer to Leor now. Like, Leo is like very benevolent. Right, right, right, right. He's more zen. It's that Bali effect from Russell. Let me ask you at the time, because I know that it's hard. Like, I'm such a history buff. But, you know, I think people don't appreciate something until, like, time has passed, like, five years later or ten years later, you're like, wow, I was really part of the team that brought one of the biggest hip-hop records, selling records to the world, like, license to ill or, you know, that sort of thing.

But, like, for you, though, is, are you recognizing that history is being made on the spot? Or was it just like, man, whatever? they became my family because the crazy thing is the first week I, my dad died when I was 15. And the first week that I went to work there, my mom died. Wow. Oh, no. And, you know, this small group from Russell, Leor, Heidi Smith, Bill Adler, Simone, who was our receptionist, Bill Stephanie. They, you know, they took care of me. They loved me.

I remember one day I got munged and Eric B and Rakim, they came to the office and they heard like I was like Lisa, why I got a black guy? I was like, oh, you got mugged. Wow, you lived in real New York. Wow. I lived in the real deal. And they were like, well, if you'd like, we could find somebody who could get for you a nice little ladylike gun with a mother of Pearl Inlay. I was like, uh. Harlem night style.

That's very Eric Bish. That is his own brand for Eric B. That's what love looks like. Did you say yes? And a nice voice too. Pretty gun. A very nerdy voice. Like nothing scares me more than nerdy thugs.

You know that's rare. I just want to tell you as a woman, especially in hip-hop, it's rare to hear this level of feeling protected and loved and all of that. So I'm just in it. I'm like. Because I also fought for them. You know, people will tell you we, because this is right before everything blows up. I worked very closely with Leor putting.

together that Adidas deal because I actually wrote a letter to Fila because Houdini had a song called Do the Fila and I wrote him a letter and I was like, you guys need to do a deal with Houdini because they're speaking to this market because I was an American Studies major. I like popular culture. I like seeing how we as black people start stuff that is then going to take over the world. But Fela's like, oh, no thank you. But so then when the Adidas time came, there was a lot that had to be translated about why this group was so important. How much convincing did they need, though? They needed some. There was a guy named Angelo Anastacio who saw it, and he was the advocate

for it. But, you know, he was communicating with people in Germany. The music had not spread there yet. And what I learned in those days, it still helps me now is about the power of community. To cross over this music, you know, we had Dave Funkin-Kline, who later came to work there, who was in Colorado playing this music, I don't know, 2 o'clock in the morning. We had the car dealer, drug dealer in

Houston who would play our records and bring our artists there. We had Paul Oakenfeld and P. Tong were with London Records, which put out, run DMC in the UK. The Paul Oakenfield? Yes, and they were hip-hop heads. And they would, the first

style, Oki, yes. Oki-D-D-O-Kee. Damn, he never, most people on the other side of the fence will go over time to like explain their hip-hop pedigree. Like we toured Oakenfeld during the Area One tour and talked a lot. He never once gave up like hip hoppedigree and da-da-da-da-da-da-da. Really? Yeah. Damn, Paul.

When they would come over, the first stop is they'd come to 298 Elizabeth Street. Like it was great. You know, everybody would come through there. And then when him and Pete Tong become these. dance, electro people. I was like, wow, interesting. So there was this community. There was the people from Japan there, you know, who ultimately become a part of the groundswell of the music crossing over and the ripple effect culturally. So these, you know, I remember we went to London and I, you know, would make myself the European tour manager so I could get a little holiday. And, you know,

we got kicked out of a hotel or people didn't the food they wanted and I would just like be like, no, you cannot treat these guys this way. So you loved them. I love them then. I love them now because I recognized how ground. I didn't maybe knew what I was in, but I knew it was something exciting and groundbreaking and necessary and a part of how our narrative as black people, we were taking it to something new. Now how it was going to become, I didn't know that.

I was young and dumb, but I knew in my heart that they had to be treasured and that it wasn't okay to be like, oh, the rappers there. No. Right. These are the artists. Yo, yo, what's up, y'all? This is Fonte, Fantigolo. I ain't interrupt this beautiful discussion we had with the great Lisa Cortez. But listen, come back for part two.

We will discuss her new documentary, Little Richard. I am everything, while also talking about her incredible contributions to music and film. We love this interview, and we hope you're enjoying it, too. It was a lot of fun. Oh, and also, in the meantime, go stream that new little Richard Dodd available everywhere. It is a beautiful film. I think y'all really like it. Appreciate y'all.

All right? Peace. What's Love Supreme is a production of IHeart Radio. For more podcasts from IHart Radio, visit the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. 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 Cliford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve

to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Cliford Show on the IHeard 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 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. 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 Slice of Life 12 and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. I'm Daniel Alarcon, and this is my friend. It'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 Alarcon and John Green on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This financial literacy month, we are talking about the one investment most people ignore, building a business around the life you actually want. It was just us, making happen whatever he said was going to happen, and then it happened.

On those amigos, entrepreneurs like America Sam and Joe Hav get real about more. money taking risk and while your dream might be the smartest move. At the end of my life, what am I really going to care about? And the conclusion I came to is what I did to make the world a better place in whatever way. Listen to those amigos on the I-Hive radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. On the Ceno Show podcast, each episode invites you into a raw, unfiltered conversations about recovery, resilience, and redemption. On a recent episode, I sit down with actor, cultural icon, Danny Trail, talk about addiction, transformation, and the power of second chances. the entire season two is now available to bench

featuring powerful conversation with the guests like Tiffany Addish, Johnny Knoxville, and more. I'm an alcoholic. Without this group, I'm going to die. Luther Nacino's show on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human.