Rotimi On Power Series, Balancing Acting & Music, Guidance From T.I & MORE❗️| Effective Immediately

[00:00:04] Speaker A: Yo, it's effective immediately. I'm DJ Head. [00:00:06] Speaker B: What up, world? It's your favorite homegirl, Gina. Views. [00:00:08] Speaker A: All right, we got the special guest. The homie is in the building. He's no stranger, of course. The R and B acting legend, man. So many hyphenates. Rotimmi is here, and. [00:00:19] Speaker C: Hey, Mr. Butterscotch is in the building, okay? [00:00:21] Speaker A: Yes, sir. I'll let her call you that. [00:00:24] Speaker B: Mr. Butterscotch is a little crazy. [00:00:27] Speaker A: Welcome to the show, bro. [00:00:28] Speaker C: Thank you for having me. [00:00:29] Speaker A: It's your first time hanging out with us. [00:00:31] Speaker C: Yes, sir. [00:00:31] Speaker A: I appreciate. Appreciate you for pulling up you and the homie punch. Yes, sir. First things first. A lot of people got introduced to you as an actor on a large scale. Like, my people, like, the people that I know, they gotta introduce you as an actor. And I thought it was super interesting that, like, I guess I wanna get your perspective. To start this off is, do you take it offensively when people don't know that you sing like that? You're a singer? [00:00:58] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah, yeah. [00:00:59] Speaker A: And you'd like, oh, that's the actor. It's like, no, I'm a singer. [00:01:02] Speaker C: Nah, I think when. I mean, it's all part of who I am, you know what I'm saying? So if you realize that, oh, that's him from this and this. I've done my job in that world, you know? However, I've had people say, yo, I don't even watch none of your shows. And I just love the music, Love the music. So it comes with the territory, you know? But at the same time, it's like, when you hear that I'm competitive, so it's like, all right, that means I gotta. When people say, damn, I don't know any of your stuff, on the acting side, I just. I don't watch nothing now. I'm like, yo, I gotta make sure I do the work that make you want to watch that from the music. If somebody says, yo, acting, I haven't heard your music, then it's like, okay, I gotta get in the studio. You know what I mean? So that's who I am. So at first, Early, Yeah. I had a conversation with Tyrese, right? And he's one of the original of it, and it was 2012. And I was like, man, people just want to say this and this. They try to put me in a box. And he was like, listen, man, God got you, bro. If they loving you for this right now, this is a vessel to open up to the next thing. And that's what changed my whole Perspective early, you know, so having that knowledge early from a legend at what he's doing, and as someone who's worth a billion dollars worth of, you know, box office sales. [00:02:12] Speaker A: Yeah, for sure. [00:02:13] Speaker C: You know, it makes sense to just listen to that advice. So that was helpful as well. [00:02:16] Speaker A: Did you have trouble, like, do you have trouble pivoting, like, going from the acting brand? Cause I've talked. I won't say who I've talked to, but I talked to somebody like Ty before, and it was like, when you go into character, you locked into that character. I've heard crazy shit that actors have done to get ready for these roles. Like, you know, the Heath Ledger story is infamous at this point. Like, playing the Joker, like, apparently he really went crazy, you know, preparing for these different roles. And you've played some intense characters, right? But taking that and then going that night to the studio and writing a love song sound a little, you know, obtuse. [00:02:51] Speaker C: You know, for me, bro, my whole story is unorthodox, dawg. So, like, they used to get mad at me on set. On every set that I was on, they got mad because I would do it so intense. And then cut. I'd be like, yo, so, yo, what we doing tonight, bro? I was so, like, whatever. Cause I never actually studied acting. Everything that I do is what I feel. [00:03:11] Speaker A: You never studied? [00:03:12] Speaker C: I've never taken an acting class in my life. I've never taken a voice lesson. [00:03:16] Speaker A: You could have fooled the fuck out of me. [00:03:17] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:03:19] Speaker B: I was so shocked hearing your accent because you do such a good job on power. How you niggas just be switching your voices like that. [00:03:29] Speaker C: We grown up. You talking about a Nigerian? Yeah, well, my parents. I'm first generation, so, like, my parents, my dad has an accent like that. He's in between. My mom does, too. So I grew up. They would turn it on like, Ah, Ms. Emily's coming. Hey. Hello. How you doing, Ms. Emily? Everything okay? And then Auntie Beecher's coming. Hey, how are you doing today? Now? [00:03:47] Speaker A: How are you doing today? [00:03:49] Speaker C: I've been. I've been hearing that duality since I was a kid. So it's nothing, you know? But now back to what you're saying, bro, it's genuinely like, I do what I feel, you know? And so if as a creative, I just create for whatever the time needs. So if it's dual record, this is where. This is space where I'm in. If it's acting, this is the space that I'm in. And then just learning how to compartmentalize my time because I didn't have this. The. Hey, this is the Meisner technique. This is the. This technique. I didn't do that. [00:04:17] Speaker A: I got a question. [00:04:18] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:04:18] Speaker A: What the fuck is a Meisner? [00:04:19] Speaker C: That's what I'm saying. I don't know. [00:04:21] Speaker B: I was gonna act like I knew. [00:04:23] Speaker C: I don't know either. [00:04:24] Speaker B: You know, I'm good with faking it. [00:04:25] Speaker C: Yeah, right, right, right. I avoided all that and respect to everybody who does it for me. That's not who I was. I don't. I don't. I don't do that. I don't stay method acting, you know, And I respect it. But it's not. It wasn't. It wasn't who I am. I didn't feel like it was necessary, you know, for me. So it was like, do your job when it's cut, do your other job, you know? And that's what kept it really sane for me. Yeah. [00:04:49] Speaker B: Being that you didn't take any acting classes, how did you self coach yourself for these roles? [00:04:55] Speaker C: So I like to watch a lot of, like, Al Pacino. I like. I watched a lot of Ed Norton. I watched a lot of Ed Norton. [00:05:04] Speaker A: Never gets credit. [00:05:05] Speaker C: He's one of the greatest ever. [00:05:06] Speaker A: Yeah, he played crazy really well. [00:05:08] Speaker C: He. And I had to learn how he did that, you know, and he might. [00:05:10] Speaker A: Be crazy in real life. [00:05:11] Speaker C: He might be. [00:05:13] Speaker A: Never. [00:05:13] Speaker C: No, no. But, but, but Ed Norton, you know, he had. I think it was called Primal fear. [00:05:17] Speaker A: Yep. [00:05:18] Speaker C: And one of those. That was the one that I like. Okay, start from the top. I grew up with a lot of Dre's, for example. Right. So I took. Okay. I remember my boy, like, he talked like this. Yo, he walked like this. He sounded like this. He disliked this. So that's how I kind of created that character. Then I watched a lot of Johnny Depp, and I watched a lot of Ed Norton and saw what they did with their eyes. And Robert De Niro, they're masterful with their eyes. So you see something and people forget. Like, if we talking about power real quick. I didn't have a lot of lines in the beginning, so everything was this and this and this and this. So I had to study and watch. How can I make people feel me in three seconds that they like, oh, he up to something. That's how. That was the homework that I put myself through. So that's what got me more and more and more because everything was, oh, I feel like he about to do. You know, he might be hitting so that they. The. The network was like, yo, this. This dude lit. Cause they were supposed to get rid of my character early. [00:06:21] Speaker A: Really? [00:06:21] Speaker C: Oh, yeah, early. So I got on. I got on season two. I was supposed to be killed off season three. [00:06:28] Speaker A: You knew that going in. [00:06:29] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:06:30] Speaker A: So they tell you like, hey, you gonna be. You gonna last six episodes? [00:06:34] Speaker C: Yes. Yeah. [00:06:34] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:06:34] Speaker C: They can't. [00:06:35] Speaker A: That's crazy. [00:06:35] Speaker C: Yeah. So it was more like, okay, you signed on, and it's like, well, this is where we're gonna go with it kind of lightly. And you're like, oh, okay. But the comp. Sorry, the conversation never came directly to me. [00:06:47] Speaker A: Got you. [00:06:47] Speaker C: My agents knew, but they changed everything once they saw what I was doing. Yeah, my agent proved yourself. Yeah, they didn't. Because they've seen that. They've been in the business long enough to tell you. Wait, let's just. They might change their mind. So they didn't tell me until 50 told me after the fact. [00:07:01] Speaker A: That's fire. [00:07:01] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:07:02] Speaker A: So it was like, that's fucking dope. [00:07:03] Speaker B: Did you. Did you. Oh, I'm sorry. [00:07:05] Speaker C: Go ahead. [00:07:05] Speaker B: Did you ever find yourself being, like, too tapped into Dre's character? [00:07:10] Speaker C: Nah, nah, nah. It was all fun and games for me. You know what I mean? I thought it was lit. I started having. I just started having a lot of fun because. Okay, when you know that you're doing something legendary, it's either it's more pressure on you, or you just kind of just, you know what? We live in it now. And I chose this way, you know? And so I was just experimenting as much as I could, but I knew how to take it off. And then what helped me a lot was also having music, you know? So I would do Little Escape. Escape. So I'll do the character from 11 to 5pm and then from 7 to the next morning, I'm in the studio working on my album. So I was able to kind of just pop out of that because that's. This is really what my passion was, and this was fun. It's my day job, but this is really what my passion was. [00:07:57] Speaker A: It's a hell of a day job, bro. [00:07:58] Speaker C: Oh, incredible. [00:07:59] Speaker A: Yes. [00:07:59] Speaker C: You know what I mean? [00:08:00] Speaker B: It was a character from the 90s. I forget his name. I know he passed away. And people would say, like, in documentaries and stuff, that I think he was in Boyz n the Hood and Poetic Justice. He said. They said that he was so tapped into the character that he was, like, living his life from these movies and stuff. But not even just the actors. Us as fans, like, we get attached to you guys. From the show. You walked in, I said, look at Dre. Bitch ass. We get so consumed into y'all when y'all die. Like, we're sad and shit. Like, it was so unfortunate seeing you gone. Like, I didn't fuck with you, but when you left, I'm like, you're Vin. You're a pillar in the whole, like, power universe that we damn near need. Dre. [00:08:43] Speaker C: Yeah. Yeah. I thank God every day for being able to do my job, man. It was fun, you know, it was a good part of my life. I learned a lot, man. I learned a lot about myself, man. You know, because it was, how you going beyond acting. It was like, how you gonna balance fame? You could stand next to any rapper, anybody, and be just as lit. And how you handle that, living in New York? And you. The topic of every discussion, like, how do you handle that? [00:09:10] Speaker A: All over the blogs. [00:09:10] Speaker C: All over the blogs. And then also, then, you know, again, how you gonna make a hit musically with all this noise, you know? So it was like, making sure that every cup that I was dealing with was being filled. And it was a dope challenge. [00:09:23] Speaker A: I remember talking to. I wanna get to the music, too, but I remember talking to Eamon Joseph, who's. I think he's a dope actor. Yeah. About his role on Snowfall. [00:09:32] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:09:32] Speaker A: And I was like. I remember when I had him on the show, I was like, yo, when you know you gonna die? Like, the day you went to you in the jail cell and they was about to set you on fire. When the day you know you gonna die, do you go there? Man, fuck this job. Cause you like, nah. Cause you, like, it's over. Like, nah, nah, nah. [00:09:46] Speaker C: I'm a professional, bro. And, like, that show made millions of dollars. You know what I mean? So, like, it was nothing but love. Like, it was. Let's finish this out the way it is. However, selfishly, I had a record that was going crazy, and my bed was going crazy crazy. So I'm like, all right, I can. [00:10:02] Speaker A: Get out and go on the road. [00:10:02] Speaker C: That's what I gotta do, you know? And so it was a beautiful moment because we all prayed together and said, man, thank you, Lord. And at the same time, I'm looking at my phone and we're number one on RB in my bed. So it was like a wow, you really doing it moment for me. So that was, you've arrived. You've arrived. You know what I mean? So that my experience. I've had castmates in the past be like, man, f this show, I'm not doing this. But I've also had people that's been like, yo, it served me purpose. It was good. But, nah, 50. And that made me a lot of money. So I can never. [00:10:34] Speaker B: That's amazing that you was killing it on both sides. [00:10:37] Speaker A: That's rare. Cause a lot of people can't really balance that. Like you said, you go to the studio after. Also, I just had a small role, and I never had a panic attack learning. I had one sheet, and it was both our lines and one sheet, so I had probably, like, a paragraph to learn. And I was like, coming up here doing radio. Then I'm doing the other show I got. And then I'm trying to learn my lines. I'm like, this is too much. [00:11:00] Speaker C: It's a lot. [00:11:01] Speaker A: But then I'm not really acting. I'm playing a radio host in the fucking movie. So it's not really like. It's not really like, acting. So I ain't gotta, like, do a lot of prep. But I'm like, I don't know how y'all do that. [00:11:12] Speaker B: Nigga, you playing yourself. [00:11:13] Speaker A: No, I'm talking about lines. Imagine, like, what he talking about, like, studying just eye movements. Like, who the fuck does that? You get me? Just stuff like that. [00:11:19] Speaker C: But I had to find something different, bro. Like. Cause I didn't take the tradition. So it was like, what can I do to set me apart? And I just watched how they move, watch how they walk, how they did. And I just turned it into my own thing. [00:11:32] Speaker B: What's been your most interesting? Cause I'm sure your social media is crazy. They've been telling Tate to go get that payback for his brother. [00:11:40] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:11:42] Speaker B: What's been your craziest fan experience with them coming at you as the character you play? [00:11:49] Speaker C: Yo, you know what's so funny? I don't. I get the. Oh, man, I can't rock with Dre, but I get that. But at the same time, it's like, man, yo, you was my bro. We miss you, bro. Like, damn, son. Like, it's like a whole passion. Like, hey, my girl wanna take a picture? Can I? My girl? And it's like. It's just, you wanna take a picture? You can take a picture, bro. You know? But it's like that. But then also with women, it was like, I hate Dre, but you cute, though, so, you know, whatever. So it was like. It was awkward, you know? So am I. You rocking. We rocking. You know, it was always lit, though, so I didn't really get. I got the same, like, okay, Dre. That. But nothing. Oh, they never. Never crazy. It was always love in person. [00:12:33] Speaker A: Go ahead. [00:12:34] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:12:35] Speaker B: No, I was gonna say, before we get off powers, I do want to talk about the chi. Yeah. If Dre got a spinoff and didn't die that day, what do you think that the concept of his spin off will be? [00:12:45] Speaker C: Well, I mean, there was a Dre spin off in the works. [00:12:50] Speaker B: Oh, okay. [00:12:51] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah. [00:12:51] Speaker B: Talk about it. [00:12:52] Speaker C: It was a Dre spinoff. I mean, it's years now, but, like, they were. They were. They had it where it was me and Lawrence Tate, and we were gonna go do our own thing, and then things happened. [00:13:03] Speaker A: You can't trust that. [00:13:04] Speaker C: N. Well, you could have trust Dre and cancel the Tate. Oh, this crazy, you know, but, you know, it was it again. God works in mysterious ways. It was. It. It didn't happen. But I'm kind of happy it didn't during that time because I wouldn't have been able to work a record that's moving, you know, globally, you know, so it worked out the way if I'm. [00:13:23] Speaker A: Staying in the universe. I didn't like that. I think it was a two bit that got you. [00:13:28] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:13:28] Speaker A: I didn't like. Cause two bit was a moron, you know what I'm saying? So I didn't like that part of it, but whatever. Anyway, Lashai, Lashai, what you wanna know about? [00:13:36] Speaker B: Yeah, so what's up? How do you feel about that role? [00:13:38] Speaker C: I love it. You know, it's so funny, man. I was telling Punch earlier, and I was telling my boy Harmony earlier, too. I was like, listen, like, I've been on TV for 10 years, and congrats. Thank you, bro. I was on TV for 10 years, and I never smiled. For 10 years, I never showed teeth. It was growling. It was. I just. [00:13:59] Speaker A: I never thought about that. [00:14:00] Speaker C: It hit me when I'm playing a pastor in the chi. So playing a pastor, I'm kind of like a ladies man. [00:14:08] Speaker B: You got range. [00:14:09] Speaker C: Thank you, thank you, thank you. [00:14:10] Speaker B: Drug dealer to a pastor. [00:14:13] Speaker C: I be trying, man. Yeah. So he's with the Lord in this, and he's a charming guy, you know? And so I remember the first scene, and it was like. And he smiles affectionately. And I'm reading. I'm like. I'm looking like for my character. I'm not used to that. So when I got on set, and I'm like kind of playing, you know, vibing. I'm like, yo, I've never done this in front of a camera except for a music video. So I think this season fans are gonna love this, even for my character, because they're gonna see me differently, like suited up, different hairs, smiling, approaching things, praying to God. It's like they're gonna be like, whoa, I've never. Wow. You know, so I'm excited. [00:14:54] Speaker B: So who did you study to master that role? [00:14:58] Speaker C: So I watched a lot of Jerry Flowers. He's a pastor out in Houston. I watched a lot of Pastor Philip Mitchell. Then I watched a lot of Creflo dollar just to get a different energy as well too, you know. So, yeah, I just watch how they move. And then, you know, I added naturally how I would approach, you know, a. [00:15:22] Speaker A: Situation more so too, just out of pure ignorance. When you. When you get offered a role, do they kind of let you iterate the role in the way that you see fit, or is it more like, here's how we want you to do it? [00:15:35] Speaker C: So this is the first time. So when I did other shows, like, it was, this is what we want. This is how we gonna go. This is what. And then working with Lena Waif now, man, like, okay, so we basically filmed season seven. We just finished. That's gonna come next top of next year. So basically, it's like, ro, do what you do. [00:15:55] Speaker A: So here's. Here's the. So they give you bullet points, or they give you the script, or they. [00:15:59] Speaker C: Give me the script. And they said, do what you do. [00:16:02] Speaker B: So make it your own. [00:16:03] Speaker A: That's crazy. [00:16:04] Speaker C: That's Pastor Charles. [00:16:06] Speaker A: What about the lines? Can you. Do you have. Can you. Do you get leeway to add that a little bit? [00:16:10] Speaker C: A little bit. But they like, she's such an incredible writer, and she has so many writers that are so lit that, like, there's no need to switch it up. Cause if you switch it up, you're not gonna come up with something as dope as that. Yeah. So it's like, do it. But I'll do it in different voice inflections or pauses and stuff that make him be like, oh, we like that choice. But they were like, bro, you dope, bro. Just do what you do and create this character. So it was fun. Cause I've never been in a situation like that. And I was only supposed to be on for the season finale of season six. It's just that again, I tell any actor or musician, anybody in any position of anything, take advantage of the situation, yo. Cause you never know who's watching. You don't know who's there saying, yo, I can see that. You gotta body everything. I had three lines Four lines in that first scene. Again, I've done enough that they know what I can do. But they didn't create the character in a way that, oh, he's gonna be here for this season and maybe next season. And they didn't reoccurring. They weren't thinking that. It was like, yo, bro. She called me. She was like, yo, bro, I got an idea. You want to rock for this? I think people seeing you on the finale of ratings and everything would be lit, and then it was like, yo, you want to come back? Because you bodied that. [00:17:21] Speaker A: Damn. [00:17:22] Speaker C: You want to do five? I'm like, I could do five, finish five. You want to stay to the end of this season? What do you like? It became those conversations. So it was just, you know. So I tell you, you never know who watching Kill Everything. Like, kill everything. [00:17:36] Speaker A: Yo, that's so dope. [00:17:37] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:17:38] Speaker B: What's your first role? [00:17:38] Speaker C: You ever played the first role, ma'am? Okay. So my first role was a TV show called Boss in Chicago on Starz. It was one of the first shows on Starz. And I never. I was a broke college kid who was just a musician. I just graduated from Northwestern, had no bread, was living in the hood in Hyde park in Chicago. My manager at the time was like, yo, bro, you're really natural in front of a camera. Like, we need bread. So go to this city. This is before Uber and all these. And it was. You had to go hand your resume to the agency. [00:18:14] Speaker B: What year is this? [00:18:14] Speaker C: This is 2012. So you had to go to the agency and be like, here, you know? And no one wanted to take me because I had no resume. So I'm going around Chicago. Everybody said no. They were like, maybe you could do a commercial. Nah. No. And then I went to a small boutique agency called Great Talent. And they were like, she only took me in because her son was a freshman at my college. [00:18:39] Speaker B: Wow. [00:18:40] Speaker C: So she was like, let me just look out for alumni. [00:18:42] Speaker A: Wow. [00:18:42] Speaker C: That's how I got an agent. And she was like, this is on a Monday. Wednesday came about. And she was like, hey, there's a show called Boss that's coming to audition. You're not gonna just please go in? Cause the role's already cast. I want you to get used to auditioning. [00:19:01] Speaker A: Gotcha. [00:19:01] Speaker C: Let me just. I know the casting director. I just wanna get you your feet wet. I go in. I didn't know I had a photographic memory. So I go in and I body it. And so the director, Kelsey Grammer there. [00:19:16] Speaker A: And they're like, kelsey Grammer was at your first audition? [00:19:18] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:19:19] Speaker A: That's a bar. [00:19:19] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Kelsey Grammer was there, but he wasn't there to watch me. He was there to thank the casting director. [00:19:24] Speaker A: Oh, okay. [00:19:24] Speaker C: Got you from casting the show. [00:19:26] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:19:26] Speaker C: But she was like, hey, just watch this kid. Yeah, let's just. Can you give him some pointers? So why. Went in and embodied it. And he couldn't believe that was my first day. [00:19:34] Speaker A: He got an eye too. [00:19:35] Speaker C: Yes. So Kelsey came and came and told me. He was like, listen, man. They called me two weeks later, and, like, you got the role. So they let go of that person. [00:19:45] Speaker B: Took a job. [00:19:45] Speaker C: Yes, sir. Wow. So it took the job. And then my first season, Kelsey was basically my acting coach. [00:19:52] Speaker A: You got coached by Kelsey. [00:19:54] Speaker C: So my first episode is my first acting class. So he's like, yo, camera left. Is this camera right? Is this. Okay, this is what you call asides. Here you go. This is what this is. So this is your trailer. Like, it was. [00:20:09] Speaker A: It just games you up. [00:20:10] Speaker C: I had to. I had to learn it, so what a blessing. Yeah. It was lit. [00:20:14] Speaker A: So was this. So you said this was 2012. So girlfriends was. He had. Because he was doing girlfriends. Yeah, at that time. [00:20:22] Speaker C: Yeah, he was. Yep, yep, yep. [00:20:23] Speaker A: That's insane. [00:20:24] Speaker C: He was doing girlfriends. He had just finished the game. Yeah. Or the spin off of the game. [00:20:28] Speaker A: Because I, like, I was obviously, I'm. I'm older, so I know, like, Frazier, stuff like that. So, like, people don't know, like, Kelsey Grammer got his hands in the coach. [00:20:37] Speaker B: He did Frazier in a real. [00:20:38] Speaker C: Yeah, that's Frazier. He's Frazier Frazier. [00:20:42] Speaker B: Oh, oh, oh, okay. [00:20:44] Speaker A: But he got his hands in a lot of. In. In culture, and I. That's a wild story, bro. [00:20:49] Speaker C: Yeah, man. It was. It was. It was. It was one of them ones, bro. And then, you know, that's. Again, God makes no mistakes, because T.I. ended up coming on the show, and T.I. heard me singing in my trailer one day and was like, yo, bro, you lit, bro? [00:21:05] Speaker B: Oh, my God. [00:21:06] Speaker C: And he was like, you have a deal or anything? I'm like, nah, I don't got no deal, man. He was like, who's your representation? I was like, brian Share. Brian. Brian Share signed me. He's tips manager as well. So he was like, are you with Brian? I'm like, yeah. He was like, yo, bro, let's figure something out. So throughout that season, he got me my first endorsement deal with a coup, and then he offered me my first record deal in 2012, too. [00:21:32] Speaker A: So Kelsey Grammer coached You through the game and then TI Offered you a record deal. [00:21:35] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah, yeah. [00:21:36] Speaker B: You just always been at the right place, right place at the right time. [00:21:39] Speaker C: It's been, God, the whole journey, man. I swear, I can't. How do you orchestrate that? I just wanted to go in and get a. Hopefully a commercial. Ended up getting two seasons, a career, and haven't stopped working since then. [00:21:52] Speaker B: So 2012, you're a broke college student, you have no acting experience. [00:21:56] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:21:56] Speaker B: What were your goals at that time? [00:21:58] Speaker C: Music. It's always been music. Yeah, music, music, music. And when that happened, I had to put everything on hold to learn how to act, you know. And then once the show finished, since Boss finished, the illest thing my dad did, and having a Nigerian parent, man, my illest thing my dad did was he said, the money that you made from this show, I'm going to put it away for about. I'm going to put all of it. I'm going to leave you $20,000. If you feel like you really that guy, you're going to flip this 20,000 and make something, make this music thing happen or however. He said, you up for the challenge again? I'm competitive. So I was like, yeah, take that. I don't need that right now. Let's do it. So I moved to Atlanta with four of my friends after the show. And this is when Atlanta prices were still supposed to be Atlanta prices. Yeah, we had a six room townhouse for $1,200. So we splitting it four ways, $300 each person. And we had no furniture and we just had a studio and so had computer chairs and just hookah for the girls whenever they pulled up bottles of liquor. That was it. And Chinese food. So for a year. So that was how we was living. But we was making records and records and records. And during that time, I made a record called Lotto. And so during that time, made a record called Lotto and was running out of bread. I was down to my last $2,000. And then I had an act for a while, but we were still making records. Had $2,000. My agent called me, he's like, yo, there's a show called Power that wants you to come in. I'm like, what is that? He was like, yeah, it's 50 Cent Show. I was like, 50 Cent Show. It's a black show like this. Initially like, nah, I ain't doing that. But then it happened. It was like, all right, well, Ro, they want to see you, so go. You gotta fly yourself to la. So I flew myself To LA with no bread, bro. No bread. At this point, I had to get my ticket. So that took up about a good. Another 700 at that time. Got a whole motel got real. I was living on East Holly. East Hollywood Boulevard. Like, you can still see the W, but it's down. [00:24:07] Speaker A: Yeah, East Hollywood. [00:24:08] Speaker C: East Hollywood. [00:24:09] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:24:09] Speaker C: So I'm over there getting a motel over there. And it was one of those things where it was like, yo, you really want this? You got to go get it. And I was down to my last, last, last 20, $30, man, before they called back and was like, you got it. So are you serious? Yeah. So, like, records like that, man, like, it's. That's why my album is so important to me, because I tell that story, you know, I tell the story of how it happened. What happened, how I went to the motel. Dude said, yo, like, it's 60, 60 a night. I'm like, I don't have 60 a night. He was like, you're an immigrant. He's Indian, dude. He was like, you're an immigrant. I'll give you half brother. [00:24:48] Speaker B: Oh. [00:24:49] Speaker C: Like, yeah. So, like, that's. [00:24:52] Speaker B: That's some real right there. [00:24:54] Speaker C: You know, for me, it was. It was. It was. It was tough because I was like, yo, how am I gonna. How am I gonna make this back to homie? When I make it, I'm gonna make it back. So I ended up giving. His name was Bob. I ended up Giving Bob, like, $10,000 once I got my first power check, you know, because he was like, yo, like, you're an artist. I was like, yeah, man. You know? And he was like, okay, where you from? I said, I'm Nigerian. He was like, how much you got, bro? I said, man, I got like 800 left, bro. I just did this audition. I don't know. He was like, it's 60. I said, you're killing me. He said, okay, I'll give you 30, man. And we got free breakfast. And, you know, so it was like that, you know, so that was what started the whole, whole thing for me. [00:25:36] Speaker B: Wow, that's crazy. When you look at your account or you pat in your pockets and you only got 20, $30, you never thought, like, let me call my dad and get the rest of that money. [00:25:46] Speaker C: Nah, I'm too. I was too much of a dog. Like, it was like, we gonna make this work, you know, if I had to stay out in la. And this is when I started. I was in my hoochie time, so I had a little baddies, you know, so it Was like, you stay. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. I stayed at her crib for two weeks. Then I stayed another one for a little bit. So just try to alleviate and I tell Bob I'll come back, you know, I'm spend this week here to get some more time. So it was survival at that time, you know. And then when I got on, I made sure everybody that helped me at that time got something, you know what I mean? Even some of the girls too. [00:26:21] Speaker B: That's an amazing testimony because you were literally working by faith. Like you were only moving by faith. [00:26:26] Speaker C: That's it. And that's what's been propelling me to make the choices I've made. I never lost that because I've seen what it looks like to have $20 and not know what's gonna happen. And knowing that you have it, you have it. But I made a practice. I was gonna make it this way, you know. And so that's why I'm still driven. That's why we are where we are now. [00:26:50] Speaker A: That's crazy. She the same way, but like she will not. She don't give a fuck what's going on. She fuck with him. Yeah, yeah. [00:27:01] Speaker B: Before we move on though. Cause I think that's amazing that you have supportive. You had a supportive father. [00:27:07] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:27:07] Speaker B: What was your childhood like? [00:27:09] Speaker C: Childhood? Grew up Maplewood, New Jersey. Born and raised first generation Nigerian. My parents were, are prayer warriors. Very Christian, very Christian. Home, very hard working, you know. My mom, for example, my mom, when she was pregnant with me, she said Bob Marley visited her and she said, your son is going to finish my legacy. That's what she had told him. He had told her when she was six months pregnant. And most Nigerian families don't like arts. They like three things. A doctor, a lawyer, an engineer. Those are the three things that you can do, you know. And so when she had that dream, she was like, oh, he's gonna be either a politician, because Bob Marley was low key. A politician, but then also an artist. So when I was three, four years old, she started hearing me sing. And my mom is a hustler. So she was like, look, like, I'm gonna manage you. And I know a lot of Nigerians who are doing weddings. So I was a n. I was a four year old Nigerian wedding singer. You know what I mean? So it was like, that's how I started learning how to perform, like how to read crowds. And I'm performing in Nigerian parties. They throwing money, like they throw money on the dance floor. So I'm realizing like, oh, okay, this is. This is what's going to happen, you know? And so that at an early age made me say, this is what I want to do. And so that was that. And then when I was 17, 18, Jay Z, his nephews had moved into our neighborhood, and they were forming a music group. And this is right when Roc Nation was just about to start. And, yeah, HOV was like, look like, if y'all really serious about this, y'all gotta come drive up to my crib in New York every two weeks and perform your records for us. [00:28:58] Speaker A: Wait, wait, wait. Yeah, you said. You said HOV said you gotta come to the house. [00:29:02] Speaker C: Yeah, he can't. Yeah, yeah, we had to go to his crib every two weeks. We had to spam. [00:29:06] Speaker A: You know, none of this shit that you saying is normal, right? Like, that's my life, dog. [00:29:10] Speaker C: Yeah, I know, I know. And I thank God for it. But it's like, I wrote, bro. Like, this is where my songwriting skills got better, because you're going to the one of the greatest of all time and what they do. And he's listening to bars. He's paying attention to melodies. [00:29:24] Speaker A: So breaking your shit apart. [00:29:25] Speaker C: Oh. He was like, yo, that's trash. That's this, that's that. That's horrible. Nah, y'all never getting signed. And again, it could make you or break you. But at that time, it was like, I'm not gonna fold, bro. So, like, just tell me what you need me to work on, and I'll come back and work on it. And that's what I got. So he was just like, nah, you got it, bro. Just, you know, just develop your gift at this age, and you'll be more than okay. So I saw him a couple years ago, and he was like, man, I told you he was gonna be lit. And so that was. That was a dope moment. [00:29:56] Speaker B: It's a trend on Twitter, and this tweet comes up every single year. Yeah, 500,000. Or dinner with Jay Z. [00:30:03] Speaker C: 500,000. [00:30:04] Speaker A: He would tell you to take the money for sure. [00:30:06] Speaker C: Yeah, 500,000, easy. [00:30:07] Speaker A: He, like. He got a whole number. Hov told me my shit was trash. I want to relive that 500,000. So in the process of working on this app, you've been fairly consistent, too. Like, especially with R and B. I think that people do the whole Kendrick shit where they go away. [00:30:22] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah. [00:30:22] Speaker A: Like, they. You know, the R and B person, they. They gotta go through life and, like, experience hella shit. But from an R and B perspective, do you draw from Your own life. You draw from the past. Do you draw from inspiration, aspiration? Like, where do you pull from when you're writing the records? [00:30:38] Speaker C: Well, this particular project that we got coming, man, that's is dropping November 1st. Yes. It's the most raw that I've ever been because, okay, I've never been able to make music without having the balance of shooting power and doing this and bah bah bah bah and endorsement. And this, this is the first time that I said, I'm quiet, I'm going to be a full time artist. And I was able to one meet, you know, my manager and best friend and also writing partner, Punch. And again, that was a God moment because I've known Punch for so long. But the timing on that was, yo, this is where I'm at. This is where you at. Let's work. And we just wrote, man, and it was free. Like, it was the first time I was free. The first time I was having fun as an artist. The first time there was no stress. The first time that it was just like, let's just create and see where we go. The first time I was like, yo, I'm an R and B artist and I'm an afrobeat artist. Why let's service everybody, everything. And let's figure that out, you know, because we were writing from that standpoint and so having that, but then realizing that, damn, like I made two or three hits under stress. Like when we did In My Bed. And Harm, shout out to Harmony, Samuel, who's also Harmony, he'll tell you that I had three days to turn in my project. So I had to fly to LA and create something in three days to make. And we just made In My Bed in three days. [00:32:12] Speaker A: So what? So you needed one more record or you needed a record, a single or something? [00:32:15] Speaker C: I needed a single. [00:32:16] Speaker A: Got you. [00:32:17] Speaker C: Yeah, I need to start a. Yeah, I needed a single. I didn't have a single yet. And they're like, we'll give you three days. If you got three days to make something lit, bring that. So had three days, but all the while I'm still studying my lines. [00:32:28] Speaker B: Do you work well under pressure? [00:32:30] Speaker C: Yeah, that's been my whole life, you know, so this is the first time that I don't have that pressure to make this album. So that's why it feels different. That's why we're able to just. What you want to do? You want to write this one? Write this one, right? And we're talking different parts of my life. Like that hasn't Happened before. So that's why it's like, if I can make a hit in two, three days, and I done that two, three times, you're giving me seven months. Oh, it's a wrap. You know, so that's why I'm excited for this, because I've never had that experience. [00:32:59] Speaker A: But do you think that it's gonna have an impact? Based on what Gina just said, you think it's gonna have an impact on the product because it's not under pressure? [00:33:05] Speaker C: No, no, no. [00:33:06] Speaker A: What sign are you? [00:33:07] Speaker C: I don't really. I'm the sign of the cross, brother. [00:33:10] Speaker A: Oh, okay. So you. So you don't. So I'm saying when you working under pressure. Yeah, I feel like I work better under pressure, too. [00:33:17] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:33:17] Speaker A: Right. So, like, does that have an impact, A direct impact on how. On the writing or the mentality that you have to do from a writing perspective? [00:33:26] Speaker C: No. When you just. When you just a dog. You a dog, bro. You know what I mean? [00:33:29] Speaker A: Because you say you had three days to figure it out. It's like, damn. I don't know what I. Look at it. So what you just said, I put that and match that up with, like, rent. Okay. I need rent in three days. [00:33:38] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:33:38] Speaker A: So, like, how do I, you know, say no? [00:33:41] Speaker B: It's not like you put out some bullshit. You made a hit. [00:33:43] Speaker A: That's what I'm saying. [00:33:44] Speaker B: Like, in three days. Like, niggas do that, and then it be trash. It's a throwaway. Like, you made a hit. [00:33:50] Speaker C: I put. Okay, that's just one way I can work. [00:33:54] Speaker A: Okay, Got you. [00:33:55] Speaker C: That's just one way I've had to work. [00:33:57] Speaker A: Got you. [00:33:57] Speaker C: This is a way that I've never felt before, and it feels even more free. It feels better this way. So now that I don't have that, mind you, I do have. There's an underlining pressure of. Bro, we gotta make this special. Yes. But having time. Oh, they've given me time. So now that I have time, you're gonna hear different sides of Rotimi that you never heard. And that's what we did with this project. It's the album of the year. [00:34:24] Speaker A: Like, hands down, album of the year. [00:34:25] Speaker C: Easily in any genre. [00:34:27] Speaker A: In any genre. [00:34:28] Speaker C: Any genre. Because I give you every genre. So it's gonna be a. [00:34:31] Speaker A: That's a big dog statement. [00:34:32] Speaker C: Yeah, It's a fact. [00:34:34] Speaker B: What one? Is there one genre that you classify yourself as? We were just having this conversation about Tommy Richmond. [00:34:40] Speaker C: Yeah. Yeah. [00:34:41] Speaker B: And. [00:34:41] Speaker C: Nah, I'm just an artist. Yeah, I'm an artist. Because that would be unfair. I'm not just an Afrobeat artist. I'm not just an R and B artist. I have pop records. I have a gospel records that. Am I a gospel artist? No, I'm just an artist. You get what I mean? So that's what we made. We serviced every single type of person multiple times on this project. [00:35:03] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:35:03] Speaker C: So if you are a certain way, you're going to have three that you like, got you, you know, so that's what we made it, you know, because that's been a complaint of mine. Like, it was like, how can you service one side and the other side still be happy? So it was like, let's figure that out. And we unlocked it, man. [00:35:18] Speaker A: Do you use your experience on sets and like, from acting and stuff like that to craft your visuals for the projects that you do? [00:35:27] Speaker C: Absolutely, bro. You nice, bro. That was a nice, nice little segue there. That was hard. Yeah. So for me, yes, again, I wanted to give another side that people also love from me, which is the acting side. So we basically shot every video to every song, like, and we did it independently. And again, artists and actors or whoever, if you believe in yourself, put up your money and make it happen. Do not wait. Then you're going to be stuck where you at. Put up the money. We had a vision. Me and Punch had a vision. We made it happen. We shot 18 videos with our own bread. Wrote it, directed it, edited it, color coded it. Everything is us shout out to Jet as well. So, like, when you have that belief in it, you gonna put up that money and you gonna then pay for the market and pay for this. So that's why it's like, it has to go, you know, and that's why we took our time. So, yes, we shot a video for every song. So my fan base is gonna basically get consistent music and visuals while the album is out every two weeks or so. And they're gonna just see what their favorite song is when it's dropping as well, visually. [00:36:43] Speaker A: So I can take. I can. So I'll be able to. So if I have a favorite song on a project, yeah, I'll be able to be like, oh, my video's dropping on this around this date. [00:36:52] Speaker C: Yes. [00:36:52] Speaker A: Oh, that's fire. [00:36:53] Speaker C: Yes. [00:36:53] Speaker A: That's never been done. [00:36:54] Speaker C: Absolutely. [00:36:55] Speaker A: That's unique because now I got a system. Not a system, but now that's unique to me. Being in the music industry. No one's doing that. Like, nobody lets you behind the curtain and be like, on this day, they try to do the surprise Shit like, they Beyonce. [00:37:06] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:37:07] Speaker A: And it's like, bro, you not Beyonce, bro. Let me fuck with what I wanna fuck with. [00:37:11] Speaker C: Absolutely. Absolutely. Let me tell you when it's coming out. So, yeah. And that's been the vibe, man. So any artists who want to. This idea came first. It started here. Listen, you can't take this. [00:37:23] Speaker A: Talk your shit. [00:37:24] Speaker C: You can't take this. If you take it, just give us the credit. Give me my pub. Just give me my credit. Just put, you know, inspired by rotimi a punch. Because now, like, this hasn't been done. And the way we're shooting, nobody's shooting every visual, you know, and nobody wants to spend that much time on their craft no more. [00:37:40] Speaker A: Yeah, so we did it. [00:37:41] Speaker C: So once y'all start taking this format. Hey, man, please. [00:37:44] Speaker A: Credit is due. [00:37:45] Speaker C: Credit is due. [00:37:46] Speaker B: That's good for the fans because there's been videos that I've. That I haven't gotten from, like, my favorite artists. And I'll be listening to the album, like, dang, we should have got a video for this one. We should have got one for that one. [00:37:55] Speaker C: Exactly. [00:37:56] Speaker B: And they don't always do that. [00:37:58] Speaker C: Exactly. [00:37:59] Speaker B: Now, are you. You giving us different characters in these visuals? [00:38:03] Speaker A: Oh, that's a great question. [00:38:03] Speaker C: That's a great question. And absolutely, yes. Like, you're seeing heartbreak, you're seeing gangster, you're seeing lover boy. You're seeing butterscotch, baby. You're seeing all type of different energies, man. Because, again, that's what it's about. That's who I am. So you're gonna get all of that. So. And again, to your point, having time to sit back and game plan. We thought of all of that. To service everybody with every single thing. People don't get videos. They like, we gonna give that to you. People don't get this type of records. We don't give that to you. People don't get this type of visuals. We don't give that to you. So that's. That's what we're. That's the whole point of saying, yo, they gave me some time. And we can actually think, oh, yeah, this album's gonna be ridiculous. [00:38:48] Speaker B: We were just talking about creative storytelling with Dababy. [00:38:52] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:38:53] Speaker B: During. You know, like, it's a lost art. People are not giving us storylines anymore. They're not giving us, like, videos with. My favorite. Who used to do that was, like, the Murder Inc. Time, where, like, it's a beginning and it's an end, and it's not just niggas in front of a green screen. It's not just n throwing money and slapping ass in front of a foreign vehicle. Why is it important to you to give the fans something so creative? [00:39:19] Speaker C: Because that's what art is about, man. And that's what makes art timeless. Like, you can say, I remember when Ro played me that song. Then I saw the visual, and I remember what it made me feel like. And you can always go back to the visual when you want to. Like, it's about making moments for people. And we wanted to make records that aren't dated, but melodically feel like you can say I love me some you. That's a very simple melody that. It's so lullaby. Thank you, bro. So it's like. It's lullaby. So when you make timeless records, they need that love to get videos and the time to come out and time to promote properly. And we want to make people feel like they're connected to the project. And that's what we did, like, by showing behind the scenes of what. How it happened, our thought process, and all of these things that everybody's going to see. What happens. [00:40:12] Speaker B: When in the. When in the process do you come up with the visuals? Is it when you listen to the beat? When you write into the beat after the song is already created, at what moment do you start visualizing? [00:40:23] Speaker C: So the conversation starts with, between me and Punch, right? So we'll sit and be like, yo, what do we not have? And we'll think about it, we'll write it out, we'll say, what don't we have? And then at that point, then we'll be like, okay, what happened in your life? Okay, yeah, this happened in my life. Oh, you have your life, too. Let's talk about it. So it became a conversation from real things. So when it comes like that, it's authentic. [00:40:48] Speaker B: So y'all kind of like Usher and Jermaine Dupri? Because Confessions is based on Jermaine Dupri. Yeah. [00:40:53] Speaker C: I mean, yeah, if you want to put it that way. [00:40:55] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:40:56] Speaker C: It's our life. It's our story, you know, different parts of our life. Like, Blessed is a record that's a gospel record that we have. That's me talking about how I feel like I have everything I need, you know? And I feel like a lot of people may feel that or sexy. No matter what you do, you're sexy. You can look as natural as you are, baby, you are fire. I've been in a situation in many situations where the most beautiful women don't need nothing on their face, you know, so. And beauty Comes in all shapes and sizes. And we've seen. So it's all of those experiences, or better at all. Like, yo, this whole experience is so lit that I'd bet it all on you. Like, so everything that we've gone through in our lives, we put it on, you know, on music. And again, that's the first time I've ever actually had the time to do that, you know, and in a body of work, not just, yo, what's that sound like? That's good. All right, let me sing that. Nah, like, no more of those days. [00:41:50] Speaker A: You know, no more. You wanna craft it? [00:41:51] Speaker C: I wanna craft it. So when you seeing them 50, 50 splits, it's like, yeah, bro, when that money come in, we did well, you know, and so that's. I don't want those five, seven percents no more. You know what I mean? That's where I'm at. [00:42:03] Speaker A: Do you look at. Do you look at the music? I mean, I guess not the music. Do you look at music now as a total. As a whole, as one of them things where. Because we talked about, like, how music is. I mean, people are just putting anything out. Like, it's just soul Microwave. Like, the thought you just. Everything you just said for the last 15 minutes, people aren't doing that. They're not sitting down. They're not coming up with concepts. They're not creatively coming up with characters. They're not coming up with visuals. They're not even having the forethought or the wherewithal to understand how important those things are. [00:42:34] Speaker C: Absolutely. [00:42:35] Speaker A: So when you look at the landscape, do you look like, oh, it's mine for the taking, or do you look at it like, still competition? [00:42:39] Speaker C: I always look at, like, it's competition, and I feel like it's mine for the taking. [00:42:43] Speaker A: Both. [00:42:44] Speaker C: Yeah. But our job and my mission. And our mission has been to bring back quality over quantity. Yeah, that is the mission. That is the goal. That is what we put at the top of the chalkboard. Like, yo, dawg, whatever else comes from this is bring back quality over quantity. But we still gonna give you a lot of. A lot of records, too. So you don't get a lot of quantity, but it's quality music. So that's been the. That's what it is. So we gonna let the music speak for itself. I don't feel like anybody can compete, you know, with what we have. And I'll say that boldly. I think. I think Chris Brown is incredible, and I think that he's the only one. [00:43:24] Speaker A: Right. [00:43:25] Speaker C: You Know what I mean? And so that's where we at. [00:43:27] Speaker A: You said so the last I was. When I knew he was gonna talk to you, I was like, looking at your stuff and I'm like, at the music. And I was like, damn, you haven't given us this many songs before on a body of work. Why now were you like, I want to do this many records? [00:43:43] Speaker C: Cause I got time, bro. [00:43:44] Speaker A: That's straight up. [00:43:45] Speaker C: Straight up. Cause I got time. But also I had. [00:43:47] Speaker A: So before, when you were doing, like, the shortest, not the cut, draw, when you were doing the seven or eight track. Two weeks. [00:43:53] Speaker C: Two weeks. [00:43:53] Speaker A: Really? The whole project? [00:43:55] Speaker C: Two weeks. Every project has been two weeks. Love, rhythm, everything. All those songs came of a bunch of eight that we did, and seven of them were the. I didn't have time. I couldn't. It was all right. I got off this episode. All right, nigga, you got. Hey, writing team. We got 12 days. I need y'all to put. I can't even. I can't even really be a part of this. [00:44:19] Speaker A: Oh, I see what you're talking about. [00:44:20] Speaker C: I still gotta study for the next episode. [00:44:22] Speaker A: I see what you got. [00:44:22] Speaker C: So y'all do what y'all do. Okay, I like that. I'll add this. I like that. I leave that open. I'll do all the melodies, but you write it. That's what it was. [00:44:30] Speaker A: I see what you said. [00:44:30] Speaker C: So it was do all the melodies, you write it, or not even touch it at all. [00:44:33] Speaker A: I see what you said. [00:44:33] Speaker C: So it was eight out of the songs recorded, seven of them made the project. So now you're giving me almost a year. Oh, we're going to record. [00:44:42] Speaker A: That's why you're saying time is so important. Because now you're able to sit down and do everything in hands on and craft it the way. Okay, that makes more sense now. [00:44:50] Speaker C: Yes. [00:44:50] Speaker A: I'm glad that you clarified that. [00:44:52] Speaker C: Yes. So it's time. And then also meeting somebody that understands the vision also has helped too. [00:44:59] Speaker A: So the team is important. [00:45:01] Speaker C: Oh, the team is just as important. Like, it's just as important. I don't think a lot of artists understand that because when you're the face of the movement, you get in your vibe and you get it big headed and you're like, nigga, I run this. Nah, buddy, you know that's your partner. Because if they don't do their job, your socials ain't gonna look good. If you don't do their job, your bookings ain't gonna look good. If they don't do Their job, your publicity and marketing is gonna look trash if the producer don't give you wag beats. What are you gonna do? [00:45:29] Speaker A: Especially independently? [00:45:30] Speaker C: Especially so. It's. No, no, nobody's over anybody. You know what I mean? And that's why. That's why it's like, even me, I. I know my strengths and I know my weaknesses, and I make sure my team, you know, takes control of those. [00:45:43] Speaker B: You know, I know you're. You're killing it amongst all genres, but I want to touch on Afrobeats for a second because a lot of people like myself were just recently put onto Afrobeats. [00:45:54] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:45:54] Speaker B: And it's been a genre for however long it's existed. Even if you look at the VMAs, this year will be the second year that Afrobeats would be a category to be. To nominate artists for. How does it feel to Afrobeats, somebody who does the genre, that it's finally, quote, unquote, mainstream? [00:46:16] Speaker C: Well, it feels incredible. I'll start with that. But also, to me, it's really beautiful because I feel like I was one of the pioneers of bringing Afrobeats to the States. In terms of being from the States and being able to go into radio programmers with my record Love Rhythm, and them saying, I can't even catch the beat of this. [00:46:40] Speaker A: What is. [00:46:41] Speaker C: What is this? I don't know how this is not going to work on radio. I remember being that guy. It's foreign. I was like, okay, trust me, this is going to win. And this is 2018, so it's happening fast. So for me to kind of, in the States, kick the door down. Mind you, there were others before me, like d'banj and who had crossed over and did well. But in terms of Kick the Door down in the States, I felt like I did that with Love Rhythm and in my bed and then Whiz kid and then DeVito and everybody else, you know, from back home, they did what they did, you know, burner and everything. But it was a time where I would go in and they couldn't catch the beat. And this is Miami, this is Texas. This is places culturally that you'd be like, oh, y'all can. Y'all can get this. Nah. It was like, yo, this offbeat is weird. You know what I mean? And so, again, major shout out to Harmony Samuels, because he had a vision, you know, and he called me and he was like, bro, I have the record for you. He was like, it's just gonna go like this. And he's over the phone he's like, I keep hearing there's a meeting in my bed. In my bed. I said, that's it? He's like, yeah, that's it. That's all I got. He was like, yo, where the fuck. [00:47:54] Speaker A: Is the record at? [00:47:55] Speaker C: That's it. He was like, but please drive out, Come fly out tomorrow. Let's finish this. You got three days, right? I said, yeah, let's do this one first. [00:48:05] Speaker A: Damn. [00:48:06] Speaker C: That's how that happened. So we were doing things that, yes, it was happening back home, but here, people weren't really understanding what it was. And when that door broke down, you know. So to answer your question, to see how fast it's moving in six years, it's a blessing, man. It's really, really dope to see. [00:48:23] Speaker B: Did you guys see a future in Afrobeats early on? [00:48:27] Speaker C: I did, Yeah, I did. I did. Because I know that if it's done right, it's timeless. Like, again, those records don't die. [00:48:35] Speaker A: Yeah, I can't. I can't date any Afrobeat record that I've played. [00:48:39] Speaker C: If I tell you say I love you. That's. That's. You don't know when that came out. [00:48:43] Speaker A: I don't know when the fuck that came out. [00:48:44] Speaker C: You know what I'm saying? [00:48:44] Speaker A: I don't know when none of these. All the records I play when I'm DJing, I don't know when they came out. Yeah, it's just. They just records. [00:48:49] Speaker C: They're just records, bro. But if you play that in the club on a day party right now, the whole club won't go crazy. Yeah, it feels good. And so with feel good music, that's what we said we wanted to do. And that's why we made the project the way it is. Where like you said when you heard it earlier, you were like, yo, I feel like I want to get dressed to this. Mission accomplished. Yo, when you heard a gospel record on there, I feel happy. Mission accomplished. So when you have those moments, man, we just want to capitalize and make people feel good. [00:49:19] Speaker A: I just. First of all, I think it's super dope that you able to do what you're doing, because you are pioneering certain things. And people will get it when they get it. They'll understand it when they understand it. As far as what you're doing to pioneer the things that you're doing. But what you said was kicking down doors. Do you feel like. Cause you are Nigerian. [00:49:38] Speaker C: Yes, sir. [00:49:38] Speaker A: Right? [00:49:39] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:49:39] Speaker A: Do you feel like it's your duty or do you feel like. Do you Feel like a symbol of pride when you're able to get these barriers knocked down, especially with taking risks that other people probably be scared to take. [00:49:50] Speaker C: Absolutely. [00:49:50] Speaker A: Especially as an independent artist. They had a machine. [00:49:52] Speaker C: Absolutely, bro. Like, I feel like it is my duty. I've been blessed with people who see that see the same vision, but it is my duty, bro. And I have to be the one that changes the structure of it. I have to be. [00:50:06] Speaker A: You have to be. [00:50:06] Speaker C: I have to be. That was what I was told when I was. That was a promise I was made when my mom, Bob Marley came. [00:50:12] Speaker A: Bob Marley said it in her womb. [00:50:14] Speaker C: Like, I have to be. I can't worry about how it costs, how much it costs. I can't worry about what's going to happen. I just got to do it. And so what we just did is the first level of that. And hopefully we start bringing back people saying, yo, I want to invest in my time, my craft, and give our fans all of this, and hopefully we bring that back in this space for sure. [00:50:36] Speaker A: Now that you got time to do music, are you shutting the acting down? [00:50:39] Speaker C: No, no, no. The money too good, brother. The money too good. Now we got season seven of the Chi again. I'm also writing movies. We have some in the works that's in development. [00:50:50] Speaker A: Movies. You heard that? [00:50:53] Speaker C: Movies. You know, so working on some stuff that we're gonna actually make an announcement soon on one that I'm executive producing. [00:51:00] Speaker A: Okay. [00:51:00] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah. So. Oh, yeah, don't stop. You know, it's just. It's just again, this is what's in the moment for now, and we gonna make it excellent for now. [00:51:10] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:51:11] Speaker B: Do. Do artists who are Afrobeat artists from. To your knowledge, do they view the American rappers who tap into the Afrobeat science sound as culture vultures? [00:51:23] Speaker C: It's a good question. I don't like really speaking for other men, but, yeah, I don't know. I don't know. [00:51:31] Speaker B: Maybe because we've seen, like, Drake get, like, drag for tapping into different genres and things like that. [00:51:36] Speaker C: Yeah. I personally, I. If you've seen it, then, I mean, personally, I'll tell y'all one thing. I'm not on socials. I don't be care about what nobody else do. Just be quite honest. So I haven't been on socials really for the last year, just been focusing on. On this. Yeah. So if that's what's happening, then, you. [00:51:52] Speaker B: Know, were there ever any roles you were offered that took you out of your comfort zone? [00:51:57] Speaker C: That's a great question. My agents know What? Not to bring to me. [00:52:02] Speaker B: Okay. [00:52:03] Speaker C: Yeah. So you know. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Okay. [00:52:08] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. [00:52:08] Speaker C: All right. So there was one that. There was one that was really lucrative and they were like, yeah, but you gotta really, like, beat this woman up. [00:52:22] Speaker B: Oh, hell no. [00:52:23] Speaker C: Yeah. And so it was like, yeah, take the money. So I called, I called my boy. I called part. I'm like, hey, bro, they often. They offering high six figures, bro. Like, and it was like, what am I doing? Like, what are we doing? And. And it was a five second. I mean, just acting, right. Because of the bread. But then the senses come in. It's like, yo, you can never do something like that on screen. Personally, for me. [00:52:50] Speaker B: Was it like actually physical or you were just pretending to. [00:52:55] Speaker C: No, no, no. It's never really. No, no, no. It's never really hitting the role. [00:52:59] Speaker A: Is him being abusive. [00:53:00] Speaker C: No, sorry. The role. Okay. So the role is me hitting a woman and viciously beating her up. It is art, right? So they were, they. They wanted me so bad that they changed the direction of how much he beat her. But I was like, nah, I don't want to be associated with that. [00:53:18] Speaker A: I'm an artist. [00:53:18] Speaker C: Like, Exactly. [00:53:19] Speaker A: So I gotta go. I'm. I got an 80%, 90% female fan. [00:53:24] Speaker C: Yeah. So. And for me, like, I go. When I. As you can tell, how you can come in the room and be like, yo, dream. When I get a role, I'm a body it. So you're gonna look at me as whoever that dude was. Like, yeah, that's that nigga that he ain't her mouth and shot her face off. You get what I'm saying? Like, that energy. So I'm gonna give it my all and you're gonna feel it, but you're not gonna be able to separate. [00:53:48] Speaker B: Yeah, me, yeah. [00:53:49] Speaker C: From here, they. [00:53:51] Speaker B: They still dragging Michael Ealy for dropping them kids out that window. [00:53:54] Speaker C: You see what I'm saying? [00:53:57] Speaker A: Niggas still. Yeah. [00:53:58] Speaker B: Still mad at Michael Ealy for that, right? [00:54:00] Speaker C: I'm saying so for me, yeah, I do it too well. Yeah, do it too well. If you ask me to do my job, I'm gonna do it too well. So I was like, hold on. [00:54:08] Speaker A: If you was a rat, if you was a weak ass actor, then you could have took it and Absolutely. Just got out of it. [00:54:13] Speaker C: Absolutely. Absolutely. And if I only had acting as well. [00:54:17] Speaker A: Got you. [00:54:17] Speaker B: Was that role picked up by anyone else? Like, is that a show or movie that's out right now? [00:54:22] Speaker C: I don't know. [00:54:22] Speaker B: You don't know? [00:54:23] Speaker C: I'm not on social Media. I don't know. [00:54:27] Speaker B: I love how you switch your voice like that. Do you got an LA accent? [00:54:30] Speaker C: Nah, I don't want to play y'all. I don't. [00:54:32] Speaker B: Just do it. [00:54:33] Speaker C: Let me. Let me. Let me get it. [00:54:34] Speaker A: Let me. [00:54:34] Speaker C: Give me. When I do your show. Okay, I'm gonna come back when I do your show. The first five minutes I do want to hear. Because I'm an L. A. [00:54:42] Speaker A: You couldn't tell me Damson not from Hoover. [00:54:44] Speaker B: Yeah, Damson sound more than ever LA than la niggas. Like, he's. [00:54:48] Speaker A: The body of that Damson is from Hoover. Like, I know niggas that sound like him. You know what I'm saying? That's great. Could you. So from, like, to her point, you think you could play anything? Like you said, you embody anything. So you think you could play any role, or is there certain things that you think are out of the realm of your capability? No, you can do anything. [00:55:06] Speaker C: It's a matter of do I want to do certain things. [00:55:09] Speaker A: Right. [00:55:09] Speaker C: The ones I don't want to do, I can do everything. [00:55:12] Speaker A: You could do it? [00:55:13] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah, yeah. 100%. [00:55:15] Speaker B: What are the roles? That's, like, completely off the table when. [00:55:18] Speaker C: It'S just not written really well. [00:55:20] Speaker B: Okay. [00:55:20] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah. It's just. There's. There's no. There's no. There's no substance behind it. It's stereotypical and. Yeah, just. Just bad. Like, I don't want to be associated with anything bad, you know? [00:55:33] Speaker B: You ever hit anything on camera? [00:55:35] Speaker C: Hid anything, like, hit anything on camera? Yes, I have. I've. I've given box shots. [00:55:42] Speaker B: How. How does that work? Cause some. Cause I'm like. I'm like a, like, 2B advocate. [00:55:47] Speaker A: She watches everything. [00:55:48] Speaker B: Yeah, I watch everything. I'm like. I'm like a 2B advocate. You can' you can't tell me they not really fucking on tubi, so. [00:55:54] Speaker C: They probably are on tubi, though. [00:55:57] Speaker B: People be selling the role for me. How does the sex scenes work? [00:56:01] Speaker C: All right, so with the budget. With a budget, with a budget, with the budget. [00:56:05] Speaker A: That's the difference. [00:56:06] Speaker C: So they give, they give, they get. So they gave me a sock, right? [00:56:10] Speaker A: Whoa. [00:56:10] Speaker C: Yeah. She asked the question, my brother. [00:56:12] Speaker A: Yeah. Listen, I'm here. [00:56:13] Speaker C: Make eye contact this way. So they gave me a sock, right? They gave me, like, like, invisible plastic string that wraps around my waist, so on camera you can't see it. But if I'm the sock nude. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So it matches my skin color. But you can't even really see that because If I'm on top or from the back, it's just protecting. It's holding it as tight as possible. Then they give the woman, like, a slit that covers her, like, a whole. Like, it's kind of like this covered her stuff. So everything is like this. [00:56:49] Speaker B: How tempting is that? Because I can't see myself playing that role without asking nigga to come back to my room. We're going to have to get it cracking. [00:56:56] Speaker C: Nah. So the misconception is, right, there's about 40 people in a room. So you're not just going at it. They're like, hold on, stop. All right, Put your hand there. Lower. Yeah, right there. Okay. Kiss. No, wait, wait, wait. So it's like. Okay, so it's not. It's just edited. [00:57:14] Speaker A: Hella technical. [00:57:15] Speaker C: It's because they got to get the shot. So it's like, if you're good at what you do, they'll let you. They'll give you some zone. But most of the time, it's super, super uncomfortable because everybody's watching. You know, half of the people are really insecure about their body, so they worried about X, Y, Z. So it's. It's not as pleasant as. [00:57:34] Speaker A: Nah, it's still a naked woman. I'm probably going to have a physical reaction, you know what I'm saying? I'm probably gonna have a physical reaction. And we got to cut. [00:57:45] Speaker C: I swear, bro, that sexual harassment gonna make you be like, hey, so wait. [00:57:52] Speaker A: Wait, wait, hold on. That's not fair. You can't have me with a naked woman, right? Like, especially Angela Valdez. I'm having a physical reaction. You know what I'm saying? [00:58:02] Speaker B: You're getting fired. [00:58:02] Speaker C: You getting fired, bro. [00:58:04] Speaker A: Effie, I'm having a physical reaction. Like, I'm just saying, right? [00:58:09] Speaker B: He got a. He got a whole hit list of power characters that he wanted. [00:58:13] Speaker C: That's crazy. [00:58:14] Speaker A: I need to start with Angie. But I'm just saying. [00:58:18] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:58:18] Speaker A: If I don't give what I got on a sock, a shoe, I'm telling you, bro, the Hulk is coming out. You know what I'm saying? [00:58:25] Speaker B: The Hulk pause. [00:58:27] Speaker A: I'm just saying, like, that's crazy. And then the sliding also, that's Cap, too, because the slip that they get, I have my friend, she's an actress, right? [00:58:34] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:58:35] Speaker A: So she told me about the slip that they have. But that's Cap, too, because women could do they thing with friction. So the slip that don't really do. You know what I'm saying? You get what I'm picking on What I'M putting down. [00:58:45] Speaker C: I get what you think. [00:58:46] Speaker B: How. How does your partner receive those type of roles? Whether if it's just kissing or anything. [00:58:55] Speaker C: Intimate, she's so lit that she know there's a job, you know? And she's also an artist. Yeah, she also an artist, too. And then for me, I make her feel so comfortable about everything. Like, we talk it out, we talk everything through. At this point, it's just like, yo, she was like. In one of the videos, she had one of the illest ideas of the most raunchiest shit. And out of all of the videos, and she was like, yo, I think you should put her on a pool table, look at her and get the shot like this. Lift her up so they show your muscles. Grab her ass. I'm like, oh, okay. Yeah. What else? [00:59:24] Speaker B: Y'all locked in? [00:59:26] Speaker A: Wait, what you going for that with my nigga? [00:59:28] Speaker B: No, I never could date an actor. Cause I know what I'm thinking in my head. I just told you I'm ready to go back and see what's happening. So, no, I couldn't. I don't think that I'm that secure enough. And that's just me being transparent and self aware. [00:59:42] Speaker C: That's real. If you know yourself, then that's lit. You save a lot of headaches. [00:59:46] Speaker A: Speaking of which, when it comes to the shows, like, obviously, you're an entertainer. You've been entertaining since you were a kid at this point. Right. A lot of people don't put work into their shows. [00:59:56] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:59:57] Speaker A: And you were talking about how she kind of encourages you to do different things and stuff like that. Do you approach the shows in the same way that you do the acting as far as, like, showmanship? Absolutely. Okay. [01:00:06] Speaker C: Absolutely. We bring women on stage. [01:00:07] Speaker A: Yeah. Do the whole thing. [01:00:08] Speaker C: They twerking. I'm thrusting everything lit. It's an experience. You know what I mean? So, like, we giving out roses, we taking shirts off. We, you know, grabbing necks. Like, it's. Everything is lit. The show. My. My show. Our show is different, yo. Like, it's different. So, like, again, because we get an R and B, but then you get an Afro and you get. So this. You getting sensual, but then you get aggressive at the same time. So it's OD lit. Super lit. [01:00:33] Speaker A: For sure. [01:00:33] Speaker C: Yes, sir. [01:00:34] Speaker B: The single is out. I love me some you yeah, yeah. Can we talk about that inspiration process, man? [01:00:41] Speaker C: I love me Yes. I love me some you I love me some you Came about during the phase of lit in Orlando. We did. We ended up in a studio somehow. And the melody just came to my head, like, I love me some you. And it just happened, happened, happened. And then the way me and Punch would work is like, oh, voice. Note that, bro. Let's get it. Let's get it. And then I'll give melodies. If I have words, I add words. But he's already starting to pen. So it was like a natural understanding. Because then we also talked about women not having enough records that a man is saying, yo, I love you so much. No matter what you do, no matter how you feeling, like, you're so lit, like, physically, mentally, vibe, sex, everything lit about you. Like, I can't get you out of my mind. And in a swaggy way with a tempo. Nobody's doing that. So, like, with that happening, it was like, this gotta be the one to set the tone again. It's not the single off the album. It's the first one to set the tone. You get what I'm saying? And that's how we moving differently, you know, because it's all about building, you know? And we have the building blocks that be like, damn, damn, another one. Damn. Even our thought process is like, yo, some of our heavy hitters, we gonna wait till January, February to drop them, you know? Like, that's how we're moving. Cause it just has to make sense. [01:02:05] Speaker B: I'm glad you're bringing that back to the game. Because even if you think about the state of R and B is my favorite genre. So if you think about, like, the state of R and B, N S is singing, but they, like, in love with the drugs. [01:02:18] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah, yeah. [01:02:20] Speaker B: Niggas is, like, praising the drugs in the R and B. If you think about even, like, the girls, nobody's doing the whole the way Indy, Iri, she said, let me tell you why I love him on the truth. And then she gave you a whole three verses of why she love her father, her son, and her nigga. Yeah, we don't have that no more. So that's great that you. That you bring it. [01:02:42] Speaker C: Absolutely, man. Listen, man, like, I told myself, look, I'm not going to compete with people on the messy side of things. Like, that's not who I am. I'm not thirsty for attention. I don't. I don't need to lie and do this, and I don't need any of that. So the way we gonna fight is basically make the music undeniable. You know, there was a time where it was about 60% talent and then 20% individualism and then 20% marketing properly. Now it's 90% mess and 10% talent. [01:03:14] Speaker A: Yeah. [01:03:15] Speaker C: So I'm not going to dumb myself down and make that. I'm just going to give you quality, you know, and that's how we going to compete, you know, and outlive all of that mess, you know. That's the goal. [01:03:25] Speaker B: You can't give us any songs. Dancing in the rain in the video, you got to bring it back. [01:03:29] Speaker C: Oh, yeah, he actually said that. And I joke. I laughed at it, but I actually. Next time. I got to do that. [01:03:34] Speaker A: You got to do it. [01:03:35] Speaker C: I got to do it. [01:03:36] Speaker B: I need to see you on top of the car with the boombox outside somebody window singing. [01:03:42] Speaker C: Yeah. [01:03:43] Speaker A: The last thing I want to talk about is features. Because the last project of the deluxe was rich in kind of like you had a feature, a good, good handful amount of features on there. This project, not so much none. Is that intentional? [01:03:56] Speaker C: Absolutely. [01:03:57] Speaker A: What's that about intentional? [01:04:00] Speaker C: For the actual project, for the work. For the work. If people want to jump on after this comes out and do remixes, cool. But the point is, nah, we're going to show you that we did this ourselves. We're going to make you feel it and say, oh, wow, no one else held the record. No one else uplifted and made the record better. This is going to be. You're going to love who wrote to me is because I haven't given enough music to hide behind a feature. I want to show there's no hiding. We're going to make you love if top to bottom, who we are. And then if you love the record, then, yeah, feature on the remix for sure. But there's no hiding. [01:04:37] Speaker A: Gotcha. And then as far as. What about people that wanna work with you? Do you. Are you one of the people who you gotta like, you gotta wait, I'm working on my album. Or are you like, you can knock it out at the same time? [01:04:46] Speaker C: Well, I believe that. It's so funny. I was talking to my brother Harmony the other day, man, and he has a new. He has an idea. It was like, if you're dope, man, let's not get in the way of each other because of money. Like, let's. If you're dope, I do something for you, you do something for me. We work like that and you see this success in that. Like, we have a single coming out with Neo that's on his project, you know, and that is going to be an incredible situation. But Harmony also has a record on my album. And when you have that brotherhood, it's not about Money. It's about making sure that we get the best product, you know? Because why would I stand in the way of my black? Like, while we're working, this. This can go. This. This could be the record. This Neo record could be the one, you know, you just never know. So when we. When we, the Jews figured it out, bro. You know what I'm saying? [01:05:36] Speaker A: They figured it out, and so worked with each other. [01:05:38] Speaker C: Yeah, they work with each other, so we should do the same, man. [01:05:41] Speaker A: Listen, bro, you had something. [01:05:43] Speaker B: Nah, I got spit or swallow, but I'm gonna save it for when you come. [01:05:46] Speaker A: Yeah, say that for a whole question. What'd you say? No, he. [01:05:50] Speaker C: We know Gina Love bar. [01:05:52] Speaker A: Oh, yeah. [01:05:53] Speaker B: I mean, I got the cards. [01:05:55] Speaker A: No, he got. [01:05:55] Speaker C: He got. [01:05:56] Speaker A: He got something for you. [01:05:57] Speaker C: Oh, okay. [01:05:59] Speaker B: Little freestyle. [01:06:01] Speaker C: Yeah, I mean, probably. Okay, let's do it. Let's see. [01:06:10] Speaker B: You need a beat? [01:06:12] Speaker C: No, no, no. I'm. [01:06:13] Speaker A: I'm thinking that he gonna go acapella, bro. [01:06:15] Speaker B: Timmy acapella. Y'all know Gina views. I make these rap. [01:06:21] Speaker C: Which one I'm gonna go with? Y'all thinking, you know. Hold on. Let me tell you the story first, real quick. I told you about the story about Bob. I told you the story about how it was a motel I was staying in, how pow's waiting for the call. So one of the songs we started, it was literally like. Like y'all think it was a motel? $30 a day for a hotel before the money started to float. Well, Bob charged me half, like a wholesale every. Every dollar I had had to count then, way before I had all these clout friends. Then I booked the show. Then I booked it. They give me the recipe, then I cooked it. It's a big rich town, trust me, God is so great. Yeah. Through the losses, never lost faith, yeah. Powers lit, never hate ya but the music was ready. I couldn't wait. Yeah. I was grinding, grinding straight to the top. I was climbing, baby. No chains on but I was shining, baby. Everyone thought I was crazy but it's my time, time, time yeah, baby boy, it's my time yeah, baby boy, it's my time, yeah. Can't deny it's my time. Yeah. You know what I mean? [01:07:45] Speaker A: So rotimi. Oh, that did it. That was it. Did you hear her voice crack? Oh, man. [01:07:55] Speaker B: I want to know one more thing. One more thing. Power related. I know you don't be on social media. [01:07:59] Speaker C: Yeah. [01:08:00] Speaker B: But when. What was the internal conversations? Like when the intro was changed to Trey Songz. [01:08:10] Speaker A: Oh, like the internal. [01:08:11] Speaker B: Yeah, because Twitter went Crazy. In the next episode, that motherfucker would switch right back. [01:08:16] Speaker C: Hell, yeah. [01:08:16] Speaker B: What was those conversations? [01:08:17] Speaker A: What was it like in the group chat? [01:08:20] Speaker C: Nah, I think 50 wanted to just try something. And we were. He was like, what do y'all think? And Trey. Trey, my man. So I was like, yeah, let it rock. Let it rock. I guess they let it rock. [01:08:32] Speaker A: So you the reason. What? [01:08:33] Speaker C: Oh, they let it rock. [01:08:34] Speaker A: You know, Ro was the one who fucked it up. [01:08:37] Speaker B: And Twitter went, so it was your fault that. That motherfucker twitch. [01:08:41] Speaker C: I guess it's my fault. Oh, my God. Let him rock. Let him rock. Let Trey rock. [01:08:46] Speaker B: Okay, but when y'all first heard it, was y'all like, oh, yeah, this is it. Like, this is going to be hard to put Trey on there. [01:08:50] Speaker C: Well, when I didn't. Okay, So I knew the idea before I heard the record. And when he did it, it was still. To me, it was hard, but I didn't know why. But again, it's like demoitis. Familiarity, you know what I mean? So people were just stuck to what they were used to hearing. [01:09:05] Speaker B: Who was it? It's Joe, right? [01:09:07] Speaker C: It was Joe. [01:09:07] Speaker A: It was Joe. [01:09:07] Speaker B: Yeah. [01:09:08] Speaker C: So you can't go wrong with either Trey or Joe. But it was just so. You've heard this for so many years. It's like, why do anything? But nah, it was hard. I was like, let it rock. If you gonna keep it, let it rock. [01:09:19] Speaker A: Yeah. Yeah, that's. [01:09:20] Speaker B: I wish you could have been on Twitter that day. [01:09:21] Speaker C: Nah, I know, I know. [01:09:22] Speaker A: Oh, no. [01:09:23] Speaker C: Yeah. [01:09:23] Speaker A: They would have been cooking your ass. And he ain't got nothing to do with it. No, but listen, bro, you know, we heard the records. Like, I'm super impressed, to be honest with you. Not because I don't think you can. You a good artist, but because of the things that you're doing as an independent artist is a testament to what I think other artists should be doing. I say the same thing about artists like Russ, right? Where it's like, you take it into your own hands, you invest in yourself, you put yourself out there, and sometimes it works, sometimes it don't, but you just get in the game. And a lot of people are afraid to even just throw the dice, so. So I appreciate that, you know, saying. And then also, I appreciate you because it's not many people willing to share that. They don't. They're not vulnerably. I call it being vulnerably honest. Like, they're not willing to share their trials and tribulations, they shortcomings. Like I was broke. Like, even things like that, it's all like, you're not on social media, but everybody rich and famous on social media. There's not nobody, there's nobody's paying 30 at a motel on social media. All these Instagram chicks got fly ass cribs, none of them on air mattresses. It's just like, come on, bro. So I think that that's dope and I want you. I just want to encourage you to keep sharing that with the world because they need that. [01:10:31] Speaker C: Thank you. [01:10:32] Speaker A: I'm saying, but appreciate you, bro. You ain't punched. [01:10:35] Speaker C: It's important, man. I feel like everybody needs to invest in themselves. [01:10:38] Speaker A: November 1st, that album, a video for every song. And you're gonna be able to get a release date or a release schedule for a calendar schedule for the videos, the visuals. And it's on the way. [01:10:52] Speaker C: Yes, sir. [01:10:53] Speaker A: Thank you, bro. Appreciate you. [01:10:54] Speaker C: Thank you all, man. [01:10:55] Speaker A: It's Gina Views. DJ Head is effective immediately.