QLS Classic: DJ Drama Part 2

In Part 2 of DJ Drama's classic Questlove Supreme interview from late 2022, the Grammy Award-winning DJ, producer, and music executive reflects on the 2007 FBI raid that sought to shut down his groundbreaking mixtape empire. History tells a different story: rather than fold, Drama adapted, launching Generation Now and helping usher artists like Lil Uzi Vert and Jack Harlow to stardom. Drama also shares with Questlove how The Roots influenced his journey, reflecting on the relationships, resilience, and vision that transformed one of hip-hop's most defining setbacks into an enduring legacy. See omnystudio.com/listener https://omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

• 0:00Speaker 00

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  Hey, I'm Niall Rogers. This fall, I'll be driving across the country, meeting some of today's coolest and most fascinating artists. We'll explore the stories before the moments that changed everything. Because every musician remembers the moment where it all began. Experience Before the Moment, a Lincoln Original Series on the iHeart Radio app, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

• 1:07Speaker 02

  Questlove Supreme is a production of iHeart Radio.

• 1:16Speaker 02

  Good people, what's up? Of course, in part one, we talked to our good friend DJ Drama, live from T.I. Studio, actually formerly DARP Studio. DARP, as in Dallas, Austin, uh, record productions. I don't know what the R.I.P. stands for, that's what I assume it was. For you Roots fans out there, uh, this is the same studio that we recorded the song Panic for our I'll Adel Half-Life record. But yeah, you know, in part one, we talked about his early days in Philly, him coming to college, and, you know, really like trying to find himself as a DJ. And now this is part two of DJ Drama, alright? QLS, thank you.

• 2:02Speaker 02

  As a mixtape DJ, you're locking it down. But as far as now, when you're DJing in clubs, if I'm hiring you to DJ a party in, eh, 2006, 2007, how long, like, how long is your set? And are you doing just exclusive stuff that is exclusive to you? Or are you still just like doing regularly DJ stuff?

• 2:30Speaker 03

  And so really, what wound up happening was, around that time, I actually wasn't doing a lot of gigs. Because I then became DJ Drama, and I went literally from getting paid $300 from doing parties in Atlanta to them not being able to afford me. And then I was also Tip's DJ, so I was on the road. So I didn't really, I wasn't doing a lot of my own gigs. I would, I would, here and there, I would, I would get hired. But I would probably do like a two-hour set and I would, you know. But this is still a time when like, so I guess Serato was already out.

• 3:11Speaker 02

  Right.

• 3:12Speaker 03

  So I would do like big gigs, like, I remember when Vibe had like the Vibe something down here and OutKast perform, like, they would book me for that. Or like BT would book me and, you know, I was just, I was playing like, I would mix it up. I mean, I would do what was hot, but I would also, you know, kind of play some Gangsta Grill shit.

• 3:33Speaker 02

  So are you a business in terms of like now, you have a manager and an agent and, um, a staff?

• 3:42Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 3:43Speaker 02

  A office space like?

• 3:44Speaker 03

  Definitely. We had, uh, Walker Street was our, was our, was our, our office.

• 3:49Speaker 02

  Shout out to Janice.

• 3:50Speaker 03

  Shout out to Janice. Janice worked for us. We had, I had, uh, Jason Brown was, was handling all the distribution. Orlando McGee was my first manager. And yeah, because then I got, you know, the opportunity to get an album deal. I mean, I literally met with every label at one point, as far as like their interest in signing me as a DJ to do a Gangsta Grill's album, you know? And based upon my loyalty and I had known the building, I signed to Grand Hustle Atlantic. But, but yeah, I definitely had staff and a manager and, you know, we, the whole nine.

• 4:27Speaker 02

  So with dedication, like, how did that come to?

• 4:31Speaker 03

  I was on the, I was on the bus with Tip. We were on the Urban Legend Tour. He was on the phone with Wayne. I heard him talking to Wayne, and I was like, yo, let me holler at him. So I remember being on my bunk and I just got on the phone with him and I was like, what's up? And I was like, you know, and at that time, Wayne was, was doing his Squad Up mixtape thing.

• 4:51Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 4:51Speaker 03

  So I was using a lot of those songs on Gangsta Grill. So I knew he was kind of in his mixtape bag. And I was like, yo, you know, we, we gotta get one. And he was like, yeah, you know, I mean, he was already familiar with me. And I remember coming off tour for a time, and I went to Stankonia and met with Wayne and Tez. And we just kind of like went over, I brought on a bunch of instrumentals, just options of things to rap on and things of that nature. And I, I literally just came up with the name Dedication, just like, let's call it Dedication. And he was like, alright, cool. And Rob Petruzzo, who used to do all my artwork, came up with the cover, which was, you know, legendary.

• 5:31Speaker 02

  Right.

• 5:31Speaker 03

  And, you know, because by that point, Gangsta Grill's was a brand, like, you know, when I was moving them throughout the southeast or up north or what have you, people were already like, okay, if it's a Gangsta Grill's, like, we, we need it, we want it. And the Wayne tape, you know, I remember when he sent me the music and listening, and I was like, yo, this shit is different. This is not the wobbly, wobbly, dropping like his hot kid, like, he's, he's on some shit. Like, some real bars on here. And, you know, when we, I did the tape and I kind of, I had known like, yeah, this, this is, this is a moment, you know what I'm saying? And then it really turned into a moment.

• 6:13Speaker 03

  And so it was like, it was like back to back for me, because I just did Trap or Die, and then Dedication happened, and it was like Wayne was on fire from, you know, Carter to Dedication to, you know, coming into his own. And so here I am, again, this kid from Philly who went to school in Atlanta, who's now the king of the mixtapes with Tip, Jeezy, and Wayne, or like who are the hottest guys not only in the South, but now in hip-hop. And it was like, I'm in the mix, like, I'm the platform for, you know, was, was, was getting these niggas hot.

• 6:47Speaker 02

  In your mind, and this is before, you know, the Feds and the Rico stuff, but like, in your mind, what was the end game? Are you like?

• 7:00Speaker 03

  Wow, great question.

• 7:01Speaker 02

  Let me start, like, when do you, you're like, hey, I need to be puffy, or I need to start my label, or I need, like, because in your mind, you're like, whoa, I was just in college, you know?

• 7:13Speaker 03

  Facts.

• 7:14Speaker 02

  Seven years ago, now, like, I determine what the future is.

• 7:17Speaker 03

  You know what it really was? When I, when I first got hot or got popular or became that guy, the only thing that I told myself is, yo, okay, you got here. Like, from 92 to 05, like, there was a lot of legwork to get here.

• 7:36Speaker 02

  Right.

• 7:37Speaker 03

  You gotta stay here, Dram. Like, I didn't know how or what it was gonna be, but I just told myself like, yo, like, you gotta stay relevant, like, somehow, some way. And it, it happened in a lot of forms. I mean, my brother over here, like, when, at the time, when Gangsta Grill's was known for trap music and southern hip-hop to an extent, you know, at the same time, like, they, they're performing, it was at Apache Cafe or Ying Ying Cafe.

• 8:11Speaker 02

  It probably was Apache.

• 8:12Speaker 03

  It was Apache. And they, Little Brother had a show, and the bus was outside of the venue. And I came on the bus and we sat down. And I, I told them like, yo, I'm a huge fan, I have been for some time. And then, you know, they told me the same in return. And they were like, what do you think about doing a Gangsta Grill's? And I was like, what?

• 8:35Speaker 03

  What are we waiting on? But around the same time, I was getting pushback from various people, like, wait, you're gonna do a tape with who? Little Brother and Pharrell? Like, that's not Gangsta Grill's. Like, how does that make sense? And, you know, I've always looked at myself like John Singleton and Martin Scorsese. Like, I make, I can make boys in the hood, but then I can go and make Poetic Justice, and I can make Higher Learning, and I can make Baby Boy. So that was how I approached this. So that, the, the fact that people were like pushing against, this is not a platform for Little Brother, was like, so like,

• 9:16Speaker 04

  Making you want to do it?

• 9:17Speaker 03

  Put a battery in my back, like, not only like, what are y'all saying? My shit's not, and I say on the tape.

• 9:22Speaker 02

  He say, yeah, you thought my shit was gonna sound good on this?

• 9:24Speaker 03

  Yeah, like.

• 9:25Speaker 02

  And that was our mentality going into it too, like, because.

• 9:28Speaker 03

  Hence the name, you know, Separable Equal.

• 9:30Speaker 04

  Yes.

• 9:30Speaker 03

  It's so iconic in so many ways, like.

• 9:33Speaker 02

  How are you talking Wayne into, because, you know, to be, it was kind of perplexing that?

• 9:40Speaker 03

  He chose that beat.

• 9:42Speaker 02

  Really?

• 9:42Speaker 03

  He chose that beat.

• 9:43Speaker 02

  You didn't even know I was gonna ask you first?

• 9:44Speaker 03

  He chose that beat.

• 9:46Speaker 02

  Alright.

• 9:46Speaker 03

  Wayne chose, and that just shows.

• 9:48Speaker 02

  Uh, Wayne rhymed over Loving It.

• 9:49Speaker 03

  Well, no, no, no.

• 9:50Speaker 04

  Oh, he chose I'm Loving It?

• 9:51Speaker 03

  Star.

• 9:51Speaker 02

  He rhymed over Loving It, yeah.

• 9:52Speaker 03

  Well, yeah.

• 9:53Speaker 04

  Loving It.

• 9:53Speaker 02

  Hey, he rhymed over, yeah.

• 9:55Speaker 03

  He rhymed over Star, and I'm like, goddamn, like, he's killing our shit more than our shit.

• 10:01Speaker 04

  I was so anti-Wayne back then, I ain't hear none of it.

• 10:03Speaker 03

  It's crazy. You miss Dedication?

• 10:06Speaker 04

  I was, I was on the radio, I was very anti all these things, and that's what I was known for, so. But I heard that Little Brother joint though, that was dope.

• 10:14Speaker 04

  I was just like.

• 10:15Speaker 03

  But you listened to the little brother tape?

• 10:16Speaker 04

  I did. You know I did. Don't do that.

• 10:18Speaker 03

  But you was front on, so you wasn't against it. Oh yeah, she's one of the ones. Like, when are you gonna do another automatic relaxation?

• 10:24Speaker 04

  No, no, no, no. So what?

• 10:25Speaker 03

  Like.

• 10:26Speaker 04

  Cause that's in you too.

• 10:27Speaker 03

  Tyree, yeah, exactly.

• 10:28Speaker 04

  Saint K.

• 10:29Speaker 03

  Yeah, exactly, like.

• 10:30Speaker 02

  But I'm saying like.

• 10:31Speaker 03

  Like the Pharrell.

• 10:32Speaker 02

  In my mind, I was like, did you, I was like, man, maybe he helped Wayne to gunpoint, like, you better rhyme over this Philly track. Or else I'm not gonna, like.

• 10:40Speaker 03

  Nah, he was.

• 10:41Speaker 02

  He was just.

• 10:41Speaker 03

  He's from the cloth.

• 10:42Speaker 02

  He was just.

• 10:43Speaker 03

  Wayne's ahead, man.

• 10:43Speaker 02

  Big giant, yes.

• 10:44Speaker 03

  Wayne is ahead, bro.

• 10:45Speaker 02

  Fucking hip hop head.

• 10:46Speaker 03

  Yeah. You know, and, and, and for me, it was my, like, again, also coming from making automatic relaxations or coming from wanting to do this because of y'all. Like, when Little Brother approached me and when Pharrell approached me, it was so exciting for me because it was, one, it was an opportunity to branch out. And then, two, it was an opportunity to like, feel like I was giving back to my roots, no pun intended.

• 11:13Speaker 02

  Right.

• 11:13Speaker 03

  But like, like, what? Like, I can make a Little Brother gangster grills, a Pharrell gangster grills? Like, oh, man, once I open this door, that just opens the floodgates for, you know, for it to go in so many directions.

• 11:25Speaker 05

  And for us doing, I did, when we did Separate But Equal, like, cause my whole thing was like, I, I hated mix, well, I love listening to mixtapes, but I didn't wanna make a mixtape, you know what I'm saying? Like, my thing was, if I'm gonna take time to write these original rhymes, I'm not putting them shits over somebody else's tracks, you know what I'm saying? Like, I can take them new rhymes, I can put over a new beat, you know what I'm saying? And that's a new jam.

• 11:45Speaker 03

  I'm loved it, I loved that our tape was like that.

• 11:47Speaker 05

  Yeah, we only rhymed over like, maybe one instrumental, the rest of that shit was all original joints.

• 11:51Speaker 03

  Can we, can we discuss the, the no drama version, though? Like, you know, I've had a.

• 11:55Speaker 05

  Yeah, you saw it, yeah, well, for talk, yeah, but yeah.

• 11:58Speaker 03

  So now that I have you here.

• 11:59Speaker 02

  What's going on?

• 12:00Speaker 03

  What did I miss? So we did a, we did a, um, we did a, um, we did the tape, and that was in like, we did Separate But Equal, that was like oh six. It was oh six, yeah. So, maybe like, what, like, shit, two years later, like, we did, uh, we call it Drama Free Version. Because at the time, when we were.

• 12:19Speaker 02

  Ouch.

• 12:20Speaker 04

  I just caught that, I was like.

• 12:21Speaker 03

  Yeah, it was Drama Free Version. Because we had the mixtape, but like, all your drops on the stuff. But then, if, if, if I'm not, if I remember this correctly, I think who we were putting it out, we were putting the project out with, they just didn't want.

• 12:33Speaker 02

  Yeah, I mean, there was a time.

• 12:34Speaker 03

  They just wanted it straight up, you know what I mean? Cause retail wouldn't, they wouldn't put it in, like, you couldn't get in certain stores.

• 12:39Speaker 02

  Cause they felt like it was a mixtape.

• 12:40Speaker 03

  Exactly. So we was just like, alright, well, here's the records. And they was original records, and they was our fucking records. So, you know what I mean?

• 12:46Speaker 02

  Nah, I mean, I, I get it. I mean, the fact that it was called Drama Free was definitely kinda made me sad, but.

• 12:51Speaker 03

  Oh man, nah, and it wasn't no, like, that wasn't a shot at you. It was just like, it was just like, okay.

• 12:57Speaker 02

  Drama Free, like, there's no DJ Drama on here.

• 13:00Speaker 04

  It's kinda catchy though, I ain't mad at it. It's catchy as a motherfucker, it's shady.

• 13:04Speaker 03

  Nah, I'm just playing.

• 13:05Speaker 04

  Before the word shady was out.

• 13:06Speaker 03

  Listen, I got it. I mean, they're not the, you know, they're not the first person to do a version of the tape without me. I mean, Crenshaw exists on, on streaming platforms without me on it. That one hurts too, like, you know, like.

• 13:17Speaker 02

  Damn, that wasn't, oh wow, that wasn't.

• 13:19Speaker 03

  I was part of Crenshaw.

• 13:20Speaker 02

  Aren't you the, the, the spice in the?

• 13:22Speaker 03

  I'm the bells and the whistles, yeah, like. Yeah, like, that, that was the thing about G, that was what, I mean, hence why, because when I did the tape with Jeezy, like, the music didn't exist without me on it. So, all the DJs had to play the versions with me on it, and he didn't give it out without me on it. So, you would go to the club and hear gangster grills all over because the music didn't exist without me on it.

• 13:45Speaker 04

  Sounds like a do-over, it sounds like a.

• 13:47Speaker 02

  I don't know, it's like, almost hearing a, a dilla joint without the, the siren and the dilla, dilla, beats, beats.

• 13:52Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 13:53Speaker 02

  Like, he thought he was fucking his shit up, like, nobody will rhyme over this shit, and to me, that's.

• 13:56Speaker 03

  That made it better. I mean, yeah, I mean, you know, I, I, like, to me, it would hurt, like, I've never listened to the Separate But Equal Drama Free Version, like, I don't even. It would hurt my soul to even hear it.

• 14:08Speaker 05

  To be honest, yo, this, I think the Separate But Equal Drama Free Version, so, and it's crazy, I thought it was me, you have never talked about none of this shit. So, man, when we did that, uh, we did that record, and I always just wanted to thank you, man, because I sent you those records, like, when, uh, our manager at the time, Doe, me and Pooh had finished everything, and I just put the records in a sequence. I put all the songs in the sequence, skits, like, everything. And I was like, I think this worked, but whatever, I'm sure Drama do his thing, he'll change it up, whatever, I trust him. And so, when they sent it back, we were on tour, and Doe was like, yo, Drama just sent the joint. And I was like, alright, cool, and I opened it up, cause this is, you know, MP3s, so you will open it and see the track listing first before you load the shit up.

• 14:51Speaker 05

  And you kept the track listing the exact same way I did it, and I was like, holy shit, you know what I mean? Like, that was just a big honor for me, you know what I mean?

• 14:58Speaker 03

  When I listened to it and I heard it, and then I heard it in the way that the, the skits were and everything, like, I'm not, like, you know, I know, part of my job is, you know, there's people that want me to put it in an order, or, or however, to do my thing, but I'm not gonna mess with something that's already dope. You know what I'm saying? So for me, it was already, like, okay, I, I, here's my bells and my whistles, but if this shit flows the way it flows, like, why, why change perfection, you know what I'm saying?

• 15:29Speaker 05

  Thank you, so, nah, I always appreciated that, man.

• 15:31Speaker 03

  Bro, like, I mean, you, like, the Little Brother and the Pharrell tape, like, came out at the time, and it came out literally like, back to back. And those tapes were, are so important to me, because again, like, you know, from where I come from, from the cloth that I come from, and for what I was being known for at the time, and not that I was fighting against it, but it was like, yo, like, I wanna show the world, like, I am hip hop, like, to its full, like, I am from the cloth. You know what I mean? And to be able to do those two projects were like.

• 16:02Speaker 05

  Nah, that, right, no, we both had a point to prove, cause you had a, you, we both had a point to fucking prove, because for you, you know, you said it was proven, like, we're from that cloth. For us at that time, you know, we were coming off the minstrel show, and it was just like, ah, them niggas, they just some backpack hate niggas, and it was like, no, we fucking rap. You know what I mean? And it was just like, look, it don't matter if it's trap shit, whatever, like, just be dope, you know what I mean?

• 16:24Speaker 03

  So it was like, even that, in, in that sense of what people were looking at was southern hip hop, and then, you know, us doing that tape and Separate But Equal, like, as a title, and y'all being from the south, like, it all, it all just made, it was, it was great, it was a great moment.

• 16:40Speaker 05

  Nah, it really was, man, and I, that was just, I'm so thankful that, you know, our paths, like, crossed in the way it did. That shit was amazing.

• 16:45Speaker 03

  Amazing.

• 16:45Speaker 02

  I've know that you rehash the story over and over and over and over and over again, so I'm trying not to beat an, an already dead horse that you move past. I mean, the question is basically, like, in 2007.

• 17:02Speaker 03

  Yep.

• 17:02Speaker 02

  I'm trying to figure out how an industry that utilizes you to break open their artists. Like, and again, I'm a staunch East Coast head, you know.

• 17:18Speaker 03

  Right.

• 17:19Speaker 02

  Tariq himself, listening to nothing but your, your mixtapes. So this is how I'm learning about Wayne, like, this is how I'm getting my, my education on what I need to learn about the rest of America, except my, my niche. And I'm trying to, like, and I understand that there was a period between 2003 and 2008, especially like, with record labels not knowing, like, if they're gonna survive, now the streaming culture, like, you know, we already had the.

• 17:47Speaker 04

  LimeWire, Napster.

• 17:48Speaker 02

  Yeah, like.

• 17:49Speaker 03

  Go with Napster.

• 17:50Speaker 02

  Yeah, like around 2003, whatever, like, that shit starts, but I'm trying to figure out how, like, like, you were definitely utilized.

• 17:59Speaker 03

  A hundred percent.

• 18:00Speaker 02

  And used.

• 18:01Speaker 03

  Right, by the labels.

• 18:02Speaker 02

  To, to break open people.

• 18:03Speaker 03

  Mm-hmm.

• 18:05Speaker 02

  Like, so, just in general, and not like, from a one to 10, how shocked were you when you came home and like, wait, what the fuck is this? Like, did you, did you have an inkling of a clue, like?

• 18:15Speaker 03

  None.

• 18:16Speaker 02

  Or even, even when the shit was selling like, hotcakes?

• 18:19Speaker 03

  Twelve.

• 18:20Speaker 02

  Even when shit was selling like, hotcakes, was there any person that was sort of like, have you ever received pushback from anyone that, like, you rhymed an instrumental over and like, Jeezy's like, hey, why'd you use frontin', or why?

• 18:33Speaker 03

  Never.

• 18:34Speaker 05

  It wasn't on the artist, like, that was a badge of honor to have someone, like, rap over your joint, it wasn't that.

• 18:39Speaker 03

  So, I mean, we, there's a, there's a, there's a lot to unpack here, and again, I know I've told the story. One part about it is, first off, it shows the disconnect within the labels, right? So as much as the marketing departments loved me, or the mix show departments, or, you know, the promotion department, how much I meant to them, the legal department of a label didn't understand.

• 19:07Speaker 02

  They have a clue.

• 19:08Speaker 03

  They don't, they don't get it, like, what, wait, what? Like, that, that's not cleared, like, we're not, you know, wait, hold on. So there, you know, I was friends with the promotions and the marketing side, but, you know, yeah, the legal department didn't. It didn't make sense to them, why are we giving this free music out? And then, this is also a time where, outside of my mixtapes, there were hundreds of other mixtapes that weren't sanctioned, that people were, you know, however, getting MP3s, hacking, for whatever way they were getting them, music was coming out that people didn't give permission for. And then, on top of that, around this time,

• 19:51Speaker 03

  these mixtapes, Mines and others, started to show up in Best Buys and in Targets and in Walmarts with barcodes on them.

• 20:00Speaker 05

  And that, yes.

• 20:01Speaker 03

  So in that, you know, and that made it confusing. And I, and I just spoke about this on Math Hoffa, because they brought up, you know, after I got raided, one of the people they asked about, what do you think about what happened to Dram? Was Wayne, and Wayne said-

• 20:15Speaker 05

  Play the game fair.

• 20:16Speaker 03

  Dram needs to play, be, Dram needs to play the game fair or smarter, like Clu or Khalid or something of that.

• 20:25Speaker 05

  But is it the same?

• 20:26Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 20:26Speaker 03

  I mean, the reason why I never took offense to it is because, you know, when these, when these, because there's all, there was a, a street code that went along with mixtapes, for promotional use only, right? Everybody knew that we were making money, and, you know, that's how I was supporting myself. But, when they started, when the mixtapes started to show up in the stores with barcodes, as an artist, I could understand how one could feel the type of way.

• 20:55Speaker 05

  It ain't promotional use.

• 20:56Speaker 03

  Yeah, cuz they're like, wait, hold on, why is this, why is my shit in Target with a barcode and I'm not seeing a dollar from it?

• 21:02Speaker 04

  Cuz they're okay not seeing a dollar if you're just selling it the way you're selling it, like, from-

• 21:06Speaker 03

  To an extent, I mean, again, now, looking, looking back on it, if, at, at, at the wise age of forty-four that I am now, in, in my twenties, the type of money that I was making, and I would, you know, I would have easily thrown someone at twenty-five or fifty, if I'm making X amount of dollars. Like, just as a quick thank you, it would've, it would've been a nice gesture, like, but it, you know, on the, on the other end, these guys are going and doing shows for a hundred and fifty, two hundred thousand dollars off of-

• 21:34Speaker 05

  Off of what we're building.

• 21:36Speaker 03

  What we've built together, so, you know, I don't count anyone's pockets, nor did I feel like anyone should count mine.

• 21:41Speaker 05

  And to be fair, and just, I mean, again, we've just started now, but, you know, I never felt, you know, me and I can speak, you know, from my brother Pooh as well, for us, it was never that, like-

• 21:50Speaker 03

  Did ours show up with a barcode?

• 21:52Speaker 05

  No, it didn't. I was just up on a barcode, I remember, like, watching it on the news and seeing, like, when they was taking, like, the shit out-

• 22:01Speaker 03

  CDs.

• 22:02Speaker 05

  And they separate-

• 22:02Speaker 03

  Separate records was there.

• 22:03Speaker 05

  Bro, I was like, what the fuck?

• 22:06Speaker 03

  They saw your joint on the news.

• 22:07Speaker 05

  Hell yeah, you see the goddamn police carrying your shit outside, nigga, what?

• 22:10Speaker 03

  I remember, yeah, y'all was there.

• 22:11Speaker 05

  Bruh, that shit was nuts, so, but, yeah, but for us, like you said, it was just a code of honor, it was just understood, it's like, okay, we do the take, you know, Dram, he gonna move it on our end,

• 22:20Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 22:21Speaker 05

  We'll do whatever on our end, we'll do press it shows, whatever. Like, it was just, you know what I mean, it was a mutually beneficial thing.

• 22:28Speaker 03

  And it was like that for most people, but, yeah, I think all those things came into play, I think the fact that, you know, two, two thousand and seven was a very pivotal year for the music business, where, you know, it was a transition and, you know, the, the, the, the bottom line wasn't, wasn't adding up for them, and there's, there's many theories, or conspiracy theories, or, you know, let's take the big guy out to shut this down, however, you know, hence, I don't, you know, I do know that for a fact, that people were told, artists were told, like, yo, if, when, when Dram's situation comes up, don't speak on it, like, leave that alone, you know what I'm saying? Or, you know, nobody necessarily, people used to ask me in interviews, like, did you feel the type of way when nobody spoke up for you?

• 23:13Speaker 03

  And I was like, honestly, not really, like, you know, like, there were a couple people behind the scenes I talked to, you know, just, that, that, that reached out or what have you, and then-

• 23:23Speaker 05

  Yeah, well, us, when you got, when, when it happened for us specifically, so, yeah, that was like oh six, oh seven, we did the And Justice For All, was it oh seven, oh eight? We did the-

• 23:32Speaker 03

  It was January, it was January oh, oh seven when my shit happened.

• 23:36Speaker 05

  Okay, it was January seventh, so, I think maybe it's the next year, maybe it was oh eight or later that year, anyway, we did, um, Mick Boogie Tape, uh, And Justice For All.

• 23:45Speaker 03

  I remember that.

• 23:45Speaker 05

  Yeah, and I hit, uh, I was telling me, I said-

• 23:47Speaker 03

  So y'all did that before the raid or after the raid?

• 23:49Speaker 05

  That was after the raid.

• 23:50Speaker 03

  Got you.

• 23:50Speaker 05

  That was after the raid, and, cuz I was telling Mick, I was like, yo, bro, like, we gotta get Dram speaking on this, cuz the first record on that tape was Can't Stop, it was a record called Can't Stop, is where we was talking about that shit.

• 23:59Speaker 03

  Hmm.

• 24:00Speaker 05

  And it was just like, I said, nah, bruh, like, we gotta get Dram talking, cuz they not, they not gonna, we not letting them shut this shit down, like, fuck y'all.

• 24:07Speaker 03

  I mean, I felt the type of way, like, I, I felt a lot of guilt at the time, cuz I'm like, damn, like, this is a culture, like, I grew up loving, you know what I'm saying, like, and I can't let this shit die on my shoulders, like, like, damn.

• 24:20Speaker 02

  You felt like you killed the mixtape game?

• 24:22Speaker 03

  For a moment, for a moment, I did.

• 24:24Speaker 02

  Metaphorically and literally.

• 24:25Speaker 03

  Yeah, like, I felt like, damn, the downfall of the fucking mixtape game is gonna happen when I become the top of the food chain, and like, you know, I, I, I spent a lot of time, like, you know, I still went and put tapes out right after that, and-

• 24:40Speaker 02

  How long was it until you looked both ways, where you crossed the street and like-

• 24:44Speaker 03

  Oh, I put a tape out like a month, two after, like, I did like Gangsta Girls sixteen, and, and was just talking crazy on there, like, you know, and I, I, I remember the first big, the, the, the first big mixtape that I probably did was Dedication Three. And then I remember, you know, that was after, you know, Wayne had went and said, like, fuck mixtape DJs or fuck DJs or something, and then he called in my radio show and we cleared that up, and then, you know, we went on to do Dedication Three. Um, but, yeah, I mean, again, I was like, you know, I had a point to prove, like, yo, I'm, I'm not, first, you know, and then Atlantic Records called, literally the next day, like, oh my god, how fast can we get your album done, like, we can't pay for this type of publicity, so-

• 25:27Speaker 04

  What?

• 25:27Speaker 02

  Was it Riggs?

• 25:28Speaker 05

  Cuz the record-

• 25:29Speaker 02

  Was it Riggs?

• 25:30Speaker 03

  Riggs, Riggs actually did all the skits on my first album.

• 25:33Speaker 02

  Okay.

• 25:33Speaker 03

  So Riggs did the, I mean, it was, it was literally Julie and Craig, and I think Kevin was still there at the time, and, and Kai's, and then they all called, like, yo, we, we can't pay for this type of publicity, how soon can you turn your album in? You know, my, my first single actually was titled Fed's Taking Pictures.

• 25:50Speaker 05

  Taking Pictures, yeah.

• 25:51Speaker 03

  Yeah, so, you know, I wanna, I wanna-

• 25:53Speaker 05

  I wanna own it, you had that beneath the diamonds joint.

• 25:55Speaker 03

  Oh, I love that.

• 25:55Speaker 05

  I love, that was my joint.

• 25:56Speaker 03

  That was the shit.

• 25:58Speaker 04

  For some reason, when that happened to you, I feel like a lot of people who knew you, we felt like it couldn't have happened to some better person who had resource or was prepared for it in a way, I don't know how to explain it to you, but, we felt like, we knew you were gonna be okay, cuz you were smart as fuck.

• 26:14Speaker 03

  Right.

• 26:14Speaker 04

  And because, but, is that another reason as to why it felt like it kinda came and went in a way, resource-

• 26:22Speaker 03

  Well, well, for me, I mean, you know, again, I mean, it, it literally made me more famous than I ever was, I mean, I, next thing I know-

• 26:28Speaker 04

  Oh, so you never had a cry moment, you was like-

• 26:30Speaker 03

  I, the only cry moment I had is the next day I got out, and I wasn't familiar with, with the Rico was, and then I called Tip, and Tip was like, bro, they hit you with the Rico, like, check your bank account. My bank account said zero point zero zero, after having six figures in it, so, I definitely shed a tear. Um, but after that-

• 26:49Speaker 02

  Did they return your stuff? Like, where is-

• 26:52Speaker 03

  No, they kept, they, so I had, we had two accounts.

• 26:54Speaker 02

  Just for a museum's sake, like, where is that stuff?

• 26:57Speaker 03

  Well, they gave back, what did they, they gave back the equipment, they gave back one of our accounts, they gave back the account that ironically was like, the, the label budget account, but, but the, the, the Drama, like, the DJ, or the DJ Drama account that I had, with, where, where most of the money was, they kept that, because they, they said they couldn't differentiate what was, what was what, so, we're keeping all of this.

• 27:23Speaker 04

  But how long did it take to replace that, it wasn't that long?

• 27:25Speaker 03

  I started making money, I mean, you know, I got it back, I got, I got back up, you know, didn't take me too long.

• 27:31Speaker 02

  Obviously, it was a performative, actually, like, what was the, the-

• 27:35Speaker 05

  The end result.

• 27:36Speaker 02

  The lesson learned, like-

• 27:37Speaker 03

  Yeah, I mean, you know-

• 27:38Speaker 02

  What's the moral of the story?

• 27:39Speaker 03

  The RIAA, you know, and around that time, me and Cannon had kinda, had a fallen out, and, you know, we went our separate ways for a moment, but the RIAA made us do this, like, PSA, where it was like, hey, kids, like,

• 27:53Speaker 02

  What?

• 27:53Speaker 03

  Don't sell music, yeah, like-

• 27:56Speaker 02

  Keep chilling and shit, they treat us good.

• 27:59Speaker 03

  Yeah, like, it never came, they never put it out, but they, they made it, we, we shot it at, um, Tree Sounds, and-

• 28:05Speaker 05

  Oh, man.

• 28:06Speaker 03

  They literally, like, you know, gave us a script, like, if you make music-

• 28:09Speaker 02

  Do you have a copy of it?

• 28:10Speaker 03

  I wish I did.

• 28:11Speaker 02

  Yo, man, you gotta put, you gotta find that joint, put it on your Instagram.

• 28:14Speaker 03

  I know it exists, it has to, and this, this was literally the first time me and Cannon had seen each other in a while, and they, we had to do it, you know, part of the agreement was us doing that PSA that they never put out, but it's like, you know, like, for me, like Laiya said, like, when I was doing interviews, I, I remember saying, like, yo, this is not the end of my story, like, this is one chapter, like, you know, and, for me, it was like, yeah, this is just, you know, everybody, anybody who's anybody gets hit with some type of adversity, and this is just my, my, my first, you know, my first real challenge, and, you know, I'm a, I'm a, I'm a be here, like, I've been here, and at the time, I had, you know, been here to, up to that extent, not knowing what, what life had

• 28:57Speaker 03

  in, in, uh, in mind for me up to this point, but it was like, yeah, like, this is just one chapter in my story, this is not the last chapter, like, watch what I do.

• 29:10Speaker 00

  Hey, it's Niall Rogers, host of Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series. I'm driving across the country, meeting some of today's most fascinating artists. We're exploring the stories before the moment that changed everything. This week, I'm joined by Miguel.

• 29:28Speaker 06

  Man, I'm a black and Mexican kid from San Pedro, and I grew up in Inglewood as well. I never liked to be boxed in. Both of my parents colored outside of the line. I mean, even them being together at the time in L.A. was just not typical. And so I think that has always been a part of my DNA. There's a defiant something in me that feels like what we get to do with what we're given that's greater than us is to maybe connect people to ideas that they wouldn't naturally, you know, connect to. That's really me. I'm just kind of like defiant with love, though.

• 30:04Speaker 00

  Experience Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series on the iHeart Radio app, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

• 30:13Speaker 07

  This is Colin Coward from the Colin Coward Podcast. Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota affordability. All starts with a great deal on an off-road ready Tacoma or a half-ton Tundra, two of Toyota's most capable and longest-lasting trucks. Built on a reputation for quality and reliability, Toyota trucks are known for holding their value, which could mean big savings when it's time for your next Toyota. For a great deal today to a great value tomorrow, shop toyota.com. Toyota, let's go places.

• 30:46Speaker 00

  Hey, it's Niall Rogers, host of Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series. I'm driving across the country, meeting some of today's most fascinating artists. We're exploring the stories before the moment that changed everything. This week, I'm joined by Miguel.

• 31:04Speaker 06

  My small experience with the discrepancy in the business of music made me angry in the best way, and I wanted to finish. So I started really leaning into my therapy, trying to get down to like what matters now. Somewhere, Miguelito felt like he didn't have a place to say how he felt, and music was the place that I went to to say how I felt.

• 31:26Speaker 00

  Experience Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series on the iHeart Radio app, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, it's Lunchbox from the Bobby Bones Show. Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota affordability, and it starts with a great deal on an all-wheel-drive Camry, Corolla Cross, or a Corolla Sedan with the latest features in tech. Or test drive a spacious Grand Highlander or an adventure-ready RAV4. And with so many hybrid models available, you can enjoy longer trips without all the stops, while Toyota's legendary resale value means you could get more at trade-in. Get a deal today and great value tomorrow. Shop toyota.com for deals and details.

• 32:10Speaker 00

  Toyota, let's go places.

• 32:15Speaker 03

  Man, I always wanted to ask you about the artist storytelling three.

• 32:18Speaker 05

  I was just about to bring that up.

• 32:19Speaker 03

  Come on, man. How did that come together?

• 32:22Speaker 05

  Three or four?

• 32:22Speaker 03

  Four.

• 32:23Speaker 05

  Oh, four, I'm sorry. I was like, wait, there's a three?

• 32:26Speaker 03

  Yeah, there is a three. That's why it's four. Big Boy has to tell you where the three exists, because he told me, because that's why we artist storytelling four.

• 32:33Speaker 05

  Okay.

• 32:33Speaker 03

  But I was supposed to do an Idyllwild Gangsta Grills.

• 32:37Speaker 05

  Oh, wow, okay. Really?

• 32:39Speaker 03

  Yeah, I was supposed to do a tape around that time. They were gonna go, we were gonna do a tape pre-IDyllwild, going into the project. Me, Stacks, Big, and their manager Blue got on the phone, and they came to me like, yo, we want to do a Gangsta Grills. And I was like, hell, motherfucking, yeah. And then a few months later, they called and was like, listen, bro, we're just buckled down with the movie and the soundtrack, and we, you know, we apologize, but we don't have time to do the tape. And they were like, but how about we offer you a song for your album? And I was like, hell, yeah, like, of course.

• 33:18Speaker 03

  So I started the process of literally sending 3,000 beats from every big-known-name producer out at the time, you know, because this is the time when I was doing the first Gangsta Grills album. Gangsta Grills was the biggest thing going, so everybody was pretty much giving me beats, and I would send them to 3,000, and he would be like, nah, nah, nah. He would pretty much turn everything down. One of the last tapes I made before the raid was Jim Jones' Seven Day Theory tape.

• 33:48Speaker 05

  From We Set the Trend?

• 33:49Speaker 03

  No, well, no, no, I mean, yeah, that Jim Jones. Yeah. With the tape, our first tape was called The Seven Day Theory, which was a fire tape. Max B is all over there. Rest in peace, Stack was on there. You know, that was when, that was when he created Bird Gang. And there was a beat on that tape, and I asked Cannon to make me a beat similar to that beat. So Cannon made the beat, and then we had gotten, the raid had happened, and Lake was actually managing Marsha at the time.

• 34:25Speaker 05

  Oh, okay.

• 34:26Speaker 03

  So, so I sent the beat to Marsha, and I told Marsha, I was like, yo, like, look, like, man, they just locked us up, like, people saying this is the end for me, like, I need something like, nothing's gonna stop us, like, I'm gonna be here, like, you can't stop us. And she literally like, took what I said and turned it into the hook, and I sent the record to 3,000, and he said, I'mma call you tomorrow. 24 hours later, he sends me back his verse of Artist Storytelling Part Four, and I just was like, I couldn't believe it that I had an Andre 3000 verse, like, and on top of a Don Cannon beat, like.

• 35:10Speaker 03

  So then I went to Stankonia, and I played it for Big. I think at the time, I was like, I was still trying to figure out what record Big had wanted to be on. I played him a couple of records, and then when I played him now, he was like, oh, what are we talking about? I'm doing this. So he did his verse, and then Big was like, yo, we should call it Artist Storytelling Part Four, and then hence, you know, I literally have a fucking OutKast record on my album. And then, you know, I wish I would have knew then, I wish I would have knew now what I knew then, because 3000 offered to do the video, and he was just like, yo, I just need 100,000 from the label. And me not, me not as knowledgeable as I was then, I kind of let the opportunity like,

• 35:55Speaker 03

  pass, and looking back on it, I would have told the label, give me fucking 100 grand to give this man for this record. Like, we probably could have got a Grammy nomination out of that, you know what I'm saying? If it would have literally happened. But, I mean, it's still an amazing record, you know? How many DJs can say they have an OutKast record? Like, it's one of my proudest moments in my career.

• 36:16Speaker 04

  And you still got a Grammy.

• 36:18Speaker 03

  Yeah, I still wound up getting a Grammy.

• 36:19Speaker 05

  Well, how did you approach making the transition from DJ to executive?

• 36:24Speaker 03

  Naturally, honestly, I mean, it was just like, you know, again, relevancy has always been very key for me in my career, and like, staying on the cusp. And I think a lot of that comes from being a mixtape DJ, and like, just like my addiction to new shit, like, my fascination of like, what's next, you know what I'm saying? And not kind of letting myself get boxed into one thing, you know? Like, there was a tweet somebody put out, was like, yo, DJ Drama literally went from The Roots in Bahama Dia, to Tip, Cheezy, and Wayne, to Lil Uzi and Jack Harlow, like, give this man his flowers.

• 37:03Speaker 04

  That's hip-hop.

• 37:04Speaker 03

  Yeah, and that's exactly what it is. So, you know, just around, I had, when I was making my albums, I had left Atlantic and went to E1, and, you know, I was still using a lot of the staff over at Atlantic, just kind of independently to work my records and things of that nature. And I started to make like, records that were having success, like, Oh My, like, My Moment, and so when I was doing that, one of the people, you know, I used to have Sam Crespo work my records.

• 37:34Speaker 05

  Man, Sam Crespo.

• 37:36Speaker 03

  My brother Sam, and Sam was like, yo, you should, like, think about being an A&R, like, you know, I should bring the idea to Julie and Craig, like, you know, you're putting together some real good records, like, maybe it could be an opportunity for you to come in the building and be an A&R. And I was like, I'm down. So he mentioned it to Julie and Craig, and, you know, clearly, you know, they were like, Drum, that's our guy, like, we love Drum. So I flew to New York, I had a meeting with Craig Julian Kaiser, and they were like, you know, are you interested in, you know, coming, coming over here as an A&R? And I was like, yeah. And then I was like, oh, yeah, by the way, I'm building a studio in Atlanta that, you know, you guys might want to partner with me on.

• 38:20Speaker 03

  And at the time, Kwan Prather, KP, was Vice President at Atlantic. He was working out of another studio. They sent him over to my spot, Mean Streets, to check it out, to see, you know, what he thought. And he was like, oh, yeah, this is dope, like, this could be a thing for us. So part of my deal when I came over as an A&R was also for Atlantic to be partners with me on Mean Streets. So I literally, you know, took their money and built the rest of Mean Streets up, you know, from what I had already built from it. And when I got there, I really was kind of trying to find my way. They had put me with like, artists that were already on the label to try to work with,

• 39:05Speaker 03

  and it just wasn't, it wasn't meshing, like, it wasn't, you know, I would go to A&R meetings and things, and, you know, they would, they would give me artists to try to work with, and it just kind of, it wasn't.

• 39:16Speaker 05

  Do you remember who they were trying to put you with at the time? Did anybody you can name?

• 39:19Speaker 03

  So Spenzo, Boosie, Cap G was KP's guy, and he was there, he was around, but, you know, he was, those were, those were some of their, the artists that, you know, early on, they kind of wanted me to quote-unquote, I guess, A&R, be a part of. And then also, Thug was, you know, I happened to be the closest thing to Thug in those days, that they felt like. Could be of assistance to help with Thug and, you know, getting music or, you know.

• 39:53Speaker 04

  Young, not Slim. I'm sorry. It's a few of them.

• 39:55Speaker 05

  Young Thug.

• 39:56Speaker 04

  Okay, okay.

• 39:58Speaker 03

  Yeah, Young Thug, not Slim Thug. Yeah, shout to Slim Thug. He's got a gangsta grills too, though. But, so, yeah, Thug was working a lot of Mean Streets, so, you know, I was kinda in the mix with Thug and Atlantic and, you know, just trying to make that whole thing kinda work out. And it went how it went. But we also, you know, myself, Lake and Cannon, you know, when Cannon was Vice President of Def Jam around the time I got my gig. And then we had missed out on a couple of opportunities of artists. I took Migos to New York for the first time and presented them to Alan Grunblatt, and he offered them pennies. And, you know, they went and did the right thing and went to QC.

• 40:42Speaker 03

  Shout to Coach and P. You know, those are my guys. You know, we kinda started our labels around the same time. But me, Cannon and Lake were like, yo, we can't miss nothing else. Like, we're not missing nothing else.

• 40:53Speaker 05

  I was gonna say, besides Migos, who?

• 40:55Speaker 03

  So Tory Lanez. I wanted to sign Tory, OT Genesis, T-Fly. I actually wanted to sign T-Fly. So those are a few that, you know, were in the midst of us and, you know, when we were trying to figure out the label thing or signing artists around the time. Cannon came back one day and just was like, yo, I heard this kid, Lil Uzi Vert. And I was like, let's do it. Get him.

• 41:23Speaker 05

  Sight unseen?

• 41:25Speaker 03

  Unseen.

• 41:26Speaker 05

  That is crazy.

• 41:26Speaker 00

  If you believe, your man believe in it, it's like, all right, fuck it, let's go.

• 41:29Speaker 03

  Never heard nothing, didn't know nothing. Where's he at? What are we doing? Like, and it was...

• 41:36Speaker 05

  This is around what year?

• 41:38Speaker 03

  This was 2014?

• 41:43Speaker 05

  Oh.

• 41:44Speaker 03

  Yeah, 2014.

• 41:45Speaker 05

  Wait, that's when?

• 41:46Speaker 03

  Yeah, we signed Uzi 2015.

• 41:47Speaker 05

  I was about to say, I know that we had Uzi on the Roots Pick like way before he had a deal.

• 41:52Speaker 03

  No, you did him...

• 41:53Speaker 05

  That was like 2016.

• 41:55Speaker 03

  When he was opening the picnic.

• 41:57Speaker 05

  Yeah, 60.

• 41:57Speaker 03

  That he did Roots Picnic.

• 41:59Speaker 05

  Okay.

• 42:00Speaker 03

  Money long. It was money long. It was before EXO Tour Life. It was money longer days when he did Roots Picnic. Cause I did it in 2017. Cause when I brought Lil Baby...

• 42:11Speaker 04

  Yeah, y'all had that stage going.

• 42:13Speaker 03

  They were looking like, who is this guy? Like, I remember that. I brought Baby to Roots Picnic. And I think that was right before the Drake record. Like, or maybe the Drake record had just came out. But literally, I remember the crowd like not understanding, like, I just brought y'all Lil Baby, like, here. But, so, yeah, so, we signed, so, we signed... Scheme, Scheme actually was our first artist that we signed. Shout to Scheme. He's kinda mad at me cause I haven't brought his name up when I talk about the label. So we signed Scheme, and we signed Uzi, and we were trying to sign this group called The Wedding Crashers, which Quentin Miller was a part of.

• 42:54Speaker 05

  Ah, got it.

• 42:55Speaker 03

  So, we named it Generation Now. Generation Now was actually a mixtape title that I had used early on, before Little Brother and the Pharrell tapes. I had gotten drops from Kanye West. He was opening up for Talib Kweli, wound up getting drops from Kanye West. I also got some drops from Joe Button. And it wasn't, it was like, damn, this is not gangsta grills. This doesn't feel gangsta grills. So I needed another title for another brand. So I came up with Generation Now. Years later, we wound up double backing when we were looking for a title for the label. And I was like, what about Generation Now? So the guys were like, yeah, that's fire. So we, Atlantic was on the verge of firing me.

• 43:36Speaker 03

  Like, I was two years into my deal, and they were looking at it like, look, we just paid DJ Drama all this money.

• 43:44Speaker 05

  He ain't bought us yet.

• 43:45Speaker 03

  We done, we put all this money into this studio. Like, what are we doing? What's going on? Like, where's our, where's our return? Craig Kalman came to Atlanta. We sat in the radio room of the, of Mean Streets, and he said, look, Drama, I believe in you, you know, I don't wanna let you go. Like, let's just do a one-year deal. We're gonna, we'll stay partners on the studio, and we'll just, you just, you guys just focus on Uzi. Like, we'll just, you guys just focus on Lil Uzi. And I was like, cool. Like, I'm with that. Like, okay, cool.

• 44:24Speaker 03

  And next thing you know, you know, Love is Rage comes out. Mean Streets becomes the go-to studio in Atlanta. And the tables turned within six months in 180. And, you know, it was like, told you.

• 44:41Speaker 04

  Not going anywhere.

• 44:42Speaker 05

  Your ancestors are watching you and guiding you, man. How did Jack get on y'all's radar? Cause for me, Jack, he was, the record, and I don't think, this was before Generation Now. My record was Sundown. Like, that was the one that I heard. I was like, this shit hard.

• 44:57Speaker 03

  He was on Generation Now.

• 44:57Speaker 05

  That was Generation Now? Oh, then, okay.

• 44:59Speaker 03

  He had put out a record called Dark Knight. That was the one that really forced our hand. But we had heard of him before them. A friend of mine brought him to me, um, late 2017, and put him on my radar. And then, you know, KY Engineering, who is based in Atlanta, who had engineered for Wayne, Tyga. He mixed Dreams and Nightmares. He mixed that whole, mixed whole first album. He was Waka Flocka's engineer. He's 2 Chainz's engineer. He mixed my records. He did my Quality Street Music album. He's from, his name is KY cause he's from Kentucky. So around the same time, he was telling...

• 45:40Speaker 04

  Right?

• 45:40Speaker 05

  Okay.

• 45:41Speaker 04

  Okay.

• 45:41Speaker 05

  Just make you sure.

• 45:41Speaker 03

  He was telling Lake, like, yo, I'm gonna bring you something when it's ready. So Jack wound up on my radar. I went and followed him. He had like 7,000 followers. He saw that I followed him. He followed me right back. He then went on to tell me later on that he told a friend of his, like, damn, DJ Drama just signed to me. I think I'm, I think I'm assigned to Drama. So we, um, so he winds up, he winds up coming, being in Atlanta and coming to Mean Streets. And, you know, that was our first time meeting. And we like, you know, we sat down, we chopped it up, we were talking. He was like, you know, what are you, what are you into? And I'm like, I'm in the movie, I'm a movie buff. Like, I just love movies. And he was like, tell me a movie that you think that I would be shocked that you would know.

• 46:25Speaker 03

  And I told him it was this movie called E2 Ma Tambien.

• 46:29Speaker 05

  Oh, yeah, E2 Ma, yeah, yeah, yeah.

• 46:30Speaker 03

  And he was like, wait, what? He was like, DJ Drama?

• 46:33Speaker 05

  E2 Ma Tambien?

• 46:34Speaker 03

  Has watched E2 Ma to Tambien?

• 46:37Speaker 04

  They think they know. They don't have no...

• 46:38Speaker 05

  Yeah, she been to the Ritz.

• 46:39Speaker 03

  And like, so I think that really blew his mind. And then, you know, we, um, we had a meeting, you know, with Jack and, you know, our staff. And he was on, you know, we, the opportunity was about signing him was there. And then, we weren't 100%. We were like 75%. And then he put out Dark Knight. And we was like, okay, we gotta do it. Like, we gotta, we gotta sign this kid before we miss out. So we went on to sign Jack. And, you know, again, this is, you know, when I signed Jack, he looked like Napoleon Dynamite. Like, so, you know, he's come a lo, the heart, the sex symbol heartthrob that he is of today was, you know, he's come a long way.

• 47:24Speaker 03

  But I saw it in him. Like, you know, the same way I saw it in Uzi early on. Like, you know, I saw, like, these are two guys that, for me, like, regardless of us being involved, they would've made their way into hip-hop. Same way, regardless of however I would've been, I was gonna...

• 47:41Speaker 05

  Whether or without you.

• 47:42Speaker 03

  Yeah, I was gonna, I was gonna get here somehow, some way. But again, we allowed them to stand on our shoulders to, you know, go a little faster. You know, me walking him in the sway and, you know, him being able to, you know, just move around. Especially somebody like Jack, who, you know, is a white rapper from Kentucky, to be able to say he signed to Generation Now and DJ Drama, who created Gangsta Grills, and the label that, you know, you know, Lil Uzi Vert was a part of. I mean, I think that brought a lot of, um, you know, um...

• 48:14Speaker 04

  You think?

• 48:14Speaker 03

  Yeah, to the table, you know.

• 48:20Speaker 00

  Hey, it's Nile Rodgers, host of Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series. I'm driving across the country, meeting some of today's most fascinating artists. We're exploring the stories before the moment that changed everything. This week, I'm joined by my friend, John Legend. What still makes you just sit down at the piano?

• 48:42Speaker 02

  If you sat down at 9:00 AM and then at noon, you had a full song that you recorded and put in your voice recorder or you recorded at your studio, you just created something brand new that didn't exist when you woke up. What a beautiful feeling it is. I'm always excited to write something new. I've been writing for Broadway, which has been a new challenge with new collaborators. And these amazing performers who are triple threats, who can sing and dance and act and do all these amazing things. And I wanna keep feeling that. And so, that means not resting on my laurels, going out there and continuing to create something new.

• 49:18Speaker 00

  Experience Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series on the iHeartRadio app, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is Jason Timp from Hoops Tonight with Jason Timp. Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota affordability. And it starts with a great deal on an off-road ready Tacoma or half-ton Tundra. Two of Toyota's longest-lasting trucks, combining power for work, tech for adventures, and style in between.

• 49:44Speaker 02

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• 50:00Speaker 03

  All right, before we, we, we gotta wrap up this, the, uh, the episode. This is, damn, we have to.

• 50:07Speaker 04

  You don't even know how long we've been sitting here, do you?

• 50:08Speaker 03

  No, I, I thought we just started.

• 50:10Speaker 04

  That's hilarious.

• 50:11Speaker 03

  We got, we got, the camera crew gotta go home.

• 50:14Speaker 04

  That mean you gotta invite us back and we'll come to your spot.

• 50:16Speaker 03

  But, okay, but before we wrap, like, I don't, I don't know if, like, I don't know if you're aware of this, because I say it all the time, but I, being, sitting at this table, like, I, I have to say, even though I, I say it all the time, like, like, you gotta understand, Amir, like, if it wasn't for y'all, like, I don't, I don't know, that I don't know if I would be here. Like, watching, like, running into-

• 50:43Speaker 02

  Ladies and gentlemen, that's Questo Supreme.

• 50:45Speaker 04

  No, no, no, you think you was gonna start taking your flowers. What you doing? You think you was gonna start taking your flowers.

• 50:49Speaker 02

  This is the ongoing joke of the show where they watch me squirm.

• 50:52Speaker 03

  Like, bro, listen.

• 50:53Speaker 04

  But I know he means it, because like, that shit is real.

• 50:56Speaker 03

  Like, I used to run into Amir playing video games on South Street, and he would like, let, he would like, put his headphones on me and let me hear fucking Tariq rapping like, G-Rap. Or like, you know, like, I used to go to the, I was at the Trocadero at their signing celebration party. Like, like, for me, like, I remember when Distortion the Static first came on Rap City, like-

• 51:24Speaker 02

  Yes, sir.

• 51:25Speaker 03

  So like, you gotta understand, for me, bro, like, The Roots are the reason why I knew that you could really do this shit. Like, oh, this shit can really happen. Like, I just watched this group in Philly-

• 51:40Speaker 02

  Watch her face.

• 51:41Speaker 04

  I'm just making him take it, because he's, it's hard, it's painful. Go ahead, keep going, keep going.

• 51:45Speaker 03

  Like, I watched this group that I loved make this album called Organics while I'm in high school, and that's all I'm listening to. And then like, get a record deal, like, get signed to Geffen, like, these guys that were freestyling on my little mixtapes that probably only a hundred copies exist, then go on to become the fucking Roots, like, oh my god, this, you can, like, this rap shit is real. Like, everything before that for me was just seeing it on, like, watching The Box and seeing Kane and KRS and Public Enemy and NWA is just like, me watching it on television. Like, I knew y'all, like, I, I, like, I was there.

• 52:30Speaker 03

  So, that for me was literally the reason, like, and I say it all the time, like, you are the reason why I knew this shit could really happen, bro. Like, and I have to give you your flowers by sitting here next to you.

• 52:43Speaker 02

  Thank you.

• 52:44Speaker 04

  It's for the documentary, it's for the documentary. That's right, it's gonna be great.

• 52:50Speaker 02

  No, I appreciate every word, yes. Years ago, I would have definitely ended the episode, because I hate compliments. No, but I, I really appreciate that.

• 52:59Speaker 04

  And this conversation was long overdue, yeah.

• 53:01Speaker 02

  No, no, for real, I, I-

• 53:03Speaker 05

  Long overdue on every, even from me and them.

• 53:05Speaker 04

  Oh, y'all, yeah.

• 53:05Speaker 02

  Yeah, yeah. And I'm very proud, like, again, like, you know, the fact that you validated us as well, because it meant a lot to me that like, wow, someone believes in us enough to put us on a mixtape. Like, to me, that was important.

• 53:20Speaker 03

  Hmm, Black Thought Gangster Girls is definitely on my bucket list, because it's full circle for me. Like, it has, that's one that I have to-

• 53:27Speaker 02

  Wow, that'd be amazing.

• 53:28Speaker 03

  Yeah, it has to happen.

• 53:28Speaker 02

  I was gonna say that eventually, one day, you're gonna have to make a Gangster Griselda tape.

• 53:37Speaker 03

  It's fire.

• 53:39Speaker 02

  You gotta make that happen.

• 53:40Speaker 03

  It's fire.

• 53:41Speaker 02

  This intro will make that happen, no.

• 53:43Speaker 03

  Great idea.

• 53:43Speaker 02

  Wait, I have one last question. I've been watching how things have been developing in the, in the last few weeks. Speaking of Griselda. And initially, what started out as something that could have gone ugly is actually turned into kind of like a, a cool moment.

• 53:59Speaker 03

  You talking about with Flex?

• 54:00Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 54:01Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 54:01Speaker 02

  Where initially, you know, there were complaints that you're not supporting, da, da, da, da. And, you know, maybe once every five years, I'll hear another generation come in that, that will tell whoever the gatekeeper is, like, let somebody else in, and let somebody- But as a DJ, and I usually go through this kind of quasi-depression period, maybe in November and December. Well, okay, so 2023 is coming up. So instantly, I'm like, all right, so someone born in 2002 is now legally gonna be louder than nightclub.

• 54:37Speaker 03

  Right.

• 54:38Speaker 02

  And that means when they're like, 14 years old and, you know, 2016 or whatever. I mean, like, I'm always doing the math of reference points. To me, I would, I don't know, like, for you, is there ever a time where you're just like, I don't know, I might be-

• 55:00Speaker 03

  Too old for this shit?

• 55:01Speaker 02

  Nah, I don't wanna just reduce it to ask, too old for this shit, but like-

• 55:04Speaker 03

  Too old for this shit?

• 55:05Speaker 02

  I mean, I- Like, right now-

• 55:06Speaker 04

  It's exhausting to keep up.

• 55:07Speaker 02

  With, like, I legit was on Wikipedia, like, taking a crash course in, in drill. Because I just like, all right, I gotta educate myself. Like, I have a whole bunch of gigs coming up for a bunch of kids.

• 55:20Speaker 03

  Oh, yeah, you got Ice Spice.

• 55:22Speaker 02

  I don't wanna be that person, but it's like, I feel like if you have to be painted by numbers, like, okay, what are the kids, whatever, but for you, like, is there ever a point where you just get exhausted, where it's just like, dog, just throw Roy Ayers album on and I'm calling it a day, like, I'm gonna-

• 55:42Speaker 03

  Never.

• 55:42Speaker 02

  I'm gonna take a nap, or whatever. So is there never a point where you saw and act like, okay, this is what the future is, or like?

• 55:50Speaker 03

  No.

• 55:51Speaker 02

  So for you, like, the more dangerous it is, the more you people my age are-

• 55:55Speaker 03

  There's talent in every generation. Yeah, and, and I think the, again, like I said, like, I'm, I'm from a mixtape culture where it's like, new shit, new shit, new shit. So it's like, my fascination is, is with, like, like, what's next? Like, my label is called Generation Now, you know? So for me, it's like, the fact that I've been able to navigate through fucking being in a Bahamadia video to Jack Harlow, you know, or to Tyler, creator, Call Me If You Get Lost, and winning a Grammy, like, my career has literally been an example of being able to surf through the eras. So, like, you know, I, it's a young, like,

• 56:40Speaker 03

  I, I love where hip-hop is today. Last night, I went to the Wu-Tang and Nas concert, and I was like a kid in a candy store, you know? I mean, that's, that's my era, like, that's when, you know, when you're, I think when you're a teen, those are your pivotal moments, you know what I'm saying? So, yeah, for me, I'm like, as a 44-year-old man, I'm, I'm, I'm in heaven, you know? But at the same time, I'm also a DJ who more likely plays for audiences in their twenties than I do for audiences in their forties. So, it keeps me current. And, again, I just, I just, I just love the culture so much, so I love every diaspora of it. You know what I'm saying? So I don't, you know, this shit keeps me 21 forever, like-

• 57:24Speaker 02

  Right.

• 57:24Speaker 03

  Even now, having this resurgence of Gangster Girls, whether it's with Simba, or whether it's Ice Wervezo, or Cedi Hendrix, or, you know, it's like, being able to still be in this space, and, you know, I, I gotta give Tyler his flowers for, you know, in a sense, kinda, you know, bringing this resurgence of Gangster Girls back for what he did. Yeah, so no, I don't, I don't, I don't get in that space, like, I'm, you know, I, again, I'm, to be a DJ and to, to have the accolades that I have, it's like, my goal was to get my name on a flyer. So, the, the success that I've had, I don't, I don't take none of it for granted.

• 58:05Speaker 03

  And as much as I've accomplished, the way my brain works is always like, damn, what the fuck am I gonna do next? You know what I'm saying? So, I think that's what keeps me in this space of still being excited about, you know, tomorrow, or not, you know? Again, being on the Wiz and Logic Tour, when I'm out there, I'm, I'm asking, you know, all my 2000s babies make some noise, and it's, they make a lot of fucking noise. Like, there's still a lot of 90s babies in there too, and the 80s babies are a little more quiet.

• 58:33Speaker 02

  Their parents.

• 58:34Speaker 03

  I don't even ask about the 70s, I leave, I leave that alone. But, you know, even when I walk out on stage, you know, having these kids like, say my name and chant my name and be familiar with me because of Tyler, or because of the Dreamville mixtape, like, is such a blessing, you know what I'm saying, that, you know, I'm still here, and-

• 58:55Speaker 02

  And you're still finding a new audience.

• 58:57Speaker 03

  And I'm still finding a new audience, and, and I'm, and I'm excited about it, you know? As much as I'm excited about being able to go to the fucking Nas and Wu-Tang show, and, you know, seeing that sellout.

• 59:07Speaker 02

  And shout out to you, God, who thought I was a stalker in the hotel lobby this morning. I'm like, you got, you got, what, man? I was like, it's me. Quest, is that you? Oh, man, I'm sorry, I thought you was, like, he thought I was-

• 59:22Speaker 03

  But you gotta understand too, like, even, I hate to, I don't wanna do this, make you squirm again, but like, bro, like, bro, I saw you in the fucking, like, I used, I was there past the popcorn. You're on television every night, like, you have, you have a fucking, you have a fucking Oscar, bro. Like, you have an Oscar, like, like-

• 59:43Speaker 02

  Well, I-

• 59:44Speaker 03

  Those things to me are like, yo, the, the sky is not the limit, there's no limit.

• 59:49Speaker 02

  I'm gonna tell you this much, this, this is, I'm, I'm not even blowing smoke. Today was a teachable lesson, because every time you say something, I'm like, wait a minute, how are you just, yes, and jumping into some shit without like, seeing who gonna be there first?

• 1:00:03Speaker 03

  Yeah, I'm like that.

• 1:00:04Speaker 02

  Like, and I, I need to be more, so this is actually taught me more-

• 1:00:07Speaker 03

  You're a little more bougie than I am.

• 1:00:09Speaker 02

  I'm very much, I'm guarded, I'm protected, I'm guarded, I want-

• 1:00:12Speaker 03

  We know that.

• 1:00:12Speaker 02

  I want the formula to work, I want to break down the scientific-

• 1:00:15Speaker 04

  He has crystals in his crocs.

• 1:00:16Speaker 03

  So if, if you run into somebody in the street right now, and they're like, yo, I'm an aspiring artist over here-

• 1:00:20Speaker 02

  In the streets!

• 1:00:21Speaker 04

  He ain't talking to nobody in these streets.

• 1:00:22Speaker 03

  Can I get your number?

• 1:00:23Speaker 04

  What he doing, walking?

• 1:00:24Speaker 02

  Five people, five people. Blau, Slum Village-

• 1:00:28Speaker 04

  Not since 2003.

• 1:00:29Speaker 02

  Jill Scott.

• 1:00:31Speaker 02

  Blau, Slum Village, Jill Scott, little brother. I'm five and oh, but I'm probably five and forty-two thousand.

• 1:00:40Speaker 03

  Oh, those five like came to you?

• 1:00:42Speaker 02

  I've, I, yeah, I was in a position where I was like, I felt in my heart like, oh, this is, oh, Cody Chestnut, that was my five.

• 1:00:50Speaker 03

  Oh, I remember. Well, he was on automatic relaxation.

• 1:00:53Speaker 02

  Yes.

• 1:00:54Speaker 03

  Definitely was, definitely was on automatic relaxation.

• 1:00:57Speaker 02

  All right, we gotta wrap up, but please give Laia another automatic relaxation.

• 1:01:01Speaker 04

  Not just me, there's a whole bunch of people, you know.

• 1:01:03Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 1:01:04Speaker 03

  There's a few of y'all.

• 1:01:05Speaker 04

  Yeah.

• 1:01:06Speaker 03

  Like, can I just give you copies of the old ones?

• 1:01:09Speaker 04

  I'll take that too. I'll take that too.

• 1:01:10Speaker 03

  Like, there's, like, it's not, I mean, we, when it, when it was what it was, like, now that exists, there's a lot of that out now.

• 1:01:18Speaker 02

  There's Spotify playlists.

• 1:01:19Speaker 04

  Yeah, but it ain't nothing like automatic relaxation.

• 1:01:21Speaker 02

  But I think coming from you, I think now at this point in your career.

• 1:01:24Speaker 04

  No, it was dope.

• 1:01:25Speaker 02

  I don't think it would be that for you now. Like, if you did that now,

• 1:01:28Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 1:01:29Speaker 02

  it's gonna be new to the audience.

• 1:01:30Speaker 04

  Yes.

• 1:01:31Speaker 02

  Yeah, you know, it's gonna be a new thing.

• 1:01:32Speaker 04

  And they'll be listening now. Now you don't have to go, well, basic grills is where they went.

• 1:01:36Speaker 02

  They're gonna check for DJ Drama regardless. So if you went in that lane, that would be, it would be something new to that audience.

• 1:01:42Speaker 03

  Nah, I respect it when you say it.

• 1:01:44Speaker 02

  Automatic Relaxations and Gangsta Griselda. There you go. All right, on behalf of Questlove Supreme, yo, Fonte and Sugar Steve and Laia.

• 1:01:54Speaker 03

  Sugar Steve didn't say anything. He was. I'm learning. Except about the skateboarder in Philly.

• 1:02:00Speaker 02

  We're, you know, he's, he's, Steve's here, trust me. Anyway, no, thank you for doing this, man.

• 1:02:06Speaker 03

  Man, thank you for having me.

• 1:02:08Speaker 02

  Oh, my God.

• 1:02:08Speaker 04

  Shout out to Fam U.

• 1:02:09Speaker 02

  Oh, my God.

• 1:02:10Speaker 04

  Best school in the nation.

• 1:02:11Speaker 02

  Shout out to Fam U. Thank you to the staff, everyone. Fam U, thank you. And T.I., thank you.

• 1:02:17Speaker 03

  Thank you, y'all.

• 1:02:18Speaker 02

  Uh, and I am gonna break that Ms. Pac-Man record one more time.

• 1:02:21Speaker 03

  Yeah, shout out to Exit. Shout out to my man Exit with Ms. Pac-Man record. One day, if somebody comes, just give them your number, bro. You never know.

• 1:02:28Speaker 04

  Mm, he's not.

• 1:02:29Speaker 03

  You don't have to answer. Like, they'll, they text. They text me all the time. Like, if I don't wanna answer, I don't have to answer. You know, random people have just, when I was on tour, this guy just called me out of nowhere. I was like, hey, this is DJ Drama. I'm like, yeah, where'd you get my number? He's like, uh, my manager gave it to me. And he was like, yo, I'm a new artist. And I said, listen, bro, I'ma duel you real quick. Like, when I was coming up, I couldn't just call Jay-Z or Funkmaster Flex. Like, I'm like, and most people aren't gonna be as nice as me, but I'm telling you, before you try to get on my radar, look to your left and look to your right. And try to create a movement with the people around you, and then, before you know it, you'll be on my radar. Like, don't just call the.

• 1:03:10Speaker 04

  Take that line.

• 1:03:10Speaker 03

  The, the bigwigs and think you can get on. Like, it's not that easy.

• 1:03:14Speaker 02

  The etiquette, yeah.

• 1:03:15Speaker 03

  Yeah, I couldn't, I couldn't call Jay-Z or Flex and say, hey, I'm DJ Drama, like, I'm dope. Like, and I was, but I didn't have the right.

• 1:03:23Speaker 02

  What does that mean to them?

• 1:03:24Speaker 03

  I didn't have the right to do that. You know what I'm saying? So.

• 1:03:27Speaker 04

  Teachable, teachable moments.

• 1:03:28Speaker 02

  That's the jewel right there. All right, we'll see you on the next go around. Thank you very much.

• 1:03:32Speaker 03

  Thank you.

• 1:03:46Speaker 02

  Questlove Supreme is a production of iHeartRadio.

• 1:03:53Speaker 02

  For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.

• 1:04:00Speaker 00

  Hey, it's Lunchbox from the Bobby Bones Show. Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota affordability, and it starts with a great deal on an all-wheel-drive Camry, Corolla Cross, or a Corolla sedan with the latest features in tech. Or test drive a spacious Grand Highlander or an adventure-ready RAV4. And with so many hybrid models available, you can enjoy longer trips without all the stops. While Toyota's legendary resale value means you could get more at trade-in. Get a deal today and great value tomorrow. Shop toyota.com for deals and details. Toyota, let's go places.

• 1:04:38Speaker 05

  If you love music and great artists' interviews, check out Before the Moment, hosted by Nile Rodgers. This new series follows Nile as he travels across the country, talking with some of today's most fascinating artists about the moments that shaped their lives and careers. From hitmakers like Miguel to rising stars like Alex Warren, Nile explores the stories behind the careers, the songs, and the moments that changed everything. Because every musician remembers the point where everything changed. And this podcast tells the stories that came before it. Listen to Before the Moment, a Lincoln original series, on the iHeartRadio app, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

• 1:05:16Speaker 02

  This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human.