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I got dudes in the industry.
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I just want to sit them down and make them do this and ask them questions. I'm with you, bro.
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You're the smartest dude that ever lived.
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Hey, what's going on everybody?
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For First We Feast, I'm Sean Evans and you're watching Hot Ones.
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It's the show with hot questions and even hotter wings.
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And today we're joined by LL Cool J.
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He's a two-time Grammy Award winning artist, hip-hop trailblazer, and recent inductee to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, which really only tells half the story.
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With decades of TV and film credits as well from NCIS to Toys to Any Given Sunday.
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He also founded Rock the Bells, his media company and Sirius Radio channel, which of course celebrates classic hip-hop.
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LL Cool J, welcome to the show.
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Thanks for having me, man.
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What's going through your head as you prepare to take on this gauntlet today? I'm terrified, B.
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I don't know what's happening.
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This is all these hot sauce.
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I didn't expect all this.
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There's a lot of different brands, labels.
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I I I kind of I seen the show, but I didn't really like realize the the You know what I mean?
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Yeah, the scale of it when it meets you right here.
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Especially me cuz this is like exactly what I'm avoiding at the restaurant.
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Like like I'm moving right past this section. Got it. Okay. Here we go. All right. That's hot enough, B.
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That's hot enough right there. Like I could go home. Oh, man. Well, god damn. Woo! That's stage one? That's stage one. We're in for one today. We are.
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And what follows is I'm a little hungry.
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And I'm tempted to go for it a little more, but I'm a Yeah.
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I'm going to ease into it. We'll pace it. We'll pace it. Okay.
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So, you're just coming off the Grammys where you introduced and performed in the star-studded tribute to hip-hop's 50th anniversary.
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As someone who's won multiple Grammys, hosted the show on five different occasions, where did last Sunday's performance rank amongst your most treasured Grammy memories?
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Probably uh the most enjoyable.
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One of the most enjoyable.
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I mean, I've had other moments hosting, just purely hosting that were amazing as well.
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But as as an artist, I mean, this was like by far the most fun for me.
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I mean, being on stage with with Rakim and Public Enemy and Salt-N-Pepa and Grandmaster Flash, Melle Mel, Scorpio, Rahiem.
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I just want people to know that, you know, for years hip-hop has been being served in a brown paper bag, a greasy brown paper bag.
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I want people to I wanted it to be served on a silver platter.
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And, you know, thankfully it was.
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I was able to, you know, make a huge contribution.
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Questlove did a wonderful job curating.
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Jessie did an amazing job producing, you know, getting making sure the production was right.
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And, you know, me just sewing things together, making sure things are right, and really helping to mold it and make it what it is.
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And and I think it turned out to be something real special for hip-hop. Shaquanda?
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She ain't going to come out and She ain't going to jump out the curtains or nothing, is she? All right. Yeah. Okay. Okay. Still got our feet. Yeah. I'm okay. There we go. I'm okay. There we go.
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My tongue is like attentive right now. You know? Head on a swivel.
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Like yeah, my head is on here.
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MY TONGUE IS WAITING FOR AN INTERCEPTION RIGHT NOW.
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LIKE, YOU KNOW how when you're on offense, you got to keep your head on a swivel looking out for interception.
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Like if there's interception, that's how my tongue feels right now.
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It's just like, you know On alert. My tongue HAS A CHUBBY.
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YOU KNOW, NOT ALL THE WAY THERE, BUT IT'S YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? It's ready. Yeah, it's ready. There for you.
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A little tongue chubby right now. Okay.
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So when we had Queen Latifah on the show, she reminisced about performing at LA roller rinks turned music venues like Skateland and Roll on Wheels. Yeah.
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What role did places like the rink in North Jersey play in your own hip-hop origin story?
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Oh man, the rink was incredible.
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I mean, um that was one of the first places I've ever played at was the rink.
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Cuz that was back then when we didn't have music videos.
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So I only had like I Need a Beat out with the rink.
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That that built I feel punch drunk right now.
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Um it's like, you know what I mean? show. That's the show. my lips right now.
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My lips is getting speed bagged. I can't even focus me. Um Um Yeah, the rink.
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So I I would I went out there and uh [ __ ] it, man.
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I don't know what I'm talking about. Whatever.
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Whatever it was, whatever I was going to say, it was going to be smart and provocative and introspective, right?
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What do you remember about hearing I Need a Beat for the first time at the Game Room on Farmers Boulevard?
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I mean, it was an amazing feeling to Like imagine if your dream was like a big giant bubble, right?
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And it was coming towards you and you had the ability to pull it in. And it's your dream.
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So you have a hand in it. And it's your dream.
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So I'm out there, I'm staring at the the the the ground.
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You know, it had rained earlier that day.
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But you know, I'm out there and this dude comes up to me and he's like, "Yo, that's you on the radio."
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And I remember I remember staring at the street, the street lights.
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It was dark and I was like, "Yeah, I know. I like that." Like I like that.
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You know, the the the the the light was glistening like diamonds off the street.
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It was like a it was a unbelievable moment.
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I'm right there with you.
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I'm right there with you.
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And if you're right there with me I am.
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are you ready to move on here? Yeah, let's do it. number three. Let's do it.
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So, this is the Donas Cadejo here. The Donas Cadejo? Mhm.
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Like, god damn, like in Don't ask good day, ho. Don't ask good day, ho.
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It's getting hot in here.
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Getting get get get getting HOT IN HERE. GETTING HOT IN HERE.
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SHOT SHOT SHOT SHOT SHOT SHOT YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? God damn, B. Right there. Right there.
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Factor fiction, an animatronic shark's grasp onto your left leg almost caused you to drown on the set of Deep Blue Sea. Thousand percent true. Facts. 100% facts.
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I was on the set You know what I mean?
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I was probably number 479 on the call sheet.
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And uh you know I was you know in the middle of a take and uh lunch and the guy holding the you know the little to the little joystick you know, pastrami.
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You know, and they just you know, broke they just bailed on me.
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And there I was just like it was like real.
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And they said, oh, and they gave me this little breathing thing this little breathing apparatus like something like this, you know, and you blow out and then breathe in.
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I blew out, breathed in, all water.
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Took took it to another level, but I ended up struggling getting out.
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And when I got out, climbed out, there was one dude sitting there with a cigarette like I saw it happen. You know what I mean? So, it was cool. Los Calientes bander. Ooh. God damn. Ooh. Going through it. Ooh. Going back to Cali. Cali. Caliente. Going back to Caliente.
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[ __ ] I'm going back to Caliente. Caliente. Damn, B. Woo.
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What are some of the biggest difference in navigating the music industry versus Hollywood?
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Like I don't think it's a coincidence that the hip-hop icons who have this enduring everlasting legacy on the big screen also happen to be some of the most business savvy.
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Um discipline equals freedom.
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You know, the music industry, man, is um a wonderful business and it can be a wonderful business, but the reality is not many people are very disciplined.
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You make it to the gold chain, now what?
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You make it to the diamond neck brace, now what?
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You know what I'm saying?
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And so, it's the discipline.
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And the guys that you see that are successful and the women that you see that are successful, the people that you see that are successful, they're disciplined.
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Like I tell always tell my staff and my team, it's like it's corny and it sounds cheesy, but it's true. Ego is not your amigo.
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You know what I'm saying?
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Humility is a superpower. Okay.
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This right here, Brooklyn Deli ghost pepper sauce.
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Yeah, different kind of Yeah, that [ __ ] there. Yeah. That [ __ ] there. This is a step up. Yeah.
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Ooh, that [ __ ] ain't playing at all. No level.
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That [ __ ] You're talking to me?
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doing You walk in the house, that [ __ ] put you in a headlock.
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[ __ ] sit the [ __ ] down. I run this. I run this [ __ ] B. Wow. Yeah. Holy mackerel. Yeah. Woo. Going in.
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All right, LL Cool J, we have a recurring segment on our show called Explain That Gram, where we do a deep dive on our guest's Instagram, pull interesting pictures that need more context.
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So we'll pull the picture up over here on the monitor, you just tell us the bigger story. Okay.
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What's the origin story behind meeting Rick Rubin for the first time at his NYU dorm room?
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14 years old, I was trying to get a record deal.
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And um I went, you know what I'm saying, to a record store called Record Explosion.
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I used to go and buy, either buy or if I had the money, or just write copy down the addresses of any song that looked like it was hip-hop or was or I knew was hip-hop.
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So I would either buy them or write them down and send demos out.
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And I did that for like 2 years.
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And I finally bought It's Yours by T La Rock.
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It was um it had Def Jam Productions, the logo was on the on the label, was Streetwise Party Time and it had the Def Jam logo. I called Rick.
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I didn't know it was his dorm room at the time, but I used to call him all the time.
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Um every day, every day, every day, every day.
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And um yo, Rick, you get the tape yet? Nope.
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Call him next day, Rick, you get the tape yet? Nope.
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Rick, you get the tape yet?
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And finally Ad Rock from the Beastie Boys, he heard my tape and he played it for Rick and then Rick called me and you know, the rest is history.
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Here we are like, you know, Hall of Fames and Grammys and it's crazy, man.
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First time I met him, I said, when I walked in, I was like, oh [ __ ] you Rick? He said, yeah.
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I said, I thought you was black. He said, cool.
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Thought he was black dude.
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He was like, yo, what's up? It's Rick.
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I'm like, I thought it was, you know, Rick.
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I was expecting Freddy Krueger to come out that [ __ ] You know what I mean? You know? You know? You know what I mean?
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I expected, you know, Don Cornelius. You know what I mean?
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I thought Don Cornelius was going to come downstairs, bro. Mushroom mayhem. Mushroom mayhem.
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Are these mushrooms going to make all these colors become vivid?
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Is this a What kind of mayhem we talking about?
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There's only one way to tell, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed, you know. That it will happen. Yeah. Oh. Yeah. In and out. Ooh, ah. Yeah. Oh, man.
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That was the Busta Rhymes in a Busta Rhymes came out just then. OOH, AH. OOH, AH. GOD DAMN, B. It's up my back. It's around my neck. God damn. WOO. THIS IS WOW. WOW, mushroom mayhem. Go ahead now. Go ahead, mushroom.
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Oh, [ __ ] That's a new rapper for you. Little mushroom mayhem. The mushroom mayhem. Yeah, I like that. That sounds like a hit. Get a mullet cut. Little mushroom mayhem.
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Little dude with a mullet.
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Do you remember what felt like your first like big money show?
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Like do you remember your first $10,000 show or your first $1,000 show or the first show for $300 was big money. Are you kidding me? Like, what? What? Yo, listen.
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Let me tell you something.
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First of all, I started when I was 16. Mhm.
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All I wanted at that time was a VCR, a gold chain, and some some sneakers.
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My first check that I ever got that would to me was a lot of money was $50,000.
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The first thing I did was buy my mother a car.
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And then, I gave my mother like I don't know, 10 or 8 grand or something, and I took the rest.
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And I just remember all my [ __ ] being gone and my mother still having the 8 grand in the car.
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I'm like, I'M LIKE, WHAT I DIDN'T REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT HAPPENED HERE. YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN?
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HE WAS just like, what happened?
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But, um you grow up and you learn.
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I can get a chicken wing if I need one.
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You know what I'm saying? I'm doing okay. I'm blessed. So, it's all good. All right. All right. This next one Uh-huh.
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is the Dreams of Calypso here.
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And the song Shout out to Harry Belafonte. Oh my god, bro. Hey, damn. That is so crazy.
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It's like a like a little aluminum foil rose is blooming in my throat.
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That is hot aluminum foil rose. Beautiful way to put it.
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A beautiful way to put it.
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Yo, you know what Poetic. Wow.
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So you signed to Def Jam in 1984. Yep. Go for it. Go for it.
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Ooh, [ __ ] I don't even like milk like that, but he needs some milk. And he pouring a storm. And he pouring a storm.
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Ah, no, I ain't going that far with you. [ __ ] that. Oh, [ __ ] Wow.
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What Cardi say, that dangly thing in my throat?
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This This [ __ ] hit that dangly thing in your throat, Cardi. This right here.
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You know, this [ __ ] crazy.
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So you signed to Def Jam in 1984, and you've successfully navigated the notoriously treacherous music industry alongside some of the biggest titans in the game.
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So if you'll humor me, what I want to do is just a thought association game.
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Right, hit you with a rap tycoon, and you just give me the first couple of thoughts that come to your mind, okay? Okay. Lyor Cohen. Smart. I think he's smart.
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I think he's um he's only going to do what HE HAS TO. LOVE YOU, LYOR.
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HE'S ONLY GOING TO DO WHAT HE HAS TO, BABY. Chris Lighty. Brilliant. Brilliant guy. Gone too soon. He's my friend. Loved him. Miss him. Ahead of his time. Good guy. Oh my god.
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That [ __ ] is in THE PIPES, BABY. WOO. CLOGGED PIPES. God damn. Where's your Cardi B at? industry.
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I just want to sit them down and make them do this and ask them questions. I'm with you, bro.
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You the The dude that ever lived with this [ __ ] This [ __ ] is crazy.
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Nobody smarter than you, B, with this [ __ ] What's the name of this one?
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This is the bomb beyond insanity.
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The bomb beyond insanity. Probably for the best.
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Yeah, that was good that's good.
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For the first time a calm in the room. Bomb.
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And I am telling you I'm not going. Yo, this [ __ ] here. Yeah. Yo. Crazy.
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They must have used military technology to make that [ __ ] That [ __ ] is crazy. Oh man, brother man. I can't sit still. Did you You know what? sit Hold on. Don't even talk.
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Don't interrupt me for sure. I'm just going to chill. I'm just going to chill. Oh. [ __ ] THAT'S WOW. GOD. AH. You need your milk. Oh.
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Yeah, give me some ice cream. Ah, bringing it in. Bringing it in. Woo. God damn.
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I'm glad you came with the ice cream.
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I'm glad you came with the ice cream. Oh, god damn. I don't know. I know. God damn. OH. OH, GOD. WOO. WOO. WOO. MHM, MHM, MHM.
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I'm I'm starting to cry out this [ __ ] That's the best ice cream in the world. I know. It never hit better. Yo, bro.
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moments like this, I know. I know. IT'S GETTING HOTTER.
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IT'S [ __ ] IT'S INCREASING. Grows and grows. Bro. Holy [ __ ] Yo.
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You got to be [ __ ] kidding me, bro.
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Holy [ __ ] And then just BE CAREFUL. GOD DAMN.
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JUST BE CAREFUL around the eyes. GOD DAMN. I KNOW. I know.
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This is like I'm damn near like in crackhead mode right now. Like Oh, NO. OH, NO DISRESPECT. THIS [ __ ] LIKE I KNOW. YEAH.
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I feel like anything can happen now. [ __ ] right now.
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I really I do feel like anything can happen now. levels of ridiculous. This [ __ ] is Yo. Come on, man. Are you serious? Holy [ __ ] Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow.
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I know that you're a ice cream connoisseur.
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Like what do you think's the goat ice cream flavor?
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Yo, my [ __ ] lips are hot. Yeah, everything. Everything. Holy mackerel. Depends on the mood.
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You know, Neapolitan's always a mean.
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Cookies and cream is good.
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You know, vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry.
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You're not going to You know.
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If you put them them three together, Classic.
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couple of bananas, some hot fudge syrup. You know what I mean?
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Some of them strawberries. You know what I mean? [ __ ] Woo. You got to love that.
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Got You got to love that. That was so crazy. It's still hot. Right.
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And what's really foul about it, it's ping It's pinball machine hot.
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In other words, it's hot over there. It's hot over here. It stops over here. It's hot down here. It stops down there. It's hot over here. It's hot up there. It's hot over here. It's hot in the back. It's hot in the front.
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It like, you know what I mean? Yeah, it's ricocheting. It's Yeah. Yeah. Wow.
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Are you ready to move on to the next one? baby.
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So, this is taco vibes only. Taco vibes only. Okay.
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Yo, I'm I'm I'm Yo, I got to I'm You're a small Yo, you come on this show, take small bites, [ __ ] Don't even think about going hard. There you go. Oh, come on, man.
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But not like the last one. Not like the last one. What do you mean?
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That [ __ ] is like It's like [ __ ] episodic at this point.
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It's episodic television.
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It's like this is the [ __ ] next episode.
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It like, you know, it has a recap. Yeah.
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Then it start last week on BMF.
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But remember remember that first one.
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Remember that Remember the bomb and how you're feeling? Not This one not as bad. Not as bad, right?
19:47
I'm just wondering about like, you know, the real damage. If the act two, yeah. No, bro. Next week's episode. No, no, yeah. Yeah.
19:56
I'm I'm really concerned about that right now.
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What does pink cookies in a plastic bag getting crushed by buildings mean? I don't know.
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I was high when I wrote it. You know what I mean? I know WHAT YOU MEAN.
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I UM YOU KNOW, I WAS UM I mean, you know, I have no idea, bro. I I I don't know, man. I was a [ __ ] man.
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That [ __ ] is just what it is, man.
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I was on the phone with some girl.
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She said, "What are you doing?"
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I said, "I'm just sitting here thinking about pink cookies in a plastic bag getting crushed by buildings." She said, "What?" I said, "You know what? That's a song. I'll call you back."
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I said, "Yo, Marley, let's go to downstairs."
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We went downstairs and made a record, man. Yeah. All right, old cool J. Mhm. Ah.
21:01
No, no, I'll play the I I I'll go with it. Woah, look at you.
21:04
You know, they say tradition is peer pressure from dead people?
21:07
Yeah, yeah, yeah, YEAH, YEAH. OKAY. NEVER HEARD THAT.
21:11
This is kind of No, I never heard that.
21:13
This is kind of peer pressure from Olivia person, you know?
21:16
Okay, you you want to do a little dab on them, huh?
21:19
Oh, I I did not mean for that to happen.
21:21
Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's too much. That's too much. That's too much. Yeah, yeah. There that yeah. Smart.
21:29
Well, what a run and what a ride. Hey. Cheers. You know what I mean? Cheers. Cheers. All right. I know.
21:39
I can see the face already. I know. I know. Oh my god.
21:46
And don't worry cuz a nice big wind up on this one, okay?
21:51
We came, we saw, we ate, we conquered.
21:56
And you know, you're one of hip-hop's great ambassadors from the music that shifted the landscape to Rock the Bells, which continues to honor classic hip-hop, Mhm.
22:07
to your most recent Grammy performance, which of course was a toast to the 50th anniversary. Mhm.
22:12
So, to close things out with your brain on fire, your mouth ablaze, Mhm.
22:17
how would you best distill what hip-hop has meant to you?
22:20
Like, what is your love letter to the genre?
22:23
Well, I'll tell you like this.
22:23
First of all, you know, just because of where I grew up and where I was raised, if I wasn't doing hip-hop, you know, it'd been, you know, either the military, bank robbery, or drug dealing. One of them three.
22:38
When I was a little kid, when I was in my 20s, it was about me taking my shirt off and making it about me.
22:42
Now, it's about looking out at the culture and elevating all of these artists and making sure that this culture is celebrated the way it should be and the way I believe it should be.
22:50
And that's been that's my life's mission with Rock the Bells.
22:54
That's why Rock the Bells is so important to me and is is has become the go-to company for all people who Oh, [ __ ] my mouth is hot.
23:04
God, I can't even get my spill.
23:04
I had the elevator pitch down, bro. It's over.
23:09
Rock the Bells is hot [ __ ] You know what I mean?
23:11
Listen, just check it out.
23:13
Go to the dot com, check it out. Shit's hot. You know what I mean?
23:16
We not corny, we not It ain't dusty, it's fly. [ __ ] it.
23:22
Mic drop, and look at you, LL Cool J, taking on the wings of death and living to tell the tale.
23:26
Now there's nothing left to do but roll out the red carpet for you.
23:29
This camera, this camera, this camera.
23:31
Let the people know what you have going on in your life. All right.
23:33
Well, right now, um, I have a new album coming out this year, new record produced by Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest.
23:41
Rock the Bells is a company, is a culture company.
23:43
We have content, commerce, and experiences.
23:44
You know what I'm saying? And we doing it.
23:46
So that's what I'm doing.
23:48
God damn, my mouth is hot. My mouth is hot.
23:52
My man, appreciate you, bro. I appreciate you, man. Wow, that was crazy, B. Wow.
23:59
Crazier than you thought it would be? kidding me? Hell yeah.
24:01
That [ __ ] was [ __ ] double straightjackets.
24:03
That [ __ ] was double straightjackets, man. God damn.
24:13
Hot Ones fans, breaking news, the three-in-one boneless bites challenge is back.
24:18
For a limited time, you can put your taste buds to the test against some of our most iconic flavors: the classic, Los Calientes, and the peak of heat, Apollo.
24:28
But don't fret, Hot Ones fans.
24:30
Even when the three-in-one challenge leaves the freezer aisle, you can still pick up your favorite flavor of Hot Ones boneless bites. Visit hotwonschallenge.
24:38
com for more information on products and to find a store near you, because it's time to bring the heat home.