WEBVTT - Grammy Award Winning Musician Michael 'Killer Mike' Render Talks Georgia Primary Elections, AI Music 0:00:02.520 --> 0:00:08.680 Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news. Look who I'm with here. 0:00:08.680 --> 0:00:09.600 You're not going to believe this. 0:00:09.680 --> 0:00:12.760 I'm live in Atlanta, Georgia, and there's one person you 0:00:12.880 --> 0:00:19.079 talk to when you come here about anything, politics, economy, life, sneakers. 0:00:19.440 --> 0:00:22.239 He just came right from a Puma commercial Killer Mike, 0:00:22.320 --> 0:00:22.840 Mike Render. 0:00:22.880 --> 0:00:25.400 Great to see you in person, No less, I'm great. 0:00:25.480 --> 0:00:27.480 Last time we came down here for the special election 0:00:28.280 --> 0:00:32.159 for Senator Warnock, we had a chance to talk. We 0:00:32.159 --> 0:00:35.480 were down at Ebenezer, but we weren't together. And it's 0:00:35.479 --> 0:00:38.320 great to see you at our set here today. It's fantastic. 0:00:38.479 --> 0:00:42.319 So look, this is someone who needs no introduction. You're 0:00:42.320 --> 0:00:45.240 a superstar Grammy Award winning artist, you're an actor. 0:00:45.280 --> 0:00:49.760 Now you've got your own bank. You're also one of 0:00:49.760 --> 0:00:51.520 the faces of Georgia. 0:00:51.600 --> 0:00:54.480 Tell her audience, people are watching Bloomberg TV all over 0:00:54.520 --> 0:00:56.440 the world what they need to know about your state, 0:00:56.480 --> 0:00:59.920 because tomorrow we're going to be here talking elections, talking issues. 0:01:00.120 --> 0:01:01.959 What is it that makes Georgia special this time? 0:01:02.520 --> 0:01:04.640 I mean Georgia has the ability to effect election in 0:01:04.680 --> 0:01:07.000 a big way, the same way did And when I 0:01:07.000 --> 0:01:09.200 say affect the election, these elections are in first and 0:01:09.200 --> 0:01:11.639 foremost for George. I want people to think hyper local. 0:01:11.959 --> 0:01:14.280 Who are gonna be our two Supreme Court justices in 0:01:14.319 --> 0:01:16.559 Georgia avenues. We have two amazing women that are running. 0:01:16.880 --> 0:01:18.440 You know, how are we gonna make sure we get 0:01:18.440 --> 0:01:20.760 all soft back in there? First two times? I worked 0:01:20.800 --> 0:01:22.160 like a dog on the behalf of this campaign. 0:01:22.240 --> 0:01:22.680 We got a man. 0:01:22.760 --> 0:01:24.440 I had a call from him about a week and 0:01:24.520 --> 0:01:26.720 a half ago like, hey, you know, looking forward seeing 0:01:26.720 --> 0:01:29.240 out there again or not? Who's done a had OUs 0:01:29.240 --> 0:01:31.520 off at went and done an amazing job hitting the ground. 0:01:31.600 --> 0:01:32.920 So you know, I think I think we got to 0:01:33.000 --> 0:01:33.440 hit the ground. 0:01:33.480 --> 0:01:36.160 I think we got to galvanized, plot, plan, strategize, organized, 0:01:36.240 --> 0:01:38.480 and mobilize our way to the polls. It was important then, 0:01:38.520 --> 0:01:40.840 it's important now. And know Tie, you know what I understand. 0:01:41.080 --> 0:01:42.840 We don't have to stay in a perpetual state of 0:01:42.920 --> 0:01:45.040 feel that we're gonna lose it all if we're losing 0:01:45.040 --> 0:01:47.240 an election or this is important. My grandmother taught me 0:01:47.280 --> 0:01:49.920 that it was in the civic responsibility to vote Ms. 0:01:49.960 --> 0:01:50.760 Ellison, who was an. 0:01:50.640 --> 0:01:53.080 Absolute tyrant, and my civics teacher taught me to appreciate 0:01:53.080 --> 0:01:55.120 the Bill of Rights and Constitution because I had no 0:01:55.200 --> 0:01:57.360 rights in her classroom, and she made sure that I 0:01:57.400 --> 0:01:59.600 understood that I was lucky when I got outside their classroom. 0:02:00.040 --> 0:02:02.320 Exercise was right. So I'm always encouraged to help people 0:02:02.320 --> 0:02:04.600 get to the post. I'm always encouraged by every election, 0:02:04.640 --> 0:02:06.600 no matter how minuscule and small it is. And I 0:02:06.680 --> 0:02:08.639 encourage people to do their research. Going your Google while 0:02:08.639 --> 0:02:10.320 you're on your lunch break. Yeh, see who's running in 0:02:10.360 --> 0:02:12.799 your district, who agrees with you? Talk to your neighbors, 0:02:12.800 --> 0:02:15.000 see who they want. And you, guys, you know, make 0:02:15.080 --> 0:02:17.239 demands of the politicians that you get in office. The 0:02:17.360 --> 0:02:19.160 day after they win, they should get a note from you. 0:02:19.480 --> 0:02:21.480 These are the potholes we want feel this week. 0:02:21.400 --> 0:02:23.040 Well, a lot of people must have been talking to 0:02:23.080 --> 0:02:26.160 their neighbors because a million Georgians voted early. 0:02:26.280 --> 0:02:27.640 That's a record. What do you make of that. 0:02:27.720 --> 0:02:31.240 I'm excited and I know that this state that has 0:02:31.280 --> 0:02:33.640 been politically active for a very long time. And I 0:02:33.680 --> 0:02:36.239 think that whether it was the wise decision of William 0:02:36.240 --> 0:02:39.160 Hartsfield to give del to an extended contract here, or 0:02:39.160 --> 0:02:42.000 the wise decision or Maynord Jackson to say, hey, our 0:02:42.040 --> 0:02:45.240 own local companies, including being black, companies can build this 0:02:45.280 --> 0:02:47.560 air for it. I think those kind of local decisions 0:02:47.560 --> 0:02:49.200 have helped make us in the international city. 0:02:49.360 --> 0:02:51.560 So I think that we're going to continue to do that. 0:02:51.639 --> 0:02:52.320 So go Georgiana. 0:02:52.400 --> 0:02:55.120 This is a tough time for our economy, which we 0:02:55.160 --> 0:02:57.080 talk about a lot here on Bloomberg. As you know, 0:02:57.919 --> 0:02:59.640 you and I spent a lot of time talking about 0:02:59.680 --> 0:03:02.160 the deep banked last time you were on. Even if 0:03:02.160 --> 0:03:04.440 you have a bank account, now you're dealing with four 0:03:04.480 --> 0:03:07.040 and a half dollar gas, You're dealing with mortgage rates, 0:03:07.040 --> 0:03:08.520 a housing market that won't budge. 0:03:09.080 --> 0:03:10.720 We're seeing food prices. 0:03:10.360 --> 0:03:12.400 Go up now with this war underway, and I'm wondering 0:03:12.440 --> 0:03:15.639 to what extent that's impacting Atlanta as a city and 0:03:16.800 --> 0:03:18.160 decisions at the polls tomorrow. 0:03:18.160 --> 0:03:21.280 It's impactful. Atlanta has more. I'll give you an example 0:03:21.320 --> 0:03:24.640 directly from my community. Atlanta has more black millionaires than 0:03:24.680 --> 0:03:26.520 any other city, Atlanta and DC at the top two. 0:03:26.600 --> 0:03:30.000 You look Atlanta that we have the greatest wealth disparities too, 0:03:30.040 --> 0:03:33.280 between the lords and ice. We actually are microcosm of America. 0:03:33.360 --> 0:03:36.160 Maria that probably has greater economic opportunity in the country, 0:03:36.160 --> 0:03:38.520 in the world. For a person that lands here on 0:03:38.560 --> 0:03:40.880 a boat one hundred years ago with someone that's getting 0:03:40.880 --> 0:03:43.040 off the plane today. But with that said, we have 0:03:43.080 --> 0:03:45.480 some of the biggest disparities, and we have lack of education, 0:03:45.600 --> 0:03:47.840 lack of proper we have food deserts, we have lack 0:03:47.880 --> 0:03:50.200 of proper healthcare. We can fix these things. I think 0:03:50.280 --> 0:03:52.680 that our mayor in Atlanta near Dickens is an amazing 0:03:52.760 --> 0:03:55.520 job of getting people house. I think that small businesses 0:03:55.600 --> 0:03:57.440 like the One TI and Open TI and I have 0:03:57.480 --> 0:03:59.839 open called man Kit Seafood, which employees nearly forty people, 0:03:59.840 --> 0:04:02.400 are important. We have millions of small businesses that are 0:04:02.400 --> 0:04:04.960 in the country. Everyone cannot work for large corporations right 0:04:05.040 --> 0:04:07.440 for these small and medium businesses. As FIFA comes here 0:04:07.440 --> 0:04:09.520 and World Cup is here, we're going to have those 0:04:09.560 --> 0:04:11.960 small and medium businesses some growth, but we don't want 0:04:12.000 --> 0:04:12.320 them to go. 0:04:12.360 --> 0:04:13.800 We want them to keep people employed. 0:04:13.840 --> 0:04:16.240 So in these tough times, let's make sure we're supporting 0:04:16.279 --> 0:04:18.520 small and local that's school's going to keep people employed. 0:04:18.680 --> 0:04:20.800 Let's make sure that we demand more of our politicians 0:04:20.800 --> 0:04:22.200 in terms of if you look what our marrors done 0:04:22.240 --> 0:04:24.400 up in New York in terms of eliminating some debt 0:04:24.440 --> 0:04:26.800 to stuff and get breas and some pressure off people. 0:04:26.839 --> 0:04:28.600 Let's look at those candidates. We're going to do that here, 0:04:28.600 --> 0:04:29.280 and let's spok for this. 0:04:29.760 --> 0:04:31.800 I love that you first reached for Supreme Court in 0:04:31.839 --> 0:04:35.320 your first answer, Yes, because national coverage hasn't gone down 0:04:35.320 --> 0:04:37.760 to that level in most cases in Georgia. But I'm 0:04:37.800 --> 0:04:40.560 hearing more about those two Supreme Court seats than just 0:04:40.600 --> 0:04:43.880 about anything other than the big ones, the gubernatorial and 0:04:43.920 --> 0:04:44.800 Senate primaries. 0:04:44.960 --> 0:04:47.080 And it has a lot to do with redrawing maps. 0:04:47.160 --> 0:04:50.000 People started to really wake up to what they see 0:04:50.000 --> 0:04:51.479 as a potential opportunity here. 0:04:51.520 --> 0:04:54.200 Is that why I'm hearing so much about it. 0:04:54.279 --> 0:04:56.640 Yeah, the re district, that is the why. 0:04:56.640 --> 0:04:59.160 And you know what what I'm encouraged by in Georgia 0:04:59.360 --> 0:05:02.200 is because being discussed racially, and it does in fact 0:05:02.760 --> 0:05:05.840 impact my community from a racial standpoint, because some places 0:05:05.880 --> 0:05:07.640 it's going to be used to deny to break up 0:05:10.000 --> 0:05:13.880 black constituents from proper representation. But I would like to 0:05:13.920 --> 0:05:16.680 implore right now that the working class understands that the 0:05:16.760 --> 0:05:19.080 master class of the planning class in the South three 0:05:19.120 --> 0:05:21.400 four hundred years ago did not care about the poor 0:05:21.440 --> 0:05:23.120 workers that they were working in the fields, whether they 0:05:23.120 --> 0:05:25.040 would look like near you. They didn't care if they 0:05:25.040 --> 0:05:26.960 were the people that were labeled rednecks. 0:05:26.960 --> 0:05:27.920 They came out of the UK. 0:05:28.200 --> 0:05:30.200 They didn't care if the people they looked at that 0:05:30.240 --> 0:05:32.200 they brought from the shores out. But they cared about 0:05:32.240 --> 0:05:34.880 economic domination. And if you think that this is not 0:05:34.920 --> 0:05:37.359 a working class issue and it is only a racial issue, 0:05:37.480 --> 0:05:39.440 it will only be so long before there you are 0:05:39.480 --> 0:05:41.359 on the chopping block and there's no one there to 0:05:41.360 --> 0:05:44.120 advocate an ally. So I would implore the working class 0:05:44.200 --> 0:05:46.440 right now to make sure that you get people in 0:05:46.520 --> 0:05:48.400 office that are going to represent the you, and I 0:05:48.440 --> 0:05:50.640 would encourage the corporate class to make sure that they're there. 0:05:50.880 --> 0:05:52.920 Or what you want to see is a break in 0:05:52.920 --> 0:05:54.720 this country that we haven't seen and nearly. 0:05:54.920 --> 0:05:58.680 Well, that's fascinating because the redrawing of congressional districts, particularly 0:05:58.760 --> 0:06:01.560 after the Supreme Court ruling on the Voting Rights Act, 0:06:02.080 --> 0:06:03.920 seemed to be distinctly racial. 0:06:03.960 --> 0:06:06.080 Is it not, Well, at that time, it had to be. 0:06:06.400 --> 0:06:08.880 I'm just saying that at the time that Martin Luther 0:06:08.960 --> 0:06:11.040 King was fighting for proper workers' rights in the fair 0:06:11.040 --> 0:06:14.039 ways for black people in Mississippi, the most underpaid people 0:06:14.080 --> 0:06:15.920 and people who were resisting him the most were also 0:06:16.000 --> 0:06:19.880 white and Passipians. At the time that Colin Kaepernick, skip bag. 0:06:19.880 --> 0:06:20.720 Was still an amazing thing. 0:06:20.760 --> 0:06:22.839 One time, Joe he said that I think it was 0:06:22.839 --> 0:06:25.839 in Pittsburgh everyone kneeled in solidarity with kapern Kaepernick one 0:06:25.839 --> 0:06:26.400 player did not. 0:06:26.400 --> 0:06:27.400 Believe he was a white player. 0:06:27.600 --> 0:06:30.000 The player, of course patriotic, believed in this country, and 0:06:30.040 --> 0:06:32.599 that was great. But the NFL was notorious for having 0:06:33.279 --> 0:06:36.800 a bully pit in terms of negotiations with the players' association. 0:06:37.279 --> 0:06:39.760 Skip said that guy doesn't understand and what he did. 0:06:39.800 --> 0:06:42.320 He broke solidarity and broke the ability for them to 0:06:42.360 --> 0:06:45.120 move as a unit beyond this particular issue. So I 0:06:45.120 --> 0:06:47.279 want to say that even if it feels distinctly racial, 0:06:47.640 --> 0:06:50.159 understand that if the tactics work on race based on me, 0:06:50.400 --> 0:06:52.560 who will work on class to you. So I say, 0:06:52.640 --> 0:06:55.000 whether you're in the Appalachians or Atlanta, you had better 0:06:55.080 --> 0:06:56.520 beware of than anybody that wants to read. 0:06:56.640 --> 0:06:59.320 These are incredibly important points that you're making. Will Georgia 0:06:59.480 --> 0:07:01.120 Redraw do you think that's done? 0:07:01.200 --> 0:07:03.240 I don't. It's something I disagree with my governor on. 0:07:03.360 --> 0:07:05.479 Yeah, you know, and I think he's ruled with a 0:07:05.480 --> 0:07:07.960 pretty fair hand, and I think he's absolutely wrong. So 0:07:08.120 --> 0:07:10.120 I say that to him. I say that on national television. 0:07:10.520 --> 0:07:12.120 I think it is not a wise thing to do. 0:07:12.400 --> 0:07:15.440 I think that Georgia has shown itself to be emotionally 0:07:15.440 --> 0:07:17.160 intelligent terms of going in the voting booth. 0:07:17.400 --> 0:07:18.080 I think that our. 0:07:18.000 --> 0:07:19.800 Mayors in Atlanta have done a great job of working 0:07:19.840 --> 0:07:22.080 with our governors, be the Democrat or Republican, from Joe 0:07:22.080 --> 0:07:24.240 Frank Harris, A Zell Miller on through to our Tremc 0:07:24.240 --> 0:07:27.000 Gerran current governor. I think that it throws the balance 0:07:27.000 --> 0:07:28.920 of Georgia. Often it makes us copy states that are 0:07:28.920 --> 0:07:30.640 not as progressive as you think. 0:07:30.680 --> 0:07:31.280 Politics. 0:07:31.280 --> 0:07:33.840 All day there's music a hobby at this point. This 0:07:33.960 --> 0:07:35.800 is it's amazing to listen to you. 0:07:35.800 --> 0:07:37.920 No, I love, I love so most of the day 0:07:37.920 --> 0:07:39.440 I'm thinking, oh my god, how can I make sure 0:07:39.480 --> 0:07:41.600 this restaurant doesn't cost me any more money? So I'm 0:07:41.600 --> 0:07:43.680 thinking bank kase foul. I'm thinking music because I'm going 0:07:43.760 --> 0:07:45.920 to be working on Michael too this summer. But lately 0:07:46.000 --> 0:07:48.520 I've been thinking about acting. I've been luckily you sure 0:07:49.400 --> 0:07:51.000 you're not the only handsome guy. Get to look in 0:07:51.000 --> 0:07:52.840 his eyes and we talk. But I get to I 0:07:52.880 --> 0:07:54.560 get to sit across from Ethan Hawk on the show 0:07:54.600 --> 0:07:56.200 calls a Low Now, and I've been brought in for 0:07:56.280 --> 0:08:01.040 seasons called Yeah. It's very fun working with Scarpettit is amazing, 0:08:01.040 --> 0:08:02.520 But Scarpett is an amazing show. 0:08:02.880 --> 0:08:06.400 How do you prepare for an acting role differently than 0:08:06.400 --> 0:08:08.680 you would for a musical show? 0:08:09.160 --> 0:08:10.840 Or to sit down and record something? 0:08:11.000 --> 0:08:13.920 Well, music you count you can record just emotionally get 0:08:13.960 --> 0:08:15.560 it out and men you can go back and learn 0:08:15.600 --> 0:08:17.880 the song and you can imitate the emotion. Interesting with 0:08:18.000 --> 0:08:20.360 with acting, it's important that you do what you do 0:08:20.400 --> 0:08:22.960 in kindergarten repetition. Let me learn these words. I have 0:08:23.000 --> 0:08:24.800 to say my ABC perfectly or. 0:08:24.840 --> 0:08:26.640 I have a horrible memory. I could never do this. 0:08:26.920 --> 0:08:28.600 So your mom won't let you go outside till you 0:08:28.640 --> 0:08:31.040 say all ABCIX. And you have to treat yourself like that. 0:08:31.080 --> 0:08:33.160 I see my actors and writers have to get along 0:08:33.480 --> 0:08:35.480 because you get there in solitude, and then you got 0:08:35.480 --> 0:08:38.280 a good reading partner. I have a filmmaker friend whose 0:08:38.400 --> 0:08:40.360 name is on Michael Allen, and he reads with me. 0:08:40.600 --> 0:08:42.640 I have friends in the industry that give me good advice. 0:08:42.679 --> 0:08:44.600 So I think you know more than anything. Kindergarten taught 0:08:44.640 --> 0:08:47.319 your repetition about that, and once you learn it, put 0:08:47.400 --> 0:08:48.280 some more repetition. 0:08:48.360 --> 0:08:48.640 Indeed. 0:08:48.640 --> 0:08:51.240 But everything we're talking about is a creative exercise that 0:08:51.280 --> 0:08:53.560 you're involved in. And there are big questions about the 0:08:53.559 --> 0:08:57.880 way AI is about to change or is already changed this. 0:08:58.000 --> 0:09:01.520 Whether you're a visual artist a music shouldn't I could. 0:09:01.600 --> 0:09:03.920 I was talking to Chuck Level about this a little 0:09:03.920 --> 0:09:06.440 bit earlier. You could listen to AI music that's not 0:09:06.480 --> 0:09:07.880 even made by a person anymore. 0:09:08.520 --> 0:09:09.760 Is that a good or a bad thing? 0:09:09.800 --> 0:09:09.880 Well? 0:09:09.880 --> 0:09:10.840 I knew, I know. 0:09:10.920 --> 0:09:12.839 A producer sent me a track last night that I 0:09:12.920 --> 0:09:15.240 ended up getting on. This an amazing track. He said, 0:09:15.280 --> 0:09:16.880 I couldn't wait for a singer to sing it, so 0:09:16.920 --> 0:09:19.400 I sang it myself and made AI fix my voice. Wow, 0:09:19.440 --> 0:09:21.679 ah man, he sounded amazing. I'll never let him sing 0:09:21.679 --> 0:09:23.960 it live. We're going to find a real singing but 0:09:24.000 --> 0:09:25.760 it was it enabled him to get his idea out. 0:09:25.760 --> 0:09:27.160 And what I found with technology. 0:09:27.200 --> 0:09:28.840 And it's interesting because I was just told by the 0:09:28.840 --> 0:09:31.480 president of Georgia Tech that they're actually bringing a program 0:09:31.600 --> 0:09:34.040 that teaches technology through creativity. 0:09:34.040 --> 0:09:35.480 You're going to be able to learn music. But at 0:09:35.480 --> 0:09:36.679 the same time be learning colding. 0:09:36.960 --> 0:09:39.880 I think that's absolutely genius and chut friend from childhood 0:09:40.120 --> 0:09:42.439 rahem b I, who's a professor of maritis over here. 0:09:42.720 --> 0:09:45.679 But what happens is I think that AI is going 0:09:45.720 --> 0:09:48.720 to give musicians and artists the ability to have another 0:09:48.800 --> 0:09:51.520 tool to use their imagination. Yes, I can imagine a 0:09:51.559 --> 0:09:53.640 sketch before I draw it. But the ability to use 0:09:53.679 --> 0:09:56.040 AI to say, do the sketch and then I'll draw 0:09:56.440 --> 0:09:57.000 might work. 0:09:57.120 --> 0:09:57.560 Might help. 0:09:57.679 --> 0:09:59.960 That's important though, so it would augment your work now 0:10:00.160 --> 0:10:02.000 replace you as the Artist's. 0:10:01.679 --> 0:10:03.760 A possibility there if we take advantage. 0:10:03.360 --> 0:10:04.800 Of it, if we do it right, if we do 0:10:04.800 --> 0:10:05.080 it right. 0:10:05.160 --> 0:10:06.920 Yeah, you don't do some wrong before you do it right. 0:10:06.960 --> 0:10:08.640 Playing with AI is this part of your world. And 0:10:08.640 --> 0:10:10.040 you got claud, You've got John. 0:10:09.760 --> 0:10:12.920 And I I am as ignorant as can be. I 0:10:13.000 --> 0:10:15.040 know much about a AI as my grandpa knew about it. 0:10:15.679 --> 0:10:17.040 Well, listen, maybe we'll learn together. 0:10:17.040 --> 0:10:18.920 The Absolutely, it means a lot to us that you 0:10:19.000 --> 0:10:21.320 came all the way here to see us appreciate having 0:10:21.320 --> 0:10:23.480 you on Bloomberg. I'm very happy for your success and 0:10:23.480 --> 0:10:24.640 I'm looking forward to the next show.