WEBVTT - Tha Don 0:00:00.080 --> 0:00:09.760 Uh uh, we wait our reparations. You're listening to waiting 0:00:09.760 --> 0:00:13.520 our reparation to production of I Heart Radio. It isn't 0:00:13.600 --> 0:00:16.319 lynching light or being skinned alive, genocide of force the 0:00:16.360 --> 0:00:18.560 working class to choose between paying that run on time 0:00:18.600 --> 0:00:20.840 and getting back to work. Catching the German bings at 0:00:20.880 --> 0:00:22.840 heaven side. It's freedom out its finest, and it's their 0:00:22.880 --> 0:00:24.800 crime if they're not getting by, And it's my right 0:00:24.840 --> 0:00:26.520 to fix my frost and tips and hit the gym 0:00:26.560 --> 0:00:28.360 and miss my spit all over them. So tell me, 0:00:28.400 --> 0:00:30.479 why are you so threatened by what's that? Now? You 0:00:30.560 --> 0:00:33.240 value human life more than investment sized and so does Denmark, 0:00:33.280 --> 0:00:36.880 South Korea, Canada, Australia, Friends, Ireland, Italy, Germany, UK, Spain 0:00:36.960 --> 0:00:39.080 and the Netherlands enough to paint the people you be 0:00:39.360 --> 0:00:41.360 so they can sit inside, and we deserve the same. 0:00:41.400 --> 0:00:44.440 To first to me, you want a general strike, ha ha, 0:00:45.320 --> 0:00:47.680 that's all right. We're Congress back in business, just like 0:00:47.720 --> 0:00:50.080 Georgia is, with hamp to deal with shortages, events and 0:00:50.080 --> 0:00:52.479 bank rolling their courtporate friends who once again exhort the 0:00:52.560 --> 0:00:55.080 dumps as much as the Republicans will buck this up again, 0:00:55.200 --> 0:00:57.760 give us relief with mortgages and rent. You leave us 0:00:57.760 --> 0:01:00.080 force to pick between the Morrigan. Pitch intensely on the 0:01:00.160 --> 0:01:02.680 pick that they'll be coming west forth to eat the rich. 0:01:02.920 --> 0:01:04.880 For it to eat the rich, of course you'd be 0:01:04.920 --> 0:01:08.600 a dish. Huh. Yeah, I thought that I had seen 0:01:08.680 --> 0:01:10.759 it all. I don't know what's more to get living 0:01:10.920 --> 0:01:13.560 under quarantine, got a nick good border stress, gave you 0:01:13.600 --> 0:01:17.080 acid check, need more, but they show impressed. Seen three recessions, 0:01:17.120 --> 0:01:19.240 three wars. I ain't forty year. It was gonna get 0:01:19.400 --> 0:01:22.479 system failed. They can deny it. Ship is frail. Listen, well, 0:01:22.520 --> 0:01:24.319 they're gonna want you to go get as sick as 0:01:24.319 --> 0:01:27.000 hell for somebody else to stop Cloud going for the 0:01:27.040 --> 0:01:29.760 rebound getting boxed out. Hope it doesn't happen. But I 0:01:29.840 --> 0:01:32.560 got doubts. While you win, you're fortressing the people getting 0:01:32.560 --> 0:01:34.600 shot down because they're in the streets, and now the 0:01:34.600 --> 0:01:37.319 cops are using hot rounds. I don't even want y'all 0:01:37.480 --> 0:01:40.120 massive gets swung on, watch the world burn with some 0:01:40.200 --> 0:01:43.440 gasoline draws on make that. But I'd rather take all 0:01:43.520 --> 0:01:46.000 ship and as long as you flowers put a face 0:01:46.080 --> 0:01:48.760 on it, wait for it. Not saying that I hate 0:01:48.800 --> 0:01:50.960 all rich, but I smoke an l for all of 0:01:50.960 --> 0:01:56.160 that hate. Y'all get dope. He my name is Dope 0:01:56.240 --> 0:02:00.200 night Frank, and we are waiting on reparations. Hurry up. 0:02:01.120 --> 0:02:05.200 Ah So fuck well, I mean, there's no it's no 0:02:05.280 --> 0:02:06.960 easy way to say. We might as well just say 0:02:07.000 --> 0:02:09.720 because it's on both of our minds. But um, you know, 0:02:09.760 --> 0:02:14.280 this episode comes after unfortunate bit of news this week, 0:02:14.400 --> 0:02:19.680 the passing of journalists, political commentator, and activist Michael Brooks. 0:02:20.160 --> 0:02:23.280 It's weighed pretty heavily on both of us. I was devastated. 0:02:23.320 --> 0:02:26.160 I am devastated. We're both pretty big fans. Yeah. I 0:02:26.160 --> 0:02:29.000 had recently, only recently gotten into his work, and it 0:02:29.080 --> 0:02:32.000 felt like I was only very very recently becoming like 0:02:32.160 --> 0:02:35.480 smart enough to fucking understand it. Like he had such 0:02:35.520 --> 0:02:39.839 a like internationalist perspective, and she's like such deep care 0:02:39.919 --> 0:02:42.280 for the struggles of working people around the globe. And 0:02:42.320 --> 0:02:46.160 I learned so much from him about like uprisings from 0:02:46.639 --> 0:02:50.760 Brazil to like communism in India in the way that 0:02:50.760 --> 0:02:54.000 they had organizedly effectively under COVID, and um, it's really 0:02:54.040 --> 0:02:58.160 apartide and just like so many topics, And to find 0:02:58.160 --> 0:03:01.280 out that he's gone, he hurts it's like every time 0:03:01.320 --> 0:03:03.760 you listen to him speak, it's like you learned something 0:03:03.800 --> 0:03:06.320 each time. But it's funny that you said that, because 0:03:06.560 --> 0:03:10.720 it's like the way that I found out about him was, um, 0:03:10.800 --> 0:03:14.680 it was actually him being funny. It was he was 0:03:14.520 --> 0:03:18.000 he was hilarious. He was playing a clip of h 0:03:18.320 --> 0:03:20.639 I mean, I had seen him, you know, guests appear 0:03:20.720 --> 0:03:24.440 on like Young Turks and you know, Majority Report, but 0:03:24.560 --> 0:03:27.440 he was you know, at this point he had had 0:03:27.480 --> 0:03:29.919 his show, I think, and he was playing a clip 0:03:30.320 --> 0:03:36.600 of Alex Jones, like berating Ben Shapiro. But he said 0:03:36.640 --> 0:03:40.280 it to the beat for Nazis Ether and it was 0:03:40.400 --> 0:03:43.000 like the funniest shit I had ever heard. I was like, yeah, 0:03:43.000 --> 0:03:47.960 I gotta find out who this guy. Yeah, yeah, Yeah, 0:03:47.960 --> 0:03:52.080 it's unfortunate. You know. Definitely was hoping at some point, 0:03:52.440 --> 0:03:54.480 the more that we keep doing this, maybe being able 0:03:54.520 --> 0:03:58.280 to talk to him. Yeah. Yeah. So if all our 0:03:58.280 --> 0:04:01.080 listeners out there, if you would please join us in 0:04:01.680 --> 0:04:05.360 a brief moment of silence for Michael, we really appreciate it. 0:04:14.160 --> 0:04:16.680 So yeah, go check out some of Michael streams with 0:04:16.760 --> 0:04:22.360 the Michael Brooks Show on YouTube, um Patreon. He had 0:04:22.400 --> 0:04:25.800 a book out about the Intellectual Dark Web that I 0:04:25.880 --> 0:04:28.800 recently started reading and it's really good, um that you 0:04:28.839 --> 0:04:33.480 can get via red Emma's and highly recommend um. Yeah. 0:04:33.640 --> 0:04:35.880 Just it's not too late to learn from him even 0:04:35.920 --> 0:04:38.400 though he's gone. The thing about when you follow people 0:04:38.440 --> 0:04:43.400 on YouTube like that is you feel like you know them, 0:04:43.400 --> 0:04:45.760 so something like this happens, or you know, you feel 0:04:45.800 --> 0:04:47.919 every day you feel a little bit harder than you 0:04:47.960 --> 0:04:51.200 do for usually in situations like this. But then also 0:04:51.720 --> 0:04:55.680 because of the nature of being a YouTuber, this is 0:04:55.760 --> 0:04:59.039 just endless amount of content that you can always look 0:04:59.279 --> 0:05:01.479 to remember him ever, Yeah, so go check that out 0:05:01.560 --> 0:05:06.159 for sure. What else is going on with you? Oh? Um, 0:05:06.240 --> 0:05:08.039 I'm finally ready to let you read my comic book 0:05:08.080 --> 0:05:10.880 because I'm finished writing it. Finished writing it. Yeah, Like 0:05:10.920 --> 0:05:14.760 I mean to explain, the comic book was written, but 0:05:14.839 --> 0:05:16.880 I kind of went with the what they call in 0:05:16.920 --> 0:05:20.080 the industry the stan Lee method, where I outlined the 0:05:20.120 --> 0:05:22.760 story and then I drew it and then I put 0:05:22.800 --> 0:05:25.720 the you know, the dialogue and word balloons after and stuff. 0:05:25.760 --> 0:05:27.960 So that's what I've been doing for the last month 0:05:28.480 --> 0:05:31.760 and finally finished that. So um, yeah, look in your 0:05:31.760 --> 0:05:35.760 in box soon you'll be everybody about everybody who's read 0:05:35.800 --> 0:05:38.480 it so far said it's been dope. So you describe 0:05:38.480 --> 0:05:40.640 it to me? I was just fucking mind blown. This 0:05:40.680 --> 0:05:42.720 is the thing that exists or what exists to the one. 0:05:42.880 --> 0:05:46.200 And because I've been like doing the dialogue, you know, recently, 0:05:46.480 --> 0:05:49.360 it's it's been influenced by everything that's been going on, 0:05:49.440 --> 0:05:52.279 so a lot of my current thoughts on stuff have 0:05:52.320 --> 0:05:54.880 been incorporated into the story of it. I I don't 0:05:54.880 --> 0:05:56.800 want to like tease it too much because it doesn't 0:05:56.920 --> 0:05:58.720 you know, it's no one can hold it in their 0:05:58.760 --> 0:06:04.240 hands yet, So fucking download that ship. What about you? 0:06:04.440 --> 0:06:07.600 Fun man? Just watching what's going down in Chicago and 0:06:07.720 --> 0:06:11.560 Portland's Yeah, did they already send troops Chicago? I don't 0:06:11.560 --> 0:06:15.080 think they had. What's going on in um I believe 0:06:15.160 --> 0:06:20.200 Friday night they had a de colonized Zega gong hopefully 0:06:20.200 --> 0:06:24.160 and pronouncing that right, protest for Black and Indigenous solidarity, 0:06:24.279 --> 0:06:27.480 asking for us for you know, the government to decolonized 0:06:28.040 --> 0:06:32.400 by like protecting community gardens in Chicago, by bringing down 0:06:32.400 --> 0:06:36.599 the Columbus Christopher Columbus statue, and you know, obviously to 0:06:36.640 --> 0:06:40.279 fund the CPD and get uh Chicago cops out of 0:06:40.279 --> 0:06:45.560 schools and uh protesters where I met with violence by CPD. 0:06:46.240 --> 0:06:48.920 A eighteen year old activist with a Good Kids Mad 0:06:48.960 --> 0:06:53.640 City named Miracle Boyd while filming an arrest, got several 0:06:53.680 --> 0:06:58.760 teeth knocked out by a Chicago police officer. And UM, 0:06:58.800 --> 0:07:00.960 I've been really heartened by the act. They haven't really 0:07:01.040 --> 0:07:04.160 let up in that aftermath, Like the very next night 0:07:04.160 --> 0:07:07.159 they were outside of Lory Lightfoot's house once again demanding 0:07:07.200 --> 0:07:11.000 to fund CPD. UM. You know, I think at this 0:07:11.080 --> 0:07:14.320 point the word is out about what's happening in Portland. 0:07:14.440 --> 0:07:17.040 The mainstream media's finally picked up on what's going on. 0:07:17.520 --> 0:07:20.360 I mean, they're they've been going at it um as 0:07:20.360 --> 0:07:24.560 far as like covering it. So that's been encouraging because 0:07:25.840 --> 0:07:27.600 I mean you would think if there's ever gonna be 0:07:28.840 --> 0:07:32.840 a moment that's going to unify just everybody on like 0:07:32.960 --> 0:07:38.800 different political spectrums, it would be literal jack booted thugs 0:07:38.800 --> 0:07:41.600 like kidnapping people off the streets. You think the fucking 0:07:41.680 --> 0:07:44.680 libertarians would have something to say about this. And Uh, 0:07:44.880 --> 0:07:46.960 I mean no, there's definitely boot liquors out there. I've 0:07:47.000 --> 0:07:49.400 been I've been seeing them. There's like all of the 0:07:49.480 --> 0:07:52.600 freedom of speech warriors that are always down to declare 0:07:52.640 --> 0:07:55.680 the end of Western civilization the minute some purple haired 0:07:55.760 --> 0:07:58.280 kid won't let Jordan Peters and speak somewhere where are 0:07:58.280 --> 0:08:00.960 you nig is at? Huh you can stop those in 0:08:01.000 --> 0:08:04.480 the street where you at? Yeah? I digress, you know, 0:08:04.600 --> 0:08:07.120 I mean, I guess this is all fitting with you know, 0:08:07.240 --> 0:08:18.680 Donald Trump's America. You know, on this podcast, um, and 0:08:19.080 --> 0:08:21.440 maybe it's mostly just me, but you know, by extension, 0:08:21.480 --> 0:08:24.000 on this podcast, um, we talk a lot about the 0:08:24.040 --> 0:08:29.080 revolutionary roots and potential for hip hop a lot of times, 0:08:29.080 --> 0:08:34.800 but um, it's inevitable that eventually, sometimes occasionally we uh 0:08:34.920 --> 0:08:39.000 in diving deep into hip hop's complexities and contradictions, we 0:08:39.040 --> 0:08:43.760 address it's fawning over the President of the United States, 0:08:43.920 --> 0:08:47.320 Donald Day Trump. Donald and So this is a topic that, 0:08:47.440 --> 0:08:50.960 like you feel really impassionate about it. I definitely have 0:08:51.720 --> 0:08:56.120 thoughts to say, Louise, well, you know what, I feel 0:08:56.120 --> 0:08:59.360 that we should clarify this right, like we should maybe 0:08:59.360 --> 0:09:03.480 amend it and not necessarily talk about hip hop's relationship 0:09:04.000 --> 0:09:08.920 to Donald Trump, but talk about rappers relationships Donald trup. 0:09:09.000 --> 0:09:11.720 Hip hop is so many different things that I think 0:09:11.760 --> 0:09:14.560 it's kind of unfair to just mask all of it 0:09:14.679 --> 0:09:17.719 like be boys and be girls and graffiti artists, every 0:09:17.960 --> 0:09:19.800 this is this is more of a rapper thing because 0:09:19.840 --> 0:09:22.360 it has to do with personas, Yeah, and like the 0:09:22.400 --> 0:09:25.760 cultivation of like very specific kind of personas in hip 0:09:25.760 --> 0:09:32.920 hop and in the rise of Donald Trump. Donald Trump, 0:09:33.000 --> 0:09:40.160 in many ways, Donald Trump's very essence pre presidency represents 0:09:42.200 --> 0:09:45.719 in a lot of ways the very id of what 0:09:46.800 --> 0:09:51.800 for at the very least mainstream American hip hop what now, 0:09:52.559 --> 0:09:55.120 you know, obviously there's much to be said about the 0:09:55.240 --> 0:09:58.240 turn that hip hop is taken on Donald Trump. This 0:09:58.360 --> 0:10:00.480 is a public figure and that's all that we're really 0:10:00.520 --> 0:10:04.720 dealing with here, Like, trust me, well, we can get into, 0:10:04.960 --> 0:10:08.280 like you know, the political ramifications of this, but I 0:10:08.360 --> 0:10:11.040 think that's pretty easy, you know what I mean. It's 0:10:11.080 --> 0:10:13.720 fun Donald Trump all day in hip hop at this point, 0:10:13.960 --> 0:10:16.280 you know what I mean, because of what he represents politically. 0:10:16.520 --> 0:10:18.800 But as we all know, that wasn't always the case. 0:10:18.840 --> 0:10:21.400 And Donald Trump was definitely a figure that was a 0:10:21.480 --> 0:10:26.560 referenced numerous times over two d times, over two hundred 0:10:26.640 --> 0:10:28.880 times in the last thirty years. So the takeaway from 0:10:28.920 --> 0:10:32.640 all these references positive and negative, and most are positive 0:10:32.640 --> 0:10:40.040 and favorable. By a count done by of song lyrics 0:10:40.080 --> 0:10:45.480 about Trump were negative, while sixty we're positive. Two hundred 0:10:45.600 --> 0:10:48.440 rap songs. Obviously, I know they've been way more than 0:10:48.480 --> 0:10:51.360 two hundred rap songs created in that time, but that's 0:10:51.360 --> 0:10:58.000 really that's a lot of references for anyone. That's crazy 0:10:58.280 --> 0:11:00.280 if you think about that, you know what I'm saying, Like, 0:11:00.360 --> 0:11:03.679 the only only other you know, figure that I can 0:11:03.720 --> 0:11:06.400 think of that has that many references in hip hop 0:11:06.480 --> 0:11:10.160 would be like Tony Montana, who's like famously not really 0:11:11.440 --> 0:11:22.160 notoriously not a real person, not even necessarily his um 0:11:23.559 --> 0:11:29.319 rise to political power, but he became such a commonly 0:11:29.480 --> 0:11:32.800 referenced character in the story that is hip hop if 0:11:32.840 --> 0:11:35.319 you actually go back and you listen to it. So 0:11:35.400 --> 0:11:38.000 let's just give you a brief little history. So the 0:11:38.160 --> 0:11:43.520 earliest that anyone can really recall hearing references to Donald 0:11:43.559 --> 0:11:49.479 Trump and rap songs would be around and that unfortunate, 0:11:50.240 --> 0:11:53.320 unfortunate accolade is going to either go to the Beastie Boys, 0:11:53.400 --> 0:11:57.040 the Fat Boys, or my pick of the goat iced tea. 0:11:57.520 --> 0:12:00.680 But one of those cats had the first Donald Trump 0:12:00.960 --> 0:12:10.640 bar I did a cart in the White House, and 0:12:10.760 --> 0:12:14.240 after that Donald It's hard to think of Donald Trump 0:12:14.880 --> 0:12:18.360 as anything other than a politician. At this point. You 0:12:18.400 --> 0:12:21.960 can't really divorce him from his office or his power 0:12:22.600 --> 0:12:25.040 or the party that's behind him. But if you really 0:12:25.559 --> 0:12:29.079 do try to, just like take yourself back to a 0:12:29.200 --> 0:12:38.680 time before that this brash, arrogant, self important, um verbose 0:12:40.120 --> 0:12:45.440 dangerous like might be a criminal, but has like an 0:12:45.480 --> 0:12:51.600 acceptance in legit business. Just there's just a lot about 0:12:52.760 --> 0:12:57.000 who Donald Trump was as a figure that totally makes 0:12:57.040 --> 0:13:01.360 sense that he was dealt with the way that he 0:13:01.600 --> 0:13:03.880 was in hip hop up to that time. I mean, 0:13:04.000 --> 0:13:07.120 no different than I mean if you just consider, if 0:13:07.200 --> 0:13:12.080 you if Tony Montana was a real person, pretty sure 0:13:12.120 --> 0:13:13.880 it would be like a horrible human being, you know 0:13:13.920 --> 0:13:17.200 what I'm saying. Yeah, like not a good person. Pretty 0:13:17.200 --> 0:13:19.760 sure Al Capome was not like a good guy. I'm 0:13:19.800 --> 0:13:22.599 pretty sure Noriega wasn't a good guy, you know what 0:13:22.679 --> 0:13:25.720 I mean. Like, these are all figures that have been 0:13:25.800 --> 0:13:28.760 referenced in hip hop time and time again, and I 0:13:28.800 --> 0:13:34.040 don't think anyone is going to to to question the 0:13:34.120 --> 0:13:36.040 references that will come in the future, you know what 0:13:36.080 --> 0:13:40.199 I'm saying. The aspect of Donald Trump that makes it 0:13:40.360 --> 0:13:45.360 such a regrettable reference going back is what he's become, 0:13:45.760 --> 0:13:48.959 you know what I'm saying, which to reveal himself to be. 0:13:49.960 --> 0:13:53.280 But that is the issue to me, is that the 0:13:53.400 --> 0:13:58.599 deal breaker he has revealed himself. Yeah, like like was 0:13:58.679 --> 0:14:03.960 that not something that was obvious to people? All right? 0:14:05.520 --> 0:14:11.040 So my thesis, as it were, if hip hop is 0:14:11.120 --> 0:14:17.199 the most powerful cultural entertainment phenomena to happen in the 0:14:17.320 --> 0:14:22.520 last thirty years, with its mainstream incarnation being at the forefront, 0:14:23.160 --> 0:14:28.240 then does mainstream American hip hop have any influence over 0:14:28.400 --> 0:14:32.600 Donald Trump's rise to power? Now? By power, I don't 0:14:32.640 --> 0:14:37.120 necessarily mean political power because again, one of the reasons 0:14:37.160 --> 0:14:39.760 that we're not really tackling what hip hop's relationship to 0:14:39.840 --> 0:14:42.440 Donald Trump is now is because like at this point 0:14:42.680 --> 0:14:46.520 it's kind of cliche, Like the consensus is fun Donald 0:14:46.560 --> 0:14:50.720 Trump for the most part, it's it really is something. 0:14:50.760 --> 0:14:54.160 I mean, I've I've asked several rapper friends of mine, 0:14:54.280 --> 0:14:55.840 and it's kind of a hard thing to deal with 0:14:56.000 --> 0:14:58.880 in music now because like making a song about your 0:14:58.920 --> 0:15:02.240 thoughts about Donald Trump is like it's kind of passing. 0:15:02.280 --> 0:15:06.240 It's like cancer is bad word, dude. Yeah, it's a 0:15:06.320 --> 0:15:11.560 really interesting song exactly what racism is bad, you know, 0:15:11.760 --> 0:15:14.520 like word, okay, we got we got you? Yeah, what 0:15:14.840 --> 0:15:17.800 is what is your thoughts on that? Just just your 0:15:17.800 --> 0:15:21.920 initial thoughts on just like that question he just wrote 0:15:21.960 --> 0:15:24.960 out of the deal. He has pretty much lied his 0:15:25.120 --> 0:15:28.120 way into people thinking he is something he's not. It's 0:15:28.160 --> 0:15:31.720 already begun and he's gotten embraced by That's that's the 0:15:31.720 --> 0:15:34.520 power I'm talking about. Yeah, Like does hip hop have 0:15:34.840 --> 0:15:38.600 have anything to do with his rise to that? I 0:15:38.720 --> 0:15:40.920 do not think hip hop is responsible for the rise 0:15:40.960 --> 0:15:43.200 of Donald Trump. I wanted I wanted to make clear 0:15:43.360 --> 0:15:46.320 something about that, because it's not as if these positive 0:15:46.320 --> 0:15:49.800 Trump references to the decades have been turning young black 0:15:49.880 --> 0:15:52.840 men out to vote for Trump in droves. According to 0:15:52.920 --> 0:15:55.880 the n y T, only of black men voted for him. 0:15:55.920 --> 0:15:57.040 So I don't know if we can really make the 0:15:57.080 --> 0:16:00.800 connection of like these positive references throughout the the years, 0:16:01.120 --> 0:16:04.280 and like, it's not that um saying that hip hop 0:16:04.440 --> 0:16:06.280 is responsible for the rise of Donald Trump. I do 0:16:06.400 --> 0:16:10.600 not believe that. But I don't believe that The Apprentice 0:16:11.040 --> 0:16:14.280 is responsible for the rise of Donald Trump either. But 0:16:14.800 --> 0:16:17.680 I definitely know that there's a there's a part in 0:16:17.800 --> 0:16:20.640 conditioning the public to be comfortable with Donald Trump as 0:16:20.680 --> 0:16:26.600 a public figure. That the Apprentice definitely played right. Yes, yes, 0:16:27.560 --> 0:16:31.560 that's all I'm saying. Well, what I think is that, Um, 0:16:33.040 --> 0:16:36.480 you know, Donald D. Trump was a young man in 0:16:36.560 --> 0:16:41.920 New York during the air of hip hop's ascendency. He was, 0:16:42.160 --> 0:16:45.160 even if distantly there when it came up, and he 0:16:45.320 --> 0:16:48.560 reportedly liked hip hop. Um, he had friendships with the 0:16:48.640 --> 0:16:52.600 had friendships with people like Russell Simmons. Um. And I'd 0:16:52.640 --> 0:16:54.920 say that this relationship between Donald Trump and hip hop, 0:16:55.000 --> 0:16:59.680 and indeed some shared characteristics between hip hop creators, rappers specifically, 0:17:00.200 --> 0:17:03.720 and the current president are what they are because they 0:17:03.760 --> 0:17:08.120 were cooked up in the same cauldron. The same social, 0:17:08.560 --> 0:17:12.320 cultural political forces that gave birth to hip hop, and 0:17:12.400 --> 0:17:15.440 the same mentality that circulated within hip hop as a 0:17:15.480 --> 0:17:19.200 result of these cultural forces also shaped Donald Trump and 0:17:19.280 --> 0:17:24.000 who he has, who he became, who has become Um, 0:17:25.840 --> 0:17:28.240 and and and and some and some have even said, 0:17:28.440 --> 0:17:32.800 you know, Charles blow In two thousand eighteen even ventured 0:17:33.000 --> 0:17:35.840 to say that Trump took after hip hop in some ways. 0:17:36.359 --> 0:17:39.119 He and he quote unquote invidd he aped it. He 0:17:39.200 --> 0:17:43.520 admired the men who learned how to monetize swagger. So 0:17:43.640 --> 0:17:47.159 I think the really interesting question is to what degree 0:17:47.160 --> 0:17:51.200 did hip hop Makedonald Trump who he is? That is true, 0:17:51.960 --> 0:17:57.159 but even the implications of that, to me, like I 0:17:57.280 --> 0:17:59.440 never even thought about it that way. But even that, 0:18:00.920 --> 0:18:03.240 with what we know of Donald Trump, now, do we 0:18:03.400 --> 0:18:07.000 think any of that reverence or respect was genuine? No, 0:18:07.280 --> 0:18:09.639 I mean it was like it's in cultural appropriation and 0:18:09.720 --> 0:18:13.040 it's superficial. I talk about the fact that Donald Trump 0:18:13.080 --> 0:18:16.320 has always been a racist. Going back to seventy three, 0:18:16.440 --> 0:18:20.439 the Justice Department that Trump discriminated against prospective black tenants 0:18:20.600 --> 0:18:24.760 of his apartment complexes, rather than just screening out low 0:18:24.840 --> 0:18:28.360 income applicants as they claimed at the time. The Department 0:18:28.440 --> 0:18:32.119 of Justice said, black testers to more than half a 0:18:32.200 --> 0:18:36.840 dozen buildings and we're denied apartments. But but similar white 0:18:36.880 --> 0:18:41.320 testers would then be offer departments in the same apartment buildings. 0:18:41.400 --> 0:18:44.159 So this is back in n seventy three, before before 0:18:44.320 --> 0:18:46.320 he even has a claim to the fame of the 0:18:46.359 --> 0:18:50.760 Trump Tower, before hip hop was even really a thing. 0:18:51.520 --> 0:18:56.240 So I do not disagree with anything that you said. 0:18:56.640 --> 0:18:59.480 I just feel like there's a reason that they referenced 0:18:59.520 --> 0:19:02.760 him so much. I'm not saying that there's no like 0:19:02.960 --> 0:19:06.240 mitigating factors behind it, and there's very well a reason 0:19:06.359 --> 0:19:08.439 for why there was that connection. There's a reason why 0:19:08.520 --> 0:19:11.240 Donald Trump was hanging in those scenes and was around 0:19:11.280 --> 0:19:13.760 those people. I don't mean it and like, I gotcha, 0:19:13.880 --> 0:19:16.560 see what you did. Yeah, that's not really how I 0:19:16.640 --> 0:19:18.720 mean it. I mean it more so just is like 0:19:19.000 --> 0:19:23.120 you know what, maybe just letting any old body get 0:19:23.200 --> 0:19:26.200 into our hip hop ship is not like a good idea. 0:19:26.720 --> 0:19:29.720 Do you think people are have wisened up to them? No? No, no, 0:19:30.280 --> 0:19:32.840 not at all. If anything, it's power has been in 0:19:33.560 --> 0:19:37.520 the way it has fueled the white suburban imagination about 0:19:38.040 --> 0:19:43.160 Black America and stoking those fears of it through reporting 0:19:43.200 --> 0:19:46.399 on what's happening on the ground in Black America. Oh God, 0:19:46.640 --> 0:19:49.960 these thugs are gonna come and rape your wives and 0:19:50.119 --> 0:19:55.560 like whatever. Um that's sort of like white supremacy. Uh 0:19:55.840 --> 0:19:58.720 that you know has linked arms with Donald Trump? Is 0:19:58.800 --> 0:20:02.320 that have foisted him up as they're champion. Like hip 0:20:02.359 --> 0:20:05.720 hop has definitely influenced that to a degree and sort 0:20:05.720 --> 0:20:09.680 of stoked most fears that gave an opportunity for someone 0:20:09.840 --> 0:20:14.520 like uh, Donald Trump too. I'm just always curious, right, 0:20:15.359 --> 0:20:17.840 maybe it's I didn't grow up in the States, And 0:20:18.200 --> 0:20:21.680 something that will discover as as we go on with 0:20:21.800 --> 0:20:25.960 these episodes is like there's certain things that I perceived 0:20:26.200 --> 0:20:28.800 one way because I was living overseas as a kid 0:20:28.840 --> 0:20:31.320 when it was happening, that maybe it didn't have the 0:20:31.400 --> 0:20:36.119 same perception. Like there definitely was a point in my 0:20:36.320 --> 0:20:40.320 childhood when Donald Trump is a figure I just knew 0:20:40.400 --> 0:20:43.960 him to be like this rich guy. Yeah, but there 0:20:44.080 --> 0:20:47.440 definitely was a point in my childhood when Donald Trump's 0:20:47.480 --> 0:20:52.359 bankruptcy and like just the concept of bankruptcy was just 0:20:52.480 --> 0:20:54.960 something that like I associated with Donald Trump. He was 0:20:55.040 --> 0:20:57.240 like the most famous person that I knew that went bankrupt. 0:20:57.240 --> 0:20:59.560 I didn't even really know what bankruptcy meant except that 0:20:59.640 --> 0:21:02.119 you money is the only concept I had it, So 0:21:02.280 --> 0:21:06.800 like I knew that, And from all of the research 0:21:06.880 --> 0:21:08.840 that we've been doing, it doesn't seem like that was 0:21:09.000 --> 0:21:14.880 ever like held against Donald Trump. Yeah, let me get 0:21:15.520 --> 0:21:18.680 you know, Like there's never any like I can't find 0:21:18.960 --> 0:21:22.760 any references to you ni is gonna go broke like 0:21:22.880 --> 0:21:25.119 Donald Trump, Like no one was ever saying that, like 0:21:25.280 --> 0:21:28.000 he even though that was the reality of his life, 0:21:28.160 --> 0:21:33.639 it seemed to escape between two tho nine. Trump's hotelling 0:21:33.680 --> 0:21:37.480 casino business has declared bankruptcy six times due to inability 0:21:37.800 --> 0:21:41.359 to meet requiring payments and renegotiate debt with bis Yo. 0:21:41.680 --> 0:21:45.159 I mean, so that's like it's like the heyday of 0:21:45.240 --> 0:21:47.080 most of these quotes that were like, yeah, that's like 0:21:47.280 --> 0:21:52.040 over a decade of failure for this to catch. But 0:21:52.200 --> 0:21:57.000 even the reference doesn't make sense that. Yeah, the aspect 0:21:57.040 --> 0:22:01.080 of like Trump being like such a bumbastad figure also 0:22:01.160 --> 0:22:05.560 playing into it too, because you know, surely, like Bill 0:22:05.640 --> 0:22:08.240 Gates is a famous, rich guy, but he didn't get 0:22:08.359 --> 0:22:12.000 as many shoutouts or like comparisons or things like that 0:22:12.119 --> 0:22:15.119 as Trump because he's not like showy. Yeah, that's a 0:22:15.160 --> 0:22:17.080 good point. That's a good point. Yeah. I know hip 0:22:17.119 --> 0:22:21.680 hop is supposed to be inclusive and everybody can get 0:22:21.760 --> 0:22:24.760 in and YadA, YadA, YadA, YadA, all that all that 0:22:24.880 --> 0:22:29.120 ship I'm saying. So I guess the thing's just like disheartening. 0:22:29.640 --> 0:22:32.400 The lesson that I don't think is being learned because 0:22:32.400 --> 0:22:34.280 maybe it's just some ship that only I'm thinking about, 0:22:35.080 --> 0:22:39.960 but is who we let into hip hop and how 0:22:40.920 --> 0:22:44.920 this Donald Trump situation is not the first time that 0:22:45.160 --> 0:22:50.440 some body fake in the funk, got open arms, embrace, 0:22:51.200 --> 0:22:53.520 and then flipped around on the other side and turned 0:22:53.520 --> 0:22:57.639 it turned out to not even be not a decent person, 0:22:57.800 --> 0:23:00.560 not be for the culture. Like nothing, know what I'm saying, 0:23:00.800 --> 0:23:04.760 Like I look at Donald Trump's fall from grace, no 0:23:05.000 --> 0:23:08.639 different than Kid Rocks. You feel what I'm saying. But 0:23:08.720 --> 0:23:11.879 there's a lot of people who listen to mainstream hip 0:23:11.920 --> 0:23:16.199 hop who, like I'm pretty sure, don't give two funks 0:23:16.320 --> 0:23:20.200 about the people making it or anybody that looks like though, no, yeah, 0:23:20.200 --> 0:23:21.680 I mean, this is a college town that we're in 0:23:21.800 --> 0:23:26.040 right now, and like you definitely see like hoisted pickup trucks, 0:23:27.640 --> 0:23:33.560 you know, Magga Hat asked, Motherfucker's out here and the 0:23:33.680 --> 0:23:38.320 newest Mego song. I just feel like, obviously there's nothing 0:23:38.359 --> 0:23:41.360 anybody can do to change the path. But in hindsight, 0:23:41.680 --> 0:23:45.240 you know the fact that there's no self reflection as 0:23:45.280 --> 0:23:48.040 to like, damn, you know what wasn't about what I 0:23:48.280 --> 0:23:51.359 was doing that would have made a motherfucker like that 0:23:51.560 --> 0:23:54.120 feel comfortable? Because what do you what do you see 0:23:54.160 --> 0:23:58.359 as the deal breaker for Trump and hip hop? I 0:23:58.440 --> 0:23:59.960 don't think. I don't think you can ask me that 0:24:00.119 --> 0:24:01.879 question because I feel like we should have been not 0:24:02.080 --> 0:24:05.160 fucking with him all along. I agree, No, I agree 0:24:05.200 --> 0:24:07.640 for you. So I'm not talking about you personally. Yeah, 0:24:07.800 --> 0:24:10.120 I'm talking about what what do you see like? Because 0:24:10.200 --> 0:24:14.600 obviously there's a switch right like Trump has been he's 0:24:14.640 --> 0:24:17.879 been doing he's been being Trump and doing all of 0:24:17.960 --> 0:24:19.879 his Trump things and having all of his Trump is 0:24:19.960 --> 0:24:22.360 um and then in hip hop was this I'm doing 0:24:22.440 --> 0:24:26.320 I'm living. It's always I'm living like I'm with um, 0:24:26.440 --> 0:24:29.960 you know. I mean, I'm getting money like Trump. That 0:24:30.359 --> 0:24:34.320 they're staying in Trump hotels, they're well known, like him, 0:24:34.880 --> 0:24:37.840