1 00:00:04,526 --> 00:00:07,703 [siren wailing in distance] 2 00:00:07,833 --> 00:00:11,359 So, my question to you is, you're in this world. 3 00:00:11,489 --> 00:00:12,538 There's people getting shot, people catching cases. 4 00:00:12,621 --> 00:00:14,057 -It happens. -People is dying. 5 00:00:14,144 --> 00:00:15,406 -Things is happening. -Uh-huh. 6 00:00:15,537 --> 00:00:18,366 Why did the streets pull you in? Like, how does 7 00:00:18,496 --> 00:00:19,937 music come into this? Like... -Yeah, so... so... 8 00:00:20,020 --> 00:00:20,672 Like, when was there time for it? 9 00:00:20,803 --> 00:00:22,544 -So, honestly... -Yeah. 10 00:00:22,631 --> 00:00:23,766 You know what I'm sayin'? I don't think it's a choice. 11 00:00:23,849 --> 00:00:25,982 You start beefin', 12 00:00:26,113 --> 00:00:27,683 and then you start speaking about it in the songs. 13 00:00:27,766 --> 00:00:29,685 LL COOL J: Mm-hmm, and it just... it just morphs. 14 00:00:29,768 --> 00:00:31,248 It's like... it's like a battle win. 15 00:00:31,379 --> 00:00:33,619 So it's a battle, but it's... but it's real life, though. 16 00:00:33,729 --> 00:00:36,558 Yeah, but behind the battle win, it's like it's pain and hurt 17 00:00:36,688 --> 00:00:38,690 and losing people every day, 18 00:00:38,777 --> 00:00:40,779 and you get lucky to make it out. 19 00:00:40,910 --> 00:00:42,089 -Yeah. -Grab a few that you can. 20 00:00:42,172 --> 00:00:44,044 -Yeah. -Just trying. 21 00:00:44,131 --> 00:00:46,133 -Let me tell you somethin', man. -Yeah. 22 00:00:46,220 --> 00:00:47,529 It's like walking through the desert. 23 00:00:47,612 --> 00:00:49,484 -Word. -You know, just 'cause you 24 00:00:49,614 --> 00:00:50,968 walking through the desert, and you suffering every day, 25 00:00:51,051 --> 00:00:53,009 don't mean there ain't no oasis on the way. 26 00:00:53,183 --> 00:00:54,493 -Yeah. [laughing] -You know what I'm sayin'? 27 00:00:54,576 --> 00:00:56,534 You know what I mean? We thirsty right now, 28 00:00:56,621 --> 00:00:58,261 but we gon' flip the script. -Hell, yeah. 29 00:00:58,580 --> 00:01:02,497 ♪ 30 00:01:02,584 --> 00:01:04,455 LL COOL J: Hip hop is everywhere, 31 00:01:04,586 --> 00:01:06,979 every corner of the globe. 32 00:01:07,110 --> 00:01:09,765 But to understand the power of hip hop today, 33 00:01:09,852 --> 00:01:12,072 you have to go back to where it all started... 34 00:01:12,159 --> 00:01:13,377 SINGER: ♪ Ain't no love ♪ 35 00:01:13,551 --> 00:01:16,859 LL COOL J: ...my hometown, New York City. 36 00:01:16,989 --> 00:01:20,384 Because listen, when I tell you, hip hop was born here. 37 00:01:20,515 --> 00:01:23,648 SINGER: ♪ In the heart of town ♪ 38 00:01:23,822 --> 00:01:25,650 ♪ Ain't no love ♪ 39 00:01:25,737 --> 00:01:27,652 ♪ 40 00:01:27,783 --> 00:01:33,180 New York City, where one out of every 25 Americans lives, 41 00:01:33,354 --> 00:01:36,661 faces a financial showdown. 42 00:01:36,792 --> 00:01:38,576 -[tone drones] -REPORTER: New York City... 43 00:01:38,663 --> 00:01:40,883 [overlapping reporter commentary] 44 00:01:41,057 --> 00:01:42,758 -...streets of New York City. -...more financial help. 45 00:01:42,841 --> 00:01:45,061 LL COOL J: New York in the '70s and '80s 46 00:01:45,235 --> 00:01:49,021 was mired in economic hardship and social struggle. 47 00:01:49,109 --> 00:01:51,111 There's always shootouts here, always. 48 00:01:51,198 --> 00:01:52,634 ♪ 49 00:01:52,764 --> 00:01:55,115 -Stagnation. -[grunts] 50 00:01:55,245 --> 00:01:58,118 Decline. The city was on the verge of bankruptcy. 51 00:01:58,205 --> 00:01:59,989 ♪ 52 00:02:00,120 --> 00:02:02,600 Unemployment skyrocketed, 53 00:02:02,731 --> 00:02:05,386 school funding for the arts slashed, 54 00:02:05,473 --> 00:02:06,778 and abandoned buildings 55 00:02:06,865 --> 00:02:10,652 transformed into havens for drugs and crime. 56 00:02:10,782 --> 00:02:13,698 Drugs, drugs, drugs. That's all the neighborhood is. Drugs. 57 00:02:13,829 --> 00:02:19,835 In an environment like that, full of turmoil and strife, 58 00:02:20,009 --> 00:02:23,099 there's every reason to give up, 59 00:02:23,273 --> 00:02:26,102 and yet some managed to break through. 60 00:02:26,276 --> 00:02:27,368 [amplified voice] Is the Bronx in the house?! 61 00:02:27,451 --> 00:02:28,452 [cheering] 62 00:02:28,583 --> 00:02:29,888 They had the intellect 63 00:02:30,019 --> 00:02:32,326 and willpower to get out. 64 00:02:32,500 --> 00:02:35,807 Artists who created an all-new art form, 65 00:02:35,894 --> 00:02:38,288 a uniquely New York art form 66 00:02:38,462 --> 00:02:41,248 that they built into an industry. 67 00:02:41,335 --> 00:02:44,251 -New York City, come on! -Rap music is here to stay. 68 00:02:44,381 --> 00:02:45,730 I damn live and die for it, 69 00:02:45,904 --> 00:02:48,342 'cause that's what it takes to live in New York. 70 00:02:48,472 --> 00:02:52,737 The birth of hip hop provided an outlet for storytelling, 71 00:02:52,911 --> 00:02:56,263 a means to find escape, to aspire, 72 00:02:56,393 --> 00:02:58,917 and to push for change. 73 00:02:59,048 --> 00:03:02,660 I'm headed back to the streets of Queens where I came up. 74 00:03:02,747 --> 00:03:05,315 I'm on my way to talk to a man who experienced 75 00:03:05,402 --> 00:03:08,492 the pain and hardships of street life firsthand 76 00:03:08,666 --> 00:03:11,756 before harnessing the power of hip hop to escape. 77 00:03:11,887 --> 00:03:13,845 -Talkin' about my man. -Oh, shit. 78 00:03:13,976 --> 00:03:15,717 James "Bimmy" Antney. 79 00:03:15,847 --> 00:03:17,284 -How you? Good? -Yeah. 80 00:03:17,414 --> 00:03:18,937 Things are beautiful, man. 81 00:03:19,111 --> 00:03:20,983 -It's good to be home, huh? -Yeah. 82 00:03:21,113 --> 00:03:24,421 My man Bim. You know what I'm sayin'? Queens G. 83 00:03:24,552 --> 00:03:27,903 A Queens native like myself, Bimmy came up hustlin' 84 00:03:27,990 --> 00:03:30,645 as part of the notorious Supreme Team, 85 00:03:30,732 --> 00:03:33,343 an outfit which handled much of the crack distribution 86 00:03:33,474 --> 00:03:35,737 in the borough at its peak. 87 00:03:35,824 --> 00:03:38,174 REPORTER: Crack, the most addictive form of cocaine, 88 00:03:38,305 --> 00:03:40,481 is now sweeping New York. 89 00:03:40,611 --> 00:03:42,744 LL COOL J: But seeing no future in the streets, 90 00:03:42,874 --> 00:03:44,702 Bimmy pivoted to hip hop, 91 00:03:44,833 --> 00:03:47,357 working at Sony Records and Def Jam 92 00:03:47,444 --> 00:03:51,056 with artists including Slick Rick, Gucci Mane, 93 00:03:51,187 --> 00:03:54,321 Waka Flocka, and yours truly. 94 00:03:54,451 --> 00:03:55,811 The GOAT, the greatest of all time. 95 00:03:56,105 --> 00:03:58,803 ♪ 96 00:03:58,977 --> 00:04:00,762 Bimmy witnessed a whole generation of rappers 97 00:04:00,892 --> 00:04:02,981 rise from these streets. 98 00:04:03,112 --> 00:04:05,723 So, there's few better to tell a story of hip hop salvation 99 00:04:05,810 --> 00:04:08,900 or of hip hop's roots in the streets 100 00:04:09,031 --> 00:04:11,686 than James "Bimmy" Antney. 101 00:04:11,816 --> 00:04:14,166 You know, we got a lot of history. We go back a long way. 102 00:04:14,297 --> 00:04:15,520 But I wanna start from the beginning. 103 00:04:15,603 --> 00:04:16,734 Mm. 104 00:04:16,821 --> 00:04:18,301 When you think about the street 105 00:04:18,388 --> 00:04:20,260 and when you think about your life, 106 00:04:20,390 --> 00:04:22,135 what was it like for you being around this area? 107 00:04:22,218 --> 00:04:23,698 -What was it like as a kid? -Well... 108 00:04:23,785 --> 00:04:25,613 My mother wanted me to come outside in this... 109 00:04:25,787 --> 00:04:27,441 this area right here. 110 00:04:27,571 --> 00:04:28,924 I used to go to that laundromat down there. 111 00:04:29,007 --> 00:04:30,792 The man that owned the laundromat, 112 00:04:30,922 --> 00:04:32,924 I watched get killed right there on the corner. 113 00:04:33,011 --> 00:04:34,709 -You know what I mean? -Really? 114 00:04:34,883 --> 00:04:36,410 -Right here by the rock. -He got killed on the corner? 115 00:04:36,493 --> 00:04:38,756 ANTNEY: Yeah, yeah. I was, like, 12 years old. 116 00:04:38,843 --> 00:04:40,414 REPORTER: There is a crime of violence committed 117 00:04:40,497 --> 00:04:42,891 in New York City every four minutes. 118 00:04:43,021 --> 00:04:45,981 Last year alone, there were more than 1,500 murders, 119 00:04:46,155 --> 00:04:48,984 4,000 rapes, 41,000 assaults, 120 00:04:49,071 --> 00:04:51,247 and 77,000 robberies. 121 00:04:51,378 --> 00:04:53,205 So, what did that tell you, 122 00:04:53,336 --> 00:04:55,295 seeing something like that over there? 123 00:04:55,382 --> 00:04:57,297 So, I was prone to it, 'cause I watched 124 00:04:57,384 --> 00:04:58,389 another man get killed next door to me. 125 00:04:58,472 --> 00:05:00,300 He jumped out the window naked. 126 00:05:00,474 --> 00:05:01,783 Yeah, he jumped out the window naked. 127 00:05:01,866 --> 00:05:03,477 [thunderclap] 128 00:05:03,607 --> 00:05:05,696 [siren wailing in distance, police chatter on radio] 129 00:05:05,827 --> 00:05:08,308 So me and my brother and sisters look out the window like, 130 00:05:08,482 --> 00:05:11,615 "Mr. Such and Such is in the yard! He dead." 131 00:05:11,746 --> 00:05:14,401 So, we watching, looking at that, and I mean, you know, 132 00:05:14,488 --> 00:05:16,448 and I got busted my head over there on the corner, 133 00:05:16,533 --> 00:05:17,712 right there by the Chinese restaurant. 134 00:05:17,795 --> 00:05:18,974 LL COOL J: Right there by the Chinese restaurant... 135 00:05:19,057 --> 00:05:20,280 -Yeah. -...somebody stabbed you 136 00:05:20,363 --> 00:05:21,673 in the head? -Stabbed me in my head 137 00:05:21,756 --> 00:05:23,627 right here. I had 20 stitches in my head. 138 00:05:23,758 --> 00:05:25,242 'Cause I was selling drugs right here on the corner. 139 00:05:25,325 --> 00:05:27,544 -Right. -So, I see, you know, 140 00:05:27,675 --> 00:05:29,202 dude trying to sell somethin' on the block. 141 00:05:29,285 --> 00:05:32,593 So I go towards him. He pulls a hoe out. You know the garden? 142 00:05:32,680 --> 00:05:34,116 -Yeah. -You know the garden... 143 00:05:34,246 --> 00:05:36,161 So I spinned off. Caught me in the head. Boom! 144 00:05:36,292 --> 00:05:38,816 -Wow. -Said, ooh! Right like that. 145 00:05:38,947 --> 00:05:40,344 -Down Farmers, I ran home. -Right. 146 00:05:40,427 --> 00:05:41,993 And my mom took me to the hospital, 147 00:05:42,080 --> 00:05:43,347 you know what I'm saying? -Yeah. 148 00:05:43,430 --> 00:05:44,344 And when I came back outside, 149 00:05:44,431 --> 00:05:46,084 bandaged up, still selling drugs, 150 00:05:46,215 --> 00:05:47,651 you know what I'm saying? 151 00:05:47,782 --> 00:05:49,479 So somebody's dying, it don't mean nothin', 152 00:05:49,566 --> 00:05:50,571 you know what I mean? You just sitting there... 153 00:05:50,654 --> 00:05:52,787 -You got used to it. -I got used to it. 154 00:05:52,874 --> 00:05:53,744 ♪ 155 00:05:53,875 --> 00:05:55,833 So growing up around here, 156 00:05:55,964 --> 00:05:58,706 you're seeing people, you know, lose their lives. 157 00:05:58,793 --> 00:06:01,099 You know, I never put a lot of that in my music, 158 00:06:01,230 --> 00:06:02,710 but a lot of hip hop artists 159 00:06:02,840 --> 00:06:04,799 put all of their street experiences 160 00:06:04,886 --> 00:06:06,714 in their music. 161 00:06:06,888 --> 00:06:09,325 It's rap music, and it sounds like this. 162 00:06:09,456 --> 00:06:13,285 Hip hop has always been synonymous with the streets. 163 00:06:13,460 --> 00:06:15,113 -[imitates barking] -It's a cycle. 164 00:06:15,244 --> 00:06:17,507 We've been dropping like flies for years, you know? 165 00:06:17,638 --> 00:06:19,513 CRYSTAL CAINES: The streets go hand in hand with hip hop 166 00:06:19,596 --> 00:06:21,337 'cause most people are talking about 167 00:06:21,468 --> 00:06:23,861 what they experienced in life, how they experienced it. 168 00:06:23,992 --> 00:06:26,690 ♪ Broken glass everywhere, people pissing on the stairs ♪ 169 00:06:26,864 --> 00:06:29,127 ♪ You know, they just don't care ♪ 170 00:06:29,301 --> 00:06:32,174 ROXANNE SHANTÉ: When you wanna think about how rough it was 171 00:06:32,348 --> 00:06:34,045 and what people had to deal with, 172 00:06:34,132 --> 00:06:35,699 it actually went like this. 173 00:06:35,830 --> 00:06:38,354 ♪ Rats in the front room, roaches in the back ♪ 174 00:06:38,485 --> 00:06:40,748 ♪ Junkies in the alley with the baseball bats ♪ 175 00:06:40,878 --> 00:06:42,924 ♪ Try to get away, but I couldn't get far ♪ 176 00:06:43,011 --> 00:06:45,013 ♪ 'Cause the man with a truck repossessed my car ♪ 177 00:06:45,143 --> 00:06:46,884 Please believe it, baby. 178 00:06:46,971 --> 00:06:49,539 ["The Message" continues playing] 179 00:06:49,670 --> 00:06:52,063 This was our music. This was how we were 180 00:06:52,150 --> 00:06:54,065 able to communicate from borough to borough. 181 00:06:54,414 --> 00:06:56,590 ♪ 182 00:06:56,764 --> 00:06:58,983 This is how we knew that Queens was getting money. 183 00:06:59,157 --> 00:07:00,557 This is how we knew Uptown was rich, 184 00:07:00,724 --> 00:07:03,814 the Bronx was burnin', Brooklyn was robbin'. 185 00:07:03,945 --> 00:07:05,472 The only way to do it was to spread it through hip hop. 186 00:07:05,555 --> 00:07:07,296 ♪ It's like a jungle sometimes ♪ 187 00:07:07,383 --> 00:07:09,516 ♪ It makes me wonder how I keep from going under ♪ 188 00:07:09,603 --> 00:07:11,217 LADY LONDON: I think a lot of things are birthed 189 00:07:11,300 --> 00:07:13,698 out of struggle and out of pain, but there's miracles that happen 190 00:07:13,781 --> 00:07:16,827 in the midst of mess, and hip hop was one of them. 191 00:07:16,958 --> 00:07:20,962 ♪ Don't push me 'cause I'm close to the edge ♪ 192 00:07:21,092 --> 00:07:24,095 ♪ I'm trying not to lose my head ♪ 193 00:07:24,226 --> 00:07:26,228 ♪ Huh-huh, huh-huh ♪ 194 00:07:27,490 --> 00:07:30,580 LL COOL J: So, you ended up at a crossroads yourself, 195 00:07:30,711 --> 00:07:31,494 'cause you were still in the street. 196 00:07:31,625 --> 00:07:34,149 What happened when you met Run-D.M.C.? 197 00:07:34,236 --> 00:07:36,934 How did you, like, pull yourself out 198 00:07:37,021 --> 00:07:38,588 of the dragon's mouth, so to speak? 199 00:07:38,762 --> 00:07:39,985 -Yeah. -You know what I'm sayin'? 200 00:07:40,068 --> 00:07:42,984 D.M.C... he started liking my sister. 201 00:07:43,114 --> 00:07:45,943 He used to come over to see her, so then me and DMC got close. 202 00:07:46,030 --> 00:07:49,425 He said, "Yo, come on the road with us." 203 00:07:49,556 --> 00:07:52,167 LL COOL J: As you're leaving, as you're going on the road, 204 00:07:52,254 --> 00:07:55,431 what is it like for, at that time, a kid 205 00:07:55,605 --> 00:07:58,260 who's in the street to be able to leave the street 206 00:07:58,347 --> 00:08:00,480 and be standing on the stage 207 00:08:00,654 --> 00:08:02,569 and watching things? Like, what is that like? 208 00:08:02,699 --> 00:08:05,485 I'm like, yo, this the life. I said to myself, 209 00:08:05,615 --> 00:08:07,399 let me get into the music. -Right. 210 00:08:07,487 --> 00:08:09,227 This guy... he had a studio down Farmers, 211 00:08:09,401 --> 00:08:12,056 so all the local rappers... -Would rap and be down there. 212 00:08:12,187 --> 00:08:13,841 -Be down there. -Yeah. 213 00:08:13,971 --> 00:08:16,887 So, now we down there making records, and I'm loving it. 214 00:08:17,061 --> 00:08:19,542 I'm going there every day just to make music with these guys. 215 00:08:19,673 --> 00:08:21,239 Russell Simmons heard my music. 216 00:08:21,370 --> 00:08:23,764 And Russell, like, "Yo, you want to come to Def Jam?" 217 00:08:23,851 --> 00:08:25,291 I said, "Yeah, I wanna come to Def Jam." 218 00:08:25,374 --> 00:08:26,614 What's going through your mind? 219 00:08:26,723 --> 00:08:29,465 I'm just like, I'm-a get off the streets. 220 00:08:29,596 --> 00:08:30,945 I'm good. And that was that. 221 00:08:31,293 --> 00:08:33,643 ♪ 222 00:08:38,735 --> 00:08:40,215 ♪ 223 00:08:40,345 --> 00:08:42,522 LL COOL J: I remember where I came from, and I don't... 224 00:08:42,696 --> 00:08:44,741 I'm never afraid to remember where I came from. 225 00:08:44,915 --> 00:08:46,747 -You know what I'm saying? -That's right, baby. 226 00:08:46,830 --> 00:08:48,401 He used to always shout out in every song, 227 00:08:48,484 --> 00:08:51,618 early back in the day, "Farmers Boulevard! 228 00:08:51,748 --> 00:08:54,142 Farmers Boulevard! That's right!" 229 00:08:54,272 --> 00:08:55,669 LL COOL J: ♪ I repped it, what more can I say, son? ♪ 230 00:08:55,752 --> 00:08:56,840 - ♪ Farmers - ♪ What ♪ 231 00:08:56,971 --> 00:08:58,668 - ♪ Farmers - ♪ What ♪ 232 00:08:58,755 --> 00:09:01,323 Now that you look at all this, right, 233 00:09:01,453 --> 00:09:04,544 what lessons did you take from the street into... 234 00:09:04,718 --> 00:09:06,158 you know what I'm saying? The industry. 235 00:09:06,241 --> 00:09:10,288 Well... listen more than talking. 236 00:09:10,419 --> 00:09:13,422 Mm. You watch people's behavior and learn lessons. 237 00:09:13,509 --> 00:09:14,989 -Yeah. Yeah. -From other people. 238 00:09:15,076 --> 00:09:16,603 You don't even have to experience it yourself. 239 00:09:16,686 --> 00:09:17,774 -You do, too. -Oh... 240 00:09:17,861 --> 00:09:19,384 Let me tell you why. 241 00:09:19,515 --> 00:09:22,736 A lot of times we was in the studio, you'd be like this. 242 00:09:22,910 --> 00:09:25,347 You know what I mean? I've been with artists that 243 00:09:25,521 --> 00:09:27,088 wanna be the only one in the room. 244 00:09:27,262 --> 00:09:29,873 Yo! [rapping indistinctly] 245 00:09:29,960 --> 00:09:31,575 You like this. And that's come from here... 246 00:09:31,658 --> 00:09:33,660 -Yeah. -...that you learned to let... 247 00:09:33,790 --> 00:09:35,230 One of the things that I learned in order 248 00:09:35,313 --> 00:09:37,446 to survive out here is to shut up. 249 00:09:37,620 --> 00:09:40,536 -Shut up. -Not trying to be tough, 250 00:09:40,667 --> 00:09:43,278 having manners, and not running your mouth. 251 00:09:43,408 --> 00:09:44,805 -You would last a lot longer... -Yes. 252 00:09:44,888 --> 00:09:46,542 ...when you move around out here. 253 00:09:46,673 --> 00:09:49,719 I don't wanna be tough because, you know, what is tough? 254 00:09:49,850 --> 00:09:52,200 You know, if I wanted to be tough, I'd be a boxer. 255 00:09:52,287 --> 00:09:56,726 ♪ 256 00:09:56,857 --> 00:10:01,513 This neighborhood, it's a lot of successful hip hop artists 257 00:10:01,601 --> 00:10:02,471 and ball players from around here. 258 00:10:02,602 --> 00:10:05,126 -Yeah. -Everybody from Run-D.M.C. 259 00:10:05,300 --> 00:10:07,737 to Tribe Called Quest and myself. 260 00:10:07,911 --> 00:10:09,043 Yourself. 261 00:10:09,130 --> 00:10:11,567 And, you know, you had people living around here 262 00:10:11,741 --> 00:10:12,655 like James Brown... -James Brown, yeah. 263 00:10:12,742 --> 00:10:14,701 -...and Count Basie... -Count Basie. 264 00:10:14,788 --> 00:10:15,793 ...and Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald 265 00:10:15,876 --> 00:10:17,399 and Colin Powell and... -Yeah. 266 00:10:17,529 --> 00:10:18,839 -...lived around here. -Russell Simmons. 267 00:10:18,922 --> 00:10:20,275 Russell Simmons is from around here and... 268 00:10:20,358 --> 00:10:21,664 Yeah, yeah. 269 00:10:21,751 --> 00:10:23,710 They've escaped the call of the street. 270 00:10:23,840 --> 00:10:25,842 Hey, we escaped. 271 00:10:25,929 --> 00:10:29,585 I just wanna know what it means to you... legacy. 272 00:10:29,716 --> 00:10:34,416 A man that care for other kids and wanna take care of them 273 00:10:34,546 --> 00:10:36,548 so they won't see how I grew up... 274 00:10:36,679 --> 00:10:37,941 -Yeah. -...and live that. 275 00:10:38,115 --> 00:10:39,639 -Yeah. -I don't want them 276 00:10:39,726 --> 00:10:42,032 to grow up with no heat, no hot water, 277 00:10:42,163 --> 00:10:43,168 'cause the decisions they gon' make in the streets 278 00:10:43,251 --> 00:10:45,949 ain't gon' be lucky like I was. -Yeah. 279 00:10:46,080 --> 00:10:47,433 -You know what I'm saying? -Yeah. 280 00:10:47,516 --> 00:10:49,344 'Cause I think I was lucky. 281 00:10:49,431 --> 00:10:51,437 -You was blessed and lucky. -I was blessed and lucky. 282 00:10:51,520 --> 00:10:53,435 You know, a lot of people was praying for me. 283 00:10:53,565 --> 00:10:56,743 You know, that's my legacy. I-I want to be known as, 284 00:10:56,873 --> 00:10:59,397 "Yo, he'll give a man the shirt off his back." 285 00:10:59,528 --> 00:11:01,486 -So, you gave love. -I gave love. 286 00:11:01,617 --> 00:11:03,057 -And set an example. -That's right. 287 00:11:03,184 --> 00:11:04,537 You know what I mean? I live by it. 288 00:11:04,620 --> 00:11:06,666 My man. Come on. Let's take a walk. 289 00:11:06,753 --> 00:11:08,015 Yeah, definitely, definitely. 290 00:11:09,538 --> 00:11:12,323 ♪ 291 00:11:13,324 --> 00:11:14,369 ♪ 292 00:11:14,543 --> 00:11:16,676 LL COOL J: As hip hop evolved 293 00:11:16,806 --> 00:11:19,853 over the course of its first two decades, 294 00:11:20,027 --> 00:11:23,117 the genre continued to mirror the streets where it was born. 295 00:11:23,204 --> 00:11:24,422 ♪ 296 00:11:24,553 --> 00:11:25,815 The pendulum swinging 297 00:11:25,946 --> 00:11:28,209 from stories of inspiration and hope 298 00:11:28,296 --> 00:11:30,428 to the brutal realities of people often overlooked 299 00:11:30,559 --> 00:11:32,169 and forgotten by society. 300 00:11:32,517 --> 00:11:33,518 ♪ 301 00:11:33,605 --> 00:11:35,607 So, now I'm on my way to Y.O... 302 00:11:35,782 --> 00:11:38,480 Yonkers, New York, 303 00:11:38,610 --> 00:11:40,395 to connect with a group of hip hop artists 304 00:11:40,525 --> 00:11:42,527 who found struggle and enlightenment 305 00:11:42,658 --> 00:11:44,616 in the streets that raised 'em. 306 00:11:44,704 --> 00:11:46,880 Most important, they found their voice 307 00:11:47,054 --> 00:11:49,317 and used it to launch a career that took 308 00:11:49,491 --> 00:11:52,146 their music and their story to millions around the world. 309 00:11:54,148 --> 00:11:55,584 Yo. 310 00:11:55,758 --> 00:11:58,021 -Yo, yo! -What's up, baby? 311 00:11:58,108 --> 00:11:59,940 Just in the process of me trimming these brothers. 312 00:12:00,023 --> 00:12:00,807 He trimming 'em, you know what I mean? 313 00:12:00,937 --> 00:12:03,200 Quick, quick cut. 314 00:12:03,331 --> 00:12:04,941 -What's good, family? -What up, baby? 315 00:12:05,115 --> 00:12:10,338 So, yo, um, the first thing that I really wanna... get into 316 00:12:10,468 --> 00:12:12,601 is where was you born? 317 00:12:12,775 --> 00:12:14,646 -Right here. -Right here. 318 00:12:14,734 --> 00:12:17,084 New York. St. John's Riverside. 319 00:12:17,214 --> 00:12:20,522 See, I believe in... I believe in money, power, respect. 320 00:12:20,652 --> 00:12:23,612 LL COOL J: The Lox... Jadakiss, Styles P, and Sheek. 321 00:12:23,743 --> 00:12:25,614 Sheek Louch, Lox. 322 00:12:25,701 --> 00:12:27,747 We've been seeing in videos hearing the name... 323 00:12:27,877 --> 00:12:30,314 the hottest street sensation, The Lox. 324 00:12:30,445 --> 00:12:32,756 ♪ Take time, try to figure out who The Lox is, fear no one ♪ 325 00:12:32,839 --> 00:12:34,579 LL COOL J: Born and raised in Yonkers, 326 00:12:34,710 --> 00:12:36,886 their distinct style and lyrical prowess 327 00:12:37,017 --> 00:12:38,496 made them rap heavyweights. 328 00:12:38,670 --> 00:12:41,673 Quickly going from appearing on underground mix tapes 329 00:12:41,761 --> 00:12:43,980 to putting out platinum records, 330 00:12:44,111 --> 00:12:47,244 The Lox continues to create essential music 331 00:12:47,375 --> 00:12:49,420 while drawing from the street life, 332 00:12:49,507 --> 00:12:53,598 which remains a dominant premise in hip hop to this day. 333 00:12:53,729 --> 00:12:57,994 Okay, so what came first for you? 334 00:12:58,081 --> 00:13:00,910 The street? Hip hop? 335 00:13:01,041 --> 00:13:02,477 I would say the streets first 336 00:13:02,564 --> 00:13:06,263 'cause going outside is how I learned about hip hop. 337 00:13:06,350 --> 00:13:08,962 Like, what was the mindset and the process of, "Yo, 338 00:13:09,092 --> 00:13:13,967 I'm going to get involved in the street life"? 339 00:13:14,097 --> 00:13:17,144 Growing up, you try to fend for yourself, 340 00:13:17,274 --> 00:13:18,885 and you start dippin' and dabbin'. 341 00:13:19,015 --> 00:13:21,017 Yeah, I mean, running around 342 00:13:21,148 --> 00:13:22,544 hustling motherfuckers that's getting the money, 343 00:13:22,627 --> 00:13:24,627 the trappers and all that, wanting to be like them. 344 00:13:24,760 --> 00:13:26,244 When you said, "Yo, come here and bag up for me" 345 00:13:26,327 --> 00:13:28,289 and do this and that" for hours and hours at a time, 346 00:13:28,372 --> 00:13:31,680 making thousands of dollars, I never looked back. 347 00:13:32,028 --> 00:13:33,943 ♪ 348 00:13:34,117 --> 00:13:36,337 LL COOL J: So, you're little kids, 349 00:13:36,467 --> 00:13:38,078 young boys, at that point. 350 00:13:38,208 --> 00:13:41,081 You're out there in the street hustling. 351 00:13:41,168 --> 00:13:44,040 What was the very first seed of hip hop 352 00:13:44,214 --> 00:13:46,521 that you heard that kinda piqued your interest? 353 00:13:46,608 --> 00:13:49,350 One of my uncles, when I was young, 354 00:13:49,437 --> 00:13:53,310 he had the room in the back. So, one day he wasn't there. 355 00:13:53,441 --> 00:13:56,748 I go in his room, I hit "play." 356 00:13:56,879 --> 00:14:00,404 - ♪ Walking down the street - Yo. 357 00:14:00,578 --> 00:14:01,753 BOTH: ♪ Box in your hand ♪ 358 00:14:01,928 --> 00:14:03,625 The Crash Crew. "High Powered Rap." 359 00:14:03,712 --> 00:14:05,888 That did it for me. 360 00:14:06,019 --> 00:14:09,370 ♪ You walking down the street with your box in your hand ♪ 361 00:14:09,500 --> 00:14:12,068 I must have sat there for about three hours 362 00:14:12,242 --> 00:14:13,156 just listening to that. -[LL Cool J laughs] 363 00:14:13,287 --> 00:14:14,984 My moms and them came in, like, 364 00:14:15,115 --> 00:14:17,987 but when he came in, and I was scared to death. 365 00:14:18,074 --> 00:14:20,207 'Cause he just gave me that look like, 366 00:14:20,381 --> 00:14:22,078 "What are you doing in my room?" 367 00:14:22,165 --> 00:14:23,210 [laughter] 368 00:14:23,297 --> 00:14:27,301 ♪ 369 00:14:27,388 --> 00:14:30,870 All right, so at some point in the midst of all this, 370 00:14:31,000 --> 00:14:34,134 you started rapping and easing away from the streets more 371 00:14:34,221 --> 00:14:36,092 and... and getting more into the music. 372 00:14:36,179 --> 00:14:37,789 We had the chip on our shoulder. 373 00:14:37,964 --> 00:14:39,443 -Yeah. -'Cause we listening 374 00:14:39,617 --> 00:14:41,228 to the radio, Mr. Magic. 375 00:14:41,358 --> 00:14:43,186 They shout out Queens, Brooklyn, 376 00:14:43,360 --> 00:14:45,014 Staten Island, Manhattan, Harlem. 377 00:14:45,145 --> 00:14:46,798 -They keep skipping over Y.O. -Yeah. 378 00:14:47,190 --> 00:14:49,192 ♪ 379 00:14:49,323 --> 00:14:51,978 So, we like, we gotta show these motherfuckers 380 00:14:52,108 --> 00:14:54,023 we got some fire here. 381 00:14:54,110 --> 00:14:56,025 But when they called us for Big's album, 382 00:14:56,112 --> 00:14:57,592 we went there straight from the block. 383 00:14:57,679 --> 00:14:59,811 ♪ 384 00:14:59,899 --> 00:15:02,597 We just try to do whatever it take to prosper 385 00:15:02,727 --> 00:15:05,600 and building this rap... you know what I'm saying... industry. 386 00:15:05,730 --> 00:15:07,998 That's who we are right now. Music, you know what I'm sayin'? 387 00:15:08,081 --> 00:15:09,865 This is our first video. 388 00:15:09,996 --> 00:15:13,216 But when we signed the actual Lox deal, 389 00:15:13,347 --> 00:15:16,828 Styles was locked up for eight months. 390 00:15:16,916 --> 00:15:20,441 And then after that, we got away and went full-fledged. 391 00:15:20,615 --> 00:15:22,922 We gon' do this music thing. 392 00:15:23,052 --> 00:15:26,012 So... all them times it went left, 393 00:15:26,142 --> 00:15:28,057 what happened for it to go right? 394 00:15:28,144 --> 00:15:29,628 I definitely wanna say, staying brothers, 395 00:15:29,711 --> 00:15:32,496 staying loyal to each other and believing in what we do. 396 00:15:32,627 --> 00:15:35,412 We've been together all our lives, since childhood. 397 00:15:35,499 --> 00:15:38,067 Same football teams, junior high schools 398 00:15:38,154 --> 00:15:39,460 to after college, the whole nine. 399 00:15:39,590 --> 00:15:41,114 Everywhere. Everywhere. 400 00:15:41,244 --> 00:15:44,247 We the only ones that believe we could have a career 401 00:15:44,334 --> 00:15:47,903 and really help our families and do something different. 402 00:15:48,034 --> 00:15:51,124 I love the love, and I appreciate the hate. 403 00:15:51,254 --> 00:15:52,952 See, my grandmother used to tell me, 404 00:15:53,082 --> 00:15:54,696 "Todd, get it done if you gotta eat shit with a splinter." 405 00:15:54,779 --> 00:15:56,956 -Mm! -You know what I'm saying? 406 00:15:57,086 --> 00:15:59,136 I grew up hearing that, and that's what you telling me. 407 00:15:59,219 --> 00:16:00,089 -The same shit. -You talkin' about ingenuity. 408 00:16:00,263 --> 00:16:01,616 -Yeah, man. -You talkin' about, like, 409 00:16:01,699 --> 00:16:03,571 "We not giving up. We getting to it." 410 00:16:03,658 --> 00:16:06,052 Absolutely. That's us. 411 00:16:06,182 --> 00:16:08,010 Read it and weep. 412 00:16:12,797 --> 00:16:14,277 [cheering] 413 00:16:14,408 --> 00:16:16,976 - ♪ Fuck the frail shit - ♪ Uh-huh ♪ 414 00:16:17,106 --> 00:16:19,456 ♪ 'Cause when my coke come in, they gotta use the scales ♪ 415 00:16:19,543 --> 00:16:21,110 ♪ That they weigh the whales with ♪ 416 00:16:21,241 --> 00:16:22,420 - ♪ Carlssons on the Jeep - ♪ Uh-huh ♪ 417 00:16:22,503 --> 00:16:24,418 - ♪ Bugatti made the prototype - ♪ Come on ♪ 418 00:16:24,548 --> 00:16:26,076 ♪ Hoped you'd get the picture but you just can't photo life ♪ 419 00:16:26,159 --> 00:16:28,944 ♪ Determined niggas make it, kicking down the door ♪ 420 00:16:29,075 --> 00:16:30,902 -♪ And we burning... -For some reason, like, 421 00:16:30,990 --> 00:16:33,122 even though how much fame we had, we was kinda, like, 422 00:16:33,253 --> 00:16:34,649 still, like, worried and shit. -Reserved. 423 00:16:34,732 --> 00:16:35,999 Like, we didn't know where this shit was going. 424 00:16:36,082 --> 00:16:38,475 Right. This whole shit is a roll of the dice. 425 00:16:38,606 --> 00:16:39,916 'Cause you never know what it's gon' be. 426 00:16:39,999 --> 00:16:42,262 Like, I never knew what it was gon' be. 427 00:16:42,392 --> 00:16:44,137 Like, the show money had dried up for a minute 428 00:16:44,220 --> 00:16:45,656 after my first single. 429 00:16:45,743 --> 00:16:47,571 -So, I'm sleeping on the train. -Mm. 430 00:16:47,745 --> 00:16:49,704 I'm on the subway. I'm on the E and the F train. 431 00:16:49,791 --> 00:16:51,666 I got my green garbage bag with my clothes in it. 432 00:16:51,749 --> 00:16:54,230 Then I got a room in Brooklyn for, like, $40 a week. 433 00:16:54,317 --> 00:16:56,102 That shit was busting my ass. 434 00:16:56,189 --> 00:16:57,712 ♪ We gon' make it, we gon' make it ♪ 435 00:16:57,842 --> 00:16:59,409 ♪ We gon'... ♪ 436 00:16:59,540 --> 00:17:01,585 It really is about where you at in your spirit. 437 00:17:01,759 --> 00:17:03,326 That's really gon' be the thing 438 00:17:03,413 --> 00:17:05,111 that's gon' give you that measuring stick. 439 00:17:05,198 --> 00:17:07,417 ♪ Y'all just talking, I'm doing it well ♪ 440 00:17:07,591 --> 00:17:10,507 ♪ Jadakiss, motherfucker, I'm-a see you in hell ♪ 441 00:17:10,594 --> 00:17:14,511 ♪ Make it, we gon' make it, we gon' make it ♪ 442 00:17:14,598 --> 00:17:17,297 ♪ We gon' make it ♪ 443 00:17:17,384 --> 00:17:20,648 ♪ We gon' make it, we gon' make it ♪ 444 00:17:20,778 --> 00:17:23,781 LL COOL J: One last word... legacy, to you. 445 00:17:23,912 --> 00:17:27,002 Um, how my kids and my grandkids think about me. 446 00:17:27,133 --> 00:17:27,655 I want everybody to say somethin' positive about me, 447 00:17:27,785 --> 00:17:29,483 you know what I mean? 448 00:17:29,570 --> 00:17:32,051 For my contribution to music, 449 00:17:32,138 --> 00:17:35,184 our contribution, I want it to... 450 00:17:35,315 --> 00:17:38,100 to live somewhere in the iCloud of hip hop. 451 00:17:38,535 --> 00:17:40,276 ♪ 452 00:17:40,450 --> 00:17:41,364 LL COOL J: When it comes to that street shit, 453 00:17:41,495 --> 00:17:43,932 that raw-from-the-curb, hip hop shit, 454 00:17:44,019 --> 00:17:46,456 you know what I'm saying? Y'all got to get that. 455 00:17:46,630 --> 00:17:49,024 We showed y'all we could stay together to the end. 456 00:17:49,155 --> 00:17:51,200 -...right here. -What up, what up? 457 00:17:51,287 --> 00:17:53,768 When you think of loyalty, I want you to think of... 458 00:17:53,855 --> 00:17:55,121 -LL COOL J: Fucking Lox. -L-O-X. 459 00:17:55,204 --> 00:17:56,731 LL COOL J: Period. That being said, man... 460 00:17:56,814 --> 00:17:58,294 -Yeah. -Somebody pick up the dice. 461 00:17:58,381 --> 00:18:00,731 Go ahead and do what y'all do, man. 462 00:18:00,818 --> 00:18:02,255 Let's see what's happening, man. 463 00:18:02,385 --> 00:18:04,213 -Carry on! -Carry on, baby. Love you, man. 464 00:18:04,387 --> 00:18:05,736 -No doubt. -Come on. Whassup? 465 00:18:05,910 --> 00:18:08,174 Yeah. 466 00:18:08,261 --> 00:18:11,525 Yo, why do people not like Fivio? 467 00:18:11,612 --> 00:18:13,309 I don't think it's people don't like him. 468 00:18:13,396 --> 00:18:15,355 What I do think is 469 00:18:15,442 --> 00:18:18,662 he kind of fell victim to expectations. 470 00:18:18,749 --> 00:18:24,625 ♪ 471 00:18:24,755 --> 00:18:27,367 LL COOL J: The Lox continue to inspire, 472 00:18:27,497 --> 00:18:30,370 but now I'm leaving the Y.O. behind. 473 00:18:30,500 --> 00:18:32,807 I'm headed back down to Queens 474 00:18:32,937 --> 00:18:35,026 to connect with a young artist from Brooklyn 475 00:18:35,157 --> 00:18:36,767 who has tapped into the often violent 476 00:18:36,854 --> 00:18:39,901 and brutal realities of modern street life 477 00:18:40,031 --> 00:18:41,685 while establishing himself 478 00:18:41,816 --> 00:18:43,948 as one of the leaders of the New York drill scene. 479 00:18:44,035 --> 00:18:45,472 ...New York City! 480 00:18:45,559 --> 00:18:46,690 [cheering] 481 00:18:46,864 --> 00:18:48,087 LL COOL J: Five, what up, baby? 482 00:18:48,170 --> 00:18:49,480 -What's up, big bro? -What's goody? 483 00:18:49,563 --> 00:18:50,433 -What's good? -How are you? You chilling? 484 00:18:50,564 --> 00:18:51,608 -Excellent. -Yes, sir. 485 00:18:51,695 --> 00:18:52,696 -Excellent. -Yes, sir. 486 00:18:52,870 --> 00:18:55,569 So... I wanna start from the beginning, 487 00:18:55,656 --> 00:18:57,353 before life changed. 488 00:18:57,440 --> 00:19:00,356 You know what I mean? Where was you born? 489 00:19:00,487 --> 00:19:03,490 I was born in Brooklyn. Little Harlem, too. 490 00:19:03,577 --> 00:19:05,148 -A little Harlem, little Harlem. -Little sprinkle of Harlem? 491 00:19:05,231 --> 00:19:07,494 -Little sprinkle. [laughs] -[laughs] 492 00:19:07,624 --> 00:19:09,060 ♪ It's easy ♪ 493 00:19:09,235 --> 00:19:10,845 LL COOL J: Hailing from Brooklyn, 494 00:19:10,932 --> 00:19:13,195 Fivio Foreign's music is built for the clubs 495 00:19:13,282 --> 00:19:15,328 but born in the streets. 496 00:19:15,502 --> 00:19:18,418 And despite the destruction and decay he came up in, 497 00:19:18,505 --> 00:19:21,290 Fivio defied the odds, 498 00:19:21,377 --> 00:19:23,249 used social media to make a name for hisself, 499 00:19:23,336 --> 00:19:25,207 took his surroundings and documented them 500 00:19:25,294 --> 00:19:26,948 through drill music. 501 00:19:27,122 --> 00:19:30,604 Figured out what people like, and then I did it. 502 00:19:30,691 --> 00:19:33,563 And in the process, he's striving to build 503 00:19:33,694 --> 00:19:36,871 a legacy worthy of Brooklyn hip hop's forebearers. 504 00:19:36,958 --> 00:19:40,309 But it's legacy that's on his mind as he finds his career 505 00:19:40,483 --> 00:19:42,659 and his relationship with the streets 506 00:19:42,746 --> 00:19:44,226 at a crossroads. 507 00:19:44,313 --> 00:19:47,186 Make some fucking noise! 508 00:19:47,360 --> 00:19:48,669 LL COOL J: Okay, so you was born in Brooklyn. 509 00:19:48,752 --> 00:19:50,232 FIVIO: Yeah. 510 00:19:50,363 --> 00:19:54,149 Where you exposed to hip hop music first or... 511 00:19:54,280 --> 00:19:56,547 the call of the streets, you know what I'm sayin'? Like... 512 00:19:56,630 --> 00:19:58,632 -To be honest with you... -Yeah. 513 00:19:58,762 --> 00:20:01,200 -I think it was the music first. -[cheers and applause] 514 00:20:01,330 --> 00:20:03,724 I'm hearing the music first. I'm catching the rhythm, 515 00:20:03,854 --> 00:20:05,552 then I'm hearing the gangster shit. 516 00:20:05,639 --> 00:20:07,815 Mm-hmm. What's the first gangster shit you hearing? 517 00:20:07,945 --> 00:20:09,469 -For real, for real? -Yeah, for real. 518 00:20:09,556 --> 00:20:11,384 -50 Cent, G-Unit. -50 Cent? 519 00:20:11,514 --> 00:20:13,647 Hell, yeah. I ain't saying that 'cause we in Queens. 520 00:20:13,734 --> 00:20:15,910 -[laughs] -That's that. 521 00:20:16,040 --> 00:20:21,132 [indistinct police radio chatter] 522 00:20:21,307 --> 00:20:22,703 -[radio chirps] -That was the first time 523 00:20:22,786 --> 00:20:24,484 I was hearing some shit like that happen. 524 00:20:24,571 --> 00:20:28,096 I'm like, damn, nigga getting shot up, rapping. 525 00:20:28,227 --> 00:20:29,750 We was all hyped. Like... 526 00:20:29,924 --> 00:20:31,578 -You was hyped. -We was hyped. 527 00:20:31,708 --> 00:20:33,061 ♪ Hit the corner, I'm doing 'em bad, skrr ♪ 528 00:20:33,144 --> 00:20:34,798 ♪ And the bully got two in the stash ♪ 529 00:20:34,885 --> 00:20:36,674 What's going on around that time, like, in the hood? 530 00:20:36,757 --> 00:20:38,672 What's the... like, lay out the environment. 531 00:20:38,759 --> 00:20:40,999 All right, so around this time, niggas ain't even looking 532 00:20:41,109 --> 00:20:42,767 at the drug dealers. They more trying to be 533 00:20:42,850 --> 00:20:45,374 the niggas who's, like, beating the most people up 534 00:20:45,548 --> 00:20:47,333 or shot the most people, you know I'm sayin'? 535 00:20:47,420 --> 00:20:48,725 -They looking at... -Gangsters. 536 00:20:48,812 --> 00:20:50,253 FIVIO: So, yeah, they wanna be like gangsters. 537 00:20:50,336 --> 00:20:51,689 Gangster shit. The real gangster shit. 538 00:20:51,772 --> 00:20:52,686 -Not the hustler shit. -Yeah, yeah. 539 00:20:52,773 --> 00:20:53,948 The gangster shit. 540 00:20:54,035 --> 00:20:55,602 Yeah, they wanna be like the gangsters. 541 00:20:55,689 --> 00:20:58,300 So, niggas grew up looking... looking up to people like that. 542 00:20:58,735 --> 00:21:01,825 ♪ 543 00:21:01,999 --> 00:21:03,831 REPORTER: Some do believe the lyrics and the lifestyle 544 00:21:03,914 --> 00:21:07,309 the gangster rappers portray does little to help their image. 545 00:21:07,440 --> 00:21:08,749 FIVIO: You get into this shit by accident almost, 546 00:21:08,832 --> 00:21:10,660 'cause it's like, these your friends. 547 00:21:10,834 --> 00:21:13,276 You see a nigga go do somethin', you know, you jump in for him. 548 00:21:13,359 --> 00:21:15,060 You know what I'm sayin'? I don't think it's a choice. 549 00:21:15,143 --> 00:21:17,624 I don't think a nigga have a choice like that. 550 00:21:17,754 --> 00:21:19,847 LL COOL J: So, then you gotta just lock in to survive. 551 00:21:19,930 --> 00:21:22,324 FIVIO: Yeah, smart thing to do is to be like, a'ight, bet. 552 00:21:22,411 --> 00:21:24,065 -Let me lock in. -Right. 553 00:21:24,195 --> 00:21:25,893 Like, this is already happening to me. 554 00:21:26,023 --> 00:21:27,899 LL COOL J: You're in this world, people getting shot, 555 00:21:27,982 --> 00:21:29,766 people catching cases. 556 00:21:29,853 --> 00:21:31,551 Shit is happening. People is dying. 557 00:21:31,681 --> 00:21:33,379 You know, how does music come into this? 558 00:21:33,509 --> 00:21:35,381 Like, when was there a time for that? 559 00:21:35,468 --> 00:21:36,734 -Yeah, so... so, honestly... -Yeah. 560 00:21:36,817 --> 00:21:39,515 Niggas started using music as a way to, like, 561 00:21:39,602 --> 00:21:43,302 probably taunt niggas that you don't like. 562 00:21:43,432 --> 00:21:46,217 You start beefin', and then you start speaking 563 00:21:46,305 --> 00:21:47,310 about it in the songs. -Mm-hmm. 564 00:21:47,393 --> 00:21:49,873 It's like... It's like a battling. 565 00:21:49,960 --> 00:21:51,270 So, they just took it to the... to the... to the beats that... 566 00:21:51,353 --> 00:21:53,442 -Drill music? -Yeah, drill music. 567 00:21:55,705 --> 00:21:57,228 Explain drill music to people out there 568 00:21:57,316 --> 00:21:58,843 that don't know what it is, 'cause a lot of motherfuckers, 569 00:21:58,926 --> 00:22:00,797 you know, they was thinking drill music 570 00:22:00,928 --> 00:22:02,629 meant, like, you know, when you in the high school band. 571 00:22:02,712 --> 00:22:04,932 [laughter] 572 00:22:05,019 --> 00:22:06,629 ♪ 573 00:22:06,803 --> 00:22:09,937 KIM OSORIO: That drill sound originated in Chicago 574 00:22:10,067 --> 00:22:12,679 and then was brought into New York, 575 00:22:12,809 --> 00:22:14,554 where New York put its own little sauce on it. 576 00:22:14,637 --> 00:22:17,161 ♪ 577 00:22:17,292 --> 00:22:18,689 Fivio Foreign could do whatever he want, man. 578 00:22:18,772 --> 00:22:19,820 New York City is Fivio Foreign's, man. 579 00:22:19,903 --> 00:22:21,644 Bow! 580 00:22:21,731 --> 00:22:22,602 ♪ Look, I've been through the most ♪ 581 00:22:22,689 --> 00:22:24,038 ♪ I've been through the most ♪ 582 00:22:24,168 --> 00:22:25,609 ♪ Why would I trip over internet posts? ♪ 583 00:22:25,692 --> 00:22:26,914 - ♪ Why would I? Yeah, yeah - ♪ Yo ♪ 584 00:22:26,997 --> 00:22:28,264 ♪ Why would I stop when I'm in that Ghost? ♪ 585 00:22:28,347 --> 00:22:29,652 ♪ Why would I? ♪ 586 00:22:29,826 --> 00:22:32,176 TONE: The feeling of it is high intensity. 587 00:22:32,263 --> 00:22:33,787 It's up-tempo. It's aggressive. 588 00:22:34,135 --> 00:22:35,658 ♪ 589 00:22:35,832 --> 00:22:39,227 It's basically me beefing with the opp on record. 590 00:22:39,314 --> 00:22:42,056 Unfortunately, some of that beef is dead ass serious. 591 00:22:43,449 --> 00:22:45,494 Hip hop is still in the streets. [laughs] 592 00:22:45,581 --> 00:22:47,409 I don't think that a lot of the artists 593 00:22:47,540 --> 00:22:49,280 are trying to get on the radio. 594 00:22:49,368 --> 00:22:51,065 They're not thinking about FCC rules, 595 00:22:51,239 --> 00:22:53,067 you know what I mean? 596 00:22:53,154 --> 00:22:55,243 They're talking to the audience directly 597 00:22:55,374 --> 00:22:57,245 with zero regard 598 00:22:57,332 --> 00:23:00,074 for any of the rules of the previous generation. 599 00:23:00,248 --> 00:23:02,990 Let's put it that way, you know? 600 00:23:03,120 --> 00:23:07,081 The thing about drill is it never really had a wide appeal, 601 00:23:07,211 --> 00:23:08,517 but it would spread. 602 00:23:08,691 --> 00:23:10,867 They would never tell somebody to do a drill song 603 00:23:10,954 --> 00:23:13,217 'cause now they calling from all over. 604 00:23:13,304 --> 00:23:16,656 The feel of drill is what we want. 605 00:23:16,786 --> 00:23:19,093 The message that drill is sending is what we don't want. 606 00:23:19,223 --> 00:23:21,400 That'll never cross over into mainstream. 607 00:23:21,530 --> 00:23:22,923 But hip hop will always be street. 608 00:23:23,053 --> 00:23:24,838 It starts there. 609 00:23:25,012 --> 00:23:27,754 So, it's a battle, but it's... but it's real life, though. 610 00:23:27,928 --> 00:23:29,281 But, yeah, but behind the battling, 611 00:23:29,364 --> 00:23:30,887 it's like it's pain and hurt, 612 00:23:30,974 --> 00:23:33,237 and niggas is going through shit. 613 00:23:33,324 --> 00:23:35,370 You losing people every day. 614 00:23:35,457 --> 00:23:37,372 And you get lucky to make it out 615 00:23:37,503 --> 00:23:39,983 and grab a few that you can. -Yeah. 616 00:23:40,070 --> 00:23:43,683 Hopefully they grab a few that they can, but just trying. 617 00:23:43,857 --> 00:23:45,815 LL COOL J: What you just told me, basically, 618 00:23:45,989 --> 00:23:47,730 when you have a hit... -Uh-huh. 619 00:23:47,817 --> 00:23:49,345 ...in drill, I mean, if you really livin' 620 00:23:49,428 --> 00:23:50,777 the drill shit, right? -Yeah. 621 00:23:50,951 --> 00:23:53,031 If you really, really drilling, you know what I mean? 622 00:23:53,127 --> 00:23:56,696 Like, you... you're committin' to some shit that's real, 623 00:23:56,826 --> 00:23:59,438 and then you gotta stand on it as part of your career. 624 00:23:59,568 --> 00:24:00,569 Mm. Yeah. 625 00:24:00,700 --> 00:24:02,528 That's a hell of a thing to commit to. 626 00:24:02,615 --> 00:24:07,097 ♪ 627 00:24:07,184 --> 00:24:09,186 ♪ 628 00:24:09,273 --> 00:24:11,058 With all of the things that you've done, 629 00:24:11,145 --> 00:24:13,974 how are you navigating a career when you got music that's... 630 00:24:14,104 --> 00:24:16,411 -Mm. -...got some... 631 00:24:16,542 --> 00:24:18,199 -It's... I mean... -You know what I mean? 632 00:24:18,282 --> 00:24:19,636 What you gotta do, you gotta move smart, 633 00:24:19,719 --> 00:24:22,330 you know what I'm sayin'? Make sure the places you go, 634 00:24:22,461 --> 00:24:24,375 tap in with certain people, 635 00:24:24,463 --> 00:24:25,468 and you can get through it smooth. 636 00:24:25,551 --> 00:24:27,030 You know what I'm sayin'? No hiccups. 637 00:24:27,161 --> 00:24:29,250 ♪ I made it this far 'cause I waited my turn ♪ 638 00:24:29,424 --> 00:24:31,082 - ♪ You live and you learn - ♪ You live and you learn ♪ 639 00:24:31,165 --> 00:24:32,605 ♪ You get what you earn, you get on my nerves ♪ 640 00:24:32,688 --> 00:24:34,211 - ♪ And you get burned - ♪ Bow ♪ 641 00:24:34,298 --> 00:24:36,344 I would say that, man. Like, listen to your ideas. 642 00:24:36,431 --> 00:24:38,041 Mm. 643 00:24:38,172 --> 00:24:39,569 Take a little advice here and there, 644 00:24:39,652 --> 00:24:41,088 but listen to your mind. 645 00:24:41,262 --> 00:24:42,742 -Yeah. -Watch who you help 646 00:24:42,872 --> 00:24:44,400 and follow your intuition. -Yeah, yeah, yeah. 647 00:24:44,483 --> 00:24:45,836 -Yeah, yeah. -Follow your intuition. 648 00:24:45,919 --> 00:24:49,009 I'm gon' outwork anybody working, 649 00:24:49,096 --> 00:24:50,793 but I'm just gon' go expand the drill. 650 00:24:50,924 --> 00:24:53,100 You know what I'm sayin'? There's more to it 651 00:24:53,274 --> 00:24:55,711 than just beefin' on the song. 652 00:24:55,842 --> 00:24:57,543 Tell your story on the song. You know I'm sayin'? 653 00:24:57,626 --> 00:25:01,500 It's just all type of ways to drill. 654 00:25:01,630 --> 00:25:04,241 What you think, like, a good... somethin' you really, 655 00:25:04,372 --> 00:25:07,027 really learned from just being who you are? Like... 656 00:25:07,114 --> 00:25:09,337 I tell you, and this is a... this is a kind of a deep one. 657 00:25:09,420 --> 00:25:11,422 -And it's wild, right? -Uh-huh. 658 00:25:11,510 --> 00:25:13,250 It's like you gotta know who you are. 659 00:25:13,424 --> 00:25:15,252 Yeah, you gotta be confident. 660 00:25:15,383 --> 00:25:17,777 Yes, you have to know your value. However... 661 00:25:17,864 --> 00:25:20,606 -Mm. -Don't be a pain in the ass. 662 00:25:20,693 --> 00:25:22,695 When you get to a certain level, 663 00:25:22,869 --> 00:25:24,566 when you get to higher altitudes, 664 00:25:24,697 --> 00:25:27,438 you got to know what to let go. -Right. Right. 665 00:25:27,526 --> 00:25:28,886 If you don't know what to let go... 666 00:25:29,005 --> 00:25:30,006 Mm-hmm. 667 00:25:30,093 --> 00:25:31,530 ...people stop inviting you back. 668 00:25:31,660 --> 00:25:34,924 -Mm. -Even if you bringing value. 669 00:25:35,098 --> 00:25:36,709 -Right. -You dig? 670 00:25:36,883 --> 00:25:38,885 -Right, right. -You just don't get the invite. 671 00:25:39,015 --> 00:25:40,281 Like, we would never survive in this park 672 00:25:40,364 --> 00:25:42,366 if you a pain in the ass. -Right, right. 673 00:25:42,497 --> 00:25:43,720 Right? You know what's... you know what's coming. 674 00:25:43,803 --> 00:25:45,065 Yeah. You got to be easy. 675 00:25:45,152 --> 00:25:48,068 I'm learning the game to where, like, 676 00:25:48,198 --> 00:25:50,549 I could pace myself now. 677 00:25:50,679 --> 00:25:52,725 So, as I more get comfortable with it, 678 00:25:52,899 --> 00:25:55,162 but I don't feel like a rookie. 679 00:25:55,292 --> 00:25:58,295 And then the thing I learned is that manners... 680 00:25:58,426 --> 00:26:01,168 -Mm. -Having manners. 681 00:26:01,255 --> 00:26:02,952 ♪ 682 00:26:03,039 --> 00:26:04,044 Every now and then you will meet a villain... 683 00:26:04,127 --> 00:26:05,868 -Yeah, yeah. -...who's a gangster 684 00:26:05,999 --> 00:26:07,265 who don't have manners, but the real ones 685 00:26:07,348 --> 00:26:08,701 that are gonna be here have manners. 686 00:26:08,784 --> 00:26:10,133 FIVIO: Oh, help the old lady. 687 00:26:10,264 --> 00:26:11,221 LL COOL J: Help an old lady cross the street. 688 00:26:11,308 --> 00:26:13,180 FIVIO: Yeah, true, true. 689 00:26:13,267 --> 00:26:14,620 LL COOL J: Don't run around with your chest poked out. 690 00:26:14,703 --> 00:26:16,056 But confidence though, 'cause we don't wanna do weakness. 691 00:26:16,139 --> 00:26:17,493 -Right. -We're not doing weakness. 692 00:26:17,576 --> 00:26:19,621 -You know what I'm sayin'? -That one is heavy. 693 00:26:19,795 --> 00:26:22,363 -Yeah. -That's a heavy duty one. Damn. 694 00:26:22,493 --> 00:26:24,147 -Yeah. -That's crazy. 695 00:26:24,278 --> 00:26:26,585 -Damn. And that's every day. -Every day. 696 00:26:26,715 --> 00:26:29,283 -That's, like, all the time. -Every day, all the time. 697 00:26:29,413 --> 00:26:32,068 -I invited you... -Right. 698 00:26:32,155 --> 00:26:33,683 ...to come out to Queens that... to hang out in my hood. 699 00:26:33,766 --> 00:26:34,988 -You know what I mean? -Yeah, try to see 700 00:26:35,071 --> 00:26:36,555 how you living, no doubt. -Yeah, see how I'm living. 701 00:26:36,638 --> 00:26:38,858 -You know I'm sayin'? -And it's peaceful. [laughs] 702 00:26:38,945 --> 00:26:41,208 ♪ 703 00:26:41,382 --> 00:26:46,213 There's one word that, um, I wanna ask you about... legacy. 704 00:26:46,387 --> 00:26:48,302 -Mm. Legacy. -Yeah. 705 00:26:48,432 --> 00:26:50,478 When I'm thinking legacy, 706 00:26:50,609 --> 00:26:52,611 I think all good things, big things. 707 00:26:52,785 --> 00:26:54,791 Like, if you gon' use this as a way to better yourself 708 00:26:54,874 --> 00:26:59,835 and get money, you just gotta, like, do right by your people. 709 00:26:59,966 --> 00:27:02,185 But when somethin' happen, for real, if you keep going 710 00:27:02,316 --> 00:27:03,408 and you keep getting up... -Mm-hmm. 711 00:27:03,491 --> 00:27:05,188 ...you gotta win. 712 00:27:05,362 --> 00:27:06,716 -Every champion has lost... -Right, right. 713 00:27:06,799 --> 00:27:08,670 -...on some level. -Hell, yeah. Hell, yeah. 714 00:27:08,757 --> 00:27:10,585 Yeah, that's powerful shit, man. 715 00:27:10,672 --> 00:27:12,543 Yeah. You know, you got all the knowledge, son. 716 00:27:12,718 --> 00:27:14,589 I'm-a be a legend. 717 00:27:14,676 --> 00:27:17,200 Watch this. Bow. Movie. I'm outta here. 718 00:27:17,331 --> 00:27:18,767 Bow. Get in tune. 719 00:27:18,941 --> 00:27:20,726 LL COOL J: I did have one last question 720 00:27:20,813 --> 00:27:22,205 now that I'm sitting here thinking. 721 00:27:22,336 --> 00:27:24,096 -The name. -The name. All right, all right. 722 00:27:24,207 --> 00:27:25,818 Let me break it down for you real fast. 723 00:27:25,992 --> 00:27:27,602 Break it down for me real quick. 724 00:27:27,733 --> 00:27:29,652 Real quick. Yeah, so they started calling me Fabio. 725 00:27:29,735 --> 00:27:31,171 The white nigga with the long hair. 726 00:27:31,301 --> 00:27:33,307 -[laughing] Yeah, yeah, yeah. -Like, "You some Fabio nigga." 727 00:27:33,390 --> 00:27:34,870 Whatever, whatever, right? 728 00:27:35,044 --> 00:27:36,702 And then I thought they were saying, "Fivio," 729 00:27:36,785 --> 00:27:38,748 so I just kept it "Fivio." I'm like, "Oh, I'm Fi... 730 00:27:38,831 --> 00:27:40,615 I like that. I'm keeping that." -Yeah. 731 00:27:40,746 --> 00:27:42,443 [laughter] 732 00:27:42,617 --> 00:27:43,792 I like that. I'm keeping it. 733 00:27:43,923 --> 00:27:45,228 Yo, I can't fucking take it, bro. 734 00:27:45,402 --> 00:27:47,361 The motherfucker on the cover of the novels? 735 00:27:47,448 --> 00:27:48,754 -Yeah! -Yo, you fucking... 736 00:27:48,841 --> 00:27:52,845 -That white boy. [laughing] -[laughing] 737 00:27:52,932 --> 00:27:54,198 -He's in that... -I fucking love it. 738 00:27:54,281 --> 00:27:56,156 -All right, bro, all right. -Fabio. I fucking love it, man. 739 00:27:56,239 --> 00:27:57,284 FIVIO: Yeah, yeah. 740 00:27:57,371 --> 00:28:00,766 ♪