Of Course Love Supreme is a production of iHeartRadio.

This classic episode was produced by the team at Pandora.

Ladies and gentlemen, what's up?

This is Questlove and you're checking out QLs Classic.

So some time back, way back, I think around twenty eighteen, there was a mythical unearthed with quotations project called Top Shelf nineteen eighty eight.

It featured like a lot of the all stars of the what I call the Latin Quarter era of hip hop, the Latin Quarter era known as the classic hip hop era.

A lot of those songs that are now staples and hip hop they basically got their debut when.

DJ Red Alert was spinning at the Latin Quarter.

Womonarias like Chubb Rot, also Grad Master Cast, Belly, Mal Smooth be Of Nice, Smooth Dress, A Black Sheet, Masta, A Grandpoopa, Jungle Brothers, Dougie Fresh, Special, Led, MC Light, Craig G, Big Daddy, Kane, Bis Marquis, and of course MC Search.

What can I say, man, this is like one of those rare summit meetings that I've always dreamed about having a conversation with my uh, you know, my comrades and the gods that built hip hop culture as I knew and loved it.

Ladies and gentlemen, let's go back back in time to a classic era and Quest Love Supreme history.

This is the Top Shelf nineteen eighty eight episode Let's go.

So Luke that man.

Hatt's just let's just kick it off.

Ladies and gentlemen, do not attempt to adjust your your.

Doing your dial.

This is probably my my, my greatest dream manifesting right now in front of in front of my eyes, Ladies and gentlemen, I'm surround the ride, all my idols literally in front of This is Quest Love Supreme.

Only on Pandora.

We have the world's greatest right in front of me.

I'm gonna introduce you one by one.

Starting up, we have sur Kane, Big Dady King, Hello, I will talk to you.

Craig g Yeah, in the house.

I want you, sir.

This is amazing.

MC light is in the house.

Good evening, Hello, Special Ed is in the house.

What it is like flat buy church as stand up for me?

All MC search is in the house.

White people stand up.

We also have Vinji Greenberg from Roston Records, Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh.

Did you bring me a Bromani brothers, I gotta go back and get you on about that.

And brotherly, I el I'm gonna put your name bro.

No, no, I'm.

Gonna say it one more time.

I I led there.

Get your jew right.

I know I'm trying to one more time.

Elkare Yeah, I did it.

I mean, Louis Vats get it right.

Word.

We are here to I guess, kick off or celebrate the Top Shelf project.

I can't stress enough to our listeners how crucial the year of nineteen eighty eight was for hip hop history.

And you know to hear of this project.

First of all, this came out of nowhere, at least for me.

I never heard of this.

The idea of can you give us who can who can best describe to me the history of the Top Shelf nineteen eighty eight project, the genesis of it.

I'll take that.

So.

I had moved to New York in two thousand, was working at a record company as an assistant, and I was working on producing and writing music at nights and on the weekends.

And so I started making beats and I was getting better at producing, and a mutual friend of me and Chris's introduced us, and Chris was big into digging for records and all that, and so he came over one day and we just made a track and it ended up being the track what was the first one we made Grand Poobas.

So anyway, we made a track and we're like, oh, this is really dope, but it sounds like it's like nineteen eighty eight.

This is in two thousand and three.

And he kept coming over and we kept making beats, and all of a sudden, we had this group of beats that we loved, and we didn't know what to do with them, because you know, it wasn't like fifty cent, who was popping off in two thousand and three, was going to get on these beats that sounded like nineteen eighty eight.

So we came up with.

This idea, like what if we got like our idols from nineteen eight eight to somehow get on these records.

And we didn't I didn't know anybody, really, it was just like a dream.

And then we came up with this whole backstory of top shelf Studios and all the tapes were lost in the Tompkin Square Park rides and we just sort of just we were just just dreaming in my bedroom.

Literally just like coming up with this story to somehow give this project some context.

And it wasn't even a project at the time, it was just a dream.

And so a friend of mine introduced me to five to five Freddy and I went to it.

We went to his house and we played him a bunch of beats and he really liked it.

He loved the concept of it, which was basically there was the studio from nineteen eighty eight called Top Shelf.

All the greatest artists came through there to record after shows, hanging out whatever, and during the Tonquin Square Park rides, all the tapes were lost.

And now crazy by the way, thank you.

And now now fifteen years later, in two thousand and three, we find these records, right, But now it's fifteen years after that.

Because I didn't have I had, I was able to.

We were able to make the record, but we like no one was interested in putting it out, and so it wasn't until we had success with Rostroum and we're able to do it properly that it's now properly coming out now thirty years after the fictional Top Shelf Studios was looted during the Tompkins Square Park rides.

Wow.

Well, yeah, I think it's only apropos that you do it on an even number, which is thirty years into it, So it seems like it's all come full circle.

How did you How did you pitch this idea to each to the artist, yes, to each member.

Well, I thought that by having fat five Freddy on my side would help because if it's like two thousand and three and it's just like, hey, my name is Benji and I want to make this record, that's you know, So it was a lot more effective to be like, hey, me and fib five Freddy because he came on as an executive producer of it.

Back then.

You know, we're making this record and blah blah blah, and and people like the beats.

I think that's what it came down to, is people were feeling the energy of the project.

I mean, you'd have to ask them, but to me, it was like, you know, to me, it was a celebration of the music that we grew up with and that we loved and what got me into music in the first place.

And so I think people felt that energy or I hope they did, which was just like it was a celebration and it was just like a cool concept idea and like, let's just all get together and make a record.

So I have to ask, were the tracks initially made on n SB twelve hundred.

Or no cheated a little bit.

We cheated a little bit.

We actually made them on an MPC two thousand XL.

That's close and uh and yeah, yeah, so you know, but yeah, no, he didn't make them on sp.

Well, definitely the spirit of idiot is in there.

Like I've never thought i'd see the day where you know, someone's spitting over something that's one hundred and eight bp ms, which you.

Know, for me, like.

I mean, I'm I'm just a lover of of of fast wraps.

So even with chub Rock's track, I was like whoa.

Like the second I heard, I was like, Oh, there's no way he's gonna map and then he started like out the now.

Yeah, absolutely, So I have to ask this room.

There's there's one sort of common thread that's on almost every Quest Love Supreme show, which.

I feel the.

Common denominator of all of you, because of course the Latin quarter, of which no one salivates more over Latin quarter stories.

Than I do.

So yeah, without my corehorts here, who will make fun of me of doing this.

I have to ask questions about the Latin Quarter.

They literally, yeah, they made that jingle just for me because they know and I ask too many questions of it.

But for me, I mean, I'll be remiss to not let any stories of nineteen eighty eight go by without without any Latin Quarter tells.

First of all, was this room at all like socially?

Because this is.

Oh yeah, oh tell y'all man, I'm too young to know what.

You Yeah, I was gonna say, I don't think you know right.

I don't know what you're talking about.

That spot really funny.

You two are actually Juice Crew remembers stars I was gonna say.

I was gonna say, was Juice crew members.

To agree with ed?

I was really young, but I have Yeah, I mean when the symphony was out, I was fifteen.

Yeah, the shouting when I was twelve twelve.

And but here's the thing about Latin Quarters.

I met searching front of Latin Quarters when you had the Hate Girls song.

And the way I wound up in Latin Quarters was I used to hey boy, my bad.

Yeah.

I used to answer the phones at the Rap Attack for mister Magic, and some nights I would wind up in Latin Quarters with mister Magic underage, scared to death, and I remember bumping into Search in front of there.

I remember seeing a couple of shows there, but I didn't go off, but I would wind up there coming from the radio station.

So it was kind of weird that New York didn't really care about your age.

And because I had to have been at least fourteen years old.

Well they made sure that you got a wristband for alcohol.

So I was at Latin Quarters are fifteen, Yeah, and it was okay, And I didn't even want to be near a bar, like it was so much going on just on a music front, you seeing all the dancers and everything, that liquor was the last thing on my mind.

I agree, I mean I wasn't even I think I maybe went to the bar.

I can probably count on one hand.

And it was all five times we're read alert to have poopoo juice because he would call us all to the bar, all the violators and have poopoo juice, which was myers rum pineapple, and I forgot the third thing, but yeah, so that was his drink.

And I've never been anywhere in the world where they know how to make poopoo juice, access the Latin Quarter and one bartenders in Peace Chris Lighty, Yeah, definitely.

Well, first of all, Search is being modist because Search was the king of Latin Quarters.

It's like, you know, when when you come in Latin Quarters, it's like just you know, it's Red Alert Paradise Gray.

Mc Search.

You know.

Yeah, that's how that's how it falls.

I mean, it's like, if you come in there and you don't see Search, you gotta think something is wrong.

You're for real.

I mean, it was like he was the king of Latin Quarters.

That's where I met him first, like really, like like when he the Hey Boy song, Like I remember the night when Search walked in and Read threw it on and gave him love and Search ran on the floor and started breaking it down dancing and everybody and everybody was screaming it for him.

I was like, Okay, you see, that's what I need to be doing, you know.

For real.

Wait, now you mentioned something great, you said that when you would go with Magic.

But I'm under the impression that Latin Quarter was more broad alt.

Well, now, now the thing about it was is we're talking before the bridge was like, we're talking when I had like the song Transformer out.

That was a couple of years before the whole conflict started.

So what was the official first year of the Latin Quarter that we know is at eighty six?

Celebrity Tuesdays?

Eighty five Tuesdays and nineteen eighty five, Yeah.

Celebrity Tuesdays with Paradise and Lamumbo Cars Awesome, too awesome, too awesome, too right, and Paradise was working, but it was special right, that's exactly right, special Teddy Ted had Celebrity Tuesdays.

That's exactly right.

Eighty four it was before like the whole drama started.

So I would go with Magic, and the funny thing is Magic would leave me.

I'd hit Latin Quarters by myself, just like what the hell's going on here?

And I never went to the bar because I had my little rope chain on in the corner, and you know who I would see.

I would see Hawk and he would make me feel safe.

That was my brother, because he would make me feel safe, and then I'd get a little confidence and hang out for a minute.

But he's talking about the guy that I'm going against in the eight and a half step in video with the Braids.

Yeah yeah, yeah.

Is this the Hawk that you gave a shout out to in Rapid Game?

Yeah that Hawk.

Yes, I'm about to play out one second for half a second before he was a black thought Trek was Hawk Hawk Smooth and his acronym was Hype African Warrior, keep kicking this smooth.

I'm sorry listening.

I'm sorry to.

African Warrior keeping it smooth.

I'm sorry, good night.

But it predated the South bronx Bridge beef, so you know what I mean.

But that was kind of Brooklyn.

Yo.

Did you take the train from fall rockaway there?

I just took the second street I would take.

The Age was the Latin Quarter.

The the was before the Latin Quarter was New York's regional then, Like, was this the first Manhattan?

Remember to me?

Like I was so for me?

Eighty three was lynn Brook Hot Skates, Empire, Roller Rink, United States of America and Queens like the only place to really hear hip hop was split between hip hop and dance music and the Five.

Boroughs Roxy and dance.

But they were real strict about young boys going in there, like they were real like you it was it was tough to get.

In there when you were young.

And dance Tarrian.

Yeah, you were getting your hip hop from the roller Rins without questions, questions, skates, skate.

My first show at USA, I got boot what yeah, I.

Think I got my first show at Empire Roller Rink.

I got booted because I had a trash record called Melissa that was trash.

But I could dance really good, so that would save me.

But that record was trash because you got to remember, I went to high school with Dan to Dana slick Rick, so I thought if I came out with a British accent, I would be fly.

Oh my god, and it was terrible.

So I performed at Celebrity Tuesday because you got some towour playing the record, and I went there and I got on stage and people are looking at me like I'm alien.

So I started dancing and they were.

Like, oh, white boy, go white boy.

So I was like, oh, okay, like this I'm saved.

Like I figured it out, like I could be whack, but I could dance.

And then Vanilla Ice came and just you know, took that whole steak.

But I decided to kind of grow and have lyrics and you know, become something better than just a dancing I.

See wait, you said you got how so well, I'll never forget it.

It was again with Miss the Magic.

Joe Sla was performing and I wasn't even supposed to perform, and something happened technically with Magic just threw me on the mic and no DJ knew what was going on or nothing, and I had to kick an a cappella and they weren't really friendly with a cappella's back then because it was dances.

So you know, about eight bars in, I think I'm kicking some hard rhyns.

This is again before I heard Kine and I threw all like seven rhyme books away.

Yep, So my rhyme.

Was mad basic and like I said, I mean, I just wasn't good and I was nervous as hell.

Again I'm like fourteen years old.

I don't know no better.

But it didn't deter me, you know what I mean.

But it was weird because when he mentioned USA, it was like one of the read like in queens everybody came through USA.

But growing up in Queensbridge, the Recenter was almost like a celebrity spot, so you had mad people come through.

I remember being ten watching Grand Master, I mean Graham Wizard did or cut with handcuffs on, and I'm like ten years old, like with my sepkin On, just amazed at it.

So I've seen a lot of stuff.

But my brother.

My grandmother lived across the street from Harlem World and forced the projects and my brother would come home.

The thing about New York back then is it wasn't as regional as you thought.

There was somebody from any borough at any show.

It didn't matter how far away it was.

Brooklyn was always somewhere.

So I would get first hand copies of like the Fantastic five cro Crush Battle.

So I would say, like even before Latin Quarters, like Halem World was the spot, like you had to be nice to perform at Hall.

I wanted to perform at Halem World when I didn't even write rhymes.

I just was rhyming off the top of the head non stop, and I was like, Halem World's the spot until I wound up at Latin Quarters scared to death, or Union Square because I was always by myself, magic with I'd get in this car with him and then he'd break out.

Just leave it.

Union Square was my first spot outside of Brooklyn, really, my first hip hop spot outside of Brooklyn can matter of fact, Yeah, yeah, Rock Kim, I used to just go to Empire.

I ain't going nowhere.

I was a kid.

I walked the Empire and walked back home.

Okay.

Yeah, so we just was in the hood, local local spots, little parties in the hood and stuff like that, block parties.

But yeah, Rock Kim was at Union Square.

My brother won tickets on the radio.

Yeah we went, Yeah, we went, and you know, we never stopped going.

We was like, oh so even after youngest in charge came out and legal don't I don't know what the last official year of Latin Quarter was, but nineteen eighty eight, damn.

Okay, so yep, that was it.

And it's it's really a very sad story because it's I don't think I've ever told this story, but don't cry.

Yeah nah, So me Fat Raoul, who was the original DJ.

We came in there on a Thursday night just kind of was me Chris Light he may rest and peace, big diar.

Read and we just strolled up in there on a Thursday night.

And in fact, Raoul was DJINGHM and we were going to turn it into a hip hop night.

We were just like, Yo're like, let Red get on the turntables.

It wasn't a hip hop nightdays.

This particular Thursday was not a hip hop night.

And what gay cabaret night?

And was doing it?

You just decided no, no, no, you don't understand like we we were just we were just rolling around the City's no, I need to verify, like be clear.

Like I'm like like Twitter right now verified.

You ain't had to tell this story, you know, no, I think it's important, like we on we on, you know, we on Quest Love Supreme.

We need to get supreme.

So so I spised out like I was.

I think, you know, I've been smoking or whatever.

And I spised and I told all the people that wasn't bee boys to get out, and I said something real derogatory about gay people.

And I was like, if you ain't a bee boy, you need to get out.

And Big Daryl he just got charged and he went downstairs and there was this cock diesel dude with his man and we went up to him and this dude knocked Darryl out, laid him out flat, and Baby Chris grabbed me put me in Mike Goldberg's office and he said you stay here, and then things started flying, things started flying.

I was in there for like an hour, like an hour, just sitting there.

I came out.

Place was trashed, empty, Mike Goldberg was heated, told Red.

Never come back, told us never come back.

And I come outside and Chris and Daryl and Ali and Red are just sitting on Chris's Mac some more, just sitting there and on the corner of forty seven the Broadway, and they were like, search go home.

I was like, Noah.

They were like search go.

Home, damn.

And that was it, that last end of the last night.

Wow, that's crazy to even hear, because you know, we just knew that it was closed.

It was like, what the hell happened?

And what did at that point Union Square, the Sheraton Hotel.

We knew that I had kind of taken up, you know, a lot of the slack and it was younger and fresher and everything.

But I didn't know that was the reason.

Why Mike, Mike shut it down, shut it down.

I just thought it was all the stuff that happened when you left that closed it.

No.

And you know, it's funny because you talk about Hawk and Dog Cainge like Hawk Dog a Rock the original.

Fifty original fifty six killer Ben Hues.

When I was in the Quarter and they were about to do their thing.

The one thing I loved about those dudes is they would tell me.

Search, Yeah, that's what would tell me, like always.

Protected me, like I was a little puzzle, which leaves.

Me to this question.

You knowingly would I don't mean risk your life, but hip hop was so potent back then that even you're I mean, basically you're playing Russian roulette.

You don't know what's gonna pop off, because.

What would happen?

No, no, no, what would happen?

I'm sorry Paul and self.

What would happen?

Was the quarter got so big, right, the rep got so big that the tunnel kids would come from Jersey, Connecticut, Long Island.

It became a feeding market for Brooklyn and for Uptown.

And these girls from Hempstead would come in and they had the big errands and these they were showing out and it was like it was there was a shop a paradise man like Hogg Dog Deceptor cons like they just they went in and they would just give you the high sign.

And there were certain records when they came on Ultramagnetic with either Ultramagnetic came on or rebeled.

Out a pause, that was it.

That was there was.

Always something that was gonna happen.

You just wanted to get enough dance time in before it did.

Quest So when that drum roll comes in on Stetsa.

In the house on top billing.

Top me, tuck your stuff, it wasn't even you didn't have time to tuck it.

Like iou would be in the middle of the floor, so it'd be Fatima and shake and stretch and all of them.

Stretch right school school, school, Lage, Reggie nice and smooth, Swift, Swift, And.

As soon as that record came on, I owe you was Jay's gone.

And what would come in the middle of that crowd was every hood.

Loom that we knew.

And we were already.

Back and somebody and was.

Girls were running out screaming because they were bleeding from the ears because their bamboos got yanked yo, And I don't know.

Who it was.

I'm not even gonna point no fingers because I'm not getting thrown under the bus, but somebody from Decepticons.

I remember when they went after jam Master Jay got to.

Bring up yo rest inter j kept his kept his.

They dragged across, they yelled his.

Ye, he had the chain with the Adidas thing.

He saw another day and Marv and Mark may he rest in peace.

He was with him, Hollis who was with him, and whoever tetricane to hurricane and whoever tested them.

And I mean that's one of the few times I remember bullets flying in the quarter like you would hear them like going past your ear, and you saw like and he's holding on and Hollis Crew and he's and they're trying to pull it off of his neck and they're dragging him across the dance floor.

It's gone.

I mean, there's nobody there except for Hollis Crew and those dudes.

And he kept his.

You remember when Jim Brown would run for a touchdown and you see like four or five dudes on his back.

That's how it looks.

Jesus Christ kept his.

Though, Yes, every week, but it's crazy Tho quest like you you wasn't that after midnight and Philly like you never like, let me tell you something.

I know, Yeah, I know, listens when they shut down New York, that's when we went.

Cane at the anniversary show and he had Divine Sounds on it.

Yep, right right.

And I'll never forget this because I posted it the day after because I took a picture with them.

I was having a conversation and I heard the intro Fi plus five and whoever was talking to me, I jetted off and ran in the stage because what I remember from that song was being at USA and they be Fats open for them.

And they came on and did that song.

Wow.

And when they said we're Define Sounds and we're back again, somebody started shooting.

And this is the crazy thing is this is not about being gangster, none of that.

I loved hip hop so much.

I wasn't mad at the gunshots.

I was mad I did not get to hear the song finished being performed.

That's exactly right, or yeah, like we we.

I was in a lot of dangerous places because of hip hop, yo like, and I was totally oblivious to it because I just wanted to hear the music.

That's exactly right.

So that's exactly.

I remember going to Zanzibar to see you performed.

It was a Juice Crew night, it was Shante, it was you, it was Master Ace, it was Zanziball.

Y'all didn't even make the stage.

They played, they played Lean on Me, and that place got shot up before y'all even probably even got in the limit.

How about sensations though a little.

Small hallway, that one hallway.

And all the way place symphony, Yes, the first Yes, that all hall way.

Man Like, a lot of stuff happened from that dressing room to the stage.

No, yeah, I remember all those places.

I want to remember.

I want to know how you remember all that stuff, man Like I don't.

It's you can't forget it.

Venes, I remember the names of the venues, but I can't.

I actually that one little with the glass mirrorage so vividly remember.

I remember you performing at Hinchcliffe Coliseum in Patterson, New Jersey with KRS Boogie Down Productions Audio two You Rock, sand I got thirty four seconds on stage to do a portion of something I mean, and it was the stage was on the fifty yard line and the crowd was like a thousand miles away, and it was like there was like two thousand people in this stadium of maybe ten thousand people, and it was the greatest show.

I mean, I thought hip hop had reached its pinnacle, you know what I'm saying, Because it was like eighty seven or something, and there was actually like people in the middle of an outdoor stadium coming to a show because you know, we were doing like you know, but we also doing the spectrum, we were doing Masison Square Guard eighty seven was really starting, you know, to pop off like that, you know, run DMC and A B C Boys as they sold out the guarden, you know, right, all of that.

But to see like people in an outdoor a like a stadium stadium, it was like mind blowing.

For you.

What were the like the most notable performances that occurred.

I've heard the the Keras One versus Melley Mello thing, whatever, I've heard that story, But what were in your mind, like, what was the consummate, unbeatable performance at.

I would honestly say, to be honest with you, it would be when I first saw a public enemy.

Oh my god, I was getting ready to say public at Latin Quarters.

Yeah, that was the first time or the rebel without a parts time though.

Was.

It or was it public Enemy number one?

That one?

And he said, I remember he's remember I'm saying, I feel like I'm on I god damn shelf because.

The stage was so shallow, it was very high and it wasn't that and the base from that beat was rattling the club.

I never.

But what you guys don't remember, but you guys two things.

One thing was the first time they ever performed there was for their Yobum Rush to Show album.

They got booed off stage like we were throwing batteries at them.

They were terrible.

Yeah no, no, no, that was no no.

And then literally a year later that's when I was raped.

But I remember, like for me, like to me.

The shows that I remember were the transformation shows.

I remember the Audio two doing I.

Like Cherries, I like Days Better and Grapes sau.

That they did that at Latin Court, yes, the first time Audio two ever performed, and four Top Build a year before, a year before they came out of the box.

I like cherries, yes, oh no.

Yes, I like cherries before I met them.

Okay, and I'll and I'll accept it.

I'll accept that, Sierr.

That's fine, and that's fine.

But those transformations are the things that I remember the best, because that was eighty seven and then they went to Top villain and the place went bonkers.

But you know what, the box top Billain was just and the second top.

Villain was immediate, immediatemediate.

That was because the top building that was immediate.

But let me correct myself.

Honestly, it wasn't the Public Enemy show, and I'll keep it a hundred the goddamn Juice Crew show at the Apollo.

When Biz came out of those quarters.

Quarters, it was public and I thought you met period like it might have been the Juice Crew Show at the Apollo.

Okay, yeah, I mean came.

Out of a giant nose caane came swinging down from a damn ivory bench.

I don't know remember when.

This was the first time I seen a production like and I'm down with these dudes, and I remember them not wanting me to perform driving a giants start dropping out.

I'll tell you.

I'll tell you another great show that I remember.

It was winter, it was cold, it was cold, and this was when Emerald City and Red Parrot were doing hip hop nights and they had a really interesting way to get to the club because the stairs and that was really like a Juice Crew spot, like that was Magic's home.

That was like that was a Juice Crew house, like they were there every week.

But Roxanne and Biz did their record.

I'm shantem right.

So they're at the Red Parrot and I'm looking at the watch and I'm like, I gotta get to the Q.

I run to the o Q, you know, having a good time, blah blah blah blah.

And then everything goes dark and we think, oh, powering out or something, and then all you hear is Vic and then Biz walked out and then Shauntey walked out in a full length fur and.

It was a rap.

It was a rap.

It was a rap.

I There are very few shows that I remember where people went that crazy that was a rap.

Were these shows in which people would just perform their single and that was it or was it a full.

People would just show up and perform and leave.

You would just come in and get busy max and.

Relieve inside, and you were happy.

You were so happy, you were so happy.

I mean, and I hate to parlay it into this and I'm not trying to, but like, what makes eighty eight the Golden Era is because of this.

It's because like everything kind of accumulated up, you know what I'm saying, like eighty five and eighty six with Rock Kim and Kine and the Canaan Rock Kim battles, you know, not battles like beef, but battle who is the better MC and g rap with I'm fly rolling up my tentsive window, raised my antenna because I'm not only fly, but I'm a big bread winner.

Like oh my god, queens.

Represent you know, And it was like all of this movement, movement movement in eighty eight, like Thomas set it straight.

You know what I'm saying, ain't no half stepping word.

I'm ready, like when he said that, when Kate said that, like it was it.

We were ready, Like it wasn't just him ready, we were ready.

We were ready to be greater than the sum of what we were in the streets of our boroughs.

I think eighty eight was like you know, transformation, you know period, you know, like during like the mid eighties.

What was going on was like during the time of the show, and a lot of that it was like really like the hip hop party era where you know, a lot of the hip hop dancers played a major part and the whole crowd participation, that interaction thing you know, it was that that party feel that like cats like your Busy Bee DJ, Hollywood Buck Starsky were doing it regular parties back in the days.

Now it's like on Wax that way.

But then incomes you know, on Brothers.

I think rock Kim was first, and then Kars and then myself and it started turning into a lyrical thing, you know.

And I think at that point, you know a lot of people were, you know, like really like stepping their game up lyrically, and the MC his presence was really really being felt, you know, because I mean, if you think about it, you know, back then, any artist that came out with his DJ the DJ name came first, you know, Jasey, Jeffer Fresh, Prince, Eric b and Rakim Grand that's the Flagh in the Furious Five.

It was like the artist was making their presence felt.

Okay, So from each of you, what song during that period did you hear that just made you, that just transformed your whole artistic approach, Like you hearing something like Jay will always till this day talk about him hearing who Shot You for the first time in his car and that totally transforming his life and his whole approach to how he was going to be as as an MC And I mean I've heard this countless of times with different songs.

But for you guys, which is the class of eighty eight eighty nine, because me, as a consumer, I cannot think of another year in which, week after week after week was just some life changing shit coming out every week.

Literally, Like I mean at least twenty four to twenty five classic albums, like career defining albums that year alone.

So for you guys that are actually participating in it, was it a thing of like, oh, I'm a fan of it, or were you like did you feel a certain way when you heard lyrics and fury or like damn, like all right, I gotta come with it, and like what song from a peer of yours that made you feel a certain way?

Like damn, Like I gotta come this damn guy right here?

Man, Like I.

Being having access to Mally, you hear stuff early and I think he had that little silver cougar and I get in the call and he puts his tape in and I hear set it off, and I was just like, okay, man, I gotta go home.

Just put burn all my rhyme books.

The old one, two, rhyme, rhyme, step and it's ova, It's done, It's done.

And then I remember this dude, I used to go out, Like I said, I used to answer the phones at BLS and I would come in early and listen to all the new records.

I've never heard a special Ed in my entire life.

Then and I put his album on, and the same way he was doing it with bars, but it was like effortless, like he was talking to you.

I was like, holy shit, man, see now that I can't be Kane.

I can't be Ed, but I could be myself because Ed is being itself.

He's dropping ill bars, but it sounds like he's making a sweat exactly exactly.

So there was a lot of moments in those times, not just eighty eight, but in those few that little corner of years eighty eight, eighty nine and all like MC's went from you know, just the basic pattern of a regular bar in the cadences, rapping three words in one sentence.

And it was like, okay, wait, you know I started with shot, Well listen, everybody, my name is Craigg.

I was like, okay, well that style is done.

I can't do that.

When I heard said.

When I heard said it off, I.

Was like, okay, man, and not even and even before I said it off, I can't hold it back that one.

I was like, Yo, these dudes is rhyming like.

And the funny story I always tell this story.

You know, I was at the studio when Rock Kim did Eric be his president Shan mixed that song and we were laughing at him because he was punching in each line.

And I'm not saying that's anything against him as a rapper.

Maybe he didn't know how to record in the studio then and we were like, this is terrible, like I didn't know.

And then when I heard it like a week later, mall he was turning records around in like a week.

The next week on the radio I heard it, I was like, that is not the goddamn same song.

I was sitting in the studio listeners.

And I'll tell you that that moment.

I used to hang out with Eric a lot in the quarter and I used to drive him out to Wine Dance.

He had old little shorty that he had in wine dancing because he thought I lived in the Five Towns.

I lived near Wine Dance, Long Island.

Which was like two hours out of my way, but I was just, you know, I just wanted to hang out with Eric Bright.

He gave me a white label of Eric B for President on Zakia Records, and I listened to it.

And when I heard.

Sitting on the couch with my feet up, you think I'm lazy?

You must be crazy.

You thought I was a donut.

You tried to glaze me.

I threw every round book I had in the trash and I'll never forget.

The next day, I went to see some homeboys that I just graduated high school with and I said to him.

I said, to my man, g Man Holt Man, he rests in peace.

I was like, yo, you heard that ERICB for President?

And we both said thought I was a donut.

You tried to glaze me.

It was the craziest shit I ever heard.

And then a month two months later, this knuckle head comes out and changes the whole game.

Brannan, Now, I mean Wrath of Cain was another point in my career where I just for a minute there I was like, yeah, I can't do this.

I can't I just me personally, I can't do this.

I see him do this.

I've seen Ratha Kane change Tarik's life.

One of Lady Bee's apprentice was in high school with me, so he used to answer phones to Para ninety nine in Philly, so he'd off to bring in like promotional twelve inches and all that stuff, so we heard like stuff ahead of time.

But man, we were in fifth period and.

He was at the door of school and he held up we saw the cold Chilling Them logo, and he was like, somehow we excused ourselves from English class, went to the rooftop and he says, you gotta hear this ship, and he like, I'll never forget the collective jaw drop of twelve of us cutting various classes or whatever.

Like lunch period was different for something like eleventh grader had a little blue school record place.

Yeah, we had like a little the preschool Crosbysby.

And we were just staring at We did not know what that ship.

We just I'll tell lights something that you don't even know when you did.

I'm not having it with pas K.

I cut off K Love for like the rest of my life because yeah, because when Hay Love, when I did Hey Boy with K Love, like I wanted to do a record like that with her, and she was fronting like she was like, yeah, I'm not you know, nobody's trying to hear all that.

And then y'all came out with that and I was like, yo, cheek guy, you, I can't fuck with you.

I can't fuck with you.

Like see that we could have done that, Like we could have done that.

That to me was the.

Greatest duet top five that are alive.

That duet is just still to this day incredible.

What was the B side the cram to understand you?

What was it called a take it Light?

No?

I had the ill bounce beat to it.

I used to call awesome too and request it.

I used to call it awesome too.

I used to call records in the morning.

He came on Tuesday.

B side to cram to understand you was take it light?

Was it take it light?

With the ill jo I used to call.

Yeah, I used to call and I used to call awesome too at four thirty in the morning on a Tuesday morning.

When if your mom's caught you on the phone, she would whoop that I would be calling and I'd be whispering into the phone.

Yo.

Molly Mall lives in my building.

Fresh by the Fresh three mcs.

Like hip hop, you know you're drawn to it, man, Like with the violence, all of that was like secondary.

I just wanted to hear hip hop.

I wanted to hear dudes rhyming and to make me feel like I wasn't crazy for doing it.

Is there a record like and I always wanted to ask you this, but is there a record that you wrote that you even stepped back and you were like yourself, h yo, that you were like, man, the most gave me this.

Right here, because this is crazy.

No, I think he was too in it.

You probably was too in it to know right.

Probably Mortal Kombat on my second.

Mortal Kombat really yeah, because it was just that, just one line that just had me like, okay, yeah, I'm in a special place right now.

Yeah, Like I remember being in the zone when I wrote gas Face.

I was in the zone when I wrote black Hat as bad luck bad guys, where black must have been a white guy that started all that.

I literally stopped for a minute and I was like, yeah, I'm never going to write a better rhym like the I.

Was the none of in front of because every one of my adversaries lack your little son of obituary columns of reach your name add out question.

Let me ask you a question, though, Yes, what is your favorite m Sea light song?

I'm gonna tell you something.

I can answer that.

No, do you know listen, I'm gonna tell you something.

See as a drummer, I've.

Never heard.

I mean paper then's the first song with the rim shot was used.

Everything was snare drum hard snare drums and again it was I mean for me to to to get a what I call a War of the World's movement, which is orson Welles's War of the World's where people thought it was a real Aliens attack and people staring at the radio like what the fuck is going on?

When I heard that song, Yo I I that was one of the for me, even as a drummer, I was just like, yo, I, I didn't know you were allowed to do that.

You can rhyme over a rim shot.

You don't have to play drummer.

You could play rim shots this shit and it's crazy.

Literally the rim was hitting hard though, I mean yeah, the drums, and for.

Me, the way the way that Tarik and I bonded, like Tarik thought it was such a novelty for a human being to like recreate it so to like get girls.

Tarik would be calling, like Tarik would call my crib at like eleven o'clock, which is like way past high school hours for your parents.

Like my dad was like Joe Jackson, drill sergeant.

Don't nobody call this house after nine pm, like that sort of thing.

Tarik would call like eleven, like yo, like on three way, have a joiner on the On the other line, he'd be like, Yo, run the basement real quick and play on place it he.

Off real quick.

But you you don't know, plase it off.

Yeah, he can place it off, like yo, man, my dad like might start riffing.

Just play us off it just like literally that was his thing, like I bet you can't play.

And he would call and be like, yo, play play play paper thin real quick, like just call girls up like I'm gonna get.

A mirror to play.

Even in school where we were he would battle MC's uh in the cafeteria on the sixth floor and all the instrumental majors were in the basement and we weren't using the elevator and I had this little cassio sk one thing.

So the way that my duib as was allowed to sit with the cool kids.

Was I provided the break beats and not and not the punching line.

They would they would take an order.

They'd be like, all right, run downstairs and play play funky drummer real quick aside to run downstairs.

That was I was the apprentice, Like, that's how I earned my way into That's how Turikono became a group.

And literally like you have like one point seven seconds to get a good four bar out of it, so you would have to pay twice as fast.

Okay, it's good, run upstairs, and then he'd be like, now I'm gonna do top billing, real quick run down set.

That was me every day at Performing Arts High school.

Like boys and men were in the bathroom harmonizing, but me and Tarik were literally Now now.

As as an actual drummer, did you have simsonic drums?

Did you have those the Mattels?

Yes, yes, I got that.

Yeah, I was doing playing rock on that night, day and night night.

And then you know what, you know?

You know my favorite song from your catalog?

Right, no.

Tempt said this?

Oh thank you?

And yo?

Where is intro?

Though?

Who was that?

Matt Robinson's inn, who's being really okay?

Can you explain the genesis of being Pezza the president and Answeringette and how this thing started?

Cannot answer that quickly, Duck Alert.

I always accused her of being a beat bier because when Kane did raw, I felt like kidd and play did do this my way?

And we used to talk about it on the radio.

I know you did, yeah really and defense though they picked up that record I think the same day I picked up the Okay yeah see, but I said it in dougle Lo, I was like herbs a beat biter.

So we always made fun of it, and maybe that's what you got magic saying that's where we got it.

So you guys must really be perplexed now in twenty eighteen, where it would be who the artist that actually mirror a track that sounds similar to what came out before?

I would welcome it now actually because it all sounds like one record to me.

Yeah, I mean, you know the.

One thing that I love about this top show record when I when I heard it, when I heard lights record on this record listen up Everybody of Night the MC five foot and you know I started crying like I started literally crying because it was like, oh my gosh, she took me to eighty eight.

And like there's very few times this year I got like emotional over records, and one of them was watching nas do Ellmatic with the Kennedy you know, Philharmonic.

Like I lost my shit when I watched Dealmatic and a three hundred piece orchestra.

But that simple little record, like her rhymeing like she was seventeen again on a record that just came out like five days ago.

I was like, like the Indian man in the garbage commercial.

Yeah, I was.

First of all, still to this day, you know.

I mean I mean people, can you say still sounds that hungry on the mic?

Yeah?

You know, but only yeah.

But I mean, with all due respect, your record on Yo be you went in, man, you went in, you went in, Edwin in Dress went in.

Doug's records incredible and they were dancing and saying it and move into I mean every record sounds like this celebration of eighty eight and that, and it's why I went so hard, you know what I mean, Like just from a marketing and promotion.

Perspective, it's like, yo, this it just sparked.

Something in me and like put a battery in my back that I'm like, Yo, there's there's a there's a wealth of opportunity here for these brothers, for these icons and these legends to get back out.

Then, So what's the plan now that the album is out?

What's the the ongoing future plan for this project?

Is this just well good morning?

I mean, you know I told like this, and I told I didn't tell you this.

Well, I told you over the phone a little bit you heard yeah, but no, no, no.

But my concept for the performance on Good Morning America is a small sample of what I want the tour to be because how we listened and absorbed hip hop is way different than rock guys did.

Because rock guys had radio twenty four hours a day.

The Beatles could you could hear the Beatles.

Six hundred times a week on fifty two stations between New York and Philly.

So the music was absorbed by that boomer generation in a way that was very traditional.

So when they continued to kind of repitulate that music, it was it was easy.

It's not easy for us.

There was nothing easy about eighty five to ninety two, ninety three.

It was three hour spurts and the only time you really heard music was how it was blended together.

You'd go from Cain to Audio two to rob bas and easy rock to MC light to a promo to Da Da Da Da Da.

So I feel like it's time to engage that essence if I can't, like and bring that out on on the road.

And that's kind of the top shelf tour and how I see it, you know, in the spring, and and and again.

Not to blow these two knuckleheads up there that are right here, but but Benji like he's spending money like it's a whiz Khalifer record.

I mean, would all do respect?

And I'm not trying to dig in his pockets, I'm really not, but like the patience and the presence of mind to do what he's doing on the level that he's doing it.

No one's done it for these icons, no one, like never, It's never happened.

I got a question for Benji, and yes, being from Pittsburgh, right, how did what was y'all y'all inspiration behind the beats?

Like did y'all get tapes from New.

York or like, because a lot of the beats are in the pocket in that eighty eight sound like you know what I mean?

So, what was your inspiration behind the beats?

Like I was from New York and I grew up in Jersey and Okay, so you had heavy access to it.

Yeah.

I used to watch Video Music Box every day after school, so I mean it was part of my childhood.

So and you know, for me from from Pittsburgh, we didn't have a video music box, but we had sandwiches.

Sorry, I know you had a local video show.

I forgot Homeboy's name, but you had a local video show.

The kid that was on buzz Zzy had like a video show.

Reggie Read the DJ that was on naz Ak, that's Cleveland.

There's a dude, Man, there's a dude in Pittsburgh.

I don't know if you remember him came.

But he had a video show.

This guy's a wealth of knowledge.

Yeah, like remember all the search write You write it down.

For me, like like a sky I got this ghetto.

Pass that these black men and women allowed me to make this music.

Like if I don't remember everything, it would be a disrespect to the people that allowed me to go into the quarter, that allowed me to go into Union Square.

I mean, turn it like turn it just a one eighty like Hawk could have just snuffed me the second I walked in there, fuck out of here, white boy.

It would have been simple.

Yeah.

But you know what in the beginning of.

Hip hop, man hip hop was for the not black or white or Puerto Rican.

It was for everybody.

We was all involved in it because it was music, It was a rhythm.

It was something that that brought together all the people from the hood that ain't have no wheels to go or something to have in common.

It was a way to communicate and a way to party together.

Y'all had your different crews coming together, partying together without beef.

And I respect that.

But b I ain't seen nine white boy in any park gym that I ever went to from nineteen eighty to nineteen eighty six, except for Vanilla b aka Blake Latham aka Lord Scotch aka KEYWAYK, like I saw nine white people anywhere.

Even in you were literally the one white person as the.

Only white person.

There was a joke understanding in mathematics who used to do the big parties in Prospect Park when the five percenters used to get together.

You remember that understand that had this Big Book of Life and he'd come on in.

I used to sneak in the Prospect Park and watch the five percenter's break.

Yo.

He would say that.

Search is the only white person except police at the park game.

Okay, I mean, yo, there were nine white people.

And that's why I got so mad, like I would.

I mean I got mad like eighty six.

Like a group came out on Select Records called B M O.

C.

And was a guy named Shecky Green and this other dude, and I'm.

Like they were Capital Actually no, no, no, no they weren't.

They weren't Select.

Prospect or for Green Park.

I'm sorry, Prospect.

Yeah yeah, I think they.

Was on Capitol.

No, there wasn't.

The b C Boys were on Capital first before men on campus.

Yeah yeah, yeah, they were before the white boys.

He was on the same time.

I'm a white boys on and then the white boys.

And I'm like all this corny ship, like yo, funk out of here, excuse my lad.

But I was like, you know what I'm saying, like, yo, it was it was shut up.

No, I know you did, but I just you know, it's disrespectful.

And my daughter me is here, like I don't you know, but it's like, you know, like I just don't want I was mad, like I was mad, like you can't come in here, like you don't know what I went through, Like I was battling in Vandermere projects.

I was van I was pink houses, like I was tearing dudes.

Down for money and like getting shot at, Like don't come in here with some Connecticut nonsense and call yourself BMOC like I'm not seeing you.

So when did you When did you guys feel that the spirit of hip hop, at least the transformation of it, was slowly eroding?

Like what was your first uh oh moment?

And I don't mean like when this guy rose to prominence or whatever, but.

When when When I heard.

Women referred to as bitches by NWA, I was like something, something's about to happen, Something's different because I had never heard Caine, KRS One, Slick Rick Heavy d Fresh Prince.

I never heard any of them refer to a woman as a bitch.

Even go see the doctor was like respectful, right, The word was skeezer, yeah, and that was really shady, Like my mom would not let me say skeezer in the house.

You know what I'm saying like, but but I will tell you.

For me, I went to I'll never forget this.

I went to Roanoke, Virginia on tour with Kine.

We went back to back and the first year we went it was Caine, Queen, Latifa, Digital Underground, third Base, nice and smooth, eighty nine.

Ronoke, black crowd, college crowd, felt good, you know, it felt like any other place.

We went back a year later.

Carol Lewis booked us a year later in Ronoke.

It was all white people all and screaming for Caine and screaming for Digital under around and screaming foret totally, totally and for me, like I was through when we did Pop Goes the Weasel and we went out on tour, you know, and we took Cypress and Naughty and Tim Dog and all that, and we would get to Pop Goes the Weasel and these drunk frat white boys would come on our stage and try to do stage diving, and our dances were from Long Beach.

We weren't having that.

We would body slam these dudes like they were rushing the stage, like we were snuffing them, like we didn't know what they were doing.

Like I was I was done.

Like for me, I was done, Like I was like, this is just not this is not what I expected.

Shout out to eighty eight for you saying snuff.

I know.

Another moment, another moment that was different for me was.

I could have said duff too right now, all of.

Those women in the hot tub with Puffy and Biggie.

I was like, wait a second, what's happening here?

It was a lot, you know, as a woman looking at these visuals, it was like I was really confused as to where we were headed.

But you trying to flip it on, trying to flip it on.

You try to flip the sexuality, try to take your sexuality.

And you were saying what kind of guy you liked?

Oh yeah, that's time.

But they wouldn't.

I was wasn't it a hot tubfo I'm.

I'm not saying that.

I don't.

I don't.

Just for me, it wasn't the music.

It was when they started first week sales.

Huh, all of a sudden, All of a sudden, they stopped developing artists, and all of a sudden, it just jumped into who could say the craziest thing and get the most like pre social media pre going viral.

It was what you could say on record to get the most attention.

And the first week sales kind of like took away from artists me and developed where you had to go open up for somebody, You had to follow the tour bus in the van, you know what I mean.

It turned into something else where.

If your album then pop in like three weeks, it was over, you know what I mean, Like not even in hip hop.

There was other genres of music where the album been out for a year and didn't catch on, and then it caught on.

So to me, the first week sales kind of ruined.

The chance of growth.

I remember.

I remember me and Pete and Clark Kemp were doing a party at Irving Plaza when Palladium was open and a young group got on stage in nineteen eighty six.

Nobody knew of them, a group called rob Based and Easy Rock.

They were on profile.

My man Steve plot Nikki, who was head of retail, said hey, can you get these guys a slot on your on your Night?

They came on, they did a song called It Takes two.

Didn't move nobody?

What didn't move nobody didn't?

Clark Camp played it easy rock got on the turntables, he was rhyming.

No one could care less.

A year later, was it the sound system?

Nope, sound system was bumping.

Was unfamiliar right now based on.

Internationally known nobody was trying to check for them lyrics.

A year later it was a rap popularity.

But no, no, no, But I'm talking about the timeline, you know what I mean.

Actually that record came out now and it didn't.

Pop in eight weeks.

It'd be a rap, be a rap.

This record developed over a year.

You know, a long time.

You know when I noticed a difference.

I noticed a difference listening to radio and seeing what was in heavy rotation, because like you know, I remember, like when we came out n W A easy E.

They was popping and they were selling a lot of records.

Didn't get no radio play.

Radio was Scott Walker.

Same thing was New York.

I don't know.

In Philly we had uh sort of no wrap work day.

Like suddenly in ninety ninety one, suddenly there was no rap work day.

Like they took away Lady B Street Beat for like a good two years.

It was like hard as hell.

Then we had to depend on college radio.

But I'm saying.

What I'm trying to say is like that at all, I'm not I don't think so.

You didn't hear No NW on the radio.

You didn't hear Luke Skywalker on the radio.

You didn't hear the Ghetto Boys on the radio.

We didn't sell, but they were selling a lot of records and they were popping millions of kind of hammer.

But when you started hearing all the Volga lyrics and the gangster rap being the main thing becoming mainstream on radio, That's when I felt like, okay, something something.

That's how it's not ours gender?

How easy or how hard was it to rock different marketplaces that weren't New York based.

So if saturd Off could move you in nineteen eighty eight in New York, when you guys would go to Phoenix or something or like.

You had to understand your catalog.

You had to understand your catalog and knew what work with certain crowds.

You know certain places I knew that you know, I could end with raw, I could end with warm it Up and.

Usually the video because by then, Yo MTV raps was rocking all over the nation, and you knew that the song you had with your video you could do.

Yeah, it was a hot joint.

I would cheat because I knew how to freestyle.

Like I remember doing a show in like Houston and they had no clue I was, but I freestyled off of a ghetto a ghetto boys beat and.

Won them over.

That's because my songs were really regional.

So you know what, I'm so glad you said that shit before anything.

We were living in London at the time, so we had to go on ninth hand information.

Yeah, what happened at night of the freestyle between you and Supernat?

Oh, that was just that was a situation where you know, I was known for freestyle and you know, on the radio and all of that, and a lot of people knew that I could freestyle, and I was cool with Organized Confusion, and they were working with Supernat and he was in the studio talking about how he was the greatest freestyler and they were like, well, yo, Craig g could probably take you.

So we were supposed to battle on Bobido okay live on the radio, and I think Buck While and a few other people were going to bring their drum machines and that didn't show up.

So I'm at the New Music seminar and I'm just chilling.

I'm with like Diamond D and them, and he was on stage and they just asked him.

They were like, yo, what's up with the battle with you and Craig g And if you ever see the video?

He kind of looks out and it's on video.

Yeah, they have like clips of.

It on video.

Yeah.

Is it on YouTube?

Yeah?

Oh god, yeah, it's like clips of it.

It's probably from the freestyle All the Rap movie.

But he called me out and I remound you out.

Yeah, Craig, where you at?

What is that?

That's a call out?

Right yes?

And then imagine him saying that and you turn around and grand Master the Kaz is standing next to you, who's like part of some of the most legendary battles.

I walked on stage with a forty ounce in my hand.

I wasn't prepared to battle him, but I did know, and I knew I was the underdog, and I used it against him.

Basically, that's pretty much what happened.

Like I baited him, I said a regular rhyme.

I knew some information.

Nobody told me.

I researched everybody.

I knew he was some Indiana and it was perfect time.

And like I said, when you go back home to Indiana, get Mike Tyson out the slammer and he couldn't.

Recover, basically is what it was.

You know.

I talked to him a lot, like you know, he lives in Calli and we might work on some music at some point.

We don't have the scheduling like that.

But you know, to me, it kind of helped me because it took me from being this old school rapper to being able to work my way into the underground and have like a slightly second career from it.

Yeah, the ripples that that caused.

Yeah, I don't know.

I don't know, I forget.

I think Tim Westwood was talking about like yeah, and this before the internet, so there was such a viral moment that it just became something on its own.

But sometimes I could be an asshole.

And I remember at the end of the battle, I had a stack of cards from record labels and I threw them all in the trash.

Really, yeah, all the trash because I was like, nobody was checking for me.

So if it ain't genuine, I don't I don't want to be the flavor of the month, right so you know, I threw them all in the trash.

I had rowdy records, I had a stack of cards from labels.

I threw them all in the garbage.

King, did you ever have any battles of note on?

I mean during that the period of where you're coming up, like any MC's ever try try to challenge you.

Like I mean, that's I started as a battle rapper.

That's all I did.

Really, Yeah, That's all I did until I met Biz.

And that's how I met Biz.

I met Biz battling.

I basked him for a battle.

You never saw him with Keith Murray was rapping for him.

No, cut it out, man, I don't know what are we talking about.

Yeah that Keith?

Yeah, now what Keith was fifteen man, you know he was fifteen, just really getting started.

Man, cut it out, man, nah man, you got it to me.

Man, you say rhyme in front of Cane and kine to just say a rhyme at the top of your rhyme by ninety five decibels of a bar and you just you're like, okay, let me just go back home and those other rhyme books.

Keith was like.

His name wasn't even Keith Murray.

His rap name was do Damage at the time.

Oh, I don't know, eighty eight maybe, But you.

Know, coming up during that time, like if you lived in a certain neighborhood and they knew you rhyme, you couldn't leave a.

House without battle with somebody.

I mean, I remember Jazz the whole Jazz Rush.

Yeah, I hear of it in Philly, but I don't what was Did you and Jazz Frush know each other from Philly or just no?

You know, I just found out, maybe like uh, two years ago, that we had battled prior to after Midnight.

I didn't even know that, yeah, because I remember battling someone at the rooftop that had dissed Bismarcky and I stepped up and battled them there.

I didn't know that that was the same dude from after Midnight.

Okay, I remember the after Midnight thing, and I know it was a time issue.

I don't know whether I got there late or what was going.

I can't really remember.

And then we got we got on and I guess Dode asked for the battle.

We came up and we went and we I don't know where we went, well, maybe two rounds maybe, and dude didn't want to stop.

Dude didn't want to stop, and then Lady B told him, listen, you need to stop.

You need to stop, because sure at first she said it to me like, yo, we need to finish the show.

And the dude didn't want to stop.

Just minchell.

He was like, I'll battle you.

Yeah, this was Durman, the show god, okay.

And then the first Lady BE told me, you know, so I was ready to go on with the show, you know, because I knew that because I already at the rooftop.

I already gave it to him and it was happening again.

But dude, you know this dude, you know, he didn't want to stop.

And then Lady B told him, like, you really need to stop.

Like I'm like, give him that look like you know, I'm doing you a favor.

But dude, dude was relentless with it, you know.

And then I threw I think one hundred dollars at him.

I was like, I was like, I was like, yeah, here you go, man, he goes something for your troubles man, something like being arrogant, you know.

But yeah, I mean, I'm just finding out that it was the same dude.

You know.

I tried to ask Charlie Me and Charlie Mack was talking about him performed but Ultra Magnetic Fie and Philly Yeah, the Juice for joint we did though for Charlie Mack.

Yeah, because I was telling Charlie Mack to bring up because he said the dude still talks about I was, yo, dude, I'm like, I'd love to see this guy.

The legend of Caine versus Jash Fresh is like bigger than what actually happened.

I'm glad you told me what actually had a lot of this monster.

Yeah, yeah here.

I don't know if it's on tape or video or anything.

No, Like Charlie Max said that he's like still today, he'd be like, y'all know, I want y'all know, I want I mean.

That I can attest dude.

That's like the garbage man.

I mean, you know, you know I ran for one hundred and fifty y'alls in high school.

Oh Pocai.

Yeah, well, I mean, I I'll give Duke credit.

He didn't back down, you know what I'm saying, and he wanted to keep it going.

But what it was, it was like we was in the middle of a show, and I mean it was like you not winning, right, there was a professional yeah you know.

You know, but I mean, but you know, yeah, that's what that was.

Wow.

Wow, ladies and gentlemen, I can go on forever.

It's about to be like zero o'clock of the morning.

Yeah, I will say.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, please please support Top Shelf nineteen eighty eight.

Can we expect any other offspring videos?

Oh?

Yeah, definitely, definitely want to have some visuals in the future.

We're going to have some crazy vinyl next year and yeah.

We would be available on hard that's yeah, that's the most important.

Yeah, absolutely, absolutely, super yeah, absolutely.

Can I just say one thing, yes, absolutely so.

In nineteen eighty eight, I was ten years old in Pittsburgh.

I was a paper boy, like a real paper like I delivered newspapers and I use that money to go to the record store.

To buy tapes.

And they were tapes of everyone that's in this room.

And and then I flashed forward to nineteen ninety at the Syria Mosque when Third Base and Big Daddy Kane Digital Underground were performing and I was there with my brother and one of his friends.

Cane.

You came out in a hot tub.

They pushed you out in a hot tub.

Ladies, you'll forgive me, ladies, lady, forgive me old time story.

I'm sitting here like you have the bike and shorts.

Oh yeah, sexual chocolate, sexual chocolate actually work back.

Oh my goodness, it worked.

But let me tell you how much of an honor it is to just be here with you guys.

It's it's like really sort of a surreal experience for me.

So it's an honor to be here and to have worked with you in some capacity and to you know, bring this project to light.

And you know, one of my main things with this project is not just like, yeah, go listen to Top Shelf nineteen eighty eight, like definitely do because it's super dope, but also listen to everything else.

Listen to Long Leave of the Cane, listen to Lighters of Rock, listen to all the different records that came out then, and it's like a celebration of that time, and it's a reminder of like, Yo, she was dope, you.

Know what I mean.

And that's like what I came up listening to, Like that's like basically all I listened to and so to me, it's important to always shine a light on it.

We have to invest in our art and our artists.

Yes, you're you're right, ladies and gentlemen.

I thank you very much for coming to Normally I tell my crew to give it up, but I'm the only person here.

Give it up to.

So on behalf of the top shelf like a crew and the QLs crew.

This is quest Love.

Thank you very much for joining us.

This was a special edition of Course Love Supreme.

I'll see you on the next program.

Peace Couest.

Love Supreme is a production of iHeartRadio.

This classic episode was produced by the team at Pandora.

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