Small Town Dreams to Social Media Success Story | Marty Ray DSH #946

Summary

Digital Social Hour Podcast Summary
Episode: Small Town Dreams to Social Media Success Story | Marty Ray DSH #946
Release Date: December 6, 2024
Host: Sean Kelly

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Introduction

In this compelling episode of the Digital Social Hour, host Sean Kelly welcomes Marty Ray, an independent musician who has transformed his small-town dreams into a significant social media success. Marty shares his remarkable journey, highlighting pivotal moments that shaped his career, his deep-rooted faith, and the invaluable lessons learned from unexpected friendships.

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Early Music Journey and Small-Town Beginnings

Timestamp: [05:00] – [07:00]

Marty Ray opens up about his humble beginnings in Blytheville, Arkansas, a small town with a population of approximately 20,000. Growing up in such a close-knit community, Marty never initially envisioned a career in music. Instead, societal expectations pointed him towards more conventional paths, such as working at the local Nucor Steel mill. Despite the lack of exposure to aspiring musicians in his environment, Marty naturally gravitated towards music, mentioning, “I never really learned how. I just sing and some people like it.”

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Viral Breakthrough with "All About That Beard"

Timestamp: [06:14] – [10:49]

Marty recounts a turning point in his career when he created a parody titled "All About That Beard," inspired by Meghan Trainor’s hit "All About That Bass." This creative endeavor garnered over 200 million views across various social media platforms, including World Star Hip Hop and Bam Margera’s channels. Marty reflects on the overwhelming response: “It got posted on World Star Hip Hop. It got posted on Bam Margera's website, his Facebook. All kinds of crazy big-time people just took this video and shared my post.”

This surge in popularity not only boosted his online presence but also opened doors to new opportunities, leading Marty to embrace the path he felt was divinely inspired.

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Divine Connection and Friendship with Vanilla Ice

Timestamp: [10:50] – [15:44]

One of the most inspiring segments of the episode delves into Marty’s unexpected friendship with the iconic rapper Vanilla Ice. After his viral success, Marty received numerous messages from individuals claiming to be Vanilla Ice’s friends, ultimately connecting him directly with the artist. Marty narrates the surreal experience of performing alongside Vanilla Ice during the 90s tour in Miami:

“I said, okay, man. Hey, if I see the email, I'll believe it. And sure enough, I went to Miami. It was my second show ever that I had done in my life. I went from that one show playing for 100 people to the second show playing for 40,000.”

Marty further shares a heartfelt story about meeting B.B. King, where he signed his first album to the legendary blues musician, cementing his belief in divine appointments shaping his career.

Notable Quote:

• Marty Ray: “If you got something going, let us jump on board, right? It seems like that's the kind of move they have.”

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Lessons from Vanilla Ice: Embracing Positivity

Timestamp: [15:04] – [16:51]

Discussing his relationship with Vanilla Ice, Marty emphasizes the rapper’s unwavering positivity despite the challenges faced in the music industry. Marty observes, “You never see him not smile. I've never seen him not smiling. Now, he might have times where he don't smile, but if somebody's watching him, he's always smiling.”

This outlook has profoundly influenced Marty, teaching him the importance of maintaining a positive demeanor in the face of adversity.

Notable Quote:

• Marty Ray: “He always says, get in where you fit in. So whatever he means by that, I don't really know, but it sounds cool.”

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Navigating the Indie Music Scene and Overcoming Industry Challenges

Timestamp: [16:54] – [24:45]

Marty provides an insightful critique of the modern music industry's dynamics, highlighting the shift from record labels investing in artist development to the current landscape where artists often operate independently. He shares his personal experience of handing out his album to legends like B.B. King, hoping for a breakthrough that initially didn’t materialize. However, Marty’s persistence paid off after his near-death experience, reinforcing his commitment to his musical journey as a divine mission.

Marty stresses the importance of perseverance: “You can't give up when you're on a mission. If you really look at it as a calling, you can't give up on that because that's your purpose.”

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Personal Faith Journey and Finding Purpose

Timestamp: [25:04] – [31:07]

A significant portion of the conversation centers around Marty’s profound faith and its role in his life and career. He narrates a life-altering event where he was run over by a car, which became a catalyst for his deeper commitment to his faith and purpose. This near-death experience led him to seek solace and direction through his beliefs, fundamentally altering his approach to life and music.

Marty eloquently discusses the intersection of science and religion, advocating for a harmonious coexistence: “The actual study of science is not really an enemy. It's an adversary. I mean, it's an ally. Of God.”

Notable Quote:

• Marty Ray: “A man's gift makes room for him and brings him before great men. And so I live by that scripture. That's my life.”

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Embracing Authenticity in Music and Future Endeavors

Timestamp: [43:22] – [47:53]

Marty praises the importance of authenticity in music, deliberately avoiding the use of auto-tune and other modern vocal enhancements to maintain the rawness of his performances. He believes that genuine emotion resonates more deeply with listeners: “I just do it from the heart. And like I said, some people like it, some people don't.”

Looking ahead, Marty shares exciting developments, including his foray into entrepreneurship with the acquisition of a beard oil company, Beardalizer. This venture aligns with his personal brand and underscores his multifaceted approach to success.

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Conclusion and Final Thoughts

In closing, Sean Kelly and Marty Ray engage in a light-hearted discussion about favorite music eras and artists, reinforcing the deep connection Marty has with the 90s music scene. Marty’s journey from a small-town musician to a social media success story is a testament to resilience, faith, and the power of authentic storytelling. His ability to blend personal experiences with professional aspirations offers valuable lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs and creatives alike.

Notable Quote:

• Marty Ray: “If you could humble yourself and go, I'm okay with that. I'm okay with knowing the hope in me is that... I know that the God of all creation, that he gave his life for me, that he robed himself in flesh and he came down here and his name is Jesus.”

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Key Takeaways

1. Persistence Pays Off: Marty’s relentless pursuit of his passion, despite initial setbacks, highlights the importance of perseverance in achieving success.

2. Authenticity Matters: Embracing originality and avoiding over-reliance on modern enhancements can create a more genuine connection with the audience.

3. Faith as a Foundation: Marty’s story underscores how personal beliefs and faith can provide strength and direction in both personal and professional life.

4. The Power of Networking: Unexpected friendships, such as with Vanilla Ice, can significantly impact one’s career trajectory.

5. Diversifying Ventures: Expanding into related businesses, like Marty’s beard oil company, demonstrates the benefits of diversification in sustaining and growing one’s brand.

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Where to Find Marty Ray

Listeners interested in following Marty Ray’s journey can find him across various social media platforms under Marty Ray Project. Additionally, his music albums are available for streaming on all major platforms. For those interested in his entrepreneurial venture, visit Beardalizer.

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End of Summary

Transcript

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[Marty Ray]

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[Marty Ray]

All right.

[Vanilla Ice]

Stop, collaborate and listen Ice is back my brand new envision Something grabs a hold of me tightly flowing like a harpoon daily and nightly Will it ever stop, y'all? I don't know Turn off the light and I'll glow to the extreme I rock a mic like a vandal, light up a stage, watch a chomp like a candle dance Caress the speaker that booms I'm killing your brain like a poisonous mushroom deadly when I play a dope melody Anything less than the best is a felony Love it or leave it, you bet they gain way better hit Bullseye kid don't play if it was a problem I would solve it Check out the hook mama DJ revolves it Ice Vanilla eye, Vanilla eyes eyes baby oh eyes eyes baby yeah I Vanilla I Vanilla Ice eyes baby oh Ice, ice baby now that the body is jumping with the bass kicked in the fingers all pumping quick to the point, to the point no faking cooking them seats like a pound of bacon burning up for not quick and nimble I go crazy when I hear that symbol and I Am with the souped up tempo I'm on a roll it's time to go solo rolling. And my 5.0 with the rack top down so my beard can roll. If it was a problem, I would solve it Check out the hook While shiny revolves it Ice Vanilla Vanilla Ice Ice, baby oh, Ice, Ice, baby, yeah Vanilla Ice Vanilla Ice, Ice, baby, oh Ice eyes, baby now that the body is jumping the bass kicked in the fingers all pumping quick to the point, to the point no faking Cooking MC like a pound of bacon.

[Marty Ray]

Thank you, man. Thank you so much, bro. I signed my first album ever, my first signature ever, to BB King.

[Host]

Wow.

[Marty Ray]

After that moment, I stopped worrying about trying to have. Get a record deal. And whatever the Lord does, whatever, whatever Jesus brings me, that's what I'll take, however it goes, and that's where I'm at. Sid, of this day, you're a blessing, and I. Hopefully I'm a blessing to you.

[Host]

All right, so that was Vanilla Ice, right?

[Marty Ray]

That was Vanilla Ice. You caught it.

[Host]

What made you want to pick that one out of all your repertoire?

[Marty Ray]

Well, you know, it was. It was a thing where actually, to be honest, I was trying. I was learning the guitar at the time. I was trying to learn how to play guitar. And I was in my early 20s and. Which is when my music career actually started. I was in my early 20s, and I started picking around on some things, and I learned those chords, G, D, E minor and C. And I said, what could I do with this? I'm just playing around. And I played two different songs because I was. I was big into hip hop back in the 90s, you know, when I was a young boy.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Marty Ray]

Believe it or not, by looking at me, you wouldn't think that. But. So I was just picking around, and the first one was actually not. That first one was nothing but a G thing. You ever heard that?

[Host]

Yeah, I have.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah. So it was like. It was more of a picking thing. So it was like 1, 2, 3, and 2 the foe, Snoop Doggy Dog, and Dr. Dre is at the door ready to make an entrance. So back on up. You know, we about to wrap this up. Could you imagine that sound like that?

[Host]

No.

[Marty Ray]

Right. It's crazy. So I started with that one, but then I did the Ice Ice Baby. And I thought, it's been several weeks since I released a song, because I had. I had one viral video that really launched my career in music, and it was a parody of a beard song called all about that Bass. But I called it all about that beard.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Marty Ray]

And I parodied it and it got like 2 million views in a day. And I thought, wow, I need to be consistent now because maybe God put me on this path to do it. And so I actually, I actually told the Lord, I said, if you want me to do this, honor the effort I put forth and I'll keep doing it. So I was doing that. And then it was a span about.

[Host]

2 this episode of Digital we're driven.

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[Marty Ray]

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[Marty Ray]

Are you a freak? Hope so. Once Upon a Time Inspired by the true story I want to know which side he's on. Then you this Christmas they just want me singing blowing in the wind for the rest of my life. Bobby, what do you want to be? Whatever it is they don't want me to be. How does it feel? He defied everyone. Turn it down. Pay loud to change everything. AAR Elvis with no Direction Timothy Chalamet Edward Norton El Fanny Monica Barbaro make some noise BD Track some mud on a carpet A complete unknown.

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[Marty Ray]

Weeks that I hadn't posted a video and so then I took this Ice Ice Baby thing and that I'd worked on in the past and I said well it's, it was about 3:00 in the morning and I posted it at about 3 o'clock in the morning. And even the, even the description, the original description said y'all probably won't like this. You probably this is an old song. It's not relative at all now. But this is a way I've been messing around with Ice Ice Baby. If you don't like it, just wait, I'll post another one. I'm sorry I've been absent, right? And I posted it that video and then literally, and I know it sounds cliche but overnight that thing got millions and millions of views. It got posted on World Star Hip Hop. It got posted on Bam Margera's website, his, his Facebook. All kinds of crazy big time people just took this video and posted it, shared my post and it's at today accumulatively that video alone accumulative across all social media platforms are talking 200 plus million views.

[Host]

Wow.

[Marty Ray]

On just that one song.

[Host]

Crazy.

[Marty Ray]

It's got legs, man. And so the crazy part is that here's the, here's the wild part about when you go and you say I'm going to do what Jesus put me here to do, he will honor that effort. So here's what happened. I posted that I had all these people messaging me. I ran a tow truck. I ran a tow truck at the time from my dad in Memphis, Tennessee. And so I wasn't thinking about, you know, who's got my number or what? So when these people would message me and they would say, hey, we're. Vanilla Ice is my best friend, right? I almost sent him that song. Everybody was hearing it, you know.

[Host]

Did you know him before you made the song?

[Marty Ray]

I know Vanilla Ice.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Marty Ray]

No, no, that's. I'm about to show you how I got to know him in this. In this story. The. His so called friends, right? These were his. They said. These people said they were his best friends. There were several of them. And they said, give me your number and I'll give it to him. And I said, what I got to lose? You know, I. My number's a tow. Tow truck number. Anyway, so I said, I'll send him my number and maybe at the very least I get a tow out of it. So I sent all these people my number, said, hey, if you know him, send it to him. I'd love to talk to him. I'm a big fan. And so about two months after this video posted, I get a call and I answer just like always. And I say Glenn Ray's tone, and it's this voice. And he goes, hey, Marty Ray. Just like that. And I go, hey, how you doing? How can we help you? He goes, what's up, man? It's Rob. And I said, how you doing, Rob? How can I help you? You know, I didn't know that his name was Rob. And so he said. He said, it's. It's Vanilla Ice. And I said, oh, okay, sure. You know, you don't believe that the Vanilla Ice is calling some old country boy like me. Why would this be happening? And so then he. He says, I want to bring you out to that. We're doing this. I love the 90s tour in Miami. We're starting at the first show. I want to bring you out to play with me at the end of the show. I said, okay, man. Hey, if I see the email, I'll believe it. And sure enough, I got the email and I went to Miami. It was my second show ever that I ever done in my life. I done one show and there was about 100 people there. And I went from that one show to the second show. Remember I told you, God, I told God, honor the effort. I went from one show playing for 100 people to the second show playing for 40,000.

[Host]

Holy crap.

[Marty Ray]

Dead serious. And terrified. Yeah, absolutely terrified. So that's how. And. And then Vanilla Ice and I became friends after that. He took a liking to me, and I sure like him. Rob. Rob and I are friends. Still to this day. And I've done several shows with him now. I actually brought him into Clubhouse. Remember when Clubhouse was up there?

[Host]

Yeah, that was popping.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah, I brought him into Clubhouse. We did a room there and had thousands of people in there. It was really cool.

[Host]

Oh, yeah.

[Marty Ray]

So, yeah.

[Host]

What's the biggest lesson you've learned from Vanilla Ice?

[Marty Ray]

The biggest lesson is that dude is. He is really positive.

[Host]

Mm.

[Marty Ray]

This dude is. It's hard when your gut feels off. Your whole day can feel off. Activia probiotic yogurts and dailies are a quick, easy, and tasty way to up your gut health game every day. They're deliciously smooth and creamy and packed with billions of live and active probiotics. Your gut is where it all begins. So start with Activia. Enjoying Activia twice a day for two weeks as part of a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle can help reduce the frequency of minor digestive discomfort. You never see him not smile. I've never seen him not smiling. Now, he might be. He might have times. I'm sure he does, where he don't smile. But if somebody's watching him, he's always smiling. So it's as if he's figured out and he actually sent a graduate happy or happy graduations. Congratulations to my daughter when she graduated recently. And one of the advice. Some of the advice that he gave her was he said. He said, always remember to pursue. To pursue happiness, the pursuit of happiness. And he was quoting that, of course, from, you know, the Constitution.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Marty Ray]

And I said, man, he's really done that. He's really pursued happiness. He's. If nothing else, he is pursuing happiness. So I would think that that would be his stance on life.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Marty Ray]

Is to. He always says, get in where you fit in. So whatever he means by that, I don't really know, but it sounds cool.

[Host]

Absolutely.

[Marty Ray]

I think it has to do with happiness. You know what I mean?

[Host]

Every time I see him on television, he's smiling.

[Marty Ray]

Smiling. Look at his Instagram post. He's just happy. He seemed like a really happy dude. He had some times in his life, though, where he was not happy. He was on a show called Surreal Life and stuff like that, and it seemed like he wasn't happy, but I didn't know him back then. It could have been all show, I don't know. But he. He's just a happy dude. So I like that about him. I like that he is. He's found. Figured out how to find joy in things.

[Host]

No, that is admirable because of what the music industry, how they kind of kicked him out, and he still is positive. That's really cool to see.

[Marty Ray]

The music industry will chew you up and spit you out. You mean nothing to them.

[Host]

They're just.

[Marty Ray]

Rick Boston will probably tell you that.

[Host]

You're just a number to them, right?

[Marty Ray]

That's it. That's all you are, man. If you ain't performing. It used to be in the music industry, you used to could. They would have development deals and they would bring you in and they would put money behind you, develop you and things like that, and they would believe in you or not believe in you. And then if you. If you had a chance to prove yourself after, they felt like you were ready. And those times were good and bad for some artists, but for some of them, at least they had the chance to be. To get a chance to be developed. You know what I mean? And they don't have that anymore. If you got a train going like I have, probably collectively, I don't know, maybe 1.5 million fans across all platforms. Not in any one place, though. So maybe, maybe I could go to a record label and say, hey, here's what I've done. Here's some numbers. Will you help me now go further? And they probably would. I don't know. But maybe, maybe not. But if they. That seems like the kind of mo that they have. You. You get something going, let us jump on board, right? You know, and it's not. It's not. Let us help you get something going. That's over. It seems like.

[Host]

It seems like more artists are going independent these days.

[Marty Ray]

That's what I've been from the start. Well, not from the start. I mean, I've been that from the start. But that wasn't my intention from the start. I really. I thought that. I thought that giving. I took the last bit of money I had in the bank and I went and made an EP and I had this ep and I had the. The honor and the gift to be able to go to certain shows. And I was actually, you know, when you get. Anytime you get an idea, there's a spark there, and you're. You're gung ho, you know, you're going after it and you go, I'm. This is it. The Lord put me on this path, and I'm going after it. But then you want quick success, so you wanted to go quickly and quickly and up and up and never see a valley. But sometimes. Sometimes you have to go up and then you got to be humbled to get through the Valley. You don't even build faith unless you go into the valley. There's no faith built on the top of a mountain because all you know is good. You don't build faith to believe in the good if you've only experienced the good. It's kind of like the tree in the garden. Why was it there? So if there was no choice of evil, then there was only good. There's no choice at all. So it was like, that's how it was in my career. But when I. When I first started, it was like I had this drive and I had this album, and I was going to all these different shows of these famous artists like B.B. king and Charlie Daniels and all these people, these legends. And I was. I thought by handing them this. This cd, one of them would listen and then I would get a record deal and all the whole. The whole rigmarole, you know, the whole thing. And one time, this was. I was giving up. Really. I was done. I told the Lord, I said, I guess it ain't meant to be, because I put. I put forth effort. And I'm trying to hand this album out. This was before the Vanilla Ice song. And I said, I'm handing this album out. Nobody cares about it. And then I went to the last show I was going to was a B.B. king concert, one of his last shows. And I was on the front row because I knew the guy that booked entertainment. And I was sitting there on the front row, and B.B. king's out there. He's. He's old at this point. He's in a wheelchair. So they rolled him out and put him in a chair, and he's playing. And as he's playing, I'm just sitting there, you know, just vibing the whole time. You ever listen to B.B. king?

[Host]

No.

[Marty Ray]

Oh, man, you got to pull up B.B. king. Get it, get it, get. When you leave here, just on the way home, just put some in. And so I'm sitting there vibing and just. Just enjoying this time, really. And so he stops the show. He's sitting there and he goes, everybody hang on. Everybody hold on. They got a trumpet section. He's got all these things. And everybody just stops because he's the boss. And then he goes. He goes. Points right at me. And he goes, as long as that man right there is having a good time, so am I. And I was going, what in the world? Why is he pointing at me? You know? And so all these people, they think I know B.B. king. They think I'm famous. And, hey, how do you Know bb, I'm like, I don't know him any different than you do. I'm just a fan. And so, like I said, at this time, I'm giving up on music. So it was like, God's going, no, you ain't giving up. I'm going to use Kings to exalt you, to keep you going. Because Proverbs says, a man's gift makes room for him and brings him before great men. And so I live by that scripture. That's my life. And I was sitting on that front row, and when he stopped the show for no other reason than just to say that, I go, wow, you must want me to keep going. And so then afterwards, this is a. This is crazy. After that, I get a chance to. A chance. I hope I get a chance to meet him. Neil, the guy who booked him, he's taking us backstage, and they're leading us backstage with a flashlight that's down like this right here. And it's side of the stage, and there's security guards. You know, they're all standing there like this to keep us from going onto the stage. Now, I don't know why they're doing that. I just figured because it's dark, you can't already see. So I'm just. I'm just. I'm the only white boy going back. It's because it's all his family. It's all BB's family. And so I'm not even supposed to be back there. So I was at the back of the line of, like, 50 people, and I'm in the back of the line. I got my Martin guitar, and I'm holding it and I'm watching. But before I even get back there, they're leading us. And this. There's these security guards. And as I'm going back, this hand, as I'm walking by, this hand comes out between these security guards and grabs my hand and starts pulling me towards the security guards. And I'm doing like this. And they're going, you got to. What are you doing? You got to move on. I said, somebody's got a hold of my hand and they do this, and they part. And it's B.B. king. He's holding my hand. He's sitting in a wheelchair behind the security guards. And he goes like this. And he goes, son, I want you to know I enjoyed playing for you tonight. And I go, Mr. King, I love you, man. I love you. He goes, I love you too, son. He said, I'll see you back there like that, right there. And I go, and I had. I had an album, a B.B. king album and a picture of B.B. king, and he signed both of those. And I had my guitar. He didn't sign it right there. I didn't even know if he was going to. So I'm waiting in this line now in the back, right by the green room. It was as if B.B. king himself, the King of Blues, waited for me to walk by there. When he saw that I was going to come through there. Imagine that. Is that wild or what?

[Host]

Crazy.

[Marty Ray]

That's insane. Why would that happen? So then I'm sitting in the line, I'm watching as his people are turning all the. All these. All the family members away with their guitars. They got guitars and they're being turned away. He won't sign them because he was contractually obligated to only sign Gibson guitars. So I'm watching them go away and I'm saying, he's never going to sign a Martin then. That's like one of their number one competitors, like in acoustic guitars. So I'm thinking, I ain't going to get. Get to get this signed. And at the very end of it, like, I'm watching him and he's. His energy is just real low, and he's gone through all these people. And then I come in. As soon as I come in, he goes, hey, my friend. Like that just lights up as if he didn't have worry in the world. And I come in there and I still am. I'm almost in tears. I don't understand what's going on other than it's a divine appointment. It's divine from the Lord. It's the only explanation. I walk up to him, I hand him my Martin guitar, and he looks up at the head of it, and he looks up at me and he goes, I'm gonna sign it anyway. And he goes, hand me that Sharpie. And he signs BB King. And he hands the. He adds the guitar back to me. He hands the Sharpie off, and we're about to take a picture. But before we do that, I got that album. This is crazy. I hand him my album and he goes, ma, ma, ma. I knew that. That's what he said. Now, he had no way of knowing this. I had no fans at all. Not one fan. And so he goes, I knew that. He said, who's got that Sharpie? And I said, no, no, Mr. King, that's for you. I want you to. I want you. He said, I know who this is for. I said, oh, okay. And so they brought the Sharpie back. And as when he brought that sharpie back, he goes, I want you to Sign this to Mr. B.B. king. I signed my first album ever, my first signature ever, to B.B. king. Wow. And I handed it back to him and I knelt down beside him and that picture's still on my wall today. And I held that album and he held it. He held it up too. And then we took. They took a picture of me and B.B. king. And I got that picture and I got the picture that he signed in the album framed in my office.

[Host]

Wow.

[Marty Ray]

Is that crazy or what?

[Host]

No, it's part of him lives inside you, man.

[Marty Ray]

Dude.

[Host]

Sounds like it, right?

[Marty Ray]

That story keeps me going. But that all started from you asking, you got to rein me in because I could be long winded. You. You know what she's getting into, though. That, that's. That was from the question. Independent. So after that moment, I stopped worrying about trying to have get a record deal. I said, I'll just go about it and whatever the Lord does, whatever, whatever Jesus brings me, that's what I'll take however it goes. And that's where I'm at. Sit to this day, this being on here, this is amazing. Right. To be on your show is an amazing gift. That's from him. That's a blessing from him. You're a blessing, and hopefully I'm a blessing to you in some way so that all these things like this happen and it just continues. It's his way to continue to honor my little bit of effort.

[Host]

Wow.

[Marty Ray]

That's the truth. Yeah.

[Host]

You've been at this for a while, man. A lot of people would have given up in your shoes.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah, man. You can't give up when. When you're on a mission. You know what I mean?

[Host]

Yeah.

[Marty Ray]

If you really look at it as a calling, you can't give up on that because that's your purpose. If it's your purpose, then there's no giving up. There's no. There's no plan B. You might do other things to supplement the plan A. Like I do. I do other things now, but I didn't always, but I do now. I just started doing other things. But you might do other things to supplement, but that calling always stays true. You never give up on that. You'll die going after that calling because it's not really for you, it's for other people. You see, here's the deal. This is the truth. People don't realize this. Everybody in this world would have a better life if they realized one thing. Jesus said when he gave his life on the cross, he said, love others as I have loved you. And that love, if you trace it back to the root meaning, it means breathe for. One of the meanings is breathe for. Imagine that if he said, breathe for others as I have breathed for you, that means you don't get breath for yourself. You're only breathing for everybody around you.

[Host]

Wow.

[Marty Ray]

I'm breathing for you, you're breathing for me, and we're breathing for all of them. So seeing that takes the selfishness right out of it.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Marty Ray]

Because every breath you breathe is for somebody else.

[Host]

Wow.

[Marty Ray]

And when you take the selfishness out of it, your purpose is great. See, again, I can go forever. So if you got another question, maybe she just asked. This is important because I can. I can just talk, man.

[Host]

No, it's important. I talk a lot on the show about purpose. So, yeah, a lot of people struggle to find it.

[Marty Ray]

You know what? You know why? You know why people struggle with purpose? Because science, NASA, all these. These entities, whatever, rather good or bad, they tell the world that they are in an ever expanding universe. And. And if they die, you know, there's not much importance. Nothing really happens, right? No big deal. We're on the animals, planets or whatever that. But that's not true. See, God said the opposite of that. He said, I built all of this. I made all of this creation, and then I put you here. You are the most prized creation. You are the most treasured thing, and I made you in my image. All of this is for you, all of it. So then when you die, it is greatly important to heaven. It's greatly. It's of great importance and sorrow to them if you die. And it cuts off that purpose. It's a sorrow for heaven. And he doesn't look at it the same way as whoever it is, science or NASA, whoever it is that says those things about it doesn't really matter because they're trying to see the enemy's job is to take value and purpose out of people, to make them think they have no value. When we are the most valuable thing here. Humans are the most valuable thing here. And we are under attack, actually, from certain groups and sects saying that we are the problem here. When this, this whole planet, this whole earth is for us. That's the difference in. That's really the difference in living for the Lord and living for. Not living for the Lord. Because you realize that my purpose. You put me here, you knew me fearfully and wonderfully. You made me before I was formed in my mother's womb. You knew me and you have a purpose for me and I'm going to live that purpose. You never lose sight of it if you believe that. You see what I'm saying?

[Host]

Yeah, that's deep.

[Marty Ray]

But so many people have lost sight because they don't believe that. They've been trained, some people been trained up to believe in that, but then they're trained out of that through college and intellect, you know, and the Bible talks about. The Bible even says it says there are many wise people and they are forever learning and never coming to the knowledge of the truth. Think about that. They're super smart people and they still don't know the truth.

[Host]

Crazy, right?

[Marty Ray]

It's wild, dude.

[Host]

They can study all day, but they'll never know.

[Marty Ray]

They'll never know it. Well, because they can't. Because they won't. They won't humble themselves to say, I can't know. I can't. I can't understand you, God. I can't fully understand you. If I could grasp you, then you wouldn't be God. If I could. If I could say, okay, I figured him out then. He lives outside of space and time. We try to put him in time sometimes, but he created it. The creator of space and time can't live within it. He has to live outside of it. So then we go, now I got to figure out exactly when you are going to do this, when you want this and how you did this. What was the beginning, what was the end? And he goes, I have no beginning. I have my everlasting. See, humans have a problem with that. Even Christians, they have a problem with that. And that's. That's a tough thing to grasp. But if you can humble yourself and go, I'm okay with that. I'm okay with knowing the hope in me is that. Is that I know that the God of all creation, that he gave his life for me, that he robed himself in flesh and he came down here and his name is Jesus. And I thank him for doing it. What an honor to know that he did that for me, that he loved me that much. That is. That is the greatest purpose of this world. And if people could really realize that this whole thing where you say you talk about purpose a lot because people like it, if they could just study a little bit, if they could just humble their self a little bit, they would find real, true purpose. That is everlasting purpose. It never leaves you. Yeah, never leaves you.

[Host]

There's always that battle with science and religion, right?

[Marty Ray]

There is. But in reality, There's a guy named John Lennox, so smart, such a smart man. And he. He talks about. He talks about science and religion. And most scientists try to say. They try to take God out of religion. But the greatest scientists that they all are inspired by, like Isaac Newton, he didn't. He didn't discover the law of gravity and say, oh, wow, the law of gravity. Now I don't need God. He said, oh, wow, the law of gravity. This is how he did it. That's. That's what Isaac Newton says in his book Mathematica. He talks about God. He's not against God. He's trying to figure out how God did this, these things. And I think God's okay with that. I think he's fine with you. I think he left trails here for us to figure out to prove his existence. So science, while today seems like the mortal enemy of God, it's because a religion of science has begun. But the actual study of science is not really an enemy. It's an adversary. I mean, it's a. It's a. An ally.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Marty Ray]

Of God.

[Host]

So was there a specific moment in your life that made you go all in on God?

[Marty Ray]

I was actually born. I was born into Christianity, you know, but. But that doesn't mean that you're gonna, you know, you're gonna stay the course. A lot of people were born into Christianity, and I was born in an apostolic Pentecostal church, and I'm still in one. Wow. And you know what that is?

[Host]

No. Is it a specific branch?

[Marty Ray]

You know, there's many denominations, but we know, like, the thing with us is that we believe in Acts 2:38 to the T. Like that the message of Acts 2:38, the plan of salvation. And it is Peter said unto them, repent, every one of you and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. We believe in that entirely. Some people. Some others, some other denominations don't. Some of them do. I don't know, but I'm just saying we are the ones that staunchly believe in that. But it's. When did I. When I was to do a. To give a. I guess a pinpoint a moment when I was all in on. On Jesus was. I was 18 years old. I was living a wild life. I mean, in the clubs, fighting and doing all kinds of horrible treacherous head.

[Host]

Back in the day.

[Marty Ray]

Huh?

[Host]

You were a hothead back in the day.

[Marty Ray]

Oh, dude. Yeah. Bad, bad, bad thing, man. That bad situation. Had. Had. Still have the same friends. I mean, as far as. They're still my friends. But we've all calmed down now. But I started calming down from this point. I was 18 or 19 years old. We were in a parking lot, and there was this car driving around the parking lot. We were all parking, you know, back then. I don't know what kids do now, but back then we would go and park on. We had certain streets that we would cruise, and then we would park somewhere and gather and talk and whatnot. And kids still do that?

[Host]

No.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah, I didn't think so. They're online or something, right? They're on Tick Tock parking on Metaverse. So, no, we were parked outside of a parking lot, big parking lot. And this car is just driving around trying to hit people. This car is, like, really acting wild. And so. Oh, I'm walking with my buddy across. Across one of the streets there that was in this parking lot. And this car comes up, and right here, it just almost hits me. And it just. It just stops right here beside me. And I'm going, whoa, man. And so, you know, back then, I'm a different human. So I'm like, man, what's your problem? You know, we're going at it, and he's running his mouth and he's saying some things and wants to fight. And so I said, you know what? Let me come around there. And so I started walking around to his side. And when I started walking around, he took off again. He took off driving. So now he's really on a mission to hit somebody. And as he's driving around, it's just really. Everybody's frantic at this point because he's trying to hit cars and. And I think the dude was methed out or something. But nonetheless, I took a shopping cart and I. And I slung the thing and hit. I mean, I hit right in the side of his car with a shopping cart. And when I did that, I was left out there in the middle of this parking lot. No poles, no. No vehicles, no nothing. And he made a circle, and I would. I thought he was leaving. And I was just. Just casually going back to the group, which was down the way, and they started yelling, and it was like, marty, look out. And he had. He had made a circle and gunned it. It came right towards me and ended up running me over.

[Host]

Holy.

[Marty Ray]

He hit me right here in my side, and I went up. I said. He said, wow. And I went up. I hit the glass, went up in the air, and I was coming down on my head. I was coming down with my head first. And as I'm coming down, literally, I'm going through my mind and I'm thinking, people say this all the time, but this actually happened to me. I was flipping through. It was as if I was in slow motion, because I knew I was coming down on my head, and I was going, man, Lord, what have I done that's any good in my life, man? And I'm just like. I'm flipping through pages in my life and I can't find nothing. I'm like, what have I done for your glory and not for my own? And I'm just doing that. And it's such a long conversation that happened like that. But like I said, it felt like slow motion. So then as I'm coming down, I end up saying toward the end, I said, lord, if you'll save me one last time, I will. I'll serve you. I promise you, I'll run after you. And I came down the last minute. I hit my shoulder somehow. Can you imagine this big head not hitting the concrete before the shoulder? Somehow my shoulder. I came down, and at the right time, this. My head was forward and my shoulder hit the ground, like, almost like this. You know what I mean? And so my head never even touched the ground.

[Host]

Wow.

[Marty Ray]

And got up. I still have a massive hematoma right here. You know what a hematoma is? It's when you get hit and there's just this massive blood pocket or something. And so it's like, still, right? It's not. It's not blood anymore, but it's just soft tissue now, but it still sits there. And I got up. I had a broken rib. I had. I had several things that went wrong. I'm limping to the. To get into my buddy's truck. He's going to take me to the hospital. And I said, just take me home. And just take me home.

[Host]

You don't want to go to the hospital?

[Marty Ray]

I didn't because I didn't want my dad to find out, because I was worried that my dad would get so mad that he would go after the guy and try to, you know, kill him.

[Host]

He was like that.

[Marty Ray]

Well, with his kids, you know, with his children, who wouldn't be right? That's yours. That's your son? I have two daughters. So you don't have kids yet, do you?

[Host]

Not yet.

[Marty Ray]

So you don't know. Man, you'll do anything for your children, man. If somebody hurts your children, you'll. You'll do anything?

[Host]

Yeah. If they hurt them intentionally, I'd imagine you'd be really pissed.

[Marty Ray]

Big time. Big time. So I didn't want him to know, so I went in there. He ended up finding out anyway.

[Host]

Oh, he found out who did it.

[Marty Ray]

He found out. He didn't know who did it, but he found out that it happened as I was. As I was in the. I was already there. And he. The cops, because he was. Because, like I said, he owned a sewing service, so he knew all the cops. Yeah, because we towed for him, and they ended up calling him and said, hey, we. We got a call about your son. He got ran over, and he's going, what? He goes, yeah, he got ran over in the parking lot. And he goes. He goes, marty is. You talk about Marty. He goes, yeah. He goes, he's in the bathroom in here. And I was in there, you know, licking my wounds is what I was doing. And he keep. Busted through the door. He goes, hey, what happened? I said, I fell out of a truck. You know, me and Tyler was messing around. I fell out of the truck. And he goes, no, you didn't fall out of the truck. He goes, what happened? I ended up telling him. And sure enough, he got his gun. And. No, he went looking for the guy, man. And thankfully, he didn't find him, because who knows what charges could have been brought up, you know what I mean? Could have been prison for life for something. For some stupid moment in my life when I would have been the cause of that because I couldn't control my temper because I was a. You know, a tough guy. You know, when you're a boy back then, you want. You think. You want to be a tough guy. You think, this is all I need. I just need to be able to. I just need to be able to hit people. And if I could just hit somebody and they get knocked out immediately, that'd be great, man. I'd feel real tough. But then, if you're honest with yourself, no matter how tough you get, there's always somebody tougher. There's always somebody that might have a knife, they might have a gun, so it don't really matter how tough you get. And then it was like Jesus said, the only way for you to really be tough is really on your knees, praying. That's really the only way, because you can't protect your kids better than I can. You can't protect your wife. You can't protect yourself better than me. So. So be a. Be a warrior on your knees, not with your fist. So that was that. It all started changing. Right then. I would like to say it happened overnight, but it did not.

[Host]

Wow.

[Marty Ray]

I just started. I started getting into his word and I started, you know, going. I plugged into church. I said, I'm gonna. I'm gonna go to church, man. I gotta. I gotta be in there because I. I'm not able to live a good life without being constantly filled with the word from the Lord.

[Host]

What a story, man. Holy crap.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah, dude.

[Host]

And you look at these tough guys, you know, some people call them bullies, and you look at their personal lives, and they're dealing with a lot of stuff mentally, usually, and they're taking it out on other people.

[Marty Ray]

Big stuff, man. Did you see the. You watch the V?

[Host]

Yeah, I watch his podcast.

[Marty Ray]

Did you see when Sean Strickland. Strickland was on there?

[Host]

Yeah.

[Marty Ray]

Did you watch all that?

[Host]

He was crying.

[Marty Ray]

Golly, man. That broke my heart, dude. That broke my heart. Because I know where his answer is, but he's. He is. I can tell that he is one of the ones. He's been hurt probably by church. He's been hurt by people in the church. And the answer, if he would. If he would, truly. After Jesus. Jesus will heal that broken heart, man.

[Host]

You think so?

[Marty Ray]

I know he would. I've seen it happen. I've seen it happen so many times. It happened with me.

[Host]

Wow.

[Marty Ray]

It's happened, man. My own daughter. It's happened.

[Host]

Really?

[Marty Ray]

For real, man. It's. It. There's no. There's no true healing other than the healing of the Lord. It just really, really is. I hate to sound so preachy on here. I didn't intend for that to be the case, but it just comes out because it's my life. Yeah, it's just my life, man.

[Host]

Noticed a lot of people. This is my first time in Nashville, but a lot of you guys are passionate about the Lord out here.

[Marty Ray]

Oh, man, that's good to hear. I didn't know that. I'm not really from Nashville.

[Host]

Oh, you're not?

[Marty Ray]

I've only lived here for five years. I'm from Memphis. I was born in Memphis, raised in Arkansas. Across the bridge. You know, Memphis is divided by river. The Mississippi River.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Marty Ray]

And right across the river is Arkansas, but it's still called West Memphis. Pretty weird.

[Host]

So that's where you grew up?

[Marty Ray]

Well, I was born in Memphis, Tennessee. I grew up a little further down down the river. Down. Away from the river. It was a town called Blytheville, Arkansas.

[Host]

Small town.

[Marty Ray]

Very small, actually. To be. To be precise. Blytheville was the big town that I grew up in. Not really in, but I grew up in a smaller town outside of that small, big town.

[Host]

Oh, wow.

[Marty Ray]

There's about probably 20,000 people in Blytheville. I grew up and graduated from a school in Goslin, Arkansas, which was about maybe 2,000 people. Damn.

[Host]

That's it. Yeah, super small.

[Marty Ray]

Is really small.

[Host]

There's pros and cons to that. I think the.

[Marty Ray]

There's more pros and cons. The cons are. The cons are not having access.

[Host]

Access, limited mindset. You think your whole life is in that area.

[Marty Ray]

Oh, that's true, dude. Yeah, you nailed it right there.

[Host]

But the pros are the community. The community is important, you know, having people you could trust and, you know.

[Marty Ray]

Everybody and everybody's your friend and everybody's looking out for everybody. And it really is that way in the small towns. But you're right about the. I always told people I was actually taught in my school and by my family. My family, they weren't. No one really in my town was ever a dreamer where they thought, hey, you can dream outside your city limits. You can go out. There's still is a Nucor. It's called Nucor Steel and it's a big steel, man, one of the biggest in the world, I think. And it's right in Blytheville. It's a big steel mill. People make great money there. They make 100 to $200,000 a year there. So that was what we were taught to go after, really. And then that in the small town, that was the dream. That you're within your city limits. This is achievable. Yeah, don't. Don't think of that. You can achieve something greater than this, higher than this, because this is what you're meant for. You're here. Right? And so my whole life I never did really have a dream to be in music. I never thought that I could make. Make a. Make a living doing music. I never thought that. I thought God gave me this gift. I've always been able to sing. I never really learned how. I just sing and some people like it.

[Host]

Wow. You never got lessons or anything?

[Marty Ray]

Never got singing lessons. I probably don't even sing right, you know, to be honest with you. If some. If some vocal. If you got a vocal teacher or something that watches your show, they'll probably hear me and go, yeah, he could have done better if he was breathing right there or. Or singing. You know, it's probably the truth.

[Host]

I've seen those YouTube videos and I.

[Marty Ray]

Would hate for them to grab one of My videos, because they would probably destroy it. You know what I mean? Because I don't know really how to sing. I just do it from the heart. And like I said, some people like it, some people don't.

[Host]

I mean, from the first comment I made to you when you were singing, I felt it was spiritually, like, comforting.

[Marty Ray]

That's.

[Host]

You definitely sing from the heart.

[Marty Ray]

Thank you for saying that, man. That means the world to me. Because that's the truth. That's the only way I know.

[Host]

Absolutely.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah.

[Host]

Yeah. Too many people are robotic these days and they use auto tune and stuff and it's like, dude, you don't even sound human. At this point on my albums.

[Marty Ray]

I made it a point on all of my albums that I've released my original. My original albums. And even on my covers, whatever I do, whatever I release. Musically, there is not one stitch of auto tune, no. No melodyne, no nothing. So there might be a place where I get off pitch or something. It stays. I just keep it there. And then if people don't like it, then they don't like it. That's kind of how it goes. But you. It's a fight, though, when you have an engineer, they're sitting there. You sure? I mean, it could be right here. You could take this brother supposed to be here, and I go, man, just leave it like it is. Or I'll go in there and say, let me just try to sing it until I get it right. Let me sing that line again. Sometimes we'll do that. And then. But now I got an engineer, so he's so awesome. Jesse Po, if anybody needs one. He's the guy here, man. And he just knows me and he's very encouraging. And anyway, so, yeah, that's. That's. That's the truth, though. Pitch. Pitch correction is huge everywhere now. You don't hear anything on the radio that doesn't have it.

[Host]

No. If you could make a song with any artist, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

[Marty Ray]

Dead or alive? Yeah, man. You know, of course, I just told a story about B.B. king. I thought after that day, I said, wow, we're gonna do a song together at some point. There's just. It just seems like God has intended that to happen, but never happened. He died shortly, not too long after that. So if I could do a song with somebody, that'd be really cool.

[Host]

It's crazy that he played so late into his career.

[Marty Ray]

I know he played till he died, man. Wow. Yeah. I like to think that my album that he took rode on his bus for his whole life.

[Host]

I wonder if he ever played it.

[Marty Ray]

I don't know. I don't really know. I know that. So the only other guy. The only guy that I know played it that I really know is a Charlie Daniels. You know who that is?

[Host]

No.

[Marty Ray]

You don't know Charlie Daniels is. Do any of you guys know who Charlie Daniels is?

[Host]

So young.

[Marty Ray]

You know him, right? Oh, thank.

[Host]

35, so.

[Marty Ray]

Thank God. Well, you ever heard the song Devil Went down to Georgia?

[Host]

If you played it, maybe.

[Marty Ray]

Devil went down to Georgia he was looking for a soul to steal he was in a bind because he was running behind he's willing to make a deal. When he came across this young man song on fiddle and playing it hot the devil jumped on a hickory stump said, boy, let me tell you what, I guess you didn't know it, but I'm a fiddle player, too and if you care to take a dare, I'll make a bet with you. You play pretty good fiddle, boy but give the devil his due. I better fiddle a gold against your soul to think I'm better than you. He goes, it's a story, right? Boy named Johnny goes Johnny, you're rising up your bow and play your fiddle hard cuz hell's broke loose in Georgia and the devil deals the cars and if you win, you get this shiny fiddle made of gold but if you.

[Vanilla Ice]

Lose, the devil get your soul.

[Marty Ray]

It's. It's a jamming song. Dude, y'all gotta look this song up, man.

[Host]

Yeah, I might have to.

[Marty Ray]

You have to. Don't hate the mic. You have to, Sean. Say, I will.

[Host]

I will. I will.

[Marty Ray]

Thank you so much for saying that. Yeah, you. You guys back here too, right? Y'all gonna look at us.

[Host]

Okay.

[Marty Ray]

Oh, you've heard it. Oh, sweet, sweet. Wow. So I saw him live, too. That was during that same era of time. I handed him the album. He just. I took a picture with him. He goes, thank you, Sean. And then it was about. I don't know, it was a while later, but I got a tweet. I still have the tweet to this day. The tweet is still on his Twitter. Yeah, and he tweeted me out. He said, marty Ray project. Listen to your album. It rocks. And I go, wow, dude. Screenshot. Share that everywhere. You know, I still share it every now and then today because that. That was another moment where I was. I was down in the pits. And then this. This king said, love your music. It's rocks. And so I just. I just started going back up like that again.

[Host]

Love it.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah.

[Host]

We'll end off with a fun question here. What is the best era of music in your opinion?

[Marty Ray]

The best era of music? Well, that's tough. That's tough. What's your answer? I just want to know.

[Host]

I would say 90s.

[Marty Ray]

That's a good answer, dude. That's a real good answer. That's the era I really grew up in was the 90s. So it's tough, but I really. Just. Like we were talking about earlier, before you started recording, 70s era in the. In the 80s, and. But the 70s was, you know, Al Green and people like that, so. But I think I gotta go with 90s just to end it. Good.

[Host]

Okay.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah. Who's your favorite artist from the 90s?

[Host]

That's tough. Is Michael Jackson 90s or is he 2000s?

[Marty Ray]

Michael Jackson's a long span, so you can say, yeah, it's Michael Jackson 80s, 90s.

[Host]

That was early.

[Marty Ray]

Michael Jackson was back in the 50s, I believe.

[Host]

Damn. What?

[Marty Ray]

Yeah, Jackson 5.

[Host]

Oh, that's true.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah. He was a little boy.

[Host]

Yeah. I'm trying to think, who else is big in the 90s? Who's yours?

[Marty Ray]

Well, I grew up listening to Boys to Men. You listen to them?

[Host]

No.

[Marty Ray]

Son of a gun. Please tell me y'all know Boys to Men. I'm not gonna say any, son. Hey, y'all gotta get him some. Some real. Some real 90s music.

[Host]

All right.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah, we. Yeah. I'm gonna send you a playlist.

[Host]

Okay.

[Marty Ray]

I'm going to. For real. I want you. Will you listen to it if I send it?

[Host]

I will.

[Marty Ray]

Or will you do like you did a while ago and not answer me?

[Host]

No, I was filming people.

[Marty Ray]

He was. He was filming. That was just a joke. If y'all. If y'all can even keep that.

[Host]

Well, dude, it's been a blast. We'll link your YouTube below. Where can people find you?

[Marty Ray]

I am at Marty Ray Project, wherever. Wherever social media is. And I have original albums that are able to be streamed anywhere. And I just bought this beard oil company. Can you believe I own a beard company?

[Host]

Oh, yeah, you do.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah. Beardalizer beardalizer.com. so if anybody's got a beard or if you want a beard, looks like you could grow a nice one there if you'd let it go, maybe.

[Host]

If I let it go. Yeah.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah, you should.

[Host]

You think so?

[Marty Ray]

I think you should become a man today.

[Host]

Damn.

[Marty Ray]

Yeah.

[Host]

Ah, shit. Shots fired.

[Marty Ray]

Well, Lincoln, you sounded scared when you said that.

[Host]

Actually, not everyone can pull them off, man.

[Marty Ray]

That's true.

[Host]

Asians don't have the best beards, in my opinion.

[Marty Ray]

That is. Well, sometimes the samurai, Samurais could pull off the goatee. They had some pretty nice beard styles.

[Host]

Yeah.

[Marty Ray]

But, yeah, full beard like this. I don't know if there's ever been an Asian.

[Host]

I can't think of any, man. We get a mustache and that's about it.

[Marty Ray]

When you going to let that come out?

[Host]

Never take it out N. Dude, I'm good.

[Marty Ray]

You know how good you'd be on the court? Court.

[Host]

I'm already good on the court.

[Marty Ray]

That's true. You got me there.

[Host]

There we go, man. Thanks for going on.

[Marty Ray]

God bless you, brother. Thank you for having me.

[Host]

Yeah. Thanks for watching, guys, as always. Check them out below. See you next time.