Fat Joe, Jadakiss & Lola Brooke talk MASSIVE changes in last 20 years of hip hop

Summary

Joe and Jada Podcast

Episode: "Fat Joe, Jadakiss & Lola Brooke Talk MASSIVE Changes in Last 20 Years of Hip Hop"

Release Date: February 17, 2026
Podcast Host: iHeartPodcasts and The Volume
Main Guests: Fat Joe, Jadakiss, Lola Brooke

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Episode Overview

This episode features dynamic conversations between hip-hop icons Fat Joe, Jadakiss (mostly referred to as "Jada" or "Kiss"), and rising star Lola Brooke. The trio dives into personal journeys and the seismic shifts in hip-hop culture, industry practices, and social landscape over the past 20 years. Lola shares firsthand stories of her rise from Brooklyn, insights on industry pressures, her creative process, and the legacy of legendary women rappers. The episode is rich with nostalgic anecdotes, generational comparisons, and real talk about creativity, success, and staying grounded.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Starting Out & The Early Grind

• [02:03] Lola Brooke explains she didn’t start music for money:

  "I didn't start doing music for a bag, but I caught a bag. So I'mma continue to do it for that as well...I gotta get this shit off. Cause if I don't, I'm be going craz."

• [04:09] Joe Crack lauds Lola's work ethic and humility, noting her early years hustling in small-town gigs, giving personal recognition for "making your chops" and not waiting for luck.

• Having a supportive, business-savvy team and OG mentors is critical (05:02):

  "A lot of these young dudes, if they ain't got no unc, no real OGs, positive people, I can see where they fuck up at." — Joe Crack

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Navigating Success, Money, and Section 8

• [09:38] Joe Crack asks Lola when she recognized she had a hit. She reflects on delayed gratification and being raised by a hard-working mother.

• Realness about financial progress and generational struggles:

  • Lola shared leaving Section 8 housing, and the challenge of "passing it down":

    "I dropped my section eight when I popped. I'm like, oh, I can leave section 8 now. My mom's passed down the section 8." — Lola Brooke [11:36]

  • Joe contextualizes Section 8 as both help and a system that "controls you from competing…to own shit" [13:00].

    "That system is a trap...It's really not a flex. That shit is meant to be temporary..." — Joe Crack

  • Lola credits her mom for teaching her to use such assistance as "a way forward" [14:04].

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Team 80, Mentorship, and Brooklyn’s Legacy

• Lola tells how she joined Team 80 in 2016, emphasizing the uplifting energy of being among other passionate music-makers [15:41].

• Fat Joe brings up Brooklyn's deep lineage of female MCs (Lil' Kim, Foxy Brown) and the pressure/inspiration Lola feels [16:19–17:53].

• On standing out from Brooklyn:

  "At first it felt like pressure. But I'm from Brooklyn. Like it's in me, not on me." — Lola Brooke [17:47]

• Comparison to Lil’ Kim and Foxy:

  "...they always compare me to both. So I be like, I guess I'm like half and half. Like I'm lemonade and Ice T. I'm a half and half." — Lola Brooke [18:14]

• Anecdotes about the intricacies of Brooklyn neighborhoods, culture, and local landmarks fill an engaging segment (esp. [20:26–27:34]). The crew reminisces about iconic food spots, sporting legends, and the city’s diversity.

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The Realities of the Music Industry & Making Hits

• Discussion about the sacrifices required after landing a hit—no time to actually enjoy the moment [10:10].

• The business always demands "the next one." Even with massive songs, industry pressure is relentless [42:13]:

  "No matter what you do, if you put out a hit, they want the second. Lean Back. I put out Lean Back...the next song I put out was Make It Rain. The shit went full platinum...And N was still like, this ain't Lean Back, yo. They was dead ass." — Joe Crack

• On creative process:

  • Lola shares that she doesn’t chase radio hits but uses music as therapy:

    "I don't be in the studio like, oh, I gotta make a hit. I'll be in the studio like, oh, I gotta get this off. Because if I don't, I'll be going crazy." — Lola Brooke [42:58]

  • Jadakiss admits he often knows "when you got a hit" in the studio (notable for "Why") [44:02].
  • They discuss the uniqueness of classic hits and how industry standards and tastes have shifted dramatically, making it harder to predict what will pop [47:59–48:54].

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Inspiration, Influences & Staying Hungry

• Lola’s Hip-Hop inspirations growing up included Lil Wayne, Meek Mill, and 50 Cent for various reasons (lyricism, authenticity, and drive). She reflects on mixtape-era Wayne’s impact [56:19–57:54].
• The conversation underscores the difference in work ethic between generations. Fat Joe credits Wayne for teaching him to "work fast" in the studio [56:31].

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Vision for the Future

• Lola wants to expand beyond music:

  "Being on the movie screens, having my own show. That's what I want." — Lola Brooke [59:50]

• The importance of being ready for "your moment" is discussed, with Teyana Taylor’s recent glow-up as a prime example [60:18–61:15].

• Fat Joe’s recurring message:

  "You gotta stay in the game. You never know." [61:33]

• On using others’ success as inspiration rather than envy:

  "When you watch somebody else blessings or somebody else pockets, then you ain't focused on yours." — Lola Brooke [66:12]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On hustle:
  "You was doing shows, you was getting your name out there early and not just waiting for Plymouth Rock to land on you. You was out there..." — Joe Crack [04:20]
• On creative process:
  "Hits come from great energy. It's a room full of energy. A hit is guaranteed gonna be made." — Lola Brooke [48:54]
• On being from Brooklyn:
  "It's in me, not on me." — Lola Brooke [17:47]
• On pressure and adapting:
  "You gotta adapt...It still don't change. You gotta adapt to enjoy your fruits of labors. That shit don't work like that." — Joe Crack [10:54]
• On generational assistance:
  "I dropped my section eight when I popped. I'm like, oh, I can leave section 8 now. My mom's passed down the section 8." — Lola Brooke [11:36]
• On artistic authenticity:
  "Music for me is a lifestyle. I'm making music because it's making me feel good. I do music because it speaks for me like...it's therapeutic." — Lola Brooke [42:58]
• On generational legacy:
  "If you keep it consistent, nothing changes...you talking your shit… and people could relate. That's powerful right there. That never changes." — Joe Crack [48:18]
• On readiness:
  "You could tell that she [Teyana Taylor] patiently waited for her moment, and when it came, she was ready. A lot of people not ready for their moment." — Lola Brooke [61:04]

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [02:03] — Lola on starting music for passion, not money
• [04:09] — Joe praises Lola’s grind and humility
• [09:38] — Recognition of a hit; challenges with celebrating success
• [11:36] — Section 8, welfare, and generational financial progress
• [13:00] — Joe: Section 8 "is a trap," discussion of system’s limitations
• [17:47] — How Brooklyn’s legacy influences and complicates Lola’s journey
• [18:14] — Being compared to Foxy Brown and Lil’ Kim
• [42:13] — The industry's relentless demand for new hits
• [42:58] — Lola's view on her creative process
• [44:02] — Jadakiss on knowing you have a hit
• [47:59] — The unpredictability of what becomes a hit today
• [48:54] — The role of energy in creating hits
• [56:19] — Lola’s musical inspirations
• [59:50] — Lola’s career goals beyond rap
• [61:33] — Joe’s advice: "You gotta stay in the game. You never know."
• [66:12] — Lola’s philosophy: focus on your own blessings, not others'

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Conclusion

This episode is an energetic, heartfelt exploration of what it means to come up in hip-hop, adapt to change, and stay true to yourself—both as an artist and as a person. Joe and Jada provide an OG lens, balancing humor and hard truths, while Lola Brooke embodies the next wave with humility, insight, and readiness for new heights. For fans, artists, or anyone interested in the realities behind fame, success, and hip-hop's evolving landscape, this conversation is packed with wisdom and motivation.

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Key Takeaway:
Stay focused, stay hungry, and recognize that every success is a stepping stone—not a stopping point—no matter what the world, or the industry, throws your way. As Joe says:

"You gotta stay in the game. You never know." [61:33]

Transcript

[Joe Crack]

1969. Malcolm and Martin are gone. America is in crisis. And at Morehouse College, the students make their move. These students, including a young Samuel L. Jackson, locked up the members of the board of trustees, including Martin Luther King Sr. It's the true story of protest and rebellion in black American history that you'll never forget. I'm Hans Charles. Our menelik Lumumba. Listen to the a building on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Bowen Yang. And I'm Matt Rogers. During this season of the Two Five Rings podcast, in the lead up to the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games, we've been joined by some of our friends. Hi, Fun. Hi, Nat. Hey, Elmo. Hey, Matt. Hey, Bowen. Hi, Cookie. Hi. Now the Winter Olympic Games are underway and we are in Italy to give you experiences from our hearts to your ears. Listen to Two Guys, Five Rings on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Lola Brooke]

When segregation was a law, one mysterious black club owner, Charlie Fitzgerald, had his own rules.

[Joe Crack]

Segregation in the day, integration at night. It was like stepping on another world.

[Lola Brooke]

Was he a businessman? A criminal? A hero?

[Joe Crack]

Charlie was an example of power. They had to crush him.

[Lola Brooke]

Charlie's place from Atlas Obscura and visit Myrtle Beach. Listen to Charlie's place on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Joe Crack]

This is Ryder Strong and I have a new podcast called the red weather. In 1995, my neighbor Anna Traynor disappeared from a commune. It was nature and trees and praying and drugs. So, no, I am not your guru. And back then, I lied to everybody. They have had this case for 30. Going back to my hometown to uncover the truth. Listen to the Red Weather on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Lola Brooke]

I didn't. I didn't start doing music for a bag, but I caught a bag. So I'mma continue to do it for that as well. But nah, I don't be in the studio like, yo, I gotta make a hit. I be in the studio like, oh, I gotta get this shit off. Cause if I don't, I'm be going craz.

[Joe Crack]

Foreign. What up, y'? All? This is Joe Crack the dawn. It's your boy Jada. You know what it is, the Joe and Jada show. What the mondami said. Jay said of moi. He said every name. He said every. He said Jason Escastudio, Savio, Rolando Torres, and they named you a hundred names and this crazy place. Every show legendary, every show iconic. You know what I mean? At this point, he just crushes. We just fried. But today's guest, think of hard working. You know, I never really seen a female Napoleon. I mean, meaning, she got a. She packs a big punch. Pause if you need one. If not, let it go. Big energy she brings, you know, a big presence. You can tell she loves her mom. She come from a good. She come from some good raising of a good mother. Represents Brooklyn to the fullest. Brooklyn, Brooklyn. She's connected, you know, she. She knocked. She knocked one out the park. Maybe one or two. I gotta look back at the billboards, but she works very hard. Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for Lola Bruh.

[Lola Brooke]

Oh, I like that intro. That was fire. I like.

[Joe Crack]

You like that intro.

[Lola Brooke]

I like the intro.

[Joe Crack]

No doubt, baby.

[Lola Brooke]

Shout out to Mom Dukes.

[Joe Crack]

You know, this is what I say. Hold on. Before we even. Did you have another name?

[Lola Brooke]

Big Gator.

[Joe Crack]

Before you was Lola. Before it was Brooke. Was it when you did the show, you opened up for me somewhere. One time we had a show with Syracuse. No, it was. No, it was Lola Brooks.

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah, that was the Albany.

[Joe Crack]

Albany. That's how long she been going. She been putting in work way back then. I like to say he was very humble. And when I seen you finally hit one out the park, you know, I was proud of that. A lot of people don't put that. You was in the trenches. You was doing shows. You was getting your name out there early and not just waiting for Plymouth Rock to land on you. You was out there making your. You know what I mean? Making your chops. So that's a good. That. Salute to you. To the success. Now, go ahead, crack. No, I'm just saying the way you moving is the way I wish all the young guy rappers would move. You got sav, you got ogs. Shout out to team 80.

[Lola Brooke]

Shout out to team 80.

[Joe Crack]

Me, my brother. Team what?

[Lola Brooke]

Team 80.

[Joe Crack]

Team 80. My thing is, when you got the right people been around the business for a while, and they know how to get you out of trouble. You know, a lot of these young dudes, if they ain't got like no unc, no real OGs, positive people, I can see where they fuck up at. So I say that all the time. With the young guys coming up, we need an OG to just tell you, yo, don't be impulsive. Don't move like that. You gonna get yourself jammed up. Cause we getting tired of the next rapper coming home from Jail, right? This shit out of control right now. Right? One go in, one come out. One go in, one come out. We. You know, this shit is played out, but I love your team and how you move. Welcome to the show.

[Lola Brooke]

Thanks for having me. I love you. Here, let me. Let me tell y'. All, they was popping mad. They was popping mad. Shit. Before the kidding. Oh, my gang. My gum came out before the cameras came out. They often on the camera they done. They the same.

[Joe Crack]

They the same.

[Lola Brooke]

Off and on, off and on the camera, they the same.

[Joe Crack]

I'm jealous of mine. Jealous of her.

[Lola Brooke]

What? My gum.

[Joe Crack]

Maybe two.

[Lola Brooke]

I knew I was supposed to have it. I was trying to hide it.

[Joe Crack]

Two BET Awards. It goes or lap or whatever one it was. We had to. We caught a red eye home together.

[Lola Brooke]

Oh, yes, dog.

[Joe Crack]

We had to. We both in first class. You know what I mean? We got the. It wasn't the seats that turned to a bed, I don't think. But when she folded her body, she was the most comfortable person in the dog. She would have thought she was on the California. I walked by, I said, damn, I want to get comfortable. She had a leg under this leg over this.

[Lola Brooke]

A bed right there.

[Joe Crack]

Yeah. That's just like a California. No, I was. I'm like, damn, I want to get. He don't remember. He did that shit to me one time. We took a.

[Lola Brooke]

But it wasn't bad. He just.

[Joe Crack]

You.

[Lola Brooke]

You a big dog now.

[Joe Crack]

Yeah, it was. But you was still comfortable. Whatever I had, it didn't look how comfortable you was.

[Lola Brooke]

I was curled.

[Joe Crack]

You went on the JetBlue mint to LA. The man before the plane took off, this guy went to sleep. Like he's describing you. When the landed, he got up. I was pissed. I'm looking at jail. Sleep like a baby on this. I can't even sleep on the plane like that. I said, knocked up. Rich player, too. Before the move, he like, you know, if I played that game taking pictures of while you sleeping, I would have.

[Lola Brooke]

Oh, you didn't do it like that.

[Joe Crack]

Dictionaries on Rich Player. He before the movie like that.

[Lola Brooke]

That's how I'll be.

[Joe Crack]

I want somebody to be scared with me on the plane. You know what I'm saying? Don't want to be scared with me. He like, yo, every man for himself. You figure it out.

[Lola Brooke]

Sleep before the flight, take off. You can't recline and that. Your back feel messed up.

[Joe Crack]

Yeah. They don't let you. Yeah. You gotta wait till you get. You know what's crazy? When you private you could do jumping jacks while the shit take off.

[Lola Brooke]

Oh, I gotta get there.

[Joe Crack]

Jumping jacks. Backflip. Them niggas don't give a fuck. Watch on private. They be like, do you want to put your seatbelt on or not? Like, so all that shit, they be running like, seat up, sir. They'll wake you up. Be like, seat up, sir. Make sure you on air. All that shit is bullshit. No, no, no, no, no. It's a fact. All that shit is bullshit. When you on the private safety measures, that's for. That's shit that gotta happen. My man Raul, rest in peace, was not afraid to fly. When that shit was landing. The more turbulent he be in the front with the pilots, like, yeah, look how he's cur. I be like, yo, you know at that time you supposed to be super strapped up. Like it's bullshit. All them rules and all that shit is bullshit, man. It's bullshit to you.

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah, he don't like the rules. He never did.

[Joe Crack]

Planes is safe, man. Don't play with it. Did you think that was a. Did you know that was out of the park or you had to work it? We always got to work every single thing, you know what I mean? You got to do a bunch of shit you don't want to do and everything. Savin I'm telling you to do and radio stations and DJs and all that. But when it got. When you know it was one of them ones. How did that feel for you?

[Lola Brooke]

I ain't gonna front. Just recently I just started realizing like I had a hit. I didn't. I didn't feel it. I've been working for so long. Like I've been raised by my mom. She a hard working black woman. All I know is to work hard and I don't reward myself. Cause it's like, it's things that you're supposed to do. So when. Don't play with it, Pop. I was just excited because, you know, as an artist, when you feeling neglected and you not getting the attention that you feel like you're supposed to get, when you finally get it, it go over your head. So.

[Joe Crack]

But you know the whack part about this business is when you get one, they're working you so much so you can't even go to your normal spot that you would go to. And look at everybody fucking with your shit. You like, you don't even get that, know what I'm saying? You gotta lean back. Number one motherfuckers like Yo Flex played it 400 times. I'm in fucking Denver, Colorado, performing somewhere, like, right, you do not get to enjoy unless you one of them dudes that Disney. You don't give a fuck about a dollar. You don't care about nothing. You could sit there and be like, all right, my shit popping. But when you get a hit, it's always like, look, it ain't never gonna look. You are hard, hard working. That's one thing we gotta say about you. But let me tell you, it never changed.

[Lola Brooke]

You gotta adapt.

[Joe Crack]

We've been in the game. I've been in the game 30 years. It still don't change. You gotta adapt to enjoy your fruits of labors. That shit don't work like that. It's like, yo, what's the next. Where we gotta go, what we gotta do, what we gotta conquer, what we gotta. You know, this shit don't never. Especially where I don't know your finances, you know, you grew up with your moms and your pops.

[Lola Brooke]

No, this is my mom's senior home.

[Joe Crack]

So, you know, you trying to.

[Lola Brooke]

I'm just trying to pay the bills on child like, you know what I'm saying?

[Joe Crack]

Generational. I never had nobody before me make money like me. You could probably look my family tree a hundred years. Everybody been on welfare for 100 years. So I'm generational.

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah, I just. I dropped my section eight when I popped. I'm like, oh, I can leave section 8 now. My mom's passed down the section 8.

[Joe Crack]

I still got mine. You're a liar.

[Lola Brooke]

I wish I could have kept mine. I was looking for somebody to hold it down.

[Joe Crack]

You hear me? You hear how much I tell you about my Section 8?

[Lola Brooke]

You know, you can't say that lie.

[Joe Crack]

He make you look crazy when he. I don't play with myself. He don't disrespect section eight, man.

[Lola Brooke]

You know how hard it is to get Section 8 right now.

[Joe Crack]

Don't even play with my. I got cousins in section 8. They. They know how to play that game. That is not easy. I don't play about myself. I feel the same way about my heart for like a month or something. Yeah, listen.

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah, that's how my mom.

[Joe Crack]

I feel the same way about my hard drives as my section eight as you should. I was holding it on.

[Lola Brooke]

I was holding it down for a minute. But I ain't have nobody to pass it down to. I'm the only child too.

[Joe Crack]

Supposed to kept that low.

[Lola Brooke]

I'm the only child too, so I was trying to pass it down. I was trying to pass it down.

[Joe Crack]

Fuck The Section, they wouldn't let me. Listen to me. Yeah, hold up, hold up. Fuck this, Section eight. I'm trying to explain something to you. You think if Jay Z wanted to stay on Section 8, he would ever be a billionaire? Ever own a building like this? That whole shit is a gimmick. Yes, it helps. I'm going for billionaire status with section 8. I don't got nothing to do with you. I'm trying.

[Lola Brooke]

I dig it.

[Joe Crack]

Calling you full of shit, man, I found the first flag, man. All my section 8 people in the comments, get them facts. Let me tell you how to stand strong about Section speak. I'm Section eight. Let me finish my statement if you need it. Your single parent moms or whatever type of struggle you going through, I'm not knocking you. I grew up on welfare, section 8. Free cheese, free lunch, everything you could. Nobody was fucking bummier than me. I say it all the time. But what I'm trying to tell you is that that system is a trap. And it's really. No disrespect, but it's really not a flex. When you go to a building and you be like, yo, the Washington's been here for 40 years and this, man, we gotta get up out that shit. That shit is meant to be temporary because they put you to a limit. If you on section 8 or you on that, you can't make enough money to do what you wanna do. So basically what they do is they control you from competing for the jobs to own shit.

[Lola Brooke]

They do control you. That's why my mom was. My mom was like heavy on, like, don't. This is. This is for you to move forward, to get you to be. That's it. You at se right now.

[Joe Crack]

But she's smart. If you need Section eight, God bless. I just. Once they see an income, everything you name, nobody been on welfare more than me.

[Lola Brooke]

When they see an income and it.

[Joe Crack]

Go up, up before you in the say, I'm sorry, it's over. You know why your mom say have a man in the house? Cause she couldn't. Because when they help you, they say they don't want you to have a man. Yeah, all right. I'm telling you the truth.

[Lola Brooke]

Wait, my mom. My moms ain't wanna. My moms ain't want no nigga in the crib. Not cause of Section eight.

[Joe Crack]

Don't tell her what. This is not about her mom. I'm talking about.

[Lola Brooke]

That's how you break my moms up, man. When my moms watch this side by side, I Apologize.

[Joe Crack]

Come on, your mom know what I'm talking about. They. They demasculate the home and the projects. They don't want the woman to have a man in the project. They don't want a man and a woman in the projects. They don't want it. Man, I'm trying to tell you the truth. It's a. Give it. Like if you got a husband, they don't want you in the projects. If you're doing better, if you got a raise in salary, they don't want you in the projects. So they want to keep going at level you shouldn't be in the project. Think about, I'm just the one breaking. I'm breaking it.

[Lola Brooke]

The first one breaking through.

[Joe Crack]

How you got hooked up with Team.

[Lola Brooke]

80, it was like 2016. It's this artist, he from Brownsville, his name Bleezy D O D. He asked me to do a feature. I came through, met everybody just to do a feature, just working. And they caught it like it to me, and I caught it like it to them. I just was around watching them do music videos. I never done a music video before. Going out, working records at the clubs, get mansions to do content and stuff like that. And I fell in love with it. Like, I always was in love with music, but to be around people that I felt like was in love with the same thing, it made me want to lock in with them.

[Joe Crack]

You know, how you feel about coming from some. Such a strong lineage in New York City of female rappers who really started the. You know, I mean, we have rappers from all over, but, you know, that Kim, that foxy, they both from Brooklyn. I'm sure you get compared to them all. I'm gonna tell you, when I saw her shit was lit, Savannah and the little daughter was doing the graga, I said, oh, yeah, that shit hit it cheap.

[Lola Brooke]

Hello, Savannah.

[Joe Crack]

Yeah, that was fire.

[Lola Brooke]

Shout out to Savannah.

[Joe Crack]

Listen, let me tell you, I try to rig it. One time I reached out to Kim Kardashian. I asked her did she want to say yesterday's price, not today. I try to rig the Bible. I try to rig it and be like, once some Kardashians or one of them Savannahs or one of them come through, your shit, next day is over. Your man Khaled did that. They don't want us to win. Justin Bieber went on that jet. The next. That's what happened, Sav. The next day, Justin Bieber went on that jet. He said, they don't want us on a plane. They don't want us to eat caviar and shit. That shit was over. You get one of them to do that, you wake up like, holy shit, this shit outta here. But coming back from Foxy Kim, did they inspire you? Do you know you have a lot of weight on your shoulders? Tapping into that soyu.

[Lola Brooke]

At first it felt like pressure. But I'm from Brooklyn. Like it's in me, not on me.

[Joe Crack]

Walking to the bodegas. Motherfucking pressure.

[Lola Brooke]

Like coming from where I come from, it's only pressure if you allow it to be. Like, if this is something that you love to do, it shouldn't be a hard thing to get done. But I am happy that. Huh?

[Joe Crack]

Which one of the two inspired you more? Foxy?

[Lola Brooke]

I would say both. I would say both because I felt like Foxy has. Her tone is just so. It's so powerful. And Kim presence is powerful. And they always compare me to both. So I be like, I guess I'm like half and half. Like I'm lemonade and Ice T. I'm a half and half.

[Joe Crack]

Said they both love Alola Palmer, they both love Joe Crack. I remember one time I must did an interview where I might have said something that might have got Foxy Brown mad at me. I don't even know what I say. I talk so much shit, you can forget about it. She hit me in the DM and said, yo crack. I knew what yo crack, man. I was like, I know I fucked up. I didn't. Don't. I will never do it again, sis. I was on her first record, her first LL Cool J's. I shot you. And she came up in there with the papa this. I was like, yo, we never see somebody with that type of swag. And she was with Mar Deep on there. Keith Murray was the hottest at the time, by the way. Very underrated. Keith Murray. Keith Murray, his flows, all that shit. He had it at one time, right? She was with us, you know, ll, who was like the king at that time, the dawn. And she came on that shit and we knew the minute we saw her on that set doing all that shit, we was like, oh no, she bout to bop bop. Yeah, yeah, it's a great place. Oh no, no, no, no. Yeah, it's really, you know, Brooklyn too big for me. Yeah, Brooklyn too big. It's like you could drive in Brooklyn for hours, like, right? You ever notice the shit don't run out? Like you go, yo, Brooklyn don't run out. I'm not disrespecting Brooklyn, it is big as fuck. If you're not from Brooklyn. You are very lost now. I remember I used to go with my mans to buy weed out there. They had one particular spot that was popping somewhere. I'd be like, I could never find that. So you got East New York's all the way on the other side.

[Lola Brooke]

It's nothing bigger than traveling from Brooklyn to the Bronx.

[Joe Crack]

I get that the Bronx is much smaller than Brooklyn.

[Lola Brooke]

Like that alone is bigger than Brooklyn.

[Joe Crack]

Yo, that Brooklyn shit, man. I don't be knowing where I'm at, you know, all the time. When the plane landing at jfk, I look out the window at Brooklyn, I be like, yo, I really need to know. Cause in the Bronx, Harlem, all that, I know every single block. I haven't discovered every single block in this shit. Just keep going. And then it turned. And then one minute you in flat books, the next way you in Flatbush. The next way you this. Then you got Jews right next to the black dudes across the street. This shit different from the whole world. Brooklyn really is. Spike Lee be calling that shit like another planet, like another. It is. It is you on this side of the street. The next side. The next gangbangers is the Hasidic Jews. They out there.

[Lola Brooke]

It is deep. It truly is, Joe.

[Joe Crack]

It is, right? It is that shit big as fuck, man. And so coming from Brooklyn, what part of Brooklyn exactly?

[Lola Brooke]

You from Bed Stuy.

[Joe Crack]

Oh, you from Bed Stuy. That's deep.

[Lola Brooke]

That's deep. No, soon as you get in Brooklyn.

[Joe Crack]

Oh, you mean like, where Biggie's from? I used to go see Biggie there. That's right there. That's right there. That's right over the.

[Lola Brooke]

It's right when you go to Junior's Cheesecake. Yeah, it's like 10, 15 minutes.

[Joe Crack]

Yeah, I've been out. I used to go see Biggie out there, man. Best size. Good. But where you go? Where you. Where you go? You go Crown Heights, then you go up. Give me another name in there.

[Lola Brooke]

Brownsville.

[Joe Crack]

No, Cody island is the end of.

[Lola Brooke]

Brownsville East New York.

[Joe Crack]

Yo, I was in Coney island the other day, and that. That diner. We went to JFK too early, and I was like, yo, let's go to the diner. We went to that Coney island diner over there. I know Coney island is.

[Lola Brooke]

Coney island is Coney Island. Like, they got their own. Like, Coney island is Coney Island.

[Joe Crack]

That's not.

[Lola Brooke]

Like, when I used to go to Coney Island, I thought. I didn't even know I was still in Brooklyn growing up. Like, I thought I Was somewhere else.

[Joe Crack]

Yo, Coney island is far, right? Shout out five mics and everybody out there. I used to go with Stephon Marbury. If you don't know who that is, he was King of New York at one time. He the best. I don't know.

[Lola Brooke]

He went to Lincoln, right?

[Joe Crack]

Yeah. He know. He was one of the greatest. He knows. Shit.

[Lola Brooke]

I know. It's my boat.

[Joe Crack]

I go with Stephon Marbury because, you know, we have OGs. I don't. I don't give a fuck what you think. She from a whole different generation. Brooklyn, man. Brooklyn. Know.

[Lola Brooke]

But I study. I study it.

[Joe Crack]

I mean, yeah, but I used to go see Steph out there and he had like 10 family members in one project building. Them niggas was on every floor. Let's see. Ms. May. Let's see. This district, like they had the whole building, bro. Sebastian Telfair. That's why I got mad when he tried to play against us. The black guy. We fed that boy four chicken wing French fries many a time out there in Coney island, man. That shit. That's. I tell people all the time. That's my. If I go dead broke, I'm good with four chicken with French fries, hot sauces, some cabbage. Argue with you. You know about mambo sauce, lady? Huh?

[Lola Brooke]

You know about mambo sauce?

[Joe Crack]

Mambo sauce?

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah. You don't know about that?

[Joe Crack]

No. What's that?

[Lola Brooke]

You gotta come to the sky and get momo sauce on your french fries. Ketchup and momo sauce.

[Joe Crack]

So what is it like? It sound like mayonnaise and ketchup.

[Lola Brooke]

No, no, no, no. I don't rock with mayonnaise. Me and mayonnaise, we don't get along.

[Joe Crack]

Come cow. You ever been to come Cal? Don't play with me, man. What does it sound like?

[Lola Brooke]

It's a Chinese restaurant.

[Joe Crack]

That's it. Cum cow. Famous Chinese rat.

[Lola Brooke]

You eat it.

[Joe Crack]

I never heard that shit before. I don't know what. I think. Bought over the dump. Don't ever play. Have you been famous? I need to eat it. But I've been there.

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah, it's a good Chinese spot, Like Sozo Slice.

[Joe Crack]

But it's like a Chinese spot.

[Lola Brooke]

Pod Greens.

[Joe Crack]

A different part of Brooklyn. That's killer. Ben and all them over there on that side. Hey. Playing trivia. Brooklyn trivia. I'm lost.

[Lola Brooke]

He really is, though.

[Joe Crack]

Listen. Demographic too. I am lost in Brooklyn. It is very.

[Lola Brooke]

It don't sound like it. Be lost.

[Joe Crack]

Pause that shit deep. That shit won't stop. Wow. He just. You go. Listen. You Go from the fucking. What you call that shit? You go from Barclays. That's that Main street, what up Barkley Avenue at the back, you go from the Barclays. That's one street about an hour Long Island. You bought a Long island on that, right? You passed four white castles on that.

[Lola Brooke]

Yo, four white castles on that shit.

[Joe Crack]

What a hell of a landmarks you know about. Oh, man, four white castles. You go to the Barclays. You take that one street down at the backs there. Four white castles. Four white castles. That's how I know we getting to the end. By the time you hit the fourth white Castle. I went to these projects. They had a. I can't think they had a fucking. A basketball game. The championship in these projects in Brooklyn. Chris Gotti sent me in there. Thank God we had the yard. This shit was like. Yo, it was like the Coliseum. You gotta park in the middle of the project. You gotta walk in the. They ain't no touching the surface, the soil and then leaving. Chris, you gotta tell me what them projects was. And they were playing the chip. They had hookah, they were selling hookah. What's the shit they call the fucking.

[Lola Brooke]

Who's that?

[Joe Crack]

Gersh. Nutcrackers. Nutcrackers. Who's that? Gersh. Gersh. They had the girls from Starlet selling hookahs and now this shit out of control. They got a popcorn standing there. But it really felt like, how we getting out this bitch if it just pop off?

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah, you was in East New York.

[Joe Crack]

That was East New York. So when you start from Fort Greene, going over there, it's deep.

[Lola Brooke]

That's. That's. Yeah, that's a drop.

[Joe Crack]

That's what I'm trying to say.

[Lola Brooke]

That's a drop.

[Joe Crack]

They jam me up. You know me.

[Lola Brooke]

They jam me up.

[Joe Crack]

I taught my wife. I never do the same shit twice. So when I go to my house every night, I go to the right, to the left, go a little further, come down.

[Lola Brooke]

No, I never done how you left.

[Joe Crack]

I did that in the projects. I come out through the basement one day to go to school. I come out through the front. I go out through the ramp building. I switch my shit up every day. You ain't timing me like that. It don't go like that, right? So in there, n gonna have to get to shooting. Cause there ain't no normal way to get out of them gir projects, I'm telling you. Are you jammed up? The. The parking lot is in the middle of the project. They close that up, good luck. You gotta do what you gotta do to get the out them projects. That's a fact of bundle.

[Lola Brooke]

Oh man.

[Joe Crack]

Today's show brought to you by our.

[Lola Brooke]

Presenting sponsor, Hard Rock bet.

[Joe Crack]

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[Lola Brooke]

Bets got new promos daily.

[Joe Crack]

Whenever you're listening, just open the app, check it out any day of the week, download the Hard Rock Bet app and make your first deposit payable and bonus bets. Not a cash offer offered by the Seminole Tribe of Florida in Florida Offered by the Seminole Hard Rock Digital ll and all other states must be 21 and over and physically present in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee or Virginia to play. Terms and conditions apply. Concerned about gambling in Florida, call 1-88-APPROVED in Indiana. If someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-9 with it gambling problem, call 1-800-GGLE that's in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee and Virginia. This month, iHeartRadio is celebrating the stars of the 2026 Winter Games. Michigan natives Madison Chalk and Evan Bates are the undisputed leaders of American ice dance. As reigning world champions, they arrive in Milano, Cortina with a reputation for storytelling and seamless chemistry that captivates judges and fans alike. After after years of climbing the ranks, the duo is poised to cap their illustrious careers with the ultimate prize. They take the ice with one goal bringing Olympic gold home for more Winter Games. Gold Search olympics on the iHeartRadio app. Welcome to the A Building. I'm Hans Charles Armenalek Lumumba. It's 1969. Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. Have both been assassinated, and black America was at a breaking point. Rioting and protest broke out on an unprecedented scale in Atlanta, Georgia. At Martin's alma mater, Morehouse College, the students had their own protest it featured two prominent figures in black history, Martin Luther King Senior, and a young student, Samuel L. Jackson. To be in what we really thought was a revolution, I mean, people were dying. 1968, the murder of Dr. King, which traumatized everyone. The FBI had a role in the murder of a Black Panther leader in Chicago. This story is about protest. It echoes in today's world far more than it should, and it will blow your mind. Listen to the a building on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Bowen Yang. And I'm Matt Rogers. During this season of the Two Guys Five Rings podcast, in the lead up to the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games, we've been joined by some of our friends. Hi, Bowen. Hi, Matt. Hey, Elmo. Hey, Matt. Hey, Bowen. Hi, Cookie. Hi. Now the Winter Olympic Games are underway and we are in Italy to give you experiences from our hearts to your ears. Listen to Two Guys Five Rings on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. This is Ryder Strong and I have a new podcast called the Red Weather.

[Lola Brooke]

It was many and many a year ago in a kingdom by the sea.

[Joe Crack]

In 1995, my neighbor Anna Trainor disappeared from a commune. It was hard to wrap your head around. It was nature and trees and praying and drugs. So, no, I am not your guru. And back then, I lied to myself, parents, I lied to police. I lied to everybody. There were years, Ryder, where I could.

[Lola Brooke]

Not say your name.

[Joe Crack]

I've decided to go back to my hometown in Northern California, interview my friends, family, talk to police, journalists, whomever I can to try to find out what actually happened. Isn't it a little bit weird that they obsess over hippies in the woods and not the obvious boyfriend? They have had this case for 30 years. I'll teach you sons of come around here in my wife. Boom, boom. This is the red weather. Listen to the red weather on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Segregation in the day, integration at night.

[Lola Brooke]

When segregation was the law, one mysterious black club owner had his own rules.

[Joe Crack]

We didn't worry about what went on outside. It was like stepping in another world.

[Lola Brooke]

Inside Charlie's place, black and white people danced together. But not everyone was happy about it. You saw the kkk.

[Joe Crack]

Yeah. They were dressed up in their uniform. The KKK set out to raid Charlie, take him away from here. Charlie was an example of power. They had to crush him.

[Lola Brooke]

From Atlas Obscura Rococo punch and visit Myrtle beach comes Charlie's Place, a story that was nearly lost to time until now. Listen to Charlie's place on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Joe Crack]

Man. I saw you in Paris. Remember, we did Paris together?

[Lola Brooke]

The Jordan.

[Joe Crack]

The Jordan joint. I seen you out there in Paris. I was proud of you.

[Lola Brooke]

Thank you.

[Joe Crack]

You know, and you know what's crazy? We don't get enough time to tell you and everybody else, whether you young, you the og, you know, in this game. Yeah, it's a competitive game, but we happy for everybody, and everybody's just. We got, like, an alma mater. Rest in peace. Fat man. Scoop us up like we. We took a beating, you know, we used to. You know, I hung out with him. Yo, Kiss. What's the matter, man? Bouncing around because it's a family tree. His brother sitting in my face. You think I can't. That's all I could think about. This is my brother, Fat Man Scoop. I hung out with him. We ate breakfast, right? We had a show in. In. In. In Europe. We ate breakfast together. That guy was so happy. He had a gun collection, right? He kept bragging to Me, yo, the AR12 comes with a. I'm like, what, yo? No, legal. Legal. But he was such a positive dude my whole life, but he was talking to me about guns. Last time I was with him, he was like, yo, I can't get back. I can't wait to get back. I'm gonna go buy this new shit with a scope on it. This. I'm like, yo, fat man school like you buying guns at a mile a minute. But he loved it, right? You know, what a beautiful soul, bro. Clap, you nigga. Huh? He was clap song. Well, you know, that's what I say in this show. Jada wants to kill me. I said, yo, listen, if you have a son. If you have a son that love guns, and you live in New York, where it's two years no matter what. I don't give a fuck what kind of money you got. Lil Wayne sat two years for the gun. I don't care how much money you got here, Johnny Cochran. Nobody could get you out if your son love guns. Take them to Atlanta, take them to Connecticut, Take them to Pennsylvania. Take them somewhere. Let them buy the guns. They're going to kill them. You making it. You saying the solution there. If your son is Gundelero, take him somewhere. Where's the wild, wild west you agree with? No, what I'm saying is kids that love guns they get caught with three guns before they blink in New York City and they doing real time.

[Lola Brooke]

I mean, this might sound crazy, right? I had a fetish for them, but I don't know, something clicked in me that it wasn't cool. It's like the kids gonna get it. You know what I'm saying? Like I'm seeing eye to eye with them. So like.

[Joe Crack]

No, I'm just talking about jail.

[Lola Brooke]

No, I'm saying though, when you raise your kids, right, after a while they get it, they get it. It'll click. It'll be so random too. You're just. A lot of things clicked for me. Like growing up in Brooklyn, I was around the wrong crowd. But sometimes I go home and I'd be like, yo, that shit was so whack. Like, why, why did I. That was, that was pointless. It was corny because I knew at home my moms made it safe. It was, I felt safe there. So it was like, why I'm going outside doing all this extra shit when I got a hard working moms that make sure the home feel like home.

[Joe Crack]

So the kids can't take that for.

[Lola Brooke]

Granted in a clip.

[Joe Crack]

Send your son crazy. Send your kids to the army, to the gun state and let it. Let them get all the guns they want is his solution. Okay, listen America, I don't know, Listen America, hear my logic. My logic is I got a lot of friends that their kids like guns. You in America, in certain states have the right to bear arms before your kid is a 3 time felon by the time of 19 because he loves guns, man, you went to jail for the hammer. Before you go do that, move to a state where it's legal and let him do it the right way. Otherwise I know what I'm talking about, guys. Play if you want. And you'll be going to see your son upstate in no time. That should fix me.

[Lola Brooke]

I think it's just pray, just pray, just pray.

[Joe Crack]

Prayer helps. Pray helps you, you, you into prayer and God. Yeah, I pray big time.

[Lola Brooke]

I pray, I pray last night. I always pray though.

[Joe Crack]

I pray every.

[Lola Brooke]

I pray everywhere.

[Joe Crack]

Let me tell you, I'm surprised. I ain't praying here yet. Sell my prayers on a plane cause you know I'm scared to fly. I see myself while I'm praying in a white suit talking to millions of. God, please, the dog next to me doesn't want to die right now. God, please give these pilots the knowledge. Oh yo, if they are, nah, I'm certified pussy. If they taped my prayers in my mind on the plane. Or they like, oh, this guy's pussy. He can never act tough in his life. This guy. Like, I. I prayed too hard. The record with Bryson Tiller. Okay, Sav Young. Yo, did that do what you wanted it to do or. No, no, that record was a super smash. Did the record label throw the proper bag behind that?

[Lola Brooke]

It went plat.

[Joe Crack]

That's my shit. Platinum. Oh, man, that's cool.

[Lola Brooke]

I wish with gold don't play with it went platinum, but I got a. Yeah, I got a platinum.

[Joe Crack]

After this, it might go platinum.

[Lola Brooke]

It's gonna go plat. It's gonna go plat.

[Joe Crack]

After this. It's gonna platinum. See how much we bring it back. Not only was the record a smash, but I don't know if, you know, we discovered Bryson Tiller, and I happen to know the man just don't work with anybody.

[Lola Brooke]

No, he don't.

[Joe Crack]

He don't care. He don't care about your bag. He don't care who you are. That's a fact. And when that man jumped on the track with you, to me being a hip hop historian, it was just super validation. Cause he don't fuck with nobody, no matter. He don't even post a picture on ig, so that shit is so fire. The record is fire. And then he rock with you. You know that. Get the other. You know, you might catch a Tyler, the creator, next time. Somebody who don't really rock with people is like, oh, she's somebody. We need to take serious. Working hard, working hard, working. So I'm glad you felt. Cause I got some records. I did that. I thought, you know, the reason why I truly went independent was I dropped the record with Young Jeezy. Yeah. What was it? Ha ha. Slow down, son. You killing him. To me, that was a lean back. Like, I thought that something crazy to that beat, you rocked to that. Ha ha. Let me tell you something. We shot the video in Harlem. We did the movie. Jeezy. I was like this shit outta here. Like the phone calls I was getting. What? Fake phone calls from the industry. You back? Yo, it's a lean back. It's them. I was hyped. And the record label, I know for a fact they didn't push that shit. And that's when I said, you know what? You guys ain't doing this to me no more. I'm going independent, putting my own bag up. I'm not coming over here begging somebody to push my shit or whatever the case may be. That song changed my life because that's one song to this day, if I'm sitting in the club with you and they play it, it bothers me when I hear it. I'm like, this shit was supposed to be outta here. This shit was a missile. This shit, you see the Savannah. When that song came out the next day, LeBron was doing the little dance to the shit too. Like, I was like, oh, no, this we got one. And they didn't push it. And they was acting like, nah, got you. We do it. You know, that's why that forced me to go independent. But you're correct, no matter what you do, if you put out a hit, they want the second. Lean Back. I put out Lean Back. I think the next song I put out was make it Rain. The shit went full platinum and N was still like, this ain't Lean Back, yo. They was dead ass. Oh, no, you got to do it again. Then again, then again, then again, then again, and then again. And that's why when I look at certain artists that put it out the park consistently, that's when I be like, man. Cause you know, one hit is a miracle. One hit is a miracle. I always say they talk about one hit wonders. I always say, yo, motherfucker, lived this dream. One hit with my man. Gold over my plaques, gold to my watch.

[Lola Brooke]

So did that James, Man.

[Joe Crack]

I seen him on the red carpet, I seen him take pictures with everybody he ever loved. I seen him live a life. So when somebody hit it out the park one time, it's a dream come true. But the consistently, you know, you hit it. You know, in our era, it's in Nelly, it's a 50 cent, as Ja Rule is. These guys kept coming and coming and coming with hits and hits and hits. And you have to respect them when you in the business of making hits, because what. When do you know you got a hit? Do you know when you got a hit?

[Lola Brooke]

Well, now I do. You can feel it. People treat you different.

[Joe Crack]

No, but I mean, in the studio, you create a song, you that.

[Lola Brooke]

I don't know. Music for me is a lifestyle. I'm making music because it's making me feel good. I do music because it speaks for me like I do music cause it's therapeutic. I didn't. I didn't start doing music for a bag, but I caught a bag. So I'm gonna continue to do it for that as well. But nah, I don't be in the studio like, oh, I gotta make a hit. I'll be in the studio like, oh, I gotta get this off. Because if I don't Be going crazy.

[Joe Crack]

I like that. You like ever songs, right? You knew you what? What songs you knew, Jada. You had a hit. Here's die fellowship. Thank you, Lola. Thank you. God blesseth the savior. This guy here, he's a sniper. He be killing me. Every show when I go home, I watch the replay. I'm like, yo, this sniping me. I'm on the couch. I don't even know. He killing me like that. What song you had that you knew is a hit before it came out? Meaning in studio, you recorded why?

[Lola Brooke]

Mm.

[Joe Crack]

Why was so incredible, brother?

[Lola Brooke]

That was a different type of hit, man.

[Joe Crack]

But it was perfect.

[Lola Brooke]

It was different.

[Joe Crack]

That was God talking like, you know what I'm saying? It was so different. It was necessary. To this day, it's necessary. Anthony Hamilton. What made you think of him for the hook? Shout out to my man. Rest in peace, Ice Pick. We just thought once we got it, once we got this song, shout out to Havoc too, for doing the beat. But once we got it, they know that we already knew. We knew we wanted to get somebody. We were big fans. We are big fans of Anthony Hamilton. So it was just the beat was perfect for him. And once we told him the concept and he heard the verses. I had the verses on before the hook. So once he heard it, he had the hook and did Usher fast. He made the hook. Yeah.

[Lola Brooke]

So he was like, why? Oh.

[Joe Crack]

Keith Sweat came up here. Keith Sweat came up here and said, what's that shit called? Southern. There's a name for that kind of music. Southern. Whole genre I never heard. Yeah, he can't.

[Lola Brooke]

He.

[Joe Crack]

He made that. We might have invented. Invented that, right? Southern something.

[Lola Brooke]

It's Southern soul.

[Joe Crack]

Southern soul. He said, it ain't R B. It ain't this. It's got his own name, huh? Listen, when I. When, you know, I'm in the house, my phone ring. It's like four in the morning. I got the house phone. I'm laying in the back. Yo, Joe, come to the head factory. I'm like, who's this? How you got my house? And he was like, reserve, Gotti, come in here. Factors four in the morning. I got something for you. I only met him one time before that. We both booked the same studio and we talk to like 7 in the morning. No work got done. We were just telling stories. And I realized, I said, yo, this snake is just like me. Like, he got the stories like that Irv Gotti, he got the stories. So we going back to back stories. He must have liked 3 pun dies right. Rest in peace. Ja Rule comes to the funeral. I never even met Ja Rule before that. He came to the funeral, and I was like, it's a good man. But anyway, like, a month after Pun dies, he calls me out of nowhere, and you want to talk about pressure? They were like, you know, Pun was so much better than me. They was like, oh, this nigga threw like, Pun is the king. Joe is a bum. Now Joe is over for him. He's like. I mean, literally in my face, they were saying this shit, right? So when I went in, they just pressed Play and the Hit Factory. Like, I ain't gonna lie to you. I don't give a fuck what you think. I never spent money like that on the studio. Like, my studios was always underground, small studio. I Never spent the 5,000 a night. Hit Factory, like, I wouldn't do that. That's one thing I wouldn't spend on. They had different speakers. That shit came on through niggas. Like, what's love? I knew immediately. I said, oh, shit, this shit out of here. Like, this is shit. It's gone. And so what's crazy? After Irv died, I had asked my wife, because she was dead with me. And I asked her. I said, yo, what? I never asked her because, you know, I'm always caring about what I think. I said, what did you think? That night when we drove home, she said, I knew our life had changed forever. When she heard Once Love One time, she was like. She said, I always loved Derv Gotti. Cause of that. She was like, I knew it. Driving back to the Bronx, she was like, oh, no, this shit. This shit over. It's about to be a new day. But you know, when, you know you got that hit.

[Lola Brooke]

See, back then, it was so different. Like, the substance was so raw. Now it's like, there's no such thing as, you know, what's the hit. It'd be like, the random stuff being a hit now. So it's hard. It's like we in a weird space with music.

[Joe Crack]

Yeah, you are. But if you keep it consistent, nothing.

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah.

[Joe Crack]

Nothing changes. You know, I love what you said without you knowing. You answered that question. So beautiful, where you was like, yo, it ain't about a hit. I gotta get this off. That's really. That's Aretha Franklin. That's all the greats that we could call. They just. Anthony Hamilton. He just sunk from the soul, this and that. And then people related to it.

[Lola Brooke]

Right, right.

[Joe Crack]

You know what I mean? So that's really where music is at. You Feel like you talking your shit. You, you. And people could relate. That's powerful right there. That never changes.

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah, hits come from great energy. It's a room full of energy. A hit is guaranteed gonna be made for sure.

[Joe Crack]

You know, it's so funny. I went to a show one time, and it was just crowded. Who was it? I think Gumbo threw some shit in Jersey. And here I'm going up the stairs, and there's a bunch of big guys and there's a girl flying in the air past me going down the stairs. That's how I knew how little you was. It was so crowded. There y' all was, carrying her out the motherfucker. I'm like, yo, this shit great. I'm looking up saying, oh, shit, that little Lola Brooks.

[Lola Brooke]

It be so much people, I be needing help.

[Joe Crack]

They carry you out of that shit. That's when it comes in handy. They can just lift you up and slide you over.

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah, like, take me 20.

[Joe Crack]

What's your process, like in the studio? What you need? What's your. What's essentials for?

[Lola Brooke]

All right, so, boom. I need some H2O, I need some water Facts, I need honey and tea Facts, I ain't gonna front. Need the tequila, you know what I'm saying? You know, tequila. I need the GS, you know what I'm saying? I need hookah. A good engineer. I don't gotta keep tapping him on his shoulder, not doing that get it right. And good. Good vibes, of course. Some. Some grubs, you know.

[Joe Crack]

You know what's crazy is we was just talking off the camera like you said it'd be some good shit. Fee was telling me that Tupac one time, there's a video where he telling the engineer, yo, my job is to record. I leave you mix that shit. I don't know what to do with that. That's you. You get that shit. Pac even stay there for the mix. He lay his verses and stuff, and he owed. Make sure it's good. That was ill, dude. That was. I gotta hear it. I gotta hear this shit, man. That boy Scott Storch sent me Back. Lean Back. Like I got a demo. I'm demoitis. I know a hit. I'm a little bit. And I noticed you're not the first artist that more artists come here saying they didn't know what was a hit. I always knew what was a hit. So when I left Lean Back, I knew that shit was number one. He sent back the mix and had, like, a cowbell on that shit going, ping. I was like, yo, my man, who the fuck told you to throw a bell on that bitch? Take that shit crack. We could just take it out. You get into the same. I'm like, fuck outta here. I'm like, I'm definitely one of those, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. We hear it, the shit, you know, your man Kendrick Lamar, they said that when he did, they not like us. They didn't even mix that shit. He said he was like, yo, get that shit out now. 30 minutes later, he was like, yo, I want that shit out. Like he. They didn't even professionally mix. They not like us. It was just like, yo, do a random little two track, it's out. You know. And so you know me, I'm into mixes. I fucked up one time and I had Jay Z on this record we had on Family Ties projects. Jay Z spit the verse and we looking for the mixer of the year. All this bullshit cool. And Dre, Jesus, Joshua gotta get back from parties. This, this that they was playing. And the man they called back about three, four days later was like, yo, you can't drop that verse now. Cause he was like getting at, like, certain people at the time. They was like, yo, can't put that out. This. I was like, nigga, I told you to get that shit. The front master flex in 20 minutes. Now we sitting on a Jay Z verse we can never use in our life. You know, sometimes you gotta go, you gotta go, you gotta run and go.

[Lola Brooke]

That's how I recorded my last project. I did. I bet. Like, I have a scratch off and I just. I just go. So whatever I say, I'm looking at the engineer like, keep that shit. Cause you might not get that moment back.

[Joe Crack]

We just fucking heard that about Tupac. He used to say the same shit. He be like, yo, I ain't erasing nothing. He go over there, rock.

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah, you be talking no types of shit put in the intro.

[Joe Crack]

That's crazy. Not us. They not even me. I probably would be like that, but they force me. These guys want perfection. These guys, these cooling Drake. I'm probably the only old school rapper that they make do it 100 times till the verse is picture perfect. Like they. They abused me in that studio. Nah, not like that, Joe. This. To this day, they still like, coach me. Like, yo, Joe, like, you know. Cause me, I. You know, if I had a dream come true, I would go to Nebraska, some shit and make my own album. And it'd be some shit about God, some about flowers, some about killing, some about they want Fat Joe the gangster at all times. They be like, that gangster shit.

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah, that's crazy.

[Joe Crack]

Nah, Joe, the niggas want to hear you spit. And I be like, every time I try to be a nice guy on the record, they don't allow us. The song. Payne, who used mj, she was in excited about that.

[Lola Brooke]

By the way, I love Mary. I was excited. I was excited.

[Joe Crack]

She said she love you. Like, by the way, behind the scenes.

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah, I love her so much.

[Joe Crack]

She was like, yo, I cleared this. She. I'm like, all right, man. Yeah, Lola Brooks, I like her. This, that. What made you use that sample and the title, Pain.

[Lola Brooke]

When you think of Mary J, pain is the first. The first word that come to my mind. Like, I done see my mom's get through her day listening to Mary J. You know what I'm saying? I didn't see my mom stressed out. She put on Mary Jane. She could clean a whole house. That's what she was in my household. My mom's what I knew Mary J was on.

[Joe Crack]

I said, oh, I gotta get up.

[Lola Brooke]

And clean my room or she gonna be wilding on me. So Dame, look, with that record, I feel like she like, no more pain. And I'm like, this the new generation. No more pain. I learned from you, too. Like, my mom's made sure of that. It's no more pain. We standing on that as black women. I'm standing on that. I'm not going through it. Like, I see my moms go through it. I'm straight. So I was excited that she cleared it because it meant something to me who was rocking.

[Joe Crack]

Because there's a generational gap. And I could tell you, my mother and my aunts, they was this one song. I don't know if you know it. You way too young. But they were saying, I will survive. Oh, and I was a kid, I didn't know what they was really singing. And they would sing this shit.

[Lola Brooke]

Wait, how it goes?

[Joe Crack]

I will survive Dinosaur. Oh, no, no, no. Walk out the door. Who's that, huh? Gloria Gaynor. Just turn around now. Cause you not welcome. And I be in front of the building. We live in the fifth floor in the projects. They be singing that shit. And you hear it outside, like, you know, that's that cleaning the house. And Mary, was that for you, right? Who are some artists that were very inspirational to you in your age group? Who was rocking when you was like, yo, I think I want to be a rap. Like, who was like, on fire?

[Lola Brooke]

Lil wayne, Meek Mill, 50 Cent. It was a time where I would have Lil Wayne, I would be on LimeWire and it'd be nothing but Lil Wayne on my iPad, my ipod.

[Joe Crack]

I just met a little. A young brother from New Orleans. What his name? Leezy or something. A rapper. He was up there, Lareezy the man. I was telling him that Lil Wayne taught me how to work fast. So I come from a way back generation where rappers would do an album, I don't give a fuck if it was number one, and they would wait four years to drop. That was it. They would wait, sit home for two years, and then, all right, it's four years, let's drop the next one. We didn't have that work ethic. But Lil Wayne, when he moved to Miami after Katrina and I used to go visit him in the studio every night. He was cutting records. He was cutting records. So he taught me like, yo, Joe, if you want to be relevant in this generation, you got to keep working and working and working. And so he taught me about being in the studio every night. So Lil wayne, Meek Mill, 50 Cent. That's who was ringing off at that. That Meek Mill. That. That shit ain't never gonna stop. That's like. That should be in the museum. What's that shit when they take your shit and they put it in like. No, they got some shit where they put it in the Washington D.C. what is that? Library of Congress, James? We gotta ask the one white guy on set. Yo, James, what is that? Is that the Library of Congress? That rhyme like this. And now I'm like this.

[Lola Brooke]

It was the hunger for me. With Meek, it was the hunger. He made me feel like. You shouldn't be shy to speak about your truth. Whatever you going through your reality, you could put it in your music, no matter if it's embarrassing or not. Like, if you cry today, Tell him you cried today, Wayne. I learned punchlines. I listened to Canon back to back, figuring out what he meant by his lyrics. And 50. It was just so New York.

[Joe Crack]

Yeah, Wayne is different, right? So Wayne, his flow path. Cause he from the south and the southern rappers use different flows. But then he started rapping over New York beats. But he was hitting them flows. He was still pocket dumbing out. Like we. I was just like, oh, shit, we didn't know people could do that. I remember one, one record, I don't know the name. Every time I bring it up, everybody act like they don' know what I'm talking about. But it was. He rapped to a Jay Z record. And let me tell you Something. Jay Z bodied that to begin with. And that man went up in there so much. You got. And that man, Lil Wayne was doing all this backstage. He was doing the jamericoi on that, remember, jamiroquad video. He was going in the treadmill backwards, like this. Lil Wayne was doing to that. It was like. AI. Like, we had never heard nobody flow. And Jay Z bodied that. And then he went up in there and was like. And that's when I knew. I said, oh, we got. We got new leader of the new school. This guy, he on another level. Another level. Lil Wayne, one of the best guys you'll ever meet, you know, on earth. So where you want to go from here, Lola? You had some success. You got platinum gold plaques. What do you want to do at the end of the day when you want to look at your career 10 years from now, 15 years from now, what's your vision of success?

[Lola Brooke]

Being on the movie screens, having my own show. That's what I want.

[Joe Crack]

Shout out. Teyana Taylor. She hit me four times today. You know what I'm saying? Word. Yeah, yeah. You know, T, she got a sneaker coming out, so she wanted to, you know, crack. You know what I'm saying? You know, I'm a snake. We so proud. Listen, Teyana, we are so fucking proud of you, man. And you wanna know what's crazy?

[Lola Brooke]

She makes New York City look so good.

[Joe Crack]

I'm into talking shit about people or whatever the case may be, but I'm falling for the. Teyana won the award. Don't she look different now to you? Like, from one day to the other? So now I'm looking at her outfits and I'm like, yeah, she's. She queen. She a big girl. I don't know the glow up. She always been bad. She always been fly. But since she won the award, she.

[Lola Brooke]

Got a glow, right?

[Joe Crack]

She looking like fucking Angela Bassett.

[Lola Brooke]

She was ready, right?

[Joe Crack]

She looking like some other shit right now. She ain't just Teyana Taylor, who sit like that on the couch with us and bug out. I don't know. I'm falling for it. I don't know. I'm feeling like, wow.

[Lola Brooke]

She was ready for her moment. You could tell that she. She patiently wait for her. Waited for her moment, and when it came, she was ready. A lot of people not ready for their moment.

[Joe Crack]

No. No, a lot of people ain't.

[Lola Brooke]

And that's the most important thing about this whole thing. You gotta be ready for when it comes. Cause you don't know when it's gonna come.

[Joe Crack]

That's a super fact, you know? Good man, you could quote is a guy named Fat Joe. His quote is, you gotta stay in the game. You never know.

[Lola Brooke]

That's what he said.

[Joe Crack]

Yo, I'm telling. Yo, listen, you gotta stay in the game. You never know. And so what I mean by that is, you got a guy. I don't know if it's true or is a lie, but what I hear from rumors, the guy. What's his name? Chlamillionaire. Chamillionaire, he had that big hit, but he went off and did some, like, some shit in Silicon Valley. You don't know. You think, Dr. Dre, this is some shit. I always say there's one of them stories, you say, joe, you repeat this shit. But Dr. Dre discovered the evil N.W.A. that's ice cube, Eazy, E, all of them. He's done his own albums, Chronic, which is we consider one of the greatest, if not the greatest, album ever. He discovered Snoop Dogg, then went and discovered eminem. That discovered 50 Cent. And did you think that the most money he ever made come from headphones? You never fucking know. I never forget when them headphones came out. I'm in first class, and every white guy, white girl on that plane had them shits on. And I'm just like. That's when you know, huh? No, black people had a pit. We had it. But, you know, we always gonna support Dr. Dre. That's not what I'm saying. What I'm saying is, when somebody.

[Lola Brooke]

Listen, my first pair wasn't mine.

[Joe Crack]

We stole them. Shit. Come on, Lola, tell me about it.

[Lola Brooke]

Wait, hold on. Cause he gonna think I was trying to put that bag in his pocket.

[Joe Crack]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. No, look. You stole them shits.

[Lola Brooke]

I'll just say, yeah, I had them here, and it wasn't mine.

[Joe Crack]

It wasn't yours?

[Lola Brooke]

Yeah. Not what. I ran them down.

[Joe Crack]

I was so grateful for them. That was the best headphones I ever heard. At the time.

[Lola Brooke]

It had the red wire. Red wire, too. It wasn't wireless.

[Joe Crack]

You know what broke my heart is before your time, Lola. They had this thing called the ipod. I have, maybe y'.

[Lola Brooke]

All.

[Joe Crack]

About an ipod. What?

[Lola Brooke]

I just told you I was listening to Lil Wayne on my ipod. I just said that. Yo, I didn't know that I was listening to Canon.

[Joe Crack]

Yo, my shit just turned off. Like, hold on, hold on, hold on. I don't want to.

[Lola Brooke]

I got.

[Joe Crack]

Let me ask you a question. Did everybody get like a. Like a. You know when they say it's a virus? When my Ipod turned off. My ipod turned off now I had like 5, 10,000 fucking songs on that shit. My shit just. Did we get a bug? No, my ipod don't work. If somebody has a working iPod in 2026. Cause my shit just turned off.

[Lola Brooke]

I wonder if my. Cause I still got mine. I wonder if it works.

[Joe Crack]

Yo, that broke my heart when the fucking ipod turned off. I'm really in the gym going, I got the same shit popped at pop that shit. Pop. I'm like, I got that shit, that gym playlist to keep going. That shit said no more ipod. You know they do that shit with the phones. They. When they come out with the new phone. I 17 your shit all of a sudden start glitching, not working. You ain't hear, nah, maybe I'm losing certain. You gotta go buy the phone.

[Lola Brooke]

Need a new phone. The updated one.

[Joe Crack]

The new XXL freshman 2023. Glorilla Friday sent you C. How you feel about that class?

[Lola Brooke]

I mean, I was on there. I feel great about it. I ain't think I would ever be on the COVID of xxl.

[Joe Crack]

Wow.

[Lola Brooke]

I dreamed of it. But I'm like, eh, I ain't never gonna get that.

[Joe Crack]

Like if I get a hit, if.

[Lola Brooke]

I pop, I ain't getting that. I would say that to myself, but you know, coming from a place of doubts, it'll do that to you. So when I did get it, I'm like, nah, don't ever. Don't ever self doubt facts.

[Joe Crack]

I was proud. You ever feel like some people might have took off before you and you was like, yo, I was right next to him. Like, I like. I had this artist shout out, Angelica Villa. She got a project coming out and I remember she was doing like them showcases and Doja Cat was. Nobody knew her. She was performing with her and Angelica had more of the power. She had Fat Joe there with her. I'm pushing her, blowing the bag. This is that and that Doja cat went to the fucking moon. And I remember that showcase when nobody knew both of them, you know, at least Angelica walked in with the Joe Crack. We coming through, furred out. She's looking good. And man, that doja cat. So you ever seen that and said, damn, I gotta get there or, you.

[Lola Brooke]

Know, if I would have seen that, I don't think I would have got my hit. I wouldn't. I wouldn't have been blessed with my hit. This is like when you watch somebody else blessings or somebody else pockets, then you ain't focused on yours.

[Joe Crack]

So talk slow to em. Yeah, I Get I got a little man. I tell everybody. I don't give a fuck what they say. You know, they gonna try to spice my shit up. But, you know, I got little man. I came in the game. I'm selling drugs. I got Beamers and Benzes, Cuban changed, iced out. All these other rappers looking at me like they saw an alien and shit. That's how I came in the game. They could fucking lie if they want. And all them niggas became billionaires before Joe Crack. And I'm sitting here still struggling for the next paycheck, and I'm like, shit, these motherfuckers really got to the Billy before me. Like, I was like, you know, so, you know, now they inspire me. Now I'm like, all right, I gotta keep going. I know we could do that because I seen these guys before, they did that. So I've always looked at stuff like inspiration, right? You know, that's how I took it. Let's listen to pain one good time. Feel the pain. Feel the pain. Feel the pain. I went to that mall and got some sneakers. Or else you will get by got.

[Lola Brooke]

To count on me cuz I can.

[Joe Crack]

Guarantee that I'll be fine no more.

[Lola Brooke]

Lift me up, you cry for everything you don't cry for love no more lift me up, you cry I can do whatever I want here. You don't look like crying. I'm buying everything you brought me. Thompson reminds him I was that before him. He chimed in, bing bong, I'm like, guess who I'm a G, they keep it P, I'm like, f you. Oh, you thought that was your mess, huh? Guess who I don't want him or his money. These hoes be crashing for dummies. They either broke or they ugly These men be dusty and musty what you doing with a that got more motion than you, more money than you that's out here I'm hustling you trying another side of but don't got nothing to lose why ain't giving nothing? He got something to prove. I've got too much money to be with you I got plenty options there's a hundred of you so you know how I do, you know how I move crying but you hope that I do.

[Joe Crack]

That's that, that baseline, huh? Try to play me like a outcast.

[Lola Brooke]

Are outlast I'mma make you drink your tears in the shot glass I'mma make you face your fears going outside trying to do your big one on me. You cry for love but you begging for attention the bundles on my back. I put some shames to your inches? Instead of trying to keep it peace? You should have knew your limits? Like I wouldn't have you crying in.

[Joe Crack]

The New York, mini.

[Lola Brooke]

You cry for everything. You don't cry for love.

[Joe Crack]

Baseline. That Baseline.

[Lola Brooke]

Thank you.

[Joe Crack]

That shit going somewhere else with it, man.

[Lola Brooke]

Thank you.

[Joe Crack]

What's the name of the project? The new joint.

[Lola Brooke]

I bet.

[Joe Crack]

I bet.

[Lola Brooke]

He's like, I bet. Say, look.

[Joe Crack]

No doubt. It's fire. It's that New York shit. Yo, this ain't that. That ain't this. It's cracking. Kiss. God damn it. Make some noise for Lola Brooke, y'. All. It.