Episode 324 | How To Make It In America ft. Bryan Greenberg & Victor Rasuk

Summary

Podcast Summary: New Rory & MAL – Episode 324 | How To Make It In America ft. Bryan Greenberg & Victor Rasuk

Introduction and Episode Overview

In Episode 324 of "New Rory & MAL," hosts Rory Farrell and Jamil "Mal" Clay delve into an engaging discussion with special guests Bryan Greenberg and Victor Rasuk. The episode, titled "How To Make It In America," explores the creation, impact, and legacy of the HBO series "How to Make It in America," featuring insights from the show's prominent actors.

Reunion and Impact of "How to Make It in America"

The episode kicks off with a heartfelt reunion as Mal expresses his admiration for Bryan and Victor, highlighting the profound cultural impact of "How to Make It in America."

Mal [01:48]: "Today you saw some emotion and some happiness out of me that you probably..."

Rory echoes this sentiment, emphasizing the show's role in representing New York City's streetwear and hustle culture.

Rory [03:03]: "I think what you guys did laid the blueprint for what I think New York City is today..."

Casting and On-Set Chemistry with Bryan Greenberg and Victor Rasuk

Bryan Greenberg and Victor Rasuk share their casting experiences, revealing how their genuine chemistry was pivotal in bringing authenticity to their roles.

Victor Rasuk [05:56]: "That's how I got my foot in with how to make it in America."

Mal acknowledges the seamless connection between Bryan and Victor, attributing it to their shared backgrounds and mutual understanding of the show's ethos.

Mal [05:56]: "The chemistry right away was like, these two guys have to know each other..."

Comparison to Other Shows (Entourage, Girls)

The hosts and guests draw comparisons between "How to Make It in America" and other contemporary shows like "Entourage." They discuss the unique narrative style of their HBO series, which contrasts with the aspirational tone of "Entourage."

Kid Cudi [24:30]: "Entourage was about, like, very aspirational... These guys were trying to, like, put twelve hundred dollars together..."

Challenges Leading to the Show's Cancellation

A significant portion of the conversation centers on the factors contributing to the show's cancellation. Bryan and Victor speculate that the niche audience and high piracy rates via platforms like BitTorrent played crucial roles.

Victor Rasuk [49:23]: "I've ripped everything on BitTorrent... That's the reason why we got canceled."

They also mention HBO's strategic shift towards other shows like "Girls," suggesting that market dynamics and network decisions influenced the discontinuation of their series.

Rory [25:37]: "The producers were like, we're working on the show called Girls next season..."

Anecdotes from Filming "How to Make It in America"

Bryan and Victor reminisce about memorable on-set moments, including spontaneous interactions and the challenges of shooting on location without permits.

Victor Rasuk [41:49]: "We had no permits, just shooting with one camera... Probably why we got canceled."

They recount specific scenes, such as selling leather jackets and the dynamics between characters Ben and Cam, highlighting the raw and authentic portrayal of their experiences.

Mal [22:09]: "One of my favorite scenes ever in how to make it is when y'all are on the corner downtown selling the leather jackets."

Influence of the Show on Streetwear and Culture

The discussion extends to the show's influence on streetwear brands like Kith. Mal credits "How to Make It in America" with inspiring modern streetwear aesthetics and fostering a deeper connection between fashion and urban culture.

Mal [57:30]: "How to make it in America and Crisp inspired Kith... Ronnie always says, you're telling our story."

Evolution into Podcasting: "How to Pod in America"

Transitioning from their acting careers, Bryan and Victor introduce their new venture, "How to Pod in America." They explain how their podcast serves as a platform to relive their "How to Make It in America" experiences while exploring broader themes of ambition, hustle, and success across various fields.

Victor Rasuk [64:31]: "But the pod idea came around... There's so much more meat on the bone than just the 16 episodes we shot."

Interactions with Notable Actors: Meryl Streep and Johnny Knoxville

The guests share anecdotes about working with esteemed actors like Meryl Streep and Johnny Knoxville. Victor describes his experiences on "Lords of Dogtown," highlighting the professionalism and camaraderie on set.

Victor Rasuk [87:00]: "He wanted to start something character-based... His vibe was just, like, he was already on a different frequency."

They reflect on the challenges and learnings from these collaborations, emphasizing the importance of adaptability and genuine connections in the acting industry.

Reflections on the Show's Legacy and Future Possibilities

The conversation turns introspective as Bryan and Victor contemplate the enduring legacy of "How to Make It in America." They express a desire for potential revivals or reboots, inspired by the show's lasting cultural relevance and dedicated fanbase.

Victor Rasuk [70:25]: "We're gonna get that... Somebody's gonna hear us next campaign."

However, they acknowledge the hurdles in reviving a show from a decade ago, including rights issues and shifting entertainment landscapes.

Merchandise and Streetwear Connections

Mal and the guests discuss the intersection of their show with the streetwear industry, particularly the unexpected rise of Kith. They explore how the show's depiction of denim and urban fashion resonated with real-life brands, fostering a symbiotic relationship between on-screen aesthetics and off-screen fashion trends.

Kid Cudi [57:54]: "I'm a big fan of Kith and what Ronnie's done with the brand..."

Closing Remarks and Future Plans

As the episode concludes, Bryan and Victor express their gratitude towards the hosts and listeners. They share plans for future podcast episodes, potential collaborations, and their ongoing commitment to celebrating the hustle and creativity that "How to Make It in America" embodied.

Victor Rasuk [68:14]: "That's a big part of it... We're just sitting at the studio, chop it up..."

Mal commends their efforts, underscoring the unique value their podcast brings by bridging nostalgic storytelling with contemporary ambitions.

Mal [103:27]: "This has been a nostalgic... It's so special and unique. I think it's amazing."

Notable Quotes:

• Mal [01:48]: "Today you saw some emotion and some happiness out of me that you probably..."
• Rory [03:03]: "I think what you guys did laid the blueprint for what I think New York City is today..."
• Victor Rasuk [05:56]: "That's how I got my foot in with how to make it in America."
• Kid Cudi [24:30]: "Entourage was about, like, very aspirational... These guys were trying to, like, put twelve hundred dollars together..."
• Victor Rasuk [49:23]: "I've ripped everything on BitTorrent... That's the reason why we got canceled."
• Mal [57:30]: "How to make it in America and Crisp inspired Kith... Ronnie always says, you're telling our story."
• Victor Rasuk [64:31]: "But the pod idea came around... There's so much more meat on the bone than just the 16 episodes we shot."

Conclusion

Episode 324 of "New Rory & MAL" offers an intimate glimpse into the journey of Bryan Greenberg and Victor Rasuk, shedding light on the creation and impact of "How to Make It in America." Through candid conversations and nostalgic reflections, the episode celebrates the show's cultural significance, its influence on streetwear, and the enduring bonds formed on set. As Bryan and Victor transition into podcasting, they carry forward the spirit of their beloved series, inspiring new conversations about ambition, creativity, and the relentless pursuit of success in America.

Transcript

[Rory]

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[Mall]

Getting your diploma or finding the right partner.

[Rory]

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[Victor Rasuk]

The cable guy. Fortunately, US Cellular's home Internet is so simple to install, you can do it yourself. And it's just $39.99 per month when bundled with a wireless plan with a three year price lock guarantee.

[Brian Greenberg]

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[Rory]

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[Mall]

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[Victor Rasuk]

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[Kid Cudi]

No worry.

[Mall]

And ma, Rory, you know I don't get excited.

[Rory]

That is true.

[Mall]

I've watched some of the greatest artists and entertainers perform right next to you. Didn't move, didn't clap, didn't do anything. You tease me about it like Jesus Christ. Do you have any emotions?

[Rory]

I stood next to you, Serena Williams and Kevin Durant while we watched Drake perform his greatest hits. Yes, you didn't flinch at all. I thought you were a sociopath.

[Mall]

Right. Today you saw some emotion and some happiness out of me that you probably.

[Rory]

You look like a child. I've never seen it.

[Mall]

It's like Christmas morning got here today, elevator doors open and two guys who I've probably been huge fans of, they have no idea how much they've impacted my life, my friends lives. They were sitting in the lounge area talking to you and Julian and I'm just like, what the fuck? Today we are joined by the legendary duo who are a part of what I believe is easily the most impactful show HBO has ever has ever aired.

[Rory]

You're going for it.

[Victor Rasuk]

Wow.

[Brian Greenberg]

Wow.

[Mall]

No, me for me. I'm just going for me. I don't fuck everybody else today.

[Rory]

Yeah, I'm just talking about Tony Soprano.

[Mall]

Fuck Tony Soprano. I'm talking about not even the Barksdale Soprano.

[Kid Cudi]

Fuck all of high praise this show. High praise.

[Mall]

How to make it in America. Represented with me and my friends in my circle were dealing with growing up in New York City finally felt seen. We felt like our story was being told. So today we are joined by Brian Greenberg and Victor Rasuk.

[Victor Rasuk]

Wow.

[Mall]

Also known as Ben Epstein.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

And Cam Calderon. Listen, man.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. Thanks for having us, man. Thanks for having us, man.

[Mall]

I look forward to this day. When we found out that you guys wanted to be on, I immediately, I was like, this is. I wore the crisp hat today.

[Kid Cudi]

I don't know, yo, you know what's so crazy, though?

[Mall]

I love the crisp hat. Like, I made. This is this show to me.

[Brian Greenberg]

He laid his outfit out last night, yo.

[Mall]

100% the first day of school.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yo.

[Mall]

This show to me represented.

[Rory]

Listen to man on the moon all the way here.

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh, God, I need a dollar.

[Mall]

Domingo D. Canine's a cannabis.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Mall]

Like all of this to me, you know, Looking forward back 2010 when how to make it in America first aired. You know, fast forward 14 years later. I think what you guys did laid the blueprint for what I think New York City is today as far as definitely what you guys did for streetwear. Just for guys that's growing up in the city that wanted to hustle and find their way and, you know, the stories and the life and everything in between, I think that you guys were way ahead of the curve. I know hbo, we'll get into it. I know HBO fucked it up. Too many. They tried to put their hands in it. Too much up the chefs, you know, order and all of that shit. We'll get into that. But what remains is the fact that, you know, Ben and Cam, your characters on how to make it in America represented so much in the culture. And I'm just. I'm honored for you guys to be here.

[Kid Cudi]

Thank you, man. We really appreciate that.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's correct.

[Mall]

I gave you a power.

[Victor Rasuk]

I came.

[Mall]

Nah, man, I appreciate it.

[Kid Cudi]

It's crazy, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

For real.

[Rory]

From a distance.

[Kid Cudi]

That's amazing.

[Rory]

To your praise of the intro. Remember when we were reading Fonte's comparison between rappers and TV shows? He wrote an article about.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh.

[Rory]

He put how to Make It America as Biggie.

[Kid Cudi]

Oh, what I'll take.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Something that was about to be a legend but was cut way too short. I'm paraphrasing exactly what he was saying, but he was suggesting it never got to see its potential, but it was one of the greatest things that we had seen.

[Mall]

Wow.

[Kid Cudi]

The show Biggie is also like. He's definitely. He could be number one.

[Mall]

Oh, absolutely. He is number one on some people's list, you know, rightfully so. But I don't know where to start. But I think I wanna start at the beginning of how to make it in America before you guys actually started shooting the show. Because I know that you guys actually met at this screen test, and the chemistry right away was like, these two guys have to know each other, and if they don't, this is like the universe aligning itself in a way where we're gonna have something special. Shout out to the producers. Ian Edelman, Mark Wahlberg, Steve Levinson. Steve Levinstein. I think that what they tried to capture, they did, but I think that HBO at the time, with Entourage and all of those type of shows, they were trying to find the next Entourage instead of saying, no, this is totally different. It has its own space.

[Kid Cudi]

You get it.

[Mall]

Let this be what it is.

[Victor Rasuk]

You get it.

[Mall]

So speak to how to make it in America changed your life. And what was life like before? How to make it.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's funny that I'm listening to you talk about how much of a trendsetter the show, and I think that if more people, like our fans that were watching the show kind of knew more of the business side, we wouldn't have gotten approached all these years about why it got canceled. You know what I mean? And I don't even think we would even start our own podcast. We almost made it, so I appreciate that. I wish more fans would just explain like, that. Be like, oh, then you already know. We ain't gotta explain it exactly, but how it changed our lives. So, you know, like, we was talking about earlier about, you know, I'm from Lower east side, straight New Yorker, and we. I started off doing the. I started, thankfully, where I grew up in Les. I grew up on Asian Avenue. D. Jacob Reese projects. Shout out to Jacob Reese projects. But the proximity of where I was at was next to nyu, you know what I'm saying? So I. In the summers when I was 13, 12, 13, there was nothing to do. I was in Thompson Square Park. I was like, where the hoes at with girls at?

[Kid Cudi]

Like, not in Thompson Square Park.

[Victor Rasuk]

Well, apparently, that's what I'm saying.

[Rory]

Where the fentanyl?

[Victor Rasuk]

And I was like, they ain't here. Yeah. No, but what was there, though, is that because of the proximity of nyu, a lot of NYU students, like, film students, were shooting their thesis film there. So, like, me being curious, y'all know, like, you know, you walking down the street, you talk 14, no girls. So you like, I'm gonna go to the pool, right? But then when I was walking to the pool, I saw a bunch of NYU students shooting, like, I don't know, like a bird on a tree. And I was like, yo, what's good? And, like, these White kids. And I'm like, yo, what's up? Can I be in your movie? And they looked at me and they were like, yeah, actually, yeah. Cause they can't pay actors. They're like, yeah. So we exchanged numbers before cell phones, before all that, right? You know, you take the piece of paper from the number, you know, like, oh, okay, I got your number. So then. And then the way how I got in. And that's why I'm so thankful about being raised in Les, because the level of creativity that was there around that time, you know, I was there during, like, the Dinkins, you know, when Mayor Dinkins was there. And, like, before, like, Giuliani cleaned it up, Thompson Square park was kind of, like, still sketchy, but there was a lot of artists. You know what I'm saying? I was like Andy Warhol, the Basquiats. Like, I grew up during that time. Anyway, long story short, nyu, I was doing a lot of short films. One of the film students did a feature that I starred in called Raising Victor Vargas. And from there, like, New York was already talking about, like, who's this kid Victor Asuk? And then later on, you know, that's when Ian Edelman, you know, he had me in mind because he saw my movie and he was like, yo, I wrote this thing, how to make it in America. So he already had me in mind. Just like he had Brian in mind because he saw Brian is something earlier. But that is kind of how I got my foot in with how to make it in America.

[Mall]

Okay.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

Okay.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

It's funny, I was listening to Neil Brennan interview Michael Che, who also grew up in the projects. And Les, I'm not sure which one it is.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, yeah.

[Rory]

But he was explaining how crazy that was, like, leaving the Courtyard projects to walk into what the world Les really is. It was like night and day. But, you know, he went to LaGuardia High School because he was around artists in the Lower east side instead of just staying right in those projects.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

And those projects are very projecty.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

And I've been there.

[Rory]

Les Ones took me there.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yo, as fans of how to make it, when we got. When we got cast and it was, you know, we were banning camp, we came. They flew us out, we came to New York, Right. We got put up. And I was like, you know, I still have fam in the Jacob Reese project. So I was like, brian, I know, you know, we just met, but, like, you should come see my fam and come to the projects. Yeah. First of all, I love this dude for so many reasons, but simple fact that he didn't even hesitate. He was like, yeah, let's go, yo. He can't. First of all, everything the projects is like mass short. You know what I'm saying? It's not made for tall people. So, you know, what are you, six one? Six, six.

[Kid Cudi]

But I'll take the six one.

[Victor Rasuk]

All right, whatever. So he comes with the projects, right? And it's actually one of the nicer buildings in the projects. Cause sometimes, like, if you go deep in the projects, like, the more in the middle you go, the worse it is. But if you in the peripheral, I don't know if it's because logistically where it's at, but it's actually nicer. Like Nycha, right?

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Like, they clean it better, I guess. I don't know why they don't go.

[Mall]

All the way in the building.

[Victor Rasuk]

They don't give up. You find that the little ones and the ones that are in the peripheral are actually cleaner. Anyway, my aunt happened to live in that one of the cleaner ones, and he came and Brian, you know, we had, you know, arroat, huela, chileta. You know what I'm saying? We had all those. My people, my Dominican people's food. And Brian ate. We chilled. It was great. And I remember at the end, we were still chilling. You know, I'm laughing with my family because, you know, I got my little cousins and everything. You know, it's like 50 people in one apartment. And I remember, I just look at Brian. He's mad quiet, and you could just tell, he's like, yeah, it's time to go, bro. Like, the claustrophobia started hitting hard, you know what I'm saying?

[Mall]

Going down. It's time to get out of here.

[Victor Rasuk]

But it's not even that. It was like, just the claustrophobic because, you know, it's small. I mean, it's like, yeah, it's in the block. You know what I'm saying?

[Mall]

That's crazy when you think about, yo, we grew up here. So many of us lived here. It was one shower.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

Ten people in an apartment. How do we make it happen? Everybody has a schedule. Everybody has to be at school. Everybody has to be at work.

[Victor Rasuk]

Got the bathroom. Yo, what's up? What's. Yo, I gotta go.

[Mall]

It never ran out of hot water.

[Rory]

The projects hottest apartments on earth.

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay, that's what I was gonna say. You said. Yeah, you said. That's exactly what I was gonna say. You'd be like, yo, turn off the heater, yo. Screaming out tonight.

[Mall]

Yo, turn off the heater no matter.

[Rory]

How wide One pipe and melt your skin.

[Mall]

Where are you from, Brian?

[Kid Cudi]

So I'm from the Midwest, from Omaha, Nebraska.

[Mall]

Omaha.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. So I was born there. Lived there for 12 years, and then I moved to St. Louis, Missouri.

[Mall]

Okay.

[Kid Cudi]

So that was, like, there from seventh through 12th grade. And then I moved here when I was 18.

[Mall]

Okay.

[Kid Cudi]

I went to NYU, but my dad's from Queens, and, like, my grand. Like, his whole family's from here. So I come here all the time. So I was always being pulled to New York. Just felt like being called almost, you know, I was like, this. The music I was listening, all the hip hop, all the actors I respected were coming out of New York. The theater scene.

[Mall]

What rap do they listen to in Omaha?

[Kid Cudi]

In Omaha? Well, it was like 311. Remember 311? They were like the big band Back, back. It was like rap rock, which doesn't really hold up now, but in the 90s, it was like, give it 10 years.

[Victor Rasuk]

Give it 10 years. It'll. It'll come.

[Kid Cudi]

Rage against the machine holds up hell yeah, 311 holds up but rage holds they would like to claim. Rage holds Rage holds We got Crawford now. Omaha, yo, but Crawford. Pound for pound, half a belly, but. But, yeah, I just always never felt like I was gonna stay in the Midwest, you know, I'm happy that I was from there, but New York was always calling me when I would visit as a kid. It's like, oh, man, this is. This is it. So I just felt like it was in my bones. And so when I came to nyu, I was like, I've. I'm here, you know, And I've kind of been here ever since, pretty much.

[Mall]

So the. The. How to make it in America. The casting call goes out. What did y'all think about the script or the opportunity? Did you think that this was gonna be something big or were you just looking for work? Was it just like, I just wanna do something. I don't have any expectations. I'm just gonna try this shit and just see what happens?

[Kid Cudi]

Well, I was on a. I had some momentum going at that time in my career. I was coming off of. I was just coming off of an ABC show that I was the lead of called October Road, which we did two seasons of. It was a great show. Before that, I did this movie prime, with Meryl Streep and Uma Thurman. And that was very, like, New York centric movie. And it's a romantic comedy. It's actually. I'm very proud of that film.

[Mall]

It's a.

[Kid Cudi]

It's a great film. It's about a younger man who. I played a younger man dating an older woman, Uma Thurman. And it turns out Meryl Streep is her therapist, is also my mother. So there you go, Mom.

[Mall]

Mom hooked you up.

[Victor Rasuk]

Hooked it up.

[Mall]

I have a son, single, but it.

[Kid Cudi]

Was very New York.

[Rory]

Like saying Meryl Streep and how to.

[Kid Cudi]

Drop that, how to drive it, name drop. So. But that was a very New York. Like, that was. You ask about how to make it. Like, I feel like my character in that was similar to Ben Epstein, meaning he was like, a Brooklyn guy, was an artist. Like, I remember my character took Uma to, like, a downtown Brooklyn party, and they're playing Biggie and, you know, Stretch Armstrong spinning. And like, it was this New York. It touched on a couple things that. That how to make it would later on expand upon. So I think maybe Ian the Edelman, the writer, the creator, kind of saw me in his head with that. Yeah, but it did. It wasn't an offer. Like, I read the script. I was like this. I kind of knew Ian because we played ball together, but I didn't even know he was a writer. I was like, oh, this guy's cool. He's a New York dude. He's like. He's just cool. Like, I fucked with him. Yeah, but. And then I was like, is this Ian the same Ian?

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

And then I read. I was like, this is. But he's the kind of dude who. He's so ahead of it. Like, whatever he does, like, you know, it's cool. Yeah, he's one of those guys. Like, if he's saying it's cool, then he's verifying it, right? So I read it, and I'm like, okay. I don't really get it, to be honest, because it's not like anything I've ever read before. It didn't have your normal plot, your normal. It just was a vibe. Right. And there wasn't a lot of those things happening at the time. It's like, oh, let's just. I call it a tone show. There wasn't a lot of that at the time. Now, since how to make it, there's been other iterations of that type of show, but nothing like that at the time. So I was like, I don't know, but I like Ian. And I. I did a show called Unscripted on HBO before. So I've always. I love hbo. And at the time, HBO was like, the best. I'm like, all right, they're doing it.

[Mall]

And it's the lead HBO own Sundays.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. I mean, their slogan was, it's not tv, It's HBO now. This is before Netflix, and everybody came up, but they kind of killing it then. So I was. I was into it. And then. So I went in, and then I. They were like, okay, we're. We're thinking about Victor for the other role, and we did a chemistry read, which you were talking about, and we just. I mean, we haven't stopped hanging out since that chemistry read before. Now our kids hang out together. It's. It's crazy.

[Mall]

That's dope.

[Brian Greenberg]

That's awesome.

[Victor Rasuk]

For me, I was like, yeah. I walked in, I was like, straight off, for bx.

[Rory]

You'Re hired.

[Victor Rasuk]

They were like, offer.

[Mall]

City.

[Victor Rasuk]

I was like, yo, y'all want somebody.

[Kid Cudi]

Put the razor blade out of his tongue?

[Victor Rasuk]

I wish it was that easy. I wish it was that easy. No, it was. You know, after raising Victor Vargas, I was trying to, like, do that thing where I was like, I. You know, I'm New York, obviously, so, like, let me try to do different things. So, like, shortly after Vargas, you know, the movie was getting so much praise that I was not getting offers, but a lot of interest for different types of movies. So, like, it wasn't just straight New York characters, which is what I didn't want to do, because I wanted it to, like.

[Mall]

You didn't want to be boxed in.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, exactly. And early on, too, which I'm glad that I had the right team around me. But the thing is that the offers for something that, like, wasn't pigeonholing me weren't coming in, so I was still working on trying to, like, do things that were out the box. I know. Rory, you were saying you were a fan of Lloyds of Dogtown, so Lloyds of Dogtown was, like, my first major thing after raising Victor Vargas. But again, audition. Like, I wasn't Mr. California. I was playing Tony Alva. Like, it was, like, the complete opposite. So I had to work on my accent. I had to live with the dude. He was teaching me. Yo, that dude is you.

[Rory]

Learn to skateboard.

[Victor Rasuk]

I had to learn, but I was living with him, and he wanted it, right? And I was like, yo, they gave us. Thankfully, they gave us three months to do it. Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is that, like, at that point in my career, it was like I was just trying to do different things outside of New York. And then, like, I had. I don't know, there was Like a gap of between how to make it and Vargas. Maybe like eight years or something like that. So I think I. Like, not established, but at least I had content out there, like Lourdes. And then I was on another show. I was on er, which I played a young doctor coming in. It was like the last season. So I was already sort of like, okay, I'm not just Mr. New York. But when how to make it came, I didn't think. Listen, I didn't think it was a hit, you know, it was like a tone. Like Brian was saying. It was like another script, another pilot, pilot season. I was like, all right, I guess I have to audition for this. But I was like, thank God I could do something that's not a Lord's a Dog Town or er, where I'm like, I could play more of myself because I knew that world. I mean, I knew the world of New York. I didn't know the fashion world, but I knew, like, oh, I could fuck with this. And then when I found out Ian was already interested, it was kind of like for me to lose. Like, I felt like I was already gonna have it, but I was like, at this point, it's for me to lose. You know what I'm saying? So then when we met and then they saw the vibe. Cause, you know, Lev and Ian and Rob Weiss, they were all there when they saw me and him meet. And I think you could tell in the room and you like, oh, yeah, this is gonna work. We felt that soon.

[Kid Cudi]

I rolled up on the fixed gear, you know.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, that's right. I forgot about that.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

I think now that we're thinking about it, I remember thinking, wow, this show could be dope if. Cause I know the world, too. Like, we come from this, you know, I'm living in New York. It's like, we understand this downtown scene. We know these people.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yes.

[Kid Cudi]

I was just familiar with the world. No one's told this story before. I think we'd be good ones to tell this story. But I was like, it's very execution dependent. And my agents were like, I don't know, Brian. I'm like, I think I know. I know this world. I was like, I think it's. I think if we do it right, it's gonna work, you know? So it's a gamble, you know, the only.

[Mall]

The thing that me and my friends, the only thing we could think about at the time. I mean, obviously we know more information now of why we never got a third season of Hot.

[Kid Cudi]

You tell me Man. Cause I don't know.

[Mall]

Well, we thought. We felt like, is this to New York? Like, is this. Because watching every episode, I was like, bro, we just lived this type of shit. Last month, we went through some shit like this. Like, this is crazy that this show is depicting real shit that happens in the city.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

Even, like, the clothes. We're in a life. Going to flight club, you know, going to the. Going to the clubs. Avenue and all this. It was like we was just there.

[Kid Cudi]

Yep.

[Victor Rasuk]

Last week, you freshly watched the show again, bro. Because you name all the stuff.

[Mall]

You know, watching it 10, 12 years ago when it aired, and then watching it now, you pick up so many things.

[Kid Cudi]

Does it hold up?

[Victor Rasuk]

Does it hold up?

[Brian Greenberg]

I just recently rewatched saying how it's still relevant.

[Victor Rasuk]

It holds.

[Rory]

It's time capsule.

[Mall]

Is what time capsule dated to you?

[Victor Rasuk]

No.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. Oh, with the fashion.

[Victor Rasuk]

And I know you keep it.

[Mall]

They're dressing like that now.

[Kid Cudi]

Again, I know that's what we were thinking because, like, you keep it 100, too.

[Victor Rasuk]

So that's. That's dope.

[Mall]

It's insane because, again, that's why I'm asking, like, did y'all know being from New York, obviously being spending time in the city, getting that script, shooting it where you were shooting it. Even going to Japan in season two, right. And shooting that shit with no. No permits, you wasn't even allowed to shoot. Just shooting that shit on one camera.

[Victor Rasuk]

You know, everything, bro. Were you there, Bro, that shit crazy. How the fuck you knew that?

[Mall]

So I'm just looking at it now, and I'm like. I'm like, this was so ahead of the time, but it was so great then. But even now, it makes more sense today.

[Kid Cudi]

Well, maybe because it was so ahead that it works today.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Like, if you did it now, it might come off as a cheesy, like, kith type of show where it's worldwide now, the streetwear.

[Kid Cudi]

Right, Right.

[Rory]

It was so niche at that time, kind of to your point of, if we execute this right, it'll be great. And to me, that's why the show was canceled, because we did it right. You executed it so right. It was just to one community, and it did not spread across to everyone else for someone to get the genius of it.

[Kid Cudi]

And also now we're living in times that are so fractured. Right. Like, we're not living in, like, NBC, abc, cbs, like, three channels. Right. Everybody's got a show for their own taste, right? Yeah. Their own network. Right. So, yeah. I don't know. Like, it was in that it was very niche, you know, and that would work now, because everything is niche.

[Rory]

Well, I think they used you guys as a case study to do Girls. I know those are two totally different fucking shows. But to what mall is saying, like, they went to Greenhouse. Like, it was such a New York show.

[Kid Cudi]

Greenhouse.

[Rory]

But the problems and issues they were going through.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Were so worldwide and relatable that girls worked, but it still had that. Oh, these are. I know this girl.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Rory]

I know these girls in Bushwick. I know these transplants. I know this. But I think they saw what I.

[Kid Cudi]

Think they had to make room for girls, if I'm being frank. Yeah. I think it was.

[Rory]

You guys did good with.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

New York shit. And we're like, let's find.

[Victor Rasuk]

They didn't take that. They took our whole fucking crew. Like, literally, like the camp with the DP of the whole crew that worked out how to make it. They were like, yeah, we're working on the show called Girls next season, and. Oh, wow.

[Mall]

And that's when we.

[Victor Rasuk]

Which is the business. No knock on them. But I'm like, they didn't just take that, but they also took our crew.

[Mall]

You know, Nate was there.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

What would have been so cool in hindsight, if those. It was the same universe.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

If those. Eventually, if they ran.

[Kid Cudi]

And Cam, the girls ran seven.

[Victor Rasuk]

I thought about that, too.

[Mall]

Kidding me.

[Victor Rasuk]

Imagine Cam just smashing all of them. Like, oh, yo, y'all just moved here. Let's go. Let's go to the bx. You ever heard of the bx? Let's go.

[Mall]

One of my favorite scenes ever in how to make it is when y'all are on the corner downtown selling the leather jackets.

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh. In the park when I steal it. When I steal the pleathers and I.

[Mall]

Walk in, and Ben is standing there with the cop. Because the cop is like, let me see the permit.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

And you like, all right, cool. I got it. It's right here. And then you walk to the rack like, you gonna get the permit.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

You snatch the coach and you start running.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

Ben doesn't move. He's drinking his coffee with the cop. The cop is like, you want to call your friend back home?

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

To me, that's such a. Like, you got to let your man know when. Yo, listen, I'm about to book it. I don't know what you doing with this coffee and this cop, but I'm out of here.

[Victor Rasuk]

But I know. I know me and you ran for 5. 0 back in the day. So that was when I read that I was like, oh, yeah, I've done this.

[Mall]

But that's because you have the friend that's not going to run.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's right, yes. Would you have told your man though, too, right now?

[Rory]

I would stand there.

[Kid Cudi]

You'd be. Right now he's taking the coverage.

[Mall]

He's been. He's standing there. I'm the guy that's going to be like, I'm out of member.

[Rory]

Laminated card.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

I don't know. Mall.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yo, that's.

[Rory]

Yeah, I'm waiting for an Uber.

[Mall]

We brought up Michael Che's name. It's funny because I feel like if how to make it was still a thing, Michael Che would be a character.

[Kid Cudi]

He's hilarious.

[Mall]

He would absolutely be in how to Make.

[Victor Rasuk]

Now I'm trying to think of what project he was because I feel like, you know, when you grow up in this particular, you know, project or whatever, there's multiple projects right next to, you know, whatever project you grew up in. And I remember that we always had beef with. This is so stupid. But like, now that hindsight, I'm like, damn, man, I can't believe I was doing stupid shit like this. But we would always have. Yeah. You know how like, so I was Jacob Reese, but we always had beef with Kat and Baruch. There's a project called Baruch?

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

And I think that's where he might be from. I'm not sure. But I wonder if like, fuck, I bumped into him on some beef. Stupid, like, adolescent shit.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Just cause he was with, you know, with a whole nother crew and I was with the Jacob Reese. That's crazy. We might actually bumped it.

[Kid Cudi]

That's funny.

[Victor Rasuk]

Anyway, y'all never met Michael J. Never met him. But like, now I'm thinking about, I could have been having beef with him and I didn't even know who he was.

[Kid Cudi]

Maybe at a Knicks game or something. I don't know.

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh, maybe. Oh, you as an adult. Yeah. Yeah.

[Rory]

Still beefing.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. No.

[Kid Cudi]

I can't wait till you guys roll up on each. On site.

[Brian Greenberg]

I wanted to ask when. When Entourage was coming to an end is kind of when you guys were like, beginning. Yeah. And in hindsight, I know now that the shows have. Have long been over. They're compared constantly.

[Victor Rasuk]

The.

[Brian Greenberg]

The LA version of the New York version of Entourage is How to Make It America. Never got that at the table read or like in the chemistry reading at that time. Did you see the similarity? Were you fans of that show? Did you, like, kind of see it then? Or was this something that Kind of grew over time.

[Kid Cudi]

So I was definitely a fan of that show. I've seen every episode of Entourage. I think it's great. But like I said, I knew this world, and I knew that this was very far from that world. And Entourage was about, like, very. It was like aspirational. Right. Wouldn't it be nice to be a movie star? Wouldn't it be nice to, like, have all your friends come with you and live that life? These guys were trying to, like, put twelve hundred dollars together to, like, you know, pay a pattern makers. Right. Like, this is very not that world, you know? So it was just like two different.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Andra felt like, I mean, again, because of the New Yorker.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Like, Entourage always felt like a fever dream. And it was just like this whole, like, world that was like this. It's a real. But it's not. Yeah, this show. Your show is like the whole cop interaction, running from the cops, and that's. That's real. That's life.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Stuff that could happen.

[Rory]

Hollywood and how to make it. America was very anti.

[Victor Rasuk]

That.

[Rory]

It was a completely different world.

[Kid Cudi]

Look, we were billed that way because obviously it's same producers.

[Rory]

Rob White.

[Kid Cudi]

Rob White, you know, Mark Wahlberg, Steve Levinson.

[Rory]

Money.

[Kid Cudi]

Julian Farino. Yeah, and they. Yeah, they had. They had heat at HBO at the time. So I think it's also easy for, you know, people. They don't want to do a lot of deep diving, you know, they just want a headline. Like, what is it about? Oh, it's a New York contract. Okay, cool. I'll watch that. It's like, you know, you got. You can't like, give them. It's about these two upstarts who start denim.

[Victor Rasuk]

No.

[Kid Cudi]

You know, so I think that was just their way to kind of introduce us to the world. But I think once people started watching it, they realized that we were totally different.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

What was that first table read like with this guy that has a song called Day and Night starting to bubble on the radio just a little bit? Because you guys shot the first season, I'd imagine, in 09, right.

[Victor Rasuk]

08. 08 08.

[Rory]

So was. Did Day and Night even come out yet?

[Kid Cudi]

Day, night was out.

[Victor Rasuk]

It was out.

[Kid Cudi]

Day and night was out.

[Mall]

Cudi was Cudi at the time.

[Kid Cudi]

No, it was not daytime.

[Mall]

He wasn't Cudi. But when he was on the screen, people know, yo, that's Kid Cudi. Like, everybody know.

[Rory]

I feel like if you were kind of in the know, that's what it was. That's Cudi.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. It was for people in the know day.

[Rory]

But now we're thinking, that's a character.

[Brian Greenberg]

Day night came out February 5th, 2008.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. But, like, percolating.

[Victor Rasuk]

When season two came out, that's when, like, the vibe was different. When. I'm sorry, when we were shooting season two.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

He was like. Because we, like, oh, he's qualified star at that point. Yeah, at that point. And in season two, we were like, how y'all locking, you know, me and Brian at least? I was thinking, like, how are the producers locking him down with his crazy schedule to shoot this show, by the way? And he even said, you know, we had him on our podcast. He was saying, like, season one and season two. He, like, studied, like, how to be a better actor, like, in between those seasons so he could come to season two coming. Correct. I mean, that says a lot about just, like, his artistry. You know what I'm saying? But when he came on season two, he was cutting, and we went, there's a video. I think we put it on our podcast. The videos that we don't have. We put it on our assets. Right. Like we were talking about earlier, he put. There was a. There's a video the night of. When the album. His first album dropped.

[Kid Cudi]

Man on the moon.

[Victor Rasuk]

Man on the moon. Yeah. We were down. Going down Times Square in his, like, suv, and we were like, yo. I was shaking him like, yo, your album is out playing right now. We hit Tom Square. It's just crazy. And I was more hyped for him than he was, bro.

[Mall]

Yeah, yeah, it was crazy.

[Kid Cudi]

No, but we told the story, too. I think on the pod, we're like, you know, we went to go see him at, I think, Santos back in the day, and there was nobody on the stage. This is like when you're shooting the pilot. I mean, there's nobody in the. There's like 30 people in the audience.

[Mall]

Yeah, yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

And Scott comes out there, kills it. But he's also, like. You can tell he's a little, like, frustrated. Like, it was a small crowd, and. But he. He said this thing, and I love the confidence that he had. He said, you guys. You guys don't know me now, but I guarantee in a year, you're gonna know who I am.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, but guess who's in the audience.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Guess who was in the audience at.

[Kid Cudi]

The bar in the back with the Yankee faded.

[Victor Rasuk]

Hello.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

So he knew, but, like. Yeah, I mean, it was his stardom, his talent, undeniable. We all knew. It's, like, just a matter of Time he had.

[Mall]

He cracked the code for the most genius job. He sells weed at night.

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh.

[Kid Cudi]

Domingo Dean.

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh, yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

Who thought of canines of cannabis?

[Mall]

Who wrote that into the.

[Kid Cudi]

Ian Edelman.

[Victor Rasuk]

I'm gonna say. Yeah.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

It was.

[Kid Cudi]

All credit goes to Ian.

[Mall]

That is fucking.

[Victor Rasuk]

But wait, I feel like. I feel like he. Because his ears, I mean, still is. I feel like his ears are always to the streets. And so he must.

[Mall]

He knows somebody that. You can't just create that.

[Rory]

But that's how great the show was executed. Because Kid Cudi was exactly who he was in real life at that time. Like, if you knew that kid from the bape store making music, living in East New York, like, he was that scene in a nutshell, like, that was probably one of the best casted roles of all time. If you knew who Cudi was at that time.

[Mall]

Without a doubt.

[Kid Cudi]

And that's all Ian. Ian found him. You know, he found him at like a party or something. I don't even know.

[Victor Rasuk]

HBO was like, who is this dude? HBO was like, who is this guy? But they loved him. I mean, when he performed, they were like. They loved him so much. You know, we said this on our podcast too, that they loved him so much that they created, like, he came in for Cam, and then obviously that. What? You know, they had. Cam. They had the vision of me being playing Cam. But then they loved him so much that Domingo didn't even exist in the original pilot. That they wrote Domingo because they loved his audition.

[Mall]

He was originally supposed to be casting for one of the leads, correct?

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, Cam. That's what I'm saying. He came in for Cambridge, and so they were like, obviously it was gonna go to Vic, but they were like, yo, we felt like he could be.

[Mall]

His own thing, yo.

[Victor Rasuk]

And that never happens in our industry. Like, never. They never create a new role, you know, just based on an official.

[Kid Cudi]

They're like, we gotta. We gotta get him in the world somehow.

[Mall]

And they made crazy and then also, which was dope. The iconic Luis Guzman, bro. Cousin Renee.

[Kid Cudi]

Yes.

[Rory]

Icon.

[Mall]

Culturally known as the iconic Pachanga.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

From Carlito's Way. Him being your cousin, I don't know who thought of that, but that was like, this is what really. How it really goes. My cousin just did a shitload of time in the feds. Whatever. He's home now.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

We need some money.

[Victor Rasuk]

He still can relate to that.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

You know what I mean? Like, that was like, to me, the most genius. And who else but Luis Guzman to play that role?

[Rory]

His career to Me is the example of not being typecasted. When everyone's trying to typecast you.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Yes.

[Rory]

He somehow breaks out of that box every single time. He has his stereotypical role that he smokes every time. But then the next month, you'll see him in something like, how the fuck is he even.

[Kid Cudi]

The thing is.

[Rory]

And why did it work?

[Kid Cudi]

He did no wrong. He can do no wrong. And I remember when we were shooting, we walked down the streets of him, and he would get love from everybody. From different. Every fan was from a different. Like, for sure. It was never the same thing.

[Victor Rasuk]

Brian and I have. You know, we've had the good fortune of working with some household names. Yeah. And be either friends or not friends. But he's the only person that is the most recognized person that I've ever, like, walked alongside on the street.

[Kid Cudi]

All genres.

[Victor Rasuk]

All genres.

[Mall]

Yeah. No matter who. What he does, he's pechanga for the most part.

[Victor Rasuk]

You know, Brian's working Meryl Streep, Clooney. I think he's still more recognized than those.

[Mall]

For sure.

[Victor Rasuk]

Like, it's crazy.

[Rory]

I just did my friend's film story, Ave.

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay.

[Rory]

Aristotle.

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, I saw that. Oh, yeah. It was the indie movie. I think he also produced it, too. That's kind of why he told me to go watch it.

[Rory]

Yeah, yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

I liked it a lot.

[Rory]

Aristotle's super talented.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, yeah. I. He. I don't know if a lot of people don't know the story about how Louis even got involved with the show, but there was a point where they didn't even consider him because they didn't think that he would do the show because he was such a big deal. And so I had, you know, two Les cats. He's from Les. He's from Mazarik Projects, from J.K. reese. And he. We had been friends, and so when they were thinking about, like, a Louie Guzman type, it was like, why don't we just get Louie Guzman?

[Mall]

Yeah, right.

[Victor Rasuk]

Like, oh, shit. Can we get Louie Guzman?

[Kid Cudi]

I was like, business is funny, bro.

[Victor Rasuk]

Like, I'll make the call. Like, I've known him already. You know, he's like my big brother. You know what I'm saying? I'll call him. And so I did. And then, you know, whatever, I told him about it, but he was like, yo, it's not enough for me to do in the pilot. Like, I'm only in, like, one scene. I'm like, yo, Louie, there's only one opportunity. We're going to do a show about our hood you know what I'm saying? Or close to our hood. You know what I'm saying? Vibe. And so he kind of took me out of my word. And he was like, all right, well, then. And I could tell he was a little bit hesitant. So then I told Ian and Rob or whatever, and then they got Mark Wahlberg to seal the deal because him and Mark had done, like, two movies or maybe one movie, they did Boogie Nights, and they were friends, and Mark, of course, was, like, a huge fan of his and whatever. So then all props to Mark, like, he definitely sealed the deal. But can you believe it if he didn't do it? I can't think of anybody else.

[Mall]

I don't know who else would have played that role.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

And not at that level. And would just. Because I feel like a lot of that watching it, it's almost like he's not acting. Like he would really react like that in that situation. That's how he would react in that situation.

[Kid Cudi]

Think about Louis. He plays such a great heavy because he's got that face, you know, he doesn't have to do shit. He just looks at you and you're like, okay, yeah, he's scared, Ben. I was like, not acting either. I was like, oh, you're not sure.

[Rory]

If you should laugh or be terrified.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, but he's such a teddy bear, man. He's a sweetheart. He's a good man. He's all about the people, and he's all about giving and charity, and he's just. He's amazing.

[Mall]

All right, so let's. Let's on HBO for.

[Kid Cudi]

Okay. Okay.

[Victor Rasuk]

I love this.

[Brian Greenberg]

Let's ask one more casting question.

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay, great.

[Brian Greenberg]

Before we did change gears, Pusha T. How did he get into the show?

[Rory]

Yeah. Forgot.

[Kid Cudi]

Push it here.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

Yo, Push was great, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

What was the name of that Caribbean.

[Mall]

What was it? The Caribbean.

[Kid Cudi]

He was in season two.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. We just want to drink.

[Mall]

What was the crew Was the name of the crew that he was a part of?

[Kid Cudi]

Oh, man.

[Mall]

The Caribbean.

[Kid Cudi]

So I gotta be honest. I haven't seen the show in, like, since it aired. And we're re watching the show, and.

[Victor Rasuk]

I'm only on episode three because we just finished it.

[Kid Cudi]

Yo, my memory's so bad. So, like, I don't even know. I don't even. I don't remember. I'm watching you, like, oh, do we get the jeans or not? Honestly, I forgot it all, so I have no idea.

[Rory]

For yourself.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

I hope he makes it, man. I hope this gets a third season.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. I love this Y'all really like that Ben? Dude, bro, that cam dude is. I'm gonna be pissed they don't pick this thing up.

[Mall]

Yeah. And I love. What. Was it the one thing y'all did, too, with the scarf? Leaving the scarf at. What was the thing, man?

[Kid Cudi]

I don't know.

[Victor Rasuk]

Remind me, dog.

[Mall]

I felt like it was a.

[Victor Rasuk]

Tell me what season. First of all. Start off with that.

[Mall]

I think it was one right where y'all would leave the scarf if you hooked up with a girl, and then, like, so if you went back to the girl's house.

[Victor Rasuk]

I don't remember this our show. Yo, you sure this is our show?

[Rory]

Yeah, I think this is your real life.

[Brian Greenberg]

I don't remember that.

[Kid Cudi]

And that's how you knew we would.

[Mall]

Go to the girl's house?

[Brian Greenberg]

Summer, I think.

[Victor Rasuk]

No, I think you didn't see it, but I think we talked about that. At some point. We was like, yo, if we leave the scarf, I. I know not to go in. Yeah, we talked about. We didn't. But you didn't see it.

[Mall]

Okay.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Like, I think there was a quick mention, and it was. And it was with Scott. I think it was with.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Too.

[Mall]

Like, you hook up with a girl, leave this girl.

[Brian Greenberg]

But yeah, again, I don't know the name of Push's crew, but just. He was casted again as a drug dealer, and he.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

Okay. So how did he get canceled? I don't know exactly, but I think Scott Venner, the music supervisor, might have something. Who was a huge part of the show. The music. At the time. He was. He's.

[Mall]

Scott does the music for Ballers.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, he did Ballers Entourage, but he was breaking a lot of, like, musicians.

[Mall]

Oh, yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

I mean, Alo Black.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

Alone, you know? I mean, Alo Black credits How to make it the theme song for launching his career.

[Rory]

And that just speaks to, like, really understanding a show rather than what your resume is, because I. Some interview. Entourage has his own podcast now.

[Kid Cudi]

Oh, yeah.

[Rory]

And they were interviewing him. He was never supposed to score any of that show. The producer just brought it to him for, like, opinion. Like, what do you think about the show? They were just friends.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

He's like, this is great. The music just fucking sucks.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

So he replaced all the songs.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

And they were like, hey, do you want to just keep doing this for the rest of the show? Like, I know it's not your job. And he just ended up doing that shit.

[Kid Cudi]

Yes.

[Mall]

Scott Venner is like. He's secretly one of the guys that has had His DNA and his imprint on a lot of the iconic shows.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, we also got to get Gabe Hilfer. Gabe Hilfer is also one of the music supervisors who doesn't get as much credit, but he also was a big part of it. He's huge. Now. He does, like, a lot of big. I mean, I did. You people. He did that. He does a lot of big shows.

[Victor Rasuk]

But y'all on a side note, just real quick. Cause I know especially. I know I'm always, like, a big fan. So you want to hear the anecdotes. One of the best moments that I had on how to make it. There's a lot of moments, right? We can talk about the clubs, how we was living real life. You know, we've shut down the club. Yo, yo, we rap. We gonna stay. Y'all go. But there's a great moment. It had to do with Aloe Black. So me and Brian, we shot the pilot, right? So we, like. Yo, we don't know if it's a hit, but we felt really good when we shot the pilot. So it was like eight day. We were just in la. I mean, it was just in New York. We flew back to la. So now we gotta do the adr, right? We gotta do all the school. You know, all the. Like, there was a helicopter in one scene. So we gotta, like, redo the voices or whatever, you know? So we in the studio. And they gotta start from the beginning, right? Cause they gotta do in chronological order, like, what we have to record with our voices. So they started with the beginning and the credits. And me and Brian don't know what we watching. We just knew. We just shot. We just know what we shot and what was on the page. But visually, we don't know what we about to watch, right? So, yo, they started. First time we saw Aloe Black. And then we saw all the. I need a dollar. And then you see my name with the earring, and you see his name with it. And then the subway. And we looked at each other. I'll never forget this look. And we were like, oh, yeah, we got one. Like, it was like two dudes acting like kids.

[Mall]

We were like, oh, yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

And like, as actors, yo, it's like. It's crazy when you know you got something dope.

[Mall]

Yeah, it's pretty rare.

[Victor Rasuk]

Never forget that moment, bro. It was like, okay. And then ever since then, it was like.

[Mall]

It was like, well, how to make it? The theme song was so iconic. Obviously, I know Black.

[Kid Cudi]

And the credit sequence.

[Victor Rasuk]

The credit sequence that was just.

[Mall]

I Think that made way for, like, the power.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

Set the tone.

[Mall]

It set the tone for, like, shows. Like, listen, from the gate. It has to hit the music. The way the names, the character. Like, everything has to. How to make it set that.

[Rory]

But even before we shit on hbo, they've always been great at that. From Sopranos opening to Wired. Like, you just knew right away.

[Victor Rasuk]

But you gotta remember for us, like, we didn't. We. We could. We could have been the first. Like, we could have been the first thinker. We were. Like, we don't know. You know what I'm saying?

[Rory]

That's what's crazy about. They want to run it. Are we going to ruin the legacy?

[Victor Rasuk]

Exactly. So we were kind of nervous when we saw we're not gonna be that good. But I was gonna say, too, like, I don't know. Like, even when you record music, don't you feel like sometimes. I don't know if you ever had that moment that we had where you, like, you recorded it, you think it's gonna be dope. But then you hear. You're like, oh, shit. If you have.

[Kid Cudi]

Rory overthinks everything, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

But that's what I'm saying. Like, you had that moment. So, like, it was just crazy. I never. And the simple fact that I could talk about it and visualize it still telling y'all the story, you know what I'm saying? Like, that's what we had. Like, it was crazy. Anyway, we were talking about Ilo Black, but Pusha T. I think it was Scott Venner. And by the way, I don't even know who he was at the time. Cause he didn't really, like.

[Kid Cudi]

You didn't know the clips?

[Victor Rasuk]

I didn't really know, man. Like, I had to be put on by he and everybody. And then he came on and did that whole thing, like, you know, when he rapped, you knew who the clips were. Yeah, I knew the clips were him specifically. I didn't want to.

[Kid Cudi]

I don't think he was, like, super solo at that point.

[Rory]

He was.

[Victor Rasuk]

And then when he broke, he was after the show. Like, then it wasn't because of the show, but I'm just saying, the chronology was, he blew up after the show.

[Rory]

Obviously, 2010 was probably around the time Pusha T became the solo artist.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yes.

[Kid Cudi]

You guys know your music.

[Brian Greenberg]

It was right around the same time.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

That's why I was wondering in 2010, when it became, like, the solo act, when he was doing all the Good Friday and Kanye came in and was like, yeah, one of my first signings that I want to push. Is this guy from the Clips.

[Kid Cudi]

Good music. Yeah, sure.

[Victor Rasuk]

He's from dmv, right?

[Rory]

Yeah, he's from Virginia.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's the first time I ever heard that term. Because I remember talking to him. Offset.

[Mall]

He's from the Bronx, man.

[Kid Cudi]

Oh, what?

[Mall]

He moved to Virginia?

[Kid Cudi]

Really?

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay. Because he told me Virginia. So I would have talked about the.

[Mall]

Bronx, Virginia, at a very young age. But I still say pushers from the Bronx.

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay, well, that's the first time I ever heard the DMV that term. You know, dc, Maryland, and Virginia. So I was like, oh, I don't know what that.

[Rory]

While we're on. Good music.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

What. What was your reaction when Cudi hit the group chat and said, yo, Puff just blew up my car?

[Kid Cudi]

Honestly, I never even got into it with him, man.

[Mall]

Talk to him about.

[Kid Cudi]

I'm close friends with Cut. And we never. I never. I never brought that up. I don't know.

[Rory]

That'd be a weird thing to bring up, too. Like, years later, if I rent something.

[Victor Rasuk]

You said exactly what I was gonna say.

[Rory]

If I leave that alone. If he didn't tell me.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's like, if you're like, yeah, if.

[Kid Cudi]

It comes up, it comes up. I'm not gonna.

[Victor Rasuk]

If you're my man and we talking about some shorty and then that happened. Am I really gonna ask you that? Like, I don't know. Maybe you would, but I wouldn't.

[Mall]

Depends on how close we are.

[Victor Rasuk]

And I think that's why we kind of just touch and go.

[Mall]

Like, I would look at you for a while and just be like, that is a great.

[Victor Rasuk]

And then this shit happened, obviously. What happened with Diddy. Even more reason why I don't even ask.

[Mall]

Don't even wanna touch it.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, I don't even wanna touch it.

[Mall]

Yeah, I feel you.

[Rory]

And it happened so long ago, and it didn't even hit the press. Like, I'm sure that's something he's wanted to move on from.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

For quite some time.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

I can't even speak.

[Rory]

I can relive that shit, y'all.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

I'd leave it alone if you.

[Victor Rasuk]

My man. I'm gonna leave it alone. I'm sorry. Especially if it came up again with this.

[Mall]

You want to talk about it?

[Kid Cudi]

Sure.

[Mall]

I'm waiting, but I'm not. I'm not going to force it.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

I mean, I'll read about it. The Ben holding the coffee in me would have been like, well, did you have auto insurance?

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Rory]

So there's ways around this to get a new car. You should have called me.

[Mall]

All right, so, yo, that's. We end season two, y'all.

[Victor Rasuk]

At least my favorite season.

[Mall]

Y'all at the beautiful rooftop. Everybody has on the crisp jeans and.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, but you going right to the end.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, I wanted to be at the Japan stories.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, let's talk about Japan.

[Mall]

Okay, well, talk about Japan. So y'all shot in Japan? I read that there were no permits.

[Victor Rasuk]

Nope. Nah.

[Mall]

Y'all had, like, maybe one or two cameras.

[Rory]

Yep.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yep. One PA and unlimited budget, which is probably why we got canceled.

[Mall]

Ran the money up in Japan. Going crazy.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, the yes were flying, and it's so much.

[Mall]

It's so much material that y'all never put out from Japan.

[Kid Cudi]

There could be a whole episode.

[Mall]

Y'all only used, like, maybe 90 seconds, two minutes of it.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

So you talking about you.

[Kid Cudi]

That, to me, is the biggest travesty, because we shot so much good stuff out there. So that's on the cutting room floor where we start.

[Victor Rasuk]

Y'all know where to start, bro. You take Cats projects, New York. You take them to Japan. Tokyo. You putting them up in. What's the hotel, man? Hold on. Shut up, Shut up.

[Kid Cudi]

Canceled. Let's just.

[Victor Rasuk]

The Scarlett Johansson Hotel in Lost in Translation. The. What was it?

[Kid Cudi]

The Park Hyatt?

[Victor Rasuk]

You put me at the Park Hyatt in Japan.

[Rory]

We gonna act on a school, you know, jet lag. Get your brain going.

[Victor Rasuk]

We shoot in kamikaze style, right? We got, like, you said, camera, gorilla style.

[Brian Greenberg]

No, kamikaze.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

You know, by the way, I come from that world in a lot of ways. Cause I came from the New York Indy, so I was like, oh, I know what we doing. This is the kind of shit we gonna do. We go. I know how to do this, right?

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

So. So we were shooting a lot, right? And then I would, like, sometimes be like, yo, we done yet? I'll tell you, yo, we done. I'm no we. And you ain't got it.

[Kid Cudi]

You guys got into it.

[Victor Rasuk]

We got into it. Cause, like, yo, we good club. Yeah.

[Mall]

You know what I'm saying?

[Victor Rasuk]

We were going to.

[Kid Cudi]

There's this hip hop club named Harlem we wanted to go to.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yo, I want to go to the hip hop club. I want to eat Scarlett Johansson sushi. You know what I'm saying? I was trying to do it up. Scarlett Johansson sushi. Yeah. I was trying to do the Bill Murray thing. You know what I mean? So we was at Park Hyatt, and then we were like, on day three, I'M like, yo, we got all the footage. I'm like, I'm not showing up at the 9 o'clock Avenue Diva call time. That. It's not really a call time. It's just. It's just heads being like, yo, what time we all meet up? It's not a real call time, right? So the third day, they're like, yo, it's Vic. I got my massage. I'm like, up in the. I'm up at the park high, getting the massage. I met, you know, some shorties. I'm like, yo, we. I'm good. I'm gonna meet you. Tell me where y'all at and I'll be there.

[Mall]

Yeah, yeah.

[Rory]

Storyline itself.

[Victor Rasuk]

I'm like, tell me where y'all and I'll be there. Because we got enough footage. I was acting a. Yeah, I'm sorry. I'm gonna tell you right now.

[Mall]

But why didn't they use it, though? All of the footage I have, why was none of that used?

[Kid Cudi]

I don't know, man. It was a great 90 seconds of television, though.

[Mall]

Oh, no, that was Great.

[Victor Rasuk]

My favorite 90 seconds.

[Mall]

That was amazing.

[Kid Cudi]

It was the best thing I've ever shot.

[Rory]

Two cameras. Maybe it just didn't match the rest of the season.

[Kid Cudi]

I don't know, man. But it was a vibe, you know, we caught a flavor of it and. Yeah, and that could have been a whole season.

[Victor Rasuk]

Let me tell you another part of the story. I don't know if y'all gonna keep this or not, but, yo, so me and Brian, right? We like, all right, we done with Tokyo. Ian flies back, right? Me and Brian, like, we already here. Let's go to South Korea and, like, let's just go to Seoul.

[Kid Cudi]

Cause my boy is a big DJ out there. So he had it all hooked up.

[Victor Rasuk]

And by the way, but besides that, like, we already knew it was a party time. So we're like, we already here. It's already paid for. Let's go. So we get there, right? Yo, tell me why I didn't realize 15 year olds can get drunk and, like, get stupid and fall on the street and be like. And I'm like, oh, this is this kind of town.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, it's basically like New Orleans. Bourbon Street.

[Victor Rasuk]

But Bourbon street, like, like on a steroid.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, it was. Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

I remember I didn't sleep. I remember I was like, yo, I'm so tired. I like the third day. But we ate, yo. We played. We ate. Well, yo, we were like, yo, hbo, we love y'all, man. I was thinking we coming Back season three. This. This season three money gonna pay for the season two money.

[Mall]

There's like too many massages.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. I'm like, this is gonna pay for all that, man.

[Kid Cudi]

Yo, but the crazy breakfast trying to be good, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

He was trying to get the continental breakfast. I was already eating sushi at 11am like, yo, bring that shit upstairs. You know what I'm saying? So can I keep this robe? I for sure blew that budget. It was crazy. But when we were in South Korea, the best part of that, there was a lot of good trip. There was a lot of good parts of that trip. But I remember we were on Korean airways flying the 747. We was on the bottom part, right? First class. Yo. There was nobody in the first class from Seoul to la. And me and Brian just looking at each other like, this is the best that's ever.

[Kid Cudi]

It's all downhill from here.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's all downhill from here. Like, we enjoyed this 12 hour flight. The girl was so bored at the flight attendant. Like, we would have a conversation and she'd be on her phone like. Cause there's nobody to serve except me and him. We was already like, let me get the third cookie. At this point, she got nothing to do. It was crazy. It was crazy. Anyway, I just had to throw that story out there.

[Mall]

Like, season two. Season two, you definitely could tell that the budget was bigger.

[Kid Cudi]

Yep.

[Mall]

The way it was shot.

[Kid Cudi]

We had a yacht.

[Mall]

Yeah. Everything was. It was beautiful.

[Victor Rasuk]

Tell the Jay Z story. After you asked the question, I got.

[Mall]

Yeah, like, but season two, as far as. Because I read that hbo, the people at HBO wanted the characters to progress.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

They wanted the writing to progress with the characters faster or something like that that I read. And I was just like, what? I know in season two, you wanted to just.

[Kid Cudi]

Did you feel like it did, or do you feel like we kept. Did you like season one better or no?

[Mall]

Well, season one, the first one, is always gonna be special because it sets the tone. But I like season two because it was like, okay, y'all got the T shirts. I made y'all first little bag.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

Now y'all starting to rub shoulders with people that's really in it. They like y'all energy. They like y'all personality. Y'all entering this world, but y'all are still yourselves. Ben kind of gets caught, you know, Pussy blindsides him a little bit.

[Victor Rasuk]

It happens.

[Mall]

Yeah. Cam. You start to see y'all roles kind of switched in season two. You become more like, yo, responsible. Responsible.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

Where Ben is like, cuts the Plot a little bit. Yeah. So that, to me, was the interesting part. Cause it's like. It's so. It's like, okay, the dynamics have shifted a little bit once they got into this new world of. Okay, now we're really mixing and mingling with these people.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

And it progressed beautifully all the way to the end of it. Everybody's wearing the clothing, the jeans, the T shirt, and then we just don't get nothing after that.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

So it's kind of like we got a glimpse, and. Okay. It's happening.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

It's taken off.

[Victor Rasuk]

I love season two, man.

[Mall]

And then it's like, nothing.

[Kid Cudi]

Well, what I liked about season two is the stakes got higher.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right.

[Kid Cudi]

Like when you're just doing, like, the $1,200 to pay a pattern maker, like, that's cool and relatable, but, like, it. Like, the drama isn't there as much. Right. But when you've got, like, millions on the line for these charact who've just come from that world.

[Mall]

Right.

[Kid Cudi]

It just feels like everything gets bigger.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. So I did enjoy that as an actor. Gave us more to play with.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

And it does suck for the fans because it does. It felt like we were just hitting our stride.

[Mall]

Absolutely.

[Kid Cudi]

Right. And then. And then it just stopped.

[Mall]

That's it.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Rory]

Do you think that goes back to the comparison of Entourage? Because it's. They're two totally different shows.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

If it's getting into that Entourage world. Right.

[Rory]

Season two and Entourage. She had already gotten Aquaman back to, like, more fantasy show.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Must be the biggest movie star on earth. Season two.

[Kid Cudi]

Right.

[Rory]

And maybe they're looking at this, like.

[Kid Cudi]

Right.

[Victor Rasuk]

All right.

[Rory]

They need. Kith needs to be open by now.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

What the are we doing?

[Kid Cudi]

Just a thought. I see it.

[Victor Rasuk]

I see it.

[Rory]

And you progress quicker.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

But it can't just be struggling.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

This long.

[Mall]

But why.

[Rory]

They're different shows, though. That's why.

[Kid Cudi]

If it's working, it's not stupid.

[Mall]

Clearly, this thing is working.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right.

[Mall]

The show is working. I don't know what the numbers look like and what HBO wanted, but where I was sitting at and where I was from. Everybody Sunday.

[Kid Cudi]

Right. But see, you're not. The executives weren't sitting where you were sitting. Right.

[Mall]

And that's the problem.

[Kid Cudi]

They were sitting in different places. Right. And it was registering on different frequencies.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

So I think it really registered hard. I'm on the same frequency as you. Like, I really would watch this show. This was. This was my kind of show.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

But I. It HBO at the time, I think they were looking for super high ratings. Everybody was stealing our shit.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, that was another thing. Everybody was stealing our shit because a lot of cats that liked it, they couldn't afford hbo.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, I used to love your show. I ripped everything on BitTorrent.

[Victor Rasuk]

I was like, yeah, that's the reason why we got canceled. Thanks. So it was like a low key dis, but like a compliment at the same time. See?

[Kid Cudi]

Guilty.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right.

[Rory]

I was in a college dorm room when the show came.

[Victor Rasuk]

See.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, Yeah, I have HBO for that.

[Rory]

I was ripping Entourage off toy. It's your fault.

[Kid Cudi]

Fault.

[Rory]

I didn't come at me my Dell laptop.

[Mall]

You know, we were Sundays that ran on Gasoline.

[Kid Cudi]

That was a big part of it.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's a big part of it.

[Kid Cudi]

And then also, I think hbo, what they were looking for at the time was, you know, the awards, you know, and we weren't getting the awards, but it was buzzing on. On the street level in very high. Yeah, but I don't think there's no social media at that time, so you can't count like those impressions. There was. There's no way to quantify it, you know, So I think it was like they didn't really know what they had. And I can't speak for them. I'm just being. I was. I'm too inside. I can't be objective about it, but it feels like that, you know? And I think they wanted to make room for Girls, which is a good show, but it just. They didn't want too many New York young people in New York shows.

[Rory]

It's the same universe to me. That's why I think they worked.

[Kid Cudi]

I mean, that kind of happened to me too.

[Mall]

Like Rachel could have been in Girl.

[Kid Cudi]

I did a really cool show called Unscripted on hbo.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

You know it.

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay.

[Kid Cudi]

So it's hard to find how to make it.

[Rory]

America's hard to find. The way they push things on Max.com right now.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, but you can't find Unscripted on. On streaming. It's gone.

[Rory]

It's on me TV though. If I.

[Kid Cudi]

No, you can't find it or if.

[Rory]

You haven't seen it, let me know.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, let him know because he was trying to find it. Because I love.

[Brian Greenberg]

This was like one of the available.

[Victor Rasuk]

Anyway.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. I don't know where it was before.

[Rory]

I went to Max. And even before HBO Go, you were able to find it on the tv. Like.

[Kid Cudi]

Okay.

[Rory]

In the depths of hbo, like before they had.

[Kid Cudi]

This was one of the things I've ever done Right. This. This show called Unscripted. That George Clooney.

[Brian Greenberg]

I think I found a link to it on YouTube.

[Kid Cudi]

Oh, see? Yeah, you can rip it on YouTube. There you go.

[Victor Rasuk]

You know what's funny, though? But if how to make it came back, let's just say so.

[Kid Cudi]

So the thing is, this was a really cool show. Actors love the show. It's about actors trying to make it Hollywood. I play a version of myself. I play Brian Greer. This is before reality shows became reality shows. So I was playing an actor trying to make it. I was sort of playing myself, like. But I wasn't. They would book me. It's kind of hard to explain. They would book me on shows like ER and just to be an extra. But we'd be filming all that stuff. Like me talking to no. Wiley in the past.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right.

[Brian Greenberg]

That was cool.

[Kid Cudi]

Playing scenarios, right? And then in real life, like, they came on One Tree Hill and we would create scenarios that like, okay, Brian's doing this. And like, we'd film with the cast, and they. They filmed on prime as well. And we would shoot with Meryl Streep and O. McDermond. It was. And we'd feel we'd film all these. Like, for example, we did this scene in. In Unscripted, where my character, Brian Greenberg. It's very surreal to talk about, like, that shows up drunk to work. Right? Like, I didn't know that.

[Mall]

Brian would never do that.

[Kid Cudi]

I would never. I'm. Yeah, but so, like, they changed my call time. I didn't know I was supposed to work that day. And I got to come in and I'm wasted in front of Meryl Stre Street. Right?

[Mall]

Wow.

[Kid Cudi]

Not. Not real.

[Mall]

Right.

[Kid Cudi]

Didn't happen.

[Mall]

Right.

[Kid Cudi]

But so I would film the scene. I had two mics on me, right. I had a mic on me for. For Unscripted. A mic on me for prime.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right?

[Kid Cudi]

So I'm shooting this thing on Meryl Streep. And then we. We all cut and then on. And then Meryl's in on the joke. And then I'd say, oh, my God, I'm so hungover. I'm dying right now. She's like, oh, my God, do you want me to get you some Advil from the prop table? You know, so it was like filming two things at once. So very surreal. Right? But anyways, point is, great show, but at the time, HBO had extras. They had Entourage just premiered.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

And they had the Comeback, so. And they had Cuber enthusiasm. So they had all these, like, entered. The Comeback was with Lisa Kudrow that's right. It's all these, like actor type shows.

[Mall]

Okay.

[Kid Cudi]

And I think they were just like, there's too many. We got. Yeah. So you can't have too many of the same thing on the same network. So I felt the same. Same thing happened with how to make it. It's like, can't have too many young New York shows.

[Rory]

Have you seen Dave yet?

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, I like Dave. I like Dave.

[Rory]

That has some comparison to it, I think.

[Kid Cudi]

How to make it my two.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

You know. Yeah. But I. I really like that show. I think it's really smart show. I think Kirby enthusiasm has more.

[Rory]

The comedic side is definitely dry Larry David humor, but more so the scenarios he's put in with real life rapper to actor. I see an unscripted with Dave.

[Kid Cudi]

I'm glad you saw that, man. Not a lot of people have seen it. I'm really proud of that show. That's one of the coolest, most unique. I wish I've ever done that show for real.

[Victor Rasuk]

Like, legit. I watched that show.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, it was fun, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

That looks like he had fun too, man. And I always quoted because, you know, the movie that he. His character gets on is called Tough Zone. Yes. He's like, tough Zone. I always do that.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. When we're playing ball and Vic scores, he always says, I'm like, every time.

[Victor Rasuk]

I score, we play ball. I'm like, tough Zone.

[Mall]

Keep saying, I played that shit out you.

[Victor Rasuk]

Let's talk about Japan. This episode is brought to you by. Skinny Pop Popcorn. Perfectly popped, endlessly delicious. Oh, so light and crunch. Skinnypop original popcorn is the snack you've been searching for. Made with just three simple popcorn kernel, sunflower oil, and salt. Snacking never felt or tasted so good. Perfectly popped, endlessly delicious. Give yourself permission to snack and pick up Skinny Pop original popcorn today.

[Kid Cudi]

Okay.

[Victor Rasuk]

I have to tell you, I was.

[Rory]

Just looking on ebay, where I go.

[Victor Rasuk]

For all kinds of things I love. And there it was.

[Kid Cudi]

That hologram trading card.

[Victor Rasuk]

One of the rarest. The last one I needed for my set.

[Kid Cudi]

Shiny like the designer handbag of my dreams.

[Victor Rasuk]

One of a kind. Ebay had it. And now everyone's asking, ooh, where'd you.

[Rory]

Get your windshield wipers?

[Victor Rasuk]

Ebay has all the parts that fit my car. No more annoying, just beautiful.

[Rory]

Whatever you love, find it on eBay.

[Victor Rasuk]

EBay. Things people love. Hey, it's Kaley Cuoco for Priceline. Ready to go to your happy place for a happy price? Well, why didn't you say so? Just download the Priceline app right now and save up to 60% on hotels. So whether it's cousin Kevin's kazoo concert in Kansas City, Go Kevin. Or Becky's bachelorette bash in Bermuda, you never have to miss a trip ever again. So download the Priceline app today. Your savings are waiting. Go to your happy place for a happy price with Priceline's Black Friday sale. Save now and travel later with our best deals of the year. Go to your happy price, Priceline. Subtle results still you, but with fewer lines Botox Cosmetic Out Polybotulinum Toxin A is a prescription medicine used to temporarily make moderate to severe frown lines. Crow's feet and forehead lines look better in adults.

[Brian Greenberg]

Effects of Botox Cosmetic may spread hours.

[Victor Rasuk]

To weeks after injection causing serious symptoms. Alert your doctor right away as difficulty swallowing, speaking, breathing, eye problems or muscle weakness may be a sign of a life threatening condition. Patients with these conditions before injection are at highest risk. Don't receive Botox Cosmetic if you have a skin infection.

[Brian Greenberg]

Side effects may include allergic reactions, injection site pain, headache, eyebrow and eyelid drooping and eyelid swelling. Allergic reactions can include rash, welts, asthma symptoms and dizziness. Tell your doctor about medical history, muscle or nerve conditions including ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease, Myasthenia gravis or Lambert Eden.

[Victor Rasuk]

Syndrome, and medications including botulinum toxins as these may increase the risk of serious side effects.

[Brian Greenberg]

For full safety information, visit botoxcosmetic.com or call 877-351-1030.

[Victor Rasuk]

See for [e-mail] this episode is brought to you by Etsy. Oh, hear that? Okay, thank you. Etsy knows these aren't the sounds of holiday gifting. Well, not the ones you're hoping for. You want squeals of delight, happy tears? How did you. And spontaneously written songs of joy. I am so happy. Oh yeah, oh yeah. Oh yeah. Um, okay, the song needs a bit of work, but anyway to get those reactions, make sure everyone on your list.

[Mall]

Feels heard with handmade, handpicked and designed.

[Victor Rasuk]

Gifts from small shops on Etsy. Gifts like personalized jewelry, custom artwork, cozy style items, vintage pieces and home decor to celebrate all of your favorite people and their specific kind of special. For original gifts that say I get you, Etsy has it.

[Mall]

We keep talking about Kith, right? How much do you think Crisp inspired?

[Kid Cudi]

I've talked to Ronnie about this. Yeah, I'm a big fan of Kith and what Ronnie's done with the brand and I and by the way, he's going to come on the Pod. We're gonna talk about Robbie inspired him.

[Victor Rasuk]

He said, yeah.

[Rory]

He said, yeah, I can imagine.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. He's kind of.

[Rory]

And I said, he, too. With Ame. I don't.

[Kid Cudi]

I mean, I haven't met Teddy. I'm a huge fan. Obviously. I'm wearing this right now. I love. I love what Ame does. I'd love to talk to T. I think he'd be great. A great guest as well. But, yeah, Ronnie always says, you're. You're telling. You're. You told our story. You told my story.

[Victor Rasuk]

You know, so I just close to get Ronnie. Like, it was just a.

[Kid Cudi]

No, we're gonna get him. He just.

[Victor Rasuk]

No, we're gonna get him. I'm just saying we had an episode ready to go, like, two weeks ago. It was like a scheduling thing, but he's coming on, but it was like, damn, so close.

[Rory]

Jeff Staple would be good.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Oh, yeah, Yeah.

[Rory]

I feel like that was that era too. Like, in real time, you know?

[Victor Rasuk]

I think. Wasn't he one of the pitches? I feel like his name was brought up already.

[Rory]

I mean, when you guys were filming, he was. Y'all in the show at the time in Lower east side, putting the pigeon everywhere. Jeff Staple. To me, I thought they were kind of telling his story at the time.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. A lot of these guys, the hundreds, those guys out of la, a lot of these streetwear fashion guys have come up to us throughout the years and have said, we've told their story and we told it authentically. So I'm proud of that.

[Rory]

What was the Jay Z story that you had?

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh, yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

All right.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. All right. So check this out.

[Rory]

I'm excited.

[Victor Rasuk]

Let him come. This is crazy.

[Rory]

Does he blow someone's car up?

[Victor Rasuk]

Nah, nah, nah, nah.

[Mall]

Fuck.

[Victor Rasuk]

Shit. I gotta lower the expectations. To me, I think it's dumb. Cause he put hove in anything.

[Mall]

No cars were blown up.

[Victor Rasuk]

No cars were blown up. Yeah.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

So when we got Pharrell, Right. So before that episode was already written, it was about that we met somebody on the boat, right? Somebody influential, like, you know, like a Jay Z or Pharrell. Anyway, so Jay Z. Apparently Ian was cool with Rick.

[Kid Cudi]

It was gonna be the first. All right. It's gonna be the first episode of the second season where Ben and Cam were having a pop. A Chris.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. I'm sorry. Not the boat. Yeah, it was the Pop. But Ian was cool with who's his man?

[Kid Cudi]

It was Rich climbing.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, Rich Freddy. So rich. So apparently Ian brought up to Rich J. Yo, can we get Jay. So Rich didn't say yes or no, but, like, kind of like, well, let me talk to Jay. So this was, like, weeks before we shot, Right. So when we were about to shoot, I mean, I guess the day. The morning of when we were supposed to shoot that scene, the story goes that Jay gets to the office, looks at Rich, is like, yo, aren't I gonna do that? Whatever that show, the how to make a show? And I guess Rich was like, you know, nah. Or like, no, that's not gonna happen. Whatever. But it was on Jay's radar, so, like, I guess Rich didn't think that.

[Kid Cudi]

It was, like, a miscommunication.

[Victor Rasuk]

It was a miscommunication. So had the miscommunication not happening, we would at least have HOV for some. Which I think that would have been just like, how you. Like. I'm like, I'm good. Like, if you would have came on the show. Granted, we got Pharrell later, which, by the way, like, we were still happy. Okay.

[Rory]

I guess.

[Victor Rasuk]

Can you imagine if HOV just lowered the window? Be like, yo, what's going on over here? And it just raised the window, and.

[Mall]

That'S all you would need.

[Rory]

But even then, I think Pharrell makes more sense.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Tied to the streetwear shit. And, like.

[Victor Rasuk]

But if you a music fan, like, we all are. Like, we would have been like, yo, I think.

[Kid Cudi]

I think the bit was going to be that Ben and camera are. We're super hyped that Jay might stop by. Yeah, right.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

And then, like, the thing was like, I think there was a shooting at the pop up or something like that wasn't there. Like. Yeah, that's why the pop up dispersed. Yeah. And then. Yeah, and then. And then Jay was supposed to roll by at the end, roll his window down and be like, it's not happening. And then fire. Yeah. But it didn't happen.

[Victor Rasuk]

It was a miscon, bro.

[Mall]

Yeah. And he was still tight.

[Victor Rasuk]

I'm still tight, bro.

[Mall]

And still tight. So that made sense.

[Rory]

But HO was like, HBO Sunday guy.

[Mall]

Oh, yeah. No, that was. It was a thing. Soul food Sundays at J's. Like, a real thing back then. Have y'all ever really thought about taking crisp and making it a real thing?

[Kid Cudi]

It's funny because you see this merch here for our podcast, it's like, I think we're just doing the podcast as a Trojan horse to make some merch.

[Rory]

It's just to talk about the merch.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. No, I mean, it's. It's been fun. Cause we're Kind of like reliving our characters by doing this. It's pretty fun. We've talked about it. But I think with this, we're sort of reliving that the Ben and Cam world. Like, you guys know how it works, like, making merch and make it. It's been truly enjoyable.

[Victor Rasuk]

You know, also, like, I don't know if y'all remember, but, like, four, five years ago, we linked up with a boy of ours who had a brand, and we did. Like, we weren't playing Ben and Cam, but it was a little thing that. To promote his brand. It was like me and Brian were chilling on the cafe, and we were.

[Kid Cudi]

Like, nico shot it.

[Victor Rasuk]

New York. Nico shot it.

[Mall]

Shout out to New York.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Shout out. Yeah. Yeah. So you saw. Yeah. So it was kind of like, not.

[Kid Cudi]

A spoof, but, like, it was a nod.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, it was a nod.

[Kid Cudi]

Exactly.

[Victor Rasuk]

It was a not. And, yo, that went bananas, viral. Like, everybody's like, season three coming back.

[Mall]

That's what started to talk that.

[Kid Cudi]

I almost felt bad.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

I was like, what do we do?

[Victor Rasuk]

Felt bad for the fans. It's like, that's not what we were.

[Kid Cudi]

I didn't mean to tease people.

[Mall]

Everybody started hitting me, like, yo, they coming back. And I was like, what? Then I was looking at it. I looked at the clip. I was like. I was like, I don't know, man. They don't look like. They don't look like they filmed anything. They look like they're, like, playing with the idea and kind of like. Kind of like nudge the producers. Like, look, the Internet is going crazy over this one clip.

[Kid Cudi]

But apparently that got up to the execs, of course. Yeah. People are like, oh, is this.

[Victor Rasuk]

But I think that gave us the inspiration to do our own joint as well. After we saw that, we're like, we.

[Mall]

Do our own thing.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

But what y'all are doing is dope. Like, rewatching it, talking about each episode, reliving it.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

I think that's a genius idea.

[Kid Cudi]

But the pod, like, when we pitched the pod during the act, we're like, we gotta do something, man. So that's when the pod idea came around. And also people coming up to us all the time, like, what happened to the show?

[Victor Rasuk]

What happened to the show?

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

We like, let's do this podcast.

[Kid Cudi]

Let's do this for the fans. Right? But then we're thinking, there's so much more here. There's so much more meat on the bone than just the 16 episodes we shot. It's like, all the themes are still relevant. You know, the hustle never ends. And like, you know, we're just so curious to talk to people about their ambitions and how they went about their achieving their goals and all the failures they had. And I just think it's. It's super relevant for all these fields. Chefs, actors, you know, musicians. It's like athletes. It's been really cool.

[Victor Rasuk]

So, you know, we're going to hit y'all out to come on our podcast. Both y'all stories, man. Just the way y'all at now. Like, the hustle whenever you. But I'm just saying, like, y'all are the epitome of the hustle, which is. I think what Brian was saying about our podcast is like, there's only 16 episodes. Right. That's all we did.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

We can't do a full season of podcast, so I think now we're starting to sort of like, find our way that, like, okay, it could be about everybody's hustle game. Yeah. The theme.

[Rory]

The theme of how to make an America.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right. The theme of how to make an America. But like, everybody gotta hustle. It's like, you talk, you're like, what you did? What. Like that. How you blew up to where you are. Like, what was the journey that got to you? And all the anecdotes, too. Like, people find that interesting, as you guys know, you know what I'm saying? So I think our podcast, we having fun. That's the biggest thing is, like, y'all know we ain't getting rich off of it. Straight up. Let's just call it what it is. But as long as we having fun and then we catching up, and we've already been homies for all those years, but to have an excuse to, like, sit at the studio, chop it up, leave our family be, y'all, you know what I'm saying?

[Rory]

Have a real excuse to abandon your family.

[Victor Rasuk]

You know already what it.

[Mall]

It is.

[Victor Rasuk]

You know what I'm saying?

[Kid Cudi]

Workshop.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's a work trip, y'all.

[Rory]

It's networking.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, yeah. But it's been fun. So now we like, now after this New York trip, we like. Oh, yeah, we definitely. We were already excited.

[Kid Cudi]

We got to do more work trips.

[Victor Rasuk]

We do more work trip. Maybe we might see y'all in Detroit. Yeah, we might see y'all in Detroit.

[Brian Greenberg]

London, go to Japan, get those 20.

[Victor Rasuk]

20 pound burgers.

[Mall]

Yeah, absolutely. I think that y'all should definitely try to do something with crisp, I think.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. I don't know.

[Victor Rasuk]

But I don't know.

[Brian Greenberg]

Legally, we can name probably the rights to it.

[Victor Rasuk]

Like, HBO might have the rights.

[Brian Greenberg]

I don't even know have the rights to that.

[Kid Cudi]

I know that somebody else bit crisp. Like, it's a denim line now. I think that.

[Victor Rasuk]

No, they already cr.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, I don't even want to give him the plug, but whatever. Crazy.

[Victor Rasuk]

They did that.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. I don't know.

[Mall]

But that just speaks to exactly how real the show felt, how much people connected to it.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

How many people, like, you know, meeting the plug. Where we from, you made a plug for something else, right? Meeting the plug for the denim.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

And for the blank tee. Like, that's such a New York thing. Me and Rory, we were just going through that with our merch, trying to find, like, the correct blanks.

[Kid Cudi]

Hard right?

[Mall]

2024.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

You know what I mean? So it's like just that Rory's face.

[Victor Rasuk]

Says it all right there.

[Kid Cudi]

Do you enjoy the process or.

[Rory]

No, not really. Because it's not my passion. I enjoy it, but it just speaks to, like, when you're ignorant to how other businesses move, they are the same as the ones you understand. People think podcasting. Let me just set up a mic and talk. It's so much to this.

[Kid Cudi]

I know.

[Rory]

So when it comes to merch.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Ignorant to that entire process.

[Kid Cudi]

Right.

[Rory]

Now I see why this is people's entire life's passion.

[Kid Cudi]

I know.

[Rory]

It takes so much time to get something right.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

It's not just printing a logo, fucking T shirt. This is an entire life feel.

[Mall]

Right.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Mall]

Like, it has to. It has to sit right. It has to. Like, you have to see it. And. Okay, that's the vision. That's what I thought it would look like, what it would feel like, people wearing it. One of my favorite parts of season two is when y'all see the kids in the street with the. With the Japan, and y'all like, yo, look at this shit. Like, we. It's moving. Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

That's such a real thing.

[Kid Cudi]

Yo, that happened to me yesterday, right? Like, with the podcast we were over at. Where was that pizza spot? It's dope over on.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's got a weird name.

[Kid Cudi]

Over side. Come on.

[Victor Rasuk]

It was on. What is it?

[Kid Cudi]

Scar.

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, scars.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Scars. Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

We were down there.

[Victor Rasuk]

You sit at the bar, and it's a great spot.

[Kid Cudi]

I walked out, great music, phone call, and someone's like, yo, love the pod. I was like, that's the first fan.

[Victor Rasuk]

I know what you were saying.

[Kid Cudi]

You know what I mean? It's a nice moment. It's a very nice moment.

[Mall]

See the it's reacting. He watches the pod. Same feeling you get when you have something, an idea, you. You execute the idea, and it gets out into the world, and you now see people gravitating and connecting.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Mall]

To the idea.

[Kid Cudi]

It's amazing.

[Mall]

It's an amazing.

[Kid Cudi]

And this is a new world for us. Right, as actors that come into the podcast world.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

Like, first of all, we're not the first ones to do that.

[Mall]

Right.

[Kid Cudi]

But it's just such a different. It's just a different muscle. Right. And I. People are like, what's the pot about? And I'm kind of like, I don't know. Like, I don't know, because I think.

[Rory]

I still struggle at Thanksgiving dinner to explain, but I don't think I appreciate that, though.

[Kid Cudi]

I don't want to have. Push an agenda.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

Like Vic said, I'm not even doing it for the money. We're just hanging out and just vibing, and we're just. That's kind of like what the show was. It didn't really have a plot, just like, it sort of had a plot, but it was really just hanging out with these guys. You know what I mean? That's the same thing as the pot.

[Mall]

I think what y'all are doing is. It's so dope, man. Like, again, something like how to make it an American. What is meant to so many people, including myself. And to see y'all still have this chemistry in this relationship and now do it podcasting, but then actually going back and reliving.

[Kid Cudi]

It's been fun.

[Mall]

Such a great, iconic show.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

Is there a possibility for a season three?

[Victor Rasuk]

Can I. Can I chime in? I mean. Cause I don't know.

[Kid Cudi]

All you do is chime in, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

Let me not cut you off, but I'm gonna cut you off anyway. I always do that. Let me not cut you off, but I'm gonna cut you off anyway.

[Kid Cudi]

Well, I. I'm gonna let you finish.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. So, you know, Beyonce had one of.

[Kid Cudi]

The greatest albums of all.

[Victor Rasuk]

That was good. That was good. I deserve that one. So this. This crazy thing is happening. Right? So shout out to bg. He just. He got cast in Suits la.

[Mall]

Wow.

[Victor Rasuk]

Because Suits had a resurgence, and a lot of. A few shows have had a resurgence where they came out X amount of years ago, and then it gets on Netflix, and then it has, like, a whole new audience. Suits LA is one of them. So he's about to go shoot that new show, though.

[Kid Cudi]

Different than the original.

[Victor Rasuk]

Ye. Than the original. Yeah. Sue, tell it the point. I'm trying to make is that I think if the right audience. Right. Like, we on your show. We've been on other shows, too. Like, if there's somebody in hbo, it always takes just, like, the right person to just to hear and be like, why didn't we. Oh, you know what I mean? You never know. But you got to at least try and put it out there. So to answer your question, I think that if we had the same resurgence as. Put us on Netflix. Put us on Netflix and maybe show just the first season and see what happens, I almost feel like we would get the love and the. Because it'll get the same kind of, like, suits love. Like, why do we not see suits? Like, why do we not.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, it's not the worst idea, but, you know, I'm not saying it would.

[Victor Rasuk]

Happen, but I said if we. If that would have happened, if it would happen, I think we'd come back.

[Kid Cudi]

I mean, here's the thing.

[Victor Rasuk]

And we would all do it, just so you know, because everybody's always asking us, like, would we do it? Yes, we would do it.

[Kid Cudi]

But I don't want to be this actor out here trying to campaign for a show that got canceled, like, 10 years ago. That's not. I don't want to live in the past. Like, that's not good for me, mentally. Right.

[Mall]

Right.

[Kid Cudi]

But that being said, like, I'm so proud of this show. It's one of the coolest things I've ever done. Like, it's. I've done a lot of shit, but this is one of the only shows or projects that have people come up to me and say, this changed my life. This actually got me to move to New York City and start a business, and now I'm having success.

[Mall]

Right.

[Kid Cudi]

It's just so cool. It's inspired people.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

And as an artist, like, I mean, look, I didn't create it. I was just a part of it. I can't. I can't claim it. But it's just. I feel very proud to be a part of that. And so this. This, how to make an America will always hold a very special place in my heart, my life, and in my career. But, you know, that being said, yeah, people don't do it. We're all game. Like, everybody's game. I think Ian would be game. Everybody's game.

[Rory]

I think catch up with that. The way movies now, you just get sequels or reboots, repurposing everything, because no one wants to take any risks. They don't have the data, lose their job. Everyone Wants to stay in the same position.

[Kid Cudi]

They want ip.

[Rory]

You can't fire me because I took something that happened already.

[Kid Cudi]

They want to play it safe.

[Rory]

I think TV is going to catch up with that, and I hope they do it correctly.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. I would only do.

[Rory]

They could do it with HBO shows that are already in their catalog.

[Kid Cudi]

I would only do it if Ian Edelman was.

[Victor Rasuk]

Ian would do it, though. Ian would do it, but I would.

[Kid Cudi]

Only do it him.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

I wouldn't do it some other.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Also, like, there's a level. Just to add to your point, like, there's also a level of, like, nostalgia, too. Yeah. Where they're bringing back. Like, I just saw the Fresh Prince of Bel Air's back. I mean, obviously not, but it's original.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Rory]

But they did a cool reboot nostalgia.

[Victor Rasuk]

Of, like, so who knows, man? But, like, I really think the more that we do this, that somebody's gonna hear us. Somebody's gonna hear us next campaign. Either you're campaigning on our own podcast. I don't know. But, like, at some point, even if.

[Kid Cudi]

It'S a movie, I think Lake Bell was like, I'm gonna do a movie.

[Mall]

Movie.

[Victor Rasuk]

Movie would be a movie.

[Kid Cudi]

Did she say Lake wants. Yeah, I think Lake wants to do it.

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh, yeah. She's been directing since how to Make It. She's been directing a lot of tv.

[Brian Greenberg]

Are you guys in touch with any of the other cats? I know you guys are obviously very close. There are the other cast members from that show. Like a group chat or something.

[Kid Cudi]

Well, we.

[Victor Rasuk]

That we should start.

[Kid Cudi]

The pod is bringing us all back together. Like, we just had Lake on. She's coming out to. Well, I don't know when this is, but she'll be on. And then we had Louie. We just did Eddie K. Thomas yesterday. It's great to catch up with Eddie. We played capo.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

You know, we did Forever. We did Cudi. Like a. Yeah, yeah.

[Rory]

I mean, that's the biggest asset as far as a reboot to me.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

It seems like Cudi would.

[Kid Cudi]

He loves it.

[Rory]

He'd want to do something like a reboot of this rather than something new.

[Victor Rasuk]

And Roy loves. You know, he. He. He's actually like, look, sometimes I'm like, oh, I should not say that, you know, because whatever. I don't want. I don't want to not get hired or whatever. He. He's so open about it, man. If he was on the pod, I mean, he kind of said it on our podcast a little bit, but he was like, yo, who do I Got to make a call to. @ HBO. Like, what do I got to do? Because he's still. I think he's still tight about the cancellation.

[Kid Cudi]

I know Louis was too. Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh, Louie was very.

[Kid Cudi]

I was super. I was blindsided. I didn't see it coming.

[Victor Rasuk]

But really, Louis was.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

I had no idea what was the call like that. That day. Find out at the same time I.

[Kid Cudi]

Was skiing and man, he was already.

[Victor Rasuk]

Spending 63 money he didn't even have.

[Kid Cudi]

I was like, yo, we got been there before.

[Mall]

He's blowing the bag.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, I was gone, man.

[Mall]

In main.

[Victor Rasuk]

He was in Mammoth Ski.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. I was chilling on the top of a mountain.

[Rory]

Definitely been there before.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

And then Ian called me. He's like, it's not happening. I was like, what? I felt like my soul just pulled out of me.

[Rory]

I bought a two day pass at.

[Victor Rasuk]

That five day, five night trip became a two night trip.

[Mall]

Yo, wrap it up.

[Victor Rasuk]

We going back home.

[Kid Cudi]

Ski out. I was good, man. So it was, it wrecked me, man, because I just didn't see it coming and I just felt like we were on our way and we had so much to tell with that, you know, so many more stories to unfold. I feel like we're just getting started. So. I also like the audience. I just was blindsided.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yo, you know what I was doing? I was in LA in my car. Ian called me too, and I was actually looking at cribs in la. I was like, oh, man, I'm good. Let's go to West. Okay. Let's go to Hollywood. Oh, okay. I can't afford that. I was putting numbers together. See three money, you know what I'm saying? He calls me, say, vic, I wish I had better news to tell you. And I knew right there.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, damn.

[Victor Rasuk]

I, you know, it was, it was, you know, naturally, but it was.

[Mall]

Was it strictly because of just the numbers weren't performing at the time?

[Victor Rasuk]

We don't know.

[Kid Cudi]

We still don't know. Like, I can't, I can't say it was because of this reason. I. They don't tell you that. They just say you're not coming back. That's what they tell you.

[Victor Rasuk]

They tell you they're not coming back. Thank you.

[Kid Cudi]

But nothing and all.

[Victor Rasuk]

Also, like, but I love hbo.

[Kid Cudi]

Like, I'm not gonna, I'm not gonna on him because it's like, I'm so. And I've worked with them since and. And honestly, they gave us our shot. Like, there was no show without hbo. Like, I'm forever grateful to hbo. It was a beautiful story. And maybe it's cool that it's just like this cult classic that just lives for two seasons. Like, maybe it's better that way that we don't touch it again, you know? I don't know.

[Victor Rasuk]

I do.

[Mall]

I understand what you mean by that, but it's just so hard for the.

[Victor Rasuk]

Story to end on that note.

[Kid Cudi]

It's like, what if Nas just did illustration and then never came back to Fonte's Biggie comparison?

[Victor Rasuk]

That's true.

[Rory]

It's just the legs. It stopped right there. It's the greatest to us.

[Kid Cudi]

And it's James Z.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right?

[Kid Cudi]

You know, you. You burn fast and die.

[Rory]

And have you heard the Chris Rock joke when he's like, yeah, everyone talks about Tupac. If he continue to live.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

I hope he would have been a senator.

[Kid Cudi]

Right.

[Rory]

But he might have just been kicking Jill Scott down some steps in the Tyler Perry movie. Like, the legacy could have. It could have gotten worse.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

We don't know where Pac would have taken it.

[Mall]

That's true.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Hopefully he would have been this political.

[Kid Cudi]

You never.

[Mall]

It's just in watching it this past weekend, watching both seasons, it just felt like this was something that I'm watching for the first time. And then you realize, like, this was 13 years ago.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

I'm so happy that you actually took the time to watch it again. And the whole thing, not only just, like, the first few episodes.

[Mall]

This is my favorite show.

[Kid Cudi]

It means a lot, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

Like, honored. Yeah. I was like, damn, you watched the whole thing? I would watch the whole thing at once, too, if I could. But I think for our benefit, fits our podcast for me to do. I watched it.

[Kid Cudi]

Right.

[Mall]

The way y'all were doing it was great.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. I'm like, yo, you watch this? I'm gonna watch it tonight.

[Kid Cudi]

By the way, you guys are podcast pros. Give us, like, what are we doing wrong? Tell us, like, how can we.

[Victor Rasuk]

How can we improve on and off camera? By the way, we, you know, criticism.

[Mall]

I think what y'all are doing is great because y'all are reliving a very special moment. But the way y'all incorporating, like, you're having Ronnie Fig, I think that's, like, super unique that only you two could do something like that.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

We're just talking about.

[Mall]

Because the show represents different Lane, a streetwear brand started in New York City. What Ronnie has been able to do with Kith is amazing. Sitting down, talking with you two and being able. Which I know Ronnie would give you your flowers on camera and tell you how your show inspired him. He was at David Z's and doing shit like that in SoHo.

[Victor Rasuk]

Talk about David Z Story.

[Mall]

Yeah, I was there.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. No, I know you. That's what I was like. Let's talk about.

[Mall]

He was doing this thing working there at David Z's, but absolutely. How to make it in America and crisp inspired kit. That's not. I don't. Ronnie doesn't have to admit that to me. And I would know he's lying, you understand? Because it's just. How could it not? So I think what y'all are doing, it's a very unique podcast, but it's so real to who you obviously are, to something that you're a part of forever. Something that's in the culture forever. And I think that anybody that is in streetwear brand now, if they haven't already watched how to make it in America, somebody that's in the fashion business at the streetwear level will tell them you have to watch how to make it for sure.

[Kid Cudi]

For sure.

[Mall]

If you want to be in this game. And I think that that alone with your podcast is because what make podcasts special is it has to be a uniqueness to it. There's a million podcasts. Everybody has a mic camera and talking. But what y'all have is so special and unique. I think it's amazing.

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay, man, that's so cool. We gonna be texting y'all too. Like, if you hear. If you. And you like, yo, village, you should have done this. So. Yeah, y'all should have talked about that. Let me know. Let us know.

[Rory]

I mean, we'll say the off mic conversation, the visual stuff.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, yeah. Oh, yeah.

[Rory]

I just think the idea of the theme of how to make an America and telling other people's stories to spread that out in the middle of each episode.

[Kid Cudi]

Oh, okay.

[Rory]

If you just go episode four, season one, episode five. Like, I would spread it out in between.

[Kid Cudi]

Okay.

[Rory]

Telling some of these stories.

[Kid Cudi]

You mean in the actual episode. Are you saying, like, do a recap.

[Rory]

Do a whole recap for season one, episode one, then have a guest to just. That's kind of what we're doing. Make it.

[Kid Cudi]

That's kind of what we're doing.

[Rory]

I'm saying spread that out even more.

[Kid Cudi]

Spread the recaps out.

[Rory]

Like, I watched the Sopranos episode Base one.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Chris, Malta, Sante.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

They have so much to work with that they can keep that pace going.

[Kid Cudi]

Right, right.

[Rory]

You guys have two seasons.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. And that out.

[Rory]

Because you want people to really anticipate when we get to the finale.

[Kid Cudi]

Like, see, I told you, man. I did tell you.

[Rory]

Get to see right away. It's like, all right, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, okay. Yeah, yeah.

[Rory]

Because people are going to be waiting for those. Those are like the bonus. Bonus episodes. Looking for that.

[Kid Cudi]

Okay.

[Rory]

In between. Tell their stories.

[Kid Cudi]

Got you, got you, got you.

[Rory]

And just focusing on streetwear people.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, you gotta get more into that.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, no, we are gonna get. We are gonna get that. Speaking of streetwear, real quick, just pivot. What was the name of that spot you talked about? David Z's. And I remember getting my Tims to take David Z's. And then across the street, just west of it, that's where I got my Broadway North Face bubbles from. It was that spot right there on Broadway. It's like, you cross the street of David Z, you go a little bit north, and it's right there. You remember that spot?

[Kid Cudi]

Oh, rat. Yellow rat.

[Victor Rasuk]

Nah, not that one. It was a mad big spot, man. It was like, that's where you got your bubbles, north faces. You got everything there.

[Mall]

And it was on the same block.

[Victor Rasuk]

It was across the street, but on the same block. So, like, you cross the street and you make a right, you go away from house.

[Mall]

I can't remember.

[Kid Cudi]

This is going to be the best.

[Victor Rasuk]

I walked by the other day and I was like, of course it's not there no more. And I'm like, damn, what was the name of that spot? I used to go there religiously, and then I used to go get my Jordans from the. Really? The only foot lock I could get if I stayed there early in the morning. Right down Broadway. You know the one that was right on St. Mark's Place. The new Jordans there.

[Mall]

I'm gonna have the name of that store.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. I feel like once you. Once you. Once you hear the name, you're like, oh, yeah, I've been there before anyway.

[Kid Cudi]

Because you guys are like. You guys are still in New York. What's. And, like, we're back in la. I'm sort of. I live in la, New York. But, like, what's good now, man? You guys put us on because we're.

[Mall]

I'm.

[Kid Cudi]

We're not those guys anymore.

[Mall]

I'm not that guy anymore either.

[Victor Rasuk]

What?

[Mall]

I don't go out. I'm shocked. I don't go out. I don't. I don't club. I don't do nothing.

[Victor Rasuk]

Because you and I felt like we met at a club.

[Mall]

I want to go club. If y'all want to go eat and get some dope spots like, oh, then we could do that all day.

[Victor Rasuk]

You don't want to go club. I want to go club. Yo. Yo. So because you and I felt like we met at a club.

[Mall]

I met you in 2014.

[Kid Cudi]

Oh, yeah.

[Mall]

@ a club in Manhattan. I can't remember the name of the club, but I remember walking in Penthouse and I was like, no, it wasn't Penthouse.

[Rory]

Oh, Griffin.

[Mall]

Nah. I was like, I said, yo, that's him. And I. And I in 2014. I was like, yo, that's Cam right there. I was like, I gotta say what's up to him.

[Rory]

You were definitely in our room for sure.

[Mall]

I can't remember where the fuck I was at the Red Wine.

[Kid Cudi]

It's probably.

[Mall]

You were standing up, talking to some people Avenue, and I just gave you a quick salute. I was like, yo, I'm a big fan. And I just kept it moving like that was like. It was like 2014.

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay. Okay. As soon as you came out the elevator, I was like, we met before. Besides, obviously, the podcast.

[Mall]

It was real quick. And I just gave you a. A salute and, you know, told you. I love the show.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, yeah.

[Mall]

But this is our first time, actually.

[Kid Cudi]

The club thing, I can't do it anymore, man.

[Mall]

You're not. I'm done. I'm done.

[Victor Rasuk]

I'm not. So I got club. Let me know. Exhausted.

[Rory]

I wouldn't know what club to go to now.

[Kid Cudi]

That's what I'm saying.

[Mall]

I don't know.

[Rory]

Because I don't think you'd like little sister.

[Brian Greenberg]

Little sister would be the best bet for, like, the club.

[Kid Cudi]

Right?

[Rory]

I feel like you wouldn't like that.

[Kid Cudi]

I, I, I.

[Brian Greenberg]

It depends on who I'm with. The girl.

[Victor Rasuk]

Do it if I need to.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Jeans on Lafayette.

[Victor Rasuk]

When I was in South Korea, not a good look.

[Brian Greenberg]

Jeans on Lafayette.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's like going to be here.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's right around the club. Yeah, it's great.

[Kid Cudi]

Okay.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's a good spot. That's the one that I would recommend, like a lounge.

[Kid Cudi]

I like a good lounge. Yeah.

[Rory]

Speaking of clubs and the era of how to make an America.

[Kid Cudi]

Yes.

[Rory]

Rest in peace. The Gold Bar closed last month.

[Victor Rasuk]

But you know what?

[Kid Cudi]

Gold Bar is closed before and it comes back, but it's like, not.

[Rory]

I think it's official.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's dead.

[Kid Cudi]

Dead with the skull.

[Rory]

You have to get it its credit.

[Kid Cudi]

All right.

[Rory]

Is that probably the longest lasting?

[Brian Greenberg]

Let's go.

[Rory]

Since I was 18.

[Kid Cudi]

Longest lasting.

[Rory]

Goldar never really got cor. I agree with you on that, Maro.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right, right, right.

[Rory]

The longest lasting club that did not get corny to me, which is crazy to me.

[Kid Cudi]

Okay.

[Victor Rasuk]

I went, yeah, it's corny when he's like.

[Rory]

Too. I'm not. I'm just saying.

[Victor Rasuk]

With you on that.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

But, yeah, I. I was shocked that Marquee was still open. I was like. And during the Pandemic, too. I was like, yeah, yo, this is crazy.

[Kid Cudi]

Well, that's the thing about New York, though.

[Rory]

If Marquee was open during the Pandemic.

[Brian Greenberg]

That'S what we were talking about. I. I went there a couple times during the Pandemic.

[Rory]

I went to, like, some underground clubs they created out of, like, office spaces during the Pandemic.

[Brian Greenberg]

My nightlife scene in the pandemic was like, I occasionally did the mar. But I luckily have a lot of friends that own, like, bars and restaurants. And what they would do is they would just pull down the, like, the metal grates like this. Draw the shades, and then, like, you just party in the back of the restaurant.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

It was great. They'd leave the kitchen open, bring food.

[Kid Cudi]

Yb, we'll just up in everybody getting co.

[Brian Greenberg]

It was so much fun.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's a co part super spread. Yeah. There's only one way to go.

[Kid Cudi]

Everybody gets. I'll let a few of those.

[Brian Greenberg]

If we all get it, we all get it.

[Mall]

Then we'll be just fine.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, it's crazy. I was. I was in the subway the other day, and I was like, yo, let me pull out my mask. This fool was like, mask? What you talking about? Nobody wear masks. I'm like, yo, it's crazy to me, man. I was just here.

[Kid Cudi]

I didn't say that.

[Victor Rasuk]

It wasn't you. No, somebody told me that. Somebody. It was.

[Kid Cudi]

I was like, no, I said. I said, you don't need a MetroCard, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's what it was, too.

[Kid Cudi]

He's like, how do I get a.

[Victor Rasuk]

Metric card, first of all? Can we check that out? New York. I remember back in the day, it was just a coin with the little O. I know. That's what I was like. And now I'm like, damn. They charging you what? Two sound for the 290.

[Mall]

One way of training, bro.

[Victor Rasuk]

290. Back then, when I was in, Les.

[Kid Cudi]

Was like, you have to turn.

[Mall]

That was a day of food slices, soda, and I could get on the bus.

[Victor Rasuk]

Dropping the mic said it all right there. Not going to touch the mic, but.

[Mall]

I'm dropping slice of Hawaiian punch and can get on the train for 290.

[Victor Rasuk]

Tropical fantasy dog. Sperm killer, bro.

[Mall]

Come on, dogs Absolutely, there should be.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yo, there was a podcast talking about the sperm killer. Just, you know, it was called. I forgot what it was called. But there was. There's a podcast out there that was talking about the myth of tropical fantasies. But that's a whole another topic that was real.

[Mall]

That. That shook the hood up. Like, co, bro, when we thought tropical fantasies lowered your sperm count.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yo, cuz, I would play ball, right? I'll play ball. 10th. And yo, Rory's like. He's like, yo.

[Rory]

Right, So I forgot that was a.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's what I'm saying.

[Rory]

But we're going back there with Lil Kim getting their stomach pumped.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yes. Yo, yo, so that when I used to play ball because, like, a Sprite or whatever was a little bit more expensive. So you get the tropical Fantasy. But then the myth started happening. I was like, well, yo, I'm not gonna be able to play ball. Because I used to play ball 10 hours, you know, like from. From literally sun up to sundown. Because, you know, they had the lights on court. But I'm like, if it's gonna kill my sperm, I'm like, I'm not gonna be able to last play ball. I'm like. So I used to just pay the extra 50 cent and get the Sprite or whatever. Because, you know, Sprite was like, targeted. It was targeting the hood hard back then.

[Mall]

Grant Hill was drinking.

[Victor Rasuk]

Grand Hill was drinking it. Anyways.

[Kid Cudi]

About the Nutcrackers. You ever get the Nutcrackers?

[Victor Rasuk]

Nah. No.

[Mall]

Never had a nut?

[Victor Rasuk]

Nah. Which was that one.

[Kid Cudi]

Wait, that's what, they just sell them in the park?

[Victor Rasuk]

No.

[Mall]

You never had one?

[Victor Rasuk]

No. Maybe I must have moved to la. Maybe the Wick wasn't covering that.

[Kid Cudi]

Nobody really knows. Nobody really knows, though.

[Mall]

You can get them uptown in Dyckman. They got them if somebody's outside in Brooklyn.

[Kid Cudi]

I still get them every now and then. I'll get one.

[Mall]

Yeah. Definitely wasn't covering that.

[Kid Cudi]

People making their own drinks, but they.

[Victor Rasuk]

Get a Tropical Fantasy still out there.

[Rory]

Oh, that.

[Victor Rasuk]

I doubt it. Okay.

[Mall]

Yeah. Where Tropical Fantasy is still around.

[Rory]

I don't go to that part of the bodegas, man.

[Mall]

I don't go to that. I don't go to that freezer in the bodegas.

[Victor Rasuk]

I think that's why. I don't know either.

[Mall]

I'm gonna stop at the water. I just get a bottle of water and I'm out of there.

[Victor Rasuk]

Or the Roster Monster or Roster Monster.

[Rory]

Far far from that shit.

[Victor Rasuk]

Look how he lit up. He lit up.

[Kid Cudi]

He lit up.

[Mall]

That was that Shit. Roster monster.

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, my God.

[Rory]

Last. Quick. Quick question before we leave. What was it like working with Johnny Knoxville as a serious actor?

[Kid Cudi]

Oh, you worked with Johnny Knoxville?

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Cause he played my manager on Lords of Dogtown.

[Rory]

It was his first, like, real role.

[Kid Cudi]

I didn't know.

[Victor Rasuk]

No, no, no. Well, yes and no, because he had come off that movie with the Rock, and that was a big deal. That's why.

[Rory]

Oh, but you could still. And Men in Black, he played like.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, yeah, those are.

[Rory]

He then played the kid in the Special Olympics. Yes, but this was the first time I feel like he got into sort of a serious role. He was still funny, but so.

[Victor Rasuk]

So how he got that role is that at the time, his agent at CAA was Heath Ledger's agent, which Heath Ledger, obviously, in the movie. Yeah. So he was. I think he was just trying to find kind of like what I was saying. What I was saying. I was a New York actor. I was trying to do different things. And so I think his agent found that, oh, this is a good role. And obviously, like, it's such a historical moment, and people are gonna watch this movie, which they kind of didn't at the time, but his agent was like, yo, you should do this. And this is a great role for you to play, a serious role. The crazy thing about Johnny Knoxville and I.

[Kid Cudi]

The crazy thing about Johnny Knox, starting.

[Rory]

At Lord's, a dark town of. The crazy part of Johnny Knox.

[Victor Rasuk]

That movie, it really. How do you say. Encouraged a lot of bad behavior, like, because we were trying to capture a moment. 70s hippie, Dippy, you know what I'm saying? Like, everything's free. Let's try this new drug, all this thing. And Knoxville brought that kind of. You know what I'm saying? He was like. It was some. I remember one time we were working together, and we were doing that scene. I don't know if you remember, but when I rolled up on Emile Hirsch, and I was like, yo, man, I'm signed with whatever. Johnny Knoxville's character in the convertible or whatever. In the convertible. Yeah. You remember? No.

[Rory]

I really love that movie.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. So right before we shot that, you know, it always amazes me, like, how actors get. I mean, I'm not saying I don't get nervous, but the level of nervousness where you literally feel them shaking.

[Kid Cudi]

Who was nervous? He was.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, he was. And so he was like, hey, buddy. Hey. It was like some from the. The Matrix. You want the red or the blue pill? And I was like, nah, man, I'm good on the Pills, man. He goes, good, I'm gonna take both of them. And I was like, you're gonna do this right before.

[Rory]

Be polite.

[Victor Rasuk]

I was like, you gotta do this right before we roll. Boop boop. Didn't even answer me, bro. It was murdered. The scene. He did murder a scene later. And I was like. And a scene that he did later, which I think he murdered. He didn't offer the red and the blue because there was a lot of people in the other scene. That one scene, the convertible, it was just me and him. So I think there was a lot of eyes that weren't looking at it. Cause he could do it on the low, the red. I was like, nah, I'm good, bro. And the reason why I was like, you gotta remember, they took me from the hood. Like, I'm in Hollywood. And I'm like, oh, this is how they roll out here. Okay. Yo, this is. But the one thing that they let us do. Well, they didn't let us do it. Let me take that back. The one thing that I was doing, I was puffing trees in New York, and I was definitely puffing trees on that movie.

[Kid Cudi]

You could puff trees and act, but hold up.

[Victor Rasuk]

I was puffing trees when they were like, cut. Cause it was the same thing. Like, how to make it. We would shut down the club. And if you watch Lords of the Dark side, there's a lot of party scenes. We weren't at clubs, but there's a lot of partying. And it was. It was like my introduction legit. It's like you took homeboy at the hood, you put him here. You like, yo, everything you doing, it's okay. Keep doing it, but just don't use your accent. Wow, it was crazy. It, like, tripped me off.

[Rory]

Sound like Venice.

[Victor Rasuk]

Exactly. To answer your question, he was mad cool. I just wasn't on that vibe that time. But he was really try to his. I think he kind of sat back at times and was, like, watching all these dope actors and was like, yeah, I want to step my game. He was so nervous that that's what he had to do. I don't want to blow up his spot, because I don't think he does that.

[Rory]

No, but I think that's super interesting because you would say, why would Johnny Knoxville be nervous about anything?

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

He shoots himself out of a fucking can. He fights butter beans.

[Victor Rasuk]

I would say, bro, the butterbean.

[Rory]

Like, that's it. That way, too. Like, listen.

[Victor Rasuk]

He drinks his sweat after, like, running on the treadmill. I was like, what the you nervous about this little scene with me and Emil, who, by the way, we weren't household names, and we still kind of weren't. I was like. He was like, the red or the blue? I was like, I'm good.

[Rory]

I feel that way, too. Like, we perform in front of thousands of people. We talk for a living. But if you put me, like, in a Starbucks with someone I've never met to have a meeting, like, I'm like, I don't.

[Kid Cudi]

You get nervous.

[Rory]

I don't know how to. It's not my world.

[Victor Rasuk]

But you're going to take the red and the blue. I mean, I would understand one, right?

[Mall]

Johnny said, fuck it.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. And so I don't know what that is like. And it wasn't like, yo, bro, he.

[Rory]

Didn'T know what it was.

[Brian Greenberg]

Like, horse pills.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, it was like. It wasn't. It was like the. The gel one. So, you know, like, no, no, it wasn't, bro.

[Rory]

With you, it could have been.

[Victor Rasuk]

No, bro. No. Because later in another scene, Amel was like that. He did the same thing to him. I don't know if he took it or not, but he's Michael Dose. He offer you the act? Maybe early on. That's pretty. He was on in some shape. Maybe he was Michael dosing.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, the acting thing's funny because. Cause, like, it looks easy, right? Everybody's like, oh, they're just talking. But, like, you get people who haven't been trained or haven't been on set before, and they. And they just freeze. And you're like. It's like that Will Ferrell thing. Like, what do I do with my hands? You know, it's really. It's a skill you have to hone. And it's not. It's not. It doesn't come natural.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yo, another part that we were nervous about just. And I'll leave it at that, is like, Knoxville was nervous about that. Like, I remember we were shooting how to make it, and we were like, yo, this is a walk and talk right now. Me and Brian in the middle of Canal Street. And action. And I was always nervous because, you know those walk and talk scenes that we were doing in the streets, we.

[Kid Cudi]

Were doing down here.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

We were doing. Right. If we. If one of us fucked it up, go all the way back to one. And I will feel bad because he's giving a dope performance, but I fucked up this line, so we got to go back to.

[Kid Cudi]

I was.

[Victor Rasuk]

That should make me kill it. So it's like, the nerves are there, but I wasn't I had to carry.

[Rory]

This guy the whole way.

[Victor Rasuk]

He had to kick. He had to carry me. Yeah. But I wasn't like the blue and the red pill. I never did that to you. So, anyway, I'll leave it at that.

[Kid Cudi]

I can't. I can't. Like, I've worked with some actors who. Who spoke before they.

[Victor Rasuk]

I don't know.

[Kid Cudi]

I think that is all right. I did a movie once where it was similar to that. That story I was telling about unscripted. But this was the real thing. Like, I was smoking, and this is why I don't really smoke anymore. But I was smoking. And then they did change my call time, and they brought me in, and.

[Mall]

I was still so stone stone.

[Kid Cudi]

And like, you know when you get paranoid, like, and it's like, you think everybody's looking at you?

[Mall]

Yes.

[Kid Cudi]

What if they really were looking at you?

[Victor Rasuk]

It was really been on the train. It was better. You just saw recently who's been on the train being like, am I talking too loud? I gotta get off this train.

[Kid Cudi]

I was like, I don't know how some actors. But I've worked with comedians who just, like, you go into their trailer and it's just weed. Blunt after blunt. I don't know. I can't. I'm not a functional stoner like that.

[Mall]

I've noticed that.

[Kid Cudi]

I can't do it.

[Mall]

I can't smoke before I pod. I can't smoke during. Cause it's gonna kick in, and I'm either gonna start, like, looking into your soul.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

Or like, my mouth is gonna get so heavy that I can't even talk.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, no, you're getting great.

[Victor Rasuk]

Then you're like, yo, y guys, let me get that chocolate fantasy. Yo. Let me get that. Really?

[Rory]

A smoker like that? As a matter of fact. What was it two weeks ago?

[Brian Greenberg]

It was two weeks ago. Rory took an edible. It was awful.

[Rory]

I'm not a weed smoker at all.

[Victor Rasuk]

How was it?

[Kid Cudi]

Okay.

[Rory]

Right before we started recording, I could barely read the tv.

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh, no.

[Rory]

I told everyone in here before we hit record, I just took an edible. I'm not sure I'll be able to get through this episode where it was like, three. I wanted to run home.

[Victor Rasuk]

Why did you take it through it, though?

[Rory]

Yeah. And then we went to Philly, and they loved it. We went to Philly and we did, like, you know, meet and greets before and after talk with the fans. And they were like, yo, you should take edibles more often.

[Kid Cudi]

Why didn't we?

[Rory]

I thought that Was the worst fucking episode I've ever.

[Victor Rasuk]

Why did we get high? Roared today.

[Kid Cudi]

I want to come back and get high, Rory.

[Rory]

So you hate me now?

[Kid Cudi]

No, I'm just saying I want to.

[Victor Rasuk]

See the high roaring.

[Mall]

I'm going to do your show. I want to do your. I want to be high when I do.

[Victor Rasuk]

All right, all right. Bet. All right, all right.

[Mall]

That's what I want to do.

[Kid Cudi]

I'm going to take.

[Victor Rasuk]

You don't smoke.

[Kid Cudi]

No, I'm going to take the blue pill.

[Mall]

You going to take the blue.

[Victor Rasuk]

No.

[Kid Cudi]

You know what I do? I take little edibles just to sleep. It's like, I just. Yeah. I'm not going to have fun with this, too.

[Rory]

You got to.

[Victor Rasuk]

And I don't.

[Kid Cudi]

You know, something changed in my body chemistry where it's like, I smoke every day all the time. And then all of a sudden, it was just like my. I got paranoid, and it was the opposite of fun. It's kind of like clubbing. Like, I do not want to be.

[Victor Rasuk]

That used to be fun.

[Kid Cudi]

It's not fun anymore.

[Mall]

Yeah, it's not.

[Kid Cudi]

I don't know.

[Victor Rasuk]

I don't like how the edibles sneak up on you because I like. I like when I puff. I know when it's going to come. I don't like, like, when it's going to come with, oh, I'm high.

[Rory]

Not only that. Second wave.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Higher.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, bro. That's why I don't like doing it.

[Rory]

I would have preferred to hear the story of Meryl Streep doing the red pill, Blue pill than that would have been weird.

[Kid Cudi]

Meryl was mad cool, dude. She was. She was like.

[Victor Rasuk]

She.

[Kid Cudi]

She's. She knows that she's a legend, but, like, so I think she goes out of her way to, like, disarm you and. And be very.

[Mall]

I love people like that.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. Like, she doesn't.

[Mall]

So you. You know that you're this huge, iconic figure.

[Kid Cudi]

Yes.

[Mall]

And, you know, people know.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Mall]

When they're in your presence. That this is Meryl Streep.

[Rory]

Yes, it's me.

[Mall]

Does everything to be like, yeah, she.

[Kid Cudi]

Used to come into my trailer and just want to hang out, and she's like, oh, I have my guitar in there. She's like, oh, you. You playing music?

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh, yeah.

[Kid Cudi]

I play guitar with her and just hang out.

[Mall]

I love people.

[Victor Rasuk]

It was.

[Kid Cudi]

She was so fun. She was so cool.

[Rory]

If I was high and Meryl Streep.

[Kid Cudi]

Came into my trailer. Yeah.

[Rory]

This isn't real.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Seeing goats everywhere with Heath on the set. I mean, obviously, unfortunately, we know the end of his story, and that was before Dark Knight. He played that role a little too well on Lords of Dog Town. Yeah, that's one of my favorite Heath roles. And after you found out what happened with Dark Knight, was he acting?

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah. Did you ever meet Heath, or did you just meet the character?

[Victor Rasuk]

No. So like I said, it was my first, like, Hollywood movie. So when they flew us out there and I got cast, Heath actually went out of his way to call me Emile and John, and he was like, hey, come to my house. And, you know, this is me. And so his vibe. We were just talking about this with somebody, Abby Cornish, who's another Australian actress. He. He wanted, like. He wanted to start kind of. And indirectly start right away, like, just building the chemistry between us.

[Brian Greenberg]

Right.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's like. Like, kind of what you said. And by the way, he was on. He was already, like, pretty known already. He had done. He had already done the Patriots and Knights tale. The Patriot was like, you know, was.

[Rory]

That before Brokeback or.

[Victor Rasuk]

So we got. I got a story, a real quick story, a funny story about Brokeback, but so he. So we all get in his crib, and it's like, my first time going up in the hills. We were just talking about the hills. You're telling me that you had rented a house.

[Kid Cudi]

House.

[Victor Rasuk]

And, I mean, you stayed up.

[Kid Cudi]

That was.

[Brian Greenberg]

They were there.

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh, it was. You guys saw you.

[Brian Greenberg]

It was there, too.

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay. Yes.

[Brian Greenberg]

The house we had in the hills.

[Victor Rasuk]

So it's my first time. So I'm like, you know, this is before ways. And, like. So, like, I'm gonna get my. What is it? Garmin. The old school. What's it called?

[Kid Cudi]

The navigation.

[Victor Rasuk]

The navigation you had to put in your car because. Oh, yeah, it was called the Garmin system or whatever.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Or Gemini. Whatever.

[Kid Cudi]

Shout out, Garmin.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, Shout out Government, come back, sponsor. So I'm like, all right, I'm going here. I'm like, you know, I'm not a drive. I'm like, yo. So we get there, and yo. Just. It felt like I was like, not in a Buddhist temple, but it just felt like his crib was set up in a way where, like, he's definitely. It was a lot of pillows, but it was. He was definitely on a different frequency on, like, on his personal level. So we got there, we sat down, puffed. You know, he had the bowl of herb, and we was just like, yo, can I. I was like, yo, can I touch this? He was like, of course. And I love Australia. So I was like, he's playing his music. I'm like, this is the first time I'm getting put on to, like, I knew Rolling Stones, but, like, I was really getting put onto, like, real old school Rolling Stones. And like, just even that whole movie, I was put on, like, old school Black Sabbath. Like, all the music, which, by the way, we talk about how to make it music, like, really, like low key Lords of Dogtown music was kind of an amazing sort of soundtrack, too.

[Rory]

Clearance budget, I'm sure, was.

[Victor Rasuk]

No, you know what happened, you know what happened when we wanted certain big songs, like even Iron man from Mike Sabbath, Osborne's son. What's his son's name? Jack. Jack. Huge fan. So the sound, the sound, the supervisor was like, I already know Jack. I already know he's a fan. He's going to give it to us on discount. We got all of that on discount because all these guys were fans of the people that we played. Tony Alva and all that back in the 70s when they were nobodies. And then they became these big stars. They were like, oh, my God, we would be honored to be. So anyway, long story short, he thought, set the tone. And then once, yo. Once we started shooting, yo, he was. He was already in the Venice Surf Club. He already knew cats. Like, we would get on set. He already knew all these old school cats because he already went out of his way.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

To go meet these cats, to get that research. The research. But then he brought. Nobody knew this, but back in the day, Heath was already a surfer in Australia because he was. He's Australian, so he was already a surfer. It was just a different sort of frequency when it came to Venice. But the surfing, he already knew.

[Mall]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

And so, like, I guess my point is that he really took the time, like, and he knew it was a big deal for us and he just, like, embodied that. And I think that he was already on his way to not doing these big mainstream movie. He was like, yo, I want to do something that is character based. And right before he rapped, he already. He had just booked Brokeback Mountain and it was in the trades and all of us young dudes was like, yeah, so you're going to go break. Jake's back. It looks like Montana. Oh, yeah. You guys are funny. I think that's his best performance.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, well, I think Broke Back. You don't think it's better than Dark Knight?

[Victor Rasuk]

I think Dark Knight was great, but those two. He had a different frequency with Brokeback. I just.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, he was incredible to be able.

[Victor Rasuk]

To, like, do what he did and, like, just kind of strip everything.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Literally and figuratively.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

As an actor, I thought that was his best performance. Yeah, he definitely. He definitely broke into something in Dark Knight, don't get me wrong. But I think for me, just as an actor, like, I just kind of knew where he had to go to do those things.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, it was.

[Victor Rasuk]

It was more. It was more here and not, like, so, you know, the whole Joker thing.

[Kid Cudi]

Like, but that thing about broke back. He did have this, like, physicality where you could see that, like, the secrets and was torturing his. It was twisting him up and he. The way he contorted his body. It was. He was. That was the first time I was like, this dude's on another.

[Victor Rasuk]

For me, it was all here, man. So, like, when he. All that was happening. But you're going to see it through the eyes. And so you see how. And with Joker, like, yes, it was all there, but. But there was so much distraction with that. But, like, he couldn't escape this. You couldn't escape that.

[Mall]

It broke down. And then Joker 2 costume makeup.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, it helps the illusion. I think with Brokeback, there was no illusion, bro. It was like, you had to. Joker.

[Kid Cudi]

To me, that's one of the most iconic performances I've ever seen, I think. For sure.

[Mall]

Period.

[Kid Cudi]

For sure.

[Mall]

But I also think I do like Joaquin Phoenix's joke.

[Kid Cudi]

He's great as well. I mean, personally, both those guys, their work, they go deep, they go real.

[Victor Rasuk]

Which, by the way, they were. They were. You know, they came up together. So, like, I would go to these parties, and Joaquin was kind of known just from the Ridley Scott Gladiator. Gladiator. But he hadn't, like. He was doing stuff, but he hadn't, like, really pop. So they would always hang out, and I was like, oh, yo, yo, homies. With Joaquin Phoenix. That's crazy. Can you imagine the amount of times they probably, like, audition for the same part? Like, crazy. Anyway.

[Mall]

Yeah, but thanks for the question, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

I haven't talked about Heath in a long time.

[Rory]

Even his performance in Lords of Dogtown, like, he didn't just play some stoner burnout. It wasn't a Cheech and Chong role that he did. He was very much like the Joker in that movie, too. His performance in Lords of Dogtown, I don't go back and watch that enough.

[Victor Rasuk]

Because you see, like, oh, man, I'm about to lose these kids who I was really. I was hard on them, but it was kind of like that tough dad love. And then when you Saw he was about to lose everything he worked for, just like what Heath did, again without kind of a Louis goose. Two different type of actors, but where it was all internal, like, I'm going to do whatever it takes and not lose all this. And then he kind of loses his mind at the end. Yeah, it was crazy.

[Rory]

Yeah, it's an incredible role.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Rory]

And just of I'm trapped here, and all the kids that I used to make fun of are now going on with the rest of their lives.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Oh, I'm the fucking loser out of this entire thing. No, that's really his role.

[Kid Cudi]

I go back on that.

[Rory]

All these kids that I thought I could control now have moved on with their lives and wanted to do shit. And I used to clown them for trying to do other shit. And now I'm this fucking loser still trying to make a fucking surfboard.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yo, that last.

[Rory]

Going through fucking overpaid bills.

[Victor Rasuk]

And, yo, remember that last, last party scene? And then he throws the bottle at the end of the room. Everybody got out of his way, man. Like, no, I'm talking about literally, like, he had. Cause you know, he had that surfboard. He was like, hey, man, leaning off the shit. And, yo, I was like, this is an actor that you want to get out the way because you were gonna get hurt. And I know later he's not gonna mean to hurt you, but he's giving that kind of performance. Get out the way. So if you catch me in that scene, like, I'm on the wall just like this. Like, I don't want to get hit, but not in a bad way. Like, not it was control, but it was in a way where, like, I'm not going to take this moment right now. This is this moment. It was crazy. Sorry. Yeah, I'll shut up.

[Rory]

No, no, that's great.

[Mall]

Um, tell the people where they can catch the pod and listen to you guys.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, you can get on Apple, Spotify, wherever you get your podcasts. You can follow us on a podcast on Instagram or follow me at Brian Greenberg. And we also people comment on the We Almost Made it podcast. Tell us what you want to hear. We answer fan questions. So slide. Slide in the DMs.

[Mall]

Yeah, this has been a nostalgic. Just, like, listening to you guys. Watching you guys sit right here in our studio has been amazing for me personally, on a personal level. So I want to thank you guys for coming through today, spending time kicking it. Thank you for how to make it in America. Thank you for being a presence in my circles. Lives every Sunday for some years. And I'm. I'm looking forward to season. Whatever.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, yeah.

[Mall]

Whatever the next season is from you, too. I'm looking forward to it. I support you guys.

[Victor Rasuk]

Thank you.

[Kid Cudi]

It's an honor to be here.

[Victor Rasuk]

Honor to be here, man. For real.

[Mall]

We talk to y'all soon. This is how to make it in America. How to pod in America.

[Brian Greenberg]

Before we go, I found the scene that we were referencing earlier of him robbing and running away.

[Kid Cudi]

Oh, yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, can we just. We could watch this. Let's watch this on the way out.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Real leathers. 150 a piece. Mark Buchanan. Butter salt in the jackets. 150 a piece. Get one. Still chilly. Hey, get one for your boyfriend. There you go, right there. Check one out. Check one right there. I was just. Adler. Okay, guys, let's see the vendor's permit. What? Oh, yeah, yeah, it's right here. See it?

[Rory]

Teasing. A lot of HBO shit.

[Kid Cudi]

Like, I don't know.

[Victor Rasuk]

Big.

[Mall]

Well, call your friend back here, please.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Rory]

Thank.

[Mall]

Yeah, I'm going to call her right now.

[Kid Cudi]

Yeah, we're talking.

[Mall]

He's just ginger.

[Victor Rasuk]

Peace.

[Kid Cudi]

Thank you, guys.