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

Release Date: November 29, 2024

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Introduction and Welcome

The episode kicks off with a playful exchange between the hosts and guests, Brian Greenberg and Victor Rasuk, reflecting the casual and humorous tone characteristic of "New Rory & MAL." Victor begins by expressing his enthusiasm for the guests, leading into a heartfelt introduction of the legendary duo behind the acclaimed HBO series "How To Make It In America."

Impact of "How To Make It In America"

Victor Rasuk highlights the profound impact the show had on viewers from New York City, particularly those involved in the streetwear scene. He shares:

“How to make it in America represented with me and my friends and my circle were dealing with growing up in New York City finally felt seen. We felt like our story was being told.” ([01:31])

Brian Greenberg echoes this sentiment, emphasizing the show's authenticity and cultural relevance. The hosts discuss how "How To Make It In America" laid the groundwork for future New York-centric shows by authentically portraying the hustle and creativity of the city's youth.

Casting Process and Chemistry

The conversation shifts to the casting process, where Brian and Victor recount their initial interactions and the natural chemistry that led to their enduring friendship and on-screen partnership. Victor praises the show's creators:

“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.” ([04:00])

Brian shares his journey before joining the show, mentioning his roles in "October Road" and the film "Prime." He credits Ian Edelman for envisioning him for the role of Ben Epstein, noting:

“I felt like my character in that was similar to Ben Epstein, meaning he was like a Brooklyn guy. He was an artist.” ([12:10])

Season One vs. Season Two

Delving into the show's progression, the guests compare the dynamics of the first and second seasons. Victor appreciates how season two elevated the stakes and expanded their network within the fashion and streetwear industries, despite facing challenges with HBO's direction. Brian reflects on the increased budget and more ambitious shoots in Japan and South Korea, which enriched the show's storytelling but also strained resources.

“The stakes got higher. Like, when you're just doing, like, the $1,200 to pay a pattern maker, like, that's cool and relatable, but, like, it just feels like everything gets bigger.” ([46:00])

Production and Challenges

The hosts discuss behind-the-scenes anecdotes, including guerrilla-style shooting in Japan without permits and the logistical hurdles of filming internationally. Brian mentions:

“We could have done a whole episode only in Japan with all that material, but it was cut down to fit the season.” ([40:58])

They also touch upon the show's cancellation, expressing frustration over HBO's decision despite the show's growing cult status and dedicated fan base.

“It's a gamble. But I think it was just their way to kind of introduce us to the world.” ([16:41])

Music and Soundtrack

Music plays a pivotal role in setting the show's tone. Julian recounts the excitement of hearing Kid Cudi's "Man on the Moon" and how the soundtrack complemented the series' vibe.

“The credit sequence, that was just... it set the tone for the shows.” ([36:35])

They discuss the collaboration with music supervisors like Scott Venner, who helped curate the iconic soundscape that remains relevant today.

Memories and Behind the Scenes

Brian and Victor share memorable moments from filming, including interactions with cast members like Luis Guzmán and Johnny Knoxville. Julian recounts working with Heath Ledger on "Lords of Dogtown," highlighting Ledger's depth as an actor:

“Heady Ledger... he really broke into something. He embodied that role completely.” ([83:58])

Comparing to Entourage and Other Shows

A significant portion of the discussion revolves around comparing "How To Make It In America" to other contemporary shows like "Entourage." Brian explains how their show diverged by focusing on authentic street experiences rather than the aspirational, star-studded lifestyle portrayed in "Entourage."

“Entourage was about a very aspirational world... How to make it would later on expand upon.” ([24:12])

They argue that "How To Make It In America" was ahead of its time, capturing the essence of New York's underground culture in a way that later shows only began to emulate.

Show Cancellation and Reflections

The hosts reflect on the abrupt end of the series, expressing disappointment over its cancellation despite its positive reception among fans.

“The executives weren't sitting where you were sitting. They were registering on different frequencies.” ([48:05])

They lament the lack of transparency from HBO regarding the show's cancellation, suggesting that its niche appeal and authentic representation might not have aligned with the network's broader objectives at the time.

Future Plans and New Podcast

Transitioning to their current endeavors, Brian and Victor discuss their new podcast, which aims to relive the legacy of "How To Make It In America" while sharing their personal journeys and interviewing other hustlers across various industries.

“We wanna talk to people about their ambitions and how they went about achieving their goals and all the failures they had.” ([59:30])

They express enthusiasm for expanding the podcast's reach, potentially featuring guests like Ronnie Fieg of Kith, and emphasize the importance of community and shared experiences.

Conclusion and Final Thoughts

The episode concludes with heartfelt thanks to Brian and Victor for their contributions to "How To Make It In America" and their ongoing support. They touch on the enduring legacy of the show and its influence on streetwear and entrepreneurial culture.

“How to make It. America will always hold a very special place in my heart, in my life and in my career.” ([66:21])

The hosts encourage listeners to follow their podcast and engage with their content, signaling the continuation of their collaborative journey.

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Notable Quotes

• “How to make it in America represented with me and my friends and my circle were dealing with growing up in New York City finally felt seen.” – Victor Rasuk ([01:31])
• “These two guys have to know each other, and if they don't, this is like the universe aligning itself.” – Victor Rasuk ([04:00])
• “The stakes got higher... everything gets bigger.” – Brian Greenberg ([46:00])
• “Heady Ledger... he really broke into something. He embodied that role completely.” – Julian ([83:58])
• “Entourage was about a very aspirational world... How to make it would later on expand upon.” – Brian Greenberg ([24:12])
• “We wanna talk to people about their ambitions and how they went about achieving their goals and all the failures they had.” – Brian Greenberg ([59:30])
• “How to make It. America will always hold a very special place in my heart, in my life and in my career.” – Brian Greenberg ([66:21])

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Conclusion

Episode 324 of "New Rory & MAL" offers an in-depth look into the creation and legacy of "How To Make It In America," featuring candid discussions with Brian Greenberg and Victor Rasuk. The episode not only celebrates the show's cultural significance but also provides valuable insights into the challenges of production, the importance of authentic storytelling, and the enduring bonds formed through shared creative endeavors. Listeners gain a nostalgic yet forward-looking perspective on the intersection of entertainment, fashion, and entrepreneurship in New York City.

Transcript

[Brian Greenberg]

No Rory.

[Victor Rasuk]

And now Rory. You know, I don't get excited.

[Rory]

That is true.

[Victor Rasuk]

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 teased 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.

[Julian]

Yes.

[Rory]

You didn't flinch at all. I thought you were a sociopath.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Rory]

I've never seen.

[Victor Rasuk]

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]

Oh, you're going for it.

[Julian]

Wow.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Rory]

Yeah, I'm just talking Tony Soprano.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

All of this high praise this show. High praise.

[Victor Rasuk]

How to make it in America Represented with me and my friends and 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 Asuk.

[Brian Greenberg]

Wow.

[Victor Rasuk]

Known as Ben Epstein.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

And Cam Calderon.

[Julian]

Love that.

[Brian Greenberg]

Listen, man, thanks for having us, man. Thanks for having us, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

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 a crisp hat today. I don't know.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yo, you know what's so crazy though?

[Victor Rasuk]

I bought the crisp hat like I made. This is this show to me.

[Unnamed Host]

He laid his outfit out last night, yo.

[Victor Rasuk]

100%.

[Julian]

The first day of school, yo.

[Victor Rasuk]

This show to me represented.

[Rory]

Listen to man on the moon all the way here.

[Julian]

Oh, God, I need a dollar.

[Victor Rasuk]

Domingo D canines of cannabis. 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 that. We'll get into that. But what remains is the fact that, you know, Ben and. And. 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Thank you, man. We really appreciate that.

[Julian]

That's crazy. I gave you a power. I came.

[Victor Rasuk]

Nah, man, I appreciate it.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's crazy, man.

[Julian]

For real.

[Rory]

From a distance.

[Brian Greenberg]

That's. That's amazing.

[Rory]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Oh, he put how to Make It America as Biggie.

[Julian]

Oh, what?

[Brian Greenberg]

I'll take.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Something that was about to be a legend but was cut way too short. I mean, 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Wow.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

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, you know, how to make it in America, like, before you guys actually started shooting the show. Because I know that you guys actually met at this screen test.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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. Let this be what it is.

[Julian]

You get it?

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

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 I got canceled, you know, And I think we would even start our own, you know, our own podcast. We almost made it, so I appreciate that. I wish more fans would, like, 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 were talking about earlier about, you know, I'm from Low east side, straight New Yorker, and we. I started off doing. I started, thankfully, where I grew up in L E S. I grew up on Asian Avenue. D. Jacob Reese projects. Shout out to Jacob Reese projects. But the proximity 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 at Thompson Square Park. I was like, where the hoes that girls at?

[Brian Greenberg]

Like, not in Thompson Square Park.

[Julian]

Well, apparently, that's what I was.

[Rory]

Where the Fentanyl.

[Julian]

And I was like, they ain't here.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

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. Yeah, I know. Like, you know, you walking down the street, you talk 14. Yeah, no, 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'm like, yo, what's good? And, like, these white. These white kids. And I'm like, yo, what's up? Can I be in your movie?

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

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? Like, you know, you take the piece of paper from the number, you know, you're like, oh, okay, I got your number. So then I called them. And then the way how I. 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, like, before, like, Giuliani cleaned it up. Township 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 Souk? And then later on, you know, that's when Ian Edelman, you know, he had me in mind because he saw my movie, right? And he was like, yo, I write. I wrote this thing how to make it in America. He. 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay.

[Rory]

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

[Julian]

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. Yeah, 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.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Rory]

And those projects are very projecty. Yes.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

And then I've been there.

[Rory]

Lias ones took me there.

[Julian]

Yo fans of how to make it. When we got. When we got cast and it was, you know, we were Ben and Cam. We came. They flew us out, we came to New York, right. I 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. 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, 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

But I'll take the six one. All right, I'll take that.

[Julian]

So he comes with the projects, Right. And it's actually one of the nicer buildings in the projects. Because 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. Yeah. I don't know if it's because logistically where it's at, but it's actually nicer. Like Nycha, right?

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Why don't go all the way in the.

[Julian]

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, one of the cleaner ones. And he can't. You know, we had, you know. You know, my people, my Dominican people's food.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

And Brian, we chilled. And I remember at the end, we were still chilling. You know, I'm laughing with my family. Cause, 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?

[Victor Rasuk]

Sun is going down. It's time to get out of here.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

When you think about. Yo, we grew up here. So many of us lived here. It was one shower.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Never ran out of hot water.

[Rory]

The projects apartments on Earth.

[Julian]

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 y'all Screaming out tonight so y'all.

[Victor Rasuk]

Turn off the heater no matter how.

[Rory]

Wide One pipe and melt your skin.

[Julian]

Oh, it's a ride It's a ride.

[Victor Rasuk]

Where are you from, Brian?

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Omaha.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay.

[Brian Greenberg]

I went to NYU, but my dad's from Queens, and, like, my Grant, 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 to, all the hip hop, all the actors I respected were coming out of New York.

[Victor Rasuk]

The theater scene, what rap did I listen to in Omaha?

[Brian Greenberg]

In Omaha? Yeah. Well, it was like 3:11, remember 311? They were like the big band. Back, back. It was like rap rock. Oh. Which doesn't really hold up. No. But in the 90s, it was like.

[Julian]

Oh, give it 10 years. Give it 10 years. It'll. It'll come.

[Brian Greenberg]

Rage against the machine holds up hell yeah, 311 holds up but rage holds they would like to claim Rage hold Rage holds we got Crawford now Omaha.

[Julian]

Yo, but Crawford.

[Brian Greenberg]

Best boxer. Pound for pound Half a belly. Yeah, 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

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?

[Brian Greenberg]

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 a ABC show that I was the lead of called October Road, which we did two seasons of. It was 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's a.

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Mom hooked you up.

[Julian]

Hooked it up.

[Victor Rasuk]

I have a son, single, but it.

[Brian Greenberg]

Was very New York.

[Rory]

Like saying Meryl Streep and how to.

[Brian Greenberg]

Drop that, how to drive it, name drop.

[Julian]

So.

[Brian Greenberg]

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. He 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 just. 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. 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?

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

He's one of those guys. Like, if he's saying it's cool, then he's. 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 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

I'm like, all right, they're doing it.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's the lead HBO OWN Sundays.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. I mean, their slogan was, it's not tv, It's HBO right now. This is before Netflix, and everybody came up, but 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's dope.

[Unnamed Host]

That's awesome.

[Julian]

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

[Unnamed Host]

You'Re hired.

[Victor Rasuk]

They were like, offer from the city got the job.

[Julian]

Like, yo, y'all want somebody put the.

[Brian Greenberg]

Razor boy out his tongue.

[Julian]

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, all right, 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

You didn't want to be boxed in.

[Julian]

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 Lloyd to Dogtown.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Julian]

So Lloyd to 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.

[Rory]

Is you learn a skateboard.

[Julian]

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 long. 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 Lords. And then I was on another show. I was on er, which I played a young doctor coming. 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, I guess I have to audition for this. But I was like, thank God I could do something that's not a Lords of Dog Town or er where I'm like, I could play more to myself, because I knew that world. I mean, I knew the world in 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 like, 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 because, you know, Lev and Ian and Rob Weiss, they were all there when they saw me and hear me. And I think you could tell in the room and you like, oh, yeah, this is gonna work. We felt that soon.

[Brian Greenberg]

I rolled up on the fixed gear, you know.

[Julian]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Let's say I forgot.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, I think I, I, now that we're thinking about it, I remember thinking, wow, this show could be dope if. Because I know the world too. Like, we come from this, you know, I'm living in New York. It's like, I. We understand this downtown scene. We know these people. We're 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, Like, I know this world. I say, I think it's, I think if we do it right, it's going to work. Yeah. You know, so it's, it's a gamble.

[Victor Rasuk]

You know, the only, 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 why we never got a third season of Hot.

[Brian Greenberg]

You tell me, man. Cause I don't know.

[Victor Rasuk]

Well, 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Even like the clothes wearing a life, going to Flight Club, you know, going to the, going to the club's Avenue and all this. It was like we was just there.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Does it hold up?

[Julian]

Does it hold up?

[Unnamed Host]

I just recently rewatched saying how it still holds.

[Rory]

It's time capsule.

[Victor Rasuk]

Is a time capsule dated to you? No.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, with the fashion.

[Julian]

And I know you keep it on it too.

[Victor Rasuk]

Fashion. They're dressing like that now.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

So that's. That's dope.

[Victor Rasuk]

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 shoot matches with no. No permits.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

He wasn't even allowed to shoot. Just shooting that on one camera.

[Julian]

You know everything, bro. Were you there, bro? Like, this is my right.

[Brian Greenberg]

You see, I shoot.

[Julian]

You knew that.

[Victor Rasuk]

So I'm just. Look, 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

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 street worth.

[Brian Greenberg]

Right.

[Rory]

It was so niche at that time. Kind of to your point of, if we execute this right, it'll be great.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

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 thing. And it did not spread right across to everyone else for someone to get the genius of it also.

[Brian Greenberg]

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, 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, but the problems and issues they were going through.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Think they had to make room.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

For girls, if I'm being frank. Yeah, I think it was.

[Rory]

You guys did good with.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Julian]

They didn't. They didn't take that. It took a whole crew. Like, literally, like the camera, the DP of the whole crew that worked on how to make it. They Were like, yeah, we're working on the show called Girls next season, and. Oh, wow.

[Brian Greenberg]

And that's when we.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

You know, they was there. Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

If those. Eventually.

[Julian]

I thought about that, too. Imagine Canvas smashing all of them. Like, oh, yo, y'all just moved here. Let's go to the B.S. you ever heard of BS? Let's go.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

And I walk through the pleathers, and Ben is standing there with the cop. Cause the cop is like, let me see the permit.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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. You snatch the coach and you start running. Ben doesn't move. He's drinking his coffee with the cop. Like, you want to call your friend back home 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.

[Julian]

But I know.

[Victor Rasuk]

I know.

[Julian]

Me and you ran for five back in the day. So that was when I read that, I was like, oh, yeah, I've done this. But that's. That was so dope.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

That's right.

[Brian Greenberg]

And then you have your friend.

[Rory]

Yes.

[Julian]

Would you have told your man, though, too, right now?

[Rory]

I would stand there.

[Brian Greenberg]

You'd be.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right now, he's drinking the COVID He's been. He's standing there. I'm the guy that's going to be.

[Rory]

Like, yo, I'm out of family member laminated cards.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Rory]

I don't know. Maul.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

No idea.

[Julian]

Yo, that's.

[Rory]

Yeah, I'm waiting for an Uber.

[Victor Rasuk]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

He's hilarious.

[Victor Rasuk]

He would absolutely be in how to Make.

[Julian]

Now I'm trying to think of what project he was, because I, I, I. I feel like, you know, when you. 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. And I remember that we always had beef with. This is so stupid. But like, now the 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 Katz and Baruch. There's a project called Baruch, and I think that's where he might be from. I'm not sure. But I wonder if, like, fucking bump. I bumped into him on some beef. Stupid, like, adolescent shit.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

It's funny.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

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

[Rory]

Still beefing.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

N. I can't wait till you guys roll up. Yeah, it's on site.

[Unnamed Host]

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.

[Julian]

The.

[Unnamed Host]

The LA version of the New York version of Entourage is How to make an America.

[Brian Greenberg]

Never got that at.

[Unnamed Host]

At the table read or like, in the. 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?

[Brian Greenberg]

So I was definitely a fan of that show. I. I've seen every episode of Entourage. I think it's great. But like I said, like, I knew this world, and I knew that this was very far from that world. And the Entourage was about, like, very. It was like, aspirational. Right. These. 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 1200 together to, like, you know, pay a pattern. This is very. Not that world, you know? So it was just like two different.

[Unnamed Host]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Unnamed Host]

Like, Entourage always felt like a fever dream. And it was just like this whole, like, world that was like this. It's real, but it's not.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Unnamed Host]

This shows show is like the whole cop interaction running from the cops and. Yeah, that's. That's real. That's life.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

And stuff that could happen and how to make it. America was very anti that. It was a completely different world.

[Brian Greenberg]

Look, we were billed that way because obviously it's same producers. Rob White, you know, Mark Wahlberg, Steve Levinson. Money, 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 New York contrast. Okay, cool. I'll watch that. It's like, you know, you got it. Can't, like, give them. It's about these two upstarts who start denim.

[Julian]

No.

[Brian Greenberg]

You know, so it. 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.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Julian]

08. 08 08.

[Rory]

So was day and night even come out yet?

[Brian Greenberg]

Day and I was out. It was Day and Night.

[Victor Rasuk]

Was Cuddy at the time? No, no, he wasn't. He wasn't Cudi. But when he was on the screen, people know, yo, that's Kid Cudi. Like, everybody.

[Rory]

No, I feel like if you were kind of in the know, that's what it was. That's Cudi.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. It was for people in the know.

[Julian]

But now thinking that's a character came.

[Unnamed Host]

Out February 5th, 2008.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

He was like. Because we're like, oh, he's bona fides.

[Brian Greenberg]

Star at that point.

[Julian]

Yeah. At that point in season two, we were like, how y'all lock in? 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. 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. When the album. His first album dropped.

[Brian Greenberg]

Man on the moon.

[Julian]

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 at Times Square. It's just crazy. Yeah, I was more hyped for him than he was, bro.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, yeah, it was crazy.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Julian]

Yeah, but guess who's in the audience.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

Guess who was in the audience at.

[Brian Greenberg]

The bar in the back with a Yankee faded hello.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, Domingo dog.

[Julian]

Oh, yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Who thought of canines and cannabis?

[Victor Rasuk]

Who wrote that into the.

[Brian Greenberg]

Ian Edelman, I'm saying.

[Julian]

Yeah, yeah, it was.

[Brian Greenberg]

All credit goes to Ian.

[Victor Rasuk]

That is fucking.

[Julian]

But I feel like he. Because his ears still is. I feel like his ears are always to the streets. Yeah, he must.

[Victor Rasuk]

He knows. Somebody knows. Yeah, 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 as 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Sure. Without a doubt.

[Brian Greenberg]

And that's all. Ian. Ian found him.

[Julian]

Yeah, he found.

[Brian Greenberg]

He found him at, like, a party or something. What? I don't even.

[Julian]

HBO was like, who is this dude? HBO was like, who is this guy? But they loved him. I mean, when they performed, they're like, yeah, 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.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Julian]

And then obviously that. What? You know, they had Cam. They had. They had the vision of me being playing Cam. But then they loved him so much that the Mingo didn't even exist in the original pilot, that they wrote the Mingo because they loved his audition.

[Victor Rasuk]

He was originally supposed to be casted for one of the leads.

[Julian]

Correct. He came in for camp. And so they were like, obviously it was going to go to Vic, but they were like, yo, he could be.

[Victor Rasuk]

His own thing, yo.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

That's crazy.

[Victor Rasuk]

And then also. Which was dope. The. The iconic Luis Guzman, bro. Cousin Renee.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yes.

[Rory]

Icon.

[Victor Rasuk]

Culturally known as the iconic Pachanga.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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. We need some money.

[Julian]

We can relate to that.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[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 is he even.

[Brian Greenberg]

The thing is.

[Rory]

And why did it work?

[Brian Greenberg]

He can do no wrong. And I remember when we were shooting, we walked down the streets with him, and he would get love from everybody from different. So every fan was from a different.

[Victor Rasuk]

Like, for sure.

[Brian Greenberg]

It was never the same thing.

[Julian]

Brian and I have. You know, we've had the good fortune of working with some household names. Yeah. And. And. 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

All genres.

[Julian]

All genres.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. No matter who. What he does, he's pachanga for them.

[Julian]

Yeah, bro. You know, Brian's worked Demryl Stream Clooney. I think he's still more recognizing those. Those for sure. Like, it's.

[Victor Rasuk]

Without a doubt.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's crazy.

[Rory]

My friend's film story. F. Okay.

[Julian]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, I saw that.

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh, yeah.

[Julian]

It was the indie movie. I think he also produced it too. That's kind of why he told me to go watch it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I liked it a lot.

[Rory]

No, Aristotle's super talented.

[Julian]

Yeah, yeah. 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 Mazaric Projects. I'm from Jacob Reese, and we had been friends. And so when they were thinking about, like, a Louis Guzman type, it was like, why don't we just get Louis Guzman? They're like, oh, shit. Can we get Louis Guzman?

[Brian Greenberg]

I was like, business is funny, bro.

[Julian]

I make the call. Like, I've known him already, you know, he's like my big brother. You know what I'm saying? Like, I 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 gonna 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 at 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. Then they got Mark Wahlberg to seal the deal because him and Mark had done, like, two movies.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

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. Can you believe it if he didn't do it? I can't think of anybody else who did that.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Think about Louis. He plays Such a great heavy. Because he's got that face, ye know.

[Victor Rasuk]

He doesn't have to do.

[Brian Greenberg]

He just looks at you and you're like, okay, yeah. I was like, not acting either. I was like, oh, you're not sure.

[Rory]

If you should laugh or be terrified.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Okay. Okay.

[Julian]

I love this.

[Unnamed Host]

One more casting question before we do change gears. Push a T. How did he get into the show?

[Rory]

Yeah, forgot.

[Brian Greenberg]

Push a te. Yeah, yeah, Push was great, man.

[Julian]

What was the name of that?

[Victor Rasuk]

The Caribbean. What was it? The Caribbean.

[Brian Greenberg]

It was in season two.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

The Caribbean.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Rory]

For yourself.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. I hope he makes it.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, I hope he makes it, man.

[Brian Greenberg]

I. This gets the third season. I love this.

[Julian]

Y really like that Ben. Dude, bro, that cam dude is I. But damn, that bend. Dude, pick this thing up.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, and I love. What was it the one thing I did too, with the scarf. Leaving the scarf at. What was the thing, man?

[Julian]

I don't know. Remind me, dog.

[Victor Rasuk]

I felt like it was a.

[Julian]

Tell me what season. First of all, start off with that season one, right.

[Victor Rasuk]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

This is our show.

[Julian]

Yo, you showed. This is our show.

[Victor Rasuk]

I did.

[Rory]

I think this is your real life.

[Julian]

I don't remember.

[Unnamed Host]

We would go to the girls house every summer.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

Too, like, it was.

[Victor Rasuk]

You hook up with a girl, leave the scarf.

[Julian]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It was mentioned.

[Victor Rasuk]

You, like, whoa. Like, all right.

[Unnamed Host]

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.

[Julian]

Yeah. Okay.

[Brian Greenberg]

So how did he get cast? 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.

[Julian]

He's God.

[Victor Rasuk]

Does the music for Ballers.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. He did Ballers Entourage, but he was breaking a lot of, like, musicians. I mean, Alo Black.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Alone. You know, I mean, Aloe 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

So he replaced all the songs.

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

And he just ended up doing that.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. We also got to get Gabe Hilford. Gabe Hilfer is also one of the music supervisors who doesn't get as much credit, but he. He's 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.

[Julian]

But, yo, on a side note, just real quick, because I know you especially. I know Mars, like, a big fan. So you want to hear the anecdote?

[Brian Greenberg]

Those.

[Julian]

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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

How we was living real life. You know, we shut down the club. Yo, yo, we rap. We're gonna stay. Yeah. But there's a great moment I had to do with Aloe Black. So me and Brian, we shot the pilot, Right. So we're 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 got to do the adr, right? We got to 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, since are 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 in 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. 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. It was like two dudes acting like kids.

[Victor Rasuk]

We're like, oh, yeah.

[Julian]

And as actors, yo, it's like. It's crazy when you know you got something dope. It's pretty rare. Never forget that moment, bro. It was like, okay. And then ever since then, it was like.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

And the credit sequence.

[Julian]

The credit sequence, that was just.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, set the tone.

[Victor Rasuk]

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 before.

[Rory]

We shit on hbo. They've always been great at that. From Sopranos opening to Wire, like, you just knew right away.

[Julian]

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. Are we gonna ruin the legacy?

[Julian]

Exactly. So we were kind of nervous when we saw, ah, 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're like, you recorded it, you think it's gonna be dope. But then you hear. You're like, oh, shit.

[Brian Greenberg]

Overthinks everything, man.

[Julian]

That's what I'm saying. Like, we had that moment. So, like, it was just crazy. I never. And to 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 Alo Black, but push it to. I think it was Scott Venner. And by the way, I don't even know who he was at the time because he didn't really like, you know, the clips. I didn't really know, man. Like, I had to be put on by and everybody. And then he came on and did that whole thing. Like, you know, when he rapped, you.

[Rory]

Knew who the clips were.

[Julian]

Yeah, I knew the clips.

[Rory]

Didn't know. Yeah.

[Julian]

Him specifically.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

He wasn't solo at all.

[Julian]

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

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Pusha T. You guys know your music.

[Unnamed Host]

It was right around the same time.

[Julian]

Time, yeah.

[Rory]

That's why I was in 2010 when 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Good music. Yeah, sure.

[Julian]

He's from dmv, right?

[Rory]

Yeah, he's from Virginia.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Offset from the Bronx, man.

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, what?

[Victor Rasuk]

He moved to Virginia?

[Brian Greenberg]

Really?

[Julian]

Okay. Because he told me Virginia. So.

[Victor Rasuk]

He moved to Virginia at a very young, but I still say, push us from the Bronx.

[Julian]

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 is.

[Rory]

While we're on. Good music.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Talk to him about that.

[Brian Greenberg]

I'm close friends with Cut, and we'd 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 read something.

[Julian]

You said exactly what I was gonna say.

[Rory]

If I leave that alone. If he didn't Tell me it' if.

[Julian]

You my man, right?

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

If it comes up, it comes up.

[Julian]

I'm not 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

It depends on how close we are.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Don't even want to touch it.

[Julian]

Yeah, I don't even want to touch it.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, I feel you.

[Rory]

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

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Rory]

For quite some time. I can relive that.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Rory]

I'd leave it alone if you my man.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

You want to talk about it? I'm waiting.

[Brian Greenberg]

Sure.

[Victor Rasuk]

But I'm not going for it. I'm not gonna force.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, 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? Like, what? Yeah. So there's ways around this to. To get a new car. You should have called.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

This is my favorite season.

[Victor Rasuk]

Y'all are at the beautiful rooftop.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Everybody has on the crisp jeans and.

[Julian]

Yeah, but you going right to the end.

[Unnamed Host]

Yeah, that's how I begin Japan stories.

[Julian]

Yeah, let's talk about Japan.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

Nope. Nah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yep.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Ran the money up in Japan, going crazy.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. Yens were flying.

[Julian]

The Yens.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

There could be a whole episode only.

[Victor Rasuk]

Used, like, maybe 90 seconds, two minutes of it.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, Yeah.

[Julian]

Y. So you talking about you.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

Where we start, y'all. 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, hold on. Shut up. Shut up.

[Brian Greenberg]

Canceled. Let's just go.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

The Park Hyatt.

[Julian]

You put me at the Park Hyatt.

[Victor Rasuk]

In Japan, there's a different level.

[Rory]

We're gonna act as fool, you know, jet lag, get your brain.

[Julian]

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

[Unnamed Host]

Kamikaze.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

So. So we were shooting a lot, right? And then I would, like, sometimes be like, yo, we done yet? I'll tell Ian, yo, we done. I'm. No, we and Ian got it.

[Brian Greenberg]

You guys got into it?

[Julian]

We got into it. I was like, yo, we good club.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, we were going to.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

Yo, I want to go to the hip hop club.

[Brian Greenberg]

Like, Jesky was.

[Julian]

I want to eat Scarlett Johansson sushi. You know what I'm saying? I was trying to do it up, you know what I'm saying? Sushi. 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. 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, we. I'm good. I'm gonna meet you. Tell me where y'all at and I'll be there.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, yeah.

[Rory]

Storyline itself.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Oh, no, that was Great.

[Julian]

My favorite 90 seconds.

[Victor Rasuk]

That was amazing.

[Brian Greenberg]

It was the best thing I've ever shot.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

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 flight.

[Julian]

Yo, so let me. 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, because my.

[Brian Greenberg]

Boy is a big DJ out there. So he had it all hooked up.

[Julian]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, it's basically like New Orleans.

[Julian]

Like Bourbon street, but Bourbon street, like on a steroid. I remember over there, sleep. I remember I was like, yo, I'm so tired at like the third day. But we ate. Yo, we, we. Yo, we were like, yo, hbo. We love y'all, man. We. I was thinking we coming back season three. This. This season three money gonna pay for the season two. Money. Exactly.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's like too many massages.

[Brian Greenberg]

Too many massages.

[Julian]

I'm like, this gonna pay for all that, man. Yo, but the crazy.

[Brian Greenberg]

I was getting the continental breakfast, trying to be good, man.

[Julian]

Yeah, he was trying to get the continental breakfast. I was already eating sushi at 11:00am like, yo, bring the. 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 it's ever going to be.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's all downhill from here.

[Julian]

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. Like, 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yep.

[Victor Rasuk]

The way it was shot.

[Brian Greenberg]

We had a yacht.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. It was. Everything was. It was beautiful.

[Julian]

You tell the Jay Z story after you ask the question. I got.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Like, but season two, as far as. Because I've read that hbo, the. The. The. The. The people at HBO wanted the characters to progress.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

They wanted the. 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Did you feel like it did, or do you feel like we kept. Did you like season one better or. No, I.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Now y'all starting to rub shoulders with, you know, 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 up, you know, Pussy blindsides him a little bit.

[Julian]

It happens.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Cam. You start to see you. Y'all roles kind of switched in season two. You become more like, yo, bro, we gotta responsible.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Where Ben is like, hold the plot a little bit. Yeah.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's taking off.

[Julian]

I love season two, man. Man.

[Victor Rasuk]

And then it's like, nothing.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

Right.

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right.

[Brian Greenberg]

But when you've got, like, millions on the Line. Right. For these characters who've just come from that world.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right.

[Brian Greenberg]

It just feels like everything gets bigger. Right. Yeah. So I did enjoy that as an actor. Gave us more to play with.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

And it does suck for the fans because it does. It felt like we were just hitting our stride. Absolutely. Right. And then. And then it's just out.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's it.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Getting into that Entourage world. Right.

[Rory]

Season two, Entourage. He had already gotten Aquaman back to, like, more fantasy show. Must be the biggest movie star on earth. Season two.

[Brian Greenberg]

Right.

[Rory]

And maybe they're looking at this like.

[Brian Greenberg]

Right.

[Rory]

All right. They need kids. Needs to be open by now.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Fuck are we doing?

[Julian]

Yeah, yeah.

[Rory]

Just a thought.

[Brian Greenberg]

I see it.

[Rory]

And you progress quicker.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

But it just be struggling.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

This long.

[Victor Rasuk]

But why?

[Rory]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

If it's working, that's not stupid. Clearly this thing is working. 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Right.

[Victor Rasuk]

But see, you're not making An American.

[Brian Greenberg]

The executives weren't sitting where you were sitting. Right.

[Victor Rasuk]

And that's the problem.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. I used to love your show. I ripped everything I bit to her. And I was like, yeah, that's the.

[Julian]

Reason why we got canceled. Thanks. So it was like a low key dis, but like a compliment at the same time. See? Guilty. Right.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

See.

[Julian]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

I didn't have HBO before that.

[Rory]

I was ripping Entourage off Tornado.

[Brian Greenberg]

Your fault.

[Rory]

I didn't watch the hot. My Dell laptop.

[Victor Rasuk]

You know, we were Sundays that ran on gasoline.

[Brian Greenberg]

That was a big part of it. 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. In very high. But I don't think there's no social media at that time. So you can't count like those impressions. There was someone. 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

I mean, that kind of happened to me too.

[Victor Rasuk]

Like Rachel could have been in Girls.

[Brian Greenberg]

I did a really cool show called Unscripted on hbo. You know it. Okay, so it's hard to find. Stop.

[Rory]

How to make it America is hard to find too. The way they push things on Max.com right now.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Rory]

It's on TV though. If I.

[Brian Greenberg]

No, you can't find it or if.

[Rory]

You haven't seen it, let me know.

[Julian]

Yeah, let him know. Cuz he's been trying to find it. Cuz I love.

[Brian Greenberg]

This was like one of the.

[Unnamed Host]

It doesn't look like it's available anymore.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, you can. I don't know where it. Once they.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Okay.

[Rory]

In the depths. Yeah, like before they had.

[Brian Greenberg]

This was one of the things I've ever done, right. This. This show called Unscripted, that George Clooney.

[Unnamed Host]

I think I found a link to it on YouTube.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

So the thing is, this was a really cool show. The actors love the show. It's about actors trying to make it Hollywood. I play a version of myself. I play Brian Greenberg. 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.

[Julian]

Right.

[Unnamed Host]

That was cool.

[Brian Greenberg]

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 cat and they, they filmed on prime as well. And we would shoot with Meryl Streep and with Thurman it was. And we'd, 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Brian would never do that.

[Brian Greenberg]

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 me. Meryl Streep. Right? Not, not real.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right.

[Brian Greenberg]

Didn't happen.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right.

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Julian]

Right?

[Brian Greenberg]

So I'm shooting the scene on Meryl Streep and then we, we yell cut. And then on. And then. And 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

And they had the Comeback.

[Victor Rasuk]

So.

[Brian Greenberg]

And they had Cuber enthusiasm. So they had all these, like, entered. The comeback was with Lisa Kudrow.

[Julian]

That's right.

[Brian Greenberg]

There's all these like actor type shows.

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay.

[Brian Greenberg]

And I think they were just like, there's too many. We gotta. Yeah. So you can't have too many of the same thing on the same network. So I, I, I felt, felt the 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?

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, I like Dave.

[Rory]

It has. Has some comparison to it, I think.

[Brian Greenberg]

How to make it my two.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

You know. Yeah. But 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Julian]

I Wish I've done that show for, like, legit. I watched that.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, it was fun.

[Julian]

That looks like he had fun, too, man. And I always quoted. Because you know that the movie that he hit, his character, he gets on is called Tough Zone. Yeah. So he's like, tough Zone.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

I score, we play ball. I'm like, tough Zone. Keep saying, let's talk about Japan.

[Victor Rasuk]

We keep talking about Kith.

[Julian]

Right.

[Victor Rasuk]

How much do you think Crisp Inspired.

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Julian]

Inspired him. He said, yeah, he's inspired.

[Rory]

Yeah, I can imagine.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. He's kind of Teddy, too, with am. I mean, I haven't met Teddy. I'm a huge fan. Obviously, I'm wearing this right now. I love. I love what I does. I'd love to talk to. I think he'd be great. A great guest as well.

[Julian]

But.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. Ronnie always says, you're telling. You told our story. You told my story.

[Julian]

You know, so supposed to get Ronnie, like, it was just a.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

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 damn, so close.

[Rory]

Jeff Staple would be good.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

Oh, yeah.

[Rory]

I feel like that was that era, too. Like, in real time, I think.

[Julian]

Wasn't he one of the pitches? I feel like we. He was. His name was brought up already.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

I mean, when you guys were filming, he was.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Y'all in the show at the time in Lower east side.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Putting the pigeon everywhere.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Jeff Staple.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

To me, I thought they were kind of telling his story at the.

[Brian Greenberg]

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. And have said we've told their story and we told it authentically. So I'm proud of that.

[Rory]

What. What was the Jay Z story that you had?

[Julian]

Oh, yeah. All right, so check this out. So I'm excited. Let him come Crazy. This crazy.

[Rory]

Does he blow someone's car up?

[Julian]

Nah, nah. I gotta. I got. I gotta. I gotta lower the expectations. To me, I think it's D. Cuz he put help in anything. No.

[Victor Rasuk]

Cars are blown Up.

[Julian]

No, cars are blown up.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Julian]

So. So when we have. When we got Pharrell. Right. So before that episode was already written, it was about. It was about that we met somebody at the. On the boat, Right? Somebody influential. Like, like, you know, like a Jay Z or Pharrell. Anyway, so Jay Z, apparently Ian was cool with Rick.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

Okay.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

I'm sorry. Not the boat. Yeah, it was the pop.

[Victor Rasuk]

Okay.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

Yeah. But. But Ian was cool with who's his man.

[Brian Greenberg]

His wrist.

[Victor Rasuk]

Climbing.

[Julian]

Yeah, climbing.

[Rory]

Rich.

[Julian]

Front of Rich. So apparently Ian brought up to Rich. Jay. 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?

[Brian Greenberg]

How to.

[Julian]

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 did think.

[Brian Greenberg]

That, like, a miscommunication.

[Julian]

It was a miscommunication. So had the miscommunication not happened, we would at least have HOV for some, which I think that would've been true. Just like, how you. Like, I'm like, I'm good. Like, if you would've kept on the show, Brandon, we got Pharrell later. Which, by the way, like, we were still happy.

[Rory]

It's okay, I guess.

[Julian]

Can you imagine if ho. Just load the window, be like, yo, what's going on over here? And it just raised the window and that's it.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's all you would need.

[Rory]

Even then, I think Pharrell makes more sense.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Street wear and, like, but if you.

[Julian]

A music fan, like, we all are. Like, we would have been like, yo, I think.

[Brian Greenberg]

I think the bit was going to be that Ben and camera are. We're super hyped that Jay might stop by. Yeah, right. And then, like. Like, the thing was, like, I think there was a shooting at the popup or something like that wasn't there. Like. Yeah, that's why the. The popup dispersed down. And then. Yeah, and then. And then Jay was supposed to roll by at the end, roll his window down, and Be like, this is not happening. And then fire. Yeah, but it didn't happen.

[Julian]

It was a miscom, bro.

[Victor Rasuk]

Could have had H and he was still tight, bro, so that made sense.

[Rory]

But HOV was like, HBO Sunday guy.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

It's funny because you see this. 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. No, I mean, it's. It's been fun because 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, make a merch and make it. It's been truly enjoyable.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Like, new York Nico shot it.

[Julian]

New York Nico shot it.

[Victor Rasuk]

Shout out to new.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

A spoof, but like a nod.

[Julian]

Yeah, it was a nod.

[Brian Greenberg]

Exactly.

[Julian]

It was a nod. And, yo, that shit went bananas viral. Like, everybody's like, season three coming back.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's what started the talk.

[Brian Greenberg]

I almost felt bad. Yeah. I was like, what do we do.

[Julian]

Back for the fans? Like, that's not what we were.

[Brian Greenberg]

I didn't mean to tease people.

[Victor Rasuk]

Everybody started 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. They don't look like. They don't look like they filmed anything. They look like they're, like, playing with the idea. Kind of like, nudge the producers. Like, look, the Internet is going crazy over this one clip.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

But I think that gave us the inspiration to do our own joint. After we saw that, we, like, we do our own thing.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

So.

[Victor Rasuk]

But what y'all are doing is dope. Like, rewatching it.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Talking about each episode, reliving it.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

I think that's a genius idea.

[Brian Greenberg]

But the pot, like, when we.

[Victor Rasuk]

We.

[Brian Greenberg]

We pitched the pod during the actors tracks, we're like, we gotta do something, man. We got. So that's when the pod idea came around. And also people coming up to us all the time.

[Julian]

Show.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

We're like, let's. Let's do this podcast.

[Brian Greenberg]

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. 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. It's been really cool.

[Julian]

So, you know, we're gonna hit y'all to come on our podcast. Both y'all stories, man. Just see where y'all at now. Like, the Hustle.

[Victor Rasuk]

Whenever you.

[Julian]

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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

The theme.

[Rory]

That's the theme of how to make it America.

[Julian]

Right? The theme of how to make it America. Like, everybody got a hustle. It's like, you talk to people, you're like, what? You did what? Like that. How you blew up to where you are. Like, what. 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. 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, like, to. To have an excuse to, like, sit at the studio, chop it up, leave Our family, you know what I'm saying?

[Rory]

Have a real excuse. Feel abandoned. Your family.

[Julian]

You know what it is? You know what I'm saying?

[Brian Greenberg]

Workshop right now, man.

[Julian]

It's a work trip.

[Rory]

Y'all see networking.

[Julian]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

We gotta do more work trips.

[Julian]

We do more work trip, maybe. Yeah. We might see y'all in Detroit, London.

[Unnamed Host]

Go to Japan, get those 20.

[Julian]

20 pound burgers.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

I don't know, but I don't know.

[Julian]

If legally we get that name.

[Unnamed Host]

Probably the rights to it.

[Julian]

Like, HBO might have the rights.

[Unnamed Host]

I don't even know the rights to that.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

No, they already cr.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, I don't even want to give them a plug, but whatever.

[Victor Rasuk]

Crazy did that.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. I don't know.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

And for the blank tee.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Like, yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's such a New York thing. Me and Rory were just going through that with our merch.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Trying to find, like, the correct blanks.

[Brian Greenberg]

Hard right?

[Victor Rasuk]

20, 24.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

You know what I mean?

[Julian]

So it's like just that Rory's face says it all right there.

[Rory]

Because. Do you enjoy the process or 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. So when it comes to merch.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Ignorant to that entire process right now I see why this is people's entire life's passion.

[Julian]

I know.

[Rory]

Because it takes so much time to get something right.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Right. Yeah. Like, it has to. It has to sit right. It has to, like, you have to see it and be like, 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. The Japan and Y'all, like, look at this. Like, we. It's moving.

[Julian]

Yeah, yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's such a real thing.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

Yeah. It's got a weird name.

[Brian Greenberg]

Come on.

[Julian]

It was on watch.

[Brian Greenberg]

Was it Scar?

[Unnamed Host]

Oh, scars.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, scars.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

We were down there.

[Julian]

Sit at the bar, and it's a great spot. Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

I walked out, phone call, and someone's like, yo, love the pod. I was like, that's the first. First fan, first podcast, what you say? You know what I mean? It was a. It was a nice moment. It's a very nice moment.

[Victor Rasuk]

See the. See the. See the.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's reacting.

[Victor Rasuk]

He watches the pod. Same feeling you get when you have something in an idea. Idea.

[Brian Greenberg]

You.

[Julian]

You.

[Victor Rasuk]

You execute the idea, and it gets out into the world, and you now see people gravitating and connecting.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

To the.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's amazing.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's an amazing.

[Brian Greenberg]

And this is a new world for us, right. As actors to come into the podcast world.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Like, first. We're not the first ones to do that.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right.

[Brian Greenberg]

But it's just such. Such a different. It's just a different muscle. Right. And I, I. People like, what's the pot about? 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. So, you know, But I don' Better, though.

[Brian Greenberg]

I don't want to have. I'm trying to push an agenda.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Like Vic said, I'm not really 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. It 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

I think what y'all are doing is. It's so dope, man. Like, again, something like how to make it in America and what is meant to so many people, including myself. And to see y'all still have this chemistry in this relationship.

[Brian Greenberg]

Nice, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

And now do it podcasting. But then actually going back and reliving.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's been fun.

[Victor Rasuk]

Such a great, iconic show.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Is there a possibility for a season three.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

All you do is chime in, man.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Well, I'm gonna let you finish.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

The greatest albums of all.

[Julian]

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 L. A. Wow. Because he 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. Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Different than the original.

[Julian]

Yeah, different than the original. Yeah. The point I'm trying to make is that I think if, if the right audience, right, like, we on your show, we are, you know, we've been on other shows too. Like, if there's somebody in hbo, Right. Because it always takes just, like, the right person to just sit here and be like, what? Why do we. Oh, you know, 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's not the worst idea, but, you know, I'm not saying it'll happen, but.

[Julian]

I said if we, if that would have happened, if, if it would happen, I think we come back.

[Brian Greenberg]

I mean, here's.

[Julian]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

Like, that's not good for me mentally.

[Rory]

Right, Right.

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Right.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

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 right. But it's just. I feel very proud to be a part of that. And so this. This how to make It. America will always hold a very special place in my heart, in 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.

[Rory]

Everybody 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

They want ip.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

They want to play.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, I would only do it.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

I would only do it if Ian Edelman was.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Only do it him.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

But they did a cool nostalgia of, like, TV commanders coming back. So who knows, man? But, like, I really think the more that we do this, that somebody's gonna hear us.

[Brian Greenberg]

Somebody's gonna hear us campaigning.

[Julian]

Campaigning on our own podcast. I don't know. But, like, at some point, even if.

[Brian Greenberg]

It'S a movie, I think Lake felt was, like, I'm doing a movie.

[Julian]

Did she say?

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, I think Lake wants to do it.

[Julian]

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

[Unnamed Host]

Are you guys in touch with any of the other cat? I know you guys are obviously very close. Are there. Are the other cast members from that show?

[Julian]

Show.

[Unnamed Host]

Like a chat, a group chat or something?

[Brian Greenberg]

Well, we.

[Julian]

That we should start.

[Brian Greenberg]

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, who played capo.

[Julian]

Yeah, we did Cudi, like, a few.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Yeah, I mean, that's the biggest asset as far as a reboot to me. Yeah, it seems like Cudi would.

[Brian Greenberg]

He loves it.

[Rory]

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

[Julian]

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. He. If he. 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 at hbo? Like, what do I got to do? Cuz he's still. I think he's still tight about the cancellation.

[Brian Greenberg]

I know Louie was too. Yeah.

[Julian]

Oh, Louie was very.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

When he really.

[Julian]

Lou was.

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Julian]

Tell us where you was at. Tell where you was at.

[Brian Greenberg]

I was skiing him, man.

[Julian]

He was already spending 63 money he didn't even have.

[Brian Greenberg]

I was like, yo, we got this.

[Victor Rasuk]

Been there before, blowing the bag.

[Brian Greenberg]

I was gone, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

In main, he was in mammoth skiing.

[Brian Greenberg]

And yeah, I was chilling on the top of a mountain.

[Rory]

Like, definitely been there before.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Rory]

I bought a two day pass at.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

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 so many more stories to. To unfold. I feel like we're just getting started. So. I also like the audience. I just was blindsided.

[Rory]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

And.

[Julian]

And 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, oh, man, I'm gonna go. Let's go to West High. Okay. Let's go to Hollywood. Hollywood. Oh, wait, okay, that's. I can't afford that. I was putting the numbers together, seeing 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. Damn.

[Julian]

Yeah, you know, it was. It was, you know, naturally, but it.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

We don't know.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

They tell you they're not coming back.

[Brian Greenberg]

Thank you, but no, thank you.

[Julian]

And also, like, but I love hbo.

[Brian Greenberg]

Like, I'm not going to. I'm not going to on them 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.

[Julian]

I would.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

Story to end on that note.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's like, what if Nas just didn't illmatic and then never came back to Fonte's Biggie comparison?

[Julian]

That's true.

[Rory]

It's just like, it stopped right there. It's the greatest to us.

[Brian Greenberg]

And it's James Z.

[Julian]

Right?

[Brian Greenberg]

You know, you. You burn fast and. And die.

[Rory]

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

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Rory]

I hope he would have been a senator.

[Brian Greenberg]

Right.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

We don't know where would have taken it.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's true.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Rory]

Hopefully he would have been this political.

[Brian Greenberg]

You never know.

[Victor Rasuk]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

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.

[Victor Rasuk]

This is my favorite show a lot, man.

[Julian]

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. It benefits. Our podcast is great. I'm like, yo, you watch this?

[Brian Greenberg]

You guys are podcast pros. Give us, like, what are we doing wrong? Tell us, like, how. How can we. How can we improve on.

[Julian]

And off camera, by the way, we, you know, criticism.

[Victor Rasuk]

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 figure, I think that's, like, super unique that only you two could do something like that.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

We're just talking about it because the.

[Victor Rasuk]

Show represents a streetwear brand trying to start it in New York City. What Ronnie has been able to do with Kith is amazing. Sitting down, talking with you two and, you know, 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.

[Julian]

Talk about the Indian story.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Oh, I was there.

[Julian]

Yeah. No, I know you. That song was like, let's talk about.

[Victor Rasuk]

Working there at David Z's. But absolutely. What. How to make it in America and crisp. Inspired kid. That's not. I don't. Ronnie doesn't have to admit that to me. And I would know his line.

[Julian]

Yeah, yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

You understand what I'm saying? Because it's just. How could it not?

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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 in America.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

For sure.

[Brian Greenberg]

For sure.

[Victor Rasuk]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Right.

[Victor Rasuk]

There's a million podcasts. Everybody has a mic camera and talking. But what y'all have is so special and un. Unique. I think it's. It's. It's amazing.

[Julian]

Okay. We gonna be. We gonna be texting y'all too.

[Rory]

Like, if.

[Julian]

If you hear. If you. And you like, yo, Vic, you should have done this. So y. Y should have talked about that. Let me know. Let us know.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. Oh, yeah, Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, okay.

[Rory]

If you go episode four, season one, episode five, like, I would Spread it out in between.

[Brian Greenberg]

Okay.

[Rory]

Telling some of these stories. Story.

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

That's kind of what we're doing.

[Rory]

I'm saying spread that out even more. Like, I watched the Sopranos episode Base One.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Chris Maltisante.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, right, right.

[Rory]

You guys have two seasons, right?

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. And choice that out because you want.

[Rory]

People to really anticipate when we get to the finale, like, see, I told you, man.

[Brian Greenberg]

I did tell you.

[Julian]

If you could, you get to see.

[Rory]

Right away, it's like, all right, man.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

Okay. Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Okay.

[Rory]

In between people to tell their stories.

[Brian Greenberg]

Got you, got you. Got you, yo.

[Rory]

And just focusing on streetwear people.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, yeah. You got to get more into that.

[Julian]

Yeah, no, we are going to get. We are going to 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 Tim's to take David Z's. And then across the street. Street, just west of it. That's where I got my north face bubbles from. It was a. It was that spot right there on Broadway. It's like you cross the street at David Z, you go a little bit north, and it's right there. You remember that?

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, rat. Yellow rat.

[Julian]

No, 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

And it was on the same block.

[Julian]

It was. 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 how Houston.

[Victor Rasuk]

I can't.

[Brian Greenberg]

This is gonna be the best.

[Julian]

Anyway, 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 the new Jordans there.

[Victor Rasuk]

I'm gonna have the name of that store.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

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.

[Victor Rasuk]

I'm.

[Brian Greenberg]

We're not those guys anymore.

[Victor Rasuk]

I'm not that guy anymore either.

[Brian Greenberg]

What?

[Victor Rasuk]

I don't go out.

[Julian]

For real. I'm shocked.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

We met in a club.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

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 and we met.

[Victor Rasuk]

I met you in 2014.

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

@ 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 Griffin. Nah, I was like. I said, yo, that's him and I. And I. 14 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 out room for sure.

[Victor Rasuk]

I can't remember where the fuck I.

[Julian]

Was at the Red Wine.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's probably you standing.

[Victor Rasuk]

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.

[Julian]

Damn being.

[Victor Rasuk]

I just kept it moving like. That was like. It was like 2014 for me.

[Julian]

As soon as you came out the elevator, I was like, we met before. I was like, it was real quick.

[Victor Rasuk]

Obviously, the podcast, it was real quick. And I just gave you a. A salute and, you know, told you. I love the show, but this is our first time.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

You know, I'm done.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Exhausted.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

That's what I'm saying.

[Victor Rasuk]

I don't know.

[Rory]

I don't think you'd like Little Sister.

[Unnamed Host]

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

[Rory]

I feel like you wouldn't like that.

[Julian]

Like, I, I, I, I.

[Unnamed Host]

It depends on who I'm with. The crowd. Do it if I need to.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

Jeans. Not a good look.

[Unnamed Host]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Okay.

[Unnamed Host]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

I like a good lounge. Yeah.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yes.

[Rory]

Rest in peace to Gold Bar closed last month.

[Brian Greenberg]

But you know what? Gold Bar is closed before and it comes back, but it's like, no, no.

[Rory]

I think it's official.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's dead.

[Rory]

With the scope, you have to give it its credit. Is that probably the longest lasting?

[Unnamed Host]

Let's go.

[Rory]

Since I was 18.

[Brian Greenberg]

Longest lasting, 34.

[Julian]

The longest.

[Rory]

Corny. Gold Bar never really got corny.

[Julian]

Never.

[Rory]

I agree with you on Marino.

[Julian]

Right, right, right.

[Rory]

The longest lasting club. That did not get corny to me.

[Julian]

Crazy to me.

[Brian Greenberg]

Okay.

[Unnamed Host]

I went a couple time.

[Julian]

Yeah, it's corny. But he's like, I've been.

[Rory]

I've been a marquee, too. I'm not. I'm just like, ultra relevant.

[Julian]

I agree with. With you on that. But, yeah, I. I was shocked that marquee was still open. I was like. And during the pandemic, too, I was like, yo, this is crazy.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Rory]

Marquis was open during the pandemic.

[Unnamed Host]

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.

[Unnamed Host]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, yeah, it was great.

[Unnamed Host]

They leave the kitchen open, bring food, byob.

[Brian Greenberg]

We'll just get up in everybody getting co.

[Unnamed Host]

It was so much fun.

[Julian]

Super spready. Yeah. There's only one way to go.

[Brian Greenberg]

Everybody gets.

[Rory]

I've got a few of those.

[Unnamed Host]

If we all get it, we all.

[Victor Rasuk]

Get it, then we'll be just fine.

[Julian]

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. Was. Fool was like, mask? What you talking about? Nobody wearing masks. I'm like, yo, it's crazy to me, man. I was just here.

[Brian Greenberg]

I didn't say that.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

That's what it was too.

[Brian Greenberg]

He's like, how do I get a Metro card?

[Julian]

I remember back in There it was just a coin with the little. Oh, yeah, I know. That's how I was like. And now I'm like, damn, they charging what, two sound for the bet?

[Victor Rasuk]

291, bro.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Was like, you have the terms.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

The mic. I'm not gonna touch the mic, but I'm dropping.

[Victor Rasuk]

It's a Hawaiian punch, and I can get on the train for 290.

[Julian]

Tropical fantasy, dog. Sperm killer, bro. Come on, dog.

[Victor Rasuk]

Absolutely.

[Julian]

There should be. Yo, there was a podcast talking about the sperm killer. Just, you know, it was called. I forgot what it was called, but they. They 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

That. That shook the hood up like, Ko, bro, bro. When we thought tropical fantasies lowered your sperm count, yo.

[Julian]

Cause I would play ball, right? I would play ball. Play ball 10, yo. Rory's like. He's like, Yo, I play ball 10D, right?

[Rory]

So I forgot that was a fun thing.

[Julian]

But we going back up there with.

[Rory]

Lil Kim getting their stomach pumped.

[Julian]

Yes. Yo, yo. So that when I used to play ball, cuz, like a Sprite or whatever was a little bit more expensive. So you get the tropical fantasy. But then the myth started happening, and 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. The lights on the 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. Grand Hill was drinking it anyway, so. Yeah, y'all taking me back.

[Brian Greenberg]

What about the nutcrackers? You ever get the nutcrackers?

[Julian]

Nah. No.

[Victor Rasuk]

Never had a nut parker?

[Julian]

Nah. Which one's that one with?

[Brian Greenberg]

That's what they sell them in the park.

[Julian]

Nah.

[Victor Rasuk]

You never had one?

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Nobody really knows. Nobody really knows, though.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Definitely wasn't covering that.

[Brian Greenberg]

People making their Own drinks, but they.

[Julian]

Get Tropical Fantasy still out there.

[Rory]

Oh, that. I. I doubt it.

[Julian]

Okay.

[Brian Greenberg]

Really?

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah. Where Tropical Fantasy is still around.

[Rory]

I don't go to that part of the.

[Julian]

The bodegas, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Or.

[Julian]

Or the Roster Monster.

[Rory]

Far from that.

[Julian]

Look how he lit up. He lit up.

[Victor Rasuk]

That was that spicy.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

Roster Monster.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, you worked with Johnny Knoxville?

[Julian]

Yeah, because he played my manager on Lords of Dogtown.

[Rory]

It was his first, like, real role.

[Brian Greenberg]

I didn't know.

[Julian]

No, no, no. Actually. 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, speed. And in Many Black, he played like.

[Julian]

Yeah, yeah.

[Rory]

Those are all, like, caricatures.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Rory]

He then played the kid in the Special Olympics.

[Brian Greenberg]

Like.

[Julian]

Yes.

[Rory]

But this was the first time I feel like he got into sort of a serious role. He was still funny, but so.

[Julian]

So how he got that role is that at the time, his agent at CAA was Heath Ledger's agent, which Heath Ledger, obviously. So he was. I think he was just trying to find kind of like, what I was saying was 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 going to watch this movie, which they kind of didn't at the time, but his age was like, yo, you should do that. And there's a great role for you to play, a serious role. The crazy thing about Johnny Knoxville and.

[Brian Greenberg]

The crazy thing about things about him.

[Rory]

Starting at Lord's, a Dark Town, of the crazy part of Johnny Knox.

[Julian]

That movie, it really. How do you say? Encouraged a lot of bad behavior, let's just say, 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?

[Rory]

I really love that movie.

[Julian]

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 shaky.

[Brian Greenberg]

Who was nervous? He was.

[Julian]

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. I was like, you gonna do this right before. I was like, you want to do this right before we roll? 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 were looking at us at the time because he could do it on the low. The red. The blue pill. I was like, nah, I'm good, bro. And the reason why I was like, you gotta remember, they took me from the hood. I'm in Hollywood, and I'm like, oh, this is how they roll out here. Okay, yo, this is good. 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

You can puff trees and act, but hold up.

[Julian]

I was puffing trees when they were like, cut. Because it was the same thing, like, how to make it. We would shut down the club. And if you watch Lord, 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're doing, it's okay. Keep doing it, but just don't use your accent. Wow, it was crazy. It, like, tripped me up.

[Rory]

Sound like Venice.

[Julian]

Yeah, exactly. To answer your question, he was mad cool. I just wasn't on that vibe that time. But he was really trying his credit. 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]

But I think that's super interesting, because you would say, why would Johnny Knoxville be nervous about anything?

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Rory]

He shoots himself out of a can. He fights butterbeans.

[Julian]

That's what I was saying, bro.

[Unnamed Host]

The butterbean, like, that's it, too.

[Julian]

Like, listen, he drinks his sweat after, like, running on the treadmill. It's 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, okay. 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

You get nervous.

[Rory]

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

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Johnny said, fuck it.

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

They'Re like horse pills.

[Julian]

Yeah. It was like. It wasn't a. It was like a. The. The gel one. So, you know, like, ty on, man. No. No, it wasn't, bro.

[Rory]

With you, it could have been just been a.

[Julian]

No, because later in another scene, Amil was like that. He did the same thing to him. I don't know if he took it or not, but he.

[Victor Rasuk]

Michael, do he offer you.

[Julian]

Maybe early on.

[Unnamed Host]

That's pretty.

[Julian]

He was on in some shape. Maybe he was. Michael doing.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, the acting thing's funny, cuz. Like, it looks easy, right? Everybody's. 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 Feral 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. It's not. It's not. It doesn't come natural.

[Julian]

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, it's a walking talk right now, me and Brian in the middle of Canal Street. And action. And I. I was always nervous because, you know those walking talk scenes that we're doing in the streets, we were doing down here. Yeah, we. Right. If we. If one of us it up, go all the way back to one. And I will feel bad because he was giving a dope performance, but I up this line, so we got to go back to that. So it's like the nerves are there, but I wasn't carry this guy. He had a cat he had to carry. 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

I can't. Like, I've worked with some actors who spoke before they. I don't know. 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 what I used. I don't really smoke anymore, but I was smoking. And then they did change my call time, and they brought me in, and I was still so hot. And, like, you know when you get paranoid, like, and it's like, you think everybody's looking at you?

[Victor Rasuk]

Yes.

[Brian Greenberg]

What if they really were?

[Julian]

Yo, it was really bad on the train. It was better. Yo, y'all saw. You just saw recently. He was bent on the train being like, am I talking too loud? Yeah, I gotta get off this train.

[Brian Greenberg]

I was like, I don't know how some act, but I've worked with comedians who just, like, you go into their trailer and it's just wheat, blunt after blunt. I don't know. I can't. I'm not a functional stoker like that. I've noticed that.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Julian]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, guys, let me get that chocolate fantasy, y'all. Let me get that.

[Rory]

Not really a smoker like that. Matter of fact, what was it two weeks ago?

[Unnamed Host]

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

[Rory]

I'm not a weed smoker at all.

[Julian]

How was it?

[Brian Greenberg]

Okay.

[Rory]

Ripe. Before we started recording, I could barely read the. 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.

[Julian]

Why did you get through it, though?

[Rory]

Yeah, and then we went to.

[Victor Rasuk]

And they loved it.

[Rory]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Why didn't we get high?

[Rory]

Worst episode I've ever.

[Julian]

Why did we get high? Roaring today.

[Brian Greenberg]

I'm gonna come back, get high.

[Julian]

Roll.

[Rory]

So you hate me now?

[Brian Greenberg]

No, I'm just saying I want to see that.

[Victor Rasuk]

I'm gonna do y'all show. I want to do y'all. I want to be high when I do.

[Julian]

All right. All right. Bet. All right.

[Victor Rasuk]

That's what I want to do.

[Brian Greenberg]

I'm gonna take.

[Victor Rasuk]

You don't smoke.

[Brian Greenberg]

I'm gonna take the blue pill.

[Victor Rasuk]

You gonna take the blue?

[Julian]

No.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

You gotta.

[Julian]

And I don't.

[Brian Greenberg]

I don't. I. 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's kind of like clubbing. Like, I do not want to be.

[Victor Rasuk]

They used to be fun again.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's not fun anymore.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah, it's not fun.

[Brian Greenberg]

I don't know.

[Julian]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, I'm high.

[Rory]

Not only that. Second wave.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Higher.

[Julian]

Yeah, bro. That's why I like doing it.

[Rory]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Meryl is mad cool that she was. She was like.

[Julian]

She.

[Brian Greenberg]

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 be very.

[Victor Rasuk]

I love people like that.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. Like, she doesn't.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yes.

[Victor Rasuk]

And, you know, people know.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Rory]

Yes, it's me.

[Victor Rasuk]

Does everything to be like, yeah, she.

[Brian Greenberg]

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 play music? Oh, yeah, I play guitar with her and just hang out.

[Victor Rasuk]

I love people.

[Brian Greenberg]

She was so fun. She was so cool.

[Rory]

If I was high and Meryl Streep.

[Brian Greenberg]

Came to my trailer.

[Rory]

Yeah, this isn't real.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Stop touching her face. Nah. Seeing go every 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 fucking well on Lords of Dogtown. Yeah, that's one of my favorite Heath roles. And after you found out what happened with Dark Knight, was he acting?

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

No. So. So. So, like I said, it was my first, like, Hollywood movie. So when they flew. When they flew us out there and I got cast, Heath actually went out of his way to call me Emil and John, and he was like, hey, come to my house. And, you know, we're. This is me. And so his vibe, he. He. 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. Right. It's like. Like kind of what you said. And by the way, he was. He was already, like, pretty known already. He had done. He already done the Path and Knight's Tale, the page treatment. Like, you know, was that before Brokeback or. So we got. I got a story, a real quick story, 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 telling me that you had rented a house and, I mean, you stayed up.

[Brian Greenberg]

No, that was.

[Unnamed Host]

They were there.

[Julian]

Oh, you guys.

[Unnamed Host]

I was there, too.

[Julian]

Okay. Yes.

[Unnamed Host]

The house we had in the hills.

[Julian]

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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Was it called the navigation?

[Julian]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

Or Gemini. Whatever.

[Brian Greenberg]

Shout out Garmin.

[Julian]

Shout out Garmin.

[Rory]

Come back sponsor.

[Julian]

So I'm like, all right, I'm going here. I'm like, you know, I don't know how to drive. I'm like, yo. So we get there, 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 a lot of pillows. 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. And I love Australian. So I was like, he's playing his music. I'm like, this is the first time again put onto, like, I knew Rolling Stones, but, like, I was really getting put on the, 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 your 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.

[Julian]

No, you know what happened, you know, know what happened when we wanted certain big songs, like even Iron man from Black Sabbath, Osborne's son, what's his son's name?

[Brian Greenberg]

Jack.

[Julian]

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 gonna 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 though, 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.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

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. It was just a different sort of frequency when it came to Venice. But the surfing, he already knew.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Oh, yeah.

[Julian]

You guys are funny. I think that's his best performance.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah. Well, you don't think it's better than Dark?

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, he was incredible to be able.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

Literally and figuratively.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

As an actor, I thought that was his best performance.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, he definitely.

[Julian]

He definitely broke into something in. 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 those things.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, it was.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Brokeback, he did have this, like, physicality where you can see that, like, the secrets was torturing his. It was twisting him up. And he. The way he contorted his body. It was. He was. The first time I was like, this dude's on another.

[Julian]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

And broke down and then.

[Victor Rasuk]

And then Joker to costume makeup.

[Julian]

Yeah. Like, it helps the illusion. I think with Brokeback, there was no illusion, bro. Yeah, it was like you had the hat and it was here.

[Brian Greenberg]

Joker. To me, that's, like, one of the most iconic performances I've ever seen. Yeah.

[Rory]

Period.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Brian Greenberg]

They go real.

[Julian]

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 really Scott Gladiator, but he hadn't. Like, he was doing stuff, but he had, like, really popped. So they would always hang out. And I was like, oh, yo, yo, Joaquin Felix. That's crazy. Can you imagine the amount of times they probably, like, like, audition for the same part? Like, it's crazy.

[Brian Greenberg]

Anyway.

[Victor Rasuk]

Yeah.

[Julian]

But thanks for the question. No, I haven't talked about Heath in a long time.

[Rory]

Even his performance in Lords of Dog Town, like, he didn't just play some stoner burnout. Like, it wasn't a Cheech and Chong role that he did. He was very much like the joker in that movie. His performance in Lords of Dogtown.

[Brian Greenberg]

I got to go back, watch that.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Enough.

[Julian]

Because you see, like, oh, man, I'm about to lose these kids. Who I was. I was really. I. I was hard on them. But, like, it was kind of like that, like, tough dad love. And then when you saw he was about to lose everything he worked for, just like what Heath did again without, like, kind of a Louis Guzman. Not. Not, you know, two different type of actors, but where he. 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. Yeah.

[Rory]

It's an incredible role.

[Julian]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Rory]

And just if 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.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Oh, I'm the fucking loser.

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Rory]

Out of this entire thing.

[Brian Greenberg]

No, that's really his role back on that.

[Rory]

All these kids that I thought I could control now have moved on with their lives and want to do shit. And I used to clown them for trying to do other shit, and now I'm this loser still trying to make a surfboard. Yo, that going through overpaid bills.

[Julian]

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. Because, you know, he had that surfboard. He was like, hey, man.

[Victor Rasuk]

Late.

[Rory]

Leaning off the.

[Julian]

I was like, this. This is an actor that you want to get out the way because you're 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 wanna get hit. But not in a bad way.

[Brian Greenberg]

Like, not.

[Julian]

It was control, but it was in a way where, like, I'm not gonna take this moment right now. This moment. It was crazy. Sorry. Yeah, I'll shut up.

[Rory]

No, no.

[Victor Rasuk]

Great. Tell the people where they can catch the pod and listen to you guys.

[Brian Greenberg]

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

[Julian]

Yeah.

[Victor Rasuk]

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, for, for coming through today, spending time kicking it. Thank you for how to make 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. Whatever the next season is from you too. I'm looking forward to it. I support you guys.

[Julian]

Thank you.

[Brian Greenberg]

It's honor to be here.

[Julian]

So much honor to be here, man.

[Brian Greenberg]

For real love.

[Victor Rasuk]

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

[Unnamed Host]

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

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Unnamed Host]

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

[Julian]

Real leathers, 150 a piece. Mark Buch canon for the SOL. The jackets, 150 a piece. Get one. Still chilly. Get one for your boyfriend. There you go, right there. Check one out. Check one right there. That was his ad. Okay, guys, let's see the vendor's permit. What? Oh, yes, yes. Right here. Great. See it. Great.

[Rory]

He's in a lot of hbo.

[Brian Greenberg]

Like, I don't know if he.

[Julian]

Fucking.

[Victor Rasuk]

Vic, call your friend back here, please.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Julian]

I gotta go.

[Victor Rasuk]

I'm a caller right now.

[Brian Greenberg]

Yeah, we'll talk to you.

[Victor Rasuk]

He's just ginger.

[Julian]

Peace.

[Brian Greenberg]

Thank you, guys.