Cam’ron | ROC Solid w/ Memphis Bleek

Summary

---

ROC Solid w/ Memphis Bleek

Episode: Cam’ron
Date: September 9, 2025
Host: Memphis Bleek | Guest: Cam’ron

---

Overview

This episode of ROC Solid with Memphis Bleek delivers a deeply personal, unfiltered conversation with Harlem rap icon Cam’ron. Together, Bleek and Cam’ron retrace their intertwined careers from the golden days of Roc-A-Fella through rivalries and reunions, sharing never-told backstage politics and business lessons from the podcasting world, the music industry, and beyond. Cam’ron opens up about the sports podcast hustle with Mase, the complexity of his relationships with Jim Jones and the Diplomats, the realities of business after rap, and why reinvention is the key to lasting in hip-hop. This episode is packed with candid anecdotes, real talk, and hard-won wisdom for anyone trying to stay solid in the game.

---

Main Topics & Key Discussion Points

1. Entry into Podcasting and Business Moves

• Cam’ron’s reasons for launching his own podcast ([03:25] – [08:03]):

  • Inspired by N.O.R.E. pushing him to do Drink Champs and then seeing the massive sales boost for his product, Pink Horsepower, after guest appearances.
  • Realization of “commercial podcasting” as leverage:

    "When I went on Nori’s show, Drink Champs, the product did like 700% more than what I was doing on my own… I’m like, damn. Hold on. Hold the fuck on." — Cam’ron [05:51]

  • After figuring out the business model, Cam created his own podcast focused on sports, blending street talk and professional settings for real impact.

• Sports podcast vision explained ([08:13] – [09:13]):

  • Cam’ron purposely set out to create a “professional meeting street” vibe, wearing suits while speaking in authentic street language, bringing together two worlds rarely seen together, resulting in a unique, highly marketable brand.

2. Roc-A-Fella Memories & Tensions

• Early Roc-A-Fella days memories ([10:05] – [12:32]):

  • Cam recounts first hustles with Dame Dash, being broke post-college, and the moment that motivated him seeing Tata pull out a huge wad of money.
  • Discusses watching the Roc team from the periphery before getting his shot.

    "I was fresh kicked out of college… when the bill came, Tata pulled out this big ass knot… I’m thinking, yo, I gotta get to it." — Cam’ron [11:13]

• Reflection on the infamous Roc-A-Fella beefs ([12:32] – [16:37]):

  • Memphis Bleek asks candidly why Dipset used to throw shots at him.

    "What did I say about you?" — Cam’ron
    "Y’all was gunning at everybody. I used to be sitting there like… just was my man." — Memphis Bleek [12:53]

  • Cam explains he never personally had issues with Bleek, and much of the friction stemmed from industry politics and misunderstandings.

• Navigating the Jay-Z dynamic ([14:19] – [16:37]):

  • Cam reflects on walking into an established machine at Roc-A-Fella and the pressure to fit in and not “mess things up.”
  • Shares a tense memory of bringing DJ Kay Slay (who played diss tracks from both Nas and Jay-Z) to the studio and Jay’s warning to be careful.

3. Reunions, Growth, and Unresolved Histories

• Memorable moments & grudges ([17:13] – [18:55]):

  • Bleek confesses he was jealous of Cam'ron's "Suck It or Not" record, even during tense times.
  • Both discuss the catharsis of their on-stage reunion (the B Sides 2 concert) and what it meant for New York.

• Behind the “Cam as Roc President” controversy ([18:16] – [18:55]):

  • Bleek reveals he called Jay-Z directly angry at Cam possibly becoming Roc’s president, showing how real the emotions once were.

• Discussion about unresolved issues and group reunions — Diplomats & Beans ([19:08] – [24:41]):

  • Cam dives into the Diplomats’ issues, stressing the difficulty of rekindling the brotherhood:

    "The run was only seven years. We got 15 years of disputes, the arguments and reunions longer than the run." — Cam’ron [24:53]

  • He owns responsibility for some conflicts but also describes the complexity of group dynamics and public expectations.

4. The Realities of Hip-Hop: Reinvention, Legacy & Business

• Why albums don’t make sense in 2025 ([31:02] – [33:07]):

  • Cam’ron breaks down the current music landscape — short attention spans, album shelf-life, and why he’d rather release singles or focus on touring:

    "A great album today... two weeks. That's a great album. Why am I gonna put my hard work in and get just two weeks?" — Cam’ron [31:22]

  • Describes supporting himself for years off his classic catalog and recognizing the power of timeless records vs. keeping up in an oversaturated market.

• The business of merch — Roc-A-Fella, Wu-Tang & beyond ([33:13] – [36:21]):

  • Cam credits Wu-Tang and Roc-A-Fella for inspiring his own merch game, and emphasizes that in hip-hop, being someone people want to emulate is as important as skill.

    "You could be the best lyricist in the world. But do a nigga want to be like you?" — Cam’ron [35:06]

5. Growth, Learning, and Life After Rap

• Entrepreneurial failures and hustle mentality ([36:27] – [37:57]):

  • Cam’ron discusses failed investments, continuous experimentation, and why not every idea is a hit:

    "Everything I do don't work... you do throw a hundred different things at the wall to stick." — Cam’ron [36:44]

• Upcoming projects announced ([37:22] – [38:16]):

  • Cam’s next big move: producing and hosting “Killa Comedy Show” at Beacon Theater with high-profile comedians, plus an upcoming book.

• On Jay-Z, Nas, and evolving business moves ([50:36] – [52:41]):

  • Cam and Bleek discuss how Jay-Z and Nas succeeded by building business empires beyond rapping, and why “after rap is still life.”

    "Jay Z's business... you’re not harassing him to do an album. Same thing with Nas… moves that really matter." — Cam’ron [50:36]

• Lessons in reinvention and taking the “reality pill” ([42:41] – [44:20]):

  • Bleek and Cam keep it 100 about facing tough transitions post-rap, swallowing pride, and realizing when it’s time for something new.

    “Reality pill, that’s the realest I think I ever had to take in my life... going from getting booked for 30, 40 grand a club, to walking in with a bottle, asking you to buy something from me, felt like I fell down the ladder. But I had to put the pride down and get it cracking, bro.” — Memphis Bleek [42:41]

6. Podcasting, Monetization & the New Hustle

• Differences between rapping and podcasting ([44:55] – [46:25]):

  • Cam emphasizes it takes personality and comfort on the mic to carry a show, not just a history in music.

    "Just because you've been around music don't mean you could talk about music." — Cam’ron [44:55]

  • Both discuss why many podcasters chase internet beef simply for YouTube checks.

• Business behind “It Is What It Is” podcast with Mase ([54:39] – [57:57]):

  • Cam describes big money offers, negotiations with Mase, and why their show only happens if the deal is right.

    "If this don't go through for this amount, you owe me $8 million." — Cam’ron [56:45]

  • He also explains his high standards for group collaborations with past friends like Juels Santana—“It’s gotta be a moment.”

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Cam’s entry into podcasting:

  "It wasn't about the pod... Nori kept asking me, ‘do the show’… but what really happened was, when I went on Nori’s show … I made 400 [thousand] this week off just off Nori show."
  — Cam’ron [05:51]

• On the professional setting of his sports show:

  "You got niggas who do podcasts, they in the living room... Then you got the sports shows with great backgrounds... The two worlds never met. So I’m gonna build a set, we throw the suits on, talk street. That was the vision."
  — Cam’ron [08:13]

• On lessons from the Roc:

  "I soaked in a lot from Roc-A-Fella... watching Jay and Dame get a $120 million check for Rocawear…"
  — Cam’ron [33:40]

• On Diplomats’ future:

  "The reunions, the arguments, the fighting’s been 15 years. The run was only seven years…"
  — Cam’ron [24:53]

• On reinvention:

  "It’s mad niggas that don’t know it’s over. That’s the worst. I be seeing that. … When the rap slowed down... I had to reinvent myself."
  — Cam’ron & Memphis Bleek [43:28–43:39]

• Business acumen—Jay-Z & Nas:

  "Jay-Z’s business, his announcements, brother. He’s selling this or selling that and making this and making that. … You’re not harassing him to do an album. Same with Nas."
  — Cam’ron [50:36]

• The “must be a moment” for a new Dipset record:

  "We haven’t done music in so long—it gotta be a moment. If me and you gonna do a record, it got to be a real moment. … It has to be a Cam and Mase moment."
  — Cam’ron [54:41, 57:57]

---

Important Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment / Discussion | |-----------|-------------------------------------------| | 03:25 | Cam’ron discusses entry into podcasting | | 05:51 | Impact of Drink Champs on Pink Horsepower | | 08:13 | Professional set for sports podcast | | 10:30 | Cam’s first Roc-A-Fella encounters | | 12:53 | Addressing dipset/bleek tensions | | 18:16 | The Roc President controversy | | 24:53 | Diplomats: run vs. years of beef | | 31:22 | Why Cam won’t release a new album | | 33:40 | Merch, Wu-Tang & rap emulation | | 36:27 | Cam on hustle and failed investments | | 37:22 | Comedy show announcement | | 42:41 | Reality pill: Reinvention after rap | | 44:55 | Difference between rapping and podcasting | | 50:36 | Jay-Z, Nas, & business after music | | 54:41 | On Dipset, Juels, and needing a “moment” | | 56:45 | The $8 million podcast deal story |

---

Final Reflections

• Both Cam’ron and Memphis Bleek express deep appreciation for their shared past, but stress the importance of evolving beyond old drama and nostalgia.
• They reiterate the value of business savvy, diversification, and staying relevant in new ways as hip-hop matures.
• The conversation, though laced with humor and old war stories, is ultimately about personal growth, the hustle behind every success, and how “staying solid” means changing with the times.

---

For those who want an unvarnished, insider perspective on hip-hop culture, business, and survival, this episode is essential listening.

Transcript

[Hunter]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[Memphis Bleak]

You can make a difference in someone's life, including your own, with a job in home care. These jobs offer flexible schedules, health care, retirement options, and free training. They also provide paid time off and opportunities for overtime. Visit oregonhomecarejobs.com to learn more and apply. That's oregonhomecarejobs.com.

[Hunter]

Short on time, but big on true crime. On a recent episode of the podcast Hunting for Answers, I highlighted the story of 19 year old Lachey Dungey. But she never knocked on that door. She never made it inside. And that text message would be the last time anyone would ever hear from her. Listen to Hunting for Answers from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Mandy Money]

Do we really need another podcast with a condescending finance bro trying to tell us how to spend our own money? No, thank you. Instead, check out Brown Ambition. Each week I, your host, Mandy Money gives you real talk, real advice with a heavy dose of I feel useless. Like on Fridays when I take your questions for the Baqa. Whether you're trying to invest for your future, navigate a toxic workplace, or I got you. Listen to Brown ambition on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

[Hunter]

Every case that is a cold case that has DNA right now in a backlog will be identified in our lifetime on the new podcast, America's Crime Lab. Every case has a story to tell and the DNA holds the truth.

[Memphis Bleak]

He never thought he was going to get caught. And I just looked at my computer screen, I was just like, ah, gotcha.

[Cam'ron]

This technology's already solving so many cases.

[Hunter]

Listen to America's crime on the iHeartRadio.

[Mandy Money]

App, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Memphis Bleak]

Peace to the planet. Charlamagne Tha God here. Before we get into today's episode, we've got to celebrate the Black Effect Podcast Network. It's turning five years old, man. Five years of powerful voices, unforgettable moments, and a community that keeps growing. This is the power of the platform. Now let's get into it. What up, y'?

[Cam'ron]

All?

[Memphis Bleak]

This your main man, Memphis Bleak, right here. Welcome to Rock Solid, a production of iHeartRadio and the Black Effect Network. And part this with my gods over at Drink Champs. Big whipping. Yeah, Memphis, I'm back at it. Notice the difference. Just more grown. Prezzy. No stones. Yeah, y', all, you already know what it is. Back with yours truly, another episode of Rock Solid. And you like, like I tell you, man, if you on this platform, it's two things. One, you my brother. Two, you always been solid. And this man sitting right here, been both things since the beginning. Even through the drama, he stays solid. You know what I'm saying? Welcome, my G Cam. Thank you for my brother, man.

[Cam'ron]

Thank you for having me, bro.

[Memphis Bleak]

How you been, my G?

[Cam'ron]

Everything good, man. Bless.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yo, man, I see you. I see you winning, winning on winning, my brother, I'm so happy for you, man.

[Cam'ron]

Likewise.

[Memphis Bleak]

It is what it is. It's moving. Then you came up with the flea talk.

[Cam'ron]

Hot.

[Memphis Bleak]

What made you get into this space, like the pod world and all that.

[Cam'ron]

So. So to be honest with you, first of all, thank you and congratulations to everything you got going on. Because Appreciate, we was just talking before we started filming, and you had a bunch of shit going on that I didn't know about. Appreciate it. And that's what it's really about, growing. But as far as the prize space is concerned, this is what happened. To be totally honest with you, it wasn't about the pod. It was about this, the straight up honesty. Nori, he kept asking me and shout out to Nori, and no, that's my brother. So he kept, you know, me and Nori is damn near neighbors in Miami. Like, Nori literally lives 10 blocks away from me in Miami. So I'm bumping into Nori. He like, do the show. Can I need your drink chips. And I'm like, I don't know. I don't feel like doing drink champs. I don't want to do drink champs. And he like, yo, dude. Because Nori. So Nori is my bro, so I'm gonna be straight up honest.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah, yeah.

[Cam'ron]

When we was doing it, we had a situation. Not necessarily Nori, but the niggas he used to be with had a situation in the streets with. With me and some of my niggas to where I felt Nori was part of that. And so I never really had a problem with Nori. But it's so. So let's say like this, like, I'm just giving you an example. And me and Nori talked about it on the show. So let's give an example, right? Let's say me and you hanging out. And I remember. I'm just going to use this as an example because I remember the name of your crew was Get Low.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah.

[Cam'ron]

So the main nigga from Get Low, outside of you, was talking shit about me and then tried to get one of my niggas on my team to come at me. So I'M like, I spanked that nigga in a fight. Then I'm like, these niggas kind of dangerous, the niggas Nori used to be with, but we kind of deaded it. So me and Nori, after that, I'm like, I can't. I don't know if I could trust bleak like that. And you. And you don't. You never said nothing to me about it. These things you do. So me and we good. Everything I'm talking about me and Nori is super duper good. So I was hesitant to do it, but it was dope because we discussed it on his show.

[Memphis Bleak]

You know what I'm saying?

[Cam'ron]

I was like. I told him. I was like, nori, I ain't trust you. He's like, come on, man. I was like, it was dope. It was a dope moment. So shout to Nori. But to be totally honest with you, the reason that I did it was because I have a product. It's called Pink Horsepower. Yeah, yeah.

[Memphis Bleak]

Shout out. Pink Horse Power. That's right. I know, I know.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah. So that product, it was doing really well for me. And when I went on Nori's show, drink champs, the product did like 700% more than what I was doing on my own. I'm like, damn. Hold on. Hold the fuck on.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah, yeah.

[Cam'ron]

Hold on now. We made. We made 400 this week off just off Nori show. I need to see what's going on. So then, shouting license, shout out to Nori. So then I went on million dollars worth of game.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah.

[Cam'ron]

Shout out to Gilly and Wallow as well. I shout out million dollars worth of game, and the same thing happened. I put the product on, they show shit zoomed up 6, 700%. So I'm sitting there saying, hold on, man. What's going on? How do. This is a commercial podcast.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yes.

[Cam'ron]

So I went back to. To Wallow. And I'm like, yo, I want to pay you to put this on the show every weekend. While I was like, no, Cam, it don't work like that. We already. You come up here and sell what you want, but we already have a deal with other people that's in the same lane issue. And then he started breaking it down to me. Shout out to Wallow. Cause Wallow shares information like a. And he explained to me. He like, nah, this sponsors. I showed this sponsors. I showed this sponsors. I showed this one. I'm like, oh, this is big business.

[Memphis Bleak]

Hell, yeah.

[Cam'ron]

You know what I'm saying? I said to my. I'm Gonna do my own show, and I'm gonna make it about sports. The reason I made it about sports is because I'm sitting there arguing with my. On the phone every day about sports. Anyway, my phone one day shouting, my man Sin City. I looked at my phone one day, and the shit said, 2 hours and 47 minutes. And we was arguing the whole time about sports. So I'm like, man, I'm gonna give this shit a shot. So I shot a few episodes. My mom got sick, so I took off for a while. I invited Mace on the show, like, yo, come be a guest. And Mace like the vibe, and he don't like nothing. And so he said, would you want to be partners? I'm like, hell, yeah, let's do it. And we shot about 35 episodes. We shot like, eight episodes. And Office started coming in. Then we shot about 35 episodes. And then Underdog came in with a big offer.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's what's up, man. So that's how it works, man. Seeing y' all in suits every day. I'm proud of y', all, man. Y' all looking good, man. Yeah. I mean, talking and looking good.

[Cam'ron]

That was the vision. That was the vision. See, when I first shot the show, people was like, yo, how is ESPN letting Cam come on here and curse and do all that shit? Because the set. So when you have podcasts, right? That was my vision before I shot it. You got niggas who do podcasts. They in they living room, they in the kitchen. They in the fucking backyard. Everything. Then you got these sports shows to have great backgrounds and productions and so on and so forth. But the two worlds never met. Street talk versus professional setting. So I'm like, I'm gonna build a set. We gonna throw the suits on now. Next thing you is up next is trash. Yeah, yeah, the Lakers just. So now you're looking at a professional setting with two who just talk. So now when were seeing it on the Gram, like, yo, what sports channel? Don't let Cam and these come on here talking like that. But that was the vision. The. The professional setting. Meet the podcast world to where it looks professional. We dress great, but we still talking that.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah, man, shout out Nori. Because Nori, he the reason why I'm doing it right now, bro. Gave me the major speech, like, bleak, I'm telling you.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah.

[Memphis Bleak]

Like you said, I saw the numbers go up and was like, hold on. Yeah, let me. Let me check it out.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah. Now, when I. When I was talking to Nori prior to. Hold on one second. You Might want to tell them to be quiet a little bit so that don't bleed into what we doing.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yo, keep it down, cuz.

[Narrator]

We were good.

[Memphis Bleak]

Oh, I appreciate you.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah, see, I'll be on all point. I'll be on top of all that.

[Memphis Bleak]

Where you was at?

[Cam'ron]

Yeah, I was saying with Nori, it was like Nori was telling me all about can we could do sell caviar with the champagne. He had a lot of vision. What? And it was, and it was dope. But I was like, nobody doing the sports shit, so. But he definitely had the vision.

[Memphis Bleak]

Nah, you definitely killed that man. But I'm gonna take it back, man, because we gotta go back in the day. Because you know, people only think when we sit down. It's about the drama, right? They don't know. Before that bullshit rap beef, it was, we was fast. We was riding around. You pulling up with Dame, I'm at the club with Jay. Like that's what I mean, like the Confessions of Fire cam, man. Like that's the cam I met. You was moving out here.

[Cam'ron]

You met Cam with no deal. It wasn' even Confessions of Fire. You know what's crazy bleak is that I was actually talked about this on Drink Champ. So I got kicked out of college at the beginning of 1995. You know, I know Dame since I was 10, 11 years old. He always been running around saying, I'm gonna do this, do this, do this. And I was saying this probably like four days, five days after I get got kicked out of college. And I'm like, I need to figure this shit out. I ain't going back to school. I see Dame busting moves or whatever. And I actually talked about this on Drink Champs. And I was like, I remember going to meet. I was with Damon, he was going to meet Jay and Tata. There's a spot used to be called Jackson Hole.

[Memphis Bleak]

Oh yeah, that. Come on. We used to order that in the store all the time.

[Cam'ron]

Kidding me, right? So I go meet, I go meet, I'm with Dame. He goes meet them. You know, Ty is with a girl, Jay is with a girl. And I'm up and you know, dam always has some money, whatever. So I'm just sitting there, I'm at the point like this bleak to where I'm like, I, you know, they told me you're full. I'm like, I hope I don't gotta pay for this because I don't even know If I had $10 on me at the time. I'm fresh kicked out of college in my grandmother House. And when the bill came, Tata pulled out this big ass knot. I think I heard you say this. Yeah. And he paid for it. And I'm like, you don't know how old Tata is. You don't know if he's my age. You don't know if he owned. Yo, he don't age, bro. Right. But I'm just saying at that moment, I'm thinking it's a my age. Who got this much money?

[Memphis Bleak]

Like, what the.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah, I gotta get to it. It's times where you might not remember. I know we talked about Penn State. Yeah. But it was a show. You guys did it at the Castle in the Bronx.

[Memphis Bleak]

That was back in the day.

[Cam'ron]

I was there, yo, I was at that show. So that's what I'm saying. When I used to hear coming to age and see what you guys was doing, I said, I gotta get to it. So even Confessions of Fire Cam, you may not remember, but I remember all of that. To the Castle, the Penn State, to where I didn't have a deal. And niggas trying to figure it out.

[Memphis Bleak]

I'm gonna ask you some off the wall shit right now. Cause it's real, right? And, yo, the baseline days, we was all cool, right? Yes, yes, I heard you speak about many times, you, Jim, all y' all talk about, like, what the difference was. Why y', all, you know, went at Jay and how shit went like that. My question to you, though, why y' all niggas shit on me? Meek or me?

[Cam'ron]

What did I say about you?

[Memphis Bleak]

Let me know. Y' all niggas used to go. You was gunning at everybody. And I used to be sitting there like, yo, just was my man. We gambling. And basically.

[Cam'ron]

Give me an example of what you told. Because I never remember.

[Memphis Bleak]

I remember watching the interview. It was something. Y' all was on this one. The DVDs was heavy, right? And y' all was like, yeah, and that bleak, too. He could get. It was you, Jim. And sitting. And I'm sitting there, I'm like, wait a minute. I understand. Got their boss beef. You know, it's. It's always behind the scenes, red tape. But I'm sitting there like, why this?

[Cam'ron]

I'm gonna keep it a honey if you don't point out a scenario. I can't, I can't. It was just.

[Memphis Bleak]

It was just rap. But no, no, I just wanted to ask you that. Like, what I do.

[Cam'ron]

I never had a problem with you. So my thing was this. And I'm just telling you, like, I said, this all went under the bridge, me and you never had a problem with.

[Memphis Bleak]

Never.

[Cam'ron]

So when I got. When I got. And like I said, you explained a lot. Just being Jay's friend. You know what I'm saying? And even with your interviews, I laugh and I'm like, this is just the way this nigga is. You know what I'm saying? Even, like, what we talked about on my show.

[Memphis Bleak]

Word up.

[Cam'ron]

So even like, to the lobby for a spot on my album. Like, that shit never even worked. Left out my mind when a nigga said lobby for a spot. Like, not. You know, I ain't here to get a spot on your album, Younger folks. I'm not here to lobby for a spot on your album. One never went out. But I want to answer your question. Is that so? The way I felt was this. And I never had a problem with you. If I said something, it was probably was just all mixed up, but I never had a problem with you.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's what I would say. Like, we never had an argument.

[Cam'ron]

Nothing. The whole thing is the way. So it was a few things just for me. When I came to Rockefeller, I was at the point where I'm like, I'm coming into a scenario to where this is already laid out. This is done. These n is up for me to even be a part of. This is a big move for Dame even bringing me in. I'm very happy. So I always was like. And I'm exaggerating when I say this, but I'm like, almost a slave. Like, can I hold the door for you? Yo, yo, niggas want something from the store?

[Memphis Bleak]

I'm on the store.

[Cam'ron]

Yo, yo, nigga, yo.

[Memphis Bleak]

Now you was definitely grind mode when you first came around, for sure. I never take that away, right?

[Cam'ron]

And so I just, you know, everything I did was like, we're not gonna fuck this up. And then, like I said, I just didn't know Jay's personality. And it was a time. I'll give you an example, right? I had K Slay in the studio.

[Memphis Bleak]

You told me that, yo, I ain't.

[Cam'ron]

Know if I remember told you. And Jay was like, yo, be careful who you bringing in here. Cause what if I would have slapped the shit out the nigga? And I'm like, I didn't know.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yo, rest in peace case. That's another thing. Slay that I respected. Like, him and Jay had their differences, but Slay always with me, right? You know what I mean? Did a mixtape together. Introduced me to Pat. When Pat first was coming up, used to always let me come on to bring my artists up the freestyle. So I always respected that about Slay. Like, he never threw me into the politics of what they had going on.

[Cam'ron]

Right. But just. I didn't know. But I knew K Slay had the drama out where he's playing all the Dish records, but he. It wasn't like he would play Nas records and not play Jay records. But I guess Jay was like, if you play Nas records, don't play. Yeah, whatever. I didn't know that. So everything I did was like, just basically trying to just make sure that I'm good. It was even a point where, like, I said, the reason we did the New York City record, I guess, you know, people's feeling the way old boy came out. It was doing good. And Jay pulled me. Jay pulled me to the side. And baseline was like, yo, I don't know if it's tension. Not tension, just that the artist wants. Want to let you know, yo, we good. You doing your thing. I said, well, if just got a beat up right? Now he got a beat up.

[Memphis Bleak]

Let's show him ain't no tension, right? Yeah, man. I. I look back in hindsight and be like, damn, if. What if. If it never happened. You know what I mean?

[Cam'ron]

100. Absolutely.

[Memphis Bleak]

It's always going to be that. But one thing I could say, even through the drama, like, I'mma be all the way honest with you because, you know, you. You one nigga I respect because you had a lot of drama in this game and you stood on all ten. You never folded. And I respect that about you. My like. But, you know, when you. When you don't with a rapper, you know, his music just become like, absolutely. I ain't gonna front. My G. When you drop, suck it or not, right?

[Cam'ron]

I hated you. Yeah.

[Memphis Bleak]

I was like, yo, this how. This ain't gonna make this record, win this drama. He's supposed to have made this before.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah, listen, you know what's crazy? I seen the interview with you one time, and they was re. You was reading some of my lyrics, and he was like, man, I don't know about this, and just do this. And threw this out.

[Memphis Bleak]

You know how much I was hating?

[Cam'ron]

No, but I was hating. It was not. It had to be that. I understand. You had. You have to be where you had to be.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah. At that time, it was a little tension, man. I'm glad we put that behind each other. To see y' all at the. What was it? The B sides 2 concert. Oh, my G. That was. That was on for the city.

[Cam'ron]

That was Big man, that was super dope, man. Like, I said, Jim. I think Jim was working with Roc Nation at the time. And then Juan called me. That me and Jay spoke, and we spoke after that. And that was. It was a dope moment. Just to show, like, my. It's. I never had a problem. It was always like. Like you said on my show, when said that president shit, yo, that changed everything. It was over for me.

[Memphis Bleak]

And I'm gonna be honest with you. On some G shit. I ain't say it on your show because I wanted you to come here for me to say it, right? But you know, I called Call Hov, okay? I'm the one who called him. It was like, yo, my, the is going on up here. How gonna make Cam the president, right? Me and Bean's been here for this long.

[Cam'ron]

What's up?

[Memphis Bleak]

And Jay like, I'm on the boat. What you mean? What's going on?

[Cam'ron]

Right?

[Memphis Bleak]

He like, yo, called Dave, right? So I put him and Dame on the phone, right? And him and Dame had words. I ain't gonna say what they said because that's between them, but they had some words. And Jay was like. That's when Jay started saying, hovie's home.

[Cam'ron]

The global phone, right?

[Memphis Bleak]

Word. I'm like, damn. And when he came home, that's when shit just went upside down, bro.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah, I can imagine.

[Memphis Bleak]

Speaking on Jim, I heard you say on your show you like, yo, what's up with you and Beans? It's the same I feel with you and Jim, right? Like, I need y' all to fix that. My G, do you think that can ever be fixed?

[Cam'ron]

Look to me, when it goes to the Diplomat shit, right? It's like the Williams. The Williams brothers from the other side of the project. Like, you know, yo, the Smiths be bugging.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah.

[Cam'ron]

The Diplomat thing to me is like, it's no matter what. At. At one particular time, nobody was bigger than the group.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's right.

[Cam'ron]

And I remember Dame saying that. Dame was like, yo, Cam, I got. Cause what happened is this. I got a fucked up deal. Epic. I had to get the Def Jam. When I got to Rockefeller, I started maneuvering, like, all right, I was in a fucked up situation. So when I'm trying to get Jim on jewels on, I remember I'm fighting for Jim. Nobody believed Jim was a rapper. I'm like, yo, nah, Jim, you gonna direct my videos. Jim, you gonna go with the deal this down the third. Basically, I'm fighting for all of us. So I remember I started getting the Diplomat mixtapes. And them shits was hot. And Dame was like, cam, you might wanna slow that down. These n. You know, if you put you out, wait a while for the Diplomats. So therefore it's not the same thing. I'm like, nobody got time to wait. Y' all been in a comfortable situation. All my niggas been fucked up the last two, three albums we tried to get on. So even like with Jim, I didn't get him his first deal at Koch. Like, I got the single Pardon Me, the artist dealer Rockefeller. I went to Kevin, Laos and Leor to get the joint venture deal for Juels and the Diplomat album. Then Dame just came and started flipping, talking about, you ain't doing no deal with Cam. If I would have came and asked you for this deal, you would have told me no. So I ended up going through Rockefeller, Def Jam for Diplomats and Jewels when it was just gonna be Diplomat. Def Jam.

[Memphis Bleak]

Oh, wow.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah. But Dame went up there flipping out on Kevin and Kevin Lyle. I remember sitting there, he's like, dame, I don't make money off albums. I get paid a salary. I don't give a fuck if it goes through Hue, Def Jam, whatever.

[Memphis Bleak]

You can make a difference in someone's life, including your own. With a job in home care. These jobs offer flexible schedules, health care, retirement options and free training. They also provide paid time off and opportunities for overtime. Visit oregonhomecarejobs.com to learn more and apply. That's oregonhomecarejobs.com.

[Hunter]

I'm Hunter, host of Hunting for Answers on the Black Effect Podcast Network. Join me every weekday as I share bite sized stories of missing and murdered black women and girls in America. America. There are several ways we can all do better at protecting black women. My contribution is shining a light on our missing sisters and amplifying their disregarded stories. Stories like Tameka Anderson. As she drove toward Galvez, she was in contact with several people talking on the phone as she made her way to what should have been a routine transaction. But Tameka never bought the car and she never returned home that day. One podcast, one mission. Save our girls. Join the search as we explore the chilling cases of missing and murdered black women and girls. Listen to Hunting for Answers every weekday on the Black Effect Podcast Network, iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Narrator]

What would you do if one bad decision forced you to choose between a maximum security prison or the most brutal boot camp designed to be hell on Earth? Unfortunately for Mark Lombardo, this was the choice he faced.

[Memphis Bleak]

He said, you are a number, a New York state number.

[Cam'ron]

And we own you.

[Narrator]

Shock incarceration, also known as boot camps, are short term, highly regimented correctional programs that mimic military basic training. These programs aim to provide a shock of prison life, emphasizing strict discipline, physical training, hard labor and rehabilitation programs. Mark had one chance to complete this program and had no idea of the hell awaiting him the next six months.

[Memphis Bleak]

The first night was overwhelming and you don't know who's next to you and.

[Cam'ron]

We didn't know what to expect. In the morning, nobody tells you anything.

[Narrator]

Listen to shock incarceration on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Mandy Money]

Hey sis, what if I could promise you you never had to listen to a condescending finance bro tell you how to manage your money again? Welcome to Brown Ambition. This is the hard part. When you pay down those credit cards, if you haven't gotten to the bottom of why you were racking up credit or turning to credit cards, you may just recreate the same problem. A year from now when you do feel like you are bleeding from these high interest rates, I would start shopping for a debt consolidation loan, starting with your local credit union. Shopping around online looking for some online lenders because they tend to have fewer fees and be more affordable. Listen, I am not here to judge. It is so expensive in these streets, I 100% can see how in just a few months you can have this much credit card debt. When it weighs on you, it's really easy to just like stick your head in the sand. It's nice and dark in the sand. Even if it's scary, it's not going to go away just because you're avoiding it. And in fact, it may get even worse. For more judgment free money advice, listen to Brown ambition on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Cam'ron]

But back to. To the diplomat thing. Look, I always wish Jim the best. I hope he does well. He came a long way, you know what I'm saying?

[Memphis Bleak]

Facts.

[Cam'ron]

We all did, bro.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah, and that's what I'm saying.

[Cam'ron]

Y' all bros. No, I want to tell you something. I'm talking about just from not being my man. You gotta realize this is my man who couldn't rap. It turned into my hype man. It turned into artists directing videos. So his hustle is impeccable for us. Me for the diplomat. Your question is this, though. You gotta think about this bleak. We put out our first mixtape probably 2001, 24 years ago. Yeah, the album came out in 2003. So you sit there and you sit there and say, okay, 2001 to. Let's say we broke up. 2007, even if you give it 2008, six, seven year run music was just so powerful. The logo was still. People just love it. Our first reunion, I'm talking about after we broke up, got back the devil was in 2010. Yeah, yeah. The first reunion show we did. If we can't get it together now, it's been 2010 to 2025. So the reunions and arguments and fighting's been 15 years. The run was only seven years. We got 15 years of. Of disputes longer than the run. The run was seven years. Yeah, the disputes is going on Typhoon, you know, we'll get together here and there, this down the third. But the thing about it is this, and I'm be honest is that the last scenario that we went to, me and Jim was cool and I take responsibility for it, but I was dead serious. It was a time where Jim had did a show with 50. And I think I remember that concept right. And I think the way 50 answered the question got Jim mad. But I'm sitting there saying to myself, I'm thinking me on the time. Me and you on right now. Yeah, we can't talk about. Yeah, we can't talk about What? The way 50 answered the question. It got Jim mad and it riled him up and he went on tangent for four or five, six months. Still to this day, I guess he's still upset, but I didn't mean militia out of it. I really want to know what it was. How this. How did you get to go with you when me and you beefing and me and Juels and Jim not saying we was beefing, but we wasn't on the same page. So it was a real question for me. And you know, Jim got mad about it and still upset to this day about it. But I'm never gonna say never. But at the end of the day, if you got to think about it, the disputes, the arguments, the reunions is 15 years old, year years old. And the run was seven years old. I don't know if it could never go right. You know, he got records dissing me earlier this year. Whatever. I don't. I don't really pay it no more. People send it to me. But you gotta think about. He put a friend a song called Our frenemies in like 2008, 17 years of DIS records towards me. I don't give a. You know what I'm saying?

[Memphis Bleak]

It's the same way with Beans. Beans got disregards this and me and all that. And it's like, I don't know where coming from, but at the end of the day, like, when the lights cut off, the music cut off, everything cut off. I can never erase what was right.

[Cam'ron]

Exactly.

[Memphis Bleak]

You know what I mean? But it's time for to definitely embrace what is exactly. You know what I'm saying? And that's what I'll be saying to niggas.

[Cam'ron]

Like, it the best thing. The best thing. And it's totally different scenarios. But you talked about it. I didn't even see the interview. I seen the clip. Yeah, when they asked you if. If niggas are ever gonna speak again. And you like, he crossed the line, like, with Game.

[Memphis Bleak]

I feel like, yeah, there's a line that. That was crossed. Like, Beans ain't go there. Like, that's my. Like, we get on the phone, I'm gonna pick up the phone tonight.

[Cam'ron]

Right?

[Memphis Bleak]

You know what I'm saying? But I feel like between them, right? I don't even have to ask Jay. It ain't even. Like Jay said it to me and was like, nah, niggas is done. It ain't never. I just know knowing him.

[Cam'ron]

But the reason I brought that up, but it isn't even about. Cause like, Biggs. My big bro, too. Shout out to Biggs.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah, shout out Biggs, definitely. Oh, gee.

[Cam'ron]

That's my big bro. So it's like. It's like this, for instance, right? And that's what I'm saying, right? I built a few different entities that's doing well right now. Unless Jay feels like being nostalgic or whatever. You're not. You're gonna see those hats that you wear. It ain't. We could go Rockefeller every five, six, seven, eight years. But this is what we pumping. It's what it is right now. Exactly. So it's never not a problem to feel nostalgic and reminisce. But if you do too much of that reminiscing and just base everything you doing off of what the past was, you just gonna sound like a nigga with a bunch of stories and you old and bitter and so on and so forth. For me, it's about still creating and moving forward and making sure that when I do talk about old, we gonna talk about what's now, too.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's right.

[Cam'ron]

Because it's great to have memories and talk about everything. But imagine if the ho would just be talking about, yo, remember in 90, remember we was in 2000. Nah, we can talk about that. But this is what I got going on today. I just sold the company for 48,480 million. You get what I'm saying? That's what it's about. He's not wearing Rockefeller hats every day. He's not. He. You know, I'm saying he's moved on. And to me, that's what it's really about. I love to reminisce and love to have fun, but if that's all we talking about, then I can't do it. Yeah, I can't do it.

[Memphis Bleak]

No, I feel you, bro. It's the same with the Rockefeller. I'll be on that. They'd be like, yo, let's do the Rockefeller shows. And it's like, bro, I can't do that no more. Rockefeller.

[Cam'ron]

Right? Exactly.

[Memphis Bleak]

It's just like, what we doing? It don't even make no sense, right? It's like.

[Cam'ron]

And everybody not going. And no disrespect to nobody out there like that. Nobody gonna. Not gonna keep theyself in shape. Everybody. Everybody. Some looking sloppy.

[Memphis Bleak]

Though. I got a trainer I'm trying to get back.

[Cam'ron]

Right?

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah.

[Cam'ron]

Sometimes you be like, huh? Right? Yeah.

[Memphis Bleak]

Word up. You be looking at like, damn, fam.

[Cam'ron]

Exactly.

[Memphis Bleak]

Now that's a fact, bro. So I wonder. We was talking off camera, but how you feel about music? Would there ever be another camera on project?

[Cam'ron]

You know what's crazy? So I deal with different people on different things, and they ask me for albums all the time. I just think the landscape is different. Yeah, the tension span is shorter album. Good album come out that lasts two, three months. Not even two weeks. No, I'm talking about when we was coming out.

[Memphis Bleak]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Cam'ron]

90S, early 2000. Great album. Two, three months. You gotta run.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's a fact.

[Cam'ron]

A great album today. Just what you said, two weeks. And that's a great album.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's a great album.

[Cam'ron]

Great album. So why am I gonna put my hard work, hard work in and get two weeks? I rather put out a single. You put out single once every few months. Let it bubble. See what happened. Cool. Like me, I was touring off the same catalog from 2011 to 2019 till Kobe. I was on tour when Kobe hit. Same catalog. So I'm sitting there saying, that's when I realized, like, the music we made was a great time because I'm still doing amputee. This. 1500, 2500 for seven, eight years straight. Same catalog I threw, new out here and there. But it don't make sense now. If I Did a project, for instance, like I did Purple Haze too. It's more of a mixtape of the album. But I toured it with my album, my, you know, my catalog, and I sold out every venue. But the dope thing about that is this. So I was seeing people online talking about cam. I didn't get the new mixtape yet, but I'm a cop it tonight. And by the time I get to your show Friday, I'm gonna know every word. So now you don't got to go to Tower records, you ain't got to go to hmv, download it the day before the show and they in tune. So I think that part is dope. But for me, if it ain't, when touring and making money off merchants, so many aspects that go into. Yes, doing music just to put a song out here and there. It's not worth it for me. If I could put it in a movie, a TV soundtrack, whatever, cool. But to do an album, not just doing albums to put it out, they not gonna sell what they used to sell. And I'm not touring and selling merch behind it. The money's not worth it for me.

[Memphis Bleak]

I feel you.

[Cam'ron]

I figured another way out to get $72,000, you know what I'm saying?

[Memphis Bleak]

Yo, chill. I feel you on that one thing. I feel you never got credit on. Like, a lot of these new artists is into the merch, but you've been into the merch since day one, bro. And I feel like you've been overlooked for that. Like, I've been sitting back and always trying to feel like, damn, how the fuck this nigga always got the hat, always got the jackets, always got the hoodies, like. But you always been like one of the niggas who started and still on the merch vibe, man. Like, you pioneered that shit for some of the east coast artists for sure.

[Cam'ron]

I appreciate it, to be honest with you. I ain't gonna lie. Like, I pioneered it. I see Wu Tang, you know what I'm saying? I seen Wu Tang thing. I seen Rockaway. Like, I. Whether me and you hung out or not, I was. I soaked in a lot from Roc a fella. And watching, you know, Jay and dame get a $120 million check for Rockaway. Watching Dame buy pro Keds. Yeah. You know what I'm saying? Watching. I'm like, yo, hold on. N. Getting nine digit checks off this. I didn't. Still didn't get there, you know what I'm saying? Yeah. But I was students other than they, like right now. Wu Tang, you know Shout out to Power too, from Wu Tang. Yeah, Them still grabbing eight digits a year off the Merchant.

[Memphis Bleak]

Them Woo shirts is all over the world.

[Cam'ron]

Exactly. So what I. And then you think about it. When you young, when you were younger and wanted to be a rapper, I remember going to Canal street and getting the chain that Eric and Parish had on from epmd. Or I want the fisherman hat like them had. Yeah. Or I want to dress like. Yo, the Grand Pooh got a nice polo. Like, I want to dress like rappers. So when it was my turn, I'm like, I gotta make. Want to dress like me or be like me, because you got the best. That's one thing that a lot of people don't realize. You could be the best lyricist in the world. But do a nigga want to be like you?

[Memphis Bleak]

That's a fact. That's what it is.

[Cam'ron]

Do a nigga want to be like you? You know what I'm saying? So people don't understand those dynamics. Like, you don't have to be the best rapper, but some things got swag. Like, for instance, I give you a great example. And this, no disrespect, what I would say before, you know, be like, you're being disrespectful to me. And I'm not saying he can't rap. I'm just saying out the group Griselda, right? To me, the best lyricist in Griselda is whether you like Benny or. Or Conway and. And west side is dope too. But I think those two are better lyricists. But you want to be like west side, west side, he got the sneakers, he's in Paris. He got the new Louis Duff. He got the. You know what I'm saying? I'm not saying he can't rap. I'm saying he's a great rapper. I'm just saying if you in that group and you picking the best lyricist, you picking the best lyricist. If you picking who you want to be like. If you're a young nigga coming up, this is the I want to be like. And that's which. If you could capture both, you won.

[Memphis Bleak]

Now that's a fact. Irv Gotti rested recipes. Irv got it. He said that to me back in the days, man. Like, yo, if you're not somebody people emulating or want to be, then you're not doing the right thing.

[Cam'ron]

That matters. Word matters.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's a fact. Yo, so what's next for my gcam, man? What's on the horizon, bro?

[Cam'ron]

Oh, well, I don't know. I mean, I Got a lot of shits. See a lot of things is like this bleach is like they don't. A lot of people don't see the. That don't work.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's right.

[Cam'ron]

Everything. Everything I do don't work.

[Memphis Bleak]

They think everything works. That's the they think work. They don't think.

[Cam'ron]

We try 100 joints and you do throw a hundred different things at the wall to stick.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's right.

[Cam'ron]

Like my. It's everything don't work. So I can see and tell you what I'm about to try to do. I can sit and be like yo, you know I wanna. I wanna open up a dance studio for dancers. You know I'm exaggerating but I'm sitting there saying everything man.

[Memphis Bleak]

We got the. We got the clubs man if you want to around. Cause we're about to open up these strip clubs in West Palm Miami. And we just opened up one up one out here. So if you wanna around the only.

[Cam'ron]

Thing that makes this investment wise I got some money.

[Memphis Bleak]

We got some shit man. Word.

[Cam'ron]

The one thing that's definite that's coming up and probably hopefully this air by time. But. October 9th I got a comedy show at the Beacon Theater. D Ray Davis, Corey Holcomb, Tony Rock, Jay Farrell. Shout out to Ray Ray Will. Will Mills. Shout out to Outback presents for putting it together with me. But yeah, I'm doing a comedy show. My first comedy show called the killer Comedy Show. October 9th at the Beacon Theater. So hopefully we'll see how that goes. And if we do that right. We already laid out a tour for that. If it goes right. So that's the next venture I'm doing.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's dope man. That's dope man. Like to see this sh man. Comedy shows, talk shows. Yo, you into everything. I heard you got a book coming out too.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah.

[Memphis Bleak]

With that.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah, another book. It's a book called. It isn't named yet. I just picked the right. I'm gonna picks with that ain't I'll come back on the show again when it's time for that. That probably ain't to like April May or some like that.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah, no the book gonna be serious. They've been asking me to write a book forever. But I keep telling them Jay's still active.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah, yeah.

[Memphis Bleak]

He gotta go away.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah.

[Memphis Bleak]

Far away. Cause he gonna snipe me if I put off.

[Cam'ron]

You know what's crazy? You know what's crazy? It's like. And I know it's two different age guys. My man Sugar Digga And I'm not comparing myself to Jay Z, neither. When I. When I just be like, he's like, 35, 36. So when I be home chilling, like, yo, it's over. He's. Nah, it ain't over, nigga. Now, you don't. I don't start trying to get old on me, nigga. We going out tonight. Get some, nigga. So I understand where you coming from, but I ain't gonna hold you. It was a good. It was a great offer. I'm gonna grab the bread.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah, no, I hope that. Man, bro, I've been. He ain't gonna do no book. He ain't gonna even let me do the movie.

[Cam'ron]

The thing about the Jay, in my opinion, is he's been so great at being not. Not just the word relevant scene, but mysterious. You know what I'm saying? He don't gotta come talk about nothing.

[Memphis Bleak]

Nothing.

[Cam'ron]

You figure it out. Yeah, you want to talk? All right, whatever. I don't care. Go look at the next announcement I make. So it's always a mystique and a mysteriousness behind them. But it ain't like you don't see him.

[Memphis Bleak]

No, that's a fact. He ain't never. He ain't outspoken like that, right? Like, that's another thing. Like, I ain't gonna front Cam with you. You be on the ass. Like, I just seen you add little drama. This making the honey rap songs about you, man. It's like, damn, yo, bro, like, I.

[Cam'ron]

Swear to God, I don't be wanting no problems with nobody, but. But I will say is, just leave me alone, please. Yeah, yeah.

[Memphis Bleak]

Just leave me your word. I heard the homie made a bunch of rap songs, sent it to me. I'm like, oh, man, I booked the. I seen that.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah, yeah. It was fun for me because he still was doing songs and shout out to. I don't have no problem with that. Like, we straight, too. But the thing about it was, like, I made a mistake. So basically, I was talking about the B list, black actors, how it was up for them. Him. And I called him Omar Gooden Jr. And his brother. His brother's Cuba and the. Went on a tangent. I apologized on my show. That's how bad it was bleak. I was like, yo, my bad. I'm sorry. I. I didn't mean to do it. Did another song. I went under his comments. I said, bro, I don't want no smoke. Did another. So I'm like, bro, I'm trying to be somebody different, bro.

[Memphis Bleak]

The rap is crazy, man. And Is gotta start like, I feel like we at the age now, we was talking off camera where, right. That rap facade, that, that gotta come. It gotta come on, bro, bro, when.

[Cam'ron]

Be like, when be talking tough and screaming, all that, it's two things. I'll be like, you pump faking and then if you're not pump faking, I feel sorry for you.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yo, that's a fact. Let it go, yo.

[Cam'ron]

Let it go, let it go. That's just where I'm at.

[Memphis Bleak]

I know. Can't be mad. You'll be like B list. B. B list actors, B list rappers, bro. I seen the list where they had the 50 worst rappers and I was on there, I was dying like, damn. Chewed me. They put me on the list, like damn. Yeah, but then I just dropped the project, right? And they dropped the new Whack 50 list, so. And I ain't on there, so I said, damn, did I get myself off the list?

[Cam'ron]

Off the list, right, exactly. But see, that's the thing about it too. It blizzes that. It's more like, bro, it's like for instance, right? You gotta realize to a lot of people, a lot of people, they grew up with you, us, whoever, Nas, J, whoever. So when you start doing that, they grew up to, they get mad, you know what I'm saying? Like, yo, nah, like you was my hero. You know what I'm saying? Like, like even like the homeboy, the Omar, good. And I seen in my comments talking about nah cam, you got to go back to them. I'm 1552 year old man from Michigan that book and get in that booth.

[Memphis Bleak]

And I'm like, yo, nah, they can't be serious.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah, but this is want because this what they grew up knowing you for. You're not allowed to do. Open a restaurant. You are not allowed to go to West Palm and get the club. You not allowed to run. Do say I know meth bleak from being a rapper. And I don't want him doing nothing else in my life but rapping. That's all. And don't want it.

[Memphis Bleak]

No, they definitely try to put you in the box.

[Cam'ron]

There you go. That's what I'm looking for.

[Memphis Bleak]

And it's on us definitely to grow outside that box. That's what made me like when the rap slowed down and it was like, damn, what's next, right? And I felt like, damn, I gotta reinvent myself. The raps ain't working, the shows ain't booking, right? I gotta figure it out. So that's when I jumped on the do say yes. And now, like, don't know, bro. That reality pill, that's the realest I think I ever had to take in my life. Like, my cause. Remember you going in the back door, getting booked at these clubs, 30, 40 grand to touch the stage. Now I'm going through the front door with a bottle, asking you to buy something from me, looking like a major, major. Like, I fell down the ladder, right? And I had to put the pride to the bottom and get it cracking, bro. Like. But a lot of don't know how to accept when it's over and there's something you gotta pivot to something new, bro.

[Cam'ron]

You couldn't have said that better. It's mad who? It's mad that don't know it's over. Yo, it's.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's the worst.

[Cam'ron]

That's the worst. Don't know it's over. I be seeing that. I used to. With. You know, I wasn't gonna say with people I used to do business with. As far as music concerned, they be doing freestyle. Talk about was hard. Now they sitting here podcasting, and I'm sitting there like, y' all don't get it. This easier. I could go right now and do three, four festivals, grab the bread. Why would I get on the plane, fly around, be bobble, and I could get. Yeah, risk your life and be something somewhere different. You know, it's funny. I seen it today. So I guess when I asked you when you was on my show, I guess he just seen it today. Choke. No joke.

[Memphis Bleak]

Oh, yeah, Yeah, I did see something from Chokes.

[Cam'ron]

I swear to God, I seen it today. And he was like, cam, my jaw is fine. I thought you was a rapper. Now you podcasting. What you doing?

[Memphis Bleak]

I'm like, oh, yeah. I seen them say, welcome to my world. You try to be like me.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah, I seen that. I'm like, bro, I just. I. I'm not trying to be like nobody. I didn't see that part. But I'm sitting there saying, bro, if I go watch sports and go talk about it, why wouldn't I go do that? That.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's a fact. And. And another thing, too. This platform, you need personality to carry a show, bro. Not anybody could just sit there and talk. And you want to hear them talk for 50 minutes? It's like, huh?

[Cam'ron]

I lost money on investments for people that I thought could talk. Huh? And they can't. Just because you've been around music don't mean you could talk about music. Just because you've been around sports don't mean you could talk about sports just because you've been around something and you have knowledge in that area, coming on this microphone in front of that camera and making it sound good, that's. That's a totally different thing.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's a fact. Yo. And like a lot of people think it's easy. It's not easy being able to carry a show and keep people entertained.

[Cam'ron]

Absolutely.

[Memphis Bleak]

And you know, stay on, stay on course, man. Cause a lot of people I watch in this spit in this space not on choke, no joke or any other journalist. Get your money how you got to get it right. But a lot of niggas choose to dig the dirt.

[Cam'ron]

Right.

[Memphis Bleak]

To live off that. And it's like, right. It's more to us than just the.

[Cam'ron]

Absolutely. And the thing about it that. And you're right. And I'm not just a choke neither. But you're right. Niggas need that.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah.

[Cam'ron]

And, and, and I'm not talking about nobody when I say this. I'm just being clear. I didn't understand how it worked at first and then when I figured it out, I'm like, no wonder this nigga's sitting in his kitchen every week talking about a nigga. Cause YouTube is sending this nigga check. Yeah. Oh, this how this working? I'm not saying I would ever do that. I'm not. But I just didn't understand why was in their basement talking about. Then I figured it out after my sports. I said, oh, this is why these is in a, in a, in a, a white wall background. You can't see where they at.

[Memphis Bleak]

Everybody taking passport pictures.

[Cam'ron]

Exactly. Exactly. There you go. A hundred percent. Finding a reason to be beef with somebody.

[Hunter]

You can make a difference in someone's life, including your own. With a job in home care. These jobs offer flexible schedules, health care, retirement options and free training. They also provide paid time off and opportunities for overtime. Visit oregonhomecarejobs.com to learn more and more.

[Cam'ron]

Apply.

[Hunter]

That's oregonhomecarejobs.com I'm Hunter, host of Hunting for Answers on the Black Effect Podcast Network. Join me every weekday as I share bite sized stories of missing and murdered black women and girls in America. There are several ways we can all do better at protecting black women. My contribution is shining a light on our missing sisters and amplifying their disregarded stories. Stories like Tameka Anderson. As she drove toward Galvez, she was in contact with several people talking on the phone as she made her way to what should have been a routine transaction. But Tameka Never bought the car and she never returned home that day. One podcast, one mission. Save our girls. Join the search as we explore the chilling cases of missing and murdered black women and girls. Listen to Hunting for Answers every weekday on the Black Effect Podcast Network, iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Cam'ron]

A foot washed up, a shoe with some bones in it. They had no idea who it was. Most everything was burned up pretty good from the fire that not a whole lot was salvageable.

[Hunter]

These are the coldest of cold cases, but everything is about to change. Every case that is a cold case that has DNA right now in a backlog will be identified in our lifetime. A small lab in Texas is cracking the code on DNA using new scientific tools. They're finding clues in evidence so tiny you might just miss it.

[Memphis Bleak]

He never thought he was going to get caught. And I just looked at my computer screen, I was just like, ah, gotcha.

[Hunter]

On America's Crime Lab, we'll learn about victims and survivors and you'll meet the team behind the scenes at othram, the Houston lab that takes on the most hopeless cases to finally solve the unsolvable. Listen to America's Crime Lab on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Narrator]

What would you do if one bad decision forced you to choose between a maximum security prison or the most brut boot camp designed to be hell on earth? Unfortunately for Mark Lombardo, this was the choice he faced.

[Memphis Bleak]

He said, you are a number, a New York state number and we own you.

[Narrator]

Shock incarceration, also known as boot camps, are short term, highly regimented correctional programs that mimic military basic training. These programs aim to provide a shock of prison life, emphasizing strict discipline, physical training, hard labor and rehabilitation programs. Mark had one chance to complete this program and had no idea of the hell awaiting him the next six months.

[Memphis Bleak]

The first night was overwhelming and you.

[Cam'ron]

Don'T know who's next to you and we didn't know what to expect in the morning. Nobody tells you anything.

[Narrator]

Listen to shock incarceration on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's why when when Nori was telling me to do this show, I was like, yo. And no, like I don't want to bring up, no, I don't want to do nothing. I don't want to be up here talking about this to go viral. Like we all real our story and who we are going to go viral just off the moves we make. And I want to Teach the coming up the young that after rap is still life.

[Cam'ron]

Absolutely.

[Memphis Bleak]

You know what I'm saying? Think that you got to rap forever and it's like, nah dog. I rap when I want to because it's fun, right?

[Cam'ron]

Absolutely. Like look, let's think about this. And I know we. I keep using them whether it's Nas or Jay Z. Jay Z's business. And when I say business, his announcements brother. He's selling this or selling that and making this and making that. You're not harassing him to do an album. Nope. Same thing with Nas. Nas is just a little more quiet than Jay Z about his business. You gotta Google and be scrolling be like, what the fuck you mean? Nas made 40 million off the ring? What do you mean? He caught a hundred one hundred twenty million dollar bag off the pharmaceutical companies. What do you mean? I just. This is Nas tattoo shop in the. You get what I'm saying?

[Memphis Bleak]

That's a fact.

[Cam'ron]

Those are the moves that really matter. And until people understand that they're gonna think that pod. Oh yeah, this podcast, whatever. Because they're not gonna be compared to. Because you gotta think about. These are two time greats. People have arguments who you like better than these two but the business ackerman to where they both going, right? It's crazy. They both moving. Yes.

[Memphis Bleak]

But speaking about that J album, so you know on Drink Champs I said yo, Jay dropping the album, right? That called me hey yo, Bleak. When the last record you heard of mine at the album dropping, I said we chill. Let's just call it wishful thinking. I think it was like, yeah, man, he was on the phone trying to see if Guru was leaking some to me.

[Cam'ron]

Right.

[Memphis Bleak]

I'm like, nah, I can't. I can't tell him my dog goo.

[Cam'ron]

Right? Exactly. But see that's. And. And I know y' all have a different dynamic. That's just another thing speaking to the level of business. It was a time I don't. I don't know if 444, whatever album it was. And I know one like Juan's a shout out to one. One is just another that. Oh man, he been up since I was 4 or 5 years old. You know what I'm saying? So when. When you think about these, these are two very smart businessmen. So I don't like. So I'm not sure if it's 4, 4, 4 what album it was, but the album was platinum before it came out. Because it was in a phone. Yeah.

[Memphis Bleak]

Oh yeah, yeah. No, that was Blueprint three. Yeah, whatever.

[Cam'ron]

These Got this. No, forget it.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah, yeah, like that.

[Cam'ron]

It makes you be like, yo, what am I doing this for? You get what I'm saying? If I'm not. If I've been doing music this long and I ain't busting these type of moves, I need to figure out something else to get around that. Even if I'm not close, the rap I'm doing is not comparing to buying. Teaming up with a phone company and.

[Memphis Bleak]

Selling a million before you should even drop is insane, right? Yeah. That was BP 3. That was.

[Cam'ron]

That's when I'm like, I'll get to a single or song when I get to that shit. My cause if that make the moves, that ain't the move.

[Memphis Bleak]

No, I give you that for sure, man. What's your relationship with Santana?

[Cam'ron]

Juels? Yeah. I haven't spoke to him in a while, but you know what's crazy? Juel's. I'll say. Three months ago, he's. We spoke for a minute on text, and he wanted me to. To do a record for him. You know what I'm saying?

[Memphis Bleak]

Okay.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah, he wanted me to do a record. He sent me the record, and, you know, it was good. I'm not saying it wasn't good, but I'm like, we haven't done music in so long, it gotta be a moment. You know what I'm saying? And that record he sent wasn't a moment, you know what I'm saying? And I'm like, I'm not really in the music space. If I do some shit, I do some shit. But if me and you gonna do a record, it got to be a real moment, because we haven't done nothing in a while. Like, for instance, I give you a great example, right? This word to everything I love. I ain't gonna name the companies or whatever. It's, you know, billion dollar companies. Call me, yo, we want to do this for Cam, with Cam. Call me to see if we want to do this. Y' all do a freestyle, we'll give you X amount of dollars, yo. Or if you shoot a video for our company, give you X amount of dollars. Or, yo, if you pop up right now to so and so Festival, we got half a million dollars for you.

[Memphis Bleak]

Da, da, da.

[Cam'ron]

So I'm like, you know me. I ain't gonna hold you. When we was doing this deal that we up for it is what it is. See, that's why I can't argue with Mace. I'm gonna be totally honest. I can't argue with the nigga. You gotta Realize he coming from Bad Boy. So he like, I'm watching everybody. That's right. I don't trust none of you niggas. I think we've been doing this show. September makes two years. I think he just started trusting me in May. Yo, chick, like, again, yo, exaggerating. That's my brother. Everything. That's my brother. So, like, when we doing this, deal is hitting me. I'm talking shout out to Rich Climbing. All the. That help Rich Man Climbing. I'm talking to Gilbert Arenas. So the deal is like 3 million, 4 million. They like, Kim, that's. That's a lot for this space right now for you. So I'm like, mace, this at 4. I talked to everybody. Like, we. Nah, can we not doing that. I'm not signing for 4 million. I'm like, mesa, this is like, we have experience in this shit. Damn. I can't do nothing to say not eight digits. I just can't do it. And I'm like, so now, this should get up to 6 million. 7 million. 8 million. I said, mace, this is unheard of. Like, off the rip. No, off the rip. If you want to give it, Cam, if you want to give up, you take 3 million and I take 6. That's fine with me. But it has to be that. So then the shit get 8, 9 million. You get the 10 million. I say you nigga. Eight digits, niggas. I didn't say the low eight digits. Cam.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yo, chill, chill.

[Cam'ron]

Just words of a promise on everything I love. Just like this. Just like that. Like. So it went up. It went up again. I said. I said now. Look, I'm telling you this right now. If this don't go through, for this amount, x amount of dollars, you owe me $8 million.

[Memphis Bleak]

Word up.

[Cam'ron]

Okay, we're gonna wait. And we waited about another two months, and he got the number that he wanted. So now everything else is. Cam, you're selling us out again?

[Memphis Bleak]

Yo, chill. I love him for that, yo. Cause you know, Biggs is like that. Biggs is the same way, bleak.

[Cam'ron]

What?

[Memphis Bleak]

When we ain't getting what we asking for, we ain't doing it right.

[Cam'ron]

So now it's different to where he's like. I said, Mason got 250,000. Hell, a situation like that, Cam, is 400 for us. It's a moment. We've been doing sports together, but we haven't had a musical moment yet. Why would I take that? Why would you take it? You got it. I said, mason, bro, we got. I just. I said, we haven't Done a song in 30 years. It's a moment, right? We need the money for the moment. It has to be a Cam and Mace moment. So I can't argue with him. So back to the Jewel situation when he sent me the record. I'm not putting it on the same level as Mace, but gotta be a moment, you know what I'm saying?

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah. I fucks with what? Santana, Joel. I'm in Cam. I mean, Joel's in jail. Him out there doing. They got the bud moving, right? The music moving. Like, I just would love to see the dipset together. Like, I don't like to see the back and forth online. I'm not on this.

[Cam'ron]

And that.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's why I respect that you don't go back and forth with the.

[Cam'ron]

With the.

[Memphis Bleak]

Like that. Because that's how I am. I'm watching. Say it's like, yo, fam, I can't say nothing because then it's just gonna be your turn, my turn, your turn, my turn. And it never.

[Cam'ron]

Let me tell you something, bro. Not to cut you off, Bliss, but. But it's like this. We just talked about it. You be playing with me online. I'm gonna play with you online.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's right.

[Cam'ron]

They say something about me, I ignore it because I don't. I don't want to do that with them. I love them.

[Memphis Bleak]

See, you get that ugg for that.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah. Like, bro and me and Unspoke after that. But the thing about it, what happened with UN was, was that he did an interview on Vlad, and he said, some dame and Jay and Camp Steve Stout, they want me out the industry. And I'm like, yo, bro, where this came from. I'm like, you gave me a chance. Biggie took me to you. You gave me a chance. I have no problem with you. So I called a mutual friend, shout out to Jacob York, you know what I'm saying? And he told. He told your tuck here, I'm just trying to move to Alcarra Algorithm.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yo.

[Cam'ron]

I was just like, yo, he wanted to move everything I love. He said, tell K I'm just trying to move algorithm. So we spoke after that. I ain't no problem. And I was like, I dig ain't no problem. We spoke. I seen none. I went to Jacob House, this, that, and third, And I'm not putting business out there. But last, for the last year, I've seen he go 4000, 3000, he go 2400. It just that whether he needed or not, we won't get that. I. I was doing that.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's right.

[Cam'ron]

You know what I'm saying? So then the other day, yo. Cause only see the clips I put up. Yeah. They don't see the whole. I don't know if you've seen the interview.

[Memphis Bleak]

I just see the clips.

[Cam'ron]

So listen, I ain't gonna say who sent it to me. I'll tell you off the camera. So nigga not gas me. But he sent me the clip. Clip. He said, go to the five minute mark, Cam. So they asked the. They say, yo, did Jay Z stab you? This down the third. So he's like, and why did he stab you?

[Memphis Bleak]

I definitely didn't see this.

[Cam'ron]

This part. Yeah. So he says, jaden stabbed me. You know, somebody. Entourage we won't get into. But they like, why? And he's like, it could have been a bunch of reasons why. Why it was a bunch of reasons why. Who knows? He said, so now pause that. What I just told you. This one I'm signing. We in the studio out of song called you. We're rehearsing that song for a show. It's me. He said, mace, but I know he meant Jim. Mace wasn't there. Was Jim and all other niggas from Brooklyn, the staff, the. You know, everybody in there. So we rehearsing. Dane come in at this time while we rehearsing. And the song, you. And we kind of like you. You. You kind of like pointing the dame. And to this day, I don't know why. You know what I'm saying? But you know Dane crazy.

[Memphis Bleak]

That's right.

[Cam'ron]

Dame Dolo. They ain't walk in the middle of the whole, like, yo, y' all too. You talking about.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah.

[Cam'ron]

So he's like. Like, the song went off. So he like, yo, Kim, let me talk to y'. All. So he's bringing us outside. He said, you don't do that no more. He said, you got these. Brooklyn thinking that we ain't united Harlem. What the is that about? And I'm like, I don't even know what it was about. The song was on it. I said, y'. All. He made me feel like I felt like. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. I was like, my bad, bro. Cool. Boom. Back to un. Un tells this story on the. All the dialogue the other day was, bro. Well, Cam and Jim and them Macy says walked in and started screaming, you with dame. When he walks in. And then three, four days later, I'm stabbed. So I don't know, bro. Everything I love my. And I'm like.

[Memphis Bleak]

So he like, dang, put the hit out Basically. So Dame called his artist for the hit.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah, this is what I'm saying. Yo, Fairman, I didn't even put that clip up. So I'm like, bro, what's. Yo, bro, why you replicated me and Dame and Mace and why he know.

[Memphis Bleak]

Exactly why that went down. Yeah, he know.

[Cam'ron]

Yeah. So I'm just like, I don't believe.

[Memphis Bleak]

He said it was because y' all was saying.

[Cam'ron]

He said those could been one of the many reasons. But that's what he's saying that.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yo, that's crazy. I gotta watch that clip.

[Cam'ron]

I' ma send it to you like they said to me and go straight.

[Memphis Bleak]

To the five minute mark. That's a fact, my G. Well, I ain't gonna hold you, my. I appreciate you pulling up, my brother.

[Cam'ron]

Listen, I'm coming to the restaurant tonight to eat.

[Memphis Bleak]

Yeah, man, I'm going tonight.

[Cam'ron]

And anything else you got going on, man, I would love to be a part of it.

[Memphis Bleak]

Come on, my brother. We got a lot of planned, man. I would love to have you with you. Come on, we missed a lot of money before. We miss it now.

[Cam'ron]

Let's catch you.

[Memphis Bleak]

You feel me?

[Cam'ron]

Yes, sir.

[Memphis Bleak]

We're gonna end up in the walker rich together.

[Cam'ron]

I appreciate it, bro.

[Memphis Bleak]

My brother love you know what it is? This is brought to you by Doucet Cognac. The smoothest cognac in the world. Whatever you celebrate, make sure you toast with Doucet. We outside. Yeah. Rock solid. Boom. For more podcasts from iHeartradio, visit I Heart radio app, Apple podcasts or wherever you listen to your favorite shows at. And you can follow me on any social media platform under the name Memphis Bleak. You see anybody frauding, flag them. Thanks for listening and celebrating five years of the Black Effect podcast network with us. Keep following because the next five years are about to be even bigger.

[Narrator]

Thursday Night Football is back and it's.

[Memphis Bleak]

Only on prime video.

[Cam'ron]

Breaking the tackle. Touchdown this the Washington Commanders take on the Green Bay Packers.

[Memphis Bleak]

Both ready to come out strong.

[Cam'ron]

Coverage begins at 7pm Eastern with Football's Best Party TNF tonight presented by Verizon.

[Memphis Bleak]

Not a Prime member. Not a problem.

[Cam'ron]

Simply sign up for a 30 day free trial. Today it's the Commanders and the packers. Thursday at 7pm Eastern only on Prime Video. Restrictions apply. See Amazon.com amazonprime for details.

[Hunter]

Short on time, but big on true crime. On a recent episode of the podcast Hunting for answers, I highlighted the story of 19 year old Lachey Dungy. But she never knocked on that door. She never made it inside. And that text message would be the last time anyone would ever hear from her. Listen to Hunting for Answers from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hi, it's Jemma Speg, host of the Psychology of youf 20s. This September at the Psychology of youf 20s, we're breaking down the very interesting ways psychology applies to real life, like why we crave external validation. I find it so interesting that we are so quick to believe others judgments of us and not our own judgment of ourselves. So according to the study, not being liked actually creates similar pain levels as real life physical pain. To learn more about the psychology of everyday life and of course your twenties. This September, listen to the psychology of your twenties on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Every case that is a cold case that has DNA right now in a backlog will be identified in our lifetime on the new podcast America's Crime Lab. Every case has a story to tell and the DNA holds the truth.

[Memphis Bleak]

He never thought he was going to get caught and I just looked at my computer screen, I was just like, ah, gotcha.

[Cam'ron]

This technology's already solving so many cases.

[Hunter]

Listen to America's Crime Lab on the iHeartrade radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever.

[Mandy Money]

You get your podcasts.

[Hunter]

This is an iHeart podcast.