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The Breakfast Club
INTERVIEW: Jon B. Talks Career Milestones, Bond With 2Pac, Babyface Business Issues, Legacy + More
00:58:25
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- [00:00]
Host/Interviewer
This is an iHeart podcast.
- [00:04]
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Commercial Narrator
What a matchup we got, y'.
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John B.
All.
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Commercial Narrator
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John B.
Mmm.
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Commercial Narrator
Yeah, that taste always hits the right note. Just like the band at halftime and just like that we're back at it. Passionate fans, school colors everywhere and in ice cold Coca Cola that's a winning combo no matter the sport, no matter the yard. Everybody knows fan work is thirsty work so grab a Coca Cola and keep that HBCU pride going the wait was worth it. The keys to your dream home have been secured. Now comes time to fill it with memories. But first, furniture and movers. When's the house warming? Who's cooking? Or should you cater? All that planning can be stressful, but ensuring your home shouldn't be. And that's where State Farm comes in. Because State Farm agents can help you choose the coverage you need. Just call, go online or check out the app. An agent is ready to help so you can focus on showing off your new home. If you if you know, you know like a good neighbor, State Farm is there tonight at 10, 9 Central on BET. An all new episode of 106 in Sports from executive producers LeBron James and Maverick Carter. It's a new top five countdown with hosts Ashley Nicole Moss and Cam Newton. They're breaking down the top moments in sports, culture and entertainment and highlighting both established pros and the stars on the come up. Watch the all new series 106 in sports tonight at 10, 9 Central on BET or catch up the next day on BET.
- [03:23]
Sponsor Advertiser
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John B.
Hold up. Every day I wake up, wake your ass up.
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Charlamagne tha God
The Breakfast Club. Yep, it's the world's most dangerous morning show. The Breakfast Club, Charlamagne, the God, DJ Envy and just hilarious aren't here today. But LL Cool Bay Lauren LaRosa is. And we got a very special guest celebrating 30 years man. 30th anniversary of his RIAA certified gold debut album. Bonafide. John B. Is here man.
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John B.
What's going on man?
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Charlamagne tha God
How are you sir?
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John B.
I'm blessed man. Good to be with you guys, man. Thanks for having me.
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Charlamagne tha God
You know it's so funny. I saw you say somewhere it might have been Vlad TV where you were the first white R B singer and I'm like damn you right. That I remember. I remember between you and Color me back.
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John B.
I. I remember. You know Other people being in R B, but I don't remember any of them claiming R B the way I have got it. Like Michael McDonald, you know, he was very soulful. You know, Holler Notes, Very soulful. The Bee Gees, you know, there's, you know, Tina Marie was a R and B. Oh, absolutely. You know what I mean? And she claimed R B. Absolutely. That's all I basically was saying is I feel like I was one of the first ones to really claim R and B. You know, George Michaels, he was soulful, but he wasn't an R and B.
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Charlamagne tha God
They weren't saying they were R and B. I wonder if that was because they were white. And so the labels probably was like, don't say you're R and B because that would limit you.
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John B.
There you go.
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Host/Interviewer
Did they tell you that?
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John B.
Not tell me that. They showed me in their own way. Like, we want you to work with Diane Warren, David Foster and make a pop record. And I'm like, I don't really want to do that, but I'mma do it to satisfy you guys. I don't want to look like a difficult artist, you know, but I was, like, more interested in working with Tupac, more interested in working with Babyface, More interest real RB and hip hop, not doing pop music.
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Charlamagne tha God
What about Color Me Bad? What would they be considered?
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John B.
R B, but more like Latin R B. Because they were more like, you know, kind of with the Latin mix up, you know what I'm saying? Yeah, they had the Mi amore I Adore Me and more. They were doing the violin, you know what I'm saying? So they had that whole kind of cross genre thing going on, which was cool, because that was new, too international, you know, everybody involved. No, that's. It was. It was a great time to see that growing up, because I was trying to have groups growing up in high school. And when we saw Color Bad, I was like, oh, man. They took our idea, man, because we had a Filipino homie and black homie and me, and we used to sing at lunchtime. So when we saw Color Be Bad, we were like, oh, man. You know, they took our idea.
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Charlamagne tha God
If Envy was here, he would say, where'd you get your start? I want to go back. I want to go back. Where'd you get your start, John B.
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John B.
Man, you know, just singing in and Altadena, Pasadena and talent shows and, you know, basically just really loving the music and being around other guys who loved it, too, and demoing, you know, basically, you know, getting equipment at an early age enough to be Able to make demos. You know, not everybody had a keyboard, not everybody had a, you know, multi track recorder. So those things were tools back in the day. And I just, rather than being outside playing ball or whatever else everybody else was doing, I was in there writing records and making, making songs. And by the time I was 16, I had a full, you know, demo ready and just trying to shop it around. And by 18, I had a deal.
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Charlamagne tha God
You think that's a lost art? Like having to make a actual demo tape, like more than one song that defines you?
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John B.
Absolutely. I think that, you know, now we just go straight to making records. You know, we don't even make demos anymore. I think the demo is the record now. So which is, which is, you know, cutting a lot of, a lot of red tape out of the way. You know, we had to do a whole lot, you know, to get noticed and to get heard. So we were out there hustling, you know, I remember my 18, you know, I turned 18 my senior year in high school. I was checking myself out of school and going to shop my demo tape, you know, in Hollywood, because I had time, you know, I was like, man, I'm not going to college, you know, I'm getting a record deal, you know.
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Host/Interviewer
Was demo tape John B. The same as like Bonafide John B. Like, did you know a lot of.
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John B.
The same records were on my demo? A lot of they were on my first album. Actually. One of the songs I wrote on my, on my first demo was called I do what you say boo, which was on my second album. We held. We held that off for. For some reason, it didn't make my first album. We just kept that in the wings waiting. And then the second album came and then Sony was like, we wanna put that out as a single. And I was like, yes. Cause that was the first song I sort of wrote and produced 100% myself that was released, but that was on my original demo.
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Host/Interviewer
That's crazy to think about. Cause I feel like too, a lot of artists now do so much different stuff because they don't know who they are. Like, feeling wise and sound wise. But you came in strong out the gate knowing that.
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John B.
Well, I mean, I was looking up to all my favorite producers, you know, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Babyface, of course Elliott and Babyface, you know, Teddy Riley, anybody who was making noise at the time. I was trying to reverse engineer what they were doing, you know, How'd they get that snare sound? How did he get that, you know, and try to, you know, make my Own sort of version of that. And, you know, you always start off imitating someone, you know, that's the. I think all of the greatest artists have always had a, you know, sort of a muse or someone they use as an example. And, you know, those guys were that for me, Babyface, you know, Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis. So I just wanted to, you know, basically follow in their footsteps, you know, and learn the chords, learn how to make the beats. And that's what I spent, you know, my time doing at 16.
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Charlamagne tha God
Yep. Yeah, I've heard you talk about working with Baby Faith and how that helped to shape your career early. What's the most important creative or even life lesson he gave you that still guide you right now?
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John B.
Man, keep it honest, man. Just be honest. The more honest you are. I think that's the special stuff that is hard to get. You know, it takes time to kind of, you know, write those type of records. It's not just a throw, throw together thing. You know, sometimes you'll have a train of thought and it'll just come out in that moment and it's boom. You know, I did that one time on this, this new album I just released. It's called Waiting on youn. And the title track, Waiting on youn, is actually a song I sat down, I wrote in one instance. You know, it was probably about a couple hours I had this written, you know, but it doesn't always happen like that. But when you have a feeling that you're really trying to convey and you're focused, you know, I know exactly what this is about. Boom. It's like laser focus. Just get it done.
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Charlamagne tha God
What about from Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis?
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John B.
Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. Don't be afraid to be as exotic as you want to be with R B, you know, R and B is so vast of a style. It's not just one thing. You can't put it in a box. And they showed me that, you know, they incorporated so many different, you know, textures in their music. And I love that about them. They really, really helped me kind of find my own style through theirs.
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Charlamagne tha God
You know, I always wondered, and I guess this is a question for Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and Babyface, but even I guess you're. You're an R and B artist. So you could ask, how do y' all feel about this new sound? To where there was a point where R B and hip hop blended so much, you couldn't tell what was what. The hip hop artists were sounding like. The, the singers were sounding like the rappers. I wonder How y'. All. How did y' all feel about that?
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John B.
It was kind of a. A transition to hear, like, novice singers, you know, sing and be accepted for that. Because back in the day, in the 90s, it'd be, oh, you can't sing. You know what I mean? If you try to do something like that. But now it's like, you know. Cause if you flip it and, you know, you turn the singer who you used to, you know, hearing sing into a rapper, and he was to try to rap, do a whole rap song. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know if that would work. So, you know, the fact that we were able to accept the singing from the rappers. I remember back in the day, R and B and hip hop didn't really. They didn't really gel like that all the way. In the 90s, we were still saying, oh, man, you know, you dress in R B. You know what I mean? Or you look real R and B over there. This is hip hop over here. And you couldn't really play hip hop music at the same time of day as you played R and B. It was not mixed up. So when we did are you still down? You know, it was very, very much against the grain. We were doing something that was sort of taboo, you know, and. But we were doing it because we wanted to, you know, we wanted that to, you know, be the. The meeting of two. Two worlds, you know?
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Charlamagne tha God
How did that collaboration even happen, man?
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John B.
Just a mutual friend, you know, was at the video shoot for how do youo want it With Tupac, and he's like, man, he mentioned my name, and he's like, man, you know him. Hit him up. Pac said, hit him up. So he called me and, man, put him on the phone, and he's like, get down here, man. You know? So I came down there, and he's cool. Cool as ever, man. We just hit it off. It was chemistry right from the walking through the door, you know, because I was playing my beats for him, and he started freestyling right away, and just, you know, Casey and Jojo was there as well. And I remember there being like, oh, you guys get that in the studio. You guys got to get that down right there. That sound like something, you know? And sure enough, two weeks later, he hit me up and we made Are you still down, man?
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Charlamagne tha God
Y' all recorded together in the studio?
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John B.
Yeah, in the studio, man.
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Charlamagne tha God
Wow.
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John B.
I mean, I pulled up and my. My CD was right there in his. In his car. My first cd, Bonafide he had it, like, just right there in the front where I could see what he was playing, you know? And I said, oh, man, you might. You might have been listening to my music or whatever, you know? So when I walked in, I felt real good about that. And I. You know, he was. He was there early, you know, he was. He was there before I was there. So he, you know, he looked forward to working with me and everybody that came into the session, you know, he made sure they knew, like, you know who that is. That's John B. Up in there. So it wasn't. It wasn't the type of situation where I was coming into the Death Row, you know, all these guys in the studio, and I didn't matter. He was like, nah, this is. He told me. He's like, this is my crossover joint.
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Host/Interviewer
Was it all love every time you met because he embraced you? But internally, like, with other artists, was it always all love? Or was it like, who is this white guy with the R B vibe? Like, how. Amongst other artists.
- [13:59]
John B.
So one of my prerequisites, I told Babyface, I said, so, you know, if I sign, you know, this deal, I gotta work with New Edition and I gotta work with Toni Braxton. That has to happen. He's like, I can make that happen. So he put me in first with New Edition. And I remember coming to the studio session with New Edition and being such a New Edition fan that they were all sitting outside of the studio just chopping it up, you know what I mean? Before we go in and do the work, whatever. We parked our cars and everybody's outside the studio. But I was so starstruck that I just walked straight past them and I didn't even say hello.
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Charlamagne tha God
What?
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John B.
And I walk in the studio and I'm like. Like, oh, man. You know, because I was a little. I was like 19, you know, and just these, you know, these are my heroes.
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Charlamagne tha God
They didn't know who you were. They thought you were like.
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John B.
They didn't know who I was. They thought I was an engineer. They thought I was an engineer. Undercover cop. But, yeah, man. So I'm in there and they thinking, I'm the engineer. And so I. You know, and they come in, and I was like, hey, guys, what's up, man? You know, And I'm talking to him and. And I'm John B. You know, and you're John B. I'm like, yeah, man. So, like, wow, we didn't know you was white. You know, and it's all good.
- [15:17]
Host/Interviewer
You probably got that.
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John B.
So I wrote the record for them and produced it and everything, and they loved it and they wanted to cut it, so we were already good. You know, we knew the music meant. That's what we was there for. What record was was a song called hey Girl. It never came out, but. But the song is dope. And every time I see those guys, we always ask. We always ask each other about it. What are we gonna do with that record, man? You know, because it was actually one of the. On the reunion album. It was for the reunion album. All of them was on there.
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Charlamagne tha God
So why it didn't come out?
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John B.
You know, it was. There was a lot of records for that album that everybody. You know, they were working with just about everybody on that album. So I was really honored to have just gotten the chance to collaborate. But, yeah, you never know. It probably will come out.
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Charlamagne tha God
I want to go back to the Tupac thing for a second, because, you know, I didn't grow up in that era. So to me, Tupac is like a mythical.
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John B.
Yeah, I feel it.
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Charlamagne tha God
How was he when you was around him? Like, what was his presence like?
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John B.
Energy. Just, like, you know, when you see dmx, like, how he just kind of glowed as a person around his presence. He just had that. Just that. That thing he did to the atmosphere of the room. When he walked in, he just. You felt his presence. A lot of it was the motivation that he had. He was such a motivation type of guy, you know, motivating his. His energy was about, all right, man, let's get this done. Like, let's. Let's be. Be present and be in the moment. Like, I don't care if we drinking Hennessy and we smoking. It don't matter. Like, you better be in the moment. Really, really putting your best foot forward. That's what he was really about. And he. I remember one of the things he said was, man, if you're not doing, like, three records a day, you're not really doing this, man. You know, you need to be productive. So productivity, I think, was his main. His main. Sort of like that was one of.
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Charlamagne tha God
His superpowers, you know, when you debuted with Bonafide, speaking of motivation, what was the sound you were chasing? What was your motivation?
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John B.
Well, I mean, I will say my first album was very heavily Babyface influence and wanted to be one of the. The guys that he was, you know, collaborating with. You know, I saw how he collaborated with Toni Braxton and with TLC and with Bobby Brown and with so many different other artists after seven. All my favorite RB growing up. So I thought what would it be like if I allowed him to produce me? You know, what does that sound like? What does our sound. What would our voices sound like? We blended them together on one record. So Someone to Love was our first time getting to do that. And you know, it's one thing to be a fan, but then when you get to actually work with the person and you know, and hear all of the lessons, learn how. How do you put a chorus together? Oh, damn. That's how many notes you have to do on the, on the stack of the backgrounds. Like, I remember stacking that chorus up so many tracks. And I had never done anything like that before as a vocalist, so it taught me a lot. You know, just that first session with, with Kenny. Yeah.
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Host/Interviewer
I saw somewhere you turned down a ton of like million dollar deals to stay signed with Baby Babyfish and his wife.
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John B.
Yeah.
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Host/Interviewer
Talk about your loyalty to him and you know what, the decision to be loyal to him, but also how that paid off for you.
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John B.
Well, I'll tell you loyalty. When you say you're gonna do something, I'm the type of guy that when I say I'm gonna do something, I'm do it. You know, it's not. I'm gonna do it. If this is. No, if, if, if, if I show up and I say that I'm down with you, then I'm down with you. You know, I mean, you're gonna have to do something pretty, pretty crucially crazy for me to get it for the burn, the bridge. Like, I'm a very, very loyal person. I'm a Scorpio. I mean, we're loyal. But I mean, I will say that it feels good to be 30 years and still have gratitude, you know, not only for what I'm getting to do. Right. Currently, right now with you guys and everything, this new album and everything, and the support and all the collaborations I have on the new album, but everything I've gotten to do, you know, you know, the 30 year career and what that would be. I don't know what that would look like if Kenny and Tracy didn't give me that opportunity. And I've never lost sight of that. You know, the business and the, the patience that it takes to be in this business is never, it's never changed. You know, you're either gonna have the patience or not, you know, and certain people just, they, it's like, you know, I could feel it. It's like the energy, the love for the music doesn't supersede how much they hate the business, so they don't continue with the music. And I don't want to be one of those guys. I don't want the music to be overshadowed by the business being what it is because the business is a messed up business. Let's, let's. Who has like the story that, that needs to be told with as far as like the business going good the whole time?
- [20:08]
Charlamagne tha God
The whole time, since the time I.
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John B.
Came in, it was fantastic, you know, who has story? But I think that, you know, that's what. That's when it comes down to having the passion for what you do, you know, do you really? Do you believe it still? Because if you don't believe it, why should we as the listeners, you know. So I hope that what I'm doing currently now with my music conveys the point that, you know, I still love what I do. I have a passion for what it.
- [20:36]
Charlamagne tha God
Well, you know, one thing about loyalty, like, you know, you can stand on that.
- [20:41]
John B.
Yeah, but is it returned? Yeah, that's the thing is, is the return part is that that's where I put it out to the universe. I'd rather put good energy out and because I know that it'll be good coming back if it doesn't come back. That's where the patience comes in, you know, Because I know what it's like to be the guy to sit to, you know, sit and sort of wait for your shot, you know. And I never also wanted to be the sort of the main dude. I wanted to be a part of the nuts and bolts of what makes this thing, put this thing together. But I'm always been. I've always been a sort of a team player. And that's where producing really comes in, is really. If you don't need to be the main guy shining all the time, then you can also, you know, make yourself felt in other ways. Like produce the track, you know, write the lyrics, you know what I'm saying? Like maybe just fall in that way, you know. And I've been able to be a part of different amazing projects just doing that. And that's just. It's just as fulfilling really.
- [21:47]
Host/Interviewer
I was going to say while we talking about things being returned, I know that there was like a bit of a back and forth at one point a couple years ago with you and Baby Face over like you were saying that you weren't paid for certain things. He was saying that it wasn't his duty to pay you. And he was kind of like disappointed. He said that you let the narrative go. Where does that conversation stand now with you guys.
- [22:04]
John B.
Well, it's interesting that he would say that because I was signed to his production, if you want to not call it a label. I was signed to his production company, which was called Edmunds Record Group. So that's the deal that you talk about me passing up the other deals so I could sign with Babyface. You know, that's the company that I signed with. Now they were distributed and they had their. They were a subsidiary label of Epic Records. So I had basically half my deal with Epic and half my deal with Kenny and Tracy. But the deal that I signed was a cross collateralized deal with all of the other artists that they had signed to their label. Now cross collateralized means that basically whatever those artists spent, whatever they were given, advances, any money, I'm responsible for that under my budget to recoup that. So basically none of those artists ever really came out. But they all got recording budgets and they all got living stipends and whatever. So at the end of the day, it's a lot of money, right? So basically what it was is that I'm in a situation where I'm not only recouping what I'm spending myself, I'm recording what this entire label was spending. You know what I'm saying? And that's, I think that's a great responsibility to put on a 19 year old kid who's writing, producing, everything, pretty much himself, but just wants to work with his hero. You know, that was a great deal to, you know, to have to, you know, to sign that deal was. It wasn't the greatest deal, let's put it like that. But to work with Babyface, you know, that was what I really had my mind set on. So all of the money part, all of the sort of like the business part, I really let that kind of like be not as important. So it, that's why it's taken so long to get to come full circle. But it's been so long that they have to come full circle now. And that's where we're, that's where we're currently at right now. It's unfortunate the Heathens really have my back and seeing how loyal I've been all this time by not speaking on none of this, you know what I mean? People being like, where you been? What's held you back all this time? Well, really I didn't allow the financial part to hold me back because if I did, I wouldn't continue putting music out independently. You know, I mean, I'm funding all this myself. So, you know, it's it hasn't been easy, but what really hasn't been easy is to be so supportive of him and then have it not be returned, like, in the sense of him just knowing what everything that I've sort of like, you know, did to have that. That opportunity to work with him, you know?
- [24:53]
Charlamagne tha God
And that's what I meant when I said the loyalty being returned. I didn't know about that situation in particular, but just being a loyal person.
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John B.
Yeah.
- [24:59]
Charlamagne tha God
Sometimes you sacrifice a lot for yourself, but it don't never come back if the person you being loyal to don't give it back to you.
- [25:05]
John B.
And that's on him. You know what I mean? If that's how he wants to address the situation, that's on him. You know, when we. When we've seen each other out in public and stuff like that, when we do shows together, it's not the same. You know what I mean? And we're not. We're not really. I mean, we're. We're cordial, but we're not. You know, it's the. The relationship hasn't really blossomed, you know, into what I thought it would be. After all of that, that I sacrificed in my. In my. In my career, I would have definitely wanted to see him at my wedding, definitely would want to see him to, you know, introduce him to my kids. So, yeah, like, he doesn't even know my kids. We don't know each other anymore. So it's like that. That part of it hurts me, the fact that we can't go on tour together because I don't really know that Kenny even really likes me as a person. Actually, you know, it's. It's interesting, but I don't really care because I did what I. I did what I got to do.
- [26:06]
Charlamagne tha God
You care, though.
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John B.
I care because I love the guy.
- [26:10]
Charlamagne tha God
Yeah.
- [26:11]
John B.
But I don't care if a person's gonna be negative just to be negative and tell a negative story or sort of, like, not respond to what the truth is. Because the truth is a lot of people sacrificed a lot to work with Babyface and their stories. I don't really get. I don't really think that they get to tell their story, that that story hasn't really been told for the respect of what it was to uphold the. You know, the. You know what. The magic that we were able to create together and to respect that and to leave that alone. Nobody wants to taint the story with, like, oh, but the business wasn't. You know what I mean? And that type of stuff. So I've never been. This is the most I've ever talked about in my entire career. Right now, actually, in this moment, the information I've divulged that I said I wasn't gonna really talk about, but I think it's important for people to understand what kind of deals were signed back in the 90s, you know, and what kind of deals can still be signed now if you. You know, if you're not careful. Just be careful to. I will say as advice to the kids coming up, be careful not to put all your eggs in one basket, you know, because that's what. That's what I did. I put all my eggs in one basket. Instead of being like, you know, a little bit more patient and just, okay, I'll work with you on a couple records, but I'm gonna have this over here publishing deal over here, a production company over here. I have my own label from the very beginning, you know, it's basically what I had anyway, because I was paying for everybody's stuff with my own budget, basically. You know, whatever.
- [27:48]
Charlamagne tha God
It's interesting, right, because I wonder about stuff like that because I think about, you know, of course, I think about LaFace, and then I think about, you know, the TLC situation, right? And I just wonder, was that intentional or was that just the business? Like, I don't know, if these people wake up and say, hey, we're gonna take advantage of these people financially. I don't know. Or was that just the way record contracts were structured?
- [28:09]
John B.
Like, I don't know. I can't really speak on anyone else's, like, sort of why they, you know, make contracts the way they do. Because really what it does is it just. It delays the process of the artist being able to have, you know, being compensated for their art, you know, and it's 30 years later and we're, you know, we're still addressing all of this. So it's. But it's a wonderful process to watch it happen because I know there's a light at the end of the tunnel that is just getting closer and closer and closer as far as really.
- [28:43]
Charlamagne tha God
What's that like?
- [28:44]
John B.
Well, just getting paid, man. You know what I mean? Like, at the end of the day, is the checks coming? You know what I mean? Oh, from. From. From Epic. From.
- [28:52]
Charlamagne tha God
They're the.
- [28:53]
John B.
They're the. The company that all of this was under. That's where all the money came from. But the fact is that all the money that was spent by the label all was recoupable by me.
- [29:05]
Host/Interviewer
You say by the label. You're talking about the label with Babyface and with Epic.
- [29:09]
John B.
So Baby Face and Tracy Edmonds, the Edmonds record group, where the late. That was the production company, Slash label that I was signed to under Epic. Epic funded their whole thing. See what I'm saying? So all the artists that they were signed, signing, the money would come from Epic.
- [29:26]
Host/Interviewer
Got you, Right.
- [29:27]
John B.
But the money was also charged to my account. So John B. Paid for everything.
- [29:33]
Charlamagne tha God
Every water, every everything travel artist, every studio time.
- [29:37]
John B.
Hey, such and such needs to get a living stipend because they need to get their rent paid. So group that signed to them, I'm paying for all of that, Recoup all of that. So all those. All those budgets have to be paid back before I can see anything.
- [29:52]
Host/Interviewer
Right.
- [29:54]
John B.
That's the deal that I signed. So that's why it's taken so long. But I knew what I was signing. My attorney told me. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. He said, listen, it's going to take a long time to. You. You're going to have to sell a lot of records for this to, you know, for you to come on top.
- [30:10]
Host/Interviewer
How many records was it?
- [30:11]
John B.
And, you know, we've sold, you know, if I'm gonna count the singles, it's over 10 million easy, because, I mean, I've sold, you know, multiple platinum singles, but the albums have gone multiple platinum as well. So my. My second album, Cool Relax, I believe, is quadruple platinum. And, you know what's cool about saying that is that we don't sell records anymore. So it's like that means that people actually went out and stood in line. You know what I mean? So when you think about a million people going out by a record, that's like, that's kind of cool for me, you know, And I still celebrate that, you know, just knowing that those albums are part of people's lives. And, you know, evidently, if I don't play certain songs, they want their money back at the show, you know, if I don't play, they don't know.
- [31:03]
Charlamagne tha God
Do you think they did that to you because of how white executives have gotten over on black artists? So it's a little payback, probably, right?
- [31:13]
John B.
Oh, you want to be an R B artist, huh?
- [31:15]
Commercial Narrator
Oh, you want to be R and B artist.
- [31:17]
Charlamagne tha God
Crazy. You was.
- [31:18]
John B.
Reparations. You want to be an R B artist. Okay.
- [31:24]
Charlamagne tha God
Damn. So how much you think you owe, though?
- [31:27]
John B.
A lot.
- [31:28]
Charlamagne tha God
Wow.
- [31:30]
John B.
A lot.
- [31:30]
Commercial Narrator
Wow.
- [31:31]
John B.
So, yeah, and the beautiful thing is, like, you know, the money is a byproduct of being as successful. You can't hide that kind of. That type of, you know, because that's how successful it was. It was and still is. It's, you know, still being sampled all the time. The records of the Weeknd just sampled actually. Someone to love.
- [31:57]
Charlamagne tha God
Oh, we gotta. I got a text from my producer, he's a OV ho. OV ho. And he said, where is it at? Where's that? I just saw it. What was it? He just texted to me, eli, send it to me again.
- [32:10]
Host/Interviewer
He said, Drake sample. John B's on a track off a take care called Cameras. The good ones go Interlude.
- [32:16]
John B.
Yeah, yeah.
- [32:17]
Charlamagne tha God
Anybody that's been near Drake or been sampled, he goes crazy.
- [32:21]
John B.
Yeah, no, it's, it's. It's been cool. Chris Brown sample. They don't know as well. Gunna and Chloe sampled. They don't know not too long ago.
- [32:29]
Host/Interviewer
Oh Lord, that.
- [32:30]
Charlamagne tha God
Yeah, we.
- [32:31]
John B.
We don't go there.
- [32:33]
Charlamagne tha God
But.
- [32:34]
John B.
But yeah, you know, it's just cool to see the music exist in, in this time, in this era and be. I never thought I'd be the guy that got sampled. You know, I was always sampling like old 70s records and, and 80s records and, and thinking, man, you know, that's where you get your samples from. I never thought I'd be part of someone's sound selection. So however I get flipped, you know, it's a beautiful thing to just. Yeah. Be a part of the times.
- [33:04]
Charlamagne tha God
How does it feel to hear your fingerprints everywhere?
- [33:07]
John B.
That's cool, man. I mean, something about that song they don't know has really, you know, it's resonated with people. And not only the song, but the track too. So I gotta give Tim Kelly and Bob Robinson their props for such an amazing track because that. They keep sampling that track even if they don't take the hook. They love that. That track. So. Yeah, man, I think that's one. We just, we got that one. We got it right with that one, you know, and if you can have one of those in your career. That's right, you know. And yeah, I penned that record myself, so that's one of the songs I'm probably most proud of.
- [33:48]
Charlamagne tha God
After Bonafide and you started leaning into your own vision, did the industry understand your vision?
- [33:55]
John B.
Yeah, okay. I think so. I think that what most. What really showed me was even if the labels don't really understand what was going on and they're kind of like going with the flow and they're kind of trusting my creativity but not really knowing how to necessarily market it or, you know, they just I was signed to Epic, so they were rolling out the red carpet for me. Don't, don't get it twisted. We were having like three or four, you know, records on BET playing at the same time. Like they knew they had to do something. They just had never done it before. So I was sort of the guinea pig for, you know, this, this thing now that's, you know, sort of like you see it all the time now.
- [34:37]
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- [39:26]
John B.
No, but I was. I was definitely like, you know, definitely trailblazing. Put it like that. At that time, nobody expected me to be accepted right away. And I think that was sort of like. The shocker was by the second album, you know, a lot of that went into the reason why I wrote a hook. Like, don't listen to what people say. They don't know.
- [39:50]
Charlamagne tha God
You know.
- [39:53]
John B.
It'S sort of like me. You know what I mean? Like, literally, like, it was more than just hearsay. It was like, no, I think I have a feeling now of, like, I know what I'm doing, y'.
- [40:02]
Host/Interviewer
All.
- [40:02]
John B.
You know what I mean? So there was a little bit of that confidence starting to show itself a little bit more on the second album. I. I remember the first. The first thing I did on that album was cut all my hair off. I just went straight buzzed it off and did the fade. Because they were trying to have, you know, they wanted me to be a pop star. They wanted me to grow my hair longer and get streaks and all this stuff. And I'm like, that's not me. You know, they straighten it out and do all this parted in the side, and I'm like, look, you're making me look a little too. You know, I don't know. It just wasn't my look. And so I buzzed it off and cool. Relax was. Or I had the Caesar cut, you know, in the beer, whatever. And so I just did that on my own. You know, that was kind of like how I groomed myself when I was in high school. So I just kind of went back to my old style. And that was. That was a big move because I remember the label was pissed as hell when they saw I cut my hair off.
- [40:59]
Charlamagne tha God
Oh.
- [41:00]
Host/Interviewer
Cause you had the shape up.
- [41:01]
John B.
Yeah, just shape up real quick. And that was more authentic for me. You know, it's just doing me.
- [41:07]
Charlamagne tha God
But it's crazy to even think back in the day how much image mattered, especially when you see everybody now just doing whatever the hell oh, yeah.
- [41:14]
John B.
Board shorts and a T shirt. Now you rock a stage, you know, look like you just going to the beach or something. Coachella, you know, they're out there. Not even dressed for a show. I mean, no, I think it's. It's different times, you know, we're living it. But one thing I love about R and B is we. We are unapologetically slick. You know, we. We just keep the, you know, the fashion going. You know, I've always loved R B and hip hop for that because we've been the sort of the leading on the leading, you know, edge of that, all of that. I think all the other genres of music sort of follow the lead of that, you know, and just every culture, whether you're. Whether you even like R B or hip hop, is. Is influenced by the culture of hip hop and rv, Whether they like it or not. It's probably the most influential style.
- [42:06]
Charlamagne tha God
Absolutely.
- [42:07]
John B.
You know, we have.
- [42:08]
Charlamagne tha God
When you look at each album over your career, you got what, 10 albums?
- [42:12]
John B.
Yeah.
- [42:12]
Charlamagne tha God
Damn. Where do you feel the biggest artistic evolution happened for you?
- [42:19]
John B.
Well, I think the biggest, you know, probably evolution was probably making the record with. With Tupac, because it was the most revolutionary and kind of risk taking. I remember I felt like I was treading in water that, you know, like, I couldn't feel the bottom of the sand no more. I was. You know, you. When you. When you tread out in the beach and you just, you know, you're no longer walking on the. On the sand, you're, like, treading water now, you know, so it's sort of like, all right, you better float or you're gonna sink. You better swim or you're gonna sink. You know, I wasn't really in my element with. With Tupac Shakur and the death row scene. I was very much like, I was the babyface R B element and working with New Edition and Tony Braxton. All of a sudden, you know, I'm, you know, with. With Tupac. But what it felt like was, it was I was in the right place at the right time. We were. We had the right energy. And so what that taught me was just, you know, step outside your norm and don't be afraid to do things that haven't been done. Next thing you know, I'm in the studio with Nas, you know, and we're making a record together and Jay Z and, you know, and so it's. It's just been. It's been really, first of all, really dope. To be one of the first ones to really trailblaze that sort of collaboration between hip hop and rb, because there wasn't a lot of that going on when I started 95, you know.
- [43:42]
Charlamagne tha God
How did you feel when they named Tupac's whole album?
- [43:45]
John B.
Are you still down? Right? His mother. Yeah, his mother. After, you know, his passing. I got to meet her, actually at his memorial, and I sang at his memorial. And, yeah, she. She felt it necessary because she's like, I'm the. You know, I told her, thank you so much for allowing the song to come out, because she was the main reason why the record got released. She said, yeah, my son played that song for me. You know, he didn't play a lot of his music because of, you know. You know, he didn't the lyrics and. But that song he felt really confident about, and he's like, this is my song. I know you're gonna like this, Mom. You know, and she loved it, of course. And that was the last song that he recorded, so.
- [44:32]
Charlamagne tha God
Damn. That was the last time he recorded when he was.
- [44:33]
John B.
Yeah, it was two weeks. Two, three weeks before he went to Vegas, man. Wow. Yeah. I remember because I went to England to go finish my album, and I found out out in England when. When he got shot that. And I. I remember when it happened because I thought, you know, because he had already been shot, you know, and lived. Shot in the head and lived. So there was this feeling of like, oh, he's gonna be all right. That's Tupac. You know, it's like. He's superhuman. Mm. So there was this, like. I remember it was about four or five days of not knowing what was. What was happening. Right. It was about, I don't know how many days. Seemed like long.
- [45:16]
Charlamagne tha God
Seven.
- [45:17]
John B.
Seven.
- [45:17]
Charlamagne tha God
Seven. He died on the seventh day, I believe.
- [45:19]
John B.
Golly, man.
- [45:20]
Charlamagne tha God
Died on the 6th. Died on the 13th.
- [45:22]
John B.
Oh, my God. Yeah, we. We were. We were. You know, I'm trying to work in this studio that's basically like an old renovated Catholic church. It was called Air Studios, and in England's George Martin, the Beatles engineer studios. And it's got these cathedral, you know, walls. You know, it's like an old church with the, you know, stained glass windows. And I'm. I'm working in this. In this room, and my assistant comes in and say, pac got shot, and he's in the hospital. I'm just like, we gotta call him. We gotta. You know, I'm trying to get in touch with him and. Can't get in touch with them. Of course. You can't get through. And, yeah, we just it was. It was really, really horrible to go through that because it was like everything that I was looking forward to doing with him. We were talking about wearing suits in the video. You know, we were just. Man, we're going to be so clean. This is about to be. You know, this is. Think about it. This is before Dr. Dre and Eminem had even done a collaboration. No, there's been. There was no collaboration really liked has ever done. And we both felt like we were doing something special, you know? He invited me after we recorded the song, he invited me to come watch him work on his other tune. He was recording in the other room, and he was doing To Live and Die in LA in the other room. And I'm sitting there like, he's gonna play it for me. I think he's just gonna play it for me. But he presses record, and he goes in there and he does a double vocal right over his vocal that he already had laid. And it sounded like a Xerox copy. It was. I was like, he's got, like, photographic memory of what he did, because he just did it exactly the same right. Right in front of me. And I was like, you just record that right now? He's like, yeah, man. You know, I just got to get it done, man. I'm like, God, you are. I've never heard any rapper double his voice. Like, it that precise, you know, it's incredible.
- [47:19]
Charlamagne tha God
That's why I'm sitting there. I'm like, yo, you know he told you that he wanted. He said you should always record three songs a day. Yeah, but he recorded with you. And then he didn't record for two weeks. And then I wonder what was going on in his life in those two weeks that he didn't even want to record.
- [47:33]
John B.
I don't know, man. I don't know. I know that he was doing a lot of collaborating with a lot of people at that time, because I had heard that he was working on a project where he was trying to unify the east and the West.
- [47:45]
Charlamagne tha God
Oh, yeah. With Buckshot. Yep. And called the One Nation.
- [47:49]
John B.
Yeah, the One Nation is. That's right. That's right. And so, yeah, he was doing some things. I mean, it was rumored that he was working with Atlantis Morissette.
- [47:59]
Commercial Narrator
Oh, wow.
- [47:59]
John B.
Yeah. On something. I mean, a lot. I heard a lot of different things, but. But our collaboration, man, was, to say the least, that was a. That was the groundbreaking, classic record, groundbreaking moment for me.
- [48:13]
Charlamagne tha God
When you think about records, like, they don't know, you know, Are you still down? Does Having those big classics create pressure when you approach new music? Or does it free you knowing you already contributed something that's timeless?
- [48:26]
John B.
Well, you're grateful for it, because if the new music doesn't catch on, I'm still torn.
- [48:31]
Charlamagne tha God
Absolutely.
- [48:33]
John B.
No, I mean, you know what?
- [48:35]
Commercial Narrator
It's a.
- [48:35]
John B.
It's a great thing to shoot for that. You know, it's like, if you have a template that, you know, works with people, then I feel like that's a good feeling. And if I could just get back to that feeling, I have an inkling of that feeling. But getting back to what Babyface says, and I'm gonna take it back to the positive about Babyface, because I love that. That man. Don't get it twisted. That's my father to the game, so. But one thing he will say to you is, keep it honest. That's all I'm trying to be, is honest. You know, that was his own advice he gave me. So, you know, I feel like this. This album is very honest. You know, I turned 50. Well, I'm 51 now. But, you know, the year I put the album, you know, March, I was 50, and it's my 10th album. It felt very much like this is the album that I want to be making at 50. You know, we got Rick Ross on the album. We have Tank on the album. Donnell Jones is on the album. Alex Isley is on the album. And to be independent and have all that support like that, people come into my aid and. And want to bless me like that with their features was. Yeah, it was incredible.
- [49:38]
Host/Interviewer
Were you ever worried. Cause it took 13 years for the album to come that you talked about being honest, that you weren't gonna be able to be as honest because your life has changed so much, or, like, you wouldn't get that feeling or that sound again that you had had in the music prior.
- [49:51]
John B.
Yeah, I think that when you mature and you get a lot more added to your life in terms of your actual. What's happening in your life in this case. I've been married for 18 years with. Chill with.
- [50:01]
Host/Interviewer
There's a lot more to protect now.
- [50:02]
John B.
There's a lot more. So there's a lot more, I think, that goes into the crafting of these songs. Like, actually, the lyrics. There's responsibility behind those lyrics now. You know, as a. As a grown man, I know what I don't want to say. I know what's sort of out of my lane to say, like, I'm not going to go in there and pour the song live. The plight of A single dude in the club trying to holler for the night and just, let's get this done and then go back to being like a married man on the next song. Like, you're not gonna get that on this album. You're gonna get one plight, which is basically me just compliment, you know, being complimentary and romantic and celebrating relationships, you know, that's what this album is really celebrating. But I'm. I'm. I'm an atmosphere creator, so I'm always gonna put. Have those sexy joints and joints that are, you know, the baby makers.
- [50:53]
Charlamagne tha God
Hopefully, you know, what's part of your journey that you think people don't talk about enough. Like something behind the scenes that even shaped the John B. We know today.
- [51:02]
John B.
I think it goes back to just really being a fan of R B that I would really continue to do this, like, for free. Like, even if I didn't make money doing this, that this would be my first choice, you know, Like. Like, this is the music I listen to at home when I'm cleaning up my place. You know what I mean? And this is the. These are the clothes I put on when I'm chilling around the house. Like, this is the life I live. Like, I'm raising young black women, you know, I'm married to a black woman. This is the life that I live, you know, so it's like, whether you see it in the video and you think, oh, that's cool. That's a cool, like, look, she's pretty for the video, it's kind of representing my life, you know? And I mean, my music is representing my life in a real way. It's not for show, you know, this is who I've been for 30 years, and I'm just. I'm glad to have been accepted for who I am, you know, and really being able to stay true to that is really. Has been really not even a challenge. It's just been an honor to do so and to sort of be the one who shows up to the gigs that I see my counterparts sort of like avoiding like the plague, you know, the places I go are, like, where real R B is being felt in. Real R B is being, you know, celebrated. So that's where I'm going to, you know, and I'm gonna continue that walk.
- [52:30]
Charlamagne tha God
So, yeah, I don't think there's enough spaces for it. I know you got Tank on the new album, you know, I think is a great dude. And like, even just creating, like, you know, Tank has an idea for this R B money award show. Want to see, you know, come to fruition just because I don't feel like number one. There's not a lot of places that celebrate R B.
- [52:48]
John B.
That's right. That's right.
- [52:49]
Charlamagne tha God
Like, R B needs.
- [52:50]
John B.
We don't have the venues. We don't have. We don't have the venues. We don't have the. The shows. We need a R B celebration show. You know what I mean? We have Soul Train. We've had the Soul Train Awards, which has been our only real venue for that. And I mean, that's really been an honor to be a part of the Soul Train Awards, you know, to. To. That's how me and Donnell linked up. We both got honored that night, the same night, and it was a pleasure to see him backstage and to be like, man, you nervous? I'm nervous too, man. We haven't been on stage in so long, man, you know, let's go have fun with this, you know, celebrate. These people are here for us, you know. So, yeah, just, you know, getting to, you know, have that moment and say, hey, let's. Let's collab, man. Let's do something, you know, and we make the song understand for my album. And yeah, he's a great guy. And same with Tank, you know, get to be on the R and B money podcast and just chop it up. And I'm like, hey, man, you know, you. You're the guy, man. You've been the guy for quite some time. And that's not our first time working together. We've collaborated in the past, but. But I was just like, man, you know, you've really, really been like one of my main influences over the last 10 years, you know, however long it's been. And yeah, let me play you this record because I think you're going to hear. Hear a little bit of that influence. And then I played it for him and he was like, I got to be on that. I was just like. I was blown away because I wasn't expecting him to say that he was going to sing on the record. And, you know, it's one thing when someone says they're going to do something, and another thing when they pull up to the studio and they're there and they're, you know, he's like, I don't want to change nothing you did. You bodied them verses. Like, I'm just going to add the bridge, play some piano on it, and it's a rap and that's a hit. And I was like, man, I mean, the most confident I've felt in A very long time.
- [54:38]
Charlamagne tha God
Wow. Yeah, man, you had lost it for a minute.
- [54:40]
John B.
Well, I mean, it's just, it's one of those things where you're hoping to get one again, you know, and, and when someone like, you know, the likes of Tank, you know, comes along and co signs for you, especially in this day and age, there's so much music, so much more music being released than it was when I first came out. The volume of artists that come out every month is insane. So just to be somebody, to even be considered. But, you know, it was really lovely to wake up in the morning and see my video playing on BET in the morning again, you know, with all the other new videos coming out and just the support that BET has shown me all my career, man, without bet, I wouldn't be John B, period. You know, I remember the funny story. I was in Jamaica with Beanie, man, I was working out there and we got pulled over by the police. And I thought, oh man, we're gonna go to jail in Jamaica, man. Was, you know, and they were like, who? The white boy in the car with you? The policeman? And he's like, that's John B. And they go, john B from bet. John B. Yeah. Can we take a picture?
- [55:45]
Commercial Narrator
Come on.
- [55:45]
John B.
So I get out and I'm taking pictures with the police and they let us go. But that's. Yeah, I mean, it just shows you, man. People know me from that, you know, and that, that, that era. And without, without them, I wouldn't be, you know, wouldn't be where I'm at. So I got a big up BET for sure. Word.
- [56:01]
Host/Interviewer
How's John B. As a dad to his girls? Like explaining like, now you got your music out and you gotta explain to them like, okay, this is what daddy does. And you know, like, how are you in that space?
- [56:11]
John B.
My 18 year old is really just now really. I feel like wrapped her. It's taken her this long to wrap her head around what I do and. And now she's part of the team, you know, she's. It's funny because like when we do videos and stuff, she'll be the one doing my makeup on the side. She'll, you know, give me a little powder or whatever and you know, telling me, dad, your hair's straight or, you know, or you need to fix this or whatever, or don't wear that like that. You know, she's sort of like a stylist for me. At the same time, she's a little bit of helping up with travel, you know, with booking all the Travel, because we do everything. My wife's the manager, so everything's all in house, so everybody's helping out. You know, my 11 year old, she's still wrapping her head around what I do. I think that it's still nice for her to sort of be naive to it, you know, and she sees the shows, and I'm sure it's intimidating seeing all those people on. Standing on the side of the stage at Madison Square Garden, being like, you know, but. But at the end of the day, it's. It's wonderful to come back to them and to know that, you know, they're there waiting for me at home. It's incentive to go out there and want to work real hard, though, you know, give them a good life, you know.
- [57:19]
Host/Interviewer
And you and your wife have been together since 2007?
- [57:21]
John B.
Yes.
- [57:22]
Host/Interviewer
Is that the right. Okay. So she's been along for the journey for a long time. So this. This unfolding of the career part is, like, easy for her. She's probably just like, doing it in her sleep.
- [57:30]
John B.
Well, it's not easy for us. I mean, it's a lot of responsibility. It's only on us, so it's no one, you know, there's no labels involved, so it's really about. But, you know, that's why I want to commend my fans and thank the fans. Without the fans, I would not be here, y'.
- [57:46]
Commercial Narrator
All.
- [57:47]
John B.
I wouldn't. You wouldn't hear me on the radio right now, you know, without the people coming to the shows to make it all. Cause the shows is what's kept me alive all this time. Because I wasn't making money from the records, but I was making money from the shows. And so you gotta go out and get that show money, you know, stay on the road, man. That's all. I'm one. I've been one of, like, the hardest working R B guys in the game. Like, really, it was me for a long time was like, me genuine. And like Case and like jagged edge and 112. We were like the hardest working guys in the games. I was always out in the road with them everywhere we go. H town too. I mean, I gotta give all my. My guys from the 90s, we stay working because people, that's some of the music. That's some of the most celebrated music.
- [58:31]
Charlamagne tha God
Time is recording, providing the soundtrack to people alive, man.
- [58:35]
John B.
It's just a wonderful thing. Me and Joe and Case are gonna perform in Jersey actually tomorrow. We're gonna be in Jersey.
- [58:41]
Charlamagne tha God
Wow.
- [58:42]
John B.
Yeah. We're in Elizabeth, New Jersey at the Ritz Theater. Yeah. So that's gonna be a dope show. And, you know, it's just, it's such a beautiful thing to be included with that, that lineup right there. First of all, I'm such a Joe fan and I'm such a Case fan. So, you know, and both of those brothers are good, good friends of mine. We've known each other for years.
- [59:09]
Charlamagne tha God
And yeah, that's the night. We're gonna play this on Friday. That's a night of R B with Joe and live band and yes, Case and John B. How the hell I ain't know this.
- [59:18]
Host/Interviewer
In Atlantic, New Jersey.
- [59:20]
Charlamagne tha God
Yeah.
- [59:22]
John B.
Gotta come on out, man. R B lovers, you know, that's going to be a good night.
- [59:26]
Charlamagne tha God
Listen, you know, you married to a black woman.
- [59:28]
John B.
Yes.
- [59:29]
Charlamagne tha God
How do you. Great. Great choice, by the way.
- [59:31]
Host/Interviewer
Great choice, by the way.
- [59:32]
John B.
Yes, I know.
- [59:33]
Charlamagne tha God
How do you and your wife feel about Dr. Umar Johnson? You don't know who that is?
- [59:41]
John B.
I, I don't know who that is.
- [59:43]
Charlamagne tha God
Oh, don't worry about it, brother.
- [59:46]
Host/Interviewer
Question over here.
- [59:49]
John B.
I'm sorry.
- [59:50]
Host/Interviewer
It's totally fine that you don't know who that is, I guess. Speaking of. So you talked. We talked a bit about your daughters. I know you said you don't want to talk a lot about it, but the Chloe moment, when Chloe was here and she reacted to you talking about her song, you seeing her moment here made you kind of rethink about how you said things. When you were asked about her covering they don't Know, and you mentioned it's because you're raising black daughters and you wanted to be more careful.
- [60:15]
John B.
Yeah.
- [60:16]
Host/Interviewer
Talk about that realization in real time because the world was what is happening.
- [60:21]
John B.
Oh, I mean, it's interesting to have an opinion in this day and age because it's, it's a responsibility. You know, sometimes you can say what you, what you think. It's the way that you say it that can be misconstrued, you know, because everybody doesn't have to like everything. You know, obviously we live in a canceled culture, like society now, where if you say something the wrong way, you can be canceled very fast.
- [60:46]
Charlamagne tha God
Whatever that means.
- [60:46]
John B.
But yeah, but you know, in whatever it means, I think is that people lose respect for you and so they, they don't mess with you as much. And for me, it's like I, I, I'm counting on people to, to continue to, to, you know, to support me. So I'm never, I never want to mess my chance up of that. And first of all, I'm A mature man. I know when to take a L and say, my, my bad. I didn't mean that. The worst part about it is raising daughters and seeing when they get disappointed how their facial expressions look and how their voices change and they, you know, to see that happen with her.
- [61:25]
Host/Interviewer
Your 18 year old is a Chloe fan?
- [61:27]
John B.
Well, yeah, I mean, she, you know, she, she could feel her energy when she was reacting to it. So could I, being that I'm raising an 18 year old.
- [61:36]
Host/Interviewer
Right.
- [61:36]
John B.
And she's not that much older, I mean, you know, but she's a young girl. So to see that I made her feel that way, you know, made me feel bad because I never want to insult anyone or make them feel bad, especially when they're incredibly talented like that. I guess what I want to say is come collaborate with me for real, you know, come collab. Let me have a chance to really work with you. She's so incredibly talented that I just don't feel like that showed the real. You know what? I want to see us how I want to see our styles collaborate together. I think, you know, it worked for what they did for it. It was just kind of like a jump to put out. But I don't know if, if I could really get behind that and say that I like that joint, you know what I mean? I felt like my song is very, very deep and meaningful and when you turn a meaningful record into sort of like a record that's just sort of like, oh, I just want to. I just want to have sex with you and let's do it good. Then later, you know what I mean? It kind of. That's fair, you know what I mean? It's just kind of like that's not what I want to tell my 11 year old, you know, right now, you know what I mean? So just kind of made me feel like speaking on it and be like, they're like, you like it? I'm like, no, I don't like it. But now I'm like, I feel bad about saying that, you know, because I know that, you know, for every action there's a reaction and trying to put good, positive energy out in the world. I'm trying to build people up, not break them down.
- [63:06]
Charlamagne tha God
You got a joint for her, you got a record for her?
- [63:07]
John B.
Definitely got a record for her. And if I don't, I will make it for it.
- [63:12]
Charlamagne tha God
Yeah, that's my cousin.
- [63:13]
John B.
No, she's. She's amazing. They're so, they're so talented and so beautiful, you know, I mean, they got the Full package. It's. Yeah, it's just a matter of us getting in the studio and just making some magic happen or.
- [63:28]
Charlamagne tha God
How does John B. Want to be remembered?
- [63:32]
John B.
I want to be remembered as an atmosphere creator, Somebody who was really honest with his emotions and somebody who just made Baby Maker music.
- [63:47]
Host/Interviewer
Definitely made that.
- [63:50]
Charlamagne tha God
Well, that's it.
- [63:52]
John B.
Yeah. Nah, we want. Hey, I think that, you know, at the end of the day, I want, I want to be remembered as a guy who was, you know, you know, he gave his all, you know, in terms of like everything I do really, from being a father to being a husband to a songwriter and a performer. I sing my heart out on stage every show I do, you know, whether they're giving it up and giving me the energy I want to have or not, you know, it's because it's the passion for what I do, you know. So, yeah, I want to be remembered for that. Really? Yeah.
- [64:28]
Charlamagne tha God
Well, John B. You're doing a phenomenal job, man. We here Talking about the 30th anniversary of Bonafide, so that means something.
- [64:34]
John B.
Yes, sir, man.
- [64:35]
Charlamagne tha God
And I hope you and Babyface can reconcile too, man.
- [64:38]
John B.
Yeah, me too, man. I think that things are coming full circle regardless. And because of that, you know, I think it's just, it's, you know, it's a matter of just us literally chopping it up one day and just letting each other know how we feel. But that definitely needs to happen in a private setting and not on a public forum where I heard you say this and you know what I mean, and then I'm reacting to that on this thing, on this public forum over here, it's gonna go tit for tat forever until we just sit down as grown ass men and being like, hey, listen, I still got love for you.
- [65:16]
Host/Interviewer
You never tried to just call him.
- [65:18]
John B.
I feel like at this, at this point, the only time that I've ever been able to get in touch with him is by going and contacting him. That's all it's ever been, is me get reaching out to him. It's never been the other way, so. And I just feel like there's only so much you can give to something before if it's not like you said, if you're not, it's like you showed loyalty. But is the loyalty being shown back?
- [65:40]
Charlamagne tha God
Absolutely.
- [65:41]
John B.
In fact, I feel like from the truth that I've told and how I've been honest, it's only got. It's only made him sort of more angry because, you know, he doesn't want people to know those ins and outs of the business, which I understand. But in no way have I defamed him or talk, you know, said Babyface did this to me. He. He wronged me, you know. No, it's not that at all. He only gets praised by me. That's all I do is praise Baby Face. But it would be nice also to see him return in this day and age. Right now, that same kind of energy back my way.
- [66:21]
Charlamagne tha God
You got a Valentine's Day cruise happening too, right?
- [66:25]
John B.
Yeah, Valentine's Day cruise. Yeah. We trying to do something. I think it's fitting for the album waiting on you. What better way to take in the new album than to, you know, play it on a cruise ship, you know, and go. We're gonna go sail to Ensenada, Mexico, and we're gonna go to Catalina. Just a little mini cruise, you know, three day jump. But it's, it's gonna be fun and up close and personal with the fans and, you know, do the grown up thing.
- [66:54]
Charlamagne tha God
Let's do it. Well, it's John B. Thank you for coming, my brother.
- [66:57]
John B.
Charlamagne. Thank you.
- [66:58]
Charlamagne tha God
Yes, sir. I appreciate you, man. It's the Breakfast Club.
- [67:02]
John B.
Hold up. Every day I wake up. Wake your ass up. The Breakfast Club.
- [67:09]
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- [68:40]
Commercial Narrator
What a matchup we got y'. All. This is that classic HBCU vibe. Non stop action. The band is rocking and the crowd lit Chance echo drum beat everybody showing that school pride. A game like this. Yeah, it calls for an ice cold Coca Cola. Ah, crisp and refreshing. That's a game changer right there. Yeah, that taste always hits the right note. Just like the band at halftime. And just like that, we're back at it. Passionate fans, school colors everywhere and in.
- [69:14]
John B.
Ice cold Coca Cola.
- [69:16]
Commercial Narrator
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- [69:57]
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- [70:23]
John B.
Lenovo.
- [70:27]
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- [70:59]
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This is an I Heart podcast.