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Only One Mic Podcast
Carl Jerard, Brooklyn Dre, and JRob welcome you to The Only One Mic Podcast. We are joined each week by authors, activists, advocates, community leaders, and professionals from several walks of life who would like to offer their experience, expertise, or commentary on the various topics you will be interested in learning.
Only One Mic Podcast
From Gang Life to Guidance with Grit Grind & Glory Author Anthony McDuffie Jr.
Anthony McDuffie Jr. author of Grit Grind & Glory and My Life in Poetry joins us to discuss his path from darkness to being a guiding light, revealing his remarkable transformation through mentorship, knowledge, and the arts. He takes us on a profound odyssey, sharing the intricate dance between personal loss and the search for belonging that ensnares youth within the dangerous grip of gangs.
Our conversation with Anthony delves into the evolution of gang culture, from its origins as community protectors to the complex, often glamorized networks we see today. We tackle the hard truths about cultural shifts, mentorship's role, and artistic expression's power in forging a new identity. Listen as Anthony unfolds his journey, dissecting the pivotal moments that led him from the streets to becoming an inspirational community pillar without ever glossing over the gritty realities of his past.
As we wrap up this episode, Anthony leaves us with a resonating message of hope, unity, and the unwavering belief in the transformative power of sharing one's story. His experiences serve as a testament to the potential within each of us to break free from life's shackles and soar.
For more on Anthony Mc Duffie Jr. click on the links below.
https://www.gritgrindandglory.com/
Books
https://www.amazon.com/Grit-Grind-Glory-born-resilient-incarceration/dp/B09ZCVNNNN
https://www.amazon.com/Life-Poetry-Anthony-McDuffie-Jr/dp/B0CVNQM3HK/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.VDbQFVXxpUoxKEpmgvJHpQ.5wwvMFzjOaF3fqCw7xHYxqT43c9GfbWKDK1T58uDQYc&qid=1708560330&sr=8-1
Rather than sisters.
Speaker 2:Welcome to the only one, mike. Podcast. College of Rob, brooklyn, dre, j, rob and all is off tonight. Hey yo listen. We got a special special guest in the building. The brother is a community leader, author, spoken word artist and motivational speaker. Mr Anthony, make Duffy join you. How you doing Good brother.
Speaker 3:Oh man, I'm good, I'm good man. Thank y'all for doing the show, good brother.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it is Great, it's great.
Speaker 2:All right, so yo listen. We. We, you know, had a little pregame before the show. We, you know, we talk. Hey, listen, man. I like this brother already coming on and smiling.
Speaker 2:Right, it's all good, we got the East Coast, west Coast thing going on to Brooklyn Brother, let's give it up for that. Yo, listen, listen, it's real bad Couple of years ago, man. This might have been a different conversation. But just to go to show you, man, how you know. We all grow, learn and grow. You know what I mean. I know you got this book coming out Well, your book Greg Brown and Gloria, so I'm thinking about the other book as well.
Speaker 3:Yeah, oh, that's out, that's out, brother. Oh my life from poetry.
Speaker 2:Okay, all right, so that's there already.
Speaker 3:All right, that's what's up, so we're going to turn. That was released two weeks ago. Brother Two weeks ago.
Speaker 2:Okay, so you know what I'm looking at, my thing as, yeah, you already had it out, all right. So that's what's up, man. So first of all, congratulations on both the books. Let me tell you something we have a lot of writers and things come on the show man, a lot of authors come on, and I have such the utmost respect for anybody who sit down and commit themselves to page like that, you know, willing to expose themselves, you know, on page exposed, you know the past and thoughts and everything like that. So kudos to you, brother. I want to hit the pause. Thank you, man.
Speaker 2:Thank you, brother, you know it's hard to do it once, but to do it two times and I'm quite sure it's going to be a third one coming, brother, you know, and in fact in two different, in two different genres, to have one, you know, biographer, biographical, excuse me, and one that's some poetry, that's, that's. You know, that's a blessing, man, it's good.
Speaker 3:Man, thank you, man Appreciate you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I might jump too far early and you know where I'm going to go with this. I just want to say I appreciate you, man, because what happens is I started looking at some of your content on YouTube and the one thing that we've talked about on this show and I like that, I like what you do is it's like you're not really glorifying you know your past or gang culture. You're not glorifying you know whatever wins or losses you had in the penitentiary. You know what I mean and I think you're taking the road less traveled and it's kind of like we take the road less traveled. I mean, we come from Brooklyn.
Speaker 1:We grew up a lot of rappers and different things like that. We could do a podcast on that regular. You know hip hop, bull crap or whatever the case may be, but you know just to have, you know, a platform where it's kind of like a conscious platform. It's probably going to take a little bit longer to get what you got to get, but you know you could, because I'm quite sure you know you could probably have a million views right now if you got on here and just told a bunch of jail stories. You know what I mean and I know you got them.
Speaker 2:You know what I mean, but you know you didn't do it that way, you know what I mean, yeah to take your path, man, and to say, look, I'm gonna use this path to kind of educate through my experiences. You know, it's kind of what we talk about here all the time is that we can use this as a each one, teach one or we can destroy. Where we come from. You know what I mean. So that's what we're looking at.
Speaker 3:So, yeah, kudos to you, brother, in terms of yeah, I appreciate that and, if I may add, brother, that was real intentional.
Speaker 3:I was real intentional on how I utilize platforms, what I'm talking about on these platforms, and also not to glorify that sort of past lifestyle. Now there's there's ways and means in which I can go back to speak about certain aspects of it, given I'm giving context and clarity or I'm giving a lesson about something. But to go back there to revisit for some, some, some giggles and some oh, you remember this and you remember that, going down memory lane, I'm past, brother, you know I'm past that type of you know, type of thinking, and so what part of that also is is me maturing and growing up and understanding that that was my past, but that didn't define who I am now. So I want you to pay attention to who I am now, look at who I am now and feel that person getting involved with that, you know, understanding the lifestyle and the story behind the person that's sitting in front of you now, not the person in the past. And so that's why it was real intentional about that, brother.
Speaker 1:And, like I said, we were intentional about what we did, you know as far as what we're doing, and so you know I understood that right off the back man, it's like yo, he could have easily just got on hand, got you know thousands and thousands of views just telling some you know some jail stories or something like that. And he took a like again. I said a road, less travel. And we really appreciate that, man, and I think a lot more people will get more out of that, because I always look at a lot of these brothers that do that kind of stuff.
Speaker 1:Man, and I said there's a contradiction in that message. You know what I mean. Not to mention, you know in that message, you know I'm looking at you and you're still, you're still banging. You know what I mean. Or you know you like banging or whatever the case may be. You know what I mean and even it's kind of weird, because sometimes you'll see, you'll see they'll have a conversation and then they get into a conversation with some old Cripple blood or some gang garbage and then they like pull up and you know they want to talk. That talk. Then like it's like yo, you, you, you kind of really not helping the community because you really have the same thought process you had when you was a child you know what I mean or when you was a gang member, you know. So, right again, we appreciate. You know what you're doing.
Speaker 2:I'll appreciate it, man, you know it might be jumping in the gun, because I'm definitely going to talk about the book. I'm definitely right, right, right, excuse me. The books, folks, books.
Speaker 1:All right, I just want to, I just want to give them as flowers, man, Thank you brother.
Speaker 3:I appreciate that yeah.
Speaker 2:But you know what, though, now that we here, you know we have to stop right here. So let's just, let's just. I want to ask you, man, how do you feel about that? I mean, you, being a person that's from LA, that's you know, have had that past. I'm not going to put that in front of you right now. What's your past? And you seeing the end results of that past and the things that it cost you in terms of time and family, friends, things of that nature. And then, when you see these older cats that get on here, that I guess has some type of prominence in the hood, but they're still talking, that talk and which you know, we've seen a whole situation with the key FD thing which cost him his freedom. At this point, you know what I mean. What is your thoughts on that man, like the messages that's being sent out?
Speaker 3:I think it's foolish. Number one, number two I think it's a shame on brothers, especially brothers that came from what we came from in prison. You know better, you know better, brother. You know to get back out here and jump on platforms and get to talking gangness and gang that when we was in those trenches. We have to stick together, right. That's one thing that I I strongly speak out against when I'm out on the streets, when it comes to the brothers that I was doing time with, right Brothers, you, you know better, it's it's, it's, it's no excuse. So for you to get back out here and you get back on the same creeping and bloody you, you, you tripping Right and so. So that's how I feel about it, brother. I just think it's a shame and I just think it's foolish.
Speaker 2:Right, right, and you know we see this like again East Coast, west Coast and even in our hometown we're seeing a lot of gang activity and stuff like when we grew up we had gangs, but it was never like bloods and crips and all of the stuff like that. And to be quite honest with you and a lot of people from New York that's listening to this can probably you know, coleson, it New York is basically turning into LA. You know what I mean In terms of the style of it, the way that things you know just the average though, the way they're walking around, but like the gang business that's going on out there is just like it's not something that was ours.
Speaker 2:You understand what I'm saying it was nothing that we, we embraced back in the day, you know, and now I can see it. Now it's just like out of control. But go ahead, what are you going to?
Speaker 1:say Actually, actually during my generation, and just know, you know I don't even know how to say this because I don't want to say no disrespect, because again it is a disrespect, because I always thought gang culture didn't make no sense. You know what I mean. And in New York we didn't, we didn't accept it. You know what I mean In my generation, in my generation, you know what I mean. And when I say, you know we're not trying to get on here, disrespect our late brothers, that would never happen. But we're just saying that I don't care if New York did it, you know what I mean. It just wasn't a good thing to do. But in truth, speaking, new York at one time in the 60s this is before our time in the 60s, in the 70s, it was heavy gang culture in New York. You know what I mean. And I actually wanted to ask you this Do you ever think of it to get corny, like it seemed, like it's thriving?
Speaker 3:you know what I mean I thought it got corny by now. It's 2024, brother. So it's like, come on, man, it's like it seems like it's getting stronger.
Speaker 3:Block tripping. We still tripping over this and tripping over that, you know. So the reality is this we understand where the gangs came from, especially in LA. And just to give it context for the audience who don't know, the gangs originally started from organizations that was protecting our community from brutality from police forces and also spook hunters. They had gangs, white vigilantes, that was coming into our communities and it was causing harm. They was causing violence. So to retaliate or not even so much retaliate, protect, fight back against that type of violence we formulated organizations. Those organizations then afterwards branched off and became gangs. Now there's a fundamental difference between an organization and a gang right, organization. It fights back for a cause that's revolutionary towards our people and for the cause of the people. Now, when you talk about gangs, you have to start going into trauma and trauma bonding right. So when you start to understand the psychology of why gangs formulate and why young brothers get together and formulate trauma bonding ties, then it starts to make sense, right, right right.
Speaker 3:You start to see why. Okay, I see why these brothers is clicked up and they hurt. And these clicked up hurt brothers are out to click up and hurt other brothers, so that makes sense.
Speaker 2:Right, right, okay, it does.
Speaker 1:I mean at the end of the day. I mean we all technically become a part of something. You know what I mean. You joined the military. You know what I mean. You joined and people say it's not. But military is the same as a gang. You know what I mean? Ain't no different. We don't like them, they don't like us, we shooting and everything like that. So it's the same thing. So I do get it, but I'm just saying that I think. Like I know, like in New York it went to a point where I guess it got so corny that it passed our generation. You know what I mean. And now I just kind of resurge. You know, I honestly, I think you know I hate to say it because I used to be a big fan of hip hop music, but I think a lot of it surged through hip hop music.
Speaker 2:That's why I 200%, and that's what I was going to say the commercialization of gang culture and, to be quite honest with you, it's you know we kind of perpetuate that. But then you got to look at the media. You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:You got to look at movies you know, all of that works hand in hand in terms of saying, like we're going to present this to you, whether it be in a funny way, a serious way, but some way it's going to be presented to you, where it might make you know, the little kid in the neighborhood curious about how do I get down with something like this, or how do I formulate something like this. You know what I mean. So I think it's a thing that was constantly we inundated with. You know this. And then, like you see, from state to state, from city to city, coast to coast, the violence is just so, so crazy man, you know what I mean. I just watched a video. You know, sorry, I even watched it at this point, but a Philly rapper just got killed.
Speaker 2:And the brother was actually, I think it was Fat G's or something like that, and so the brother was actually on like a positive tip, like you know, trying to stop the violence or whatever. They've gotten this man down in front of his cred. You know what I mean, and this is the stuff that you're seeing. It's like even with the purpose of that ring video getting out. Why is it even on the news? You know what?
Speaker 1:I mean why?
Speaker 2:would. I need to see something like that. But you know, it's just, we see the stuff. But as a good segue, man, you talk about brothers coming together collectively through past traumas and things to to like, formulate these gains or be a part of a game. So that shows that it's an individual choice, okay. So I want you, you know, in regards to your book, to take us through the choices that got you here to you know, the negative choices all the way up to the positive choice where you can come back and tell us you know why this is a wrong thing. You know what I mean. So what I'm getting at is go ahead and talk about the book, man.
Speaker 3:You know, come out. Yeah, yeah, so yeah, absolutely, brother. Thank you, man. So for me, it started with losing my father. I lost my father at eight years old and before my father had passed away, I was the type of daddy's boy where I slept on my daddy's chest. That was the nearness I had to my father, the nearness I had to my father in terms of me being his health provider and caregiver at that time, and as young as that, as young as I was, he had diabetes. So there was times where I had to, you know, get this form or help him to the bathroom or tuck him in or whatever the case may be. So that formulated a bond between me and my father that it was like no other person in my family, right?
Speaker 3:So when you died, it ripped apart of me a way that I couldn't understand. I was grieving and that grief just took over and took control over my life, to the point where I didn't know which direction in life I was gonna head to, because my dad at that time was the guide. He was the one who provided, he was the one who gave me the security, he was the one who gave me the love. So now that that is gone, my life is in shambles, my life is in shatter. So my thinking is what do I do next? Of course, when you're so young, you go outside and you get influenced. You get influenced by your circumstances, you get influenced by your environment, you get influenced by your peers. And that's exactly what happened in the case of me. I went outside and got influenced. Everybody around me at that time was picking which gang to be from, and it was kind of weird because at some point we were all just kids in France.
Speaker 3:And playing marbles and shooting BB guns and pallets and all of these things. But it was just a friend group. But because he stayed on this street and he stayed down the street and he stayed up the street, we all eventually became gang members and became from different gangs. And so for me, when I lost my father and I went into this gang life, it was for me going to look for a father figure that I so desperately missed. So I seen that father figure in my older homies. They just so happened to be gang members and at the time my mother was going through so much things in her life. At the time she had about six kids, young, still doing her thing, and so it was hard for her to try to console me and comfort me through that grief process. And because she wasn't there to support me in a way, I needed her to support me. I felt like I wasn't loved, I felt like I wasn't secure, I felt like the household was disabled. So I ran out and ran away and went into the streets and then that's when the homies want to give you this and give you that. And of course now, looking back, it was a farce and some love, but as a young kid, you accept anything that somebody's willing to give you that you're not getting in the household. So that's exactly what happened with me, brother. I accepted the love that they gave me, the praise that they gave me, and although it was short lived and although it was superficial, it still felt good because I didn't have anything else to replace that.
Speaker 3:So, right into it, adapted a game mentality and went full-fledged. It wasn't nobody to tell me otherwise. I didn't have no mentors. I didn't have no one to come into my life to say, hey look, there's another way, there's another path, you can do this, you can do that. I didn't have any of that, other than the homies telling me well, I should do it, what I should do.
Speaker 3:So once I adapted the street cold, the game mentality, my thinking became warped. I then now adapted to a street cold in a gangbanger philosophy and mentality and I stuck to that wholeheartedly because that's what I believed in at the time. These are the people and the individuals who's given me the love that I felt that I needed at that time giving me the money, giving me shelter in places and putting me in abandoned houses or even in the night households, but giving me food when I had had nothing to eat, it was the gang members who took me in. So, of course, when, again, when you're so young, you're so impressionable like that, you willing to take any and everything at that point at that age. So that's what I did and that's how I joined the gang lifestyle.
Speaker 1:And I'm glad you said that, because you said that you did it young and to bring clarity of what I was saying before, I'm not saying that I could see a child coming up like you, coming up and you saying, listen, these people are pulling me in, I get it. I mean, we come from the street, we come from Brooklyn, new York. So we get it, we understand. But where I say that I kind of I'm kind of disrespected is when you become a grown man.
Speaker 1:Once you become a grown man like you 50, 60 years old I don't care if you're in New York, I don't care if you're in LA you still banging, you 50, 60, you got grandkids. You got grandkids like really man, like it's time to grow up. At some point you gotta grow up. You know what I mean. So that's really what I was coming at. You could I'm glad you said that because it brought it to my mind and say, okay, yeah, that's what I'm talking about, it's a kid, yeah, I get it. You know, as a grown man, it's a totally different thing. And you said something that was very interesting, I'm just.
Speaker 2:But what it is is that you were saying, like these guys embraced you. You know what I mean. So obviously this is something within the community, right? So, as a community, when you looking back on it, what is something that you could have looked for to say, let me, what can we do to counter that so that you wouldn't embrace? You know, these guys is doing this and, like you said, with someone that can show you a better way? Do you think it's something that we lacking as a community, especially within the black community, hispanic community and whatnot that we're lacking in terms of people that can show us a better way? What do you think about that, brother?
Speaker 3:I think so. You know I think so. But so there's a two-fold answer to that question. And it reminds me of a proverb, and the proverb states that when the student is ready, the teacher appears right. Sometime the young youth may not be ready to receive whatever it is that can steer them to a different lifestyle and stare them to a different life path. They may be still influenced by their peers and want to go about doing what their peers are doing because it feels good at that time, it makes sense to them at that time. So you have that. But on the other end, on the flip side, you do have some elders, you do have some mentors within the community, that is, within our community, and have that outreach, but they're not accessible to some of the young youth. You know what I'm saying. So I think that's the problem too. The accessibility of our mentors and the accessibility of the brothers who can stare young other young brothers down a path that's righteous or towards another career path or et cetera. The accessibility so those brothers is just not there when it comes to our community.
Speaker 3:And another thing too is it's not being appraised in a way it should, it's not being glorified in a way it should. You're gonna glorify the negative. You see that a lot. They glorify the negativity a lot. But when that young brother graduated from high school, how many people can graduate? How many people taking them out to eat? How many people take them to the movies, buy them some clothes, buy them a pair of Jordans because he graduated, it's not too many. I'm not saying that it's not happening, but it's not happening enough. So there needs to be a counteractive when it comes to that as well.
Speaker 2:So I think, if I answered your question, I think it's twofold, brother, yeah, and I like the fact that you said that it's not glorified enough, because again, it goes back to what we say about what the media pushes on us, what we see on television and stuff and you know how local news is they might spotlight something where a community outreach or something like that. You don't see enough of that. You know what I mean. I don't care what city you went, you don't see enough of that. To say, well, look, if I'm sitting here and I'm watching the news and I can say, well, wow, that outreach is right down the block from me, or you know that outreach is maybe 30 minutes away or something like that, that why you know those things are not put in the forefront to say, all right, well, y'all can come over here. You know your kid ain't got nothing to do to something. Well, look, we got this going on or something. You know what I mean.
Speaker 1:And it's so extreme. It's so extreme if they do have it. It's like you've got these old men who don't have any attachment to the hood and they're trying to talk to young kids and they're so far out of the loop the kid can't get them. And then you got these gang members that's talking like they want to help you, but on the same token they were in blood. You know, they're giving you food and they're doing something to help you, but on the same token they still telling you the politics of the gang and teaching you the politics of the old and how it came up and all the other stuff like that. So it's kind of like a, you know, kind of like a crazy situation.
Speaker 3:It's money, brother, it's money. You're right, you do have that. But you also have this. You have also individuals who's coming into the community and they look like us and they talk like us, but they don't work for us, right, you hear what I'm saying. And they're working for other systems and apparatuses that's not really set for the construction of our community. And they're in there and they're talking a good talk, right? But when they go back to their homes, they live in the suburbs and when they go back to their lifestyle, their lifestyle is not like our lifestyle. So they're giving us some game and they're giving us some advice, but the advice is kind of like man you telling me that, but it's not.
Speaker 3:It's not really. It's not really. It's not helping me right now, it's not. It's no connection there, there's no correlation there. The knowledge and the information you giving me is righteous. I'm not saying that. But how do you bring that to today's times and today's reality when you don't live in our community? You look like me, you talk like me, but you not living a day to day like me.
Speaker 2:Right right.
Speaker 3:So you also have that too, brother. That's why I say it's kind of muddy. You know what I'm saying, right, yeah?
Speaker 1:But I mean while you were incarcerated I mean and I don't know if you want to get rid of any brother's names or anything like that but you know who were those men that maybe sparked your interest and turned you a different way, or what was said to make you turn. You know your thought process, yeah man.
Speaker 3:Thank you for the question, brother, because I think I was very blessed, and even I think I know I was very blessed. I was very blessed in a way, by way, when I went into the prison system and this is my book, grid, grown and Glory. I speak highly, I mentioned it several different times and several different aspects of when I turned 18 and I went into that prison, brothers came to myself and they handed me books, right, whereas, on the contrary, I seen my peers and I seen the interaction that other homies was having with them, and they wasn't getting handed books. And even if they was getting handed books, once again, that student wasn't ready for that teacher, right, I just so happened to be ready. So when the brothers was feeding me knowledge, I was retaining it. Not only was I retaining it, I'm questioning it. Not only am I questioning it, I'm having dialogue and conversation about it. So now this flip, it turned to switch in my head to say wait a minute. This information that I'm being now exposed to is righteous to not only my heart and my mind, but it's appealing to my spirit, and the good thing about it was I was giving this information by way of Dom Moves, who was still part of the tribe, but these were older OGs who learned the game, realized like it's a trap with the tribalism and was also in growth and maturity and wanted to do the same for that young homie. I just so happened to be that young homie and I just so happened to be the young one who was young enough and smart enough to retain the information and take heed of it. So that's why I say I was blessing that regards.
Speaker 3:And so, to answer your question once again, it was several brothers, and it wasn't just Dom Moves, they came from Keyways too. There was Crips too, because we was all in there together. So we was all up in there learning together, and with me knowledge can come from anyway. Our prophet, muhammad Shalaulaheel wassalam, says seek knowledge from here to China, it don't matter where you at, and seek it from cradle to grave. So you continuously learning. It ain't just no one stop show, no, I'm continuously learning. Brothers was continuously coming into my life and it was continuously feeding me knowledge and information and I was continuously just receiving it and applying it, brother. So that's why I say I'm different in that regard.
Speaker 1:And, like you said, it was excellent for you and for me. We say the Holy Bible but we say holiness and not like that goofy garbage you talk about. As far as TD Jakes and all the other stuff like that, we talk about real trying to be Christians. You know what I mean.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, yeah, real understanding of scriptures and everything like that. And, like I said, you know, because you're a Muslim, you're a true Muslim. You know where we might disagree. You know what I mean. But what we all both are quite sure agree upon is we agree upon the truth, like I agree about the truth in Islam and I'm quite sure you agree about the truth Absolutely and the Christian belief. And it's good that you say the same things that you're saying, because maybe, hopefully, somebody listening to this who is on their way to the penitentiary some way shape or form, or in the street doing something stupid, I think what happens is when them brothers saw you, they saw clay, you know what I mean. They saw something that they might have been able to mold. You know what I mean. So there's some other like they might have saw another brother to it. It might have gave him that same book and, like you said, he wasn't able to get it.
Speaker 2:But it's the same thing.
Speaker 1:But they seen, they seen some potential in you. You just happen to be able to get some information.
Speaker 3:You know what I mean, absolutely I remember one time, coming on the yard and I explained it in my book once again in the chapter as First Day of Prison a brother named Umar came up to me. At the time I didn't even know the brother name and I just came out of the hole. I was in the hole for smuggling some drugs and they kicked me out. They did the DA rejected the case, they kicked me back out to general population and once I came back on the main line, I'm tongue balled. Within a minute, two minutes of me being on the yard, I'm carrying a push in the car About to go into my building, into my housing unit, or we're not on the prison yard and this brother just just just was.
Speaker 3:I, me, I'm like man, what's up with, bro, you know? And so he spoke. He like, uh, brother, where you from? Man? I'm like I'm from LA. He liked I'm from San Diego. Man, um, you were hitting Jew man. I seen you shining from way across the football field to me. That appealed to me in my mind. I'm like what made him see that diamond he's saying that he's looking at right wasn't about me. That attracted him to me. So stuff like that is what you're talking about. I was ready to be modig. Yeah, because I was open and I was receptive to you know these brothers compliments to me and I was willing to embark upon another path, bro, and get myself together.
Speaker 3:I was ready at that time just got out the hall, still reading, still studying, and here it is another brother, another teacher, coming up to me, like brother, you look like you, you got it. I want to teach you. And he did. He taught me how to be a hunter and hunt for knowledge. And most of brother got done with me. I was consuming books like crazy, read books, this course in books man writing essays on books man, and he was just like wow, you know. So ultimately, I think what it is? Yeah, brother, see it, you know.
Speaker 3:Seeing brother, you know, you, you know when you see it, brother it's just, it just appealed to you and you know it from the heart, you know from the intuition, and that's what the brother seen in me, and so I just so happened to be that chosen one man for real during that particular time when you you know you're starting to get this knowledge, but then you still got to fight who you are.
Speaker 2:You know what I mean. We all got that journey going on, brother, like you know, we're getting all this information, we we're getting what we need to get to get right, but we still got to fight who we are.
Speaker 3:You got our honor and let me, let me use some clarity on that, bro, because it was a battle.
Speaker 1:Yes, it's a battle right now I'm still.
Speaker 3:I'm still fighting with these forces. You feel what I'm saying, right? One part of me, it wanted to embark upon the path of being an intellectual, but another part of me is still wrestling with the gangbanging and the gangbanging mentality and the gang politics and the prison politics. So it was a tug of war, for sure, and it was processed to get out of that mentality because, as we know, when you win the gangbanging mentality, it's very, very hard to get out of it. That's why you see brothers steel, 40, 50, 60, sagging a pen, still stupid, and you like man. What's wrong with this brother? But the truth of the matter is it's a psychosis brother, it's a mental, it's a mental retardation. You know what I'm saying. And it's so hard to get out of that for most people. It take courage, it takes strength, it takes prayer, it takes fasting, it takes god to get about it at both.
Speaker 2:Right, right, right yeah, so I, when I, when the brother's seeing you, possibly am I saying that you did, but possibly, after all this, what you obtained and you might be kind of leaning towards the, the left one, this name, they're like y'all, I see this brother about to do something crazy. What was that conversation? Like one of the older brothers came to school to you up, like y'all, like see what you're about to do. You know this is what you don't?
Speaker 3:yeah, um so if I remember so, when you said that, I remember a time where um, uh, one of the one of the older brothers, he was actually from New York too. He was like back and forth from New York to LA, but he ended up being a rolling 60 Crip from LA but he had ties in New York, so he was back and forth, right, um, remember one day, me and the brother um having conversations and he sees me outside of his cell and I'm with my, I'm with my tribe. Now, mind you, at that time I'm leveled up, meaning I got leadership now and I got a little rank up under me. Where now young brothers is listening to me and I'm, I'm galvanizing the youth now at this point.
Speaker 3:And so he's looking at me and he's at the top, his top, bunking out the tears, licking at me, peering out, and he called me to the cell one day and he like, um, he like, young brother, you have so much potential, so much potential and you shine so bright, but at the same time, you still caught up in your ignorance, right, you still caught up in your ignorance, and I knew exactly what it meant. I knew exactly what he meant and it was one of those moments where it just hit home and it hit my heart like um, but at that time, I think, instead of receiving it as constructive criticism, I took it as the brother taking a shout at my reputation, the brother taking a shout at my you know who I am as an individual and not trying to allow me to be or come forth, but but bring me, or you know, bring me back to who he think I am in terms of the gang, lifestyle and but that's not what he meant.
Speaker 2:That's how I took it. That's how you took it right that's how I took it.
Speaker 3:So they asked yo question, brother, it was moments like that, those defining moments where I had to go back in the cell and I had to sit with myself and reflect and process that man, brother, right, you know I'm saying right, can you be, on one hand, um, consuming knowledge and talking these high power intellectual conversations, but on the other hand, you know, I'm, I'm rebel, rousing with the tribe and getting myself involved in some prison politics and some game politics, right, um? So once again, brother, it's those fights, it's those internal battles of determining who I am and ultimately I end up winning the fight. And what I mean by I end up winning the fight? I mean my true self, because the person that I created in the gang culture wasn't my true self. That was a personality that I created in the gang culture and I thought that was myself, but it wasn't right, you didn't know no better.
Speaker 1:I didn't know no better, you know no better. All right, that's, that's deep, man, that's deep. I'm glad we had to talk to you, man. You, you know, really, this conversation can go forever. You know me because you know, this is something where it's like you kind of got to open a person, like your mind open, like you know, like you got to dissect it and find out. I know you're giving us some things, but it's like almost like I want to say well, you know, if we see a young brother like y'all, look what he did right here, man, you know, I mean this is when he made that move. You know, I mean that changed everything.
Speaker 1:You know, I mean I think the the blessing that we had different from you is that we grew up in the hood. We got in this foolishness. The same thing, but at the difference is we had a father, you know, I mean. So we had somebody that we had to. Um, so what I'm looking for, we had to, uh, we had to follow their rules, man, you know, I mean like we couldn't. We couldn't come home and do what we wanted to do. You know, I mean in the street you got away with what you could get away with without you know my father hearing about it. But you know we had to come home and, you know, fall up under, you know, a rule and I think that's the.
Speaker 1:The biggest thing that happens with kids like yourself is that at that time I should say is that you don't have a rule and then your mom can't do. But so much you know. I mean, we seen family. We well, we had a close friend man when his father died. You know the family went left, you know I mean, and we were all, my father was their father's friend and everything like that. And when the father passed away, I mean, luckily life had it where you know they had enough people around to come back around and be decent men in life. But I saw their issue fall like what you're talking about, you know I mean. So kudos to you, brother.
Speaker 1:You know, what was he was. Well, any of these brothers, uh, that you're talking about, were they the ones that, kind of like, talked you into writing or, you know, putting your thoughts down on paper?
Speaker 3:so I think, um, I barked upon that path myself. I discovered that myself, my writings, and it really started with it really started with poetry. So before I write, I wrote the, the memoir. Um, I was actually writing poetry first and the poetry was a way to I call it like therapy. It was cathartic, right. It was a way where I can write down my thoughts and feel how I'm feeling and release it in a positive way while dealing with the circumstances that I was dealing with.
Speaker 3:So at that time I was in prison. That's when I discovered that, you know, I really had skills with the writing and I would share some of my work with selective, chosen few. They would give me some feedback to encourage me, and I just kept going on from that point. Um, so I think the writing aspect of me was a self discovery, and that's what happens when you come to self, that's what happens when you do the shadow work and deal with self and work on self. You start to discover your talents, you start to discover your gifts, you start to discover what you like and what you don't like, what you're interested in and what you're not interested in, and so at that point, that's when I came to that self discovery, brother right, because I read.
Speaker 2:I read a. You know some episodes from the book and everything like that. Um, and you went through some wild stuff, man, but truly you know I can say the guy had his hands on you, man, during those particular times. You know, um, coming out in the middle of a war, you know I mean and, and being shot at like on site and stuff.
Speaker 2:By that. You know things like that, and I'm pretty sure there's a lot more that can go on, not only with you being on the streets, but you being in the inside too, uh, whereas, like you, you know God has blessed you to to avoid being harmed in this situation killed in this situation and you feel like all of that was done just to get you to this point. You know I mean where you at right now, absolutely, you know I mean, and it's like, how thankful are you?
Speaker 3:you know I mean oh man, I thank God every day. I had the.
Speaker 3:I had the conversation today, man, I was walking around um the beach path with my peer, and oftentimes I walk the beach path because for me this is therapy, right, when I'm looking at the ocean and what I do is I manifest and I cast my doubts into the ocean, I cast my fears into the ocean and I self reflect. But anyway, I had a conversation with one of my bros, man, and he's like so how's things been, you know, since the last time we talked? And I said, brother, I'm looking at you, I'm free and alive. That's progress. So, if you want to measure how things been, I'm progressing, because yesterday for me was prison yesterday, right yesterday. So I have a frame of reference, brother. So that's what keeps me grateful, that's what keeps me thankful to God every single day, because I have a reference point, I know where I came from, I know where I've been and now I know where I'm going. So that's what gives me the humility and and and the focus to keep going and moving forward. And the positivity, man, the positive listen, I was just in a sale yesterday.
Speaker 3:When I come to that state of mind and I vision that prison sale, and then I look out and gaze out to the ocean. It's a miracle, wow, that's what I can say. So I always have these moments of reflections where I thank God for just the presence, the presence. Sometimes I walk by trees and I touch the tree, because I remember when I couldn't be by tree. I remember when I wanted shade but couldn't have shade. I remember when I lost my century perceptions and didn't know how grass fell and didn't know how leaves fell. So now I walk up to flowers and I smell them, because I was a once a time I didn't have no flowers and I couldn't smell no plants. There's always moments of reflections, brothers, always, always those moments of gratitude and being thankful to God for the present. The present is the gift, brother yeah, you know what.
Speaker 2:I hear the passion in your voice why. You know I'm actually feeling you while you're saying this, man, and I think too, like even with you, you know, of course you did 15 years, you know I mean. So it's like A lot of times we thank God for a lot of things health, you know. Mental clarity, man, you know things of that nature, and I always say, if I'm out walking my dog or something, just in the park, I stop and I say thank God for freedom, man, you know what I mean. Thank God for physical freedom, because I could have been locked up, you know what I mean.
Speaker 1:Yeah, we could have all made it, we all could have, we all could have made it bad. We didn't get caught.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we was one bad day away, man. We didn't get caught. Yeah, that's all.
Speaker 1:That's all it is. But you know, it's funny that you just say you know the thing where you talk about. You know touching flowers and everything like that. It's funny how God can bring you to things, because in 2020 I had a kidney transplant and I always tell my brother I say yo listen, man, you know, like once these doctors, if you're lucky in life, if you're lucky cause a lot of people don't get lucky, they just drop I said you're right, blessed, a lot of people just drop dead.
Speaker 1:You know, if you're lucky, blessed to go to the hospital and somebody tell you something crazy, like you got cancer or kidney issues, whatever the case may be, once you go through those things and, like you said, like I find myself a lot of times too, going down to the water in the area where I'm at and, you know, just going to take a walk. And you know, like you said, you're going to look at the leaves on the tree different. You're going to look at the birds different man. You know what I mean. So, again, you know. However, you come to that point. You know it's a good way to get there, man.
Speaker 3:Man and brother. You know that perspective what keeps you? It keeps you grounded, brother. Right, yeah, Perspective keeps you grounded because, like you said, you could have lost your life in that man. Right, right, right. The mere fact that you're here, brother, is a blessing. It is a blessing. It's a blessing, yeah, 100%, bro. You know what I'm saying, and so this is the type of thing that I take the time to reflect on, to recline in. Do you know how many slaves died for our freedom? There's the people that's falling right here, right, you know we had a conversation on this podcast. You know what I mean. See, brothers was lynched, sisters was raped. So when you put all of that in perspective, you come to the tumbling moments, brother, where you appreciate everything.
Speaker 2:Brother, yeah, yeah, yeah, appreciate everything, man, Definitely definitely, especially where you coming from especially where you coming from.
Speaker 1:You know I've had a lot of, you know, friends in it from LA. La is a weird place, man. You know what I mean Coming from a New York person, man, because it's weird, because, like everybody I know from LA, got your vibe, they smiling, they laughing, but when they go left, they go left. Yeah, that's what I mean. They talking, cool and calm and relaxed, and then you be like yo, we don't have to go that far, man, this ain't that. Yet, man, you know, in New York, you know, anytime something happened, you know, historically it's about some money or females or something like that. In LA it's just, it can just go left. You know what?
Speaker 3:I mean, it's Wild, wild West.
Speaker 2:Oh, but nothing.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's a zoo, you know what I'm saying. And so, with that perspective, you learn how to move in the city, right, right, right, you learn how to move in the city. You have to learn how to strategize, you have to learn how to. You know bob and weave, and you know I live by proverbs. Our old proverb says a wise man in times of war shall hide himself, right. So if it's punk going on outside, I ain't outside without a home. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:And that's what you get. Go ahead, brother. That's where you get twisted. In LA man, everybody out there smiling their son. You know what I mean. Like you know, in the East Coast, you know what the hood is In LA, you got palm trees and you thinking like this is a nice place, but it ain't like that. You know what I mean. It's different, man, but you know I appreciate the conversation, man, because you know I can hear the goodness singing man, and you know what I mean. It's a beautiful thing to you know. I didn't even ask how old you are, bro 37, man 37.
Speaker 2:37, man 37.
Speaker 1:God bless that 37, man man, you know what I mean. He looking like he's 21, man, he's like 21, man.
Speaker 2:So you know what I just wanted to say it too, because I know right now we talking about things that happened in the past. Man, we talking about, you know, things that happened with the gangs and all of that. It's perception a lot of times man so like, for instance, we had one time a friend of ours, his cousin, came from LA and this is during the height of a lot of gang stuff East Coast, west Coast business, whatever and he was telling us he was like yo man, like we in LA, was looking at Brooklyn like it was a war zone back then you know what I mean.
Speaker 1:And I was like well, new York was crazy. Yeah, it was crazy, but to me.
Speaker 2:but you know, then he would say the same thing, like well, we was looking at LA, like it was the same thing, but in the same talk we have our bad times. Give us some good times in LA during that time.
Speaker 3:Yeah yeah, yeah, for sure you know. Yeah, yeah, I mean because you know it's a lot of, it's a lot of Stereotypes out there about the city. You know what I'm saying? Just like New York Sancta, it's a lot of stereotypes. And don't get me wrong, you do have a lot of dangerous zones, you do have a lot of areas where you know that is happening, but that's like everywhere else in the world. Man, when you go into the jungle and you walk in certain aspects in the jungle, you expect that smoke, right, yeah right right.
Speaker 3:But you go into other aspects of it. It's beautiful. You're like, wow, look at that waterfall, wow, look at this river, wow, you know, you see the amazement, you see the beauty. So it's the same thing in the city you go If you're looking for the dirt, if you're looking for the gromminess and you're looking for the slums, you will find it. But if you're also looking for the beauty, if you're also looking for the amazements and the wonders of the city, you also can find that too. So I think it's a macro perspective. What are you looking for? And then also, what are you attracting? Because you're attracting with your thoughts. You're attracting with your wardrobe, what you're wearing, right. You're attracting with the colors you're wearing. Notice my color is green, it's neutral. Who I don't know.
Speaker 1:As you should man. As you should, man. You see what.
Speaker 3:I'm saying Because what you're doing is you're communicating, whether you realize it or not, you emanating something out of you, whether you realize that or not, and it's an energy. And whatever that energy is coming from you, you're going to receive it back from the universe. So, man, I keep myself positive. I've been listen. I've been out here, I've been home now almost five years. I ain't got banged on a date Now.
Speaker 2:I want that. Congratulations man. Congratulations, man.
Speaker 3:Thank.
Speaker 2:God for that. Thank God, congratulations.
Speaker 3:Yo, let me have a shot At late.
Speaker 1:Yeah, let me have a shot. But you know what, like you said, man, it's your attitude, it's the positivity that comes out of you. I hate years ago, I think it was. We're just going off on a conversation. I heard it was a Karris One and I think it was Fat Joe. Recently I had seen an interview where he was saying like he was talking to Karris One and everywhere he went, karris One was getting love and everybody was loving on him, or whatever the case may be, and he was like at the time, karris One, he didn't have a song out, but he was saying like I got the number one song out and I'm not getting the same love. And Fat Joe and Karris One told him like it's about what you speak about.
Speaker 1:It's what you put out into the earth, man, and I said it's going to come back to you. Man, let me ask you this question about LA, which is I never accessed. I had a bunch of friends at LA. One thing about New York is whether or not it's right or not. You go with these conscious community cats and it's all over in New York. There's always somebody standing on the soap box somewhere preaching something. You know what I mean For right or wrong, and I have to say I think that's the one thing about New York that's kind of pretty good, and I'm not saying I'd agree with a lot of that mess, but there was some righteousness in a lot of it that we were able to obtain. Is that not the same in LA or?
Speaker 3:I don't think we take that approach when it comes to, like it sounds like, the poor righteous teachers, the ones who are up on the street and trying to educate brothers and out there, and brother, do you know your history? You know who I'm talking to, you know who Martin Scarney is, you know how to, you know what I'm saying. But you know what I wish we did, though I wish we did. You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 3:That's a part of the culture, the New York culture, that I love and I appreciate, and the East culture that I love and I appreciate. That's how those brothers who are the poor righteous teachers, and they out in the community, out in the block, and they out preaching the poor righteous message, you put them saying, rather you like it or not, rather than that, then you know some old gang, gang wishwash, that whole type of situation. So I think, man, you know it's like you take what you like out of the culture and what's good out of the culture, and then what's not, you leave it right where it's at. You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 3:And that's what I do, that for every culture. You feel what I'm saying. From East Coast to West Coast, I take good from it and what's bad I leave it right where it's at. You know what I'm saying. I think that's like a universal way to move. You know what I'm saying, not just in California, la, new York, anywhere. You know what I'm saying. Listen, man. I was in Saudi Arabia. I went to Saudi Arabia in February, man for Umumrah Bro. I received so much love in Saudi Arabia. It was crazy, man. We didn't even speak the same language. These people treated me like a celebrity man, that's right. I got pictures of whole tribes coming around me hugging me, man.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's what it is. It's a whole other country. So that's when it appealed to me. Then I say, oh, it ain't just the United States, it ain't the. It's me Right, it's what you put now.
Speaker 2:It's what you put now.
Speaker 3:But when I put them, that's what it's about. That's what it is. So, once we get to understand that it don't matter what we have, brother, we going to attract the love, we going to attract the grace, we going to attract the blessings, because that's who we are and that's what we attracted, because that's what we put now.
Speaker 2:Right, Right, you read about that, so listen, listen. I got to ask, man, because it's once said when you grow in, some going to love you and some going to hate you. Brother, that's just the way it is. You know what I mean. You made this transition in your life, man. You went up and you leveled up to this standard in your life, man, that you changed and all With that, I'm pretty sure you had to get out of the gang culture, man. How did a lot of the brothers take that?
Speaker 3:as you say and I'm not going to be a part of this anymore- Well, they actually just respected it, bro, and the reason why they came to respect this is because once I, you know, no longer participated with the gang activity, it wasn't like I dropped out, it wasn't like I snitched, it wasn't like I turned foul or went wrong, it wasn't any of those reasons. So it was almost like an honorable discharge.
Speaker 2:Mm. Ok, it was an honorable discharge. I applaud that man. I never heard of that before. Honorable discharge, brother Right right, right.
Speaker 3:I hate it brother and still, to this day, I'm still able to go back into the community and still hang with my tribe members. I'm not disconnected from them. You know what I'm saying. I'm not saying that I'm on this plateau now and I can't go back to my community and hang it, and they still may be what they at, but they need a brother like me. They need a brother like me to see the inspiration or the motivation. Otherwise, where else are you going to get it from?
Speaker 2:Exactly, and I'm glad you brought that up, because I was going to say you put this book out here. You know what I mean? I'm pretty sure brothers have read the book and everything like that. Have you had anybody come up to you after reading this book or just seeing how you move and say, hey brother man, how can I do it?
Speaker 3:All the time, all the time, all I was, I was just in my community, in my hood, passing out books, yes, pictures and all that, videos, and all that with my homies, with my books. My G homies, older homies, community Hold my book with pride, cheesy yeah.
Speaker 2:Because if we're making it feel like you all made it. You know I mean.
Speaker 3:Right, exactly. So that's what it's about, and it's not. It's not, it's not enough of us that's doing it, and so that's why I believe I became that beacon of hope, if you will, for those who are even trying to make in the transition and the transition is not hard. I encourage anyone. But you just gonna have to have the courage, man, to Step into your to yourself and address some things. You know you gotta, you gotta forgive some folks. Oh, they go with some things. Yeah, you gotta do some killing. You got it. You know you got to do these things if you want to get to this next level in your life. But if you're not trying to do these things and you still hold on and you still holding back and you still had a hatred on your heart for the next tribal man, then it's gonna be a long roll. It's gonna be a long road for you.
Speaker 1:But if you are trying to get out of it, there's hope you're not looking down on your past and your brothers in the past like I Don't look down on my, my friends in the past, and you know, sometimes when you take a righteous route, people can look at you like that. You know, but the reality is it's like I Might have to separate myself from you for a time. You know where to be, but you know, like you said, it's good to go back, it's good to touch the people and everything like that. That's a, that's a good way of looking at it. But you, I would say this, I know what you would say, but you do got to separate yourself.
Speaker 3:Oh yeah, you have to create a safe space in the distance. So when I'm, when I'm over there, I'm not over there spending hours and countless, and you know I'm not doing that. But if I am, stop by how you doing, I'm hugging on you, I'm loving on you, I'm running. Oh, how you pimpy your people's is doing, how's your brother doing, how's your sister doing? I'm asking these questions. You know I'm saying I'm listening, right, because sometimes they need to listen in here. Right, you're right, and and and then I did not go.
Speaker 3:I'm not stand to hang out to talk about the war stories. I'm not stand to hang out to talk about the politics. I'm not stand to hang out to talk about the dissent of that and the he, she and the they, she. I'm not into all of that. So I own. So only stay long enough to get to embrace my loved ones, for them to embrace me, for us To catch up for a bit, and then I'm gone, I'm back into my safe space and I'm back to my job. I got things going on Company, so I can't be fraternizing for too long. I got to get to it, brother.
Speaker 2:You know, like you know, your book was embraced by like the lights, like Paris Hilton and people would I like how did that come about? Like, how did they? They get to stay man and, you know, show you the love of promoting your work at all.
Speaker 3:Yeah, man, thank you for the question. So, um, I think so. For Paris Hilton Specifically, I was a podcast producer and we just so happened to go to Paris Hilton's Mansion and while he was at her mansion she was there and we was doing a podcast on her husband and her husband me and her husband exchanged books and she was there and we had a, you know, in exchange and I was like, man, I would love for you to get my one of my books as well. And she was like, oh for sure. So I gave her the book and then, you know, we took the pictures or whatnot, and the whole little get out. So so that's how that happens.
Speaker 3:But I say that to say this I always stay on point, man, this is my product, don't gang. But I ain't selling dope, I'm selling books, right, but you always want to have your product on hand. You always want to have your product on standby. So this is how my book got in the hands of so many celebrities, because I always had it on me. So when I ran it to him and I had that exchange, here you go, I leveraged my story. So that's also another point, right, where it ain't just me giving them my book. No, I'm giving you my life. Right, I'm averaging that, because whatever you take and you extract from my life up, that's a good. Then you gonna come back and you gonna circle back and we gonna have that Conversation and that conversation may lead to a partnership and that partnership may lead to, you know, a business Venture or a joint venture or however right.
Speaker 1:And so I'm real strategic, brother, on how I position myself and my and that's the hush, that's seem like that's the hush thing, because, uh, what happens is there's a million people out here with books that didn't take that approach to it and, like you said, just keeping one on you, like I give an example, there's a bunch of people that got books that's running around in New York City in the New York City, so that but he is a dime, a dozen, you know, I mean, and um, the fact that you had the, you know the, hustling you to the point where you said, listen, I'm gonna get this book to take a picture with them. Now you put that post, that picture, somebody gonna say, well, what, what is Paris Hilton reading this for? You know, I mean, what is that person reading this for? So you know, that's, uh, that's, that's something that you know get to do. All the people that's, you know, coming up authors right now. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. See, I'm in the right, right Leveraging your story. That's the bar.
Speaker 3:You're not just selling your story. You leveraging yourself in your story for connections, right and these connections lead to other things. It leads to other opportunities, and that's exactly what's been happening with my life. I leverage my story. People have been looking for story, people been been been leaning into it, having questions, and that those questions lead to, you know, opportunities. And that's why I'll be finding myself in all of these crazy spaces where I'm around all actors and actresses and stars and I'm just like asking myself, wow, this is amazing, and it is. It is amazing when you can become a self entrepreneur and utilize your story as a product and sell it like dope. That's amazing, that's amazing.
Speaker 2:So I should wait, wait, you know it, getting into all of these different hands that anybody try to say, well, look man, maybe we can do a film out of this.
Speaker 3:or oh, it's already happening?
Speaker 2:Is what happening? Okay, last one, last one, last one, last one, last one, last one.
Speaker 1:Everybody likes to go rock the riches man, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:So listen, listen are you gonna play yourself or looking at somebody? If so, who would you? Who would you get to do that thing?
Speaker 3:I would wanna play myself, but if I did have like somebody who don't say Denzel or Tawal, brother, you know audition and wanna play that role. I would definitely wanna be part of that process and make sure that person meets up to the standard, because you know. I wear a will, and I got a nice smile on my face.
Speaker 1:So you gonna audition for yourself, Audition for yourself right. That's the stuff, man.
Speaker 2:That's the stuff, man, so listen before we get ready to wrap it, man, please tell everybody where they can get the books. You know what I mean. If you see the brother in the street, he probably got one on him. So you know you can get it there. We know we can get it there. But go ahead, man, give everybody your handles and whatnot man?
Speaker 3:Well for sure. So you can find my book both of my books my Life and Poetry in Grit, grind and Glory on my website at gritgrindingglorycom. Also, you can visit Amazon. Amazon has my book both books on Amazon. One of the book, grit Grind and Glory, is also an audio book. So if you're looking for that cinematic experience where you wanna listen to the book and also engage it with your ears, I also have that for purchase on my website, gritgrindingglorycom. You can get the audio book there. Also, you can get the audio book on Audible and other platforms that has audio books, such as Spotify and such as Apple Books. My book is on all platforms the audio book version. My Instagram is gritgrind grit excuse me, gritgrind underscore glory. That's my Instagram. My Facebook is Anthony Morshan McDuffie Jr. That's my Facebook handle and my TikTok is gritgrindingglory as well, and that's where all of the viewers and listeners can find me on my website, on my TikTok or on my Instagram.
Speaker 2:All right, that's what's up, and of course we will put all that link information in our description. So if you're listening to the show, just go ahead and click on that man. Go purchase this brothers, but definitely a good brother man. We appreciate having you all here for real. You know what I mean.
Speaker 3:Thank you, brother, Don't be no stranger bro, Don't be no stranger man. Oh, no, no, we locked in from LA to New York. Man, yeah, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, brother, you are young.
Speaker 1:I just bought the book, man.
Speaker 3:That's love brother, that's love man.
Speaker 2:We're going to check this out, thank you man.
Speaker 3:I appreciate that brother, I appreciate that man. And also, man, if y'all ever get a chance to that audio book is an experience, man, it's a cinematic experience and it ain't just the typical audio book where you just listen in the words. Nah, man, I bring a whole cinematic effect to it. You going to hear the sounds, you going to hear the bullets.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, I encourage you to go to the audio book. You going to hear the bullets on it. That's all I'm just going to say, man. All you're going to hear is everything. You going to hear the sounds you going to hear the screams?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's the whole cinematic effect, it's like a movie yo.
Speaker 3:It's like a movie.
Speaker 1:Like what you call it, Colors 2024,. Man, yeah, it's coming 2024.
Speaker 3:That's what it sounds, man Yo listen before we go, man, before we go, definitely, man.
Speaker 2:I want you to do one last thing for me, brother. While we got you here, man, Please give a message to the youth out here. Man, it's taking this life thing as a joke. You know what I mean. Taking freedom as a joke, brother, can you just speak on it? Black man, tell them, tell them.
Speaker 3:So my words to the youth is this believe in yourself and don't Don't follow the peer pressure. Don't believe the hype, don't follow the influence, don't follow the way. Create your own way. Believe in yourself, be an entrepreneur, be that person that you always want to be. And if you don't know what that is, then look towards a mentor, look towards somebody that you love in your life, that loves you, and sometimes, for the youth man, you might just need a hug or somebody to talk to. I encourage you to go find that person that you can love, you can talk to and you can exchange a hug with man. And ultimately, don't believe the hype of glorifying the gangs and the violence man, because that's not the way. It's not. You know what I'm saying as a people, it's killing us. So if you want to be positive and be constructive man, I advise you to get around folks. That's on that wave and don't fall into the peer pressure. You know what I'm saying Be yourself.
Speaker 1:That's it, that's what's up? If you listen to the podcast, man support man. It's on Amazon, it's easy to get. I got one, so everybody should be able to go and get one. Oh yeah.
Speaker 2:It's a good book to get. And again, if you see this brother in the street man, you know what I mean. Yeah, man, you see me in the streets man. He keeps the product going on, folks.
Speaker 3:He's in the streets man. Hey man, I'm hoping to give hugs, I'm hoping to give daps. Man, just don't come too crazy man.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, you said, yo, you got PTSD, yeah bro, all right, man.
Speaker 2:We going to say I know if man Anthony McDuffie join you, black man doing the same baby, all right, so listen man. Any time you got a platform, brother, you come on. Check us out please, man, you know what I mean. Thank you, bro.
Speaker 1:Thank you, man. I got my information too brother, all right, you got the same the.
Speaker 2:Only One Mic Podcast is available on all platforms you stream your podcasts on. Also check out our Only One Mic Podcast YouTube channel to catch up on the past and current episodes. Please don't forget to rate to show and subscribe Also, guys, you can catch us on any platform that you stream your podcasts on. I just got confirmed the other day we are on I Heart Radio, so might be taking that to another level, guys, so make sure you check us out. We also are on Instagram and X slash Twitter I never used to call it an X like that, but at the Only One Mic P1 Facebook and LinkedIn at the Only One Mic Podcast, and you can email us at theOnlyOneMight00 at gmailcom. Also call us if you got any questions or comments you want to have here on the show 302-367-7219. We thank you once again for your time, anthony. Thank you, brother. You know. Peace and blessings always, brother.
Speaker 2:We thank you to the audience for making space for us and encourage you to please speak the truth quietly and clearly, and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant, because they too have their story to tell. So until next time, please keep in mind that we never have to run from the Clue Clutch class, or we shouldn't have to run from a black man. Peace.
Speaker 1:Peace Thanks.
Speaker 2:Thanks.
Speaker 3:That's love man. That's love man. Thank you, our brothers man.