Jaiga: How I Helped Build Soca's Biggest Stars | Corie Sheppard Podcast

Jaiga joins us for one of the most revealing conversations ever recorded about the evolution of soca music, talent development, radio, entrepreneurship and mentorship in Trinidad & Tobago.

From selling apples in the market as a teenager to becoming one of the most influential figures behind the scenes of Caribbean entertainment, Jaiga shares the stories that shaped his journey.

We discuss the creation of Soca Star, the origins of Next Ten, discovering artists like Voice and Ding Dong before they became household names, building Radioactive, working alongside Machel Montano, Destra, Iwer George and Fay-Ann Lyons, and helping launch opportunities for the next generation of talent.

Jaiga also opens up about personal growth, therapy, fatherhood, relationships, men's mental health, and why he believes vulnerability is one of a man's greatest strengths.

In this episode:

• The real story behind Soca Star
• How Voice was discovered
• Why Ding Dong lived in his mother's house
• The creation of Next Ten
• Building careers before social media
• The hustle of selling apples in the market
• Touring the world with Iwer George
• How Action became a soca hit
• Radioactive, Synergy TV and radio history
• Entrepreneurship, sales and business lessons
• Fatherhood, therapy and men's mental health
• Why only 4 of 106 young men knew their fathers 

Whether you're a fan of soca, business, entrepreneurship, media, or personal development, this episode offers a rare look at the mindset and experiences behind one of Trinidad & Tobago's most influential cultural figures.

#coriesheppardpodcast #Jaiga #Soca #TrinidadAndTobago #CaribbeanCulture

Transcript

Cold Open From Market To Stage

SPEAKER_02 0:00

My government in turn is not even my name. At 13 hours in the market, bro. Not a woman passing my stall and then buying Apple, brother. When you bite an apple, it's the juicy thing. When you go my son in it. Sukasa started with real passion. I saw the show went from a 250 million dollars in sponsorship. A lot of people get caught up in the feelings in the Us at Sukasa. I remember blacks want to fight me and thing it. I've been to a session one time, 106 boys. Show of hands. Who in here know your father? Guess how much hands went up? 106 of you. Four. If you fling an envelope inside, I am the DJ. I am pressing. Hallelujah, Lemasi. Hallelujah, LMSC. The people want water. I see I'm not doing a DJ anymore. 50 50.

Meet The Guest And The Legacy

Corie 1:13

Welcome to the Cory Chapter Podcast. Welcome to the Cory Chapter Podcast. Welcome back to everybody who's been listening. Welcome to all the new listeners. Today we have a man who spanned many, many eras. I don't know if to introduce him as a songman, a soccer artist, a radio announcer, entrepreneur, businessman. I don't even know his name. So we can start with Jigger. Welcome to the show, my brother.

SPEAKER_02 1:34

I want to say on camera, congratulations to you. And if David Letterman and Oprah had a son, it would have been Corey. Oh man, that is double.

Corie 1:42

This is a lot of pressure though.

SPEAKER_02 1:43

But where do we go from there? For real, for real, for real. I've been waiting to tell you that in person. I could have messaged it, but I wanted to tell you that because that's how I look at the show. That's how I look at you. And that is the direction I'm seeing. This is the type of thing. And I'm proud to be here. Why? Because there's one person in my lifetime to date that I always felt that I wanted to sit in front of because I was very fortunate in my career to meet just everybody, right? Would have been Alison Hennessy. Oh, of course, of course, of course. I was never able. I grew up looking at her. She was a pain, she has been my Oprah. Yeah, all of us, all of us, right? All of us. And when I started seeing the show, could I meant you because you would have seen, I mean I hit you up all the time. Support her of the show, everything. You understand? I on everything, the Patreon, everything. Oh, really? Yeah, yeah, and everything.

Corie 2:27

So I'm gonna say no.

SPEAKER_02 2:30

So, so with that, when I looked at it, I just had to make the joke. I said, Boy, if David and Oprah, that child. No, because that is where it is at, and I want people, everybody out there. This is this is what we have to feel proud about, things like this. So, young people looking on, if you always if you ever felt for a second that what are you doing and why you're doing it, this is a good stepping stone. Just think about listen, my first great deed is to get on Coreys. Yeah, once I get once I get on Corey, I'm on my way.

Corie 2:56

No, we talk about it. But I'll tell you something, yeah. The names that you bring up, they're very, very important to me. Because when I in doing this, I look at what Oprah is doing in terms of what the demand is to get on our show and what it means to people to get there. I watch Letterman a lot in terms of you have a calm style, it almost feels like you're never asking a question. Right. And and I mean when you talk about people like Alison Hennessy, I build things all for people like them. But use one of them people too. Because I think people people like I was telling you before we start that now, I don't remember to say JIGO because I accustomed to TC knowing the name TC from so so.

SPEAKER_02 3:31

A lot of people don't understand TCT real name, it's just the is just the initials. That is what my father, mother, entire family give you a story that a lot of people don't

Government Names And Growing Up

SPEAKER_02 3:40

know. My government in Terran is not even my name. Yeah, what do you mean? I won't have I'll give that one we always laugh about it. Back in the days when you know the young people now they do SCA, we used to do common right, of course. For common entrance, boy, when you get our paper, you know, you crack your seal with your pencil and you write it in. Then you find out your name. No, I couldn't write Leonard, boy.

Corie 3:59

It's gonna be LC.

SPEAKER_02 4:01

I started telling myself, boy, how I go in secondary school with name Leonard.

Corie 4:05

Because we come from a time where people maintain social media pressure was the kind of pressure we have to go to into it in like face to face and person pressure, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 4:16

For me to have to go to school in a short product for them to come. I say, not at all, not at all. And I was an only boy. My family is a family of women. My mom have we talking about a span of 13 aunts on one side and the next nine aunts on the next side. I'm the only boy coming to the family, three sisters before me. I'm the last on a tooth and pull it on the sun. Everybody should know how to operate with that boy. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Spoiler child thing. My mother was putting my shoes in my pants and powder.

SPEAKER_00 4:43

Oh, I say, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 4:44

Exactly what I mean.

SPEAKER_00 4:45

Yeah, and then so I say with all of that too.

Corie 4:48

And with semen thing, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 4:51

What a mess.

Corie 4:52

And then they say call merino of a tiny rino inside.

SPEAKER_02 4:55

I say, Merino. It's going my mother. Tell me going into form one that long pants is for big boys then. Oh man, so she said you would eat short pants. My mother says shorts it is because them days you have an option. You could have gotten a little bit more. You got the option, that's right. What school is secondary school? Well, my first secondary school entrance, I went to Baratari. Oh I was like, nah. I see with all of that.

Corie 5:19

First week how to be rough, bro.

SPEAKER_02 5:20

And my mother, I come from a very humble my dad was a reverend, my mom is a housewife. Okay. So we're talking about very humble beginnings. So my first shoes was that sweet fox. For those of you who don't know what a sweet fox is, think about the top men in China. They say we're travel first. That's right. Sweet fox was the imitation versus and it was plastic. You remember spoilers too, people said by this both stuff. Spoiler was a top shoe relevant. Spoiler was a top man relevant. It's a sweet fox. Sweetfox was the plastic version. And when you're doing an assembly in the hot sun, your toes burned. Oh my god, yeah. So pick your boy in a sweet foxy short marino and shoot pressed there. If it's one academ beat me with a cadir, I learned iron. Well, you are then. No, but like my mommy's saying them days, but I learned for me. So it's one thing I know is about a neat uniform. So when I study all of this and I'll overthink, yes, so in primary school, while I cracking that people dies by thinking, I don't know why going and go there looking real horrible. And then to add on top of that, they go and call me Lena. By right turn on my thing, yes. You were studying the exam days when you're still. So years later, and I'm and watch me, it's so funny. I'm having that story now because it just came up recently. My mom turned 80, had a big celebration for my mom's 80th. That is when I say, Listen, I recently went and had the deep poll and swear for David and everything because all my documents was here. Why? Yeah, of course.

Corie 6:41

You have different name everywhere.

SPEAKER_02 6:42

But every time I go to the bank and the business, I always have a thousand different pieces of paper to take.

Corie 6:46

So it's not just subriquet. All your names is all your names are chaos. It's always been chaotic from since nine. I witch you, I witch, I'll wait till you.

SPEAKER_02 6:54

So that's it that's to get to the you talking about the name I give it, the full story. So appreciate that, I appreciate that, I appreciate it. Ended up from super chicken to this to that.

Corie 7:02

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, we gotta get to that because that's what we know. Yeah, but when I was when you message on Instagram, I appreciate that. I appreciate that. I always uh think about people who when I was just building it to message and say something positive. Right. Because you know how messages is go. Oh, yeah. It'd always be very positive for sure. But the thing is, like, I see you're doing next 10 now, and it's something I admire. You your next turn, uh how do you talk about the concept of it? It's like you have people doing top 100 all over the place, and it caters, especially in our market, the top people might be the same people recurrent.

SPEAKER_02 7:29

Not only that, I when you when you think about the word top 10, top 10 to me is is is is a period at the end. Top 10 full stop. Next and continues, it's infinite. And that's how I looked at it. I think that for a long time, my passion for the art form is I for me to sit down here and explain how I feel about the art form, we need nine of these, right? But that's how I feel. And ironically, it was myself and my girlfriend having a conversation, this line down, just having chit-chat, and she shows, she said, Hey, look at this young, this small man here. What's amazing to see is all the technology into this space now and how easy it is for people to break out. So is this you this young boy in a room, all the top-notch equipment, he looking like Puffy. Right, right, right, right. All the nice new serato, the new laptop, they knew this lights full of room, and he ain't alive. And he said, This is the top 10 songs to try it out. And this was like November 6th. Right? No, it wasn't local. Okay. November 6th. But the thing about it is that he, you know, when you you put a post, you could boost it. So it's a boosted post. So you have a hundred, hundreds of thousands of views on the post. Right. So I'm like, but why would you do that? And I said, This is insane. I say, I'm sure I could go downstairs on my machine and I could find an extended songs really easy because she's the one who sparked it. And I went downstairs, that's that's vex, you know, that's upset. But nothing upset or angry, but I'm like, nah, this can't be. And I pull my laptop and I go DJ, no, my sub DJing how much gazillion is, but I still have everything in. Yeah, so I pull up and I still get everybody's emails. When I open my thing and I go in one folder, I must be fine about 125. But what was the issue with his list? It just wasn't good at all. No, no, no. It's not that the list, the list had the songs that we know at the time, at the time on that list, you'd have a thing about that being pieces, some Nadia. Okay. You'd have the basics. Popular songs. In the popular songs. Right. And I've always felt as though, yeah, there's always popular songs, but that's not what the business is. But we had people around, as I say, we created people say culture. Like the argument I had with Hoppy, with the discussion about what is culture and what is not culture. Like, I honestly feel as though Trinidad, we have allowed habit to become culture.

Corie 9:40

Bad habits. You're saying it, but when he said dance all is we culture.

SPEAKER_02 9:43

Yeah, we fight and for Twitter niggas all in the house. I'm a boy, I end up in his place. And you laughing, and he's always sung like when he did his podcast, I was I was only hoping that you open his mouth. You know, his he talk like he wake up every day. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. When he asked please your question, words will come out. He is always sung like it's four o'clock in the morning, and he just answered the phone. So I am like, bro, he and you know, he's entertainment. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Cool. But yeah, so for me, that's what it was. I was like, listen, I'm sure. So I went downstairs and I pull the first ten songs that I know that I I still have an air. Sure. I believe I still have an ear because I'm, you know, pull the song and boom. I went on and I said, listen, guys, hear what? I sure I can give you a next 10. And it just slipped out. I'll give you a next 10 songs. And I post the first thing, and I'm no big social media person, but I understand analytics and numbers. When I post the first little video, and it's in my kitchen as home. Um, at the time when I looked at it, I was doing like 35,000 that week. And about two days past, I see jump to like 190 something thousand. Chromatics was the first person to hit me up. I always give chromatics credit. Chromatics say, bro, you see that thing you just did? That hard, and it could be onto something you say. But I want to challenge you one more time. Give me 10 songs from 10 unknown people.

Corie 11:04

Okay, so this was 10 hitmakers you put on the first thing.

SPEAKER_02 11:07

I wouldn't say hit makers, it was 10 great songs, but it was from people that we know. Oh, gotcha. So in my in my top 10, if I can remember, I had like Ding Dong. Okay. I had I think Jimmy October. I had a couple names that are around. But that there's these songs that people just wasn't playing heavy. Because you know it goes not because you have a big name means you get played all the time. Yeah, evidently. Right. So that's what I did. So I went on in the next episode. I

Why Next Ten Had To Exist

SPEAKER_02 11:30

put up 10 people that I know for sure are not big names. Right, right. Right? And listen, what people I've always learned over the years is that people forget community sometimes. Everybody has a mother, a father, a brother, sister, aunt, a neighbor, somebody that's loved them. They both people love Trump. Of course. Right? So I'm saying it happens. Oh, oh, okay. So it happens, right? So I was like, um, boom, when I put up the first time, people were like so excited, like, hey boy, look, driver post, yeah. Boy, the trigger post it. My phone started blob. I said, Well, what craziness is it? People listen, all kind of old aunts and things started messaged me from all parts of England. I see your pop my nephew got tough so much.

SPEAKER_00 12:12

And I started say, Well, what is this?

SPEAKER_02 12:14

And bro, it thing reached like about 400 and something, though. I was like, damn. So, like, we're really onto something. So at that point, no, I said, okay. And you know, ironically, 2026 was the year I told myself, listen, I was working on some projects, me and pretty. I wanted to say, boy, Jags Boy, let'll be run out the road 2026. I'll release some singles. I'll focus on the Jigger. Yeah, yo, the Jiggers and the Artist Jigger. Right. But I'll focus on artist Jigger. As for you, well, I always just get dragging and the passion again, boy. Yeah, yeah. When you see them young people sell it my pan be like, boy, Jagger, I say, okay. Next thing you know, I consume it next time. Gotcha. I say, well, let me make it look decent. Because at the end of the day, we have to make the thing look good. So I say, alright, cool. I will shoot. Because I'm doing it myself. I ain't bringing no team. Started the shoot. I say, I'd pop one twice a week. The thing started to get wild, it started to get PC. Next thing you know, emails started come and come. I watch in the calendar, watching the thing and say, So, in the midst of that, by the time I publish the fifth episode, that would be 50 songs. I have 50 songs done. I was like, listen, I need to make this feel better. So I made the the decision to invest in the showcase, which is the ones that everybody saw, which the little the little kind of um room of course with them and all the fireworks and all the things. So I said, well, okay, cool. And I had a long-standing relationship with Stag as people know. I used to be a brand ambassador for many, many years. Stag has been always good to me. So without even, I say, let me do it and I'll go after stop a carriage before horse. So I went and I shot it and I called him and I said, Listen, I wanted to come. We didn't talk any kind of you know, money, nothing. We said, I just want to do it off of love. I want to help these young people. Let's see how best we can help them. That's how it started. And he made that the next brand, we can call them and mention the name call and offer a bag, a humongous bag. Right, yeah, because they see potential. But I know that they're seeing the it's like how the world is now. And I turned it down. Some people in my team was like, Are you mad? I was like, nah, sometimes you go with people understand loyalty, right? Loyalty sometimes, it doesn't have to be not blind, but loyalty is a is a very broad thing. People just feel as yeah, I'll be loyal because it's how to be loyal. And I was loyal to the brand because I always felt they don't just put a name on a t-shirt. I've seen over the years, because I've done some Stark Stage for like what, 12 years. Yeah, and we have been able to put on, I would say put on young talent for so long before they even get. I I feel I sit and joy watching, bro. I've been using Mikhail Tesha before he had a hit song.

Corie 14:50

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 14:51

I've been using, I remember when Wadix, I remember Wadix coming by me and I playing Wadix on stage with P. And let me just put that there. A lot of people, every time you work for Jaguy on Piro. Okay, gotcha. Because I know where I came from. So if I have an opportunity to put you on, and I always tell the young people, don't study the pace, study to be on payroll.

SPEAKER_04 15:08

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 15:08

A lot of them try to focus on how much this one gets. Don't think about because you can never get what Garland gained. You can never get what Marshall gained now. But be grateful that when they list the score, it's like when you watch the TV shows, the Mexicans trying to get on the van to go and do a job. Their concern is not what the job is in, it's being on the back of the van.

Corie 15:26

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Garland is a good example. I hear him say before in an interview where he was talking about the struggles they went through traveling and touring. And basically saying if you're if you really want to be an artist, like the passion that you have, you will you will drive it and you will do it. Yeah. But when was your start for Nexton? If Stark Stage was 12 years ago, no, next ten, the first episode was on the 8th of November. Right. Last year? 2025? 2025.

SPEAKER_02 15:50

And what your goal then was to do weekly, or how often? Well, I tell I had no plan. All right, right, right. It was just it was just me putting up the songs, giving them a play, and and understanding that I took for granted for a long time, you know, sometimes you do at least trust and believe in self. I took for granted that all the things I've done over the years is done and it's finished. Yeah. Not knowing that there are people who still look at it and be like, yo, bro, you have that because sometimes I have my moments when I look back and think about all who bro, it's a long list. If you go to south now, every modern day young so artist would have passed through the ranks. Yeah. Would have had a Jiga moment, come by me, sit up in my gallery, get some woods of advice, do something. I have all of them from the voice, the printing, second thing, the earth, all of them. Yeah. Right. And I was like, and I noticed it when I started getting comments and all the DMs about bro, this rail hard. I really like this. They need this. And then younger people started reaching out, bro. Thank you so much. Because we need this, nobody taking us on. That's when I said, okay, if that's the case, let me just do some tweaking take real quick. And it took like a week, two weeks, and then I came up with the concept about doing the showcase and how I wanted the showcase to look. That was the biggest part. Yeah.

Corie 16:59

So the showcase wasn't in you're just bringing us out as you want to. Yeah, the showcase.

SPEAKER_02 17:02

Same thing with the playlist, we can't notice, just keep them on our playlist as well. Yeah, well, the playlist, because one of the rules, because it's everything when you're teaching, right, you have to lead by good example. Coming on to Next End, I have to let them know not because you do a song and put it on YouTube, you could get on next then. There's some work that has to be done. And if you're not there yet, I will also try and help you get there. In terms of you have to be on iTunes, that's the rules. Because I put it on an open iTunes playlist. So I ended up with 110 songs on the next end 2025 iTunes playlist. So you made it to the playlist, but then from the playlist, now you have to make it to the showcase, which is the same thing I just explained to you at the beginning. For a young person to get on Corey Shep, but it's an amazing stepping stone. For you to get a next end, that's one thing. But then to get on the showcase, it's not a competition, but it's giving you a sense of worth. Of course. It's like I made it to the showcase because this showcase and everything is funded. Imagine as a young artist, let's say you come out one year, you ended up on the next end. Okay, people liking your song playing heavy on the radio, but you end up on the showcase. On the showcase, we gifted every artist 250 US. I gifted each one of them $250 in terms of on social media credits. So we boosted each one of them. So we're talking about these kids had well, Crystal, because of what Crystal ended up. Crystal ended up with a million, over a million, but some of them had 300 and something, 400 and something thousand views on their IG. They never had that before. People start singing their songs, and

Rules, Playlists And Funding Young Artists

SPEAKER_02 18:30

I saw out of the 15, at least nine of the songs went mainstream because that's the purpose at the end of the day. So I found purpose in the next thing at the same time. So out of that, I can call list of names that was in the showcase that now. How so we had Brave Boy, we had we had um Paris Coutine, we had um well, Christo, obviously. Of course, yeah.

Corie 18:49

Right? And you see this concept before too, because it is a difficult thing. Let me talk from me personally, it's it's real difficult for me to see. My ears not like yours. So let me put it like that. So when I hear a song, it's hard for me to tell what the song would do. Right. I might be more dependent on the personal singer than the song. A lot of people, yeah, as a fan. A lot of people. But you sit down and you watch, let me use voice as an example. You sit down and you watch him come in. Everybody who talks about him say they know he was a star one time. But the truth is he's a real young fellow. You know, he's supposed to be in the competition from what I understand. He was on the age. And you see that for the stuff.

SPEAKER_02 19:17

Not only that, but that's the story that a lot of people leave out with the voice thing, which is why I think there was the tension between him and Ilfun. Yeah, is we went for Ulfan. Myself and Peter at the time, we used to do, we used to scout. So we had this thing where we had an agreement with the ministry where we used to go to the schools and we used to pull like little competitions and little things, so we could kind of sense the talent, right? Earl fun in St. George's was the star. Let's be real. Let me put it on the record. He's still a star. Earl Fun in St. George's was the Dan. He used to battle with a youth man called um, oh my god, this boy's name has evaded me. There were two fellas used to run the young Calypso, the soaker competition. St. George's. With um, no, I'm talking about National National. It was um his father was a contractor. David don't know who I'm talking about. Um oh my god, is this guy boy? Yeah, his father was a big contractor, so his father used to buy him all the mixers. I see. He said, Yeah, all the hit songs. So him and Ufan used to be going neck and neck. This is before um Iran and India. I talk about when Ufan was winning back to back to the back. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Why are we going to see Ufan? Voice, I know voice as a panman. Right. Right? Voice as a panman. When he was coming to free, voice was very timid. Yeah. Voice was shy and timid, but he had the voice. Right? So when Peter was like, yo, this bad, and I remember when we heard the alien, meaning if if boy will ever mention it, to remember it. I remember a boy coming and he watches, he ain't Peter TC that song. I think I won that song. And you're like, Alien? Yeah, no, no, you're laughing. You had to understand music, right? And timing. There's some songs you cannot remember why it was big. But it was big. Yeah, Alien was huge. Alien was huge, but he won it for himself. Yeah, we can't gang them style. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. The biggest song ever. At the time, it was just big. Alien was um, yeah, for sure, for sure, for sure, for sure. Right? So, boom, it worked. And voice came into the free, and that is when you started seeing when he had the support of his team and whatever, and family, and he started to shine and he started goal. But he was very timid, but he was the talent was there. But originally, the focus was really from we went and we were speaking out of the lots now. Right. Right? That's what it was. That's the real story because the dance of Georges and them timing. Gotcha, gotcha. I'll give you a next quick story about that too. That people don't know, I put things on record here. When Umi Mokano won Soka Star, the song was Umi's song. That's him and Chucky Gordon. That's right, that's right. That's right, that's right. Chucky at the time was upset. Yeah. But me and Chucky's father's my music teacher. That's John Boy's father. Yeah, Roland. Roland. I remember John Boy. People might think John Boy's Chucky's brother. Of course. And we explained to Chucky that listen, what They didn't understand it's what a television show. A lot of people get caught up in their feelings in the earlier took us, but understanding that we were doing something that was new to our market. This is scripted reality. So scripted reality in Trina and Tobago where people are passionate. Like I remember blacks want to fight me and thing. Boy, we had back an Island practice and thing and trip and cuss and kick down equipment and walk out and because many. It's when you're passionate about something, bro. Yeah, I guess. Every time when I came in, and I'll say this now, like this is the perfect platform to really, I have real sorries to say here. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Plenty of sorries because arrogance is a hell of a thing. At that time, bro, I young, I wanna I don't want to say rich, but young, earning, right, and super arrogant. You can't tell me shit, buddy. Blacks I don't care about you. I remember watching blacks and papi and them boy, and dishes fucking them, boy hungry, boy.

Corie 22:57

So then you're mine or you see that.

SPEAKER_02 22:59

Me and Papi saying, but TC, I said, and I cussing blacks and juice man trying to hold me back on his canal because I explained to them, they're curling with me what fashion had to do with so. I see. I was trying to explain to them, bro. I am trying to tap into a new audience. I say, earlier, want to come up there and wear the same foobo shirt all earlier and look like a pung man. That is not what this is. Well, them cussing me like I remember we Anchorage and we had to go on stage, others. No blacks can accuss that blacks. Blacks ready me and I go in at blacks. And God have it that that's but me and blacks end up the what are the best, the best, the best, the best. Yeah, I guess the passion is the common innocence. We understood each other at a different level. But that is how I felt at the time. And I always told people, my reason for wanting to do so the way I did it, and the even the soccer thing I saw that people might know. I was not supposed to host soccer. Right, right. I was part of the production process because what I had, I was opening 91.9, Bashprint Radio, which is um the name came from some a project I had. That's how he got the name. So I went in there as a director and we from the beginning, I knew from I knew everything. So we opened it. I had all the music because I was the only DJ in Trinidad toying playing soccer, right? Right. Because of George. I was talking with George for 13 years. So everybody used to bring the CD for me because that's the only breakup. Them days is on a social media.

Corie 24:26

Yeah, it's on leave.

SPEAKER_02 24:28

It's super jigger TC, go Brooklyn and thing and play a song in my game. So I used to get everybody music. So when we came trying, I was opening the station, Peter was now doing the TV. And Peter had the idea for so he called me, he said, Bro, I need to get some of them so many always know about it. I want to do this, and that is how the marriage happened. The marriage happened with me having the music and the talent. And he hired a company with Shira and them to do the organizing of the names because playing it into the other thing all women do things right. We had to skip them. We are I have about a thousand CD in a box, me know who's who they would take it out, yeah, put a name to it, a telephone number, call everybody, just put all them things right now. And that is how it started. So on the day we had hired um a particular host, I wouldn't call him out here now. We hired a particular host. So we went to do the pilot. I didn't did the pilot at 51, and and Marshall was very impatient with the person that we picked because they was making too much mistakes, it was taking long. And them days, when you think I was arrogant, them days, boy was that was thing. Let's go time. Nah, like this is all wrong. This could have been 2005. Five. Yeah, okay. And he was in dandy. Yeah, yeah, yeah. In charge. I'm telling you, dandy. You can't talk to the dandy to sit down here to waste time. Come on, all the things to do. Carrying on. So I say, listen, this is what we're gonna do. And I take the mic, I do the first three people to give the guy a little vota so how we want it. Because remember, we know the project. Me and Peter are working on the project, so we know what we want. Boy, Marsha gave X and said, Let's do all things because we're shooting our pilot up to shop to the sponsors. So that happened. So when we shopped it to the sponsor at the time, yeah, usually host. The sponsor said, Yeah, we like it, we'll do it. It's alright, cool. So when we bring back, they say, No, no, no, no, that's not what we pay for, we pay for this. So we had to run. So we said, okay, we'll do the first set with me and see how it goes. So the first three ended up into four, ended up in the first season. By the time season two comes around, they say no. Then the sponsorship money jumped from 250 to almost a million. Men started go, nah, nah, nah, I mean I invest the one the same thing. Of course. And boy, that's just how it happened. So I ended up there. Yes, I was part of Soka Safa Manception, but I was never supposed to be the host.

Corie 26:36

That's interesting because you you hosting it, you end up being a kind of

Soca Star Was Scripted Reality

Corie 26:40

signature. So you're talking about season two, right? Season one, as somebody who unlooking, it's so hard to figure out what it is. You don't know what to expect. I remember seeing people line up outside Synergy. I think Fireball was the first one, Umi was second.

SPEAKER_02 26:52

Yeah.

Corie 26:53

Something like that, right? Yeah. So by the time Umi came on, we had um maybe we contributed a million a little bit. We was representing Sony Ericsson. And Sony Ericsson had come on as a sponsor for Sony was there.

SPEAKER_02 27:04

And that's when I had um Andrew Batiste was amazing at the time. Yeah. Myself and Peter had one of the sweetest deals with Andrew. Because what people don't understand. So you're talking about. Yeah. Right. What people don't understand is the vision we had for Silk. So what I wanted to see was I really and truly where it was supposed to go, I wanted to be the first ever competition to really give people a start in life. Okay. Where the dream was to get you a house, life insurance, and a vehicle as a young person. Because I wanted, I felt as though I was fortunate in my time and at a tender, tender age, I was able to purchase my first place. And you know, so I felt as though okay, I could do the same for somebody else. You don't have Iowa kind of bread. I was rolling with Iowa. Like I'll give you a story with the Iowa thing after, but how amazing that was. But yeah, so that's what we wanted. So when we got the deal with the cars, we are like, okay, we get cars, we get a good stipend in terms of money. We were neck and neck with Soka Monarch in terms of finance, right? But for unknowns. This is for unknowns. So in the first year, when we when Farball won, as Gore will have it, Farball just got bragging rights. He got a zero dollars, was just bragging rights. I remember Paul Richards telling me, Oh, they are big show now. Yeah, fireball, you play use a big DJ. You know, if you know if you ain't got a um, if fireball ain't got a hit song next year, the show crash. So said so done. So I had to be like, okay, and I was interested in trying to make sure that fireball get a hit song the next year. Me being uh at the time a very versatile DJ and well traveled and knowledge and thing, I learned the concept of music bullying. Right? I would say, as I say, everything good on record here. I learned how you can bully the business. I said, okay, cool. And ironically, the person who showed me how to bully, God rest the soul, just passed away. It's Glenway Watson. I see. He showed me the skill of bullying. Yeah, he knew how to do that. Yeah, we know he owned it because he at the time had only studio that Chassu was working on. Chassu had the biggest rhythm at the time. And them then, class would as we've been in class. Class started to sing, then dance, then started produce, then started sing again. That class has its whole little history, too. But sure, it was class, little bits, a couple of people because chassis used to work heavy with H2O flow was on that. And they had a rhythm, and they were the first people to do like a music medley video. Gotcha. Because Chassou was very forward-thinking at the time. Chassis was a dance. Chassis was our Swiss base. Of course, you look, you know. So boom synergy, big. That's the one the main videos that that is before in the time in Galen thing with Surge. There was Sashu thing. So I call him as like, bro, I need to get fireball on that rhythm.

unknown 29:51

Clicks.

SPEAKER_02 29:52

Man, hang up on me. I call back. I said, bro, they TC, you know. Super Jaggerboy, I want to get fired here. And bro, bro, they'll be bringing your bro, bro. You know the triple that you're saying, they'll be calling my phone, my thing, because right now he's bigger, eh? Yeah, he rhythm around. So I started setting now, and then as somebody whispered in my eyes, bro, you don't know how much power you have. I said, Oh, let's take the man thing off. I said, You lie. I called Peter. I said, Peter, we can take the thing off the TV. He said, Peter, no, we cannot do that. What do you mean? I said, the man who wants to give me the rhythm. He said, So you mean? I say, the man saying no, boy. I said, take it off the TV. So you mean? I said, boy, we could tell people we're not playing the thing. Yeah. Why I threaten the man to not play the game? Let's bring him, just bring him. And you better not bring no share. I said, cool. I pick up Faber by Rurry by Rural Castle Independence Square with no song. All we had is your rhythm playing in my van. The rhythm was playing in my van. And that is how the story that will have so much conflicting stories with that. I remember how I remember it is I how I flush my ears is RB. I listen to so the time, right? But I flush my ears with RB. I love RB. So, like now, next thing going on, I listen to RB in the car, when I home, then I gather the songs because remember it's always a mess with a different soca. So just in case I don't make it home tonight. That's one time. That's the song I was playing. And I had the uh uh or the opening, and that is where the melody came from. This girl of mine, she's always teasing me. It's the same was a gambling. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And Fabol went into the studio, and I'll give credit to Fabol. Fireball went and did a demo and click watched me, had Chessu and everybody in awe. H2 flooded in the background vocals. When Fabo was supposed to cut back a vocal, I was like, nah, that Chris Chesso. Yeah, leave it. And listen, as Gold will have it, Fabol, as I said, got just the bragging rights for year one, but by year two, he had the biggest sukersong in history that ended up signing and of course efforts went here everywhere.

Corie 32:08

But actually, because why would somebody say the show feel? If, for instance, I do in a show where I have a cast this year, and the intention is to bring a new cast.

SPEAKER_02 32:15

Again, bad habits of trend and tobacco, as you said earlier on. The culture or the bad habit of us is that we've so been embedded or been beat with a stick to never support and like ourselves. We've been trained how to dislike ourselves on each other, you know. I suppose so watch you and don't want you to succeed. That is just what it is. That's the that's the the fine print of trend and tobacco. I'm not supposed to watch Corey, not supposed to have a big podcast, you know, why? So it was said not in malice, but in looking back at it, now I understood. So when Paul said it, he didn't say it because he wanted it to feel he's part of the show. But what would fireball having a head do with it? It would have said what it would have done, it would have said that with the show is the show is garbage, we didn't create anything. But just flop. Because he's nobody now, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Right? So I had to think outside the box. Understood. So in thinking outside the box, I didn't make sure, and while doing that, we this next show star. So we had the past one winner with a big, big song carnival the following year. Huge, like you kind of talked it. Then we have the show coming, so everything was lining up, everything was lining up perfect. So by year three, now the next step was the saddest question. Because remember, I was again loud and very voice, like sad acts, but who make them, who give them the authority to talk about so the what them knew under the then the sad question? My ability. I'm not a musician, as I as I told them. I never came. You never could put on record to hear me tell anybody out a key. Yeah, flat. It was really hosting, hosting my job. That is what Carol was there for. Beavers, one of the greatest producers of our time. And Paul Richards, who is a stallworth and a master in his craft because he was a radio programmer for so much years. So they had knowledge of that. So Paul was there to understand what the public needed in terms of the sound of music as a program director. Yeah, yeah. Carl was there as a voice coach because we had all those things. What people didn't see was the back end. We used to have voice training, rehearsals, we had business man, we used to go roy take on a Saturday.

Corie 34:12

Yeah, Shira was talking about some of it.

SPEAKER_02 34:14

Yeah, a lot of things we used to do behind the scenes, right? And Beaver was there for the production side. So I was studying television and scripted reality. So I had to do all the flamboyant nonsense to keep the audience engaged. Size where they fit and tight it and write and all that nonsense came from. I was wearing tight pants, I was loud because I wanted to tap into the audience. The audience was kids, bro. Yes, yeah. You're talking about 13 to 25. So I need to keep them interested. Yeah, and that's what it was. I understand. So they were trying to fight me down on who gave us the authority to me and I said, listen, it's a reality television show, and this is what's needed. But the people who mentioned singing were are very qualified. I understand. So that is why, because I was so frontal with the show, that's why they said, Who gave me? So I say, okay, my year tree. I was so lucky again. There was a rhythm called Coconut Tree. Producer of that rhythm is Peter Coppin, who, because of my DJing career, because my bet was a friend of ours, me and Hoppy, and Peter was tight. So Peter said listen and call him and said, Boy, I need it. Peter gave me the rhythm and I brought the rhythm to try and dad. And I wrote the wang, wang, wang, wang for Iowa. I did the make your bumper tune in the front line for myself. As I tell people, I didn't start singing because I was forced to sing. Because I had to do it to show that listen, we know what we're doing. I could take a rhythm, take a song. And at the time when I took the song, because of the popularity of the show, everything I could have sing the cockarooch run away and it would have been a hit song. And I could say that to provide. I remember I do TC, your name calling, watch your pants squeezing, you have everybody jump in. That was that. That was supposed, that was the tag for this for season four soccer star. That was the jingle. Right, yeah, yeah. And they put me in soccer mona finals with a verse. I was at the finals and I didn't have a verse because the sleep the jingle was so big. Yeah, yeah, yeah. They say he has to be in the finals for a jingle, bro. So wait, where did Taipan's thing start? You just like type bands? But no, traveling. Right. Remember, I was I was fortunate as I said, I was traveling with George for many, many years. So I had the opportunity, like, bro. I have played in some arenas and pitied our soaker many of them times. I did when when they had the whole democratic move in in Taiway and in Thailand. So Taipei City had this thing 190,000 people. I was give I was asked to come and do a cultural exchange. So I played in front of 190 something thousand people to go and play so and nobody knew English or nothing. I had the opportunity to see some great things at a young age, bro. So going to Europe and think from early, the fashion was different. So I just said, okay, I'll just bring that flag awareness to here. And everything I did, I did loud. I remember when we were giving away the vehicles. Up to this day, Nadia Basic wanna cough me in the face. I made Nadia about that to Tereos. So that's the sky, but I made everybody in trend. I believe that. Yeah, terrios, yeah. Bro, I had a terrible white cherry was on some 24s. What's me? If you see all my terriers, you say, look, when I pack that in front of the everybody jewel and it everybody said we want to get one that dude, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Building Hits And Bullying The Business

SPEAKER_02 37:20

If you break a light, you can't find it. But that's a job. Yeah, yeah, and of course, the other selling. I tell everybody one thing I could do is sell.

Corie 37:29

Yeah, yeah. So I had to do a presentation one time for Sony. We were in Miami, right? And they did the first year of thing was with Umi. And of course, when Umi went, the car was overshadowing all the other sponsors, right? Because I tell them, I try to tell them, listen, all these phones they're giving, right? So when when Umi, I know Umi. So I get Umi to Holy Phone, I was like, Umi, when you went just holy phone, please let me just get a picture. And I went back to them and they want a police sponsorship, huh? And it's your videos. You had a video when you was promoting, there was some point in time you all started to do the amphitheater. I can't remember if it was from the yeah, we did it from from all this amphitheater was the spot you go on for the early thing. I pull a little clip with you saying, because it's youths. I think people might forget how much youths used to line up outside of the synergy to to try to get in and then just to be a part of the show. The amphitheatre was rum. And you had a video, you hear Shiran them laughing back. There's all freshness in my mind. Well, you tell people we're going down to the amphitheater for the grand price of nothing, and that gets me back a contract for the next year, you know. Because when I show it, I say all it's bigger than just this the thing and the phone. And that's when they had done this huge blow up photo because it was getting a pressure with that serial, so it's like nobody sees the phone.

SPEAKER_02 38:35

Funny, when you're young, you make mistakes. When I presented the theorists to Umi, Umi went on top of the hood and jumped. Yeah, I should fix it. I had to fix the terrible, and then to add insult to injury, add insult to injury after he went it. He said it on Barney Sun. That is Umi. So my Umi. I was like St. James used to do it different. I was like, what? I was like, what? So I had to put the contract the next year, you're not allowed to move your kind of listen. You talk about headache, that was headache. So yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Corie 39:05

But the nice thing about it is you have kind of like proof of concept because you see so many of them coming fresh and just trying something, and you might just see them improve over the years. It's something that you're you're doing again with next thing like Wadix when you bring up Wadix. People see success sometimes and they say, Boy, Wadix, boss, Wadix. But I hear the name Wadi for like years, years.

SPEAKER_02 39:24

Wadix had a tune called Monkey. Was the most garbage you'll ever. And I remember putting Wadix on stage, right? And I start stage. I mean, understand something, the culture of answer. People might think there's a lot of people, there's big misconceptions. You know, we used to try that about this and that and whatever. I try to tell these young people when you're working, try your best when you get into corporate to understand it. And that's what I'm there for, to teach you how to understand corporate. Like in terms of pay, for instance, corporate is not a dun thing and you reach out the side of the stage and they looking fine, Philip. It doesn't work so. But you have to groom yourself and understand that this is part of what you do. You can get events where you go and you sing and you yell and Philip out the side, but you want to be affiliated with this type of business because it could transcend into other things. You can get to the point where now you like like McAllie doing your own show, you'll want to lean on them for support. And if you showed support over the years, the the support will then be reciprocated. So I remember putting Wadix on and Tron that well, he was he didn't have the position he has now, but Antron looked at me. Him and some other executives looked at me like, what are you doing? And I keep telling them, bro, just trust me now. What are you doing? This is rubbish. Swear to God. And I live to see over the years when Wadix got his song, all of them was in front jumping up. And I remember shooing them the tape. I say, watch this. The man remembers the same man. The man jumped, he's not gonna cry. And I've seen it so many times, bro. Yeah, like when when um Crystal had I don't need a red girl in my life, before that I was hiring him. People feel ironly crystal bandwagon. No, are you insane? I jump on bandwagons, bro. I just grow things from the beginning. Right. You can't talk to me about Ding Dong. Ding Dong lived in my mother's house for years. I wore Ding Dong from point 14. Ding Dong used to be my DJ at a club in point. He used to DJ my club. I remember Ding Dong coming and begged to play his 14 years ago in PFC. Ding Dong's father and I were his best friend. Right? I remember Ding Dong father coming and saying, God Jagger, well, TC, take care of my son, and Ding Dong mother, known in point, the grandmother, popular. Ding dong was very popular as a youth man. What people see in Ding Dong know that was him from birth. What you see with Ding Dong know is who he was from. I go in in PFC, and everybody knows Ding Dong. Ding Dong used to throw a two to six in my club. He used to come nine o'clock in the morning and put garbage back to block all the way to see it'll be dark. Right? And that was sponsored by Shandy. All right, right, right. So you dance. I used to get you ding dong and you dance and it ram. When I come down by the club, it's carrying. Ding dong, you go in whole night. He was always interested. So I um with things from the beginning. I don't jump on ban on.

Corie 42:08

But why? Who it is in you that caused you to be so interested in you? Because for me, from a business standpoint, right? I think it's real risky. If I identify some youth now who have a I guess you see in a future for them or giving them a platform.

SPEAKER_02 42:20

For me, it's personal, it's an experience I was over here. I went in Polish bear with my mom years, years ago and I saw a kitchener. And I wanted to go and talk to him and he shunned me. I guess he didn't do it in a bad way, but he shunned me because I guess he was busy. And I always looked at them as these Calypsoans to me was old. The concept of Calypso was old to me when I was growing up. And when I started to watch how Sukka was running, Sukha had no identity. Right? It was if you see a man looking like Sizzler, you know, them is dancers. You see a man with a snap back and some jewelry. Right? When you see a man and a tripy suit, them is Kai Sunia and Sukh, I had no look. So when I had the opportunity to put a vibe tape in Sukhasted, and remembering what I went through as a young DJ coming up, I remember trying to go on stage and try that to play in a in a fire fit. And they say no, sir. You're my mad. Remember the people might forget TJ's used to play under the stage a long time in a soak. Yeah, it wasn't seen. It was not seen. When we when I started the fight to be seen, I remember as loud. And my girl is real coil about that. She said, I used to cuss skill. Yes, I know. I real loud.

Corie 43:31

Yeah, loud and voice and and visually too, right? All right, good.

SPEAKER_02 43:35

I know that, I know that. So when I had the opportunity to be loud and remember what I went through, every time I see a youth man, I think of me. It'd be like, who wouldn't I know why he did? I had the opportunity where George pulled me. So I said, boy, let me just pass it forward. So when I see a youth man and I see a little inch or something, I'll give it a try. And there are people I've tried with and failed. I don't get it all the time. I'm not gonna come here and brag and say I'll shut. Nah. I won't call no body name to this then, but you know what? Artist, I pawn right there and waste my time. Yeah, yeah. Most things you try, you're gonna fail more than you succeed. I have lost plenty in terms of that, in terms of the passion I have like we we look at something now where the first ever Soka Sah final was held in a place called Soka Broadway. People forget that. So Broadway was the same concept they have now with flavor. It's a concept that I had with Iowa. Where we had a venue, booked it out, and try and resell it for the whole cann't be a season. The only difference is we couldn't let everybody come for free. Right. But it was a venue. Where it was again? That was Jean Pe was the Stadium Car Park. Right. And that year we had Soka Star Finals there, we had Junior Gong there. We posted a couple big shows on the venue. But the concept, I'm talking about the concept was there from a long, long, long, long time.

Corie 44:46

And them days, I guess, even seeing Sukasta early days, the idea of how much sponsors came on board. I'm not sure that it had any other show like that back then.

SPEAKER_02 44:55

I again I say I put things on record. Let me just let people understand what happened. Sukasa started with real passion. The first three years, zero dollars and zero cents to myself. Right? Mean nothing. Um I saw the show went from a 250 to millions of dollars in sponsorship. And we never cheated the people, no, the brand. Back then, Davey had a dome. What we see now with Lullaby is what Davy was back then. We're talking about in those days, this is 2006, we were spending four and five hundred thousand in infrastructure, bro. We never cheated the brand. And I was very adamant in fighting for make sure that the artists themselves walked away feeling like somebody. That was my thing. Because again, I come from the world of I didn't have them. I started people at 13, I was in the market, bro. I started in the market. I came from a nuclear family proper because father is pastor, mother is housewife, picket friends, you know, what's all about? All we didn't have was a dog. Right. Right? But in on paper, that is the family. Right. I shouldn't be in the market. But what I would tell is that my father was from Tobago. He came across the Trinidad and wherever, yeah, I can't remember. Bare feet. He said, a man has to buy his own shoes. And you would have heard me say at the beginning that my mom bought me a sweet fox. So in order for me to be compatible with my pair, I had to find my own way back. Of course. There was a guy called Many, he used to manage Superblue.

Consignment Hustles And Radioactive Lessons

SPEAKER_02 46:30

He had a store called Sneakers Machine inside. He had a store called Sneakers Machine in Sound, bro. I'm talking about I am 15, 16. I had met an old man called Jalo who introduced me the concept of consignment and what consignment is. First one thing I was street teaching me great things early. And he in I used to do fig wholesale. And he took more until dry goods produce, right? Then I started to put then fruits. When I got to fruits is when I realized that's the sweet spot. And it was a Christmas. He said, Well, I'll consign me, I'll give you a consignment. I made 30,000 worth an apple. And them days that is real money, bro. I talking about ain't no youth man on this planet. Could no, could sell apple like me. Yeah. None. No, I'm not even, I didn't I'm bragging here.

Corie 47:29

Which market do you know?

SPEAKER_02 47:32

I remember going on the front line by Job Avenue with my apples. And hear what I telling you, buddy. When I come away and I start to sell apple, I was if it's one thing I tell you, I could talk. Not a woman passing my stall and then buying apple bread. I watched my then I learned the trick. I shouldn't say this, but I learned the trick where you had a wet and oilet. I making you feel as though when you bite my apple, it's the juiciest thing. When you go home is sand in there, what kill me, but I don't bite him. What's it? Bro, they teach me the concept of consignment, and for all my life I went on with that. And that's where that that that that gave me the when I got to these the stage when radioactive and then come into play. We went because of that. I remember meeting Cleves and Chris and his quees' daughter to the record store. Back then you had to get records. Perry, Mary Perry, had run the border with records because he was working for Johnny Soon, one of the biggest clubs in the country. So they had access to all the new music first. You couldn't get a new record before him because the club have the play and the capital. We do have to have nothing. Quiz had two records playing back at Jane House. That he made in Diamond. Like we went to practice. All of us hungry and broken. Chris has no car or nothing. Everybody begging for drugs. Right? I was the only man driving that could legally drive at the time. Right, right. Right? I had an old car that used to call it the granti cai. My father gave me a my father gave me a way to call them car back to it, a crisida. The bonnet was one colour, the door was the next colour, because we are actually hungry and broken badness. So we used to take that car for the records and pack it in the back of the club because we can't waste it. We get one of the wee men, bro. Right? So the consignment came into where I went and broke a deal with the record store. Give us the records up front and we will pay on a fortnight. Nobody wasn't doing that at the time. I did a lot of first. I went to every big school in town, the top fives of both sides, so both on the convent and the call, and the color, right? And told everybody, listen, all the principals, give us your graduation, radioactive doing your graduation. And I went by, we went by it was it was AD song. That is um, oh god, Gus. Gus is AD? Gus. Yeah, Gus. You say give radioactive song and consignment. So we come into you with the concept of radioactive, which is the whole team. So you know, when you listen to a radioactive duplate, it's 10 times man in calling. So we're telling you is hello, yeah, hoppy, TC, DJ Dave, tall Paul. So when we tell you, we sell into you, bro. You know it did you get any whole radioactive in your party with a song system where every school gave regard. Yeah, so we will the market a certain way, right? So that is what that was. So I learned that from market coming up. So I took that document straight into my life. Coming up so I understand the power of consignment in business, yeah, and sales, I guess. And sales, but I remember you have to do it in order to pay a bill. And I went to cashier. Wendell ice always bigger, Wendell, bro. Wendell is starting active looking nice, but every Monday we pour it.

Corie 50:40

So wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Only had we run it by Cash and Oligan consignments.

SPEAKER_02 50:45

Consignment, bro. Bro, watch me. Long time. Remember, we partying. I was telling some man DJ talking to us telling him how it used to go. Remember, here all our circuits used to run Monday was Sabbath, Tuesdays Moonover Boulevard. Wednesdays, Wacky Wednesday, and roundabout by bar tire. Tuesdays, coconuts, Fridays, base, Saturdays we call open night. Saturday is where you get a party where them times them south men and promotion them doing real things. So every weekend you have a party somewhere in trend, and then Sunday, that's where I come back in. I back up in the regular Sunday coconuts. So the only days, the only Sabbath is Monday sometimes to go and pay bills. So come 1 p.m. on a Monday, I have to find myself by Prince Street to go and pay everybody bills. Right, yeah. John boy take a polo t-shirt when I go by Wendell, yeah. At 1500 by 1600 by 2000 by yeah, that's proper money themselves. So we looking nice Saturday, Friday, and Saturday, but Monday we poor because all the money going back in record, right?

Corie 51:42

And clothes that look nice, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And begging girls to give you a little drop. Now girls name and nobody done played so woman name the plant.

SPEAKER_02 51:52

That that story, right? That double story was for quite man and Queensy share clothes birthday with me, right? And the 16th, he's the 12th, I think, the 10th, somewhere around there. And there's this girl like Quasi bad. Real bad. She comes, oh my god, so you know me again. Smooth talker. Give to win Queensy all in ears a little plate, girl. Serious how much I watch me. I don't know where these girls getting this money, you know. Bro, them time I played this thousand years and things. I tell you, I remember girls meeting me. Them time, you know, no, you guys go by grandmas. That's a central point. Long time is QF Junction. I buy QF KFC and I only count in complete money. 600. So I doubled it, but we're calling Jews. Jews are 600. Every time a girl whistling my ears, it's complete money. I know you you can't talk to me unless you're talking double it. And then to make some of them feel good, and they had a slipping out of the name. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm telling you, we do some crazy, crazy things. That's how that went. So the consignment concept is what really drove me into structuring that part of radioactive and then into my life too. Figuring out how to do business at that level and understanding that once you pay bills, you can start in the every speak. Watch when you now get to this easy and understand how the conglomerates live in credit and live in debt. Yeah, the brokerage debt. Of course. Big companies do it now. Yeah, yeah. But if you have something, if if I have I have a item that generates four million dollars in sales every month, I can more than leverage that by the way. Yeah, it's leveraging. It's leveraging. You don't know that then. I didn't know that. No, you had a learning, and you learned it from the street. Of course, of course. And all of that. And then it moved into soaker, sir. So me personally, I got to the point where I started realised I could leverage me. And that is where the William Monroe concept came. Right. I remember having a meeting. I gave George's idea for so for summer. George and I said, Boy, I could sell that for sure, bro. He said, Listen, let me take you by William. When by William is house in summer by the pool. When I done talk to William, William called her boy, meaning where you're gonna come from, I get 100,000 around bag. Right? And I went to the 100,000. Now again, I paint things on the record here. Go and check it, you can fat check me. First person I remember is boy. And them days, I gave boy 30 up front. That's plenty of money. This is this is 2005. First soccer for summer. And I told boy, yeah, what I'll give you. You own 12%, and I have an ex 10% that go in and sell to Peter. That's why I ended up on television in the first place. I went on television to sell soaker for summer, not so. While going on TV, I had this idea. I said, Peter, bring me on every two nights a week to talk about the show. This is three months out. I was less coming on the TV to talk about the show. And me being on TV, people started calling Peter and say, Yo, who's that fella? He's real bad, but he's funny. Because I was going there the Atlantic, I talk about kind of nonsense. The market talk with you. Yeah, the market talk within. So I noticed talk streets, so I talk and shipping and say, people and giving away tickets. And I saw soaker for summer went from people laughing at the idea. Because them times I stay in point, so I come in from point and come up the road. So people laughing at the idea of soaker for summer until it started to go from a laughter to but wait like something serious here. I'll tell you when they'll cash a print street alone, did 850,000 cash sales.

Corie 55:12

Yeah, I feel I contributed to that because all the no one knows I was a given fool that was being adwinked. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 55:17

But yeah, yeah, yeah. So on the day, if I recall, we did over 17,000 human beings, which is a humongous number in the Savannah. And I brokered every inch of that event in terms of I remember having shooting all the ads with Marshall. I gave Lady Us in a way, but that's when I realized how better Lady was. Lady string me up for $14. From your doing some check.

SPEAKER_00 55:45

But TC, where's your 14 shots?

SPEAKER_02 55:48

I said, ladies $14. No, no, no, you're 14 shots. Bro, we count in hundreds of thousands of dollars. You're trying to correct me for $14. And I sold Synergy 10%. So Synergy was partner with the event. That is how I tell Ira we had to win it. Yeah, so we win the people. So we had the television support. And at the time, Synergy, as you know, was the in thing. And that is how my introduction to Synergy started was promoting that. And then different ideas came and we started do different shows and that whole thing. So again, all of that started from market. I understand, understand. Market is what bring that. So I sold the concept that we are going to, but and the next thing I'll tell you, like where people for Marshall and me had a very weird relationship early on. When Marshall had his um B12, he had a B12. Yeah. A goal B12, paint up nice with hard music. I used to shop Marshall to the East Clubs. There was a club called Um that's where Cash was and thing is now. Um 50 Element I think. Patrick was the man who had only place, right? He was assassinated, unfortunately. I remember those days. I was

Selling Events And Leveraging A Personal Brand

SPEAKER_02 57:00

getting Marshall is a lot of metal calling because he was getting like pocket change. I said, Give Marshall and them days 15 grand to lime in a yeah, just to show up in the club. Just to show up in the club and lime. He does have to see a way himself had to go, hey ha. He just had to stand up and DJs. Them time it's Marlon Mr. Music and MZ DJ. Yo, pick up Marshall. Yeah, and he just does so. Yeah, club. 15. Drinks go sell. Yes, sir. That is how again you leverage connections. I learned early out how to do that.

Corie 57:29

Well, it makes sense, but that market experience, like you're talking about real different eras and real different spaces. You're selling in sour market. How are you not in point fourteen? What we're not doing with you I was I used to do this one can't go on record.

SPEAKER_02 57:41

Um in New York, right, at the time, I dambled in pirate. Right, yeah. Right? And um, there were some people there who I basically just kind of showed them how to make what they were doing successful, right? Right, radio copies or success. Radio, radio. Radio, okay, gotcha. And I made it very successful. So they were very happy. So this young one, do you? Yeah, young. I young. So you end up doing? Well, I was toying with George back then. He toying thing, bro. Long terming on your room. Yeah, you're good. Not like no, eh? Yeah, boy, yes. I remember me and Galen used to live 51 Rutland. Between 51 and 52nd, we still have Rutland Avenue. Me and Galen used the same apartment. Garland used to teach me how to put money in a socks and face in a shoebox. Gallon used to really make funny too. And it's only shoebox. And boy, we in that side of this apartment and it's licks. We had to stay there right through. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So that's how I was there. Absolutely. And as I said, helping these men streamline an idea that they had, right? And I streamlined it for them and turned it into something grand that was very popular in that early 2000s. This is before the bombing. Like super popular, right? And when that ran its course, I will beg and say, bro, I need you to do this for me. And I want to use the bashment name. And that's how Trini Bashman started. So I came back to Trinidad to do bashment. That's why I ended up in point.

Corie 59:12

I understand.

SPEAKER_02 59:12

Because the original license was license was for point. That is where we had the structure for doing it. And I went on there, and while being there and this there every day, I had to do other things because that's just how I am. That's how the club happened. Got it. The club was 410, the play on the wood point fourteen. Of course. And the club was very successful. Of course. But I did just take the energy of Porter Spin, the same club about the clubs for all these years. Yeah, you know the eats, you know. No clubbing. So I just basically gave them a dumped-down version of a coconuts. It definitely couldn't look like that. Right. But the vibe, the concepts, and everything ran it the same way. So I gave them reasons to stay in point.

Corie 59:48

So how you get to know all these people from the market, though? Or when you start DJing? You was DJing all the time? So it started DJ News now.

SPEAKER_02 59:57

Big time DJ. My cousin used to work for Pro's Father, which is Primus, which was the biggest like production songs, was the biggest song. So I used to go on a Saturday and think hell and move box for Roti. Primus wicked, Primus was feeding me with soul and root. Gus too, Gustu and St. Juice.

Corie 1:00:14

Like we just put out there was Royal Castle, so we were gusto.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:16

Bro, you're listening to Box of Primus all day. And Primus buying your traction. And I still wicked him. So I used to get a call out because it's a play for him. That guy used to play for he was the DJ for production. So I used to always be around music because he had players at the house and things. So I used to always be around music. I always love music. And I grew as an old man child, my sister's Bremer Senior. So I grew up with seeing songbook. But I remember you would like your little girl and thing. I go in any bathroom. I write I need love on a copybook page. I put a plastic over it and stick it up in the battery. And I need a battery. And I'm alone in my room. Sometimes I see the wall and in the back of my mind. I hear my constant score, telling me I need a girl who's as sweet as a dove. For the first time in my life, I know I need love. I need a love.

SPEAKER_00 1:01:05

Bro, I write on a copy book pages.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:08

And practice in the batch. No, I come from that area.

Corie 1:01:14

My sister never had song books. Yeah, they write old lyrics.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:17

Books, you know, no, no, one book, you know. My sister had copied books of songs. Yeah, yeah. And my house, as I said, remember is a Christian house. So my grandmother eaten gay. Yeah, it's yeah, of course. I remember growing up thinking Marvin Gay's devil, you know. That is that he is the that is Lucifer's child. Of course. My grandmother planted in my head, is that is Lucifer child. But across your was also DJ News. So he used to pop boxes and think Sunday. So I was always around it. I met Crazy to get into the DJ Thing Heavy when I was doing the marketing. I always had business at a barber shop as well. And I remember as a young, young, young barber. And I always said that proof of concept again. Like sometimes yesterday, like people used to, I never bragged myself as a top man barber. But you know why when? I had a barber shop in Curep. And at the time, Curep had a drug problem with real crack cooking and things. So everybody, all the little hustlers in Curep always had a case. I had to go to court for eight at Sunday morning. So I used to make my barbershop at six. I used to trim men who had to go to court. So my business model was I trim all hustlers who had to go to court. I done make $300 already. I know to be the best, but I used to show up. I'm consistently showing up every day. That is how I do it. Right? So boom, I know. See, well, listen, the me doing that and having the barbershop and doing all those things, I had a pager because pager was popular. So when I had a pager now, I remember having an issue with P and the bill. Why I had to go down in tongue. So I remember going tongue in tongue, I did a PD bill. I could have been about 19. And I walk into the show and I met this lady, gorgeous Indian lady. When you see her see money, that lady turned out to be my mentor. And I was sat to Ramturean. Right? When I walked in, I saw this lady, she's like, What is your problem? I said I explained to her the issues that people like me have with owning a pager and can't, you know, maneuver properly. When I explained my idea, she said, You're busy? Come, when took me to the office. While sitting there, at this time I didn't know who these people were. She offered me something to drink thing because if I'm by a street boy from these things, I talking loud and road. So I carrying on. She's like, I don't know what she saw in me in that moment. She said, wait. About 15 minutes later, Lindsay Gallette walked into the room. When Lindsay Gallette walked in, she said, Lindsay, I need to meet this young man. Explain to me now to me. So I tell him if he did these things this way, it would be so much easier for like people living thing. I say, so, and at the time I didn't know what I was really setting up is like what these years later you saw B-Mobile and they did when they had stations. I was selling pages in the barber shop and I'm a parlour. And I was creating. So what I did East West Corridor was now me. I controlled East West Corridor by giving, getting like different agents to sell the papers like that dealership. I didn't know that's where it was at the time, but that's what I did. That's the idea I pitched to them. And I remember he he asked me one question. He pulled out a piece of paper, he took a pen out of his pocket and he put a dot. He scribbled his dot in the paper. He said, What did you see? I said, The clear feature of paper. He's what? I said, Yeah. He said, This exercise normally everybody brains leads to the dot. So he looked at me and he said, Why you see the clear feature paper? Because as the bigger is you, the clear piece of paper. And in that moment, it's when he said, Saturday, work it out of them and see if it could work. And I started dealing with this lady. And as years go by, she taught me so many things in terms of even etiquette. She used to take me to Pelican on a Friday. She said, always meet today. And she showed me how to have conversations with men, how to hold your drink in your left hand, shake with your right, how to have dinner properly. I'm talking about basic things like that, right?

Corie 1:05:08

Yeah, that we might not grow up knowing.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:10

Yeah, she showed me how to, and in that room, I was introduced to real players. She was married to Movin Campbell, right? A profound lawyer. And in that, on those Fridays, I met the brand Kwitong. See, and this is a youth man from the Samuel Market. So she was showing me a different side of defense. And that was one of the reasons why I pivoted and was able to maneuver. Like I always say, I could code switch really well. Like I could sit in front of you and I can leave for me. And I feel I could I could go and present to you and right now to carry colour on the fly because I understand people. And the market is what taught me that. Because in the market, you meet everybody. There are women who come in to buy from you who one might be a lawyer, doctor, next one is a single mother who wants to kill the child father. I know everybody. And it's up to you to understand. Just exactly, you think so.

Corie 1:06:01

That is where I will say I took it from it. That's how it helped me moving forward. I understand, I understand. And them early connections with people like Quasey, you met them where.

SPEAKER_02 1:06:10

And Crazy, the connection with Quissy's from their pagan thing, I went to present to his mom. She had she was working for the government at the time and sat to call and she said, Listen, I want you to do my favor. I wasn't working enough. This was just me having my thing, but she knew I understood people. So she's who encouraged me to say, say, Boy, get into the side of the fence. I'll know you're doing anything, but come and decide. I think you're stronger here. And I went to do that presentation. And I remember Auntie Jane coming to me after. She said, Listen, come, how old are you? I tell her, She said, You know, my son is your same age. And he's to come and see my son. Because the same story cues he gave me my Chris, you watch less bother him, mother, and then fed up. That's when he was playing music. They say, Listen, so I go. It's a long time. Now he's so long time. So when I reached Johnny Road now, me and Quiz thing up I we dab up and thing. And obviously I knew who he was. Because we all young people, the name radioactive was starting to do it. So radioactive was over there. Yeah, radioactive was there. He was already doing his thing. Right, yeah. And this was just in the early, early stages. So we started a par, I started to go down that went from one day to two days to think, and then I started get heavy with Quasi. I would tell you, I started get real heavy into the music thing because as I wrong it more and I started realize that I was happier on that side of the fence. Yes, my business and I must still run and add my ice cream parlor at the barbershop, but I was real happy with the music thing. So I started to focus on that. And me being in front of the mic, I would always give credit to him as well. It was a Tobago great race. Them times Signal and them used to do it. We were hired, as obviously the big song today. We had a prime night, Crazy Come and Get Chicken Box. And couldn't come out. And I remember us in the room debating who went on the mic. So it was told, but everybody in Tobago. So everybody looking at flip coins. So everybody say, Nah boy, TC, you gotta go. Them times I frighten you are there. So they say, Nah, but you gotta go there, you gotta go there. So John boys saying, But you gotta go there, you gotta go there. I remember Chris telling me, bro, easy. Chris, this is an advice I give to everybody. So listen, when you go on the stage, look for one girl that looking nice. Any girl that looking that catch your eye and just talk to that one person, forget the rest of the crowd. Just zero in on that one person and talk to that one person and say, Oh, the human mind operates. If it's like if you go outside and look up in here, people pass where you watch, everybody will look up. Of course. So it's like you focus on this one person, you talk to this one person, and people realize, but who you talking to? They will then zoom into what is you're saying. Chris knew this from like 20. Because he was always brave. And talk, granted, he doesn't open his mouth and you articulate well, but he was always brave. For sure. He might be going, but he's not afraid to do it. Right? And he gave me that. And I was like, to this day, I do so much of mentorship and workshops all over the world, bro. And that's something I always remember. If you zero in on that one person and you that's your comfort zone, and from then, but listen, I don't know if I get real booty, I remember. I remember.

Corie 1:08:58

But I feel he's one of the few men who because when all right, so look at caliber, radioactive, Matsumiller. When people want to when people pay, they want to see Hoppy. So I remember when you come in and then it's somebody else, and it's like, well, who is this? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:10

Yeah, but you you find your way. The worst was by um where's that place of Zero Roxy again? Harvards. Harvards. Yeah, I wanna Harvard. Me and John boy. Listen to what I tell. Listen, I live to conquer Harvards. That was my mission in life to conquer Harvards. I go on in Harvards and they say, boy, radioactive. Same thing you say. Everybody expecting this banana. But like they say, introduce the radioactive.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:36

But yeah, boy, you want to energy for the big body, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:45

That then John Boy not even on stage. Yeah, the create the box of record himself open. What's me? John Boy, what's your boy? Why don't you boy relax? You don't know how to talk and sue the crowd before. All right, right, right. John Boy, not even on stage, the create a recording self reach in the party yet. All I started here is a bar boo. Let me explain to me what a barbu is. A barbu is any man who opened the bath and that's going boom. Watch me, I start taking a boo from the men who opened and drinks in the whole party. Yeah, yeah. What's me and the cheek me like yeah, that sounds crowded was lazy. I was ashamed, but the thing about it, Dina and the side, she's laughing. Listen, men laugh, you know. Say it could you're too wild. Wait, yeah, yeah. That's always sad. I remember years I used to say, I watched me, Chris. He used to be laughing. I say, but I have to come and I used to live to see when I walk in that same venue as I touch his changes ball and shit. I live to see how that's why I tell people consistency is a hell of a thing. When you like something, you just have to, but bro, hours of doing something, I tell my children, practice doesn't make perfect, it makes easy. You do it enough times, it becomes easy. Yeah. I have done that so much times. Like to this day, at my age, I could still go on a stage, grab a mic, in a song dance, and I know I batter than men who feel the hard. I know that for a fact. I always tell them to have one hand, one foot, and one eye. I battered them real men.

Corie 1:11:19

You were there for the last one in um. Of course, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:11:22

Yeah, yeah. I travel the day after. You come on the mic and sing, or you just rock back? Yeah, comedy mic, and we did. I did that, I did action double it live.

Radio Craft, Code Switching And Breakfast Energy

SPEAKER_02 1:11:30

Oh, right, right, right. Which was this again. It it's like a it was such a great feeling to be like, I can't. Oh, yes, I remember no action. Yeah, I remember you doing it. It actually could action on every song, man. Come on, phone afternoon.

Corie 1:11:42

Policy response in the crowd. Like in the nostalgia some of them times something was uh and action has been a big song. So I had to do it on special for radioactive was a special feeling for me. I would imagine, I would imagine. I want to get all your leave there to go guy. Well, but action, like you talk about that for a minute. The first time I saw you perform it, the first time you hear it, is one of those songs where from the first time you hear it, you know, it's a hit here. You know, immediately you like it, right? Which is how I feel hard to do with music sometimes. You know, most times you gotta build it. That was the experience you had when you put it out, people react one time.

SPEAKER_02 1:12:13

Yeah, because listen, at the time, again, when you knock in and knocks in in that era there too, because I was on the road heavy. The original GB, which is Kenmin Holder, and me were always friends that from my New York stint as a telly, right? So I knew him many, many years. Yeah, we were on King Street in Toronto that's on Young, between Young and King, and I introduced him to Shao. I had a speaker box and motorbike. I sang the both songs when we were testing because at the time the popularity of me and Trend had was so huge, I knew for a fact once I take that song because what GBM had was a song, the S O U N D. Not an S O N G. Right? They had a song. Neutron had created a song, yeah. It was when you hear it, you know it's hard. And I knew it would have been hard. So I said, okay, this is this is me coming out and make a bumper tool in the front line with Peter Coppin. So I said, well, all right, cool. I said, JB, give me it and I'll take it on you. Guarantee it to make it shot. I called Charles. I said, Charlie, what are these options? I gave Charlie the option to pick Charles pick's um motorbike. So we did the motorbike and speakerbox. When I knew it, I knew it was going on shot. Action came because of uh technical issue. Girl Ben Hoover dropped to the gong you do amazing was the song I was supposed to do the year after. GB and Marshall had particular arrangements and agreements, and that song had to go to Marshall. So I ended up out of luck. We had just do trouble for this girl, this trouble, we just do trouble for because I was in the studio heavy them times. When so star rap, I used to go to New York and stay in the studio with GBM and work right through it. That was me. And lost now, looking at GB, looking at Neutron, action came. And when action came and producing action, it was a mistake with this name and I didn't have it, it was left out. So I said, Boy, it's song it empty and nice, just so let me wing it. And them days Twitter was big. And I was one of the first people on Twitter in trend from in the I from in the Anya Young Chi times. I had learned who sweeten thing. I was a real advocate for Anya. I was a real posting on there. I remember for her launch here, which thing she real praised me and said tanko. I I had this whole Anya team thing because I was real invested in it and I was happy to see that I was operating social media the way I was at that time. So I used Twitter to sell action. I had these tweets and things programmed every day. But everywhere it turns action, I remember I launched action purposefully on Marsha's birthday that yeah. At we went to Gene um Um Queen's Hall at his award show, and I was gonna launch his song. And I remember watching him and Kitchener, them they watch it, but they couldn't get away from the tune to that bottom kick was infectious. So people was like, like this hard boy, but they don't want to say it hard yet. Like by watching everybody's face, and I go in and I go, hmm, and I think it one boom, gone. But I knew it was a big song from the beginning. A huge song. But again, when you believe in something, you decide to put behind, I put everything behind it and it worked.

Corie 1:15:25

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I saw you in Lara Fett. I'm not a fact, I say it year before the year before was Motorbike and Speaker Box, the year before action. So you and Charles were rolling together and performing together on time. So I guess no, I know why. And well, they do this song and thing, and but the next year with action, the other confidence that even for somebody who's supremely confident, right? That year.

SPEAKER_02 1:15:43

And action was action was heavy, action was very, very, very heavy. And again, from that action came. And like I always tell people, the song that I love the most is not even action. I did a song that Pretty wrote for me called My Teen. That is the song I love the most. And that's just how it is, that's what music is. And it's because of how it came. Like I I have a special love for Pretty. Because I've seen Pretty used to be a dancer. He used to come and dance for us on Synergy Dance thing, and I remember seeing Pretty singing and that and tell him to come across. And Pretty came across, and Pretty was just unpolished, but amazing voice. I saw him married to one of the best vocal trainers in the world. His wife is one of the best. So Pretty, I will see hands down as one of the Soka's greatest vocalists in the world. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You say that all the time. Yeah, in terms of control and thing, you can't beat him. He's very, very bad. So I I always had a love for Pretty. And all of them, like Ufan has written for me, Voice has written for me. I will get all of them all the time.

Corie 1:16:38

But you was writing too? You was doing your own writing as well.

SPEAKER_02 1:16:40

Yeah, I yeah, yeah, yeah. I write and I did something nice sound like like just recently, even Death Shirt, she made a comment. I named Destra Queen Abacana. They gave her the name. With Ron Radio. No, we when we did um Queen Abacanal for this call, my name Destra that's me and Neutron. And I told you, because she didn't want to do the song. When I was shopping her this song, she said no. I say, if you're into the song, you're throwing away your career. I taught with Destra for many years. And that's the thing. I've been so full. Like people just say, bro, I have seen and been embedded in so much different things. Like I really like when I went with Viking, right? My relationship with Ian has always been great. We still have an amazing relationship, but everything is time, and you get into situations where we streamline certain things. When he was changing management and Fayanne was taking over and thing, I guess she just wanted to be supported and around by people who I guess you could trust. Like ironically, I gave this story, and that's recently we laughed about it. When Fian won that, I don't know how. I remember doing Fian's clothes, caring about the seamstress or the child the time she was. Yeah, she's pregnant. And ironically, my first daughter's mom was pregnant same time with Fian. So it was a kind of we used to always be together. Right. Like all the time. I would be constantly on the music side rocking with Fian. Yeah, me and Ian is Bridge in. But yeah, I remember that yeah. I been on stage when Fian ran out. When the super blue, meet super blue thing tick off, and I see all the stadiums again. I remember walking on the back until I were rack up. Came on, I say, pack up. It's done. Came with me. I say, bro, gotta your things. Let us go. It is over. I will laugh. I tell y'all when you say back up my brother. I said, the girl win proper. Yeah, that was our win. And so I was fortunate to be around the business because of Iowa. I get to see the rise and fall of many. I am I get to see, bro, I get to be in backstage and rooms with like the shadows. Yeah, of course. I live it. I remember seeing the big bad monk Gebu. I in in in New York, I think that was uh was the man of a club in the Amazon is the next one. And I see it. No miracles, no, it was miracles. I see it, bro. I live it. I see the KMC. I see when KMC was Michael. Yeah. I experienced Edwin here within Anchorage. When you hear Gotaraton Invitation, bro, I experienced that. So my love for the thing, different people know. I live it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I feel it.

Corie 1:19:15

I I was there. So even things like Meet Superblue, you were I was still at that point, or you were garning on them. So when did it start with Viking?

SPEAKER_02 1:19:22

I was with um the Viking thing happened, as I said, after the his his change of management when Faye and took on a more vital role in in reconstructing what Viking was when I came in and started to work with the team. Right. And that's when the old Viking thing started. That was long after she won. I see. That Viking thing wasn't when she won. She said that was a couple years later. Got it, got it. And always rock with Iwan, but I just decided to freeze out it. Like I was everybody's road DJ at the point. Yes, it was Destro too.

Corie 1:19:48

When did you say you're in a Destra?

SPEAKER_02 1:19:49

Yeah, I told DeSha as no. I told DeSha in the co. We did um um I want my girl upon me anyway. We did a song together, and I did that circuit, I did that entire circuit where we went, Amsterdam went all over the world because that song was a huge single outside of Trevor, like very massive. And I remember doing Jamaica because in Desha's Beyonce in Jamaica, Clean took hands on you could say what you want. There's Beyonce and there's in Jamaica, and I remember that year Cohen didn't want to travel when Cohen had um back canal, back canal hello and greetings, bro. I sing hello and greetings like it's mine. I say, Cohen, you want to stay on that why when Desha comes here, I started hello and greetings. First time we meet in a hell and a leader stay. That's some more than months ago. So yeah, so no, I do desha around that time, but that was music.

Corie 1:20:44

I understand, I understand. And I say I'm surprised to hear you say that your your artist's career really starts from promoting synergy too. Just wanted to do a song from that year after so.

SPEAKER_02 1:20:54

Yeah, because I had to do, I did the jingle. Because I used to do jingles like if you remember radioactive, we used to have real singing jingles. We're doing that a long time. Remember, we had an unfortunate situation. We were supposed to go to club celebs in South. Now figure this was a story that really hit us. And there was a young man who passed away on the way to go to see us, but we never made it down. We had too much party down and whatever. And I remember it was real sad, and we sat down as a team and said, But we need to go back and do one for South people. And that is when we came back and I sat with Chris and we did, I'm sorry, Club Celebs, this time for a real radioactive song. We come in down here. And we did Swiss Jackson, yeah, we did that on radio, and them times that that jingle was heavy, bro. And it was like a tribute to the small man who passed and watched memory. We down there, yeah, line. I tell you line, because we used to go down there in Max. Yeah, we're talking about the. I used to go everywhere in Max. Yeah, we said everywhere in Max. Line. And from that, we always did that. So me doing a jingle, second nature. I understand. So for Synergy season four, I needed a little oomph like something to make it puff now. So I just created a TC and then calling. Look at your pants squeezing, you have everybody jumping, TC. Season four, Synergy TV, whatever, whatever. But it played so much that every time I go in a venue, men are sticking a little cut and play this and game forward. Yeah, so you're taking booking. Outside. No, I wasn't taking booking. It's what happened at William because at the time I had the relationship now with William. William said, listen, I will take the finalists of Silicastar, and they get an automatic entry into the finals of Susanna. Because he was looking at the paperwork. Remember, I was doing 17,000 kids at the finals of Sukastar. The numbers was huge, right? And if you get 10% of that, that is that is his 100,000 click. Of course. So he was giving them 100 guaranteed when they take away 10%. So that's 90,000 guaranteed. When I spot any finals, you to be that. And it's an alignment of the brands. It's telling you that so monarch is taking you as a soccer status.

Corie 1:23:00

Of course, of course.

SPEAKER_02 1:23:00

And it makes sense if it's developments as well. That is what happened. So because of that, and the jingle being so big, I get the call, bro. You're in the final. Like, what? Them times, William, could I do where you want? Artist thing not on your mind then, you know, thinking about that. Artist was never on my mind. I was still DJing. All when I doing so, I was still toying with George. I still ran with him because we had plenty of shoes talking about. Like, I tell you, what threw me off into the artist thing heavy is a caribana. I did with George. George normally, George is the man who pioneered going to festivals on your own dime. Right. Okay. I would say that too. He's one of the first men who instead of waiting for promoters to call, George will fly in, book his own room, pay for everything so that we can work for everybody. Yeah, and sell itself over there. Right? Instead of one man bringing you and your car. So this one. So George, too. But this was a caribana. Listen, this was for that mash me up. We went to the caribana. So we went up like the Monday before Caribana is the following the weekend and this is we went up from early, like the Tuesday before. So and George, listen, George coming and sing here for me and you alone, eh? And if he had no shame, man. It was one day, me and George coming here and pray water and two hours alone. All out, extra body performance. All David wet. And it's me alone watching John, but that is two hours alone. Okay. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Why are we going real show? I talk about George working Tuesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Tuesday. Friend, whole weekend to Caribana. So the Monday, I remember, yeah. I make it another tuning there. I go in another scene. He fling an envelope inside. I hit me up. I'll check you later. We'll have dinner later because we leave any Tuesday. And your boy Jackson, right? Listen to my telling. I want a little person's perspective. I am the DJ. I am pressing and then yeah, let me see. And then yeah, let me see. The people want water. Granted, I used to do this little gimmick where I will talk and I'll come and sing a one thing because it's a gimmick. He used to tell people, Adi Bad is DJ any business or lady you can do this, and I'll come and sing a thing and get forward, right? When I skin my pay, buddy. My pay and equivalent to trying and money is over $175,000. I say I not do an DJ anymore.

SPEAKER_00 1:25:22

If I get in this, what you get in love, it's always me and do you send me I love the blessing? So we tell people I shall have myself and silver.

SPEAKER_02 1:26:01

That was a historic year for me. We finished two passports, two business passports a year. I don't think there's an artist in the soup, a space has traveled more. Somebody had to come and prove it to me because I live it. I do two passports.

Corie 1:26:13

Two passports in a year in a circuit year running with George. So from radioactive days, when radioactive went on radio, you was on radio since then? 1996. Oh, that's very long ago. Yeah, old Jesus Christ. That's almost 60 years ago. Nah, at least

TikTok Soca After Dark And Next Ten 2027

Corie 1:26:30

minimum.

SPEAKER_02 1:26:31

I was in '96. Yeah, boy, in 1996. And I ended up on the radio by guess and chance. I was on the soup lyming, and now figure this. And Tony came and had nobody on here. They had cricket going on in the oval. And we just used to go by station. We used to be liming and think. He said, hey boy, look TC. Say, go on the radio. Say, well, had nobody coming out. I ended up on the radio by accident. Right. Most of us ended up on the radio by accident. And then after we did the whole thing, like I tell everybody, it's very important too to actually go and learn the craft. There's to think talent could get you so far. But you have to understand. Like I tell people, talent is a fraction of the thing. You know, there's so much thing. Discipline could make you more money than talent. Discipline and consistency makes you way more money than talent. Right. So I ended up on radio that way. And then afterwards, yeah, we did all the radio things by Edison Carr, myself, Hoppy. Oh, so you went and did the course? Of course. No, the course came to us. They did a program where we did it at the stage. Oh, right, got it. Yeah, which was an excellent program at the time. So yeah, we went through because they were getting backlash too. Yeah, I remember the brand in itself. The brand was a big brand, and people started to talk about, yeah, these little boys on the radio making noise and stuff. I remember meeting um, I used to date this girl who was Thomas, which should have been um Bobby Thomas' daughter. And I remember meeting him one time, and that was when he was the most humbling moment of my life. He looked at me and he said, You into broadcasting? Because you'd never tell us then. No, Bobby. I was the anchor of TTT, boy, the first black pilot. Gotcha. And he was the anchor for TTT News. Right. This is men who studied in England, bro.

SPEAKER_01 1:27:56

Deal question.

SPEAKER_02 1:27:57

Yeah, they studied in England.

Corie 1:28:00

But he was trained in England. Yeah, so you're not happy with radio absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 1:28:03

When he met me and he was like, You what you an announcer, a broadcaster? That's what you do is not broadcasting. That is rubbish. Bro, cool. In that moment, I realized, I'm a dog, man. I'm a dog. I used nobody. I used to have some real humbling moments in my time. Meeting him was one. These are men who went to like the best schools in London for broadcasting. Listen, I heard a story from him. When he met her mom, he said, Hey, I want to take it for breakfast. She said, Breakfast is like eight o'clock any night. We're talking about yeah, I'm gonna take the breakfast. Okay. Well, let's challenge him and carry him there. Went to Piaako on the old ship, went on a one Sam two seater plane and took a Barbados. I like that. That is how you do it. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, that's not the front level. And said, This is breakfast. I'm gonna country doing breakfast. I didn't say it too. That's when you're at that level, yeah. That's not the front level. People don't understand them fellas. No, just them fellas live. I don't know. You want to go for breakfast in nine? Do you feel good? And have a PJ of the road.

Corie 1:29:12

Oh, you mean nice, nice light.

SPEAKER_02 1:29:15

Yeah, so so for me, that's what it was. That's how the radio artists think started on radio, did that for a while. And then when George came, left radio, satted it so heavily, was outside for long lots and lots of times, or back and forth, and I was busy on the road constantly. And in 2005, came back. And as I say, you know, the rest of the situation with the Synergy thing started, but it started with me promoting the show, the the concert, into being on TV, into soaker star, into so much other things.

Corie 1:29:40

But yeah, with a career in radio again, when that started back, because you were radio up to recently, yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:29:45

But I started back radio when there was a period when um Umban Charlotte a big show, and it started window when Hoppy went on the other station and started beat them like Doll. Yeah, hyper was a hyper drive, or started beating them like Zug, and because of the popularity of me and Charlotte just made sense. So both of us came in here, we take back the spot. Right, yeah, yeah. But Chris couldn't be that. Yeah, that was a special time to be and Shalon Right. He could have beat everybody else at the time because the hyperdrive was big. But me and Shal at the time, yeah, it was that's like a Bentley and a beater team. But when did it end up being morning? Well, morning came, morning came after because um I had this idea that everybody didn't agree with at the time. Shal hated it. In order to grow the art form and how I felt it needed to grow across these spans, we were too top heavy in the night, in the evening. It was me, him and ding them, it's too much. So you need to spread the wings. And me going in the morning with my soca, the energy, it will make the station have a little more legs. Right. In terms of the music, I went there for the music initially. That's what that was my mindset behind it. That's what I wanted to do. And grew into me and Nikki having an amazing thing. And out of that, I started concert series and all them things. I brought some pretty decent things again, all around so I went from having 80% of people correl about 80% of other things. My shows for the past 10 years, 12 years has always been 90% so at the heart of it. At the heart of everything I do. The name of my company is great as the art form limited. Granted, I do executions for every major corporation and try that. But once you hire me, you understand that it comes with a sprinkle. A sprinkle. If I I can be doing a company launch, but I must hire two Moko Jumbi and a pan man. I know they're saying I don't ever do anything. The art form has to be art form centered. I don't care. That's just how I lead. If it if it again, it can't go against a client, but again, sell. See, I'm always able to sell them the idea of using somebody in the art. And around the over the past couple of years, I've been so lucky to meet so much a great young talent. Like I use a guy called David Durham, he's a little pianist. Right. Talking like a prodigy, like very bad. He's like nine or like ten. Oh, yeah, yeah. I'm I'm fortunate to meet some of those. Like even in the soaker, will there much young little skysonians are you from Zachary to come up do that?

Corie 1:32:08

Yeah, see, you you you all of them. You're conscious of open spaces for people because when I see that breakfast morning party kind of vibe, I don't think we ever see anything like that on radio. Almost like full performance.

SPEAKER_02 1:32:18

Well, full that was the whole concept was making was making it feel like a party any morning time. So, what went on? Because I just wake up a morning and all the well. But like everything in life, like some things I I try to say, I am a guy who emotion trumps logic for many people. No, for many people, not me, but I'm a logical thinking person. But emotion trumps logic. Some people lead with emotion, and in doing so, sometimes you can make decisions that affect you or damage you. And my grandmother taught me something very early in life, and my father says beat it in my head. Respect people's property. When something is not yours, you can't scream and fight over it. Alright? So at the end of the day, I look at it as whatever disappoint disagreements you might have or misunderstandings he might have, I still have to respect that it's not mine. And it'll let sleeping dogs lie. But me as an entity, Jagger, radioactive, not radioactive, Jagger, great to the art form limited as a company, solid and strong. My passion for the art form will continue to lead me and what I do. I am not about to be caught up in somebody else's emotion.

Corie 1:33:33

So changes like that don't dampen you because I wait until the day when you go on Instagram live and tell everybody what going on in the Instagram.

SPEAKER_02 1:33:38

Again, yeah, you see, people could do those things. I'm in a position where I can. I think I have the power where I can go and say anything disparaging and make things bad before what? At the end of the day, you do it, and then what is the outcome? What is the end result? Because character makes its manner, and I have made tons and tons of mistakes over the years in my personal life and in business decisions. And in growing and in one understanding self, you have to get to the point where you have to be bigger than that. And I am at that point in my life now where I feel I am good mentally, still growing, still healing from different things. I am an advocate for therapy, as everybody knows. I always say a man's vulnerability is a superpower. You have to find a way to just get past certain things. I cannot come here and spill up because this is the perfect platform I could skin out. Yeah, I could look into this camera and say and say all kinds of things. And I know it will watch me. Everybody will be excited for. I can do that. I can go on a live too tonight. But then what? Yeah, I will continue to tell people that great is the art form and it will always prevail. Yeah, and I will always be good.

Corie 1:34:40

Well, I think I agree with that. I mean, I see it just as a fan over the years, and I always noticed that even in the youngest days, I always know you as a man who has a platform. Whether the platform was a barbershop or ice cream thing, I used to say what I used to be so confused. I was like, Well, TC from radioactive. Yeah. And you always seem to do that. So the focus now is on going great as the ad from drive radio and things things you will do again or um radio.

SPEAKER_02 1:35:03

Well, currently, currently, I do um have this nice thing I'm doing on a call soak after dark. Okay. Which I've never I never dabbled in the TikTok wheel. I tried it for 10 days, and in the 10 days that I've done it, this is by TikTok standard. They started me at a D5, I'm now at a D1. Right. And I gathered over the past of last time when I checked, I did what, 200 and something thousand likes, I have 660 something thousand views. What is it? A live TikTok. So yeah, I do a live, a live sook after that hardcore authentic so people understand. What people need to understand is the wheel is is at your doorstep. And there is fans, I call them the citizens of soak, are real. They'll get twisted, bro. It have real soaker fans in the world. And when I re I start understanding the power of my voice and the power I have in the space, once I present things like that, it connects. Like I was yesterday, I launched Sukhas um Next End Green Eater. That's all. Which is new. And Green Eden always in this space and in the conversation. Because they suffer the same feats as Trend. I wish I could do Nextel on every island, but maybe we'll get it eventually, but right now we focus on Trender and Grenada. So Grenada kicked off yesterday, and the response has been amazing. I have an inbox full of young Green End talent.

Corie 1:36:23

I wonder how he's dealing that because you emailed it for them to send you this stuff directly. That's what I tell. That's what the RB is for. Yeah, I guess.

SPEAKER_02 1:36:30

And it's not even like this, it's more like it's more. I know what you mean. It's a it's a frequency thing. Yeah, it's a frequency thing. If you listen to bro, if I let you listen to Jabber for a hour, when you're done, all you hear is poop, poop, boop.

SPEAKER_04 1:36:40

Yeah, poop, boo, boop.

SPEAKER_02 1:36:42

Like all they're going on here. So you listen to the RB to flush the ears so that I could give people a fair chance because everything starts to sound the same. Even in trying that and bro, when I listen to all the mutants sending me songs in try, right? I am already getting songs to 2027. Everything will start to sound the same. So it's what people think it's easy, it's not just going in front of the camera. Yeah, no, I couldn't. I understand how that is to get to 10 is hundreds you're listening to all the time. And then you narrow down to Trinidad. I do 15 for the showcase. All right. I'll be doing 10. Gotcha. Trinidad is 15 for the showcase because and the showcase 2027, like I will sell you this though. I am taking the new approach where I'm doing virtual, virtual, um, vertical reality. So I'm doing next end 2027. It's going to be a documentary style based next end where we're seeing it's going to go from studio to stage. So I'll be following artists, but everything is going to be shot. Like how you see the new TV dramas is for the phone, so everything is shot that way. So everything is on the on the phone platform. Makes sense. I'm not doing anything for television, everything is for the phone. So you're going to grow with the artists from seeing them in the studio come all the way up until we get to the showcase. And the showcase 2027, that's the one that I did in the little room. That is what I'm excited for because the idea I have for the showcase for 2027 is going to blow everybody's mind. If you think that one was cool, this one is on steroids.

Corie 1:37:57

Well, congrats in advance. I know when you say you're going to do something with it.

SPEAKER_02 1:38:02

Trust me, I'm excited. I'm excited for these young people giving them an opportunity because I see it, how they feel. You feel proud to go out now because people stopping in you, they I see you on the showcase. Of course, of course.

Corie 1:38:13

And you must feel proud when you see them the years down the road where the bus and they go.

SPEAKER_02 1:38:23

Nice live. Nice. I was fortunate to get the village flavor. The government gave me flavor to do it. So I did it there, create, create audience, you know, nice is to see them from on the phone to then coming and see them live. Of course, of course. So I know giving them a platform. So every Tuesday, Carnival Tuesday is the home of next ten finals. Well, I'll be saying finals, but it's a showcase because my dream for it is I want to get next end to the point where people will pay. Because my idea is to take it. I want to go on the continent with soaker. I want to take so on the continent, but in a different way. I always felt as though the competition thing is done. We did that in the party. We did so, we did soon. That time is done. Now it's about showcasing the talent in a way where there's control. Where I can put 15 young people, fresh, nice talent, do it in such a way where the production is what you're spending on. Right. And every song you create, dance, or do different things. So when you present it, that is something we could, that is something people will stream on Netflix. Of course, of course. Because it's something great to see as opposed to a competition. And the only trick in that is my and I've seen it here again on record, is I want to be able to make that person, every individual gets a hundred thousand for their time. Because I'm asking you for your time to produce you, to create you. And the waiver is I pay you a hundred thousand to license your time and your face and your image for this night. Because I am sure more than sure, and give me a couple years, by 2030, I can have a next end stream on a major, major platform because people understand what it is, and it's coming from a place like Trinidad and Tobago, which is an amazing place. Of course. As much as they try to talk, we are still the Mecca, we create greatness here all the time. Some people might try to ignore it, but the greatness is always here. So I give myself until 2030 to have something like that. But next year, next then, it's gonna be amazing.

Corie 1:40:08

Yeah, well, thanks for the thanks for doing it because it's something I complain about a lot. Or we talk about here, we're it seems to be in the country, they have less and less spaces for young people, not just in culture and the art form, but it's like we're gonna foster youths and we we complain here and we frustrated about crime months ago. Wait, what up to do? We're not creating enough spaces for them. So thanks and congrats for you.

Men’s Mental Health And Fatherhood Gaps

Corie 1:40:30

Last thing before you go, David Gustave. You always make it a point to talk about men's mental health. What led to that? Why is it so important to you?

SPEAKER_02 1:40:38

Um, for me, I carried a piece of guilt in my early years with somebody I dated early out in life when so was happening. And in COVID, I started doing therapy. And my therapist said I need to reach out to her, and I did because this was somebody who I felt at the time, this was early 2000s. I came from, as I said, a family where everybody's married and thing. I started hearing you talk like he's the black seed, he ain't thing. So this was a young lady who I felt as though I would have been married too and have an amazing life with, right? And she had a son at the time, and one day we still live together. Everything I was talking about, young and successful young bit, she was in oil and gas, doing well, beautiful young lady, boom, who came on a Thursday, as life will have Tuesday, it's a real wear day for me too. Came on my Tuesday and wasn't there. Everything was there, she and her son was gone. And I couldn't understand why. For years it bothered me. And I did the regular thing I'm gonna do. I flew to where she went, stayed for a month, begged to make back, blah blah blah. She came back. Um, she said, Listen, I'm gonna come back. This was to spend Christmas together, but it's not a permanent thing. I'm gonna go back. This is not what I wanted to do. And years later, telling I saw her, I remember going to do a party in Toronto for Dr. J. And me and her IMEs for this would have been like about nine years after. I was married at the time and had a child, and she looked at me and I remember her walking up to me and saying, Hi, she said, This looks good on you. That's what she said. Meaning the performance thing or what I'm doing. So in the COVID time when we had a conversation when I reached out and I asked her, What was the reason? She said, Um, I saw something that I think you weren't seeing. So what? When I saw how you were getting on in the building of Sukasaka, I'll come home every night, and every night I excited to talk about what we planned. Me and Peter, we doing this and the other because I was heavy and tight. She said, I knew that wasn't my life. But it was yours. So she takes the grown-up approach to leave me to be me. I didn't see it at the time. I didn't see it at the time. But years later, when I understood that and I knew how important it was to me to kind of balance it. So along the way, I made tons of personal mistakes. So I am, I went through a thing of atunment, and you know, like how they say addicts have to go and do their 12 steps. I've been on my 12 steps for a while, like going back to take because I will say this. Um, I will still encourage marriage. I'm not married, I'm divorced. Um I'm since then to now been in a very stable and secure relationship. I love my significant other all with the intention of being married again. I have no issue with it. It's something I will explore. People always ask me, do you remarry? Marriage is great. I would not ever tell anybody covenant is not good. So my reasons for being married was wrong. I married for the wrong intentions again. It was about star nonsense. He was looking for that. And it's something that I tell people that I think damaged me from early on in life is a derogatory statement that my grandmother used to make. Where I grew up hearing, don't bring no late to school for me. People don't understand how derogatory that is when you hear that. So it was planted in my head from early that I have to have a particular type of person to be around. I only understood that late, later on. So now my mission is talking to young men. Like I do Empower, I do these type of shows to encourage young men to really stay focused and understand how strong their voice is and their vulnerability. Because we always felt as I came up anytime like you, where a man can't do something. So I understand now how important it is to look into self. And I again, to this day, I make mistakes. Me and my significant be going after it, and she is what I considered my accountability partner, where she is one that, bro, like even coming here just now is like, why you should this way? Why there's little things it might be annoying to some, but I see the value of course of what it is. And my my thing is not everybody's fortunate to have somebody like that to really be for them. A lot of people get into your life not really for you, eh? Of course. For life for your potential or the comfort of what you can do. A lot of people they really be in relationships for what it actually is supposed to be. And I guess for me, over the years, I I really get a chance. I was fortunate to meet good people, to have great conversations and understand me a little better. So, like if my kids' mums and they and me, it's it's been a struggle to try and co-parent properly and and show up for them the right way and be the right way. Because again, that's how I learned the whole theme about emotion trumps logic. So I try to deal in a logical sense and not emotional because you could see things on a day when you're emotional that really is not where you believe. You just you just and understanding how to listen, not just to respond. That's very important. I tell people like that's something I I try to tell people to do all the time. You know, this thing we haven't tried that, you see my hey, my brother, you're good, you're good, you're good. I hate that. If you stop someone and you ask them, how are you going, pause, just wait for a response. And that is something that's important for me. So that's where the whole mental health thing came from. And I've no problem in leaning into it. I am very, very open and I know the importance of it. And I encourage all young men to really have that up with that time. And it doesn't always have to be a therapist. And I tell the people this way, I'm a therapist is like a shoe, eh? You have to find one that fits for the therapist to go by it's not. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So you had to keep trying them on.

Corie 1:45:56

But a therapy could come from many different places. Yeah. But it's something that I appreciate you for doing and saying, because I noticed that you make it a point to talk about men's mental health. And you take five minutes to tell me all kinds of things in the beginning. I had to take back them five minutes now. Because I think that when we come from that song system, Europe, it was so, let me just say masculine, right? For lack of a better term now. It it's it's difficult for me in 1990 something to picture anybody from radioactive being the space where youths could come up and be themselves. Because there are vulnerable things to go on a stage by yourself with a song to send a man who's successful and put yourself out there. I maybe it works now with social media because you could put it out there and you think it's the worst. And people will tell you mean stuff on social media. For sure. I'm sure. But you are custom, you have true habits. I can't do that. Yeah, yeah. I can't do nothing. But you could see where I worry about youths now, I worry about young men because we're in a space where it's it's difficult. It's hard to just say is a man in in some spaces.

SPEAKER_02 1:46:54

I'm gonna tell you something real quick that even worse. I've been to a session one time, 106 boys. Right, and one of the first things we always ask is I will ask things like a show of hands, show me who've heard good job for the week. Or who have heard I love you for the week, who have heard congratulations for the week, hands down. Next major question: show of hands, who in here know your father? Yeah, the question 106 boys in a room. Guess how much hands went up? 106 love you. Four. That's the way we're living in. That's the trend and to be that we are. And when I say know your father, understand this. There are men now who are born into a house with a mother and a grandmother. There is no male figure represented as their father. There's no men. And they know it's who they grow up with on the street. Not people don't understand how important knowing a father is, even if it's just a figurehead. Of course. It is very important. And the lack of that and how we see how heavy it is here is part of the problem. So we try to put plaster on and put carriage before horse and are dealing with the core issue. The core issue is understanding. And when you get to like, I remember having his commission, a youth man, he's 17, he's 18. Yeah, right? No, he was 19, and he went on his boat, right, with a 17-year-old girl. And she's very feisty, very, very feisty. I'm talking about this, brought the man to tears. He said, bro, think I need to talk to him. He said about Uncle Jay's, but you think she wants to go home, da da da da went home. Granted, they went home, they did they do. Yeah, and I stopped him in the tracks, and I said, You know, legal intrin and to be good, that's statutory rape. As much as she's the aggressor under any circumstance, yeah, as much as and this is what you need to make these young men understand that the times are different because of social media. See, I struggle too as a dad. I'm a guild dad. It's not easy for me having these conversations with your daughter and understanding that as much as you're feeling how you're feeling and you want to do what you want to do in a place, now we have to be very careful. Of course, of course. And it's hard. I I am I'm in the battle, so I don't want nobody to look at this and feel I'm perfect in hells. No, I struggle the same way just like you. I'm trying to figure it out just like you. There's never a guidebook, and we as black men, especially in the Caribbean, we didn't have a guidebook in. And understand this real quick before we close, right? If you watch at no disrespect to the Caucasian race, but if you have ever been to a friend from our city west side and you go into the house, you see lineage. When you go into the four into the living room, you see a grand pick of the grandmother playing mask, then the aunts playing mask, and then the grandfather, the grandmother, and you see it coming up the road. When you go into a black person's home, you ever see pictures of us playing mass with our grandparents and things and go, we don't have that. No, no, we never had it. I tell people these are the things that you have to look. So, in order to create that, you have to act and have the hard conversations, you have to get comfortable having hard conversations. Sure, sure. I struggle with it still. I have these conversations with my gil and is be hard because it's embarrassing too as a man.

Corie 1:49:32

Well, it's tough. It's tough. And I mean, I'm in the same boat as you, and that's why I think I appreciate it. I appreciate him making his space to say it and say it out loud. Because one of the things is when we struggle, for me personally, when I struggle, I want to go inward. I don't want to answer my phone, I don't want to talk to nobody. So the fact that when you you you you openly talk about your struggles is is encouraging and it well, you see it personally in terms of how much youth it returned about 106 boys. In a sense, if only four men put up their hand. We have to be 102 people farther hell, Jan. It's not towards now. We were young and we ran and we do everything we had to do, but somehow we turned to David Wayne's age along the way. But congrats, but I appreciate this great thing. I appreciate this great thing. A real important conversation.