Tales From The Jails Podcast
Tales From the Jails breaks down prison life from inside of a prison facility. Tales from the Jails brings you exclusive interviews from those who have served time behind prison walls. The horrific details of what happens and or what could happen to those inside of the prison system. Stay Free..
Tales From The Jails Podcast
PHILADELPHIA FREEWAY : TALES FROM THE JAILS EPISODE 61
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In Episode 61 of Tales From The Jails, we sit down with FREEWAY for an unfiltered conversation about life, the streets, prison culture, survival, loyalty, mistakes, redemption, and the lessons learned along the way.
FREEWAY shares powerful stories and real-life experiences that shaped his journey, offering insight into the realities of incarceration and the choices that can change a person's life forever. If you're looking for authentic conversations with people who've lived it, this is an episode you don't want to miss.
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SPEAKER_04I'm the la.
SPEAKER_03I want to start by, you know, talking in and I want to thank you uh for uh coming onto this podcast because um I know you uh are one of the ones, like I said, who was pushing for prison reform, you know, and you most definitely may have had loved ones who may have maybe on the wall, so forth and so on. Um, so I want to thank you for coming on the show, man. And I also want to thank you, black, man, for being here as well as usual. So it's all good, man.
SPEAKER_04I I I really feel like what y'all are doing is powerful. You know what I'm saying? So that's why it was a no-brainer for me to come up. And y'all gotta keep it going, man, because it's needed.
SPEAKER_03I appreciate that. So coming up in Philly, uh, free, uh, you know, I I know Philly is is a is a rough, rough spot coming up, you know. Um and we see other cities as well that are rough, but us being from Philly, we we understand what it takes to actually survive here. Yeah, most definitely. If you can make it out of Philly, I said it earlier, if you make it out of Philly, you can you basically make it make it anywhere.
SPEAKER_04I'm telling you, it's a fact, man. I I traveled the world. Like, you know what I mean? I've been in a lot of hoods all over the United States, outside of the United States, and being from Philly is definitely an advantage, trust me.
SPEAKER_03And you coming up in Philly, how was it for you like early on, like, you know, you know, Philly, because no Philly is rough, like we said, how was it for you early on?
SPEAKER_04Well, I'm originally from West. So, you know, I uh I was in West probably the whole first half of my life. I went to West Philly High for a couple weeks, then I transferred to Kensington High with my cousins down north Philly. So I started going to school with my cousins, and that's when I started coming down north. So out west, it still was dangerous. I still seen people getting shot, like, but it was a little more middle class than it was when I moved down north. You know what I'm saying? So down north is like really when I got in the mix, started selling drugs, and like, you know, started talking about all doing all the stuff that I talked about on the albums.
SPEAKER_03Now, um coming up in West Philly, both of us are from West Philly as well. He's from West, I'm from West, we're from the same area. And um, like I spoke to you about earlier, uh, one of the guys who was speaking about you when you first got on was our guy, our our brother, uh, who's your brother, Shellyano.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, shout out to Shellyano, that's my brother, man. And he's real, you know, influential in my career. When I was a young boy, like just running around, like rapping anywhere, like Shell was around, man. And he had like a lot of passion in his music, man. And I feel like not only show, but it was a lot of people that I was around on my come-up that all contributed to the MC that I am today. Like, I feel like a little bit, pause, a little bit of everybody helped shape the artist that I am today.
SPEAKER_03Now, prison. We would our show tells from the judge, we just talk about prison and the oppression of prison. Did you ever spend any time in prison?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I didn't do no major time in prison, but in 99 I got arrested for possession with a tent to deliver, and I had like three warrants. So I I think I spent like three months in CFCF. I had a detainer. So before the detainer got lifted, I had to be in there. So, you know, I wasn't feeling it at all. Like being a place where people tell you when to eat, when to sleep, like it wasn't for me. Like, you know, and once I got my experience with jail, I was like, listen, I'm not never trying to go back there. And home duty live, once I got out, I was able to, you know, get with beans and get with Jay and get with The Rock. I tell people, like, I feel like Rockefeller was my re-entry program. You know, because when I was like, after I got um, when I came home, I had to go to a program called the net. So it was like an end in treatment program. So I got booked with a bunch of coke, and then my lawyer was able to get me in one of those programs, like, you know, because it was my first offense or whatever. So I was in there for 90 days, and I would be talking to beans, and you know, he'd be like, Yeah, I'm in LA. When you get off house arrest, you're gonna be right with me. Yeah, I'm in New York. When you get off house arrest, you're gonna be right with me. And when I got off house arrest, I was right with him. Like, you know, and if I didn't have that in place, I probably would have gone back to what got me locked up in the first place, and that's selling drugs.
SPEAKER_03You know, so and me and him, I talk to him about all the time, you know, and I know you have guys who have gone to jail and came home. Yeah, for sure. How important is it to have that type of support?
SPEAKER_04A lot of my homies. It is is very important. And you know, I'm definitely tuned in and tapped in with all my homies that's in jail, and I try to support them the best that I can because being in there, man, is rough, man. Not only, yeah, I mean, on on a person that's in there, but on their families, like, you know, and then when you win there, you worrying about your family, you worrying about your kids. Like, it's it's a rough stop, man. You know.
SPEAKER_02Let me let me ask you a question, Free. Because we're talking about dudes being in jail. When they come home, right? And we're talking about the convicted, you know, brothers of ours that's still behind them walls. When them dudes come home, to you, to you, what is support to them, right? And how much support? Do it end, do it stop? Because you know, a lot of dudes that come home from prison, man, they ain't intact, especially if they did a whole lot of time, man. A lot of people expect them dudes to come and just hit the ground running.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, man.
SPEAKER_02You know, and that's a myth.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, for sure.
SPEAKER_02For anybody that's been in the penitentiary 10 years or better, they they can get a check. They can get a check from the government because they're not mentally able to.
SPEAKER_04Like being in there is definitely a hardship, and you know, on your on your mental period. Like, you know, it's a rough thing to deal with. You know, we got a lot of brothers that's strong, that's dealing with it, but it's rough. But but the question is, do you cut them off at the year and they still ain't getting it right? It really, to me, it depends on a person. Because I had people that been in jail that came home that's solid. And like, you know, I would help them when they came home and I'd be there for them when they needed certain things, but they didn't OD. Then I had people that came home from prison that just tried to OD and just wanted me to take care of them like they was my son. You know what I'm saying? So it depends on a person and their mentality. And just like you deal with any other people, that's any other person that's trying to leech onto you and that's trying to take advantage of you. When it gets to a point where you feel like it they doing too much and they trying to use you, then of course you gotta cut them off. Right. Like, you know what I'm saying?
SPEAKER_03And like you said, that balance, a lot of times, you know, you have to understand that.
SPEAKER_04That word, man, is just and everything in life is about balance. Like everything is about balance, man. You can maintain that good balance, you can be successful in whatever you do.
SPEAKER_03So you, you know, uh, you know, like I said, you have been out here, you had, like you said, you have guys who who come home. How difficult is you like because everybody wanna really understand the other side of the spectrum as far as guys like yourself, like me, like him, who when guys go to jail and you out here and you're you're their support. You're paying for lawyers, you're paying for, you know, taking care of their family members, you're paying for all types of stuff, putting money on their books. How much of a uh an issue is that or how do you deal with that type of you know pressure?
SPEAKER_04That's another thing that that it depends on a person. Like if it's somebody that you really love and that you really care about, you're gonna be there for them no matter what. Like, you know, if it's somebody that that you just alright with, you're gonna try to help as much as you can, like, you know what I'm saying? So it really depends on the person. And almdoc, like, you know, I'm in an alright situation where I can be there for my peoples. You know, but when when things get rough, and you can't do, if you can't do nothing for yourself, you can't do nothing for nobody else. And like a lot of times people don't understand that, and people get upset with people, you know. But if a person out here struggling on trying to take care of themselves and their family, it's not too much that they could do for a person that's in jail.
SPEAKER_03Wow. And just to speak about that, how how um how gratifying is that for you to be able to be able to be there for them?
SPEAKER_04Man, listen, man, it feels amazing. Like to be there for my homies, especially like like my old heads and people that really done stuff for me, like when they come to me and need stuff, I'll be like, man, listen, I'm happy to do something for you. Like it is, and it probably has a lot to do with me being Muslim too. Like, you know what I'm saying? It's just a good feeling when you look out for people in general. Like, you know, Alhamdulillah. When you're doing it for the right reasons, like you know, when you're doing it for the sake of Allah, solely for the sake of Allah, then you know, it always feels great.
SPEAKER_02For sure. I got a question for you, uh, Free. You know, there's a saying that's been going around for a couple months now, and people been answering it in the way they I want to ask you though. When people say fuck the streets, what is your uh answer to, or not even answer, but your theory or your opinion to that when you have a person say yeah, fuck the streets.
SPEAKER_04I mean Have you heard that before? Yeah, of course. You know, I I heard I'm in tune, bro. You know, I'm in tune with with everything that's going on to to the best of my ability. But I mean, that's really a a a rough statement to say fuck the streets because the streets built who I am. Like, you know, I had uh my man, shout out to my brother Malik. We uh we went to Mecca. The first time I went to Mecca when I made Umra, he went to Umar with me. And back in the day I used to date his sister. I uh you probably heard me talk about it in a rap, in one of my raps or whatever. And I talked to her probably like a couple years ago and we was having a conversation, and she was like, if you would have stayed my boyfriend, you wouldn't be freeway. Because I wouldn't have let you be out in the street selling drugs and running around holding guns and all that. I'd have tried to make sure that you was in school and tried to make sure you did the right thing. Like, you know, and um everything that I did in the streets is the reason why I was able to make a classic album because I poured my heart into that, into that album. I still had one foot in the streets when I made Philadelphia Freeway, so I could never say fuck the streets. But then my cousin Raheem got killed by the cops. I got like out of 20 of my homies, 15 of them is dead. Some of them, like probably nine or ten of them is in jail. Like in the middle of in the height of our career, beans went to jail for a shooting. Like, you know, I've been locked up, you know. And when I got locked up for possession with a tender deliver, I was like actually in a crack house. And then when I went to court and the cops did gave their testimony, they said, yeah, we seen them selling drugs in a lot. And I'm like, damn, the cops lie too. Like, what the f like I'm like, I don't got no chance to win this. Like, you know, so that's why I didn't even go back. Like, that's why I went on the run. Because I'm like, if the cops is lying on me, it's no way that I could win this.
SPEAKER_02There's no justice.
SPEAKER_04There's no justice. Like, you know, like being young, I probably was like, I think I was like 18 at the time. So being young, fresh off the streets, and being naive, like I was thinking at least I have a fair shot in court. And I don't you don't even have a fair shot down there. So, like, you know, it's it's it's rough.
SPEAKER_03Now in our city, and you know, you see a lot, but I mean, just last couple years, uh, the gun violence was through the roof.
SPEAKER_04Definitely.
SPEAKER_03And did you have any young guys that you knew that got caught up in that in that type of in that violence that was going on around the city? Yeah, man, I was one of them.
SPEAKER_04Like, you know, I used to cat man. You know, we was Muslim. I was I probably don't even need to talk about that on on the podcast, but we was like I used to be strapped in school, like, you know, every day. Like, you know, and I had the Tommy, Tommy Hill book bag, and I used to have like a sawd off in their joint, and nobody even knew. Like, we was drawn. So, you know, but when we was younger, it wasn't as like, you know, we was ready and we were strapped and we was ready for whatever we was gonna go through, but we went through it with who we went through it with. Like, you know what I'm saying? It wasn't nothing random or like we wasn't trying to do nothing to somebody for nothing. Like, you know, nowadays it's like these youngers just doing stuff for nothing to anybody.
SPEAKER_02Well, let me let me ask you a question to that right there. Do you think the kids, the generation underneath us, is following our footsteps? Do you think they follow in the ways that we did?
SPEAKER_04Most definitely. I definitely like, and I, you know, I make do I a lot about that. Like, you know, from you know, stuff that I talked about, you know, stuff that I, you know, even if I didn't mean to glorify it, I did in my music, even just telling my story. So I do feel partly responsible about the the generation that came under us. You know, the generation that came behind us. Because they really are way more out of control than we were. Like, you know, we had morals. We wasn't doing nothing to nobody's kids or nobody's family. Like if we you we see you with your mom, you cool, you with your mom. Like we're okay. You know. Nowadays, it's it's none of that, man. You know, and that's one of the reasons why I try to give back as much as possible. Because in my early life, I did a lot. I was a drug dealer, like I was in the streets, like, you know, I took a lot from the community. And you know, as Muslims, we want our good to outweigh our bad, you know, before it's our time. So I try to do as much as I can. Am I an angel? No, I'm not perfect at all, but I try and I try to do as much good as I can.
SPEAKER_03There's a question we pose up here a lot that we talk about a lot. Um we uh try to weigh the two. You have the drug dealer, you have the drug user. Which one would you say is more detrimental to society? Is it the drug user or is it the the drug dealer?
SPEAKER_04I would probably say the drug dealer.
SPEAKER_03Why you say that?
SPEAKER_04Because without without without the drug dealer, there would be no drug user. And I I know it sounds crazy, but if you remove the drug dealer, where are they gonna get the drugs from? You know what I'm saying?
SPEAKER_02No, I might got a rebuttal that free. They're gonna find it somewhere else.
SPEAKER_04No, but I'm saying if we answering that overall, if we answering that question, like overall, like you know what I'm saying? Of course, like in reality, like they gonna get it. Like, you know, if you just go around and lock all the drug dealers up right now, it's gonna be another drug dealer that comes around. But if you remove the ability for it to be a drug dealer, it won't be no drugs. You know, so you know the drug the drug dealer is definitely uh, to me, I feel like it's more detrimental to the community.
SPEAKER_03And I and I always say the same. I I agree with you, and I say that more so because the drug drug dealers, what we do over those who were drug dealers or or currently selling drugs, um we destroy the community because we are now not only we harm one individual, we're selling it to a large mass of individuals. And now you're affecting the babies that's in the stomach, you're affecting the you know, the household, you're affecting so many different people by just serving drugs to one individual. And it just and if you don't, you know, these drug blocks when we was young, I don't know how they are now, but I'm pretty sure it's price doesn't throw a lot of not a lot of numbers, but these drug blocks can do $10,000, $20,000 a day. So how many people are you serving drugs to making that amount of money? And you're just destroying lives of kids who haven't haven't even been born. For years.
SPEAKER_04Like, you know, if you if you really knee deep in it, like I was, like for years, like you know, and to the to the point where we normalized it, like it was our regular job, like you know, so and now you now our city right now, we we are in a place now, and I know it's going a lot of other cities, but we start talking about uh Philadelphia.
SPEAKER_03We're talking the Philadelphia Freeway right now. So Philadelphia right now, you see Larry Krasner. Larry Krasner is is as like they say on the on the uh online, he's putting he's uh BTA. Larry Krasner, BTA, he's he's putting belts to the the behinds of the of individuals, criminals, and he's um you know making people pay for what they do or he's locking people up for what they're supposedly post uh doing. Reactions. So how do you feel about Larry and what he's doing in the city?
SPEAKER_04Shout out to Larry. I I actually did some work with him, like, you know, um for his re-election. You know, I I think what he's doing is is needed. Like, you know what I'm saying? I think it's needed, and I definitely respect him for for the other thing that he's doing, like, you know, bringing people home, yeah. Exactly. You know what I'm saying? And really looking into these cases and finding the unjust in these cases. Like, you know, so that's first and foremost, he's super solid for that. You know, and then you know, he's just doing his job.
SPEAKER_03Exactly.
SPEAKER_04And for me, uh looking at, you know, Larry Crack. That's another thing, not to cut you off, but that's another thing about when we were in the streets. I don't I don't want to sound like a bitter old head or nothing like that, but we had like we knew they were doing a job. And we kind of respected it. Like, you know, we wasn't doing too much, we wasn't drawing. Like, if they came around, we knew we had to, you know what I mean? Get out of here. Get out of here, shut it down. Like, you know, it was like, and to a certain extent, they respected us. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like, you know, so but it's it's out of here now. Like, you know, not too much of that going on. Now uh there's so we so many other ways to get money 2026. Like, you know what I'm saying? It like, you know, all you gotta do is apply yours uh apply yourself, like you know, put a little bit of effort into it, man. There's so many ways to get money. Like, look at Wallow, he came home and seen what he did with that phone, he's a millionaire from the phone. Like, you know, and after doing years, if that's not motivation, I don't know what it is.
SPEAKER_03Like, yeah, I see that all the time. And then shout out to Wallow and uh and I talked to Wilo um just the other day, and I was on the phone with him, and then he was telling me that he just shot a bunch of videos on his phone.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_03He said, whenever I'm in the mood, I think about something, he said I shoot a bunch of videos. He said, I have a bunch of videos on my phone that I don't even I haven't even put out yet. That I just sit down and look at my phone and talk about it and put and I just have them and have him loaded, ready to go. And he's like, that's that's just me, a part of a part of my motivation. Whatever is my mind, I'm gonna put it out there to the masses. But off my phone. But I got a question.
SPEAKER_04When that's Wallow, and that's his lane. You could some some of us out here could come up with something totally different and become a millionaire from it. Like, you know what I'm saying? That's the lane that Wallow chose. Some other people might be able to do the same thing that he did, but if you really think and apply yourself and come up with something totally different, you could become a millionaire and set a whole new trend. Like, you know, it's possible.
SPEAKER_02I forgot what I was ready to say. No, I ain't forget. Um, as far as in because we we've been speaking about Wallow coming home doing that with the phone and becoming a millionaire, but a lot of people can't follow that format. You how many people you see every day on the phone and doing stuff and trying to and don't go nowhere.
SPEAKER_04That's why I said what I just said. Exactly.
SPEAKER_02That's why I did.
SPEAKER_04You gotta find out what works for you. That worked for Wallow that might not work for you. Exactly. But it might be something out here that can work for you. Like you just buy yourself. Like you could look at what a person does and be motivated by it, but not trying to copy the same thing, the thing that they're doing.
SPEAKER_03Exactly.
SPEAKER_04It should motivate you to want to do your own thing or try to come up with your own like lane, like you know, like what um what motivates you though, Free?
SPEAKER_03To can uh could to continue to uh go out there and put your best foot forward and and you know and you know, just to you know be keep yourself relevant as you as you already do. Or what motivates you in life?
SPEAKER_04Man, just life, man, and you know, just as far as the music, you know, I feel like I still got something to say. You know, um as far as everything else, you know, I like you know, I I started when I was diagnosed with kidney failure in in 2015, I started the foundation called Freedom Thinkers Academy, which is music, health, education, and culture. On the health side, you know, I travel the world and I preach prevention so people don't get to the point where I was at where I had to get a life-sustaining kidney transplant. You know, I I sit on a community advisory board for gift of life here in Philadelphia. I sit on a community advisory board for donate life on the West Coast. I work with plenty of companies, Bear, Johnson ⁇ Johnson, a bunch of different companies, health organizations, and I just tell my story so people can have a fighting chance. I had three of the leading risk factors for kidney failure, one being hypertension, another one being diabetes, and just being African American is a risk factor. So I had those risk factors, and I was still unaware that could happen to me. So I feel like it was important for me to spread that information. And through doing that, help a lot of people. You know, on the education side, we do workforce development. We got phlebotomy, we got medical billing and coding, we got medical tech, digital media. We partner with different organizations. In Philadelphia, we partner with OIC. Uh, we provided a couple of phlebotomy cohorts, and then we did like five or six digital media cohorts. And um, all of our digital media students, we working on a project now that we're gonna put out sometime during this year. You know, and to date, we graduated almost 200 students, and we help and change lives. Like, that's what motivates me. Like, you know, I feel like the reason why a lot of these young Young folks is getting into the streets and doing the stuff that they're doing, is because they don't have many outlets. You can sign up for one of our programs and it's free, 100% free. You take the course, you get a certification. Now you have a certification, you can go straight into the work first and start earning money. My daughter Harmie, that passed away from cancer in 2021, I just did a program at the school that she graduated from, Mastery Charter, Pickett Campus. We just did a phlebotomy cohort with some juniors and some seniors. So they all passed, they all uh passed the cohort. The seniors have the ability to get their certification and go straight into the workforce. And the juniors, once they graduate next year, they can get their certification and go straight into the workforce. So if they don't want to go to college, they could be a phlebotomist. And phlebotomists earn anywhere from $52,000 to $73,000 a year. So that's right out of school. Like, you know, so even if you still trying to figure out what you're doing, you can get this job and you could immediately start taking care of yourself. Opportunities mean a lot. Like, you know, so we're just trying to provide people with opportunities and home duty lives working.
SPEAKER_03Now, uh, you um for you you you you uh uh taking time out of your out of your business schedule and you're going to these uh state pen uh you know penitentiaries and you know and motivating the guys who are set to come home or even some guys who may not come home, you you're in there talking to these guys. Um how is that for you, like to do those um these meet and greets and and spread this you know awareness?
SPEAKER_04It's surreal. That's that word people be saying, like surreal means like surreal is surreal, man. Like every time I walk in them Jones, like you know, I'm like, man, like you know, it's I remember being in here and not being able to leave. Like, and when I leave out, I feel bad for the people that can't leave out. Like, you know, it's really a rough stop, man. Like uh, we just was at Chester uh probably like a month and a half, two months ago. We went twice. We went um I went one time with Wilo. Shout out the the brother Mike that be facilitating me and Mike Scott and and a couple other good brothers. Wilo actually cooked some food for the inmates and everything. It was dope, and you know, I shared some of my story with them. And then the second time we went back, we put a studio in there, you know, so they could record while they're in there, and you know, hopefully, you know, sharpen up on some of their skills and all that while they're in there. So when they come home they give a a a shot at, you know, a successful career or whatever.
SPEAKER_03And what kind of what kind of studio was it? Was it podcasting? A recording studio.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, so they could use it for podcasts and they can use it to record music.
SPEAKER_03Oh wow. Wow. And these things that you mentioned like the podcasting and then the recording of music now, these things wasn't wasn't uh, you know, allowed years ago.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, it wasn't allowed years ago, man. Um I think it was last year or maybe the begin the begin. We either was last year or the end of 2024. I was in Chicago and I went to Cook County prison. And they had a music program in there. Like, you know, when they was telling us all you gotta do is be good for three months and you could join the music program. Not only did they have a music program, they had a whole floor. They had culinary, they had a music program. That's one of the worst prisons in Chicago. Like, I was blown away when I seen it. I even did a song with some of the uh inmates that was working in the uh recording studio and they was able to put it out and put it on um put it on um on streaming networks and all that. You know, and um like having stuff like that can really take you out of there. Exactly, you know, for a little while, like you know, again and it can motivate you to want to get out of there, like listen, I'm doing this. Like some of them really was talented, like you know, they really had some good music in their genre.
SPEAKER_03And going to these prison systems, you know, a lot like you said, some guys are coming home. Um staying in these uh in these uh places where you uh are visiting inmates. How many inmates have you met or talked to that's never coming home again? If you can if you can uh put a number on it.
SPEAKER_04Probably at least like 50. And it is it's rough, it's a different conversation. Like, and then when I be talking to the to the inmates, I gotta be careful because like some of them are coming home and some of them are not coming home. So when I'm talking to the ones that can come home, I don't want to like offend the ones that can come home. So like you know, it's it it's touchy, man. Like, you know, and a lot of them old heads that's in there got some solid game and like you know, and like it's a I I forget the old head name that's that's in Chester, but he's the one that's like the reason why we're able to come in there because he put a lot of work in and was facilitating programs inside of Chester, like, you know, and um it's rough, man. Like, it's a lot of good men in there, good, healthy, strong men in there. Like, I'm in there, like, man, y'all could really be out here in the world doing major things right now, man. A lot of Muslim brothers, man. Like, you know, and this it's sad, man. You know, but they fighting. And the good thing about when I was in there is they do have like some kind of community, and like, you know, they pray together, and like, you know, they're doing podcasts and they're coming together. You know, the reason why we was in there was speaking is through them. Like, you know, they already had the program going on and we came in to talk and share some information with them. So, you know, that's the good thing. Some of the brothers are actually getting together and trying to do something positive and trying to better themselves, you know.
SPEAKER_03Uh, just to go back on back to our city really fast. Um, they just had, you know, uh an indictment. A lot of these young guys got indicted. A lot of we we know who they are, you know, different gangs. And we always talk about this all the time, and not glorifying anything, but um, back when we was running the streets and you've seen these type of indictments, you see whether whether it was for uh you know state indictments or federal indictments, it was money involved. Money, maybe some drugs.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, for sure. It was definitely about something.
SPEAKER_03Now these indictments now is just all murders. Yeah. How do you feel when you see that? I mean, I know both of them are bad, but now you just these indictments now, these are just all murders.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, it's different, man. It's like if somebody steps on your shoe, they gotta go. Like, you know what I mean? Like, you know, it's it like I said, like, you know, I feel like it's like what we was doing mutated. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like we was we was talking about our real life experiences, things that we did in the past. Once I got signed, I wasn't shooting nobody. Like, you know, once I like, you know, in the beginning of my career, I still was in the streets a little bit, but like once I knew things was official and I got a check, I was not going back to the streets. I was not trying to go back to the streets. It's like that's a part of being an artist now. Like, how many people you can drop, and I'm like, and I like it's it's wild to me. Like, you just want to be in the jail with your homies, you you don't want no women, you don't want a wife, like you're like, it's wild. And then a lot of them, once they get in and they get some time, then they start thinking. Like, you know, like, wow, man, maybe what I was doing was wrong, or I shouldn't have been doing that. Like, you know, and you know.
unknownGo ahead.
SPEAKER_02What you want to say, yo? It's a uh it's a because I heard Freeway say you, you know, being around a lot of men don't go to jail just to, you know, because they want to be around niggas and stuff like that. I went and did a significant time of my life in jail. And believe me, you know, I I I do not want to be around men, period. For sure. I went and did that time because of what I was chasing. I wanted some money, but I didn't go about it the right way. Yeah, but that's us. Right.
SPEAKER_04Like to me, like, I'm I'm not 100% sure about it, but that's how it looked from the outside looking in. Right. Like niggas be in jail with their homies, like, yeah, we in here. Like, we, you know, this is what we had to do. We in this joint.
SPEAKER_02I'm saying, but when you're in here with me, we cool. Like, yeah, but we when you're in there, but what you gonna do? You you you you can't cry about it. Like, I'm alright, cool. I got my man in there. And see, the reason why I'm talking from this point because I come from out of there from doing a stick of a all the I'm 46 years old and I've engaged them people 30 years of my life. Wow. I can't even imagine that, bro.
SPEAKER_04So now when I'm you know what I did in 30, you know what I've been doing since I was 21? Give me the world. Exactly.
SPEAKER_02I've been like I gotta catch up because I'm gonna do that now. I want better for myself. But at the time before I went in there, I wanted better for myself too. That's why I went in there. But I did it the wrong way. And a lot of these kids coming up now, the message to them, I can't tell nobody what to do and how to do it. I could, you know, tell us from the jails. We tell you these real stories and bring you live stuff that goes on in there to try to deter you in case you're making a mistake to lean you in there. Most definitely. But now, what's the message? Like, what's the message? Like, somebody we just had a live performance the other day, right? And somebody asked me on stage, he said, What's the method for the youth? I don't know. I think sometimes a person gotta touch that pot themselves. You know how motherfuckers about yours, don't touch that, man. It's hot. Yeah, sometimes you do. Some people gotta go through that. Experience.
SPEAKER_04You know, I said in one of my reps, I was like, I wonder what jail was like in two. I got inside. Like all my homies was going to jail. Like it was like a badge of honor.
SPEAKER_02Right. You know, that's crazy.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, that's it. Like, that's that damn, like we we is kind of like the young bulls, man. Yeah, like understanding. Yeah, you're right, bro. But it was about something, though. Like, it was about some money. And I can't even say what they're going through is not about nothing, because it's about whatever. They disrespected their homies, and they went like, you know what I'm saying? So it is about something, but like we really need to like stop, like, or like try to bring it to a minimum because there's a lot of people losing their life, and it's it's it's sad.
SPEAKER_02And then on the other hand, on the flip side of it, because it only just it don't just affect the person that's in jail. You got family members out here, like, damn, they gotta, they gotta pay their bills, they gotta take care of themselves, and then you want a couple dollars. Like, it's more so crushing the people that's out here riding with you than you. You stayed up in there, you ain't gotta pay no bills. You get you eat three times a day for free. Okay, yeah, don't nobody want to be confined in that. But if we really, really digging deep, who's uh uh uh uh uh not benefit the most? The person that's out there, like you got a person in there for this man took care of me my whole life in there. I went back, did a violation, still was taking care of me, paying my rent in there. I ain't got no cheap rent. I'm in there for two years. So this is hurting him more than it's hurting me. Nobody, nobody benefiting, man. Yeah, that's a bad joint, man.
SPEAKER_04I had a homie that did a dub and he was out here with us for a couple years, and now we back in that joint.
SPEAKER_02He back in there.
SPEAKER_04Back in that joint.
SPEAKER_02See, a lot of people don't it's not no expensive.
SPEAKER_04Give it a good brother, like good solid brother. Like, he's back in there. Yeah, man.
SPEAKER_02It's great, like streets, man. But I had to learn my lesson like that. Because I went back in there free. I just now came off the home now about a year and a half. I did 21 years, came home for about three, four years. You know, it be the impatience, especially when you're used to getting some money. Yeah, for sure. And you gotta take this route, it's harder than the route of being in the streets. Listen, it's easier.
SPEAKER_04Patience is very, very important, man. No matter what you do, you gotta have. I learned that the first time I went to Saudi. Like, I'm in at the height of my career, like, you know, big houses, foreign cars, and I went on a uh trip to Saudi with with the mass j, with the uh one of the local mass jazz, and like I slept on the floor like everybody else. Like I had to like when I go to the airport, I like I I breezed through first class and all that. Like I had to wait. I had to be patient, I had to learn patience. Like, you know what I'm saying? And it it was a beautiful experience for me, man. Like, you know, everything takes patience, man. You gotta have patience, man. No matter what you I was trying to be a rapper since I was 14 years old. I got on probably when I was like 20, 21. Like, you know, everything takes patience, man. You gotta have some patience, man. Like, if you put God first and you're trying to achieve a goal, you can achieve that goal, but you gotta have some patience. That's what's wrong with nowadays. The new generation. Instant gratifications. Everybody expects instant gratification. You think it's social media? Social media plays a major role. Social media plays a major part. It it affects me sometimes. Like I come to myself like, yeah, like damn, he got like that. He just bought a new light. He just got a new, you know what I mean, man. Like that, you know what I mean? I snap out of it, man. Yeah, that social media is dangerous, but it's dangerous. Yeah, you know, uh there's so many people fraud, you know how many people I know that's frauding on that joint and calling me needing stuff, and they be on that joint looking like the kingpin.
SPEAKER_03Oh man, that's crazy, man. It's crazy. Uh yo, listen, Max said something said something. He said, um, he said I should complain about having sneaks inside somebody who ain't had no feet.
SPEAKER_04Most definitely. And that's real when I the first time I went to Saudi.
SPEAKER_03That's crazy, man. When he said that way that way that I said, damn, I gotta start looking at people who he said I I used to complain about not having new sneaks inside, saw somebody who ain't had no feet.
SPEAKER_04That's a fact. You gotta always try to look at the cup, it's half full, man. First time I went to Saudi, it was a brother on like one of those things that move you move the refrigerator with. Like going to prayer, like scooting himself on there with his arm with his arms. And you know, we from feeling like, bro, you need some help. Like, no, I need all my barricades scooting itself to the junk to the line, to the prayer line. I'm like, wow. Like, you know what I'm saying? I can't, I can't complain about nothing. Like, you know what I mean? Like, there's always somebody that's doing better than you, and it's always somebody that's doing worse than you. So you gotta appreciate what you got, no matter what it is, man. Trust me, man. Like, even like sometimes I come outside and I just breathe fresh air and I just be grateful. Like, man, like I'm out here, like I can move around, like you know, like because what's even deeper than that, as Muslims, we know we're gonna be in that grave a long time. Like, we ain't gonna get no sunlight, we ain't gonna get no air, like you know, so we gotta try to enjoy it while we can, man, and try to make the best of it.
SPEAKER_03Wow. And you know, coming coming from where we could we come from once again, and and just looking at the uh I'll say that I won't say that set up the plan for it, look at just like looking at the youth. Um, what type of uh things are you doing outside of you know going to the prisons and uh and speaking to uh speaking to the prisons? What are you trying to do for the youth? What's your your goal to try to help deter them from going to prison?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, like some of the things that I was just talking about. Like, you know, the workforce development is like one of the main things that I do. I got my festival next week. August 1st is my third annual Free Fest. It's a free festival for a community, for the community. We're gonna have vendors, we're gonna have live performances. Uh, we're gonna have, it's the 23rd anniversary of Philadelphia Freeway, so I'm performing a whole Philadelphia Freeway with a live band. We're gonna have health screenings. We got a youth village, we got an village for elders. Like, you know, I'm letting these young folks, people from my uh Freedom Thinkers Academy uh cohort are gonna come and perform. I'm letting some other people from the neighborhood come perform. Like, you know, provide people with opportunities showing them that this is real. Like, I'm from where y'all from. I had a bunch of tragedies. I had kids, I was on dialysis for four years. I lost my son in 2020, lost my daughter in 2021, lost my dad in 2022. But I'm still here, I'm still pushing, I'm still trying to help people. So I feel like we can show people better showing, showing them than telling them. Like, you know, I feel like showing is proven, and I'm trying my best to show people. Besides Free Fest, the workforce development that we're doing. I told you we almost graduated 200 students. Like that's 200 people that could have been in the streets. That's major. You know what I'm saying? Doing something, hitting somebody upside their head or trying to sell some drugs. Now they have an opportunity to have a legitimate job and legitimate income.
SPEAKER_03Like it's crazy you said that too. I got two things. You know, uh, you say you graduate you helped 20 20 kids graduate. Do you know that um it takes maybe like five high schools in the city of Philadelphia to get to get 200 kids gradu to graduate? Wow. Wow. Five public schools, high public high schools, it may take to get 200 200 kids.
SPEAKER_04And that's why I say it's important to meet meet them where they at. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like a lot of people come to my programs because of me. Like, you know what I mean? Not like I'm trying to act like I'm some big and mighty person or nothing, but they relate to me. They know my music, like, you know, they know, you know, it it draws them in. Like, you know, especially for my digital media, because our digital media, we have rappers, we have singers, we have dancers, we have people that want to work behind the scenes, like you know, it's it's all different types of people that be in our cohort. Like, all trying to achieve different goals, and when we come together, it's beautiful. Like, you know, and it's just showing them, like, you know, you you can be whatever you want to be, you just gotta put your mind to it, and you don't gotta be in the streets.
SPEAKER_02But it's hard though. Free time. I'm listening to what y'all saying, man, but I'm pushing back because I'm speaking for everybody because I know it's hard, bro.
SPEAKER_04But if you like, listen, if you got an opportunity, like through my partnership with OIC, some of our courses is like eight weeks. So you come here every day during the week for eight weeks for free. You could get a grub. You could be if it's a summer, it's air conditioning, if it's the winter, it's the heat, like you know what I'm saying? Like it's friendly people in there, it's people that you can vibe with and learn different things, and then when you finish, you can get a certification and we assist you in getting a job. So you rather be out here in the streets like doing whatever you're trying to do than versus that.
SPEAKER_02No, but see, I'm asking you the question, right? Hold up. Nah, shit, don't be a choice sometime, bro. Why not? I'm asking the question because we all, like you say, we all grew up in the in the city of Philadelphia. You got them dudes, man, that got a broken family. You got dudes. I went out there trying to feed my sister at five, six years old, stealing raw bacon from the store. I'm not thinking about no motherfucking program. I'm not thinking about that. Mom ain't been there for days. We in there. So how do you reach them? All he knows is damn, I can go steal this little. Like he not thinking, he ain't got the proper atomic on, he didn't wash his ass for days.
SPEAKER_04No, I feel you.
SPEAKER_02So how do you touch them? We speaking to the motherfuckers that got a mom and dad, and they just was miscellaneous. No, but how we go deeper?
SPEAKER_04But how we get into the moods and touch them. That's a lot of people that be in our cohorts that's like that though. Yeah, there's people in there, like you know, that don't have moms, don't have dads, like you know, uh one one of the uh one of my uh students is in my cohort was in a wheelchair and he's on dialysis. You know, now he recorded with me, he be in my studio recording with me. So he knew I was on dialysis, like, and I got through it. So imagine how much motivation that is for bro. Exactly. You know what I'm saying? So it is like we gotta try our best and and and show people through examples. Like you might be the person that can help the people, like you know what I mean. You said how many how many years you said you did it? Man, I did over 21 years. You did over 21 years, you might be able to relate to them young boys more than somebody else. So everybody gotta play their part.
SPEAKER_02Exactly. Everybody got a lot of people.
SPEAKER_04Everybody gotta play their part. What I'm doing is what I can do. Like, you know, I'm trying the best that I can do. Like, you know what I'm saying? And if uh it was a hundred of us don't trying to do the best that we can do, then we'd be better off.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, sure. We'd definitely be better off. I'd just be wanting to speak for the ones that's you know, because you got levels to poverty, you got levels to, you know, niggas doing it's levels to everything in life.
SPEAKER_04And I see it, like I move around in these streets. Like people see me. Like, I'm I'm not like one of them people that be hiding from people. I'm out here here. You out here, people see me every day. Hands on. Like my studio is in the hood, like you know, and that I come through the hood when I'm going to record. So you've seen it. I see it. Like, you know what I'm saying? So like I'm I'm not one of them bulls that ain't in tune. I'm around, like, you know. So I see what you're talking about all the time.
SPEAKER_02Like that shit.
SPEAKER_04I got people like people in my like like somebody that's close, close family member we just had to send to to uh treatment in Florida. Like, you know, like this shit affects me. Like my son passed away from this shit. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like, I'm like, this shit is real.
SPEAKER_03Let's talk about that. So you you're uh just you know, you know, sorry to hear about your son, you know, uh passing. Um how did your son pass again?
SPEAKER_04Man, so he had a drug problem. Like, you know, and earlier that year, we we put him in a treatment program. He was doing good. He I think he came home like June. And you know, he was living with me, you know, in the in the burbs. And um he was doing good. But you know, he kept wanting to come to Philly, like, you know, and uh it's crazy, man, because one one day, like I had a show in Philly. Like, you know, and I would I would try to keep him away from the city because I know that's where the problem is at. It's the triggers. You know, it's triggers and all that. So I try to keep him away from the city as much as I can and it worked for a little while. You know, uh one day we had a show. I thought I had a show on 52nd Street. Like in front of s uh one of my old schools, like on 52nd and Pine. My son was on stage with me, like, you know, him and my daughter, we performed and like we trying to ride back to the crib. That nigga jumped out the car. Like I jumped out the car, tried to chase him, like, you know, but how old was he? He was 20. He was 21 when he passed away.
SPEAKER_03Wow, so you housed the car and you tried chasing.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I tried chasing, like, you know, and like we had good b days, we had bad days, man. And um one weekend, he left my house to go to Philly. Like, you know what I'm saying? And um probably like Sunday or something, and we didn't hear from him for like a day. And then um they found him, he was unconscious, and uh he was unconscious for so long that the oxygen was stopped going to his brain. You know, so you never expect to lose a child, bro. Like that's like even when I was in the hospital, like I expected him to pull through, man. Like, you know, and it was a struggle. Like we we was we was rumbling, like, you know what I mean? It keeps always being with you like that shit that shit hurt so much, man, and like Even like when my son was going through his shit, like that's why social media is so fucked up. Cause even like when my son was going, like somebody caught him out there and was like put a picture on there, like, look a freeway son, like he out here, like, you know what I mean? And then and I'ma be so transparent with y'all. Like I remember one day I was with my son, and he was on looking at social media and he was like, shout out to K Dot. You know what I mean? God, God willing that, you know, K Dot, you know, win his fight with this shit. Like, you know, it was back and forth for him, like, Sha'Allah, Allah allow him to pull pull through that. But one day my son was like looking at the phone and he started laughing, like, haha, look at K Dot. Like, he down there, like, and I'm like, you going through damn near the same thing K Dot going through. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like, don't laugh at him. Like, what's wrong with you? You know, then K D Dot out outlasted my son. Same person he was laughing at.
SPEAKER_02Same person he was laughing at.
SPEAKER_04And the reason why I'm being so transparent, because this shit is important. Y'all need to hear this. Like, this shit is real. I'm famous as shit, and this shit still affected me. Millions of dollars, and it's still I still can't keep my son from down there. I was in, I was the one with them in them programs and sitting on 28th inch rod in there with my son and people coming in there laughing. And I'm just trying to get my son better.
SPEAKER_05Like, this shit is real. Like it don't matter who you is, it can affect you. No matter who you are.
SPEAKER_04Like it's real, man. That's why we gotta do better, man. We gotta try. That's why I do what I do. That's why when I see them kids graduate, it fucking do something to my heart. Like it's real, man. And we gotta do better. We gotta come together and do better. I don't even talk about what happened to my son. Like, y'all hear me talk about what happened to my daughter. My daughter passed away from cancer. But I don't even really talk about what happened to my son because this shit hurt. Like, people look at me like, yeah, you freeway. You supposed to like I did everything. We lived in the suburbs. He went to the school out when he started messing up in school in Philly. He went to school there. I was still paying child support to his people, and I took him and had him up there with me, and had him in school up there with me, and it still happened to him. He knew Jay-Z. Wilo talked to him, everything, no matter what. We did everything, we tried everything. I locked him in the house. Like, you know what I mean? Like, I tried everything. You know, it's real, man. No matter who you are, no matter how much money you got, it can affect you. Like, it's wicked out here, man. I'm telling y'all, man.
SPEAKER_03Like, there's no joke. I talk about it all the time too, and I speak about you know money, you know, and I always speak it about it to a sentence where I say, like, money isn't money isn't everything. It's it it's valuable because you have to have it, because it provides a way to live. But just because you got money doesn't mean you can stop everything.
SPEAKER_04Like, money is valuable, but we don't worship I don't worship money. Like, you know, I've been pop after being famous. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like, it like money come and go. Like, you know what I'm saying? But it's about when you make mistakes with money, learning from your experiences and trying to do better, man. Like, you know what I mean? Because money is a valuable tool, we need it. Like, I'm I'm definitely not as happy as I am when I got a bunch of money. You know what I'm saying? I'm pretty sure everybody else feels like that, but it's not everything. Like, you know.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. I got a son, man. Um, I got a son who's 20 years old, and um he has an addiction. And I fight with him. Do it all. I like like I'm talking about really like a fist fight. Like, I'm just fighting, bro. I want to reveal something. Like, I'm actually I got arrested for fighting. For my son actually, and his addiction actually attacked me. But they ended up locking me up for him, because you know, for me, for me defending myself against him. But even to this point now, my son just fled and went somewhere else. And and if he's watching this, I'm like, yo, I st I still love you, son. And I still want to um try to help you, son. I'm not turning my back on you because we go through stuff, material things don't mean nothing to me. What means something to me is is you, you know, changing your life for the better. You know, for you to be a better person. Did you hear you freeway? This is our brother in the slam, he lost his son.
SPEAKER_04Listen, listen, young boy. If you listening, man, my son thought he had it figured out. He thought he knew what he was doing. He thought he knew it all, man. And I had the resources, I had the money, I had the friends, I had everything to save him, and I couldn't save him. That shit haunted me. The last day my son walked out of my house, and I didn't get to say goodbye to him. And then he didn't get to see me. Like I saw him in the hospital, like I saw him at his Ganaza. Like, you know, I placed him in his grave. The last time he seen me was when I closed that door. You know how much that bothering me? Like, like, I could be having a great day. And then I think about that and just like young boy, get with your pop, man. Like these streets, like that stuff, like the stuff that you're doing, it might feel good, but it ain't it, man. Get with the people that love you, man. Trust me, man. My son thought he had it figured out and he didn't.
SPEAKER_02Let me ask you this, Free. You know, and before I make this statement, I want to shout out to all the you know single mothers out there raising, you know, their kids by themselves and doing a pretty good job with it, man. I salute you women, man. But how important is it, Free, in today's society? As we came from where we came from to right now, where we know, how important is it for a man to be there for his son?
SPEAKER_04It's very important, man. It's very important. It's probably one of the most important things.
SPEAKER_02Because I don't think a woman can fully equip him with the tools he needs for life.
SPEAKER_04Bro, like, I I could just tell you from my experiences and my life and things that I've seen. So when I was growing up, I had my mom and dad. Like, they went through some stuff, like, you know, probably when I was like 13 or 14, but I still had them. I had them both in my life. They instill morals into me. Like, you know, certain things I won't do. Like, you know what I mean? Like, and I can see the difference in my life and some of my friends that didn't have a dad. Like, I got friends that didn't have a dad that don't give a f about nothing that'll blow your brains out and won't even think about it. Like, you know what I mean? Because they didn't have that man in their house to like instill what a man needs to instill into a son or a daughter.
SPEAKER_02Only a man can do.
SPEAKER_04What only a man can do, man. I'm telling you.
SPEAKER_02No disrespect to the ladies, but it's only a certain point that the women can reach. A man has to be present with a boy. That's what I think, anyway. And what a female is too. But females too, but I'm talking about, but the man to make him bend that, would you say the curve? You see the curve. See, the woman gonna get you on the road, but when that curve comes, the man got to be there. She can't feel like the curve.
SPEAKER_04The best thing for for a child is is a two-parent household. So you don't think a man can do it by herself either? Uh I feel like that it would probably be a little better with a man, but it they need that balance. What would you say earlier?
SPEAKER_02That's what we said.
SPEAKER_04That's why a lot, that's why it's set up like that. Exactly. Because we need that balance. Like, if it was something different, then it wouldn't be set up like that. Like, you know.
SPEAKER_03Wow, man. And you know, and free man, you know, um, you know, I'm sorry to hear about your son, man. I I heard about it, but I didn't I didn't know the extent of the story. Yeah, man. Damn, man.
SPEAKER_04I don't even really like I just man, listen, I don't even really talk about it like that, man. It's embarrassing, it hurt, all kinds of stuff. Like, you know what I'm saying? But if I'm gonna be completely honest with y'all, like, listen, man, like it happened. Like, you know what I'm saying? And like it can happen to anybody. Man, you know what I mean? Famous people, I know, rich people I know that kids they going through with their kids, and their kids got like ask Wallow, he be talking on everybody's kids. Like, Wilo, like, you know, when um rest in peace to Cheese, shout out to my brother Gil, I love you, man.
SPEAKER_03Shout out to rest in peace to cheese, Raheem Allah.
SPEAKER_04Like, me and Wilo had conversations, like, man, I like I talked to Cheese, I talk, I talked to I talked to your son. Like, I already I got the videos of Wilo talking to my son, like, you know what I'm saying? Like, you know, and we got all these people like pouring into them, like, you know, and then the tragedy still happened.
SPEAKER_03Man, like and you know, sometimes, you know, kids, man, they because it's gonna speak it'll be kids watching this episode. You know, you heard it, you heard it for me. You know, you you see free speaking about his son, then like the only reason why why we fight with y'all and try to get y'all on the right path is because we care about y'all, not because we're trying to obtain some type of success, some type of money. It ain't about none of that, it's about just wanting better for y'all.
SPEAKER_02And not even that, not not just that, right, bro. But guess what? We all three done been through it. Ain't nobody no squares sitting up here. For sure. Niggas done made their bones, and that's not no applaud. I'm not saying that for applaud, but we done made the same pitfalls, and by the grace of God, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, we're still here to correct it. So now when we have sons, it's easier to see the pit. I know that it's a hole up there. I've been walking this road before. It's a hole right there that you don't see. Exactly. Not to be uh on your top, and then I got a drum on the hands pop, and nah, bro. It's a whole nother that you ain't seen yet. And that's just it.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, young folks like they they think they gotta figure it out, but they don't. Like, you know, I'm still trying, I'm 40 something and I'm still trying to figure it out. I still need help with certain things, I still need knowledge from certain people, man. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like, and I'm like, I'm famous, I got I'm a deputy sheriff in in Philadelphia, like, and I got that from community work, not because I'm a cop. Exactly. Like, you know what I'm saying? And I still get nervous. I'm famous, I got my own day in Philadelphia, and I still get nervous when the cops get behind me. You know what I'm saying?
SPEAKER_03Like, you know, uh my son, my son talked to me about um how he got into his his addiction and what he uh what he he he spoke about, you know, us letting him go certain places, us letting him hang around certain people and so forth and so on. And that caused him to get into, you know, you know, his addiction and whatever he had going on. Did your son ever speak to you about how he got into his addiction?
SPEAKER_04That's good, man. That's good that you like, that's a good sign that he talked to you and he opened up to you because my son was in denial. Like, nigga, we see you high. Like, I just had to put you on a program, like, and he still was like, nah, I'm good. Like, you know what I mean? Like, was in denial about it.
SPEAKER_02So basically, your advice would be, man, dig into your kids' affairs.
SPEAKER_04And don't give up. Don't give up no matter what. Don't ever give up on your kids, man. Never.
SPEAKER_02But don't it come up? I could see, not saying that I agree with the parents that do give up, but kids be out here going crazy, man. You don't think that'd be a breaking point, like, all right, man. You think you know it all? I done helped you. You stealing out the house. Or you crashed your mom's car, you stole your mom's. Like, kids do shit that you be like, damn, bro. What is your thing?
SPEAKER_04We responsible for our kids though. You know, as parents. So, like, who if we don't do it, who else is gonna do it?
SPEAKER_02Yeah. If you give up on them, it's gonna be BTA if they go to the streets.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, they ain't gonna have as much mercy as you will, trust me.
SPEAKER_03Exactly. Exactly. Now, you lost your daughter as well. Um to you said to cancer. Yeah, shout out to I miss my daughter so much, man. This is I was, I mean, I I know you know, you sever f went went through with with your son, and then just had to go through that right after losing losing your son.
SPEAKER_04How long was she was she battling cancer? She actually was diagnosed in September. My son died in October. So she was diagnosed in September. And then, like you like I said, my son was doing good, like probably like up to August. Like he was doing good, like we was chilling, like you know what I'm saying? And um then that one weekend things just went left. So uh she was diagnosed in September. Then in October, my son passed away. We buried my son, and we go back to rumbling. She had a rare cancer called sarcoma. I don't think nobody survived that, John. They said like one person might have lived like 15 years. But you know, we still was hopeful. Like, you know, we we was prayed up, like you know, and um it just was rough. Like she had tumors everywhere, but alhamdulillah, she still had a smile on her face through it all, man. And like she's a beautiful person, man, and I truly believe that she's gonna make it to Jenna, insha'Allah. You know, the way she dealt with her challenges, and like, you know, up until the last moment, you know. You know, freeway. You got somebody, if you know somebody that's going through cancer, it's important that you be there and you and you be supportive of them, man. Cause it's rough, man. I remember my daughter came came to me and was like, Dad, I think the doctors are giving up on me.
SPEAKER_02Like that, man. Like you know, freeway, I sit right here, right? And I did a lot of time in jail. And I respect you. I've had respect for you before I met you today. Thank you, bro. You mean off your lyrics, off of the way you move. And I want to tell you to your face, man, I got a whole nother respect for you, bro. Thank you, bro. I done did all this time in prison, and that ain't nothing like losing one child, but not only one, but two. And for you to still be growing and building in the direction that you're building in, man. I'm giving you your flowers, man. Thank you, bro. I respect that, man. I respect the work that you're doing, man. I respect the man that you are after you. That's way worse than me. I could have done 50 years, and that shit ain't got nothing on what you got going on, bro. And guess what? You ain't blaming nobody. You could be sitting back, you know how many people probably go through that and just give up. Yeah, man. Just one of those experiences. Guess what I'm saying?
SPEAKER_04Then my pop my pop passed away in 2022 during dementia. Then when, like, when when my we all lived together. So, you know, when jihad passed away, he had dementia. He like, where'd jihad? Like, where'd jihad at? And like I didn't even want to, I I told him a couple times, but then I couldn't even keep telling him because every time I told him, he'd be like, Man, oh man, like it's sad, and like, you know, he didn't want to mess with his mental. I was going through a lot. Then when Harmony died, you know, he was like, he used to be like, she used to be like, he used to be like, Harmony. And Harmony used to be like, pop pop. So my dad used to walk around like Harmony, and it was no pop-pop. Like for her to say pop-pop. So he'd be like, Where, where's Harmony at? And I just be like, she had to go away. Like I wasn't, I didn't want to put him through that no more. Like, you know, because it was like he was getting hurt every time. Then that dementia, man. If you got somebody dealing with dementia, be there for them. Cause like I can't imagine how lonely that is. Like it was a point when my dad would ask me for me, and I'm right there. He'd be like, yo, where freeway at?
SPEAKER_05And I'll be like, Dad, I'm right here.
SPEAKER_04And he'll be like, like, I see him, and he'll be like, like, he don't even he'd be like, okay, like, but he don't really believe me.
SPEAKER_02You were absolutely right. I grew up in foster care, right? And we had a foster family. And she was a cool lady, but she died from that. And I was living in her house, me and two other dudes, and this she'll send us to the store for milk. We be going to the store about three, four minutes, corner store. We come back to the house, we can't get in. Next thing, five minutes later, all these cops pulling up. Damn, what happened? Hey, lady, lady, y'all trying to break in this lady's house. Yeah. She don't even know. She said we trying to break in and she got us living in our house. They like, ma'am, you they had to take us from her. Like, yeah, you can't even cope. These are the kids that you acquired through adoption. And you're talking about they break it in your house. You just sit in the store to get some milk. So I understand exactly what you mean by that. It gets lonely, man.
SPEAKER_03It gets very lonely, man. Bam, man. I went through that with uh, you know, um my father-in-law, Yusuf Rahim Allah. He uh he passed away, but he he had dementia. He's the and one day he he left out the door and was gone for like maybe like two weeks.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, one day my cousin let my dad leave out the door. My little cousin, man, shh, he let him leave out and then he went to go find him, right? So then uh the cops brought him back. So uh I was I told the cops, like, yeah, my cousin went to go find him. And he was like, he got a blue truck? I was like, yeah, he's like, yeah, he came and seen us and sat behind us and then pulled off. Like he was like scared of the cops. Like he sat behind him, ain't even telling that was his uncle. But they had to bring him to the crib. Like he wound up at out the development and in Costco's. Then it was cold. He was sh- I felt horrible.
SPEAKER_03Like, yeah, it's the same thing happened to um my father in law. He he uh the same, he was he was going, he uh the cops brought him to the house. He was out there in the cold for two weeks, man. Wow, they find like an hour or two, or two. They find him like walking around like in a um like in a development, and they brought him to us. It's like he was freezing cold and survived, man. Yeah, man. It was uh that was that was difficult. But um, you know, free man, you know, your trials and tribulations, man, and you're still uh going uh going strong. Strong, free, strong. That's motivating me for you, bro. That's motivating me because stuff I'm stuff I go through, I'm like, it can't be, I you know, it's not that bad, man. It is, it's just it is what it is, man.
SPEAKER_04Then there's people that there's people that like, I do a live every Tuesday. It's called Feeling Healthier Freeway Road to a Healthier You, where we come together for like an hour, and like whatever you're dealing with, we could talk about it. If you're dealing with the loss of a loved one, if you got a health issue, mental health, whatever, you're having a bad day, you're having a good day, whatever you want to talk about, we come together and we talk about it. And there's people, people that lost three people in one week, or like, like, like I lost three people in three years. This somebody called and I think they lost three people in one week or something like that, and then some people lost three people in a car accident in the same day. So it's always somebody doing worse than you doing worse than you.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, it's like I said, when Max said that to me, I I when Max said that line, I and I he said that it even that's on a small scale, but just think about it though. Yeah, you complained about sneaks, and there's people who ain't got no feet. You know, and I I'm gonna keep saying that, but it you know, cause it it really set because I when I go through things, I'm like, I'm I'll be sitting back like, man, I can't complain about nothing. And man, I'm gonna be riding the car, he's like, man, you how you just deal with stuff like because I had nothing to complain about. Like you said, I done been all around the world. I didn't travel, I did so much stuff, and I done seen so much, and you know, I didn't I done took losses before. So it's like, why am I complaining? What do I have to complain about? I have nothing to complain about. And I have opportunity every day to go out, like you said, just stand in front of your door and just breathe. I have an opportunity to go outside and try to and try to make something happen. People don't even have the opportunity. If you go to the uh children's hospitals, it's hundreds of kids in there who can't even come outside. They have cancer, they have these types of you know diseases, they can't come out. It's not, and then there's adults in there who just confined to a bed and they can't come out. Or the penitentiary.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, even that. They hit. They're getting waited on every day. You you in a big old daycare. That's what the penitentiary is, is a daycare. You in there getting governed by other people's rules, not your own, and you can't do nothing on your own.
SPEAKER_04You're in the big ass daycare, and you're crazy if you think daycare.
SPEAKER_02You crazy if you think it's got the vibe there. Drop it. Come on, man. You're in a big ass daycare, and you crazy if you think daycare. Come on, man. Come on, free, man.
SPEAKER_03Sure. Um, I know um just to kind of go into uh back into uh just where we're from in our community. It was something you said, you said um take it with me when I cash my check so they can see clean money.
SPEAKER_04So they could clean money, you came from spitting the royal nine off a bundle of got a stash the rest. Yeah, that's a fact. Like, I remember I got a check for $10,000 and I'm with the cash there, I took some of my young boys with me. Like, this is legitimate here. And we we can do it. I'm doing it.
SPEAKER_03Like, mm-hmm. And you know, that's the thing. Like, we talk about a lot of the young boys who under us who are going to prison, as as the elders or the older people around them, we gotta kind of you know reach out to them and try to take them to see different things.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, for sure.
SPEAKER_03I talked to them, I said, um, I was I'm opportunity that's available for me. And I said, I'm gonna start doing for a lot of the young guys, I'm gonna start taking them out of the city for those who want to go, taking them just places to have like different kinds of meetings and different kinds of things with them to try to show them something different. For sure. But then what then while I'm thinking that, and then now the indictments came, and a lot of the young boys that's from our neighborhood, you know, that YBC gang and stuff like that is going on, they all now indicted.
SPEAKER_04And a lot of them young boys is hot, man. A lot of them young boys got bars, like all sides. Like, I'll be like, damn.
SPEAKER_02A lot of them, the my young boy, yo, shout out the uh Milky man, baby yacht, man. He couldn't.
SPEAKER_04Imagine if they came together. Like, imagine how crazy it would be. Like, could really take over, man.
SPEAKER_02I'm talking about these dudes be athletes, artists. I'm talking about their minds. When you meet these kids and before the things happen to them, you be like, well, damn, you got all these, you got all the tools to succeed and like.
SPEAKER_04As far as influence, what you do as far as as far as influence, it plays a major part of what's going on. But we gotta think about them video games too, like Call of Duty and all that. I mean, they already like home 24 hours shooting, like, so they like, man, we about to take this in real life.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, to the street, yeah. So, Free Man, now do you consider you plan on continuing to go and go to the prisons to speak at the prisons? Is it something you're going to continue with?
SPEAKER_04Most definitely, most definitely. Um, soon, soon. Um, I'm about to go visit a prison in Jersey, and I'm uh probably gonna go back to Chester soon.
SPEAKER_02How is it for you when you're doing that, Free? Because when I sit up here and I tell these stories, right? And it be real stories, it'd be real stories, and it's not bragging or a badge of honor, it'd be therapeutic for me.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, for sure.
SPEAKER_02Like when I'm when I'm done talking to you today, when we close these cameras down and I hug, because I'm gonna give you, I want to give you a big hug. No homo before you get on his not on duty. But man, when I walk away from this today, I'm I'm I got a different perspective of life, man. Because I always be complaining about a lot of stuff, man. Everything a lot of stuff. But now, after talking to you, this is something that I needed. Just the mere conversation of hearing another perspective, man, goes so far. But how would it be when you go in them penitentiaries, man?
SPEAKER_04Everything I do is therapeutic, man. Just being in there with the brothers, like you know, sharing my story, being able to get them some good advice, seeing their reactions, and like, you know what I mean, means a lot to me. Uh the live that I do every Tuesday, sometimes that joint helped me get through the week. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like, even just to be able to talk about what I'm going through. Right. Like, you know what I'm saying? And it's it's a blessing, man. Like, you know, I'm duly law that I'm in a position to be able to do that. Because I could have lost my life to this kidney failure. Like, you know what I'm saying? I could have lost before that I could have lost my life in the shootout or in the streets, like way back in the day. Like, you know what I'm saying? I could have been up, I got a couple homies I could be right next to in jail right now. Like, you know what I'm saying? So it's I'm duly laugh for for the opportunity and to be able to be here and and all the experiences that I've been through shape me who I am. Like, as Muslims, we all know that pen has been lifted and ink has been dried. And the only thing that can change what's already written for us is sincere doa. You know, so we gotta carry it as such.
SPEAKER_05You know, and try to do the best we can. TNS licensing and consulting.
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SPEAKER_04Yeah, most definitely.
SPEAKER_03And now getting around guys who are kind of established. How important was that for you to help shape you as far as your mental and seeing, like, hey, listen, this world is way bigger than Philadelphia.
SPEAKER_04It did a lot for me, man. Like, it opened up my eyes. Like I told y'all, like, Dame told us to make sure we pay our taxes in the beginning. Like, you know, every time I was around, Jay, I would try to pick up a jewel from him. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like, it did a lot for me. I like I didn't even know what a full course meal was. Like a four-course meal. Like, I remember we uh when Beans and Bleak got their rock changed, they took us to uh Philippe Child's and they got like a room in the basement for us to eat. And they brought out like the uh chicken satay and and the and the uh the lettuce wraps, the peanut sauce and all that. Crazy. I'm thinking it's the mill. Like, you know what I mean? I'm going crazy on them, Jones. And then I'm almost full off that. Then here come the second course, the steaks. I'm like, what's this?
SPEAKER_02Like, yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm I'm I'm I'm new to that.
SPEAKER_04They open my fine dining, a lot of different things, like, you know, so it's a blessing, like experiences, like getting to see different things. Like what you were saying earlier, like taking the young folks. Like, uh, we do uh some work in Wilmington, Delaware, too. So we did a couple digital media cohorts um at the community education building in Wilmington. Pardon me. And maybe like, I think it was last summer, we did a uh cohort with some younger kids. I think they was like between like 15 and 18 or something like that. And you know, we took them to see the Book of Hove. We took them to Rock Nation so they could see how a record label is ran. We took them to Rock Nation Sports so they could see how sports agency is ran. We took them to Plains so they could see how uh uh uh clothing line is ran. And then once we got back, like they was telling me some of the kids was like, yeah, freeway took us all around the world. And like we just went to New York. They'd never been out of Wilmington before.
SPEAKER_03Wow.
SPEAKER_04You know, so that opened their eyes to a whole new world. I remember when I was a young boy, when I was in when I when I I'm originally from West. So at one point, all I knew was the Avenue. Because my people lived on like 41st in Parkside. My grandma would take me to the Av the Avenue, Lancaster Avenue. That was the world to me. It was super big. Then when I moved out west, when I was like nine to ten.
SPEAKER_03You mean north?
SPEAKER_04No, when I moved, when I moved further, because I lived on Lindenwood, I lived on uh Parkside, then I moved to Lindenwood. So that's Parkside is like closer to down the bottom near the zoo than I moved to what like up 52nd Street. And like, you know, once I got up there, I seen a bunch of different things. Like, you know what I'm saying? And like, you know, it's just just the different experiences and and everything I've been through, you know, made me who I am, man. And it's real.
SPEAKER_03Wow. And you know, uh Free, like we always uh talk about experiences in in life and and and the things that that you that you go through. Um you know what advice do you do do you have people out here that's you know that's going through stuff? We speak about the kids, but we're not as we talk about the actual adults who are father and these children or or mother and these children and the things that we go through. What advice can you get can you give to the parents out there who who are dealing with uh you know you know parenting issues as far as raising their children? Trouble kids and stuff like that.
SPEAKER_04My my advice for for everybody, like first and foremost, have God as your foundation. Now, you know, when when when you start with God as your foundation, it helps tremendously. Trust me. Like, you know what I mean? If you got a good understanding of who God is and and you have an understanding of who you are and what's your purpose here, then it helps make things a little easier. And then my other advice is be patient. Like be patient with them kids, be patient with them trials, whatever you're going through, be patient. You know, with every difficulty comes ease. Like that's a that's a promise from God, and we gotta we gotta believe that, we gotta stand on that. Everything I've been through, with every difficulty I've been through, came ease. Like, you know, like I I had kidney failure. You know, uh they told me what I needed to do to get a transplant. You gotta do this workup to get on the transplant list. I did the work up, I got on the transplant list, I stayed active, I didn't miss a treatment of dialysis, and in 2019 I got a new kidney home duty lot.
SPEAKER_03And also, you like you said, you know, millions of dollars, you know, been all around the world, you know, close friend Jay-Z. Um after obtaining all that, what motivates you to continue to keep going forward?
SPEAKER_04Well, right now, at this point, trying to make my my good outweigh my bad. Like, you know, like the majority of the work like that's the work that I I feel the best about, and that's not about me. Like, you know, when I make music and certain things, that's that's for me. Like, that's me releasing and it's still it's therapeutic for me, because it's me releasing whatever I'm going through and getting the message out there at the same time. But the other work that I'm doing, like for people, that's for people. Like, you know, that's trying that's for me too, trying to get make sure make sure my good I always my bad. But I'm doing it solely to try to help people and uplift people, man, and help people get in a better position.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, man, you know, uh another question I got in in uh city of Philadelphia, right? Once again. Do you see where is that now? Do you see it like see it getting getting any any better? Like if you can they kind of I mean, I know that's that's a a a a question where as though you gotta have a lot of numbers in front of you to kind of answer it, but from what you see, do you think that is that it's getting better or that it can get better?
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I definitely I definitely feel like it can get better. Like I feel like we on the way. I feel like it's gonna take time, but I feel like it we on the way. I just told you, we almost graduated almost 200 students. Like, you know what I mean? Like look at look at the work that that Mira Parker is doing with her foundation. Like a lot of people may not agree with some of the things that she's doing, but she's doing a lot of work with her green, with the green initiative, like you know, trying to help the communities and help better the people. We got people like Mike that's doing a lot of work in the prisons, like you know, we got people like y'all with y'all podcast that's bringing people in here and allowing them to share their stories that can relate to people and help better people and make help people realize that they have other choices out here. So if we all continue to put the work in and we all continue to try to uplift each other and be better, we ain't got no choice but to be better.
SPEAKER_03Wow. Wow, man. And uh one more thing, man, I just want to say, um, like I heard Gilly say something. He said that you helped him wash his son's body. Um, a lot of people don't understand in our religion that you know we we wash the body of our individuals who lose their lives. How was that you know helping somebody that you know, you know, and seeing the pain that Gilly was going through after losing his son and being there for him through that whole that whole process and what prompted you to actually you know want to be a part of that process?
SPEAKER_04Man, I just went into like you know, that's my brother. So I just I didn't even think. You know, I just the experience that I I'm a firm believer in the experiences that we go through is not just for us, it's to to help other people and to share the experiences with other people. So I've been through this twice. That's my brother. Who else gonna help me? Like, you know what I mean? I I I'm unfortunately I'm an expert. I I buried my son and my daughter and my dad. Like, you know what I'm saying? So I have this knowledge, why not help my brother? Like I it's crazy because that night when when when Cheese passed away, may Allah have mercy on her. I um I was at like a movie premiere um downtown, yeah, at like near the gallery or whatever. And um usually like if I'm downtown, I jump on the E-way, go home, like go all the way out to the suburbs or whatever. But this day I chose because I could get to my crib riding through the city too. Like all the way down Broad Street and go the other way or whatever. So I chose to ride through the city that day. And like when I'm riding down Broad Street, then Wildlo called me, like, yo, they killed G, she's they killed G, she's gone. I got there in like five minutes. I know they like, yo, how you get here that fast? Like, you know what I'm saying? I like and normally I wouldn't even have gone that way. Like, you know, and um as soon as I seen Gil, I hugged him, man, and I like it that sh that shit hurt, man. I lost my son, and then my brother lost his son. Like that hurt. And the crate, like even like when when Oskino's son died, when I got the news that Oskino's son died, I think it was a Saturday, I was in the studio. And when when I heard, you know, that's my brother, so I'm like, damn, I like you know I don't I don't know if I reached out to him, maybe I did, maybe I didn't, I don't remember, but I know why uh I was recording in the middle of recording. I'm a a reality rapper talk about what I go through. So I was like my my brother Oskino just lost his son. I'll probably lose my mind if I lost a child. I still got the record. And then four days later, my son died. I went to Oskino's son, Janazah, and then my son died 504 that same day. And our birthdays is four days apart. So I'm still I was still trying to wrap my mind around that. Like, wow, like you know, like but yeah, um it's our duty as Muslims, and you know, that's my brother Gil, my brother, so I had to be there for him. Like it was like, you know.
SPEAKER_03And he spoke about that, and he was like, he was like, man, thanks to thanks to free, like man, free helped me get, you know, because people understand, you know, like washing a body, washing a bias a lot that goes with that, man.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, man.
SPEAKER_03You gotta you gotta it's a lot, you gotta, you know, turn the body and move. And this is it, and this is your loved one. Somebody that you love unconditionally. And and and then you have to really be able to stomach it because, like you said, uh well, which uh Gilly's son died in in gun violence.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_03So you gotta be able to stomach what you see while washing your body and you know and not be and keep it to yourself.
SPEAKER_04Yeah. Like you like you can't tell nobody what you see in that drama.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, so having to do that, not only did you do you lose a child, you gotta wash that child, and then you also gotta place that child inside the grave. You know? And that's that's tough for anybody. Heavy on the mental. You walk in there.
SPEAKER_04I got the I got to wash my wash and rap my dad, but when my son passed away, it was still COVID, so I couldn't even wash and rap him. The brother that washed and rapped him, I got to hug him and like, you know, give him my love. And like, you know, I really appreciated that. Like, you know what I'm saying? But yeah, man, it's rough, but the beautiful thing about Islam, and like the reason why I'm Muslim is because Islam makes sense to me. Like, it's everything makes sense to me. And the beautiful thing about Islam, like, my mom and my aunts is not Muslim. Like my father, Alhamdulillah, I got to take him to take shahada. Like he when he passed away, he had a shahada. My son and my daughter, of course, they were Muslim or whatever. You know, and um after my son's Jannaz, like my mom and my aunts, they stone cold Christians. And I always, I'm pretty sure if you have any people that's not Muslim in your family, you probably the same way. We want our family, we want our family members to be Muslim. So we always like as much as we can.
SPEAKER_03My dad, my mom, I'll be on, I'll be on them.
SPEAKER_04We try to give them da'wah or whatever. So after after my son's Janazah, after they seen us pray over my son and they seen us put him in a grave, they came to me and it was like, we never seen nothing this beautiful before. Like the care that y'all take, that y'all give y'all loved ones is beautiful, it's uh it's amazing. And now they're a little more receptive when I share information to them. They share information with them, man. So, you know, that's the beauty of Islam, and that's what I'm talking about. Even with the young folks in our community, when y'all ask me what should we do to help them be better, we gotta show them. Like, you know what I mean? Like when my mom and my aunt seen that with their own eyes, they like, oh wow, this is beautiful. Like, this is what real Islam is about. Because if you listen to the news and like you think we run around like, oh, yeah, some wild crazy. You know what I mean? So it's about like real experiences and getting to see with your own eyes. And I feel like we show these young folks and we we in their face and we let them see and and feel and experience the real, like, inshallah, slowly but surely they'll come around.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, man. Um, so I just want to say to you, man, thank you, free man, for coming through today, man, once again. No, no problem uh and sharing uh your story, your pain, man. You know, you got me up here crying with you, man. Thank you. And I have I have a son, like I said, I got two sons. I got a little baby son now. Um I got a little boy, and I uh and every day I look forward to being with him every single day. I look forward to I I rush home to see him. Um I'm just I'm I'm I'm I'm holding him, looking at him at night. I'm I'm uh you know, I'm just everything that I'm changing. I'm just every I'm just being a father, you know, trying to be a father. And I'm also thinking about what I'm gonna do as he gets older, how I'm gonna try to raise him and um do different things. I'm gonna lie, inshallah, you do a good job. He's gonna be there for you. You know what I mean? Yeah, man, yeah. Because our kids are very, very important. Um, everybody, like you said, you're freeway, man. So, you know, people probably already know how know how to get how to find you on social media. But for those who cannot find you on social media may need some help with some guidance, yeah. Where can they find you at free?
SPEAKER_04On Instagram, I'm Philly Freeway, on Facebook, I'm Philadelphia Freeway, on X, I'm Philly Freezer, and I got a uh uh TikTok, but I don't even really be on that joint. I don't even remember what that joint is. But and the website for Freedom Thinkers Academy is www.freedomthinkers.academy.
SPEAKER_03And what else do you have coming up next? You got anything coming um as far as you know, any any new um uh movements as far as far as what you have, what you don't have to do.
SPEAKER_04Uh we dropped, I'm dropping a project. Uh Philly 250, probably like within the next month. Uh, my third annual free fest at the Philadelphia Navy Yard is next Saturday, August 1st, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. And you know, we got a bunch of stuff going on with the community. Uh, we're gonna have some more cohorts, some more uh digital media cohorts and phlebotomy cohorts popping up real soon, probably like September. So, you know, check in with me on my social medias for the information. And you know, we're gonna just keep pushing forward and trying to uplift the community as much as we can, Charla.
SPEAKER_03For sure. And also, you you know, us uh tells from the jails. Uh, we are on all platforms as well. We on uh you can find us on Instagram at Tells from uh from from the jails, also you can find us on TikTok at Tells from the Gels. Also, uh um we are on Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Spotify, all those platforms as well. And thanks to y'all, our podcast is uh just gotten to the top 200 uh podcast, um, you know, Apple Podcasts. So that's that's a major thing, you know what I'm saying? That's great to do that. Thank you, man. And um, we just want to keep pushing, man, and uh keep keep doing what we're doing. We uh thank y'all for tuning in. Anything you want to say young before we get about it? Man, I just want to hug free. I'm just trying to hug freeway, man. I mean, that's it, man. Yeah, show some love, man. Yeah, some love. So I want to thank everybody for tuning in once again. Thank everybody for their support. Thank everybody who's been tuning in and rocking with us from day one. Also, everybody who's been supporting Freeway. You know, Freeway is somebody in Philadelphia. I was just I would say Philadelphia starting with Philadelphia. I know it's all we worldwide, but Philadelphia, everybody knows Freeway is somebody who's legendary in our communities uh for a lot of good reasons. So thank you for once again, man. And uh it's tell us from the jails, we out of here.