The Bill Bellamy Episode

What started as an ordinary interview turned into something neither of them expected. Backstage at the Improv in Milwaukee, Promise and Bill Bellamy reflect on the ironic circumstances of their first meeting—and how it opened the door to something greater. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:00

Man, listen, man. I'm I'm just excited that, you know, life is good, you know, and I'm doing what I love to do in the response. And sort of like it's been a a renaissance in the culture a little bit, you know, where I feel like my fans, it's a lot of nostalgia because cats grew up with me, you know what I'm saying? Like I raised you. Big fat. You feel me? Tell me how to beat me. I taught you how to beat.

SPEAKER_00 0:37

Well, you can get it straight from the yet. With promise.

SPEAKER_03 0:55

It's not a threat, it's a promise.

SPEAKER_01 0:59

Yo, what it do? You know who it is and what it is. She got promise. Appreciate you tapping in to another episode of Straight from the Yap with Promise, brand new podcast sponsored by Nicolay Law. And you know, I'm kicking it in the Yap house. So appreciate you coming through the vibe with me. But you know, I gotta get relaxed. You know what I'm saying? I'm in the crib and I got an amazing episode for you today. I got a special guest coming through. But see, it's a little different. He's not in the studio. I recently had the chance to catch up with the legendary Bill Bellamy. You know, this dude from MTV Jams, Cousin Skeeter, How to Be a Player, stand-up specials, movies, all of that, man. Had I recently had a chance to catch up with him backstage at one of his shows when I had the chance to open up for him. So he's not in the studio, but I'm gonna tell you how it all came together because it's a crazy story. Plus, I'm gonna tell you about our relationship, how we linked up, and how we even got a chance to connect. But before all of that, again, I'm in the Yap house, you hanging out with me. I gotta get relaxed. Hello, neighbor. I'm gonna take these fresh Air Force Ones off, aka Doogies, and I'm gonna hop up on this couch, and I'm gonna get ready to vibe out with you. So again, appreciate you coming through to Vibe Out with me. And make sure you subscribe, like, comment on the page, and stay tapped in everything we got going on at the Yap House straight from the Yap. Now, there's something I used to do when I had my radio show called PSAs, Promise Service Announcements. And I feel like it'll be the perfect time to bring that thing back here on a new platform. So check this out. PSA, Promise Service Announcement. Change your battery and your smoke detector. Yeah, I'm talking to you. You trying to be cute, flexing on the gram, posting videos, and all we hear in the background is. Yeah. You can't even get a sentence out. You trying to post something, you trying to do something, and all we hear in the background is you on the phone, having a business conference, having a Zoom, having a meeting. And in the background, all we hear is change the battery and that goddamn smoke detector. I know I'm talking to somebody, and it just might be you. This has been a PSA Prime Service announcement. Yeah. Alright, now again, I told you, I got a dope episode for you today. The one and only Bill Bellamy is going to be a guest. But before we get into that interview, I gotta tell you how this thing all came together. This is the time where, you know, I hadn't told everybody about the podcast coming out yet. But in my head, I'm like, yo, I gotta find a way to get B on the show, even though we hadn't really even started filming nothing yet. But I was just like, I got this new podcast coming out. Don't nobody know about it. I gotta find a way to try to talk to B and try to get him on the pod. So I ended up texting T. I remember telling him, like, yo, crazy thing is you kind of suggested it almost a year ago, and like, I'm really about to do this podcast. He like, man, congratulations, bro. We proud of you, you super talented, like, do your thing. So he's like, I ain't coming to the mill this time with uh with B, but I'll run it past him. I'm like, yeah, just hit him, let him know what I'm trying to do. And then I text Bill as well. So once he gets to town, it was crazy because like I had hit him to try to like see what the play was, not even to perform or nothing. I'm just trying to figure out how can I get him to come to this new space that I got, you know what I'm saying? Come to the Yaf house, come pull up on me. And it was crazy, like trying to get him that day, because he had so much going on, he was doing press other places. And when he finally texts me back, he like, P, what's up? What's the podcast? What's going on? So I'm like, it don't exist yet, but I'm trying to get you to, you know, kind of christen and do the do the joint for me. So it's like, long story short, it just really didn't work out, right? To where we couldn't get B to pull up to the space. But, you know, my brain is always running, I'm always thinking of things. So I remember talking to the squad and specifically to, you know, my engineer, Ken B. So I'm just like, man, what if we go portable? Like, what if we bring this spot to him? If he can't come to the Yap house, what if we do it portable? So we just do some improv shit, really without having a green light from him, because he really hadn't gave me an answer or not. We just like, let's let's try it. So um that night before I had opened up for him and it was a good vibe. And the next night, you know, they was like, yo, you coming back? And I'm like, yeah, I'm gonna come back and rock. So I didn't even really want to perform. I mean, I always want to perform, but my goal was to try to get him on the pod. So anyway, we go on set, we kick it in the green room, and we trying to get him to do the pod while we there. And so he's like, Man, there's too many people in the damn green room. Where are we gonna shoot this at? And we like, you Bill Bellamy, this is your dressing room. You can tell everybody to get out. And we can record it here because it's well lit, it's got good lighting in here, and he really wasn't trying to shoot it in there. So what ends up happening is we go into like a hall that's in the improv. And it wasn't the quietest, because it was probably like 15 minutes before the show starts. Mind you, I'm getting ready to go open for him again. But we had a little window, you know. We grabbed some couple mics and we basically shot an impromptu interview and had some fun with him, you know, backstage before I got ready to rock with him. So you're gonna get a chance to see the conversation between myself and Bill Bellamy backstage before we perform at the Improv in Milwaukee recently. So let's check it out. I'm sitting next to a man who needs no introduction, the living legend of movies, TV, stand-up, the one and only Bill Bellamy. They're good, my boy.

SPEAKER_02 6:06

Hey, man, listen, man. I'm I'm just excited that, you know, life is good, you know, and I'm doing what I love to do in the response. And sort of like it's been a renaissance in the culture a little bit, you know, where I feel like my fans, it's a lot of nostalgia because cats grew up with me. You know what I'm saying? Like I raised you. Big facts. You feel me? Taught me how to beat me. I taught you how to beat. You feel me? He didn't know what he was doing until he met me.

SPEAKER_01 6:32

But no, this is a full circle moment too, because you know, the first time I ever met you, we backstage here at the Improv in Milwaukee. First time I ever met you was here. Yes, sir. A couple years ago, I got to interview and have my radio show. Absolutely. Stand down, watch you do your thing, met you and Terrence, you know what I'm saying? Ever since then, stayed in contact with you.

SPEAKER_02 6:48

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. And I remember uh what I remember vividly about that uh interview was you saying that, you know, you didn't want to do radio forever.

SPEAKER_00 6:57

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 6:58

And you were like, yo, B Man, I'm a comedian. This is my like kind of day job thing or whatever. Yeah. And um, I don't know, can what can I tell what happened? Come on, speak on it. So this is so crazy. This goes to show you how fate works, right? Over a year ago, just over a year ago, yeah. I'm at the radio station. You say, yo, B Man, I want to really, really get out there and do my comedy thing for real, for real. I said, Well, you know you're gonna have to step out on faith. I know you got this day job and this, that, and the other. So you hooked me up with the barbershop. Yeah, I go to the barbershop. You standing out there and you like, yo, they canceled my show today. So you had no choice. You was my you was my last guest. I was the last guest wanna go out with welcome to the game, bro. You ain't even, and then you, I'm gonna tell you what I remember so dope about that moment. Yeah. You wasn't angry nothing. Nah. You was like, oh, this is good. Because now I could do what I really want to do.

SPEAKER_01 7:57

But you know, it was crazy, it was the highest, highest, lowest, low. Okay. You had just early that morning before I know I was gonna get laid off. Right. You gave me the opportunity to come open for you. Absolutely. So I'm on high. Then when I find out I get canned, I'm like, damn, but I'm like, I gotta lock in. Yes, sir. I can't let this moment defy me. I gotta go rock tonight. So I remember like, I didn't even want to tell you. Shout out to the homie GA. He said, You gotta tell B, you gotta tell us. Remember, we take you to the barbershop and tell you what happened. And you like, man, don't even worry about that comfort phone tonight. And I remember that last night, because I rocked you remember that whole weekend. Yes, sir. You sat me down, you talked to me that last night, you said, I don't know why this happened to you. I don't know why I was here when it happened. You have everything happened for a reason. I still gonna be a high. And shout out to T, your manager, because T was like, dude, you do a podcast. Fuck it, if it happened, dude, but I'm like, it's so fresh, my head scrambled. So I'm happy to announce that we're gonna we're gonna drop the news, B, they don't know. I got a brand new podcast. We do it, B Fisher. Look at straight from the Yeah, what promise, brand new podcast for y'all 26? We're gonna do it. This the guy, man.

SPEAKER_02 8:56

I'm all the dead, man. It's a good dude, man. You know, and I I'm glad to hear stories like this because I lived that moment with you.

SPEAKER_01 9:03

Yeah, you know, you were a part of you a part of my story forever.

SPEAKER_02 9:05

Absolutely, man. And it happens, you know, for government doesn't make mistakes. And I think what was so pivotal about that moment was you had to decide what you want more. Yeah. Did you want to be laid off or you want to get busy? Yeah. Like laid off is just a mentality. Yeah, but you wasn't laid off, you was free to do what you want to do to keep grinding.

SPEAKER_01 9:25

Keep grinding. By that layoff, blessings in the sky. Shout out to Nikola, our sponsor. Yes, was sponsoring the radio station, fought out what happened, helped set up the podcast deal. So I lost one area, but two months. Come on now. Come on, won't he do it? Now, B, before I let you go, you know, we did this on the radio, we gotta do it on camera now. Okay. I'll play first and last. First and last. Axe the first, axe last, the man may not be connected. You ready? Okay, go. First and last with legendary Bill Bellamy. Bill, what's the first thing you do when you wake up? Thank God for another day. Amen. Yes, totally respect that. All right, B. We just talked about it earlier. It's a classic. I got the DVD still at the crib. I got you, I gotta have you sign it. Okay. B when's the last time you watched How to Be a Player?

SPEAKER_02 10:07

Last time I watched How to Be a Player was maybe two years ago. Word. And uh it was on it was on um one of the platforms, and I just watched TV. It was it was it it was so dope because you know the first beginning of the movie is James Brown. Yeah, and um, and I'm I'm I'm taking a uh shower on the stage in anywhere. I'm getting ready for my day and I just remembered how much fun I had making that movie because uh really Hot of Be a Play is just the best day ever. And if you were to change the title, it's called the best day ever, folks, because that was the how I was feeling that I'm having the best day ever here. Firebox picks is coming to see me. Yeah, my boy, I'm gonna see you. And so I watched it, and I see why people like it. It's a very, you know, wonderful movie to enjoy.

SPEAKER_01 10:59

And you had so many amazing, beautiful women with mass mates. You know what I'm saying? You had a you had a roster, boy. Last month my roster was clean.

SPEAKER_02 11:06

You know, that's why my roster was not clear.

SPEAKER_01 11:09

But then you was bogus, you got your homies sitting in the car while you gave me clean players.

SPEAKER_02 11:14

But they couldn't, they couldn't, because they're gonna sit and be loud if they was in the apartment. That's why I made them sit in the car. I'm not a little Thunderbird, you make a little Thunderbird, Thunderbird, my brother. Listening to the radio radio, we had those consents, but don't do it in there.

SPEAKER_01 11:31

All right, B, when is the first time you realized you were famous? You've been doing this a long time, bro.

SPEAKER_02 11:37

Wow. I think our first time I realized I was famous was right after I did Def Comedy Jam. Well, that's who didn't know my face, but they knew I was Bellamy. They would be like, yo, you my man, um, oh, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on. You my man Ralph Bellamy. Or they would say, yo, you Bill Big Devo. They just built it with anything with the road. And uh the big blow up like from that point was MTV because I was on the TV every day. Okay. And everybody used to say, You Bill Bellamy, you Bill Bellamy.

SPEAKER_01 12:12

Yeah, okay. Bill, last one. What's the last job you worked before you got into the entertainment industry? Like, what was your last regular job?

SPEAKER_02 12:21

I was working in marketing. So I was a um what they call a regional marketing manager. This was my my uh job that I got out of school, and I worked for um a tobacco company at that time, and it was like um, it was a really good job, actually. I had company car, expense account. I had eight um sales reps under me. Okay, you know, because I had gotten a degree in uh marketing and uh economics, so I I kind of got in a mid-level managerial job in sales. So I was doing pretty good. And um, but I didn't want to do that for the rest of my life. Like I was like, I like marketing, but not like this. I'd rather work for me. You want to market yourself? Yeah, work market Bill Bellamy, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 13:04

Yeah, yes, sir. No, that's crazy. B, as always, bro, I appreciate the energy and the time that you give me, or the pointers you give me the game, you give me the conversations. And sometimes it just tripped me out that I look at my phone, I'm like, dog, I got Bill Bellamy's number. I don't know.

SPEAKER_02 13:18

You know what I'm saying? Hey man, listen, bro. I always tell people this. I'm gonna leave this with you. Your gifts make room for you. So the gift is is your is is your your black card. Your gift is your access to your dreams and to the people within that dream. So your your love for comedy put you in the world to meet me. Yeah. Now, if you was in the in the world of being the best janitor, you would have made a dope ass judger. With a bunch of dudes, bro. Hey, B, don't talk about the social media thing, not follow you all. Okay. All right, y'all, man. Stay tapped in with your boy Bill Bellamy. On Instagram, it's at Bill Bellamy. On uh Threads, it's Bill Bellamy, on TikTok, it's Bill Bellamy. Like just know the name, know the game. You feel me? Man, Legend, I appreciate you.

SPEAKER_01 14:12

Oh, brother. We got more coming for you. Brand new podcast, straight from Yahweh promises on deck. And you already know, it's not a threat, it's a promise. Yeah. Boom! I like that. It's not a threat, it's a promise, I ain't gonna. So, probably like three years ago, I had the pleasure of interviewing Bill. Now, I had my morning show. Bill was in LA, I was in Milwaukee, there was a time zone difference. So he wasn't able to come to the city and do the interview ahead of time. So we set it up virtually, we did the interview. And it was dope. It was my first time getting a chance to talk to him. Obviously, I had been a fan of his work from before, but truly, I didn't really know B from stand-up. Like when I was a kid, I remember him seeing him on MTV, seeing him in music videos, knew he was the voice of Cousin Skeeter on Nickelodeon, stuff like that. You know, of course, how to be a player, classic films. But I didn't really know about his stand-up bag. Like I knew back in the day he had dead Deaf Comedy Jam, but that was before my time, so I never really had seen him do stand-up. But I do remember he had the like Who's Got Joke show. So I knew he did his thing in stand-up, but I really knew him from film and from television. So when we chopped it up, you know, we had a good conversation, it was just good energy. And, you know, after doing the interview, B was like, yo, when I come to town, like, pull up to the show. You know what I'm saying? Come through. So I was like, cool, appreciate it. So about a week later, he comes to the mill, and I go to see him when he's at the improv performing. And after the show, he comes out, we meet, and in person, and he's like, yo, the old man still got it. I'm like, absolutely, bro. I'm like, you funny as hell, like, never seen you do stand-up live before. You did your thing. I thoroughly enjoyed the show. And Bill runs with uh his role manager, Terrence, T. And when you meet T, T kinda got like an intimidating personality. Like, he's a real tall, big, bald head dude, and his demeanor is just like no bullshit. But he's cool once you get to know him, and if he rocks with you, he's gonna let you in. But when I'm first meeting him, like I don't know how to read him right away. But T basically says to me, like, yo, Bill might want to go get some food or go check out some spots while we in town. Um, take my number and text me some stuff we can check out while we're here. So I'm like, all right, cool, no problem. So I send T the information. Now, the type of person I am, I got my days where I can be aggressive and I can involve myself in things, and other times I'll fall back and I'll be more reserved. So this time I didn't assert myself. I wasn't like, yo, I could take y'all here, tell you where to go, do this, do that. I just text the information over and I dipped out of the club. You know what I'm saying? So I don't know where they end up going, what they did or didn't do, while they was in town that weekend. But that was kind of that. But I kept Terrence's number and I didn't have any direct contact with Bill, but I'm like, if I got his manager information, I know somehow I got access to him. So probably like maybe a few months to a year go by. And I just would text T here and there just to tap in, like, yo, how you doing, bro? Uh, y'all on the road, how's things going? Just kind of standing aloop with him. And T is based in Atlanta, and Bill is based on the West Coast, but obviously they travel and they do a lot of shows and events together. But I was just standing aloop and just kind of tap in with him here and there just to kind of see how he was doing. He'll respond, just kind of keep that line of communication open. So, fast forward to a few months later, they actually was getting ready to come back to Milwaukee for like a Mother's Day show. We wasn't able to link that time, but again, just keeping that communication, networking is key in this industry, um, just to keep your relationships open and to grow your, you know, your surroundings and your circle. So another time comes up with B getting ready to come back to the city in the fall. So I reached out to Terrence and I'm like, yo, um, we did a virtual interview. I would love to get a chance to have B come to the station, you know, in person to do this interview. So we're trying to figure out a way to set it up to make it happen. Long story short, um, B is a morning guy. I don't know that he's an early dude. He likes to get up early. And at the time I had a morning show. So I didn't know if he'd be wanting to come and do the show early or live, and he was like, Yeah, he would do it. So it's like, all right, bet. So we set it up for B, you know, to come and to do the show. So I had never told Bill that I did stand-up comedy, you know, or that I had aspirations to do it. The first time we chopped it up, the only thing I talked to him about is I was curious how he got into acting. Because, you know, early back in the day, he used to do V-Jing, or, you know, he was a host on MTV and he would host a lot of different things. So I said, bro, how did you end up getting into the MTV gig and things like that? He said, Well, when I was first doing comedy in Jersey, I had a manager at the time. He said, My manager told me that I should take some acting classes. He said, So from taking acting classes, I ended up getting a book with MTV. Obviously, we know the rest is history. He does how to be a player, he does the movie brothers and all these other films, and that's kind of how he got his feet in that area. So I told him at the time, I said, bro, I've really been thinking about taking some acting classes, but I haven't done it yet. And he, like, don't even think about it, like, just do it. It'll be something else to have in your bag. Now, again, at this time, he only knows that I'm doing, you know, radio. He has no idea about me trying to do stand-up or anything like that. So fast forward, you know, we get a chance to do the interview. He comes to the station, and it's a dope ass moment. You know what I mean? Um, I get to tell him full circle, like B. I ended up taking the acting classes, um, and he's like, that's what's up, that's great. So talking to him, we're having a dope conversation. He's only supposed to be there for like 30 minutes. Terrence don't come to the station with him. But Terrence is like, yo, he's only supposed to be there for 30 minutes. Like, let B come in there and do his thing, let him get out of there. Man, Bill stayed for like a whole hour. You know what I'm saying? So we do an entire interview for an hour live on the radio. He's acting a fool, we taking callers, like, we just having a great time. So the homie GA, and if you go back and you watch episode or listen to episode one, if you're not watching us on YouTube, you go back and listen to episode one of the pod, GA and I kind of talk a little bit about kind of what happened on this day, because it was like one of the best and worst days ever. So we had this amazing interview with Bill, and while we live on the radio, he says, Yo, you pulling up to the improv tonight, because he's performing an improv Milwaukee. And I was like, Yeah, absolutely. I'm gonna come to the show, I'm gonna come check you out. And he like, nah, I'm not talking about, you know, you coming to see me. He said, Are you gonna do your thing on stage? And in my head, I'm trying to think, like, how the hell does Bill know I do stand-up? I don't remember ever telling him I did comedy. I don't remember telling T that. So I don't know if they looked on my social media or really even how they knew that. But they, you know, knew I did comedy for some reason. And Bill kind of has the story mixed up because he says that he in the story, he's basically saying that I told him that I wanted to do stand-up, but he got it mixed up. I actually never told him that. So anyway, live on the air, he's like, I want to see you do your thing tonight. You gonna pull up? And I'm like, man, the clip stay loaded. Like, absolutely, it'll be an honor. So he gives me the blessing to say, yo, you're gonna come and you're gonna perform, you know, at the improv for me tonight. So I'm geeked this opportunity to open up for Bill Belling, you know, to be in front of his audience, to gain a new audience, like let people see me do my thing. We live on the radio at the time. My show is popping. So I'm I'm on cloud 10. You know what I'm saying? I'm I'm in late, not cloud nine, I said I'm on 10. Fast forward, GA dips, Bill asks us a place to get some breakfast. You know what I'm saying? He goes about his business. I'm thinking, like, all right, cool, I'm gonna see him later. The craziest thing happens, and we talked about it a little bit on that uh earlier episode. Man, I get laid off that same day. So you talk about being on the highest of the high and the lowest of the low. Like, I just find out that I'm opening for uh a huge comedian and getting a chance to be on his platform, but at the same time, I just lost my job. And it's crazy when you lose your job when you didn't do shit wrong. It's one thing if you know you were slacking off, you know you ain't been on your JO, so you lose your job, you like it is what it is, I'm gonna hold an L. Losing your job when you're doing well at it, and you have a number one show and they gotta pay you a bonus out is just crazy. So, you know, lose my gig or whatever, I'm frustrated, but at the same time, I can't even really be mad or be dwelling in it because I have to lock in and know I gotta perform later that night. So my emotions is all over the place. So, you know what I'm saying? I end up chopping up with GA. We talk about what happens, and this is where the story gets crazy. So me and GA are in the parking lot of Starbucks, which is probably a few blocks from the station. We just stand in the parking lot. We not even in the building. We just in the parking lot just looking at each other like, what the hell just happened? Like, how did we just lose our jobs? We tripping. So we in there chilling in the parking lot, just kind of going through the motions. And G, like, yo, let's go inside. I'm not a coffee dude at all. I don't drink coffee. But G, like, man, I got to get something. So I go in there with him. He's like, man, let me buy you an energy drink. Let me buy you something. We just got to kind of figure out what's going on. So I get a drink, he gets something. We sitting down at the table in Starbush, just kind of like laughing, but just being like, how the hell did you just happen? At the same time, still geeked up about this opportunity to perform with Bill later tonight. So we sitting at the table talking, and I get a text message from a number that I don't have in my phone. And if you listening to earlier, I told you I never had contact with Bill directly. I only would talk to his manager T. Never had B's number ever. I get a text message, it's like it's Bill. Like, yo, it's Bill. So I look at the phone, I'm like, what's good? He like, yo, I need a cut. You know where I can get a haircut? And in my head, I'm like, what? Now, when I seen him earlier that day, now that I think about it, he had a Yankee fitted on. So I don't know what his hairline was looking like. So apparently he was like, yo, I need to get fresh for this show tonight. You know, can you hook me up with getting a cut or whatever? So I'm like, you need me to tuck my barber, you know what I'm saying? See what's good. He like, yeah, if you can. So then I end up just calling him. So I'm like, bro, you serious and you joking? He like, nah, I'm dead ass serious. Like, I need to get a haircut for tonight. So I'm like, all right, cool. Let me set something up for you. So I'm like, what time are you available? So I set something up, hit up the barber, you know what I'm saying? Tell him, like, hey, this is not a joke. Bill Bellman wants to get a haircut. Can you get him in? He like, yeah, tell him to come at this time. So GA, like, shit, I'm rolling with you. I ain't got no job. I'm laid off. I ain't got nothing else to do. Like, I'm finna roll with y'all. So I'm like, all right, cool. So we end up going to the barbershop, and this is where the state, the story just gets even crazier. We go to the barbershop and we sitting there waiting for B to come. And GA is like, yo, you gotta tell Bill what just happened at the station. And I'm like, nah, bro, like, I'm not trying to kill the move. We got a good vibe going on. Like, there's no way I'm about to tell, bro, what just happened. Like, I'm focusing on performing tonight. And GA is like, nah, man, like he's a part of your story. He was there when it happened. You gotta tell him. So I don't really want to tell B what happened, but GA is adamant, like, you gotta tell him. So we sitting here waiting, you know, thinking Bill is gonna get dropped off by like an Uber or his team or somebody gonna be with him. Bro, Bill Bellamy, tall, lanky ass, walking down the block by itself. We like, B, what is you on? So he walk up like this is shop. We like, yeah, he like, all right, cool. So I'm like, hey, I'm like, after you get your hair cut, I got something to tell you. He like, all right, we go in the barbershop. So some people at first recognize who he is, some people not paying attention or whatever. So I tell my barber, like, yo, I need you to take care of him, whatever. So Bill in the chair getting lined up or whatever. So one dude walk over, like, oh man, I I uh I named, I can't remember if he said he named his kid Dre because of the character in the movie or his name. I don't know, whatever. So, bro talking to Bill, somebody trying to sell him some uh food and shit. You know how the barbershop be. Somebody like, I got these pies, I got, you know, Bill, like, man, I'm good. So we just chillin'. GA sitting there, I'm sitting there, Bill getting cut up. You cannot make this up. While we are in the barbershop, the U.S. Marshals come into the barbershop, like three or four of them, hands on hips, hands on guns. They walk in, we everybody just stopped conversation, silent in the barbershop. And you know a barbershop live. I'm talking about you can hear a pin drop. Everybody looking like, what is going on? I'm thinking, like, man, I'm gonna have Bill on TMZ. I got this man in here getting chopped up, and here come the damn uh U.S. Marshals. You know what I'm saying? So they come in, they looking for somebody. We don't know what's going on. So, you know, Bill, like, hey, it ain't me. I ain't do shit. So everybody just kind of tense, like, what's going on? Apparently they're looking for somebody who works in the shop. We don't know what's going on. I'm just like, man, this is crazy. I gotta get Bill up out of here. So Bill finished getting the cut. He just like, bro, what the hell is going on? Where you got me at? I said, hey man, it's it's Milwaukee. Anything can happen anytime. So um we go outside real quick and I tell Bill about what happened with the radio station. So he's like, bro, like you lost your job today. I'm like, yeah. So first I blame it on him. I'm like, man, you was acting a fool, dog. You got me can. He like, what? I'm like, no, I'm just messing with you, dog. I'm like, it is what it is, man. These people made a decision we don't agree with. They ain't know our culture, they decided to pull the plug and flip our format. It is what it is. So he was like, you know what, don't even worry about it. You gotta perform tonight. Like, just lock in, be ready to do your thing. So if you know anything about stand-up comedy, when young comedians or up-and-coming comedians get a chance to open for an established comedian or uh a veteran or whatever, you typically might get three to five minutes to kind of show what you can do on an opening set, you know, to see if you're funny or not. So I'm I'm used to that because I've been open for Donnell Roders and some other cats. So I'm like, B, what you want me to do? Have like five ready? And he's like, five? He like, fool, I can't see if you're funny in five minutes. Like you ain't got 10, you ain't got 15. And I'm like, absolutely, I'm just trying to be respectful. He like, nah, man, come with your shit, do your thing tonight. So again, I'm I'm I'm elated, but I'm like kind of salty at what happened. So we leave the shop or whatever, and me and GA hold it in the entire weekend. We don't tell nobody. So the public has no idea what just happened with our radio station, which was high 105.7. People don't know that I lost my show. The morning grind will promise. Like, nobody knows anything. So that weekend, I end up rocking with Bill on five shows. Amazing. Five sold out shows. I open all five shows. Bill is giving me advice on what I'm doing good, how I can tweak things, but he's like, yo, you funny, you got good material. Like, yo, rock out with us the whole weekend. So I'm booked the whole weekend with him. GA comes to the first show kicking with us, and then GA ends up coming the last night. And I didn't really want to be backstage talking about what happened because we just having a good vibe. But backstage is T, his manager, Rudy Rush, who a lot of people know who used to host Showtime like The Apollo. He also used to do radio. Uh, what I think um Tom Jonah or Doug Banks, one of them. And Bill comes to me and says, Yo, did you tell Rudy what happened? And I'm like, nah. He like, tell Rudy he will understand, bro. He did radio for years. And I'm like, bro, I'm not trying to, you know, bring dude down with that energy. I remember watching him on Apollo when I was a kid. And he like, bro, just tell him. So I end up talking to him, telling him what happened or whatever. And they kind of all give me encouragement. And the crazy thing is, Bill's manager, T is like, yo, man, forget it, man. It is what it is. Like, do a podcast. And at the time, my brain is fried, bro. Like, I just lost my job. Like, I had a podcast probably five, six years ago. I was doing some stuff like right before COVID and like when COVID first started. So I'm not new to like doing the pod thing, but I was just like, man, I don't know. Like, my brain's scattered, bro. I ain't thinking about nothing right now. I'm just trying to figure things out. So I remember that last night of the show, Bill gave me like just so much energy. He poured into me. He was just like, yo, I don't know why this happened to you while I was in town. I don't know why I was here, but he's like, everything happened for a reason. And he's like, um, you're gonna be fine, though, bro. He was like, no matter what, I think you're gonna be fine. I think you got a good head on your shoulders. You know what I'm saying? You got a good energy, a good mentality. You seem like a good dude. He was like, and uh, one day you're gonna be able to look back, you're gonna be able to laugh at this shit. And he was like, you're just gonna have to find a way to turn this pain into humor. Yo, big shout out to Bill Bellamy, man. Always an honor and a pleasure to work with him. Thank you for doing that impromptu, randomized interview. Hopefully, next time here in the city, we can get him in the Yap house to do it at the crib. All right. Getting ready, get up out of here. Before I do, though, I gotta always remind you that my sponsorship is from Nicolay Law, Wisconsin's number one injury attorney. So if you find yourself in a situation where you're injured and you need an attorney, there's only one name you need to know. That's Nicolay. Call him, tap in with him, go to nicolelaw.com for more details. Make sure you follow us on social media, subscribe, like, thank you to everybody who listens to the pod. Thank you to those who are watching the pod. We got more in store. The rest of this year is gonna be amazing. And before I get up out of here, I want to hit you off with a positive quote. It's something I used to do on my morning show, and it's something I think I want to bring to the podcast. So, my quote for today says sometimes when things are falling apart, they may actually be falling into place. And trust me, I am truly living proof of that. I've been blessed, and I'm gonna continue to keep grinding and see what's next for me in this next chapter. Appreciate y'all tapping in, and as always, you're already know. It's not a threat, it's a promise. Change the battery and that goddamn smoke detector.

SPEAKER_02 30:29

Yeah, that was the phone.

SPEAKER_01 30:30

Oh, I didn't know what the hell that bro, I didn't know what the hell that was. That's why I just kept rolling, cause like it did, bro. All I heard was crack, and I just kept going, cuz you know, it was okay. I just kept it going. I'm like, shit happens on the pot. All head, the glasses, the billboards is everywhere in Wisconsin. You get into an injury, but you get into a injury. My mama said I could sit on this couch.