Ice-T CONFIRMS Fat Joe’s Bronx stories + talks gangsta rap origins, N.W.A., ’Law & Order: SVU’ & NEW ALBUM ‘Criminal Migraine’

28:16I'm Nick Turturro. You probably know me from NYPD Blue, The Longest Yard, or Spike Lee's Black Klansman. But I'm also from Queens, which means I know pizza. And on my new podcast, Delivering Happiness with Nick DeToro, I deliver pizza from Prince Street Pizza to a new guest. You deliver pizza now? Then we sit down for a real conversation. I've shared a slice with everyone, from Seth Rollins. What are you doing with my belt? To Alex Rodriguez. Just to let you people know, we're talking to one of the goats here. To Bill Burr. I don't think I've ever met somebody so exactly out of their mind as I am.

28:50And now we even have more great guests coming up, including the great John Turturro. It's called happiness. Delivering happiness. Mariano Rivera. Oh, my God. And many, many more. Open your free iHeartRadio app, search Delivering Happiness with Nick Turturro, and listen now. I'm Hoda Kotb, host of the podcast Joy 101 with Hoda Kotb. If you know me, you know I'm always searching for inspiration and useful tools to maximize joy. So this podcast lets us uncover those things together through meaningful conversations with fascinating people. Like when my friend Henry Winkler offered advice to aspiring actors and really anybody hoping to stand out.

29:33You're not hired just to fill time and space. You're hired to fill the space with you. You have something in your guts. You go with it. And Shawn Johnson recalled the moment she realized her now husband, Andrew, was the one. He was just so unapologetically himself and knew nothing of Hollywood. He hadn't been on a plane before without his family. It was so pure. Listen to Joy 101 with Hoda Kotb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

30:09let me ask you a question. What was it like? Because they call you the godfather of gangster rap. He crowned you the inventor of gangster rap right here on this show. And so if you're the inventor and you're the godfather, then surely NWA and Eazy-E and them came after you. Yeah, two albums after you. And what the fuck did you think when you see them with flamethrowers and going through the alley and you seen them fuck the police? Like, what was your first impression when you seen N.W.A.? Ice-T. Okay, let me back up and tell us the gangster rap story correctly, right? So the first version of Ice-T you guys saw was me cosplaying a rapper.

30:59I didn't know you could talk about crime. I didn't know that you could actually say you did negative shit. Either. Got it? So early in the game, I was trying to look like New York. I was dressing like New York. You saw me in breaking. I had on the goggles. I wanted to be part of y 'all shit. So I figured I got to act like it. How are you going to bet? No one's rapping from LA. So I got to fit into New York. This was my first thing. I wanted to be accepted by New York. And I tried. I did everything I could. But then one night I was at a concert with Russell Simmons in LA because I used to open for all the New York acts.

31:34And I went on stage in a feel of sweat, suitcase, Swiss, all that. blah blah. And when I came off the stage, Russell said, that's you, Ice. You can't be Melly Mel. There's already a Melly Mel. Be you. They don't know what LA is. Put LA on the map. I didn't have the courage to put a whole coast on the map. Like, no, you know, it's like, if you're going to be a country Western singer, you're going to put on a cowboy fucking hat. You know what I'm saying? So I'm like, so they was like, he was like, do it. So that was step one, like be yourself. Then I heard Schooly D. I was in a club and I heard PSK.

32:09And the beat came on and it sounded like angel dust. I don't smoke dust, but I figured that's how dust makes your head. So I hear Schooly. PSK, we're making that green. People always say, now this is the first rapper I've ever seen that wasn't yelling. We were all yelling. And so then he said, put my pistol up against you. hit my head and said, suck ass nigga. I said, this got to be the coolest motherfucker ever. So I'm like, so I run to the DJ booth. I'm like, what is that record? It's called PSK. What does that mean? What does it mean? So I restarted and meant Parkside Killers. I said, he's repping a gang.

32:49That was the green light. I'm like, it's okay to talk about it. And next thing you know, my boys were like, say that shit you be saying. Because I used to rhyme gangster shit to the homies, but to think you can make a record. I was like, 6 in the Morning was the B-side of a record and it hit. And that was like, oh shit, niggas want to hear this shit? I could do this shit all day. I could do this shit all day. So that was the invention. So I'll say Schooly D is the inventor of gangster rap. I popularized it. Now, NWA. NWA was out on the road with me. EZ, DOC, and everything. That's when they had Dope Man, They had Gangsta Gangsta, and they would perform.

33:33We was just all friends. Cube, everybody, we're close friends. Because, like I said, Ryan Pace... What I'm saying, what I'm trying to capture... The beginning, nigga. No, no, no, no. NWA, some guys dropped the record. Niggas with Attitudes. And you see this... I'm bringing you up to the speed. Here it goes. They have two songs out, okay? They have two songs out. But they didn't drop Straight Outta Compton yet. Straight out of Compton was Godzilla. Straight out of Compton, when they dropped that album. Now, I know them. Dope man, dope man, gangster, gangster. But I didn't know what they was getting ready to drop, right?

34:11So, fuck the police. Now, fuck the police came. I'm not going to... I did that because I used to come out on the stage and before I would do six in the morning, I would say, my name is Ice-T. I got a rep like a killer, killer. No one gets wilder. No one gets iller. Iller. I don't get high. I don't drink Miller. Miller. But if your bitch is empty, I'm sure I could fill her. I make stupid ass records because I just don't care. Suckers won't play my shit on the air. But y 'all know you like it. You say you want more. But every time I leave the crib and go to the store, I hear six in the morning. Before I would do that, I'd say, the police said I cannot do this record.

34:52Fuck the police. And the audience would go, fuck the police. Fuck the police. Now, a month later, we're on tour and Easy and Em got a song called Fuck the Police. Now, ask Dr. Dre if that inspired them to do Fuck the Police, but they saw the audience response to that. But it's all fucking love. When they came out, I was happy. Everybody got to get inspired. Everybody got to get inspired. When NWA came out, I was happy. I was happy because I wanted some backup. I was by myself for three years. There was no West Coast real power. You know, when they came out, I was like, yes, yeah. Okay, now I got some niggas.

35:32We going. And they coined the term gangster rap, Jadakiss, after Cube. Because when Cube said, straight out of Compton, crazy motherfucker named Ice Cube, from the gang called Niggas With Attitude. So the press said, this is gangster rap. So I'm like, okay, then I'm the original gangster. And that's where OG came from.

35:59you want a history lesson that's how it goes it makes sense when you look at it all like that and also another thing i wanted to make sure people understand gangster rap is two different kinds of gangster rap there's gangster rap and then there's gang banging rap snoop introduced gang banging rap where he rap as a gang banger gangster rap to me is being a drug dealer player a pimp, a hustler, whatever. We was gangsters. You was a gangster. You was no gang banger. So there's different levels of gangster rap. So, you know, people think, oh, you was in a gang? No, I never joined a gang. I was never a gang member.

36:35Me either. Right. But I talked a lot of gang shit in my music. I get what you're saying. I want to make an honorary shout out, right? Because this guy gets overlooked all the time. And you just, you digging into a treasure chest to where I'm here, but I want to shout out Curtis Blow. Yes. Curtis Blow to me was the first superstar rapper. And so when I would watch him, even though I grew up, next door, my next door neighbor, next building neighbor is Mr. Ness from the Furious Five. You know, I used to watch Melly Mellon and play basketball pickup games. But the guy to me that was like, I don't know if he was the first to get like a big major deal or whatever, but Curtis Blow was like the first rap superstar I had ever seen.

37:34Soloist. Soloist. And here's a Curtis Blow story. Like, you got stories. I'm old, so I got stories. Yeah, that's why I want it. We here right now. That's the whole reason for this. Before I really was seriously rapping, because like I said, nobody was making money rapping, so we was still hustling, right? I was at a club called Carolina West and they had a talent, like a rap competition. Oh, a rap battle. Yeah, not a battle, but just a contest. Contest. Right. And I was with my homies and they're like, nigga, go rap, go rap, go rap. You know, and I rap and I won and Curtis Blow was the judge. And that really made me think, man, maybe you could do this shit.

38:15Because to me, a real rapper said you could rap. And from that moment on, anytime I meet a young artist, I always try to give them motivation because to them, they're trying to get in. To them, you're a real rapper. You're in. Now, some of these cats might not feel that way, but I always felt like that. If somebody's already doing something and I want to get in, I'm not real yet. I got to prove myself. Curtis Blow giving me that little thumbs up. You're not real yet. Changed me. You know, you go from a police killer to being the police on the fucking TV. And I know they can't afford all that Gucci you be wearing in the fucking TV.

38:58How the fuck, how you got Gucci on every episode and you a cop? I mean, you know, people want us to look good. This is fantasy. They want Mariska to look good and all that. So what happened as I started to do the show, the characters started to morph into me. There was a moment when I started to do this show and Dick Wolf was like, you don't like cops, right? He says that to me. And I said, well, Dick, I was a criminal. So real criminals don't dislike cops. To them, cops are not the enemy. They're the opponent. We know we're going to break the law, but we're going to beat them. Punk hates, I don't hate cops.

39:37I hate racists and I hate bullies. but as if we, me and Jada kids, actually, if, if we're selling drugs, the law creates the margin. If it becomes legal, shit's worthless. So we need the cops. So I said, the cops were always the opponent to me. I never hated them. I said, but you meant we need them. I'm like, yeah, I know some niggas that need to go to jail, Oh no, some niggas. So he goes, play the cop. We need ice. Imagine that. That's your cue. Play the cop. And so Joe, if you had to be a cop, what kind of cop, how would you be? And we all knew cool cops. You know what I'm saying? So that's what I tried to play.

40:17Now I'm coming to, I come to work, you know, I dress. So they started to look at how I dress normally and they started to put the fly shit on me. You know, that's how the Gucci. You know what's crazy? It was a cool cop that locked my brother out. We used to love him. Smitty, you know, the cool cop that buy the kids ice cream. He knew my brother since he was a baby. He was like, Yo, Junior, what you doing in the old way? I'm chilling this and that. And he showed him nothing but love. And then he just tapped him in the back and felt the gun in my brother's waist. It was like, he came to my house.

40:52He locked him up and came to my house and told my moms, Yo, Ruby, I had to lock Junior up. He had a gun on him. This, this, that. The cool cop. The nigga in the little scooter around the block. Everybody like, he caught him with the hammer. He couldn't let it go. I would have threw it in the incinerator if I knew a kid since he was born or something. See, I don't believe... I'm afraid of cops, period. Period. I don't care if it's your brother. I don't care because when is he not a cop? You know? So say, for instance, this guy's a friend of yours, but he's a cop and then homie just comes in, he's shot.

41:25You know, you could be around me and one of my friends could... When is he not? I'm sitting here, we're square, you know, blah, blah, blah. And then this guy comes in, a friend of us, he segues into a murder. You know, like he's a cop. So I'm less like, I tend to stay away from police in real life. You know, that's how I feel about rats. And some people say, yo, he ain't tell on me or whatever. I said, but what happens if we walk out this building and we got to get ketchup out here and the guy's here, he going to tell on you. So it's like, that's his job. Yes. My thing is, well, he ain't tell on you last time, but some shit happened.

42:04The cops come, he run down the block, he get caught. my money's against you. He's going to tell on you. No matter how cool he is, no matter what you think or whatever the case may be, I feel the same way. I always felt like if you're committing a crime, let everybody know you're about to do it. You know, if you jump in my car and I didn't know you had a brick on you and your bag and we get pulled over, you violated me. You sure to let me know I'm dirty. Don't, you know, So even now today, when I'm driving, I'm like, what's going on? Everybody, you got something on you? At least give me the opportunity to know.

42:46Whether I want to drive with you or something on you or not. Right. Don't be like, the police pull up and be like, drive, nigga, drive. What are you talking about? Don't stop right now. Out comes the hammer. Like, no, don't stop. I'm like, hold up, man. I was in a car one time. You know, I think I'm really tough, Ice. Right. But I was, no, no, no. I really think I'm tough. But I was in the car one time where I borderline got punked. Right. Right? Because we driving on the FDR and the cops pull us over. And I never forget, these was probably like the most legendary niggas from my hood. There's legends all over.

43:26But these guys, they passed away. I'll give you one name. He passed away. My man, man, money marking them. All these dudes did 20 years in jail. And the cops pull us over and they all strapped. And they like, yo, we ain't going back. And I'm Fat Joe. I'm Fat Joe the rapper already, nigga. Who? Me, nigga. Shitting on myself. I'm in the FDR. The cops pull us over. They ready to shoot it out? I was already big punters out. No. They talking that shit. Yo, we going to shoot this nigga in his face. This. And I'm in the car. I'm like, please, guys. No. Joe, I did 20 years. I'm not going back. The nigga, the cops came over.

44:11They was like, hey, guys, don't... My God. That's a great scene for a movie right there. That shit. Did I pray? I'm not going back. Every time, every time. It's a traffic stop. Listen, I might drive through the FDR one million times after that. I will never... I will show you this spot. I'll never forget it. if you ever been in a situation, I don't care. And I'm not pussy, my nigga. But I don't think I was ready for the shit these niggas was talking. They strapped out the wazoo. We went to handle something. Right? We went to handle something like, yo, some niggas owe me money. I brought the ugliest of, like, the real ugliest of it.

44:55These niggas are borderline. Like, I don't know how to explain it to you. And you get what you wish for. The cops pulled us over. The niggas was dead ass. Like, yo, we shooting the niggas in their face. We're not going back. I did 20. I did 30. Yo, I did this. And I'm like, I'm on Hot 97, nigga. I'm like, please, guys. Could y 'all let me out right here? No, no, no. You can't let me out. Because I know how to stay calm and play this shit off. But please. And the cop come over. Yo, guys, you know what? Something bullshit. have a nice day Jesus nigga had a gun the shirt was out yeah they had they was gonna let it fly that's when hanging out with the with the real ones could turn real bad and that's one of the few times where I felt like when I pulled off I was like I felt punked that's a great segue cause that would've gave me a criminal migraine This one is for the OGs Let's keep it 1800 That was a criminal migrant You know what?

46:08I had to stop rapping for a while Because I lost passion I don't think artists ever stop rap Stop doing art Miles Davis did it till he died I think Rembrandt George Clinton I was with him, he's 85 I was like This shit went to Ringtone rap then it went to auto-tune rap, then it went trap. That wasn't my shit. But then when I seen Killer Mike win a Grammy, then I seen Clips drop an album, then I see Ghostface, then Nas, I'm seeing people. I say, we're in a renaissance right now. Our era is back. People want you doing your thing. So I'm like, I'm kind of motivated now. So all of a sudden, everybody's like, nigga, you're not done.

46:54You're not done. So I started getting tracks together and I put a double album together. It's called Criminal Migraine. The Criminal Migraine is basically what happens when you get your life together, but something happens to you that you would have handled differently. And your brain is like, nigga, you really don't understand. Oh, no, you don't. And it's that point in our brain when we are, or either maybe life's not going good for you and you're thinking about going back to your old ways. And it's that headache you get. So that's the name of the album. But it's a really get out of the game album.

47:27It's an album based around like people looked at early Ice-T like I was trying to get it. Now people look at me like, Ice, you successful. Tell us how to do it. Tell us the game. You the OG. What's the game? What's the next move? It's an informative album. It's an album from somebody in their 60s. You know, I'm 68 years old. I'm the oldest rapper. You what? I'm 68. What the fuck? Yo, Ice, you look amazing.

47:59But I was with George Clinton the other day. He's 85. He had a young bitch. She was 62. All right. Damn. All right. So the shit don't stop. And, you know, if you're a real player, you just get thin in the waist, handsome in the face. You dig what I'm saying? You know, we don't change. We don't change. So now I go in the studio. I was like, I rap better now than ever. I got more content. But my job is not to put anybody in prison. The homies say, Ice, don't send nobody to jail, baby. You know, so that's my thing. So yeah, that's the criminal migraine. It's coming out. But I'm not streaming. I'm not streaming.

48:35Fuck streaming. I'm telling everybody, let's not stream no more. That was the biggest ripoff in music history. The labels used to have a job, Joe. They used to have to press our record, make our CDs, send it out. put them in trucks, go to the record store, collect the money. Now they don't do nothing. So they just sold us out. They said, fuck it, Spotify, take it. And you get.007 cents a stream. I never met a pimp that could break down a penny. Okay? These motherfuckers figured out how to break a penny down. What kind of pimping is that? Fuck! You gotta get 300 million streams to equal a million dollars.

49:13No, 300 million make you a million dollars. 300 million streams Who gets that? $300 million. That's Taylor Swift. Swifties. That's Bad Bunny, but not us rappers. So I'm just like, look, I'm putting it on my site. Go to Icedee.com. Get the album. Pre-sale,$10. You know, it's a double album. Who the fuck told me this? I think Eric Sherman. Same shit. I think Eric Sherman is the first guy who ever broke all that shit down to me. It was like, yo, you put it out yourself. You got 40 ,000, 30 ,000 fans and you make the money off of it, this and this and that. Yeah. Joey Crack, you a drug dealer. 10 ,000 people at$100, that's a million dollars.

49:58I personally... You should know these numbers. I see. I see. Let me explain something to you. I never understood these niggas' math ever in my life. Not when I was the biggest, whatever this, I just didn't understand it. I'd be like, yo, all right. So if I got this little massage gun and it cost me$10. I'm going to sell it outside the store and get five cents? Who's going to stand out there all day selling the fucking thing for$10 and your profit is five cents? This whole shit been a rip-off since day one. This shit been a crime. The biggest crime is still getting robbed in 2026. Well, at least when I was on the label, I made a dollar an album.

50:46So if I sold a million records, that was a million dollars. But that's not really a million dollars because it's about$750 ,000. They got to pay for the video, the lies they talk about. They promoted this and that and that and this. I used to throw parties. The nigga with me used to tell me, yo, I hired 20 security, 10 flyer guys. This, the shit go for$5 ,000. I'm leaving with$500. Niggas know how to play with them numbers. Legendary. Well, I got to pay the producers too. You know, like the way I did the deal, I split 50-50 with my producers. You know what I'm saying? And nobody's out of pocket.

51:21Everybody's working in their own studios, stuff like that. It could be profitable. But like at the end of the day, rule one of a hustler, you must get paid. So we're not doing shit for funds. So I'm like, I'll put out a record, but we're going to generate some funds and I'm going to have accounting. We'll be able to see how many records sold and we can pay everybody. One thing I've never been charged with is ripping nobody off. Everybody ever worked with me, always got paid probably more than normal. So I've never had any beef. I heard that. I heard that about you. And let me tell you something.

51:57Somebody asked me recently, somebody I truly respect. And I'm going to say it, Desiree Perez from Rock Nation. And she was like, Joe, what would you do different if you had a situation where I was like, I would get the best accounting so that niggas know it's transparency and they get paid exactly what they deserve. Because I think all these guys get into just business in general turns you off when you see all these loopholes and all this fuck shit they be doing and you be like, damn. Fuckery. Like, you know what I mean? Motherfuckers just crooks to the highest level. The only thing that saved us as rappers is we know we get this amount for the show and we getting it and then we break everything because any other aspect of business it always seems to me the most honest niggas that you think you go into that you be like yo but how you come up with that like that's not what we agreed to that shit happens to me 99.9 % of the time when I do business with so called legit businessmen.

53:10They always got some doopoles, some fast-talking shit, some this and this and that. They don't really show you the math. Yo, we got to get it in eight months. You know what it is. Streaming. You know, and streaming. No, I can't... Our cast is almost under the umbrella of streaming. Yeah, but when you own your own shit, remember I told you. You got to own your own shit no matter what it is. Yes. Lemonade stands. Let me use the bathroom one second. I got to... I got a question. If you're selling waffles, you better own your own fucking everything. Ownership is very important.

53:49JoeandJayTheShow.com. We got new merch fresh off the presses. Go get it. Bang. Out of bang. Bang. JoeandJayTheShow.com. You can get these little cold for a t-shirt with a hoodie. It's my favorite right there. I need an extra large. Show at Jadishow.com. Go there. Get it.

54:14Yo, I was scrolling through the Sprite living track list the other day and immediately started arguing with myself. Arguing with yourself? I'm serious. It was wild because records like California Love, Still Not a Player, back then, those aren't just songs. Nah. Those are moments, memories, snapshots of where hip-hop was and where it's going. Exactly, and that's what Sprite gets They spent over 40 years Celebrating artists who really defined the culture And now they flipping it Letting the fans be part of the conversation Which is where it gets interesting Because the real debate is why Like, why did that song matter?

54:54Why did that line hit? Why did it change hip-hop forever? I can't promise you we got the answers But you're definitely gonna have a good time figuring it out Go check out Full Sprite Living Trackless. And break down the stories behind your favorite bars. At livingtrackless.genius.com. This is the Sprite Living Trackless. Obey your thirst. Hey, this is Hayes Davenport. And Sean Clemens. We host the podcast Hollywood Handbook. Every episode, we're trying to help our guests improve their careers by mainly focusing on how they can help us improve our careers. The show is famously super accessible, so you can easily jump into any of our 650 episodes and understand what's going on.

55:38We recommend some of our recent episodes with Ben Stiller. The definition of what is a movie has kind of changed anyway, too, right? What do you think it is now? It's images and words being spoken, captured by some sort of technology. Danny McBride. He loves Boba. Oh, that's fantastic. And you make it on, you make your own. That's great. I call him Tarot Reed. it's a good name they're all named after cast members of american pie yeah i call i don't i never looked up if she was in this but i call him lychee sobieski yeah i don't think she was an american pie but i haven't looked it up haven't looked it up she was prominent around the same time yeah then mary steenburgen why are you guys talking to me like i'm worried why are you talking so down to me that you think i don't understand your little play play game i just really i I'm trying to set you up for success here.

56:31Listen to Hollywood Handbook on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Nick Turturro. You probably know me from NYPD Blue, The Longest Yard, or Spike Lee's Black Klansman. But I'm also from Queens, which means I know pizza. And on my new podcast, Delivering Happiness with Nick Turturro, I deliver pizza from Prince Street Pizza to a new guest. Are you delivering pizza now? Then we sit down for a real conversation. I've shared a slice with everyone. From Seth Rollins. What are you doing with my belt? To Alex Rodriguez. Just to let you people know, we're talking to one of the goats here.

57:04To Bill Burr. I don't think I've ever met somebody so exactly out of their mind as I am. And now, we even have more great guests coming up, including the great John Turturro. It's called happiness. Delivering happiness. Mariano Rivera. Big in, what's up, brother? And many, many more. Open your free iHeartRadio app, search Delivering Happiness with Nick Turturro, and listen now. I'm Hoda Kotb, host of the podcast Joy 101 with Hoda Kotb. If you know me, you know I'm always searching for inspiration and useful tools to maximize joy. So this podcast lets us uncover those things together through meaningful conversations with fascinating people.

57:46Like when my friend Henry Winkler offered advice to aspiring actors and really anybody hoping to stand out. You're not hired just to fill time into space. You're hired to fill the space with you. You have something in your guts. You go with it. And Shawn Johnson recalled the moment she realized her now husband, Andrew, was the one. He was just so unapologetically himself and knew nothing of Hollywood. He hadn't been on a plane before without his family. It was so pure. Listen to Joy 101 with Hoda Kotb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

58:29thank God my whole entire life the worst guys I mean the animals the guys with eight heads they love Fat Joe when I start hanging out with Mac 10 rest in peace man's name was Dum Dum he had niggas names all on his arm of everybody he killed rest in peace he loved me we give him a 560 jacket and he wears it every day in Inglewood. Like, all the maniacs, I don't care what religion, what color, what, they love Fat Joe, right? So one day, I'm sitting out there, I'm not a rapper yet, but probably the number one or the number two biggest maniac in the Bronx's history. When I say maniac, I don't want to say that.

59:24When I say maniac, he's probably in jail for like 90 murders and they started telling niggas when niggas was going in there to snitch they said please don't tell me about he's done 10 ,000 you can't use him you can't come in and say I see the murder in broad daylight it was such they like please they ran out of you can't snitch on him no more he's underneath any Lord there's no Jesus Christ will have to come free the prisoners for him to get out so I'm in front of the club thinking I'm fly we're talking to the nigga right we over there in the circle over there by Parkchester Fat Joe talking to this nigga is the biggest shit you could ever see in your life in the Bronx like niggas is terrified of this guy it's just death like if he was in the thing you knew three niggas was getting murdered after the joint there is no way around but of course I'm stunting Joe Crack out there yo hole in court he said you seen that I said seen what he said this is the A and B conversation nigga get in the car so I'm like and I'm not pussy right so I'm looking at the nigga he's like so I get in the car man pull out the hammer he says niggas roll by got beef he said we gonna lay these niggas out right now he passed me a joint he gotta join this guy's a mass murder is what I'm trying to tell you thank God we never found these niggas I could not sleep when I went home I felt so pussy cause the nigga almost forced me into a body at least 30 of the 90 niggas he's in jail for were his best friends yo this is a A &B conversation pop ball all I try to do is go to the club get some bitches or something and then threw me in the car.

1:01:25He driving through the cross ronks looking for... I don't... I didn't even see them. He brings me back in front of this shit. I'm just like, that night I could not sleep. I say, yo, you pussy, my nigga. Nigga almost forced you into doing some... the wildest shit ever and you ain't argue with him. You ain't telling nigga no, this, this, that. So you got to be careful of those moments because the wrong nigga make you do some shit. And so I go like this. It's funny. It leads into something because Mick Benzo over there. You know the infamous story that I always tell about Allen Iverson that we went to his birthday party in Virginia and the whole club beat us up.

1:02:09The whole club. On the AI's birthday. AI came in. He denied it. I think he told me in person, you right, Joe, but we ain't got to tell a story. Whatever. We went to Allen Iverson's birthday party. Bad news, VA. and all I know is these cups these 1800 cups these sis was flying the whole club against us they went from yo the guy who saved us was Big Benzo Big Benzo jumped out in the middle of the club and pulled out two guns and backed the whole club down like this shoot y 'all niggas this at the time remember when Mickey moved to Virginia where you had the fast food joint and all that. Mickey's in that story, my dear.

1:02:57Where he pulled out the... I asked him before I said it. Because I say the story. He said, yeah, you can say the story. It was Mickey who stopped niggas. Yo, I don't know. Has the locks ever been in a situation where you had to fight the whole club? Like a thousand. The whole club all of a sudden went from singing some shit to like they're trying to kill you, the whole club. You ever been through that? We have a few experiences. Like that. We have a few. No, it happened to us. You know, Mick was with me in fucking Africa when we got kidnapped. Oh, wow. I heard that story. No, he was with me. I know.

1:03:34He told me the story. He was there, too. Mick, he was over there acting like he was coming to America. Like he had the bitches washing his hands. Isn't that crazy? Mick was, he's the first guy I ever seen make somebody wash this thing. and give me a hot towel and all. I said, yo, my man, this nigga way too fancy for me. Like, that ain't it. But Mick, I told him the story about the Alan Iverson, the VA, when you pull out the two hammers in the middle of the dance floors, he shut it down. Mick ain't never fold on some beef. He ain't never fold. He was always ready for war. So the new album, Criminal Migraine, shout out to your wife.

1:04:18you know we big fans my whole family loves your wife yeah we love your wife and so shout out to Coco your little daughter she's five I see you brought her out on a tour date with you that was five she comes out on a body count tour and opens a song we do called talk shit get shot that's five the fuck I'm talking about they used to always bother me yo you let your daughter hear curses I say all the time when I was young. Come on, man. They used to ask me that about my kids. They said, they listen to your records. I'm like, when they not selling crack or, you know, doing drive-bys, yeah, they usually listen to that shit.

1:04:58You know, fuck them. Two new tracks. Which one we playing? Yeah, let's play No Competition. Get it. Africa Islam Produce. Boom!

1:05:17I see no competition. I see no competition.

1:05:27I see no competition. I see no competition. Took a look out my window. What did I see? A bunch of wack-ass niggas that can never be me. I don't play games. No need to say names. I'ma just keep them 100. These clowns are abundant. Meanwhile, I'ma make it ice cold as the snow Maximize my hustle and perfect my flow Pearl white rolls, I slam old four doors Can't a soul on earth touch me when it comes to the clothes Playing on the razor blade, no chance of falling I've been balling since you niggas was crawling Expert with the drum work, watch that four-five jerk Nigga play dumb, meet the handgun, get murky Don't try, bitch, nigga, this is not AI Ain't nobody on my level, ain't nobody just fly I got what you wish you had Bankroll crazy and my bitch is bad I see no competition I see no competition I see no competition I see no competition License speaking, you are now in school Just look down at your feet and speak up the jewels Pay attention, every word is meant Hustlin' is a game that I didn't invent But I mastered every angle of the games I know And no matter what I know, there will always be more Bentley Continental or Black Six-Foe Keep a crew of YMs, they're all ready to go I give a fuck about what you think I'm that nigga up in court in a full-length me You never meet a nigga on the earth this cool I'm take it back, throwin' balls to my dog in the pool No drama, no beef at all Niggas got issues, I just block they cause You might out-rap me, but that's just rap You say you out-ball me, that's just cap I see no competition I see no competition I see no competition You gonna like this part, Joe?

1:07:37I see no competition I'm a keep it real. If I thought these niggas out here was really that dope, I'd shut the fuck up. I see no competition.

1:08:12I'm all the way up. You should see my view. You never reach my level or can do what I do. Blessed, I'm one of the chosen few. If I was you, I would hate me too. Mag if sin rhyme on the hill beat designer. If they ask you if I'm dope, don't front and say kinder. These niggas so goddamn whack. I went back to 87, brought that bar back. Most of you niggas ain't been off your block. I'm on my fifth passport, nigga, rapping rock. Live on the East, represent the West, my fly best. DB3RS, social media, wanna be me. Only time you ever went viral, nigga, was an STD. You wanna age niggas out in hip-hop? Most you bitch niggas, so garbage, why the fuck should I stop?

1:08:58I see no composition.

1:09:04I see no composition.

1:09:09I see no competition. Man, you want to know what? I see no competition. You know what, man? God bless Killer Mike because he inspired me to start rapping again and take it serious and go for it all. That record right there is crazy, bro. and so the way I look at music and what we do, whether it's with the podcast, right? You know, because people change the narrative and they change words and they change everything. That's why we got a legend like Ice-T so that 30, 40 years from now a kid, a young kid then could look up this video and be like, nah, that man Ice-T said it different on the thing.

1:09:57Snoop Dogg said it different on the thing. So that's why we started of the podcast. Because a lot of niggas, they call me Kappa. A lot of niggas was doing too much Kappa. True. So we had to get it authentic. And so when you got a brother like Killer Mike who won them Grammys, he inspired me. And you just told me the same two culprits, the clips too. They inspired me too. When I see them, I get so fucking excited. Shout out Killer Mike. I'm going to give you that graffiti piece. He wants the piece for his house. You know, I do art. So he on my ass in the DM's paws saying, yo, crack, I need that fucking graffiti.

1:10:33You know, also one thing, by being my age, if I can put out a decent project that's critically acclaimed, especially by my peers, I only care about my peers, really. I reset the bar for hip-hop. I've proved that you can rap forever. So everybody should get behind it because you don't want to expire with this. But I don't think we ever do, you know? So, and also, another thing is, like, honestly, I don't need any new fans. I moved over 20 million records over my career. I had six consecutive gold and platinum records. So if only my fans buy the record, I'm good. So you just had to show it on. People have fan bases.

1:11:12You just have to hit, you have to super serve your fan base. Don't worry about it. I don't, I'm not worried about Drake. Drake has a million, millions of people. I don't need that. I just need my fans. So if you ever own the Ice-T album, get this one for your collection. It's a double album. I won't let you down because I rap the way I rap. It sounds even better. You sound even better, Ice. I think you get better. No, you sound even better. Trust me. But I think you get better. I've heard every album. I'm with Mick Benzo. He's played it. I know all about Ice-T. But the thing of it is, I get better because you're listening to other people.

1:11:47You're inspired. I know what new hip hop sounds like. I wanted to give it that vibe. I wanted to give that DJ sound. You touched something real quick, and I never knew that earlier. But I heard it, and I was like, I wanted to stop, but it was so early. They said, I'm a criminal at stopping the guests I'm talking. You discovered Everlast? Yes. How did that happen? There was a guy named Bilal Bashir and he was a producer. He brought me Everlast. He brought me Divine Styler. And Everlast was dope but when I first met Ev, he was rapping in Rakim's voice. You know how rappers rap like other rappers?

1:12:23Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I was like that. Yeah, I was like, nah, nigga. You got it. Same thing I had to learn from Russ, B-U, just rap. And one of his first records is called Syndication. I got him a record deal at Warner Brothers. I got him, Donald D, Divine Styler, like I said, Lord Fanel. I got a lot of people record deals. I've never signed an artist, though. I've never... Let me tell you something. I always just want to help. Everlast has always been one of my favorite rappers ever. Yeah. Ever, ever. We did the Knicks parade, and we shot a video their victory lap. And the whole time we shooting the video, I'm like, this reminds me of Everlast.

1:13:05And then Everlast had beef with Eminem. He came to the yard. No. Everlast came to the yard. I'm in the barbershop. They playing the Everlast shit. I said, yo, this guy not pussy. This one, Eminem is, hi, my name is the nicest nigga on earth. He shot back. Like, and I'm listening to him. I'm like, yo, this nigga, this is my guy. That's why I always love... If you ain't here, use a shotgun. Y 'all, Everlast, my... Y 'all, Everlast is the truth. But, um, just like, uh, when Melly Mel had that situation with Em, like, I love Eminem. Like, I'm one of the few guys that can get him on the phone. And I remember...

1:13:48Melly Mel had a situation with Eminem. Yeah, he tried to go... But I told Mel to leave him alone from jump. I told Mel, I heard him... I heard him. I said, yo, Mel, leave him alone. Now, Mel is the leader of my tribe. Mel is my Don, my boss of bosses. There's just no way around. When I see him. Mine too. Oh, no, I'm still a little kid. When I'm around Mel, I sit there. You see, we did the parade. We bring him. He's included in everything, right? So I go to Mel, and I say, yo, Mel, what are you doing? you're going to burn every bridge in the world it's niggas Mel still disses him and then M's about to get at him and I throw up a picture of Melly Mel in my Instagram and I said this is my Don this is my godfather M fell back I swear to God that post right there I think M honored the Joe Crack and M relationship and just said because I never heard of a person Eminem ain't destroyed or go back and really go crazy on it.

1:15:00He was just like, yo, and he was like, nah, Joe, it's all good. I said, yo. I think they love to ask us a top five. I always pivot to my most inspirational. Top five most inspirational. Who's your top five most inspirational? Melly Mel would be the first person that I ever really, he turned a message. When he did the message, he changed the direction of hip-hop. Hip-hop was all about a party. And that's when I learned, oh, you can talk about things in it. Okay? And he gets locked up at the end. They get locked up at the end. Ain't shit changed. Right. In that video, one of the most legendary songs videos in the world.

1:15:44Is it no surprise they got locked up at the end of the shit? They throw them in the paddy wagon? That shit is still real to this day. George Floyd, everything you look at, you can see that shit right in that video. Early 80s. Chuck D. Because they made us understand we had to represent being black and being powerful and strength. That was very important. Rakim because he kind of like rewrote the way that we rap. You know, if you listen to me, I'm not really yelling. It's just, I like try to just talk that shit. You know, because Rakim wasn't really overly barred up. It was just a very slick way he would rhyme.

1:16:25So I like that. Yeah. Let's say those three right quick. So you got Chuck D. Public Enemy. You got Public Enemy. You got Man, that's a hell of a three. Yeah, we'll just leave it there. Because there's a lot of other people. To me, like you said, N.W.A. really took the gangster shit to a whole nother level, which I really respected. I was like, because I was a soloist, there was a group. That's why I like blocks, too. Because when you see three people rapping the same time, my favorite group of all time is Mobb Deep. Because to me, Prodigy... I was at the funeral with you. Yeah. My style of rap, I like to know what you're saying.

1:17:14I like Jadakiss. If I can't hear what you're saying, how can I hear what you're saying? So I want you to make it easy enough that I can digest the lyric. Some people rap so aggressively, I can't get it. Like I said, I was Chino XL, rest in peace. It's like my nephew, I love him to death. But it was so intense. I'm like, yo, Chino, I'm catching every third bar. You just did, you know, just like you said, big pun, it's so incredible. but me myself for my ears I just want to hear I want to hear what you're saying like I like RJ Payne now the new kid Merkums I'm working with this kid Mad Squabbles I like rappers I like rappers rappers so you know I got on my album I got Raz Kaz I got Merkums I got Freddie Fox Freddie Fox yo what's up Freddie Fox yeah yeah Smooth to Hustler ooh yeah you had something to do with Smooth the Hustler?

1:18:14Are you Mickey? Who asked me? I think you the first person ever played me Smooth the Hustler. The cock rocker. What happened to that story? I was in New York. Now I'm Ice-T and I'm doing my thing. And I went up to Freddie Bugs. What's his name? Bugsy. Bugsy. Bugsy. Bugsy a legend. And so I'm on the radio and they asked me, well, what records in New York do you like? And I'm like, this one record, I Want to Rock Right Now. I like that. Rob Bass. And there's some other, the Bible, the Jesus Christ Bible ripper, the Ike and Tina Turner ass whipping learner. I'm like, oh, that's Smooth to hustle and Trigger to gamble.

1:18:52That's broken language. Listen, by the time I came out the radio station, SMG, the whole Brooklyn crew was at the station to meet me because in Smooth's words, you was a real rapper. You're somebody who was already there to say our name. You were the first person that really said our name and me and Smooth and Trigger have been friends ever since. Okay, let me tell you something. Smooth and Trigger, I'm going to give you a whole new category. Smooth the Trigger and, um, your man, uh, where my homies? Ill and Out Scratch. Ill and Out Scratch. Uh, what's my man? Mad Beats for the Nine, and then I was in the Bronx, and then it went, hey.

1:19:36Channel Live. No. No. Nine. Nine. Nine. Nine? Smooth the Hustler. Blase, Blase. Non-Blase. I just seen Blase. Yo, it's the whole fucking category. UFO, he just seen Blase. When Brooke was in the house. Oh, my God. Papoose was SMG, too. Sex, Money, and Guns. Papoose was the youngster that Smooth and them introduced me to him. He was down with Smooth the Hustler? No, I never knew that. He was the little homie. He was down with G-Rap. Yeah, he got SMG tattooed on. That was on 456, Pooji Rap album. I never knew that. Word. Yeah. DR period DR period yo listen this ain't that that ain't this it's cracking kiss make sure you get criminal migraine on Ice-T's website no streaming August let's go August legendary the OG network man we doing Remy got a network Ice-T got the OG network everybody got some shit coming out yeah everybody got fucking Too Short was just there I just did something for Diamond.

1:20:41Yeah, it's the renaissance. Let's go, Grammys. We here, baby.

1:20:53Before we go, let me ask y 'all something. What's a hip-hop lyric that changed the way you saw music? Because that's really what the Sprite Living Trackless is about. It's not about crowning winners. It's about starting conversations. 50 tracks. Generations of artists Endless debates And Sprite didn't just throw lyrics on cans either Nah, they went deeper Bringing in hip-hop experts and tastemakers To totally break down the stories and impact behind every track Check out the full Sprite Living Tracklist At livingtracklist.genius.com This is the Sprite Living Tracklist Obey your thirst

1:21:38Hey, this is Hayes Davenport and Sean Clemens. We host the podcast Hollywood Handbook. Every episode, we're trying to help our guests improve their careers by mainly focusing on how they can help us improve our careers. The show is famously super accessible, so you can easily jump into any of our 650 episodes and understand what's going on. We recommend some of our recent episodes with Ben Stiller, Danny McBride, Riz Ahmed and Mary Steenburgen. Listen to Hollywood Handbook on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Nick Turturro You probably know me from NYPD Blue The Longest Yard Or Spike Lee's Black Klansman And on my new podcast Delivering Happiness with Nick Turturro I deliver pizza to a new guest I've shared a slice with everyone From Seth Rollins What are you doing with my belt?

1:22:22To Bill Burr I don't think I've ever met somebody So exactly out of their mind as I am And now we even have more great guests coming up Including the great John Turturro It's called happiness Delivering happiness And many, many more Open your free iHeartRadio app, search Delivering Happiness with Nick Tutoro, and listen now. I'm Hoda Kotb, host of the podcast Joy 101 with Hoda Kotb. You know, I'm always searching for inspiration and useful tools to maximize joy. Like when my friend Henry Winkler offered advice to aspiring actors and really anybody hoping to stand out. You're not hired just to fill time and space.

1:23:01You're hired to fill the space with you. Listen to Joy 101 with Hoda Kotb on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.