That guy literally did everything in his power to just continue to be him be himself and open the door for other creatives to be comfortable with just being Themselves hi everyone welcome to the Empire where we engage with everyone from pastors to actors rappers to Trappers and everybody in between yes we have another great guest today but before we get into it y’all should know the deal actually we’re going to skip past that part n I’m just joking y’all should
Know the [ __ ] deal like the video please subscribe to the channel if you haven’t comment down below what you think uh my name is Antonio the miles yes your host for the day uh with the swaggy swag or you know if you can catch it you can catch it if you can’t then
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Podcast and we also have PayPal which is uh paypal.me backthe ire podcast all three will be in the description for today’s video and mostly all the videos uh but other than that you know we can do jumping jacks and have some Cracker Jacks and uh get that all smack in a
Smack uh but we’re going to talk about our guest today who’s an entrepreneur businessman father artist and uh who also runs his own podcast and uh his name is Mike session welcome to the podcast thank you man appreciate it I really do appreciate it actually oh man
It’s so great to have you bro how you been I’ve been good man um had a quite the long weekend but you know that’s kind of my life you know so um like I said just excited to be here I’ve been like I’ve been straight you know okay I
Really can’t complain I really I try not to complain you know got you try try to keep the complaints to a minimum you have to my girl tell me all the time that I complain too much you oh really so I’ll just be like all right I got I
Need to work on that you know be more present in a moment interesting yeah well okay since we’re already here we got to ask like what what is she saying that you’re complaining about uh just some of the day-to-day stuff you know just like um maybe my job is probably
Been like wearing my ass out you know so um just you know just it’s really just the day-to-day stuff like like damn like I gotta go do this I gotta go do this I gotta go do this and she just all right you know you got to work on that a
Little bit gotcha you know um there’s this well I guess we going we going to go kind of deep here so there’s actually a belief system in a certain uh group where they say that men should never come complain to their women mhm they said men should only uh
Release their problems onto other men that sound toxic as hell well no like Express their their problems and issues to other men because only men can understand men problems and and women don’t care about men’s problems or Men issues right and it becomes it looks like weakness to a woman seeing a man
Complain so it’s better to keep your problems away from your girl and talk to your homies about it but do you think that in a way kind of like reinforces or like like rein or enables like toxic Behavior not at all you don’t think so like like even like with the topic of
Like vulnerability like do you think you should be able to be vulnerable with your woman um to an extent but no oh [ __ ] okay yeah because like I said it becomes a form of weakness uh and this is a certain belief system that certain people have and it’s
Mostly against the modern Norm it’s kind of like they say oh yeah we want you to be vulnerable but when you started being vulnerable they complain about it so the truth is they don’t want they want they want a man to protect and provide and they’ll be vulnerable to you yeah right
And a man should only express like his issues to other men and like they’ll weaponize your vulnerability you know uh they will is that what you’re saying yeah yeah yeah yeah like it’s like yeah I know what you I know exactly what you mean I’m like just kind of uh just playing Devil’s
Advocate you know but I totally understand it like in terms of I see it like you know being you supposed to be the quote unquote bread winner and all this different type of stuff or just like be the person that everybody can count on in the house for for any type
Of situation like you know they supposed to follow the man’s lead you know um so I definitely understand I understand that mentality but yeah it gets tricky that that entire thing gets really tricky especially today like yeah I think it’s simpler than you think you think so definitely okay I think the
Only way it gets tricky is you’re you know you’re following you’re trying to adjust to what society’s trying to tell you to to be right but then Society or modern society modern Western Society doesn’t even they’re confused got it you know what I mean they don’t even know
What million gender name you know like it’s it’s endless let the blind lead in The Blind basically if you wouldn’t go biblical with it yeah you know what I mean yeah as opposed to like the argument is like if something’s been working for over since like the
Dawn of time and we’re trying this new thing that’s not working right there must be a pro there must be an issue got it like the old saying like don’t fix what’s not broken M you know what I mean yeah like I think like an umbrella like you know like an umbrella
Like we what that’s actually funny because umbrellas are so simple yeah it’s like they get the job done what a [ __ ] up yeah think it be like something more modern something that would just be like prevent us from getting wet but just the Umbrella Just that’s it like it works
Yeah like why the most they did was put it on a on a hat and that didn’t that didn’t really do as well as a hat you know what I mean so it’s like why fix was not broken you know or that’s actually hilarious just the umbrella [ __ ] just
Think about that often now yeah yeah yeah you know but yeah I think we’ve been tricked you know and I was on that plane too you know and then like you start realizing like okay man like once I guess it’s kind of like um taking the blinders off like I guess
The you know like kind of seeing like the truth or whatever you know or seeing it with a better with a better lens mhm um so yeah I don’t know it’s it’s to each their own in the end of the day yeah you know what I mean I think that’s
Important like what you like what you just said is very important mainly because like I grew up with nothing but women you know what I mean like a bunch of AES my mom my mom’s single mom you know so my dad wasn’t around so I didn’t
Really see a lot of like uh powerful men figures in my life yeah so I often kind of seen things through the lenses of women’s perspectives yeah um so like when I often like talk to other men and they kind of you know re reiterate kind
Of like what you’re saying um like it makes sense now that I have kids and I have a girl we all live together and all that stuff and I see the expectations that is placed on me and like you said my girl be like you need to stop
Complaining so much because she don’t want to see that from her man yeah she wants to see a little bit more of a dominant leader type figure you know yeah whe she says it or not yes because okay if you’re the protector and the if you’re the protector of the house and
You’re complaining then it kind of you lose the image of being strong and powerful got it does that make sense yeah absolutely you know what I mean and to each their own you know I guess every relationship is different but generally speaking you know I mean and I only mentioned it
Because you said your girl was like you complained too much right right and um so you’re a father huh too yeah wow well congratulations I know it’s I know it’s a beautiful job and I think I think children are a blessing not all people should have children that’s a different
Topic but uh I do think that people are giving kids to um better their life and Ne and then people have like a choice whether to step up to the plate or not that’s just my opinion though I say it all the time that my kids saved
My life uh if I didn’t if I didn’t have kids I don’t know what the hell I’ll be out here doing I will probably be I will probably be in in some deep [ __ ] somewhere got you know what I mean um my kids slowed me the hell down you know it
Made me um have to think about things outside of myself like on a bigger way bigger scale you know and yeah yeah it’s just like the the job of a father is you can’t even like really describe it you know it’s it’s it’s it’s a task
You know it is a task do you have any kids I don’t okay I don’t you know yeah it is a task man yes yeah yeah you know cuz it’s a task man yes a task man she just broke out singing yeah it remind I don’t know think of that song uh well
You know since we’re into it uh Mike can you tell us all who you are and what you do for people who don’t know who you are and what you do man yeah um my name is Mike sessions man um I’m from Watts California um I was raised there like probably the
First you know six seven years of my life um my family is primarily based in Watts so you know came from the Imperial course projects um and yeah I moved around a lot as a kid you know after that after we left we went Long Beach uh
Wigan uh not Wigan uh uh uh W Wittier um you know what I mean Paramount I moved to sadino a couple times I actually lived a good portion of my life in sardino and yeah I’m I’m I’m an artist you know um I do a lot of different
Things I went to school for video production Cal samino shout out to yodis and yeah man just I’m just all around just I do a lot of different things man I’m I’m just into a lot of different things and um for people that don’t know
I have a podcast called if I let you tell podcast I’ve been running it for three years now um a little over three years and um it’s doing good doing being doing numbers and um can’t wait till it I’ll start getting a bag from that you
Know um and yeah father you know what I mean and I don’t know I’m I have a lot going on I’ll say that just in terms of just trying to balance everything and trying to figure out how to really hone into my creativity gotta and and make it
Make sense for not just me but just for my life in general for those that are around me my kids and everything like you know my son is an artist as well you know so he he’s an amazing drawer like he draws like freehand like he just
Draws things okay and he’s seven years old but he is like phenomenal you know you have more than one kid yeah I have a son and a daughter how seven and what seven and uh five she’s going to be six next month oh wow they not that far
Apart no they was back to back like Drake yeah it was literally like he was doing diapers when I I actually found out um I was going to have a daughter on April Fool’s Day got so I thought it was a joke you know what I mean then she was
Just like she told me like April 3rd she was still like yo I’m pregnant got you like DN [ __ ] this is the longest APR fool joke I ever heard in my life right U so yeah they’re they’re literally back to back and um some people will say that
It’s best to have kids back toback because they get to grow up together and kind of knock it out yeah but the challenges though yeah for the parents I’m like oh man you know so yeah I’m into a lot of different things got you when you first mentioned them back to
Back I was like okay at least they’ll be in high school together that’s the first thing I thought I was like they’ll be in high school together yeah and what’s cool is that since you’re into the Arts like you’re able to help like uh nourish your son’s artistic Vision you know or
Like goals and stuff like that nurture that cuz it’s I think it’s kind of hard for some parents who are not really into the Arts try to like um nurture their child in the Arts um and some actually get away with because they just want to give their child the best
And some do do that yeah do do um when you went to Cal State sardino for video production yeah do you what did you want to do bro when I first initially signed up um went to Cal State I went to school for psychology initially okay well first
I I I went Undeclared so I didn’t have a major at first but I went to I end up declaring psychology and I was like oh I want to understand the human brain and I want to help people understand what the flo of then you start to realize I I’m
Not interested in this [ __ ] like I was in the classes and I was like this is not connecting the way I thought it would and um I had one elective class that was uh in Communications and it was um it was um inter inter is it interpersonal communication
I believe so um I went into that class and I was just like yo this is fire you know you just like you know you learn about like the different ways of like sending like this is the process of communication in itself you know what I mean like being able to deliver
Something and also receive it and just like how important both parts are so we talked about like tone and all that different type of stuff like if you say certain words a certain way like how it just impacts the delivery of your message and that just like it just like
Felt good and then I started going into some of the classes with video production okay but mind you though at that point I was already doing videos I was me and my brother we used to do um like skits and all that stuff and like
When I was in high school uhhuh so back in the day we used to literally like be on MySpace and just like uploading videos of us just doing all kind of crazy [ __ ] like stuff you see like on Tik Tok and all that stuff we was doing
That in like 200 like four 2005 okay and we was just uploading so I was already into video editing and all that stuff so then I end up finding out that that was by way of like with college that Communications had like video production and all this stuff so I was like oh
Interesting so I took a class and like it was just it was easy it was just like oh this is what I’m supposed to do you know so literally from there um I end up doing some more videos and I did this video called ashy ass knees okay dang
Yeah black folks know about that [ __ ] no it went semi uh semi viral on YouTube and I like I was just doing it with my brother literally we were just having fun came to my campus one day and we just shot this video put it up on
YouTube I was 20 years old and everybody literally to this day it was a rendition of the Soulja Boy Pretty Boy Swag song okay but it was a parody of it ashy ass knes hilarious so it took off and everybody was singing that to me on campus it was crazy even white people
Was coming to I didn’t like that singing but it was just like you know it it took off and I knew I had something from then on I was like okay I could actually like whether it’s entertaining or you know just content wise like I know I can step
Into that field and be a natural at it you know okay okay yeah and did you meet cam because you also met cam gnarly at C sanino right you mentioning yeah like I he was there but I actually I don’t know the specific way I met cam because it
Was also like we have like some of the same friends Okay so we might have even met at like a house function or something like that you know CU I used to throw a lot of parties out here in sardino like oh really like hous them House Parties apartment parties wherever
KBS like that was known like you would host them oh yeah that was my thing like you know so it was it was constant for years you know like people would come to my house and it would just be like a thing so um and I join a fraternity five
Incorporated blue f um so our frat parties was just like you know a lot so yeah I I met cam like that’s my that’s my boy man you know and then you know he’s doing his music stuff and he’s super dope and yeah man I don’t know you just start surrounding yourself with
People who are just like into a lot of the same things music and all that stuff and you know and you just kind of like just go from there facts yeah shout out to you Cam narly shout out Cam man um you know uh it’s crazy
Cuz wow what I was thinking and we talked a little bit about it which is you know talked a little bit about your upbringing you know because I think unfortunately I think a lot of black American men are grown up with mostly women right you know whether it’s system
Wise or they just whatever whatever situation especially Our Generation yeah you know um but could you give us all like a brief uh background story of like where you grew up which you told us with Watts yeah um you know how you grew up like we
Lear a little bit more that you have a brother and stuff like that to basically where you are right now you know living in the SD right San Diego obviously got kids running a podcast not even maybe tell us also some of the work that you’re doing right now if you don’t mind
Oh yeah um but yeah if you can give us like a brief story about you know how you grew up where you grew up all the way up to where we are today um man I bounced around I went to like 13 different schools growing up okay you
Know like literally we moved every year felt you know like after we left Watt um how old are you by the way um I’m 33 33 oh man you’re so young okay yeah yeah yeah so we bounced around my mom you know I I didn’t realize until I got
Older that my mom was actually she was dealing with a lot of different things you know a lot of financial things and stuff like that and you know as a kid you just like you kind of just move with whatever the parents are doing you know yeah yeah you just living you’re living
Underneath them but I didn’t understand like cuz I used to go from my mom’s house to my grandma house all the time so I live both of them like different parts of my life you know so I live half my life for my mom half my life for my
Grandma okay but I didn’t realize a lot of those times when I was at my grandma house my mom was thugging it out trying to figure something you know trying to figure how to make it so every time I will like go back to my mom’s house
We’ll be in a whole different apartment I’m like who the hell’s house who house is this you know what I mean but it was like my mom just found a new place and y y um and yeah man like we man this is throughout the whole like this is like
My my entire up until 18 okay you know so like I said we was stationed in the projects until I was like five six years old and then um and then we moved around but we used to always visit the area because that’s like I said my family was
In Watts so that’s why I used to get my haircut in the Jordan down used to get haircut on the porch you know and you know like my mom I don’t know my mom she she was really trying to figure it out she had two boys
At a time it was before my sister was born and I have a little brother named Dre shout out Dre um two years younger than me and you know I was a scholar I was the the kid who was never really into the mix like that like Street Life
Type of thing yeah like cuz I saw it all the time like you know my my family like involved you know what I mean so I I just really enjoyed reading um I enjoyed um fiction non-fiction uh I loved like drama and and [ __ ] like that like I was
Kind of into science fiction like but it wasn’t really my thing until I got older you know um but I really love like a good narrative I love a good like just a really good story you know so I think that end up leading me into like film
And all that stuff and TV and video production but um yeah I was always known as a kid that would carry a book every time we about to get into a car go somewhere I would bring a book with wow you know so that that was my thing so everybody knew like
He’s going to go to college and he’s going I was the first person in my family to go to college okay you know so well Auntie never went but I was the first male okay God to go to college so you know it was just one of those things
Everybody like they didn’t try to bring me into the street like they didn’t try to have me like they was just like they if anything everybody kind of nurtured me in a way like yo you go over there you keep doing that and don’t worry about this over here you know so my
Family really looked at looked after me in regards to that but um yeah so long story short um I wasn’t even supposed to go to Cal State samur toino got you what was your favorite book as a kid or when oh man I used to read like the babysitters club the babysitters club
David Copperfield Oliver Twist um what else did I used to read it was like man it was so many just different my grandma on my dad’s side she sent me like this box they live in Nebraska she sent me this box just full of books oh wow you
Know and like you know I don’t know I just I I used to just and I love reading like autobiographies you know I love autobiographies you know what I mean like I don’t really like biographies I like hearing it from the actual person likewise yeah likewise so cuz I feel
Like you hear from the actual person like it’s it just has a different flare to it facts facts were you too young for Goosebump books no I used to have Goosebump yeah okay yeah the little slimy like little logo and everything yeah very cool design mhm yeah oh I love
Like I love like just like Thrillers and like scary books and stuff like that like I was really into that [ __ ] like so yeah I like I said I just loveed the good story you know I just yeah that’s what I gravitated towards I didn’t really like like some of the other like
More bland type things so just didn’t really catch me but yeah that was that was kind I mean it’s it’s a lot to me man like I I saw a lot man I’ve been through a lot of different things man just that I don’t think any any young
Man should ever go through you know yeah just you know just the stuff that I saw stuff that happened like you just you know it made me who I am but it also allowed me to as I got older to just learn from a lot of [ __ ] where it’s like
I don’t want my son to go through any of that and obviously some [ __ ] you can’t control true you know when they go outside like you know you kind of have to just be like e you got to just leave it up to God at that point you know got you do
You want to share any stories yeah yeah man um like I said I wasn’t really into the street life [ __ ] but a lot of that [ __ ] did affect me like you know just going to school and stuff like that like I’ve gotten jumped a couple times just
By way of whatever like you know what I mean like wrong place wrong time type had a gun put out on me twice um you know one I was by myself the second time I was with with my cousins um just like kind of like you you in that area you
Kind of looked theart you know what I mean you of that age range black dude walking around like you know you get pressed on certain things was it was it by the PO or was it by no other [ __ ] got you got you were they trying to rob
You what was the situation I don’t even know what they were trying to well one of the situations I was wearing the wrong color okay but I did you know you’re wearing the wrong color yeah absolutely okay yeah but I didn’t think it was that big of a deal okay clearly
Um but I was in Englewood at the time we were living in Englewood off century and fourth and if anybody know anything about Englewood Englewood is primarily Bloods M you know and my family I have a I’m I was born in the [ __ ] family got
You so we don’t we don’t really wear a lot of red not like I don’t bang or nothing like that but you just didn’t wear red there’s no red in the there’s no red in the wardrobe yeah you know what I mean and some people do but it
Was not the big of a deal now but uh at the time I had this striped shirt on stripe button up the blue was like so thin like it looked almost like Black from a distance okay for some odd reason like they they peeped it it was like
Yeah got you and yeah I had a gun put out of me in front of a grocery store I was just trying to get my mom some bread got you not grocery store liquor store yeah I went to the liquor store to try to get my mom some bread and and by
Grace of God owner of the store Asian guy like literally like came out and like stopped the whole [ __ ] had a gun on like literally like get away from my store like you know he told both of you guys basically well he was really yeah essentially but he really was like kind
Of talking to the guy but like get that [ __ ] away from here you know and like I’m still to this day I think like I don’t realize like how much of those things actually still play a part in my my anxiety when I like leave the house
And I go outside today like I’m very paranoid just like on like I’m always like looking I can’t even like sometimes enjoy myself when I’m just like outside with my girl or whatever like got you I’ll be like let’s go home like I don’t want to be outside you know because of
These basically traumatic experiences yeah yeah it’s and I think a lot of dudes a lot of especially growing up in La like I think a lot of dudes experience the same things you know yeah not even think I know a lot of dudes experience the same things you know no I
I you know I agree because I used to know this cat who’s part of the Rolling 60s right and um one day I think we had a gig and yeah we had to share a hotel hotel room and I was with my girl at the time and I
Remember he passed out and like he was having like these crazy nightmares like crazy nightmares like you could just hear him yeah you know in the middle of the night like and you you just know it’s from living that life right the [ __ ] he’s seen you know like
MH shit’s wild bro it’s it’s a lot yeah like nightmares for sure you know um like I just stopped having nightmares I don’t know why I but my girl she used to like um recently like she used to like see me like having like I used to like
Pop up out of my sleep and scream whatever like you know just different stuff like you know and I’m I’ve been in therapy though like I’ve been in therapy for over a year okay you know um shout out Yas and my therapist and um that’s been helping but it’s like you see like
I end up going into like this deep addiction with alcohol you know and um just it made me feel good in a way like kind of like you not have to think about certain things but it’s it does it actually does like the reverse effect you know because like
You think like it makes you feel good in a moment but like if you don’t was yourself when you drink and stuff like that you end up kind of like going through this Rabbit Hole of just like negative thoughts you know yeah yeah and you know once I start realizing that
Really was like really making me into a really dark person like I had to take a step step back you know what I mean like I mean I still drink here and there but like that yeah I mean not even here and there like I still drink but it’s like now
It’s like I don’t I don’t drink during the week days you know what I mean like I just be like all right I’m not doing it like you know and like even my therapist like you know that’s that’s actually what put me into therapy was the drinking the drinking yeah um and
Yeah like she created different plans and at some point like I went like three months without drinking at all okay um you know I try like different different methods and stuff like that but um I don’t know I just childhood and in in a nutshell like it was not your
Regular upbringing but what is regular upbringing yeah know yeah everyone’s different everyone’s different everyone’s different I uh I definitely want you to continue on your story and your journey on how you got to where you are today but I have to ask this question because you know I’ve heard
Different things about therapist and had someone Victoria on talking about her therapists recently um but what I heard was is that Some people prefer therapist that can relate to the individual so for black men if you don’t know we’re both black afroamerican men that are speaking right now yeah they say
That you can relate more when the person has gone through similar experiences as you MH right so and I’m not saying anything about your therapist but right have have you ever sat down and it’s probably a lot harder to find a black afroamerican therapist and also that
Went through some of what you went through too you know but at least being a a male right being a black man right um and I forgot I but basically I heard that the interest or you know commonality is easier to open up with and open up to and stuff like that how
What do you think how’s your experience been for you it actually has been good I I see it I see it two different ways like I see it that yeah I think if I had like a black male therapist I think there would definitely be like points
That we can definitely connect on um that would probably be a little bit more easier to you know dive into certain topics yeah um but I also see on the flip side with speaking of somebody who never went through that you kind of see a different perspective of like U just a
More objective way of thinking about things or looking at things and with my therapist like she’s a she’s a Latino woman okay you know she’s uh she’s from San Diego and like just some of the pointers that she say like I I would have never thought about that you know
Um so yeah that’s essentially kind of like the the entire experience with her is she she allows me to just kind of just speak you know and just get it out and like I said like she has a her her own way of upbringing things that she
Can and I think sometimes when you are sitting with somebody who’s been through similar things sometimes they will uh kind of like uh pigeon hole the conversation to what their experience was like you know what I mean like it’s like you can relate to it but it’s also just
Like I don’t know you know how some people just like project on like project on something I don’t know yeah I’m with you I understand understand and it’s just like I just like the real objective stance from somebody who never been through it but can kind of see from
Outside looking in like have you ever looked at it this way you know yeah and that’s that’s kind of what my therapist does like she’s really good at just being like hm okay but with me like I only know what I know facts you know
Yeah I think that’s their job is to be objective as a therapist right and some are not like some like I’ve been in therapy before and my other therapist she was cool but you know like you got to like it’s like ther having a therapist is like having a relationship with somebody like
With anybody big facts you know so like you got to be able to connect with them and they got to be able to connect with you in a way that is like it’s beneficial to both of you guys you know well they’re gonna win regardless because they’re gonna D yeah for sure
For sure but it’s like you want that experience when you talking to a therapist that it doesn’t feel like they’re just there for the money yeah and like they’re you actually have a good genuine relationship with them and they actually care they actually care gotcha so yeah’s let’s keep moving
Forward in in the story um like how you know you’re you’re a reader as a kid a big reader people keep saying that so right lead us lead us keep keep get on the journey this journey yeah to how we got to you know the podcast so I
Literally like throughout the years I just kept on with school I was a straight A student um I used to just Stack Up on Awards man I was always coming home with some type of troll Fe certificate or something like that like my granny got all of them I gave it to
My granny I gave something to my mom my granny like she puts everything up on the wall and stuff like that so uh that’s my baby yeah that’s my gr shout out my granny man um and just all the way up into um High School I was at
Paramount High School that’s where I went to and um the situation in Englewood um I end up uh coming across some blood members and you know it got to a a point where my mom was like all right you got to got to go got to get
You out of here you know and that’s when she sent me to barow Baro oh like a [ __ ] like you go from the city to Baro is crazy so um I end up moving to Baro um halfway in my sophomore year in high school okay um what year you think
This is this is 2006 this is literally January February 2006 okay and um she sent me out there I was like what the hell is going on like I literally in the [ __ ] Boonies like this is crazy why does anybody like my mom make the joke
About my granny cuz my granny is always up and moving too she was like what makes somebody just move to Barto like you just driveing like oh this would be a good place to to set up shop like you know you know um so any to open up a
Tweak Factory right anybody know anything about Barto is literally a desert Town um it’s like a a truck stop on your way to Vegas yeah um literally it’s one high school like a couple middle schools the mall is Walmart like you know it’s a very small town so I end
Up going out there and I was supposed to I I got accepted into like 11 different universities cool and I was like ah I want to go to a HBCU okay interesting I was going to go to Tuskegee so I got accepted in Tuskegee I really wanted to go to Howard
Is that in Alabama Alabama damn yeah yeah yeah you got it see um so literally I was I wanted to go to Howard that’s the one school I didn’t get accepted into I’m still conf I had like a 3.75 GPA in high school they’re like he’s
From BARC though we don’t want him right I was like man come on um so I didn’t end up getting into Howard so I was like all right well HB uh Tuskegee was the only other HBCU that I had like applied to mhm um and so literally I was about
To go to tusi but the only thing only reason I didn’t go is because we didn’t have the money for the um out of state enrollment fee oh so it wasn’t like a full rght scholarship or anything like that no no no so it was just like okay
Like we don’t got the money so I was like where could I go where it’s like I’m still fairly close to my mom and my grandma my mom was living in La at the time my grandy was in bar though okay so I was just like uh guess I can go to Cal
State sadino like it’s right in the middle of both you know so I can see my granny when I need to I can see my mom when I need to and I was familiar with samino cuz I did come out here a couple times in middle school I went to uh
Airview I went to airview and I went to Devo okay so um I went to both of those schools so but I was like I’m familiar with sardino my grand used to live off magoli and Sierra way so that’s literally where you know so I like cool went there
Joined a fraternity um did videos and you know and made a name for myself like what did you learn from being in a fraternity what’s one of the biggest takeaways you got from being in a fraternity yeah um this [ __ ] is way bigger than yourself you know the
Fraternity is just life oh okay things are just it’s way bigger than you you know like um like when you are part of a collective and other black men at that because I joined F second which is a historically black fraternity you know part of the Divine n so what what was
The name again five Sigma fraternity Incorporated gotcha so like when you join a group of other black men like who are also trying to you know make things happen other entrepreneurs that or like just people that’s in different fields and you join this network of men across
The world you know like we got chapters all over the world so you know you you just get the just experience life in a way that’s like no other just you know regular person will be able to like you get access to just different things like
You go to se like literally I us when I came to San Diego one time like just by way of me being a sigma man saw another Sigma man and one of the things we always learn is like you know when you see a sigma man you know you always make
Sure you take care of each other even if you don’t even know that man like you never SE seen to talk to this man to day in your life but you see those letters respect you know okay so you just get into certain doors like certain opportunities that probably not other
People would get because you were a sigma man you know so that’s just kind of like how is but but just all in all like brothers like it’s really Brotherhood you know got got even if you you fight you don’t get along with some people sometimes you know like that
Happens but at the end of the day like I got your back period you know that’s what it is so yeah I love that yeah all right continue um so yeah um yeah I made my name in Cal State and just doing like by way of like one of the parties um me
Doing I was always known as the funny dude who did videos parody videos and stuff like that so I was on YouTube just doing just random [ __ ] like you know um this like 2010 yeah like 2010 and up actually yeah uh Ash asne was it was one
Of the first ones I did but I did a couple videos in 09 I used to work in the Student Union so I was worked as the videographer for the entire Student Union like my time at Cal State that was a p g right it man that’s that was my
First job wow my first job was being a videographer for the Student Union and I got that job because of Ashley ass needes so wow literally they saw the video my homeboy Antonio Shan Antonio he recommended me to he like yo you guys gota you guys got to see this video show
The department the marketing department Cal State sardino and they literally was like find him we got to hire him this the funniest [ __ ] in the world like I’m like I got my first job because of ashy as nie like a video called ashy as n and when I did videography for the
School I was like oh I can do this I could I could really do this you know or just like just something with media yeah something with media I could I never thought it would turn into podcasting but you know um long story short I end up graduating from Cal State in
2013 and um entire family showed up like you know everybody was there you know drones right right right and I purposely only did Black graduation I didn’t do the actual commencement oh interesting I was like I don’t want to sit here in this 5 Hour ceremony with a bunch of
People who I don’t know and I didn’t experience it like I was really in Gulf with the black community at College I was really involved mainly with the black people you know so when I did Black grad it was like these are all the folks who I’ve been around this entire
Time they families and stuff like that so it meant more to me was just to do black gr and had a blast you know and then um then my life just kind of like went to [ __ ] okay the good part part’s coming I guess yeah um so graduated
Literally I was telling you off mic about like my cat had like gave birth to like four or five different kittens the morning of my graduation but I ended up losing the place that I was living at I was about to get evicted um I lost my
Job um I lost my car got you so much happened like like two months after I graduated like it literally like all you graduated life life is about to happen you one after the other right like right after so like I was literally like homeless uh my girlfriend at the time
Just broke up with me like I felt like a damn failure yeah you know what I mean and with a degree with a degree just literally just got a degree and felt like literally at the bottom of the toep pole and I’m in debt you know college financial aid and all that stuff
So I was like all right I got to regroup I did not come all this way for this to be my story you know so I stay with my mom for a little bit and I was like you know what I think I’m move to San Diego just just randomly I just thought
About it like I’ve been here I’ve been there um a couple times before and I remember when I went out there like it always just felt like I’m supposed to be here oh beautiful it just felt like you know like it just felt like me like this
Is where I’m supposed to be record store all over the place nice weather expensive as hell but I was like part that part I’m supposed to be here okay and literally I love it yeah I said I was going to do it and I just I did it
Picked up and left one day my I found a couple cousins like uh cousins who I don’t really talk to anymore but I didn’t really talk to at the time either but found out that they lived in San Diego and I like yo like they was like
Yo you can stay here for like a couple months while you like get on your feet whatever and one of my friends at the time was living out there I was like okay like I can try to figure it out and came out there and then that’s when I
Found out I had a son and that’s you found out you had a son I found out I had a son oh [ __ ] so you okay so it was just dropped on you every yeah every like I’m telling you like my life just like I don’t even want to say like me
Having a son like that was like part of my life with the [ __ ] but it’s part of like the war like literally like iy what the hell is going on like literally I just I didn’t know what was happening with my life it was just like where’s all this coming from that
Part you know like and um you know and is that a phone call what how does that even happen it’s a essentially yeah it’s a phone call okay it was a text message first Dear that led to a phone call okay um wow and yeah like I knew that at that
Particular moment I had to make adjustments fast yeah because he was boring gotcha he was alive it wasn’t a pregnancy call gotta it was so she was pregnant for nine months and you got no word during that whole time no we we did we talked we talked
The entire time she was pregnant okay but she didn’t tell you she was pregnant no I knew she was pregnant you knew she was pregnant I didn’t we didn’t think it was my kid though ah you know even better but uh like you know like and
That’s I me and her like we’re we’re solid you know what I mean me and my kids mom we’re super solid but it was just like one of those things that it was just like it was one of those real like what the [ __ ] yeah yeah I’m
Assuming you did a DNA test yeah I did okay yeah I did the DNA test it was 99.999999 it’s my baby it’s your baby he got your eyes Mike’s got your eyes right but um it was just one of those things that you know it it it it can happen you
Know and it happened to me and you know it’s just one of those moments where I was like all right I gotta I got to step up to the plate like you know cuz I grew up without my dad so it was like okay okay this is interesting I just
Moved to San Diego now I got this new kid who is in sadino and how do I make this work yeah that part so my thought process was to well let’s I’m might have to move them out to San Diego I’m not moving back to sanino I just got out here like I’m
Literally like I got my chronous out of tacos you know like I’m chilling yummy right but I didn’t have a place of my own at the time okay so I was just like okay I got to really get on my feet and I end up applying to be a College
Advisor okay um and I end up getting the job and I was like oh [ __ ] wow um what’s the College advisor um a College advisor so basically like for it was an online school at the time um kind of like a guidance counselor kind of okay but it’s like you
You’re like assisting with like the scheduling and stuff like that with their classes you making sure that their degree plan is exactly where it needs to be like you know making sure like oh you failed that class you need to retake this class and this is not available to
This time it’s kind of like being the the spokesperson to them as they go through their whole college degree cool you know so it’s kind of like a guidance counselor essentially and that’s actually what I do now but I do it for a different University so wow um so I got
The job and found an apartment cool apartment moved them out and um like you saying about like men are not supposed to complain and supposed to just like complain to other men to just like figure things out that’s why I just had to do it in that moment like I couldn’t
Complain about it I couldn’t I had to make something happened like literally like their entire existence kind of depended on me just back fast you know so we end up getting together I end up trying to be the family man you know like you know playing house as they say
Essentially yeah so I was like all right man let me try to do this the right way you know and you know when you try to force things like that like it’s is probably going to fail so her and I didn’t um at least you tried I tried the
One thing I can say is I tried yeah and it it put me into I didn’t realize how much of a depression it would put me into oh wow like cuz everything was happening so fast and I couldn’t keep up so to say like it was just so many life
Events that were just so big that was just happening and then while he was a baby she pregnant again I got a daughter coming holy [ __ ] like holy [ __ ] he can’t control himself folks my goodness the num n num is so num nom numb the mind
Yeah so all of this is happening and then I just had to take a step back and we didn’t you know we broke up and she moved back to samino and I stayed in San Diego for a little bit but I was like damn I got to move back to the dino oh
Damn and I end up moving back to the dino cuz she probably took the kids with her probably she took the kids with her it was that day I was like I was like the kids stay with me and she was like that’s not about to happen and I was
Like why not you know all this stuff but he’s like you as as a dude you just don’t fight it like it’s some things you can fight but some things like when it comes to the kids leaving you some [ __ ] you just can’t fight so that was one of
The hardest days in my life like her getting in the car and the kids like literally seeing that car drive away yeah that like really I didn’t know how to live at that particular moment I didn’t know how to exist without my kids being at the house mhm you know so I end
Up moving back to the Dino and had to start over I was working in warehouses I was doing Uber e oh you have to leave your college advisory job well I got laid off oh I got laid off they they literally they were transforming their entire system and they were moving the
Campus to uh Chandler Arizona they either you can move here to Arizona and keep your job or Deuces got you house is so they cut me off and I went back to sardino and literally started from scratch I ended up working warehouse job throwing boxes ues I applied to all these different jobs
College degree all this you know just felt like a [ __ ] waste you yeah we know about it yeah man and yeah and at some point you know I Was Here For What 2019 to 2022 so I was up back here for like almost three years wow three years and
Co happened while I was out here and just so much [ __ ] man it was like it just felt like a wi and then I said stop literally I just said stop I’m about to do something about this [ __ ] got you like I you grab the by the horn you yeah
By the horns this is too much like so I literally just told my kids mom at the time I was like I’m moving I’m going back to San Diego got you that’s where I was happy I didn’t get the experience in a way that I thought I was going to
Because so much [ __ ] got thrown on me like right when I moved out there that I was like I’m trying it again for a second time got I’m going to do it my way got it’s you know it’s interesting it seems like I don’t want to say it this way but
In sardino kind of feels like the things are not stacking up in the right way M but in San Diego you’re able to thrive mhm that’s what it kind of seems like it was it was a space it was a it like I said when I went out there the first
Time or before I moved out there the first time I felt like I was supposed to be there yeah like the people this the energy out there was just like this is me it just felt like me and like when you’re out there I was able to do things
More for myself because it felt like I was supposed to be there when I was in the dino like definitely no shade to the dino cuz I love my Dino people I love the city but I never felt like I was supposed to be in samino like you know and and it’s like
Sometime like just sometimes sanino can feel like a black hole sometimes okay you know like it just like yeah emptiness Darkness it’s just like some of the opportunities are not as present got you you know yeah so it was just like okay I got to do something and I
Applied to this job they were hiring my shout out my homeboy James he sent me a link he was like cuz he lived in San Diego he was like yo we should look into applying for this job and I was like okay whatever I applied for it it was
For um the student advisor position for the school working with um business students so I was like I don’t got no damn business degree what the hell like you know like but I did if some business students at the other school true um you know so I had like familiarity with it
So I just applied and I literally got a phone call while I was delivering Chick-fil-A dope um literally call from the school um and he was like hey is this mik sessions whatever and I was like yeah and he like I want to interview you for this position at the
University I ain’t going to say the university I don’t want yall looking for me yeah yeah find him folks but um yeah and I literally pulled the car over I did a inter a phone interview on the side of the road oh wow somebody’s hot Chick-fil-A just sitting in the
Passenger side um did the whole interview and literally he like I want to do a second interview can you available for this day whatever so long story short I end up applying not apply I end up getting a job I was like [ __ ] told my girlfriend
We just got together at that point I was like let’s move to San Diego and she was like okay she was working she can she working from home oh dope okay so she was like all right this is in 2022 This Is 2020 this is like November December 2021
Okay so we was like all right well we got to we got to move so I basically I was working from home while I was figuring out the job first MH and then I found an apartment out there beautiful apartment dope moved out there and then
Yeah the rest is history and um I was able to bring my kids with me perfect it it just worked out that way you know yes and uh did you already cuz the podcast has been going on for 3 years you said now oh yeah and the podcast was happen
Okay yeah the podcast was happening during this time okay what made you start it um I was supposed to have started this podcast years before I even did it um it was supposed to be me and the homies MH we you know you talk with the group chat
With your friends your boys and all these ideas come up and I was like this is like this this literally is this is what I do often like where you just like you see with people you just have dialogue about all different type of
Stuff yeah so I was like yeah I was a big fan of the Joe Buton podcast at the time I’m still a big fan of it but like I just love just playing the music and laughing talking [ __ ] like I was like man this is like literally that’s what I
Do with my friends all day every day you know and I like I think I know some people that can do this with me and I try like couple different people I was like ah it’s not going to work if we do it like nobody’s going to be consistent
Or or just like personality wise I don’t know I don’t think they will care about it as much as I would cuz that’s into media so got you do you think different personalities just don’t they’ll Clash oh absolutely okay absolutely like it’s it’s I don’t know like some people just
Like they in theory it sounds good but it just be like they ain’t going you know okay so um I started it I like you know I’m about I was about it about to be me and this um and this other guy and then I was just like know I might just
Do it myself I just start the [ __ ] myself and I can make it about kind of like um um it initially started as me kind of like just talking about my upbringing and stuff like that and how everything started and like and then the second season I
Brought in a co-host so it was one of my fat Brothers one of my boys and um it it really took off after that like after season two like just the personalities matched ah it was like we were perfect on the M together you know what I mean
And um like like slowly but surely like that dissolved and then I had to go back to being by myself and so I’m seven seasons in and you know it’s I don’t know man it’s just like it’s it’s therapeutic for me definitely you know 100% it’s therapeutic
It’s I have to get this like I have to get a lot of this [ __ ] off me you know you know it’s the best format for me like you know I know people say like a lot of these you see all these toxic meal podcasts like these hyper
Like alpha male podcast where they just sit there and they just [ __ ] on women all the time and they’re like that’s not my platform at all you know I like to like I said I like to play music on it I like to talk [ __ ] I like to bring in
Different people from different walks of life because the main thing of the podcast is everybody has a story you know yeah so why not tell your a story over a nice dope Ass soundtrack that part you know how did the name come about um the original name of it was
Going to be something stupid I think it was like the fourth side of story some [ __ ] like that I don’t know but it was like a like a list of names and I like like like I said it was about to be me and this other guy and we went through
This whole like list of names and then if I let you tell it was literally like on it cuz it was just like how do we like create a name for a podcast where it’s like you let people say whatever the hell they want to say mm like if I
Let you tell it like things like this you know what I mean it was just kind of like that and you know you just let people kind of like tell their side of things and that’s your truth I suppose you know got you got you so you know everybody has
Like I said everybody has a story so it kind of goes along with that and if I let you tell it what it just it just it just sounded like something that I probably wanted to listen to so that’s that’s kind of what the name we went it
Wasn’t really that big of a decision it was just like all right yeah let’s go with that and then just took off it stuck right it’s just stuck literally there you know I I guess it’s my turn to playing devil Devil’s Advocate cuz you said there’s a lot of podcast that talk
About about like uh hating on women yeah do you think there’s a lot of podcasts that involve women hating on men absolutely there a like there’s a lot of that [ __ ] it’s actually kind of like it’s I’m like I said even when I was a a
Kid like I try to be very careful of the things I consume on a dayto day that’s like with Twitter Instagram or X whatever they call it now um like I try to really like be careful of the things I allow into like my my mental space I don’t like watching
Reality TV shows and none of that stupid [ __ ] like it’s just like like what why are we doing this you know um so even with podcasting it’s so many different types of platforms it’s platforms for everybody yeah you know endless it’s it can feel oversaturated sometimes cuz You’ be like you know like
Some people shouldn’t have kids some people shouldn’t have mics that part that part I like to say that uh the the best part and the worst part about the internet or social media is that everyone has something to say but unfortunately the internet now has given everyone an opportunity to say
Whatever they want but everyone shouldn’t be saying everything you know it’s supposed to like what did someone say they said hey you know you’re talking like shut the [ __ ] up that’s stupid like but now no one could say shut the [ __ ] up right you can’t even
Say that yeah it’s like oh I have I could just post M was that a good idea I it doesn’t matter I’m going to say it anyway right how do you cut through the noise like how do you be Innovative in your approach to whatever you’re doing
With podcasting like you can’t just get in there and just keep saying the same old thing that everybody else is saying like how do you be um how do you be true to you but also be compelling you know and that’s that’s that’s the hard part
About it is cuz ultimately I don’t think I think I’m interesting to a point but I was like I don’t want to assume that I’m like so interesting so I don’t approach my podcast that way like I literally that’s why I like to let other people
Like I just go by what their energy is you know yeah and like I said I just I could just do a podcast where I just play songs all day if I just DJ the entire time basic I would be happy you know you might you might I think we’re
Talking about a different type of podcast now right right you can have two a lot of people have two I can but it’s like that’s but that’s also the beauty of this show is like I created it so I can do whatever I want with it if I
Decide tomorrow that I just literally just want to just play music and that’s it I can do it you know would you lose some of the fan base if you did that um probably but I I always feel like the people who like certain things they’re going to gravitate towards so you might
Lose these people but you’re going to gain these people you know true yeah so and I’ve learned that even with podcasting is don’t get so caught up in numbers don’t get so caught up in um in like um trying to appeal to certain things like just be you yep and
The people who are supposed to be there is the people who are going to like your [ __ ] is going to show up period whether it takes years or whatever like just be consistent and it it will happen for you like you know so I drop every week I’ve
Been dropping every week for the last three years you know nice and it’s it’s worked like it’s literally it’s being shown that it works so like why do I why would I stop yeah you know yes sir like that’s just that’s kind of what it what
It goes down to you know be consistent but also loving what you do too it’s important like important like this [ __ ] like I I like genuinely like doing I like sitting down like getting to know somebody getting to meet somebody for the first time you know and building that network
Of stuff you know what I mean and just other people who are doing similar things too you know it just it it it’s it’s just cool like like I said I’ve been through a lot of my life and it feels good that I could just chill at my crib and just like and
Literally just [ __ ] talk [ __ ] on the microphone and just have fun like you know do you do filming at home you film at home mhm okay nice y like y uh I wanted to ask like do you have a YouTube channel for this page I used to what
Happened why why you take the reason I took it down is because I play a lot of music on I was going to ask it’s the music that is like copywritten right they they used to take all my [ __ ] down that’s actually why it’s not on Spotify
I was going to ask the same question same thing for Spotify cuz you people music they was ripping my episodes down what happens when you when you start using that music what does it say like copyright infringement essentally yeah they were just like you’re playing songs
You’re not supped to play him y y but um you know you you try to find like different ways around it like it’s like weird rules man it’s just like when you start a show I think something on YouTube is like the first three minutes you’re not supposed to curse on your
Show or something like that oh that’s interesting it’s like certain like little things that people don’t know about but that you get flagged like or you’re easily found if you do things a certain way got you know so like I was I don’t want to go through this Hassle and
I love playing music so that’s why patreon works you know do whatever you want on patreon oh absolutely so essentially that’s what I do on patreon I literally I get to upload full episodes um and they don’t take nothing down and you know and the video versions
Of the episodes are all up there for free so just like you can listen to it for free on whatever device like you know you’re able to watch them for free as well so for those of you guys listening definitely tap into that patreon um and yeah it it’s it’s just
Cool man like you know it’s just cool to be able to um just sit and and just do what you like to do you know and be as creative as possible so that’s that’s essentially like what I’m going to continue to do and yeah yeah I think patreon’s really cool you know and
Um I guess there’s something that you mentioned earlier which was like um finding the balance between being yourself and being like I guess like entertaining quote unquote right and I think in my opinion you know I think it’s kind of like uh and I agree certain certain extents with certain people like
Sometimes you kind of like got to like 3x your natural personality when you’re on the camera or something like that but I’m also kind of a component where it’s just like uh I think I rather just be myself it’s just easier you know and then people can if they [ __ ] with
You they [ __ ] with you and to be honest I think um and I believe this in everything in life and artistic Wise It’s like if it’s good it’s good if it’s not it’s not I and I I don’t think everyone who has a podcast is meant to
Be a podcaster right I guess and I think that’s for everything in life like right um and some people are and some people aren’t but luckily there’s you can basically podcast about anything but what are you podcasting about and you know you have a title for your podcast
Called like um what was it it a music podcast F focused on everything but music yeah yeah so I and I guess you kind of clarified earlier but your focus is what is your focus if it’s everything but music a music podcast is focused on everything but music right yeah cuz that
Essentially goes into what I was saying like I want to play music like I want to just play music on the pot but um essentially like it’s literally like um bringing people into a space that um like I just learned so much about other people by by way of just sitting down
And like put people in certain situations you see how they react like I love I always love observing people okay you know so give us an example about situations um for example um uh like I have like family members who’ve been on the podcast before I know who my family
Members are like I’ve been around them my whole entire life yes but I would have never thought I would ever see like a family member like in front of a microphone talking like you know so like to put like my auntie or my cousin whoever like put them in front of a
Microphone and just seeing how that translate into like a episode like it’s just always interesting to see what they will say in front of a mic and what they will say off the mic got you you know what I mean like didn’t you have I think
A cousin and aunti on I think either like the last episode of season 6 I believe it was and I think one of them was like you know I need to date a cancer because cancer is uh basically feminine and and I’m masculine and I can’t be with a
Masculine man shut up Sean do I am I sounding pretty accurate about that that’s that’s definitely my cousin Sean uh yeah like you know me it’s just funny like when you see the [ __ ] that people say in front of a microphone yeah but I’ve also seen people who was like
Talking like crazy prior to the episode or like off the mic and soon as soon as that mic is hot like a mouse it’s like trying to pull teeth try to get them to say it’s just interesting just the dynamic and there been some people who I thought
Were going to be like I don’t know about this episode I don’t know if this person going to be that compelling end up blowing the like just going crazy on episode amazing show got you got you you know like and you just be surprised by certain things you you know like they
Say in Forest Gump life like a box of chocolates yeah essentially yeah like you never know what you’re going to get yeah I just like I said with this podcast like I I love love making people feel comfortable know you’re coming into my home you know yeah that’s so that’s
That’s even in itself is a Big R cuz my girl be like yeah who you bringing to my house next yeah yeah yeah I I personally I couldn’t do it I was like I don’t I can’t bring strangers in my house I just yeah and I guess it’s probably a little
Bit different vibe in San Diego than out here but yeah I just was like tricky yeah it’s a sacred your home is your Sacred Space and so you’re allowing people into your Sacred Space but go ahead It’s Tricky but it’s like at some point I do aim to you know have like my
Own Studio or something like that you know but like right now like this is what works like it’s just and it’s like I think it also just helps with the vibe of the show in itself people could be comfortable people get to you know don’t
Wear no shoes in my house you know you walk in have your socks on make sure your toes are done if you going to have your feet out got you you know make sure your toes are done give a heads up hey no don’t wear no shoes in my house and
It’s my lady’s house too you know so be be respectful so you know and I don’t know it’s just a different type of vibe and every it just works for the feel of the show in itself you know people come to get comfortable you know we have just
You know we get some little drink whatever and you know whatever drink they want to have and if they don’t drink drink water you know whatever you know so just get comfortable let’s chill and let’s get to the bottom of whatever like your story is and it looks nice
Like the layout looks really nice you know just me in my living room you know it looks nice though yeah look nice you know so yeah the show like I said man the show is it’s me man it’s literally me and it’s one thing I think about
Podcasting is you might be able to uh relate to this sometimes you like look back on some episodes you be like ah why did I say that or you know I me like or just like oh damn that wasn’t me my best you know you know it’s just like something like oh I
Should have edited that um you know and but what I’ve also learned is [ __ ] it hey [ __ ] it man cuz it’s just some people ain’t going to like it some people don’t like it that’s where you really kind of get into that [ __ ] mentality just like man it is what it is
And nobody really cares that much yeah yeah probably more so ourselves than anybody else right right yeah you know you have all these people come to your house you know between like friends artists and family how do you decide what guest to pick to come onto your platform oh that is an excellent
Question that is an excellent question um um normally is most of the people who have been on the show has been people who I’ve known already okay um I’ve met either through college or I’ve met just in some form of Walk of Life like and I’ve always found them to be interesting
To some degree um funny or just like yo you should be you’ll be good for a podcast there are some people who I really want on a show but I really know their their backstory and I’m like I don’t ever want to feel like I’m trying
To exploit anybody you know it’ be like some people who I’m just like yeah they’re interesting but ah I don’t want to hey come on my podcast and talk about that dark [ __ ] from your past you know like but it’s just like give us an example um there’s there are some
Family members who I who I think will be good guests but I just know their story all too well that just like um if you decide you want to come on a show hit me up but I like to maintain I really like to maintain the the relationships I have with people and
Not feel like I’m out here trying to C like go viral you know I got you I got you you know and yeah I mean that’s that’s as far as like choosing guest man A lot of times people hit me up you know true true can I give some advice on that
Family thing what um cuz you know you say that you’re waiting for them to hit you up right but they’re probably not thinking about that but their story and I think you should probably have like a off camera one-on-one with them yeah but say I think your story could actually
Probably help somebody MH go the right way help someone relate right and figure it out and in my opinion I think might be more it might be more successful and beneficial if you reach out to them and say hey I think your story could help somebody right and obviously I’m family
So I’m not going to come at you maliciously yeah as someone on CNN would right yeah and and also I do have I’m the only person in my family that’s doing some [ __ ] like this so it’s like I have a platform that these voices will probably never be heard you know so and
I think a lot of my like well some of my my audience like their favorite episodes the one I brought my mom on okay and I brought my dad on you know um and once you kind of hear them speak you kind of get to know me a little bit better you
Know get to understand Mike a little bit better you know by way of hearing what they say um but also just like like I said I have like this whole booking system and I normally hit people up like a month or two in advance okay so like I’m normally like booked out already
Like like right was October right now so yeah I already got like episodes booked for like December nice you know a good yeah so it’s just like it you want to be proactive especially cuz I live in [ __ ] San Diego so a lot of people
That I do know and I you know that I have on the show they don’t live in San Diego so okay they got a plan for it I’m about to drive out there I’m about to do this and that so um I’m actually taking an approach now where um I’m kind of
Getting away from just having people on that I know and now I’m doing more of the I want to interview artists and uh business people or people uh even maybe even bring in like a local politician or something like that okay you know what I mean like just kind of like really
Expand the nature of this show to where it’s like still keep the feel of it like play music keep people uh like bring people to like down Earth you know like yo we chilling I don’t care who you are what you doing in this space we are
Literally just kicking it I like it you know so y just like literally like just I like to if you’re even like if you got 880,000 followers I want to make it to a point where you feel like you only got like 300 and you’re just like a regular
Ass person just sitting on the couch talking just chilling M just chilling you know and you you said you had guested on that off mic they’re one way and on mic they’re different right yeah hell yeah and you know you guys you say you drink on the Pod I don’t know if you
Guys puff or do anything else we done all that [ __ ] got you yeah so has that helped with people’s comfortability on on on the mic and have you seen it change when they do that some people shouldn’t drink on the podcast okay me sometimes I I have to stop myself cuz
Sometimes I’ll be like oh I took a little bit too many shots for that episode you know um but people for sure like you got to put people in a space that’s comfortable for them so if like if a person is like yo I smoke all right
Smoke you know what I mean like whatever like it’s it’s not that big of a deal but it’s like uh liquor definitely has loosened a lot of people up but some people a little bit too much point where got you I’ll be always saying yo I can
Edit whatever you need to say out just let me know but be careful man I don’t want to edit like I want to actually kind of go through this whole thing and be like all right that was a good episode I don’t feel like I need to go back and change
Anything uhhuh oh so you don’t have to do much you don’t do much uh post production I try my best to uh in real time when I’m recording to um kind of like edit in real time oh man how fun you know and post production sucks yeah
I don’t think people realize how much post production like that [ __ ] is so much work yes so I try in real time while I’m recording to just put a lot take a lot of pressure off myself and just be like all right man I have a a a format of the
Way I go you know like I have a I know I start off with three songs I have uh the thing I read the purple book to them you know I go I do my intermission MH and I do my outro and in those blocks this is
What we’re going to talk I already have my topics laid out so I have a format I have a system so it’s just like I’m used to the system so it’s like once to get to post production I’m be like oh I remember I do time stamps if I be like
Oh probably goingon to edit that part out I like just put the little time step down okay so I know when I get back to postproduction I know exactly where it’s at take that out good to go never existed so for two things so for people
Who don’t know what’s the purple book oh man yeah the purple book is um is this astrology birthday book and my girl is really into astrology and I got it um I got it for her one day and it’s just always funny to read it to people like
Because it may be so awful who they actually are but it got it became this thing where people literally come to the show and be like you going to read that purple book to me right you know like they want the purple book and it’s just
They kind of like taking on its own like life you know and so I’ll just read the purple book to him like all right here’s the infamous purple book you know I bring it out and people love it you know it basically become like a a segment for
The show yeah dope yeah I guess that’s where that cancer thing came in with your yeah okay yeah and how do you pick your three songs for the show O that’s a good question um I actually have a formula okay um I’ve never said this before but I’ll say it here
Um oh I’m such a nerd but so a lot of times the songs that I pick um it’s normally like it’s the anniversary of that song when it was released okay but I like I’ve never said it but like I always said I was going to like say like
Much like years later like yeah when I choose a songs it’s normally like no this it’s literally like um it might be like a 30y year anniversary of the song being released or 25 whatever for the album that is on that came out one of the songs now after the new format I
Allow the guest to choose one of the songs so um I’ll have it like when they’re doing like the little booking system I have a one of the questions is what song would you like for me to incorporate in the intro don’t make yourself look stupid because this is a
Reflection of you like whatever song you choose you know but also it allows me to know what especially if I don’t know them what vibe we’re going into the show you know so I I you could tell a lot about somebody by the music they listen
To gotcha you know one of the ones that comes to my I didn’t cut you off did I no one of the ones that come to my mind I think that’s on one of the recent ones I think is Summer by childis scambino yeah yeah yeah was that an anniversary
For something recently no um actually yeah yeah damn was it yeah yeah yeah it it may have been it may have been um or or my guest no my guest chose that song okay my guest chose that song that was the one with M16 on it I believe oh yeah
Yeah yeah yeah yeah um I believe he chose that song if I’m not mistaken M16 yo I’m sorry 16 like if that if you actually didn’t choose that song but I’m trying to remember like well yeah like those songs that I choose it’s very specific and it’s like strategic only
Songs that is not like that’s the intermission the intermission is I normally try to choose a song that just came out that I don’t feel like nobody’s talking about you know okay so yeah it’s a whole formula for the songs I choose beautiful and first here on the Empire
First time I ever said that [ __ ] yeah I’ve never even said on my podcast I choose the songs uh you know you’ve been doing this going on eight seasons now right yep uh what have you learned from being a podcaster and what advice would you give to people who want to start
Their podcast o that’s a good double part question um what have I learned I learned a lot about myself I actually learned that I can actually really be dedicated to something okay like outside of my my kids was the first thing that showed me that I can be consistent in something I
Always felt like I was a very inconsistent person MH but I felt with this podcasting I’ve learned also mainly that yo every everybody’s not who who you think they are you know there’s layers like there’s layers to everybody and and don’t be nervous to invite whoever to your show you know what I
Mean and everybody everybody is just regular people MH you know like it’s it’s really like we sometimes see people on social media and they doing this they doing that once they step into your living room and they sitting on your couch like they kind of like walk into
Your world and you just start to see like how just regular human human everybody here like and I think that’s what I’ve learned what I the advice I would give oh man if you you got to be consistent the only way to really flourish in the podcast space is to be
Consistent and to also like um don’t try too hard like don’t try too hard to be compelling don’t try too hard to try to capture audiences and stuff like that like just do you do you and like I said be consistent like I’ve listened to some podcast that I didn’t
Feel were the best of quality as far as like sound and stuff like that M but I listen because they’re consistent I can rely on the episode drop like you know what I mean like I always said shout out drink Champs I love drink Champs is one
Of my fav favorite shows I always said like though I was like man this like multi-million doll platform they have all these guys I like why is the bikes sound like this like you know I used to really like it used to bother me but they’re consistent they drop every
Friday you know and I know and they have compelling guests they have people who I want to know like oh I I never knew that story about this person you know so it just like it just be stuff like that is just if you’re going into the podcast
Space try not to think so much about what other people are doing in their shows mhm make your show your show just make it like make that [ __ ] your baby and literally just just have a blast man got you be yourself be yourself whatever topics you’re interested in if you like
Polit politics talk about politics don’t but don’t get on a mic and start talking about a bunch of [ __ ] that you don’t know about yeah or not or not truly interested in I think yeah cuz it shows yeah it shows I you know I’m glad you mentioned drink Champs cuz it’s going to
Kind of connect to my another question cuz I do like drink jamps too as well yeah um shout out to drink jamps nor yeah I just the last episode I just recently saw was the one with leard con Cohen oh yeah I finished that whole and
I think that was a good one because there’s a lot I feel like there’s a lot of shade thrown thrown on leard you know for a while and now he get to kind of explain himself a little bit more come from his perspective right the meth meth
Man one was pretty good that I recently saw too as well um and that waren g episode was really really good right yeah man I wish they didn’t take that Kanye Kanye West one but um in your opinion which podcasts do you think are overrated and which ones do you think are underrated
Overrated oh man that’s funny uh yeah he has he has the answer he already has the answer go ahead go ahead Mike um there’s a couple go ahead he he I don’t want to get in trouble no I don’t care about get I don’t worry about that what they going to do uh
Overrated um it’s some like sports players there some like NBA players that got like shows that I’m just like no names I didn’t I don’t really like the pat beev podcast that much okay and I know that he’s doing his thing and shout out to him you know what I mean
But it just it like you these shows that get all like all this Acclaim and stuff like that people like plugging it in because you know they are who they are and they work to where they are but it just it just doesn’t really doesn’t really click like that yeah now
Underrated uh I just hate that I just like just put him but it’s like other ones too like you know what I mean like it’s okay it’s okay million dollars worth a game all right this but is that underrated or overrated overrated okay to a point now the reason that they are
Going to always do good is because one they are they are interesting they’re funny and they always have guests on that we care about MH I just personally hate podcast with a shitload of advertisements like it it it it disrupts the flow of the show they be
Sitting there talking to be like and by the way New Amsterdam Baka you know you just I hate podcast where I have to keep stopping and then pressing the 30 second little go forward you know um I like to put on podcast when I get in the shower so I
Just let it run you know gotcha so it’s not too much you don’t like their their work you just don’t like the advertisement that’s in their work I don’t like the systems of some shows that just like yo it’s not it’s not easy to listen to okay you know um and that’s
One thing I really love about the Joe Button podcast is this it’s literally just a through it’s three hours of them just talking no advertisements they just get to the [ __ ] okay you know know um but I understand it to each a s like people got to make money you know like
And for me like Damn I probably would do well if I had some [ __ ] sponsorship you know like but I also know my audience and I think if I started like just cutting in the middle and just start talking my advertisement I think they like what the [ __ ] is this you know
What I mean so it’s like I don’t know but underrated underrated podcast um I listen to like some nerdy [ __ ] I listen to the Marvel Cinematic Universe podcast shout out cool shout out Jeff shout out Matt shout out Ashley um favorite Marvel Superhero yeah yeah my my favorite one
Yes favorite hero um here we go folks I’m a huge Thor fan okay um from the live action or from the actual uh comic um no live action I think Chris Chris hamsworth is the perfect casting for Thor they did a good job um and I’m a huge Spider-Man fan you
Know like i a like I love and I look shout out Toby Maguire shout out Andrew garford but I think Tom Holland is amazing as Spider-Man like you know um but have you seen the spiderverse oh yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah okay and I think that
They’re going to bring mes Morales into live action I think they have to yeah yeah I think they have to I think they’re going to especially with the secret warwards coming up and everything you know you know so do you think oh sorry oh no keep going do you think
They’re GNA keep John Mayor as they have to he’s such a great actor he’s killing it this this last episode of Loki he murdered as Victor timley I don’t know if you saw this episode yet I haven’t seen it yet oh my God I ain’t even going
To say what happened but yeah he is and even with him like I I feel like the the energy is kind of like subsiding a little bit around that whole thing and then I don’t think they can even find a woman like she’s like went on the run or
Something like that it was false allegations yeah so but he’s like he is extremely talented and I just think you know it’s an unfortunate situation that that whole thing happened whatever whatever happened we just still don’t know what the hell happened but um I just think his role in this going
Forward in the MCU is just too important to let him go right and and to find a replacement that could do just as good nobody’s going to be able to do it the way he’s doing it yeah like it’s almost kind of like with with um with Robbie D
Jr and Iron Man like it was the perfect casting just like nobody could have done Iron Man the way Robert Downey Jr did yeah like like nobody literally nobody he’s Iron Man true you know like Chris Evans is Captain America like that’s Scarlet Johanson is Black Widow you know
Like that’s it’s the perfect casting now we could talk about Hawkeye Hawkeye uh uhoh hit him with the Hawkeye hit him with the Hawkeye hit him with the Hawkeye we could have found a different one okay okay but okay shout Jeremy Evans but or Jeremy rener Jeremy EV CRA
Jeremy Jeremy rener but yeah like I don’t know like I listen to the Marvel C itic Universe podcast I think they’re very underrated um I just like little geeky [ __ ] I listen to I’m big basketball fan so I listen to a lot of basketball podcast um Paul George got a really
Underrated podcast oh interesting Paul George’s podcast uh podcast P that [ __ ] is great he had Jerry West on the damn show like he got the the NBA logo on your show like you know um yeah I I don’t know I Kevin Garnett show is uh uh kg certified that show was amazing gotta
So it’s a lot it’s a lot of show it shows for everybody out there man I got two things for you Mike yeah so current who’s your current favorite bball player basketball player folks and would you be what’s your uh opinion on the debate between Michael Jordan versus LeBron
Yes uh my favorite like favorite player right now or my favorite player of all time let’s do both um favorite player right now that I love watching um I love watching jar okay um I don’t know like I’ve always been a fan of guards like I
Never really been that big of a fan of like big men okay um but guards like I love guards who are just like High Flyers like dudes that out there dunking on people like Dwayne Wade is one of my favorite players ever and I’m a Miami
Heat fan like the die so um just I always love seeing like the little dude that’s just like just smack on big dudes like just it’s so good to watch and like just ball handling and all that stuff um favorite player of all time LeBron okay
So does that settle my uh my question between Brun and and Michael Jordan I think that it’s just different I don’t know it’s it’s different I think that Jordan will be able to exist in any generation I think LeBron could have existed in any generation of basketball but I
Personally didn’t see Jordan like that that M you know um I mean kind of but I was 13 when LeBron got drafted you know so like you know I I I remember him getting drafted I remember the St I remember him being his first seven years
In Cleveland and then going to myi I remember that day actually because like I said I was Miami he fan since I was a kid yeah so that day LeBron came I was like what the hell my favorite player ever coming to my favorite team you God
Does exist yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah so that that happened and you know so and I understand like a bunch of people being Miami fans that [ __ ] was weird yeah you know how it happens cuz I’m like I’m I’ve only known myself I’ve never met another Miami Heat fan in my life you
Know how it rolls though the bandwagon it so frustrating I was like who are you people what the hell is this we’ve always been fans yeah I was so mad man where have you been that was a weird time that was such a weird time yeah you
Know my opinion on the whole thing is that I think since they’re different eras it’s kind of hard to judge because different things existed different rules different regulations different uh so I think that’s the only way cuz like it’s different time zones it’s like you might as well just start bringing
Um God can’t Dr J you know and is Dr Jay better than LeBron it’s like it’s or Kareem you know it’s like it’s different eras different things existed different you know like LeBron is even like his body size is completely different than any basketball player that probably
Existed before you know he’s a unicorn um and I think like any like any era like you’re just going to adjust what the rules are at that at that time they always say like oh LeBron wouldn’t be able to last in the 90s and 80s because they were more physical yeah but like
LeBron do you know have you seen his size like LeBron would have been okay and LeBron is a very skilled player he don’t play to like the physicality of the sport but he doesn’t have because of how skilled he is he’s smart he has extreme cour awareness and I think he
Actually gets a bad rep a lot of times like he they always talk about him complaining Interesting Man complaining um but I just think that’s a product of the times everybody complains about referee calls and [ __ ] like that that’s just how it is now like you have to yeah
It’s part of the game everybody [ __ ] it’s like shooting it’s like uh the big man shooting a three everyone’s doing it now pictor W wiana man 7 foot five out here playing like KD that’s a scary dude very you know um I think this last season um I was
Watching LeBron and I was just like you know he’s not as as athletic as he was obviously because you know time and needs but I’m like damn his basketball IQ is tremendous like it’s tremendous you know and actually different completely different topic but is sessions your real last name or is that
A right right or you know is it your artist name and how’ you come up with that that’s [ __ ] hilarious because I Every Time I Think of sessions I think about okay let’s go outside and smoke have a session you know yeah so yeah my name is Michael Des Shane sessions
Jr yeah that’s my actual name and I used to I used to uh get not clown about it but girls used to get mad at me about it okay why they used to think I was like really cocky cuz I walked around and I called myself my session and SP like no
That’s my name yeah they used to think I was like walking around like with a stage name you know like who does this person think he is I like no like that’s really what I do it’s my birth name right like yeah I I used to do open mic
Nights so I used to do poetry like in front of people and literally introducing mik sessions like who’s this guy that’s my name guys I don’t know what else to say like you know like that’s really my name but yeah for the longest time people thought I was like
Walking around with a stage name but like no birth name mik and I’m a junior my dad name is Mike sessions oh you’re junior yeah oh yeah yeah yeah so actually my granddad name is my Mike sessions as well so it’s weird that I’m actually a
Junior I should have been like the third or something like that but yeah my grandpa name is Mike session my dad name is Mike session so your Mike session is the third I should be but the only reason I think my grandpa’s name is Michael James sessions um so I think
That’s why I’m not you don’t have the James in there I got yeah my name is D Shane so Michael D Shane sessions my dad name is Michael D Shane session oh so you Junior okay so Junior yeah uhhuh D Shane I like that it’s actually kind of
Cool that’s when my my dad goes by Shane uhhuh so they call him Shane um and they used to call him Mike fresh so that’s where uh I got the nickname Mike fresh I got it from my dad cuz my dad name is Mike freshes so when I was a kid my
Family used to call me like little Mike fresh cool yeah cuz they knew my dad and um that’s actually funny now thing I never thought about this about like my son’s origin like how I just like kind of found out um my dad found out the
Same way about him uh about me I mean wow cuz yeah I was conceived in Utah Augden Utah job Court that’s when my parents met each other my mom’s from La my dad’s from Omaha Nebraska and that’s where they met each other and then I was conceived there and then my
Dad went back to Nebraska my mom went back to LA and then yo you got a son that’s actually crazy I never thought about that in my entire life that’s weird having Revelation time wow on the Empire Is How We Do It people shout out the Empire man wow think like
Father likes Junior indeed yeah the Apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree crazy yeah wow that’s that that be happening all these type of things always happen when I’m podcasting yeah you know things things is open things is open you know what I mean you know um I wanted to talk
About because you have patreon right yeah and like can you talk to us a little bit about monetization right and the process it is your thoughts your experiences and other sources that you’ve done to try to monetize yeah so entire like the show in itself is free
So you can listen to it on every platform except for Spotify um but with patreon you know um it’s I have three different tiers so I have a $1 tier $3 tier $5 tier and depending on which tier you in depend is going to be what
Content you get you know so the $1 tier is like people who you know I call it the listeners that’s the tier the listeners the $1 tier um you essentially you get you I might do like some DJ mixes on Saturday or something like that and upload it or you can like be
Involved in different polls I might put a poll up like yo what should I talk about this episode like should I talk about this this this this and then you get the vote $3 tier I call it the homies so the homies is literally you
Get to get all those things with the $1 tier but you also get a bonus episode every month so that me that’s a full entire episode that regular listeners do not even get to listen to so it’s strictly on patreon um what’s one of the bonus episodes that premiered um I just
Put one out recently with my dad um um I have one coming up this week it’s going to be me and my girl and I had the idea I said yo let’s like get on some edibles and just do a show okay me and my girl
And I’m like was it heavy Edibles no we haven’t done it yet we’re going to do it this week but it was like let’s just get high off Edibles and just like go on patreon you know just do a full episode and put on patreon for like the $5 tier
So the $5 tier is the special guest so that’s the people I always like the whenever I have people on the show I say you know it’s your boy Mike SES Mike fresh and we have a special guest that’s what I say every episode to introduce somebody so the special guest here is
You get two bonus episodes every month and you get everything from you know um the other tiers but I’m also going to be bringing out merch so I’m working on merch right now and with the people who are in that tier like you most likely like probably either going to get some
Free merch or a really high discount M you know so just like it’s been people who have been mostly people sign up for the $5 tier cool so because it’s just like why not like if if you gonna sign up for $3 you might as well sign them
For $5 you know what I mean so um and some people who just want to support so they just um some people just they subscribe to $1 tier because they just take my dollar a month you know and with the monetization like you know I got to
Make some money off this [ __ ] somehow but I try my best to use those funds like towards the Pod so you know if I need some new equipment or something like that like you yeah so it’s just a way to invest in it but my main plan is like I said at
Some point I would like to get a bag like a exclusive deal where it’s like we will host your podcast on this platform strictly on this platform and we’ll give you like give you a bag for it you know that’s how a lot of that’s how a lot of
People I’m St that’s how a lot of people get their you know their exclusive deals to get you know six figures you know to just be on one platform give us uh your dream Dream your dream of that what you would love to have knock at your door oh man um I mean I would love I would I wouldn’t even mind like the black effect Network you know like I would like to be involved with like a network that’s like created and owned by
Black people okay like I mean I definitely would I’m not opposed to like if Spotify or somebody like or apple was to be like yo we wanted you to be a Apple exclusive podcast say less you know what I mean like I know the bag is
Going to be there you know they’re a a brand that you can trust you know so um my dream is to really just you know get into that space where I want a team you know okay I would love love to have a team you know but even with having a
Team and involves you know you got to pay people you know you got to have like you know and and I’m just not there yet what do you what would you like help wise what would you put this team at what would you need them to help do oh
Man I would love a producer I would love somebody who will be able to do time stamps for me okay you know I would love somebody to make sure that the the video is recording properly you know I would like somebody to do Post production you
Know like [ __ ] like that I would like to just really just be able to show up record and walk the [ __ ] away tell me about it like cuz I’m a oneman show I do everything I do the video editing I do the video shooting I do the audio
Engineering um I do the topic I do the music I do everything yeah you know like when a guest come over I buy you know the liquor I buy the snacks whatever like I do everything you know so I learn a lot doing the stuff yeah yeah yeah
Yeah and but then the downfall of that though is you kind of know exactly how you want things to be done so if you do have a team sometimes it’s like you got to trust that people are going to do things the way you know you like like you’re
Done well [ __ ] I hired you better do it this way right right and sometimes that might be a little difficult but I realize as an entrepreneur as a you know as a businessman like is going to you going to end up having to step into that
Role where you just going to have to be big boss dog yeah and and you’re going to have to break some heart sometimes and what you say I hired you for this yeah yeah and sometimes I could be a little bit too nice and I realize you
Can’t do that when you’re trying to own a business and you’re trying to run some [ __ ] yeah nice people don’t get get far no no no well you know I think there’s a difference between being nice and being like a pushover MH type of thing you know what I mean yeah uh
Dang oh man my train of thought totally went away we were just what we just talking about what were we just talking about being nice and being a pushover before boss uh having a team before that oh yeah how much would be a good amount of money to get paid that’s a good
Question uh cuz we know we said Apple music or black effect so but yeah like what’s the bag look like it’s like I definitely don’t want to undervalue myself I wouldn’t mind the six figures okay just off 999,000 I mean like 99,999 I don’t mind starting starting at
A certain like probably like uh what I always learn is sometimes you kind of have to undersell just in the beginning sometimes okay just to kind of prove that you know you go back you go back to the negotiation table and you you know you proving yourself that you are worth
More you know cuz sometimes some people oversell themselves you know or you try to get too high of a bag and then you like I ain’t getting that you like what you haven’t shown anything like you know um but six figures to start off for me
Just like that’s that’s fine um and I know that I I’m very capable I know my talent you know I know I’m very confident at this point now I’ve been doing it three years going on four years I’m very confident in my podcasting ability yes you know and I wasn’t always
This conf confident cuz I was starting off I used to borrow people mics and show up to their house and record in their living room that’s how I started off yeah got to start somewhere yeah like I was literally like a traveling podcaster like I was going to people’s
Houses I’m like y you don’t have to drive to me I’ll drive to you you know mainly because I was like nobody know this damn show like you know I’m trying to get you on my show that you don’t know about true but now it’s like I’m established you know or establishing
Myself and you have a location I got a location and people kind of know what it is at this point so now people like look forward to it so as far as like my value in the bag like I don’t mind six figers
I mean I dog I I have a regular N9 to5 like everybody else you know I clock in I work with doctorate level students and Master Level students you know so I’m helping them get their credentials and stuff like that and um and I work from
Home I work for online school so I get to just do [ __ ] from home you know wow so I was like I had a regular job like everybody else but and I feel like if I did get the bag I probably would still work my job that’s how much you like it
Not even that that’s how much I like it but it just like until I really become that established I feel like I kind of have to play my play my cars right I like and keep my 9 to5 you know so you know I want to say and the benefits too you
Know you shance all stuff got babies got to take care of yeah you know I I I’m a firm believer that um going back to after you graduated everything went to [ __ ] or whatever um I’m a firm believer that sometimes life knocks you down to prepare you for something better you
Know or you know you what we think we’re the [ __ ] that we’re going through at the moment is actually preparing us for something better it’s just hard to realize that in the moment and so I just want to share that with you because you probably would never imagine during that
Period of time that you were going through the great life that you’re currently living and much better future that even from now it’s going to be like five from five years from now yeah um so I just want to share that with you and cuz I I see it
Thank you you know what I mean like San Diego is not a cheap place to live people most expensive place in the United States thank you they just put out that yeah thank you so this is coming from a man who was just got his degree was homeless and now he’s working
From home has his kids yeah making enough money and able to pursue his creative Endeavor simultaneously mhm that’s a blessing that’s a blessing if I would look at it God did yeah and I give all I give all praise to my mom you know
I give all praise to my mom cuz like I said we’ve been through some [ __ ] like growing up but I always saw like you Liv you left to fight another day you know like you see it and you know and I told her I I had a baby that
You know Mom I got a baby you know imagine tell your mom that’s out of nowhere yeah instead of my mom like going crazy and being mad my mom was excited beautiful and my mom welcome my son and my kids just Open Arms never questioned it never my grandma now yeah
She Big Nana yeah one day we going to talk about Granny’s not want to be called Granny’s new Granny’s they like to be called Nana Nana and all that stuff interesting uh but yeah like I wonder if it’s related to girls when uh you’re like hi Miss and she’s like um
Just just call me yeah don’t come I don’t know man it’s you my mom man all praise to my mom cuz my mom is one of those people you see like hit a wall but that [ __ ] it doesn’t stop stop the [ __ ] from going The Show Must
Go On you know and yeah I’m I’m truly blessed and awesome that’s goals for you Camille my girl like learning to not complain about [ __ ] cuz there’s too much to be grateful about there’s too much to be came too far came way too far for me
To sit here and compling about my life I’m blessed man you know so I and I definitely receive what you’re saying you know got you and this is not the end no [ __ ] no this we just getting started getting started it’s getting started in here yeah absolutely you know you
Mentioned on the PO and I got to bring this up M that you don’t like the Productions that Swiss beats makes let’s talk about it yeah I have been an advocate Swiss Beast hater for for quite some time gotcha uh no I respect I respect him as
A musician but I just don’t get it like his Beats are just not that for me like it’s just annoying like like I just don’t like his music hey okay simple as that I like it to each just all I look shout out him he’s being successful
But I don’t like it man they always like have like those debates like Swiss beats or Timlin or for real like what get S why Swiss Beat in this conversation how did he make it okay got what the hell you know who Timlin and for real is like
Kanye West you know what mean DJ battle cat like hilarious you know what I mean like it’s way too many artists that producers who are just like come on got you you know there’s a um a song with Alicia Key’s album um moment of honesty unable huh Unthinkable
Unthinkable yeah right amaz that’s one of my favorite songs ever it’s a great song and I think Swiss beats produced that album B not have I think he I think he did let me find out and he’s he’s actually on that track is he in the
Background and so I believe so you can we can double check that but I look at that song as a confession him and her’s confession for being for they’re basically their Affair it’s their it’s their confession on record for their Affair wow I did not know that yeah what the hell think about
It we’re doing the unthinkable uh ah okay yeah oh that changed distance I might not like that song no more I’m joking it’s up to you but yeah uh when I first heard I was like yeah this is their confession of them doing their infidelity together you know
Should we do the unthinkable yeah if you if you’re ready I’m ready let’s do the unthinkable that’s actually hilarious I never put those right things together wow cuz he help produce that album that is nasty work uh I like it because they’re being honest and it’s on record
You know I like stuff like that that’s why I Lear I get it but he was Mike wasn’t ready for that one wasn’t he married or something exactly that’s what I’m saying they’re doing that they’re doing the unthinkable oh they’re sick yeah I can’t even listen
To that song to say oh I love that damn song it’s a good song that song is Amazing you just ruined for me I did not expect to come in here and get Unthinkable ruin for me oh I did well I guess the the lens has now been cleared
You can now see clearly what’s going on yeah listen to it listen to it and listen to the male background vocals it’s him it’s his voice I’m so mad about that you know um I believe you said that you’re the president on your Instagram is like president of the R&B debate team
Oh hell yeah right so if you’re stranded on a desert island and you can only listen to hip-hop music or R&B music which one are we picking which is one album uh you can only pick a genre oh okay oh I I do not like rap okay like I
Like some rap you know but I’m a R&B head gotcha yeah I listen to R&B more than anything like everybody they call me old like my friends they like cuz you going to walk in you might hear like some Anita Baker some Luther vanson you know what I mean music Soul Child Eric
Ab do Teddy Pendergrass like that’s my bag like I don’t got you but I like my ratchet [ __ ] too like you know what I mean like I’m I’m a huge YG fan you know like I listen to Kendrick Lamar’s my favorite artist next to Marvin Gay so oh
Really yeah like those are my two favorite artists ever wow so yeah rocking the Marvin Gay type of Beanie style right now L that’s that’s literally like that if you see my Instagram there’s a picture of me holding a Marvin Gay picture that’s what
Uh my f my friends that came over for my 100th episode um they came over they gave sh shout out summer she gave me that photo of Marvin Gay because they know that’s my favorite artist ever um have you heard the album Here My Dear
Yep classic do you know why he made it yeah for his wife it more like a shot fired mhm do you can you go in more detail why he made it for his wife um wasn’t it like wasn’t she about to leave him or something like that yeah it was like a
Lawsuit she placed a lawsuit on him and so basically he made an album and said here you go to pay basically for money I love a good Petty you know see like look the more you just little [ __ ] that I just like
I i i for some reason I I I knew I knew it was like something with the extent of his wife and [ __ ] like that but I think it was like during the divorce or something like that that’s [ __ ] hilarious yeah Here My Dear yeah my
Favorite Marvin album is um it’s it’s a mix between what’s going on and I want you okay oh I want you yeah yeah that’s like I want you is probably my top three favorite songs ever okay yeah the extended version his his his the way he died is unfortunate
In like yeah right before his birthday his father right yep killed him with a gun that he gave his dad yeah there’s some questionable things about that yeah very questionable things about that um and I’m assuming you heard Kendrick’s newest album mhm thoughts Mr morale it’s a great album um however
It’s not his best album it’s okay you don’t think it’s his best it’s probably his Worst Album you think it’s his Worst Album in a wild but his Worst Album is like still better than a lot of other people’s best album gotta you know like
So when I say his Worst Album I’m saying it’s like it’s at the bottom of when I think about good kid section 80 two pimper butterfly and damn it doesn’t compete with those but then it’s like also with Kendrick discography you kind of have to look at each of his his
Albums kind of like um like Quinton Tarantino Martin squ Spacey like type of like films like okay directed by the same person but they’re all their own entity like they all se you can’t compare Good Kid manc City into pimper butterfly you can’t they’re two completely different albums you know
And I love artists like that’s why I love Marvin Gay that’s why I love artists like even like Frank you know um Frank Ocean like whatever album they drop is kind Tyler Creator okay like you know like he never drops the same type of album every album is different
Completely different true you know so I love artists that can challenge themselves in that regard and still be true to themselves yeah that’s very difficult that’s the key very difficult that’s the key yeah but I’m if I’m choosing the AR genre R&B man all day every day I’m like R&B and funk
Music okay yeah it’s like and I’m choosing R&B because I’m just I love singing okay I mean I’m not a singer don’t get don’t get twisty don’t don’t ask me to sing but but I can carry a note but um I just love I love singing
Okay I don’t it’s some good R&B out right now for sure but it’s nothing like that old [ __ ] like you know people don’t sing about love no more and it’s unfortunate so unfortunately I think yeah what are they singing about oh I guess all toxic [ __ ] I guess that’s what
P didy was compl I think that’s where P didy created this new album where he’s like I want love songs back yeah did you hear about this yeah yeah and that album is incredible but it’s just like actually that’s the last album I cried to that album which the the the new one
The new PD wow this the song it just recently came out right yeah okay I haven’t cried to an album since it sound crazy crying I didn’t cry to the album I cried to a song okay the song about Kim Porter like that actually like made me
Tear up um last album that made me cry like maybe two pimper butterly okay back to Kendrick yeah when I heard pac’s voice at the end of the album that I actually really shed his Z off that [ __ ] cuz that was like damn we really he’s
Really no longer here facts shed so many tears that’s my favorite P song M like you know what I mean like that back in the limit yeah like dog that you go my mom’s house right now you see a big ass picture of Tupac her you know you know
What’s crazy is that he died when he was like 25 26 Crazy Kids mhm we think they’re grown ass men you know even basketball players you’re like man look like a grown ass man oh you’re 21 think about it this way pac’s career in music was only five years biggie was
Only three okay okay Pac started when he was 20 Pac first album came out I think like 91 92 gotcha yeah oh so you’re not counting um Digital Underground yeah Digital Underground you’re not counting that stuff not really I mean like well he was on same song but sure like when
He dropped his first album got you to Apocalypse Now is the first one okay to Apocalypse Now and all eyes on me he died in September 1996 yeah yeah bigy di what like seven months later six seven months later yeah do you think what do you what’s your thoughts on them
The killer or they say they found the killer what’s your thoughts on that I did a whole patreon episode about this I had but it was just like it’s just like the guy has been dead for almost 30 years and it’s just like I just think they just throwing
[ __ ] at the wall at this point it seems like it right cuz it’s just like he he been he’s been now he’s been having interviews he’s been doing all these things like you know and been admitting to different things and you know I just think all in all it’s just an
Unfortunate situation we lost one of the greatest human beings that’s this Earth has ever had Yeah by way of some stupid [ __ ] very much so you know and that also just shows us how fragile this whole [ __ ] what does any of this [ __ ] even really mean you know yeah like we could
Be just taken out true nothing’s permanent and I think do I want to go on this rabbit hole Yeah I will um yeah I won’t go too deep about it but I think Pac knew the contract I’ll say it that way that he was under because he made a lot of
Music so that way there would be stuff left after he was gone Pac wasn’t scared to die that’s the main thing like he knew he knew it was a big risk because of how crazy his life was like it was too much like very few people come out
Of all of that [ __ ] alive I’m still surprised that Snoop Dogg is who he is today like yeah the [ __ ] that he’s went through and survived like and then to be on a show with Martha Stewart and all that and and they’re giving him blunts on like Jimmy Fallon and [ __ ] like you
Know that was very interesting for his birthday the half birthday that was very interesting you know what I mean like to see some people get to it like Ice Cube like just to see even Jay-Z like to see where people end up very few people make
It there you think about that [ __ ] like the life that they lived yes yeah yeah definitely snoop’s definitely a great Ambassador I think Market Ambassador for what he does not even that Pac got Pac got shot like five times yeah and uh lost the lung yeah
Lost the lung so much so that people thought that when they just heard he got shot they thought he was going to make it he was like like a damn Marvel Marvel Superhero like this guy do not die it was a very sad day I remember when he
Passed yeah yeah I remember what uh celebrity outside of P like do you remember like hearing that news and they like just shook you up um well the first thing that comes to my mind but it it didn’t really shake me up but it’s coming to my mind as nipy
Right now that’s the first thing that comes to my mind right now I cried big that day yeah yeah was it was nipy I remember how big it was I even went to his like funeral they had in La you know oh you went yeah yeah that was a big
Thing you know you see everybody out there all Races and stuff I that the day of that funeral or going away surfice I literally had to leave work I couldn’t do it gotcha I was watching it on my computer at work and then I literally
Just was balling and I got up for my little cubicle at the time went to my boss I’m going home like died I’m going home lost a family member I got go like can’t do this what do they call it when you when the family member dies and you
Get to go off of work oh bement yeah I got bement boss I got to go use your bement for nipy crazy that’s awesome I lost the blood I mean a crib and uh yeah that’s [ __ ] hilarious but yeah yeah but that was that’s the last
Person I can think that that like really struck when they passed that hit me thank you for being on the Empire Mike can you tell us any current projects that you guys are working on that you’re working on yeah um whether it’s podcast or anything well that’s that’s kind of
Like the main priority is really expanding this podcast you know we got about what 12 more episodes before the the season wrapup um really the main project I’m really just working on is trying to get this damn merch out you know like so that’s been like kind of
Like the hardest thing is just like making sure that because I don’t want to just do anything I don’t want to just be like mad Bland with it like you know I just want to be creative with it um and so I’ve been taking my time with it but
Yeah really just expanding this podcast you know um I work regular 9 to-5 so you know um just if I’m not doing that then I’m I’m with my babies and I’m with my girl and you know that’s pretty much like what I’m doing but I do I do want
To get into um back and suit writing so um you know writing poetry and even like getting back into film making okay you know writing writing scripts and stuff like that and I don’t want to direct I don’t want to I don’t want to direct I
Don’t want to produce I don’t want to do none of that like I just want to write a good script and just like yo y’all do what y’all want with that okay you know what I mean like I know I’m good at writing um my homie always told me I was
Like I’m excellent writer so um I would like to do that but right now I’m just taking my time and just like just enjoying this pod you know enjoying doing that and whatever comes from that like it will come you know so that’s kind of what what I’m focused on just
This podcast if I let you tell it for for for you guys so um for the merch m M what type of merch are we talking about and what’s like what are you working on as far as merch is going t-shirt hoodies sweats dad hats like [ __ ] that I normally wear what’s a
Dad hat uh just like the Hat kind of like a smaller brim to it okay you know um kind not a trucker hat is it [ __ ] no okay no it’ll be like you know like I don’t know just like just type of fits that I like to wear okay you know so I’m
Trying to make the merch is like very authentic to me as well you know like I love like sweaters I love like uh crew necks and you know t-shirts I love the color black um but like my podcast colors like my podcast colors is like purple and um purple and orange okay um
And like the Lakers I hate the Lakers gotcha no um not like the Lakers but I realize even with the colors like I try to have like a bluish purplish type of uh energy in the room when when we’re doing the show cuz I learned that with col
It also affects mood mhm so I try to apply that to the show to bring a level of like comfortability in the room and you know I think with purple and like blue is like for me it feels like a very vulnerable color okay so and the Orange
Is like it’s kind of like just always I always do like explosions you know yeah so I just the orange for me just like that little fiery spirit that I like to okay bring to the show so um but the merch I want incorporate those colors into some of the the shirt
Designs and the color of the shirts and stuff like that so yeah it just just different stuff and um yeah I want to do posters and stickers and you know um like water bottles with like you know if I let you tell it on it whatever but
Really like I got this idea of this shirt with like me on the couch kind of like a cartoon like it just like me like putting my hands with like explosions you know yeah like like [ __ ] like that yeah yeah you know so just something cool and I’ll have it like probably like
Like maybe even through patreon you know so why not they got a shop option on there so you know just fig just figuring this [ __ ] out really you know fig uh when would you like to have this stuff out by um I would like to have it out by
The end of November honestly okay soon yeah so so before the beginning of next year you would like to have it out I would like to I would like to go into like the holiday season with merch so you know that’s essentially my plan but
With me man I just I try not to commit to some of these dead to myself cuz like I said I be having like so much [ __ ] going on and like I said I’m a oneman show so I do everything so you know and I got to
Learn to Outsource I have to learn to start doing that and you know but yeah that’s pretty much what was what’s coming up man just merching I would like to one day go back to having a co-host you know okay I would I would preferably
Like a woman co-host okay why cuz I just think it’s a good balance perspectives okay like you have people people over and um black woman preferably um okay but somebody that’s into music as well somebody that’s knowledgeable on somebody just dope somebody’s interesting you know like no somebody
That’s just sitting there just hates just hates on man all goddamn day you know like you want to give a shout out to one of them you want to give a shout out to that you’re looking for somebody yeah so if you preferbly if you live in
The San Diego area and you know um and you’re interested in podcasting and you’re a black woman and you know and you’re just interested in the media space like definitely come to death row you know you know what I mean if you TR to people singing in all the videos right
But like I I like I said I need somebody that’s committed I need somebody that’s GNA doing a weekly podcast is a lot for anybody you know so it’s a lot for me so to be as committed as you can be to be there every week and I film on Saturdays
So you know that’s a hard ask you know cuz Saturdays most people day off so um just be committed man so but I’m not going to force it you know whenever it happens it’ll happen so yeah I guess we’re putting into the air so it might
Be coming you know yeah I’m a big believer is um and I had my my Bible things popped up classic thing you know knock it shall be open ask and it shall be received and so I’m a big also a big component shout out to Billy Carson
Which is like a lot of people complain about problems but the real people who are about success will figure out the problems figure out how to solve dealing with like to work and be around people who want to solve problems right and so I think a big part of solving problems
Is talking about it right and then basically getting to it um what I also think is really cool is that you have a N9 to-5 so you can always take some of that money and put it as an investment towards oh yeah the Pod so I think
That’s a really great thing that you got going on I got four mics you know um I got yeah I mean I’m still working on getting even better equipment you know and like like I said I just want to get equipment and stuff where I’m making it easier on myself in the recording
Process like I just that’s the last thing I need to be worried about is like the damn equipment yeah you know what I mean like I I be really focused on just delivering a good product but some sometimes but not most times delivering good product is also by way of the
Equipment that you have so yeah yeah so you know beond the face value because I think I think everything starts from the authenticity of the individual and the guest and stuff like that MH and then everything else goes up cuz you could have the best equipment but if like if
You’re not if you’re not interesting it doesn’t matter yeah okay man it sounds great but what the hell am I listening to yeah for real though you mentioned that you want to go into writing again right what type of do you have a genre that you would be interested in writing
Oh man my favorite movie of all time is baby boy I love dramas I love dramas like I love a good story like I love drama story true yeah like I just love plot twist I love um you know just conflict okay you know cuz I like to see
What people will do with certain when they’re under certain positions yes you know I just watched this movie on Netflix uh fair play okay Amazing Stories two people who are together but they work at the same place but the job don’t doesn’t know that they’re together
And like they get like engaged and then like the girl get like oted like she’s like his boss now okay it’s a good ass story you just start seeing kind of like how [ __ ] like unravels I can imagine so and they live together it’s just like so
Much I can imagine so like power dynamics to the fullest right there yeah yeah yeah so I just I love writing good drama because where I came from like I’ve seen so much [ __ ] that I can this writing is easy to me got you it was
Super easy see and the reason why I have to ask is so that way people can know right and that way like hey you know what let me just hire Mike like you know what I mean yeah yeah yeah I need help wrri a drama yeah like yeah I’m like I’m
Slowly getting back into it my homeboy shout out Antonio Johnson Antonio Devon Johnson um he’s a filmmaker so you know um oh dope and he often like ask me to like yo can you like write like write a little something for like this little short that I got or something like that
Or you know like you know him out and Shout Out Richard blacker he’s a musician out here he would be good to have you show too um but he’s um the three of us we have a group chat that’s been running for seven years and he’s a musician Antonio’s a filmmaker and um
I’m a writer so the three of us often times like we collaborate just know hey man how much it will cost if you and Antonio also does graphic design so like okay and we’ve known each other for years so it just like yo could you do
This for me yeah Co and we just do it off the strength like off for free you know cuz beautiful like cuz I know if I if I ever get to a point if it’s like the Oscars or something and I’m getting a war I’m bringing my boys up there they
Coming up right they coming up with I got to than Antonio not me but uh right word but I I think they would do the same thing they’re bringing us up you know like you know and that’s just how we operate got you would there be some
Uh some shade if they didn’t mention your name if they got it if they oh we definitely talk a shade in the group chat for sure but that’s just like that’s that’s just it’s real brotherly like real brother Lu it’s love man you know what I mean so yes you know you
Need that you need those type of people um to keep you creative definitely and grounded to I and grounded as [ __ ] they will they will [ __ ] on your [ __ ] if it’s not good got you you know now we know now we know the gentlemen to talk to
When we want to complain about something oh yeah talk to them they will [ __ ] on me e like immediately yes like you know what I mean but that’s just the nature of it man yeah it’s good brother Brotherhood brother good you know Brotherly Love uh Mike I want to thank
You so much for being on the Empire man thank you bro uh let’s say 100 years pass by half a millennia passes by what would you like your Empire to look like whether it’s music podcasting fatherhood family whatever what would you like your Empire to have look like
Um that guy I want people to be able to look at everything and be like that guy literally did everything in his power to just continue to be him himself and open the door for other creatives to be comfortable with just being themselves you know um you know like I said
Everybody has a story everybody has you know things that they can share that will be helpful to somebody else and that’s my main goal is to utilize my story and my upbringing and what I’m going through today to inspire and help others and show people that they’re not
Alone I’ve known way too many people who have Suicidal Thoughts I’ve had it myself um that yo if you just give yourself another chance another day you know you can turn this [ __ ] around you know and you could really make a significant impact to those that love
You and those that don’t know you so that’s what I would like my Empire to be I don’t really care so much about money and monetary [ __ ] but I just love the the feeling of that I’m positively impacting others you know so that’s what
I would like for my my Empire to to be is just love by way of I love that maybe that should be a tagline Love by way of for real though I like it I like Shir hey merch boom write it down write it down in the notes Love by way of explosion
Explosions uh Mike sessions thank you so much for being on the Empire man than you sir can you please tell everybody how they can could find you reach you support you patreon everything man can you please let everybody know how they can yes do that with so the podcast uh
On Instagram is if I let you tell it pod um all one word if I let you tell it pod and um you can find it on patreon at patreon.com if I let you tell it um very easy to find and you can also subscribe
To it and not actually be subscribe to a tier so you can actually be on it for free if you like so if you want to be a part of that Community please join if you want to be on part of one of the tiers go ahead and get your debit card
And sign up you know what I mean and go ahead and do that you can follow my personal page at the music homie um on Instagram and on uh X Twitter I’m not on Facebook so don’t look for me there um and yeah always say on the podcast if
You don’t know how to spell the music on me please don’t follow me you know it’s not that hard to spell but some reason some people have hard time so yeah that’s pretty much where you guys can find me man I appreciate you sorry if I was longwinded today you know what I
Mean and yeah that’s where everybody can find me boom and everybody I’ll have everything in the description so you know if you do have trouble spelling uh I will have all the links in the description for you guys you know um I think we had a great podcast great
Interview today you know we learned so much about Mike you know learned about his upbringing about you know man the uh the how the Asian guy saved his life in front of the the GR store that man you know how uh we also learned that you
Know he’s he loves singing you know we didn’t get no Tunes today but you know but he he loved singing and that you know his first job was being a video production at Cal State San berardino right and how you know he basically felt his calling inside his spirit
Inside called him to go to San Diego and he’s been there since he had to he had to fight so let’s keep that in note ladies and gentlemen like if something’s calling you in a positive way to be there to do something MH fight for it
Yeah right and so he fought to be there and and he’s thriving he’s thriving there now living a great life you know he’s got a his kids with him he’s got his business with him and his journey with him you know so we learned so much
Today with Mike um I want to thank him again I want to thank all you guys for listening um um please like the video if you haven’t already subscribe to the channel if you’re not comment down below what you thought about today uh my name is Antonio the miles if you guys didn’t
Know uh that’s me if you want to support the channel what we’re doing out here you can do with the cashbacks or the cash app which is dollar sign T Empire podcast venmo the same T Empire podcast paypal.me backthe ire podcast again all those will be in the description and uh
I think we had some good times today you know we learned a lot we did a lot you know sometime granny but anyway uh other than that we will catch you guys in the next episode all right peace thank you I say is it my duty yeah is it my
Will yeah to do what yeah do do what’s right I said M appreciate you that was that was amazing man oh my God thank you
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