A Waste Of Time with ItsTheReal

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#143: MANS NOT HOT AKA Big Shaq AKA Michael Dapaah Oct 23, 2017

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This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal, we welcome British comedian Michael Dapaah AKA the worldwide sensation Big Shaq AKA Mans Not Hot to the Upper West Side! In his first American interview, Michael talks about the genesis of Big Shaq, how the Fire in the Booth segment took shape, how Michael wasn't completely happy after the performance, how it took the internet by storm, and whether man actually did get hot in the booth. We also dive into Michael's full history, from growing up in South London with dreams of being a football star, to his hilarious quest to get into University and follow his father's footsteps, to finding his passion in performing live on stage and in Instagram videos. We discuss how the loss of a lifelong friend changed his outlook on life, how he quit his desk job to focus on creative videos, and how he held himself to goals he kept posted on his bedroom wall. All that, plus stories about Drake, Shaquille O'Neal, Charlie Sloth, dealing with the ups and downs of producing internet content, and much more!

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#142: Rsonist of The Heatmakerz Oct 19, 2017

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Today on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal, we welcome producer Rsonist of The Heatmakerz to the Upper West Side! R talks about growing up in the Bronx, heading to Howard University where he would study architecture, crossing paths with a ton of musical talent, including Young Guru, and becoming one of the most in-demand DJs on campus, to the point where he was asked to spin at Grandmaster Flash's birthday party... which went totally left. We discuss his leaving Howard before graduation, moving back to his parents' place with no degree, no future plans, and a baby on the way, how he fell into music production, how he sold his early beats, and how nearly every beat he had on his beat tape made it onto Diplomatic Immunity. We discuss his work with Cam, Jimmy and Juelz, playing beats at Baseline for Jay Z, running around with Kanye, meeting Nicki Minaj when she was still in high school, working with Gucci Mane before his first major deal, recording with Stevie Van Zandt for a song that ended up in Beyonce and Solange's hands, moving to Las Vegas and back to NYC, running a studio where everyone in NYC goes to record, his recent work with reggae artists, the best DJ Khaled impression, and much more!

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#141: Big Face Gary Oct 17, 2017

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This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal, we welcome fellow Upper West Sider and former A&R for Roc-A-Fella Records and State Property, Big Face Gary to the podcast! Gary talks about growing up on the Upper West Side when drugs, prostitutes and crime ruled the streets, hanging out on the block with Biggs and Dame and the Best Out crew, and meeting a skinny kid from Brooklyn who rolled up in a white Lexus and Dame swore was the next up: Jay-Z. Gary reminisces on partying uptown, The Tunnel, Latin Quarter, traveling to Jack the Rapper in Atlanta, and truly buying into Jay, Dame, Biggs and the entire Roc-A-Fella movement because they all lived what Jay rhymed. Gary speaks on working with Hip-Hop, Wayno Clark, Beanie Sigel, Freeway, Young Gunz, and all of State Property, being in the studio for the Jay and Cam'ron recording sessions, Jay's competition with Nas, and why Dame would call meetings at 2am. Gary describes what he put on the line for Roc-A-Fella, how much he cared for everyone in Roc-A-Fella, why he took the break-up so hard, what he's been up to for the past dozen years, and what he's got in store for 2018!

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#140: Coodie And Chike Oct 10, 2017

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This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal, we welcome the acclaimed filmmakers Coodie and Chike to the Upper West Side! We talk with the duo about their upbringings in Chicago and New Orleans respectively, how their jobs as a touring comic and graphics editor led them to meet in NYC, and the process behind the scenes of their groundbreaking music video for Kanye West, Through the Wire. We discuss expectations vs. reality in Hollywood and New York, executives feeding them less-than-stellar feature scripts, and how they finally got a documentary that was close to their heart, Benji, greenlit for ESPN's 30 for 30 series. Starting Creative Control out of Dame Dash's apartment, Erykah Badu accusing them of bootlegging her album, Jay Electronica suggesting they shoot Erykah's video for Window Seat, collaborating with Dave Chappelle, new work on Muhammad Ali and Ernie Barnes, and the joy the internet showed when Coodie reconnected with Kanye during BET Awards weekend, and much, much more!

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#139: Rapsody Oct 02, 2017

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This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal, we welcome Jamla/Roc Nation recording artist and North Carolina's own, Rapsody to the Upper West Side! Rapsody discusses growing up in a town of only 1600 people, being class president her senior year of high school, driving around back roads with a heavy foot, working as a cashier at a country grocery store, going to college for accounting, and the hope of walking onto the women's basketball team. We talk about her dreams of being a rapper, her collective Kooley High, meeting 9th Wonder and him telling her she was a star. Rap recalls her years as a studio rat, listening to classic albums as homework, recording hundreds of songs, improving her craft, being patient, exhibiting diligence and humility, and working alongside the perfect partner in 9th Wonder. We get into her first show at SOB's in NYC, how she progressed with each project, her appreciation of J. Cole's journey, what it meant to be on Kendrick's second album, the first email she received from Roc Nation, and how she feels with the release of her new album Laila's Wisdom. All that, plus stories about Erykah Badu, Busta Rhymes, Young Guru, the hilarious circumstances of how her parents found out she was a rapper, and much more!

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#138: DJ Set Free Sep 26, 2017

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This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal, we welcome the man behind the AND1 Mixtape, DJ Set Free, to the Upper West Side! Set Free discusses how he turned a couple of derailed record deals into a big time marketing position and a legendary advertising campaign by trusting his gut, recognizing talent, and being true to the culture. We talk about working with Rafer "Skip 2 My Lou" Alston, Mos Def, Questlove, Latrell Sprewell, Fat Joe, Akon, Lebron James, Nike, Crispin Porter + Bogusky, scoring movies, traveling around the world, bringing his work back home and building The Compound in The Bronx, and much more!

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#137: DJ Semtex LIVE in London Sep 18, 2017

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This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal, we join the legendary DJ Semtex LIVE in London, England in front of a sold-out crowd at the Hoxton Sq. Bar & Kitchen. For the first time, Semtex - world-renowned DJ, radio personality, and author - speaks in depth on his self-made journey from working-class Manchester to mastering his craft in London and traveling the globe. Semtex discusses how he got into hip-hop, how he became the most in-demand DJ in London, and the doors that his obsession with vinyl records opened up around the world. We talked about how he went from running street teams for Sony Music to establishing Def Jam UK to championing artists like Kanye, Lauryn Hill, DJ Khaled and Dizzee Rascal early, and what that meant to both his career and theirs. All that, plus meeting Jay-Z and Dame Dash at Roc-A-Fella's first office, the backstory to his huge Drake interviews, working with Destiny's Child, attending and videotaping a tiny Kanye after-party/cipher, becoming a trusted interviewer, his thoughts on radio, DJs, and downloading sites, the super-real reason he got rid of his entire vinyl collection, and much, much, much more!

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#136: Chuck Inglish Sep 12, 2017

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This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal we welcome one half of The Cool Kids, the influential producer and rapper, Chuck Inglish to the Upper West Side! Chuck discusses growing up in Detroit the son of an auto worker and a nurse, hearing dice games outside his house that reminded him of rap album skits, seeing Cecil Fielder pull up in a car straight out of a Dr. Dre video, and playing drums in his friends' Sublime-like band. Chuck talks about how a skateboard accident got him into making beats, what he would have done if music wasn't his career, what the city of Chicago means to him, and the fear that existed when label heads started to inquire about The Cool Kids. We get into the sound Chuck defined, the influence it's had across music, and in his most revealing statements yet, why exactly Chuck and Mikey took their hiatus and why right now was the right time to link back up. All that, plus working with Bun B, Asher Roth, and Kid Cudi, hanging out at Alchemist's home studio and Mac Miller's home studio, predicting success for Fetty Wap, what he saw early in Drake, and so much more!

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#135: Lecrae Sep 05, 2017

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This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal, we welcome Lecrae to the Upper West Side! Known for his independent grind, his infamous BET cypher, and of course his faith-based rhymes, we get into his entire, fascinating and relatable journey. Lecrae talks growing up with a mom in the Army, moving around from school to school and reestablishing himself at every stop, lunchroom rap being a common denominator, finding his way into trouble via robberies, and finding his way back to a better way before it was too late. We discuss why he thought Middle Tennessee State was where he'd find success as an artist, how he sold CDs on an independent level, and how making one fan at a time and taking advantage of opportunities brought him to new cities, new countries, and onto TV. All that, plus stories about Lauryn Hill, Killer Mike, Royce da 5'9, French Montana, his new deal with Columbia Records and much, much more!

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#134: J.I.D. Aug 29, 2017

Show notes

This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal, we welcome Dreamville rapper and Atlanta native J.I.D. to the Upper West Side! Fresh off supporting J. Cole on his 4 Your Eyez Only Tour, J.I.D. discusses his All-American high school football career, following in the footsteps of his brother, and the injury that sent his dreams into tumult. J.I.D. talks leaving the comforts of Atlanta for college in Virginia, the circumstances that sent him back down I-95, and the realities of being a nascent rapper in Atlanta: sleeping on couches, questionable performance spaces, and delivering pizzas. All that, plus living with Earthgang, hanging with 6lack, racing Bas, meeting J.Cole, finding his own sound, signing to Interscope, reconnecting with his parents, and much more!

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