Latest / The Steve Harvey Morning Show / Comedian Lavell Crawford talks about taking advantages of opportunities and the power of relationships.

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Comedian Lavell Crawford talks about taking advantages of opportunities and the power of relationships. · The Steve Harvey Morning Show

• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Welcome to Money Making Conversations.
• 0:06
  Speaker 2: It's the show that she is the secrets of success
• 0:08
  Speaker 2: experience firsthand by Marketing and Brandon expert Rashan McDonald. I
• 0:12
  Speaker 2: will know he's given me advice on many occasions. And
• 0:14
  Speaker 2: in case you didn't notice, I'm not broke. You know
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  Speaker 2: he'll be interviewing celebrity CEOs, entrepreneurs and industry decision make
• 0:21
  Speaker 2: because it's what he likes to do, it's what he
• 0:23
  Speaker 2: likes to share. Now it's time to hear from my man,
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: Rashan McDonald money Making Conversations.
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: Here we go.
• 0:30
  Speaker 3: Hi, I'm Rashan McDonald. You know our host money Making
• 0:33
  Speaker 3: Conversation Masterclass show. The interviews and information this show provides
• 0:37
  Speaker 3: offer everyone. Really, it's time to stop reading other people's
• 0:39
  Speaker 3: success stories and start living your own. My guest is
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  Speaker 3: Lavell Crawford, just a Els. He's one of my favorite
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  Speaker 3: celebrity presenters. At the Neighborhood Awards, we discussed building his
• 0:50
  Speaker 3: stand up comedy and acting career. It really is about
• 0:53
  Speaker 3: believing in yourself. Because I first met this young man
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  Speaker 3: on the Jamie FOXX way back in nineteen ninety eight
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  Speaker 3: and three. Lavel returned for his fourth Showtime comedy special,
• 1:03
  Speaker 3: call d Love Al and Especial. He talks about there
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  Speaker 3: was tape to enjoy theatre in New Orleans, dove in
• 1:10
  Speaker 3: the issues of getting older, which I can relate to
• 1:13
  Speaker 3: with the shame and all this sarcasm. Lavell is a
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  Speaker 3: wonderful comedian. Obviously seen him in acting. You know Breaking Bad.
• 1:20
  Speaker 3: I remember we've talked about Breaking Bad. I said, how
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  Speaker 3: you got that role? We're gonna talk about that. They
• 1:24
  Speaker 3: need to spin off better Call Sault. The album version
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  Speaker 3: of his twenty twenty one comedy special was nominated for
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  Speaker 3: a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album at the six
• 1:33
  Speaker 3: or fourth Annual Grammy Awards. Please welcome with the money
• 1:35
  Speaker 3: making conversation, master class. I'm call my friend Lavell Crawford.
• 1:39
  Speaker 3: How you doing, Levell.
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  Speaker 1: I'm gladed brother. I'm out here trying to make it
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  Speaker 1: happen for you.
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  Speaker 3: See, just a little backstir. We started in this basement.
• 1:47
  Speaker 3: We did it with his phone. Now we're doing comedy
• 1:50
  Speaker 3: from his truck. So we got some We started something new. Lavell,
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  Speaker 3: How you doing, brother?
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  Speaker 1: How you doing? Man?
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  Speaker 4: Man? I'm I'm blessed man, I'm happy and I'm doing
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  Speaker 4: everything I supposed to be doing. I'm on my two
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  Speaker 4: feet living life the way you're spposed to still on
• 2:09
  Speaker 4: the road doing my thing.
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  Speaker 3: You know the interesting thing about it, when I look
• 2:12
  Speaker 3: at my life and my relationship. You know, we're young,
• 2:16
  Speaker 3: we don't think about longevity. But then as we get
• 2:19
  Speaker 3: older and I look back and go, wow, I've been
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  Speaker 3: in this game for a long time and I can
• 2:22
  Speaker 3: appreciate longevity. What are your thoughts when you look back
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  Speaker 3: a little bit? Because you know, me and you met
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  Speaker 3: in nineteen ninety eight, Jamie Fox, who were young, and
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  Speaker 3: I can remember some of those conversations that I've been here.
• 2:33
  Speaker 3: I brought you on Steve Harvey's big time, and we
• 2:36
  Speaker 3: kept in touch and just along the way, just seeing
• 2:39
  Speaker 3: each other in the streets at the comedy clubs or
• 2:42
  Speaker 3: any opportunity I could give a young comed like your shot.
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  Speaker 3: The longevity part. What's that conversation? What runs to your mind?
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  Speaker 1: Well, I, first of all, you know, I thank the
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  Speaker 1: love above it.
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  Speaker 4: I always appreciate you, as Steve Man, for giving me
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  Speaker 4: some opportunities because like I mean you, I mean you guys.
• 3:01
  Speaker 4: You know, when we think about the comedy game, and
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  Speaker 4: everything about it.
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  Speaker 1: You know, y'all put me on the hoodies Ward Steve.
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  Speaker 4: Big Tie every time y'all had something, y'all, y'all let
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  Speaker 4: me come on and shine, man, and you know, and
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  Speaker 4: some of it was unbridled, but it was a lot
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  Speaker 4: of fun and it and it got to the people.
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  Speaker 1: Thank God for YouTube, because when y'all let those.
• 3:23
  Speaker 4: Things fly, man, people fell in love with me, you know.
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  Speaker 4: And like the one where you had me and mister
• 3:30
  Speaker 4: uh but David into it, you know, and y'all just
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  Speaker 4: let that fly.
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  Speaker 1: People went crazy because they was like, man, what is this?
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  Speaker 4: And I mean, that's all people talk about sometimes, man,
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  Speaker 4: you and uh.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, hey, you know they call them mister Browns.
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  Speaker 4: And I was like yeah, and people thought they thought
• 3:52
  Speaker 4: that that was just luck we made up. I said, naw,
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  Speaker 4: now that that was some real deal, a real deal.
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  Speaker 4: But I look at all of that, man, just like
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  Speaker 4: I think somebody said it best being that I just
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  Speaker 4: stay stay consistent. Anybody give me an opportunity, I go
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  Speaker 4: and take it and ride off of it.
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  Speaker 1: And I appreciate every door to open for me.
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  Speaker 4: And I thank you for people yike you and Steve
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  Speaker 4: and many other people that I've worked with. You know,
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  Speaker 4: they gave me those opportunities because I don't get him
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  Speaker 4: handed to me. I come from the mid bro. You know,
• 4:28
  Speaker 4: it's almost it's a trial and error every day for me,
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  Speaker 4: you know what I mean.
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  Speaker 3: So you know the beauty, soul, beauty of lavel is
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  Speaker 3: that you know. You know, I look at my life.
• 4:39
  Speaker 3: You know this is money made conversations, master class talking.
• 4:42
  Speaker 3: He's an entrepreneur. An entrepreneur means that you count on yourself.
• 4:45
  Speaker 3: You know, you got to put in the hours in
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  Speaker 3: and for the hour week, in a five hour work week,
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  Speaker 3: you know, it's time that you have to discipline yourself.
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  Speaker 3: And I remember when I look back and every time
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  Speaker 3: I called him, he delivered every time I asked him.
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  Speaker 1: And he was never afraid.
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  Speaker 3: That his said chards that do good, you know, because
• 5:06
  Speaker 3: he wanted to make sure he got the next phone call.
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: He wanted to make sure that you.
• 5:10
  Speaker 3: Know, he didn't if he messed up, tell me so
• 5:12
  Speaker 3: I can fix it. That was important to you, right
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  Speaker 3: level all the time, all the time.
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  Speaker 4: I mean, I don't just go on it just like
• 5:20
  Speaker 4: you know, like, oh well they gonna come, they need me.
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  Speaker 1: I never had that idea and I was trying to be.
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  Speaker 4: I wasn't a perfection, but I always wanted to make
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  Speaker 4: it look as perfect as possible, right right, right, right.
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  Speaker 3: Right, because because those moments I remember when we were
• 5:36
  Speaker 3: going through the process and having these conversations, and when
• 5:40
  Speaker 3: you got the big break on Last Comic Standing, right,
• 5:45
  Speaker 3: and then you and then when I would watching you,
• 5:48
  Speaker 3: we would talk. You had to come up with material
• 5:51
  Speaker 3: like the material like the material welcomes through that whole
• 5:55
  Speaker 3: process of trusting yourself and using new material that you
• 6:00
  Speaker 3: didn't do but turned out to be beneficial to you
• 6:03
  Speaker 3: becoming a champion.
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  Speaker 4: Well, the crazy thing about Last Common Standing was, you know,
• 6:10
  Speaker 4: they put me in at the wrong time because I
• 6:13
  Speaker 4: was polished. I was ready for all that I had.
• 6:17
  Speaker 4: So I had so much weaponry and anything they asked
• 6:21
  Speaker 4: me to do, I said, let's go, let's do it.
• 6:25
  Speaker 1: I had material out of day.
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  Speaker 4: Some of those comedians, it was weird that, you know,
• 6:29
  Speaker 4: they like a young, upstart kind of comic who been
• 6:32
  Speaker 4: in it for four years. Man, by the time I
• 6:35
  Speaker 4: was old there, I was been in it by eleven years.
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: I think Ralph Harris was older than me.
• 6:39
  Speaker 4: Yes, but yeah, yeah, so Raphie, I had watched raph
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  Speaker 4: before I even made it, so he was probably more
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  Speaker 4: veter than me.
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  Speaker 1: But by the time I get in there, I said, whoo,
• 6:49
  Speaker 1: they ain't ready. He goes, I'm coming with it.
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  Speaker 4: And and the thing about I tell any comedy in
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  Speaker 4: this man, I always tell him. I said, Man, every
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  Speaker 4: opportunity in front of the camera back in the day
• 7:03
  Speaker 4: was your advantage, right, you know, you get to get
• 7:06
  Speaker 4: that put that put that material out there because you
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  Speaker 4: got forty two to fifty two million internationally people watching
• 7:14
  Speaker 4: you all over the world, and they watch you all
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  Speaker 4: the United States. I said, every time I go up, man,
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  Speaker 4: I'm gonna be funny. I seen some comedians like, ohn't
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  Speaker 4: know what I'm gonna do. I said, we move out
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  Speaker 4: my way, and I know exactly what.
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  Speaker 1: I was gonna do.
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  Speaker 4: I like, I said, you crazy, These are the opportunity
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  Speaker 4: to come alive. You know, some people make it like
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  Speaker 4: just being likable and they just get in.
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  Speaker 1: I was, you know, I was always a big guy,
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  Speaker 1: so I.
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  Speaker 4: Was intimidating on one side, and then on the other side,
• 7:43
  Speaker 4: you know, I was, you know, a strong comic, So
• 7:46
  Speaker 4: that was intimidating to a lot of comedians because they
• 7:48
  Speaker 4: ain't gonna let me.
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  Speaker 1: They ain't gonna let me eat at the table all
• 7:52
  Speaker 1: the time.
• 7:53
  Speaker 4: Oh, we don't need him blowing me out with you know,
• 7:56
  Speaker 4: I'm one of them guys to say, Man, I like
• 7:59
  Speaker 4: to be around other killers. I'm sorry, I don't like
• 8:02
  Speaker 4: to be around people that are scared of the killer.
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: I want to be around another killer that then you
• 8:07
  Speaker 1: can try me right, you know.
• 8:08
  Speaker 3: Because the interesting thing about when I look at my
• 8:11
  Speaker 3: relationship with it's my trust, you know, because when and
• 8:16
  Speaker 3: I'm gonna go back to the Neighborhood Awards where I
• 8:19
  Speaker 3: really thought that, you know, it was a blessing because
• 8:22
  Speaker 3: it was something that Steve and I did it for
• 8:24
  Speaker 3: the community and we honored people for it was Ward's
• 8:28
  Speaker 3: best church, best barbecue, and every award every year. I
• 8:33
  Speaker 3: would give him the food Award every year, and then
• 8:41
  Speaker 3: I would give him as Richard, don't give you a
• 8:44
  Speaker 3: food Ward, Well, I march.
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: Him right out there with call he farrall. She wouldn't
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: say nothing. She knew her role. She knew her role, which.
• 8:50
  Speaker 3: Is announced the way you walk out there. And I
• 8:54
  Speaker 3: think when the cracker barrel war, if anybody see that
• 8:57
  Speaker 3: video YouTube, is a cracker barrel when we were there
• 8:59
  Speaker 3: was possor boy, that is by far the most and
• 9:03
  Speaker 3: it was all in prov because nothing he was saying
• 9:06
  Speaker 3: was on that screen. Her walking through that whole process
• 9:09
  Speaker 3: of just seeing because the average attendance we had was
• 9:12
  Speaker 3: like nineteen thousand people. And brother, you held everybody's attention
• 9:16
  Speaker 3: walking through that process. The bell Oh well, I mean
• 9:20
  Speaker 3: I think that was the one where Steve.
• 9:22
  Speaker 1: Came out to her because she had lost all that weight.
• 9:25
  Speaker 4: Yeah, yeah, yeah, so Steve said he could put his
• 9:28
  Speaker 4: hands around me.
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: He couldn't believe it. He was like wow.
• 9:32
  Speaker 4: And it was one of those things where you know,
• 9:35
  Speaker 4: Shirley came up and she had did that thing talking
• 9:37
  Speaker 4: about the uh she was up for the LeVert movie
• 9:41
  Speaker 4: or whatever and everything and I and I told Sjarl,
• 9:46
  Speaker 4: I said, congratulations. I wonder who won won depart because
• 9:50
  Speaker 4: I was up for it too, but I just didn't
• 9:52
  Speaker 4: have enough chest here. I had to sing it down.
• 9:56
  Speaker 4: I had to ask you down. But I have enough
• 9:58
  Speaker 4: chance there. And if I anybody I know who got
• 10:02
  Speaker 4: some chests here is Sharyl. And Cheryl was a good
• 10:10
  Speaker 4: sport because that's my sister man, and she know I
• 10:12
  Speaker 4: was gonna play with it no matter what. Every year
• 10:15
  Speaker 4: she'll say so crazy. You know, I'm gonna run up
• 10:18
  Speaker 4: and touch it right. It never be over offensive, you know.
• 10:21
  Speaker 4: And I just ask.
• 10:22
  Speaker 1: I said, Sharyl got more hair on her chest than
• 10:24
  Speaker 1: her back to me and Steve's ever seen. Back in eighty.
• 10:27
  Speaker 3: Five were talking about Cheryl Underworld, now the host or
• 10:34
  Speaker 3: co host of the talk CBS Talk.
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: She was another phenomenal.
• 10:38
  Speaker 3: It was cyl and it was level running neck and
• 10:42
  Speaker 3: neck who was destroyed and the hoodies every year every year.
• 10:47
  Speaker 1: I mean, Kim will even do a great job. Man.
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: It was a it was a it was a fun time.
• 10:52
  Speaker 4: And I said, man, I mean, what other venue do
• 10:56
  Speaker 4: you have where you got two almost twenty times of
• 11:00
  Speaker 4: your own.
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: People watching you and you get up just let him fly?
• 11:04
  Speaker 4: And I said some stuff because at the time y'all
• 11:07
  Speaker 4: cut the cliffs to make it move, move along, right,
• 11:10
  Speaker 4: But when y'all let that play, and then they wanted
• 11:13
  Speaker 4: to play me off, and I was like, no, no,
• 11:16
  Speaker 4: you ain't gonna do me.
• 11:22
  Speaker 1: Boys of Dog and and couldn't. It wasn't in the shape.
• 11:28
  Speaker 4: Hey they had. You had Grandpa Pigeon talking about everything
• 11:33
  Speaker 4: and church I was I went in boy I said,
• 11:36
  Speaker 4: you won't play that music.
• 11:38
  Speaker 1: On me, and I went into yeah that was.
• 11:46
  Speaker 3: That was so brilliant, man, that was so brilliant because
• 11:48
  Speaker 3: it was two things. I remember that video did like
• 11:51
  Speaker 3: because I emailed it to you. It was like three
• 11:54
  Speaker 3: million views the next day of you doing that moment
• 11:58
  Speaker 3: of cracker Barrel and when you did that with David Mann.
• 12:03
  Speaker 3: That was, I have to say, was instrumental in you
• 12:07
  Speaker 3: being branded as a top comedy act in the black community.
• 12:11
  Speaker 1: Correct.
• 12:12
  Speaker 4: Yeah, yeah, I mean it was one of those lounching
• 12:15
  Speaker 4: pads I'm telling like I tell people, I think me
• 12:19
  Speaker 4: and a comedian.
• 12:21
  Speaker 1: Had a conversation.
• 12:23
  Speaker 4: They were talking, man, they got your stuff on YouTube
• 12:25
  Speaker 4: and they exploiting it and they ain't got your permission.
• 12:28
  Speaker 1: And I told them, I said, brother, let me tell
• 12:30
  Speaker 1: you something.
• 12:33
  Speaker 4: Some of the best rappers who made it big used
• 12:36
  Speaker 4: to sell mixtapes.
• 12:39
  Speaker 1: And when I look.
• 12:39
  Speaker 4: At YouTube, it's like me, I have to go out
• 12:43
  Speaker 4: on the streets and sell my mixtapes. They being blasted
• 12:46
  Speaker 4: all over YouTube. People watch YouTube more than they watched television.
• 12:50
  Speaker 4: And I became a star off of YouTube right and
• 12:55
  Speaker 4: then Netflix, and then like the Hoodie was when y'all
• 12:59
  Speaker 4: put my stuff on there and people got to see it.
• 13:02
  Speaker 1: It was like, oh my god, where this guy at.
• 13:04
  Speaker 4: You know, and I tell comedians all the time, you
• 13:07
  Speaker 4: have to use Rudy Ray Morris is the best thing ever.
• 13:10
  Speaker 1: You got to.
• 13:10
  Speaker 4: Use what you got, use what you got, and every
• 13:13
  Speaker 4: opportunity every door. Instagram made a lot of these comedian
• 13:17
  Speaker 4: stars doing their little skits.
• 13:20
  Speaker 1: But I was doing straight up stand up right right right,
• 13:24
  Speaker 1: you know.
• 13:24
  Speaker 3: Now, then if we moved through the whole stand up
• 13:26
  Speaker 3: because like I won't ever try to understand because in
• 13:29
  Speaker 3: this business, we always hope for one big moment to
• 13:33
  Speaker 3: just send us to the top.
• 13:35
  Speaker 1: But it's steps.
• 13:36
  Speaker 3: Like being the part of the Shaquille Nails Comedy Special
• 13:40
  Speaker 3: was instrumental too, correct.
• 13:43
  Speaker 4: Sure, I mean you know the crazy thing about that was,
• 13:47
  Speaker 4: you know the Shack All Star.
• 13:49
  Speaker 1: You know, when I finally met Shack and I want
• 13:53
  Speaker 1: to be on it.
• 13:53
  Speaker 4: They had a couple of them come before I got
• 13:55
  Speaker 4: to do it, and then I think it was the
• 13:58
  Speaker 4: same time. It was a prolific It was a night
• 14:01
  Speaker 4: that Michael Jackson had dad and everything. It was a
• 14:04
  Speaker 4: crazy weekend. But when we got out there and like
• 14:07
  Speaker 4: that was one of those times where I had some
• 14:09
  Speaker 4: comedians talking about I don't know what I'm gonna talk about.
• 14:11
  Speaker 4: I don't know what I'm gonna talk I said it
• 14:13
  Speaker 4: was you better move out away because I'm about to
• 14:16
  Speaker 4: explode this sucker. It's packed in this building.
• 14:18
  Speaker 5: We'll be right back with more money making conversations.
• 14:21
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  Speaker 5: Welcome back to the Money Making Conversations Masterclass, hosted by
• 15:36
  Speaker 5: Rashaan McDonald.
• 15:38
  Speaker 1: I mean, it got everybody in there.
• 15:40
  Speaker 4: You got my man, Cliff Pole, you got celebrities, you
• 15:43
  Speaker 4: got NBA stars, and you ain't coming up there talking
• 15:47
  Speaker 4: about nothing. Man, I'm about to show you what this
• 15:49
  Speaker 4: is gonna do. And seeing the crazy thing about it.
• 15:52
  Speaker 4: I went up second. Meli Kamacho went up first. I
• 15:57
  Speaker 4: went up second. But when I blew that suck go
• 16:00
  Speaker 4: off the off the hinges, they clipped mine and move
• 16:03
  Speaker 4: my clip always.
• 16:04
  Speaker 1: Like I ended the show. Okay, yeah, okay, yeah you
• 16:09
  Speaker 1: know yeah yeah, I didn't even end the show.
• 16:12
  Speaker 4: They they looked at them like, man, ain't no way
• 16:14
  Speaker 4: we could put him up at the beginning.
• 16:16
  Speaker 1: People wouldn't watch it.
• 16:17
  Speaker 4: So when I did that, man, it was it was
• 16:20
  Speaker 4: a it was an epic moment for me because it
• 16:23
  Speaker 4: just broke the seal again. And you know, my people
• 16:27
  Speaker 4: saw me and everybody saw me. I mean, because see,
• 16:31
  Speaker 4: we always think that we do these big shows and
• 16:33
  Speaker 4: black people were just gonna watch it. It's worldwide because
• 16:37
  Speaker 4: let me tell you something. Every nationality be watching us.
• 16:40
  Speaker 4: They just begot to be on our fourth fourth man
• 16:42
  Speaker 4: a for room. Don't mean that everybody ain't gonna check
• 16:45
  Speaker 4: it out because everything I've done, I think, you know,
• 16:50
  Speaker 4: because the little venues I've done and open doors in
• 16:53
  Speaker 4: every spot because they said, well he's funny over there
• 16:56
  Speaker 4: and with us.
• 16:57
  Speaker 3: So hey man, because because I mean, last Comic Standing
• 17:02
  Speaker 3: was for NBC. So that was just white television. Look,
• 17:05
  Speaker 3: don't listen late with what it is. That's white television.
• 17:08
  Speaker 3: You did the Neighborhood it was that was one hundred
• 17:10
  Speaker 3: percent black, you know what I'm saying, one hundred So
• 17:13
  Speaker 3: you controlled that medium. And then when you went over
• 17:15
  Speaker 3: to the Shack, you know, Shack brings Hispanics, he brings you,
• 17:19
  Speaker 3: he brings sports, he brings black, he brings all the whites.
• 17:24
  Speaker 1: So that really allowed.
• 17:26
  Speaker 3: You because you already was well known because of Last
• 17:28
  Speaker 3: Comic Standard, it really merged the whole process. Now when
• 17:32
  Speaker 3: you did you've done four showtime comedy specials. Now your
• 17:37
  Speaker 3: first one I.
• 17:38
  Speaker 4: Did, I did, I did, I did, ah, I did
• 17:41
  Speaker 4: a five five together altogether you did what Now I
• 17:45
  Speaker 4: did five I did I did the first one was
• 17:47
  Speaker 4: cann brother gets some love, right. I did a Home
• 17:49
  Speaker 4: for the Holiday, I did Comedy Vaccine, I did New Look,
• 17:54
  Speaker 4: Same Funny, and then I did these of Veil Group.
• 17:57
  Speaker 4: That was the final, the last one I did, Yeah,
• 18:00
  Speaker 4: so I had okay one I did it.
• 18:02
  Speaker 1: The first one was yeah, I'll just let you know.
• 18:06
  Speaker 3: Okay, cool because because you know, I'm getting all my
• 18:09
  Speaker 3: press release wrong. It's at four, so it's five. You've
• 18:13
  Speaker 3: done with show time?
• 18:13
  Speaker 4: No no, yeah, yeah, yeah, Well well congratulations, but about
• 18:18
  Speaker 4: it because right, so let's talk about you because you're
• 18:22
  Speaker 4: out there, you're out there touring Lavell, you're out there headlining.
• 18:28
  Speaker 4: I was out there, and boy, selling tickets or people
• 18:31
  Speaker 4: coming to see you is always a special feeling, you know,
• 18:36
  Speaker 4: seeing the words sold out. Where did you realize that, hey,
• 18:41
  Speaker 4: you know, could we just hustled that you can make
• 18:43
  Speaker 4: a living out this, that people you have a brand
• 18:45
  Speaker 4: that people will paying money to see consistently, which additional
• 18:50
  Speaker 4: puts more pressure on you.
• 18:52
  Speaker 3: Talk about that, that that turning that corner.
• 18:56
  Speaker 4: Well, honestly, my man, you know, I think the biggest
• 19:01
  Speaker 4: moment that I thought I could sell tickets was when
• 19:04
  Speaker 4: I was out there, I with my first one of
• 19:06
  Speaker 4: my managers, Phil Bonna, and we had got booked at
• 19:09
  Speaker 4: the Stardom Comedy Club in Alabama and.
• 19:14
  Speaker 1: H Birmingham, Alabama. Bruce air Yead Birmingham, Alabama there.
• 19:19
  Speaker 4: At the Bruce Airs Room, and Bruce Hairs gave me
• 19:23
  Speaker 4: that and he said he could if I sell out,
• 19:24
  Speaker 4: I get bonuses, so we would go.
• 19:26
  Speaker 1: We did the first night Thursday night.
• 19:29
  Speaker 4: I was in my dress, shoes and my little suits
• 19:32
  Speaker 4: after the show, going to every night club, passing our
• 19:36
  Speaker 4: flies every night club, let people know because if they
• 19:39
  Speaker 4: see my face, they were like, oh man, we know him.
• 19:42
  Speaker 4: But but you know, it wasn't a notoriety there. But
• 19:45
  Speaker 4: I went out there, and I went out there and
• 19:47
  Speaker 4: hustled it, and next thing you know, Friday, Saturday, Sunday
• 19:51
  Speaker 4: was sold out and.
• 19:53
  Speaker 1: I was got my biggest payday ever.
• 19:55
  Speaker 4: It was Ninadays I look at it like it's nothing
• 19:58
  Speaker 4: like what it is now, But back then, I was
• 20:01
  Speaker 4: so proud of myself that I couldn't believe it.
• 20:04
  Speaker 1: Were really great.
• 20:05
  Speaker 3: Because when you headline the Shack All Stars, I just
• 20:11
  Speaker 3: thought you headlined the show. I didn't know you were
• 20:14
  Speaker 3: second slaughtered the stage. As we said, that's every comic dream.
• 20:19
  Speaker 3: That's every comic rule. Okay, I'm gonna make it hard
• 20:21
  Speaker 3: for you to follow me.
• 20:22
  Speaker 1: That just competition.
• 20:23
  Speaker 3: You ain't try to be evil, but if you gonna
• 20:26
  Speaker 3: follow me, let's make it difficult, right, That's right.
• 20:30
  Speaker 1: I mean, I mean, now, I don't care.
• 20:32
  Speaker 4: I've been I've had this moment several times lately too,
• 20:35
  Speaker 4: because I'll be on these tours and the comedians, you know, I.
• 20:39
  Speaker 1: Mean, hey, if they they high, you know.
• 20:42
  Speaker 4: And but in a minute, like I tell him, I said,
• 20:44
  Speaker 4: you know, I had comedians calling the promoter and Thelle
• 20:48
  Speaker 4: just he's doing. They always say I'm doing too much time?
• 20:51
  Speaker 4: And I say, now, now, I said, you give me
• 20:54
  Speaker 4: twenty minute. I'm gonna make it a hot toy, right,
• 20:55
  Speaker 4: you give me eight I'm gonna make a hot end.
• 20:57
  Speaker 1: Right, give me the full time. I'm gonna bring it.
• 21:00
  Speaker 1: I mean, but a lot of comedians get to a
• 21:03
  Speaker 1: point where they.
• 21:04
  Speaker 4: Get a headline status and they get comfortable and they
• 21:08
  Speaker 4: think they could go on cruise control. And this game
• 21:10
  Speaker 4: ain't no such thing as cruise control. I believe you
• 21:14
  Speaker 4: stay sharp and you ain't got to never get ready,
• 21:17
  Speaker 4: you know what I'm saying. Absolutely, And I go. I
• 21:20
  Speaker 4: go up there and I go to guns and blazers.
• 21:22
  Speaker 4: I only got one speed was shot. And I tell
• 21:24
  Speaker 4: people that all the time. I said, if you're coming
• 21:27
  Speaker 4: behind me, I'm just gonna let you know, just bring
• 21:31
  Speaker 4: bring your best.
• 21:32
  Speaker 1: Don't come up there trying to think you can jump
• 21:35
  Speaker 1: on my ride my wave. You know, because I'm coming.
• 21:39
  Speaker 3: Because as a comic, we know the blessing is somebody's
• 21:43
  Speaker 3: giving your stage and that's an audience in front of it.
• 21:45
  Speaker 3: That's the number one blessing. The other blessing is your
• 21:50
  Speaker 3: name is on the banner and people coming pacifically to
• 21:53
  Speaker 3: see you. Now, you had a run, you did your
• 21:56
  Speaker 3: first comedy special. What did you do and how did
• 22:00
  Speaker 3: you react when you really got that first opportunity in
• 22:02
  Speaker 3: the comedy room to sell tickets?
• 22:07
  Speaker 4: I think I think, like I said Birmingham, Alabama, when
• 22:10
  Speaker 4: I started selling, I was able to get out there
• 22:13
  Speaker 4: and pump and do my own promotions and I sold
• 22:16
  Speaker 4: the place. I got my first bonus and people came
• 22:19
  Speaker 4: to see me. Because that's just solidified. Because what I do,
• 22:22
  Speaker 4: and I know a lot of comedians do is is
• 22:27
  Speaker 4: uh they don't.
• 22:29
  Speaker 1: I don't. I don't see it.
• 22:30
  Speaker 4: But I see that I'm teaching some of my young
• 22:32
  Speaker 4: count After the show, I had a meet and Greek,
• 22:35
  Speaker 4: right and I and I still do that nowadays. You know,
• 22:38
  Speaker 4: I may sell the picture, you know, photo with me
• 22:40
  Speaker 4: for about ten bucks, but you know it's still a
• 22:43
  Speaker 4: meeting Greek. You know, it's still and that's how you
• 22:46
  Speaker 4: sell tickets. And I try to explained to my wife
• 22:48
  Speaker 4: and everybody else. I said, man, it ain't out there
• 22:51
  Speaker 4: trying to look.
• 22:55
  Speaker 3: And then now the acting opportunities, the draw which I
• 23:00
  Speaker 3: didn't see coming your way when you came into played
• 23:03
  Speaker 3: a bodyguard in one of the all time great series,
• 23:06
  Speaker 3: Breaking Bad. Tell us how that occurred in your career.
• 23:11
  Speaker 1: Man, you know, I just moved my wife and kids.
• 23:14
  Speaker 1: We had just got married.
• 23:15
  Speaker 4: I moved out my wife and gives me from my
• 23:17
  Speaker 4: youngest was born, moved them to California, and I was
• 23:20
  Speaker 4: on the road, come out rode tired as hell. I
• 23:23
  Speaker 4: got an audition and it said and I was trying
• 23:26
  Speaker 4: to reschedule audition. He said, man, you gotta go do
• 23:28
  Speaker 4: this now. And I you know how you do audition.
• 23:31
  Speaker 4: I'd have done like billions of them. I was like, man,
• 23:34
  Speaker 4: I'm tired of getting these like no call backs, nothing
• 23:37
  Speaker 4: like that. And I went in and I went out
• 23:41
  Speaker 4: for one thing and read one line for the second thing,
• 23:44
  Speaker 4: and the guy said, can you start Wednesday?
• 23:46
  Speaker 1: And next thing you.
• 23:47
  Speaker 4: Know, there I was you know, Breaking Bad, one of
• 23:50
  Speaker 4: the hottest TV shows in America.
• 23:53
  Speaker 3: So so you went in not expecting to get it.
• 23:57
  Speaker 3: You gave a one hundred percent. The second line he give
• 24:00
  Speaker 3: you a job.
• 24:03
  Speaker 1: Yeah, because I read for two two roads, and.
• 24:06
  Speaker 4: The second one they had one line, we're clothes, We're closed.
• 24:10
  Speaker 4: That was it, and the dude was like you the man,
• 24:15
  Speaker 4: and they loved it. And it was you know how
• 24:20
  Speaker 4: I used to say that all the time. How there
• 24:22
  Speaker 4: was those Hollywood stories like Elvis Presley and I was
• 24:25
  Speaker 4: like he was at a gas stage, he was just singing,
• 24:27
  Speaker 4: and Colonel town Parker said you need to be a star,
• 24:32
  Speaker 4: and that's that's I was always wanted that to happen.
• 24:34
  Speaker 1: And I just went in.
• 24:36
  Speaker 4: I I was thinking I was gonna it was like
• 24:38
  Speaker 4: three people, and then people said read this one line.
• 24:42
  Speaker 1: I said, we're clothes and the dude said, can.
• 24:45
  Speaker 4: You start Wednesday? I said, and I thought it was
• 24:50
  Speaker 4: a joke. Next you know, I got a plane ticket
• 24:53
  Speaker 4: I'm going to Albuquerque.
• 24:54
  Speaker 1: I'm up there with.
• 24:55
  Speaker 4: Gen Ga, Carlo Spazito, Brian Craston, and Paul uh Uh
• 25:03
  Speaker 4: Bob Odenkirk, and I'm sitting up here, got my own
• 25:07
  Speaker 4: uh On camper, sitting up there in my own trailer.
• 25:12
  Speaker 4: I'm playing the role all the time, and I wasn't
• 25:15
  Speaker 4: doing nothing fake acted like I was sleepy.
• 25:18
  Speaker 1: Then I like some small roles of talking.
• 25:22
  Speaker 4: And then why the winner the sag Award won a
• 25:25
  Speaker 4: sag Award and everything.
• 25:27
  Speaker 3: Congratulations, congratulations, congratulations. Let me ask you this, man, because
• 25:31
  Speaker 3: it's so funny.
• 25:32
  Speaker 1: Listen to this.
• 25:33
  Speaker 3: When you went in for the audition, did you know
• 25:36
  Speaker 3: anything about the series?
• 25:40
  Speaker 1: Nothing?
• 25:40
  Speaker 4: I heard about it, but I didn't know nothing about it.
• 25:43
  Speaker 4: I honestly, god, I didn't know nothing about this show.
• 25:47
  Speaker 4: You know, like all black people.
• 25:52
  Speaker 3: When you when you when you look at that, so
• 25:54
  Speaker 3: you know, I gotta askwer this question. Five comedy specials,
• 25:58
  Speaker 3: shit call? Have you been approached? Are you developing a
• 26:02
  Speaker 3: sitcom or some type of calm a dramedy for the
• 26:05
  Speaker 3: next step because of the fact that you're so amazingly funny.
• 26:10
  Speaker 1: Well, I wrote, I wrote it.
• 26:11
  Speaker 4: I wrote a couple of them called like a daddy
• 26:14
  Speaker 4: step because I'm a stepfather as well as real father,
• 26:17
  Speaker 4: you know, And I want to talk about how how kids,
• 26:20
  Speaker 4: you know, don't never call black kids don't never call
• 26:23
  Speaker 4: you daddy.
• 26:24
  Speaker 1: Even though they daddy wasn't no good.
• 26:26
  Speaker 4: You always be in their life. Boy, everything they daddy
• 26:28
  Speaker 4: was shoes. They still calling you by your first name.
• 26:31
  Speaker 1: Thank you, mister. Level them. You know, I do.
• 26:37
  Speaker 4: All day and I gotta asks the father around and I.
• 26:42
  Speaker 1: Look at the kid, Can I can I step in? Yeah?
• 26:47
  Speaker 4: Mr gram you you made the bills. I'm like, what
• 26:52
  Speaker 4: but but but yeah, I wrote that, Scot I wrote that,
• 26:58
  Speaker 4: writing on that.
• 26:59
  Speaker 1: But I I've had we had me and uh, what's
• 27:02
  Speaker 1: his name?
• 27:02
  Speaker 4: Ralphie made past you know, got resch Is sol Me
• 27:06
  Speaker 4: and Raphiel was up for a couple of sitcoms together,
• 27:09
  Speaker 4: playing brothers, you know, and uh, but it never never
• 27:14
  Speaker 4: panned out. Now they got this writer strike now, so
• 27:17
  Speaker 4: it's like I've got blessed Adam Sander. Adam Sander put
• 27:21
  Speaker 4: me in so many, you know, some of his films.
• 27:24
  Speaker 4: I was so blessed to be a part of his stuff.
• 27:26
  Speaker 4: I couldn't believe it.
• 27:27
  Speaker 1: And that's thanks for YouTube, you know, Adam Sander saw
• 27:31
  Speaker 1: me on YouTube.
• 27:33
  Speaker 4: He put me in Ridiculous six and then I was
• 27:35
  Speaker 4: in Huet Halloween and also did Home Team.
• 27:42
  Speaker 1: It just opened doors for everything, yep, exactly.
• 27:47
  Speaker 3: You know the beauty of watching you now. You know,
• 27:50
  Speaker 3: we talked about it when Steve Harvey came out and
• 27:53
  Speaker 3: put his arms around you, and it was a big
• 27:55
  Speaker 3: deal about the weight loss and things like that, talk
• 27:57
  Speaker 3: about that decision making process and we're you're at right
• 28:00
  Speaker 3: now emotionally and mentally about your weight.
• 28:05
  Speaker 4: Oh man, you know, you know, you know way wait,
• 28:08
  Speaker 4: you know, being overweight, man is always you know, you
• 28:12
  Speaker 4: know you're a health guy. I mean you do your
• 28:13
  Speaker 4: bacon and everything, but you know, you go out, you know,
• 28:17
  Speaker 4: try to stay healthy and then you know healthy healthy,
• 28:21
  Speaker 4: healthy healthy as well.
• 28:22
  Speaker 1: But you know, it's like I was. I was comfortable
• 28:25
  Speaker 1: with the skin i end, but when.
• 28:27
  Speaker 4: I had my son and and everything and that, then
• 28:30
  Speaker 4: I was just looking at some of the things that
• 28:33
  Speaker 4: I was going through, some of the health issue. I said, Man,
• 28:37
  Speaker 4: I think I'm squadding and this blessing that God that
• 28:39
  Speaker 4: gave me, you know what I'm saying, because if I
• 28:42
  Speaker 4: died from a heart attack, for me too too, much
• 28:45
  Speaker 4: gravy on my chicken. I think I'll be I think
• 28:48
  Speaker 4: I'm gonna get to heaven, and guy ain't gonna let
• 28:50
  Speaker 4: me in.
• 28:50
  Speaker 1: You could have left that chicken wing sit there. You
• 28:53
  Speaker 1: didn't have to eat that, you know.
• 28:55
  Speaker 4: And then I started feeling, you know, and I you know,
• 28:57
  Speaker 4: I played sports. I boxed, I play football, I do
• 29:02
  Speaker 4: even when I was overweight.
• 29:03
  Speaker 1: I did jiu jitsu.
• 29:04
  Speaker 4: I wrestled and went out the way to state and wrestling,
• 29:07
  Speaker 4: and I did a lot of sports. But you know,
• 29:10
  Speaker 4: once you'allt here, you doing comedy, and I didn't get
• 29:14
  Speaker 4: real big until I started making money. When I started
• 29:17
  Speaker 4: making money, was there to go to Ruth Chris. That's
• 29:19
  Speaker 4: when I started getting all that butter on the state.
• 29:23
  Speaker 3: You know what I'm saying, absolutely, Hey man, they bread
• 29:27
  Speaker 3: and Ruth Chris.
• 29:28
  Speaker 1: That's what I get.
• 29:29
  Speaker 3: The best brother, that's the best.
• 29:33
  Speaker 1: Man. You know. I want to thank you everything gotch
• 29:39
  Speaker 1: mm hmm.
• 29:41
  Speaker 3: You know the thing about it, because you know, as
• 29:44
  Speaker 3: we end the show, food and travel, going to bed
• 29:49
  Speaker 3: late night. You know that comedy you in it said
• 29:52
  Speaker 3: at ten you're gonna eat you in it said that
• 29:55
  Speaker 3: one you go.
• 29:55
  Speaker 1: Eat, then you wake up. You eat and that's how
• 29:58
  Speaker 1: the weight gain happened.
• 30:00
  Speaker 3: You know, sometimes our profession won't allow us to be normal,
• 30:04
  Speaker 3: and then it just next thing. You know, you're twenty
• 30:07
  Speaker 3: pounds a week, you're thirty pounds away, you're forty pounds overweight, and.
• 30:09
  Speaker 1: So you know, don't look at us bad lifestyle.
• 30:17
  Speaker 3: And then you're watching my videos on YouTube and you realize,
• 30:21
  Speaker 3: Rashan make me sick.
• 30:22
  Speaker 1: He ain't gave you no doing weight. And look at
• 30:24
  Speaker 1: it he baking every day an day with them deserts.
• 30:27
  Speaker 1: I get that all. I get that all the time.
• 30:29
  Speaker 1: I get that all the gut you still got new
• 30:31
  Speaker 1: flash suits. I'd be like, man, does he eat it?
• 30:39
  Speaker 1: Love it? Leavell man.
• 30:41
  Speaker 3: I want to thank I know there's been one hell
• 30:44
  Speaker 3: of a tape that we went through, but I want
• 30:46
  Speaker 3: to thank you, brother for taking the time.
• 30:48
  Speaker 1: And now I know you're in Houston.
• 30:50
  Speaker 3: We're gonna connect, man, and go down to my favorite
• 30:53
  Speaker 3: Mexican play Loopy Tortillas down in Houston, Texas, and then
• 30:57
  Speaker 3: kick it for a while.
• 30:58
  Speaker 1: Man, I appreciate you, brother.
• 30:59
  Speaker 4: This is a day, this, this is the thing says you,
• 31:03
  Speaker 4: you so called know how to fish.
• 31:05
  Speaker 1: Yes, we're gonna get out of that wat you have you?
• 31:09
  Speaker 3: Oh oh yeah, cause I talked to Ronnie Green yesterday.
• 31:12
  Speaker 3: So Ronnie Green, I tell you what we will you
• 31:14
  Speaker 3: listen meet and you do an episode of Ronnie Green together.
• 31:18
  Speaker 1: How about that? Let's do it?
• 31:20
  Speaker 3: Okay, I'm let's do it. I'm gonna call Ronnie Green today.
• 31:23
  Speaker 3: It's just go forward and you and I gonna do
• 31:25
  Speaker 3: one together.
• 31:26
  Speaker 1: Cool? All right? I love you, man.
• 31:28
  Speaker 3: Thank you for coming to my show, Money Made Conversation
• 31:30
  Speaker 3: Master Class.
• 31:31
  Speaker 1: Appreciate your brother, Love you bag, take care of man.
• 31:33
  Speaker 1: Thank you.
• 31:36
  Speaker 5: Let me tell you about the host of Money Making Conversations,
• 31:39
  Speaker 5: Rushan McDonald. Rushan's a two time Emmy Award winner, three
• 31:43
  Speaker 5: time n double a cp Immage Award winner, sitcom writer,
• 31:47
  Speaker 5: stand up comic, and former IBM executive. Thank you for
• 31:51
  Speaker 5: joining us for this edition of Money Making Conversations Master Class.
• 31:55
  Speaker 5: Money Making Conversations Master Class with Rushan McDonald is produced
• 32:00
  Speaker 5: by thirty eight fifteen Media Inc. More information about thirty
• 32:04
  Speaker 5: eight fifteen Media Inc. Is available at thirty eight fifteen
• 32:07
  Speaker 5: media dot com. And always remember to lead with your gifts.