Vegas Circle

From LVMPD Blackballed to Rick Ross Signed: Yowda’s Rise from Vegas Rapper to Movie Producer

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A friend hits play in a car and everything changes. That’s how Yada first landed on Rick Ross’s radar, and it’s where this story of independent moves, relentless output, and Vegas grit really begins. We sit down to unpack how a Maybach co-sign became a mandate to own his path, why he built a 600-song catalog without chasing gimmicks, and how being blacklisted from local venues pushed him to write, finance, and star in his own films.

We dig into the real mechanics of momentum: relationships that turn features into friendships, the lesson learned from paying for a verse once, and the quiet patience required to survive the “nobody cares yet” phase. Yada breaks down Mustard’s place as a West Coast legend, his Bay Area-heavy influences, and the difference in energy he feels as an actor compared to a rapper. The film play comes alive through Loyalty Over Trust—rooted in loyalty, betrayal, and karma—and extends to his new suspense project Smoke and Mirrors, headed to Amazon and Tubi. He explains why he casts actors over rappers, how financing shapes creative control, and why he’s determined to shoot in Vegas, where access is unmatched.

Beyond the studio and set, we explore discipline and mindset. Yada credits jiu-jitsu for patience, presence, and two national golds, and he doesn’t shy from hard takes on AI: useful as a tool, dangerous as a creativity eraser. We also tackle streaming economics, the tradeoffs between reach and revenue, and the ownership mindset that keeps artists afloat. Bonus: his favorite Vegas vegan spots, including Down To Earth and Prones and Plants, because fueling the grind matters.

If you’re building in music, film, or any creative lane, this conversation is a field guide to staying independent, choosing relationships over optics, and letting your catalog do the talking. Subscribe, share with a friend who needs the push, and drop a review with your biggest takeaway.

SPEAKER_02:

Welcome to Vegas Circle Podcast with your hosts, Pocky and Chris. We are people who are passionate about business, success, and culture. And this is our platform to showcase the people in our city who are making it happen. On today's podcast, we're welcoming a special guest who's a recording artist, entrepreneur, and actor from signing with Maybach Music to dropping his new film, Loyalty Over Trust. He's built a name that nobody can ignore. We welcome to the circle, Good Brother Yada. How you doing? So good to see you, man. Good to see you in the flesh, man. So he's making a lot of moves, man. Making a lot of moves, man, from business, writing movies. I just got a chance to check out your new flick. But let's jump right in, man. So first off, so you signed with May Back Music originally. Yeah, originally.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay through management. But yeah, I signed with them a long time ago. Okay. 2015, 16, something like that.

SPEAKER_02:

Damn, so 10 years ago. Almost 11 years ago. Okay.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay. How'd you how'd you connect with them, man? How'd you get on their radar for management?

SPEAKER_01:

Ross heard my music through a buddy of mine. Okay. A buddy of mine uh was picking up Ross to give him a ride. In my in Florida or here? Yeah, here. In Vegas. Okay, okay. And as soon as he got in the car, you know, my homeboy threw my music bar. You know, and uh, you know, the dude at first was like, uh, his security was like, hey, turn that off. He don't want to hear nobody else. You know, my buddy was like, This is my car. Y'all can walk. You don't listen to what I want to. Wow. And then Ross was like, let me hear that. You know what I'm saying? So that's how that happened.

SPEAKER_02:

That's a less that's a good buddy, man. Yeah, that's my buddy. That's somebody that was that was a good business move, strategic move. Yeah. So what ended up happening with that, man? So you signed up with management to be able to just what what what was that whole process like with management for real?

SPEAKER_01:

He treated me like one of the artists for real, but I got to control everything.

SPEAKER_02:

Love that.

SPEAKER_01:

That was part of that was part of our arrangement. You know what I'm saying? He said he'd mess with me as long as I did my own thing because he felt like I was stable enough to handle my own business and didn't need a label. So he's like, stay independent and I got you. Okay. So that's how we pushed.

SPEAKER_02:

Love that. Yeah. Vegas hip hop, man, is just a unique, very unique situation, man. And I don't, I know we can go down a lot of different rabbit holes, man. But what's your take on just the Vegas? I'm gonna say just Vegas artists in general and the music scene from people making music that are from Vegas. What would you say is your perspective on that?

SPEAKER_01:

There's a couple artists that I really like out here that rap. I think it's all about the push.

SPEAKER_00:

Okay.

SPEAKER_01:

You know, I think it's like any other city, a lot of people get distracted out here. There's too much hustling going on. You know what I mean? It's dangerous, it's dangerous. It is. You know, people get wrapped up in it a lot. And I feel like that's what's I feel like a lot of the artists here end up making money other places. So they they're not as dedicated to the music as they should be. Yeah. You know what I mean? Because other things are distracting them. And you know, when you focus on the goal, you gotta focus on that one goal. You know what I mean? Really like literally tunnel vision. Yeah, yeah. You know what I'm saying? From the bottom to the top. And sometimes, you know, the the worst, the worst thing about the music industry is that part where you ain't. Can I cuss? No, yeah, do what you got. Okay, that part, that part where you ain't shit. Yep. That part where you're starting off where you ain't shit. That part where you're starting off where nobody knows you, nobody wants to hear you. You know what I'm saying? I remember giving my CD to somebody one time, and they, when I walked away, they was trying to hand it to somebody else. And he was like, You take it, no, you take it. And then they end up throwing it in the trash.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

You know what I'm saying? Going through stuff like that. So nobody wants to go through that. So everybody wanna look like they're successful before they are. And I feel like that's the problem.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah. It's because of so much of the glitz and glamour, right? Like I've been there, I've been here 18 years, and I love Vegas. But it's not like any other city.

SPEAKER_01:

You know, Vegas is a glitz and glamour city, man. It is. You know, somebody come here, you know. You don't I've been to a lot of cities, a lot of different places. And I mean, there's people getting money a lot of places, but you know, a lot of cities, people get money and they don't try to show it as much. Here it's open.

SPEAKER_02:

That's very true. You know what I'm saying?

SPEAKER_01:

Here, even when, you know, when I was, let's say six, seven years ago, you know, here it would it's common to see somebody in a Rolls Royce riding around. Ferraris, Lamborghini, stuff like that. You go to other cities, it's like, oh, he might be a ball player, or he's a you know what I'm saying? Very true. You see that every day. Literally every day. Everybody's a hustler here. You know what I'm saying? So all the cars and stuff you see, they're not from rappers, they're not from entrepreneurs, they really from dudes in the street. You know what I'm saying? Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

So yeah. What do you like about Grace Vegas just growing up here, man, just in general? The foundation.

SPEAKER_01:

The access to everybody. Everybody's coming here. At some point in time, everybody's gonna come here.

SPEAKER_00:

Yep.

SPEAKER_01:

So that's how I end up getting a lot of my features and stuff like that. You know what I'm saying? It helped me a lot because I took advantage of that. You know, like people coming in town. Hey, what's up? Hey, you know where I can get some weed, I can get some lean, like, yeah, pull up to the studio. Smart. Yeah. Yeah. Come through. Yep. Let me get a song, let me get, you know what I'm saying? Yeah, some stuff like that. So that's one thing good about Vegas. You can get access to anybody here because they're gonna come.

SPEAKER_02:

Yep. You know what I'm saying? That's what I love about it. That's why we started Vegas Circle. You know, we start about in 2018. So we've been going on seven years now, man. And that was the biggest thing was like Vegas is such a hub, but then you got the strip that literally dims the light from a lot of people. And there's a lot of, like you just mentioned, there are a lot of business folks here that are really, really doing it. Yeah, very educated, very creative. And we wanted to put that spotlight on. So let's talk a little bit about just your whole catalog, right? I mean, you work with a lot of different people. Yeah, DJ Muster's produced, you know, some of your stuff. You got YG. You I can't even, your resume's long.

SPEAKER_01:

Ross, Kevin Gates. Yeah, uh, there's a bunch of people. Yeah, I gotta. Who have you enjoyed the most working with? I kind of feel like everybody I've worked with, I've got like a friendship with. Love it. You know what I'm saying? Yep. Nothing was ever really like over. I'm gonna email you this, you email it back, and we never even hung out before. So that's one thing I like about all the features I got. You know, only one feature, the first feature I got was from Two Chains. That's actually That's your first feature? First feature I had. That's a huge feature, yeah. Well, that's the only feature I paid for. Okay. Yeah, all the other features were kind of like, you know, kicking it. Yeah, we're gonna do this. So and I kind of learned my lesson with that because he treated it like a business.

SPEAKER_02:

That's interesting.

SPEAKER_01:

So it didn't work out the way I wanted it to. Like with these other guys I got features with, you know, I'm kind of we locked in. So if I'm in a city, I call them, I mess with them, you know what I'm saying? We hang out, we do things, it's easier to get footage and stuff like that.

SPEAKER_02:

So the energy, energy is completely different. For sure. When you're paying versus relationship, yeah. That's ill. Yeah, yeah. That's ill. I gotta ask about Mustard, man, because obviously he's ridiculous.

SPEAKER_01:

You know, I was messing with them before. I wanted to ask. I'm glad you said that. I'm glad you said that. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

How long how long ago did you connect with them? Man, I connected with Mustard about 10 years ago. And people don't give, I still don't think he gets the respect as other DJs. I mean, I know he does because of Kendrick and all and all that, but I still feel like he's so. I feel how he's the West Coast legend. Okay, I love that. I'm glad you said that.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. I do. He's made a lot of moves. And if I mean if we're talking numbers, then I mean we can't deny what he's done. 100%. Yeah, 100%.

SPEAKER_02:

Did you like, like I was listening to Mob, right? You know, Mob coming out with a new album, Havoc, you know, putting it together. What how'd you feel back in the day, man, with all the East Coast, West Coast BS, man?

SPEAKER_00:

Nas is my favorite artist. I love that. Yeah, Nas is my favorite artist.

SPEAKER_01:

Why, why, why was Nas? I don't know, man. It was just something about him when I was growing up and just listening to him, I really liked it. Yeah. And as far as that, you know, I grew up in the Reno area in here, so everything's mostly Bay Area in LA. Yeah. Like my top, my top five is definitely artists from the Bay Area. Okay. You know what I'm saying? But Nas is right there. Then it's like Bay, Bay, Bay, Bay. But you know what I'm saying?

SPEAKER_02:

You know, it's interesting you say that because I'm originally from Chicago, and I remember my first time going to the Bay, going to the barbershop, and they they treated me so well. I didn't realize how many people from Chicago live in the Bay or have their roots from the Bay. And it's it's so interesting you say that, like E40 and all them cats, man. Just solid. Solid people. Yeah. Legend. Solid. So who so going to the top five, man? So we'll stay in that lane real quick. So who would you say is your top five? So you mentioned Nas. So Nas. I got a top 20, though, man.

SPEAKER_01:

I'm with you. I like I like I'm with you. I'm one of them dudes who still root for Messi Marv. I don't even know who Messi Marv is. Oh, you slipping.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay. I don't even know what that is. I'm not even gonna front with you.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay, he's he's from San Francisco, California. Mac Dre, of course. Mac Dre, I know. Yeah. Um, 40. I listened to a lot of SIBO growing up as a kid. Brother Lynch. They from Sacramento, they're not really from the bag, but man, I could go on. Keek the sneak. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

I know Kick the Sneak, yeah. I know you.

SPEAKER_01:

Back then, three times crazy. Okay. You know what I'm saying? Like Yeah. Yeah. The Loonies, Numb is uh Numb and Yuck is my homies. I fuck with Yuck Mouth real tough. Okay. Okay. That's my dog. Okay. I'm actually on his new album coming out. Oh, that's what's up. That's what's up.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay. You mess with Black Thought at all, man. That's my that's my number one.

SPEAKER_01:

He's cool, but he's not, he's not on my top radar. You know I'm from the West Coast, man. So how y'all say that, man? No, he's dope. He's definitely like, if we just go on, not my top five, but if we just do an all-around top five, I feel like he's probably like up there with a J. Okay. Okay. Tyler Parli. I like Kylie Parli a lot. You know what I'm saying? Okay. He's up there with that. He's uh his mental and what he's talking about is very relatable for an intelligent black man.

SPEAKER_02:

Love that. That's that's why I've always loved him, man. The wisdom of breaking all that down and then losing your parents at a young age and being able to keep your head right and then building the roots is is amazing. Absolutely amazing. Didn't I read this right? So does Metro Police Department, did they have you on the list. That's a that's a real list. Yeah. So you couldn't you couldn't do any of your shows in Vegas at all? They blocked you, like basically blackballed you? Yeah. Why why is that? Yeah. And I got a follow-up question with that.

SPEAKER_01:

There's a reason why I'm asking. They say because of the crowd. Okay. And, you know, we just gonna be up and up, like, you know. Yeah. I I understand why it happened. Okay. And why they did it, but at the same time, my growth has outgrown that image. It's like, okay, I've been doing positive things for so long and been doing it for so long. Like, that shouldn't be nothing to do with it. You know what I'm saying? And I've never had an incident and no, nothing I've ever had going on. You know what I mean? But I've had a lawyer talk to like the detectives and stuff like that. And the problem was because they felt like I could control a crowd. So the detective literally, word for word, said, told the lawyer, he said, Well, we don't want Yada because he's like, Well, he he's never had an incident and none of his functions. But they still blocked. And the cop was like, that's the problem. He was like, Well, we have all these dudes from different gangs and different places, and they're all getting along when he's around. When he's not around, they're not getting along. So we feel like he can control the crowd. So that was the That's ill. Yeah, it is.

SPEAKER_02:

That's super ill. I get it.

SPEAKER_01:

Just being, you know, a realist, but at the same time, it's like that's not what That's too much power, is what you're saying. That's too much bad. That's what they say, but you know, it's really like they just looking out. Like people are proud to have somebody from here doing something. So it's like, because I had a couple people come to me, man. I know it's your show, so I'm gonna leave because I see dude. And if I I won't I don't want to bust his head, it's your stuff. Like I appreciate that. That respect. You know what I'm saying? That respect. So I've had situations like that. But yeah, that's that's why they're who else is on this list, man.

SPEAKER_02:

This is why I don't know.

SPEAKER_01:

Right now they got everybody on the list, really. Most rappers from here, a lot of them.

SPEAKER_02:

Well, I don't understand. Cause like, you do you know who do Doolamite is? Doolamite, that sounds familiar. Doolamite, I've had him on recently, and he mentioned the same thing. And I'm like, what is that? Like, I don't understand why we wouldn't want to support the people that are from here.

SPEAKER_01:

Once they started it, it was just like, all right, let's just put everybody on it.

SPEAKER_02:

So you gotta be from out of town to come in and make your money and the whole nine because it just racks up.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, I had him tell a I had him tell a dude who owned the who owned a place that they were gonna set up DUI check stop in the parking lot.

SPEAKER_02:

Coming out the show.

SPEAKER_01:

Oh, hell no. Okay. They told him that. Because he was like, I'll do it. I don't care what they say. And then when it got close, they was like, Oh, so that's that ill. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

What would you want your legacy for the next generation growing up in Vegas?

SPEAKER_01:

Especially looking up to you. Just the work ethic, man. You know what I mean? Like, I got over 600 songs on all platforms. 600. Over 600. To tell you all the work. Yeah, love that. You know what I'm saying? It's like a hundred and something videos on YouTube, stuff like that. You know what I mean? Like the catalog is definitely where it's at for me. And just do that. Like, a lot of people don't drop a lot of music. I have been slacking lately because of the movies and stuff like that. I'm not gonna lie. Yeah. So, but usually, you know what I'm saying, it was like five, six projects a year.

SPEAKER_02:

That's a lot, yeah. When when did you get into music? Like, what year did you get into it? Was it when you got the management deal with Maybach? Or when we were the same year, yeah. Okay.

SPEAKER_01:

I started rapping because I lost a bet. You kidding me? Yeah. The same dude that played the song in there, that's my homeboy Natter. Yeah. Wow. We had made a bet. You lost a bet. Yeah. I lost a bet to him. And the bet was like, if he if he won, then I would start, right? I would make a mixtape, basically. See, you must have seen something. And then you must have seen something. So and then that first mixtape I did Later than Hands of Ross. That's ill. That's God's will right there, boy. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

You were two-time just jujitsu.

SPEAKER_01:

Jujitsu champion, yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

What got you in the MMA and all that?

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. I always like worked out and stuff like that. You know what I mean? So that was that. And then um, I started doing I did jujitsu a few times. The very first time I did jujitsu, I remember we did the warm-up for the class, right? Okay. So the warm-up was like 45 minutes. So we got done with the warmup. I was like, oh man, that was a good workout. They was like, nah, that's the warmup. That's the warm up. I was like, what? Okay. It's serious. So uh I remember we were in there and we were sparring and rolling and stuff, and it was a little dude, and he was getting with me. And I'm like, This is serious. That's not to play, yeah. So I was like, man, let me try it. So I did it a little bit, then kind of like didn't pursue it as much as I probably should have. And then maybe like two years ago, I started going back like heavy, like three days a week, three, four days a week, training and doing all that stuff.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

And nationals was coming up, you know. So, and I was the white belt, you know, so they were like, Man, you want to try for nationals? I was like, Yeah, let's do it. Okay. And I went in there, and then of course, doing the tournament for nationals was a lot different than me sparring in the gym. Because in the gym, you know, they're trying to teach you. Yep. Nobody's trying to get away. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, when I got in there, dude grabbed me. I'm like, oh, this dude, this fool serious. Yeah, that's that's not for play. Yeah. Nah, he was trying to, so, and then uh, you know, I just did my best and I ended up winning, so I ended up winning a gold medal. Oh, so the phone, you know, everybody had their phone now. I was like I can't get yoked up. I talk too crazy to people to be Especially, yeah, especially having.

SPEAKER_02:

I gotta get my kids in that. That's what they say is one of the biggest best things is MMA and just learn the ground game and all nine, man.

SPEAKER_01:

No, for sure, for sure. And I feel like it gives them a lot of confidence that they need. You know what I mean? I feel like if a lot more kids did like martial arts or you know, because you know, the people who fight and practice fighting don't get into no fights really. At all, yeah. And they let a lot of stuff slide because they they know they can. Yeah, it's like, dude, I I know I can do this to you, so I'm not finna mess with you. You know what I'm saying? So I feel like it's really good.

SPEAKER_02:

You notice the body language for a lot of people, like, yeah, they probably the person to play with, just because you can't.

SPEAKER_01:

I'm not gonna lie, it's it's done a lot for me in general with my attitude. Like, it really has. There's a lot of stuff sometimes I've been like doing. It's taught me a lot of patience. Yeah. You know what I mean? Especially being in my weight class, because like the dudes I spar with, one of them's like 350 pounds.

unknown:

Damn.

SPEAKER_01:

You know what I'm saying? So this nigga gets me to the ground and gets on top of me. It's kind of like wrap.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah. You know what I mean? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

So yeah, it teaches you a lot of patience and stuff like that.

SPEAKER_02:

That's what's up, man. Yeah, that's excellent, man. Congratulations, man, on the goal, man. So let's jump into this film career, man. So you've been in a lot of movies, but you wrote this particular movie, from my understanding, right? So that's what I wrote. Okay, let's get into that, man. So describe to the people, you know, the theme is loyalty and betrayal, right? Loyalty and betrayal, right? Or would say but from your perspective, what would you say? Because you wrote it, right? What would you say for the people that maybe have not seen it yet? What would they, what would they see? What would they expect? Well, they need to watch it ASAP.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, yeah. No, it's a good movie, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So it's my first one. So a lot of people, like, you know, are pretty surprised when they see it.

SPEAKER_03:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

Just really is just a lot of stuff I've seen in the streets. Like, sometimes things just don't go how they're planning. And karma will come get you. Yeah. You know what I mean? Karma's always not going to be able to do it. It's a real thing. Yeah. That's a real thing. Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

You always got something to answer for. Yeah. I'm always telling my kids that all the time, man. That one split, that one split thing, man, you always got an answer for it. Yeah, straight up. And so then you you executively produce this also, right? So talk a little bit about that. So what for people that don't know, right? So if you're the main actor or whatever actor piece, how does it work as far as executive producing, writing, and then you got to be in the film? Like, how does that all play? Like, for people that don't understand the pieces.

SPEAKER_01:

The director is a big part, too. Okay. Shout out to Dennis Reed. He directed that. Okay. I also got a movie that we just finished editing today.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay, great.

SPEAKER_01:

It's called Smoke and Mirrors.

SPEAKER_02:

Smoke and Mirrors. Okay. Smoke and Mirrors, yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

So it should be out. Hopefully. I'm going to go home today when I leave here. They sent me the final edit. So I'm going to look at it today and it should be out within the next couple of months.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay, great. So what what platform will you put that on? It's going on Amazon and Tubi. Congrats. Okay. So what's the play with that, right? So and I and I want to, or actually, before we go there first, so the executive side of it, how how does that all work as far as executive producing? Executive producer is the one that basically finances. Okay. So you got to come with the funding, the whole nine. Got it. Pay everybody, the whole budget, though. Okay.

SPEAKER_01:

And make sure everything goes through. Okay. Script writing, the script is me. The acting. I picked all the actors. I picked all the actors in this next one, too.

SPEAKER_02:

That's hard to do, man, to cast and be able to fill that energy for different people, man.

SPEAKER_01:

It is, but it's not. You know, I I got some game from Dennis one time. I was like, because I was finna put a whole bunch of rappers in there.

SPEAKER_00:

Okay.

SPEAKER_01:

You know what I mean? Like, I'll put a whole bunch of rappers in the movie and make it pop.

SPEAKER_00:

Yep.

SPEAKER_01:

And he was like, well, I don't use rappers. I'm like, why? And he was like, well, rap, you know, rappers got egos. He's like, and which makes sense. That's why, you know, in this next movie, I got my homeboy G Perico in there, but I didn't pick enough rappers to be in there. And I'm like, he like, actors act. He's like, you're not gonna hire a mechanic to do the plumbing. You know what I'm saying? If I want a rapper to play a doping, he's not really gonna be into it like he should. If I want him to play a snitch, or if I want him to get beat up, you know, depending on what he might make him look like, you know, because they always want to look good. Actors act, they're gonna get into it. They gonna get into it, they get into the part. They don't have an ego, they don't have an image to portray from the music they're doing and stuff like that, which made a lot of sense. So that made it a lot easier for me to pick out people. Okay. And then everybody I picked, I feel like I was in movies with before. Because it's before my movie, I was in like eight movies.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay, yeah. So you got a big resume. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay. So I picked out people who I fought think, or I thought could do the uh roles really well.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay. Yeah, you did a good job, man. The casting is no joke, man. How'd you learn how to act, man? Did you go to school for that? Like, how did you figure that? Because you seem like a natural. Yeah, I didn't do that.

SPEAKER_01:

And I'm not just saying that, like, it's hard to do. I did take one class, but I feel like it's from all the videos. So you were trained for this, man. You were trained for this. I've shot a lot of videos. Okay. I've shot a lot of music videos.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay. Yeah. So just that repetition of being able to do that and just get into it. Okay. That's excellent. That's excellent. So I'm sorry, I might have missed it. The movie that you're about to come out with, what did you say it's called? Smoking Mirrors. Smoking Mirrors. And what is that all? What would that be up be about?

SPEAKER_01:

I really don't want to say too much. Okay, but I'm sure it's, yeah, I'm sure it's a little more, you probably got to think about it. It's a little more suspense-based than this last movie was.

SPEAKER_03:

Okay.

SPEAKER_01:

I'm trying to trying to elevate each one because I feel like with loyalty over trust, it's a great movie, but I miss the crowd of people. Like I got all the homies watching it. Okay. But the church ladies ain't watching it.

SPEAKER_03:

Okay. You know what I'm saying? Okay. I got you.

SPEAKER_01:

I got you. It's like Tom and and and Kevin in the gym, they didn't see it. Got it. So I want to make something that's kind of like universal. Universal. Yeah, I get it. But at the same time, that keeps in touch with people. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_02:

I get it. I get it. Can you say who's in the movie at all? Are you able to mention that? Some of the catches.

SPEAKER_01:

It's kind of like some of the same cast members.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay. Okay. All right. Your main guy in it was excellent, man. Your brother, basically, your brother that was in it. What's his name? Yeah. Ro, his name is. Yeah, he's excellent. Yeah, he's excellent. He's the main character. Yeah, I picked him for that. Okay. Yeah. Where is he from? He's from Detroit. Okay. So that's Midwest. Okay, Midwest brother. That's from So Chris, he's not here, man, but he's from Detroit. Oh, okay. That's what's up. So I want to go just side note for a little bit. I know this is this has failed a little bit, man. But how'd you feel about the Las Vegas 2.0, man, with Hollywood? My understanding is it's it's canceled, man. I don't think it's gonna come back on the ballot.

SPEAKER_01:

I don't think it is, but my next movie I'm shooting out here for sure. Okay. Love that. Yeah, we need it. We need it, man. And probably every movie after that, I'll probably shoot out here. Okay. I love Detroit. Detroit's a wonderful place, but I feel like I could do a lot here. Yeah. A lot more here. Yeah. And I get a lot more support than what I would out there. I don't feel like nobody here is gonna tell me no. Like if I asked to use something, like they're not gonna say no. Other than me being out there trying to search around and do a lot of stuff. That's perfect. That's perfect.

SPEAKER_02:

What do you like better, man? Do you like acting or rapping? If you had to choose. If I had to choose, probably the acting. Okay. I feel like. Wow, I was I was lost on that. I thought you were gonna say the rapping. Okay.

SPEAKER_01:

No, because you know, with the rap, what I've noticed with the acting, it's not as many head stares. Like, you know, me being a rapper, you know, people always looking upside my head.

SPEAKER_02:

How so?

SPEAKER_01:

Just because what I be rapping about, basically, and you know, it's a kind of a tough guy image. So, you know, you sometimes every time you go somewhere you gotta be with people, you know, people expect the image. You know what I'm saying? Yep. I feel like if I had never did movies and came in here just for the rapping, I'd be drew all the way down. Yep. 20 niggas with me. You know what I'm saying? Yeah, yeah, yeah. So the acting is kind of like a little more calmer, but I like it because and I'm not gonna lie, I get approached more by people that have seen the movies than I do for the music.

SPEAKER_02:

Interesting.

SPEAKER_01:

Okay. And it's crazy because the crowds are different because like even say this like past week, there was this rap battle thing I had to be at. You know what I'm saying? So, you know, sometimes when dudes be just looking at me, I'll be like, hey, what's up, man? My name's Yada. Like, oh, I already know. And I'm like, Well, you ain't say nothing, bro. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like, what's what's you know, just staring at me. Like a lot of people will stare at me and won't say anything. But you know, with the movies, it's like, hey man, you the one in the movie. You know what I'm saying? The energy's different. That's right. You get a lot of different energy, yeah. Because they intimidated or they don't know what to do. Or just intimidated, or they don't want to be like, I was on that, because they feel like I might be like, oh, yeah, my nigga nuts. Yeah, yeah. You know what I'm saying? Stuff like that. You know what I'm saying? With the movies, people don't act like that. But with rappers, they do.

SPEAKER_02:

I don't like I I can't stand that, man. If you like somebody, man, say it.

SPEAKER_01:

I've been I've been places with like rappers that are you know a lot more popular and here, and people ask them for a picture and then won't say nothing to me because like, oh, he's from here. Like, you know what I'm saying? Like people won't because I'm from around here, people won't want to engage with me like they engage with other people.

SPEAKER_02:

So that that's probably the problem with supporting your own, man. It'd be hating.

SPEAKER_01:

It's a lot of hate.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

It's a lot of hate. How can we change that though? I don't think it's ever going to change. Listen, you know, everybody I've had a problem with, I've never met. I already know you're going. Yeah. Yeah. So everybody I've had a problem with in the music industry that are from here, I didn't know I had a problem with them until after they said something about me. Or, you know, on a diss song or something like that, or something. It's just like, dude, bro, come on, man. And we've never met before. That's crazy. I like they could they could have walked past me a million times, I would have spoken. Like, hey, how you doing? You know what I mean? Yeah. So, I mean, it is what it is. It comes to the territory.

SPEAKER_02:

That's wild. What you think happens with this AI, man? The AI is take it over, man. So what do you think? Okay, so why? Because I I I got mixed feelings about AI. I feel like it's a cheat code.

SPEAKER_01:

I feel like it's gonna make people I feel like it's gonna make people lazy. I feel like the creativity is gonna get taken away from a lot of stuff. You know what I'm saying? And me being an artist or even like writing scripts, like I had my homeboy one time, he went through AI and was like, I got a sequel for loyalty over trust.

SPEAKER_02:

Already.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, he put it in there and it broke down a sequel. And some of it was cool, but he was, you know, you still gotta put something to it. But I'm like, I'm not going off a blueprint. Like, this is my creativity. This came from my mind, you know what I'm saying? This came like from my soul, basically. This is this is me. Yeah, you know, my artists are part of me.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

So I don't, I don't like it. I think it's gonna be, I think it's gonna mess up a lot of stuff. I think it's gonna take away a lot of a lot of jobs.

SPEAKER_02:

It already, it already is. It already is, but like what I'm seeing is like how do how do I train it to make me better is how I'm utilizing it, right? Because I agree with you, it's making like my kids, you know, nine and eleven. They can just go to this and yeah, whole Chico where I don't know how old you are, I'm 45. We just go to the library and you gotta do the whole encyclopedia, like learning.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, that's what I'm saying.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And you could do it in less than a second, try to figure out the whole setup. But but what I'm seeing, you know, is the point of like helping it train myself to learn a little bit better. Hey, teach me about this, teach me about that. You know, how do I better ask this? Or you know what I mean? Like those are the things that I feel that are that are helpful.

SPEAKER_01:

I feel like Google is enough. I don't disagree with that. Yeah, I do feel like Google is enough. Yeah, I just feel like everything is is gonna take a lot of people's jobs. I feel like sooner or later we're not even gonna have sports. Well, you're not gonna know what the hell the difference is because it's so good. Yeah, yeah. I feel like we're not gonna have sports. I feel like you're just gonna take creativity out of everything. Yeah. Yeah. And you're either gonna be a mate or have one.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

You know, that's gonna be tough. Yeah. Like now they got things cleaning up everything, you know what I'm saying? So it's like it's crazy.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah. I just can't see what we're gonna be at 20 years from now, man. It's gonna be wild. It's gonna be super wild. Yeah. Just business and just life advice in general, man. I always ask everybody this: man, what's what's the biggest lesson that's made an impact on you or and that you could share with an entrepreneur or artist right now that they should hear? Yeah, biggest lesson or business decision maybe that you've made that you maybe maybe made a mistake on, or maybe it's work for you. What would you say is the biggest lesson uh or or business advice that you could share? Man, work hard and stay prayed up.

SPEAKER_01:

Yep. I'm with you, yeah. It's going like life go like that. Just work hard and stay prayed up, man. Yeah. Like whatever you're going through is, I mean, you know, my grandpa used to say, when you're going through hell, keep going. Where's your grandfather from? He's from, well, he's from Arkansas originally. Okay. Yeah, he's 997 right now.

SPEAKER_02:

And good blood, yeah. That's that's what's up, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. You can learn a lot, man. Uh, especially for the older people. Just listen to him.

SPEAKER_01:

There's little phrases and stuff. I post a lot of them, a lot of stuff he says, man. He'd be yeah, I talk to him on the phone, like, oh, gee, what's up? Give me some game. Yeah. Oh, well, you know, uh, you know, he liked to say something slick and then get off the phone.

SPEAKER_02:

You know, that's the old, I know I'm about to tear this up, man. You know, that old African proverb talks about that. Just, you know, learning the books in the library from older people, man, and learning that wisdom, like your grandfather being 97. It's so crazy. My father's 84, and I just want to I want to interview him just to get all of that, all that knowledge. You know what I mean? And just learn and just all them nuggets, man. I want to get it, get it recorded.

SPEAKER_01:

And he's still kicking. He's like, you know, he's still sharp. Yeah, if I call him right now, he'll be like, hey, what's going on? Ain't nothing shaking but the bacon. You know, he always says, That's what's up.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, that's what's up, man. What's what's next for you, man? Um, you got movies. What what what else did you want to accomplish, man? You've been in a lot of different lanes, man.

SPEAKER_01:

Right now, this next movie is my main focus, putting the soundtrack out for it. Loyalty or trust has a soundtrack to it too. Okay. Well, I gotta listen to the okay. I gotta listen to the soundtrack. All the movie, all the music in the movies from on the soundtrack.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay. Yeah. I don't know why I wouldn't have thought of that. I should have listened to the soundtrack before you came off. Okay. Who you got on the soundtrack? Uh, just me. Okay. Okay. Okay. Smart. Yeah, smart play. I do want to ask you about just music, just stepping back for one for one second. I know I went down a different rabbit hole. This streaming, man, what what how do you feel about the way music is made and the money is made as far as streaming and Spotify and Apple and just YouTube. I mean, what's your take on all of that?

SPEAKER_01:

I feel like it's a gift and a curse.

SPEAKER_03:

Okay.

SPEAKER_01:

You know what I'm saying? But I do come from an era where Tower Records, you know what I'm saying? Yes. Stuff like that, where I used to look at a cover and be like, I want this and that. Yeah. I'm listening to this because the cover is dope. You know what I'm saying? Stuff like that. Yeah. But as far as like I feel like the streaming and everything, how it's based now on the internet, is keeping a lot of kids out of some bull that they would have got into if it wasn't around. I agree. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. Even though the money isn't letting them do some stuff they probably ain't got no business doing. For sure. But it is helping a lot of more people and their families and stuff like that. So I think it's a good thing and a bad thing, it just depends on how you look at it. For sure. I don't think the artists are getting as much money as they should. You know what I mean? They get robbed, yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah. Food is a big conversation for me, man. I'm a big foodie man. And you being from Vegas, man, what's your favorite restaurant? You've that's that's even better. Yeah, I've been vegan. So what's what's your favorite vegan spot there? Down the earth. Okay.

SPEAKER_00:

Down the earth. I don't think we've been to down the earth before.

SPEAKER_02:

It's right down the street. Sure, I ain't. Yeah, I don't think I've been to down the earth.

SPEAKER_01:

Black owned, too. That's what's up. Okay. Give me the street. It's right in town center. Okay. It's right next to Blue Martini. Damn, I'm tripping.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah. You kidding me? Okay, so down the earth, man. Wait a minute. It's right across from Milano.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

It's right across from Milano. I know exactly where they are. And wise guys, yeah. You know what's crazy? I've been to Milano 5,000 times. I know Laura and Laura are friends of ours. They've been on our show, but I gotta check that out. I know exactly where it is. It's right on top of the um, it's like a cigar bar, like uh whiskey spot or something below it.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. Okay, that's on the earth, man.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay, I'm glad you said that. Yeah. Give me something else, man, because vegan, we usually have too many vegans on, man. So what else you like?

SPEAKER_01:

Down the earth sounds fire. Down the earth sounds favorite. I'm trying to only shout out people I know. Okay. Okay, that's it. I respect that. Prones and Plants. Okay. Prones and Plants. My boy owned Prones and Plants. He's open Thursday through Sunday, and he does a lot of mushrooms and stuff like that. Like all kinds of oyster mushrooms. Okay. The Lion's mane. Okay. There's a lot of stuff like that. Okay. Prones and Plants is another one that I really mess with a lot. Man, he gave us two gems, man. Okay, that's what's up. But Down to Earth definitely is the best. Okay. I'm gonna check that out. Vegan spot in Las Vegas. Okay. That's what's up. Maybe on the West Coast.

SPEAKER_02:

That's what's up. I'm glad to hear that, man. You know Stacy Dugan at all by any chance? Stacy Dugan. She had Simply Pure. She used to be in, she used to be downtown at Container Park for a long time. Vegan. Matter of fact, a lot of the artists, so like when Erica Badu and Common and Autumn Cast came to Vegas, she's the one that would cook for them. So yeah, so she's she's solid.

SPEAKER_01:

She's been vegan for like eight years.

SPEAKER_02:

Anything else, man? I think I mentioned on anything else you want that I forgot to leave you out on, man, that you want to share that uh maybe I forgot to ask you.

SPEAKER_01:

Nah, man.

SPEAKER_02:

We kind of covered everything. Okay. That's what's up. What's your social handles, man? People can check you out on.

SPEAKER_01:

One Yada. Number one, Y O W D A. That's you can get me on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook. Just type in YOW at a pop up. Yep. Always tell people follow me if you need some inspiration or if you need a real reason to hate me. You can look on the internet. You're gonna find either one on there.

SPEAKER_02:

That's what's up, man. Well, check this bella out, man. Support what he's doing, man. Check his movies out, man. Very creative. Check us out at VegasCirc.com and subscribe with us, man. So appreciate you, brother. Thanks for your time, man. Yeah, that was solid, man. That's solid.