Hi everyone, it's Sophia. Welcome to Work in Progress. Hello friends, welcome back to another week of work in progress. I am geeked about today's guest because I am such an enormous fan not only of his art but his activism, and I cannot wait to pick his brain on all of it. Today's guest is Alo Black. You know him as an American singer and rapper. You know him from A Vichi's Wake Me Up and from his smash hit I Need a Dollar. What you may not know is that Alo never planned on being a musician. His life kind of happened by accident. He thought he would be an academic and somehow took a left turn, and from touring around the world and major stages everywhere, he has managed to solidify his place in the mainstream music scene while also being an incredible advocate for change. From studying the methodologies of Nelson Mandela to being mentored by Harry Belafonte, Alo has been involved in so many charitable causes and in deep social justice work. He speaks out on the importance and mental health awareness. He has collaborated with the Biden administration to promote its national strategy to prevent suicide, and his latest album, Stand Together, is not only a beautiful musical journey that I've been waiting for for five years, but every song on the album has a partnered philanthropic initiative that fans can learn about. Talk about being a true artist in every sense of the word and spending your privilege and your platform for good. Hear Mallow Black, Where are you today?

Hi everyone, it's Sophia. Welcome to Work in Progress. Hello friends, welcome back to another week of work in progress. I am geeked about today's guest because I am such an enormous fan not only of his art but his activism, and I cannot wait to pick his brain on all of it. Today's guest is Alo Black. You know him as an American singer and rapper. You know him from A Vichi's Wake Me Up and from his smash hit I Need a Dollar. What you may not know is that Alo never planned on being a musician. His life kind of happened by accident. He thought he would be an academic and somehow took a left turn, and from touring around the world and major stages everywhere, he has managed to solidify his place in the mainstream music scene while also being an incredible advocate for change. From studying the methodologies of Nelson Mandela to being mentored by Harry Belafonte, Alo has been involved in so many charitable causes and in deep social justice work. He speaks out on the importance and mental health awareness. He has collaborated with the Biden administration to promote its national strategy to prevent suicide, and his latest album, Stand Together, is not only a beautiful musical journey that I've been waiting for for five years, but every song on the album has a partnered philanthropic initiative that fans can learn about. Talk about being a true artist in every sense of the word and spending your privilege and your platform for good. Hear Mallow Black, Where are you today?

I live in LA I'm Glendale.

I live in LA I'm Glendale.

Okay. I grew up in Pasadena. Oh are you there now or neighbors. No, I'm actually on the East Coast now, but my folks are still there. And yeah, we were like Miracle Mile kids. And then eventually my parents moved to Pasadena and they're still there.

Okay. I grew up in Pasadena. Oh are you there now or neighbors. No, I'm actually on the East Coast now, but my folks are still there. And yeah, we were like Miracle Mile kids. And then eventually my parents moved to Pasadena and they're still there.

Oh. Crazy.

Oh. Crazy.

Normally I like to ask people about who they were as kids, And so often when I'm interviewing parents that have kids in that kind of stage of developmental age that I know years are in, they get to kind of see this mirroring of themselves as children and see versions of themselves in their own children at the same time. Yeah, and I wonder if you got to go back and hang out with yourself as a ten year old kid, the way you get to hang out with your kids. Would you see aspects of the man you are today in that little boy?

Normally I like to ask people about who they were as kids, And so often when I'm interviewing parents that have kids in that kind of stage of developmental age that I know years are in, they get to kind of see this mirroring of themselves as children and see versions of themselves in their own children at the same time. Yeah, and I wonder if you got to go back and hang out with yourself as a ten year old kid, the way you get to hang out with your kids. Would you see aspects of the man you are today in that little boy?

Oh? Probably not. I don't know. I don't know. I was.

Oh? Probably not. I don't know. I don't know. I was.

I see my son and there are a lot of similarities in him as a child compared to who I was as a child, And I think it's going to be I think he might be the same. It's going to be like a night and day flip where the kind of rambunctious, un bridled energy of youth sort of meets with this this moment of change where you become measured and more temperate and decisive, but no, also with the ability to navigate between both personalities, the extrovert, the introvert.

I see my son and there are a lot of similarities in him as a child compared to who I was as a child, And I think it's going to be I think he might be the same. It's going to be like a night and day flip where the kind of rambunctious, un bridled energy of youth sort of meets with this this moment of change where you become measured and more temperate and decisive, but no, also with the ability to navigate between both personalities, the extrovert, the introvert.

The entertainer and the observer.

The entertainer and the observer.

Yeah.

Yeah.

I feel like, yeah, he seems like he's probably gonna flip that switch in the next seven years.

I feel like, yeah, he seems like he's probably gonna flip that switch in the next seven years.

Probably.

Probably.

Wow. And is that all right around when it started to happen for you?

Wow. And is that all right around when it started to happen for you?

No, it happened for me earlier then. I think it will happen for him. But I think that it's just different circumstances. You know, I had I had two parents that worked full time. We were a very kind of middle class family. And what's different now is that there's I think a lot more attention that my wife and I give to the kids, a lot more comfort and intentional parenting versus fly by the seat of your parts on the table and make sure the kids get to school parenting that I grew up with.

No, it happened for me earlier then. I think it will happen for him. But I think that it's just different circumstances. You know, I had I had two parents that worked full time. We were a very kind of middle class family. And what's different now is that there's I think a lot more attention that my wife and I give to the kids, a lot more comfort and intentional parenting versus fly by the seat of your parts on the table and make sure the kids get to school parenting that I grew up with.

Yeah. I talk to my friends about this all the time, because we're really the first generation that has been in this phase of life with all these resources, all the mental health studies and all the understanding of you know, communication and the value of therapy and all these things that our folks didn't really have. And it's it's so inspiring for me to look at parents in my life and watch the way they can acknowledge where their own parents fell short, still love them for it, and be choosing to create a different pattern in real time. Yeah, it's pretty incredible.

Yeah. I talk to my friends about this all the time, because we're really the first generation that has been in this phase of life with all these resources, all the mental health studies and all the understanding of you know, communication and the value of therapy and all these things that our folks didn't really have. And it's it's so inspiring for me to look at parents in my life and watch the way they can acknowledge where their own parents fell short, still love them for it, and be choosing to create a different pattern in real time. Yeah, it's pretty incredible.

It is incredible. There's a lot, like you said, a lot of resources. We chosen a school that has a pedagogy that I think helps parents become better parents. One of the really special things is that before the Surgeon General's warning on social media, we were already engaged in a media free campus, media free lifestyle. So you know, it's very limited the amount of television or TV programming that the kids would get and they're you know, they're they're fine with it. They've learned to manage without it, and there's no pressure coming from the school because the other kids are on board with the program. So it's helped us be better parents, but also just more focused and intentional.

It is incredible. There's a lot, like you said, a lot of resources. We chosen a school that has a pedagogy that I think helps parents become better parents. One of the really special things is that before the Surgeon General's warning on social media, we were already engaged in a media free campus, media free lifestyle. So you know, it's very limited the amount of television or TV programming that the kids would get and they're you know, they're they're fine with it. They've learned to manage without it, and there's no pressure coming from the school because the other kids are on board with the program. So it's helped us be better parents, but also just more focused and intentional.

Yeah, it's an interesting thing I think for people in our lines of work to analyze relationships to media, and even when you talk about how the sort of flip happened in your young self, how as an adult you have to hold both your performer and your introvert, you know, I think about that a lot, being the performer, the entertainer, and also a listener who likes to be quiet. There's then the layer of how you have to participate in media on top of it, and when you've pursued a career in it. I mean, before you became a solo artist, you were part of a hip hop duo and la in the nineties, I mean, everything about it was so incredible and music was so incredible, and there's no way to be a musician without being in the media, right, So, like, at least then there was no social there was no thumb scroll on the iPhone. What was that what was that era like for.

Yeah, it's an interesting thing I think for people in our lines of work to analyze relationships to media, and even when you talk about how the sort of flip happened in your young self, how as an adult you have to hold both your performer and your introvert, you know, I think about that a lot, being the performer, the entertainer, and also a listener who likes to be quiet. There's then the layer of how you have to participate in media on top of it, and when you've pursued a career in it. I mean, before you became a solo artist, you were part of a hip hop duo and la in the nineties, I mean, everything about it was so incredible and music was so incredible, and there's no way to be a musician without being in the media, right, So, like, at least then there was no social there was no thumb scroll on the iPhone. What was that what was that era like for.

It was the best era. I don't know.

It was the best era. I don't know.

I don't know that we'll ever be able to have that again. I would love to try to replicate it somehow, but it would take concerned effort on everybody's part to recognize that what makes it special is sort of the exclusivity of the temporal exclusivity, the spatial exclusivity, and the informational exclusivity. It's that you, if you know, you know, and once you're there, you get to experience it, and then it's word of mouth, and and if you weren't there, then it's like the tail of you know, the fish that you caught just keeps getting bigger and bigger, and so the hype gets is real.

I don't know that we'll ever be able to have that again. I would love to try to replicate it somehow, but it would take concerned effort on everybody's part to recognize that what makes it special is sort of the exclusivity of the temporal exclusivity, the spatial exclusivity, and the informational exclusivity. It's that you, if you know, you know, and once you're there, you get to experience it, and then it's word of mouth, and and if you weren't there, then it's like the tail of you know, the fish that you caught just keeps getting bigger and bigger, and so the hype gets is real.

So but.

So but.

Wow, when I was growing up and in the hip hop scene, we would have access to all of the artists, the stars nowadays, people that you kind of just look at like, oh, that's a bonafide you know, superstar, billionaire artist and hip hop those folks. We would literally go to clubs and see them for five bucks or ten bucks in LA and just an awesome time of music and dance and art and culture. And I know that it is possible, and I know that we was part of our mental wellness, right. It was our own modality for ensuring that we were healthy because we had a community and a culture that we belonged to, that we subscribed to.

Wow, when I was growing up and in the hip hop scene, we would have access to all of the artists, the stars nowadays, people that you kind of just look at like, oh, that's a bonafide you know, superstar, billionaire artist and hip hop those folks. We would literally go to clubs and see them for five bucks or ten bucks in LA and just an awesome time of music and dance and art and culture. And I know that it is possible, and I know that we was part of our mental wellness, right. It was our own modality for ensuring that we were healthy because we had a community and a culture that we belonged to, that we subscribed to.

Of course, my parents are from Panama.

Of course, my parents are from Panama.

There was a whole community and culture from Central America Latin America that I was part of. And then my friends that I went to school with, we had our our own sort of you know, suburban subculture.

There was a whole community and culture from Central America Latin America that I was part of. And then my friends that I went to school with, we had our our own sort of you know, suburban subculture.

And then there were my hip hop friends and culture.

And then there were my hip hop friends and culture.

So I had the opportunity to choose between uh and and actually code switch between a lot of different cultures.

So I had the opportunity to choose between uh and and actually code switch between a lot of different cultures.

But it's the it was the.

But it's the it was the.

Beautiful mental well I'm gonna a kinning making it an association with mental wellness. Now I didn't. I wouldn't have done it back then, but now I can see that. The fact that we were in propinquity and proximity with one another, that we were engaged in physical activity so it was dance or performance. The fact that we were free to make mistakes without the repercussion of forever documentation. All of that combined was I think the best and most nurturing soil to grow up in.

Beautiful mental well I'm gonna a kinning making it an association with mental wellness. Now I didn't. I wouldn't have done it back then, but now I can see that. The fact that we were in propinquity and proximity with one another, that we were engaged in physical activity so it was dance or performance. The fact that we were free to make mistakes without the repercussion of forever documentation. All of that combined was I think the best and most nurturing soil to grow up in.

I love that that idea that you could be free not only to make mistakes, but to experiment with your own art, because sure, if you can make a mistake in private, you can have a normally sized consequence of sorts. To do it in public does something to I think a tiny human brain that it's not meant to experience. But I worry about this, everyone recording everything all the time. I worry about what that's costing art because people are afraid to have something that's mediocre go on the internet. But you got to rehearse, you got to try things, You got to see. If you're a comedian, you have to see how a joke works in a crowd. Comedians workshop around the country, Artists perform a new song, see what the vibe is, realize it it's missing a synth or a drum or whatever, and go back and layer. And nobody wants to do that anymore. People only want to give out what is perfect because it might go somewhere. And I'm scared of the generation of art we're costing ourselves because everyone's too afraid to take risks.

I love that that idea that you could be free not only to make mistakes, but to experiment with your own art, because sure, if you can make a mistake in private, you can have a normally sized consequence of sorts. To do it in public does something to I think a tiny human brain that it's not meant to experience. But I worry about this, everyone recording everything all the time. I worry about what that's costing art because people are afraid to have something that's mediocre go on the internet. But you got to rehearse, you got to try things, You got to see. If you're a comedian, you have to see how a joke works in a crowd. Comedians workshop around the country, Artists perform a new song, see what the vibe is, realize it it's missing a synth or a drum or whatever, and go back and layer. And nobody wants to do that anymore. People only want to give out what is perfect because it might go somewhere. And I'm scared of the generation of art we're costing ourselves because everyone's too afraid to take risks.

Now, yeah, that's a real concern of mine as well. And I would add in the layer of algorithms and industry. Industry is so much smarter, and now with algorithms, they're even more informed about how to sell and market. And what's unfortunate is that it becomes this recursive loop, a reductive recursive loop that does not allow for better or more interesting or productive art. Yes, and I think about how we can, you know, try to you know, go back to square one. And I don't want to sound like, you know, back in my day, but there was something special about the garage band. Yes, And now that it's more so, the discovery and engagement is online and it's more insular, it's more solo than it is the group, and the groups that exist are all so manicured and perfect and seen that it begs the question will we ever be able to see, you know, kids just having fun for the sake of having fun anymore? Or is all of their fun for display? And does it have to be perfectly presented and rehearsed fun?

Now, yeah, that's a real concern of mine as well. And I would add in the layer of algorithms and industry. Industry is so much smarter, and now with algorithms, they're even more informed about how to sell and market. And what's unfortunate is that it becomes this recursive loop, a reductive recursive loop that does not allow for better or more interesting or productive art. Yes, and I think about how we can, you know, try to you know, go back to square one. And I don't want to sound like, you know, back in my day, but there was something special about the garage band. Yes, And now that it's more so, the discovery and engagement is online and it's more insular, it's more solo than it is the group, and the groups that exist are all so manicured and perfect and seen that it begs the question will we ever be able to see, you know, kids just having fun for the sake of having fun anymore? Or is all of their fun for display? And does it have to be perfectly presented and rehearsed fun?

And when it works for these young artists, the blow up is so fast. You know, It's been interesting to watch Chapel Roone have this big year and everyone's like good for her, and she's out there being like I'm traumatized, like the Internet's wild. What people expect of me is really hard for me to process. A year and a half ago, nobody knew this kid's name, and I think about the pressure, you know, we kind of got to be out there and make a thing and have a show premiere or drop an album and do the press tour and then also like go home, go to the bar with our friends, like not every outing was expected to be chased and tailed and photographed and packaged. And I think about things that are so like those moments that take me back, you know, almost like an old factory hit when you smell something and suddenly you're to someone you haven't seen in ages. And when I was getting ready for today and I was thinking about all the phases of my own life that your music has been a part of. I even think about when I Need a dollar, was, you know, the theme song to Make It in America. And like my buddy Brian Greenberg from my first show, One Tree Hill was on that show and we were like, oh my god, and it felt like this moment for us, like supporting our friend and this song that was everwhere on the radio and it was it was the theme song of the HBO show, like the possibilities felt so big, and it was it's like one of my favorite memories as a young artist. And it wasn't even my show, but it was like we all had this connection in this way and nobody was expected to be and like the head to to look by the stylist and doing the thing. And you know, now everybody's looking at these retro photos from the nineties and the early two thousands and being like, God, what cool style. And it's like people were just wearing they were.

And when it works for these young artists, the blow up is so fast. You know, It's been interesting to watch Chapel Roone have this big year and everyone's like good for her, and she's out there being like I'm traumatized, like the Internet's wild. What people expect of me is really hard for me to process. A year and a half ago, nobody knew this kid's name, and I think about the pressure, you know, we kind of got to be out there and make a thing and have a show premiere or drop an album and do the press tour and then also like go home, go to the bar with our friends, like not every outing was expected to be chased and tailed and photographed and packaged. And I think about things that are so like those moments that take me back, you know, almost like an old factory hit when you smell something and suddenly you're to someone you haven't seen in ages. And when I was getting ready for today and I was thinking about all the phases of my own life that your music has been a part of. I even think about when I Need a dollar, was, you know, the theme song to Make It in America. And like my buddy Brian Greenberg from my first show, One Tree Hill was on that show and we were like, oh my god, and it felt like this moment for us, like supporting our friend and this song that was everwhere on the radio and it was it was the theme song of the HBO show, like the possibilities felt so big, and it was it's like one of my favorite memories as a young artist. And it wasn't even my show, but it was like we all had this connection in this way and nobody was expected to be and like the head to to look by the stylist and doing the thing. And you know, now everybody's looking at these retro photos from the nineties and the early two thousands and being like, God, what cool style. And it's like people were just wearing they were.

Just wearing what they were Yeah, what were in closet or in the drawer? There was and there was none of this.

Just wearing what they were Yeah, what were in closet or in the drawer? There was and there was none of this.

Thank you for mentioning I Need a Dollar because that was an epic moment for me as well.

Thank you for mentioning I Need a Dollar because that was an epic moment for me as well.

That was exactly what you said.

That was exactly what you said.

I was just making music for the few fans that I knew I had who would appreciate it. And I was like, and I'll probably go get another job in a couple months.

I was just making music for the few fans that I knew I had who would appreciate it. And I was like, and I'll probably go get another job in a couple months.

Yeah, And now for our sponsors, and can I ask just a technical question for the timeline, how long was this after you embarked as a solo artist.

Yeah, And now for our sponsors, and can I ask just a technical question for the timeline, how long was this after you embarked as a solo artist.

I Need a Dollar hit in two thousand and nine or so. I had been laid off in two thousand and three, so six years of kind of solo artistry. I've always been engaged in art, doing hip hop music. I released I think two thousand and five maybe the last the hip hop album with my partner DJ Exile as Eminon, and then released a solo album in two thousand and six or something like that.

I Need a Dollar hit in two thousand and nine or so. I had been laid off in two thousand and three, so six years of kind of solo artistry. I've always been engaged in art, doing hip hop music. I released I think two thousand and five maybe the last the hip hop album with my partner DJ Exile as Eminon, and then released a solo album in two thousand and six or something like that.

So this song hits and it's like, what, yeah, I mean when that when that beat starts and it just the loop is so good. I think about walking down the street in New York and my bee, I don't know, it's so it's seminole.

So this song hits and it's like, what, yeah, I mean when that when that beat starts and it just the loop is so good. I think about walking down the street in New York and my bee, I don't know, it's so it's seminole.

Oh my goodness. You're right.

Oh my goodness. You're right.

It has an essence, a really really powerful emotive sound to it, and it does.

It has an essence, a really really powerful emotive sound to it, and it does.

It does make me think of like.

It does make me think of like.

A scene, you know, scene of Staying Alive where johnsha Volks was just walking down New York. But I was, you know, I was at a moment where I had no expectations because I've been doing music for so long and music really wasn't supposed to be my career.

A scene, you know, scene of Staying Alive where johnsha Volks was just walking down New York. But I was, you know, I was at a moment where I had no expectations because I've been doing music for so long and music really wasn't supposed to be my career.

It's just the hobby.

It's just the hobby.

And I knew that I can always go back to corporate or go back to school and kind of be a career scholar or something.

And I knew that I can always go back to corporate or go back to school and kind of be a career scholar or something.

But I was lucky. I was lucky, and I've been chasing this luck, writing this luck for a little bit.

But I was lucky. I was lucky, and I've been chasing this luck, writing this luck for a little bit.

Yeah, you said in an article. I suppose I should say an interview. It was an interview that an article was written from that you feel like serendipity lives on your front doorstep.

Yeah, you said in an article. I suppose I should say an interview. It was an interview that an article was written from that you feel like serendipity lives on your front doorstep.

Oh my goodness.

Oh my goodness.

Can you say a little bit more about that as you talk about riding this wave?

Can you say a little bit more about that as you talk about riding this wave?

Yeah, I feel like it's not fair.

Yeah, I feel like it's not fair.

You know, I have a lot of friends where are struggling artists who are incredibly talented but just haven't had what I consider the lucky breaks that I've had, and I wish that I could share, you know, the sprinkles of serendipity with them. But everywhere I look, there's something positive happening, and my goal is to just trying to pay it forward as much as possible with philanthropy and with message and engagement. But I was signed to an indie label. First of all, I wasn't signed to any label. In the very beginning. I was going to work for a big corporation and they pushed my start date back. And because they pushed my start date back, the opportunity to go to go on tour in Europe. Opened up because one of the members of this hip hop group decided to stay home. So there was an extra seat in the bus, an extra bed in the hotel rooms. And the idea was that I could join the tour if I paid my way. And I had just received, you know, just graduated from college, received this like exit scholarship that I don't even again. Another serendipity, right, money, money on the way out, Okay, I'll take it. So I had some money to pay my way on this tour. Came home and started recording with the artists that I had toured with, and one of the recordings peaqued the attention of the record label that that artist was signed to, so they ended up signing me as a singer and not an MC. So all this time, this whole tour, I'd done, I'm a rapper and I'm writing hip hop music, and I decided to sing on one track, and the labels considering me a vocalist, and now I'm signed as a singer. And so I had to really like bootstrap myself to become a vocalist and a singer, trying so many different sounds and styles over the years, and then by the time I started working on my second album, Good Things, which holds the I Need a Dollar song, I kind of had figured out where the best place was to use my voice. So it wasn't in power and b it wasn't alternative rock. It was in this kind of folk soul vocal and it ended up being the mark of my early career.

You know, I have a lot of friends where are struggling artists who are incredibly talented but just haven't had what I consider the lucky breaks that I've had, and I wish that I could share, you know, the sprinkles of serendipity with them. But everywhere I look, there's something positive happening, and my goal is to just trying to pay it forward as much as possible with philanthropy and with message and engagement. But I was signed to an indie label. First of all, I wasn't signed to any label. In the very beginning. I was going to work for a big corporation and they pushed my start date back. And because they pushed my start date back, the opportunity to go to go on tour in Europe. Opened up because one of the members of this hip hop group decided to stay home. So there was an extra seat in the bus, an extra bed in the hotel rooms. And the idea was that I could join the tour if I paid my way. And I had just received, you know, just graduated from college, received this like exit scholarship that I don't even again. Another serendipity, right, money, money on the way out, Okay, I'll take it. So I had some money to pay my way on this tour. Came home and started recording with the artists that I had toured with, and one of the recordings peaqued the attention of the record label that that artist was signed to, so they ended up signing me as a singer and not an MC. So all this time, this whole tour, I'd done, I'm a rapper and I'm writing hip hop music, and I decided to sing on one track, and the labels considering me a vocalist, and now I'm signed as a singer. And so I had to really like bootstrap myself to become a vocalist and a singer, trying so many different sounds and styles over the years, and then by the time I started working on my second album, Good Things, which holds the I Need a Dollar song, I kind of had figured out where the best place was to use my voice. So it wasn't in power and b it wasn't alternative rock. It was in this kind of folk soul vocal and it ended up being the mark of my early career.

Yeah, it's amazing, and I again I think about that thing. Would you have had the time and space to find the best use of your voice had that moment in your early career been happening in this kind of algorithmic machine we're in now, No.

Yeah, it's amazing, and I again I think about that thing. Would you have had the time and space to find the best use of your voice had that moment in your early career been happening in this kind of algorithmic machine we're in now, No.

I don't think so.

I don't think so.

Yeah, I think because of my attraction to process, I would be trying to figure out the algorithm how to be eat it, and it wouldn't It wouldn't give me.

Yeah, I think because of my attraction to process, I would be trying to figure out the algorithm how to be eat it, and it wouldn't It wouldn't give me.

The opportunity to be my best artistic self.

The opportunity to be my best artistic self.

I'm so lucky that in high school I had the chance to put in ten thousand hours of free, expressive artistic creation. Yeah, without again, without the repercussions of.

I'm so lucky that in high school I had the chance to put in ten thousand hours of free, expressive artistic creation. Yeah, without again, without the repercussions of.

Having to be perfect, because.

Having to be perfect, because.

It wasn't going online right, it was being vetted by my very close associates, and once they approved, then it made it to you know, mixtapes that we then delivered to more people.

It wasn't going online right, it was being vetted by my very close associates, and once they approved, then it made it to you know, mixtapes that we then delivered to more people.

I miss the mixtape when you talked earlier about like if you know, you know, when you finally when you're not a music maker but you love art, you know, artist of a different vertical, like to go, oh, now, now I get the heads up when the mixtapes are coming, like nothing was cooler, you know, as a young person finding the way in these creative scenes. I'm like, oh my god, just to hear you talk about like you workshop it, then it goes on the mixtape, then it goes out, then people come to see you in the venue. It's like, I don't know if we'll get it again, but I I'd be so thrilled if we could figure out a way.

I miss the mixtape when you talked earlier about like if you know, you know, when you finally when you're not a music maker but you love art, you know, artist of a different vertical, like to go, oh, now, now I get the heads up when the mixtapes are coming, like nothing was cooler, you know, as a young person finding the way in these creative scenes. I'm like, oh my god, just to hear you talk about like you workshop it, then it goes on the mixtape, then it goes out, then people come to see you in the venue. It's like, I don't know if we'll get it again, but I I'd be so thrilled if we could figure out a way.

Yeah again, I'm going to try to figure out how that can be possible.

Yeah again, I'm going to try to figure out how that can be possible.

I think that there is a.

I think that there is a.

Hunger for it, but I want to, you know, try to My kids are a hop skip and a jump away from high school and so maybe, you know, I'll try to work shop it with them the rental venue where they can go and you know, have parties and be creative and explore.

Hunger for it, but I want to, you know, try to My kids are a hop skip and a jump away from high school and so maybe, you know, I'll try to work shop it with them the rental venue where they can go and you know, have parties and be creative and explore.

But one rule is that it has to happen offline.

But one rule is that it has to happen offline.

Yeah, phone free love it. I even think about what a big deal it was in that era when you'd hear about something after and then you'd see the you know, the five photos that came out because some great shooter was there and and but that was it. It wasn't you know, six hundred grainy Instagram videos or whatever. And there's something I think really beautiful about all of that, and I do think it's why so many young people crave it. I hear from you know, my friends with teenagers. We've kind of we've kind of got two camps, like friends with little kids, like you know, five and under, and then we've got friends with teenagers. And the teenagers want to ask questions about my first show because they're like, everybody has a flip phone. They they all talk to each other about how they're feeling. No one's texting, and that kind of blows my mind. These kids are like, wait, we want that version of high school.

Yeah, phone free love it. I even think about what a big deal it was in that era when you'd hear about something after and then you'd see the you know, the five photos that came out because some great shooter was there and and but that was it. It wasn't you know, six hundred grainy Instagram videos or whatever. And there's something I think really beautiful about all of that, and I do think it's why so many young people crave it. I hear from you know, my friends with teenagers. We've kind of we've kind of got two camps, like friends with little kids, like you know, five and under, and then we've got friends with teenagers. And the teenagers want to ask questions about my first show because they're like, everybody has a flip phone. They they all talk to each other about how they're feeling. No one's texting, and that kind of blows my mind. These kids are like, wait, we want that version of high school.

Yeah. The beauty is the art of story, and so what is.

Yeah. The beauty is the art of story, and so what is.

You know, missing, is that with all of this video and all of these photos available, for every event that happens, you end also the ability to watch and experience in real time, you lose the art of story, and so nobody, nobody tells the story in a way that is compelling. You're receiving it in real time, and you get to interpret it at your own level, uh, with with your with your own you know, intellectual curiosity and your own ability to really process deeply. And we all have different abilities. But when you have a storyteller that's coming to you and dictating really what you should feel and how you feel, that's a whole different experience. And I think that's what is missing, is the Yeah, the great narrator.

You know, missing, is that with all of this video and all of these photos available, for every event that happens, you end also the ability to watch and experience in real time, you lose the art of story, and so nobody, nobody tells the story in a way that is compelling. You're receiving it in real time, and you get to interpret it at your own level, uh, with with your with your own you know, intellectual curiosity and your own ability to really process deeply. And we all have different abilities. But when you have a storyteller that's coming to you and dictating really what you should feel and how you feel, that's a whole different experience. And I think that's what is missing, is the Yeah, the great narrator.

Yes, And what I miss about the great narrator is that it was being presented, as you said, with someone's story that also helped to encourage critical thinking and to question the story.

Yes, And what I miss about the great narrator is that it was being presented, as you said, with someone's story that also helped to encourage critical thinking and to question the story.

To.

To.

Examine the facts of it, rather than just to look at one hundred images and decide you already know the story. The irony that we used to have narrators and that made us better critical thinkers is not lost on me. And it it gets to the root of something I've always really admired about you as a person in my age peer group, ish like you're one of those people. I'm like, yeah, we kind of came up together even though we never really knew each other. And I'm so happy you're here. But you've done something that I've seen be so important to so many artists in our generation, which is use your platform, really spend the privilege of your platform for others as an advocate, As an activist. You know, you've focused on mental health, you focused on criminal justice reform. You have so artfully told other people's stories to remind people that if we don't have community, we don't have anything. When did that spark get lit for you as an artist or was it always part of who you are as a person and the artistry he helps let it out right?

Examine the facts of it, rather than just to look at one hundred images and decide you already know the story. The irony that we used to have narrators and that made us better critical thinkers is not lost on me. And it it gets to the root of something I've always really admired about you as a person in my age peer group, ish like you're one of those people. I'm like, yeah, we kind of came up together even though we never really knew each other. And I'm so happy you're here. But you've done something that I've seen be so important to so many artists in our generation, which is use your platform, really spend the privilege of your platform for others as an advocate, As an activist. You know, you've focused on mental health, you focused on criminal justice reform. You have so artfully told other people's stories to remind people that if we don't have community, we don't have anything. When did that spark get lit for you as an artist or was it always part of who you are as a person and the artistry he helps let it out right?

I think there's definitely a moment where it was lit. And I would say, right after I need a dollar. I was very very excited to be, you know, kind of having this moment of visibility after being an obscure niche artist on an obscure niche record label. And I was asked to do some endorsements for different products, some luxury products, and one of them was a liquor brand that happened to be a gin that was my dad's favorite gin. I am not a drinker, never was, but I thought I'll take some photos and hold a martini, and then I'll have some bottles sent to my dad and he'll get the posters and it'll be a nice little father son moment. And the posters ended up being placed in the inner city across the country. And I got a phone call from one of my wife's friends who was an activist out of an organization called Community Coalition of South LA which was started by now Mayor Karen Bass, but back she was just a citizen of her community trying to make it better and she started a nonprofit organization. The phone call was a reprimand of my use of my celebrity and influence to sell alcohol and liquor in a community where this organization was trying to shut down liquor stores which had become a blight.

I think there's definitely a moment where it was lit. And I would say, right after I need a dollar. I was very very excited to be, you know, kind of having this moment of visibility after being an obscure niche artist on an obscure niche record label. And I was asked to do some endorsements for different products, some luxury products, and one of them was a liquor brand that happened to be a gin that was my dad's favorite gin. I am not a drinker, never was, but I thought I'll take some photos and hold a martini, and then I'll have some bottles sent to my dad and he'll get the posters and it'll be a nice little father son moment. And the posters ended up being placed in the inner city across the country. And I got a phone call from one of my wife's friends who was an activist out of an organization called Community Coalition of South LA which was started by now Mayor Karen Bass, but back she was just a citizen of her community trying to make it better and she started a nonprofit organization. The phone call was a reprimand of my use of my celebrity and influence to sell alcohol and liquor in a community where this organization was trying to shut down liquor stores which had become a blight.

On the community.

On the community.

And I had no connection and no idea, and I was really taken aback. So I use that as an opportunity to visit the org, learn what they were doing, and recognize how much my influence was a responsibility that I had to take seriously. And when I signed with a major record label after that, I promised that I'll use my music for positive social transformation. And you try to turn every music video into a PSA that could tell a story, to humanize the most vulnerable.

And I had no connection and no idea, and I was really taken aback. So I use that as an opportunity to visit the org, learn what they were doing, and recognize how much my influence was a responsibility that I had to take seriously. And when I signed with a major record label after that, I promised that I'll use my music for positive social transformation. And you try to turn every music video into a PSA that could tell a story, to humanize the most vulnerable.

Yeah, that's beautiful, and you know, from learning lessons, and I think it's also very vulnerable. If I may say, to be willing to learn out loud, I think it's incredibly important to push back against this sort of weird algorithmic perfectionism, to say, oh, yeah, I did something that seemed fun and it turned out to have an impact that was terrible. FYI, this was my lesson. If you're ever in this position, ask these questions. You know, nobody gives us a handbook on how to do these things right and how to pull the thread till you get to the end of it. And it's so interesting to hear about that feedback and the way you chose to receive it, and then to think about what you've done with all of this since you know, as you said, the way you use your music, the way that you've stepped up, and I mean even helped join the president, you know, join President Biden to talk about him and Kamala Harris's National Strategy for Suicide Prevention, you know, to take a crisis for our communities and say, this is something a lot of people keep hidden out of pain and shame, and let's go talk about it literally from the most powerful, you know, stage in America. What was that like for you? Was that unnerving in any way or as you've built this sort of series of learnings and voicings for others, did it just feel like the next right thing?

Yeah, that's beautiful, and you know, from learning lessons, and I think it's also very vulnerable. If I may say, to be willing to learn out loud, I think it's incredibly important to push back against this sort of weird algorithmic perfectionism, to say, oh, yeah, I did something that seemed fun and it turned out to have an impact that was terrible. FYI, this was my lesson. If you're ever in this position, ask these questions. You know, nobody gives us a handbook on how to do these things right and how to pull the thread till you get to the end of it. And it's so interesting to hear about that feedback and the way you chose to receive it, and then to think about what you've done with all of this since you know, as you said, the way you use your music, the way that you've stepped up, and I mean even helped join the president, you know, join President Biden to talk about him and Kamala Harris's National Strategy for Suicide Prevention, you know, to take a crisis for our communities and say, this is something a lot of people keep hidden out of pain and shame, and let's go talk about it literally from the most powerful, you know, stage in America. What was that like for you? Was that unnerving in any way or as you've built this sort of series of learnings and voicings for others, did it just feel like the next right thing?

I would say the latter, It feels like the next right thing.

I would say the latter, It feels like the next right thing.

I don't feel any real trepidation, and I look to my mentors and also heroes from the past that have basically educated me on what's possible. I think about, you know, was fortunate to meet Quaku and Endaba Mendela. These are the grandsons of Nelson Mendela, and the stories that I hear from them, and understanding Nelson Mandela's story and also Winnie Mendela's story that in the face of the most tremendous and horrendous adversity, torture, incarceration, that he still was able to maintain a level of humanity and compassion not just for himself, but for perceivably his enemies, which you know, he wouldn't call them his enemies because he didn't punish them when he came out of prison, he embraced everyone and moved forward with dignity. And I think about Harry Belafonte, who was a mentor of mine, someone that I had chance to sit with and learn from, and how he used his voice and celebrity in a way to encourage, you know, transformation that otherwise might not have happened without.

I don't feel any real trepidation, and I look to my mentors and also heroes from the past that have basically educated me on what's possible. I think about, you know, was fortunate to meet Quaku and Endaba Mendela. These are the grandsons of Nelson Mendela, and the stories that I hear from them, and understanding Nelson Mandela's story and also Winnie Mendela's story that in the face of the most tremendous and horrendous adversity, torture, incarceration, that he still was able to maintain a level of humanity and compassion not just for himself, but for perceivably his enemies, which you know, he wouldn't call them his enemies because he didn't punish them when he came out of prison, he embraced everyone and moved forward with dignity. And I think about Harry Belafonte, who was a mentor of mine, someone that I had chance to sit with and learn from, and how he used his voice and celebrity in a way to encourage, you know, transformation that otherwise might not have happened without.

His very privileged position.

His very privileged position.

And there certainly was fear, you know, death threats, physical altercations, but somebody's got to do the work. And if you're in that position and you have that access, then the job is yours and you have to rise to the occasion. So I don't know, I just think I felt I feel like I've had the right guides along the way.

And there certainly was fear, you know, death threats, physical altercations, but somebody's got to do the work. And if you're in that position and you have that access, then the job is yours and you have to rise to the occasion. So I don't know, I just think I felt I feel like I've had the right guides along the way.

Hmm. That's beautiful. And now a word from our sponsors that I really enjoy and I think you will too. It's the you know, the Harry's, the Jane Fondas that the folks who came before all of us, that when the pushback comes and the fear kind of sinks in of like, oh god, what does it mean to say this out loud and to keep beating this drama and to refuse to be quiet when you feel in terrible thing that you know, someone out there does that falls under the category of threat. I think in moments, especially like this one, you know this many days into this new all hands on deck administration, I just think, well, they did it. They did this work, don't. We don't get to do less. There is no world in which we can do less because we for for all the negative aspects of how interconnected we are, we do have the ability to do this. You and I can be in community from different sides of the country. We can get on a phone and speak to people and remind people of what's good and true. And yeah, when I get scared, I try to think about those people are there? Are there like leaders and mentors or folks you call, Like, who do you turn to when you get scared?

Hmm. That's beautiful. And now a word from our sponsors that I really enjoy and I think you will too. It's the you know, the Harry's, the Jane Fondas that the folks who came before all of us, that when the pushback comes and the fear kind of sinks in of like, oh god, what does it mean to say this out loud and to keep beating this drama and to refuse to be quiet when you feel in terrible thing that you know, someone out there does that falls under the category of threat. I think in moments, especially like this one, you know this many days into this new all hands on deck administration, I just think, well, they did it. They did this work, don't. We don't get to do less. There is no world in which we can do less because we for for all the negative aspects of how interconnected we are, we do have the ability to do this. You and I can be in community from different sides of the country. We can get on a phone and speak to people and remind people of what's good and true. And yeah, when I get scared, I try to think about those people are there? Are there like leaders and mentors or folks you call, Like, who do you turn to when you get scared?

It's mostly community, mostly community. You know.

It's mostly community, mostly community. You know.

What reassures me is that Harry Belefonte was in the middle of all of the civil rights struggle, and many of his peers were murdered, doctor King, you know, many were beaten, but he was able to also survive and for decades and decades later to be able to tell the story and to tool up and train a whole new generation of artists. There, but there are there are others.

What reassures me is that Harry Belefonte was in the middle of all of the civil rights struggle, and many of his peers were murdered, doctor King, you know, many were beaten, but he was able to also survive and for decades and decades later to be able to tell the story and to tool up and train a whole new generation of artists. There, but there are there are others.

You know that in my circle. Who are the folks that I go to when I'm.

You know that in my circle. Who are the folks that I go to when I'm.

Trying to think through how we position ourselves for the for the next four years and and beyond. What are the what are the strategies, what is the goal you know? And what are how do we triage what are the things that are not as important as What are our highest priorities and how do we make sure we maximize those highest priorities?

Trying to think through how we position ourselves for the for the next four years and and beyond. What are the what are the strategies, what is the goal you know? And what are how do we triage what are the things that are not as important as What are our highest priorities and how do we make sure we maximize those highest priorities?

Yes, and how do we do it in a way in this very.

Yes, and how do we do it in a way in this very.

Information sensitive or hyper informat informed society. How do we do it in a way that is information sensitive mhm h and in ways that doesn't make our strategy and concepts vulnerable two.

Information sensitive or hyper informat informed society. How do we do it in a way that is information sensitive mhm h and in ways that doesn't make our strategy and concepts vulnerable two.

To being thwarted. So there yeah, lessons and from.

To being thwarted. So there yeah, lessons and from.

The past, there are technologies that exist that didn't exist then, and we've just.

The past, there are technologies that exist that didn't exist then, and we've just.

Got to be thoughtful about about how we how we manage.

Got to be thoughtful about about how we how we manage.

But really what it comes down to is as well like making sure that we are using our influence for the betterment of humanity, all humanity, and we are standing up for the rights and of indignity of.

But really what it comes down to is as well like making sure that we are using our influence for the betterment of humanity, all humanity, and we are standing up for the rights and of indignity of.

The most vulnerable.

The most vulnerable.

The waight of it feels very immense and close to me right now. But I do feel very grateful that so many of us, in our little worlds that all kind of vend diagram together in the ways that they do, are both preparing and slowing down just enough to ask these kinds of questions. That has been one of the great lessons for me is that in the immediate, you know, fury or heartbreak that can come to witnessing injustice, like I have a spicy Italian lady in me, Like I can just get out there and start screaming and to hold that passion, but also take a breath and go to a friend and say, Okay, what's the plan. How do I scream effectively? How do I instill the fear my grandmother knew how to instill in me effectively? And how do I also enter the spaces that require immense empathy with that empathy on my sleeve and just be present to support people. And I wonder if maybe the root of that willingness to be curious is from the thing we all share, which is being a storyteller. Yeah.

The waight of it feels very immense and close to me right now. But I do feel very grateful that so many of us, in our little worlds that all kind of vend diagram together in the ways that they do, are both preparing and slowing down just enough to ask these kinds of questions. That has been one of the great lessons for me is that in the immediate, you know, fury or heartbreak that can come to witnessing injustice, like I have a spicy Italian lady in me, Like I can just get out there and start screaming and to hold that passion, but also take a breath and go to a friend and say, Okay, what's the plan. How do I scream effectively? How do I instill the fear my grandmother knew how to instill in me effectively? And how do I also enter the spaces that require immense empathy with that empathy on my sleeve and just be present to support people. And I wonder if maybe the root of that willingness to be curious is from the thing we all share, which is being a storyteller. Yeah.

I believe that we all have the storytelling capacity, and we all have to those of us who are recognized for it have to lead with it, and we've got to lead with it in a way that's going to empower others use their storytelling.

I believe that we all have the storytelling capacity, and we all have to those of us who are recognized for it have to lead with it, and we've got to lead with it in a way that's going to empower others use their storytelling.

You know.

You know.

Quite often we'll be at some public event and my wife and I am I kind of retreat because I feel like, if it's not my show, I don't need to be on stage, and it's an opportunity for other people to be seen and on stage. And my wife always reminds me, just like, but this is people love your voice, and you know, why would you restrict them of it? And the part of me is like, well, they didn't. They haven't asked for it, So I don't want to impose. But she's right, though, there's you know, there is always an opportunity with the right intention and with with humility two quote unquote impose hm hmm, if you can do something.

Quite often we'll be at some public event and my wife and I am I kind of retreat because I feel like, if it's not my show, I don't need to be on stage, and it's an opportunity for other people to be seen and on stage. And my wife always reminds me, just like, but this is people love your voice, and you know, why would you restrict them of it? And the part of me is like, well, they didn't. They haven't asked for it, So I don't want to impose. But she's right, though, there's you know, there is always an opportunity with the right intention and with with humility two quote unquote impose hm hmm, if you can do something.

Good with it.

Good with it.

I like that impose for good. Yeah, it feels nice.

I like that impose for good. Yeah, it feels nice.

You can use your your fiery Italian voice in some moments. Yeah, And as long as you're doing it for for good, you.

You can use your your fiery Italian voice in some moments. Yeah, And as long as you're doing it for for good, you.

Know, Yeah, Yeah, I think it's I think it's crucial, you know. I know it gets set a lot, but truly, now more than ever, I want to go back to something that you said earlier, you know, about how you begin to realize that even a music video in a way could be a PSA because the new album, I'm so excited it's here. We've waited as I'm leaving and like coming back as a fan, and then I'll show exit stage left and that your interviewer will be back. But you know when you wait and you're so excited as someone who loves someone else's art, like, oh my god, it's here. And then of course I was like, of course every song is tied specifically to an action you can take for positive social change. Of course it is, and I just think it's so cool. So I'll join the chorus of people saying bravo. But can you talk about how you how first of all do you say this is the album I want to release after you know, see years noodling and finding this version of this year's voice, And then how do you kind of layer this larger mission so that we're not just your listeners, but we're also we're also becoming a community of folks doing something right.

Know, Yeah, Yeah, I think it's I think it's crucial, you know. I know it gets set a lot, but truly, now more than ever, I want to go back to something that you said earlier, you know, about how you begin to realize that even a music video in a way could be a PSA because the new album, I'm so excited it's here. We've waited as I'm leaving and like coming back as a fan, and then I'll show exit stage left and that your interviewer will be back. But you know when you wait and you're so excited as someone who loves someone else's art, like, oh my god, it's here. And then of course I was like, of course every song is tied specifically to an action you can take for positive social change. Of course it is, and I just think it's so cool. So I'll join the chorus of people saying bravo. But can you talk about how you how first of all do you say this is the album I want to release after you know, see years noodling and finding this version of this year's voice, And then how do you kind of layer this larger mission so that we're not just your listeners, but we're also we're also becoming a community of folks doing something right.

Well, I would say that, you know, again the serendipity on my doorstep. I'm not a bleeding hard artist there's plenty of tragedy and things in my life to be sad about, but I have a very optimistic and positive outlook, and I enjoy this opportunity to create and share with this megaphone that I have for the whole world. And I recognize that in the marketplace there's so much darkness, lots of you know, depression and anxiety and misogyny and violence and substance abuse, and that's I don't think I need to contribute to any of that. And I could tell an album worth of stories about myself and glorify myself in a way that would probably make me more popular than I am. But I also I'm not compelled to do that. I don't feel that it's necessary. I have to think we have enough self promoting narcissists in.

Well, I would say that, you know, again the serendipity on my doorstep. I'm not a bleeding hard artist there's plenty of tragedy and things in my life to be sad about, but I have a very optimistic and positive outlook, and I enjoy this opportunity to create and share with this megaphone that I have for the whole world. And I recognize that in the marketplace there's so much darkness, lots of you know, depression and anxiety and misogyny and violence and substance abuse, and that's I don't think I need to contribute to any of that. And I could tell an album worth of stories about myself and glorify myself in a way that would probably make me more popular than I am. But I also I'm not compelled to do that. I don't feel that it's necessary. I have to think we have enough self promoting narcissists in.

The music business. And I feel like, okay, well, what can I do.

The music business. And I feel like, okay, well, what can I do.

Let me show up in the way on music, on tape, on record as I show up in community, and how is that that is?

Let me show up in the way on music, on tape, on record as I show up in community, and how is that that is?

Whenever I get a phone call or.

Whenever I get a phone call or.

I get invited to engage with a nonprofit organization, I try to find a way. And I thought, well, posting you or media assets online is certainly helpful. To my to my fan base that works. Maybe shooting a p s A for a video, or showing up to the gala and performing at the galaff you can raise funds. That I'm sure is very helpful. But if my forte is storytelling and songwriting, how can I lean in heavily on my passion and expertise using your messaging and and work in the community so that two plus two equals five. And it's not that I came up with this idea. I know there's been the we Are the worlds of the past. There's there have been the bono and YouTube you know one, There's Bob Marley with Redemption songs. There's so so many artists in the past have done the message music or the positive social mission. But I thought, why not really lean in with an album that suggests to my peers that that era is not over and that we can continue to do that. And here's an album full of songs.

I get invited to engage with a nonprofit organization, I try to find a way. And I thought, well, posting you or media assets online is certainly helpful. To my to my fan base that works. Maybe shooting a p s A for a video, or showing up to the gala and performing at the galaff you can raise funds. That I'm sure is very helpful. But if my forte is storytelling and songwriting, how can I lean in heavily on my passion and expertise using your messaging and and work in the community so that two plus two equals five. And it's not that I came up with this idea. I know there's been the we Are the worlds of the past. There's there have been the bono and YouTube you know one, There's Bob Marley with Redemption songs. There's so so many artists in the past have done the message music or the positive social mission. But I thought, why not really lean in with an album that suggests to my peers that that era is not over and that we can continue to do that. And here's an album full of songs.

The least you can do is one yes.

The least you can do is one yes.

And so each song is inspired by a nonprofit organization or a positive social mission. One of the songs is called Breakthrough. It was inspired by a nonprofit organization called Breakthrough that is helping returning citizens matriculate back into society with jobs, education, housing to reduce recidivism.

And so each song is inspired by a nonprofit organization or a positive social mission. One of the songs is called Breakthrough. It was inspired by a nonprofit organization called Breakthrough that is helping returning citizens matriculate back into society with jobs, education, housing to reduce recidivism.

You know.

You know.

Another song on the album is called Don't Go Alone. It's written inspired by an African proverb. But really I'm promoting in Service of the Phoenix, which is an addiction recovery organization that uses collective activity like exercise or hiking as a modality to combat substance abuse. This is your accountability family, your accountability team, and you just find new friends and new ways to engage to avoid, you know, going to the bottle or the pill. And so each song is built around that concept. And I would be remiss to not mention that my wife was probably the most inspiring factor in making this decision because we were the spokes couples for an organization called Peace over Violence here in Los Angeles that does awareness for domestic abuse, and there was a campaign every year. There's an annual campaign called Denim Day, which is messaging around sexual violence and how.

Another song on the album is called Don't Go Alone. It's written inspired by an African proverb. But really I'm promoting in Service of the Phoenix, which is an addiction recovery organization that uses collective activity like exercise or hiking as a modality to combat substance abuse. This is your accountability family, your accountability team, and you just find new friends and new ways to engage to avoid, you know, going to the bottle or the pill. And so each song is built around that concept. And I would be remiss to not mention that my wife was probably the most inspiring factor in making this decision because we were the spokes couples for an organization called Peace over Violence here in Los Angeles that does awareness for domestic abuse, and there was a campaign every year. There's an annual campaign called Denim Day, which is messaging around sexual violence and how.

It's important for.

It's important for.

Men just as much as as any anyone to recognize that our role in sexual violence. My wife wrote a song after watching The Hunting Grounds I think is the name of the film about rape on campus called never Said Yes, because the conversation around you know, sexual violence is always very directed and pointed at blaming the victim, saying well, you know, did you say no?

Men just as much as as any anyone to recognize that our role in sexual violence. My wife wrote a song after watching The Hunting Grounds I think is the name of the film about rape on campus called never Said Yes, because the conversation around you know, sexual violence is always very directed and pointed at blaming the victim, saying well, you know, did you say no?

Did you.

Did you.

Lead the perpetrator on? You know, it's never a question of did you say yes?

Lead the perpetrator on? You know, it's never a question of did you say yes?

Right? And if you didn't say yes. So she wrote a song called never Said Yes.

Right? And if you didn't say yes. So she wrote a song called never Said Yes.

And I thought it was brilliant and you know, great idea to take the social mission, put it into a mantra that can become the language to support that mission in the absence of, you know, a narrator.

And I thought it was brilliant and you know, great idea to take the social mission, put it into a mantra that can become the language to support that mission in the absence of, you know, a narrator.

You know, now you have this.

You know, now you have this.

This quick, easy SoundBite that helps to tell the story in a way that people can digest quickly.

This quick, easy SoundBite that helps to tell the story in a way that people can digest quickly.

It's really beautiful, And now a word from our wonderful sponsors. One of the things that strikes me about the opportunity that you've created here is with an album's worth of songs, each song having a focus for a cause, you offer up a board to an audience to say, which of these things resonates with you the most deeply? Which of these things will you join the call for? Because you know, I remember early in my career people would always say to me, we have to pick something, pick a cause. I'm like, how is working on a more civil society going to be accomplished with one thing? That seems ridiculous to me? And I actually think one of our greatest strengths is the fact that when we get to speak to so many people, the more you can teach or showcase how interconnected these things are, the more likely you are to inspire each person paying attention to what you're sharing with the thing that most inspires them. Because not every fan is going to have the same cause, but everyone's going to be inspired by something. So what an amazing What an amazing thing to a layer this creative process with so many opportunities for real passion and connection.

It's really beautiful, And now a word from our wonderful sponsors. One of the things that strikes me about the opportunity that you've created here is with an album's worth of songs, each song having a focus for a cause, you offer up a board to an audience to say, which of these things resonates with you the most deeply? Which of these things will you join the call for? Because you know, I remember early in my career people would always say to me, we have to pick something, pick a cause. I'm like, how is working on a more civil society going to be accomplished with one thing? That seems ridiculous to me? And I actually think one of our greatest strengths is the fact that when we get to speak to so many people, the more you can teach or showcase how interconnected these things are, the more likely you are to inspire each person paying attention to what you're sharing with the thing that most inspires them. Because not every fan is going to have the same cause, but everyone's going to be inspired by something. So what an amazing What an amazing thing to a layer this creative process with so many opportunities for real passion and connection.

Thank you.

Thank you.

I'm really happy about it. I think it's just the volume one of many to come, and I'm going to keep exploiting this this method for the long haul.

I'm really happy about it. I think it's just the volume one of many to come, and I'm going to keep exploiting this this method for the long haul.

Do you have a favorite song on the album?

Do you have a favorite song on the album?

Very hard to say.

Very hard to say.

Don't Go Alone is so infectious to me, the message, you know, being about if you want to go fast, you can go alone. If you want to go far, you go together, and that being this African proverb that really makes so much sense about how society and communities can can operate, and then deep inside the music is everything that I grew up with parents coming from Central America via the Caribbean, so lots of you know, Latin and Caribbean sounds and then African diaspora African sounds in the music. But then there's on the other side of that sonic landscape is this very calm and relaxed kind of story of father and son, which is Daddy told me, so the concept of.

Don't Go Alone is so infectious to me, the message, you know, being about if you want to go fast, you can go alone. If you want to go far, you go together, and that being this African proverb that really makes so much sense about how society and communities can can operate, and then deep inside the music is everything that I grew up with parents coming from Central America via the Caribbean, so lots of you know, Latin and Caribbean sounds and then African diaspora African sounds in the music. But then there's on the other side of that sonic landscape is this very calm and relaxed kind of story of father and son, which is Daddy told me, so the concept of.

My relationship with my dad and the lessons that I learned from him.

My relationship with my dad and the lessons that I learned from him.

And there's I guess there's a favorite moment or reason for every song on the.