#2003 - Killer Mike

Joe Rogan (0:04)

The Joe Rogan Experience. Good to see you, my friend.

Killer Mike (0:15)

Man, it's always good to see you.

Joe Rogan (0:16)

I played your shit in the gym today, it was awesome.

Killer Mike (0:19)

Thank you.

Joe Rogan (0:19)

The new shit is awesome, I love it.

Killer Mike (0:21)

Thank you, thank you, thank you, man, thank you.

Joe Rogan (0:23)

By the way, I should tell you also, you are the Run the Jewels playlist is the playlist we play at the club, before the show gets started, to hype people up.

Killer Mike (0:32)

Thank you.

Joe Rogan (0:32)

And that is credit to Tony Hinchcliffe, and this is years ago he said this to me, he goes Run the Jewels is the fucking best music to play before a show. Because everybody gets hyped up, you know, and then it's just perfect, it's like a lot of energy, it carries you right into the show.

Killer Mike (0:46)

Shouts out to my rap partner LP, who's probably like chilling in his vacation home with his puppies right now, I love L2, he's a great guy.

Joe Rogan (0:52)

He's talented as fuck too.

Killer Mike (0:53)

Him and his wife, M, man, shouts out to them and their dogs.

I don't even know what to say, I'm just honored to be a part of that group. And if Run The Jewels is like the X-Men, I tell people this Michael album is the Logan origin story. So the badass swagger and black motherfucker in the group, you get a chance to see the true story of what became, like how he became who he is.

Joe Rogan (1:19)

So you did this, like you had a concept when you created this.

Killer Mike (1:24)

Well yeah, what happens is, at nine years old, I just wanted to be a badass motherfucker rapper, right?

Joe Rogan (1:30)

Nine years old?

Killer Mike (1:31)

My mother was 16 when she had me, so you got to think about it, disco and rap, disco was fading out and rap was fading up. So that's what she was playing around, she was playing like Houdini, Curtis Blow, shit like that. It was like I liked it, but they still dressed like disco people, they still dressed like my mom's band, you know what I'm saying? And then I get a chance to see Run-DFC and first I saw the Fat Boys, I'm like, oh shit, like I'm chubby, they're chubby, they're fresh, and then I saw Run-DFC, it was over, I'm like, I'm in. And I told my mom, I'll never forget, I'm just like, mom, I want to be an MC, and she had a joint, she was like, fuck it, that's what we're doing.

So shouts out to Denise, man, for believing.

Joe Rogan (2:16)

Amazing advice, obviously, nobody can deny that's amazing advice.

Killer Mike (2:21)

I have a theory that if a child is given the confidence to know that they're competent early enough, there's nothing they can't accomplish.

Joe Rogan (2:28)

That's absolutely true. And also children need to know, and this is a very difficult thing to say, but it is true.

If someone out there is doing something, you can do it. Don't let anybody tell you any different. Someone out there is a musician, if someone out there is an artist, someone out there is an author, and people tell you it's too hard, don't listen to those motherfuckers ever. It can be done.

Killer Mike (2:50)

It can be done.

Joe Rogan (2:51)

100% can be done.

Killer Mike (2:53)

Now, you gotta figure out doing it, I'm taking this jacket, I don't want to stay cool. I want to tell kids, you gotta figure that part out. My mom didn't buy me studio time, she didn't put me in, she was just like, motherfucker, you want to rap?

She'd bring me in front of friends, rap.

Joe Rogan (3:08)

Wow.

Killer Mike (3:08)

But by the time I got 13, 14, I figured out how to get in studios and stuff like that. My friends would take me and shit, you know what I mean? So I'm just like, okay, now I get my older homies would take me.

So now I got it. But I just tell people, kids, man, Jordan Peterson said something.

He said boys don't get to be, they don't learn because we're putting them in this box. And we're saying learn, and boys don't learn like that. They learn by being out. And I believe that with all kids, but especially little boys, you gotta let their imaginations just go fucking crazy. And my mom was good about that.