Fabolous talks ‘Ghetto Fabolous’ 25th anniversary, ‘Let’s Rap About It’ podcast, WILDEST tour stories + calls out Fat Joe’s past comments

Joe and Jada

Fat Joe and Jadakiss host Brooklyn hip-hop icon Fabolous to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his platinum debut album, 'Ghetto Fabulous.' T

Key takeaways

• Fabolous's debut album 'Ghetto Fabulous' was released on September 11, 2001, creating a somber atmosphere for the launch.
• The artists discuss how fashion sense is often inspired by observing the 'fly guys' in their local Brooklyn neighborhoods.

Main topics

• 25th Anniversary of Ghetto Fabulous
• Hip-hop fashion and influence

Notable quotes

You can't rush the sauce, you can't rush the music, you can't rush relationships, and you definitely can't rush great tequila.

Conclusion

A high-energy celebration of hip-hop longevity that blends nostalgic m

Transcript preview

Speaker 6 (0:00) Lisa, tell them about our new show. We have a new podcast. It's called Don't Lie to Me. I'm Lexi Iwano. We're two best friends, 22 years apart, but so close at heart. And I'm Lisa DiGiulio, the old one, which means we have wildly different references, occasionally different opinions. And at this point in my 50s, I've lived it all. Now in my 30s, being the founder of New Shoes, good taste is my business. Listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Speaker 5 (0:31) I'm Lacey Mosley, author, actor, stand-up comedian, creator, and host of Scam Goddess Podcast. The true crime comedy podcast all about robbery, fraud, and those who practice it. Each week I bring on an amazing guest. Speaker 8 (0:43) Ooh, I scammed him. What? Speaker 5 (0:44) I Speaker 8 (0:45) could talk to you for an hour. Speaker 5 (0:46) You're a generational yapper, like me. That's why I had to make yapping a job. And now you can catch full episodes of my show on YouTube. Start listening to Scam Goddess on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Speaker 6 (1:01) Hi, this is Kylie Brakeman, Angela Geratana, Speaker 8 (1:04) Jeremy Colhane, Patrick McDonald, and Speaker 6 (1:05) we're the hosts of the Artists on Artists on Artists on Artists podcast, the Speaker 8 (1:09) improvised character comedy podcast, where each week a new panel of artists discuss their craft. Join us for a panel of Eurovision participants. Speaker 6 (1:18) And we do a little Halloween sometimes. Does the Pope dress up? He winks on Halloween. Speaker 8 (1:24) He gets right up next to the microphone. Speaker 6 (1:26) I hear you can almost hear the eyelashes hit each other. Speaker 8 (1:29) You've never seen Italy so quiet as when the Pope gets up to wink on Halloween. Speaker 6 (1:34) Listen to Artists on Artists on Artists on Artists every Thursday on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Speaker 5 (1:42) So like by age 11 or so, at least 70 % have a phone. Speaker 4 (1:46) I'm Dr. Joy, and this is Therapy for Black Girls. We spin our surviving middle school run, getting into what's happening inside your kid's brain, the group chats and their friendships, and what you can do about it. Speaker 8 (1:57) Your child is not doing this on purpose. Speaker 4 (1:59) That's the kind of perspective we've been pulling from the psychologists and psychiatrists who studied this for a living. Listen to Therapy for Black Girls on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Speaker 3 (2:11) I did see, I think, I got a thought flag on this. You be saying, you said something on the show that I be... I said, I'm going to go to it Speaker 2 (2:16) right now. I said, you the elf in the shelf. Let me tell you something. He said, I always late the shows, all kind of... Hold on, hold on. It's time to go there. I've seen a couple Speaker 3 (2:27) clips where I was waiting to come up here. Let me hear this. Fab. You have... Let's get it. Speaker 1 (2:47) Yeah, yeah, what up, y'all? Joe Crack the Dog. You know who it is, your boy Jada. You know what it is, Joe and Jada. Every show legendary, every show iconic. Speaker 2 (3:00) Now we ain't going to diss all the other podcasters. We got a fellow Potter here. You know, that's around the time I'd be like, yo man, fuck these dudes. You know, these podcasts ain't shit. Pop your shit. Pop your shit. Don't switch up for me. Don't switch up for me. Yeah, that's when I start my shit, my bully shit for a little 20, 30 seconds. Could you introduce who's here? Because once he's talked, his voice, Speaker 1 (3:27) he gave it up. Yeah, but still, we still get flowers. Okay. When you think of today's guest, you think of the smoothest flow, the sharpest punchlines to ever come out of Brooklyn. That's the big accomplishment. That's the big one. You know who came out of Brooklyn. Big J. He came up off DJ Kool's Hot 97 show. And in September 2001, he dropped Ghetto Fabulous. Top five debut on the Billboard 200. Platinum. Can't deny it. Youngin' trade it all. Then he came right back. We can't let you go and into you. Speaker 2 (4:11) Little adjustment for you, brother. Let's go. Speaker 1 (4:15) Little Speaker 2 (4:15) adjustment. Speaker 1 (4:16) It's when it comes out better. I mean, the Cardys. Little adjustment for you. Speaker 2 (4:19) The Speaker 1 (4:19) Cardys that look like the Crones, but they call it, oh my God. Think to my, whatever you call it, doctor for the eyes. Let's go back to the beginning. When you think of today's guest. You think of the smoothest flow, the sharpest punchlines that ever come out of Brooklyn. He came up off DJ Clue's Hot 97 show, and in September 2001, he dropped Ghetto Fabulous. Top five debut on the Billboard 200. Platinum. Can't deny it. Youngin', trade it all. Then he came right back with Can't Let You Go and Into You. Both number four in the Hot 100. And Breathe went platinum. Doing shit. He's a mixtape king with the Soul Tape and the Summer Shootout series. He's my partner on Friday on Elm Street. 25 years after that debut, he's still one of the most respected lyricists in the game. Make some noise for the F-A-B-O-L-O-U-S. Fabulous is in the building. Speaker 1 (5:21) That's how I go with the glass. You see what a prescription can do? Speaker 7 (5:25) Yo, Speaker 2 (5:25) Fab, I ain't gonna lie. That's my outfit for my video tomorrow, man. I'm just letting you know ahead of time. Don't think that it's already sitting there. What are you talking? What's the flag? You stole his outfit in one. My outfit? I'm just trying to smash it up on the hanger. But in one set. Damn, my shit is there. What are you talking about? I'm wearing that shit tomorrow. Speaker 1 (5:51) You got any more flags? You couldn't save that for happen. That could have been you and him moment. That's crazy, Speaker 2 (5:58) bro. No, I'm not. He going to be like, yo, see, I pulled up and the next day, fat Joe ran and got that outfit. I got the same shit. I'm being honest with you. Speaker 7 (6:09) That happened to me before. Speaker 2 (6:10) It happened before when you was like, yo, he stole my shit. No, that just mean Speaker 1 (6:14) y'all niggas like to spend a lot of money on gear Speaker 2 (6:17) and y'all buy it. Brother, when I want to look like Schoolhouse Rock, I wear that Victor Victor shit you got going on right there. Oh, yes, I'm a pill. They saw your face. They saw your face. I am a pill. They told me Speaker 1 (6:29) page. I am a Speaker 2 (6:31) pill. Speaker 1 (6:31) You can say whatever you want. You got the four-fold face. on the Joe and Jada page. So we know you want him. We know you a sneakerhead. You just let it go, brother. No, no, no, don't start this. This is true. You don't got the Vickie Vicks. Don't start this. Don't start this, man. He know he's a sneakerhead. He wants him. He got him. Speaker 2 (6:52) You got them T.S. You got them T.S. You know, 25,005 minutes. When are you commenting about something? 5,000. He know he wants him. Five. It's two days in one store. Speaker 1 (7:05) He know he wants it. Don't kick my shit. Let me tell you something. He know he wants it. We talking about fat. Speaker 2 (7:13) Can I say something? Why you ain't let me get my shit off though? Because Speaker 1 (7:16) you're going the wrong direction here. Off something we Speaker 2 (7:20) know he wants. Speaker 1 (7:21) Thank Speaker 7 (7:21) you, sir. Thank you. That's happened to me before though. One time I was doing 106 and Park back in the days. AJ. Remember the host that was... Yeah, yeah, yeah. Nah, he came in the dressing room. He Speaker 3 (7:33) came with the same Speaker 7 (7:33) outfit. He came in the dressing room, was like, yo, what's up, Fab? Just giving you a rundown. He wasn't dressed yet, but I had... Remember the Jeff Hamilton jacket that got the football patches all Speaker 3 (7:44) over it? Yeah, Speaker 7 (7:44) yeah, yeah, yeah, Speaker 3 (7:45) yeah. Speaker 7 (7:45) I got that jacket. I'm dressed for the show already. You're already dressed. I came up. They announced me freeing AJ. Yo, everybody make some noise for Fabulous. I come out there. AJ got the same jacket on. I said, yo, AJ, bro. Speaker 3 (7:58) Nah, you got fat. How you compete what I'm wearing? That ain't the same as you got on Speaker 7 (8:03) the head. That was Speaker 1 (8:04) fat. I Speaker 3 (8:05) had a Speaker 7 (8:06) similar situation. So he let me know that he got this jacket tomorrow. I appreciate that. Speaker 2 (8:13) You know, everybody ain't got fat. Speaker 7 (8:15) Everybody Speaker 2 (8:16) ain't original. Everybody needs pointers. They see shit on you. They want it. I know for a fact my wife get a bag. The whole crew going to get the same bag, same color, same everything, same thing, same thing. Otherwise, it's mannequin time. You know what I mean? They got to get the mannequins. So they be like, you know, everybody, I look at it as inspiration. Speaker 7 (8:36) You got to Speaker 2 (8:36) switch it Speaker 7 (8:37) up a little bit, though. You got to put your own. Tell Speaker 2 (8:40) me about it. I talk off the cliff all the time. I be like, she be like, guess what? My friend just got the same bag, same color, same. I be like, yo. Bags is crazy because you can get another color. In beige? Yeah. Speaker 3 (8:53) Orange? Speaker 2 (8:54) Like, nah, that's the problem. You know what I'm saying? But you know, hip hop is all about inspiring people to want to dress better, want to live better. They Speaker 7 (9:03) say imitation is the best form of flattery. I think it's just the best form of annoying you. You know what I'm saying? Like, it's annoying to see somebody try to be you when they could just be themselves. You know what I'm saying? Speaker 2 (9:16) Couldn't say that no better. Now you talking that shit right now. That's that shit. I was worried about you in the back. podcast business. Yeah. Because you always so quiet. Speaker 7 (9:27) Yeah, that's my Speaker 2 (9:27) vibe. Speaker 7 (9:27) You know what I'm saying? And that's your vibe. But not in this podcast. Yeah, you can't be like that. You talking your Speaker 2 (9:32) shit in this podcast. You Speaker 7 (9:34) gotta talk. You can't sit up there and not talk. I think it's easier when you talking amongst your guys or your people that you have that kind of relationship with. It's easy. I wouldn't be able to do it with somebody that I can't vibe with like that. Speaker 1 (9:49) Yeah. And you know, besides him being quiet, You've been dropping some jewels on us, Rapper. Oh, yeah. I mean, you Speaker 2 (9:56) got how many years in the business? Speaker 2 (9:59) How many years? Speaker 7 (10:00) 20, 25. Bro, we've all been Speaker 2 (10:04) through some shit, bro. He's been in the game 20-something years. Speaker 7 (10:07) Yeah, you're going to go through... If you've been doing anything for a while, you go through the ups and downs, the peaks and valleys of it. I Speaker 2 (10:16) did a show one time in Brazil. When I got to Brazil, I thought it was just sexy Brazil. When I got there, they explained to me... I am performing for the biggest warlord in Brazil. And it's the city of gods. The guy went, bro, when I go up in it as a kid, like 12 years old, 60 pounds flat with a rocket launcher that could shoot down the plane. Talking about fat Joe, let's smoke a blunt. My asshole got this tight. Speaker 3 (10:48) You got the flags. You didn't got the flag. Oh, I got some flat. Oh yeah. Okay. Speaker 3 (10:56) Yo, on the house show, we would've went crazy. Yeah, that's true. I Speaker 2 (10:59) walked up that hill in the favela. I was like, yo, all money ain't good money. You ever had a time where you felt like all money ain't good money? Like you was like, yo, what the fuck am I doing here? I had a show in Africa. Speaker 1 (11:12) My first one. I went to Swaziland. For the president. For Swaziland. There's a country called Swazi, man? Swazi. That's the one. Man, Speaker 2 (11:22) I Speaker 1 (11:22) never been Speaker 2 (11:23) to Speaker 1 (11:23) that Speaker 2 (11:23) one. Damn. Speaker 1 (11:25) I could chill on that one. I go over there. It's for the president's kids. They were very nice people. They were beautiful. It was almost like some experience you had. His kids went to all. The president, I think he had 14 wives or something. Of course. He got the crazy crib and around it is more crazy cribs. Those is his wives. Now he got the kids. The kids is the one who do the show. They the ones who book me. His kids go to all the best colleges. Some go in LA, some go in Dubai. We get there, his kids is pulling up. Jacob watches 745s and this and that. We get off the plane, no. This is how powerful it was. It's a regular plane, and they got us off. Don't worry about customs. Don't worry about your luggage. None of that. I was scared. Me. It's mad people. I didn't know which luggage. We got everything. Get in the Phantom. It's like coming to America. Now we go. Now I'm in the town. It's one of them shits. I'm going to a store. So I'm telling you, I'm going to see the king. Damn the king. Speaker 1 (12:35) You're not going to his house. You can't touch him. You can't even see him. Now I'm getting nervous. Now let me rewind. Before I get there, I'm getting mad tweets. You know what Twitter is, all type of, you don't know what's going on. People's telling me, don't go there. I'm saying, who would've? The bag was right. Back forward. I'm over there. I'm going to see the king. The show's tomorrow. I'm on my way to his crib right now. When I get there. Speaker 1 (13:06) Everybody's on their knees. His mans, the kids, everything. You got to talk to him on your knees, man. This is how royal you be. I'm like, what the fuck is this? Him. Not you, though. Man, you come sit next to me. Pictures all the day like, what? He do us the shit that never been done. So you're the only one that Speaker 3 (13:27) didn't have to get on your knees? No knees, none. Not even deep Speaker 1 (13:29) whips. Speaker 3 (13:29) Oh, he wasn't getting on his knees. Yeah, I wasn't getting on my knees. Come on, fucking flack. Bro, you in one of them countries. Yeah, you got to do whatever the fuck you Speaker 2 (13:37) say. Get on your knees, crack. No crack is not getting on his knees. We take the flick. Sorry. When I got kidnapped, I told the nigga, yo, I'm not pussy. While he was manhandling me, I Speaker 1 (13:47) was Speaker 2 (13:47) like, yo, Speaker 1 (13:47) my back. Speaker 2 (13:47) When I got kidnapped, I told him I'm not pussy. I'm telling the nigga, yo, I'm not pussy. Like, don't play with me like, Speaker 1 (13:54) even though I fuck you up. Speaker 3 (13:56) Okay, Speaker 2 (13:56) what Speaker 3 (13:57) happens? Yo, listen. So now, they tell you to get on your knees and swazzy Speaker 1 (14:02) land? Man, I'm doing some investigating. Oh, man. I'm seeing what's going on. First, his face is on everything. KFC, the airport, the money, the everything. He's like, yo, it's crazy. I meet some people that's saying it's not so good what you think of it. I'm like, I got mixed emotions. Now, fast forward tomorrow to show. Somebody hijacked the equipment. The production shit got to come from Johannesburg. They shot it. He shot the equipment. It's not a pop now. He shot the equipment. He's Speaker 2 (14:41) active. Speaker 1 (14:41) He shot up the equipment. He knocked off the equipment. He ain't got so much bread. He ain't Speaker 2 (14:46) got Speaker 1 (14:46) another equipment. I'm starting to understand. Look, Speaker 2 (14:49) he Speaker 1 (14:49) ain't Speaker 2 (14:49) got Speaker 1 (14:49) so much bread. He just replaced it. Now I'm doing my homework. I'm looking up where the fuck is going on here. Speaker 1 (14:58) I got to go back. When I went to the King's crib, he was, he was showing me soup. Yo, so thanks for you, for you to come at a time like this. And then me, what is he? What do you mean a time like this? What's the time like? I went and look. It was warm. I was the stupidest. Yo, dog, I was in a 211 trip. I don't know how I was there. It was one of them shits. I wasn't. He was saying, you are the greatest person for you to come here right now. I'm thinking, I'm like, yeah. Anytime. I look, this shit was cold red. It's the middle of, it's going Speaker 3 (15:37) down. You ever been in some shit like that? Yeah, like, I think. Speaker 7 (15:41) I was going to say one time we did a show. I brought you to Speaker 3 (15:44) Angola. Yeah, Speaker 7 (15:45) Angola. Angola, we did that. Anytime I go to any of them countries, we literally look the whole country, see what's going on. It'd be countries having civil wars. And they ain't Speaker 1 (15:57) going Speaker 7 (15:57) to tell you. Or you don't know. You're just going because of the bag. You know what I mean? It might be a festival that you're doing. You don't know what's going on out there. So I try to have my team just look up. One time we had like a... Offer from Libya. Yo, you got a smarter team than me. Speaker 8 (16:13) They Speaker 7 (16:13) like, nah, it's a little shaky out there right now. Or like, you get something in Haiti, they be like, nah, don't do it. All money ain't good, man. I did Haiti. Speaker 2 (16:24) You did everything. You crazy. I did everything. Just last week, I went to Romania. It was like 100,000 people busting in. They said, Ja Rule ain't coming. I said, Ja Rule ain't coming. They was like, you know who? 12 minutes that way is Ukraine. I'm like, once again, my asshole got this small. I said, huh? First time I ever caught the... Yo. I said, what? He was like, you know, 12 miles this way, Ukraine. The war. Yeah. They said, because Ja Rule been in Africa with me like the trenches. For him not to come? He's tougher than me in them spots. They was like, no, Ja Rule said because of what, Ja Rule? He said, you know, 12 miles that way, Ukraine. 12 miles ain't that far. Yeah, but it wasn't popping. That's Speaker 1 (17:18) too Speaker 2 (17:18) far for bombs. That's Speaker 1 (17:19) nothing Speaker 3 (17:20) for a bomb. That's Speaker 1 (17:20) an Speaker 3 (17:20) Uber Speaker 1 (17:21) for a bomb. Speaker 3 (17:23) Instead of bombing an Uber, it's 12 miles. Just last Speaker 2 (17:26) week, but I didn't hear nothing. I ain't seen nothing. It was a beautiful country, great seafood. But sheesh, like Ja Rule knew better than me. He didn't show up. No drama, no nothing. Eve showed up. Timberland showed up. I mean, but, you know. It was like a festival. Big festival, 100,000 people. But I do believe if I had that information, I might have not shown up. Speaker 7 (17:50) If Speaker 2 (17:51) I knew, somebody would have told me, yo, it's 12 miles from Ukraine, I'm not going. I'm pulling the Ja Rule. That's a little bit too close. Speaker 7 (17:59) It is tough. We also come from like, we travel to LA, we travel to Miami, we travel all these places. And sometimes we out of our environment, even when you go from state to state, but you know, we got connections and stuff there. So we never even think about like, if we go into those other countries, if it's really too much over there, we thinking we go in there to get our bag. We do what we do. But sometimes they got different things going on. Sometimes Speaker 3 (18:26) they got different hood politics going on. Even Brazil, how you said Brazil, trenches is... Speaker 2 (18:31) I'm telling you. I ain't Speaker 3 (18:32) gonna Speaker 2 (18:32) lie to you, God. Because Speaker 1 (18:33) I never used to really... It just had to be... If nobody ain't get killed then, then yes, then ain't. Yeah, Speaker 3 (18:40) if it ain't in the news. But sometimes the news ain't showing they type of shit going on over there. You started me. Speaker 1 (18:48) investigating where I'm going to. The news might have gone. I learned that from you. Because I never really was doing that. One time Speaker 2 (18:56) they paid me. I was going to one of the biggest markets for Fat Joe his whole entire life is the Ivory Coast in Africa. One time I took a shuttle. They paid me in full. I go to the airport. Cia called me. He's like, yo, you don't have to get on the plane. I'm about to get on the plane. I said, what happened? They kill 500 guys in front of the venue that you're supposed to go to. This, this. Yo, I was getting on the plane. Not down the block, not around the corner. Speaker 1 (19:27) He Speaker 2 (19:27) was like, if you look at the United States website, it's telling you not to go this and this and that. Shit, they don't understand that because we travel so much and the bag is out there. Shit that you watch on the news that you don't care about if you never leave New York. It affects us. I'm in fucking Paris to do a show and they shoot up all those theaters. And we watch the CNN Paris, they're killing 100 people. We look and Google, that shit was across the street, down the block. Speaker 7 (19:57) Yeah. We don't watch world news either. So even when you, even people here watch the news, they watch like shit that happened in Speaker 3 (20:05) the Speaker 7 (20:05) Bronx. Shit that happened in Yonkers. They not really watching what's going on in Libya. Watching Speaker 1 (20:11) the boroughs. Yeah. Speaker 3 (20:12) Maybe a little bit to Florida or something. In our environments, we come from, Speaker 7 (20:16) we Speaker 3 (20:17) come from humble beginnings and rough Speaker 7 (20:19) times. So like, You know what I mean? When we grew up, you thinking you going, when I went to Paris one time, they said, like the soccer team was playing there and they was like, yo, they shutting everything down because whether they win or lose, they get kind of crazy out here. I'm like, well, how crazy could it, you know what I mean? I'm thinking the crowd outside Speaker 3 (20:42) the Speaker 7 (20:42) garden, you know what I mean? They Speaker 3 (20:45) gonna get a little rowdy, but we gonna be on our, Speaker 7 (20:48) nah. It went crazy out there. Shit on fire. Cars burning. Smoke everywhere. Like, it was crazy out there. So, you got to pay attention to that. I said, Germany one time, when they Speaker 2 (20:59) won that shit, you could not sleep. The hotel, the big... The hotel put a gate. Speaker 7 (21:04) They boarded up windows of Goyard and all. Like, all of the stores boarded up the windows. The hotel, the Mandarin, closed this gate and you couldn't come in and out of the hotel. I'm going to Speaker 2 (21:16) end Speaker 7 (21:16) that shit with this. They got the proof. Speaker 1 (21:17) Listen, when we go to a Speaker 2 (21:18) novella, they say the man we performing for like... Look, he was a good guy to me. Who? No, no, the guy from the Favela. He obviously was a beyond dangerous guy. If you're the leader of the whole Favela city of gods, he was killing everything moving, right? So we go up there, we perform. It was beautiful. When we leaving, I'm watching everybody put a gun on the car. Like, so they give the whole town a gun in case if the enemies come to their concert. So like everybody's walking by throwing a gun on the, like they all do the collection. Yo, this shit out of control. Some money ain't good money. I remember being out. Yo, these people, then you get mad at your family, right? When you walking out that bitch, you're like, yo, these people don't even appreciate this shit. They don't know what type of shit I had to do to go get this bag. This shit crazy. Like it really is crazy. Sometimes when we go in these areas. Speaker 7 (22:20) And it's not just us. Like, I've heard stories from you. I've heard stories from Swiss. I've heard, you know, people go in places and they ain't want to let us out. I'm like, what? So I even keep them stories in mind when I be going to them places too, like, just to be on point. I Speaker 2 (22:38) see Swiss in Saudi Arabia. He look like he was home. Speaker 7 (22:41) Oh, no. Saudi, he got it. Saudi, he got that shit on. Man, he probably got a crib over there. He went somewhere and he told me it might have been Haiti. He went somewhere and... I'll tell you Speaker 2 (22:52) my Hattie story. What they do, what they do. Speaker 3 (22:55) They Speaker 1 (22:55) had him there Speaker 3 (22:56) for a minute. They had him, he Speaker 2 (22:57) couldn't leave. Speaker 3 (22:58) This artist Speaker 7 (23:00) I know from Africa said she went somewhere to perform and the guy kept saying, do it again. That's Speaker