Episode 7 - The Swizz Beatz Breakdown

Nicky Saunders: 0:00

What's poppin'? What's poppin'? What's poppin'? Welcome to Nicky and Moose! I'm Nicky! That's Moose! 'Sup Moose?

Mostafa Ghonim: 0:07

What up y'all?

Nicky Saunders: 0:09

Listen. And today we are going to go over the man who had created, well part not super creative, but definitely the sound of a whole movement in our childhood days right? You may know him as a Swizz Beatz. You may know him as Zone Zone. You may know him as one of the best producers out before, now, in the future. Right? Clearly I already said his name Swizz Beatz! Moose, how you feeling about Swizz Beatz?

Mostafa Ghonim: 0:47

Man this is the honestly this, so many lessons. Like you know, you think you know somebody, but then you like start really digging deep and you're like, Whoa, whoa, whoa! We talked about it. It's like we have too many good clips. Right? Like, that's not... Yeah, that's a rare problem. So no this this has been incredible man. I'm really excited to to dive deeper and just kind of break down the mindset, the mentality and how he's arrived to where he is now.

Nicky Saunders: 1:15

We're not going to hold up. Go into the intro.

Jaymie Jordan: 1:19

Two kids from Queens. Cut from a different cloth. Now joining forces helping you to elevate your personal brand. Yeah, I'm talking about Nicky and Moose, bringing you a never before seen perspective into the mindset, the mentality, the behaviors, the driving force, but more importantly, the stories behind the people and brands that you know and love the most.

Nicky Saunders: 1:48

So, um, man, I'm so excited about this this episode. I don't think you understand. So this was honestly, like a last minute vibe. Right? We had another situation we had another plan for this episode. But I really feel like we make the best decisions very last minute. Well, me making the last decision and Moose being like, "Yo, that's really dope. Actually, let me add this, this that and the third." Like together we make the dopest like last minute decisions. I just want to put that out there. But yo, before we get super into it, let me go through the review of the week. Shout out to everybody who sends us a review, who submits that, all that great stuff who's been sharing it. It's a whole vibe and we wouldn't be here without y'all. So, this one says from the Canna pride girls. Inhope I said that right? Y'all know I always mess up these names, right? But "Who needs TV anymore? This podcast is entertaining, educational, and raw. The topics are broken down in a way that's so helpful for people to understand. So inspiring." Shout out to you for the review and shout out to everybody who sends us a review. I...yo Moose have you seen these reviews? These reviews like almost got me teared up. Like I'm like "Oh my God".

Mostafa Ghonim: 3:13

Yeah I was shocked to see the amount of five star reviews. I'm like wow, there is a lot of people who are really taking time to leave those reviews. So definitely super grateful and much appreciated for sure.

Nicky Saunders: 3:26

Facts! But I just want to dive right into it but I'm not because I want I want to give some backstory, right? Um, man Ruff Ryders was like, of course, we first heard about Swizz Beatz through the whole Ruff Ryders movement. And me and Moose, before we even pressed record, like we were playing some of Swizz Beatz literally beats, and even the impact that he did with Ruff Ryders and DMX. I was like yo, you haven't heard like the intro for DMX? What are you talking about? That was like a whole movement in New York. You heard that first intro and it stopped everything. But he created such a sound that is still a match. It doesn't make any kind of sense, but the the Ruff Ryders tapes because they were tapes back then right? Ruff Ryders tapes when he brought Drag On and Eve and everybody all together in one compilation like even had Snoop on it and everything, like that sound from going from New York to the South to the West and everything like that. And then the motorcycles and everything like what what do you remember from the Ruff Ryder days? Like not the Swizz we know now who we will get into is super sophisticated and everything like that, but...

Mostafa Ghonim: 4:55

Yeah no, for sure I definitely remember like the Ruff Ryders specifically through the motorcycles, you know?Lliterally, all my block where I grew up in Queens, one of my best friend's older brother was huge into the motorcycle scene. So he used to ride with them.

Nicky Saunders: 5:12

That's crazy.

Mostafa Ghonim: 5:13

So that's kind of how I got introduced to it. Yeah, he used to bring back the DVDs with them like doing stunts on the highways, and like riding all over the city. And we were like, just little kids sitting there watching, and I'm sure Swizz Beatz's music was on there at the time, but I probably, you know, didn't connect two and two together. So to see the the progression, like you said, from then, which was probably '98, '99, from what I remember, you know, almost 25, 30 years later, it's like, wow, man, that's incredible.

Nicky Saunders: 5:44

Right, and the whole, you know, clearly the one that that got him super on the scenes was the Ruff Ryders Anthem. Like...I can't even talk like just, that whole movement, like we can't, we can't, knock how big Ruff Ryders anthem was. And even some people who could still play it to this day it's still like, still, there's still a big movement with it. And, and to see how he went from there being starting at like what 19 or something like that, right? To now, creating now a whole new internet movement. Right? Which we'll get into. It's so crazy, because he started as a DJ, right? He started as a DJ, and has become not only a producer, but an entrepreneur, an art collector, a father, great husband, like, what's, what's the... Hold on? Let's let's start it off. What's the net worth? Do I even want to ask? What, we look we lookin' like? What we lookin' like?

Mostafa Ghonim: 6:58

Hey I'll tell you what, yeah, it's nice. Because for someone who you wouldn't think because of just how he kind of like, gets off the main scene a little bit and gets interested in something else, and then pops back up, all of these moves have been steadily increasing his net worth. He comes in with $150 million net worth. Yeah.

Nicky Saunders: 7:22

I mean, as we break it down, you, you will see why, um, and like, one of the things that that really, as we were doing the research that really stood out is he definitely didn't stay in the creative mode. Like he took on the word "producer", to whole new levels. Like it wasn't just a producer in music, but he was a producer in culture. And I think that's, that's huge for people to understand when it comes to this episode, is that we're given certain titles within the in the industry, but it's up to us to really expand that to not just the industry, but the culture. And it's how he just created one movement, to the next movement, to another sound, to now art culture, to how he made it cool to go back to college, like so many different gems that you're going to get out of this. And I want to bring it back to why don't we kind of do these different episodes, we really want to give the flowers to our living legends, and break it down to a part where we can understand the brand and business side, you know? There's, there's other shows that are going to give you kind of a biography of things and tell their career from that kind of standpoint, right? But we really want to help people not only grow their, their brands, because that's just where you need to have a brand nowadays, but really start to make different waves as creating a business and an empire. Right and all these people, we can learn something from them, especially when we break it down into the flight assessment.Ya mean? I didn't practice that but um, if you haven't taken the flight assessment yet, you need to. We really try to break it down. So it is the pilot, the flight attendant the grounds crew, air traffic controller. These are different characters from the assessment to help you connect and identify not only yourself but how can you connect with these living legends and Moose,

if you can in 1: 10:00

30, or 45, or however you feel like it, because we didn't do it last episode, can you explain what is what?

Mostafa Ghonim: 10:09

Absolutely, yeah. So this is basically based off of the dominant personality types that exist in the world. And, as Nicky mentioned, we're drawing, we're drawing connection between each one. And it's, like, what was the driver behind each of these characters, or each of these people's success, right? Which one of these personality styles you think helped contribute to their success? So we use the airport theme, because it's easy to observe. So when you look at the pilot, you notice the pilot is swagged out gets on the plane and go straight to the cockpit. And he's really focused on getting the plane from where it is to its final destination. So they're not really interacting with people like that, until they get the job done, and land the plane safely. So when we think of pilot characters, or people who have that pilot, personality, we talk about A-type personalities, right? People who are super driven and determined, and they love to really go after new challenges. And then up next, another style you're going to notice is, of course, the flight attendant. So when you're getting on the plane, and you pass the cockpit, and you're going to your seat, you're probably going to come across a flight attendant, that's smiling, welcoming you to the plane. During your trip, they're going to want to make sure you have a phenomenal experience. So those of that style are typically those who are super charismatic, right? They have a lot of charisma, a lot of charm, they love to be around people, they have a infectious smile. And again, for them, it's all about utilizing relationships to build and grow the experience. And then if you're in your seat, you're sitting by the window, you look out the window seat, you're gonna see some people in orange, blue or green vests, doing a lot of different things like a very important piece to the puzzle because they're putting bags onto the plane there maybe helping the pilot get through from the gate onto the runway, or vice versa, or bringing up snacks and beverages to the flight attendants to serve during the trip. So these are people who are behind the scenes in a sense, but they play a major part to what happens in what you see up front on stage. Right? So yeah, you can call them maybe supportive, very loyal to a vision, very flexible and adaptable. They can play in a lot of different areas, because they're also multi talented. And then lastly, you're going to have the air traffic control. Again, not people that you hear or see much from, but they're up in the tower somewhere having a different view of what's happening on the ground. But they're looking at charts, numbers, schedules, making sure no two planes are coming off or leaving from the same runway right? Just really working with the small details to make sure everything clicks and that's it there you have it all four.

Nicky Saunders: 12:38

So we're going to try to figure out what Swizz Beatz is or identifies with. So we'll get right into that. So we went a little bit into the music career and everything. I mean, my man has made so many platinum hits, platinum albums been between Eve, between DMXcountless of plaques for DMX. And all the compilations and working with so many other Lil' Wayne, right? Kanye, so many... what does he do? And what does he feel about these different accolades, these different awards that he gets? I found it very interesting. So our first clip is kind of his thought process with that.

Swizz Beatz: 13:26

This would be the first plaque that I hung on my wall since I was like 18. I gave away everything else Grammys, all that stuff. You know what I'm saying? Because it's like people get complacent with where they at with hanging all these things around. You know what I'm saying? And it's like, I don't want to see that. I want, I want to feel empty. I want to feel like I haven't done anything. I don't want to see all these things around me like as if I made it when I'm still hungry and I still have a lot to do and I still have a lot more to learn. I'm still a student.

Nicky Saunders: 13:59

Moose start it off.

Mostafa Ghonim: 14:02

I love I love the passion and the drive, man. And you know, for me, we and I think everyone really in our circle really prides themselves on being lifelong learners. Because it's it's our way of staying dedicated to the craft, to the mission, to the calling, and looking for ways to continue to improve. So I like where he says, I want to continue to be a student. But another way you can look at this is what you what you did before no longer qualifies you. Right? And that's kind of like that, that that's where he's telling you. Like, yo don't put the plaques on the wall because that's gonna make me sit back and say, "Oh, look at all I've accomplished or look at what I've done." But when you walk with the mentality of I'm only good as what I did yesterday, or what I'm doing today, I think that definitely gives you a new level of focus and drive where you no longer rest on your laurels. Like one of my favorite things that I've learned about The Last Dance when we were you know in COVID or the beginning COVID everyone watching The Last Dance, it was MJ making up scenarios in his head about people, almost this and, I'm bored, talking smack, because he just...it got too easy. So he had to find ways to bring this this savage out, which I love. So honestly, I'm definitely of the belief that especially on your way to the top, or as others begin to recognize your accomplishments, you have to keep yourself grounded so that you can continue to reach your potential. But more importantly, it helps you stay grounded in who you are, and protect your humility. Because you don't want a lot of that to get to your head either. Like oh, word, you know what? Like I looked up the

stat: 15:43

Yo 350 million records sold worldwide! Crazy, crazy. He's contributed to so much, right? Like we said DMX, The Ruff Ryders Anthem, again, so many so many hits. Six Grammy nominations gotta Grammy for On to the Next One, right? Like, he's done a lot. So I think that mentality of saying, "Get those things out of here", right? So that I can stay focused and humble. I thought that was powerful.

Nicky Saunders: 16:13

And so the crazy thing is like, how do you not...some people decorate their whole house with the plaques. Whole house with the Grammys and everything like that. And he's like, Nah, I'm, this is the first one since I started, right? Um, and where some people may need that affirmation may need that pat on the back, he's like, if I get that, that could lose some of my drive, that could lose some...because I'm going to look at it and be like, "Yo, I made it" right? Um, and I'm looking at that, like, I'm about to take down a whole bunch of stuff. Nah, I don't have nothing. I don't have nothing pulled up. But what I was thinking, was the good thing he said is like, yo, it was like, man made, like awards. Like, he didn't care what somebody made up, because that doesn't define him. And I think we look at these awards, these different accolades, these different, you know, statuses, and put so much weight towards it, but they were really man made, they don't necessarily define who you are and your value, or what you really have accomplished. Because who are they to say that you truly accomplished what you were there for? You know, that I think those were great milestones, they were great things to say, Yo, I got it off the list, but I'm not done right? Now, some people are going to think of it like, well, we need to celebrate. We need to, you know, show love to those who are doing great. And this is true, right? This is absolutely true. I'm, I'm so for the awards and all those great stuff because you got to you got to make a person feel as if they're not only doing wrong, right? We're very quick to be like you did this wrong, you did that. So let me celebrate the great things that you do do, right? But he's like, I don't even need that. I truly don't. It's not my, it's not my thing. And I, I see that. And I'm like, yo, that would explain why so many years later, you're still coming up with new things as if you were just starting. Like that was his way of making sure that his creativity doesn't get tainted. That his creativity doesn't stop or hit a ceiling because he thinks that I came into the music business as this and I accomplished that. Or I came into entrepreneurship as this and I've done that. Right? And I think everybody has to figure out that thing. And it may not be taking all the awards and degrees and all that stuff down. Right? But what is it that thing that's going to keep you humble? What is that? You know, what do you have to remove from your environment, from your room from your workplace, that will always keep you hungry? That will always keep that drive. Like, I don't care if it's a picture of somebody who is struggling or where like, I love how, um, how some people when they're on their weight loss journey. They'll put a screensaver of what they used to be right? And be like, Yo I'm not there yet. Right? I'm not there yet.

Mostafa Ghonim: 20:03

I don't want to go back to that guy.

Nicky Saunders: 20:05

Right. Right. Right. So, um, what is that? What is that thing for you? For him it was, I don't need to see the awards but for you, what is that thing? And and actually Moose, I'll ask you that. Kind of like, what keeps you hungry? What keeps you besides the like, I'm never settling kind of status or whatever. But what is that thing that maybe you reflect on? Or that's not in your house or whatever that is like, yeah, haven't made it.

Mostafa Ghonim: 20:39

Yeah, I mean, to be honest it's two things man for me personally, and they're very personal things that are near and dear to my heart. The first one is, I'm so mindful of this I say this a lot. It's to reach the expectations of the public before short of my potential. I'm, so like, I keep that at the top of my mind. And then also just because of my personal story, and I'm comfortable sharing it, it like literally at any moment, the States is not home for me. I don't have you know, like, a legit home base. So it's like, you gotta you got to squeeze out every ounce that you can, because you're not guaranteed like safety, right? And for those who are wondering, like, Moose, what are you talking about? I'm just saying, I'm not I'm not a citizen of the States. So for me, at any moment, I walk with the mentality of yo at any moment, they can call you to go back home. And when that call comes, you gonna have to pack the bags and leave. So there's a different mentality for it.

Nicky Saunders: 21:41

Hold on you. Like, clean that up, though. I don't want people to think you illegal in these streets. I don't want you like...

Mostafa Ghonim: 21:48

No, no, no, it's not even about being illegal it's that's just how the system is set up, right? And you play within the rules, and you understand. But I'm saying it's a, you know, it's a different mentality in terms of how you how you walk with it, when you know that, Oh, I got forever, this is my home versus Oh, I know, at the end of the day, I'm just a visitor here and I have a great opportunity and I got to take advantage of it. So that that's just kind of how I look at it, right? It's like, you know, it is what it is. That's how the system is and I choose to, to live and play by these rules. And if I don't like it, I can always leave, you know, on my own. But that that's just a part of the game that I'm not I'm at right now. Tell the people what it is for you, though, we want to know. We want to know what keeps you humble and hungry.

Nicky Saunders: 22:35

My house, I'm a be honest with you, my house. And what I mean by that is I try, and some people think I'm crazy for this, I try to have an incomplete house. Right? Like for those three people who've probably been to my house, shout out to those three, um, it's not super furnished or anything like that, because I don't want to feel like I'm at home per se because there's so much more like I feel as if I...how do I put this? That there's so much more to do. And I don't want to feel comfortable even at my own home. Like my, my room is straight, don't get it twisted, but the home as a complete whole, there's still stuff that still needs to be done and build and everything. And in my mind, I have certain milestones of, okay, when I reach this level, then I get this done. When I reach this level, then I reach to get this done, and things like that. But I never want to come home and be like, ah, I come home to this and everything like that. I really feel as if this is a place that I'm here to work and sleep, right? Work and sleep. Not completely relax, because what I need to get done is not done. So work and sleep, and a little bit of recharge because I got a PlayStation 5. But I will say that. But let's get into the next clip, which I'm really really excited about. Um, if you have been living under a rock, or you don't have Instagram, or Apple Music, we're gonna be talking about Verzuz. And this has really kept me super excited throughout COVID. Right? How they've really taken a an idea and really made it into a brand. But before I get all into it because I could do a whole lecture on it. Let's show the clip.

Swizz Beatz: 24:54

Myself and Timbaland been working on this idea called Verzuz for about three years now. Then this trying time came and everybody started going to social media to express themselves. So what we did was, I played my top songs, he played his top songs. And we went on Instagram Live. A lot of people like to say "battle". We pulled back off of that word "battle", because we're battling enough in the world today. We call it an educational celebration.

Nicky Saunders: 25:30

So, let me let me get in my bag on this one. Let me get in my bag. So check this out. First part, timing. My man said, we've been thinking about this for three years. Okay. Now, him and Timbaland, by far, are top tier, top five, hip hop artists ever. Okay, I'll say ever. And for them to have an idea. They could have executed at any moment, right? Swizz Beatz, a few, not few, quite a bit ago of a Summer Jam, did a battle with Kanye West. And it could have been right then and there, the start of Verzuz, right? But they saw opportunity through COVID, where everybody was all confused, didn't know what to do, stuck at home, only had their phones or their laptops or whatever. And was 24/7 on social media. They said you know what, this is the time. This is when people need it. People would have maybe appreciated it before, just for bragging rights or whatever. But the culture, the world needs Verzuz now. Right? So they took an idea, found the proper time and and launched it during a time where everybody was on their phone, where everybody needed a piece of relief, and getting their minds off of reality of everything that was happening through COVID. Even everything that was happening through the Black Lives Matter movement, right? And how they took an idea to a whole established trademark, multi, oh I wouldn't say multi million, but definitely a bag of a brand is incredible. And how even the sense of let me put it on a free platform. Because it's an idea, right? Because it's an idea. Let me take it from a free platform to then let the artists have control of it because most I don't know if you remember when they had it with Neyo and of course the the famous Baby Face and Teddy Riley battle that was all with a with the artists controlling the live. So it wasn't even on the Verzuz's Instagram or platform per se. It was on the artist you had to go and follow them and everything right? And they saw that, saw the ups and downs with that, like any other business, any other brand. They saw the ups and downs and they took full control. They put it on their platform, they made people go and that was based off the Beenie Man battle where it was in Jamaica and they were all in one location, right? They partnered up with Apple so that when there is a battle, people from Apple are now on on ground and setting up everything instead of allowing the artists to do it. Right? They partnered with Instagram to make sure that there's longer lives instead of getting interrupted. Right? They got sponsors like Ciroc, and whatever, and whoever else wanted to sponsor it Wingstop with Rick Ross and things like that, and was very strategic with the partnerships as well as still keeping it free for the culture. And not only did it helped the culture, but it helped the artists who were involved. They called it like the Verzuz effect, where not only do your following go up, not only do you get the exposure that you need to different generations, but your streams went up. Patti LaBelle and Gladys Knight, people who were not streaming, who didn't come up in the streaming age or era now was streaming to the max. They were on the charts. They've never they haven't been on the charts ever in the streaming in the streaming era. Right? Erykah Badu and Jill Scott were in like 20 different charts. They took an idea to something that was for the people and the artists. And the great thing. That's why I talking about Swizz before, when it comes to the producer, there was one interview where he was like, what we created with Ruff Ryders was great. But I felt like I needed to do more with just the label of producing and I need to give back to the people. So Verzuz allowed him to be to give back to the people and produce something for the culture right? Now, like I said, we'll get into the the art and everything as well. But from a music standpoint, from a place where people really needed that relief. And not only the people needed the relief, but the artists need the relief, because once you bring up the streams, you bring it up people's money, you bring up people's bags. So it is what he did with him and Timb did with Verzuz is unbelievable. Unbelievable. But Moose, I would love to hear, because you know, I've watched all the Verzuz, well, maybe not all. I think I didn't watch two of them. But out of all, all of them I ain't watch two. But what do you think about Verzuz?

Mostafa Ghonim: 31:54

Phenomenal idea, you know, I'm not gonna lie, I didn't watch all of them. But while I'm going through this concept, I'm thinking about the message and the meaning behind everything that he created, right? Something by the people, for the people. So much so it's so unique in its essence that it it makes the platform have to reconsider where they're investing their resources, more how they're making things available. Like you touched on it, for Instagram to remove their 60 minute live limit. Like think about that. You have a billion dollar or multi billion dollar platform, restructuring its platform for you.

Nicky Saunders: 32:38

And the crazy thing, before that, we had DJ D-Nice who was going live all the time. And they didn't do that for him. And they that brought beyond traffic to Instagram to see what DJ is going live for 12 hours? And he would continuously start. It wasn't 'til Verzuz 'til they're like, "Oh, there's two key players on our platform that is ringing in super traffic. Let's take this, this joker off." I think that's huge!

Mostafa Ghonim: 33:09

Major, major, major! Like I'm saying for the platform to level up because of what you're doing. You know, one of the things I was thinking about too, it's the importance for us on this journey of building businesses and brands to not fake our numbers. I think it's so critical because we were mentioning Favia the lady from Instagram herself, where she said it caught her attention because outside of the fact that I'm personally a fan of the music and what they were doing, on the back end we also saw the numbers. So they saw the numbers and it was like, Oh, yeah, this is something worth looking into. Right? And they put their chips behind it. So I think it's it's revolutionary in so many ways. And I love that they didn't sell out. That that's something we got to talk about. Like there's a lot of movements that start with a lot of the right slogans "Oh, this is for the culture. This is for the people." But as soon as corporations come with the big check they're like "Uh culture we'll be right back. Let me go back real quick." So the fact that they stay true the entire time is so real man. So yeah, I think it's it's it's beyond artistry or just really good deeds that they're doing. They're really revolutionising what's possible, regardless of how something is already established, like we can literally still come out here with the right resources and relationships in place, and reignite something that has not been thought of before.

Nicky Saunders: 34:42

And and the pivots that they've done through each stage of a Verzuz is crazy. Like it started with their phone and their laptops, right? And random internet service right? To then let's do the iRig. So then you heard the music clearer, through the phone based off their system, right? To then partnering with Apple, to then have two different experiences. You could watch it on Instagram, right through clear audio and everything like that. But you could have a way better HD experience and have it on your smart TV and your your laptop and your phone and have it all there high definition through Apple. Like each, they were very intentional with each of the steps. You saw the growth of what came from an idea to a whole brand. Worldwide brand people are and from recent interviews, they're like, yeah, we haven't even touched the surface. We haven't touched Latin. We haven't touched the Hispanic community. We haven't touched the world community yet. You know? We haven't touched African community. Like, there's so many different ways they could go about it. And I do love the fact that they were like, yo, it's A celebration, right? Though we hear Verzuz more of instantly like yo battle, right? And we can't help it. That makes it very entertaining. But down the line when they were going through the later rounds like Brandy and Monica. Clearly Patti LaBelle, Gladys Knight, like that's not a battle that's like, yo, let's really celebrate that these living legends are here in this era. Like...we never see them anymore. Right? Um, who was it? It was like, Jada Kiss and Fab. That was a great battle, right? Shout out to New York. Um, but to, to really show even, it inspired me because you could use this very practical like, don't look at it from just a musical standpoint. Right? I literally have created the Replay Squad based off the Verzuz effect, where you have the live on your Instagram, but then you're recording on an HD. And you're and you're giving a certain community, the HD experience with the audio correct and everything like that. So I really want to make sure that people see like, the growth of these different brands, and these different businesses, there's stuff that we could apply for ourselves, if we just start thinking as a producer, as what can we take from these lessons and put it into our own brands? Because the second I really started studying Verzuz like, I used to go live after every Verzuz, do a recap, but from a branding standpoint, like okay, what did we learn? What did we learn? You saw when Rick Ross was there, Belaire was there, Wingstop was there. Right? He was always promoting his brands. Right? Ciroc is always there. There's, they're starting to get clear...they starting to understand the virtual experience a little bit better. So take what these people are doing, and how can it apply to what you were doing, I think would be a super game changer for...it doesn't matter what brand you have. It doesn't matter what you do. I don't care if you're a speaker. I don't care if you're author. I don't care if you're a shoe lace person, whatever, I don't care. You could learn something from this the virtual experience based off what we're doing now. We're hearing that we're going to be locked in again, for what six weeks?

Mostafa Ghonim: 38:44

Possibly.

Nicky Saunders: 38:45

Yeah,

Mostafa Ghonim: 38:46

It's here to stay. You know? It's here to stay. I think just there's this, like people are so used to this now. And I'm not saying that this is going to be the reality forever. But you know, I think for people like Swizz and Timbaland who jumped right into it. And and the part that I don't want going over people's head is if you're watching this clip, and again, shout out to everybody who's actually listening to the episode on YouTube. You notice that there's a piece of it where like you said in the car, right, like I remember actually tuning in to that specific live. Like Swizz Beatz was in his car. Right? Like on live and, and going back and forth. And really just having a great time with it. And and we often talk about, let your audience tell you if they like it or not, you know, they had 20,000 people on those lives. And it was a very just kind of like, simple setup, you know, like you said, phones laptops, whatever making it work. And and it proved the concept. So yeah, it's a it's incredible on so many levels. What are some trends that you're seeing, maybe now that people are getting acclimated to the new normal, the pandemic, a potential second lockdown, what are some trends that you think might pick up or something that is opportunity you know, going nto this next prayerfully, we on't see it, but just this new ormal? What do you what do you hink are some trends that might op off?

Nicky Saunders: 40:07

I think live isn't going anywhere. Right? Like so not necessarily a new trend, but I think like truly focus on how do I connect with my audience, and for certain industries, live, and virtual concerts and virtual events, is, is really here to stay. Why? Because you're now reaching the masses, and not just a certain location. Right? And I think, through this time, we've realized even with, um, with Eric Thomas brand, we really see that there's people from Australia, and Germany, and all these different places who are now tuned in to these events that they couldn't have before. Right, we look at the Verzuz thing, there's people worldwide watching in a concert, that they would have never, never seen. No one would have ever seen Brandy and Monica in one spot and be in the rooms, virtual rooms, with Michelle Obama, with Diddy, with so many celebrities. Like, that's what is so great about this is like, you...you would never be in a room of over a million people, a million people, right? And with top people who get paid millions of dollars and all that great stuff, only people you see on TV, movies, all that great stuff, you would never be in the same room. And because of COVID, that has been the positive side of it is that we are now being able to be in the room to sit at the table with these people that we never would have. So I think figuring out and really coming up with a strategy for live events for live concerts for live readings, you know, is going to be what people really need to hone in on rather than just regular posting, regular this and that, like what is your virtual experience? What is your Verzuz effect? What is happening in your brand that you could really take this time because especially with this potential of another lockdown, right, depending on when you hear this, it is it is real, and we're not going anywhere. So I might as well try to make an experience for my audience, because they're dealing with it just like I am. And so if I'm not being a thought leader, if I'm not being a forward thinker, with this with the situation, then I'm going to be left behind, like how some people have through COVID.

Mostafa Ghonim: 43:11

Simple as that.

Nicky Saunders: 43:12

Ya mean? But okay, let's get into this next clip. Oh, cuz this part is very interesting. So we've talked a lot about different investments, with stocks and stuff like that, when we were on our Facebook Live, when we went over Jay Z, which we will bring to the podcast, I promise you down the line, we mentioned about an art collection, but we didn't really go into it, Swizz is big in art. So big my man has his own museum in his house. So let's hear what he has to say about art.

Swizz Beatz: 43:55

Well, I feel like um, it's very important for us as the culture to own the culture, or pieces of the culture and change that whole concept of making it for other people to own and we don't have a trace of it left around where we can pull from, which is the reason why we collect an Indian collection so heavy, we collect like we build in the museum, because we want to save most of these pieces so the next generation and the youth can have something to pull from or go back to have the history.

Nicky Saunders: 44:30

So, Moose start this off.

Mostafa Ghonim: 44:34

So that so this this was really just on so many levels, man, so dope. So like. The first part is you got to understand kind of the again, the progression that he takes right first he gets interested in art just as anybody else. It was his way of getting into something to take a break from the music game, right? So he goes into art, while others were in real estate, he dives into art about 10 years ago. Maybe a little bit more now. So really way before it was popular, right, so he's in the room having these discussions learning and he really replicates the Verzuz model in the art industry, right? With No Commissions, with The Dean Collection, where he's now starting to look out for the artists because he's realizing like, Yo, I'm a creative. And the creatives that are here are, or specifically creatives that are making art and paintings and all of these amazing things, they're not getting the opportunity to continue to benefit off of the resale. So I'll give you an example. There's a piece that Diddy sold or purchased, actually, and Swizz helped him with it. He helped him to purchase the piece because it was a growing piece that again, wanted to keep within the culture. It was $21 million. Twenty one million dollars! So Diddy got a piece for $21 million? Right? And, and Swizz helped kind of facilitate that deal. The artist who actually created that piece, I believe his name is something Mitchell, forgive me on that. I'm paraphrasing a little bit, but he got compensated less than six figures. So while people were reaching out to him, absolutely like, man, congratulations, you're the highest paid, right black creative or black artist living? How does that feel? And he's like, it doesn't feel too great, right? Because like, I literally, I'm not getting any of that, because that's just how it was set up. So that was an opportunity for Swizz Beatz to be like, hold on a second. We should not let people who are building such great things in our world, to starve to die broke and literally replicated, and I would say he probably even started in that industry first, and then replicated the same thing with the Verzuz model, right? Where there are some people who were getting upset because they were saying like, oh, Swizz Beatz wants to take money from the younger generation to pay the older people almost like an entry fee, or respect to the OGs. And it's like, no! What he's doing is brilliant because he wants everyone to not deteriorate to have that fall off. So yeah, I think it's, it's just so powerful man, what he's done there. And then to kind of keep himself disciplined is all the art that he collects through the dean collection, it's under his children's name, so he can't resell it. So it's just like what I'm looking at I'm like, man, where people have different passions, or different reasons for being involved in things. I'm seeing a true flight attendant spirit. And I'm going to make a quick reference to the flight assessment here, but I'm seeing the true flight attendant spirit just to say, I want to give back to the people I care about the creatives. I'm a creative, and I'm going to pass it forward, you know, to the next generation. So I'm gonna start making some early predictions here Nicks and just give the people something to look out for.

Nicky Saunders: 48:11

I don't know. I don't... I could, I could semi agree. But we'll get into that conversation. I think so. So I want to put up on the screen. So for all my podcast, audio, people, make sure you head over to YouTube to see what I'm showing, but KAWS all right? My man has one of the biggest statues in his quote unquote, museum, aka his house. Right? And let me give some back, I had this conversation with Moose, where I, because we're being so exposed now with, you know, how important stocks are, how important art is, how important owning different businesses are, you know, I started looking into some of the the art situations that people have. Now, granted, I'm a sneaker head. So of course, sometimes I go into the Hypebeast culture, because what is the most popular thing that people are buying? Right? And so KAWS is one of those art things that is like a figurine that some people think resembles Mickey Mouse, right and other kinds of things. It was definitely literally like a toy figure. Now, they run about like $6,000 for a small piece, right? Um, those who saw Drake's Toosie Slide, right? He has 2. Those run about like $120K a pop, right? So I could imagine how much that one is. I got an email for just 10 prints. Okay? Because I'm on their email list like, yeah, I would love to own something like this, right? Because I just think is super unique, right? $28,000 for 10 prints, not originals, prints people. Yes, 28, right? Art is a different, like, that's a different bag. Okay, that is a different bag. And what I did like about what Swizz says is like, Yo, I want to introduce the culture to art regardless of if you have $10 in your pocket, or if you have hundred thousand dollar in your in your bank account. It doesn't matter. Like I think the culture needs to have a piece of it and continue to keep it in the culture. Right? And what he does in Art Basel and No Commission situation, and introducing people to, to these different artists, for free pretty much and allowing the artists to have 100% of the commission, which is not heard of when it comes to these different galleries and everything like that, right? I think how he's taking art and putting it almost as a new norm for minorities, I think is really great. Because he started it off as first like any other person, like, yo, it's a great investment. But then he realized, like, Look, this is, this is something that we all should own. We should all have a piece of right? And even, um, man, there was this one once again, sneakerheadso there's this one artist that has, I showed you Moose, like it was like a 3D Jordan thing like, so it showed Jordan and then you put it to the side It was a whole sneaker. It was like $10,000. I was like, Yo, I really like need to get my my weight up if I want to get into the art thing. Right. But with The Dean Collection, what he's doing, he's introducing art to whatever budget that you have within No Commission. Right? So I know for me, I'm gonna look more into these different artists, right? There was an interview that he said, the the way to make money in the art situation in the art business is to get them where there's no hype. Like, get them when there's not trending, because you take up 100- 300% of the earnings right, when there is hype, when people start getting into it. It's not about buying the, the hundred $300 million paintings. It's really about going into the artists when they're when they're kind of warm kind of lukewarm. And then willing it up. So I thought, like, he really opened my eyes as far as Okay, cool. And plus, I love how he's doing the business side of it. Where the like the example that you said, He's like, yeah, we're going to try to make it feel as if it's publishing, like, you're going to sign a paper like, Yo, this person made it, and it's going to be up to you what you give back to them. Right? Because I think with the guy that you said, he sold it for maybe a couple of hundred, like 100,000. Right, he sold it for that. But then he got resold, I'm assuming that resold for the 21 mil, right and shout out to Diddy for keeping it into the culture. But that that is true. Artists do get like screwed in that kind of way. And Swizz coming from a music standpoint, he's like, yo, anytime my music gets played, I get paid. Anytime it gets used in a movie, anytime I get used, like I get paid. And so I think we should do that with artists and I'm on I'm going to put it to a point like, how can that happen with content? I would love to team up with somebody to try to figure that out like how and besides YouTube and everything because you got to reach a certain amount of views and subscribers and anything like how do we take more ownership of those videos, that and those pictures and everything that continues to be repurposed. I think that's definitely a topic to be talked about. But you know, we're neither here nor there. But let's get into this next one. I'm not, I'm not gonna introduce it. I'm just gonna play it.

Swizz Beatz: 55:13

Right? Because we the only culture that hold endless grudges. The other cultures and other side of the world, you could take 100 they'll take $100 million from each other and be at dinner on Friday at each other house. You remember we used to see that with the labels? Leo Cohen got a problem with this one. And we think and it's a war. We go to the Hamptons, they all in the same house. Talking about as business we we chillin right now. Our culture gotta understand those particular lines when it's business it's business. And when it's family and when it's friendship, it got to stay on that line. We can't mix those things together and hold grudges, because we only hold ourself back?

Nicky Saunders: 56:02

Let me tell you, okay, let me tell you, I'ma start this. Business, and friends and family is so hard to separate sometimes, okay? I totally agree with Swizz and I don't I didn't even think about it from a culture standpoint. Right? But, um, if we if we gone be real with this, certain people can like be super cutthroat and then have crumpet and tea right after. Like, "Yo what's up? How are you doing How's everything? How's your wife? Yeah, I just, you know, I took a $3 million deal from you, right from under you. But yeah, we still good, right?" And they could actually, like, be cool. where we're out here like, "Nah, get out of my face. What are we doing?" Right? And I know, for me, I struggle with that. Like, and when it comes to Swizz. Like, we we look at him. He went back to business school. He went what to Howard, Harvard, which one he go to?

Mostafa Ghonim: 57:24

They went to Harvard Business School got two degrees from there. Yeah.

Nicky Saunders: 57:27

Let's go with the two degrees. But you know, he went back and there was a, there was a language barrier. Like there was a culture barrier where he was bringing in like, really big, big players to the table. He was doing a lot of great things. And he still wasn't getting the results that he needed. And he asked some of his friends like, yo, what's going on? He's like, yo, you're not speaking the proper language. Right? And he had to learn the business side, he went back and invested three years into college to truly learn the business side because us as creators, right, we stay in our creative vibes. So staying in our creative vibes, we know, not necessarily know nothing, but we're not, um, we're more concerned about the creative side than the business side. So those friends and family situations and business when it collides, right, it, it doesn't make sense to us because we are so involved in the creative side. Moose will know that about me. I'm like, yo, you handled business. Like I don't want, like, just bring it back when it needs to be like a solid, like, yes, no certain direction. We need to get this done. But all the details and everything I don't want to because I have feelings, and I think we all should get together and it shouldn't be this ugly. And why are we even talking about this? Like, I don't get it? Right? But he's so real because I think even in a in our standpoint, Moose I think I got in my feelings a bit sometimes. Like, no, I'm done. I don't want it. I don't want to do this. I don't want to do this. This is trash. Why? Why do you say this? This hurt my feelings? How can we how do we have to bring it this way? But then I think in on the other side, like, they ain't trippin. They're like, we still good. This is business. This isn't anything bad. And I think we really do need everybody do needs to spend time learning the business side. I don't know if we all need to go and do the same thing that that Swizz did and go back to college for three years. I'm not saying that. But shout out to Karen Civil because she did the same thing. She went back to college and learned more of the business side. Because when we get into these industries that we made up, that we created, how are we supposed to learn the business side of things? That's why no offense to anybody, I promise you, but that's why white people come in, and they be like, we been doing this. Let me show you while I take a whole big chunk of your money. And we just don't know. And so now I'm looking at it like, yo, how am I supposed to get more aware of the business side? How do I detach myself from the feelings and business from the creative and to the business? Because if I could do that, I think my money would be way longer. Way, great, right? I'm not saying that my money's bad. But I'm saying that I know, I've caught myself into some things that I've held a grudge. And it probably stopped me from making a bigger bag than I could have. Because I was so caught up in this isn't this isn't right, morally, this isn't right like, as a human being. And I ain't fooling with you or your kind because you did it this way. And the other person's like, Yo, what's the problem? We chillin. What's... we can separate it. Why can't we separate it? And the fact that Swizz from the background that he has, from New York, running the streets and everything to be like, yo our whole culture needs to stop holding grudges, and understand that a bag is a bag, and friends and families two different things they've never been. And then even, we give advice of yo don't. Your business isn't for friends and family. Like we start off with that. But then we don't get into deeper with the team, we don't get deeper into the legal side, we don't get deeper into that part. We go from the surface of don't don't mix your business and friends and family and don't put so much expectations on it. That should have been a clear sign in the beginning. I'm just saying. What you think Moose?

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:02:16

Yeah, I mean, you got to have the discipline to know when to let go of the friends pass in a business situation, because it's it's not that the two can't be mixed, or one can do something that the other can't. It's just that when you're thinking that we're still operating as friends, but we're having a business discussion, that's when you're going to really get taken advantage of would just not have a favorable outcome. I'm not saying that there are bad people out there. But yeah, we do know that there are people out there who are sharks who their main job is to compete or negotiate terms that are more beneficial for their party, the party that they represent. That's a real situation that that is not anything that's made up or a thought about that that's a real situation. So when you're still walking in the park, and this is a legit negotiation at the table, you're going to lose, you're going to get taken advantage of. And I think that's where people get emotional about it. Now, we expect that maybe we get a fore warning like, hey, friendship, pause, activate business mode.

Nicky Saunders: 1:03:23

Yeah. That would be great. That'd be great.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:03:25

That would be nice. Yeah, but no, that's not how it works, man, for people who are competitive and they're looking to win at all costs. That's what it is. But I think also in the minority community, just in general, a grudge in that community is different than what it is, in other parts of the world or in other communities. a grudge in the minority community is people possibly losing their lives. Right? Like it's different. It's a different type of grudge. And I think that's more so what he's speaking about here, that we have to learn how to maybe just take one for the team, even if you can wear your heart on your sleeve, but not go to the extent of Yo I'm beefing for this person for X amount of years. And it's just totally taken away from the greatness that you have to give or share or can co create with that individual.

Nicky Saunders: 1:04:17

That's great. That was so good. That was so good. Shout out to the minorities though. I'ma just put that out there. I just...we're great. We're great people. We just, I think...

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:04:29

We're awesome, man. We're awesome

Nicky Saunders: 1:04:30

Yeah, I think we just a bit more...like almost like how do I put this uh, adjusting, which is I think that comes hard for me to say I don't know why, adjusting to the environment that we need to be in. So if we're in a business environment that we need to adjust to those business rules to those business vibes. Instea of thinking that everything' play play or love and everythin like that, even I think an industry, because you know we're big on, on music and h p hop, of course. But a y industry, you're always going o hear something that's like Yo that was super cutthroat. Like that was super wrong. Right? ow do we avoid those things I think that's just really l oking at the situations and lear ing from it. And even getting a little bit more ahead of ourse ves. Like the same way we take our craft as serious as we do and learn from that, we need to learn all the different angles of it. So if we are in the cre tive side of things, and it has to be the business side as wel , we have to learn the busines side, if we are, you know, j st in any part of entrepreneur hip, it's not just about the bra d that we are creating it is th business side of it, as well So like, what do... what do w need to to make that as a whol and not just be one sided I think that's going to e really crucial for people suc ess. But before I get too much into it, because I could go rea deep on this one because t's it's personal. It's perso al, people. See Moose didn't h ve to stop me this time. Let's o into the the last part that I always try to get, you k ow, a deep statement and everyt ing. Moose sent me one clip, a d I had to add an extra bar to i . So let's go into the

Swizz Beatz: 1:06:39

What I see today, I see a lot of people getting a lot of great head starts because of the technology and different things like that. But just remember, can you survive without your Instagram? Are you really talented, like they say you on your likes, right? Know who you are and know what your talent is. And then when you get to a certain level in your talent, sometimes you got to make yourself cold. Don't wait for people to make you cold. Just know that in this process, you're gonna have to get cold to go back and oven and reheat yourself up again, to come back outside for people to appreciate that.

Nicky Saunders: 1:07:19

Moose

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:07:20

That one is multi layered man, there's there's so many levels to that, you know? And I want to start with the part of it of him saying you got to make yourself cold. You know, when and he's really talking about walking away from the limelight, where, again, in our culture and our generation, we of course, we understand the importance of consistency, because that's what builds credibility. It's what keeps us hot. It's what keeps us that Top of Mind awareness. But, you know, there's, there's a certain element of power that you have, when you purposely and intentionally step back. Yeah. And so you know what, I'm, I'm going to do it this way, right? Like, I'm gonna break the rules on it. And I'm a big believer in that I really do believe that it's important for us to go against the grain and break the rules, especially from how it was done traditionally, because it does capture people's attention in a unique way. Now, I think what it really does in addition to it, if you're in that process, right, if you're in that stage, if you can afford to do it more importantly, because again, we don't want you to take a one size fits all mentality and just say, Oh, I heard Swiss do this. So I'm going to do that. But if you can afford to do it, if you're in that position. Allow yourself to walk away and understand that when he talks about going back in the oven, it's really an opportunity for you to test your gift and see how good you are that you can come out revamped, revitalize, and capture that attention again that you once had? Are people really going to respond? Right? Do you really have that loyalty? Or do you really have people's ears in a way that you can shut down for a minute and come back without making it seem like oh, this was a social media detox, I was looking for my personal wellness. It's like no, this was an intention. I was challenging myself. I wanted to see if I can come back and do it again. So yeah, I I'm honestly, I know I say this a lot. You know what I'm... what am I about to say? Let's see if you know.

Nicky Saunders: 1:09:25

It's one of the best episodes?

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:09:30

This my favorite episode! I love this so much.

Nicky Saunders: 1:09:35

Shout out to one of the best episodes. Even though Moose says that about all the episodes, I think I semi agree with him on it but is what he says it on every... this the best episode ever. I don't know. You don't agree?

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:09:51

The numbers say differently.

Nicky Saunders: 1:09:53

The numbers saying different. But um, so what I will say about this clip, so like he said it's multiple layers, I'm gonna go with the part of, I'ma piggyback off of what you said first. And you controlling, when you are hot and cold and not allowing other people to control it. I think we push the limits and we allow people to control our lane control our careers, than us controlling it, right? We should know, when it's, it's a bit, it's starting to go stale. Right? And sometimes we get very caught up in this was working. Right? It reminds me of boxing. It reminds me of how Floyd said, I'm out. There's no scar on my record. I've made the greatest investments. I'm good. I don't have anything else to prove. Where other boxers have Parkinson's. And other things has happened to them? Because they did not know. Like, there is no reason. And I'm sorry, because, you know, shout out to E, because he did a voiceover for this. But there is no reason Mike Tyson, Roy Jones are fighting. There's none. It gets to the point of you have depended too much on the limelight and the money. And that some of those factors will make you go and not have you stop when you should have at least from your standpoint, right? Once you reach a certain amount, you may need to regroup, you may need to reinvent yourself. You may need to do something different. I think a pivot, for example, if we're staying on this topic, if the pivot that Mike did from a boxer to a podcaster. And to his marijuana empire, I think that is amazing. There is no need to go back into the ring. Right? I think instantly of that when you allow something to go cold. Certain rappers continue to drop albums when their best was probably at their second. They didn't even need to make a third. Right? You have established everything you needed to and now you're allowing the public to tarnish it. Which is worse. Right? I think a perfect person as for for this example is Chamillionaire right? Rapper out of Texas. Did one one big hit. Right? Ridin' dirty. Then he made a pivot to the tech industry and is a millionaire multi millionaire off of being in the tech industry and being like nah, you know, I did my accolades, I got a hit. I've made millions. Now I'm going to take it to this way, righ? Um, so I think for that, like, allowing yourself to go cold, allowing that to like to sit down real quick, and maybe reinvent yourself, or come back even stronger is crucial to people's careers crucial in any industry. And not only entertainment industry, but just any industry. I think that's really crucial. The first part that he said, is so big, because so many people were going over on this episode, and I don't really care Um, it's so big that a lot of people think they have talent, and all they have is likes. Generally, you're not talented in anything at all. Sorry. Y'all really not. And we, we are just in a time where we're not really concentrating on our true talent and what we're supposed to do, we are concentrated on the tech side, and making people and making these impressions in these in these reach and this engagement. And granted, I'm all about that. I'm big on social media. I'm big on the whole online branding. I know it's very crucial as a tool, but it does not determine who you are. Right? It doesn't determine how hot you are. It doesn't determine how knowledgeable you are. It doesn't determine your your worth or anything like that it is a tool to help you expand. And some people have taken away the tool part and have really made it as an identity for themselves. And so I think at that point, just get off social media because you're completely lost, but they won't. So we have to look at it and continue to, to look at things as this is a tool. This doesn't make or break me. If I do not make it on this platform that does not determine that I am not worth anything that that my talent is great that I'm not going to still be number one in some standpoint. We allow the tech to kind of take over the hard work. Because it's supposed to make it a bit easier. Absolutely. We're not supposed to be if we're talking about Swizz Beatz, and the hip hop industry, we're not supposed to be selling out of the trunk of our selling mixtapes out of the back of our car anymore. We're not supposed to be going on Time Square and going yo my man can you check out this mixtape real quick check this out? It's $5 Can you check this out? Right? We're not supposed to be doing this, we are able to go on social media, on Spotify, on SoundCloud, and be able to distribute it to the world, not just to that block, not just to that shopping center, but to the world. Right? It's supposed to be a bit easier because those people before us has made it has has done the hard part. So we can come in and be like, yo, boom, I'm going to be I'm going to be good but some of us have just allowed it to create our identity identity and saying that we are hot because we have a 50,000; 100,000; millions of followers but to be honest with you, what are you good at? I'm just saying.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:16:33

That was fire. That was fire.

Nicky Saunders: 1:16:35

I'm just saying. It is what it is. But um let's let's get into cuz I got to play this PS5 ya mean? Shout out to everybody got a PS5. That was a whole situation. We'll get into that. But let's get into these, uh, flight assessment characters and try to figure out what Swizz Beatz is. Is he a pilot? Is he a flight attendant? Is he grounds crew or air traffic control? If you have not taken the flight assessment at all, please go to flightassessment.com. It will change your life. It will change your life. It will change your life. So whose turn is it? I don't remember. Is it mine.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:17:18

I don't remember either. But I think you should go first.

Nicky Saunders: 1:17:22

Okay. I'll go first. So, right? I do not believe he is a pilot.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:17:34

Correct.

Nicky Saunders: 1:17:36

What do you have his assessment? He's like, correct. I talked to him. I made him take the assessment.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:17:49

That's Swizzy.

Nicky Saunders: 1:17:50

Oh, my goodness. All right. sagiri.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:17:55

All right. All right. I will say that Swizz is not a grounds crew.

Nicky Saunders: 1:18:11

See how slow I am with this one?

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:18:14

Yeah.

Nicky Saunders: 1:18:19

Can we talk about that?

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:18:21

Yes. Yes. We can.

Nicky Saunders: 1:18:23

We can talk about that. Um, okay. So yes, I agree with the three right? There was one that I was like, he's definitely not a pilot, right? But he talks too much about giving back and the community and everything like that. And though that does go with the flight attendant, I do, I do agree with you. Okay? I'm not saying he's not that. I'm saying. The the consistency of always caring for others, and putting now others in front of himself a bit more. Could have ground crew vibes. Can be like more of a support kind of vibe. I'm just saying. It could.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:19:12

I totally, I totally. I mean, you you make a Yeah. Anyway. A variety of different industries, right? But great deal, right. We know that ground crews tend to be extremely supportive, and they do care to look out for their people 100%. But what I took into consideration, is just slight, slight different information. Right? So I noticed that, number one, he's extremely well connected. His relationships are very rich. Across a plethora of different industries. Why did I just say that word? Plethora. here's what I look at. He got into a program at Harvard, that is only for top executives. It's an entrepreneurship program that helps you to scale your business or whatever it is that you're a part of. But you have to be a part of a company or an organization that is $10 million or more, and you have to have majority stake. Guess how he got into the program Nicky.

Nicky Saunders: 1:20:18

I don't know.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:20:20

It was his partnership with Monster that allowed him to get the okay into the program. And then guess what happens? His classmates are executives that come to class on private jets. So it's a very strategic way to network and build with some of the people in power positions that you need to continue to build your empire so that you can then come back and say, Okay, let's look out for the South Bronx, let's look out for the artists who are not getting commissioned after they sell their piece. Right? So I just thought that the moves are so strategic, the relationships are so rich, that you can come back and then do what you want to do. So I saw more of the flight attendant, of course, paralleled with that air traffic control there with a with a with a unique combo for sure.

Nicky Saunders: 1:21:12

Okay. Okay. I see what you did there. All right. Okay, I'm with it. I like it. I like it. So, um, so...

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:21:26

Yeah, I was gonna say...

Nicky Saunders: 1:21:27

Oh, well, I'm gonna...hold on. That leaves one, I'm going to say that my man is, is a flight attendant. I'm not going to say anything else. I was gonna say he's a flight attendant. Ya mean? I think he's... I will say he's super strategic, super strategic. And, you know, even from currently, like, you could tell before, like, his flight attendant was, like, super big in the beginning with the Ruff Ryders, and everything. But then, you know, as you got a family, married, all that great stuff, you know, things were now starting to be a bit more strategic a bit like, Yo, I got to be with, I don't have to be upfront, I don't have to be screaming Swizz Swizzy all the time and everything like that. I have to literally create something in the background. Like, but I still have to make sure you know, my presence is there. You know, so he was giving me a lot of ATC vibes as later down. But definitely, definitely, with the art with with the the definitely people person and always looking out for them and everything like that. I would definitely say flight a flight attendant. For sure. Yeah.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:22:53

You mentioned Chamillionaire, and there's a like a saying that he has a slogan that he believes the formula for success, which I think is this here. It's information, information plus relationships is success. And it's really that flight attendant air traffic control combo that you see, you know, Swizzy really like rockin to get to where he is now. So slow, okay.

Nicky Saunders: 1:23:20

Yeah. And it's crazy, cuz like, I'm really, I think in this season, really understanding understanding the power of relationships, and the power of like, really reaching out to certain people like shout out to, even though this is still semi exclusive. Shout out to everybody in clubhouse. If you know, you know. But there are some, like really powerful people in there. And that you can talk to if you put your pride down and stop. Some people need to really put their pride down and stop thinking that they are, they know everything. Like, this platform is really allowing people to be in the rooms that you would have never thought of. Like how we were talking about what Verzuz like, we would be in a virtual room with Michelle Obama and Diddy and everything. Like you're literally in the room with some of the top executives in different industries. And you could create your own platform on there. And connecting with people having conversations and seeing their different perspectives. And being like, yo, let's connect, let's do this together. And every...like this is great. Like this is a season of relationships where other people may think this is a season of isolation, right? This is a season of relationships because we all are on our phones. We're all here like what else are we gone do? I might as well talk to you because I can't talk to anybody else in my house. Hello! Hello! No? Okay. Like, there ain't nobody else in my house. So, like, relationships is so key and it's this, especially in this season, pick up a book, listen to a podcast, shout out to everybody Listen to this. Listen, listen to a podcast. You know, buy a course, whatever it is. Get more information into you into your soul, not to your mind I need it in your soul, I need it to be that deep, right? And make sure you reach out to new people. Make sure you reach out to those people who you hope to work for, hope to talk to, you know? We reached out to Rick Ross. Right? Look at what happened. My man shared it. Like you never know, because of this phone, what could happen. I think it's I think we're in a great time. That's all I got to say. We're in a great time.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:25:56

For real. That's so real. That's crazy.

Nicky Saunders: 1:25:58

But we are so over time. And plus, like I said, I got to play my PlayStation 5. Moose, final words.

Mostafa Ghonim: 1:26:10

Yeah, you know what man, I think when when you when I look at Swizz, and I'm gonna bring it back to make it about the person that we're covering, when I look at Swizz, he's not competing to the world standards. He's competing to his own standards. That's why you see no awards on the on the walls, walking away, not because no one wants to buy his music anymore, but because he wants to walk away. So it's like when you're really confident, you don't need other people's approval to determine your self worth your self value. It's like that value comes from within. That confidence comes from within. So with this one, I'm definitely going to go back to like, yo, create your own world in the sense like it, it really is that time for us to walk in our own light.

Nicky Saunders: 1:27:06

That's it, folks.