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Trick Daddy - BOOK/GRAPHIC NOVEL/MOVIE DEALS
Trick Daddy, Florida rap legend, is releasing his eighth album entitled, Finally Famous, on September 15th on his very own label, Dunk Ryders. Trick also anticipates the release of his autobiography, Magic City: Trials Of A Native Son, as well as the graphic novel project he's been working on called Naan, in which he plays a superhero. Additionally, he will be hitting the silver screen soon in a film entitled Just Another Day that is about Miami and Hip Hop, two things Trick knows very well.
In this exclusive interview, Trick Daddy opened up to his fans about what he learned from the streets of Miami-Dade County, his estranged relationship with his father, and how it felt to be a father figure to his brothers when he was growing up. Trick also spoke to me about how he went from the juvenile justice system, at the age of fourteen, straight to the prison system. Although he lives and raps like a gangster, this interview reveals a softer side of Trick. He discussed some of the positive things he's been doing for children through the Trick Luvs Da Kids Foundation, and he also shared his experience battling Lupus, an autoimmune disease.
I think it's really inspiring everything you're doing in terms of your music and raising awareness of Lupus. I am also really excited about the release of your new album Finally Famous!
Thank you. And I am too.
What did you learn from the streets of Miami-Dade County?
Aaaw man. What I learned from the streets is that the streets are slimy, they're dangerous, and there are no set rules. The street rules in this day and age are made to be broken, and they change every day.
Did you have a close-knit family?
Well, my momma's kids -- I was never close to no one in my whole entire family which is a huge family, except for my grandmother and my grandfather's sisters and nieces.
I know you said in another interview that your mom had eleven kids with ten different men. That's a lot of people -- so where did you fit into all of this? Were you the middle child, the baby, the oldest?
Actually I was two.
You were two! So...
Yeah, I was more of a daddy than a lot of the daddys.
So you took care of your brothers?
Yeah. I always helped.
And how has the way that you've grown up -- being a father figure to your brothers and where you're from affected your music?
It's more like the blues man. I wouldn't call it a success story because my family will struggle for thirty, forty, maybe fifty more years until we are able to do something positive as far as further education, college degrees, and good business so that our kids and our family can inherit things. If that don't happen, then it'll be another forty, fifty years before I can -- you know what I'm saying -- really sleep comfortable at night and feel good about what I've done.
And this is the most important question. I'm sure that all your fans are really excited for the release of your eighth album, Finally Famous, coming out September 15th. What would you tell them to expect from the first two singles, Why They Jock and This Is The Shit I Live?
I can't really tell them to expect too much from the singles because music is different now so you have to pick singles that will be radio friendly records. You can only do borderline, and remember I'm already with one foot on the banana peel and the other one in the streets. Really everything I say is borderline...so in the mixed tape you can see where I'm coming from and just the history of all my albums. But what I really want people to know is this.
Mmm Mmm.
When they hear this album, Finally Famous, they can say "Damnnn, it's about time that a good album came out!"
[Laughs] I like that, that's a good quote. Moving on, I heard that the film you're working on called Just Another Day relates to Miami and Hip Hop. Do you feel like it's truly a reflection of your life or do you feel like it's more of an artistic take on things?
It's a movie, you know. My life would be my biography...My life is more like my book which is called Magic City: Trials Of A Native Son. My life is more like that. A lot of Islanders, a lot of Caribbean folks, Cubans, Haitians, Puerto Ricans, Jamaicans, Colombians -- all of that added to the struggle, to the riots, hurricanes, drug addictions, prison time, murder and mayhem, rape, organized crime -- that's my life so that's what my book is about. This book is about me. It's my book and it's about my life -- everything from the day I was born and everything I can remember. I am not gonna get nobody indicted, I'm not gonna wake up nobody in their graves, and I'm not gonna mess up no appeals. I'm just gonna tell it how it is. But as far as the movie goes, there's never been a Miami movie done before. They did a lot of movies about the East Coast and the West Coast, they did Jersey movies, New York movies, they did Philly movies, and Cali movies. All of the Miami movies ain't Miami movies, you know. The Fast and the Furious and all that -- that ain't really Miami. My favorite movie is Scarface but it doesn't tell the whole story. I also liked Cocaine Cowboys but there's a lot of twists and lies in that also. They don't tell about the people that actually cooked, sacked up the cocaine, and sold it. They also don't tell about the ones that was buried behind it and that are serving time. A lot of the movies and the things they're doing right now -- people end up ratting at the end of the day. And I wanna do something about Miami that doesn't end that way.
think it will turn out really well -- and my parents see every movie so they'll definitely be there. [Laughs] Also, when you say your book are you talking about the graphic novel project you were working on, or is this something different?
No, I also have a book that will be released before the year is out. But I have a graphic novel too called Naan, where Trick Daddy plays a superhero and is gonna assassinate all bullshit, fake ass rappers and other people in the game...I'm gonna assassinate athletes, lawyers, politicians, the law, anybody and anything. Everyday current events -- I'm gonna attack them like anybody else would but in a respectable way that I think the people will find very interesting.
I heard about your film Straight From The Projects -- what was the most heart-wrenching story you were told when you went back to your old neighborhood and visited you father?
Well, I'm the kind of person that stays in the streets, so I never really left my neighborhood. I don't sleep there and I can't put myself in bad situations and bad areas for no reason because I'm a convicted felon. But I never left the streets. If I had to remember anything bad, I guess it would be my first time before I went to prison when I was finally released from juvenile hall because I was only fourteen at the time. Before I was sent to prison, they released me from juvenile hall and I had to stay locked up for a couple of days because I had my daddy's last name. And my momma came to get me. My mom and my step mom got there at the same time -- and they was like, "Wait a minute, one of ya'll is lying." So it was two women trying to resolve their differences and make sense of the situation. Then when I got out, all the numbers were changed. My mom had just lost her place and she was staying with one of my cousins. My father was on the run. At that time, I felt like my father was living that life where he'd get up and leave all of us and didn't give a damn who got hurt as long as it wasn't him. And all the numbers were changed, I had no guidance. I was given a lawyer that was gonna make sure I didn't snitch and make sure I took a plea because he never did nothing but took all the money from my dad and made sure that I went to prison by myself.
That's horrible.
So that was the most fucked up part of my life. And why I say that is because still today, I believe that if I was to die today I would go to hell for not forgiving my father for what he did and for what he didn't do. I never called my father -- "daddy" -- I would just start the conversation. My father never even cared how I felt and he never tried to explain my childhood to me. And now I feel like I don't care and I don't want to hear it. So that is one of the most fucked up feelings I've ever felt.
Well, I think you've come a long way from there. I haven't heard anything that messed up -- probably ever. So I really think you've come a long way. Getting back to your music, I know that you are currently on your own label Dunk Ryders. How does it feel to do the album Finally Famous on your own label?
Right now, it feels expensive.
Expensive! [Laughs]
Yeah, it feels very expensive. [Laughs]
Do you have family members working on this business venture with you?
I have one brother that's signed to the label who is currently doing federal time -- Soup.
Soup?
His name is Soup. He's doing federal time for conspiracy and trafficking. And my oldest brother, Charles, is the President of the company and my business partner.
Wow! So Charles looked after you? There was one person who looked after you.
I have other cousins and other brothers that are signed to the label also. One of my brothers is not taking it serious enough for me though...It's not going to be easy just because I'm his brother. And then I have other brothers and I've tried to give them chances but maybe they got too much of my daddy's blood in them. You know, it's all about themselves.
So I know that with all the success you've had, your kids will inherit money. But I also see you doing a lot of great things in the community to give back. What are some of the intangible things you would like to pass onto the next generation.
Well, I have the Trick Luvs Da Kids Foundation. I always think that going back to school time is hard, especially for single parents. We do toy drives where we give away toys to school children. And to the kid that is most improved in school, we give them toys and other monetary gifts -- whatever we come up with.
Aaaw!
So it's not for the kids that are smarter than the others, but it's for the kids who try harder than the others.
So it's the ones who struggle but continue to push right on.
Yeah.
I know that you've done a lot of work helping children with your Trick Luvs Da Kids Foundation. Can you tell us the most heart-warming experience you've had with a kid since you started the foundation?
Actually, it was with a grown man who now plays football at the University of Miami. And I always go out and talk to the football players when I see them at parties, functions, malls, stores, and restaurants -- I always show them love. They call me "Uncle Trick." And one of them said to me, "Dog, you just don't know how much you keep it real! And I realize I've never had the million dollar videos, but I've always been that one who genuinely kept in real -- and I can relate to you and I can put you on my level. And he said, "You won't even remember this man, when I was a lil shorty, you came to my grandpa's and you was talking to my mama -- and you was telling my mama how hard you had it growing up. And my mama told you that she understood because she was going through the same thing trying to get me some shoes before school. And then you gave my mama a hundred dollars and she bought me some shoes."
That is so nice.
And that shit -- that shit embarrassed me! It was so touching that I was ashamed. That story right there, I don't think no other story was more touching than that. The fact that I had been this thug "N" who got in so much stuff and had so many enemies and had to be in prison twice -- been in five different camps. And when this person asked me, "Are you Trick Daddy?"...I was thinking he was gonna pull out his gun, and we was gonna have to fight, but all he wanted was my autograph.
Well that is a really great story! And on another note, I heard that you discontinued your Lupus medication because of the adverse side-effects, do you have any different views about taking medication now that we've recently heard about potential advances in Lupus treatment?
Actually, it's like that...it's like that. My partner is looking into it. They supposedly came up with a cure. Something that's gonna work -- and I'm willing to be the first person that tries it.
And I know that this medication is expensive...
Yeah.
Do you have a lot of friends and family with Lupus?
Actually everybody with Lupus has become my friend now. I don't look for enemies. I consider a lot of people in the world as my friends. Everybody that's suffering with diseases and illnesses, they're all my friends because I feel like I've bonded with these people-
I know you've talked about your illness a lot, but what would you say is the most humbling experience you've had with it?
The most humbling experience is not slapping or cursing people out that are staring at my face or commenting about my skin. I don't like people staring. If you're not gonna kiss me and you're not plotting to hit me, you shouldn't stare at me.
[Laughs] Well I had childhood acne, so I can relate. Does it get so bad sometimes that you don't even wanna leave your house?
Nah! I'm gonna leave my house, I'm gonna leave my house regardless. I have to leave and I have to move to get money. I have an open mind about everything in life, and I know that certain things make people uncomfortable.
And how do you feel the hip hop community deals with real life issues such as politics and diseases. For example, how did the hip hop community react when you revealed that you had Lupus?
Being that we have the radio and the web -- and everything is so controversial now -- and television -- all of it is based on hype and there's always something different or something that's uncalled for. But a lot of people are willing to listen though. And if it makes sense, then they give reactions that make sense. But if it doesn't make sense, then it just don't make sense. But as far as the whole world goes, especially in my city, I feel like this world has become so cold. People don't care no more. People will pass a child walking by them on street. They will witness murders and not say anything about them. They will try to avoid babies after being six months pregnant. They will lie on me, so they won't look bad. They will kill you, so he won't go to jail. This world, in my city, it's become such a cold world. Like, nobody cares. So when you have a fan and when you have time to really show them the soft side of you--it's important. And you also have to let them know that you are aware of the dark side. People tend to think, "I got problems of my own so I don't give a damn about him or her" -- and that's the sad thing about worldwide reality, television, and the bullshit radio songs that get played so much now.
Trick, I remember the Mase song 24 Hours To Live. I'm only 25 years old -- so I remember listening to that song when I was probably in the eighth grade. I am going to ask you the three questions that Mase asked in his song. Trick, if you had 24 hours to live -- where would you go, what would you do...and who would you wanna notify? What are the three things that you would do?
If I had 24 hours to live, I would wanna notify my family and friends...what would I do...and who would I go see...Well, I would definitely go see me a pastor and somebody who could get me closer to God so I could spend my last 23 hours begging for some sort of forgiveness because I ain't ready to die...
I don't see you going anywhere, anytime soon. I know you talked a lot about your dad and some of the hard stuff you went through with him. Trick, what do you want? I know everyone looks at your house on MTV Cribs and you seem to have everything. But what do you, "Trick Daddy," want that you do not already have?
[Pause] I wanna be able to leave my kids enough money for them to live for the rest of their lives, and that's something I don't have. I pay bills month to month just like everybody else. I just try a little bit harder. So I don't feel pity for the beggers because I was once a victim of the struggle. But you have to try harder. You know what I'm saying. You have to be in it, to be a part of it -- right
In this exclusive interview, Trick Daddy opened up to his fans about what he learned from the streets of Miami-Dade County, his estranged relationship with his father, and how it felt to be a father figure to his brothers when he was growing up. Trick also spoke to me about how he went from the juvenile justice system, at the age of fourteen, straight to the prison system. Although he lives and raps like a gangster, this interview reveals a softer side of Trick. He discussed some of the positive things he's been doing for children through the Trick Luvs Da Kids Foundation, and he also shared his experience battling Lupus, an autoimmune disease.
I think it's really inspiring everything you're doing in terms of your music and raising awareness of Lupus. I am also really excited about the release of your new album Finally Famous!
Thank you. And I am too.
What did you learn from the streets of Miami-Dade County?
Aaaw man. What I learned from the streets is that the streets are slimy, they're dangerous, and there are no set rules. The street rules in this day and age are made to be broken, and they change every day.
Did you have a close-knit family?
Well, my momma's kids -- I was never close to no one in my whole entire family which is a huge family, except for my grandmother and my grandfather's sisters and nieces.
I know you said in another interview that your mom had eleven kids with ten different men. That's a lot of people -- so where did you fit into all of this? Were you the middle child, the baby, the oldest?
Actually I was two.
You were two! So...
Yeah, I was more of a daddy than a lot of the daddys.
So you took care of your brothers?
Yeah. I always helped.
And how has the way that you've grown up -- being a father figure to your brothers and where you're from affected your music?
It's more like the blues man. I wouldn't call it a success story because my family will struggle for thirty, forty, maybe fifty more years until we are able to do something positive as far as further education, college degrees, and good business so that our kids and our family can inherit things. If that don't happen, then it'll be another forty, fifty years before I can -- you know what I'm saying -- really sleep comfortable at night and feel good about what I've done.
And this is the most important question. I'm sure that all your fans are really excited for the release of your eighth album, Finally Famous, coming out September 15th. What would you tell them to expect from the first two singles, Why They Jock and This Is The Shit I Live?
I can't really tell them to expect too much from the singles because music is different now so you have to pick singles that will be radio friendly records. You can only do borderline, and remember I'm already with one foot on the banana peel and the other one in the streets. Really everything I say is borderline...so in the mixed tape you can see where I'm coming from and just the history of all my albums. But what I really want people to know is this.
Mmm Mmm.
When they hear this album, Finally Famous, they can say "Damnnn, it's about time that a good album came out!"
[Laughs] I like that, that's a good quote. Moving on, I heard that the film you're working on called Just Another Day relates to Miami and Hip Hop. Do you feel like it's truly a reflection of your life or do you feel like it's more of an artistic take on things?
It's a movie, you know. My life would be my biography...My life is more like my book which is called Magic City: Trials Of A Native Son. My life is more like that. A lot of Islanders, a lot of Caribbean folks, Cubans, Haitians, Puerto Ricans, Jamaicans, Colombians -- all of that added to the struggle, to the riots, hurricanes, drug addictions, prison time, murder and mayhem, rape, organized crime -- that's my life so that's what my book is about. This book is about me. It's my book and it's about my life -- everything from the day I was born and everything I can remember. I am not gonna get nobody indicted, I'm not gonna wake up nobody in their graves, and I'm not gonna mess up no appeals. I'm just gonna tell it how it is. But as far as the movie goes, there's never been a Miami movie done before. They did a lot of movies about the East Coast and the West Coast, they did Jersey movies, New York movies, they did Philly movies, and Cali movies. All of the Miami movies ain't Miami movies, you know. The Fast and the Furious and all that -- that ain't really Miami. My favorite movie is Scarface but it doesn't tell the whole story. I also liked Cocaine Cowboys but there's a lot of twists and lies in that also. They don't tell about the people that actually cooked, sacked up the cocaine, and sold it. They also don't tell about the ones that was buried behind it and that are serving time. A lot of the movies and the things they're doing right now -- people end up ratting at the end of the day. And I wanna do something about Miami that doesn't end that way.
think it will turn out really well -- and my parents see every movie so they'll definitely be there. [Laughs] Also, when you say your book are you talking about the graphic novel project you were working on, or is this something different?
No, I also have a book that will be released before the year is out. But I have a graphic novel too called Naan, where Trick Daddy plays a superhero and is gonna assassinate all bullshit, fake ass rappers and other people in the game...I'm gonna assassinate athletes, lawyers, politicians, the law, anybody and anything. Everyday current events -- I'm gonna attack them like anybody else would but in a respectable way that I think the people will find very interesting.
I heard about your film Straight From The Projects -- what was the most heart-wrenching story you were told when you went back to your old neighborhood and visited you father?
Well, I'm the kind of person that stays in the streets, so I never really left my neighborhood. I don't sleep there and I can't put myself in bad situations and bad areas for no reason because I'm a convicted felon. But I never left the streets. If I had to remember anything bad, I guess it would be my first time before I went to prison when I was finally released from juvenile hall because I was only fourteen at the time. Before I was sent to prison, they released me from juvenile hall and I had to stay locked up for a couple of days because I had my daddy's last name. And my momma came to get me. My mom and my step mom got there at the same time -- and they was like, "Wait a minute, one of ya'll is lying." So it was two women trying to resolve their differences and make sense of the situation. Then when I got out, all the numbers were changed. My mom had just lost her place and she was staying with one of my cousins. My father was on the run. At that time, I felt like my father was living that life where he'd get up and leave all of us and didn't give a damn who got hurt as long as it wasn't him. And all the numbers were changed, I had no guidance. I was given a lawyer that was gonna make sure I didn't snitch and make sure I took a plea because he never did nothing but took all the money from my dad and made sure that I went to prison by myself.
That's horrible.
So that was the most fucked up part of my life. And why I say that is because still today, I believe that if I was to die today I would go to hell for not forgiving my father for what he did and for what he didn't do. I never called my father -- "daddy" -- I would just start the conversation. My father never even cared how I felt and he never tried to explain my childhood to me. And now I feel like I don't care and I don't want to hear it. So that is one of the most fucked up feelings I've ever felt.
Well, I think you've come a long way from there. I haven't heard anything that messed up -- probably ever. So I really think you've come a long way. Getting back to your music, I know that you are currently on your own label Dunk Ryders. How does it feel to do the album Finally Famous on your own label?
Right now, it feels expensive.
Expensive! [Laughs]
Yeah, it feels very expensive. [Laughs]
Do you have family members working on this business venture with you?
I have one brother that's signed to the label who is currently doing federal time -- Soup.
Soup?
His name is Soup. He's doing federal time for conspiracy and trafficking. And my oldest brother, Charles, is the President of the company and my business partner.
Wow! So Charles looked after you? There was one person who looked after you.
I have other cousins and other brothers that are signed to the label also. One of my brothers is not taking it serious enough for me though...It's not going to be easy just because I'm his brother. And then I have other brothers and I've tried to give them chances but maybe they got too much of my daddy's blood in them. You know, it's all about themselves.
So I know that with all the success you've had, your kids will inherit money. But I also see you doing a lot of great things in the community to give back. What are some of the intangible things you would like to pass onto the next generation.
Well, I have the Trick Luvs Da Kids Foundation. I always think that going back to school time is hard, especially for single parents. We do toy drives where we give away toys to school children. And to the kid that is most improved in school, we give them toys and other monetary gifts -- whatever we come up with.
Aaaw!
So it's not for the kids that are smarter than the others, but it's for the kids who try harder than the others.
So it's the ones who struggle but continue to push right on.
Yeah.
I know that you've done a lot of work helping children with your Trick Luvs Da Kids Foundation. Can you tell us the most heart-warming experience you've had with a kid since you started the foundation?
Actually, it was with a grown man who now plays football at the University of Miami. And I always go out and talk to the football players when I see them at parties, functions, malls, stores, and restaurants -- I always show them love. They call me "Uncle Trick." And one of them said to me, "Dog, you just don't know how much you keep it real! And I realize I've never had the million dollar videos, but I've always been that one who genuinely kept in real -- and I can relate to you and I can put you on my level. And he said, "You won't even remember this man, when I was a lil shorty, you came to my grandpa's and you was talking to my mama -- and you was telling my mama how hard you had it growing up. And my mama told you that she understood because she was going through the same thing trying to get me some shoes before school. And then you gave my mama a hundred dollars and she bought me some shoes."
That is so nice.
And that shit -- that shit embarrassed me! It was so touching that I was ashamed. That story right there, I don't think no other story was more touching than that. The fact that I had been this thug "N" who got in so much stuff and had so many enemies and had to be in prison twice -- been in five different camps. And when this person asked me, "Are you Trick Daddy?"...I was thinking he was gonna pull out his gun, and we was gonna have to fight, but all he wanted was my autograph.
Well that is a really great story! And on another note, I heard that you discontinued your Lupus medication because of the adverse side-effects, do you have any different views about taking medication now that we've recently heard about potential advances in Lupus treatment?
Actually, it's like that...it's like that. My partner is looking into it. They supposedly came up with a cure. Something that's gonna work -- and I'm willing to be the first person that tries it.
And I know that this medication is expensive...
Yeah.
Do you have a lot of friends and family with Lupus?
Actually everybody with Lupus has become my friend now. I don't look for enemies. I consider a lot of people in the world as my friends. Everybody that's suffering with diseases and illnesses, they're all my friends because I feel like I've bonded with these people-
I know you've talked about your illness a lot, but what would you say is the most humbling experience you've had with it?
The most humbling experience is not slapping or cursing people out that are staring at my face or commenting about my skin. I don't like people staring. If you're not gonna kiss me and you're not plotting to hit me, you shouldn't stare at me.
[Laughs] Well I had childhood acne, so I can relate. Does it get so bad sometimes that you don't even wanna leave your house?
Nah! I'm gonna leave my house, I'm gonna leave my house regardless. I have to leave and I have to move to get money. I have an open mind about everything in life, and I know that certain things make people uncomfortable.
And how do you feel the hip hop community deals with real life issues such as politics and diseases. For example, how did the hip hop community react when you revealed that you had Lupus?
Being that we have the radio and the web -- and everything is so controversial now -- and television -- all of it is based on hype and there's always something different or something that's uncalled for. But a lot of people are willing to listen though. And if it makes sense, then they give reactions that make sense. But if it doesn't make sense, then it just don't make sense. But as far as the whole world goes, especially in my city, I feel like this world has become so cold. People don't care no more. People will pass a child walking by them on street. They will witness murders and not say anything about them. They will try to avoid babies after being six months pregnant. They will lie on me, so they won't look bad. They will kill you, so he won't go to jail. This world, in my city, it's become such a cold world. Like, nobody cares. So when you have a fan and when you have time to really show them the soft side of you--it's important. And you also have to let them know that you are aware of the dark side. People tend to think, "I got problems of my own so I don't give a damn about him or her" -- and that's the sad thing about worldwide reality, television, and the bullshit radio songs that get played so much now.
Trick, I remember the Mase song 24 Hours To Live. I'm only 25 years old -- so I remember listening to that song when I was probably in the eighth grade. I am going to ask you the three questions that Mase asked in his song. Trick, if you had 24 hours to live -- where would you go, what would you do...and who would you wanna notify? What are the three things that you would do?
If I had 24 hours to live, I would wanna notify my family and friends...what would I do...and who would I go see...Well, I would definitely go see me a pastor and somebody who could get me closer to God so I could spend my last 23 hours begging for some sort of forgiveness because I ain't ready to die...
I don't see you going anywhere, anytime soon. I know you talked a lot about your dad and some of the hard stuff you went through with him. Trick, what do you want? I know everyone looks at your house on MTV Cribs and you seem to have everything. But what do you, "Trick Daddy," want that you do not already have?
[Pause] I wanna be able to leave my kids enough money for them to live for the rest of their lives, and that's something I don't have. I pay bills month to month just like everybody else. I just try a little bit harder. So I don't feel pity for the beggers because I was once a victim of the struggle. But you have to try harder. You know what I'm saying. You have to be in it, to be a part of it -- right
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