WEBVTT
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So how was that transition between between becoming a an NFL defensive back, right?
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You've got well that's a whole nother story.
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See, see well why don't we get back to this story too?
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Yes, please.
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Yeah, because because I think people might want to know how well how did it actually happen that I did get the opportunity to to perform as the lead singer of the miracle.
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So so after that took place, it really never really you know kind of phased me anymore after that night.
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I mean, I thought about it a while and I was like, that's weird.
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I mean, it was I thought it was really w strange.
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And I just went on, continued doing what I was doing, and uh and and obviously nothing was happening with that because he never gave me any res any solutions to that issue, right?
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So did you want it?
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Uh oh, I was very interested in under you know if that was gonna be the case.
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I didn't know that was true.
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Smokey hadn't left yet.
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Oh, right, yeah.
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You know what I mean?
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That wasn't the the point, he he was still in the group, it was not a situation.
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So I'm you know, it was a it was a strange experience, a strange conversation, um, to say the least, uh, because of the outcome.
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Right, right.
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Um, I never really really thought about it that much after that fact.
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Uh but um as things turned around, I started doing other musical things because I didn't play high school football.
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Okay, so I'm gonna intertwine these things.
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Yep.
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Okay.
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So I didn't play high school football.
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I was a I was a gymnast, and so um uh I was actually pretty good.
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Um, had a lot of uh offers, school offers and stuff like that.
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I was like the all-around gymnast.
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I did everything tumbling, floor exercise, parallel bars, high bar, rings, the whole thing, right?
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Long horse, all of the events.
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Okay, I did all of those, and I was pretty good at all of them.
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And so that's what I did.
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Well, just so happens the gymnastics coach was the one of the football coaches as well.
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So I had a conflict there.
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I wanted to play football, he wanted me on the gymnastics team.
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He didn't think I could do both.
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He won, he didn't want me to get hurt football.
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He so I um so I play football in the parks against like other, let's just keep it real, but gangbangers, other guys out in the in the in the in in the neighborhood and like that, different neighborhoods, and we would play against each other.
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Um it wasn't uh no referees, none of that kind of stuff, you know what I mean?
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It was it was this we were ironing.
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It was definitely the real, you know, real crazy, but it was but it was a lot of fun to us, and we had a good time.
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And I didn't play football because they wouldn't give me a chance to play.
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I tried out for the team every single year, but every year I got cut in high school.
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So I got cut every year that I tried out.
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And I tried out, and it wasn't really a tryout because they never I never did anything.
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They I was stood in line.
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We I did the exercises, I did the the running drills, but I never got in to do a play, any kind of play, whether on offense or defense.
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One year I tried out for offense, the next year I tried out for defense.
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You know, it was kind of like I was trying to figure out how come I'm getting cut?
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Why'd you cut me?
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Never gave me no real answer.
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Um, but I figured out later on.
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Well, the coach was a gymnastics coach, he was relying on me in gymnastics and didn't want me to be involved in you know football.
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So I never did play high school football.
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As it turns out, I I was a gymnast my entire high school.
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Did the nose help strengthen your resolve?
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Or what was the the determined the determination?
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Yes, that's right.
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I continue, okay.
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So I like I said, I I got a couple offers to go go to uh uh get gymnastics scholarships.
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Yeah.
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Um, but I chose to play football over that, and I went to a junior college.
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I went to LACC first, um, which is uh junior college there, and and they had the same, it was the same situation.
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Gymnastics coach was a football coach.
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He wanted me to play, wanted me on the gymnastics team because he knew my my history.
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Right.
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And and again, they cut me again because they wanted rather for me to be a gymnast than for me to be a football player.
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Not a play ever in high school.
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Yeah, you make it to the NFL.
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Yeah.
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And I guess I'm I'm just guessing that in terms of being a gymnast, it's all about that agility, flexibility.
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It helped me.
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I think I think the that part of yeah, when you when you when you look at it uh in the in the in the long term, right, the gymnastics part of it did help me because I was very flexible, I was very agile, uh, I was quick, I had good reflexes.
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Um, and I think that that really helped me uh in my football career.
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Did it help you in your music career?
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No, not really, not really, uh, as far as gymnastics is concerned.
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But uh, but as I as I went on to another junior college, uh-huh uh no one knew me.
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No one knew anything about anything.
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They didn't have any history on me.
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I was just a walk-on at this college, at Southwest Junior College.
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And I um and I and I prevailed.
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I met a coach that gave me an opportunity, gave me a chance.
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His name was Coach Ray Denham.
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He gave me a chance to um to show skills that I never got a chance to show from anybody else because I was pretty good in the in the playgrounds.
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I was one of the I was uh sandlocked football.
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You're a top dog.
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I was top dog in the sandlock football, right?
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So uh uh and like I said, you know, we played against very tough guys, older guys.
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We played against men, basically.
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And I was this in high school, and I was playing against men, tackle football without uniforms in the park.
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Okay, so we we we had some pretty tough games.
