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Hello. Welcome back to Empathize.

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The Podcast. As you know, this is a platform to really talk about people that are embedded in community, uh, people that I've been connected to, uh, and, and people that I admired when I see the work that you're doing.

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And today is a brother that I'm connected with on so many levels.

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And I've watched his career blossom and I'm so proud of this brother and, and, you know, someone that's Scotian and someone that really you'll see him every corner of what he does, he's representing the fact that he's from, from Nova Scotia.

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So, uh, today's episode, I'm pleased to welcome, uh, Jordon Croucher, AKA, JRDN to the show

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What's going on, bro. How you doing?

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Nah, man. It's so good. Yeah.

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No, but you're doing great things, Jordon. And again, I love these platforms to be able to showcase.

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I see the things you're doing in, in these small ways, the ways you're representing it, always circling back.

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And, and that's something that we at Scotians I don't know, we do that.

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That's that's, you know, so you know, want to welcome you to the podcast and, and we're gonna really get into.

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Your flow, right? Like how you got to where you at.

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Um, and, and, uh, we'll as we go through, we'll see all the connections that you, that you and I have.

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Uh, you know, as I say, I'm so proud of you brother, and I follow every step you make.

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Um, but let's, let's, let's let's circle.

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We always kind of start off talking about community and what it means to you.

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So, um, talk about young Jordon.

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Crouch. And when you were young, where would you say was your community?

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Talk a little about how you grew up and what you saw as community and where are you signing community?

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Yeah, well, I was born. A lot of people don't know I was born in Halifax, but when I was nine months old, I moved to Toronto and we moved to Jane and Finch.

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So I was there for 10, the first 10 years of my life.

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So that's where, you know, that was a part of my community and my community building in the sense of being in a multicultural community with having a friend from a different parts of the world, you know what I'm saying?

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And then boom, at 10 11, I moved right to Nova Scotia and I come into an all black.

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You know what I mean? So things were a little different coming from that world to this world.

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What I learned from those, those two worlds is that we're all a lot of like in those same environments, you know what I'm saying?

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Which let me allow me, which allow me to eliminate any racial barriers because of what I know about people in general, learning from a young age.

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So that's a strong thing about community for me.

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So those two, those two communities are two communities.

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I always got a big up and always got to represent for.

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And it's funny, you talk about that because now you got your foot in Toronto when your foot yeah.

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As an artist, right?

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Yeah. I lived half. Yeah.

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I lived half of half of my life there and half my life here.

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And even like, you know, after I've, after basketball and after all those years I moved back up here.

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So it's been half my life there and here. So, you know, down home and uphold north Preston where my dad's from.

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That's how.

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Yeah. And I want to talk about that, cause I know both your mom and dad and you know, obviously you'll get to the basketball part where you're, I got to know them.

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Um, but your, your dad's from North Preston, your mom's from Halifax.

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Um, talk about, so when you got to 10 years old, I remember you telling me that you were talking to him on the skateboard and you're switching sports, right?

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10 years old in back in Nova Scotia.

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Let's start from there because I know you told a great story.

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Yeah, no, this is, this is it. And I came, I came back and I was, I love skateboarding.

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I came from a community and Jane offense, I lived in 17 can grasp and the connection.

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And I hung out with some older guys that were skateboarders.

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So skateboarding was my thing. I loved it.

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And then, uh, you know, coming to Uniacke Square, that wasn't a thing, Uniacke Square nobody really skateboarded you, everyone was out there playing hockey, no basketball.

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Yeah. Some hockey players, football or basketball.

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And that was it. You know what I mean?

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So it was like for me to come into that environment and then everything switch up and then be.

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And entice with the thing about basketball, where I just kinda stumbled into because of somebody making fun of me one day, because I like, I like, I like to sing, you know what I mean?

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So, you know, one of the homie's, he's a great friend of mine, but we talked about it too to this day.

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And, uh, one of the homies he's like, yo, you know, stop singing, you know, you're a fruit, like you're a fruit, no, you're a fruit, like your brother and God rest his soul.

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My brother's passed on now. And that, that struck a nerve with me.

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You know, what. For someone to literally, you know, take my dream out of my mind and out of my head at such a young age.

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So I took that to heart and I'm like, yo, I'm going to be in my head.

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I'm going to be better than you at what you love to do.

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And that, that was basketball. So I didn't even know. I didn't know who Michael Jordan was, nothing.

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Oh, I just was playing basketball because somebody told me I couldn't sing.

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I didn't know that I'll get, because they know that you started to get your dream back at X.

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And we'll talk about that by singing. I didn't even know you could sing, like I, cause it's funny y'all I get introduced to Jordon Croucher.

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Cause I get introduced to you as a baller, but we also know, and this is so what did you to circle back to your dad and then Uniacke Square?

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Like when you were going between those two communities in Nova Scotia, because people would know Northwest.

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And then I'll have you. Next square is great. Downtown, um, uh, Halifax square town.

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What were the two differences when you were young?

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Did you D did you feel that the nuances and differences between those two communities?

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Oh, for sure. Yeah, definitely. This that's like, especially even just to like the geography of it, like, you know what I mean?

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Like, you're in like a concrete jungle when you're over in the hood over there, you're in the country.

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There's, you know, . Yeah.

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My grandparents had horses and pigs and you know what I mean?

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So it was like on a farm. So it was totally different worlds.

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You know what I'm saying? Growing up, but, you know, I mean, you learn a lot and growing up in those two environments and being a part of those two environments, you know what I'm saying?

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And you

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hit on something to go be in Scotia too, because we know that from the 300 year, 400 year history of us being here, we were always on the outskirts of town.

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So any town that people know in Nova Scotia, there's a black community in the woods.

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Right. And so whether it's North Preston, East Preston, Upper Hammonds Plains, Lucasville, Cherry Brook.

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Like we can go through these areas

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all over the province

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Scotia. We got that country in us.

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Yeah, for sure. For sure. Is that down-home is that down-home feel, you know, it's like, you know, when they talk about down-home they talking about going to the Country going where it's, you know, they're going to get some good home cooked meals and have a laugh or your family.

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So when you talk about the square and you know, I can, I can see the basketball court there by George Dixon.

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And I do know from growing up and really hanging on that area, because that's where the basketball players were and the community.

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Why was there, um, basketball was a big thing in, in urban, uh, Halifax around your status, right?

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Did you start playing at the, Y, did you start playing those side?

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When did the,

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why it was it, man. It was a variety weighty.

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You know what it mean? D you know, Nelson, it was Roddy them guys when, as soon as, oh, you guys played basketball, you guys got these jackets.

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Them cool though, corduroy community-wide basketball.

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I want one too. So I can be cool with you guys. Right.

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You know, I'm not wanting to jump right in and hang with the cool kids.

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So boy, I went over with. And, uh, Terry Simon God rest his soul, we had, that was my first day.

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He, they, they brought me in, okay, you won't play. Come on. They brought me over to Y on Cornwallis.

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Um, and, uh, you know, I went into the gym and that's why that's the day I learned who Michael Jordan was.

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Cause I didn't that's it. I remember never forget.

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He's like you pass me the ball. I have court. He's like, you got the name.

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What do you got the game? I'm like, why did he talk over the name? He said, go show me what you got coming there.

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I'm glad I laugh. But I, man, I, I threw a shot, missed everything, Augy.

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Missed everything. So everybody laughed at me, but then Nelson and them guys, they taught me to game.

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You know, me, they took me under their wing, the fellows in the Y everybody taught a Cecil, Quint, uh, everybody over there.

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So Stevie D you know what I mean? So that's, that's what community that was for me to act.

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That's what community really is. You know what I mean? When you, especially in a community wise that situation, you know, we all came in up in that program and all the great coaches that instilled all the fundamentals of basic, not even just basketball, basic life in general, you know what I mean?

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Yeah. Yeah, that was, that was a special time for

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sure. And that's where we kind of start to intersect because I've had a couple people on the podcasts, already to be talking about the Community Y.

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So everyone had a YMCA, but we had this community YMCA satellite that was in our community, that bumper pool.

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Like, you know, when you first go through that area, it was games,

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ping pong, and you had to be good or you ain't getting on you.

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You're not all playing if you're no good, you have to be good.

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Had to be good. You know what I mean? Cause I didn't even play bumper pool.

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Cause I saw. But I hadn't, I had Nelson Carvey over in the corner teaching me how to dribble between my legs though, every minute.

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You know what I mean? Um,

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the cool thing is to Jordon is that community piece, when you unpack it, it's, there were fellows your age that were better at basketball at the time than you were, but they taught you the game and, and, and we have.

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Because as you start to rise up, obviously we'll talk about how you got very good at basketball, but when, what age did you say, hold on now?

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I'm, I'm not, I'm not bad at, I'm actually better than some of the guys that are my age.

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Like when did he catch on that? This was my thing.

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It was like, um, man, Joe Murphy, we, Joe Murphy used to coach us at him and Eddie Carvery down, down St.

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Pat's. It was there when, when I started hitting his left hand finger roll, clean, but I started that's when.

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I was like, oh man, you hit the free throw.

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Oh, I mean, okay. And everybody else could do it.

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Just like I could do that. And it took me so long just to get to that from not from, from throwing a ball all the way over to backboard and back then, it was many you had to the other attachment backboard on the little ones.

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So I threw it over every time I missed everything, you know what I mean?

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So then to come into that, that's when I was like, okay, I can get.

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And I can do this and I can be really good at this. You know what I mean?

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Cause it took a lot of hard work and in a short period of time, it took a lot of hard work for me to do that.

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You know what I mean? Having that, you know, that mindset of being okay.

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I know I got to play, catch up. These guys are all good at it and I'm going to be, you know what I mean with them, if not best hear me.

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And I love that, that piece of community, because when we're from Halifax, whether you're female or male, if you are in a certain age group, you all know who Terry Simons is.

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Louie Gannon, Gary Farmer, and Joe Cawley and Roger Grant and Bev Green.

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You know, there was a whole, whole gamut of coaches we

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all went.

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Yeah. Yeah. So now when you get to, when you get to high school and they go into QE High School Jordon, and at that point, I think high school is where you start to think, okay, am I going to, is basketball going to be something that.

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Help me out to get to the next level. Um, obviously, you know, it was Stevie D and some of the guys that Steve Nelson that you played with a great point guard and booza and some of those guys.

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Um, when did you know cause really you rose, you rose high school.

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Jordon Croucher can hit threes. He went, ended up.

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We didn't even get to your singing yet bad.

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You know, when, when did that sense of man I'm on a provincial community here?

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Like I'm, I'm one of the better players in the province.

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Yeah. I mean, I think it really, after my first year at QE, you know what I mean, after being uncomfortable, you know, with my friends, you know what I mean?

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Cause I was like, I had, like, I had a great squad at St Pat's we had a good year, but when I went to QE the reason I went to QE is because.

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Those are everyone there was my homie's like the summer before I'm like, oh, I'm working out with them.

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I'm I'm training with them. We're playing one-on-one every day.

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So it just didn't feel right. Not being with, and even like Jonah Tosic coming into me and him becoming friends the summer before that, you know what I mean?

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It's just like all of that things just didn't make sense for me to stay at St.

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Pat. So when I went to QE after a year at QE and playing with the best players in the provinces.

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That's when it was like, all right, man. I'm, I'm nice too.

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Cause all of us are nice and we got the best squad and that's what it is.

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And we're running the whole Province. You know what I mean?

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So, yeah, that's when it was like, all right, we were were nice, you know, and you know, if we had a, if we had social media back to Instagram or something, maybe we would've, things would have been a little different.

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He did well. Yeah.

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From there you go to St. Francis Xavier University, which, you know, I really, you know, that's something I feel proud of because Wade Smith and myself had been to X and we always love to see players from HRM come and there was a championship group that came.

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With you, which was, you know, Fred Perry, Danny Oliver, yourself.

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Um, you know, I think that it was something that you guys came to X at a time and you brought this Halifax power, African Nova Scotian vibe.

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And so we don't want, I don't want to spend too much time of basketball cause I really want to get to is what you do now, which is, you know, but when you got to access another community, we know at StFX.

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And so you were part of this X-Men Basketball community.

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Talk a little bit about Steve Konchalski and not that community and legacy that you kind of became a part of.

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Right? Right. Um, I would start with, like, when I talk about this story, I always start with, you know, The first day I walked on campus and the first meeting I had with Coach K, because a lot of a lot, you know, a lot of, a lot of the things that the reason I went was because, okay, Fred Perry was just there to year before, you know, I think, I believe they got to the AUS that your you're his first year, you know what I'm saying?

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He was excited and that's my bro. That's my homie that I grew up at the community Y with playing with my whole life, my whole basketball career.

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So it was like, all right, let me see, you know, Freddy was there and then, you know, Damien was thinking about going.

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And it was just for me, Coach K was the only coach to come to Uniacke Square and sit down and look me in the eyes and looked at me and had dinner with my family and say, what's up, you should come with us.

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You know what? The thing I respected the most about is that he did.

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And he also at the same time was like, you know where I had coaches say, yo, you could come here.

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You would be no guarantee. You'll be rookie of the year in CIS.

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Like people were like, oh, like I could have broken my leg the next day.

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But coach was like, yo, you're going to come here. And you're going to work for every minute on the court.

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Right. But he said that in front of my parents, I really respect it.

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So that was like the thing that was all right, that made my decision easy.

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But you know, going there and. The first day on campus Coach, like this is when this could be a good transition into the music stuff, because he asked me what I wanted to study.

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And I said Music. And, you know, we talked about it and he's like, ah, I think Bella, I think Bella maybe had studied in, took some music when you asked he did.

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Right. So he was like, well, Bella tried it.

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And it didn't work, you know? So what the next year you remember he'd met after that?

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He was all for it because. You know, you hear me sing it on, you know, man on the road, when we were on the road, get, I'm always singing.

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I had, I had my Walkman on and I have my discman and the, you know, on the back of the bus and I'm singing.

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So he kinda, you know, he figured that, yeah, let me let Jordon do his thing.

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So that for me, like that's when I really started falling in love with the music too, knowing that I was going to come back.

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I really started falling in love with, you know, the music I've met these guys.

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I did karaoke, of course Piper's pub.

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And, and I met these guys from the jazz department and that was it.

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I was like, oh, I'm definitely going to record one day, but let me make it to the NBA first.

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And then we come back to this. Right. But you know, fell a little short, but we, here.

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And I know that, you know what I'm gonna, you, and I can say this back to back national champions, you know, you guys did a fantastic job over two years ago.

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Last year that we played, we went 30 and 1 33 and 1 or something and so great career.

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But the thing I remember, man, is I went to karaoke and Jordon, I said, I heard you on the bus.

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I did. I was assistant coach on the team.

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I didn't really can see you. I went to karaoke. I said, dang, this guy got, and I did.

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I think you might've talked to coach and said, coach, do you mind if I do the national anthem.

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That's right. And I was like, and obviously I'm glad you talked to the coach knowing that you like music from the beginning.

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Although I could see why they wouldn't put you in the music program, the music program at X is serious and all of that.

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And he was

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smart to do that. And he was, yeah, of course.

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And that's as should. Because look what we did, that was the right.

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That was the right thing to do. You got to know, you know, you know, you got to know your position to know when you're playing it.

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That's why I respect them, but you know what? Even I respect more about them.

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He let me take some study hall off to go jam with the fellows in the jazz.

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Cause he knew that. Yeah, he knew that he, yeah, there was times there was like, yo Coach, man, we got, cause I had two shows with the Shades of Grooves while I was down there in Antigonish.

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We did two shows and Coach, we had study hall, but it's like, Coach, man, these guys, this is the time that they want, they got their time to jam it.

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You know what I mean? Is it like, you know, Jim Marla and you know what I mean?

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These guys are over there. So he let me go during study hall because he, after a year and a half and here after a year and a half of hearing me sing every minute, and I asked him that and when he remembered telling me, no, I don't think you should.

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He was like, go ahead. You guys can have fun jammin with the fellas.

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You know what I mean? So he let me, and let me go play.

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So coaching you the

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story and the links I love about these conversations, Jordon.

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When you started from when it was young and you had that comment, about singing and the homophobic comment really about singing about your profession and you're great at it, but you circle back to it.

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And that's why I think I ought to think about learning as you go on a path and you think you're going wherever, you're going to school thinking I'm going to do this and you end up singing comes back to you.

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And so let's, so I know that you've got a chance to play some, some pro basketball in Europe.

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But you come back, um, you start to do some, we talk about, I don't want to tell the story.

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When did you, once you left at a Antigonish where St.

19:08

Francis Xavier university is, and you knew that music was going to be the thing, what was your first after you did those couple of shows with the jazz group?

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When did you, when you got, what was your first connection into the dip on your toes?

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Strobist, Tremaine Howe, Tremaine Howe, how, uh, Muzzy and his pop that was like, cause we're not right before I went over to T to play pro over overseas.

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Um, I, like I told I wanted to sing.

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I, you know, he was the barber and he was always doing music electro.

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I want it. So he had me and I did one. That was my first course I ever recorded.

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I was at a studio on Gottingen to get it used to be Marty Smith and them guys old.

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Remember the video that they had, I forgot the name of the shot, but you know what I'm talking about it.

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See, he had it, he had, so showbiz had a little spot in there and, um, that was the first time I record so that, and then I flew to France and I started to record.

20:01

I started to just write and while I was there, I was kept telling trouble, man, I'm going to, when I come back, let's go like, you know what I mean?

20:06

So trope is really, that was the first. After that, that was the first guy that I started to make music with.

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And then after that, it was like, yeah. And then after that it was like littles, then ghetto, ghetto, and then MCJ, you know what I mean?

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And that moved on to class, you know what I'm saying?

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And then it started to move on to Cuyama. So that kind is the timeline of it.

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But trope is for sure is the first guy that I started making music with.

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Like, besides, besides the song that I'll flip your mind for a second, you probably don't know this story, but the size of song that I recorded.

20:38

Eh, 88 with Rafi.

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When I was a kid, one of my classes went to a, to, uh, when I was at, uh, for a girl public school, Jennifer, we went and sang a one, of Rafi's records.

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So that was really where the bug really, really started.

20:54

But I didn't even realize it until years later until I fell in love with singing.

21:00

Yeah. And even the names you, you talk about, you know, with Lydos and ghetto and guys that we know from, from, from here that were involved in music, I think about, you know, um, you know, James McQuaid, MTJ, he does the theme music for Empathize Others: cause I reached out to him cause he and I played at the community Y together.

21:20

We actually went to games together. So there's these basketball music career links that are crazy.

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And I think that community. Like we keep meeting community, right.

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We're also willing to help each other out and willing to, to make that step up.

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Cause even Tremaine how trope has played at DAL he's he's Wade Smith's brother-in-law right.

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You know, so there's, there's connections there.

21:45

So we always have these connections of, if you do this, let me help you go into this

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thing. And that's how. Yeah.

21:54

Yeah, exactly. Oh, for cloud and you know, what's cool about classes.

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Um, the way that me and class kind of started to, cause I wasn't, like I knew who he was.

22:02

I wasn't like too familiar with his music when I started doing music.

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You know what I'm saying? But I knew that he was a dope producer, but Martin.

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I don't know if you know, Martin Finch, Martin Finch. He was a he's part of the Rockpile, um, with trailer park, boys and everything, but he told me, he was like, man, you gotta, you gotta hit up class and get some beats from class.

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So he really put the bug in my ear to start working with class at a point in my career where it was just like beginning of my career.

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You know what I'm saying? But it was like, I didn't have beats.

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And I was just thinking, okay. I was always, we were always recording our YouTube beats and just, you know, like just taking beats out.

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Yeah. There's some stuff, you know, the locks, whatever bad boy.

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We're just taking stuff off and just doing, you know, recording our records.

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But that's how I got into working with class.

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Besides before, after, you know, I worked with troll and MCJ, then I was, and I was working in the school board for a minute, you know, so, and that's okay.

22:51

You're just resigned from that job to keep the music career going.

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And Sheila Lucas was my, uh, supervisor.

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So she, she gave me the, she gave me the green light, the first go round when I asked for some time.

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And the second time she was like, you just got to go. She's like, do it.

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Like we believe in your God, do what you got to do.

23:07

You know what I mean? Yeah. And to put that

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in context for the audience, you know, and again, we talked about basketball.

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We talked about music now that links education, because Jordon's talked OB.

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And African Nova Scotia student support worker in the system.

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And she, Lucas was his, was his boss.

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And so at that point, the job description is, is working with African Nova Scotian youth in the, in the school system to help them at all kinds of ways.

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And, and the funny thing was Jordon, one of the jobs I just finished doing at the department of education.

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You know, you know, one of the supervisors and leads for all the students, port workers in the province.

23:45

So again, there's that link in education.

23:48

I remember when you were student support worker, to be honest, because I was teaching at the time.

23:54

Um, so, so now where does Canadian Idol fit in, uh, in, when you, you know, where does that fit in?

24:04

The process that's

24:06

right. So since we're talking about that, that it's right around that process.

24:09

So right when I finished my, my one year, um, you know, stint over in France, I came back and, uh, I was, you know, I was waiting to hear from my agent to see if I was going to go back and Ronnie Lovett..

24:24

Who at the time it started the, uh, He started his security company at the time.

24:30

Yeah. Oh, is he?

24:32

Oh, awesome. Tell him, I said, what's up. Tell him, I said what's up.

24:35

He, uh, yeah, so he, he started that security company at the time.

24:39

And then I was just like, man, I got a whole summer here before I may have to go overseas in the fall or whatever.

24:43

Ronnie, you got like hooked me up. Let me get some, you know, and he put me, he's like, yo, you want to go to the high school and be like, you know, security in a high school, your old high school.

24:50

I'm like, man, I can do that. You know what I mean? So I went in and, and that's where really the Canadian Idol thing came about because when I went there, it was when I was like, you know, waiting to hear back from.

25:02

You know, my agents go play pro ball, but then at, and then, you know, as, as time went on as a security guard and at school, you know, I think whoever was, you know, it's principals, teachers all realize that I had, uh, more of a value to the kids and just, you know, being a security guard.

25:17

So that's how the, the, um, the outreach coordinator Nadir position came about.

25:21

So right then is when I fell in love with recording at the same time.

25:24

So the kids were hearing my music and they, they actually were the ones that were.

25:27

Supported me the most. And like, you know, they would come out.

25:30

Some kids would come to my office on their 'frees' and help put my mixtape covers in the mixed tapes.

25:34

I did an album with them, kids at the school and stuff.

25:36

So they were a big part of that. And they, you know, were like Canadian Idol came and they were like, oh, you're on Canadian Idol.

25:42

And I'm like, all right, I'm doing it though, because I had so many kids, I'm like, you got to go like, you know what I mean?

25:47

So, and I didn't make it that year. And, and that's, you know, that happened.

25:50

And then the next year, I think, yeah, a year later, my boy K.

25:55

He drove me up to, uh, Leland drove me up to Moncton.

25:59

He's like, you're going. So it's just family, community support.

26:02

And you know what I mean? Like just giving you that energy and letting you know, you can do it.

26:05

You know what I'm saying? When you're, when you, when you're passionate about something.

26:08

So yeah, that's how that came right around that time.

26:10

Right. When I got that job as a support or.

26:13

Yeah, but that that's. So again, the synchronicities are, so it's blowing my mind brother, because when I, you almost answered my question, why do you feel connected to communities?

26:24

Because connected was community was connected to you.

26:26

You know what I mean? Or your whole story, are these people in community?

26:29

How rise you up because you didn't have it on your own.

26:33

Obviously once you make it. Cause when you talk about, cause you obviously made it, you couldn't do it and say, well, you guys didn't really apparent.

26:40

Yeah, no, no, no. That's the thing.

26:43

And that's, that's the thing about community that people like.

26:45

That's why it's like, you know, it's important to, you know, regardless of where you, you know, what kind of career or success you have in your life, you should always be connected to what made you, who you were and what helped you become who you were.

26:58

You know what I mean? And it's important that. Stay strong in community and people, they have to see that and they have to know that, you know, going back all the way I need

27:06

to find out, do I have to Arnie for that brother?

27:09

Because when I see the videos and I know, you know, when you talk about, you know, in 2007, you start to record, right?

27:16

No dress coding and recording, and 2010 year up that the bomb album, the one, the

27:21

drop.

27:24

And from that point, um, your videos that's I like some of your videos were cut videos and you had to do your thing, but there were so many videos that had people who are African Scotia.

27:35

Oh, look, who's in it. Like, so from the very beginning, why did you feel, I don't want to say obligation, but what was your sense of I'm now putting out albums?

27:44

I'm making videos. My videos are in rotation.

27:46

My music's in rotation. Y like that use of community was always there.

27:52

What did that, why was that so important to

27:54

you? Yeah, it's because of the environment, you know, what is the culture is the culture, you know what I'm saying?

28:00

It's the, it's the hip hop culture. You know what I mean?

28:02

It's that culture of, of soul and, and, you know, coming from, you know, certain environments and being, and being raised in the old adviser and coming up in those environments, you know, being like yo watching these hip hop videos and they see all, they got all their homies in the back.

28:16

So that's what we do. We bring our whole community, we bring the whole everybody out.

28:19

So that's what we do is about the culture. That's what, you know, just in the visual of it, it just wouldn't feel right.

28:24

If you don't involve that aspect of, you know what I'm saying?

28:28

Who you are and who made you and what was inspired you because that's where you were inspired to do those things anyway.

28:34

So why wouldn't you show that and show the world where, why you are, who you are through your art.

28:41

You know what

28:41

I mean? No, that's a really good point of brother because that talks about hip hop culture.

28:46

Overall. Like we saw so many people that we grew up in hip hop videos.

28:50

You, you represented your community. That's a, that's a part of your culture.

28:54

And so what was unique about you is, is coming from cause really classified and being from Nova Scotia.

29:00

He's not from Uniacke square. He's not from square when you were going and dropping your music.

29:08

And the spotlight was on. The community that you wanted to show up for, which is where time and many of you.

29:16

So you were committed to that from, from the very beginning.

29:19

So as you're in Toronto now, because you're, you're recording music, um, you're going to award shows, um, just for the, maybe the younger people that are, that are listening to this, what was it like?

29:31

Did you get swept away? Like after 2010.

29:34

And you think about all now, you're in a new community, you're in this, you know, this black music community, even bigger than that in Toronto.

29:43

Talk a little bit about what it was like to be in Toronto.

29:46

Now you've got something to talk and you're getting attention.

29:49

People often don't know the backsides of what goes on in the music community.

29:53

Can you talk a little bit

29:54

about recommended? Sure. For sure.

29:56

That's like, that was, you know, exciting times.

29:59

Cause that's when, you know, I decided to know.

30:02

Move, you know, stop commuting. Cause I was commuting back and forth for about a year just to come up and create with my new production team and then getting, you know, and then when I moved up to Toronto and then getting into a deal with them, you know, the, then the development started.

30:17

So it was, you know, about me just being in Toronto, being in that vibe where there's, you know, a lot of producers at a lot of studios and you know, my producers had already had some traction in the U S and you know, wanted, uh, uh, For Raul, a couple of people were interested in signing them at one point.

30:33

So it was like, you know, I'm around, you know, I had good, you know, good guys around, but that also turns into, you know, you know, you sign a contract you're, you have something hot.

30:42

And then it comes to becomes a world where there's a lot of people involved.

30:45

So you, you know, for me, I was just. Jumping into business.

30:49

I hadn't known anything about love making music.

30:52

I was in it for the passion. You know what I'm saying?

30:55

So, you know, you, you have the success.

30:57

And then for me, you know, there's, there's things that happen in that world that, you know, happened to a lot of artists, you know, that the alcohol, the women, the drugs, you know, that, you know, that is gonna, you know, going to be tempted by enough.

31:10

Of course, you know, I've been tempted by and done these things and, you know, so it becomes a little a world where.

31:17

Worked into this way of trying to live or trying to keep a lifestyle up and you could get caught up.

31:24

You can get lost, but for me, I just stick to the music and that's the one thing I continue to.

31:29

I mean, no, that, and that's the thing that I was so attracted to in the first place is that knowing that I couldn't play basketball forever, but.

31:37

People can hear me forever. Uh, you know what I'm saying?

31:41

Even when I'm dead and gone, you know, people can listen to me forever.

31:44

So that's like, you know, the thing of the music that I just focus on, you know, and just keep, keep making good music and getting better.

31:51

Yeah. And you are getting better. You are in Jordon to see, you know, you can have it all in some of those huge tunes at the beginning.

31:59

And then now, um, you know, I see there's a maturity.

32:04

I really, I love, I asked you that question on purpose.

32:06

Cause I know. That you got more mature in the business, and I know that lifestyle, you got your feet underneath you more cause you wouldn't be the only person.

32:14

That's not only music, it's sports, it's whatever. Like when people are, are, are, see that you're hot, you know, th th th you know, there's a lot of things and, you know, a better than me.

32:23

I never been in a position of. But, I mean,

32:32

you had to play, you had the first ice, the first time I ever seen D brown pumps, you had, you guys had.

32:38

That was hot to be like you guys part of culture, right?

32:40

That's the post.

32:43

Yeah, y'all go away back,

32:49

but, but let's talk, let's talk your maturity in the business now.

32:54

And I took it. I looked at your, the release of the album, Ralph, and that goes back.

32:58

I saw that there was, um, when you were promoting it, you were sh that picture of you.

33:03

You're only a little boy and there was a sudden.

33:06

Um, you catching yourself and I'm going to do an album that fits for me that shows my maturity.

33:13

And you had some, some, some huge tunes on there that had a maturity level that was on just on top.

33:22

And so for me, talk about your progression as you get your feet underneath of you, things that you used to get caught up in are things that seem so.

33:31

It seems like you change your focus and when you change your focus, your music changed and it expanded.

33:36

So talk about, make, getting ready to make the album Ralph, and up to that and where you were at personally.

33:45

Um, that, okay. Right, right.

33:47

When I started to make Ralph, it was a, there was a certain song that I had, it was with this writer, Sebastian Cole.

33:56

So, I mean, I knew that my next album, I want it to be mature.

34:00

Cause I knew like I'm getting older in this game and you know, you can't, you know, we only got so much time here, so you can't hide you, you know what I'm saying?

34:06

No, I may die my beard here and there or whatever, this, that, and third, you can't hide the truth.

34:11

You know what I mean? But, um, so when I started working with Sebastian Cola is when he gave me some records that were like, you know, the core of this album.

34:20

And a certain sound after he got to know me working with me for a few months after he'd get gotten to know that I got a bloodline from North Preston who comes from a gospel background, who has the, you know, who might, you know him?

34:32

Hear me say, yo, my dad and my brother had been asking me to do a gospel.

34:35

So not, not making me go all the way, you know, gospel, but giving me those.

34:40

That is truly, is truly within me because that's who I am.

34:44

That's my DNA. That's my makeup. So that's, that's what made the core of that.

34:47

That's what made me excited to really feel like I was doing something that was true to me.

34:52

So then the baby picture was like my daughter being five at the time.

34:56

You know, and that I was around five, you know, when I was finishing the project and everything.

35:01

So that's why I used it to kind of just reflect of being, I remember that being that day, when my dad put the chain on my neck and being like, oh man, um, I'm Ralph, you know what I mean?

35:10

Um, you know, those first moments when you're like, I'm here, it can be in a lot of stages in life.

35:14

He's like, I'm here. You know what I'm saying? I'm here, you know, so yeah, that's kind of with

35:22

the. Th that's that's bubbling up in you.

35:27

And, and so, um, your first hit off of that album.

35:34

Yeah, well, same sky.

35:36

Same sky was the first release. But see what, this one, I had a record that I, uh, poor me that I put it on last minute.

35:43

So a really poor me was the first single and then say same Scott.

35:49

No same sky, poor me. Sorry. Sorry. I'm S I'm sorry.

35:52

Cause it was a lot of times it was like a year, two years that I released a record before I even then I started to really try to get Ralph put Ralph together after knowing, okay.

36:01

I had another record and now I still have a couple of singles that I'm pushed out of.

36:05

The videos are going to come really soon. Uh, Finish off with this, but, uh, yeah, th that, that process was, it was, it was really cool.

36:13

Cause like, I, I got to, you know, involve like Sean Downey and, you know, cause it didn't feel right to have like in shout out to, um, my boyfriend, uh, from Buffalo, he gave me a little, uh, one to one to two, but Sean down.

36:28

You know, having him, he he's from, from when I grew up, I always seen him, you know, playing the organ in the church at home, he beyond it.

36:35

So I got to go to him.

36:37

So he played on a few of the records on, on the hour because he, no, he didn't play up here when he paid on growing old, uh, the way you, the way you love me and, um, LA.

36:50

And lost his feel is on there. Yeah.

36:52

He's yeah. And he did some backgrounds and stuff for last.

36:55

Yeah. Yeah. So that's why it was important to have that field, like, to really connect into community and who I am, you know, and that's why the album kind of came off.

37:05

You know, that's how it came up for me. That's why I did those.

37:09

And I'm seeing, that's why I told him I was like, you know, we have a guy and you know, Linda's waiting 10 twos when the long

37:17

journey, and now he's playing with the

37:20

following me. I had the same thing with you too, though, Jordon, like, I mean, I knew that I'm tall.

37:25

I heard you from karaoke and that.

37:30

You know, and, and oftentimes you'd be on video or song when I told us that's my boy, that's Jordon.

37:36

I think that's the pizza communities when you involve.

37:39

I sit and you allow us to be a part of you.

37:41

We feel like we're, I think Linda's do that now,

37:44

right? Yeah. You said, yeah, I'm up, man.

37:47

I'm in the NBA right now. That's how out there on the court with them.

37:55

You feel me? Yeah.

37:59

That's the excitement. And that's what, like, that's the importance of community is always being there and like supporting each other, you know, like, just

38:07

so on that note. On that note of support.

38:09

I mean, right now you got like, you're almost at a million downloads and

38:17

streams

38:20

on Spotify, and I'm saying, you know, for the people around and that haven't really experienced.

38:25

I know a lot of people have heard that. To go and check out that album.

38:30

Um, you know, when we download, that's the easiest way to support, you know, to stream someone's music and to commit to downloading it and, and, and making yourself part of that, that million people.

38:43

Um, and so you say you have a couple more songs to drop off, off of.

38:49

Jordon. Is there any other, you know, pieces in the future, you know, that you're thinking about projects, um, connections that, that you'd like to kind of let people know.

39:00

I mean, it's, it's, it's, uh, there's a beginning going on.

39:04

We're coming out of COVID.

39:08

What are your plans? Yeah, I got a, I got an EAP that I'm about to drop.

39:12

We'll have two videos that are going to come out. During the same time, that's still supporting the Ralph project that we've been working on.

39:18

One of the complete, already feature. My girlfriend, Kelly Barker, it's called flying.

39:23

And, um, so that's coming out.

39:25

Um, there's an IMAX film that they use the song, that song for the movie.

39:29

It's her family's IMAX film called wings over water.

39:31

So that's, that's a big one narrated by Michael Keaton.

39:34

So that's going to be something that's also, you know, we're going to do some things with that, you know?

39:39

And, uh, I got the EAP called red. I come in and the.

39:43

Three weeks working on another album right now and, you know, continuing to write, write, and a lot of music.

39:50

And, um, you know, there's a lot of great opportunities with sinking and TV and trying to get, you know, trying to get more connections in the U S because that's where, you know, the numbers.

39:58

Are you feeling?

40:02

So, as we wrap up, I know recently I did a panel on a.

40:08

Trying to kind of talk to young people around.

40:11

If you feel like an artist and you feel like you got creativity in you, like you don't necessarily need to go to university or college to do trades believe in the arts because the arts is always at abstract.

40:23

If he ground and often parents are like, well, you can't really play guitar or you can't really just paint, like, but from your dream to where you are now, what advice would you give to many, many of the young people that listened to this podcast around.

40:37

How you started, if you had to look back on your young self who loves singing, but really wasn't any yet, what would you.

40:46

Um, I would, as far as the music goes, I would, um, I would say take your time with it and finding yourself and what you want to present to the world as your art and for, cause for me, you know, I was, I always considered myself a late bloomer in the, in the music because I'd started late recording when I was like 25.

41:07

You know what I'm saying? So, um, you know, whoever's listening to this, I would say just whatever it is, take your time.

41:11

Really, really. You know, focus on what you want to contribute with your art to the world, you know?

41:18

Cause when you think about it like that, you know, then that really make you say, okay, what am I going to do instead of just jumping in the studio and just talking about nothing or like what, what is your purpose?

41:27

What is, you know, what is your purpose with this, with this art?

41:30

So just take your time. That's all is.

41:33

No, I appreciate that. And bring out your uniqueness, what God puts us all on here with one path of one purpose.

41:39

And so find that because no one else can find,

41:42

and then it takes a while sometime to find it too.

41:44

So that's why I take your time. And don't, you know, don't be like, you know, don't, if it doesn't happen overnight, just know that everything in time, you know, will be worth it even more.

41:53

If you really take your time and really focus on whatever it is you're doing.

41:59

Well, brother, I want to thank you so much. And I know you're a busy man and you always, whenever I reached out to you and, and said that I would love to have you on you were always positive.

42:07

Anytime, man, in community,

42:12

you already know that, bro. Anytime I'm always here.

42:17

I can still smell the incense and scent and taste the honey brown, the hunt, you know what I mean?

42:21

The honey, you know what I'm saying, Coach?

42:31

Yes. You know, trying to

42:35

Tony brown,

42:39

uh, good times was Jordon man, love you brother.

42:43

Keep doing what you're doing. You got a whole like province behind you.

42:47

If not country, um, late bloomer or whatever, you're doing group good work, great work.

42:52

And you're growing. Keep growing, keep growing and keep doing it because I love to see the seed blossom into the.

43:00

This powerhouse tree. And the thing that I love about you the most is you walk the walk that you talk.

43:07

And so when it comes to community connection, I can tell everyone when the easiest people for me to get in touch with that always got back to me when I'm trying to get scheduled these podcasts with Jordon Croucher and, and you know, and I really appreciate that brother, cause not everybody moves.

43:22

Yeah, I know. Yeah. Yeah. But thank you bro.

43:24

You know, I love you bro. And, and, and always proud of everything you've done.

43:28

You know what I'm saying? You've been, you've been somebody like that.

43:31

I've looked up to. I've seen you and guys coming out and doing your X marks, the spot on the court and you're running and doing the X with the pumps.

43:39

Like I said, you was, and Smitty got arrested.

43:41

So I've been real, you know, great mentors for, for young guys like me.

43:45

Well, not young, not so young, no more, but for the whole city and you know, everything you guys have done, man.

43:50

So I appreciate you and I love you.

43:52

I appreciate it, brother. So we'll be following you.

43:54

Thank you so much, Jordon Croucher,

43:57

Hali, you already know. That's crazy.

44:01

Let's go, Peace, Bro

44:04

thank you. All right.