The Keys Read online

  I know that this chapter began with the most literal definition of securing the bag—money—but nothing about me or the keys is literal. Securing the bag sometimes means not ruining your future. Now that I’m older and wiser I know that I have too much to lose to exact revenge, but back then? Back then I don’t know what would have happened. In those days I was just starting my business and was really from the street when it came to my reputation, and it’s by the grace of God that the police caught the robbers and they were strangers.

  Unfortunately, this wasn’t the only hardship my family would endure. Almost immediately after they lost everything in their home, my parents ran into some financial trouble with the business. These two events combined finished them, and a few years later they declared that they wanted to leave Orlando. It was a dark time. They packed up and wanted to move in with some family in New Orleans to get back on their feet.

  At the time my music career was blossoming, and since I had been spared having to take revenge and was old enough to secure my own bag, I decided to stay. Florida was my home and I had big plans to eventually move to Miami, but I also didn’t want to be a burden while they got their bag up. So they went one way and I went another.

  I said good-bye to my family, to my parents who I love so much, and became determined to become so prosperous, so successful, that I would one day be able to help them. I was focused. I’d just broken some barriers with “they.” I was throwing my own parties—things were popping—and “they” had just started to let me DJ in the club. I was even being invited into the studio by a few local artists to play some of my beats. This was big for me; we were still at the ground level, but I could see where it was going because it was the start of my vision. I told my parents of the plan, they gave me their blessing, and from there I got an apartment.

  Getting an apartment was easy. Keeping it was hard. At the time I was making like $100 a week with two jobs and whatever else I needed to do to make ends meet. I was just a kid and I got evicted probably ten times; you know how it goes when the bag is low. You pay one month and then you ain’t paying again for like two, three months. “They” start coming after you, and “they” want you out, so you go. Trust me, what young world goes through to make rent, I went through all that. My friends would come over and I would have no furniture. Nothing in my fridge. Just records. Records were my furniture and the floor was my bed when I went to sleep at night.

  Every day I would get up and raise money to get another place to live. Those days were rough, and it was real hard to work through it, and at a certain point I couldn’t find another apartment. That was it. The bag was beyond low. The bag was, like, negative.

  During this time I ended up going to New Orleans to live with my parents. I’ve lived in Florida most of my life. This is my home, so it broke my heart to have to leave. But what I’m saying is that I went back because it got so rough with money that I had to stay at my mom and dad’s house. It hurt my pride and was a source of great frustration that I was depending on them when they needed to figure their situation out.

  I only went back for a year, but I had to work for that year so I could return to my home. There was no choice. I lived with my parents and started working at a Shoney’s as a busboy and at a record store called Odyssey Records & Tapes.

  I hated being away, but I knew I had to secure the bag. I put my head down and just saved all my little checks from the jobs. But knowing what I did about being on my own, losing my apartments, and not having enough money to eat, I didn’t get comfortable sleeping at my parents’ house. I didn’t spend anything. I knew I had to secure the bag, so I saved. And then God really blessed me. There was a DJ contest. I’d been practicing all the time at the record store, where I’d set up some turntables, and I knew I could do it. When I was up there just tearing it down, I was so determined to win. My energy is already crazy, but on top of that I had a fire because I had a goal—I had to get home to Florida and I had to become a help to my parents, not a burden. I was just in that zone where after you’re done you maybe don’t even really remember what happened, but when I looked into the crowd I knew I’d ripped it.

  I won five grand at that DJ contest. The opportunity was such a blessing, and it came at exactly the right time. Over one year I secured the bag, saving up my $200, $300 weekly paychecks, but that five grand put me over the top. It was what I needed so I could rent a little U-Haul for all my records and drive back to Florida.

  I got another apartment and started it all back up. I took a one-year break to get my money right, but it was worth it. I had to secure the bag to come back to my vision and my dream, but there wasn’t a day in New Orleans that I got confused. I knew the minute I could go back to the dream, I would do it.

  Complaints are excuses, and excuses are for the weak-minded. People who have long-winded explanations about why they can’t do things never become bosses. That’s just a fact.

  Nobody’s going to follow this kind of negativity into battle because complainers waste the day imagining new bad scenarios and spend no time accomplishing the vision. People like this can be so creative when it comes to new ways to be frustrated and annoying. Whenever I wake up and I just don’t feel right or I feel down, I do everything in my power to change it. I don’t want to be a “they” today. That’s how it starts. Why spend all that time and energy focusing so hard on roadblocks and then telling everybody around you how life is hard? Of course life is hard. Nobody said it was going to be easy, and I guarantee you that someone else has it harder. If you’d rather make excuses than succeed, be my guest. Complain your annoying little heart out. Just don’t do it anywhere around me.

  KHALED’S SUCCESS IS no accident. He never let any lock, any door, or any roadblock block his dreams. His knowledge is firsthand and invaluable for all aspiring hustlers making their dreams come true. The Keys shares his journey and it teaches us all how to follow our own path to

  —Sean “Diddy” Combs, recording artist, actor, designer, philanthropist, and CEO and founder of Bad Boy Worldwide Entertainment Group

  LIFE IS WHAT YOU MAKE IT, SO LET’S MAKE IT

  Life is unpredictable. I look at some of the things that happened to me over the past twenty years, and I gotta be honest with you: It’s like a movie, for real.

  You already know that negativity is not the answer, but you’ve got to go the extra step—be positive. Just as there are a lot of storms to endure, there are also moments of pure joy. Recognize these for what they are and be open to them, because sometimes blessings surprise you at exactly the right time.

  I’ve always been one of those people who look at the positive. Now, that doesn’t mean that I’m naïve or that I allow people to take advantage of me. It’s just that most situations are a matter of perspective. It’s why my friends’ blessings make me happy, not jealous, regardless of how I’m doing. And when I’m down, I just think about what I can do to get up. There’s no sense in just being depressed about it.

  Different stages always signal different struggles, and there was a time in my life when things were really looking up. You have to understand that I started throwing parties when I was young. Me, Nasty, and Caesar started Hitmen Productions when I was, like, fifteen or sixteen, and we hit the ground running—our parties always did well financially. And we’d throw them once every few weeks or months.

  When we started out in Orlando, we threw house parties, but then we moved our operations to a spot called the Lebanese Club on the corner of Mill and Colonial. It was official. We’d have security, a girl in the front taking tickets. There would be like a thousand people, and it would be poppin’. We’d charge $5 for a cover, and we’d sell sodas, so that was a nice hustle. That was enough to where it was a job. We could make actual money doing what we love: DJing, listening to hip-hop, and catching a vibe with our friends. After that I finally got to move to Miami and started working the nightclubs there, DJing and tearing it up. I loved that my dream was coming to fruition in a city that instantly
felt like my home.

  But dark days did come. That year in New Orleans was tough. I’m not going to lie to you; leaving my friends and my hustle and my dream was hard. But it was something I had to do at the time so I tried to stay positive, even though I hated being away from home more than anything.

  During the time in Louisiana I worked at a record store because I’ve always loved them. Back in the days before the Internet, me and Nasty would get all competitive about who would get the white-label promo records. I used to make sure to develop relationships with all the little mom-and-pop record stores so that they’d give them to me first. Even though me and Nasty were in the same crew, that was just how we’d get a little competitive, because getting one of those promo records was so rare and we both loved the challenge.

  I set up some turntables behind the counter at Odyssey Records, where I worked, so I could practice and make sure I kept all my skills up. That was like my little office, too; sometimes when the boss wasn’t looking, I’d make some long-distance calls to different people in the industry, trying to hustle and network. Anyway, people would walk in and I’d be mixing it up and scratching while they bought CDs and tapes. Birdman used to come twice a week with Slim, his brother and partner in Cash Money. I’ll never forget—they would bring me CDs and tapes to stock out of their trunk. We’d talk, and I just knew that he was special cloth even back then, and I swear every time they came in and dropped off music, it didn’t matter how many it was, they’d sell out. Always. This was before social media, so it’s not like it was on Twitter or something that they brought new music in. It didn’t matter when they brought it in; an hour later, it’d be gone.

  Birdman and Slim were always grinding, and just seeing them and their focus inspired me. They were doing their thing in their hometown, and watching them made me hustle harder so I could get back to Florida. It gave me hope for my own dreams. And then, months later, to see them get a huge record deal at Universal was all the motivation I needed. Back then, in the late nineties, that contract was huge. Hundreds of millions, and they got to own their own work. It was crazy. Matter fact, I even saw Birdman meet Lil Wayne for the first time in that store. That’s historical. You never know when history’s being made all around you. Even though I was down at the time, this gave me hope, knowing that it was all possible. So I spent this time focusing on my vision and my long-term goals. This is when I pictured my dream house, my garden, the career that I wanted, and my best life.

  Life is not a game, but what we do is joyful. Making music is a pleasure, and it’s a blessing. I am so grateful that this thing that I love so much can pay my bills. That’s why you’ve got to stay positive. You can’t approach someone already thinking they’re going to say no. They catch that negative vibe, and it makes them feel like you’re a negative person. Wake up each morning and expect the best to happen to you that day. No matter how dark your yesterday was. That’s what I mean by “Life is what you make it.” Make your life great.

  I KNEW A long time ago that this guy was special. I met Khaled a while ago at a convention and we’d hung out in Miami and he always said he was going to take over the radio. Next thing I know, we’re back in Miami and we turn on the radio and it’s like Mobb Deep, Fat Joe, and I’m like, “Oh shit, Miami came up,” because they never used to play real hip-hop. Then the guy on the radio comes on like, “This is Don God Gargamel, this is DJ Khaled, Terror Squad!” He’s going crazy on the radio and I’m like, “Oh shit, it’s Khaled!” It’s me, Big Pun, and a couple of other fellas in the car and then we’re like, “Let’s call him up,” so we write the number down. We call him, he gives us the address, so me and Pun go and just started freestyling and rapping on the underground radio station for like two hours. Callers are clapping and the three of us, shirts off, sweating bullets, no AC, we were wilding out. We just had a real serious bond with him.

  Plus, he wouldn’t stop harassing me. Every time it would be like, “I want to make an album, I want to make an album, I want to make an album.” I knew he had the potential to do what he wanted and he wouldn’t stop, like, “I’m the biggest shit, I’m the biggest shit!” telling me I had to put him on. I told my friend Alan Grunblatt, who first signed me, that Khaled was going to be big. I told him he was me on steroids. So he ended up working with Khaled and that was the best decision he ever made. That’s what I love about Khaled, just that energy. We’ve always loved him. Pun used to even drive down to Miami just to play him records. Khaled was the first one to hear “Twinz” and even then he tried to steal it from us so he could play it first. We were like, “Hell no, Khaled, stop.” Khaled can’t stop. It’s one of his best qualities.

  —Fat Joe, rapper and CEO of Terror Squad Entertainment

  WEATHER THE STORM

  They never said weathering the storm was easy. It’s going to rain some. It’s always going to rain some.

  You notice how I started off this book talking about the pathway to more success? I say more to imply that the pathway is long. There are ups and downs. One success is fine, but as I’ve said before, We The Best—one blessing is not enough. You could be enjoying the brightest moment—the sun is shining on your face, you got a raise or a promotion—but that storm could be lurking just around the corner. It doesn’t matter who you are. You could be a CEO or working in the mail room; there will always be storms.

  But just as storms come, storms also end. The key is to keep your head up and work through it with your mind focused. Life is like school; you will be tested. The key is to pass it. And you have to do well on those tests over time in order to graduate.

  Success is a process.

  Dark days are challenging, but they’re important. Struggles help you know. Once one storm tests you, the next time you know to get food and water, usher your pets indoors, and protect your windows at the first sign of a hurricane. The following time you might have enough wisdom to get gas or a generator. Time after that you could be such a pro at weathering storms that you’ve secured a safe place stocked with absolutely everything you need where you can take other people in and protect them. Living in Miami, we know storms. Most of the time it’s beautiful. Not even a hint of a cloud in the sky, with a balmy breeze, and everyone is just out swimming, laughing, wearing sunglasses, and chilling. But when the storms come they change everything. At this point in my life I can smell the electricity in the air and see how the light moves low before it gets dark. These days I can see most storms coming, but even I have been surprised.

  I’ve been living in Miami now for a long time and I knew from the moment I arrived that I wanted to make this my home. I bleed for Miami. I wave the flag for all of Florida but I love Miami like no other. But that doesn’t mean it’s always been easy. I told you when I got locked up I drove out here right after. I also told you about the hardships I had to endure trying to secure the bag, but those storms didn’t stop. When I first moved to Miami permanently, it was in a black Honda Civic with my girlfriend whose parents lived here. They were divorced and her mother would let me sleep on the floor in her house, but when my girlfriend was at her father’s house I had to sleep in the car. Her dad didn’t want to allow another man in the house, and I respected that. Sleeping in my car was a huge storm. No bathroom, no showers—that was humbling. And that was a time I couldn’t prepare for simply because I was just getting by to survive, but I’m grateful for those dark days because they made me hungry. Every morning that I woke up even more tired than when I went to sleep, sweating like crazy because I didn’t have any AC, I knew I didn’t want to sleep in a car ever again.

  But just because I had to weather a hard time doesn’t mean I got down about it. Self-pity was a luxury that I couldn’t afford. Every day was a new opportunity to get out of my current situation. I had to find a new opportunity, and thank God that this was the time I met the people at Mixx 96. (I would love to name names but since it was pirate radio, I gotta respect the code if you know what I mean.) I will always be grateful they showed love.
br />   I met Cool & Dre at Mixx 96. These are my brothers, and I had the show after theirs. From the moment they said I could be part of the operation I always made sure I was prepared. I had all my crates with me and was never late. It didn’t matter if it took me thirty minutes and like seven trips to the car to get all my records in the hallway; I was always the most professional, and then I’d tear it up. Some nights I even slept in that station, and though it got hot in that little room, too, it was a lot better than the car. Not having a place to sleep gave me perspective and taught me gratitude. That’s what I mean when I say storms are important. After that Cool & Dre went to Atlanta to pursue their dream of becoming producers and gave me their time slot. It was still a crazy challenging time but with each small step up, I knew the storm would end.

  The thing is, when I look back at my life I wouldn’t trade any storm in my path if I had to do it over again. Every time I had to struggle, I learned how to avoid it the next time or how to get out of it faster. It’s called experience. I have a big heart—anyone who knows me can testify to that—and I try to help anyone, anytime. Because I’ve seen so many different types of challenges over the course of the last twenty years I make sure to help people weather storms. I might help people even though I’m in a storm, too. Because there were definitely times when I was struggling that people saw my hardship and thought to help me out.