Good Friend, Bad Friend

Hey friends, welcome to another episode of The Rise! Today, we're going to talk about the challenges of balancing friendships while building our careers. 

Join us to hear why Skrizz says that he hasn't been a good friend, and how he's changing that, and how Adam has struggled to balance friendships on his entrepreneurial journey - including over the last few years as a nomad.

Don't miss the ending with more rapid fire.

And most importantly, to all of our friends - new and old - we love and appreciate you!

Transcript

[00:00:00] Adam: Talking music, building businesses, and the grit in the journey. We're Skrizz and Adam and welcome to The Rise

[00:00:16] Skrizz: And we are back. It is Rizz. It is Adam. It is the rise. It's everything you know and love. We are at episode 19. Adam, what is going on in your world right now?

[00:00:28] Adam: I really like that, that intro right there. That was, that was pretty good. Off the, off the cuff. You're, you're really settle into the groove on this side, this intro.

[00:00:35] Hilarious. That's good. It's no, man. I'm doing well. I'm one just a few more days away from leaving Hawaii. I know I've been teasing that the last few episodes, but I'm about to hitch a flight to Austin, Texas, so I feel like you should be doing, doing some shows in 

[00:00:47] Skrizz: Austin. I had something lined up, but it fell through, but I will be back in Austin during the.

[00:00:51] Adam: Heard Stop by Southwest is coming. They need you. 

[00:00:54] Skrizz: And no one does stop by Southwest anymore. Really? It's not like a thing anymore. I'm behind the times. Yeah, sir. Let's talk to me, Adam, what's on your mind? What are what, what are, what are we discussing on the rise today on our both our journeys?

[00:01:08] Adam: I figured last, last episode we talked about love and hopefully y'all got a chance to check out that episode.

[00:01:14] Yes. And by the way, if you like at all we're saying, give us a thumbs up. Give us a comment. We'd love hearing from you. But if you heard last episode, we talked about love, and I thought today a good episode would be to talk about a different type of, But it's around friendships because Sure. One of the challenges that I've had, like in, in, when I was growing up, I had a really great, great group of friends.

[00:01:35] We would hang out, do everything together. But for me, I went to college. In Boston. I grew up in New York, so I didn't get to see my friends quite as much then. And then when I started my company, like with a lot of stuff, I went all in on that. And one of the things I've always struggled with is balancing friendships with, you know, as we call it, the rise.

[00:01:53] So I thought it'd be an interesting topic for us to throw around in hear how you do that balance. And yeah, see where the conversation goes.

[00:02:00] Skrizz: That's great. And I think, I think, you know, just to, to kick it off, like, you know, friendship is another form of love like we talked about on the last episode. And, you know, with that, there's, we're on this journey, on this rise to, you know, put yourself in the best situation and be the best self you can be.

[00:02:15] And part of that requires the most valuable commodity on earth time, of course. And with you focusing on yourself, you're have less time to focus on your friends and your loved ones. You know, I can say, I can say confidently this year as I'm transitioning to be nomadic I've kind of realized my pitfalls, you know, you know, I'm so obsessed with my music, so obsessed with my music and my work and my travels that maybe I haven't been a good friend.

[00:02:42] Or maybe when I had a funny thought in my head about something funny that happened or whatever, like, I didn't text that person. You know what I mean? And I think just recently I've been like, you. This really stupid joke, I really should text that person. Or like, like, like, we should just go to the gym together once, you know what I mean?

[00:03:00] Even once every four months, cuz I might die. You might, you never fucking know. You know what I mean? So I, I can say I've been, I've been bad and I'm working on getting better. And I think, and this is an excuse, I mean, this is just, you know, growing pains and learning curves, but it's like the. I have, I work with my friends, you know what I mean?

[00:03:20] Like everyone I work with is my friend, like they're my brothers. Like so many people I work with in music, I get off the phone and say, I love you too. On a very, very, very regular basis, man. Men telling me love each other. You know what I mean? So it's the areas get great and I think, I think, I think that's such a blessing and a beautiful thing.

[00:03:38] But it's also like, you know, it's also realizing like, It's gotta be the same in football, it's gotta be the same in whatever. You know, you, you bust each other's balls on the field. You love each other, but you find ways to show each other that you love each other off the field as well, you know? And then those that you don't have on the field, you have to find ways to give them the love that you're giving the people on the field.

[00:04:01] So, I don't know if I answered any question there, but it is a struggle and just being proactive and, and conscious, I think is, is the name of the game. 

[00:04:10] Adam: And I feel like as you start to go into this nomadic lifestyle too, and, and I've been doing it for, for a few, almost a few years now, it is a challenge cuz you're, you're always also making new friends and, or you're, at least you're trying to, when you go to these new spots and you're constantly trying to develop new relationships with new people.

[00:04:25] And it, it's for me I think it's very exciting cuz I, you, what you see is there are just so many different types of people. Depending on where you are, depending on what phase of your journey that you're in. And I, I always think that's such an exciting part about traveling is the new friendships and relationships.

[00:04:40] Like I talked about last episode, leav in Hawaii, one of the toughest things is not just my family that's here, but also the good friends that I've been able to develop here. Cuz that that is, that is a big part of it too, is when you are traveling a lot, it's tougher cuz you don't get to have maybe as deep a relationships because you're not there, you know, full.

[00:04:57] But you do get to have more relationships with different types of people. 

[00:05:00] Skrizz: I wanna piggyback on what you're saying. Cause I, I so deeply relate with that, especially like from doing house parties and shows and settings where, you know, I get off stage and I, you know, say there's 70 people there, I get to meet every single person there or whatever.

[00:05:13] Like, I have 3000 numbers in my phone. I say I have zero friends, but I have 3000 numbers on my phone. Not true at all. I'm just exaggerating. But it's, It's a discipline and I, I'm so grateful that, you know, the people around me, I think, really get that. I think very few people don't under, there are very few people that don't really understand it, but it's like, just like you can't maintain, let's say I have, you know, maybe 500 people feel close to me that aren't fans.

[00:05:38] I mean, the people that know me personally and have my number feel close to me. I don't have time for 5,000 people, 500 people. You know that. You know what I mean? So it's. Maybe the depth of the time consumption is kind of shallow, but it doesn't mean the connection isn't deep and it doesn't mean it's valued and it doesn't mean when I pull up to Montana and give you a hug, I don't mean it.

[00:05:56] You know what I mean? So I think it's kind of managing that. That's definitely managing the thing that comes down to you don't have all the time in the world to give people, but when you do, you have to make sure it. An authentic kind of thing. And if it's not authentic, I want nothing to do with you, you know?

[00:06:13] Adam: Yeah. It is interesting though cuz it's like the, the, at least from what I, I hear is the, the bigger you get and the more that you actually rise, the less, the more difficult it is to have genuine relationships and friendships. Just cuz you don't know. What their intentions are. And that's what sometimes the, you know, the top of the mountain is the loneliest place.

[00:06:32] And, and like we talked about, Kanye we talk to Kanye, Kanye a lot, but that's one of the challenges for him is does he have anybody that is, that is honest with him and has his best intentions in mind and has his, 

[00:06:44] Skrizz: I say nobody. I mean, I think his position right now with all the controversy, all his business, all his financial God knows what, like who.

[00:06:54] Who? I don't, I can't think of a single person. I know his father's relationship isn't great with him. His mother's not alive, so it's like, who?

[00:07:02] Adam: Yeah. And you have, you, you see it with athletes. Yeah. You see it with a lot of business people, athletes, it doesn't matter. The bigger you get sometimes the tougher it is to have those genuine friendships and relationships.

[00:07:13] Is that something at all that's a concern for you? Like are, you know, let's say you do make it to, to the top of, you know, is that, is that a concern for you at all? Or are you like, Hey, if I get there, screw it. Let's, let's figure it out as we go. 

[00:07:24] Skrizz: I mean, the gut reactions figured out as we go this, I've actually not thought about this.

[00:07:27] I wanna say one thing then let's get back to that real quick. But This actually remind there is a business the, the mafia concept of cons is essentially created to to prevent the, the boss from being unaccounted for, you know, what a cons is. Mm-hmm. Like number two in command. Mm-hmm. He's essentially like the consultant for the boss of the family.

[00:07:47] And that's kind of like a really good business model actually. Like people should use that in their lives of having like a number two person who only holds certain interests, who's meant to just keep you in check. So kind you need to cons, Larry. I will sign up for that job. 

[00:08:00] Adam: And every It is true. I feel like creating a 

[00:08:02] Skrizz: business way of keeping you genuinely intact is actually, that actually makes sense.

[00:08:07] I mean, obviously companies have boards of trustees, but Exactly. It's business at the end of it. It's too businessy. Yeah, back to your question I mean, yeah, I mean, I mean, I can think of people I even know personally, like, you know, changing their financial status isn't becoming significantly more lonely or paranoid.

[00:08:27] I'd say no. Let's get real vulnerable here. I can, I can say this is, this is, I mean, I've never shared this publicly. I have this habit, and maybe it's a blessing. I can say it's probably my worst quality as a human. But it's never failed me. My worst quality as a human being and I feel so ashamed of it, but it's just somewhere in my dna cuz I'm just so paranoid all the time.

[00:08:51] Is that at any given moment, if anyone in my life, you, Adam, anyone in my life were to turn against me. I would know how to bury to them, to the ground. Like I just, I'm on the defense at any given fucking moment. I mean down to like my blood, like I am ready for war at. Given moment saying it, just putting it out in the universe.

[00:09:15] I'm very aware of it and something I'm not proud of, but it's just in me. Maybe I will get free of that through spirituality. I don't really know. 

[00:09:22] Adam: One thing is that, let's do a little, little little psychology session here. Yeah. I mean, you know, what, what do you think is a root cause of that? 

[00:09:29] Skrizz: Is a root cause of that? There's, there's a lot of root causes for that I can get into. I mean, I've been betrayed. I mean, I've been betrayed in several, in several situations. And because of that, like I just don't trust anyone. So again, at my core, I feel very, very, like it is just me. It is me to the death of me. Like if my own, I hate to say my own parents turn on me, like I'm fine.

[00:09:50] You know what I mean? I'm ready for whatever at any given moment, like with anyone. So that is, that is so that like I, I already feel isolated, but I think because of that I also, I mean also the reverse, like you, like I communicate very, very hard with the people around me. Like, you know, in a very loving, like, I'm very loving towards the people around me, but I'm also very aggressive towards the people around me.

[00:10:12] Like everything's at a very high voltage. So there's no, it's like a very strong bridge, but it's a bridge. I'm also ready to explode at any given way. Again, this feels, I feel awful saying all this, but. That's the true answer. You know, it is what it is. 

[00:10:26] Adam: And the whole thing is the rise, right? So hopefully, whatever the whatever the word is, 

[00:10:30] Skrizz: Maybe a year from now, we'll do an episode.

[00:10:32] I'll say, I don't feel that way anymore. You know what I mean? And maybe I have a more strategic, but that, that is, that's how I feel. And because of that, I'm kind of ready for whatever. Isolation or alienation comes with it, you know, so it doesn't worry me. 

[00:10:49] Adam: You well that's actually, we we're gonna do rapid fire in a little bit cause Okay.

[00:10:53] I think that that's fun. So, and, and the question I was gonna ask you, I I, I'd actually rather hold off Sure. Until uh, until the rapid fire around. So in terms of friendship then, so the whole point of this episode is friends on the rise, all that have you. Any friends along the way because maybe they were tr they wanted to hold you back, or you felt at least like they were holding you back and maybe you were outgrowing them.

[00:11:16] Did have you had any of those experiences before? 

[00:11:19] Skrizz: Actually, no. I've had no bridges burned. Like there are friends, like I have a friend, I'm not gonna say his name, I haven't talked to him in like 10. But like, I promised him like, he can play the drums when I do Madison Square Garden. You know what I mean?

[00:11:34] And like, I'm still gonna hit him up about that, you know what I mean? Like, I'm gonna be like, bro, like in eight years, I'm like, Hey, like I'm a man of my fucking word. Roll through. 

[00:11:41] Adam: Yeah. There was, there's a handshake on the line right now for that. Just so everybody know.

[00:11:45] Skrizz: Know who you're, you know who you are.

[00:11:46] Adam: Yeah. There is a official handshake that when Skrizz plays at MSG.

[00:11:52] Skrizz: You're coming up on Drumm by the band. You know who you are? Yep. Yep. Yeah. No hard feelings. You owe me a steak dinner though. I know that much. But you can do that after MSG. I'm in no rush. 

[00:12:03] Adam: That's a, that's a deal All day, all day, every day.

[00:12:05] I love that. Yeah. So no, you never, you never felt like you outgrew any friends. None of that. No. So it sounds like your only real friend issue is just, you just are scared about, you're worried about being betrayed. You're worried about someone just back stabbing you. 

[00:12:22] Skrizz: Yes, for sure. 

[00:12:23] Adam: You have trust issues, man.

[00:12:24] You gotta, you and Drake gotta gotta huddle up.

[00:12:26] Skrizz: Me and Drake. That's funny. You gotta fucking all 

[00:12:31] Adam: So you ready for some some rapid fire? 

[00:12:33] Skrizz: Let's bring it home. Bring home strong. 

[00:12:34] Adam: Let's do it. Here we go. So best friend in the music industry.

[00:12:46] Skrizz: My friend Andrew or Chris Weby, I'd say. 

[00:12:51] Adam: Okay, who's the who's the one friend you'd want to do a you wanna perform an MSG with?

[00:13:02] Skrizz: Probably my friend Andrew. Cause we've played together musically the longest. 

[00:13:06] Adam: Who is the the nicest, you know, big time celebrity you've met that that was maybe a little surprising for you? 

[00:13:12] Skrizz: Pat Monahan from Trane is like the nicest, most respectful, time giving human being I've ever met. And he is like one of the best selling artists on earth.

[00:13:20] And you wouldn't guess that, which is crazy, like super nice, like he will. Like I, we, we did a show for like 15,000 people in Pennsylvania, and I texted him like right put, I was in the same festival with him. I texted him like the morning of, and he like set me up to like be on stage with him the whole night.

[00:13:38] And again, like he doesn't do meet and greets, like he's sold like. They're like the biggest like white person band ever. People forget how big train is. And like, he just like walked off stage and again, like he doesn't do me and greet, he just goes back to his, like he's, he like had a whole like tense just for us and like sat down with me and a really annoying girlfriend for like an hour and just chatted.

[00:14:00] That was a level of like, That was a level of class hack I haven't seen before. He had no reason to do that at all. Like no reason 

[00:14:08] Adam: should we get him on the podcast? I'm a big train fan.

[00:14:11] Skrizz: Yeah. Uh, Let's get him on all, I'm emailing him next week actually, so maybe I'll write it up. 

[00:14:14] Adam: Cool. Let's get him on the podcast.

[00:14:16] I love it. Alright. Who now I, I lost my train of thought with all that. What's up? I had a couple, I had a, I had a good one. Good one locked in there.

[00:14:29] I don't wanna wrap up this rapid fire cause I, I, I have a couple of That's okay. I have you got, I have a couple good ones. So, so train pat, that's who we're gonna have on the podcast. That was nice guest. Okay. That's good to know.

[00:14:48] Which, which place you performed. Okay. Had the nicest, nicest fans. Awesome. Favorite fans.

[00:14:55] Skrizz: Awesome, awesome question.

[00:15:02] Madison, Wisconsin. Fucking rocks. I don't know why that is, but Madison, Wisconsin Fucking rocks. And I heard. On the radio, they were saying like, the most stressful places to work, and they were a bunch of cities and like, like Vegas and you know, whatever. The least stressful city in all of America to work is.

[00:15:19] Madison, Wisconsin not talked about enough nicest fucking people on earth. They're just great. I mean, the Midwest in general is just like, just so nice and down to like, just like they're so happy for you to be there. And if only five people go to the show, it feels like you're at Madison Square Garden.

[00:15:36] It's. I don't know. It's not like that in New York. New York, you know that much, you know? 

[00:15:42] Adam: Oh, yeah. Well shout out to, and you're friends with her too, but shout out to my former roommate Holly. She's from Kenosha, Wisconsin. So, yeah, so Wisconsin does have just a nice, there is Midwest Nice. Is a real thing.

[00:15:55] Skrizz: Yeah. It's very real. Like they're very grateful, like they treat artists with such a level of g. And they know how to have a good time. Like you've been the New York shows, you've probably been LA shows, like, everyone's so stiff and they're all Yeah, they're not, they're not having a good time. It's awful.

[00:16:10] It's awful. East Coast. Get it together. What are we doing? It's awful. 

[00:16:15] Adam: All right. Who is the who's the most famous person you have in your, your 3000 plus contact list in your phone? 

[00:16:23] Skrizz: I got a couple. I'll just say I have Everett Ruben's phone number. I have Eric Church's phone number.

[00:16:34] I feel like I got a couple wild ones.

[00:16:39] I mean, I got Pat's number. I feel like he's not that famous though way. He's just like, his band's a big deal. I say that's it. I got Rick Ruben, our church's number. 

[00:16:46] Adam: Those are big ones. All right, so last, last one in rapid fire, which was kind of like a semi rapid fire, which is my fault for, for the, the little break in the middle.

[00:16:54] But this last one, 

[00:16:56] Skrizz: time out. Are you not? Someone's off. I got Adam Rosen's number. That's the biggest deal. Manifesting, looking back on this episode, 2035. Me saying I've had Adam Rosen's number. Numero Uno Eric Church. Well said. 

[00:17:10] Adam: Exactly. Well said. Well said. All right, so I know you're not partying right now. I know that's not, not part of what you're doing.

[00:17:16] Skrizz: I still bar every night. Don't get me wrong. I'm like every night, 

[00:17:19] Adam: all right. Sober partying or if you ever wanted to, to, you know, have go party with alcohol again, which I'm not con condoning, but regardless, never, never know. Of course, regardless. Who is the one person you would like to party with? 

[00:17:33] Skrizz: Can they be dead? Sure Eddie money. I'd love to do like a shit ton of cocaine with Eddie money. I don't even do cocaine, but I just love the novelty of just getting real fucked up with Eddie money in like the eighties. That's some like, La Strip Club Bender night. Just something about getting fucked up with Eddie money.

[00:17:54] Sounds pretty cool. R i p Eddie Money.

[00:17:57] Adam: R i p. Eddie Money. Any money? Yeah. Honestly, I don't, I don't even know who Eddie Money is. 

[00:18:01] Skrizz: Eddie, anyone has tickets to Paradise? Take me home tonight. Oh, nice. Oh, that is a jam.

[00:18:10] He had some bangers. He's a big influence on me, like a really big influence on me. Actually, I actually, him I reached out to him several times before he died. Like I harassed him on social media, emailed his manager. I was like, I have hit records for you. I see my song. Bad Desires was like, made for Eddie Money.

[00:18:26] But yeah, I was like, Eddie Money we're making hits, and then he died. So I forgive you, Eddie Money. You missed out. 

[00:18:33] Adam: Could have been Eddie Money. Well, in another lifetime you would. Eddie Money, you're gonna have some fun and.

[00:18:38] Skrizz: Take some hits, hang out with some strippers, do some blow. It's gonna be great.

[00:18:42] Adam: Yep. Not condo any of that here on The Rise, but hey, what you do in your own, in your own time, it's your business.

[00:18:48] Skrizz: Your business. Cool. So 19, it's been a pleasure, Adam. Have an amazing evening. Talk soon.

[00:18:53] Adam: All right man. See ya.

[00:18:53] Skrizz: See you guys. Bye.