When the neon glow of the city lights meets the roar of engines, it's not just about horsepower—it's about heart. Join me, The Hood Florist, and my esteemed guest D. Franklin, the founder of Metal Militia Motor Club as we navigate the twists and turns of car culture, from the adrenaline-fueled underground takeovers to the community-forging power of organized car meets. Daniel brings a wealth of experience, from his roots in the scene influenced by his mechanic father to his pivotal role in steering enthusiasts towards more respectful gatherings that pay homage to our shared passion while prioritizing safety.
This episode throttles up a conversation that's turbocharged with stories of evolution within the car community, where the rubber of personal anecdotes meets the road of broader cultural shifts. We share the visceral experiences that underpin our love for the scene and the sobering moments that have redirected our course. You'll ride shotgun as we reflect on heart-wrenching tragedies, the dynamics of car clubs, and our personal journeys that drive the quest for a space where enthusiasts can converge safely and legally, away from the city's watchful eye.
Amid the growl of engines and screech of tires, there's a symphony of community and connection waiting to be heard. We don't just shine a spotlight on the high-octane thrill of takeovers; we illuminate the power of the car community to rally around good causes, support local businesses, and build bridges over the divides that can stall the wheels of progress. From my own experiences with law enforcement to Daniel's admirable efforts in activism, we put the pedal to the metal on discussions that could shape the future of our culture—one where respect, collaboration, and diversity aren't just buzzwords, but the fuel that drives us forward.
Follow our instagram for more updates http://instagram.com/therollbackshow
When the neon glow of the city lights meets the roar of engines, it's not just about horsepower—it's about heart. Join me, The Hood Florist, and my esteemed guest D. Franklin, the founder of Metal Militia Motor Club as we navigate the twists and turns of car culture, from the adrenaline-fueled underground takeovers to the community-forging power of organized car meets. Daniel brings a wealth of experience, from his roots in the scene influenced by his mechanic father to his pivotal role in steering enthusiasts towards more respectful gatherings that pay homage to our shared passion while prioritizing safety.
This episode throttles up a conversation that's turbocharged with stories of evolution within the car community, where the rubber of personal anecdotes meets the road of broader cultural shifts. We share the visceral experiences that underpin our love for the scene and the sobering moments that have redirected our course. You'll ride shotgun as we reflect on heart-wrenching tragedies, the dynamics of car clubs, and our personal journeys that drive the quest for a space where enthusiasts can converge safely and legally, away from the city's watchful eye.
Amid the growl of engines and screech of tires, there's a symphony of community and connection waiting to be heard. We don't just shine a spotlight on the high-octane thrill of takeovers; we illuminate the power of the car community to rally around good causes, support local businesses, and build bridges over the divides that can stall the wheels of progress. From my own experiences with law enforcement to Daniel's admirable efforts in activism, we put the pedal to the metal on discussions that could shape the future of our culture—one where respect, collaboration, and diversity aren't just buzzwords, but the fuel that drives us forward.
Follow our instagram for more updates http://instagram.com/therollbackshow
Yo yo yo, it's your boy. The Hood Floors you tuning in to the motherfucking rollback show. And this is an epic episode already in itself because, coming from the takeover culture, I have Mr Antietake over himself. If you know, you know, go ahead, tell him what's up. D.
Speaker 2:Daniel Franklin. I owned founder MettaMotion Motor Club and I'm basically the guy that you guys been hearing about from the anti-takeover group.
Speaker 1:So and it's kind of funny cause we had a short time to talk on the phone when we set up the interview. But like it's not really that you anti-takeover.
Speaker 2:No no.
Speaker 1:It's really more so.
Speaker 2:I think there's a proper, better way of doing it, where you guys will be looked on favorably by the law, by everyone, by the people that are just like trying to get to work and everything.
Speaker 3:Just trying to live their day to day life, so sure, yeah.
Speaker 1:And you've been in the cars. How long my whole life.
Speaker 2:My dad's a mechanic. I got family that was just like in the cars Since I was born. What some of my earliest pictures are? Me being in the garage with my dad working on stuff.
Speaker 1:Okay, yeah, so you are like you're more of the parking chill vibe, right yeah, parking chill cruises, charity events Okay. Yeah. Parking, chills, cruises, charity events I like that, yeah. And if, what made you crossover? Cause we had a quick chat and you was in the drag racing at one point in time, yeah.
Speaker 2:Wasn't even more so. Drag racing. We used to just come downtown do our cruises through the city. We used to go to like to, oh man, we used to go to Lorwack and before Lorwack was popped we used to go host the car meets at Ashland Archer, at the White Castle we used to go to, if you guys know, Doty used to go out there. We used to go off 35th and Rays scene before they put up all the speed bumps and cones, Like basically we were doing the stuff before the takeovers were even a thing in Chicago.
Speaker 1:Exactly, and White Castles was originally one of yo-me spots.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we used to just all congregate there, but there was like no structure whatsoever. So then we started saying hey, what if we had some structure? Yeah.
Speaker 2:And I was part of another crew, Swift City back in 2018. Okay 2019 to 2020, actually no 2016 with Swift City. 2017, 2018 was Street Dreams. I was one of the founders of it, and then I split off and I just decided you know what, like we should be working with businesses, we shouldn't be doing all this crazy stuff. It's hurting these businesses. I've seen people get hurt. I've seen people getting the fights over the littlest things. Yeah.
Speaker 2:And guns getting drawn on people. It's like there's no point of it. It's like we're here for the cars, we're here for the fun and enjoyment of it and I hear the worry of like this is gonna be our last car meet.
Speaker 1:Facts, and that's something I say all the time.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1:Just put the guns down, put the guns down, put your dukes up. If anything, win, lose or draw, you live to fight another day and everybody go home. Yeah.
Speaker 1:That's the beauty of like, even though we're from separate worlds like you can have a similar moral compass. You know what I'm saying. Like I come outside because for me and I was on the takeover scene like wholeheartedly every weekend in 2022. Up until like the fatality rate started rising. Like you see, we had a lit weekend and you having the time of your life, and you wake up Sunday, Monday morning news they talking about a car crash near a meat location. Four teams died. Like shit, like that was starting to bother me and I'm knowing that they in there drunk. You know what I'm saying. So that's why I stepped away.
Speaker 1:I spent majority of 2023 not active on the takeover scene and it was funny because the first time I popped out in the whole 2023, I blew my motor on my car. Oh really, yeah, man. Like it's crazy how it worked. But like the shit was just you know me being old, like I was being deterred by the fatality rate. Like every weekend somebody died. Then one weekend a lady died. Ain't had nothing to do with the takeover, she just walking. I'm not even sure if that incident was directed, was a direct connection to the takeovers, but it hit you some type of way right?
Speaker 1:Yeah, because they definitely pented on the takeovers. The media painted it us terribly, but it started to like, shape and mold my thought process how to maneuver what? Can we do different? Because when I first got on the scene it was some form of organized chaos.
Speaker 2:It was also an art. Yeah, because you're doing photography, videography, whatever you do, you're creating an art. Essentially is what you're trying to do. Yeah, and I had a similar experience, lower Whacker. There was an SUV whipping it past me, smacked, you know how. There's an upper amp going up. Yeah.
Speaker 2:It's an upper Whacker Smacked right in that concrete pole. Everyone's dead in the car and I was the first one up there and that's what changed my mind, that's what made me realize, hey, what we're doing here it's not helping people. It's only hurting people and I'm not going to say I'm perfectly innocent. I used to run through the like, go through the streets with my maximum, when I had my maximum, acting stupid.
Speaker 2:I was 19 at the time. Acting like an idiot I can't be claim myself as an innocent, but Facts. I'm pretty sure you can also say that you got a. You can change and there's an ability to change.
Speaker 1:Nah, for sure, because I was in the streets before I started my business, you know what I'm saying. So I can definitely affirm, believer, that you can change, and it's just about knowing what and how to change. So my next question for you, like cause you were on the news before, yeah, what was your thought process when you went on the news?
Speaker 2:My thing was which time I was on the news. Are you talking about the most recent?
Speaker 1:No, I'm talking. So the one I'm familiar with was around the time when I first started hearing about you, when I first got on the scene.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, cause I was on I think about four times so far. Okay, I was talking about, like, what happens with Chicago Car scene, yeah, and like I got some people I know that are on the media side of CBS two, okay, and I'm friends with a few of them and they were doing a story on it and the one that was the most recent was that made the takeover guys lose their mind. Was that girl falling out of the car and getting ran over? And my thought process on it was, the minute that stuff happens and it's publicized, they go after everyone, the media goes after everyone, the cities go after everyone. They think we're all one.
Speaker 2:All one, when in reality I feel like there's a obligation on my part of the park and chill scene that trying to like my voice was more so. There's gotta be a better way to do it. This can't keep happening. It's not beneficial for anyone and it is like it's something that I don't support and I don't want my name being tied with it, my name being associated with it Cause a few of the media people were trying to blame everyone, say anyone that owns a car group is affiliated about with this stuff, when in reality there's a majority of the car groups out there that are not for this, that don't even go to takeovers.
Speaker 1:Don't go to takeovers. And that's the thing. And that's why I invited you on, because you have history with car culture inside of Chicago and, like I was saying on the phone, the takeovers are the most popping thing now, but back in the day we were equivalent, like just the car clubs in general was equivalent to the takeover, because the amount of people that came together you couldn't go down South Chicago. It'd take you an hour to get down South Chicago from 79th to 71st. You know what.
Speaker 2:I'm saying you just have the whole and the cops couldn't do anything.
Speaker 1:That's what I'm saying. Cops couldn't do nothing because it was so many cars.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and that's why I'm thinking the takeovers understand that cops can't do anything. They're powerless. You get like what one or two cops? You guys outnumber them in 1001?.
Speaker 1:Shit, not, no more, no, no. They pulling up full force but you still outnumber them and that's the cops 20, 30 cops and they hopping out on foot grabbing people. I know they're doing that to spectators. Yeah, they getting aggressive and my whole thing is like grabbing the spectators. You're not changing anything. You're not changing anything.
Speaker 2:What you gonna get a couple Instagram names Like yeah, the thing that I've and I've tried saying this to the city. I've talked to Alderman, I had interviews with the Alderman, I had meetings with Alderman you gotta give a spot, you gotta give a place for the takeovers to have. It might not be as crazy as how it is here. It might not be everything allowed like guns, knives, fucking, alcohol being drank out in public. It might have to be a little limited, but the city has to step up and give a spot for the takeovers to happen, Cause they gonna continue to go on it's gonna continue, whether they like it or not, and I the more, the bigger it gets, the more people get attracted to it.
Speaker 1:And I ain't gonna lie to you. Like I'm been a car guy, was in the drag race, grew up in it. Like my father sold my mother's car because he was, like you, not gonna kill yourself and my baby Cause she was drag racing while pregnant with me. Like the adrenaline and shit is in my blood.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, it's not in your blood.
Speaker 1:This shit live in my veins and like so, and my family, like we grew up in the drag race world. Then, as I got older, my mother fucking went into. Like I never joined a car club but I used to hang out with them Like I'm doing all the cruises Shit, we on South Chicago, I we going to Washington park, I we going to the circle, I'm following the trail all night, I'm outside all night. And those were great times and I think I think the city made a mistake trying to stop that because they were peaceful, like yeah, you get some some stupid motherfuckers within some shit pop off, but that's it happens, it's happens life Everywhere, everywhere.
Speaker 1:Like you can't stop everything and everybody Like they they call it they self trying to stop something from happening. But then you take away an outlet for people Like exactly, and when you take away an outlet for people, it makes it more difficult to for them to for them to motherfucking deal with their day to day lives. So now you got people running around angry because you took away something where they could displace this anger in a in a healthy way.
Speaker 2:And that's actually. I know there's not a lot of people that know this, but there's several takeover guys that I talk to. I give them spots. I have spots that my family used to own that so tucked away that you won't even notice it's there. I gave them a few different spots out in the suburbs near Bensonville area and then like nobody you would never know like there was a parking lot around there.
Speaker 2:And it's like, it's like everyone thinks that like, just because I speak out against how certain things are with the takeovers, that I'm completely anti-takeover, anti this, anti that Like me.
Speaker 2:I got a challenger. You saw it. It's I swing it. But I know there's a proper way of doing it where you won't have the like the problems that the cities will give you, police will give you, the public gives you cause. Like, anytime you see a takeover on the news, anytime you see it on like Instagram or something, it's always someone getting hurt, someone complaining about it, someone just like crashing out.
Speaker 2:Like what if you showed the adrenaline side of it, like how they do it, the tracks, like what if you were able to get a spot out here in Chicago Cause, like you know, 37th and race scene near there? Yeah, big, open, fricking pizza land. It's been sitting there for ages, ages. We were talking to the alderman telling him listen, it's been sitting here. What's stopping you guys from like opening something up here? What's stopping you from allowing people to be there? And it's huge, massive. And I've talked to some of the other takeover groups, like a few of the members from like 312 and stuff Like they. They absolutely despise me, they don't like a lot of them don't like me, but like a few of them, they're starting to understand I'm not a hundred percent against them, like I'll respect them as a people.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you just don't care for the culture of takeovers.
Speaker 2:Like, but there's an ability, there's gotta be a way. There's gotta be a way for them to still be able to do their stuff to a proper, to get their own place, Like I know there's some legal pits opening up. I've seen some stuff online. I've seen some videos from it. I haven't stopped out there yet. It's beautiful. They had a church and someone bought off the land and they opened up a legal pit. Looks fucking beautiful.
Speaker 1:I think you're talking about Roe hogs and Indian Indianapolis.
Speaker 2:I don't know it's, it's closer to here, yeah, yeah, so it's not that far. It's a couple like a couple hours you gotta send me the details, yeah. They were posting something up online. I just saw it going around. I'm like yo, this is freaking cool. You got everyone still swinging, everyone enjoying their time, everyone's still partying out. Yeah, and it's amazing, y'all are having a good time and it's like that's. That's a good thing it should be allowed to be having.
Speaker 1:But man, I tell, I tell people all the time, I tell people all the time we should do a petition to get Ford City or talk to the owners of Ford City and rent out the property. Let let us rent your parking lot for the weekend.
Speaker 2:I know everyone would be down to throw in a couple bucks. You feel me Like how do you think these, these big groups that are doing like buying, renting out whole stadiums and stuff, are doing it? Yeah, you just charge us a small admission here and there. Yeah, you raise the money to buy the rent out the property. There you go. You got your place to swing as much as you want Terri and Hope have fun.
Speaker 1:So, like I know a couple guys that have been like, was on the parking lot scene with you but became Takeover Guy. Of course, yeah and um.
Speaker 2:You get bored.
Speaker 1:Yeah, because, because it's like when you, when you chasing that high, because the adrenaline, that's what everybody's chasing at the takeover, it's the adrenaline. Yeah. When you, when you chasing that high it it, it's hard for you to like sit still. Yeah. Um, but tell me some some of the benefits of like parking shield communities.
Speaker 2:So how I did. It actually is kind of weird, you know, like with COVID starting. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Back in 2019, it's like I started my club July 4, 2019. Perfect timing with COVID. It was absolutely terrible. We thought there was never going to be another car meet again and I started thinking you know what? What? If we hit up these businesses that are struggling, tell them listen, we'll fill your lot for free. Everyone will be socially distanced People that still come to your business, order food, come out, bring out and just eat in the car. A lot of my I live out in the suburbs. We had a couple of towns that were really struggling, my town especially and there was a taco place and a pizza place and they were just like yeah, we're closing like in two weeks if we can't do this. Like, and they just opened, it was a wonderful family and they hit me up and they're like can you make this happen? Like, is there any way you can make this happen? I'm like yeah.
Speaker 2:I'll do it. So I started hosting car meets and no one else was hosting car meets at the time. Everyone was too worried about it, so we packed a lot. A lot was ran out of spots and I'm like, and just seeing everyone bring out the families, bring out the kids, bring like just coming out looking at cars, still socially distancing and everything, and enjoying their time, I'm like you know what? This is exactly what I was looking for. This is like the premiere of everything that I've ever wanted.
Speaker 2:And, like me, I don't make money off my meets. If anything, I spend a ton of money Just getting the parents, getting all the permission, all that, just working on stuff, buying equipment for my club website up, keeping all that. And it's like for me, it's like almost like giving back to the community, because I feel like every like and that's one thing that I do different than every other club doesn't really do Like I don't care what you drive. I don't care what you drive. You can have a hoopty, you can have a freaking McLaren, I'll still have you use the same person. Not like I grew up with a poor ass family, like we didn't have shit growing up and honestly, I'm glad that I did Because made me realize like owning something really doesn't mean anything.
Speaker 2:I've met way more people that have McLaren's or assholes than I've had with people that bring, like, a Toyota Corolla to a car meet. I met way more nice people with Toyota Corolla is than McLaren's and I try viewing people as a person based off what they have. So that's why I tried doing the takeover guys. It's like I'm like I'll talk to you as a person. I want to have a conversation, I want to speak to you, I want to like get to know you as a person. Not everyone has to be judged based off looks off what they got, thanks. So especially with that start taking off and we essentially grew a community it's like our control community and we just support local businesses. We find businesses looking for make some extra money, looking to boost their sales, and we will flood their whole lot and just pack it full of cars and families and everyone just be enjoying their time.
Speaker 1:Man, and that's a beautiful thing, because I remember when the takeovers was a place where families could be. It's not like that, no more.
Speaker 2:When you guys first started doing it even though I wasn't really for it, it's like it was still nice, it was an art, it was beautiful and people were like, sure, y'all were still doing takeovers, but it was like y'all were having fun, people weren't getting shot, people weren't getting killed, people weren't crashing out, getting too fucked up to be able to drive and crashing out. People weren't beating the hell out of each other over everything and it was actually peaceful. Back then, which I remember, there were several groups running it and I gave them props. I told them you guys are holding it down, keeping it organized. I got to say as long as you guys don't hurt my parking chills, I don't care, it's your own world. And I know some of the groups fell off. They stopped doing them, running the takeovers and then it just went to anarchy. It was every man for himself.
Speaker 1:Well, it's crazy, and I know which crews you speak of. One of them is still active, but, like you said, it has become anarchy because everybody just is every man for themselves. Now you know what? I'm saying, you know I'm talking about that? Yeah, I know exactly who you're talking about.
Speaker 2:The good people.
Speaker 1:No, for sure, For sure.
Speaker 2:And it's like, especially with a few of the groups, that I still talk to some of the owners of the takeover groups and they're will be as cordial as ever. We'll talk and we'll be laughing and joking about shit, and it's like I might not agree with everything they do, but you know what? I respect them as a person. We get along.
Speaker 1:And that's what it's about. It's about having that respect for individuals. But it'd be funny, though, because I'd be seeing my account got shadow banned right Because somebody was under a post talking crazy under one of Leon's posts. Oh, really.
Speaker 1:And so I like get up under their talking shit to do All right like on some troll shit, and it was around the time and it was like damn near I'm going to say it was like around the time when that funny shit was going on, when the motherfucking New York motherfucker was doing that bing bong, oh my God, bing bong, fuck your life.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So I was like using that shit like on some troll shit and do like reported my page Ah see, that's some petty stuff. Block me, got me shadow band, like Instagram sent me a message and was like we will not show your account to any new followers. Wow, I'm like damn. So I've been fighting the algorithm since then and still able to grow my shit.
Speaker 2:But now I just don't troll as much. Oh yeah, I try not trolling.
Speaker 1:If I don't know you, I won't troll.
Speaker 2:And that's it's kind of funny. You brought Leon Like he does, it's some arty, makes it, and like it was funny me first meeting him, it was like he knew I was like no one is the anti takeover guy, which I joke about, that. I'm not really the anti takeover guy, if anything I'm. I consider myself the best asset for the takeovers because try to show them and try and bring them a new age of takeover, essentially bring them a whole new way of thinking.
Speaker 2:It's like if you do it right, bro you, you'll be invincible. Yeah, like and like, especially with like.
Speaker 1:Just getting a spot, that's all you got to do, and I tell people like we at any given, let it be a main event. Yeah. A main event like Cinco or A, forfeit your lives, yeah, whatever. Any major holiday weekend. Yeah. Or they do like whenever we do like multi state takeovers.
Speaker 2:Oh, yeah, those are freaking cool.
Speaker 1:I've seen.
Speaker 2:I've seen a few of them.
Speaker 1:Like it'd be crazy. You know what I'm saying. Like, and it is. It has gotten to that point of. At any moment, we can have anywhere from 200 to 2000 people outside. Yeah, there's no way. All of us can't come up with a hundred dollars and go motherfucking. Purchase a plot of land. Yeah. Whether it's in a, whether it's an hour away or whatever.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's what I've been trying to work on for the last couple years, because I want the replace essentially a car haven. Yeah. No matter what you are about for the car community, you deserve a place to be.
Speaker 2:And like I've talked to so many people, it's always talking, it's always talking. I think past that, unfortunately, but it's like it's also kind of cuts into my background a little bit. Like I came like from like a not so rich family, I guess, like we're pretty poor growing up, like hand me down clothes, all that, and I went to like school. That was like my parents tried paying for it. It was like they bust their ass as hard as they could. They were working insane just trying to get us into like a Lutheran school. Yeah.
Speaker 2:And like we were like the poorest of the poor there, like it was not, not good. It was like when you're kind of the outcast, you kind of realize like, if you like, if you ever get a chance to build your own community, you want to be the most beautiful thing ever, accepting of everyone, no matter where you come from. Yeah.
Speaker 2:And it's like my ideal. My idea for that is like If there was like a plot land you can get, place that anyone can come, whether you're swinging it, whether you're pulling up and chilling, whether you're showing off your old hoop tee or your brand new McLaren, whether you're a food truck vendor, you want a place to sell your food. Just think of it. How beautiful that'd be.
Speaker 1:Be fucking amazing, but that would that. So that would be where me and you would have to figure out ways to bridge the gap between our community and your community, because we can. It's motherfuckers like me and other motherfuckers from the takeover community that wouldn't mind having one set place, a lot of these young kids. They enjoy the thrill of the police and running from spot to spot. I don't. I have to. After after six months of motherfucking, filling up my charger twice in one night, chasing this shit all fucking weekend. I'm spending and gas prices has giraffe pussy. I'm spending damn near a hundred dollars every time I feel this bitch up and we running all fucking night. Yeah, you ain't running slow, you run fast.
Speaker 2:You're hard Like you drain it through that. You see that needle go down bro.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like I don't mind pulling up somewhere and watching this shit for fucking eight hours. I don't my. I had my very first experience with a legal pit. I called it the practice pit. Yeah it's in Kanga Key.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think it's the same place. Is it by a church? Oh, used to be a church. I think it's the same place we're talking about. Sounds very familiar. It might be, yeah, in the country, in the country, middle, nowhere.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, but it but. But they got a small small place. Yeah, it's a small little little pit. That's why I call it the practice pit, because now I didn't been to Texas House of Power. That's a giant Norman's fucking.
Speaker 2:What are you doing?
Speaker 1:out there man, I took the pocket. Oh dude. I'm going back there, you go. February 10th. That's legit and that's that's my goal now. Like I want to travel and go see new places and see new things, but I'm going after the legal aspect of it because I got too much to lose chasing this shit.
Speaker 2:That's actually. Another reason is I got my CDL. You know, I used to be an overrow truck drivers to travel across the country. Yeah, and now my weekends I just I'd go to the car meets in different country and different states, different cities, to see what's all about and it's like I'd see takeover. I bring my freaking semi to takeovers Like I literally detach my trailer, just bring my Bob tail and just park up and just see what's going on and you just see people swinging stuff. Yeah.
Speaker 2:And it was like before I started Metal Militia and it was interesting. I saw how both sides were, how both aspects were, and it just got me thinking. It's like I like I discovered the parking lot stuff because of COVID, yeah, but it's like really got me thinking as of late, like what's stopping it from like bringing two worlds together? Man you can.
Speaker 1:you got to be away, there's got to be a way man when I tell you it is like it's just all about getting the right people together, getting the right resources together, Like um, because it can be done. Yeah, I'm 34 years old. You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1:As much as I have fun being with the youth and being called up and all that shit, like like, and a lot of the younger generation that I have locked in with look up to me, like they see what I'm doing. They watch me pushing my business. They like, they see me live in my life and they look up to me. So I want to, I want to make sure I'm setting the right example for the ones that's set up for me and as watching me, I want them to know that a the street same way as that, no more is. It's fun, it's a great time. But when you right there in the thick of it, when this shit started getting bad, because the police are only going to start getting more and more aggressive, because it it it initially like, I remember times where police had just pull up, run us off, cut the lights on, you got to go.
Speaker 2:That's all was with our stuff back in the day they pull up with their lights on. We moved to the next spot, yeah.
Speaker 1:Same exact shit, but now it's not that no more. Now they pulling up, aggressive. They not just sending blue and whites, they sending detectives in blue and white cars, the motherfuckers who licensed to throw these spike strips and like they trying to catch motherfuckers. They want to take people to jail because in them it will look so much better in the media if they could catch them. Oh, we caught a corporate this weekend.
Speaker 2:I saw a video going around this morning and it showed a good 50, 60 takeover guys being walked out, walked down a sidewalk with their hands on their head.
Speaker 1:No, it was 150 motherfuckers that got arrested 150.
Speaker 2:150. They kept caught all of them.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:They they.
Speaker 1:They boxed them in. I saw it this morning. I'm like everybody got arrested.
Speaker 2:Holy shoot and they were like dude. It was like it was like some gulag looking type of stuff.
Speaker 1:Like marching.
Speaker 2:A bunch of people like and they were young people onto a bus, yeah, Onto a bus, hands on their head with guns drawn on them.
Speaker 1:It's like and see that's the thing Like you, putting so much at risk for a night of fun. Yeah Like, yeah it's fun, yeah it's a bad and yeah it's fuck CPD, because they be some crooked motherfuckers too.
Speaker 1:Oh we not. We not saying we're not saying be for the police or whatever. We're saying beings, be smarter. Yeah, because you could still have the same kind of fun. Like it's all about how you create that street. Feel like Texas House of Powers the first legal pit I've been to, where the shit feels like I'm on the streets but I'm in the same place for eight hours. Yeah, like it literally gives that grit and grime, that adrenaline rush of the streets because they not barricading, they make everybody sign a waiver, they not barricading motherfuckers back to where they can't be in the pit or you know what.
Speaker 2:I'm saying, if you want to take that risk, you take that risk.
Speaker 1:You take that risk, but no, it's on you. Yeah. Like that's it. That's it, like we can very much so do something similar All around the globe. It's just all about it being done.
Speaker 2:I know you just touched on a subject about police and the corruption. Yeah.
Speaker 2:It's bad Even for our parking jails. We've had cops come up to our stuff Hot headed as hell, trying to push us out, trying. I've had cops lie to my face telling me they talked to the organizer of the part of the meat. And I'm like, really, you talked to the organizer? He's like, oh, who'd you talk to? And he's like, oh, they talked to this guy here. And he's like, but some guy was over there. I'm like, really, so you talked to the organizer, the owner of metal militia. Yeah, he said they were shutting down this meat. I'm like you say you talk to me. That he's like, oh yeah, nice yeah.
Speaker 1:Line, line out his ass.
Speaker 2:Like I've had multiple towns where the cops are crooked man and they would look for any reason to shut down something Like, but like we have some good ones, like Buffalo Grove. Last night we had a memorial for one of our guys not mine, but he ran space society. Joe was a freeze. He passed away and we had a memorial and they were at first going shut us down right away. I told him, like give it a chance. Like there's not going to be any brevin, no two step and no burnouts. Like we're going to treat this a lot with respect. You know my people are going to stay after. Clean up the lot, make it look better than we even came in here. Okay.
Speaker 2:Let us host our whole event. We close it two hours early just because we packed a lot. We ran out of room, like people were like double parking, all up and down the whole thing, and it's like like we had probably good 1500 people there and it was just insane just packed.
Speaker 1:But now just imagine Both coming together. You got 1500 people with a bunch of fly ass cars they want to see here. Oh yeah, this is a showcase. Yeah, you get to walk through view the showcase and if you want to motherfucking get, get some adrenaline feeling walk right over here and it's a pit or it's a drag strip.
Speaker 2:I know some of these people that have these show cars. If they had an ability to go to a place to swing their stuff, they would love, and they'd love to bring some passengers along too. Yeah, a little helmet on and stuff, put it on. We used to, because I get rides in my car all the time to the kids. Yeah, um, anyone that's hits me up at the meat, I'll take you down the street with your parents where I can y'all have some fun and they love it. Just five minute ride, kids and the parents enjoying the hell out of it. So it's like we I still understand that want for adrenaline Like I got that too I got. Like I was fortunate enough to have places that I know where I can swing it. And I talk to businesses, like different property owners. I say, hey, like it's okay if I give you a call sometime here and there. Like you're whipping my car around and stuff just in case the cops call you and they're like no problem. Like and that's the one thing that honestly, a lot of these car, uh, these takeover groups could do Hit up, hit up industrial parks, hit up with the property owners at some of these places.
Speaker 2:They don't care. They don't care about a couple tire marks. Yeah, a lot of them, a lot of them will say no, like I. Probably you get 10%, maybe even 5% will say yes. But just think of that, just the ability to be able to say, hey, I've got a spot, we can swing it, I have permission here. And if the cops come tell them that we have permission, they call the property owner. Property owners. Yeah, dude, they're a lot of swing here, we can have fun. Dude, there's your problem solved right there, in a smaller aspect of it, it's. It's a cool thing because there's a lot of bit like property owners that understand that Yo, like, we're trying, they're trying to have fun, they're asking permission, they're not just coming here to destroy my land.
Speaker 1:And that's the thing. Like a lot of these people, um, a lot of these, a lot of, a lot of these younger generation, like I said, they in it.
Speaker 1:They in it for the adrenaline rush, they're in it for the rah, rah, rah like the, the, the thrill of the chasing, all that and that's cool, it's fun while it lasts, yeah, but what happens when you get locked up? Now you, because they coming out with all new kind of laws and shit Ways that they could charge motherfuckers oh type of wild shit Like they're. They're trying their hardest to stop this.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they were even doing one word. Spectators, if you're caught, even vicinity, you can be arrested and charged. Yeah, I'm like me. I'm a very, very, very constitutionalist person. You have the freedom of travel. You have the freedom of assembly, like your violent constitution rights. Now, I have an issue for that. That's especially like, even with my car, me. It's like they bring up shit like that. They try making laws to hinder us.
Speaker 2:Mm-hmm and that's where I like to say like you know what you're Now we're getting deep into politics and shit, but like you're hindering the Constitution right of freedom of assembly, of freedom of travel, guys have these God-given rights yeah and and To an extent, as long as you're causing destruction to businesses and stuff like.
Speaker 1:Like I just was informed today that Indiana passed a new law that if you Are caught at an illegal takeover and like say, they get your license plate number or VIN number, they can pull up to your home and take your car and you never get it back.
Speaker 2:That's insane.
Speaker 1:That's insane. We go search and see, as you're dude. That's unconstitutional as fuck it is.
Speaker 2:But because they the lawmakers they can do where they can do whatever fuck they want to do.
Speaker 1:That's the thing they think they can yeah, it's about a month fucking, knowing what they can and can't do and really being able to use your, your intellect and resources to make a way To prove, because I'm sure if they took somebody car that I pay for and I paid for your pain.
Speaker 2:Tags is on it. Yeah, paying for the registration.
Speaker 1:Paying pay. I'm paying every fucking fee you motherfuckers charge me on my vehicle. Then you know what I'm saying like yeah there's no way you can take my car and tell me I can never get it back Because I was at this event. I don't give a fuck how illegal his name, none of that shit.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's like the mint, like there will be mistakes where they're going to start assuming just because you have a nice car driving through the area. Mm-hmm that you was there and then they start profiling based off race and all that like man, don't get me started with that. I before I did the car scene, before I even got into anything cars, I still I activist work.
Speaker 2:Uh-huh we used to organize protests. I was with a group that was an Activist hacktivist group called anonymous. We used to do like protests here in Chicago, yeah, and we helped like organize Stuff with like little quad McDonald protests. We did the fight against the. We were just like G2 summit protests. Yeah, I was like really big with the activist stuff Okay, and One of the things I see is like they People lawmakers will always try passing laws to hinder people. They want you surprised, they want you held back and held down, and All it takes is a group of people like takeovers Stand up and say, hey, we got a solution for you.
Speaker 1:Give us a spot.
Speaker 2:That's all we need. That's all we're asking for man.
Speaker 1:I wrote a letter to mayor. Glory lifehood when she was still in office. Yeah, I Don't even know if she ever read it, but it was funny because she was doing a press conference at the at discovery. That old it used to be target on, like 87th and cottage Grove, yeah, dipped off in the cut. But now Discovery credit card company they own it. They opened up a Call center there.
Speaker 1:Yeah and that day she was doing a press conference on behalf of Discovery, but Her initial walking in statement because I did the flowers for the event. Yeah her initial walking in statement was About the takeovers and I had just handed her a letter About the takeovers asking for a location for us. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Give us out of telling us, give us for city or somewhere off the lakefront, yeah, give us Montrose Beach or something. You know what I'm saying anywhere where we're out the way. Like I've always wanted like some car shit. Like since I've been a kid, I always wanted like a Car, a car place we could kick it off the lakefront because, like that was always my piece of mind. Like I used to always drive to the lake park up, jump out motherfucking. Now I'm Pop out, mike, smoke my weed Fucking, walk, walk the lake a little bit. Then I get back in my car. I cool.
Speaker 2:Actually, that's literally what I'm planning on doing right after this. I got a nice cigar in my car right now.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I can't smoke weed because I'm trying to join the CTA right now, but, yeah, got a nice little cigar and only just cruise the Montrose Beach and just hang out and just enjoy my day. You know, and it's it's unfortunate because I understand, like the parking shows scene, the takeovers are two different worlds and I Was lucky to be on the other side, not the takeover, but the city side, yeah, and the suburb side, because I used to live in the city. In fact, I moved out 17, just got my own place, just like fuck it, you know yeah and I Was fortunate enough to learn both both sides of it.
Speaker 2:And it's you guys got your own art form, we have our own art form. But at the same time it's like as I always them, telling them like there's got to be a way to make it work yeah and I'm always open to talking.
Speaker 2:That's the thing. Like my, my chats are never closed. I never tell people like, oh, I don't want to talk to you. I always want to hear what you have to say, and that's what. It was kind of funny because after the news, lot of people just came at me like they were talking in these telegram chats, talking about putting a bounty on me. And all this Talking put it, put a hit on me, and all that. I'm like you know, it'd be kind of crazy if you guys just took, took a step back and just like tried saying something, just tried talking like there was um man I.
Speaker 2:Don't want a name drop, but there was a takeover group my first time, when I was on the news Spouting off Sam a fed, I'm all this, all that, and I told him like hey, let's meet up, let's talk about this. I was expecting to hop out and fight or something. I just went up to like what the first business I ever hosted parking chills at and just was chilling there in the lot waiting for.
Speaker 2:Yeah you brought him and one of his boys and they both came out and they were all aggressive as hell at first. I'm just like hey, just want to talk. Let me at least Hear what you have to say. I'd like to say a few words. You want to say something? Say something you want to throw down? We could throw down, box it out. I'm down for that. And we ended up talking and it's funny because me and one of his boy that he brought Me and him became best friends after he found out what I had to say.
Speaker 2:Hmm and we actually just saw him. Uh what, three days ago. Four days ago, I like we went out to the casino just fucking around chillin and shit and um, it's weird because they ran two of the biggest crews before, like 312 before um, I Don't even know they got like street painters. All that before all these big crews start forming.
Speaker 2:Yeah they were the first takeover guys out there and and, um, and you say before 312 for 312. What was the name of these groups? Oh, dude, it was like Heartless Rex, do you remember them? Yeah, yeah, I hate name-dropping, but it was like literally, we were about to like I swear, I thought there was gonna be a fight. Yeah, we met up, but he, we still have opposite differences and like we still. I don't think he likes me too much based off my opinions, but I mean one of his friends who runs, he runs. Oh fuck, what is it? Shytown suspects okay.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean him became super close friends, yeah, and We'll talk like I feel him as a brother, like I'll take care of him, he takes care of me. Like there'll be times at 3 am he's got a situation, calls me, I'll be there, I'll watch out for my people. Yeah, it's like even some of these other crews out there like they do takeovers. I'm still like close with them. We'll be talking and it's a mutual respecting, like they know they ain't gonna be Sending their takeover guys go fuck up my lots and shit. Yeah, like there we had an altercation in Lombard with I don't. I never found out what crew it was, but Some people said it was a couple different crews. I used to host meets at Shytown Lombard okay, and.
Speaker 2:It massive, massive lot. It was abandoned for the most part, yeah, shitee. And there was a Panda Express and like a Jamba juice or wherever the hell it was, and basically a takeover group came when I wasn't there a Thursday night before my car meet for a Saturday, bricked every single window, the buildings, hmm, through rocks, through all of them. I Get a call Friday In the morning. They're like, hey, like, the sheriff and the fucking sergeant, the captain, all called me from Lombard, pd, do page kind sheriffs were calling me and they're like, hey, like, unfortunately, we properly want to say that you're no longer allowed to host and meets here and all this, all that. And it's crazy because it was a beautiful spot and Even a few of the takeover guys have came out to my spot to just chill the crazy night. The city just want a night to chill. Man, I'm trying to think of who was, um Poseidon, you came out one night.
Speaker 2:Yeah we're just talking like everyone was like worried as hell cuz they saw Poseidon. They thought man, he's gonna start swinging or some shit. And I went up to him. We just started talking and everything was chill and we're all hanging out. I'm just, he brought his whole group was. I'm like man, I hope they don't start. I was, I won't, I won't lie. I was a little worried, but it's like he came respectfully and we spoke. We had a great time. I got respect for the guy.
Speaker 1:No, for sure, like, but that's the thing about the the Poseidon family as a whole, once they left the same only did yeah, because I haven't heard much from him.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:I'm not like he went track for a while, like he got sponsors, like he's trying to Go straight, legit yeah you know I'm saying um and so I.
Speaker 1:Once they, once they stepped off the scene Cuz Papa Poseidon. He had to push back boys. He had crowd control like they had. They direct in traffic all the whole nine. You know what I'm saying. It has to be. Some people have to step up, yeah, and play these positions that are no longer field. When I was out there, I was pushing crowds back or just talking to motherfuckers like you, like I Get. I hear all the time from different people they miss me being outside. Yeah, because the vibe was different when I was outside. Yeah.
Speaker 1:But is no, for me is I Don't mind popping outside If I know the crowd right. So I'd rather go to a smaller private event Than the big mega shit, cuz it's chaotic, out of control. Yeah it's, it's chaos, it's pure fucking chaos. But I love it. I love seeing it.
Speaker 2:I love watching it. It's fucking beautiful. I see some of these drone videos Da Vinci posted and I'm like damn, she's fucking packed like.
Speaker 1:And you be like yeah.
Speaker 2:I'm like and I always imagine it, if you can have something legal like man man, just imagine flying over that, having all the show cars on one side, fucking everyone, just chilling, bringing their families, having concessions, everything working out they have another one where they're just swinging it, having fun, tearing up the turn up the whole entire thing, just going crazy.
Speaker 2:Multiple cars fucking tandeming together, like. Can you imagine that man? Like it would? Just, it would just be the coolest, freaking thing it would. And it's like Rockford Speedway, but to the to the next generation, because I'm not sure. I'm not sure if you're too caught up with Rockford. They closed down Rockford Speedway. They Sold to some mega corporation that's basically putting up condos there. Now. It's unfortunate. It's like all our speedways are. Race tracks are going away. Unfortunately, most of them are owned by older, older people, so they don't want all that.
Speaker 1:Refer, yeah, but I feel like we could potentially find somebody like because they even with them being older, a lot of them were a part of Something of this nature of course.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's true At some point in time.
Speaker 1:You know what I'm saying. Now I do got a question for you, dog. Yeah, let's hear it. This is this, even though you're supposed to be mr Antie. Takeover yeah, I'm Like it now that I know that you're familiar with Some, with, with some key people from the takeover, yeah, as far as skill go, who would you say? Oh, who am I?
Speaker 2:Man, I honestly don't know too many Like personal skill levels, like I've seen some videos but I've never seen like been at the takeover just judging people. Yeah, I know you know Panda. Yeah, I know he can swing. I know A lot of the 312 crew guys. They can swing very well.
Speaker 1:They got control 312 crew guys, yeah, yeah, SRT Huncho. Huncho can swing. Huncho can swing. I've seen it, huncho got it. But you know who I miss seeing from 312? Luke Body Art and Will. Aw man, I've never seen them in a minute and Frank he went by 6.4. Yeah, yeah. Like them. Guys used to put on real shows.
Speaker 2:That was a while ago. Yeah, I was a while ago.
Speaker 1:Used to put on real shows.
Speaker 2:Whatever happened to them?
Speaker 1:Man, they just live in their lives, not a part of the scene. Yeah, body Art just bought a.
Speaker 2:GTR. Aw, see, that's my goals. There is fucking GTR. If I stop dumping money in the post-in-parking shows, I'd be having a GTR by now, man yeah a lot of the three on two. I know a lot of their guys. They can swing really well. That's their T-Huncho. He swings really well. I've seen videos of his. I've seen stuff where they capture all of it and I'm like dude, he's decent, he's decent, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:Huncho holding the name down. Yeah, for sure, yeah.
Speaker 2:I wish a lot of them drove manuals, though.
Speaker 1:Man tell me about it, Mine's manual.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I swing mine. Yeah, I can perfect that rollback.
Speaker 1:I bet you can.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:I bet they're motherfucking wicked too. Aw, dude, it's fine.
Speaker 2:And then it's actually going away in March for a couple weeks, okay, and then getting some work done by Sound Performance. Okay. Out in Bensonville.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, that's going to be lit.
Speaker 2:Dude, you're looking to do a lot to it.
Speaker 1:I'm going to have to lock in with you. So I could, so I could, I'm finna start coming out to the parking to you.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, dude. It's fun.
Speaker 1:Like, like, because what I do with the legal pits, like I'm going to fucking you know, I'm going to fucking pop out with my little camera and do like a rollback show vlog. Oh, hell, yeah, I want to do the same thing with y'all man.
Speaker 2:It's amazing. That's the thing that I tell all the takeover guys like if you ain't revving and doing burnouts in two step and like we try to keep it as calm as possible because like we got people walking, dogs and stuff with their little kids being pushed into strollers, it's like you're chill, come chill. Like have a nice ass freaking meal. Dogs usually give discounts during those days and they enjoy having us there.
Speaker 1:I'm definitely coming to check out.
Speaker 2:I'm looking forward to it.
Speaker 1:So now I'm going to just get dive into some questions.
Speaker 2:Let's go for it.
Speaker 1:What was your first takeover experience?
Speaker 2:Oh man. So it was kind of funny. It was the day because I really didn't go to takeovers when I had my maxima. Okay, I went for the parking, I went for the, just the cruises through the city and then I ended up stopping doing that, going to suburbs hosting parking shows. Okay.
Speaker 2:My maxima got crashed out one time. I was just at stoplight. Some lady texted and driving to smoke me going 60. And I was looking at a challenger already and the day I bought my challenger, I took it downtown and I met up with Panda because he was like hyping me up. He's like there's no fucking way, you just bought that. I'm like, yeah, dude, like fucking got it. He's like, dude, you got to bring it down and show me a freaking.
Speaker 2:We went down to Whole Foods Garage. I was just parked there and everyone's just checking it. I let Panda hop in it, rev it up and shit, fuck, he's enjoying himself, yeah, and we're all just chilling. Then a cop comes and I'm like, seeing everyone just take off, I'm like you know what? I just bought this car. I know for a fact, if I tried taking off right now I'm a crash. It's my fuck, someone's going to hit me. It was just 2K, so I just parked there, yeah, and I ended up just waiting for everyone to leave. And then the cop comes up to me and he's like, what are you doing here? So I'm like, yeah, I'm just not trying to crash this thing. He's like, okay, just going out, have a good day, man. I'm going to fuck. I'll talk to cops. I'll tell them, like, don't give a fuck. Like. I'll tell them straight up, like, just do what I'm doing. I'll leave when I can, I'll be the last motherfucker out and they'll be all pissed off and shit.
Speaker 1:And it was crazy because when I was on the scene, I was always the last, one of the last people to leave.
Speaker 2:Did you always get harassed by cops? Did you ever like get pulled over? What was God? They do that to me when I, because I was the last one out of lower whacker, every time I was made sure my crew leaves and then I get pulled over. And they'd be like it didn't.
Speaker 1:So it didn't start like. At first I guess they saw the flowers as something cool and then at some point I guess they started to assume I was a host. So they started getting aggressive with me and I just started taking off on their ass because I'm not like bro, I'm not on that and you not, finna, jam me up in no while situation and I got all these people with me, like when I go out, I typically go out me by myself or I'm out, and I got a bunch of chicks with me and I might have my two little brothers with me, like driving a car, like just being security, so I could like, full on, be in hood floor.
Speaker 1:It's mode night. Looking over my shoulders. I got somebody there watching my back. You know what I'm saying, man. It just it just. I used to could talk to them, and then they started getting aggressive. And then Nick and Leon got arrested and when that shit happened I was like, oh yeah, I'm, if they arrested them, they damn sure gonna try to get me.
Speaker 2:The day I remember Leon getting arrested man, I was like there's no fucking way, like he's not doing anything wrong. He was just chilling.
Speaker 1:Yeah, sergeant Dick, sergeant Dick Buck is ain't on the force. No more after, really.
Speaker 2:See, I really wish that Because I recently just got sponsored by an attorney.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:And he takes care of everything I got. If you ever look up a cool car law, okay, this guy fix anything. I got pinned with $50,000 of fines from Schomburg for hosting a parking show to support local business.
Speaker 1:That's crazy.
Speaker 2:They got me dropped down to $850, $800 and a $50 court call speed.
Speaker 1:So that's crazy though 50 G's bro. But I'm helping.
Speaker 2:I'm helping a business and your community Exactly, and I'm helping every every time I've driven past that freaking lot. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Empty, empty, empty, empty. The freaking pizzeria that because it was a shite. They opened up a place in Schomburg, off of I can't even think of the road now Shite opens up. And then there was a place called Joe's Pizza right next to it. Yeah, Small little family that's trying to put their kid through college and shite's these got. A whole family is trying to keep and Joe's Pizza. They found out we're doing the car army and they brought their whole family to work at the pizzeria and they're freaking thanking me, the fucking dad's. Like giving me August. Like you don't know how much this helps our family. Like this is keeping my kids through college. Like you guys don't know what keeps the lights on. You see, here every day it's empty. Like it's people only want delivery nowadays. They don't want to come in and buy food and it's unfortunate. Yeah.
Speaker 2:And it's like everyone was respectful, nobody was bothering anyone, everyone was just being peaceful and the cops were just off the handle.
Speaker 2:And it's like just imagine, I can't imagine how they treat you guys when, for the takeovers, they just man if they're lying to us, if they're trying like they pulled the owner of shite out of the restaurant, took him around the corner and we're grilling him and like saying like you're going to get your store shut down, threatening him and all this stuff. And then I walked up in the Maverick media and my guy and we all had the cameras and stuff and they walk away instantly. It's like the men with the cameras on them, they walk away.
Speaker 1:Because they know they be bullshitting and they know they be motherfucking, using that badge and that gun to their advantage and they just a bunch of pussies who probably didn't get no pussy in high school and fucking would probably got bullied. So we went and signed up for the police academy or went to the military so they could get tough and then went to the police force, I don't know. But like whatever it is, it bothers me because looking at me you would never know I'm a business owner, I got kids. I still dress like I'm in the streets, but it's comfortable for me Me too.
Speaker 2:I'm a big dude. I like my hoodies and my freaking sweatpants Like bro Don't get me started with that. Everyone wonders because I dressed up for my friends funeral. No one ever sees me dress up. I can dress nice if I need to.
Speaker 1:If I need to. But I would very much so prefer to be in my street years Comfy, handling my beasties and people like my guys.
Speaker 2:They get kind of irritated with me whenever I have my business meetings with, like some of these restaurants or some of these property owners. I'm okay showing up in a T shirt and freaking sweatpants.
Speaker 1:I don't care.
Speaker 2:But they're always like oh, you should dress up for this, you should wear your nice, nice shirt, your dress shirt and tie and shit. I'm like man.
Speaker 1:But they know what we come and do. We come in the parking, chill and make them some money and have a good time while we doing it.
Speaker 2:And the funny thing is I don't ask for a cut. I don't. I do it for free. I know I lose money on it and it's like you know what.
Speaker 1:But that's because you're, you're for the community and that's what's. That's what's important being for the community, being Because without community there is no car show period. Exactly Without, like, even at a parking to you, if nobody pulled up, if people not bringing a family and people just get to talking, like this is not going to go on. Nobody's just going to come, walk past and look at the cars solely Like, yeah, I want to see the cars, but you telling me I can see the cars, meet new people, like it's about the cars and community. That's what car culture is about. It is about cars and communities.
Speaker 2:It's about the body and that's like when I was younger. That brings it back to that. Like I grew up, I didn't have a, I didn't have a group, I didn't have a place to be.
Speaker 2:I guess you can say like I'll cast of the fucking school that I was at. I was like I grew up away from everyone. I like isolated, like I just stayed away from people. I was very anti social before I got into the car scene and I was like I'll talk to anyone and everyone and I, that's one thing Like. I like people, they like be like. Oh, thank you for hosting the car meet tonight. I appreciate it. I'm like hey, I couldn't. I honestly I could not do it without the people that came to support this and bring their cars and socialize and be all friendly. Like I'm just, I just find a spot for us to be, that's all I do. They're the ones that come out and make sure that this happens, so Okay.
Speaker 1:So my next question what are some of the positive takeaways from the shows and what do you want to see rid of from the takeover show?
Speaker 2:There's a lot of positives. I'm actually thanking you for letting me be on here, because most people that like are associated with takeovers. They don't want anything to do with me. Yeah, I'll be honest.
Speaker 2:Even the people that I talk with. They don't want to be known as like hey, I talked to the anti takeover guy or Dan from metal militia and I feel that there's a lot of positives. I want there to be open dialogue between the takeovers, the car communities and the people that are like trying to see a bigger, better version of what's happening, cause even I was talking my parking chills can't last forever. We're losing spots. We're like I'm finding new spots all the time, but we're. What's the point of hopping from spot to spot to spot, moving and just keep on talking new property owners and stuff. Why not have our own place to be?
Speaker 2:Takeovers can do the same thing. I've seen the legal pits. There's no reason you can't bring best of both worlds together and I feel like a lot of the takeover guys try their best. There's a lot of them that are trying to keep it controlled, trying to keep it contained, trying to keep it even though it's illegal, even though they're kind of causing problems. It's like they're trying the best they can to keep it as civil as possible, which honestly, like how they were doing it, like in 2019, 2020, like 2021, when it was like still calm.
Speaker 2:I had respect for that. I have still have respect for the guys that put their name on the line to keep it calm and say I take ownership of what's happening and had their own freaking force of people of make sure everyone's respectful, ain't pulling out guns and shooting each other and a lot of like. Even though we don't see eye to eye and stuff, they want to make it better. They, like I, know that they're trying at least to keep it going, but there's legal way to do it and I'm hoping that they will hear me out and hear that I'm not here to say fuck takeovers, fuck all this like all that, but I want there to be a better version a legal version, one where you guys won't have to be chased by the cops 24 seven.
Speaker 1:So okay, now, what would, now, what would you want to get rid of?
Speaker 2:What, what, like as far as the shows go, what, what, the, the, the concepts of the concept is, to me it's I wouldn't get rid of much, to be honest, like it's all pretty good. Just I know the drinking and driving. I'm a huge person against that. I've lost too many friends to drinking and driving.
Speaker 1:I lost my best friend to a in 2010,. My best friend slash cousin. My mama used to say we were yin and yang, he was the balance and um lost him to a ex state trooper. I'm talking about 10 times over the legal limit of alcohol. Motherfucking had a F 450. He fucking plowed into my cousin's Malibu. They couldn't get him out the car and I and I honestly think that was just God's way of keeping us all from seeing him in that manner. Because the people tried to get him out the car Like they. They stopped the truck like got due to rest. It happened on the freeway. This was in 2010.
Speaker 1:Yeah, um dude he ran into the back of my cousin. The doors wouldn't open. They they tried busting the windows, you name nothing. They could nothing. It was damn near like his windows were bulletproof because they wouldn't bus.
Speaker 1:They trying to get him out the car and they just Like it was crazy. But since then, like, uh, you got to know your limits. I'm big on you knowing your limit. Whatever your limit is, you need to stop two, three drinks before that, before you decide to get in the car. And if you, if you're going to decide to because it's hard to like when you, when you popping outside and you trying to have a good time, of course you're going to drink, it's very easy for you to be like, yeah, I'm going to have a, I'm going to have a drink, but it's when you get shit face blasted with no designated driver where it becomes a problem for me and that's part of it. Like I said, that was part of the reason why I'm leaving the scene. I'm seeing for it. I'm seeing uh car car full of teens killed on the headed or coming from a location I know we was at over the weekend.
Speaker 2:Like and it's like I've lost too many friends just from dumb shit. Second ones the guns. I stay strapped forever. I go like just in case, but pulling a gun out over a minor, argument minor altercation.
Speaker 2:Like me, if I got to handle business, I'll give my friend my gun and be like yo, just make sure this doesn't come out. Just keep it calm. I might. If I throw hands, let me throw my hands. If he pulls something, I'll hope you take care of me. Thanks, but I don't want it falling out if I'm throwing hands. But I've had situations like that. Um, I know a lot of people. They just rely on that and I've seen the shootouts and the takeovers. I'm like holy, holy crap Like this and most of the people that are shooting they're not the best shot Like hitting, like people that don't deserve to have anything. They don't want that. They've been in some bystanders here to have fun and, um, basically the guns, the alcohol, that's basically it. Like, if I ever opened up my own place to do the swinging, you guys perfectly fine, doing basically everything else, Like I know, like how they do it, the thing have a waiver. People want to be reckless and jump into the pit, it's on you, right here On you you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, cause, cause. Like it'd be looking cool, like I'm imagining me in the middle of the pit with a big ass flower arrangement that's about four feet, dancing while niggas is swinging around. Like it'd be fun. Yeah, we'll be having time. You know what I'm saying? Yeah, you can't deny that.
Speaker 2:Yeah Me, I'm a big dude. If a car hits me, bro, I'm doing more damage to that car, I'll acknowledge that, but it's like it's unfortunate. I'm really hoping that there's a solution. There's gotta be a solution because it seems every year the cops are ramping it up more and more with the pressure, with the, because I well did they bring dogs. Last time I think it was a couple of weeks ago they brought out the dogs. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Which means I'm not a big fan of them. Dogs, I'm not like Me either, especially when they had like 10, 15 cops and they're all have dogs and shit just going down the street walking and just I'm a real big history buff. It reminds me of, like, how they did crowd control back in the 60s. Yeah, like I'm not not for that shit.
Speaker 1:No, I'm bringing out dogs and shit is taking it too far, but I think half the time they be trying to bring out the dogs to see where the drugs is at or something. I think that's more so what they looking for. Who got the weed? Oh yeah, but what you need is legal what the fuck, you got to bring some dogs.
Speaker 2:Dogs ain't going to sniff anything else out.
Speaker 1:What the fuck is they doing? No more fucking hair around. No crazy shit Like they wouldn't be able to drive. Stupid Like man thinking police use their brains more than the world to be a better place. They want to use brute force instead of actual intellect.
Speaker 2:Especially if there's open dialogue between the police and the people. I don't think that they'll ever happen. Personally I've tried it with even with my parking chills and they want. But a lot of them try their best, but there's quite a few that are sabotages. They just want to fuck it up.
Speaker 1:Yeah, because they don't want nobody to have fun. Those dickheads that didn't get no pussy in high school.
Speaker 2:I gotta say there are quite a few good ones that I've dealt with, but there are quite a few bad ones that are intermixed and they just ruin it for everyone. They'll sabotage even the good guys trying to do the shit.
Speaker 1:So what are some of the hurdles you had to jump to reestablish parking chills in the wake of the takeover thing?
Speaker 2:A lot of it was just showing who we are as a group Metal militia what do you think of Rockstar? Either Rockstar or I've been compared to a right wing elitist group. I've had people literally call into the police station and say there's this metal militia. I think it's a right wing extremist group. I'm like I'm the most accepting of people. If you ever get to know me, I got every race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation in my crew. I don't care, I don't care what you drive.
Speaker 1:You're a decent person.
Speaker 2:You deserve to have a place to be, and a lot of it had like hurdles are just the portrayal of what a car club is, what a car group is. When we were first starting out, everyone thought that like we were just going to start fucking shit up and I had to talk, like I had to go up to the police. I still do this. Every single time a cop pulls in, I talk, go up to them and say hey, my name is Daniel Franklin. I'm the owner of metal militia motor club. I'm organizing today's event. What you need from me, you need my ID, you need my phone number If you need to get in contact with me. You got any questions. I'll take care of it.
Speaker 2:We got security on site. We're going to make sure everything runs smooth and they'll burn out. It's two-stepping, excessive revving and I rattle that off. And every single time I talk to a cop, let them know like hey, I'm here to make sure that this runs smooth. I'm not here to fuck your town out. Yeah, I'm here to support local businesses and just bring a bunch of people that have nice cars. We're going to have fun, just enjoy their day. Yeah. Um.
Speaker 1:I got one more question. What would be? Your idea of Number five, eight. If there was a message you wanted to give to car community whether parking, whether parking chill cruise or takeover what's? What's the message you want to give to the people?
Speaker 2:Mostly that every person, no matter who they are, has power. You have the ability to change stuff. You have the ability to make stuff better. You have the ability to make stuff worse. It's all what you decide to do with that power. You may think you're just one person, but one person can change a lot. And I know letters like people out there that, just like they doubt themselves way too much, they think that, oh, I'm just one person. What can I do to make this better? What can I do to change stuff? That's going on?
Speaker 2:Everyone has power. Everyone has a mouth. Everyone has the ability to speak, the ability to type stuff on social media, the ability to write a letter to your local business, your local township, your local community center. You have the ability to reach out and do stuff, and I see too much in the car scene, especially in the parking show and some of the takeover guys. They think that they don't have power, they don't think they have the ability to do anything and shit. I'm just some poor kid from the fucking suburbs who moved to the city and I did my car stuff and then came back out to the suburbs to take care of my parents. You can change stuff you all got a power and the ability to. Also it's community. Don't ever forget that it's always about your community and your other people around you. You may think like it's just all it could be. Just you view it all about you, but in reality everyone's actions affect the community.
Speaker 1:That's a key. Everyone's actions affect the community. It don't matter who you are.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and even in parking chills I've had guns pulled on me. At parking chills We've had a crew came out and they were trying to swing. We told them not to. They got mad because we told them that they got to leave and the owner of the crew came out and pulled a gun on me, literally just right to my head. I was like this was before I had my point card and had my gun. So it was unfortunate, but it's like that one action alone snowballed a big thing. Police saw it. Police had issues, they chased the guy, they caught him. But that was one of the issues that started, like the problems with the parking chills, even like it was harder for us to host meets and host events because the town's at first they were like yo, is this going to be a regular thing? Is this going to be a one time thing? But slowly regain back the trust and they understand that it was a one time thing. Yeah.
Speaker 1:And that's the thing. There's a difference between an isolated incident and a consistent behavior. See, the issue with the takeover is that there is consistently drunk driving shit going on. Crash is happening and you know what I'm saying. I'm fucking consistently there's CTA buses and fucking emergency vehicles not being let through. Like you got to stop these shows and let these like.
Speaker 2:Especially the ambulances. Yeah, that's one that had me pissed.
Speaker 1:Ambulances, fire trucks, but depending on who's organizing that stuff like it's plenty of it's plenty of times, me personally, while I've been on saying, depending on where we at, I jump in the middle. Hey, stop, let let them do oh yeah, like Panda used to do that way back in the day.
Speaker 2:I remember I've seen some of the stuff. I saw video Ambulance trying to get through Pan is like, hey, everybody, move out the way, move out the way, let the ambulance through. I'm like he won my respect with that, just as one simple action. It's like I didn't know the dude before, never heard of the guy and it was a luxury Never heard of him in my life. And that one little incident which I never told him about it, and it stuck with me and I just like have respect for that.
Speaker 1:I learned that. I learned that from watching Papa Poseidon, yeah, and to me he sculpted my, my persona of who I wanted to be. Yeah. When I was on the scene.
Speaker 2:Was that the son or the father that had the charger?
Speaker 1:That was the son.
Speaker 2:I never met the father.
Speaker 1:So so so Poseidon was the swinger and Papa Poseidon was just like coming out to make sure son was safe and to put some organization to the shit that's a good dad right there.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's a good dad.
Speaker 1:I wish I could have met him honestly, we could make it happen.
Speaker 2:I'd like to.
Speaker 1:That's the Papa Poseidon, that's my dog.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I met the son Poseidon. Yeah, I like it was crazy because, like I've seen him before, I know he swung and like I met him at Shitee, like we had a good hour hour and a half talking. The cold was like freezing cold, it's like probably like 20 degrees out and we're just standing outside talking and he had to get some more dreams to what I want about trying to find a way to do it legally, trying to find a bigger, better way of doing it, and it's like we talked about that. We brought that up and I gave him a couple of spots that I had to swing around in. And he's a good guy, I had respect for him. He came big group of people. He had like probably like six, seven cars All all deep as hell, like pulled up all together. I'm like oh shit. Like I cause.
Speaker 2:I never had takeover guys, except for, like Panda, come to my meets before. Yeah, cause they always thought I was just playing anti takeover and it's like he spoke, we talked and everything was cool and I've had him a couple of times at my meets. He's really really, really respectable guy.
Speaker 1:No, he come. He come from a very, very good background, yeah, Very good home and shit like that. Like that shit is major key into his respect level and who he is as a person. That that family, Good people. Good people, great people. Yeah, got a heart of gold.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I could tell he's dude he had. He had some dreams. Man, I know he's not letting anything get in his way. Even with all the bullshit with the cops issues that have happened, he's not letting anything get in his way. From last I spoke with him he was a good guy.
Speaker 1:No, he won't. He gonna. He gonna do great things with this shit. I see it already and it's crazy cause like it's this huge perception of you being anti takeover, and here it is you. You, you understand the culture more than most of the motherfuckers coming to the shit. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Like it's crazy. I've seen both sides of it and it's personal opinion, which everyone's got one. I'm never going to tell someone you're wrong for thinking the way you want to think. There might be a reason why you think the way you think. And I think if people, if the takeover guy is under, like, gave me a chance to talk to him, I can at least help them understand where I'm coming from and how I think and why I do what I do, the way I do it.
Speaker 1:So could you give me a piece of that Like, like, right now. I want you to take this time and talk like as if you was talking to somebody who don't understand you.
Speaker 2:And so as we were, as I told you about, basically, I came from doing the stuff in the city and we were doing stuff even it almost as a equivalently on the illegal level as the takeovers Like we were running through the streets acting, acting a fool, and racing down 35th and race scene, going out to Doty doing our stuff there. We doing the same leak as the illegal, as the takeovers. The only issue that I ever had with it was the blocking of traffic and the blocking of businesses and the vandalism. That was it and I saw it and I had that instant lower whacker. That's what caused me to switch over to parking Chills and away from the whole city thing.
Speaker 2:The minute you see, like because the parents both died that were in the SUV and there were two kids in the back that died the minute you see the little kid die, like that'll fuck you up for life. It's like being the first one there to see it. That just fucked me up. And that and I used to go to like the Mexican and Penn State stuff. I was real big on that. I I'm half Mexican, half Mexican, irish, german, scottish, so I like that half Mexican army. I was like adopted from a different family. I got a whole backstory bullshit thing. Um, I grew up in a white family so I always held that piece of me because I never met my parents. Okay.
Speaker 2:And, um, I would always support the Mexican and Penn stuff, always buying flags, always buying everything I can Like. I always like going and just supporting it. I'd have my whole crew come with me and, um, one year I went and we we went to the Jewel on canal and we took over the whole lot. That whole lot was packed, and this was about three years ago and we were all just partying, fucking drinking and all that, just chilling, just hanging out and enjoying our time listening to music, and something didn't feel right. And I told my friend, like yo, you gotta go back to the car, I'm gonna get out here. Something don't feel right.
Speaker 2:And there was some guys stand probably like three feet for me. Guy just walks up, all messed up, pulls out a gun, executes them right from me. I get fucking blood and brain all over me. I'm like that's like run in my car, fucking grab my shit, tate. Like I have my shit up with me in the driver's seat and I'm just took off. I'm like that's last time I'm ever stepping foot here again. I'm done, done, trying to integrate myself back into this and and it's crazy because, like, having shit like that will fuck you up, like having to clean off someone's fucking brain off. Your skin got blood all over, you know I've seen some change.
Speaker 2:Yes, I've seen some stuff, I've been around, but it's like it's always been a dream of mine to have a higher level of Stuff for people to be able to go to, like just as someone who didn't grow up with money and shit. I see the elitism out there and I hate elitism. I hate where people think you're better than you just because they got more.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and a lot of people takeovers like they're they're not. They're not Billionaires, like they aren't from, like wealthy families, like a lot of us that went downtown just to fuck around. We weren't from wealthy families, but we all came together for the love of the car scene, for the love of what we thought was like the car scene definite, or for like what we love doing and we didn't have nice cars like I had of what was this Chevy uplander as you, like a mini van, like a mini van right, like put all fill my car full of my friends that didn't have cars we go traveling downtown.
Speaker 1:That's just like me.
Speaker 2:I had a 97 suburban extended cab dude, don't get me started. Suburban I had an 87, things are tanks tanks. Tanks. We were carrying a air stream trailer. Yeah and we rolled it six times. Nobody got hurt and they're popped out of dent. We were good to go, airstream trails absolutely destroyed, but Fucking suburban suburban tanks tanks built tough.
Speaker 1:Yeah, the ones from back then, when they were still using metal.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, this one had like the big barnyard doors on the back. Yeah, dude crazy man but the thing that's like I just I've been on both sides of the fence, I guess you can say it's like I See what you got, what the takeover guys are trying to do, I see what they want, I see what they're trying to do and I'm hope like it's almost like learning like in school, kind of like it's always the next page. It's like what if you wrote the next page yourself? What if you?
Speaker 2:ran it the way you wanted it to be ran better, like we're all writing our own stories here, like, literally right now, our own stories. Like what's stopping you from being making it your dream? What's stopping you? And it's like the only thing that really is his money.
Speaker 2:So that's what's stopping me from doing these big parking chill events. And it's like If the community came together you see how packed these takeovers good. You see how packed the parking chills good. If the community came together under one Formation or a coalition or whatever you want to call it, so you know what, we can make something big happen. Thanks, that's what I want and I know I know I'm known as the anti-takeover guy, but in reality I Want that shit more than the takeover guys wanted. I feel like I want to see that next step being something productive, where there won't have to be a rest people getting freakin pepper sprayed, being arrested, dragged out of their cars, getting freakin attacked by tack dogs like man.
Speaker 1:I saw a video last night. I don't know what happened, but I'm telling you what they had this girl, feet cuffed together, hands cuffed together, and they're throwing her into the back.
Speaker 2:Oh, I saw that they just like toaster. Yeah, I'm like I'm a dremel and junkie myself. I like going out at night and just cruising.
Speaker 2:He's just having the battle to the metal sometimes, but like I got CDL, I can't risk it anymore. It sucks, yeah, but To have a space to be able to swing and still have a space to be able to pull up and park and chill and then watch the swing and imagine, like you, you already got the crowd for takeovers. Now imagine what the crowd for the takeovers plus all the other people and I see some action You're gonna have a massive, massive, massive crowd, massive. Yeah, there's nothing that really is stopping Takeover organizers from doing something like that. It'd be a beautiful thing.
Speaker 1:Beautiful yeah. I honestly think that I'm. I'm almost certain. I know a couple people off hand. That will be game to sit down and talk with you.
Speaker 2:I'd be more than willing to have have a talk. I'm always loved to talk. I had Just last week a takeover organizer for the suburbs mean him at met up one of my parking shows made a talk. Okay, we had a look two or three hour meeting like. I'm more than happy to talk. I want to talk. There's always got to be an open-line communication, dialogue. That's one of the biggest keys I have with everything. If you feel some type of way, if you feel like you want to change something, you want to do something, you want to work together, you want to have your opinion said I want to hear it.
Speaker 2:I Got no problem with that. Is that the end of the day? We're all? We're all people. We all got our own views and our own opinions and our own expectations on how stuff should be.
Speaker 1:So If you got anyone, I'd be more than happy to talk man, I'm sure and I'm letting you know now We'll be inviting you back to the park.
Speaker 2:I'm looking forward to it like.
Speaker 1:Like I said, I will be coming outside to some of the parking chairs this summer. I'm like a because my vision for the community I'm learning Well. I've always known that it was more than what we had yeah you know what I'm saying because I come from real car culture. Like there's no way Drag races go all around the world, there's no way the parking chill communities go all around the world to big, humongous shows and car shows.
Speaker 2:You know, I'm saying like it's If, if, if they could do it, we can too, and that's the thing that I was seeing because, like I worked with a group that was that came into Chicago, hosted their big car event and I ran their security for them, like I have my own security force for my Car group, for my metal militia.
Speaker 2:Yeah we took over their whole security and we just ran the whole outside and helped with some of the inside. I'm looking at it and I see them price-guided and I see them price-guided in the hell out of these people, price-guided in people that I call my friends and I'm like what's stopping us, as a Chicago car community, from hosting our own indoor outdoor events Well, even an outdoor event? Why the hell can't we do something? Why do we have to have these people coming from out of state, coming to our community, charging 80 bucks to park their car and they were charging, like they mentioned that. They didn't mention this to me until I was already helping with security. They were charging people $20 to park outside in the public parking lot and then another $30 to just get inside to look at cars $50 just to look at cars. To me, that's insane. Chicago auto shows cheaper. What's Chicago?
Speaker 1:auto show fell off, though too they lost a lot of people.
Speaker 2:I heard a lot of companies this year. Man cuz it just don't they don't make them like now, these, these two. Yeah, I just done, bro, like I.
Speaker 1:I Want to say I Either went this year or last year and I was just like, yeah, I'm never doing this again.
Speaker 2:Yeah, last year I went and it was just dead. It was didn't feel the same, it didn't like. I've been going since I was probably like five years old. My dad used to take me, used to get tickets, used to work here. Oh. Used to work a moody Bible Institute. Oh, I'm fleet mechanic, so he worked right down here in Chicago. Yeah, off of like locusts and wells and all that a sal and my father was a car Salesman, so we yeah, oh, you grew up around it.
Speaker 1:I grew up around it. Yeah, so we would go to Every fucking car show convention From as from a kid, oh yeah, like it got to the point where in my, in my 20s, when I really started like living my life, I was like man pops, I ain't going with you this year. Oh yeah. Come on son, it's tradition.
Speaker 2:Literally that's how I told him last year, because I was trying to go last year. Yeah but I was out for another convention. I'm like dude, it's tradition. I literally ended my convention early to come back here and take come with the family of the auto show. I'm like dude, we've done it every single year. Yeah, and it's like man, it's tradition.
Speaker 1:At this point, yeah, no, for real. And it's, it's, it's different man, like growing up how I grew up around cars. You know what I mean when I say that like my dad's.
Speaker 2:My dad's working on a car right now, right when I was pulling out the driveway. It's checking my my neighbor's tires. They had a couple nails and it was patching the tires. Yeah.
Speaker 2:I come up, I am heading to Chicago and he's all. No problem, I have a safe trip. Yeah, it's like they just don't park up by the garage. We got another car coming in later. I'm like okay, so yeah. He's been out of work for a bit, so he's picking up side car jobs and all that. So yeah. I Move back. Take care of the fam, you know yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, hey, but that's what. That's something that me and do, it's, it's, it's, it's. No matter what, you know what I'm saying. You take care of those that you love. Oh yeah.
Speaker 1:That's what's important. Like like my first time going to Texas House of Power. Right, I Went. It was just me, one of my co-hosts and one of our photographers, videographers, three of us. We went. It was lit. Oh, I don't know that I had. I had a ball, like literally had a ball, just hanging out with people talking to people, fucking cars doing what cars do, yeah, and I'm like man, when next time I go back I gotta have Chicago with me, like I got Bring, bring your people I gotta bring my people with me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, this my first, this our first. We going February 10th we got like 30, 40 motherfuckers corn.
Speaker 2:Dude, that's awesome. That's gonna be a fun trip. Yeah, you better document every little bit of that trip, bro. I want to see that video when I am. I'm looking forward to that video.
Speaker 2:I am going to document it like that's like me and my boys. We had a memorial in KC for those of what you call a tow truck driver passed away and we did like a fundraiser for the family. Yeah, me and all my boys, we took a trip to Des Moines, iowa, picked up our Des Moines Iowa chapter president, drove down to KC to my chapter other metal militia chapter over there. Okay, just had a big ass like cookout. I had like an auction for like stuff to help raise money for the family.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's what's up, man, and that's, and that's, that's that community. Oh, that's what. I'm talking about like yeah, I Was talking to Some of the originators, were one of the originators of 312. Yeah and he was basically saying like man, we used to have meetings, we used to do this, we used to do that, and I Think that's some of what's missing from Like cuz, it's just. It's just Motherfuckers just talking back and forth in these group chats, that's, it doesn't matter.
Speaker 2:I used to have no meetings with the takeover guys.
Speaker 2:Yeah we had Cuba from unlisted, uh-huh. We had a panda yeah. We had Jonas. We had TJ yeah, and I brought them to my house, set them down at my dining room table and we had a talk. We just talked like how we're talking now and I missed that. I'll truly say I truly missed that open dialogue and I think I got pictures of that. Actually, I wish I, I wish I Could show you it's. Um, we took a group photo after. It was just a beautiful thing, like Everyone came from different points of view and we all sat down, talked, yeah, and like sure, at the end of day we still didn't come to a great conclusion of everything, like no, not everyone's going to agree 24-7, but I say that there was respect.
Speaker 2:There was respect and there was honor with that like and that's.
Speaker 1:That's what's important with this shit. Like people got to Put the emotion to the side. It don't matter if you don't like this person or that person, because we hear for community and cars. Yeah. So have some respect for this individual, even though you don't like them. Yeah, sit down and have a conversation with them. You might find out he's more like you than you think, oh yeah.
Speaker 2:I'm pretty sure. I'm not sure. Did you? How do you think of me when you were going? First talk to me? I'm not. I know for a fact.
Speaker 1:every single time I talked to someone that's in the takeover, so I don't think you would think like this dog, honestly, like you, I Was going off of what everybody else was telling me, of course, and the news Clivens, I seen I'm like oh shit, like Dude, super anti takeover, oh shit.
Speaker 1:Yeah and then to actually sit. When I sent you to the message on your lab he was like hell, yeah, I'm game for it. I was kind of taking it back. I'm like shit. But when I tell him I come from the takeover, saying it might be different, Then we talked on the phone and like for me and I knew like I this gonna go a lot different from and what everyone else told me.
Speaker 2:Yeah, like, and the funny thing is it's like everyone else that tells everyone else. It's like I've never met these people. Yeah, I've never talked to them like a. I Know I have views that come off as like very, very, very like anti, but it's like we're kind of seeing the same thing. It's just I see a better way. I see or not even a better way a different way. You see the different way, a different way.
Speaker 2:I'm not gonna say it's better because let's say my idea is not the better way, never know, it's a different way. Yeah, put it like that.
Speaker 1:But see, that's the thing, though, like that's the beauty of ideas. Yeah, nobody's is better, it's just add known to the initial. Like oh Well, maybe you guys should do illegal. And then you turn around, I Say maybe we can figure out how to do something legally. And then you turn around and you tell me well, a shit, let's bring the communities together. Now we got more numbers. Yeah you know what I'm saying? Like shit, like that you got a build on snowball effect.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's like how with parking shows. Before I did it, there was not really Parking shows like how they were. There was like stay ill, was a group that you hosted car meets but did it in a lot of Just businesses. It wasn't any restaurants or anything. Yeah. When COVID happened, I was thinking you know what? There's so many businesses hurting. Let's reach out to the businesses that need sales of food. We're hungry. I'm a big dude. I'm a hungry motherfucker.
Speaker 2:We gonna eat oh, it's like we found a way to pitch it to them where we're benefiting you at no cost to you Free advertisement. You got hella. People are in Instagrammers. You got people that do Facebook people. I do Snapchat, all that stuff, twitch and all that. Come out, your business gets free advertisement. Your plaza, wherever you're at or wherever the hell you are, gets free advertisement. People are gonna leave reviews that are positive. They're like oh, I came here for the car shows was awesome, it's snowballs and makes it look nice.
Speaker 2:Mm-hmm and it's like the only thing that happened that I saw that was a problem. It's just the split between the takeovers and then the parking show side, because I Know there's so much shit talk between the two.
Speaker 1:Yeah so much hate, so much hate so much hatred, but it's like I really like, and that's what I was Expecting yeah, you were expected.
Speaker 2:I know everyone expects that whenever they talk with me, it's like I'll say I hate the takeover stuff, but it's like, at the same time, it's not that I hate it, it's more so. I see the loss of everything Possible that could be good, yeah, and it gives the people that hate the car scene already the towns, the city.
Speaker 2:More shit to say more shit to say and then they say it against us as a parking show. Guys, it's all, you're all the same. You're all car people. You all drive these loud like very, very high-powered cars. Yeah, cause in a ruckus like I had some lady yesterday. Else, we were having a memorial and I went to a game store and this guy was just off his rocker about he's pissed. He was like saying it's like all these guys are taking up all this. I'm like looking at all the people are inside his store, they're all car enthusiasts. I wanted to say something. I had to walk away. I had to like tell my media guy listen, you go talk to him.
Speaker 2:I'm not saying the thing because I'm gonna say something stupid because, it was a card game store like someone like Magic the Gathering, you go cards, all that like don't drink stuff. I'm like 80% of your customers right now, 90% probably car enthusiasts. They would not have stopped in this plaza to look at your thing if it wasn't for the car. Me at all and all.
Speaker 1:So they wouldn't even know this existed.
Speaker 2:I didn't even know it existed. I was just walking down the plaza. I'm like, oh cool, there's a game story, let me check it out, see what they got here. Yeah, I would not have stopped in there anyway, like I never even knew it existed. And that's one thing I try doing is, whenever I have a car me, I try spending a little bit of money in each every store just to show we support. Yeah, bring my media guy with. He takes photos, videos of what's going on the store where they got and all that. So that's lit man.
Speaker 2:Yeah but I know, I know it's possible there's, there's got to be open dialogue, that's.
Speaker 1:Well, that's what. That's what we're doing. Yeah, that's it. We'd love to be on a podcast with takeover guy. We, we definitely gonna Continue to motherfucking. Keep the keep the line of communication open, because now, cuz like You've completely changed my idea. Like when I when I heard, I'm like when, when I was like man, I gotta get this guy, I don't cuz like I'm not. Since I've been on the scene, in my mind You've been anti-takeover king.
Speaker 2:Like, hey, I'll wear the, I'll take the crown, I can use it. That's funny though. No one wants to speak.
Speaker 2:Yeah and I know the media hops on it. They want to be like oh it's drama, it's essentially what it is. They want the. They post the drama. I say a couple things here and there there's just like yo, this is fucked up, someone got shot at this takeover. Like you guys, later complete idiots for shooting a show like that. Like you Killed an innocent bystander for what? For nothing? People getting ran over by hanging out of the car. Like I was pissed at that because I knew the driver and Me and him he had. We've had talks in the past.
Speaker 2:Yeah because he's came to my meets before and. We've talked to each other and we thought we had a clear understanding about what to do and what not to do. And he was actually Like friend of one of my best friends at the time and just I Can't, like I can't have that stuff near stuff I do, thanks. Last thing I need is Someone to try to say like, oh yeah, it's like one of metal malicious guys acting stupid out there. Yeah, I don't guys.
Speaker 2:I told him, if you want to swing, I got the guy a lot here, I got a couple out and your Got some near morango, I got one near Bensonville. It's like we got places we got good lots to swing at.
Speaker 1:the cops ain't gonna bother you man, so I'm gonna be tapping in with you. Yeah so we could get together and get which all Cuz I like. I know some dudes that Would love to like, because they like practicing on the course on the regular. You know what I'm saying. Like they really into this shit? Yeah and they really take they craft seriously. Yeah and I got people that I'm connected to some of every aspect of the takeover scene.
Speaker 3:Yeah like, so we gonna be in my good for the chat man cuz good.
Speaker 1:That's gonna be fun. Yeah do you know how many of us gonna come outside because you say Wait what? Oh Bad yeah. We all said this weekend don't, don't tell the knuckleheads yeah, literally, I'm only respectful crews, respectful specs, yeah, people that are like genuinely fuck with on a day-to-day basis. Yeah we gonna be popping out, we gonna be fucking around, cuz I look forward to it, cuz, cuz, like it's, it's more to all of this shit.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, there's, there's always more and it's like I'm only 26, I'm, I've been like I started the basically the Chicago stuff. I was like 19. Yeah and it's like growing up through that, like it's just it's changed a lot has changed and, on the police side aspect, I feel like it's only gonna get worse with them.
Speaker 2:No on the city side aspect, the laws at me. I hate extra laws. I am very no, I'm not about that. I feel like they're gonna crack down even more and there's gonna be a time where it breaks. Something's gonna snap, something's gonna give, and I'm hoping that Getting something that would be beneficial for the parking chill and the takeover guys to be able to have a place to be Would lessen the strain on that.
Speaker 2:Would, give the city less reason to try to crack down and Ruin the what little is left of the car seat.
Speaker 1:Yeah, cuz in the city it's a, it's a fight tooth and nail. Oh, you can't host a car me, you can't even. You can't even drive your nice car without.
Speaker 2:I get pulled oh, I should tell you how many times I get pulled over in my car and they check in the vignet, they check in the plates, everything, they check my registration and they just they want to find a reason to mess with you want to find a reason to take what you got yeah. Yeah, I appreciate you. Let me come on here.
Speaker 1:No problem, man, it's been fun, it's definitely been a blast. Yeah, but you're gonna you get you coming back. I'm not.
Speaker 2:I'm actually.
Speaker 1:I might actually get you back with a Couple of guys here, man.
Speaker 2:Oh, I'm looking forward to that. I think you should sit down and chat with yeah, yeah, you might just be witnessing history in the process right here man, we, we making it.
Speaker 1:Yeah that's what we doing we making history. Yeah, that's what we doing we bridging gaps and making history. I Appreciate you be appreciate you too.
Speaker 1:It's your boy the hood floors. We here with Dan the man, mr Anti-Takeover that ain't really, mr Anti-Takeover Like this, this definitely like, yeah, this definitely like it's gonna fuck the community's mind because it's like, bro, what we've been thinking you know what I'm saying and like in the comment section like it get it. Can. It can definitely get vicious, because everybody just Back and forth, back and forth. Oh yeah, you know, don't get me wrong.
Speaker 2:I'm not perfect. I say some, some stuff too. I almost got troll for trolling too.
Speaker 1:But yeah, but you know, you live and you learn. Oh, yeah and we, we, we are initiating To build the bridge, to bridge that gap between the two. So I'm happy that the, the initial Piece of steel was laid here with you, man, I appreciate it for sure. Yeah, it's your boy. The hood floors this, the rollback showing we rolling now baby.