 Who, taking me down memory lane, were you at a point in your career, were you your own agent? I'm still my own agent. Do you? How you think you got this interview? Did you call my agent? Did you call my agent? Who did you call? You called my homeboy. You called my homeboy. And he called me. And that's how we got through it. Yeah. All right, Baron. Like the most disrespectful thing about you is that you don't even know what you're doing. You don't even know what you're doing. He called me. And that's how we got through it. Yeah. All right, Baron. Like the most disrespectful thing about basketball is crossing the dude up, making him fall or dunking on a man. I used to want to like dunk on guys all the time. I used to dunk on my cousins. It was on official price goal, but still, I got somebody once, but the rim was bent a little bit so it don't technically count. But you've got one of the most disrespectful, one of the most amazing dunks in NBA, in NBA history, I got to say, what is that moment like and how exhilarating is it? It's a packed crowd there in Oakland, and it's a playoff game. Anybody a guy? Man, it was crazy. I mean, you know, it's like sports are always, you know, moments, there's moments in sports. And so for me, it was just one of those moments. Like I knew I caught him slipping. You know what I mean? And, you know, what's that? I didn't even know if I made it. I just looked to the bench and that's when I knew because everybody was like, oh my god. I was like, oh, yeah, I got him. So I didn't know what it was happening at all so fast, but it was like happening in slow motion. You know what I mean? Like anytime you dunk on somebody, it's almost like, you know, you can see it happening in slow motion. Was business something that you were always interested in? Was it something growing up or something that sparked it? To make you want to take things a step further? Well, I was, I always say, you know, I always consider myself a hustler. Right. And so when you grow up with nothing and you see people that like I've always been in the middle, right, of the haves and the have nots, but more on the have not side and then all the way to the haves. You know what I mean? But as, as I live and as I grew up, I always kind of found myself, you know, in this middle ground and trying to figure out like, where do I fit, right? In this space. And so when it was time for me to decide to live out on my own, I was already by myself, right? Because, you know, it'd have been great to have an agent, right? And have somebody just kind of like, you know, ease all the clutter. But at the same time, I never would have gotten into film. I never would have gotten into investing, right? I would have been limited, right? And so the more people I figured I had around me that came from the traditional space, the more I was going to limit my opportunity for growth. And I know a lot of people always say, wait till you're retired and start investing, then start doing this. But I think the best time to experience all the things that you're going to go through, right, is in your 20s and your 30s. And so if I was just playing basketball in my 20s and 30s, then I wouldn't be aware of all the things that's happening in the world or aware of who I wanted to be when this is over, you know what I mean? And so that's for me. It was like, man, I got to write my own narrative. You know what I mean? I got to punch my own ticket and, you know, it always stuck, it always stuck to me that, you know, I would be able to write my narrative, right? I would be able to write my story. So when I go to write my book, right, you know, what kind of story do I want to tell, right? And so that led me into different directions of business and, you know, cultural things and looking to just expand my horizons. So I could experience it all, right, when I have the opportunity to. So how did that start? How did that pop into, this is what I'm doing. Well, my first three years, my first three years of being introduced to the NBA for three summers in a row, when I had an agent, I just sit in his office all day after I worked out. And because I'm nosy, I have to ask what everybody does. And then because I'm annoying, I have to sit in on everybody's meetings, right? And because I'm curious, I start looking at, like, hey, man, can I look through these papers like, yeah, it's public records. So, you know, I started looking at NBA contracts and things like that and start studying a lot of the players in the company, their contracts, Kobe, Jermaine, O'Neill, Chase McGready, Reggie Miller, all these dudes just sit back and do research. And then, you know, when the time came for me to re-up for another contract, I figured that, you know, the 4% should go to my agent, my new agent, which is me. One of the things I appreciate about you is your mindset about paying it forward. And I heard you in an interview not long ago, talk about financial literacy and that word almost being barbed wire for people who want to expand their mind and get involved and try to understand it a little bit better. Tell me about your upbringing and what sparked this idea in your heart about paying it forward and the things that you experienced and helping others along the way. Like I said, I come from South Central Los Angeles, the east side borderline Watts and, you know, literally where I came from was crack, cocaine, gangbanging, shootouts, drugs, you know, police, police brutality, shootouts against the police. Like there was, there was, I'm trying to, in church, right, and every now and again, we, you know, we have some, some fun time playing sports to keep us, to keep us active. And so I would say, you know, just kind of coming from that environment and then saying, and then, you know, by the grace of God being picked, one of anybody could add this opportunity. I realized that, you know, and my grandmother told me that I had an opportunity to do something, right, and to be responsible, to be presentable and, and, and I never forget my uncle used to tell me, like, all my grandmother wanted was for her kids to be sharp, respectful, smart, intelligent and presentable, right. And I listened to her, you know, and now I understood why, right, because she felt that, you know, I could make it, right, I had an opportunity. And so when I look at it, I think about all my friends that didn't make it, right, and how they could have end up in jail. Well, they were going to jail, they were in and out of jail. And so for me, it was like, I can't go this way and they go that way. So I have to come back and pull them up and get them on the surface so we can get three or four or five more Baron Davises. Now, if we get that out our neighborhood, we can go on the neighborhood and now you got to worry about gangs, drugs, violence, police brutality, right, because we have the economic resources, we have the community, you know, sustainability and togetherness to actually do it. And another thing I appreciate about you, man, is you're multifaceted. You know, I don't, you know, conversation with guys and, you know, you're more than you're more than just a basketball player. They're guys that are, you know, more than just an actor. They have interest in other things they want to get into. Matter of fact, you hosted a show, How I Rock it. I used to watch that bad boy and see how stylish the show was and how you show a different side of people and things like that. Always appreciated that. And you with film, tell me about the movie that you that you've got coming out real soon. Yeah, man, you know, I decided when I left the NBA, I was going to focus on media entertainment and, you know, I've been pitching projects, pitching projects, creating. And this lady came up to me and was like, you should be a director. And I was like, I want to be a director. She was like, I'll, I'll, I'll finance a movie if you want to direct it. And I was like, I don't know about directing. I'm the movie. So I said, all right, I got one. And so with that, with that, we have a movie, Domino Battle of the Bones. I got David Arquette, Snoop Dogg, Scruncho. Some social media, you know, Rising Stars and famous Losers in it, the Instagram Big Job. A bunch of bunch of guys from Instagram. And what I wanted to do was create a movie that, you know, kind of dealt and felt like where we come from in Compton and LA and our culture. And Domino's is such a baseline communicative, you know, event, right? That, you know, we felt like Domino's could be a great entryway into, you know, a world of comedy and, you know, character. So it's really, you know, character driven. It was my first one, but I think I did a pretty good job because we're working on number two. So they don't let me do it again. You've been around. I've tricked somebody. You've been around since and acting in different things like that yourself. So you, did you have to take like a crash course on Directing? Did you hit some people up? What was that process, process like, you know, as far as like executing your vision for the film? It was a learning experience. It was a learning experience. I realized as a director that I realized where my talent would lie. And that's in working with the artists, right? Being able to direct, you know, the artists and the actors and things like that. The hard part, I think, is just a preparation, right? Because you have to, you have to see, you have to almost like see everything before it happens and then be able to see it in the moment, right? And then be able to figure out, like, if I need to pivot and tweak it or something, you know what I mean? Like, you got to make some fast decisions because, you know, on the set, time is money, you know, and you mess around and like think you're going to get two extra takes or three extra takes and you come, you know, they pack it up once. It's like, hey, come back. They're like, we can't, we can't. We're late. So, you know, the first five days we went over like crazy, we just, over time was crazy. And then they told me, if we keep going over time, like they is going to have to get bumped to a new tier. And then we were going to have to come with like basically matching funds. So I did it, I did it, I delivered it. It was under budget, you know, actually it was within budget. And as I'm doing this, I'm learning like, and like directors always get, you know, cussed out for like trying to spend more money on their film, you know what I mean? And so I didn't want to be that, dude, you know? It was a process. It was a hell of a process. I'm a Midwest dude, living in New York now. But I felt something, you know, whether it's single 10 or some of the other films, Straight Out of Compton was another one. You know, how great a job that they do as a Caligar, Eligar yourself of capturing the essence of Los Angeles. And what? In their films. In Ministers Society? Ministers Society, Your Boys in the Hoods, you know, those kind of films, Straight Out of Compton, not long ago, you know, telling the NWA story. Like, how do you feel like? You're out of Compton, man. We're keeping it real. It was cool, but it didn't. It was it didn't give us a like that was not like that was some Hollywood. Yeah, you know what I mean? Boys in the Hood, you saw LA. You felt LA. Ministers Society, it showed you LA. You felt LA. You know what I mean? You felt like you were leaving LA going to Oakland. OK, right. Because you saw stuff, you saw people, you saw landscape, you saw buildings, you saw atmosphere, you know, Ministers Society, one of my favorite movies of all time, when you think about that, it was shot like a magazine, a hood movie being shot like a French film noir. And the reason why it stands out because you've never seen anything like that. You know what I mean? It was just the aesthetic, the approach, right? Like is that movie could have been made terribly wrong. You know what I mean? And, you know, just their eye and their lens and like, you know, just just the intimacy of bringing you so close. And when you think about Ministers Society, it was like every shot. Right. It was a beautiful shot, right? And they made the hood feel like, you know, like one of the best backdrops and scenes that you can imagine. So, bro, I love I love movies. I find myself loving those movies where the location is like another character in the film. And that's certainly one of those. I've always I've always loved those. Whose music are you listening to these days? Mine, mine, mine. I love. Dom Kennedy, obviously, I'm always listening to that. You know, Dom Kennedy. Now listen to everybody, dude. I love everything. I listen to everything from Lil' Texas still to Red Man New Project. I listen to everybody. Uncle Murder, I listen to him. You know, I'm a DJ, so I have to listen to everybody's stuff. But, you know, I'm I'm definitely West Coast bias, you know, and I love the, you know, the Atlanta Midwest scene. So, you know, when it comes to Dom Kennedy, the Nips, the Kendricks, you know, people like that. Even the locals glasses alone problem. You know, it's like the Blue Blucks clan. I don't know if you heard it. You know, no. Hey, for real, for real. All the young homies is putting off. Yeah, man, it's some good, it's some good music, some good young music. You know, as you see, I'm in my studio, so I've been making beats and making music and stuff because I had to for my films. And so I'm going to be putting out a project pretty soon, soundtrack and then we'll be producing it. I'll be producing an EP, an EP and a project that I'm putting out. But what does music represent to you? Is it therapeutic? What does it represent? I mean, it's another opportunity to connect. I would say the reason why I make music is because I don't want to sit and write an autobiography. You know what I mean? And so a part of it is just, you know, it is therapy when you think about, you know, words and expressions and feelings and emotions and, you know, where else can you go? Where else can I go outside of, you know, basketball? I don't play anymore. That I can express myself, my point of view and, you know, all the things that I think, that I know, right? Or all the things that I want to share. Like I think music and art is the best part, whether it's poetry, you know, writing things like that. So I just chose to, you know, kind of like create sounds and things like that to represent, you know, my voice. I'm going to ask about the, you know, talking about the business ventures and things like that, things that you're really proud of and involved in, including being on the board of charge. Yeah, I think everybody needs a charge. You know, I'd say the future of this world is going to be, you know, sustainability, right? Microtransportation, last mile delivery. And, you know, with me joining the board of charge is really we want to be the picks in the shovels, right? We want to be the enablers to be able to, you know, reignite, rewire, you know what I mean? Recharge. Our cities and infrastructures, right? When you think about pollution and climate, you know, climate change and, you know, really trying to be all in as far as like what we can do as a people from an infrastructure standpoint, you know, I think that's where I wanted to invest my money. So, you know, it's not just about entertainment. It's about, you know, social responsibility and being a part of charge. I think it's going to be the future of, you know, really being able to power, you know, these stations, car stations, motor home stations, office buildings, things like that. And so, you know, super grateful for the opportunity. And more importantly, it's like the reason why I took the seat is, you know, I want to be able to amplify our positions in different industries as athletes and people of color. And so, if people see me, you know, on the board of charge, then, you know, they would, they'll be interested in a whole other industry, you know, and we can allow our people of access. Haven, the way for so many, Baron, I appreciate your time, brother. Thank you so much. Appreciate it. Thank you, my dad. Absolutely.