- Hey, what up?
It's the Bodega Boys coming to you live from ATL.
We're trying to figure out what we'd be doing if we
didn't have a late night show.
We're going to learn valuable skills that
will help us in the future.
[HIP HOP MUSIC PLAYING]
Oh, wow-- Killer Mike.
Hey.
My guy.
What it do? DESUS: Yup.
Homies, what up, man?
Love.
What's going on, dude?
Man, welcome to the shop, man.
Thanks for having us, man.
What part of Atlanta are we in right now?
Because this feels like the Bronx out here.
Like--
KILLER MIKE: Yeah it's--
well, it's a lot of people of color yelling
and talking to themselves. DESUS: Exactly.
[LAUGHTER]
That's what made me feel at home.
So where you are is the heart of working-class
and black Atlanta's economy.
All of this was at one time black business, black commerce,
from barbershops to restaurants to hotels--
all of this.
And so I'm honored to be here, because I've
grown up in this city.
So being a part of being able to be a part of the business
community-- one of my heroes is Alonzo Herndon,
who was the largest black insurance company, Atlanta
Life, the world has ever seen.
Well, that guy started with owning
a barber shop in Atlanta, so.
In your heart, you love the barber shops.
The barber shop's always been a pillar in the black community.
KILLER MIKE: Absolutely.
And what people call the black barber shop, to me,
is just working class.
It's Dominican, it's Puerto Rican barbershop.
It's anywhere working-class men can
get together, congregate, and talk that shit
that they can't talk at home. - Talk shit, listen to music--
Yeah, exactly.
--talk about sports, politics, whatever.
Man, you learn how to tie a tie in a barber shop.
You learn how to ask a girl out.
You know what I'm saying?
That's why I first learn when you slow dance,
you can't grab butt at first.
You gotta work.
Important lesson.
Start up here.
No butt-- waist, hips, butt.
Go straight to the butt-- DESUS: It's like a Bootsy song.
Yeah, yeah.
I remember them telling us, like, y'all can't do that.
Like, y'all a little sassy.
Y'all just start grabbing ass slow down.
Yeah, yeah, exactly. DESUS: Slow down, slow down.
I made that mistake seventh grade.
DESUS: All right.
So we all know the barber shop-- one of the things
barber shops are known for--
you always got that one guy in there with the wild conspiracy
theory.
What's the wildest conspiracy theory you've heard here?
Because I've been in my barber shop.
I had one guy talking about, yo, yo, listen.
We ain't have celery in Africa.
You know what I'm saying?
I don't know if that's true.
We didn't have celery in Africa?
He said they were basis--
They found cocaine in stomachs of mummies.
They found, like--
DESUS: OK.
I think the wildest conspiracy I heard
was that I was in the Illuminati from a customer in my barber
shop. MERO: I heard that, too.
And I was like, therefore, you're
supporting the Illuminati.
Thank you.
[LAUGHTER]
MERO: Open that eye.
Is that really an insult?
I mean, I was just like, I'm in the Illuminati?
I didn't get the message.
You're like, yo, where's my membership card?
I shouldn't own a barber shop.
I should be in a hotel lounge.
So you got the barber shop.
Barber shop.
You just opened a seafood restaurant?
Opened a sea-- well, we're opening it.
So you've got the restaurant, the shop, the records--
Yeah.
MERO: --the touring.
Kids is honor roll students.
KILLER MIKE: Yeah-- well, one child is honor roll.
DESUS: One child. See, now you made it hot.
Now, you made it hot.
But I got four good kids.
[LAUGHTER]
So you're here.
You're telling us about barbershops.
You know what? KILLER MIKE: Yeah.
We got some bad news.
We might be losing our late night show.
So we wanted to know-- could we come here and work?
So y'all fixing to get somebody's faded.
DESUS: That's right. MERO: Sir.
Check it. I've got a master barber.
My man Ern is in here.
He's been with me the longest, and he's going
to walk out through fuckin--
I mean, fading someone's hair.
Gotcha.
[LAUGHTER]
MERO: Oh, he got sunglasses on, so you know he nice.
All right.
I like that.
MERO: If you can cut a motherfucker with sunglasses
on, you are nice.
Ern is going to walk out through.
MERO: OK.
I'mma probably dip so I don't have any liability.
Smart, smart.
Smart.
I'm about to fuck up somebody's fade.
Yeah.
| got somebody.
Free haircut time.
[HIP HOP MUSIC PLAYING]
So before I cut, let's get this understood.
His haircut is not from the Swag Shop.
We're in no way affiliated with this haircut
once they touch your hair.
Don't worry, man.
Showtime got mad money.
Four words-- sue the white people.
[CLAPPING]
ERN: PhD in barberology.
Let's get it.
What's the first thing we need to know?
It's the drape. DESUS: OK.
When you drape this cat, man, it's
gotta be like poetry in motion.
Ah, yeah.
Get that wind under there.
You know what I'm saying? - Let me try that.
ERN: Yeah, go ahead and try one. Try it over there.
I'll take that, very smoothly, and--
[BUZZER SOUND]
[LAUGHTER]
Sorry.
That's not it.
Whoo.
[BELL RINGING]
You know what I'm saying?
ERN: And the tightness of the cape--
do not choke anybody out.
You ever killed anyone accidentally?
Well, one time, [BLEEP].
Oh, shit.
ERN: Yeah. MERO: That's art.
ERN: See, I wasn't supposed to tell you that.
These are called clickers.
Try it out. MERO: Boom.
Here we go. It's a buzzer.
Start from the bottom?
[BUZZER SOUND]
Well, you want to ask him what haircut he would like.
Oh.
What do you want?
Trying to do a bald fade, low on the top.
- Bald fade, low on the top? - Yes, sir.
All right.
See, a fade is like a slow walk along the beach, man.
Look at this guy. He got that.
He got that. - Ooh.
OK.
DESUS: OK, he in there. He in there.
ERN: All right.
I've never seen this done like this before.
MERO: That's how you get the waves.
ERN: The waves matter, you know?
MERO: Waves matter around here.
ERN: Free Max B.
Black Lives Matter and waves matter.
That's right.
I need some Pepto right now.
- Getting seasick, right? - Man.
My belly.
Yeah, they teach you everything you need
to know about this game, man.
DESUS: OK.
Look real close at the haircut with the squinty eyes.
That gives your clients so much comfort.
Yes.
This is good, guys.
This is good.
What we like to do is stick your tongue
out while you're cutting here.
I missed a step.
[SHUTDOWN SOUND]
There's sanitation and sterilization.
[BUZZER SOUND]
DESUS: So basically, we just gave him razor bumps.
[BELL RINGING]
- Essentially, yes. - Sorry about that.
MERO: Sorry.
Sorry about that.
Sorry.
How your mama doing?
You tell her I say hello.
OK.
This is a great pointer right here.
Make sure your conversation doesn't lead
to your client swinging on you.
[LAUGHTER]
I was about to say.
You know what I'm saying?
Yeah.
You know, you're right.
ERN: I know my stuff.
I know my stuff.
DESUS: So is this the point in the haircut
we start doing conspiracy theories and such?
ERN: Absolutely. DESUS: OK.
You know the government tried to kill RJ, right?
MERO: That's right.
They tried to make Fabolous do it, you know what I'm saying?
But he said, nah, I'm from Brooklyn.
DESUS: A lot of people don't know about that.
There are tracking devices in the new Popeye's
chicken sandwich.
MERO: Oh, shit.
DESUS: I don't want to rock the boat,
but I think black Air Force Ones are
destroying the black community.
Now, all the hood kids are smoking synthetic marijuana.
Mm-hmm.
K2.
- How about K7? - Come, baby.
Come, baby. Come, baby.
Come.
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
Come smoke the K2.
Illuminati!
[AIR HORN BLOWING]
Guys, can I get the Laurence Fishburne Denzel eyes on this?
[BELL RINGING]
Yeah, strong squint.
Strong squint.
MERO: Looking right. DESUS: OK.
Oh, that's clean right there, boy.
MERO: Woo-hoo.
My man look like he's just about to win a dunk contest.
- What's your name again? - Derek.
You can't be Derek, because the Derek that walked in here
did not look like this, baby.
MERO: D-Hoe's The MVP.
DESUS: OK, D-Hoe.
Yo, with--
D-Hoes.
You already know.
KILLER MIKE: We back.
Oh, man. - Hey.
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
How's it going?
The Swag Shop gave you an amazing haircut.
DESUS: OK.
I thought we did the--
Who's we? Oh, yeah.
You're my new barbers.
Hey!
[DRUM ROLL]
[BELL RINGING]