Rob Markman: 2010 man, again, when we talk about generations, I think our parents, you
know, when you go to sporting events, and they have Queen We Will Rock You.
T-Pain: For sure.
Rob Markman: And that's the staple.
T-Pain: Yeah.
Rob Markman: I think we have one that you and Khaled gave us.
T-Pain: Oh boy.
Rob Markman: Sporting events, it's even presidential.
Can we ... we don't acknowledge Trump, can we check out Obama?
Yeah.
Fucking right.
First of all, was he about to Millie Rock?
I thought he was about to bust into a Millie Rock.
T-Pain: He was about to bust one out.
Rob Markman: It was three years early.
T-Pain: Like go crazy, you're fucking right, Barry.
There you go.
Barry O.
Rob Markman: How did that moment feel, man, when Barack came out and said this is my new
theme music?
T-Pain: It was cool as shit, man.
That was about the coolest thing I done had happen in a while, and I got kids.
Ain't it fucked up?
Oh shit.
Oh man, no it was dope, man.
It was dope seeing it man.
It's levels that you reach in life, and that was a big milestone for me, man, you know
what I'm saying?
You know, things start happening more.
Corporations start calling me more, prices of my shows went up, it got crazy.
It was just a lot happening then to where that stable point in my life that kind of
made sure I'm going to be alright, you know what I'm saying?
That, seeing that at that moment was like alright we're good now, we're straight.
Let's make more, let's do more of this.
Rob Markman: I always wondered how that song kind of came about, and Khaled came to genius
one day and I asked him, so I just wanted to see from Khaled's perspective of how that song was made.
Then we're going to ask your perspective, can we roll Khaled?
Rob Markman: Khaled has an interesting way of
telling stories, doesn't he?
From your perspective, was it really just him kind of badgering you, like yo, we got
to win, I got to turn my own in.
T-Pain: It was a lot of that.
There was more food this time.
There was ... it was a lot of food, it was lobster this time.
That shit was crazy.
Oh, he had some money.
It was crazy.
But no, he was in the studio.
The way I was doing songs at the time, I would do my ad libs first.
So, you know, I would listen to the beat for a while and I was just in there...up!
In the!
Building!
Yeah!
He didn't know what I was doing so it was like yo ... trash.
I'm like yo, just give me a second, give me a second.
Ima come to you in a minute, I'm just setting where the rhythm needs to be, I'm setting
the points where I need to get to, and he would stop it and all that stuff, so, it was
just a way of processing it.
Nobody in the room understood it but me, because you know I can hear everything in my head.
T-Pain: Then I was like give me the talk, and he did all that.
We got to win, we got to win and this, and this.
Then I started doing all I do is win, win, win, no matter what, and then he kept talking
and I was like okay, next thing.
Then he kept talking and I was like alright, Khaled you got to leave, you got to get out
of here.
Rob Markman: Was it sort of though a response ... it's almost like him challenging you.
He's like yo, we got to win, and then you're like no, all I do win.
It was almost ...
T-Pain: Yeah, it was kind of like that, but you know, the things I was thinking of and
the things I was saying back to him, he kept saying no, that's not big, that's not big,
and I'm like okay, well, what about I want to win.
No, that's not it.
What about I'm trying to win.
No, that's not it.
Well goddamn Khaled, I guess all I do is ... let's go, hit the goddamn record button.
So, yeah.
It worked out, but Khaled gives you that motivation and Khaled really bigs you up crazy and makes
you feel like you're the best fucking artist in the world when you're doing a song for him.
him.
It definitely helped.