- Congratulations on this new album.
- Thanks, man.
- The album's name is 'PTSD.'
How did you come up with the concept
and title for this project?
- Really acknowledging myself that I have PTSD,
and with really being clinically diagnosed with PTSD.
- Right.
- And, trying to spread awareness on the fact
that people don't really realize that they have PTSD.
- Yeah.
- So, it was real important for me
to shed a light on that,
cause it affect my life on a day to day basis
and so many other people.
- How did making this album help cope with your diagnosis?
- Definitely therapeutic
to get a lot of stuff off my chest
that I didn't know that I wasn't able to.
So, music always was like a form of therapy for me anyway,
like that's actually why I did it.
That's why I started rapping because I was able to
tell my story in a way where it kinda,
it made me feel better.
- Yeah. Does understanding your diagnosis
change the way you make music?
- I don't really, try intentionally
to make music about that.
You get what I'm saying?
Like, it just come off naturally
cause this is my life, like my lifestyle.
Like I really suffer from PTSD.
- [B.Dot] Yeah.
- It affects my train of thought every single day.
I just got a strong mind
where I'm able to, understand it,
you know what I'm saying?
- Why was it important to seek professional help
with a therapist versus just relying on music?
- I think it was important for me to talk to somebody
who's never been through the stuff that you been through.
Talking to my therapist,
I was telling her certain stuff and she couldn't believe it.
You know what I'm saying?
I was so nervous my first therapy session,
I cracked my ID in half.
- [B.Dot] Wow. - Just talking to her
about (beep) that I've been through.
I literally split my ID in half just talking to her.
She told me, "You have PTSD.
"It is a sickness and mental illness."
You know I'm saying?
The way you think
and I had to really like, get naked with her in a sense.
Like every day I left out the house
I really felt like I was gon die,
or I could go to jail for protecting myself.
It's important to just talk to somebody,
you know what I'm saying?
And, a lot of times we have blocked
that intuition and blocked that in the back of our head
because we desensitized by it, we think it's normal.
So, she was there to tell me, "No, it's not normal."
- Yeah.
Being that you have gone to seek professional help
how do you feel now?
- It helps, but I still feel the same.
A lot of times, you know what I'm saying?
I know all my steps have to be calculated.
I can't get too comfortable, you know what I'm saying?
Because, I come from one of the
most violent neighborhoods in Chicago.
I come from one of the worst neighborhoods
in the whole city of Chicago.
And, the stuff that we up against, we so desensitized
by it, we don't even know that it's a problem.
- [B.Dot] Yeah.
So like, seeing, being exposed to murder
and addiction and all of that stuff early on.
Like we so desensitized by the reality
of what's going on, it's normal.
I've seen murders, I've been shot,
and I left out the house the next day to go to school.
And I was just smart enough to pass the test the next day,
but a lot of these kids aren't able to
because they still fighting these inner demons,
you know what I'm saying?
And they don't even realize,
they don't even know that you suffer from a mental illness,
when you encounter these things
because it affect your day to day life.
You don't wanna walk to the store,
you scared you gon' get shot.
You don't wanna walk to school, you scared you gon' get shot.
You know what I'm saying?
So, it's important for me to spread light on that
and not only talk about the cause and effect,
but try to bring solution to the situation, too.
Like I really think schools should have a therapist.
- Yeah.
- Schools should have somebody that's gon' ask you,
"How was your day?" 'Cause a lot of these kids,
they don't have a sense of family,
a sense of none of that at home.
- [B.Dot] Yeah.
- When they're in school that's the only love they gon' feel.
Sometimes, that's the only meal,
that's the only clean, safe environment that they have.
And it's only for eight hours outta your day.
- [B.Dot] Yeah, even in the cover man, we felt that a lot.
Like you're holding a flag with some of the faces
of the people that you've lost.
- [G Herbo] Yeah.
- [B.Dot] Can you explain the inspiration behind that?
- [G Herbo] I wanted to bring people into my world,
my reality. I'm 24 years old.
It's 50 stars on that flag but I could've put 60.
I could've probably put 70. - Wow.
- You know what I'm saying?
Like, these are people who I shared meals with,
who I slept on couches with.
These are my best friends, mothers, uncles,
you know what I'm saying?
Stuff like that.
I got Juice Wrld on the cover.
- [B.Dot] Yeah. - [G Herbo] You know.
I think the families, they appreciate it,
'cause it's not about me glorifying it,
you know what I'm saying? - [B.Dot] Right.
- [G Herbo] I'm just bringing light to the situation
that what is going on here is not normal,
you know what I'm saying,
and something needs to give in these situations
and I make the sacrifice to
try to bring change.
- Yeah.
You memorialized Juice Wrld on the cover, like you said.
You called him a baby Michael Jackson.
- (laughs) I've been calling him that since I met him.
- Yeah, what did he mean to the city of Chicago?
- Chicago, never seen an artist like a Juice.
- [B.Dot] Right.
- Young and on top of the world, talented at that,
you know what I'm saying, and really like,
reached this big level of stardom so fast,
you know what I'm saying.
And, knowing how to deal with it.
He was, excellent when it came
to really dealing with the fame.
- Yeah.
- I think just coming from Chicago and the stuff,
you behave yourself a certain way,
just because you don't take it for granted,
because the stuff that you had to encounter
before you got there, you know what I'm saying.
And Chicago don't see that.
- On your Instagram post when you eulogized him,
you said you remember those talks with him.
Can you share some of what those talks were about?
- Yeah, I used to always talk to him about like,
real life, you know what I'm saying.
He used to look at me like a big brother.
- [B.Dot] Yeah.
- So, sometimes he would pull me to the side and be like,
"What you feel about this?"
I would tell him, "You gotta take control of your life bro.
"Control how you set the tone for your career.
"Set the tone for your relationships.
"Set the tone for everything you do
"'cause it's your life, it's your legacy,
"it's your destiny to fulfill."
Help him with anything he do,
regardless of his music or whatever.
If you instill certain morals in you,
no task is really too hard.
- I know you're setting the tone lyrically and musically.
"So Chicago" freestyle.
- [G Herbo] Yeah, yeah.
- You said you're, "trying to restore the hip-hop feeling
and mix facts with it."
What do you think has been missing in hip-hop?
- Hip-hop has been missing from hip-hop!
Like real substance,
talking about something and it being competitive.
Making mistakes, vulnerability,
like that's what hip-hop was, you know what I'm saying?
Hip-hop was somebody, nine times out of 10,
that diamond in the rough,
talk about their vulnerability, their life.
You know what I'm saying and for the people that to relate to it.
I think hip-hop now has become a popularity contest.
- [B.Dot] Yeah.
- You know what I'm saying, and I want it to get back
to real music substance.
Meek just tweeted the other day,
"[2020] wack music will perish."
- Yeah.
- You know what I'm saying?
And, I felt that.
(laughing)
- I could tell you else what I felt, man.
Listening to the project of 'PTSD.'
You're sampling some of these classic hip-hop tunes.
You opened the track up with the Jay Z "Dynasty Intro" beat.
Then, I noticed you had Jadakiss' "Still Feel Me"
on "Feelings."
And you had Beanie Sigel's, "Feel it in the Air,"
with "Intuition."
Like, was that intentional?
- Yeah, of course it was intentional.
(laughing)
I really want these hip-hop legends,
icons that I looked up to, to know that I embraced them.
Like nowadays, the kids, average kid my age
they act like they don't even listen to,
none of that old stuff
or they don't know who these people are,
like they don't know the Rakim's
- [B.Dot] Right.
- and the— the Pac's
and they can't tell you a NAS album.
- [B.Dot] Right. - You know what I'm saying?
So it's like, that's important for me to be able
to embrace that because that's what I grew up on.
That's what I appreciate.
That's the reason why I did music,
to be able to be in a room with these guys
and be able to be considered like a top-tier artist, an emcee.
You know what I'm saying. - Right, absolutely.
- Not a rapper, emcee like I'm a emcee.
- Feels like this is something
that's needed right now in hip-hop.
What do you hope from—
What do you hope that 'PTSD' does
for the hip-hop listener and for your peers in Chicago?
- I hope 'PTSD' wakes people up.
Nothing in life is by coincidence bro.
Even going through the stuff
that I went through, it strengthened my armor plate.
I wouldn't be the man I am today.
I learned so much.
I really grew into a man.
I started doing music when I was 16 years old,
and I felt like I was a man then, but I was still a boy.
So, I want people to really like, wake up
and fix your situation.
Because you going through it for a reason,
you know what I'm saying?
No matter how messed up the situation may be.
And I'm that kinda guy like you will probably get mad at me
because when you in a (beep) up situation,
I would understand, but I won't probably have empathy
for the situation because everybody knows
nothing you going through is too hard, too difficult.
Somebody always going through worse than you
or the same thing you going through.
And, people have PTSD
and don't know that they have it, you know what I'm saying?
People don't know that
they really suffer from a mental illness.
That's why you don't wanna do this.
That's why you don't wanna get in the car.
That's why you— You know what I'm saying? So,
I think the first step understanding it,
will help you maneuver through life a lot better.