Are You a G? 7 Questions to FIND OUT if R&B STAR LYFE is the 7th letter of the alphabet. Lyfe is currently working on what he says will be his final album, an 11-track creation called Sooner Than Later. And since he plans on retiring soon, we figured we better determine his G’ status sooner than later. A. Your hometown of Toledo, Ohio, doesn’t sound too hood, but it definitely has a grimy side. How was it growing up there? I really don’t remember. I don’t have nothing that was really stands out because I lived in prison more than I lived in any other place in my live anyway. I got more memories of that than I do of Toledo. Damn, the title of this feature is “Are You A G” and by definition, there’s probably never been a more textbook response. B. Being that you were in prison for ten years, how did you not go crazy? It was the music. I was just writing my music, keeping my little hopes alive. Really the music was my hope, it kept me from doing a lot of stuff that I might’ve otherwise did. As a music magazine, there’s no way we can not award him a point for this answer. C. Since you’re from a small town and are one of the only artists to “make it” from your city, do you feel an obligation to help other artists from Toledo get on? I don’t know if I have an obligation just to [Toledo], but I feel like whenever you have a certain form of popularity you have an obligation not to put out anything that would be harmful, cause in reality 24 // OZONE MAG
music is a product. If you make cheesecake, you’re not gonna put out a cheesecake that’s gonna harm the consumer. Some people do, but that’s their thing. If Lyfe wasn’t a felon he could certainly be politician, because this proves he can dance around a question. D. Can you recall any crazy fan requests that you had to decline? One of the craziest things was when I was in Minneapolis signing autographs and this big lady got to the front and started yelling, “I got something for you to sign!” She started undoing her pants and I’m thinkin’ she wanted me to sign her stomach or something like that, but this lady pulled her whole pants down and pulled out her little man in the moat. She opened it up and was like, “Sign right here.” I was like look, “Buckle yo action back up, and I’ll sign yo stomach.” So I’m trying to sign her stomach but she got so many stretch marks that I can’t even get a straight line, so I did what I could. It looked like a computer chip, because the marker kept skipping. Then later on that same night I was at the hotel, kicking it with a few of my cousins, and out of nowhere she came in like, “Dere he go!” and she started unbuckling her stuff again trying to get me to sign it. I told my security she had to go. Man in the moat? We’ve never heard that analogy before, but big girls need love too. Since Lyfe had security handle his heavyweight, we can’t award him any points for this one.
abcdefG E. Do you have a stylist in your entourage? Naw, I roll with about ten people: my band, my background singers, my security dude, road manager, and me. Of course this was a trick question, but Lyfe passed, so we’ll give him a point. F. I heard you got the name Lyfe in prison, but what did they call you before you were locked up? They used to call me Cash. I used to get it in, I was at work. Sounds like he could’ve been a character on “Menace II Society.” G. Do you ever get worried that somebody might snatch your chain, or is that not a concern since it’s a Jesus piece? Man, I be having a different relationship with cats. I’m not saying it couldn’t happen, because dudes probably really don’t care about me like that [because] they don’t know me, but I think they have a certain amount of respect for me, ya dig? And a lot of them chains they be snatching are flimsy anyway. It’d be hard for somebody to snatch my chain off. My [chain] would be a challenge. His answer sounded even more confident in real life than it does on paper. Score 5/7 Music industry politics and cheesecake cost Lyfe a few points, but anybody familiar with his story already knew LJ would pass this test pretty easily. - Words by Eric Perrin
Hood Deeds WORDS By Eric Perrin PHOTOS COURTESY OF MAYWEATHER PROMOTIONS
Floyd Mayweather Jr. doesn’t give much hope to any of his opponents. The undefeated professional boxer with a 39-0 record has been brutally effective in establishing himself as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, and has arguably destroyed the lives of many who have squared up against him. But outside of the ring, Mayweather has a completely different agenda. On August 14th, the boxer took time out of his training schedule to speak to a group of teenagers from the Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth (NPHY) at their Safe Place Drop-In Center in Las Vegas. His goal was to instill a message of inspiration. “I have been fortunate enough to rise above what I was faced with as a young kid in Grand Rapids,” said Mayweather. “If even a fraction of what I said to these kids today can give them hope, then I have done what I came here to do.” His words resonated and his attendance alone had an impact on the teen members of NPHY who attend the life skill program at the center once a week. “Today was one of the most inspirational days of my life,” said Breanna Watkins, age 18. “It’s not easy to keep your head up and push through the storm, but after today, I realize that no matter how much you struggle, it is possible to make it out on top. I really appreciate that Floyd Mayweather and his team took the time out of their schedules to give us words of encouragement.” Tim Mullin, the Director of Operations at NPHY, also expressed his gratitude. ”It’s great to have a professional athlete like Floyd Mayweather come in and teach our kids what it takes to rise to the top of his profession,” he said. Though his recent trip to the Safe Place Drop-In Center was Mayweather’s first, he and his entourage frequently prepare hundreds of packed lunches for distribution to homeless people living on the streets of Central Las Vegas. //