1 rich Libsyn https://www.libsyn.com 90 600 KXNG Crooked (AKA Crooked I) is one of Hip-Hop's all-time most respected lyricists. Suge Knight once hailed him as the next Tupac Shakur, and years later Eminem signed his group Slaughterhouse (with Joe Budden, Royce da 5'9&quot;, Joell Ortiz) to Shady Records. But that doesn't even begin to explain Crooked's foresight and brilliance. Crooked built one of Hip-Hop's first online followings with the release of his Hip-Hop Weekly Series in 2007, releasing a new track every week for a year, and creating a trend that was later implemented by a number of successful artists. He has also continued to stay relevant by remaining innovative and taking frequent chances.&amp;nbsp; This is definitely one of the best episodes yet, as Crooked shares invaluable knowledge, and he even provides a blueprint for up and coming artists to follow when releasing an album. In addition to being an incredible MC, Crooked is a born leader, social activist, TV producer, and an overall great person. I guarantee you will get some real value from this interview or I'll give you a full refund. Check it out! &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; 6:25 Traveling expands your mind 10:50 Being inspired by the success of Snoop Dogg and Warren G in his younger years 13:01 Crooked took advantage of his first big opportunity&amp;nbsp; 16:29 Being too&amp;nbsp;smart for his own good 19:50 Why Crooked chose Death Row over Aftermath 21:44 Crooked ponders whether his friend who sells incense or Dr. Dre is the most successful person he knows 24:05 Suge Knight always led by example and was accessible at any time 27:16 Crooked has always tried to match 2Pac’s work ethic 28:49 Being an early adopter of technology and building an&amp;nbsp;online fan base 32:05 Why so many artists stole Crooked’s formula 36:37 On aging well 39:06 The making of Slaughterhouse 43:10 The positioning used to get Slaughterhouse on Shady Records 50:00&amp;nbsp;Eminem’s work ethic is infectious 52:38 Why being creative will always have value 54:27 How a rock bottom moment solidified Crooked’s sobriety 58:51 Surround yourself with positive people 1:04:21 Never let ideas escape 1:05:13 Crooked details a great plan on&amp;nbsp;how to spend $10K on your album release 1:14:17 Learn from your mistakes The Indie Playbook Presented by Focused Noise http://focusednoise.libsyn.com/website <iframe title="Libsyn Player" style="border: none" src="//html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/6186635/height/90/theme/custom/thumbnail/yes/direction/forward/render-playlist/no/custom-color/88AA3C/" height="90" width="600" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen></iframe> https://assets.libsyn.com/secure/content/18791377