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In this episode of People’s Party, Talib Kweli and Jasmin Leigh sit down with singer, rapper, actor, and songwriter Everlast, aka Whitey Ford. This in-depth interview covers the full career arc of a man who has been able to reinvent himself time after time, the way few others in the music game have been able to pull off.

The interview starts with Everlast discussing being born in New York and moving to LA a few years later, where he gained a love for graffiti and started writing rhymes in the late '80s. He lays out how he was put on Ice-T's Rhyme Syndicate collective, along with his close friend Divine Styler. He goes on to detail his transition to House Of Pain, after linking up with DJ Lethal and DJ Muggs. Later, Everlast shares the backstory of HOP's iconic hit 'Jump Around', and explains how the track came out at the same time as Kris Kross's 'Jump' -- due to a Ruffhouse executive stealing the concept.

Later, the conversation moves to House Of Pain's Irish hooligan identity and how that came into play in their music. Everlast also talks about House Of Pain's role in the late 90's Rap/Rock scene, his song 'Legend' dedicated to Kurt Cobain, the making of the movie and soundtrack to 'Judgement Night', and -- finally -- the band's breakup. He details his struggles with depression in the aftermath of HOP's disbanding, before finding his new identity as 'Whitey Ford.'

Prompted by Kweli and Jasmin, Everlast goes on to discuss his beef with Eminem, and how it eventually got squashed with the help of B-Real from Cypress Hill. He also talks about working with Santana on 'Put Your Lights On', as well as his experiences at Def Jam Records. He speaks on his super-group La Coka Nostra being created on the fly with late-night recording sessions featuring the likes of Ill Bill, Sick Jacken, and B-Real. The conversation starts to get real when they touch on Everlast's quest for his spiritual identity, and he opens up about the birth of his first child Laila and her diagnosis with Cystic Fibrosis. He also speaks on his favorite of all his projects 'Whitey Ford's House Of Pain', Donald Trump supporters, America being a corporation, gives aspiring artists advice about not compromising their creative integrity, and tells us what Everlast aka Whitey Ford has in store for the future.

TIME STAMPS:

3:34 -- Everlast expands on a quote of his saying "Everything I do is hip hop", being the first music that really spoke to him. He speaks about all of the music he created throughout the years regardless of the genre having elements that are reminiscent of hip hop culture. Talib also brings up Post Malone annoying him due to the fact that he can't help but like his music. The problem being the fact that he has distanced himself from hip hop since his success. Talib also mentions Lauryn Hill and how she was forced to only perform medley's of her biggest hits after some legal issues.

11:16 -- Everlast talks about being born in Long Island, then moving to Los Angeles, where he attended the same high school as Ice Cube. He speaks on graffiti being his first creative effort in hip hop culture, rapping actually coming later when he wrote his first bars around 1988. They also talk about his close friendship with LA conscious rapper Divine Styler, as well as his involvement with Ice-T's Rhyme Syndicate.

17:35 -- Everlast tells the story of his transition from the Rhyme Syndicate-era to House Of Pain. Making his exit from Warner Records due to lack of promotion and marketing of his music, then later linking up with DJ Lethal, and Danny Boy to talk about a new group. He also explains why he fell in love with the name House Of Pain, reveals how their group was originally intended as a live rock band with Everlast rapping, and tells how that changed after DJ Muggs and B-Real from Cypress Hill brought over a demo tape for their first album. Everlast was blown away by Muggs' innovative production, so later B-Real urged Muggs to collaborate with them for their debut, and the rest was history.

26:05 -- Everlast shares the backstory of the song 'Jump Around', including the fact that Ice Cube passed on the beat. He also addresses the source of what just might be the world's most controversial sample. When Kweli remarks on the fact that the track launched around the same time as Kriss Kross's "Jump," Everlast tells the story of rushing their song onto the radio after learning that Joe Nicolo, co-founder of Ruffhouse Records, had heard the track and created a similar beat and theme for Kriss Kross.

35:43 -- Talib brings up the often contentious relationships black people in New York experience with Irish police officers, and asks Everlast if he received any friction among Irish police after the release of his first House Of Pain album due to its anti-cop sentiments. Everlast responds that he actually got preferential treatment from those police due to his Irish-American celebrity status.

39:10 -- The trio discuss how the 'Alt-right' uses the history of Irish hardships as a way to push white pride, and how the pro-white movement has always been about oppressing others vs. black pride being created as a way to push back against white supremacy. Everlast speaks about how House Of Pain's Irish hooligan concept came into play, Jasmin asks Everlast who he thinks is holding it down, as far as the Irish figures in today's popular culture, and they discuss Macklemore's use of his Irish identity in his music.

47:04 -- Everlast is asked about the Rap/Rock pollenation-era of the late-90's. He talks about House Of Pain receiving offers to perform at rock festivals, and also reflects on the song 'Legend' that was dedicated to Kurt Cobain. They discuss Kurt's legacy, and Talib talks about 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' blowing his mind when it dropped. Everlast also speaks on House Of Pain's collaboration with Helmet on the Judgement Night soundtrack, he deconstructs the making of that song, and talks about him starring in the movie, and getting cut out of most scenes because the director didn't like him.

52:20 -- Everlast talks about House Of Pain's disbandment in 1996, stating that drugs were a huge contributing factor. He illustrates the moment he announced he was quitting the group at the Hollywood release party for their final album. He also reflects on his personal struggles following the breakup dealing with depression, and having panic attacks on his way to finding his new identity as Whitey Ford. He touches the origins of his new moniker, the making of his album 'White Ford Sings The Blues', and the pushback he received from record companies that thought it was a huge mistake.

1:03:36 -- Everlast speaks on his beef with Eminem and their subsequent diss tracks. Everlast outlines how the beef spawned from their first meeting, how Dilated Peoples got pulled into it, how he and Eminem went after each other, and how it finally got squashed with the assistance of B-Real.

1:12:41 -- Everlast talks about working with Santana on 'Put Your Lights On' from Santana's Grammy Award winning album 'Supernatural'. He explains the whole thing came together with his manager submitting the demo without Everlast even knowing. He describes the shock he experienced finding out Carlos had such deep interest in his music.

1:16:28 -- Everlast talks about his experience under Def Jam records making the album 'White Trash Beautiful'. He details all the people and events that contributed to that album getting released. Talib also asks Everlast about his 'Martyr Inc Records'.

1:21:46 -- Everlast speaks about his and Ill Bill's group 'La Coka Nostra', it's origin's and how that came to fruition. Starting with Everlast and Danny Boy beginning to talk again, 10+ years after the House Of Pain break-up, then moving to do late-night recording sessions with Ill Bill, Sick Jacken, B-Real, as well as other with intentions of being released as some single posse-cuts before the concept of the group really even came into play.

1:29:18 -- Everlast talks about his spiritual journey, spending time immersed in multiple religions in search of the truth, and going through phases of doubting his faith, and goodness as a human being. He details his time spent as a Muslim beginning in 1996, but explains he eventually came to terms with not landing on any one particular faith, but using the principle of the golden rule as his guiding light, and stating his view that who your savior is really isn't what's important.

1:34:22 -- He talks about having his first child, and doctors explaining to him his daughter Laila had been diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis, giving her a life expectancy of 16. He speaks on how he dealt with that dark news, getting cops called on him while at the hospital, and almost having a serious altercation with his daughter in the next room. He explains finding the right therapist helped him cope with the harsh reality, and speaks on how his daughter Laila manages his Instagram account documenting her every-day complexities dealing with the disease.

1:44:58 -- Everlast talks about his lastest album 'Whitey Ford's House Of Pain', being his personal favorite project to date. He speaks to how it's a perfect combination of Everlast's two identities, a stream of consciousness and a culmination of all the elements that make up who he is, and what brought him to this point in life.

1:48:23 -- Talib asks Everlast to speak on his quote about Donald Trump being elected by 'scared ass white people' and that he'll probably be elected again. He explains how sick he is of the current political climate, talks about how people should get in touch with their own cultural history, and how that could help them appreciate others' more.

1:53:30 -- Everlast gives his take about America being a corporation. Talib asks Everlast if he has any advice for artists coming into the industry, and how they can be successful without compromising their creative integrity, Jasmin asks Everlast if he has an opinion on what Meg The Stallion is going through with her contract issues, and Talib asks what the future holds for Everlast.

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