Why do you think it is that a lot of people have a negative reaction to you?
I think the media played a big part of that. I think the beginning of my introduction to the world was not the greatest. When people first saw me and first heard about it, and it became global news ... within one week almost the whole world knew who I was. Within one week. So, you really have to look at that and take into perspective that the first light that you're shown is like them judging a book by a cover. That's all they've seen -- the cover of the book. They haven't really thought past that or tried to look past that.
What do you think they saw on the cover?
They saw this dude. They saw this street kid. The world doesn't want that for Britney Spears. That's their queen. They don't want some dude that looks like a hoodlum -- baggy pants and wearing his T-shirt all baggy and hat crooked, tilted to the side. They don't wanna see that shit, and that's why they hate me. They want her to be with the all-American boy. I think that's really what it is.
You said it yourself, in the space of one week your life changed. How did that affect you?
At the time it was great, because I didn't pay attention to it. It helped me out all the way through to where I am right now, because I didn't pay any attention to it, because I was falling in love with this girl. I didn't see her as Britney Spears. People look at her and there's fans and there's "Oh my god, celebrity" and all that. I was never the guy that was star-struck. I've never been that person. I've never been the person that was, "Oh let me have your autograph and let me have your picture." That's not me. Not since I moved to L.A. eight years ago and started dancing for all these artists. I've never been that way. I brought the real dude and she fell in love with that, and I fell in love with her for the country girl that she is. I look past all the other stuff. I don't care about your money. I don't care about your fame. I don't care about any of that,
The watch you're wearing is worth more money than I've made in the last five years.
That's my baby. Whenever I made some money that's the first thing I went and bought.
So there are certain aspects of the lifestyle you probably enjoy.
Of course, of course. I have my fetishes like everybody else does. My shoes -- my kick game is ridiculous.
How many shoes do you have?
Probably like 80 to 100 pairs. My watch game is ridiculous -- just jewelry in general. It's an investment. I bought this [points to his watch], and it's already gone up in value. All the jewelry I'm wearing has already gone up in value.
You're not planning on selling it anytime soon are you?
Hell no. I ain't getting rid of it. I'm going to go out and get some more. It's great to be able to go and do that stuff, but you really sit back and think about it ... You could have all the money in the world and within two months of having that ... Say you hit the lotto, right? Two months of having that money, you go and buy a mansion, you buy a big-ass boat, you travel all around the world, you do everything in two months. That's not gonna buy you happiness. That's not gonna define who I am. It only goes so far. There's something way beyond that that's deep that I have with my wife that nobody will ever understand.
So let's say somebody says you release this rap album, but you're on the level of [underground rapper] Hi-Tek or somebody like that who's not actually selling a lot of albums or living the life you're living.
That doesn't matter. If somebody compared me to somebody like that -- I look up to people like that. Backpackers, underground music is great. I'm not doing this for the money. I already have money. If people think I'm doing this for the money, they got to sit back and look at, like ... what the fuck do I care about money right now? I'm doing it because this is what I love to do. This is a piece of my heart right here. I'm trying to share that with the world. I don't think they're accepting to it too much because they take it as bragging and shit talking and just a cocky arrogance. It's not that at all.
What's the last book you read?
Last book I read was either -- man, somebody just asked me this shit today -- it was either Russell Simmons' or Puffy's book. I'm really studying people who have been in this business and people who have really made themselves into a business from nothing because basically that's ... you see the watch and you see the jewelry and even though, yeah, I do have money, in a sense, I act like I really don't. Right now the way I look at it is that I'm broke and I'm struggling to get this shit off.
About the writer
David Marchese is an editorial fellow at Salon.
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