In this episode of The Freestyle, I’m sharing something a little different:
How writing music has shaped the way I think about business, creativity, and life.

Over the years I’ve written hundreds of rap lyrics, and inside those lines are lessons, observations, and patterns I’ve learned along the way. 🏆

I call them Life-Lines — ideas hidden inside the lyrics that apply far beyond the music.

Let’s Rock.

Some people journal.

Some people write essays.

Some people talk things out.

For me…

I rap. Freestyle Rap off the top of the dome.

Some I record on voice notes, some I write down.

Over the years I’ve written hundreds of lines.

Some turn into songs.
Some stay in voice memos.
Some sit in notebooks.

But every once in a while a line lands that feels bigger than the track.

A line that explains something about business, creativity, or life.

I call those Life-Lines.

Music wasn’t always part of my life.

Then one day my brother’s friend handed me a tape cassette.

Bone Thugs-n-Harmony.

I put the headphones on — metal headband, gray foam speakers — and hit play.

The first track started with an alarm clock.

Then a yawn.

Then the beat dropped.

“First of the Month.”

I was hooked immediately.

From that point on music became a constant.

Surfing during the day.
Music in the headphones.

Later it became something else too — a way of thinking.

Because writing lyrics forces clarity.

If a line doesn’t hit, you feel it immediately.

Business works the same way.

Weak ideas fall apart.

Strong ideas stick.

Writing music feels surprisingly similar to building companies.

You start with nothing.

A rhythm.
A thought.
An idea.

Then you start building.

Layer by layer.

Line by line.

Decision by decision.

Eventually something real exists that didn’t exist before.

Music taught me something important:

Creation is a muscle.

If you use it, it gets stronger.

If you wait for inspiration, nothing happens.

The same rule applies to entrepreneurship.

One of the lines that stuck with me came from a late-night writing session.

Everyone has the same 24 hours.

But those hours can go in two directions.

You can:

• build
• test
• experiment
• move something forward

Or you can wait.

Years later the difference becomes massive.

Small daily action compounds.

Another line that always stuck with me:

It’s blunt, but it’s real.

Your environment shapes your expectations.

The people you spend time with influence:

• what feels normal
• what feels possible
• what feels worth pursuing

Ambition spreads.

So does complacency.

Choose your circle carefully.

Another bar that eventually became a real business principle:

Our businesses didn’t grow in a straight line.

They expanded outward.

Printing.
Signage.
Advertising.
Digital screens.
Real estate.

Each stream strengthens the others.

Diversification isn’t just financial strategy.

It’s risk management and resilience.

One line captured a shift in thinking:

There’s a moment in entrepreneurship when your mindset changes.

You stop thinking only about income.

You start thinking about assets.

Assets produce value repeatedly.

Ownership creates leverage.

Leverage creates freedom.

Another line that reflects how progress actually works:

Success rarely happens overnight.

It’s incremental.

A little progress today.

A little more tomorrow.

Stack enough of those days together and suddenly people call it success.

But the real story is consistency.

For me music isn’t about performing.

It’s about processing ideas.

Sometimes a concept becomes clearer when it rhymes.

Lyrics compress ideas into a single sentence.

One strong line can hold an entire philosophy.

That’s what I love about writing.

You discover thoughts you didn’t know you had.

When I go back through old notebooks and voice memos, I see something interesting.

The lines reflect different phases of life.

What I was learning.

What I was trying to figure out.

Music becomes a timeline of thought.

Sometimes a line you wrote years ago ends up explaining something you're experiencing today.

That’s why I call them Life-Lines.

Because sometimes a single line becomes a reminder.

Keep building.
Keep creating.
Keep moving forward.

Quarter century I finally came to my senses,
finally got my hands on that tinted Benz kid.

I see the world clear through my tinted lenses,
with the dream and the drive the possibilities endless.

🎧 If you’re curious, you can hear some of my music here:

ctzns.co

Forward this to someone building something.