The Vlad Couch Episode 13: David Banner (Full Interview)

On this week's episode of "The Vlad Couch," insightful rapper David Banner sat with us to chop it up about social injustices in America and what's he doing to make a change that will impact the Black community.

"One of the reasons why I stopped doing hip-hop - up until just recently - was because I had an opportunity to travel internationally. And I got to see the way that America was depicting Black men here...we looked really bad, and I was a real big part of that." The activist took a hiatus from rap to pursue an acting career, but unfortunately, as director Craig Brewer put it, if you're a dark-skinned Black man over six feet tall you'll only be cast as a thug or other negative characters. "I sat in LA for a year and barely got two auditions because I said I didn't wanna play that role again," Banner recalls, telling directors "I don't want to be your n******."

David Banner also chatted with us about police brutality. He and Vlad both agreed that the rate police officers are killing Black men and children hasn't changed for decades, but social media is bringing light to it more than it ever has before. "The original job for a policeman was to catch escaped slaves and protect the property of slave-owners. And it has not changed," he detested. "The only way you're gonna stop police brutality is if those police's lives are threatened, or if something is gonna happen to their children. Or if something is gonna happen to their jobs, their money [or] their lives."

Listen to our latest podcast to hear how David Banner wants to change hip-hop, shed more light on Southern artists and how he contributes to the Black community with his Heal the Hood Foundation above.

Also be sure to stay tuned for more from The Vlad Couch: