"Did people get rich from the crack game at it's peak?" Thu Jun-03-21 11:55 AM by double negative
I was just thinking about this.
Imagine:
A middle or upper-middle class family. The house is extremely nice. The kids have gone to college. For all appearances, things are pretty great. The thing is...everyone in the family knows not to talk about the "good old days" or ask dad how they got money.
OR
A similar situation but everyone and I mean everyone knows how the money was made, but the law can't touch them...but its still out in the open.
Like most of the people here, I grew up in the crack era. I also remember the stories of dealers who were making 10k or more a day. Obviously, the formula most people in that situation observed was "live fast, die young" or "live for today" - but, I am wondering if there were people who secured the bag and walked away rich and managed to stay rich or turned that money into a legit situation or got richer after flipping the money into legitimate ventures
or... is everyone from that time on the dealing side dead, in jail or worse off than before?
legsdiamond Member since May 05th 2011 79586 posts
Thu Jun-03-21 12:15 PM
2. "I used to beg my friend to open a record store with his money" In response to Reply # 0
and he always said “how would I justify where the money came from?”
me: nigga how would you justify where it came from right now?
he woulda had a nice 10 year run before napster hit.
.....
another friend kinda made it out the game with profits but someone told me he was on the local news in the area a few years back and he doesn’t even live here.. lmao.
**************** TBH the fact that you're even a mod here fits squarely within Jag's narrative of OK-sanctioned aggression, bullying, and toxicity. *shrug*
"Walleye, a lot of things are going to go wrong in your life that technically aren't your fault. Always remember that this doesn't make you any less of an idiot"
4. "went to highschool with a cat who rolled with a crew of known high rolle..." In response to Reply # 0
he opened a salon for his girlfriend who he later married and he opened a barbershop and maybe 1 or 2 other small businesses... everyone knew his affiliations and how his crew got down.
another cat, this one a childhood friend linked up with some other guys at A&T and they all put in 5k from school refunds and copped many lbs and a good amount of soft white some of which they cheffed up. my homie owns 2 restaurants now and from what i understand his crimees have invested in realestate, strip clubs, group homes, small used car dealerships etc. lotta niggas came up for sure
8. "yeah i think stories like mine are the exception and not the rule..." In response to Reply # 6
i know SEVERAL people (many from my own hood) who started dealing and became addicted and eventually full blown addicts. others got washed for football numbers and some died. it was a ruff game, i knew i wasnt cut out for it
10. "I think there tons of these stories but that the secret of their success..." In response to Reply # 8
they laid low and quietly made the transition.
Like if you were out here bragging about how you turned crack money into legitimate money you'd be taken down in 10 seconds (which is what I think happened to Murder Inc.).
********** "Everyone has a plan until you punch them in the face. Then they don't have a plan anymore." (c) Mike Tyson
7. "Maybe these don't qualify as "foot soldiers," but weren't Murder Inc., ...." In response to Reply # 0 Thu Jun-03-21 01:23 PM by Brew
... Death Row, Roc-A-Fella, and like every major hip hop label from the 90s and possibly beyond funded by crack money from one or two people who were deep in the game ?
they bought air time on cable tv and ran recruitment commercials. arguably indirectly launched the xth wave of hip hop (trap) via young jeezy. so influential and massively successful until they got popped. where is the prestige tv BMF series?!
20. "they were bound to get caught." In response to Reply # 17
way too flashy. you could see them in the clubs. see the line of cars jammed on Peachtree street and at Lenox. they were not shy and basically asking to get popped.
16. "RE: it's like making it to the pros. " In response to Reply # 15
>some will get there. most won't.
and from these accounts, those who made it out with some bread still, simply invested in other things but still had to hustle in those things..that aint rich
BrooklynWHAT Member since Jun 15th 2007 85067 posts
Thu Jun-03-21 05:22 PM
18. "thats how my barber is" In response to Reply # 16
ran the streets in his 20s, got his shop when he was in his 30s
met him at this point when i was 9, im 30 now.
started buying other property and putting money in other businesses. i wouldnt say he's rich now but he's comfortable. thursday-saturdays are his money days for the shop but if i pop in there on a Tuesday or Wednesday he's sitting up in there playing Madden or watching some bullshit TV chilling.
21. "Was heroin the constant "main" drug in Baltimore?" In response to Reply # 14
Heroin (and meth) were always constants in some hoods in Philly, but crack really swept through and became the drug of the streets here in the late 80s/early 90s. Now it seems like heroin (really fentanyl) is back in that #1 spot, especially if you add-in all with all the opiod pills.
Always wondered why I didn't see more crack on The Wire (not that that show is a real source of info, just something I noticed).
crack was sold but the big names who got rich and branched off built it from heroin.
And not for nothing, I won't say the Wire is "accurate," but it's accurate in the sense of the references they make.
David Simon mixed up a few of the names and events for the sake of the show, but if you know, you'll know who Stringer Bell is referencing and who Avon Barksdale is referencing, so on and so forth.
The Barksdale last name holds weight if you're older. I don't know if these young dudes hold that name in that regard still. Dante Barksdale was running a program to cut down gun violence in his later years and was doing some real work in Baltimore until he was killed.
19. "Some of the old-timers that moved weight & invested did well" In response to Reply # 0
They own reputable businesses and property now. They probably make up like such a tiny fraction of all the folks that worked in the crack industry tho. Probably very few corner boys did well in the long run. What I've noticed in Philly.
23. "Theres a couple Soul Food spots in town" In response to Reply # 0
That were directly funded by that crack money. Its really no secrets about that though. I dont see how its any different than the Kennedys making all of that money during prohibition.
You take the blue pill, the story ends. You wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill, you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes.
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