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Growing Up and Rising Above: A Grammy Nominated Baltimore Native | All Roads LTR Podcast | Ep. 43
19 Plays5 months ago
In this episode, our guest Jaymes Karter (Teddy Pendergrass Band), shares his experiences growing up in West Baltimore, his musical journey, and the challenges he faced and overcame along the way. From his early days playing the drums to his success in the music industry, Jaymes gives us an intimate look into the transformation of Baltimore's real estate landscape while sharing personal stories of his childhood, offering a unique perspective on real estate, resilience, and community development. This is a story of perseverance, optimism, and finding joy in life's journey.
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Transcript
Growing Up in West Baltimore
00:00:10
Speaker
I want to start first before you can get to the musical career, just growing up in Baltimore. So i don't I don't talk to enough people that are from here. A lot of people move in, right? But just having grown up and and and just having lived through that, in fact, I ended up buying a home you know that you introduced me to down in West Baltimore and rehabbed it and and all that. So um I'm a little bit familiar with where you're from, but just tell me what it was like to grow up in Baltimore and West Baltimore specifically. because it was it was grass It was grass and trees. yeah you know It was grass and trees and fence on your property and your lawn. It was beautiful. you know i mean I actually watched the beauty of Baltimore and then I've seen the destruction of Baltimore. i mean We could actually play in the street you know and I had my drum set in the basement.
00:01:02
Speaker
And people would come to the window and hear me. I was always performing. So they would come in here, you know, drummer boy down there and I'm playing drunk. And it was a real neighborhood. I mean, it really felt good in Baltimore City. And what time frame was that? ah This was 70 exactly in the 70s, like 73, 74, 75, because right from my mother's house is where I left to go out with the band. So they heard me in the basement practicing and then all of a sudden, you know, drummer boy is going with a big band. They never let me live that down to this day. It's like the star of the neighborhood. But you know, not, I mean, it's just so hard to say that because you always measure in how many great big stars are out there.
00:01:53
Speaker
But I had a real beautiful run, man. And trust me, man, you got great people with good minds living right here in Baltimore. I mean, this studio that I'm in now is just as great as some of the places that I've been in California, in Las Vegas. this This is a beautiful studio. So it's like I'm still surrounded by stars. You're a star, man. Come on, please. You done sold so many homes for us, man. you know And they liked you. They actually liked you. do Who's the lady named down on St. Paul? She and her husband bought a home and oh my God, that's a beautiful place, man. Yeah. Well, there's stars here. So i I ended up buying and I live in John Waters' old home. and oh wow And so that's where I live in Lutherville. I know you're doing a gig tomorrow next door to me. Right. Yeah.
Life Challenges and Positivity
00:02:44
Speaker
And so, you know, and his his childhood bedroom is my one year old daughter June's bedroom.
00:02:51
Speaker
And so I heard him on some interview once. i't I forgot one of the late night shows and he was describing that, you know, he thought up a lot of weird shit in that room. Wow. And I'm like, oh, God, my baby girl. You know, but, you know, we're surrounded by talent. And, you know, it's just like when I hear and I was, you know, look, you know, just looking into your bio and I've researched it before when I first met you. But it's like it's so true. Like some people will have bios that don't make any sense when you meet them. yours like Yours just describes like you emanate like soul. Like, you know, it's just like you're one of the most upbeat humans I've ever dealt with. yeah And you've had challenges in your life and your childhood and everything else. Everyone does. But yeah you are just array of sunshine when you call and you call to just check in. Yeah.
00:03:38
Speaker
You know, you know, we passed class just say, Matt, I'm thinking of you today. Oh, yeah, man. It's like, you know, life is real. And I've um i've been blessed to really appreciate life. Some people are still trying to find out what they want to be when they grow up. I was blessed to be able to appreciate every moment. I had friends that would say, why are you so up? Why are you so happy? You know, I went to a funeral when I was a kid and they said that that little girl was dead. I remember that. And I'm like, I don't never want to be that. That doesn't sound good. I'm telling
Journey to Sobriety and Health
00:04:14
Speaker
you, man. And I really think from then on, I had just, you know, look, I'm 36 years clean, man, leaving wine and drinking and smoking and everything alone. So I had a great run of destruction. And when I said, this is not
00:04:30
Speaker
working for me. you know I got so high ET told me to go home. yeah And I'm like, this is not working. Did you feel that you did that when you were full-time gigging, right? Yeah. Was that necessary you felt at the time to to be able to do that? Well, the party was so enticing. yeah The party was so enticing. I could have went without it. But when you have you know ah certain beauties come up to you and say, that let's go in the other room and let's talk. And then they break out something. You'd be like, okay. And then I didn't know I was allergic. I didn't know I was allergic to it, to all kinds of drugs. I didn't know it. You just, there's not a specific drug just in general? Well, cocaine was, I was allergic and I was really allergic to alcohol. I didn't know it. It's like, oh,
00:05:24
Speaker
I parked my car and don't know where I parked it. oh yes The car got banged and I don't remember who banged it. So I said, something is, we're going to have to work on this. And, uh, and something happened and I worked on it. It's been 36 years and you're not 36 are you? don't say oh No, I am older than that. Unfortunately, don't seem like you are, but you know, Hey, here we are. One of us looks better for our age than the other one. And it's not me. Okay. Oh my God. So, i you know, I work out, man. I do what I do and ah coming from a deep challenge now, you know what I mean? One day I'm just driving downtown and go to the restroom, come out the restroom and I'm losing my balance. And this was just ah what a couple months ago? October the 7th. I was losing losing my balance. I'm like, what's up? And I had a nice exp pa a nice expensive phone and I dropped it.
00:06:22
Speaker
I'm like, why did I drop my phone? So then my hands start tingling. I'm like, I'm calling 911. So I called 911 and they said, ah stroke like symptoms. I'm saying stroke like symptoms. What are you talking to? My bicycle was still in the van. yeah i'm a I'm a gymnast, I'm in the gym. I ride my bike, I exercise. I mean, come on. Anyway, when I got to the hospital, the lady was like, I'll be your nurse. I went to Mercy Hospital and she said, I'll be your nurse. My name is Faith. I said, Faith, she said, I got to see, I said, I got to see your name tag. So she showed me a name tag. Then I went to, after two, three days, I went to University of, uh, of Kern and for short. That's ah a short name. It's a long name, but it was old Kern and.
00:07:15
Speaker
And the lady said, I'll be your nurse, my name is Peace. I had to see her name tag. African woman was like, Peace my mover or something. yeah what And she said, and Joy will be your tech. So I was like, Peace, Joy, Mercy, and Faith, I must be in the right place. you know yeah So you know I was released November the 12th, and since then I've been in the gym, I've been recording, I've been on the treadmill, yeah this came from Just came from working
Financial Triumph and Homeownership
00:07:47
Speaker
out. Yeah, just i I just come from therapy today and I love it. It's just an upbeat, let's stick to the point, upbeat, upbeat. I'm gonna keep up as long as I got the strength in me. Even when I was buying a house, right? yeah When I was first buying a house, they told me, oh, you owe $27,000 to the government. I'm like, really, 27,000? Okay, no problem. Somebody told me something crazy and you're good, but I don't know. you know I'm gonna challenge this.
00:08:15
Speaker
The lady said, we won't be able to give you the home because you owe so much. I said, okay. She said, we're going, if you can pay three, if you can pay three payments of a hundred dollars to downtown at the federal building, because that's what the bill was, we will put the loan in front of the lien. You ever heard of that? I've never heard of that. She said, we will put the loan in front of the name. Now I don't know what that meant, but I go down and I could call his name, but I'm not going to call his name. Well, you didn't do anything illegal. He said, uh, your names, I told him my name. He said, uh, you said James. I said, yeah, your middle name. yeah I said, yeah, that's my middle name. He said,
00:09:05
Speaker
I don't know if you believe in God or not. I thought it was gonna say garnish. But he said, I don't know if you believe in God or not, but it's gone. Huh. So I asked him, did he have a restroom? And he went and he said over there and I goes to the restroom and start to dance. I had to dance. And when I came back, I said, is it still gone? He said, yeah, I am typing your letters of satisfaction. Wow. And that's what made me able to talk to you. yeah Because ah the credit score had went to a better place and we was able to get the first house together. Upbeat, upbeat, upbeat. Well and I still, I like to tell people.
00:09:49
Speaker
the first thing that I remember you for and so but I advertise on Zilla like a lot of people. I met you on that. Do you remember that? I met you on Zilla. You clicked that link to find an agent. Yeah, you're right. And you spoke to me. I was, right you know, the young buck trying to make it. still and bill And I'm sitting there talking to you and you said, I'm going to meet you at Starbucks. Right. And but that's odd. That doesn't ever happen. Most people want to meet you at the house, open the door, you know, and that's all they care about. You know, I'm second. I have to, they have to care about me later. You know, first it's the home.
00:10:22
Speaker
But not you, you immediately went and you're still the very first client to buy me a coffee. When you haven't even met me yet. You know how many lunches and coffees I've offered people? Well, let me tell you this, my wife- And I still appreciate it. Thank you for that. Well, you're so welcome. And my wife said, when we got in the car, she said, and I liked you from the start. And my wife said, I like him. I really like him. So she double sealed the deal. yeah I said, okay, we're going to work with him, you know, because you knew everybody. I mean, you was a real, real intuitive deal. Like you would have thought I was buying the Queen's palace the way you, you was like there. You had great mortgage people and it was just a good realtor and you didn't pay me to say this. I was going to say people who think this is fake. No, this is real, man. Matt Ryan is one of the best that ever did. I mean, I turned my mom on to you. Yes, he did. So if I put some if I put my mom in somebody's hand, that's very, very good. It's very much appreciated.
Dreams, Books, and Baltimore's Potential
00:11:30
Speaker
And ah and so I just want to get back to I guess I want to just revisit your childhood because I find it interesting that like you grew up in an an environment now that when people think of West Baltimore, they think
00:11:41
Speaker
it They think it's scary. yeah you know And you're such a, you know and it's like it's just the area that, and I have a listing in that, I just told you, two streets over from where you grew up. And um it's a beautiful little house. It's it's totally renovated, it's great. And you know it's just like, that wasn't the experience you had growing up. Now mindset, yeah I must say that in my neighborhood, we had fun, but it wasn't like there were serious dreamers. It wasn't a lot of dreamers. Man was my nickname. Man, for some strange reason, was dreaming of being this person or something. They couldn't put it together. ah And i i was ah I remember reading books about thinking grow rich and the power of positive thinking. and
00:12:29
Speaker
I believed that stuff. And they thought, they just thought I was a wild hippie. You know, I was born again hippie. I really loved it. And back then, you know, ah it was all about music and rock and roll. And and that was me. I was a hippie. You know, I'm African-American, was the first guy to bring a white guy in the house. Do you know what I mean? And they like, Oh, man, got a white guy in the house. He was a bass player. You know, he was Ray. Ray Pulaski, that's my man's name, you know? And he was a bass player and a singer. And, you know, we were jamming. Wow, man, life, whole life. So West Baltimore and James Carter had a very good relationship when it was West Baltimore. And, you know, but I think I outgrew West Baltimore.
00:13:22
Speaker
I outgrew West Baltimore from name. I outgrew West Baltimore from dreams you know and aspirations. I just thought bigger. Now Harry, you can get a government job or city job and really work forever. It's all good. good go watch and retire, you know? ah But man, I just felt like I'm a drummer at that time, and I just felt like I was good or gonna be good or get good later, you know? And it worked, it worked for me, because I was hanging around the Civic Center back then, it's called, it's called the Mariner now?
00:14:00
Speaker
The Civic Center. Yeah, that's what it is, man. It was Baltimore Civic Center back then. I was hanging around backstage just to watch these people go back. It was so big to see the stars go in the door. And I saw this sign that said, Stage Door. And I said, wow, somebody down here is gonna need a drummer one day. And one day, that's when I saw Teddy Pingrass and Harold Melvin and him get out of the limousine and go in the back, and I walked in with him. They didn't stop you? They didn't stop. Actually, they met the, what you call the guy that, you know, like the usher. He had a red jacket on and he said, let him in, move back, move back, let him in. He said, let me in. He said, he'd been here, let me in. I'm like, I ain't never, oh yeah, okay. And I walked on in and I got in the dressing room and pulled my sticks out, drumsticks, and started playing.
00:14:53
Speaker
on my drum pad and the the the ah manager, Henry Evans, he said, get that boy number. And I gave um my mother's phone number was the same number that she had to the day she passed 301-945-2790. And I gave them that number and they called me and that's how I got with them. That's crazy. Upbeat, upbeat. I believe that law of attraction is too late. I've been there, I've been attracted. yeah I was attracted much earlier. Yeah, so it was fun, man. Baltimore still and you is still my place, man. I still love Baltimore. I mean, I know what to say I don't like about it.
00:15:33
Speaker
But I still love that this was a place that I grew up in. Well, Mike, I had someone sitting in your seat a week or two ago, the last episode, his name is Dr. Jim. He ran um the psych. I forgot the exact division, but he ran at Baltimore City and Baltimore Police. He is a psychiatrist. um And so he got to to go in and telling me about how Baltimore has become such a dangerous place. To me, like it was very interesting to hear his perspective, but I hear from you as a very you're optimistic about, you know, in other conversations with me about what it could be. And he was describing it's going to take leadership from within to have any opportunity for change. He said some old white guy like me is never going to change anything in that city. What is your thinking on that? Having grown up there, it's like, do you like how do we
00:16:21
Speaker
You know, like I'm there. I work there. I want I want the best for Baltimore. Like how do how does anything change? Like how do we well first of all as far as Homes are concerned. I want to talk about the neighborhood and homes people will always need somewhere to stay Revered a turn the door down or you have to keep building it.
Leadership and Community Improvement
00:16:42
Speaker
They're gonna always need somewhere to stay. ah really making that area look like like North Shaw Street, you know, it's going to be the individual desire to want to live in their paradise, how to make their paradise where they live. If that particular person is not inspired and believe and have hope, you know, and desires to see a better place, it could be a continuing repair.
00:17:11
Speaker
But everyone will always want to live somewhere. So as a realtor, I would buy homes in Baltimore. I would sell homes in Baltimore as far as that's concerned. But that I was just that oh statement about it's going to take a real what to say. ah He described it as his words. He said it's leadership from within. Yeah, that that right there. That's that's leaders. ah You know, is between church and leaders, you know, is iss it's a heavy it's a thin line because something has to it has to be a profound personality change within the person. It has to be like what motivates me might be different from what motivates you. I'm inspired to see things bigger and better. And if I never get a home like Jay-Z, I want my
00:18:01
Speaker
Area to feel me feel just as good when I walk in my home As he feels when he walks in his home, you know, right? I feel great, you know, and I can and I have enough heart to compliment someone else's home You know what I mean? I'm that's no jealousy. This isn't a spiritual attitude, right? It's a spiritual attitude It's not that's not a popular word these days. They they try to make a commercial. word ah Do you you practice Buddhism? No, not really, but but Buddha is a real kind person. I have Buddha all over my home. Yeah. And that's why I remember seeing it. I was asking. I was like, I've never asked you directly with my man. he's I mean, he's just what what he represents was a real love, real understanding.
00:18:45
Speaker
and a certain kindness and a certain forgiveness. And so he could hang with me and I can hang with him. I'm not the kind of guy, you know, you meet somebody and he say, well, I'm into da, da, da, da, da. And I say, well, now I'm going to quit what I'm in and go join da, da, da, da, da. No, what I say is, hey, we can all walk together, you know, because spiritual principles are never in conflict with one another. You know, if you're really who you say you are, you wouldn't have no problem with me.
Passion for Music and Creativity
00:19:17
Speaker
Yeah. So I love, I love Buddha. Matter of fact, I have a 36 little tiny 36 bull front gallon.
00:19:26
Speaker
ah floor a glory And my whole theme, Buddha's all in my water. Buddha's all in the water. So, you know, I just bought some new pieces, decorations, and ah I'm gonna change the theme a little bit, and I gotta change the water tonight. Well, I think what i when I talk to you, I always am reminded of passion. And so some of the compliments I've received that i that mean the most to me, it's usually related to, man, you are into it. Like, you love your job. You are all over it. And it's like, you can't fake that.
00:19:57
Speaker
And I think what you do, it's like you're just a passionate guy, you love music, you're just passionate about life. And it's just like I would love to have seen you back in the day, you know, when you were touring and it was like the heyday. Like, was that a different James than the James I see now? Or was that the James that was having too much fun going crazy, not appreciating life? That was James, la evolved that was that was the young James that was doing all of the things that you know he learned not to do today. But in deep down inside of that person was still a heart that lives today. You say, that's the same heart, no matter what. I could feel the same love. I mean, the same love, the same heart.
00:20:41
Speaker
I could, um I mean, I would go to studios in New York and they would say, that's James, let him in. Luther Vandross and them. that The only Jimmy Carter I know is James Carter because the only other one is the president. So let him in. That's that's Bruce friend. Let him in. Outstanding, you know. And matter of fact, I mentioned Bruce. I said something. You got to meet this guy named Bruce Wallace. This guy was from New York. You're talking about Baltimore. He knows New York like in side out. He was the first cast on one Sesame Street. You know, Sesame, you remember Sesame Street? Oh, yeah, it's still going. The first Sesame Street was black.
00:21:22
Speaker
I didn't know that. It was Luther Vandross, Bruce Wallace, and Fonzie the Thornton. No, no, Fonzie. Yeah, I think his last name is Thornton. Anyway, Fonzie, you just say Fonzie at Sesame Street, you'll see. And Bruce is still living to this day. He got to be 71 or whatever, I don't know, called his age, but whatever. Brilliant guy about making it. brilliant guy about, I mean, he sent people with David Bowie, Lisa Fisher with the Rolling Stones. And he still living, calls me all the time. Matter of fact, called me while I was on my way up here. The only time I could tell him, man, I gotta go is when I'm dealing with a household mat or something like that. So I told him, amen. But you gotta meet him. You gotta get him on this. This should be good.