Urban Life News Issue 5: Securing the Bag

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Riker’s Island, Bronx NY

URBAN LIFE NEWS

FOR ADVERTISING info@urbanlifenewsmagazine.com

CEO & Publisher

Demar Tyson

Associate Editor

William Oree

Business Services

Nerissa Tyson

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Demar Tyson

1-800-288-1744 Fax: 516-667-0711

CORPORATE OFFICE 2270 Grand Avenue - Suite 6 Baldwin NY 11510

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TABLE OF CONTENTS HIGHLIGHTS 4

Publisher’s Word

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Show & Prove 2018

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R.I.P. Ceelow TheGr8t

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Handgun Penalties in NYS

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Conversation with the Feurtado Bros.

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$ecuring the Bag: Wealth & Credit Building

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Shout Outs: A Voice From Within

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Model Spotlight

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Puzzle

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Justice For Junior

WE SALUTE YOU GERALD PRINCE MILLER

WRITE TO PRINCE: Gerald Prince Miller 10766-050 USP Allenwood U.S. Penitentiary PO Box 3000 3

White Deer PA, 17887

PUBLISHER’S WORD. Y

ou have fallen & experienced a setback!? Now it’s time to get back up?

What else are you gonna do?

Crying is O.K., but for how long?

Stressing is also a natural response to setbacks. But for how long?

What benefit will it add to your life and situation?

It is you who must pull through and dig yourself out. Spiritually, mentally or physically. Circumstances do not make or break a man, instead they reveal the man to himself.The rest is up to you.

I remain your publisher,

DemarJahliekTyson 4

&

2018

SHOW

PROVE

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HONORING

DR. SEBI

Dr. Sebi is a pathologist, herbalist, biochemist, and naturalist. He has studied and personally observed herbs in North America, Central and South America, Africa, and the Caribbean, and has developed a unique approach and methodology to healing the human body with herbs that is firmly rooted in over 30 years of experience.

Dr. Sebi was born Alfredo Bowman on November 26, 1933, in the village of Ilanga in Spanish Honduras. Dr. Sebi is a self-educated man. He took cues on being obedient to the procession of life from his beloved grandmother, “Mama Hay.” His early days of play and observation by the river and in the forest, coupled with guidance from his grandmother, afforded Sebi the foundation to be obedient to the Truth in his later life.

Sebi came to the United States as a self-educated man who was diagnosed with asthma, diabetes, impotency, and obesity. After unsuccessful treatments with conventional doctors and traditional western medicine, Sebi was lead to an herbalist in Mexico. Finding great healing success from all his ailments, he began creating natural vegetation cell food compounds geared for inter-cellular cleansing and the revitalization of all the cells that make up the human body. Dr. Sebi has dedicated over 30 years of his life to develop a unique methodology that he could only obtain through years of empirical knowledge.

Inspired by the personal healing experience and knowledge he gained, he began sharing the compounds with others, which gave birth to Dr. Sebi’s Cell Food.

“There is no disease that is incurable. Not with chemicals but with nature I have found cures.” - Dr. Sebi 10

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A Q&A with

CUTTING EDGE BAIL BONDS LLC Cutting Edge Bail Bonds LLC sat down with me to give me some insight on bail bonds and how that system works.

Question: What is a Bail Bondman?

Answer: A Bail Bondman is a licensed agent for the court that works for an insurance company in securing the liberty of criminal and at times civil offenders prior to and at times after trial proceedings.

Question: Can you use a credit card to secure bail?

Answer: Yes Question: Who determines the percentage of bond that must paid by cash?

Answer: New York State law and Statues regulates what bail bondsman services can be lawfully charged

Question: When can someone arrested call upon a bail bondsman’s services?

Question: How long does it take for someone to be released once bail is posted?

Answer: Traditionally, bail bondsman can only secure someone’s liberty once a judge sets the price – either in cash or bond. While many believe that once arrested all citizens have a constitutional right to bail – this is not true.

The US Constitution only states that “if” bail is afforded it cannot be excessive. Affording bail is up to the discretion of the judge.

Answer: It’s a process which depends on the speed of the correctional facility’s records. If all information is readily available the process can take anywhere between one to three hours for the arrested person to physically walk out a jail’s doors.

Question: What are the steps to obtaining bail?

Answer: First, a judge must inform the court of his bail determination in the following manners a) No bail b) Cash bail c) Bond bail d) Cash or bond bail Once the judge sets bail, the bail bondsman carefully analyzes the variables that effect its insurance company’s policies in awarding or posting bail. Matters like the nature of the crime, the totality of charges, criminal history, previous bail awards, and the possibility of flight risk are all factors in determining whether bail will be awarded.

Question: What is the difference between cash and bond bail?

Answer: A cash bail really doesn’t require a bondsman services. A friend or a family member can simply go to the jail and pay the cash amount as stated by the judge.

However, a bond requires an insurance company to issue the bond of the amount the judge sets. In essence, the bail bondsman acts as an insurance agent for the court. The assurance is that the bail bondsman informs the court that you will return for all court appearances because they have a vested interest in you. For this service, New York State bail bondsman agencies will charge between 10 to 20 percent processing fee which is equivalent to 10 to 20 percent of the bond. For example: if the bond is $50,000 then you would pay between $5,000 and $10,000 (which represents 10 to 20 percent).

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Question: Can anyone pay/post bail for someone arrested?

Answer: Yes. However, it cannot be a co-defendant, the arrested person, a victim of the arrested person, or a witness to the crime for which the person was arrested.

Question: May the courts investigate where and how someone got the money for bail?

Answer: Yes, especially if the person was arrested for drug charges. Therefore, it is highly recommended that you go through a bail bondsman if the person is arrested for a drug affliated charge.

Question: Why is Cutting Edge Bail Bondsman Services, LLC better than other bail bondsman agencies?

Answer: We are the best because of our ethics in the application of our services; meeting the needs of the communities underserved by bail bondsman; honest in our assessment; professional in our representation to the courts of the arrested individual and we never venture outside the bail bondsman guidelines established by the laws adopted in the state of New York.

W.T. Oree Contributing Writer www.cuttingedgebailbondsbronx.com 184 East 161 Street 2nd Floor, BX, New York 10451 Phone: 718-618-7118 • Fax: 718-618-7118 Serving: NYC, NY State, Nassau and Suffolk County, Westchester County

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Rest In Peace

CEELOW THEGR8T 17

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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT

HANDGUN P E N A LT I E S

IN NEW YORK STATE

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hile Possessing a firearm may look great in movies and videos or feel like it’s the only way you can survive these streets, you need to know and understand that there are real consequences in New York State, which has some of the nation’s toughest gun laws, even for 1st time offenders who likely face mandatory state prison if they are convicted.

would still be convicted of the illegal possession and face the sentences described above. Sadly, many people also don’t know that under NYS laws a firearm can be determined to be “loaded” even if there is no ammunition in the gun, if it is within the reach of and readily accessible to the person accessing the gun. Penal Law 265.00 (15).

NYS Penal Law Article 265, defines and sets forth the different categories and subdivisions of Illegal Weapons Possession in New York State. While it is illegal to possess certain knives, stun guns, rifles and shotguns in New York State, it is the possession of illegal handguns and “firearms” that most often cause people to suffer Felony Convictions and State Prison time.

Lastly, an important fact to keep in mind is that Guns which are legally purchased, owned, registered or possessed in other states, DO NOT qualify as LEGAL in NYS. Therefore, you will still be arrested if you bring your handgun from Florida, North Carolina, Nebraska or wherever, into New York, even if it is completely legal there.

Many don’t realize that possession of a loaded and operable firearm in New York State (penal Law 265.02) is a class C Violent Felony (a very serious crime); and for a first time offender who is sentenced as an adult and who doesn’t work out a plea deal, the minimum sentence is Three and one-half (3.5) years in State Prison, up to Fifteen (15) years in State Prison, and also comes with a period of Post Release Supervision of between 2 and 5 years. Even though plea bargains are a usual occurrence in criminal cases in New York State, a solid Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the 2nd degree charge, will still likely cause an individual to receive a two (2) years State Prison sentence, even as a first time felony offender.

Knowing all of the above- you really have to ask yourself,

Furthermore, individuals who already have an adult violent felony conviction on their record, face even harsher consequences and face a minimum of Seven (7) years in state prison if convicted on the C felony, and even if a second violent felony offender works out a plea to the lesser charge of attempted possession of a weapon in the 2nd degree, (265.03), the penalty is at least Five (5) years in the State Penitentiary, also with a period of Post Release Supervision (aka parole) when they are released.

IS IT REALLY WORTH IT? IS HAVING THE GUN ON ME REALLY NECESSARY, AND AM I REALLY READY AND WILLING TO GO TO STATE PRISON, AND BE FOREVER LABELED AS A VIOLENT FELONY OFFENDER? Anthony Mayol, P.C. • Attorney Contributing Writer

Third time violent felony offenders face mandatory life sentences, if convicted of possessing a loaded and operable firearm in New York State, starting at Sixteen years to Life and going up to Twenty-Five years to life.

It is very important to understand that even if a firearm is not loaded, you can still be convicted of a D violent felony, if it is defaced (Penal Law 265.02(3), if it is an assault weapon 265.02(7), or is possessed during a drug trafficking felony or violent felony 265.02(9) and (10); and under Laws that were enacted less then six years ago, you can also be convicted of an E felony, just by possessing an operable firearm even without any ammunition, and still face up to four years in State Prison.

Interestingly enough, I have come to learn that many clients actually don’t know that self-defense is NOT a defense to possession of an illegal firearm. Therefore, even if you were justified in “using” the weapon or you are found not guilty of using the weapon criminally, you 20

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CRIMINAL CONSPIRACY A Simple Definition

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criminal conspiracy exists when two or more people agree to commit almost any unlawful act, then take some action toward its completion. The action taken need not itself be a crime, but it must indicate that those involved in the conspiracy knew of the plan and intended to break the law. One person may be charged with and convicted of both conspiracy and the underlying crime based on the same circumstances.

For example, Andy, Dan, and Alice plan a bank robbery.

They 1) visit the bank first to assess security, 2) pool their money and buy a gun together, and 3) write a demand letter. All three can be charged with conspiracy to commit robbery, regardless of whether the robbery itself is actually attempted or completed.

The “Agreement” Requirement You might be wondering how exactly the agreement between two co-conspirators actually takes place. First, the agreement does not need to be expressly conveyed. For instance, in the above example, Andy isn’t required to tell Dan and Alice in unequivocal terms, “I agree to commit a conspiracy with you,” (although, that statement would surely be a prosecutor’s dream and strong evidence of a criminal conspiracy).

Instead, the agreement may be implicit or shown by the action of “two or more guilty minds,” as required under common law. Examples of evidence of an implicit agreement can include the appearance of the co-defendants at transactions and negotiations in furtherance of the conspiracy such as a planning meeting.

It is important to note that courts have found that mere presence or association with those committing a crime doesn’t, by itself, make someone a co-conspirator unless there are other factors that collectively point to an implicit agreement.

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The Element of “Intent” As with other specific intent crimes, your intention means everything. But that’s not the only intent the court will care about. Not only does one other individual in the conspiracy need to intend to agree, all parties must intend to achieve the outcome.

Simply put, knowledge of a crime isn’t enough to get you thrown behind bars. For instance, just because your friend tells you he is going to burglarize a house, doesn’t mean you are part of the conspiracy to burglarize it. Not unless you also agree to help by acting as a getaway car or helping him scope out the property ahead of time.

Penalties A conspiracy conviction can yield some pretty tough penalties depending on the underlying crime. You can be punished for both the conspiracy and the actual crime itself if, it was completed. For example, if you are charged and convicted of conspiracy to commit robbery and the actual crime of robbery, you may have to suffer the consequences of both. Additionally, in some cases if you are convicted of a conspiracy to commit a felony, you may have to serve a mandatory minimum sentence.

Charged with Conspiracy?

You’ll Want a Good Attorney Being accused of a criminal conspiracy is a serious accusation and can have a huge impact on your life, including the strong likelihood of incarceration. If you are being investigated or have been arrested for a conspiracy to commit a crime, you’ll need a strong advocate on your side.

More to Come Next Issue STAY TUNED!

SEAN KEITH EXCLUSIVE CUSTOM ART SEANKEITHGALLERY.COM 24

Harvard Law School’s stated mission is “to educate leaders who contribute to the advancement of justice and the well-being of society.” With only one fifth of graduates pursuing public interest work after law school, Harvard Law is falling short of its mission.

In this comprehensive call to action, Pete Davis examines the source of this civic deficit and proposes what, in Harvard Law’s third century, the school community should do to rectify it.

WWW.HLRECORD.ORG © Harvard Law Record Corporation, 2017 Pete Davis is a civic reformer hailing from Falls Church, Virginia, a current Harvard Law School student and the co-founder of Getaway.house. Previously, he co-founded OurCommonPlace, a web platform for local community engagement, and served as a poverty and labor advisor at Ralph Nader’s Center for Study of Responsive Law. By night, you can find him playing folk music and bopping around the Boston alternative stand up circuit.

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Email Pete at Pete@civicideas.com

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KINGS OF KINGS A Conversation With

The Feurtado Brothers

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Tyson: Peace all. Urban Life News Magazine is back again with something very special for you. We are fortunate to be able to sit down with the Feurtado Brothers, Mr Lance and Mr Todd. We appreciate you welcoming us into your home, into your office, and into your world.

Thank you.

Lance: Thank you for having us my brother Tyson. It’s a pleasure to meet you also.

Todd: We truly appreciate it. I love the concept. Urban Life is news for those who want to hear it because it opens doors, many doors and shows you the way out. (through insight) Lance: As I see it, Urban Life creates the news. We’re the trendsetters. When it comes to retail, industry, music - whatever - it’s Urban Life. So everybody wants to emulate what we do.

Tyson: That’s a fact, that’s a fact, and I appreciate that.

Just for the record, we didn’t even rehearse on that. That was organic; that was natural. It’s as if they saw my mission statement or something. (laughter) Lance: Listen, that’s how we flow man. It’s nothing like getting the true essence out of a conversation.

Tyson: Yes sir. Today were going to speak to our subscribers to Urban Life News Magazine who are sitting in those prisons, in those institutions; specifically, in upstate (our first target market), Nassau County Suffolk County, Ryker’s Island, and in the Feds.

Todd: Right Tyson: And so what I want to do is sit down with you guys and kind of go into your history, into your experiences in the so-called game, and build about your transition along with what you’re doing now for the community.

Let’s start with who you are and where you’re from?

Lance: Okay.

Tyson: Some people may not know you brothers story, others may have seen some of the You Tube videos, while others may have read something in some other magazines. However; today we’re going to set the record straight, we’re going to give up some clear, concise information straight from you guys mouths.

Lance: Straight from the mouth. Yeah. So, we’re from South Jamaica, Queens. Originally we were born in Harlem; then we moved down to Queens in Southside, South Jamaica, and I don’t say that, literally, we’re not geographical. So we’re not bound to just South Jamaica.

No. We’re liaisons, we travel the nation and we can go in 26 different states or more because we’ve preserved our characters and our respect. So just to answer the question, South Jamaica man.

Todd: And this is Lance.

Todd: And I’m Todd, and we’re better known as the Feurtado Brothers.

Tyson: That’s what’s up. Okay. So you’re from South Jamaica. You want to tell us a little bit about your entrance into the so-called game. How did you guys get started?

Lance: Okay. So, the block that we grew up on right, when we were young growing up. I described the block and the hold that was on this block, like this: Every house on that block had a Mom and a Dad. We grew up in a single parent home. Not to take nothing away from my Mom, because my Mom made the best she could, with what she had, but by comparison those other homes had a mom and dad. So they had dual income. “Those kids had what they wanted. We didn’t have what we needed”. So we took matters into our own hands. At the tender ages of eleven, twelve and thirteen, we stepped into a life of crime, for less of better terms. We were involved with one of the biggest gangs in Queens at the time. I guess if you have to measure it, it was equivalent to the present day Bloods, the Cribs, and/or the Latin Kings.

We started off with selling weed; trying to help Mom make ends meet. And the gang that we were involved with, was over 1500 strong, back then. I would say at least three to five hundred of them sold weed, for our family, so as you can imagine, the ends started to meet really quick. We went from trying to help Mom make ends meet to becoming lovers of money. We graduated and one of the reasons why we’re so dedicated and passionate about reaching back by way of interviews is because when we were that age, no one took the time to talk to us. Had they taken the time to talk to us we still might have looked at them and said, “well, who the hell are you?” Can you relate to what we going through and some of the things that we experiencing? And so for the subscribers, the readers and the people that was watching us; We can relate first-hand to some of the things that you might be experiencing or going through. So that’s why we love to do interviews like this especially with Urban Life. Man the Urban community, that’s where we are from. So, the ends started to meet really quickly and we graduated from weed, trees, whatever they call it today. And we...

Tyson: Loud Lance: Right. And we moved up to heroin and cocaine and, like I said, we become lovers of money. And that was our transition into that life. We didn’t just go into it saying, ‘yeah, my nigga I wanna be on!’.Nah! We were trying to live a better life because as I mentioned, it was three of us, Todd is the youngest, and it was hand me downs, hand me downs. You know what I’m saying?

Todd: And the thing is, like Lance made mention of, in all reality, all we were trying to do is get some new sneakers, some new clothes, not to be a burden on my 28

mother because she was working two jobs. Our Dad was in the city, he was active but he’s in the city, while we’re in Queens. So it was about just trying to better ourselves.

As Lance made mentioned, the hand me downs came to me so you know, they went from one, two, to three and they were still good because one thing that we learned growing up, we learned how to appreciate everything.

whole nine.

Todd: One thing that we truly believed and we always knew was that it was dirt money and we knew we were never going to hurt anyone over dirt money. Because if it was meant for you, it’s going to come to you. So if you were with us and you messed up fifty, sixty thousand, you got that.

Lance: For those listening and watching this when he says, the city, we’re talking about Harlem, we’re talking about New York City.

Lance: I don’t know ‘bout fifty, sixty thousand. Not so.

Tyson: We’re talking about Harlem.

Lance: Right. for our subscribers, we’re talking about New York City, Manhattan, not Jamaica Queens.

Todd: Right. And, so when you come from that era in the early sixty’s when it cost little of nothing to live but that little of nothing was hard to achieve, you don’t know you are poor; we didn’t know we was part of the have-nots.

Then moving to Queens you know, it’s a different atmosphere, seems like a whole different life and people was doing things that we weren’t doing in the city and likewise we were doing things in the city that they weren’t doing in Queens. So once, as Lance made mention also, we got involved with weed smoking, we started feeling like we needed sneakers, we need clothes. And then everything began to take a life of its own because once you start becoming part of the haves- it’s hard to go back to the have-nots, and one of the things that we used for justification was; If we ate, everybody ate. That was our slogan..........

Lance: Once you get with the Feurtado Brothers, you could never go wrong.

Todd: Because we were part of the Good Hands people.

Lance: And that’s what we were willing to be. We were like the Robin Hood of the game.

Tyson: So for the lack of a better expression, do you believe that because of your philosophy of’ ‘when you eat, everybody eats’, do you believe that contributed to your success in that particular arena? (The game) Todd: Of course. Yeah. Definitely, who would want to be part of the team, where only the ‘high up’ is eating? You know what I’m saying. If everybody is eating, everybody is like, ‘Yo, I want to be a part of that. You have no animosity, you have no griminess, no sneaky Sh*t, (excuse my language) going on, you know what I’m saying, That’s what it was all about. Eating.

Tyson: Because when you’ve got some starving soldiers that also increases the possibility of talking and telling and so...

Lance: Talking, telling, backstabbing, being set up. the 29

Todd: We weren’t dropping bodies over no money, regardless of the amount it was; and yes someone would have to pay it off but as far as getting limbs broke, we weren’t with that.

Tyson: So you aren’t talking about a dollar amount you’re talking about a philosophy, a strategic approach.

Todd: I just used that amount to make a point, because if it had been fifty or sixty grand, we weren’t hurting nobody over that money because in that life we already knew there’s no right way to do wrong. If you’re doing wrong and you capitalize on the game by hurting people, I believe you’re out of order because they are doing it because they see you doing it, you can’t fault them.

Lance: So in a nutshell, a person that got fifty or sixty worth of whatever, was Bonafide (thorough), and was a Pay-master, so that wasn’t even part of the conversation.

So like Todd said, it’s just a philosophy...

Todd: True.

Lance: Because it’s really you know, down in the area of five and ten thousand. If you owed five thousand, ten thousand, and started playing games, you did us a favor.

You just paid your way out of our life.

Tyson: You revealed your character for a little bit of money.

Todd: Right, right.

Lance: Right. For a little of nothing. So, you stopped yourself.

Todd: Look, it ain’t like people ain’t ever, owed sixty or seventy thousand dollars and walked away with it, because it has happened. But it wasn’t a thing... that took place regularly. However; at a certain level in the game you will take some loses. It’s just a matter of how you deal with it.

Todd: It’s sad to say, in that life there were many people that wanted to be part of your crew, and they’re going to do things that they think you want them to do. So a lot of things went under the rug. We knew that if we put something in the atmosphere, we (Tony, Lance or myself) had to be careful not to put anything into that atmosphere.

Someone was going to act on it, because they would be

thinking we put in the atmosphere for a reason. For example; we might say “don’t mess with the dude because he’s X, Y and Z,” but they took it as, yes, let’s snap that arm and break that leg, so we didn’t put certain things in the atmosphere because we realize the power of our influence. We knew the life we that lived, was a life, that was a gateway to that Federal System, so there were just certain things that we just didn’t do.

Tyson: You know I appreciate you saying that because I believe what you’re talking about is integrity. Right. So although we are playing in a so-called dirty game, we are chasing our visions, we still play the game, with integrity, with a certain moral consciousness...

Lance: Exactly.

Tyson: ...and that’s one of the foundational reasons why I wanted to have this interview because I believe the game today is lacking that. It’s lacking that moral consciousness.

Lance: It’s like you said, rules, codes, procedures, respect, climbing that ladder. Back in the day when you were described as being a hustler, there was a level of accomplishment that you had to prove of yourself to be considered a boss. In order to get up here, you had to know what was going on down here, and then when the era of crack came about; anybody could cook up, go stand on the corner and sell the drug. Claiming; I’m a ‘top-notch’, I’m a hustler, cause they getting a few dollars you know what I’m saying. But, nah, it was rules, codes and procedures that went along with the game.

Todd: Yeah, you hit it on the head- morals, brings about longevity. Because, in that life enemies come because you have something that they want. But we weren’t an enemy creator. Even before the drug world, people gravitated to us; as well as we gravitated to them but when we got into that drug world, it was really no different because of how we carried ourselves.

Tyson: So now I heard you mention Tony; we were talking about Big Brother pretty Tony...

Lance: If you want to call it that.

Tyson: You guys at some point got arrested and did a significant amount of time.

Todd: Yes. So, and I say it all the time, God had a plan and a purpose for us. We didn’t know it then. We were facing, we were facing three life sentences right, and, but there were some doors left open for us, our soul was intact, so anybody just watching, reading, they know what that mean, our soul is intact, we don’t compromise.

Lance: You see the shirt, right. Get the shirt. Paperwork good. We saying that for a reason, that’s what we talking about.

Todd: I stamp that.

Lance: We don’t compromise.

Todd: Paperwork is good.

Tyson: Paperwork good. It’s your visa through life and your passport through the hood, so I’m glad you touched on that, because that’s important.

Todd: Very, very.

Lance: That there were some gates and then when you understand gates, you understand methodology and strategy. It doesn’t mean you slide out the door at the expense of somebody else.

Todd: Right.

Tyson: It means understanding your situation, count your blessings and get to maneuvering.

Lance: Maneuver meaning: Shepardizing, researching your case.

Todd: Yes sir.

Tyson: Oh Yeah?

Lance: And find enough loop holes that can help you.

And so, as I made mention, what the devil meant for hurt, harm and danger, God took it and turned it into good and multiplied it for the greater. For those who are sitting up in a cell, reading this laying up, you can go to; Fed third, book 191, page 420 and you can see Feurtado versus the US and you can read how we gave time back, you know what I’m saying. There are some issues there that can help you, so you need to get up, get up off that cot, get up out of the gym, thinking you’re the next LeBron James or Kevin Durant get up off that mic thinking that you’re the next Styles P, or Jada Kiss or somebody, no man. Do for self.

Lance: Yeah. So it’s a ladder. Yeah. Tony, Me and Todd

Todd: It’s only one of them.

Tyson: Alright. So, ultimately you guys did a bid...

Lance: You got to help yourself. If you don’t help your-

Todd: That’s what they call him. (laughter around the table) Tyson: A lot of our young viewers might not even know that phrase-ology but that’s why we’re here today so they can get some game.

Lance: Exactly. So you know, but we’re all only one year apart.

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self, no one’s going to do it for you.

Todd: So it’s more than safe to say that the Law Library is called the keys of justice. and the only way that you’re going to find that keys is if you get in that Law library and due diligence. You can sit back and allow your lawyer, cause your lawyer want to eat and he want to get as much money as possible. You have to help yourself because at the end of the day it’s your life, your freedom on the line, your family home suffering.

Lance: Exactly. And let me drop a subliminal. It’s like Todd said, it’s the key to justice, but if you don’t use that key, that’s what you’ll find. Just us.

Tyson: Wow! That’s deep. And I appreciate that insight, because during my last incarceration, they would announce the Law library. For one, you’re supposed to go there for an hour, but they only give you twenty or thirty minutes. Nobody’s complaining. Because when they call Law library, only two or three guys are going. The rest say they’re going to go to the yard, I’m going to play some ball. I’m stressed out I got to make a phone call.

Todd: Yeah. And then the thing is; how could you be comfortable? not you per se...

Tyson: That’s alright.

Todd: But how could a person especially looking like you and I - be comfortable in a situation where you’re locked up whether you committed a crime or not. There’s always a way out. Not by telling, paperwork is good, but you have to get in that Law library. Because every rule, code and procedure there is to get (catch) you, there’s one to release you. Just like you committed a crime, and as the streets would say, you got caught slipping, if you do your due diligence in that Law library, you’ll find out that the United States Marshalls are sometimes slipping also, but they just didn’t get caught. It’s up to you to catch them, and that’s why you must get into those books. As Lance said, you have to sherardize your case, you can find those loopholes, you can find those harmful errors and you can use it to your advantage. It’s your choice!

Because if you don’t, that means you are satisfied with doing some time. If you’re a father how could you sit on your butt? I sat back as a dad, and one of my children were born while I was locked up and I was like, how did I do this to my child? And when your child is born and you’re locked up, so your child’s going to hear the stories and it’s more than safe to say that sometimes your child may say, ‘you know what, if it was good for my dad it’s good for me. And they follow those footsteps without even realizing they are following you. There ain’t nothing cool about going to prison. I’m not going to say idiots are in prison because everyone that’s in jail is not a criminal. But there are idiots in jail.

Tyson: When I was doing a little bit of research, in one of the stories about you brothers, I heard your names 31

mentioned in relationship to the Supreme Team. Is there some history between the Seven Crowns and the Supreme Team, and the Feurtado Brothers? Can we just get a little clarification on that piece?

Lance: So, we all grew up together. We all went to school together. They, came under us or was directly influenced by us.

Todd: We were actually kind of right there at the same time. When people look at the name, connotation, King of Kings and they wonder where that name came from, it’s not something we made up for ourselves. It’s the name that the streets gave us, you know what I’m saying.

Cause rightly so, when you look at Preme, Prince and other folks, Cat, everybody, those brothers were Kings.

They were Kings. We just happened to be the King of Kings. I say that humbly.

Tyson: Of course. What’s real is real Lance: Yeah, and so it’s definitely history. All of us go back to twelve and thirteen years old.

Todd: Plenty of bread was broken together, even before the Supreme was the Supreme Team. Even before they had the name we broke bread together.

Lance: Yes, so we all went to school together and...

Tyson: Okay. So for, our brothers locked in a cell somewhere that’s going to read your story and hear your wisdom, at what point did you guys individually or collectively began to make a transition?

Lance: So as we made mentioned earlier on, in the interview, we were always dubbed as ‘The Good Hands People’. You know what I’m saying. We were always trying to do good, trying to do right with something negative.

But when we went to prison we kind of realized that this is a black hole that we just opened and this was a chain of destruction that we led down this black hole. We said you know what, learning more about what people describe as the prison industrial complex, I describe it as the business of incarceration and we started learning more about it. I said, you know what we’ve got to make sure that our future leaders don’t fall into the same traps we fell into.

Even though we made our choices knowingly and willingly, you know what I’m saying, it’s still a trap right.

Cause subliminally we’ve been brainwashed and so we said you know what we got to make sure that we put some truth out there. So when cats make their decision they make it like I said, knowingly and willingly. Because we don’t believe in genocide, even though we hear people say we played a role in it, but whether you know it or not, whether you’re putting the drug in the next man hand or if you’re pulling that trigger or you stand in front of the man with the black dress and talking about we did

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it, you just committed genocide. So we are here to break that chain, we are here to destroy the myth of there being a pipeline from the school yard to the prison yard, that’s a myth, that’s a lie. We are here to destroy it. You know what I’m saying. The choice is yours.

Todd: Exactly.

Lance: So individually, we kind of just, that spirit was breathed into all of us simultaneously, that it’s time to make a change, we got to make a difference. So while I was incarcerated, while I was in prison I was a GED tutor. So I was responsible for helping over 75 inmates to receive their GED. Todd, played a major role where he was also.

Todd: You know what was the eye-opener, (pardon me) when we got locked up? We were all in South Carolina 1400 Heilger Street one the worse jails in existence. It looked like it used to be a slave holding pin.

Tyson: Was that a State or a Federal jail?

Todd: State. Cause when you’re Federal they put you in a state for …...

Tyson: For processing.

Todd: Exactly. So while we were in this prison, this jail, pardon me, we didn’t miss a beat. Everything that we had on the street we in a sense had in jail. And we had so many police officers or should I say; COs on a payroll.

I was like, yo, we in jail for committing a crime, how we’re going to be in the same prison together and continue to commit crime. So our transformation just took a life of its own. I must say I was fortunate enough to go to FCI, Petersburgh, where the Christian base was so thick and not thick meaning in numbers. There was a strong presence of brothers who really wanted change in their lives that were of the Christian faith. So as Lance made mention he was a tutor, I was also a tutor for folks that was older than me, whom the population had gave a negative label to, calling them S&L, slowly learning, and I didn’t really appreciate that. So I would go into the library and act as if I didn’t know what certain words meant, th what we would do, was to go into the dictionary together. So while they were learning, I was also learning. This helped me to connect with the brothers I was helping. Because the one thing we learnt in just life in general, never ever point your finger in someone’s face because you always get three pointing back at you.

Tyson: That’s a humble perspective. I think it’s a, there’s a lot of power in humility...

Todd: Yes.

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Tyson: especially with your experience in life period. And often times we run across a gentleman who have significant experience and accomplishments in his life and they take on a different attitude towards people and, so earlier we kind of mentioned, your brother Mr. Pretty Tony, so where is he and...

Todd: So, right now Tony is a license Broker, dealing with real estate and his mission kind of falls right in line with the King of Kings foundation. Because he’s helping to get affordable housing and homes for folks who really can’t afford it. You know what I’m saying. dealing with rent stabilized places. He’s helping a lot of people with his Real-time solution, that’s his own Realtor business, Real Time Solution, you know I’m going to drop that in there.

Tyson: Shout out the Real Time Todd: Two sites, two sites.

Lance: One coming near you wherever you are.

Todd: But, yeah, so, it was no way that we could come home and fall right back into what we did for twenty-five plus years of our life and that’s virtually unheard of for someone to have a twenty-five plus year run still here to talk about it, intact, soul is intact, you know what I’m saying, and we have sound, mind with us.

Lance: That’s what’s important. Sound mind is key.

Tyson: Most important. Yeah. because you got a lot of gentlemen, right, and God bless them, that are coming home from bids and they are messed up.

Lance: Yeah. You know what, there’s so much going on man, that they’re putting names to it now. You know bipolar, you know disorders and, we didn’t know that growing up and, we didn’t even recognize it. But one thing we not going to do, we’re not going to glorify your past history because Cats look at it and be like, and I’ll just share a story, that no matter where we were right, the COs, the Lieutenants, the Captains, everybody, they used to come to us individually in our own prisons wherever we were and go, you know what? I hear Cats walking around talking about how they did the damn thing and it was about, bout it and this and that. He said I’ve read their paperwork and these dudes are all phony and liars. They say, yo, but you and your family is the real deal. How you all so humble? We were always deemed to be a quiet storm. You know what I’m saying. You hear some people throw the term around, that real gangsters move in silent, you know what I’m saying.

But I guess that’s why saw God saw it fit to give us a second chance in life cause as I mentioned, I humbly say we aren’t supposed to be here but we are supposed to be here because God got a plan for us, you know that

I’m saying, so I can’t say we aren’t supposed to be here.

We were facing three life sentences and they were trying to give us every bit of it but the Higher Being said no, no, I got something for them to do man and it’s to reach back to a generation that’s lost man. And we love the youth man. I mean we are in the schools’ hard body and I wish, when I was in junior high school or high school that somebody of our character came back and said, yo man, what’s up. Let me give you the 4-1-1 for real.

Tyson: And you know what, we were starving for that as young guys. Somebody charismatic and solid to listen to.

Todd: And, I’ll be the first to tell the world jail was too good for us. For the way we were living and the destruction that came along with that life, we should have blown hell wide open. See, but God saw it fit even though there wasn’t a ditch to crawl low enough or an air condition big enough to cool us off, God saw it fit, because if we did all this work for the Devil, playing a devil’s game, if the Lord captures our attention, how much more or we going to uplift and edify Him in reference to saving lives, be it in prison or not. Because at that time when we turned our lives over to the Lord, we had no idea if we were going to spend the rest of our lives in jail or not. But we knew that we couldn’t do the same thing, have the same conversation because there’s a lot of young cats, and you can attest to that. There’s a lot of young cats that’s not only in state prisons but in federal prisons and a lot of them are on joke time, not realizing that you just gave your life away. It’s like we got caught in that stigma that the white man took my freedom.

White man isn’t taking nothing. However, he created the cell to put your behind in, but then you committed a crime, I’ll say I committed a crime which put me in that cell. So while in that cell, I had to use rational thinking. I came in stuck on stupid. There’s no way I could dwell in there being stuck on stupid because I had to realize first and foremost, because it says Correctional Facility, that’s a myth. No correction comes from inside any prison system. Prison breeds criminals so you have to be a strong person to make a conscious decision to change your mindset. Like I don’t care what type money we’ve made collectively or individually, there’s no way I could put myself in this position again. First and foremost, we have families, not only mother and father, aunts and uncles, but we have wives and kids.

So if this is the legacy that we want to leave for our kids, and if God opened that door and give us a chance to come home, guess what? Why would we stay stuck on stupid. When you stuck on stupid what does that mean?

You going to be caught up in recidivism. And that door doesn’t stop revolving for no one that’s why you got to make a conscious decision. Now, I thank God that he moved on Lance first. Like I said, we were on 1400 Heilger Street, and in the cells they have the little trap where you slide the food through.

Tyson: Yes. Todd: So one day I’m looking through the trap at Lance so I can holler at him and I see there’s glow in his eyes. So the first thing came to my mind; was I know isn’t nobody over there acting crazy. I didn’t realize that he turned his life over to the Lord. So the message he sent to me by the little kites, was - I don’t care what you do, pray at ten o’clock, even if you don’t know how to pray hold somebody hand and pray. From then on it just caused a domino effect then it opened our eyes of understanding and our heart to be accepting of or receptive to a better way because there’s nothing cool about being in prison.

For instance, a skid bid (I almost said a word I don’t even say). Don’t go to prison and thinking because you did six months, you could do that standing on your head. That’s a recipe for disaster.

Lance: You know what and for the readers that’s out there, I don’t want anyone to try to misconstrue anything that is being said. It isn’t about being scared straight or nothing like that. We are who we are. We the Feurtado Brothers. There’s no ifs, and or butts, about where we come from, what we’ve been through, our accomplishments and all of that. There comes a certain time in life when you have to wake up. You know what I’m saying.

You can’t be a foolish fool all your foolish life. You know what I’m saying. And I’m saying that with no disrespect to nobody.

Lance. It wasn’t no scared straight or nothing like that.

We just made a conscious decision Todd: For the nobody’s, if the shoe fits, then you got to put it on. You got to wear it because a lot of people is in the same position maybe not your level, but as far as being incarcerated. You have to get out of that box and stop thinking, it’s all about me myself and I, especially when you’re a father. It’s like you setting a tone as we made mention early in the interview, we were dubbed the Good Hands People. Right. Once you get with the Feurtado Brothers you never go wrong, or the Feurtado family, you never go wrong. So if that’s the slogan, that’s going to take a life of his own. And especially if you left a trail, somebody going to say, yow what? Twenty-five years? I’ll take that for four or five, six million. No. There’s not a dime that’s worth your... Not a dime that’s worth your freedom.

Lance: So, and you know, our thing is to motivate, educate, uplift and inspire everybody to reach their full potential despite the elements that surround you. And that element might be prison, it might be drug life, it might be gang life, it might be whatever. We’re not hating on nobody because we come from that. So we got nothing but love for everybody man. We just want to encourage you man. You know what I’m saying. If you make a choice to live by that, but we promote positivity.

Tyson: Do you have a position on gang life?

34

Lance: Of course. We have a whole curriculum that can go from one day to one year. And there’s nothing new, gangs been around for so long. For those of you all that watched the gangs in New York, The Five Points and the gangs were always in existence. We have one of the biggest gangs in existence right now, they all wear blue.

And they’re not Crips. You know what I’m saying. So we describe New York’s finest as gangs. When you look at the gangs in New York they showed how Police Department, the Fire Department whatever, it was all a gang.

Right. It’s all your click, it’s all your team.

Growing up in gangs is just how you allow yourself to be used cause everybody’s going to be used in some shape, form or fashion. We did what we did but we were also being used politically when they were trying to close the night centers and things of that nature that kind of kept a lot of us off the street, even though we utilize it for negativity, but it still kept us in doors. Whenever they were trying to close them one of the local politicians would come to us and say, ‘hey man, I need you all to come march with me. They trying to close down your center and that was a way to get to us. It was like, what?

Cause they knew we weren’t scared about nothing. What close? What? Naw. They ain’t closing nothing. So there are some positive, politically correct things that you can do, why are you still involved! And then I’ll give you, a specific gang that I remember when they started off as a gang and then they started policing the train stations and everything like that, especially when it was the Son of Sam Right. What’s their names? They wear the red 35

bonnets, come on, you all got it.

Todd: Guardian Angels.

Lance: Guardian Angels.

Tyson: Your guardian angels. They were everywhere.

Todd: Right. And so that’s a gang. But they turned it into something positive. You know what I’m saying. So you know, we grew up watching this commercial they had an egg frying in the frying pan and they used to say, ‘this is your egg, this is your brain on drugs, they used to say the mind is a terrible thing to waste.’ It is a terrible thing to waste man. If you can sit down and collectively come up with ideas and ingenuities on how to get some money illegally you can do the same thing and get money legally.

Tyson: So, what’s required in that process? Do you have any insight on that? what’s required of an individual who’s having some success in the game but you really don’t want to be in the game but you still want the benefits of the game.

Lance: The same energy, right, the same ingenuity, the same methodology, the same thought process that you put into making that illegal money saying that you know I’m going to go and let me start up I’m going to buy me half an ounce of this and that, I’m going to bag it, I’m going to do this, I’ll turn it into this, I’m going to build an empire. If you used that same concept positively, I tell

you what man, I see that in my community everybody like to eat hot dogs. Well I’m going to go get me a hot dog stand. You know what I’m saying? and I’m going to turn that one hot dog stand into five hot dog stands. You know what I’m saying? Or young man, everybody like to wear them hats, well I’m going to go get me some Fitted hats and I’m going to come up with a design and I’m going to create it, like that shirt like the clothing line that we wear we buy them. It’s sitting back and you look at the void, what’s missing and say how can I fill that void and make it profitable. See that’s why I say the mind is a terrible thing to waste. We can sit here and give a road maps all day but the best road map comes from within.

Everybody’s been blessed with a talent or gift. You have to tap into your gift and your talent and build on it.

Todd: Yeah. And especially if you’re in that gang and you do not like what you’re seeing, the effects of it, the cause and effects of being in that life and you’re not blinded by the money that you’re making, then you got to make a conscious decision. Yeah, what you want to, what you may look into may not be as equivalent as getting that fast money but slow money is good money and is safe and you can be able to make a difference in your community as Lance made mention.

Lance: Let me give you an example. So you got two sets of crews growing up right. You got the south side you got the north side. Right. I’m just going to use this as an example. A lot of us say I’m going to make that fast money. I’m going to live, I’m going to ride, I’m going to

die, drive my cars until my Daddy take the keys away.

You know what I’m saying. That was the philosophy right so that’s all of us on the south side. Then you had the cats that was on the north side. The Russell Simmons and the Damon Jones. The LLs, the different people from the north side that said, you know what I’m a go to school.

I will take my time. I’m going to learn and develop an art, a craft and I’m going to build on it. We said I’m a do whatever it takes to get that that house with the white picket fence around it quickly. Most people in the gang have a three, maybe four year run and they spend the next twenty-five years reminiscing. Right.

And when they come home that same dude that they looked at and they thought was a sucker because he decided to educate himself and go to school, and he says you know what I’m going to do, there’s twelve years of school and I’m going to do an additional four years and then I might decide to get my Masters also so I’m going to do more and more schooling, so by the time he is thirty, everything that you got at eighteen and nineteen you only had it for three years and you lost it, now at thirty, you might just be coming home from prison and they got it all legitimately, everything that you wanted. So I use resemblance in the story like that to show that there’s a right way and there’s a wrong way. So those cats were, and then when you say Damon John, that was Fubu. Just like I’ve used the example about that fitted hat. For if you take the hat, then you flip the hat, then you wear the hat, LL helped launched that. And, so many cats I mean, nowadays, with social media you’re your own marketing 36

expert. It’s what you put into it is what you go get out of it.

Tyson: So part of what we do at Urban Life News Magazine, we got a section in the magazine that’s been receiving a lot of positive feedback, it’s called Shout Outs.

Right. A Shout Out is a personalized message from someone in the street, along with a picture of the person that’s locked up and they put a personalized message to that person locked up and we put it in the magazine. So what we like you to do right now is do you have a Shout Out you want to give someone specifically...?

Todd: Oh man, do you know how many people we’d like to shout out Listen, you go put us on the spot, people would be like, ‘I don’t hear you shout me, I’m just going to shout out everybody: Cat, Preem, Prince, everybody, Pappy, Tut, everybody. Man, we could keep naming man.

I got so many dudes that sitting down behind the walls man and, I mean, no disrespect if I didn’t call the name because it’s like tons of you all man, there’s tons of you.

Tyson: So what message would you say not necessarily to them but what would you say cause they going to read it, they going to get it.

Lance: People think you come from nothing. That don’t mean you have to return the nothing. Think about that.

You know what I’m saying.

Todd: And my Shout Out is to every person that’s incarcerated, at the end of the day, whether you have the 37

opportunity to make it home or if you have a L on the end, don’t think you can’t be anyone proactive in making a difference even in the midst of that storm. I can tell you one thing, Lance says this so much, if we knew that it felt this good to do right, my goodness, we’d have been doing right a long time ago. Don’t allow your situation to stop your purpose. No devil in hell can stop it, but you got to receive it. Just because you’re behind a wall that don’t mean you can’t be somebody super-magnificent. You have to take that chance. You took a chance.

Look where it got you. Now take a chance to help other people out and if you do have a way out, don’t ever, ever, ever don’t you ever, ever, ever forget your trials and tribulations because some young person needs to hear the sound wisdom that you are sitting on.

Lance: As Todd made mention, in order to receive it, you have to believe it.

Tyson: Yes. Lance: You know what I’m saying. Everybody can make a difference. I’ll leave you with this man.

There’s two type of people in this world. One that believes he can, one that believes he can’t.

Guess what? Both of them are right. Which one are you?

Tyson: Well you have it. We got the Feurtado Brothers. The organic version without no cut. Straight up.

The truth. Straight from the brothers’ mouth. Urban Life

News will always salute those who came before us paving the way that the gift of life, that the gift of wisdom and understanding can be ours. Like the brother said it’s just up to you to read and digest it and get what’s, what’s for you. If you don’t believe it’s for you, just pass the magazines to the dude in the cell next to you.

Lance: Exactly. For those that want to follow us, we also should be under Feurtado Brothers, under Todd Feurtado, that’s on Facebook and Instagram. Our website is King of Kings Foundation. org. If you’re interested in the clothing line, you can go right to Revivedwear.com. You can see the whole collection of our clothing line. You can order. We just want to Shout Out again man, Urban Life News. We Shout Out our boy, Peter Shue...

you guys taking your time out to allow Urban Life News to sit down and have a conversation with you and I appreciate it.

Lance: Thank you for having us.

Tyson: Thank you.

Todd: Blessings.

Tyson: Peace!

Todd: Yeah baby.

Lance: He grace to cover of Issue #4, that’s Peter Shue there. You know what I’m saying. One of the big promoters from back in the day. Also, you know what I’m saying, he made it out of there like we made it out of there man. Shout Out to you Pete, again, Shout Out to Urban Life News man. We appreciate you man.

Tyson: And I appreciate you man. Once again, I’ve probably said it three or four times, but I sincerely appreciate

WATCH THE ENTIRE UNCUT INTERVIEW ON YOUTUBE

38

BOOK REVIEW

THINK &

GROW RICH

BY NAPOLEON HILL

I am very often asked to recommend books.

The average person does not read.

When one of these people asks for a recommendation, I know they are after something.

I know that whatever they are after, they are getting ahead of themselves.

Rather than recommend a book having to do with the thing they are after, I always recommend a step back.

Before the subject, before the plan of action, before anything at all is to be done, comes first, mindset.

Attitude, and a realistic perspective on the course of events to follow in your pursuits are more important than the actions themselves.

I have studied Think and Grow harder than any other book, read it and listened to it over and over. In only a few short years I have gone from living in a small car with another big man to now what I feel is the top of the world and rising. I attribute most of this success to the change in mindset and the definite road map provided

by Napoleon Hill.

I had read over a thousand books before Think and Grow.

I learned much history and science. I studied engineering, and architecture. I read the holy books of many religions.

I read the classics and the moderns. I studied my own crafts and worked towards mastery of them. And I ended up homeless.

This is why my first recommendation is always the same, Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill.

Being good is not enough. Being good at what you do is not enough. What happens in your mind determines your reality. In the absence of this understanding it is very difficult to win in this world.

Think and Grow is written as a manual. It is hard to misinterpret. It covers in great detail the steps to success and the diseases of attitude that prevent it.

There are many self-help, personal development, learn-to-win books. Almost all of them stem from Think and Grow.

How to be successful is a more important subject than how to do something, because you must learn how to be successful at what you are doing, or else join the legions of talented poor.

I have heard it said that there are only two books with enough wisdom in them to study throughout a lifetime.

What can be more important than success, when the alternative is failure? Failure is horrible. Failure is poverty, it is prison, it is dis-ease.

I want abundance, freedom, and ease, for myself and my people. I tend to assume that someone looking to the wisdom of the ages is ultimately looking for these things as well.

39

You can guess the first. The second is Think and Grow Rich.

Ryan Aleckszander @therealNotUs @RyanAleckszander Contributing Writer

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he concept of understanding how to make your money work for you instead of you working for it, is important. Getting back into the grove of the outside world once you’re released can sometimes be confusing, overwhelming and discouraging. As long as you set yourself apart and think about what and who will elevate your lifestyle, you’ll be fine. Will tahose same kinds of people who got you locked up want to see you doing better than them?

Will your family support your decision to be a responsible adult? Will YOU encourage yourself to be better than who you once were? There are a lot of questions that only you have the answers to. Your life is in your hands more than you know it. It’s time to learn a different meaning to “doing what needs to be done in order to get what needs to be got.”

Hustling and risking your life, freedom and sanity behind some money is definitely played out. Falling back into your old lifestyle with old habits, thinking with your past mindset will surely be the downfall to you being discouraged. It’s all about thinking smarter in order to move smarter, making calculated risks with high returns. There’s more than one way to skin a cat and even more ways to get a check.

Like-minded individuals will help you grow as a person; they will kindly tell you when you’re wrong or when there is an easier way to get the same result. You might think along the lines of how I used to think: “starting off small is a waste of my damn time, it’s either go big or go home.”

That’s fine and all until your trying to save $50,000 realizing that you have to first put up $1 to make $2 and then you have to keep $2 in order for it to transition into $4. It’s a numbers game and a test of your will power, are you strong enough to separate yourself from the negatives in your life and strive for elevation?

In my opinion, living in the free world is a systematic lifestyle where you pay bills, you work, you dream big and you sleep. Although, if you’re working towards your dreams and paying bills that support your future then your sleep will come easy. Don’t look at being out in the world as you needing to “work your way back into society.” You’re still a person with ambitions and a strong mind, you just have to put it to use. Make a list of your top responsibilities and make sure they are always met. A plan is easier to follow when it’s written out step by step because your next move is already laid out. Whether you have to start with penny pinching coins you see on the ground, working odd jobs to gain experience and credible references or even finding a hobby and turning it into a craft, you got this. Use what you already have to get to where you want to be, your success starts with you. How successful do you want to be?

Kourtney Rolle Contributing Writer

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BASIC BUDGETING They say that, “Money Is the Root to all Evil” when in actuality there is a magnitude of importance laced in “securing the bag”. Struggling day after day is not the way to live life, asking Tom, Dick & Harry for a few dollars when your down on your luck isn’t a proper option either because friends can be disguised as foes. There is always an enemy lurking in the shadows and if your downfall is their come up, best believe they will creep out of the shadows and prey on your hard times. Money is often used as leverage which makes a person feel as if they are trapped, boxed in a corner with their back against the wall. Bills will never stop piling up, mouths always need to be fed and clothes still need to be purchased. This life we live has been built on the backs on the people listed on the bottom of the totem pole. The poor class, the urban neighborhoods, the ghettos and slums, the street corners with the hustlers hanging out all night and the dark roads with the women walking back and forth just trying to make a dollar more than yesterday. Money is a necessity. Its imbedded into our blood stream so hustling for it by any means often come as second nature.

My mama has always been a penny pincher. With raising 6 kids in the heart of Miami, money was hard to come by and when it did come through there was something that always needed to be paid. I can count the times that she kept a few dollars in her pocket from her check after it was all said and done. She didn’t mind as long as her family was taken care of, but it didn’t take me long to peep that she was living paycheck to paycheck. The sole purpose of a security blanket is to protect you when things come up that need to be handled within a timely manner. Building your own personal savings cuts back on you needing to ask anyone for help or assistance. My pride is very big so before saying that I need help I used to often go without. At a certain point in your life that gets old because it makes you feel like you can’t even afford to take care of yourself. Therefor I had to make a change. I had to dig deep into myself and ask, “what’s really important and what changes am I willing to make to get to where I want to be?” My answer was simple, stop playing games and following the hype. Let’s get this money, save this money and make it flip. End of story.

Beginning to save starts with a solid plan and knowing that each outline will be different because we all have different goals, different things we value as important and we all will walk a different path in life. First thing first is straying away from the crowd and finding the honest answers to the two questions above. That’s the start of you preparing for a better financial future. If you’re ready to get the ball rolling, pay close attention to the following...

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Step 1: Own up to your past mistakes, value what’s important and write it down. Are materialistic things at the top of your list? If so does buying a house come before buying a flashy car or is making sure you always have food in your house your main priority?

Step 2: Who are you saving for? You? Your kids? Your family? Your future? Or a little of each? Prioritize who and what your saving for first and foremost, then allow everything else to fall under that.

Step 3: Find a quote that will motivate you to stay on track.

My favorite quote is “No one is going to just give it to you, you have to grind and get it yourself” Step 4: Never deviate from your plan. There will be days when it’s hard as hell to stay focused, you’ll feel like the few dollars your putting to the side won’t really make that big of a difference. But your wrong. If you doubt yourself now how can you ever support yourself later?

Step 5: Understand that your future is only what you make it. Money makes the world go around but if your world is solely fixated on money, you will never get anywhere.

After all steps have been thoroughly understood, you can now begin to build your security nest. In the beginning it seems easy to say “okay, I want to save this particular amount of money in this amount of time” but that sometimes derails you from the true goal of saving if that amount is not met. You may get discouraged and want to say to hell with savings. You can’t do that, well you can but I’d prefer you tough it out. Stash away every little bit you can. I’m talking about pennies, dimes, nickels, dollars it all counts.

Trust me, I’m not here to lie to you. Savings is a huge part of your financial future and if you can’t manage to find the courage to get it for yourself, you won’t ever have it!

Kourtney Rolle Contributing Writer

HOME OWNERSHIP FOR BLACKS

Easier Than It Appears A few months ago, President Trump at a rally in Pensacola said that black homeownership just hit the highest level it has ever been in the history of our country. There have been claims and counter claims about this fact since then. The truth is that black homeownership peaked at 49% in 2004. Since then it has fallen slowly every year until now. It stands one sixth lower than the peak figure today. Homeownership among blacks is much lower than white, Native Americans, Asian Americans, and even Hispanics.

Segregation resulted from policies of the government Even though the average family income of blacks is around 60% of average family income of whites, their average wealth is just 8% of average wealth of whites. This can be easily attributed to federal housing policies that were biased against blacks. Blacks were prohibited from buying homes in the suburbs in the 20th century. In many cities, whites were banned from selling their homes to blacks with help from racial zoning ordinances. Racial restrictive covenants were in fashion and communities were awarded shield of honor for restricting wrong people from owning homes. Even FHA played its role in keeping blacks out of certain communities.

Passage of Fair Housing Act transformed the scene for blacks It was the passage of Fair Housing Act 1968 that led to the improvement in black homeownership. 2018 is the 50th anniversary of this Act and there has been much improvement in black homeownership. In Color of Law, an autobiography written by housing expert Richard Rothstein, it is clearly written that the laws and policy decisions at the federal and the state level promoted segregation.

Fannie Mae guidelines are expected to give a new impetus to mortgage for blacks Things have been changing slowly and gradually. It is today much easier for an African American family to get a mortgage to purchase a home in any city or suburb across the country. The Federal National Mortgage Association, commonly known as Fannie Mae, has set new rules for lending that are benefitting black Americans in their dream of home ownership. It now requires lenders to consider nontraditional credit data from applicants. This includes rent payment and utility bills payment history of a household. This makes it far easier for black families to produce their credit history, especially those families that have not availed consumer loans like car loans or other loans from banks.

those who do not have traditional credit history against their names. In the absence of these guidelines, a clear majority of African American families across the country were unable to secure mortgage to purchase homes.

Funds to pay down payment and closing costs Another big obstacle in front of middle income and low-income families when approaching for a mortgage was non availability of funds to pay for down payment.

Today, there are available many programs that make available funds for down payment as well as closing costs to those who cannot afford such costs. The problem lies in the fact that only a small percentage of consumers are aware of low down payment programs. This lack of knowledge about down payment options as well as closing cost assistance has kept many renters form going for purchase of homes.

One such program that makes available funds for down payment to eligible applicants is CDBG. Community Development Block Grant program is a program of U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development. Eligible families can use CBDG funds for down payment assistance up to 50% of the down payment required by the ender. Under this program, $500 assistance is also available for eligible home buyers to help them with closing costs. Such programs are available to eligible individuals not just at the Federal level but also at the level of state.

It is hoped and expected that with new guidelines for lenders, homeownership among African Americans will see a rapid improvement in the next few years. With state assistance in arranging finance for down payment and closing costs, more and more black households have been able to secure mortgage loans for purchase of homes.

Key Take Away It’s several loan options such as FHA loans, VA Loans, and USDA loans. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers a loan program for rural borrowers.

The USDA offers a guaranteed loan for “moderate” income earners. Keep in mind that the word “rural” doesn’t necessarily mean the boondocks or suburbs. You will be surprised at what the government may consider rural.

Homeownership is the best way to build wealth. Studies found the average net worth of a homeowner ($194,500) is 36x greater than a renter ($5,400).

Eugene Hutchenson 624 S. Houston Lake Road Suite E-200 Warner Robins, GA 31088 (312) 330-5056 (Mobile) (478) 953-9100 (Office)

The idea behind introduction of these new guidelines to banks and other lenders is to make available mortgage to 44

WHAT IS

?

A Step-By-Step Guide for Beginners If you want to know what Bitcoin is, how you can get it and how it can help you, without floundering into technical details, this guide is for you. It will explain how the system works, how you can use it for your profit, which scams to avoid. It will also direct you to resources that will help you store and use your first pieces of digital currency.

What is Bitcoin in a nutshell?

Small wonder that Bitcoin emerged in 2008 just after Occupy Wall Street accused big banks of misusing borrowers’ money, duping clients, rigging the system, and charging boggling fees. Bitcoin pioneers wanted to put the seller in charge, eliminate the middleman, cancel interest fees, and make transactions transparent, to hack corruption and cut fees. They created a decentralized system, where you could control your funds and know what was going on.

Bitcoin has come far in a relatively short time. All over the world, companies, from REEDS Jewelers, a large jewelry chain in the US, to a private hospital in Warsaw, Poland, accept its currency. Billion dollar businesses such as Dell, Expedia, PayPal, and Microsoft do, too. Websites promote it, publications such as Bitcoin Magazine publish its news, forums discuss cryptocurrency and trade its coins.

It has its application programming interface (API), price index, and exchange rate.

Problems include thieves hacking accounts, high volatility, and transaction delays. On the other hand, people in 45

third world countries may find Bitcoin their most reliable channel yet for giving or receiving money.

What is Bitcoin in-depth?

At its simplest, Bitcoin is either virtual currency or reference to the technology. You can make transactions by check, wiring, or cash. You can also use Bitcoin (or BTC), where you refer the purchaser to your signature, which is a long line of security code encrypted with 16 distinct symbols. The purchaser decodes the code with his smartphone to get your cryptocurrency. Put another way; cryptocurrency is an exchange of digital information that allows you to buy or sell goods and services. The transaction gains its security and trust by running on a peerto-peer computer network that is similar to Skype, or Bit Torrent, a file-sharing system.

Bitcoin Transactional properties: 1.) Irreversible: After confirmation, a transaction can‘t be reversed. By nobody. And nobody means nobody. Not you, not your bank, not the president of the United States, not Satoshi, not your miner. Nobody. If you send money, you send it. Period. No one can help you, if you sent your funds to a scammer or if a hacker stole them from your computer. There is no safety net.

2.) Pseudonymous: Neither transactions or accounts are connected to real world identities. You receive Bitcoins on so-called addresses, which are randomly seeming

chains of around 30 characters. While it is usually possible to analyze the transaction flow, it is not necessarily possible to connect the real world identity of users with those addresses.

3.) Fast and global: Transaction is propagated nearly instantly in the network and are confirmed in a couple of minutes. Since they happen in a global network of computers they are completely indifferent of your physical location. It doesn‘t matter if I send Bitcoin to my neighbor or to someone on the other side of the world.

4.) Secure: Bitcoin funds are locked in a public key cryptography system. Only the owner of the private key can send cryptocurrency. Strong cryptography and the magic of big numbers makes it impossible to break this scheme.

A Bitcoin address is more secure than Fort Knox.

underpin BitTorrent, a file-sharing system, and Skype, an audio, video and chat service. Bitcoins are mathematically generated as the computers in this network execute difficult number-crunching tasks, a procedure known as Bitcoin “mining”. The mathematics of the Bitcoin system were set up so that it becomes progressively more difficult to “mine” Bitcoins over time, and the total number that can ever be mined is limited to around 21 million. There is therefore no way for a central bank to issue a flood of new Bitcoins and devalue those already in circulation.”

How can I store my bitcoins?

To see how the system works, imagine someone called Alice who’s trying out Bitcoins. She’d sign up for a cryptocurrency wallet to put her bitcoins in.

Bitcoin Wallets

5.) Permissionless: You don‘t have to ask anybody to use cryptocurrency. It‘s just a software that everybody can download for free. After you installed it, you can receive and send Bitcoins or other cryptocurrencies. No one can prevent you. There is no gatekeeper.

Where can I find Bitcoins?

There are three different applications that Alice could use.

You can get your first bitcoins from any of these four places.

Lightweight client – This is a standalone email client that connects to a mail server for access to a mailbox. It would store Alice’s bitcoins, but it needs a third-party-owned server to access the network and make the transaction.

1.) A cryptocurrency exchange where you can exchange ‘regular’ coins for bitcoins, or for satoshis, which are like the BTC-type of cents. Resources: Coinbase and Coinsquare in the US & Canada, and BitBargain UK and Bittylicious in the UK.

Full client – This is like a standalone email server that handles all aspects of the process without relying on third-party servers. Alice would control her whole transaction from beginning to end by herself. Understandably, this is not for beginners.

Web client – This is the opposite of “full client” and resembles webmail in that it totally relies on a third-party server. The third party replaces Alice and operates her entire transaction.

2.) A Bitcoin ATM (or cryptocurrency exchange) where you can change bitcoins or cash for another cryptocurrency. Resources: Your best bets are BTER and CoinCorner

You’ll find wallets that come in five main types: Desktop, mobile, web, paper and hardware. Each of these has its advantages and disadvantages.

3.) A classified service where you can find a seller who will help you trade bitcoins for cash. Resources: The definitive site is LocalBitcoins.

How do I buy and sell stuff with Bitcoins?

4.) You could sell a product or service for bitcoins. Resources: Sites like Purse.

Caution! Bitcoin is notorious for scams, so before using any service look for reviews from previous customers or post your questions on the Bitcoin forum.

How does Bitcoin work?

Without getting into the technical details, Bitcoin works on a vast public ledger, also called a blockchain, where all confirmed transactions are included as so-called ‘blocks.’

As each block enters the system, it is broadcast to the peer-to-peer computer network of users for validation. In this way, all users are aware of each transaction, which prevents stealing and double-spending, where someone spends the same currency twice. The process also helps blockchain users trust the system.

“Unlike traditional currencies, which are issued by central banks, Bitcoin has no central monetary authority. Instead it is underpinned by a peer-to-peer computer network made up of its users’ machines, akin to the networks that

Here’s the funny thing with Bitcoins: there are no physical traces of them as of dollars. All you have are only records of transactions between different addresses, with balances that increase and decrease in their records that are stored on the blockchain.

To see how the process works, let’s return to Alice.

Example of a Bitcoin transaction Alice wants to use her Bitcoin to buy pizza from Bob. She’d send him her private “key,” a private sequence of letters and numbers, which contains her source transaction of the coins, amount, and Bob’s digital wallet address. That “address” would be another, this time, the public sequence of letters and numbers. Bob scans the “key” with his smartphone to decode it. At the same time, Alice’s transaction is broadcast to all the other network participants (called “nodes”) on her ledger, and, approximately, ten minutes later, is confirmed, through a process of certain technical and business rules called “mining.” This “mining” process gives Bob a score to know whether or not to proceed with Alice’s transaction.

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The transaction between Alice and Bob

Scams to watch out for

What is Mining?

Mining, or processing, keep the Bitcoin process secure by chronologically adding new transactions (or blocks) to the chain and keeping them in the queue. Blocks are chopped off as each transaction is finalized, codes decoded, and bitcoins passed or exchanged.

The four most typical Bitcoin scams are Ponzi schemes, mining scams, scam wallets and fraudulent exchanges.

Miners can also generate new bitcoins by using special software to solve cryptographic problems. This provides a smart way to issue the currency and also provides an incentive for people to mine.

The reward is agreed-upon by everyone in the network but is generally 12.5 bitcoins as well as the fees paid by users sending transactions. To prevent inflation and to keep the system manageable, there can be no more than a fixed total number of 21 million bitcoins (or BTCs) in circulation by the year 2040, so the “puzzle” gets increasingly harder to solve.

What do I need to know to protect my Bitcoins?

Here are four pieces of advice that will help your bitcoins go further.

As you’d do with a regular wallet, only store small amounts of bitcoins on your computer, mobile, or server for everyday uses, and keep the remaining part of your funds in a safer environment.

Backup your wallet on a regular basis and encrypt your wallet or smartphone with a strong password to protect it from thieves (although, unfortunately, not against keylogging hardware or software).

Store some of your bitcoins in an offline wallet disconnected from your network for added security. Think of this as a bank, while you, generally, keep only some of your money in your wallet.

Update your software. For added protection, use Bitcoins’ multi-signature feature that allows a transaction to require multiple independent approvals to be spent.

What are the disadvantages of Bitcoin?

Bitcoin got off on the wrong foot by claiming an apocryphal person (or persons), Satoshi Nakamoto as its founder. Nakamoto has never been found.

Regarding more practical concerns, hacking and scams are the norms. They happen at least once a week and are getting more sophisticated. Bitcoin’s software complexity and the volatility of its currency dissuade many people from using it, while its transactions are frustratingly slow.

You’ll have to wait at least ten minutes for your network to approve the transaction. Recently, some Reddit users reported waiting more than one hour for their transactions to be confirmed.

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Ponzi Scams: Ponzi scams, or high-yield investment programs, hook you with higher interest than the prevailing market rate (e.g. 1-2% interest per day) while redirecting your money to the thief’s wallet. They also tend to duck and emerge under different names in order to protect themselves. Keep away from companies that give you Bitcoin addresses for incoming payments rather than the common payment processors such as BitPay or Coinbase.

Bitcoin Mining Scams: These companies will offer to mine outrageous amounts of bitcoin for you. You’ll have to pay them. That’s the last you’ll see of your money (with no bitcoins to show for it, either).

Bitcoin Exchange Scams: Bitcoin Exchange Scams offer features that the typical bitcoin wallets don’t offer, such as PayPal/Credit Card processing, or better exchange rates.

Needless to say, these scams leave you in the hang while they siphon your dollars.

Bitcoin Wallet Scams: Bitcoin scam wallets are similar to online wallets – with a difference. They’ll ask you for your money. If robbers like the amount, that’s the last you’ll see of your deposit. The address, in other words, leads to them, rather than to you.

Of all of these, wallet scams are the most popular with scammers managing to pinch millions.

What are the advantages of Bitcoin?

The best thing about Bitcoin is that it is decentralized, which means that you can settle international deals without messing around with exchange rates and extra charges. Bitcoin is free from government interference and manipulation, so there’s no Federal Reserve System to hike interest rates. It is also transparent, so you know what is happening with your money. You can start accepting bitcoins instantly, without investing money and energy into details, such as setting up a merchant account or buying credit card processing hardware. Bitcoins cannot be forged, nor can your client demand a refund.

Article By

BlockGeeks.com

Credit Health & Wealth Understanding credit score management can be a surge in emotions. Coupled with carrying the weight of not even understanding a credit report can make it more complex. Here’s a guide to getting on track and staying on a positive trend. Most of us find ourselves in uncharted territory by paying our bills late which is a huge hit to your credit score matrix. Here’s a great piece of advice “pay your bills on time”. It’s also important to make sure you haven’t been the victim of identity theft. Almost 75% of credit reports have inaccurate data so you maybe a victim and don’t know it.

“Empowered People Empower People” - Nihki Frederic

Individuals rebuilding credit scores can get tradeline that can increase credit scores more efficiently, effectively, yet less costly. A tradeline is essentially a credit card often associated with authorized users being added in order to gain a credit score boost. I know many of you reading this are wondering

Dominique Nihki Frederic Widget Solutions Group WCRS.

“HOW MUCH WILL MY SCORE INCREASE BY ADDING TRADELINES”? 40-50 pts which can give you a positive increase and there enable you to buy a new car or house, and get your own lines of credit.

Instagram: @Widgetllc

Of course, all situations are different, but it is possible to boost your score with tradelines even if you have derogatory or negative items on your current credit report.

The amount and severity of the negative items will determine how much of a boost you get… along with the appropriate selection of tradelines to counter the problems with your report. When you look at the report, you will notice derogatory items and assume there’s no way my credit will ever see a jump. That assumption is incorrect.

Contributing Writer

Facebook: @Widgetcreditrepairservices www.widgetcreditrepairservices.com Try the Widget Credit Repair Services app.

Available in the Apple App Store & Google Play Store

A positive credit score needs to be above a 620, however a 750-800 credit score will take you to new heights. Your ability to get loans and aid with financial freedom will give you a jump start. For starters, most people consider excellent credit to be a score of 720+. We actually recommend setting the bar a bit higher, at 750+, based on the approval rates we’ve seen for loans and lines of credit. So you can’t get complacent. Fortunately, there’s plenty of incentive, considering that perfect credit is within reach.

Any credit score of 800+ counts as perfect credit because when you’re in that club, the possibility for building a debt free future is the objective.

Check out our do it yourself credit Repair app available on Apple App Store and Google Play Remember credit building is not easy but with a strong focus and commitment, getting your resources for success with Widget Credit Repair will allow you to achieve your final goals.

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How to

Rebuild Your Credit & Increase Your Score

It is no surprise that America revolves around money, so much so that we created the option of lending or credit as an extension, so that we may have money when we don’t have the money. When you think about it, credit itself is just a concept. Good or bad, what matters is how you use it. Credit comes in many forms. We have credit cards, payment plans, loans, mortgages, the list goes on. The fundamental concept around credit is your ability to receive goods and services without having the money upfront because you are trusted to pay for these goods and services over a longer period of time in the future. Trust is key! You want the lender to be able to trust you in order to receive the perks of good credit like increased buying power and lower interest rates.

Credit has its advantages and disadvantages. The latter can result in a poor credit score, massive debt and an unhealthy financial cycle. When I first opened my credit card, I was spending what I didn’t have. I had this pre-notion that when I didn’t have money or didn’t want to use my money, I could put it on my credit card. I did this for big and small purchases, and surprisingly enough, ended up with almost $2000 of debt and a low credit score. I had to quickly educate myself on building my credit back up in order to save my score.

So how can we avoid all of this? We get in front of it. Whether you have no credit or are rebuilding your credit, it’s important to learn the necessary steps to build and maintain a good score. So here are some things you should know before diving into debt.

What is a credit score?

First things first, let’s discuss what a credit score is. A credit score is a number based on a person’s credit history, that represents the creditworthiness of an individual. A credit 49

score is primarily based on this credit report information typically sourced from credit bureaus. According to myFico, your credit score consists of the following: • Payment history, which accounts for 35% of your score; • Amounts owed or your credit utilization, which accounts for 30% of your score; • Length of credit history, which accounts for 15% of your score; • Types of credit, which accounts for 10% of your score; • Account inquiries or new credit, which account for 10% of your score.

Tips to increase or rebuild your score: Knowing what goes into your score is only half the battle. In order to make a difference in your score, you have to know how to implement this information into your decisions and use them to your advantage. These credentials give us insight on what the lender will be looking for in order to evaluate their trust in you. Therefore, you want to make sure that you are staying on top of the following: Utilization: Keep your balance low! Utilization is a debt-to-credit ratio, which measures the outstanding balance on your accounts in relation to the total credit available to you, this helps lenders assess your capacity to take on new debt (meaning you getting approved for things). In order to maintain a good/great score, your utilization has to be between 20 and 30 percent. Let’s say you have a credit limit of $1000, do not think of it as you have $1000 to use! Instead, tell yourself you have up to $300 to use, the $700 is in case of

a real emergency. Utilization is a MAJOR KEY when they calculate your credit score so make sure you’re on top of it!

Payment History: The way to keep your utilization down is by paying your statement balance (obviously) but if you cannot pay in full, pay your monthly payment, ON TIME! Monthly payments are a monthly fee determined by your credit company after assessing your income. The result is the minimum amount you can pay them each month to pay off your balance, if you cannot pay off the full statement amount. You have to treat your monthly payment like the strictest bill in your life (besides necessities of course) because missed or late payments HEAVILY affect your score! Do not wait until the night before to put forth the transaction, most companies allow you to schedule a future payment to be taken out on the exact day it is due. If you download the app on your phone it will send alerts well in advance! A missed or late payment will not only lower your score but there could be an extra charge for them as well. So make sure you are putting money aside each month to pay it off because they do NOT play games.

Myth busting: There are various myths and incorrect knowledge involving credit scores and the lender. Have no fear, it is time we put these myths to rest and focus on the more important aspects, like finding the money to pay off these loans!

Lastly, if you hear any myths telling you that checking your credit score often will hurt your score let me just clear this up for you now….THAT IS NOT TRUE! They want you to be able to keep track of your score so you can see how each financial decision you make is either hurting or helping your score. In the article, “Does Checking My Credit Score Hurt My Credit?” Jeanine Skowronski, a credit expert for credit.com, states, “The notion that checking your credit score affects your score is a common one, but it’s false.

Checking your own credit score doesn’t hurt your credit, but that doesn’t mean every inquiry is safe. Credit-damaging “hard” inquiries occur when you apply for credit and can impact your credit score, unlike the soft inquiries that occur when you check your credit score or credit report.”

So check your score, even if it’s every two hours, two days or even two weeks. Make sure to stay on top of it yourself so the credit card company doesn’t have to do it for you!

One thing that I want to emphasize is the fact that you, and only you, control your credit and score. Your financial decisions affect your score, so be wise when acquiring credit. If a loan is absolutely necessary, make sure you immediately create a plan to pay it back. You never want to have lingering/roll-over debt if it is not your only option. Remember to have patience with the process as well. Building credit will not happen overnight; it took me almost a year, but it was worth it. By following these tips, having patience and keeping a careful eye on your financial decisions, a great credit score will be something you will be able to brag about soon!

Credit reports: A common misconception is that it is a good idea to close your card because you no longer want to use it while it has a high balance. That’s actually going to hurt your credit even more! Before closing any credit card account, you need to consider the possible effect on your credit score.

Just because you cancel a credit card doesn’t mean that its payment information comes off your credit report right away. Negative credit data may stay on your credit report for up to 7 years so closing it may only hurt you, not erase the past. So as stated before, keep low utilization and make sure you are paying your minimum balance so you are not tempted to close the account when you get stressed out over the balance!

Liana Dominique - ½ of Minority Wealth Management Contributing Writer

lianadominique13@gmail.com www.youtube.com/minority-wealth-management Instagram & Twitter: @minority_wealth

Length of credit history: Another reason you shouldn’t close your card is because your length of credit history also effects your score. The longer you have your credit card, the more trustworthy and loyal you seem to other companies. Therefore you can get approved for more cards with better deals; like lower interest rates. Also, don’t open a number of new credit cards that you don’t need, just to increase your available credit.

If you have been managing credit for a short time, don’t open a lot of new accounts too fast. myFico states that new accounts will lower your average account age, which will have a larger effect on your scores if you don’t have a lot of other credit information. Also, rapid account buildup can look risky if you are a new credit user. It is recommended by the US to have 1-3 credit cards, but this amount also depends on how you are as a person.

Checking your score: 50

SHOUTOUTS F R O M A VOICE

WITHIN

To: Havok

To: B.B.K Nene

My best friend, my lover bun when I think about where we began and where we are now all I can do is SMILE so hard knowing this isn’t a fluke, 8years in; married almost 4 years. We’re meant to be and everything we’ve been through up to this point should have broken us instead its confirmed what we have is UNBREAKABLE. You are one of the smartest, loyalists and did I say sexiest man I know and I want the world to know you’re MINES and I LOVE YOU FOREVER. You know the motto: us against the world; stay focused because we know it will be greater later #kausekarma

You’re my bestfriend, my soulmate, my rider, my better half but most importantly you’re my husband!! I want you to know that not a second goes by in each passing day that you aren’t on my mind or in my heart Daddy!! I love you more than any words could ever express!!

I’ve been by your side since day one of this journey and I’m riding this out with you til the wheels fall off & then we’re walking side by side til infinity and beyond!! I can’t wait for you to come home to me so we can make some babies!

I love you King, Eishy

To: Knocka The countdown is almost over and threw all the ups and downs you remained, strong, level headed and motivated to be great and do better I’ve seen you accomplish so much In just this little time and I can’t wait for you to come home and be the best you! The world ain’t even ready for what you got up your sleeve! Stay positive, focus on the plan at hand and keep pushing to be greater than you already are! Love you! (A.D.D/ Another day down)

Your Wife Nikki aka Your P.Q

To: Popalot Being apart from you is even harder than I thought it would be. I see you in my thoughts and dreams .

I try to be logical and tell myself it won’t be forever but that’s not much comfort. When I really need to touch you kiss you and love you.

Your Wife, Cami

Love always, Nandi

To: Walter Tut Johnson

To: Chichi

First of all, Freedom is a must. I want to say, thank you for all the support with my boxing and everything, It means a lot coming from an individual like yourself. All my prayers will be kept inside & on the outside. God willing you will get the freedom you deserve, as I do believe and God mentions himself, everybody deserves chances in life. May peace and love be upon you and God willing you will be a free man again. (Jordan)

This fall you’ll be home! 8 years passed and we can finally wake up from this nightmare. I’m so board without you, I cant wait for you to come home to experience the good things in life.

Been going since 2007 can’t stop now. LOVE YOU CHICHI.

Keep your head up freedom is inevitable in this situation, we both wait for your return to positively impact societies worldwide and make the change we always spoke about, you are a role model to me & many others in society and we won’t give up this fight until you are where you belong and that is home.

Love and Peace, Liam AKA Justice Born!

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Your wife, Nyssa

SHOUTOUTS

To: My Past, Present, & Future

We already in the 2nd half baby, I can’t wait to change my last name officially to Mrs. Fortune and carry your seed. I’m riding baby, you know your wife got you always and forever. Our love and loyalty is second to none.

Forever yours, Red’s Rose!

NO QUESTIONS ASKED!

A VOICE

FROM WITHIN

We Come from Ruff Backgrounds We continue to Face obstacles Everyday We are not Defined by Da Obstacle alone But By how we overcome them.

In Life we Go through ups and downs But we MUST! Continue to move forward Towards Da VISIONS! Shout out to My Bros on Lockdown Continue to work towards your VISION. Instagram/iamdeadeye59

What better way to SHOW someone who’s locked up you care? What could be better than having their picture, yours, or a family member’s picture put in this magazine with a personalized message from YOU to THEM. How do you think they will feel when they receive it?! As the saying goes...............

PRICELESS

LEARN HOW TO SEND YOUR OWN SHOUT OUTS

ON THE NEXT PAGE 52

HOW TO SEND

SHOUTOUTS

A VOICE

FROM

WITHIN

Shout Outs Terms of Usage & Disclaimer: All ads will be printed as you write them and pictures will be posted as you take them. Do not send pictures with nudity or gang signs. Protect yourself. The opinions expressed here are the views of the individual or business and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Urban Life News. By using and viewing the Shout Out section you automatically agree to our terms of usage and disclaimer. We reserve the right to change or omit any ad.

STEP 1:

Select an image. No nudes or gang signs.

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2

STEP 2:

On a separate piece of paper, Write a personalized message to the person in the picture, or something about yourself.

Must be type-written.

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STEP 3:

Mail both to Urban Life News along with an institutional check or money order. No stamps

Fill Out and Include The Form Below:

Make checks and money orders payable to:

3

Urban Life News Magazine 2270 Grand Ave Suite 6.

Baldwin NY 11510

1 Picture + 50 word message

1 Picture + 100 word message

1 Picture (Âź page size) + 200 word message

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$50 $100 $250

Name: Inmate #:

Location:

Institution Name: Address: City:

State:

Zip:

Urban Life News Magazine 2270 Grand Ave Suite 6. Baldwin NY 11510

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THE OFFICIAL YOUTUBE CHANNEL OF

• INTERVIEWS • MOTIVATION • INSPIRATION

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Photo Credits: The Curves Club 56

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THE BEST REVENGE IS NO REVENGE Read, “The Life of the Party: The Peter Shue Story”

To Order Go To:

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Peter Shue is a well known New York City superstar party promoter, who rises

to the top of the drug game and then falls when taken down by Federal Agents. A true story. You will be surprised at what pop/movie star helped set him up and why she did it.

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URBAN LIFE NEWS PUZZLE

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LAW

MOTIVATION

INSPIRE

VISIT

PAPERWORK GOOD

READ

SUPPORT

FAMILY

MUSIC

FREE THRU ME

FREE THE REAL

URBAN LIFE NEWS

11•11•02 - 06•20•18

#JusticeForJunior

MAINO: “COULD’VE BEEN MY SON”

Artwork by @deauxphouse Executive Nick

Credit: @Jusice4Juniior