The relationships between Shyheim and members of the Wu-Tang Clan are solid now, but for a brief time, there was a bit of a strain. The rapper has been affiliated with the rap collective since he was a child, so when Shyheim got sent away to prison over a second-degree manslaughter conviction, he thought they would come to see him. Shyheim admitted that it didn’t happen, and it took him some time to come to terms with it.

“Like, damn, RZA ain’t come,” Shyeim said. “You sit there sometimes it’s like, dream it, right? I remember I used to dream sometimes like, yo, RZA gon’ show up. I know [Method Man] comin’. And then it’s like, nobody come. Not to say that they owe me anything to come besides friendship and things like that but I just believed I had a different relationship.“

Shyheim added that as he “evolved,” he realized that the Wu were grown men with responsibilities and families that don’t involve his troubles. “They got love for me, but it’s just not in the schedule. It’s not like when you young and you’re like, I’m goin’ to see my man… You’re preparing for your future and your retirement.”

He also dropped off some advice to the younger generation of emcees. “Get rid of your ego,” he said. “Get rid of what people are gonna think of you, because most of the time, we’re trying to live up to status quo. We’re trying to look like—I know for me, it was kinda like, yo, I’m f*cked up for real in real life. I’m struggling. I gotta get to it. I can’t show up without having a Benz. What Shyheim look like without a Benz? Then you start perpetrating for what other people think.” Watch Shyheim’s clip with VladTV below.