Meet Roderick Taylor & Jacari Gentry | Hosts of The Rise & Grind Podcast

We had the good fortune of connecting with Roderick Taylor & Jacari Gentry and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Roderick Taylor & Jacari Gentry, what is the most important factor behind your success?

Roderick: To me, the most important factors behind our success are our chemistry, and consistency. Myself & Cari’s lifelong friendship is what allows the podcast’s dialogue to flow so smoothly. It’s why the show is so easy to do. As for consistency, it’s equally as important. We found out that when you’re on the road to success, there’s no time for breaks & vacations, & no time to become stagnant. Whatever your craft, you have to work at it every single day to reach your heights.

Jacari: Our number one driving factor has simply always been just believing in ourselves. Believing in the beauty of our dreams. That’s what keeps us going. Other factors are being consistent and truly knowing what our goals are. The name of the game has always been consistency. We know as long as we stay consistent and never quit, the success of our brand will continue to rise. We focus on controlling what we can. It’s not up to us to decide when exactly we’ll accomplish all our goals. We just have a burning desire to be successful so we know eventually we’ll get there.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.

Roderick: A lot of podcasters saw the growth of the podcast landscape over the last couple of years, & they started their shows because they want their piece of the pie. We’ve been here since 2018. We’re here because we truly care about the state of Hip-Hop music. We care about our content, how we’re seen, & what goes into this show. That’s what sets us apart.

Jacari: When we are recording, our chemistry is what sets us apart the most. We’ve been friends since we were in the 3rd grade. Roderick is my brother. This has allowed us to create an organic sound and style for our podcast that’s not similar to many.

What you are most proud of or excited about

Roderick: I’m excited about our future the most. I think we both are. For everything to come. We have so much up our sleeve, from more content for the listeners, to merch, to touring, etc. I feel like ive seen it in my head a million times already, it’s just time to make things come to fruition.

Jacari: I’m excited about our future. Seeing where the podcast takes us. Expanding on our brand and creating a lifestyle we once dreamed about. I’m also excited about seeing the continued growth of the podcast industry. When we first started in 2018, we were apart of the few that really saw where the industry was headed. Now more people are starting to pay attention and the industry is exploding. I’m excited to just continue the journey.

How did you get to where you are today professionally. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges?

Roderick: Honestly, just being ourselves has gotten us to the level we’re at now. It was not easy, but we just had to stop caring about what anyone thought. Everyone says “I don’t care what anyone says about me”, but deep down, somewhere, we all care a little bit. For us, that was holding back content in fear of what family, friends, coworkers, etc might think. Once we let go of that, we took off.

Jacari: Honestly, we’ve just embraced the journey. We never quit. If you look at any success story, no matter the industry, that’s always the common trait. Just never quit. The road is never going to be easy. Life will always throw you challenges. We just choose to focus on how to overcome them rather than the challenge itself.

What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way

Roderick: In my experience so far, I’ve learned one huge lesson: You cannot expect this thing to happen overnight. It’s a marathon, not a sprint. Good things take time, & if you truly love your craft, you’ll stick with it as long as it takes to be successful.

Jacari: I’ve learned along the way that if you truly want to accomplish your goals, you have to go all in 100%. You have to eliminate excuses and really put the work in if you want to be successful. I think understanding that growth and success doesn’t come overnight has been a lesson as well. We know that eventually the success we’re striving for will come. We just have to keep going.

What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?

As a collective, we host The Rise & Grind Podcast. Every Monday & Thursday, we get together & discuss all things rap music, & everything surrounding the Hip-Hop culture. We’re available for listen on all audio platforms, & available for view on Youtube.

Website: https://theriseandgrindpodcast.podbean.com/

Instagram: https://instagram.com/riseandgrindpod

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/risegrindpod

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/riseandgrindpodcast

Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCySI9ubq5SEHT1L7aI_YxMw

Image Credits
Instagram: @daaarrio