EP 135 What happened is what was supposed to happen with Josh Boots

In this one, Cody talks to Josh Boots. He’s been a fixture in the Alaska rap scene since the 90s, back when he helped form Arctic Flow Records. It’s a legacy that solidified him as one of the best, most authentic lyricists in Alaska. He says that he and the rest of Arctic Flow truly believed that they would one day take over the world with their music. It was a belief and a dream supported by talent and selling weed. That was a big part of maintaining the dream for Josh — the weed — it brought in the money that supported his lifestyle. Since 18, that was mainly what he did for work. Now, at 44, he owns and operates a legal dispensary in Anchorage. He says that making that transition from the traditional market to the legal one was a huge jump, but there are similarities. Like how you treat the customer and how you operate in the industry. Those principles that kept him successful in the old market are now crossing over into this new, legal market.

There was this moment when he was mixing his first album, “Cold Weather Survival Guide,” at Unique Studios in Time Square. He was looking out of a 10th story window thinking, “We’re here. We made it.” Partly because all of the action outside — the Puerto Rican Day Parade was going on and he had a clear view of Total Request Live — and partly because of all the greats who had recorded at that same studio. James Brown, Ice T, Tupac, Nas, Madonna, Public Enemy, Big Pun, Mobb Deep, the list goes on. And now, at 21 years old, Josh was there too. It was a dream come true. The rebellious kid who had little to no supervision and a tumultuous upbringing, just running up and down the streets of Muldoon causing trouble, was now on the path to being a household name.

But he had to make a choice: Chase this rap dream or be a family man. He and his wife were in their 20s and they were starting to have kids — they would eventually have six — and he wanted to give them the upbringing that he never had. Although he never wanted for anything, including love and affection, he grew up in a rough household with lots of partying, drugs and alcohol, and he knew that’s not the environment he wanted to raise his own kids in. So, he chose to be a family man instead of a rapper. It’s a decision he’s thought a lot about over the years. Did he give up on his dream or did he follow his destiny? Ask him and he’ll tell you, what happened is what was supposed to happen.

PHOTO / Leif Ramos