Memphis (2016) - full transcript

Memphis.

It s a rough place where

the slow economic rebound

still hasn't happened,

and it's a sure bet

for the top 5 list of most

dangerous cities in the States.

These four people have adapted a

complex relationship with money

just to survive there.

I wouldn't have

stopped using heroin

if I hadn't been

arrested, at all.

I would have kept

going until I died.

When I left prison,

I didn't have money,

but I had my time

back, so I was rich.

Working full time and busting

my butt as a police officer,

and busting my butt

in training, you know,

all that stuff's gonna pay

off eventually in the future.

Ah, nice!

24-5 in one day. One day.

Not two days, one day.

One city, four people,

and where they live is a

key part of who they are.

* I found a place

to sell my name *

* Along the markets promenade

* High prices

* Going down

* Oh the rice is burning brown

* And high prices going down

*

It's home base for FedEx

and Oscar-winning

rap group Three 6 Mafia.

But despite its musical rap,

Memphis struggles with crime

and poverty more than

most cities in the South.

The biggest building

downtown isn't a Wal-Mart,

it's a jail,

overseeing 2,600 inmates.

But Memphis is also the second

most affordable city in the US.

Housing costs are 20%

below the national average,

making it an easy

place for millenials

to gain a financial edge.

Tito Porter is one of them.

He rents his large four

bedroom split level house

in the suburbs.

My name's Tito Porter.

I'm 29.

I have five kids.

My oldest is 8, and

my youngest is 7 weeks.

We live in a house in

Memphis, Tennessee.

Good ol' small country town.

My three jobs are car

salesman, tax preparation,

and a barber.

I'm fixing up a car

I already sold,

and the client is just

waiting on me to deliver.

So I gotta get it out

before they get too anxious

and buy another car

from somebody else.

So if I can't get this

car finished in time,

then I lose about 3,400.

I try to make 2,500 a week

at least, you know.

My bills, you know, they equal

three or four grand per month,

so I like to have a surplus.

If you don't have a

surplus, you can't invest,

you can't make more money.

If you just make it,

that's what you'll do

for the rest of your

life, just make it.

*

I grew up in South Memphis.

It's probably the

bottom as far as poverty,

housing conditions,

the schools available,

the neighbourhoods, you know.

It's pretty run down.

And it's kind of hard,

just to be frank.

It's a hard neighbourhood

to grow up in.

It's like one of the worst.

A lot of businesses, they

don't open in South Memphis.

Tito was looking at a jail

sentence of up to 196 years

for a string of

crimes, mostly theft.

Consecutive sentencing

meant he could serve time

for every conviction.

I was arrested for

aggravated robbery,

and also crimes

that I didn't commit.

And upon each conviction, the

sentencing guideline rises,

and I had like 12, so

196 years was within scope.

When they tell you,

it's mind-blowing.

You don't know whether to cry,

you don't know whether to

commit suicide, it's just...

it's just hard to grasp.

It seems like a dream.

The judge allowed Tito to serve

his 12 sentences at the same

time, and he got out after

4 years for good behaviour.

When I left prison, I didn't

have money, but time is money.

And I had my time back,

so I was rich.

* Hey world, what's poppin'

* I go by the name

of Blac Youngsta *

Blac Youngsta is

from South Memphis,

one of the poorest

areas in America,

with an average

income in the bottom 10%.

Rapping got him out of there,

and he doesn't wanna move back.

I rap about the

struggle, the pain.

Like the shit I

talk about, real life.

I don't worry about no Hollywood

shit 'cause I ain't Hollywood.

*

I've been in the industry

probably like six months,

since I been signed to CMG,

Collective Music Group,

Cocaine Muzik Group,

whatever you want to call it.

*

24-5, one day.

One day.

Not two days, one day.

We just got started.

I ain't even through

with the week yet.

When I'm through with the week,

I'm probably like

100,000 or something.

Wanna see me make some money?

I'm gonna show you

how to make some money.

I'll show you.

- Payday.

- Payday.

What's up, bro?

What's up?

It's the king himself, man.

Yeah, what's up?

Yo Gotti is the CEO of CMG,

and my relation to

him, I'm his artist.

I look at him like a big

brother, he's my mentor.

Rap mogul and

Memphis native Yo Gotti

discovered Blac Youngsta rapping

in the streets of his hometown.

I was shooting a video in the

hood and he was out there

on the corner rapping, dancing,

doing these things with no beat,

just a cappella.

And then like the kids

and everybody walking by,

people around, they was

rapping the song with him.

So I noticed that like

whatever this is he's rapping,

they knew it.

And one thing led to

another, you know.

I just told him like

if you with it, man,

we can go try to

get some money together.

This the new rim?

These the new rims

you put on them?

They're Forges.

With Yo Gotti's help,

he produced a mixtape

and started playing shows.

The money poured in.

His fan base grew to

over 300,000 followers.

Yo Gotti bought

me a Lamborghini.

You know, he bought it because

I made him a lot of money,

we made a lot of money together.

I'm pushing hard.

What we gonna do about the tape?

Youngsta wants to keep his

fans happy and make money.

The only way to do that

is to make more music.

I'm working on a

mixtape right now,

it's called Young & Reckless.

This is my second once

since I've been signed to CMG,

so it mean a lot to me

to just see my fans

and see how they

gonna react to the music.

I love people's opinion.

Right now, my career,

honest to God truth,

I haven't got started yet.

We just really playing around.

I ain't even got a record.

I ain't got a single,

I ain't got shit.

I'm just playing around,

getting money.

Blac Youngsta has

fought to get where he is.

hat's the story other people

n Memphis can relate to.

Ah, I messed it up.

That's okay, that's alright.

I grew up in Memphis.

I dropped out of school

and I was doing drugs,

snorting cocaine.

I was on a horrible,

horrible path.

Martial arts definitely

saved my life.

Good! There you go!

Right on that cheek.

Good, good good good.

My name is AmberLynn Orr,

and I'm 23 years old.

I work full time as

a police officer,

and I work pretty much

full time as an MMA fighter.

I've been a police

officer for about 3 years.

The typical day for me

is 12 hour shifts,

which is pretty long.

I make 18.55 an hour, which

is... you know, it's not bad,

but you know, having a house,

and of course bills, and

fighting full time and training,

it gets kind of strenuous.

I definitely think police

officers are underpaid,

and it is a selfless job,

and it's a thankless job.

Driver, pull over to your right.

Driver, pull your

vehicle over to the right.

I'm seeing the worst of people.

I'm seeing people

when they're angry,

I'm seeing people

when they're mad.

A lot of people don't

like police officers.

I'll be on 301 just north

of just north of Nell Road.

There's a lot of media scrutiny,

and I don't think cops

are respected anywhere.

You know, every time

you turn on the news,

it's an officer shooting,

or officer did this,

or officer did that.

So there's nothing,

anything positive.

And it just makes this

job so much tougher.

What can I help y'all do?

What can I help y'all with?

14 Information, the

fire's picking up pretty fast.

At the end of the day,

it's hard to just

take this uniform off

and let it be over with.

But it's something

you learn to cope with

and start fresh the next day.

*

Memphis, other side of the

tracks is where you can walk

from the have to the have-nots.

You can walk from 3-storey

buildings to a duplex

that is boarded up one side

and open on the other.

Teenage heroin use in Memphis

is double the national average.

20-year-old Nathan Wilson

just got out of jail

for heroin possession.

He's trying to get

his money straight

the first time in his life.

I'm from Memphis, Tennessee.

I lived in the

Highland Heights part,

but I hung out in Nutbush a lot.

Nutbush is a notorious

white ghetto.

At least half the people

in the penal farm,

in the legal system that

are white, come from Nutbush.

And it's... scrub life,

is what we call it.

Nathan met his friends in a

rehab program called Drug Court.

Energy Drink Day.

Sounds like a great idea

on paper, great idea.

How many did you have?

At least six.

That's too much.

I'm in a program

called Drug Court,

where I have to take up to

21 piss tests a week.

We sign a waiver that says

it's a six month program

at the halfway house, but

it's really after 90 days.

Then we're eligible to move out,

and that will be coming up

in about a week.

I have to have everything

in order at the old house,

as far as rent.

I have to be a certain amount

into my 12-step program

until I'm eligible to move out.

Nathan, Garret and Flynn

all want to make money,

but random drug tests,

court dates, and AA meetings

make it hard to keep a job.

A criminal record is one thing,

but a criminal record with all

the stipulations and all the

time constraints that you've got

in this program, getting a job,

paying rent on a house

of your own, it's just--

it's not gonna happen.

We are in Lafayette Circle.

This is a house that I'm

hopefully gonna be moving in,

if the courts

deem that I'm ready.

Where's the flame come out of?

There ain't no flames,

it's electric.

It's electric.

So if a power

outage came, we screwed.

Cold, cold raviolis.

Cold raviolis.

This'll be the first house

that I could say is my own,

so it's a major accomplishment.

So you've got space

underneath your bed.

This bed looks really

comfortable, but it's not.

I'm so proud of you.

Nathan and his friends realize

that with their low paying jobs,

they'll cover rent with just

a few extra bucks to spare.

At minimum wage,

40 hours a week,

after taxes it would come

out to about 280 bucks.

You got $110 a week for your

rent, that's down to 170.

Then you got court costs,

which is $100 a month,

25 off that, so 145, let's say.

$5 a day for a pack of

cigarettes, 35 out of that.

So you got about

100 bucks to eat,

do anything you want to

do, and transportation,

'cause we have to be here,

we have to be there.

But on the flip side of that...

I had a drug habit, which

was way more than $20 a day.

So like when you're sober,

you're not necessarily

willing to do the things

that you were willing to do

to get high to get an

Egg McMuffin, you know.

I'm not gonna rob Flynn's

grandma for an Egg McMuffin.

I'm just not gonna do it.

There are 170

documented gangs in Memphis.

80% of the crimes committed

in Tennessee are drug related.

There's one cop for

every 300 people in Memphis,

5th highest police-to-citizen

ratio in the States.

AmberLynn is a cop, but

what she really wants to do

is be an MMA champion.

With 9 out of 10 wins

in her amateur career,

she's got a good chance.

I'm training

for my upcoming fight.

It's gonna be my

professional debut.

Starting off, you know, the pay

is definitely not that great,

but just getting the exposure

of being with Invicta

and having a professional

debut in Las Vegas is huge.

Amberlynn knows that she can

make 30,000 a year as a cop,

but her dream is to make

60,000 a night in the cage.

Let's go!

Training is definitely

gruelling and painful.

You know, your body, it just

gets broken down over time.

You know, there's

plenty of nights in here

where I sit on the floor after

practice for 5 or 10 minutes

'cause I literally

cannot get up.

Since I've become

an MMA fighter,

I've had my nose broken,

I've had lower back injuries.

I definitely need

surgery on both my knees,

but I don't have the

money to pay for that.

There you go.

'Cause I pulled a bit more.

Oh, okay.

I wish I could train

full time, but that's...

the biggest thing is

the financial pressure.

I'm not able to do that, which

in turn I think my skills lack

as a professional fighter.

Good, yes!

A lot of these other girls,

they don't have full-time jobs.

That's all they have to do.

How they do it, I'm not sure.

But right now, I'm just looking

to get my name out there

where I can make enough money

and dedicate 100% of my time

to MMA and training.

Blac Youngsta's going

to see his grandmother

in the house where

he was raised.

I had to take care of my

little brothers and shit,

like I had to be a man

at the early age.

I had to, 'cause I was a

hustler and I was selling dope.

My grandma used to go to sleep

late at night and shit.

It'd be 2:00, 3:00

in the morning.

I used to crack her window open,

and I used to be serving

motherfuckers out the window.

And I want my kids to

have a different future.

And I know I can change it,

you feel what I'm saying?

Hey, man!

Yeah, man, CMG!

CMG shit, man!

Young rich niggas

ahead of the shit, man!

CMG shit, know what

I'm talking about?

Yeah, man!

For real, Jack!

Hey, man!

You see that?

They love me, man.

My city love me, man.

Gotta keep that heat.

Grandma house right here.

People are allowed to

open-carry weapons in Memphis,

and in this South Memphis

neighbourhood, you have

a 1 in 15 chance of becoming

a victim of violent crime.

Because of that,

Youngsta brings his crew

to protect him and his money.

Watch everything.

Anything come through looks

suspicious, we bust 'em.

Ain't no talking or nothing.

Hey now.

How y'all doing?

Hey, Grandma.

Anything look

suspicious, shoot it.

Don't hesitate, shoot.

We at the queen

house, Queen Louise.

Queen of McMillan house.

Queen of McKillin'.

I'm gonna get you a queen bed.

You slept in a twin bed

all your life.

New bed, new house,

new everything.

I want that big-ass bed now,

I'll tell you what.

lmost a third of the people

in Memphis live below

the poverty line, including

Blac Youngsta's grandmother.

But not anymore.

He just bought her

she raised him in.

I love the neighbourhood.

I know everybody

in the neighbourhood,

and everybody know me.

Now I won't have to move.

Won't have nobody to tell

me nothing to do no more.

I got something belongs

to me and I'm proud of it.

One bedroom, one

bathroom, and one living room.

It was me, my three

little brothers,

and my grandma

and my granddaddy.

My Aunt Janice, she

got like seven kids.

So like half of the time

they was in here with us.

So we were like 15 deep

in this motherfucker.

We used to sit here, and

we used to have prayer.

Like our prayer was like,

"Thank you Lord for this food,

I hope I get some more."

I've been eating

leftovers all my life.

That's why I don't eat

leftovers no more, to this day.

I want a fresh plate.

No leftovers, no

warm up, none of that.

*

* Grew up in a

one bedroom house *

* I swear to God

* I ain't had no bed,

had to sleep on the couch *

Youngsta's manager, Brandon,

shows up with an advance

of 10,000, all in cash,

for an upcoming gig.

That's cheesy.

Yeah, man.

Oof.

Tennessee has the top

self-employed workforce

in the South, with over

36,000 people in Memphis

running their own businesses.

Tito juggles three of them.

D&P Taxes is a

tax preparation company.

We deal with small

tax, personal tax,

and business taxes as well.

We opened about 12 days ago, and

business has been phenomenal.

We didn't even expect it.

And so far, we've made $35,000.

From this batch

today, 15 clients.

That'll be at least

6,000 or 7,000 today.

TP!

My name is Shameka Porter,

and I'm his wife.

I'm an income tax preparer.

I'm comfortable

with both us working.

It's a hassle sometimes,

it's kind of hard,

but we can get the job done.

We're a team.

In an area where 96,000 people

use no financial institutions,

Memphis contains more tax

preparation and loan shops

than bank branches.

Tito's tax business offers

quick returns for people

who are likely to get refunds.

Some of them will take that

cheque and buy a used car.

Hello?

It depends on

what's your price range.

I got a few vehicles right now,

and I'll check the inventory,

I'll see what we got,

and I can...

I can give you a

call back tomorrow.

I saw a common link that

I could use to my advantage,

and it's cars and taxes.

I got a reputation for

having good vehicles.

When I got into the tax thing,

it was like they both coincide.

So they can come in walking

and they can leave away driving.

You know, it's a

win-win situation.

They win, and I win.

s, with an incarceration rate

double that of

the national average.

any time, there could be

er 4,500 people behind bars.

At one point,

Nathan was one of them.

I was raised by

my mom for most of my life.

That's the

frosted look, you know.

I had grandpa's suit on,

you know, was balling.

I think I'm gonna

marinate the steaks.

I'm gonna put them in

the foil, and yeah,

put 'em straight in

there, in the fire.

My mom's an alcoholic, my dad

was an alcoholic and addict.

So they have a saying

in recovery that

two sickies don't make a welly.

Well... you know what

I'm saying, here I am.

But the grill marks

really makes it taste better?

It does.

You eat with your eyes before

you eat with your mouth, Mom.

I've heard that before.

It's not just a

saying, it's facts.

You ever had a omelet

that had all those

different coloured

peppers in it?

Yeah.

Do you think the peppers

really taste different?

No, it's the mixture of it.

When I found out that

Nathan had been arrested,

I was happy.

Because he had consequences,

therefore I was hoping this

would make a change for him.

His mom found him dead on

his porch two years earlier.

EMS brought him back to life.

I wouldn't have

stopped using heroin

if I hadn't been arrested.

Heroin was... was God.

I would have kept going until

I died, and died some more.

Nathan's mom refused

to pay his bail bond,

so he ended up in jail

with a year's sentence.

I just think

people don't change.

If they keep on

getting by with anything,

they're not gonna... why change?

He's got the drive that it

doesn't matter what it is,

he could do that.

* Hungry like the wolf

Memphis has

always been a big part

of southern hip hop.

Rappers from Memphis

love to rep their city.

Most working musicians here

earn less than $15,000 a year.

Only a very few will

ever break six figures,

and Youngsta's one of them.

He hopes his new mixtape

will allow him to command

up to $30,000 per show.

One more time.

Let me hear from

the top of my verse.

This mixtape right here mean

a lot to me 'cause it's turnt.

Every song, like boom, boom,

boom, like that popping.

You know how it is,

it's just like that.

I'm already hot.

I'm already booked up.

Me dropping this mixtape is

gonna just make it even worse.

Put out 14 songs, and if one

catch, we got the bag, we gone.

Like you make more money

when you got a hot single.

I asked them if this

feels like an intro.

You say it is or it ain't?

I feel like it ain't,

it ain't hard enough.

That's 'cause you

ain't make it hard.

Brandon is my manager.

He important to me

'cause he's like...

like he go get the money.

Brandon knows it's dangerous for

Youngsta to carry so much cash.

Just weeks before, Youngsta

was detained by Atlanta police

for carrying 70,000.

Youngsta, all he

talks about is money.

All he shows is money.

I mean, he made it that way

because he's never had it

the way he has it now.

These my babies right here.

Shit right here

mean a whole lot.

I spent 12,000 apiece for these.

12,000, 12,000, that's 24,000,

just the charm by itself.

My watch, this cost 45,000.

When you're a young,

black African American,

you gotta have this.

Like we're I'm from in the hood.

you hood rich with a hundred.

So like... I got way

more than a hundred.

It's part of a

young black man's life.

I used to ask him like,

"Bro, put the money in the bank.

It's getting overwhelming.

You can't even put

the money in your pocket."

He was like, "Man,

I've never had any money,

so for it to be on me like

this and for me to see it,

you can't even understand

the feeling that I feel.

'Cause me and you, you've been

there with this kind of money,

so you probably went

through this phase too.

So let me go through my phase."

And I can't do

nothing but respect it.

Bow-bow-bow-bow-bow

brr-bow-bow-bow!

While Blac Youngsta

has made a vow

to never eat leftovers again,

AmberLynn has to make her

food last for the entire week.

I just went to the

grocery store today,

so I've got like tons

of food for the whole week.

Fruit, chicken,

broccoli, cauliflower,

those are nutrients that

your body needs to be able

to push really hard

and keep on going.

But the healthy food,

it's really expensive.

The grocery store trip that

we made today was like $130,

and this will probably last us

hopefully a week and a half.

But it's gonna have to

last us a week and a half,

'cause I just got

paid on Wednesday

and I've got like $290 left.

That's why we buy

in bulk and we...

we ration out everything.

Woo!

Oh, that's a good one.

Thomas is my boyfriend.

He's my main trainer.

I think that one of the pros

to having him as my trainer

and my boyfriend is that

we understand each other.

What are you

gonna do with the meat?

Make some of it and

then freeze some of it,

with some bell

peppers and onion.

I think he probably walks around

a little bit heavier than I do,

but we both fight at

the same weight class,

which is kind of cool.

Cutting weight is one of

the most crucial parts.

With me walking

around about 155 pounds,

that gives me 20 pounds

to cut to 135,

which is definitely a

very, very strenuous thing

that your body

has to go through.

And there is definitely

a sense of urgency.

The quicker I can

get to the top,

you know, hopefully the

quicker I can get out.

AmberLynn has gotten clean,

which is hard to do in Memphis.

In the past decade, Tennessee

ranked 2nd for opioid use.

About three quarters of

these users turn to heroin.

Nathan Wilson was among them,

and now the Drug Court demands

that he checks in 20 times a

week to make sure he's clean.

If he misses a drug test,

he gets a penalty.

I've got community service.

Picking up trash.

I was five minutes late

for a drug screen.

I was just running late.

I tried to find

a ride, couldn't,

so I ended up walking up there,

and I was five minutes late.

And the person who takes

the screens was already gone.

If I'm late for a

drug test, when I call

my drug screen line in the

morning, my name will be there

and I'll go to court,

and it'll probably...

I'll receive probably

a 24-hour sanction,

which is a 24-hour

jail sentence.

And if I keep messing up,

they'll kick me out of

the program and I'll have to

do my year's incarceration.

So I'm okay for

another four hours,

then I gotta call again.

Having to call in three

times a day and having all these

obligations, it most definitely

can affect my employment.

First time something happens and

you have to tell your employer,

"Yeah, I've gotta do this.

I'm on a thing

called Drug Court."

It's called Drug Court.

They're gonna wanna know

what the hell you did.

And in my case, it's heroin.

And nobody wants to

hear the word heroin.

So yeah, it definitely

affects employment.

But on the flip side, if

you complete this program,

it's wiped from your record.

So it's a hell of a penance,

but if I can do this,

I can do anything, man.

Nathan's mistakes are

costing him time and money.

Tito isn't making

that mistake again.

He's got a buyer for a used

Buick, and if he can find

the right car, he'll

make $2,500 profit.

Right now I'm headed to the lot

to check out a couple vehicles.

Some days it's kind of hectic.

Being a dad, it takes

a lot of your time.

Especially if you have to

pick kids up, drop kids off.

So that's three hours

gone out of the day.

My wife just sent me

a text message,

and it said I do too much.

I rip and run,

I gotta slow down.

But I don't think I will stop.

Stopping is like

death, or like jail.

And jail is the 2nd worst thing.

So I can't see

myself slowing down.

If there's an opportunity where

I can make $10 or 10,000...

I'm gonna try to make both.

Hello?

I'm up here right now.

It's a whole lot

of Buick LeSabres.

What's the price range

you looking for?

All right, thank you.

Replace the grill,

replace the head lights,

and put a new bumper on

there and it'll be good to go.

It'll be a perfect car, almost.

That's how you

make money though.

It's easy.

My wife was there

every step of the way.

Even when I went to prison, she

was waiting on me to come home.

And she was just

my girlfriend then,

so that spoke volumes.

I realized that I wasn't

just living for myself anymore.

You know, I couldn't

make selfish decisions.

I had to make decisions

based on us as a whole.

I thought about

their quality of life,

and it made me change my life.

Like I did a 360.

Thanks for your help.

Thank you for your help.

I just give them

everything that I...

wished I had, you know.

So everything

that I wished I had,

I give it to them.

That's what made me

who I am today.

Blac Youngsta

knows that he has to make it

outside of Tennessee.

Brandon books him a show

in Chicago for $10,000.

And the last thing,

make sure you got that ice.

You're on point with

your ice and shit.

Put that big boy on first.

It's important that I'm here in

Chicago for me to gain fans.

The whole goal is

to be a superstar.

I wanna be everywhere.

I want Grammys,

I want everything.

I wanna be in the top

magazines, all the shit.

So like in order for me to

get that, it's gonna take

for them to ask who you

think should be in a magazine?

And all my folks

gonna be like, Youngsta.

But in order for that to happen,

I gotta gain my fans outside

of Tennessee, everywhere around

the world, to be on my side.

God sent me here to

put on a good show,

and that's what

I'm gonna do tonight.

* I had to go and

get somewhere else *

* Died right there

in front of my eyes *

* Laying on the

hospital bed and crying *

* You said your last

words, I thought I died *

* Screaming still

la la la la la *

* I swear to God

* I cross my heart

* My fingers ain't crossed

* Nah nah nah

It went great tonight.

I wish I would have sold

that motherfucker out,

you know, but I still

feel good about it.

I appreciate that

love like that.

I'm on camera, man!

You know what we

talking about, we turnt!

Yeah!

Yeah, they love my music.

They love the new shit

and they love the old shit.

I feel good about the

new mixtape for the drop.

It's gonna turn out good,

it's gonna be great.

*

To be the richest motherfucker

and the greatest motherfucker

to ever do this shit.

That's my endgame.

Next city, next show,

next dollar, man.

Next cheque, next

bag, next 10,000.

Blac Youngsta has risen so fast

he'll fall hard if the

money stops rolling in.

*

Despite the fact that

the murder rate in Memphis

is about 4 times

the national average,

AmberLynn has an

optimistic view of the city.

I want to bring

more awareness to Memphis,

and you know, show more people

that Memphis is an okay place.

I think a lot of people

hear Memphis, and they're like,

"Oh goodness, I'm

not gonna go out there.

I'm gonna get shot

or something like."

But there is places

where it is pretty nice,

and I would like for other

people to know that too.

Being a police officer,

up to this point,

is my only source of income.

I need to make money and

it's definitely hard on me

physically, I'm

paying the price for it.

Having just turned professional

in the rankings of MMA,

I have not made a

dime off of fighting.

You know, I can't quit my job.

As much as I would

like to train full time,

I just can't quit my job.

It's Payday for AmberLynn.

I just got paid this morning.

The money was definitely needed.

I was running on $8 for

about two or three days,

so this couldn't have

come at a better time.

For this pay period I had

95 hours, and I made $1,172.

*

Nathan landed a job at a sports

bar, and he needs to get $100

a shift to make his part of

the rent for the new house.

The problem is that at any

moment he can be called downtown

for drug testing

and lose his shift.

On a Friday, Saturday night,

I expect to make over $100.

This is the night I

come in and my head,

I'm gonna make rent tonight.

Working at a bar puts

Nathan at risk for drinking.

If he gets caught, it's

an automatic year in jail.

Sometimes it can be

a little stressful,

especially when people try

and buy you shots repeatedly.

I tell 'em if you're

gonna buy me a shot,

you also gotta buy me

a lawyer, bond money,

hand cuffs, breathalyzer test,

and it's just a lot cheaper

to get me root beer.

*

So that's what I made tonight.

$51 on a Friday,

and that ain't so good.

That ain't so good at all.

I'm just holding on to hope

that I can recoup this Saturday

and that it'll all work out.

'Cause if I get down about it,

I'll defeat myself

before I even begin.

But yeah, it's

definitely a disappointment.

To meet her goal of

making $60,000 per cage fight,

AmberLynn has to transform

her body, and that's not cheap.

This is $35.

This is $70, which definitely

can't afford that right now,

so we're gonna go

with the smaller one.

I have to be 135 pounds

for my fight.

If I don't make 135, then the

way that I look at it is they're

not gonna want me back and

I'm never gonna have a career.

$55.

Guess I'll pass on that.

Man, all this is complicated.

It's like being in a pharmacy.

At this point, we only

have two confirmed sponsors.

If those two offer $200 apiece,

the rest of the money

comes out of my own pocket.

$35.12.

I think the other one was

35 too, so 60, 70, 80...

- $90.

- Wow.

AmberLynn's mom Carla

manages her fight schedule

and promotions.

Now that she's pro, she

definitely needs a manager.

A manager takes 10%.

Then you've got trainers,

you have to pay 10% too.

So with me being her manager,

she doesn't have to

pay me right now.

The expenses are a lot.

We have the medicals, which

is from about $700 to $900,

all the money for food,

for protein, for supplements,

everything gets really expensive

in preparation for my fight.

Think I'm gonna get this one,

let's see where we're at.

Alright.

So 133.60.

Okay, so here's 60, and then I'm

gonna put the rest on my card.

Okay.

Thank goodness Thomas

gave me 60 bucks.

With his 60, I

put $73 on my card,

and I only had $93 on my card.

So that leaves me with

$20 for the next two days

until I get paid again.

In Memphis, about half the

people who go to jail end up

back there within three years,

and about 85% of those people

have been convicted of drug

related crimes and have to

check in at Drug

Court once a week.

What about it, man?

We straight?

Alright.

How's it going?

It's going.

Nathan thinks he might get

out of this system this week.

Drug Court Judge Tim

Dwyer knows otherwise.

As a general rule, we

like for them to stay

in the halfway house

about six months.

Our main emphasis, of course,

is to try to keep them

in a drug-free environment.

The house is getting

a little toxic, man.

Well, we'll stay in

touch with him about it.

He keeps us posted,

he's good about it.

You've gotten a

good report, and...

you know, I'm proud of you, man.

It's not up to him,

it's up to me,

it's up to his

counsellor, Mr. Flowers,

it's up to the men

at the halfway house,

if he's ready to move

on to the next level.

Well, you keep it up, man.

The judge says Nathan has to

stay in the halfway house

and can't move in

with his friends.

I'm not gonna be moving

into that house because

one of the guys relapsed there,

and then me and the guy

who owns the house

sort of got into it.

I lost my phone.

I've gotta call a screen

line three times a day,

but I don't have a phone,

so I gotta like find a phone,

which there's no payphones

in existence anymore.

It's stressful, but

I'm just holding on.

*

This the chopper.

This is my baby.

This is what I use

to protect my life.

Shit get real on the road.

Like sometimes folks

follow you from the club,

trying to rob you and stuff.

You gotta let the

window down and brrt.

You know, shoot it out.

Blac Youngsta's payday

is a new house

in a wealthy suburb of Memphis.

He paid $380,000 cash, upfront.

Yeah, welcome to my home.

This is my shit.

Boss man shit, young CEO,

young entrepreneur.

I ain't even moved in

this motherfucker yet.

I know one thing for damn sure.

You gonna put CMG...

I'm gonna put CMG in

the middle of the floor.

The light gonna

shine on that bitch,

CMG.

Gotta get you

a big-ass chandelier.

For real.

Motherfucking police

come in this bitch,

I'm gonna get the chopper and

stand up here like Scarface.

We're gonna have a shootout

right here, for real.

Uh, with the police though?

Yeah, whoever come

in this motherfucker.

Shoot out.

You've got the Lord up in here.

'Cause transformation has got

to come in all of our lives.

- Amen!

- Amen!

Hallelujah somebody.

Personally, I don't think money

is the main thing that creates

happiness, but it's the things

that you need money for,

you know, so I would

say money is a necessity.

It's a necessary evil.

Before we get ready to go,

let's bless the Lord

with our tithes and

offerings, amen.

Alright.

There's a line ready!

Fire!

I'm always

down for a competition.

I'm a very, very

competitive person,

I'm a very aggressive person.

If I see something that I want,

I'm gonna take it

and I'm gonna get it.

There's definitely an

expiration date on MMA fighting.

There's, of course, only so

many years that your body

can go through that

much destruction.

The crazy thing is, is that

the fighting is the easy part.

The training is

the hardest part.

You gotta have that heart

to keep going, to finish.

You can't teach somebody that:

they either have

it or they don't.

And that's what makes

really good fighters,

and that's what makes

legendary fighters.

*

I bought it 'cause I deserve it.

Coming from where I come from,

it don't happen like this.

Like, this shit right

here is a dream come true.

But I just gotta keep the

money coming in to keep this.

I can't keep it

without no money.

So if this house fuck up,

the house might cost me

40,000 to 50,000

getting it fixed.

So I gotta keep money coming in

in order for me to

live like this.

To be honest, I couldn't picture

where I'll be at in 20 years.

Five years, I hope

to have a degree.

I hope to be starting on

opening my own business.

I always thought if you

could have one bake shop

where you could like sort of

go around with the desserts,

I thought that'd be a good idea.

That's probably my

primary idea, yeah.

If you let money rule you,

and you don't rule the money,

you'll never succeed.

You have to reign

supreme over your dollar.

You have to make the

dollar work for you.

The Invicta fighting

championship sent through

my contract, that means

that the fight's on.

So we're going to Vegas.

Nothing's gonna

keep me from fighting.

After filming this,

AmberLynn tore the

ligaments in her knee.

It'll be 6 months

before she can fight again.

*

Memphis can be a tough place,

but these four people

have all proven you can

adapt and thrive there.

And like their city,

they've been down,

but they've made an

effort to come back.

You've been here more than me!

This shit man, this

shit so fucking nice.

This shit a dream come true.