Payday (2016–…): Season 1, Episode 4 - Baltimore - full transcript

Baltimore, a
place with two populations:

one gentrifying,
one just making do.

Both love their city.

These people are
trying to make a living,

or at best just stay
afloat, in a city where

divisions of class and
race are hard to ignore.

Everybody in
Baltimore is a hustler.

I'm always thinking of another
way to try to make money.

I, for some reason, have
this fear of going broke.

It's not even like
I'm irresponsible,

where I just blow my money.



I try to do the best things
possible with money.

That way I always have it.

I never go back broke.

I think it really sells life
short for life to be about

accumulating some wad of money
that you can just set on fire.

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 market's promenade

* High prices

*

* Going down

* Oh the rice is burning brown

* And high prices



* Going down

*

Baltimore faces challenges.

There's anger over the 2015
death of Freddie Gray

while in police custody, and
long-time residents feel like

their neighbourhoods are
crumbling around them.

Meanwhile a younger demographic

attracted by low housing
costs is moving in.

Baltimore is a city in flux.

Chino Braxton is a well-known
member of Baltimore's

12 O'Clock Boys' dirt bike crew.

Rapper Meek Mill became a fan
and signed him to his

Maybach Music Group to
do personal appearances.

At 19 he's a rising
star in the city.

I never thought
I was gonna get paid

for riding dirt bikes,
it was just fun.

The first paycheque
I got for riding,

it was probably
like 2000-something.

That didn't really
open up my eyes.

It was just man, I got a
cheque for riding dirt bikes.

That's when I knew it was real.

*

No one ever who have rode
streets in Baltimore or

another city was ever signed
for riding on the streets.

I'm like the first
that ever did that.

I opened up a bigger land
for street riders really,

I would say.

*

I love riding in sync,

'cause if I did before I got the
sponsors and stuff like that,

and I'm gonna still
love it after the sponsors.

The only thing gonna stop me
really from riding is something

was to happen with my body
that I can't ride no more.

That's how much I love riding.

But after I got shot it just
made me have a different mindset

which it would do to
anybody who get shot.

Now if I want to
keep making money,

I got to keep riding dirt bikes.

I mean, I do look
at it as a job.

If I stop I won't be
making money no more.

Chino is fully recovered after
getting shot, and is now aiming

to get his first
paid gig in two weeks.

Noah also makes his
money on the street.

He's a photographer
documenting Baltimore.

His work has been published
by the New York Times and other

international publications,
but with no regular income,

he gets by through
bartering and trading.

I forgot plastic bags.

I hope you pooped already.

This is a city
that you definitely

have to walk through to get.

Ma'am, how you doing?

Good. Beautiful house.

I guess just taking pictures
out in the city and meeting

people through that
became this conduit of

getting to understand the place.

My favourite technique
is getting it right.

I'll see something and it's like
the first picture is the one

with kind of the magic.

I see it and it's
four feet ahead of me,

and I'm able to get my
phone, get my camera out,

focus and get it right
in no time flat

before they even notice
that I've had that movement.

That's what I really enjoy,
where it's just completely like

a ninja skill.

Even if you feel powerless,
if you have your phone you can

document things in a really
beautiful impactful way, and

I think that's why people are
drawn to some of the pictures

that I take, because
it's in communities that

all they've ever heard about
that community is like

Freddie Gray, the riots,
dilapidated housing.

As a photographer, I was
making good steady money

because that was my interest.

I wanted to make money,
make a living doing that,

I thought that was great.

And what became more important
was taking just better pictures,

like more genuine.

My interest in money
and getting paid for it

sort of declined and these
very honest and interesting

pictures started coming out.

I can say with a clear conscious

that I'm just seeing
what's there.

How y'all doing?

I'm just experiencing
and learning and watching.

And I don't really have an
agenda, I really try to think

as little as possible and
just watch the world.

- Making a video out here?
- Yeah man.

This some real niggas
in the video.

I know, they want
to see that shit.

Get it, get 'em, man.

I used to torture myself because
I was like, "Oh no, I'll just be

taking advantage of people
and I'll take these pictures,"

and it was kind of like
presumptuous to assume that

I could exploit somebody and
go there and just do that.

I live my life on the thread
bare minimum to get by

and do as much as I can.

And for someone to be like,
"Oh you're exploiting people",

it's just "Okay,"
I just don't even get mad.

I'm just like "Okay, whatever,
see ya, I'll see ya later."

Noah's living on
the poverty line

in a state that has the highest
per capita income in America.

Maryland also has more
female-owned companies

than any other state.

So yeah, they gonna
be with us tonight.

It's gonna be interesting.

Raised in Baltimore,

Cat's father was a
small business owner.

She owns her own business too,
a mobile Hookah rental company.

Ever since I was a kid
I always just wanted to work.

I just had this
attraction to making money.

If you woulda met me
three years ago,

nowhere in any conversation
that we woulda had would I say,

"In three years, I will own
a mobile hookah business."

It's almost like I
kind of fell into this.

*

Kyle's my hookah guy.

He works with me.

Cat is my favourite boss.

I've had a lot of bosses
and she's my favourite.

Hookah's become more
popular in Baltimore recently,

people look at it as
a after-hours thing.

The life of partying and
buying tables at the club and,

I just think it's something that
adds onto your party experience.

Cat and her staff are
booked by club managers

to provide hookah table
service at parties.

She supplies the
hookahs and tobacco,

and walks the floor
making sales.

All the money is hers.

So is the risk.

Sometimes I work really hard,
and at the end of the night

I'm so tired and I think
to myself my gosh,

if I worked a regular 9 to 5,
my body wouldn't hurt so much.

And then I'll be like uh, nope.

Scratch that,
never mind, I'm good.

I work hard 'cause for me it's
a lot more rewarding that I do

this on my own terms than
working for someone else.

My weekly goal right now is
to make $1,500 dollars a week.

I feel like if I work
three clubs a week

or three nights a week,
that's doable.

This could end at any point.

Any of these clubs
could tell me not to come.

Any of these clubs could
get their own hookahs.

So that's why I
save as much as I do.

My next thing is to just make
it bigger and better and try to

have it work for itself as
opposed to me working for it.

50,000 homes in Baltimore
are abandoned, and yet

30,000 residents are homeless
for some part of the year.

Good morning, good morning.

AJ lives with his wife,
four children and uncle

in a house that was passed
down from his grandma

to his mom and now to him.

You wanna go in
the bathroom first?

So you can wash up and stuff?

After his mother died he fell
behind on the mortgage and needs

to raise 12,000 dollars
or he may lose the house.

This was my grandmom's house.

I grew up here, I got memories
from the time I was a little boy

to now, in the same house.

So it like... this means a lot.

You need money, how
much money do you need?

Come on, hold your face up, Jay.

To have my kids grow up
in the same house that

I grew up in is wonderful.

The house is still in
my grandmom's name.

So actually I'm in the process
of trying to pay the house off

and get the house
put in my name.

Y'all be good in
school, alright?

Being a dad is the best
feeling in the world.

Like, waking up in the morning
and having the kids there,

and having my son look at me,
having my daughter telling me

she love me.

Like, that's the best
feeling in the world.

AJ runs an unlicensed
business on the ground floor.

This house has definitely
been a big part of my life.

I grew up here and I'm also
conducting the business here,

so like, it's two-fold.

It was kind of like
a crazy situation.

I ran out of gas, then
a guy pulled over on 695

and he took me to the gas
station and we were talking.

So, in the
conversation he was like,

"I got a gun that I'm
trying to sell you."

I'm like, "Nah, I ain't
buying no gun from you."

He like, "No,
it's a tattoo gun."

A lot of people in Baltimore
want to express their selves.

So why not do it on your skin?

I don't have an actual
license to do tattoos.

You gotta do what you
gotta do to get money.

It just seemed like
tattoos was my route.

This was my gift
that God gave me.

It's hard living
where you work at,

like, I can never sleep.

Somebody knock on my door
and they got $250 for me.

I wipe the coal off my
eyes, I go wash my face,

wash my hands, and we
gonna get back to work.

Me losing the house, that's
not really an option to me.

I get up every day,
I do my tattoos,

I do my business in
order to keep this house.

Chino makes about
80,000 dollars a year

from his sponsors, plus an
additional 10,000 dollars

for every special
appearance riding his bike.

But in February 2016
Chino was shot in the head,

putting his career
and life in danger.

The bullet like right here
in the top, and the graze

is directly in the back.

You know, bullet's
still in my head.

You can't really feel it.

But it's there.

Doctor said it's there.

There's definitely a
constant fear of someone

coming back for me, not
knowing where it came from

or something like that,
so I just try to be

as safe as possible
and stay out of the way.

That's one of the reasons
I don't live in the city

and none of that type of stuff.

Like my whole mindset changed.

I don't want
nobody know nothing.

I don't want you to know what
type of car I'm in, nothing.

None of that type of
stuff so, you know.

That's the reason why I
want to leave Baltimore.

Soon after that, she was really
like let's get out of here,

she wanted to get out
of here after that.

I said I'm ready to go.

I'm ready to go.

I need the bag, I need
the milli wipes in the bag.

I need them Ms, I need
them Ms in a bag.

He's just like a
personal saving bank.

I'm the one that
spends all the money.

He save everything.

If it was up to him
we'd save all the money.

'Cause he cheap.

I don't know, he don't
ever want to go broke.

That's what he keeps saying,
"I don't want to go broke."

Well, if we die today
or tomorrow, shit,

the money still gonna be here.

I want to spend it
while I'm here.

Spend all the money.

I want to have enough money

to take everybody and
make my day go by with me.

- At one time.
- At one time.

I definitely want to move
my family out of Baltimore

within the next few years.

I'm going to say few, not five.

Few meaning two, three years.

I'm going to get my
family out of here.

Everybody who make my day go by.

In America 8% of people
have no bank account.

They're called "The Unbanked."

AJ is one of them.

To help pay off his mortgage,
he sources discounted tattoo

supplies in the local
underground economy.

As far as Baltimore, like you
got a lot of different people

to do a lot of different things.

So you gotta learn how to
network, because there's a lot

of good things that I need
out here, you feel me?

If I don't get out here and
talk to people and communicate

with other people,
then I go without.

As soon as I wake up in the
morning I'm thinking about

if I got gloves, if I got
needles, if I got ink caps, ink.

As far as with Brie,
like she my backbone.

She help me go get the supplies,
cleaning the shop and all that.

She's hands on with everything,
and that's love right there.

I couldn't ask for a better
partner, better child's mother.

Did he have everything?

Yup.

Alright, how much was it?

70 bucks.

70? Alright, that's cool.

The Baltimore community economy
is like if you got something

and I need it, and we
link up, you feel me?

Like, it's one
hand wash the other.

Yo!

- Yo.
- 'Sup?

I'm ready to be on my
way to come get them,

the supplies and stuff.

Alright, I got you.

Basically, that's
a friend of mine,

their mom actually
gets the supplies.

The stuff that she don't use or
the stuff that she don't want.

I just wind up going
to buy it from her.

It's not like the stuff is old.

It's brand new stuff,
it's still in the box,

it's sealed up and everything.

What's good?

I definitely appreciate
it, you feel me?

Yeah, you already know.

Basically I got
a case of gloves,

hospital grade gloves, like
this case probably right here,

probably be maybe
100, 150 dollars

and I damn sure ain't pay
that for it, you feel me?

Cat lost 40,000 dollars
when her hookah lounge failed.

Baltimore shut it down
because of bylaw infractions.

Her new mobile hookah rental
business is helping pay off

that pile of debt.

241.

So right now I am making
my nightly envelopes.

This is how I keep track
of how much I make.

I keep track of the amount
of cash and credit,

and then the amounts
I pay the employee,

or whomever was helping
me for the night.

One, two, three...

I don't want to make more and
more money and not account for

it because that's how people get
themselves caught up in a bind.

I've been very irresponsible
with money in the past.

I don't have the best credit.

I don't even have
a retirement plan.

I'm 32.

So I need to start treating
my money like a paycheque.

Cat's garage is filled
with the furniture

from her first failed business.

So the garage has all of my
furniture from Play, my lounge.

I just stored it back here.

I opened up the
lounge, that was cool,

it was a cool first
business experience.

The straw that broke the
camel's back was the fact

that technically hookah
lounges are illegal here.

So the city started focusing
on trying to shut us down,

and they started sending
us citations monthly.

They had a vice squad
that would come around.

They also send you fines, and
those are 1200 dollar fines.

It just became
not worth it to me.

Because I had this kind of
extension of a mobile business

to my business, I
was like you know,

I'm just gonna make it this.

Sometimes you have to rip
through it and go broke again

in order to realize you
could have did that better.

The children at
the Kid Safe Zone

get ready for their
photography fundraiser.

- Okay.
- Exactly.

- I got ya!
- You got it.

That's really cool,
that's perfect!

I was in West
Baltimore one night.

I saw a bunch of cop cars,

and I went over and
took a few pictures.

A kid comes up to me,
and he was like,

"Hey man, like, how do I
become a photographer?"

I was like, "It's really easy,
someone gives you a camera

and you just take
pictures, and voila,

basically you're
a photographer."

4:06 in the morning?

What are you doing up at
4:00 in the morning, man?

So, I went to the camera store
that I spend a lot of time at

and they gave me a box
of old point and shoots.

These are a bunch of the cameras
that we have gotten donated.

Some is just like... like I
don't even know what this is.

Pretty, like, not really
what I'm gonna give a kid.

This is like a G2 I think,
which was popular in like 1912.

But who knows, maybe it works.

There are a lot of kids here
and there's a lot of like...

you know, just like
a lot of need here,

so it would be nice to have
a more... like a robust program,

and have a little more
financial stability.

So we started
almost a year ago today,

in the wake of the
riots with Freddie Gray.

We wanted to be a
place for kids to come

and have a safe place to go.

They can be a kid here, they
don't have to worry about

the stress of the environment.

It's really rough around
here to say the least,

but they can come here,
they get a hot meal every day,

they play video
games, we do yoga.

This is our everyday.

When they have the cameras
they're not thinking about

drugs, violence, ills at home.

All they're thinking about
is capturing that moment,

in that moment.

We're putting together
a show, a photo party.

The idea is to sell
those pictures and fund

summer programming
at the Kids Zone.

So this right here is the
back of the Kids Safe Zone,

this is the back door,
and you can see the mural,

like the side of
the Freddie Gray mural.

He was arrested... 50 yards from
where we're standing right now.

So... you know, the
location isn't lost on me.

Just that it's-- okay, you
can go out the back door

of the Kids Safe Zone and see
a place where a man was beaten,

you know, was killed by police.

I don't know.

I don't know, I'm gonna look,
see if there's a picture.

- What do we want?
- Justice!

Only a handful of demonstrators,

but with voices just as strong.

The Freddie Gray story
ominates and divides Baltimore.

A recent Department of Justice
report condemns Baltimore police

for disproportionately
targeting black citizens,

confirming public
suspicion of racial bias.

What you think, Chino?

I just feel like it's crazy
and it's sad for his family

and all that, even though,
you know what I mean,

they help their family out,
but not charging the cops

for any charges,
that's just crazy.

Feel like they should be at
least charged with something

if they're not going to
be charged with murder.

But you know...

I worry about my kids getting
pulled over by the police,

interacting with the police.

The police know Chino, everybody
in the city know who Chino is so

when he's out riding the bikes,
like you say now they're saying

they can't ride their bikes,
they can issue a warrant for him

riding on the street without
even pulling him over because

they know who he is.

So yeah I fear for that.

They got to catch
me first though.

Yeah.

I ain't never think nobody
want to do nothing to me here,

everybody love me here.

I mean everybody when they see
me they want to take pictures

with me.

All the time "Just keep
doing what you're doing

for the city," this,
that and the third,

stay positive and all that.

So I just felt like everybody
love me here but you know,

you're never supposed to think
everybody love you because

out of everybody that loves you,

there's always one person
that hates you.

So you know, I was just a
little bit too comfortable.

But I learned from my
mistakes and you know...

I was coming from home, you
know, just pulled up here,

and parking my car
and all of that.

As I'm parking I just feel my
windows just start ricocheting.

All my windows just
start shattering.

I'm like...

Then I just started looking
around, looking around.

I knew somebody
was shooting at me.

It was just stuff
coming through the windows,

just coming through the windows.

So I started to duck down,

and started to
climb out of the car.

And as I'm climbing out
of the car I got shot.

I got hit in my head, one of
them grazed me in my head

and one of them went in my head.

And then I just ran in
and sat on the couch.

My little sister, she
had called the ambulance

and the police and all that.

She was just so G'd up.

She sat there... how you was?

She sat there... She sat
there just chilling like,

"Yeah can y'all come,
'cause my brother

just got shot in his head.

Why y'all keep
asking me how old he is?

Can y'all just come?

He's shot in the head, there's
blood coming out of his head.

Can y'all just come?"

Mom grabbed the phone and said,
"If y'all don't get the hell

down here my little brother
just got shot in the head."

I tell you, Baltimore
is full of hatred.

Police even hate you.

They don't wanna see you win.

You should see how long it took
when you called and said

a kid got shot in his head.

It took them over half an
hour before they came to him.

Definitely got to get
out of Baltimore, you know.

Stay away from "they", "they"
don't want to see you win.

I mean I'm trying to figure out
well, who wants to hurt Chino?

Everybody knows Chino, Chino's
like a role model in Baltimore.

I didn't think nobody in
Baltimore that hate Chino

that would want to take him out.

I just want him to leave.

With a city on edge, Noah's
spending the day driving around,

ready to photograph
whatever happens.

So yesterday, one of
the officers in

the Freddie Gray trial was found
not guilty on all charges.

There was some concerns,
I guess in the media,

not in my mind,
but in the media,

that there would be a riot.

I think the media was just
ready to eat that shit up,

so they were like, "Oh my god,
someone on Instagram said riot?

Well, there's gonna be a riot!"

It's like well...

- I know, it looks bad.
- I didn't know it was you, son!

I know, it looks bad
when they roll up.

I'm like, "Yo, who
the fuck is this?"

- I know, man.
- What's up, man?

Aah!

Man, you hear that bullshit?

I heard about that.

You got a lot of
people out here that's...

that's really frustrated, man,
you know what I'm saying?

Because we looking for
any type of justice, nigga.

Any type, anything, right?

Any type!

But not guilty on all charges?

- Not guilty.
- What the fuck is that?

Ashland?

What are they doing?

Well, I'm trying to find
out what they're doing.

Low income residents live under
the threat that City Hall can

seize homes owing as little
as 750 dollars in back taxes

and auction them off,
keeping all the proceeds.

The evicted can buy their
homes back if they pay

the original tax lien
plus legal and transfer fees

at a punishing 18% interest.

Is that that lady's house?

- That's that lady's house.
- Yeah!

They were outbidding it
right out in front of her.

Right in front of her.

We don't bring in
a third of that.

Like a year, we don't
bring in a third of that.

15 grand?

Who the fuck we gonna
get that shit from?

Thank you, man.

You good?

Noah's headed off
to take some photos.

He spots police
activity in the sky.

When it's that's low....

When it's that's low, I
don't know what's happening.

They're trying to keep an eye
on it, when they're that low.

Yeah, and you can
still hear the sirens.

Oh yeah, look at how
many are behind us.

Oh yeah.

Come on.

Yeah, there you go, home boy!

Get that down!

Walk down the street,
they can't do nothing.

Walk on down the street, bro.

What are they doing
to our man in the car?

There is a lot of cops.

There's one, two, three,
four, five, six, seven...

There's like 25 cars here.

That's a lot of cops.

Wait, what's going on right now?

They locked the
man up for nothing.

- For what?
- For nothing!

Yo, y'all brought y'all gun,
y'all mace, and handcuffs.

What about these?

Take photos of all that shit.

I mean... I mean it's
your face or this, you know.

Y'all see that?

You have a good day.

80% of Baltimore's police
force lives outside the city.

Who's talking?
You're the one talking.

Residents are sending a message
that they want accountability.

Locals document
the scene as their way

to prevent potential
police brutality.

Noah joins in.

The goal is to get what's hidden
and what they're trying to hide.

If they want to
cover something up,

it's like you better
try and get it.

'Cause there's a reason that
they don't want you to see.

They trying to
Freddie Gray shorty, man!

That ain't right, man!

Y'all wouldn't do that with
that gun and that badge though!

Y'all wouldn't do that with
that gun and that badge though!

My whole agenda is to
sort of compromise reality

to bust it open.

Baltimore schools
were among the first in America

to identify financial
literacy as essential

to a healthy community.

AJ faces an overwhelming
load of paperwork

join the mainstream economy.

My uncle, he was locked up
for 38, almost 39 years,

and he got a chance to
come home and start over.

Him coming home was such
a tremendous help to me,

my business, my
personal life and everything.

So I'm just doing
whatever I can do

to help him live the rest
of his life, you feel me?

This tattoo right here will
probably run anywhere from

75 to 100, depending
on the size, colour.

The size I'm gonna do, it
will probably be 100 dollars.

It's all I can do, man,

is try to give people
good ink for a nice price.

I keep everything
clean and safe.

Right now I'm still considered
an underground tattoo artist.

In order to get a license in the
state of Maryland, you gotta

do apprenticeship under another
artist, and they basically

want you to be their
flunky for 4 to 5 years.

Won't be doing no tattoos.

So it's like I'm doing
my own apprenticeship,

I'm doing it in my own way.

The house as of now is
still in my grandmom's name.

There's a lot of legal aspects
that I gotta deal with as far as

getting the house
put into my name.

They want to see pay stubs,

and they want to see
your work history,

and make sure that
you're making enough money.

That's something that
I can't give them.

I can't give them
a bank account.

I can't give them tax ID
number, stuff like that.

But like I said, it's a process.

But we working, we'll get it.

I do any and everything
that I can to keep the house.

Noah lives in Better Waverley,

an old area that is
quickly gentrifying.

I live with two
dogs, Chico and Moose.

I live with two women,
Julie and Andrea.

Julie bought this
house... I don't know,

6 months, 8 months ago,
something like that.

She paid like just
under 50,000 for it.

I think it's pretty low for
the neighbourhood, I mean,

but there are definitely 50,000
dollar homes in this city.

No, put it how it would be,
or it would be like that?

- It would come out like...
- Oh, that side.

I guess that would work.

I mean, I don't know what...

It depends what we're
gonna put up here, I guess.

Noah moved in what,
like three months ago?

- Two months ago?
- Yeah, end of February.

And he currently
does not pay rent,

but helps around the house.

It's kind of like
a barter-type deal.

Getting the carpet
out, building shelves,

painting the walls,
working on the yard.

My house cost 42,000 dollars,
it was a Fannie Mae property.

So my mortgage is less
than 200 dollars a month,

and... that's what it's like
to live in Baltimore, I guess.

It helps me specifically,
like living really cheaply,

to be able to just make work and
to be able to go out and shoot.

I can live here, I can
keep this room in this house

for basically no
money, for very cheap.

Being able to just do that
and keep my expenses low,

it's just allowed me
to do what I want,

which is work with the kids,
print their work, print my work,

and just take it on my own time.

*

Chino has become a Baltimore
street legend for surviving

a bullet to the head, and
for his prodigious skills

on a dirt bike.

But he needs to diversify
his revenue streams

if he wants to insure
long term income.

Like this is how we talk
about building the game.

On some-- He rides the
bike and we film everything,

and you see every perspective

of him on the bike,
you know what I mean?

So, I'm thinking
taking that perspective

and having you actually ride.

It took some getting used to
when you... going to meetings

and stuff like that
with corporate people,

but now I'm used to it.

I can go into meetings
and have a meeting

like it's just regular.

The currency that people are
going to trade in tomorrow

is data.

It's not going to
be dollars, it's data.

Like if you don't have
a website, you need to get one.

If you haven't
registered your name,

you need to register your name
and all that kinda of stuff.

You need to do that.

I mean you got to just take
control of who you are

in this digital... this digital
age, you know what I mean?

*

For Chino, the corporate
doors are finally opening.

*

Cat is focused on supplying
hookahs for a night club.

If city inspectors stay away,

she'll be able to pay
down more of her debt.

I've been working
in night clubs and stuff

since I was like 22, I think.

I started bartending.

I don't know, it's
fun to get dolled up.

Being attractive doesn't hurt.

Hoping for a large crowd,

Cat is taking all of her
23 hookahs to the club.

This is Logan, my cousin, and
this is Logan's friend, Trinity.

If I sell all
the hookahs I bring,

I should make 920 dollars there.

*

So now with the business being
mobile, I'm trying to maximize

a small window of time
in making money,

and not having to
wait on the crowd.

Now I just go to the crowd.

*

Hookah is still
technically illegal.

I've been in night
clubs selling hookah,

and seen the vice squad come in.

But it's almost like
when they come into the club

and see the hookah,
they don't care.

Because when it
comes to a night club,

now this night club
has a liquor license.

Like they have
bigger fish to fry.

So it's weird, but
I'm not complaining

because it's working out.

*

I sold all 23 hookahs
and a few refills.

It's been a really good night.

*

Where some see
junk, AJ sees money.

With his house at risk
of being foreclosed,

he's working a second
underground job

scouring the city
for scrap metal.

So basically now
what we doing is like...

Shit like this,
scrap metal, you feel me?

Just take shit like this
and put it on the truck.

Any...

Any type of scrap metal,
whatever, you feel me?

Let me see the gloves on.

I think somebody break some
rotors and shit, you feel me?

Hey, hey bro, y'all need
these rotors over here?

See, Jeremy?
Free money.

Yep, that's free money.

All day.

Every day we get up, we try
to grind and do something.

It don't matter if we get 10
pans or 5 rotors, you feel me?

It don't matter,
like money is money.

There's money
out here to be made.

So we gonna get
out here every day

and we gonna do
what we need to do.

So we got us some brake pads.

Thank you, fellas,
appreciate it.

We not out here stealing, we
out here basically scavenging.

Like whatever is left over,

that people look and they
say is trash is gold to us.

See, you can tell like...

there's already been
people through here.

But we're going to
get what we can get.

We ain't even been
out here real long,

and we probably already got
like a hundred dollars.

That's a day's work right there.

A fridge, dryer or stove brings
7 dollars at the scrap yard.

I just bought the truck and
it already it made us money.

Next we're going
to get a trailer,

then we're going
to have two trucks,

then we're going to have
two trucks and two trailers.

So it's about
building, you feel me?

We young entrepreneurs.

We out here just trying
to get money, that's it.

*

This is the end process.

We bring it here, we
break everything down.

We just get out here
and grind it out,

and at the end of
the week it's our payday.

We just try to stay in our
lane and stay out of the way.

That's all we doing,
man, that's it.

That's like the music
of the streets, man.

You hear that every night,
every day, every night.

All you hear is the bike.

Cat has landed a white party,

staged by an important
local promoter.

It's the largest
event she's ever done.

Happy customers will mean
big sales and more bookings.

...arguing, "I don't
want this flavour."

That's what you ordered,
that's what you're gone to get.

Sorry.

Hookahs are 45, refills are 20.

It's a lot of tables here.

I wish I woulda
had more hookahs,

but we're about to make it work.

Star, you see how
he's making hookah?

Show her.

- I'm watching.
- Oh okay.

And maybe make one so
you know how to do it.

Today I recruited
some of my family,

and I have both of
my helpers with me.

I guess we're five shirts.

I spent 85 dollars.

So the fifth shirt is
actually a crop top,

so I didn't think Kyle
would want to wear that.

I'm not wearing a crop top!

We gonna hope that it
doesn't rain too much

and we just have
a really good day.

A nice dry day.

Cat needs the weather to improve
or this party will be a bust.

How you guys doing?

You guys want to get a
hookah for your table?

You do? Okay.

- You got peach?
- Peach? Yes.

You guys want to
buy another hookah?

Since there's so many of y'all?

This shit is the worst.

*

*

In Cleveland, Chino is making
his first public event

since his gunshot
wound to the head.

He'll fly home to Baltimore
with an appearance fee

of 10,000 dollars plus expenses.

Yeah, this is my first gig
ever since I got shot.

I chilled out for a minute,
I haven't been doing any.

And yeah this is the first one.

It turned out to be a good show.

Everybody liked it once again.

*

For the past 6 months,
I didn't do shows

because of my situation.

When I got shot and I just
put everything on pause,

had to take some time, think
about things and how I want to

go forward with everything.

So it ain't really affect
my income 'cause I still had

sponsors and things like that.

I just wasn't getting the shows
on the side that I usually get

and things like that.

But you know, we're back,
picking up where we left off.

*

In Baltimore, a
little cash can go a long way.

The fundraiser Noah is helping
with at the Kids Safe Zone

is about to begin.

If enough photos are sold,
the photography program

can continue.

I feel a little bummed
about the weather, I guess.

It's overcast and
chilly and was raining.

It works.

Come pay for this work so we
can be here with these kids.

It's great, it's a good time.

Yo Nell, can you help me out?

It's been so rewarding to
see how something as small as

literally like a 20 dollar point
and shoot in the hands of a kid

has been to their life,
just having fun and smiling.

These kids who have
like no formal training,

they took some pictures that
not only would I be proud to

call my own, but I would never
even have thought of taking.

I'd like to see it flourishing.

I'd like to see kids
interested in photography,

or making documentaries
about their community.

I think a lot of kids here
are down on themselves

because they're from
a down community,

and I think there's
something beautiful

in helping them
express themselves,

and yeah, helping them find
that beauty in themselves,

and in the world.

Noah and Kids Safe Zone parted
ways after the fundraiser

due to a financial dispute.

*

AJ finally has a bank account,

and expects to own
his home by next year.

Money makes the world go round,
money makes things happen.

Money is everything but money
is nothing at the same time.

I could have a million dollars
and I still wouldn't be happy

if my family wasn't good.

There's a lot of stigmas
around Baltimore and tattoos

and black guys being fathers.

Like I just want
the real to be shown.

Like if people understand
what I'm going through,

that's all I ever wanted.

The white party definitely
was a huge success.

I sold more hookahs than I have
ever sold in one party so far.

But I also worked harder.

I'm like running around.

I mean literally running,
trying to maximize my sales

in a small window of time.

Everybody used to always say,
"You just have to be patient,

just be patient, it's going
to work, just keep up with it."

It was so many times
that I didn't see that

because it just wasn't working.

I had the right ingredients,

I just didn't have
the right formula.

In my career right now I still
feel like I'm at the beginning.

There's definitely
a lot more to come.

Bigger deals, long term money.

We ain't ever got to worry
about nothing so we're good.

To the up-and-coming riders,
man, that's coming up,

I just say keep riding,
stay on top of their game,

and we definitely opening up
a lane for everybody.

We're going to make
it street riding.

We're definitely going
to make our own lane.

I would like to see
everybody start making money.

I don't want to be the only one.

Baltimore is a changing
but divided city.

These four people hope to
make a place for themselves

in what this city becomes.

Yeah, bike life!