BY ERIC DIEP • JUL 30, 2019

In 2017, the six-episode podcast Mogul: The Life and Death of Chris Lighty from Gimlet Media and the Loud Speakers Network debuted to widespread critical acclaim. Narrated by Reggie Ossé, better known as Combat Jack, the series told the story of hip-hop through the life of one man, who managed hip-hop heavyweights like 50 Cent, LL Cool J, Busta Rhymes, Missy Elliott, and more. Ossé admitted in the first episode that he was all about getting fashionably fly, and so was Lighty, which is why he was drawn to his story.

“In some ways, me and Chris lived parallel lives,” he said. “We both grew up in New York City around the same era. Chris in the Bronx, and me in Brooklyn. Like so many city kids, we fell in love with the hip-hop culture that was starting to take shape around us. We dedicated our lives to this.”

Ossé’s dedication to hip-hop was what made him so relatable. As a former entertainment lawyer, he worked diligently behind-the-scenes and earned the trust of his clients. As a blogger and host of his podcast The Combat Jack Show, he was an intelligent hip-hop curator that spoke in our language. For any of his guests, he treated them like family, asking them the right questions that created more robust conversations.

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