Transcript: Mayor de Blasio Appears on Power 105.1 FM with Angie Martinez

November 5, 2015

Angie Martinez: The leader of our fine, fine city – Mayor Bill de Blasio is our guest today –

Mayor Bill de Blasio: Thank you, Angie.

Angie Martinez: – on the Angie Martinez Show. It’s nice to have you, finally.

Mayor: It’s great to be here.

Angie Martinez: What I found out today from the mayor, before we started, is that he actually watches Empire.

Mayor: Oh yeah.

Angie Martinez: And I don’t know why that really surprised me to my core.

Mayor: Isn’t like everyone on earth watching Empire?

Angie Martinez: I don’t expect our politician – any politician, or our mayor to watch Empire. But yes, every human being on the planet has at some point seen it.

Mayor: Let me just offer some advice, don’t trust Lucius Lions –

[Laughter]

Angie Martinez: That is your –

Mayor: I really think that’s important for all of us to get clear.

Angie Martinez: That is solid – that is solid advice.

Mayor: I will also say that Cookie Lions is my new role model. You know, she’s assertive.

Angie Martinez: And how’s that?

Mayor: Assertive.

Angie Martinez: Assertive.

Mayor: Clear – clear-minded, creative.

Angie Martinez: Confident.

Mayor: Confident. So, yeah Chirlane and I – Chirlane and I thought we should look at it just be up to date, and them we could not stop watching it.

Angie Martinez: Is that right?

Mayor: Yeah. Now –

Angie Martinez: When you say not stop did you watch like a whole season?

Mayor: We watched all of it, yeah. And did you see – this is one of the things I love, this is very New York – did you see when Cookie started her company – okay, quiz, what’s the name of her company?

Angie Martinez: Oh, oh I know this –

Mayor: Come on, [inaudible].

Angie Martinez: It’s Cookie – it’s the Lions

Mayor: Lions –

Angie Martinez: Lion’s Den.

Mayor: Lion’s Dynasty.

Angie Martinez: Dynasty.

Mayor: Come on, Lion’s Den – such a tacky name.

[Laughter]

Angie Martinez: I failed the mayor again.

Mayor: The Lion’s Den – they would totally be thrown out of hip-hop if their name was the Lion’s Den.

So, Lion’s Dynasty – if you look – this was a brilliant New York moment – if you look at the scene when she’s trying to  figure out the name of the company, the warehouse, and it used to be a company that provided some kind of product to the Jewish community, and on the  boxes it says [inaudible] dynasty. [inaudible] is a Hasidic sect. So, it’s like someone was smart enough  –

Angie Martinez: To keep it authentic.

Mayor: Right, to keep it New York, to keep it authentic.

Angie Martinez: And you were smart enough to notice it.

Mayor: Well, I know because I’m from Brooklyn.

Angie Martinez: I know that you’re trying to, and I was speaking to the amazing people on your team, and I know you’re trying to make some differences in this K2 situation that is so easy to get on the street.

Mayor: Well, look, first let me say, it’s a problem that grew very quickly –

Angie Martinez: Yeah.

Mayor:  – and it’s definitely a really dangerous drug. They take leaves, not marijuana leaves, but other leaves, spray chemicals on them – often very different each time.

Angie Martinez: So you don’t even know what you’re getting.

Mayor: Yeah, you don’t even know what you’re getting, but you do know one thing – the likelihood is its very dangerous.

Angie Martinez: And super addictive I hear.

Mayor: And because it’s very cheap some of the people who have been buying this drug are some of the most already troubled people – all of those people with mental health problems.

Angie Martinez: It’s easy to get, and it’s cheap.

Mayor: It’s cheap, and it’s very insidious. So, we’re – you know, before this thing gets any bigger we’re going right it. So the legislation I signed makes selling it illegal; makes the intent to sell illegal; makes the manufacture illegal, and we’re telling store owners right now because we have some rules  on the books already we can use. Store owners selling this stuff – there’s a chance of being very, very substantial consequences, again, even shutting down their stores. You know, I know lots of people listen to your shows.

Angie Martinez: They do, and some of you didn’t know it was so bad, and your fiend was probably trying to convince you –

Mayor: No, it’s dangerous.

Angie Martinez: If you’re just tuning in, Mayor Bill de Blasio is here everybody. We’re going to chat some more, and we’re going to do a quiz.

[…]

Angie Martinez: Alright, guys – Power 105.1 – if you’re just tuning, we have Mayor Bill de Blasio in here, and we’re going to do our New York Quiz right now. It is the Voice of New York versus the mayor of New York. Will you do that?

Mayor: Of course I will. I’m in the presence of the Voice of New York. 

[Laughter]

I’m in your house, of course I’m going to take your quiz. 

Angie Martinez: So, this is Honey German, she runs our digital department. 

Mayor: Hi, Honey. 

Honey German: Okay, so what are we doing? Voice of New York versus the mayor of New York? 

Mayor: The Voice of New York is a more important job, you know that.

Angie Martinez: Stop it.

Mayor: You know that.

Angie Martinez: You are the leader of our fine city. 

Mayor: Let’s have it. And I don’t know – this is [inaudible] but we’re going to try. 

Honey German: Four Manhattan parks used to be cemeteries – let’s see who can guess more.

Mayor: Okay, I got one – Washington Square Park. 

Angie Martinez: Yes.

Mayor: Yes. Okay, I got it. 

Angie Martinez: I don’t know – Central Park?

Honey Martinez: They’re Manhattan parks. No.

Mayor: Come on now – Riverside Park?

Honey Martinez: No.

Angie Martinez: Prospect Park?

Mayor: No, she said Manhattan. 

Angie Martinez: Oh, Manhattan. 

Mayor: Madison Square Park?

Honey German: Yes – two.

Mayor: I got another one, okay.

Honey German: What New York City borough does not have a Major League team?

Mayor: That’s easy – Staten Island.

Honey German: There you are.

Angie Martinez: I was going to get that, I just didn’t get to it –

Mayor: Too slow – too slow. 

Honey German: Again, the mayor wins. Which New York City building has its own zip code?

Mayor: Empire State Building.

Honey German: Once again, the mayor –

Angie Martinez: The Empire State Building has its own zip code?

Honey German: 10118.

Mayor: Honey, you should take over this show, cause Angie is just losing her grip.

Angie Martinez: I know. I’m going to go –

Honey German: Don’t get me fired, mayor, please.

[Laughter]

Mayor: Okay, I see – I see it coming, Angie.

Angie Martinez: Wait a minute, did everybody in the room know that about the Empire State Building? Is that a common fact? Yes? Well, you work for the mayor, it’s not the same thing. Oh wow – okay, go.

Honey German: The first pizzeria in the United States –

Angie Martinez: Lombardi’s.

Mayor: I was going to say that, damn. 

Angie Martinez: I got it first! You have to be faster. You have to be faster. Okay, go.

Honey German: Hip-hop music was created in which –

Angie Martinez: The Bronx.

Mayor: Aw, come on – too easy. That was too easy. 

Angie Martinez: You knew that though?

Mayor: Of course.

Honey German: And which two artists were featured in the song Empire State of Mind?

Mayor: Alicia Keys and Jay-Z.

Angie Martinez: Jay-Z.

Honey German: Yeah. He won.

Angie Martinez: That’s too easy.

[Applause]

Honey German: You’ve got to be quicker than that.

[Laughter]

Angie Martinez: Next time we’re going to do a dance battle. That’s what we’re going to do. Mayor Bill de Blasio, everybody – it’s Power 105.1.