Flavor Flav

Frank151: What experiences have you had in Italy?
Flavor Flav: I’ve been going back and forth to Italy for over 14 years now, and I’ve made a lot of friends over there.  I always loved Italian culture.  My favorite spot in Italy is Milano because of the concepts they have there.  My second favorite place is the Vatican because it’s close to the Roman Coliseum.

The thing that I really like about Italian culture is that it is so much different than American culture, and not only that, but the spaghetti sauce and pizza.  The reason why I love the pizza is because over here, when you go to get pizza, you get a slice, but over there, before you get your pizza they put it on a scale and weigh it. Also in Italy the spaghetti sauce is more original than that stuff they got here in the jars.  You know what I mean? And I love my wine, my salad and my girls!  And my music!  And my peoples!

F151: You love Italian music as well?  Is there any Italian music that you’re listening to?
FF: Yeah, sure I love Italian music!  It’s just that some of the stuff I like listening to, I don’t know how to pronounce the names of these groups and stuff. But yeah, I got some Italian music I listen to.  I even ride around in my car listening to Italian music every now and then.

F151: Talking about the difference between American and Italian pizza, what would you say is the best pizza in New York?
FF: The best pizza in New York is the original form of pizza we used to eat when we were young. Today the recipe is too different, everybody got different pizza recipes and all of this shit. You know what I mean?  I like my original recipe!  The old cheese and old pizza sauce.
F151: Is there a particular pizza spot that you like in New York?
FF: Nah, nah, nah, but there’s this place down on Myrtle Beach.  I’m gonna fly all the way down to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina for this place to get pizza! Donatelli’s down in Myrtle Beach, they got the best pizza in America right now! They were so warm, I met the whole family and there are mad bodies up in there! 
F151: Man you love your pizza.  Would you say pizza was your favorite dish in Italy? 
FF: My favorite thing I ate over there was chicken and steak dishes up in there.  Love my potatoes, string beans, and carrots and stuff.  I didn’t really eat much pizza over there, but I ate a lot of spaghetti and sauce and stuff. 

F151: I noticed from watching the show Strange Love that you didn’t want to try some of the food they offered you.
FF: Yeah, I wasn’t feelin’ some of this, I wasn’t feelin’ some of that.  When I saw something I thought I wouldn’t like, I didn’t go crazy over it.
F151: What were some of the things you absolutely hated?
FF: Man, tomatoes, I don’t eat tomatoes! I don’t eat squash and stuff like that either. It’s just certain things I don’t eat.

F151: What about the sports over there, did you get into any soccer?
FF: I couldn’t because I couldn’t really watch TV too much because we were always shooting TV [for the show].  You know what I’m saying, we were doing 24 hour TV over there!  But I really like the sports over there; there were times when I went to sports games over there.  But that’s when I was over there as Public Enemy.

F151: How did the fans react over there to Public Enemy?
FF: We own Italy son!  Italy belongs to us when we go there.  It’s like we took over Italy son!  Definitely the fans love us because we always love our fans. 

F151: What’s your favorite thing about Italian women?
FF: A lot of Italian women are generous and I like generosity out of women. 
F151: What do you miss most about Italy and what makes you want to go back there? 
FF: Mainly my friends. After I finish doing whatever I always go out and enjoy a night on the town with my friends. Seeing new things; I like landscape, I’m a landscape guy cause I’m from New York, and New York’s landscape isn’t so great, so when you go to other countries you appreciate their landscape. So I’m like a night-landscape person too because I love beautiful lights and stuff like that.

F151: Were you able to take in any of the art when you were in Italy?  You visit any of the museums?
FF: Nah, I wasn’t able to go to any of the art museums or anything.  The only art I was really able to enjoy was the art I saw on the streets, the artwork on the buildings and the architecture. Just the artwork of the city man!  I like the paintings on the walls inside the restaurants and stuff. I was able to get into the art like that. 

F151: Is there anything over there you discovered that you brought back with you to the states like a custom or something?
FF: Definitely, having some red wine with my salad!  [Laughter]  Having some red wine with my salad and cuttin’ up some mozzarella on top of my salad with little small pieces of salami!  Oh I know how to do it bro!  Boy, your man Flav got a little Italiano up in him man!  [Laughter]  Ciao tutti and all of that stuff! 

F151: Is there anything you’d like to add in closing?
FF: I’d just like to say it was one of the greatest experiences Flavor ever had was going to Lake Cuomo over in Bellagio.  I really loved it, it was like living out of a storybook. I really liked going to that winery and stomping those grapes to make the wine.  It was really fun, and I would love to go back there and do that stuff again.  I would love to get me a house over there some day. 

Yo this is Flavor Flav and the job is never done, just keep opening up Frank One-Five-One, boyyyyyyy-eeeeeeeeeee! Yeah that’s right! Ha!