Clean Raps. Deep Faith. Zero Filters. Prodigy Tha Kid Says...What Most Wont w/ The OddPod

Louisville-born rapper, producer, and self-described "circumnavigator of thought and circumstance" Prodigy the Kid (PTK) sits down with Marc and Pod Rashid for a two-and-a-half-hour Easter Sunday conversation that covers just about everything — from childhood bedrooms to the music industry, faith to freestyle rap history.Born in 2002 and raised in Louisville, Prodigy started writing music at 8 years old — lining out composition grids on notebook paper. By 11 he was freestyling over Childish Gambino beats into a Rock Band USB mic plugged into a PC, then graduating to a first-gen iPad, an iPod touch, a closet recording setup, and eventually a Mac mini purchased with money saved through middle school. GarageBand carried him all the way to 2019 before a mid-session computer crash forced him onto Logic Pro for the first time — and he's been on it ever since.A Ballard High grad (class of 2020, homeschooled his senior year due to COVID), Prodigy grew up in what he describes as two separate worlds — bouncing between his mom's household and his dad's — which he credits with sharpening his instincts and sense of right and wrong. He talks openly about navigating depression at 13, how Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly became a lifeline, and how that album still reveals new layers over a decade later. His musical convictions run deep: Kendrick is his GOAT with three pivotal albums, and he has a standing dream project called Ville Matic — a Louisville compilation record inspired by Illmatic — that he hopes to bring to life as his platform grows.The conversation gets into the business side of music in a serious way. Prodigy — currently studying music business — breaks down Spotify's evolving terms of service and the AI rights implications for independent artists, why Drake's $500 million lifetime deal was a missed opportunity, the mechanics of record advances, and Bandcamp as a more artist-friendly alternative to streaming. He also touches on staying a clean rapper, navigating faith and art, and how his 2023 album Ten Year Rookie was the peak of his ego — followed by a deliberate reset.Rounding out the episode: a deep dive into wrestling (Cody Rhodes' redemption arc hits different), the Young Thug RICO case, Gucci Mane's legacy, and a side project podcast with his church friends built entirely around pitching terrible ideas.Follow Prodigy the Kid at @prodigythakid