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Fonzworth Bentley recently sat down with us to speak on the word “swagger” along with sharing the true definition of a gentlemen amongst many other things. Going from Diddy’s assistant and then trying his hand at music, we see the true diversity of Mr. Bentley extends further than just his umbrella. Make sure you check out his show on MTV which airs Tuesdays at 10pm ET/PT. Enter Mr. Bentley.illRoots.com: First off thank you for all your time and efforts. Please define a gentleman.
FB: I think it is a lifestyle, it is a commitment and it is a man that feels comfortable in all sorts of situations. That’s ultimately what a true gentleman is. But it’s [also] someone who is gracious and for those who have all those buzz words or buzz phrases, if they could just live by the golden rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” then you will really get the gist of what it means to live this lifestyle.
iR: I definitely have to commend you for bringing mannerisms back into the mainstream culture, or at least putting forth the effort. What sort of feelings do you want people to walk away with from this show “G’s to Gents”?
FB: There is a greener way to live. What I mean by that is you always hear “There is greener grass on the other side” and I think for the majority we get caught up in our comfort zones and our day-to-day and don’t raise the expectations. Not just expectations within our communities, but raising the expectations for us as a man or as a woman and raise the expectation on how you treat others. I just want folks to get that. There is a better way to live and it is hard work. You’ll see that watching that is tough and that it is hard work. I think that ultimately if you put it in you will start to see the clarity of your true purpose. I think so often that we get up and go to work because we have to pay the bills, but have we really found our true purpose? When you come to this realization you’re going to A. Be happy B. Going to flourish and C. You’re also going to get paid for it. I think “All your needs will be met” is a better way to put it.

iR: Bringing mannerisms back into the mainstream is going to be an uphill battle. Give me one instance in which you feel you grew the most, whether that be professionally or personally.
FB: I think it had to be about three years ago when they told me I had a tumor the size of a volleyball in my stomach. I’m one who is a true believer in faith and that it works, but the way faith is that it is a muscle. It’s sort of like “Can I lift a 300 lb. dumbbell right now?” No I can’t. Yet you and I both know that if I go to the gym and exercise that eventually I will be able to. With that and how I feel that you have to exercise your faith, I had to exercise it on a whole different level. It prevailed when the doctor walked in after cutting me up and taking everything out, and said “We have witnessed a miracle.” The interesting thing is that my faith had gotten to the point where when everyone was singing and rejoicing, I didn’t scream or rejoice. I knew I was healed and that’s how strong my faith had gotten.
iR: Well that’s something you don’t see everyday for sure. You wrote a book called “Advance Your Swagger.” Personally, the word “swagger” is taken so far out of context and grabbed up by the mainstream that it destroys the word.
FB: I agree.




iR: I think right now rappers use the word swagger as a way to shadow or cover up arrogance. I’d say that there is a thin line between arrogance and confidence.. Being that you wrote a book on mannerisms and how to advance your lifestyle, what is your take on the word itself?
FB: Just for the record, I would like to make it very clear, my book came out in 2007. However in the publishing world you have to come up with your title like 2 years before that, so I’m talking 5 years when the word was not used as often. What had happened was I wanted to get this to the people that are in the streets that I see and [are] always asking me “How did you get this and that?” I really attribute swagger to these three things: Manners + Confidence + Style = Swagger. To truly have swagger, I think that you can be fly and confident. But if you’re rude, no one will ever want to be around you. You can have proper manners and confidence, but if you do not know how to dress appropriately for the occasion then you will not gain entry. So I think that you have to have all three, thus I titled it “Advance Your Swagger,” because you have to have some swagger of some type. Yet let’s advance that “What are you doing to make it better?” That’s what true swagger is; it was a new vocabulary word for a lot of folks and it became really cool and it was just really easy to say this word to kind of either explain what you were on that day or what you are about instead of having all the information. Like you said, folks just sort of ran away with the word but I had to redefine “swagger.”
iR: Taking all of this into context, besides the obvious parallels between fashion and music, where do you see yourself fitting into this whole scheme of things. What do you want people to see you as?
FB: I want them to see me as someone who ultimately wants to inspire but my mission is to change cool. Cool is one of the most powerful things that is taken for granted all the time. Cool is what helped you decide what your job is, what school you went to, what lip gloss you’re wearing, what type of purse you have. Cool is very powerful especially in this day and age because back when I was growing up we didn’t have YouTube. Doing something to keep yourself informed is what’s cool. There is a teachable spirit in everything that I do and I’m not here to be liked. I could care less about that but you will learn something.
iR: Again thank you for this time and all your work.
Words By: Hallway Jay | Edited By: KNOWxONE | Graphic By: Mike Waxx