Newly signed New Orleans rapper, Dee-1, waxes poetic over a Soulja Slim-inspired, Mannie Fresh beat in his new song “I’ll Pay For It”. In the song Dee and a friend are newly minted billionaires and the aforementioned friend is all geared up to hit the strip club and make it rain to celebrate. His more evolved companion Dee though has an idea that will surely go over like a lead balloon amongst his southern rap compatriots; instead use their new-found wealth to shut the strip clubs down by paying each dancer what she’d make at the club in a year, hence empowering her to find another line of employment.
Take a listen to “I’ll Pay For It” below:
Dee was rightfully nervous as he went to press play on the finished song for Mannie Fresh. Mannie has been known to put a dancer or two through college in his day.
Says D,
“I always like to try to impress Mannie, so i was excited. Then, when I pressed play I got nervous because I didn’t know how he’d feel about the message of the song. When it went off and he said he loved it, I let out a big sigh of relief.”
Mannie himself was more cavalier on the subject when asked his reaction to hearing the song for the first time, saying only,
“Who ever made that beat is a genius and the rapper on the song is very lucky to know him. Dee-1 is a super great look for hip hop and the city of New Orleans. He is a very true to life artist and his raps come from his life experiences. Also he is not afraid to take a positive stand for rap.”
With his RCA signing announcement only a week old, Dee is still going through the process of letting everyone know and thanking his thousands of well-wishers and supporters. In a recent letter to his former students, the middle school teacher-turned emcee posted…..
“This is specifically for all the students I ever taught math, life skills, or study skills to at Baker Middle School. This is for any student I ever tutored, mentored, or held a conversation with in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, or over the phone. This is for any kid who I ever coached in basketball. When I walked away from my job as a teacher it was a tough decision, but once I did it, I wanted to make sure I made it because I knew I could represent and symbolize something we rarely see where we come from. My dream came true. Yours can too. But first you have to have a dream. Find something you love, something you can become great at, something you’re willing to do for free, just because you love it so much. Something your mom can be proud of and say “Ooohhh yall look at my baby!! He/she is doing soooo well.” Then do it. Focus on getting better and remaining positive. GRIND!!! No wait, my bad….. SHUT UP AND GRIND!!! #SUAG is the new SWAG. Yep, I love all yall. I want to see yall WIN! Let my success serve as MOTIVATION…
The letter can be found in its entirety on Dee’s Tumblr page here.
“I’ll Pay For It” will be on Dee-1′s next upcoming project, “Psalms of David II”, which drops on November 19th.
Dee-1 once again has taken a taboo topic and addressed it head on. The underground world has become accustomed to this but now that he is signed it’s even more invigorating to see him stay on his path and continue to reach out to the youth in order to inspire and motivate them to do all that they dare to dream. Where so many artists or entertainers fuss and complain and flat out yell about having zero desire to be role models for the kids who look up to them, Dee-1 makes it a point to demonstrate that he is trying to be a role model for the youth. Wow!
He defied the odds by even getting singed considering his music has always had a greater purpose and positive message, but now being signed and continuing to show kids that they can do whatever they want if they just apply themselves and believe puts Dee-1 aka Mr. Augustine on a Hip Hop pedestal all his own. And it is well deserved.
Congratulations again to Dee-1! We can’t wait to see what else he comes up with!
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