Onsight Deeda is the newest artist to sign to Cash Money Records… which means speaks volumes in itself.
Hailing from Abbeville, Louisiana, the rising star has one hell of a story to tell, and he wears his heart on his sleeve through the music. Going from the streets to signing a one million dollar deal is no easy feat, and Onsight Deeda plans to make the most of his blessings.
Onsight Deeda states, “If you’re looking to ride around with your friends and really turn the energy up, have a good time, play my music. It’s gonna take you there, fasho.”
A few years back, real name Darron Carter went viral after he was threatened during a press conference held by Captain Clay Higgins of St. Landry Parish. The video has since going viral, boasting over 20 million views and catching the attention of Bill O’Reilly, Nancy Grace, Joe Rogan, and more. Darron was the first listed out of the 10 “thugs” arrested, with warrants set out on the remaining 7 gang members that make up the Gremlins.
After Deeda turned himself in and spent three months behind bars, all charges were dropped as Higgins was elected to the U.S. Representatives for Louisiana’s 3rd Congressional District.
Now, Onsight Deeda is ready to take over the rap game, one banger at a time. After a string of releases — including “PFK,” “99 Opps” and “Letter To My Mummy” — fans are excited as he readies his forthcoming single titled “Don Doda,” arriving on April 21st.
AllHipHop caught up with Onsight Deeda to discuss his background, his name, his reaction to the viral video, being locked up, signing to Cash Money Records, inspo behind “Don Dada,” his new music, and more!
AllHipHop: Being from Abbeville, what was that like growing up?
Onsight Deeda: A small town, a lot of violence going on. Just the basic, a lot of struggling going on forreal. That type of stuff.
AllHipHop: When did music come into play for you?
Onsight Deeda: Probably when I was about 16, I made my first song. Really, I was just playing with it. My first song really took off you could say, so I stuck with it forreal.
AllHipHop: Do you remember when you fell in love with music?
Onsight Deeda: I’ve always been a big fan of music. When it comes down to it, just needing to vent to myself or anything like that, I always brought my problems to music. That’s something I always did to really help me cope with everything.
AllHipHop: What artists did you listen to?
Onsight Deeda: Lil Wayne, that’s what I grew up jamming.
AllHipHop: What’s your favorite Wayne project?
Onsight Deeda: It gotta be the Carter III. I remember when I was young, because my mom & dad would always play for real. So even as I got older, that’s what I still be playing every now and then.
AllHipHop: Favorite song off the Carter III?
Onsight Deeda: Man, “I Miss My Dawgs.” That’s the Carter II. That’s the one I’m talking about, that one right there.
AllHipHop: How did you get your name?
Onsight Deeda: It’s spontaneous, everything be on the spot with me. My friends started calling me Onsight, so I just rolled with it like that. Deeda is my nickname. As a kid though, that’s been my name. All my family, my grandmother and them called me Deeda, so I just put the Onsight in front of that. We took off like that.
AllHipHop: Growing up, did you always want to rap?
Onsight Deeda: Nah, I honestly didn’t know. It really just came out of the blue because all my friends, my cousins, they rap. I wrote a little song, just playing, and they made me go record it. After that, I had a little buzz with it. So I kept sticking with it for real.
AllHipHop: Talk about going viral. What was going through your head when you saw that?
Onsight Deeda: To be honest, I didn’t really know how to feel about the situation. I was really in shock forreal. My whole thought process, I never saw this happen before so what’s the next step? What’s my next step? What should I be doing? At that point, I’m fearing for my life. I really was trying to see what ‘s my next step as far as being safe and staying alive forreal.
AllHipHop: Did it make you angry at all, the way they were talking?
Onsight Deeda: To me, it was really more so funny. Somebody just be saying [anything]. You don’t even know me forreal. You acting like you know me all my life or something. I don’t know, I really laughed about the situation.
AllHipHop: You turned yourself in, how long were you locked up?
Onsight Deeda: When I turned myself in for that, I did two years. I ended up bonding out after. Two years, they gave me a bond reduction. I ended up coming home after that.
AllHipHop: What did you learn from behind bars?
Onsight Deeda: Really to be honest, jail was part of my upbringing forreal. That made me the man I became today. Jail showed me how to really be very manneristic. Always give respect to get respect. But I’m not going lie, it’s really crazy. Because every day, somebody’s either getting stabbed in here or different stuff like that. It really taught me to pick my battles. This not what I want to come back to.
AllHipHop: How did it affect your mental health?
Onsight Deeda: It really made me stronger, as far as mentally. Because it’ll really make you or break you forreal. I done seen it turn the biggest men break down. Jail gon’ make you or break you. Either you gon’ get in here, you gon’ man up and really hold your own ground in here, or you gon’ fall victim to everything else that’s going on. As far as mentally, it put me in the mindset to know man, whatever I got going on, I’ma go through it and I’ma have my standpoints. I’ma live by my morals no matter what my situation is. That’s how it’s been.
AllHipHop: How did you find your way to Cash Money Records?
Onsight Deeda: Really, all my family they are from New Orleans. I got a lot of talent out there too, but my producer Sinista introduced me to Slim. After we made that introduction, it was just love. It was really no other place for me to go forreal, and feel at home. I really feel at home with Cash Money.
AllHipHop: Did they give you any advice?
Onsight Deeda: The biggest thing Slim preached to me is do me. “Man do you. Have fun with it, do you, and stay focused.” The main thing they be preaching to me is stay clear and focused. It’s different now for me because I still got partnas, they still in the hood and everything. But I gotta realize that I‘m on a whole different level now. I have to change up my moves, so they be preaching to move accordingly to my situation.
AllHipHop: I was listening to “PFK,” what inspired that record?
Onsight Deeda: That joint hard. Honestly, the last jail sentence I just did here, I had another time I’m just venting forreal. I’m sitting down, talking to one of my partners. Out the blue, I cut the conversation off. Went to get a pen and pad, I just started writing. I didn’t really plan on coming home and dropping this. I got in the studio, ran the beat to my partner and he’s like “man you gotta drop it. I just did it. That’s one of my favorites songs I’ve done so far.
AllHipHop: Best memory from the video shoot? Looked like you had all your homies out.
Onsight Deeda: Man, just the fact I’m fresh home from prison. I got all my patnas out here, it was nothing but love. I had friends out there who I haven’t seen in two or three years, because they just came from doing jail time. If it was nothing else, I coulda just been out there chillin’ with my friends. I’d have a cool day, just creating memories forreal.
AllHipHop: What inspired your new single, “Don Dada”?
Onsight Deeda: “Don Dada“: As you soon as you put it on, it’s straight energy. I don’t care if you in the car or you sad or something, as soon as you put that song on, you’re gonna wanna stick your head out the window and do all kinds of crazy s###. “Don Dada” gon’ bring that energy for sure.
AllHipHop: What about “Hit They Block”?
Onsight Deeda: “Hit They Block,” same thing. If you stay in the car, you gon’ throw it in park and jump out at the stoplight. That’s what I did for the video shoot. On the highway, threw the car in park and jumped out the car. “Hit They Block” energy! Straight energy on that one!
AllHipHop: Are you going to be releasing a project? What can we expect next?
Onsight Deeda: I know right now, we’re finalizing my tape. I got maybe one or two songs left to turn in for my tape to be completed. My tape gon’ be Letter To Mummy also, that’s the name to my first tape so I can dedicate it to my little brother. That tape is gonna be the hardest tape that came out this year. From front to back, you gon’ play it. You won’t be able to skip a song.
