Before Dee-1 was a rapper he was David Augustine, middle school math teacher. So you know already know his numbers game is point. But his fancy wordplay just scratches the surface of “Writer’s Block.” Read the rest of this entry »

In an ideal world, every child would have two parents, a safe neighborhood and trust fund to attend college without the burden of loans. Unfortunately, just like Tip declared four years ago, “life ain’t always a dream and horrible sh*t happens.” Dee-1 brings the incredibly personal and reflective “Garden Of Eden” to life; a brilliant move by he and his team to push one of his better songs to date from this year’s I Hope They Hear Me, Vol. 2. Read the rest of this entry »

It seems like every day we get commenters clamoring for real Hip-Hop with a message in the face of the unending amounts of terrible, vapid shit we get spoon-fed on the regular. I don’t know what any of those people could ever hope for besides Dee-1. Read the rest of this entry »

Dee-1’s honesty is always striking, no matter how many times I hear his music. It bleeds through every lyric he writes. Instead of forcing himself to be something he’s not, or coming up with some contrived gimmick, Dee-1 just lays it down straight, spitting what’s in his head and heart every time out, as seen and heard in “The One That Got Away.” Read the rest of this entry »

Dee-1′s I Hope They Hear Me Vol. 2 is one of the most honest efforts I’ve heard in recent memory. Read the rest of this entry »

One artist that had a considerable amount of buzz before and definitely since SXSW has been the New Orleans MC Dee-1. Thanks to the strength of “Jay, 50 and Weezy” and his stellar project, I Hope They Hear Me Vol. 2, Dee landed himself on one of the hottest bills in Austin, the Vibe House. Read the rest of this entry »

We’ve been riding for Dee-1 for a while now here at TSS. Now, like the title of this mixtape states, we hope y’all hear him. J. Tinsley stated a while back that “the content of his lyrics are a breath of fresh air” and I definitely agree with the man’s assessment. Read the rest of this entry »

Ever since David put me on to Dee-1 last year, I’ve made an honest effort to keep up with his music. The content of his lyrics are a breath of fresh air, but one of his more unheralded aspects is his charisma. Read the rest of this entry »

As warmer winds begin to blow, Dee-1 creates a “Ridin’ By Myself,” for complimentary track geared towards the windows-down approach to spending the day alone with music. “Ridin’” invokes the same spirit the title imagines, full of low-end bounce built for riding and a playful delivery centered around Dee’s words accented by singer Syreeta Neal. Read the rest of this entry »

I saw Dee-1 perform this a few weeks ago at the NOLA Summer Jam and it really got the crowd’s attention. Calling out Jay-Z, 50 and Wayne is an ambitious task to say the least, however this isn’t your typical unsigned rapper trying to pull the capes of the greats to get recognized. “Jay, 50, And Weezy” is a poignant look at these three men’s influences on the game and whether it’s really for the best or not. Read the rest of this entry »