The Elegant Hoodness Musical Program highlights Kansas Cities own D.I.S.E., “The Show Me State” and home of Tech 9ine. We discuss the ups and downs of life and the elevation of hip-hop through out the globe. The importance of lyrics over flow and why the Mid West is still unrated. Make sure to come out and check out D.I.S.E in Kc Mo performing at The Elegant Hoondess Musical Program kc in Nov.
D.I.S.E.
N.A.B.: Tell me where you got the name Dice and what it means?
D.I.S.E: I’ve had that alias since high school; it came from nothing but being in the school bathrooms shooting Dice for our lunch money, lol. The alias stuck to me and I just ran with it, for years. Everything from life experience, to copyright issues has brought me to recently ditch the "Dice" alias and replace it with "D.I.S.E". My issues with addiction, depression, and other factors forced me to reevaluate who I was and really dig deep to find my true self and purpose, for the sake of improvement, hence the acronym D.I.S.E (Dice Influenced Self Enhancement). My story and approach at this point fits the acronym perfectly, it’s the new and overly improved me.
N.A.B.: You were born in KC MO? Tell me a story about growing up and KC and when you 1st fell in Love with Hip-hop?
D.I.S.E: Born and raised in Kansas City. My story is a long and tumultuous one filled with the usual, poverty, growing up in bad environments, hanging wit a bad crowd, law issues, culture clashes, etc. Hip Hop was my escape from a world that at that time, I didn’t understand. I was 9 years old playing wit my Rapman Casio keyboard. My life, my therapy, my own world was nothing but headphones and tapes/cd's, I put out my first tape in 1996 with a high school friend, after a few years I broke off to do my own solo thing, I signed with a production company in 99' and put out my debut solo project in 2000, released a remixed version of the same project in 02'. I later recorded an album with a label that went belly up before it was even released; it became a downhill spiral from there. I got in the lab from time to time, but overall, my mind got lost and I lost my way. Which brings me to today, I found that way again.
N.A.B.: What would you say your rap style is? And who would you say influenced your style if any?
D.I.S.E: My journey with Hip Hop has been a long and eclectic one, touching all sub genres within our music so I can’t put a finger on any one influence. I am from the Midwest and we tend to be known for that rapid fire fast spit, which I'll work into what I do, but no direct influence. My focus is to have my own style. My rap style has to be D.I.S.E, it has to transcend sub genre labels. When you think of Eminem, you don’t think of west coast, east coast, crunk, hyphe, and backpacker, none of that, he is Eminem, he is his own entity, that is my objective.
N.A.B.: Which is more important to you, your lyrics or your flow?
D.I.S.E: To truly stick out from the other 99% both need to be tight. To focus on one or the other is limiting yourself and your potential.
N.A.B.: Do you prefer performing or recording?
D.I.S.E: My personal preference is recording, the art of making my story come to life in the lab, just me and the engineer. But to truly stick out, every aspect of your package must be tight. Your show is your window to the world, that’s when they discover you in a lot of cases.
N.A.B.: Do you feel the Mid West is under rated and why?
D.I.S.E: I think at one time the Midwest may have been considered underrated, but as of late it seems that Hip Hop is slowly moving away from the territorial aspect of shit (east coast, west coast, down south, etc). Drake is from Canada, and he is platinum. The Midwest has its champions like everyone else so when it really comes down to it, it’s all about the artist, not the address.
N.A.B.: Where can our listener hear some of your music and reach you?
D.I.S.E: I’m independent so basically the obvious, youtube, myspace, reverbnation, and a few others. I’m in the process of reestablishing a website for my up and coming product.
N.A.B.: Any thank you’s and shout out's?
D.I.S.E: Thanks and Shouts out to those who saw the Star in me even when I no longer saw it. There are only a few of them, and they know who they are.
Written By: A.D. The General
Courtesy of The Elegant Hoodness Musical Program 2011
No comments:
Post a Comment