THE ILLEST: DUPREE G.O.D

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK | DUPREE G.O.D

INTERVIEW REALIFE PHOTOGRAPH @TALENTOVERHYPE

“YOU MIGHT HIT ALL YOUR GOALS AND THEN MORE GOALS START TO FORM. YOU MAY HAVE PROVED YOURSELF IN YOUR CITY  BUT NOW YOU HAVE TO PROVE YOURSELF IN OTHER CITIES. IT'S A CONSTANT BATTLE SO REMAIN CALM, PATIENT AND ENJOY THE RIDE.” - DUPREE G.O.D

VALIDATED: A NATIVE OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, WHAT’S YOUR EARLIEST MEMORY OF HIP HOP CULTURE? 

DUPREE G.O.D: I REMEMBER RECORDING  ARTIST LIKE WU TANG, JAY-Z OFF THE RADIO TO TAPE. MY SISTER AND I WOULD REWIND THE TAPE TILL WE LEARNED THEIR VERSES WORD FOR WORD. IT WAS LIKE OUR THING. WE WOULD HAVE COMPETITIONS WHO COULD LEARN IT FIRST. THAT WAS SUCH A HUGE MOMENT IN MY DEVELOPMENT. I KNEW I WANTED TO DO MUSIC SINCE THEN... SHOUTS TO JESSICA DUPREE, MY SISTER.

VALIDATED: GROWING UP THE SON OF A HUSTLING MUSICIAN, HOW MUCH OF AN INFLUENCE DID YOUR FATHER HAVE ON YOU MUSICALLY?

DUPREE G.O.D: MY BIOLOGICAL FATHER DIDN'T INFLUENCE ME MUSICALLY AT ALL. I THINK I INHERITED HIS NATURAL ABILITY FOR PERFORMING AND BEING CREATIVE AS A MUSICIAN BUT HE WASN'T AROUND MUCH FOR MY MUSICAL DEVELOPMENT. HE WAS IN AND OUT OF MY LIFE AS A CHILD. I'VE ALWAYS  FELT LIKE MY FATHER COULD HAVE  BEEN ONE OF THE GREATS BUT NEVER GOT HIS SHOT DUE TO LIFE, HAVING KIDS AND GETTING LOCKED UP. LEARNING FROM HIM, I'M WORKING EXTRA HARD TO MAKE SURE I’M BUILDING MY LEGACY. I WANT EVERYONE TO RECOGNIZE I'VE BEEN COMING WITH SOMETHING SPECIAL.

VALIDATED: HOW DO YOU FEEL YOUR HUMBLE BEGINNINGS PREPARED YOU FOR A CAREER IN HIP HOP MUSIC?

DUPREE G.O.D: IT MAKES ME REALIZE THERE IS ALWAYS NEW LEVELS. YOU MIGHT HIT ALL YOUR GOALS AND THEN MORE GOALS START TO FORM. YOU MAY HAVE PROVED YOURSELF IN YOUR CITY  BUT NOW YOU HAVE TO PROVE YOURSELF IN OTHER CITIES. IT'S A CONSTANT BATTLE SO REMAIN CALM, PATIENT AND ENJOY THE RIDE. I'VE HAD SO MANY UPS AND DOWN AND JUST WHEN I WAS  ABOUT  TO GIVE UP SOMETHING  GOOD HAPPENS. IT'S A MARATHON, SHOUTS  TO NIPSEY. 

VALIDATED: PREVIOUSLY YOU WENT BY THE NAME WORDSPIT, WHAT PROMPTED THE NAME CHANGE TO DUPREE G.O.D?

DUPREE G.O.D: I FELT LIKE I'VE BECAME MORE THAN A RAPPER. WORDSPIT WAS CLEARLY A RAP NAME AND WITH THAT YOU EXPECT ME TO COME SPITTING BARS. I FEEL LIKE OVER TIME I'VE BECAME MORE THAN A NIGGA SPITTING RAW BARS. I WANTED TO GO WITH SOMETHING THAT WAS AMBIGUOUS, LEFT ROOM FOR THE IMAGINATION ABOUT MY ARTISTRY AND ME, WHILE BRANDING A LEGACY. I DIDN'T WANT TO GO WITH MY REAL NAME "CHRISTOPHER DUPREE"  BUT I LIKED DUPREE BECAUSE IT STUCK OUT. IT HAD A RING TO IT. I REMEMBER LISTENING TO KANYE AND HOV’S, “BLACK EXCELLENCE", THINKING THE GODS ARE FLOWING. JAY Z’S SAID, OPULENCE, DECADENCE AND I THOUGHT THAT WAS A LINE OF GRANDEUR. THOSE THREE WORDS WERE SYNONYMOUS TO THE LEGACY I WANTED TO LEAVE BEHIND WHEN I'M GONE. IN ACRONYMS THEY SPELL "G.O.D" AND I WAS LIKE YEA THATS COLD. BOOM, "DUPREE G.O.D" WAS  BORN. IT TOOK ME LOSING ALL MY SOCIAL MEDIA PAGES TO REALLY CHANGE IT THOUGH BUT IT WORKED OUT.

VALIDATED: WHICH EMCEES INFLUENCED YOU AS AN ARTIST AND WHAT IF ANYTHING DID YOU “BORROW” FROM THEM?

DUPREE G.O.D: NAS WAS SUCH A HUGE INFLUENCE ON ME. I TOOK THE ART OF RAW STORYTELLING FROM HIM AND COMBINED THAT WITH JAY Z’S TECHNICAL SKILLS AND AGILE FLOW WHILE MERGING IT WITH CANIBUS FEROCIOUSNESS ON TRACK WHEN I STARTED. AS THINGS PROGRESSED I FELL IN LOVE WITH KANYE, LUPE, AND STARTED DEVELOPING A LOVE FOR CREATING VERSATILE MUSICAL DEPTH, LAYERED BARS, AND SONGS THAT WHERE ANTHEMIC AND EMOTIONAL. SHIT YOU COULD PERFORM IN A STADIUM. NOW I TEND TO LOOK AT THE LANDSCAPE OF MUSIC AND TAKE BITS AND PIECES WHILE CREATING THE NICHE OF MUSIC I'D LIKE TO HEAR.

VALIDATED: YOU BEGAN BUZZING IN THE 2009 NEW YORK UNDERGROUND MUSIC CIRCUIT, BUT HOW DID YOU GET YOUR START RHYMING?

DUPREE G.O.D: I STARTED RHYMING BECAUSE OF ALL THE INFLUENCES AROUND ME. HIP HOP WAS EVERYWHERE ON TV, ON THE RADIO, EVERYONE I RESPECTED RAPPED, MY COUSINS AND UNCLES. MY BIOLOGICAL FATHER IS AN AMAZING MUSICIAN AND MY MOTHER IS A CREATIVE SO I THINK CREATIVITY FLOWED IN MY BLOOD AND TRANSMUTED INTO HIP HOP. SOMETIMES I WOULD GO CHECK MY FATHER AT HIS STUDIO AND HE WOULD LET ME FREESTYLE AND RECORD. I REMEMBER BEING 5 RAPPING IN MY BUILDING HALLWAY AND THE DRUG DEALERS WOULD BE LIKE SON KEEP SPITTING "THAT LIL NIGGA NICE". SINCE THEN I JUST KEPT AT IT... IT'S BEEN A LONG JOURNEY.

VALIDATED: YOUR DEDICATION TO YOUR CRAFT EARNED YOU THE 2010 UNDERGROUND MUSIC AWARD FOR MOST DYNAMIC SOLO ARTIST AND A COLLABORATION WITH THE SOURCE MAGAZINE AT THE 2010 SXSW MUSIC FESTIVAL, HOW DID THOSE OPPORTUNITIES COME ABOUT AND WHAT DID YOU LEARN ABOUT YOURSELF AS AN ARTIST?  

DUPREE G.O.D: WINNING THAT AWARD WAS AMAZING. I BEAT OUT SOME REALLY TOUGH COMPETITION WHO HAD A WAY BIGGER FOLLOWING THAN ME. IT WAS  A REMINDER TO KEEP GOING. I SAT IN THE CROWD LIKE I'M NOT WINNING THIS BUT I'M GLAD TO BE HERE, THEN BOOM, I WON. IT WAS A CRAZY MOMENT. AS AN ARTIST I WAS LOOKING FOR A WAY TO BE AT ALL THE HOT EVENTS AT SXSW. SXSW WAS NEW TO HIP HOP AT THE TIME AND THE SOURCE NEEDED SOMEONE ON THE GROUND WHO KNEW HOW TO MOVE AND SHAKE. I VOLUNTEERED BECAUSE IT MADE SENSE. I'M INDIE AND AT THE TIME I HAD A MCDONALD'S AD THAT WAS MAKING IT ROUNDS, I WAS BUZZING ON THE NET BUT STILL DIDN'T GET THE LOVE I THOUGHT I DESERVED. I WENT OUT THERE WITH THE DIY MINDSET. I INTERVIEWED TOP ACTS AND FINESSED SOME STAGE TIME FOR MY CRAFT BY USING THE SOURCE MAG AS A WAY IN. MY GREATEST MOMENT WAS  INTERVIEWING SEAN PRICE AT THE DUCK DOWN BBQ AND HEARING HOW EXCITED HE WAS ABOUT HAVING A DAUGHTER. THIS WAS SEAN FUCKING PRICE, A BEAST GETTING SENTIMENTAL AND I WAS SHOCKED. CLASSIC MOMENT! 

VALIDATED: YOU TEAMED UP WITH SEVERAL INSTRUMENTALISTS TO FORM “WORDSPIT AND THE ILLEST”, THE BAND WERE CONTESTANTS ON NBC’S HIT TELEVISION SHOW “AMERICA’S GOT TALENT”, WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE?

DUPREE G.O.D: IN ALL HONESTY THE EXPERIENCE WAS EMOTIONAL AND EYE OPENING. YOU SEE THAT ARTIST ARE CREATED BY NOT ONLY SKILLS BUT BY THEIR STORY. 2016 I COULDN'T GRASP THIS NOTION BUT NOW AN OLDER AND MORE MATURE ME SEES THAT. IT'S A LOT OF THINGS I'VE FELT I COULD OF DID BETTER AS A LEADER. FOR ONE, LISTENING TO THE PEOPLE ON THE SHOW MORE. I REALIZE THEY WERE TRYING TO BUILD OUR STORY OUT MORE BUT I WAS SO IN MY EGO I WOULDN'T ALLOW THAT. WE WERE PERFORMING AT GIANT STADIUM, PERFORMING FOR JAY'Z, DOING ADS AND GETTING SPONSORSHIPS, PACKING OUT SOB'S,  SO I FELT LIKE THEY WAS TRYING TO PLAY US WITH HOW THEY WANTED TO PORTRAY US. NOW I SEE THEY JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE RELATED TO THE PEOPLE WATCHING. EVEN THOUGH WE HAD A GREAT STORY WE COULD HAVE GOT WAY MORE IN DEPTH. I STILL DON'T REGRET DOING AN ORIGINAL SONG. WE WERE THE FIRST IN TV HISTORY TO DO THAT ON A SHOW. THE PEOPLE LOVED US AND VOTED, HOWARD STERN LOVED US, SHARON AND HOWIE VOTED AGAINST US BUT AYE, WE ROLLED THE DICE. IT WAS LEGENDARY.

VALIDATED: HOW DO YOU FEEL YOU’VE GROWN AS AN ARTIST SINCE THE RELEASE OF YOUR PREVIOUS INDIE ALBUM “THE COOLEST BBOI STANCE”?

DUPREE G.O.D: SINCE "THE COOLEST BBOI  STANCE" I'VE GROWN SO MUCH. I'VE GROWN AS A SONGWRITER, AS A PERFORMER, AS A BRAND MARKETER AND ARTIST IN GENERAL.  AT FIRST I WANTED TO BE THE BEST RAPPER AND EVEN THOUGH I WAS INTIMATE ON "TCBBS" AND TOOK RISK WITH SONGS LIKE "CHOP SUEY” AND “NEW LIFE", I FELT IT WAS ROOM TO GROW. HAVING SKILLS IS GREAT BUT  BEING AN ARTIST IS SO MUCH MORE THAN THAT. SO I'VE WORKED ON MY SONG WRITING, MY DELIVERY, BARS, AND PERFORMANCE. I FEEL LIKE I'M AT A SKILL LEVEL WHERE I KNOW HOW TO MAKE EVERYTHING FLOW AND EXIST AT THE SAME TIME. I'M ABLE TO TAP IN THE HEART OF THE SONGS EVEN FURTHER. I'VE ALWAYS HAD A DYNAMIC PERFORMANCE, I'M ONE OF THE BEST PERFORMERS TO SEE LIVE, NOW I'M JUST MORE REFINED. I FEEL LIKE THE UPS AND DOWNS OF MY CAREER HAS ALLOWED ME TO NOT TAKE MYSELF SO SERIOUS SO I'M ABLE TO LAUGH, CRY, AND BE THIS SUPER SERIOUS MC WHEN THE TIMES NEEDED. I  ALSO CREATE A LOT OF VIRAL CONTENT NOW WHICH GIVES ME THE FREEDOM TO ACT AND BE FUNNY. THAT'S ANOTHER LAYER OF ARTISTRY TO WHO I AM. I WOULD HAVE NEVER DONE THIS YEARS AGO.

VALIDATED: RUMOR IS YOU’RE WORKING ON NEW MUSIC THAT WILL BE RELEASED SOON, WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT IT?

DUPREE G.O.D: BROOOO... I'VE BEEN WORKING ON TWO PROJECTS THAT ARE FINISHED THANK GOD. ONE IS "FUCK YA GRAVITY ", A HIPHOP ROCK HYBRID THAT’S RELEASING THIS WINTER. VERY DENSE MUSIC, HEAVY HOOKS AND DOPE SONG CONSTRUCTION. MY BAND AND I WORKED HARD AT THIS ONE AND I'M GLAD IT WILL FINALLY HAVE A RELEASE DATE. MY OTHER IS “G.O.D EP”, WHICH IS A SUMMER PROJECT/PLAYLIST OF SONGS AND DIVERSE CONTEMPORARY SOUNDS REINTRODUCING MYSELF "DUPREE G.O.D" IN THE HIP HOP MUSIC SPACE. I'VE HAD SO MUCH ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION DURING MY WHOLE CAREER WITH ALL THE UPS AND DOWN AND EXPECTATIONS, THAT I'M EXCITED TO RELEASE THESE BODIES OF WORK WHILE WORKING ON NEW MUSIC. I HOPE TO LEAVE A DOPE LEGACY OF MUSIC, AND ART AND THESE ARE MY FIRST STEPS.

VALIDATED: YOU RECENTLY COMPETED IN DA INPHAMUS AMADEUZ’S “WHO GOT BARS?” AND WON A SPOT TO RAP ON SHADE45. HOW IMPORTANT TO HIP HOP CULTURE ARE OPPORTUNITIES SUCH AS THIS FOR INDIE ARTIST? 

DUPREE G.O.D: FACTS, I HAD TO PACK DUDE UP, LOL. AS AN INDIE ARTIST, VISIBILITY IS LIFE, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE WORK HARD TO CREATE WHILE GOING BROKE INVESTING IN OUR OWN CAREER. SHADE45 HAS ALWAYS BEEN A STAPLE FOR HIPHOP, SO TO BE ABLE TO WIN A BATTLE FOR A CYPHER SPOT ON LORD SEARS AND INPHAMUS SHOW WAS A EUPHORIC VICTORY. IT WAS A HIGH POINT IN THIS QUARANTINE. 

VALIDATED: ARE YOU INVOLVED IN ANY VENTURES OUTSIDE OF MUSIC?

DUPREE G.O.D: OUTSIDE OF MUSIC I CREATE A LOT OF VIRAL CONTENT WITH MY TEAM - JOE SHOW, DANNY DUCES AND OTHER CREATORS IN AND OUT OF NYC. WE HAVE BROKEN THE INTERNET SO MANY TIMES. I'VE ALSO FEATURED IN A SHORT FILM FOR AMAZON PRIME CALLED "POWER CHORD" AND I'VE MODELED FOR DIFFERENT BRANDS LIKE GSHOCK AND MORE. 

VALIDATED: WHAT’S THE 2ND HALF OF 2020 LOOK LIKE FOR YOU FROM AN ARTIST STANDPOINT?

DUPREE G.O.D: I'M GETTING IN MY FULL CREATIVE BAG, MUSICALLY. I HAVE TWO PROJECTS READY TO GO, “G.O.D EP” AND “FUCK YA GRAVITY". I'M WORKING THROUGH MY ANXIETY ABOUT RELEASING MUSIC AND NOW I'M READY TO JUST TAKE FULL CONTROL OF MY CAREER AND PUSH FORWARD. I'M ALSO READY TO CONTINUE CREATING SOME OF THE WILDEST VIRAL CONTENT THE INTERNET HAS EVER SEEN WITH MY TEAM. I FEEL GOOD ENERGY AND POSITIVE VIBES.

VALIDATED: WHAT’S YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA CONTACTS AND WEBSITE?
DUPREE G.O.D: YOU CAN FIND ME AT WWW.WETHEILLEST.COM OR DUPREEGOD ON INSTAGRAM, TIK TOK AND TWITTER.