Taking Hip Hop "Higher" | Dom Dirtee & Bobby J From Rockaway

INTERVIEW Terrell “ReaLife” Black PHOTOGRAPHY @QueensGoonDTD

Over the past few years, Bobby J From Rockaway and Dom Dirtee have been making waves individually, each carving out a unique path in hip-hop. Bobby J From Rockaway has continued to refine his craft, collaborating with some of the industry’s sharpest lyricists and producers while balancing a new chapter in his personal life as a father. Meanwhile, Dom Dirtee has expanded his reach, not only with his second Hardcore Composer album but also through major production placements, including his work on the BMF documentary for Starz. Now, the two have come together to take their musical chemistry to the next level with Higher, a project that blends their distinct styles into a cohesive, elevated sound.

In this exclusive Validated interview, Bobby J From Rockaway and Dom Dirtee break down the creative process behind Higher, how their previous collaboration on “DMX Energy” sparked a full-length project, and what sets this album apart from their past work. From the influence of their respective upbringings to the balance of raw lyricism and polished production, the duo offers insight into the journey that led to their latest release. They also discuss the challenges of navigating the independent grind, the evolution of their sound, and the standout collaborations that helped shape the album.

VALIDATED: What have you guys been up to since your individual Validated interviews?

BOBBY J: First and foremost, I became a father to two girls - Jacqueline and Juliette — and moved into a new house. Since we last spoke, I released one album — “Radio Days” with Nef and several one off singles with Little Vic, J57, Planet Asia, Boldy James, Dub Sonata, Copywrite and Kount Fif to name a few.

DOM DIRTEE: I released my sophomore LP The Hardcore Composer 2 back in 2022 on Duck Down. Later that year I produced the main title theme for the 8-part BMF documentary Blowing Money Fast on Starz that had a lot of my beats in it. I’ve also stayed busy designing professionally for major networks and have done official album covers for Prodigy, Onyx, Kool G Rap, Statik Selektah, Nems, Termanology and others.

VALIDATED: You collaborated on the “DMX Energy” record about two years ago—was that your first time working together? Did you know then that you wanted to collaborate again in the future?

BOBBY J: Yes, that was our first official record together. After the response to that song, and the chemistry we had doing it, I knew I wanted to make more songs with Dom because he brought a production style to the table that was different from previous songs or albums I did.

DOM DIRTEE: After that record I was pretty sure we’d do more work together. I remember appreciating the lyricism and how intricate Bobby was with the verses.

VALIDATED: How did the idea for “Higher” come about, and what inspired the collaboration?

BOBBY J: “Higher” happened organically. The first song we did for it was “Once Again,” which I assumed was going to be for Dom’s next producer album — “The Hardcore Composer 3.” However, he sent me a batch of beats and I loved them so much I kept recording references that I would send his way. What was supposed to be one joint turned into several and we decided it needed to be a standalone project.

DOM DIRTEE: Bobby stayed on me about sending beats and we did “Once Again” first which, like he said, was originally going to be for my next album. Then I believe we did “Hello” next. But when he wrote to the “Higher” beat I felt like we were on to something different. The way he did the hook made it feel more universal than just your typical boom-bap record. At that point it seemed clear that we should keep making more records and explore this dynamic.  

VALIDATED: What do you both feel sets “Higher” apart from your previous work?

BOBBY J: For me, I think Dom’s production tends to lean “darker” than previous producers I’ve collaborated with. There’s a harder edge to this album than say my last album — not in a bad way — just very different in terms of the overall vibe. The feel of the music always dictates the subject matter so I felt I could go places personally that I maybe didn’t on previous projects. We also have a handful of songs that are high energy/uptempo, which are always fun to make especially since a lot of our contemporaries aren’t really doing that at the moment.

DOM DIRTEE: For my Hardcore Composer albums, there is a very specific frequency that I try to create within. Working on this project allowed me to expand sonically and do a lot of records that I might not necessarily do for that series, but were still the types of records I wanted to make. Even though we do have a bunch of gritty, hardcore records, we made songs that I’d consider more accessible while still remaining true to our musical identities.

VALIDATED: The album has a very classic yet fresh Hip Hop sound. What was the creative process like in crafting this project?

BOBBY J: During the bulk of the recording process, I had recently became a father so I was a home body. Most of the time I was taking beats and recording demos at home — usually one verse and a hook idea — and sending them to Dom to get his opinion. He’d usually come back to me with notes and I would tweak it based on his suggestions. Then he’d mix it at his crib. Almost every song on the album went through several iterations before we arrived at the final version.

DOM DIRTEE: Aside from a couple times where I sent Bobby folders to pick from, the majority of this album was me making a beat, thinking he would sound good over it, and sending it to him right away. I think only a few beats were from my stash. This record gave me more of an opportunity to create and send on the spot, which was cool. He would send something back relatively quickly, I’d give my little two cents on it, and we’d keep going. We developed a solid creative rhythm. And knowing how actively he was working on them motivated me to match his work ethic.

VALIDATED: Lyrically, “Higher” feels introspective yet confident. What themes were you focused on exploring in your verses?

BOBBY J: Again, it depended entirely on the vibe of the music. Usually when I’m writing, I like to think of a hook first and reverse engineer the song from there. “Outta This Club”, “Vibin,”“Break Me Down,” and “Higher” are all examples. Once that happens, the themes and subject matter kind of write themselves. In the case of a song like “Break Me Down,” I knew I wanted to do something personal/introspective. “Outta This Club” brought the storyteller out. I like starting from a blank slate and seeing where the music takes me organically.

VALIDATED: You’ve always had a strong balance of lyricism and storytelling. How did Dom’s production push you creatively on this album?

BOBBY J: Without sounding redundant, Dom’s beats just inspired me in the sense that I would hear certain joints, and within the 1st 2-3 listens, I would already have a semblance of a song concept. If a beat makes a phrase, hook, or a flow pop into my head immediately, then I know it’s something I want to work with. Songwriting should be “easy” in the sense that you shouldn’t have to force it. He made it easy.

VALIDATED: Coming from Rockaway, how has your environment shaped your artistry and perspective on Hip Hop?

BOBBY J: Rockaway is one of the most unique parts of NYC in the sense that, yes it’s Queens, but it’s detached and isolated. We’re on the beach separated from everybody else. So I never readily identified with being “from queens” — I’d always say I’m from Rockaway. Most people from the neighborhood share this sentiment. Having said that, because I grew up on the beach, there’s a little bit of a west coast vibe on the east coast in that we all grew up surfing, skating, etc. So as a kid, I was a fan of not only east coast hip hop but also west coast rap/underground hip hop, grunge, punk, classic rock, etc because I grew up around so many different people who were all into different things. All of that stuff is part of the mixture when it comes to my music and creative process.

VALIDATED: The independent grind in Hip Hop today is more prominent than ever. How have you navigated building your brand as an artist while staying true to your craft?

BOBBY J: For me, I never had a choice to do anything other than be independent. The “industry” never cared about what I was doing so I never felt the need to fit into a particular mold. I care about making the kind of art I want to make with people I respect and want to work with. If I don’t find it interesting, I’m not gonna do it. Whether people like it or not is up to them. Ironically, once I stopped trying to please everybody is when I started to gain momentum. I always put my personal tastes first.

DOM DIRTEE: These days unless you’re just intentionally trying to make what’s popular at the moment, being independent is pretty much the only route. It’s a personal journey for every artist and can be very lonely at times, but at the same time you also have total creative control. You have to lean into your strengths and try to amplify them, and keep trying to find new ways to connect with fans. Being independent can be challenging to just make people aware of what you’re doing, as the social media algorithms control what your followers see, and in most cases don’t see, more than ever. But at the end of the day, you have to make music that excites you and trust that it will make its way to people that feel the vibe.

VALIDATED: Your production style is raw yet polished. What was your approach in shaping the soundscape for “Higher”?

DOM DIRTEE: Like my other albums, I composed all the music from scratch which is what probably gives my music a more polished feel. Like I literally sit at a keyboard and mess around with instruments and sounds until I start making something that sounds interesting, and I continued with that while we were making this project. Pretty much everything still had a hardcore edge to it, but with Higher it was more about sending those beats that I felt Bobby had the most potential to elevate, some of which were outside of the normal gamut of beats that I send. Once we had a core group of songs, and the more he pushed the boundaries with the hooks, the more I think I was comfortable sending less-conventional beats by my standards to round out the project, like “Break Me Down” and “Vibin’.” If I wasn’t actively working with Bobby I don’t know that I would have fully fleshed out those beats. Or maybe I would have and they would have sat on my hard drive until I found someone who I thought would be able to turn them into a record. Which could have been never. Even the “Higher” beat, which was one from the stash. I made that while I was making my second album. And I always liked it, but I wondered who, if anyone, would ever pick it. So when he chose that one out of a folder, I was excited because who knows, it otherwise might have sat on my hard drive for years.

VALIDATED: Were there any specific influences or inspirations you drew from while producing this album?

DOM DIRTEE: I would say that the majority of my production is inspired by very early 90s hip-hop, coupled with a lifetime of ingesting all different genres of music. I think I kept creating within that realm, more or less, and what Bobby did with the songwriting is what opened up the songs more. Maybe with the exception of “Vibin’ (All By Myself)” which I kind of pitched to him. But I pretty much would just create a beat and be like “this sounds consistent enough with what we’ve been making” and see if he liked it.

VALIDATED: As a producer, how do you balance bringing out the best in an artist while maintaining your own creative identity?

DOM DIRTEE: Well my process of beatmaking has stayed pretty consistent. I wouldn’t send anyone a beat that didn’t give me some type of excitement or inspiration, so my creative identity was never an issue. What I think I’m particularly good at is hearing a beat and knowing which artists would probably be a good match for them. So whether it ends up having a scratch hook, someone singing on the chorus, no chorus, a repetitive chant, whatever. It’s just about giving an artist something I believe they can bring to life, and helping them navigate that if needed. A lot of the beats I gave Bobby I think were finger rolls in that regard. Songs like “Vibin’” and “Break Me Down” were what I would consider the most outside of my normal wheel well sonically, but when I sent them to him, I had a belief that he would understand the assignments and know how to turn the caterpillars into butterflies, so to speak. A lot of people probably think I’m a purist, but I’m pretty progressive as far as being open to whatever direction will make for the best song.

VALIDATED: How did you both collaborate during the recording process? Were most tracks built from scratch together, or did you each bring ideas separately?

BOBBY J: Sometimes, Dom would send me a beat he wanted me to use and would not necessarily give me a concept, but nudge me in a certain direction. “Vibin” is a good example. Other times, I’d come up with something completely original that he would love. Or — like in the case of “Dangerous” — I’d write a verse/hook idea and that would prompt him to say “I don’t know if this works as a hook but it may work at the end of the song” and then he’d come up with a hook idea after the fact. In all cases, we really trusted each other’s opinions on what was right for that particular song.

DOM DIRTEE: I’d send Bobby a beat and either just be like “What do you think about this one?” or in a few cases, give my two cents about where it could possibly go at the beginning. And we’d just do a back and forth until we considered each track done and would agree with each other the vast majority of the time.

VALIDATED: Were there any tracks that challenged you the most, whether in writing, production, or execution?

BOBBY J: I know for me, “Hello” was challenging when I was recording it because there was a particular pocket I wanted to be in flow wise. The listener will probably never notice but there’s definitely lines on there I said over and over again to sit exactly how I wanted in the beat. Also, “Break Me Down” was tough because I sung the vocal reference for Vivian’s hook and I’m far from a singer so getting it “right” to where I was comfortable showing her was difficulty.

DOM DIRTEE: For me, I wouldn’t say any track was particularly challenging, per se. But with “Dangerous,” we did a lot of passes on that song. Like, first verse, then hook, make that hook a bridge instead, come up with a new hook, verse two, made an intro, then added scratches at the end. And we came up with all the scratch phrases together. There were plenty of opportunities for us to blow it. But at the end of the day I think it just required staying focused on the end result.

VALIDATED: The album features some dope collaborations—can you speak on how those features came about?

BOBBY J: The album was never intended to even have any features. The funny part is the last two songs recorded for the album - “Break Me Down” and “I Gotta” — both have features. For “Break Me Down,” I wrote the hook but I knew I could never capture the emotion needed to drive it home. I know Vivian through KWAMÉ and as soon as I laid it down, I knew I was going to pitch it to her. Viv was gracious enough to do it and she absolutely bodied it like I knew she would. For “I Gotta,” this was actually the last song we did for the album. I wrote a verse and a hook reference (without the chopped and screwed part) and sent it to Dom. I was honestly stuck on where I wanted to even go with it creatively. But one day, the chopped and screwed part popped into my head and I recorded it. Once I had that, a lightbulb went off In my head and I texted Dom that Paul would be perfect for it. That little part changed the whole song dynamic. Dom has worked with Paul in the past, so he sent it to him and we both honestly thought we were taking a shot in the dark. A couple weeks later we had his vocals.

DOM DIRTEE: I’d worked with DJ Evil Dee a couple times in the past for cuts. With “Dangerous,” that beat even came to be because one day I just decided I was going to try to recreate the OGC “No Fear” beat (that was produced by his brother, Mr. Walt). But once I sequenced the drums, I got bored quickly with the recreation idea and just played something that was completely new. Bobby loved it so we started making the song. We thought the record might be done and I sent it to Mr. Walt and told him the story, and he thought the song was dope. We thought it would be a great finishing touch to add scratches at the end, and Evil Dee seemed perfect for it. Mr. Walt even blessed us with the skit leading up to the song. So everything came pretty full circle on that one. Shout out to Da Beatminerz!

I also want to give a major shout out to Paul Wall. Possibly the coolest person you could meet in the rap game. He’d already held me down a couple times (on my first album and also my next one) and didn’t owe me anything, but he was still gracious enough to help us see “I Gotta” through and he bodied his verse. That was the last song we did and I was hype to have him be a part of it.

VALIDATED: If you had to pick one song that defines “Higher” as a whole, which would it be and why?

BOBBY J: I think the title track “Higher” sets it off perfectly. It’s upbeat, it’s energetic, it’s catchy, it’s lyrical, it’s Boom-bap and rooted in classic hip-hop but at the same time feels fresh and new, which is what we want listeners to take away from the album.

DOM DIRTEE: I’d agree with that.

VALIDATED: Which records are fans feeling the most?

BOBBY J: It’s hard to say. “I Gotta” has the most streams but I think as a whole, “Dangerous” with DJ Evil Dee has had the widest reach as it’s been played all over Shade45, independent radio, college radio, and even Hot97. DJs have definitely shown that one the most love.

DOM DIRTEE: Yeah shout out all the DJs because every song has gotten some type of radio play.

VALIDATED: You released the visual for “Hello” nearly a month ago—what led you to choose that track for the first video, and how has the response been so far?

BOBBY J: The response has been great. We chose that song because we knew we could achieve a lot with a very straightforward, simple aesthetic that was essentially just a one shot with creative lighting. It allowed us to focus the audience’s attention on the subject matter/lyrics over everything. It also happens to be one of my personal favorites on the album.

VALIDATED: How has the press run and overall support for the album been so far?

BOBBY J: The press run is still an ongoing thing but early and continued support has been great. We’ve been lucky to have a lot of radio support, which is all a result of our own personal relationships with the DJs. We don’t have a promo team or publicist working the project so every spin and review is all grassroots. In addition, a lot of reputable outlets have given the album stellar reviews which has helped turn a lot of new listeners on to us as well.

DOM DIRTEE: The critical response so far has been great. We put this project out ourselves so it’s really been a DIY situation. Like we said we been fortunate that the DJs have kept us in rotation, and a few outlets, like y’all, have shined a lot of positive light on the album. It’s a slow burn and everything helps.

VALIDATED: What do you hope listeners take away from “Higher”?

BOBBY J: My goal with all my music is not only to reach the hip hop heads, but also reach across the aisle and bring casual listeners into the fold and turn them on to lyrical, traditional hip hop. Bars always come first but there’s a way to do it without alienating the average person. I hope there’s a young kid out there that hears this and maybe feels inspired to make music. Ultimately, it’s about creating the hip hop heads of tomorrow.

DOM DIRTEE: I feel like if you’re a hardcore hip-hop head, you’ll really like the album. But I think the production and songwriting is such that you don’t need to be one to enjoy it. We just tried to make really good songs. Maybe a casual listener will like how hip-hop it is, and a hip-hop head might appreciate the songwriting. As long as they feel something on it, I’m happy.

VALIDATED: Looking ahead, do you see yourselves working together on more projects in the future?

BOBBY J: We already plan to keep going!

DOM DIRTEE: For sure.

VALIDATED: What’s next for each of you individually? Any upcoming solo work or other collaborations in the pipeline?

BOBBY J: Definitely more work together, whether it’s another project, or a song for Dom’s album, one off singles, etc. Recently, I released a short film/music video for a song called “Pain” with Hush and Cadillac Dale that’s out now. In addition, me and producer/rapper Little Vic have a bunch of songs in the stash and are actively working on new stuff as well so be on the lookout for that to start dropping soon too.

DOM DIRTEE: I’ve made pretty good headway into my next producer album and already have a very solid lineup of MCs. Also likely more sync work for TV/Movies. I have a few things in the stash that I haven’t decided what I’m gonna do with yet… but til then, I’ll just be creating.

VALIDATED: Where can readers support you both and the album?

BOBBY J: Higher is out everywhere you stream music but if you really want to support us, go to DomDirtee.com and you can purchase physical signed CDs or buy it digitally and receive bonus tracks not on streaming. Vinyl is in the works as well. If you want to follow me, @bobbyjfromrockaway on all platforms. Peace!

DOM DIRTEE: It’s @domdirtee on everything. Domdirtee.com where you can buy music, clothing, and more. Much love.