Today we’d like to introduce you to Die Young
Hi Die , it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My artistic journey began when I was a kid and my older sister dated the hip hop pioneer Charlie Chase of the legendary cold crush bros. I remember going to his apartment in Harlem NY and meeting such hip hop legends as Grandmaster Caz, flavor flav, chuck D and melle Mel. That evolved into lunchroom ciphers and school yard battles in junior high school. One of my good friends growing up bought DJ equipment and we would record freestyles in his bedroom. However, the street life consumed me at an early age and I would end up in juvenile detention at the age of 13. There is where I first ever grabbed a microphone and performed on stage. Though I embraced writing as a way to pass time in juvey, I honestly embraced criminality more and found myself in adult prison at the age of 16 for gang assault and manslaughter. I ended up spending my entire young adult life in prison but there is where I honed my craft and developed my skills as writing became not only a possible way out of the streets but also therapeutic. I left prison and started making music, shooting videos, opening up for artists like Fred da godson and Chinx drugs. I started growing, rubbing shoulders with artists like Fat Joe, meek mill, Jim jones, French Montana, yo gotti, coming out in nick cannons wild n out show, and traveling and performing as far away as Dubai, but honestly I found myself getting pulled and sucked right back into the street life. My best friend and manager was murdered in a night club in NYC in 2016 and that changed everything for me. I took a hiatus from music but then in 2019 a coworker invited me to go to the world famous nuyorican cafe that was having a slam competition and I ended up winning first place. So began my love for the spoken word artform. That grew into headlining for NYC voices and then I moved to Orlando in 2022. Since moving to Orlando I have won 5 poetry competitions and Orlando’s poet of the year, but I also rekindled my love for hip hop and started making what I have termed as ghetto gospel, trying to save the youth from traveling down the same roads and making the same choices I made in my life. This change of direction got me nominated for best new gospel artist last year at the fusion music awards and most recently The Flavor Fest Rapzilla 16 bar champion!!
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
My biggest struggle in the beginning was my addiction to the street life but since giving my life to Jesus Christ I have conquered that addiction and actually became an activist for troubled teens. Now I would say my biggest struggles are raising my daughter who is 10 years old now and was diagnosed with Autism at the age of 3. That and balancing earning a living working 10-12 hour shifts sometimes a day.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a spoken word / Christian Hip Hop artist. I am known for my raw poetry that spans a versatile and eclectic range of topics from historical facts to real life everyday issues, romance, social issues, heartbreak, and erotica. I am most proud of winning Orlando’s poet of the year for 2024 and also the Rapzilla 16 bar championship at flavor fest in Tampa Florida. What sets me apart from other poets is my passion, my fiery delivery, and my subject matter as I usually touch on topics most are afraid to touch on.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
My favorite childhood memory is recording my first mixtape that became an underground neighborhood success at the age of 14.
Pricing:
- Feature performance 15 minutes $150
- Feature performance 30 minutes $300
- Single “The Devil Working” $1.99
- Open mic “SPEAKEASY” $20 tickets
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dieyoungbx/profilecard/?igsh=MXR0bDFsdXMwdW5xMQ==
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@dieyoungbx?_t=8rLg56Ymiop&_r=1
