There is no comparison. What happens when soul meets swag? You get Dee-1, “The One Man Army.”
His style is so diverse that he creates his own lane in hip-hop. Born & raised in the heart of New Orleans, Dee-1 shared the same struggles as the legendary artists that put the 504 on the map, but he represents the city with a different viewpoint. He is the voice for anyone on a mission to win in the game of life by maximizing their potential and grinding with a purpose.
After graduating from Louisiana State University with a bachelor’s degree, Dee-1 began teaching middle school in Baton Rouge by day to help fund his music projects. The strong bond he formed with his students inspired him to be a powerful leader, but it also made it hard for him to leave. As his buzz as an artist continued to grow, he finally decided that his passion for hip hop was too much to ignore and that being “Dee-1″ gave him a much larger platform to be heard than being “Mr. Augustine.” Sleepless nights being a full time teacher and part time rapper were now replaced by sleepless nights being a “full time dream chaser,” as chronicled in his courageous song “The Announcement.”
It is impossible to box Dee-1 in because he is truly one of a kind. His subject matter is bold, creative, and unapologetic. With Dee-1, its more than just music. Its about a lifestyle, a frame of mind that empowers people to live with purpose and develop what he calls “mission vision.” That’s where Dee’s nickname “The One Man Army” comes from. “Everyone has a mission, and everyone is their own One Man or One Woman Army. In 2010, Dee-1 founded his own entertainment company, OMAR Ent. Omar is short for One Man Army Rebel and the definition of the name Omar means flourishing, long lived, and gifted speaker. How appropriate…
Having already built a solid street buzz with his critically acclaimed independent album “David & Goliath,” he released his mixtape “I Hope they hear me Vol. 2” as a free download in 2011. This mixtape changed his life. In less then a year he had four videos that gained heavy rotation on MTV Jams, made major hip-hop blogs praising his work, and two national two nation wide tours under his belt. You haven’t witnessed Dee-1′s true star power until you have seen him live in concert. He has become known for giving jaw-dropping shows and electrifying audiences wherever he performs. As Dee-1 says, “It feels way better to win over an audience than to just brag on how good I am. I’d rather prove it to you.”
All of this progress has left die-hard Dee-1 fans asking, “What’s next?” No one knows for sure, but as his fan base continues to grow throughout the nation, Dee-1 is poised to become Hip-Hop’s next great superstar. However, don’t expect him to get satisfied anytime soon. Ask Dee-1 how he feels and he’ll explain it in his classic words…
