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DJ Drama is an American DJ, record executive and producer. DJ Drama gained prominence as rapper TI’s official DJ and is also known for his contributions to the mixtape scene. He is the co-founder of the Atlanta-based mixtape label, Aphilliates Music Group.
Early life
DJ Drama was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, on April 22, 1978. Currently, he is 45 years and his birth sign is Taurus. Her birth name is Tyree Cinque Simmons and she has American citizenship. She belongs to the African American ethnicity and believes in the Christian religion.
His parents’ names are Michael Simmons and Dina Portnoy. By profession, his mother is a teacher. Furthermore, she grew up with her sister whose name is Aishah Shahidah Simmons.
Meanwhile, her sister is a documentary filmmaker, author, educator and activist. At the age of 13, his sister took him to New York City, where he purchased his first mixtape. He quickly began recording his recordings, including one called Illadelph, which included Black Thought, Dice Raw, Malik B. and others. Furthermore, he also experimented with record players.
DJ Drama – Education
He attended Central High School in Philadelphia and completed his graduation in 1996. Later, he moved to Atlanta to attend Clark Atlanta University (CAU), where he studied mass communications.
During this time, he met two other Philadelphia-raised DJs: DJ Sense and Don Cannon. The three later formed Aphilliates, a collective of DJs and artists. During his studies, Simmons began creating and releasing mixtapes under the name DJ Drama.
One of his initial series (titled Electric Relaxation) included a selection of R&B music. Meanwhile, she completed her college graduation in 2000.
Career
DJ Dramahad’s debut mixtape, “Jim Crow Laws,” was released in 1998 and featured only Southern hip-hop performances. In 2003, along with Don Cannon and DJ Sense, he officially founded Aphilliates Music Group (AMG).
The group released DJ Drama’s Gangsta Grillz mixtape series, which had initial success with T.I.’s “Down With the King” (2004) and Jeezy’s “Trap or Die” (2005). In 2005, Drama and his AMG colleagues hosted radio shows on Atlanta’s Hot 107.9 and Eminem’s Shade 45 station on Sirius Satellite Radio.
He produced and featured Lil Wayne’s “The Dedication” mixtape in late 2005, the first of several ‘Dedication tapes’. “Dedication 2,” released in May 2006, debuted on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums list and was hailed by The New York Times as “one of the ten best recordings of 2006.”
AMG and Asylum Records formed a joint venture in September 2006. The first artist signed was Willie the Kid, an American rapper. Fulton County police officers raided AMG’s Atlanta offices in January 2007 and seized more than 80,000 mixtapes, four vehicles and some recording equipment. DJ Drama and Don Cannon were arrested on RICO charges.
Even though Gangsta Grillz: The Album, Drama’s “official” debut album, was to be released “over the board” by Grand Hustle Records through Atlantic Records, the hard drives containing his tracks were confiscated. Drama and Cannon faced no further legal action as a result of the raid.
In December 2007, Drama released his debut album “Gangsta Grillz: The Album”. The album’s lead single, “5000 Ones”, debuted on BET. While the second single, “The Art of Storytellin’ Part 4”, peaked at number 26 on the Billboard 200.
He continued his successful musical career.
He then released his second album “Gangsta Grillz: The Album (Vol. 2)” in May 2009. He also continues to work on mixtapes for Gucci Mane (Mr. Zone 6), Chris Brown (In My Zone 2), Dead Prez. (Revolutionary but Gangsta Grillz), and Wyclef Jean (From the cabin to the projects, to the mansion), among others. In March 2010, he voiced Mr. Thanksgiving, a radio host, in T-Pain’s musical television special “Freaknik: The Musical.”
Caption: DJ Drama performing at the concert (Source: Instagram)
He released his third album, “Third Power,” in October 2011. The single from the album called “Oh My” peaked at number 95 on the Billboard Hot 100. In late 2012, he released his fourth album, “Quality Street Music.” Meanwhile, the album managed to peak at number 15 on the Billboard 200.
Additionally, Drama, Don Cannon and DJ Sense created The Academy, a DJ incubator and arts group, in August 2013. In January 2014, DJ Drama joined the A&R team at Atlantic Records. He signed several musicians to the label, including Kap G, Spenzo and Que. DJ Drama and Don Cannon co-founded Atlantic Records’ Generation Now label in 2015.
Drama executive producer of Lil Uzi Vert’s 2015 promotional mixtape Luv Is Rage, who was one of its first signees. In July 2016, Drama released his fifth studio album, “Quality Street Music 2.”
He served as executive producer for Lil Uzi Vert’s August 2017 debut studio album, “Luv Is Rage 2.” In 2021, he narrated the Tyler, the Creator album “Call Me If You Get Lost” and appeared on the opening song, Sir Baudelaire.
DJ Drama – Awards
DJ Drama has won several awards during his career. In 2008, he received three Justo Mix Tapes awards: “Best Dirty South DJ”, “Best Mix Tape Team” and “Best Mix Tape Series”. In 2013, he won the BET HIP-HOP Awards for “DJ of the Year.” He received the Global Spin Award for “DJ Record Label of the Year” in 2018.
Net worth 2024
As of 2024, his net worth is estimated to be around $13.4 million, while his salary and income are under review. Mainly, he makes money by producing Mixtapes, collaborating with artists, and DJing.
civil status
Regarding his personal life, DJ Drama is a divorced man. Previously, he was married to Summer Walker. Walker divorced him after finding out about the extramarital relationship she had with another girl.
Summer was babysitting DJ Drama’s two children, whose names are unknown. The children were from Drama’s previously unknown relationship. She dated Jessica Burciaga. She is a Playboy model. Unfortunately, they broke up in 2018 after four years of dating.
DJ Drama – Body Measurements
Caption: DJ Drama in front of a large crowd (Source: Instagram)
This American DJ stands 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs around 75 kg. Furthermore, he has a pair of black eyes with black hair.
Social media
On his Instagram page ‘@djdrama’ he has more than 1.2 million followers. Likewise, there are more than 2 million on his Twitter page ‘@DJDRAMA’ and more than 1.5 million followers on his Facebook. He runs a self-titled YouTube channel and has over 351,000 subscribers.
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Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn