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Person of Utmost Clout and Creator of the Legendary Gangsta Grillz Series Dj Drama Announces Documentary via Instagram. Who Cares about Mixtapes?

Written by Junior Antalich on Thursday, January 31, 2019

Mixtape is a dirty word. Hearing “Peep my mixtape,” feels like, “Watch my kids,” or, “Can I hold five dollars until next week?” And we all have DJ Drama to thank for this.

Mixtapes are the modern successor to the Hip Hop LP in this streaming dominated music industry. Mixtape DJ’s started out printing bootleg CDs until the FBI started actually raiding physical locations where mixtapes were being manufactured, including Drama’s own studio. The difference between other DJs and Drama was that Drama picked up speed after the raid. Imagine a Mixtape Mount Rushmore: George Washington would be the 40 year old Philadelphian wearing a flat brimmed baseball crown off the side of his head in an borderline obnoxious way.

Why is Drama Washington? If you are putting out a mixtape, DJ Drama is the Johnson & Johnson of trustworthy brands with whom to affiliate. Drama has not only hosted critically acclaimed mixtapes for all three Atlanta-based, disputed Fathers of Trap music: T.I., Young Jeezy, and Gucci Mane, but is also the reason why son of Satan himself Lil Uzi Vert refuses to drop Eternal Atake, clarity comes to the question, “Why does DJ Drama even matter?”

Many couldn’t pick Drama out in a crowd visually, but most have heard his low, deep, mid-song trash talk or the ubiquitous Gangsta Grillz tag. (Gangsta… Grizzill!) Along with others like DJ Khaled, Lil Jon, and maybe even Diddy or Pharrell, DJ Drama hops freely between background and center, always present at the rapper public pool, frequently sitting nearby or dipping his legs in, but never diving in. As a successor of the enigmatic producer-performer superstar brand, DJ Drama made his way into hip hop royalty exactly like his predecessors: by staying consistent and being loud on other people’s songs. But then why is the Philadelphia-born mixtape don arguably the least famous of this list?

While Khaled makes a point of standing next to a exclusive list of the top dogs in pop music, Drama has built a stairway to heaven in plastic by working with everyone, or everyone to anyone that lives in any of the thousands of socioeconomically deprived cities throughout America. Drama’s credits include Lil Wayne, Yo Gotti, Jim Jones, Lil Baby, Freddie Gibbs, Peewee Longway, Shy Glizzy, and even Cee-Lo Green’s collaborative project with Danger Mouse Gnarls Barkley. According to reputable music industry website discogs.com, Drama has 81 albums to his name, but one Vocal credit. His credits for Featuring and Presenting, however, reach an astounding count of 143. That’s in a little under 15 years.

The question still looms, “Why a documentary?” DJ Drama’s magic is he’s trustworthy. Never will you see Drama pandering to the mainstream. In fact, the mainstream has embraced Trap, and the albums that laid the foundation for that were DJ Drama mixtapes. While his particular Gangsta brand lacks cohesion with the newest generation of drugged out mumblers, his stamp of approval still holds weight for the more conservative listener.

No matter what brand of urban music with which DJ Drama chooses to associate, his legacy is legendary and still growing. While even Dedication 2, the holy grail of Lil Wayne mixtapes, may still be too lyrical for the run of the wheat mill, 12-year old, Chief Keef fan from Boise, Drama’s influence over the record industry deserves to be known.

A Gangsta Grillz documentary has not been announced officially at this moment; however,  two hours ago, at approximately 12 am Central, footage from 2005 was posted on DJ Drama’s IG of the profilic Trap or Die mixtape being recorded with frequent collaborator Don Cannon. Comments asking “There should be a documentary,” are answered by Drama with on-brand consolations like, “It’s comin…” and “I got u…,” staying enigmatic as he rightly should.

Will it come out this year? Who knows. My guess is it might. Drama is too professional to keep his fans waiting too long. (Insert observation about Eternal Atake never coming out.) When it does, Lil Wayne streams will skyrocket, and the documentary will win subsequent Grammies for the Soundtrack and Oscars for Drama talking shit like he’s hard, just like we like it.

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