Billy Drease Williams | |
|---|---|
 Billy Drease Williams performing in 2009 in Buffalo, New York | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Edreys Wajed |
| Origin | Buffalo, New York, United States |
| Genres | Hip hop |
| Occupation(s) | Teacher, artist, emcee, hip hop producer |
| Years active | 1995–present |
| Labels | DTR45 Deep Thinka Records |
| Website | Official Website Official Blog Page |
Edreys Wajed, also known as Billy Drease Williams is an American hip hop artist, emcee, singer and producer from Buffalo, New York; known for his uptempo production, clean lyrics, and motivational messages. Billy Drease Williams started as part of a short lived hip hop group called The Elements (formed with Soulive members Alan Evans and Neal Evans) and later was one half of a duo known as Raw Intel (with producer Trevor "TrevThorne" Drayton). Acclaimed Music critic Jeff Miers has described him as “the most promising, adventurous, nigh-on-visionary hip hop artist Buffalo has yet produced.” [1]
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Raw Intel found success early, placing five songs on the ESPN NFL 2K5 Video Game, [2] and producing a little-known but highly acclaimed self-titled album in 2002/2003. Billy Drease also collaborated with Soulive again for their Turn It Out Remixed Album and released a project on Velour Records with drummer Alan Evans, entitled M.E.K.A. 54. [3]
After the Raw Intel album failed to provide Billy with a viable major label deal, he focused his efforts on production and visual art: placing several tracks on films and television, including Lionsgate Films' "The Farce of the Penguins" and Lifetime Television's "Officer Down"; as well as opening an independent art gallery in Buffalo called Gallery 51. [4] Additionally, he produced several tracks for Atlanta-based rapper, Stat Quo. [5] [6]
Soon thereafter, Billy Drease decided to embrace the industry's movement from mainstream to indie [7] and signed a deal with Buffalo-based independent label Deep Thinka Records, which then proceeded to re-brand themselves as DTR45. Creatively invigorated by the deal, Billy's first single "I Like It" – a raw chopped up rendition of a Betty Wright tune – secured features in Billboard Magazine [8] and on Myspace; and the accompanying music video was featured by YouTube and BET. [9]
Originally performing as solo artist under his birth name, Edreys decided to take on the moniker Billy Drease Williams right around the same time I Like It dropped. This change in stage name was both in homage to the actor Billy Dee Williams and as a way for the pronunciation of birth name to still be present within his stage name. [10] Billy Drease Williams has released three albums with Deep Thinka Records / DTR45, including Good Morning Amy – an inspirational hip hop album which garnered Grammy buzz [11] – and made several high profile features and appearances, including Warped Tour, NXNE, [12] and CMJ Music Marathon [13] performances. His hit single, Just Doin' It has proven to be his biggest commercial success to date, and the groundbreaking music video has received over half a million views to date. [14]