Drumma Boy | |
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 Gholson at the 2011 BET Awards in Los Angeles | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Christopher James Gholson |
| Also known as | D-Boy Fresh |
| Born | August 11, 1983 Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. [1] |
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| Years active | 2002–present |
| Labels | Drum Squad Productions |
Christopher James Gholson (born August 11, 1983), better known by his stage name Drumma Boy (or Drummer Boy), is an American record producer and rapper.
Born in Memphis, Tennessee, and raised in Cordova, Tennessee, he was exposed to music at a young age. His mother, Billie Baker Gholson, was an accountant who worked as a part-time opera singer and was the first African-American to graduate from Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music at the University of Memphis. His father, G. James Gholson, a retired clarinetist and music professor at Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music, was the first African-American male to hold the first chair position in the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. [3] [4] His father is an emeritus of the Memphis Woodwind Quintet and a soloist in the United States Navy Band. [5] His paternal grandfather was a high school principal and has a high school named after him in Washington, D.C. The rest of his extended family including grandmothers and aunts were also musicians and taught music in the schools. Drumma Boy says he had a recorder in his hand at age 3 and a clarinet at age 5. [6] His father was instrumental in teaching him about traditional classical music yet it was his mother that introduced him to Curtis Mayfield and 1970s rhythm and blues. [7] A classical musically trained musician, Gholson began the practicing E-flat clarinet at age six and then went to the B-flat clarinet. At the age of six, Gholson began taking piano lessons. [8] [9]
Mathematics was his favorite school subject. In 9th grade, he made a song about the quadratic formula for extra credit and received the top grade for the class. [10] [3] Gholson started making hip hop beats at the age of 12 and scored his first production placement on local radio with Memphis rapper Tela's "Double Dose". [11] He produced an entire album at age 14. [12] During high school, Gholson played basketball and was offered several athletic scholarships. [13] He was offered a position in the Memphis Youth Symphony Orchestra as well as being offered college music scholarships. [14] As an amateur producer during his high school days, he began charging $200 for each beat that he made and eventually earned $500 per track by the time he graduated from high school. [14] [15] [16]
Gholson attended the University of Memphis as a Music Business major, matriculating in 2001. Due to the pressure from his parents to achieve academically, his father advised him that a college degree would open more doors for career advancement, and his mother stressed the importance of financial savvy. Gholson also attended college to satisfy his father's belief that a college degree was a ticket to a solid and stable career. [13] Following his father's advice and by his junior year, Drumma Boy established a name for himself and was quickly becoming the most sought-after producers in Tennessee.[ citation needed ] He spent much of his spare time outside of classes on the keyboard and drum machine making hip hop beats in his room. [17] In between attending classes, he would shop his homemade beats to local Memphis rappers such as Gangsta Boo, as well as travel to Texas to work on musical projects for Scarface and Bun B of UGK. Though Gholson earned good grades, he was expelled from school in 2004 due to lack of attendance. [18] The cash flow from his music production company was so strong that Gholson pulled $20,000 per month where he eventually realized that he had no reason to stay in college. [18] His father challenged him, in an effort to convince him to return to college, to earn $100,000 within 12 months to prove his independence. Drumma Boy earned $100,000 within 10 months. [18] [19] Though Gholson never returned to the University of Memphis, he and his father established the James and Christopher Gholson Scholarship Fund, a scholarship that goes towards undergraduate and graduate students studying music at the school, furthering his father and his family's commitment and values towards education and cultural literacy. [5] [20]
Within two years of leaving his native city, Drumma Boy had fostered relationships with a number of hip hop groups and rappers such as Outkast, Trick Daddy, Slim Thug, DJ Cash Money, Pastor Troy, and Killer Mike. [21]
In October 2013, Drumma Boy conducted a halftime show during the 2013-2014 season opening of his hometown NBA team, the Memphis Grizzlies. [22]
Gholson has worked with an array of acts from hip hop, R&B, and reggae. [23] Gholson relocated to Atlanta in 2004 and set his sights to become a professional music producer and entrepreneur. Citing his sense of business acumen from his mother, a professional accountant, Gholson founded Drum Squad, an independent umbrella entertainment company that encompasses Drum Squad Productions, a music production company that represents producers and songwriters, Drum Squad Records (a record label), and Drum Squad Films, a film production and distribution company. [24] [25]
By 2008, Gholson became one of the most sought after hip hop producers in the music industry. [26] In 2008, Vibe Magazine named him one of the Top 5 Producers "making noise" in the music industry. In December 2009, he was named by The New York Times one of the 4 hottest producers "driving the city" in Atlanta, describing his sound as "a busy bee swarm of synths overlaid with brash bass injections that's equal parts Memphis and Atlanta". [27] He was quoted in the January 2010 issue of Rolling Stone surrounding his production work for controversial recording artist Gucci Mane's #1 rap album The State vs. Radric Davis .
In January 2009, Gholson starred alongside Jazze Pha and Vawn in BET's reality series Welcome to Dreamland. [28] He appeared on a segment of Bravo's The Real Housewives of Atlanta while making beats for cast member Kandi Burruss as well as appearing in the studio during an episode of Monica's BET reality series Still Standing. [29] In November 2009, Drumma Boy released his music video "Dis Girl" shot by Mr. Boomtown, the first single off his mixtape Welcome II My City, which received millions of hits on Worldstarhiphop. [30] He has appeared on Good Day Atlanta, Good Morning Memphis, CBS News Channel 9, BET and MTV. [31] [32] [33]
Gholson also scores for television and film, most recently working on FOX's hit TV show Empire with Bryshere Gray (Yazz). [34] In December 2013, Drumma Boy was commissioned to create film scores for the independent film Blood First for NaRa Films and O.Y.'s Spotlite Entertainment. He created film scores for movies Chapters and Holla 2. [35]
In 2013, Gholson released his own line of luxury wine called Moreno BHLV. [22] Gholson has also opened "G Factory"; a 20,000 square foot creative studio in his hometown Memphis, for film and TV show production that will eventually encompass a wood shop, and car detail crew where the space will be designated strictly for creative professionals, artists and painters to hone their talents. [36] Gholson also launched a film production and distribution division called Drum Squad Films subsidiary within his company, Drum Squad. One of the first few independent films called "Chapters" was launched through Drum Squad films in 2012, of which Gholson did additional film scoring for. "Know your History" was another independent film released by Drum Squad films documenting on history of the city of Memphis. [25]
Gholson is part of Tracklib's Creators Advisory Board. [37]
Gholson was a featured guest at The Heart of God Foundation's "City of Atlanta Neighborhood Revitalization Ball, an organization dedicated to raising funds to provide for the city's homeless. [36]
Along with his father, Gholson annually bestows a scholarship [38] at the Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music that benefits either clarinet or music business students.
Gholson uses a variety of production equipment to compose hip hop drum beats for hip hop songs. He primarily uses an Akai MPC 4000, Pro Tools, Logic Pro, Roland TR-808 and electronic keyboards manufactured by Roland, Korg and Yamaha. [25] Gholsons's signature drop on his beats is a voice saying "listen to this track, bitch". He is also known for the origination of extending sounds at the end of a verse and his use of a rise effect before the beginning and end of every verse and hook. He also utilizes his ad-lib of "Yeah Boy" and a young reverbed female voice saying "Drumma Boy" before the beginning of a song.
Gholson cites hip hop and R&B musicians Dr. Dre, Quincy Jones, Raphael Saadiq and The Funk Brothers as his signature music production inspirations with other musical influences ranging from European classical composers Ludwig van Beethoven, Jean Sibelius, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Johann Sebastian Bach to American jazz icons Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis all the way to hip hop group Three 6 Mafia and Houston rapper, Scarface. He is known for combining classical music chords with urban hip hop street sounds, and for his adherence to the Atlanta trap music subgenre. His production techniques bring together a diverse array of genres that originate in hip hop, rock, pop, classical, soul, and R&B. [39] [40] [41] [42] [43] [44]
Drumma Boy won "Best Indie Producer of the Year" consecutively at the 2009, 2010 and 2011 Southern Entertainment Awards. [45] [46] He received a nomination for "Producer of the Year" at the 2008 Ozone Awards [47] and at the 2010 BET Hip Hop Awards. His beats assisted with two nominations during the 2009 Grammy Awards including his work on T.I.'s Paper Trail (Best Rap Album) and "Put On" by Young Jeezy & Kanye West (Best Performance by a Rap Duo.). [48] Drumma also produced "Stranger" off Usher's 2010 Versus (EP) , released in conjunction with the deluxe edition of Raymond v. Raymond; the album won two Grammy Awards for Best Contemporary R&B Album and Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. In 2011, Drumma's hit single "No Hands" for Waka Flocka, Roscoe Dash and Wale received a nomination for "Best Collaboration" at the 2011 BET Awards and picked up the accolade for "Best Club Banger" at the 2011 BET Hip Hop Awards. [49]
Albums
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| Film | |||
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| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 2013 | Buck Mentality [51] | Himself | Video Documentary |
Southern hip hop, also known as Southern rap, South Coast hip hop, or dirty south, is a blanket term for a regional genre of American hip hop music that emerged in the Southern United States, especially in Georgia, Texas, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Florida—often titled "The Big 5," five states which constitute the "Southern Network" in rap music.
Although the music scene of Atlanta is rich and varied, the city's production of hip-hop music has been especially noteworthy, acclaimed, and commercially successful. In 2009, The New York Times called Atlanta "hip-hop's center of gravity", and the city is home to many famous hip hop, R&B, and neo soul musicians.
Radric Delantic Davis, known professionally as Gucci Mane, is an American rapper. He is credited, along with fellow Atlanta-based rappers T.I. and Jeezy, with pioneering the hip hop subgenre trap music for mainstream audiences into the 2000s. His debut studio album, Trap House (2005) was released by the independent label Big Cat Records and entered the Billboard 200; it was followed by Hard to Kill (2006), which spawned his first Billboard Hot 100 entry with its 2007 single, "Freaky Gurl". That same year, he released his third album, Trap-A-Thon before signing with Atlantic Records to release his fourth album, Back to the Trap House (2007).
"Go Getta" is the second single from Def Jam artist Young Jeezy off his second album The Inspiration, it features singer R. Kelly. The song samples "Born On Halloween" by Blue Magic. It was released in late January. This song was #76 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007.
Alonzo Keith Mathis Jr., better known by his stage name Gorilla Zoe, is an American rapper from East Point, Georgia. He joined the Bad Boy Records hip hop group Boyz n da Hood in 2006, following the departure of its lead member, Jeezy. His first album with the group, Back Up n da Chevy (2007) was met with lukewarm critical and commercial reception, leading to their subsequent disbandment. He then signed with Bad Boy, an imprint of Atlantic Records in a joint venture with Block Entertainment as a solo act to release his debut studio album, Welcome to the Zoo (2007).
"Put On" is a song by American recording artist Young Jeezy featuring Kanye West, from Jeezy's third studio album The Recession. The song was released as the album's lead single on June 3, 2008. The song received a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group, and was featured in the video games Midnight Club: Los Angeles and Skate 3.
My Life: The True Testimony is the debut solo studio album by American rapper Blood Raw. It was released on June 17, 2008 via Corporate Thugz Entertainment/Def Jam Recordings. Recording sessions took place at Dirty South Studios, Thug Mansion Studios and PatchWerk Recording Studios in Atlanta, and at 360 Studios in Tallahassee. Production was handled by Arnaz 'The Nazty One' Smith, Midnight Black, Cliff Brown, Drumma Boy, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, Mannie Fresh, Megaman, PnO, Terry "T.A." Allen, The Runners, Tony Rey, with Demetrius "Kinky B" Ellerbee and Young Jeezy serving as executive producers. It features guest appearances from Big Rube, Lyfe Jennings, Mannie Fresh, Torica, Trina, and fellow U.S.D.A. groupmates Slick Pulla and Young Jeezy. The album was preceded by its lead single "Louie".
"What Up, What's Haapnin'" is a song by American rapper T.I., released on September 2, 2008, as the fifth single from his sixth studio album Paper Trail (2008). The song, which was produced by high-profile American record producer Drumma Boy, is a diss track directed towards fellow Atlanta-based rapper Shawty Lo, in response to his multiple accusations that T.I. is not from his hometown of Bankhead. The song peaked at 84 on the Billboard Hot 100 and at number 97 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, when it first leaked online. The video had made its way to iTunes, BET's 106 & Park, and MTV.
"Lost" is a song by American hip hop recording artist Gorilla Zoe, released October 14, 2008 as the lead single from his second studio album Don't Feed Da Animals (2009). The song leaked in May 2008 entitled "Losin' My Mind", featuring a verse from fellow American rapper Lil Wayne. It is notable that, specifically with the Lil Wayne version, both songs use the auto-tune effect. "Lost" received positive reviews from critics praising Drumma Boy's electronic production and Zoe's sincere Auto-Tune delivery of introspective lyrics. The track peaked at numbers 10 and 29 on both the Billboard Hot Rap Songs and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs charts respectively. It also reached number 71 on the Hot 100.
The State vs. Radric Davis is the sixth studio album by American rapper Gucci Mane. It was released on December 8, 2009. The State vs. Radric Davis came after a slew of independent releases, mixtapes, and features over the prior few years. Productions from Polow da Don, Drumma Boy, Fatboi, Mannie Fresh, among others. Featured artists include Usher, Plies, Lil Wayne, Cam'ron, Soulja Boy, Rick Ross, Bun B, OJ da Juiceman, Wooh da Kid, Waka Flocka Flame, and Nicki Minaj. The iTunes deluxe version contains the EP, Wasted: The Prequel.
Lexus Arnel Lewis, professionally known as Lex Luger, is an American record producer. His stage name is a homage to the former WCW/WWF professional wrestler Lex Luger. He co-founded the American hip hop production team 808 Mafia with Southside. He is a member of the hip hop production duo Low Pros with A-Trak, and the VABP, a hip hop group that he founded in high school.
"Oh My" is a song by American hip hop disc jockey DJ Drama, released on May 13, 2011 as the lead single from his third studio album, Third Power. The song was produced by Memphis-based producer Drumma Boy, and features guest performances from American rappers Fabolous, Roscoe Dash and Wiz Khalifa. "Oh My" peaked at number 95 on the Billboard Hot 100—becoming Drama's first entry on the chart—and number 18 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
Third Power is the third studio album by American hip hop disc jockey DJ Drama. It was released on October 11, 2011. It marks his first album not to be released in the Gangsta Grillz series, after his previous two studio albums Gangsta Grillz: The Album (2007) and Gangsta Grillz: The Album (2009). Featured guests on the album include Fabolous, Wiz Khalifa, Roscoe Dash, Freddie Gibbs, Young Jeezy, Wale, J. Cole, Chris Brown, Pusha T, French Montana, Crooked I, B.o.B, Gucci Mane, Ya Boy, Akon, Trey Songz, and Big Sean, among others.
Michael Len Williams II, known professionally as Mike Will Made It or simply Mike Will, is an American record producer. He is best known for producing trap beats for several Southern hip hop and pop artists on commercially successful singles. His credits include "Black Beatles" and "Powerglide" by Rae Sremmurd, "Mercy" by Kanye West, "No Lie" by 2 Chainz, "Bandz a Make Her Dance" by Juicy J, "Pour It Up" by Rihanna, "Love Me" by Lil Wayne, "Body Party" by Ciara, "We Can't Stop" by Miley Cyrus, "Formation" by Beyoncé, and "Humble" by Kendrick Lamar. He embarked on a career as a non-performing lead artist in 2013 with his debut single "23", which peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100. His 2017 follow-up single, "Rake It Up" peaked at number eight on the chart. He has released six mixtapes and one solo studio album, Ransom 2 (2017).
Trap is a subgenre of hip hop music which originated in the Southern United States, with lyrical references to trap starting in 1991 but the modern sound of trap appearing in 1999. The genre gets its name from the Atlanta slang term "trap house", a house used exclusively to sell drugs. Trap music is known for its simple, rhythmic, minimalistic productions that uses synthesized drums, and is characterized by complex hi-hat patterns, snare drums, bass drums, some tuned with a long decay to emit a bass frequency, and lyrical content that often focuses on drug use and urban violence.
Joshua Howard Luellen, known professionally as Southside, is an American record producer, rapper and songwriter. Based in Atlanta, he is recognized in the music industry for his aggressive, trap-infused production work for prominent hip hop artists. His association with hometown rapper Waka Flocka Flame led Luellen to sign to his label Brick Squad Monopoly, an imprint of Gucci Mane's 1017 Records, as in-house talent in 2010. Luellen and labelmate, fellow producer Lex Luger established the production team 808 Mafia that same year, who were credited on several commercially successful releases throughout the remaining decade.
Sonny Corey Uwaezuoke, better known by his stage name Sonny Digital, is an American record producer, rapper, and DJ. He first saw recognition for his production work on YC's 2011 single "Racks", which peaked within the top 50 of the Billboard Hot 100. Throughout the following decade, he was credited on a string of commercially successful hip hop and trap singles including ILoveMakonnen's "Tuesday", Future's "Same Damn Time", 50 Cent's "I'm the Man", 2 Chainz's "Birthday Song", and Travis Scott's "Stargazing". Uwaezuoke has also produced for XXL Magazine's Freshman Hip Hop Cyphers in 2017 and 2018, and pursued a lukewarmly-received career as a recording artist.
Walter Scott Williams, known professionally as Scotty ATL, is an American actor, entrepreneur, rapper, record producer, and songwriter.
The 2014 BET Hip Hop Awards was held on October 14, 2014 at Atlanta Civic Center in the ATL. The nominations were announced on September 4, 2014. Snoop Dogg returned as the event's host. Canadian rapper Drake leads the nominations with 8 nominations, while Jay-Z, Pharrell and Future follow him with six. DJ Mustard won the most awards with 4 wins, followed by Drake with 3 wins.
Terry Landers Jr., professionally known as ImaShiine, is an American record producer from Detroit, Michigan. ImaShiine Is best known for producing, hip hop R&B, and Trap instrumentals for independent music industry. He is also known for founding the musical software company ProSoundz..
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