Denzil Porter

Sunday nights are usually pretty boring for me. I count down the hours until I have to go to bed and wake up to get ready for the 9 to 5. Yuck! Last Sunday night (July 22) was anything but boring. I made my way to see the rapper Denzil Porter rock the stage at The Studio at Webster Hall in NYC. He walked out on stage, grabbed the mic, and showed everyone that his words can cause a wave that will swallow you whole. The mic was like his hostage, being dragged with him wherever he strided on stage. He performed songs from his mixtape Home Made Music with so much energy that you would think he was a spark about to start a fire.  Mr. Porter's songs are all unique, from tunes that have catchy hooks, like "Why you gotta be such an asshole," in the song "Kanye West" to tunes that will have your ears running to keep up with all the words that spill out of his mouth, as in "Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde". I was really blown away after listening and watching Denzil Porter's song "Intuition" on Youtube. The video has a surprise ending, but  I don't want to spoil it for you. Click here to watch. I bet this rapper from the Bronx will be signed and doing big things in the next five years. Keep an eye out for Denzil Porter.

An Interview with Denzil Porter

(MD: MusicDosage, DP: Denzil Porter)



Photo by Lailaa

MD: Can you give me a brief history of how you got into hip hop?


DP: Back in elementary school, I used to come home and watch music videos and judge them on my own, as if I was the one behind the music. Three other students and I started singing our own lyrics in the park of P.S. 16 in the Bronx.

MD: Can you describe how you came up with the song “Kanye West"?

DP: After doing some traveling with my music, I realized that people all over have this view about New Yorkers being the way they are. So, contrary to the title, the song is actually about the people of my hometown.

MD: Is your family musically inclined?

Not that I know of... yet. I plan to do some research myself to see if I'm the first leaf on the musical stem of the family tree, but my parents did raise us on all sorts of music from Bob Marley to Busta Rhymes.

MD: What motivates you to write a song?

DP: It depends. 98% of the time it's inspiration... what that inspiration stems from is a different story. I may be inspired by wherever the beat takes me OR I may have some events I need to get off my chest. It's really inspiration. A lot of times I feel challenged, especially on a beat that is fully designed, but the challenge is the fun part. After getting the tools and putting my mind to it, I let the inspiration speak.

MD: Is there a moment in your music career thus far that stands out?

DP: Right now, I'm in the early stages of my career so everything stands out. From my first release "Intuition," I got to see the different side of things and it opened some doors for me to hit some major blogs and get some recognition. It kind of introduced me into the underground. Though still hard to understand, just like almost any venture, the hard work comes with some sort of kick back. I've met a couple dope artist, had some amazing shows and been to some dope places, and there's more to come so everyday stands out for me.

MD: Where do you see yourself in the next five years?

DP: In the next 5 years I hope my talent will help me to reach almost, if not, icon status. My rookie year would be long passed and I would be at the point of maintaining and keeping my fans happy. I'll be better at my craft, since the only way is up, if I keep it up.

MD: If you could perform with anyone in the world, dead or alive, who would it be?

DP: Robert Nesta Marley hands down. You can watch the soul take over his body on stage. Witness someone speak his mind in front of thousands, performing as if there was not a soul in the building - Amazing. Youtube every Bob performance and you will be stuck.

MD: Do you have a particular routine before performing live?

DP: Before performing live, I do some breathing exercises. I go on stage and use a lot of energy so breathing is important to me. I listen to some of my stuff and imagine how I want to project it differently from the last then I grab the mic and do my thing.

MD: If I give you a topic to rap about, such as "global warming", could you be able to give me a few lines?

DP: Lol a written freestyle?! Hmm.. well,well look who just stormed in/ step shake, earth quake, make they house board in/ heating up like global warming, catching sun rays as it's beaming/ any time I'm in the booth I'm breaking ices off of greenland (green_lin)/. It's better than you think, it's how you pronounce & project it. haha!

MD: Where would you most like to perform?

DP: Madison Square Garden, of course. It is the arena of my hometown but I don't want to just perform there - no... It has to be something BIG! MAJOR!

MD: If you weren't rapping, what would you be doing?

DP: I get asked this question all the time. I was so focused on this dream so early I made the mistake and never took the time to think about that much. If not music, I would probably be in some sort of technology field. I like breaking and rebuilding things like ipods and sidekicks (remember those?) but yea I used to fix everybody's stuff around the hood. Or I would probably be in the underworld like a lot of the people are where I'm from. I can never blame them though, we all can't do music but we all have to survive.



Mixtapes:

- On My Way Home (2008)
- Live from the Other Side (2010)
- Home Made Music (2011)

Website: DenzilPorter.com