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Yella Beezy stays dropping hit after hit. Hailing from Dallas and rocking the town’s popular hairstyle called the shag, real name Deandre Conway exploded on to the rap scene with his viral single “That’s On Me,” which received the ultimate remix when 2 Chainz, T.I., Rich The Kid, Jeezy, Boosie Badazz, and Trapboy Freddy hoped on it.
Not only does this collaboration defy boundaries, the visual has accumulated over 151 million views on YouTube and counting. But, that’s nothing new for Beezy. Nearly everything the 28-year-old drops online garners instant attention with each of his videos getting millions of views just days of their releases.
Not only is Beezy’s success well-deserved and respected, it’s his effortless ability to create a banger equipped with a catchy hook that stays in your head for days on end. His distinct voice is undeniable, one that proudly stands out in hip hop. In 2019, the artist teamed up with Chris Brown on “Restroom Occupied,” which proved that he can show out in the R&B realm, as well.
Currently signed to HitCo, Beezy continues to consistently unleash street anthems that serve as reminders of his humble beginnings, and overcoming battles in his Oak Cliff neighborhood where he grew up. When it comes to hometown presence, nothing will top his 2019’s stint opening for Beyonce and JAY-Z at the Arlington stop of their “On The Run Tour.”
Now, fans wait patiently for his forthcoming project, which follows the release of Summer 2019’s Baccend Beezy. REVOLT caught up with Beezy to discuss his music, his new visual for “Keep It In The Streets,” wanting to be as big as Michael Jackson, and more. Read below!
“Hit Yo Dance” with Rubi Rose and NLE Choppa has been going crazy. Heard it was your idea to repeat the line, “Hit yo dance.”
Yeah, it’s been going crazy. It was BET weekend, the first night we went in there to listen to music. I played him some music. His car got broken in to within the first five minutes, so we had to reschedule the session and meet up with him the next day. That’s how that session came about. I had recorded a few songs, then Rubi was in there. That was my first time meeting her in the studio. We’re in there just vibing. I was putting down hooks for them, we came up with the “Hit Yo Dance” shit together.
I heard Rubi took the verse home, right?
She was in the back. I know Hitmaka came up with the first part, I came up with the second part. I left after that. We had a lot of shit going because it was BET weekend, so we’re in and out. I went to that studio session, I’d jump from studio session to studio session.
Have you known Hitmaka?
Personally, nah. We linked up not too long ago. I’ve been knowing though. When he did that first song “The Business,” I’ve been knowing.
Every single one of your videos hit millions of views almost instantly. What do you make of that?
Shit, thankful. Just good quality music. A good enough core fanbase.
Do you care just as much about your visuals?
Hell yeah. Certain songs you got to bring out a certain type of visual for.
What’s your favorite visual you’ve done?
I had fun doing the “Rich MF” in Vegas at the casino. That’s because I always wanted to shoot a video at the casino. We took it over. Shout out to Renzo and Fertitta Brothers.
Did you gamble that night?
Yup. Ask him if he did (points to friend). That man lost money! He gambled until we left the next day (laughs). I like to play Craps. That’s easier than cards if you ask me. It’s easy. They get casinos out here.
What’s your secret to creating a hit?
Nothing, you have to have a good ass beat. Just a beat, I’m going to vibe and come up with the concept fast. Easy.
Do you have go-to producers?
Right now, just the ones I’m working with. Monstah on the Beat, people from back home in Dallas.
Are you still freestyling everything?
Yeah. I don’t write anything. If you’re making hits, you’re making hits.
How do you create a vibe in the studio?
To create a vibe, all I need is beats and water.
How was linking with Ty Dolla $ign on “Ay Ya Ya Ya Ya”?
That was cool. On the tour, our rooms were next door to each other one day, he was just playing music real hard. They had big ass speakers, he’s playing the music real loud and I went over there. As soon as I walked in, he’s like, “Get on the song.” I didn’t even say wassup to him yet, he told me, “Get on the song” as soon as I walked in. I ended up playing “Ay Ya Ya Ya Ya” for him and he wanted to get on it.
How was the energy with him?
He’s cool. Everybody was on that tour. We’re out here with good vibes. We ain’t had no problem with nobody. Nobody got into it. It was all good, positive vibes for real.
Best memory from the video shoot?
Me throwing water on my partner’s face when he went to sleep. Behind the scenes, two to three times. “Wake up!”
What’s the dumbest thing you dropped a bag on?
My clothes (laughs). Dumbest thing I dropped a bag on… losing money on gambling. That’s about the dumbest shit you can do. I done lost some money, man. Think the most I had lost on dice one time was $30,000; $40,000.
You didn’t try to win it back?
Yes, but I ended up going more in the hole. You try to chase that $30,000 or $40,000 and be down $80,000. No sir! I get that $30,000 back in one show, I’m cool.
What were you going through when you recorded “Keep It In The Streets”?
Keep this shit in the streets, mayne! Off the internet. Just internet bumpin’. Internet trolls. It was just a feeling I thought of that time. When I heard the song, “Just keep that shit in the streets!” Keep your business off Instagram. Whatever your business is, keep it at home or in the streets.
Don’t you think that’s so hard nowadays because everyone’s on it?
No, it’s only hard when you want to chase clout. You’re not a clout chasing ass person, it’s very easy to keep it in the streets. Go get that by the way. Go download it, stream it, and watch the video.
Favorite memory from that shoot?
Short Dog (OG from the hood) didn’t have any goddamn teeth in his mouth. On the comments, that’s all they talk about (laughs). On the Instagram, they’re like, “The old school guy, he’s smiling too hard. He has no goddamn teeth in his damn mouth.” Shout out to Short Dog.
Is Yella Beezy dating?
Who me?! Yeah, I’m dating. I’m dedicated!
You don’t post her do you?
Nah, we keep people out of our business. Keep it in the streets (laughs). See, that’s how the internet gets involved, that’s when the relationship starts crashing.
How often are you on Instagram?
I check it a lot. I post about at least three times a week. Not as much as I need to though, I post a lot.
How important is YouTube compared to Instagram?
YouTube is very important because YouTube creates a lot of shit for people. That’s where you go watch videos, old videos, content, blogs, all types of shit. YouTube is a very big part of the game because a lot of people like seeing visuals. Me personally, there’s a lot of times I didn’t like the song until I actually saw the video. The video brings music to life to a certain extent.
What’s an example?
Let’s see. It didn’t happen recently but back in the day, before people were on YouTube… the Kid Cudi song “Day ‘N’ Nite” (sings). The song didn’t catch until I saw the video.
Did you know Pop Smoke?
Not personally. I went to New York for promo, it was me and my manager. I left them at the room because he’s always going to asleep. I went over to the club with Casanova, it was his girlfriend’s birthday party. That Pop Smoke “Welcome to the Party” song was fresh, first time I ever heard it. When they played it, they went fucking crazy. They went stupid. I leaned over and asked Cas was that him. He’s like, “Nah,” but he’s from his hood.
After that, we went to another club. They played it again, people went crazy. I’m like, “Man, who’s that?” I didn’t know who he was. I found his name out when Meek Mill came home, he posted something about him. I’m like, “Oh, that’s the song I heard that they’re going crazy [to].” I looked up the song, that’s when I saw it’s him. I honestly liked the song, fasho.
What do you make of all the recent deaths in hip hop?
It’s fucked up because he was so young. He just got started. People had just started hearing about him outside of New York within a six to eight month span. I didn’t know he was that young. He was nothing but 20 years old. That was fucked up to me.
What do you want your legacy to be?
Everything. I want to create a bigger legacy, somebody you’re going to talk about and remember forever. Through kids. You know how Michael Jackson’s name lives on? Two-year-old, three-year-old kids know who Michael Jackson is. He’s been dead for how long? He’s been dead damn near 10 years and little kids know who he is. That’s a legacy.
How do you plan on getting there?
Working. I have to find that route. Whatever the route is, I have to take it and do it. No disrespect, I’m saying that’s a legacy. You’re born in the ‘50s or ‘60s, you’re the world’s biggest pop star ever. You die and 10 years later, you still have little kids knowing who you are. Trying to moonwalk still. You’re forever talked about, that’s a real legacy. I’m trying to be to music what Michael Jackson was to music. What the Michael Jordans are to basketball. What the Mayweathers and the Mike Tysons are to boxing.