Damizza - A Feature Story On a Music Icon

Damizza

It is rare that I get to talk to someone and feel as if I’m listening to myself. Sort of. I worked in FM radio as a Music Director and On-Air personality for six years. During that time I got to meet some of the most influential artists in music such as Kanye West, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, Pitbull and many more. When you work in the entertainment industry and it is your job to hang out with a variety of celebrities, you begin to gather a lot of stories that the average person doesn’t see. Friends of mine would always say stuff like, “What was it like hanging out with Fonzworth Bentley. Is John Legend cool? Was Big Sean nice?” Granted I’ve had some good run ins with celebrities and some not so good run ins. But those are another story. Now, I worked in radio in Texas. Austin, TX. A great city, but not a huge entertainment hub like Houston or Dallas. Could you imagine the stories that someone from one of those cities would have. What about someone from New York or Los Angeles. Los Angeles, I can only dream. Or could a dream become a reality?

Damion “Damizza” Young is has been a staple in the music industry for more than 25 years. Damizza is best known as being a producer for artists such as Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, and Mariah Carey. He produced several of Carey’s hits such as “Crybaby” and “I Still Believe”. He was also named the #4 most powerful person in Hip Hop by The Source magazine in 1999. Damizza was also a former radio programmer and worked at Power 106 in Los Angeles where he became Senior Director of Programming and Artist Relations. With accolades and accomplishments throughout the music industry, Damizza is now releasing a memoir entitled “Guilty By Association”.

“I’m the luckiest dude on the planet. I’m a fan of the music and the cool things I see I want to share with the people”, says Damizza. When I asked him about his inspiration for the book he goes on to say, “I wanted to share what it was like, from a fans perspective, to see how it was Eminem recorded music. To see how it was when (Dr) Dre and Snoop worked on Chronic 2001.” These are stories that any fan, including myself, want to read about it and feel as if I’m in the room when these events are taking place. However, the book has come under fire by some critics and tabloids. The biggest uproar has to do with Damizza’s relationship with Mariah Carey. Damizza responded to his critics with this quote.

"I think Nick Cannon is a brilliant person that does not get enough credit.  And this is old business.  So lil' homie step back, that's with my respect.  My name is DAMION YOUNG. I'm an alcoholic. And I have to stop lying. Yes. Mariah & I dated. It was hell. Everybody in this industry saw what I did for Mariah. And for what I did, or said, I have NO apologies. If you think for 1 second I'm afraid of Facebooks' lawyer, that Mariah is hiding behind, you are crazy. Sweetheart, are you afraid I might say something that would end your career? Wielding a confidentiality clause that I had drafted for your protection from J.Lo, who was stealing your records thru SONY? OK, "Let's be real." I would have done that a long time ago. If this was personal. But, like Nick said.. "Hey, this is entertainment". I'm sick of the lawyers. I'm sick of lying to make people happy & tell them what they want to hear. That's not what I'm about. I AM A REAL PERSON. And you, are hiding behind a lawyer because you feel to guilty to pick up the phone and say "I'm sorry, I really did put you thru hell."”

“The truth isn't always popular.. but, it's always the truth. This book was never about money. It was never about exploiting and snitching on all the artists I put on or assisted in their time of need. This book was the most sanitized version of my story I could give, without hurting any one's feelings. Mariah read the chapter. She offered "Suggestions to make it better". Being a nice guy & a loyal friend I obliged. And in return I got a new confidentiality agreement that not only was retroactive, but, she could name her price if she felt offended. I'm offended. Be a REAL PERSON. Come out of the glass box. If you have something to say or if anyone in this industry has something to say to say. I ain't never been too hard to find. Feel Me?”

I have to believe from what Damizza told me that this book isn’t about the money. Number one, he’s giving it away absolutely for free. Number two, you can hear in his voice how passionate he is about the music and the lifestyle and how he wants to bring reader into the moments that have changed hip hop and music and made it what it is today. Basically no different that what a musician does when he steps in the studio and records a song.

Being a former radio guy, I had to ask him how he felt about radio from a new artists standpoint. “It’s sad as fuck. They’re not breaking artists”, says Damizza. He added “Now its more homogenized. It’s rare that you have a personality that’s a personality.” I also asked Damizza how he felt about the new music artists coming up. Specifically, I asked he felt as some people do that some artists are using gimmicks to get attention or if they are just different artistically. His answer, “Hip Hop is an art form. You have more choices. It’s just something that is different. Hip Hop reflects life and that’s what that is.” With that, I asked him how a new artist should approach a strategy to make it in the music business. “Get seen as much as you can be seen”, says Damizza. “Keep your eye on the prize. Be passionate about what it is and find people with the same passion. And stay away from passive people. Believe in yourself.”

Damizza’s book “Guilty By Association” comes out December 14th and will be free of charge on www.DamizzaBook.com. The book features stories about Damizza’s times with artists such as Jay-Z, Michael Jackson, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and many more. You can also follow Damizza on twitter at www.twitter.com/Damizza.

I went into this interview thinking, ok, I’m interviewing Damizza. A legendary figure in the music industry, he’s got a book coming out, this book is about things he’s done, and he’s letting fans in on all the things that they probably would never know about certain incidents. Little did I know that this interview would turn into another story for me in my career an an entertainment professional that I can look back on and say “man, remember that time I interviewed Damizza?”



Check out this clip below to see how passionate Damizza is about Hip Hop.