Donwill on The Almanac of Rap & The Art of the Interview

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Almanac of Rap Promo Spot

[00:00:00]

Jay Ray: What's up? This episode of Queue Points is brought to you by Okayplayer's Almanac of Rap. Enjoy the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you enjoy your podcasts. Peace

Intro Theme

Welcome to the Show & Guest Introduction

Sir Daniel: Greetings and welcome to another episode of Queue Points podcast. I am DJ Sir Daniel.

Jay Ray: And my name is Jay Ray, sometimes known by my government as Johnnie Ray Kornegay III. And Sir Daniel, I gotta say we got a legend in the building.

Sir Daniel: We have guests. I've straightened up. I've made sure that, you know, the right lighting is, is hinting. The albums are straightened. Um, you can't see it right now. The sign is a little crooked. I didn't get to that. But Jay Ray, there's been a [00:01:00] lot of hip hop conversations going on. You know, albums have dropped and people are just, things are things people are saying all kinds of stuff.

And there's a lot of glazing, there's a lot of praising and all of it carrying on and all of that is fine. But here at Queue Points, we believe in speaking to people who are genuine articles of the art of hip hop, people that know what they're talking about, people that actually love the music and the arts, and the different elements of hip hop.

So I think our guest fits all of that criteria. Jay Ray, what do you say?

Jay Ray: Absolutely. Our, our guest lives, this culture is, this culture breathes this culture.

Sharing Donwill's Bio

Jay Ray: And before we introduce him, I, I want to just do two things. 'cause what's great is there are these folks in the Queue Points universe that, that this person is also connected to. So we gotta shout out LiKWUiD,

Sir Daniel: Yes.

Jay Ray: making sure

Sir Daniel: Much love to

Jay Ray: this

Sir Daniel: LiKWUiD.

Jay Ray: [00:02:00] happen.

Al Pete. So he's been on Mr. Al Pete's podcast. Of course, Mr. Al, Pete is our brother. But, um, folks joining us on our show today is Donwill. Donwill is a certified rap encyclopedia, or rather in Almanac ha. He is the host of The Almanac of Rap. Webby award-winning podcast. A Webby award-winning Okayplayer produced podcast series. The series combines rap conversations with deep in the weeds, fandom and satirical humor. All curated by Donwill himself, a former blogger who's written for the Village Voice traded book recommendations with Lupe Fiasco and rapped with Drake.

As a member of the duo Tanya Morgan, Donwill employs a workman like approach to the art of journalism, taking at least a week to research each episode of his show. appreciation as much as attention to craft. It's [00:03:00] also why his podcast stands as a show by and for the culture. More specifically speaking, Donwill is the culture.

He is the rapper-turned-podcaster we deserve And it is. Without further ado, Queue Points family. Welcome Donwill to the show. What's

Sir Daniel: Welcome. What's happening Don?

Donwill: Listen, man, I was listening to that, to the, to the introduction, the greeting, and I'm like, this for me? Are

Jay Ray: It is

Donwill: me?

Jay Ray: you.

Donwill: He

Sir Daniel: That's you. That's you.

Donwill: so it must be about me, but I don't know if I know what I'm talking about all the time.

Sir Daniel: Absolutely. And

 Donwill on The Almanac of Rap — Origin Story

Sir Daniel: You put in the work, you put in the hard yards to, to get this rep and to, you know, this reputation. And clearly you have a love for rap music and hip hop. Hip hop in general. Just school, our viewers and listeners right now and tell us a little bit about The Almanac of Rap and just this [00:04:00] inception and why'd you even start calling it the Almanac?

Donwill: So was called, initially it came about from a Twitch stream. I used to do, um, I had a, I used to stream on Twitch during the pandemic and a friend of mine, DJ Lindsay, had a show on Sonos Radio called, think it was called Black is, um, but it was just a show about just black culture and black, really black musical touchpoints and things within the black community. And she would come to my Twitch stream and I would like do these like rants about artists. I have, I had a rant about LL Cool J as one of the most ridiculous people to ever. Just a ridiculous man.

Jay Ray: I wanna hear this rant

Sir Daniel: Listen, you've got my attention.

Jay Ray: right.

Donwill: will give you the abbreviated version. LL Cool J has been unhinged the entire time. He's maniacal. Like from seeing him on the I'm bad video running down the [00:05:00] street and then jumping around a condemned warehouse, like I was like, oh, this man is special. And he's proven to be as special as we think he is. Up until like, like, uh, the "Deepest, bluest, my hat is like a shark's fin."

Jay Ray: Yeah. Yeah.

Donwill: So imagine an hour's worth of that with music and commentary and stopping the song and like talking about the lyrics. And my friend was like, you should really look at like, adapting this into a show and trying to like make a show about I don't know what, but I think you have the personality for it. Um, and prior to that I had been podcasting before. I had a show called a Book of Rhymes where I, um, just interviewed lyric interviewed artists about their catalog and about their lyrics. Before that, I had a podcast called Bad With Names, where I would just interview friends and people about whatever, you know. was more or less just about the art of conversation, just talking to people.

Um, I've always had like a, I. I don't know. I just really like recording and I like the audio space.

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: know, like outside of [00:06:00] doing lyric, outside of rapping and recording lyrics, it just lent itself to spending more time with voices. Like getting in the DAW and getting in the dig digital audio workstation and editing the voices and like putting effects on there.

Like it's, it is just so much fun for me to play in that way. Um, the show itself, the Almanac rap, so all of that to say, um, I,

On Research, Preparation & Respecting Guests

Donwill: I do have a deep care for hip hop.

Sir Daniel: Mm.

Donwill: And I have a deep, deep care for interviewing and for treating guests a certain way because as an artist myself, I do remember, I remember good interviews and I remember bad interviews.

I remember interviews where you would show up and the person would be like, and what's your name? What, what did you, what did you do? Who are, what do you do?

Sir Daniel: Yeah.

Donwill: you would get thrown into like a, like basically just you would get thrown into a conversation with a stranger who hadn't done any research because either their team hadn't researched them or they just didn't do it. And part of the reason why I take so long to [00:07:00] do my research is because I at least want to have like a working knowledge of the person I'm talking to.

Jay Ray: Hmm.

Donwill: I have had, I, like, I like a week, but I have had like interviews that I've had to turn around in like 24 hours,

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: And I think that, that the way that my anxiety is set up, you can't really tell if it's been a week or 48 hours.

Sir Daniel: Yeah, no, I could relate to that. I could relate to that as a, as a dj, like, especially when we're talking about vinyl, I need to know what I'm playing. Like I know, I, I know several DJs that just bring crates with them,

Jay Ray: records

Sir Daniel: and they just, they're just like, Hmm, eh, I guess I'll just play this. And I'm like, the way my anxiety is set up cannot, cannot.

And I, I, I appreciate that as well with regards to interviewing, because we put the same amount of care into what we do here at Queue Points. So, Jay Ray, I think we, we've met another cousin. We've definitely, uh, akin, [00:08:00] this is definitely kinfolk here.

Jay Ray: Absolutely.

Donwill: could tell by the, uh, by the guest email, like the email that was sent to

Jay Ray: Oh, we do like that.

Donwill: Yeah. I, I was like, I, I know what I'm getting into it. I felt very comfortable,

Sir Daniel: Yeah.

Donwill: comfortable coming onto the show. Like, I've, I've gotten somewhere. I'm just like, let's see how this turns out.

Jay Ray: So glad.

Donwill: Shout out to anybody that wants to talk to me at all. Like, I, I

Jay Ray: Yes.

Donwill: anybody that's willing to share their platform with me, but a show goes that extra mile to really just care about the details and buttoning things down and making sure that the guest feels like their time is going to be respected in a way, you know, that's the thing that I care the most about is making sure my guests know that I respect their time and the fact that they show up for me, you know?

Jay Ray: And that's what we definitely strive to do. And I'm so glad you had that experience, brother. We appreciate that note. Um, I, I, moving from, so there's the [00:09:00] stage, there's all the stuff you do musically, and then of course being in this, uh, this, this podcast space in this current moment, what are some things that are the same that you bring from that world into this work?

And what are some things that you're like, Ooh, I've had to really learn how to do this and really, really figure it out?

From Stage to Mic — What Performing Taught Him About Podcasting

Donwill: I think the thing that I've had to learn how to do more than anything is be present. And it's gonna sound really weird, but I think that, you know, as a DJ you can relate, um, sometimes when you're performing whatever your craft is and you've rehearsed it and done it so many times, you can go to autopilot.

Like, I, like, there's so many countless stories of artists and other people who will be on stage and be doing the, the hit song and be like, yeah, I was thinking about what we got, what we gonna eat later after the show. Or I had to think like, you get so distracted by the life that you're living [00:10:00] the other things, the external forces in that life that sometimes it's hard to really ground yourself in that moment. so sometimes when I was on stage, like I have to remember to be present on stage.

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: remember like, you're in front of X amount of people performing a song. Just because you know the words and your body understands exactly what to do. When this bar comes, still lock in. 'cause, so on the flip, when you're in a conversation with a person. Like you have to lock in.

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: be distracted, especially when it's being recorded because it comes off, you know what I'm saying? that's one of the main things that I, you know, that I've, I've had to like, adjust to. But something that I brought from the music space, um, and brought from performance space. Is just curiosity. I'll say that,

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: um, you know, like really, like when you're writing a rhyme or when you're looking for a record for a mix, or when you're looking for a sample, you almost have to be curious in a different sort of [00:11:00] way, like in a way that makes you unique. Like,

The Art of the Just-Outside-the-Frame Question

Donwill: I always say that I like to think of, think about the questions that I pose in interviews as being things that are just outside of the frame.

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: know what I'm saying? It's like you see a picture and you see somebody in a picture in like the background, like

Sir Daniel: Yeah. Yeah.

Jay Ray: Yes.

Donwill: like, well, what was he pointing at?

Jay Ray: Right.

Donwill: you, you start to go through a whole forensic essay and of like, okay, so they're in a supper club and the light was demo over there, so maybe he couldn't see like you. And that's, that's where my mind usually goes is I'm always trying to figure out a interesting angle to talk to a person that may have been talked to a million times or that may have never been talked to, you know?

Jay Ray: Man, you, you, that clearly comes across in The Almanac of Rap. So I'm going to give people, I'm gonna give y'all a spoiler for one of the things that you'll experience if you check out Donwill's show. So I was checking out the Raekwon show you asked him one of the most fascinating questions, and you was like, why was the tape purple?

And I said, why was

Sir Daniel: Huh?[00:12:00]

Jay Ray: purple?

Sir Daniel: Huh.

Jay Ray: And to have him be like, actually it was supposed to be green, but they didn't have green. I said, that is the best question ever.

Donwill: the best because the thing is you just assume like, oh, he wanted it to be purple the whole time. 'cause like purple is the color of royalty. It means so much. It's also one of those colors that like, it speaks volumes. If you

Jay Ray: Yes.

Donwill: purple, you'd notice it. And if you see, if you see green, it doesn't really, I mean, I love green, but it doesn't really hit the same

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: Like green is more of a grounding color, and purple is more like this kind of opulent royal color. So for me, when he said it was like, oh, it was supposed to be green, I was just like, what?

Jay Ray: Right. Like, but why?

Donwill: yeah, if, if, if the multiverse is real and we go back in time to when Raekwon dropped the green tape, I don't, I don't think it would've hit the same, you know, I think, I think that that, I think that the marketing of the purple tape, even saying the

Jay Ray: The real tape.

Donwill: it's more fun with a two [00:13:00] syllable word, with a, p puck gr like, just thinking about the, the syllables in the word like. Green tape. Don't really got that, but purple. You got, you have to reckon with the word purple. You have to like say it.

Jay Ray: Yes.

Donwill: you can't, you can't really like just lazily say purple.

Jay Ray: No.

Donwill: say green. You know what

Sir Daniel: Yeah, you, you definitely have to take your knife and fork with it, slice it up. You, you just can't devour that and just try to swallow that whole, that's absolutely correct. And that's the mark of someone who takes their craft seriously. And, um, we talk about music journalism and hip hop journalism is spoken a lot of lately, has been spoken a lot of these days.

And you know,

Jay Ray: Hmm.

Sir Daniel: anybody can get a microphone and, you know, set up some cameras and, you know, have conversations like who's your, [00:14:00] who's your favorite top five dead or alive

Jay Ray: Yes.

Sir Daniel: until the cows come home. But Donwill, what are the conversations that we're not having in hip hop? What are the conversations that we should be having right now in this state of the, the state of the music, the state of the world?

What are the conversations that you think that we should be having? Instead of things that might be a little, you know, banal that people keep talking about over and over again in these spaces.

Donwill: Hmm. think that a conversation that's starting to bubble to the surface, because it has to, is not even ageism, but just aging into hip hop and just, you know, like, like a lot of, a lot of artists we, we love are entering their fifties or leaving their forties, or, you know what I'm saying? Like, so that, that aspect of, of just being an adult, it's, it's something that comes up in conversation because when you, if you interview De La Soul or you interview Common or you know, [00:15:00] MC Lyte or Pete Rock, you, like, you almost have to talk about adulthood in a different way.

I mean, you, you don't have to, but they bring that into the room with them. So their answers are gonna be different. Like, like if you asking somebody like, yo, what do you do after a show? And they're like, I go to sleep.

Jay Ray: Right.

Donwill: It's

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: you asked them, ask them when,

Jay Ray: Right.

Donwill: put on some Icy Hot, I'm wrapping I'm wrapping my knee.

But you asked them that 20 years ago and it's like, ah, man, we going to the club and the studio and Whoopty whoop. Or you know, like, just in terms of like their, their wellness routine and like how they, how they recuperate from studio or the tour. So that sort of thing is something that I feel like is being talked about more.

Something that I don't think is being talked about enough in general. Ah, man, it's tough because nothing's being talked about.

Jay Ray: Let's go. No, I mean, let's, no, let's stay there.

Donwill: say I, I don't wanna say nothing. I don't wanna be like salacious for the sake of having a thing. But I will say [00:16:00] that lot of hip hop journalism and a lot of outlets can't really, they can't compete with Instagram and they can't compete with social media.

So they're kind of beholden to, you know, just asking the same old questions or asking questions that, asking questions about Instagram. 'cause they're

Sir Daniel: Right.

Donwill: up with the thing that's happening. So, you know, they're not taking a chance to look the, the fullness of an artist or the fullness of their personhood or career.

They're just focused on like, so you, you, I saw a post where you was like, you were going back and forth with Bootsy, tell me about that. Or some shit. And it's not really you know.

Sir Daniel: like, so, so let's just stay there for a second. So. We talk a lot about gatekeeping here on Queue Points and you know, not inviting everybody to the cookout

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: Mm-hmm.

Sir Daniel: so there are a lot of [00:17:00] conversations I feel are not being handled, talking about maturity, are not being handled with maturity, are not being handled with, um, with any kind of finesse or pro, just a lot of gotcha moments.

There's a lot of sensationalism and so it's like, who, how do the, the formats, how do the people that, the platforms that are actually taking the gig seriously and wanting to have those conversations, how do we uplift that and how do we offset the algorithm to pick, pick that up more instead of, you know, the clip, the clip baits that we're getting that're being fed.

Donwill: I,

Hip Hop Journalism in the Age of the Clip

Donwill: I think that. It's. I'm trying to think of, trying to formulate my thoughts correctly because like we're at the point where the clip is the whole thing. the clip

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: you know, we we're recording this [00:18:00] conversation for your listeners and the people who watch the whole thing are gonna get it, but there are people who will only encounter whatever clip goes out and that's, that's the end and beginning of the relationship.

You know what I'm saying? And I'm fully aware of that now, and I understand that there's a, a art to the clip and making sure that the clip is at least poignant enough to cause a conversation in the space that it exists in. but you know, the other thing is that, and I don't know if this answers the question, Budin along, like, he, he was the first person that I remember saying the word poin, like P-O-D-D-I-N, like, oh, oh.

Now we podding, like when things are getting meaty in the podcast and I don't think people really. Understood the gravity of that word when he

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: it. And I'm, I'm, when I say the gravity, I mean like when he says, now we're podding, that means now we're in character of, of who we are for the audience, the forward facing character of [00:19:00] the podcast.

Like if your podcast is a red pill thing, then that's when you get, that's when you do it. That's when you in it. If your podcast is a financial podcast and you really in a, in a bag talking about some, some finance shit, that's when you're podding. So I think that people just assume that the people on the microphones are who they are the whole time.

Sir Daniel: Mm-hmm.

Donwill: sometimes you're just, they're just in character

Jay Ray: Right.

Donwill: and those are the, those are the things that get clipped up and I think that the best way to combat it. Brother, I, it's gonna sound dire, but I don't know if we can comment.

Jay Ray: That's real.

Donwill: man. I think we here and I think that our job, I think that our job as media and content creators and artists is to do whatever our version of that is.

Like get in our bag, get in, get in our, like our character and embody whatever moment that we're in is. So like if I'm, [00:20:00] if I'm talking to Raekwon about the color of the tape and he said some real shit, there we are.

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: you service that. Or know, I think, I think the, it was not even a fight fire with fire, it's just to let that bitch burn. Sorry for cussing. Sorry for cussing.

Jay Ray: You are good.

Transition

Jay Ray: ​this is leading me to a, a, a place. And I'm, I'm curious about this, like when you put on your, your artist hat, right? Um, it is different in this moment. Shout also. Shout out. It's the 20th anniversary of Moonlighting, actually. So 2006 is when that record came out.

Artists, Social Media, and Just Being Yourself

Jay Ray: Y'all came in right at that time when everything was shifting. Literally all the widgets were moving at that moment in 2006. Uh, to where kind of moving us to where we are [00:21:00] now. Now there isn't, when artists need to get put on, they're using their social, they have to build their audiences themselves now basically before they get put on. but for those artists that are like, listen, I'm good at making beats. I'm good at getting on the mic. What I am not good at is getting on social media and, and selling y'all and cooking y'all grilled cheese. I can't do that. What do you say to those folks that are like, that are talented and are, are like, the world needs to hear you, but they need to break through.

Like, what, what advice would you give them as somebody who's been doing this on all sides of this?

Donwill: Yeah, I'm dealing with it too. Um, and the hardest part about it is, you know, figuring out. How to make yourself palatable outside of your talent to a audience that you didn't think you had to make yourself palatable to. So it's sort of like, it's [00:22:00] sort of like you built these audiences on these social platforms thinking that you have an audience and you're actually just building a collection of people that particular platform to advertise other things too, because they follow you and they know who you are. So I think that, you know, the thing that I've been kind of trying to figure out with my content, because you know, you gotta just call it what it is. Call it spade a spade, is understanding that, I recorded an album. I made an album. Me and a producer, The Expert, we sat down, made this album, done.

It sounds fantastic. It's 12 14 songs. Now, how do you make content about that? Because that's not the content, that's the art. do

Sir Daniel: Alright.

Donwill: content about the art? And even within that. How do you do it in a way that's true to you? you know, we can use all the, the terminology, the ick and all that shit.

It, it, that's not really a, that's not really a thing if you're trying to market and promote. It is a thing. It's a [00:23:00] thing if you're doing it in a way that's out of character for who you are. But you know, like if. Like if you do cook and that's what you do, you know, just turn on the camera, cook a meal, and then place your audio over it.

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: say something to camera like, like, there's a million ways to skin a cat. But the thing that I've been resting, my resting easy about with it all is that I, a saying that I have is that the typos now are more important than ever because AI is about perfection.

Jay Ray: Yeah, buddy.

Donwill: if you can be as human as you can, you can be full of errors, you can, whatever.

You gotta, whatever you do, don't feel bad about it. Not shining through with this perfect sheen because you got robots dancing in China. You know what I'm saying? You got you.

Sir Daniel: Terribly, by the way.

Donwill: I love seeing robots bust their

Jay Ray: Right.

Donwill: you got. [00:24:00] Yeah, they glitch out. you know, you got, you got robot food delivery carts.

The

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: themselves, the, the po, the ai, you can make AI podcast. They're making this so that you can now do remixes of songs with ai. They're doing all these things because they just have the data and they're, they're essentially, they're bored. You know what I'm saying? When I say bored, that's probably the wrong word.

But just have this technology and they're trying to find all these other ways to implement it. And I'm like, just build a robot to make mining safer. Go, go put a robot in the f**king mind so people don't lose arms and shit, but, you know, whatever. So I know, I, I know I took a long tangent, uh, long way of saying this, but the short answer is. You know, it's gonna sound very, uh, what's the word? not stereotypical, it's gonna sound, um, cliche, it's gonna sound very cliche, but you just gotta be [00:25:00] yourself. Just be you, just cut on the camera and be exactly who you are. Um, and again, that's something that I've been griping dealing with because, um, I don't like the forward facing camera,

Sir Daniel: Oh, okay.

Jay Ray: and your podcast is, is video now too.

Donwill: It is video. Uh, it's because not filming myself so I don't have to,

Jay Ray: Uh, so you don't have to worry about it. You have a, yeah.

Sir Daniel: Right.

Donwill: it's, it's much easier for me. It's for me anyway, it's much easier to have someone filming me and making decisions on what they think looks good aesthetically than me filming myself. and that's, that's been my hangup all the time.

It's like, I, you, you don't really see too much of me Instagram, like doing the, yo, what's up? It's done. Will, you know what I'm saying? I'm just, just checking in to tell you. I don't do that a lot because I just, I'm just not comfortable with it all the time.

Sir Daniel: Yeah.

Donwill: and it's just something that you have to get comfortable with. just have to.

Sir Daniel: And [00:26:00] that's fair. That's very fair. Um, you know, I, I think it might be generational. 'cause I know, you know, some, me, for me, like the, it is kind of foreign, you know, um, having a camera and talking into it. Now talking into a tape recorder, that's different. You know, again, generational. But knowing that you're, you've, you're able to continue and to shine just being yourself and like you said, um, not be artificial intelligence, but to be yourself, be human and have flaws.

What does being supported by Okayplayer

mean to you in that sense? That, 'cause it sounds like, Okayplayer is okay with you being the way you're, you know what I'm saying?

Donwill: like that. I like that. Yeah. It's, it's a, it's a, a, a full circle moment. Like it's a, and even even thinking about how the album was 20 years old, like

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: around the time I logged onto the website for the first time. It was in

Jay Ray: [00:27:00] Das crazy. Yeah.

Donwill: was. Yeah. So like, you know, walking into the offices and seeing like, you know, they have a little timeline of events and like my, my group's Morgan stuff is back there in oh six and then I'm up there in 2026. it's a really wild feeling. Um, Okayplayer has been nothing but supportive, helpful. Um, and in terms of cha turning the, turning the, podcast into a video show, been like, they have a vision for it, you know, like, I definitely had the audio thing. I knew exactly what I was doing exactly, but when you start pointing cameras at me, I'm like, I don't, I don't, I don't know, man. So shout out to shout out to them over there. You know what I'm saying? Because the whole staff over there, the whole team, because they, they 1000%, um. Made the, made the Video podcast what it was like. I, I didn't, I don't, I don't take [00:28:00] credit for the video aspect of the podcast at all. know, I do have a vis, I do have input and I do have say, and I do have like a, you know, we should do X, Y, Z, the way you have to approach video, and this might be why this might be touching on the conversation about the front face of camera.

There's a way you have to approach the visual image and treat the visual image that, you know, wanted it to look a certain way, if you want it to be a certain thing. Like, I, I can't, I don't have that sauce.

Transition

​

Jay Ray: So you were just opening act, Michelle Buteau was on tour big things. Congratulations for you

Sir Daniel: Earth.

Jay Ray: to do that work.

Right. Um, so there's two things in that. One, um, I saw that you released very recently actually a, a video clip of your set a, I think it was, it was a Vegas show that you had done. And what I loved about it was [00:29:00] you did like three things in there. You dj, you rap, and the crowd work was really important.

And then I learned in the research to this that you have a comedy background. I don't know how I missed that in your background, you did some work at comedy too. So two things. what was the hardest part about prepping for being the opening act on those shows and how important was that crowd work to like sticking the landing for you?

Opening for Michelle Buteau — Adapting to a New Audience

Donwill: Oh man. Both. In both. Yes and yes. The hardest thing about prepping for those shows figuring out how to make my music translate to a universal audience. because, you know, if, if any, if any listeners out there that aren't familiar with the music that I make, it is backpack rap.

It is Boom, bap. We do have some [00:30:00] songs that are, you know, danceable, singable. But for the most part, my solo catalog, you have to search for a hook. just like, I don't know what's happening. is a DJ scratch and it is a f**king,

f**king

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: for minutes. It's, it's, it's very artful hip hop. It's

Sir Daniel: Yes.

Donwill: And like I do what I do in a way that I've cultivated enjoys

Jay Ray: Yes.

Donwill: and going in front of her audience, 'cause I've been DJing for her and working with her a long time now. Like I did our last tour with her as well.

Jay Ray: Okay.

Sir Daniel: Nice.

Donwill: DJ'ed that tour. I didn't, I didn't like perform. I just DJ'ed and then we had a op, have an opening act from city to city. But the thing that I learned on that run was that. Her audience is very diverse and gauges, gauges slightly out of the age range of what my demographic is musically. Um, so, you know, even within the DJ set, like I'm not, I'm not playing [00:31:00] respectfully. I'm not playing like tribe or ll or, you know, like I'm, I'm, I'm playing like, that that audience wants to hear.

It's not really a, like if it's, if it's some rap shit, it's the girls, it's like

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: like, you know, like city Girls is a lot for them,

So it,

Crowd Work, Comedy & the Magic of the Opening Set

Donwill: for me it was just, okay, what do I do to make these songs appeal? And part of it was two songs. I, I, I did a, I did a beat switch on one song, and then on another song I just did a whole different beat. because I figured that if I could just make the, the sound bed interesting enough, the message would be cut through still. And then within that, also the crowd work and engaging the audience was a big part of it because. The thing about rap shows and the thing about shows in general, if you're not familiar with the artist, especially rap, just a lot of words coming at you really

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: It's just a lot of like, [00:32:00] you know what I'm saying? Me semi angry whatever the thing is or it is it, won't say it's not musical, but it's not singing, singing, I think, I think if you're watching a person singing for the first time, it's fine. You're like, oh, okay, this person, oh, they can sing cool. But a rap act for the first time, it gives you so much more space to it on, on a different metric. so that was the crowd work thing was fun because it was also very rewarding. It's like kept calling it like a magic trick, by the time I get through the first song. Like, people are just applauding.

Jay Ray: Yes.

Donwill: yeah, and some of that applause. I'm gonna keep it funky. Some of that applause is like, okay, this is over.

We, we get the headliner. And I'm like, no, you don't.

Sir Daniel: Alright, I Bring her on.

Donwill: But so, so that's what makes the crowd work important.

For the most part, for the most part, not even, for the most part, the, the [00:33:00] reception that I got was overwhelmingly positive. it just, 'cause the other thing too is that I don't really do solo shows I've been, I've been hiding in plain sight as a dj. Like I found a way to be on stage and be involved in, in, in the, the, the, the night, but not be even be front and center, but not be like the focal point.

When I dj it's about the music. It's just, I'm, I'm enjoying the music as much as the audience is and I'm also reading the room. So there's a lot of, you know, there's a lot of different things that go into a DJ set that would, you know, it's a different muscle for me than rapping. And this was the first time where like Michelle flat out was like, the end of our last tour, this is how, this is how me performing on her, opening on her show came to be. She was like. She just walked. We were at the, I think we were in the beacon. She was like, hey how come you don't rap? And I was like, what do you mean? And she was like, [00:34:00] she's like, you are a rapper. You have a whole like career albums. How come you haven't been rapping? And I was like, I think I was just like, I didn't know I could do that.

I said, whatever I said was just, and she was like, you should rap. And I was like, okay. Then the next night she came back like, you're gonna rap. And I was like, okay. Then the tour ended. That tour ended. before this tour started, she was like, hit me up like maybe two months in advance. Like, so you're opening the tour, um, you have 20 minutes. Figure out whatever you're gonna do, but it will be rap.

Jay Ray: I love that. See how your friends push you.

Sir Daniel: Yes.

Jay Ray: community like pushing

Sir Daniel: Super important.

Jay Ray: man.

Donwill: And, and it's, it's so funny, like, 'cause that's one of the most unlikely sources for a person to push you to rap is a comedy comedian in the comedy space. And she, she's like, I, I, man, I have [00:35:00] nothing but like glowing, kind, beautiful words from Michelle. Like, she's one of my favorite people. Uh, she's a really good friend and she like the, the, the stuff you see and the, the message, it's not just, it's literally baked into her.

DNA, like she is one of the most giving kind people I know. And she's funny,

Sir Daniel: Super funny. She's hilarious.

Donwill: but she also, you, like, she's not, she don't take no shit, you know, she's, she's ever, like, I love her to death. I love her to death, and I, I'm eternally grateful for her letting me, you know, pull out the raps real quick for

Jay Ray: Yes.

Donwill: enjoyed it.

Sir Daniel: you know, it's so funny how, I guess this is just a, a testament to how life. Doesn't, it doesn't always turn out the way you, you thought it was going to be, but still, like 20 years ago, you're thinking, yo, I'm, I'm a mc. I'm just, I'm gonna hold it down [00:36:00] and, you know, I'm gonna wrap my raps and people are gonna love it.

Um, I also like the dj, you know, 'cause that's what I do. I'm a bboy. I know how to DJ as well. I live this hip hop stuff. But then comedy and, and hip hop are ha go hand in hand. Quite frankly. Our, our cu, our ca culture has really joined the two of them together quite a bit. And so who knew that preparing yourself back then as an mc and as a DJ would lead you to this point?

You know, so it's just like, you just all the, the, the, all the, the, the practice hours that you logged, I mean, it. It was for a purpose, and here you are now. So that's gotta feel really good when you look back and you, you see, you know, I've accomplished this, this is what I did.

Donwill: I think about it a lot and I mean, um, especially with that tour, like there were just moments where like outside of the, outside of the opening [00:37:00] performance, like rapping, I would just, like, when I would, I would go back, I would resume the op, the role of dj, and Michelle would be doing comedy and she'd turn around, like we'd have banter. rap got me here.

Sir Daniel: Yeah.

Donwill: I think about it so many times, like, like I, you know, like, I'm like, I'm in so many different rooms and so many different spaces that I wouldn't have dreamed of being in because my vision for what. What my path would be was so narrow. It was like, I'm going to rap, I'm going to tour.

I remember the first job that I, well, not first, like, one of the last jobs I ever quit was around early two thousands, and my boss was like, what are you gonna do? I was like, I'm going on tour. I'm gonna be a rapper. And she was like, oh, I, I, you might wanna rethink that. I'll, I'll give you a, I'll give you a 30 day grace period.

I was like, no, no, no. The tour is 45 days. I won't be back. It's fine. Within, within a month of that tour, I was like, uh, I think I need to go back. [00:38:00] I didn't go back though. go back, but like, like the dedication and just like like, no, this is what's gonna happen. I'm gonna do it. And also being open to whatever. Being open to positive experiences and being open to new experiences and learning. all got me here in the same way, you know what I'm saying? But like, it, it is just. Sometimes I'll just be like at a random place like, like I DJ the Amby and I'm

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Sir Daniel: Yeah.

Donwill: presenting awards and I'm like. I just used to rap.

Sir Daniel: Who to thunk it.

Jay Ray: Who the

Sir Daniel: to thunk it.

Donwill: thunk it? I was in my bedroom making demos and now I'm, this is crazy, but it's never crazy. It's just, it's, it's, it's not even about it being crazy. It's about it being just your ministry.

Sir Daniel: Yeah.

Jay Ray: Ooh.

Donwill: Being your thing. You know what I'm saying? Like you're really like, like to to, [00:39:00] to back to what I was saying about Joe Button and the pod, like if you in your bag, if you just in your life bag, it works out.

Jay Ray: It works out. I don't even know. This is gonna be interesting then, 'cause I'm curious to know what your, your answer is, uh, to this next question, but what are you gra on the artistic side, um, outside of pod, outside of podcasting? Like what are you gravitating more to these days? Is it like DJing is like the thing, the thing has rapping, like raised back up since you've done the tour?

Like what, what's like the thing that you're gravitating to the most right now and why?

Donwill: So

DJing as Ministry — Why It's His Truest Calling

Donwill: rap is my first language. It's my fluency. Um, I do have an album coming out, like I'm, I'm, I'm going to make a rap album. I'm, I'm always gonna make some music. So I have an album coming out in the fall with this guy, The Expert, really dope producer from Ireland. Uh, it's very boom bap. It's, it's exactly what you would expect a man who made moonlighting to make.

Jay Ray: Yes.

Donwill: Um, [00:40:00] but you know, like even within that, outside of that, I would say right now I'm more, I'm just producing a lot. I'm making beats. I just enjoy the quiet and the, the, the focus of, of like the knobs and make and, and the sampling and shit like writing. When I write, writing for me is. I have to be in the space to write.

I don't have, I don't have much to say. I just, I just finished the album. I don't have much to say that's new or unique. I'm, I'm still in the middle of gathering the information. DJing is always gonna be around like the, the three things. So rapping, producing and DJing are just constants in my life and they never stop. DJing is the one thing that I do the most. and it's the thing that I genuinely am, I'm gonna be completely honest. It's the thing I feel the luckiest to get to do

Sir Daniel: I,

Donwill: because.

Sir Daniel: I, I totally get that.

Donwill: It's one. I came at one, I came about it late. [00:41:00] like it was the, it was the thing I put in my arsenal after everything else. when I tell you, I understand why people are just like starting to DJ or pick buying controllers or like whatever.

'cause there is literally nothing like a night where you had a, a, a day that has whooped your ass and you, you turn on that f**king mixer, them turntables, and you play the song that you've been dying to hear loud. And the room wants to hear it too. Like it is. Man. Like it's, it's the one thing that I truly, even when I'm like, I don't want to, even when I have those moments where I'm like, I don't feel like doing this.

You're not like, it's like going to the gym.

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: there are sometimes, not every gig is your favorite gig. I'll just say that and I'm gonna leave it.

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: already know. You already there you some gigs where you show up and like, your pay is a f**k, two

Sir Daniel: Yeah.

Donwill: and a plate or whatever the f**k they wanna do for you that night.

Sir Daniel: that,

Donwill: you,

Sir Daniel: if that.

Donwill: sit, you sit your controller at the end of the bar or whatever. You, you [00:42:00] just doing your thing. But it's, it's, it's such a, a beautiful, you know, it's such a beautiful task to be able to just play music for people.

Sir Daniel: Yeah.

Donwill: that's the whole thing. That's the trade. The trade is that even when it's like. Those horror stories about requests and people like coming up and asking for music. They're real, but also on the environment, an opportunity to, it's, it's, it's further research. Like

Jay Ray: Mm.

Sir Daniel: Yeah.

Donwill: club and somebody comes up like, yo, me and my homies, we want to hear X, y, z, whoopty, whoop. And you, if you're actually watching the room and doing your homework, then that might be the, the term that the night needs.

You know what I'm saying? Or it might be a person that just. You know, they just want to connect with somebody.

Sir Daniel: Yeah.

Donwill: just literally, not everybody is, has nefarious, you know, intentions when they approach a dj. I won't, I won't, won't say everybody is like that, but for the most part, I've [00:43:00] softened up on requests.

There was a time where I was very, I, I, I remember stopping the music and telling people like

Sir Daniel: Me alone.

Donwill: that a woman walked up and request and I was just like, tell the room what you wanted to hear. That type of shit. Do we wanna hear this? You guys

Sir Daniel: Whoa.

Donwill: sort of shit. Yeah. I would say I, I feel, I feel, I feel lucky and I feel blessed to be able to do any of the things that I do for a living. But DJing is just that one thing that man, like, it feels like you can control the tone of a room, control the, the time, like you're helping people have a better night. Have a good night.

Jay Ray: you are like, I tell, uh, sir, sir Daniel knows this. So I'm a dancer. Uh, uh, Donwill

Sir Daniel: Are done.

Jay Ray: listen. Um, and there was a period of time when I thought I wanted to be a dj and because I love [00:44:00] I, that, that, that the experience that I have as a dancer. But what I realized is like, no, no, no. I don't. I just want to experience it.

And so I am a, a, a lover DJs and the experiences that y'all create for us, and I sit in that experience. I just want to go, sir Daniel knows I'm gonna hit the dance floor if you get me hitting the dance floor. You doing good?

Donwill: And I was gonna say, and I'm sure Sir Daniel could attest that the dancers are as as important as the dj.

Sir Daniel: Absolutely.

Donwill: And.

Sir Daniel: and the fact that we don't see more people. So if I see somebody break out, you know, there might be that one person that breaks out, it's like, oh, whatever it it takes to keep that person doing that, I'm going to do that. I'm gonna continue playing because that person right there is who I'm playing for.

Because they, the outward display of joy [00:45:00] is like, those are the, that's what we, that's what DJs live for. That's currency to us big time.

Donwill: and I think the, I think a, a quiet part that doesn't really get spoken about enough is that there are so many different types of DJs.

Sir Daniel: Yes.

Donwill: like Jazzy Jeff. If he comes to DJ or party, you're going to see Jazzy Jeff, period.

Jay Ray: Absolutely. I wanna watch him. He's gonna do that CR do all of that work. I wanna see it.

Donwill: Whatever he gives you is what you're going to get and you're gonna like it God. And like there are other people like him. Like he's, he's, he's, he's who he is. He's of the cloth. He's a like a icon. But there are other icons, like who you go, you get what they give and you enjoy it. And then there are DJs who are working DJs who show up, read a room, play to the audience and make sure that everybody's having a good time. And you know what I'm saying? Like, I'm not saying that that's all there is, but know, the gray area between that like I. Really [00:46:00] do enjoy reading rooms, making people move, looking at pockets of people like, all right, so they're not dancing. Let me see, you do a little, you do a little bit of like, like profile.

They like, okay, I'm gonna, I'm gonna throw 'em some spice girls and see what happens.

Jay Ray: Yes.

Donwill: like, I got 'em, I got 'em all right now, now how do I get these niggas to party with these people? And it's just like, it's this subtle dance of like, it's um, it's like anthropology. I don't know if that's the right word for it, but you know what I'm saying.

You're, you're, you're doing this kind of like.

Sir Daniel: That's valid.

Donwill: Yeah,

Sir Daniel: Just studying people. Yes.

Donwill: I, and as a people watcher who it's, it's my joy to like, not only watch them, but them a little bit and make them dance.

Transition

Jay Ray: Yes.​

Sir Daniel: You know, Donwill, well, the, the, clearly, as a dj you speak the language of music, but what also what DJs have to do is we always [00:47:00] also have to keep our ears fresh. And, you know, people are always asking us to listen to new music and to check this out, to have you heard this? Um, but you have a substack called New Music Tuesday, and which I love because as a former record store employee, Tuesdays was, Tuesdays were

Jay Ray: the day.

Sir Daniel: super, Tuesday

Donwill: that.

Sir Daniel: was the day that we all looked forward to because that's when the new releases would come out.

And we'd have them, we'd have dates on our chalk, our dry erase board, and people would come in asking

Donwill: erase.

Sir Daniel: and, you know, asking, has it come out yet? Nope. Next week.

Jay Ray: back, you

Sir Daniel: If this gets pushed back, then, boy, let me tell you something. Uh, if it gets pushed back, forget about, I'll never forget when that Wonderland K's Wonderland.

The date kept getting pushed back and pushed back and pushed back. Then finally it was just, it's not coming out. Well, not,

Donwill: Yeah.

Sir Daniel: the US version. So it's just not coming [00:48:00] out. So I said all that to say, um, you have the Substack new music Tuesday. Um, you're listening to new things Constant. Well, that's a question.

Are you, because you're so heavily in it, do you, do you just some, sometimes I just, like, I don't want to hear anything else. I'm in album mode right now. Or are you constantly listening to new stuff and if so, what are you enjoying right now and what should we look out for?

New Music Tuesday & What He's Listening To

Donwill: That's a, that's a really good question. Like the, the, the posing it as, do I listen to the stuff that I write about or am I just No, seriously,

Sir Daniel: Yeah.

Donwill: a valid question because there are times when I don't, there are times, like, I wanna say for the past month and a half, two months, I haven't heard anything I posted about, I've just been using it, using the space as a way to earmark things for me to go back and check out. Um, like, so basically the, the, the theory, not theory, the philosophy of the new Music Tuesday newsletter is, um, I'm not gonna write about something that I don't [00:49:00] personally want to hear. I'm, I'm

Jay Ray: Love that.

Donwill: light or give light to anything for the sake of like, trashing it or, or saying like, oh, look at this one.

Like, oh, I

Sir Daniel: Yeah.

Donwill: Look at this video. His video sucks. I, there's enough of that. This is a, a space where I'm writing about things that I either enjoy or think I will enjoy. And if you happen to enjoy them, that's great too. I'm also writing about. Other musicians are artists who I know that I know who are working class musicians and might not be able to get the same level of that they used to.

So it's just, it's just a way for me to like spread them. Like, you know, I got so many homies that the blogs went away, like we are like, well what do we

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: I guess we just run the Instagram and it goes back to that same question you asked me. Um, that's a long way to answer. I'm sorry. But, so what I'm, the last album that I remember running back three or four times uh, this cat, like from his, he was in a group called Pacific Division Pac Div.

Jay Ray: Oh, okay. Yeah, yeah. Yeah.[00:50:00]

Donwill: put out a album called, um. I, I forget what it's called. It's called like songs. Songs made, I don't know what the album's called. It's got a green cover and like, a little like hand drawn figure. like produ. He also like, also produced the song, um, sing about me for Kendrick Lamar.

Jay Ray: Mm-hmm.

Donwill: know, he's got like a, he's, he's got like a heavy resume and he raps really f**king well.

So the album is dope. It's got two cuts of FTE on it, blues on there. Michael Rocks from, what's his group's name? The Cool Kids is on there. It's a really dope album, but it's, it's, it's classic boom bap. It's just, it's hip hop, you know what I'm saying?

Sir Daniel: Nice.

Donwill: another album that I listened to and I enjoy but I haven't returned to is Kalani's album.

Jay Ray: Oh, I have to check that. I have to check it out. I haven't listened yet. I heard it's good.

Donwill: yeah, the, the prop, if I'm gonna say there's a problem with it, it's not a problem. But for me personally, I enjoy shorter albums, [00:51:00] uh, with a

Sir Daniel: Okay.

Donwill: concentration of songs.

Sir Daniel: hold on, Don. Will, are you telling me that you don't like albums that have like 39 cuts on them? Is that what you're saying? Oh,

don't like, you,

Donwill: You know, if,

Sir Daniel: you don't like.

Donwill: have, if you dropping, if you drop a three disc

Jay Ray: Yes.

Donwill: not listen to it.

Transition

​

What songs would Donwill and DJ Sir Daniel drop in a set?

Jay Ray: I'm gonna ask you a question just you have, uh, in your spirit. If y'all were DJing a party tonight

Sir Daniel: Hmm.

Jay Ray: and you had to drop a song that's in your spirit, you like, I just want people to shake they ass to this, what's that song for you tonight? Don? Will, what's the song that you was just like, this one's going in?

'cause I want people to dance to it.

Donwill: At the party I'm gonna be at tonight, [00:52:00] I think the one that I would drop Act Up City Girls. Act Up

Jay Ray: Okay. Okay. Okay.

Donwill: a classic give up about an like, I love, I love that song. love that song so much.

Sir Daniel: Shout out to Lil.

Donwill: yeah, it, it always gets the response that I wanted to get.

Jay Ray: Here we go.

Donwill: those like, you know, standards and then, you know, this fun stuff you could do to mix out of it, but.

Jay Ray: I love that. Sir Daniel?

Sir Daniel: So I was, I was trying to, you know, be, you know, real grand about this. But then I said, you know what I, the song that I'm going to drop, if I were to be spinning tonight, I would drop "It Takes Two" by Rob Base and DJ EZ Rock. Just, I, I just gotta do it. I have to do it. I have to do it.

Paying Tribute To Rob Base

Sir Daniel: at the time of this recording, you know, we just, we just got the news that Rob Base passed away at the age of 59.

Which is, wow. It is so crazy that he passed away so young, [00:53:00] such a young age. And dj and his dj, DJ EZ Rock, passed away back in 2014, and he was super young as well. So that, for me, that's what I would do. I would definitely pay Amish to him because he is such an important part

Jay Ray: Yes.

Sir Daniel: our lives

Jay Ray: Yep.

Sir Daniel: and we actually, we've taken it for granted.

We have taken that, we've taken his music for granted because it's just because it's always been there. And I think we do that a lot to our, um, to our heritage artists. Especially when we're talking about hip hop. We were talking earlier about us about aging in hip hop. And being respectful of that. And I think we do take a, we take a, um, take for granted people who are over a certain age and who maybe have not dropped a record for 30 years, but it does not negate the importance that they have to the culture because [00:54:00] what they've done has actually carved a lane for everybody that's popping right now.

And for everybody to continue to be eating off of hip hop. You know, I don't know if it's still a full course meal or a carcass right now, but people are still eating off of rap music today. And I guess the question I wanna pose to you all then is, well, it's not even a question. It,

Rethinking 'One-Hit Wonder' — Rob Base & Legacy

Sir Daniel: thinking about Rob Base makes me rethink the term, one hit wonder.

Jay Ray: Hmm.

Sir Daniel: I think that we do a disservice when we call people one hit wonders simply because that one hit. Literally can become part of the fabric of your life.

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Sir Daniel: And again, it spins off. That's the thing about this, this culture, it, it creates a vibration and a ripple effect throughout the culture that you don't even realize is happening.[00:55:00]

But do you know how many like clubs and dance recitals we've been to that people, people have jammed out to, to, to, it takes two. How many DJs have done routines off of it takes two. So I think we, again, I'm rethinking the term one hit wonder and using it, possibly removing it from, from my vernacular when it comes to talking about artists, especially when it comes to talking about our artists, because I don't wanna, uh, I don't want to, to demean them anymore in that way.

Donwill: I don't it. I I've, it's funny you say that. I haven't, I don't use that and I'm, I'm just realizing in this moment that I don't use it like, it's as like a artist when, you know, when you're trying to make, you know what I'm saying? Like music that has man appeal or make music that people would enjoy. it just, it's, it's only a negative connotation. There's nothing positive about it. You know what I'm saying? And like the other [00:56:00] thing is that to get a hit, get a hit, whatever the, whatever your definition of a hit is, is it's hard for one. You know what I'm saying? So you got one round of applause. If you make more than one, then lightning, just lightning is striking inside the bottle.

But you know what I'm saying? the, the other thing is that there's. There's this thing about work I'm thinking and how, you know, to say one hit wonder means that that artist worked in service of an industry and not a community.

Jay Ray: Hmm.

Donwill: to say he had one hit, he's a one hit wonder. Yeah. one-hit wonder for the label that that is making money off of him for, for an industry that needs him to, to, to pay assistance [00:57:00] and,

Jay Ray: Right.

Donwill: fuel other ventures. But in terms of like his impact, it's, it's endless. It's boundless. You know what I'm saying?

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: also it, it has to be said that he said, f**k the Big Mac. You know what I'm saying? He loved Whoppers.

Sir Daniel: You know how impactful that is because McDonald's is king. Mc, especially McDonald's was putting a lot of money in hip hop and for him to say that directly for the competition, that took a lot of balls,

Donwill: f**k big,

Sir Daniel: big Mac.

Donwill: what, I feel like, I feel like I'm half joking,

Transition

​

Jay Ray: i'm so with the both of you. Like there is not a black gathering the world that it takes two or joy and pain is not playing at,

Donwill: Joy and

Jay Ray: a ga, there isn't a gathering where these songs aren't showing [00:58:00] up in the DJ set.

Bridge Songs & the Generational Power of Hip Hop

Jay Ray: And I'm gonna tell you, Those songs were bridge songs. They

Sir Daniel: Yes.

Jay Ray: that our parents loved, added some rap to them, and we loved it. So my parents were dancing to those songs and they didn't like rap, but they liked that.

Donwill: Yeah.

Jay Ray: And we don't get a lot of that these days where there are these songs that directly call back to the previous generation and bring it forward. So that legacy, we, yo we staying 10 toes down on that. Those that, that, Rob Base and DJ EZ Rock made magic

Sir Daniel: Absolutely.

Donwill: even if you go back and look at like, that video,

Jay Ray: Yep.

Donwill: the video for, um,

Sir Daniel: It takes two

Donwill: it

Sir Daniel: or

Donwill: Yeah. That video is,

Sir Daniel: Bi.

Donwill: was such like a, it is a time capsule.

Jay Ray: Yeah.

Donwill: that is like, he's as important to the culture as Rakim.

Jay Ray: Yo. Classic, [00:59:00] classic. And this has been a an amazingly rich classic conversation. Don, will, we appreciate you, brother. Thank you so much for taking the time to come and hang out with us, man.

Donwill: Yo, thank and thank you for having me. Like, I gotta say, I love conversations like this, conversations that like go from place to place, well structured and also are just full of like curiosity and whimsy. That's my, that's my shit.

Jay Ray: Man.

Donwill: to y'all, man.

Sir Daniel: Thank

Jay Ray: you. We

Sir Daniel: you. We love to hear that.

Where to Find Donwill & Outro

Sir Daniel: Please, before we go, please tell everyone where they can find Almanac of Rap and how they can follow you. All of the things, all of the socials. Please let our audience know.

Donwill: Almanac Rap is on Instagram under AORShow. Um, I'm on Instagram under Donwill just all one word, no spaces. And if you wanna hit me up, I have a one 800 number. 8 7 7 Donwill, that's 8 7 7 [01:00:00] D-O-N-W-I-L-L. Drop me a message, man. I might pick up, I might say, what's up? You never know. I'm trying to, I'm just, I'm just doing

Jay Ray: That's amazing.

Donwill: I'm

getting weird.

Sir Daniel: Please, you should, you know what you should do? You should do one of those. Remember those commercials? I don't know how old you are, Donwill, but Jay Ray, do you remember when, like JJ Fad or um, 2 Live Crew, they would drop commercials and they, Dr. Dre them, they would have their 800 number and you can call them, but it is gotta be eighties.

Jay Ray: Love that man. Please, y'all make sure that you connect with Donwill. Thank y'all so much for joining us here on Queue Points. If you can see our faces and hear our voices, make sure that you subscribe. Tell your friends, family, colleagues about the show. Make sure that you subscribe to Donwill's platforms.

Go and subscribe to The Almanac of Rap right now. Wherever you enjoy your podcast, make sure you follow him on social media as well. Check out Queue Points at Queue Points dot com. You can become a member. It keeps the lights on and Queue Points land. And you can listen to [01:01:00] all of the archive episodes of Queue Points.

In addition to a bunch of other stuff on substack and you can shop our store, do all of the things. We appreciate y'all. We love y'all.

Sir Daniel: We absolutely doing this. Like I say, in every episode in this life, you have a choice. You can either pick up the needle or you could let the record play. I am DJ Sir Daniel.

Jay Ray: My name is Jay Ray and that's our brother Donwill.

Sir Daniel: And this is Queue Points podcast, dropping the needle on black music history. We will see you on the next go round. Peace y'all.

Jay Ray: Peace y'all.

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