Image via Complex Original
While it's easy to gravitate to places like New York and Los Angeles to find vibrant hip-hop scenes, overlooking other regions is a critical error. Even though New Orleans might be synonymous with Lil Wayne, Cash Money, and the Hot Boys, the Big Easy is also a hotbed for fresh artists. Dee-1 is one of them.
After entering the scene in 2009 with his debut album, David & Goliath, Dee-1 made a name for himself as a formidable lyricist. His punchy flow earned him placements on tours with the likes of Lil Wayne, Drake, Macklemore, Trey Songz, and the Roots to name a few. By becoming a staple in New Orleans’ hip-hop community, he has helped grow the city's cultural heritage and exuberance through his music.
Over the summer, Lil Wayne set up shop and threw the Lil Weezyana Fest. The high-octane festival certainly delivered, drawing crowds in the thousands. “Lil Wayne has worked hard to get to the top, and Lil Weezyana Fest showed how much power he has in New Orleans,” said Dee-1. “I hope the success of the festival inspires him to make sure his voice and power is used to breathe life into the city. A lot of his fans are following his lead."
Though Lil Weezyana Fest is long gone, there are some notable venues in New Orleans that serve as the permanent homes to the city’s rap scene.
We sat down with Dee-1 to get his list of the top five can't-miss hip-hop venues in New Orleans and why each one brings something special to the table.
House of Blues
“House of Blues is so historic. You feel it when you're performing. When you're backstage, you can see this wall of all of the names of artists that performed there. They only write their names there if they sold out the show. If you sell it out multiple times, they put up a tally next to your name. It's like a rite of passage to perform there. I like the fact that it's small enough and still intimate. No matter where you're standing at, you feel like you're right up there with the action.”
The Howlin’ Wolf
“I didn't know what the name meant for the longest time—until about three months ago. I realized that the Howlin’ Wolf was a nickname for Chester Burnett. He was a Blues singer. It's named after a blues singer from Mississippi. So he's just right around the corner from New Orleans.
The Howlin’ Wolf is not about style—it's not a beautiful venue per se, outside or inside. It's more about the structure. It's a large venue. I remember performing there and having about 80 people at the show. The venue was so big that the 80 people felt like hardly anybody was there. It's so big that you think, 'I don't even care about selling it out. I just want it feeling full in there.' It's not the prettiest place, but it's definitely a staple down here.”
The Dragon's Den
“The Dragon's Den is a hole in the wall. It has all the culture. It has this rich historical feel, but it's super, super small. That is where normally you're first jumping out the box as a rapper. That's the first venue of prestige that you’ll get the opportunity to perform at. When I wasn't even taking hip-hop seriously—when I was a college student—I remember performing there. It was packed with a bunch of my high school classmates. They were like, 'Wait. David is a rapper now? Let's go see what all this is about.' It felt so full because it's packed like sardines in there; that was really a turning point for me. Like, 'Aha. I'm about to do this for the rest of my life.'”
The Republic
“The Republic has a level of class to it that not many hip-hop venues down here have. This is the Big Easy; this is the Dirty South. Everything here has a certain level of grunge to it. The Republic definitely has a classy feel to it, but it still maintains a hip-hop vibe to it. When you perform at the Republic, it feels elegant.”
The Maison
“The Maison is on Frenchmen Street. Frenchmen Street is like Bourbon Street's little brother. It's not as wild and crazy as Bourbon Street, but it's kind of wild and crazy. There were such dope hip-hop shows going on there. It's pretty great. They serve awesome food, the kitchen and the catering are amazing. I've seen everybody there—Snoop Dogg, Mystikal, Juvenile, Raekwon, and Dead Prez. You get that, and you also get your local hip-hop [artists]. I just like the fact that it has such a wide range of people who have performed, including myself.”