We talked to him about the record that changed his life, why relationships matter more than talent alone, and why he still considers himself a vinyl collector to this day.
Take us back to the early mixtape days in Atlanta. What did the scene look like before you became one of the DJs breaking the sound coming out of the city?
The ATL mixtape scene before I got into the scene, man, I have to shout out the legends like DJ Jelly, the old camp, DJ Monte. The Super Friends were doing their thing, DJ Drama, the Aphilliates were just getting started. And I kind of came in with a more hood approach, hood-rich per se, working with artists like Shawty Lo, Gucci Man, Rocco, a lot of the crunk artists too, like Crime Mob and Trillville, and so forth. That was kind of like my lane. A lot of Atlanta natives, a lot of people that was representing that trap, that hood and crunk movement, was how I built my name, just aligning with them and breaking those records. A lot of people know I was one of the first people to play Crime Mob's "Knuck If You Buck," helping to break that into the high school market and just elevate my name from there.
You're credited with breaking Future, Migos, Gucci Mane, and Jeezy, among others. Was there a specific tape or moment where you knew you had something before anyone else did?
I think with each of those brothers, shout out to my partner Hoodrich, man, he put me on Future. Shouts to Rocco, Rocco brought us Future. We knew Future was special. I knew Migos were special from the moment I met them before I even heard a record. I just knew that it was special, you just get that vibe when you know it's a star. Gucci Man is just a brother, we're from the same side of the city, so Gucci Man was already Gucci Man by the time I connected with him, but it was an honor to work with him. And the same thing with Jeezy, he had a rich history before I was able to work with him.
What's one mixtape from that era you still hold onto, and why does it still matter to you?
I think that Shawty Lo is the one. That's my brother, long live Shawty Lo. That's a situation where I toured with D4L as their official DJ, that led to me doing Shawty Lo's first mixtape, "I'm Da Man" and "I'm Da Man 2," which I always credit with changing my life. I always say those Shawty Lo records changed my life. So salute to him, a distinct voice, a distinct flow, a unique story. Shawty Lo was one of the ones we do that from day one, from studio session one. There was a lot of special mixtapes, my mixtapes are kind of like kids, it's hard to put one above the other, but again, I'll say Shawty Lo's "I'm Da Man 2," just because there's so many memorable moments. All of my hip-hop icons that I looked up to called me, because I was the point man to get the remix done and to get this, that, and the third done. So shout out Shawty Lo, "I'm Da Man 2." I think that's when I finally found my rhythm and my swag. I was confident, the streets were on fire, the phone was blowing up, I'm getting booked crazy. So that was definitely a memorable moment, man. Salute to Shawty Lo, my brother forever.
How has Atlanta's sound and the mixtape culture around it changed since those early days? What's stayed the same underneath it all?
It's definitely different now, there's a different aspect of production with the sound, there's a different culture in hip-hop from top to bottom, it's not the same culture. I think it's amazing though to see everything kind of goes full circle and people are coming back to that mixtape sound. Shouts to what Playboi Carti and Swamp Izzo did. Shouts to what Metro Boomin did with DJ Spinz. People want that mixtape sound because it's real, it's authentic, and it's true to hip-hop culture. So it's definitely different now, I'm not going to front, I hear records that confuse me, but nonetheless, I'm always happy to see the young brothers doing that thing. So it's a different Atlanta, it's a different sound, but it's still the same ATL, from the perspective of just the foundation. This is ATL. We support each other, we show that love to each other, and we always got them hits on the charts.
Now that you're running Big Facts and the Scream Foundation, how do you think about your role in the culture differently than when you were purely a DJ on the come-up?
I become a businessman and a brand, man. Big shoutout to Hoodrich and T, and what we did from the mixtapes, we'll continue to do. Of course, Big Facts the podcast, the Big Facts Network. I just launched my solo podcast. I'm a restaurant owner, Riverview Grill, Smyrna, Georgia, I'm a restauranteur as well. The Scream Foundation for the community, my nonprofit 501(c)(3). I just studied the game, man, I studied your Jay-Z's and your DJ Khaled's and your T.I.'s. I don't want to be boxed into just being a DJ. I always pay homage and salute who I am and what I am as a DJ, but I always wanted to be a brand, the biggest brand I could be, the biggest version of myself. So with that being said, for me, man, I'm here to not only inspire DJs to be the best DJs they could be, but just to inspire people in the culture and outside of the culture to be the best versions of themselves.
Have you seen artists misjudge what actually earns real credibility with DJs and the streets versus what just performs well online?
I pride myself in still being here, still being relevant, still having fans, salute to the fans, and I'm going to keep it moving. I think that if you know better, you do better, and a lot of artists don't understand DJs. They don't understand radio, they don't understand mixshow, they don't understand mixtapes. I think that's the thing, we haven't done a great job of educating the new artists on what these things mean to the culture, what the cosign and the stamp of a DJ means. I think it's amazing for influencers to stamp and break artists too, that's forward energy, that's moving forward, not backwards, but I think all of it is important. There's still hundreds and hundreds of thousands of DJs across the nation, let alone millions across the world. So always pay homage to the DJ, always salute to the DJ.
Vinyl and physical formats have become genuinely popular with collectors again in recent years. What do you make of that, coming from an era built on tapes and CDs?
The reality is, even DJs got to know that there's different ways to get your music out and get your brand discovered now. But yeah, it's nothing like touching that vinyl. It's something special about just touching the vinyl, I'm still a vinyl collector to this day. And it's dope to see the young kids even know what a record player, a turntable, and vinyl is. It's something special about the move from cassette tapes to CDs and compact discs too, that was the revolution. I think one of my first CDs was Raekwon's Purple Tape, and OutKast's "Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik." Before that, it was Illmatic on cassette, and I was rewinding the tape over and over and over again until the tape popped. It's amazing that physical formats have come back, and even if nothing else, to use it as a collector's item, I think it's amazing, it just gives it some flavor. Not knocking the digital, but the physical to me is priceless, it's a big part of the culture.
When you're evaluating a new artist or project today, what tells you it's worth putting your name behind?
Innovation, something special, something different. I hate when people come up to me and say, man, I got this rapper, I want you to check them out, they sound just like Future, they sound just like Gucci, they sound just like Lil Baby. I want the next. I want the person with a unique voice, a unique story, and more importantly, good character, integrity, and somebody that's willing to hustle. Some of the biggest artists you see right now in the game, they ain't afraid of that hustle. There's some young brothers out there, some young females out there that really get busy and really hustle. So that's what I look for in an artist, more than just the artist. Anybody can go in the studio and make music, it's a blessing and a gift if you can make great music. But if you don't have that hustle, that character, that integrity, and that vision to stand behind it, I don't know how far it's going to go, and I don't know how much I want to be a part of it.
How much do relationships with other DJs and tastemakers still shape what breaks through, compared to when you were coming up?
Relationships is everything. You want a good name with DJs, you want a good name with radio personalities, you want a good name with everybody in this industry, man, relationships is everything. And I tell people, don't get so consumed in being a rap artist that you forget about being a great human being. It's so important, because you never know, they always say the same people you see on the way to the top is the same people you might see on your way back down. But if you treated those people right on the way to the top, they're going to lift you back up and hold you up. So always keep your name good, always keep your brand good with everybody, DJs, promoters, influencers, gotta keep that name solid.
If an independent artist wanted to build something with real staying power today, the way the mixtape era did, what advice would you give them?
If you're building today, the most important thing is the fans. I'm gonna be completely honest, direct to consumer. Can you sell ten t-shirts? Can you sell a hundred tickets? Build a direct-to-consumer relationship. A couple people that do it masterfully, big shouts to Larry June, big shouts to him. My brother LaRussell too, them brothers really build real direct-to-consumer relationships. You don't necessarily need a record label anymore. I think you still do need DJs, a good engineer, a good team, and so forth. But if you can get it together, you could build a real wave with your consumers, you can eat and you can feed your team. So focus on that direct-to-consumer piece, and see what you really got.
Last question, who or what should mixtapekings.com spotlight next in this series?
There's so many dope DJs, that's a tough one, man.
In Memoriam
I would like to pay homage to some of my brothers that have transitioned. DJ Michael Watts, rest his soul. DJ Bigga Rankin recently transitioned, rest his soul. And DJ Kay Slay, which was amazing because I grew up being a fan of him, but I got an opportunity to actually become his friend, maybe a year or two before he passed. That brother gave me a lot of insight and gems. And I'm sure there's other ones I missed or forgot about, like Mr. Clark Kent. Any of the DJs that have transitioned on, I think it's really important to highlight them and keep their legacy going.
Big shoutout to MixtapeKings, Diony. I remember, bro, I remember you were there from day one. I appreciate every tape you copped. I think my brother Remo put me on to you, and I appreciate it, man. I'm going to hit you back with my info, and if you need anything, my brother, hit me. All right, love.
DJ Scream didn't name a next spotlight candidate. Instead he gave a tribute to four DJs the culture lost, Michael "5000" Watts, DJ Bigga Rankin, DJ Kay Slay, and DJ Clark Kent, and a direct shoutout to mixtapekings.com. Sometimes the closing question doesn't need an answer to be the moment worth keeping.
DJ Scream on his own show, breaking down how the Soulja Boy mixtape run changed his career, and calling out gatekeeping in hip-hop.
The same theme runs through this interview: DJs who put in the work early rarely get the credit later, and Scream's been saying it since long before this clip.
DJ Scream helped break Future, Migos, Gucci Mane, and Jeezy in the streets before the rest of the world caught on, and hosted Shawty Lo's "I'm Da Man" and "I'm Da Man 2," records he still credits with changing his life. Today he's the voice behind Big Facts, a restaurant owner in Smyrna, Georgia, and the founder of the Scream Foundation.
More Collector Spotlight is coming. If you know a DJ, collector, or curator whose perspective deserves a platform, let us know.
Get Early Access →