Legendary Atlanta Rapper and Producer Don P Working on Trillville Biopic, New Music – 95.5 WSB

“I started recording tapes and took them to the high school for them to listen to and they thought it was great,” he said. “My biggest influence growing up was Master P. I wanted to become more of a CEO. Master P, Timberland and Lil Jon made me want to make beats. »

As a teenager, he worked at Best Buy and bought a machine to make beats.

He formed the band Trillville with his friends LA and Dirty Mouth in high school.

“One year I had to go to high school because I failed math by one point. Los Angeles invited me to a party and I saw him and some other people play, and we clicked,” he said.

One day, a friend gave him the phone number of Vince Phillips; he was the CEO of BME Records, the label of Atlanta icon Lil Jon.

One day I called him and said, ‘People keep telling me my music is great. I don’t know if it is or not, but you can listen and see.’ He liked what I said. There was something authentic about that conversation, so he invited me to the office and I let him hear the music. The song he chose was ‘Neva Eva.’

Don P started going to different clubs in Georgia to perform “Neva Eva” with other rappers from Trillville, LA and Dirty Mouth and “he was a hit.”

“And then all of a sudden Lil Jon signed us,” he said. “I had to go to that office every day after every show to make sure I was in front of Vince Phillips and make sure he didn’t forget about us.”

Don P credits Lil Jon, Vince Phillips and countless others for paving the way not only as young artists, but for believing in them early on.

“We could never have done what we did without people paying the price,” Don P said. “Lil Jon, Jermaine Dupri, Jazze Pha, Pastor Troy, Rico Wade, Dallas Austin, Outkast and Goodie Mob. All these people that came before us. All these cool people that set the bar high. Pastor Troy was a big part of getting more Atlanta songs on the radio, not just in the mix, but in rotation.”

Sometimes he’s so busy making music and working on other projects that he doesn’t always take the time to reflect on his own legendary status in music.

“Quavo contacted me the other day and reminded me that I was a legend to him,” he said. “It’s very humiliating. I still have the same feeling from the first time we performed “Neva Eva” until now. I love when new artists sample it. Drake sampled Some Cut and Young Nudy’s “Neva Eva.” Young artists sample it and bring it to life, it feels good.

A significant moment from my childhood in Georgia was seeing Outkast win Best New Artist at the 1994 Source Awards. Then, Andre 3000 made his famous statement: “The South has something to say.”

“For the first time, we felt seen,” he said. “For a long time, it was Wu-Tang and Biggie, all the New York artists. It was the West Coast, Snoop, Dre and Pac. We loved those artists, but this was ours, in Atlanta and the South. We were very proud of Outkast and our local artists. Goodie Mob with Soul Food. That statement made everyone in Atlanta feel like that was it. It was a turning point for the South in general. It put a spotlight on Southern hip-hop.”

Don P also talked about the evolution of mixtapes over the years.

“Back then, we were just trying to get the word out about who we were, what we were doing, and how we felt,” he said. “It was the equivalent of a tweet or a post today. Nine times out of 10, the biggest song on the mixtape became the song on the album. On an album, everything has to be perfect. Everything has to sound amazing, everything has to be great. One is for the streets, one is for the masses, the world.”

He has released several albums with Trillville and Lil Scrappy and has released mixtapes and other musical projects. He has also produced dozens of tracks with other hip-hop artists.

“It’s a gift and a curse to rap and produce,” he said. “Even if you watch the Kanye West documentary, he was very good at making beats, but he had to fight like hell to get people to take him seriously in the rap business. Even Dr. Dre, one of the greatest beat creators. It’s fun because you can be as creative as possible. »

Don P created the beat for “Neva Eva” over 20 years ago and the song blew up around the world. He has produced for many rappers, including Gucci Mane, Kendrick Lamar, Jay Rock, Yung Joc, T-Pain, Roscoe Dash and others.

“It’s always great to be able to produce because the beat is like the canvas,” he added. “I produced with my favorite artists of all time, 3 6 Mafia. Collaborating with them was one of the highlights of my career. »

Don P says one of the things he learned from Lil Jon is work ethic. “Lil Jon’s work ethic is insane,” he added.

Don P and Lil Scrappy released “Get Active” in 2023 and recently released an album together to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their album Trillville.

“I came back to Atlanta from Los Angeles and we talked about making more music to celebrate. I made about seventy-five beats and we went through them. We all started recording.

Working with Lil Scrappy is always nostalgic for Don P and his energy is always awesome.

“If there’s an opportunity, he’ll take it,” Don P continued. “He does music, he does television, he does wrestling. He’s like a Renaissance man. It was fun working with Trillville and Scrappy again.

Don P and Trillville recently performed at Hot 107.9’s annual Birthday Bash at State Farm Arena.

Don P said he is excited to work on the new Trillville biopic titled “Welcome to Crunkville,” a project he began creating two years ago.

“I woke up one day and realized that the story had to be told,” Don P. said. “I wrote the script a few years ago. Our story is unique because it was before cell phones. It was before everybody had pictures. It was before there were sections in the club, there were just dance floors. There were fights before, during and after a show at the club and we still did the show. It was a different era of Crunk.”

The film will show the trials and tribulations that Trillville has gone through throughout their life and career. It will highlight them in their struggle to climb the music ladder.

He said the legendary “NuFace” will play Lil Jon in the film and he was grateful to be a part of the movie.

Larry “NuFace” Compton is a highly regarded and enthusiastic Atlanta hip-hop historian whose music memorabilia, magazines, and numerous collections have been featured at the Trap Music Museum in Atlanta and other exhibits, including Cruise Rock The Bells in 2023.

“NuFace is extremely important to Atlanta and to hip-hop,” Don said. “So many accomplishments go unnoticed, forgotten or unnoticed. He is the person who always makes music known. He is the god of artifacts. He is the connector. Some people wouldn’t have met without him. »

NuFace also coined the term “NuFace Was There” because he attended thousands of events, concerts, shows and always supported others. He’s someone who Don P thinks deserves more flowers for everything he does.

“It highlights things that people might have forgotten,” said Don P. “It’s extremely important. I don’t even know how he does it.

The film is set between 2000 and 2007. Don P said fans can expect a “nostalgic feeling” with the new film.

“If you’re from that era, you’re going to love it. If you’re not from that era, you’re still going to love it and you’re going to learn something.”