Naturally, Dame responded, which then led to a couple of “diss” tracks from both sides — and they’re all dope, to be honest. Check out the brief-but-satisfying battle between the two NBA players below.

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The post ICYMI: Damian Lillard & Marvin Bagley III Had a Friendly Rap Battle Over The Weekend appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

By: Ashley Broadway

Virginia rapper and professional basketball player Gee, is using his creative genius, and superb jumpshot to tell his uniquely devine story.

I had the pleasure of catching up with the superstar in a quick question and answer session, as he discussed music, basketball and how he’s able to balance the two. Check it out below.

Me: Who is Gee?

Gee: Gee is an artist who plays basketball. Not the other way around. I want people to see the art first because i feel it’s more of a direct reflection of who I am. Also the art will be taken more serious if you see that part first.

Respect: How would you best describe your sound?

Gee: I feel like my sound is definitely refreshing for the people who appreciate the art of lyricism, storytelling, and just the clever use of words to paint a picture. Especially at a time in which we’ve gotten away from that too often.

Respect: What makes you unique as an artist?

Gee: What makes me unique as an artist is simply the fact that I’m staying true to myself. Not to a point where I’m not willing to adjust my sound, but people tend to run with whatever sound is popular with people. I’m making the music that I, and the people like me, love to hear.

Respect: What made you pursue a career in music?

Gee: What forced me to pursue a career in music was time. It never stops and starts again when you decide to make up your mind. I started writing when I was 16 and I kept it from almost everyone until I was 20 l, out of fear of what people would say. But when I was 19, one of closest friends, Jxy True, who is also a rapper, was in the beginning stages of making music altogether.

He wasn’t very good yet, at all, but he had a ton of potential and was already strategically planning every release. He didn’t care what anyone thought. So I decided I didn’t want to have any regrets. I didn’t want to be that 35 year old saying, “Yo I was nice at rapping when I was younger.” No one wants to hear that.

Respect: What was the inspiration behind muse?

Gee: Muse is a reflection of where I was at in life at that time. My ex and I were together since we were 17 until we were nearly 21. So I didn’t live the single life or experience any of it ever in my life until we broke up.

So it chronicles that single life experience for me, and how I was just trying to figure it out. I saw how my friends, as single men, handled their women so I took note of it and tried to incorporate it into how I did things.

Respect: When can we expect some new material from you?

Gee: I will certainly have new music dropping this year, hopefully this summer. In the meantime, I will try to drop content mmore consistently on my instagram just to draw more people to me and my music.

Respect: What is it like being a professional ball player who does music?

Gee: Being a professional ball player who does music is tough, but it’s equally cool. It’s tough because we don’t have the best reputation in music. 

And I don’t know it’s true, but it always seemed like professional ball players did music just to do it, they never seemed passionate about it, but I could be totally wrong.

I also get a little jealous when I see Nic and my friends doing all these cool things with music because then I feel like I’m not doing anything.Then I have to laugh at myself for forgetting that I don’t even have time because I’m working on a whole other career here.

I find it cool maybe just because I know myself and I know that I may very well be a better artist than I am a basketball player. Some ball players are actually pretty talented with music like Damian Lillard and Iman Shumpert, and I’m not saying I’m better than them or anyone else, but I don’t think anyone does this quite like I do. Athlete or not.

With an ill demeanor on and off the court, Gee’s flows are just as impressive as his jumshop. Check his latest material out below.

The post Gee: The Melodic Basketball Superstar appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Under the name “Dame D.O.L.L.A.,” Damian Lillard transcends the definition of the normative definition of what a basketball player is by dropping a very revealing project, entitled The Letter O. The “O” in question is a nod to the persistency of the “O” shape and letter in Lillard’s life- the number he wears, his youth in Oakland, his Trail Blazers in Oregon, and more- and a testament to the subject matter which acts as the engine for the project.

Tales from the very crime and poverty ridden Oakland, California and pressures about what it means to be a black man in America today are only a couple of the topics Lillard dabbles in over the course of his debut project. With these topics in mind, it’s no surprise that sonically, as well as lyrically, Lillard takes influence from 90s hip-hop, where the sociopolitical stories and diagnoses were put on display for the wider hip-hop audience. Essentially, the album sounds like it could’ve easily been released sometime in the 90s.

“First day I stumbled in teacher hand us the syllabus
I’m Dame from east Oakland I don’t know if I’m feeling this”

Rhyme scheme and beat wise, Lillard definitely takes a step back into time. The project features Jamie Foxx, Raphael Saadiq, Lil Wayne, and plenty others. Clearly many hip-hop and R&B legends were down to help Lillard artistically portray his story.

Stream the album above, and keep updated on Lillard to keep up with his basketball and his music.

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The post Damian Lillard Drops the Compelling ‘The Letter O’ appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.