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Dubba D is a Louisiana based bass artist who is constantly leveling up. I was lucky enough to be able to do one of my first interviews with Darian way back when. Today, he is back with a release that is hot off the presses: a remix for Boo Munch and Kingsli. Willy Wonky has been taken and completely revamped into this energetic, fast-paced banger. He has taken a song that was an in your chest, space bass and given us something to rage to. Adding a dash of hard-hitting flavor, some truly spicy drops and Dubba D has crafted the perfect recipe. The new remix can be streamed on all major platforms and is definitely the best way to start your day. Darian took some time to chat with us about the past year, musical creativity in the midst of a pandemic and what else is coming up. Check out the interview below!
Welcome back Darian! So excited to have you back on Stay Vibrant. How are you doing?
I’m doing really well actually! Ironically I just got over coronavirus first thing of the year and then played a live stream set for a collective I’m a part of called The Phoenix Lair! I’m one of the cofounders, and it was our first livestream set, it went super well. I’ve also started my last semester of college and I graduate in May, plus I got a new job! 2021 is already off to a crazy start!
2020 was an absolute roller coaster of emotions. How did your quarantine start and where did it end as you started the new year?
My quarantine started with BUKU getting canceled, followed by every gig and show I had planned for the rest of 2020 following suit. However, being cramped in a room really helped me to explore new avenues of creating. I spent a lot of time producing more, which felt amazing, and I also started streaming! It’s been an awesome journey exploring new horizons as an artist and a musician.
The pandemic completely decimated the live events industry. Leaving millions jobless and
many artists forced to cancel any tours or venue performances. How did that affect you and how did you redirect that time and energy?
So as I stated earlier, I had several gigs lined up that were canceled cause of COVID-19. Being in quarantine really put me in a position where I was able to spend time working on sound design and perfecting my mixing skills. Isolation is an excellent breeding ground for some major mental health struggles, and we’ve discussed in depth the prevalence and severity of issues such as depression & anxiety within the realm of creatives. You know that that’s been an area where I’ve struggled just as much as the next, but music was a beacon of light for me in this time period. It helped me to feel empowered and gave me a sense of accomplishment, which helped keep the mental health struggles at bay.
2021 has begun, we have a new president, we have a new year, vaccines are going out worldwide -- there seems to be a new found hope. What are your vision board goals for this coming year?
Well, last year I started a New Year’s tradition where I post up a list of the goals I want to accomplish for that year on Twitter, and I book mark it and revisit it at the end of the year. It helps to gauge what I consider for my self as success, which at the end of the day is just reaching the goals I’ve set for myself. So with that being said, here are my goals that I have set for 2021!
• recover and finish my EP (I had a hard drive stop working in me as of a few weeks ago, and it had all of my music from the past 10 years on it)
• play a set that is more than half original content
• put out 6 more songs
• 3 more label releases
• 1 substantial label release (15k+ following)
• become involved with a major music festival (BUKU, GRiMEFEST, etc)
You released a new remix today for Boo Munch and Kingsli's tune Willy Wonky, tell us a bit about this exciting release!
It’s crazy because I’ve actually been sitting on this release for a while now, it’s been in my sets for a solid 10 months! Sean and Eric released their track almost a year ago to date, and when I heard the rough track, I immediately started having ideas for what a remix would sound like. Sean thoroughly enjoyed my idea, and he gave me some excellent input that really gave the track some extra dynamic. It was an amazing learning experience and I can’t wait for people to finally be able to hear our finished product on their streaming service of choice!
I appreciate you chatting today, very excited about this new release and look forward to having it stream constantly. What else is coming up for you and is there any advice you'd like to leave the readers with?
So it’s funny that you mention streaming, because I’ve been streaming the creation of this new EP I’m working on via Twitch! Like I said earlier, I’m in the process of recovering the drive on which the files were located, so it’s production has been postponed indefinitely until further notice. However, WHEN I DO RECOVER IT, it’s going to be my first EP since the Monsters EP that I released in 2015! I’m extremely excited for what’s in store, I have some amazing vocal talent that I’ll be bringing in, and I can’t show the world what Dubba D. has grown into!
All of this being said, I have two very solid bits of advice for the readers. Firstly, if you are someone who has important stuff stored on a computer, PLEASE back up your computers to external drives! Haha. And secondly, please, never stop pushing yourself and growing in new and beautiful ways. Art is living and organic, it grows and changes as you continue to work with it!
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