Deedub Goes International with New CD, 'Liberation'

You know the storyline: someone has a "real job," and they chuck it to follow their dream. The plot is played out, with varied degrees of success. There is also the question of "making it." That's different for each person.

From out of SoCal comes Deedub. His new album, Liberation is the product of the embrace of that music, which came "as a result of people's encouragement. I started out doing music as purely a hobby, a passion, just something on the side. As I made recordings and played them for my friends, people were pretty much blown away."

Hip-hop was the prime musical force in the evolution of Deedub, but like most his influences were many. "I've gone through a lot of phases in my life," he admits. "In middle school I listened to punk rock, and before that I was into the whole Nirvana scene and Metallica, but hip-hop was the motivator."

The stage name comes from Deedub's initials. "I think I was like 13 years old," he recalls, "and I wrote rhymes for a long time. That was like my first pen name and I stuck with it."

Liberation has a stripped down feel, devoid of the over-the-top production elements and technical tricks that have become too much the norm. The reggae vibe is the big one from the title track onwards, but tracks like "International" and "Bentley" show other sides to Deedub's personality. "'Burn Notice',' and tracks like that have more of the hip-hop influence and my background in that area," Deedub explains, "whereas 'Liberation,' that's where the reggae influence and more Caribbean vibes come in."

Added to the mix are the sultry vocals of KLB, who is also Deedub's wife and fellow performer. "She came to a lot of my shows," he recalls. "I started throwing her on some tracks; she sings a lot of hooks on songs; she's become vital to the whole music thing.

"The overall message coming from (Liberation) is positivity," he stresses. "It's just about doing what you want to do in life, being yourself and freeing yourself from anything that's holding you back."

As for being categorized? "To me it doesn't matter. Right now I'm considering my music as world music, as a blend of different types of music from around the world, reggae, hip-hop and R&B."

Along with the music comes the business side of it, especially in LA. "If you want to do this, you have to be passionate about it," Deedub says firmly. "You have to love the music-there's going to be setbacks, there's going to be people along the way that promise you the world and not deliver. On the bright side, there's tons of people out here. It's like crabs in a bucket, people trying to do the same thing. You can get a huge leg up if from the get-go with your music you approach it as a business and professionally. It's just about professionalism and backing it up with a solid product."

The approach has added up: Deedub took the LA Music Awards Hip-Hop Artist of the Year honors in 2011, and the Artists in Music trophy in that category in 2012.

Locally, Deedub has shows coming up at Boardners in LA on February 22nd, plus appearances at OC Fashion Week in Newport Beach on the 28th and March 3rd. Plans are being set for the "Liberation" tour through the state and beyond.

"We do this for real," Deedub says. "We don't' get onstage and lip sync, we're gonna bring the music from the soul from the spirit, you're gonna feel it."

Going to any show is generally for an escape or a release, but Deedub hopes those who come out get "a soulful experience. It makes you feel empowered, now you can do anything. The chains are gone, the fear is gone."

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