In cooperation with LiveFromTheFrontline.com, This Is Hip Hop presents this dope interview with up-and-coming emcee, Donny Goines.
Born in Manhattan, Donny Goines spent his youth going back and forth between Philly, the Bronx, and Harlem. Ingrained with a street mentality that some can only imitate, Donny knew that to fill the holes in his life, something had to change, something had to happen. His energies had to focus on a positive to avoid the negative. Having been forced to grow up fast, Donny realized in his searching that music was his solace. With an obvious interest in performing, writing and freestyling, Hip-Hop became more then a prominent aspect of Donny’s life, it became his salvation.
LFTFL: First and foremost, for the sake of those who aren’t familiar with who you are and what you do, can you take a second to introduce yourself?
Donny Goines: I’m Donny Goines and I’m an unsigned rapper hailing from New York City
LFTFL: How did you get into music? When did you first fall in love with hip hop?
Donny Goines: Music has always been a part of my life. I initially got into it way back in 1997. I took a serious interest in the art once I saw my friends freestyling on the block. I noticed how people would gather around, listen to them and give them their undivided attention and that really intrigued me. That’s when the love for hip hop started to develop.
LFTFL: Is Donny Goines a stage name, your government name or a combination of the two? I ask because I know up and coming rappers tend to borrow their stages names from once infamous figures. I searched the name on Google and all I found was an author who penned novels about the struggles of pimps, thieves, drug dealers and other society outcasts. Did you name yourself after him?
Donny Goines: It’s a combination of my government name and a fictional stage name. I hate fake shit and I’ve never been big on nicknames so the more I took music serious the more I realized I needed to come up with a stage name. The name of my birth certificate reads Donny so I wanted to incorporate that into my stage name. After days of tossing around different names one of my boys blurted our ” Donny Goines”. I thought about it and at first I was hesitant because those are some pretty big shoes to fill but I didn’t rule it out. After some careful consideration I thought it suited me well and decided to go with it. His ( Donald Goines ) son actually reached out to me and gave me his blessing, which was dope.
LFTFL: I’m a big fan of thinking so for me the common bond between a rapper and an author like Donald Goines is obvious but some of the readers might not be as familiar with the author as I am so for the sake of our intellectually less fortunate readers can you explain your reasons for taking on the moniker of someone like Donald Goines?
Donny Goines: I’m a great writer, writing has always been something I was good at and it’s a fitting surname. For those who don’t know, Donald Goines was a popular author who wrote many stories about life in the ghetto. His work was actually the blueprint for all of these black hood novels you see floating around today. Like mine, his stories were candid and vivid so I figured his name was a great one to adopt. Should I have named myself Donny Brasco, Donny Gotti, or Donny Trump? I’m not a rat, a gangster or rich. I’m an emcee who tells stories.
LFTFL: You’ve made a name for yourself by utilizing the internet as a promotional tool, what role has the world wide web played in your career? Where do you think you’d be without certain internet only resources such as message boards, email, YouTube and myspace?
Donny Goines: The internet is the wave of the future and the foundation of my career. The same way this magazine considers mixtapes hip hop’s foundation I consider the internet my foundation. When I decided to pursue this as a career I sat back and really put some thought into it. Do I go the mixtape route? Too crowded. The DVD route? Too common. Radio and TV? Too expensive. I saw the internet as the most economical and logical route and I knew it would produce the most results. Without the message boards, websites, blogs and outlets of that nature Donny Goines doesn’t exist. Its that simple.
LFTFL: How important is it for an up and coming artist to move away from internet only promotion and connect with the fans on a personal level thru shows, open mics and things of that nature?
Donny Goines: I’m glad you asked that question. Connecting with fans on a personal level is very important and that’s why I throw album release parties, perform at showcases and open mics and attend as many networking and industry events as I can because people need to see you. Some people don’t really use the internet so if I’m not on the streets how will those people know me? You’ve got to combine the internet with DVDs, mixtape features an live performances. An artist needs to utilize all those avenues in his career.
LFTFL: If you had to choose one promotional avenue, the internet or the streets, to utilize for the remainder of your career which one would you choose and why?
Donny Goines: The internet because it’s the new hustle and the wave of the future. The internet is the new streets. You learn about the rumors, new music, new and things of that nature, faster and at the touch of a button. It will only get more and more concentrated as time goes on.
LFTFL: The internet has been very good to you so it comes your choice comes as no shock. The internet gave birth to Donny Goines, true or false.
Donny Goines: True, very true. I would not exist without the blogs, the websites, Youtube, Face book and things of that nature. I built my career from the ground up on the internet and branched out. I’m fully capable as an artist in all aspects but the internet is where it all started.
LFTFL: The internet isn’t all rainbows and gum drops, it has a negative side to it doesn’t it?
Donny Goines: You lost the personal aspect of the music, which is very important. Using the internet can also box you in sometimes, you’ll hear people saying things like ” Oh he’s just a myspace rapper ” or things of that nature. Another problem is that it’s a very serious rat race that moves very fast so you have to work at an even faster rate to keep up. These are a few examples of the negatives but all situations have pros and cons.
LFTFL: You actually meet you mentor and good friend, Disco D, thru the internet, something I know you consider to be a pro. I know the story but can you tell the tale of how you two meet for the sake of our readers who might not be familiar with the story?
Donny Goines: Long story short, during the summer of 2006 I posted a topic on one of the popular forums for DJs, the Bumsquad DJs networking forum, one I’m sure your familiar with. I was basically looking for a part time job in the music business. Disco D responded to the post the next day via myspace. At first I had no idea who he was but he asked me if I was interested in becoming a ” runner” for him, which involved running errands, cleaning up and things of that nature. I accepted and he told me to come down to his studio in Williamsburg. We meet and after about an hour and a half long conversation he paid me for the first two weeks, gave me a key to his crib and I worked eighteen hours straight, on my first day. I eventually became his personal assistant and was in charge of supervising the interns. While pursing a career and working with him we became great friends. Disco D was a great mentor and a real friend. His passing really hurt me but as long as I’m alive his legacy will live on.
LFTFL: I have to play devil’s advocate for a second because some people believe your relationship with Disco D wasn’t as genuine as you make it out to be and say you’re merely using his name to create one for yourself. For the record, I don’t personally believe that’s the case but I’ve heard people talking and I wanted to provide you with an avenue in which to set the record straight.
Donny Goines: That’s fine, people can think whatever they’d like, that doesn’t really bother me. I’ve always believed that knowing the truth is all that matters. I’d like to delve into the situation a bit, for the sake of the non-believers.
First of all I lived in his studio from June to October of 2006. I slept on the floor of his studio and worked as his personal assistant and in the process became his friend, good friends. I don’t have many friends, a handful at most, the rest are just associates or acquaintances. If I call someone a friend you better believe its for a good reason. I don’t have to use his name to advance my own, at the end of the day my talent and drive are what I rely on to move ahead in this business. I turned down an EP deal with Disco D back in September of 2006. Now does that sound like something someone who was trying to eat off another man’s name would do? Wouldn’t it have made sense to take that opportunity if that was the case? Here’s another little known fact, I have several of his unreleased beats in my possession right now but to date have only used two. One is a song I dedicated to his parents and the other I recorded in his studio with his permission. If I were using his name and music wouldn’t I take advantage of name by using his beats?
The bottom line is simple, I don’t have to justify what I say or do to anyone, actions speak louder then words. I’ll tell you this much thou, the same people talking about me are probably the same ones who left Disco D for dead. People in our business are frauds and that’s the reason I don’t fuck with a lot of people. If the public only knew half the shit I knew they’d be really shocked to find out the real truth about some of his so called friends. Rest in Peace to Disco ” Dave ” Shayman. You’ll always live thru me.
LFTFL: I can respect your position but that leads me to another question. If you’re not using his tracks or speaking his name how are you keeping his memory alive? If I was in your position I’d use the records and tell those stories to whoever would listen.
Donny Goines: Who said I wasn’t? I’m not in a position right now to do what I want but when I am people will understand the motives. In the meantime his memory lives thru me. His legacy is alive because we are speaking about him now. Actions speak louder then words. Only time will tell.
LFTFL: What’s next for Donny Goines?
Donny Goines: Right now I’m working on my debut album which is being Executive Produced by Dame Grease. That’s my main focus. I’m looking for the right situation to launch that off the ground. I’m am also helping to produce a short with my boy Don Hankins (the person who took my photo for this interview) which should be done soon along with many other projects, collaborations, etc. I’m doing a million different things and who knows exactly what the future holds but you best believe I’m be putting out great music that’s for sure
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