diggy

After seeing the great feedback, “The First Flight,” mixtape by Diggy Simmon got on RealTalkNY, I decided to reach out to him to discuss his music, critics and his future plans in rap. Check the full interview below.

Nigel D.: What inspired you to drop your first mixtape, “The First Flight”?

Diggy Simmons: Well I’ve been rhyming since I was 5 years old and I kinda stopped when I was 10. Then this summer I got back into writing and rhyming, I had a lot to express so I was just making tracks on garage band with industry instrumentals for a while. Then I released a remix to, “She don’t wanna man,” by Asher Roth and it got good feedback, so I had the idea of doing a tape and I just got up and did it all by myself.

Diggy Simmons – She Don’t Want A Man Remix

Nigel D.:What sparked your interest in rap and why you stopped for a few years?

Diggy Simmons: I think it’s sad that the media and people influence us on our decisions so much that we’re almost afraid to do what we want to do. I’m mainly known for my fashion sense so when I stopped rapping I did it based on I can only do one or the other. I felt that way because you always tend to see people get ridiculed for quote on quote “Trying to do it all”. As I’ve matured now I have I don’t care what people say mentality when it comes to doing what I love to do.

Diggy Simmons

Nigel D.: Do you feel people judge your music sometimes based on your background and the image they have of you on TV instead of your content?

Diggy Simmons: Oh for sure in my outro on the mixtape “I gotta make it” I wrote, “The ignorance of every comment on each blog he’s a rich kid why he rapping he don’t need a job.” That’s just one of the many things I will here over and over until my point is 100% proven. No one thinks that I honestly have a hunger for this because of how I came up. So a lot of people hate instead of embrace because there first thought they believe is his uncle is gonna get him signed and his dad helped him with his tape. People fail to realize that I’m a kid and they’ve seen me on T.V. for so long that it’s the only thing they think I’m capable of doing. This is my passion and I go hard at it on a daily basis just like the next man that wants this does. I’m not seeking help from my dad or uncle because I believe the feeling of me making it will feel much greater by putting in that hard work and dedication. My dad’s super proud he just heard the whole tape only like 3 days ago so he’s real pleased. Same with my uncle and Jojo they are proud of it.

Nigel D.: What topics do you plans to discuss in your music?

Diggy Simmons: I’m a story teller so I just write about past experiences I’ve been through. Or what I’m dealing with right now. My music is a reflection of me.

Nigel D.: Some artist have an image that doesn’t reflect their real life, are you going to avoid that?

Diggy Simmons: Definitely I’m real in everything I write down to what record. I found that really important. What’s the point of rapping about something you haven’t experienced yet.

Nigel D.: Ok so the mixtape has received good feedback online, what are your next plans?

Diggy Simmons: I just keep going going hard at it. Keep writing and releasing music. If the right deal comes along we’ll see, I’m definitely looking forward to doing an album in the future.

Nigel D.: What rappers did you grow up listening to have influenced your music?

Diggy Simmons: I’m influenced by a lot of people but mainly Lupe, Q-tip, and Andre 3,000.

Nigel D.: So your focused on lyrical content?

Diggy Simmons: Yeah that’s like my number one focus. I write all my rhymes the day before studio there for everything is perfect and I can go straight in. People don’t think I write my rhymes which makes me mad and happy at the same time. It makes me happy because it’s a form of flattery they do not think a kid wrote it. Then it makes me mad they weren’t the ones watching me write at 5:00 A.M. for 10:00 A.M. studio.

Nigel D.: so u write 100% of your rhymes?

Diggy Simmons: I write 100% of my rhymes no ghost writer nothing at all.

Diggy feat. Neako – What’s It All For

Nigel D.: On the track, “What’s It All For,” you state, “We losing the definition of success,” how do you define it?

Diggy Simmons: When people in music think of success It’s millions of dollars , mansions, A lot of grammys, a lot of women etc. So a lot of people think luxury living is when you have made it when it’s necessarily not. I say in the rhyme “This something your supposed to set” meaning you create your own definition of success not some one else’s

Nigel D.: On, “Truth Is Me,” you rap, “The show almost put my social life to an end,” can you explain how the show affected your life?

Diggy Simmons: I’m growing up and I’m a teen and all my friends have treated me normal, but other people I see in the streets don’t so It’s really hard. There’s a lot in that song that I expressed I wrote that on and off for about 2 weeks because I was trying to get so much out in such little times. There’s a lot more that I was saying behind the words.

Nigel D.: So what do you think of the state of Hip Hop now?

Diggy Simmons: As I said I mean the substance is definitely missing from a lot of Hip Hop music. A lot of people are just talking about the same things and rappers my age coming up are looking at this and are seeing who’s living quote on quote “The Life.” So they believe that’s the way they should rhyme to “Make it.”

Diggy Simmons & Family

Nigel D.: How do you feel about people writing you off because they feel you haven’t been through struggles in life? Assuming you have it made because of your family basically.

Diggy Simmons: As I said in the beginning of the truth of me, “You know a lot of people just run and assume how they think I am cause they see the house and they cars and they see the wealth they think they see it all.” People honestly believe that I don’t have struggles and I don’t go through anything like a normal dude just because my family is wealthy, not every issue has to deal with money.

For more on Diggy Simmons check twitter.com/diggy_simmons and digslifeofthejetsetter.blogspot.com