P-Dash

Production wrapped on George Stinney music video!

We recently wrapped production on a very exciting music video project for the song George Stinney written and performed by P-Dash. As co Director of Photography on this project, I got to spend a lot of time on set with P-Dash and I was very impressed with his work ethic and intellect. The video required P-Dash to perform the entire song dozens of times throughout the 2 day shoot. He gave us full energy performances every time and he was happy to do so. I told him how impressed I was by the fact that we were working him to the bone yet he never complained once. He replied by saying, “If I’m ever complaining that means I’m not learning something so that’s never even a thought.” It’s P-Dash’s open-mindedness and eagerness to learn that make him a great artist and that made me want to get to know him better.

Since working with P-Dash on the shoot, I’ve been listening to his album Dying 4 A Living and chatting with him over Facebook. I asked him a few questions for the purpose of making this blog in order to provide insight into who he is as an artist as well as what drove him to make the song George Stinney.

Interview with rapper P-Dash about the inspiration behind his music.

Brandon: In the opening track of your album Cause N Effect, you absolutely kill it. It’s some of the best rapping I’ve heard and it reminds of the good ol’ days when Tupac was around. Is your rap style a throwback to that bygone era?

P-Dash: I appreciate you taking notice. Not many people are willing to listen and peep whats really going on in the game these days. The fast pace of our culture is really reflected upon by the craftsmen represented (or lack thereof) in the genre. Lots of gimmicks and microwave shit now, so it’s definitely a new era these days. Hopefully a resurgence will be in order. I personally feel that it’s my mission to ensure that the platform is used to inject commentary of substance with a unique and clever style in the manner in which the foundation of the genre was created. Pac was definitely one of my favorites and teachers coming up but now it’s my time and responsibility to do what I can to move the game forward or at least offer something to contribute to its progress in this “recession”.

Brandon: What inspired you to make a song about George Stinney?

P-Dash: One night in 2012 an old friend of mine whom I hadn’t spoke with in quite a while but who knew where I was from called me and asked if I had ever heard of George Stinney. At the time the name did not ring a bell. I immediately asked who, what, where, and why and as soon as he said “that he was the youngest person ever executed in the United States” I told him that I knew exactly who he was referring to and was even able to tell him some of the details that he was already prepared to share with me about his story. As a kid growing up in Alcolu/Manning South Carolina I learned about George Stinney at a very young age, but I did not know his real name until that night. I watched a film by the name of “Carolina Skeletons” when I was 7 years old. It was based on George Stinney but since his name in the film was “Linus Bragg”, me being 7 at the time, I always figured that was his real name. Coming to such a realization made me want to discover if there was anything else that I didn’t know about such a historically traumatic event in my backyard especially now being an adult. I asked some of my other friends if they had heard of George Stinney.…few did but the majority had not. The few who did remember were like me and only remembered fragments of the story. For something like this to happen in my hometown (a place that is honestly not known for much of anything but this of all things) I felt responsible to tell his story to my generation and immediately began writing the song. I did some more personal research on my own and spoke with some of the elders from back home who were around during that time when everything went down to gain further insight. I was shocked to learn about how so many people didn’t even know this ever happened but not surprised being that this did take place in Alcolu, SC. After I completed the song it seemed like everywhere I turned I was hearing something about George Stinney. I truly felt like the spirit of George Stinney reemerged during this time of creation (as referenced in the song) and paid me a visit with orders to make sure that everybody knows what happened to him in Alcolu, SC. Now that’s inspiration!

Brandon: Why is it important to tell George Stinney’s story even though it happened 70 years ago?

P-Dash: It’s very important to tell the story of George Stinney today even though what happened to him occurred over 70 years ago for a couple different reasons. For one, there is still hope that he could be exonerated (for whatever that is worth). Secondly, and most importantly his story serves as the epitome of historical reminders of how “unjust” the American judicial system has been towards black men in particular throughout the existence of this country. The track record of inequality and unfair treatment towards this demographic, of which I myself am a member of continues to be prevalent in our society to this day, even when the prejudices and biases towards us are obvious in many cases. One would be hard pressed to look at the news and not find a story where another young black man has met his fate before a judge or even worse before he ever got a chance to see one, ironically in the name of Justice. Even when you look at the tactics of how modern law and order is “carried out” the scenes aren’t much different from how they appeared 60 and 70 years ago when America allegedly didn’t know any better and was admittedly more racist and unequal as a society. Some statistics could prove that not much has really changed now and if it has at all, it may even be for the worse as it pertains to the current state of black men in America. For any problem to get better it has to first be addressed and the origin or history of that problem has to be acknowledged and studied. This is why the story of George Stinney is so important. Subconsciously, a precedent was set that said any rights given to protect citizens in this country noted in the constitution don’t apply to black men. 70 years is enough time for a great percentage of people who may have even been in denial years ago to admit that something was wrong here. This allows us to at least face the problem without bias and ask the questions that could inevitably bring us closer to the solutions to these and similar types of problems that are still occurring to this day.

Brandon: Thanks for your insights, P! It’s always interesting to hear what’s on your mind.

P-Dash: Thanks, man. I’ve got a good feeling about this George Stinney project. I’m just so blessed and grateful to finally link up with such a great team with you and the rest of ECG who I have great confidence can bring the visuals to life as I imagined. I’m just very relieved because I couldn’t move forward in the process without the right visuals to accommodate the music and I couldn’t short change myself and settle for subpar work. I’m excited to be working with y’all going forward to help bring things to life. I think George Stinney will be the best video anyone has seen in years. - ECG Productions

"From slavery we wept tears, from all of them kept years
Do this for my peeps who never got the chance to rep theirs
Some people take the ELEVATOR to the top, I step STAIRS
Starting from the bottom was the same place where I left fears
Reached another level showed the devil that he's less fierce
Don't ask HOW, WHAT, and WHY got to HEAVEN cuz WHO the HELL cares
Put work in for the GOVERNMENT, jeopardizing my WELFARE
Funny the same GOVERNMENT jeopardizing our HEALTHCARE
Hate to push the buttons but come on just being real here..."

"Dying 4 a Living" made an impression before I opened the album. Reviewers are used to receiving self-released albums by mail in the form of a burnt CD-R with a handwritten label. P-Dash ain't goin' out like that though. Even though he's his own label of record, under his real name of Bryant P. Robbins, Dash still spent the cash to have his album get a proper print run. It comes in a foldout digipak, with a full insert that has all of his album's lyrics and production notes, although it's somewhat redundant in the latter case since all songs besides "The Format" are self-produced. Either way it's clear P decided not to half-ass this album in any way, even getting his face painted and professionally photographed for the cover artwork.

Even though I'm relatively new to P-Dash, the level of care and detail suggests he's not new to the music industry, something his bio makes perfectly clear. Creeping up on 30 years of age, he doesn't have the time to waste half-assing any part of his effort - he's not making rookie mistakes he'd have to rebound from or correct later on. He's here to put in "Work." The song is a spiritual successor to Kool Moe Dee's hustle anthem with a much more Southern swang.

P-Dash's thoughtful lyrics keep the listener engaged throughout the near 60 minutes of "Dying 4 a Living." He's grateful for being shaped into the man he became on "Letter 2 My Teacher," something we should hear more of in society - and not just from our emcees. "Only My Tears Can Explain" is his personal confession of hardship and loss, with P not fearing showing us his vulnerable side. He also shows us his self-motivation on "Get Up," which is also an anthem to get everybody off their ass and put in the effort he does.
"First things first don't do this rap shit to stand out
My plans bout to minimize the folks holding they hands out
Whether you're on the corner bumming or all day at your mans house
Relying on government funds, crying cuz they ran out
It's hard to believe you can RECEIVE when you ain't RAN ROUTES
When chasing the greed most people bleed cuz it don't pan out
It's time to proceed so take heed to what your plans bout
So you can grow SEEDS with no WEEDS then watch your plans SPROUT
Everybody want something but don't know how to get it
Pride in they way, hide it away and just admit it
Swallow that shit, ask somebody who done did it
Since they done done it, I mean that's if you want it
Stop gettin blunted..."

There are only two drawbacks to "Dying 4 a Living," which I'm somewhat reluctant to mention given P's drive and professionalism, but I'd be doing him a disservice if I didn't. The first is that P-Dash seems to be stuck in second gear emotionally with his flow. Since he's a former army soldier he's probably used to staying cool even under the most intense of situations, but I'd like to hear the mood of "Only My Tears" match the words a little more closely - he raps it just like every other song on the album. Regrettably his self-produced beats are a little blase as well. None of them are bad or unlistenable, but none of them are that fire, and when Cedric 'Neo' Gaymon steps in on "The Format" the difference is immediately noticeable. Since Mr. Robbins is already willing to invest the money to put out a polished album, I want him to save up the proceeds and get a few tracks from Statik Selektah or Alchemist. P-Dash has the focus and the commitment, but his own beats won't take him to the top. Other than that "Dying 4 a Living" has a lot to offer the listener and is worth your consideration. - RapReviews.com