About Me
Every now and then a voice emerges with the ability to touch millions. A voice derived from the streets, but not defined by them. A voice that is so different it feels almost familiar. It might remind you of a southern sound with a bit of D.C. style. Something you may have imagined but is not quite real--until you hear the voice of Hump Deville.At age 17, Hump Deville found himself in a precarious situation. The forth of seven children growing up in Chocolate City, Hump Deville wasnt on the path to attending college like his brothers and sisters. Nor was he on the path to becoming the next big rap star. Instead, he and his friends were on the path to becoming juvenile burglars, perhaps even on the road to prison. But when Hump Devilles older brother, Daoud Baptiste walked in on his baby brother planning a street robbery, he knew he had to steer him in a different direction, and that direction would be music.I knew he had what it took, says Daoud of younger brother. He always loved music, and he loved to imitate rappers. I heard it in his voice, his style, and I told him he could be as successful as the biggest rap icon if he wasnt out in the streets getting caught up. I knew we could focus his energies in to something more positive.Having already been involved in music production in college, Daoud took his brother under his wings and together they formed the group Power of Three. They began to create a buzz in the D.C. area performing at any and every venue where they could be heard. Whether it was college campus shows or beauty pageants, they were constantly claiming the stage. After gaining a loyal D.C. area following, the groups music caught the ears of Sony/Epic Record executive Chuckie Thompson, who signed the duo under the Bad Boy label. Though it seemed like this would be the break they were looking for, the deal would proved to be disappointing. After recording an album, and shooting a video, Sony/Epic underwent a management change and the project fell through the cracks.We did a great album, we had a lot of input from the Puff Daddy and the Bad Boy camp, but the album was shelved, and we asked to be released, recalls Daoud. Though a major blow, both Daoud and Hump Deville had no intentions of giving up. Still, they knew it might be time to branch out.For Hump Deville this was a time to start over and he quickly formed a new group called Top Notch. Again, the group garnered a huge local following, with its single, The Union making it to the Battle of the Beats, a D.C. area radio competition that pits local singles against the top rap songs out. Not waiting for a record label this time, the group also pushed over 10,000 independent albums between their car trunk and local retailers.As Top Notch began to enjoy local success and great national feedback, a star began to emerge. Soon people began urging Hump Deville to go solo. Now, ten years since the first record deal, Hump Deville has developed his voice and gained the respect of hip-hop stars like Busta Rhymes, and Bun B, recording tracks with both. As a solo artist, he knows its time to give the world an introduction to sound of Hump Deville.Citing Outkast, Jay-Z, NWA and the great city of Washington D.C. as his greatest influences, Hump Deville truly brings something original to the game. A hard-core voice, with street sensibilities and insight in to the human condition, his heavy lyrical flow sets him as apart.Im definitely street influenced, but not held in the bracket of gangsta rap, he says. Im street and semi-playboy. But Im not just talking about naked women, and Im not just talking about drugs and violence, theres more to my music than that. I want people to hear my music and know it has depth, it might even make you want to make you tear up at some point.And with plenty of life experiences to draw from, Hump Devilles story is no gimmick. I never consciously said, Im going to be a hip-hop artist, until my brother walked in on me planning that robbery. He told me I was gonna either end up locked up or dead, and that music could be my way out.At 15, I started selling drugs, doing the obvious things, he continues. If your clothes aint looking right, you want to go to school looking clean. There were times I didnt go to school because the clothes wasnt looking right. All my brothers went to college, so I assumed thats where I would go. It just happened that in the neighborhood we were in, it was really easy to go down the wrong road.Hump Deville has used his experiences to fuel his fiery lyrical style with real life experiences and personal stories. An industry veteran, with a truly unique vibe, hes ready to share his voice with the world and put Washington D.C. on the map. Weve never really had a true gangster rapper, Im trying to make that mark for D.C. and all the metropolitan area artistsRequest "Hustle Harder" at royal-radio.com
