We recently connected with D’shon El Villano and have shared our conversation below.
D’shon , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
The most meaningful project that I’ve worked on so far is my most recent album, VILLANO DE LA BARBA BLANCA. This is an album that I started
many years ago with the goal of submitting it to the GRAMMYS® and I’ve been perfecting it little by little and it’s it’s been something sentimental in many ways for me. Not just because of the subject matter but also because of the process of crafting these songs from scratch. I have the fortune to be able to work with my favorite producer: Immanuel “IMA305” Ramirez. He was my teacher at school. I learned sound engineering from him about 15 years ago, he’s a Grammy-winning engineer & producer who worked on incredible projects with Mark Anthony, Ricky Martin, Maluma, as well as many many other international superstars, and of course, many local artists. I’m blessed to have the opportunity to sit down and work with him the way I do. Producing music with him has been a lifetime opportunity I greatly appreciate. One of the most important things that I’ve been striving for is to better myself with each song, with each album, and with each project. A big part of bettering who I am and what i do is my wife who is a renowned creator, here in Miami and Mexico. She’s a magnificent artist and designer. She always has her finger on the pulse of art, hip-hop, and culture in general. I benefit so much from having her in my corner. Also, I was able to work with engineer/producer Drezs of Macana Estudio from Medellin, Colombia. So much of this album I credit to his expertise and guidance.
We’ve currently been able to promote this album with the means of a real indie artist: with no real budget to be spoken of but enough hustle and grit to make any top music mogul proud. With our hard work, we’ve achieved more than 600,000 streams across all DSPs.
It’s been incredible to see people interact with the music and then come back and interact with us. It means so much to me to be able to hear people’s opinions be it positive or negative, constructive or otherwise. It’s a humbling experience to have the feedback of unknown people and at the same time the feedback of the people who I have in my circle, the people who I appreciate that also participate in what I do. It’s been life-changing for me.
There’s so much of this album that is outside of my comfort zone. I’m singing I’m rapping, I’m playing instruments, I’m reading poetry, we’re fusing different sounds from different parts of Latin America and hip-hop culture so it’s really a blend of a lot of things and a labor of love. We’ve coined the name TROPICAL HIPHOP to better explain and define the music that we make. VILLANO DE LA BARBA BLANCA is a step up from the rest of my albums and it sets the bar for what’s to come. It means so much to me that we were able to submit to the 67th Annual Grammy® Awards in 5 categories: Album VILLANO DE LA BARBA BLANCA for *Album Of The Year, *Best Musica Urbana Album, and *Artist Of The Year. We also submitted the single (not included in the album) BIG STEPPA for *Song Of The Year and *Best Rap Performance. In the meantime, we will be promoting to Grammy® voters in October while the first round of voting is going on. Hopefully, we’ll find out if we are nominated by December, we can only dream. Nomination or not I think the important part is to participate. This is the first year that I have submitted my material. For now, I’m incredibly proud of the work we’re doing, so much hard work and soul has been put in on this album that I really want people to check it out and see what it is. It’s so beautiful and so meaningful that I want to put this album in front of as many new eyeballs and ears as we possibly can.
Another very meaningful project I am involved with is the VILLAINS WISH FOUNDATION working through the non-profit: BEAUTIFUL VISION MIAMI, It all comes together thanks to THE BEARDED VILLAINS Miami Chapter. We’re a brotherhood dedicated to helping our community at large. We lead by example with consistency and conviction. Our brothers come from all walks of life, we all have different points of view and lifestyles but we come together to influence each other and our community in the most positive way imaginable. Giving back and self-care are the most important things to us. We make sure we constantly communicate and make sure we are there for each other no matter what.
To learn more about our movement and our good deeds check out our website: BV305.COM and follow us on Instagram @beardedvillainsmiami
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
My name is D’shon El Villano. My family is from Colombia and I was born and raised mostly in Miami. Growing up, I had the
influence of my parent’s culture at home and the influence of American culture at school. I spoke English outside of my house and at
home I was only allowed to speak Spanish. I feel my life and everything I do is kind of like an extension of what Miami is in a
way. I feel I represent Miami to the fullest. There are a lot of paradoxes and a lot of contradictions going on in Miami and I can say the same about my life and that’s just the way life is in general. I’m a very positive person. I’m usually an optimist but also I can’t help but be a realist and kind of be that person who some call “the devil’s advocate” despite my positive attitude. I try to stay positive and be an optimist for my family, I always wish for the best and hope for the best motivating them and motivating myself. But when it comes to the street life and this music business, I’m that realist playing devil’s advocate, That’s kind of the way that I live.
I started making music professionally when I was about 20, but before that, I was very much
into writing lyrics, and poems and performing. I studied music from a very young age. Scholastic, I always analyzed the music and the artist’s life. Eventually, when I started recording professionally in the 2000s, I started looking for ways to become a successful artist, and for me, being successful entails knowing everything I can about what everybody does and all the positions in the entertainment industry. I figured the more I knew, the more I learned, and that would increase my chances of having the success I sought out. Eventually, I surrounded myself with good people who were the best at their craft. I’ve been very lucky to work with the people that I’ve worked with because I’ve learned so much.
Gradually and early on in my career I started crossing my T’s and dotting my I’s by getting my publishing straight, getting you know these little aspects of the music like trademarks and copywriting so that I could do the business side of the music correctly. I have always done what I can to be able to learn as much as I can so that I can do the most with the least amount of resistance and do as much as I can without spending too much money because I never had a rich benefactor or a record label, so that meant learning sound of engineering, learning how to edit video and pictures, learning, graphic design, learning, marketing, kind of becoming a “jack of all trades” and this is why I have business I have and why I’m the artist I am Today.
It takes a lot of discipline to be able to succeed in what you want. I know that sounds generic but the truth is that the more you stick to what you’re doing, the more that you practice, the more that you engage, that’s gonna define the outcome and how successful you are. It’s not easy, matter of fact sticking to your craft no matter what can be the most difficult thing you do, especially when you come from adversity. Life will always throw fucked up situations your way and it’s up to you how you deal. I’ve always taken inspiration from my difficulties and the problems around me. I mean what can I do? No question I’ve had my doubts and I’ve wanted to turn away from my mission, but part of being disciplined is sticking to your guns and believing in yourself to the extent that you’re gonna
see it through to the end. As a rapper, as a writer, it affects my craft. It’s not an easy thing to be consistent and in the rap game, you have to be consistent to make a difference. And to be consistent, you have To be disciplined. In Hip-hop being an MC is not just saying: “Oh I rap” you know? Being a great MC really revolves around knowing and bettering the craft as a writer and freestyler. Putting words together, and putting poetry in motion is in itself a tricky craft. The more u do it the e the better you get. That’s kind of the point of having discipline as an artist.
Throughout the years being an artist eventually led me to start my own business. We have a record label named Villano Muzik Internacional and a marketing company named Sparkle Craft Mia. I also run a Grammy® winning studio. We do it all under the main company VMI Enterprises Co. So to all artists in need of recording, mixing, beat composing, songwriting, and all things music, we got you covered. We also offer digital distribution through our distribution deal with Empire, the #1 distributor for independent artists. As far as marketing and promotions we handle all things visually: Photo shoots, video production, editing, graphic design, website design and maintenance, social media, print, TV promotions, and promotion strategy development. All types of artists and businesses are welcome. I’m Definitely very proud of the work that we do and we’re open to helping anybody who wants to be helped. So come check us out and see for yourself. Our brand is all about commitment and building success.
Reach out to us via phone: (1)786-571-3580, email: [email protected] or via our social media.
How did you build your audience on social media?
Two things consistency and networking. That’s how I belt built my audience on social media and my music career. You have to stay posting and creating relevant and outstanding content. It has to look good and it has to be non-stop. Also making it look and sound good helps to make it stand out. It has to be dynamic and it has to be appealing to the people you want to reach. That means that much thought and care has to go into the planning and execution. Sometimes that means going out and getting your hands dirty with the research and development. You just gotta be willing to do the work and the work isn’t always easy.
The part about networking is very important as well because going out there and shaking hands is the only way to learn about people and expose your brand. Talking to people and asking them questions is what works. I move in different circles, precisely to expand my brand and knowledge. That etiquette of shaking a person’s hand looking them in the eyes and speaking from the heart is the best way to up your game.
Integrating and combining networking with social media go hand in hand. Making that connection with people and following them on social media so they can follow you back and starting communication is extreamly important and honestly half of the battle. Personly I had to overcome my social anxiety and fear of speaking in public to be able to reach the leveal we have. It’s not simple, It’s not easy, yeah sometimes conjuring up the courage to go out and speak to
people it’s not for everybody, but you know if you’re somebody who has that goal and really wants to do things for yourself and see the results, Then thats the formula to follow.
Can you share your view on NFTs? (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)
I honestly think the NFTs are a scam. They’re designed like a Ponzi scheme pretty much, only the people at the top make money. Everything that has to do with NFTs and cryptocurrency at large is all a scam. It’s all rug pools. It’s all people getting taken for their hard-earned money. In many cases, NFT’s and cryptocurrency are the favorite grifts of modern con men and scammers. They just love taking advantage of people. Long term all this NFT stuff has proven itself to be a huge scam.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.dshonelvillano.com
- Instagram: @villanomuzik @dshon_el_villano
- Facebook: D’shon El Villano
- Twitter: @villanomuzik
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@VillanoMuzikVEVO
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/villanodope
Image Credits
photos by Diana “DiRagga” Sandoval