Hakeem Tha Dream

Good article on some local talent.

Show is a dream for St. Louis rapper
By Kevin C. Johnson
POST-DISPATCH POP MUSIC CRITIC
06/19/2008

Hakeem Tha Dream performs in a style that he describes as edgy, conscious and melodic.
(Christian Gooden/P-D)

The big crowd at the Chris Brown concert in January at Scottrade Center eagerly awaited the headliner to take the stage when, during intermission, a DJ spun St. Louis rapper Hakeem Tha Dream's "Thick Wit It."

And the crowd went wild, almost as if Brown himself had appeared.

Hakeem Tha Dream wasn't at the show to see the crowd's response; he wasn't asked to be a part of the lineup. But he heard about it.

"I felt cheated," says Hakeem Tha Dream, 24, also known as Hakeem Love.

A similar scenario went down more recently at the Rick Ross and Plies concert, when a DJ played "Thick Wit It" during a break.

But when the Hot 104.1 Super Jam comes to Verizon Wireless Amphitheater on Saturday with headliners T.I. (bottom left) and Keyshia Cole, (bottom right) Hakeem Tha Dream will not only be there, he'll share the bill with nearly two dozen national and local performers. And he can't wait.

"If they acted like that when I wasn't even there, what will they act like this time when I am there, in the mix, live and in 3D? Everyone's going to see the hometown kid get it cracking," Hakeem says.

Local rap fans already know that Hakeem has been getting it cracking for a while now, thanks to his breakthrough "Thick Wit It." But he's been doing so mostly on smaller stages such as Lucky's, Society, the Loft and the Spot.

Last Saturday night, he headlined a sparsely attended show at the Spot that featured Kimora Lee Simmons' father, Vernon Whitlock Jr., judging a model-walk contest. Hakeem wasn't especially happy with the evening.

But his Super Jam gig is a good look, the best yet, for one of St. Louis' most promising young rappers.

That big stage represents a big step in more than venue size. It's a long way from Hakeem's upbringing on a gang-riddled portion of Red Bud Avenue in St. Louis.

He says he could have taken any number of wrong paths earlier in life.

"We were kids with dangers around us. That lifestyle was all around us, and most of my friends veered off into that lifestyle," says Hakeem, who avoided following suit despite some "dibbling and dabbling" in negative situations.

But he made it through, thanks to having "a family that showed a lot of love. A lot of kids didn't have that, and they would either go home to mothers on crack or seek love in the streets."

Part of the family love Hakeem received came from his grandfather, St. Louis blues musician Clayton Love, who had reservations about him getting into rap music.

"He was like, 'You gotta show me something grandson,' prove it," Hakeem says.

And that's just what he's doing. He says he's been into rap since grade school, when he watched rappers on TV. His early favorites were Kid 'N Play, Eric B. & Rakim and Bone Thugs-N-Harmony.

Hakeem, a graduate of Central Visual and Performing Arts School, at one point thought he would go into public speaking, at the urging of a mentor, before realizing "I couldn't get with that, though I will still speak to kids."

He knew rapping was his thing, and he was good at it. After listening to more lyrically based rappers such as Canibus and Jay-Z, he wrote more and more while taking part in every rap battle and amateur show he could find. He began honing a style he describes as edgy, conscious and melodic.

Hakeem hooked up with local music producer Ronnie Notch, who presented him with a bunch of tracks, including what would become "Thick Wit It."

"Thick Wit It," which pays homage to the shape of sizable women, wasn't nearly Hakeem's favorite track. But it would be the one people embraced because it was so catchy. The song not only became a staple in St. Louis, it garnered airplay in Chicago; Little Rock, Ark.; Indianapolis; and in Memphis and Nashville, Tenn.

That, coupled with digital sales, landed him a spot on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.

"That was a two-sided thing for me," Hakeem says. "I'm happy on the one side. But there's still so much work to be done on the other side."

The success of the song allows Hakeem Tha Dream to land gigs weekly. He says promoters love booking him and holding "Thick Wit It" contests.

While he's still milking "Thick Wit It," Hakeem is ready to drop a follow-up. He's weighing four songs as the next single, including "Crush" and "Model Type," for those who got on his case for doing a song for the thicker types.

The songs are expected on his full-length CD, which he'd like to see out by the end of the summer after his next mix CD, "Nightmare Series Vol. 3."

Hakeem says he'll probably release the new CD independently, despite rumors that he's been offered major-label deals.

"I only got offered one deal, and it didn't make sense," he says.

Hakeem prefers the indie route, which would mean releasing the CD on PiMO Entertainment, the company he shares with Rams receiver Brandon Williams.

"That way I'll get all the money," Hakeem says.

However his CD is released, he says, he will face a particular challenge in breaking out of St. Louis. Thanks to Nelly and

Chingy, he says, the industry is mostly looking at St. Louis rappers only for party raps.

"Labels didn't want to hear what else I had," Hakeem says. "I don't want to be boxed in. I have so many other kind of records I want to present that are more meaningful."