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elieve it or not, Atlanta’s Bankhead district was once a scary place. It was a community full of hate, animosity, and permanent police presence — but that was back when it was an all-white neighborhood. In 1953, two black families attempted to move into the once peaceful area, and violent protests ensued. Today, the scene in Bankhead is a little different; it is still the least diverse part of the city, but its demographic is drastically dissimilar. ATL’s Zone 1 is riddled with crime, infested with drugs, and crawling with crackheads. But despite its bad rep, Bankhead is beloved. Perhaps more than any hood in America, residents of Atlanta’s far Westside are profoundly proud of their home. And recently, the historic district has been made famous by the plethora of pushers who rapped their way off of Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway and beckoned the masses to do the Bankhead bounce.
from Bankhead. I’m planted here, and I’m that nigga from Bankhead. How has Bankhead influenced your sound? Everything about me is Bankhead. Everybody be saying they love my style, and they be saying, “Shawty Lo, you don’t sound like anybody else, you got your own swag,” and when I did that song, “Let’s Get It,” that’s when I really feel like I broke outta my shell. I was doing that song at like 5 or 6 in the morning and I was when I was spitting it in the booth, it just hit me that I had found my swag. I found my style and after that it just clicked. And if you go to any of the clubs on Bankhead, Club Crucial, or The Poole Palace, or whatever, I got it sewed up, man. Those are like my clubs. Is D4L — you, Fabo, Mook B, and Stuntman — still together as a group? Do you plan on releasing any projects together? Yeah, we’re still together. That’s what D4L stands for, Down 4 Life. Everybody is just doing their solo projects now. I guess we’ll come back and do another album once we get out solo shit done, but I’m looking forward to it.
Rapper Shawty Lo has been living in Bankhead his whole life, and he is adamant about staying put in the place he feels most comfortable. As CEO of D4L Records, Lo witnessed his group’s 2005 smash “Laffy Taffy” reach the number 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100. Though many rap fans harshly criticized the group, the only other rap acts from ATL to ever reach the number 1 spot were Kris Kross, Outkast, Lil Jon, and Ludacris (recently Soulja Boy accomplished the feat). Now, Shawty Lo has established himself as a prominent solo artist and has crafted several of Atlanta’s hottest club tracks. But even with all of his success, Lo and his Down 4 Life Record label refuse to bounce from Bankhead.
How is your relationship with Fabo currently? We’re great. Fabo stay outta town right now, but we talk everyday. It’s family.
If you had to rank yourself among all the other rappers in Atlanta, what would you say your place is? Until recently I had never really thought about that, but that’s been coming up Atlanta is home to a seemingly endless array of plush million dollar studios a lot lately. This girl I know was asking me that same question and I told her nestled in nice neighborhoods and hidden in high that it never crossed my mind, because I just do me. society. D4L Records, however, is located across the But she was like, “Shawty Lo, you definitely one of the street from a coin laundromat, in an anything but lavish top rappers in Atlanta.” And a couple more folks done strip mall. It’s a few blocks away from the Bowen Home told me that, too. Some people say I’m the best rapif the camera crews was Projects. Outside of their humble home office, Bankhead per in Atlanta, definitely top three. They feel I got the to come to Bankhead like couldn’t be more alive. An animated legion of white Tee realness behind me. They know my story is true. They OZONE is right now, you’ll wearing stragglers is congregated right out front. Two know that I’m from Bankhead, and the city can vouch of them are arguing about women. “Naw, nigga. I’m for me. I’m like the underdog, but if the camera crews see that way more of a pimp than you,” the first voice blurts out. was to come to Bankhead like OZONE is right now, You won’t find nann you’ll see that D4L is Bankhead. You won’t find nann “Every hoe you fuck you wanna marry,” he adds. other group or nann other other group or nann other rapper that say they from “Fuck you!” the second voice replies, and just when Bankhead besides Parlae from Franchise, The Shop rapper that say they from the conversation appears to be growing violent, out Boyz, or D4L. The rest of those rappers and groups Bankhead besides Parlae of nowhere the entire group busts out in laughter and just be hollerin’ it on they records trying to get credit. from Franchise, The Shop everything is cool. A few feet away, an unfazed older woman in a floral dress is sweeping the front entrance; Are you saying that other rappers aren’t really from Boyz, or D4L. it’s Shawty Lo’s mom. Moments later her son arrives; he Bankhead, or that they just don’t come around and Bankhead? acknowledges the stragglers, gives his mother a kiss on the cheek, and heads into a studio surprisingly less groups just be hollerin’ it in They ain’t from here. impressive than the outside storefront. This is Bankhead they records trying to get life, and Shawty Lo wouldn’t have it any other way. So you’re saying that Tip and other rappers that rep credit. Bankhead aren’t really from Bankhead? How did you become a rapper? You said it yourself. I’m telling you who’s from here: I wasn’t trying to be a rapper; I was really just trying to Parlae from Franchise [Boyz], The Shop Boyz, and D4L. stay behind the scenes. When I first formed D4L back in You can put it however you wanna put it. 2003, I wanted to be kinda like Baby with Cash Money. I was just trying to be the man behind the scenes. I might do a verse here or there, but nothing big. I Well how does it make you feel when rappers that you say aren’t from Bankhad got arrested back in 2004, right before we had came out with “Betcha Can’t head scream out Bankhead on their records? Do It Like Me,” and I was incarcerated for a whole year. I didn’t know if I was See, I wouldn’t mind, but my thing is, how can they mention Bankhead and gonna get out or not. I was facing about four years, but with good lawyers and not acknowledge Shawty Lo? I don’t understand it. They try to blackball me, God, I ended up getting back out. But about three months before I had got out, man, but I’m coming. I’m here. I got my own situation, and they finna see. That the group had did this song called “Laffy Taffy,” and let me hear it from jail. I Raw Report finna drop in October and it’s called Shawty Lo: The Real Bankhead didn’t think it was a hit, but they pushed for it, and you know what happened. Story. They gon’ see the movement. They thought cause we had the “Laffy I ended up getting out right of jail before we got the deal with Asylum and Taffy” song and Fabo did the dance that shit was sweet, but I don’t dance. I’ll Atlantic, and I had did a song called “I’m The Man.” That was the first solo deal with the money behind it. I’m the movement. I’ve been doing my thing in song I had ever did, and people from my hood in Bankhead were hearing it and the hood; everybody know me. bumpin’ it in the club, and everybody told me it was a hit. They were like, “We wanna hear more of you, Lo.” And that was the first solo song I did by myself For a while, Fabo was the only member of D4L that mainstream fans really without no help, so I thought it was luck, but I kept writing new songs. I put a knew and were talking about, but now, you’re kind of emerging from the shadmixtape together with DJ Scream and it was a hit; the streets loved it. Now, I’ve ows. How do you feel about that? been doing shows for over a year just off of mixtapes, and I’m bubbling in the That’s what kind of inspired me to do more music. I used to hear stuff in the streets. streets like, “D4L ain’t shit without Fabo,” and people were always saying that. I used to hear that shit, and it gave me a challenge — I’m not saying that I’m So now do you consider yourself more of a rapper or a CEO? trying to be better than anyone else, but it makes me work harder when folks It’s all business with me. Rap is a dirty game, and I knew the streets were a doubt me. It makes me work harder and look where I’m at today. dirty game, but I didn’t realize just how similar they are. You got a new album called Units In Da City coming out soon, right? You stay in Bankhead and your studio is in Bankhead. Why haven’t you moved Units In Da City is basically stories about me; it’s all about Shawty Lo. I ain’t out the hood like everybody else with a little bit of success? trying to be nobody I’m not. It’s really like the life story of Shawty Lo. I’m This is where I feel comfortable at; this is my home. I’ve been here since I was giving you all the adventures, and everything I’ve been through and still go a baby. I was born at Grady Hospital, man. No matter what kinda money I get, through today. I got the whole group D4L on there. I got Gucci Mane, Yola Da I’ll be here. You can bring the camera around me and everything, but I stay in Great, and Miss T on the album, and some great producers on this album. It’s Bankhead. There’s a lot of rappers saying they’re from Bankhead, but they ain’t going down, man. //
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head.
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OZONE MAG // 91