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When Chicago-native producer David “D.A”. Doman traded in his Roland MC 505 Groovebox for an MPC in his sophomore year of high school, he had no idea he would go from being a local Chicago amateur beatmaker to lacing the beat for Young Money’s upcoming single “Senile,” on their upcoming Young Money: Rise Of An Empire album. VIBE caught up with D.A. to discuss the making of “Senile” as well as other projects with big hip-hop namesVIBE: How did things transcend from being producer of your high school to getting into some professional, grade-A kind of work?
It was definitely a gradual transition, and it definitely took a while. At the time in Chicago, there wasn’t a real industry like there is now. So I worked with local artists. My first major label placement as a solo producer was with 2 Pistols, it was a song called “Candy Coated Diamonds.” But my first singles and hits came with Tyga. I produced “Do My Dance” with Tyga and 2 Chainz, which just went gold. I produced Fabolous’ single with 2 Chainz “When I Feel Like It.” And now i have this Young Money single about to drop.
Doman: The “Senile” track is the big thing circled around you right now. Tell me how they enlisted you to be the producer of the track.
It’s an interesting story. Originally, it was going to be a single for Tyga, but when Nicki heard it, she went crazy over it and she’s like ‘Oh, I need to be on this joint.’ And then basically she was like ‘Man, we need to put Lil’ Wayne on this.’ Tyga thought it was a good idea too. And so it just kind of went from being a Tyga single to everybody feeling the record was urgent and that it had to get out there. So they were like ‘Tyga’s album isn’t coming out until summertime, so let’s put this out right now as a Young Money single.’
And what was your reaction to that, going from a Tyga single to a Young Money single just like that?
I love working with Tyga, I’ll always love getting Tyga singles ‘cause i think he’s a dope rapper. So obviously Tyga’s like a big rapper, but then to have two more big rappers on it, Nicki and Wayne -- and Wayne’s obviously a legend -- is a great honor. It feels real good. The thing that’s cool about it the record too is that the beat has a really unique sound to it. It doesn’t sound like a typical joint. So I think it’s going to get my name out there more as a producer to not just the industry people, but to fans in general.
You tweeted that ‘Senile’ is a “new sound” and that “everybody came dope.” Tell me more about what the record sounds like in comparison to what you or Young Money have done before.
It’s is a real hard record. It’s definitely gonna kill the clubs, and I think it’ll do well on radio. I don’t want to give away too much, but it just has kind of like a different sound. It’s got some crazy stuff going on in it. Everybody killed their verses. Tyga brought back that low tone that he’s famous for from ‘Rack City.’ Nicki absolutely murdered her verse too, she came really creative on it. Wayne went just totally crazy on the third verse. It’s definitely an ‘event record.’ You know, when you talk to some radio promoters, they’ll call certain songs ‘event records’ because they’re so many big names on it, it just becomes an event that the radio has to play
.
So Wayne is spitting on this?
Yes. Definitely. Wayne is going crazy on it. Wayne is definitely going crazy on it. The thing that I love about this Wayne verse is -- I can’t give away who said this, ‘cause I don’t want to step on anyone’s toes -- but a certain famous producer heard the record and was like ‘Wow, that’s a whole new Wayne that I haven’t heard before.’ Wayne is spitting hard on the verse, but it’s still fresh. It’s not like this is the Wayne from five years ago, or this is Carter I Wayne. It’s real hard, he’s really spitting, but its fresh.
Did you get to work in the studio with them, or did you send the beat out?
I worked with Tyga in the studio; I work with him all the time. But I think Tyga brought it over to Nicki’s spot, Nicki heard it and loved it, and then they brought it over to Wayne.
Was anyone else from Young Money considered for the track, like Drake or Mack Maine?
That’s kind of who we all thought would be best on it. Drake’s amazing and Mack Maine is doing his thing, but we just felt like these three were the best fit for the track.
Have you heard any of the rest of the Young Money: Rise Of An Empire album?
I actually have not heard any of the other songs on the album.
It seems you have this great working relationship with Tyga. How did you two originally link up? What is it about you two that works so well together?
Yeah, I’ve been working with T for a really long time; it’s been like five years now. I think we’ve just always clicked musically. One of the first joints I ever sent him was “Lay You Down,” which went on his first album. But we had actually completed that song a couple years before his album came out; Wayne was on that one too. I don’t know, it like my sound has changed a lot over the past five years, and his sound has too, but we’ve just kind of always been in the same zone in terms of the music we’re making. He’s always vibed with my beats.
You’ll also be working with Tyga on his Fan Of A Fan 2 with Chris Brown. Have you guys started working on that yet?
Fan Of A Fan 2 is in progress. I don’t know how much I’m allowed to speak on that, but they definitely have some really hot records coming up. It’s gonna be a beast of an album. I have heard some joints on that album, and they sound really, really hot.
And have you gotten to work with Chris?
I’ve just been in the studio with Tyga, I haven’t been in with Chris. Chris definitely murdered this joint that I did though. Jess Jackson also worked with me on the production on it. He’s Tyga’s kind of in-house guy. It’s a pretty crazy, unique joint. I don’t wanna give too much away, but it’s something to look forward to.
What else are you working on now?
I’ve been sending a lot of stuff to Fab. Que -- he’s the one with the ‘Bobby Johnson’ joint -- he just picked out some of my beats. Wale just recorded a joint over one of my beats. I have a record with Tyga and A$AP Ferg about to drop. It’s a DJ SpinKing record, it’s going on his album.
We’ve been waiting on that Fab album.
Fab’s been working. He’s a legend, he’s been in the game a long time and he’s just got so many bars. He’s an amazing writer.
What about the Tyga/A$AP Ferg joint?
The SpinKing record is like another ‘Do My Dance’ kind of record, but on steroids. It’s got my girl Tina Monaco on the hook. Once again, I don’t wanna give away too much, but it’s got kind of like an opera intro. It’s just something real creative and different. That’s another one that gonna definitely kill the clubs.
You have your hand in a lot of things right now. Do you see yourself taking the Mike Will route in the future and dropping your own album?
I don’t know, I don’t really feel the need to do my own project right now. Mike Will he made a lot of hot tapes. But as of right now, that’s not really where I wanna take it. I just wanna keep focusing on working with a bunch of different artists, making great songs, making great singles, making great album cuts and just keeping it moving like that.
It was definitely a gradual transition, and it definitely took a while. At the time in Chicago, there wasn’t a real industry like there is now. So I worked with local artists. My first major label placement as a solo producer was with 2 Pistols, it was a song called “Candy Coated Diamonds.” But my first singles and hits came with Tyga. I produced “Do My Dance” with Tyga and 2 Chainz, which just went gold. I produced Fabolous’ single with 2 Chainz “When I Feel Like It.” And now i have this Young Money single about to drop.
Doman: The “Senile” track is the big thing circled around you right now. Tell me how they enlisted you to be the producer of the track.
It’s an interesting story. Originally, it was going to be a single for Tyga, but when Nicki heard it, she went crazy over it and she’s like ‘Oh, I need to be on this joint.’ And then basically she was like ‘Man, we need to put Lil’ Wayne on this.’ Tyga thought it was a good idea too. And so it just kind of went from being a Tyga single to everybody feeling the record was urgent and that it had to get out there. So they were like ‘Tyga’s album isn’t coming out until summertime, so let’s put this out right now as a Young Money single.’
And what was your reaction to that, going from a Tyga single to a Young Money single just like that?
I love working with Tyga, I’ll always love getting Tyga singles ‘cause i think he’s a dope rapper. So obviously Tyga’s like a big rapper, but then to have two more big rappers on it, Nicki and Wayne -- and Wayne’s obviously a legend -- is a great honor. It feels real good. The thing that’s cool about it the record too is that the beat has a really unique sound to it. It doesn’t sound like a typical joint. So I think it’s going to get my name out there more as a producer to not just the industry people, but to fans in general.
You tweeted that ‘Senile’ is a “new sound” and that “everybody came dope.” Tell me more about what the record sounds like in comparison to what you or Young Money have done before.
It’s is a real hard record. It’s definitely gonna kill the clubs, and I think it’ll do well on radio. I don’t want to give away too much, but it just has kind of like a different sound. It’s got some crazy stuff going on in it. Everybody killed their verses. Tyga brought back that low tone that he’s famous for from ‘Rack City.’ Nicki absolutely murdered her verse too, she came really creative on it. Wayne went just totally crazy on the third verse. It’s definitely an ‘event record.’ You know, when you talk to some radio promoters, they’ll call certain songs ‘event records’ because they’re so many big names on it, it just becomes an event that the radio has to play
.So Wayne is spitting on this?
Yes. Definitely. Wayne is going crazy on it. Wayne is definitely going crazy on it. The thing that I love about this Wayne verse is -- I can’t give away who said this, ‘cause I don’t want to step on anyone’s toes -- but a certain famous producer heard the record and was like ‘Wow, that’s a whole new Wayne that I haven’t heard before.’ Wayne is spitting hard on the verse, but it’s still fresh. It’s not like this is the Wayne from five years ago, or this is Carter I Wayne. It’s real hard, he’s really spitting, but its fresh.
Did you get to work in the studio with them, or did you send the beat out?
I worked with Tyga in the studio; I work with him all the time. But I think Tyga brought it over to Nicki’s spot, Nicki heard it and loved it, and then they brought it over to Wayne.
Was anyone else from Young Money considered for the track, like Drake or Mack Maine?
That’s kind of who we all thought would be best on it. Drake’s amazing and Mack Maine is doing his thing, but we just felt like these three were the best fit for the track.
Have you heard any of the rest of the Young Money: Rise Of An Empire album?
I actually have not heard any of the other songs on the album.
It seems you have this great working relationship with Tyga. How did you two originally link up? What is it about you two that works so well together?
Yeah, I’ve been working with T for a really long time; it’s been like five years now. I think we’ve just always clicked musically. One of the first joints I ever sent him was “Lay You Down,” which went on his first album. But we had actually completed that song a couple years before his album came out; Wayne was on that one too. I don’t know, it like my sound has changed a lot over the past five years, and his sound has too, but we’ve just kind of always been in the same zone in terms of the music we’re making. He’s always vibed with my beats.
You’ll also be working with Tyga on his Fan Of A Fan 2 with Chris Brown. Have you guys started working on that yet?
Fan Of A Fan 2 is in progress. I don’t know how much I’m allowed to speak on that, but they definitely have some really hot records coming up. It’s gonna be a beast of an album. I have heard some joints on that album, and they sound really, really hot.
And have you gotten to work with Chris?
I’ve just been in the studio with Tyga, I haven’t been in with Chris. Chris definitely murdered this joint that I did though. Jess Jackson also worked with me on the production on it. He’s Tyga’s kind of in-house guy. It’s a pretty crazy, unique joint. I don’t wanna give too much away, but it’s something to look forward to.
What else are you working on now?
I’ve been sending a lot of stuff to Fab. Que -- he’s the one with the ‘Bobby Johnson’ joint -- he just picked out some of my beats. Wale just recorded a joint over one of my beats. I have a record with Tyga and A$AP Ferg about to drop. It’s a DJ SpinKing record, it’s going on his album.
We’ve been waiting on that Fab album.
Fab’s been working. He’s a legend, he’s been in the game a long time and he’s just got so many bars. He’s an amazing writer.
What about the Tyga/A$AP Ferg joint?
The SpinKing record is like another ‘Do My Dance’ kind of record, but on steroids. It’s got my girl Tina Monaco on the hook. Once again, I don’t wanna give away too much, but it’s got kind of like an opera intro. It’s just something real creative and different. That’s another one that gonna definitely kill the clubs.
You have your hand in a lot of things right now. Do you see yourself taking the Mike Will route in the future and dropping your own album?
I don’t know, I don’t really feel the need to do my own project right now. Mike Will he made a lot of hot tapes. But as of right now, that’s not really where I wanna take it. I just wanna keep focusing on working with a bunch of different artists, making great songs, making great singles, making great album cuts and just keeping it moving like that.
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