DJ Drama facts for kids

Quick facts for kids DJ Drama
DJ Drama performing in 2016
Background information
Birth name	Tyree Cinque Simmons
Born	(1978-04-22) April 22, 1978 (age 47) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Education	Clark Atlanta University (BS)
Genres	Hip hop
Occupation(s)	Disc jockey record executive music promoter
Years active	1999–present
Labels	Aphilliates Generation Now E1 (current) Grand Hustle Atlantic (former)

Tyree Cinque Simmons (born April 22, 1978), known as DJ Drama, is an American disc jockey (DJ), record executive, and music promoter. He became well-known as the DJ for rapper T.I. from Atlanta. He also gained fame by hosting mixtapes for many other hip hop artists.

His special Gangsta Grillz series is very popular. Many famous artists like Lil Wayne, Tyler the Creator, Snoop Dogg, and Meek Mill have used it on their music. In 2015, he started a record label called Generation Now with his friend Don Cannon. This label has signed popular artists like Lil Uzi Vert and Jack Harlow.

DJ Drama is not a singer or rapper himself. Instead, he uses his many connections in the music world to bring together different artists for his albums. He has released six studio albums, including Gangsta Grillz: The Album (2007) and Quality Street Music (2012). These albums were generally well-received by critics and fans.

He was named "DJ of the Year" at the 2013 BET Hip Hop Awards. He also won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album in 2022. This was for his work on Tyler, the Creator's album, Call Me If You Get Lost (2021).

Early Life and Education

Tyree Simmons was born and grew up in the Germantown area of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. When he was 13, his sister took him to New York City. There, he bought his very first mixtape. Soon after, he started making his own mixtapes. He also began learning to use turntables to mix music.

Simmons went to Central High School in Philadelphia. He graduated in 1996. After high school, he moved to Atlanta to study mass communication at Clark Atlanta University (CAU). While at CAU, he met two other DJs from Philadelphia: DJ Sense and Don Cannon. The three of them later formed a group called the Aphilliates.

During his college years, Simmons started releasing mixtapes as DJ Drama. One of his first series was called Electric Relaxation, which featured many R&B songs. In 1998, he released a mixtape with only Southern hip hop artists like Outkast. This mixtape was very successful. It led DJ Drama to create his famous mixtape series, Gangsta Grillz. He graduated from CAU in 2000.

Music Career and Success

Starting Out: Mixtapes and Albums

DJ Drama in 2008

In 2003, DJ Drama, Don Cannon, and DJ Sense officially started the Aphilliates Music Group (AMG). This group helped distribute DJ Drama's Gangsta Grillz mixtapes. Some early successful mixtapes included T.I.'s Down With the King (2004) and Jeezy's Trap or Die (2005). By 2005, Drama and his AMG friends were hosting radio shows in Atlanta and on Eminem's Shade 45 channel.

In late 2005, Drama produced and hosted Lil Wayne's The Dedication mixtape. This mixtape started a long series of popular Dedication tapes. Dedication 2, released in 2006, was even called "one of the 10 best recordings of 2006" by The New York Times.

In 2007, there was a legal issue where some of DJ Drama's mixtapes and equipment were taken by police. However, no further legal action was taken against him. Despite this, DJ Drama's first "official" album, Gangsta Grillz: The Album, was released in December 2007. The album featured many artists like Jeezy, T.I., and Rick Ross. It reached number 26 on the Billboard 200 chart.

In May 2009, DJ Drama released his second album, Gangsta Grillz: The Album (Vol. 2). It included songs with Akon, Snoop Dogg, and Gucci Mane. Besides his own albums, DJ Drama kept working on mixtapes for artists like Gucci Mane and Chris Brown. In 2010, Drama even had a voice role as a radio announcer in T-Pain's TV special Freaknik: The Musical.

New Music and Generation Now

Drama released his third album, Third Power, in October 2011. It featured the song "Oh My" and reached number 95 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. He then released his fourth album, Quality Street Music, in late 2012. This album reached number 15 on the Billboard 200, which is his highest-charting album so far.

In 2013, Drama, Don Cannon, and DJ Sense started The Academy. This group helps new DJs learn and grow. In 2014, DJ Drama also joined A&R at Atlantic Records. In this role, he helped find and sign new artists to the label. During this time, he continued to host and produce mixtapes for artists like 50 Cent and Snoop Dogg.

In 2015, DJ Drama and Don Cannon founded their own record label called Generation Now. This label is part of Atlantic Records. One of their first artists was Lil Uzi Vert. Drama helped produce Uzi's first commercial mixtape, Luv Is Rage. In July 2016, Drama released his fifth studio album, Quality Street Music 2.

Generation Now had its first number one album on the Billboard 200 with Lil Uzi Vert's Luv Is Rage 2 in 2017. DJ Drama was a main producer for this album. Other artists signed to Generation Now include Jack Harlow.

In 2021, Drama narrated Tyler, the Creator's album Call Me If You Get Lost. His voice was featured on the first song, "Sir Baudelaire." The album's style was partly inspired by Drama's "Gangsta Grillz" mixtapes. Another Gangsta Grillz mixtape, D-Day, was released in 2022 with J. Cole.

In 2024, Kid Cudi (pictured) released his album Insano and Drama narrated half of the album for his famed Gangsta Grillz series.

Discography

• I Told U So (with Yo Gotti) (2006)
• Gangsta Grillz: The Album (2007)
• There Is No Competition (with Fabolous) (2008)
• The City Is In Good Hands (with Snoop Dogg) (2008)
• Gangsta Grillz: The Album (Vol. 2) (2009)
• There Is No Competition 2: The Funeral Service (with Fabolous) (2010)
• Third Power (2011)
• There Is No Competition 3: Death Comes in 3's (with Fabolous) (2011)
• Quality Street Music (2012)
• Quality Street Music 2 (2016)
• It's tha World (2018)
• 12 AM in Atlanta 2 (with 24hrs) (2020)
• Fame or Feds 3 (with Hardo & Deezlee) (2021)
• What Would Big Do 2021 (with Fat Joe) (2021)
• Call Me If You Get Lost (with Tyler, the Creator) (2021)
• Let Me Go Or Else: Gangsta Grillz Edition (2022)
• Gangsta Grillz: We Set the Trends (with Jim Jones) (2022)
• The World Is Yours: Gangsta Grillz (with Badda TD) (2022)
• Misguided (with OMB Peezy) (2022)
• Results Take Time (with Symba) (2022)
• Gangsta Grillz: I Still Got It (with Snoop Dogg) (2022)
• Snofall (with Jeezy) (2022)
• God Save the Rave (with David Sabastian) (2022)
• Book of David (with Dave East & Buda & Grandz) (2022)
• Paint the City (with Icewear Vezzo) (2022)
• Kill Us Both (with Ayilla) (2022)
• Rollin Stone (with J. Stone) (2023)
• Coke Boys 6 (with French Montana) (2023)
• Back on Dexter (with Kash Doll) (2023)
• I'm Really Like That (2023)
• Gangsta Grillz: Mvrda Gang (with YOVNGCHIMI) (2023)
• Insano (with Kid Cudi) (2024)
• Greatest of All Trappers: Gangsta Grillz Edition (with Gucci Mane) (2024)
• Still Praying (with Westside Gunn) (2024)

Generation Now Record Label

Generation Now is an American record label started in 2015 by DJ Drama and Don Cannon. The label's name comes from a mixtape that Drama and Cannon made in 2004. It is part of Warner Music Group.

Awards and Recognition

See also

In Spanish: DJ Drama para niños