DaBaby makes confession about his career: “I didn’t even care”
DaBaby‘s time as an exciting new artist was not only short but shrouded in controversy. After a 2018 shooting outside a Walmart in North Carolina, in which the rapper was allegedly involved, he barely had time to settle into his career before he was entrapped in legal proceedings, which adversely affected his ability to release music.
Only two years later, in 2020, DaBaby was caught slapping a female fan during his Up Close N Personal tour as he walked up to the stage. The incident, which went viral on social media, created more negative publicity for the new star.
After a sharp decline in the popularity of his brand, DaBaby was hit even harder when, in late 2020, his brother took his own life. However, after four years, the rapper has had time to reflect and work through his grief. As such, he had a lot of personal material to put on his new album How TF is This a Mixtape?
During a recent in-depth conversation with Oakland radio host Sway Calloway, DaBaby explained how he is much more insightful and introspective on this new project and disclosed that prior to his brother’s passing, he was recording material he “didn’t even care” about.
The North Carolina emcee admitted that he suffered from “survivor’s guilt” and explained how it shaped him. Recalling the traumatising event, the lyricist told Sway, “Anything I put out before 2020 before my brother passed — anything I put out after that, anything I put out between them times, I didn’t even care about that shit.”
DaBaby stated that prior to his brother’s death, he was purposefully making mainstream music, unveiling, “I was just targeting a specific audience to generate income to keep this shit going. But this is the first time I really cared about a project.”
DaBaby’s brother impacted him a lot and since his death, he has been a strong advocate for mental health. On September 26th, during Suicide Prevention Month, the artist took to Instagram to make a post about mental health, writing, “To keep it real I been thrown off mentally & spiritually since we lost big bruh. The only thing kept me strong was the kids! Every child in our bloodline a SOULJA, But damn that kids need to be kids.”
He continued, “With that being said I know from experience that the majority of mental health issues come from unchecked childhood trauma & in honor of my brother, my nieces & nephew, and anybody who done lost a loved one to suicide I wanted to utilize my platform to provide the resources and create a safe space where it’s REALLY NEEDED for the ones struggling with mental health. Specifically targeting Black Males & the Youth!”