Meek Mill explains the culture behind Philly and dirt bikes
Meek Mill has long been associated with dirt bikes, and it’s a product of where he comes from. The 38-year-old rapper was born and raised in Philadelphia, and like others in his area, he was chasing a feeling. He grew up in the Strawberry Mansion neighbourhood of North Philadelphia and used motorcycles as a form of excitement.
The Dreams and Nightmares artist caught onto the dirt bikes wave as a way of keeping out of trouble and getting a thrill out of something. Dirt biking is just another hobby in Philly, similar to playing football or doing tricks at a skate park.
“Dirt bike culture is like a lifestyle, man,” he told The Fader. “When we were growing up, everybody played basketball or sports, everybody hustles—you got kids in them neighbourhoods that just want to do something different. Bikes are an adrenaline rush.
“They fast, fun, and we don’t really got too much dirt, things like that, where we from, it’s like concrete everywhere in the city. Doing stunts and having fun, just like when the kids skateboard downtown. When they skate down the rails they might hit somebody, it’s the same thing with the bikes.”
Like all kids across the globe, everyone needs a way to express themselves. It’s just the hobby Meek was into, people can hurt from time to time. But to him, riding dirt bikes helped him avoid selling drugs and robbing people in his spare time.
It was a chance to switch off from the world around him and live in the moment, while at the same time serving as a way to connect with others. “You might cause an accident, but this is how we have fun, instead of a guy running around on the corner selling drugs, who might rob bikes all day off young kids,” he said. “It’s your freest moments: you can’t hear your phone ring, you can’t hear nobody, you’re moving.
“We’re willing to fight for the right to have bikes and be able to ride them. We just like having fun. In the hood, you usually don’t see 200 guys from different areas all together as one. It brings kids together.”
Just because Meek is a celebrity, it doesn’t stop him from getting into trouble. In 2017, he was arrested and charged with reckless endangerment for riding his dirt bike in New York City. He was allegedly moving “in and out of traffic and popping wheelies in the street.” Meek posted footage of himself riding the bike on Instagram Live, which was spotted by an NYPD officer.
These days, Meek tends to spend his days riding in his own property instead of through the streets, but his arrest proves he’s still got that rebellious side in him. “I get to ride a lot when I go into my house,” he revealed. “I got a driveway now, and my neighbours got dirt bikes, so they ain’t really mad at the sounds, so I be out all riding with the neighbours’ kids and stuff when I come home.”