The Familial Strength of Dreamville Records
There is an old saying that you can’t choose your family members. Except, in some instances, you can.
Written by Camryn Garza
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Mannion
The idea of family is extremely subjective. There is family in the traditional sense, the one people are born into, and then there is family in another sense, the people in one’s life that, in a way, they get to choose. For the members of Dreamville Records, family revolves around a shared passion for music.
Rapper J. Cole and his manager Ibrahim Hamad started the Dreamville record label in 2007, and over time it has evolved into a philanthropic, creative, and collaborative space for several artists to voice their sound. Self-sufficiency is at the heart of the label, and every artist is encouraged to “figure out what their path is,” Hamad explained in an interview with Rap Radar. Dreamville Records describes themselves as the “label of the connected age,” a way to emphasize the exploration of new sounds amongst its artists. Even though each artist is connected to the label, remaining independent in the development of their own personal sound is what makes Dreamville unique. Today, there are nine artists signed to the label, Cole included.
Photo courtesy of XCLSV media
Most notable, however, are the Revenge of the Dreamers compilation albums that the label has produced over the years. The most recent, Revenge of the Dreamers III, was released in July 2019. Over the course of 10 days, 343 total artists and producers were invited by the members of Dreamville to record over 124 songs, each person vying for a spot on the album. The dream: to get several artists in one place that all “have different sounds and different vibes, but that feels like a family,” Hamad said in the online REVENGE documentary.
The idea of family is the driving force behind the album. Competitiveness arises when one feels the need to “outperform” another person. So, when the Dreamville team decided to post an open invitation to record in Atlanta’s Tree Sound Studios, which resembles more of a house than a recording studio, the competition arose. In the documentary Dreamville Presents: Revenge, rapper Bas is seen talking to a fellow artist who just got kicked out of one of the recording rooms, a hot commodity when you’re in a house with hundreds of other people. Jokingly, Bas says, “You got to put out your toothpaste, your toothbrush,” all in order to keep recording in the same room — kind of like when kids “fight” with their siblings to hurry up in the bathroom, or when they make sure to secure their favorite spot on the couch for movie night.
Photo Courtesy of Variety
More than this family-type competitiveness, however, are the more humbling experiences that such a relationship among people can create. For resident Dreamville artist Ari Lennox, the experience reminded her of how “grateful” and how “lucky” she was to be a part of this album. Because of the amount of talent surrounding the production of the album, each recording session served as a reminder of how special this opportunity was. But the Dreamville artists are more than just the albums they record, and Dreamville is more than just a record label or a family — it has also expanded into a community.
In 2011, a new version of Dreamville was created, this time in the form of a charity. The Dreamville Foundationhas provided educational aid to urban youth in the Fayetteville community, as well disaster relief after Hurricane Florence in 2018. J. Cole also purchased his childhood home in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and converted it into a shelter for single mothers.
Photo courtesy of CLTure
Like the parts of your family that drive you to push for more, the goal of the foundation is to create opportunity, specifically for those in Fayetteville, Cole’s hometown. In a 2014 interview with the Fayetteville Observer, Cole said that he wants to show people the “world is not only big, but it’s real,” that there is a world bigger than that of your hometown, and more in life to strive towards. This world is just as real as the family that Dreamville has created for themselves. The opportunities that these albums provide for artists are parallel to the opportunities the foundation strives to create for the less-fortunate. It’s all about creating family, and community.