The music industry is like any other industry, and then it is unlike other industries. I know, that sentence really does not make sense, but if you spent any time within the music industry you know what that opening sentence means. Music is very much like anything else because money is the foundation. If little money was made in music, it would be quite different. At the front end, or at the performance level, music does not have 9 to 5 jobs. The life of a successful musician is hard work, where the night to early morning hours are the normal times for work. Yes, the old clichĂ© of sex, drugs and rock n’ roll is still more the norm than not. It’s a different life than most live. Our featured artist this week seems to be made for this life. He even makes music that celebrates the day-to-day life of a star musician. This week Weekly Music Commentary features singer/rapper/producer Ty Dolla $ign. He is well-known for his work on his mixtapes, Beach House and Beach House 2. Let’s go back and start from the beginning.
Tyrone William Griffin, Jr. (Ty Dolla $ign) was born on April 13, 1985, in Los Angeles, California. Growing up in South Central Los Angeles during the late 1980’s and 1990’s was not easy for a young man like Ty. In fact, the gang life and culture surrounded him and was a large part of his day-to-day activity. Ty Dolla $ign was a gang member, representing the Bloods, while his brother was a Crip. Even some of his cousins were affiliated with one side or the other. It might be difficult for some to understand, but I had a similar upbringing on the south side of Chicago. Even though I was not directly involved in gang activity, I was surrounded by it – even within my circle of close associates and family. It was a part of my life, and we all grew up and moved on. I understand how it works well.
There were other influences in young Ty’s life that most likely led him directly to music. Ty Dolla $ign is the son of musician Tyrone Griffin, a member of the band Lakeside. Ty’s father opened up the entire world of music. He got a chance to meet and regularly see some of the bigger acts in entertainment at the time. That unfiltered view of the industry possibly meant that he understood as a youngster that a musicians life was not a regular existence. I got that understanding too by way of my father and his time in the jazz world. Ty began his music career by learning how to play the bass guitar and later learned how to play drums, guitars, keyboards, and the Music Production Center. He was prepared early on to make music today.
Ty Dolla $ign and his partner Kory were signed a record deal with Venus Brown and Buddah Brown Entertainment, subsequently releasing a mixtape, titled Raw & Bangin Mixtape Vol 2. The duo also made guest appearances on studio albums by other artists such as Sa-Ra Creative Partners and Black Milk. They also sang on songs such as “U”, which was featured on the latter 2007’s recording Popular Demand. Eventually, however, the partners had a falling out related to these ventures.
After the dispute, Ty Dolla $ign would go on to collaborate with Los Angeles-based rapper YG. Ty Dolla $ign’s initial claim to fame was through the success of YG’s single “Toot It and Boot It”, a song he both wrote and produced with YG. He then became affiliated with YG’s group Pu$haz Ink. In 2011, Ty released his first solo song, titled “All Star” featuring Joe Moses, and produced by Fuego. He was now well on his way to the top.
In 2012, Ty Dolla $ign signed a recording contract with Atlantic Records. After signing with Atlantic Records, he released his first solo mixtape, titled Beach House, on October 1, 2012. He followed with the mixtape’s sequel, Beach House 2, on July 1, 2013. Beach House 2 features guest appearances from Too $hort, Wiz Khalifa, Juicy J and Kirko Bangz, among others.
Why did Ty Dolla $ign choose the title of Beach House for the series of mixtapes? He explained in an iHeartRadio interview.
“It was just the vibe at the time because first, I made House On The Hill, and that was from my old crib. Then, I had In The Hills and my dream was always to move to the beach. This was like a dream that was really my parents dream. But then, they broke up and I guess they forgot about it because they moved on in life. But, I never forgot about the dream. And Beach House for me is just a metaphor for success or a dream — Actually like going after your dreams, and manifesting them, and making them happen. That’s what Beach House is about.”
Om January 21, 2014, Ty Dolla $ign released the dĂ©but extended play Beach House EP. Ty mostly produced through the entirety of this EP, alongside the variety of the other record producers such as DJ Mustard, D’Mile and Young Chop, among others. The EP features guest appearances from Wiz Khalifa, B.o.B, French Montana, Trey Songz, Twista, Jay Rock, Travis Scott and Fredo Santana, among others.
Ty Dolla $ign has an interesting view of working with different artists. If you notice he has worked with artists of differing styles and genres. He spoke further about this in the iHeartRadio interview. “Everyone that I feature is because I like their tone. I like their style. I like their lyrics. I like their vibe, I like their sound. I look at people just like I look at a bass, or a guitar, or a keyboard. When it comes to music, it’s all instruments. It’s all frequency and when I feel like I want someone’s frequency added to my song, I call out on them and we build. So, that’s why I feature people.”
Now Ty has made a return to the Beach House. Beach House 3 is the second studio album by American rapper Ty Dolla $ign. It was released on October 27, 2017. It features guest appearances from Pharrell Williams, Lil Wayne, Tory Lanez, The-Dream, YG, Future, Swae Lee, Wiz Khalifa, Damian Marley and Lauren Jauregui, among others. I got a chance to listen to the entire album, and it is well-constructed. The reason is that Ty Dolla $ign is a multi-instrumental musician. His approach to his music is like a craftsman. Paul A. Thompson of Pitchfork noted, “A superbly refined collection of songs, carefully crafted and smartly cast. It doesn’t have the longer thematic crescendos of TC, but is even more ruthlessly listenable, stacking hooks on top of hooks and flitting between an array different, pop-viable aesthetic frameworks.”
For now it looks like Ty Dolla $ign is living the dream. I think he finally moved into that Beach House.