Dewey Da Don; A Young and Articulate Philanthropist Making a Difference

by Jacklyn Jones
Oct 18, 2015
3 min read

He is one half of the Rap group Urban Republic and Usher's protege. All the way from "Killa City" Kansas City, Dewey Da Don relocated to Atlanta to pursue his opportunity to work with Usher’s New Look Foundation." Today he is an Executive Board Member and Digital Program Director for the organization and is also CEO of his own company, Loud Pack Productions www.loudpack.biz . Dewey also created S.W.A.G. (Strong Willing and Gifted), his own founded nonprofit venture. Dewey's longtime friend and the other half of Urban Republic, Novacain shortly followed Dewey Da Don to Atlanta. The dynamic duo is set to release their anticipated single "From Atlanta With Love" in 2016 https://soundcloud.com/urbanrepublic. The pair mentions that when on tour they always find time to say a prayer before each performance, Dewey Da Don stated, "Before any performance we are going to find somewhere to pray".

Dewey gives back to his community by mentoring youth and sharing what he has learned from Usher's New Look foundation. He graduated in 2007 from the academy. In this clip from NBC News Dewey talks about how Usher's New Look program changed his life. "I would either be dead or in jail without Usher". http://www.nbcnews.com/video/nightly-news/37260559#37260559

Photo credit: Thomas Springer of Feets McCoy Films

Some advice or principals that Dewey learned from Usher's Foundation, "Always stand humble but stand hungry. Never forget where you came from but also never be content with status quo or being comfortable in a certain position. It is not always what you can do as a person sometimes the greatest abilitly as a leader is being able to inspire someone else to do great things". It's hard to believe he is only 28 years old, his drive and his willingness to empower the youth is proof that Dewey has a bright future ahead of him. Along with empowering others Dewey advises that you pursue your passion.

On their music Dewey explains that he wants to continue to create good music that tells a story of what has happened in his past but also educates the listener. "Hopefully we can continue to make music that just creates energy that really gets people talking. At the end of the day we want to engage and open up and educate people to understand the difference between artistry and entertainment and how you differentiate the two."

Photo credit to Thomas Springer of Feets McCoy Films

Novacain adds that you have to talk to people in their own language for example talking about what's going on in their hood. He goes on to say "someone has to report their pain and anger. This is the mentality that goes on in the city." Novacain started rapping at the age of 12 and by the time he reached high school he knew he wanted to pursue a career as a recording artist. Novacain met Dewey Da Don aka James Harris in High school and they bothed worked at Sonic restaurant. The two realized they had a connection through their music and worked together to form the Rap Group Urban Republic. Their smash hit "Heavy Artillery" is a club banger and has already recieved 20k plus hits on YouTube. You can download their new mixtape "Killa City State of Mind" at http://www.datpiff.com/Urban-Republic-Killa-City-State-Of-Mind-mixtape.738832.html?utm_campaign=piff.me&utm_source=&utm_medium=piff.me ~ ~