PEEZY CREATED HIS NEW EP “SMALLTOWN GHETTO” IN ONE DAY
Peezy is way more than your local Detroit rapper. Not only has his music shaped what we know as “Detroit style” music, Peezy has created a brand that will go down in history as one of the top rappers from the Midwest. Music is so ingrained in him, he was able to complete his newest project “Smalltown Ghetto” in 24 hours. I sat down with Peezy to learn all about him and what he has in store for the world in 2025 and beyond.
FEATURE INTERVIEW:
What is your favorite thing about being from Detroit?
You know home, it’s where I’m from so it’s always your favorite place to be. They treat me with so much love everywhere I go here, so it’s really no other place I’d rather be. Detroit gives me the upmost love and respect everywhere I go.
Your 2022 project “Only Built 4 Diamond Links” features the hit single “2 Million Up”. The song took a mind of its on via social media where celebrities made the song viral way after the release. How did it feel during that time and did you expect that song to be so popular?
This song wasn’t even initially supposed to be on this project. It was a throwaway song I had sitting for a while. But I was releasing a new album and needed a song to create some buzz around the new project and “2 Million Up” happened to be one of the songs I put out. It went stupid viral, getting over 100,000 views a day.
So, on the 4th day, Ghazi and them called me telling me to add it to the tape because it was a hit record you know, and it kinda went from there. After that I started celebrities and everyone posting it like Kim and North, and it was a good feeling because usually when people mess with your music it will be a secret and you don’t know how much they really mess with your music, but so many people were really showing me love when this song came out.
Once “2 Million Up” hit over 400 million streams did you celebrate in any way? What was going through your mind when you hit this milestone?
Nah, I actually never knew it had 400 million streams until you just told me. I really don’t pay attention to the numbers, I be feeling like it’s a distraction. I feel like once you get caught up in the numbers, you start feeling like if you don’t reach a certain milestone then you ain’t nothing, you know what I’m saying? I know I make good music overall, so I don’t focus on the numbers at all. I never knew how many albums I’ve sold, never wanted to know so I don’t pay attention to it. I was excited when I found out I went gold and platinum for this song though.
You’re currently on tour with Icewear Vezzo on the “Welcome 2 Our Side” tour where you both will be hitting over 18 cities. Being an artist who’s managed to stay relevant for so many years, how does your audience look now compared to when you were first starting out?
Hmm, it use to be a bunch of hood guys and it’s gone always be hood guys because we’re hood guys but a lot of girls have started coming to my shows over the years. At one point, I remember my shows going from half girls and guys to mainly girls. I would look in the first few rows and it would be all women. It depends on where my music is at and what market I’m in at the time.
What type of music were you making where it was mostly women at your shows?
“Freak Like Me“, “Soakin Wet“, songs that resonate with the women. On top of that, I’ve always been one of those guys that made the music that women in the hood can relate to, you know what I’m saying? So I’ve always had women in my fan base. I have a song from my first album about my girlfriend. Then I have a song called “Real Talk” before I ever put out an album about my oldest son that explained the situation with my baby mom a long ass time ago. So women have always gravitated to those songs but when I started making nasty songs women started actually coming to the shows you feel me?
So can we expect more songs catered towards women in the future from you?
Most definitely, I never really stopped making songs like that. I released my newest tape “Smalltown Ghetto” because I wanted to feed the streets. My new album I got records for the girls on there.
New EP “Smalltown Ghetto” features 8 songs. What was the inspiration for this project and the process of creating it?
I did it all in one day. I only dealt with one producer for this project, my mans K Money. Every beat he sent me was sweet. Sometimes I’ll get in the mode where I’ll make myself rap to any beat a producer plays, you know what I’m saying? That’s one of my secrets on how I train myself to record a lot of songs, I make myself rap on any beat I hear. I’ll tell the engineer to pull a beat up and regardless if I like it or not, I make myself rap on it.
But this day, K Money sent me a pack and I liked every beat so I just did all of them in one day. Once I got to like the 3rd song, I’m like oh yeah, this a tape right here. I realized I was on to something. Cause usually I don’t go into the studio with the mentality of making a tape, it’s more so just to record music. But that day I’m like oh yeah, I got a good EP right here and I’m about to put it out.
What’s your current favorite song on this project?
Well mine is “All Black Trucks“, that shit just slide to me. The beat is so hard, it be knockin! Then I be in all black trucks so I really relate to it since all my trucks black, you know what I’m saying, so it’s like an anthem for me. Going to or leaving the club, having 2 to 3 black trucks following you is a look and a feeling I can’t explain.
You and Babyface Ray have a friendship that has stood the test of time. You two are always including each other on your projects and in my recent interview with him he said you two were trying to push a joint project out but it didn’t end up happening. Talk to us about your relationship with Ray and if we can expect a joint project from ya’ll in the future.
Oh yeah, Babyface Ray that’s my brother man. We got so many songs, we damn near got an album but we just gotta lock in. He’s busy and so am I so we just have to really find the time because we could get that done in like 2 days. That’s how me and bro work. Our chemistry on songs, everything we make really be a classic. One day I’ma pull up on Ray and have us go lock in at the studio for a couple days and then we just gone present it to ya’ll.
You’ve been into fashion for years, talk to us about your personal style. What brands do you love to wear and what pieces can you not live without?
I wear a lot of Rick Owens, LV, even though I don’t wear Chrome Hearts as much as I use to, I like their bags. I got a lot of Goyard but it’s burnt out now to me. I’m one of them guys, if I see somebody with it I don’t really want it no more. I be trying to stay ahead of the wave, so a lot of people may say I dress weird but I like what I like. I feel like I’ve been going Rockstar with the flannels and vintage t-shirts, but I’m really a D-Boy so I gotta keep my Air Force Ones, I can’t live without them.
I can’t live without my wallet chains either or my watches. I like to be comfortable. That’s fashion to me. And having a pretty girlfriend. Like my mans Don C said, if you got a pretty girlfriend and you fly, that’s fashion to me.
In a viral video of you I saw, you were talking about brands you don’t like seeing women wear. So what do you like your ideal woman to wear?
I can’t even create a dream woman, but at the same time, when I said that in that video I was saying brands a man buys for a woman. I feel like a man shouldn’t buy a woman anything he knows isn’t worth anything.
Even though it might look good, but if a man know what he know, he should purchase accordingly. Some women don’t care but if you one of them guys, that’s on you to bring her into that and put her on something. That’s what it’s all about, spreading love. Giving people something they never had, a new experience. You gotta give a woman an elevated experience when they dealing with you. You feel me?
Out of all your jewelry which piece is your favorite?
I got 3 tennis chains that I wear all the time, a few 3/4 carat earrings and my plain Rolex and my wallet chains, I don’t really need nothing else.
You recently held a sneaker drive in Detroit where you provided the community with free custom Air Force One’s. What made you want to do this and what do you love most about giving back to your hometown?
When I was young, nobody ever gave us shoes. We use to try to make money to buy new sneakers. A lot of stuff we did when we were younger was to have nice sneakers. I know to this day kids still get that feeling. They still want to have a nice pair of sneakers on even if they parents can’t afford it.
Me being in the position to give back, I wanted to make sure my community had that same feeling when I put a nice fresh pair of Air Force Ones on my feet. I feel like a brand new person when I put a fresh pair on. With a fresh white tee on, you couldn’t tell me nothing.
When you’re away from Detroit for a while, what’s your favorite meal to have as soon as you touch down in the city?
Man, you gone think I’m lying if I tell you this… I don’t even be eating Coney Island and all that shit anymore. Fast food, none of that. You know how some people come to Detroit and gotta stop at the Coney and all that? I don’t eat that type of food anymore. So the first thing I’m probably going to get is a salad or some shit.. I been eating vegan so I have vegan chefs and shit. So I’ll call a vegan chef and see what they made, but I’m done with fast food, Coney’s, shit like that.
You know what I learned, any meal that can be made in a few minutes, I don’t want it. It ain’t good for me. Anywhere you can get a whole meal in less than 5 minutes, I don’t want it.
How long have you been vegan?
I’m not completely vegan but I’ve cut out a lot of meat. Chicken, beef, pork, shrimp, I don’t eat anymore. I slightly eat turkey and fish sometimes. I eat sides, fruits and vegetables, lots of greens, but a lot of stuff I’ve stopped eating. I try not to eat dairy and sweet stuff like candy, I might eat some chips but not a lot of junk food at all. This shit a lifestyle. Once I was aware of what I was consuming, I was like oh hell nah!
It’s really set up for you to turn a certain age and you start getting sick and dependent on medication from getting cancer, diabetes, all that shit. Once you’re over 35 years old, all of it hits you at one time and I ain’t going through that shit. I’ma enjoy my life, so I’m going to eat and live well.
Being a father of three young boys, what advice do you have for anyone who’s new to fatherhood?
Always try and never give up cause it ain’t easy. Especially when you not with the other parent. Your child will never forget the effort you put in.
What’s something about you that many people don’t know?
I’ll sit in the house and won’t come outside. I don’t like being around people, places or things. I like to be isolated. Not saying I don’t like some people, but I’m really not into being in crowded places. I learned that people do bullshit so I stay down and out the way. Mind over matter.
Where would you like to see your career in the upcoming new year?
I wanna see more touring going on, selling more merch and overall selling more products outside of music. I got big plans on making my brand bigger. Music is always coming regardless, so in 2025 it’s all about the brand, I’m putting Boyz ENT. on everything.
TEAM CREDITS:
Editor-in-Chief: Prince Chenoa (@princechenoastudio)
Feature Editor: Taylor Winter Wilson (@taylorwinter)
Photographer: Kevin Wright (@lvtrkevin)
