Today we’d like to introduce you to Adrian Gardner.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Adrian. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I’m from a small city in Southwest Georgia called Dawson, it’s about an hour south of Columbus, Georgia. Growing up, music and performing was always been a big part of my life. I grew up in the church, and since my father was a deacon and my mother was a singer in the choir I grew comfortable performing in front of people at an early age.
However, it was actually my older brother that initially got me interested in music. Even though I was young when he left for college, he bought me my first CD player and would send me some of the first Hip Hop CD’s. From that point on I was always a fan. When I got older, I became one of those kids who would constantly bang the Clipse beat into the lunchroom tables, and write my own raps in class. It wasn’t until I moved to Atlanta in 2011 for my own college years that my love for music would developed into a true passion.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It has its ups and down. Early on my biggest struggles were finding places to record and get my music mixed. As a college student who was also a student athlete, I didn’t really have time to make any money to book studio sessions so I had to record in the Multimedia Studio in the Campus Library. After I graduated I would record in different spots throughout the city. Other than that, my main struggles then just included developing my own flow and sound as well as growing my fanbase, and also just learning more about the music business itself and about how to build the right kind of team around me and make the best moves.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I’ m a Hip Hop Artist known as Da Real AG, as well as the Co-Founder of the C.Y.P.H.E.R. Youth Program, which is an organization that specializes in mentoring the youth and integrating hip-hop and hip-hop history with life lessons.
What sets me apart is that in addition to being an independent artist, I also am a certified educator, which played a major part in the formation of C.Y.P.H.E.R. While I worked in the counseling department of one of the schools I served, I noticed that a great deal of the students who pursued rap only sounded like the artists they heard on the radio and rapped about the things they rapped about. During our meetings at C.Y.P.H.E.R., we helped those students find their own voice and tell stories from their own perspective. One of the things I’m most proud of is that in 2018, two of our very first members graduated from high school and now attend college.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
God, first and foremost. My older brother Trenton for exposing me to hip-hop at an early age. My parents for supporting me and continuing to support me in everything I do. My homie Nick Middlebrooks for introducing me to my longtime producer J-Wood. FattBaxx was one of the first people to professionally mix and master my music. J-Wood and Onineteen, as well as Apollo who engineers most of my current music deserve a great of credit for helping me develop my sound.
My former coworker and longtime friend Erica Louise Richards aka Rica G deserves a credit as one of the first people to let me hop on a track and she also deserves a HUGE amount of credit as the co-founder of C.Y.P.H.E.R. and the one who spearheaded most of our projects and events. Those are the major ones that came off the top of my head, but it’s alot of people who have shown a great deal of support for my movements and all of them are greatly appreciated!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/_darealag
- Email: adrian.gardner94@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_darealag/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/darealag229
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/_DaRealAG
Image Credit:
@whoasaucer @5trapalbum
Suggest a story: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
