Today we’d like to introduce you to Destanie Barz.
Hi Destanie, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Being number six of eight children born to a single mother made early life a bit challenging but the proper balance of being street smart and book smart proved to keep me in high regard and respect among my peers and superiors. I began writing as a child, and not in any particular fashion, but writing everything to self-cope and have therapy. As a teen, that writing was focused more creatively in spoken word and poetry and there was where I found my sweet spot for music. I’ve always loved words and when people realized I had a knack for wordplay, Barz was added to my original alias of Destanie, and Destanie Barz was born my Junior year of high school. From there, my life took a turn when I got pregnant both my senior year of high school and my freshman year of college, pushing through both and cultivating a journey that was to influence my coming years in life and in music. At this point, I was a single parent of two young sons in Midwest cities such as Albert Lea, MN, Mason City, IA, Omaha, NE, Duluth, MN, and Superior, WI at times battling hardships, hustling, and at other times spreading my music.
After dropping my first album, “The Resume” in 2014, the following years boasted a video for different songs off the project such as “Dope Girl Sh*t” “First Million” and “I Know” which was followed by releases from my next Project. Songs and videos such as “Fool For You” “Better” “Fall Back” and “No Let Up” are releases from my newer albums, both which drop later this year.
Gearing up for these next singles to drop, and reflecting on my independent career has put me in a focused state of mind and has sparked the interest in telling my story through a broader spectrum of mediums. Investing in myself has proved to be like any entrepreneurship, and the pandemic disrupted many strides in the making… but it did not stop them. Coming up next for me in this new environment of Atlanta is to stay growing my finances and my core fan bases by keeping my nose to the ground and hitting the content factors with some unbelievable pieces. This is the short version.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The first struggle I encountered along my journey was distraction. Whether it be the streets, then a boy (or girl), then being a student or employee or parent or all of the above, and never being able to focus on just the music. When you’re independent, the momentum, the consistency and the focus you have to spend on your craft has to be prioritized and most of the time, I’m not able to do that. Some things just come second to none, like my two boys.
Another struggle I was faced with is this pandemic. While I had battled hardships in the past, by 2019, I was basically soaring in my music path. I was gaining a bit of traction and had opened a brick and mortar with a genius partner and here came Covina. It was outstanding… and it was a time to be alive. It was like a master reset and having to rework the framework because the reset has upgrades that didn’t catch.
The most prominent struggle I’ve faced was playing catch up with my life after swearing off the streets and letting that n*gga go (and no specific n*gga just every hypothetical one). To supplement the hustler lifestyle I once led, I turned my talents to serving tables “serve tables not drugs” and taking the slow money over the risks. With every turn, no matter of sky-high or rock bottom, I never folded and I never will.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a songwriter and performer. I specialize in lyrics and help artists I want on my publishing roster to license their music to gain all 16 royalties for each release based off a master class taught by a super soul named GeeGee Miller. I’m most proud of my streaming patterns for new releases and my travel capacity to perform with my track record throughout the cities I’ve lived in throughout the Midwest. I am also proud of both my first album and mixtape which boasts my following of about 5K organic fans. What sets me apart from others is that without a co-signer, a big name feature or a manager, I continue to collect an income from my music and brand and run my music career as a legitimate business. My mentor, “Chips” has taken me from rapper to entrepreneur and keeps me up to speed on how the game goes.
What’s next?
The biggest change happening now is a small rebrand. My music and music interests are changing so I’m in the stage Of researching and being a student. My next project is set to release fourth quarter and the next few months are working toward that release. The release will be a double album and the singles will be released in two.
Another big change will be the journey for getting placements and securing the artists I’d love to assist in releasing their first single. Destanie Barz is releasing her own artists soon.
Pricing:
- Hook: $225
- Verse: $450
- Hook/Verse: $600
- Song Performance: $500
- Song Direction: $175
Contact Info:
- Website: www.Dezzie516.com
- Instagram: Instagram.com/Dezzie516
- Facebook: Facebook.com/Dezzie516
- Twitter: Twitter.com/Dezzie516
- Youtube: YouTube.com/Dezzie516
Image Credits
Image Credits to Proper Etiquette Photography, Telescope Digital and goofaaahs Deejay Vado
