Rapper, Doug The Plug has been making quite a name for himself as of late to be regarded as one of the most promising artists on the scene today. The Inglewood native delved into music as a freestyle cypher emcee in the seventh grade and then, went on to make bold statements with his aptly titled debut mixtape, The Jordan Tape released in 2016. Since then, he has redefined the meaning of popular music in his community.
Two V’z, Doug The Plug’s latest single has been a huge success and with his next project, he’s aiming to drop more songs that will swerve in and out of Hip-Hop, without reservation. Doug is also on a mission to familiarise the world with who he really is, before this project drops.
Names, like eyes, are windows into people’s personalities and backgrounds, and the origin of Doug’s name is a weighty teller of exactly who he is. According to the rapper, when he chose the name Doug The Plug, he was on a philosophical path. Delving into its history, he said,
“I mean growing up I worked a lot, but it still wasn’t enough to get the fly shit so of course you gotta hustle. Before they legalized weed, I used to have people pulling up to my mom’s crib for dimes and dubs, that was way back. Then I started doing my music and as I got in tuned with it, I had to know everything, down to the mixing, the mastering, I engineer a lot of my music and mix a lot of my music. I just figured that I was really plugged into it. And then, the name just rhymed, it was me, Doug The Plug.”
This personalization doesn’t stop at his name but carries on into the reason he took up music. Doug’s journey into music starts as far back as middle school where he beatboxed and participated in freestyle cyphers. Moving on, in 2016, his first mixtape, The Jordan Tape was released. Since then, it’s been a rollercoaster. The existence of adversity in the industry has made the realization of fame, tough. According to Doug,
“People recognize your talent but don’t give you your credit. You don’t give up. Lately, I have been in my bag, I got a lot more to say. For me, it’s all about going through the experience to have the stuff to talk about.”
With time, Doug’s approach to music has changed, and his most recent release, Two V’z is proof of this. Doug’s intention was to get people’s heads nodding. He claims he usually goes into studios with nothing, but on hearing the instrumental, knew he wanted it. This immediate interest was followed by a freestyle that resulted in the fan-favorite the single is. Going deeper, he said,
“Two V’z was just to let people know what type of time on. “ You playin’ games, but I’m outta your league”. Basically saying my style is major league. I’m ahead of my class.”
On its wow factor, Doug believes the instrumental has everything to do with it. It’s video which he describes as “bananas”, too.
Doug the Plug’s debut album is slated for a mid-September release. He’s currently working on ironing out all the kinks but believes that, like his previous work, the body of work will be a classic.