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Journey to healing: Rapper Danny Brown gets introspective with sobriety on 'Quaranta'
Danny Brown has always done everything his own way.
Oftentimes, the Detroit native rapper and podcast host would spark a firestorm with his drunken antics.
Today, he鈥檚 living in Austin, Texas, where he鈥檚 living a new life 鈥� clean and sober.
Journey to healing: Rapper Danny Brown gets introspective with sobriety on 'Quaranta'
He released the album, 鈥淨uaranta,鈥� late last year and the body of work chronicles his journey to where he is today.
鈥淓verything has been going good,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e had a lot of downtime for a few months and it鈥檚 good to be back on the road. I鈥檝e been working on my podcast and I鈥檓 in a good place.鈥�
Brown鈥檚 tour is slated to make a stop at the Historic El Rey Theater in Downtown sa国际传媒官网网页入口 at 8 p.m. Tuesday, April 9. Opening for the show is Alice Longyu Gao and Bruiser Wolf.
Brown remained an underground hip-hop artist during his career.
He spent his time releasing mixtapes and eventually released his first studio album, 鈥淭he Hybrid,鈥� in 2010.
In 2011, his follow-up album, 鈥淴XX,鈥� was released. During the same year, MTV took notice of Brown and called him 鈥渙ne of rap鈥檚 most unique figures.鈥�
He broke through mainstream with his 2013 album, 鈥淥ld,鈥� which reached No. 18 on the Billboard 200 Album Chart.
Throughout his journey in music, he鈥檚 garnered plenty of accolades. He doesn鈥檛 let any of it get to his head.
鈥淚 keep music the way I like it,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 good to be busy and I use my writing as a form of therapy.鈥�
As the 43-year-old rapper embarks on his latest tour, he feels less pressure with releasing music.
With six albums under his belt, he pulls from each album for his set list.
鈥淚 usually put songs in the set that I can remember,鈥� he says with a laugh. 鈥淚 also want to feel comfortable with each song that I鈥檓 putting into the set. It all has to make sense.鈥�
With 鈥淨uaranta,鈥� Brown dove in deep to write some of the most personal songs telling his personal journey battling depression and addiction.
He says the writing process has gotten easier over time.
鈥淚 feel like if you write from the heart, you never really have writer鈥檚 block,鈥� he says. 鈥淲riting is my therapy. There are subjects in my songs that I wouldn鈥檛 talk about with my friends or family. The process for this album was freeing and I felt like it all had to be said. I鈥檝e been on a journey and discovered myself again.鈥�
Brown, born Daniel Dewan Sewell, says he鈥檚 wanted to be a rapper since he was in kindergarten.
His dad was a DJ and was surrounded by music, where he acted like a sponge and took everything in.
鈥淚鈥檝e been blessed and I continue to work with people who challenge me in the studio,鈥� Brown says. 鈥淚鈥檝e been a fan of music all my life. It鈥檚 been years that I鈥檝e been in the game and I still have the passion for it. Sometimes the business aspect makes it feel like a job, but I have to remember that the passion for creating music is there and it makes me happy.鈥�
