“I wake up in the morning thinking about creating something,” says DeeLow The Diamond Man. 

 

The producer, rapper, app designer, jeweler and entertainer’s CV is proof of his creativity. Calling him an entrepreneur would be apt, but also reductive. He’s more so a person on a perennial pursuit of fulfillment, and he just so happens to find it while creating. 

 

Raised in the 7th Ward of New Orleans, Louisiana, DeeLow is one half of noted production duo MonstaBeatz. Along with his cohort Jean Lephare, DeeLow has produced records for or worked directly with Lil Wayne, Curren$y, Wiz Khalifa, Nipsey Hussle, Styles P, Jadakiss, The Migos’ Takeoff, French Montana, Jadakiss, Styles P, The Cool Kids, and many more. 

 

Thanks to a resourceful mother, DeeLow was enlisted in talent shows at a young age. He was in school bands and was a dancer (though, back in his school days, they called it “flexin’”). It was in 1998 when he began pursuing music production, after surviving a bad car accident which left him with five screws and a plate in his arm. At the time, he was surrounded by friends who were rapping, but that didn’t immediately appeal to him. Instead, he took inspiration from Unc, a local producer who sold DeeLow his equipment for $1,000. That purchase became a hearty investment in his future, as did the countless hours he spent indoors, mastering the craft of beatmaking.

 

After high school, DeeLow moved to New York City. Eventually, he began writing verses. “I didn’t even rap, but people would just tell me to hop on the hook because I had so much personality,” he says. It was then he became The Diamond Man. DeeLow became a full-time rapper who simultaneously made beats. He and Jean, who was also in New York City, merged their collective talents to form MonstaBeatz. 

 

Like countless other New Orleanians, DeeLow’s life was punctuated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. He moved back home, with production as his main focus. In 2009, MonstaBeatz produced Curren$y’s first digital release, This Ain’t No Mixtape and eventually went on to work with him extensively, including full production work on 2011’s Weekend At Burnie’s and inclusion on a Jet Life tour the same year. Also in 2009, MonstaBeatz produced Lil Wayne’s “I’m Good,” which appeared on the rapper’s No Ceilings mixtape.

 

MonstaBeatz crossed paths with former members of Sqad Up, a rap group featuring a young Lil Wayne. The duo produced a mixtape for both Supa Blanco and Lucci Lou. Supa Blanco’s Doin Numbers featured “I Bet I Do,” which gave MonstaBeatz their first placement on BET, in 2010. They also produced Lucci Lou’s Mr. Pharmaceutical mixtape.

 

In 2018, Lil Wayne released the MonstaBeatz-produced “Vizine.” The duo also produced Takeoff’s 2018 song “Last Memory.”

 

Now, DeeLow is preparing for the summer 2019 release of an ambitious solo project, Good Vibes: Diamond Edition. It builds upon his Good Vibes mixtape released in 2018, but is not necessarily a sequel. Featuring Curren$y, Mannie Fresh, Smoke DZA, Young Roddy and more, it’s a case study in DeeLow’s lifelong drive to create and uplift. 

 

“This project is good energy,” he says. “Long story short, it all comes down to your energy. If you’re putting out bad energy, you’re going to receive bad energy. If you’re putting out good energy, you’re going to receive good energy. Even when I’m down, you’re not going to see me down. I’m at the point where nothing can bring me down. I’m way 2 up!”