The DangerFeel Newbies look to history for new album

dangerfeel newbies 3

What was the inspiration for the project?


Well, in this case, the inspiration for this project came from a real-life person. Dangerfield Newby was a member of the John Brown party of 1859 and he was fighting to free his wife, Harriet, and their children. Unfortunately, he was one of the first to die in the botched raid on Harpers Ferry but his actions helped serve as an impetus for the Civil War. This album is inspired by the love story between him and his wife, Harriet.


How did the album come about?

We were led to doing this album because Mark Angel, Darren Wagner and myself are creative beings. We have so much creative energy in us and it was just time to make this happen. We also wanted to be known as more than DJs who played other people’s music.


How important is it for an artist to know how to market their project?

It’s extremely vital for artist to understand that they have to wear more than one hat in the new industry model. No one is going to make it happen for you but you. We’ve seen this firsthand. The days of just delivering an album to someone else so they can market and promote you are over.

How do you guys stay at the leading edge of your craft?

We stay at the leading edge of our craft by always keeping our finger on the pulse of what’s happening globally. That’s how you always keep an edge. You must possess a world view these days to remain relevant.

How do you measure your success?

We measure our success by listening to the feedback of the people. They have given our album favorable reviews and we know that a few people represent many.

Who do you admire in the business?

We look up to groups and individuals like Snarky Puppy, The Foreign Exchange and Eric Roberson. They all have a strong global fan base, been nominated for Grammys, and are 100 percent independent. They represent the future for all artist, no matter what genre.

Who are your biggest influences?

Two of our biggest influences are Nigerian artist Fela Kuti and activist Malcolm X. As three African American men, these two men represent the best of the art world and the world of activism. We want to see more of an intersection of these two worlds that we hope would have a positive, long-standing effect on our community.

Why is lifelong learning important?

It’s important to continue learning because once you stop, life isn’t worth living! The blessing about this planet is that one can never learn everything. There is always something new to discover and these new discoveries help expand our human palette.

What role does art play in the community?

Art plays an extremely vital role in our community. We as African Americans are blessed to have a rich lineage of artist who knew how express the nuances of our community to a very attentive world. Our art truly represents who we are. Amiri Baraka once said that if you want to understand the black community, then just look at the art. Our goal when creating this album was to stay true to this ethos and leave behind a document that our community would be proud of.

The DangerFeel Newbies’ debut album, Hariet, is out now via bandcamp, iTunes and Amazon.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Join our Newsletter

Sign up for Rolling Out news straight to your inbox.

Read more about:
Also read