Doug E. Fresh’s impact on hip-hop is immeasurable. For over three decades, he has pushed the culture forward with an original style that transcends generations. Doug E. Fresh recently joined forces with the Country Time brand to introduce its first new flavor (Half Lemonade & Half Iced Tea) in 14 years. He spoke about the “Campaign for a Name” venture and how hip-hop continues to influence people worldwide.
How did you get involved with Country Time Lemonade’s ‘Campaign for a Name’?
I thought that one of the things that was missing from the campaign was a hip-hop artist. I appreciate what they’re doing with all the other people, but I told them I was a little upset that they didn’t put my name in the hat. I told them, “kids all over the world are doing the Dougie. I have football and basketball players doing the Dougie.” I figured while these new cats are doing the dance, they could be drinking this new “Dougie” drink by Country Time. The numbers don’t lie and we’re going to see who the winner is soon.
Some people didn’t think rap would last back in the 1980s. Now it’s one of the biggest music genres in the world. How has hip-hop garnered the attention of major corporations across the nation?
Back in the days when we was rocking out there. Adidas didn’t really want to do anything with Run-D.M.C. until they realized the magnitude. They should have caught it because our records were so powerful. Coca-Cola saw me with a Coca-Cola shirt on while I was performing the Soul Train Awards so we ended up doing a commercial. As the years went on, the brands started to get smarter and we saw the relationship between the artists and the brand is incredible. I knew that it was possible, but I didn’t know to this degree. I think that brands are very much more aware of the power of the artists.
The “Dougie” dance has bridged the gap between old school and new school hip-hop. It has also become a pop culture phenomenon. Did you ever think that dance would become so huge?
It’s a very interesting thing to analyze because that means whatever I did or whatever lifestyle choices I was making, the kids gravitated towards it and just kept with it. I never tried to take any money from the kids who created the song because I thought it was cool that they wanted to make a song about the dance that I was doing. I was doing the “Dougie” in the movie Paid in Full and kids watched it. It has that classic hip-hop energy and it’s about having a good time, which is something people forgot about.
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