Written By Cyn The Great featuring Dj XO (XO)
During a brief one on one interview with Let Us Live Magazine Dj XO provided senior writer and editor Cyn The Great with a quick glimpse of what it’s has been like for him to navigate his way through family life, giving back to his community, becoming a master dj, producing for major artist in the music industry, and transitioning to being an artist. XO had time to give insight on his new single “Hood Hop'' and first album; “Big Dreams”. For the average person starting off as an artist there are certain aspects of the industry that most would have to learn and cultivate. XO shared how the transition from producer to artist was natural for him as he already has been and still is so involved in music.
Houston,Texas native Dj XO shared that he came from humble beginnings just like most of us. He said that he grew up like most young boys playing sports and adjusting with life's ups and downs. He shared that there was a point in his life where he was living in a shelter; so for him to be at the point of traveling from city to city performing at sold out shows is just something that is amazing to him. One of the first things he did to give back to his community once his career started to take off was purchase a barbershop in his old neighborhood. The barbershop has been able to host block parties that give different things to children, free haircuts during special events and serve as a safe haven as a way to pay homage to XO’s upbringing.
As a dj XO has performed with artists like Kirko Bangz, Young Jeezy, T-Grizzley, Lil Durk and a continued list. As a producer/artist he’s worked with industry heavy hitters like 2Chainz, 21 Savage, Lil Uzi Vert, YFN Lucci, Lil Baby, Slim Thug, Lil Keke, Erica Banks, Dave East, OTB FastLane, Jazze Pha, Twysted Genius, and many others. Currently XO is on the “SoulFly'' tour with Rod Wave. He shared that they have been going nonstop from city to city performing and having a great time. When they stopped in Atlanta at the beginning of September he hosted a listening party for his new single “Hood Hop” featuring Foogiano from his first and new album “Big Dreams”. The album is scheduled to be released soon and features Trey Songz and Slim Thug. XO expressed that he is a firm believer that anyone can be successful as long as they put in the work and believe in their vision. He shared how he went from living in a shelter to traveling from city to city performing sold out shows for his fans. For those who are looking to break into the industry he advised must really stay focused to learning the ends and outs of the industry because his transition was smooth as he was already involved. He said that he loves what LUL is doing because he would love to see more magazines in homes and in the streets to bring back that old school vibe where we’d walk into our grandparents homes to Jet Magazines spread across the coffee tables. We agreed that we would be connecting in the near future to capture a more in depth conversation of XO’s life story and all the ups and downs he experienced through the journey to success.
He shared that there are only big things coming in the future and one thing for sure, we’ll be here to capture it all. Make sure you follow him, and look on the tour rooster to see where he will be next to show him some love.
(Be sure to check out two clips we shared on instagram - @lulmagazine13 from his interview).
