Check Out Dean Beanz’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dean Beanz.  

Hi Dean, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
I always had music in my life as a kid accompanied by the thirst to be the best at whatever my attention was locked on at the time. Growing up poor, we simply didn’t have resources, so I used whatever I could put together. My first stereo was a bunch of pieces I found in the attic that I dismantled and put back together. I started break dancing then, I got into rapping. I immediately wanted what the stars had but again, we were poor. So, I took one of my mom’s tape decks and recorded mixes off of the radio to create pause mixed instrumentals to rap on. A pause mix is when you use a dual cassette tape deck to record a 4-bar loop from another tape to another, then take the tape deck out and rewind it back with your finger or pencil at the exact moment the loop stops and re-record it until you have 5 minutes of music. I wanted changes in the composition, so I used loops from different songs to make my beats. At that point, the bug for music was never going to end. I realized that I can hear the full composition before it’s ever played. I could memorize melodies in my head and knew what songs went well with others. I didn’t know that was a DJ’s way of hearing music back then. I just wanted beats to rap on. I got frustrated with pause mixing and using the left ear of my headphones as a microphone because the quality was horrible. I saved up some money, borrowed records from the local record store, then walked 4 miles to Mo Master studios and told him which parts I wanted to take from different songs, and had him put them together for me to rap on. Man… I was a real artist then I thought.

That was short-lived. Being a father of 2 at age 18 making only $4.25 an hour, I couldn’t make sense of spending $16/hour at the studio. Fatherhood was more important, so music fell by the waist side. Like every other dude in the hood that was unaware of his options, I broke the law to make ends meet. Once people I knew started getting killed in front of their homes or ended up incarcerated, I made a move, got out, and joined the army. Little did I know the money was just as bad in the military as being in the hood. There I was back in the streets while in the military. Back then I was a bad person. If I knew you, I was probably plotting to rob you at some point. One night, I decided I was going to do it big so I can stop being a crook. On that last job, I was surrounded by police and arrested.  I was in front of the judge facing 6 years and 6 months for 7 counts of burglary in the same night ready to lose my freedom. The judge asked me why I did all of this. I simply said: “I joined the army to take care of my family and still couldn’t. I tried loans, soup kitchens, and even a second job delivering pizzas and we were still in a bad predicament so I did what I used to do.” This is the same judge that gave a guy life for robbing a guy for his sneakers at a dice game. She put her head down and said: ” I don’t want to see you in my courtroom again” and gave me nine months. Due to working in the jail, I was released with time served in 2.25 months. Jail jump-started me back in music and changed my perspective on life and ultimately who I wanted to be.

On day one I walked into the tank (cell) and another inmate looked at me real tough. I thought I was going to have my first jail fight. I was ready for the smoke. He says: “say playa. I have a question”. I looked at him real tough and said harshly: “What!” He (with a straight face) asked: “Do you know how to rap?” Confusingly staring at him, I replied; “yeah”. He smiled and we instantly became friends. From that point, I was the entertainment in the 12-man tank. One day I was on a collect call with my son trying to discipline him from my cell and his tone of voice sliced through my harmless threats. I thought: “what can I say to him when I’m in trouble.” At that moment I wanted to be the opposite of the devil I was. I wanted to help people and really be a good person. Evil left my soul that fast. Jail didn’t rehabilitate me. My kid did.

When I got out of jail I discovered that they lost my pants lol. So, I left with no pants walking down an old country road, hitchhiked back to the barracks, and then went through the process of being discharged / banned from the entire base. Now I have a record and an other than honorable discharge. No one would hire me. I ended up living with a woman on section 8 and the system found out. It was either me leaving or her and her family getting put out so I left. I ended up being homeless for a few months. Funny thing is, I never stopped writing. The wife and kids were long gone and I was in another state pretty much alone in the streets. I stole khakis and neckties to fill out job applications and go to job interviews. I also had sex with a couple of women who would let me shower, and eat a bite. Sometimes I would get a couple of bucks for my time. I finally landed a job at AT&T and also assisted a guy who owned a company that supplied sound for major concerts. He heard me rap and would ask the promoters if I could open for the major acts. That fast a homeless guy was performing with the majors. I would rock out, pack up the equipment, then get dropped off at the shelter after.

I eventually got on my feet and had a summer of shows booked. That never happened because my kid’s mom ended up in a mental hospital. That required me to leave. I had to take care of my kids. I came home and entered cosmetology college to pursue a career in beauty. I would record from time to time but it was still too expensive. I had 3 kids at this point. My kid’s mom left, leaving me a single parent of 3. Thank God my mom and Lil brother helped. I went to school and worked in the salon to make ends meet. Out of the blue, a friend of mine came by my house one day and dropped off an ASR X Pro (sampling drum machine) and told me to pay him back in installments. I don’t know why he did that but, that drum machine got me doing shows, making beats for others, and ultimately convincing someone to purchase a studio for me. That also was short-lived because the investor started treating me badly. I had a friend that stayed across the street from the studio who saw the not-so-favorable situation. I told him how my partner was doing me wrong. When I was not there, he robbed the studio. I had no clue and was devastated. My partner thought I set him up and we separated. My friend across the street would call me repeatedly but I would never answer because I wanted to leave music and that period of my life behind me.

I finally saw him over a year later. He told me that he robbed the studio and was trying to give the equipment to me but sold it because I didn’t answer. I’m glad I never answered because that was dishonest and I vowed to not be that person from my past again. He was a gangster to the 10th power. I know how it goes. He would’ve felt like he owned me. He ended up getting killed in his house months later by way of a gunshot to the back of the head. I have no clue who did it or why but, wow… “he robbed me for me” I thought. Fast forward, I was playing old beats for a friend and he asked why I stopped. I gave him the sob story and he simply replied: ” Shut the f*ck up and go get another studio.” I explained why I can’t but he repeated the same phrase. We went back and for a half-hour saying the exact same thing over and over again. For some reason, I heard it differently. It got through to me and I said: “I should shut the f*ck up and get a studio.” He simply said: “now you got it”. So, I did. After that, the shows came, I started hosting the shows, and my popularity grew. I needed graphics and couldn’t afford it, so I learned how to do them myself. That turned into a graphics and printing business.

Everything I needed to release music I learned how to do and when I got really good at it, I turned it into a business. Super-fast forward, I found myself in Taiwan with my friend walking around the day before the concert I was headlining. Standing in front of some golden gates, I looked at him and said: “man if we never get where we feel like we should be, we can say we’ve done some cool ass sh*t.” Here I am in a foreign country signing autographs and taking pictures in the subway because of a few pushes and kicks in the ass that some homies gave me. I now own a multimedia company; I’m well known for my music and marketing content. I travel the world, mentor artists, and encourage everyone to pursue their dreams with no remorse.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Not due to personal issues and constant rejection. The yes I gave myself was far more valuable.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am all things creative. From writing music, producing, engineering, filming, photography, graphics, and not producing talk shows. If it involves creating, I’m there.

Music is my main bag. Media and design are my other bags.

Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
I wish I knew that the “Industry” was not the only industry that you can create on. Go for the mainstream but simultaneously create your own tailor-made lane. Never quit and be obsessed with success.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.evry.media and evrymusic.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/iamdeanbeanz
• Facebook: facebook.com/iamdeanbeanz
• Twitter: twitter.com/iamdeanbeanz
• Youtube: YouTube.com/c/evrymusictv

Image Credits
Kara Eid