Laying the Groundwork
When asked about the first time he knew he wanted to rap, St. Domonick recalled the first day he performed in front of an audience in his detention classroom. He was in the third grade. Since the day he rapped for his classmates, he has made a name for himself throughout the Tulsa music scene and laid groundwork for fellow rappers to develop their own identities and music careers within their hometown
“Tulsa is slowly catching on,” St. Domonick said. “We got to hold it down and wait for them to catch up.”
St. Dom first performed under his current pseudonym about five years ago at the downtown bar, YETI. It was at one of these performances that he ran into his third grade classmate from that first day performing in detention. This classmate, DJ OD, now performs with St. Dom as his DJ.
Throughout quarantine, St. Dom and his long list of local collaborators have spent hours in the studio mixing and mastering enough content for Dom to put out one album a month for the rest of 2020. While some artists have expressed a void of creativity during the COVID-19 outbreak, St. Dom has made it his mission to make as much music as he can.
“This pandemic has made it a lot easier for people to slow down and appreciate things,” St. Dom said. “People are finally able to sit down and just make a good song.”
St. Dom actually prefers time in the studio over live shows. During this time, he listens to beats from his producers and builds verses that reflect the nostalgia or romance or hype of the sound.
“There is a lot of diversity in the kind of music coming out of Tulsa,” St. Dominick said. “And with the 100th anniversary of the race massacre in 2021, we are on the cusp of really getting on the map.”
Releasing soon after a long time coming is St. Domonick’s new album titled Aurora, after the northern lights viewed from arctic mountain places and heated vallies like Alaska or Africa. Speaking of Africa,on the cusp of the centennial, St. Dom joined Fire in Little Africa (FILA), a hip-hop collective who signed a record deal with Motown Records. St. Dom was the last artist to record and became the glue that brought the album together. He recorded, mixed and co-produced all his FILA work from home. This was largely due to the fact that when St. Dom was about to record, the pandemic sent everyone back indoors—serendipitously that’s just how St. Dom likes it.
“80% of the music that you hear, I pick the samples, I’ve arranged the drums and said ‘Nah, I want this type of snare, can you change this pattern,’” St. Dom said. “I’m pretty much there, and every time somebody is making a beat for me I just don’t know how to push the buttons.”
St. Dom is a well rounded artist, being that the visionary has directed every music video he’s created alongside co-directors and videographers he hires. Recently St. Domonick gave ASLUT a few exclusives, including what happened to the original release of Fire In Little Africa’s most questioned music video. St. Domonick disclosed that he had full creative control over the first video and the reshoot which was released on the rap collective’s YouTube channel.
“As far as what happened to the original video, to clear up any confusion, I’m still confused just as much as the people are,” St. Domonick said. “I’ve heard so many different stories about so many different people coming in and shutting the video down. So that’s why there’s so many different stories out there.”
He wants people to come to their own conclusions. He said that whatever people thought happened, definitely had. The reshoot took a Kanye West trolling approach and mixed it with LIzzo’s “Rumors” approach with Cardi B. confirming to fans that “All the rumors are true.”
“I’m not feeling like we fucked up or failed or anything. All the reactions or responses I saw him coming in I planned for them,” St. Domonick said. “I definitely wanted the video to be left open to interpretation.”
Alongside his music career, St. Dom is adding VUELO, a streetwear brand, to his legacy. He has merch drops dropping with collaborations like Bluefly, Silhouette, and Town University apparel.
“ASLUT exclusive, I have a sneaker dropping soon,” St. Dom said. “But if I got a sneaker deal, I would do a Jordan 4 or a Jordan 5 maybe.”
According to St. Dom, all of his inspirations are multifaceted artists, and he hopes to build a similar legend around his name. With aspirations among the likes of multimedia artists and entrepreneurs Pharrell and Curren$y, St. Dom’s ultimate goal is for his music to sustain him.
“I already feel like I’m a success,“ St. Dom said. “But when I can wake up, not think about anything, and just make my music, then I’ll know I’ve made it.”
Be sure to stream his new “Reparations” music video on Fire In Little Africa’s Youtube channel.
Stream St. Domonick’s most recent release, a 3-track EP titled Call Me In The Morning You can also find St. Dominick on Spotify and Apple Music.
Click here to hear St. Domonick's ASLUT Spotify Playlist
*Update*
Fire in Little Africa's original Reparations music videos surfaces on IGTV watch the full video below to see the unedited version.