BILLY BLUE

Miami’s music scene has brought hip hop some of its brightest stars. With the path blazed by artists like Rick Ross and Flo Rida, new artist Billy Blue is hoping to bring that same fire to the game – and he has a story to tell. His machine gun flow mixed with his gritty – and very real lyrics – make him a fortified contender to keep the fire burning in the South.

Born Pedritho Dorsonne in New Rochelle, NY to Haitian immigrants, Billy Blue’s stage name came from his many trials and tribulations while growing up. His life story sounds more like a movie script than real life; the promising artist signed to Interscope through a joint venture with Poe Boy Entertainment, Akon’s Konvict Music and Timbaland’s Mosely Music Group has lived a dangerously fast and mostly tragic lifestyle. In fact, he would say music saved his life.

At the formative age of 10, Blue’s mother passed away. This life changing occurrence would lead to his first nickname – Blue. Never really finding joy in school or with friends once she passed, his schoolmates quickly named him “Blue” because he was always sad. When she died, he and his two sisters assumed they would live with their father, but their dad had other plans. Instead of taking in his own flesh and blood, he transferred his estranged wife’s social security checks to his sister in North Miami and shuffled his kin to reside with her and her two sons. This was the beginning of a long nightmare for Billy.

His older sister, ten years his senior, quickly got a job and moved out of the house. His younger sister, five years his junior, was taken care of – Blue, on the other hand, was neglected. Instead of treating him like a member of the family, Blue’s aunt kicked him out of the house, making him sleep in her backyard. To this day, he has no idea why. Not only did being virtually homeless at such a young age rob Blue of a childhood, it also put him in the precarious position of doing whatever it took to get a dollar in order to eat. His survival techniques earned him his other moniker, Billy – as in Billy the Kid.

Struggling to live is not something a healthy 11 year old boy should have to worry about but in Blue’s case, it was his daily life. He surprisingly continued going to school, if not only to eat lunch and hang out with his classmates. It was around this time Blue discovered his love for music. He and his friends would freestyle on paper. “It sounds crazy now telling the story but we would get notebooks and write out rhymes, then pass the notebook to a friend in class. It was then their turn to put together a rhyme – and on and on. Sometimes we would have to tell stories. The more I did it, the more I realized I was finally good at something. I never thought it would amount to anything, I just did it for fun,” says Blue.

But school wasn’t always fun for Blue; he was constantly in trouble for acting out. “I was always getting suspended for fighting or other dumb things. I was the bummy kid in school – and was treated like the bummy kid,” explains Blue. “Looking back, I think the fact that I wasn’t getting attention from my dad, my aunt or anyone else, led me to trying to get attention by doing other things.”

These “other things” consisted of home invasions, stealing cars and other ways of getting money – just to get some food in his stomach. Living a fast life finally caught up to Blue at age 13 when he caught a breaking and entering as well as aggravated assault charge. The sentence he received was three years in juvenile. While locked up, Blue continued rhyming and his musical influences unsurprisingly consisted of hardcore, gangster rap figures – mainly The Ghetto Boyz, Dr. Dre and Big Mike. Blue says, “I was living that lifestyle and to hear people rapping about it was intriguing – they were definitely my musical influences.”

Blue looked forward to getting out of lock up, hoping that his father would possibly move him back to New York – that maybe his actions finally got the attention he was seeking. However, on the day of his release, he was sent packing to another relative, this time an uncle in Haiti. Going from his “home” in Miami to a new home in Haiti was definitely a step in the wrong direction. At the time, there was a revolt going on in the country, and Blue lived right in the middle of it all. Daily he would see dead bodies, hourly he was hearing the gunshots. All of this at age 16, coupled with his already troubled life, was a recipe for life long scars.

Blue returned to Miami a young adult. Now 19, Blue had to get his life together so he moved in with his sister who helped him get into a school in order to get his high school diploma. Once armed with a degree, Blue tried his hand at college and enrolled in Florida Memorial College. The stint was short lived once Blue started selling weed to the students and learned that drugs were a more lucrative career choice – he dropped out.

Blue’s career as a drug dealer got him everything he needed – friends, cars, new clothes, an apartment. His mentor in the drug game purchased a club and assigned Blue as the manager – he also recognized Blue’s talent and put him in a recording studio. Blue was excited to be rapping but never really saw it as a reality. He did it as an outlet and was fortunate enough to get studio time to really hone his craft. However, a string of unfortunate events eventually landed his mentor in jail, and Blue out of a job. Luckily, another friend purchased the club and gave Blue a new position – this time DJ. Since Blue was making his own music, he decided to use his job as a way to get his songs out there. He built a buzz with a song called “Ball Like a Dog,” and eventually caught the attention of two major entertainment companies in Miami .

“I received 2 calls in the same week,” says Blue. “I met with both companies and really clicked with Poe Boy Entertainment. I decided to sign with them almost immediately.” Poe Boy Entertainment is the home to high profile artists Rick Ross, Flo Rida, and Brisco; Billy Blue knew his style of music, personality and lyrical content would fit right in with the company’s vision.

Blue says, “What sets me apart from everyone in this game is my life experiences. I have been through so many crazy struggles and I rap about things I know – things I have been through. I am another normal person from the streets, rap was NOT my life – it was not something that I was destined to do, it is something that saved me from this messed up life that I have lived. I have regrets but I was trying to survive, I am thankful that I do not have to live that life anymore and I promise to give back once I make it.”

Joining the already successful Miami movement, Blue is looking forward to his debut album in the Summer of 2009. Working with notable producers like Akon and Timbaland, Blue is finally getting the attention he yearned for as a child – this time for all the right reasons.