As the Internet continues to increase ways to share music, the record industry is working at a fast pace to regulate how music is distributed online. In that environment, who would have ever thought mixtapes would be able to prosper on the ‘net? The creators of one of the biggest sites for mixtapes––Datpiff.com, that’s who.
StreetSmos caught up with Kp Dat Piff, one of the men behind the site breaking ground for thousands of artists looking for the break a hot mixtape can create. Witness, the future of the mixtape… StreetSmos: What made you start the site? Kp Dat Piff: We started just wanting to stream mixtapes personally to each other. It grew out of that.
How do you keep the site fresh? The users keep it fresh. Since we allow everyone to get on, we receive new content daily.
Why the name Dat Piff? That was the hot name on the streets. Piff was just a unique name. Every thing hot was called Piff.
Who’s on your staff? I work with DJ Ill Will and DJ Rock Star. We’re partners. We get involved with the creative process of mixtapes, we go in the studio, and we do the PR. The easiest part is the release. A lot of established artists also ask us to assist them with the creation and release of their mixtapes.
How has the site expanded from then to now? We grew gradually; the street was still the main source for mixtapes when we started. The Internet was not really popping. Now with the growth of the Internet in hip-hop we are growing daily. What is the Internet’s place in hip-hop? It allows artists the chance to expand their market and make themselves known worldwide. For nearly everybody, the Internet is just a click away. It’s an easy way to get big notice. The Internet is a major tool. Describe the site? \We are known as the site where you find the latest and hottest mixtapes. What’s your mission statement? Provide a place for talent and music to be heard, giving the little artist a chance to be big.
50 | Streets Mos Magazine
How is the Internet helping artists reach the mainstream? Well, any artist can now attract a fan base, some are even growing their name––in most cases for free. The ‘net allows artists to reach a worldwide audience. Soulja Boy was a big supporter of the site. Jahlil Beats, Meek Millz’s in-house producer uploaded his beats and I introduced him to a lot of people. Now he’s one of the hottest producers. How do you feel you’re helping the advancement of the mixtape? We’ve revolutionized the way the mixtape is being received, and we have a lot of functions on the site at the cutting edge of technology.
How do you describe physical vs. virtual outlets? It’s two separate markets. There are people who are still old school and some even in the new school have not even seen a mixtape from canal. What are some of the sites you visit on a daily basis? Hot New Hiphop.com, This is Fifty, World Star, Two Dope Boys Media, Take Out Hip Hop, and Dx Vlad TV are the ones I go to most. Do you think your site is breaking new talent to labels? No doubt. A&R people use us to search for new talent, and they use the site to hear more music from an artist that interests them. We provide a platform. Do you think the Internet is hurting hip-hop? No the Internet is for those who love it. I don’t think it hurts Hip Hop at all. People like myself still like physical activity of buying product, but at the same time, I’m not afraid of the future of the Net. Dat Piff will be there. Right now, we have over 70,000 mixtapes, two million subscribers, and over 200 thousand unique visitors. And we’re only getting started. The mixtape is in good hands at DatPiff.Com SM