Music & Fashion 2022

IMPORTS CAR MAGAZINE JULY 2021

NEW FEATURES NEW MODELS

M USIC

EDITION 21

Sp eci al D ou bl e Ed i t i on Feat u r i n g D u t ch ess O f I n k

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M ICHAEL LOPEZ BOND Ph ot ogr aph er f or Gillie & Wallo

WALLO

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You can have anything you want in life if you dress for it.

- Edith Head

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NEW MUSIC Written By Sarah Hawkins

Behind The Unlikely Rise of Singer Songwriter Dominic Fike Dominic Fike is an intriguing and illustrious figure whose background

the officer to protect his brother, who was being pursued by the

nearly eclipses his immense talent. Long before he was being

police. Due to the charge, Fike was placed on house arrest--- which

scouted by record companies Dominic Fike was sitting in a jail cell in

ultimately became a blessing in disguise. Fike had nothing to do with

Florida. Long before he began recording his debut extended play

his time but work on his music, and it was then that Fike recorded

album (EP): ?Don?t Forget About Me?, he was bound to house arrest.

what became his debut EP, ?Don?t Forget About Me.?

When Dominic Fike was just 21 years old, it seemed as though his life was already over. Back in 2016, Dominic was charged with a house arrest for battery of a police officer. Barely old enough to drink, he was already labeled a felon. Little did he know in just a little over a year, Fike would soon be one of the most intriguing and up-and-coming music artists. Dominic Fike?s chaotic rise to stardom began long before his debut extended play album (EP) began charting internationally.

However, after failing a drug test, Fike was sent to jail in 2017.

Determined for everyone to hear his music, Fike released the EP behind bars, and it quickly caught the attention of major record companies. After signing a $4 million dollar deal with Columbia Records while still in jail, Fike deleted all his music online, making him ostensibly a ghost. The entire industry waited for the young artist to finish his sentence. Hopefully, he would live up to the massive hype surrounding him.

Growing up in Naples, Florida, a city near the Gulf of Mexico, Dominic Fike had a troubled childhood. Both of his parents were in and out of jail, and his music became a form of escapism. Fike acquired his first guitar at the age of ten, and he has been playing nonstop ever since. Growing up, money was always tight. From a young age, Dominic had to provide for himself and his brother. At one point, he was so broke he had to sell his guitar to buy food, and he spent many nights sleeping in dingey hotel rooms.

Upon rereleasing the EP in 2018, Fike generated a massive amount of buzz, gaining international interest with hits such as, ?3-Nights? and ?King of Everything.? Fans enjoyed his fresh, genre-bending sound, fearless and unique like the artist himself.

Fike?s life changed overnight and yet, at the same time, it hadn?t.

While major stars such as DJ Khalid were tweeting about him, Fike found himself driving his mother to jail for her two-year prison sentence. He told Complex Magazine, ?Yeah, the day I released the

After he pushed an officer and was charged with a felony, things only got worse for Fike. Even though Fike swears he assaulted

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tape, I f* ckin?had to take my mom to jail for two years. So that's what

DRIVE IN STYLE happened that day.? The first thing he did after getting his paycheck from Columbia, was hire a lawyer to help reduce his mother ?s sentence.

Now at 25, Dominic Fike has already been a huge success in the music industry, has collaborated with artists such as Halsey and Brockhampton, and has released numerous chart-topping singles, such as ?Acai Bowl? and ?Chicken Tenders?. Fike also branched out to the fashion industry and collaborated with Marc Jacobs, producing an exclusive tour hoodie back in 2019. In August of 2021, it was announced that he will be joining the cast of the HBO teen drama Euphoria for its second season. Even with this success, Fike remembers his roots. He continues to take care of family and the people who were there for him when he was a struggling artist in Naples. He relishes his ability to do so. ?I eat crazy foods, and I cover people?s rents,? he told the New York Times. ?I take care of people. Never done that? like people have always taken care of me.? Dominic Fike is genuine and doesn?t hide that scrappy kid from Naples. Maybe that?s what continues to make his music so unique and fresh.

The

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WALLO The encouraging and powerful Wallo served a lengthy 20 year jail sentence after being convicted for multiple counts of armed robbery. Following his release in 2017, the then 37-year-old turned his life around and became a motivational speaker starting out on Instagram and eventually doing public events and panels. We caught up with Wallo at the Beauty with Brains event in Raleigh NC earlier this year to learn more about his life and motivation.

The Philadelphia native regularly encourages his followers on Instagram to command more from life and avoid the mistakes he made in his youth.Before rapper Young Thugs recent arrest on rico charges; he and partner King Gillid explained that the street life would not be worth their career.

The Million Dollaz Worth of Game Podcast Co-host has a segment called ?stories from the cell? where he shares funny or serious memories from his extensive 20-year sentence.

Wallo regularly fights for Black leadership in business, wealth and activism. He has taken part in a panel discussion for The Source on the black community?s next move in light of George Floyd?s death.

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L I FE BEYOND BL ACK I NK

RENT DUE -Wallo

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KING GILLIE Gillie Da King and Wallo unveiled their admirably successful podcast ?Million Dollaz of Game?. The first episode aired on April 22, 2019, and since then; they?ve released over eighty episodes.

Some of their previous special guests include, Young Thug, and Deion Sanders.

ON

NC

S tyle TREND

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