Dom Kennedy has prepared a grand homecoming and you’re invited.

Words_Bryan Hahn & Roger Kratz
Images_Don Morris

As a student of America’s favorite pastime and the game of hip-hop, Dom Kennedy embodies the spirit and drive of a seasoned veteran poised to take the pennant for his hometown, Los Angeles’ Leimert park. From the unheard of move of dealing with Best Buy without a middleman to stock his latest album, Get Home Safely, to being personally invited to Rick Ross’ Miami crib out of mutual respect, the artist who has become Dom Kennedy is not going for the record books per se, but for the history books. It’s an early afternoon on a Saturday in New York City and Dom Kennedy, his DJ Drewbyrd, Niko-G4, and Dom’s manager Archie make their way up to our office. Meanwhile, 2,800 miles away on the opposite coast, the Los Angeles Dodgers are looking to keep up with the St. Louis Cardinals as they trail the NLCS series 2-0. Sitting upright on the edge of his seat, with an all-black Dodgers fitted under a grey Stussy hoodie, Dom curiously checks the score on his phone. He realizes that his beloved Dodgers are up early in the game. “We gonna take this game today, I know it!” says a confident Dom, who’s an avid Dodgers fan to the point that he will not let his in-house DJ and friend, Drewbyrd, wear any San Francisco Giants apparel while they perform on stage together. Dom confesses that his love for the Dodgers began when he was very young, learning how to play baseball, Young Dominic Hunn adopted the individual team concept from Little League straight to the majors, dodging offers from Interscope and assembling his own team, OPM (Other People’s Money). “I learned that everyone has their own job, but they all need each other, and that’s how it is for me, especially being a solo artist.” Now five years deep into the Hip-Hop game—he dropped his first mixtape, 25th Hour, in 2008—he understands the rules set by DJ Kool Herc in the Bronx over 40 years ago at a basement party. New York built this. This is their game. And they know that what I’m saying is the truth. I’m from LA. That’s what I’m an expert in. That’s where my setting takes place.”

Being on the road has helped Dom understand that his story is no different form that of the average kid who lives in New York, Chicago, New Orleans, or even Arica. Unlike some of Dominic’s friends from his neighborhood, his situation was a bit more favorable due to the balanced support system that came from both of his parents. He humbly counts his blessings, especially after noticing that “a lot of friends really didn’t have a fair shot to even just be productive people.” While his father instilled a strong work etc in him, his mother showed him the pleasurable side of life within his community—a prominent theme in Dom’s music. “My mother would always make sure that we stay in our community, from the Magic [Johnson] movie theater to the local mall, she wanted us to be proud of who we were and where we came from.” Furthermore, his uncle, who owned a liquor store in Crenshaw and any teenager’s dream, a whip, brought those lessons to life and helped inspire him to become the businessman he is today.
As Dom delves deeper into his life story in our office, he casually checks his phone one more time to get an update on the game. He nods in approval and says, “Man, it’s great to see my Dodgers in the post-season.” In fact, the last time the Dodgers appeared in the post-season was 2009, a huge year for Dom’s budding career. The releases of Future Street/Drug Sounds and Best After Bobby changed the game in the digital space, which cemented his status in Los Angeles Hip-Hop. Labels, music critics, and people across the world started paying more attention to Dom’s laidback, but vivid storytelling over reimagined G-funk beats. And you may notice that part of that storytelling entails musical intermissions. He laughed as he explained that this proclivity in his projects stems from listening for Jodeci for years and interpreting their art of the interlude to create chapters within each project. “I went from being a fan of the music to hopefully a person in Hip-Hop that somebody will remember for the type of music they added.”

Read the rest of the feature story in our current October/November issue, on newsstands now.