#188: Dave

This week on A Waste of Time with ItsTheReal, we welcome British rapper Dave to the Upper West Side! Dave, AKA Santan Dave, talks about his breakout hit Wanna Know, how Drake reached out to appear on the remix, how OVO did right by him, and what that one song meant in terms of radio, festivals and recognition. We discuss Dave's youth in South London, not having much of a relationship with his two older brothers when they were growing up, and what it was like to visit his siblings throughout their stops in the prison system. We dive into Dave's proficiancy at piano, his early attempts at rapping, how movie soundtracks opened his ears in a new way, the inspiration in Meek Mill's music, and how his own freestyles on Blackbox and Fire in the Booth launched him into a legitimate career while trying to balance his studies at university. We talk about his collaborations with J Hus, AJ Tracey, Fraser T. Smith, how he started doing his own production, what spurred him into getting political in his own rhymes, and how his powerful song Hangman came about. All that, plus traveling with his new puppy, shooting music videos in Europe, football referees, dreaming of Aston Martins, touring around the world, and the confusion that comes with being a rapper named just Dave.