I remember about 2 years ago when I first met The Last Artul, Dodgr, before the Record Label Eyrst was formed, before Portland knew who she was .. before anything really. I was with another Portland emcee Epp who told me that this girl was coming over to our place who’s got some pretty dope music. When she arrived I noticed that she was a genuine and humble person straight from the jump. Soon enough we all got to talking (smoking) and she informed me just moved here from California which I thought was very interesting considering a lot of Portland musicians do the opposite. Right then, I knew she was different.
Eventually, it got to the point where I wanted to hear what she had to offer musically and I politely asked her if I could hear some music. So I grabbed my janky iHome and an old auxiliary cord and plugged in her phone. I can honestly say I had no idea what to expect so I just sat there and thoroughly listened and within in 30 seconds of the first track, I had a huge what the f*** moment. My jaw immediately dropped and I was absolutely blown away. I knew from that tiny moment in my garage that Dodgr was going to do something BIG.
I’ve had the opportunity over the last few years to get to know her personally and see her progression sky rocket and I all can say is that it is truly inspiring. Her confidence, stage presence, and delivery has grown tremendously to the point where she is on a completely different level than most rappers in Portland. I remember a few weeks back at the Eyrst One Year Celebration, I pulled her aside and talked about the first time we met comparing it to where everyone is now. I told her she she was going to be the one that opens the gates of Portland hip hop to the industry and she humbly responded, “If I’m lucky, I just want to be one of the many gate keepers because there is too much talent in Portland not to be heard.”
Having said all of that, if you’re not familiar with The Last Artful, Dodgr, it’s time to pay attention.
Check out her latest visual for her single “Jelly Hunt” below which was produced by Neill Von Tally and shot and directed by the wizard himself TimSlew from Soundlapse Media.
#OutHere
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLevmf5JPfU]