Eddie Morra wants to blaze a path in rap, and he’s willing to put in the work to do that.
Rapping under the name Dbait, Morra has recorded with established peers, features, promoted his music at First Friday, battled in Los Angeles and New York, and released a slew of singles.
“My songs are already in a couple of playlists,” he says.
“I’m aiming my efforts in marketing and Spotify, playlists and networking. That’s been my biggest success, I guess you could say, so far. That’s where I’m trying to fit myself into the scenes.”
This latest effort is “Pop Up,” in which Dbait trades verses with former G-Unit rapper Young Buck. Morra says it was a “surreal” process.
“When the verse was delivered to me and I downloaded it, I couldn’t believe it when I heard his voice singing in my software. It was just a blessing from God.
“They were his lyrics. So, on the first verse that’s all him. I produced the music, and then I did the rest of the chorus and the lyrics. He recorded his first verse, and I just structured the sound around that.”
Morra is hoping “Pop Up” will give his career traction. Immersing himself in the Phoenix rap scene has been challenging. Morra received a positive response at Centennial High School, from which he graduated.
“Then the real world hit, and I’ve been fighting for that recognition,” he says. “I’ve had personal experiences where I thought it was a friendly competition among friends and even that turned nasty.”
Recently, he founded Street Mogul Records and its associated line of merchandise. As an independent artist, Morra does everything himself, from merchandise to recording and videos to marketing.
“It’s extremely hard,” contends Morra, who also creates video games.
“Lucky for me, we live in the 21st century and there is just so much technology that it makes it much more user friendly. As soon as I record a song, I could release it.”
Morra feels blessed that he has the experience to “crank and churn out music and music videos” quickly.
“I do the beats. I do the recording. I do the music videos,” he adds. “I’m self-contained pretty much, so why not? Just writing and recording a song alone are a lot of work. It’s second nature for me. So I’m blessed where I don’t have to mess with a lot of people.”
Music is in his blood
Morra has been a musician most of his life. His father is a jazz pianist and his mom is a singer, while his grandparents are mariachis. Morra began his career at age 8 as a Christian rapper and continued his musical pursuits with jazz band and drumline.
“Music is what brought my family together,” Morra says. “We were part of the worship group in church. My mom is a nurse, and my dad started a business. My sister does gigs. Music is nostalgic for me. That feeling is a good memory that I cherish. That’s what brought me into it in the first place.”
Morra subscribes to the “1,000 True Fans Theory,” proposed in 2008 by Wired magazine’s Kevin Kelly, who said an artist needs 1,000 true fans to maintain a fruitful career.
“You see someone like Ryan Leslie, who has worked with celebrities, and they have been huge for them,” he says.
“He flies in private jets. He’s set for life, but he doesn’t have TMZ chasing him everywhere. That’s my dream. I don’t want to be like Jay-Z or Eminem, where you have crazy people breaking into my home. John Lennon was killed by a fan.
“You don’t have to have a multimillion-dollar marketing budget, but if you have 1,000 true fans who buy one T-shirt every year, you’re set. A T-shirt is $30, and a concert ticket is $20 and up. It’s exponential in a compounding effect.”
Morra hopes to leave a mark on fans by giving them a memorable experience, whether it’s from the music or his Street Mogul Records’ logo.
“I’m pretty proud of everything I’ve accomplished so far,” he says. “I actually directed my first two music videos recently. I edited it myself. I’m pretty pleased with the results.
“I think 2021 made me realize what is possible, what I can accomplish. I think 2022 is going to be successful, too, when I can continue to brand and market myself.”
