A day in the life of Dosseh

Full disclosure, when you’re about to meet a rapper known for the explicit content of his discography, you tend to have certain expectations. However, as French rapper extraordinaire Dosseh walked up to us at the Hôtel Pigalle, we clearly weren’t prepared for his friendly and easy-going demeanour. Dosseh is in Paris for a couple of days to promote his upcoming ‘Summer Crack Vol. 4’ mixtape, and was kind enough to sit down and talk to us. Decked out in a Givenchy tracksuit and a Comme des Garçons polo, the rapper discussed beard dyeing, Games of Thrones, and the logistics of maintaining a bald head while on tour.

Hello Dosseh, could you introduce yourself to our readers?

My name is Dosseh, and I’m 34. I’m a rapper, I come from Orleans, but I split my time between Orleans and Paris. That being said, I’ve been spending much more time in Paris recently.

That’s because Paris is where you work, right?

Yes. Everything happens in Paris. The studios are here, most of my meetings take place here, etc. I’ve spent most of these past few weeks locked in the studio as I’m about to release a mixtape. We’re mixing it right now, but we’re close to finished. It will be the fourth of a series of mixtapes I’ve been dropping in summer, every two or three years. The previous mixtape dates back to 2015, and I thought it would be a good idea to come back with a new one. After the success of my ‘Vidalo$$a’ album and singles like ‘Habitué’ and ‘À chaque jour’, the timing was right, too. I’ve recently reached a whole new level of exposure, and that can only be good for the Summer Crack brand.

Speaking of new-found fame, it feels like you’ve been getting a lot more attention recently. When did that start? With the release of your ‘Habitué’ single?

I think so, yes. Each album has one or two stand-out tracks. For Vidalo$$a, it was ‘Habitué’. There was definitely a before and after that track, and by extension, that album.

We’re just entering festival season, and it looks like you’ll be having a busy summer. Do you spend a lot of time touring and on the road?

I’d say I have about one concert a week. I mean, it’s just part of the job, I don’t even really think about it. Sometimes I’ll have a few concerts in a row, but we often come home between gigs. It’s just a question of being organised and managing to fit these concerts in an already very busy schedule.

Walk us through one of your typical days.

I go to bed late, generally around 4am. I wake up at 10 or 10:30am. I’ll get ready, and I’m good to go at noon. Then I’ll either go to the studio to record, or meet up with my manager Oumar Samaké and the rest of the team in our office at Vanves. Office time is spent discussing upcoming videos, or any marketing-related questions. There are so many things in an artist’s life that revolve around the music and artistic process itself: interviews, promotion, video shoots, and writing, obviously. I don’t have a routine as such, except maybe when I’m recording, and those periods basically consist of entire days spent in the studio. It’s about as far as you can get from a repetitive 9-to-5 desk job. We always try to improve our approach to each project, as well as our processes and working methods. We’re constantly challenging ourselves.

As an artist, your brand can make or break you. Do you pay a lot of attention to the clothes you wear, and your style in general?

Yes, it’s super important. You have to keep these things in mind. I love wearing beautiful clothes, it means a lot to me. As an artist, you have to keep your image as clean as possible. I don’t have any specific tips or tricks, but I do try to have my beard trimmed as often as possible.

Really? How often?

Keeping it really clean means two trips to the barbershop a week. When I can’t be bothered, I’ll get it trimmed just once a week or every ten days. I don’t do it myself, because I never get the result I was hoping for. I’d rather go to my barber’s or get him to come to me. When I’m at the barbershop, I’ll generally let him shave my head too, as he has the proper equipment for a clean, close shave: he’ll prepare my scalp, and shave my head with a straight razor. Silky smooth! I’ll sometimes do my head myself, it’s not as precise, but clippers do a decent job too.

Who’s your barber?

I can’t even tell you the name of his shop. All I know is that he’s my barber. Either I’ll go see him, or he’ll come to my home or the studio. I literally get shaved and trimmed everywhere: before a concert, in the studio, before shooting a video. He’ll come and do a great job, as usual.

You’re often seen with a dyed beard. Does this require a specific routine?

I always take care of my beard, whether it’s dyed or not. My beard hair is pretty dry and brittle. So, I have a bunch of oils I use to soften and moisturise it, I have no other choice. The dye makes my beard even drier, so I have to be extra cautious. I like castor oil, and Jamaican black castor oil. I use coconut oil for my skin, but not my beard. I have pretty nice skin, so I concentrate most of my efforts on my beard.

Being on the road a lot means spending a lot of time in hotels, how does that affect your grooming routine?

I have a toiletry kit I bring everywhere with me. It holds everything I need: my clippers to manage unruly hair growth, my beard oils, my body lotions, etc. Whatever the situation, I’m ready to handle it.

Another aspect of an artist’s life is brand and community management. Is that time-consuming?

Yeah, insanely so. I mean managing the entirety of music-related topics takes up a lot of time as it is. There are so many questions you have to answer: choosing the right beat, writing the lyrics, talking to beatmakers to explain what you want, etc. Then comes the studio, which is also time-consuming if done properly. All the while this is going on, you have to keep posting stuff on social media. You can’t afford to let your social media accounts die, because people will simply forget you. Thankfully we have people to help us with concepts and projects to keep people interested and invested in upcoming projects or simply in me, as an artist. On top of all of this, there are photo shoots, interviews, concerts, etc. In all honesty, it’s a lot to handle.

Do you still manage to find time for yourself, and maybe switch off for a week?

Not for a full week, no, that never happens. I do intend to find a week or ten days at some point this summer to completely log off, though. You can’t really afford to take long breaks. I’ve done three or four days, but you don’t really switch off. I’ll still spend 45 minutes on the phone at 2am if I have too. I’m always on my phone, sending messages, checking if everything is running the way it should. It’s really a constant stream of micro-decisions I have to make.

You’re a night owl, you spend most nights working, right?

Yeah. But you also have to find time to live, so anything I didn’t manage to fit in during the day because I was working, I do at night. I watch TV shows, I try to relax, listen to some music, find inspiration. Having your mind on the job 24/7 will drive you insane, for sure. Watching an episode of a TV show can lead to writing a punchline. I was watching Gomorrah while we recorded Summer Crack, and there are a few bars in there that were inspired by the show. You can find inspiration everywhere, you know. Sometimes it’ll be a conversation, someone will say something that catches my ear, and I’ll write it down. I keep everything in my phone. If someone were to nick it, they’d be stocked up on fire punchlines for the next ten years. I recently watched Games of Thrones. It’s packed with punchlines that can be reworked for the modern world. When I first discovered the show, I called Oumar and was like “we have to release a project called ‘Game of Thrones’”. That idea wore off after a while…

You’ve been surrounded by rap since forever, but you’re also an actor. What do you think the future holds for you?

I love films and acting, I always have. I recently played in a film called ‘Paradise Beach’. I loved the experience, and would really like to do it again. I write a bit too. Screenplays, stories, it’s all part of the goals I’ve set for myself. If you want to do something properly, you have to go all in, you can’t put in half-arsed efforts and expect good results. You have to fully focus on one goal at a time. I’ve always loved doing plenty of things at the same time, but I’m sure this ended setting me back on some of my objectives. I’ve really gone back to focusing on my music recently, and when I feel that’s reached the level it should, then we’ll talk about advancing my other projects.

Thanks to Hôtel Pigalle!

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