Denver-based rapper Trev Rich was one of an unconfirmed number of artists and producers who convened in Atlanta last week at the “Dreamville Camp Sessions.” Essentially a 10-day-long songwriting and recording session, J. Cole and Dreamville Records facilitated the event to create original music for the Revenge of The Dreamers III mixtape. Big names like T.I., Rick Ross, DJ Khaled, and Swizz Beatz reportedly checked in, so this third installment of the mixtape series is one of the most anticipated projects of the new year.
Trev Rich didn’t confirm who he specifically worked with or if he has any insider information about the final picks, but he definitely came back to Denver reinvigorated and freshly inspired to create. On Thursday, he announced that he wants to organize his own creative session series with the hottest artists and producers in the Mile High City.
“Really just the vibes I got from the Dreamville sessions were unmatched,” he shared. “It was just a musician or songwriter’s dream. Being around nothing but talent, seeing the differences in everybody’s creative process and how they put their own music together compared to mine…Wanted to bring that vibe back home and give our own musicians what I got in Atlanta.”
With his repertoire growing exponentially these last few years, it’s not at all surprising that Dreamville tapped the Denver native to participate in the sessions. In 2016, he released his full-length studio debut To Make A Long Story Short with Rich Gang, a Cash Money Records subsidiary, arguably making Trev the biggest and most sought-after rapper in Colorado. This year, DJ Khalil featured him on the song “Elevate”, with Denzel Curry, YBN Cordae, and Swavay for the Spider Man: Into the Spider-Verse soundtrack, which is currently the 4th best selling album in the U.S.
Rather than counting those successes as end-of-journey achievements, he sees it all as motivation for elevating the Denver hip-hop culture. This past weekend, he orchestrated two successful collaborative gatherings and appeared to genuinely pull the artful brilliance of Denver’s hottest acts out of uncertainty. Hosted by Get Busy Living Studios, the mini-conference has the entire city talking about creative teamwork and squashing the proverbial competitive beef, even if it’s only temporary – that silently hangs between rappers and their peers.
“I’ve been running all over outside of Denver trying to make connections to push our own scene over the top,” he said. “Not only to get some real money in these artist’s pockets, but also to show how the business side of music works–the publishing side of the business going hand in hand with the creativity. We don’t have to put our creativity in somebody else’s hands if we don’t want. Deals aren’t the wave anymore.”
With no release date officially announced and no confirmation of who exactly made the cut, we still expect Revenge of the Dreamers III to deliver the heat. Check out Trev Rich’s latest project, Clarity, featuring the internet radio hit, “Bet It Up”, available to stream and download on all major platforms.
