Fantastic Negrito: Blues Without Boundaries

Xavier Amin Dphrepaulezz, otherwise known as Fantastic Negrito, deems himself a “marketing nightmare.” As the first winner of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert contest in 2015 and a three-time Grammy Award-winning artist in the Best Contemporary Blues Album category, Dphrepaulezz is nothing short of a virtuoso of his genre.

The 57-year-old African-American artist seamlessly weaves together R&B, soul, funk, rock, and classic roots in a freshly modern way in his newest album, Son of a Broken Man, released in October 2024. Fans of Robert Finley, Steve Lacy, Gary Clark Jr., and Dphrepaulezz’s biggest inspiration, Prince, will appreciate Son of a Broken Man’s driving rhythms, gravelly vocals, and unique mixing and instrumentation.

Prince’s Dirty Mind triggered Dphrepaulezz’s impulse to make music, as did the notion that Prince was an independent and self-taught musician. Fueled by a desire for safety in gang-run Oakland, California in the late 70’s and 80’s, Dphrepaulezz sought refuge in music. So, he started his long journey to industry success by posing as a student at the University of California Berkeley and sneaking into music rooms to learn how to play.

A self-proclaimed lifelong hustler, having excelled in petty robbery and half-hearted drug dealing in his teenage years, Dphrepaulezz “hitchhiked to LA with $100 and a keyboard” the day after a gang held him at knife-point and stole his money after he and his friends bought firearms from them, he told The Guardian in 2016. He was ready and raring to make a new start.

A serendipitous deal with Prince’s former manager led to Dphrepaulezz’s debut album under the name Xavier titled The X-Factor. But after a severe car accident that broke all four of his limbs and left him in a coma for three weeks, he found himself unable to play guitar. He returned to his hustler background, converting a warehouse into an illegal nightclub and taking on multiple artist personas. However, Dphrepaulezz’s true passion for his music resurfaced after he had a son and moved back to Oakland. According to The Guardian, he rebuilt his playing ability by strumming The Beatles’ “Across the Universe” for his son nightly for a whole year.

He released his first album under his new stage name, Fantastic Negrito, in 2016. The Last Days of Oakland is a tromping journey through Dphrepaulezz’s life, including roots anthems with a work song feel, such as “Working Poor” and “Rant Rushmore” alongside spoken interludes about police and gang violence over bluesy instrumentals.

With seven albums, three Grammys, and countless alter egos and side projects (see Xavier, Blood Sugar X, Me and This Japanese Guy, and Chocolate Butterfly) under his belt, as well as a song on the Season One soundtrack of the Arcane television series, it’s safe to say Dphrepaulezz has made a name for himself–as soon as he decided which one to use. Catch Fantastic Negrito live in Hell on Feb. 23.

Article by: Rachel Spooner