Not 'Nobody': Toronto Indie Rapper D-Sisive Wins Echo Songwriting Prize

Posted on Oct 7th 2009 12:00PM by Joshua Ostroff
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When Derek "D-Sisive" Christoff first arrived on the Toronto hip-hop scene in the late '90s, he was as cocky as any up-and-coming MC. But a bout of personal tragedies -- including his father's death followed by crippling depression and writer's block -- kept the rapper, then best known for bitingly hilarious one-liners, off the mic for six years.

His return to rhyming was notable for his newly serious worldview and brutally personal lyrics, an exercise in poetic self-awareness that came to a head on the sublimely sad song 'Nobody With a Notepad' from his album 'Let the Children Die.'

But though his lyrics paints a sardonic picture of himself as something of a loser, the song has just won the fourth annual ECHO Songwriting Prize, which includes bragging rights and a $5,000 purse.

"Being recognized for my songwriting feels great because it shows me I'm on the right road towards my goals," D-Sisive tells Spinner. "I don't want to be remembered for being a great MC. I want to be remembered for being a great songwriter. S---, I just want to be remembered."

Produced by Robert Bakker, 'Nobody With a Notepad' won an internet vote in the SOCAN-sponsored contest over a strong line-up of jury-selected nominees, including Timber Timbre's 'Lay Down in the Tall Grass,' Land of Talk's 'Some Are Lakes,' Joel Plaskett's 'Through and Through and Through' and Sebastien Grainger's 'Love Can Be So Mean.'

"I was in shock. I was up against some heavy hitters and didn't think I had a chance. 'Lay Down in the Tall Grass' is a phenomenal song," he enthuses. "It's starting to sink in more as time passes. It feels good. I can finally afford the flux capacitor that [Toronto comic shop] Silver Snail is selling [so I can] go back in time and re-record 'Who Let the Dogs Out.' Getting paid, son."

D-Sisive continues his onslaught of uplifting new material with the album 'Jonestown,' which Urbnet will be releasing Nov. 18, not coincidentally the anniversary of the 1978 Jonestown Massacre.

"I think it's the honesty in the lyrics that listeners connect with. It's not three minutes of bragging. It's real. I just hope I don't lose my listeners with my new material. I've abandoned the honesty and have been writing a lot about DJs and asking them to play specific songs," he quips. "It's always been a great concept to write about. People love that."