Conversations with Dominque Robbins

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dominque Robbins. 

Hi Dominque, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Well to make a long story shorter, I grew up singing, playing multiple instruments, and even directing choirs beginning at age 3. My grandparents and I attended Emmanuel Missionary Baptist Church where we served faithful until I turned 19 years old. I left Emmanuel and after a year of not going to church a friend at the time invited me to play at another church called Church For All Nations Southwest Campus. I served there faithfully as a drummer, vocal coach and even served my last year as a worship leader until 2016 when it was my time to transition from serving in church to serving at home after my grandmother began to fall ill. I always played and sang in school growing up as well and I was even afforded many opportunities to play for many gospel artists and travel to various conferences as well to learn, sing and play. My solo artist and producing journey began in 2009 when I started writing songs again, only this time I was recording them. I did two solo mistakes in 2010 and 2012 several fsinglesfrom 2013-2015 and two other mixtapes as my then DJ persona Dj Dominator. That was quite the time haha. Fast forward to my first independent album as my current stage persona, DMINQ, “The Disassembly of Me” which came out August of 2018. Definitely was an interesting project and my first stab at pop music. I was proud of this album because it was my first all-original project, but looking back it wasn’t my best. I took a year off in 2019 to live a little bit, but also to get my head back in focus and evaluate if I want to do music again. So, I came back in 2020 with eight new singles, and in 2021 released my second album that a lot of people know and love “30”. In 2022 I am back doing music, but full time and I just released my new single “Fight For You”. My popular song “Drunk featuring Quincy Tyree” was just featured in the YouTube reality show Chasing Atlanta. I opened my production company Art Matters Productions and studio in Rocky Ford, Colorado in February, but personally, I am doing very well and ready to take my music and performance to the next level. 

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
This has not been a smooth road at all. I’ve had so many ups and downs since 2009. I in no way thought getting to do music was going to be easy, but I thought at some point someone would see my potential and would want to push me, but that didn’t happen. I do believe my own mental status and thought process was part of that though. I was so angry and so frustrated that I wasn’t getting ahead and so I put that energy into my music early on. I’ve been lied to by people. who claimed to be in the music industry, especially in the LGBTQ music scene, which at the time I thought that is where people wanted me. I thought I was supposed to be like Todrick Hall or Elton John you know. I at first wanted to be the gay black pop star, but that wasn’t my voice and it wasn’t my route. Thanks to the people who are in my life now who pushed me to find my true sound because without them you probably wouldn’t be doing this interview right now. 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m a producer, songwriter, vocalist, drummer, audio engineer, and mentor. I am most known to be a vocalist and drummer, but I am slowly becoming known as a producer and engineer. The songwriting side is about to come to the front a bit more as well. I am most proud of the fact that I have self-produced, engineered, sung, and wrote two albums and on my way to my third. There are people who think it’s easy to be the all-in-one person, but honestly, it’s hard. I believe what sets me apart from others is my personality and my sound. I don’t try to sound like anyone but me. I know that’s kind of cliche to say, but it’s true, each of my songs are so unique in their own way. It’s like tiny pieces of me are being given out, each song represents each piece. So basically, you are getting me in layers. 

If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
Whoooo let me tell you haha. I have been told that I was a good kid, but in my mind and my household, I was a little demon. Honestly, I used to do a lot of things I shouldn’t do, like fight a lot in school. I wasn’t too keen on the books either in school, but I have a very good memory, so I would memorize a lot of stuff in school, and I would pass my tests almost every single time. I would also admit I was a bit of a nuisance in choir class. I didn’t really know how to express myself in the best way, so I would do and say things sometimes that didn’t make sense or I would over-exaggerate things at times, but no matter what I did music is what I would always go back to. I was interested in a lot of things that other kids around me weren’t interested in, so I was the oddball in that sense. 

Contact Info:

• Email: artmattersproductions@gmail.com
• Website: www.artmattersproductions.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamdminq/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=dminq
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/dminqofficial
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKb6DIZADppXAFxC5HCfgwA
• SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/theartmattersmovement

Image Credits
Zak J.
Rockie Sanders
Dominque Robbins