Lil Dude is giving us a teaser of things to come!

Lil Dude is featured in BE Magazine’s 2010 Youth Issue. Lil Dude is hard at work making his dreams come true. On June 25, 2010 he celebrated the his latest music release, entitled Teaser 2.0. “It was a real good turn out [at the release party]. And I’ve been selling my CD since then, doing a lot of shows and traveling.” Lil Dude seems excited to face the challenges of a teenage superstar. “My single ‘Supa Dupa Fly’ is the first track up on [Teaser 2.0].” He then proceeds to break it down, “I had to write a song about the girls. I had to write a song about the haters cause you got haters everywhere you go. Not everyone’s gonna love you.”

Born Micah Brown, in Detroit, Michigan, Lil Dude began his love affair with Hip-Hop, at the mere age of four. By six years old, while many of us are just trying to come to terms with 1st grade,  he was leaving audiences amazed with his high energy performances throughout his hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. “Ever since I was young, I saw people on TV like LL Cool J, Ludacris, and Will Smith and I wanted to be just like them,” he reminisces. Dude soon relocated to Atlanta, GA where he began to develop himself as a Hip-Hop and spoken word artist, incorporating acting, voice over work and modeling into his radar. “I write my own music. Some people use ghost writers. I like for stuff to come from my heart,” he says. Lil Dude is confident in his talents and it shows in the fearlessness of his live performances. “It always feels good when you’re in front of a crowd and they’re showing you love,” he explains.

Lil Dude doesn’t mind acting his age either. In a world of grown-up-too-fast superstars, Dude makes music that all age groups can relate to without the raunch. “Aw naw. Never that,” he explains. “I keep grindin and do the stuff that I’m doin rather than doin what everyone else is [doin].” His dream collaborations would be “Ludacris, LL Cool J, Eminem, Will Smith, people like that.” Speaking of Will, Lil Dude is preparing a career that parallels the success of Smith’s. Not a bad model to follow. So, I asked him could we expect to see him in a movie or two in a few years. Miss Telah, his manager  jumps in to reiterate that Lil Dude’s team is laying the foundation for Lil Dude Enterprise. “We’re attempting to developing him into an all around entertainer,” she explains.

His team surely has built a lot of positive momentum. Lil’ Dude has performed for audiences of over 20,000, including Summer Fest where he performed alongside Grammy winning group Arrested Development and has opened for the renowned R&B diva, Patti LaBelle, and Grammy Award winning soul artist, John Legend. In addition, he performed at The Russell Simmons-sponsored “Pioneers Block Party for The Kids of the South Bronx.” As a poet, Lil’ Dude has performed along with prominent spoken word artists such as Abyss, Jon Goode, Georgia ME, Dasha Kelly and Dan Vaughn to name a few. To top it all off, Lil’ Dude landed a continuous child character role as “Brandon,” in BET’s television series, “Somebodies”.

As if that wasn’t enough, Lil Dude is the co-founder of a non-profit organization, MIKAH, Inc. (Mothers, Infants, and Kids Achieving Heights) where he sees this as his way of assisting those less fortunate than himself. Lil’ Dude was recognized by Georgia’s U.S. Senator Nan Orrock for his community involvement and professional accomplishments with a Georgia State Resolution honor. An actor, voice over talent, model, songwriter, poet, rapper, host, motivational speaker and radio personality — it’s no wonder he has been labeled as Hip-Hop’s next generation.

His advice to young talent? “Follow your heart. Don’t give up. If you give up then you’re never gonna know what’s gonna be the outcome of it. You can’t do it by yourself. You’re always wanna have some people that believe in you. And don’t follow peer pressure. There are always gonna be people who tell you to go the other way.”

Lil Dude hosts an open mic for teens 13-18 at the ART ON 5 Gallery, 2001 MLK Drive on Saturdays at the end of every month from 6-9PM in Atlanta, Georgia.