For some of us, the first memory of Dezi came in 2019, when the soulful pop singer gave an unforgettable performance of “F.W.M. (F*ck With Me)” at Trees. Supported by a synchronized band, he captivated the audience with electrifying energy and mesmerizing vocals. The gospel elements in his performance, combined with dazzling '80s pop and old-fashioned blues, made him someone to keep watching.
The multi-talented entertainer, whose real name is Dezman Lehman, has a signature image, crossover sound and magnetic presence. In 2017, he moved from Dallas to New York to pursue a musical career before returning a few years later to focus on the place that made him: Deep Ellum.
“Deep Ellum is my playground,” he says. “It has always been where I was able to test my boundaries. It's where I meet my musicians. It's where I drink. I feel comfortable. The influence that Deep Ellum has with me and my music, it just fuels me to continue to do what I'm doing. Sometimes you get discouraged, but then Deep Ellum lets me know exactly what I'm doing. I can be an advocate for our music scene as well as still create music, because we've created this music business where we forget about the actual creativity of it, the having fun."
When he left New York, he says, he discovered that what he sought in his music was in North Texas all along.
“The entire time that I was in New York, I was still working in Dallas," Dezi says. "I came home to Dallas at least five times out of the year doing something at [venue] Double Wide. At that time, it was something that was needed. I am a single Black gay male, and I don't see myself having a family and children and a white picket fence, so my music is my family."
The Big Apple bit him right back.
“I just came to the mature decision that Dallas is the home for my child, which is my music," he says. "All of my musician friends are here. Opportunities just flow. I moved to New York for ... in the words of Carrie Bradshaw, I was 'searching for love.' I wanted to experience a Northern exposure. I'm attracted to the Northern style. It's not too catty, but catty enough. I like people not always being in your business."
At home, Dezi 5 became a member of the Deep Ellum Foundation. He rediscovered his passion for music as he explored local history.
“This is the mecca of music,” Dezi says. “We got [band] RC & The Gritz. We got [drummer] Cleon Edwards. We still have the spirit of [the late] Daniel Jones and Shaun Martin, which Shaun Martin is featured on my record. .... We are in the spirit of them and Erykah Badu, Norah Jones. You'd be a fool as a musician, as a performer to not stay here. Now, we do have a lot of work to do to get more support from the city for locals.”
With vibrant singles and hypnotic live performances, Dezi 5 has kept fans patiently awaiting an album for years, a full-length follow-up to his 2018 EP, Club Kids.
The artist has always aimed for consistency, a lesson he credits to Dallas' musical Queen Bee.
“I just put on the best shows, the best productions that I could," Dezi says. "One thing Erykah Badu says is that, ‘Performing is creating the moment, and recording is perfecting the moment.’ A lot of the songs I would perform are not out, but that's part of my show and it's a part of who I am.”
As a DJ, Dezi has also kept fans interested through a variety of events. By focusing on offering a true show every time, he has been able to create without worrying about time constraints.
“When I feel like it can be released, it can be released, so there's always music to be recorded," he says. "I am a virtuoso singer. I can do a Chaka Khan tribute show. I could do a tribute show. I do a lot. Every year I do [a performance of] Andre 3000’s Love Below. I know how to keep myself relevant by just being an entertainer. I'm an entertainer first. I think entertainers last and gimmicks don't. Cher is still here because she is an entertainer.”
It has been five years since Dezi 5 began promoting a new album, which never came to fruition due to timing, until now.
“This is my first album, this is what I've been working my entire life for,” he says. “This is what I've always been wanting to do. It just never was the right time.”
Dezi would not release Dirty Laundry until it was perfect, and it needed proper funding and space to be perfect.
“Financially, recording an album is tough, especially when recording a conceptual album, when you're constantly worrying about paying for the record, which I just got out of that struggle," the singer says. "But when you're constantly worrying about if you can pay for it, or the time that you have in the studio, it gives you agility. It gives you a nice bed to lay in and create.
“I always think to myself, I need to make [music at] the right time for people to want to listen to what I got to say. If I would've released this record maybe five or six years ago, it wouldn't be received as it is now. I think I've created a little buzz of what the fuck is going on with this guy?”
The album may have taken years to develop, but he recorded it in six days after getting the required resources. The album's title aligns with its theme, showcasing the artist's journey through past relationships and seeking a fresh start. In songs such as "Key at the Door," he leaves an open invitation for a past love. “F.W.M." is about a spontaneous relationship. On “Master Plan,” the album’s finale, Dezi taps into his hip-hop roots, inspired by the '90s Soulquarians era. He calls it "my ode to neo-soul, to Q-Tip, Badu."
The album also draws from the invaluable insights he's learned from watching the legendary Tony Bennett.
“Honestly, in the words of, rest his soul, Tony Bennett, 'Make intelligent music,'” Dezi says. “Talk about what you want to talk about. We're selling a story. I have a story to tell. At one point in my career, I didn't sing about relationships or unconventional relationships because I really didn't have a lot of experience in that. But then, over the past seven or eight years, I've been dating. I've been seeing people. I've been experiencing in and outs, long-distance relationships [...] lost connections, all those types of things, and so I really have something to express this time.”
Dirty Laundry explores the entertainer’s personal life, but it also captures the essence of Deep Ellum’s music scene. Deep Ellum is a longtime tourist attraction, and Dezi 5 has long been one of its unofficial guides.
“I think it's just a Dallas tradition to tell people that's where you should go because that's where it's always been," he says. "The music has always been there. The blues has always been there. Black people went down there to bank because we couldn't have banks, so we went through the pawn shops. It's the tradition of what Dallas has always been. I'm glad that that's still happening no matter what new buildings [pop up]. It's still going to be that place that everybody says [you should] go to.”
Soap Opera
Dezi’s family history is rooted in Deep Ellum, and he takes pride in preserving its culture.“I feel responsible to preserve it through my music — and my grandmother owned a business in Deep Ellum for 40 years, so I'm part of that community — just to keep it going because I think it is our Nashville," he says. "It is a tourist spot, and it needs to grow the way that it is."
The album was worth the wait for Dezi 5, as a tour and new executive opportunities accompanied its creation through his partnership with 828 Records. The singer is now doing A&R for the label.
Notably missing from the album is “Religious,” a song with artwork that mimics Tyler, The Creator’s 2019 album, IGOR, using a photo of legendary pastor Bishop T.D. Jakes with a pink background. He released the track in May, but aesthetically, it wasn't a fit with the album.
“‘Religious’ was made by a producer that I work with who actually wrote ‘Missing Myself,’” Dezi says. “The way that we recorded that is completely different from the way that we recorded everything else, so I feel like it just doesn't fit. Now, ‘Religious’ was a one-off. It's almost like a 'Bitch Better Have My Money,' [which] wasn't on Rihanna's record. It's just a little side something.”
Dezi 5 says Dirty Laundry allowed him to develop a carefree attitude.
“It's cleansed me so much to where I don't give a fuck,” he says. “No, seriously. It has. It's cleansed me musically and spiritually. I'm very clear as to who I am, where I'm going. I can't wait to perform this shit.”
He wants the album to be a “freeing” experience for fans.
“It's OK to feel alone, but just know that you only got yourself," he says. "That's really what I want people to take from Dirty Laundry is you got yourself, baby. Tell everybody else to pack their bags. They can have it all, we don't need that dirty laundry. Keep it away to keep your sanity what it needs to be so that you can elevate and live and live your best fucking life. We all want peace of mind, so Dirty Laundry is to hopefully help you get peace of mind.”
The singer is ready to hit the road and rediscover his love for the art.
“This is my life,” Dezi says. “Even if it's not making new tunes, I'm going to be performing. I'm going to be on somebody's stage with a band performing for the rest of my life. We lose the art of it, and I want to keep that artistry. That's what this album is. My art. I don't care what anybody ... I don't care if it doesn't sound like anything today. I don't care. I just know that this is what I want it to sound like, and this is me.”
