Diggy Simmons
Oct 24, 2011
Diggy Simmons released his debut mixtape, The First Flight, in 2009. Following the album's release, according to Simmons, five record labels showed interest in signing him; he chose Atlantic Records. Early in 2010, Simmons uploaded a video of himself freestyling over the Nas song, "Made You Look". The video became a viral hit and garnered praise from Kanye West, who responded on Twitter: "I knew this kid was [going] to be fresh. I knew it!"
Airborne, Simmons' second mixtape, was released in 2010. The album track "Great Expectations" was featured that year in a national AT&T television commercial. Simmons released his third mixtape, Past Presents Future, in December.
Early this year, Simmons was named one of Billboard's "Artists to Watch 2011" and was selected to XXL's annual Freshmen list. "Click Clack Away", a song featuring Bruno Mars, leaked onto the internet in May. Simmons noted that the track would not be included on his debut studio album, set to be released by the end of the year. He released his first major-label single, "Copy, Paste", soon thereafter. The song's video was directed by Phil the God, who previously directed Simmons' "Made You Look", "What They Been Waiting For" and "Shook Ones". "Copy, Paste" peaked at number 29 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart in September. Simmons is featured on the singles "Like 'Em All" by Jacob Latimore, "Mrs. Right" by Mindless Behavior and "Yeah Right" by Dionne Bromfield. "Yeah Right" reached number 36 on the UK Singles Chart in April 2011.
