Michigan, also known as the Dirty Glove, for the state’s glove or mitten like shape, has a rich history of drugs and violence and a vast array of criminals from murder for hire kilers to politicians, rappers and professional atheletes. The Dirty Glove Diaries takes readers through Michigan’s dark underworld featuring stories about some of the state’s most notable characters such as the Purple Gang, Y.B.I., maserati Rick, Blade Icewood, Coleman A. Young, BMF, Kwame Kilpatrick, John Delorean and more. The Dirty Glove Diaries is the story of Michigan, its streets, its neighborhoods, and its residents, some imfamous, some long forgotten, but all a part of the state’s beautiful but tainted history. We at gorillaconvict got up with Terrell “Wall$treet” Wilkins, the authors of the Dirty Glove Diaries and fellow gorrilaconvict writer to see what’s popping his way.
Rell, what’s going on homie? For the people who don’t know you let them know who is Wall$treet and where is he from?
Wall$treet is a hustler, an author, a rapper, a man and most importantly a stand up dude. I’m basically what you could call a product of my environment. And that environment being the westside of Detroit, specifically the Beechwood Hood 48204/ W.Warren/ Number $treet area.
What made you go from rapping to writing?
To be honest with you, what made me go from rapping to writing was me being in prison. Due to the amount of time that I’m servng my aspirng career as a rapper is over but even before my incarceration I was playing more of the CEO role with my label DPC Muzik so my transition into writing is just me switching lanes to in the game doing something that I love to do and stay relevant all at the same time.
So what compelled you to write “The Dirty Glove Diaries” and how did you come up with that title?
I actually started writing the Dirty Glove Diaries with the intentions of it being a continuing running series on gorrillaconvict.com but once we posted the first two stories and i seen the response that they were getting I figured that I would capitalize off of that and turn my whole series into a book. The title I guess you could say, that’s a little self-explanatory with the state of michigan being shaped like a glove or a mitten. I was initially going to call it the Murda Mitten Mysteries, but I think the Dirty Glove Diaries ahs a much better ring to it.
How different was it to write this book than writing a song or an album?
Really the process between writing this book and writing a song or an entire album wasn’t too much different. Each chapter to this book was like writing a song which eventually becomes an album so for me it was actually the same.
What is it about Detroit that us outsiders need to know that “the Dirty Glove Diaries” is giving us?
You know with me being in the custody of the FBOP for the last 7 years I realized that outside of the core Midwest states of Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio that not too many people know too much about Detroid other than it being the home of Motown records and the auto industry or that our city filed for bankruptcy, and our mayor went to jail so I wanted to put some of the history of the Motor City out there. Plus being born and raised inDetroit my while lie, all of the stories in the Dirty Glove Diaries have played a significant role in me being who I am so telling it’s story is sort of like telling my story. And for people to get a bit of a better understanding of who Wall$treet is I felt the need to let them know about where I am from. So me putting this book out was more so to let people know about the long istory of gangsters and corrpution in my city so they can understand why us Detroiters have that against all odds, boss up and go get it mentality.
Where did you get the information in this book?
Most of the information in this book just comes from being Detroit and having the knowledge and knowing the history of what goes on in my city. Of course I did have to use the Internet to research certain things just to make sure that my facts were correct but overall like I said most of these stories are a part of who I am so me being able to put that info out there was easy.
Some of your book revolves around the 80’s and the whole crack era, can you explain why is that?
With me being born in the 80’s and most of the dudes and the stories that I’m paying homage to havng existed and actually took place in the 80’s it shouldn’t be hard to see how that whole era had such a profound effect on me. Then, you have to realize that some of these dudes and the way that they put it down was so legendary that they’re still relevant to this day. So with me coming up in the same streets as them it was damn near impossible for tem not to have an influence on me. You got to remember, when i was growing up in the 80’s crack was everywhere so most of my first examples of what I thought a role model was were the drug dealers and at that time there wasn’t too many drug dealers in Detroit as big as dudes like Maserati Rick, Demetrius Holloway and the Camber Brothers. Let’s take Rick for instance, even as a kid I heard stories about him balling and I remember him getting killed and buried in that Benz casket and how that was big news all over the city. So growing up in that era, those were the dude that I aspired to be like.
Are these people that you or your family had personally relationships with?
A few of them. My cousin Eric “Fats” Wilkins was a part of the Chamber Brothers crew and I have reached out to BJ Chambers so there is somewhat of a personal relationship there. I do have a personal relationship with some of the BMF dudes and the Malice Green situation is personal to me because it happened in the neighborhood that I’m from so I feel some sort of a personal attachment to that.
So is Detroit more than just music and cars?
You can thnk Detroit is just about music and cars if you want to and they might find your ass in one of the city’s many vacant houses. Barry Gordy been headed west with Motown records and the auto industry ain’t what it used to be any more. I don’t just call Detroi the Murder City because I like the way it sounds, do your research. Detroit has been the most violent city in America for damn near the last 10 years. It’s all about money and murder there, so to answer your question, yeah Detroit is about a lot more than just music and cars.
Where can we find “The Dirty Glove Diaries?”
If you’re in the Detroi area you will be able to pick up a copy at Can you Picture This on Grand River or at Harlem World Music & Video in the Greenfield Plaza. It will also be available on Amazon.com, Createspace.com, Books-a-million.com and BarnesandNoble.com and hopefully on gorillaconvict.com lol!!!
Can we expect any other projects from Wall$treet in the near future?
Right now I am going to dedicate all my energy into pushing the Dirty Glove Diaries, but sometime in 2016 I will be dropping my autobiography titled “Rap Game/Crack Game….Drugs, Money and Music….The Wall$treet Story” and my urban novel titled “WHATUPDOE?” and of course I have to follow up with the Dirty Glove Diaries II. Also be on the lookout for some of the upcoming projects from YNT/McClurge Media.
Is there anything else that you would like to express to the public?
I just want to salute the few “Real Men” out there who still exist and all of the soldiers in the system who refuse to let this shit break them and who continue to go hard and hustle ith there hands tied. I want to shout to my OG Fat Mike and my kids Jada and Darious. Also check out the YNT Incarcerated blog @www.YNTINCARCERATED.wordpress.com I’m out.
#FREEWALL$TREETRELL
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