Formula Indie Sessions – Interview with DA-MOVEMENT
Introduction of the project
DA-MOVEMENT: The Exclusive Interview
DA-MOVEMENT is proud to present an exclusive, deep-dive conversation with the visionary architect leading Chicago’s new creative renaissance. Below, Pompey “Pay” Hicks III, the founder of DA-MOVEMENT, breaks down the literal miracles, heartbreaks, and historical milestones driving their current era.
We are in the middle of an “Audio Resurrection.” This isn’t just about dropping singles; it’s about reclaiming the Chicago sound. Our current run—from the breakout global traction of All Black Everything, to the release of This Is What It Sounds Like, and now the historic release of 24s—is proof that you can honor the architects of this culture while still building something new. We are bringing the “living architecture” of West Side hip-hop to the world stage.
What is your earliest memory connected to music?
Reply: My earliest memory connected to music is from 1988, when I was 4 years old, watching Michael Jackson perform “The Way You Make Me Feel” and “Man in the Mirror” at the Grammy Awards. That specific broadcast changed my DNA. Seeing him go from that precise choreography to dropping to his knees in pure spiritual exhaustion showed me that music isn’t just entertainment—it’s a transfer of energy. How did your passion for creating music begin?
Reply: It began as a survival mechanism and a way to document what I saw on the block. Growing up in Chicago, you’re surrounded by this rich musical history—from the soul era to the rapid-fire flow of the ’90s. I realized early on that if I didn’t tell my own story, someone else would water it down. I started writing to own my narrative, which is the same energy we are carrying today with DA-MOVEMENT. What’s the story behind your current music project?
Reply: There is a huge misconception in the press right now that we’ve just been sitting on this music for years, holding it back by choice. That is factually incorrect. The truth is, years ago during the creation of this music, my hard drive suffered a catastrophic failure. It was deemed completely unrecoverable by everyone we took it to. The music was gone.
But in January of 2026, my friend and engineer, Rae Nimeh, told me to dust off that old drive and bring it to him. He told me straight up: “Technology in 2026 is much better now.” It took 60 grueling days of intense, meticulous technical work, but we managed to recover 95% to 98% of that hard drive. I want the public to know the truth: this wasn’t calculated marketing. This was God. This was a literal miracle. We kicked off this resurrection when All Black Everything dropped first on December 11th/12th,
followed immediately on December 16th by This Is What It Sounds Like. But at that time, we only had raw MP3 copies available, so we put out what we had just to plant our flag and show everyone we were still here.
Since then, we have been meticulously remixing and remastering the catalog, bringing it into modern, high-fidelity spatial audio. The very first track we mixed in Dolby Atmos was 24s, which was produced by our late brother Jason Pamon. We prioritized 24s for the Atmos treatment to honor the staggering legacies of Jason and the late great Johnny P—reuniting Never of Crucial Conflict and Johnny P on a track we thought was lost to a broken disk forever. We just finished completely remixing and remastering All Black Everything for 2026, and we are undergoing that exact same sonic restoration for This Is What It Sounds Like. We have Rae Nimeh at United Technique Recording handling all of our mixing, and Mike Tucci executing the final Masters and the Atmos spatial Mix/Mastering. It’s a complete restoration of the city’s soul.
How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard your music before? Reply: It’s “Street Soul” meets cutting-edge engineering. It’s what happens when you take the grit of a West Side basement and elevate it with world-class, multi-dimensional Dolby Atmos presentation. If you listen to 24s, you hear that specific Chicago swing—it’s melodic enough for the radio, hard enough for the trunk, and engineered so clearly that you feel like you are standing in the room with us. What is one thing you’ve learned that completely changed the way you make music? Reply: I learned that you have to let the “ghosts” in the room breathe—and I learned to never give up on a piece of art. Surviving that hard drive crash and hearing what Rae Nimeh and Mike Tucci have done with the restoration taught me that a great feeling can never truly be destroyed. When you hear Johnny P’s vocals sitting perfectly in that Atmos spatial pocket over Jason Pamon’s production, it reminds you that sometimes the file you thought was lost forever holds the exact immortal magic the world needs to hear. What tools, instruments, or software are essential in your creative process? Reply: The most essential tools are the collaborative spirit and elite engineering ears. Software like Pro Tools is standard, but the magic happens when you have minds like Rae Nimeh at United Technique Recording fighting for 60 days to recover dead data, combined with Mike Tucci’s brilliance in mastering immersive, spatial Atmos audio. That technical team is the real engine and “essential software” behind the DA-MOVEMENT sound.
Which indie artist or song are you loving right now?
Reply: I’m respecting anyone who is building their own independent infrastructure, protecting their data, and respecting the sonics of their masters. I see a lot of young cats in Chicago realizing they don’t need a major label to validate them if they invest in their sound. I’m listening to the artists who are fearless about
being regional—because if you are authentic to your city and your quality is top-tier, the world will eventually tune in.
How have your personal experiences influenced your music and artistic vision? Reply: Every loss, every funeral, every technical setback, and every hard-won victory is etched directly into the frequency of these tracks. When we talk about All Black Everything, it isn’t just a title or an aesthetic choice—it’s a mindset of heavy solidarity, survival, and pushing forward when the room goes completely dark.
That weight became devastatingly real for us in April of 2026, when we lost our brother and master producer, Jason Pamon, after a silent, agonizing battle with cancer. Jason was the brilliant mind behind the boards who produced 24s. To lose him right as we were preparing to share this music with the world completely shattered us.
His passing, alongside the quiet absence of the legendary Johnny P, fundamentally shifted my entire artistic vision. It made me realize with absolute clarity that we aren’t just making records to club-hop or chase playlists; we are caretakers of a sacred, living legacy.
There are two major historical milestones built into 24s that the world needs to recognize. First, this track marks the absolute first time in hip-hop history that Johnny P and Never of Crucial Conflict have ever been paired together on a song. In fact, it is the first time any member of Crucial Conflict has ever done a record with Johnny P. Second, 24s marks the very first time these two legendary Chicago icons have ever been experienced in Dolby Atmos.
Looking back, the “miracle” recovery of the hard drive with Rae Nimeh from January to March feels like divine intervention. We fought for 60 days to save those files before we lost Jason in April. It feels like God allowed us to rescue that work just in time, so that Jason’s final sonic masterpiece wouldn’t be lost with him. Now, we owe it to Jason and Johnny to treat their art with the highest level of respect. That is why we poured our souls into the 2026 remixes and these massive, immersive spatial masters. We had to make sure the world could hear their genius exactly the way they deserved to be remembered—undefeated, historic, and immortal.
What emotions or messages do you hope listeners take from your work?
Reply: I want them to feel Ownership, Hope, and Awe. I want people to hear our records—especially the new Atmos mixes—and realize that nothing is truly lost if you have the faith to keep fighting for it, whether that’s your life or a crashed hard drive. The ultimate message is that we define our own value, protect our history, and honor our legends with the absolute highest quality possible. What’s the most important lesson music has taught you so far?
Reply: That your legacy is defined by who you bring with you and who stands by you in the dark. Music
taught me that my greatest strength isn’t just my own verse—it’s my ability to bring a team together. When you look at our current run, we are uniting true Chicago royalty. We have legendary spitters like Never of Crucial Conflict alongside the undisputed King of Hooks, the late great Johnny P, on 24s—and we have the icon AK of Do or Die bringing that heavy lyricism to All Black Everything. When you bring forces like that together under one movement, you aren’t just making songs anymore. You are preserving history.
And it takes a complete village to protect that history—from those iconic voices in the booth to brilliant sonic engineers like Rae Nimeh and Mike Tucci working behind the boards to honor the blueprints left by pioneers like Jason Pamon. Music taught me that we are always stronger as a collective than we could ever be as individuals.
What is a dream venue or festival you would love to perform at?
Reply: We need to take this energy to Lollapalooza right here in Chicago, to show the city that this sound can rock the biggest stages. Internationally, I see DA-MOVEMENT at Glastonbury. We’ve seen the numbers—we know the UK and Europe are tuning in heavily to All Black Everything, and we want to bring that Chicago energy across the pond.
If you could collaborate with any artist, past or present, who would it be and why? Reply:
● Past: It always goes back to Curtis Mayfield. He is the absolute architect of Chicago street consciousness and sonic soul. He taught the city how to make music that carries both a heavy message and a beautiful groove.
● Present: For the present, I look at the absolute royalty of Chicago’s music history. I want to build a track that unifies the entire spectrum of our city’s sonic landscape.
○ The Visionaries (Kanye West & Common): I want to lock in with Kanye and Common to bridge DA-MOVEMENT’s raw street-soul sound with their level of world-class production and elite, conscious storytelling.
○ The Speed and the Spitters (Twista): Getting into the booth with Twista is a necessity. His legendary rapid-fire delivery is a fundamental pillar of Midwest hip-hop history. Matching his double-time flow with the fast-paced energy Never brings would be an instant classic for the city.
○ The First Ladies of Chicago (Shawnna & Jennifer Hudson): To round out the ultimate record, we need that undeniable Chicago power and grit. Bringing Shawnna back to the forefront to lay down a fierce, unapologetic verse, mixed with a soaring, earth-shattering hook from Jennifer Hudson, would create a timeless anthem.
Where can our listeners follow and support your music?
Reply: Join the movement. We are active everywhere. Tap into the records directly through the links below:
● Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/artist/6N9C9rKDrJkkluJdN90dC2?si=FJdQMcqCQOuuIcZjN5TAxA ● Apple Music (Dolby Atmos Mix):
● Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dachimovement/
● Instagram: @DACHIMOVEMENT
Looking toward the future, what’s your dream for the next chapter of your musical journey? Reply: The dream is to solidify the “Audio Resurrection” as a permanent fixture. We want to be the bridge that allows the next generation of Chicago artists to eat off their own high-fidelity masters and protect their files. We are setting up the infrastructure so that five years from now, DA-MOVEMENT is looked at as the Motown of the Midwest.
What do you hope listeners will discover about you along the way?
Reply: I hope they discover that I never folded, even when the data crashed and the music seemed dead. In an industry that rewards cheap gimmicks, I stayed true to the sound, honored the late legends who can no longer stand here with us, and trusted the process. I want them to see that All Black Everything and 24s weren’t just luck—they were a literal resurrection of art, history, and soul.
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