Dame Dash Says “Fuck Hollywood” In New Interview

Dame Dash sat with Sway on Sway in the Morning this to discuss his recent ventures into film—such as Loisadas, an independently released, eight-part gritty street tale that was co-produced by Kanye West. He cites Hollywood bigwigs Martin Scorcese, Quentin Tarantino, and Wes Anderson as his main competition, but was not shy when addressing the industry's diversity issues. "Fuck Hollywood, man," he said. "You know why? Because it's not our game. We not from Hollywood, so I'm not playing Hollywood's game. I don't complain about other people's game—I just create my own. I'm not a complainer. I'm taking from you. I'm taking market share. You don't take my calls? Now, it's get down or lay down."

Dash explained that a long simmering disagreement with Empire director Lee Daniels helped inspire Loisidas. Last year, Dash brought a suit against Daniels alleging that he had not been properly reimbursed for investments he had made in a couple of Daniel's early projects. Daniel apparently offered to include him on Empire—but Dash declined. "That's one of the reasons I made Loisadas," he said. "Where I'm from, you can't walk around owing another man that kind of money and have it. So I made a movie about what I would do in my mind instead of doing it." The interview is long, but candid; listen above.

Lead photo: Steve Lovekin/Getty