photo by Mike Parente
Musical artist, Tucker Pillsbury, stage name ‘Dillis’, released his new rap album, “MOTH,” and will be one of the featured up and coming artists opening for Lil Debbie on Nov. 4 at the Altar Bar. Pillsbury is a sophomore multimedia major at Point Park. 

When Tucker Pillsbury first arrived at Point Park, he only rapped with his high school friends and never recorded any mixtapes or performed in front of any crowds.

More than a year later, the sophomore multimedia major found himself in the coveted position of opening for the touring Oakland-based rapper Lil Debbie.

“I wouldn’t be into music if I didn’t come to Point Park,” Pillsbury said.  “It was the people I met.  We used to go down to the wharf, me and a couple of friends, and freestyle.  They wanted to record, so just meeting those people from Point Park kind of changed my life.”

On Nov. 4, Pillsbury, who raps under the stage name ‘Dillis,’ will be one of the featured opening acts for the nationally touring Lil Debbie at the Altar Bar in Pittsburgh’s Strip District.

Pillsbury’s luxury of novelty in the rap game comes out in the two albums he has released to date.  His first album, “Since When,” recorded under his initial stage name ‘Tucker’ is weighty with obvious aspiration.  The production outpaces the lyrical content, though Pillsbury’s ear for aesthetically rounded compositions is evident.  For his newest album, Pillsbury decided to scrap everything.

“When I put out that first mixtape, it was very early-Mac Miller sounding,” Pillsbury said. “And I hated that, I don’t really listen to that anymore.”  

The Mac Miller comparison has to be an unfortunate recurrence for any college-aged, aspiring white rapper, and doubly so for those starting out in Pittsburgh.  The comparisons are the result of both the commercial success of the campus-darling Miller and the general unawareness of the hip-hop underground.  Scores of Soundcloud and Bandcamp pages offer the fruits of labor borne by artists who are trying to get their voices heard.  This is the musical sphere Pillsbury works from. 

The sophomore record from Pillsbury is a heavy and complex album.  Recorded under his new name Dillis, “MOTH” is the product of six months of writing, producing, and recording. 

“I had been working on it since last April,” Pillsbury said. “And then I brought all of my recording equipment home (Cape Elizabeth, ME) with me over the summer.  A lot of that was trying to find a sound to match my new name.”

His efforts are visible.  “MOTH” explores themes and techniques that Pillsbury didn’t show on his first album, placing an emphasis on song structure, chorus, and melody, and it is all for the better.  ‘Dillis’ can’t be mistaken as another Mac Miller hop-on for his new work, opening up his toolbox in the new act.  His new songs float with soul and delicacy via a new sing-song style of vocal diction that is more akin to Drake and Chance the Rapper than any straightforward bar spitters.  

In his second go around, Pillsbury puts a greater emphasis on rounding out his sound rather than showing off clever collections of rhymes like too many rappers. 

“I wanted to make it more dark.  I wanted to put in some R&B and a little sing rapping, too,” Pillsbury said.  

The album “MOTH” features production from LA-based Felly and fellow Point Park student Laila Fahim, who has “an amazing voice” according to Pillsbury.

“The first tape I put out was me getting out all of my feelings, telling the story of how I got into music, or ‘Since when does this kid rap?’  That was the idea,” Pillsbury said. 

Adam Valen, a social media marketing assistant and booking assistant for Drusky Entertainment, who booked the Lil Debbie show at the Altar Bar, believes Pillsbury has the potential to gain name recognition around town.  Valen is also a member of Nevada Color, a band formed by Point Park students.

“As long as he is persistent and sticks to his guns there is no doubt he can be successful.  The rap scene is a great game to get into at this time in Pittsburgh,” Valen said.

Pillsbury is working on booking more and more shows to showcase his talent in the near future, whether it’s at venues or through the much-loved house show.  The Lil Debbie show at the Altar Bar will only be the second in Pillsbury’s young career, though he seems to be taking it in stride.  

“Obviously this Lil Debbie show is a huge deal for me,” Pillsbury said. “But I’m excited.  I’m really excited.”