Laura Young
ECB Publishing, Inc.
2021 has been a bright, shining year for performer and fashion designer De'Andre "Dre Ben Frank" Fagan. He's launched clothing lines, headlined shows during Fashion Week in New York City and attended the BET Hip Hop Awards ceremony.
How did all this come about?
De'Andre "Dre Ben Frank" was born on March 24, 1990, the son of Tommy Fagan and Cayco Brooks. With a dad who got signed by the NFL, a mom making a difference every day in her classroom and legendary performers Billy Holiday and Betty Wright in his family tree, Dre Ben Frank had solid role models for success.
Dre Ben Frank is a 2008 graduate of Jefferson Middle High School and has been growing as a performer since a young age. He recalls how Stanley Norton, his band director at Jefferson Elementary School, took an interest in him.
"He took me on as a project," says Dre Ben Frank, "became a manager and gave me vocal training."
Dre Ben Frank talks about performing in his youth at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University and at annual charity dinners for the Boys and Girls Club, where donors gave millions to the cause. He remembers the first winning "Jefferson Idol" contest and getting the opportunity to audition for American Idol.
As time went by, however, he became dissatisfied with unproductive record deals and was unhappy working as a travel agent while pursuing his artistic dreams.
By 2010, he had developed an "I'll show you" attitude that motivated him to head in an entrepreneurial direction. He created his own studio and aired his first radio single, "Bye Bye," on 96.7 FM in Valdosta.
He credits an appearance at the Disney location of House of Blues in March of 2017 as the event that kicked his career into high gear. The song "Bye Bye" is now one of 17 tunes on his album, Lyllaby's, released in 2020, with more than 250,000 streams across popular services such as Spotify, Pandora, Apple Music and YouTube Music.
Dre Ben Frank was on tour in Mexico in 2020 when COVID hit.
"It threw everyone for a loop," he says, "but it gave me time to get strategic with my next ideas for a clothing line."
For several years, Dre Ben Frank had been getting recognition in the fashion world, and by February of 2021, he was ready to launch King Killection, his fashion collection and online boutique.
"I also have signed on to be an influencer model for major campaigns like Target and Walmart," says Dre Ben Frank, who has more than 25,000 followers on Instagram alone.
Last month, during Fashion Week in New York City, he headlined three shows and premiered his cow-themed line called The Cash Cow collection, inspired by his new album, Da Cash C.O.W., which is scheduled for release later this Fall. He also was photographed on the Brooklyn Bridge as the first "Parachute Warrior King" by Laylonna Hurley, known for her Parachute Goddess Project.
What's next for Dre Ben Frank?
In addition to his upcoming album, Dre Ben Frank just finished taping a show with Steve Harvey and has plans to work with Tyler Perry next week on the set of Sistas, Season 4.
"I just want to inspire others and make history like my family members before me, and that's what I plan on doing."
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