Damon Dash | |
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 Dash in 2007 | |
| Born | Damon Anthony Dash (1971-05-03)May 3, 1971 (age 53) New York City, U.S. |
| Other names | Dame Dash |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1991–present |
| Known for | Co–founder ofRoc-A-Fella |
| Spouse | |
| Partners | |
| Children | 5 |
| Relatives | Stacey Dash (cousin) Darien Dash (cousin) |
Damon Anthony Dash (born May 3, 1971) is an American entrepreneur and record executive.[4] He co-foundedRoc-A-Fella Records withJay-Z andKareem Burke in 1994,[5] and co-founded the fashion retailerRocawear with the former in 1999.
Born inNew York City, Dash swept the floors of a local barbershop and sold newspapers in order to buy sneakers and shirts as a teenager. Dash "learned to hustle", in his own words, from the example of his mother, who died of anasthma attack when he was 15.[6] The same year, Dash was diagnosed withtype 1 diabetes.[7] "Before I was diagnosed... I went about a month or two just going to the bathroom non-stop and losing weight", Dash recalled. "Magic Johnson had just been diagnosed withAIDS, so that's what I thought I had. I was scared to even go to the doctor. I thought I was going to die."[7]
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Dash served asJay-Z's manager and business partner atRoc-A-Fella Records, and in 1999, he organized a tour for Jay-Z which made $19 million.[8] Their relationship soured as a result of two subsequent events. The first was when Roc-A-Fella Records was purchased byDef Jam Recordings (which had previously only owned half of the company) in 2004, after which Jay-Z agreed to take a job as Def Jam's president. Then, in late 2005, Jay-Z bought Dash out of his stake inRocawear.[9]
In April 2014, it was announced that Dash is involved with Blind Debit, a fingerprint payment application being developed by Dez White.[10]
Dash foundedDD172, a media collective which encompasses:America Nu, a magazine; VNGRD79, a web design firm; BluRoc Records, a record label division.[11] It also includes anart gallery.[12]
Dash met R&B singerAaliyah inNew York City in the summer of 2000 through his accountant,[13][14] and dated her untilher death on August 25, 2001, in a plane crash inThe Bahamas.[15] Though they were not formally engaged, in interviews given after Aaliyah's death, Dash stated that the couple had planned to marry.[16]
In 2005, Dash married fashion designerRachel Roy, whom he had dated prior to his relationship with Aaliyah. They met when she was working as an intern atRocawear. Together they have two daughters, Ava Dash (born December 7, 1999) and Tallulah Dash (born May 14, 2008).[17] Following their divorce in 2009, they had a bitter custody battle.[18]
Dash has a son, Dame "Boogie" Dash (born November 28, 1991), with former girlfriend Linda Williams.[17] Boogie stars in the reality television showGrowing Up Hip Hop.[19] He also has another son, Lucky, born in 2004 with Cindy Morales.[17][20]
Dash and his fiancée Raquel Horn have a son, Dusko Dash, born on November 14, 2020.[21]
Dash is a first cousin of the actressStacey Dash.[22]
In 2012, rapperCurren$y sued Dash for $1.5 million for releasing his music without permission.[23] Dash's attorney released a statement that Dash released the music on fair grounds.[24]
In 2014, Dash was ordered to pay Linda Williams, the mother of his son Boogie, $50,000 for causing her to be prosecuted on harassment charges in 2009.[25]
In April 2015, Dash's ex-wife, Rachel Roy, accused him ofdomestic abuse and filed for arestraining order.[18] Roy was awardedsole custody of their daughters. The court granted Roy and her daughters with a three-year restraining order against Dash.[26] Days later, Dash filed a $2.5 million claim against Roy in asserted damage for allegedly mishandling their joint fashion business, Royale Etenia.[27]
In 2018, Dash settled a suit he filed against directorLee Daniels requesting $5 million to recoup a $2 million investment with interest.[28] Lee had received financial support from Dash early in his career, and reportedly failed to repay him despite his subsequent success.[29]
In November 2019, Dash was arrested for failing to pay more than $400,000 inchild support. Dash was in New York City for an unrelatedFederal Court appearance when he was arrested for two warrants. The first warrant was issued in April 2015 in the Supreme Court in New York County case of Cindy Morales; he owed $62,553 since 2012.[30] The second warrant was issued in March 2019 in theBronx Family Court case of Rachel Roy. He was ordered to pay her $341,991 and $25,000 for attorney fees in 2015.[31][30] Dash reportedly paid more than $1 million to be released.[17]
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