Brian takes a seat next to “Miracle Emieje,” another HCC student. As they talk about childhood, aspirations, inspirations, and entrepreneurship in their one-on-one conversation with Brian. Additionally, this magazine features a number of fashion outfits in which Brian displays his incredible sense of style.
This project also involved collaboration with the in-house photography studio staff at HCC. Together, they produce a gorgeous magazine spread.
Photographer: Shelia Guidry
Assistant: Chris Juengel
Styling: Brian Payne
Interview by: Miracle Emieje
Editing: Brian Payne
Brian accounts his favorite childhood memory.
Before I knew it, my mom was helping me with my very first song, ‘I’m Da Best.’ As time went on, I entered my first talent show at my elementary school. Which I won, he says. The next talent show was more serious. I had all my cousins and friends perform with me. We had choreography and practice leading up to the event. I remember my mom and late godmother Alexis giving us critiques to take home the win. We eventually won the talent show, taking home one of the biggest trophies I have ever had. I gained a lot of confidence from those few wins, and it pushed me to pursue further. Before 13, I had a feature with The Club Banga King, ‘Level’. If you are from BR, you know he was a huge part of the culture. So, I was very thankful for him to do a song with me and mentor me. “After that, I started to get invited to perform at people’s birthday parties and all kinds of other stuff,” he says. I could remember going to school, and my classmates would sing my songs. On the inside, I was grinning, but on the outside, I couldn’t show that to them.
“BR COULD NEVER BE REPLACED!”
Growing up in Baton Rouge is a challenge, he says. Even though the city is so small, it is too much to get into. So many hoods, gangs, wannabe gangsters-just a lot of evil spirits for real. Sure, it’s like any other urban city in the South, but the experience is simply different. BR could never be replaced. Don’t get me wrong, he says; that would always be home for me. Like my family, the food, and the crawfish, that’s all still a part of me. I feel I had more fun as a child in BR than in my adolescent years. Just because, you know, I was more Nivea and innocent in a lot of situations that would normally make me mature faster. I don’t know; sometimes I take that as a good thing, Brian said.
In my second year of middle school, I joined the marching band.
We took trips all over. From Washington, DC, to Epcot. We performed for a veteran memorial, where we met a veteran who was 104 years old. I even did a pageant before, he says. It was a pageant hosted at my middle school (Park Forest) for young boys and girls.
The experience was dope; I did like 3 different rounds.
Presence, performance, and questions. All my family and friends were there watching me, so I had to do my big one, he said. I ended up winning the contest, and that year ended up being one of my best in middle school. I had become homecoming king prior and won prom king later the same year.
Brian Payne, also known as Tha Yungin, is the CEO of Dworld, an apparel company. He was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on September 19, 2003. He graduated from high school in 2022, following a recent move to Houston. He launched the brand in 2020, our it sained traction by 2022. Despite his lack of prior fashion experience, Brian has always had a strong sense of style and a passion for luxury. Before becoming interested in fashion, Brian worked as a graphic designer, art director, and photographer/videographer for several years. He also has been the creative director of the DWORLD brand since September 2020. He provides further details about his goals and aspirations for the next mission. I aim to instill a new culture centered on DUMPWAY that is motivated by an integrated strategy. Certainly, I would like to style the individuals who inspire me, and I want the brand to encourage them just as much. The mission is running from just one quote that I think could resonate with a lot of people. ‘Takeover the World’.
Flashback to May 4. 2018. my stepfather was fatally shot in his neighborhood. “It broke me,” he says. It was a melancholy period for everyone involved. Mother, siblings, and relatives. Adding to the problem, 1 was only a few days shy of finishing middle school. What hurt was knowing he would show up with a big smile on his face. I’m currently in my third year of college, and I am aware that he continues to be pleased with my accomplishments. I will always be thankful to him for teaching me the importance of chasing dreams and putting in hard work, it is inspiring to be around YoungBoy, a fellow Baton Rouge, Louisiana native like myself, who is achieving remarkable success at a young age by reaching “I on the Billboard charts and setting records. Full story could be found at dworldofficial.com
DREAMS TO REALITY
“I just knew I wanted to be creatively amazing.” – Brian Payne.
Many dreams graced my mind growing up. I wanted to be a rapper, actor, designer, entrepreneur, and film director. My options were so open, he said. I just knew I wanted to be creatively amazing. I was just so filled with so much hope and inspiration. Not to mention, I was surrounded by so much talent and motivation. It was so right to dream big. During the 2016 era, my late stepfather ‘Dump’ introduced me to the new artist he was managing at the time. He always bragged about how his new artist was going to be the biggest thing ever. It happens to be who we now know as ‘NBA YoungBoy’. I believe Young Boy was about 16 or 17 when I met him. He had on some black and white Nike Air Max 95 sitting under the tree on what we called ‘Hardnett Lane’. We had just come from school. Me and my little brother ‘Dee’ were already listening to YoungBoy music prior but meeting him in person was different. To some people, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Over time, I became one of YB’s biggest fans. We were so close to him to the point he had our dog in one of his first videos, ‘Bandz’. 
