(PCM) Those of us at the recent Made In America Festival in Philadelphia were being showered by both cake and champagne during the rousing set from DJ Steve Aoki, but also got showered with something a bit more unusual….two-dollar bills courtesy of Jay-Z himself, and the mysterious “Two-Dollar Bill Man”.
Most of the festival attendees paid little mind to this small financial gift, thinking it was part of either Aoki’s set or just some generosity from HOV, some didn’t even believe that it was real money at first. We managed to catch one of the bills and sure enough it is real and it got us thinking that there has to be more of story behind it and we were quite surprised with what we discovered with a little bit of research.
Come to find out, these two-dollar bills have become a staple in the rap scene and if you are paying close attention you will see them connected to everyone from Kanye West to Justin Bieber. Here’s where it gets interesting…the bills come from a man by the name of Steven Reisman. Reisman is a middle-aged attorney, said to represent many rap artists, but this has not be confirmed, some claim he does not even work in the music industry. He is a staple in the hip-hop industry and is known at “The Two-Dollar Bill Man” because that is what he always gives away. Everyone has nothing but praise and good things to say about him and he is certainly well-loved in the industry..he is truly everywhere!
Reisman was handing out his two-dollar bills at Made In America in Philadelphia and is looked at as a dispensary for the stars of rap and hip-hop for his famous two-dollar bills. Despite being by the side of so many of rap and hip-hop’s A-list, Reisman is not seeking any fame or notoriety for his acts of generosity, he is just a fan who adores rap music at the end of day. He has refused multiple times to speak with the press about his actions and his trademark item, and prefers to work on his multiple charitable organizations and has also been known to give out free concert tickets to those who can’t afford to attend.
A while back, Complex did a story about the “Two-Dollar Bill Man” in hopes of finding out a reason for his actions and a little bit more information. The story says that Reisman was travelling in a taxi cab and received a two-dollar bill as his change. He thought it was quite odd and lucky, so he then began giving out two-dollar bills everywhere he went.
Reisman would leave two-dollar bills as tips and also hand them out at concerts. In a video obtained by Complex, it shows rapper Drake, speaking to Reisman from the stage commenting on how impressed he was that Reisman had been singing along to each and every word of his songs. Reisman then handed Drake a two-dollar bill while he was on-stage and seemingly the rest is history.
We felt this story was fascinating and are thrilled to have our very own two-dollar straight from Jay-Z and of course the “Two-Dollar Bill Man” a.k.a. Steven Reisman the mystery man who is adored by all.
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