Artist Of The Week – Crew54

Crew54 may be from Texas, but they’re nothing like the state’s previous Hip-Hop offerings. Brought together by a want to make “feel good music,” the duo of G-Christ and masterOFself are looking to bring a little positive fun to Hip-Hop. Recently Crew54 released their first full length album, Beaters & Babies, and this week I’m sitting down with them to discuss their unique sound, how it fits into their hometown’s Hip-Hop scene, and what makes a song “feel good music.”

Adam Bernard: First thing's first, how did you two link up?
G-Christ: We met through a mutual friend. At the time we were only with our groups, MOS with M7 and me with the Texas Immigrants. We found out we stay literally around the corner from each other and started chopping it up. MOS did a feature on a Texas Immigrant track and every since then it’s been on and poppin.
MOS: I was surprised that someone from this town liked the same music that I did. We both were big on Little Brother at the time. I had a beat that I asked him to get on with me, “Street Soul.” When it came out so lovely we both knew right then that something special was going on. We started doing shows together, but it was a split set, he would do Texas Immigrant songs, and I would do masterOFself songs, till I joked around with the idea of creating a crew and he took the idea and ran with it. We started this out of a mutual respect for what we do, so it wasn't like we were leaving our own crews, it was more of a building of an entire network.

Adam Bernard: You've described your work as feel good music, in fact you even have a track on Beaters & Babies titled "Feel Good Music." What is feel good music to you and why do you feel it's important that you get it out there?
G-Christ: Man, feel good music is inspirational music. When you wake up early in the morning, tired as hell, you can throw it on and get your day started right. It's not going to get you ready to fight or have you walking around angry, it’s just going to make you smile and rock out with it. There is very little music that just makes you feel good, it’s either murder music, pimp shit, or extra revolutionary shit. Feel good music is music for people that just like to chill and bump good music.
MOS: And I love that track! We have people who don't even really listen to Hip-Hop bumping that track around here. Little kids, old folks, and just regular ass folk can throw on Beaters & Babies, put that “Feel Good Music” on and get their head bobbin. Cats are always talkin bout recreating the Golden Era or whatever, we’re just trying to take what we are doing now and make it hot.

Adam Bernard: What other concepts and topics did you look to address on Beaters & Babies?
G-Christ: Really we’re just feeling the vibe of each track and session. It's well rounded, there’s something on there for all types of listeners. We got songs about grinding, inspirational stuff, backyard barbeque music, and even something on there for the ladies.
MOS: Yeah, we really tried to showcase ourselves on this album. Listen to Beaters & Babies and you will really know mos and G-Christ. Everyone I know has different aspects to them, it’s not just one thing every day all day, and that’s what we tried to get across. Sometimes we want to get a drink and chill, sometimes we want to wild out and act a fool. It’s all there.

Adam Bernard: You're from Texas, which has a legendary Hip-Hop scene, dating back to artists like The Geto Boys. Where does Crew54 fit into Texas’ Hip-Hop scene?
G-Christ: Being in Texas you have a diverse Hip-Hop scene. Some shows will be all dirty dirty south type shit and other shows will be extra backpack underground type of stuff. When we go out to perform we’ll usually be the only ones on the bill performing the type of Hip-Hop we do, but we show and prove, leaving with fans every time.
MOS: And being in Texas right now most people associate you first with the Houston sound that blew up recently. We love that shit, bump it all the time, but it’s not really how we put it down. Also doing a lot of shows in Austin, which has a large college music scene, you get a lot of people wanting the extreme opposite. We really lay in the middle ground, but we bring it from every direction.

Adam Bernard: Finally, hit me with your favorite moment of being an MC so far.
G-Christ: "Street Soul." That was my favorite moment as an MC because up until then I didn't feel like I was ever on a track that was so complete from beginning to end. At that time Texas Immigrants were compromising on tracks, trying to find a good sound, instead of it just feeling natural. When MOS and I did “Street Soul” each part fit so perfectly, everything we both brought to the table was used, nothing was left out. I felt like I didn't have to hold myself back to make someone else happy, it made me step my shit up from there on out.
MOS: For me, it has to be the shows that we do. We’re trying to bring back the excitement of live shows that the game is missing right now. We go to a lot of shows were these dudes are on stage really uninterested in themselves and the crowd ain't feeling them either. When Texas Immigrants go on, or anyone from the M7 Movement rock, it’s pure energy from start to finish. G-Christ and I just take it to that next level. Most guys have an ego problem where they would love to be on a set with four wack acts, so they could shine. We hate it We want to rock with the best cuz we feel we can hang, we want that chance to show and prove.

You can check out Crew54 showing and proving on MySpace at myspace.com/crew54 and take a listen to their individual groups at m7music.com and myspace.com/texasimmigrantrecords.