Or at least for the moment...Team Scene sounds are def. original, but i cant help but compare them to a mash-up of Pop culture meets Kid CuDi mixed with the Seeing Sounds Pharrell... Honest lyrics with abstract beats combine for a great mixture and a breath of fresh air to the music industry.
"Team Scene" (the name's under discussion) is a project that's been a long time in the making. Creating music together since 2003, Team Scene should see a spot in the limelight soon!
Bigger.Bu$iness and Carmel Labs are the producers and architects of the project. Erick and Ike are the MCs
FLOSS: Uniting new talent in music is IA's goal and you guys def. have a different sound...Can you explain how Team Scene was formed and where the name originates from?
Nako - Thanks man. Well Erick (Chase Love) and I have actually been rapping together since 2003, since the days of Cool Edit and computer mics. I put out a tape back in '04 that he helped me with called "Educated Thuggery" that got a generally mixed reaction on the net, both good and bad, but we've been making records together ever since.
We never really had a band name (it was always just Chase Love & Nako) up til a few months ago. I guess you could say, we kinda "borrowed" the whole Team Scene idea (haha, shout out to jblackcat and NT) first and foremost because I love scene girls...
Chase Love - I think with the name Team Scene comes from, both words have significant meaning to form the overall point we try to make. Life is a collaboration. Music is definitely a collaboration. While we are the only two official members of the group, there are plenty of people who make Team Scene happen whether they are musicians we've worked with, our people behind the scenes, or our fans --- everyone's a part of the team!
Now "Scene" basically stems from the fact that we are the life of the party, and while our music varies widely in style, theme, and topic (and is not always party music), it is always entertaining.
FLOSS: Who are your musical influences and How would you define your sound?
Nako - I grew up listening to every genre of music, and I mean literally EVERYTHING. Em's rap style definitely had a big influence on me when I first started -- all my verses were very lighthearted and sarcastic -- and of course everyone from New York aspires to rhyme like BIG and Jay. I'm really into T.i. and Luda... But also artists you wouldn't expect like Zack de la Rocha from Rage Against the Machine (one of the most underrated MCs ever) have definitely influenced my style as well. Haha, and I've made the argument before that folk vocalist Regina Spektor's flow is flawless (check out her tracks Pavlov's Daughter and Consequence of Sounds). Oh and I fucks with Kanye and 50. They're the funniest personalities in hip-hop today.
Chase Love - Outkast, Lupe Fiasco, Kanye, Jay, N.E.R.D.,
FLOSS: As a group i know its hard because sometimes the beat takes you in two different directions, how do you vibe and create your songs together?
Nako - It really depends. With the "Go Shawty" record the producer, BNyce from "Carmel Labs," came to us with the beat and song idea so once we agreed to keep it simple, coming up with that hook was automatic.
Chase Love - The fact that right now we both live in different cities makes it a bit different than usual. We'll get a track from either Carmel Labs or Bigger Business that one of us likes. That person will throw down a rough draft of whatever inspiration has created (it could be as developed as a few verses and a hook to a simple hook idea). The other will then formulate their part. It goes back and forth a couple times after that until we have a full version. We usually go through 2-3 different versions of a song.
FLOSS: Also I peeped you have two seperate groups of producers...Can you explain the two different producers?
Nako - Well Bigger.Bu$iness is a group I've been down with since high school. The producers are the Marti brothers who are very into pianos, strings, and guitars. Carmel Labs are child hood friends of Chase's and if you hear samples, deep bass, and synth then it's probably them.
FLOSS: Which group produced the single?
Nako - Carmel Labs did, specifically BNyce who also rapped on the record. But there's definitely going to be a lot of Bigger.Bu$iness on it.
FLOSS: What is your favorite 16 that you've rapped? Heard from an established artist?
Nako - My favorite 16... actually it's probably more like a 48, is a verse i originally came up with for a radio cipher I had with a few rappers on a show I hosted back in '05. I said something on there like "I inhale shotguns like Kurt Cobain, and let the smoke out slow, blow my thoughts away..." I remember the first time I kicked that everyone's face was sort of like "eek!" haha. I actually just laid it down on a song that we're thinking about using on the tape, so that verse should see the light of day soon. As for my favorite verse I've ever heard... I don't know, I'm not sure if I have one. Both of Biggie's verses from Victory still give me shivers though.
Chase Love - My favorite verse I've rapped is actually from an unreleased song we did called The Coolest Verse Ever. My favorite 16 from an established artist has to be from Lupe Fiasco's Real Recognize Real track..."They say the game has the belly of a beast..."
FLOSS: How does the international traveling of your life influence your music?
Nako - This probably pertains to me a lot more than Erick. Umm, well you know I spent my childhood in England so I grew up very into British Rock and Garage music, but I've also been surrounded by Nigerian culture my entire life and that upbringing definitely still influences my tastes today. I'm REALLY into MIA, groups like MSTRKRFT and JUSTICE and I personally thought Kanye remaking Stronger and Jay covering Wonderwall were two of the greatest things to happen to hip hop ever. I'm really into experimenting with genre blending and international sound, so every time Carmel or Bigger.Bu$iness play a beat for us with the slightest hint of an electro sound or African drums or sampling sitar strings or whatever, I go nuts. This is a little bit of a diatribe, but if Timbaland could stop straight up jacking beats from international producers and just work with them on bringing their sounds over here, I think he could really help advance hip-hop as a world genre (because it really isn't just an American thing anymore) and really expand it to a lot of people.
FLOSS: If you could get a mainstream artist on your debut album who you going to get? Producer?
Chase Love - Andre 3000, Pharrell (I need my melodies)
Nako - Hmmm, artist... I'd go with Kanye. I'd have to. I'd definitely have Timbaland produce it though. With Just Blaze helping, haha.
FLOSS: Have any labels shown any interest in you and if no what would be the perfect label situation for you?
Nako - Hah, naw no label interest yet. Bigger.Bu$iness got a couple of offers to intern as producers (think Mysto and Pizzi) with some big names and Carmel are definitely talented enough to work for a major, but no deals are on the table for Team Scene as a whole yet. I'm not really sure what the perfect label situation would be for us. You always hear artists complaining about how labels are restricting them creatively, but then the second they get that freedom they wanted so bad, they fuck it up, you know what I mean? They just make horrible decisions and piss everything away. I want to say I'd want to sign with Puff because he's a fucking genius, but I know after the first album he'd just rape us for everything we had hahaha. I think the right situation for us would be one with a label that understood yeah we'll do the club songs and the pop records -- haha, I've got no qualms about making the sell out record -- but they would also need to understand that every now and then i might want to sample a billie goat, yodellers, and a baby crying and I'd need them to support my creativity and vision and believe in me enough as an artist to get behind me and give me and that record the proper push we deserve.
FLOSS: What upcoming projects are in the works for the group? (Shows, Albums, etc).
Nako - Planning the logistics for shows are hard considering we and our live band live in different cities right now, but we've got a few things in the works for Boston this winter. And the album/EP/mixtape, whatever you want to call it, either way it'll be free, should be out around the same time. We're about 4 or 5 tracks in, way more than we expected to have done by now, so we're just working on getting that done and then taking it to the next level. A website launch is gonna coincide with the album release, so be on the look out for that too.
FLOSS FIVE (answered by Nako)
1. USA or LONDON - USA. NYC to be exact.
2. FAVE New Artist - Hmmm, besides Chase? I'm gonna go with Drake. "Wheel Chair Jimmy's" been doing his thing lately, and I can't hate. I still think we'd body him though.
3. Football or Soccer - Football. Ask me again in two summers, and I'll probably say soccer hah.
4. Music Gulity Pleasure - i don't really have guilty pleasures. It's music. I listen to it all and I like it. (That last Britney album was a banger though...)
5. Jordan 4 or Jordan 5
Jordan 4. i'll take the 3s over both of them though.
Thats it for this week's artist you need to know, but as usual i provide you with your musical fix: A link of 4 songs from TEAM SCENE enjoy!!!
TEAM SCENE MUSIC
No comments:
Post a Comment