Ill Harmonics

Last updated
ill harmonics
Origin Dallas, Texas
Genres hip hop
Years active1995–present
LabelsBishara, Infuse, Uprok
Members Playdough
Blake Knight
Gib
Website becrecordings.com/artists/195/Ill_Harmonics/

Ill Harmonics is a hip hop band from Dallas, Texas, formed in 1995 by Playdough and Blake Knight. In 2004, Gib, the brother of Blake Knight, joined the group as a drummer. Ill Harmonics has released four studio albums, An Octave Above The Original Volume No. 1 (2000), Take Two (2002), Monkey Business (2004), and Modern Heart Exhibit (2007), as well as a compilation sampler album with MG! the Visionary and Soup the Chemist, released in 2000 through Uprok. Both Playdough and Blake Knight have released solo material, and Playdough also performs and records with the supergroup Deepspace5.

Contents

History

Playdough and Blake Knight formed ill harmonics when the two met in Dallas, Texas, after the two met at their local church. [1] [2] [3] Both artists rap and produce in the group, [4] with Playdough also serving as a guitarist and Blake Knight as a keyboardist and bassist. [2] The duo released some demo recordings, and gained national exposure in 1998 when they made it to the Top 10 on MTV's The Cut . [5] The group was signed to Uprok Records and released their debut album, An Octave Above the Original Volume No. 1 that same year. [6] They also appeared with MG! The Visionary and Soup the Chemist on a sampler album, also released in 2000. Playdough also formed Phonetic Composition with Freddie Bruno, and both artists joined Deepspace5 in 2000. [7]

Ill Harmonics released their second album, Take Two, in 2002. [8] The album featured appearances from DJ Maj, Freddie Bruno, Earthsuit, and Marcos Curiel of P.O.D. [9] In 2004, Tony Gib, the brother of Blake Knight, joined the group as a drummer. [10] Now a trio, Ill Harmonics released Monkey Business, through Infuse, that year. [11] A fourth studio album, Modern Heart Exhibit, followed in 2007, also on Infuse and distributed through Spirit Music. [12] [13] In 2012, the group released a single, "Loneliest Man", through Bishara Entertainment. [14]

Discography

Studio albums

Compilations

Related Research Articles

Mars Ill is an emcee/DJ hip-hop duo from Atlanta, Georgia. The duo consists of Gregory Owens (Manchild) and Nathan Corrona. They are also part of the hip-hop collective and supergroup Deepspace5.

Deepspace5 is an underground hip hop supergroup formed in 1997 and currently composed of Beat Rabbi, Manwell?, Freddie Bruno, Listener, Mars ILL, Playdough, Sintax.the.Terrific, Sivion, and Sev Statik. Deepspace5 also previously included Illtripp and The Recon. Since its formation, the collective has sold over 100,000 copies of its recordings, and has performed with KRS-One, Atmosphere, and MF Doom, among others.

Gregory Scott Owens, commonly known by his stage name Manchild is a Christian rapper who works within the alternative hip hop genre. He fronts the underground and Christian hip hop group Mars ILL, is part of the Deepspace5 supergroup collective, and has collaborated with the likes of Christian rappers KJ-52 and John Reuben.

<i>Raw Material</i> (album) 2000 studio album by Mars Ill

Raw Material. is a Mars Ill album released in 2000, on Sphere of Hip Hop Records.

David Frederick Washington, who goes by the stage name Freddie Bruno, is an American Christian hip hop musician and member of the hip hop collective, Deepspace5. He has released two noteworthy studio albums, The Ballpoint Composer in 2002 on Uprok Records, and Hold Music on Illect Recordings, in 2007.

Joseph T. Evans, known professionally as Sev Statik and Stu Dent, is a hip hop musician and promoter from Albany, New York. Active as a rapper since the early 1990s, he has performed and recorded both as a solo artist and as a member of the hip hop collectives Deepspace5 and Tunnel Rats. Evans has also been a member of various Albany-area hip hop groups, including All Bully, Master Plan, Body Language, currently fronts the rap rock band Goldtooth, and is active in Pitch Control Music, a musical collective and arts movement he co-founded in order to promote and develop hip hop in the Albany area. Evans is a freemason in East Greenbush, New York.

Tunnel Rats is a West Coast underground hip hop collective founded in 1993 in Whittier, California. Named after the tunnel rats in the Vietnam war, the mixed-gender, multi-racial collective consists of some seventeen individual members and incorporates four affiliated groups, LPG, Future Shock, Foundation, and New Breed, which have recorded both within Tunnel Rats and independently. Several members also formed two additional side-projects, Footsoldiers and The Resistance, which recorded one album in 2006 and collaborated with KRS-One. Pioneers in the Christian hip hop genre, Tunnel Rats often met with resistance from church leaders who disliked the collective's aggressive style and felt that Tunnel Rats praised their rapping skills more than glorifying God.

The combined discography of Tunnel Rats, a West Coast underground Christian hip hop collective founded in 1993 in Whittier, California, is three studio albums, a collaborative compilation album, several compilation appearances, one guest appearance, one music video, and a collection of unfinished material. Named after the tunnel rats in the Vietnam war, the mixed-gender, multi-racial collective has included twenty individual members and incorporated six affiliated groups: LPG, Future Shock, Footsoldiers, the Foundation, New Breed, and the Resistance, which have recorded both within Tunnel Rats and independently. The collective has released three albums under the Tunnel Rats name: Experience (1996), Tunnel Vision (2001), and Tunnel Rats (2004). They also collaborated on a compilation album released through Uprock Records, Underground Rise, Volume 1: Sunrise/Sunset (2003). Though currently on hiatus, Tunnel Rats has not disbanded, according to a statement by member Peace 586.

<i>Tunnel Vision</i> (album) 2001 studio album by Tunnel Rats

Tunnel Vision is the second studio album by West Coast underground hip hop collective Tunnel Rats, released on October 25, 2001, through Uprok Records. Featuring a brash, aggressive sound, the album drew admiration from critics and proved highly influential for the Christian hip hop movement.

<i>Underground Rise, Volume 1: Sunrise/Sunset</i> 2003 compilation album by Tunnel Rats and Various Artists

Tunnel Rats Present... Underground Rise, Volume 1: Sunrise/Sunset is a 2003 compilation album by Uprok Records in collaboration with underground hip hop collective Tunnel Rats. Around thirty-five rappers appear on the compilation, which features, in addition to the Tunnel Rats, numerous other underground hip hop artists and groups, Christian and non-Christian, including LA Symphony, LMNO and 2Mex of The Visionaries, Remnant, Mass Reality, Sekou the Misfit, and Deepspace5 members Playdough, manCHILD of Mars Ill, and Listener. Production was handled by Tunnel Rats members Dert, Donovan Luke Henry, Jermz and Raphi. Most of the album was recorded over a single weekend. CCM Magazine noted that on the song "One Voice", the entire Tunnel Rats and LA Symphony crews come together, with seventeen rappers appearing on the same track. Critics received the album well, noting that, it offered a diversity of musical styles and showcased the many talented artists in the underground and Christian hip hop scenes.

<i>Tunnel Rats</i> (album) 2004 studio album by Tunnel Rats

Tunnel Rats is the third studio album by West Coast underground Christian hip hop collective Tunnel Rats, released on March 3, 2004, through Uprok Records. Featuring several new members among the group's ranks, the album was well received by critics, with Christianity Today and Rapzilla considering it the best album so far by the group.

New Breed is a Christian Latin hip hop duo from Boston, Massachusetts, consisting of brother and sister Rosario "Macho" and Elsie Ortega. An affiliate of the underground hip hop collective Tunnel Rats, the duo has recorded and toured both as part of the Tunnel Rats and independently. After joining the Tunnel Rats in 1998, New Breed appeared on the DJ Maj mixtape Full Plates with the song "What's My Name" in 2001, and later that year on the Tunnel Rats album Tunnel Vision. The duo released its first album, Stop the Music, in 2002, and then appeared on the Tunnel Rats albums Underground Rise, Volume 1 in 2003 and Tunnel Rats in 2004. A second album from New Breed, Nine, came out in 2004.

<i>Stop the Music</i> (album) 2002 studio album by New Breed

Stop the Music is the debut album by Christian Latin hip hop brother-sister duo New Breed, a Tunnel Rats affiliate, released on March 12, 2002, through Uprok Records in the United States and through EMI Christian Music Group in the United Kingdom. Featuring a Latin-influenced East Coast hip hop sound that revealed the duo's Puerto Rican heritage, Stop the Music met with positive critical reception from critics.

<i>The Night We Called It a Day</i> (album) 2002 studio album by Deepspace5

The Night We Called It a Day is the debut studio album by underground hip hop supergroup Deepspace5, released on January 8, 2002, through Uprok Records. It was recorded in Dallas, Texas.

Douglas William Krum, Jr., who goes by the stage name Krum, is an American hip hop musician. He's released nine studio albums, one extended play, and three mixtapes in his career.

Christopher Jose Cooper, professionally known as Soup the Chemist and Super C, is an American Christian hip hop musician and a pioneer of the Christian hip-hop movement. He was a member of the hip hop group Soldiers for Christ, also known as S.F.C., and, as a solo artist, has released two studio albums, Dust in 2000 through BEC Recordings and Eargasmic Arrangements in 2003 through his own Beesyde Records label. He published an autobiography, Through My Windows, in 2014, through Dimlights Publishing.

Daniel Josev Brewer, who goes by the stage name Sintax the Terrific, sometimes stylized as Sintax.the.Terrific or simply Sintax, is an American Christian hip hop musician and a founding member of both The Pride and the supergroup collective, Deepspace5. Brewer is also a practicing attorney in Columbia, South Carolina. He has released three studio albums through Illect Recordings – Simple Moves (2003), Curb Appeal (2007), and Prince with a Thousand Enemies with DJ Kurfu (2011) – and two studio albums, Qoheleth with Beat Rabbi (2010) and The Last Unicorn with Sir Chamberlain (2015), independently. Brewer, originally under the moniker ipoetlaurate and later The Press Junket, runs a blog for which he writes articles and composes songs discussing current social and political events. He released three compilation albums containing these songs in 2011, 2012, and 2013.

<i>Speak Life</i> 2002 studio album by Sev Statik

Speak Life is the debut studio album by Albany, New York-based hip hop musician Sev Statik, released on November 9, 2002, through Uprok Records. While Sev Statik, real name Joseph Evans, had released a previous studio album, Altered State, in 2001 under the moniker "Stu Dent", Speak Life is considered his debut. Sev Statik had recently joined to the hip hop collective Tunnel Rats, and the release features several artists from that group. It also features Listener from Deepspace5, another collective of which Sev Statik is part. Speak Life marks the debut appearance of Propaganda, who would join Tunnel Rats the following year. The album garnered a mixed response from critics, receiving praise for its positive lyrics, East Coast sound and use of sampling, but criticized for its lack of innovation and inconsistency in overall quality.

<i>Nephilim: Act of God 1</i> 2003 studio album by Stu Dent

Nephilim: Act of God 1 is the second studio album by hip hop musician Stu Dent, released November 14, 2003 through Illect Recordings. Stu Dent is an alternate moniker for Albany, New York artist Sev Statik, real name Joseph Evans. Evans originally created the Stu Dent pseudonym in order to release the album Altered State in 2001 without breaking his contractual obligations with Tunnel Rats, a hip hop musical collective of which he is part. Nephilim follows up on Altered State and the 2002 Sev Statik release Speak Life. The album includes production from Beat Rabbi and Freddie Bruno, fellow members of Deepspace5, a group Evans co-founded, and production and a guest appearance by JB!!, also known as Dirty Moses, a member of All Bully, another group that Evans helped found. Nephilim met with a highly positive reception from critics.

<i>Back to Dust</i> 2007 album by Sev Statik and DJ Dust

Back to Dust is a studio album by Albany, New York-based rapper Sev Statik and Atlanta-based producer DJ Dust, originally released on October 9, 2007, through Rawkus Records. It was the fourth studio release by Sev Statik and the second studio release for DJ Dust. Back to Dust features numerous guest appearances, including Manchild and Playdough of Deepspace5, Theory Hazit, Supastition, LMNO of The Visionaries, and Raphi, Griffin, and Triune of Tunnel Rats. The album was selected by Rawkus for inclusion in its "Rawkus 50" promotional campaign, and was released as a digital download. A physical version of the album was released on July 7, 2008, through Braille's Hip Hop IS Music label. Back to Dust met with critical acclaim. In 2010, Theory Hazit released a remixed version of the album.

References

  1. DeBarros, Anthony (June 1, 2002). "One to Watch: Ill Harmonics; Quality Is Job 1 for Hip Hop duo" (PDF). CCM Magazine . Salem Communications. 24 (12): 24. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  2. 1 2 Wilson, MacKenzie. "Ill Harmonics". AllMusic . All Media Guide . Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  3. "aphire :: interviews :: playdough". Light Online. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  4. Quinlan, Thomas (May 31, 2002). "Ill Harmonics Take Two". Exclaim! . Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  5. DeBarros, Anthony (June 1, 2002). "One to Watch: Ill Harmonics; Quality Is Job 1 for Hip Hop duo" (PDF). CCM Magazine : 24. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  6. DeBarros, Anthony (June 1, 2002). "One to Watch: Ill Harmonics; Quality Is Job 1 for Hip Hop duo" (PDF). CCM Magazine : 24. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  7. 1 2 Fryberger, Scott (October–November 2010). "Deepspace 5 Interview, Deepspace 5 2010 Jesusfreakhideout.com Interview". Jesus Freak Hideout. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  8. McCreary, David (April 1, 2002). "Ill Harmonics: Take Two" (PDF). CCM Magazine . Salem Communications. 24 (10): 62–3. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 25, 2013. Retrieved February 25, 2016.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg
  9. McNeese, Kevin (January 30, 2008). "Take 2 by Ill Harmonics". New Release Today. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  10. "Drummer Joins Ill Harmonics". Cross Rhythms . Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  11. Bain, David (December 1, 2004). "Ill Harmonics – Monkey Business". Cross Rhythms . Cross Rhythms (83). Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  12. "Harmonic Exhibit: US hip-hop team Ill Harmonics release new album". Cross Rhythms . Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  13. Inglis, Greg (July 21, 2007). "Modern Heart Exhibit – Ill Harmonics". Cross Rhythms . Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  14. "Loneliest Man – Single by Ill Harmonics on iTunes". iTunes . Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  15. 1 2 3 4 "Ill Harmonics". Discogs. Retrieved March 13, 2016.