Maybe it’s because the percolating bass and percussive claps at the beginning of this record call to mind the funk that would prefigure hip hop, but it’s not a hip hop record I first think of when the Knox Family’s “In These Streets” comes on. It’s not a funk record either, although the band I’m thinking of was certainly influenced by both funk and early hip hop. No, it’s the Clash’s “Somebody Got Murdered” that wells up out of my subconscious the moment MC Jerm raps “Yo man, I don’t think they heard you” and a voice cries out in the dark, “a murder!”

And that makes sense. A big part of the Clash’s appeal was a bracing honesty that confronted the walls that keep us apart. Seattle’s The Knox Family takes us from behind any four walls we might like to think protect us and out into the darkness. Guest singer Toni Hill’s beautiful vocal is key to the intimacy of that journey as she reminds us, “Somebody’s praying in these streets/somebody’s dying in these streets/somebody’s hustling in these streets” and then takes it all in her immediate embrace with, “Somebody’s singing for you and me.”

The rest of the record goes further into the muck and mire that’s the current human condition than anything I’ve ever heard. What’s more amazing? It shines a light through.

In verse one, Julie C’s sassy and knowing rhymestyle catalogues a mind-numbing list of offensives in the “all out war against poor populations,” including intimidation tactics carried out by everyone from the FCC to the beat cop, gang legislation, privatized prisons and deaths caused by “non-lethal” weapons. This verse and the second are rapped against sirens that spiral between the left and right channels of the speakers and another voice in the night, making an unclear sound but plainly in distress…Somebody hustling or somebody dying.

And then Hill sings again, backed by a 5 note key progression that mines the same territory Timbaland’s been working lately but suggests a bigger, explicit dream— hope for every voice that currently goes unheard and faith in those voices to change the world.

Julie C’s second verse starts at the heights of Wall Street and follows the “global economic collapse.” She somehow hits on all of it, from the political stakes that lead to bank bailouts to the foreclosure of the homes of those small enough to fail. Before she’s finished, Julie C describes a globalized war between the rich and the poor.

With the stakes this high, Hill begins to tic off more of what “singing for you and me” means: “We gotta get together/’cause we need/ to heal the sick and hopeless/ yes, indeed/to strive for peace and justice/ equality/love for you and me.” With keys washing in behind her, Hill’s voice grows more reassuring and inspiring as she touches on each key to the future.

The third and final verse starts after the record’s turned the corner toward a fade out. Julie C raps a sign off and then, like James Brown throwing off his cape, she launches into, “Yo, violence is a symptom not the disease.” The dissonant sirens are gone now, replaced by flute-like keys and more percussion including high hat and snappy wood block beats. Something’s different about this last highly charged verse, though the signs stay grim, “Why is the city of Seattle dropping another 110 million to open a new jail we don’t need, while the district can’t even find a measly 3.6 to keep our schools from closing?”

And the difference is the cape-dropping intimacy. This last verse feels like an urgent whisper being passed on a streetcorner. “Want to know what’s really going on?” Julie C asks. “Just follow the paper trail to downtown Olympia, Wall Street, D.C./As long as poverty pimps keep profiting from our problems/We can’t wait for change/We gotta create our own solutions/Straight from the peoples’ movement.”

And with that, the Knox Family’s debut Ep is out. It’s the end of something very rich , though only 7 full tracks long. From the opening “Make Love,” DJ B-Girl has produced an infectious party record with a laid back, minimalist style that communicates class-conscious strength and unity. Though it’s laid back and minimalist, it also uses multi-colored keys and beats in continuously fresh and surprising ways. “In These Streets” is the perfect ending, justifying all the tough talk and hard play that come before.

But it’s more than that. It’s a singular piece of revolutionary art unlike anything else. It’s the blues of “The Message” wedded to a concrete basis for political unity. And it’s a spiritual, with Toni Hill’s refrains insisting that the human spirit was made to fulfill our dreams. It’s a song to suggest a new genre—not protest music so much as revolution rock—good for dancing, crying, shouting and even (especially?) blueprinting our dreams into reality.

Permalink: http://livinginstereo.com/?p=507

Click Link below to Listen to Knox Fam interview

Listen to Breakdown FM Interview of the Knox Fam

The Knox Fam consists of Seattle Hip Hop mainstays, Julie C, and Jerm from the super group Alpha P and well known producer DJ B-Girl. They came together to not only drop a nice album, but to also add to a serious community movement that the city’s Hip hop community has been sparking.

In other words Knox Fam are not simply rappers who are looking for commercial airplay or BET love. Sure, they’ll take it if offered. And they are more than talented to deserve it. However, what stands out first and foremost for the group is that they are community activists and organizers who are part of a larger more vibrant scene. Its not good enough to just flow on the mic. Nowadays many of the city’s heads are knee deep involved with some sort of organization or project. Maybe its 206 Zulu which has one of the larger and more exciting annual celebrations. Maybe its Hip Hop Congress which has Seattle as it the site of its conference later this year (July 29-Aug2). Maybe its community outlets like UmojaFest Peace Center or B-Girl Bench. Whatever the case for many in Seattle, Hip Hop is beyond music and the Knox Fam personifies that.

During our interview we kicked things off by talking with DJ B-Girl about the Seattle sound which has come along long ways since the early Sir Mix-A-Lot days. She explained that her production skillz and the Knox Fam has added to the underground sound as defined by stellar names like Vitamin D, Jake One, Blue Scholars and Gabriel Teodros to name a few.

We spoke with Jerm about the influence his two female counterparts Julie C and B-Girl have had on him. In an industry that is often criticized for being too male dominated, Jerm explained that the two forced him to step up his game and become more polished. He also talked about how he has built upon life experiences and reflect them in his rhymes. You’re not likely to hear him rhyming for the sake of riddling.

Later in the interview Julie C and B-Girl spoke about the strong presence of women in the Seattle scene. Julie C noted that many, including herself had been flowing and getting busy long before it became a trendy thing to focus on.. DJ B-Girl rattled off a long list of female emcees ranging from Canary Sing to Beloved One to Toni Hill who is featured on the Knox Fam EP. There were so many names of people who who are putting out dope material there’s no excuse to not have a female on the ticket of any Hip Hop show. If you can’t find someone go to Seattle cause they rolling extra deep.

During the interview Julie C expanded upon the community projects that the group is committed to including the Hip Hop Congress Goes Platinum project which is a innovative fund raising tool for the organization.

She also talked about the concept behind the groups’ name Knox Fam. She said it was inspired by the movie Natural Born Killers and that the Knox Fam understands they have to Destroy to Build. In this case they are about breaking the chains and challenging the long held notions and paradigms that in many ways has stifled Hip Hop and communities in general.

For example, we talked about the fact that the album took more than a year to make… Once upon a time that was the norm. People took their time and perfected their craft. Nowadays in the days of instant gratification, people step in a studio literally freestyle an album in 10 minutes and put out half ass material. DJ B-Girl noted it was important to take time to do things right. For her its not just producing and editing, but also getting the business aspect correct. The Knox Fam is on an independent B-Girl media label.

Julie C added that the group did not want to compromise or shortchange their community activities. In fact if anything the community involvement helped make the group and album more accountable to the communities they wanna speak to..

All in all the Knox Fam EP is just a the start of great things to come from this talented trio from the Emerald City. Currently they are on tour and in keeping true to their words, their tour involved them connecting and building with local community centers. Julie C described it as a homecoming of sorts..

Click Link Below to listen to Knox Fam Interview

Listen to Breakdown FM Interview of the Knox Fam

Return to Davey D’s Hip Hop Corner

http://hiphopandpolitics.wordpress.com/2009/06/08/breakdown-fm-the-knox-fam-destroy-to-build/

In this week’s issue of the Weekly, there’s a mini feature on local hip-hop group, the Knox Family, who just put out their self-titled EP and are having a release party for it tomorrow night at Chop Suey. The group is getting a lot of good feedback on the project and anyone looking for a fun hip-hop event to check out on Saturday night should go and support the trio.

Interestingly enough, local musicians Mark Oi and Andrew Miller have a hilarious hobby that I’ve been meaning to write about for awhile now — and here’s my chance. They make mini animated films (while they’re totally baked no doubt) just for fun, but the hand-drawn sketches that they make, which they later turn into animated films are really good. The series is called Porch Jams. This week, they made a 1:46 skit dedicated to the Knox Family and you’ve got to watch it to believe it. It’s full of comedy and good music — two things that the world needs more of so take a quick break and check it out.

http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/2009/05/the_knox_family_gets_animated.php

Street savvy styles with lyrics that speak on the real, and beats that slap…That’s what the Knox Family EP is bringing to the party. Listen carefully for that particular Seattle swagger that’s been kept under wraps for all these years. You are listening to Jerm and Julie C., some emcees that are highly under-rated, coming up for the last decade in a crew called Alpha-P. These cats rip it harder on the mic than most of the cats you hear on the radio, hands down. And with guest appearances by Rufio and Toni Hill, singing and harmonizing, the tracks really melt into your brain. By the way, the production by DJ B-Girl ain’t no joke either, so don’t sleep. Cop the EP today.

Track Listing:
1. News Flash Skit (Physical CD Only)
2. Make Love
3. Interlude
4. Boots Laced
5. Run Up
6. Born Bad Skit (Physical CD Only)
7. Couldn’t Handle That
8. Snake Skit (Physical CD Only)
9. World Turns Feat. Rufio
10. These Streets Feat. Toni Hill

Release Date: 05/20/2009
Photo by Marshall Reid
Graphic Design by DJ Audeos
Recorded at B-Girl Media
Mixed by DJ B-Girl
Mastered by Steve Turnidge at Ultraviolet Studios

Musicians can sometimes be too quick to box themselves into categories. Sometimes that’s a record label’s doing, other times it’s just mental laziness. But if you’re not trying to conform to industry standards and are lucky enough to be on a local label that understands you, why not have fun and smash all the boxes you can?

That’s a question MCs Jerm and Julie C started asking themselves a year ago when they formed the Knox Family along with local producer/label head DJ B-Girl. Although all three are involved in various other projects—Jerm also fronts Helladope, while Julie C works with Hip-Hop Congress/206 Zulu and DJ B-Girl heads an indie-media company—they found time to record songs together with the intent of challenging the expectations of Seattle’s hip-hop audience.
Jonathan Cunningham

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