Talk about a blast from the R&B past. Rochester's MusicFest begins this week and Rochesterians can kick back and listen to the old school sounds of Dru Hill this Saturday. All four members -- Sisqo (Mark Andrews) Jazz (Larry Anthony Jr), Nokio (Tamir Ruffin) and Tao (Antwuan Simpson) have been touring the country, finishing work on a new CD and are happy to take time out of their schedule to talk with The Challenger's 4-1-1 columnist Marsha Jones about everything from the music industries evolution to what Dru Hill means to them.
All four members of Dru Hill are natives of Baltimore, Maryland. "Our musical influences are too numerous to mention," jokes Nokio. "We listened to everything from R&B to gospel to Bach. We would just hear a song on the radio and it would just hit us emotionally.
"Nobody is like us," he adds. "No one has ever filled our shoes. We came into this musical game and took a different route."
The group was named after Druid Hill Park, a popular park on the West side of Baltimore, the name of which is pronounced "Dru Hill" in the local accent. Most of their early repertoire was made up of gospel music; the group eventually switched to the more commercially viable genre of R&B.
"Dru Hill is a family," stresses Tao. "We are like four brothers. We have our disagreements, we sometimes break each others balls, but we compliment each other musically."
"Being a part of Dru Hill has taught me that my music is organic fuel. It's a passionate situation," continues Sisqo. "Music isn't a warm or cold thing. The beauty of Dru Hill is that you have four separate entities that comprise this group." All four members, who attended high school together, took turn singing leads.
"Music is revealing a lot of stuff about ourselves and when you go to record music, it is a very personal thing. Our new cd made me really 'think'. Fans won't learn about my personal life. I'm staying focused and the words and music address a lot of today's current situations. They get a glimpse of what's going on today."
"Our music," adds Tao, "helps others express themselves. Our music releases your stress. Fans in Rochester can expect to hear our signature harmonies, melodies and love songs. They are gonna hear a lot of real stuff."
He explains that the industry has changed ten-fold from when they first started. Dru Hill had to initially worry about other upcoming and aspiring artists bootlegging their music. These days, the group confronts the "digital revolution." With the internet, the group has to worry about hackers. "People handle your e-mail account and steal your music. People are getting to music early and release stuff that isn't finished. They aren't concerned about quality, but we do."
The popularity of shows like American Idol and America's Got Talent also poses another issue: the perception of being an overnight sensation. "Every show is set up in a certain way. People are entertained by whatever entertains them. You can't put a stamp on it. When you see someone who becomes an overnight sensation, you really don't know what they have been through.
"A lot of artists do what they do; you have to balance the artists out. Twenty years ago, you had Phil Collins, N.W.A and Luther all out there at the same time. Back then, it was about music. Today, it's about making money...it's a business. When we were growing up it was about Boyz II Men and Jodeci. Younger generations don't have that variety of music. You have to expose them to it and then you let them make up their own minds."
What advice do they give aspiring musicians? Nokio says: "Just be true to what you do and keep your integrity as a musician."
Posted By: Marsha Jones
Thursday, July 22nd 2010 at 11:07AM
You can also
click
here to view all posts by this author...