Introducing: Them Concrete Boyz

By pipersunshine

The scoop on Them Concrete Boyz comes off a bit fairytale-ish in the retelling. The serendipity of the Concrete Boyz initial encounter with the camp that now controls their production, 2Bold Entertainment, makes their current success seem fated. And perhaps it is. But rarely does a new group on an indie label move 500 units out of Best Buy in two days without investing some hard work.

Augusta’s own new sensation knows a little something about the grind. At an obviously young, yet undisclosed age, these cats have put in more time hustling their music, than many of their would-be detractors realize.  With a work ethic undoubtedly influenced by Augusta’s own Patron Saint of Funk, the Hardest Working Man in Show Business, Dr. James Brown  (who, incidentally, had been scheduled to record the intro for their debut album, but sadly, passed away just days before) this duo has been hustling tracks for over 5 years now. Their first hit emerged when a standout track from a series of self-produced underground CDs, made the unprecedented jump from obscure mixtape to popular radio request. ‘My Dickies’ continues to merit prime radio airtime today, several years after its original release.

Once upon a time several years ago, Yogi and sometime partner V. Gates happened through Wal-Mart, blowing off some steam, and noticed Blike perusing CDs. For reasons none of the parties can recall at this time, Yogi randomly asked Blike if he rapped. He responded with a crisp freestyle right off the top of his head. Yogi, impressed, asked which school Blike attended. When he replied ARC (Academy of Richmond County High School), Yogi asked if he had ever heard of “this cat, Blike”, known to set it off in the hallways of his high school between classes. He went on to explain that he and V were shopping for new artists to bring through Yogi’s older brother Darnik ‘Spock’ McAlpin’s studio, the home of 2Bold Entertainment. Caught off guard by the coincidence, Blike was initially mistrustful of the offer, but after relating his encounter to partner Skinni, the two agreed to make a trip to the Atlanta studio. The experience proved mutually beneficial and soon, the pair was spending every weekend in tha A, taking off after school on Fridays and returning just in time for class Monday mornings.  This routine would have left most of their peers exhausted, but Them Concrete Boyz were energized by their work.

According to V. Gates, after several weeks of allowing them to “just dump material, and get it out of their system”, the team began to record in earnest, and soon the notorious My Dickies song was born. In January of 2005, Skinni, Blike, V, and Yogi burned over 5000 copies of the track on their home computers. Affixing the discs with leftover Christmas labels indicating the artist and song title, they began to flood the city with the song.  From local high schools to known DJs, they handed copies to any and everyone. By the following spring, the song was hitting the airwaves from Atlanta to South Carolina, and throughout the Southeast.

And yet as their fan base grows, so it seems does the list of local haters. Groups of their peers would discredit their popularity because they didn’t originate in Atlanta, the city viewed by many local youth to be the current hub of southern hip-hop. The Boyz seem motivated by the challenge of correcting this misassumption, “Augusta is the second largest city in Georgia”, says Blike, “and music doesn’t have to come out of Atlanta to be hot! This is the home of James Brown… We’ve got soul right here!”

Blike is southern all day. Hailing from Washington County, not far from Wrens, GA, he laces his verses with an emphasis on his deep south accent. It has become a trademark of sorts for his flow, complete with phonetic spelling. Blike, is in fact a derivation of his nickname ‘little black’, but with a southern twist. His commitment to his Georgia roots is no gimmick, however. When asked how he hopes to benefit from future fame, he replied without hesitation: “(By) blowin up the AUG!” In an industry climate where most artists display a preoccupation with material gain, earning money and then flossin their pricey toys, Blike’s dreams of success include organizing family friendly festivals, and all expense paid community days.  He describes it as, “a place where folks can come with their kids and chill, eat, (and) listen to music, without worrying about having to pay for anything.” Also, he spoke of opening a “lavish, luxurious (night)club in Augusta” to help counteract the impression that locals need to travel to more metropolitan cities for a sumptuous nightlife experience. By no means a slight to other cities, Blike just wants to nurture a sense of pride in his hometown.

His partner shares his enthusiasm for Augusta. In response to a question about how he personally defines success he replied: “Selling 10,000 copies out of Augusta alone!…and traveling all over doin what we do”. Well, he came by the latter honestly as well. Skinni, is an Augusta transplant by way of Army ‘brat’ hood.

Though he comes off as the Quiet One, Skinni’s contemplative nature comes through in his rhymes; the meter of his delivery is adventurous, and his lyrics are often very illustrative. He first delved into music as a sort of private hobby; purchasing and tinkering with the sequencing program Fruity Loops and recording tracks and rhymes for his own amusement. Eventually, he says, he began to share his creations with his boys in sort of impromptu jam sessions, as a way of amping up for a night out. This practice led to his fortuitous meeting with soon-to-be partner Blike, when Blike’s little brother, privy to one of the aforementioned ciphers, introduced Skinni to his sib, a rap enthusiast and at the time merely a closet lyricist.

The two were soon working together regularly, even distributing crude mixes of their material around their respective schools, ARC and Hephzibah High.  By the time they crossed paths with Yogi and V, their style had been established though not yet honed. Citing their sources of inspiration, they name their city, Augusta, first and foremost, followed by the requisite collection of A-list rappers, OutKast, LiWeezy, Busta, Jigga and T.I. (sorry TIP). The CD hustling high schoolers are now a far cry from the two young rappers whose debut album boasts guest appearances from Rich Boy and the legendary Pastor Troy.

And haters take note: Their path wasn’t mapped by some fairy godmother; it was trod through much hard work and dedication.