The Live Experience

Courtesy Storage 24

Baby Phred and a newly formed Storage 24 headline "Rock and Rap III: The Rebirth" next Friday at Hal & Mal's.
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by Bryan Doyle
September 10, 2008

The Jackson music scene has its fair share of rock bands and hip-hop acts, but seldom will one see the artists performing on the same side of town, let alone at the same venue. On Friday, Sept. 19, Hal & Mal’s will provide the venue for fans of rap and rock alike to come together and jam under one roof.

“Rock and Rap III: The Rebirth” will feature a slate of prominent local rap and rock acts to guide each artist’s individual followings across the genre divide.

For a show featuring rock and rap artists alike, there is perhaps no better headliner than Storage 24, who will play live for the first time since the band broke up in 2007.

The multiracial rock/rap act and their heavy, energetic tunes are no stranger to the Jackson scene. The band built a substantial following during their brief tenure in Jackson with an almost completely different lineup, and in 2007, Jackson Free Press readers voted the band “Best Rock Band.”

Joining original vocalist Baby Phred are new members DJ Brayks and Fondren Radio’s Daniel Guaqueta on drums.

“Storage 24 helps bridge the gap. Yes, there’s rap. Yes, there’s rock. But this night is going to show that these genres can converge and it’s not that big of a deal,” Guaqueta says. “We’re pulling in people from all different angles here. And the beauty of it is that it’s all Jackson music.”

The rest of the lineup includes Plan B, Kamikaze, and three JFP 2008 Artists to Watch: indie rockers Red Hill City, astro-rapper 7even:Thirty, and the inspirational hip-hop artist 5th Child.

“With Mississippi always being looked upon as a separatist state with a racist history where black people and white people normally don’t party together and go to concerts together, we thought we could put fans of both genres in the same room and see what happens,” Kamikaze says. “The live experience always changes people’s perception.”

This is the first cross-genre experience for the likes of Red Hill City, according to guitarist Joe Regan.

“We’re all excited because we’ve never done anything like this before—the rock and rap coming together,” he says. “It’s something that Jackson will be into. We really don’t know what to expect but I think that good things are going to happen.”

To 7even:Thirty, whose lyrics are literally out of this world (much of musings focus on his mother ship and interstellar travel), rock and rap are similar in numerous ways.

“I like both genres of music, the rock and the rap. When it’s put together the right way, it’s a beautiful thing,” 7even:Thirty says. “I think both genres have a lot to say, and they both pretty much say the same thing. Rock is the voice of the people and hip-hop is the voice of the people. (This kind of collaboration) should happen as much as we can make it happen.”

Sponsored and organized by the Mississippi Artists and Producers Coalition, the Jackson Arts Collective and the National Hip-Hop Congress, the event is in its third year, and depending on community feedback, organizers are considering the possibility of moving beyond annual shows to something more regular.

The MAP Coalition was formed four years ago to unite Mississippi artists, serve as a conduit for sharing fan bases and act as a teaching vehicle for the state’s musicians. The MAP Coalition meets monthly and offers seminars for budding musicians. Past classes have covered running a record label, marketing and how to approach area radio.

One of the reasons for organizing these functions is to encourage Mississippi and Jackson venues to book local artists.

“We do that better when we come together in a unified front than doing it separately,” Kamikaze says. “We want to put our artists in an arena where they can do what they do best. The only way that Mississippi is going to win is if we do it together.”

“Rock and Rap III: The Rebirth” is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 19. $10 cover. Artists interested in attending the next meeting of the MAP Coalition should e-mail mapcoalition@gmail.com or call 601-807-6005.

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