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LA Symphony is an underground hip hop group from Los Angeles, California. Current members of L.A. Symphony are FLYNN, UNO Mas, CookBook, Joey the Jerk, and Sharlok Poems. Past members include Pigeon John and bTwice AKA the Inglewood President of the Brainwash Projects, J-Beits AKA Great Jason and Trendi MC (who compose Halieyoos Fishermen with Sharlok Poems), Xpress, Gaja and Beond of Acid Reign.
Formed in 1997 during a time when West Coast hip-hop was better known for gangsta rap and its graphic portrayals of sex and violence, the crew rose through the ranks of Los Angeles' underground hip-hop scene with a distinctively organic vibe intended to "connect with the common man."
While attracting a burgeoning fan-base and receiving early interest from record labels, the band decided to release the first album, 1999's Composition #1 independently on record label eartube empire. Despite its spotty distribution, people began to take notice, including Steve Taylor of Squint Entertainment. Having established industry respect with hit releases from Sixpence None the Richer and Chevelle, Squint was looking to expand into the hip-hop market and wanted an act that was accessible but also thought provoking. They believed that LA Symphony had the qualities they were looking for.
After building up a buzz, LAS's Squint debut, Call It What You Want, was hotly anticipated by both industry insiders and aficionados alike. With tracks produced by the band and guest producers Mario C (Beastie Boys), will.i.am (Black Eyed Peas), and Prince Paul, the project's debut single "Broken Tape Decks" was lauded by critics.
However, due to internal problems at the label, the album would never see the light of day, and the band endured a four-year struggle to record and release another album. During the interim, they continued to tour relentlessly, opening for major acts like Jurassic 5 and Black Eyed Peas, and playing major events, including the NBA All-Star Jam Tour, the Warped Tour during its Los Angeles appearance, and The Night Hip-Hop Stole Christmas. They quietly released The Baloney EP in 2002.
Discography
Composition No.1 (1999)
Baloney (E.P.)
Big Broke L.A. (Promo E.P., 2001)
Call It What You Want (Officially Unreleased)
The End Is Now (2003)
Less Than Zero (E.P., 2005)
Disappear Here (2005)
External links
Gotee Records | American hip hop groups | Christian hip hop groups
"LA Symphony"