Gryndhousz is the cousin of Grammy Award-winning soul singer, John Legend. Despite being related to a music superstar the independent artist has no plans to follow in his cousin’s footsteps to become a household name. In a fascinating interview with NuFlex Magazine – his first UK print interview,Gryndhousz talks candidly about his forthcoming album, his relationship with John Legend, why the UK is a better place than the USA to be in as an independent artist, why major labels don’t always support their artists fully, and he reveals which of today’s rappers he believes lack the talent that greats like Tupacand Notorious BIG had, plus much more…
Hi Gryndhousz! Thanks for giving us your time for this interview. Few people in the UK will be familiar with the name, so tell us a little bit about yourself…
I have been recording and writing as a profession for the past eight years, but I have been writing for fifteen years. I grew up in the era where you actually had to be able to have lyrical skills and word play to be respected. Nowadays it’s about hot beats and hooks, so I found a way to adapt to the new definition of what’s hot now while still keeping the lyrical and skills element to it. My music is relatable to the average person. They live and see the same things I talk about. A lot of today’s artists sound good, but the average person is not living the same kind of life that they are talking about in their songs. The average person will probably never see the things these cats talk about.
Whose music did you grow up listening to, and who would you consider your biggest musical influences?
I’m an R&B guy at heart. That’s what I write so I grew up on the likes of: Jodeci, Blackstreet, Intro, R.Kelly, Joe, Faith Evans, and Mary J. Blige. My favourite rappers or groups of all-time are: Naughty By Nature, Jay-Z, Rakim, Kanye West, Kool G Rap, Biggie Smalls and Tupac.
To read full interview with Gryndhousz please visit Nuflexmag!
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