Bio/Press
Grip Grand is a rapper, producer, and songwriter best known for his rapping, producing, and songwriting. He has been compared to everyone from Andre to Kanye, from the mighty Mos Def to the metal-faced Doom, and his vocals have been sampled by Madlib. Favoring a melodic and musical production style, he’s also plenty nice with the synthy keys and 808s. In short, they don’t call him Mr. Versatility for nothing. And by him, I mean me. I hate it when people write their own bios in the third person. I wrote this first-personally. So I guess it’s an autobio, strictly speaking.
My life has been a lot like Marco Polo’s, insofar as if I told you all the places I’ve lived and the dates that I lived there, you’d be bored to tears by the end. Let’s just say that I’ve had a lot of phone numbers, but most of them had a California prefix.
I was born in San Francisco, where I spent my first decade. My second decade passed me by in sunny Los Angeles. I headed to Portland, Oregon long enough to get a BA in Russian and German Literature. I speak neither language.
After my years in Oregon, I went back to the Bay, where I teamed up with the Rec-League All-Stars, Bomb Hip Hop Records, and eventually DJ Design’s Look Records. I’ve been putting out my own music since 1999; my first full album, Welcome to Broakland, came out in 2002; my second solo long-player, Brokelore—featuring hip-hop luminaries Percee P and A.G., among others—dropped in 2008.
Since then, I’ve released two mixtapes, a full-length instrumental album, and numerous collaborations with other artists, both in the US and abroad. A new mixtape, a new full-length album (produced entirely by MF Shalem), and a third solo album are all in the works. My calendar is looking pretty full for the future.
My work has appeared in well-known print publications such as XLR8R and XXL, and my newest album has been praised online at websites ranging from Okayplayer to IGN. I was featured on URB Magazine’s prestigious Next 100 list in 2005, and the East Bay Express named me Best Rapper in their 2007 Best Of issue. In addition, regular people totally like my music. Not all of them, you know, but some, for sure. They write me and say so themselves. I don’t think they have any reason to lie about it.
Help me help you. Grip Grand…try it, you’ll like it.
Grip Grand on iTunes
Grip Grand on Facebook
Grip Grand on Myspace
Grip Grand on Allmusic
Grip Grand in XXL
Grip Grand Top 5 in WYDU Best of 2008, Editor’s Picks
Grip Grand in WYDU Top 100 Songs of 2008, #42
Grip Grand in WYDU Top 100 Songs of 2008, #65
Grip Grand Number One in RapReviews Best of 2008
Grip Grand in City Sound Inertia Top 10 Albums of 2008
Grip Grand in Stories In High Fidelity Top 20 Albums of 2008
Grip Grand in IGN.com 95 Best of 2008
Grip Grand in Santa Cruz Metro Best Hip-Hop of 2008
Grip Grand in East Bay Express Best Music of 2008
Grip Grand in East Bay Express Best Rapper 2007
Grip Grand on Access Hip Hop
Grip Grand on RapReviews.com
Grip Grand on XLR8R.com
Grip Grand on Blogarythms @ Okayplayer.com
Grip Grand on IGN.com
Grip Grand on Wake Your Daughter Up
Grip Grand Interview on Rap4Fame
Grip Grand on The Gray Area
Grip Grand Interview (circa 2002) on Bomb Hip Hop
Grip Grand in Bomb Comp Review on Okayplayer.com
Grip Grand in DJ Design Jetlag Review on Monkeyboxing.com
Grip Grand in DJ Design Jetlag Review on sfbayguardian.com
Grip Grand in DJ Design Jetlag Review on plugonemag.com
