PRINTPartners in Rhyme
Rhyme University sends a wake-up Call
Courtesy of Rhyme University; Colleen McDevitt
Black Caesar, left, and his brother, Bustrip, scope the forest for inspiration. The two began rhyming through e-mail.
June 12, 2008 | 12:00 a.m. CST
Musical inspiration comes in many forms, but for local hip-hop group Rhyme University, it is global wisdom that powers their heady rhymes and diced beats. Members and brothers Tony and Charles Iyoho, known as Bustrip and Black Caesar, were first inspired to craft their political verse in Muscat, Oman, where Charles attended school. Their Nigerian parents’ music collection of soul and funk provided beat inspiration for the future rappers. “Anytime we’d drive to soccer games or anything, our dad used to always put in Nigerian music,” Black Caesar says.
In 2006, the brothers released their first album under the name Rhyme University. They call their music “conscious rap” and say it is meant to provoke reflection. “Our music is headphone music,” Black Caesar says. “It’s the type of music where you can just lay back and just vibe to really deep and poetic lyrics.”
Click here to listen to an interview with Rhyme University about "conscious rap."
What: Rhyme University CD Release Concert
When: Wed., 9 p.m.
Where: The Blue Fugue
Cost: $5
Call: 815-9995
Tony relies heavily on his music collection to create the band’s beats.
Now, Rhyme University is poised to make its third mark on Columbia’s hip-hop scene with The Mo(u)rning Call on June 18. Black Caesar, who works outside of Houston as a newspaper reporter, makes his first return to Columbia since summer of 2007 for a performance and release party.
Click here to listen to the brothers discuss the title of their new album.
If you go, be prepared to pay attention — the focal point of Rhyme University is the wordplay. Following in the footsteps of sharp-tongued groups like the Wu-Tang Clan, the brothers carve verses crowded with metaphors and disguised undertones and at times draw from a pop chorus. Some love stories are sprinkled in, but most of the subject matter is explicitly political, as in “Prayer,” when a livid Bustrip screams “Can’t get a blast of wind when asthma attacks begin / and that’s a trend for the men who are black in skin.”
Because the brothers live in separate states, Bustrip composes the instrumentals and sends them to his brother over the Internet. Black Caesar then frames a concept for the track, and the two begin writing verses. Once the lyrics are complete, the two meet in person to record the album. “It only took us about a week to finish The Mo(u)rning Call,” Bustrip says.
The beats are minimalist and raw. Produced entirely by Bustrip in his combination studio-bedroom, the beats are coarse with a vintage hum reminiscent of early ’90s hip-hop. Bustrip says his range of obscure sampling, which varies from sitars and strings to ragtime horns on “Tap Dance,” comes from his vinyl collection.
Although Rhyme University isn’t offering a Lil Jon-esque experience, the duo hopes it can offer a little more than an insta-rapper experience with its albums and live performances. “I feel like I’m imparting some wisdom as far as, don’t worry about things, don’t worry about what other people think because it won’t matter,” Bustrip says. We’re all together; love each other.”
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