Fresh Sounds of Houston with BLAZE X BLACK

Source: FRESH Media TV

Meet Blaze x Black, a creative duo making their mark on the Houston music scene. They are known individually as Rick Blaze and Bishop V Black. Their story goes way back–they first met in a third-grade summer enrichment program in Fifth Ward. Though not music-related then, they reconnected by chance in their 20s and their partnership solidified organically. Rick Blaze's production skills and Bishop Black's unique approach impressed each other, building a strong foundation of trust.

When it comes to genre, Blaze X Black states it's simply "just music." They don't subscribe to a specific box but appreciate all types, citing influences like Pharrell and Tyler the Creator. Rick Blaze is seen as someone who "does exactly what he wants to do" with production, even creating tracks years ahead of their time. Bishop Black calls him the "the Pharrell of the South" and their sound is familiar yet new, simply good music that doesn't fit a mold.

Their new album, NAHIMSAYIN, uses a common colloquialism. The album is a journey that reflects inner-city life from the perspective of individuals who have chosen different paths than those often highlighted in hip-hop, aiming to inspire the next generation. A notable track, "Timmy Chan," was born from a spontaneous, literal real-time freestyle by Bishop Black over a beat Rick was playing one day.

Their desired legacy is for listeners to know they cared about the music, the message, and their community. They want to provide an outlook and outlet, showing it's cool to be from the hood and be smart or pursue diverse interests.

The NAHIMSAYIN album and merch are available now at blazeandblack.com. Take a look at a short part of our interview with Blaze x Black. The transcript excerpt has been altered for readability. For the entire interview, visit our YouTube channel, or listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

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Do you subscribe to a certain genre of music? What I hear is hip hop, but it's also very much infused with a lot of stuff. “Pinky Swear” opens up with a saxophone, and I was just like, "Wait, what is this? Is this jazzy?" There are some songs where y'all definitely pay homage to Houston. I hear some of the screwed. I hear some skits. I hear so many different elements. So, do y'all subscribe to a certain genre or subgenre of hip hop?

RICK BLAZE: It's just music to us. We love all types of music, when you listen to Tyler the Creator or Pharrell, those guys. When I think about music, I think about trying to get from point A to point B. It's just the sound–which vehicle you're going to take. It's just the change of transportation. So, I might take the sports car to get there. Or I might take the truck to get there. Or I might take the scooter to get there. It's just different ways to get there from point A to point B. And I think everybody doesn't do it because everybody can't do it. It's not an easy thing to pull off and still be yourself.

But we've, since day one, always just ridden our own wave, and I think that's what's taken a little bit long for us to bubble because we don't fit in a box, and you live in a world where people want to put everything in a box. So when you play outside of that box, you've got to build your own world and invite people into it because those who are used to and accustomed to the box are not going to know what to do with the information anyway.

BISHOP BLACK: That was a cute answer. Rick just does whatever the hell he wants to do. He sent it to me. He's like, "Hey, man, what are you going to do?” There's stuff that he makes that's so ahead of its time that I couldn't write anything to it until three or four years later. He just does exactly what he wants to do. He is literally the Quincy Jones, the Pharrell of the South. He literally does what he wants to do.

My job is to do what I do best, and that's why we work together so well. He doesn't have a certain sound where when he comes on, it's him, or oh, it's this type. No, you just know this is good music. It sounds familiar, but it's new. But, damn, this is good music. So, it's not a certain genre or anything. He's made some stuff that's so beautiful, it doesn't even need lyrics. It can literally be just a soundtrack to whatever.

So, I've been blessed to work with one of the greatest to ever do it. And that's been my goal through this musical journey to make sure that…I'll be heard, but I'm trying to make sure people know the impact of this music and these sounds and his genius. We'll never get another Rick Blaze. This is something to tune into. Y'all got to tune in because we'll never hear this again. We'll never hear this again.

Wow, Blaze. How does that make you feel? He called you the Pharrell of the South.

RICK BLAZE: Yeah. I have a song on the album that says, "I should be up there with Pharrell." So, I don't lack confidence, but I'll take it as a compliment.

What are your inspirations as far as producing goes, or just musically, period?

RICK BLAZE: When I first saw the album for N.E.R.D., In Search Of, I was like, "This is it." This is encompassing everything that I am. It's the outsider who has a viewpoint to see everything inside, right? So Pharrell's definitely one of my biggest influences. So yeah, Pharrell's a big influence. Michael Jackson's a big influence. Kirk Franklin's a big influence. So people who color outside the box typically are the people that I gravitate towards.

So, what about you, Black? What inspires you to rap, or who has inspired you in maybe your style or cadence, or do you have an inspiration?

BISHOP BLACK: I'm a big OutKast fan. So, Andre 3000 and Big Boi. Then N.E.R.D. is also, and that's where we really connected once we said N.E.R.D. around each other, because where we're from, people don't listen to that. People don't really listen to that. They all listen to the same thing or the same version of the same thing. So, having our musical influences and people that we listen to, it was two people that were really big. No, three people. So, four people. So, Prince, N.E.R.D., Eric Roberson, crazy enough, and The Dream.

Yeah, because one day, he had this drum set in the crib and he had these CDs or whatever. And when I saw Eric Roberson, I'm like, "Whoa, that be on my playlist for the ladies." I was like, "Oh, what do you know about E-Rob?" So, yeah, just going through those, and I'm just like, "Okay," I can really trust him with music. I can trust him with music. I'm not a producer. I can hear stuff, and I know what I like and I don't like, but I'm literally like let this guy just do whatever he wants to do, and you figure out a way to incorporate your world into what's going on.

So, it helps me rhyme better because I'm just like I could do whatever the hell I want to do too. But still, I got to make it make sense, and then he'll go back in after I lay whatever I lay and he'll make my stuff just sounds better than it is. He'll drop the beat out, he'll add a little something…I don't do my own ad-libs really. So it's usually him under me doing ad-libs, making it make sense. When I say he's for real in every aspect, he is for real in every aspect. He may do something in the song–a harmony part, and I'll tell the engineer, "Hey, I want this under my verse the whole time," or I want this somewhere in my verse the whole time. I'll take a piece. I'll sample him on his record to make my stuff make sense. So, I ain't just all rappity rappity…Not around here.

But that's amazing because I can see just with what you're talking about, the kind of music that you like versus what he likes. I can see how y'all easily mesh together and have that kind of musical chemistry. And it's great that y'all are able to trust each other like that because I mean, trust is the biggest thing when collaborating with somebody to create art, especially when you're creating art and you don't always want to expose people to what you're creating because you're like, "Oh, they might not appreciate this, or they might steal it, or they might do this.” But I'm glad that y'all are able to come together and– just work creatively. It sounds like so much fun. To be a fly on the wall in the studio–y'all are having fun.

RICK BLAZE: Now, I will say, the studio component is an interesting dynamic. Oh my God. When you see a studio and you see people in the studio, usually you see two people hammering out a song. It's not really like that with us for the most part. I do most of the work at home, and I send him an idea, and then he'll come up with a verse, and he'll come over and record it. He'll come up with his verse, which I don't typically hear. He'll let me know when he's ready. He'll come over and record it, and boom. That's just it.

So that's our workflow now. It wasn't always like that, but that just goes back again to the trust factor, right? Where we don't have to be in the same room. I don't ever question to see what verse he's going to come up with. I just know when he comes and lays it down, it's going to be fire.

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Follow Blaze x Black on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Music. Check out their video for their single, “Alright,” below.

Source: Blaze x Black