Lordz of Brooklyn
Encyclopedia
Lordz Of Brooklyn now known as The Lordz are an American
crossover Hip hop
/Rock group composed of brothers and childhood friends of mostly Irish American
and Italian American
descent from Brooklyn
, New York
. The original line up consisted of the McLeer brothers, ADM (previously Ad Money, born Adam McLeer) and MC Kaves (Michael McLeer, born 1969), with Scotty Edge, Dino Bottz and Paulie Nugent (aka Paulie 2Times). Both Kaves and Edge were part of the 80s New York underground graffiti culture, and graffiti featured heavily in their music in songs like Tales From The Rails, Bomb The System, and Out Ta Bomb.
Throughout their career, the Lordz Of Brooklyn have collaborated with many artists, including Everlast
, Bumpy Knuckles, Liroy
, Busta Rhymes
("Forget Bout It Bout It"), Ozzy Osbourne (Busta Rhyme's "Iron Man" cover), Tim Armstrong
("Outlaw"), KoRn
("White Trash" remix), Shanti
("Momma's Boy" new version), Danny Diablo
("PSK What Does It Mean" Schooly D cover) and others.
On June 7, 1994, Donna and Michele Blanchard, the mother and sister of ADM and Kaves aged 43 and 4 respectively, died from a hit-and-run in Brooklyn. It remains unsolved to this day. Kaves described his mother as a hippie
who encouraged him and his brother to pursue their interest in hip hop. The McLeer brothers are of mixed Italian, Russian, Irish, English, and Scottish descent.
While touring with House of Pain
in mid 90s, the group befriended Everlast
with whom they recorded "Gravesend (Lake Of Fire)
" and some exclusive songs on their own for the 1997 indie film Gravesend
. The song itself was remixed by Marshall Goodman from Sublime
/Long Beach Dub Allstars
fame, for Marshall Arts Music (MVP Version) and by Lord Finesse
who added verses by himself and O.C., but cut Everlast's verse. A second Lord Finesse remix was made and added new verses by Everlast and Lordz Of Brooklyn, both versions, however, were only available on a promotional single. The edit was used in the end credits music for the videogame Mafia: The City of Lost Heaven
.
purchased American Recordings and Venture got closed. The three track EP also featured a song with Ozzy Osbourne
sampled in the chorus and a song with Freddie Foxxx
aka Bumpy Knuckles and IP aka Ice Pirate.
2000 also saw the release of the Lordz Of Brooklyn cover version of Run DMC's Hip hop
classic "Sucker MCs" on the tribute album Take A Bite Outta Rhyme: A Rock Tribute To Rap. Their version featured Stoned Soul and Everlast and is reportedly Run's favorite Run DMC cover.
The group's next album release, Graffiti Roc, was rather a compilation of various previously recorded tracks than a proper studio album, and followed in 2003. It featured Busta Rhymes
, Korn
, Rampage of the Flipmode Squad
, and others. Now, the groups' style leaned towards a crossover sound of both Hip Hop and Rock influences. By that time, Scotty Edge, Dino Bottz and Paulie 2Times have already left, and the McLeer brothers added live musicians on guitar (Patrick Saccenti), bass and drums to tour festivals such as Vans Warped Tour in 2003, 2004 and 2005.
, Jaret Reddick of Bowling for Soup
and Tim Armstrong of Rancid
. But not only the name has changed, the group's sound changed as well, there are only very few, if any, hip-hop references. The majority of the songs are now rock-driven.
In 2007, Scotty Edge has rejoined the group for their spring tour with Fishbone
.
In April 2008, The Lordz had their own reality TV show on Fuse
entitled "The Brooklyn Way" which focused on the McLeer brothers' life and times since before 2006. Later that year, they were playing all dates of the 2008 Vans Warped Tour and were also touring the US with Everlast.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
crossover Hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
/Rock group composed of brothers and childhood friends of mostly Irish American
Irish American
Irish Americans are citizens of the United States who can trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau...
and Italian American
Italian American
An Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...
descent from Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. The original line up consisted of the McLeer brothers, ADM (previously Ad Money, born Adam McLeer) and MC Kaves (Michael McLeer, born 1969), with Scotty Edge, Dino Bottz and Paulie Nugent (aka Paulie 2Times). Both Kaves and Edge were part of the 80s New York underground graffiti culture, and graffiti featured heavily in their music in songs like Tales From The Rails, Bomb The System, and Out Ta Bomb.
Throughout their career, the Lordz Of Brooklyn have collaborated with many artists, including Everlast
Everlast (musician)
Erik Francis Schrody , better known by his stage name Everlast, is a Grammy Award-winning American rapper and songwriter, known for his solo hit "What It's Like" and as the front-man for rap group House of Pain. He is also part of the hip-hop supergroup La Coka Nostra, which consists of members of...
, Bumpy Knuckles, Liroy
Liroy
Piotr Marzec , better known as Liroy , is a rapper living in Kielce.He is one of the pioneers of rap & hip-hop culture in Poland. His CDs include East On Da Mic ,Albóóm,...
, Busta Rhymes
Busta Rhymes
Trevor Tahiem Smith, Jr., better known by his stage name Busta Rhymes ,Smith is an American rapper, producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the alias Busta Rhymes after NFL wide receiver George "Buster" Rhymes...
("Forget Bout It Bout It"), Ozzy Osbourne (Busta Rhyme's "Iron Man" cover), Tim Armstrong
Tim Armstrong
Timothy Lockwood Armstrong is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known for his work with punk rock bands Rancid, Operation Ivy, Downfall, and the Transplants. He is also the owner and operator of Hellcat Records.-Personal life:Armstrong was born November 25, 1965 and was...
("Outlaw"), KoRn
Korn
Korn is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The current band line up includes four members: Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Ray Luzier. The band was formed as an expansion of L.A.P.D.The band released their first demo album,...
("White Trash" remix), Shanti
Shanti Wintergate
Shanti Wintergate is a Canadian/American musician/actress/writer. Her debut album, "This Moment" hit airwaves across Canada, the United States, South America, Japan. "The Beauty" was featured in Charmed and Joan of Arcadia...
("Momma's Boy" new version), Danny Diablo
Danny Diablo
Danny Diablo a.k.a. Lord Ezec is an underground recording artist focusing mainly in the worlds of hardcore punk and hip hop. He has fronted the hardcore bands Crown of Thornz and Skarhead and is known for his heavily tattooed image and his Queens-bred thug lifestyle.-Early life:Dan Singer was born...
("PSK What Does It Mean" Schooly D cover) and others.
1992-1997
The group was initially formed in 1992. Signed to American Recordings/Ventrue, Lordz debuted with All In The Family in 1995. It contained the underground hit single "Saturday Nite Fever", based on a sample of Guess Who's "American Woman". The video to this song has the rare distinction of having been featured twice on separate episodes of Beavis and Butthead.On June 7, 1994, Donna and Michele Blanchard, the mother and sister of ADM and Kaves aged 43 and 4 respectively, died from a hit-and-run in Brooklyn. It remains unsolved to this day. Kaves described his mother as a hippie
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
who encouraged him and his brother to pursue their interest in hip hop. The McLeer brothers are of mixed Italian, Russian, Irish, English, and Scottish descent.
While touring with House of Pain
House of Pain
House of Pain is an American hip hop group who released three albums in the 1990s before lead rapper Everlast left to pursue his solo career again. The group's name is a reference to the H.G. Wells novel The Island of Dr...
in mid 90s, the group befriended Everlast
Everlast (musician)
Erik Francis Schrody , better known by his stage name Everlast, is a Grammy Award-winning American rapper and songwriter, known for his solo hit "What It's Like" and as the front-man for rap group House of Pain. He is also part of the hip-hop supergroup La Coka Nostra, which consists of members of...
with whom they recorded "Gravesend (Lake Of Fire)
Lake of Fire (song)
"Lake of Fire" is a song by the American alternative rock band the Meat Puppets. It appears on their 1983 album, Meat Puppets II and consists of three choruses, punctuated by two verses, in the key of G#....
" and some exclusive songs on their own for the 1997 indie film Gravesend
Gravesend (film)
Gravesend is a 1997 criminal drama film directed by Salvatore Stabile.-Plot summary:Four friends from the ghetto get involved in a careless prank which goes badly wrong. As their weekend spirals out of control, they try to "fix" the situation with criminal acts and only succeed in making things...
. The song itself was remixed by Marshall Goodman from Sublime
Sublime (band)
Sublime was an American ska punk band from Long Beach, California, formed in 1988. The band's line-up, unchanged until their breakup, consisted of Bradley Nowell , Eric Wilson and Bud Gaugh . Michael "Miguel" Happoldt also contributed on a few Sublime songs, such as "New Thrash." Lou Dog, Nowell's...
/Long Beach Dub Allstars
Long Beach Dub Allstars
The Long Beach Dub Allstars were a dub reggae/ska/rock band formed in 1997 and disbanded in 2002.-History:Eric Wilson and Bud Gaugh met in childhood and later started their first garage punk band, consisting of drums, bass and vocals. They later formed Sublime with Brad Nowell...
fame, for Marshall Arts Music (MVP Version) and by Lord Finesse
Lord Finesse
Lord Finesse is a Hip hop artist and producer, hailing from The Bronx, New York, best known as the leader of the D.I.T.C. rap crew.- Career :...
who added verses by himself and O.C., but cut Everlast's verse. A second Lord Finesse remix was made and added new verses by Everlast and Lordz Of Brooklyn, both versions, however, were only available on a promotional single. The edit was used in the end credits music for the videogame Mafia: The City of Lost Heaven
Mafia: The City of Lost Heaven
Mafia is a third-person shooter video game initially made for Microsoft Windows in . It was developed by Czech company Illusion Softworks and published by Gathering of Developers...
.
2000-2005
The Lord Finesse short remix was not released to the public until the Lordz Of Brooklyn next release, the 2000 Vinyl EP The Lordz Of Brooklyn Meet Bumpy Knuckles, released on their own and distributed through Landspeed since Island RecordsIsland Records
Island Records is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group...
purchased American Recordings and Venture got closed. The three track EP also featured a song with Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
sampled in the chorus and a song with Freddie Foxxx
Freddie Foxxx
Freddie Foxxx, also known as Bumpy Knuckles, is an American rapper and music producer from Long Island, New York.- Biography :...
aka Bumpy Knuckles and IP aka Ice Pirate.
2000 also saw the release of the Lordz Of Brooklyn cover version of Run DMC's Hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
classic "Sucker MCs" on the tribute album Take A Bite Outta Rhyme: A Rock Tribute To Rap. Their version featured Stoned Soul and Everlast and is reportedly Run's favorite Run DMC cover.
The group's next album release, Graffiti Roc, was rather a compilation of various previously recorded tracks than a proper studio album, and followed in 2003. It featured Busta Rhymes
Busta Rhymes
Trevor Tahiem Smith, Jr., better known by his stage name Busta Rhymes ,Smith is an American rapper, producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the alias Busta Rhymes after NFL wide receiver George "Buster" Rhymes...
, Korn
Korn
Korn is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The current band line up includes four members: Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Ray Luzier. The band was formed as an expansion of L.A.P.D.The band released their first demo album,...
, Rampage of the Flipmode Squad
Flipmode Squad
The Flipmode Squad is a production crew and musical group, founded and fronted by rapper Busta Rhymes. The first Flipmode album debuted in 1998 with The Imperial, Rampage and Rah Digga went on to record solo efforts...
, and others. Now, the groups' style leaned towards a crossover sound of both Hip Hop and Rock influences. By that time, Scotty Edge, Dino Bottz and Paulie 2Times have already left, and the McLeer brothers added live musicians on guitar (Patrick Saccenti), bass and drums to tour festivals such as Vans Warped Tour in 2003, 2004 and 2005.
2006-Present
In 2006 the group shortened their name for the release of the third album The Brooklyn Way. Featured artists are long time collaborator Everlast, Bedouin SoundclashBedouin Soundclash
Bedouin Soundclash is a Canadian band currently based in Toronto. Their sound can be described as reggae and ska.-History:The band's current lineup consists of vocalist and guitarist Jay Malinowski, and bassist Eon Sinclair with Sekou Lumumba on drums. Their debut album, Root Fire, released in 2001...
, Jaret Reddick of Bowling for Soup
Bowling for Soup
Bowling for Soup is an American pop-punk band which originally formed in Wichita Falls, Texas in 1994...
and Tim Armstrong of Rancid
Rancid (band)
Rancid is an American punk rock band formed in Berkeley, California in 1991. Founded by Tim Armstrong and Matt Freeman, both of whom previously played in the ska punk band Operation Ivy, Rancid is credited—along with Green Day and The Offspring—for reviving mainstream interest in punk rock in the...
. But not only the name has changed, the group's sound changed as well, there are only very few, if any, hip-hop references. The majority of the songs are now rock-driven.
In 2007, Scotty Edge has rejoined the group for their spring tour with Fishbone
Fishbone
Fishbone is a U.S. alternative rock band formed in 1979 in Los Angeles, California, which plays a fusion of ska, punk rock, funk, hard rock and soul. Critics have noted of the band: "Fishbone was one of the most distinctive and eclectic alternative rock bands of the late '80s...
.
In April 2008, The Lordz had their own reality TV show on Fuse
Fuse TV
Fuse is an American national television network dedicated exclusively to music. It features original series and specials, exclusive interviews, live concerts and video blocks....
entitled "The Brooklyn Way" which focused on the McLeer brothers' life and times since before 2006. Later that year, they were playing all dates of the 2008 Vans Warped Tour and were also touring the US with Everlast.
Discography
- All in the Family (1995)
- Graffiti Roc (2003)
- The Brooklyn Way (2006)
External links
- lordzofbrooklyn.com original site
- thelordz.com new site
- Lordz Of Brooklyn at MySpaceMySpaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....