Vibe.com, April 18th, 2006
North Carolina rap trio, Little Brother, has been on the grind since their college days on the campus of North Carolina Central University (NCCU) back in '99. NCCU’s “yard” was the meeting place for Phonte Coleman, Big Pooh and 9th Wonder. Now, seven years later, these three are still rocking together and making good music that’s gratifying to a universal hip hop audience.
With strong beliefs and an eternal desire to create meaningful music, Little Brother started recording tracks that were, according to them, self-fulfilling. The group wholeheartedly aims to makes music filled with intense passion. “Even if we were told when we were making The Listening that we wouldn’t make a dime off of it, we still would have made it for ourselves,” explains Phonte. “The love for making music is the foundation behind what we make.”
It’s this same method that L.B. applied when they dropped their debut ABB Records classic joint, The Listening. “We make the type of music that’s for [other] artists. The general public really aren’t fans of music per say, they’re just fans of songs,” says Phonte. “The average general public doesn’t have an intense passion for music the way an artist has the passion. So if the public don’t hear on the radio, then they’re not going to know Little Brother.”
It was after they released The Listening that hip hop listeners started paying close attention to their talent. Group member 9th Wonder actually branded himself as one of the illest producers in the game. 9th is best known for his work on Jay-Z’s The Black Album (“Threats”) and on Destiny’s Child Destiny Fulfilled (“Girl”).
Known for his drums, 9th sticks to a more soulful feel when making music. It’s this same heavy thump sound that is very addictive for rappers Phonte and Big Pooh. It’s the love for the richness in the music that has kept the Raleigh-Durham area group afloat in the game after so many years.
Little Brother follows this same suit when making music in general. After The Listening
