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| BIG K.R.I.T performs at A3C Fest Photo by Patrice Worthy |
Big K.R.I.T. gets on stage in jeans and white T-shirt just like the ones you can buy at a local gas station. He sips Hennessey on his birthday, eats candied yams, and when in the company of a lady says ‘yes ma’am.’ Born in Meridian, Mississippi and residing in Atlanta, BIG K.R.I.T. keeps his swag authentically southern. His music, like most rap from the South revolves around a beat and hook, but Big K.R.I.T. holds fast to a long overlooked southern tradition - the tradition of lyricism. His effortless ability to story tell over a slow syrupy beat keeps him right where he wants to be- somewhere coolin’ between the popularity of mainstream and the grittiness of the underground.
To some outside of the South, the sound coming from below the Mason-Dixon line is not real hip-hop , but don’t tell that to K.R.I.T. fans. When he hits the stage to perform ‘Me and my Ol’ School” or his classic Southern anthem “Country Shit ” the crowd recites his lyrics word for word bobbin their heads and bouncing their hands as if they are in a car riding down Glenwood Ave or Old National Highway.
Pull up hop out clean /in my ol’ school time machine/keep a parachute for this altitude/ cause when you ridin’ this high it make hard to breathe/Let me tell you bout this country sh*t
K.R.I.T.’s songs are laced with images of big country booties, collard greens, ol’ school cars and the street culture that can only be found in the hoods of Magnolia, East Atlanta and Obie Clark in Mississippi. K.R.I.T.’s music, like that of ol’ school rappers from New York, gives a voice to the underclass and underserved. He was born country and is going to stay country and for Big K.R.I.T. he does best when talking about what he’s lived.
“I’m proud to be country and proud to be Southern. I grew up in the South. Growing up I listened to groups like Outkast, UGK, MJG and Scarface. These people were all proud to be country and proud to be Southern too. So I am going to do the same,” K.R.I.T. says. “I am going to showcase my southerness and talk about what goes on in my backyard and my community.”
As the new voice of Southern hip-hop K.R.I.T. has big shoes to fill. His storytelling and true to life lyrics are influenced by B.B. King, one of the best lyricists to ever come out of the South.
“I’m also going to bring subject matter and content. The stipulation is that if you from the South you may not have a lot to say,” K.R.I.T. explains. “I go to other places and they’ll ask ‘How do you feel about the South being lyrical now?’ I’m like man you missed out on a generation of lyrical artists. I grew up listening to nothing but lyricism from Southern artists.”
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| BIG KRIT performs at One Music festival photo credit Samantha Yancey, Wildy Civil for ONE Musicfest |
“I got to work with a lot of legends, a lot of Ol’ Gs like Bun B, 8 Ball MJG, Ludacris T.I. and David Banner,” he explains. “I feel like I got a lot of mentors I can reach out to and call that can help me with my trials and tribulations in this industry.”
K.R.I.T. has worked with the biggest names out of the South and if there is a song about the South that needs a fresh perspective K.R.I.T. is who they call. His debut album “Live from The Underground” features heavy hitters such as B.B. King, 8 Ball MJG, Ludacris, 2 Chainz, Anthony Hamilton, and Melanie Fiona, a testament to the respect he has earned as an artist. To K.R.I.T. being a Southern artist puts him on the peripheral of hip-hop which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
“When I think of mainstream I think of how many people know your music. Underground is when you start off being independent being in your area and region,” K.R.I.T. explains. “Social networks have made it to where an underground artist can be mainstream because a person like me on Twitter or Facebook can go check out somebody they couldn’t of 10 or 15 years ago when you had to push your album out the trunk. So now underground is merged with the mainstream and that is why I call my album “Live From The Underground.”