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Cross was born 14 August 1983 in Detroit, Michigan, US and grew up absorbing conscious rap greats like J Dilla, A Tribe Called Quest, and Questlove. This influence is evident in his overarching style. Like these predecessors he makes beats that sedates the soul and spits lyrics that expands the mind. When he was not listening to revolutionary figures of the hip-hop industry he was experimenting with drum and karaoke machines in his basement, constructing lo-fi beats in a style that recall proto-punk acts like Suicide. Later down the road he updated to higher end recording equipment and unsurprisingly boasted a more sophisticated and intricate sound.
Curtis got his professional start at the very dawn of the 2000s. One of his very 1st production credits was on a 2001 compilation album released by Slum Village. His group B.R. Gunna, which he formed with Young RJ and Fat Ray released it’s follow up “Dirty District: Vol. 2”.
Within a year of B.R. Gunna’s formation the members called a hiatus. This prompted Curtis to start a solo career (hence the origin of Black Milk) and in 2005 released the mixtape/album “Sound of the City Vol. 1” through his self-established label, Music House Records. His next release, 2006s “Broken Wax EP” came out through the label Fat Beats, sister company to the USA’s largest independent distributor, Koch Entertainment. He also kept busy this year producing many of the tracks on the “Olio” mixtape from T3.
His 2nd studio album “Popular Demand” followed in 2007 and featured a list of aspiring artists from the Detroit area: Phat Kat Guilty Simpson, Slum Village and One Be Lo. In fact the whole album seemed to be heavily steeped in Detroit culture as most of the album’s samples were comprised of Detroit soul acts such as the Supremes, the Originals, The Miracles, and Aretha Franklin. If that was not enough the album’s release date of March 13 presumably relates to the Detroit area code 313.
2008 appeared to be one of the busiest years for Black Milk. He released three collaborative albums that year “Caltroit” with Bishop Lamont, “The Set Up” with Fat Ray and “The Preface” with Elzhi. His 3rd solo LP also came out that year and was met with positive reviews and moderate commercial success, hitting the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart at no. 76 and the Top Heatseekers chart at no. 12. This album also ventured from traditional R&B/soul samples, instead finding inspiration in electronic pop (Gary Numan), folk (Suzane Vega), and space-age prog (Tangerine Dread and Alan Parson’s Project). This release also sported appearances from Bilal, Pharoahe Monch, DJ Premier, and Sean Price.
Black Milk released very little material in 2009 with the exception of “Keep It Going”, which was the lead single from his 2010 “Album of the Year”. This album likewise was met with critical acclaim and broke into the Billboard 200 at no. 136. Contributions from Royce da 5’9”, Elzhi, Danny Brown, and Mr. Porter also graced this release.
More collaborations followed in 2011, seeing Curtis put out the album “Random Axe” with Sean Price and Guilty Simpson and the “Black Brown EP” with Danny Brown. His solo effort “No Poison No Paradise” came out in 2013 and his 6th studio album “There’s Hell Below” was issued in 2014.
Detroit rapper Black Milk is somewhat of a virtuoso beat maker. He can construct some of the most extraordinary sounds out of thin air and on top of that he has the lyrics to match them. If you don’t believe me just take a look at his appearance on “Rhythm Roulette” in which he samples a scratched up 70s christmas album and makes it into a relevant and interesting hip-hop track.
Black Milk’s music is individualistic but is also representative of his city’s rich musical heritage. After all Detroit is the home of Motown records as well as countless prominent jazz and blues musicians. These diverse styles are evidently filtered throughout his sound. It is widely recognized that Detroit has become known as one of the key cities for rap over the past decade. It is the home of hip-hop giant Eminem and has also spawned some of the most interesting up and coming acts Black Milk being one of them. Danny Brown is also a part of Detroit’s emergent rap scene and has created quite the sensation himself. His style is absurdist and oddly intelligent. Black Milk has also mixed ideas with Danny in their cleverly titled collaborative album “Black and Brown”. Perhaps one of the most interesting and unexpected Detroit influences Black Milk has integrated into his sound is techno music. While his music can spew the organic and raw character of soul music it can also embrace a strict mechanical trait. On some of his songs you can hear perfectly sequenced drumbeats and robot-like synth pulses.
Probably the most intriguing thing about Black Milk’s live performances is the fact he tours with a backing band. This is actually fairly rare to see at a rap concert. Most of the instrumental material is usually prerecorded and triggered by a DJ. However the majority of music you hear at a Black Milk show is played in real time. This is a bold and exciting risk considering the challenge of lining up fast pace rap verses with the free nature of a live band. The risk certainly pays off. The band adds a great extent of enthusiasm to the show and at times break out into very interesting improvisations and solos. Because all the music is not exactingly premeditated beforehand they have the opportunity to get more creative with their live performance. During one show the DJ and drummer went into a manic call and response spar. The DJ was scratching away with records while the drummer responded with rapid drum fills. This is just one of many examples of the unpredictable events going on at a Black Milk show and this sense of surprise is why so many people can’t help coming back for more.
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