After GRIP signed to Shady Records, Eminem appeared on one of his songs to deliver some prophetic words and sage advice:
“No pun intended, but GRIP, hold on to this moment
Cause soon as you reach the top, they’re gon’ want you to fall from it
So you better grab your seatbelt like I did mine, and fasten yours
Like a motherfucking plane-crash passenger
Cause one day, you’ll be crashing back to Earth.”
— Walkthrough!
While still on Shady Records, GRIP could feel “the ship sinking.” He joked that “In hip-hop you age in dog years. I already know where the ceiling is.” But rather than fully succumbing to the negative self-talk in his head, he externalized his thoughts into a project he could only describe as “Scattrbrain and the Unwavering Self Doubt” (aka Scattrbrain).
Over a virtual call from his place in Atlanta, GRIP smiles as he describes bringing shape to his pain: “I took where I was at and thought, if I was to make characters out of this situation, this unwavering self-doubt, what would it look like? What would it sound like? What color would it be? And what if I let myself exaggerate on some things to make the story more engaging like [Robert] DeNiro [in Martin Scorsese’s movie Taxi Driver]?”
Like DeNiro’s character passively accepting taxi routes from a dispatcher, GRIP describes a creative passivity that can take place in any hip-hop recording studio, even the best.
“In hip-hop, producers make a beat, or they’ll send you a pack of beats. You choose the one that hits you, but it’s already their idea. Then you have to put your idea on top of theirs as opposed to creating it all from scratch. I realized that the reason producers who rap can make hits for another artist is they were building the song the entire time. There are some producers in hip-hop who start creating songs from scratch, but most don’t.”
Like falling in love with a mistress, it wasn’t until GRIP started having jam sessions with GROUPLOVE members Daniel Gleason (bass), Ben Homola (drums), and Josh Smith a.k.a. Mallbangs (guitar) that GRIP was able to recognize that what he really craved was the opportunity to create music with other artists more organically. So, when the time came to re-sign with Shady Records, GRIP passed in exchange for a set of new challenges. The first adjustment he had to make — and was happy to make — was to alter his writing style without abandoning his talent as a syllable rapper.
GRIP explains, “Now, I have to be more potent. I have to say more in fewer words. With what we’re working on now, I might only have four or eight bars in a verse where with rap, there’s a lot of fluff. You’re rapping twelves or sixteens or twenty-fours.”
Scattrbrain’s song “Bombs Away” features GRIP’s infamous rap bars, yet he still maintains there’s not a lot of fluff in there. “It’s a story and there’s no room to write lyrics to rhyme for rhyming’s sake.”
Additionally, as part of his lyrical navigation, IDLES’ frontman Joe Talbot has offered GRIP guidance through Instagram DMs and backstage hangs.
I shared with GRIP that my favorite song on the Dug a Hole EP is “Melancholy Melodies” because it’s very reminiscent of the grunge sound where the music goes from soft to loud to soft again and does it in such a catchy manner. I was told the track found its origin in Smith’s melodic guitar riff, which GRIP layered on with lyrics that mimic a hangover. Even though GRIP found himself once again adding lyrics to another artist’s starting point, the fact that it was all happening organically made all the difference.
For engineer and co-producer T.J. Elias, GRIP’s background changed his perspective. Elias elaborates, “The way hip-hop artists tell stories, there’s a little more flare to it. I feel like with a typical rock artist or rock band, or even punk band, it’s just like, ‘Here’s a thing I’m pissed about, and it’s on this song, and I’m getting it all out on this one song, and then here’s another song about something else.’ You can listen to this [Scattrbrain] album all the way through and it’s like listening to a film.”
Scattrbrain hasn’t even released their first album (which is slated to come out on September 9). But already, GRIP has plans for their sophomore LP.
Leaning in a bit as if to tell a well-kept secret, he shares, “I’ll give you dibs on this one. The next album is called Scattrbrain in a Big Ass Scary World, but it’s the external version of the world we’re in now. It’ll be a continuation to where we’re leaving off.”
For now, Scattrbrain is getting ready to drive twelve hours from East Atlanta to Chicago as they open for Ecca Vandal at the Empty Bottle (Ukrainian Village) last Thursday night.
“I love Chicago. I love the river that runs through the city. I wish Atlanta had that. The lake’s so fuckin’ huge, it looks like the fuckin’ ocean. I’ve played at the Metro and House of Blues. Obviously, Scattrbrain hasn’t played Chicago before. And Ecca Vandal’s fuckin’ sick. I feel like our energy matches and the crowd will like what we bring to the table. It’s an opportunity to get in front of a lot of people at the right time, especially with Lolla going on. Our name being attached to something that’s been around for so long is cool. I’m stoked for that shit.”
Feeling his excitement coming through the screen, I ask a sobering question: “How independent can an artist really be?”
Confidently, he responds, “Of course, you’ve got your team, but the artist can be in control. You just have to have something you can leverage. If we keep running Scattrbrain up, people are going to come knocking regardless.”
“So, it’s possible [to rejoin a label]?”
“Yeah, it’s possible,” he answers quickly, like he’s already seen the future. “It’s a longer grind, but when it’s independent, it’s organic. I love the authenticity that comes with doing it by ourselves.”
Though the excitement is palpable, GRIP admits that even though he’s still writing 100% of the lyrics and doing vocals, a lot of people didn’t come over to Scattrbrain from GRIP.
“People don’t like change,” I observe plainly. “And not everyone can evolve with you. Not everyone’s moving like that. When you pick up new fans, that’s proof that you expanded. If you keep the same fanbase, you haven’t expanded.”
“Exactly, exactly.” GRIP loosens and nods.
Julie Simmons is a Chicago-based music journalist and founder of Music Makes You Think, whose work highlights emerging artists and established performers. She also likes to drum for fun.
