RC & The Gritz

RC & The Gritz are an American soul, R&B, and hip-hop band with origins in Dallas, Texas. Led by RC Williams, formed in 2004. RC & the Gritz currently provide live instrumentation for Erykah Badu.[1][2]

RC & The Gritz
OriginDallas, Texas, U.S.
GenresHip-Hop, jazz, funk, fusion, soul
Years active2004–present
Labels
Associated acts
Websitercandthegritz.com
Members
  • RC Williams
  • Cleon Edwards
  • Braylon Lacy
  • Jah Born
  • Jonathan Mones
  • Claudia Melton
  • Evan Knight
  • Mike Jelani Brooks
Past membersTaRon Lockett

History

RC's professional career began at the age of 19 by joining Kirk Franklin's 25 member choir, God's Property. A commercially successful gospel group and winner of accolades including Dove, Grammy, and Stellar awards. God's Property is most popular known for their Grammy-winning hit, "Stomp".[3]

During the early 2000s, RC assumed the role of Music Director, Producer and Keyboardist for Erykah Badu. After connecting with veteran producer Jah Born who also contributed to Badu's discography (known most for his production behind the single '"On & On" from the Baduizm album), RC and other members of the newly formed Gritz band began hosting an open mic and jam session. This weekly event served as a vehicle to expose some of the talent in Dalla-Ft. Worth Metroplex and was frequently visited by friends of the band including Mos Def, Talib Kweli, and other Hip-Hop favorites.[4] The event took place at the now defunct Prophet Bar in the Deep Ellum area of Dallas.

RC & The Gritz released their debut album Pay Your Tab independently in 2013 containing the single "That Kinda Girl" which featured Snoop Dogg and Raheem DeVaughn.[5] The band would go on to work with artists such as Sarah Jaffe, Bernard Wright, Shaun Martin, and Shelley Carrol on their follow up album and first release under the Ropeadope label, The Feel in 2016.[6] In 2019, Devin The Dude, Bobby Sessions, and N'Dambi all make appearances on the third release from the Grtiz, Analog World, also released under the Philadelphia based Ropeadope.[7] The album Live In LA was performed and recorded live during a pop-up show in Hollywood, California.

Members

RC & The Gritz has eight primary members and 11 rotating members.

Primary
  • RC Williams – Keys, Vocals
  • Cleon Edwards – Drums
  • Braylon Lacy – Bass
  • Jah Born – Programmer/MPC
  • Jonathan Mones – Alto Sax, Flute
  • Claudia Melton – Vocals
  • Evan Knight – Sax
  • Mike Jelani Brooks – Tenor Saxophone, Flute

Rotating
  • Miracle Foster – (Vocals)
  • Durand Bernarr – Vocals
  • Matt Ramsey – Bass
  • Mark Lettieri – Guitar
  • Bianca Rodriguez – Vocals
  • A.J. Brown – Bass
  • Nicholas Rothouse – Percussion
  • Kazunori Tanaka – Trumpet
  • Mike Clowes – Guitar
  • Marcus Jones – Drums
  • Frank Moka- Percussion

Discography
  • Pay Your Tab (Independent, 2013)
  • The Feel (Ropeadope, 2016)
  • Analog World (Ropeadope, 2019)
  • Live In LA (Spectrasonics) (Independent, 2019)
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References
  1. "Erykah Badu's band, RC and the Gritz, adds New Orleans concert". OffBeat Magazine. Retrieved 2019-10-10.
  2. Erykah Badu: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert, retrieved 2019-10-10
  3. Raggio, Eva (2016-12-09). "RC Williams Opens Up About His Wild Ride as Erykah Badu's Musical Director". Dallas Observer. Retrieved 2019-10-10.
  4. "RC & the Gritz Invite You to Dallas' Best Jam Session". D Magazine. 2016-11-07. Retrieved 2019-10-10.
  5. "RC & the Gritz Invite You to Dallas' Best Jam Session". D Magazine. 2016-11-07. Retrieved 2019-10-10.
  6. "Stream RC & The Gritz New Album 'The Feel' [Premiere]". Okayplayer. 2016-11-04. Retrieved 2019-10-10.
  7. "RC & The Gritz – Analog World, a playlist by ddtwhalley on Spotify". Spotify. Retrieved 2019-10-10.
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