Thrilla
Artist: Mr Del
URL: http://www.myspace.com/holysouthmusicLabel
Label: Holy South Music
Tracks: 20 Tracks/80 min

You know, when I bought my first album (vinyl, not shellac) there were only a few styles of music available to the discerning buyer. They included country (midwest and Californian), bluegrass,folk, and rock, which probably had the most sub-genres including pop--progressive--and psychedelic, to name a few. Then there was pop, punk and disco. Yup, good old disco. I could dance once, before my hips started to stiffen and I got pains in my feet and lower back. At least I have my memories . . . for now. My 23-year-old daughter is a dancer, and a good one at that (my youngest son wants to learn the Melbourne Shuffle). She has done several performances and stuff. She mostly does Hip Hop, but is into a bit of poppin' and crunk too. Not bad for an Italian born kid living in Australia!

By the mid '80s, music had several new styles emerging, along with a myriad of new sub-genres. Now we have so many styles, genres and sub-genres it is hard to keep up (all part of the marketing machine). In the mid '80s, I was getting into Hip Hop, which in itself is an interesting genre. In the few short years hip-hop has been around, it has mixed itself with rock, metal, industrial metal, drum n' bass, and spawned several sub-genres, including west/east coast, conscious and battle wrap, gangsta, hyphy, snap, ragga, Southern rap and crunk, just to name a few.

Anyway, back to my daughters dancing and in particular "crunk." What the hey is "crunk," I hear you say. Glad you asked. According to the urban dictionary the term was defined--In 1995, Conan O'Brien and Andy Richter were scheming ways to get past the TV censors on Conan's late night talk show, and they settled on an all-purpose, suitable replacement for the infamous seven dirty swearwords that they couldn't say on TV: Crunk. The choice to use that word was definitely not random. Ice T just happened to be on the show that night, and he likely fed the word to them beforehand and certainly helped fuel its popularity during the telecast ("That was seriously crunked up, right there."). But Ice never claimed to have come up with the word--he probably got it from Dirty South rappers, who had been using it for years as a euphemism for getting really crazy and #@&*$% up on marijuana and alcohol (stoned and drunk. Chronic plus Drunk = Crunk). Or maybe crack and drunk. Or coke and drunk. Or maybe just being crazy and drunk. Whatever it is, it means getting really crazy and #@&*$% up. And with Conan's introduction of the word to northern suburban audiences, Crunk came into its own as the recognized sound of the new generation of Dirty South Rap . . . (http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=crunk).

But as my youngest can tell you it was Dr Suess who first used the word crunk, saying, "You can go on stilts.You can go by fish. You can go in a Crunk-Car
if you wish." (Marvin K Money Will You Go Now Please! Dr Suess, 1972). Yup, a children's story writer used the word crunk over 30 years ago. Hip Hop/poet Jon Watts has referenced the good Dr. Seuss on his album, self, but I think it's about time some Crunker paid their dues and put Dr. Seuss' rhymes into an album.

In fact, I think the founders/pioneers of Crunk, Three-Six-Mafia, should take up the cause. 'Bout time they put out a kiddies' album, minus the expletives, of course. Dr. Seuss just wouldn't sound the same! Can't see Three-Six-Mafia doing that. It'll never happen hey? My dreams have been dashed.

Well maybe Mr Del could consider it. As a founding member of the platinum selling genre defining group, Three-Six-Mafia, he is more than qualified in making my dream come true of a Dr. Seuss inspired crunk album. Mr Del is a prolific writer releasing four albums over a three-year period, so he might be able to fit a Dr. Seuss album in? Maybe?

Until then we have his latest offering, Thrilla, to keep us all entertained. The good thing is my boys love listening Mr Del, so he is already gaining a ready audience in the Boynton household for a possible Dr. Seuss album.

Seriously, Mr Del is the real deal. It is not very often a founder of a musical style joins the ranks of the Christian community. You can correct me if I am wrong (I have been many times before), but the last one I can remember is Larry Norman who is credited with starting the whole CCM scene. Not that Mr Norman joined anything, but like Mr Del. he is responsible for starting a new genre. Just like Norman, I have no doubt Mr Del will be misunderstood. As with other Hip Hop artists like Journey and LPG, Mr Dels' focus is on the mainstream scene and attempting to reach those who need to hear the gospel most - the lost and hurting. There was a term coined (I like to think by myself of course) for folks like these: musissonary or musissonaries for obvious reasons.

And true to a musissonary's call, Mr Del (or should I say Pastor Del. Yup, he has a church in Memphis, Tennessee and now Atlanta, Georgia) is not so interested in ministering to the churched as he with introducing Jesus Christ to the unchurched with his music. He has even started his own label, Holy South, to reach that goal.

Talking about his music and views on the scene in a 2005 interview he said that, "From a music standpoint, it's definitely a level of passion," shares the Holy South mogul. "Secular people seem like they are more passionate about their god, the devil, then we are about Jesus. The reason I say that is that for some reason, these saved folks think that it's gotta be less hard when you're saying Jesus. It should be more hardcore when you're saying Jesus. They tailor it because they feel like the only place we can go is the church and since the church doesn't understand, we've gotta water it down, make it churchy, and throw a choir in there. Now I have no problems with choirs and people singing on hooks. I have Out of Eden in my CD player. I love them and I'm a street head but you will never say that my song is not comparable to a Ja Rule and an Ashanti. That's what type of flavor it's on.

"But I think that many in holy hip-hop do a lot of compromising as far as music. They're not as passionate to do what God gave them. God gave everybody an individual gift and He wants you to do it to death. He doesn't want you to conform it to make somebody else like it so it can get into a church so you can get a little $300 offering. I believe if God really called you to something, He's going to take care of you and I'm a living witness of that.

"I left millions of dollars," continues Del. "My cars were taken from me. I was about to get evicted every day for about a year and a half. Every month I got an eviction notice. To this day, I can't tell you how God sustained me but something happened. Either I was being sent money or somebody gave me money. Something was going on where I was living by a string but I didn't lose the place where I stayed. I still stay in the suburbs but I did lose my cars, my money, and I lost everything. But in those four years, I got it back like a hundred times." (<http://gospelflava.com>gospelflava.com)

Crunk started in Tennessee and Georgia and has slower beats than hip-hop (similar to Reggaeton), and is mostly party music full of profanity and attitude. Though not played on mainstream radio, it has gained a large fan base.

So what is this CD like?
As a recent convert to crunk--thanks to my daughter--I love this disc. With great beats, good production and un-compromising lyrics, Mr Del has delivered an energetic creation with enough variety to keep any hip-hop listener interested, even if not a crunk devotee. He collaborates with label mates and friends to turn out a very good disc.

Musically, Mr Del mixes it up a bit. He mostly keeps true to the Southern rap/crunk style, but throws in a bit of east coast bounce for good measure. He is joined by a good mix of guests--male and female--to keep it sounding interesting on the mic without losing sight of where he is going. The result is that this disc hold its own the whole way through without losing focus, which can happen when an artist tries to mix it up too much or is joined by too many guests.

I loved Lecraes' disc because he is intellectual and showed me God through his lyrics and music in an uncompromising fashion. Mr Del is on the same shelf for me. They both appear to have the same passion to reveal the truth of God to all who will listen.

So if you have fading memories of your youth and are now having your musical tastes dictated to you by your kids, or maybe you really are into hip-hop, do yourself a favour and give Mr Del a spin.

Rob Boynton