Willie D of Geto Boys fame is no stranger to controversy or speaking his mind. The Houston rapper known for telling it like it is has found a new group to carry on his straight talk in the form of Huntzville.
Like The Geto Boys, Huntzville is a trio of composed of D-Boi, Lil Fly, and C-Lean. Willie D got involved with the group after receiving a demo CD. Impressed with what he heard, he decided to mentor the group.
In preparation for the 2009 debut, the group has tackled the hot button topic of school shootings with their single “Backpack Fulla Guns”
Unlike other songs that address school shootings, “Backpack” takes the listener into the mind of the shooter.
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“This is a topic that no one else is musically approaching in hiphop [sic], and we wanted to make a strong point of it,”C-Lean says. “Everybody can relate to being bullied or bullying. We wanted to get a dialogue going on this.”
C-Lean believes that society as a whole has become desensitized to the tragedies.
“It is so commonplace today, that on CNN the other day, they only ran a little tickertape on the bottom of the screen, saying there was another school shooting in Jersey. These are not even featured stories any more. No one seems to care.”
The group—following in the footsteps of elders in the rap game—hopes to use their music as a mirror for society. They’re also seeking to make music that will span the test of time.
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“The trend is that lot of rappers are not doing anything that is going to be relevant in five years. There is so much trendy stuff and dance stuff,” observes C-Lean. “We wanted to do something of substance that you could listen to in twenty years from now that would still be applicable. Unfortunately, kids are still going to be bullied in school 20 years from now, so people will relate to this topic in many ways, from many points of view.”
While the song is controversial in nature, Huntzville was explicitly clear that they’re not endorsing or glorifying school related violence.
“We’re not excusing it, glorifying it, or saying this uncontrollable reaction is what you should do,”Lil Fly states. “We’re trying to say this exists, and there are people who honestly feel like this, and who feel they have a reason and right to do this. We’re just bringing you inside what drives a person to be like this.”
Huntzville’s debut album, Disrupting the Ordinary, is scheduled for an early 2009 release.
