So Solid Crew

So Solid Crew
Origin Battersea, London, England
Genres UK garage, grime, hip hop
Years active 1998–present
Labels Independiente Limited, Relentless
Associated acts Beenie Man, Oxide & Neutrino
Members Lisa Maffia
Romeo
Megaman
Oxide & Neutrino
Harvey
G-Man
Skat D
Swiss
Face
MAC
Kaish
Asher D[1]
Past members Carl Morgan

So Solid Crew are an English garage, grime and hip hop group originating from Battersea, London which achieved wide success in the early 2000s. The group consisted of a large number of members, the most notable being Lisa Maffia, Romeo and Harvey. They are generally credited with having paved the way for the current generation of crossover UK hip hop stars.[2]

Members

So Solid Crew is a large group which has expanded from 19 initial members to 30. One of the drivers for their first big single, "21 Seconds", was to ensure each of the members's faces were shown to stop impersonation.[3]

Confirmed members

Background

Before breaking into the mainstream market, So Solid Crew were involved with many pirate radio stations in London, such as Supreme FM and Delight FM. It was at Delight where they made their name, occupying most of the Sunday schedule, the so-called "So Solid Sundays". From around lunchtime until 10pm, there were shows from different members, where the various So Solid Crew DJs would play 2-step garage tracks. At times, the So Solid Crew emcees would rap on top of tracks for up to two hours each session. On Christmas Day in 2001, So Solid Crew performed their last Sunday show on the station.[10]

History

So Solid Crew's first album They Don't Know was released in October 2001, followed by a remix album entitled Fuck It in December 2001. Their hit singles include "Oh No (Sentimental Things)" and "21 Seconds", the latter reaching number one in the UK Singles Chart in August 2001. Another hit, "They Don't Know", reached number three in November 2001 and "Haters" got to number eight in January 2002. "Ride Wid Us" was less successful (UK number 19 in April 2002). They released a single, "Broken Silence" in 2003 which spoke out about government prejudice which they felt they had faced.[11]

In 2002, they were the subject of the Channel 4 television documentary This Is So Solid directed and narrated by David Upshal,[12] later released on DVD by Universal along with a live performance. Members Harvey, Romeo and Lisa Maffia have all appeared on the Channel 4 celebrity reality show The Games. In 2012, Romeo and Harvey each appeared in a separate series of Celebrity Big Brother, in the 9th and 10th series respectively; they both finished in sixth place in their respective series. The band's former producer, Carl Morgan, was convicted of murder in October 2005.[13] Group member Dwayne Vincent (Megaman) was also accused but was cleared after a retrial.[14]

Harvey has gone solo and has produced tracks such as "We Ride" with Doom Man, Swiss, JME & Skepta. So Solid Crew MC Asher D has gone on to have an acting career appearing in 50 Cent's Get Rich or Die Tryin' and in the British films Bullet Boy and Life and Lyrics, while still making independent mixtapes and albums in the grime and UK hip hop scene. Member Swiss released "Cry" featuring Sharifa. Trigger is now working with UK/US based producer Clyde Ward on his solo project JAX and features in UK based band The Fallen's debut album track "Maybe".

In February 2013, the group announced its 2013 tour.[15]

Discography

Studio albums

Year Album UK Albums Chart[16]
2001 They Don't Know 6
2003 2nd Verse 70
2013 The Greatest Hits -

Compilations and mixtapes

Singles

Year Song UK
[16]		 Album
2000 "Oh No (Sentimental Things) / Dilemma" - They Don't Know
2001 "21 Seconds" 1
"They Don't Know" 3
"Haters" 8
2002 "Ride Wid Us" 19
2003 "Broken Silence" 9 2nd Verse
2004 "So Grimey" 62
2010 "Since You Went Away" 82
2013 "UK Hot Wid It" - The Greatest Hits

References

  1. ↑ "SOLID GOLD; LISA MAFFIA IS BACK WITH SO SOLID CREW AND SAYS THEY ARE ALL OLDER AND WISER.". Daily Mirror. 15 January 2010. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  2. ↑ Ashley Walters interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' December 2012
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Barnes, Jake (19 October 2001). "Triple MOBO winners So Solid Crew are determined to make sure their fame lasts longer than 21 Seconds.". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  4. ↑ "So Solid: 'The UK needs us back'". BBC News. 20 January 2010.
  5. ↑ "Rap producer jailed for shooting". BBC News. 28 October 2005. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  6. ↑ "So Solid Crew: MC Harvey". BBC News. 27 January 2003. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "So Solid star jailed over gun". BBC News. 19 June 2003. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Lyle, Peter (27 July 2003). "MAFFIA HIT". The Independent. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  9. ↑ "So Solid Crew:'2nd Verse'". All Music. 25 November 2003.
  10. ↑ Jamie Jackson (26 October 2006). "A history of So Solid Crew | Music | Observer Music Monthly". London: Guardian. Retrieved 2013-02-12.
  11. ↑ "So Solid: 'England needs us back". BBC. 20 January 2010. Retrieved 2010-01-20.
  12. ↑ Alexis Petridis (14 October 2002). "So Solid Crew: the official version | Music". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2013-02-12.
  13. ↑ "News.bbc.co.uk". News.bbc.co.uk. 2005-10-28. Retrieved 2011-12-10.
  14. ↑ "NME.com". NME.com. 2006-09-29. Retrieved 2011-12-10.
  15. ↑ "So Solid Crew Tickets". NME. Retrieved 26 February 2013.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 513. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.

External links