24-7 Spyz
24-7 Spyz (pronounced "twenty-four-seven spies") are an American rock band from the South Bronx, New York, formed in 1986, originally consisting of Jimi Hazel (born Wayne K. Richardson) (guitars), Rick Skatore (born Kenneth D. Lucas) (bass), Kindu Phibes (drums), and P. Fluid (born Peter Forrest) (vocals).[4] The band plays hard rock, heavy metal,[1] funk metal[2] and rap metal[3] songs which incorporate elements of jazz,[5] R&B, soul, reggae and hardcore punk.[4] The fact that they are African Americans playing variations of heavy metal led critics to compare them to bands such as Living Colour and Bad Brains.[4] After several lineup changes, the band broke up in 1998, but reformed in 2003 before releasing their first new album of original material in over a decade in 2006. As of 2021, the lineup of the band includes Hazel, Skatore, and drummer Tobias Ralph.
24-7 Spyz
South Bronx, New York, U.S.
- 1986–1998
- 2003–present
- In-Effect
- East West Records America
- Enemy
- What Are Records?
- The Gumbo Recording Company
Jimi Hazel
Rick Skatore
Tony Lewis
P. Fluid
Anthony Johnson
Matt Martin
Kindu Phibes
Mackie Jayson
Jeff Brodnax
Joel Maitoza
Sekou Lumumba
Ronny Drayton
Phillip "Fish" Fisher
Tobias Ralph
Band history[edit]
Early days and In-Effect Records[edit]
Upon their formation in 1986, the band, consisting of Jimi Hazel, Rick Skatore, Kindu Phibes, and P. Fluid, quickly earned a dedicated following in New York City due to the eclectic mix of their music. The band would switch gears from Motown and soul sounds with lush vocal harmonies to violent heavy metal and hardcore punk with ease, sometimes several times within the course of one song. Phibes left the band in 1987.
In 1988, In-Effect Records, a subsidiary of Relativity, signed the band which now included Anthony Johnson, formerly of the three-piece New York ska band, A-Kings, replacing Phibes on drums. The band released their debut album, the genre-hopping Harder Than You, produced by Bob Musso and Jimi Hazel, in December 1988.[4] The first single was a cover of the Kool & the Gang song "Jungle Boogie." Critics and fans took notice of the band's left-wing political stance and the unique sound of their tight-knit, high-energy music. The album sold just under 300,000 units due[6] to non-stop touring worldwide and became an underground hit. It remains a pioneering classic in the rock/funk/hip hop genre made popular in later years by such bands as 311, Limp Bizkit, and Kid Rock. The video for "Jungle Boogie" was the first single video on MTV to air on all of the following specialty shows: 120 Minutes, Yo! MTV Raps, Hard 60, and Headbangers Ball.
The band's second album, 1990's Gumbo Millennium, produced by Jimi Hazel and Tom Soares, was once again released through In-Effect Records.[4] The album was much softer than the previous effort, focusing mostly on clean guitar and lush R&B harmonies and grooves although it still contained elements of thrash metal and punk. The first single, "Don't Break My Heart!," while commercially viable, failed to receive radio airplay. Regardless, the album sold over 300,000 units once again due to massive amounts of touring and proved to be an underground success. It soon brought the attention of several major labels. The band were soon opening for Jane's Addiction on their 'Ritual De Lo Habitual' tour. The tour brought the band to a new audience but their growing success could not halt the sudden departure of Anthony Johnson and P. Fluid.[4] Fluid made the announcement of his departure during the band's live performance on the final date of the Jane's Addiction tour. Allegedly, he had not made it known to his bandmates beforehand. Johnson followed suit and, as a result of the departures, the band dropped out of a planned co-headlining tour with Suicidal Tendencies. Fluid soon made it known that he intended to start a new band named The P. Fluid Foundation.