There is no definitive way to describe Paul Lewis and Jon Numonics. In essence, Paul Lewis and Jon Numonics are pushing hip hop forward by taking it back to where it started. The name itself is a throwback to an era in hip hop where lyricism was valued and chopping up a sample was considered an artform. "When we were considering names for our group we didn't want to go with something cliche or something that is not representative of who we are. We decided to go with just our names as an homage to the greats like Eric B and Rakim and Pete Rock and CL Smooth. They didn't need a catchy name or some gimmick to represent their music and we felt the same way" says Jon Numonics. What makes a musical group legendary is when the members are alike but completely different at the same time. That trait is definitely the case with this particular hip hop group based out of Tampa, FL. Both Paul Lewis and Jon Numonics hail from South Florida (Ft Lauderdale and West Palm Beach respectfully) and were raised in families whose origins are deeply rooted within the Tri-State area of the United States. That unique mixture of being raised in the South with the mentality of a Northerner is quite apparent in their music. "When we first started, that was our main goal as a collective. We wanted to make music that didn't have a particular geographical sound. With hip hop, you generally know where the artist is from just from either hearing the beat or how the MC flows. I think with our music there is a distinct blend of all types of hip hop, ranging from fast paced percussion you hear in Southern Hip Hop to the ingenius use of soul samples that you normally expect from most New York based hip hop" explains Paul Lewis. In 2002, The pair had moved to Tampa to further their education at the University of South Florida but shortly during the tenure the drive to be creative was vastly more powerful than anything that could be found in a text book. Oddly enough, both Paul Lewis Werner (aka Promise) and Jonathan Rosenfeld (Numonics) found themselves dropping out of college to put their efforts full time in honing their crafts as artists. "What I always found strange is we both moved to Tampa from other areas of the state at the same time, knew all the same people and dropped out at the same time yet we never met" says Jon Numonics. It took a mutual friend named Maurice Mendes to have the two eventually meet in late 2004. "It just made sense to me. Jon was always good with the keyboard and Paul could always spit. I kept telling Jon that I knew a guy that spit flames on the mic and he should meet up with him. Well, he finally did and the rest was history. They've recorded ever since" explains Mendes. Soon after the initial meeting they began recording their first songs. The very first one, "Sweet Sensation", would later turn into one of the stellar tracks from their debut LP "First Name Basis". It was that instant chemistry that fueled the creation of Pyramid Builders LLC and led to multiple performances including an opening slot for Hip Hop legend Common and the respect of their peers.
"First Name Basis" is truly a unique project but not nearly as unique as the pair that created it.
[LOVEMYFLASH]
