Cross of Da Gutta Fam - ProfilesArchive

About Me

CHECK OUT DIS JOINT WE DID FOR 50 CENT! (A GUTTA FAM PRODUCTION OF COURSE) ALSO CHECK OUT THE OTHER JOINT CALLED FAMILY MATTERS! WE GOT U 50!!!
THANK YOUS!
SINGIN' YOU WILL KNOW AT MR FINGAZ SPOT!
CLASSIC HIP HOP LOOP
REHEARSING IN ASTORIA, QUEENS, NYC! (NEEDLZ AND MR FINGAZ WILDIN')
RELEASE PARTY FOR THE KIDS FROM QUEENSBRIDGE (PROJECT EXCEL, NONPROFIT ORG). THEY WROTE SONGS, RHYMES AND POETRY TALKING ABOUT THEIR LIVES. I DID PRODUCTION. CHECK OUT THE FOOTAGE 11/9/07MESSIN' AROUND WIT PURPLE HAZE (JIMI)
AMANI IN CONCERT (NEEDLZ DAUGHTER)DA BRIDGE! (QNS, NYC) .. Myspace Layout Generator-Layoutgen.com
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You might not see him coming. Donning a pair of loose fitting jeans, a Stevie Wonder T-shirt and a bucket hat pulled below his eyes, Cross leans back in the small club booth as if he is patiently awaiting the opening act. Just as the room gets packed to capacity, the young artist floats to the stage with the poise of a veteran. The banter in the room is hushed. He begins to play the keyboard, and then he opens his mouth. You have crossed the point of no return.
The crooner, who can quote John Lennon, Toni Morrison, Nas, and Bob Dylan all in one sentence, fuses the past and the future, then packages it up and delivers it as the present. I grew up listening to Marvin and Stevie, watching Sanford and Son while flipping back and forth from the Honeymooners. Of course youll hear some of that heritage and old school soul in my music because thats a part of me.
Cross pure passion for music took a hold of him as a child while performing in church. Under the guidance of his father, who doubled as the minister of music, the young musician has been belting out electrifying performances since the tender age of 5. I always knew that I would be an entertainer, Cross reflects on his musical ambition. Since I was a kid I never wanted to be anything else.
Its impossible to pigeonhole the 24 year-old artist into a box. Upon first impression one would think that he was a rapper, ready to rip the stage with heavy-handed lyrics and chest-caving percussion. But when he begins to showcase his raw vocal talent, it is clear that he has a presence that can transcend boundaries and genres. They say I could fit in any era, he quips beaming with natural energy. Whether it be the Motown and Stax era of the 60's, the blues of the 50's, the Jazz of the 40's, Thomas A. Dorsey's mixture of blues and sacred music of the 30's, the 90's sound, I guess I'm pretty flexible.
Much more than just your typical R&B singer, the Jamaica Queens native, along with production partners, Da Gutta Fam, have penned and produced countless classic records for A-List artists ranging from Usher to DMX, Musiq to Ghostface Killah. It was the creation of Montell Jordans hit record Get It On Tonight that garnered the crew a Number 1 in Pop and R&B stripe while ushering them into the limelight as credible musical sources. I like to work with artists who can make your vision come to life while adding themselves to it, Cross comments on his musical career path. But when I step on a stage, theres nothing like it. Plus nobody can sing my songs like I can.
Planning to take his musical career to the next level, the artist became a member of the group, Morrison Slick, and began to chisel out his own style of music. The band signed a deal with legendary duo Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Flyte Time Records (Arista), but plans of a release were derailed due to the closure of the record label.
It was this minor setback that propelled Cross into action. When we would shop joints to labels they kept asking about my availability and we'd always turn them down and say 'he's in Morrison Slick.' Da Gutta Fam members suggested we get behind me as a solo act. This is how Cross got started.
One listen to his latest musical offering is testimony that his impact is only beginning. Pushing beyond his role as a vocalist, the talented musician (he also plays the keyboard, guitar, and drums), alongside Da Gutta Fam, penned, produced, and performed all of the tracks on his debut solo project. Ranging from meditative ballads to up-tempo grooves, Cross makes sure that he delivers his signature personality and unbridled intensity on every track.
On the introspective song Love Is A Hustle Cross showcases his matchless songwriting skills while nesting his warm vocals between soothing percussion and rich piano rifts. The artist changes the flow with When The Game Plays You, a 70s style mid-tempo groove that spotlights his dynamic vocal arrangements and natural cadences. With lyrics that speak to anyone that has ever been in love, Cross sings on an elevated platform for every one to relate to. How To Make Up explores his take on the modern ballad and adds a sense of timelessness while still drawing from musics soulful past.
With a personality that kinetically draws people to his side, Cross is on his way to making a name for himself. Im just trying to bridge the gap between the living past and the living present in the minds of this generation, he muses about his impact in the music industry. History is just as much a part of the living present as anything we see currently. And with an album in the works, a live show that blends live instrumentation and digital sound (Platinum Producer Needlz (50 Cent, Ludacris, G-Unit) is his DJ) the musician is well on his way to becoming a household name by making listeners Cross over one at a time.

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 4/3/2006
Band Website: WWW.TLCROSS.COM
Band Members: Cross on leads and keys...
BeeZo, Frank Wiz and DK on backgrounds...
PLX on guitar...
Needlz on the 1's and 2's...
Mr Fingaz on keys....
www.tlcross.com on your computer
Influences: ELI WILSON JR., Eli Tre III, Bobby Wilson, MacArthur Wilson, Cynthia Wilson, Darryl Wilson, Frankie Wilson, Thelma Wilson, Eli Wilson Sr. JEWELL ZAIRE, BEEZO, PLX, NEEDLZ, Drego Moore, Remo DeCastro, THELONIOUS MONK, JOHN LENNON, Duke Ellington, Marvin Gaye, Twinkie Clark, Holland-Dozier-Holland, The Funk Brothers (Earl Van Dyke, James Jamerson), Sam Cooke, L.C. Cooke, Donny Hathaway, Ray Charles, Yvette Flunder, Quincy Jones, Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Wonderlove, Syreeta Wright, Minnie Riperton, Michael Jackson, The Jackson 5, The Temptations, Norm Whitfield, Davd Ruffin, Eddie Kendricks, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, Gladys Knight, Smokey Robinson, The Andantes, The Supremes, Barry White, Billy Preston, The Delfonics, Isaac Hayes, The O'Jays, Patti LaBelle, Bobby Womack, Archee Brownlee (5 Blind Boys from Mississippi), Curtis Mayfield, , Nina Simone, Burt Bacharach, Phil Spector, Al Green, Sly and the Family Stone, Prince, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Carol King, Brian Wilson, James Brown, The JB's, The Dells, The Gap Band, Earth Wind & Fire, Ernie Isley, The Isley Brothers, Frankie Lymon, Jimi Hendrix, Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, Bruce Hornsby, Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, Rick James, The Pointer Sisters, Billy Joel, DeBarge, Luther Vandross, Joni Mitchell, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Chuck Berry, Bo Didley, Jefferson Airplane, The Doors, The Ronettes, The Shirelles, The Chiffons, Lenny Kravitz, Led Zeplin, Crosby Stills Nash & Young, Howlin' Wolf, Bob Dylan, Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, Charlie Patton, Leadbelly, Bessie Smith, Sun House, Skip James, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blind Willie Johnson, Blind Blake, Blind Boy Fuller, Ida Cox, Willie Dixon, Scott Joplin, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Bud Powell, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gilespie, Coleman Hawkins, Errol Garner, McCoy Tyner, Herbie Hancock, Clifford Brown, Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Charles Mingus, Chic Corea, Charlie Rouse, Max Roach, Terence Blanchard, Wynton Marsalis, Branford Marsalis, Lester Young, Roy Ayers, Bob James, Bohannon, Gil Scott-Heron, Fatback Band, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Billy Eckstine, Nat King Cole, Betty Carter, Lena Horne, Joe Williams, Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, Mahalia Jackson, The Clara Ward Singers, Five Blind Boys from Mississippi (Archie Brownlee), Dixie Humingbirds, The Mighty Clouds of Joy, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, The Soul Stirrers (Sam Cooke), The Highway QC's, The Caravans (Inez Andrews), Shirley Ceaser, James Clevland, Rev CL Franklin, Mattie Moss-Clark, The Hawkins Family, Walter Hawkins, Thomas Whitfield, The Clark Sisters, The Winans, Commissioned, Richard Smallwood, Yolanda Adams, V. Michale McKay, Margeret Douroux, Frank Williams, James Moore, Take 6, Deloris Cain, Mariam Makeba, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Jimmy Cliff, Kool Herc, Afrika Baambata, Grand Master Flash, Furious Five, Melle Mel, Cowboy, Cold Crush Brothers, JDL, Grandmaster Caz, Almighty KG, Supreme Easy AD, Sha Rock, Funky 4+1, Jazzy 5, Spoony G, Treacherous 3, The L Brothers, Coke LaRock, Afrika Islam, Grand Wizard Theodore, Chief Rocker Busy Bee, DJ AJ, Fearless 4, Kurtis Blow, Davy DMX, Spyder D, RunDMC, Hollis Crew, Marly Marl, Juice Crew, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane, Roxanne Shante, Biz Markie, BDP, MC Lyte, EPMD, Slick Rick, Doug E Fresh & the Get Fresh Crew, The Auds, LL Cool J, Rakim Allah, DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince, Salt n Pepa, Red Alert (weekends), Mr Magic, The Fat Boys, Public Enemy, Tribe Called Quest, The Jungle Brothers, De La Soul, Leaders of the New School, Native Tongues (in general), X-Clan, Gang Starr (DJ Premier), Main Source (Large Prof), Pete Rock and CL Smooth, Brand Nubian, Heavy D and the Boyz, Stetsasonic, Nasty Nas to Esco to Escabar to Nastradumas back to Nas, 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks, Notorious B.I.G., Tupac Shakur, Wu Tang Clan, Ma$e, Dipset, Jada Kiss, Mobb Deep, M.O.P., Teddy Riley, Guy, Al B. Sure!, New Edition, Troop, Today, Bobby Brown, Bell Biv DeVoe, Jodeci, Mary J Blige, Whitney Houston, Boyz II Men, Horace Brown, Dave Holister, Chuckie Thompson, Faith Evans, Yummy Bingham, Crystal Johnson, Terri Robinson, Dave Hall, Musiq Soulchild, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, The Roots, Raphael Sadaaq, Tony Toni Tone, Soul II Soul, D'Angelo, RZA, Dr Dre, Just Blaze, Avila Bros., Kanye West, The Neptunes, Kyle West, J Dilla, Beatnuts, The Underdogs, Mr Fingaz, Harold Lily, Rich Harrison, Devante Swing, 4Evermore, Kena Sage, Heavy, Apryl Williams, DK, Lavell, Lysette Titi, Frank Wiz, Victoria Byerson, DaDa the Golden Child, Wyclef Jean, Lauren Hill, Aaliyah, Beyonce Knowles, Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliot, Timbaland, OutKast, Raekwon, Handel, Sebastian Bach, Mozart, Eric Satie, George Gershwin, Ann Wilson, Brenda Marie Wilson, Adele Tousaint RIP, Kendrick Hodges RIP, Loretta Henry, Kim Hill RIP, Muhammad Ali, Martin Lurther King Jr, Dr Howard Thurman, Cheikh Anta Diop, Ida B Wells, Sojourner Truth, MalcoLm X, Assata Shakur, H. Rap Brown, Adam Clayton Powell, James Baldwin, James Weldon Johnson, James Cone, Langston Hughes, Toni Morrison, Joe Louis, Dr Jeremiah Wright, Dr Gardner C Taylor, Dr James Forbes, Dr Wyatt Tee Walker, Dr Vernon Johns, Maya Angelou, Fred Hampton, Nelson Mandela, Winnie Mandela, Fredrick Douglass, Ralph Ellison, Ivan Van Sertima, Cornel West, Gordan Parks, Henry Louis Gates, Shaka Zulu, Sitting Bull, W.E.B. Dubois, John De Conquer Root, Lenny Bruce, Darren Benbow, Spike Lee, Ernest Hemingway, Denzel Washington, Canada Lee, Harry Belefonte, Paul Robeson, Kimberly Elise, Halle Berry, Jeffery Wright.....Last but most certainly not least, hailing from northeast Africa: Nefertiti, Makeda, Moses, Hapshetsut, Abraham, John the Baptist, David, Amos, Jeremiah, Ruth, Elijah, John the Revelator, Mary of Magdela, Paul, Augustine the African and above all others Jesus Christ!
Sounds Like:

PEOPLE WE HAVE WORKED WITH (AND ARE WORKING WITH) INCLUDE.......

Record Label: Da Gutta Fam
www.myspace.com/daguttafam
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

Let Me Feel You Up.....

This blog is about "misheard song lyrics". Yo, u ever been feelin' a song for a long time (even from childhood) and you swore they were saying one thing and come to find out they were saying somethin...
Posted by Cross of Da Gutta Fam on Thu, 03 Jan 2008 11:01:00 PST

An autobiography (the first movement)

This has little to do with the record making business. That's for another blog. This is deeper than that. It is Music. I left out a lot in order to fit what could probably be an entire book into o...
Posted by Cross of Da Gutta Fam on Wed, 28 Nov 2007 09:59:00 PST

Chris Brown vs Usher (as told by the kids from Queensbridge)

Those of u who know me know I'm a straight up New Yorker. U can catch me in Jamaica, Queenz (Hollis, Southside and Laurelton) and if not Jamaica u can catch me in Queensbridge and if not the Bridge u...
Posted by Cross of Da Gutta Fam on Tue, 11 Sep 2007 02:48:00 PST

If youz a LaG head answer me this......

What did u perform at your audition? lol All majors. Also, if you remember, who auditioned you? This is random but I've always been interested in knowing what people actually did. I was a vocal ma...
Posted by Cross of Da Gutta Fam on Mon, 30 Oct 2006 01:02:00 PST

If you were on a deserted island.....

....and you could only bring 10 CD's with you, which 10 would they be?(had to jack you Needlz lol)
Posted by Cross of Da Gutta Fam on Tue, 19 Sep 2006 08:53:00 PST