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Baby Bash
Baby Bash does not consider
himself a rapper. “I’m more of a spitter,” he offers. “I
might rap, I might sing, I might make some funny noises.
I don’t try to freestyle (spontaneous rhyming) and
battle everybody. I just try to make something that’ll
stick to the ribs.”
Don't let the name or his baby-face fool you. Baby Bash,
the next big thing from Houston’s ever growing Latino
Rap scene, is poised and ready to cross over to
mainstream stardom with the smash single, "Suga Suga"
from his new album, The Smokin’ Nephew. Happy Perez,
whose credits include hits for southern clientele
including Master P and Mystikal, produced the entire
album.
B aby
Bash and Happy Perez’s chemistry in the studio has
resulted in a sonically pleasing blend of thumping
hip-hop beats, addictive grooves and melody. “Happy P is
the dopest producer ever,” adds Bash. “Our formula is
the beats go on and I swear to God, the beats tell me
how to say it and what to say. It sets the mood. Happy
puts [on] a lot of good melodies, a lot of good
music…real music. He plays live bass and live guitar. I
can go to a gangster low rider show and do hardcore rap
songs, hop on the plane the next day go to an all
American college and do my alternative, folk type rap,
then go to a Ja Rule, Mary J. Blige [type] show, and do
some mainstream R&B. I’m like a chameleon, I adapt to
wherever I’m at.”
Bash (alternately called Bash and Beesh by fans) is
originally from Vallejo, CA, part of Cali’s “Bay Area.”
He got his start in the groups Potna Deuce and Latino
Velvet (which consisted of Kid Frost and Jay Tee of
legendary Chicano rap group N2Deep). He was drawn to
Houston after being exposed to its emerging Latin Rap
scene by his work with South Park Mexican. “I did some
songs with SPM and it started blowing up,” explains
Bash. “He had shows every weekend. I was going back and
forth and I figured I might as well stay out there.” He
jokingly adds, “Plus, California’s rent was going up
like skyscrapers.”
 High on
life, amongst other things, Bash cites musical
influences ranging from hometown rap favorites like
E-40, Mac Dre and Too Short, funk idols like Con Funk
Shun and Sly & the Family Stone, down to Steel Pulse and
even Tom Petty. “My uncles they were all homeboys. I
grew up on a lot of oldies.” Bash's eclectic taste
explains why "Suga Suga" is such a sultry mix of
soothing and funky vocals over an intoxicating baseline.
But, Bash himself rhetorically asks: “You got some great
rappers that are hard as fuck and vicious but can they
write a hit?” Baby Bash can and “Suga Suga” isn’t the
only Ace in his hand.
Tracks like the Crunk-dafied “Yeh Suh!,” the sensual
“Sexy Eyes” or the sexcapade tales over playful guitar
plucks of “Early in the Morning” not only showcase his
flair for creating memorable songs but also his musical
diversity. From the West Coast to Texas, the
self-proclaimed “Latino Deniro” is here to make his
mark, with style and substance. The beats are hot, but
Baby Bash tries to really say something with his jams.
Baby Bash has been through some hard times. His Mexican
mother and Anglo father weren’t really around much in
his youth. “My parents were in prison while I grew up,”
says Bash. “So my Grandma Fuarez, raised me. I was
always with my Latin side of the family.” Though he
missed the influence of his parents in his life, he was
a self-motivated artist. The fact that Baby Bash is
still recording after all these years (The Smokin’
Nephew is his third solo album to date) is a testament
to his drive and determination.
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