On May 7th of 2002, Christian rap got an amazing compilation album that is often forgotten – BK & Associates: Beatmaker Session 1. The BK stands for Blake Knight who was best known as one-half of the hip-hop duo Ill Harmonics. The other half was Playdough who is now KRUM.
Who are the Associates? Well, they are a who’s who of Christian Rap O.G.’s and a few names you may not have heard of. Here they are Playdough (KRUM), Sivion, KJ-52, John Reuben, Mars Ill, L.A. Symphony (Pigeon John, Flynn & Sharlok Poems), Paul Meany (Earthsuit & Mutemath), Lojique, Moon, Freddie Bruno, Tyson Pumphrey, Tunnel Rats (Peace 586, Raphi, Macho, & Theory, Scott Bellows, Bustone, Nathan Smart, and MG! The Visionary.
For this project, Blake Knight handled the production and then invited his friends to wreck shop on the beats. Unfortunately, we never got a part two, but there’s enough substance in this one to sound good 20 years later.
It’s really dope to hear the “20-something-year-old” voices of these CHH legends. For those who never heard this project, it’s a good source to hear “new” songs from your favorite artists.
The project was released on Uprok whose parent label was Tooth & Nail. The label was founded in 1999, and featured a slew of rappers including Ill Harmonics, KJ-52, Manafest, MG! The Visionary, Sup the Chemist, Deepspace5, Mars ILL, Playdough, Sintax the Terrific, and The Tunnel Rats.
Here’s a review of the project Rapzilla did in 2005.
