Mid-Week Intermission Artist Edition: Black Violin
Around here, we don’t choose favorites….but if we did, GRAMMY-nominated duo Wil Baptiste and Kev Marcus, AKA Black Violin, would certainly make the cut. Part classical, part hip-hop, and completely unique, this act is absolutely electric on stage. Heading back for their third performance at the Long Center on October 30, it’s clear that we just can’t get enough of these guys!
In this Mid-Week Intermission, we chatted with Wil to learn a little more about how BV came to be, what keeps their creativity flowing, and to hear about their Black Violin Foundation – an organization that’s dedicated to empowering youth by resourcing them to access quality music programs, reaching over 100,000 students each year.
Long Center: Welcome to Mid-Week Intermission! We usually like to ask folks for a song to go with their interview – anything come to mind? Maybe a track off Full Circle?
Wil Baptiste: The track I would recommend is The Walk from the Full Circle album.
LC: We’re so glad to have Black Violin at the Long Center! For folks who may have missed your last couple performances here, would you care to share a bit about yourselves and your sound?
Wil Baptiste: Black Violin is a band that is comprised of myself Wil Baptiste (viola + vocals) and Kev Marcus (violin) along with our band members Nat Stokes (drums), Liston Gregory (keys), and DJ SPS (turntable). Our sound is multiple genres fused together with classical and hip-hop being the main components. Bridging these two worlds together was something that was very natural for us.
LC: What’s your origin story? How did this duo come to be?
Wil Baptiste: Our origin story started in high school — Kev and I were in the same orchestra class. We both went our separate ways to college and then came back together to create music. The idea was that we wanted to be major hip-hop producers and one of the things we would do was play the violin on top of our hip-hop beats for artists that would come by the studio. They were amazed at our ability to do so. We didn’t realize we had something special until we sent our tape out to Apollo — eventually being crowned 2005 Apollo legends and from there we went on to tour with the likes of Alicia Keys, LINKIN PARK, and more. We always felt like we had something special, so we started focusing on the band and refining the Black Violin sound.
LC: You guys are passionate about music education and making music programs accessible to all kids. What’s your connection to this mission? Can you talk a little about Black Violin Foundation?
Wil Baptiste: Our mission to make music education accessible to kids is really simple. In our careers, we’ve had individuals that that were incredibly important to our growth as artists. Our music teacher in high school was one of those individuals. His name is Mr. Miles and we named a Black Violin Foundation grant after him. The point of the foundation is to fill in the gaps — what that means is if a child needs an instrument or needs funds to go to a music camp or a college audition, the foundation works to step in and help them. The Arts have given us so much and it’s only right that we pay it forward.
LC: After over 20 years together (impressive!), what keeps you inspired and creating?
Wil Baptiste: What keeps us inspired is knowing that Black Violin is bigger than just two individuals. We’ve created something very special that inspires and uplifts the world and that’s an incredibly special thing.
LC: Do you have any advice for the young musicians out there?
Wil Baptiste: My advice to young musicians is to find yourself in the instrument. Make the instruments speak your own individual language. Once you do that, it’s very difficult for you to quit.
LC: Anything you want to tease about your upcoming show in Austin on October 30?
Wil Baptiste: We’re performing six new songs from our latest album ‘Full Circle’ in this upcoming show.
Thanks, Wil!
Be sure to check out their new album, Full Circle, and don’t miss their show at the LC on October 30!
At the Long Center, we’ve always got a new partnership or something cool we know you’ll want to check out! Find and follow us @longcenter on your social media platform of choice, and we’ll see you real soon.
