NYC’s very own S.C.R.D., whose old school rock star vibe and fresh new hip hop beats have been hailed as a mashup of unlikely styles that delivers a deliciously guilty pleasure worthy of heavy indulgence. They say what you wanted to say, but never did.
S.C.R.D. is named after Sweet Chuck and Ravin Dave, the two principal members of the group based in Gramercy, Manhattan. Together they infuse old skool beats, live instrumentation and witty, humorous and slightly satirically lude lyrics to take fans on a journey through heartbreaks with an ebullience for life and the thirst for adventure. Their collaboration between each other, thrives off co-collaborating with local musicians, friends and fans they lure into their musical tsunami, which helps drive their artistic creativity to new heights.
S.C.R.D. officially released their debut studio single, titled “Someday” on Tuesday, June 30, 2015. The record release includes three versions (Dirty, Radio Edit, Instrumental) and will be available through a year-long contract with TuneCore for global distribution across iTunes, Google Play and other major retailers.
“Someday” is not just a story about heartbreak and rebound, musically it’s a journey of collaboration between a bunch of characters seeking to make cool shit and have fun. On Someday, Marissa Licata’s violin plays the role of the narrator helping to bring listeners through the various emotions as the story is being told. Another very notable featured artist on the record is top American Jazz musician, James Genus, whose bassline nails down the groove in the record along with Anna Awe, who delivers the assertive hook.
On their single “Downtown,” S.C.R.D. once again teamed up with the “Mermaid,” world renowned violinist, Marissa Licata to craft an exquisite tale of temptation, dedication, and pure, unabashed urban fun and frolic through her violin’s voicing.To lock down the groove, this dynamic duo tapped Eddie Eyeball, bassist of 2 Skinnee J’s along with a young, talented singer/songwriter named EMCity.
For the “Downtown” video, Sweet Chuck and Ravin Dave examine that fragile balance between the daily grind of work life, social obligations and the difficulties of finding time for personal relationships. The video begins with superstar NYC producer Dj Journey dropping by to try to get Chuck to the studio, but he’s preoccupied and heading downtown. Life imitates art, and art blurs life, the nights get longer, and the stakes get higher. When heading “Downtown,” sometimes the night doesn’t end, when the day begins.
S.C.R.D. officially released a new single titled, “Phone Sext” on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify and 20+ digital, global retailers and on CD format via Amazon. Phone Sext is an exploration of fantasy versus reality, and the musical, storytelling duo’s third record release on indie record label Trip Digital Inc. The record includes three versions (Explicit, Radio, Instrumental).
Featured artists include the (4+ octave) UK singer and songwriter, Mr Wright, multi-talented Jazz and Soul musician, Benny Harrison on piano and background vocals, the most talented American Jazz Bassist, James Genus performing on the bass, Marissa Licata performing on the violin and Dj Journey performing background vocals.
S.C.R.D. unofficially released a new track titled, “Under the Mistletoe” on ReverbNation, Soundcloud, and scrdnyc.com. This track is only sampled beat that S.C.R.D. wrote a song to. It was originally an exercise on evening to with the goal of writing a Christmas song for the neighborhood. It then turned into a local favorite, so the duo subtly dropped it again in 2015.
The musical bed is primarily a sample from Run-DMC, Christmas in Hollis, original recorded on November 25, 1987. Additional samples include AC/DC, the Beatles and the Nutcracker. The song lyrics are original and tell a local story of what happens underneath the toe, “the mistletoe!”
MARISSA LICATAA Boston and New York based, Honduran American violinist, Marissa Licata, is a star powerhouse soloist. Her electrifying passion and vibrant presence have been featured on international and world-renowned stages. With over 15 years of classical violin training, and her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the New England Conservatory, Ms. Licata collaborated on projects and performed on national and international tours with Alicia Keys, Ben Harper, Ringo Starr, Dave Stewart of Eurythmics, Gloria Estefan, Pras of the Fugees, Jermaine Paul, Elle Varner, Gaby Wilson, and many more.
MR WRIGHTMr Wright, or more formally Jason Anthoney Wright, was born in Nottingham, UK. Armed with four and half octaves, he powers from low to high with the ease of a smile on his face. Jason's passion for music has seen him work with many leading musicians. He lent his voice to the Grammy award winning duo Basement Jaxx Kish Kash album and has successfully released material of his own in the UK. Reaching both recording and album of the week many times, his sound epitomizes legends of the smooth soul era like Al Green, Curtis Mayfield and Luther Vandross. Radio hits like “Reset 2 Zero”, “I Wud If I Cud” and “ No Me Without You” will have your feet stomping, head nodding and hands clapping.
JAMES GENUSAn American jazz bassist. He plays both electric bass guitar and upright bass and currently plays in the Saturday Night Live Band. Genus has performed as a session musician and sideman throughout his career, with an impressive list of artists with whom he has worked. He has played with Out of the Blue (1988–89), Horace Silver (1989), Roy Haynes andDon Pullen (1989–91), Nat Adderley (1990), Greg Osby and New York Voices (1990–91), Michael Brecker (1992–96), Bob James (since 1994), Michel Camilo (since 1995), Elysian Fields (since 1995), Branford Marsalis (1996), Chick Corea (1996), Dave Douglas (1996), Uri Caine (1997), Global Theory (1997), Ravi Coltrane (2000), Bill Evans (2005), Herbie Hancock (2008), and Daft Punk (2013).
BENNY HARRISONThe man is multi-talented...gifted in so many ways that he is at first overwhelming, and at the same time amazingly accessible. His music is a gourmet's blend of urban, pop, funk, r&b and latin. Sophisticated mixtures of rhythm, soul, jazz, blues, latin fire, raw funk and energy. He is surrounded by some of the greatest musicians on the planet. Benny has shared stages with these greats for decades. Now they are all rejoicing at the reappearance of Benny And The Spydrs, a band whose raw power has been inspiring musicians in New York for decades. After a recent reunion show by Benny and The Spydrs at one of New York’s iconic clubs, Will Lee, known for his work in the Letterman Band said it best “This was one of the greatest performances I’ve seen in my twenty years of coming here. This was just great! Benny must continue!”
EDDIE EYEBALLEddie Eyeball is widely known for unabashedly “bringing the heat”, typically flying in off the top rope, eyes ablaze and in full war paint, ready to deliver a sonic tsunami-sized wallop of low end thump that’ll knock your ironic ass from here to tomorrow and pronto. This devilishly handsome hombre will shoot now and maybe ask some questions later, much later. The de-facto "musical honcho" of alternative rap band 2 Skinnee J’s, this bass player, songwriter, producer and all-around idea man has performed, written, and collaborated with a wide range of musical artists including Ginger Wildheart, Gordon Gano, Valley Lodge, Vic Thrill, and The Infantiles, and has backed Jenny Lewis, Har Mar Superstar, Bridget Everett among many others in concert. Most recently, his band Valley Lodge’s song “Go” is the theme song for HBO’s Last Week with John Oliver, and he wrote the pilot theme song for Nick Jr.’sTeam Umizoomi.
EMCITYEmilia Wilson is a hip Millennial in search of the newest sounds and the next concert to attend, and quintessentially defines today’s “prosumer music enthusiast”. As a recent graduate from the University of Connecticut School of Business, Emilia brings with her a B.S. degree in Marketing along with a dynamic musically-tuned and market-savvy personality. The daughter of an accomplished business owner, she has grown up learning what it takes for a business to grow from start-up to the top of the industry.As a young, passionate thought leader, Emilia has previous experience at TracyLocke coordinating TV, web and radio advertising projects across PepsiCo, Starbucks, and Hewlett-Packard clients. All of these elements combined with 15+ years of dance and 10 years of chorus and choir, help give EMCity potent singer/songwriter potential.
BIO MUSIC VIDEO ARTISTS GALLERY
ANNA AWEThe man is multi-talented...gifted in so many ways that he is at first overwhelming, and at the same time amazingly accessible. His music is a gourmet's blend of urban, pop, funk, r&b and latin. Sophisticated mixtures of rhythm, soul, jazz, blues, latin fire, raw funk and energy. He is surrounded by some of the greatest musicians on the planet. Benny has shared stages with these greats for decades. Now they are all rejoicing at the reappearance of Benny And The Spydrs, a band whose raw power has been inspiring musicians in New York for decades. After a recent reunion show by Benny and The Spydrs at one of New York’s iconic clubs, Will Lee, known for his work in the Letterman Band said it best “This was one of the greatest performances I’ve seen in my twenty years of coming here. This was just great! Benny must continue!”
