- How did the connection first happen between both of you ?
Tribalife : " We were both in breakdance crews from rival schools and we actually met in a battle against one another. Those two crews would eventually merged and would later evolve to become Tribalife. "
- Where did you come from exactly ?
Tribalife : " Though we’re from different parts of the world and reside in different places now, Tribalife was birth in Fresno, CA. "
- How did everything start for the group ?
Tribalife : " We started out as b-boys. The rapping didn’t come about until later. We were both writing raps separately and then we both hopped on the mic at a house party and we’ve been rocking together since. We called into the local radio station’s “Battle of the Rappers” and won week after week before retiring from the contest. We were eventually invited into the station to come and freestyle and we returned regularly on the hip hop show which played from 12am - 2am on a Saturday. We would hone our skills freestyling in the radio station and hitting local rap cyphers whenever possible. We finally got serious about putting something together and recorded our first single “Level 19” in 1998 at Fast traxx studios. Produced by Rka Sha. "
- Who did manage Illogic Records ?
Tribalife : " Illogic Records was managed by Eric Smith a.k.a Phlipside. "
- Could you tell us how the connection happened between you and 427 & Planet Asia ?
Tribalife : " We recorded our first EP at Eclipse 427’s Darcman studios in Oakland, CA. Thru Rka Sha we linked up with Planet Asia on a track, but we already knew Asia from the local hip-hop freestyle cyphers we all would frequent. "
- Could you give us more info about the producers Rikochet and Phlipside ?
Tribalife : " Thru local networking we met with Rka Sha who produced and Phlipside who also produced and Dj’ed back in the day. They were also affiliated thru music before we met them. Both based out of Fresno, CA. "
- Why is there no more release after Destination: UNKNOWN in 2000 ? What happened with the album ?
Ironically, a full joint Tribalife project never came to fruition until 2024. “Soundtrack to Life” was supposed to be the next Tribalife album but Geenuistick moved to from Fresno to San Diego and began to focus his creative energies on his budding career as a graphic designer while Al duMaurier (formerly known as Asiatik) got into the production side of things and continued to make music independently. He would release a number of projects starting in 2003, many with guest features from Geenuistick as well as a number of other underground MCs.
- Al duMaurier “Soundtrack to Life” (2003)
- Al duMaurier “Wreckonception” (2006)
- Al duMaurier & Ensilence “Between The Lines”(2008)
- Al duMaurier “Bamboo Shack LP” (2014)
- Al dumaurier “Bamboo Shack Beats Vol.1” (2020)
Geenuistick would finally release a solo project in 2022 but it was more of a collection of collabs and unreleased tracks throughout the years. In 2024, he released a four song EP which had guest feature from Al duMaurier.
- Geenuistick “Somewhere Between Art & Science” (2022)
- Geenuistick “Tides” (2024)
As mentioned before, Al duMaurier and Geenuistick finally released the EP “Old Heads” in 2024. It was their first group effort since their 1999 debut. Al duMaurier and Geenuistick remain close to this day.
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