Flint, Mi - To put it plainly, from the outside looking in, Blood Rich Business is a hard-hitting rap group from Flint, Michigan who opened for Soulja Boy in Lansing on Thursday September 19th. But from the inside looking out, this is a group of artists who have formed bonds over blood, the good times, the bad, the shared experience of coming up in Flint, and the journey of building their life and riches here.
If Blood Rich Business was going to open for Soulja Boy, they were going to do it right. Weeks in advance DaeDae Flint rented out a party bus to take her, and the crew to the venue. Something in me needed to be on that bus. I wanted to experience it all for myself. What made this group feel so different? After figuring out the logistics, and securing my seat, the day was here.
The Fieldtrip
Landon (Pastori Productions) and I pull into the party bus pickup lot. I was hit with a familiar anxiety. I quickly realized I didn't recognize anyone there. I was somehow surprised by the need to socialize. Again. I stepped out into the parking lot and anxiously introduced myself. I was met with,
"Nice to meet you Rob, the name is BIIIG Ni! NOT the Little One.... Now, what's my name?"
"BIG Ni? ... NOT the little one?".
I passed the test, and that set the tone for the rest of the evening. As time went on, the circle grew larger, the blunts were smoked, and the familiar faces had arrived. Soon enough the eyes were glassy, and it was time to head to the venue. For the rest of the night, it truly felt like a movie. Everyone was ready to turn up on the bus. Music was being played, the drinks were being poured and the women were ready to dance.
As DaeDae was pouring a mixed drink the setting sun caught the bottle just right. We were about halfway to the venue, and I had to take a moment to look around and soak it all in. There was not an ounce of hate on that bus. Each new song off the playlist was a song from one of the artists ON the bus. And of course, everyone there knew all the words. As I was sitting there taking in the moment, I was snapped back to reality. I hear Big Ni (not the little one) shout my name from the front of the bus,
"WHERE YOU AT ROOOB!?"
I look up and see DaeDae headed my way with a full cup. I had been caught. I had been too quiet and needed to loosen up. A drink poured by DaeDae Flint will do that to you.
The Performance
As we pull up to the venue and the driver looks for a good drop off point, Landon and I hop off the bus to get ahead. We make our way to the front of the building to find Ace Gabbana who had arrived earlier for sound check. We quickly found Ace and as we are taking our pictures, the party bus rolls to a stop in front of Grewal Hall.
Random person in line at the venue,
Oh my GOD! Is that SOULJA BOYS BUS!?
Ace Gabbana surrounded by cameras and the crowd shouts,
Nah N*gga, that's BLOOD RICH!
Just standing next to him when he said that made me feel cool.
Should have had a red carpet with how Blood Rich pulled up
Like you would see at a movie premier, out pours the crew. The party had arrived, and it was in short order that everyone made their way off the bus, past the waiting line, and into the building. I have been in countless music venues just like this one, but this was my first trip with a camera and my first on the other side of the gate in almost 15 years. Landon and I raise our gear above our heads, push through the crowd, past the gate and settle in while Quasar performs their set.
This place was PACKED!
There is no objective way I can talk about the evening, the other artists, Soulja Boy, or truthfully even Blood Rich Business. I was swept up in it. Blood Rich showed up in a party bus, because they had a bus worths (plus) of people to show support. The crew was there, the drinks were heavy, and the music was loud. How could you not just throw a party on stage?
When it came time Ace Gabanna, Cameron Tyler, DaeDae Flint, and Shira Eyonna took the stage and put on THEE show. The combination of tones of voice, rhyme cadence, delivery, and the selection of beats that they use complimented them all as individuals and as a group so well together. The building was packed, you could feel the music in your chest, and in floor below you. After two to three songs, Joker found his way on stage to hype the crowd, the ladies found their way on to the stage to shake that thang, and the evening rolled on.
That's BLOOD RICH!
In what felt like too short of a time Soulja Boy was up and ready to perform. He put on a great show, played his hits and the crowd was loving it.
After three songs, the media were shuffled out of the pit by artist's request. I wasn't bitter as I knew that was not an uncommon thing, but it did reinforce the internal feeling that the "big event" portion of the evening had already passed. I resign myself to the back of the venue opposite of the stage to get some crowd shots. Not long after I hear the loud, "GET OUT THE WAYYYYY" the evening was over.
Eventually the Blood Rich Business crew make their way out of the building to smoke, laugh, and joke about the evening. The rest of the night was capped off with a few drinks and singing some RnB on the bus ride home.
Closing Thoughts
When you look at Blood Rich Business on the surface, they are who you think they are, and they are who they say they are. They are rappers from Flint, that rap about what happens on the streets, making money, loss, love, sex, drugs etc.
But to be a double entendre you need the other side of the coin and to understand they are so much more than that. They are artists that care about their craft. They pour their blood into it, into their music, into the family they created. They rap about their lives. They love and support their crew and the crew returns it.
No one in this group knew me until a couple of weeks ago, I was another dude with a camera, but I showed love and respect and have gotten nothing but the same in return.
That's Blood Rich.
-Rob
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