Slick & Rose

Subtlety and hip hop have become as strangers recently. Sample these heavily edited lyrics, taken from Lil’s Kim’s 2003 duet with rapper Twista, “Thug Luv”: “Here come a b**ch with the fly (female anatomy), and a n***a with the fly (male anatomy).”

Anyone else in the mood for love. Atlanta –based soulsters Slick and Rose have the looks, and attitude, to take the conventional road to commercial success, but neither feels comfortable adopting “thugette” persona popularized by a growing number of chart-topping female acts (including former Mouseketeer Christina Aguilera).

“Nikki and I write music we wanna heat” says native New Yorker Sabrina Rose Harvey, who’s been collaborating with Alabama-bred Nikki “Slick” Ervin since 2000. “That’s just not what we’re about.”

Well, maybe a little bit; their name implies a mix of “street” and “sweet”, their target vibe.

“We’re hip hop babies…we’re certainly not nuns,” Ervin says. “There are aspects of our lives in some of the tough lyrics. We may write a song where using the word “bitch” is appropriate”…
“And we have,” confirms Harvey. But record industries tend to bow at the altar of predictability, pre-packing and proven concepts. So, befitting the strong sistas you hear about in their music, Slick and Rose have improved themselves to jumpstart their careers. So far, the results have been positive.

They’ve invested much to their promotional energies to new media outlets, including MySpace.com, a popular Internet destination for up-and –coming musicians and audiences seeking fresh above formulaic. Slick and Rose have already reaped benefits from their grass roots approach, securing inclusion on a much sought –after soul compilation released by My Space.

While they’re not yet sorting through endorsement opportunities, Slick and Rose have already secured extensive street cred, performing with and/or opening for such acts as Common, Nappy Roots and A Tribe Called Quest. All that came prior to the release their debut album, Objects in the Mirror, released through their debut album, Objects in the Mirror, released through their own label, Soul Hippie Music Group in March 2004.
“We want to be able to map out or own directions, and we want to eventually become an outlet to help break other bands," says Ervin, adding “Now we have bargaining power.”

Not to mention the kind independence most artists crave, yet often willingly give up in their pursuit of the Top 40. “We’re proud of our first album, but part of what we had to do with it was to show people that were a viable act,” Harvey says. “We fell like we’ve proven ourselves, so we cam into this next album feeling like we had more room creatively.”
As proof of their “viability,” slick and Arose have attracted some prominent producers, including Seven (a veteran of two Outcast albums) and Soul Messiah (whose credits include Jay Z and Nappy Roots), for their sophomore release.

If it follows that Atlanta has become the birthplace of urban trend, then Slick and Rose may be leading a hip hop redirections, more hip-hop redirections, more hip than hop, as it were, with emphasis on sophisticated lyrics amid a background of jazzy cool. Their music doesn’t demand attention, but it slyly invites you in for a comfortable, and memorable, visit, appropriate in either background or foreground.

“People are wanting more in their lives, and artists I think are really wanting to grow beyond singing about bitches and ho’s,” Ervin says. Somewhere, Teddy Pendergrass is smiling.

- GA Music Magazine

Here's another hot new CD from two of our favorite singers, Slick & Rose. As soon as we received the news that this dynamic duo was dropping a new mixed CD, "Winter Spells," we were dialing their number for a preview and exclusive interview. Kind and gracious as always, they agreed and provided us with one of our three favorite CDs for the summer! "Long Goodbyes," "Life Today," and "Mister Inferno," are our favorite tracks on the mixed tape. These tracks have been played over and over until the CD player was about to ignite its own inferno! But seriously, it's time to invest in another purchase or two of their CD as well.

If you're fortunate to be in the Atlanta area lately or in the near future, Slick & Rose have been making the rounds through the local music venues and you can't afford to miss them at one of their upcoming events. These ladies were first brought to our attention last year during the Dogwood Festival. We were running late to catch an earlier act and although we tried and tried to battle through the Friday afternoon traffic on I-85, we missed the group that came before them. But our delay was only to be rewarded with the sounds of two heavenly creatures that we had the pleasure to later speak with and have been fortunate to continue to communicate with. They are down to earth, kind, funny, and two talented women that if you don't get a chance to meet in person, you should definitely experience through their music.

Want to take a journey back to the days when hip hop was really hip hop, then pick up a copy of their tribute to hip hop, "Winter Spells." This mixed tape is just a preview to their upcoming sophomore CD; but the list of contributors makes it more than a preview and just as satisfying and enjoyable as what's in store for the next CD. Guest appearances on the CD include but are not limited to: Baatin of Slum Village, Fish Scales and Skinny Deville of Nappy Roots, Phife Dawg of A Tribe Called Quest, and Chip Fu and Hawkeye.

This CD ranks 5 stars out of 5 for this review.

LISTEN TO OUR INTERVIEW WITH SLICK & ROSE NOW.

- Ngoshi Books

MIXED BY DJ RASTA ROOT
Hosted by Phife (of A Tribe Called Quest), S&R Winter Spells is a collection of the latest, unreleased, remixed and jacked cuts from the
Atlanta Soul/R&B/Jazz duo Slick & Rose. This mixtape finds the backing
of Phife, Baatin (formerly of Slum Village), and Fish Scales & Skinny
Deville (Nappy Roots). Rasta Root is a no-fail bet to give you your
money’s worth of music—the CDs sponsors (AOL Radio, Spitkicker,
Myspace and LRG, among others) believed in it enough to walk the
walk. Root helped S&R bring to wax the emergence of ATL’s new
Soul/R&B movement. Later on down the line, when you hear Anthony David, Julie Dexter, Kerisha Roi, Maya Neiada, Madame CJ and Ebonee Devynee, remember that you heard it from the Winter Spells Mixtape. Get on the bus.—myspace.com/riddimkid; myspace.com/slickandrose
- Import Tuner

Buzz R&B/hip-hop acts ready for 2005 breakthrough
Billboard Magazine
By Gail Mitchell

LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - Some of the biggest names in R&B and hip-hop released albums during fourth-quarter 2004. Destiny's Child, Eminem, Ludacris, 2Pac, Nas, Snoop Dogg and Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz are among the acts that provided end of the year fireworks.
Outside that superstar arena, however, awaits a host of diverse up-and-coming R&B/hip-hop acts. And though they may not be household names, a few sparked some buzz in 2004 and deserve honorable mentions now that the holiday dust has settled.

Following are several of these acts:

SLICK & ROSE
Atlanta-based Nikki "Slick" Ervin and Sabrina "Rose" Harvey first piqued interest in Japan. That's where the duo's debut album, "Objects in the Mirror," was released in 2003 via P-Vine Records. Opening stints for the Jazzyfatnastees, Kanye West, Chingy and Van Hunt followed, and Slick & Rose reissued "Objects" in the United States last March on their own Soul Hippie Music Group label.

Since then, the pair's brand of hip-hop soul has picked up positive reviews, a new marketing and promotion partner (Blue Maze Entertainment) and new management (Rasta Root).
After seven years of honing their sound, Slick & Rose converse lyrically on everything from spirituality to struggling working mothers, lacing jazz and soul over sumptuous beats. Repeat-worthy tracks include "Space" and "Milk & Honey."
"Our foundation is basically hip-hop," Slick explains. "Then we have live music played over the tracks. Our lyrics and the way we sing songs is also in a hip-hop style." - Billboard Magazine, Writer Gail Mitchell

Fusing live music and movement, Crunch’s Acapella Asanas in Atlanta, Georgia, is a weekly vigorous practice accompanied by the mellifluous hip-hop tones of singing duo Slick & Rose. As yogis sink into resting poses, like child’s pose and savasana, local musicians Nikki “Slick” Ervin and Sabrina “Rose” Harvey break into the appropriate groove. “Certain vocal tones connect with certain points in the charkas.” explains Harvey, a year yoga veteran. “We make it as harmonic as we can and I think it is pretty soothing.” The women say that singing for the class not only enhances the yoga experience for others, but also meets their personal mission: we get to join the two things we love: music and peace of mind.” - Breathe Magazine

R&B
Slick & Rose
"Objects in the Mirror." Soul Hippie " Music Group. 14 tracks, Grade: B

From Atlanta's independent R&B scene comes a promising new act and a compilation by someone with a proven ear for discovering such talent.

With Zhane an unfortunately distant memory and Floetry the only female twosome of note in this genre of late, the new duo Slick & Rose has plenty of room to establish itself. "Objects in the Mirror" is a fine start.

Much of it is cool drum taps, guitars and nice harmonies that easily wind their way around hints of jazz, reggae and drum and bass. But nothing really insists that you listen closely until the ninth track: "Watch U Weary." It is here, as they melodi-t cally describe a hard working mother who's been "wounded from the day/angered by the game," that they make their case for being storytellers. Three songs later, on "Milk & Honey," with some help from Atlanta's Ores tha Beatnik, Slick & Rose becomes especially vibrant and tuneful. And by closing ode "Hip-Hop," they've properly introduced themselves as an unqualified treat. - Atlanta Journal Constution, Sonia Murray

IT'S UNDERSTANDABLE THAT WITH THE CONSTANT BARRAGE of pop and R&B acts forced onto unsuspecting viewers of MTV one would grow weary of every new soul diva or pop sensation' that springs up weekly. But what local songstresses Slick & Rose offer is noticeably different and refreshing. Fortunately for them the Atlanta-based duo comprised of Nikki "Slick" Ervin and Sabrina "Rose" Harvey understand how to craft soulful yet catchy R&B, managing to maintain their roots without straying too far into the pop mainstream.
Both women come from vastly different musical backgrounds which influence their music. Slick is a southerner hailing from Mobile Alabama, where her childhood was spent in churches, listening to the gospel choirs that ultimately influenced her singing today Rose was raised in the urban metropolis of New York City, and claims that the hip-hop scene and her Jamaican heritage are the biggest influences on her musical style.
Luckily, their fusion of delicate, silky vocal stylings and urban mentality has not gone unnoticed. Before the duo even had any material recorded, they were asked to join Rahzel and the Jazzyfatnastees of the Roots on their Okayplayer Tour of Japan, a country where they are already receiving noticeable recognition. In fact, the past three years have seen them sharing the stage with such big-name acts as Kanye West, Common, Slum Village, and Chingy.
Now that their long-awaited debut album, Objects in the Mirror, was released back in March, Slick & Rose can expect to see bigger crowds and earn even greater recognition. The album is comprised of a versatile mixture of different styles of music, with songs like the track "Gods," that can both lull and relax you, and "Hip-Hop," which will get you dancing on your chair.
Therein lies the brilliance of the album: It's a CD that you can pop in if you just feel like hanging out and unwinding with a cup of tea in the comfort of your home, or something that can get you ready to hit the clubs. It's no wonder that the duo is experiencing the success that they are: a success that is well-deserved for two chanteuses trying to pave their own way sonically and artistically. - South East Performer

As experienced through the haze of various adult nighttime cold medicines: a not-so-engaging opening act, and a spoken word performer whose work included something like: ?if a woman has sex with you after you buy her drinks, she doesn?t like you, she likes to drink?.?

And why all of that background, you ask? Because even in that ?haze? it was impossible not to pick up that Atlanta has yet another vibrant act headed down the pipeline. It?s easy to want to place Slick & Rose in the Floetry category, since they?re two women of the hip-hop era, but they also are accomplished vocalists who know how to direct attention their way. It?s only a matter of time before their import release, ?Objects in the Mirror,? finds its way to the store here.

Peppermint Music manager Rico Brooks looked around Vinyl and noted that it felt like the old Ying Yang Caf?where India Arie and others were groomed). There were musicians (singer Kerisha Roi, jazz artist Michael Johnson, and drummer Maynard ?Buzzy? Jackson III), music execs (Groovement?s Richard Dunn) and others of the industry (DJ Salah Ananse, photographer John Crooms) all in one place, as fans. - Sonia Murray

Slick With It
BY CARLTON HARGRO

Sean Combs and Mary J. Blige may have created the musical sub-genre known as hip-hop-soul. But these days everyone from Ashanti to Britney Spears exploits the sound, usually with disastrous results. Though wildly popular on radio dials and TV screens, the combination of hardcore break beats and smooth vocals has become the stuff of sterile pop. But, with Slick & Rose's debut CD, Objects in the Mirror, the Atlanta-based vocal duo prove that hip-hop-soul can still be true to the game.

Ditching the tired, Diddy-esque samples and cliched vocal arrangements, Sabrina "Rose" Harvey and Nikki "Slick" Ervin opt instead to place jazz-tinged stylings over Pete Rock-flavored beats. This winning formula is in display on tracks like "Space," "Hey You" and "Objects." The pair also forgoes the usual tales of getting crunk in da club in favor of songs about spirituality ("Gods") and a mother's struggle to make ends meet ("Watch U Weary").

And, when it comes to collaborators, Slick & Rose substitutes the usual cast of jiggy MCs with underground dons like Dres tha Beatnik -- who provides beatboxed rhythms on "Milk & Honey" and the near-legendary Phife Dawg of A Tribe Called Quest for "U Know U Want It." Pound for pound, Objects is proof positive that hip-hop-soul can be hip without losing its soul.

11.18.04 - Creative Loafing

Slick & Rose have changed.

Although you probably wouldn't notice any signs of a metamorphosis if you saw the Atlanta-based hip-hop soul duo walking down the street or shopping in a thrift store. But watching the slender, eclectically clad ladies at work in a recording studio, it's easy to see that they've made some drastic changes.

Peep the scene: Nikki "Slick" Ervin sits in front of a huge mixing board calmly scribbling lyrics on a yellow legal pad. As she writes, her partner, Sabrina "Rose" Harvey, belts out vocals in a booth to the left. Behind the mic, Harvey confidently sings various variations of the same vocal arrangement. She doesn't flinch when Ervin's voice pops in her headphones saying, "That don't sound right." After effortlessly spitting a dozen more variations, Harvey emerges from the booth and passes the mic to Ervin, who quickly throws down with her own freshly written stanzas.

A year or so ago, this process probably would not have popped off so smoothly.

"Before, it was a lot of being unsure and nervous," says the Bronx-born Harvey. "Now, I feel like we've become more professional in the studio and more ­­-- "

"Definitive," says Ervin, finishing her teammates thought. "We're still developing musically, but we're a lot stronger than we were before."

No, these aren't the same green singers who joined forces in 2000 and quickly found themselves whisked away on tour in Japan. They aren't the neophytes who recorded hooks on solo tracks for A Tribe Called Quest's Phife or the ones who scraped together a small stash of cash to record and release a critically lauded debut album, Objects in the Mirrors. Hell, they aren't even the same chicks who were surprised to learn they were named one of five "artists to watch" in 2005 by Billboard magazine.

"We kind of call it 'The Next Level of Slick & Rose,'" says Ervin.

The next level doesn't just represent a progression in how Slick & Rose make music; it also marks a growth in what their music sounds like. Currently at work on two new CDs, the duo's first project -- a mix tape titled The Winter Spells -- is due in January. It combines smooth harmonies with boom-bap-flavored beats provided by local hip-hop collective Vintage Imperial. Winter Spells -- which they will sell through a handful of retail shops and bestow on some lucky folks for free in person -- comes off like one small step away from the DJ Premier-meets-Zhane rhythms found on Objects.

"These are fresh new songs, different styles and a different approach. At the same time, [Winter Spells] is a cleansing of sorts," says Harvey. "We had a lot of old business creatively -- old songs that we never finished, old concepts. We thought it would be good for us to get these songs out of our system."

While the tunes on Winter Spells only slightly differ from the group's earlier works, the second new CD in the pipeline -- their still untitled, official, full-length sophomore album -- promises to plunge Slick & Rose deep into uncharted musical territory whenever the unannounced release date finally arrives. A good chunk of the project is set to be produced by the man known only as Seven, who crafted the hit "Roses" for OutKast's Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. The tracks he's recorded with S&R so far ring with an undeniable freshness laced with a rock-skewed but still funky sensibility.

With such a pervasive air of transformation lingering about, one has to wonder: What sparked Slick & Rose's current crop of changes? Part of the shift can be traced to a reorganization in the duo's business affairs. Almost two years ago, they parted ways with their original manager, Vonico "Don" Johnson, so he could focus on personal issues that needed his immediate attention, Ervin says. After managing themselves for six months, S&R once again gained outside management in the form of renowned DJ/producer Rasta Root. Rasta Root, who also manages Phife, has been affiliated with S&R since the group's inception, so the move into his new role was an organic one.

"He was already helping us out so much. A lot of the work we got in the past came directly through him," says Ervin. "He can maneuver in different ways than we can. And since he started managing us, we've been open to a lot more opportunities."

Another element that's helped to push the pair to the next level is simply time. When the ladies originally formed the duo, they, like many doe-eyed wannabe recording artists, thought that landing a major-label deal was the proverbial pot of gold. But, after spending time in the trenches -- performing at shows, establishing relationships with retailers, securing radio play and coverage in the press -- Slick & Rose admit that now they're in a better position to negotiate with the big boys.

"Although we didn't think so at the time, it's better this way," says Harvey. "Because when we sit down at a meeting now, I'm not telling you what I think as an artist about our music, I'm telling you what I know for a fact. I can back this up with CD sales, hits on the website and the people that come up to us on the street."

This better, stronger, faster version of Slick & Rose goes forward into a big, bad music industry with a new sense of self-confidence. "When it comes to Slick & Rose," says Harvey, "nobody knows better than Slick & Rose."

- Creative Loafing Magazine, Writer: Carlton Hargro