The Shivtaz

SHOOTERS OF SAGINAW, 8845 Gratiot, Saginaw, MI 781-6333. Comic Schedule:
Appearing Jan. 30-31, Brian Mekim & Tracey Call 781-6333 for
reservations. Live Music Schedule: Jan. 22, Powerface; Jan. 23, Kid Rock
After Party featuring The Shivtaz, Killshot, Paradime, and tons of surprise
guest appearances. - Review Magazine

Gorilla Warfare
September 11th is now a day of rememberance for the world and in SAGINAW MICHIGAN, local bands played tribute for the troops in Iraq to show thier patriotism. The following bands raised money for care packages: ELEMENT, The SHIVTAZ, 40 FLEE, 2nd SYSTEM, The COMMON GROOVE, DOWNPOINT and MIDORI. They all rocked out the whole night! This is the kind of fight against expliotation that Gorilla Warfare is all about. E-mail if YOU have fought the common fight in your hometown-
- A.P.E.S. Website

Born on the doorstep of the new millennium in that landmark year of
1999, The Shivtaz are a hip-hop group that forged together the strengths of
their respective members into a vision of diversity that has commanded
microphones throughout the tri-cities with their stylistic flow.
Consisting of T-DO (Tim Maker), Batt-L (Mike Latty, Karnaj (Terry Dawkins)
and DJ Mike Mayhem (Mike Hernandez), the group is very much like their name
- they refuse to conform to any particular creed or style or fashion, but
'shift' from genre and topic depending upon the mood & style of the moment.
"People aren't going to know right away who we are," notes T-DO, "because we
don't sound the same every time we perform. We sample a lot of different
sources for our music."
The group has pooled their collective created talents to write, produce,
and record their highly anticipated first album, Logical Warfare.
Comprised of gritty street themes and hardcore battle rhymes, Logical
Warfare is full of all original music that flips words to a variety of
tempos, displaying the evolving technique of each emcee on songs like
Breathe, Freebase, and Perfect Timing.
"This whole thing actually started back in '98," explains BattL. "I started
hanging around in California at DJ's house and he told me about Tim. When
we got back from California, we decided to put this group together as
opposed to following solo projects. Usually you don't find many hip-hop/rap
groups around because generally it's just one guy up at the mic. So we
figured we're all mature, older guys, that were around when hip-hop first
came out, so let's get together and make something happen."
"We started recording," continues TDO, "and decided to do everything
ourselves - the producing, the writing, the recording, even the artwork. It
took two years to put this first project together because we all have full
time jobs, but during that time we started doing shows at The Watering
Trough, The Empire Club back in '99, and now we're playing at venues like
Wiseguys and spreading the sound around. DJ's been doing this since '85
and has been all over the place. Mainly we want to start some type of real
hip-hop scene in this area."
"Bedlam was the first group that put us on the bill," notes BattL. "We
started out doing these underground 'dis' tapes because we didn't like the
way the local scene was looking, and they loved it. They put us on the bill
and since that first opportunity we've been doing many different shows."
"Mainly, on those first tapes, we parodied a couple different acts because
our feeling was that coming out locally, you shouldn't try and act like a
major star. You can't talk about having a mansion and all this stuff when
you don't. So we kinda made fun of that, and Bedlam dug it because it was
something different. Now we're trying to get down with the Detroit scene
because the culture is thicker down there. We've hooked up with some
different lyricists and a group called Element, who also turn out some nice
stuff more on our level."
"We want to come out and keep this on a hip-hop level," notes Karnaj. "It's
what we grew up with. By the same token, we want to bring our own niche to
the whole thing to keep the essence but add the flavors."
"I feel our showmanship distinguishes us," he continues. "We're not just
walking back and forth with a microphone, but bring excitement to the
stage. To me our CD is very edgy. We don't stick with one genre. We don't
just write about cars, girls and drugs but try and take old subjects and
make them fresh again. It's the beats that we use and the type of lyrics
that we use, It's unpolished so you feel the energy."
"Each one of us has our own style and the way we like to deliberate,"
comments BattL. "Sometimes it's more conscious. I like to bring up issues,
but not in the plain jane way but through the music. I don't like to preach
and tell people what to do on the mic, but cast it out there so people can
hear what it is and what it's about."
With so much diversity at play, what does each member feel they contribute
to the group?
"Myself, I feel I'm the well-rounded one of the group," reflects TDO. "I
change my voice a lot more than the other guys, so I bring a little of
'this & that' to the table."
"In terms of social issues, I talk about things the others can't because of
the way I grew up," comments Karnaj, "so I bring a certain perspective
about the streets and hard times, although I don't dwell on it."
"My specialty is to 'break it down' in many different ways," states BattL.
"I'm the raw one, I think. I bring the energy."
"I contribute what's no longer there much in Hip-Hop anymore," notes DJ Mike.
"Usually you'll have one or two guys up on stage with a microphone, but I'm
actually a live DJ, so bring the music to the table. I'll shift the music
in the show and provide the foundation. Guys that grew up with hip-hop
remember seeing a DJ in the back, like a maest - Review Magazine