Ground Up on The Happy Hour Tour: Saturday @ The TLA.

Philly hip-hop trio Ground Up sold out the TLA in March and they’re headlining the venue for the second time, on Saturday, as part of their Happy Hour Tour.

The performance will feature tracks from their latest project, Supernatural, which was released on September 18. Each track on the mixtape has their signature chill-yet-heavy flow with a tinge of more attitude.

Our Sofiya Ballin spoke with Azar, Malakai and Bij Lincs about life since they sold out the TLA. Top image by Michael Beon. Lower image by Caitlin Morris.

How’s The Happy Hour Tour going?

Azar: The tour is about to begin and we couldn’t be more excited about it. The idea of traveling all over to share our music is still surreal to us. The tour includes 13 stops as far north as Toronto, Canada and as far south as Columbia, South Carolina. We’ve worked tirelessly to incorporate a live band into our set, something we believe has improved our show ten-fold. The band playing along side us also calls Philadelphia home. They go by the name of The Lawsuits and are talented to say the least. Above all else, The Happy Hour Tour will be a great experience for everyone in attendance.

As your fan-base gets larger, do you see a more widespread tour in the near future?

Malakai: That’s always been a goal of ours and always will be. As amazing as it is to travel up and down the East Coast and perform for our fans, we’re by no means satisfied. We’re well aware of the fact that our fan base reaches much further than where we have been able to travel in the past. Our goal going forward is to share our sound with everyone, no matter the distance.

Your new project is the Supernatural series. What was the vision for this project?  Tell me about the sound and why that name?

Malakai: I like to think that this is our most adventurous and complete project to date. I say that because we consciously took risks, broke boundaries and scrutinized every second of every song until it was perfect to us. The name itself was a product of an inspirational weeklong trip we took to Amsterdam where we performed two shows alongside fellow-Philadelphian, Reef The Lost Cauze. Inside one of our favorite coffee shops, we noticed a sticker posted up that simply read, “Supernatural.” For whatever reason, we felt as though that sticker was so representative of where we were at that point mentally and creatively. It may not always make sense, follow rules, or be logical, but our music works. It’s supernatural.

This  is your 11th project! What makes this project different? How does it feel?

Bij Lincs: The fact that we’ve released 11 projects in less than four years is a testament to how amazing our fans are. They challenge us to make the best music we possibly can and we never plan on letting them down. We’ve always believed that they deserve as much music from us as often as possible. We’ve never strayed from that plan.

Last time we spoke, you were about to headline your first show at the TLA and it sold out. Did you expect that? What’s changed since then?

Azar: To this day, that sold-out show is one of our proudest achievements. I believe we were the first local, independent artists to achieve that feat, which made it even more memorable not to mention improbable. I think our work ethic has improved even more since then after realizing how beneficial it was to truly work toward what seemed to be an impossible goal, and then achieve it. We grind more every day. My dad used to tell me, “If you’re not getting better, you’re probably getting worse.” We’ve applied this saying to our daily lives and thrived by simply working hard at a relentless rate.

You also collaborated with New York native, Action Bronson. Why that collaboration? What was it like working with him?

Malakai: We are big fans of his music and movement. He embodies what we represent – good music and realness. Not to mention he’s been ultra successful in his own right. He was extremely professional and fun to work with. We played him some Bij Lincs beats after we did a show together and the rest is history. Hopefully they’ll be some collabs in the future again.

Yet, you guys still kept it Philly with Chill Moody and Reef The Lost Cauze.

Azar: We would never work with a rapper JUST because they call Philly home. We have respect everyone we work with as artists and people in order for the collaboration to be effective. Chill and Reef are both great dudes on and off the mic, first and foremost. It’s just a bonus that they’re from this beautiful city.

What can we expect from you guys next?

Malakai: More consistency. More quality music. More skill over swag.

*** Click here to get tickets to the show, which also features DJ Damage, The Lawsuits and Guy Harrison.