Comprised of Crayon and Rock Shabazz, the LongShots have created a serious buzz in the underground and it’s steadily surging to the mainstream. Their name only conjures recognition amongst the true purists but many are now wondering: Who are the LongShots? In an era where publicity stunts pass for skills, they infuse top-notch lyricism with classic New York City beats to create a sound reminiscent of golden age Hip-Hop with a fresh, modern twist. They speak on real-life urban narratives about ghetto survival, not exaggerated to satisfy the pop masses. The duo is currently working on their second album, The Jungle Book.

BACKGROUND

The streets of Jamaica Queens, New York have spawned many hip-hop artists — from classic old schoolers like A Tribe Called Quest to modern day platinum stars such as 50 Cent. Hailing from the same streets, this duo, who goes by the LongShots, were born with hip-hop pumping through their veins. Their love for the hip-hop capital New York goes deep. “Even though other places get it poppin’, just the same, rappers still got to come to New York to solidify their spot in the game. But as a fan, I love hip-hop from everywhere. I feel like rap is like air and you can’t capture it and keep it to one coast; you can only let it go and let it be where it wants to be,” says Crayon, one half of the duo explains.

Being around labels in the Big Apple and seeing how much control they had over artists made Crayon shy away from the industry for a while. In 1999, he decided to do things his way and established The LongShots with Rock Shabazz.

While performing at venues such as E.O.W. and Mindspray, Crayon and Rock Shabazz made a strong impression at emcee competitions in the underground circuit. The duo then set out to record their debut album. The LongShots met up with the Beat Bandits in Hollis Queens, while having a few tracks from other producers in the can already. At first Crayon and Rock Shabazz just wanted some beats, but after hearing what they had to offer, an album was suggested. The duo then started recording in 2003 at the Viper Studios with Southpaw, who used to engineer at Bad Boy. He was in between projects from his peoples — Immortal Technique and Akir — so the LongShots went into it full force. The production was wrapped up in early 2005 with all tracks recorded during that time making it to their debut LP, Hunger Music.

HUNGER MUSIC

Producers: Southpaw, Beat Bandits, Ayatollah, Funky DL, C-Sharp
Label: Sun City Networks
1. By The MacDonalds On Jamaica Ave.
2. Hunger Music
3. If You With Me
4. Life We Livin
5. Audioriot
6. Cold World, Frozen Tears
7. Hands Up
8. Sneak Attack
9. Girl Next Door
10. Reality
11. Running Back To You
12. Game Of Love
13. Ready For War Pt. 2
14. Pallbearers
15. First Brick
16. It’s All Over

VIDEO
Life We Livin’

RECENT AND UPCOMING PROJECTS
“We wanted our debut to be a very East Coast oriented, biographical LP. The second may be different. But with the first one, we had a lot of things to get off our chest, so we wanted to make that statement.” The duo is currently working on a new EP, titled The Jungle Book, which they hope will hold over their fans until their sophomore release, where they plan to begin collaborating with other emcees in the game.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE 
http://www.theLongShotsonline.com

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