Starving Art Clique - Starving Art - 1998

If there is an album who deserves a proper release on vinyl, it could be certainly that one, "Starving Art" which was released on CD by the Baltimore-based group Starving Art Clique in 1998. 

Starving Art Clique consisted of Christopher "30 Fingaz" Gittens also know as Cleptomaniac, Robert "Hawaii" Russell, and DJ Joe "Guess Who?" Davidge. 

The album is composed of 12 tracks featuring other local artists like Dutchess, Oddessy, Cabral Cartel and Hoe and was released on Overkast Records which was owned and managed by Joe Davidge. All the tracks were  produced by Guess Who? and Shane "The Doctor" Faber.

"On the self-produced album, both 30 Fingaz and Hawaii exhibit a lyrical density and maturity that belie their age. They engage true life with wordplay and metaphor for a result that works on several levels, and Guess Who? complements the duo's lyrics with beats and sounds. Instead of the typical stripped-down bass and drums that producers usually place beneath "reality" lyrics, Guess Who? swirls horn lines and piano around the griminess of the rhymes in way that is jolting but effective." - Press Sheet

I had already blogged something about the vinyl EP a few years ago but nothing about the album. It was the good opportunity to talk with Christopher Gittens who gave me more info about it. 

30 Fingaz : "My real name is Chris Gittens,  but in the rap world, I'm known as Cleptomaniac.  I was born in Brooklyn, New York City. I was born into a music loving Trinidadian family. I was always around music. We eventually moved to Baltimore County where I later met Robert Russell (Hawaii) in Highschool. I had already known Joe Davidge who was the producer of the Starving Art album through my older brother Hoe. Hoe went to school with Joe Davidge, and Lamont Morraigne'el (Joe's business partner). Joe made beats, and I liked his beats. Even though I was a child,  Joe and Lamont saw something promising in my rhymes. I introduced Hawaii to Joe and EL (Lamont), and we started to discuss a project.  Although Hawaii and I were already making music, we hadn't done anything serious. We started the starving art project about a year and a half before it was actually released. It took so long because there was a constant clash of creativity between Joe and myself. I wanted to go with more of a ruff and rugged sound (hardcore hip-hop) if you will. Joe on the other hand worshipped A Tribe Called Quest and I think he wanted to sound like them. Me and Hawaii did not. We were street battle rappers. But because of Joe's heavy personality, along with the fact that him and EL were funding the whole project, we eventually went more of Joe's direction instead of really a group effort. Hence the Starving Art album is really Joe's creation. We just performed it. Joe gave me the concepts, and I wrote the songs, and Hawaii filled them in. 

Guess stars included Dutchess & Oddessy, Mekalicious, Cabral Cartel, and Hoe. Hoe and Cabral are my brothers.  Oddessy and Dutchess went to school with my older brother. We brought Mek in just to have an "out of town" guest on a track (I don't think we really needed him). After the project, Hawaii and I technically still had another project to do according to the contract, but, we were not willing to do another project without full creative freedom. Joe attempted to employ us again for a reunion album, but we declined because we never made any money off of that album. If there were to be a Starving Art reunion album, it will be without Overkast records."