“The interaction of two or more agents or forces that combine to produce an effect that is greater than the sum of their individual effects”. This is the literal definition of the word “Synergy”, but it is also the definition of the walking, talking, and breathing music experience known as “Tru Connection”. Spawning from the depths of the seemingly stagnant and torpid music scene in their hometown of Columbus, Ohio; Tru Connection IMMEDIATELY sought to revive, rebuild, and restore the realm of Hip-Hop, and music in general, to a state of vivacity and integrity on a local level, and eventually, on a national scale. Fueled by nothing more than their unfaltering love for the music and their own God-given creativity, the group began their journey, which up to this point, has given birth to both local success and national acclaim. Tru Connection was initially created on a cold October night in 2005 by two high school kids who go by the name of Bruce Moseley (Jaka) and Malachi Mustafa (The Halo) as merely a medium through which to pass the time… something to fight off the boredom. But little did they know that what originally was created as a hobby, would later evolve and shape-shift into a Mid-west movement. The group began to record 5 to 10 track demos at “Stay Beat Studios”, located in the heart of the Columbus metropolitan area. Encouraged by their classmates and peers to keep making the music, they elevated their musical efforts and began working on their first full length project dubbed “Final Introduction”. After its release, and after a vast amount of local success that stemmed from the project, Tru Connection made two critical decisions. First, they decided to take their music and display it nationally for the world to love, hate, and experience. Secondly, they made a more significant move, which would ultimately lead to decision #1 becoming a reality. They added a new member to the group. Phil Cook: an eclectic producer, genius-writer, and a true student of music who proved to be a key addition to the already talented Tru Connection roster. Tru Connection remains to be a true force within the music industry, because of the collective genius that manifests itself when the members begin to channel all of their creative powers into masterful joint projects. However, individually, they aren’t half bad either. Malachi Mustafa, better known as “Kai” or “The Halo”, is a pure lyricist and has been compared to such artists as “Lupe Fiasco” and “Nas”. He is a mastermind with a full arsenal of delivery styles that never fail to brutalize and completely obliterate every instrumental that dare tries to prove itself immune to The Halo’s adept lyrical technique. He made a statement in one of his press releases that reads as follows: “When I create a song, I interpret the instrumental as a canvas and each one of my words as a different color of paint. The different ways in which I say those words determine its hue. Like, if I’m stating something in an aggressive tone, then that would be a “dark” tint. However, if my tone is more jovial then that would be like a “light” hue, you know? And each song I make, or assist in making, is the end result of that verbal artistry. That’s the “portrait” in its entirety. So naturally, each of our albums, in my opinion, could be best described as “Art Galleries”, only in sonic form instead of the physical. You can’t actually get up and walk through it and touch the paintings, but if you close your eyes and let us guide your imagination for a while, we can show you the real world through vibrant, expressive, and breath-taking art in the form of melodies and poetry, instead of pastels and paint brushes.” ~The Halo (2009)

As you can see, there is a method to the young artists’ madness, and what’s scary is that this kid is still growing skill-wise. There’s no telling how great this lyricist could end up being, and if he ended up on a lot of people’s G.O.A.T. list five to ten years from now, I would not be surprised in the least bit.

Phil Cook, who decided that he did not want a rap alias, is equivocally adroit and sagacious, lyrically, to The Halo. He has drawn constant comparisons to artists such as “Andre 3000” and “Kanye West” for his similarly “hard-to-forget” delivery style and exceptional lyrical prowess. Mr. Cook probably solidified his position as one of Hip-Hop’s elite after his critically acclaimed verse was heard by the masses on a leaked rough version of the track “Super Ultra Mega Cool” off of the group’s forthcoming album “The Classic”. Phil’s wordplay is as refined as Ray Allen’s 3-point jump shot, and he can be matched by VERY FEW in that department. His verse over the instrumental to Jay-Z’s Intro on “The Dynasty: Roc La Familia 2000” album is arguably superior to its original critically acclaimed counterpart. Phil Cook is another likely G.O.A.T. candidate, whose brilliant rhyme-schemes and remarkable verbal technique is sure to attract and retain fans for the length of his career, which hopefully, will be as extensive as it is promising. Collectively, Tru Connection wreaks havoc on every music forum they appear on. They have received honors and awards such as: Track of the Day, Track of the Week, Best Male Vocals, Best Production, Best Melody, Best Beat, Most Original, and many other accolades on Garageband.com which hosts well over a million independent artists. In 2008 they placed as high as #2, #7, and #9 on A&R Select’s Independent Music charts in the Hip-Hop category for roughly 3 months straight (OVER 7,000 artists in the category). In the short time they have been on “Myspace.com” the group has accumulated precisely 220, 372 profile views, 335,536 plays, and over 1500 fans (and counting). On Wemix.com, a site initiated by the platinum selling Hip-Hop artist “Ludacris” for independent musicians, Tru Connection boasts an artist ranking of 1,069 out of 56,648. On “Ourstage.com” the highly touted Tru Connection “614 remix” of one of their songs entitled “Taking them All” (featuring a myriad of local Columbus, OH artists) placed 85th in the Alternative Hip-Hop charts and their signature track “The Crown Vs. The Halo” featuring “Bry Green” placed as high as 5th in the Hip-Hop charts before topping out in 153rd place. On “Showcaseyormusic.com” Tru Connection has a near perfect artist-critique score of 4.64/5. The list seems to have no end in sight, thus it is apparent that this group knows how to appeal commercially while not sacrificing anything musically. Thus, if there is one thing to be said about Tru Connection, it’s that they are a dedicated group of individuals… dedicated to their cause, to their music, and to their fans. Their approach to the way they produce art has not been altered or skewed by any negative externalities, and the blinding flashes of ignorance, immorality, and self-degradation that resonate within the halls of the particular industry, in which, they aspire to one day transform, merely reflect and bounce off of their sunglasses of faith, integrity, and wisdom… The likes of which they NEVER take off. This is a group destined for greatness and beyond. They have the leadership, the talent, and the drive to make “positive” popular again in a realm where faux “rap wars” orchestrated for publicity, watered down lyrics, and negativity reign supreme. The door to the game has recently been slammed in the face of all who have hoped to restore some small amount of dignity and honor to it. So Phil Cook and The Halo have been left no other choice besides one. In the words of the former TC lyricist, “Jaka”:

“If they won’t let us through the door, then we’ll just break it off the hinges…”

“The Classic” coming soon.