Wil Baptiste (viola) and Kev Marcus (violin) are Black Violin, the string duo from Florida with equal footing in the worlds of classical music and hip-hop. Though they have been playing together since high school, their debut album "Stereotypes" features a wide range of guest artists and writers, expanding and adding R&B, jazz and rock elements to the mix and illustrating the genre-busting sensibility behind Black Violin's music.
"Wil and Kev's DNA is all about shattering and breaking stereotypes," says producer Eli Wolf, who has worked with the likes of Norah Jones, Wynton Marsalis and Elvis Costello. "We wanted the album to thread their sound through a kaleidoscope of styles, and bring out ways to break down categories and barriers into something multifaceted and expansive."
With "Stereotypes," Black Violin set out to achieve something more than just selling some records or gaining notoriety as a curiosity. "We want to really be something that young musicians aspire to," says Marcus. "For us, the violin is the vehicle for a bigger message, which is not to be afraid to be different."
The members of Black Violin first met in Ft. Lauderdale and played together in the orchestra at the Dillard High School of the Performing Arts. Classically trained by day, they faithfully put on their headphones and listened to the hottest rap records each night. "We wanted to be the next Neptunes, the next Timbaland," says Baptiste. "But we noticed how, whenever we performed with our artists, the audience was really drawn to us."
They developed an act covering hip-hop songs on their violins, which became popular in local clubs. Two years after sending a tape to Showtime at the Apollo, they were invited to appear on the show—which they won, and kept winning. "After we won the Apollo, which is the hardest audience on the planet, we knew there was something there," says Marcus.
They were approached by the manager of Alicia Keys, who asked them to perform with the singer on the Billboard Awards. Other offers followed—they toured with Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park, opened for the Wu-Tang Clan, scored an episode of "CSI: New York," and even performed for President Obama at his 2013 inauguration. Individually and together, Baptiste and Marcus have worked with everyone from Kanye West to Tom Petty, Lupe Fiasco to Aerosmith.
The pair created a distinctive, peerless sound: "A hard-hitting beat with lush string sounds," says Baptiste. "Something you can listen to if you don't listen to hiphop, or if you don't listen to classical music—we bridge that gap."
Wil Baptiste (viola) and Kev Marcus (violin) are Black Violin, the string duo from Florida with equal footing in the worlds of classical music and hip-hop. Though they have been playing together since high school, their debut album "Stereotypes" features a wide range of guest artists and writers, expanding and adding R&B, jazz and rock elements to the mix and illustrating the genre-busting sensibility behind Black Violin's music.
"Wil and Kev's DNA is all about shattering and breaking stereotypes," says producer Eli Wolf, who has worked with the likes of Norah Jones, Wynton Marsalis and Elvis Costello. "We wanted the album to thread their sound through a kaleidoscope of styles, and bring out ways to break down categories and barriers into something multifaceted and expansive."
With "Stereotypes," Black Violin set out to achieve something more than just selling some records or gaining notoriety as a curiosity. "We want to really be something that young musicians aspire to," says Marcus. "For us, the violin is the vehicle for a bigger message, which is not to be afraid to be different."
The members of Black Violin first met in Ft. Lauderdale and played together in the orchestra at the Dillard High School of the Performing Arts. Classically trained by day, they faithfully put on their headphones and listened to the hottest rap records each night. "We wanted to be the next Neptunes, the next Timbaland," says Baptiste. "But we noticed how, whenever we performed with our artists, the audience was really drawn to us."
They developed an act covering hip-hop songs on their violins, which became popular in local clubs. Two years after sending a tape to Showtime at the Apollo, they were invited to appear on the show—which they won, and kept winning. "After we won the Apollo, which is the hardest audience on the planet, we knew there was something there," says Marcus.
They were approached by the manager of Alicia Keys, who asked them to perform with the singer on the Billboard Awards. Other offers followed—they toured with Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park, opened for the Wu-Tang Clan, scored an episode of "CSI: New York," and even performed for President Obama at his 2013 inauguration. Individually and together, Baptiste and Marcus have worked with everyone from Kanye West to Tom Petty, Lupe Fiasco to Aerosmith.
The pair created a distinctive, peerless sound: "A hard-hitting beat with lush string sounds," says Baptiste. "Something you can listen to if you don't listen to hiphop, or if you don't listen to classical music—we bridge that gap."