Few Montreal hip-hop groups have achieved what rap trio NBA has over the span of a year and half. Ever since their humble beginnings when they met at a small rapping event four years ago, the boys have pioneered their way to the top of the Montreal circuit.
N.B.A., which stands for Natural Born Artist, is made up of Seven30, Lil Da.k.a aka Da Franchi$e, and MVP. Seven30, whose origins are Lebanese, is the businessman of the group. Although he raps, he also produces and goes to Music Business School where he studies artist management, copyright laws, and other aspects of the business. Da Franchi$e, whose is originally from Trinidad, is the ladies’ man. As Seven30 describes him, he is a “chick magnet”. MVP portrays a more smooth side of the group, originating from the beautiful Islands of the Seychelles.
Since jump-starting their career in November 2005 after winning the “Battle Of The Tracks” on K-103 with their song “Wild Out”, the group has enjoyed heavy radio-spin, opened for Bobby Valentino as well as Rhianna, and put out a mixtape that placed them on top of the local game.
“It was crazy”, explained Seven30 about winning “Battle of the Tracks”. “People were calling in asking if we were from the States. Then we performed the song live and we had the whole crowd singing ‘Wild Out’.”
The response was so positive that the group was booked right after to open for Rhianna and the buzz kept growing. They were also approached to open for Lloyd Banks, Juelz Santana, and Obie Trice but the group turned them down without hesitation.
The reason for it is that N.B.A. knows their target audience: girls. As Seven30 broke it down, “why would we wanna do a hip-hop show with only guys looking angry when we can have hundreds of girls and guys dancing and having fun to our music?”
Their myspace page is the best testament of that. With over 15,000 fans and 95 per cent of them female, N.B.A. has hundreds of girls from the four corners of North America showing admiration. Since they realize that there are great rappers everywhere, they’ve decided to target their audience in order to achieve success.
And their dreams of success don’t stop within the confines of Quebec. “We’re trying to be the first group coming out of Canada to break that international, multi-platinum barrier,” Seven30 said. “But before taking over the world we gotta rule our own turf.”
Right now N.B.A. is working on their album “The People’s Choice” which will soon be released. Although they have been offered many deals, the group is still unsigned because the want to increase their bargaining power before signing anything.
Upon hearing their single, it is clear that the material is designed for heavy radio play. “Every track we do, we wanna make it a hit. Our music is about having fun. It’s not depressing, it won’t make you angry. It brings out a more pleasurable side, a happy side,” Seven30 explained.
Until the release of their album, the group is prepping a high school tour organized by MusiquePlus and K-103 where they will have the chance to showcase their upcoming material and raise money for charity.
Keep an eye out and maybe sooner than you think you may catch these guys on MTV or BET.