Myke Charles Interview

by Tim Wenger

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Myke Charles is Denver’s freshest superstar. Not only is his group Urban Method currently on NBC’s hit show “The Sing Off,” but also he has been performing around town for years with his groups In The Buff and Fresh Breath Committee. I got the chance to catch up with Myke and drill him with some questions about his career, recent success, and the new “Rap-a-pella” genre that Urban Method has brought into the spotlight.

CMB: Let’s hear about how you got started and how the ‘Rap-a-pella’ genre originated.

MC: I wrote my first rap in third grade, but didn’t really start rapping until fifth grade. I started as a result of being bored in class. I was a gifted student in elementary school and my imagination would run wild during class. So I started drawing and writing a lot. In middle school, I got into choir. By the time I hit high school I started feeling like being a rapper and singer was what I wanted to do with my life. However, rough times in high school made me feel like I didn’t have what it takes to make it. So I went to college at CU for engineering and tried to quit music. About a week into college I ended up auditioning for the a cappella group ‘In The Buff’ and making it into the group (so much for quitting, right?). During my four active years with In The Buff I honed in my performance skills, becoming one of the primary lead vocalists of the group. All of my solos except for one were surprisingly strictly singing, not rapping. One year we decided to do a Kanye West song and I was able to showcase my rapping abilities. Now we all know I’m not the first to rap a cappella and Urban Method is not the first group to do all-vocal Hip-Hop. However for ME, this is where Rap-a-pella originated … at CU with my college group and me. Since then, I’ve been able to come together with Urban Method and present this concept to millions on television, making it a new sensation around the country.

CMB: What led to getting on ‘The Sing Off’?

MC: Making it on to ‘The Sing-Off’ was a very fast-paced deal. Tony contacted me two weeks before I graduated college asking if I was interested in being a member of Urban Method. He told me the first thing he wanted to do with the group is audition for the show. The day after my graduation party I met with the group. About a week later we filmed our audition video and sent it in. About two days later I’m filling out paper work to be on the show. Craziness.

CMB: Other than publicity, how has being on a TV show helped to further your career, and what have you gained from it that you don’t get from everyday performances?

MC: Being on television has been a highly memorable experience. It’s kind of crazy, though. I go out to eat in Denver and people recognize me. Last week at a haunted house people in line were pointing me out. Even in New York (which is where I am right now for a few days) someone came up to me at 3 am at the subway station to talk to me about being on the show. Other than publicity and some recognition, I think being on television has given me some invaluable experience to help further my career. I understand things about the business that I didn’t going into it. It’s also given me a foundation from which I can really launch my career. I get contacted everyday from people around the nation. They tell me they are fans now and that they love my confidence on stage. I’ve been very fortunate to have this experience.

CMB: Talk a little bit about Urban Method and what it is all about, and Fresh Breath Committee as well, how did they come to be and where are you at now?

MC: Urban Method is an all-vocal Hip-Hop group from Denver, and I am the lead rapper and baritone for the group. Urban Method is focused on merging Hip-Hop and a cappella music into an accessible genre (Rap-a-pella, as it’s been dubbed, I guess) and sharing it with the world. We are all about the dream, and long to give people the confidence to continue pursuing their dreams no matter how vast they are or how difficult they appear to achieve. Being from Denver, we like to think we are the underdogs in the music business fighting for all the other underdogs – ha. Tony Huerta, who hand-picked the members of the group, founded Urban Method. When he decided that he wanted the group to be Hip-Hop-based, he called me. I was a member of CU’s premier a cappella group, In The Buff, for four years, and Tony and I met when he was hired to do a live album for the group. We struck up a great business relationship and we have a lot of mutual respect for each other, so when I got the call about Urban Method, it was a no-brainer.

Fresh Breath Committee started out as just a small Hip-Hop collective with some of my boys that I had been making music with at the time. We just had fun with it all. We released CPR in 2009 and Westword gave it Hip-Hop Album of the Year in Denver. It was cool. Since then, the crew has been performing all around the city and stacking tracks. I’ve been out of town for a while so the team has just been stacking tracks. Since I’ve been back we’ve started working on the second album and formulating some plans for next year. Those are my boys and no matter what I’m gonna keep working with them. Even though I’m more focused on UM and my solo career right now, the team is still behind me. Particularly Res and Flawless. I’ve been working real close with the two of them for production, recording, and sound engineering on my solo tracks.

CMB: How has being from Denver as opposed to the West or East Coast helped or hindered your success and ability to get recognition?

MC: I’ve always credited Denver for having a vibrant music scene. There is a lot of talent out here. I think the problem is that there isn’t a big music BUSINESS. It’s a not a large hub for any particular genre really, especially Hip-Hop. A lot of the venues and music businesses here will play you if you let them … they’ll pay you pennies. I think being from Denver has hindered me in the since that if I would have accomplished the same things in another city, somebody in the business would see something worth investing in or working with. Out here, you don’t get a lot of that until you are already big. Regardless of all of this, I love my city.

CMB: What’s the future got for you? Solo work or group work?

MC: Hopefully the future has bright lights, memorable performances, and fame for me. I really just want to connect with people and give them something relatable and classic to listen to. As far as the medium I do that in, solo work and group work are both in the future. Right now I’m working on a lot of solo content. I’ve been releasing songs almost weekly since ‘The Sing-Off’ began to air in September. My current single, ‘Hotel Confessions,’ has been getting a lot of love. I have an official music video coming out for ‘Hotel Confessions’ at the end of November. I’m excited for this one. As far as group work is concerned, I’m working with Urban Method on original content as well as putting together a set to start lining up performances. I still work with Fresh Breath Committee as well; we’ve been in the studio focusing on the second album.

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Category: Planet Buzz