So Solid Crew

So Solid Crew are a British UK garage and hip hop collective originating from Battersea, London, which achieved wide success in the early 2000s. The group consisted of many members, the most notable being Asher D (Ashley Walters), Lisa Maffia, Harvey and Romeo. So Solid have been credited for being pioneers in the UK music scene.[1][2] By turning UK garage from a dancey-genre to one that was darker and more MC-oriented, and gaining mainstream success, they inspired London youth to experiment with their own darker sounds, leading to what would become known as grime music.[3][4]

So Solid Crew
OriginBattersea, London, England
Genres
Years active1998–present
LabelsIndependiente Limited, Relentless
Past members

Members

So Solid Crew is a large group which has expanded from 19 initial members to 30.[5]

Confirmed members

There was also a sub-group of So Solid called So Solid Kids, which contained members Samantha, Skip, Frost, and Thrust.[18] Skip and Frost hosted a 'So Solid Kids' show on Delight FM.[19]

Background

Before breaking into the mainstream market, So Solid Crew were involved with many pirate radio stations in London, such as Supreme FM and Delight FM. It was at Delight where they made their name, occupying most of the Sunday schedule, the so-called "So Solid Sundays". From around lunchtime until 10 pm, there were shows from different members, where the various So Solid Crew DJs would play 2-step garage tracks. At times, the So Solid Crew emcees would rap on top of tracks for up to two hours each session. On Christmas Day in 2001, So Solid Crew performed their last Sunday show on the station.[20][21]

History

So Solid Crew's first album, They Don't Know, was released in October 2001, followed by a remix album entitled Fuck It in December 2001. Their hit singles include "Oh No (Sentimental Things)" and "21 Seconds", the latter reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart in August 2001. Another hit, "They Don't Know", reached number three in November 2001 and "Haters" got to number eight in January 2002. "Ride wid Us" was less successful (UK number 19 in April 2002). They released the single "Broken Silence" in 2003 which was their fourth and final top 10 hit. The song spoke out about government prejudice which they felt they had faced.[22]

In 2002, they were the subject of the Channel 4 television documentary This Is So Solid directed and narrated by David Upshal,[23][24] later released on DVD by Universal along with a live performance.[25][26] Members Harvey, Romeo and Lisa Maffia have all appeared on the Channel 4 celebrity reality show The Games. In 2012, Romeo and Harvey each appeared in a separate series of Celebrity Big Brother, in the 9th and 10th series respectively; they both finished in sixth place in their respective series. The band's former producer, Carl Morgan, was convicted of murder in October 2005.[27] Group member Dwayne Vincent (Megaman) was also accused but was cleared after a retrial.[28]

Harvey has gone solo and has produced tracks such as "We Ride" with Doom Man, Swiss, JME and Skepta. So Solid Crew MC Asher D went on to have an acting career appearing in 50 Cent's Get Rich or Die Tryin' and in the British films Bullet Boy and Life and Lyrics, while still making independent mixtapes and albums in the grime and UK hip hop scene.

So Solid member Swiss released "Cry" featuring Sharifa.

Trigger is now working with UK/US based producer Clyde Ward on his solo project JAX and featured on UK-based band The Fallen's debut album track, "Maybe".

In February 2013, the group announced its 2013 tour.[29]

Also in 2013, Harvey and Asher D appeared alongside many other garage pioneers in a documentary exploring the legacy of UK garage, Rewind 4Ever: The History of UK Garage.[30]

Discography

Studio albums
Year Album UK Albums Chart[31]
2001 They Don't Know 6
2003 2nd Verse 70
2013 The Greatest Hits -

Compilations and mixtapes
  • 2000 – MC Harvey and DJ Swiss of So Solid Crew Present UK Garage Mafia
  • 2001 – Fuck It
  • 2006 – The Time Is Now
  • 2006 – Roll Deep Presents Grimey Vol. 1
  • 2011 – So Solid Lost Tapes (Garage) Vol. 1
  • 2011 – So Solid Lost Tapes (RNB) Vol. 2

Singles
List of singles, with selected chart positions
Title Year Peak chart positions Album
UK
[31]		 AUS
[32]
"Oh No (Sentimental Things) / Dilemma" 2000 —— They Don't Know
"21 Seconds" 2001 159
"They Don't Know" 3—
"Haters" 8—
"Ride wid Us" 2002 19—
"Broken Silence" 2003 9— 2nd Verse
"So Grimey" 2004 62—
"Since You Went Away" 2010 82—
"UK Hot wid It" 2013 —— The Greatest Hits

References
  1. Garcia, Francisco (31 May 2017). "The Complicated Legacy of So Solid Crew". Vice. Archived from the original on 16 September 2019. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  2. Jones, Lucy. "So Solid Crew". NME.
  3. Collins, Hattie; Rose, Olivia (8 September 2016). This Is Grime. Hodder & Stoughton. ISBN 9781473639294.
  4. Bramwell, Richard (22 May 2015). UK Hip-Hop, Grime and the City: The Aesthetics and Ethics of London's Rap Scenes. Routledge. ISBN 9781135085988.
  5. Barnes, Jake (19 October 2001). "Triple MOBO winners So Solid Crew are determined to make sure their fame lasts longer than 21 Seconds". Daily Mirror. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  6. Panayides, Theo. 'A new kind of punk rocker' Archived 22 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine, Cyprus Mail, 24 July 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  7. Kutner, Jon; Leigh, Spencer (26 May 2010). 1,000 UK Number One Hits. Omnibus Press. ISBN 9780857123602.
  8. "Rap producer jailed for shooting". BBC News. 28 October 2005. Archived from the original on 31 August 2017. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  9. "Easter is packed with Dance Anthems' Dave Pearce, So Solid Crew, a Waster Reunion and more in Sam Cherry's Club Scene". www.portsmouth.co.uk. Archived from the original on 5 November 2019. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  10. "Exclusive: Big Mikee & Dub Plate Mex trash talk ahead of LOTM DJ Clash | RWD". rwdmag.com. Archived from the original on 16 November 2019. Retrieved 16 November 2019.
  11. Vibe. Vibe Media Group. June 2003.
  12. Jackson, Jamie (24 April 2005). "A history of So Solid Crew". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 20 February 2017. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  13. Formosa, El (19 March 2020). "Spotlight: So Solid 2WENTY 1ONE Tour with full live band". UK Bass Music. Archived from the original on 3 May 2020. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  14. "So Solid star jailed over gun". BBC News. 19 June 2003. Archived from the original on 15 February 2009. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  15. "So Solid: 'The UK needs us back'". BBC News. 20 January 2010.
  16. "So Solid Crew: MC Harvey". BBC News. 27 January 2003. Archived from the original on 26 August 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  17. "So Solid way to promote race relations". Daily Echo. 10 November 2004. Archived from the original on 16 November 2019. Retrieved 16 November 2019.
  18. Jackson, Jamie (24 April 2005). "A history of So Solid Crew". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 20 February 2017. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  19. The Fader. Fader, Incorporated. 2004.
  20. Jamie Jackson (26 October 2006). "A history of So Solid Crew | Observer Music Monthly". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 19 February 2014. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
  21. Smith, Sean (16 August 2012). Alesha. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4711-0217-2.
  22. "So Solid: 'England needs us back". BBC. 20 January 2010. Retrieved 20 January 2010.
  23. Paphides, Pete (5 October 2002). "Crew's control". the Guardian. Archived from the original on 30 December 2016. Retrieved 27 September 2018.
  24. Alexis Petridis (14 October 2002). "So Solid Crew: the official version". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 9 September 2014. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
  25. "ASM Talent » So Solid Crew". 31 May 2015. Archived from the original on 31 May 2015. Retrieved 27 September 2018.
  26. "So Solid Crew - This Is So Solid, N/A - 2003 - music DVD Dance, Pop". www.musicafilm.it. Archived from the original on 23 November 2015. Retrieved 27 September 2018.
  27. "News.bbc.co.uk". BBC. 28 October 2005. Archived from the original on 21 March 2007. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  28. "Megaman cleared of murder". NME. 29 September 2006. Archived from the original on 22 October 2011. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  29. "So Solid Crew Tickets". NME. Archived from the original on 5 June 2013. Retrieved 26 February 2013.
  30. "Todd Edwards, Wookie and more to appear in documentary exploring the legacy of UK garage – FACT Magazine: Music News, New Music". Factmag.com. 27 June 2013. Retrieved 10 January 2014.
  31. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 513. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  32. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 259.
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