Doing big things

Local hip-hop duo Big Quarters are right where they want to be. Current underground king and local hero P.O.S. calls them his favorite rap group. They’re releasing an EP’s worth of material every month with their innovative and ambitious “BQ Direct” subscription service. And, their sophomore LP “From the Home of Brown Babies & White Mothers” is stirring up much anticipation leading up to its early-May release.
Consisting of Latin-American brothers Brandon and Zach Baggason, Big Quarters spawned from rather unlikely origins. Originally from the Chicago suburbs, the brothers Baggason moved to the diminutive northern Minnesota town of Clearbrook , population 551, before they were even teens. From an early age they were keen on rap, but given the sometimes suggestive nature of the rhymes they were mimicking, their mother suggested they start making their own rhymes.
In 2000, Brandon and Zach migrated to Minneapolis, where they attended the U of M and Perpich Center for Arts Education, respectively. Once immersed in the then burgeoning Twin Cities scene, the brothers took quickly to hip-hip under the tutelage of more established local acts like I Self Devine and Kanser. Then, in 2007, their debut LP “Cost of Living” was released and immediately garnered attention.
Now, both still in their mid-twenties, Zach, the obsessive beat-maker/emcee, and Brandon, the possessor of a flow so low it competes with the bass line, are set to release their latest LP and it won’t disappoint. Boasting old-school beats with added complexity and depth, naturally adept flows and trade-off verses that focus on culture, family, city life and the rap game, “From the Home of Brown Babies & White Mothers” takes the promising formula employed on Big Quarter’s first record and betters it across the board.

A&E got to the opportunity to chat with Brandon about the new record, the Twin Cities’ scene and tacos. Glorious, glorious tacos.

What inspired you and your brother to first get into hip-hop?
As far back as I remember, I’ve been listening to hip-hop, rap and R&B. The first thing that made me consider actually rapping and contributing to hip-hop as a whole was when I heard B Real and Cyprus Hill. They were talking about Latin lingo, and I’m Mexican , so, that was the first time. I was about twelve years old and thought, ‘I can write a rap.’
Tell me about the new record. Are you happy with the finished product?
This is the first record that we produced, wrote, recorded, mixed and mastered start to finish. We do it all ourselves. I’m real happy with it. If you heard our last record, “Cost of Living,” it’s a natural progression. We didn’t have a lot of singing on our last record, and that’s not something we set out to do. For the album, but we wanted each song to be more melodic and force ourselves to grow and develop as artists.
Explain the title of “From the Home of Brown Babies and White Mothers”?
It’s from a line in the song “Everyday” on our last record. It’s a line I wrote, and I wrote it as an observation, something I feel. But a lot of my friends identified with it. Most of my family is made up of brown babies with white mothers. People just connected to it because being multi racial, multi cultural … there’s not a lot of that identity portrayed in media. So when there are little pieces out there, we just gravitate towards it and grab on to it. It’s something that needs to be represented, and we’re just representing ourselves.
What’s the most encouraging aspect of the Twin Cities’ hip-hop scene?
One thing I appreciate and I think we contribute to, is giving back to younger artists that are coming up. In the same way Heiruspecs , Lost Nativos , I Self Devine and Kanser have all helped us as Big Quarters get our name out, we’re doing that now. Especially through the programs we’re working at at Hope Community , we’re also working at a school – Anne Sullivan – a middle school where we do song writing and recording with kids. That’s something I’m proud of, that we can give back like artists who’ve helped us.
What could be better?
One thing that’s a challenge, and a challenge that we’re meeting, is just getting our music out. We don’t have a lot of outlets. There’s not hip-hop TV shows or channels – or even many hip-hop radio shows that are covering what we have going on. So it’s up to us to promote ourselves and make our own outlets, whether it’s a show or a podcast or, ya know, a blog. That’s something that’s always growing and people are supporting it.
Who’s a younger emcee or group who hasn’t got much exposure, but who you see a future in?
There’s a crew called Shelf Life; it’s a lot of south-side kids. There’s a group called Fresh Squeeze and a group called AP Classes that’s a handful of N.E. kids. The Org, Fly Jungle … I know I’m gonna forget one. These are young people who I’ve known since they were 15 and they’re 18 now and doing shows. That’s some of ’em.
You invited me out for burritos to do this interview – where’s your favorite Mexican food in Minneapolis?
Other than my Grandma’s spot, it’s Tacos Pineda on Lake and Hiawatha.
What kind of future do you see for Big Quarters?
In the last eight months, we’ve put out 40 songs, five songs a month through our subscription service BQ direct. Now, with the album, we’re just gonna attract more people and gain their confidence. People are gonna see what we’re doing and say, “Ok, this is something I can get with.” We’re totally self-sufficient and that’s something we’re gonna keep doing.