One of the most eye-opening things about Ben Grizz’s music is not that it’s street or that it’s extremely catchy, it’s that it has the power to cross multiple demographics. People from all walks of life and ages – from 16-to-65 – love his music. They love the way he relates stories from his own life with their own shared experiences. They love the way his music motivates them. And they mostly love the unique sound and style he brings to the table.
Earlier this year, Grizz dropped the album “Expensive Taste,” and in the months since, he’s been riding a wave of success that has seen him played in places all over the U.S. That’s quite a journey for a young man from Fitchburg, Massachusetts.
According to Grizz, music has been in his blood since birth. Hip-hop in particular runs in the family, with both his uncle – a rap artist himself – and his grandfather being really into rap music. His own stage name stems from an expression passed along to him by his brother’s friends when they would say, “Get it Grizz!” It’s a term that emphasizes the grit and grizzle it takes to overcome all of the struggles of his life in order to achieve the goals he’s set before himself.
“My sound is street, but it’s catchy,” Grizz said. “It’s street music you can play and vibe to. It’s not just all hard-core and in your face. It’s the kind of music I like to listen to – like the people I grew up listening to. Those legends were always very relatable but kept it street at the same time – but not too street where you would want to turn it off because it was too much in your face.”
Grizz puts that perfect balance of sound on display with his most recent single “Steak & Rice.” Continuing the theme set forth with the album “Expensive Tastes,” “Steak & Rice” is a metaphor that illustrates the importance of taking care of one’s body and always “being on your A game,” he said.
One of the things Grizz particularly loves about the track is that it’s a song that brings his life’s journey full circle. One of the hardest things for him to overcome as a young child was when his father was deported to Haiti. He wasn’t able to see his father again for 18 years, until earlier this year he finally had the opportunity to travel to Haiti to shoot the music video for “Steak & Rice.” His father not only had the opportunity to reconnect with his son, but also got to see an up-close look at his son’s success. The entire experience was one that Grizz said was the perfect capstone for his journey so far.