In late April 2019, the Los Angeles-based group Your Grandparents introduced themselves to the world with their debut EP Been Cold. The project put the group on many new listeners’ radar, including Lyrical Lemonade who said “Your Grandparents certainly kicked off what will surely be a prosperous career on the right foot.” Been Cold is made up of seven songs, ranging from the laidback waltzy love plea “Overthinkin’”, to upbeat dance track “Groove.” Been Cold was the first official release that put the group on the map, but it’s only their first step to gaining even more recognition. Or as Cole, the primary producer of the group, put it, “Been Cold was the first ‘game’ we had. The other projects and releases we did before this were just scrimmages and practices.”
Photo Credit: @3rdconcept
Your Grandparents is made up of Ghettoblasterman (Cole), DaCosta (Kyle), and Jean Carter (Chaz). The trio first met as friends when they were 13 years old at Culver City Middle School in Los Angeles. The group recalls the first song they ever wrote together when they were 16 at Kyle’s grandmother’s house. “If I were to put that first experience of writing and producing together into one word, it would just be ‘fun.’ It was a really fun time.” This first song was “Been Thru,” which punches so hard your body naturally wants to lean into it; which, in my opinion, is the testament to a damn good track.
When asked about their writing process, Cole said “When we first started out, I would make beats and we’d let the beats sit while Kyle and Chaz would write. Since then, we’ve grown as musicians and we’ve expedited the process. Now a lot of the time as I’m making the beat, Chaz and Kyle are coming up with the concepts and the writing. By the time I’m done, or even before I’m done, there’s already verses, a hook, a vibe, and a concept created.”
You might be wondering where their slightly comical artist name derived from. When it came to deciding on a group name, they were thinking of ways they could pay homage to those that came before them, not only in their own families but in music history. “Cole suggested the whole ‘Grandparents’ idea. We first thought of ‘Grandpa Squad’ but that wasn’t it haha. So we went with ‘Your Grandparents’ which was Chaz’s idea.” (Photo credit: @thepositivepapi)
A couple of the artists Your Grandparents pay homage to in their own artist name include OutKast, A Tribe Called Quest, and Earth, Wind & Fire, to name a few. Cole says “I like to look at us somewhere in the realm of A Tribe Called Quest or OutKast: Very avant garde, but still a household favorite.” As influenced as they might be by these artists’ sound and style, Your Grandparents are still unique in their own right. “Production-wise and the way we balance raps and vocals, we’re not generic or sound like everything else out here in California. We’re pretty unique,” Chaz says, “I don’t think there’s any one group who’s done exactly what we’re doing.”
With a full year having gone by since the group’s debut release, the members continue to grow as artists. Whether that’s by adding more instruments and musicality to their live performances, or just trying out new things in the studio. “My favorite song on the EP is ‘Overthinkin’” says Chaz, “That song was really a trailblazer, vocally, for what I’m doing now. I wasn’t singing that way before “Overthinkin’.” If Been Cold was just an intro to who Your Grandparents are, we’re eager to see how they’ve continued to grow within the past year. One thing they plan to do is incorporate more visuals and music videos into their new releases, “giving listeners a visual into our world” Cole says. Their first full length album, consisting of ten new songs, is currently in the final processes of mixing and mastering.
Since the YRGP members have known each other for years (and in some cases, possibly even know each other better than they know themselves) we asked Cole, Kyle, and Chaz to name who would be the “most likely” to carry out these situations. (Photo credit: @xoxohadas.)
Of you three, who would be the most likely to…
Lose their phone?
Chaz: Kyle for sure.
Kyle: I am definitely the most likely to lose their phone.
Win in a freestyle battle?
Chaz: I’m gonna have to give that to me. Jean Carter, he’s got the bars. I don’t rap so much on the songs anymore, but in real life I’ll go in. I don’t know how to talk otherwise.
Get a regrettable tattoo?
Cole: I think Kyle.
Kyle: Me?!
Cole: Yeah, because Jean Carter really has to think and analyze his tattoos. And I don’t get a tattoo unless I’ve lived through some sh*t.
Kyle: Okay yeah, that’s fair.
Cole: Kyle, do you have any regrettable tattoos?
Kyle: Not yet. Yet is the key. I’m gonna be very careful, but if I’m drunk or something stupid and I get put into an “oh, you won’t” situation… then I might.
Chaz: Okay we’re going to go with Kyle for this one.
Text their Ex?
Kyle: I would text an ex.
Chaz: But you don’t have any exes that it would be a thing.
Kyle: I just know I would. I would just be like, “Hey… you busy?”
Cole: I feel like I’m very much in the same vein as Kyle. I don’t have any people with relations with that I feel very weird about hitting up. I’m the kind of person who would just be like “Hey! How’s it going? How’re you doing?” So I think either me or Kyle.
Fall asleep at the studio?
Kyle: Oh, that’s fair game.
Chaz: It’s not going to be Cole, just because the session is kind of contingent on his staying awake.
Kyle: True. Cole has to stay awake, if anybody.
Chaz: It could be anyone. It might be me, just because I smoke – but I’ll get sh*t done though.
Kyle: He’ll fall asleep because he’s tuckered out, that’s how it goes. Once he gets all his raps out, the only thing left is to take a slumber.
Follow Your Grandparents on Instagram and Twitter and be on the lookout for new releases coming soon. You can listen to Been Cold now on all streaming platforms.
