Daily Inspiration: Meet Christin Brown

Today we’d like to introduce you to Christin Brown.

Hi Christin, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Negro Justice’s message is equal portions of good news and realism. The tone is celebratory in his songs as they seem to be saying, “I’m glad we made it here”, while he has no problem describing his journey. He possesses dual citizenship in Kentucky and Tennessee – Kentucky born, Tennessee bred. He’s not forgotten his roots in Bowling Green while growing up in Nashville and building a community in the Nashville hip hop scene. Negro Justice is the brainchild of Chris (Chris) Brown, coining the name after Project Justice – a fighting game by Capcom that black folks love. The name has since taken on a larger meaning with the rise of movements like Black Lives Matter as people are becoming more aware of socioeconomic injustice, but it will always have its humble genesis.
Chris’s first memories of hip hop revolved around the feeling he got when Missy Elliot teamed up with Timbaland on the 1997 album, Supa Dupa Fly. Chris was fascinated with the relationship between the rhymes and the beat which led him to appreciate producers like Just Blaze, 9th Wonder and The Neptunes. “I never thought I’d end up rapping. If anything I wanted to make beats. Now look where we are.” Chris proclaims. This was all preparation where he learned his way around an instrumental to flow with ease.
The Negro Justice live show is as personable as it is impressive. The flow is smooth as he flexes his charmingly deep southern voice over jazzy gospel influenced instrumentals that waste no time getting your head bobbing. His debut album, Chosen Family, features Justice’s good friend and producer Just Vibez on a majority of the beats which gives the album a continuity on the tracks. . Negro Justice seems to breathe life into anything he touches whether it be the arcade where he games competitively or the studio where he drops cream of the crop bars. He has been releasing music since 2018, and his most recent full length release is a 1-rapper, 1-producer collaboration with Just Vibez called “Art of the Craft.” The album has been critically acclaimed, landing on best albums of 2023 lists both at home as well as overseas.
He describes his Hip Hop sound as his own flavor – Southern Fried Boom Bap. “It’s where wordplay intersects with storytelling.” Negro Justice’s debut album, “Chosen Family” received praise from Ghettoblaster Magazine, Nashville Scene, Scratched Vinyl, We Own this town and more. The album would then go on to win best hip-hop album of 2022 in the Nashville Scene. Chosen Family is a mantra that Chris has lived by before he wrote a single lyric. “You choose your own family. Blood is not thicker than water. If a person is toxic to you or your loved ones, no amount of blood will change that. I want as much distance between my circle and that person as possible.” The album includes features from Amber Woodhouse, Face of the Major Playerz, Rio Tokyo, BLVCKWIZZLE, Corduroy Clemmens, HB Mandella, Chan Tate, C.I. Aki, Gee Slab, FU Stan and Auntie Jo. It seems he always has something cooking like collaborations with California based producer, Cal Cuttah. Justice also has a duo with his cousin, Chan Tate, called Prince Edward. He and Chan Tate started rapping around the same time period. They kind of took off together as they were living in the same neighborhood. Chris put together a bootleg studio in his home, coining it “The Lilypad.”
The future is bright for Negro Justice. He just release a mixtape titled “NJAM – Negro Justice Appeciation Month” named for his March birth month, which is also the month the project was released. He is currently working with Just Vibez on a sequel to “Art of the Craft” as well as a yet to be announced concept album that he’s keeping under tight wraps. He is also planning a series of smaller projects and EPs for release in 2025.. Negro Justice is an artist who brings inspiration to every circle he enters. He’s the friend that makes the party feel right when he shows up. His songs are infectious and relatable as he brings out the best of every collaboration in the way that a great director would in an epic film.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I don’t think it’s possible for the road of an independent artist to ever be smooth, haha. You constantly deal with bots, scammers, and even people you thought you could trust (this one hurts the most) trying to take advantage of you.

However, and especially as of late, the biggest obstacle has been platforms trying to block my access because of my name. I’ve recently started a journey within one of my other passions – gaming – as I began streaming on Twitch and posting content on YouTube. However, my name, Negro Justice, has caused my account to be banned on both platforms, claiming that I’m spreading “hate speech” which is completely absurd, especially given the other content that is allowed to exist on these platforms. A black artist being banned for having the word “Negro” in their name is the current climate in an nutshell lol.

I have since got my Twitch account restored, but I am still banned on YouTube and cannot use any of their services. I am 99% sure this because YouTube uses AI to moderate their services, and AI simply does not allow for any nuance or human element.

If anyone reading this knows any legal counsel with experience in dealing with YouTube, or has any HUMAN contacts at YouTube, please let ya boy know! Lmao smh.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a rapper and videogame streamer. Gaming and Music are my passions and I was constantly looking for ways to marry the two growing up. I got heavy into 8 and 16bit gaming music as a youth. I have tons of game soundtracks and remixes from the days of OverClocked Remix (OC Remix) and still look for opportunities to sample them to this day.

I call my style “Southern Fried Boom Bap” – to me, there is NOTHING like a Southern MC with something to say. I don’t consider myself “conscious” but I am not afraid to comment on the current state of things. Lyricism over the soulfulness and grittiness of Southern beats speaks to my soul, and I want my listeners to feel that too. I also love injecting humor into my music and live shows. I think Dave Chappelle said a lot of rappers think they are funny and I believe I am one of them lol.

As far as something I’m most proud of – hell, winning best rap album in Nashville with my debut was one hell of a proud moment. One that I will never let anyone forget hahaha.

Another moment I haven’t fully revealed yet, and won’t until I’m ready to start rolling out the album that the song is on, but I was able to get a feature from an individual that is in my personal top 5 favorite artists ever for one of my upcoming albums. They snapped too! Can’t wait for yall to hear it.

Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
My advice to anyone would be to just keep getting reps in. What I mean by that is to constantly work to refine your craft and be a student of it. Always be writing and take as many opportunities as you can to record. It’s just like anything else as far as developing a skill. Keep working the muscle and it gets stronger. Raw talent is very real, but so is hard work. Also keep people around you that will push you to improve, be it just thru their support or friendly competition if they are a fellow artist. You need people that will keep it a buck with you – no yes men.

Rappers – keep track of your lyrics and the beats you wrote them to. Also make sure you are registered with a PRO.

Producers – name your beats in a meaningful way and keep up with who you sent what. Also put the BPM of your beats in the file name.

The biggest things I wish I knew starting out were more on the administrative side of things. Make sure you are registered with a PRO as well as distribution. The last thing you want is to get an opportunity thru one of your songs and not have the paperwork in place. It also wouldn’t hurt to have access to some legal counsel to run questions by when it comes to contracts, performances, licensing your music, etc.

Pricing:

• Features – $500 for a verse
• Song Licensing – varies
• Merch available on my website or DM me directly

Contact Info:

• Website: www.negrojustice.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/negro_justice/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/negrojustice/
• Twitter: https://x.com/NegroJustice
• Other: https://negrojustice87.bandcamp.com/