Rock to the Rhythm: The Story of Lexicon

Nothing of consequence should be boiled down to an elevator pitch. Certainly not in 1990s rap, when the culture was accelerating in numerous, often disparate directions. Still, it didn’t stop brothers Gideon “Big Oak” and Nicholas “Nick Fury” Black from establishing their group Lexicon with an idea that was as sincere as it was simple: make music that melded elements of the Beastie Boys and A Tribe Called Quest—but for the West Coast.

It was in the pursuit of these classicist proclivities that the Los Angeles-based Lexicon came to epitomize a philosophy valued by a certain strand of hip-hop heads: underground over everything. They saw themselves in an alliance with the off-mainstream ingenuity of Rawkus, Fondle ‘Em, Definitive Jux, and, closer to home, Stones Throw. Boom-bap was the scripture, crackle and hiss was the writ. For Lexicon, no stage was too small or recording space too cramped; this was backpack rap at a time when you literally sold tapes out of a backpack.

They kept the project on the road for over 15 years—a hell of a run for an underground act in any era. Released earlier this year, Greatest Hits and Unreleased Bits is a revelatory document—12 of their best cuts plus 21 rarities spanning 1999 to 2015. It chronicles the duo’s faith in timeless fundamentals, as well as the daring heresy of their later genre-splicing rap-rock experiments.

A Fateful Encounter with Eminem

Though Lexicon would never find their way to rap’s head table, they did occasionally spot a superstar in the wild. You could easily make the argument that Big Oak and Nick Fury were on the bill at the birth of Slim Shady. It was December 20, 1998, and before Dr. Dre sent him to tick the world off, Eminem would have to conquer the Whisky a Go Go. As Lexicon remembers it, the headliner showed up four hours late.

“It was weird,” recalls Nick Fury, “because it wasn’t very hip-hop and he’s working with Dre now. It was like, ‘Okay, this is a new pop artist’.” Any fears that Eminem was some rapping pop-tart were duly banished as he smashed out the show in furious fashion. But what Em might not have known is that trouble was brewing. While awaiting the tardy star, another Detroit rapper named Aristotle had taken to the stage, creating a potentially uncomfortable situation for Eminem to be in.

“Defari was down with The Alkaholiks, Dilated Peoples, and KutMasta Kurt—he bled into the entire scene,” says Big Oak. “Eminem had to go on The Wake Up Show… to say that he had never met Aristotle, he didn’t know who he was, and completely dissolve any relationship he had with him.” Inevitably, after the show, they all partied together. “He was at our house that night after the show,” laughs Fury.

Lexicon’s journey, from their Colorado roots to the L.A. underground, remains a testament to their dedication to the craft. While they may not have reached the commercial heights of their peers, their body of work stands as a vital piece of hip-hop history.