Artfull Dodgers

Flint, MI, indie rappers B-Gozza (Brady Gasser) and Jackpot (Rex Demski) founded the Artfull Dodgers (the name deriving from a character in Oliver Twist) in 1996 in order to continue making music, since their previous, larger crew, collectively called the Juggernaut, had dissolved. The duo's first effort, the Dusted World EP, arrived quickly the following year on Midwestern Union Records, and their debut full-length, Lazy Eyes, was released in 1999. Praise from local press and their underground single, "One Mic Then Pass," gave Gozza, who doubles as a producer, and Jackpot momentum to tour throughout the Midwest, performing alongside big names such as the Wu-Tang Clan, Too Short, and Eminem. With the addition of DJ Sir Real (Jake Greba), ex-compatriot of Detroit's Howling Diablos, as the third official member in 2001, the Artfull Dodgers returned the next year with Second Wind. Boasting productions from His-Panik (of Chicago's reputable Molemen) and the Ann Arbor, MI-based Lab Teknicians plus guest appearances from J.U.I.C.E. and Killah Priest, the album increased their press coverage and earned them further accolades along the way, winning Album of the Year at Detroitrap.com's Hip-Hop Awards. After bombarding the punk crowds of the Vans Warped Tour with their subsonic boom-bap music in 2004, DJ Zack Daniels replaced DJ Sir Real, who departed the trio in 2006 for solo projects. The Artfull Dodgers' third LP, Off the Credenza, was released in 2007.