Cauze in Effect

STRICTLY BUSINESS: "The hype doesn't register," says Reef the Lost Cauze. "I still wake up every morning and go to work." Photo By: Michael T. Regan

West Philly's Reef puts his battling days behind him and aims for the high life.

by Deesha Dyer

At long last, things are looking up for the Philly MC who dubbed himself The Lost Cauze. After giving up a film scholarship to the University of the Arts in 2000, working dead-end jobs and generally struggling to make a name for himself on the local hip-hop scene, Reef threw his hands up and embraced his underdog status.

"At the time I had nothing going on," he explains. "There were no prospects and things just looked bad."

Five years later, the nickname borders on ironic. These days, Reef the Lost Cauze, 23, is headlining shows up and down the East Coast, opening up for national acts such as Mobb Deep and collaborating with respected local underground MCs like Chief Kamachi. Last year he won the coveted End of the Weak Challenge at the annual Rock Steady Weekend. He's come a long way from the humble young buck who fought his way through the battle rap leagues.

"I've grown up. I was 18 when I first started rapping. Once you become a man, you realize what is really important to you."

A West Philly native, Reef recognized early in life that he was a writer.

Throughout high school, he wrote poems, short stories and essays. Raised in a disciplined and loving home, his transition from Lamberton High School to college tested his survival skills. Once he moved out of his mother's house, he wanted to prove to her that he could make it on his own. But he knew from the start that school wasn't where he wanted to be.

While piecing together how to pay his bills, Reef was eager to get his career started. He spent days in the studio recording with childhood friend and producer Sleep E. Together they released The High Life in 2002. With only 500 copies pressed, the album, while a starting point, didn't help establish his name.

So Reef showed up at open mics, networked and entered every battle in the city. Battles helped him turn heads. His freestyles were filled with the requisite disses, but they possessed a clever, sarcastic edge. His battle technique forced media and other MCs to take notice, and he was quickly identified as a leader of Philly's new school.

Philly DJ Meddafore says the hype is justified. "Too often MCs can't make the transition from battling to putting together songs. Reef is one of the few exceptions. His intensity is unlike any other's."

"I'm not arrogant and I stay consistent," says Reef. "The hype doesn't register. I still wake up every morning and go to work. People show me love. It's a blessing."

But being known for battling can definitely work against you; there's a perception that battle cats can't make a quality studio album. Reef knew that sustaining the fan base he accumulated on the battle scene would be a challenge. He enlisted brothers Jake and Josh Eigo (Eyego/Direct) to produce his second album, 2003's Invisible Empire (Gladiator Films); their production and beat selection match well with his maturing sound. Unlike the battle-based, "let's get fucked up" tracks of his debut, Invisible Empire showcased his songwriting skills: "The fact remains that it's never gonna change / The stress is never stoppin' and I need oxygen / Breathe with me."

With that album, he successfully crossed over from one-dimensional battler to multifaceted artist. "I didn't want my music to revolve around battles," he admits. "Sometimes I feel like I'm still stuck in that trap."

While fans anxiously await his third solo album, Feast or Famine (expected later this year on Good Hands Records/Easter Conference), Reef is keeping them sated with appearances on various mix tapes like The Mic: The Mixtape Vol. 1 (The Mic: It Sounds Nice) and Hogan Fam (KRU). In addition to his solo endeavors, Reef is collaborating with punchline MC Side Effect for a full length, and hooking up with State Store, Charon Don and Chief Kamachi for a JuJu Mob album. These projects, along with a feature on the forthcoming Army of Pharoahs release on Babygrande, are due out later this year.

Despite his present in-demand status, Reef's remains modest, personable and, above all, focused. "Hip-hop is a basic instinct," he figures. "I've never done anything other than what I thought I was supposed to do. Opportunities keep presenting themselves, and I take and run with them. I've stumbled a little bit, but so far, it's been all love."

Reef the Lost Cauze at Hip-Hop Lives, Fri., Feb. 4, 10 p.m., $5, 21+, with Electric City, Tritone, 1508 South St., 215-545-0475.

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