MC Chris and Swell Rell

Truth be told, if you’re ever going to take your obsession with Dungeons And Dragons, ninjas, and Star Wars and truly make something of yourself with it, Christopher Brendan Ward should probably be who you want to emulate with it. He’s one of the biggest cult rappers around and he’s become that big of a name with albums called things like “Dungeon Master Of Ceremonies”. He’s living proof that no topic is too far-fetched for hip-hop when it’s done well, but unlike many of his peers, Ward wasn’t a hip-hop performer from an early age. Like the true geek that he is, he was an artsy theatre kid growing up.

That upbringing led to a BFA in dramatic writing from the NYU Tisch School Of Arts and a job as an animator, songwriter and voice actor with Adult Swim. It even got to the point where he spent a year as one of the producers of on air content before he jacked it all in to become a musician. Joking aside, that takes an insane amount of guts, and considering the kind of music he plays and the kind of scene that he works in, it massively paid off. He had already released his first couple of albums in the form of 2001’s charmingly titled “Life’s A Bitch And I’m Her Pimp” and 2003’s “Knowing Is Half The Hassle” but 2004 saw him take on music full time.

Since then he’s created the theme tunes for a variety of Kevin Smith’s podcasts, created his own cartoon series entitled the mc chris cartoon and, unlike many of his peers, created a truly widespread cult following that’s seen him play concerts all over the United Kingdom as well as on the Warped Tour. Drawing on his experience in improvisational comedy, his shows are as hilarious as they are displays of Chris’ genuine skill as a rapper, and are ones to see as soon as possible whether you get the references or not. He’s a truly unique kind of artist, the kind that has to be seen to be truly believed, and he comes highly recommended.