112: ‘Chris Brown Is The Michael Jackson Of This Generation
R&B group 112’s Slim and Mike discussed now being a duo and Chris Brown being the “King of R&B” and “the Michael Jackson” in a new exclusive interview with Revolt.
When asked why there are now two members of 112, Mike stated that it’s “a recession,” with laughter. Slim chimed in and said that “some budget cuts” took place.
“Actually, the other two former members (Q and Daron) of 112 decided to go in a different direction and that’s as layman as we can possibly make it,” Mike said. “They decided to go in other directions and we wish them the best, but we felt it was best that we continue the 112 legacy.”
During the interview, Mike and Slim opened up about rumors of a lawsuit that allegedly took place, last year.
“It was a lawsuit pending, but it wasn’t necessarily towards Slim and myself, and these other two guys (the former members). It was the other two guys, and representation for Slim and myself. So, it wasn’t necessarily he and I. We tried our best,” Mike explained.
“We tried to stay out of the law, as much as we possibly could, so we could avoid this because it never ends. Unfortunately, that could not be avoided and we, Slim and myself, we were actively supportive of the said party that was sue from the other two members.”
Slim and Mike also discussed Jacquees calling himself the “King of R&B” and who they actually think the “king” is.
In a short and simple answer, Slim said, “Chris Brown.”
“Yes, he is the Michael Jackson. I mean, we’re old enough to understand the pinnacle of Michael Jackson, right? So [with] that being said, I look at where Chris Brown is right now,” Mike explained. “The fact that he surpassed over a hundred million records sales…”
Slim said that there is a lot of variables that goes into saying that you’re the “King of R&B.”
“True, you gotta have more than one album, number ones. You gotta sell over, you know, ten million records. You have to have something about you that is iconic,” Mike followed up.
“Like Slim said earlier, we don’t even consider ourselves in that conversation. Number one, we was a group. And number two — and I say this again with no arrogance and no conceit – but, to put us in a category of kings, it kind of dumbs down what 112 had accomplished because in our minds, we were considered gods. And that comes from other musicians telling us how dope the 112 sound was.”
112 fans can look forward to new music from the group.
“So the last time that we spoke, we were promoting the last album that we had as four members. With this single that we’re promoting now, it’s entitled “Tonight,” and as much as we love the last album–me personally- [it was] one of my favorites,” Mike said.
“However, it was a little too slow and if you know 112, you know us for the up-tempo; the “Dance With Me,” the “Peaches & Cream,” the “It’s Over Now,” the “Only You.” So, we wanted to get back to those roots. So that’s why we did “Tonight.”
Glennisha Morgan is a Detroit-bred multimedia journalist and writer. She writes about intersectionality, hip-hop, pop culture, queer issues, race, feminism, and her truth. Follow her on Twitter @GlennishaMorgan
