Brockway Biggs Digs New Name And Hometown
Friday September 14, 2007 @ 05:30 PM
By: ChartAttack.com Staff

Brockway Biggs

OTTAWA — Fredericton, N.B. isn't exactly a hotbed of hip-hop activity. Not to the casual listener or outsider, that is. But dig a little deeper and you'll find a network of emerging MCs and DJs and one man who was, until recently, at the centre of it all.

Brockway Biggs has relocated to Ottawa, and the new home brings with it a new CD and new moniker. Indie hip-hop heads might recall Pimp-T or Pimp Tea. Both were the product of a young MC named Troy Neilson — a guy who fell for the music of Method Man in grade 10, made his first track, "Ice Ice Water," as a chemistry bonus project, and somehow stumbled into a music career thanks to the nurturing Fredericton scene.

"I think I've been given a lot more opportunity in coming from a smaller city," Neilson says. "The music scene as whole in Fredericton was a lot more unified, and everyone knew everyone else, which led to more performance opportunities.

"By the time I left, it felt like everyone knew who I was. I couldn't even go out to dinner with my mom without someone coming up to me. I really enjoyed the anonymity of Ottawa when I moved here, as it rejuvenated me and helped shape a few tracks on my new album."

The album in question, In Awe Of Simplicity, features straight-up beats and Neilson's simple delivery. It's also somewhat more sincere than the albums he released as Pimp-T and Pimp Tea. While his love of hip-hop has always been genuine, Neilson's sarcasm and his affinity for '70s funk clothing — not to mention the unintended connotations of the "pimp" moniker — had some listeners wondering if he was for real or a joke.

"After my Pimp Tea album, I really had to step back and evaluate," Neilson says. "I wanted to be taken seriously, so that meant some changes.

"First the name changed to Brockway Biggs. Then I wanted my lyrics to be less sarcastic. As much as I love the funky clothes, I realized a hip-hop show isn't the avenue for them, so usually you'll see me wearing typical hip-hop attire when I'm on stage. I'm still the same person with the same values, I've just realized that image does play a large part if I want to someday make a career out of this."

In Awe Of Simplicity took three years to craft, but Neilson's been tending to other business at the same time. As the head of Brockway Entertainment, Neilson promotes other independent Canadian hip-hop artists.

"I spend far too much time doing this work, as I'm not good at saying no to struggling artists who need help, because I can relate," Neilson says. "I guess it's important to me because I see so many folks in the struggle, with hopes and dreams of making it big, and I like being able to enable them — at least get some national campus radio exposure."

Now's the time, though, for Biggs to turn the attention back onto himself. His official Ottawa CD release party is Friday night at the Gluepot Pub with guests Boz Faramone, The Reds, DJ Ducats and Mischief. A cross-Canada tour will follow in 2008.

—Caitlin Crockard