Hick-Hop Hits From The Lacs

Nov. 13, 2015

Quiet is pretty much the only word that applies to the rural town of Baxley, Georgia. The eightsquare-mile city that holds a population of around 4,000 has had few claims to fame, save one mention in an old Charlie Daniels’ tune: “Open Letter to the Hollywood Bunch.”

But now, little ol’ Baxley is becoming known as the hometown of Brian King and Clay Sharpe of the chart-topping duo The Lacs, opening for returning rapper Uncle Kracker in Traverse City.

ACCIDENTAL ACCELERATION

Sharpe grew up listening to country music with his father. When King moved to Baxley at the age of 18, they bonded over the traditional genre as well as ‘90s music, which gave the two teens a focus. Fifteen years later, they’ve got a solid friendship and a quickly accelerating career, signed to Backroad Records, an alternative-country label owned by fellow country artist Colt Ford.

What sets The Lacs apart is their unique blend of music; they mix country and rap, which is affectionately called “hick-hop” by their fans. They’re fans of both genres, but the musical recipe itself happened mostly by accident.

“Funny thing, we didn’t set out to make this kind of music,” Sharpe said. “In the beginning, we couldn’t sing real good, so we kind of rapped instead. And all we knew to rap about was country stuff, so it just ended up this way.”

“All there was to do in Baxley was drive ‘round in circles,” King added. “When we met and became friends, we ain’t had anything else to do so we started doing music.”

REAL RAPPERS

The Lacs really started picking up steam in 2012, when their first album, 190 Proof, hit the Billboard country chart at No. 15. Their album Keep It Redneck debuted at No. 3; that same album crossed over to the rap chart, where it hit No. 5.

Sharpe and King used to sit in Wal- Mart parking lots selling their CDs from their trucks. Now, Wal-Mart is one of the biggest retailers of their albums.

Twenty million views on their YouTube channel prove that The Lacs’ unexpected sound is definitely working for them. Outlaw in Me is their latest album (2015) and they’ve already got another new set of tunes in the works, expected next year.

“Yeah, we’re workin’ on a new album now, here at our own studio we got set up in Georgia,” King confirmed. “It should be out next summer.”

They’ve brought in the likes of Craig Campbell and Josh Thompson for past recordings and are planning to add more surprise guests to their upcoming album.

“We don’t have everything confirmed yet, but we are bringing in a couple of real rappers,” King said.

COUNTRY CONNECTIONS

Their shows with Uncle Kracker came about like many Southern connections — all the musicians hung out together one evening.

“We met for the first time at a show out in Montana and just became friends fast,” King said. “We’d love to have him on one of our albums, but that ain’t happened yet.”

In the meantime, there’s plenty to keep The Lacs busy. King and Sharpe said they never stop touring, consistently playing two to three shows every week, year round.

They rotate among three setlists to create a different concert each time.

“And we even veer away from those lists pretty often, based on what the fans wanna hear,” Sharpe said.

“We have to play ‘Kickin’ Up Mud’ ev’ry night, though,” King emphasized. “That’s the one everybody knows, and we’re known for it.”

The Lacs have already made the rounds down in the Detroit area, but are still adjusting as they bring their unique hybrid sound to the other regions of the state.

“At first, aw man, we weren’t sure what to expect way up north where you all are,” Sharpe said. “But we got there and found a bunch of damn rednecks just like us, so it’s all good.”

The Lacs will open for Uncle Kracker at Ground Zero/Streeters in Traverse City Nov. 19. For tickets, visit groundzeroonline. com, To learn more about the bands, visit thelacsmusic.com and unclekracker.com.