Marcus Harris is the face behind the helmet that embodies his MH the Verb project. With his passion for precise - even intellectual - beat making, his dedication to empowering and educating the younger generation, and his desire to bring together local artists to create a whole new genre of music, Harris is changing the way Philadelphia and beyond consumes and comprehends hip hop music. There is something invaluable about an artist who gives back and expects little in return except to see the work he’s put into his community flourish beyond his reach. I think that’s what Harris has achieved with his drive alone. Along with the help of his collective, ArtHouse95, he’s pushed the boundaries of other conventional hip hop artists and redefined what he feels is the true meaning of connection through music. Respect the past to empower the future is his method, and it has seen him through some widely successful creative and philanthropic endeavors.

As we’re all faced with a national shut-in, Harris isn’t using this time as an excuse to slow down. If anything, he’s merely reworking his creative flow to adjust to a new set of boundaries so he can push through them in the most positive way possible. I feel lucky to have gotten a look inside his head and understand his intense process and motivation. He’s one of the most well-connected artists that I’ve come across in Philadelphia, and to see the product of so much effort and collaboration is something special. Take a look at our conversation about his latest release, “Space Ninja,” and the people behind it below.

How are you and the ArtHouse95 collective dealing with creating content remotely? Are you using this time of social distancing as a way to regroup your creative direction? How are you navigating staying connected while physically separated from all of these different outlets you work with?

The next couple of months were going to be a really important time for me musically because I just released my new album after two years of working on it. I had a bi-coastal tour scheduled with over 20 dates that have all been canceled or postponed now. Also, a big part of my income is doing freelance work as a DJ/performer for corporate events and weddings in the Bay Area. The spring is usually a heavy time for those events and in March and April I'm going to lose about four or five which account for more than half of my overall income. All of that work has obviously dried up for the next two months and it's frustrating not knowing what to expect going forward.

However, I'm staying positive and I realize that people are going to want to connect digitally and will be searching for entertainment and community online. Of course, I am always creating - I just bought some studio upgrades. I will also be doing some organizing and taking some time to unplug and relax and focus on self-care. Since I just released my new album, I'm going to take this time to focus on engaging my community with new music videos, remixes, live stream performances, behind the scenes footage, and interviews. But more importantly, I'm also going to take this time to connect directly with people through FaceTime and phone calls. I think this is a unique opportunity for us to take some time and really connect with each other on a deeper level without distractions.

Johann Sebastian and I have started working on some new songs via Zoom mixing sessions. It's been fun linking with everyone digitally and seeing how they create in their home studios with live streams. Buscrates and Arjun Dube of Trap Rabbit have hosted really dope live stream beat sets and now I've caught the bug. I'm planning to do a live DJ set on Monday, April 27th featuring my full catalog and unreleased gems from the vault. I'll even be premiering some of the new songs from a future collaboration with Kuf Knotz.

How have you connected to the various artists you've worked with in Philly? What do you feel is your contribution to the Philly music scene?

I moved to Philadelphia in 2010 and lived between Philly and NYC until 2017 when I came out to the Bay Area. I've spent time in a few different areas but Philly is definitely special because of its location, history, and the community that I've been able to cultivate. When I first moved to Philly, it just seemed like a natural fit with my brand of genre fusion, hip hop, soul, jazz, funk... You have so many amazing and original musicians in Philly and so many people that connect and create together.

I feel like I've been a catalyst over the years for linking artists and expanding the circle of the Philly scene. I've hosted studio sessions, organized events, and cultivated unique spaces where collaboration is welcomed from all genres and introduced a lot of artists to new communities. When I sold out World Cafe Live for my first album release show in 2011, I brought down a bunch of artists from NYC like Kemba, Soul Khan, and Raye Zaragoza to do their first Philly shows. Likewise, I brought a bunch of Philly artists, including Max Swan, Dani Mari, and the late Rich Quick, to NYC for the CMJ Music Marathon in 2014 and 2015. I've also worked on digital marketing and artist consulting with a ton of artists like Trap Rabbit, Kuf Knotz, and Ivy Rand.

What do you feel sets you apart as an artist?

I think my art is really unique and transcendent for hip hop in the way I focus on multi-media and inter-sectional art forms and genres. I'm really conceptual and my intent with the message is about providing an alternative focus for my community, as you can see from the Afronaut Project. I'm blending elements and mixing visual art, afrofuturism, live music, electronic music, technology, hip hop culture, poetry, politics, economics... Sometimes I feel like it’s too much and I should focus more, but I just think it's me being honest to who I am as a complex human. The Afronaut Project helps me encompass all of that energy into a concept.

What kind of activism are you involved in?

My focus is more on community work and activism through education and connection. My parents raised me to be very involved and give back. My mom is an educator and early childhood specialist. My dad is a community organizer and currently runs an advocacy non-profit in Oakland. For me, I think it first starts with the idea of being my true self in that respect; aligning my music and actions in the community. I've always enjoyed working on projects and connecting with people. The Afronaut Project was founded with the mission of building a better future by honoring the past.

I worked in banking for years before I became a full time artist and a lot of my recent work has been focused on financial literacy and education. I've worked with Operation Hope, The Art Dept in Philadelphia, and multiple financial institutions (Santander, PNC Bank, etc.) teaching courses about budgeting, cash flow, and credit.

Currently, we are working on empowerment events and projects that will promote the engagement and education for young artists of color (aka Afronauts) in the art and tech industries. One of the projects we were working on before COVID was a scholarship program for young people of color to attend a unique VR Game Design school in Brooklyn. Unfortunately, that is on hold now but we are hoping that once everything settles down we will resume the project.

Over the years I've worked with a number of organizations and causes around the ideas of community building:

World AIDS Day benefit Concert @ The Blockley - Philadelphia (2011)
Organized events with RocktheVote.org and the League of Young Voters
Video production work with nonprofits such as Barrios Unidos, The Haitian Center for Family Services, & Shoga Films

Take me through the writing and production processes behind “Space Ninja.”

I began the process a few years ago by hosting multiple studio sessions in Philadelphia. I set up a spread of food, drinks, and other goodies and invited some of the best live musicians I knew to record improvisational jams based off of production ideas I had created while on tour. Those sessions laid the ground work for me to arrange and develop songs.

After relocating to the Bay Area, I spent months searching through these incredibly complex 10+ minute jam sessions and editing them into instrumental hip hop beats. My goal was to blend the influence of east coast jazzy boom bap with west coast spacey funk. I began heavily studying how artists like The Coup used funk to promote the energy of their activism. By listening to legendary California producers like Dr. Dre and DJ Quik, I picked up on the influences of Parliment Funkadelic and Tower of Power, and I decided to focus on the short looping bass lines and how to make them sound fat and percussive with layering effects.

The east coast hip hop sound of the 90s was more natural for me to cultivate through the live keyboard sounds. I studied the dynamics of drum snares and fills from bands like The Roots, A Tribe Called Quest, and more recently Oddisee. I also decided to really focus on the abstract song structures that would drive the message of the album in a similar fashion to Outkast's "Stankonia" and Q-Tip's "The Renaissance". I felt using the automated computer vocal interludes would be a nice homage to Tribe's "Midnight Marauders".

In December of 2018, I organized a retreat at Turtle Studios in Philadelphia and took over all three rooms of their studio to put the finishing touches on the album in a 30 hour-block recording session with the full ArtHouse95 team. Over the next six months, our engineer and co-producer Johann Sebastian and I corresponded over emails and phone calls to mix the album and create a sonic impression that captured the essence of the live Philly hip hop sound.

What's the specific message you're trying to convey?

This album is about connecting generations through hip hop music. We use the word "Ninja" out of respect for the ancestors and to empower generational communication. I got the idea from speaking with elders in my community who expressed their frustration with the language of hip hop and how they couldn't get past the use of the N-word specifically to really understand the messages of young artists.

For example, one of the BaBas (or fathers) was surprised to learn about the inter-sectional community work and impact Nipsey Hussle had in his neighborhood. When he watched one of Nipsey's videos he couldn't decipher the positive messages through the profane language. In the true mission of the Afronaut, as a younger generation, whether we agree or not, we must learn to make respectful comprises from time to time in order to move the culture forward into the future and honor the past.

I'm looking to use the project to promote conversations between generations as we gear up for movement in 2020. Rather than focus on traditional shows and concerts, I will be focused on more experiential curated events that combine music, art, and technology to bring together generations.

Who did you work with on "Space Ninja”?

ArtHouse95 recording sessions featured:

MH the Verb : vocals/ DJ/ drum programming
Logan Roth : keyboards/ synth
Arjun Dube : drums/ percussion
Buscrates 16-Bit Ensemble : multi-instrumentalist/ drum programming
Johann Sebastian : bass/ mixing engineer
Chena Kovax : vocals
Evan “dataf1ow” Bogunia : bass
Kuf Knotz : vocals
Christine Elise : vocals/ harp
Drusef : vocals
Jung Marx: vocals
GR Stone : keys
Broken Horn : production/ horns

ArtHouse95 sessions recorded at:

The Juicebox (Philadelphia, PA)
Woodbrook Studios (Penshauken, NJ)
Turtle Studios (Philadelphia, PA)
Broken Horn Studios (San Mateo, CA)
Dave Humes Studio (Philadelphia, PA)

What makes ArtHouse95's work different from other collectives or groups of bands that typically collaborate?

ArtHouse95 is a collective/co-operative of the east coast's multi-media artists and producers. Operating as an artist resource center (and eventually a full label), we help our artists develop campaigns through building community with digital media, music, and art. Partnered with Four Finger Distro/Distributed by RedEye Worldwide and formed in 2015, ArtHouse95 is an outlet to create content, develop concepts, and release dope audio and visuals. Our collective has built relationships and partnered with brands, companies, and organizations to promote new ideas and progressive sounds. Based in Philadelphia, we operate a production labs and will be hosting a monthly series called, "Vibe House" featuring us and our friends.

You can find “Space Ninja” and MH the Verb’s other releases anywhere you stream music. Be sure to keep up with his live streams starting on Monday, April 27th where he’ll be debuting some never-before-heard songs.

MH the Verb's Art and Activism Is Defining a New Generation of Hip Hop