THE SOUND: Being a product of hip hop, reggae naturally floating into our surroundings. We (crossfire & dready) used to listen to shabba ranks, cutty ranks, super cat & others while being the hip hop heads we were. As time went on, we met more and more people who were from the caribbean and introduced us to more reggae. In 1992, Crossfire and Dready formed a hip hop group called A Simple Truce with members DJ Slim Prod (R.I.P.), Junebug, Ivan the barber, & others. From this group spawned Crossfire's desire to DJ rather than MC. In 1994, Crossfire bought his first reggae record and discovered Kirky C Muzik Station in Tampa. From that day forth, Reggae & Hip Hop were of equal status in his record crate. He made reggae & hip hop mixtapes weekly selling them 3 for $10. In 1996, Crossfire was buying his first dubplate, where he had to come up with a name for his sound. The artist Ninja Ford named the sound "Unity Sound"
THE SHOP: In 1996, Crossfire moved to Atlanta with his bro Dready. Crossfire and Dready were already selling A.N.P. mixtapes throughout Tampa & Atlanta. Wanting to push the tapes more, Dready & Crossfire decided to open a booth in a local Mini-Mall on Candler road in Decatur, GA. From that small store grew UNITY SOUND RECORD SHOP. It served the Atlanta Area for over 9 years and on the web for over 7 years. It was respected as one of the best carriers of 7 inch vinyl in Atlanta. We were always on top of the game.
THE MIX CDS: UNITY SOUND (or ANP) always made mixtapes from the start. In 1997, the technology for pressing CDs were becoming easier and more affordable. In 1997, Unity Sound decided to release their 1st official mix CD. To rave reviews, it sold all over and brought forth the sequel in 1998 which sold over 5000 copies manufactured & distributed by Harry Dread. At that time, Unity Sound & Fantasy Mix cds were the most requested in the streets. Having a shop and good distribution, Unity Sound became popular for their mixes around the world. Unity Sound still is the only sound from Atlanta that releases mixes on the regular (even though we don't live there anymore).
TODAY: Still today we look for new beginnings, new ways to promote the music, new innovations to bring to the business. Currently we distribute in Japan. We currently hold a yearly clash Unity Cup and a monthly dance called "Unity Fridays". In addition, we have a global network with artists, radio, magazines, sounds to help distribute and promote official releases via mp3. We're bredrens to Fresh Ear label in Jamaica and help artists sign record contracts with Japan based labels. We also help sounds voice tunes.
THE FUTURE: We will be releasing our first production on our label soon. We will be returning to the global sound market with traveling and entertaining over the world, as well as participating in upcoming sound clashes.
Check out The More Fire Show with DJ Crossfire every Saturday at 8pm EST on Mashup Reggae Radio!
