The Elements
The Elements are a five-piece Rap/Hip Hop group from Dublin, Ireland. A lyrically gifted group, they are influenced mostly by Jazz, Soul, Funk and R&B, from which they utilise obscure samples combined with original compositions to make socially conscious music. All members bring different styles to Irish Hip Hop, all of which have made a huge impact on the now thriving scene in Ireland.
The Elements formed originally in 2002 around a group of friends in the Blanchardstown area of Dublin. They now consist of MCs & Producers Richie Lewis (Mr. Highspeed), Sheriff Ibrahim (Gemsmiff), Adam Swords (Swords/D1) Keith Connell (ThaBoy) & Neill Whelan (NdLZ).
Founding members also included Karen McDermott (Neveah) & top Irish DJ Mo-K.
The Elements first came to the attention of the Irish Hip Hop scene with a track called "I Guess We Came Strong" which was well received among fans of the band locally and others alike. A track which demonstrated the production talents of Gemsmiff, it also displayed the intricate word play of all the band’s young members, particularly Neveah, who was one of only a handful of "Fem-cees" in the burgeoning scene. DJ Mo-K was also a favorite among Hip Hop fans as he played a regular Hip Hop radio show on "Vibe FM".
Popularity of the group was running high after several tracks were released to members of the influential website IrishHipHop.com, The Elements played a number of packed out shows as support slots and headliners alike, including selling out Blanchardstown’s Draíocht Theatre in Dublin. This is where they first played alongside NdLZ & Finesse, another Hip Hop group from the South side of Dublin, with whom The Elements had previously collaborated on tracks produced by NdLZ.
2006 was a year of highs and lows. The Elements had a couple of line up changes, DJ Mo-K left the group to join forces with Rob Kelly and was replaced by NdLZ. Neveah had left the group to pursue other interests, but not before the group played an amazing show at Oxegen in the RedBull Stage alongside great Irish Hip Hop talent including Rob Kelly, Correkt Minds (Sons Phonetik) and Urban Intelligence.
After that year The Elements really found their voice with the release of the video "The Method" which really demonstrated their style of twisted cyphers and socially conscious lyrics, while opening up to new production techniques using all live instruments instead of samples with a take on Iron Butterfly’s In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida.
In 2009 after a long Summer of gigs in The Sugar Club, The Village and at SOLAS Festival to name a few, The Elements took a break from gigging & writing together for family reasons. But all members stayed close friends as they honed their production skills while working on solo projects.
The Elements are now back and currently putting the finishing touches to a compilation of the best of their work in the period of 2006 to 2008 – ‘The Lost Archives’ - and are rehearsing for upcoming shows in 2012.