Universal and Mastermind, two native Long Islanders, grew up no further than a few miles from each other's home towns. The two then
unknown to each other, were developing their own individual, sounds and styles which would later come together to form the group 59's Finest.
An Oakdale native with musical influences such as Dr. Dre, Bell Biv Devoe, Faith No More, and A Tribe Called Quest, Universal incorporates many different styles and rhythms into his lyrics, flow and delivery, helping make 59's Finest's a step above your average rap group. Ronkonkoma native Mastermind's influences include producers such as Dr. Dre, Timbaland, Just Blaze, Scott Storch, Havoc and many others. He has an even wider range of musical influences which are apparent in his versatile style of beat making and production.
When asked how they decided upon the name "59's Finest" Mastermind recalls, "One day I went over to Uni's place and he showed me this rhyme he was working on for one of our songs. He said something, I can't exactly remember what, but one thing that really stuck out to me was "59's Finest". At that point, I knew that would be a great name for a group representing the area. I don't know why, but I never mentioned it to him for about six months. One day, we were talking about a name for the group, and I told him about it and he loved it. It fit us perfectly, since we're both from exit 59 off the L.I.E. and the rest is history."
After numerous live performances around the local L.I. club scene, which include opening up for big names such as Funkmaster Flex at the Vanderbilt, and more recently Stagga Lee at Eclipse, amongst various others. Universal and his partner Mastermind plan to take their music to the next level. Forming 59's Finest in 2002, Universal and Mastermind brought together true to life lyrics with hot beats. "The name represents what we are, where we're from. We don't claim Queens or Brooklyn, or some other area that has some kind of reputation. We want to bring respect to our area. Anything else would be unacceptable. We want people to be proud to be from a great place like Long Island. Most of all we just want to keep making great music and continue to grow as a group." |
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