Chatting it up with Manwell, Blanca and Pablo AKA : Group 1 Crew
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| L-R Jose "Manwell" Reyes (Vocals&Rap) , Blanca Callahan (Lead Vocals) and Pablo Villatoro (Vocals&Rap) |
I was able to sit and chat with Blanca, Manwell and Pablo hours before they received the news of the victory. We discussed some controversial issues and some very heartfelt dreams and goals that each of them carry on their sleeve. If I had to pick one scripture that sums this group up in a whole it would be Romans 13:10
"Love does no wrong to one's neighbor. Therefore love meets all the requirements and is the fulfilling of the Law."
In the seven years they have been singing together, they have created three hip hop albums influenced by life, love and God. In 2007 they released their first "self-titled"
album.
The following year they released “Ordinary Dreamers”. 
Their Latest Release,
"Outta Space Love” was birthed in 2010. This album has seemed to open more doors and cross more paths reaching people f
urther with just living a good clean fun life in a way that is ruffling the feathers of some "Religious Folks".
Being the free spirited fun loving songwriters they are, I was curious if they ever disagreed on the production of new music.
Pablo: Oh yeah all the time!
Manwell: Always! It's not that difficult though. It's not like we are going to argue about it or anything. We don't really care about that.
Pablo: We all have such different musical influences so we just sort of throw all the options out there and pick the best one.
Me:“How long does it usually take for you guys to make a video production of a song?”
Manwell: We made three videos in three days.
Me: Really? Wow! That is pretty impressive.
Manwell: The hardest part about a video is the story boarding and concept. We directed “Live it up” (official video below) ourselves, so we presented the director with the idea and literally shot by shot what it was going to look like the whole way through.
Me: It really looked like you guys had a lot of fun making that video.
Manwell: Yeah. It was really easy to shoot. It’s just concept that is the hardest part.
Me: Are you guys involved with any charity organizations?
Manwell: The group is a World Vision artist. I have a child that I have personally adopted through that outreach. I also run a non-profit organization called Revolution1. It is something I started a couple years back and we do a lot of things to help people. We were just able to give a car away. My fiancé and I are kind of doing that under the radar right now and doing it ourselves. We try to present on video and show people what is being accomplished. A lot of our tours right now are revolved around other organizations so I cannot really let people know about it while we are on the road. However, we are getting ready to do our own tour now, so hopefully more people will become aware of it and realize the potential with us.
Me: So, is there a certain place that people can go to learn more about how to make a difference through your organization?
Manwell: Yeah, they can go to Rev1.org and the whole concept is just very simple. Everyone can afford a dollar to help someone out. A lot of other organizations, even though they are great, are like 35 dollars a month and people get scared of that because it becomes another bill to them. With Rev1 it is just a dollar and then they can tell someone else about it too. If everyone did that you could raise so much money to help others. Imagine what could happen if everyone gave two bucks!
Me: So what is your main focus on when it comes to the organization as far as helping people?
Manwell: There are so many areas around the world that need help. We just bought a well we are going to give to someone in a different country. We bought some goats for some families, and school supplies for children in Africa. We are really trying to help with the sex trafficking epidemic.
Me: One of the more sensitive subjects that I wanted to talk with you about is how you have had a tough time being accepted as a Christian band. For you it is more important to be real and try to spread a positive message to reach out to the lost, instead of singing to the saved. Has that affected your faith at all?Manwell: I don’t think it has affected our faith. I think it makes me understand why the more and more people do not want anything to do with Jesus. It makes me feel bad for Christians as a whole. We will never turn away from our faith. You know it is not going to make us bitter. Churches are not perfect. Some people have ideologies that are based on complete assumption and something has to be hurting inside them to get on a public board and just be malicious toward another Christian.
Me: What is one example of a time when you were upset by someone passing judgment on someone you cared about?
Manwell: I remember getting into a long debate with this pseudo Christian once for just bashing Skillet for wearing make-up and
black clothes. He said there was no way they could love God because the Bible says that we are not to show an ounce of femininity. I said wait a minute, you cannot Americanize the Bible. In many cultures around the world, make-up is the thing for guys. Just because it’s not manly to wear make-up in America doesn’t mean you can go over into their camp and say Jesus said they cannot wear make-up.
You know with the Egyptian culture it was the noted difference between a slave and Pharaoh. It was just so frustrating because we toured with Skillet and we saw John backstage with his wife and his kids and being so nice to everyone and cool with us and real genuine. The fact that some people have God in this little box is really what makes me sad. As a passionate band hoping to open people’s minds up to different moves of God in music I think we just need to get out there more.
Pablo: We have gotten a lot of tension from Pastors. But there has also been a lot of support from Pastors and youth Pastors as well who have embraced our music. They are realizing that hip-hop is very influential. We were just at Fish Radio station and they were telling us that they used to not play Toby Mac. Now, Toby Mac is one of the most popular on the radio station. It used to be that Christian rock music was “of the devil” but people have started to embrace that as well. It takes a group and a movement and the communities in the churches to see how Christian hip hop influences the teenagers in the church for them to say, let’s give it a shot!Manwell: For us I think it is hard you know, waiting for everyone else to catch up. You know, we don’t have time to wait for people to figure out whether we are Christian or not. There is so much to do. There is a world that is so much bigger than that. I think that is what I appreciate so much about the secular music world. To them it is say what you want and do what you want as long as it sells we’re good. I appreciate that! In ours it’s like if you don’t do this, or if you don’t say Jesus this many times or it’s not in this format or it doesn’t sound like this it’s not Christian. You know we start to question what we are being led to share and it’s crazy. We are scared of our own people you know? They are supposed to be happy for us and supporting us, we are afraid that they are going to say negative things about us.
Pablo: That’s not God you know? That is only here in America. Overseas for instance in Amsterdam they play everything together on the radio. They play Kanye West and then right after that they will play Toby Mac. After Toby, they will play Natasha Beddingfield. If it’s good music, they love it. We will play at a bar or wherever, it doesn’t matter to us what people are doing. If they start singing along to our songs, that is where we have to let the spirit of God begin to work through the music and touch the heart of people. Just like kids listening to music in their car with their friends. A lot of times the Christian parents take away that opportunity because we don’t say Jesus at least eight times in our song. You know what I am saying? So, they miss that opportunity to share of God’s joy and abundant life we share in our music with others.Me: You guys have a really positive uplifting message in all the songs that I have listened to. It just makes you feel really happy. It was just really good music! One of my friends listens to hip hop, and he doesn’t listen to Christian music. I sent him your video “Live it up” on face book and he really liked it you know? So I am going to give him your CD.
Manwell: See people don’t get to hear stories like that. It’s not about how many times you say Jesus in a song.
Me: Yeah that is true! I personally love Chris Tomlin, but my friends that don’t listen to Christian music would not get that.
Blanca: It has a lot to do with what people are going through at different times in their lives. If they are going through tough times they will listen to Meredith Andrews or something and they might be open to it, but our music is just so relevant to where they are at any point. You know it’s just like our lives.
Manwell: If you read Psalms there are certain ones that are just like, life stinks, it sucks, I am mad and you are not real the end. If you write a song like that all of sudden you are Satanists. Or Song of Solomon “her breasts are bountiful and they are pleasing.” You can’t write a song like that. If I took Song of Solomon and wrote it word for word and put a beat behind it they would think I was the devil. I am sorry I am passionate about this stuff. I could talk about stuff like this for hours.
Me: Oh Yeah! Don’t apologize. It frustrates me too as a Christian. You can go to talk to people sometimes as a Christian and it seems because the way the world has seen God through the portrayal of some who profess faith they will not think they can have a conversation with you unless it is about the Bible.
Blanca: Yeah, that is such a good example. Even putting music aside, you just want to talk about normal stuff with people. We have put ourselves in a bubble pretty much that you can’t sit with your girlfriends as a Christian and talk about real struggles or real questions like real stuff you are dealing with in your relationships. You just feel like it has to fit this certain category and when you go outside of that it just makes some people uncomfortable or they become judgmental and it’s like automatic shut down.
That is kind of how we feel sometimes with our music, when it comes to the reaction of certain people. Like the only thing we should be approved to sing about as a Christian band is God.
Manwell: The two most taboo subjects in the church are sex and money. And those are the two top reasons that couples get divorced. No one knows how to handle sex and no one knows how to handle money. Different principles are taught on money and when it comes to sex they are just told not to do it. How can people tell you not to have sex, when it is like one of the most beautiful gifts that God gave to us? People don’t need to be taught not to do it. They need to be taught how to do it and just to wait until the right time. A lot of young Christians are going into marriages scared to death cause they are on their honeymoon and they feel like they are about to be prostituted. It’s not a bad thing! We need to learn about stuff like that for our spouses. It’s something that needs to be talked about. It’s all about the timing, everything we do as a Christian comes down to timing. You don't ever hear anyone preaching that.
Me: Yeah I think most people get uncomfortable talking about subjects like that.
Blanca: I mean it makes me uncomfortable talking about it right now (laughing). But it is true you know.
Me: Yeah, it is true we could all be wiser in some situations. So what is one thing as a group or on your own that you hope to accomplish in the near future?
Blanca: I am in a season of my life right now where God is really showing me my voice. Not with just music but about what He has put inside of me. He has birthed this strong pull toward young women in my heart and I am beginning to develop that more. Being on the revolve tour has really made that come alive and I want to expand that. I started a boutique on our website about fashion and girl stuff, and who knows maybe I will make some clothing down the line. It's really fun to do stuff like that.
Me: I know I seen where you are really into clothes. I thought it was really neat to see the pictures where you pull certain girls out of each show and take your picture with them. I know that probably really makes them feel good about themselves and appreciated.
Blanca: Yeah, it's usually teenagers. We are at a place where society is so strong on how you should dress and what to wear. I see things that I really like but I wouldn't actually wear it because I want to stay modest. I also want to stay true to who I am as well, so finding a balance how to do that the right way helps me. So hopefully I can help other young women find that balance but still share their love for fashion as well.
Pablo: I am getting married in August, so we are really looking forward to that. My fiancé loves the beach so we got a special spot picked out for that. I also have a strong passion to try to help individuals discover who they are. You know to help them find their purposes and assignments in life. One of my biggest interests right now is One Alliance Group. It is a network of people or leaders who are all trying to improve self development in people. Right now I am still trying to define what it is. My heart really longs to see people accomplish their calling in life and reach a new platform so that they can help others do the same thing. Kind of like a pay it forward program.
Manwell: I would like to see us collectively as a group get to that next level. We really need to define that for ourselves. One of the greatest things a Pastor ever challenged me to do was to define success before you pursue it. As long as we can keep doing this because people are buying our music, then that is success. However, when you are an athlete you are not a pro until you are in the NFL. For us as a group, there is nothing like competing with the best of the best. And though the Dove Awards are great, the best of the best are at the Grammy's. I feel like we are good enough to be there. It's easy to get your message across when you are respected in your talent. I feel we could reach so many more people with what God has blessed us to do if we can just get to that next level.
Blanca: Just seeing where God has taken us since we first began. You know for me He has really laid on my heart to reach out to young women. With Pablo, he really wants to reach out to leaders and people in position and all that increases with the platform that we have been given. So, the bigger the platform, the more people we can reach. In doing so, God begins to turn those dreams He has placed inside of us into a reality. We have more resources to go after it.
Manwell: We need to have more influence! Music is going to become secondary. It is going to be the love that we share with people. I think the dreams in our hearts are just going to go on. We have to be known for more than just music.
Me: So you want your impact as individuals to be stronger. To share the love of God with all you come in contact with because of the position that you are in?
Manwell: Yes!
I am certain if you have the opportunity to catch Group one Crew on their fall tour this year with Shon Lock and Rapture Ruckus your life will be impacted. They are going to be hitting their strongest markets which are mainly the East Coast and Mid West. So if you are a fan you better be calling up the radio stations in your area and requesting “Outta Space Love”. Don’t forget to check out Rev1.org to see how far your dollar can go!
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| L-R Pablo, Blanca, Manwell and Me |
"And this I pray: that your love may abound yet more and more and extend to its fullest development in knowledge and all keen insight [that your love may display itself in greater depth of acquaintance and more comprehensive discernment."
-Philippians 1:9
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