Leroi Conroy

Steeped in equal parts golden age hip-hop sensibilities and lost 60s and 70s film scores, the debut LP from Leroi Conroy weighs in heavy and has been years in the making. The first two tracks from the album were released in 2017 as a 45, which were sampled in the years that followed by <a href="spotify:artist:6GEykX11lQqp92UVOQQCC7" data-name="DJ Premier">DJ Premier</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:2yQf6b8hxahZaT5dHlWaB1" data-name="Raekwon">Raekwon</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:6FD0unjzGQhX3b6eMccMJe" data-name="Ghostface Killah">Ghostface Killah</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:3JhNCzhSMTxs9WLGJJxWOY" data-name="Macklemore">Macklemore</a> , <a href="spotify:artist:1l9d7B8W0IHy3LqWsxP2SH" data-name="Phantogram">Phantogram</a>, and more. But after its release, Terry Cole aka Leroi Conroy spent much of his time growing his indie soul label <a href="spotify:playlist:28mXNP3AFnquH9rR9aG3a0" data-name="Colemine Records Official">Colemine Records Official</a> and producing records for others (<a href="spotify:artist:0UyhOIzQ8yAuLmVlEw1Lo5" data-name="Okonski">Okonski</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:4c6oXo4PWpSqSnuLqFUxLm" data-name="Parlor Greens">Parlor Greens</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:5sDnPhZdAs4FW1ewepXdFj" data-name="Wesley Bright">Wesley Bright</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:5nNxPO2aR0S8363jLsmuwW" data-name="Black Market Brass">Black Market Brass</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:7rtM2wPKQlFpsm0C4qJlDk" data-name="Kendra Morris">Kendra Morris</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:4zAauwbGLs7vAEzfJEklGF" data-name="Rudy De Anda">Rudy De Anda</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:7owr01EP6gwCYjnfQtPKy8" data-name="Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio">Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:34q6xZrTKUR0YIrDxlIdU6" data-name="Andrew Gabbard">Andrew Gabbard</a>) as opposed to his own.

Now, eight years after many of the rhythm tracks were put to tape on the trusted Tascam 388, Leroi Conroy’s debut LP, A Tiger’s Tale, will be released. The album is conceptualized as a hypothetical soundtrack to an alternate telling of Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book. The narrative here being man’s quest to tame and bend nature to his will...and nature’s response. The album is a mix of triumphant instrumental scores alongside absolutely grim, dark, and at times dissonant moody tracks. The underlying element of hip-hop’s sample culture is obvious throughout, drums are courtesy of Cole’s longtime collaborator Rob Houk and are truly the backbone of the record. And with a couple of features from Colemine artists <a href="spotify:artist:0gdEDrF1Fve7FIBYcmX7W4" data-name="Kelly Finnigan">Kelly Finnigan</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:4MpCHcOqKRsSXGiYuGR9JY" data-name="Jimmy James">Jimmy James</a>, the record is truly a family affair.