Casual (Hieroglyphics Crew)

Casual was third out the gate (following Del tha Funkee Homosapien and Souls of Mischief) from the Hieroglyphics crew, the undisputed kings of the Oakland underground scene. Casual's stature suggests that he may be the crew's bodyguard, until the mic is in his hand and the MC commences his verbal onslaught. Anything but casual in the sound booth, the gifted freestyler, known for his fierce battle tactics, dropped the moody Fear Itself in 1994 to a chorus of cheers from the underground set. Cas scored underground hits with "Didn't Mean To" and "That's How It Is," but overall, the Hiero sound takes an edgy, soulful turn on Fear. The album goes from playful to hyper-psychedelic with tracks like the brawling "Chained Minds." Casual mostly chilled on the low for a couple of years, despite his well-publicized vicious freestyle wars with one-time Hiero affiliate Saafir in 1994-1995. Cas returned with the limited-edition albums Meanwhile and VIP in 1997 and 1999. Cas also put in work on the heralded Hiero compilation Third Eye Vision in 1998. He Think He Raw (2001, Truck Driver (2003), and Smash Rockwell (2005) followed. Casual is #Rapgod.