Lyndon Harewood / Gengis Don & The Empire

Lyndon Harewood / Gengis Don & The Empire
Jersey City, NJ
Grant amount: $15,000

About the Artist

Gengis Don graduated at the top of the class from the School of Hip Hop. As a drummer, producer, songwriter, & engineer, Gengis combines his deep knowledge of Hip Hop and his study of jazz/improvisational music to create the music of Gengis Don & The Empire. Described as the love child of Jazz & Boom Bap, Gengis Don has a sound that represents today’s social climate, while staying true to his roots in groove and Hip Hop. A Brooklyn native, Gengis grew up listening to New York artists like 50 Cent, Ja Rule, Ashanti, Notorious B.I.G., Fat Joe, Nas, and Jay Z. Those influences are evident in his gritty, unapologetically dirty, sound on drums. At just 27 years of age, Gengis has worked with some of the world’s best artists, drumming and producing for: Roy Hargrove, Solange, Bilal, ASAP Ferg, Nick Hakim, Klein, keiyaA, Melanie Charles, Anna Wise, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Marquis Hill, Braxton Cook, Chris McBride, Alina Engibaryan, Steve Toure, Jon Bap, and many more. Gengis Don & The Empire collide two musical worlds and leave their unique fingerprints on the music as the audience joins along their journey through the Hip Hop universe. As a producer, and engineer, Gengis has consistently shown his versatility by producing Hip Hop, RnB, House, Afro Beats, Pop, and Jazz songs. Gengis is respected by his peers and collaborators, who call on him for the authenticity in his sound that they can’t find anywhere else. His fluidity and maturity is rare--and signature.  

Vocalist & Keyboardist, Zacchae’us Paul hails from Atlanta, GA by way of Philadelphia, PA. Having spent an extended period of time in Puerto Rico, studying the native rhythms and musical language, Zac is well adept in afro-caribbean rhythms and blends it with his upbringing of Hip Hop/Trap music to give him a very unique sound. One word used to describe Multi-instrumentalist, Keenyn Omari, is “prolific.” Also hailing from Atlanta, Keenyn is a producer, saxophonist, guitarist and engineer. Since the pandemic, he’s released over 100 body’s of music; Beat Tapes, EP’s, Albums, Compilations. Keenyn’s relenting quest for self discovery and betterment, shine in his saxophone playing the most. You can catch Keenyn on the road with Big Daddy Kane, Solange, or Moses Sumney. Peter Enriquez, also known as the Swiss Army Knife, is the co-captain of The Empire. While his principal instrument is guitar, Peter owns and operates his own Commercial recording studio out of Brooklyn, NY. He plays bass, piano, drums, talk box, engineers and produces. He’s considered the glue of The Empire, as he fills in wherever needed, harmonically, melodically or texturally. When he’s on the road you can catch playing for MELT The Band, or Mac Demarco. Bassist, Chris Gaskell hails from Chicago, by way of NYC. He also owns and operates his own commercial recording studio. Although he’s the newest member of The Empire, Chris has quickly acclimated to the band and brings a welcomed energy of freedom and expression as someone who identifies as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. His Punk & Heavy metal background, blended with his study of jazz throughout his time in college in the NYU Jazz Department, blend extremely well with the musical identity The Empire has come to be known for!