We had a moment to chat with Chico Roze, of ‘Roze Gang’ a Lexington, KY comedy group that has been making a storm on Facebook and YouTube with their viral videos. They first caught our attention with the “I Need To Know” stimulus check song parody of Ushers “Nice and Slow”. Since then they have dropped several great videos including the newly viral video “All Gone” a Bone-Thugs parody of “Crossroads” being part 3 of their hilarious stimulus videos/songs. Get to know more about Chico and Roze gang in the full interview below and be sure to follow Jukebox Culture on Instagram.
Where are you from and how was life growing up? I was born in Killeen, Tx but I was raised in Mt. Sterling, KY & Lexington, KY. My parents divorced when I was 6 so my mom raised me. I went to Texas during the summer to visit my Dad and Grandmother. My dad was always funny so I definitely think I got my sense of humor from him.
What got you started in comedy? I started doing comedy once I figured out I was too short to be a real rapper. I was always the class clown in school and making people laugh has always been a passion of mine. I never thought about doing anything comedic at first but then I thought about it and realized that it was the most natural thing about me. My father was also a jokester in his hay day so I definitely get it from him. The power to change someoneās mood or make someoneās day better through laughter has always been a power I wanted to obtain. I can be a serious person at times, but I prefer to joke around and be goofy. A lot of people told me that I needed to start taking my comedy aspirations more serious because of the way I tell stories and make people laugh when Iām out downtown. So I said what the hell Iāll give it a shot and here I am!
Who keeps you motivated? My mom, my brother, my girlfriend and haters keep me the most motivated. My mother has always made sure I had what was needed from day one. She has sacrificed so much for me and the drive to make her life easier and take care of her just like she did me is a strong motivation factor. My brother has always told me I can do whatever I put my mind to. He was like a father figure to me and always supported me in any and everything I did. My girlfriend, Misty Crowe, has always supported my dreams and visions. She has been one of the most critical factors of the success of any of my skits or videos. She shoots all of my content. She has always believed in me and even when I felt like giving up she would never let me. Real oneās like her are hard to find. As far as the haters, they are just people who have the most to say about what I do but canāt do what I do. I let my content and work ethic speak for itself. No need to talk smack or make it a point for any successes to be seen. Regardless if you want to or not, you see it.
Name some of the guys in your videos and what roll do they play in your content creation process? Roze Gang consists of: Chico Roze, Misty Crowe- Shoots all the videos, Marquis āKumbeā Washington, Jermaine Dunn, Doc Dunn, Joe Hall, Chad McCann, Dino Flex, Antwian Jones, Wes Drinkard- Recording and Mixing Engineer
The greatest thing about Roze Gang is that we pretty much all grew up together. Everyone knows their place and the role they play. No one is trying to out do the other man. I had a vision and a dream and these guys are helping me achieve it every step of the way. My guys are everything. They show up and get the job done without complaining and have fun while doing it. Without them, none of this would work. The creative energy we have amongst each other is very special. We bounce ideas off of each other and things just seem to fall into place. Besides marching band, this is the most fun Iāve had in my life. My girlfriendās friends who I call the Roze Buds are also an important factor when it comes to the production of some of my videos.Ā
What struggles did you have starting off as a comedian? My biggest struggle at the beginning was figuring out who I was and who I wanted to be. Itās very easy to lose your identity when watching certain Youtuberās and Social Media Influencers that you admire. I didnāt know where to start. I started making skits in 2013. My videos were getting maybe 10 or 15 views and 2 or 3 likes. My editing skills were terrible and the overall ideas were random and were not thought out thoroughly. Like anything, through trial and error I got better as time went on and I started to gain a little traction and the reactions I was looking for.
What type of support do you get from your home town? I think I get pretty decent support from the city. I am very humble when it comes to everything I do. I make sure to let people know how much I appreciate any support that I get. People know me for my skits and parody videos but they also know me as being the bass drummer during my time as a member of the University of Kentucky Pep Band. I gained a nice following playing bass because of my animated style of play and style. I had an HBCU mentality in a predominantly white band. I wore black shades, matching Nike receiver gloves and dope kicks. I stood out and was easily noticed anytime I played no matter if it was a home game or on the road. Lexington has always supported me, but it really feels good to get recognition for my parody videos and content. Strangers look and say arenāt you the guy that makes the funny videos? I just look with a smile and say yeah. I try to represent the city as much as I can in my videos. Either I have something on that says Kentucky or Iām making sure the name Lexington is in there somewhere. When it comes to Kentucky, people mainly think basketball and horses. But people fail to realize we really have talented people here.
Whatās your most viewed video to date and how did the idea come to be? My most viewed video is my Outkast āHey-Yaā parody Ro-Na. With Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube and other platforms it collectively has over 20 million views. The idea started over a cup of coffee late at night. Covid-19 was in full effect and there was nothing to do. Everything was closed down so all I had was time. I had previously made a parody to Blackstreetās āNo Diggityā which did pretty well so I was looking for a follow up. I came across the video Hey-Ya and was really blown away by the production of it. I had seen the video plenty of times but I never looked at it as something I could do. I started writing the song about Covid-19 and how it had everyone acting. Some people believed in the virus and some didnāt. Some people followed the guidelines and some didnāt. So I made it about the way that it was affecting life and normal activities. Once the song was written I knew that I had to do more than just record myself singing into my phone and dancing. I recorded it at Fyre Ent. in Lexington, Ky. Once I had the song, I knew I needed more guys to be in the video. At the time I was working with some different people and without them helping me capture the essence of the original video it wouldnāt have been nearly as successful.
If you could have a conversation with anybody for 1 hour past or present who would it be and why? I would love to have a sit down with Kevin Hart and listen to advice and any game he could teach me. I definitely look up to him because his work ethic is so hard. You can see the growth that he had when it comes to his craft. His early work was ok but as time went on he kept getting better and better until he got where he wanted to be. He never seems comfortable and keeps pushing to create better material. I know what itās s like to not know what to do or what direction to go so his come up is an inspiration to me.
What goals do you have personally and professionally for next year? My goal personally is to push as hard as I possibly can. Life is short and when my time is up I donāt want to leave this world with any regrets or knowing that I didnāt try. As far as my professional goal I want to one day become a household name. I want to be known for my skits, parodies, movies and stand up.
What advice would you give to someone who wants to become a comedian? The best advice I can give is to never give up. There are going to so many people who are going to sneak diss you and talk about what you are doing when they donāt even create content themselves. Donāt get discouraged or pay attention to the numbers. You will get a few likes and a few shares and at times the numbers can be frustrating. All it takes is one video to do decent enough to make people search through your previous material and then you will start to gain traction. Itās a slow grind but you canāt be in it for the money you have to do it because you live to entertain.
