Typically, hip-hop and raunchy lyrics go hand in hand. But that isn’t the case for Eugene hip-hop group The Phormula, members of which hail from Casper, Wyo. The Phormula puts on shows for charity and avoids vulgar lyrics. Members of The Phormula challenge the associations that go with rap. It’s no wonder they’ve organized an upcoming show at the WOW Hall that defies conventional live hip-hop shows.
Members of The Phormula include University graduate Gabe Sechrist, aka Philosophy, 26; University senior Aaron Martin, aka Examine, 21; and Cody Hall, aka AlphaMatic, 20. The fourth member, Devin Weston, aka DJ Phonics, born in New York, complements the three emcees. Sechrist, who has organized other shows in Eugene, spearheaded the event at WOW Hall. A hip-hop club he founded at the University in 2001 hosted events similar to the upcoming show, appropriately named Battle Ground.
“They brought all the elements of hip-hop together,” Sechrist said last week in a Springfield apartment also used for recording.

Roughly 70 people would get together, including lyricists, beat makers and dancers, he recalled.
“I thought bringing back the idea was good in Battle Ground and should represent DJ-ing, emceeing, breakdancing and (as) much of the true hip-hop essence as possible,” he said.
Sechrist, who runs a promotional company called Ground Work, also made improvements from two shows he promoted and participated in called “Better Than You I and II,” which puts 16 emcees in a one-on-one competition at the WOW Hall.
“It just got kind of boring and repetitive,” Sechrist said. “It was not original.”
The winner of the show was decided by judges and offered a cash prize.
“I just kind of felt like (the show was) promoting the success of one person. That’s not really what hip-hop’s about to me,” he said.
Battle Ground will put more focus on groups.
“Watching two people rap against each other really isn’t that exciting. I think people got bored with (Better Than You) and left early in the night,” Sechrist said.
Unlike the “Better Than You” shows, no individual winners will be declared at Battle Ground.
“I’m bitter,” Sechrist said jokingly about not winning the previous competitions. “When someone just calls you every name in the book and you’re in front of a group, you get laughed off stage,” he said on the head-to-head emcee battles. “At the end of the night, I don’t want to say, ‘This guy’s better than this guy’ or anything like that.”
The show will feature artists from the south and central Willamette Valley – a place teeming with hip-hop talent, according to Sechrist. Artists performing at Battle Ground include University student Stu Holdren, aka Stupendous, originally from Albany; University student Jacob Espinoza, aka Kid Espi, originally from Salem; and Eugene’s Chris Hanai Wills, aka Undermind.
Groups include The Reward System and The Alliance, both from Eugene, while The Phormula will play with artist Big Balou, a veteran of the Eugene hip-hop scene.
“It’s going to be more of a representation of their skill in a competitive manner, but without trying to take away or degrade anybody,” Sechrist said of the show.
The event was built through networking with friends of Sechrist and Martin.
“Most of the groups or people interacting and competing with each other are on a friendly basis. They’ve done songs together in the past, done shows together in the past,” Sechrist said.
The show was organized with the audience in mind.
“It’s more about the audience,” Hall said. “Who they liked more and not actually breaking people down.”
Organizers of the show will attempt to keep the audience engaged by moving the show along quickly, exposing the audience to different forms of hip-hop and offering a number of new features.
An emcee battle will differ from typical competitions depicted in movies such as “8 Mile” with Eminem. An emcee will have to improvise for 30 seconds on a given topic while a second emcee wears soundproof headphones.
“(The audience knows) how well it went,” Sechrist said. “It’s totally up to (the second) emcee – he’s totally fresh. Nothing is regurgitated.”
Although each member of The Phormula can recall playing to crowds of less than 10 people, they hope 500 show up to the WOW Hall for a high paced, energetic atmosphere.
The group is optimistic because the Eugene community has been accepting to hip-hop recently.
“It’s gotten to the point where hip-hop tours won’t go through the Northwest without stopping in Eugene,” Sechrist said.
Tickets are available at 8:30 p.m. for $5 at the door for the 9 p.m. show at the WOW Hall, located at the corner of Eighth Avenue and Lincoln Street in
Eugene. For more information, those interested can visit www.myspace.com/thephormula.
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