| Giant Panda | |
| Background: | group_or_band |
| Origin: | Seattle and Tokyo |
| Genre: | Underground hip hop |
| Years Active: | 2002–present |
| Label: | Tres Records |
| Associated Acts: | People Under The Stairs, Bloquera |
Giant Panda is an underground hip hop group from Los Angeles, California.
Giant Panda is composed of childhood friends Newman and Maanumental (hailing from Seattle), and Chikaramanga (a Tokyo native), with their foundation based out of Los Angeles, CA.
The trio's name is simply an analogy to their ethnic and cultural make-up. The first single released was "88 Remix" independently in December 2002, with airplay across the globe. The follow-up to that was the acclaimed 12-inch single "With It" in September 2004 on Tres Records. "With It" received raves from print critics such as Chairman Mao from XXL. 2005 saw the release of Giant Panda's first full-length, Fly School Reunion (Tres Records). Fly School Reunion received positive reviews in magazines such as URB (4 1/2 stars), XXL, XLR8R, HHC, NME, and Exclaim!.[1] It was also a hit with college radio (3 on CMJ hip-hop charts).
Giant Panda made URB's list of Next 100 in 2005. This buzz allowed the group to tour the West Coast with fellow Angelino hip-hoppers People Under The Stairs and Time Machine. In 2006 GP hit the road with Ugly Duckling for a European tour, and then once again that year reached the EU shores with People Under The Stairs. 20 May 2008 saw the release of Giant Panda's sophomore effort, Electric Laser. XLR8R called Electric Laser "futuristic funk" that stays true to the group's "boom bap" and "electro" modes but also moves the sound forward. [2] [3]
The group cites De La Soul, Jungle Brothers, EPMD and A Tribe Called Quest as key influences[4]