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A Guy Named Harry

harrygrigsby

Over the past six seasons, Providence College basketball fans have grown to recognize a familiar voice echoing throughout the Dunkin’ Donuts Center. Whether it’s propelling the Friar Faithful into a “Let’s go Friars” chant or announcing an in-game promotion, Harry Grigsby has manned the microphone through three head coaching stints. Beginning his time as an emcee during the end of the Tim Welsh era, Grigsby has become a mainstay at PC home games for a while now. That will all change this season however, as Grigsby will not return to work his seventh year with Providence College.

Grigsby’s run with PC began back in 2009 but the relationship was born over a decade prior. During his high school years, at Pawtucket’s St. Rafael Academy, Grigsby became close with then assistant coach, Bob Walsh. “Bob really took me under his wing when I was 13-14 years old,” Grigsby shared. “He used to sneak me into Alumni Hall and we would work on my game. He and Coach [Kevin] Kurbec were great to me and I owe them a lot. My philosophy and outlook on life, my stance on hard work and dedication stems from what Bob Walsh taught me.”jonhope

In spending time at PC, as well as working basketball summer camps, Grigsby established relationships with former players like Jamel Thomas and John Linehan – guys he remains friends with to this day. “Jamel became a close family friend, he even came to my aunt’s house one year for Thanksgiving,” Grigsby noted with laughter.

After finishing up his senior year at St. Ray’s – a season that landed him MVP accolades in the Rhode Island State Basketball Tournament [17 points in the championship game], Grigsby made his way south to URI. As a walk-on, Grigsby played one season for the Rams before transferring to Virginia Union the following year – a move that Grigsby credits Bob Walsh for facilitating. When he decided to stop playing basketball, Grigsby would eventually wind up back in his home town of Providence, where he would earn his Bachelor’s Degree from Rhode Island College. Several years later, he chose to return to RIC to obtain a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership.

Currently working at CCRI as a Counselor, Grigsby assists adults looking to further their education. “I work with adult learners – people who want to return to school as well as the prison population,” Grigsby said. Helping incarcerated individuals who need help getting started after being released from prison is also part of his position. For the past six years Grigsby has been working for CCRI and this upcoming school year, he will teach his first class.

With this being the first year since 2009 that Grigsby will not be emceeing PC home games, he will now focus on his work at CCRI as well as his up-and-coming rap career. For those that are unaware, Grigsby performs under the name Jon Hope and has already released one album and is currently working on a second. Two weeks ago, he released the first single off his new album called Camp St. and Comstock. In Grigsby’s words, “Camp Street & Comstock is the story of the city of Providence as I knew it growing up. The two streets are located on the East Side (Camp St.) & South Side (Comstock Avenue). Both sides have a long standing history of feuds and street activity that date back before I was even born. Coming from a virtual unknown place, I wanted to share what life is like growing up in Prov City.”


“This a song to my city mentally absorbed, Diamond in the rough between Boston and New York”

A release date hasn’t been chosen yet but Grigsby hopes to have his new album titled A Guy Named Harry, out by year’s end.

When asked where the name Jon Hope originated, Grigsby commented, “Hope is the state motto for Rhode Island, so that was my inspiration. Hip-hop typically gets a bad rap, but I am a positive individual. I am an educator and I am someone who likes to motivate and inspire people so I wanted to make sure that my representation in the Hip-Hop arena was akin to who I am.”

Grigsby’s ultimate dream is to tour the world with his music as his vehicle. He already has a pair of college tours under his belt and has worked with recognizable names such as Nas, B.o.B and Wale. With the goal of producing songs that are progressive, moving forward from the negative connotation that typically comes with the industry as a whole, Grigsby aims to give people hope through his music. He certainly did that with Camp St. and Comstock, and will continue to do so on future releases.

At the end of the day, Harry Grigsby is a man of many things. He’s not just an emcee or a guy with a microphone. He’s an educator, motivator and an ambassador for the Hip-Hop community. As a final message to his fans from Providence College, Grigsby writes, “It has been with great joy to be able to connect with Friar fans and help develop an incredible and unmatched pride and spirit. I am forever a Friar and I am grateful to have met such wonderful and amazing people during my time working for PC.”

His time with Providence College may be over, but he will continue to represent the city he loves.

To listen to more of Grigsby’s work, check out his website www.thisisjonhope.com and follow him on Twitter @JonHope.

Email Craig – craig.belhumeur@friarbasketball.com
On Twitter – @Craig_Belhumeur

One Comment

  1. Og3ru

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