Kyle Ellison needs Cigarillos from the corner store. It’s sometimes hard to tell whether Atlanta’s latest crop of eccentrics are bored or exhilarated by rap. Half of the time it sounds as though the city’s young rappers might actually pass out from excitement, either buzzing off of some loopy synth beat or a lean-induced sugar […]
| MobbDeen: Lil Herb & Lil Bibby in Fazoland | March 4, 2014 |
Deen drinks with Scarface every weekend. Messrs Herb & Bibby first came to my attention circa 2012 when I came across their remake of Project Pat’s classic, “My Hood.” A remake isn’t necessarily the most efficient way to gain attention in 2014 and the same was true back in 2012 when we all thought the […]
| The Alternative Trap of Chicago’s Lucki Eck$ | March 3, 2014 |
Eric Thurm is not like a desk in math class. Lucki Eck$ mostly raps about dealing drugs, which would be tired if it weren’t for his lyrical dexterity and hypnotic, sensitive delivery. The Chicago 17 year-old’s first mixtape, Alternative Trap, showcased his gift for storytelling and unusual, vivid imagery (standout “Count On Me” has the […]
| The Blogger, the Engineer, and the Future of Chicago Hip-Hop | January 29, 2014 |
Tosten Burks deserves a day off. The Blogger and the Engineer The living room is not a living room – overstuffed couches swapped for 50 thousand dollars worth of studio equipment, tile floor crowded with new friends and old. A funky smoke lingers. They line up for the dining room that is not a dining […]
| Tree: Soul Trap On Ice | January 28, 2014 |
Max Bell is made of limestone. Ascendant Chicago rapper/producer Tree’s claim that he “invented soul trap” isn’t entirely accurate. Soul trap was around before Pimp C had a pocket full of stones. There just wasn’t a name for it. Goodie Mob and Witchdoctor’s first albums are so full of soul and blues, both lyrically and […]
| Under the SeaPunk: ShowYouSuck & Ultrademon Are “Old Voyagers” | January 13, 2014 |
Tosten Burks invented seapunk four years ago in a crack alley on the outskirts of Bikini Bottoms. Whether Albert Redwine is first-gen #seapunk or just an appropriator riding a #waverave , I could care less, as long as he keeps feeding beats to ShowYouSuck, the Rad God of low-brow art-rap. The duo released “Old Voyager” […]
| Twista’s Return: Double-Time Basics | January 10, 2014 |
Kyle Ellison has an extensive knowledge of rap songs that feature violins. It’s hard to ignore the underlying tragedy of a rapper whose best music was made in the ’90s releasing a project called Back to Basics. Generally, the explicit avowal of a return to form is a sign of creative bankruptcy. The artist has spent a few […]
| 150 Degrees of Lil Herb | November 14, 2013 |
Lil Herb and Lil Bibby have been bubbling for a while now in the Chiraq guns flashing, rap-as-inferno lane, but I have never written about them due to negative association stemming from my aversion to all Bibby’s dating back to Mike (and maybe Henry). I’ve been watching a lot of NWA and Eazy E lately […]
| Mick Jenkins, Martyr | November 12, 2013 |
Tosten Burks is beatified. One of Chicago’s best young lyricists this side of the tweakers, twists 2013’s most iconic sample into lamentations of lifestyle, praying he’s not too preachy but preaching nonetheless. To the boys carrying guns to the beat, to the girls leaving their cherry stems in the street: everyone’s hanging too high to […]
| Doom Generation: Chicago’s Max Wonders | October 10, 2013 |
Unless you’re a teenaged rap fan in the murder capital of the Midwest, it’s difficult to keep track of who exactly is in The Treated Crew. In fact, it’s difficult to keep all of Chicago’s crews apart, if you don’t have an affinity for deep dish pizza. The Treated Crew was masterminded by Kanye’s DJ, […]
