Tosten Burks killed Walter White. Few things complicate and challenge the blog-rap come-up more than the immediacy of expectations. A little hype goes a long way in turning writers into prophets and young artists into pressure-cookers. More taxing yet is when the pressure simmers as quickly as it came. Nineteen-year-old Hyde Park native Vic Mensa’s […]

Matthew Schonfeld is a classically trained theremin-rap master. Chicago’s Save Money crew is way more than just Chance The Rapper. The collective encompasses the sweeping diversity of Chicago’s arts culture. There are rappers, singers, painters, videographers, producers, and jazz musicians. Nico Segal fits somewhere in between — originally sitting as trumpet player for the defunct […]

Tosten Burks prefers root beer. I don’t think Vic Mensa thought his best friend would blow up before him. There’s just something about the way he goons around backstage at Chance shows waiting to spit his Cocoa Butter Kisses verse, not smiling, not really dancing, not even during the obligatory all-of-SaveMoney-wilds-out-on-stage moments. He’s still getting […]