Boyuan's SXSW Hip-Hop Hot Box

Navigating your way around the infamous SXSW festival is a difficult and somewhat daunting task. There is always so much to see, and not enough time. Under the blaring sun, meandering through streets stagnant with pungent aromas of street BBQ meat, taquería, beer, and drunken hipsters, the blocked off downtown areas were saturated with music lovers and mini-celebrities partying like it was Mardi Gras. Aside from making an interesting spectacle to view, the entertainment available represented the music world’s progression into the New Year. For hip-hop heads who were privileged enough to attend the festivities, the week offered unbeatable all-star showcases, glimpses into untapped talents, and an advanced look at the artists who are about to blow up in ’09. Here are 10 hip-hop artists/acts that you must absolutely not gloss over (in no particular order).

 

1. Blu/Exile:

For the past couple of years, Blu and Exile’s 2007 collaborative album Below the Heavens has been on heavy rotation in the underground circuit. Since his debut, Blu has been featured on tracks with everyone from Dela to Evidence, and Exile has been making parallel moves, having just dropped his solo joint “Radio.” These dudes have been grinding hard and receiving the appropriate accolades for their talents. At SXSW they were featured in multiple showcases ranging from one for new L.A. artists, to some downright straight hip-hop sessions from Blacksmith on Thursday, Smoking Section on Friday, and Okayplayer on Saturday. With Exile’s transcendental production style— multitasking proficiency of DJing, beat-boxing and serving as Blu’s hype dude all at the same time—and Blu’s candid and self-conscious-personal narrative-mode rhymes, this duo was one of SXSW’s favorite hip-hop acts of this year.

 

2. Asher Roth:

In opposition to most of the reviews on this man, Asher Roth is not to be compared to Eminem. Though he is a white rapper, the comparison stops there. Roth’s youth oriented, light-hearted party music is what opens up his avenues to the mass market. Whether that’s his advantage or the subject of his demise, his potential is looking quite endless. Roth pulled out the tricks at the Biz 3 showcase at Club De Ville on Friday night, including a fully choreographed dance routine with his hype man and DJ Wreckineyez to Soul for Real’s “Candy Rain.” His now infamous “I Love College” track inspired a full on sing-along session with the audience, with extra oomph in crowd participation at the “chugchug chug” chant part concluding the bridge of the song. Roth’s charisma, sincerity, talent and youth-friendly content have gotten him near the top of iTunes sales, and music video airs on MTV. With the drop of his upcoming album, you can expect huge things from this cat in ’09.

 

3. U-N-I:

L.A. rolled deep this year to SXSW. U-N-I is another group that is on the brink of some loud hype. First appearances may lead you to believe that the Dunk obsessed, plaid sporting duo could be no more than merely fashion obsessed hipster rappers. In actuality, Y-O and Thurzday are boom bap influenced emcees who are politically driven in their lyrics without the braggadocios claim to consciousness. Rocking the unofficial SXSW Okayplayer showcase on Saturday afternoon (concluding the hip-hop portion of the conference), U-N-I got on their mics with a full force of energy, as the rest of the venue was still in progress of waking up and shaking their hangovers, and managed somehow to revive some sleepwalkers. Y-O and Thurzday’s progressive highly stylized, and obviously L.A. derived appearances, coupled with their conscientious and intelligent lyrical content give them a good shot at longevity. It’s not exactly the type of thing that L.A. is known for, but U-N-I seems to be one of the many fantastic things to come out of this new L.A. surge in hip-hop/soul. Their new feature length album A Love Supreme drops at the end of the month.

 

4. Keelay and Zaire:

This new production team does not play around; they get down to straight business. Their 3/10 release of Ridin' High, featuring everyone from Blu to Phonte of Little Brother, exhibit all of the ways that these new dudes, Keelay and Zaire (K and Z) are able to drop endlessly exciting fresh melodic instrumentals down on edgy beats. For the past couple of months, they’ve been rapidly serving them to us right off the press, and they can even do it live. The Speakeasy show at SXSW featured a live band, and numerous guest emcees, giving the stage somewhat of a clown car effect. Fortlive, Evangillest, and Icon the Mic King were amongst many other guests. The Bay Area/Virginia partners are incredibly humble, as they are still new kids on the proverbial block of hip-hop. Considering the collaborations on their debut, this year will be even more expansive.

 

5. Res:

Res has been on the low for a couple of years, yet it’s interesting how she has maintained to continuously increase her fan base, despite the fact that her one and only album How I Do
was released all the way back in 2001. With Talib Kweli, and Canadian based vocalist, Graph Nobel, the trio performed together as Idle Warship and performed at the Blacksmith showcase at SXSW. Res and Graph as the power vocalists took over the show. Talib sat back as somewhat of a setback—definitely the weaker link of the outfit. Res’ solo set at the Okayplayer showcase brought out the loyalists, marinating on every lyric to “Golden Boys” and “Sittin’ Back,” with hopeful thoughts that there will be more of solo Res soon to come. In the meantime, Idle Warship is due for a release this year.

 

6. Buff 1:

Right around the tracks from the rapidly burgeoning hip-hop scene in Detroit is another city eager to make its mark. Ann Arbor is the place, and Buff 1 is the dude. This cat was seen everywhere throughout SXSW, rocking the mic on the same bill as Mickey Factz, B.o.B., and a bunch of other buzz-worthy emcees at the Smoking Section joint, and later that week with Invincible and Mr. Lif at the Back Alley Social. Buff recently teamed up with DJ Rhettmatic of the Beat Junkies to form Crown Royale, something to get die-hard backpackers hyped about. Buff’s good-natured, self-exposing (but not self-deprecating nor self-absorbed) lyrics were exhibited passionately on stage. Buff was one of the most engaging emcees to see this year. With the drop of his sophomore solo album There’s Only One, hopefully you’ll be able to catch a live show and see for yourself.

 

7. Mayer Hawthorne:

For an artist to be signed to Stonesthrow usually indicates that they have a knack at the absurd, are forward thinkers, and are also possibly very bizarre people (think Madlib, and Georgia Anne Muldrow). It also indicates— on the consumer side of things—that unless you’re really in the know or are down with hip-hop eliticism, you will most likely not know of this artist. But lastly, the most important thing that it indicates is that the artist signed is probably a genius. Mayer Hawthorne played multiple SXSW shows DJing, crooning and playing the xylophone with his soul band The County, and rocking the mic whilst on the turntables with his hip-hop group Now On. Hawthorne’s Motown-style harmonious hooks and colorful beats make him a force to be reckoned with. This is future soul music.

 

8. Janelle Monae:

Janelle Monae is possibly the greatest live entertainer of our generation (think Michael Jackson performing Thriller in the ’80s) that has graced the music scene in our recent memories. Having the ability to sing operatically, transition to gospel and call it soul music, accompanied by a DJ, electric guitarist and drummer, while wholeheartedly assuming the role of a glamorous automaton, makes Monae a standout. The whole package deal is beyond replicable. From Monae’s tuxedo and saddle shoes, to the semblance of a Pompadour-fro atop her head, to her soul/punk/Motown inspired sound, Monae has upped the bar of live performances. There is much circulation of skepticism out there claiming that she is merely an internet fad with an expiration date. Live testimonies contradict that sentiment. The reactions of real audiences who are newly introduced to her live shows—almost without fail—become eternal devotees. Monae performed a new song at SXSW in front of a packed house at Stubb’s on Wednesday night. Later that week at the Fader Fort, Monae’s daytime performance had an unusual effect with the smoke of the smoke machine hitting the sunrays through the tent, serving as her backdrop while she mixed a robotic Chuck Berry jig across the state. In heavy anticipation of her next release, it would not be wise to miss an opportunity to watch this cyborg-chick live.

 

9. Black Spade:

Nelly has painted and tainted the image of St. Louis hip-hop as a monotonous/misogynist/gross-misrepresentation of the true talent that exists out there. Black Spade is evidence that their time has come; the real artists are on the rise. As a notable SXSW mention, Black Spade is another cat who is blessed with multiple talents, doing in his thing on the keys, making live organic beats, delivering rapid fire rhymes at the Smoking Section hip-hop showcase on Friday afternoon, and the dude can sang. The fact that he has collaborated with Foreign Exchange is proof enough that he’s someone to be on the lookout for. And now, with the Charles Hamilton beat beef, you’ll be hearing a lot more about Black Spade.

 

10. Rockwell Knuckles:

If Rockwell Knuckles didn’t ring a bell, it shouldn’t. Rockwell was another St. Louis highlight at the Smoking Section’s showcase, one that most folks previously were not privy to. This emcee’s furious theatrical maneuvers onstage leave a lasting impression. Rockwell’s perfect diction and his animated movements are stylistically Shakespearean, though his flow resembles something more like Pharoahe Monch. Accompanied by DJ Trackstar—urging there to be more balance in hip-hop—Rockwell may just tip the scale in favor of the St. Louis underground. His live performances perhaps shadow his recordings, but that’s just to say that you should find the opportunity to catch him in person.

* An added bonus for good measure.

 

 

* Keys N Krates:

If shit goes down in Amurrrica, and you’re actually going to move to Canada this time instead of just threatening to, it might not be such a bad idea, especially if you are a golden-era hip-hop fan. The Music Gym Patio hosted a Canadian hip-hop showcase, putting the shine on some insanely talented acts including Keys n Krates, a trio of cats who claim that they “invented the remix.” K n K are comprised of a keyboardist—and as “krates” would suggest—a turntablist, as well as a drummer, and in the case of the SXSW show, a bass guitarist. These guys recreate everything from Snoop to the Fugees, using samples and livening up the originals with stupid arrangements of synthesizer manipulations, a quality of turntabalism on another plane, and the hardest breakbeats you’ve heard for decades. I’m not sure what their marketability is in the recording world—but live—these Canadians are bananas!

These above artists only reflect the highlights of shows that BRM was able to attend.

Words by Boyuan Gao

 

 

Also check out:

Lilly's List of SXSW Randomness

Kyle's SXSW Highlights Countdown

Shannon's Top 10 SXSW Performances

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