The Boy Illinois Gets Fierce on New Mixtape, Windy
The Boy Illinois has been working, that's the most blunt way to say it. Over the years, he has continued to climb and build a career in music that has seen him tour with Lupe Fiasco, and release heralded projects that stretch beyond the Chicago Hip Hop scene into the national music consciousness.
While he's going global, he reminds everyone where he's from on his new mixtape, Windy. The new "mixtape" is 9 tracks deep and features fellow Chicagoans Saba, Frsh Waters, Chai Tulani, and YP - who delivers a stand out feature on the similarly Chicago-centric track "90'94".
Themes of identity, pride, community building, and protection against f*ck $hit peppered the EP, making it fierce and determined throughout. Listen to the mixtape below.
Saba - Where Ideas Sing (Feat. Daoud)
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“Art scene like a renaissance”
Saba returns with his latest energetic track to show us "Where Ideas Sing". Saba is back in peak form with his signature double-time flow and fiery delivery. The production features a soft piano and clap that invoke the spirit of Chicago Hip-Hop; determined but playful. To this sentiment, Saba praises Chicagos current artistic boom, recalling the open mics he attended every Tuesday that nurtured his budding talent. His raps are often nostalgic in nature, giving his music a personal touch that only emboldens his connection to the city that raised him. Daoud joins him on the hook with a House inspired chorus that sends the song into a dancy crescendo. Listen now above and join Saba in his love for the community.
Joseph Chilliams wins with Henry Church
Pivot Gang's Joseph Chilliams released his debut mixtape, Henry Church, about a week ago and then celebrated with a sold out show at Schubas. The project, which consists of 13 songs and features homies such as MfnMelo, Saba, NoName, and others, is cohesive project chock full of pop-culture references, regular-guy observations, and a fun energy throughout. That's not to say that Henry Church is devoid of seriousness or melancholy. Many of Joseph's observations are told with an air of concern and a subdued tone, especially when remembering John Walt, who was tragically killed last spring. From the cover art, to the videos, to the music, it is clear that Chilliams is serious in not taking himself too seriously. And he's winning. Enjoy the project via Soundcloud below.
Music Video Round Up
Alright, so we have a collection of videos to come out over the past couple of days, all collected in one, bandwith-busting post. One of our "Acts to Look Out For", Saba, dropped his long-awaited video for "Secondhand Smoke", which offered glimpses of wintertime Chi alongside Vesely-esque digital effect to create a powerful aesthetic in the lead up to his project, ComfortZone. Iggy Azalea gave fans a Clueless-inspired visual for her track "Fancy" with Charlie XCX. There's lots of fake fur, bubble gums and platform sneakers. Jamal Science hit "Splitsville" with Jasmine Luvano in his latest video while Aloe Blacc gave his track "The Man" a dope visual rendering; he really does look like the man. Which may make it awkward to put it next to current "Man of the Year", Schoolboy Q who traded his bucket for a Pharrell number in this piece for ALife. Auggie The 9th continued a strong campaign behind his December release GAWS with a new video for the somewhat title track "GWS". Run The Jewels debuted a video for their track..."Run The Jewels" and Hundred Waters did their thing in the new one for "Cavity". You can watch them streaming all below, or for you real thrill seekers, play them all at once and gobble up that media a la A Clockwork Orange. Enjoy!
Iggy Azalea: "Fancy" (Feat. Charli XCX)
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Jamal Science: "Splitsville" (Feat. Jasmine Luevano)
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Saba: "Secondhand Smoke"
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Auggie The 9th: "GWS"
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Aloe Blacc: "The Man"
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ALife Presents: Schoolboy Q
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Run The Jewels: "Run The Jewels"
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Hundred Waters: "Cavity"
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[Songs of the Day] 2/27/14 (Feat. Chance The Rapper, King Krule, LIZ & More)
It got colder in the Midwest today. And new music came out. As I sit shivering at my computer, I can only be glad that the Internet brought us some heat today. Ace B8gie gave fans a new version of the instant classic "Fuck A Plan B" enlisting the likes of Creative Control, Young Giftz & Saba for the remix while Chance The Rapper hopped on the soundtrack to the new movie "Divergent" by hopping on "Fight For You" with Pia Mia. Zella Day gave listeners a light new song in "Sweet Ophelia" and RAC released "Tear You Down" featuring Alex Ebert. Evian Christ dropped the first single off his upcoming album in the glitch-filled ride that is his latest track, "Waterfall" and LIZ celebrated the drop of her project in style, tapping Tyga for "Don't Say". We also got a remix of King Krule's "Neptune Escape" from Travi$ Scott and another solid new track from newcomer Joyner Lucas in "Jurisdiction".
Track of the Day: LIZ: "Don't Say" (Feat. Tyga)
Ace B8gie: "Fuck A Plan B" (Feat. Creative Control, Young Giftz & Saba)
Pia Mia: "Fight For You" (Feat. Chance The Rapper)
Zella Day: "Sweet Ophelia"
RAC: "Tear You Down" (Feat. Alex Ebert)
Evian Christ: "Waterfall"
LIZ: "Don't Say" (Feat. Tyga)
Joyner Lucas: "Jurisdiction"
King Krule: "Neptune Estate" (Travi$ Scott Remix)
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Chicago Acts to Look Out For in 2014
Photo by Bobby Reys
Chicago has been on lately. The Second City has always been known as a musical city and the current rate at which it has produced talent as of late is only adding to that legacy. As festival lineups roll out as we transition into Spring, it has become common to find a Chicago act, if not several, on the list. For this reason, we decided to put together a list of up and coming artists from Chicago that we expect to fully blossom throughout 2014. We added numbers, but there's no real order as far as rankings, just a collection of musical acts from the city that deserve a spotlight. Last year, Chance The Rapper, Chief Keef and a host of hip-hop artists dominated music headlines as a pipeline was established in the Midwest. There is plenty in the city that isn't rap music too though, and we made sure to highlight everyone. Take some time to flip through the next batch of stars to rise out of Chicago.
[RH First Glance] John Walt: "Liu Kang"
Pivot Gang has been making some noise out of Chicago lately, with the rise of artists like Saba and a well-formed project in Jimmy, the crew is beginning to put its foot firmly in the door of Midwest hip-hop. Today, we get the latest from Pivot Gang member John Walt, "Liu Kang" produced by Saba and featuring an X-Files sample. The track is a solid entrance to an emerging artist part of one of the young up and coming collectives doing their thing in Chicago. Check out the track below and keep it posted to Ruby Hornet for John Walt's full debut project, Get Happy 2.0, due out December 17.
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