Musa Reems Presents A Deep Dive Into Motivation with "44 4's"
"Before I knew it, I was moving up, I would forego classes just to get a couple bucks."
Musa Reems is dedicated. That's apparent as soon as you meet the emcee and college student who is quickly earning his stripes in Chicago's Hip Hop scene. Musa is purposeful in much of what he does, and not afraid of hard work. I know, because since September, Musa has been working with AEMMP Hip Hop, the Columbia College run rap label that has a long history of working with Chicago's top talent (Thelonious Martin, Saba, theWHOevers, C-Sick...).
For those that don't know Musa, his latest joint "44 4's" is a crash course he what he does, and who he does it for. The production is handled by Curbside Jones, a familiar collaborator for Musa and they make a good pairing again on this new joint. Listen up.
Devin Loveloss: "The Wind" (feat. Fleaux & PRJR)
AEMMP Records is currently finishing up production of a new album entitled “The Prerequisite, which is expected to drop during Spring. "The Wind" is the third single from said project and it's performed by Devin Loveloss, Fleaux & PRJR. Peep below.
[Interview] AEMMP Record Producer: Von Vuai
Von Vuai is a producer and drummer from the Westside of Chicago, and from the sounds of his production, his time is near. A member of the Chvrch crew, with fellow rising artist St. Millie, Von produced ½ of Millie’s debut effort No Religion But Up, an underground success that catapulted Millie into the lens of the Chicago music scene. With a beat tape titled Stank on the way, Von's airy, futuristic and melodic production will likely have the chance to make its way into the right person's ears.
A full-time student at Columbia College, Von is balancing homework and class schedules with all night sessions and finding the right creative space. He has had good teachers both in and out of the classroom, another up and comer under the guidance of The Gift. "Gift is my homie he has been a lot like a big brother and mentor to me. I’ve been able to learn a lot while working with him, more than he even knows." Von remarks about The Gift, who is an in-house producer for Rockie Fresh, and frequent collaborator with many in the Chicago Hip Hop scene.
From his background behind the drums, to his aspirations of diving into the fashion world, Von's creative peak as yet to be reached. It will be only up from here as Von continues to grow as an artist of many trades. We take a look at the ascent in the latest AEMMP Hip Hop producer spotlight.
[Interview] Aemmp Record Producer: Dee Lilly
When I first heard of Chicago based producer Dee Lilly, after listening to his latest compilation Obey, I wasn't aware of his status as a true musician, beyond being a beat maker. After learning he attended the Duke Ellington School of Music in Washington DC for high school, Lilly found his way to Chicago and Columbia College to study Music Business. "I loved the networking opportunities here in Chicago. I feel like if you grind hard enough you will eventually be heard, there is just that pure competitiveness here."
Now working on his next compilation project, the Columbia College pianist turned producer has worked with the 2008ighties crew, Murph Watkins, and other rising Chicago musicians, since arriving here from DC in 2008. "So this one day Legit was like, 'man I need producers.' So a couple months later I showed him some more stuff... he was like, 'yo, give me that beat I promise I will make that the intro for COTL.'He rapped the verse he had for it and that was it."
Lilly, struggled at first as a budding producer, jumping right into an industry he definitely thought was simpler than it truly was. After crafting his sound, Lilly is looking to make an impact on our scene, from here on out. Read on for our AEMMP Hip-Hop Record Producer Interview.
[Interview] AEMMP Record Producer: Ikon
We have linked with Columbia College's student run record label AEMMP Hip Hop for a little subset of our Record Producers column. If you've haven't seen the column, it's an in-depth interview with Hip Hop's best producers, new and old. Focusing on the new, the AEMMP Hip Hop edition will highlight producers that the student run record label is currently working with for their forthcoming compilation, which will be a follow-up to last year's Class President. Much like rubyhornet, AEMMP Hip Hop's efforts are aimed at providing young musicians with a platform to expose their talents to a larger audience.
Today we kick off the feature with Ikon, a senior at Columbia from Forest Park, IL. Ikon's production on the yet to be titled AEMMP compilation will come via two tracks, both featuring this week's AEMMP Artist of The Week, Saba. Read on for the full-interview and a short clip introducing Ikon.