WGCI Big Jam brings Chris Brown, Young Thug, and more
WGCI’s Big Jam returned this year to the United Center featuring performances by some of the biggest names in business. Big Jam was the best place in Chicago to celebrate the end of 2016.
Stellar showings from Trey Songz, Chris Brown, Young Thug and many more made for an unforgettable night.Local Chicago talent represented their city strongly with G-Herbo, Lil Bibby, and Dreezy rocking the Big Jam stage. Opening to a strong early crowd these local favorites represented Chicago well.
G-Herbo | Lil Bibby | Dreezy
Sharing the stage G-Herbo and Lil Bibby joined forces and started off Big Jam strong. The only female artist on the lineup was Chicago’s own Dreezy. Dreezy a force to reckon with held her own and showed the Big Jam crowd why she’s one of the most talked about new artists.
Lil Yatchy | Desiigner
Fan favorite Lil Yatchy played to the crowd performing hits like “Night”, “Minnesota”, and “Broccoli”. One of the most talked about sets came from Desiigner. His outside-the-box performance took him all over the stage. Having the crowd in complete awe, Desiigner put on a show those in attendance won't soon forget.
Trey Songs
Owning every inch of the Big Jam stage, Trey Songz had the crowd in a complete frenzy. Songz, a crowd pleaser, matched his signature vocals with his just as impressive dance moves. The roaring was matched with Songz’ charismatic performance. There was some speculation as to whether or not Songz was going to perform due to an onstage breakdown of stage equipment last week. Songz didn’t disappoint the United Center with his stellar performance.
Chris Brown
Co-heading Big Jam was R&B juggernaut Chris Brown. Brown a true showman used every inch of the platform to dance every single of his signature hits. Brown led the United Center in the ultimate dance party. Without skipping a beat Brown didn’t stop giving one second of a showstopper performance.
Youg Thug
Young Thug ended the night with some of his crowd favorites. Young Thug’s performance was unfortunately cut short due to his allotted set time. The strict set time definitely created some confusion with the Big Jam crowd. Without proper good byes and final songs, the transitions were a bit off. Regardless of the time mix up, the sold out United Center crowd didn’t let the biggest house in Chicago slow down. WGCI DJ’s kept the crowd in a roar with classic Chicago juke jams. The atmosphere from the sold out crowd seemed homely. The dance friendly crowd made WGCI’s Big Jam the biggest house party in Chicago. There wasn’t a better way to close off 2016 then seeing some of the best in hip-hop and R&B.
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.
[Mixtape] Lil Herb: "Welcome to Fazoland"
The day has finally come for Chicago's own Lil Herb to step out on his own. After first hitting the scene early last year with fellow south side artist Lil Bibby on the strength of their joint project which produced nods from the likes of Drake, and a slew of record labels. After sharing the spotlight as a duo, Bibby stepped out at the end of November 2013 with his powerful solo offering in his singular debut project, Free Crack, which continued to push him as one of Chicago's must-see acts. Today, his counterpart gives us his latest, the highly anticipated Welcome To Fazoland, which aims to establish Lil Herb (G Herbo?) as the next in line to pop from the Second City. The project, hosted by Don Cannon and released today via DatPiff, is precisely what the rap world has been waiting for from Herb. Utilizing a distinctly calm tone to his voice, Herb glosses over the issues facing his community and city in a way that feels authentic without getting preachy, feels less like a report than a young man relaying what he sees around him. On "At The Light" he discusses the complex issue of simply sitting in his car at a stoplight, and the problems that seemingly innocuous, everyday action can bring by rhyming "Summertime I remember them nights/I know n**gas out for my life/Gotta look to my left and my right/I be damned I get left at the light" It's an impressive stepping out for a young artist eager to make a name for himself on the solo game the same way he got his buzz up with Bibby next to him last year. Welcome To Fazoland might be just the debut to get him to the next level. Check it out, available for stream and download below.
[Documentary] Chicago Hip Hop Profiled in "The Field"
[iframe id="http://www.worldstarhiphop.com/embed/65971"]
WorldStarHipHop, the website best known for knock out videos and general ratchet-ness, decided to bring their cameras to Chicago for a special video special titled The Field, detailing the in and outs of not only the Chicago hip-hop scene, but the social and socioeconomic ramifications that surround it as well. Shot by Sher Toor and Jonathan Hall, the doc is an interesting take on the issues facing the Second City, from those who have become rhyming reporters to explain what is happening around them.
The documentary delves deep into the "drill" movement, focusing on the record 2012 murder rate as the major catalyst for the rise of the haunting beats riddled with gunshots and stories of surviving with little and trying to find a way out. Upon first hearing about the documentary and it's publisher, I was immediately skeptical. Although named better than Vice's "Chiraq" documentary done earlier in 2013, The Field digs beyond the surface issues by going to the sources for the answers.
I found it interesting to hear artists like Lil Bibby, Lil Durk and Lil Reese talk about the stress from the success they've realized lately, what it potentially leads to. Hip-hop today has become such a game of numbers, it's interesting to hear some of the artists at the top of the game here talking about how far they've come with almost a semblance of regret, not unlike a star athlete that doesn't especially like sports. Music may be a passion to many, but to these young artists from the rough neighborhoods, it's more than that; it's a way out. Toor and Hall do a tremendous job organically demonstrating this through first person accounts and careful storytelling.
What the documentary really does is hone in wholeheartedly on a specific location in the country and demonstrates how hip-hop music is largely seen not as a way to get famous, but a vehicle to escape their current environment. By highlighting the likes of Bibby, Reese, Durk, King Louie and Katie Got Bandz, the filmmakers did an excellent job in drawing the very thin line between the artists and those around them. Given more time with the subject, the video could have possibly been the hip-hop Hoop Dreams.
The project is both inspirational and upsetting, casting a light on not just the murders that plague the landscape, but also the catalysts that lead to the current situation. It's a surprising production for WSHH, an interesting take on the rise of drill through the violence and crime of the south and west sides of the city. Riding through the streets, talking to the people that live there, it perfectly captures a very certain period in the history of Chicago by highlighting the good and the bad, and the unexpected.
[Video] Lil Herb: "4 Minutes of Hell" (Part 3)
Photo by Elevator
Lil Herb first stepped onto both the Chicago and national scenes late last year with local collaborator Lil Bibby. The pair gained recognition upon dropping Heir Apparents last year and have been branching off individually as of late. Today we have the latest from Lil Herb, with the third installment of his "4 Minutes of Hell" video series, directed by Zae, that essentially features the young artist rapping his ass off for, you guessed it, four minutes. The series is a precursor to Herb's upcoming solo project, Welcome to Fazoland, which is expected soon, on the heel's of Bibby's well-received Free Crack. Herb is proving himself as a true rhymesayer with a penchant for crafty wordplay and blistering rhyme schemes. Keep an eye out from more coming from Lil Herb via RH.
[youtube id="MHQ4y-ppSZ0" mode="normal" align="center"]
Lil Bibby: "Lettin Up" (feat. Lil Herb & Lil Durk)
Lil Bibby is firing on all cylinders with every single release he puts outs as the day of his his highly-anticipated mixtape Free Crack gets closer and closer. "Lettin Up" is the newest leak from Bibby and it features his east-side compadre Lil Herb and OTF's Lil Durk. DJ Victoriouz, DJ Bandz, DJ Twin and DJ Keem unleashed this record via their We Mean Biz Vol. 1 'tape (available now), but there's a real possibility this might end up on Free Crack as well. Peep below.
Lil Bibby: "Water"
Lil Bibby has made a name for himself with aggressive street anthems detailing rough times on the rougher streets of Chicago. On "Water", premiered on Complex yesterday, Lil Bibby laces his gritty voice over a soulful sample and high pitched synths that sounds more like a Kanye West track circa 2004. For his part, Bibby shows why he is one of the most talented upcoming and diversely talented hip-hop artists to emerge from the increasingly cluttered and eclectic Chicago scene. Check out "Water" here below:
[Video] Gianni Blu: "Hotel Infinity"
Gianni Blu made a bit of a name for himself engineering and producing for the likes of Kind Louie and Lil Bibby on their trap/drill track "Crazy". Talk about range. "Hotel Infinity" is about as night and day as you can get from the drill scene. It's a house banger with well-placed ambient vocals and a video to match. APJ Films continues to do his thing once again with this video as well. Check it out below!
http://youtu.be/-l51CWAyPiA