206phaces-blog

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Flavr Blue

Although Flavr Blue may not be Hip Hop exactly, all three members of this synth-pop trio have plenty of Seattle Hip Hop credentials and have even been described as a "Super group."

Hollis has been part of lady-duo Canary Sing and, more recently, been seen singing with local hero Ben Hagerty. Parker Joe has production and rapping experience with one of our favorite 206 projects ever, State of the Artist. And Lace Cadence has been singing, rapping, and producing in the Town since before the rest of the world knew we even had a Hip Hop scene.

Their Bright Vices EP dropped October 15, 2013 and the trajectory of Flavr Blue will be exciting to watch. They're already one EP deep with Pisces and blessed us with some supremely beautiful visuals below for their single, In My Dream.

- Words by Oz | 10.15.13

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Yirim Seck

Every city has dozens of under-appreciated rappers. Yirim Seck may not have the national recognition of some from the 'six, but he is one of Seattle's Hip Hop backbones.

The simplest way to describe Yirim is to say most MCs would make a deal with the devil for his smooth, effortless flow. And we can describe his content in just one word: Authenticity.

Yirim is a true blue collar rapper. He has the ability to rhyme circles around most cats, though he has garnered no where near the accolades he deserves. Part of Yirim's station might be due to his content -  smart, positive, educational and socially aware.

Yirim's newest album, Audio D'oeurvres, is only available on iTunes.

-Words by OZ | 10.11.13

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> Website  >Facebook  >Souncloud

Label: WestAfriCoast Media

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Budo

Budo isn't a rapper, but he's worked with a ton of them.

He was a critical part of Macklemore's first album, Language of my World, and is best known for his work with Grieves. Budo has produced for and played with most notable MC's in and around Seattle. In April 2013 he released a 12" single, Treadin', with Grynch on Ballard label Fin Records.

Budo is a hugely accomplished Hip Hop producer who has influenced music and Hip Hop sounds in Seattle, the nation, the world and universe. The dude is a savant of a musician who plays his own instruments - at a really high level - at shows and on recorded tracks.

Budo released his first solo album, The Finger And The Moon, on October 8, 2013. it isn't Hip Hop, but it is magical, swirling, emotional, and extremely honest. We encourage (expect?) you to listen to Budo's music, explore his back catalog of work with Hip Hop artists, and write us a really nice "Thank You" note for turning you on to this Seattle gem.

- Words by Oz | 10.10.13

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>Website  >Soundcloud  >Facebook  >Twitter  >Bandcamp

Label: None

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Ka.lil (Khingz)

Ka.lil, formerly Khingz, is as an important person to Seattle Hip Hop as anyone we can think of.

You can't have a skyscraper without the foundation, and rappers like Ka.lil are that foundation. He's been around for what feels like forever and continues to show up in songs, videos, and at shows. Maybe only Nasty Nes, Mr. Supreme, and Nightclubber Lang were more likely to be seen at every Hip Hop show in the 90s and 2000s.

He's also 1/2 of Abyssinian Creole with Gabriel Teodros and now makes solo material that varies from years to light-years ahead of the pack.

The last four albums under the name Khingz -  From Slaveships To Spaceships (LP), Cold-Hearted In Cloud City (EP), The Khingz Bigger Than Jeezuz Mxtape, and Liberation of the Monster - were critically acclaimed Northwest Hip Hop gems.

Using Ka.lil as his new monicker, the artist formerly known as Khingz has released one very dope and very slept on album, Between Saturday Night & Sunday Morning, and hopefully has more in store.

- Words by Oz | 10.09.13

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>Website  >Bandcamp  >Twitter  >Facebook

Label: Wandering Worx Entertainment

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Ra Scion

After Geo, (now Prometheus Brown) of Blue Scholars fame, Ra Scion is the next most important contemporary rapper in Seattle. 

The dude is from Kentucky, but he's lived all over the damn place and fell out of the sky at some point and landed in the 'Six. He's propped up the city's Hip Hop scene ever since. He is known internationally for his work as one half of the group Common Market. Judging by social media stats and Youtube views, fans of the Market got confused somewhere along the way and have had trouble finding Ra.

But shit ain't changed. He still writes formidable songs with precision with a vocabulary that causes listeners to reach for their dictionaries. He rocks an outstanding live show, cranks out ill videos, and mentors with emergent rappers like he gives a fuck. The guys is filthy and deserves the respect of anyone rapping in Seattle (and beyond) for his blood, sweat, and rhymes.

- Words by Oz | 10.07.13

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>Website  >Facebook  >Twitter  >Youtube  >Common Market

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Nissim

Nissim (formerly D-Black) is a Jewish rapper from Seattle. He hasn't always identified himself as Jewish, having an entire career as D-Black behind him. A few years ago he retired his microphone and focused on spirituality and family. Recently (you can read the entire story here) Nissim's journey has brought him back to music-making. This is a good thing for him (he was born to make music and perform) and a GREAT thing for you.

Nissim produces his own music (beats, recording, mixes and everything else) and has a strong creative vision not only for the music, but the visuals that accompany it as well.

Nissim raps, sings and lives with a smile that could light up the darkest night. The light and energy that shine forth from him are contagious. D-Black was one of the hardest, impassioned rhymers, and even though the content has changed, Nissim is no less capable on the mic - a candidate to break off a big run anytime he's in the booth or on a stage.

- Words by Oz

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>Website  >Facebook  >Twitter  >Bandcamp  >Youtube

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Kingdom Crumbs

Have you ever woke up in outer space with the most serene feeling of happiness? That’s kind of what listening to Kingdom Crumbs is like. And that’s just at home or thru the ole earphones.

A true triumph of the incredible Cloud Nice collective,Crumbs released their S/T album August, 2012 and are still getting praise from it. That album grows on listeners from all genre backgrounds and infects their brains. Lifelong Hip Hop haters will become entangled in their trance. The best musicians hook you with their album and over-deliver on their live performances. Crumbs make a case for being some of the best musicians in Seattle (not just Hip Hoppers, breh) by following this formula and executing like a guillotine.

Frankly, Hip Hop has been getting progressively more boring over the past fifteen years. Especially live acts. I had a couple lean over to me at a SXSW performance by Roc Marciano and ask, “Is this boring to you?? Because we are bored to tears!” Roc was rocking on an enormous stage alone with only his DJ accompanying him. Whether you like his music or not, no one gets bored at a Macklemore concert. The same is true for other Town heroes like Nacho Picasso, Dave B ., Sol, Sam Lachow, BFA and Grynch. And KingdomCrumbslead the charge. They combine smooth vocals, rapping, singing, outrageous production, choreography, instrument swaps and electronic assistance to create a vibe you can pluck out of the air, roll up, light and inhale.

- Words by Oz

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>Website  >Bandcamp  >Facebook  >Twitter  >Soundcloud  >Tumblr

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La

Language Arts changed his name to (the wholly un-google-able) La at some point, but it almost doesn’t matter what he goes by. We just want him to keep spitting. And spitting, and spitting…

Critiques of La are that he is a bars man, not capable of writing a complete song. He gets compared to Black Thought and Canibus as a lyrical specialist without the ability to write hooks or tell stories.

Everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion. Ours is that La is one of the best rappers in Seattle and most probably the country.  His upcoming Gravity 2 will surely quiet some doubters, just as recent features (check out his verse on The KnowMads The Book and try not to break your chin on your desk), singles and live performances have. And his Frank Hirata video is one of the coolest vids out the 206 in the past five years. We know, we say that a lot. Watch it below and disagree. We dare you!

Go back and listen carefully to the first Gravity tape (and Ocean Howll and Sealab 2012), you might be surprised what you find. And if you have never heard of La before, you will most certainly be (pleasantly) surprised by what you hear.

- Words by Oz

The KnewBook by KnowMads

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>Bandcamp  >Twitter

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ILLFIGHTYOU

Irreverent, angry and really good at rapping, ILLFIGHTYOU is technically from Tacoma, but you can feel their energy and rage in Seattle and (far) beyond. 

Ugly Frank, EvergreenOne and Khris P are ILLFIGHTYOU. They’re three of the most talented musicians and performers in the area, and they seem to be hell-bent on rapping really hard and possibly punching you in the mouth just for standing near them.

It would be one thing if ILLFIGHTYOU were one-dimensional but they have the collective beats, flow and wordplay to make them more Mobb Deep and less Made Men (#nobenzino), which is just what Seattle Hip Hop needs.

- Words by Oz

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>Website  >Facebook  >Twitter  >Soundcloud

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Jarv Dee

Jarv Dee is a real-ass Drake with actual, real (not CMYMB-purchased) credibility. (And I like Drake's music!) He is what Hip Hop would be like if Drizzy came from the actual bottom and had an un-broken heart.

Jarv can rap and sing with the best musicians in the country. Not just rappers. Musicians. He sings when he feels it, and he raps when he wants to rap. Whatever his process, a few years ago no one knew his name. Today, he's one of the hardest working, buzzed about artists of any genre in Seattle. And for good reason. He dropped a phenomenal solo record in 2012, he is one-fourth of the outstanding group Kingdom Crumbs, he is one of the pillars of Moor Gang and he has been playing live shows his life depended on it for the past 15 months.

Don't let the Drake comparison shape your perceptions before you listen to Jarv, though. If you like cloudy, turnt, thoughtful, irreverent partying, you will dig this dude’s music like grave robbers dig corpses.

- Words by OZ

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>Bandcamp  >Facebook  >Twitter  >Youtube

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The Good Sin

If The Good Sin he were a basketball player, we’d hear a lot about how high his ceiling is and Jay Bilas would annoy us all by ceaselessly pointing out his tremendous upside.

2012 saw a fantastic album, The Story of Love and Hate, coming off the late 2011 release of Late. with 10.4 Rog and the tremendous video, All For You (below).

The young Seattle MC is worth a listen if you like heartfelt, thoughtful songwriting with an edge. Heads will give him their approval, but his music appeals to casual Hip Hop fans as well. The Good Sin makes a teeth-bared version of the emotional, socially aware history (see Blue Scholars, Sol, Grynch) Seattle is known for. But if you think Seattle, and The Good Sin in particular, lacks grit and snarl, you are wrong.

Backed by Seattle’s Hip Hop crusading label and management firm Sportin’ Life, The Good Sin provides a good role model for youngsters while avoiding the sterile, boring sound that can trap smart artists. All you need to do is look at his Tumblr page for proof that he cares about community and the future as much (if not more) as his own career.

The Good Sin’s music is textured and deep enough to warrant falling into over and over again.

- Words by Oz

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The MC Type

Anybody who takes themselves or their music too seriously better watch themselves when The MC Type gets his hand on the mic because he's bound to make them feel ridiculous while giving all the rest of us something to laugh about.  

Check out his latest release, A Good Tattoo, to hear him take on Hip-Hop-by-numbers (My Backpack), casual internet encounters (Craigslist Pimpin), and cousin-inlaw lust (Incest Love Song). If none of this manages to crack you up, you should probably get a ditch witch for that stick up your ass.

- Words by Stuck

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>Bandcamp  >Facebook  >Reverbnation  >Youtube

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Black Stax

Not that long ago Charles Mudede wrote a great piece about the hate a XXL article spawned in Seattle Hip Hop. Some of the names on that list that were hatted on most were Champagne Champagne and Black Stax. But all you have to do is visit the Black Stax website to realize what the separation is. The online presence of an artist says a lot about who they are, where they are going and what they want for themselves. In addition to making a danceable, realistic, cerebral brand of music, Black Stax is more driven than 95% of Seattle Hip Hop artists. Talent isn't the whole story, but this group has that in spades as well. You'll like Black Stax if you like to think, dance and have a great time at a show. They may also apeal to you if Shabazz Palaces and THEESatisfaction are in your iTunes. Black Stax are proof that hate is played out and love is the new baseline. What has bitterness and hate ever accomplished? Let's love, support and build!

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>Website  > You Tube  >Soundcloud  >Facebook  >Twitter

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Champagne Champagne

As Hip Hop continues to sound less and less like the "90s ideal" and more like the melting pot it truly is, heads everywhere will argue about what is "good" and what sucks. But if you open up your ears a little bit, the Hip Hop world becomes and exciting place.

Champagne Champagne doesn't fit into either of the two stereotypes developing about Seattle Hip Hop. They aren't thoughtful, "conscious," emo-Rap. But they also aren't cloudy, irreverent Hip Hop. So what are they? They are fun, slightly satirical  wizards of the party. They make any show a freaking badass party. The old rule is proven again by CC ( haters who spend countless hours in the stu and zero in front of fans making them jump continue to stew in their own bitterness) - be awesome live, build a following.

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>Website  >Facebook  >Twitter  >Soundcloud  >You Tube  >

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J. Pinder

J. Pinder has been a name in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest for the past half decade, but he has amped things up in the past two years, releasing a flurry of emotional, honest material including Careless, Careless Redux, Code Red 2.0 and a whole host of incredible singles. He has an effortless flow and complex rhymes, critical of self and modern Hip Hop culture. Under tutelage from town kings including Dyme Def, Vitamin D and J. Moore,  Pinder has tapped into a soulful approach that is difficult to find in any cities Hip Hop today.

We can tell you that Pinder will be the next BIG thing out of Seattle after Macklemore along with Sol, Shelton Harris and Dave B ., but the best way to understand J. Pinder is to explore his work. Dig in to Careless and its Redux follow up. Start with his amazing "No Fault of Mine" video and have fun!

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>Website  >You Tube >Facebook  >Twitter  >Label

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GMK

The man behind Skymen and the heartfelt Brilly movement is no longer a Seattle resident, but is perhaps one of it's best standard bearers.

GMK (Golden Mic King) is a talented, multifaceted rapper and producer. He produces for himself as well as Royce the Choice (who's most recent EP, Talk Aint Cheap, has GMK's fingerprints all over it). He makes creative, authentic music that we think embodies Seattle Hip Hop in it's unpredictability and flavor. GMK doesn't care if you like his next, oddball offering. He makes it because he feels it. The craft flows through GMK in a way that is hard to describe. Hip Hop began as a fringe artform, built for and by outcasts. GMK speaks for the weirdos with an accessible, intelligent writing style and flow. His most recent beat tape Sweat Shorts and Slushies hits the spot (kind of like drinking Slurpees in jogging pants). And his previous EP was Say Anything themed. The kind of masterpiece that is never appreciated during its time (it featured art, videos and promo materials with the MC dressed as John Cusack in his most famous role). Fans of Macklemore, Grynch, J.Pinder, Geo (Prometheus Brown) and Sol should be right at home with GMK's music. But the best think about GMK is his constant respect for his fans (he drops records and announcements for dedicated supporters first, always rewarding their love and support) and his enduring message: We can all be brilliant if we put our energies toward positive, creative endeavors.

Check out GMK, be brilly.

Detooz Films: GMK Interview from Detooz Films on Vimeo.

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>Website/Facebook  >Twitter  >Reverbnation  > Soundcloud

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Scribes

Scribes is one of several MCs now living in Los Angeles (GMK and J. Pinder are a few others). Some in The Town (as proud natives of any city would) have blasted such migration and hate on it extra hard. But the best thing that can happen to a product (in this case, Seattle Hip Hop) is for it to spread. Seattle musicians of any genre moving away and doing their thing (hard, in the case of Scribes) is a good thing for the scene in the place they physically left. Seattle Hip Hop, in particular, has the curious problem (please note that it's only a problem when it comes to breaking into the mainstream) of having "too many sounds" to provide a solid platform for the scene to rise up, like those out of Atlanta and San Francisco. So spreading the good word with ambassadors like Scribes (no, especially Scribes) is a very good thing. The more opportunities other folks have to encounter our region's unparalleledbrand of Hip Hop, the better.

On the topic of Scribes, he is grinding hard down in L.A. He recently released the SEACAL Drive EP along with a video for "Backseat (New Ride)."  It's become clear that Scribes doesn't give a fuck what you think about him. Some of his earlier work, like the 2007, Macklemore-produced, Sleepwalk, might remind listeners more of Grieves, Soland Grynch, while his new work is more likely to be compared to Drake. And that's the thing about Seattle Hip Hop: You can try to put it in a box if you want, but it won't work. Scribe's soul, energy and wit haven't changed. Self-described "true Hip Hop heads" might turn up their noses to his new singing/rapping approach, but Jarv D's approach has been highly regarded by some of those same folks. The truth is that people don't like change. At least at first. Art is almost necessarily changing all of the time, just like Scribes' approach. He is wildly talented and driven, so we wouldn't expect anything less.

Here's the bottom line: Scribes has music for every Hip Hop listener. He can write deep, thoughtful rhymes and deliver them expertly. He can write and sing more fun tracks, meant to uplift and entertain in a different way. But at the end of the day, art is change, Scribes can swich things up at the drop of a hat (read:change). Therefore, Scribes is art. High art, at that.

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