SXSW Hip Hop Preview

The weekend before SXSW is historically a dead one in Austin and this year was certainly no different. This makes sense because any up and coming band that’s worth noting is actually playing the festival in an attempt to blow up to the next level. And if you’re not playing SX that means you’re either too big for it and will only play a surprise show if your coke dealer is down here for the week or you’ve plateaued as a band and you’re stuck playing for overweight former frat boys who are trying to relive their glory days.

Well seeing as how I’m an overweight wannabe former art student, I couldn’t just lay low for an entire weekend and wait for the other Radiohead fans to arrive, so I decided to pop in on what is usually a good and freaky art show deep on the east side of Austin. But it wasn’t long before I realized that even the good artists are saving their energy for SXSW. When I walked in all I saw was a bunch of high school level art hanging on the wall and a few kids who were trying to get in on the transgender game because stealing from Black culture is so 1990’s. Now I’m certainly not knocking true transgenders, I’m just saying that these kids were clearly posers because even I, a meat and potatoes scrub from small town Texas, know that you don’t mix a blue jean romper with Doc Martins! I mean, come on scrubs, pop in on some of the new Queer Eye on Netflix to get some fashion tips and smoke a little herb to hopefully create some better art.

Anyway, after checking out roughly 1,000 artists or so, it looks as though RnB and Hip Hop will once again reign supreme at SX this year. And this isn’t that big of a surprise as it seems as though Hip Hop and Rock n Roll are never on point at the same time. I can only remember one instance of this occurring and that was back in 1992 when Wu Tang, Gangster Rap, and Grunge music exploded on the scene all at once. But the good news is that Hip Hop and RnB are so good right now that you really don’t miss Rock n Roll, which is a good thing because from the looks of it, we’re still a few years away before the next Kurt Cobain hits us. Here a quick look at some of the best that will be playing SXSW this year.

First up is Buddy, a wiry looking dude from Compton who went to art school so he could focus on what he loved and not the other things you typically have to deal with in that neighborhood. But don’t let that fool you as he is still able to bring that hood edge to his rhymes while not focusing solely on popping Molly and banging chicks. It’s refreshing to see that artists still exist in this genre and that someone like Kendrick wasn’t a complete anomaly. Like most Hip Hop performers today, he can sing and rap and also appears to be the next big thing out of Cali. FRESH
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3QOBYq0lBI

Next up is Kelela, this is where soul and electronic music meet to give you something you can groove to while either rolling or simply sipping on some wine while trying to close the deal on a Netflix and Chill night. I remember checking her out for the first time a few years ago but I was so deep in punk music that I really wasn’t trying to check for anything like this at the time. Do yourself a favor and don’t sleep on her like I did. FRESH
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l227G1KSWks

Next up is Jpegmafia from Baltimore. He’s angry, grimy, and a little rough around the edges but thankfully it appears as though that he’s on his way to a more refined sound so that most of the general public is actually able to digest what he has to offer. The closest comparison I can think of is Death Grips but just imagine how grumpy they’d be if they had to tour all of the time; well that’s Jpegmafia. FRESH
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=974TXFKtyls

Topaz Jones reminds me of 90’s RnB and Hip Hop, which after today, isn’t a bad thing as I witnessed a floor full of 20 somethings get wet the second Usher’s Nice n Slow came on. Is he Usher? No, but he’s the perfect blend of every fun hip hop song from that era. FRESH
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1FL2RR0iJI

While Duckwrth is a super mainstream hip hop artist he’s still not quite Macklemore. He actually has talent brings a ton of energy to the stage; it’s just that he’s clearly in the game to make money and peace out. WEAK
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vV71CEm-svU

And the last artist that will be all over SX is Smokepurpp. He clearly has the least amount of talent of anyone I’ve previewed today as he sounds like the next coming of Lil B but because he’s from Miami and makes simpleton music, he will probably blow up and will be featured at every nightclub this summer. WEAK
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YO2WD8Fky8I