It's difficult to stand out as a rapper, especially in today's crowded online media environment, where attention is scarce. But two artists sharing a bill this weekend in Chicago have found ways to do exactly that.
One, from Brooklyn, represents a new, eccentric take on an old model of New York rappers. The other, an increasingly hyped Chicago grass-roots sensation, is a variation on the kind of operatic, aggressive rap coming largely from the South in the form of artists like Waka Flocka Flame. They are, together, a good picture of the weird, varied directions of contemporary hip-hop.
The pithiest introduction to the most exciting Brooklyn rapper to emerge in half a decade is a profane explanation of his name during his single, "Huzzah." If the lyrics sound ridiculous, well, they're supposed to.
"I think I push the envelope a little bit," eXquire (whose full name is unprintable in this newspaper) said, speaking on the phone from the Crown Heights, Brooklyn, housing complex where he has lived for the last 13 years. "I think people like to see that ... I'm not ignorant because I'm stupid; I do ignorant s--- because it's funny."
eXquire's music, which he began seriously pursuing as a career after getting fired a year ago from his job as a parking garage attendant, undeniably draws part of its magnetism from juvenile crassness. The aforementioned "Huzzah" is largely an ode to irresponsible drinking; his most recent release was a Christmas mix tape for which the title wished the listener a "Merry eX-Mas" before a sexual request.
But much of eXquire's musical appeal is the way that his lyrical range embraces and penetrates this type of humor, extending to subjects that are often disarmingly relatable. One song begins "I get up in the morning, or better yet at 3," then descends into bathroom imagery before changing direction: "Look, Jimmy Neutron's on," before turning into a reflection on life choices (Does it make sense to give up your job and become a rapper who watches a lot of cartoons?).
It's almost too convenient of an origin myth that eXquire claims to have started rapping in the bathroom when he was supposed to be doing his high school homework. (The details as to why he chose to do his homework in the bathroom to begin with are, rather vaguely, chalked up to "weird ritual"). Regardless of its provenance, his blend of tongue-in-foulmouth-cheek bravado and borderline scholarly reference of nostalgia-triggering pop culture is perfectly suited for an Internet culture that thrives on both of these things.
"He's not super swagged out and clean-cut," said Andrew Barber, who runs the Chicago hip-hop blog Fake Shore Drive. "He's not what you think a rapper is supposed to look like in 2012."
In many ways, eXquire is much closer to what a rapper looked like in 1994: a blend of the oddball sensationalism of New York groups like Wu-Tang Clan or Company Flow, and the everyman bravado of Brooklyn's patron saint of rap,Notorious B.I.G.Now, that style registers as distinctive, and the online rap community has taken note.
"He's really buzzing. ... 'Huzzah' is on lots of peoples' (best of 2011) lists," said Alexander Fruchter, founder of hip-hop blog RubyHornet, which collaborates with Chicago's SoundScape Studios in a recording project called Closed Sessions. This group is bringing eXquire to Chicago for the first time, as part of its Digital Freshness concert series.
"The goal is to bring really buzzing artists from the online world offline," Fruchter said. "We want to introduce them to the music community so they can really build something in Chicago."
To that end, the concert series pairs visiting artists on a bill with local artists on the rise. For this edition, eXquire is paired with South Side rapper King Louie, an unusual bill in that it represents the diverse interests of contemporary hip-hop. Though eXquire is an oddball favorite of Internet tastemakers, Louie is a grass-roots success grounded in the street culture of Southeast Chicago who is only beginning to attract the attention of national bloggers. His lyrics are harder, blunter.
"He's a different breed, at least as far as Chicago hip-hop is concerned," said Barber, highlighting the contrast between Louie and Chicago rappers such as Common, Kanye West and Lupe Fiasco, who have traditionally projected a cleaner or more conscious image. Tellingly, Louie identifies Chicago rapper Bump J, currently serving a federal prison sentence for bank robbery, as the local artist to whom he most relates, and he identifies the grandiose strain of hip-hop dominating radio as more suited to his style.
"That's what I come from," he said, during a recent video shoot with fellow local rapper Rockie Fresh. "The area I'm from is more on the Waka Flocka label or the Rick Ross."
The fact that the gritty, street-rooted Louie and often-humorous, over-the-top eXquire would share a bill speaks to a climate in hip-hop that wouldn't have existed in the past.
"I think that it's an ill time because you can kind of just do what you want," eXquire said. "It's kind of just like a free-for-all. If you like any type of rap you can listen to rap now. You can listen to gangster rap, you can listen to nerd rap, you can listen to horrorcore rap, gay rap. It's so broad. It's a beautiful thing."
"Those boxes have always kind of existed," Barber said, referring to hip-hop styles. "The difference is now you can decide what you want to listen to and find it."
This is because of the Internet, which provides a forum for listeners to discover and access music that might have been hard to find or kept separate from other genres in an old system limited to major label releases.
"These dudes aren't relegated anymore to used record stores," said Fruchter. "Walls have been broken down."
The Internet also makes it easier for artists to build and connect with their fan bases.
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