MC Frontalot ~ Mega Ran ~ Heroes For Hire ~ Magnetic The Shaman
**All shows 21+—valid ID required** Doors: 7:00 PM Show: 7:30 PMMC FrontalotMC Frontalot (née Damian Hess) is the original mastermind of Nerdcore Hip-Hop and still its Final Boss. Front was born in San Francisco and grew up in Berkeley. He was tall and scrawny, had trouble breathing, and could not see well. A special teacher was called in to help him attain basic competence on the monkey bars, another to give him standardized tests meant for older children. Thusly, he was the most popular kid in his elementary school. Just kidding! He got pushed down a lot and called “nerd.” Did he maybe even deserve it? I mean, really – who strikes out at kickball? He spent the next twenty years or so trying to get over it. And kind of succeeded! Flash forward to 1999: the dotcom bubble is maximally inflated; nerds everywhere imagine themselves to be popular and/or hip. Damian is getting overpaid to code web pages, which leaves him free in the evenings to play with audio software. A longtime idolizer of rappers, he has been committing his own esoteric hip-hop compositions to four-track tape since high school, revealing them to nobody. But, suddenly! Multi-track desktop studios, cheap pro-grade recording hardware, skyrocketing bandwidth, semi-anonymous web publishing: these factors converge on Damian’s rap hobby like a flock of winged monkeys. He posts an MC Frontalot web page, dubbing his output “Nerdcore Hip-Hop” because his audience is composed of several Star Wars figurines who live on his desk (and also random internet people who click on his MP3s by mistake).https://frontalot.bandcamp.com/Mega RanRandom, aka Mega Ran, aka RandomBeats… Teacher, Rapper, Hero. Guinness World Record Holder. When LA Weekly said that Ran’s “fanbase and niche audiences are growing at a rate not seen since Tech N9ne,” they meant it. A former middle school teacher, Mega Ran (formerly Random) blends education, hip-hop and gaming in amazing new ways, penetrating the farthest reaches of the galaxy with his unique rhyme style and electric performances. Ran cut his teeth in the city of Philadelphia as a moonlighting emcee and producer, performing, freestyle rapping, producing and later engineering at a studio. After relocating to Phoenix, competing in the Scribble Jam emcee battle championships and taking an early exit, Ran almost quit before he was even started, when a creative lightning bolt struck, and a fire was lit. Video games, comic books and pop culture, all such huge factors in Ran’s upbringing, would begin to seep their way into his musical output, and the results were stunning. Ran’s music and story have been shared on stages across the world, on television (ABC/NBC News, ESPN, Portlandia, Tosh.O, WWE Wrestling) and on Billboard, where four of his albums have placed on the Top 200 list, including 2021’s “Live 95” debuting at #6 on the Hip-Hop Charts. His musical resume boasts collaborations with legends like Del The Funky Homosapien, MURS, Kool Keith, and Young RJ of the group Slum Village. Today, Mega Ran is no longer a teacher by title, but maintains a rigorous touring and recording schedule, traveling the world to entertain and educate through the gift of rhyme.https://megaranmusic.com/Heroes For HireMagnetic The Shaman
Call Me Karizma ~ Astrus ~ FAANGS ~ Letdown
**All events 21+ — Valid ID required for entry**CALL ME KARIZMAMorgan Parriott, known professionally as Call Me Karizma, is an American singer-songwriter and rapper from New Prague, Minnesota. His music tends to be within the hip hop and punk genres.http://www.callmekarizma.com/ASTRUShttps://open.spotify.com/artist/1CyAtnOmpHpo7OcTqkLMnRFAANGSBrimming with swagger and biting lyrics, 22-year-old pop powerhouse FAANGS has arrived on the scene with a strikingly futuristic take on pop music, finding her voice somewhere “between trap, rock star shit, and pop”.https://open.spotify.com/artist/2UlXIWBLOjskz5esa7ec2j LETDOWNhttps://instagram.com/foreveraletdown?igshid=NTlmMWMyMzg=
Homeboy Sandman ~ Deca ~ Darko ~ Torito
**All shows 21+ – valid ID required for entry**Doors: 7 PMShow: 7:30 PMHOMEBOY SANDMANHomeboy Sandman is an MC from NYChttps://homeboysandman-mmg.bandcamp.com/album/anjelitu-2DECADeca is a Hip-Hop/Rap artist from Colorado, currently based in NYC.https://deca.bandcamp.com/DARKO Darko the Super is the weirdo rap superstar alter ego of Evan Souza. Born in the bosom of suburbia in 1993, Darko the Super wrote his first song at the tender age of 5. A prolific mad genius on the beats and microphone, also the mastermind behind indie label, U Don’t Deserve This Beautiful Art. Darko has collaborated with the likes of Lil B, MC Paul Barman, Homeboy Sandman, Open Mike Eagle, and Mr. MFN eXquire. His favorite album of all time is “Hello Nasty” by the Beastie Boys. Darko has stated his biggest inspirations in life are Bill Hicks, Frank Zappa, and Andy Kaufman. Other influences on his style are E-40, Kool Keith, Del the Funky Homosapien and Ghostface Killah. As a producer, J Dilla, Madlib, and MF Doom have had the biggest impact on Darko’s production technique.https://darkothesuper.com Torito Whether in his grungy basement studio or on the shoddy stage of a local watering hole, Torito provides a deluge of multisyllabic wit, absurdist imagery, personal musing, and societal reflection. It’s a bit like observing a psychotherapy session in which the shrink foregoes the typical elevator music/Yanni/nature sounds playlist in favor of a carefully curated beat set, and the patient attempts to keep a partial grasp of reality, voices all of his thoughts in complex internal rhyme schemes, and wears a leather bull mask. After self-producing his previous two albums, 2018’s “Fabric Scraps” and 2020’s “Meat Circus”, Torito collaborated with Philly producer Small Professor for 2022’s “Soiled”, out 7/29 on U Don’t Deserve This Beautiful Art. https://toritorhymes.bandcamp.com/
Jarren Benton ~ Oswin Benjamin ~ Nazeer Art’aud
**All events 21+ — Valid ID required for entry**Doors: 7 PMShow: 7:30 PMFour years after being voted in by fans as the People’s Choice selection for XXL’s 2014 Freshman Cover, JarrenBenton is starting over. He’s a seasoned veteran doubling down on the lyricism he made his name on, but his new music experiments with new emotion and bottles up the last few years of his life. In 2012, the Decatur emcee began making a name for himself on the outsider indie label Funk Volume, where he carved out a unique brand of ferociously lyrical, tongue-in-cheek horrorcore. At the label, his early mixtapes carried titles like Huffing Glue with Hasselhoffand Freebasing With Kevin Bacon, equal parts comedy and terror, like a goofy slasher flick come to life. Benton’s time with Funk Volume was punctuated by a debut album and a follow-up EP (My Grandma’s Basementand Slow Motion Vol. 1), national and international tours, and then, in 2016, the label’s sudden fold. Ever since, Benton has been reinventing and reintroducing himself. “People were introduced to me as the ‘Skitzo,’ guy” he says, harking back to his breakout single nearly seven years ago. “They had a certain expectation that was very outlandish, very lyrical. Lately its’ been more personal.” Benton has been a prolific mixtape artist and voracious rapper throughout his career, but his albums have been heavier and more carefully tuned. Last year he released The Mink Coat Killa, an album-length homage to the gritty New York hip-hop sound Benton grew up admiring from afar. Benton’s new music also looks ahead by nodding back, rekindling a working relationship with his longtime producer Kato—the executive producer of his new album—and throwing his styles in a blender: part lyrical attack, part journal-like reflection, still a little disturbed. “I think when people listen to an artist from Atlanta, they have certain expectations of what they’re gonna hear,” Benton says. “My shit is very left from the artists from Atlanta, but it still embodies that sound.”OSWIN BENJAMINhttps://www.instagram.com/oswinbenjaminNAZEER ART’AUDNazeer Art’aud is an independent artist from Philly who began rapping at the age of 12. His earliest vivid memory of falling in love with hip hop, is cruising through Philly in his Uncle June’s green hoopty listening to Gimme the Loot by The Notorious B.I.G. Alex Smith of WXPN described his style as “the epitome of the street stories and outre metaphors of late ‘80s to early ‘90’s hip hop, exhibiting a lyrical quality delivered in the cadence of peak Biggie Smalls but drunk watching Saturday morning cartoons.” Art’aud wants his music is to entertain audiences via dope storytelling, and in return, he just wants them to feel something while traveling on the musical journey that he takes them on. https://linktr.ee/nazeerartaud
Quelle Chris ~ Cavalier ~ Darko the Super
QUELLE CHRISWhen an artist consistently creates at the forward edge, there are no guardrails. Quelle Chris has been comfortable at the boundaries, leading Hip-Hop since he started. Quelle’s vision extends beyond genre or format. He continued broadening his creative ambitions even beyond his own legendary four album run (BYIG, Everything’s Fine, Guns, Innocent Country 2) and worked with Chris Keys to compose part of the score for the Oscar-winning film “Judas and The Black Messiah” with director Shaka King.The new album, “DEATHFAME,” is a sonic treatment produced by Quelle himself, along with Chris Keys and Knxwledge. The record carries on like an incredible lost tape found at a flea market. It explores, unflinchingly, every moment of the trials the early 2020s has brought to all of us. Guests Navy Blue and Pink Siifu lend brilliance to the dynamic and unexpected new album coming May 13th on Mello Music Group.https://quellechris360.bandcamp.com/CAVALIERhttps://www.instagram.com/cavwins/DARKO THE SUPER Darko the Super is the weirdo rap superstar alter-ego of Evan Souza. Born in the bosom of suburbia in 1993, Darko the Super wrote his first song at the tender age of 5. A prolific mad genius on the beats and microphone, also the mastermind behind indie label, U Don’t Deserve This Beautiful Art. Darko has collaborated with the likes of Lil B, MC Paul Barman, Homeboy Sandman, Open Mike Eagle, and Mr. MFN eXquire. His favorite album of all time is “Hello Nasty” by the Beastie Boys. Darko has stated his biggest inspirations in life are Bill Hicks, Frank Zappa, and Andy Kaufman. Other influences on his style are E-40, Kool Keith, Del the Funky Homosapien and Ghostface Killah. As a producer, J Dilla, Madlib, and MF Doom have had the biggest impact on Darko’s production technique. Darko played his first live show at a college in Lancaster, PA. He cleared out the dance floor and made $47. That was the genesis of his career as a professional musician. Shortly after, he started landing gigs and performing all over Philadelphia or anywhere that would have him, and eventually connected with independent cassette label, Already Dead Tapes in Kalamazoo, MI. Later, Darko took a bite out of New York City, linking up with collaborators Steel Tipped Dove and Harvey Cliff, who became two pivotal pieces of the U Don’t Deserve This Beautiful Art stable. Harvey Cliff became to Darko what Art Director Jeff Jank would be to Stones Throw in these formative times for everyone involved in the label.https://darkothesuper.com/
Pink Navel ~ SB the Moor ~ Vastness ~ godfieri
**All shows 21+—valid ID required**Doors: ?? PMShow: ?? PMPINK NAVELPink Navel is a non binary rapper originally based out of the South Shore of MA, but has relocated to Maine to join Ruby Yacht at their headquarters. As a self proclaimed Nintendo and Disney collector, Navel’s music tends to blend the carefree cadence of cartoons with introspective lyrics on gender identity and mental health.https://pinknavel.bandcamp.com/SB the Moor SB the Moor AKA Christian McLaurin is a cali born and raised artist, weirdo, and psychonaut. Known for their enigmatic presence and inability to be pinned down, their art is a synthesis of personal experience and observation. Their projects are unbound by genre, skipping over boundaries and rules like a child does in hopscotch, and include records, zines, clothing, prose, and comics, all utilized to share thoughts, feelings and emotions. Currently a music educator for all ages, they reside in Sacramento, CA working on their Bachelor’s of Arts in Psychology. Ruby Yacht forever! https://sbthemoor.bandcamp.com/VASTNESShttps://www.vandalvast.com/godfieriGodfieri is a producer/artist/multi-instrumentalist based out of the northeast suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formerly known as yungworldconqueror, Godfieri has worked hard at crafting a unique blend of lofi hip hop, soul-hop, and boom bap to create a timeless feel to his sound.https://godfieri.bandcamp.com/album/space-boy
Spose & The Humans ~ Jarv
*All events are 21+ valid ID required for entry*7 PM Doors7:30 PM ShowSPOSE & THE HUMANSSpose is a rapper/producer from Maine.https://www.sposemusic.com/JARVJarv is an MC / Producer from Windsor, VThttps://jarvmakesmusic.bandcamp.com/album/jarvage-vol-2
mc chris ~ Crunk Witch
*All events are 21+ valid ID required for entry*7 PM Doors7:30 PM Showmc chrismc chris (always intentionally spelled lowercase) is having a moment. You’ve probably already heard of him or heard him; you just don’t know it. His voice is playing most nights on Adult Swim. Thanks to streaming, his shows (Sealab 2021, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, and many more) are finding their way to new audiences and die-hards alike. Thanks to Disney+’s The Book of Boba Fett, his lyrics have found their way into most articles about the show, into most YouTube reviews of the show, into most Fett oriented Twitch and TikTok videos. His lyrics are just part of language because he’s influenced a generation. Twitter personalities and huge companies are getting in on the act, even X-BOX was dropping some mc chris lines in recent tweets in response to Fortnite’s Boba Fett DLC. He has become an integral part of the zeitgeist. His fans call him legend, icon and king. He’s thought of as a game changer. His influence on comedy, animation and rap is unparalleled. It’s almost as if all red strings stem from the efforts of mc chris as he pioneered things like Adult Swim and Nerdcore. These days he’s a single dad coming out of Covid and divorce with a determination to do what’s best for his son who he cares for full time. For two long years he has not been able to tour, cutting short a successful and groundbreaking 15-year run, but now that Covid restrictions have eased, mc is going back out one more time. Join him and Maine based Crunk Witch as they make their way across the country for another go, bittersweet as it may be. He will be appearing in Adult Swim’s “Aquadonk Side Pieces,” later this year and his 19th release “King in Black” will be coming out in conjunction with his tour. Catch him while you can! Who knows when and if he will return. https://mcchris.com/(Photo: https://www.mandeejohnson.com/)CRUNK WITCH The husband and wife electro-pop duo from Maine that make bangin’ beats and rad parties a reality!!https://crunkwitch.bandcamp.com/
Rav / Kill Bill / Scuare / Airospace at First Unitarian Church
EXOCIETY Presents: The Out of the Woods Tour Feat. Rav / Kill Bill / Scuare / Airospace What do an Asian kid born in the Soviet Union, a Brazilian kid born in Oklahoma, a Jamaican/Grenadian kid born in the DMV, and a kid from rural South Carolina have in common? Depression. exociety began in 2013 (with Airospace joining in 2018). They would go on to carve their own lane independent of labels and industry insiders, garnering an impressive, grassroots, rabid cult following through releasing several cult-classic mixtapes and albums online for free download. Combining over 200 million streams, and countless sold out merch runs, members of exociety have been featured on Leafly, Anthony Fantano’s TheNeedleDrop, Vibe, and Pigeons and Planes, as well as numerous other online publications, and have collaborated with the likes of Open Mike Eagle, Ant of Atmosphere fame, Potsu (producer of XXXTentacion’s megahit Jocelyn Flores), and MegaRan, to name a few. And now, Rav, Kill Bill: The Rapper, Scuare and Airospace are gearing up for a 27-city national tour in spring of 2022.
Juan Wauters + R.A.P. Ferreira at First Unitarian Church
R.A.P. FERREIRAR.A.P. Ferreira fka milo aka scallops hotel is an mc, producer and theorist working in the Black arts tradition commonly categorized as rap. Having founded the label ruby yacht in 2015 and since releasing all of his music through this channel, Ferreira has earned a sizable following within independent hip hop by rigorous, constant touring and an elevated, explorational style of performance. He is known for an uncompromised, utopic flow that speaks directly to the root of the listener. By 2018, the young artist galvanized his presence in the American rap scene with the opening of Soulfolks Records & Tapes in Biddeford, Maine. Ferreira has a sprawling, limitless catalog ranging years, names, geographies, intentions, collaborations, and vocabularies. In an era defined by keyword search, soundbyte, cosign, marketing and virality this artist’s work stands out by not cow tailing to the movements and trends of the digital sphere. https://afrolab9000.bandcamp.com/JUAN WAUTERS We think we know what we want. The digital age has made it easier than ever for us to get it – we can search, skip, and customize to our hearts’ content. But something is lost in this exchange – without an external perspective, how can we know what we’re missing? Juan Wauters understands this. It’s why he’s such a big fan of radio – it takes some of the power out of our hands, opening us up to new sounds, new possibilities. This is the effect he sought to reproduce on his fifth album, Real Life Situations, a multifaceted ode to surrendering control and taking life as it comes. References to radio abound on its 21 tracks, and with good reason – the album spans genres, narrators, languages, and perspectives with the ease of spinning a rotary knob. https://juanwauters.bandcamp.com/album/real-life-situationsSHA RAYSha Ray is a rapper and multi-instrumentalist from Indianapolis, IN currently based out of San Francisco, CA. Joining the rap collective, Ruby yacht, in 2019, Sha Ray gon’ stay reimagining independent black feminine rap. https://sharaygonstay.bandcamp.com/releases