Rock City - “No Air” (Remix)

I like how the “sureshot” dude at Iced Media was gracious enough to append instructions to the blast for this song: “If you don’t know about them yet don’t be a sucker and wait until EVERY other blogger and site is f*ckin’ wit them!”

I understand where he’s coming from, because it’s always tough for PR folks to get people to peep relatively unknown artists while they’re still relatively unknown. But why throw everyone in the same boat? If he took the time to research the targetted tastemakers, maybe he would’ve noticed that The Rap Up, for instance, is known for showing love to under-the-radar artists moreso than the established MCs.

Oh, in case you’re wondering about R.City, they’re Akon’s weed carriers trying to jumpstart a career by touting their credentials as Akon’s backup singers. Nothing wrong with that, it’s the way of the music industry. The song is decent, by the way.

Bonus
Rock City - “Losing It”

Shaya - “Fall Back”
A gripping track from Shaya’s debut, Fallen Awake, out July 29th. Listen close and you just might hear the Method Man influence.

Grynch - “Peer Pressure” | “If Only” | “That’s Hip-Hop”

Get familiar with Seattle-based MC Grynch. He rocks one of the crispiest flows I’ve heard in years, while dropping headphone-worthy lyrics over SUV-friendly beats. The fact that these songs are from his second album, My Second Wind, betrays the fact that I’ve been sleeping on dude for a minute. He’s currently working on a 7-track EP for the summer with guest verses from Geologic (of Blue Scholars) and Tunji (of Inverse). And there must be something special about him, because he’s opening for Nas on May 16th in Seattle.

Other MCs I Care About:
Shad
Verbal Kent
8thW1
Astonish

Verbal Kent - “The Dagger” | “Game Face”

I told you 2 years ago that there’s no end in sight for Chicago’s hip-hop hegemony. Funny thing is, I made that statement because of Kanye, Lupe, and Rhymefest. Since then we’ve seen the Cool Kids, Gemstones, Yung Berg (unfortunately), and Kid Sister rise from obscurity to prominence. It’s as if Mayor Daley is churning these folks out at some build-a-dope-mc-factory in Illinois.

Verbal Kent is also straight outta the Windy City. I won’t call him Chicago’s next best thing, but Verb is ridiculously intense on the mic. He puts his heart in his rhymes and still sounds fierce as hell. If you like what you hear from VK, then go cop his latest album, Fist Shaking.

On the web
myspace.com/VerbalKent

See also:
An MC I Care About Today: Shad

Misnomer(s) - Special MSG

Misnomer(s) consists of Brooklyn rapper/TRU regular Knewdles and her violinist sister SoS. Yes, I know what you’re thinking: “Didn’t Miri Ben Ari already try this violin thing and fail?” Let’s just say it wasn’t quite like this.

Thoughts?

I believe in Santogold. Stop the hating.

Identity | The Shocker | A Fool’s Lullaby

His 10-track opus, Love Money and Music, splendidly blends a low-fi approach with novel rap anthems. It’s well worth your time.

Catch 8thW1 at the Knitting Factory tonight. He’s opening for Atmosphere.

::Little Vic feat Kool G Rap - Caked Up

Little Vic is a new MC out of NY, but he reminds me of Elzhi for some reason. His style is fresh, his lyrics raw and intricate. “Caked Up” is taken from Vic’s impressive debut, Each Dawn I Die, due sometime this month. I know some will hesitate to check the record unless a big name is on board, so I’ll go ahead and add that DJ Premier produced one track on the CD.

Astonish feat. Termanology - “Life Ain’t Sweet”

Astonish is a budding rapper from the Windy City. His EP, From Now Until Forever, drops this Tuesday (2/26).

On the Web:
myspace.com/astonishmusic

The Knux - “Cappuccino”

OK, they’re not exactly “new” in the normal sense. Krispy and Al Millio are two brothers from New Orleans who signed to Interscope back in 2006. “Cappuccino” is taken from their debut, Remind Me in 3 Days. Even though they resemble Kid-N-Play, they actually sound like a cross between Hieroglyphics and OutKast.

(Shouts to Matt for coming through with the mp3)