Azuré, rapper and Tour DJ for IAMSU, its safe to say he’s from the Bay. Dope lyrics and smooth old school 90’s Westcoast type beats like Quik, Warren G, Yukmouth, Rick Rock to name a few. He released his,”Mint Condition” project last year and caught some buzz, which I must say is really impressive from the production to the lyricism to the videos he shot. You can check out two of my favorites, “Slow Motion” and “Deadstock” below, but remember overall “Mint Condition” is a must cop. S/O to Down 2 Earth, Enjoy!
Producer To Watch: Ozhora Miyagi
Check out Ozhora Miyagi, producer based of the U.K. and originally from Belgium. He’s been out for minute and landing some placements with A$AP Ferg and Casey Veggies. He’s also done work with Kid Ink, Devin Cruise, Bow Wow, and Bone Thugs to name a few. Last time I talked to him he told me that’s he’s working with Casey Veggies on his album and he also told me about his mixtape, “Black Tamagotchi”, which you could download by clicking here. Check out his beats below. Enjoy!
Producer To Watch: KHAN
Music producer KHAN AKA KHAN ON THE BEAT is an amazing up and coming talent in the LA music scene. He grew up in Humboldt County, CA, moved to San Francisco where he received his Bachelor’s degree in Business from SFSU, and finally on to Los Angeles to pursue his musical talents. His accomplishments and relationships made in the amount of time he’s really been in the music industry are admirable. He has already produced for/worked with the likes of T. Mills, Iggy Azalea, Fat Trel, James Fauntleroy, Angel Haze, Roscoe Dash, and many more all within a few short years.
Although respected for the Urban/Hip-hop production he has created so far, his talent to also make Pop, Alternative, and R&B production is not to be overlooked!
KHAN is a true producer. Not only did he teach himself how to play piano, he also engineers, writes, and sings. His versatility for any type of music session is unmatched. New projects, new writers to work with, new music, and new sounds keep him at the top of his game. As time goes on he continues to progress into a potential Super-Producer! His future is bright and the possibilities are endless. Check out his music below. Enjoy!
Duo To Watch: Olympic Ayres
You might of heard of these guys already cause of their big hit, “Magic”, which was featured in FIFA 14. Ever since that sing I’ve been following these guys. Based out of Sydney, Australia the duo has came far. They released a some EP’s and still are from Episode I to Episode III, which feature ,”Magic”. They have that MGMT sound mixed with funk and rock. Check out their music below. Enjoy!
Producer To Watch: Louie Lastic
Little is known about Louie Lastic other than he must have been a fan of Remember The Titans, and that he has without a doubt helped to propel Virginia-based artist GoldLink into national hip-hop relevancy after producing three tracks on his debut project titled The God Complex. Lastic is one of the pioneers of a sound that is now becoming known as “future bounce,” and appears to have a very bright future ahead of him. Follow him on twitter and stay up to date with his releases via soundcloud.
Twitter: @LouieLastic
Producer To Watch: D. Brooks
Introducing the up and coming Chicago producer, D. Brooks. You may or may not heard of him, but I’m sure you have heard his beats. He’s mainly working with the whole new Chicago Rap/Hip-Hop music scene like Dreezy, Lil’ Herb, Z Money, King Louie to name a few. His biggest breakthrough came with Dreezy, the Female MC spit dope lyrics over his production on her mixtape, “Schizophrenia” (which I recommend you download, if you haven’t done so). Anyways, expect to hear plenty more of D. Brooks and the new wave of music of Chicago. For now check out his production below. Enjoy!
Producer To Watch: BNJMN
For those in the know the five letters which make up BNJMN stand for a lot in our rapidly changing music landscape from electronic to hip-hop. The European producer/DJ has been dubbed as a “future sound” . Lately he’s been exploring his taste from Hip-Hop and remixing R&B, Pop songs. His recent songs “The Fuckin’ Man” and “New Kingston Flow” will make you drop jaws, but don’t take my word listen to him for yourself below. Enjoy!
Artist To Watch: J.K. The Reaper
Greensboro rhymesayer, J.K. The Reaper is making a name for himself with his honest and raw, at times intense music. Really dope lyricism and his delivery is on point. The beats are knocking and Reaper spit that grimey ish. J.K. is blunt and you can tell by his music. He been dropping music like crazy and his most recent like “Fountain of Youth”, “Kill The Snakes”, “Drug Symphony” and “Cold Sake” are all dope check them out below. Enjoy!
Artist To Watch: Raury
Introducing Raury, the ATL native has been creating buzz off his,”God’s Whisper” single; that was released in March. The kid is only 17 and does songwriting, perform, produce, plays the guitar (he’s talented). He has that rock infused with hip-hop sound. I was talking to my colleague Ciara Smith (who told me about Raury) and she told me about how he’s growing and his shows are amazing. She also mentioned how the whole ATL is talking about this kid. he will also be performing with Outkast on their #AtLast concert in September. The kid is above standards for his age.
This kid is too smart that he has this marketing/ brand strategy called, “Anti-Tour”. Now “Anti-Tour” is when Raury goes perform at a venue where the most major artists are performing. For example, he did that to Childish Gambino when he was in ATL and the crowd loved him. It’s what Complex calls, “Guerilla Style” performance in which he “steals” fans away.
Anyways enough talk and just listen to “God’s Whisper” and “Sunshine” below. S/O to Ciara Smith
Artist To Watch: Jaye$
This kid named Jaye$ from Oakland impressed me with his bars and Westcoast representation. He recently released his “Light Skin Brotha 2” album on iTunes. The guy reminds me of a blend of Dom K and Problem, because he has those laidback raps on his beats with the loud vocals. Watch “Babe Ruth” below: