Black Artists you are Sleeping On Right Now and a Manifesto for Musicians, Artists and New Black music. #Blackrhymesmatter

The Intro

My name is Ace, I'm from Sydney Australia, seemingly a world away from most music I listen to as I live for many different types of urban inspired music from everywhere. I used to cop whatever dope cds and music I could find and this was all because I was disassociated with what I heard on the radio and mainstream. I was a discovering artists before they blew up but then there were equally artists I heard who I enjoyed yet never made it in comparison and it got me thinking why? At the time, around 2008 to 2010 Youtube was at it's infancy as was Soundcloud and Spotify didn't exist. Avenues for finding new music were slim and all I wanted was to control my own airwaves. Then the internet got faster, Soundcloud became a bigger thing, introducing Soundcloud rappers. Bandcamp gave artists independence and Spotify became the go to way to hear music. 

Spotify changed my life.

Since 2017 I've been subscribed to Spotify Premium, and for half of that entire year it consumed me like nothing else. I was finding all this awesome new music and was able to hear artists from every corner of the globe.

I'm a DJ and an artist myself and for years I was looking for myself and my sound and I had finally, I found it.

I enjoyed all the dance and r'n'b and other music along the way but I always felt I was riding other peoples waves in the way I was following fads and trends. I was searching for a collection of sounds, music and artists I couldn't describe as a specific thing, that didn't exist in my city and wasn't something shared amongst my peers. I started digging around Spotify and finally felt at home. I had found many different artists all making the music I was looking for and the sounds I was craving.
At the time I was down with Kaytranada and Anderson .Paak, as many were, but I wanted more. I didn't want that vibe to end and discovered Lou Phelps, Nxworries Knxwledge, Goldlink and many other lesser known (maybe at the time) artists like Blackwave, Lion Babe, Ye Ali and so much more. I started a playlist based on the music I had found, that had over 1000 songs by the end of 2017  and now sits at just over 4000 songs at 241 hours long. Playlist can be found HERE

 

The Why

I speak about my own experience because first of all, if you're an artist I discovered or listened to I want to send out my deepest appreciations for the hard work and good music but mainly because it  ultimately made me realise something. Here I am, a dude from the other side of the world, listening to hours of great new music by artists from all over the world, something I had the ability to do and yet I wasn't doing something with all this.

Back in the day all people had were word of mouth and local scenes. People didn't have the internet and even still, scenes and music are still somewhat localised or insular in ways.  Lately you've likely either been listening to big name artists, something found via some kind of YouTube recommendation, maybe it’s a channel or a person like Anthony Fantano or even YouTube recommendations themselves, something your friend recommended or music within your local scene and community (though these aren't the only ways). But what does this do for you if you're an artist? How do get your music out into the world beyond your friends and peers, if the people around you are the bulk of those who listen to you. Also considering you know this struggle, what do you think and feel about other new good artists on the come up just like you (not that you may not give them props, but you may notice yourself sharing music from your peers and bigger names more so than other new artists for example)

 

The What

As artists and musicians all we want is to have people enjoy our music and build our fan base and community based around what we're doing and all these people doing similar things as you in other cities and states or even other countries want the same love and appreciation for their music.  Having other people and channels help us is great and can be instrumental but in this age we don't need to rely on them.  We don't need to exist purely within our communities either. Spotify is one of the best tools because it allows artists to be experienced by people from all over the world and allows us to do the same. Spotify gives EVERYONE the power to find new music and experience all the people making the shit we want and we like and as listeners and artists, who have followings, and it also gives us the ability to share that music.

My manifesto and my idea is to come together as artists and support each others music so we can all collectively build our fan bases together. I'm sure there have been times you've performed but your friends only cared solely about you. It was the same for everyone else and it's because people are becoming too concerned with their own lives and their friends and not opening themselves to all the new people, experiences and music around them. We are all in this together and I just want to do something to bring good people and good music together. 

I want this to be a movement for all artists, but currently we are at a critical juncture. We have all seen the tragedies that have been going on currently and for years previously and people are still getting hurt, arrested and killed over it and more than ever we need to come together. People are coming together in protest, and fighting violence with violence. It's something that is making ‘White’ people notice, whether they like it or not and this is a period where some of them are actually sitting up and actually paying attention for once. This is why I'm making this list specifically to give artists due props and hopefully provide another necessary platform where their voices are needed and can get heard.

I cannot speak on certain matters and feel it isn't my place. However, I do feel as a DJ and someone with all this knowledge of good new music I have some power to help, within this situation. I can donate money, but the time and effort I've put into this and the ideas are something you cannot really pay for.

With clubs being closed and DJs turning to streaming, the power of playing what they want is coming back, just like when Vinyl was the only option.

That's what I want now. A way to share and experience great new music with these new souls and people I don't know and would have no way of meeting beyond me going to this effort and reaching out.

The How

That's why I came up with this idea. I want you to hopefully share this post or at least the message to help get all this incredible new music out there. I want you to find some new and inspiring black artists you listen and share their links and music to whatever socials you have with the hashtag. #Blackrhymesmatter. If we can get this hashtag even at least somewhat trending it can be a platform for great new emerging and establishing black artists to have their voices heard at a time when they need to be listened to most. Looting, protesting and rioting can only go on for so long, and many people are getting hurt and arrested in the process but the music can still keep playing and it can make your voices heard anytime and anywhere.  I want you to tag new music and black indy artists you've been listening to as a way to give everyone easy access to all this great music that may not be hitting peoples radars, via the hashtag, and to give more plays to these hardworking artists making all this great music.

I am personally messaging everyone on this list, if they want to and can help and personally calling out dudes who can help get this going like PatrickCC, Anthony Fantano and all the other tastemakers out there.. So if you're reading this because of a message I sent you, this is your time to hopefully be a part of something big, while claiming your well deserved shine.

This isn't just a call out to all the tastemakers and musicians though, I'm talking to the people who have the ability to reach someone, anyone. Even if you have 5 people on Facebook following you, you can help.

All it takes is someone to read this and listen to and/or follow at least one artist here or use the hashtag and share artists yourself. Buy music, buy merch, attend a show (post Covid) and help maintain proof that every single one of these peoples musical lives matter. You supporting any Artists, black or otherwise, help fund their careers and help them show the world what can be done, not only as musicians or as coloured lives, but as humans, which is all we want to be seen as., people with the same fundamentals and same basic respects.

The WHO

I thought I'd help with the push myself by making a list of Artists I feel need to be heard.

There are hundreds of Artists that could make this list, probably a few thousand and a lot I have never heard.  So I thought I'd dig deep, extra deep and talk about some underrated Black artists out there. I tried to maintain a list of artists with under 10,000 followers though some of these artists may have songs with many more plays. I chose under 10,000 because I wanted to find artists that could use this push the most and even if this only gets seen by 1000 people, if even 10% of them do something, it is a start because any effort helps.

Now I did say there are hundreds of artists that could have made this list, so here are a list of 50+ contenders, who missed the cut due to having over 10k followers and others, all who are likely just as deserving in their own respects. It's also a great place and way to start finding and hearing these talents. 

I've found many barriers in my quest to find and experience great new music and find my sound and then Spotify came. Now I'm just sharing my findings and hopefully helping others find their sound and new artists. Wouldn’t it be great if artists could start name checking other new artists? One can dream, but I hope to turn this into somewhat of a reality. We’re all running for the same dream and this is the time to come together and be heard.

To everyone who got this far, I truly appreciate you taking the time to read this. I’ve probably spent at least 10 enjoyable hours on this project and the mere fact that you’re acknowledging it validates it’s existence, so thank you, and enjoy the Music

The List

1. MAAD 2.MarcLo 3. Amber-Simone 4. S4U 5. Trapo 6. Cold Callers 7. Devin Tracy 8. Orion 9. Planet Giza 10. Vee Tha Rula 11. J-Tek 12. Stro 13. Tim Gent 14. Malika 15. Twelve'len 16. Blaquestone 17. Derin Falana 18. Rachel Foxx 19. Straange 20. JeVo'n 21. Madijuwon 22. Ordnry Yngstr 23. Eros Taylor 24. Tay Walker 25. 718 Spank 26. Foisey 27. Jodie Abacus 28. The APX 29. Tony Momrelle 30. Shash'U  31. KASAI 32. Tanya Morgan 33. Joseph Chilliams34. Kam Robinson 35. Chillxwill 36. Sareem poems 37.  J-Milla 38. Age of L.U.N.A 39. Mayzin 40.YTK 41. Tariq Disu  42. Rasneek  43 .KNLO 44. Loud Lary Ajust45. Bo mason46. Lukas Setto 47. Ahwlee 48. Louie Bagz 49. RIlla ForceI50. Awkward Z 51. Nafets
52. Noowah The Flood 53. DAVESTATEOFMIND 54. Kabwasa 55. Ayoni 56. Mighloe 57. Illu$trious 58. Huey Briss 59. Well$ 60. Kur 61. Classic Williams 62. Reign IV 63. Natia 64. Raheim Supreme 65. Monday Night 66. Fly Anakin 67. Bronze Avery 68 .Ziggy Romano 69. WealStarr 70. Devin Morrison

 

 

Micki Miller-2,851 Monthly Listeners

Website

Micki released the Vibetape in 2019. The album cover is a studio with a can of Red Bull that sits in the centre of the photo a juxtaposition and likely symbol of all the late nights and effort to make her sound perfect. She graduated Berklee college of music and her sound shows she means business. She has an ability to write lyrics and music with instrumentation that shares the soul of the Neo soul sound she's gifting to the world. If you want a sound that pairs live instrumentation with synths and electronics that makes us remember why we fell in love with Neo soul in the 90s. Check her out.

 

 

Desean 351 Monthly Listeners

Facebook

I found Desean, randomly on Spotify, as I do with some artists, and was very surprised to see his low follow count. He may sound like cookie cutter club trap and r'n'b but he's just using the technology at his fingertips to make something of himself. The thing is, not everyone can perform and not everyone has what it takes beyond being able to perform over a good beat. Desean comes off like he's following in someone like Drake's footsteps but that's not a bad thing when you could confuse him with someone with thousands more followers. All he needs is to get signed or co signs from larger names. This guy is destined to go places if can get to the right places.

LmbrJck_t-7 Monthly Listeners

Facebook

He has the lowest follower count here so far so you can't not say he isn't underrated. He is a man with a sound and a voice that demands to be heard. He has bounds of talent and grooves for miles. I came upon him in 2014 and he has been releasing quite a constant stream of great music since then. If you like Prince and 80s vibes with nods to Neo Soul and are down with Lo Fi home studio recordings, help him hit his first 100 followers because he deserves to get somewhere with his music.

 

Maydien-5,675 Monthly Listeners

Facebook

Mitchell yard 4232 Monthly Listeners

Facebook

Maydien is already making waves in his homeland back in the Netherlands opening for artists like Frank Ocean and Anderson Paak and one could possibly even mistake Maydien for Paak on tracks like G.T.F.O.H (produced by French Multi Instrumentalist Pastel) or Don't wait up (featuring the equally awesome Wantigga). Don't mistake him for any copy or derivative though as he has his own flow and style and a voice you could listen to for days. He has teamed up with, also Dutch, producer Mitchell Yard, which is why they get a Dual mention. He speaks of influences like GZA, Rakim and other legends but his sound is a veritable passport of sound with tracks like Tu Amor and (one of my favourite tracks of 2017, so scuse the bias) Fever, rivalling some of the best artists producing the Latin sound.

Shaka Shams 886 Monthly Listeners

Facebook

This guy comes out of Antwerp in Belgium and either he ain't pushing socials hard enough or he just ain't getting picked up by the right promotional outlets. this guy is true evidence that Talent alone won't get you places, which is a shame. If someone with power and the ability to get this guy heard, jumped onto his sound and gave him a shot, his possibilities as an Artist would be endless.

Bathe- 10567 Monthly Listeners

 

 

Ladies of Beach City-612 Monthly Listeners

Facebook

or for short the LBC, are probably somewhat of a niche with their impressive 90s Throwback, that harkens back to the best of what California was offering up but are very perplexing as their listener count is at 612, while being signed to Snoop Dogg's Doggy Style label. It could mean a few things, but one thing is for sure, he still has an ear for good music. Just don't think they’re purely running with a 90s G-funk gimmick, because they have lyrical skill that shouldn't be messed with. 

 

Jay Alpha-2540 Monthly Listeners

Facebook

Producer/beatmaker Brandon Jackson a.k.a Jay Alpha's bandcamp shows an impressive 23 releases which all seem to be full albums or Eps and likely shows my ignorance to Bandcamp (but I am noticing it) and if anything this is just me calling him out to release something new because what I've heard so far is great, and once I get through all of his releases I'll be surely wanting more. So hopefully he doesn't keep us waiting like Rick and Morty.  

 

Gerald Walker 2227 Monthly Listeners

Facebook

Consistent Great releases and slick production. His track 100 Miles and Runnin' says "I Know that it's coming" and this guy is maybe the most surprising on the list because I am blown away by everything I have heard from him thus far and feel it should have come by now. Alas this is what sleeping on people does, leaves dudes like this, with so many great songs, but not enough people to hear it. If you at least hear one thing, right now (at this very second), let it be this guy. He is going to blow up out of nowhere and I'm sure of it.

The Good People 1990 Monthly Listeners

Facebook

The Good people, led by rapper Marc Smith a.k.a Emskee and The Saint, Stephen Luthy prove that low numbers don't really mean much in the scheme of things, since their last album Good For Nuthin was well regarded within the hip hop community and it's CD sales give a good reason as to why their spotify numbers are lower than they should be. But the ability to make fairly good physical album sales as an independent artist in this day and age makes up for lower Spotify plays. This is not to say they don't deserve more plays though, far from it. The fact they can push physical product must mean they have something worth listening to, so if you're down with how A Tribe represent and need a fix of jazzy boombap that sits with the best of them, peep this.

Nacynze-(pronounced In a sense) 30 Monthly Listeners

Facebook

Speaking of Jazzy Boombap, Their 2016 release is an overly slept on jazzy Boombap Gem and their 2018 Drop Pep Rally is one of the most consistent things I have heard in a long time (and if you knew how many artists I've been listening to, that's saying something). These are a duo who would really get somewhere with Physical releases. Remember folks, Spotify is a great way, but not the only way to build an audience. Peep Their Joint N**** Audit, above, a very nicely worded and important letter to the rap community.

Jade De La Fleur 1804 Monthy Listeners
Facebook

Jade builds funky and electronic r’n’b sounds with a layer of popiness in just the right amounts, so her sound has more pop flavour than other people on the list, but that’s a good thing because her sound caters to people with those tastes. She possibly wants to make her sound more accessible to more audiences and I think her latest release, has songs that prove she deserves it.

 

 N-Rimes 1 Monthly Listeners

Facebook

Yes That is correct, He has 1 monthly listener, which could probably be me. So to say I am getting in at the bottom could be correct but he has been grinding since 2014 and the fact he is still pushing is a testament to the time and effort it can take to make it. He may have toyed with the thought of giving up, but he has improved a lot over time and if there's one thing I want from this article, it is to encourage all these tremendous artists like N-rimes to keep going because listening to their music and financially supporting artists are only singular ways of helping and if you can let the world know about all this music, take that opportunity and do so because if these artists are as great as you think they are, the world deserves to know and it's up to you to tell them.

 

 

 Re Lxuise 6674 Monthly Listeners
Facebook

Pronounced Rae Lou-ease. She makes me realize why I loved female R’n’B music in the 90s and 2000s. There is a large resurgence of the 90s sound coming back and I’m sure you’ve felt it. With all the crap going on this year her last project makes me feel happy that i’ve at least got such comforting sounds and vibes to help me get through it all. 

 

Lauren Mcclinton 246 Monthly Listeners Jamiah 212 Monthly Listeners

Facebook Facebook

I heard both of these women throw down on the collaboration joint Granted, from 2018 and felt it just not right to pick one over the other. Jamiah and Lauren keep good company also working with Tim Gent who features above. It’s a great metaphor for what can be achieved with the power of working together. This ability collaborate with other great musicians and expose yourself to new audiences through these collaborations is one thing that keeps me using Spotify and helps me (and hopefully you) find all this incredible new music. It's like a network of amazing people all pouring out their own special energy into the world and the Internet has really helped show me things I could not find in my own little space across the other side of the world. So if there's anything I can be thankful for this year, it is that.

 

 

Hazy 131 Monthly Listeners

Facebook
Isaiah “Hazy” Hill is a 23 year old rapper from Washington D.C. He Has a song called P.S.A That says everything you need to know. My P.S.A to all you readers, is to Listen to Hazy, and specifically this joint and it’s message. right now!

 

The Lique  331 Monthly Listeners

Facebook

The Lique (pronounced Leak) is a band comprised of 3 White Guys and an Asian Jason, Sean, Nick and Jeremy. and fronted by the Black MC Rasar.  Now for the possibly sole person reading this who is down with the Japanese label Goon Trax label and In Ya Mellow Tone CD compilations, they can be described as the perfect fit. A Soulful Jazzy Hip Hop band from Las Vegas,their sound draws from their influences like A Tribe Called Quest, Slick Rick, Mos Def, Immortal Tech (lyrically at least). A lot of musicians talk about big names like these as their influences but I’ve always wondered what it would feel like for musicians and bands like The Lique to have others be inspired by them. I assume it would be quite humbling to know they’d have the same affect on someone, as a Tribe has had on them. Maybe if I ever get interviewed about my influences I might just give them a name check I’ve had Drifting Away on repeat for a while now and I would feel blessed to be able to drop joints half as good as that.

 

Derric Gobourne Jr. 315 Monthly Listeners

Facebook |

Derric has a dream of bringing New Jack Swing back and I support his dream wholeheartedly and made this playlist back in 2019 because I want to as well. This guy has basically lives and breathes New Jack, with the sound, Clothes and even the moves. he must’ve spent hours trying to perfect the moves and that’s something I can get down with. Check out his new joint Unlucky so you can feel as lucky as I do that I get to witness and try and be as much a part as I can, of the New Jack Swing revival. Also peep the video above if you really wanna see just how well he can move.