Artists
Billy Woods
billy woods is an artist who defies easy categorization. He claims Washington, D.C. as his hometown but has spent nearly all his adult life in New York City. He was born in the U.S. but spent much of his childhood in Africa and the West Indies as the second child of a Jamaican intellectual and a would-be Marxist revolutionary. On the mic, woods is no less a conundrum, possessed of versatile flows and not only an ability to tackle topics other artists wouldn’t imagine, but bring unique perspectives to the familiar ones.
After spending much of the 2000s in relative obscurity woods stuck a nerve with 2012’s audacious mission statement, History Will Absolve Me. An album two years in the making, History was a Molotov cocktail of sarcastic fury, with production to match its uncompromising vision. in 2013 woods and fellow NYC artist Elucid joined forces as Armand Hammer and released the incendiary Race Music. In the years that followed, woods has released a steady stream of critically acclaimed projects, both as a solo artist (Known Unknowns, Hiding Places, Terror Management), and with Armand Hammer (Paraffin, Shrines, Haram)
Social Links
Kenny Segal
One of Backwoodz’s most acclaimed projects to date is 2019’s Hiding Places, by billy woods and L.A.-based producer Kenny Segal. The two had worked together before on Armand Hammer records, but never on a solo record. Hiding Places found woods rapping over distressed samples looped into madness, with snares and bass kicks that called back to old-school Nineties hip-hop records. woods worked with Kenny for the first time for a track on Armand Hammer’s 2017 album Rome, thanks to ELUCID, who knew Kenny previously. The following year, the rapper and the producer met up in woods’ East Williamsburg apartment. “He came through, just playing me beats,” woods says. “He had all these weird little children’s toys that he’d turned into live beat-machine things, and I was just like, ‘Wow, this guy’s a nut.’”
-Rolling Stone
Social Links
Cavalier
For heads of a certain time period of NYC hip-hop, Brooklyn born, New Orleans-based rapper and songwriter, Cavalier was the one that got away. The outrageously talented artist whose name and reputation preceded him everywhere you went in the scene. The rapper who everyone knew was so dope that he had to blow, but who never seemed concerned with any of that. The pretty boy draped in Polo who stole every live show with a feather in his hair and a mouth full of gold fronts. The cat so dedicated to his own independence that even indie labels stopped trying to sign him and projects came when they came, but when they came they were undeniable. Cavalier was THAT guy for a lot of us; a silver-tongued philosopher with an eye for the poignant details of black life and a delivery as effortless as a young Ken Griffey’s swing.
All that said, it never really felt like Cav had that moment in the spotlight that we always assumed was coming. After chiseling away through headier cult corners of the NYC hip-hop scene Cavalier was recognized for his memorable co-pilot to Quelle Chris’ 2013 Mello Music debut, Niggas Is Men. The critically acclaimed LP helped propel Quelle Chris into the forefront of indie hip-hop (and also happened to be the first production credits for Messiah Muzik). Cav followed up with his first full length, Chief, which sports a notable Raekwon feature but also early work from producers like Ohbliv and Tall Black Guy. A relocation to New Orleans and partnership with producer/vocalist Iman Omari yielded two more projects: 2015’s Lemonade EP and Private Stock in 2018. Great records all; eagerly sought by collectors and signal boosted by influential media like OkayPlayer, Solange’s Saint Heron, and Pitchfork. Cavalier’s bonafides have never been in question, but his new album Different Type Time feels like a revelation—a sonic suspension bridge between his rich history and the artform’s future.Social Links
Lealani
Lealani is an independent artist from Pomona, California. She is a self-taught songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, who started out performing in the Los Angeles underground beat scene and punk scenes. She has toured internationally all over the US, Canada, Europe and the UK, opening for well-known artists such as Incubus and Kid Koala; as well as collaborating with artists such as Aesop Rock, David Choe, and more. Through her captivating performances of live beat machine, guitar, and a unique vocal style, her music defies genre boundaries of art-pop, trip-hop, electronic punk, and rock. You may have heard Lealani’s music on TV shows such as Netflix’s series “Elite” and “Shoresy” as well as Hulu’s series “Choe Show”. (edited)
Social Links
Heavy Arts Ensemble
Heavy Arts Ensemble is a collective ensemble fusing jazz and electro acoustic live sampling with textures inspired by the lo-fi beat school of thought. Heavy Arts Ensemble blends together hip-hop, jazz, and the outer edges of experimental rock along with live improvised and generative visuals. The Oakland based ensemble is forming an approach influenced by jazz sounds and everything in-between to create a unique listening experience gathering the past, present, and future of underground beat culture and ambient free jazz.