Vince Staples. A young emcee rising through the tides of the
independent industry, has broken through the rough, gritty, and often
suffocating surroundings of his hometown Long Beach, California. Vince
began rapping at an early age with “The Cutthroat Boyz,” whom also
consisted of fellow rappers Joey Fatts and Aston Matthews. While trying to
escape the reality of being embedded in a life of warfare and complete
uncertainty, Staples began to branch out with his music and utilize his
inherent talent. He immediately engulfed himself in work with the Odd
Future team, including work in the very early stages of his career with Earl
Sweatshirt, most notably known for the song “epaR.”
After becoming serious about rapping, he became completely
consumed in creating music and began to mold his craft artistically in his
own direction. Staples was featured in Sweatshirt’s “Hive,” in which he
delivered an intensely, yet casual flow, descriptively depicting the grime
ridden side of his personal underworld.
Capitalizing on his work with Odd Future, his name and ability to
work with others’ began to quickly escalate. Staples began cultivating
recognition from well-known artists and producers. In 2013, he released
Stolen Youth, a mix tape completely recorded and mastered by Mac Miller
under his pseudonym “Larry Fisherman.”
XXL considered this project “a trippy ride through the witty mind of the LA
spitter,” with a “dreamy, textured production.” The mix tape contains
features from his long time affiliate Joey Fatts, Ab-Soul, SchoolBoy Q,
along with a plethora of other hard-hitting emcees.
Often alluding to the wide based corruption with those who claim to
“Serve and Protect,” Staples has reoccurring themes of the unfortunate
circumstances regarding the lower class. As the listener, we relate to the
topics each individually in some way, and stand against the manipulation of
minorities, as he paints a vivid picture of the modern man’s struggle to fight
social corruption.
After working with prominent artists and developing a solid name
within the industry, Staples went on to release his first debut EP titled Hell
Can Wait, which contained content that immediately received critical
acclaim. “Blue Suede” and “Hands Up” received massive praise and was
considered a success from the hip-hop community, with tracks produced by
Hagler and NO I.D. These two songs also acquired an enormous amount of
attention as both videos embodied the craft of his work perfectly with visual
After this stretch of success, Staples went on to release his first full-
length album titled Summertime 06’via a live stream on “NPR First Listen.”
Keeping to his roots, Staples considered Summertime 06’ to be almost a
continuation of Hell Can Wait, embellishing on the events that happened to
him personally during the Summer of 2006. At this time he was 13, where
he provides insight into the life he experienced growing up as a young teen,
surviving in the streets with intense ties to gang affiliation, and existing in a
constantly unpredictable, violent environment. On June 30th, Spin Magazine
awarded it “Album of the Week,” and wrote “it could be well the fiercest,
most ferociously focused street-oriented double rap album since UGK’s
Underground Kingz.”
It is evident that Vince Staples is no ordinary emcee; in fact he is the
epitome of what this generation so desperately needs. Staples would much
rather write a song about current affairs and injustices within our society,
than waste studio time on the current status quo. Staples’ continues to break
barriers and entertain his audience, all while educating the youth to try and
support change among the community.
Written by Ryland Root Journalist at Raw Hip-Hop Headz
https://www.facebook.com/groups/RAWHIPHOPMUSIC/
No comments :
Post a Comment