OFFICIAL BIO
Regarded upon his 2006 arrival as a promising beatmaker looming in the shadows of J Dilla, Madlib, waterfalls and Dabrye, Steven Ellison -- known as Flying Lotus -- nullified all comparisons only two years later with Los Angeles. On that album, his first of five for the Warp label, Ellison distilled a uniquely crisp, spasmodic, and heady sound with elements of hip-hop, avant-garde jazz, IDM, and dubstep. While the abovementioned producers fueled Ellison, he had also been excited as a youngster by the '90s West Coast rap classics that combined programming and live instrumentation. His sound continued to develop as he put his own twist on the approach, recording with a crop of jazz musicians including the indispensable likes of bassist Thundercat and strings master Miguel Atwood-Ferguson. This process began with the turbulent 2010 set Cosmogramma and peaked in terms of acclaim in 2014 with You're Dead!, which crashed the Top 20 of the Billboard 200 and spawned the Kendrick Lamar collaboration "Never Catch Me," a Grammy nominee for Best Dance Recording. Ellison devoted a few years to various forms of film work and the operation of his revered Brainfeeder label, and returned in 2019 with Flamagra, his second consecutive album to top Billboard's Dance/Electronic chart.

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Raised on the South Side of Chicago, Vic rose to public awareness as a member of the eclectic hip-hop band Kids These Days and founder of the Chicago collective SAVEMONEY alongside Chance The Rapper and other local upstarts Joey Purp and Peter CottonTale. His solo debut mixtape INNANETAPE dropped in 2013, igniting immediate accolades (including a spot on the XXL Freshman cover in 2014), and a fortuitous introduction to Jay Z that led to a record deal with Roc Nation. Mensa went on to help Kanye West pen his esoteric song “Wolves” from The Life of Pablo, drop three critically acclaimed EPs (2016’s There’s A Lot Going On, 2018’s Hooligans, and 2020’s V TAPE) and his debut full length The Autobiography (2017), as well as furthering social causes in his hometown through his nonprofit SAVEMONEYSAVELIFE. In both music and his social activism, Vic challenges the American system responsible for a history of overcriminalization, racial injustice, and issues that affect the lives of people in underserved communities, while showcasing profound levels of consciousness and self-reflection.

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