Coming up from nothing to something is a hell of an accomplishment, that's why when it comes to DJ Spinn, that feat is highly attainable. Starting out at the early age of 14, DJ Spinn had his mind set on future musical goals Growing up, writing, djing, dancing, and producing, DJ Spinn made sure to stay on top of his game. In 1997, while dancing with Chicago's infamous "House-O-Matics", DJ Spinn gained a honorable rep djing for one of Chicago's number one dance groups. In the same year, he headlined DJ gigs at the biggest teen parties in Chicago including those at Club Cavilini's in Harvey, Dolton Expo, Markham Roller Rink, and The Rink on 87th, not to mention numerous house parties and school events. 

By 1998, DJ Spinn had a following that loved the style of house tracks he and long time buddy DJ Rashad were creating. Their notoriety led to the opportunity to drop one of his house tracks, Bout It Bout It Mix,on vinyl—aka a 12" record—with Ray Barney's Dance Mania Records. A year later, the legendary DJ Chip and DJ Thadz album, Bang Ski, which included the track Bang Bang Bang Skeet Skeet Skeet, also featured DJ Spinn’s Chicken Headz and DJ Rashad’s Child Abuse. As they gained more DJ and production credits, it was only a matter of time before DJ Spinn & DJ Rashad got their chance to grace Chicago's world famous dance music distributor, Dancemania. But in early 2000 "Dance Mania Records" had stopped its 20 year musical legacy which was responsible for the legendary careers of Traxman, DJ Funk, Jammin Gerald, Paul Johnson, DJ Deeon, DJ Milton, DJ Slugo, DJ Nephets, and DJ PJ, to name a few. Nevertheless, DJ Spinn knew his success would not be hampered by the fall of any label.

Since 2000, DJ Spinn has released numerous albums, remixes, and sets which have changed the way people thought about House music.  Whether it be DJ'ing at the Detroit Electronic Music Festival, or creating the No. 1 selling Juke track of all time, "Bounce N Break Yo Back," DJ Spinn has become the figurehead of the local movement that is taking the world by storm.  With upcoming projects with MIA, Bok Bok, Headhunter, Big Dope P, Basutbudet, and Ghetto Division, DJ Spinn is setting the foundation that will make himself an integral part of the international music scene.  

An underdog from the underground, Buffalo-bred rapper Westside Gunn brings the sounds of '90s hardcore rap into the 21st century alongside his brother and fellow emcee Conway. With their tales of street life, drugs, and gun violence, the pair have employed sample-heavy production in the gritty East Coast tradition of the Lox, Mobb Deep, Capone-N-Noreaga, and the Wu-Tang Clan. In addition to his work with Conway and their Griselda labelmates, Westside Gunn branched out on his own with a series of Hitler Wears Hermes mixtapes issued in the 2010s, as well as solo albums such as Flygod (2016), Supreme Blientele (2018), and Pray for Paris (2020), the latter of which cracked the upper half of the Billboard 200. The lengthy, guest-heavy full-length And Then You Pray for Me appeared in 2023 and reached the Top 30 of the same chart. The EP 11 and a mixtape, Still Praying, were released almost simultaneously in 2024.

Born Alvin Lamar Worthy in Buffalo, New York, Westside Gunn started rapping at a young age. In high school, he joined with Conway (born Demond Price) and fellow rappers Benny the Butcher and Machine Gun Black as the Forerunners. They stuck together over the years and in the early 2010s, they founded Griselda Records. In addition to output as Westside Gunn & Conway, Worthy began issuing his own mixtapes, including the Hitler Wears Hermes series, which kicked off in 2012. With his strong, steady rhymes and often laid-back production, he released five installments of the Hermes series into 2017. 

His debut studio full-length, Flygod, arrived in 2016 and featured appearances by Benny, Conway, Roc Marciano, Danny Brown, Action Bronson, and more, as well as production by Statik Selektah and the Alchemist. In 2017, Griselda inked a deal with Eminem's Shady Records, which graduated Westside Gunn to the majors. That same year, he hopped onto a collaboration with MF Doom titled WestsideDoom, and a year later he issued his sophomore LP, Supreme Blientele, which featured many familiar faces from Flygod, as well as new guests Jadakiss, Busta Rhymes, Anderson .Paak, and producers Pete Rock and 9th Wonder. 

After Griselda hit the Top Ten of Billboard's R&B/hip-hop and rap charts with WWCD, Westside issued the solo album Pray for Paris in April 2020. DJ Premier, DJ Muggs, the Alchemist, and Tyler, The Creator were among the contributors to the set, which entered the Billboard 200 at number 67 and the R&B/hip-hop chart at 39. A second Gunn album, Who Made the Sunshine, was initially set for release that August, but it was delayed following the death of longtime Griselda Records collaborator DJ Shay from COVID-19. The album eventually appeared in October 2020 and featured appearances by Benny, Conway, Slick Rick, Black Thought, and others. Two tracks, "Julia Lang" and "TV Boy," arrived in March 2021 as the first songs released off Gunn's mixtape Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Sincerely, Adolf. Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Side B followed. The mixtapes Peace "Fly" God and 10 (the final installment in the Hitler Wears Hermes series) appeared in 2022. The studio album And Then You Pray for Me arrived in 2023, boasting guests like Rick Ross, DJ Drama, Denzel Curry, and Boldy James. It reached number 29 on the Billboard 200. In 2024, Gunn issued the EP 11 as well as the DJ Drama-hosted mixtape Still Praying. ~ Neil Z. Yeung, Rovi

Sovereign of empty space, czar of the far out, magistrate of the chasm in the void, monarch of a member-less caste, King Poobah rose to power in the state of delusion provoked by ceaseless foraging deep in the dark archives of ecological documentaries. The lord of the illogical claimed dominion over the vacuum, and subsequently declared that his reign would bring beats, grooves, riffs, licks, jams and other exotic treasures to his domain and his subjects.

King Poobah, as all sovereigns are, is in a constant state of war with all but his own subjects. This leviathan’s methods of war employ techniques like sample chopping, sound sequencing, finger drumming, and scratching...but never biting. Combined, these tools make up an Arsenal exclusively utilized to proliferate notions of the natural, the order of the organic,  and the law of the landless.

Natural Coarse is an bass-driven view through shafts of sunshine into the development of evolutionary ecology accompanied by cheeky observations that bounce in your brain regarding the extraordinary niches in which life succeeds and flourishes. King Poobah, the simple sultan, stumbles down some bunny-holes exploring this rich world, vaguely searching for some semblance of normalcy as he struggles to reconcile the divisive understanding of nature and culture.

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