BrownTown tackles the current state of hip-hop once again with the help of featured podcast artist and Thailand native Fiendsh. The three talk new releases, the importance of art in changing the narrative, and everything in between. Originally recorded July 2018.
GUEST
In the second take on the world of hip-hop, BrownTown goes international by inviting the podcast’s first featured music artist Fiendish AKA Junior AKA Kaiphobthawiphong to chop it up all the way from Bangkok, Thailand. Originally a DJ in high school, Fiendsh transitioned to creating his own content while at Columbia College Chicago. With similar stylings to J. Dilla, Madlib, Kanye West, and Mf Doom, Fiendsh has since released two EPs, Al Capone and Gold Pope.
OVERVIEW
Fiendsh and BrownTown discuss current mainstream releases, the cultural and media pieces they impact, and the broader socio-political context in which they are created. Over a year since part one, “Hip-Hop in the Age of Spin,” Fiendsh shares the origins of his name, his introduction into DJing, moving to Chicago for college, and the influence hip-hop has had in his life, his work, and his home country at-large. The gang sifts through the musical stylings, business acumen, and overall critique of album releases from GOOD Music, Drake, J. Cole , and Nas. As authenticity in hip-hop is and always has been an important and heavily contested theme, they unpack the cultural and critical relevance of Kendrick Lamar’s Black Panther Soundtrack as well as Cardi B’s rise to popularity. The latter includes a nod to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s stunning New York Democratic house primary victory, noting a parallel between different yet unapologetic, strong Latina figures in different areas of public life. From appropriate and intentional track sampling to a viral video of the young woman aggressively rapping “Bodak Yellow” to her boyfriend, passion, purpose, and persistence illustrates that hip-hop is here to stay and reimagines what it can be.
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Find Fiendsh's music on his site as well as his Soundcloud and Bandcamp pages. Follow him on Facebook and Instagram.
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CREDITS: Intro music by Fiendsh. Outro song Everything by NAS ft. Kanye West and The-Dream. Audio engineered by Genta Tamashiro.
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