Louis Logic
louis logic splashed onto the Indie Rap scene “party foul” style in 1999 with the drinker’s anthem “Factotum”. He spawned a laundry list of collaborations with artists like Jedi Mind Tricks, MF DOOM and Malik B of the Roots, establishing himself as a beer soaked braggadocio Rap hero. In 2003, Louis surprised audiences with the release of the highly critically acclaimed Indie Hip Hop classicSin-A-Matic, a concept record that cemented him in listeners’ minds as a standard for dark romantic comedy and shock Rap. He took a somewhat bizarre turn following his debut with 2004′s The Odd Couple Alcohol/Ism, a collaborative effort with his college classmate, Jay Love, that sophomorically celebrated drinking, drugs and sex. Louis’ curious trajectory and taste for musical exploration grew increasingly unpredictable on Misery Loves Comedy (2006), the album on which he officially partnered with longtime mainstay producer and underground production impresario J.J. Brown. This was his most mature record to date, showcasing a new talent for genuine singing and a more grown up application of his romantic adult humor.
Despite belief that he had stretched himself to his limit, Louis made his wildest, most mysterious move yet retreating into a monastic seclusion to study voice, piano and music theory. When he emerged, it was touting a new live Surf/Hip Hop/Balkan fusion band, Spork Kills, which he debuted with the Beaches Love US EP (2009) featuring the video that garnered his first MTV exposure, “Night of the Hip ‘N Dead”. Louis refused to offer an explanation for his artistic wandering, often putting himself whole heartedly into public spectacles and the espousal of philosophies which challenged the convention of the rigid Hip Hop scene. He fired off against homophobia and even dressed in drag for a special seated theater show with NYC Burlesque Cabaret starlet Lady Rizo of Moby and Yo Yo Ma fame. Fans watched with an almost confused fascination as Louis drifted further and further from the beer bravado MC they’d grown up on, becoming the first, and currently only, Rapper in the world to fluently play piano while rhyming as part of his repertoire. Some speculated he would give up on Rap music altogether to pursue a career in Indie Rock or that he might even be gay, a supposition the bombastic Rapper refused to defend against in outright defiance of the attitudes sadly common to his genre.
He continued to tour worldwide as louis logic, cultivating a theatrical live show that managed to amalgamate rapping, singing, dancing, piano playing and even stand-up comedy. After more than 10 years of experimentation and adoration as a renegade Indie Hip Hop anti-hero, Louis befriended genre bender Ceschi Ramos, whose Fake Four Inc. record company had grown to be regarded as a warm home for Hip Hop artists on the fringe. In Fake Four, Louis found a place where his experimentation would not only be accepted, but encouraged. 2011 marks the year in which Louis will finally spread his lanky, tattooed arms wide and scoop in all the breadcrumbs he has scattered along the path of his adventurous journey. Louis will reintroduce himself to a world of curious onlookers as a fully formed “One Man Variety Show” with the start of his Get To Know the New Lou campaign. A barrage of fresh content will include a new EP on Fake Four Inc. with up and coming NYC production wiz-kid Hot Sugar and a series of TV Spot style videos leading up to the music video for the EP’s single. This will be the first time since 2006 that he has shared new louis logic material and more importantly, that Louis offers a frame in which to contextualize the years of experimentation listeners observed with such curious interest over the last 8 years. Louis will tour extensively throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand and even South Africa in support of his reintroduction to the world. Catch the “One Man Variety Show” for yourself to see his fascinating story unfold and reach full realization before your eyes.
Blueprint
Blueprint (aka Printmatic), is an emcee/producer from the city of Columbus, OH who began his career with the release of a couple unassuming cassette tapes in 1999. The success of those tapes at a local level inspired he and his crew to form their own independent label, Weightless Recordings, and led to national and international distribution of their releases. Those early recordings eventually spread to the internet (still new at the time), and propelled the Weightless crew to national recognition, as a part of the fast-rising Columbus hip-hop scene that included acts like Illogic, Camu Tao, RJD2, Copywrite, Greenhouse Effect, DJ Przm & Spitball, J. Rawls, and The MHz.
With Blueprint at the production helm, Weightless Recordings went on to become the most successful independent hip-hop label in the history of Columbus, releasing records from Blueprint, Illogic, Greenhouse Effect, Envelope, and Zero Star – which created strong local and national followings. The press took note as well and XLR8R Magazine featured Weightless Recordings as one of their “Labels to Watch,” and Blueprint was listed by URB Magazine in their Next 100 issue.
Although his initial buzz came from his work as a producer, the formation of Soul Position with instrumentalist RJD2 pushed Blueprint into the spotlight as an emcee. The duo signed to independent powerhouse label Rhymesayers Entertainment, and released three critically acclaimed projects (Unlimited, 8-Million Stories, and Things Go Better with RJ & Al), that were featured in outlets like Spin, URB, XLR8R, and Hiphopsite.com among others.
In 2005, Blueprint released his debut solo release 1988, touring the United States and Canada extensively, and over the course of the next four years proved to be one of the most prolific artists around by releasing two solo EP’s (Blueprint Who & Blueprint vs Funkadelic), two instrumental albums (Sign Language & Chamber Music), two Greenhouse EPs (Electric Purgatory Part One & Two), and his his genre-defying sophomore album Adventures in Counter-Culture in 2011.
In his 10-year music career, he has been on the cover of the Columbus Alive three times, the cover of Ghetto Blaster Magazine, been on the front page of MTV.com, had his video in regular rotation on MTV & MTVu, and toured the United States (15x), Canada (8x), & Europe (5x). His Soul Position crew has headlined a sold-out nationwide tour, and he has toured with acts such as Atmosphere, Murs, Brother Ali, Living Legends, Evidence, Blowfly, Islands, Grieves & Budo, and Eyedea & Abilities on his way to becoming one of the most respected artists in underground hip-hop.
His new full-length album Adventures in Counter-Culture is out now on Rhymesayers Entertainment.
