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I’m going to flip the script and put the moral of this story right at the top. Hopefully, every “undiscovered” artist gets it: Sometimes it’s not how many people come to see you perform, but who, that really matters.
Last night at Smith’s Olde Bar, there couldn’t have been more than 25 people sparsely scattered throughout the room to catch a performance by Radiant Kids. The local, rag-tag crew of emerging artists — including solo MCs L-Marr the Great, Small Eyez, Spree Wilson and punk band Tendaberry — originally joined forces to lend mutual support among Atlanta’s disparate, clique-heavy underground scene.
They’re finally starting to get some of the attention that evaded them early on. Several key tastemakers, promoters and artists (Fadia Kader of Come Up Kids, Thomas of Proton, Jessica Tonder, Seven of Chocolate Industries, Ree de la Vega of Bang Bang, Arjan of ArjanWrites.com) came out last night to show suppport and/or see what the growing buzz was about.
n the past month, several outlets (Urb magazine, ArjanWrites.com, and yes, Creative Loafing) have glowingly written about standout Spree Wilson, who’s equally adept at rapping and riffing on his electric guitar while Alien 1 backs him with insane drumming skills.
But enough about the show, this post is about the new track Wilson debuted in front of the live audience. It’s called “Word!” and it’s produced by his mentor No I.D. If his name sounds familiar, you might recall hearing some random dude named Kanye West rapping about “No I.D. my mentor” in his song “Big Brother” off the Graduation album.
No worries, though. Beyond sharing the same mentor, the two have little in common style-wise. Spree Wilson’s a better dresser, too. - Creative Loafing
So I like to think when I tell the readers things, that they actually pay attention. So when I tell you that you need to be checking on a certain someone, then I can only hope you take my word for it.
Meet Atlanta's "odd man out", Spree Wilson. Originally from Nashville, TN, Spree brings something totally leftfield to the trap/snap scene that seems to have a stronghold on Atlanta G-A right now.
Creative Loafing Atlanta writes:
In a close-knit scene where even the best acts still struggle to form an identity beyond the shadow of OutKast, Wilson really is an outcast. Despite the wide range of influences coursing through the disparate veins of Atlanta's latest ground-level movement – from electro-punk to retro-'80s rap – an MC who hits the stage with an electric guitar strapped to his chest doesn't quite fit the bill. In other words, dude is out with the in-crowd – or the out-crowd, as it were. Confused? Imagine how Spree Wilson feels.
I liken Spree to a cross between the Pharcyde and Andre 3000...And oh yeah, he's no Lil Wayne on the guitar, my man can actually play.
Be on the lookout for Spree's debut album, The Beauty of Chaos, which features production from Spree himself, not to mention No ID and Shoden1. - URB
Discography
Alright (21 Soundtrack)
Weird Science EP - 2006
I Am
Photos
Bio
If Atlanta's left-of-center hip-hop scene was a high school popularity contest, Spree Wilson would be a shoo-in for least likely to succeed.
For one thing, he just doesn't look the part. Dressed in a black Mr. Rogers sweater buttoned over a plaid collared shirt, with his great-grandfather's fedora hanging off the back of his head in a decidedly un-hip-hop fashion, the Nashville native rears his head back and belts out a few lines from the Beatles' classic, "Eleanor Rigby."Ahh, look at all the lone-ly people.
A big part of Wilson's appeal is his vocal delivery. Reminiscent of the Pharcyde, it sounds as carefree and breezy as the alternative rap group did in the early '90s. But Wilson actually points to former rapper Queen Latifah's personable vocal inflections as the inspiration behind his flow. "That's why when I rap, I move around," he says. "It's just the energy that it gives." As a youngster, Wilson was often labeled a "sellout" for listening to acts such as the Beach Boys, R.E.M. and Nirvana. But maybe he was destined to go against the grain, considering his godfather Billy Cox was the bassist for Jimi Hendrix' Band of Gypsys.
A self-proclaimed misfit who had his life changed by the De La Soul album 3 Feet High and Rising, literate and witty rapper Spree Wilson blends many other genres with hip-hop thanks to his diverse background. His father was a doo wop singer in Memphis and he grew up listening to the giants of blues and jazz along with his beloved De La Soul. The quirky group was an alternative to the bleak world of gangsta rap that left Spree cold, but he later found another alternative, rock music.
Though he's more likely to lift a sample from Bob Dylan than George Clinton, he believes his blues-inflected, folk-infused rap will one day make him "the biggest artist in the world. And if that makes him more of an outsider, he couldn't care less.
"I always cared about what other people thought," he says. "Then in the last couple of months, I just came to a point where I don't give a fuck. And you know what I realized? It makes my music better. When you're fearless, it makes your music better."
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