While most South Florida hip-hop fans might have some legitimate gripes concerning the amount of touring artists that bypass our isolated peninsula, fans of the Rhymesayers label have nothing to complain about. In less than a year, the area has hosted shows from Toki Wright, Grieves & Budos, Musab, and MURS. And now, newest in the string of RSE affiliates coming to rock our sunny shores, Blueprint. The Ohio emcee best known for his work with RJD2 in the group Soul Position is set to embark on a mini-tour of Florida with dates slated in Orlando, Tampa, Jacksonville and Miami before hitting the road with Macklemore and Ryan Lewis on full U.S. tour -- which does in fact bypass Florida completely.
Six years since his last full length solo effort, 1988, (and five since the last Soul Position record dropped) it seems like Blueprint has been keeping relatively quiet in recent times; especially for being in a genre with an extremely high turnover rate that requires constant musical reinforcement to stay valid. But true to his name, Blueprint has been in the lab for the last five years drafting plans for something bigger and better that he considers to be his greatest and most diverse musical effort to date. His sophomore LP, Adventures In Counter-Culture, is scheduled for release April 5. Here, Blueprint takes a step away from the '90s golden era sound that he is most known for into the more experimental realms of rock and electronic influenced hip-hop and sample-less (aka royalty free) compositions.
Catch him February 12 at long running hip-hop weekly Catalyst for his first South Florida appearance since the ill-fated Scribble Jam Tour show on the old Sweat Records patio. Also performing is a strong cast of local support including Wrekonize, the Bench Warmers Clique, Jabrjaw & Dee Dubbs and Charlie Fast & 8ch20wens. And if that wasn't enough, it's free to get in!
Blueprint With Wrekonize,The Bench Warmers Clique, Jabrjaw & Dee Dubbs and Charlie Fast & 8ch20wens 8 p.m. Saturday February 12. Located at Catalyst 301 Westward Dr. Miami Springs, FL.
