Check out previous instalments of this feature:
Every month or three, the HNHH staff writers get together to listen to some new music. We're constantly in the thick of covering music-related things, but we don't always get a chance to sit down, digest and dissect new artists. This is not only a chance to do that, it's a chance to discover and share those findings with the HNHH world. Our staff writers each bring a couple of personal suggestions to the table, artists who they've stumbled across but whom we probably haven't posted (yet). We also go through our e-mail submissions (and you can find all the details on how to submit to our e-mail below) and select the strongest e-mailed submissions to listen to as a team-- the HNHH e-mail submissions are a way for truly undiscovered, unsigned, or else, just-starting-to-rise artists to start getting their music showcased on HNHH.
With our latest post-meeting-recap, we're showcasing five of the strongest submissions we received both from our staff's picks as well as our user submissions. These five selections were determined by the staff; everyone votes for their favorites songs after our meeting, resulting in the artists with the most votes appearing below. While we typically like to showcase three artists under each umbrella, today we're only highlighting two artists under e-mail submissions due to a general lack of enthusiasm among the other submissions. Nonetheless, we're pretty excited about all the newcomers we've highlighted below -- after you've checked out their music, scroll to the bottom to vote on your favorite.
The Guidelines
- Each HNHH staff writer attending the meeting submits a song/artist of their personal choosing.
- We also open up submissions to our readers/followers; this means you will see a Tweet or Instagram post go up stating that we are actively looking for new submissions, ahead of our scheduled Music Meeting. Follow us on Twitter and IG to never miss these.
- We cull the best of the listener-submitted music to bring to the Music Meeting.
- We listen to all the listener submissions and staff submissions as a team.
- We vote on our favorite songs, resulting in the final list you will see below.
- Then we bring the vote to the masses: keep scrolling to vote on your favorite from the list below.
How to Submit Music
- Previously, we've only accepted submissions through Soundcloud messaging. We now have an official e-mail: musicsubmissions@hotnewhiphop.com, to help maintain submissions from everyone/anyone on a rolling basis. This means, you will not be relegated to the 'Open Submissions' message, but can simply e-mail us your music directly, at any time, should you wish.
- Nonetheless, we do alert you to 'Open Submissions' when we are approaching a meeting - follow us on IG and Twitter and look out for these posts as well.
- Submissions are meant for new or rising artists, however, the recency of the song is flexible.
- When e-mailing a submission, the subject line should read Music Submission: [Artist Name] + [Song Name]. Please include in the e-mail: artist name, song name, social media links, link to stream song (video or audio), and any additional facts or things you'd want us to know.
STAFF SUBMISSIONS: TOP 3
PORTION
Song: "WAVE"
Location: Toronto
Sounds: TO meets ATL. A triumphant banger.
Discover more music: Check out his Soundcloud
Posted before: Yes, but sparingly
GENESIS OWUSU
Song: "Same Thing"
Location: Ghana-born, Australia-raised
Sounds: Funky, feel-good r'n'b
Discover more music: Check out his Soundcloud
Posted before: No
EAST CHAIN
Song: "Grand Marquis"
Location: Atlanta
Sounds: An eclectic and versatile rap collective
Discover more music: Check out their collective's YouTube channel
Posted before: No
E-MAIL SUBMISSIONS: TOP 2
BURDIENYC
Song: "Troubled Child"
Location: New York
Sounds: Seemingly A Boogie (or Highbridge)-inspired in its melodic yet gritty NYC sound.
Discover more music: Check out his Spotify
Posted before: No
STACKZTOOTRILL
Song: "Lowest"
Location: Houston, Texas
Sounds: A unique flow and take on Southern-inspired melody
Discover more music: Check out his Soundcloud
Posted before: No