You undoubtedly know what Redbull is. If you yourself haven't purchased one of their beverages (which they are now expanding in a variety of flavours, shout out the orange one, that's my favorite, but also, limited edition kiwi), your friends have. However Redbull has made it their mission to be more than just your energy drink of choice, they've embedded themselves in local music scenes and a variety of cultures around the world, with various Redbull programs-- Redbull Music Academy for example, Redbull Sound Select series-- which is the reason I'm out here in Los Angeles writing this right now. That being said, even if you've also heard of Redbull Sound Select (RBSS), you may not know exactly what it is they do-- I know that before I came down here and chopped it up with what I now consider my RBSS BFFs, it wasn't exactly clear to me either. Let's start at the beginning, though. Click through the galleries to find out more about the program and one of the 30 shows RBSS put on for their month-long 30 Days in LA festival series.
We Missed Stones Throw
Saro (that's my boss, CEO of HNHH, general man in charge), and I head out at 5:45 am from Montreal for the six hour flight to Los Angeles, where we not only plan to attend Redbull's 30 Days in LA event series, but also knock out business meetings of varying topics and generally get some werk done. I'm armed with just under two hours of sleep and a slew of Brilliant Idiot podcasts, some extra strong Tylenol nighttime cold medication (because sleep) and my baby, aka my laptop. There was a suitcase, with some clothes in it too (!), to be clear, but inconsequential when compared to the assets listed above.
After a sufficient five hours of sleep on the flight over (sorry Saro), and going back in time three hours (yeah, I can do that) we finally arrive at LAX, although it'll be another hour or so before we get our car and make our way to our hotel, only to drop off our car and grab a bite to eat. By "bite" I mean two cheeseburgers, two fries, a tuna melt, two ice coffees and two diet Pepsi's. So, just a light snack before we check into our room and pass out for a few more hours, ultimately missing Stones Throw Fest, sad face emoji for Common, Dam Funk and the other indie acts who no doubt killed it, although I can't actually vouch for it, take my word anyways, lmao. Even though I didn't get to see them live, I do get to share some photos from it-- check the gallery above.
Despite missing Stones Throw Fest, we did get to eat some more, so shout out my number two love behind hip hop, food.
Kweku Collins & Pell
The following day, and the main reason we came down-- Tory Lanez's 30 Days in LA show with Pell and Kweku Collins at the Echoplex on Sunset Blvd-- begins much like any other day, with breakfast. I take that back actually, it wasn't like any other day, because we absolutely went in on breakfast (which became somewhat of a trend for this trip), ordering each our own meal, and then a serving of french toast on the side, smothered in whip cream, berries and maple syrup. I'll spare you the rest of the food details so as not to incite jealousy, instead I'll just embed a photo of it.
Although by now it might sound like we came to LA for the food, we really came for Tory's headlining show-- not only an HNHH bestie and mainstay, but a top pick for Redbull. It only made sense to come together for this particular event out of the month-long series. Last night's show featured Pell and Kweku Collins as opening acts, both rising artists whom we've co-signed in the past (Kweku here and Pell here), and both of whom have been tapped by Redbull Sound Select. Pell is set to get the ball rolling as a RBSS artist in 2017, but ahead of that, he shared a few words with me on his plans with the program (while remaining sufficiently vague, although we can't blame him not wanting to spoil the fun). "Redbull and I have been cooking up some ideas," Pell says-- you might have also seen the New Orleans rapper all over HNHH Snapchat (@hnhhsnaps) last night. "They really care about my vision as an artist, and are letting me put my music and voice first - it's awesome. We are building something really special. I can't wait for people to experience everything. It's gonna be a crazy year."
Kweku Collins has been building his relationship with RBSS ever since his Nat Love project released in April of 2016. How does one even link with RBSS? It sounds like they will just find you if the fit is right-- so basically, focus on creating dopeness, and dopeness will follow. Kweku tells us, "Shortly after Nat Love dropped I played a show in Philadelphia with Redbull Sound Select that was curated by Afropunk. Our relationship has developed over time since then." He went on, "My relationship with RBSS is still fairly new, so I haven’t been able to flesh out collaborations with anyone just yet. I have been able to meet some really talented artists through RBSS like In The Whale, H09909."
Kweku also gave his take on what sets RBSS apart from other brands that might attempt to embed themselves in local scenes, and pop culture as a whole, quite accurately too: "I think what sets RBSS apart is that they have footing in so many different cultures. They understand how to inject themselves into a culture without losing authenticity and losing the focus of what that culture is about. The RB skate stuff is still corporate, but they really put on for skateboarding. Same with Sound Select from what I’ve seen. It’s Redbull so it’s still very corporate, but they put on for artists. The cultures they immerse themselves in, they actually put on for."
After hearing from these two up & comers, to give you an even better idea of what RBSS' mission statement is, I'll go ahead and throw in this quote from the Redbull team themselves: "Red Bull Sound Select is an accelerator for music artists. We support them by collaborating on ambitious projects and ideas; using the strength of our global network together with a collective of artists, creatives and events to accelerate their growth. The network consists of 18 city residencies, 200+ events each year, 250+ artists, 50 partners and a growing list of our own festivals like 30 Days in LA and 3 Days in Miami." Boom.
It's safe to say that if you're an upcoming artist who is focused on creating quality music, you want to be tapped by RBSS. They won't only link you with collaborators IRL in the studio, they'll get you involved in their festival series like the show we attended last night. What's more, they genuinely care about the artist and their music-- I think it's evidence enough in the calibre and kind of artists they choose to collaborate with-- beyond just Pell and Kweku Collins, they've worked with Mick Jenkins, Gallant, and the list goes on.
Obviously I can't end this recap without a few remarks on the show as well. Tory Lanez was up to his usual crowd-surfing antics, igniting the crowd's reactions when he played I Told You cuts as well as riffing off old records (Juvenile's "Slow Motion" among them). However he probably got the biggest reaction when he prefaced his rework of Drake's "Controlla" with: "Let's do some shit we not supposed to do."
Fan-favorite records like "Trap House," "Diego," "Woods" and "Dirty Money" were also highlights and crowd-energizers. It was towards the end of his set that he brought out the big singles-- "Luv" and "Say It," before performing "Tony Montana" which was probably peak-turn-up-moment among a night of turn-up moments. Before bowing out, Tory left the crowd with the following statement: "Shout out to the bad bitch I'ma fuck tonight."
Undoubtedly he did, because the swarm around his tour bus following the show was unbelievable. Until next time RBSS.
Check out the remaining shows for 30 Days in LA here. Upcoming shows include Pusha T, Jeremih, Jhene Aiko, YG and more.