Abby O'Neill -- Brooklyn-bred hip-hop duo Smif-N-Wessun – consisting of
partners in rhyme, Steele and Tek – illuminated the Tiny Desk with
their signature, 80-proof poetry: straight, no chaser. Their music,
inspired by their gritty and pre-gentrified Bedford-Stuyvesant and
Brownsville neighborhoods, offers the vocabulary of veterans who
survived the grimy streets. These original members of the Duck Down
Records group Boot Camp Click represent quintessential '90s true-school
hip-hop from the bedrock, when Timberland boots were standard issue.
Backing Steele and Tek for the first time is D.C.'s own Black Alley
band.
Smif-N-Wessun set things off with their classic debut single "Bucktown,"
an ode to their native Brooklyn, which uses their love for lyrical
clapbacks as an allegory for overcoming the violence-ridden reality of
their wonder years. Their undeniable Gemini chemistry - clearly the
byproduct of a 20-plus year friendship - is on full display. Throughout
the performance, the two emcees dance, share easy banter and express
their spiritual connection to the music they've created over the years.
Things climax when the two perform "Stand Strong," another favorite from
their debut album Dah Shinin'. Anchored by the mantra, "I never ran /
never will," the tune receives a refreshing update, courtesy of Black
Alley. Driven by the live interpolation of their Beatminerz-produced
tracks, the music decries the struggles of late-stage capitalism and the
plight of the disenfranchised. It's a revelation of love, life, and
brotherhood in an era when the antiheroes were really just the ones
cunning enough to avoid becoming victims. That survivor's drive is
personified when Steele lets his guard down during the performance and
gifts the audience a little boogie, while referring to the "holy ghost"
that has come over him.
The set concludes with an exclusive premier of their new single, "One
Time," from their forthcoming album, The All, produced by 9th Wonder
& The Soul Council.
Set List
"Bucktown"
"Stand Strong"
"One Time"
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