K’Naan is an artist that I fully support regardless of how successful he may be. I think it was a great decision he took a break to work on new music since his megahit Wavin Flag. I think he definitely took every opportunity to promote that song and tons of new fans discovered K’Naan. It could have worked against him if he kept releasing song after song after Wavin Flag that’s why it’s refreshing when he released this 5 track EP More Beautiful Than Silence. Check the link below to purchase it on itunes.

Tracklist:

1. “Is Anybody Out There” feat. Nelly Furtado
2. “Nothing to Lose” feat. Nas
3. “More Beautiful Than Silence”
4. “Better”
5. “Coming to America”

Download: K’naan- More Beautiful Than Silence

They have been to London more than a few times now opening for acts like Classified and headlining their own show at The Wave. They finally released their first EP and I’m excited to share it with you. Check out Keys N Krates Blackout EP on Soundcloud.

Download: Keys N Krates- Blackout

Somewhere between hip hop, funk, soul, r&b and indie rock; the Vibonics sound is more accurately described by feel than genre. Last Thursday, the Vibonics performed at the Hard Luck bar and released their debut EP. I took in the show and was impressed with the chemistry of the 6 member band. Lead singer Kubota has an incredible voice, which pairs nicely with the rhyme skills of Toronto emcee Crossword. The Vibonics just returned from a trip to the U.S., and are currently in writing mode. They plan to tour central Canada and parts of the US in late fall. Listen to the EP below, comment, and let us know what you think.

1. Major

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Cop the EP on iTunes.

Click below to hear the rest of the EP.

J.Cole and his fans are counting down the days until September 27, I am too, why? Because that’s when J.Cole’s DEBUT album Cole World: The Sideline Story is planned to release!! Until then every Sunday until the album drops J.Cole will drop either a single, a video, “depends on he is feeling”. The first thing to release is an EP called Any Given Sunday. J.Cole breaks down each song in the EP, enjoy.

1. Like A Star- Was saving this for the 2nd album. Due to some other shit beyond my control, I’ma let this out now.

2. Knock On Wood- One of my fav. freestyles. OG Dreamvillains gotta be reminded, new fans gotta get put on.

3. Pity- Brand new J. Cole, Omen, Voli. Produced by Voli @volitheentity

4. How High- at one point this was guaranteed to go on The Sideline Story.

5. Unabomber- Just heard this today for the first time in a longgg time. Love these raps.

Download: J.Cole- Any Given Sunday #1

There is so much Canadian talent that I can honestly sit on this computer and blog for days at a time. I discovered Brendan Philip on 88 Days of Fortune mixtape which is a collective of talented Toronto artists. Brendan’s song Wait really caught my ear, I had it on repeat, played it on The Come Up Show and wanted to hear music from this artist. I checked out his website and it brought me to the Song of Songs EP. Check out the description below of what the EP is about and stream the EP on bandcamp and download link is also available.

The debut EP from Brendan Philip takes its name from one the oldest most well-regarded and controversial books of all time, the bible. Song of Songs is a particularly enigmatic collection of prose in the bible dealing with very romantic sentiments between two unknown lovers; interesting for the Bible, that often mulls over anything remotely intimate let alone goes into such details as this particular section. For Brendan Philip, this is a short suite of pieces featuring songs like Reflection, a minimal piece only two and half minutes long, but fits so much clarity in a short breath; and the lead single ‘Harvest Moon’, a cover of one Canada’s most revered singer/songwriters, Neil Young, with a BP twist. With production from local talents like Quest, Shane Tone and Brendan Philip himself, this EP is a most appropriate introduction to Brendan Philip, one of Toronto’s free spirited, off kilter but all together beautiful artists to be treasured.

Download: Brendan Philip- Song of Songs

A while back you heard the first single from Toronto’s Purple Hearts, “Know Go,” a collaboration between Brendan Phillip and Lord Quest. Now they’re back with a short album/EP, and you can get it FREE on bandcamp. They call their music electronic soul, which is a pretty appropriate description for the smooth vocals and rounded electornic beats that span the album, crooning topics of love and life.

You can stream “Know Go” below, then head to their bandcamp where you can cop it for a limited time — let me just say it again — for free. Snap it up!

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Download: Purple Hearts- Purple Hearts I [Bandcamp]

“It’s not about making music to get something out of people, but rather sharing experiences, capturing moments and communicating through music and lyrics,” Kae Sun.

I interviewed Kae Sun a year ago which you can check out on The Come Up Show, Kae Sun is orginally from Ghana and he has been living in Canada for the several years. When he returned to his homeland it truly reignited his drive for sharing his raw experiences, the whole EP was recorded on 2-inch tape on a farm in Ontario!!! Kae Sun wanted to focus on sharing instead of dictating your experience when listening to Outside The Barcode.

Recorded on 2-inch tape on a farm in Ontario the raw acoustic songs recall the sense of community and authenticity that inspired the tracks. Kae’s focus was to create a more shared listening experience rather than dictating his audience’s experiences. Continue to the FULL post to check out the recording process of the EP on youtube.

The Boombox Saints, holding down Van City, recently dropped visuals for their track “Gotta Let You Know” off the Bringin’ The Boom Back (EP). The crew consists of 3 emcees, Adlib, Freeky P, Huggy Fresh, & DJ Relik. Check out the video below:

Download: Boombox Saints – Bringin’ The Boom Back: Based On A True Story (EP)

BADBADNOTGOOD is a jazz trio from Toronto (Keys, drums, bass) that re-imagines hip-hop tunes in their own post bop-harmonic and melodic language. It appears BBNG’s talented constituents are college students, since most of their performance videos and pictures posted up on their tumblr are shot in various classrooms. Staffed wipe boards and retractable desks in mid-sized rooms further suggest they’re property of some lucky music faculty.

The present self-titled EP is a collection of previously released covers from artists like Odd Future, Waka Flocka Flame, and A Tribe Called Quest. It’s tip top. Get the EP over on their bandcamp, and watch “The Odd Future Sessions Part 1″ below.

Gratias, Potholes In My Blog.

This is where we say, “thank you”.
Thank you for coming to every show. Thank you for rushing to the front of the stage. Thank you for driving ten hours to see us play for ten minutes. Thank you for taking taxis, buses, boats and planes. Thank you for telling your friends. Thank you for telling them to tell their friends. Thank you for singing the words. Thank you for screaming them. Thank you for wearing your shirt until the shirt wears out. Thank you for buying a new one when it does. Thank you for recording, downloading, ripping, burning, stealing, streaming and most importantly, sharing our music. Thank you for your patience.
Thank you for your support.

Two Crown King EP is finally here!!! They decided to release the album for Free but you can always support and buy the EP from itunes and you can cop physicals at Grooves Records and Sunrise at White Oaks and Masonville Mall.

Make sure to check our interview with Two Crown King for more info on this great band representing the Forest City and check out their website.

You and I

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Please Believe Me featuring Odario Williams of Grand Analog.

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Download: Two Crown King- Two Crown King EP

It’s about time I posted this project, I really think most blogs today just post up music that they personally don’t even fully take in, absorb, and enjoy first, before sharing. That’s why we at The Come Up Show don’t always brag or try to be first in posting something because it’s not a race. This is more about sharing music that we feel you would enjoy and how can you share something if it doesn’t resonate with you.

I’ve known about The Airplane Boys for a year now and if you were at any Snoop Dogg concert in the past few weeks then you would had the chance to check their live performances. Where You’ve Been was just released in May and you should definitely take a listen and open your mind just a little bit if you are all about that “Hardcore Hip-Hop”. This definitely bumps in my Chevy Lumina haha. Let me know what you think!!

Escape

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Download: The Airplane Boys- Where You’ve Been