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The Brickheadz

WAVE YOUR FEET IN THE AIR The seven-man group Brickheadz puts a new spin on old-school moves.

Break dancers
Check out the seven-member Brickheadz, who wowed the half-time crowd at a recent Windy City Rollers roller derby bout with their gravity-defying dancing. The 21-year-old crew is one of the most prominent groups in the city’s hip-hop scene, and it not only pulls off some wicked moves—ever see a guy spin 180 degrees, parallel to the ground, and land gracefully on one hand?—it’s also dedicated to spreading knowledge about the break-dancing culture. The group participates in about 30 shows and battles a year, and three of the members also teach the craft.

“A lot of people say they’re hip-hop, but they don’t do nothing. In my teaching, I try to establish a huge connection between the history and what’s going on now [in break dancing],” says Brickheadz member Anacron, who teaches break dancing at the Old Town School of Folk Music. “I let my students know, ‘You’ve got to learn this, it’s foundation.’ But at the same time, you have to make up your own stuff.”

Anacron admits that about three students per session don’t make it to the end of the class, but learning how to break dance is no small feat. Coordination, balance and strength are essential. (Not to mention looking good while spinning on your head.)

The Brickheadz practice for three hours twice a week, which doesn’t seem like much when you see the moves they pull off. One such move is the spinning arm chair, in which a dancer’s body is perpendicular to the floor. With his legs straight up in the air, he spins his body on one hand.Newer moves like this may upset B-boy purists because it’s not traditional breaking. The Brickheadz mean no disrespect—they’re just out to take break dancing to the next level.

“Hip-hop has stayed around for so long because it’s evolved and continues to evolve,” Anacron says. “Without evolution, hip-hop would still be in the Bronx.”—Maya Henderson

For the lowdown on the Brickheadz, check out www.brickheadzbhz.com.

Kenny Keys

Producer
Producer Kenny Keys couldn’t have picked a better moniker for himself: His formal training as a pianist comes out in his soulful, light-on-the-samples and heavy-on-the-keystrokes beats.

“Nothing against samples—I use a couple, but I don’t get caught up on the MPC,” Keys says about the drumbeat and sampling machine used by nearly everyone who makes beats.

Born Kenneth Carter, the 26-year-old first got into hip-hop in the early ’90s, as a freshman at the Chicago Academy for the Arts. “[A] Tribe [Called Quest] had just come out with Midnight Marauders—it was the perfect time to be in high school, right in the golden era,” he says. “Everyone was into hip-hop.”

Today, Keys teaches piano, plays with various jazz bands and produces for Chicago’s All Natural label at his North Side studio, where we recently hung out with him. He and MC Adad form the label’s newest addition, Eulorhythmics. Many critics have compared them to influential hip-hop group Black Star, and Eulorhythmics’ album Extended Play is gaining popularity locally. Keys will get even more exposure soon, with two tracks on local MC Diverse’s upcoming album, Round About, on Chocolate Industries.

Keys says he owes part of his producing success to Chicago’s rich history of soul and jazz, which greatly influenced his musical taste. Now, instead of trying to sound like what’s hot in the mainstream—a crunky synthetic dirty South sound—he’d rather take listeners back to a time where music sounded more organic. “There’s a lot of people trying to sound like the South, East or West here,” Keys says. “My style is a reflection of where I’ve been and what I’ve been through. I can’t lose sense of where I’m from.”—Maya Henderson

For the black and white on Kenny Keys, visit www.myspace.com/kennykeys1987.

Dance to the Drummer’s dB

CAT SCRATCH FEVER DJs, including G-Fields, right, fight for the title of beat-master at a DJ battle at Sonotheque.

DJ battle
You rarely hear the nauseating scratch of a dropped needle at Sonotheque. But this stunning sound snuck out of the speakers while three hip-hop heads set up gear for a recent Dance to the Drummer’s dB. The monthly event, created by Tone B. Nimble (of All Natural), throws three local producers into a ten-round battle of beats. Chalk up the night’s sonic goofs to prematch nervousness. “It’s like chess,” says contestant Rob Krunz, a bookish guy who records as Earmint. “You have to see how the other guys play it. You can’t have a set game plan.”

Dance to the Drummer’s dB started in December 2004 with a set structure: Each monthly winner advanced to the round-robin playoffs. The competition ended when Rude1 took home the championship belt (for real) 12 months later. This year, judges (including Tone and host 5th Element) will wait until the end of the regular season in September to pick the producers worthy of competing in the October finals.

Milling about behind a table filled with more cords and audio equipment than an AV-club cage match, the night’s three players—Vanysh, Earmint and G-Fields—took turns coaxing out one- or two-minute compositions. G-Fields slew the crowd with commanding, soul-drenched songs. Later, the wiry Vanysh dedicated a G-Funk–fueled subwoofer jam “to those who smoke weed.”

With no Iron Chef–type secret ingredients required, sonic creativity reigned. G-Fields sampled everything from Prince’s “Diamonds and Pearls” to the Benji soundtrack. “That’s my favorite joint,” says the rapper and producer. Laugh, but he turned the evening into a beat auction, walking off with three offers from indie-label reps.

“It’s not an uncommon occurrence,” says Tone about the offers. “It’s a night where anything goes.”—Patrick Sisson

DJ 3rd Rail

Radio DJ
“You’re about to hear five hours of crack-free music mixed on turntables.”

Every Sunday at midnight in the dimly lit WNUR studios on Northwestern University’s campus, show producer Franklin Harris, or Tow Truck, announces the arrival of a hip-hop institution.

“Make sure you have your recording devices going,” he boasts into the mike. “The crates this morning won’t disappoint.”

Tow Truck is tipping off listeners that 3rd Rail is about to hit the airwaves. The erstwhile Mike Fuentes has been spinning since 1983, first at parties in the Little Village neighborhood where he grew up, then at radio stations around Chicago. He eventually reached WNUR in 1994. Dropping roughly 80 to 120 records during his marathon Sunday–to-sunrise-Monday mix show, he plays everything from Gang Starr to local artists to rare test pressings he picked up in Japan, mostly sticking to noncommercial tracks, uptempo and classic beats, and positive messages. This is, of course, in addition to running a huge hip-hop message board on his website and releasing scores of mix-tapes.

“I love playing good music, though you really have to dig for it now,” says 3rd Rail, flashing a big grin and chugging Gatorade. “People appreciate it, which is why we have fans who have been listening for years.”

Considering the hours he keeps, it’s no surprise 3rd Rail’s show is called Dedicated. “For many years, people have had baggy eyes on Monday,” Tow Truck says. “We make you stay up, but it’s worth it.”—Patrick Sisson

Tune into WNUR on Mondays from midnight to 5am for Dedicated, or check out www.dj3rdrail.com for more information.

Sang Yi

Promoter
One of the city’s only hip-hop promoters, Sang Yi doesn’t like being known as That Guy Who’s Always Out Pushing Flyers. But somebody’s got to keep the underground scene going, and it may as well be him. “People [in Chicago] become rappers and DJs, and it’s like their pass not to support others,” Yi says. “All Natural, stalwarts of the scene for the past ten years, have a record-release party, and you’d think everyone in the scene would come out and they don’t. It’s really unfortunate.”

Yi fell into promoting when he became the manager for his budding DJ friends while a student at Lane Tech high school. Now, he makes his living playing weeklong, intense games of phone tag with artists’ managers and local venue owners to work out possible show dates. Once all those loose ends are tied up, he gets anywhere from 10,000 to 20,000 flyers printed and hawks them seven nights a week.

Recently, Yi brought underground stars like Peanut Butter Wolf, Jean Grae, DJ Z-Trip and Pete Rock to Chicago. But he also throws shows for local acts, citing the Molemen, Maker and DJ Intel as some of his favorites.

Yi downplays the notion that he is a major contributor to the Chicago hip-hop scene by finding these artists a place to perform and interact with fans. “I’m not a DJ or a rapper, so I can’t get the thrill of being onstage,” he says. “I try to keep the scene fresh and exciting…My adrenaline rush comes from seeing people have a good time.”—Maya Henderson

Next time you see Sang Yi outside a club, take one of his flyers already.

Wonder Women Project

THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL Rappers Ang13, from left, MC Apple and Pos Senda get ready to drop some tracks for their upcoming album.

MCs
Everyone needs a hero these days, especially female rappers. “Kim’s in jail, Latifah doesn’t rap anymore and so much of today’s music is all about shaking your ass,” says MC Apple. So she and two other local hip-hop veterans—Ang13 and Pos Senda (Positive Sender)—formed the Wonder Women Project and recorded “Wonder Women Taking Over the World.” The track is both a kitschy TV-theme-song remake and an empowering anthem they hope will swing the focus on female rappers from foreplay to wordplay.

“You know how Wonder Woman has that rope that she puts around people to make them reveal the truth?” Apple says. “Our lyrics are like that rope. You’re going to hear the truth.”

The trio first worked together in Seven, another local all-girl group that Ang13 calls “the female Wu-Tang.” The group dissolved before putting out an album due to internal friction, but some of the group’s seven members still wanted to make music. Friend and producer Chris Krytel created a track with a Wonder Woman sample with the three MCs in mind, and they got together and grooved. The song triggered plans for a yet-untitled album and the Ladies First tour, which features the MCs traveling through the Midwest and East Coast performing with local performers like Lady Flipside and StephStaa (who sings on the new single).

“I think this tour is going to make women step their game up,” Apple says. “We just want to be real. We’re just here to be us. And nobody can beat us at being us.”—Patrick Sisson

Catch the Wonder Women live on July 24 at Exedus II (3477 N Clark St, 773-348-3998).