The $hoots collective

A few months back I got excited about The $hoots, a Chicago-based hip-hop collective that made effortless rapping sound authentic. On “How Are You”, the crew continues to impress with their reintroduction of the kind of “cool” that deserves quotes. It takes over a minute before the first voice graces the jazzy instrumental, and even then, it’s just the group hardly breathing an infectious hook. “Feeling good, feeling great, feeling great, feeling good, how are you?” The first proper verse arrives at 1:30 and by then the feels have already taken over. - theup-turn blog

In rap, you really just gotta let people know that you’re here, and you aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. Many MC’s attempt to leap, many fail to make it over the bar. The $hoots collective is a definite exception. These two (of the four in the collective) by the names 20 Gramz and Rikki Star fly over said bar with style and ease with some bars of their own, and a grimy vid to show y’all who they really are. The Andrew Robert/Kris Brandon directed scenes bring their words and sonics to life, while a LANZO production slaps in the background. It’s gray. It’s street. It’s lurking. Everything needed to successfully do a record of this feel.

“Lyrically luxurious, young, black and furious.”

The two Chicago natives on a team of four want to let everybody know they are here, and they will be felt. - The Place for things (blog)