Samil

Samil and LoudChief (aka A1) are a producer/rapper duo from Grand Rapids, Michigan who both started their music careers at different times. New Jersey-born Samil released his debut instrumental album in 2018 and has since built a respected rep in the underground scene with his style of blending '70s funk grooves and '90s aesthetics with his own unique twist. With more than a handful of notable collaborations under his belt, Samil has teamed up with LoudChief for an upcoming project but in the meantime, they share the lead single "Breathe Easy".

Their latest track dwells on the importance of taking the time to breathe, relax and smell the roses while holding one's head through troubled waters. The production features Samil's brooding and somewhat hazy soundscape. It's a seamless mix of delicate drums, dusty textures, and dynamic sound design that adds a bit of depth as the song progresses. LoudChief delivers a brilliant performance as his vocals paint vivid pictures of his life treading the unbeaten path while flexing his lyrical biceps on naysayers alike. This is the duo's first single from their upcoming full-length project. - Earmilk

Following on Jetty Rae’s heels is versatile Grand Rapids musician Samil, whose new mostly instrumental solo album, “A Summer Night,” came in at No. 3. Samil, by the way, is a frequent accompanist to West Michigan hip-hop artist Wuzee.

“I honestly wasn’t expecting the amount of support it has received,” Samil told Local Spins. “I was really just sitting on a lot of music and I decided to put something together that to me felt like I was cruising through the city on a summer night listening to music. All of these were recorded in my home studio.” - Local Spins

LoudChief (aka A1) is an emcee from Grand Rapids, Michigan. Illustrating timeless music through rhyme form in an effort to captivate as well as influence the culture. He has shared stages with names such as Nas, Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, Curren$y, Rick Ross, Dave East and more.

Born in Paterson, New Jersey Samil is a producer/multi-instrumentalist now based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Since his debut instrumental album release in 2018 he has slowly become one of the most sought after producers in the underground Hip-Hop scene. His deft mix of samples and styles, leaning heavily on ’70s funk grooves and ’90s vibes, creates a chill backdrop for the emcees he’s working and going to work with. - Spitfire Hip Hop

M.I.C. Book & Samil make waves across Fortune Cookies for Breakfast featuring Wills Piff, Wuzee, Rello and more. - Okayplayer

I currently distribute via OneRPM. I have been working with them since 2021 and have released two albums and have at least two more planned for this year. Before that, I was distributed by SUGO Music Group. Before SUGO Music Group, I also released a single through RouteNote. I also use Bandcamp since 2016 or so.
As a producer, I‘ve released different types of projects for myself and other artists: rap, R&B/neo-soul, instrumentals, house music, etc. I‘ve mainly released EPs and albums. I think the art of creating
a whole body of work in album format is getting lost these days. But I plan to release more singles independently in the near future in preparation for a proper album or EP. I sell merchandise online at loopfiction.bandcamp.com and on my website loopfiction.net: Hoo- dies, shirts, caps, etc. Nowadays I also count physical releases as merchandise: vinyl, cassettes, CDs.

I use Facebook and Instagram for my promotion. I also work with a marketing agency to reach my audience on streaming services and YouTube. I also have a publicist who supports me with bigger releases.

What I love about OneRPM:
I like that I can go online and see reports and all the analytics on
my releases and audience. I‘ve been distributing through SUGO
and it‘s a huge difference. Before, I had to rely on quarterly reports emailed to me and there was no way to view stats online. All the music was submitted through a private server and I had to fill out
a spreadsheet with all the relevant information about the release. With OneRPM, that all goes online (as it does with most distro ser- vices). I also like that OneRPM lets you add songs to playlists directly from the interface. The marketing tools they offer are pretty good too (creating promo posters for social media and customizable aes- thetics, smart links). Sharing revenue between employees is also pretty easy. Thus, it is quite easy to give a featured artist a percen- tage of the revenue from a song or even an album. For certain artists who have a good track record, they also offer label services, rights management and publishing services. Another benefit is the ability to upload music videos, which they distribute to Tidal, iTunes, Ama- zon and a few others I‘m forgetting. I haven‘t used this feature yet, but I plan on using it for at least 2-3 music videos this year.

What I love about Bandcamp:
I love the discovery aspect of Bandcamp. I‘ve been surprised at how many people have discovered us there and become supporters. We‘ve also gotten opportunities because we‘ve been found by music executives and radio managers. It‘s a platform that focuses on the artists and allows us to connect more directly with our supporters and fans. I‘ve also discovered other artists that I‘ve grown to love and admire. It‘s easy to contact the editorial team and submit music that could potentially be featured on their blogs and website. I‘m constantly using the analytics tools to see where our music is get- ting the most play and what sources are linking to our profile online. This works quite well and provides a lot of information. - Beat Magazine

Revving up The Stache stage, MIC Book, Wuzee and Samil delivered a healthy dose of hip-hop bangers. With chunky production and an onslaught of rhymes distributed by the MCs, the set was more than worthy of the enthusiastic applause it received. - Local Spins

Samil | Genre: Hip-hop, R&B

Founder of the independent label Loop Fiction and a member of the Almighty Foot Clan hip-hop collective, Samil has largely worked behind the scenes crafting some the best beats in the business for artists across genres. His deft mix of samples and styles, leaning heavily on ’70s funk grooves and ’90s vibes, creates a chill backdrop for some of the most talented MCs and vocalists in our area. Check out his work on Wuzee’s upcoming album, Like Food Stamps for Liquor, as well as his own beat tape Diaspora Blues and his new electronic project Flashover, later this year.

For Fans of: Flying Lotus, DJ Shadow - Revue

A tape of golden era booms baps and loops drenched in house tones from Samil of the Almighty Foot Clan is available now on streaming platforms as well as physical copies at https://inserttapes.bandcamp.com/album/in-life or www.inserttapes.com - SkipFiction

ALTERNATIVE HIP-HOP ALTERNATIVE SOUL BEAT TAPE BEATS HIP-HOP HIP-HOP INSTRUMENTALS INSTRUMENTALS RAP INSTRUMENTALS SOUL-HOP WAVY HIP HOP - OK Tho Mag

A member of the Almighty Foot Clan crew, the producer Samil comes out with this instrumental work in which the boom bap and the jazz and funk samples intertwine perfectly.

Samil creates chill atmosphere, almost ambient, for about 30 minutes of pure sound detachment from reality. - Parole Liquide

What Stands Out: It’s one thing to create the feeling of nostalgia for a listener through one’s music by making it easily relatable to hip-hop classics present during the beginning of the decade. However, Grand Rapids’ Wuzee and Samil truly have presented the industry with something special by intertwining the old school vibe of rap with the new school. “Like Food Stamps For Liquor’s” assortment of choice sampled tracks, along with high energy and up-beat flows, grabs new listeners’ attention and leaves fans wanting even more.
Digging Deeper: Displaying legendary influences such as MF Doom and Wu-Tang Clan, Wuzee and Samil’s latest project has an awesome habit of influencing the listener to partake in the famous “head bob” from start to finish on the album produced by Samil and recorded at the Technodrome. From clever and witty lines such as “I know you better than you do, so never think this s— was fool-proof or bullet-proof Cartier frames; I heard your vision tough, I pulled the fool off of his chain, like why do you bluff?” to the use of funky keys and classic samples throughout the production, this pair of artists clearly took their time crafting this project to once again propel their sound to the forefront of the current “boom bap” sub-genre of hip-hop.
Perfect For: Cruising through the city on a warm sunny day with the windows down. – Jason Clark - Local Spins