Unapologetic artist A Weirdo From Memphis is hitting the road this summer with label mates PreauXX, Kid Maestro, and CMajor. They’ll be appearing at Offbeat in Jackson, Mississippi on June 15, at the California Clipper in Chicago on June 22, at Seasick Records in Birmingham, Alabama on June 28, at the Platypus in St. Louis on July 13, and then two nights in NYC at Heaven Can Wait on July 27 and the Bed-Stuy Art House on the 28th.
AWFM’s got a new single and music video to wow the crowds. “Hysteria” is a horrorcore-style grinder which features a guest verse from prolific New Yorker RXK Nephew. “Its an unexpected blending of universes between two unhinged artist that both value being themselves over more traditional approaches,” says AWFM.
For the video, AWFM and crew traveled to Los Angeles to work with filmmaker filo5ofi, with whom the rapper had collaborated early in his career. Instead of some some California sun-and-fun street footage for the video, AWFM says “it was filmed in an L.A. hotel in the middle of one of the most unprecedented rain storms in 20 years.”
Stay dry, stay fly, and take a look:
If you would like to see your music video featured on Music Video Monday, email cmccoy@memphisflyer.com.
If you search for Kid Maestro on your favorite streaming platform, you’ll find the bulk of his credits couched after the names of the rappers and singers he produces. One playlist is proudly headlined, “OMG It’s the Tajin God!!” (echoing the sonic tag he inserts into all his beats — the guy loves Tajín seasoning), then notes “Everything Produced, Co-Produced, Recorded, or Mixed by Kid Maestro,” before listing over five dozen tracks, largely with the Unapologetic-adjacent artists with whom he’s worked for the better part of a decade: PreauXX, AWFM, Cameron Bethany, MonoNeon, Aaron James, and IMAKEMADBEATS.
At the top of that playlist is a collaboration Kid Maestro did with PreauXX and AWFM in late 2020, the single “10K,” which, being about the proverbial 10,000 hours of experience one needs to master a craft, stands out as the perfect foreshadowing of where Kid Maestro — the artist — finds himself now, over three years later. These days, Kid Maestro is actually racking up those hours that his rappers boasted of in 2020. Indeed, that’s the key to understanding his new series of ambitious, sprawling, and unorthodox releases on the Unapologetic app, the Tajin Tapes.
As Maestro writes in a preamble to the collection, “I refuse to allow myself to stay the same, so I came up with the Tajin Tapes beat series. I’m releasing a beat tape every week.” Having just dropped Tajin Tapes Vol. 5 this Monday, the series is already proving to be a massive collection of music. But beyond sheer volume, this self-challenge was aimed at mastering a new tool in his arsenal, the Ableton Push, which Ableton is hyping as a standalone “instrument” for playing samples as easily as other instruments play notes. As Maestro notes, “I just upgraded to the Ableton Push 3 and I want to be one of the greatest users in the world of that machine. I have to get my 10,000 hours in.”
Yet he’s also philosophical about it. “It’s more of a practice, an exercise,” he says of his one-beat-tape-per-week discipline. “It’s a punching bag; it’s going into the gym. The only thing I can do is just get my reps in. So it’s a myriad of different kinds of self-improvement, on multiple fronts, not only in music-making, but in being an artist, and accepting that I’m an artist and valuing my art. All of those things are wrapped up into Tajin Tapes.”
The result feels a bit like getting a rare view into an artist’s sketchbook, as one soundscape after another, each built on layers of samples, synths, and effects, unfolds effortlessly and then is gone. Aside from the ever-inventive beats and basslines, these loops are especially distinctive for their samples, which range from the symphonic to the folkloric — a global smorgasbord of sonic flavors. As Kid Maestro explains, that’s partly due to the touring he’s done in recent years as the playback engineer for Lauryn Hill.
“I started digging for samples when I started going to other countries to do playback for Ms. Hill. The first place I went was Brazil, so I got some Brazilian records. And from there, it just became a thing. Every time I go out of the country, I make it a point to get some records. Then I get them organized for me to use the sample when the time comes.”
From there, Maestro moves quickly. “I have this personal goal of averaging two beats a day right now,” he says. “It takes an incredible amount of focus to keep up the pace because a new tape drops every week. But because of the pace of it, there is not too much that you can overthink if you plan to keep up. It’s very freeing to work through an idea, then say, ‘Okay, this is done. I’m going to move on and let it do what it’s supposed to do in the world.’ Like, stop holding on to it and let it grow into whatever it grows into.”
That reveals the true potential of these mostly instrumental tracks: Each is a kind of seed that could grow into more fully developed tracks in time. “PreauXX has already released a song that’s in the app and he put out a visual for it on social media. He’s recorded and chosen multiple beats from the Tajin Tapes, and AWFM just did the same last night. And that’s really exciting because it’s just great when an artist can see their art being accepted and used in ways that they couldn’t have imagined.”
“In my bed/But what’s the cost?” Aaron James is going through some stuff in “Ghost,” his latest single from Nobody Really Makes Love Anymore. He think’s he’s found someone special, and she’s intrigued enough to hook up. But now he’s sent a “note in a bottle” and she’s got read receipts off. What gives?
Aaron fears the worst, and so do I. But it’s better to have loved and lost and written a great song about it than to have never loved at all. Backed by Unapologetic producer Kid Maestro and some inspired vocoder work by Eillo, “Ghost” is the climax of an album filled with mascara-runners and heartbreakers. The video by Jordan Dudek drifts by like your gauzy memories of (I Blew It With The) Hot Girl Summer. Grab a tissue and take a look:
If you’d like to see your music video featured on Music Video Monday, email cmccoy@memphisflyer.com.
The long-awaited Aaron James album Nobody Really Makes Love Anymore is set to drop this November. I’ve heard the Unapologetic folk singer/songwriter’s first magnum opus, and it’s as impressive as it is moving. Recorded during the pandemic, mostly in a makeshift tracking room built in a shed out back of Dirty Socks Studios (aka IMAKEMADBEATS’ house), James and ace producer Kid Maestro paint sonic pictures by punctuating the heartfelt songwriting with wild noise.
For the title track, available now as a single, James enlisted Unapologetic’s house video artist 35 Miles to produce an impeccable visual. It sure looks to me like there’s some lovemaking going on, but don’t take my word for it. Watch:
If you’d like to see your music video featured on Music Video Monday, email cmccoy@memphisflyer.com.
As I detailed in this week’s Memphis Flyer cover story, Unapologetic is getting ready to transform Memphis with the Orange Mound Tower project. Right now, three of the Bluff City-based record label’s heavy hitters want to transform your earholes with the jam of the summer. “Slide” is the latest single by PreauXX (a frequentflyer on Music Video Monday) featuring a smooth guest verse by A Weirdo From Memphis. Produced and mixed by newly inaugurated Unapologetic president Kid Maestro and mastered by IMAKEMADBEATS, “Slide” is a sly groove for cruising in the whip.
“A ‘slide’ can be multiple things,” says PreauXX. “It can be a special person, it could be you visiting someone, and it could even be just hanging out. But ultimately, it feels good.”
The video is co-directed by PreauXX and Unapologetic visual leader 35Miles. It features the talents of Kierra Monique, Isadorabriony, Raphel Baker, Chris Craig, and R.U.D.Y. Drop what you’re doing and dig this earworm.
If you would like to see your music video featured on Music Video Monday, email cmccoy@memphisflyer.com.
2020 was a bad year for all musicians, but A Weirdo From Memphis (AWFM) had it worse than most. He lost his job, his first big tour was canceled, and he had both his identity and his car stolen. So, he did what he had to do: he wrote a song about it.
“’Kerosene Heater’ is what I felt like after one of the worst months of my life,” he said. “Sometimes you arrive at a turning point of realizing things aren’t going to be for a long time, and then living in that and embracing it and turning that feeling into art. Thats what making music turns into for me lately.”
Rapping over a Kid Maestro beat, AWFM speaks for all of us as he tells the world where to shove it. Now, the video — shot by Unapologetic collaborator 35 Miles and cut by Troy the Editor — is ready for a turn on the Catwalk.
Music Video Monday: A Weirdo From Memphis
If you would like to see your music video featured on Music Video Monday, email cmccoy@memphisflyer.com.
In 1993, University of Colorado professor Anders Ericsson first put forth the idea that the key ingredient in expertise is 10,000 hours of practice. Many interpret it as a message to creatives everywhere: Talent doesn’t matter so much as not giving up.
PreauXX’s new song “10K” is an ode to the grind.
“They say it takes 10,000 hours to become a master at your craft…have you taken your journey?” asks PreauXX. “This song is dedicated to the people who are relentless about their grind/hustle/goal. Are you willing to do what it takes to get to where you want in life?”
PreauXX’s partners in grind on this Unapologetic joint are producer Kid Maestro and A Weirdo From Memphis.
“10,000 means something different to everybody,” says AWFM. “Could be your journey, could be your price, could be your bounty. What does it mean to you?”
The video, directed by 35Miles, puts us in the middle of a cutthroat card game.
“Shout out to Unapologetic Visual for creating this visual experience,” said Kid Maestro. “Their eye and vision really brought this song to new heights. Also, I won the game of UNO in case anyone was wondering.”
Music Video Monday: PreauXX & AWFM
If you would like to see your music video featured on Music Video Monday, email cmccoy@memphisflyer.com
At the beginning of this week’s music video, PreauXX is kicking it in the back yard with his friends C MaJor, AWFM, and Kid Maestro like Hank Hill and company in King of the Hill.
You probably wish you were chilling with the squad instead of working this morning, but you can live vicariously through the Unapologetic crew. Director 35Miles, who last teamed up with PreauXX to take home one of the Ten Best Music Videos of 2019, gets mellow with his clip for “Blunt In My Hands.”
Music Video Monday: PreauXX and C MaJor
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Indie Memphis 2019 kicks into high gear on Friday with its first full day of films and events. The first screening of the day comes at 10:40 AM with the music documentary The Unicorn, director Tim Geraghty’s portrait of gay psychedelic country musician Peter Grudzien.
Indie Memphis Day 3: Legends, Queens, and Sorcerer
3:30 at Playhouse on the Square is the second annual Black Creators Forum Pitch Rally. Eight filmmakers will present their projects they want to film in Memphis on stage, and a jury will decide which one will receive the $10,000 prize, presented by Epicenter Memphis. The inaugural event was very exciting last year, and with this year’s line up of talent (which you can see over on the Indie Memphis website), it promises to be another great event.
Over at Studio on the Square at 3:40 p.m. is the final work by a giant of filmmaking. Varda by Agnes is a kind of cinematic memoir by the mother of French New Wave, Agnes Varda. It’s a look back at the director’s hugely influential career, made when she was 90 and completed shortly before her death last March. Here’s a clip:
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Part 2 of the unprecedentedly strong Hometowner Narrative Shorts competition field screens at Ballet Memphis at 6:15 p.m. “Shadow in the Room” is an impressionistic short by director Christian Walker. Based on a Memphis Dawls song, and featuring exquisite cinematography by Jared B. Callen, it stars Liz Brasher, Cody Landers, and the increasingly ubiquitous Syderek Watson, who had a standout role on this week’s Bluff City Law.
Waheed AlQawasmi produced “Shadow In The Room” and directed the next short in the bloc, “Swings.” Based on the memoir by ballerina Camilia Del, who also stars in the film, it deftly combines music from Max Richter with Del’s words and movement.
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“A Night Out” is Kevin Brooks and Abby Myers’ short film which took this year’s Memphis Film Prize. It’s a technical tour de force—done entirely in a single, 13-minute tracking shot through Molly Fontaine’s by cinematographer Andrew Trent Fleming. But it also carries an emotional punch, thanks to a bravado performance by Rosalyn R. Ross.
In “Greed” by writer/director A.D. Smith, a severely autistic man, played by G. Reed, works as a human calculator for a drug lord. But while he is dismissed by the gun-toting gangsters around him, he might not be as harmless as he seems.
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Andre Jackson’s tense and chilling “Stop” finds two men, one a cop and the other a mysterious stranger from his past, reunited by a chance encounter on the road.
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Kyle Taubkin’s “Soul Man” earned big applause at the Memphis Film Prize, thanks to a heartfelt performance by Curtis C. Jackson as a washed-up Stax performer trying to come to grips with his past.
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Director Morgan Jon Fox, whose documentary This Is What Love In Action Looks Like is one of the best-loved films ever to screen at Indie Memphis, returns to the festival with his latest short “The One You Never Forget.” A touching story with incredible performances by two teenage actors, this film has had a killer run on the festival circuit that climaxes with this screening.
At Ballet Memphis at 9:00 p.m. is the Hometowner Documentary Short Competition bloc, featuring new work by a number of Memphis documentarians. Matthew Lee’s “9.28.18” is a wonderfully shot, verité portrait of a very eventful day in the Bluff City. Indie Memphis veteran Donald Myers returns with heartfelt memories of his grandfather, Daniel Sokolowski, and his deep connection with his hometown of Chicago in “Sundays With Gramps.” Shot in the burned-out ruins of Elvis Presley’s first house, “Return to Audubon” by director Emily Burkhead and students at the Curb Institute at Rhodes College presents an incredible performance by Susan Marshall of Elvis’ “Heartbreak Hotel. Shot in the churches of Memphis and rural Mississippi, “Soulfed” by Zaire Love will tempt your appetite with an examination of the intimate connection between religion and cuisine. “That First Breath,” a collaboration between Danielle Hurst, Madeline Quasebarth, and Kamaria Thomas, interviews Mid-South doulas and advocates for a more humane and natural childbirth experience. “How We Fall Short” by Brody Kuhar and Julie White is a six-minute dive into the Tennessee criminal justice system. “Floating Pilgrims” by David Goodman is a portrait of the vanishing culture of people who live on boats in the Wolf River Harbor. “St. Nick” is Lauren Ready’s story of a high school athlete fighting debilitating disease. “Fund Our Transit” by Synthia Hogan turns its focus on activist Justin Davis’ fight for better transportation options in Memphis. And finally, Zaire Love’s second entry, “Ponzel,” is one black woman’s search for meaning in an uncertain world.
The competition feature Jezebel (9:30 p.m., Hattiloo Theatre) by director Numa Perrier focuses on the story of a young black woman in Las Vegas who is forced to take a job as a cam girl when the death of her mother threatens to leave her homeless. The emotional heart of the film is the conflict that arises when the protagonist discovers that she kind of likes being naughty with strangers on the internet, and the dangers that arise when one of her clients gets too close.
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Outdoors in the big tent block party, the premiere musical event of the festival happens at 8:30 p.m. Unapologetic Records will celebrate the release of its new compilation album Stuntarious IV with a show featuring performances by A Weirdo From Memphis, IMAKEMADBEATS, C Major, Kid Maestro, She’Chinah, Aaron James, and Cameron Bethany. Expect surprises and, well, lots of mad beats!
Finally, at midnight, a pair of screenings of classic films—for various definitions of the word “classic”— at Studio on the Square. Queen of the Damned is Michael Rymer’s adaptation of the third novel in Anne Rice’s vampire trilogy. Pop star Aaliyah starred as vampire queen Akasha, and had just finished the film when she died in a plane crash in the Bahamas. The film has become something of a camp classic, and is probably most notable today for inspiring a ton of great Halloween costumes.
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The other screening is Exorcist director William Friedkin’s masterpiece Sorcerer. Starring Roy Scheider as an anti-hero in charge of a ragtag group of desperados trying to move a truckload of nitroglycerin through the Amazon jungle, it’s a gripping ride through human greed.
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Come back tomorrow for another daily update on Indie Memphis 2019.
The true genius of Memphis music has always been our willingness to mix and match. A show tonight in a Downtown alley proves that tendency is alive and well.
“We keep it fresh by following this one idea: If it doesn’t intimidate us, we didn’t think big enough,” says IMAKEMADBEATS, mastermind of the Unapologetic label. “Every show we throw, we try to do something we’ve never seen or done before. We try to scare ourselves with our own ideas, and then we take the necessary steps to make it happen. The adrenaline alone pushes us somewhere new in each show.”
Goner Records co-owner Zach Ives says when he was approached by the Downtown Memphis Commission (DMC) about scheduling a show, he thought it was a great idea.
“I love what [IMAKEMADBEATS] is doing over there,” Ives said. “We’ve met up and talked some over the past year. Nice to share experiences. While our avenues are different, there are plenty of similarities. We are both doing it our own way and figuring it out as we go along.”
Both Goner and Unapologetic follow in the Memphis tradition of independent record labels making and selling the music they want to hear, and then creating the audience for it.
In the case of Goner, Ives and his partner, Eric Friedl (aka Eric Oblivian), that music is the raw, rootsy garage punk that emerged from the Antenna and Barrister’s scene of the 80s and 90s.
For Unapologetic, it’s cutting edge hip hop.
“I really believe people value sincerity and vulnerability in music over everything else,” says IMAKEMADBEATS. “I think things like genre and other divisions come second to those things.
“These kinds of shows are great for us for the obvious reasons of getting in front of new people with open minds, but also because people like the good folks at Goner understand pushing boundaries and creating the kinds of atmospheres that allow people to be unapologetically themselves.
“Beyond the music, shows like these are great for the people, how they feel there, and the kinds of minds they’ll meet there. It’s great for community.”
Ives says after the initial conversation with Unapologetic, “One thing we both agreed on, our different parts of the music community don’t interact enough. This seemed like a good opportunity to try and correct that.”
The show will kick off around quitting time on Thursday, July 12th with Unapologetic rapper PreauXX and wunderkind producer Kid Maestro.
“There are few people as naturally talented as PreauXX,” says IMAKEMADBEATS. “[He] can go anywhere and share the stage with anyone and be a showstopper.”
New Orleans-based retro-synth wizard Benni will echo his spacey vibes through the Downtown cityscape.
“The Unapologetic guys are super into Benni, so it was a no-brainer!” says Ives. “They demanded it! Also, he has a new record about to come out next month, so it made sense to get him back up and fill Downtown with new space sounds. It also felt like a good transition with the Unapologetic artists.”
Unapologetic R&B sensation Cameron Bethany will lend his smooth, emotive voice to the chorus.
“Cameron found me, actually,” says IMAKEMADBEATS. “We’d met before because someone I was working with in the studio called him in for some background vocals. He told me that he’d kept up with some of the things I was doing with PreauXX years ago.
“One day in 2015, Cameron called me and told me he wanted me to produce a single for him. We met, talked some business and artistic direction, then set a date for him to come and work on the record.
“The music on his Soundcloud page was mostly cover songs and when I’d asked peers about him, a handful mentioned an amazing voice but no one knew what his music sounded like. We started working on his single and after hearing the hook on it, alone, I knew we had something special. Something different. I listened to it on loop after Cam left the studio for almost 3 hours.”
Fresh off a sold-out European tour with Superchunk, Memphis punk legends The Oblivians will be joined by New Orleans vocalist Stephanie McDee.
The Oblivians covered McDee’s “Call The Police” on their last album, Desperation.
“It’s such a party anthem,” says Ives. “And her original version is soooo fast! We’ll see if the guys can keep up. Can’t wait to see what happens.”
The free show, sponsored by the DMC, begins at 5 p.m. in Barbaro Alley Downtown.
A Weirdo From Memphis 
