His favored reverb-y hand claps, crisp hi-hats and extraterrestrial synths had become a bit of a calling card. In 2014, the Haitian-Quebecois producer had made a name for himself as a kind of remix savant, molding R&B classics like Janet Jackson's "If" and TLC's "Creep" into swinging club tracks and thumping beat-scene anthems. Since that fateful early exchange, the artists' respective sounds have evolved with their profiles. The ace 11-track album, replete with a radio-worthy single and a some of the best crafted verses and beats of their respective careers, is emblematic of artists who, not only have migrated from the margins to the mainstream, but are operating with a level of comfort and confidence that they could have previously only dreamed of. If this origin story - a shot in the dark becoming a pivotal career turning point - is the prologue, then KAYTRAMINÉ, their new collaborative project, is a fitting afterword. Music Reviews Shirley Collins is an English folk song's bridge between now and then It was a moment that established Aminé's swaggering hip-hop-outsider persona and provided proof of concept for his ebullient brand of pop-rap. The free beats that Kaytranada sent back eventually ended up on his mixtape, Calling Brio, a project that ingratiated the Portland rapper with the music blogosphere and, ultimately, helped earn him a spot alongside megawatt acts like Ariana Grande and The Weeknd at Republic Records. "I was broke as f*** working on music everyday in 2014 looking for a north star," he recalled on Twitter last week. His signature bounce, Aminé hoped, would provide the boost he was looking for. Said producer, Kaytranada, already had a growing cult following on SoundCloud and an iconic Boiler Room set. The then-20-year-old soon-to-be dropout at Portland State University hoped a few beats from a buzzing DJ and producer in Montreal would help give him some much needed juice. In July of 2014, the marketing student and would-be rapper Aminé sent out a wishful Twitter DM attempting to get his fledgling music career off the ground. TOURING TOURING TOURING AND MORE TOURING.The record runs like a compilation of their best musical instincts compressed, refined and fine-tuned to a punchy summer frequency. The thing I’m most looking forward to doing when the pandemic is over is: The thing I’m least looking forward to in 2021 is: We all tried but we all took Ls this year.Ī word or phrase I never want to hear again is: Sometimes I’d even say that I hated touring. Touring is a big part of my career and I would usually complain about how tired I would be. The mistake I learned the most from this year was: We Were Eight Years in Power by Ta-Nehisi Coates I always thought it was so hard to make but I realized it was easy. Shiro, which is an Ethiopian dish my mom always made growing up. The most interesting thing I learned to cook during quarantine was: Jay-Z, because I would secretly trick him into executive producing my next album. The celebrity I’d most want to quarantine with is: I found a new love for Korean beef and jasmine rice with a little dash of teriyaki garlic sauce. I recently started cooking for the first time and actually trying recipes because I was stuck inside. The old-favorite movie I returned to for comfort this year was:Ī new hobby I picked up in quarantine was: And as the year comes to an end, Aminé has plenty to celebrate and look forward to in 2021: On Friday, he released a deluxe edition of Limbo with seven new tracks, and just last month notched his first Grammy nomination for Best Dance Recording for “My High” with Disclosure and Slowthai. Still, there was plenty at home to keep him busy, including an array of TV shows and a newfound love of cooking (he says learning to make the Ethiopian dish Shiro, which his mom often made, was a personal highlight). Or, as he more succinctly described the epiphany: “Sometimes I’d even say that I hated touring. While the rapper was unable to hit the road in support of the record due to the coronavirus, he says being stuck in lockdown helped him realize how much he took the touring life for granted, even at its most grueling. We’ll be rolling these pieces out throughout December.Īfter two years since his last project, Portland rapper Aminé returned in 2020 with a new album, Limbo, that showed once again why he’s one of the most creative and compelling MCs out there. So, How Was Your 2020? is a series in which our favorite entertainers answer our questionnaire about the music, culture and memorable moments that shaped their year.
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