Album: Twista – Crook County
The Billboard Chart Topper Spits Some of the Hardest Bars of His Career on the 13-Track Project, Premiered by Noisey
07.7.2017
Critical Praise:
“Twista is the Mayor of Chicago rap” – Noisey
“Chicago’s own tongue-twisting legend” – XXL
The Album:
Making his mark on the hip-hop landscape with his varied flows and lightning speed delivery, Twista is a bonafide legend in the game. Packing pearls of street wisdom with meticulously stacked syllables, the Chicago icon returns with his tenth studio album Crook County, premiered by Noisey. A diverse and accomplished effort with stellar production from the likes of Zaytoven, Zenzan Beats, and more, Crook County features some of Twista’s best bars of his 25-year career. Boasting highlights such as the tongue-twisting “Stacking Paper,” premiered last month by Billboard, the haunting, Zaytoven-produced banger “Baddest,” the Vic Spencer-featuring stoner’s anthem “Mortuary,” and the Jeremih-featuring “Next to You,” Crook County is an eclectic yet coherent listen, and a formidable return to form for the veteran rapper. Released 20 years after his classic album Adrenaline Rush, Twista paints a picture of his experiences in Chicago on the album, while blending current sounds with his signature flow. Featuring appearances from Jeremih, Blac Youngsta, Vic Spencer, Supa Bwe, Cap 1, The Boy Illinois, Bandman Kevo, and others, Crook County cements Twista’s status as one of the Midwest’s most important rap artists.
“Crook County got me thinking about what my city is, and Hip-Hop’s conflict between old and new. The project is my vision of where I’m at in the music game right now, bridging the gap between the youth and myself,” Twista explains. “What I wanted to focus on was not necessarily so much the guys that were on the forefront of Chicago right now, but just do it with that whole background scene a little bit. Like these guys that could sell out a Chicago crowd and you not know who the hell they are.”
Gaining notoriety for his intricate wordplay and impossibly fast flow, Twista helped put Chicago on the map in the early ’90s. Originally known as Tung Twista, he grew his reputation with the release of Adrenaline Rush, which was certified Gold despite little radio play outside the Midwest and is rightly remembered as a classic. In 2004, Twista made his long-awaited national breakthrough with a little help from Kanye West, who produced and rapped on his platinum-selling, Billboard 200 chart-topping album Kamikaze, including the Hot 100-topping single “Slow Jamz” and “Overnight Celebrity.” Since his high watermark in the mid ’00s, Twista has thrived as a rap O.G., dropping hits such as the Pharrell-produced “Give It Up” and the Chris Brown-featuring “Make a Movie” and appearing on singles by artists such as Chance The Rapper, Ty Dolla $ign, A$AP Ferg, Jeremih, DJ Khaled, Lady Gaga and many others. Most recently, Twista has blossomed as a rap statesman, working prolifically with young Chicago talent including Mick Jenkins, Saba, Joey Purp, and more. Twista’s dedication to collaborating with new artists is one ingredient behind his thriving career, culminating with Crook County, distributed by EMPIRE.
Listen to Crook County: https://soundcloud.com/gmgent/sets/crook-country/
Buy Crook County: https://Empire.lnk.to/CrookCounty
Check out the Noisey premiere: https://noisey.vice.com/en_us/article/9kwk9a/twista-is-the-mayor-of-chicago-rap-and-the-commissioner-of-crook-county
Crook County Tracklist:
1. Disrespectful (Prod. by Xcel for Beat Bangers Production)
2. Mortuary ft. Vic Spencer (Prod. by Zenzan Beats)
3. New Flow ft. Bandman Kevo (Prod. by YF Beatz)
4. Happy Days ft. Supa Bwe (Prod. by Zenzan Beats)
5. Hollywood (Prod. by Supe & Cal-i)
6. Baddest ft. Cap 1 (Prod. by Zaytoven)
7. Paper Chasin ft. Blac Youngsta & B. Scott (Prod. by YF Beatz)
8. Dreams ft. Bodi Deeder (Prod. by Xcel for Beat Bangers Production)
9. Stackin Paper (Prod. by Chase The Money)
10. Just In Case ft. The Boy Illinois (Prod. by Zenzan Beats)
11. Next To You ft. Jeremih (Prod. by Ty Fyffe)
12. Spend It ft. YP (Prod. by DJ Tight Mike for 1 Street Heat Production)
13. Can’t Be Me (Prod. by DJ Tight Mike for 1 Street Heat Production)
Please contact Michelle or Isabel for more info.
The Background:
Life’s best surprises often come from unlikely places. Twista knows this better than most. The pioneering platinum rapper put Chicago on the rap map and made the double-time rap style a rap staple. Despite selling millions of albums and popularizing a delivery incorporated by everyone from Jay-Z to Eminem, the Windy City rapper remains largely unheralded by the uninformed. After years of making a name for himself in the Chicago scene, Twista grew popular nationwide in 2003 and 2004 when he teamed with fellow Chicagoan Kanye West and Jamie Foxx for the smash single “Slow Jamz.” Twista’s 2004 album, Kamikaze, earned him his first platinum plaque. Since then, Twista has remained one of rap’s premier practitioners and in-demand collaborators. He’s appeared on albums from Mariah Carey, Pitbull and Jay-Z, among others, and released a string of acclaimed albums and mixtapes.
Links:
website | twitter | instagram | facebook | spotify
Crook County: https://Empire.lnk.to/CrookCounty
“Mortuary” ft. Vic Spencer (prod. by Zenzan Beats): https://soundcloud.com/gmgent/mortuary-feat-vic-spencer
“Stackin Paper”: https://soundcloud.com/gmgent/stackin-paper/
“Baddest” ft. Cap 1 (prod. by Zaytoven): https://soundcloud.com/gmgent/baddest-feat-cap1/ // https://youtu.be/fWepC0h_v1M