Credit – Back To The City Festival
Critical Praise:
“Samurai is expected to be one of Fiasco’s most intrinsic works, as he is known for his conceptualized approach in his albums.” – Forbes
“The Chicago legend’s ninth album is inspired by battle rap and Japanese culture…” – CLASH Magazine
The Recap:
With over 25 years in the game, Lupe Fiasco’s influence as one of rap’s most vital wordsmiths has stretched across the globe. Over the weekend, Lupe traveled to Johannesburg, South Africa, to headline the 19th Annual Back To The City music festival, igniting the crowd with a scorching hot set filled with classic records like “Kick, Push” and “Superstar,” plus songs from his recent catalogue like “SOS” and “High Note.”
While staying in the South African capital city, Lupe connected with the local hip-hop and rap community, visiting the South African Hip-Hop Museum and participating in a conversation with Osmic Menoe, the founder of Back To The City, as well as the South African Hip-Hop Awards. Lupe also took a trip out to Soweto to the Nelson Mandela Apartheid Museum, After another sit down with local DJ and radio host, Nick Archibald of 5FM & The 5 drive team, he made a trip out to Soweto to visit the Nelson Mandela Apartheid Museum, capping off a culturally significant trip to Johannesburg.
Download high-resolution photos from Lupe’s performance HERE (credit – Sherilea Gaspar for Gas Photographic)
Credit – Sherilea Gaspar for Gas Photographic
Credit – Back To The City Festival
Credit – Back To The City Festival
Credit – Sherilea Gaspar for Gas Photographic
Lupe and Osmic Menoe at the South African Hip-Hop Museum
Credit – Sherilea Gaspar for Gas Photographic
Credit – Sherilea Gaspar for Gas Photographic
Over the summer, Lupe Fiasco released Samurai DX, the deluxe edition of his critically acclaimed 2024 album Samurai. The new expansion features two songs from the Samurai sessions, the self-produced recent single “SOS” and the Soundtrakk-helmed “High Note,” plus remixes of original album highlights “Samurai,” “Palaces,” and “Bigfoot.” Featuring vocals by Troy Taylor, the new remixes add a different perspective to Lupe’s rhymes, changing up the style without sacrificing the soul. The record’s second half, and the vinyl version’s Side B, includes instrumental versions of the DX‘s five vocal tracks.
Samurai DX continues Lupe’s exploration of the boundaries of hip-hop as an artform, as the legendary Chicago rapper knows a rap album can be as exquisitely crafted and delicately designed as fine art. Expanding the story of what Lupe Fiasco calls one of his “most personal projects to date,” Samurai DX is available in digital and physical formats via 1st & 15th / Thirty Tigers.
Produced in full by longtime collaborator Soundtrakk, 2024’s Samurai earned widespread critical acclaim, with praise from Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, Billboard, and more for its cerebral lyricism and warm sonic palette. Lupe’s ninth studio album, Samurai was the second full album collaboration between Lupe and Soundtrakk, following 2022’s DRILL MUSIC IN ZION. The 8-track Samurai is home to singles such as the title track, “Samurai,” praised by Rolling Stone, Complex, Billboard, HYPEBEAST, Clash, The Needle Drop, and more, plus a masterclass in difficulty, “Cake,” with dense bars and shifting cadences that requires elite skill, and Lupe demolishes it with champion-grade performance. Other highlights include the orchestral, street freestyle-esque “No. 1 Headband” and the experimental “Mumble Rap.”
Recently, Lupe Fiasco has kept busy with performances with the legendary Cypress Hill and underground heroes Atmosphere on their “Dank Daze of Summer Tour,” as well as a special performance at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he is a visiting professor teaching “Rap Theory and Practice,” in May. His MIT concert formed part of “GHOTIING MIT: Public Art,” an innovative project by the List Visual Arts Center that turns campus installations into live sonic experiences. On-site at nine distinct artworks, Lupe recorded new songs, capturing ambient field sounds and composing lyrics that respond in real time to each piece. Earlier this year, he further cemented his academic credentials by joining the faculty of the prestigious Peabody Institute at Johns Hopkins University.
Stream Samurai DX: https://lupefiasco.ffm.to/samuraidx
Order a physical copy of Samurai DX: https://lupefiasco.ffm.to/samuraidx
Samurai DX tracklist:
*denotes vinyl-only track
Credit: Karl Ray
Please contact Michelle or Kevin for more info.
The Background:
With a career spanning more than two decades, Lupe Fiasco has continually redefined hip-hop’s creative limits. His 2024 album Samurai earned year-end accolades from outlets like The Needle Drop, Okayplayer, and FLOOD for its ambitious concept and razor-sharp lyricism. Building on the critical success of 2022’s Drill Music in Zion, praised by NPR, Complex, and The FADER, and many others, including Clash’s Jazmin Kylene, who wrote “Keeping us well-fed and in constant questioning, there is no doubt Lupe Fiasco is fulfilling his purpose and artistic servitude every time he obliges to step back into the dojo.” In 2023, the iconic Chicago native also settled into his position as a visiting professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he teaches “Rap Theory and Practice” and spearheaded the “GHOTIING MIT: Public Art” project. Off-stage, he leads several community initiatives, including We Are M.U.R.A.L., the Neighborhood Start-Up Fund, and Society of Spoken Art, while his single “Pound For Pound” now headlines the AAA game Undisputed. Catch him this summer on the “Dank Daze of Summer Tour” with Cypress Hill and Atmosphere, shutting down stages in multiple cities across the U.S.
Links:
official site | store | instagram | twitter | facebook | spotify | youtube | apple
Samurai DX: https://lupefiasco.ffm.to/samuraidx
“SOS”: https://lupefiasco.ffm.to/sos
“Palaces” (Remix): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xS7Ii49ai04
Samurai: https://orcd.co/lupe-samurai
“No. 1 Headband”: https://youtu.be/-qpInC2hSSw
“Cake”: https://orcd.co/lupe-cake
“Samurai”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcoRc2ieFzE
DRILL MUSIC IN ZION: https://orcd.co/dmiz