EP: The Outfit, TX – Deep Ellum

Dallas Rap Scene Solidarity Hits Its Peak As Artists Unite For TOTX’s New Compilation, Debuted by Noisey

07.16.15

Critical Praise for The Outfit, TX:

“The Outfit, TX is… mixing Texan traditions with a wide range of influences from New Wave to punk to vintage boom-bap.” – Noisey

“…the best thing in rap today that nobody is talking about yet.” – MTV Hive

“…positively perfect.” – Complex

“The Outfit, TX is one of the best rap groups in Texas.” – PassionWeiss

“This is definitely a song I’d like to hear blasting out of a car.” – EARMILK

“Restrained but intricate screw-meets-funk delivery.” – The FADER

The EP:

Gearing up for an album release later this year, space-funk/rap trio The Outfit, TX have gathered a community of undiscovered Dallas rap artists for the Deep Ellum EP. The project is produced by TOTX’s Mel and Dorian, and it features a slew local talent who were mentioned in Mel’s essay about the scene that ran on Noisey in June, claiming “Dallas has the best rap scene in the country that you’re not paying attention to.” Last week, Passion of the Weiss debuted the Deep Ellum EP’s first single, “Whatcha Mean,” where he stated that TOTX are “mixing Memphis, Cleveland, and the eternal promethazine-spiked slant of Texas into something that sounds expansive and narcotic, ideal for your spaceship to start swanging on 4s.” As for the rest of the compilation, TOTX’s third member JayHawk brings his edgy, ruthless tone to “I Know People,” a song that evokes a theme akin to Cool Breeze’s Atlanta classic “Cre-A-Tine.” With “On the Cool,” Mel and Dorian are joined by Kissed Killed for one of the project’s more hypnotizing cuts, as the rappers breeze through rhymes while chirps and looped vocals are burrowed in the song’s background.

Awarded Best Rap Group from Dallas Observer in 2014, the trio’s critically acclaimed repertoire has distinguished them as one of Texas’ most eccentric groups, having done interviews with NPR,Complex, and SPIN.The Deep Ellum EP serves as a follow-up to 2013’s double album Cognac/Four Corner Room – Cognac showcasing rap and production by Mel and Four Corner Room showcasing rap and production from Dorian. TOTX closed out 2014 by performing on the Red Bull Sound Select tour as openers for Run the Jewels. They’ve been busy in the first half of 2015, releasing several singles – an ode to their favorite bourbon with “Wild Turkey,” a collaboration with cross-state spitter Maxo Kream with “Ü,” and a strip club-ready anthem in “Big Daddy.” Poised to continue picking up momentum, TOTX’s Deep Ellum showcases the solidarity within the Dallas rap scene, and also previews a developed sound that listeners can look forward to hearing more of on their forthcoming album.

Listen to the Deep Ellum EP: https://soundcloud.com/theoutfittx/sets/deep-ellum-ep

Check out the Noisey premiere: http://noisey.vice.com/blog/the-outfit-tx-deep-ellum-ep-dallas-premiere

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Please contact Michelle or Rory if interested in talking with The Outfit, TX.

The Outfit, TX Background:

Born and raised in Dallas, producers and rappers Dorian, JayHawk, and Mel make up the hip-hop band The Outfit, TX. After forming while in school at University of Houston in 2006, they returned to Dallas to continue to work on their patented brand of “Cooly Fooly Space Age Funk.” Individually, each has their own respective sound and together, they expertly blend their unabashed Southern credo of smooth synth bass, moogs, 808s and synthesizers.

TOTX has performed with the likes of J. Cole, Wiz Khalifa, The Clipse, and Kendrick Lamar. They headlined their first sold out show at Warehouse Live in Houston, TX in March 2013, then hit the road, performing at several music festivals including A3C’s “Best in Texas” Showcase, and Spune’s Index Fest in Dallas, TX. The future holds much more for the three Southern gentlemen that comprise The Outfit,TX, who recently relocated back to Dallas from Houston. They might have put it best, describing their artistry as “one small step for Texas, one giant leap for Southern kind.”