BeatRoute Magazine B.C. print e-edition - May 2016

ANTWON
flexin’ twice the luv in the booty club
Historically, San Jose rapper Antwon
presents a very interesting composition
of emotional nuance, ostensibly
clashed against wild assertions of explicit
desires. In the same five minutes of an
album that sifts through the phenomenon of
self-image and depression, he also launches
into “I eat the pussy after periods, strawberry
day.” While he promises he “skeeted in
her throat,” he also promises, “Finna watch
sunrise, hold each other during Mimi’s / I’m
finna hold you girl when we fall asleep.”
But what seems like a clash is actually a
breaking out of a mold into something new
for rap music as we know it. Antwon brings
the sexually explicit and the tender out of a
binary. He represents a wide range of emotional
and sexual realities and never tries to
keep them in different rooms. He sheds any
societal sexual repression and lets it breathe
amongst life’s other neuroses, allowing
connections to be made that couldn’t when
these genres were deemed separate entities.
Touring behind his latest, Double Ecstasy
EP, many media outlets have categorized
Antwon’s sexually explicit material as
“tongue in cheek” and “absurdist.” However,
speaking to Antwon, he does not seem to be
reaching for irony at all. When asked about
the lyrics “Hit the pussy raw 2016 / It’s time
to have sex” on his new single “Girl, Flex” he
says, “I’m talking about sex; I’m stating the
point, I’m not trying to be ironic. I just try to
be honest to me.” Antwon abides by playful
and raunchy lyrics as self-expression.
After being in the rap game for more than
10 years now, Antwon’s new music plays
with lo-fi beats and production in what he
calls “a rebirth in sound.” But the real change
lies within Anwton himself. “I’ve evolved
more. I’m more focused now, I know what
I want.” He has sought longevity and after
San Jose rapper Antwon uses playful and raunchy lyrics as a form of self-expression.
album upon album, has achieved it with soaring
marks and there’s no stopping him now.
He just finished a co-headlining We Stole
Hip Hop tour with Wiki and is heading out
on a tour of Europe for the summer, but
he doesn’t act like someone who is ready
to rest on his laurels. “I work on my music
everyday. I have to keep my plans tight,”
says Antwon, citing that he regularly
works every day until one in the morning.
What’s impressive about his Double
photo: Kristin Cofer
by Callie Hitchcock
Ecstasy EP is that it’s versatile in sound
while maintaining the status of killer
dance beats that would hold up in a live
setting. The production and beats that he
raps over are varied and belong to a car
with heavy bass, cruising the streets of
downtown. Over all his albums he maintains
a stronghold on lyrics, beats and
interesting instrumentals. His 10 years of
experience really shines when looking at
how he’s not afraid to choose disparate
samples while also oscillating between
vulnerable and aggressive wordplay.
Whether he’s in the mood to delve into
love, depression or oral sex, Antwon the
entertainer always rises to the occasion.
With lyrics like, “Show me love in the
booty club” from the first song on the EP
“Luv,” and “On a whirlwind trip getting two
bars deep getting lit” from “Dri-Fit,” Antwon
is clearly having a lot of fun. The combination
of out-there lyrics and raw energy in
his music makes you feel like Antwon is a
party you want to join. He represents wild
abandon, emotional honesty and sucking up
every drop of life possible.
Whether you’re dancing in your room or
banging it out, dancing at the club, Antwon
will set you free.
Antwon performs at 22 East 2nd Ave on May 7.
May 2016 ELECTRONICS DEPARTMENT
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