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Tomorrow night, Wednesday, January 19, we’ll be throwing our ninth No Ceilings showcase at Rough Trade in Brooklyn. When we started doing these things a little over a year ago, we had absolutely no idea what we were doing. We just wanted to see our favorite rising artists get together and perform on one stage, so we started reaching out. Eight shows later, that hasn’t changed. But along the way, No Ceilings has turned into something really special. Where else in New York City are you going to see four awesome up-and-comers in one night, for $15?
This time around, we’ve got Cousin Stizz, Saba, ZelooperZ, and Big Leano. Get familiar below, and we’ll see you there.
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Image via Ian Goodwin
Cousin Stizz
Bet against Cousin Stizz at your peril. The Boston rapper’s rise has been measured but unstoppable—he started bubbling with hypnotic sleeper hits “Shoutout” and “No Bells,” and then proved his consistency with last year’s Suffolk County project, which won’t be coming out of rotation any time soon.
Don’t let his unhurried rapping and the mesmerizing beats fool you, when Stizz hits the stage, it’s time to turn up.
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Saba
Saba just got a huge look thanks to a feature on Chance the Rapper’s “Angels,” but his solo work is making waves too—look no further than his excellent ComfortZone project, or his latest song “GPS,” a high-energy collab with the artist’s father.
Saba has also worked with the majority of up-and-coming Chicago rappers, gracing tracks with Mick Jenkins, Tink, Lucki Eck$, and more. He attacks every one of his verses with ferocity, and with more new music around the corner, the ascent is just beginning.
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Image via Instagram
ZelooperZ
Out of this bunch, Detroit rapper and Danny Brown protégé ZelooperZ is the wildcard. His music is off the wall, and his live shows are insane. Seriously. The first time we ever encountered him was at Complex’s house at SXSW 2014. When he started, everyone seemed to be looking around like, “Who is this guy?” By the end of his set, he was off the stage and in the middle of the yard, surrounded by a mob of new fans.
ZelooperZ’s 2014 project Help was a fantastic introduction, but we’ve heard some of the music he’s getting ready to release, and trust us, it’s next-level.
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Image via Tim Larew
Big Leano
Boston is on fire right now, and Big Leano is another up-and-comer you need to be paying attention to. He’s already proved he can write instantly memorable hooks, and his stock is only set to rise in 2016. Don’t sleep.
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