Since the Spring Concert performers were announced over a week ago, I’ve heard plenty of statements and questions regarding who these artists are. The most notable unknown is Big K.R.I.T., though that will not last long, as he is on the rise as an artist.
K.R.I.T. hails from Meridian, Mississippi. His name stands for “King Remembered in Time.” He has been making music since a young age and he released his first mixtape in 2005, but it wasn’t until 2010 when he got his first big break with his critically acclaimed mixtape “K.R.I.T. Wuz Here.” The street album featured such standouts as Country Sh*t and Hometown Hero.
K.R.I.T. followed up on that effort with his second mixtape “Return of 4eva” released in 2011. Return was entirely self-produced and received a very positive reaction. Many critics have considered Big K.R.I.T.’s last two official mixtapes as official albums, due to the solid structure, cohesion, and overall quality of the music.
What makes Big K.R.I.T. a special artist is his ability as a lyricist and a producer. He self produces most of his own music and writes his own rhymes which is something any musician can appreciate. Also, K.R.I.T.’s songs contains lyrics with a vast amount of depth, whether it be “The Vent,” which talks about losing significant friends and family and coping, or “Another Naïve Individual Glorifying Greed and Encouraging Racism,” which features K.R.I.T. going against the grain of what the subject matter of the majority of commercial rap music has become.
Big K.R.I.T. is on the rise as he has also produced and been featured on songs for other artists, such as Chris Brown, Wiz Khalifa, Ludacris and most recently T.I.’s latest single “I’m Flexin’.”
We all always talk about supporting good music, but then when we as Umass students have an artist that touches on real deep subject matter, we ignore the artist and proclaim how we don’t know anything about that artist. We get two genuine artists in J. Cole and Big K.R.I.T. for Spring Concert, and then we hear an outcry of students asking why we didn’t get Drake. Give Big K.R.I.T. a chance and listen to some of his work and see the effort put into music.
The UMass RSO Real Music Xposed interviewed Big K.R.I.T. at The Feastival event in 2010. Check out interviewer Akiyah chop it up with him. Also, check out K.R.I.T.’s website, as he dropped his mixtape, “4eva N A Day,” on March 5.
Rafael Canton can be reached at [email protected].
