The Higher Brothers Push It Higher
Formed in 2012 in Chegdu, China, the trap-rap crew, the Higher Brothers were thrust into the Western limelight by intercontinental label and purveyors of the finest in Asian Rap, 88rising in 2016. The HB’s bring a lotta energy, spiked with a healthy sense of mischievous irony. They keep their finger on the pulse and one eye on the hip-hop legends which preceded them.
They got fast, chirping hats and punchy 808 samples. And they often draw comparisons to modern, trap-rap artists from the Atlanta such as Gucci Mane. But the Higher Brothers’ influences run much deeper. Comfortably wearing their Generation Z vogue on their sleeves, the Higher Brothers are instagramable, snapchattable and buzzfriendly. But they never fail to pay reverence to the recognised masters of their craft. They cite influences as diverse as DJ Premier, The Notorious B.I.G. and Kendrick Lamar.
Their latest album, Five Stars sees collaborations with a host of American hip-hop artists including Soulja Boy, Rich Brian and Schoolboy Q and if you scour YouTube you’ll also be lucky enough to find the 2019 collaboration with Snoop Dogg, “Friends & Foes”, recorded as the title track for Netflix’s Wu Assassins.
Wednesday 11th September sees Higher Brothers headline the Electric Ballroom in Camden. This is their one and only UK stop on their current (modest) European tour. If you’re itching to hear what happens when American Hip-Hop, Lo-Fi Trap and Chinese Rap collide, this could be your last chance for a while to get hyphy to the Higher Brothers.