SoloCelo is the Next Wave Of Chicago Rappers That Skateboard
SoloCelo is a 20 year old Rapper/Producer that grew up in a creative household, his parents are huge film fanatics- it was a surprise when Celo began making music rather than films in his early teens utilizing the stock version of GarageBand on his MacBook. Celo grew up listening to Twista, Techn9ne & Busta Rhymes– but now leans toward Gunna, Don Toliver & Polo G. You can hear the juxtaposition on his newest release Life Is Drain a tug-o-war of styles like old school lyricism over modern trap type beats & catchy hooks.
SoloCelo’s recent single “Sweet N Sour” can be heard blasting around Chicago’s underground skate parks since it’s release in July. Celo was looking for new hobbies during quarantine beyond making music, he picked up his old skateboard and began relearning old tricks he used to flip when he was a kid. Celo is part of new wave of rappers that chose a skateboard as quick way to pop into a party or a recording session.
In the 90’s when Hip Hop and Skateboarding began becoming mainstream separately- 85% of sponsored skaters were White Males & the majority of music found on the skate tapes was punk rock. SoloCelo joins a league of Chicago legends like Lupe Fiasco, IBN Jasper, Virgil Abloh merging the two cultures together and using it as a springboard to shape his sound & audience.
The story behind the title comes from slang among his rap collective Exit The Premises (Goldenboymnny, Vell Le Villain, Jae Rio, Kredit, Prod.Ra among others) Celo explains “We have a word called drain that is used almost like an adjective. We use it to describe situations, people, things etc. ‘That’s so drain’ or ‘I’m draining right now.’ You’d actually use it in response to something that is inconveniencing you.
Stay connected with SoloCelo for upcoming announcements and releases here.
