Snotty Nose Rez Kids / Lex Leosis / DJ Kookkum
Subterranean
Chicago, IL
April 7th, 2022
By Randal Hicks
The night started strong with DJ Kookum spinning and weaving some classic songs in ways most of us have never heard before. Superstition with a dub reggae beat layered underneath? Check. Mixing Native drumming and singing into seamless sets. Check. This combination catches my ear lately and she gave us plenty. She didn’t miss a beat and succeeded in warming the crowd up. You can give her a listen here: https://soundcloud.com/djkookum (Give Skoden a listen!)
Immediately after DJ Kookum wrapped her set, Lex Leosis descended the spiral staircase at the back of the stage. Her flows were truly unique with equal parts rooted in Toronto and the Bay Area of California. The backing tracks especially carried a California vibe. Lex graced us with a solid set spanning both old and new music.
Closing out the night SNRK took the stage around 9pm. I have so much to say about this group and their show, but I will try and keep it short. From the moment the first beat dropped, the duo went 100% and kept it there the whole night. Darren “Young D” Metz and Quinton “Yung Trybez” Nyce spent the night alternating verses, singing into cell phones thrusted in their faces, and keeping us sweaty.
While it was impossible to keep track of each song played, there were a few notable mentions. Young D described “Red Sky At Night” as a song talking about murdered Natives who no one cares about. An audio clip of the character Uncle Rico from Napoleon Dynamite precluded their song titled after the same character. “How much you wanna make a bet I can throw a football over them mountains?” The duo explained there is a little Uncle Rico in all of us. Before “Boujee Natives” started, Yung Trybez invited all self-identified Boujee Natives to come up on stage for the song. The two danced around and sang with their fellow kindred spirits. It was a lot of fun to see how much they interacted with the crowd. For the last couple songs, the duo came down as the crowd formed a circle around them. Fans jumped around, taking in all of the energy the band fed them. Trybez also explained that while travelling, others have shared their languages with them. It was only fitting to share theirs with us. Wathla’a, which is repeated often in “Crazy,” means (and I am paraphrasing) when you are stepping out of line and your grandma or grandpa needs to set you straight. Growing up in the same house as my grandparents, I could relate.
I will say that I was hoping to see a more packed house that night. SNRK had been selling out the last couple shows and I was hoping Chicago would be no different. Regardless of how many people were there, the energy of the evening was off the charts. SNRK has a firm following and it is only growing. It’s easy to see why; it’s the effort, energy and message they are spreading. It’s infectious and keeps you wanting more and more of it.
The first time I heard SNRK I was hooked. I grew up around Native people and I gravitate towards the culture and worldview. The lyrics speak of their people, their culture and, most importantly, their experiences. But beyond having a message and my nurtured affinity for the culture, the music just courses through you. Cutting melodies paired with deep punching bass are the perfect pair to transport their voices to our ear. Throughout the night Trybez reminded us of the shirt he was wearing “Stop Police Brutality” and the phrase “No Justice, No Peace.” It’s a common theme in SNRK’s music. Activism is at the core. Giving a voice to the voiceless is paramount.
I think I have rambled enough for now =D TL;DR: If you like great hip-hop, check SNRK out. If you also like learning while listening to great hip-hop, check SNRK out! SKODEN!
