Atlanta’s prolific, independent rapper, Tony Shhnow has just announced the 4/28 release date for his forthcoming project, Love Streak, along with a new video “ILY / IH8U”. After introducing Atlanta’s buzzing “plugg” sound to the Hip-Hop mainstream with his breakout hit “Vet” (10M+ Streams), Tony Shhnow garnered the attention of R&B superstar Brent Faiyaz in 2022 with the release of “Don’t Look At Numbers” (5M+ Streams). Continuing to release music at a breakneck pace, Tony shared three projects in 2022: Kill Streak 2 (Deluxe), Plug Motivation, and Reflexions,all of which received critical acclaim from Pitchfork (7.5), The FADER, Audiomack, Okayplayer, and Stereogum among others. Noted by HipHopDX, “Tony Shhnow is a black sheep, an artist who raps for himself first and everyone else second… no flashy trends, hit-hungry A&Rs or marketing gimmicks in sight.” Breaking away from his traditional “plugg” sound, Tony’s forthcoming project, Love Streak features the Atlanta MC rapping with a sharp and well-researched East Coast flair over new-age boom-bap production as he fills the rhythmic space with lover-boy raps, his dizzying technical ability, and an impressive guest list to match. In the words of Tony:
“I went into this with more compassion, this is the most vulnerable I’ve been on a project and I tried to put a lot of my own love life into it. A lot of the samples came from iconic Black love movies like Romeo Must Die, Poetic Justice, Two Can Play That Game, and How To Be a Player. I studied those soundtracks when making Love Streak, and tried to recreate the feeling the tracks added to the storyline and themes of the films.
This is not just a love project, this is a life project. It’s tastefully toxic-––this is what it’d sound like if Billy Dee Williams and Luther Vandross had a kid, and they made an album. This is for everyone…this is for your girlfriend, this is for your mom, your sister, your brother, your uncle, your father. This is for you––this is for me.“
Fresh off of a booked and busy 2022, Tony Shhnow is continuing to expand upon his dynamic sound with his forthcoming project Love Streak—a spin-off of Tony’s official Kill Streak mixtape series. The forthcoming project is a strong shift for Tony, replacing cold-hearted raps with flirtatious bars over smooth-sailing Solange samples. In his new video for “ILY / IH8U”, Tony pays homage to the 90’s R&B visual aesthetics that influenced him growing up as he goes back and forth on the pros and cons of being in a relationship—reflecting on intimacy, reciprocity, and familiarity as he introduces the overarching themes of Love Streak. Produced by frequent collaborators Grimm Doza and CashCache, the project includes features that coincide with Tony’s new artistic direction—“On The Street” finds Tony sparring with lyrical phenom Mavi and “Reminisce” features the R&B superstar DRAM who contributes his signature soothing vocals. While “ILY / IH8U” serves as one of the project’s most essential tracks, Love Streak as a whole helps to showcase Tony Shhnow’s extensive artistic palette, expressive lyrical abilities, and a rarely heard but welcomed emotional presence.
Stream ‘ILY/IH8U’ below:
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