Rick Chyme's new release,
5iveit, which he describes as a means to, "Push It Past Potential Each Day Manifest Your Dreams," is a lovingly crafted collection of songs produced by Nixon and Ryan K. Wilson and featuring a who's who of the area's indie music scene with guest appearances from Molly Bouwsma-Schultz, Edye Evans Hyde, Willie The Kid, Red Pill, One Be Lo, AOK, and many more.
Recorded in a variety of rooms around town,
5iveit delivers a rich and layered experience of listening to stories and fables -- of realities and dreams intermixing and never far from each other, or maybe just out of reach, giving the release a balance of lightness, but with a somber reminder that time is moving quickly. Musically, it is a simple pleasure for the ears in every way from start to finish.
Chyme is extremely humble in our conversation, offering up none of the traditional trappings of hip-hop ego. Instead, he peppers his replies with a more gracious "we set out to" and "we hoped to…" indicating that the years it took to create
5iveit were both a collaboration and a labor of love driven by someone with a deep understanding of the ground he covers.
"The
5iveit LP is the start of a conversation. I'm proud we were able to create a cohesive body of work while including so many different instruments and voices," says Chyme.
For the Founders appearance, Chyme will be joined on stage by many of the voices that contributed to make
5iveit so stunningly original in our city. (I do not believe that Chyme will be lighitng his hand on fire as he does in the photo by
John Boros.)
Typically, when an artist releases a new work and hits the stage to perform it live, these compositions are mixed in with popular tracks from the artist's past. Chyme's performance will instead embark to recreate the album from start to finish (as guest vocals will allow) with a lavish encore set featuring some of the favorites the audience will want to hear as well. It is extremely rare that we get to experience a work of art played out as the artists and producers intended.
Chyme says the release feels inspired by life. "It doesn't really matter if a song is 100 percent autobiographical, something that was created by imagination, or from a story of someone else. I'd most like people to listen to the album themselves and create their own conclusions."
Time is a central theme that keeps surfacing in
5iveit, and so is your opportunity to see one of Grand Rapids' most impressive hip-hop artists in this fashion. Don't let time slip on by. 5iveit, please.
Joining Chyme at Founders will be Red Pill & Hir-0, The Diatribe, DJ Providence, and Dreas. Next month, look for Chyme to be a part of ArtPrize with his entry, The Art of Freestyle.
Admission: $5.