Next month, Stefan Ponce will at long last begin the process of releasing a collection of music. It's a project that has been teased little directly, but often via the music which has come in sporadic but prolific bursts over the course of the last three years and today Ponce started getting fan's hopes up with the release of his single "Drive In" featuring TheMind and Julian Bell. 

One thing you can always credit Stefan is with the ability to find talent around Chicago before most can recognize it. For their part, TheMind and Julian Bell have been plugging away around town for a minute, the latter finding recent success alongside Mick Jenkins. Here though, they find an appropriate maestro as Ponce plugs them into his larger framework, manipulating their individual talents to fit the scheme, one that works wonderfully here and speaks to a multifaceted cross-section of the city's influences. Check out what's been offered up in the stream above and definitely stay tuned for more coming in the coming weeks from one of the city's hottest up and comers.

Also, make sure you get out to the return of Stefan Ponce & Friends at East Room and catch myself chopping it up with the man himself at Bucketfeet on March 30 as part of their monthly 'Artist Talks'.