Smino • blkjuptr
Since meeting Smino at a random studio session a couple years ago, I can't say I've heard anything from dude that has been anything less than exceptional, a clear reason why everyone here at TheseDays has been highly anticipating his follow-up to April's EP with the release of his full Blk Juptr project, which came available via Apple Music yesterday.
Since stepping into the scene as Chris, the artist now known as Smino has crafted a sort of unique lane unto himself that sits at a distinct cross-section of the two locales that have shaped his music: his native St. Louis and Chicago. Having just returned from his first overseas run of shows, Smino appears to have fully broken through to the next layer of the game, just the latest in a long line of artists working out of the city to do so. In graduating upwards, he also leads a line of talented artists from the Classick Fam/Zero Fatigue collective including Ravyn Lenae, Monte Booker and current beau, Jean Deaux which should prove to be one of the most exciting squad rollouts since SaveMoney started dropping mixtapes with regularity.
This one, while a re-release of the previous project on a larger platform, is a statement of sorts that yet another act reared within what we have called the Chicago Renaissance has gotten to a point of being able to dictate his own future. Smino's future happens to involve a world named Blk Juptr, check it out with him at the button below and expect plenty more coming soon.