Cincinnati x Milwaukee in a Midwest Weird Rap Tag Team

Cincinnati alt-hip hop mainstay Abiyah meets Milwaukee art rapper/filmmaker WC Tank in the second single, “Deep Breaths,” from Milwaukee Producer Community Centaur’s Upcoming Collaborative Full-Length.

Local alt-hip hop/cross-genre vocalist Abiyah appears with Milwaukee-based MC/filmmaker WC Tank on the song, “Deep Breaths,” from Milwaukee-based producer/multi-instrumentalist Community Centaur. The single, the second from Community Centaur’s upcoming full-length of instrumentals with guest vocalists, dropped today.

Abiyah met WC Tank when she opened for the Hellfyre Club (Busdriver, Open Mike Eagle, milo, Nocando) at Cincinnati’s Northside Tavern in March 2014. Tank was touring with them as their video creationist/projectionist, which culminated in the Hellfyre Club tour documentary “Chewing.” He mentioned that he liked her music, and a few months later invited her to be on a song with him that would later become “Deep Breaths.”

Taking a somewhat intellectual approach to the typical club banger, “Deep Breaths” incorporates Tank’s rap David Byrne-esque flow with dancehall reggae-stylized vocals by Abiyah over Community Centaur’s sonically-full beat. It reinvents standard club pick-up game and pokes some fun at dancefloor stereotypes while shedding light on some of the accompanying contradictions and emotional impacts.