SXSW Review: Noname, March 15, Cheer Up Charlie’s

Noname

One of the up and coming acts at SXSW that received a lot of hype coming into Austin, Noname played a packed show at Cheer Up Charlie’s at midnight on Wednesday night to much enthusiasm. Also known as Fatimah Warner, Noname came to the forefront with her association with Chance the Rapper (including a SNL appearance) and listening to her set, you can see that they have similar tastes in the way their songs are constructed. Perhaps it’s a Chicago thing, but Noname also likes to rap over laid back jazzy vibes with the piano playing a big part in the tracks. It’s chilled out mellow rap which is seems to suit Noname’s personality which seems to be laid back, and chill.

Noname brought a full band with her for the showcase, which is definitely not the norm with hip hop acts. They added a nice organic touch to the music. Her set on Wednesday had sound problems but that did not deter the crowd from showing it’s appreciation despite Noname’s disclaimers (she mentioned how her monitor was messed up and she was feeling all vulnerable on stage, but just went with it). It’s actually kind of crazy how in the past few years, more and more hip hop artists are comfortable with saying they are anxious or awkward on stage. Is it a Drake thing? I don’t know.

Anyways, here’s a tune by her

Posted on by Ricky in South By Southwest

About Ricky

Britpop lovin Chinaman, consumer of all things irrelevant. Toronto Raptors fan.