ATSIC S05E15 - Alternative

There’s a full tracklist at the bottom in a spreadsheet if that’s what you’re looking for.

With Kendrick and Drake taking over everyone’s feeds and attention spans this week, I wanted to offer up an alternative to Universal Music Group music. Not that that wasn’t wildly entertaining, it was, but there’s a ton of talent out there going unheard, and the era where we have to allow the major label billionaires to gatekeep should end any time now. Drake was actually very early in the game in a position where he could have stayed independent from the jump, sold direct to fans, and set a precedent - he was already famous and had a ton of attention after his first mixtape, but a bidding war happened and he decided to sign to Young Money, Cash Money, UMG.

Anyways, this full of indie artists from across the country, but it starts with the new Ghostface single featuring Nas, as just as I ran out of Wu features to start every episode with, GFK swoops down on a golden eagle and drops off a bomb. Looking forward to hearing the full album next week when it drops.

I put this mix together to showcase trap from across the map this week, so it’s high bpms and big bass. I do my best to pick my favourites from all lane of Hip Hop and put theme mixes together to represent as many corners of the scene as I can find dope lyricism in. There are bigger artists making this style, but I really feel like guys who have hundreds of thousands of streams probably don’t need me putting any more attention on them, they’ll be alright. I just can’t fuck with some songs either, I play what I like most, no matter how many plays people have. That’s a part of DJing that I actually enjoy. An algorithm can tell you who’s most popular, a human can tell you what could be.

Some of my favourites on this mix were K-Blitz new one “100” with Crank Lucas, with an infectious hook and some catchy flows while still barring up'; “Ven Aqui” by Ezza & the Choom Gang, which resulted in my learning of 2 more words of Spanish when Dice told me the translation in Twitch chat; Calgary’s Toosick & Edmonton’s Deezy the Don spreading smoke on “Just Smudge Me”; Spitty back in his bag with “Pooja” featuring his Brampton homie Jarin Alab; and Junk & Massiah rapping from the POV of “Brittney Griner”. Lots of good stuff from coast to coast in here, with tracks from JustReid, Ramone & RunXGun’s J.O. Mairs, Haviah Mighty with Eva Shaw, Karisse G, 613tino, Fortee & yvngxsno, DillanPonders, Max Winds on a Diallo track, Mo Money Matteo, RaytheNihilist, and new tracks from Edmonton’s Yetsho and 7even7ide7moke. It’s a lot.

If you want to know more about what I thought about the individual songs, there’s a Making of #ATSIC stream posted below where I piece this episode together like a preschooler with a new toy, in slow motion. There’s some tech troubles with that set up still, so there might be some silent sections, bad sound quality ect. I’m still getting my shit together for these type of streams. The more people come through to chat with me the better they’ll be, so come through on Twitch for the next one and let me know if I forgot to turn the mic on.

If you appreciate the work we put in, help us out by building community on the social platforms (links at top and bottom of the page), sharing links, commenting, and dropping by for Twitch live streams to chat. If you want to join the email list, I’ll be happy to hit you with new episodes every week directly to your inbox. There’s a sign up at the bottom of the page, or you can msg me with your email on IG or FB or TT (or even X), or wherevers clever.

This episode is followed by a fairly inflammatory episode of Fly in Formation where Calgary emcee Sinzere told us what she really thinks. Check the FiF playlist for an archive of all the past guests.

Every week, I buy every song I play, unless the artist sent it to me, saving me a buck. I believe in buying music to support independent artists. Making music is time-consuming and expensive. Streaming doesn’t pay much at all, and since streaming has become the way most people consume music, it’s even more important to make sure to buy tickets, buy music (physical or digital), and buy merch from artists you want to hear more from. Streaming pays next to nothing, so if you want artists working on more music instead of working more shifts at their day job, you need to show them love by opening your wallet and giving them financial support.

Season 3 of my interview series Fly in Formation is soaring along in style, and I’m planning on double booking June. The most up to date schedule is posted below and June’s schedule will go online as soon as I have it. I’m trying to accelerate the momentum with twice weekly live streamed interviews next month, adding Saturdays to the regular rotation for a month to build up some extra content and take some time off in the summer. Make sure to hit follow on Twitch or subscribe so you don’t have to watch the ad breaks during interviews too. I love seeing the community pop up in chat to say hi during interviews.

Independent shows like After the Smoke is Clear also need support. If you enjoy the music; if you enjoy learning more about artists; if you want to see the Canadian Hip Hop scene documented; if you enjoy discovering new artists without digging and navigating the algorithms yourself; please consider supporting the show.

If you don’t have the funds to support right now, that’s fine. You can listen for free because other people who do have the money have donated. You get a free weekly show, I get paid for the work I spend the hours of my week doing.

Telling a friend is another great way to support the show, I appreciate everyone who helps spread the word immensely.

For those wanting to support the show financially, you can donate through PayPal. It's safe, requires no recurring sign-up, and puts money directly in my pocket. I use these funds each week to purchase all the music featured in the show. Supporting ATSIC is supporting indie artists, and that includes me personally. Thanks to the folks who help out.

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