There’s a lot of people in the world, let alone our little pocket of the PNW, that are trying to make it in hip-hop as artists. Even more so, a lot of them all sound the same. It can be hard to stand out and be different in a flooded system, but some artists, like Icy Ike, find a way nonetheless.
Whether it be through personality and infectious energy, sound, or just flat out looking cool to other people, there’s no clear way to blow-up right now. It’s not just about making dope music, getting on your local radio, and BOOM you made it. It takes time and constant effort; and while you don’t have to create a whole new kind of music, you do need to bring at least a little something unique with your brand and sound.
Who is Icy Ike?
Icy Ike is relatively unknown in the grand scheme of things right now, having quickly built a solid fan following and popularity in Spokane. He has been working to expand his reach to the West side and further South to places like Seattle and Portland. If you look Icy up, you’ll see that he’s actually been putting up numbers. Several of his tracks on Spotify break the 20k mark, with one over 40k. That’s pretty impressive for someone who’s only been releasing music for about two years.
What’s more impressive is he’s done it simply by doing what came to him naturally. Not matching any current mainstream hip-hop convention, he lays down bars and keeps pushing limits. If I could compare him to anyone, it would be a cross of Tyler, the Creator and the late 6 Dogs.
I first got put on to Icy Ike by local videographer Lledrow with his track “D.T.N.T. (Day Time Night Time)”; this is where I first drew the 6 Dogs comparison. With a deep grumbly tone, Icy Ike’s flow is very punctual, smooth, and harmonic but still rough in an oddly euphonious way.
Check out Icy Ike’s latest music video drop for his track “My Issue” below, filmed and directed by Lledrow Multimedia.
Stream Icy Ike
Apple Music | SoundCloud | Spotify
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