Zimbabwean Portugal based Emcee Synik's new project is a concept EP produced by US Emcee/Producer Antagonist Dragonspit titled "The Industry"
With fluid storytelling, Synik unravels the plot of an underground emcee who is hunted down by 'The Industry' in order to assimilate his skills for nefarious ends.
On the opening act, simply titled "Like A Drug" Synik and Antagonist Dragonspit borrowed some sounds from Mobb Deep's Eye For An Eye and maintained the late 90's/ early 00's hip hop theme through out the project.
Synik began rapping driven by a desire to tell his own story through hip-hop music. With a largely introspective approach, his subject matter is diverse ranging from personal reflections to politically charged lyrics.
"The Industry is me exploring how I can expand the storytelling beyond a verse or a song." Synik shared in a statement. "I have never made bangers, In one way or another my music is built around telling stories, whether personal and at times really vulnerable ones like "Losing Sleep" , "Muripo" or fictional ones like some guy called Timmy having to bring fuel for the generator."
Being a bit of a cinephile, Synik draws inspiration from classic movies such as The Matrix in order to immerse the listener in the world in which one wrong move by the protagonist can lead to fatal consequences.
"I love telling stories and I'm happy with how this one comes together. Its very traditional hip-hop, so its a different vibe from the jazzy/smooth vibes I've been digging lately."
His releases include The Beta Version EP (demo), God Within as well as the ground-breaking debut album Syn City which was lauded as one of the more accomplished hip hop projects to come out of Zimbabwe. From Harare’s spoken-word and hip-hop scene Synik went on to perform at various festivals in Zimbabwe and other African countries.
Apart from his solo work Synik has done a number of collaborations in Zimbabwe and beyond including working with Depth as the duo Soular Rayze and being part of Jazza Experiment (Lisbon) which released an eponymous EP in 2017. In 2019 he released The Soulsteez EP with Austrian producer Phil Chronics.
Having performed on various stages in Portugal including festivals such as Outjazz, Festival Todos, +Jazz (Açores), as well as being featured on Portuguese band f.e.r.a's album Space (2020), Synik is already finding a space for his brand of hip-hop on the Portuguese scene and is currently working on his second studio album which enlists a global array of musicians and contributors. He recently released a concept EP, entitled The Industry. (2020)