For some of you who don't know I moved Portland, Oregon to find more opportunities and I love it so far. I love the city, the people are nice, and the food truck game (FUHD) is something crazy, But there was something missing though, BLACK PEOPLE. This is due to the history of gentrification (nearly 10,000 People of color, mostly black pushed out), turning it into a utopia for Mom and pops stores and retro/hipster shops. I come to find out Portland is the Whitest city in America. With that slight dilemma, I was on a quest to find my brothers and sister. Being on the bus and traveling around the city I spotted a few specks of pepper in a sea of salt.
After being frustrated in the lack of diversity, my roommate (A white buddy from Chico)introduced to the Black Portlanders facebook page (S/O to Inistar Abioto). The name is self-explanatory, but it is much more than a bunch of black folks located in portland all in a facebook group. It is a photographic journey across Portland and beyond that tells our story. And this where I found the music of MC Ripley Snell.
The 25-year-old rapper is more than a musician, he has an entrepreneur sense to him. He has been on his grind with clothing lines and collaborating with Indie-rap duo Safeword (Cruel Summer), and Dual Mode. The Chico, CA product has been rocking in Portland for almost a decade. His music has a great blend of nice melodic flow over a blend of jazz influenced, boom bap, and trippy beats.
His social commentary is very candid and necessary for hip-hop. He touches on topics such as living in Portland, Homelessness, racism, among other things. On his latest EP, 6 Natural Flavors he doesn't shy away from his social critiques with a melodic twist. Unlike most music out I thoroughly enjoyed the entire project. On my favorite track “Caramel Colors” he uses the term “gentri-fried chicken" and express feeling isolated from the Portland Spirit (Portland motto "Keep Portland Weird")because of his style. It's always great to find good music and this is one of the good finds.
Check out Ripley Snell's 6 Natural Flavors.
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