SXSW Hip-Hop Day 1 Report

Day 1 of SXSW started off as we headed downtown to the Whisky Bar where Carnival Beats was putting on a showcase for their current roster of artists. The turnout was nice, as a mixture of fans, A&R's, and other industry representatives, were all in attendance. Salih and Tomar had the chance to debuted their new alternative group, Meteor Street Massive. Other showcasing artists included Nac, Swift, and Mookie Jones. Chingo Bling was also in the building showing his support to the entire Carnival family.



Next, we headed a few blocks east to Club Fuze for the Bun B show. The entire night was a tribute to the late Pimp C of UGK. DJ Rapid Ric was the DJ for the night and immediately started the tribute vibe with a variety of UGK records. The show kicked off with performances by the Circle G'z, Sly Cat, Public Offenders, Gerald G, and Chalie Boy. They crowd responded quite well to the Public Offender, Gerald G, and Chalie Boy performances. Gerald G brought out Bavu Blakes to assist on one of their collaborative efforts.

Around 11:30PM, the UGK family began to take the stage. There were performances from Bankroll Jones, B Do & T.O.E., XVII, Hezeleo & Big Bubb, Viscious, and the MDDL FNGZ. Pimp C's mother and youngest son were present as Bun B took to the stage. UGK had two different performances at last years SXSW, so seeing Bun without Pimp again was hard to digest for everyone. Bun performed a variety songs and even brought out Dizzee Rascal to share the stage with him for a track. The night ended with Bun performing the UGK Grammy nominated hit "International Players Anthem".

The night belonged to Bun B and the UGK family.

In all, a great day.

(More photos coming after SXSW)