Manny King John
Today, the Bronx’s Caleb Giles shares his brand new single. ‘Quicksand’ finds Caleb rapping urgently about the pitfalls and triumphs that accompany coming of age in the city. Caleb’s blissfully heady rhymes are rounded out by a characteristically hazy verse from fellow rapper-producer Pink Siifu.
“The song to me is about hope”, explains Caleb. “Sometimes in life, it feels like you’re sinking into your circumstances. You have to be able to believe in something greater than your current circumstance in order to pull yourself out of it.”
In addition to the new track, Caleb is announcing a new full-length project called ‘Under the Shade’ which will arrive this Summer. He will also play his first ever headlining New York City show at Baby’s All Right on July 10, where he will be joined by Pink Siifu and Syl.
At just twenty-one-years-old, Caleb Giles is at the forefront of the recent Rap renaissance taking place in New York City. Alongside peers such as Medhane, MIKE, and Slauson Malone, Caleb has helped foster a scene reminiscent of the early days of Rap in that it puts a high value on community and personal relationships. The sound that this new pocket of Rap has created is something entirely new, however. Using glitched out soul samples and sometimes jarring drum kits, the production that this scene is built upon can often sound as hectic as the busy streets of the city that birthed it.
A fully realized artist, Caleb also plays saxophone in Standing on the Corner, the eclectic New York City Jazz and Hip-Hop ensemble that had credits on both Earl Sweatshirt and Solange’s most recent records. His 2017 project ‘Tower’ turned heads with its technically impressive raps and established Caleb’s name as one to watch in New York’s crowded underground Rap scene. With his 2018 project, ‘There Will Be Rain’, which Pitchfork described as “a lovely melange of Jazz, Hip-Hop, Gospel, and Soul”, Caleb demonstrated true artistic growth which culminated in a gorgeous visual for his song ‘Wondering’. On ‘Under the Shade’, Caleb delivers on years of potential with his most complete body of work to date, combining his proficiency as a straightforward rapper with the more abstract artistic styles he explored on his past projects. Hear ‘Quicksand’ featuring Pink Siifu below.
