ATL Rapper RETRO Heads to Compton for Visual of 2pac-Inspired Single From The Six Mixtape, Premiering via HipHopDX

Video: RETRO – “How U Want It” (feat. Lor Taj)

ATL Rapper RETRO Heads to Compton for Visual of 2pac-Inspired Single From The Six Mixtape, Premiering via HipHopDX

07.28.2014

Critical Praise for RETRO:

“…RETRO slips in clever asides too, like a sly reference to Rick Ross getting dropped from Reebok after his molly-all-in-her-champagne debacle.” – The FADER

“RETRO is coming out the gates strong.” – The Smoking Section

“The edgy track combines some off the wall production with an unorthodox flow in carving out a total experience for new listeners seeking alternative hip hop freshness.” – Earmilk

“[We] can assure you that RETRO and the rest of the Rocket Team are gonna be the new faces of Hip-Hop.” – Fly Little Things

“RETRO and his crew definitely deliver.” – PotholesInMyBlog

The Video:

While sneaking into the BET Awards and taking photos in front of Steve’s Market (the gas station from the movie Friday) were priorities during RETRO’s trip to Los Angeles, his reason for visiting was to shoot a visual for his forthcoming single, “How U Want It,” which loosely pays homage to 2Pac’s song of the same title. “If I was gonna do an L.A song, I wanted to go where the roots of L.A. hip-hop started,” says the 22-year-old who lived in Detroit until age 13, at which point he moved to Atlanta.

RETRO and his crew shot scenes throughout the city from Venice Beach to Compton, where “the block looked like a scene from San Andreas,” says RETRO. “I was on the corner shooting the video, I got on all red, and in the midst of dancing and entertaining, this guy that looked just like CJ came down the street on a motorcycle and he just stared at me the whole time.” He adds with a laugh: “I knew that it was time to go when it started looking like there was a swap meet about to go down.”

The youngest sibling of six, RETRO’s mother challenged her children to be creative, once forcing them to come up with their own song. “Y’all have two hours to go and make up your own song or I’m beating y’all,’” he recalls. “We all had to write our own verses. That’s why I’m never scared to perform, because that first time the pressure was on. She took us to a professional studio to record the song and I have it to this day.”

Earlier this year, RETRO performed on a multi-city tour with Rich Homie Quan and Riff Raff. Expressing his love and gratitude for the opportunity, he confidently says “I’ve learned that performing is my favorite part about the music. I’ve seen crowds of thousands and thousands of people, but I don’t get nervous. I was born for this.” The Six will be released August 6th and will include “How U Want It,” as well as Retro’s previously released singles, “1946” and “Resist,” which debuted via Potholes In My Blog and the The Smoking Section.

Check out the HipHopDX premiere: http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/videos/id.17107/title.retro-how-u-want-it-

Watch “How U Want It”: http://youtu.be/zO2sCayKO0U

Please contact Michelle or Rory if interested in talking with RETRO.

The Background:

After moving to Atlanta from Detroit with his family at age 12, RETRO found a whole new host of melodies to fall in love with, from the work of Jermaine Dupri to the then-recently released OutKast LP, SpeakerBoxx/The Love Below. He found inspiration in a whole new sound. “I love Atlanta hip-hop to a certain extent,” he says, pausing. “I’d be lying if I said Atlanta didn’t help me become who I am.” The ability to flip between a Midwestern flair and the flashiness of Atlanta’s rap scene makes RETRO’s lane unparalleled, but beyond the music he has countless other goals that he and his Rocket Team, a crew of 15-plus, plan on executing. His forthcoming mixtape, The Six, is due this August.