Iamsu!’s HBK Gang Releases Video For Lead Single, “Go Crazy,” Off The Gang Forever Mixtape

Video: HBK Gang (Iamsu!) – “Go Crazy”

West Coast Crew Releases Video For The Lead Single From Their Gang Forever Mixtape, Available Now on iTunes

09.03.2013

Critical Praise for Iamsu!:

Best New Artist – SPIN

“[Iamsu!] is making some of the catchiest and most pleasant music in all of rap right now.” – Stereogum

“[Iamsu!] is very easy to like, and…he flashes an intensity to match.” – Pitchfork

“Iamsu!’s growing buzz is warranted and this is shaping up to be a big year for him.” – Complex

Gen F featured artist – “Iamsu! asserts himself as a hip-hop tour de force with fluid, confident rhymes.” – The FADER

“It truly seems that Iamsu! is incapable of making a bad song.” – VICE

The Video:

HBK Gang, the West Coast super crew made up of Iamsu! (who will be performing at Rock The Bells in San Bernadino, CA, September 8th and in San Francisco, CA, September 15th), producer P-Lo (of The Invasion), Sage The Gemini, Skip, Rossi, CJ, Jay Ant, and Kool John, recently released their first collaborative mixtape, Gang Forever, available now on iTunes. Today Complex premiered the visual for their lead single, “Go Crazy,” directed by Ebhodaghe “Daghe” Esoimeme. The video, shot in various locations throughout Oakland, California, displays a different portrait of the Bay Area than what most are used to seeing in mainstream media, which was something that was of extreme importance for both the crew and the director.

“The background for the video was to portray the Bay Area as it is and not just some cluster fuck of turf dancing, dreadlocks, gold teeth, old-school cars and side shows,” says director Daghe, “I was just trying to show the diversity and culture of the Bay.” Having participated in the monthly East Bay Bike Parties for the past few years also inspired Daghe and the crew to capture that scene and incorporate it into the visual. Serendipitously, the bike ride began at Fruitvale Station, a location recently spotlit after the release of the homonymously titled film chronicling the murder of Oscar Grant by BART police on the train platform, creating yet another opportunity to re-contextualize Oakland’s often negative reputation in mass media. “I thought it was important to show that the Fruitvale Station is more than a movie,” Daghe continues, “[It’s] our day to day life…[and] I wanted to also portray the station and area in a lighter way.”

Capturing the bike ride was also an effective means of displaying Oakland’s ethnic, cultural and social diversity in an integrated rather than divisive context. “This is an all-inclusive bike ride,” explains Daghe, “Hipsters, thugs, regular folks, teachers, people from all walks of life in the Bay. Everybody at the bike ride was familiar with the HBK and Iamsu!’s music so its just turned into a party!”

Up next for the crew is Iamsu!’s headlining tour, the HBK Forever Tour featuring Kool John and Jay Ant, presented by Pink Dolphin. The tour is currently underway and wraps up Reno, NV on September 22nd.

Watch the video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KP9yxahwKA

Check out the Complex premiere here: http://www.complex.com/music/2013/09/video-premiere-hbk-gang-go-crazy

Download Gang Forever on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/gang-forever/id690125959

Download Gang Forever on LiveMixtapes: http://www.livemixtapes.com/mixtapes/23289/hbk-gang-gang-forever.html

Purchase tickets here: http://hbkgang.com/

Tour Dates:

Fri. Aug-23 Portland, OR @ Roseland Theatre w/ E-40

Sat. Aug-24 Vancouver, BC @ Fortune Sound Club

Mon. Aug-26 Seattle, WA @ Nemos

Tues. Aug-27 Spokane, WA @ The Center

Thu.Aug-29 Salt Lake City, UT @ The Complex

Fri. Aug-30 Denver, CO @ Cervantes

Sat. Aug-31 Ft. Collins, CO @ Hodis

Mon. Sep-02 Albuqerque, NM @ Launchpad 1H

Tues. Sep-03 Flagstaff, AZ @ Green Room

Wed. Sep-04 Tucson, AZ @ Club Congress

Thu. Sep-05 Phoenix, AZ @ Club Red

Fri. Sep-06 San Diego, CA @ Porters Pub

Sat. Sep-07 San Luis Obispo, CA @ SLO Brew

Sun. Sep-08 San Bernadino, CA @ Rock The Bells

Wed. Sep-11 Santa Barbara, CA @ Velvet Jones

Thu. Sep-12 Bakersfield, CA @ B-Ryders

Fri. Sep-13 Whittier, CA @ Whittier College

Sun. Sep-15 San Francisco, CA @ Rock The Bells

Wed. Sep-18 Fresno, CA @ Strummers

Thu. Sep-19 Chico, CA @ Senator Theatre

Fri. Sep-20 Santa Cruz, CA @ Catalyst 201H

Sat. Sep-21 Sacramento, CA @ Ace of Spades

Sun. Sep-22 Reno, NV @ Knitting Factory

Please contact Michelle or Dan if interested in talking with Iamsu!.

Iamsu! Background:

2012 was nothing short of a breakout year for Iamsu!. The 22-year-old popped up with a triple-threat performance on LoveRance’s ”UP!,” which Su! produced, penned the hook for, and guested on with a scene-stealing verse. The song peaked at number one on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart, and in the midst of that success, Su! again delivered a fan-favorite verse on a big-time radio single, this time with E-40′s”Function.” Su! followed that success with a solo mixtape, KILT, and the critical acclaim came in droves, as the project was hailed by SPIN as their Rap Release Of The Week, with the outlet also naming Su! as one of their 5 Best New Artists for June ’12. Su!’s been plenty busy since – a west coast tour; a collaborative mixtape with Jay Ant; a standout collaboration with Wiz Khalifa, “Bout Me,” that appeared on Khalifa’s Cabin Fever 2 and will also show up on his sophomore album, O.N.I.F.C. Iamsu! released mixtape $uzy 6 $peed, which was released exclusively through LiveMixtapes on November 10th. The tape was presented by Bay Area streetwear company Pink Dolphin, which released an exclusive t-shirt and hoody for the tape. Iamsu! is back to work already in 2013, with the recent release of Million Dollar Afro, a collaborative mixtape with Compton rapper Problem. The two West Coast rappers co-headlined their own Million Dollar Afro Tour to support the mixtape. Most recently Iamsu! released his new solo mixtape, KILT 2, in conjunction with LiveMixtapes, which is available now, as well as the remastered deluxe edition, which is available via iTunes.