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Anthony Kannon & Chade Summerset dive into their collab EP Plug Talk 2
Anthony Kannon finished his 2021 in a masterful display of skill with the Chade Summerset produced EP Plug Talk 2. With five tracks of amazing production and Kannon doing exactly what he’s known for, this will go down as one of his best pieces of work overall. This is for true fans of rap and hip hop. The two even included the instrumentals of each song in their Bandcamp release.
Between the five songs of relentless lyricism, Kannon also recruited a few features that all came to play just as hard. Jayy Grams, Rellz of Icey LLC, K@T, and Noetic each understood the assignment and executed it to perfection.
We got a chance to chop it up with both Kannon and Chade about their incredible collaboration and what’s in store for the future of the two talented creatives. Read up on the full interview below.
When did you and Chade initially begin collaborating on music ?
Kannon– “Chade & I started making music together around the time the pandemic started. We had spoken before that; but never actually got any tangible work done. In 2018, he reached out via email and sent me a beat pack-but I don’t think we had any songs done until 2020. I finished recording Saint Kannon in Dec. 2019… by the time spring/summer of 2020 came, me and Chade had already started building a catalogue”
Chade how long have you been producing music?
Chade- ” The decade plus club! I’ve been around for a long time. By way of my record label SAMURAI SYNDICATE, there are 13 Chade Summerset albums out on streaming platforms since 2018. I was releasing independent albums prior to that too on platforms such as soundcloud and bandcamp. All of those albums have been taken down for some years now: those files are pretty rare at this point, but they’re definitely still out there!”
Plug Talk 2 is an immaculate project start to finish. Chade, did you have certain beats already in mind when the art cover came in? Or was the project put together prior to the art?
Chade– ” Describing Plug Talk 2 as ‘Immaculate’ is such a high compliment: I can only hope that it truly lives up to that notion as time passes moving forward. The project was actually put together and rendered towards a finalized state before putting the cover art together. I’ve handled all of the graphic design work during my music career either personally or with YungFlory, so the creation of the Plug Talk 2 cover is special to me because it required me to step out of my comfort zone & cross collaborate with two other artists: Nicko & SOEMS. The OG SOEMS is an underground graffiti legend from Boston whom I’ve been an avid fan of for many years now. From there, I took all of the collected aspects of my vision for the final cover into Photoshop & synthesized the final product.”
Kannon, your also very particular when it comes to your covers. Can you break down the meaning you specifically put into this one ?
Kannon– Besides for fitting a natural aesthetic; the covers have been a way that I can visually represent the music. This particular piece, I’m in love with. Nicko went absolutely crazy. It’s collage-like; every small image in the photo represents a specific song or theme from the project. For example, the $100 bill (20,000/Money Talk), The burlesque woman (Sundress), The pistol (Plug Talk 2), etc. Once we had the art, we reached out to a graffiti artist (SOEMS); they handled the text for ‘Plug Talk 2’. Chade took all the raw elements and brought it together for the finished piece“
Each feature on this brought their A game. What made you guys decide to take the direction you did with them?
Kannon-” I’m thankful for all of their contributions to the project. I’ll break down my thought process behind each artist…
Jayy Grams: Jayy Grams is somebody I’ve been listening to for a couple years now. My friends put me onto his music in highschool. He’s from Baltimore; my father’s side of the family is from Maryland. I spent A LOT of time there growing up. I knew we would have natural chemistry, I just had to get in contact with him. After a couple failed attempts reaching out; my friend Malcolm actually tweeted at him. Within a couple seconds, I had Jayy in my DM to work. It spiralled from there!
Rellz & Noetic: Rellz of ICEY LLC & Noetic are 2 artists that I do not personally know yet. I had these songs with open verses, and I was trying to figure out who to throw on them. Meech Booker was actually originally slated for ‘Death of Me’; and I had nobody in mind for Plug Talk 2. Chade told me straight up: “Trust me, I know exactly who to send these to”. He was RIGHT. We created amazing tracks; but most importantly, built relationships that will be here a long time. You can expect to see both of these names more with future music.
K@T: K@T speaks for herself! One of my favorite singers and R&B artists in this area. When I showed Chade “Sundress SZN”… we both knew it needed background vocals. It was missing a couple elements that K@T so elegantly brought. She sang with class, brought her own flavor to it, and really helped create a dynamic song that sounds nothing like I’ve ever made before.”
There’s a rumor that you two have over 100 songs in the vault is this true?
Kannon- ” I will say this… In the almost 2 years Chade & I have been working together; we have built an archive of songs that is deeper than a lot of rapper’s whole discography. Top to bottom. 100 songs is a lot of music, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we have more than that laying around on our computers”
Chade- ” Facts Only. Double Verified! We could play unreleased songs and bodies of work from the stash for an audience & I think true fans of Hip-Hop would lose their fucking shit “
In that case is it safe to say there will be more collaborations coming from you two in the near future?
Kannon– “This project will not be the last thing you hear from us. In fact, it is literally just the beginning. I spent the first six months of working with Chade creating an album that is NOT Plug Talk 2. We finished the album… but I had more beats. I brought up the idea to Chade of making a smaller, more palatable EP-that could act as an introduction to some of the deeper and extensive work that we have. That’s how we ended up with this 5-song collection of appetisers. The main courses have yet to arrive.”
Chade- “ Through working together closely towards one common goal, we’ve developed a natural trust in one another and won’t release music unless we both
fully sign off on the drop. If it’s any hint as far as that’s concerned, let’s just say that we’re definitely back in the post-production phase of our next
offering!”
Will any of them possibly have merch along with them?
Kannon- “Absolutely. I don’t want to give anything away, but we have been figuring out the best way to roll everything out. I have physical CD’s now, and plan to have physicals for anything I release. We had sweatsuits designed out of the cover; but never pulled the trigger on it. That could happen at any moment. I will say this; one of the next things that my mind is dead-set on: Vinyls. I need vinyls of this project, and the future projects we have down the road.”
Q: Chade, are there any other Upstate artists that you’ve tuned into and are interested in working with?
Chade- ” I operate on an international scale, however, my eyes & most importantly my ears are always open. My inner circle is pretty much air tight, & I try my best to keep my sound and aesthetics exclusive. Some of the artists I’ve been quietly recording albums with include Fresh Daily, Rellz & Sone of ICEY LLC., DJWRECK1NE, and NOETIC. Anyone interested in working with me: I’m always open to hearing out a serious business proposition. If anyone wishes to reach out to me regarding beats or whatever else, you can hit my line directly via: chadenmngmt@gmail.com or DM me on Instagram or Twitter!”
What else can we expect to see from you guys in 2022?
Kannon- “2022 is going to be the year I finally show folks what I’ve been working on. Plug Talk 2 was the first domino to knock down, and it’s going to snowball into something insane. I have so much content that I’ve created the past 18-24 months, and it is finally time to let it go. You can expect an onslaught of new material. I don’t want to say too much; or get anybody too excited; but if you’re a fan of my music, it’s going to be a very very good year for you. In my opinion, the best one yet”
Chade- ” Mo’ Fiyah.”
Check out Plug Talk 2 on streaming services now. It’s also available for purchase on bandcamp. Stay connected with Anthony Kannon and Chade Summerset through their social links below and don’t forget to keep supporting your locals!!
Anthony Kannon-
Chade Summerset-
Written By: Joshua Chaffer
Published: January 5th, 2022