At the crux of Hip-Hop and Electronic music are producers that possess the credence and ability to live in both sonic worlds. Skyrocketing into stardom at this crossroads is Blunts & Blondes, who has continued to garner attention across the spectrum of the festival scene. Next month, the Florida-producer is set to unleash his debut album, Story of a Stoner – a hip-hop forward project backboned in dubstep production.
Next Wednesday, March 23, the producer releases the title track, “Story of a Stoner,” which emphatically communicates the producer’s ability to flourish in both spaces and further conveys his potential as a crossover star.
For longtime fans of B&B, “Story of a Stoner” starkly places listeners into an emo rap soundscape. Auto-tune heavy vocals from the producer himself rides slow moving production, which leads fans into a crunchy dubstep, chorus-backed drop.
Quote from Blunts & Blondes:
“I always have had a love for hip-hop and rap music. It’s what I listen to everyday. I also wanted to express myself a lot through the album and I think it was more effective to use lyrics. I think hip-hop has had an overwhelming influence on bass music and my own life. I thought it was the perfect harmony between genres.”
Raised as a military kid, Blunts & Blondes—real name Mike Guard—landed in Jacksonville, FL around high school. After bouncing around schools due to marijuana related incidents, he ended up in Tampa for college. Falling hard for the local music scene, which offers an amalgam of electronic and hip-hop communities, he began producing under his current moniker as an emblematic ode to his budding interests.
Shortly after, the producer earned a residency at The Ritz Ybor nightclub in the historic district of Tampa, where he learned how to play varying audiences every weekend. This included frequently networking with electronic acts that would tour through the state, as well as hip-hop artists that frequented the market.
The Blunts & Blondes live show picked up steam after a series of videos of him moshing in his own crowds went viral online. Soon after, he began picking up festival bookings at events like Okeechobee Music Festival, where a B2B with Boogie T and Ganja White Night furthered his credit in the festival scene. His momentum continued to rise amidst and following a nationwide, co-headlining tour with Subtronics, one of the largest touring bass acts in North America.
Today, Blunts & Blondes headlines his own nationwide tours, in addition to one-off billings such as the recently announced curated event at The Caverns (Pelham, Tennessee). Blunts & Blondes star power has earned him direct support slots with iconic acts like Excision and Zeds Dead, and recurring nods from fellow artists, such as his upcoming B2B performance with PEEKABOO at Ever After Festival.
The Blunts & Blondes catalog has garnered acclaim across multiple verticals as well. The producer has an official remix of Rebelution’s “Safe & Sound,” joint single with GRiZ, and in 2020, dropped a collaboration with Dj Afterthought that features Wiz Khalifa on vocals (“McQueen Dreams”). The latter offers a preview of what’s to come, as the future of Blunts & Blondes will find him exploring his background and love for the genre of hip-hop.
His debut album Story of a Stoner, out April 20, finds him at that intersection – offering a hip hop focused album that’s still flush with electronic production and collaborations. Smokepurpp, Yung Pinch and Lil West are all featured on the LP, in addition to high profile electronic collabs from Zeds Dead and fellow FL electronic star, Lucii.
A long way removed from his residency days in Tampa, Blunts & Blondes is ready to bring things full circle and display his inimitable approach to connecting with listeners all over.
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