About Medhane
Hometown
New York, NY, United States
Genre
Hip-Hop/Rap
A key figure within the lo-fi New York hip-hop scene of the 2010s and 2020s, rapper and producer Medhane infuses his bars with intense reflection and poignant anecdotes. Working in near-constant collaboration with other members of the movement, the musician released his debut full-length, Own Pace, in November 2019.
Born and raised in Brooklyn, Medhane-Alam Olusuola excelled both in artistic and academic prospects from a young age. In addition to skipping two grades and attending the prestigious NEST+m academy, the young Olusuola was a regular figure at the Ifetayo Cultural Arts Academy, an arts organization working with children of African heritage. After enrolling at Pittsburgh's Carnegie Mellon University in 2014, he got his start in the music game, working with Slauson Malone as Medslaus on the explosive 2015 EP Greys in Yellow and the 2017 full-length follow-up Poor Boy. Medhane's solo debut was soon to follow; the EP DO FOR SELF landed in September 2017, with features from MIKE and Sixpress in a showcase of the lo-fi New York scene.
From here, Medhane moved from strength to strength. After the well-received Ba Suba, Ak Jamm EP (2018), and a plethora of featured work, the rapper released his first full-length project, Own Pace, in November 2019. With collaboration from Slauson Malone, Caleb Giles, and Navy Blue, among others, the project continued Medhane's work within the cutting-edge New York scene, delivering introspective slices of life over expansive production. A shorter project, February's FULL CIRCLE (2020), demonstrated Medhane's production skills while teasing the release of another full-length project. This album, entitled Cold Water, arrived in May that year. Featuring atmospheric soundscapes, poignant narratives, and a wealth of features (Maxo, Chuck Strangers, Navy Blue), the record consolidated the musician's emotive style. ~ David Crone
Medhane has also released music as a member of Medslaus.
