kev-choice-silver-lining-premiere

Photo: Courtesy of JP Cutler Media

Kev Choice and Fellow MCs Find the “Silver Lining” in Social Distancing (premiere)

On "Silver Lining", Kev Choice is joined by a collective of Bay Area rappers to reflect on positive efforts in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kev Choice is a Bay Area establishment. A prolific Oakland artist, Choice is an MC, bandleader, and multi-instrumentalist; he is also a music teacher at the Oakland School for the Arts and a governor in the Recording Academy’s San Francisco chapter. While 2020 looks as different for Choice’s best-laid plans as it has for most of us, he’s making the best of what has been made available to him. Shelving an EP release with his new band, Black London, for the time being, Choice had opted to collaborate with a collective of Bay Area rappers for an album entitled Social Distancing. Having dropped on 10 April, Choice is joined by Mistah F.A.B., Kevin Allen, Martin Luther, Jennifer Johns, Lalin St. Juste, members of Black London and more on the new LP.

On “Silver Lining”, Choice collaborates with the aforementioned F.A.B. and Allen, alongside Brookfield Deuce and Mani Draper. The MCs form a quintet, each getting a step up to the mic to share a verse that reflects on their life amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Each beat takes a positive spin—a refreshing twist in light of the world at this moment. The artists reflect on issues that are affecting many of us, from working at home, to self-isolation, religion, and parenting in the midst of quarantine, and more. Its music video is edited and directed by Salvatore Fullmore, with additional footage by Silence Dem All and Choice himself, offering a picturesque look at Oakland at-present.

Choice reflects, “With all this going on in our nation right now, it’s important to listen to voices, especially voices of Black men, who’ve endured so much, but can still provide very introspective, positive and real perspectives on our situations dealing with the pandemic, racism, and many other issues we face. This song offers thoughts from five gifted Bay Area MCs on how to find light in the darkest situations and hope in very dire situations.”

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