Kalil Johnson

While others spend their entire rap careers trying to prove that their roots are concrete, Kalil Johnson feels no need to. Born and raised in Newark, New Jersey, Kalil wrote his first rhyme at the age of 18 battling a plethora of rappers on hip-hop battle sites. After spending a short stint at Norfolk State University in Virginia, he realized that hip-hop was in fact his true passion. Kalil knows how to get a crowd hype, bring them back down to earth, then leave the stage ablaze again with high energy. It's because of this style, as well as his very original sound, that his career has catapulted at such a high level in the New York City hip-hop scene. In the years, Kalil has played at Public Assembly, Highline Ballroom, the legendary End of the Weak, The Bowery Poetry Club, Crash Mansion, and not to mention a few college shows in Saratoga Springs, NY. He's released two critically acclaimed, fully-independent LP's, The Exit Method (2010), and Kingdom (2012).