June 15, 2020 - Bay Area hip hop artist & producer Chow Mane will release his gritty new single “Silk Road” feat. All Black on Friday July 3rd. As a continuation of “Silk Road”, his single “Xanadu” feat Oksami will serve as the B side to his classic cassette tape style music release. Self-produced by Chow Mane, “Silk Road” presents as a classic flex track with a dominant bassline. Lyrically, his sarcastic delivery touches on political topics such as presidential downfalls and problematic social issues. The climate is tense and Chow Mane isn’t afraid to address uncomfortable topics like racism toward Asian Americans in mainstream media. The reference to ‘silk road’ refers to the first modern darknet market that was used as a platform to sell illegal drugs. Popular Oakland rapper AllBlack chimes in with his flex verse, assisting the track in a synergistically pleasing way. References to ABG culture throughout, the track offers a bare bones, stripped down hip hop feel over buoyant instrumentals which organically lead into the B side track “Xanadu”.
The vibes of “Xanadu” immediately introduce a new feel; a more serious and mellow track, “Xanadu” touches on how fast our world has changed within the first half of 2020. Empathetic to the conversation most of us are having about if it’s really worth it to live in America, he realizes that he’s planted seeds here and he wants to see them grow. The track is entwined with topics like cultural appropriation and the racism toward the Asian community during the peak of coronavirus. With lines like “Covid-19 ain’t your excuse to beat us in the street, better not catch me I’m never weak, I’m stayin with the heat” it reminds us how difficult times can bring out the worst in people.
Coming off of his recent single “Late Nites”, the “Silk Road” / “Xanadu” release is undeniably the perfect follow-up. Chow Mane plans to deliver a steady stream of singles to his fans, leading up to his next project “South Bay Summer”. The lightheartedness of his new works offer true summertime vibes, taking a slightly different tone from his latest project “Simmering”. “Simmering”, celebrated his familial roots by incorporating vestiges of his family history. The project bounced back and forth from Mandarin-Chinese to English with a rhythm influenced by the bay area music scene. Chow Mane is an 88Rising competition finalist and easily one an artist coming out of the bay area that you should have your eye on.
