Photo by Gabriel C. Pérez
It starts with a wiggle in the toes and in mere seconds it’s become a bounce of the knees. Hips move back and forth, shoulders start to sway, and finally even the fingers have a mind of their own – it’s an infectious rhythm that can’t be ignored. Hip-hop duo Riders Against the Storm are taking over bodies all over Austin one brilliant beat at a time.
Back in 2013, Chaka and Qi Dada were the first hip-hop group to win an Austin Music Award for Band of the Year and they’ve won the award every year since! RAS has opened for artists like Wu-Tang Clan, Talib Kweli, Questlove, Yasiin Bey (Mos Def) and many many more. Radiating optimism and conviction, the energy behind RAS is a force to be reckoned with – it’s funky, it’s soulful, it’s a morning cup of coffee and a night out dancing.
As summer comes to an end, embrace the Texas heat with one of three Riders Against the Storm performances:
Music Under the Star – Friday, July 22nd @ Bob Bullock Museum
Body Rock ATX’s 6th Annual Michael Jackson B’Day Party – Saturday August 20th, 2016 @ Antones
Riders Against The Storm Day w/ Sun Ra Arkestra, SIP SIP, & Tameca Jones – August 27th, 2016 @ Kenny Dorham’s Backyard
It’s been three years since KUTX had Austin’s favorite hip-hop duo in Studio1A, but Chaka and Qi dropped by with this week for a session with our very own Jay Trachtenberg. Check out the performance down below.
–Roxanne Zech
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