Newly christened as Career Crooks, the duo of bearded Philly bard Zilla Rocca and bearded Philly beatsmith Small Professor has been pressing up their patented digital dimestore variety noir-hop for the better part of a decade. Unfortunately, that time table doesn’t quite cater to industry standards. Whereas Label Owner A would prefer their facial hair a bit patchier and more tamable, Label Owner B lost interest after discerning no direct connection to the boom-bap or backpack era. [“Sorry, boys, if only you’d been born 10 years later or earlier.”] And both execs’ promotional teams would likely suggest trading in the everyman looks for trench coats and fedoras. [“You know, really work the whole gritty angle.”]
Still, a hard sell for bigwigs is easy money for side hustlers. And if these Career Crooks have a core demographic, it’s them, the full-time part-timers and vice versa, the last of the Three-Card Monte players, their exploits caught between the ‘er and ‘ed phases; those who represent the “Least Important Most Important” among us, the informally economized “creatives” performing unspeakable acts with and at untold costs.
Sin Will Find You: The Collected Works of Zilla and Small Pro is available at an unfair rate (name your price) in a back alley near you. Good Luck With That, the debut album by Career Crooks, drops early 2017. Premiering below, its first video single.
More about: Career Crooks, Small Pro, Zilla Rocca
