This year has been incredible, and 2013 is shaping up to be the year Boston makes a national statement with its abundance of talent and drive.

Before 2012 draws to a close, though, there are a few notable events that are going to help put an exclamation point on the final week and the year as a whole.

On Wednesday, 12/26, Cam Meekins will be performing at the Middle East Upstairs. Doors open at 7 PM, and tickets are available for $10.

Also, Cam will be at Laced Boston (569 Columbus Ave) at 5 PM the day of the show for an in-store event.

On Thursday, 12/27, Bigg Dee and the #ChefBoyz will be headlining Villa Victoria (85 West Newton Street) as part of Big Tyme Promotions’ Double Cup Potion concert. Doors open at 9 PM, and tickets are available for $10 before 11:30 PM and $15 afterwards.

And as a bonus, Dee just announced on Twitter that he’ll be performing two new joints at the show. Don’t miss out.

And to complete the back-to-back-to-back string of Boston hip-hop events, Michael Christmas‘s FXCK AN EP Release Party will be taking place at Kyoto Jungle (50 Gloucester Street) on Friday 12, 28. Though Cam and Bigg Dee’s concerts are sure to be great, the Michael Christmas Party will likely be just about as rare and festive as an occasion could possibly be. The event will be live-streaming online, courtesy of Annie Mulz, so if for some reason you can’t make it to the party… maybe you’d like to observe what you’re missing out on from the comfort of your living room.

This event is FREE. Expect live performances, music, drinks and much more.

See all three flyers below for more details, and contact @TheFreshHeir on Twitter if you have any further questions.

As any follower of The Fresh Heir should know by now, Chuuwee is without question one of the most consistent – and one of my personal favorite – rappers in the game right now.

The Amalgam Digital representer already released one of this year’s standout projects in Crown Me King back in April, but he’s back for more and has a brand new free album releasing TOMORROW. I’ve been highly anticipating Wildstyle! for several months, and judging by the handful of tracks off the project that have already surfaced, Chuuwee has yet another winner on his hands.

Amalgam Digital CEO Next Anyextee hooked TFH up with an exclusive track off Wildstyle! to premiere to the world, so with that, I proudly present “Boom Bap Flow,” a smooth, jazz-influenced record produced by WhoAreI.

Listen and download below, and stay tuned for more. Wildstyle! releases at 12 PM (EST) TOMORROW, exclusively at LiveMixtapes.com – Follow the countdown HERE.

Two days ago, Natural released the second project of his young career, the highly-anticipated 20 Something EP.

The #12For12 affiliate has been making major moves since he dropped The Bartender a little over a year ago, and from front to back, 20 Something is a tale of both immense progression and of a 20-something-year-old hip-hop artist on a journey unlike any other.

The project has hard rhymes and crafty wordplay throughout, and whether it’s on passionate, story-driven records like “February” and “Grand Marquis” or anthemic hits like the already infamous “Bump That” or the monstrous, Famous Nobodies-assisted “Monster,” Natural commands the mic and proves his ability like never before.

On top of what Natural brings to the table, the production on 20 Something is phenomenal – another reason for the step up from his debut mixtape. Stay Puft handles five of the eleven joints, and other credits include Teddy Roxpin (Mac Miller, Chris Webby, Dillon Cooper, etc.), Sal Capone, Peacock, eone, and Raw B. The sounds vary throughout, but they all mesh well, creating a truly cohesive product.

20 Something is a hit from an up-and-comer just 16 months into his rap career, and if the jump in quality from this project to Natural’s next matches the jump from The Bartender to this, he’s going to be turning a lot of heads for a long time to come.

Listen to “Go To Work” – the first single off 20 Something – right HERE, and download the mixtape in its entirety below.

DOWNLOAD: Natural – 20 Something

September 11th is a date unlike any other. For the past decade, it’s been a day of reflection, of uninhibited emotion… even of an enhanced sense of unity, in a way. Tomorrow, 9/11 arrives once again. But this year, in addition to the annual memorials, remembrances and tributes for the greatest national tragedy of our time, the date is bringing with it two of the most highly anticipated hip-hop albums to come out of Boston this year.

Natural and Avenue, two #12For12-affiliated artists, are releasing “20 Something” and “Words Speak Life,” respectively, on 9/11. Last week, I remember seeing Nat hit up Ave on twitter about possibly doing a joint freestyle together to prep both of their projects, and today… it’s a reality.

The two artists got up with DJ Real P, who recorded and mixed the track, and laid down one of the hardest freestyles I’ve heard from any duo this year. Appropriately titled, “9/11 Freestyle,” the track features both Natural and Avenue going in with the wordplay, referencing each others’ projects throughout, all centered on the common themes of unity, support, and of course, September 11th.

I’m proud to have the opportunity to premiere this freestyle – a true product of two hard-working, talented artists whom I’ve watched grow just over the course of the past several months.

Listen to/download Natural and Avenue’s “9/11 Freestyle” below, and no matter what, don’t forget to cop 20 Something and Words Speak Life – both for no charge – TOMORROW.

FOLLOW: @Natural617 || @avenueGF || @DJRealPFN || @TheFreshHeir

RAP GENIUS LYRICS & ANALYSIS

#12For12

One of the most anticipated projects coming out of Boston – Avenue’s Words Speak Life – is releasing in a few days, on Tuesday, September 11th.

With the exclusive listening party set to take place tonight, the #12For12 affiliated artist chose to leak one record off the ten track mixtape.

I’ve already played “The Scale” through several times, and it’s nothing short of a banger. You might recognize the third verse from the infamous #12For12 cypher that Avenue got things started with, but you’re definitely hearing the opening verses for the first time.

I can’t wait to hear the rest of Words Speak Life tonight. If you’re interested in doing the same, hit up @TheFreshHeir or @avenueGF on Twitter ASAP for details.

Don’t forget: Avenue – Words Speak Life, releasing on LiveMixtapes.com on 9/11

I’ve been away from the site for the past several days, and though a lot of great music has been dropped off since my last post, the latest from Dillon Cooper takes precedence over everything.

I don’t know if it’s biased to say one of my good friends is one of the best young rappers doing it right now, but I think you’ll start to agree with me soon if you don’t already.

Dillon has released three official videos to date (peep his YouTube channel for those), and in the middle of our 2K game one night last week, he decided he wanted a fourth.

“Richie Rich” is nothing official, but it’s an effortlessly smooth (written) freestyle by Dillon – over an incredible Jenova 7 x Esbe beat – that was captured on camera and edited perfectly by JMP Productions. Dillon dropped it the following day, and per usual, the reception from his fan base has been nothing but positive.

Look out for much more from Dillon Cooper in the near future as he continues to prep his debut mixtape, Season 1.

It’s been a little while since I’ve stumbled across an artist I’ve never heard of before and been incredibly impressed, but that drought has officially come to an end.

Out of Harlem, 18-year-old Dominic Lord just dropped this new track called “Old English” off his upcoming EP, Fashion Show (Sept. 6th), and I didn’t have to listen for more than 10 seconds to click that download button without hesitation.

The young emcee has a captivating voice and seems to already be carving out a niche for himself with a style truly his own. “Old English” is both catchy and creative, and it manages to be light-hearted with a certain mysterious air to it at the same time.

I did a little research, and though there are only two songs posted on his Soundcloud, I saw that the first, “Pierce,” was followed up with a set of accompanying visuals which Pusha T tweeted. Dominic is obviously well-connected despite just starting to get his career off the ground, so I’m very excited to see what comes of Fashion Show in a couple weeks.

Listen to and download “Old English” above, and peep the official video for “Pierce” (Prod. by Hudson Mohawke) below.

Shouts to Pigeons & Planes for putting me on.

Last month, a Boston-based hip-hop movement headed by The Fresh Heir and The Collab Projekt got publicly recognized with a feature story in the Boston Globe.

Along with the front page story came a video put together by Boston Globe photographer Brian Fuelner. The video was private when it was released with the story and could only be viewed with an online subscription to the newspaper, but Fuelner recently published it on his own site, meaning it’s now available for public viewing.

Watch above, and catch up with the #12For12 movement HERE if you feel like you’ve got a lot to learn.

Anyone that’s familiar with this site knows that although TFH is based in Boston, we have a pretty good grip on what’s going on in Chicago. In terms of the sheer amount of fast-rising hip-hop talent, there might not be a city that’s ahead of the Windy one right now. From artists like Chance The Rapper to Kembe X to Cashflow Ellis… the list goes on for a while… Chi-Town is killing it.

Pavy, a 21-year-old emcee from the same city, hasn’t made as much noise as some of the biggest names – not yet at least – but he’s steadily proving himself as one of the brightest young talents a city filled with buzzing artists has to offer.

I caught up with him several weeks ago and got to speak with him about everything from his latest project, Middle Class Ignorance, to his affiliation with S.U.H. Entertainment, to what the future and the album he’s currently working on – Theory of Defiance – has in store. Pavy also touched on he and Sir Michael Rocks’ joint track, “Heroin,” which is dropping THIS WEDNESDAY.

Pavy is an insightful, unique and above all, extremely talented artist who has a bright future in store. Enjoy the exclusive interview presented by The Fresh Heir, and be sure to stay tuned for more.

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TFH: Who are you? Introduce yourself for anyone who might not be familiar.

Pavy: I’m Pavy, a future cultural icon that really just wants to leave a legacy and doesn’t focus on too much else in life.

TFH: How did you get started rapping? And when did you realize it was something you really wanted to take seriously?

Pavy: Honestly, I just came home one day after my freshman year of high school and thought to myself, “You know what, I’ma write a rap today because I need to release from all of the problems I’m going through.” But after a while it became a daily thing, and I really started to take it seriously around the age of 16. I basically clocked out of everything else in life to rap then.

TFH: Who are some of your inspirations in rap?

Pavy: No artist ever inspired me because growing up, no one spoke on issues that pertained to me. So my influences literally just come from everyday life and history. I’m a huge history buff.

TFH: What’s the scene in Chicago like?

Pavy: It’s cool, I don’t really submerge myself too deep in the scene here because my find is focused on taking over the world and not just one city, but it’s cool I guess. It’s a lot of people with buzes so that’s always great. It’s always good to see people prosper.

TFH: What’s been the defining moment in your career so far?

Pavy: I don’t think I’ll have one until like, I win a Grammy or stand on a stage in front of 100 thousnd people. Right now I’m pretty numb to everything. I don’t get happy or excited about too much because I really haven’t done anything, so I’m still waiting for that moment.

TFH: There was a good amount of buzz surrounding the release of Middle Class Ignorance. What was your goal with that album? How did you feel about the general reception to it?

Pavy: Honestly, when I started I just wanted to prove to myself that I could make a project and actually have it be good. But as time progressed, I really wanted to create a culture with the album and speak to people that hadn’t been spoken to in hip-hop before. As far as the reception, it was cool. I feel like a lot of people didn’t take the time to fully understand it, but the videos definitely helped a lot.

TFH: Do you have a favorite track off MCI?

Pavy: “The Uprising,” which is the intro, because it’s so personal to me… like, that’s literally my whole life put on a record for you to hear.

TFH: Talk a little bit about your label and your affiliation with The Boy Illinois, who’s now a part of it.

Pavy: It’s great man, everybody at SUH has their own sound and style. Like a lot of labels have five artists that are basically the same, but us we’ll all just do whatever the hell we want to do. And picking up Illi [The Boy Illinois] was great, man. He’s a great artist that I respect and it’s really cool to work with him. We’re actually working on a compilation called The Syndicate that we just recorded for tracks for. So look out for that.

TFH: Theory of Defiance, your next project – what can people expect from that? What are your goals? Any major features people can look out for?

Pavy: People can expect more energy, more personal lyrics and just overall progression. Like, people don’t know I finished MCI five months before it came out, so I’ve been working on TOD since August. And hell, I want this project to put me on the map. With the way things are, you never know what might happen so hopefully it gives me a much bigger fan base and stamps me like, okay, this guy right here is for real. As far as features, yeah, the first official single features Mikey Rocks. It’s called “Heroin,” and drops this Wednesday, August 8th.

TFH: How about the webisode series leading up to TOD? Can you give us some info on that?

Pavy: Yeah, basically it’s just my everyday life but in TV form. It won’t just be studio footage either because I don’t do rapper things all day. I’m a regular person. I chill and play video games too.

TFH: One of the first shots of the “Pointless Rap Song” video is you in a bumblebee suite holding up posters of Dikembe Mutombo (watch below). Talk about that track and what it means to be able to have fun with hip-hop.

Pavy: Yeah, I do a lot of serious videos but I just wanted to give the people something to laugh at, and Vic [Spencer] is hilarious anyway as a human being so I had to do something funny. As far as the track , I think people lost the message with the video. The song actually had meaning to it, I just thought it would be cool to name it our “Pointless Rap Song.” But basically the meaning was for all you other artists out there to SOP MAKING POINTLESS RAP SONGS!

TFH: Are there certain artists or producers you’ve really enjoyed working with?

Pavy: Yeah, as far as artists, just everyone that’s on SUH so that would be D2G, The Boy Illinois, Capital K and Mr. Gage. As far as producers, I’d have to say DC and Coop are my favorites to work with, they challenge me a lot sonically.

TFH: Outside of rap, what do you do? What’s your life like?

Pavy: A lot of history channel and a lot of staying at home. I don’t really like going out, like I hate parties and stuff like that. I’d rather just sit and chill.

TFH: What can people look out for in the near future?

Pavy: Definitely look out for that “Heroin” record with Mikey Rocks, then TOD later this year. Also, random records and hella videos as well as my webseries in between there.

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FOLLOW: @PavyWorld || @TheFreshHeir

LIKE: Pavy || The Fresh Heir (Facebook)

DOWNLOAD: Pavy – Middle Class Ignorance

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Interview flyer by @GoodwinWinsgood

Some more fire coming out of Chicago… what else is new? Femdot drops off this quick, hard-hitting video for “Chi State Of Mind,” putting a new, Windy City spin on the Nas classic.

This is the first I’ve heard from this kid, but now I’ll make sure it’s not the last. His flow grabbed my attention two seconds into the track, and with a clean Visual Mecca Ent. video to go along with it, “Chi State of Mind” is a dope all-around product that’s got me wanting more.

Shouts to the homie Pedro for putting me onto this one.