But even before that, in 2010, UG released a project — and like most rappers’ first mixtapes, it’s nothing that reflects where he is now. While he’s still trying to feel out his sound, it can be said that he does have a penchant for whimsically flirtatious wordplay, vocal manipulation, and verses that, lately, sonically lean more toward singing rather than rapping. While the depth of his content might not yet be robust, he can certainly pen a catchy hook. “One thing I’ve noticed is like shit that I tweet will probably be in my lyrics,” he says.
Technically, though, UG only moonlights as a rapper. His nine to five is nursing — and that’s something that makes its way into his songs, too, like on “Bussin’,” where you can hear a few odd quips about human anatomy. “They say beauty’s skin deep / Let me see your cerebellum / Super soak that hoe / Got me feeling like I’m soulja tellum.”
Indeed, for whatever reason, Chicago has an uncanny ability to churn out musicians. Each new rapper that springs from this city is some sort of testament to Chicago’s vitality and longevity. And this night, in an empty-space-turned-gallery in West Town, it was just another one of those many moments where the city’s emerging rappers are continuing to stake claim. That, although Chance the Rapper and Chief Keef are damn near household names at this point, this is just the beginning — there is a lot left to prove.
As Supa Bwe takes the stage, UG stands to the side, his white, short-sleeved button-up shirt soaked in sweat, his blue ballcap slung low over his face — the laces on his Dr. Martens boots loosely tied. But the grin UG had while performing still hasn’t faded.