City Natives Form Like Voltron, Listen to Their Rugged New Single, "Ruler"

Stream "Ruler", the lead single from City Natives' new album, Voltron.

Voltron is not just the title of City Natives' latest album, it's also an apt metaphor for the crew's collective power.

Energized by Indigenous camaraderie and lyrical skill, the New Brunswick and Nova Scotia-based quartet of MCs and producers—Beaatz, IllFundz, Gearl, and BnE—has consistently delivered some of the dopest hip-hop coming out of Indian Country.

Last year's Red City was one of 2014's finest releases, and this year the group returns with their latest effort, Voltron, the crew's third LP. Continuing to build on the strength of their established sonic palette—rugged rhymes paired with head-knocking production—the crew's consistency trumps all else; and they're becoming increasingly adept at interweaving the dextrous flows and intricate wordplay between each MC. Every track on Voltron bumps like a long lost classic posse cut unearthed from the dusty crates of hip-hop's bedrock foundations.

On "Ruler", the crew declares their supremacy as "natural born lyricists" committed to maintaining hip-hop's ethos of self-determination and self-made success. There's no denying their claim to a rightful place in hip-hop's pantheon of greatness—but as an Indigenous crew, they're harnessing a uniquely native set of superpowers that makes their collective form all the more compelling and dynamic in what it represents for the people.

And, not that we can take the credit, but all the way back in 2013, we hailed their imminent ascendance as "a young Native rap Voltron" poised for break out success. Looks like it's taken City Natives a couple years to grow into the title. But they've earned it.

Tour dates and album purchase info below.

STREAM: City Natives - "Ruler"

CITY NATIVES - TOUR DATES :: SUMMER 2015

June 24th - Kingsclear, NB @ Jedi June 26th - Halifax, NS @ Multicultural Festival June 30th - Elsipogtog, NB @ CC's Bar July 3rd - Eskasoni, NS @ Pow Wow July 12th - Antigonish, NS @ Evolve Festival July 19th - Fredericton, NB @ The Capital Complex July 31st - Fredericton, NB @ The Capital Complex August 1st - Listuguj, QC - @ Real Bar August 8th - Toronto, ON @ Planet Indigenous August 19th - Millbrook, NS @ Summer Games August 30th - Charlottetown, PEI @ Babas Lounge

City Natives' Voltron is available now on iTunes. Stream the full album on Spotify below:

Listen to City Natives' new album Red City

Rising east coast hip-hop crew City Natives are back with Red City, a new album of aggressive and confident hip-hop.

Following the swagger and sway of their potent 2013 debut, 4 Kingz, the quartet of MC/producers Beaatz, IllFundz, Gearl and BnE return with a continuation of their established artistic vision: to bring back the boom bap of 90s-era hip-hop classics and spin it effortlessly forward into 21st century stories of struggle and survival.

Red City storms through your speakers over ten tracks of rap bravado.

As the seamless pass-and-trade verses of the four MCs lock into position against a sonic backdrop of triumphant loops and memorable hooks, City Natives call out haters, celebrate their ascendance, and claim dominance over all rivals and competition.

With production duties on the record expertly handled by Beaatz, Juliano, and Grant Keddy, Red City paints a vibrant portrait of the living spirit of Indigenous hip-hop claiming its rightful place in the present.

STREAM: City Natives - "Red City"