Artist: Uno Hype
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Uno Hype, as his stage name hints, epitomizes the mantra “fuck the hype.” Known for his bold persona and sharp lyricism, the Maryland native has quickly established himself as one of the brightest rising stars in the DMV area. Though he’s been rapping for a while, the rap pioneer initially gained national attention after featuring on the late Capital STEEZ’s “HYPE/Beast” and later that year, oddCouple’s “Bombay State of Mind” alongside Chance The Rapper.
“My childhood was alright. I grew up with three older brothers in Maryland, right outside of D.C., Silver Springs. I was moving around a lot, playing basketball, sports, video games,” Uno states. Furthermore, music also played a crucial role in his childhood. He reminisces on listening to Lupe Fiasco, Kanye West, and Eazy-E amongst others. “Maryland is cool, it just depends on where you’re at. The energy you’re giving out is the same energy you’re going to get back. It’s that kind of place, I love it.”
Before diving into his music career, Uno Hype wittingly jokes about wanting to play ball before he eventually touched a microphone. “I definitely had NBA dreams. I was trying to play for the University of Maryland at one point,” he says. Gravitating towards music was fairly easy, his brothers used to rap at the time which sparked an artist in the young creative. “Me and my cousins would battle rap each other. We started making projects on cassette so we would plug in the headphone in the mic jack and record mono. We would rapper over beats in the background kind of like how people used to record voicemails.”
Throughout his career, Uno served as a member of rap group G.U.M.P, which made some major noise in the Washington, D.C. area. “I was always working on solo music, it was just now was a perfect time to put out everything we had been working on over the past couple of years. Situations started changing so I had a lot of time to put effort into my solo act,” he shares. Fast word to today, the Maryland rapper has shared stages with artists from Joey Bada$$ and Mac Miller to Tierra Whack and Logic to name a few. His years of hard work are finally coming full circle, allowing the artist to reintroduce himself to the world through a slew of singles and later this year, his debut project.
Towards the end of 2020, Uno released singles like “Leave,” “Color Me,” and “Deywun,” which collectively amassed hundreds of thousands of streams. Speaking on new material, Uno Hype emphasized, “It feels good, I feel like it’s just the first stepping stone to really making my mark on the game. This is just the beginning so it feels great because for a while I was making music, but I was just wasn’t putting it out. Seeing people react to it as tight because my music is a reflection of myself.”
Uno Hype’s 2021 debut project is slated to arrive this Spring. He’s been dropping a number of records in anticipation of the full-length release, including “Superman.” The standout cut touches on touches on giving out more than you receive and showing up for yourself. With the upcoming Sol Glo, Uno Hype looks to fulfill his promise, collecting his deepest thoughts and musical passions into a cohesive document that builds on his past and blazes a path towards the future.
Not looking back on his mistakes or things he could’ve done in the past, Uno Hype looks to be one of Maryland’s elite lyricists. We’re certain that with his soulful and nostalgic sound, it’s only a matter of time before Uno Hype’s music is praised all across the States. He’s perfectly content with playing the long game to reach rap’s pantheon, as shown by nearly a decade of spitting raps.
In terms of his musical journey, Uno Hype is selfless. He puts others before himself, which ultimately separates him from a lot of artists. “Remember me as a person, remember me for my music. My intention is to touch people, change lives, affect their day to day,” Uno states. “I want to be able to pay my mother bills for real put my nieces and nephews through college, and help my area come up. That’s really it, that’s my end goal.”
