Brooklyn producer August Fanon picked up a cult following after handling the majority of Mach-Hommy’s 2016 breakthrough HBO, but went relatively quiet in the ensuing years. It was only a rare few who could pick up a full collab, and more often than not he just left placements for the Dump collective or other relative (and respectfully) no names. He’s also got a great EP with Defcee that delves into graf culture.
Thankfully, Fanon has picked up steam again over the past couple years and is seemingly willing to lace anyone; is it his versatile, sample heavy production bringing the most out of these MCs as they step up to the plate, or is he carefully curating his catalog of underground legends and up and comers alike? No matter the case, 2024 saw him amass even further respect as he put in work on tons of new music and has fans checking for artists they might have never heard of otherwise. Each soundscape is so different and meticulously crafted to help elevate these indie artists.
Here, we’ll discuss some of the highlights for August Fanon in 2024.
Blackchai – Otherwise a Blur
A super under the radar release, Otherwise a Blur shows that August Fanon isn’t afraid to dip into the weirder lofi side of hip-hop, rather than maintaining the old head soul motif. Blackchai sounds like he would fit right in with Ta$e Grip, heaving cascades of breathy bars all about Black justice and classism. Fanon does more than just send beats though – there are interludes a plenty that stretch the runtime and really add character to this album.
Listen to Otherwise a Blur
Vic Spencer – Psychological Cheat Sheet 5
The fifth installment in Vic Spencer and August Fanon’s collab series Psychological Cheat Sheet is more of a statement for Vic than August; this being one of his best career years, he also dropped the gripping Being the Bigger Person Sucks, and a long awaited tribute album to Sean Price. PCS5 really sees both him and August doing more of the same, with August in his comfort zone. That’s obviously not to say anything bad though, as they always bring out the best in each other. You might even argue that Vic is the quintessential August Fanon collaborator over Mach at this point.
Listen to Psychological Cheat Sheet 5
7×3=21 – The Intentional Whatever
Minneapolis has a nice lineage of indie rap, and 7×3=21 is one of it’s most important, undersung pieces. An alias of Kevin Beacham, a key figure in backpack history, he shines a light on 3Wisemen Enterntainment as a label worth diving into, hopefully in the vein of Doomtree and Rhymesayers. On The Intentional Whatever, Fanon matches the energy and dives into a rare, almost industrial bag that grows very dissonant and lofi in a way that even Blackchai didn’t approach. It almost felt like they were just fans of eachother and wanted something fun to challenge each other with. It’s cool to hear someone like Beacham who’s been around for so long and done it all in this scene working with August as both of their reaches grow in all different directions.
Listen to The Intentional Whatever
Kendall Spencer – The Trauma Center (pt. 1 & 2)
Florida MC Kendall Spencer is one of my favorite discoveries this year – and it’s largely thanks to the August Fanon cosign. They connected earlier this year on Pearl’s Prayers, a tribute to his grandmother, while The Trauma Center is a deep dive into his psyche after a near fatal accident that left him an amputee and in with a months long hospital stay. Between his commanding voice, Fanon’s bleak samples, and the vulnerable lyrics, it makes for a truly haunting listen that speaks to his perseverance.
What’s interesting is that Spencer’s early work, such as Total Package, is so different; full of Lex Luger type beats and generic hustling lyrics, it’s clear that his life experiences since then and a kick in the ass from August Fanon brought a completely new artist out of him.
Listen to The Trauma Center
This isn’t even a comprehensive look at Fanon’s 2024 work, but just some full-length highlights (not to mention some with TheFoodLord and Doof/Escee). He recently posted a recap of his own which includes placements on some of my favorite albums of the year, including the likes of Elucid, Ty Farris, Akai Solo, Obijuan, Mach-Hommy, and more.
Better yet, it seems like August is poised for another strong year in 2025, teasing collabs with Blu and Fatboi Sharif, among others – I even got the man Aler Himself looking for a payment plan. It’s great to have August Fanon as one of the most prolific and committed producers in the game after half a decade of elusiveness.