The 2014-2015 school year saw the overwhelming presence of DJ Clorbis, whose Ice-T-meets-Al-Yankovic-meets-early-Eminem sound swept the halls of Roosevelt seemingly overnight. With classics like F*** My Dad, Y’all Don’t Even Know, and #indastudio, DJ Clorbis became so popular that it prompted ‘15 Seniors to plaster posters featuring the stage name of the young rapper from Evanston, Illinois around the school.
However, the absence of a continued fandom has prompted the rise of a fresh face on the Roosevelt rap scene. Meet Antonio Diaz-Mitchell, better and more affectionately known as BigBone Tone or Young Tone, a current senior at RHS. Unlike DJ Clorbis, Tone takes the same approach to rap that you can hear in Lil Wayne and feel in Chance the Rapper, reviving the laid-back, give-no-s***s-style that you just can’t find in Fetty or Drake.
Beginning almost every track with a classic piano or synth intro, listeners are set up for some seriously sick trap rap. With original lines like “She got a bunch in her panties/I mean her panties in a bunch/And I’m eating all these n****s like Captain Crunch”, Tone makes way for an authentic, consistent rapping style with a relatable content theme: getting and having girls.
BigBone Tone began his rap career on SoundCloud in early 2015, with tracks like You Already Know, Stay Real, and Yeah Yeah, which feature fundamental verses that he sprinkles heavily with “n***a” and “p***y” as he pleases. Tone has developed his sound over time as his popularity has grown, expanding the simple theme of “I got girls” to “I got girls and I can absolutely take your girl too because I’m a boss”, while staying true to his genuine appreciation for bae’s personality in phrases like “Stuntin’ on these h**’s/Man, I swear you do it right/Angel from heaven/I swear to god I see the light” in Where You Been.
BigBone Tone five out of five stars for making rap chill again, and for spitting verses that officially deem DJ Clorbis the amateur rapper of past. Tone’s style and deliverance give him an authentic spin on quintessential content that acts as the existential theme song for young life in the 206. His most recent tracks, Freestyle Boom and SAH can now be found on SoundCloud.
Featured Photo: BigBone Tone, Antonio Diaz-Mitchell’s alias, poses outside Roosevelt. Photo by Conor Courtney
