Shabazz Palaces is an American

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

group from

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

led by Ishmael Butler a.k.a. Palaceer Lazaro (formerly Butterfly of jazz rap group Digable Planets). Much of Butler's work as Shabazz Palaces has been made in collaboration with multi-instrumentalist Tendai "Baba" Maraire, son of

mbira Mbira ( ; ) are a family of musical instruments, traditional to the Shona people of Zimbabwe. They consist of a wooden board (often fitted with a resonator) with attached staggered metal Tine (structural), tines, played by holding the instrument ...

master Dumisani Maraire. Active since 2009, Shabazz Palaces has released five studio albums on

Sub Pop Sub Pop is an independent record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman. Sub Pop achieved fame in the early 1990s for signing Seattle bands such as Nirvana (band), Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Mudhoney, central players in the gru ...

after self-releasing two EPs.

Biography

Two anonymously self-released EPs titled ''Shabazz Palaces'' and ''Of Light'' in 2009 led to Shabazz Palaces becoming the first hip-hop act to be signed to

. Their debut full-length album, '' Black Up'', was released in 2011 to widespread critical acclaim. In 2019, ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' ranked ''Black Up'' at number 179 on their list of "The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s"; cultural critic Hanif Abdurraqib wrote: "From great mystery exploded an album of impossible vision." Their sophomore album, '' Lese Majesty'', was released on July 29, 2014 after being premiered at Seattle's Pacific Science Center Laser Dome. In 2017, Shabazz Palaces released its third and fourth full-length records concurrently. ''Quazarz: Born on a Gangster Star'' and ''Quazarz vs. The Jealous Machines'' were accompanied by a short film directed by Nep Sidhu, and a limited-run comic book illustrated by Joshua Ray Stephens. In 2018, Shabazz Palaces joined up with frequent collaborator Erik Blood to release a full-length LP titled ''1 Time Mirage'' under the moniker ''Knife Knights'', originally a moniker used by Butler for his collaborative production work with Blood on previous Shabazz Palaces records, though now formalised as a touring band signed to Sub Pop. Shabazz Palaces' fifth full-length record, ''The Don of Diamond Dreams'', was released in 2020. In 2023 the EP ''Illusions Ago'' was released on Glass Cane Records in collaboration with 'Lavarr The Starr', presumed to be another moniker of Butler's.

Collaborations

Shabazz Palaces' collaborations include guest features with or from Flying Lotus, Thundercat, Theesatisfaction, Stas THEE Boss, Erik Blood, clipping., Battles, The Helio Sequence, Porter Ray, Sunny Levine and Carlos Overall. One notable collaboration is the supergroup WOKE, formed with Flying Lotus and Thundercat, which released one single, "The Lavishments of Light Looking", featuring George Clinton. Chimurenga Renaissance is a project led by Maraire, in collaboration with guitarist Hussein Kalonji and with contributions from Butler. The project released a mixtape, ''Pungwe'', in 2012, and published it as an album on March 5, 2013. They released their full-length debut album ''riZe vadZimu riZe'' on March 25, 2014. Two EPs followed: ''Kudada Nekuva Munhu Mutema'' on February 3, 2015, and ''Girlz With Gunz'' on February 5, 2016. Shabazz Palaces form part of the Black Constellation, a Seattle-based collective including visual artists, fashion designers, and musicians. An April 2020 article on ''The Don of Diamond Dreams'' confirmed that Tendai Maraire was no longer part of Shabazz Palaces.

Style and influences

Butler notes that the work of Shabazz Palaces differs from his previous work stylistically. He cites his primary influences as "abstract", pulling from podcasts and mixtapes. Butler attributes the use of African percussion and jazz overtones to his family's musical preferences.

Discography

;Studio albums * '' Black Up'' (2011) * '' Lese Majesty'' (2014) * '' Quazarz: Born on a Gangster Star'' (2017) * '' Quazarz vs. the Jealous Machines'' (2017) * '' The Don of Diamond Dreams'' (2020) * ''Illusions Ago'' (with Lavarr the Starr) (2023) * '' Robed in Rareness'' (2023) * '' Exotic Birds of Prey'' (2024)

References

External links

*
Sub Pop Records: Shabazz Palaces
{{Authority control West Coast hip-hop groups American hip-hop duos Sub Pop artists Musical duos from Washington (state) Alternative hip-hop groups Five percenters American experimental musical groups Musical groups from Seattle Musical groups established in 2009 Rappers from Seattle Third Man Records artists 2009 establishments in Washington (state)