Sydney hip hop outfit 206collab are MCs Flip+Skip and Eno, DJ/Producer JPlatnum and soulful female lyricist Tiff. Since 2002 the 206 crew has cultivated a stylish, jazzy and energetic style of hip hop and a strong, eccentric personality as a crew. Having experienced a 2006 full of milestones, the group's current evolution and creative productivity promise to bear great results in 2007 and beyond.
206collab's debut album, What You Waited Years For (WYWYF) burst onto the scene in October 2006, released on label hatonrack and distributed through
Creative Vibes. A glance at the 206collab scrapbook reveals the extent of excited press the debut release attracted in publications such as
3D World, the
Sydney Morning Herald,
Drum Media,
Beat Magazine,
InPress,
TNT magazine and a host of others. Two 206collab tracks were selected by
JJJ for a July session of their regular program, Hack, aired on ABC TV and ABC2, and three tracks have been added to the soundtrack of High 5 Extreme Sports TV series 6. WYWYF enjoyed a place in JB Hi-Fi's Top Ten chart for six weeks running. On radio, WYWYF enjoyed airtime on JJJ and extensive play on community stations throughout Sydney, NSW and inter-state. A glance at the album's credit list gives some clues as to the reasons for the hype...
WYWYF was mixed and mastered by veteran MC/producer
Weapon X, who has released amongst other things the acclaimed Nodfather compilation and the Sneakerpimpin Ain't Easy LP with Ken Hell in recent years. The album features an impressive array of Australian talent on production, including Melbourne artists Weapon X and
Aux One, Sydney's Fame,
Mr K-La and Standard Issue, and 206's own JPlatnum. Musically, WYWYF travels through a diversity of moods, from the funky, energetic vibes of Too Oh Six, A Flagrant Affair and You Don't Know, through the harder-hitting Deadly Concoction and Tough Justice, to the softer, reflective ambience of Below the Surface. The latter is the vibe that first saw the soulful melodies of Tiff integrate with the musical talent of 206collab.
After performing Below the Surface live with Tiff for the album launches, it was decided that the offer for Tiff to become a full-time member of the crew was inevitable and could wait no longer! As a fulltime 206collab member, Tiff complements the energetic and twisted humour of the original crew with a soulful melodic dimension to produce a deeper, varied, dynamic, and mature style of music that is sure to snatch the attention and imagination of Australian music observers everywhere. When will the new work be revealed? Cryptically, all we can say is keep eyes peeled in the first half of 2008 for Kulagina. Oh and of course, see upcoming 206collab shows to sample the new music delivered with the raw energy, professionalism and entertainment-value that they have become renowned for through their years of performance.
The live show has always been central to 206 crew's perspective on hip hop. After starting as regulars at venues in North Sydney in 2002, the 206 crew expanded out into the Australian scene, performing explosive live shows at Sydney venues such as Bar Broadway, The Globe, The Gaelic Club, @Newtown, UNSW Roundhouse, The Lansdowne Hotel, The Hopetoun and Excelcior, in Melbourne at Revolver, Hi-Fi Bar and DJ Peril's Bliss Lounge, and at Toast Nightclub in Canberra. 206collab have played alongside a plethora of famed Australian groups and artists including
Koolism,
The Herd,
Bliss n Eso,
2Up,
Fizard, Brethren,
Maya Jupiter and
DJ Flagrant, as well as playing support for infamous UK beatboxer
Killa Kela on his Australian tour.
With inter-state show dates already booked, a hatonrack tour in the works and a heavy musicwriting schedule, 206collab is looking forward to a heavy latter-half of 2007. The crew looks forward to bringing their new sound, along with the next level in live and recorded experience, to audiences everywhere.
