Tribe Mafia releases first LP "Teepee Gang"

In preparation for the now cancelled SXSW 2020 Festival, Tribe Mafia’s debut LP Teepee Gang features a wide array of sounds ranging from Hip-Hop, Rap, and even Dancehall. The group explores distinct melodies, sharp lyricism, and vibrant sounds to create a collective of songs that their fans can enjoy, especially during this trying time of the virus.

The LP features various artists such as Bankroll Barbie, Leekthough, Sam Sage, and RJ Maine. The group takes pride in supporting and giving opportunities for artists from Texas to be featured in their music.

Tribe Mafia are the best, and it’s not because they spit good lines with skill, in fact, it’s more accurate to say they spit catchy lines with complete, infectious abandon. From the opening second you can tell they’re determined to make a grand entrance with their debut album, Teepee Gang. For the Austin, Texas duo made up of Chinasa Broxton and Dashawn Daniels, their new project also contains lots of humor, and it doesn’t take itself too seriously at all. Tribe Mafia rap about grinding, getting money, women, and they really don’t mind what anyone thinks about their music. They’re are putting out a fun project, and they do it far better than most artists out there. With songs like “Follow Me” and “Issa Difference” there are just some extremely catchy hooks, hard-hitting and otherwise very well done production, and great guest contributions.

On Teepee Gang, you don’t look to Tribe Mafia for deep wisdom. Inside their productions they tackle all of the trap tropes. Their immense skill allows their voices to do much of the work, pressing into beats with repetitive phrases and rhyme schemes, single syllable rapping, and tottering slow flows. From the West Coast sounding “Take It Off” to the South oriented “Still the Same”, Teepee Gang serves as the soundtrack to every spring party you attend. From the jump, Teepee Gang gets stuck in your head and shows that Tribe Mafia know exactly what they are doing – hit-making 101. As much as you try to avoid this, it’s just not possible. Their sound is clearly trippy AF and its sinfulness draws you in.

Another great thing about Teepee Gang is that it’s consistent. You won’t really need to skip any tracks because they’re all fun, care-free, and extremely well produced. In fact, a lot of the beats are not really the kind of beats you’d see in an average trap album. It’s fairly simple, lyrically speaking, but it keeps you listening because it’s catchy and doesn’t try to disguise itself as something it’s not, which is part of what draws you to Tribe Mafia’s sound. However, there’s just as much soul as there is swagger especially with songs like “Life of a Savage” and “Ostracize”. Even though they are placed at the end, these songs definitely add flavor to the album. With that in mind, Teepee Gang is best enjoyed as a light digest. Tribe Mafia find the right balance between lofty conceptual ambitions and a seemingly endless well of hard-hititng bangers, which makes it hard to stop listening to the album on repeat.

During the COVID-19 "shelter in place," the group is preparing for their annual Tribe Mafia Listening Party that gives local artists in Austin the opportunity to perform and network during the event. The group is hoping to hold the event once the shelter in place hold is over.