The Cool Kids
Encyclopedia
The Cool Kids is an American
hip hop
group. Consisting of rappers Antoine "Sir Michael Rocks" Reed (originally from Matteson, Illinois
) and Evan "Chuck Inglish" Ingersoll (originally from Mount Clemens, Michigan
), the group is based in Chicago, Illinois and Detroit, Michigan
. The Cool Kids' music has been released primarily to the independent Chocolate Industries via their own label C.A.K.E. Recordings, but as of 2010 are no longer with Chocolate Industries due to label issues. Reed and Ingersoll have made appearances in numerous forms of media, as well as in collaborations with other artists such as Chip tha Ripper, Asher Roth
, Yelawolf
, Kenna
, Ivan Ives
, The Bloody Beetroots
, Drake
, Travis Barker
, Lil Wayne
, Ludacris
, Maroon 5
and Curren$y.
that Ingersoll had produced. The two met to discuss terms of the beat's sale, and eventually ended up recording for two hours. They were inspired by golden age hip hop
and artists like Eric B. & Rakim
. Ingersoll began promoting the new duo's material, and it was eventually booked by Josh Young of Flosstradamus
for a DJ performance. At this performance (in a venue called Town Hall Pub), the duo met the DJ Diplo who offered to release a mixtape
of their unreleased tracks titled Totally Flossed Out on his label Mad Decent, though it was eventually released on C.A.K.E. Recordings. They also received an offer from the DJ A-Trak
to sign to his Fool's Gold label, which they did, but only for one single. Of their time with Fool's Gold, the Cool Kids felt they weren’t getting enough attention: “When your boss is on tour with Kanye West, it’s easy to have timelines missed,” said Chuck in an interview.
All of their material had been released solely on the band's MySpace page—their recording contract came after performances at the CMJ
Music Festival and Pitchfork Media
Music Festival, on July 15, 2007. Eventually, The Cool Kids signed to Chocolate Industries, another independent label. The group has revealed on its MySpace page that The Cool Kids' debut album, When Fish Ride Bicycles, will be released in 2008, though as of 2010 it has not been released. Ingersoll has been the producer for tracks released thus far, but both work in rapping and production. The duo uses music software program Reason from Propellerhead Software
to produce their music.
They have been on tour, opening for M.I.A.
and they will be also joining the bill of the 2008 Rock the Bells
hip hop festival on select dates. The group toured across Australia in February 2008 and also appeared at the Laneway Festival. The group also appeared at SUNY Purchase's
Culture Shock event in April 2009. One of the duo's singles, "Black Mags", was featured in a late 2007 Rhapsody
TV commercial, along with Sara Bareilles
. In the same year, the group collaborated with Lil Wayne
and DJ Benzi through the Internet on a track entitled "Gettin' It", which will reportedly appear on the DJ's future album Get Right.
The Cool Kids have been featured in the video games NBA Live 08
and MLB 2K8 with the song "88", in Need for Speed Nitro, with The Bloody Beetroots
in the song Awesome, and in the episode "The First Cut Is the Deepest" from HBO's TV series Entourage
with the song "Mikey Rocks". They were listed in Rolling Stone
's Ten Artists to Watch in 2008. According to Rolling Stone, "since "Black Mags" debuted, the Cool Kids have gone from an underground sensation in their native Chicago to the hottest ticket at New York's CMJ festival."
The duo has been endorsed by Mountain Dew for their single, "Delivery Man", to which commercials and the music video have aired on MTV2. The group's song "Bassment Party" was featured in the September 21, 2008 episode of the HBO hit comedy Entourage
. They also recorded an original track, "2K Pennies," for the soundtrack of NBA 2K9However, The Cool Kids have said in an interview that their success has been gradual.
They will also be headlining the "NBA 2K Bounce Tour" along with Q-Tip. The Cool Kids also performed at the 2009 Voodoo Experience in New Orleans, Louisiana. Producer Don Cannon
said in an interview with XXL, that he will be working with The Cool Kids for their new album. The group's second official mixtape, Gone Fishing
was released on May 5, 2009. They are currently working on their debut album, When Fish Ride Bicycles, which was released July 12, 2011.
Their song "A Little Bit Cooler" was used in a "Most Valuable Puppets" commercial from Nike
with LeBron James
and Kobe Bryant
entitled "Mrs. Lewis". A new mixtape called Tacklebox
came out on May 31, 2010. Chuck Inglish worked with Chip tha Ripper and produced his debut album Gift Raps in its entirety. The group claims they haven't put out an album because of having issues with their former label Chocolate Industries for the past three years, but according to the group these issues are now settled and they are working on putting out When Fish Ride Bicycles.
Chuck Inglish and Mikey Rocks recently teamed up with Gary, Indiana's
Freddie Gibbs
and Cleveland's Chip tha Ripper to form the "super group
" P.O.C. (Pulled Over by the Cops). Sir Michael Rocks has released a solo project titled The Rocks Report. When Fish Ride Bicycles was finally released on July 12, 2011. Featuring production by The Neptunes
and also featuring Bun B
, Chip Tha Ripper, Ghostface Killa, among other artists. The group plans a follow up album titled "Shark Week".
On October 23, 2011 Mikey Rocks signed with Jet Life Recordings, a Warner Bros. imprint owned by fellow rap artist Curren$y. Chuck Inglish is also set to work on a mixtape with Curren$y.
EPs
Mixtapes
Singles
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
group. Consisting of rappers Antoine "Sir Michael Rocks" Reed (originally from Matteson, Illinois
Matteson, Illinois
Matteson is a village in Cook and Will Counties, Illinois, United States. The population was 12,928 at the 2000 census and an estimated 17,080 as of July 2007.-Geography:Matteson is located at ....
) and Evan "Chuck Inglish" Ingersoll (originally from Mount Clemens, Michigan
Mount Clemens, Michigan
Mount Clemens is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 17,312. It is the county seat of Macomb County.-Early history:...
), the group is based in Chicago, Illinois and Detroit, Michigan
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
. The Cool Kids' music has been released primarily to the independent Chocolate Industries via their own label C.A.K.E. Recordings, but as of 2010 are no longer with Chocolate Industries due to label issues. Reed and Ingersoll have made appearances in numerous forms of media, as well as in collaborations with other artists such as Chip tha Ripper, Asher Roth
Asher Roth
Asher Paul Roth is an American rapper.-Early life:Asher Roth was born and raised in Morrisville, Pennsylvania, a small town about 20 miles northeast of Philadelphia. His mother, Elizabeth , is a yoga instructor, and his father, David Roth, is the executive director of a design firm...
, Yelawolf
Yelawolf
Michael Wayne Atha , better known by his stage name YelaWolf, is an American rapper. He is currently signed to Shady Records, Ghet-O-Vision Entertainment and Interscope Records...
, Kenna
Kenna
Kenna Zemedkun, known professionally as simply Kenna, is an Ethiopian-born American musician. His track "Say Goodbye To Love" was nominated for Best Urban/Alternative Performance in the 2009 Grammy Awards.-Personal life:...
, Ivan Ives
Ivan Ives
Ivan Ives is an American hip hop artist born in Leningrad - living in Los Angeles, California. Although from Russia, all of his work has been composed while growing up and living in the United States. He has worked with the likes of The Cool Kids, Black Milk, Percee P , Oh No , Tre Hardson ,...
, The Bloody Beetroots
The Bloody Beetroots
The Bloody Beetroots is an Italian electronica and dance music project. The Bloody Beetroots were formed in late 2006 by producer Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo . In 2008, their EP Cornelius was in the Top 100 International iTunes downloads. This album was a complete art project composed of music, videos,...
, Drake
Drake (entertainer)
Aubrey Drake Graham , who records under the mononym Drake, is a Canadian recording artist and actor. He originally became known for playing Jimmy Brooks on the television series Degrassi: The Next Generation....
, Travis Barker
Travis Barker
Travis Landon Barker is an American musician, producer and entrepreneur, most noted as the drummer for the American pop punk band Blink-182, as well as the alternative rock band +44, the rap rock band The Transplants, and the alternative rock band Box Car Racer. He was a frequent collaborator with...
, Lil Wayne
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. , better known by his stage name Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. At the age of nine, Lil Wayne joined Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label, and half of the duo, The B.G.'z, with B.G.. In 1997, Lil Wayne joined the group Hot Boys, which also included...
, Ludacris
Ludacris
Christopher Brian Bridges , better known by his stage name Ludacris, is an American rapper and actor. Along with his manager, Chaka Zulu, Ludacris is the co-founder of Disturbing tha Peace, an imprint distributed by Def Jam Recordings...
, Maroon 5
Maroon 5
Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. While they were in high school, lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Adam Levine, keyboardist Jesse Carmichael, bass guitarist Mickey Madden, and drummer Ryan Dusick formed a garage band called Kara's Flowers and released one album...
and Curren$y.
History
The members of The Cool Kids met in 2005 when Reed found a beat on MySpaceMySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
that Ingersoll had produced. The two met to discuss terms of the beat's sale, and eventually ended up recording for two hours. They were inspired by golden age hip hop
Golden age hip hop
Hip hop's "golden age" is a name given to a period in mainstream hip hop—usually cited as being a period varying in time frames during the 1980s and 1990s said to be characterized by its diversity, quality, innovation and influence. There were strong themes of Afrocentricity and political...
and artists like Eric B. & Rakim
Eric B. & Rakim
Eric B. & Rakim were a hip-hop duo composed of DJ Eric Barrier and MC Rakim .Hailing from Long Island, New York, the pair are generally considered by hip hop enthusiasts to be one of the most influential and innovative groups in the genre...
. Ingersoll began promoting the new duo's material, and it was eventually booked by Josh Young of Flosstradamus
Flosstradamus
Flosstradamus is the stage name of Chicago-based DJs J2K and Autobot .They have performed at events such as the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Pitchfork Music Festival, Rothbury Music Festival, Lollapalooza, and South by Southwest...
for a DJ performance. At this performance (in a venue called Town Hall Pub), the duo met the DJ Diplo who offered to release a mixtape
Mixtape
A Mix Tape or Mixed Tape is a compilation of songs recorded in a specific order, traditionally onto an audio Compact Cassette.A Mix Tape, which usually reflects the musical tastes of its compiler, can range from a casually selected list of favorite songs, to a conceptual mix of songs linked by a...
of their unreleased tracks titled Totally Flossed Out on his label Mad Decent, though it was eventually released on C.A.K.E. Recordings. They also received an offer from the DJ A-Trak
A-Trak
A-Trak is a Montreal-born DJ, turntablist, and owner of the record label Fool's Gold.- Career :...
to sign to his Fool's Gold label, which they did, but only for one single. Of their time with Fool's Gold, the Cool Kids felt they weren’t getting enough attention: “When your boss is on tour with Kanye West, it’s easy to have timelines missed,” said Chuck in an interview.
All of their material had been released solely on the band's MySpace page—their recording contract came after performances at the CMJ
College Music Journal
College Music Journal, commonly known as CMJ, is a music events/publishing company which hosts an annual festival in New York City, the CMJ Music Marathon, as well as a weekly magazine of and for the music industry and college radio stations in the United States and Canada. It publishes top 30...
Music Festival and Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
Music Festival, on July 15, 2007. Eventually, The Cool Kids signed to Chocolate Industries, another independent label. The group has revealed on its MySpace page that The Cool Kids' debut album, When Fish Ride Bicycles, will be released in 2008, though as of 2010 it has not been released. Ingersoll has been the producer for tracks released thus far, but both work in rapping and production. The duo uses music software program Reason from Propellerhead Software
Propellerhead Software
Propellerhead Software is a music software company, based in Stockholm, Sweden, and founded in 1994. They are most notable for the studio emulation Reason.- History :...
to produce their music.
They have been on tour, opening for M.I.A.
M.I.A. (artist)
Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam , better known by her stage name M.I.A. , is an English singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer, painter and director of Sri Lankan Tamil descent. Her compositions combine elements of hip hop, electronica, dance, alternative and world music. M.I.A...
and they will be also joining the bill of the 2008 Rock the Bells
Rock the Bells
Rock the Bells is an annual hip hop festival that originally took place in Southern California only, but has since toured throughout the world. The concert features a lineup of high-profile alternative hip hop artists, often headlined by a more mainstream artist...
hip hop festival on select dates. The group toured across Australia in February 2008 and also appeared at the Laneway Festival. The group also appeared at SUNY Purchase's
State University of New York at Purchase
Purchase College, State University of New York, is a public four-year college located in Purchase, New York, United States. It is one of 13 comprehensive colleges in the State University of New York system...
Culture Shock event in April 2009. One of the duo's singles, "Black Mags", was featured in a late 2007 Rhapsody
Rhapsody (online music service)
Rhapsody is an online music store subscription service, launched in December 2001, and available in the United States only. On April 6, 2010, Rhapsody officially declared its independence from RealNetworks. Downloaded files come with restrictions on their use, enforced by Helix, Rhapsody's version...
TV commercial, along with Sara Bareilles
Sara Bareilles
Sara Beth Bareilles is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. She achieved mainstream success in 2007 with the hit single "Love Song", which brought her into the number one spot on the Billboard Pop 100 chart. She has sold over 1 million records in the United States alone and has been...
. In the same year, the group collaborated with Lil Wayne
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. , better known by his stage name Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. At the age of nine, Lil Wayne joined Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label, and half of the duo, The B.G.'z, with B.G.. In 1997, Lil Wayne joined the group Hot Boys, which also included...
and DJ Benzi through the Internet on a track entitled "Gettin' It", which will reportedly appear on the DJ's future album Get Right.
The Cool Kids have been featured in the video games NBA Live 08
NBA Live 08
NBA Live 08 is the 2007 installment of the NBA Live series by EA Sports. It was released for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, PlayStation 2, PC , and PlayStation Portable. This is the first NBA video game to include all three next-generation consoles...
and MLB 2K8 with the song "88", in Need for Speed Nitro, with The Bloody Beetroots
The Bloody Beetroots
The Bloody Beetroots is an Italian electronica and dance music project. The Bloody Beetroots were formed in late 2006 by producer Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo . In 2008, their EP Cornelius was in the Top 100 International iTunes downloads. This album was a complete art project composed of music, videos,...
in the song Awesome, and in the episode "The First Cut Is the Deepest" from HBO
Entourage (TV series)
Entourage is an American comedy-drama television series that premiered on HBO on July 18, 2004 and concluded on September 11, 2011, after eight seasons...
with the song "Mikey Rocks". They were listed in Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
The duo has been endorsed by Mountain Dew for their single, "Delivery Man", to which commercials and the music video have aired on MTV2. The group's song "Bassment Party" was featured in the September 21, 2008 episode of the HBO hit comedy Entourage
Entourage (TV series)
Entourage is an American comedy-drama television series that premiered on HBO on July 18, 2004 and concluded on September 11, 2011, after eight seasons...
. They also recorded an original track, "2K Pennies," for the soundtrack of NBA 2K9However, The Cool Kids have said in an interview that their success has been gradual.
They will also be headlining the "NBA 2K Bounce Tour" along with Q-Tip. The Cool Kids also performed at the 2009 Voodoo Experience in New Orleans, Louisiana. Producer Don Cannon
Don Cannon
Donald Cannon is an American record producer and DJ. At the age of five, Donald Cannon began his musical career with his first a set of turntables, a mixer and a karaoke machine...
said in an interview with XXL, that he will be working with The Cool Kids for their new album. The group's second official mixtape, Gone Fishing
Gone Fishing (album)
Gone Fishing is the 2009 hip hop mixtape by Midwest rap duo The Cool Kids, and their second official mixtape after 2007's That's Stupid!. The album was executive produced by Jonathan "J.P." Keller and Chuck Inglish, while the album was mixed by Don Cannon...
was released on May 5, 2009. They are currently working on their debut album, When Fish Ride Bicycles, which was released July 12, 2011.
Their song "A Little Bit Cooler" was used in a "Most Valuable Puppets" commercial from Nike
Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
with LeBron James
LeBron James
LeBron Raymone James is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association . Nicknamed "King James", he was a three-time "Mr. Basketball" of Ohio in high school, and was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA superstar while a...
and Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bean Bryant is an American professional basketball player who plays shooting guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . Bryant enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Lower Merion High School, where he was recognized as the top high school...
entitled "Mrs. Lewis". A new mixtape called Tacklebox
Tacklebox (The Cool Kids Mixtape)
Tacklebox is the 2010 hip hop mixtape by Midwest rap duo The Cool Kids, and their third official mixtape after 2009's Gone Fishing.- Track listing :#Fishing Lessons#Flying Kytes#Freak City#So Neat #Going Camping#Volume II...
came out on May 31, 2010. Chuck Inglish worked with Chip tha Ripper and produced his debut album Gift Raps in its entirety. The group claims they haven't put out an album because of having issues with their former label Chocolate Industries for the past three years, but according to the group these issues are now settled and they are working on putting out When Fish Ride Bicycles.
Chuck Inglish and Mikey Rocks recently teamed up with Gary, Indiana's
Gary, Indiana
Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The city is in the southeastern portion of the Chicago metropolitan area and is 25 miles from downtown Chicago. The population is 80,294 at the 2010 census, making it the seventh-largest city in the state. It borders Lake Michigan and is known...
Freddie Gibbs
Freddie Gibbs
Fredrick Tipton , better known by his stage name Freddie Gibbs, is an emerging hip hop performer. He was signed by Interscope Records before being let go from his deal without a record being released...
and Cleveland's Chip tha Ripper to form the "super group
Supergroup (music)
In the late 1960s, the term supergroup was coined to describe "a rock music group whose performers are already famous from having performed individually or in other groups"....
" P.O.C. (Pulled Over by the Cops). Sir Michael Rocks has released a solo project titled The Rocks Report. When Fish Ride Bicycles was finally released on July 12, 2011. Featuring production by The Neptunes
The Neptunes
The Neptunes are a record production duo consisting of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, who are credited with contributing the sound for many successful hip hop, R&B and pop artists in the late-1990s and 2000s...
and also featuring Bun B
Bun B
Bernard Freeman better known by his stage name Bun B, is an American rapper and was one half of the southern hip hop duo UGK . He is also a guest lecturer at Rice University located in Houston, Texas...
, Chip Tha Ripper, Ghostface Killa, among other artists. The group plans a follow up album titled "Shark Week".
On October 23, 2011 Mikey Rocks signed with Jet Life Recordings, a Warner Bros. imprint owned by fellow rap artist Curren$y. Chuck Inglish is also set to work on a mixtape with Curren$y.
Discography
Albums- When Fish Ride Bicycles (2011), Green Label Sound
EPs
- The Bake SaleThe Bake SaleCD Bonus Tracks- Charts :...
(2008), C.A.K.E., Chocolate Ind. and XL RecordingsXL RecordingsXL Recordings is a British independent record label owned by Richard Russell. It originated as a 1989 offshoot of Beggars Banquet Records.Though only releasing an average of six albums a year, XL Recordings has worked with The Prodigy, Radiohead, The White Stripes, Dizzee Rascal, M.I.A., Vampire... - Merry Christmas (with Don CannonDon CannonDonald Cannon is an American record producer and DJ. At the age of five, Donald Cannon began his musical career with his first a set of turntables, a mixer and a karaoke machine...
) (2009)
Mixtapes
- That's Stupid! (2008)
- Gone FishingGone Fishing (album)Gone Fishing is the 2009 hip hop mixtape by Midwest rap duo The Cool Kids, and their second official mixtape after 2007's That's Stupid!. The album was executive produced by Jonathan "J.P." Keller and Chuck Inglish, while the album was mixed by Don Cannon...
(2009) - TackleboxTacklebox (The Cool Kids Mixtape)Tacklebox is the 2010 hip hop mixtape by Midwest rap duo The Cool Kids, and their third official mixtape after 2009's Gone Fishing.- Track listing :#Fishing Lessons#Flying Kytes#Freak City#So Neat #Going Camping#Volume II...
(2010) - The Rocks Report (2011) (Sir Michael Rocks)
- Premier Politics (2011) (Sir Michael Rocks)
Singles
- "Black Mags" (2007), C.A.K.E., Chocolate Ind.
- "Delivery Man" (2008), Green Label Sound
- "Bundle Up" (2011), Green Label Sound
- "Swimsuits" (featuring Mayer HawthorneMayer HawthorneMayer Hawthorne is an American singer, producer, songwriter, arranger, audio engineer, DJ, rapper and multi-instrumentalist based in Los Angeles, California, USA. The stage name "Mayer Hawthorne" is a combination of Cohen's real middle name and the name of the street he grew up on in Michigan...
) (2011), Green Label Sound
Videography
- Black Mags (2007)
- Delivery Man (2008)
- Pennies (2008)
- Knocked Down (2009)
- Tires (2009)
- Free Throws (2009)
- Do It Big (2010)
- Gold Links (2010)
- Big Talk (2010)
- Bundle Up (2011)
- Summer Jam (2011)