If you were to somehow grab hold of a time-traveling DeLorean and travel aaaaaaaaaaaall the way back to 2013 to ask a four-years-younger Cousin Stizz if he could see himself signing a contract with one of the big three record labels (I’m considering RCA’s progenitor in this case) less than a year after releasing his second mixtape, I’m guessing he’d probably tell you…”fuck the Lakers!” Or, on second thought, he’d probably at least say something like: “Noooooo way! I guess I’d better keep up the rapping, then and take every opportunity that comes! But still, Kobe is overrated!” Etc.
And while that reaction is pretty in-line with his being a passionate native of Boston’s Dorchester neighborhood, it also squares pretty well with the dude’s seemingly unwavering sense of humility — a trait he may well have picked up while navigating the dichotomy of growing up in the self-described “hood” while attending high school in the wealthy suburbs — coupled with the kind of widescreen-dreaming open-mindedness that has landed him where he’s at today.
So, where is he at today, anyway? Let’s see: the essentially brand new One Night Only mixtape — his first release under an RCA backdrop — just came out a few months back, and it represents Stizz’s first tangible foray into a grandiose music world. And the first verse on the track “Jealous” attests to a full embrace. “It’s your time,” he’s telling himself in his head. Then a label exec actually busts in the room and repeats that line with a slight addendum: “It’s your time…to go on tour!”
So…uh, logically, he’s just announced…a, um, North American headlining tour.
Sorry if that seems a bit on-the-nose…but if it helps, the tour is pretty stacked, and it begins in October in Philly and lasts all the way til’ turkey time — which, probably not-coincidentally, is just about the time when the NBA season really starts cooking.
10.11.17 - Philadelphia, PA - Coda
10.13.17 - Cleveland, OH - Grog
10.14.17 - Ann Arbor, MI - Bling Pig
10.15.17 - Toronto, ON - Mod Club
10.18.17 - Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon
10.19.17 - Chicago, IL - Reggie’s
10.22.17 - Denver, CO - Cervantes Other Side
10.23.17 - Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court Gallery
10.27.17 - Seattle, WA - Barboza
10.28.17 - Portland, OR - Hawthorne
10.30.17 - Oakland, CA - Brick + Mortar
10.31.17 - Los Angeles, CA - The Roxy
11.01.17 - Santa Ana, CA - The Observatory (Constellation Room)
11.02.17 - San Diego, CA - The House of Blues (Voodoo Room)
11.03.17 - Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom
11.04.17 - Albuquerque, NM - Launchpad
11.06.17 - Houston, TX - Warehouse Live-Studio
11.97.17 - Austin, TX - Come and Take It Live
11.08.17 - Dallas TX - Club Dada
11.11.17 - New Orleans, LA - Parish
11.12.17 - Atlanta, GA - Masquerade
11.13.17 - Washington, DC - U Street Music Hall
11.14.17 - Carrboro, NC - Cat’s Cradle
11.16.17 - New York, NY - SOBs
11.17.17 - Pawtucket, RI - The Met
11.24.17 - Boston, MA - The House of Blues
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