You Probably Oughta Know Probcause

Chicago – On a reasonably mild winter night, rapper Probcause took the stage smiling ear to ear. Perhaps it was his warm demeanor keeping the cold at bay because his happiness and enthusiasm could be felt throughout the room. He told the packed house the last six months have been the best of his life; he teamed up with drummer and DJ Ben Cofresi, started working on a new EP (soon to be released through Bonafyde), played Best Fest in Costa Rica, and has continued to work with a number of influential Chicago hip-hop artists. Prob also made it known that he was extremely excited to be able to perform for his friends and family, in his hometown, for a sold out show at Schubas, right before heading off to tour with Cherub for their Blow’d Tour. Last year Probcause released his mixtape The Recipe Volume 2, which included “LSD,” a track with Chance the Rapper, who was listed as one of our “8 New Bands to watch in 2014.” Since its release, Prob has been flying high.

Colin Grimm – aka Prob – is one of many local rappers who have begun to gain national attention. Grimm has been working hard to make a name for himself, and he is starting to see the fruits of his labor. His raps range from fun and playful, to more serious and social conscious, mixing dubstep, glitch hop, funk, and electronic music with his poetry. Based on his live performance, the emcee will undoubtedly continue to experience success well into the future. In “The Recipe” Probcause critiques the music industry and gives credence to the challenges artists face, especially when you’re “a little white boy from the North Side” trying to make it in the hip-hop scene. Despite all this, Probcause testifies: “When it comes down to it, I really love music. I truly love rapping and performing, so I do it.” Which rings true. Seeing him execute his rhymes on stage, he is buoyant, passionate, and clearly comfortable with an audience: a natural performer.

Prob had everybody in the venue singing along, dancing, and jumping up and down all night, to old songs and new. During “Subzero,” when he rapped the words “it’s been a long cold winter, with no sunshine for a sinner, and my mind frozen over but somehow I ain’t bitter,” the room seemed to nod in agreement. After this brutal winter, surely everyone in the room could relate. Grimm shouted, “We’re gonna make it summer in this bitch!” The space certainly heated up as people began to jump up and down, going crazy. He demanded that everyone scream with him: “Chi-Town!” His fans followed through, prompting Prob to scream with furor, “This is THE best fucking city in the WORLD, I swear to God!”

Halfway through his set, Probcause called The Palmer Squares to the stage. After they busted out their track “No Foam in the Cup,” the three broke into “Muffhugger,” with much applause. They stirred up the audience further, crying out, “When I say ‘Palmer,’ you say ‘Square’” and then of course, “When I say ‘Prob’ you say ‘Cause.’” Everyone ate it up, hollering and laughing.

After the duo left the stage, Prob asked how people had heard of “Blackout.” Whistles and applause filled the room. He told everyone to sing along if they knew the words, but if they didn’t, he joked, “You better download my album and memorize all my complex lyrics! Naaah, I’m just playin.” That said, most people were able to rap along word for word with him.

Later in the night, Prob noticed that his friend Yuri Lane – aka The Human Beatbox – was in the audience. He called him up to the stage to bust some beats with Cofresi, do a little battle, and play the harmonica for an amazing impromptu session, which transitioned perfectly to his new song: “Lil Help.” Prob called out, “With a Little Help from My Friends,” and fans responded, “I get high!” He then played “Chicago Girls,” a song he hadn’t played in six years, which he referred to as a “throw back joint for one of his homegirls.” The ladies went wild with these words: “She can kick it the snow or kick it at the beach… Ain’t nothin’ like Chicago girls. What your city got, huh?”

He attempted to end his set with “LSD” (Prob informed his fans that unfortunately Chance couldn’t join him for the night, as he was in LA recording his album) and “Gotta Know,” but before he could even leave the stage, people began chanting, “Encore. Encore, Encore!” Prob decided to give them one more. He walked back to the mic, laughed, and said, “Okay, okay. Shit, keeping me up late!”

You can catch Probcause at SXSW and on tour throughout the U.S. until May.

(All photos by Sarah Hess: smhimaging.com)

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Sarah Hess

At the age of six, Sarah Hess discovered True Blue by Madonna. This resulted in her spending hours in front of the bathroom mirror with a hairbrush microphone, belting out "La Isla Bonita" off key. Her love for music only intensified over the years thanks to her parents; her mother exposed Sarah to The Jackson Five and had her hustling to the Bee Gees, while her father would play her albums like 'Pet Sounds' and 'Some Girls' from start to finish, during which he'd lecture on and on about the history of rock & roll. Sarah would eventually stumble upon rap and hip-hop, then punk and alternative, and fall madly in love with Jeff Buckley and film photography.

After attending The School of the Art Institute in Chicago, Sarah went on to study education at Dominican University, earning a degree in history. When not teaching, writing, or taking in a show, she is most likely to be found with a camera to her eye or hanging out in a darkroom.

You can follow Sarah Hess on twitter at @Sarahhasanh and view her music photography on her website: smhimaging.com.