Rap Sheet: Dirt Platoon, Wordsmith, and Future Fest

Long-running Baltimore rap duo Dirt Platoon released its latest album, “Bare Face Robbery,” this week on the French label Effiscienz. Dirt Platoon will perform at the Windup Space on April 25 to celebrate both the album and group member Snook Da Crook’s birthday. DJ Harvey Dent will be on the wheels of steel, and opening acts include Guy Grams, Bankai Fam, Fel Sweetenberg, and ILL Conscious.
Veteran Baltimore rapper Wordsmith has crowd-funded his next album on the site IndieGoGo.com. Having successfully reached his original goal, he is still accepting donations until April 24 to further fund future recordings, music videos, and tours with his backing band, The Big Band Theory. Wordsmith’s latest EP, “Apt. 507,” was released earlier this month. During late April and early May, Wordsmith and his band will be traveling to countries including Kuwait, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates to support and entertain our troops with Armed Forces Entertainment. For more information on how to donate and what rewards are available for donating, go to: indiegogo.com/projects/my-purpose-my-dream
This weekend, $craper World Entertainment will take over North Avenue for Future Fest, with dozens of offbeat and experimental hip-hop acts and musicians from other genres at The Windup Space on March 27 and Hour Haus on March 28. Memphis’ Cities Aviv will headline. Also performing is Sierra Leone’s Versace Levi, special surprise guests, and Baltimore acts including Rye Rye, Black Zheep DZ, Butch Dawson, and Hi$to.
On March 28, the website MakeshiftDeluxe.com and Squared Circle present its monthly hip-hop showcase, Last Saturdays, at Church St. Pub in Frederick, Maryland. Rapper Gone is this month’s headliner, with additional performers including The Baker Boys, Raff Alpha, and Scoopay. As usual, Raidawreck is the host, DJ Blaze Daily and DJ Carl Ice are spinning records, and the cover is $5.
Kendrick Lamar, whose highly anticipated album “To Pimp A Butterfly” is out now, has been announced as the headliner of this year’s Sweetlife Festival. The two-day concert, which will also include fast-rising Chicago rapper Vic Mensa, will be held at Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland on May 30 and 31.
There are a number of national hip-hop headliners coming to Baltimore over the next couple of months. Indie rap icon Sage Francis will perform at the Metro Gallery on April 5 with openers Cubbiebear and Seez Mics. Also on April 5, New Orleans weed-rap cult hero Curren$y performs at Baltimore Soundstage with opener Damond Blue. Talib Kweli and Immortal Technique’s co-headlining tour comes to Baltimore Soundstage on April 11. Cerebral young California rappers Earl Sweatshirt and Vince Staples come to Rams Head Live on April 22 with opener Remy Banks. Bay Area rapper IamSu! is at Baltimore Soundstage on April 25 touring in support of his latest mixtape, “Eyes On Me.”