News

B.O.B. Announces Debut UK Show

• 18th May 2010

Introducing B.o.B who is set to release his hugely anticipated debut album “B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray” on May 24 through Atlantic Records via T.I’s Grand Hustle label. He will be headlining his first ever UK show at London’s Kings College SU on Thursday 27th May to celebrate the release. The album is preceded by single “Nothin’ On You (Feat. Bruno Mars)” which is out May 17.

Born Bobby Ray Simmons, B.o.B is already a significant force in Southern hip-hop, having captured underground interest with a variety of mixtapes and his smokers anthem, “Cloud 9.” “Nothin’ On You” is shaping up to be a breakout hit for the Atlanta-based rapper/musician/producer in the US, earning both immediate acclaim and popular success. The track has ascended to the top 10 on Billboard’s “Rhythmic Airplay” chart – the fastest rising debut track since Drake’s 2009 smash, “Best I Ever Had” – while also reaching #16 on Billboard’s “Hot 100” with 257,097 units sold to date. What’s more, Billboard praised “Nothin’ On You” for its “feel-good singalong hook,” noting that the single “provides a solid launching pad for this promising talent.”

One of hip-hop’s most inventive and exciting young artists, B.o.B has quickly drawn a bounty of rapturous critical applause Stateside. In its 2010 “Faces To Watch” feature, Billboard celebrated the rapper’s “versatility,” declaring that he “recalls both OutKast’s Big Boi and crooner Raheem DeVaughn and may be the first rapper to play the guitar well.” XXL – which named B.o.B among its “10 Freshmen of 2009” – called him “ready for stardom,” Nylon hailed B.o.B as a leading figure of “a new generation of hip-hop upstarts” and the Wall Street Journal concurred, praising the MC for “testing the genre’s conventions.” Vibe recently hailed his leading role in the emerging Atlanta sound, noting that “a musical renaissance has begun to take shape, and locals like B.o.B are putting a new movement in motion”. Additional profiles have appeared in The Source, Spin, XXL, Fader, and Rolling Stone whilst here in the UK RWD magazine tipped B.o.B as an act to watch in 2010 heralding him as “one of the most exciting singers/rappers around”.

“B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray” sees the resourceful rapper producing the majority of the album by himself, while also playing multiple musical instruments, including piano, trumpet and French horn. In addition, tracks such as “5th Dimension” and “Friday Night Star” offer a funky and fascinating journey into a gifted new talent’s far-reaching imagination.

“I just want to show people that there are endless possibilities of what you can do,” B.o.B says. “You don’t just have to be a rapper; you can be anything you want to be and whatever you do, just love it and it will show.”

B.o.B scored a breakthrough hit in the US in 2008 with the smash single/video, “Haterz Everywhere,” which was an MTV “Jam of the Week”. A number of blockbuster mixtapes followed, including 2009’s celebrated “B.o.B VS. Bobby Ray” (available at B.o.B’s own link). He has also established a major presence online, having now logged over 21 million total plays at his official MySpace page, link. In addition, his official website, link includes tons of exclusive tracks, videos and user-generated features.

Having spent much of last year sharing stages with such like-minded artists as Asher Roth, Kid Cudi, and Shwayze, B.o.B is currently out on a full-scale US tour supporting Atlantic labelmate Lupe Fiasco. He will soon be heading to UK shores for his first ever UK appearance at:

Thursday 27th May London KCLSU