Pro Era | |
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![]() Members of Pro Era pictured in 2015 [lower-alpha 2] | |
Background information | |
Origin | Brooklyn, New York City, U.S. |
Genres | Hip hop |
Years active | 2011–Present |
Labels | |
Members |
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Past members |
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Website | www |
Pro Era (short for Progressive Era) is an American hip hop collective group from Brooklyn, New York. The group is a collective of rappers and record producers that includes East Coast rappers Joey Badass, CJ Fly, Kirk Knight, Nyck Caution, Dyemond Lewis, Aaron Rose, Dessy Hinds, Dirty Sanchez 47, and Rokamouth, along with producers Chuck Strangers and Powers Pleasant. The collective was formed in 2011 by Capital STEEZ and Powers Pleasant, with Joey Badass and CJ Fly among its founding members.
Capital STEEZ (then known as JaY STeeZ) had started recording music around 2009. Around this time, STEEZ and his friend Jakk Da Rhymer (then known as BlakkJakk (The Rhymer)) formed a rap duo known as The 3rd Kind. The duo released their only mixtape, The Yellow Tape, in 2010. Shortly after the tape's release, STEEZ & Jakk parted ways as a duo but continued to work together as solo artists.
In the spring of 2011, while still a student at Edward R. Murrow High School in Brooklyn, New York, Capital STEEZ had a performance at a cafe in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn, with friends including Powers Pleasant, Joey Badass and Dirty Sanchez also in attendance to show him support. [1] On their way home from the performance, he and Powers Pleasant came up with the idea of forming a hip hop collective, which they named "Progressive Era", or "Pro Era" for short. [2] In addition to the two co-founders, Joey Badass, Dirty Sanchez and CJ Fly were brought into the group as founding members. [3] [4]
The Pro Era collective signed with the Cinematic Music Group label in 2012, shortly after Jonny Shipes became the manager of Joey Badass. [5] On February 14, 2012, Pro Era released their debut mixtape entitled The Secc$ Tap.e. [6]
The release of the AmeriKKKan Korruption (Capital STEEZ) and 1999 (Joey Badass) mixtapes increased the group's popularity in the underground scene. 1999 was listed among "Best Mixtapes of 2012" by multiple publications. [7] [8] Capital STEEZ was on the list of "Rappers to Watch For in 2013" curated by website HipHopDX. [9]
Pro Era performed with The Smoker's Club's One Hazy Summer Tour, a 30-date tour that began July 13, 2012. [10] In December of that year, Pro Era released the PEEP: The aPROcalypse mixtape. [11] From October 27 to December 1, 2012, Joey Badass went on the first tour for any member of the collective, beginning in New York and ending in Virginia, with the tour also extending abroad to countries such as Switzerland, France, England and the Netherlands. [12]
On December 24, 2012, Capital STEEZ committed suicide, jumping from the rooftop of the Cinematic Music Group headquarters in Manhattan, New York City. Earlier that evening, he sent text messages to a few of his closest friends, telling them he loved them. At 11:59 PM on December 23, STEEZ posted a tweet saying, "The end." [13] He jumped to his death later that night. [2]
On March 21, 2013, Pro Era participated in the Beast Coastal concert tour with The Underachievers and Flatbush Zombies. [14] The Beast Coastal concert tour performed all over the United States. The first leg of the tour covered the West coast while the second leg covered the East and Midwest, before the tour ended on April 20. Pro Era began a tour of their own on August 29, 2013, at Fort Punta Christo Pula in Croatia and they performed at a variety of venues including New Zealand, Australia and the United States. The tour went on to December 14 and this was technically the first tour in which Pro Era as a group went on tour. [12] Later that year, Pro Era toured with the Under the Influence 2013 tour with Wiz Khalifa, ASAP Rocky, Trinidad James, Chevy Woods and Smoke DZA, among others. [15]
On October 5, 2013, CJ Fly released his debut mixtape, Thee Way Eye See It. [16] On December 25, 2013, the group announced that their third mixtape, The Secc$ Tap.e 2, would be released on February 14, 2014. [17] As promised, it would be released on that day, as a part of a free-music giveaway coined "Pro Era Week". [18] Their next project, The Shift, a free EP was released on May 27, 2014, by Scion AV. [19] [20]
Due to the coming release of his debut studio album, Joey Badass began a long world tour alongside Pro Era. The tour started on August 8, 2014, in Norway before they went on to tour the U.S. for weeks until reaching their Europe leg of the tour which began in England on November 18 making stops in countries like France, the Netherlands, Australia, Denmark, Belgium, Croatia, Switzerland, and Germany. [21] Joey Badass and Pro Era decided to cut the tour short while in Australia due to the death of member, and cousin of Joey Badass, Junior B. [22]
After Joey Badass' debut album was released, he stated in an interview that Kirk Knight, Nyck Caution, and CJ Fly will be releasing new music in 2015. He also announced an upcoming Pro Era album as well as a Capital STEEZ posthumous album. Pro Era producer and rapper Kirk Knight began his first tour with fellow Cinematic Music Group artist, Chicago rapper Mick Jenkins, without any other musical artists within Pro Era, on February 13, 2015, and will continue to February 27. They will tour the United States and make stops throughout the country. Joey Badass released his debut album, B4.DA.$$ on January 20, 2015. He went along to promote it on his "World Domination Tour". In June 2015, Powers Pleasant released his debut project, The Powers Pleasant Experience, while Kirk Knight also released his debut project, Late Knight Special , on October 30, 2015. [23]
On February 2, 2016, Swankmaster RAW announced that he had left Pro Era. He wrote, "Respectively, want to let to whom it may concern know, I'm no longer a part of the Era. Many blessings to all my brothers." On February 3, 2016, Joey Badass reported on Twitter that another member, Dyemond Lewis, had an amicable split with the group. He wrote, "Dyemond Lewis is no longer a part of PROERA... That's my brother to the death but we had to come to this conclusion unfortunately." [24] On February 29, 2016, Nyck Caution released his debut project, Disguise the Limit . On December 9, 2016, CJ Fly released his debut project, FlyTrap. On December 27, Nyck Caution announced the album Nyck @ Knight , a collaborative effort between himself and Kirk Knight, stating that they had already completed 4 songs. In June 2017, both Kirk Knight and Nyck Caution announced that the collaborative project was completed. It is scheduled to be released on July 21 of 2017. On the third annual STEEZ Day Festival, Joey Badass announced after Pro Era's performance that they are working on a group album as well as announcing that a posthumous album from Capital STEEZ, King Capital , was to be released on December 23, 2017, the 5th anniversary of his death. [25] [26] However, on December 11 (eleven days before King Capital was due for release), Joey Badass announced on his Instagram account that the album's release would be delayed until further notice due to "business legalities and sample clearances." [27]
In 2019, the supergroup Beast Coast, consisting of members from Pro Era, as well as fellow Brooklyn-based hip hop groups Flatbush Zombies and The Underachievers, released three singles ahead of their debut album, Escape from New York , released on May 24, 2019. The group also announced a North American summer tour that began on July 23 and scheduled to end on August 16. [28] [29] [30]
The design of one of Pro Era's logos is the number 47 with its digits joined. [31]
It has sparked controversy due to its similarity to the Nazi flag. Like the Nazi flag, the logo has a red field with a solid white circle and a black insignia. Instead of a swastika, the circular white field of the sticker contains the 47 symbol, which bears close resemblance to the swastika and to a wolfsangel, both of which are associated with Nazism and Neo-Nazism. Stickers of the logo and graffiti of the symbol appeared in numerous locations around Edward R. Murrow High School and the Brooklyn neighborhood of Midwood (where the school is located) in March 2014, being planted by members of Pro Era to honor the memory of the late Capital STEEZ.
According to local news station News 12 Brooklyn , the group has explained that the logo was designed the way it was to draw attention, and that the symbol resembles peace, love and balance, as with the swastika's significance in various religions. They say that it is supposed to be a spiritual symbol and not an offensive one. Capital STEEZ believed that the logo's resemblance of a swastika is a commentary on the appropriation of what was originally a peaceful & spiritual symbol with roots in Eastern religions. [2] STEEZ chose the number 47 due to the 7 chakra points, 4 being the point for the heart and 7 being the brain.
Pro Era Records | |
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Parent company | Sony Music Entertainment |
Founded | 2015 |
Founder | Pro Era |
Distributor(s) | Columbia Records |
Genre | Hip hop |
Country of origin | United States |
Location | Brooklyn, New York |
Official website | theproera |
Pro Era Records is an American independent record label founded by the group in 2015. [32]
Albums
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Aaron RoseEPs
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Capital STEEZ Mixtapes
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Chuck StrangersAlbums
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CJ Fly Mixtapes
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Dessy HindsEPs
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Dirty SanchezAlbums
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Hans SoloEPs
Joey Badass Mixtapes
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Kirk Knight Albums
Instrumental albums
Nyck CautionMixtapes
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Powers PleasantEPs
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Jo-Vaughn Virginie Scott, known by his stage name as Joey Badass, is an American rapper and actor. Born in Brooklyn, New York City, he formed the regional hip-hop group Pro Era in 2011, with whom he has released three mixtapes and formed the larger collective, Beast Coast the following year.
1999 is the debut mixtape by American rapper Joey Badass. It was released on June 12, 2012. It features production by Chuck Strangers, Lewis Parker, Lord Finesse, MF DOOM and J Dilla, among others. The mixtape also features guest appearances from members of Pro Era, a hip hop collective of which Joey Badass is a member. The mixtape is based heavily around musical samples. Music videos have been released for "Hardknock", "Survival Tactics", "FromdaTomb$" and "Waves".
B4.Da.$$ is the debut studio album by American rapper Joey Badass. It was released on January 20, 2015, his 20th birthday, by Cinematic Music Group and Relentless Records. The album was released in North America and United Kingdom, as well as being made available for digital download on iTunes.
Summer Knights is the second mixtape by American rapper Joey Bada$$. It was released on July 1, 2013, by Cinematic Music Group. The mixtape was planned to be released as an EP, to prelude the release of his debut album B4.DA.$$, but instead it was announced to be a full-length mixtape. The mixtape features production from Chuck Strangers, Kirk Knight, MF Doom, Statik Selektah, DJ Premier, Lee Bannon, Oddisee, Navie D, and Bruce Leekix. The mixtape features more original instrumentals than his first mixtape 1999 which was primarily samples.
"Unorthodox" is the debut single by American hip hop recording artist Joey Badass, taken from his second solo mixtape, Summer Knights. The song was produced by DJ Premier. "Unorthodox" was released as the mixtape's first single on January 14, 2013 on iTunes.
The discography of American rapper Joey Badass consists of three studio albums, 2 extended play (EP), three mixtapes, and 24 singles.
Donnovan Malik Blocker, known by his stage name Dyme-A-Duzin, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor from Brooklyn, New York. Dyme-A-Duzin is a former member of the band Phony Ppl. From 2008 to 2013, they performed with popular acts such as Erykah Badu, The Roots and Talib Kweli. His song "New Brooklyn" was listed on Spin's 50 Best Rap Songs of 2013 Dyme made his debut with Warner Bros. Records which caught the eyes of not only the industry but fans around the world. Among the many artists and producers Dyme has worked with Fabolous, Joey Bada$$ and Plain Pat.
The Underachievers are an American hip hop duo from Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York. Formed in 2011, the duo is composed of rappers AK the Savior and Issa Gold. American record producer Flying Lotus signed the duo to his Brainfeeder record label in 2012. Following that signing they independently released two mixtapes, Indigoism and Lords of Flatbush in 2013. Their debut studio album Cellar Door: Terminus Ut Exordium was released on August 12, 2014. The Underachievers released their second official album Evermore: The Art of Duality on September 25, 2015. Their third album, Renaissance was released on May 19, 2017. They released After the Rain on November 9, 2018, and Lords Of Flatbush 3 on June 21, 2019.
Indigoism is the debut mixtape by American hip hop duo The Underachievers, released on February 1, 2013 as a free digital download via Brainfeeder. The mixtape was produced by Mr Bristol, Rich Flyer, The Entreproducers, Bruce Leekixs, Dreamrite and Lou Chapo, among others. Upon its release, it was met with universal acclaim by music critics.
Courtney Everald Dewar Jr., better known by his stage name Capital Steez, was an American rapper from Brooklyn, New York. He was a founder of the Brooklyn-based rap collective Pro Era, along with childhood friend Joey Badass. Capital Steez was also a co-founder of the Beast Coast movement, which consists of three main groups based in Flatbush: Pro Era, Flatbush Zombies, and The Underachievers. Capital Steez committed suicide on December 23, 2012, jumping from the roof of the Cinematic Music Group headquarters aged 19. Both Pro Era and Beast Coast went on to gain international success in the years following his death.
Chaine St. Aubin Downer Jr., better known by his stage name CJ Fly, is an American rapper and producer from Brooklyn, New York City. He is a founding member and the oldest member of the hip-hop collective group Pro Era. Throughout 2012 and 2013, he was featured on many of the collective's projects and towards the end of 2013, he released his critically acclaimed mixtape Thee Way Eye See It.
Kirlan Labarrie, better known by his stage name Kirk Knight, is an American record producer, rapper and member of the hip hop collective Pro Era. His debut project, Late Knight Special, was released on October 30, 2015. On July 21, 2017, he released a collaborative project with fellow Pro Era member Nyck Caution, Nyck @ Knight, with its first single "Off the Wall" released on June 8, 2017. Kirk Knight is both a producer as well as a rapper. Kirk has produced top songs such as Flem by A$AP Ferg and Big Dusty by Joey Bada$$. His debut studio album, Late Night Special, peaked on the Billboard charts on November 21, 2015, at number 33. Lasting one week on the charts. Recently, Kirk Knight as well as Joey Bada$$ of the Pro Era collective rap group have made hints at a new solo album coming out in 2018 for Kirk Knight. Kirk Knight also went on tour in 2018 with rap collective Flatbush Zombies along with fellow Pro Era member Nyck Caution.
Cinematic Music Group is an American record label, management, publishing & touring company distributed by Geffen Records founded in 2007 by Jonny Shipes. Their roster as of 2020 consists of Joey Bada$$, Pro Era, T-Pain, Smoke DZA, Va$htie, Mick Jenkins, G Herbo, Caveman, Public Access TV, Flipp Dinero, and others.
Roland Collins, better known by the stage name Troy Ave, is an American rapper from the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City. His moniker derives from Troy Avenue, a street near his childhood home. In November 2013, his first studio album, New York City: The Album, was released. It debuted at number 47 on the US Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. He was named in XXL magazine's 2014 Freshmen Class.
Disguise the Limit is the debut mixtape by American rapper Nyck Caution. It was released on February 29, 2016, by Cinematic Music Group and Pro Era Records.
The following list is a discography of production by Kirk Knight, an American record producer and rapper who is a member of the hip hop collective Pro Era. It includes a list of songs produced, co-produced and remixed by year, artist, album and title.
All-Amerikkkan Badass is the second studio album by American rapper Joey Badass. It was released on April 7, 2017, through Pro Era Records and Cinematic Music Group. The album features guest appearances from Schoolboy Q, J. Cole, Kirk Knight, Meechy Darko, Styles P, and Chronixx. Production of the album was handled executively by Joey Badass himself and Jonny Shipes, along with 1-900 as an associate producer. Production contributions also came from Pro Era members Kirk Knight and Chuck Strangers, as well as industry producers such as DJ Khalil and Statik Selektah.
Beast Coast is an American hip hop collective and supergroup from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2012 by the members of Pro Era, Flatbush Zombies, and the Underachievers. The collective has been on multiple tours together, and their debut group album Escape from New York was released on May 24, 2019.
Escape from New York is the debut studio album by New York hip hop supergroup Beast Coast, released through Beast Coast Media and Columbia Records on May 24, 2019. The group consists of members from Pro Era, Flatbush Zombies and The Underachievers. It features the singles "Left Hand" and "Snow in the Stadium". The group embarked on the Escape from New York Tour to promote the album, which started in Seattle on July 23, 2019. The album is titled after the 1981 American science fiction action film Escape from New York
2000 is the third studio album by American rapper Joey Badass. It was released on July 22, 2022, through Pro Era Records and Cinematic Music Group with license to Columbia Records. The album features guest appearances from Diddy, Westside Gunn, Larry June, Chris Brown, Capella Grey, and JID. Production of the album was handled primarily by Statik Selektah and Chuck Strangers, with contributions from Erick the Architect, McClenney, Mike Will Made It, Kirk Knight, and Cardiak.
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