NEW MUSIC: LIL REESE FT. CHIEF KEEF - "TRAFFIC" - RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture

Lil Reese is a 19 year old Chicago Southside native that appeared on one of the biggest rap records of 2012. “I Don’t Like”, by Chief Keef featured Lil Reese, became a local hit in Chicago on radio stations WGCI and WVAZ this March. The song created a buzz within the area and caught the attention of rapper/hip-hop music producer Kanye West, who is also a native of the same town. West quickly reached out Chief Keef to remix the song, and added rappers Pusha T, Big Sean and Jadakiss to the mix. The song was then labeled, “I Don’t Like (G.O.O.D Music – Remix)”, and included Chief Keef alongside the other rappers, leaving Lil Reese out the mix. The remix gained popularity in the U.S. and rose as high as 73 on the Billboard Hot 100, 15 on Billboard Rap Songs chart and 20 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart. In addition, the song collected over 17.5 million views on YouTube. But what many people don’t know is that it was Lil Reese who chose the Chief Keef track, over another Young Chop produced track titled, “Everyday”, to be released as a single.

During the period of Chief Keef”s success, Lil Reese released a track titled, “Us.” The track garnered similar attention within the Chicago area. In July, his DJ Drama and Don Cannon hosted mix-tape titled Don’t Like came out. “Traffic” became a stand out track and was released as a single. The track caught the attention of No I.D., the vice president of A&R at Def Jam Records, who signed the Windy City’s Southside Englewood neighborhood projects native to a record deal with the label. Currently, the Glory Boyz Entertainment crew have three rappers signed to major record labels. Chief Keef is signed to Interscope Records and Lil Reese and Lil Durk are both signed to Def Jam. This shows that the three rappers are bringing Chicago inner city life, back to a mainstream audience. So, keep an ear open for Lil Reese and his 3Hunna/300 Squad crew, because they’re about to change the rap game with their hardcore style. Include these three along with, past and present Chicago natives, Kanye West, R. Kelly, Da Brat, Common, Lupe Fiasco, Twista, Shawnna, Yung Berg, Crucial Conflict, Do Or Die, Jeremih and producer No I.D. who have all made major impacts in the music industry, because they represent Chi-Town to the fullest. “Traffic” does just that by, representing the hard street life that Lil Reese and Chief Keef know and face on a daily base. With lyrics like, “He not bout’ that life man/Catch him in traffic/We ain’t really with that talking/Bitch, we love that action”, you’ll definitely know that dem boys don’t play on the Southside of Chicago. And if you thought that was it, Lil Reese has more in store, with a remix featuring his Def Jam labelmate Young Jeezy coming soon.