Words by Axel Metz
Inspired by the golden age of hip-hop and armed with the tools of modern music, Caleborate is the California rapper you think you’ve heard before.
28-year-old Caleb Parker is a very good rapper. Sure, that’s easier to write than coming up with a witty metaphor to describe the talent of an emerging California musician with an ear for potent lyricism, but it’s true. Parker – better known by his stage name, Caleborate – can spit bars with the best of them, and it’s for this that he deserves recognition among the biggest names on the hip-hop scene today.
Hailing from the sunny streets of South Sacramento, Parker began pursuing his music career professionally while attending university in San Francisco and living in Berkeley. It was here he produced several mixtapes, ultimately landing near-mainstream popularity with the release of his second album, 1993, in 2016.
Parker – hereafter Caleborate, as he’d wish it – strikes a decidedly old school sound which taps into the hip-hop generation of the ‘80s and ‘90s. Think The Pharcyde, A Tribe Called Quest and Mos Def, albeit with the trappings of modern beat-making. Kota the Friend, with whom he shares a track on his latest album, Light Hit My Skin, is probably Caleborate’s most comparable 21st-century contemporary. That is to say the young rapper places as much emphasis on smart lyricism as he does catchy melodies, which is a winning combination in any genre.
Still, taking cues from the golden age of hip-hop doesn’t necessarily mean Caleborate is stuck in the past. Quite the opposite, in fact. Speaking of his latest work, he told KQED: “I made 1993 to speak for and to people in their twenties everywhere. People need that confirmation that someone else is in these shoes, too.”
Not beholden to any large commercial label, Caleborate releases his music independently under the imprint TBKTR – “That Black Kid That Raps” – which offers him the freedom to pursue the sound he wishes. Naturally, independent management has meant the young artist’s name hasn’t yet broken into the conversation around the likes of modern masters Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole and Childish Gambino, but with a five-album repertoire behind him and a rising monthly listeners figure, it won’t be long before Caleborate finds his way onto your playlist.
Seriously, we defy you to listen to “Pull Up” and not succumb to the groove.
Interested to discover more emerging artists? Take a look at our Discover Weekly archives.