Saba
Affiliated Projects: La Collection
“Sound to me is music. I’m one of those music nerds who thinks that there is something beautiful in all music, and I feel like there is music in all sound. Sound is really vibration, and to me good vibration is the most important thing in the universe”.
At a Saba show, when vibrations boom and sharp-witted verses start to permeate the crowd, you better have your hands up and mind in full focus. Tahj Chandler, better known as Saba, the 20-year- old rapper and producer from Chicago’s West Side, joins the city’s new wave of bubbling talent with an aggressive delivery and unmistakable production.
Born to a family of musical talent, Saba grew up to the sounds of soul, R&B, and jazz thanks to his father, Chandlar. He began to play piano at the age of seven, and soon after he started to experiment with his sound on beat making software. However, it wasn’t until the young Chandler first heard the legendary Bone Thugs-n-Harmony and other burgeoning Midwest talents that he found his true musical niche and emcee calling, “Hands down my biggest influence was Bone Thugs-n- Harmony. They’re the ones who actually made me like rap and want to do it," he says. At age 16, Saba joined the open mikes at YouthMedia Center and Young Chicago Authors, which he credits with giving him the confidence and charisma to perform onstage. With all these tools in his arsenal Saba has developed a career sound with appeal that spans from the staunchest old-school hip hop heads to a new generation of rap fans.