Seven Days: Vermont's Independent Voice

Get Down, Pharoahe

Pharoahe Monch has been flirting with mainstream success practically since he began making music in the mid-’90s. Though he may never be as widely known as Diddy or Jay-Z, hip-hop aficionados regard the Queens native as among the genre’s finest artistic minds. A uniquely clever lyricist blessed with a smooth chameleonic flow, the MC refuses to be bound by the conventions of commercial hip-hop, practically reinventing his approach at every turn. His upcoming album W.A.R. (Let My People Go) is one of the most hotly anticipated releases of 2009. But while you’re waiting for that to drop, you can catch him at the Higher Ground Ballroom this Saturday with Mickey Factz, K-Salaam, Neighborhood and DJ Russell.