In an act of what some might call saving the best 'til last, Fat Mike, Sam King and Ceschi Ramos aka Codefendants have dropped the series finale of their music video pentalogy today for brand new track "Fast Ones". Both the song and the video feature legendary rapper, The DOC, who lends his first new verse in 19 years to the track. Listen to "Fast Ones" HERE and watch the video below. Catch up on the previous video episodes HERE.
Speaking on working with Codefendants on the new track and video, The DOC says
"My experience was nothing short of exhilarating, as I found myself surrounded by an ensemble of gifted individuals and luminaries from the underground hip-hop and punk rock scene. I am eagerly anticipating the release of our collective creation, and I can't wait for all of you to witness the magic we have conjured up."
Adding to this, Ceschi Ramos shares
"We were raised on hip hop & punk. To us, blending those sounds is not some cute fashion statement or gimmick that we can suddenly abandon for the next trend. I always think of that photo of Public Enemy wearing Minor Threat shirts in the 80s and realize how that image alone sums up a good chunk of my musical & cultural upbringing. Getting to record alongside the legendary DOC and watch as he crafted ferocious, wisdom-laced bars was an absolute honor. Heads in the know understand that this is a rarity, DOC doesn’t just rap on anyone’s shit, it had been many years since he unleashed the growl & we spent time together to eventually create a Codefendants call to arms theme in an organic fashion. When we were able to film the video with Indecline so much of our artist family came through - Myka 9 of The Freestyle Fellowship, 2Mex, Awol One, Factor Chandelier, Stacey Dee of Bad Cop Bad Cop, Jenn from the Bombpops, Zeta, Rick Thorne & many others…Punk Rock & Underground Hip Hop were properly represented - it was an unforgettable day."
The new video also features cameo appearances from Rick Thorne (Professional BMX Biker), Stacey Dee of Bad Cop Bad Cop, Jen Razavi of The Bombpops, Bettie Bondage (Pro Dominatrix), Zeta (also the backing band for Codefendants on their North American tour), 2MEX, MYKA9 and Awol One.
Codefendants will release their highly anticipated debut album, 'This Is Crime Wave', on March 24th via Fat Wreck Chords imprint, Bottles To The Ground. Pre-order bundles are available now HERE and fans can pre-save the album on streaming platforms HERE.
Codefendants will hit the road for their first ever US headline tour in April. The 'This Is Crime Wave Tour' will kick-off in San Francisco on April 14th and hit 10 further cities before culminating in Atlanta, GA on April 27th and will feature special guests, Zeta as support. Codefendants will also play several shows with NOFX on their Final Tour and will appear at Lost Festival in St Petersburg, FL on April 29th. The band also announced a handful of shows in the UK today. Tickets are on sale now fromcodefendantslegalfund.com Full routing below.
On the subject of the newly announced US tour dates, Sam King adds
"With everything going on in the world right now, I just hope we don’t go to jail"
CODEFENDANTS
LIVE DATES 2023
April 14 - San Francisco, CA - Bottom Of The Hill
April 16 - Los Angeles, CA - Knitting Factory
April 17 - Anaheim, CA - Chain Reaction
April 18 - Mesa, AZ - The Underground
April 19 - Flagstaff, AZ -Yucca North
April 20 - El Paso, TX - Rockhouse Bar & Grill
April 22 - Austin, TX - Carson Creek Ranch (NOFX Final Tour)
April 23 - Houston, TX - The Secret Group
April 24 - Dallas, TX - Sundown at Granada
April 25 - Baton Rouge, LA - Chelsea's Live
April 26 - Murfreesboro, TN - Hop Springs
April 27 - Atlanta, GA - The Masquerade
April 29 - St. Petersburg, FL - Lost In St Pete Festival
May 13 - San Diego, CA - Waterfront Park (NOFX Final Tour)
May 23 - London, UK - Old Blue Last
May 26 - Leeds, UK Temple Newsman (NOFX Final Tour)
June 3 - Rimini, Italy - Bay Arena - Slam Dunk Festival Italy
July 23 - Tacoma, WA - LeMay - America's Car Museum (NOFX Final Tour)
September 16 - San Francisco, CA - Cow Palace (NOFX Final Tour)
September 30 - St Petersburg, FL - Vinoy Park (NOFX Final Tour)
ABOUT CODEFENDANTS
Sam King from Get Dead’s graffiti crew were giving tattoos and making flash art to raise money to help rapper Ceschi Ramos when he was incarcerated. Months later, they met at the Gilman Street Project in Berkeley, California. They bonded, talking about their love of hip-hop and punk rock over a bottle of Jameson. They didn’t know it yet, but they had just started Codefendants.
They began recording songs two years later in Los Angeles with Fat Mike from NOFX as producer. Soon after Fatty joined the band, they decided to make an album that sounded like nothing else - a completely genre-fluid album - a cross between hip hop, new-wave, flamenco, and the Beatles. And thus a whole new genre - Crime Wave - was born. That album entitled This Is Crime Wave will be released via Fat Wreck imprint, Bottles To The Ground.
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