"GOWHERE HIP HOP comes from the question of where hip hop is going."
Gowhere Hip Hop (GWHH), the #1 Chicago Hip Hop Blog, brings visitors the latest in mainstream and underground hip hop and R&B with a Chicago hip hop focus. We are dedicated to providing a positive outlet for unveiling underground talent to a mass audience, so we try to remain as an open source of exposure for unheard talent, so they can put their work out & be heard. In addition to the music, GWHH provides visitors with perspective into other forms of art and entertainment with consistent spotlights on art work, design, photography, sports, and anything Chicago. We are also a platform for aspiring music industry professionals to enroll in college-level courses as GWHH is taking a leadership role in an increasingly digital music industry to educate the next generation of music industry professionals. Our strategy is to attract a mainstream audience by providing their latest content while selectively focusing on talented, up and coming underground artists who gain more exposure from a broader, previously unfamiliar demographic. Thank you for your continued support! The site's unique features include:
- Exclusive Content: We cover all of the major Hip Hop/R&B events here in Chicago, so we have tons of exclusive content on all the happenings here. We also conduct many video and print interviews with notable figures in the industry along with providing powerful editorials on topics today. Gowhere Hip Hop is one of a select few of websites that provides exclusive music, news, and videos. Each exclusive track or video is labeled as a *GWHH EXCLUSIVE* and the favorite tracks of the daily new music posts by Sgt. Tibs are labeled with a *Tibs Fav.™. The rating system allows visitors looking for a quick recommendation to easily separate the good tracks from the average and download them accordingly.
- Exclusive Interviews: Gowhere Hip Hop provides visitors with an exclusive, direct insight into the mind of an artist with extensive interviews with some of hip hop and R&B's most recognizable names.
- Reviews & Editorials: Gowhere Hip Hop offers in-depth, articulate reviews and editorials of the latest albums, concerts, and controversies in the world of hip hop and R&B. Topics extend beyond the local Chicago hip hop scene into sports, art, design, and politics. Each blogger's colorful commentary is another recurring element of every single post, which helps provide visitors with an added perspective about the day's content.
- Contests: We regularly execute contests such as the one described below with reputable sponsors via innovative marketing and reader participation. Gowhere Hip Hop was the host of the wildly successful "Return Of The MC" contest, offering visitors the opportunity to submit their rhymes over a selected beat. The winner received a prize package from the sponsor, SanDisk, that included a mobile memory card, 2 tickets to the Rock The Bells Tour, exposure on GWHH, and respect amongst the online hip hop community. The contest attracted 10 hopeful MCs in the one week it was available. The winner, S-Preme, has since earned regular features on GWHH.
- Divison 1 - Limited G: Gowhere Hip Hop has an internal clothing line called, Limited G. It is Chicago's premier limited edition urban apparel and helps bring the Gowhere Hip Hop brand to life! Original designs from Maks G. are hand-printed and produced in limited quantities, meaning no one tee is like the other. Limited G has already been featured in the premier Chicago clothing boutique, St. Alfred, and will be building across the city and online internationally in 2010!
- Division 2 - Chicago Hip Hop Connects: Gowhere Hip Hop's newest division is Chicago Hip Hop Connects - an organization developed by Chicago Hip Hop Exposure and The Loop Music Group. Their mission is to provide a resource list for everyone in the industry to utilize, while providing networking opportunities to get everyone connected. Their vision is to bring exposure to Chicago, with hopes that it will become a destination for industry professionals to launch their career.
- GWHH Radio Show: Gowhere Hip Hop has formed a partnership with Vocalo.org 89.5 FM in Chicago to host a weekly radio show. Maks G. & Sgt. Tibs have brought in guests such as Rhymefest, GemStones, and up and coming Chicago talent into the Navy Pier studios for extensive live on-air interviews. The GWHH Radio Show can be heard live on Vocalo.org or on 89.5 FM in the Chicagoland area with hosts Maks G. & Sgt. Tibs every Friday from 8pm-8:30pm.
- Art Work: Gowhere Hip Hop blogger, Maks G., an art and design student at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, posts unique and original art work produced by himself and his peers. The art work is displayed not only in its own feature posts on the website, but also through the eye-catching headers that rotate bi-monthly.
- Visitor Interaction: Readers can create a picture profile with links to their media outlets like Facebook and Twitter. This is great for interacting with us and other readers on daily posts. We also have a convenient green "Re-Tweet" button on top of every post, so you can tweet our post to your followers, and media outlets! This advanced form of networking on the actual website also allows visitors to develop new social and working relationships. Other forms of visitor interaction include comments, polls, requests, Twitter, MySpace, and Facebook.
- Old School Sundays: Gowhere Hip Hop not only spotlights the latest in hip hop and R&B, but also the greatest. Each Sunday, one of the bloggers shares an "old school" track or video to further open readers' minds to good music that they may have missed. Sometimes inspired by the week's events in music, sports, or their personal lives, Old School Sundays provides another sense of personal interaction with the bloggers' personality and taste in music.
- Artist Sponsorship: Gowhere Hip Hop is the official sponsor of many upcoming artists and mixtapes. They include LA & Mr. Music, S-Preme, G.o.D. Jewels, FeSo, and much more on the way! The website's success has created a great opportunity for exposure for talented up and comers to try and crack the music industry. In exchange for exclusive content and added promotion, Gowhere Hip Hop proudly promotes fresh talent as a major tool in building an artist's buzz in an increasingly digital industry.
Meet The Team:
Sgt. Tibs graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2009 with a Bachelor of Design in Architecture degree with an Environmental Design minor. Tibs is the co-founder of Gowhere Hip Hop, LLC and managing partner of Limited G, Inc - the sister clothing line for Gowhere Hip Hop. Tibs is also the main content editor of gowherehiphop.com writing daily commentary and reviews of new music, videos, and news. Furthermore, Sgt. Tibs has interviewed some of today's biggest names in the music industry and beyond such as Ludacris, Trey Songz, the late Guru, and even Bo Jackson!
Maks G.
Maks G. graduated from the School of Art Institute in Chicago with a Bachelor of Fine Art degree. Maks is the co-founder of Gowhere Hip Hop, LLC and the sole founder of Limited G, Inc. Maks is also an innovator and strategist of the GWHH brand and many behind the scenes developments. Maks and Tibs can also be heard every Friday on the radio at Vocalo 89.5FM or vocalo.org.
Lara Phillips
Lara graduated from Ohio University in 2004 with a B.F.A. in Graphic Design. Since then she has expanded her career into the music industry focusing on web design, search engine optimization, online marketing, and social media. Some of her clients/projects include: Chicago Hip Hop Exposure, Summer Jam MPLS (Jeremih, Hurricane Chris, and the GS Boyz), Vanessa Sims, JVS Records, City Wide Youth, The Remix Entertainment, and Killa Beatz Entertainment. Read more about Lara.
Seth Kammueller
Seth graduated from Western Illinois University in 2004 with a B.A. in Instructional Technology with a minor in business. Upon completing his MBA in marketing he has expanded his career into a prosperous photography business. Some of his clients/projects include: Chicago Hip Hop Exposure, Julie Dexter, Talib Kweli Napoleon Suarez, Lee England Jr., HustleWard Inc., and Mathien. Read more about Seth.
Tony Balbin
Tony graduated from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2008 with a B.A. in Economics. Throughout college, Tony juggled both hip hop production and online entrepreneurial pursuits. Upon graduation, he founded Next Level Lifestyles LLC, one of the fast growing online publishing companies of 2009. As a producer, he also co-founded The Loop Music Group, a hip hop production company based in Chicago.
Jordan James
J.J. graduated from the University of Nevada Las Vegas in 2008 with a Bachelor of Science Degree. Straying away from his intended career path, he has always been dedicated to the Performing Arts, with Music being his main influence. Since then, his capabilities with songwriting have gotten him to meet/work alongside such notables as Just Blaze, The Stereotypes, Cory Bold, Da Internz, Too Short, Jupiter Rising, Bruno Mars, Aundrea Fimbres of Danity Kane and most recently Ryan Leslie. Read more about J.J.
Matt "Naagy" Banaag
Naagy graduated from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 2008 with a B.A. in Sports Management. Then made a completely unrelated move to Las Vegas to become one of the most popular nightclub hosts in the City of Sin. Las Vegas was where Matt established his persona as "Naagy" and turned his 40 contacts into a database of over 600 personal contacts in one year. He saw Las Vegas as the best opportunity to personally introduce himself and offer services to clientele of all kinds. This opened up doors to meeting clothing designers, nightclub hosts, music artists, TV producers, and every celebrity imaginable. Too Short, LMFAO, 9Grand Clothing, HippoEsthetics, Kevin Garnett, and every single D-List VH1 reality TV show character you can think of were among some of the people he partied with and hosted.
Lindsey Jones
Lindsey Jones, graduated from the University of Illinois-Chicago with a B.S in Movement Science. She began her classical training at a very young age, it wasn't until college that she was introduced to, and fell in love with hip hop. As a hip hop dancer, she was a former captain for Hip Hop Connxion Elite. Lindsey had the opportunity to perform all around the country and at Hip Hop International's USA Championships with them. She currently dances for Design here in Chicago, and was given the opportunity to be a featured dancer in Oprah's 24th season kick-off party dancing amongst the Black Eyed Peas. She is the former Dance Team Director for the Rockford Rampage (MISL), formerly of the Chicago Storm Professional Indoor Soccer (MISL & XSL), Rock River Raptors (CIFL) and McHenry County Pirates (MidStates). Her other credits include: WNBA, NBA, NBC, CNN, ESPN, Fox, Dance Chicago and the CLT 20/Twenty Cricket Championships in India with Varsity. She has also had the opportunity to open for such artists as the Roots and Chris Brown.
Jen DeLeon
Jen DeLeon is graduating at Columbia College in Chicago, Illinois, with a B.A. in Journalism in 2011. Jen maintains a popular personal blog, JenDeLeon.com, is currently working with NBC Chicago, involved with the organization Rhymix Productions, and helps manage an artist named Tim Koda. She one day aspires to have her own television show and be a sports/entertainment reporter.
Heather Michaels
Heather Michaels, graduated from DePaul University in 2010 with a Bachelor degree of Public Relations and Advertising. She worked at "Venture Marketing Group" in London and was head of marketing for DePaul's Ray Meyer Fitness Center.
