Black Sumo

Black Sumo is the instrumental-hip hop alias of KRTS aka Kurtis Hairston; an artist raised in Pittsburgh, USA, traversing to Brooklyn, NY, and currently residing in Berlin, Germany. In the early period of the pandemic, during a walk & talk with a "Covid-meter" of distance between each other, KRTS strolled the empty streets of Berlin with a friend. The details of the discussion are a blur, but the statement "yo, that is as rare as a black sumo wrestler" is recalled. They laughed & continued their walk. KRTS began reflecting on those words. "Black Sumo… That could be an artist name… But, what kind of music?…". His friend agreed & quickly confidently replied "definitely hip hop beats". So was born the moniker & the concept. Sonically it began as a homage to the instrumental beat tapes he'd make in his dark & musty basement in Pennsylvania at the turn of the century. Raw & gritty, they combined jazzy lo-fi boom bap, reminiscent of early 90's East Coast & Bay Area sounds, with added flares of dramatic layered melodies, and a hint of Shoegaze-esque walls of reverb.