Amir Obé

Amir Obe, who claims ties to both Brooklyn and Detroit, first stepped into the spotlight in 2009 under the alias Phreshy Duzit. Born Amir Obeid, the MC developed an approach recalling the work of Big Sean and Drake, laying down his earliest track while still in his teens. Although Brooklyn was his birthplace, he later settled in Detroit with his Polish mother and Sudanese father, channeling energy into daytime athletics and nighttime creative sessions. High school marked the moment he composed his initial number, “Step Your Swag Up.” After finishing school he returned to New York to focus solely on music, continuing to record as Phreshy Duzit. Atlantic Records signed him, resulting in the 2011 release of his label debut, the Brave New World EP. Finding the arrangement unfulfilling, he instead issued the independent mixtape The New Religion the next year through his own Neighborhood PHCK$ imprint in partnership with After Platinum Records. Once he severed ties with Atlantic in 2014, Obe quickly reconnected with After Platinum, adopting the stage name Amir Obe. With longtime producer NYLZ at the boards, he soon dropped the Detrooklyn mixtape. The following year brought his second EP, Happening in the Grey Area, alongside production credits for “Star67,” a cut on Detrooklyn admirer Drake’s If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late. By March 2016 Obe had unveiled a third EP, Won’t Find Love in the Hills, and inked a deal with Def Jam before the year closed. His song “No Peace” surfaced on the label’s promotional playlist Direct Deposit, setting the stage for the 2017 arrival of his Def Jam debut NOTCW. In 2018 a trilogy of EPs appeared under the Can’t Be A ____Here banner, covering volumes 1, 2, and 3.