Cities Aviv

Gavin Mays, an underground producer and rapper from Memphis, crafts atmospheric instrumentals through his Cities Aviv project. Shaped by unconventional rap acts such as Three 6 Mafia, 8Ball and MJG, and Black Moon, he issued the 2011 mixtape Digital Lows at age 22. Pitchfork and Spin both praised the project enthusiastically, naming it among the strongest underground rap efforts of that year. In 2012 he put out the Black Pleasure album via the Mishka streetwear label’s imprint, after which he aligned with Young One. The following year Young One issued the “URL IRL” single alongside the album Come to Life. Cities Aviv worked with Mykki Blanco and Antwon in 2014; after moving to Brooklyn he independently dropped the 2015 digital single “Neutralizer”/“Graced and Blessed.”