Denmark Vessey

Born in Detroit, the hip-hop artist Denmark Vessey took his name from the man who led an 1820s slave uprising in Charleston, South Carolina. He joined forces with Quelle Chris to create Crown Nation, pairing candid, unvarnished rhymes with expansive beats rooted in golden-age traditions. After the pair relocated to Chicago in 2008, they maintained close connections to the Detroit scene through partnerships with House Shoes, Danny Brown, and Slum Village. Vessey launched his first solo mixtapes in 2012, then joined Scud One to issue the 2013 album Cult Classic via Dirty Science. The 2015 instrumental project The Gift, Vol. 9 preceded his 2016 collaboration with Gensu Dean on Whole Food, released through Mello Music Group.